Witches' Side

[soul_mods]

Characters: OPEN, Witches' Side
Location: Factory #1
Rating: R
Time: SEPTEMBER 1-15TH 2019
Description: A place where you either live in splendor, or squalor. Where has fate thrown you? The Witches and their kin have picked up an unusual bit of excitement from those in Shibusen, just what could it be? All sorts of rumors are flying around, and not

Comments

[blue_darkslayer]

Concentrating, his brow furrowed, Vergil paused for several moments before finally replying, "On two counts."

Measuring his words carefully, he continued, "I need everybody to be available at the end of the week. We're Hunting. Crane wants more bodies, so I need you to help me Empty A Nest too." The two terms were significant only to members of APOC; as Vergil's mental functions had become severely impaired by the drugs that Doctor Crane administered to keep him sedate and controlled, it had become necessary to devise less eloquent means of conveying orders to the rest of the team.

Hunting commonly referred to the team's activities in hunting down Weapon and Meister pairs. Vergil had been warned ahead of time that new targets were being tracked and slowly lined up for acquisition. "Emptying A Nest" on the other hand was a practice more recently established; with the growing scarcity of human victims, it had proven more efficient to target Kishin Eggs rather than humans themselves. APOC supposedly 'protected' a number of nearby villages. In reality, they would allow or purposefully cultivate Kishin Eggs to move in on the villages, consume souls, then after a few days sweep in and destroy the Eggs, devouring their souls. They would also discreetly abduct a couple of villagers in the process for Crane's experiments, falsely attributing their loss to the attacks instead.

"We can be done in two days. Just have to be back before the weekend."

[soulparadox]

Turning on his side, he fell into a fetal position on the floor as he held his stomach. Yet his facial blank expression did not change nor did he yet open his eyes. Hungry. The word fluttered in and out of his thoughts easily. Already, he could feel his mouth watering involuntarily at the thought of eating those souls. His head gave a slight tilt, awkward in his position, but he ceased the gesture as soon as a cramp began along his neck. The end of the week. The end of the week. That is far. Why did brother have to tell me so soon? To prepare. To get ready. It is all right.

Rolling so that he was on his back, he nodded once at what Vergil said. Though, he did give pause. His eyes did finally open to stare up apathetically at the other Kishin. "Why before the weekend? Is something happening that I should be aware of?" Ten years, he finally was getting just a little more assertive -- at least, in asking what was going on that may or may not concern him and the place that he was living. Even if it did not, he was curious what it was that everyone was thinking.

[blue_darkslayer]

Vergil blinked once, then proceeded to explain to the best of his ability. It was something he found himself having to do often in his sedate state. It was one of the reasons he preferred being on the field; there, he could remove his shackles and his thoughts were completely free. But that was dangerous, especially here among people.

"The end of the week is when we all Hunt. You and I need to Empty a Nest before then, for Crane. We have time for both. If time runs out though, Shibusen souls are more important." The thoughts that came out were somewhat disjointed, and he hoped that what he had said had made enough sense. "It will take time to get the Prey in place. We need to be ready for that."

He then touched his temple with one finger gently. It was merely a habitual thing that Vergil did sometimes when attempting to think. He then concluded, each of his words slow, "That is all." At the sound of all a light 'ding' from inside the kitchen intruded upon his speech. He looked in the direction from which it originated curiously for a moment, then shifted his eyes back to Nataku expectantly.

[soulparadox]

Throughout the explanation, Nataku merely continued to stare passively at Vergil's face. He almost gave very little indication that anything that was being said to him was actually being acknowledged one way or the other, until he finally nodded at the end of the statement.

The clone knew enough that there was something "wrong" with the other Kishin's head and so always waited for him to finish all thoughts patiently. It was not out of any real affection that he had for him, but Nataku simply felt that he would be left with more questions otherwise. Disjointed statements or not, the general idea was understood. Which, in the end, was all that mattered.

"I understand." Sitting up, he pushed himself into a standing position. He waited a few seconds as he felt just a little light-headed from suddenly getting up, but dismissed it easily enough as he turned off the oven. Nataku walked over to pick up oven mitts before returning to finally taking the pastry out to cool. "You should have some as well, brother. It does not do much other than make me want more souls, but it allows one's stomach to be temporarily occupied with something."

[blue_darkslayer]

Truth be told, it had been quite some time since Vergil had actually perceived the taste of anything that conformed to the standards of 'food'. The sensation of ash in his mouth was something he had come to believe was due to no longer really being human, coupled by the fact he very rarely felt the need to eat anything beyond souls. It was something he had come to terms with.

Even so, instincts and routine provided where coherent thought could not, and it was generally considered prudent to be kind to Nataku for a multitude of reasons. So he humoured the other Kishin with a simple, "Sure," afterwards drawing up a high stool and taking a seat, staring into space for a moment or two.

To this day, he still didn't quite understand Nataku's interest in cooking. "I still don't understand why you cook, Nataku." That thought had come surprisingly easily. Vergil himself didn't have much in the way of 'interests': he trained, he hunted, he killed, and he spoke to members of APOC where necessary, along with Crane. There was also Adah Price, though he generally avoided mention of such to this particular member. Another instinct.

[soulparadox]

"I do not understand, either." It reminded him of ten years before, of all those things that he no longer had any real emotional attachment to. Of course, he still carried on the souls of those that he ate. Watson. Tassadar. We are always together now, are we not? The thought was neither in a happy or sad tone. It merely was what it was. The idea that he was never alone, that he would continue to get stronger, did very little to sedate either hunger or concerns.

So, why was he holding onto such thoughts and actions? Nataku had also become aware of the fact that there was a good possibility that Kazuki was dead. Her soul and thoughts no longer as "loud" as they had once been, but it did not bother him as much as one thought. The little girl was supposed to no longer exist, and that was fine -- finding that he did not even have any real attachment to her either.

"It does not stop the hunger. It does not do anything save give my hands and mind something to do." He stared at the cooling pie, before taking his own seat. His head gave a slight tilt as he continued on with his explanation. "I feel that I may try to eat those that are in this place, if I did not carry out such acts. That would be unacceptable as it would end in my death, which would be an inconvenience to others."

A brief pause.

"You would not hesitate to kill me in such a situation, would you, brother?"

[blue_darkslayer]

"Hmm."

Vergil's gaze lowered and he stared at the floor, his right eye twitching a single time as he did so. Kill Nataku? He'd quite laboriously programmed his own mind against the notion of killing his allies, and the thought was something better left alone. Even so, it was provocative. He remained silent for a full minute before finally replying.

"Yes. No. Our work for Crane is to ensure that does not happen." He began tilting his head this way and that with each new thought. "They are too scared to not allow us to Hunt and Empty Nests for souls. If they don't give us enough freedom, then we have no reason to be allies. They know we could be a threat to them, too." In spite of himself, he found he was smirking. The truth was, though, that he spoke mostly of himself and Nataku. Giovanni would never turn on the Witches, and both Sasuke and Dawn also had much more to gain from their allegiance.

Even so, it was a comforting thought. "If you can't control yourself, talk to Crane. For anything else, I would die with you, Nataku. That won't happen, though. We will go to the Nest and everything will be fine. Then, this weekend, you may even have a Weapon Soul."

[soulparadox]

"That is true." Nataku nodded once. It was his hunger that was talking now over his logic. His hunger threatened and stated over and over that there would never be enough souls, that he would eventually have to begin feasting on those that were present in their home. He rose his hand to wipe at his face, even though he kept his salivating to himself. "They are scared of us." He parroted the response, but no longer knew what it was to have someone be afraid or be afraid himself. No. I am always concerned about eating and what will happen, if I do not eat.

His eyes widened at what Vergil said next. A flickering of something -- constantly throw rocks into a pond and one would strike a fish. That was a statement that he had not heard in a long time. If we are to fall, we fall together. His hands lightly folded over his stomach. I am keeping that promise, Tassadar. Because you are still here. And when I fall, I will make sure that many others fall with us. He allowed his surprised expression to slip back to neutrality. "I see. A Weapon's Soul. That will be good. The others are searching for one."

Setting his hands down on the counter, he got up so that he could begin cutting a piece of what he baked for Vergil and himself. "I will not allow a Weapon to eat your soul, brother. I will eat it myself so that they will not have the chance." A pause, accented with the cutting of the pie. "All right?"

[blue_darkslayer]

Even to Vergil's dulled mind, Nataku's statement struck him as bizarre. Fortunately, long association with the other Kishin had meant developing a rapport in spite of their respectively odd natures, or perhaps even directly because of them, so it was not overly startling. Even so, strange or not, he did operate under a form of logic, so Vergil had to conclude it had personal relevance in a manner he was unaware of. Experience had taught him to follow that logic as best he could, rather than question.

"I wonder what would happen if a Minor Kishin ate another Minor Kishin." It was a notion that the Vergil of five years ago might have considered as a means to obtaining even greater power. Sadly, he had not had that kind of foresight, and the creature he was today was in no state to form plans to that end. He made a (sadly futile) mental note to mention it to Adah or Saralegui later.

"Hmm. But if I die, you can carry my soul. Only you. You have to promise to become the most powerful Kishin if that happens, though." It was only fair; the one aspect of himself that could not be suppressed in his drug-induced stupour was his unyielding determination to become the strongest being in this world. He refused to die, but if he had to, he could begin to tolerate Nataku being the one to inherit that purpose. Better his friend and fellow Kishin than one of Shibusen's dogs.

[soulparadox]

"I do not know." Nataku took that statement as an agreement to his plans, returning to serving the slices. Calmly, mechanically. It seemed like he stored up all of his rage and hunger for actual battle, because logically, there was no reason to release it where he was technically safe. He would be wasting energy and time that could be spent conversing and preparing for the next Hunt.

"I understand, brother." A nod. "I will carry on your wish as it coincides with mine. Killing and eating, killing and eating, until there are no other souls left. Until I am the strongest." Then, all those concerns that I have will also fade away. It was now just a constant ache in his chest, which was what brought about his desire to sever all ties with emotions. It was too hard to carry on with them. It was easier to just be rather than deal with the waves of conflicting and ever twisting feelings. Just shut himself down until he could feel nothing, save the occasional glimmer when he remembered or someone said something particularly meaningful to him.

The slices places on two separate plates before he returned to set one down in front of Vergil and himself. "It really is a poor substitute, but we need only suffer until close to the end of the week." A small pep talk for himself and his hunger, but he supposed that it also was directed at the one seated beside him, too.

[blue_darkslayer]

Vergil glanced downwards as the plate was set in front of him, his gaze fixed and expression thoughtful, before he closed his eyes and exhaled slowly. He'd never admit it, but Nataku's path to oblivion bothered him. While he had always desired power, he'd also understood that it required purpose; there was no point to being the strongest and ruling over nothing. Control had been his own objective ever since he arrived to this world and the fact that he went so far as to keep the greater part of his mind sealed away was evidence enough of this.

In a way, it meant Nataku and Vergil balanced each other perfectly. He'd found it odd one time during combat, when his thoughts were clear, that he was the Striker and Nataku was the one whose powers focused on restraint, when in truth the clone was the relentless destructive force. It was Vergil who devised innovations like Nests, which were based in efficiency and restraint, and who went to great lengths to keep APOC together despite the differences between its members.

Nonetheless, now wasn't the time to be concerned over whether or not there would come a time that he'd have to deal with Nataku's pursuit of nihilism. Opening his eyes, Vergil looked across to reassure him.

"We could go Empty The Nest today, if that would be good for you. I don't know how long Sasuke will wait."

[soulparadox]

"We could?" Just before he had to take a bite of the foul-tasting dessert -- foul-tasting only because he had grown so accustomed to the taste of souls that nothing else compared -- he stared up at Vergil. His tone of voice did not hint at the eagerness that his hunger brought forth to the idea of devouring such a meal; still as bland and apathetic as always. "It would."

A pause.

"Then we will all go. It would be smarter than to leave it all to him, if he is so wanting to Empty The Nest today." Because they might eat all the souls and his stomach would not accept such an answer. It was only logical to go along so that he would get his share. He closed his eyes as he settled down his hunger with promises that he would feed it. Of course, it really did nothing to help, but made all the souls -- as he liked to call it -- just that more restless for others to join them.

Setting the fork down by stabbing it into the slice, he turned toward Vergil. "When would you wish for us to be prepared to go?"