(no subject)
He paused at the edge of the city, collecting his thoughts. His search had been largely a failure, he reflected, but it had at least led him back to the city. After finding no sign of his younger brother in the city in the first days after Ram's defeat, Jay had turned to the old Techno bases situated in the wilderness around the city, and had even ventured so far as to investigate the camps in the surrounding towns. He had hoped to find Ved and gather information on what remained of the Techno army, but had met with little success. He had been received cordially enough, for a man who had been hunted so recently, but Jay understood that the Old Order of the Technos had fallen, and he, in the minds of those who had once served under him, had fallen with it. He had been dealt with in a pleasant manner; he'd been fed and re-armed and gently told to go looking for his brother elsewhere, but he'd been given very little useful information. Despite the pleasantries, he knew full well that the Technos no longer respected or feared him, and he had made his visit accordingly brief.
Somehow, all of this did not matter to him anymore. All that mattered now, given the realities of the army, was finding Ved and resolving things with those he had left behind. Then, he could begin helping the city piece itself back together. Looking down at the city, he stifled a sigh. He had overheard some very vague rumors about his brother living in an apartment somewhere, but, in truth, Jay did not believe them. If Ved was still in the city and was still alive, there was only one place to go looking for him, and the thought of it stirred up memories Jay was not entirely ready to deal with. He shifted uneasily as thoughts of Ebony returned to him. He was uncertain as to how he would be welcomed back after such a lengthy absence; Ebony was unlikely to understand his reasons for leaving at a time when he knew he'd been needed in the city. But it had been a necessary trip, though it had pained him to take it, and he could only hope that she and the others would understand. Though he tried to deny it to himself, he knew that he missed her, and those feelings, coupled with his need to find Ved, made a trip to the Mall inevitable.
Squaring his shoulders, he adjusted the weapon on his wrist, and headed into the city.
Somehow, all of this did not matter to him anymore. All that mattered now, given the realities of the army, was finding Ved and resolving things with those he had left behind. Then, he could begin helping the city piece itself back together. Looking down at the city, he stifled a sigh. He had overheard some very vague rumors about his brother living in an apartment somewhere, but, in truth, Jay did not believe them. If Ved was still in the city and was still alive, there was only one place to go looking for him, and the thought of it stirred up memories Jay was not entirely ready to deal with. He shifted uneasily as thoughts of Ebony returned to him. He was uncertain as to how he would be welcomed back after such a lengthy absence; Ebony was unlikely to understand his reasons for leaving at a time when he knew he'd been needed in the city. But it had been a necessary trip, though it had pained him to take it, and he could only hope that she and the others would understand. Though he tried to deny it to himself, he knew that he missed her, and those feelings, coupled with his need to find Ved, made a trip to the Mall inevitable.
Squaring his shoulders, he adjusted the weapon on his wrist, and headed into the city.