2017-08-19: Going the Rite Way
- Cutscene: Going the Rite Way
- Cast: Dean Stark, Avril Vent Fleur, Rebecca Streisand
- Where: Guardian Temple outskirts
- Date: August 19, 2017
- Summary: After getting seriously hurt in his fight against the Metal Demons, Dean attempts to run back to Milama to regroup with his friends--only for them to regroup with him first on the still fiercely raging battleground.
Although it galled Dean to have to run away from a battle when everyone else was still struggling to push back the Metal Demons, he knew he was badly injured, and he also knew he'd done his best to help. It was for that reason that he could run back to civilization, if with wobbly feet. The potion he'd bought from Jay helped a lot to slow the bleeding, but his vision was still wobbling, and the sky spinning, and explosives banging...
"Dean!"
Huh? That sure sounded like Rebecca. She was supposed to be in town with Avril--
"/Dean/!! Oh my gosh! You're hurt so bad!!"
Arms caught him. Huh? Was he falling down? Dean shook his head, then blinked up at the stricken face of his childhood friend. Their more recent companion hovered over her shoulder.
"Dean, please allow me to heal you," Avril said, while Rebecca rolled him onto his back.
"Wh-what're you guys doing here?" Dean asked, happy to let Avril work her magic through the Sea Medium.
"None of the Metal Demons even tried to come to town, and then those giant ships showed up, so we got worried!" Rebecca said. "We thought you might need back-up so we came running to help, and it's a good thing we did! What *happened* to you?!"
"I fought a Metal Demon," Dean explained. "I won, though!"
Rebecca shot him an exasperated look. "If this is what you look like when you *win* against one of those things, I'd hate to see what you'd look like when you lo--"
A shell, fired from one of the incoming landships that had ironically saved Dean earlier, exploded nearby, interrupting Rebecca and showering all of them with a massive wave of sand. Better than shrapnel, but all three of them yelped before having to unearth themselves, spitting and dusting themselves off. At least Avril had finished healing Dean's wounds, though he still wasn't in the best of shape.
"Wh-what's going on with those things?!" Rebecca demanded, fear making her voice tremble. "Aren't those ships fighting off the Metal Demons?! What're they doing, firing so close to civilians like us?!"
"I-I dunno! They came in outta nowhere!" Dean said. "We'd better run back to town before--"
"No, the town is too far away," Avril interrupted, "and there is no cover between here and there. I fear we would be placed in grave danger."
"Th-then let's take cover in that temple!" Rebecca said, pointing to the heavily damaged Guardian Temple. "It's the best we've got, and it's a lot closer--we should be able to hide out in there until the worst is over!"
Dean and Avril, who both relied on Rebecca's good sense to carry them through dangerous situations like this, nodded their agreement. Together, the three of them wove their way around the battlefield, avoiding conflicts with other Metal Demons, until they could safely find refuge within the Guardian Temple.
A pity Rebecca had no way of knowing that Metal Beasts had already made it inside--and would drive anyone who sought temporary refuge deeper within...