Kicking Dust/Episode 1

Kicking Dust Episode 1 - Kicking Dust!
We meet Duster and her friends on an average day, and witness one of their sparring matches. Meanwhile, Fractus conquers a tribe, uniting more of the Flydevin civilisation!
==Scene 1==
An outer-space shot of a desert planet - Silanex - is shown. The camera then zooms towards the planet, through the atmosphere, and eventually to a barren area where a Flydevin’s silhouette is shown using their Wind Arts to fight off a raider with scrap weapons.
The camera then zooms into a sandstorm, coming out near a small, peaceful Flydevin settlement, showing people using Droplet Winds to create water and Solar Winds for blacksmithing. Overseeing the village is a man wearing a blue robe and a metallic chestplate with two lightning rods “points” on the shoulders.
The camera then moves out of the village, revealing the silhouette of a town in the distance, but most importantly, an army marching towards the village, led by an large, imposing armor-wearing Flydevin with rock wings - Fractus Zhantom.
It zooms past this army, and into the town, flying around it and giving viewers a good shot of it - its architecture appears to mainly be carved out of sandstone blocks, yet the buildings appear quite stable, and it appears to be a relatively expansive town, especially considering the planet it’s on. The camera briefly flies through a castle, before then flying into a small home…
Where it suddenly stops dead in its tracks, showing two Flydevins merely eating cereals for breakfast.
One appears to be a young teenage girl, with poofy hair reminiscent of a cloud and a similarly cloud-like dress with wind patterns on it. On the other side of the table is an older-looking, but slightly shorter muscular woman wearing a grey sleeveless shirt, rock-patterned pants and with grey, slightly less poofy with two “buns” to its sides, one of which is doubled. These are known as Nimbus Zhantom and her older sister Duster Zhantom respectively.
The two begin to have a conversation, the camera shifting from angle to angle to show the two talking.
:Duster: So, Cloudie, what do you have for school today?
:Nimbus: Oh, ya know, the usual. History, art, PE…
:Duster: Nice! How’re you holding up in there right now?
:Nimbus: Pretty well! History is boring as usual, but, uhm, it’s pretty good overall, I think!
:Duster: Nice, nice… yeah, I hated History when I was at your age, I don’t blame you.
:Nimbus: Weheheh… I was going to ask you what you’re doing today too, but, um, I already know it’s training with Broccoli and Radish!
:Duster: Yeah, you’re not wrong. They’re great friends.
:Nimbus: I w…
Nimbus accidentally spills some milk from her bowl.
:Nimbus: Waugh!
:Duster: Ah! L-lemme help you with that.
Duster grabs a nearby towel and wipes away the spilled milk.
:Nimbus: T-thanks!
:Duster: No problem.
Duster keeps eating her cereal, while Nimbus visibly tries to remember something.
:Nimbus: … right! I was going to ask what it’s like to have, ummm… battle friends?
:Duster: It’s pretty cool. Besides, it’s not like we just duel.
:Nimbus: Ah, um, nice! I um, never liked fighting, as you know.
She sighs.
:Nimbus: Why is everyone, like, you’re a woman so you gotta fight? Like, I’m glad mom doesn’t make me do that, but still!
:Duster: It’s, uh, mostly a question of tradition, I think. I don’t really know either.
:Nimbus: Maybe I should pay more attention to history class...
:Duster: Hahah, maybe.
Duster finishes her cereals, and then points at a door behind her with her thumb.
:Duster: Anyhow, I gotta fly. You gonna be good to get to school on your own?
:Nimbus: Of course, dummy! I’m a teenager now!
:Duster: Hahah, yeah. Well then, seeya later! Have a good day!
:Nimbus: You toooo!
Nimbus waves to Duster as she leaves.
==Scene 2==
Duster goes outside, giving the viewers a clearer view of the town, which has a few other people walking around aside from her at the moment. It first shows a view of the camera from the perspective of the door, Duster walking out of her house and onto the street, heading towards the right as the camera pans in that direction.
The camera then cuts to a view close to her head as she walks - she has taken a more neutral and serious expression compared to the one she had inside with her sister. It then cuts to a view of two Flydevins conversing with each other, the two looking in her direction while she is still seen walking on the camera’s angle.
:Flydevin 1: That’s the general’s daughter, isn’t she?
:Flydevin 2: Wonder if she holds a candle to her.
The camera then cuts to another view focusing mainly on her head, on which she seems to be more on edge. It then shows another group of Flydevins gossiping.
:Flydevin 1: Duster’s record in battle isn’t all that great, is it?
:Flydevin 2: Yeah… you’d expect more from Fractus’s daughter of all people.
The camera, shifting back to Duster’s face, shows that she is getting more frustrated, as the comments on her seem to multiply and grow in intensity. It cuts to an angle slightly further away than the current angle to see that she is beginning to walk faster and faster.
She is then shown taking a turn and entering a relatively spacious and tall building, slamming the door shut behind her.
==Scene 3==
Once inside, she takes some deep breaths, before heading further inside, the camera panning to show two Flydevin girls wearing outfits similar to Duster who wave to her. One, known as Beruli Tei, has blue hair and two pointy pigtails, wearing shorts rather than pants like her and holding two rock spears, while the other, Trida Kyrjan, has short green hair, is taller than the other two, and wears a skirt.
:Beruli: Heyooo, Potato!
Duster blushes a little upon hearing this nickname, waving back.
:Duster: Heya, Brocoli. And hi, Radish.
:Trida: Hey. How’s Nimbus doing?
:Duster: She’s doing quite well! Finds History boring, but that’s pretty much it.
:Trida: Ah, yeah… History’s important, but the history they teach is just about how great a bunch of random Flydevins were.
:Beruli: Most ain’t even actually all that great!
:Duster: Yeahhh… I need to look into proper history sometime.
Duster begins to do some stretches.
:Duster: Anyhow. We ready for a duel?
:Beruli: Eeyup!
Trida nods, and the two walk in the middle of a rectangular battle arena, the camera showing a view from above to show that they took a triangular formation.
:Duster: We ready?
:Beruli: Yeah!
:Trida: Let’s go.
The match starts with Trida quickly flying up with a burst of winds. But Beruli attempts to intercept her flight by throwing one of her rock spears at high speeds. Trida, however, blocks the spear by forming a rock shield. Beruli then spots Duster taking the occasion to charge towards her, forming a stone fist to deliver a strong punch to her. Beruli therefore manipulates the winds around the spear she threw to launch it towards Duster, forcing Duster to skid and punch the spear. However, Duster swiftly proceeds to throw a kick towards Beruli, who blocks it with her other spear.
Trida is shown observing the match from the air, slowly creating basketball-sized stones that hover around her as Duster and Beruli are shown fighting, Duster throwing another punch towards her, which Beruli also blocks, before performing a roundhouse kick to disarm Beruli from one of her spears. She takes the occasion to thrust her other towards Duster, however, who narrowly dodges it before choosing to punch Beruli in the gut while her guard is down.
Beruli reels back, before using her winds to bring her other spear back to her and performing swinging motions towards Duster, who jumps back from each of them. Trida is then shown smirking in the air, now having created a volley of rocks which she launches towards the two other fighters. This causes Beruli to start batting them away with her spears, while Duster punches one towards another. The latter proceeds to jump on another one and use it as support to propel herself towards Trida, attempting to punch them - Trida simply forms another rock wall, though Duster punches it, breaking it.
Trida’s expression grows concerned, but she soon redirects the fragments of the rock walls towards Duster, who quickly dives back down to dodge them, after which Trida proceeds to fly to the side in order to dodge another thrown spear from Beruli. Beruli is then shown manipulating the spear from the ground in order to make it chase Trida, who flies from side to side to keep dodging it. Duster takes this occasion to deliver a powerful rock punch to Beruli, who is too late to notice and gets knocked back.
Beruli decides to sit back for now, watching the other two fighters stare at each other. Trida holds a hand up as she lifts up the leftovers of the rocks she created, launching them towards Duster who takes to the air to dodge what would’ve otherwise been a painful smash from all directions. She charges again towards Trida, who feigns a surprised expression as she creates a stone wall behind her. She then shifts to the right at the last second, causing Duster to slam straight into the wall.
Duster is shown comically sliding down the wall before dropping to the ground, shaking her head after landing.
:Duster: Gah…
:Trida: I win!
:Duster: Not yet…
Duster flies back up, before flying towards Trida again, who tries to perform the same trick, only for Duster to suddenly stop herself right in front of Trida. She then swings her arm, which Trida narrowly dodges, before swinging her other arms, her legs, and so on. However, Trida simply keeps dodging all of her attacks, causing Duster to become more and more frustrated until Trida simply creates a rock above Duster which bonks her on the head.
:Duster: Agh!
Duster drops down again, looking away from the other two, visibly frustrated and taking deep breaths to calm herself down.
:Trida: Do I win now?
:Duster: … yes.
:Beruli: Woo! That was a pretty good match, I’d say.
:Duster: I guess… how do I hit you, Tr… Radish?
:Trida: I suppose you’ve gotta figure that out for yourself.
:Beruli: You could, maybe… wait, I can’t say that while she’s here, heheh.
:Trida: Hey…
Duster proceeds to smile a bit.
:Beruli: Anyways! Trida, how’s li’l Erifa’s doing?
:Trida: Sulky as always, but otherwise, he’s doing pretty well.
She glances towards Duster.
:Trida: I wonder what would happen if he and Nimbus were to meet…
:Duster: Oh, god. Cloudie’s way too naive for him. Imagine how much he’d mess with her!
:Beruli: I think it’d be fun to watch, at least!
:Trida: Yeah, true.
:Duster: Not as much for me… it’d be painful to see Cloudie being taken for such a fool!
:Trida: Ah, yeah, I can see that...
The camera pans out as the three keep talking.
==Scene 4==
A shot from inside Duster’s home is shown, and through the windows, one can see it’s later in the day. It then pans away to show Nimbus has returned from school, sleeping on a couch with a soft-looking white blanket on her. She is then suddenly woken up by the sound of a bell ringing, and quickly jumps out of bed, running towards the entrance and opening it to show Duster entering.
:Nimbus: H-hi!...
Duster stares at Nimbus, who has a comical mix between a tired expression and an enthusiastic expression, as well as messed-up hair. Duster then looks behind Nimbus, represented by the camera changing focus to the couch, blurring Nimbus.
:Duster: I just woke you up, didn’t I…
Nimbus nods.
:Duster: Sorry for that…
She gives Nimbus two headpats before walking into the house, before looking back towards her.
:Duster: Did you do your homework?
:Nimbus: Um…!
She quickly runs off to her room. Duster chuckles slightly, before walking further in the house. She looks around, shiftily, to make sure nobody’s watching, before laying in the couch, putting the soft blanket on her softly after and sighing in pleasure.
:Duster: (Hopefully mom isn’t returning soon…)
The scene then cuts to black.
==Scene 5==
The army shown earlier is shown to still be walking through the desert from an overhead view. It then cuts closer, focusing on Fractus Zhantom, before giving a close look at her helmet - her face can be seen behind it, with a determined frown showing on it.
It then cuts to a Flydevin with a brown hat, wearing a similarly-colored robe with yellow spots on it and a lightning-shaped pattern splitting it down the middle, sitting next to the blue-robed man seen in the episode’s introduction, who is watching the army in the distance, in their village. They are wearing the same gadget as him around their chest.
:Blue-Robed Flydevin: Gampa…
:Gampa: Yes, father?
:Blue-Robed Flydevin: I suspect you should get away. We’ll try our best, but I don’t think we’ll be able to handle them.
:Gampa: Ah…
:Blue-Robed Flydevin: And I’d rather have you be safe, my child.
:Gampa: Understood.
The camera pans to reveal an unusual-looking umbrella with the same lightning rod “orbs” as the ones on the duo’s chestplates. Gampa grabs it, before flying off. The Blue-Robed Flydevin then looks back to the army - the camera pans to show they are getting very close to the village.
It then cuts to the army, which stops, before getting in a more battle-ready formation.
:Fractus: …
Fractus is shown to step forward, before speaking up.
:Fractus: People of this village. We are giving you a chance to surrender. Do you take it, or shall we use… force?
The people inside the village look worried. The Blue-Robed Flydevin, however, floats down, in front of Fractus.
:Blue-Robed Flydevin: Allow me to introduce myself. I am the Drizzler, and I am the leader of this village.
:Fractus: I see. That was rather obvious.
:The Drizzler: Yes… anyhow…
The camera zooms on the Drizzler’s face to show he is thinking deeply, about heavy subjects.
:The Drizzler: (We shouldn’t give up with no honor, but…)
The Drizzler, in his mind, is shown to think of the village getting ravaged by the army, its residents assaulted, through a transparent filter. A second or two pass, before he takes a deep breath and a more neutral expression.
:Fractus: Have you made your decision yet?
:The Drizzler: Yes. Fractus Zhantom…
He takes a more battle-ready position.
:The Drizzler: I challenge you to a duel. You and me.
Fractus observes the Drizzler for a bit.
:Fractus: … challenge accepted.
The Drizzler quickly raises his hand up, making it rain in the surroundings. Fractus does not appear to flinch, however, and just stands there, waiting. The Drizzler then points towards Fractus, before unleashing a lightning blast from their hand. Fractus, however, takes it without flinching, to The Drizzler’s shock. He proceeds to dash to the side, and shortly after, a large rock falls down where he was.
:Fractus: … I see you’ve done your homework.
The Drizzler doesn’t respond, as he proceeds to use his Droplet Winds to engulf Fractus in water. She proceeds to slowly walk towards the Drizzler, seemingly shrugging it off, before going for a heavy punch, creating rocks around her arms as she does so, though the Drizzler dodges back.
The Drizzler then focuses as he attempts to compress Fractus with the water. Fractus, however, seems to not mind too much, before suddenly propelling herself forwards with the air of wings before gripping the chest of the Drizzler’s robe.
:The Drizzler: Gah!
The village’s habitants are shown to have grouped up near the entrance of the village, and they express shock as their leader gets grabbed.
The Drizzler puts his hands to the approximate location of Fractus’s ribs on her armor, before trying to electrocute her at point blank range with his Spark Winds. However, once again, Fractus seems to not even flinch to the attach, as Fractus grabs onto his face with force.
She proceeds to suddenly create some sort of dark mist, to the visible horror of the villagers watching, and pumps it into The Drizzler’s face orifices as he makes muffled screams. After a few seconds, he goes limp, and Fractus lets go of him. The villagers look terrified as Fractus, followed by the army, marches into the village.
Gampa, who is walking away, looks back, and glares towards Fractus, before shaking their head, continuing their way away from the village.
==Trivia==
*This episode was originally going to focus more on how Duster feels as if she fails to live up to her mother's expectations. However, the focus was moved to generally introducing the characters instead.
**Scene 3 was originally planned to end with Duster returning home, frustrated about her loss, but it was changed because Poisonshot felt it would have given a bad impression of Duster's friendship with Beruli and Trida.
**Scene 4 was originally rather different, with Duster and Nimbus conversing more about Fractus. However, it wouldn't have made much sense for either of them to have brought up Fractus in detail, so the scene was shortened.
Category:Episodes
Category:Pilot Episodes
Category:Poisonshot