ORIGIN - For You I Will Live

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BARATHEON

"the world is mine for the taking"

This was sickening... He hated feeling so defenseless. Hated that Louie had captured him. Hated it all! He let out a rumble lashing a forepaw at a boulder. It hurt his paw but he managed to send it scurrying away down the side of a cliff. He felt a surge of satisfaction before it was smothered by a feeling of hopelessness. He couldn't fight Louie. Couldn't save Booker. Couldn't save himself. He just had to sit in Monoceros and wait until Louie wanted to attack the Bonebound. Hmph. At least he actually liked the Bonebound... unlike the assholes here.

His paws thundered across the ground as he made his way over to the one source of water at the Gorge. He needed to soak and hopefully forget about his troubles. Booker was fine for now... He could feel that through there link. He was off with Louie and though that infuriated him to no end he was still safe. If only he could get them out. If only he wasn't half of a dragon right now. Until he rescued them he would continue to be half of a dragon. Despite all of the bravado he talked he wasn't himself... He only put on a show to keep the Merrymen off of Booker. If it wasn't for the numbat he probably would have given up altogether.

The dragon sighed as he sank down into the water. His body wasn't completely covered, he'd gotten too big for that but it did cover over half. It felt nice and brought a bit of happiness... He turned his head and tucked it into his flank, underneath one of his wings as he rested. He was idle, falling into restfulness as he waited to be called upon... Like a servant. It boiled his gut but again, nothing he could do. Helplessness. Tame. That's what he was.

Sad...

That's what he also was.

For Booker... He would keep living for Booker.

325
Magdalena, @Nemesis
---
7/10

"Talking looks like this!"
Thinking looks like this...

I'M THE MONSTER, I'M THE VILLAIN
WHAT PERFECTION, WHAT PRECISION

She wondered if anybody else could sense her delight since she'd learned the fate of the criminal dragon they had captured. Could Nemesis feel it? Her head turned every time she felt the dragon close. Her eyes, empty, wandered to where his cultures thrived in what seemed like a tangible form. Not spotted from afar - no, felt. Beckoned. A reminder of her victory. She had been eager to find him, to speak with him regarding Delphine; at this point, it was more out of selfish pride that wanted to find him and know why he'd done it, to hear him admit it, or realize that he had wronged her. Was Delphine bitter about it? Would she be scarred, wounded permanently - she'd been told of the girls new scar, but mentally?

Magdalena had wanted someone to protect, for whom she could be strong like Nemesis, and she'd been blessed with Delphine. Maybe there would always be that bitterness that the first time, she'd lost a starry eyed child to the dragon; with the passage of time, she didn't even care about Booker anymore. It was her own dignity that had been damaged in losing what she'd first gone to find, and now her own dignity that was repaired when the one who'd fractured it atoned for his sins. She indulged in it. She never realized how satisfying vengeance could be.

Rumor flew that the dragon retired to the gorge, and with nobody to watch him, Magdalena saw fit to strike. Nemesis was never too far from her and she had asked the rhino to join her. Sure, Magdalena was arrogant, but she didn't lack self preservation and if the dragon chose to attack her as he did Delphine, at least with Nemesis she would stand a fighting chance of getting out alive. Plus, Baratheon attacking Nemesis would only fuel the dog's anger and excitement even more - it was the justification of further punishment, and for that reason alone she almost hoped to find him out for blood. Oh, she was a fiend, and perhaps it was selfish of her to place herself behind the protection of the rhino; did she take her for granted, or was it merely a lapse in judgment? No, Magdalena adored the rhino. She wouldn't put her in harm's way on purpose.

Would she?

They descended the gorge. Magdalena took long, precise steps; she would have taken to the rhino's back, but gratification had her relishing every step. Once the ledges slouched into flat ground, she hesitated. There was no need to explain what she was doing - the dog merely paused and reached out, grasping at the air for the familiar pull of the dragon.

Post-Roll Edit:
The direction of his pull came clear as day, but the form seemed desaturated and scattered. Magdalena led them to where the walls opened up and revealed a body of stagnant water that cradled the dragon in his restlessness. The dog's movements were deliberate, slow and of cautious regard as she monitored for any sudden movements. She said nothing as she advanced on him, half-lidded eyes gazing to the distant void above him.

@Nemesis

Nemesis

There was no way in hell Nemesis was going to let Baratheon just tromp around like he owned the place. As the monster of a dragon came charging down the gorge to the water-- their clean, pure pool of water!-- she stalked after him... And Magdalena. For some reason, the Princess wanted something with him. She would not stop her, for she knew that the sweet faced canine held more strength than most knew. No, she simply walked along with her Princess, her permanent body guard.

Until that menace was out of Monoceros, at least. Maggs didn't need help getting around or anything like that, no. She could handle herself. It was just... The dragon was deadly. Just one quick snap, and her Princess could be snuffed out like a candle.

The pair had become sort of silent in the way they went along through life. It was as if, without words, they could speak. Perhaps it was something like how Maggs handled the world without sight-- they did not need words, they did not rely on words, and they were both at peace with that. At least, that was how Nemesis saw at. She was pretty obsessed with Magdalena, as it was. Everyone she had ever known had used her in one way or another, and the Princess actually needed her... Actually made Nemesis feel like her existence was important, that it mattered, that she was... Irreplaceable.

Anyway, Nemesis had decided already that she wasn't going to be a pain and make a huge fuss. She'd let Maggs do what she wanted to do to the dragon, and make sure he didn't hurt her. The Princess could handle talking to him, and what not, she was just there in case things got ugly.

The rhino did not want to provoke the bull. She knew what it was like to have a short temper. Best to just be ready for the flash of red if it came. Her eyes narrowed at the beast in the water, his white fur soggy and soaked... That was their drinking water, for fuck's sake....

table by shax

BARATHEON

"the world is mine for the taking"

Alone. It gave him more time to think, more time to ponder over what he'd done and how far he'd come. From his days as a babe up to now. So many had tried to help him, so many had been hurt by him... In the moment he enjoyed the fighting but afterwards when it was gems that he cared about... Those that he loved, even those that he didn't even know... It hurt. He didn't want to hurt, he didn't want to destroy, he didn't want to kill. He was forced to by the thing inside of him. The evil thing that he really was. How could Booker keep seeing the light in him when it was nearly gone out?

This whole Merrymen thing, he hated it. Hated what Louie wanted him to be and hated that Magdalena had turned traitor. How could she let half-face do this? He hadn't hurt her. No. Not even when he Bloodlusted but... Well, that had to be traumatic. He knew it had probably left a bad impression but still. Hadn't they been friends? Couldn't she talk to him and forgive him? He hadn't meant to do any of that. If he could go back and change time he would.

His eyes closed, holding back tears as he tormented himself over these thoughts. His Bond he tried to squeeze shut. He didn't want Booker to feel this and be forced into comforting him. He was supposed to be the strong one... He was the fighter. Today... He was not. He was vulnerable and pitying himself for what he had become.

Today he did not wished to be bothered by anyone... but fate had different plans.

He heard them. The soft footfalls of the dog and the heavier stomps of the mutated rhino. What did they want? To gloat over half-face's new pet? Ugh... he hated that word but really that's what he was. Forced into servitude and bent to the fox's will. He was a pet. If he was a pet then that meant he was also a shame to Ae'thiya and a shame to dragon kind itself. Maybe they speak or attack him... perhaps he'd be lucky and they'd kill him but no... If they attacked he would be forced to defend himself. Not just for Booker but because of the Bloodlust, it would force him into action even if he didn't want it. It would be that way till the end of time. His soul could be dead but his body would never allow him peace.

He could have spoke, could have begun a pre-preemptive strike but it wasn't in him. Not now. Especially with Booker not around. Without his brother he felt no need to protect himself except to keep his body prepared to protect the smaller creature. Instead he fell to the tactic of his youth. Not speaking and pretending to be mute or dumb. However, it wasn't for a perverse sense of humor but to get the others to leave him be. Baratheon didn't even flick an ear, move his wings or scarcely even breath. Perhaps they would just walk away if they thought him to be asleep.

530
Magdalena, @Nemesis
---
7/10

"Talking looks like this!"
Thinking looks like this...

She felt a certain level of assured safety with the rhino behind her; not only having her as backup in case her meeting with the dragon got ugly, but as the comfort of a friend and supporting figure. Magdalena was not emotionally exposed when she went to confront the dragon. Everything that had plagued her, she'd patched up and kept hidden, buried underneath the pervasive fog of intent. Her vulnerabilities had been tempered and put aside, lying in the shadow of vanity; where everything was already right, she didn't need to worry about what could go wrong. Control had been handed to her when the dragon moped in on a metaphorical leash, all and she had to do was keep a tight hold.

Magdalena was mindful of the rhino following dutifully, matching the thunder of her steps with the graceful, airy movements of her own, focusing on the path until they had found the dragon. There he sat curled in the pool of water, and for a few moments, she hesitated as she stood several meters away. Critical senses honed in on the smell of the musty gorge, the sounds of the water quietly lapping against his body, the feel of the cool and unmoving air. Nothing to dictate he had shifted from his position. Either he had fallen asleep or he was ignoring them, but Magdalena cared little for one case or the other, she'd rouse him as she pleased. A few more steps brought the ghostly dog ever closer to the water, her head elevated; could she see, she'd stare down her nose at the dragon. Alas, those foggy, honey eyes merely fixated on the wall behind him.

"It torments you," She allowed her voice to ease into the air, melodic intones seamlessly fitting into the white noise of the empty gorge. Her head tilted slightly, as if more curious than sympathetic. "how his sublunary mortality reminds you more of a wilting flower, and less the babe you love. Doesn't it?" She knew how it felt. She was no stranger to the helplessness, the desperation to go back, or to do anything to make things better now; in the moment, what was once the past was all that mattered. She knew the pain of a suspended fate, she knew it too well. It was how she knew of his pain, too.

Magdalena angled her body, walking slowly parallel to the perimeter of the body of water. She didn't know which direction he faced, but she strode none the less, wondering if he'd mirror. "Do you plan to stop him?" The dog quietly implored. "He is a monster for what he's done." She breathed, widening her eyes as she lingered there and stared, watching, waiting, so hungry for his answer.

Nemesis

Nemesis stopped a few paces back, behind Magdalena. She waited, and she watched, tail twitching with anticipation. She kept a careful eye on the parameter, something that Maggs wouldn't be able to do herself. They didn't want any interruptions, especially from that slime-backed vulpine devil.

As the Princess began to speak, the rhino's attention was drawn to her. Her words were thick with flowery decoration, her voice silky sweet. Nemesis could quite literally listen to her talk for hours. Some of the meaning was lost on her, but she generally understood what the elegant but lanky dog meant. That scrap of meat that Baratheon watched over.

... What struck her as curious, odd, was how Maggs spoke of Louie. While the fiery spirited girl agreed, it felt unsettling to side with the dragon about anything. Louie was a slimeball, but he was still, technically, family. What was the Princess planning?

She took a careful step forward, snorting softly, her eyes wandering over the white dragon with a fierceness that she never let down. Her whole body was tense, and she refused to slouch. Should the dragon peer in her direction, he would know immediately: he was not to hurt her precious Magdalena. Not if he wanted to live. Yet she did not feel angry at him anymore, or perhaps, if she did, the flames of her fury had burned away at her nerves to the point where she was numb to the feeling.

Nemesis was more curious to what her dearest friend was up to. What did Magdalena want? What was worth risking her life on the gamble that Louie had complete control over the dragon, that Baratheon wouldn't lose control and strike her. Mm. Anything for the Princess. Even facing a dragon. A knight had to be brave, after all.

BARATHEON

"the world is mine for the taking"

It seemed as if he would get no peace, no rest, not today. Today whatever gods watched over him would see that he hung for his crimes. Perhaps the All Mother was real and she hated him for not believing. Today she would seek retribution by sending the traitorous dog and her companion. No, not even that was real. He was just an unlucky white dragon to be tortured by creatures that would love to see him burn.

Her footfalls reached his ears as she paced but still he did not move. Beneath his wing his one eye opened but it would be unseen by those condemning him. It was hopeless to think they'd leave him now. A pause. Then words rang in the air. They were fancy words, confusing to his glazed and self-pitying mind but after mulling them over they made perfect sense. It was like she could see into his mind yet there was no sympathy in her voice. She cared not for his torment for she was just a bystander coming to watch the condemned at the guillotine. To hear his last words before the knife came sliding down.

Her question, the first one, he left hanging in the air. His sadness grew, rang throughout his entire being. He was a large creature and there was much room for emotions to run rampant. Magdalena was helping to cultivate those emotions and give them more room to take root and grow. She was right... Booker falling into Louie's clutches, falling before him... wilting away. It was his fault in any case. If only he had been there if only he'd taken action, taken that swipe before it became too late and his soul was infected. Tears sprang into those bright pink orbs as he shut them against the world. Still. He did not visibly move. Not because he wanted to them to leave, he did but he had given up all hope that they would fulfill his wishes, but because he could feel even more guilt and sadness in his body.

Footfalls. Moving. Again. Was she leaving after sowing seeds of destruction? No. She was simply placing herself elsewhere. Words came again. Normally they might have filled him with rage, might have made him speak obscenities against the one he called half-face but that was normally and when his Bonded was near.

His Bonded was not around.

He was sad.

He was alone.

He had no rage to give.

He moved.

His long neck uncurled from beneath his wing like a swan freshly woken from slumber. His eyes turned to face the white dog who had broken into his very soul with her truthful and harsh words. Those eyes held no anger, the only thing in their depths was sadness... Sadness and the blanket of tears that glistened across their surface. Those tears rolled down his muzzle and fell into the waters below him.

He was alone.

He had no rage to give.

He was broken.

He was hopeless.

No words came from his maw. He simply stared with intense sadness down at the dog and the rhino. Where he once might have gleaned anger at the form of the one who had helped down him those weeks ago he now could pull nothing from the depths of his heart. He felt only pity. She was trapped just as he was. The half-face had a chain around her neck just as there was one around his.

He finally spoke but in his voice was nothing... None of the inward sadness. None of his pity. He was empty. His voice displaying nothing but defeat. He knew Magdalena held all the cards so he would play her game. What else could he do?

"How can I? He has my Bonded. He has my soul. I am trapped... I will not escape." His eyes raised. Looking beyond them, staring off into space as if he could see a way out. He did. This way he could not take... Not without leaving Booker. He would stay. His eyes lowered back down to the pair before him. "Monster or not... I can do nothing." Was that what she wanted to hear? Perhaps. Maybe he was giving her what she wanted but he didn't want to fight. No fight was in him this moment. Give them what they wanted even though it was the truth.

732
Magdalena, @Nemesis
Damn, Bara... Get a backbone!
11/10

"Talking looks like this!"
Thinking looks like this...

Nemesis

Nemesis hardly reacted to the words, to the silence, but as the dragon moved she tensed. Her head tipped down slightly, not in any show of fear or submission, but in threat. The dragon slouched before them, raising his head to show off the tears on his face. If he expected sympathy from her, he had another thing coming.

As he finally spoke, his word dead and empty, she remembered distantly. This Dragon was nothing like the one of Fire. This one had some other element, one that was not Wind, nor Water or Earth... Whatever it was, it was as soulless as the one before her. Her eyes narrowed, scuffing the earth bellow her feet with her rough toes.

You don't fool me, she thought, bitterly. As Magdalena spoke her reply, her ears flicked, catching on her words. They were cold, detached, but her voice was still soft and angelic. It dawned on the rhino, slowly, that Madalena was talking about someone. About her, perhaps, or the other one. What was her name, the... She snorted softly, embarrassment flooding her emotions at the final sentence.

The other one then? The babe. But surely, the Princess could have just as easily been talking about her. Her mind wandered to the thought of a smooth, blue gem, deep as the sea in color. Children. It sent flutters through her heart, distracting, flustering feelings. The ever-silent rhino still had no idea what the lanky dog was up to. It didn't really matter.

BARATHEON

"the world is mine for the taking"

He expected no sympathy, no pity, no sadness from them. He was the monster in their eyes. He had come uninvited to their home for a second time and this time it was to interrupt their normal rhythms of life. The rhino, while she had put him down, he'd likewise helped do it to her. Bathing her in radiation before she had been snatched up. He felt no guilt for it because it had been self-defense but he could see why it influenced her now. Magdalena... Why was she turning even more of a traitor? Sympathy would not come so why did she visit him now? Just let him wallow in his sadness. He didn't need their help in fueling it further.

Her words assaulted his ears again. Empathize? It sounded like she could do no such thing. Her words were not sympathetic. They were harsh, razor blades against his tortured soul. "You cannot." He said simply. Even if her words had been tempered and kind he still would have spoken thus. No one in this world knew what he went through. No one could know what it was like to share your very soul. It was the greatest joy in life and yet it was the greatest weakness. Booker brought him many great things, joy, love, patience, companionship. Oh... so many things and yet it was so easy to capture the tiny creature and bring them both into imprisonment.

Love was one thin but taking it to the next level with Bonding... No one in all of the caves could empathize with him. No one except Booker.

For a moment he was lost to her, his ears lowered his eyes closed while the tears leaked from underneath. Weak. That's what he was now. He hated it. He hated himself for what he'd become. He could look back and remember when he'd fought with all his might against this slavery and now he'd just given in. Pathetic. Useless. Only a meat shield to keep his Bonded safe. Perhaps he'd die in the war if they wouldn't do it for him.

His body moved, he started to turn and lie down again. This time if he laid down he would move and react no more. He would shut down and close himself off to the judgments of the white dog and her companion. His turn was almost complete when she said those words.

"She was just a child."

No more movement. His body tensed, eyes widened. Magdalena had been there, had nearly fallen victim to himself. In the blurry haze of his memory he remembered her standing over his prey-- Delphine. Standing over Delphine. Protecting her while he wreaked havoc on all the others. Delphine... the one who he'd apologized and bonded with. The one who was innocent and sweet. He had made her bleed. Magdalena wouldn't forget that... Who would? But surely she could forgive. He hadn't meant it. It was an accident.

His gaze turned to the dog, eyes boring into her. Still, no rage, just guilt in those deep rosen eyes. "I.... I didn't mean it. I wasn't myself. I... I..." Excuses. That's what they all amounted to. They sounded sorry even to his own ears. "Truly, I am sorry for what I did. To Delphine, to all the innocents that fell victim to me in my Bloodlust. I can't change the past or what I did. But I wish I could... Delphine didn't deserve what happened to her..." His voice broke, trailed off. Eyes shut against the world as the demons of the past haunted him. From that long time ago when Giggle had sent the vision and he'd spoken to his own demon within. The one that assured him he was made to do nothing but kill and destroy. It hurt... He didn't want it but he couldn't get away from it. That demon would stay within him forever to make sure that he would never climb out of his hole to seek redemption.

668
Magdalena, @Nemesis
---
8/10

"Talking looks like this!"
Thinking looks like this...