- Posting Speed
- 1-3 posts per day
- Writing Levels
- Advanced
- Preferred Character Gender
- Female
- Primarily Prefer Female
MENTIONS: None at the moment.
It was a day like any other. The radio that rested on the dusty windowsill hollered out a mixture of distorted trumpets and jolly singers, intermingled with a heavy veil of static. The sound was upbeat, rapid-- the "perfect" melody to get the morning frost out of your system. It was the kind of song that served to get people out of bed and on their way to work as soon as possible, which made sense, because in the eyes of the Empire they were all just working ants meant to blaze through a freezing morning just to get a couple of gil in their pockets. Veronica Rougeflaire rubbed her hands together from behind their little counter in an attempt to gather warmth between her palms. When that didn't work, she raised them to her lips to blow a puff of breath into them... though that didn't help much in staving off the cold. The ARIES HQ was a small shack in the heart of the Undercity, but their access to technology rose above the businesses in the surrounding area. And yet, their radiator was broken once again. It was a wonder how Veronica didn't freeze to death in her sleep.
The sound of a coffee maker dribbled on behind her. Hopefully the coffee would warm her up. If it didn't, then she'd still be freezing, and the others would whine about it being cold as if she could help it. She wasn't very good with fixing machines; if she tinkered with the radiator she would most likely end up ruining it even more, and then she'd have to fend off the japes the others would toss her way as well. Not that she minded. Maybe some fire in her blood would do well to get her out of this morning drudge.
The radio crackled again, this time switching to the sound of the radio station's host rambles about there being no respite from the cold that would wrack the Undercity for the rest of the week. Veronica wondered if it was just as cold topside. She doubted it. Why would the Empire risk getting their workers ill if they could just manipulated the cold away somehow? A small 'tsk' came from her lips as she moved from behind the counter and stomped over to the small, pink-colored radio. The static only seemed to increase as she approached, as if it was defying her. Her annoyance became frustration, driving her to slam her fist into its top. The force didn't necessarily break the thing, but the metal became dented and the disruption became louder. And, above all else, the music could hardly be heard from the crinkled speakers and roar of static.
"Uh... u-uh, hello?" A timid voice came from the doorway.
Veronica perked up, glancing over her shoulder. Someone had opened the door and stepped inside. It was a little girl with a bright red scarf and a woolen hat with a pom pom at the top. She wore a ragged coat that was far too big for her body, though she still trembled. Though, Vee soon figured out that it wasn't because of the cold, for heavy tears spilled from her bright brown eyes.
"I-is this the monster hunter place? ARIES?" the girl sniffled.
"You got it right, sugar. What's wrong? Somethin' snuck past the gates again?" Veronica asked. Hopefully it wasn't another of those drakes that ate another girl's cat last week. That was a tragedy.
"My friend, he went exploring past the walls... I told h-him not to go, but I followed him anyway j-just cause I thought he might change his mind... but he didn't, and he hasn't come back!" the girl wept, rubbing her face with clenched hands. "H-he's been gone for almost the whole day... and Ma and Pa always say that there's horrible monsters past the walls! S-so I thought, ma-maybe you guys could--"
The little girl's sobbing made her words unintelligible, but Veronica got the gist quick. There were many types of monsters past Eros' steel walls, most of them big, ugly, and with many pointed teeth. She didn't want to think that the little girl's friend was probably dead. Humans always strove for survival, even in the most desperate of situations. If they were lucky, the little boy might have found shelter in a groove under a boulder or something. A sigh left her lips as she walked over to the little girl and got on one knee.
"Don't worry. We'll find your friend," Veronica said with a wink.
The little girl's eyes went wide. "R-e-eally?"
"Yeah, really. We'll find him and bring him back safe and sound, you hear? So why don'tcha get out of this cold and go back to where your Ma and Pa are. Don't want to catch cold, right?"
The little girl tucked her chin into her scarf and gazed at her with upturned, teary eyes. A moment passed before she nodded sheepishly and ducked out of their little shack without another word. Veronica let out another sigh, this one much hefty than the last as she stood up and stretched her arms above her head. A series of small cra--acks ran up and down her spine. Work already-- and she hadn't even had her coffee yet.