miles baines: riff-raff! street rat! (mimicks) wrote in emillion, @ 2014-04-28 14:01:00 |
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Entry tags: | !complete, !log, audrey leradine, miles baines |
then the bicycle flips, crushing ribs smashing hips, and he broke every bone in his face.
Who: Miles Baines & Audrey Leradine
What: And this, children, is why we don't do heroics.
Where: Nobles District, then the Albrecht guesthouse before it's unceremoniously destroyed.
When: Backdated to 4/17, day one of plot.
Rating: Profuse profanity, some violence.
Status: Complete!
Audrey had been playing with her food for some time. Her fork dragged the stir-fry vegetables through the sauce so artistically poured over the lamb. She had been close to complaining to Miles, about how lamb isn’t breakfast, and she could have considering Miles was not, in fact, Baines but Norwood. Unfortunately, she didn’t feel it would bode well. A roll of her eyes and she took a bite out of her food, already she was acting more of a wife and less of a business partner. The chef had visited the table frequently, Audrey’s recent bite had been read as an invitation to check on the couple. “How is the dish to your liking?” A forced polite smile shined through as she swallowed. “Delicious, could we get more wine, please?” Wine, unlike lamb, was an all day affair. The chef had merely nodded, grabbing the attention of a nearby waiter as he poured their cups again. In silence she stared at her glass, her fork idly poking at the meat. The liquid vibrated. Audrey glanced at Miles who had been resting back on the chair, leaving the table untouched. Her eyes went back to the glass and she saw the liquid vibrate again. It had a pattern now— like steps, each beat getting more and more violent. Without looking, her hand lightly tapped his thigh, leaning her attention closer to the glass. He responded instinctively in the manner of Basil Norwood, asking only a polite “Pardon?” as he refocused on his fiancee. (Fiancee. That term never stopped sounding ridiculous, no matter how many times he assured others that this was only a sham, that it hardly counted, that it wasn’t a real wedding.) Once his eyes picked out what Audrey was staring at, however, his own reptilian instincts twitched. Basil melted away and Miles blinked, eyes narrowing at their glasses on the table. Rhythmic ripples flickered across the full-bodied red wine. His foot resting against the floor, he could feel something thrumming through his soft patent-leather shoe. “What’s that?” he asked, his voice suddenly sharp and analytical and not-at-all-Basil-y, right before a giant brick leg came smashing through the wall (along with a disheartening sense of deja vu). “I don’t,” she paused tilting her head, “know—” The restaurant immediately erupted as the outside world—and one unexpected monster—came roaring in. Its windmilling legs sent patrons screaming and spilling out of their seats and running, the expensive chandeliers crashing and raining glass down on them all, tables overturning. Miles went flying backwards along with a frantic Nononononononono that he hadn’t realised was coming from his own mouth. “Not another fucking golem,” he cried, despondent, remembering. The sound had Audrey jolting, her arms rushing up to cover her face from flying glass and debris. Her chair toppled backwards by the force of the stone stomp. Spilling out, she pressed her back against the table, dress smeared in sauce and red wine. Audrey’s eyes drifted over towards Miles leaning forward and dragging him against the table as well, “Shut up,” she hissed, hoping the sound wouldn’t draw the thing. Her eyes flicked up and around the building already calculating exits with the least casualty. Unfortunately (or was it fortunately?) it had found another victim. After muting out the screams and chaos, her mind focused on a particular window as her hand lifted to point. “Will lead us into the alley,” she spoke in between breaths. “Gotta time the exit,” her head leaned over the edge of the table, trying to locate the Babil’s position. It was tall, far too tall for the room; its head (or at least what passed for a head) scraped through the upper floors of the building, ripping open the ceiling and starting to expose the building to morning light, spilling in through gutted rafters and the skeleton of the restaurant. Miles always scoped out the exits upon entering a room, so his gaze landed immediately on the window as Audrey motioned towards it. But he kept muttering admonishments to himself (it seemed he should have been able to avoid this fucking somehow) as he scrambled back to his feet and grabbed the ninja’s hand. One, two, three— And they ran, bolting from cover just as the lumbering brick golem turned its attention away, towards another set of terrified patrons. A moment later, the party of well-dressed women in cocktail dresses were nothing but wet red splotches, crushed against the wall like insects. Miles closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and went. “Go,” he said, “go go go go,” as they tore towards the window and struggled to open it before the Babil noticed its fleeing quarry. Was it locked? Audrey struggled, fidgeting with the window, the obvious stress from being chased by a giant tower intent on making them red splotches shining through. Glancing away from the window and back, Babil had already started to make its way toward them. “Fuck it,” she spat, grabbing the nearest chair and throwing it out the window, effectively breaking the glass and opening them an exit. Once out on the street, she struggled to keep up with Miles. Her steps were shorter, her dress restraining, and when she thought it couldn’t get worse she felt her heel give way. The man’s hand immediately shot out and caught her elbow, balancing the teetering Audrey before she could break her ankle on the street. It was bad enough that she was trapped in that dress, her movements restricted. “Get rid of those fucking heels,” he hissed. The mime’s usual self-control and ability to rein in his presentation was completely gone—there was a strangled note of panic in his voice, barely tamped down. Now being out on the street, they could see that Mist had somehow seeped into the city, coating all the streets and buildings until they could barely see to the end of the block. This was not a controlled situation; he hadn't been able to map out the variables, plan for contingencies. Miles Baines didn't possess contingencies for tower-sized golems. Judging by recent events in the past couple months, probably he should've. Nodding, she obediently did as a told, using Miles as leverage as she tossed the heels out into the rest of the broken street. “We should get to higher ground,” her expression motioned towards the roofs. The crashing sound behind them, had startled Audrey in a scream as she covered her head protectively from any flying debris. Glancing up, the Babil was crushing its way through the alley towards his prey. Beside her, Miles still managed to brush dust and crumbled plaster off the shoulders of his suit in irritation. But he nodded. "Good idea." The two had scrambled deeper into the complexity of the alley ways, seemingly losing the Babil behind its own destruction. Almost reaching the opening into the street, Audrey fell and stumbled back (thankfully holding her mouth shut this time) at the sight of an elephantine foot stomp down, making its way through the street they had been thinking of running into. Audrey's eyes glanced up. Finding a climbable path, she immediately pointed it out as she stood. The ninja had been ready, almost eager to climb, but at the first step she had found a restraint. “My dress! I can’t!” He sighed, looking down at the hemline curving around her thigh. They'd been hobbling down the street in their formalwear, Miles struggling as well not to slide on the cobblestones in his slippery dress shoes. "Well, what do you suggest? Stripping naked?" Miles arched an eyebrow, still finding the time for sass even in the midst of this chaos. Then, a second later, a slightly more workable idea presented itself, businesslike in the crisp way Miles said: "Or we could just rip it." “Wow!” her tone sarcastic with an incredulous shake of her head. “About to die and you still have lines to throw at me.” Despite her annoyance with the man, she was quick to take his advice as she knelt, pulling at seam line so a rip drew to her upper thigh. With a sigh and a pointed glare at the mime she stood and turned her attention to climbing the side of the building. Within seconds she had made it to the top, readjusting her balance every time the earth shook. His progress was slower and more laborious, however, having to stop and search for each new handhold. He almost fell several times, but finally managed to claw his way over the edge and flop wheezing onto the rooftop. Standing above him, scanning the horizon, her lips dropped open at the sight of the Mage’s Tower. “Miles.” "What?" Audrey had glanced back at the mime doubled over and the pure awe she held at the sight of the Mage’s Tower under attack had rotted away into complete frustration with her partner’s incompetence. “Get the fuck up. Fucking look! Emillion is falling apart!” There was nothing they could do. Audrey had let herself fall next to the mime as he caught his breath, eyes drifting from the figure of Hashmal in the distance, to the other districts being ripped apart by large beings. Miles eventually managed to sit up, propped up on his elbows against the rooftop, and the two of them stared off into the distance in an awed, horrified silence. After that, there was little else to do but get the fuck out of Dalmasca. He had nothing but a barren apartment in the commoners district, and so they made their way towards the Albrecht estate instead, which would have all sorts of servants and security guards to help—much as he hated it, loathed the distance between the classes and the resources the nobles had that the tenements didn't, Miles would take advantage of it if he could. So they tried to make their way through the noble district, Audrey scurrying along barefoot. She'd originally carried her strappy heels dangling from one hand, but they'd eventually abandoned them, as well as Miles' tight, constrictive jacket. "Sucks to be a mage," he eventually said as they turned another corner, warily checking each turn to ensure there weren't any other monsters waiting. Miles thought of Lionel, but swept the concern aside with focused effort. Audrey, however, seemed to have other plans. “That’s rather bold to say. Isn’t your brother a mage?” She stuck behind him, her attention scattering elsewhere, alert in case they were to be flanked. “With the city literally crumbling, you’d think the rumors would stop. Wonder if there’ll be a witch hunt. Hang the mages. That sort of archaic bullshit. Then I would suppose it would suck to be your brother.” "I simply meant," Miles said stiffly, "that it sucks to be a mage because it looks like their tower's currently being smashed to the ground." The sight of that fire-shrouded beast in the distance, shaking the ground, was hard to dispel, and the mime took another few moments of silence as they walked on. Then something slipped out before he could pull it back in (his composure still cracked, unsettled by the entirety of this attack). "At least my brother's at the Cathedral instead. Presumably." Audrey only scoffed, rolling her eyes. “Well maybe he can pray for the city, I guess.” She could spot the guest house in the distance, her steps hurrying and now passing Miles as she reached for the door. Unlocking it she stepped through, calling for the dogs and making her way towards her bedroom. Out of this dress and into proper gear. Now in her ninja garb, she poked her head out of the doorway. “Jules and the dogs aren’t here. Probably at the Countess’. Here,” she threw a pair of sheathed daggers towards him. “These should help you.” Picking up a satchel, she went through to her kitchen pouring in all the potions she could find. He caught the daggers easily, and just the simple act of carrying weapons made the mime calmer, more confident. Basil’s suit hadn’t exactly been battle material, with no places to hide his usual long-bladed daggers with their curled hilts. He’d even lost Basil’s fake spectacles somewhere in the destroyed restaurant. “Do we have a plan?” he asked loudly, addressing the sound of rummaging coming from the next room as he belted on the daggers. For once, Miles was the one polling for direction, picking someone else’s brain for a direction rather than simply barking orders. Normally, Arielle and Loch were the only ones he strategised with on such a level. “I have a plan. I don’t think you’ll like it much,” she called back, pulling the strap over her shoulder as she made her way towards the mime. “I’m delivering these,” she motioned to her bag. “Who knows where our friends are. You think your brother might be in the Cathedral, but what if he was at point zero under a pile of rocks barely clinging to life? That could be my sister, it could be Ari, Damia, Loch. Everything is crumbling around us so we can at least save what we can’t rebuild.” Audrey paused, looking him up and down. “We both can hide and flee if we need to. We can potentially tip toe around these monsters. And you, you can sing.” Shrugging, she crossed her arms. “Or you can go to Albrecht’s Estate.” He squinted at the smaller ninja, weighing her little speech and probing it for a hint of mirth. “What, you’re not suggesting being big damn heroes, are you?” Audrey stared back, a straight line formed on her mouth. “You’re laughing at me.” “Not laughing,” he corrected. “Doubting. Have you met Miles Baines?” “Well, what do you suggest? We just sit around and do nothing while our friends die?” Sighing she looked away. “I’m not saying let’s go fight that big damn thing, but we should at least do what we can. This is our home,” her eyes glanced back up at the mime. “Even when you leave, you always come back. Why? Think on that.” His face stilled, his body stilled, and Miles’ hand rested against the daggers she’d given him, weighing those words. He didn’t want to let them sink in, but so they did, and the question found itself asked. He didn’t like the answer, when it came. “I…” Blast. Fucking blast and ruin and fuck. He squeezed his eyes shut again, letting his own pulse wash over him for a moment, all pounding in Miles’ ears as he controlled his breathing and consciously willed his body to behave, to regain what he’d lost so terribly today. “Fine,” he finally said, and it was like prying teeth out of his jaw to agree. The smile on her was short lived. She had won this argument, but the window at the end of the hall was telling her something different. It looked different. She could always see the yard, but right now all she could see was the morning sky. Lips parted as her head tilted. “Miles…?” “What?” he cried. “I finally agreed! What more do you want?” Before she could say anything, the house had begun to tilt and she could finally see the grass at the end of the hall. The furniture had begun to slide with them, uneven as it felt as though something was lifting the house up into the air. “We need to get out!” “For fuck’s sa—” His heart lurched in his chest. It was something Miles might have mistaken for butterflies and anxiety, were it not confirmed by the both of them wobbling on their feet and stumbling into the wall, sliding inexorably down the floor as the guest house was ripped up from its foundations, the two humes inside jangling around like so much loose change. Audrey had gripped around the window, pushing it open and kicking the screen and sliding through. Hanging from the edge, she could calculate the height. “We can jump, but we need to jump now,” she related the information before taking her own leap. Bending her legs on her landing, she absorbed the shock well managing to keep the potions safe in the satchel in her arms. “Miles, jump!” To his credit, he didn’t hesitate one whit: Miles Baines had flung himself out of an airship porthole not too long ago without any real confirmation that The Rising Sun was waiting below, riding sheer adrenaline and derring-do into the skies. So he leapt out of the window after the ninja and caught himself in a roll on the landing, rolling on the Albrecht front lawn, more elegantly done than most of his physical feats lately. He sprang back to his feet triumphantly, about to look like a gymnast taking a bow. Until the monster dropped the guesthouse again and it exploded some fifteen feet away from them, still not enough to protect them from the debris: a pile of bricks and wood landed on M. Baines. Audrey had vanished by the time the monster had taken a glance her way. Finding nothing small, nothing moving it continued its northward rampage, avoiding the Albrecht estate. Rushing to the shambled remains of her house, Audrey lifted wood and bricks, anything and everything to get the debris off her betrothed. “Miles!” she echoed repeatedly as soon as the monster was out of earshot. The sound of her voice flickered in and out and faded into a haze, syllables morphing into nothing more than a strident wail. Somewhere beneath the rubble, someone groaned, feebly. |