31 A Bit of a Hiccup

The moment at the very end of never-ending human activities as part of always-changing society with all of its ethics and norms... differs from others in spite of bearing the same essence, craving for respect from the righteous right of their own fellow, for a better living or at a very least the constancy in the very pattern of those themselves... unwavering, as in purpose, love, or loyalty; firmness of mind; faithfulness... yet when that moment when the sun leaning towards its temporal resting place, to the west horizon it off... respect shall the sun received from those humans, as the sparkling crimson dust of the dusk had subsided and the dark night was about to lurk around, covering every possible corner of light and forcing the everlasting humans activity to an end and called it a day.

Ought to be the usual day like any other... the customary activities at which many families had the assured tendency to spend the rest of nightfall with their own kin, inside their own houses while listening to the the rich melodious pieces of the nightingale, and sheltering beneath their concealed yet cozy rooftop... renewing the energy for the vivid light of tomorrow.

However, when God of Stages had been pulling the string of the amphitheater many valued - and expectedly hated - it as the indestructible and inevitable bond yet neglected cognizance that humans were nothing more than a puppet of the Marionettist... suffering from their own powerless before His prowess. No walls, no defense mechanisms, no any kind of shielding methods nor earthly systems were capable of warding off the rectitude thread of the crimson. Higher prospect of inclination to be happened, sadly most were illiterate to perceive the likelihood, for the plausibility was giving them - the earthly sentience - so much promises with that of arranged solid concrete... towering at the far horizon and seemingly guarding the terrene terrain of a thriving civilization.

Therefore the shocking event of the turntables, startling the too-comfortable masses upon the initial rumble that brought the three creatures of mayhem inside their upright great-wall... and the tantrum of the masses to be harkens upon the pale reflection of the over-early perpetrator as the mutual demand to meet the role of to-be-blamed-one had been increasing to such a degree that they, despite delay, disregarded the white within the black... for they had found a reason albeit to do so, one reason that wrought a destruction upon their beloved city for treasured community. that of dissimilarity linking with the recent unfortunate occasion was fallen upon the infrequent sight to find.

"As I thought... you guys still in here,"

The typical soprano, that of high pitched vowel yet sounded so soft upon listening to, only lessened by the monotonous and sluggish tone giving an indolent demeanor of that person whose voice was heard above this shattered terrain full of scattered and ruined stones once standing-firm houses and gracefully-built road.

Walking from the opposite site where the sun may rest, seemingly put a distance in between that girl was... her short stature was the most stood out besides the rare sight of her hue of hair, and a pair of sleepy eyes staring tens of yards before herself and traces of certain demolition at which few people were seemed attentive to gather... hoping to find something fortunate to survive at each of those piles of stones and woods, yet those sort of things were became their main precedence above all others mundane things. Pinning their hopes on the salvaging procedure of the fortunate piles that contained stones or woods still in good condition for a slightly chance to reconstruct which once a ruined piles... to become houses, at least a temporal shelter to accommodate a sufficient number of refugees.

"Good things I decided to take the longer route. My energy wasn't wasted in the end."

Glittering under the bleached sky of the afternoon her hair was... a short of green hue waved around her slender neck alongside the dry breeze sweeping the residue of dust, imperceptible to be perceived yet the presence was somewhat felt by that long white vest of hers, hanging down on her tiny back and sweeping the dust on every steps taken... steps that brought her closer to a definitive figure whose aura was the most attractive within the approximately.

Beyond the average size of ordinary physique, swathed in a thick layer of the rigid silver attire... covering his whole body as well as his face facing around the region of salvage activity, with that one large greatsword in a tint of starry midnight on its surface was resting on his large back of shining silvery.

Standing alone that silvery figure was, at the center of hurly-burly the downhill resolution after the honed acme of much more conflicting resolution. Filling the role of mediator seemingly, providing himself a position where he could contemplate the state of affairs... watching the synergy of energy, working hand in hand helping one another - the local inhabitants and his colleagues alike. Till that monotonous voice he heard coming from behind... turning his head a little and peeking at his another colleague through the slits of his silver helmet.

"Erceuse?"

The wondering silvery figure let out his pondering remarks, once his silver-plated face facing that greenhead girl, calling her name. Staring at her sluggish expression yet gladly to expose her convivial smile beneath that pair of sleepy lime-green eyes upon taking a glimpse one of her colleague whom she regarded as friend. Hence becoming the closing destination for her feet working out the lethargic steps of hers.

"How unusual... you come home early than usual."

There was a bit of lightly sarcasm within that simple phrase, wording wholly the surprised assertion of his beholding the unexpected entrance of that green-haired petite approaching himself... yet a welcome one regardless.

"Your warm welcome back... somehow sounded so... diffident, you know that, Neve? And awfully made me feel bad," clearly grasping the concealed sarcasm that green-haired girl was, regarded Erceuse as her name, as the silvery figure called her. Erceuse Greenforest... since she was too, a member of their famous and somewhat infamous cause - Ancient Heroes, "Is it unnatural for me to come home earlier when there is something unnatural occurred?"

Expressing her piqued query regarding herself and to corner his wayward curiosity the innocence side of hers had been spoken... stimulating the vivid yet muffled chortle from beneath that steel helmet,

"Hahaha, it's my pardon then... merely my wondertainment to see you before the moon rises."

"Well, regarding how unnatural the occurrence it was... eventually became natural by our hands." taking one more steps that greenhead girl once again, passed the silvery figure who was seemingly obscuring her sight to take a glimpse something much more heartwarming matter behind his large back, "But it seemed... I may actually too much worried this time."

Possibly two dozens of ordinary inhabitants, probably more... mostly male adults and a handful of female dressed in typical housewives, serving those male adults with light dishes on a quite large wooden table not far from the scarlet thread, the leading reason of that gathering event before the sun shrinking itself at the far western while hiding behind one of those white towers as one's eyes perception was in tone with the exact location where the slightest tip of its enormous penumbra touching the dilapidated region and shading those who struggled to restore its zeniths... by small margin at the very least, by reconstructing one simple mansion-like house, made of entirely from those piles of ruined stones and the remnant of the black wood.

"It seemed that the temple would welcome any refugees no longer," the silvery figure began to narrate the current situation for his little friend once she taking a glimpse about that half-built dwelling where she could discern the lines of male adults passing by towards the building as the landing station to place those stones and black woods from their stained back out of dust they carried alongside, "The numbers are simply beyond what the temple would expect to accept. Therefore they decided to build a temporary shelter, at least till the mess is cleared up."

"I see..." still favored her monotonous tone, the greenhead girl perceived the on-going circumstance, "Today's... accident, seems to be our biggest... accomplishment yet... with a bit of a hiccup in it apparently."

Smiling a truthful one, while making such an assumption that remained indefinite for some time till eventually her lime-green eyes catching a distant figure whose hair sparkling beneath the obscured golden ray of cloudy afternoon yet persisting its alluring factor, seemingly matching with that silver hue. Was seen flying that silver-haired figure, with a handful of hovering pieces of old papers around her while carrying some huge stones on it that plainly impossible to be carried by any conventional mean. Therefore came in handy her magic was, with her nearly limitless mobility in the air and capable of reaching the highest level of the half-built dwelling with a short - almost instantly - time, she was more than enough requirement to accelerate the completion before the night fell.

It wasn't her beneficent activities however, that took an interest over those careful, watchful eyes of theirs. It simply her fingers, the tip of her fingers to be more precise, on which curiously the black bruises-like marks had changed its pale characteristics.

"A bit of a hiccup, eh?"

Subtly and muffled the reiteration was uttered, hardly to be heard other than himself, of such a queer quotation spoken through the inert lips of the petite greenhead girl standing alongside. Fixed his own gaze as hers... staring at the scenery they both stated as a beguiling one, since mostly the scenery in their eyes was clashing with each other - the other reality that happened instantly after the roaring thunder forging the very same ruined ground on which they both placed their feet respectively.

A bit of a hiccup was that roaring thunder,

Transpired from the aspired sentiment of comprehending the previous reality that destroyed the entire thriving city into ruins of recognizable stones and wood, and some turned into dust and ashes instead - the unrecognizable bits. The responses were varies at that time upon the coda of the conflict... some were the archetypal patterns of positive feedback and that of encouraging assessment... while other, unfortunately, were the retorted ones... seemingly the ill-mannered jeers, for the majority had shared the similar frame of opinions regarding whom they supposed to be blamed.

Tracing back the scarlet thread they eventually stumbled across that infrequent-sight-to-find at the end... a race whom many thought almost vanished on the surface of the world out of extinction by the genocide mandate over hundreds years ago. Practically inherited only the partial of the said race that silver-haired girl was, yet it didn't guarantee of such a thing when the urge to find such a role was insanely increased - not only driven by historical resentment, but also the unfortunate reality that was bestowed upon her becoming the leading reason.

She placed her sweaty pale forehead on the ground, lowering her weary body and letting the dust of her own doing littering the sparkling silver beneath that cloudless noontide. Wishing no forgiveness but showing her condolence over the undesirable inconvenience. Solely unpurposed, solely had nothing to do with her kin - both of her kin. So long the savvy resentment was targeted for her only, and spread no beyond, she was more than willing to fill the role.

"There was indeed a bit of a hiccup," resumed the silvery figure after recalling that noontide development, "However, like you just said earlier... you did too much worried this time, so did your never-miss intuition... ironically missed."

"For sure it missed, speaking of intuition."

The third interlocutor unexpectedly was coming to join up with the subtle flowing of this tête-à-tête. A deep and hoarse voice, yet seemingly exposed that well mannered demeanor - gentlemanly manners... coming from behind their back with steady and quite loud steps the owner of the voice created... as if his body weight was quite massive for the gravity to pull it, or from their experience knowing well whose voice that was. Carrying quite a massive object on the figure's shoulders was more expected guesses.

Turned the body position they were then, prioritizing to verify their shared guesses... and sure enough, it was such a large shadow that fell upon their looked up faces, gazing wonderfully at the colossal white granite stone that was solely being held by one hand only. Little time they fixed their gaze upon the stone as it was already a common everyday scenery for them, hence very little time as well they put a startled expression for now they had to face the one who carried the colossal object... one bulky-looking man in a sleeveless armor who already a few feet away from their stood place, and his deep-black eyes staring specifically at that greenhead petite girl.

"Didn't your supposedly-never-miss intuition supposed to tell you to come here quickly?" a bit of scolding was shown by that bulky man, more about caring one another as she was too, his colleague - a friend of the same cause,

To provide an answer for a quite rhetorical query, the innocent smile followed with a childlike yet truthful apology was shown by that greenhead girl, "Sorry, sorry Lyell... but I did came earlier, didn't I? After all, I have faith in you two... to handle the matters as I handled the... inconvenient one in the background."

"Well, it is a good thing you came home earlier, and will be better if you rushed yourself to lend a hand," seemingly had no time to respond more, the bulky man rushingly gave an order to the girl before proceed to carry that colossal stone, walking away from them both.

"Aye, aye... roger that," a sluggish response in tone yet with visible enthusiasm in her expression intended for that bulky man who walked away when she finally came upon a realization that one of her colleague was absent from current scene regarded as the utmost important,

"Oh right... where's that slim Mest? I know his expertise is to be unseen... but... I feel this a little unfair to have four of us working while he just... wandering around... don't you think so, Neve?"