Lorenz112
Tybur OC in Warrior project, later sent to Paradise.
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"It all started in the year 840. I was seven, and I was unreasonable. Few kids are at that age, but I was the most unreasonable by far - and it, ironically enough, saved my life. Armin would've probably come up with some pretty moral for this. I am not Armin, though, and I don't have a moral for you.
I simply know that it was the first step on the path that created me."
The capital was rarely silent at night. The music coming from the night venues, loud steps of patrolling soldiers, a few gunshots coming from the internment zone.
The study of Dirk Tybur, in contrast, was the sanctity of silence. The uncrowned emperor of Marley, the empire spanning across the entire continent, valued silence more than anything else in the world. What a pity that I was not going to give it to him.
"Are you going to tell something, dad? I am sitting here for half an hour already."
It took a not-insignificant amount of audacity to say that aloud - but hey, it did the job. He raised his eyes from the pile of documents on the table that did not grow smaller and looked at me.
"What was the purpose of your disgrace?"
He had pretty eyes. So blue that they almost seemed violet, and hard - very similar to those that I usually see in the mirror. Mine are soft, though. Sometimes I try to look threatening, but I feel like my reflection is laughing at me.
"Since when do you call duty a disgrace, father?"
Silence. I looked into his eyes – deep, cold, un-fucking-impressed eyes – and did my best not to look away.
"Duty? Are you going to lecture me about duty, my boy?"
There was no pressure in his tone, only mild interest - and oh boy did I feel it. I tried to hide the sweat on my palms, but I doubt it worked.
"Do I need to?" I felt a nervous chuckle leaving my throat. "All eldians must serve in the military. I only did my duty."
And enlisted into the military. Fortunately, the guard that father ordered to follow me around was sloppy - or just allowed me what he considered a harmless childish whim.
Father's glance moved to my left hand, finding a simple white armband. His eyes hardened.
"Remove it. Immediately."
I chuckled again. I couldn't hold it.
"Why? To be executed? Forgive me, father, but I can not follow such order. As an Eldian, I must wear the sign of the devil's blood at all times. As should you." I felt a laugh coming through my lips. "Wasn't that what our grand grandfather had ordered? Or did you forget who we are?"
He glared at me. No, not really. He stared, evaluated, and, finally, nodded.
"Eldians also live behind the walls of internment camps. Would you rather I send you there?"
"Would you?" I asked. I really hope it did not sound like a scared whimper. "Don't bother answering, I wanted to offer that myself."
"Enough. I have no time for your childish foolishness. You never felt hunger or need, and don't have the tiniest idea of what you are discussing so easily. You are throwing words without the understanding of their meaning, my child." He sighed. "Take off the cloth from your hand and go back to your room. I will decide on your punishment later."
Yeh, would not happen.
"Do you want me to run from home? Because that's how you make me run away from home."
Father chuckled. He honestly, genuinely chuckled. Perhaps I said something dumb.
"Are you trying to threaten me with your own foolishness?"
Yeh, I definitely did.
"I am only stating a fact. You will lock me in my room, and I will leave the house."
"To go where dare I ask?"
"A rhetoric question, from you? Please, dad. We both know that I applied for the warriors' program. That is why you summoned me today, for the first time in years."
It sounded way more jealousy than I intended.
"Is it an attempt to get my attention, then? With a childish rebellion?"
"It is not a rebellion if it succeeded." I let out a single snort. "Let us get to the point, then?"
"Very well." He sighed. "Your sister will inherit the War Hammer from your mother. You will return to your room and forget about this foolishness. I will ignore your insolence for this once."
"I regret to inform you, but you are not the one who decides who will inherit it, it is the sole prerogative of the bearer. Besides, I do not want to pursue War Hammer."
"What do you want, then?"
Wow. At this point, it was officially ten times more words in a single dialogue than I heard from him in the entirety of this year.
"I had applied for the program and went through the initial medical and psychological tests. You have the results on your table. I am Eldian. I have a right and duty to serve. Are you going to deny it to me, too?"
He sighed.
"You do not have the slightest idea what the warrior unit training entails, don't you?"
A whole lot of suffering and imminent death in thirteen years in case of success. But, besides that…
"Are you going to shield me and Willy from the world for the whole eternity, then?" I screamed. "What, you think a training regime will break me? For Marley sake, you are throwing Lara under War Hammer, but refuse to let me enlist into a freaking army?!"
"Tybur had already saved Marley once. We have no responsibility to serve it any longer."
"Well, I am sorry, but not everyone in this family is impotent! I am not going to sit here when our people are dying for us!"
He stared at me, with anger and... I think I hit the nerve. I think he was done with this talk.
"Very well." Father shook his head. "If you are so willing to insult me and our family, I will allow you to choose your path."
"Meaning?"
"If you wish it so much, you will join the warrior program. You will compete with every other cadet on equal grounds. It will be your responsibility to succeed. Should you fail, you will be transferred to the internment zone along with the other rejects of the Eldian descent. You will stay there until I allow you to return. If you enjoy wearing the armband so much, I will give you the opportunity to get accustomed to it."
His tone was harsh and final. Did he want for me to get down, I wonder? To say "sorry" like a good boy and get the fuck back to my room?
I shrugged instead.
"If you say so."
Father nodded. He looked at his guard, a huge man clothed in red and black.
"Bring him to the Headquarters of the Warrior project in Liberio. Tell them that I allowed Albert to join. They will receive detailed instructions later."
And that's how with a single "yes, sir" from the guard I truly stepped out of the comfort of the family mansion for the first time in my life.
In the years to come, I will remember it as the single most important day of my life.
--------
"It all started in the year 840. I was seven, and I was unreasonable. Few kids are at that age, but I was the most unreasonable by far - and it, ironically enough, saved my life. Armin would've probably come up with some pretty moral for this. I am not Armin, though, and I don't have a moral for you.
I simply know that it was the first step on the path that created me."
The capital was rarely silent at night. The music coming from the night venues, loud steps of patrolling soldiers, a few gunshots coming from the internment zone.
The study of Dirk Tybur, in contrast, was the sanctity of silence. The uncrowned emperor of Marley, the empire spanning across the entire continent, valued silence more than anything else in the world. What a pity that I was not going to give it to him.
"Are you going to tell something, dad? I am sitting here for half an hour already."
It took a not-insignificant amount of audacity to say that aloud - but hey, it did the job. He raised his eyes from the pile of documents on the table that did not grow smaller and looked at me.
"What was the purpose of your disgrace?"
He had pretty eyes. So blue that they almost seemed violet, and hard - very similar to those that I usually see in the mirror. Mine are soft, though. Sometimes I try to look threatening, but I feel like my reflection is laughing at me.
"Since when do you call duty a disgrace, father?"
Silence. I looked into his eyes – deep, cold, un-fucking-impressed eyes – and did my best not to look away.
"Duty? Are you going to lecture me about duty, my boy?"
There was no pressure in his tone, only mild interest - and oh boy did I feel it. I tried to hide the sweat on my palms, but I doubt it worked.
"Do I need to?" I felt a nervous chuckle leaving my throat. "All eldians must serve in the military. I only did my duty."
And enlisted into the military. Fortunately, the guard that father ordered to follow me around was sloppy - or just allowed me what he considered a harmless childish whim.
Father's glance moved to my left hand, finding a simple white armband. His eyes hardened.
"Remove it. Immediately."
I chuckled again. I couldn't hold it.
"Why? To be executed? Forgive me, father, but I can not follow such order. As an Eldian, I must wear the sign of the devil's blood at all times. As should you." I felt a laugh coming through my lips. "Wasn't that what our grand grandfather had ordered? Or did you forget who we are?"
He glared at me. No, not really. He stared, evaluated, and, finally, nodded.
"Eldians also live behind the walls of internment camps. Would you rather I send you there?"
"Would you?" I asked. I really hope it did not sound like a scared whimper. "Don't bother answering, I wanted to offer that myself."
"Enough. I have no time for your childish foolishness. You never felt hunger or need, and don't have the tiniest idea of what you are discussing so easily. You are throwing words without the understanding of their meaning, my child." He sighed. "Take off the cloth from your hand and go back to your room. I will decide on your punishment later."
Yeh, would not happen.
"Do you want me to run from home? Because that's how you make me run away from home."
Father chuckled. He honestly, genuinely chuckled. Perhaps I said something dumb.
"Are you trying to threaten me with your own foolishness?"
Yeh, I definitely did.
"I am only stating a fact. You will lock me in my room, and I will leave the house."
"To go where dare I ask?"
"A rhetoric question, from you? Please, dad. We both know that I applied for the warriors' program. That is why you summoned me today, for the first time in years."
It sounded way more jealousy than I intended.
"Is it an attempt to get my attention, then? With a childish rebellion?"
"It is not a rebellion if it succeeded." I let out a single snort. "Let us get to the point, then?"
"Very well." He sighed. "Your sister will inherit the War Hammer from your mother. You will return to your room and forget about this foolishness. I will ignore your insolence for this once."
"I regret to inform you, but you are not the one who decides who will inherit it, it is the sole prerogative of the bearer. Besides, I do not want to pursue War Hammer."
"What do you want, then?"
Wow. At this point, it was officially ten times more words in a single dialogue than I heard from him in the entirety of this year.
"I had applied for the program and went through the initial medical and psychological tests. You have the results on your table. I am Eldian. I have a right and duty to serve. Are you going to deny it to me, too?"
He sighed.
"You do not have the slightest idea what the warrior unit training entails, don't you?"
A whole lot of suffering and imminent death in thirteen years in case of success. But, besides that…
"Are you going to shield me and Willy from the world for the whole eternity, then?" I screamed. "What, you think a training regime will break me? For Marley sake, you are throwing Lara under War Hammer, but refuse to let me enlist into a freaking army?!"
"Tybur had already saved Marley once. We have no responsibility to serve it any longer."
"Well, I am sorry, but not everyone in this family is impotent! I am not going to sit here when our people are dying for us!"
He stared at me, with anger and... I think I hit the nerve. I think he was done with this talk.
"Very well." Father shook his head. "If you are so willing to insult me and our family, I will allow you to choose your path."
"Meaning?"
"If you wish it so much, you will join the warrior program. You will compete with every other cadet on equal grounds. It will be your responsibility to succeed. Should you fail, you will be transferred to the internment zone along with the other rejects of the Eldian descent. You will stay there until I allow you to return. If you enjoy wearing the armband so much, I will give you the opportunity to get accustomed to it."
His tone was harsh and final. Did he want for me to get down, I wonder? To say "sorry" like a good boy and get the fuck back to my room?
I shrugged instead.
"If you say so."
Father nodded. He looked at his guard, a huge man clothed in red and black.
"Bring him to the Headquarters of the Warrior project in Liberio. Tell them that I allowed Albert to join. They will receive detailed instructions later."
And that's how with a single "yes, sir" from the guard I truly stepped out of the comfort of the family mansion for the first time in my life.
In the years to come, I will remember it as the single most important day of my life.
