My Fanfic.... still untitled. chapters one and most of 2^^

[andonly]

Chapter one: Family comes first


It had been a long day. Panther sat down on her bed, to get the little sleep she could before she carried on her duties tomorrow.
Panther worked as a member of the Homeguard, in the Bulldog Battalion. After the last attack, Madrigal was a wreck. Morale was at an all time
low, and riots were breaking out on a daily basis. They usually lasted long into the night, and after the heavy losses that Madrigals once
formidable military had suffered, the Homeguard had to work around the clock.
"Never mind..." she sighed to herself.
As she took off her armour, and lay her swords to rest for the night, she looked into the mirror. The scar that emblazoned her chest would
would always serve as a constant reminder of the friends she had lost over the past year.

Morning came, and today had all the promise of any other day. She got herself dressed into her civilian clothes, and left to run some errands
before work.
"Morning Charlie." she said as she passed him on her way out of the Military Housing Complex. Charlie also worked for the homeguard, and he was
posted as a guard to the crew quarters. A muffled voice replied.
"Morning Panther." Charlie was always wearing a hockey mask. It hid the disfiguring scar he has across his face. Due to weapon shortages,
Charlie had little choice but to use a chainsaw as his weapon, from his old job as a lumberjack. When a chainsaw is your only weapon, accidents are bound to happen. Charlie had used his chainsaw in combat many, many times.

As Panther made her way to Losha's shop, she noticed that things were strangley quiet today. The usual hustle and bustle of central Flaris
was now just a quiet murmur, with hardly a soul to be seen. Even the wind seemed oddly still today, and the familiar squeaking
of Flaris' many windmills was absent.
"How strange..." Panther quietly mumbled to herself.
"What is?" Exclaimed a boistrous childs voice. Panther had been in such deep thought, she hadnt realised she was at Losha's shop already.
It wasn't really Losha's shop, it was May's shop, Losha's mother. May was Panther's sister, but since she lost her husband, she was seldom seen,
and not the best parent she could be. Losha had'nt really mourned the loss of her father, she had been oo busy running the shop for her mother.
"Oh, sorry Losha! Can i get the usual please?"
"Sure thing Aunty P!" she said, as she skipped off into the house behind the stall. Losha and Panther were very close since her father died.
Things like this were commomplace now though. Many people had lost siblings, husbands and wives, even children. All cruelly snatched away
In a war that began with a surprise attack by a foe that, at the time, was unknown.

Losha peered around the door, looking outside to her Aunt.
"You didnt answer my question!" she said, curiously. She reiterated:
"What's strange?"
"Well, where is everyone? And your mother?" Panther said, concerned.
"You dont know?" Losha replied, suprisedly.
"They've captured one! One of those filthy winged beasts has washed up on the shore! Mum went with the others to go and see it."
Panthers face froze.
"Come, pack your things, you're staying at my house. Its not safe here anymore." Losha could tell from Panthers tone, that this was no
tome to ask questions. She obediently ran inside, packed some clothes and her favourite teddy. As she ran outside, she made sure not to forget Panthers
usual order of roll breads, milk, and star candies. As she opened the door, she noticed Panther was on the phone. She stopped, quietly moved behind
he bushes at the end of the garden, and listened intently.
"Yes, I just heard Sir." There was a pause. Losha knew that Panther was talking to her superior, Master Trip, and that they were talking about the
Winged Beast.
"Affermative. On my way now. Panther out." As she hung up, Losha slowly slinked into the open, and Panther was none the wiser to her presence
during the call.

"Come quickly, we dont have much time. Do you have all your things?" Panther said softly.
"Your shopping too...Is everything okay?" Losha asked worriedly. She was a bright girl, but she couldnt understand why they were in danger.
"You're a good girl losha, but we have to move fast, and right now, i cant really answer any questions." Panther scooped Losha up into her arms,
and began to run hastily towards the Military Housing Complex. As they approached the main gates, Panther noticed Charlie was not as his post.
"this is bad..." Panther thought to herself. "If even Charlie has been called to this...." She put the key into the door of her quarters, and it flung wide open.
She put Losha down.
"You have everything you need here. Bed, Television, food, everything you need."
"I dont understand..." Losha said, confused. As Panther got extra sheets ready for Losha, she said to her;
"It's okay. Im going to get your mother very soon, and she can come and look after you. It's just very important that you stay here."
Panther took the sheets, and walked towards the bed. To Losha's surprise, she started frantically shifting it to the other side of the room.
"Losha, come here." She ordered. Her Aunt was quite out of breath. Panther pointed to a keypad, embedded in the floorboards where the bed had just been.
"This is very important Losha, so listen carefully." Losha nodded.
"The code is 4453, and then press enter." Panther was demonstrating as she told her. "Make sure that when you push enter, you take a few steps back."
They both moved backwards. There was a loud bang under the floor, followed by the hiss of released air pressure. A hidden door - similar to
a trap door - opened slowly, revealing a short flight of concrete stairs.
They stepped inside and several flourescent lights flicked to life. They revealed a long corridor, with steel walls. intersecting the walls every few feet,
on both left and right, were other concrete stairwells.
"Every house in the complex has a door like mine, all leading to the emergency escape route." Panther informed Losha. They started to walk quickly down the bright corridor, and Losha was struggling to keep up. They came to the end of the corridor, where two steel doors impeded them.
"Behind these doors," Panther explained, " Is a very big elevator. When you press this button," Panther pointed, but didnt push, "The doors will open.
You must quickly get inside, because once they close, they dont open again."
Losha started to look quite afraid at this point, as she realised there was no room for error.
"The elevator will move downwards quite fast, so try not to be frightened. It will take a few minutes to reach the bottom. When the doors open again,
you will be greeted by a man with a Knuckle on his fist, and a Sheild on his arm. You dont need to be afraid of him though, he is a friend of mine. His name
is Spytfyre, and he is a good friend of mine. He will look after you from then."

Panther took a deep breath, and simply asked;
"Do you understand?" Losha just nodded. She was scared, but she knew that if she just does as she is told, things would be okay.
They started to walk fast again, back towards the house. Losha remained quiet, trying hard to remember everything she had just been told.They came back thrugh the trap door, and Panther closed it up again.
"4453. Remeber it Losha, but dont write it down." Panther said firmly.
"O..Ok....." Losha replied, apprehensivley. "Your leaving now, Arent you Aunty P...?" Losha said, sadly.
Panther was already putting her flame red armour on. She tied her long, crimson hair into the back of her chestplate.She paused for a moment, looking
towards the ground.
"I dont want to... but i have to." She replied, softly. "I cant say when I will be back either... but there is nothing more I can do." She paused again.
"My unit is being deployed to the shore, where your mother is. I will find her, and send her back as quickly as i can." They stared at each other in silence.
"Promise me though Losha. If there is any trouble, you will get to the elevator as fast as you can, with or without your mother. Promise me!" She said in a tone
that was soft, yet firm.
"4453 Aunty P...4453." said Losha.
"Good girl Losha." She said, as she strapped her swords to her waist. She put on her heavy, bladed gauntlets, and picked up her red face mask, and walked towards the front door.

Losha remained still, a single tear trickling down her cheek. Panther knelt beside her, and kissed her forehead.
"Losha... " She said sweetly. Losha looked upwards slightly, to better see her Aunts face, while trying desperatley not to cry.
"I love you." Losha threw her arms around her, and the tears began to stream down her rosy cheeked face. Yet she didnt make a sound, not a whimper.
Panther picked her up, and embraced her lovingly, as if she were her own daughter.
She put Losha down gently, and opened the door. As the mid morning sunlight flooded into the windowless room, Losha could see nothing but
Panthers silhouette in the doorway. Panther stopped, and gazed out onto Flaris, and the few people that remained.
"You will be safe Losha... I will make sure of it." She put on her face mask, leaving only her big, ocean blue eyes visible. She slowly stepped outside, closing the door behind her. She couldnt bear to look behind her. Hearing Losha sob as she walked away was enough. She wiped away a solitary tear, and began to run to her
designated location, the north Flaris memorial lodelight.

[andonly]

Chapter two: Comrades are a close second

The silence in Flaris was broken by a familiar voice, as Panther ran.
"Bulldog Battallion, Fall in!" It was Master Trip, leader of the Bulldog Battallion. They were froming up outside the guild comabt centre.Panther quickly shuffled into formation next to Skye, a ranger. She was late enough as it is. She stood to attention, and nodded quickly to Skye. Master Trip glared at them both, but Panther defiantly
glared back at her. Master Trip always gave Panther the benefit of the doubt. They had been comrades in the Bulldog Batallion since they both signed up almost a year before. they were two of the few surviving, original members of the battallion. Skye was another original member, as well as 2 more in the 50-strong squad.
The other two were Dawun, a female Knight, and there was AndOnly, who, like Panther, is a Blade.
They were all very close knit, each of them united by a past full of loss and sorrow.

"Now that we are all here.." Trip bellowed, "...We can get straight to business. The Bulldog Battalion has been selected to deploy at the beaches of south
Flarine! As you may or may not know, a Shadwaraan has washed ashore in the last few hours!" There was a murmur in the battalions ranks. Never before had one of
the winged beasts been left alive. This was strange though; There had been no attacks for weeks, and that was strange in itself! For a year, the Shadwaraan's had
been relentlessly attacking every few days. The fact that they had'nt in such a long time had caused dissent in military circles. Everybody had been ordered to prepare for
a full scale assualt on Madrigal.
"Unfortunately..." Trip continued, "...The general public became aware of its presence before we did, and have susequently swarmed the beach. Our main focus is not
to retreive the soon to be prisoner of war, but to instead work police duty on the shore." The whole battallion groaned. Police duty was boring - regardless of the
circumstances.
"Any questions?" He barked to the squad.
"Yes Sir!" Yelled AndOnly. "Sir, which battalion has been given the extraction orders, Sir?!" he loudly enquired.
"I have been given very little information outside of that which we as a battalion need to know. All I know is that another squad will rendezvous with us, just as soon as we
report that the area is calm, and orderly." Trip replied. " we will be moving out in a few minutes. Remember, time is of the essence. After everything those.. those monsters
have put our people through.... there is a substantial risk of the public killing the beast. Central Command has already stated that the beast is invaluable to the military
effort, and we cannot afford to lose this opportunity."

Trip was a fine leader. He earned his prmotion to Battallion Master with a valiant combat history. He was a one of a kind Ringmaster. With the ability to
moralise his squadmates so effectivley that they actually fight better, and his own excellent combat abilities, he was truly unique. It was his belief that a Ringmasters duty goes far beyond that of a field medic, so he trained hard to be the best of the best. Yet no matter how good he gets, he is never satisfied.

"Bulldog! Right turn! South face!" Trip ordered, "Now, Move out! Forward march!" The Battallion began to March out of north Flaris, through central Flaris, and towards the beaches. Oddly, even though they all felt as if police work was dull, tensions were high. As they marched, Dawun looked to AndOnly. His silvery blue armour was shimmering in the light, and his sheathed swords were stained with the blood of many, many foes.

The tales of his combat were not myths. AndOnly was a legendary gladiator. Undefeated in the colliseum, he is the most adept dual weilding warrior in the known
world. Not only undefeated though - AndOnly set numerous records that are long standing. He was only ever hit once in his whole career, he was that fast. The blow he took to the chestknocked him across the colliseum floor, kicking swirls of dust and sand high into the temperate, Flaris air.He lay there, motionless. His opponent was a Billposter.

In an attempt to take the world title from AndOnly, he used the forbidden art of Asalikarum. The crowd fell silent. before the fight had even been declared as over, the Billposter began to walk smugly to the doors out. AndOnly wasnt out yet though. The crowd roared in disbelief as he picked himself off the ground. His chestplate smashed, and clarets of blood pouring from his mouth and nose, he actually wanted to carry on.
The Billposter heard the cheers. He smirked, and turned around to face the audience and recive what he thought were his cheers. AndOnly shouted across the arena.
"Dont you MOVE!!" The Billposter froze. As the colour drained from his face, AndOnly moved, faster than anybody had ever seen, almost faster than the eye could detect!
He appeared behind his opponent. Once again, the crowd fell silent, focused intently on what would happen next. There was a pause. The audience could clearly see
him whispering into the Billposters ear... but could not hear it. Legend has it, AndOnly said;
"Lets see you do that with no arms." But now, only AndOnly will ever know,
He sliced upwards with both custom made Orichalium blades, and the Billposters arms fell to the ground with a heavy thud.
AndOnly said nothing. He just slowly walked out of that silent colisseum, and never competed again.Nobody knows where he went after that. All anybody knows is that he sgned up for the military, months later, and has remained in the Bulldog Battalion ever since.

AndOnly looked back at Dawun. He smiled to her, and she smiled back. They admired each other. She admired his agility, and he admired her endurance. AndOnly had heard about Dawun before he met her. Most people have.

Dawun was a Kingpin in the Bulldog Battallion, like AndOnly. She was awarded this rank for her bravery in the first weeks of the attacks by the Shadwaraan.
She hails from the once beautiful city of Saint Morning, now the most devastated place in Madrigal. During the first wave of attacks in Saint Morning, citizens were being evacuated to Darken by airship, from Saint Morning Station. The attacking Shadwaraan became wise to this very quickly, and attacked the station, killing hundreds.
In an attempt to safley evacuate the city, the Mayor of Saint Morning ordered all the Soldiers of the city to from a perimeter guard around the station, and the main route to it. It was a last ditch plan to save the lives of the citizens. The Plan failed.

Shadwaraan assassins killed many of the guards, in strategic locations arround the perimeter, forcing the soldiers to spread themselves thinly. They took the opportunity and assualted in one huge force, storming the stairs to the station. As the majority of citezens paniced and got on board the airships in terror, a handful stayed to fight. One of those brave citizens, was Dawun.

She picked up the sword of a fallen Knight, and selflessly threw herself into the ranks of the Shadwaraan forces - slaughtering hundreds. her natural ability with the great sword was unrivalled, even though she had never used a weapon before. With each swing, she killed many soldiers. She fought tirelessly into the night alongside the military, as they each saved thousands of innocent lives by buying them time to escape. The Shadwaraan were forced to retreat as their numbers dwindled. As they all spread their black feathered wings to flee, the true impact if the devastaion was revealed. the vast majority of Saint City was destroyed, and bodies littered the entire city. Only a few survived.

For her Valour in combat, she was awarded a top spot in the military, one which she gladly accepted. She was also gifted a suit of golden armor, one which now strikes fear into her Shadwaraan opponents. Her position in the Bulldog Battallion has allowed her to hone her abilites in combat even further, and she has proven herself several times since then. Her bravery is told the world over like a folk tale.