that roadtrip song from a goofy movie softly plays

[livesarock]

WHO: Geddoe and Zel (still cured btw)
WHERE: All over the friggin country...FOLLOWING A RAIL LINE MORE OR LESS
WHEN: 1/29 to....whenever they get back in one piece...AT LEAST A WEEK.
WARNINGS: elle doesn't capitalize in action brackets OH NO seriously idk what to warn about
SUMMARY: screw this snow noise we're going out west. totally not going to get lost along the way.
FORMAT: no

   So once upon a time, two men from high fantasy settings decided that record-breaking snowfall on the east coast was stupid and also being hassled by local authorities for magically blowing up things wasn't much fun either. The solution was clear: Get the hell out of Dodge the City.

   By train. Because lots of people took the train - it has to be totally fine, right?

   A series of train rides with hopes to getting to Arizona. Here's some threads of what happens along the way and after. ENJOY.

Comments

[livesarock]

[and that worries him, too. because even if lina ever deserved a bit of a backhand for going over the top, zel wouldn't be too keen to let it happen.

unless agreeing to leave her behind was an unstated concession of such things.

oh, jeez. what the hell. if gourry were around, he wouldn't be nearly this anxious about it, right? what the hell was up with him and the girls he knew lately? why was it only like 4 hours into the trip?

oh wait. he's supposed to say something.] Nyeah. [BRILLIANCE.]

[trueltning_fury]

You need to let go. [though he doesn't say it scoldingly, he means well] I'm a captain and I don't worry this much over my unit.

[livesarock]

[yeah, no. geddoe's right. zel's getting annoyed with how annoying he's being - and he's usually so lenient when that happens, given that he usually doesn't assume he's being annoying.

he exhales, dropping his topic and jumping onto the next closest one.]

Why would you have to? If they're soldiers. They're trained enough, right?

[trueltning_fury]

[there's a pause, and then low, quiet laughter]

They're not soldiers. They're mercenaries. The only training you get is not dying on any missions.

[livesarock]

[zel sits up, scrutinizing that new information.] So 'captain's...less of an official stamp than something said out of respect? [because you're old good at stuff?]

[trueltning_fury]

No, captain is a legitimate rank. [oh good, lovely bland topic he can actually chat about] The Southern Frontier Defense Force is a branch of the Harmonian Regional Army. Even though we aren't Harmonian and aren't soldiers, unit captains still hold rank.

[he thinks, and then adds the rest self-deprecatingly] Considering how seldom my men actually call me 'captain,' I doubt there's much respect involved.

[livesarock]

[zel's head tilts as he makes a face. his tone is a bit on the dry side:] I don't really take mercenaries the type to pat each other on the back all the time, though, so...

[trueltning_fury]

No, not really. [there's a hint of fondness hidden in there, though. He's closer to those knuckleheads than he lets on] But it's still better than my days as a bandit.

[livesarock]

[there's a brief look on zel's face. it goes with the notion of what it'd be like if he was a bandit and introduced himself as such and lina just happened to be around...

well, whatever. brief thought over. zel folds his arms and leans back into his seat.]

A bandit out of necessity?

[trueltning_fury]

...yes and no.

[he sits back in the not-quite-so-comfy train seat and just sort of stares straight ahead for a minute. It's like he's steeling himself up to spill a secret. Or to let the drink cart go by so no one eavesdrops. Or maybe both]

When I was eighteen, Harmonia destroyed my home country. I didn't stay to resist, I fled. But that doesn't mean I had no choice - there are a lot of things a young man that age could do even without a place to call home. Banditry was only one of them.

[a pause for breath, and a sigh] Yet, after I got stuck with the True Rune, being a bandit was how we began a guerilla movement to resist the Harmonian occupation and save the Grasslands. Who knew that a couple of highwaymen would become the generals leading the resistance army to victory?

[livesarock]

[zel listened attentively, aware he was hearing something significant. at least, as far as either of them were concerned. he was kind of a jerk a lot of the times, yeah, but not that bad. and besides, it was rare to have a deep bit of conversation that wasn't rooted in alcohol or his own miseries (or both).

so...it was a kind of noble form of banditry? sounded like it. it wasn't something zel'd look down on, at least. if geddoe's mini-version of that world's history was accurate enough to make group-h bad and group-...whatever his group was called...the good guys. not exactly his call, though.]

You already won?

[trueltning_fury]

...fifty years ago.

[draw your own conclusions, Zel]

[livesarock]

[zel squints, turning that over in his head for a moment.] Do all people live that long, or was it some kind of residual magic effect?

[trueltning_fury]

[he lifts his right hand] ...it's from this. True Runes enable the bearer to live forever, or until they're killed by outside means.

[livesarock]

[huh.

handy. pun disregarded.]

I bet a lot of people would like to pry that off of you, then. If they knew.

[trueltning_fury]

Yes. [sneaky smirk. You catch on pretty quick young padawan] If they knew. They certainly would.

They can't be removed like basic runes, though. I would have to be killed so the Rune could choose a new host.

[livesarock]

[a light sigh. hey, neat - more pals with powers putting them (or the friggin world) in jeopardy! it's about as new as sliced bread for zel.

dryly:] How fun.

[trueltning_fury]

Thrilling.

[leaving totally unsaid that that's why he never takes off those damn gloves even in the summer, or talks about the Rune overly much, or anything else really. Secrets are important]

...do they serve alcohol on these trains?

[livesarock]

I don't know. [and he sounds the faintest bit touchy at that, folding his arms all the tighter and making a bored lineface at the window again.] Ask.

[trueltning_fury]

[well geez fine poutyface] ...all right, I will.

Problem?

[livesarock]

No. [only that adventures in alcoholism have wound up being adventures in regrets and also birds. the second part wasn't really the alcohol's problem, but. still. guilt by association.

also zel's fairly sure partaking in any wasn't going to make the ride any faster or fun. because. regrets. birds (by association).

no, he's marginally content enough to just peer window-ward and feign interest in...whatever the hell kind of store passing by happens to be.]

[trueltning_fury]

[whatever, as long as Zel wasn't going to get all mother-hen on the old man for wanting a beer. He gets up and goes to investigate, ignoring the looks and whispers from other passengers. Comes back in a little bit with a Heineken - success! Beer! And he found out about the meal service later, too, so right about now the train's not looking so bad]

[livesarock]

[the food news was good to hear - especially considering the fact that lina pilfered all the food that zel had set aside for the trip...so, despite still being utterly bored out of his skull, there was at least one less thing to worry about.

giving way to something else he was starting to observe as hours passed and stops continued. everyone else tended to get off at some point or another, making room for new people who subsequently left not long after. geddoe and zel were almost like fixtures, still a couple hours away from having to change trains. it bugged zel. a lot. and he looked a little more unhappy about it each time there was a stop that wasn't theirs.

so...taking the train was relatively normal. for short trips. but not the long ones? did that make him weird(er)? nevermind the fact that nobody else even gave a damn, this was important! kind of!

unless it wasn't and he was just clinging to a stupid idea for the sake of having something to think about that wasn't...well. other certain stuff.

needless to say, zel all but ran off the damn train when they reached DC. he didn't know anything about the city (or it's supreme relevance in the country) - he just wanted to get out and stand and breathe air that wasn't refiltered for once. and that was great!

until he hauled himself over to the route maps and proceeded to chart out their progress. as he'd done before the trip, and during...yet he still looked as disgusted as if he'd just found out jut then:] This isn't even halfway there...

[trueltning_fury]

[ooo maps. Geddoe liked maps. They made things make sense]

Where are we, then?

[livesarock]

Here. [he taps the glass case at the big, red, YOU ARE HERE-esque dot surrounded by labels and important notes of a touristy nature.] That's the City. [his finger rides up a red line up to the smaller, bluer City dot. he traces back, then squints, looking for the line that would be their next practice in patience.

there. angled north and west, he stops his finger in Illinois' general area.] Then this way, then...three days west. [that's where his accuracy stops; there's too many friggin lines and labels for him to remember which one was precisely which.]