The Ivory Jaguar
06-06-2007, 00:47
I am Talon. The warrior. The leader of men. I have done horrible things. I have killed and had killed thousands of men, women, and children. I have toppled a democratically elected government, and replaced it with half a dozen warlords leaping at each other's throats. I have exterminated those warlords, one by one, until only I was left, the absolute ruler of my nation. All this, and more, I have done for one reason. Power. Not for me, but for my people, for my nation. I have built the foundation, though I shall not live to say the end result of my struggles. Ten years from now, twenty, a hundred, a thousand, my people shall issue forth from this nation and remake the face of the Earth in their image. This is my dream, this is my prophecy, this is my doom. I am Talon.
~Excerpt: The Talon Journals
Five weeks ago.
They came in the night, one hundred of Talon’s finest soldiers, his personal guard, descended on the town. They moved swiftly, but calmly and precisely, with Talon himself in the lead. One by one, they identified and removed areas of major resistance. The large extended family that made a stand in an apartment building. The sharpshooter on the roof of the abandoned temple. The police who valiantly but futilely tried to barricade main street against the enemy. It didn’t really matter what the resistance was, it was broken, either head on, from the sides, or from the flank. Finally, the town was cleared of enemy resistance.
Talon stood on the roof of the temple, overlooking the town. As he stood there, he cleaned the blood off of his knife. It had come down to close quarters in that apartment building. His lieutenant and majordomo, Phenex approached him. Talon was head and shoulders taller than Phenex and far more intimidating than the plain faced man, but the smaller man approached without fear. “Talon, Lord, I have the butcher’s bill.” Talon turned, and nodded, and Phenex proceeded. “Mark and John Blaze were both killed by that thrice damned sniper. Elizabeth Sael was killed in that apartment building.”
Talon nodded. These were acceptable losses, though regrettable. “A shame that we have lost Elizabeth,” he said. “She was the personification of grace and death. I would have made her my queen when all this was over.” There was pain in his voice, an odd change from his usual icy calm. “And the Blaze brothers, a shame almost as great. But do not grieve, my blood brother. They shall be avenged. For each one of them, a hundred of these cattle shall be slaughtered. Round up the usual assortment.”
***
There were three groups, each of a hundred men and women. Most of them were either elderly or infirm or both. Talon did not believe in unnecessarily wasting resources. There were, however, a few young, healthy men and women in each group. They were huddled together in barbed wire enclosures, terrified of what would happen next. Stories of the cruelties and inhumanities of Talon and his warriors had spread before them, encouraged, in no small part, by Talon himself. The sight of the soldiers, all at least six feet tall, clad in black body armor and face concealing helmets and gas masks, was anything but reassuring. The soldiers both kept wary eyes on those in the enclosure, and held at bay the rest of the townspeople. Talon himself stood before the center enclosure, holding his helmet in his hands.
“You are here for one reason and one reason only,” he said. His voice began icily cold, but quickly flared to a white hot rage. “You have aligned yourself with my enemies. None of you took the offer I generously gave you to surrender before I attacked this town. As I told you then, every man, woman, and child that remained in town after the deadline expired has been sentenced to death. I am merciful, however, and I have granted pardons to the majority of you. However, not content simply to defy me, the people of this town have murdered my soldiers! Killed two of my brothers, and the woman I would have made my queen! They cry out to me for vengeance, for the people of this town to suffer as they have! Each one of them is worth a hundred of you, and so, a hundred of you shall die for each of them.”
An elderly woman tried to break through the soldiers keeping the townspeople back, calling out to one of the young men in the barbed wire pen. A soldier, a young woman, calmly clubbed her on the head with the back of her rifle. The older woman fell back, blood streaming from her head. Others among the townspeople held her back as she tried get up, and dragged her away from the enclosures.
“This is the price you pay for defying me, for murdering my brothers,” said Talon, his voice once again ice. At each enclosure, a soldier lowered his weapon at the prisoners. “This is the price that must be paid, so that the people learn that to kill my soldiers is death. Men, fire.” Each of the three soldiers pulled the trigger, and a jet of flame leapt from the barrel of their weapon. Most of the townspeople turned away, as did a good deal of the soldiers. Talon and Phenex, however, kept their eyes locked on the condemned as they died.
One Week Ago:
“We have done well, Phenex,” said Talon. “We have remade the nation. We have turned a complacent, soft, squabbling democracy into a nation of war and warriors.” Phenex and he stood on a balcony overlooking a training ground where the young men and women who were to become the elite shock troops of the currently being built military were drilling. Most of them were of the western Angelli tribes, as was Phenex, and as was Talon himself, if only by adoption. “I am proud to have called you my blood brother Phenex,” said Talon, “But my work here is done. I am a monster, and it is not for me to see the nation through this next phase. Goodbye, Phenex.”
Phenex opened his mouth to say something, but Talon cut him off with a sharp hand gesture. He froze as Talon drew his pistol, and placed the barrel in his mouth. He did not freeze for long, and as the pistol rang out, he was screaming into his radio. “Medic! Medic! I need a thrice-damned medic down here now!” He knew it wouldn’t help- the odds of surviving a pistol going off while in your mouth and pointed towards your brains probably weren’t absolute zero, but they were close enough as to make no difference, but it didn’t seem to matter. Talon’s body had stayed upright for a moment, and Phenex caught him as he collapsed. Then, for the first time in his memory, Phenex began to cry.
Today:
Official Diplomatic Communiqué
I hearby announce my intention to bring the Nomadic Peoples out of years of isolation, and into the world at large. We have recently suffered the loss of a ruthless but brilliant ruler, and are working to recover.
In addition, we are looking to purchase large amounts of intercontinental capable missiles, and effective missile defense systems, in order to provide an effective deterrent and defense against foreign attack.
I regret to inform that at this point, until we have fully put our own house in order, we are not looking for and do not intend to enter into any long term diplomatic or trade relations.
Phenex
http://img503.imageshack.us/img503/5518/talonsc9.png
~Excerpt: The Talon Journals
Five weeks ago.
They came in the night, one hundred of Talon’s finest soldiers, his personal guard, descended on the town. They moved swiftly, but calmly and precisely, with Talon himself in the lead. One by one, they identified and removed areas of major resistance. The large extended family that made a stand in an apartment building. The sharpshooter on the roof of the abandoned temple. The police who valiantly but futilely tried to barricade main street against the enemy. It didn’t really matter what the resistance was, it was broken, either head on, from the sides, or from the flank. Finally, the town was cleared of enemy resistance.
Talon stood on the roof of the temple, overlooking the town. As he stood there, he cleaned the blood off of his knife. It had come down to close quarters in that apartment building. His lieutenant and majordomo, Phenex approached him. Talon was head and shoulders taller than Phenex and far more intimidating than the plain faced man, but the smaller man approached without fear. “Talon, Lord, I have the butcher’s bill.” Talon turned, and nodded, and Phenex proceeded. “Mark and John Blaze were both killed by that thrice damned sniper. Elizabeth Sael was killed in that apartment building.”
Talon nodded. These were acceptable losses, though regrettable. “A shame that we have lost Elizabeth,” he said. “She was the personification of grace and death. I would have made her my queen when all this was over.” There was pain in his voice, an odd change from his usual icy calm. “And the Blaze brothers, a shame almost as great. But do not grieve, my blood brother. They shall be avenged. For each one of them, a hundred of these cattle shall be slaughtered. Round up the usual assortment.”
***
There were three groups, each of a hundred men and women. Most of them were either elderly or infirm or both. Talon did not believe in unnecessarily wasting resources. There were, however, a few young, healthy men and women in each group. They were huddled together in barbed wire enclosures, terrified of what would happen next. Stories of the cruelties and inhumanities of Talon and his warriors had spread before them, encouraged, in no small part, by Talon himself. The sight of the soldiers, all at least six feet tall, clad in black body armor and face concealing helmets and gas masks, was anything but reassuring. The soldiers both kept wary eyes on those in the enclosure, and held at bay the rest of the townspeople. Talon himself stood before the center enclosure, holding his helmet in his hands.
“You are here for one reason and one reason only,” he said. His voice began icily cold, but quickly flared to a white hot rage. “You have aligned yourself with my enemies. None of you took the offer I generously gave you to surrender before I attacked this town. As I told you then, every man, woman, and child that remained in town after the deadline expired has been sentenced to death. I am merciful, however, and I have granted pardons to the majority of you. However, not content simply to defy me, the people of this town have murdered my soldiers! Killed two of my brothers, and the woman I would have made my queen! They cry out to me for vengeance, for the people of this town to suffer as they have! Each one of them is worth a hundred of you, and so, a hundred of you shall die for each of them.”
An elderly woman tried to break through the soldiers keeping the townspeople back, calling out to one of the young men in the barbed wire pen. A soldier, a young woman, calmly clubbed her on the head with the back of her rifle. The older woman fell back, blood streaming from her head. Others among the townspeople held her back as she tried get up, and dragged her away from the enclosures.
“This is the price you pay for defying me, for murdering my brothers,” said Talon, his voice once again ice. At each enclosure, a soldier lowered his weapon at the prisoners. “This is the price that must be paid, so that the people learn that to kill my soldiers is death. Men, fire.” Each of the three soldiers pulled the trigger, and a jet of flame leapt from the barrel of their weapon. Most of the townspeople turned away, as did a good deal of the soldiers. Talon and Phenex, however, kept their eyes locked on the condemned as they died.
One Week Ago:
“We have done well, Phenex,” said Talon. “We have remade the nation. We have turned a complacent, soft, squabbling democracy into a nation of war and warriors.” Phenex and he stood on a balcony overlooking a training ground where the young men and women who were to become the elite shock troops of the currently being built military were drilling. Most of them were of the western Angelli tribes, as was Phenex, and as was Talon himself, if only by adoption. “I am proud to have called you my blood brother Phenex,” said Talon, “But my work here is done. I am a monster, and it is not for me to see the nation through this next phase. Goodbye, Phenex.”
Phenex opened his mouth to say something, but Talon cut him off with a sharp hand gesture. He froze as Talon drew his pistol, and placed the barrel in his mouth. He did not freeze for long, and as the pistol rang out, he was screaming into his radio. “Medic! Medic! I need a thrice-damned medic down here now!” He knew it wouldn’t help- the odds of surviving a pistol going off while in your mouth and pointed towards your brains probably weren’t absolute zero, but they were close enough as to make no difference, but it didn’t seem to matter. Talon’s body had stayed upright for a moment, and Phenex caught him as he collapsed. Then, for the first time in his memory, Phenex began to cry.
Today:
Official Diplomatic Communiqué
I hearby announce my intention to bring the Nomadic Peoples out of years of isolation, and into the world at large. We have recently suffered the loss of a ruthless but brilliant ruler, and are working to recover.
In addition, we are looking to purchase large amounts of intercontinental capable missiles, and effective missile defense systems, in order to provide an effective deterrent and defense against foreign attack.
I regret to inform that at this point, until we have fully put our own house in order, we are not looking for and do not intend to enter into any long term diplomatic or trade relations.
Phenex
http://img503.imageshack.us/img503/5518/talonsc9.png