Mira's Departure

I walked in on Mira as she finished packing. If there is one thing I learned from our time together it is that she is a minimalist when it came to possessions. Some clothes, books, lotions, her sword, and hand gun was all she seemed to have. I can only assume that the whole packing process took about ten minute at most.

"Ready to go?"

She gave a small nod  "Everything is in order."

"So what do they plan to do with you when you return?"

"I am not entirely sure." she said with a shrug. "Given my prolonged absence from combat, I believe they will send me on missions that will be easier in order to have me get, as you would say, back into the swing of things."

"Sounds like a pain in the ass." I said with small laugh.

"I suppose."

We sat in silence for quite awhile after that. There wasn't much to say at that point.

Soon, there was a knock on door. Tobias stood there as his cold expression looked down at me and then to Mira. "Are you ready to depart Mira?"

"Yes sir." she said politely and went to his side. She gave me a sincere, genuine smile "It was...fun. I enjoyed the time we spent together Chris." she said and donned her mask. "Please stay safe."

"Please proceed to the car Mira. I will follow you shortly." Tobias said. She gave a silent nod and followed his order. He looked back to me. "Are you sure?"

"Am I sure of what?"

"Are sure of your decision? Are sure you want to place yourself at risk?"

I gave a smirk "Why not? It's not the craziest thing I've done before."

"I wish you the best then." he said and went on his way.



The apartment is rather quiet now.

It's just me.

And a tall, faceless, well-dressed man waits ever so patiently to see what I do next.



-Raggedy

My Decision

So I've been pondering about where I wish to go from here. Do I travel around in the hopes of finding a Runner to assist or the ass of a Proxy to kick? Do I follow a feeling in my gut that is telling me that I should look more into what happened in Florida all those years ago? Do I continue to take advantage of the protection provided by the Eyes? Do I launch a full-on suicide attack on Slendy?

Well, I've come to a decision.

I'm going to Florida.

The fact that I led so many of my classmates to their deaths is still eating away at me. Guilt's a bitch like that. Over the last year, I've had a greater desire to find out about the aftermath of the event. I mean, surely I wasn't to only one who was silenced in one way or another but at the same time, someone has to know at least something. I think..no, I know that this couldn't have been a one-off thing for Slendy. Something seems off...

So I want answers.

Mira, it's nothing against you. It's been fantastic having you and Noah as guests. But it's something I have to do. I can't just sit around any more. I gotta' get off of my ass and finally do something.

-Raggedy

Q&A with Mira, Part 2: Warren

Since the situation had become a little uncomfortable, I decided to change the subject "Speaking of Warren, what does he do?"

 "Warren is our combat specialist." Mira's demeanor had completely changed. While she was rather formal when she described Tobias, she loosened up in an instant when Warren was brought up. It seemed like she held him in very high regard. "He is the one who taught us everything."

She went to talk about the various styles that he had taught. Upon her request, I will not list the various styles. What I can say is that he is has served in a couple special ops units, received..I guess you can call it unofficial training, and some fighting styles that were self-taught.

"So he teaches all of you?"

"Yes, he trains us in groups. He takes those of us who are just beginning training and trains us in basic combat styles. He observes us for about a year and then splits us up based on what we excel at and what our flaws are. Those who are split up have two separate classes. One for mastering our strengths and one for improving on our weaknesses, at least to the point where they are not too much of a hindrance."

"Christ, how does he manage to do it?"

"Devotion I suppose. He says that fighting and training others are two of the things he loves most in life."

"So what, he's like a blood knight?"

Mira tilted her head slightly. The question had obviously gone right over her head. I should've known that she wasn't familiar with tropes.

"I mean is he like some war monger? Is he one of those guys who is like 'Screw winning, losing, motivation, morality and whatnot. I wanna fight!' or all like 'Maim!! Kill!! Burn everything to the ground!!'? Does he intentionally hinder himself to make the fight last longer?"

Mira perked an eyebrow "Um...I do not think that is how it is. He just says it 'gives him a rush'. He is very quick and efficient in what he does."

"So why does he love training others?"

"He has never really gone into any detail about. In my personal opinion, I think it is because if he dies, everything he has learned can live on through others.If that makes any sense."

"It does. Well, for me anyway. So I noticed you kind of..perked up, when I brought up Warren."

She blushed slightly, I'm assuming because I caught her with her guard down, "As I told you earlier, Father picked Tobias and Warren to build the Eyes with him. I think it is because they both share the qualities of Father from two different points of view. Tobias is very intelligent and analytical. However, he is rather distant because he needs to make sure that he can evaluate us properly. Warren however shares Father's combat skills and his..fatherly attitude towards us. He always makes sure we are okay and gives us advice when we have problems."

"So you have a strong mentor-student relationship with him then?"

"Yes. That is a good way to describe it."

"Thank you. I think that is all the questions that I have to ask you."

Hearing her descriptions of both Tobias and Warren, I wondered if The Grigori was using them to determine which one would be his successor. I can't really figure out which one would be the best choice.

I've also really been thinking about what Mira said about Warren's love of training. How everything he has learned can live on through others. Maybe on some psychological level that's what I've been trying to do with Kenny and why I've admittedly kind of been forcing it on Sanna via e-mail.

I mean, obviously I don't want them to get killed but..I'll be honest. At this point I have a gut feeling that I have at most a year, maybe a little longer. I want to know that I've had some kind of impact. That I can help as many people as I can. Especially after my massive fuck-up.

I think that as long as what I know and what I've learned can live on through others, I think I can die without any regrets.

-Raggedy

Q&A with an Mira, Part 1: Tobias

Ever since the clash with Moriarty's Remnants, I had a few questions for Mira that I had never really gotten around to asking.

"Hey Mira, mind if I ask you some questions?"

Poor Mira was practically limp on the couch as though she was melting. The sudden jump to hundred degree weather was definitely doing a number on her. "I'll answer what I am allowed to..."

"I was wondering about two of the Eyes that were with the Grigori...I think their names were Warren and Tobias? I noticed that they didn't refer to him as 'Father'. Is there some sort of reason for that?"

She quickly moved to sit up as though a spark had shot through her. "Their names are Warren Devereaux and Tobias Deckland. They do not call him Father because they were not taken in by them. They helped him establish the Eyes. From what I know, Tobias was the first one to follow Father and Warren was brought in shortly afterwards."

"So what exactly are their roles within the group?"

"Tobias is responsible for...a lot of the background stuff?" she seemed unsure of the words that she was using. "He makes sure that everything is in order. He keeps logs of all of our missions. He does evaluations to make sure that we still have the mental stability to complete our missions without making grievous errors. He also assists us with our education."

"Your education?"

"Yes, is it not obvious that we would have to be educated?"

"Well yeah, but I've always come to assume that there are a large number of you guys that are of various ages. A school-like scenario would seem kind of difficult to pull off."

"When we reach the age of 14, Tobias begins to teach us subjects that are on a high school and college level. As time goes on, those of us who...I believe you call them quick studies?" I gave a nod to assure her that she was right. "Those of us who are quick studies will help teach the younger ones. Father believes that it is a way to strengthen the bonds between us."

I personally felt that this set up was laziness on either The Grigori's or Tobias' part, but I was going to keep that thought to myself. "So is he the one who helped you learn to speak English?"

She nods "That is the subject that Tobias teaches every one of us. Learning various languages. A lot of time, it is simple words and phrases that someone would say in combat."

"So basically, if you were carrying out a mission in, lets say Brazil, and someone is talking about flanking you, you'd be able to pick up on it."

"That is correct."

"So was it difficult to learn English?"

"It was frustrating at first. It was probably because I was so young at the time. Warren was also fluent in my language so unlike some of the others, I had two people teaching me. I was lucky to have learned it rather quickly."

"Is there anything else that he is responsible for?"

"He is responsible for ensuring that we get to our destination."

"I was wondering about that. How exactly do you guys manage to get around the world."

"If there are a large number of us that have to go on a mission, we usually go by vehicle. If there are three or less..."

I raised an eyebrow when I saw her hesitate. "What about it?"

"It is kind of difficult to explain. Father, Tobias, or Warren will blindfold us and grasp out hands tightly. Then there is just this weird feeling. It feels...cold, heavy. It is like there is something weighing me down and wants to consume me. But it is only for a quick moment. One second, we are at our home, then we are somewhere else." She fidgeted a little. "I would like to ask how it works, but....I fear that it would just cause more trouble than it is worth."

I took in what she said and tried to piece it all together. My conclusion is that 1) Tobias and Warren are full-fledged Proxies and 2) The Grigori is using the Path as a means of travel for the Eyes and is blindfolding them in order to limit their exposure to anything Fear-related.  

-Raggedy

Heat

I forget just how hot some places can become.

According to Raggedy, Texas is starting to reach the normal temperatures that this location has over the summer. To save on his power bill, we very rarely have the air conditioner on. 

In hindsight, I probably would not have been able to hide myself forever. With the combination of  the hoodie and my mask, I fear that I eventually would have been overcome by heat stroke.

The last several weeks have been nice. Raggedy is very kind. He is not put off by my appearance and aside from his occasional rants about terrible movies, he is quite enjoyable to talk to. He even went out in the middle of the night to get me skin lotion when I had run out. I go through a lot of bottles... 

I have not told Raggedy yet, but I am not sure if I can accompany him if he decides to leave the apartment and travel. Father wanted us to watch him as he stayed at the apartment. If he left, I think  my mission would have ended. Also, just because I am comfortable with having my mask off around Raggedy obviously does not I am comfortable having it off around others. I think a girl wearing a mask would make people uncomfortable. I feel bad about leaving him in this situation but...if it must be, then it must be.

-Mira

Where do we go from here?

I'm free.

I am no longer bound by probation.

It honestly wasn't as eventful as I thought it would be. It was just sort of a "You're done. Get on your way." kind of thing. I wasn't really expecting some big fanfare or anything but a "Good job." or "Good luck." would've been nice.

Anyway, now that I can actually travel, I have a whole world of options open to me. I can travel and help other Runners. I can go to Florida and see if there is anything worth looking into regarding my first encounter with Slendy. As silly as it sounds, at one point I consider making my place a rest stop for Runners in the area. It's a little difficult to do it with Mira staying here but I think it could still be worth a shot.

I got to admit. This is all a little overwhelming.

I tried asking Mira what she thought would be a good idea but she was no help. "My job is not to help guide your life."

All I know is that I can't sit around and wait for something to happen anymore.

-Raggedy

Archers

In the television shows and movies that I have seen, they never really show archers having to defend themselves if they are forced into close range combat. You are just left to assume that they have no chance of being able to defend themselves. 

That is not true. In the Renaissance period, archers were equipped with a sword called a katzbalger. It was particularly known for having a very sturdy blade and a unique guard that could protect the user's hand in case the opponent's blade would slide down their own. It was easy to wield, weighing only a little over two pounds and the blade is short enough to be used in very tight quarters. 

Why do I bring this up? 

It has been mentioned before that Noah and I are usually paired together for missions. It is not only because we work well together. We make up for each others flaws. Noah is phenomenal when it comes to handling firearms. However, he tends to have a bad habit of not watching his back and getting. That is where I come in. I am capable of using firearms, although I am not as fast as others when it is a matter of reloading or recovering from the recoil of the gun. When it comes to swords however, I am very proficient. My job is cover for Noah and eliminate anyone who my pose troublesome threat, especially in close quarters. . 

Noah is the archer. I am his katzbalger. 

-Mira