[ M ] This Death will be Art

The Tainted Victory

After many weeks of drunken venting at the pub, marking maps, searching old scent trails, and mulling over plans until their eyes grew bloodshot and sunken, Lieutenant Corrus and Colonel Bartosz had finally secured a substantial set of leads in the form of blubbering Saoran smugglers. An utterly sloshed fool, more liquor in his veins than blood or sense in his brain, practically fell over himself to snitch on a new 'catch' he'd heard of within Iverness. "Real beaut'ful dames they was if ye' ask me - pair o' red-assed babes," he croaked before chugging back his glass and ordering another, "'S wand'ah how Dry shacked 'em up... 'ear ones even got a bump in price, the fuck'ah! Why ye' blokes asking, huh? You thinkin' o' buyin'? "

It'd taken some work—enough alcohol to kill a country - but eventually, the scrawny male agreed to setting up a meeting between this Dry and two potential buyers. Granted, they were walking into dangerous territory, trusting a man who lied for a living to not double cross them, and the added risk of Jacob's forces catching wind of two Imperials so close to their fortress. Sylvain had outlined as such to Obsidian on their way to, but the determination in his eyes was enough to wipe doubt from her aching heart: They would bring both of the girls back, dead or alive. It was worth it.

As they neared the meeting place, Sylvain's eyes canvassed every bit of rubble and forest before them. This site was a long way from the rest of civilization, surrounded by dense forestry and tangling shrubbery. It'd been a long and dreadfully quiet journey, aside from the occasional discussion of their plan... But this felt like the best time to say her final words to him before they'd be forced to play the part of malicious clients. "...Thank you by the way," she murmured to Obsidian lowly, "for coming with me on this. I was beginning to have doubts, but you've persisted with no aim of slowing down. Badari was... is fortunate to have you in her life." Beatrix, the bronze Soldier, was unfortunately not as well-known as her Tiamat counterpart - and that worried the Colonel. If something went wrong, Beatrix's life would be far more expendable than a rare find like the smuggler had described Badari to be. She was at greater risk between the two. Sylvain's grave frown only grew at the thought, stopping as they neared their destination.

Notes

"God doesn't hear deadmen." But, I do...

N

othing in his life had made him feel more of a drive. Moving up the ranks was important, following the wishes of his father was important, getting Sethos home was important, but none of that mattered as much as bringing Badari back home. He was furious and some days he had his doubts she was even alive still. He had to shake those evil thoughts away. Every time he met with Sylvain, he made sure the doubt was not there. That was an inner demon he would drown in alcohol. His kidneys were feeling it, never had he drank so much in such a small time frame.

He had been mentally preparing himself for what this meeting would mean to them all. He told himself tha5 he would be cordial to the dealer, or whatever he was called. He would act cool and reserved, but if and when he saw Badari - if she was wounded in a way that seemed torture had taken place - he would lose his shit and kill the bastard right there on the spot. He didn't know the other female that Sylvain had mentioned, but he was going to save her too. Any and all soldiers needed to come home. He could not stop himself from thinking that if he and Leoric would have switched places, she never would have been taken. It ate at him. Wanting to keep in a calmer mindset, he gave a nod to his female partner. He took steady breathes and made sure he was not showing any outward emotions.

@Sylvain

code by Yahtzee-Penguiduck

dead men tell no tales

Words had been whispered his way, snaking through the grapevine once he had allowed the fact to spread that he had wares to sell. There had been more bites than he had originally guessed would arise, but one such bite was much more juicy than most. They offered the highest sum, and so much time had passed that all Drystan saw was dollar signs in his yellow eyes. Unfortunately for him, this oversight would cost him more than he would know.

And so, they arrived.

His guards had watched for him, coming to notify the dealer once they made it close enough to the walls of his makeshift mansion. Drystan emerged from the shadows of the stone walls with an eerie quietness, a wide grin spreading across his maw as he greeted the buyers.

"Welcome, welcome! I trust you had a smooth journey?" he asked pleasantly, though he hardly gave enough time for them to respond. Instead, he twisted around like some boneless snake, ushering them with a flick of his tail to follow him. In truth, he wanted this over and done with as fast as possible. One never knew what was lurking in the shadows, and somehow it never crossed his mind that those he was avoiding, were the ones on his flanks now. "Come now, I'm sure you're eager to see the merchandise. Trust me - I'm just as eager to be rid of them; they smell, but at least their attitudes have been beat-- I mean, they've finally learned their place." a slip up, and he grit his teeth. In an effort to ignore any possible pushback from them as they were promised untouched women, he whisked down the stone staircase into the dungeons there the girls were shacked up together in a cell.

He then turned to the two, his hungry eyes curious on how a woman was here to buy other women... that wasn't common, at least in his experience. Venomous eyes watched the masked female and uniquely marked male, studying their expressions as Badari and Beatrix were brought into view. He allowed a few moments to pass before he spoke again.

"I trust they meet - or let's be real, exceed - your expectations. Once the coin is in my paws, they're yours." he nearly salivated at the thought. This would all be over with soon.

"We are all young and naive still."

code by claerie

How long had it been...

Badari had lost count of the days as they passed but she knew winter had come from the chill in the air. Her hope had run out, she expected she would die here eventually when no buyers came to claim her. Maybe her captor had been too expectant of her; he claimed she would sell for a high price but she'd not seen a single face in this place save for him and his guards. And Beatrix. That fiery woman was her saving grace when it came down to it, without her here she might have very well lost it by now. A traumatic bond had formed between them, at least on her side, and she felt drawn to her in a way she could not imagine being drawn to anyone else. Only Beatrix knew what this had been like. Only Beatrix knew what they had gone through. Nobody else.

She shifted her gaunt figure, the feeling of her too-heavy skin a burden against her body. She was exhausted in every way possible. Her mind, body and soul ached for freedom and sadly she was beginning to think that her last day of that had been on the battlefield. What would happen to her, to Beatrix, if someone actually showed up to 'buy' them. She could only imagine all the horrible things she might be forced to do and it began sending her into a spiral just as she heard paw steps in the distance. The familiar clicking of claws and that voice. That voice she'd come to hate filled the air. A low rumble vibrated in her chest as she nudged Beatrix with her paw. "He's coming. And he's not alone," she warned. This might be it...

She was emaciated, weak, and her spirit had been broken in a way she'd never thought possible but she was still ready to fight the moment that door opened. She would not let this bastard sell her to some other monster. She would rather die. And that was where her resolve settled before two familiar faces walked through that door. "What the fuck?" she nearly whispered. Her eyes were round as saucers as she looked Obsidian and Sylvain up and down, as if she were seeing them for the first time in her life. Her heart shuddered in her chest and her gaze flickered to Drystan. Hope. Hope filled her for the first time in weeks and she nearly broke. It took everything in her not to.

"Badari Tiamat speaking."

TABLE BY AMANDA

ain't no crying 'till the war's done Beatrix no longer bothered to keep track of the days, each time one passed she felt herself growing weaker. Their capture seemed like months now, and time and again she would see the ugly mug of the man who caught them in the first place though she had no energy to say anything anymore. She did her best to push away the slop they were fed as she had no desire to look pristine to anyone else who wished to buy them. She would have much rather been dead. The sounds of faint voices caused a single audit to flick as her golden eyes scanned down the dark corridor. Briefly she would look at Badari who seemed to take note of the same thing before she concluded it with words. No response left her lips, but when the two bodies finally did come into view she noticed a shift in her comrade. Eyes faintly squinted at the red woman, it seemed like she knew them, or one of them at least and Beatrix wasn't sure if she should consider that a good or bad thing. A soft exhale escaped her as she remained quiet, what was going to happen would happen anyways. She had no energy to do anything about it.

TABLE BY AMPHI