1 In Favor of Sangfroid

The month was now at the very end of a year, when there was about the changing annually in the counted year. New year celebration, which had been long be decided to be the clear celebration of famous or perhaps infamous with its cold and dry season. Cold season of Winter, as opposed to that warm season of Spring. However such a situation only applied to the northern hemisphere, while the southern one, nothing really was a fortunate for them; most inhabitants of the southern... for they too, experienced similar and the opposite of their kin in the northern – dry and the heat the northen inhabitants must endure for the rest of last month, waiting numbly for the counted year to change annually.

To pass the year of one hundred and twelve, changing into one hundred and thirteen year After Nuclear Explosion which also had changed more than just the counted year throughout this over century,

It was December 20, 112 ACE;

And to find such a nice place, to spend the remaining time of waiting for the annual celebration, was quite uncommon to be experienced. However this girl seemed to be lucky enough to find one such a place... where no chill nor heat she felt in which she was situated right now, sitting in solitary while resting her light-blue skirt in a quiet place on the edge of a river dipping her pair of bare feet into its calming and gentle surface – refreshing herself while the sun was high above her in the cloudless azure sky highlighted her long and straight hair; pitch black like that one starless night sky, such a hue which dominated most of her hair... thus letting it to loose freely shading that slender shoulder and back of hers covered in white-blue vest, while at will playing along with the breeze, swaying to and fro, for there was nothing to block its wave and flow to ring a little that little bell tied to her ribbon tie,

A little sound of a little bell... the tiny tintinnabulation, faint as fairy bells enriched surely this vast plain of green meadow as far as her pair of emerald eyes were capable of staring at the distant horizon where the azure sky-line seemingly intertwined with this vast of green-line and its overgrown however gentle grasses. Thus there was none of such an absolute and reticent nuance, yet it was serene most of the time. A nice and snug place to let herself lost within it, killing time waiting for the new year celebration while staying far away from that dry, cold, and hot hemisphere. In here, which warm, since the gentle breeze nuance capable of cooling down the radiant sun right above,

Supposedly it was such a nuance, until moments later of somewhat this unbearing chaos that was doomed to be occurred breaking the soothing aeolian wind blowing the tiny bell and the gentle burbling river streams calming as white noises... and quite an irony, all would start from the said river itself in actuality, as the ripples subtly emerged – the subtly shifts in tone from hush to fuss,

A dart needle; quite small and thin yet still a long dart sharp needle–––made it harder to be perceived solely by naked eyes–––came from inside the river, presumably from a blowpipe judging by its speed targeting the girl's exposed neck with an intention of making her incapacitated through some kind of tranquilizer substance that was found leaking from its sharp end to inject it into her blood stream,

Supposedly it was however, until moments later of the unexpected transpired within second after the dart being launched. Should have it sticks on the skin, pierced through the thin flesh of the base neck, and delivered that harmless however toxic substance into the internal jugular vein... instead the dart needle was seemingly being bounced off upon the collision with that girl's neck, as if it wasn't strong enough to penetrate her skin let alone that flesh of hers which seemed to be durable enough to withstand the sudden assault... even more in reality, the dart needle seemed incapable of scratching her white and smooth skin at the slightest,

The initial first strike it seemed, however failed it seemed for the dart needle hadn't enough to surprise this girl as the expression over her face was unchanged and panic didn't ensue... her pair of emerald eyes remained gazing relishing the scenery in front without even bother to move from where she sat upon and her bare feet remained playing with the river streams when all of a sudden, whoever that was, the hidden assailant who was swimming under the water–––likely the perpetrator of the initial sudden attack–––seemed to have lost such an ability to do so. That silhouette under the water as though drowning, as hands trying to grab onto something on the chaotic water surface, but nothing was seen flowing on its raging surface of such a large river yet shallow,

The only weird thing that was persistent; the bizarre reality within that logical sense of action shown by the drowned silhouette. As panic as that assailant might be out of drowning, resurfacing the face or at the slightest course of action, instinctively trying to bring that opened mouth closer by tilting head to the water surface... gasping for air to survive longer... however such an effort was hardly visible, only hands that waved among the wild ripples while head remained under water–––as if something holding it back, prevented it to move at its own will... something supernatural.

Not long after, fortunately for that drowned silhouette, another supernatural thing happened as though coming to the rescue... seemingly out of nowhere and all of a sudden, whoever was under the water then vanished into thin air thus leaving only that mark of wild ripples which slowly became docile, ebbing away as the time went and eventually returned to its calming state... however not for long as it seemed, for another disturbance would occur breaking the silence between storm – especially when this moment was subtler, hence much greater the impact would be,

Greater yet more less than a conspicuous one when this as though blending in with the ever-present enviros… this breeze which blowing up together an abiding mood of the tender caress when the wind whispering within an ear that listened always. And the distance silhouette seemingly was running as though riding together with all of those – faster than an eye could catch hence appeared nothing more than a wild gust blowing away the lush of green grass along its way, dashed directly towards this lone girl sitting stilly still on the edge of the same river… seemed to make an attempt of attacking her.

An ambush as it seemed to be; however such was never meant to success against her. Either luck still was with her, or something else that made this gust of wind carrying a person to miss the steady, never-moving target. Nonetheless this person, appeared to be a boy wearing the same set of attire as hers who–––seemed to be an identical uniform as hers, only the difference was in its style and shape–––crashed so hard to the soft grassy ground, as for the momentum which created by his fast-paced running, the super velocity was contributing so much on the accident befell upon him in a strange way… because his feet all of a sudden felt so heavy when moving closer to that black-haired girl, even to move a step he couldn't while in such speed thus leaving the impact quite a noticeable crater just behind her, and a clear view finally happened for this emerald eyes to see – the exact identity of her another assailant who now lying unconscious deep in that crater; a boy with that dark blonde hair, likely to be within the same age as hers, only a second later to be vanished instantly by leaving no a single trace… again.

And again, the serenity would be lurking from behind the hushed setting through conciliating breeze once again dominated; only later to be filled by this low sigh – quite a long yet gently gust came out of this girl mouth, warming up the ambient temperature surrounded her solitary presence before the vast of green lush scene where no one else nearby to listen but to herself she began to hanker to talk,

"They sure don't know when to give up, do they? Those stubborn kinfolks,"

Through this softly whispering tone of hers, sounded surely so annoyed however… for mostly after many attempts of assault were being targeted towards her alone, though ultimately failed, yet she did not think such was over as she was expecting more, and now would be more blatant and likely violent – a much more bolder trick she felt confidence about… the more conspicuous ways in favor of spectacle,

So that might she would sow preparation for another upcoming wave which surprisingly faster and greater to occur than she anticipated… and in a form she never had a thought before,

It was a deep-black shadow… the first thing she noticed at once, for it came seemingly out of nowhere, making the broad daylight as though hankering to succumb into the unbidden starless night or the unwanted eclipse, for this shadow was spreading vast thus turning most of the green scenery within her emerald eyes into dull dark. Something enormous above surely triumphed of blocking the sun to shine upon her only relish till now; therefore looking up to see with her own eyes, something enormous above which fully responsible for its nuisance value hence messed up her sangfroid.

That which was something of a blackened purple mass of somewhat a thick and durable-looking object… likely to be a kind of a rock formation in a form of cuboid yet with its impossibly large size; so large that such an object as though replacing the bright azure skies with its black, thus these emerald eyes as if staring at a complete night sky, yet instead of bright stars, such a sky was filled by those many layers of small dark purple marks twinkling on its dark surface which absorbed the escaping daylight.

Feeling astonished by such a spectacle surely she was, as she quickly stood up from the river edge yet with no a single sign of preparation to leave the spot… after all that thing above already was falling down for being attracted by gravity; hence without a doubt, she already painted to be its target,

Too big to dodge, and too late to escape… had no other option but to accept her black present with an open hand… literally… for there was no more sangfroid within her after all,