TWO SIDES OF A COIN // [Social: Amagiri & Sonya]

The sound of the crowd was overwhelming. A faint buzz hidden amongst the occasional thunderous roar. Stampedes of feet slapping against poorly made, wooden seating. Wave upon wave of applause, torrents of abuse, chanting of names. This hellish setting could fit no other title but the arena of Talonia. A place where wizards, beasts and your everyday civilians converged to spectate or partake in the activities the cruel stadium provided.

The festivities of the day had yet to begin; an opportune moment for a certain young gentleman to make his mark upon these conflict-loving folk. Flashes of white could be seen amongst the throngs of people that gathered amidst the thin streets. Despite the overwrought nature of this environment, some had come assembled near a small box. Astride the platform stood what was previously described as the "flash of white.". A young gentleman dressed in a pale, baggy buttoned-down shirt and black pants. White bangs obscured his colourless eyes for the most part but there was no mistaking the passion that escaped his lips. His arm swiped through the air as he continued to gesticulate.

"People! I can only tell you this! In the animal kingdom, the rule is, eat or be eaten; in the human kingdom, define or be defined. We're no animals! We can't end this ceaseless violence whereby competitor upon competitor is forced—"

His monologue soon came to an end as an unexpected fist came flying from the rabble. Lost in his own words, Amagiri's body contorted while a grunting noise escaped his mouth briefly. His eyes widened as the platform from his feet cracked under the pressure only to send him tumbling the floor. Mud blanketed his white shirt. His eyes closed briefly whilst he struggled for breath. The very crowd he'd attempted to convince now stood over him. Amagiri shielded his head, attempting to speak once again whilst a foot collided off his guard.

"The people you trust the most could become strangers in their longing for violence! You turn on me now because I provide you all with a common enemy but.. what if that common enemy were your brother someday? If we continue to fight like this.. if we don't take a stand, there won't be any enemies left.. simply our fellow man! Your need for violence will need to be sated again and what then? Will you turn on those you care about the most?!""

Punches continued to rain down on his guarded frame. Amagiri knew how to fight because knowing how to throw the punch was just as important as knowing when to do so. This wasn't one of those times though. To him, these people simply misunderstood. They could be persuaded and violence wasn't the answer. He had to unite these people and stop this arena for good. Providing them with more entertainment, a fight that necessitated more fighting, this wasn't a solution Amagiri was willing to entertain.

Another punch slipped through his guard catching him on the mouth. His red lips soon flowed a deep crimson as blood spilled from the wound another mobster had inflicted. Amagiri felt his vision fading, eyeline blackening, his guard slackened...

---

deltra of gangnam style

Blow after blow. Fists flew in torrents, sheets. Blows concatenated into one immovable force whilst Amagiri's consciousness soon faded out of reality.

He drifted freely now, stuck in his own mind-space whilst the damage he'd sustained prior soon began to fade. He watched on through an outsider's perspective. The weakling who couldn't persuade a simple crowd. A dark voice drifted through the rift, coaxing, muttering. It was unmistakable. "You know.. If you want to know the outcome of a game before the game has even started, you need to control each side." the voice teased. It had materialized now. A shadowy wisp of personified hatred, loathing, conflict. Everything Amagiri detested about this world.

"Shut up.. Peace cannot be kept by force; it can only be achieved by understanding. If I were to control them through fear of my strength, then I'm no better than them. I'd only be adding fuel to the goddamn flames."

Amagiri's eyes blazed, his fists were clenched. Anger was fueling his movement now and he could feel one foot move on it's own in a step towards the murky tendril of a being. Before he could take another step though, a light-touch interrupted his moment of solitary. A yanking feeling overcame his body and this spatial void of consciousness that had once held him prisoner soon began to fade away.

Pain covered his body from head-to-toe as the sensation of each adjoining blow flooded back into him like a tsunami. His legs almost gave way but the support of this individual who held firm on his forearm stopped him from doing so.

It took him a moment but his vision soon returned. His colourless eyes widened while the white bangs that once covered his eyes slid to his temples. "W-woah.."" he exclaimed in some kind of verbal slur. It would seem that the busted lip affected his ability to speak though, in actuality, it was more of a reverence for the being that stood before him.

Pink hair traipsed and cascaded down her shoulders whilst a compassionate and concerned gaze decorated her expression. It took Amagiri several moments to process her appearance. Rationalize such beauty in his brain. He presumed it wasn't her look that he'd become so infatuated with but rather the aura of kindness that surrounded her. He could have been wrong as one should never judge a book by it's cover but.. it was this kind of attitude that he wanted from the world. It was faultlessness.

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to cause you any trouble." Amagiri exclaimed, snapping back to reality within a moment's notice. "I hope no one was hurt.." he said, glancing around at each and every bystander. Some cast gazes of a sinister nature while others were simply bewildered by the events that transpired. Regardless, Amagiri's solicitous personality enabled him to see past prior-events and still emanate an aura of concern to everyone, regardless of whether they'd done him harm.

Shaking his head briefly, his eyes refocused on the pink-haired beauty before him. "So.. what's your name?" he said with a warm smile decorating his features. His hand wobbled for a moment before extending out from his side. Even movement seemed hard as every bone in his body ached, some limbs seemed inept of even the most basic manoeuvres. It was clear severe damage had been done. "I'm Amagiri Volkov. Your local bringer of the peace!" he grinned.

---

deltra of gangnam style

A pale hand grasped at the rivulets of crimson that dotted his now brightly colored lips. He grimaced, well-aware of his appearance in the company of this pink-haired maiden. He wondered how she regarded him now. Battered, downtrodden, assaulted. A few words to describe the harsh deliverance he'd received as a direct result of his words. Fingers clasped to his mouth to stop another cascade of brightly lit liquid falling to the trodden earth below.

"Ow.." he winced as a consequence of handling his wounds in this way. He shook his head to temporarily dismiss the pain, his colourless eyes brightened as the strong-willed woman piped up a second time.

"I doubt that was my doing.." he remarked, before continuing. "You know, humans think conflict to be a primal instinct. A go-to when you've said something they disagree with. It's a hard thing to dismiss. That anger and protest that builds up inside them, their failure to see logic even when it slaps them in the face. Conflict only causes pain, hurt and loss. I don't care what they do to me provided I can make them think differently. If they run.. or if they fight, it doesn't matter. As long as they walk away a changed individual." he smiled to himself, well-aware of the unrealistic aims he vocalized. That's all they were at this point, aims and intentions. He'd accomplished nothing, truly. These people had walked over him today, stamped him into the mud like trash.

"See, you're starting to realize it too. Even a conqueror can be a lover of peace, little one." the voice chimed; manipulative and sadistic. It reverberated through him like a musical instrument. It's melody entwining itself with his heart-strings--threatening to corrupt him at a moment's notice.

Amagiri only shook his head to banish the thought. This wasn't the time nor the place. Instead, his attention redirected itself to what stood immediately before him. He couldn't help his mind from wandering as she deliberated over his very simplistic question.

Weird.. he thought to himself. She continued though and her responses brought a distinct pleasure to his features. "A seducer of the people, huh? Maybe that's what I need. You could do my job for me!" he exclaimed though his voice lacked it's usual sincerity; his goal was a burden for him to bear.


His face transitioned into a mysteriously bright shade of pink--contrasting greatly with it's usual pale white undertones. What had caused such a bizarre phenomenon? Amagiri's colourless eyes glanced downwards. A hand clasped over his.. Dahlia's hand! He hadn't even a moment to react to this random episode of intimacy though before he was whisked off down the street to a location where Dahlia claimed he would be tended to.

Amagiri's voice cut off whilst his analytic mind soon began to process his surroundings. It was instinctive of him to do-so. His explorative nature and swashbuckling attitude often left him exposed to periods of absent-mindedness. Brief intervals whereby his bodily motions would completely shut off so he could inspect every little element of his surroundings. This was one of those times where this sharp ingredient of his personality did not come in handy.

Each and every observation only fueled his growing sense of irritation. Individuals locked away, beasts besieged in the cages that binded them. The very image of violence unfurled before him to create a tapestry of everything Amagiri despised about this world. Greed, envy, wrath to name a few. It was rare to see a figure that didn't exhibit any of these detestable attributes. The young white-haired mage wanted to explode and he would have done so if it weren't for Dahlia's discovery of a diamond in the rough. A quaint little café that stood out like a sore thumb amidst this pit of anarchy.

Bijou chairs accompanied elegant looking tables. Wooden paneling extended gracefully through the length of the room. A warm illumination flooded the free space where a waiter and waitress practically danced from customer to customer. The place was relatively quiet, Amagiri presumed a shop like this wouldn't attract the largest company considering the crowd that resided outside.

"Hey, you don't needa..-!" Amagiri's voice was muffled briefly as Dahlia attended to the wound on his lip. His face flustered again, returning to it's absurd state of purpley pink. He did his best to hide it through the white bangs that hung low over his features.

Whilst cowering within the shadow of his own hair, Amagiri's thoughts continued to wander. A stranger exhibiting this kind of kindness. It was his ideology brought to life. If everyone in the world could simply follow this woman's example.. His eyes twinkled though her question snapped him back to reality.

"The truth hurts." Amagiri replied bluntly before continuing. "People shouldn't be harmed at the expense of other's entertainment. I won't stand idly by while they throw their money at those enslaved to a life of conflict." his eyes began to burn with a passionate flame whilst the bangs fell to either side of his face. "I told them that, they didn't like it.. I guess." he smiled, accidentally breaking the cut on his lip again to give way to yet another globule of red liquid.

It had taken time but Amagiri had grown accustomed to the sounds of Talonia. Ruffians shouting explicitness at one another, paddlers advertising yet another bloody battle royalé, painful outcries from abused animals. There was one noise though.. a noise that this white-haired mage couldn't ignore. A piercing innocence that shot through this sea of vocal corruption. A young girl screaming for her brother.

A cold air shifted through the café despite it's closed doors. An emotional burst of magical energy exuding from Amagiri's orifices. His body shot from the seat, knocking the table from it's position and sending the chair reeling backwards. The waiter shouted obscenities after him but it was too late, the young mage was out the door in a matter of seconds.

It didn't take him long to assess the situation. A young girl weeped only a few meters from the café whilst a carriage pulled a cage with a slightly older boy as it's occupant. The horse-drawn vehicle disappeared around the bend and the girl's cries only got louder.

"I'll get him back for you, that's a promise. No more people will suffer today." Amagiri's usually quaint tone had taken an almost dark-shift as he spoke. There was something sincere about his voice, a resolute truthfulness to his every word. However, at the same time, there was something sinister there too. A darkened resolve. This was the kind of voice that you'd expect to hear from a man who was willing to do anything to achieve his wishes.


Assuming Dahlia were to go outside and assess the scene, she'd only notice the young girl still on her knees. Her tears would have subsided and her gaze stilled. Her eyes trained on a darkened cloud in the distance. A thunderous echo broke through the fanatical yet commonplace voices of Talonia and it began to rain. This rain wasn't ordinary though. Each and every droplet seemed to resonate with emotion, a saddened expression. Lightning roared over ahead in the direction of the arena and men's screams could be heard.

Meanwhile, Amagiri stood in the vast arena, a dark shadow concealing all of his primary facial features. The young boy cowered behind him; fearful of his savior. A behemoth of a being stood infront, his body charred and crisp--clearly a victim of the lightning from before. Now, the young white-haired mage stared down several heavily armed Talonia guards.

"No more.. people.. suffer.." Amagiri spoke though his voice sounded alien.

---

deltra of gangnam style

Deathly wisps of smoke curled and contorted into the open air. The smell of burnt meat left a repugnant twinge in Amagiri's nose as his senses began to return. A scene of raw brutality unfolded before him while his colourless eyes soon returned to focus. Irises widened as the blackened bodies of two individuals lay curled on the ground, their faces immortalised in a picture of fear and grief.

"I.. I.." Amagiri stuttered, mumbled, clambered for a sentence but no words found his lips. Instead, a dreading feeling of weightlessness flooded his system triggering a drop to his knees. Dust curled from the impact his body had on the ground.

Dahlia stood a few meters away screaming obscenities at him. The little boy he came to rescue stood behind her, a fearful look that might never disappear in his eyes. His fingers trembled in Dahlia's grasp but his glance never left Amagiri's. The white-haired mage clenched his fist in the dirt before slowly rising to his feet. He turned his back to her and raised the concealing white hood that hung low over his features; masking his face in a silhouette of mysteriousness.

"Maybe you're right. Maybe I am nothing more than a filthy liar."

Amagiri's proclamation rang through the silence considering Dahlia had stopped shouting at him. She was near the gate now when the crowd that had once stood in awe of the events that had unfurled began to cheer. Their hungry war-cries for bloodshed sickened Amagiri to the core as they jovialised the senseless acts the ruthless white-haired mage had caused. Row upon row of these repulsive individuals rose to their feet to grace Amagiri with a sickening standing ovation.

Tears flooded Amagiri's eyes as the reality of this issue was only amplified by the cheer of the surrounding crowd. Clenching his jaw, white-hair fluttered as Amagiri took off from the ground. His leap aided him in clearing the barricades of the arena and his body vanished from Dahlia's view.

The boy is safe now.. that's all that matters. Amagiri thought to himself while a sinister malintention flooded his thought-space.

"Guilt is cancer. Guilt will confine you, torture you, destroy you as an artist. It's a black wall. It's a thief." it spoke calculatingly as if every word that left it's diseased lips were planned, rehearsed and delivered exactly when he wanted them to.

"You'll never control me again, monster. I'm done listening to your nihilistic bullshit. You don't care for life, all you want is war.. death.. there's no end-goal for you. You'd rather me fight until everyone lay dead. You fail to understand that the supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting. Everyone we meet is fighting a battle we know nothing about. If we don't try to understand them and resolve our problems through violence, we only create more conflict."

Amagiri practically screamed the last-sentence into the open-air. He found himself in a forest now and his acts of defiance to the demon that resided within pierced the canopy's tranquility. Animals scattered from the bushes they resided in and a harsh wind whipped through the leaves above.

That defiance, that anger.. it would soon fade. Fade and transition into a feeling of eternal sadness. Amagiri had done wrong today, he had murdered, mercilessly slaughtered. The tears he had wiped away earlier returned with a vengeance. His eyeballs glistened over and cascades of shimmering liquid fell from his eyes gracefully while a harrowing grief rose to the surface. How would he recover from this?

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