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Post by Ace Kihaku on Jul 19, 2009 2:59:07 GMT -5
"Stand with me vire's. We will rebel! We will take the streets and kill them no matter what they throw at us. We will make sure that the kingdom knows the people are in charge. They will die!" - Apollo Shiyoke: Quoted from 'Victory Lap'.
Ace had heard of this quote before. It was engraved on a statue in the park. Apollo was the only rebel that Ace had ever felt a connection with. Sure, he was still rebellion scum, but something about him reminded Ace of what the leader of the loyalists used to be before he was in charge. It doesn't make much since to me. They trained me from my first memory to a year ago to become a leader. I could never do what Apollo did. I could never cause a change. I will be a forgotten leader...unless if I put an end to the rebel threat. That is the only way I can be remembered.
Ace walked over to a bench and sat down, looking at the cement. Can you please a monster? These people who took away my family...what are they fighting for. WHAT THE HELL ARE THEY FIGHTING FOR? Ace's face stayed blank, but anyone who knew Ace would know he was struggling. His hands were held together and a little twitchy. It was almost dangerous to be around him in this condition, but he can calm himself down when the time came. It was always good to vent now and then.
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Post by Amelia Force on Jul 20, 2009 0:31:32 GMT -5
"Well, this is a rather rare sighting, the loyalist leader alone in neutral territory..." Amelia spoke quietly to herself, wondering if anyone else noticed. As she kept walking, she shrugged to herself, as it's not really her problem. Still though, she was on break, and annoying her superior could be a good pastime. Still though, that statue is quite an eyesore. The greatest rebellion leader... that guy has guts, she will give him that much, but still, a statue of the enemy right smack middle of neutral territory is just horrid.
Taking a seat next to Ace, she turned towards him and asked, "Ah, still struggling with this, huh?" That was more or less a rhetorical question though, she has known him for a couple of years now, and his little actions here and there makes it quite easy to get a read if one knows that one is looking for.
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Post by Ace Kihaku on Jul 20, 2009 0:52:35 GMT -5
Ace was a bit surprised when she walked up next to him. "Uh..yeah." Ace sighed. "History shows us that we can learn more from our enemies then our heroes. But right now...I'm not sure which catagory he falls in." These words were dangerous for Ace to say. Stating that someone who was the enemy was a hero could lead to execution for a leader. "Not because of his cause but because he led many away from us. They lived in an almost eutopea and he ruined it."
Ace looked back on the ground. He was young, yes, but his intellect and maturity rivaled that of Apollo. "Makes me wonder though, what was his secret? At 17 he changed a nation. A stupid nation, yes, but a nation nonetheless." Ace picked up a small rock. It seemed as if he was going to throw it at the statue, but instead, he just stared at it. "Control goes one of two ways. You let it do what it wants but guide it to what you want it to do." Ace waited for a breeze and threw the rock slightly forward. The breeze pushed it back and he cought it. "Or brain alteration. Destroying everything they know and have. Forcing them into submission." Ace squeezed the rock as a bit of cracks appeared. He then effortlessly threw it at the ground. It didn't even seem like much of a motion. The rock broke into pieces. "But the second way always leads into disaster."
Ace continued staring at the ground. "Apollo had one thing that I will never have. Two lives. Being able to choose a better life and living it out. History tells us that he had lived a life before monsters were real. When they were holigrams." Ace sighed, "I'm never going to be like him Amelia. I can never do what he has done. I can't lead a nation. I'm not being depressed or pessimistic I'm being honest. I have no life experiance. I was treated like the king my whole life. But now...Now these rebels came in again to attack the loyalists. Their leader...if he's anything like Apollo we're damned!" Ace wasn't much for showing his emotions. Apollo was the only thing that brought out his emotions at all. It was a good thing he could trust Amelia, anyone else could blackmail him into doing what they wanted.
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Post by Amelia Force on Jul 20, 2009 1:28:52 GMT -5
"As far as any conflict goes, the winning side are the heroes while the losing side are painted as the villains, even if it was not clear cut at all at the time of the conflict. That's just how it is." Amelia mused over his concerns as she said that, wondering just how much of his memory was kept in tact from the previous experiment. Taking a short pause, she continued, "If we win this conflict, he will be labeled as a traitor; and shall they win, he will be branded as a hero. It's simple as that, really."
She crossed her legs and looked at him quizzically, wondering what he would say next and looks on with interest. When he finally took a pause, she held back a smile, noting the irony of his brain alteration statement. In response though, she answered, "His secret? He saw a vision and then had enough courage to go towards it. While that's not usually the best way to do things, it certainly was.... admirable." However, Amelia didn't want to comment on his control statements, just in case she accidentally let out something that she shouldn't have, so she just nodded in agreement.
When he finally finished his pseudo-rant, she can't help but smirk a little and said, "And that, is exactly why you are a good leader. You, sir, see your own flaws, and that's more than anyone could ask for. As long as you know your flaws, you know where to turn your attention to make you a better person." She took a short pause yet again before continuing, "Now, I don't know what kind of person the current leader of the rebellion is, but it's going to be tough for him to be intellectually superior to yourself." She let out a soft laugh and went on, "Oh, and you really should do this type of thing more often, if you let it bottle up inside, it could cloud your perspective."
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Post by Ace Kihaku on Jul 20, 2009 1:40:58 GMT -5
"Funny thing is, I dont have a perspective." Ace stood up finally as he walked towards the statue. "History is written by the victors, yes, but it is later retold by the losers. And I'd hate to say it, but..." Ace stopped walking as he was inches away from the statue. He unsheathed his sword and stabbed it at the heart of Apollo. "There's no way to do anything." As soon as he said anything the sword broke. He dropped the handle.
"I may be able to spot my flaws but that won't guarantee victory. Nations are run on stupidity." He walked back towards Amelia but didn't sit down. He had Apollo's look in his eyes. One that both rebels and loyalists would agree was an unmatched intellectual look. An observation mixed in with determination. "Even our own. It keeps going up and up until it stops with the person with the most control. People are controlled, manipulated, then disposed of. It will happen to me, it will happen to you, and it will happen to all of the people."
"The rebels operate on a different basis though. From what I've heard, they know how to recycle. They reuse success for themselves. While we're constantly doing new things, they're doing the same thing over and over again. A stubborn approach yes, but also a successful one. I don't like this." The last part was almost a mumble. Ace wasn't looking at Amelia, rather, the wind next to her hair. "I don't like how we operate." He was still mumbling, as if scanning information in his brain. "I can tell you how the rebels are going to beat us."
Ace then stared Amelia in the eyes. "I will become overconfident and order a full-on invasion of the rebel territory. They will evacuate and attack us when our forces are reduced. We can't win, they can't lose. We can't get any higher up in power, they can't get any farther down. It's an all or nothing for them. And what IF we win? The rebels will always come again and again until they eventually beat us. Apollo knew this and exploited the fact." Ace continued staring at her, watching her every emotional response; her every twitch, laugh and sigh was being recorded in his mind.
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Post by Amelia Force on Jul 20, 2009 2:31:49 GMT -5
Amelia stayed seated at the bench, looking at Ace as he stabbed the statue. She looked up into the sky and said, "Nothing is guaranteed, so you really don't have to worry about that. Also, would have to agree on your control statement. People seek power, it's human nature; and when a person has no power, he or she is cast aside, that's also human nature. So it happening eventually should not be that big of a surprise."
She looked at him after he is finished his simulation of defeat, and responded, "And, that, is why you have an adviser, or do you not trust me to inform you when you cook up sketchy plans in your mind?" Smiling a little reassuringly, Amelia said, "Besides, shall we win, the rebel's morale will be down, and if we keep crushing them, the morale level would eventually be too low for an effect attack."
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Post by Ace Kihaku on Jul 20, 2009 2:46:28 GMT -5
"Funny thing is, Amelia, even you can make mistakes." Ace smiled, "I'm thinking about getting a second and third advisor as a balance system. You will be the jury and I will be a humble judge, assigned to cast punishment or mercy on those who have deserved or earned it." Ace then sat down. "I'm expecting a revolt among my own people. This superstition will lead to my downfall. I want you to do me a small favor."
Ace stayed seated for a few minutes. He let the air blow across his face. The next words would show his true relation with Apollo, how his ideas were the same as Apollo's and how he only thought of his people. He stood up. He'd say what needed to be said and leave to allow Amelia to take in the impact. I have a feeling even she will take advantage of this. I need to make sure that my friends are far away from me after I say this. Even an advisor is only human. "If I make a hasty move based off of paranoia or superstition..." he started walking past the park. "Kill me." He left the area.
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Post by Amelia Force on Jul 23, 2009 23:10:49 GMT -5
"Although one person may make mistakes, having three or more person giving advice to a single individual could lead to delay in action, which in times like these, could lead to absolute disaster." While having an extra adviser or two in the mix could make her control process go much more slowly; but in the mean time, it could actually be better for the faction as a whole. To his next line, however, she replied, "I will just ignore your little superstition, since there really isn't anything I can say that could change your mind, it seems. And whatever could the favour be?"
Once she heard what kind of favour he is asking, Amelia just kept sitting on her seat completely unfazed. In fact, once he is out of sight, a small smirk crept onto her face. Looking back up at the sky and making sure that no one was watching, she asked herself, "Now, would you suppose that asking me to kill him if he makes a hasty move based off on paranoia counts as a hasty move based off on paranoia?" As soon as she said that though, she just grinned and said quietly to herself, "And you didn't need to ask, I would have done so anyways should said occasion rise up." Sitting there for another minute or so, and noting that there is still no one else around, Amelia stood up and left the area as well.
((Exit, stage left. Thread concluded. Locked.))
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