Comments | damned: Nightshift 19

lustful_thing in damned

Nightshift 19 - F1 Hall

Nov 06, 2006 19:50

Another night in this place. And, if the intercom was to be believed, more experimentation. Lust realized that she needed to learn the fake names of her companions, to be on the lookout for things such as this. She knew her supposed name, but no others. Ah well. She could only hope that Scar, Dias or River weren't among the ones taken. And ( Read more... )

inara, scholar ling, elena (ffvii), river, dante, lust, kadaj

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lapis_inferno November 7 2006, 05:02:09 UTC

Dante fought the urge to jerk away from the other woman's touch: one part of her loving the contact and the other screaming that she was being degraded. Lust's skin no longer felt as cold against Dante's cheek, but she couldn't bask in the warmth without remembering that their roles were reversed and that this time she wouldn't be calling the shots. Lust's advances were out of her hands, and now she was the one at the Homunculus' mercy ( ... )

soulofdiscord November 9 2006, 04:26:44 UTC

Hm... a quandory. On the one hand, Lust was a useful woman, and she had proven to be much stronger than most of the other individuals Ling had yet met. On the other, Dante was champing at the bit to be free; such a situation would make her prone to carelessness ( ... )

lapis_inferno November 9 2006, 21:03:46 UTC

Listening intently to what Ling had to say, Dante nearly burst with satisfaction. Yes, of course she would leave Lust in a moment if given a better offer. As much as she longed to bring Lust back under her control and to see the other alchemists falling into her grasp, she wasn't stupid and knew a better offer when she saw one. She'd even sacrifice her own personal satisfaction for the time being knowing she could get out of the embarrassing state Lust had put her in.

And yet she wondering what exactly the Scholar was getting at. She admired the woman's obvious skill with manipulation: a skill that seemed to rival Dante's own. But it seemed strange that Ling would talk of her like an object for one minute and then immediately switch to treating her with respect and attention. Even if her praise was only given in warning, it was still praise, and she knew it would do Lust good to hear it.

lustful_thing November 9 2006, 21:14:12 UTC

"She knows full well what will happen to her if she makes a bid for freedom." Lust glanced out of the corner of her eye at Dante. "I'll give her what she gave me. I have no qualms with killing her, just as she had no qualms with killing me." A bitter smile followed. "My allies are quite faithful - I do not choose them lightly. This arrangement is between Dante and myself, and it is personal. She and I have a history, and following the laws of my world, I must repay her for all that she gave to me. I appreciate your concern, but I won't be swayed from this."

No, Lust wasn't going to let Dante slip away from her. She would just kill the woman if she did, but she wanted her revenge first. Then the woman could die. But Lust would extract every bit of pain and humiliation that she herself had suffered at Dante's hand.

"Now if you will excuse us, there is much I want to accomplish this night."

soulofdiscord November 10 2006, 00:25:39 UTC

"...you are blinded, Lust. Revenge is one ideal, but you are bound by those 'laws' of your world. If you are not awakened to that danger, then you shall perish at the hands of those you believe you can trust. Perhaps... perhaps, in time, you shall see that I do this for your own benefit."

The Scholar turned to Dante, the faintest of smiles still on her face. "Will you hear my offer? You shall not be a servant; indeed, I despise the very concept. I believe that we could be very beneficial to each other, you and I. At least, I shall grant you my own protection; you need not fear her nor her allies so long as I live."

lapis_inferno November 11 2006, 06:46:28 UTC

Offering the other woman a delicate nod, Dante gestured for her to continue. She did not want to lose Lust's loyalty, but it seemed as if she had no choice. She would've liked to gain favor with the others from her world, but not at the price of her dignity. She did not believe in equivalent exchange, after all. She had no reason to believe she deserved any punishment for her past misdeeds.

"Of course." Dante dropped some of the facade she had constructed for the other patients, letting her true intelligence and eloquence fill her voice. "I'm willing to consider any offer, even if it pulls me away from my former allies. Just like everyone else, I am only interested in getting out of this place. I have so many other things I need to attend to, and this unexpected hospital stay is only further hindering my plans."

Turning back to Lust, Dante added, "And it's really a shame you feel that way, dear Lust. For I don't remember ever having you killed. I've killed many, but certainly not one of my own allies."

lustful_thing November 11 2006, 17:07:21 UTC

"And here I thought you were intelligent, Dante." Lust gave a small half shrug. "I gave you your life, and now you seem so intent to throw it away. Can this woman truly protect you from everyone? Me, Edward, the colonel, his little friend.... Scar. Oh, and a note about Scar that somehow slipped my mind." Lust chuckled. "Scar's powers aren't hindered here in the same way others are. And that's right, he knows all about you." Lust smiled menacingly. Scar was her trump card. Yes, he needed a catalyst to use the full brunt of his arm, but she hadn't lied. He wasn't hindered in the same way because of that catalyst.

"If you truly think this woman can protect you against the Beast of Ishbal, go right ahead and walk away from me. I won't hold him back any longer, if that's truly what you want. And don't claim you've never killed an ally. You did kill me - or I suppose you do kill me. Or have me killed at any rate." Lust shrugged. She didn't remember it either, but enough had told her it happened for her to believe it ( ... )

soulofdiscord November 12 2006, 03:05:22 UTC

((Gah, sorry for the delay, you two. @_@ ))

Scholar Ling simply offered a soft smile in response to all of that; she wasn't going to name her terms where anyone could hear them, nor would she reveal the true depths of her powers. Not now, not when it could be used against her... and not when she didn't know how dampened those powers were. She was, however, thoroughly confident that she would have no problems at all offering much much more than Lust ever could.

...at least Lust seemed to be taking the offer well. Perhaps she understood the reasoning behind Ling's actions? Or perhaps she understood nothing; in either case, she seemed to be too busy with Dante to notice the Scholar. Time would tell where this river of destiny flowed.

...she could, however, offer a few hints. "It is your choice; already, the terms of the 'arrangement' are shifting in your favor. I can free you from everything; from your past, from the future she plans for you, and even from the wrath that hangs over your head like a storm cloud. It will cost you dearly ( ... )

lapis_inferno November 14 2006, 17:04:27 UTC

Dante glared at Lust through the darkness, each word infuriating her more and more. "What good would come from killing me in this place?" Dante paced forward, stopping a few feet away from Lust's shoulder. "I never killed without a purpose, you know. Everything I did was well calculated, and needed to happen for a reason. But you're talking about murdering out of jealousy. Murdering for revenge. You're only hurting yourself by doing that. I could be a powerful ally for you and your friends, or I could be an even more powerful enemy. You decide ( ... )

lustful_thing November 14 2006, 19:26:18 UTC

"You've never killed without purpose?" Lust laughed at that, tossing her head back and closing her eyes. Did the bitch honestly think she'd believe that? "Greed didn't need to die. He barely even remembered you. You killed him to be certain, to ensure he couldn't become a problem later on. And I'll do the same for you. You're of no little to no use to me here or back home. I have everything you ever dangled in front of me, everything you falsely promised me. And you're wrong there; I do have a soul ( ... )

soulofdiscord November 15 2006, 00:51:38 UTC

Now Scholar Ling was just getting frustrated. Did either woman truly want to act, or were the content to bandy words back and forth like a pair of clucking hens? By every god in the Bureaucracy, Ling had never seen their equal! Not even Roderick Ponce von Fonselbottom the Magnificent Bastard could use so many words on such a cut-and-dried topic ( ... )

lapis_inferno November 15 2006, 18:57:26 UTC

Dante, a strong believer in the fact that she was immune to everyone else's insults, nodded in agreement, assuming Ling's words were intended for Lust and not her. After all, Dante had been more than happy to leave the past in the past and move forward. She had come into this hospital with the hopes of remaining anonymous and undetected by the other patients. Sure, she had enjoyed Lust's reaction when they first met under these circumstances, but she knew even then that Al's decision to reveal her identity would not profit her in the least. Even though the others were terrified of her, there was strength in numbers and, if they worked as a team, they could easily overcome her ( ... )

lustful_thing November 15 2006, 20:30:07 UTC

"Don't be any more foolish than you already have been," Lust said in a chiding tone to the small woman. Dante's weapon didn't frighten her. Dante had never been a hand to hand fighter. Lust knew she could handle the woman. Besides, Dante had just transmuted and Lust had seen the other alchemist's after even a small display of alchemy. It exhausted them. She dismissed her old master rather curtly, turning her attentions to Ling instead. That woman, at least, had her respect.

"I don't intend to kill her this night. Take her, then, and do what you will with her. I give her to you for the time being - but I will have what she owes me. It is the way of our world."

She nodded to the woman and continued to ignore Dante, as though the alchemist was nothing.

soulofdiscord November 17 2006, 07:19:34 UTC

Scholar Ling... actually offered a nod of her head, a mark of respect to Lust that few had yet earned in this place. The woman had a grasp of the Way, instinctive as it was, and Ling was quite glad that her propositions weren't going to be a problem with Lust.

...not yet, anyway. It would depend on how her negotiations went with Dante, apparently. "You shall have what you demand, in the fullness of time. Let us speak again during the daylight hours."

Then she turned to Dante, indicating Ling's own room. "Come with me; this offer is for your ears alone."

lapis_inferno November 19 2006, 00:26:07 UTC

Fighting the satisfied smile that twitched on her lips, Dante followed behind the other woman, throwing Lust a long, appraising stare. She didn't really believe Lust would try anything, but she wanted to be sure. It wasn't worth taking any risks, even if she was interested to hear Ling's proposal. As much as she tried to reassure herself of her own abilities, she found it hard to believe she could take on both Edward and the Colonel.

'Let's just hope it doesn't come to that.' Lust was weaker than she was letting on. Dante was sure of it. She remembered scooping her misshapen body out of the desert and cradling her in her arms, and knew that that part of Lust was still in her somewhere. She would just have to find it.

soulofdiscord November 22 2006, 20:34:29 UTC

The Scholar began leading the way to her own room, that soft smile on her face... but then she stopped in mid-stride.

Agony. White-hot, piercing, all-consuming agony exploded in her mind; twisting with enough force to make even her iron-hard control slip. It was far worse than the pain of dying, exceeding the most virulent of poisons or the deadliest of weapons.

It felt like words, feelings, impressions were being burned into her mind. A desperate plea for rescue, and yet still with the arrogance to suggest terms. Not like a certain deity, who had been weak in her desperation, but rather suggesting strength and resilience- that aid would be welcome, but the one responsible would not perish if left alone ( ... )

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