Dive into Creativity: Explore, Discover, Enjoy
Tagged By: @akamikazae Thank you for the tag!!
Trigger Warnings: - Blood & gore depiction - Mutilation - Physical injuries
Cold echoed hymns promising the world a new song made the crunch of snow beneath her boots the drums. These past twelve days of this five month long hunt had made her once beloved metal burn into her exposed skin as the crystals formed and cracked from each movement much unlike the green that had been hidden beneath thick snow. Truthfully she couldn't even recall when she had last stopped to turn and check for the hounds. Had she been sly enough? Could she finally take a rest for even a second in this land of white cold? The bird songs died telling her no as the heel of her boots no longer could be hidden with her magic. May the daughters guide me to my destination. Knowing damn well there were no daughters that would find her in this hour. "Were I an easy prey you'd have already warmed my corpse with the fires of your hut." "Yet you are not." The hooded one, snow melting from their cloth as if a ward had been placed on them. So she assumed as she could feel the blood pooling behind her nose. A mage, mentally she tsked, someone's certainly starving if they agreed to join. "This could all be rectified if you just came along like a good mutt." Curled tongue matched the twinge of the lips on the ranger. "Unless you wish to be forgiven with your blood on an alter of a god that will never answer." And this one is the greedy one no doubt, fucking rangers. Digging her already freezing hands into the snow with a rage that almost warmed her weary bones. The grasp of snow revealed a stone, nothing to gawk at but something big enough she could perhaps distract them. They never were her favorite brood, most were just in the pocket of some lord after all. Hopping off the horse, smashing the snow and dirt under their fall, ensuring a difficult spring for the plants, the ranger took out their small sword and swung it about dramatically as she scooted closer to the stone her back had found a match with. "I'll give you exactly one minute to think about it mage-growler." Swiping their blade upwards, pressing the tip to the stone, holding it above her head. Taunting with a twist of their wrist. "So either come with us or die quietly for me."
"I'd rather not." Twisting the energy of the stone with her own. The ridged edges growing sharper and sharper as it cut through her palm, the trail of red riveting down the cracks. With a fierce wind she slip it between her knuckles and slammed it into the rangers side. Forcing them to release the blade, her other hand free to catch it before it nicked her more important body parts. Could always just regrow any lost fingers after all, though the pain alone would leave any mage worth their salt bedridden for a time. Tossing the blade as far as it would go she slammed her hand back against the stone she had been pinned against. Twisting it out and through the rangers neck, a sick snapping of bones like the branches the stone inevitably hit. Why wasn't the mage making a move? Why were they still sitting there looking in her direction. "You?" The dark warmth of his soil tinged eyes captivated her as her reflection shot back. "Never the one for hellos, obviously." Calloused fingers, roughed from years of labor either on docks and farms, traced over the back of her hands like water to stone. Leaving a mark in the most minuscule of ways as the bandages he applied pressed tightly against her wounds. Making the ointment press thick into the wounds as his magic did it's best to stop the bleeding. "Rude is a thing I could never be to one such as yourself." The creek in his throat had her heart thump. The cadence of a past far too pushed behind her. "This dog will never be loyal to man when his howling still confuses them." "You are a disgrace of a mage then." "Says the one who gave me the curse." The sharp eyes she still found comfort in were the same ones that held something colder than the earth beneath her. Why did it need to be like this? "I'm guessing this means you'll be taking me in?" The twine he dug from the the rangers pack became evidence enough that she had to chortle. Of course. Any kindness they might have had left to spare for one another was being used up for the present moment it seemed. You teach a man to fish and he comes after you like a starved dog begging for more. Huffing a breath as he began to tie her wrists.
---
It grew wild and tall, encumbering the home beneath its weight with each wide breath. How could a fire so large be the cause of her skin freezing with a numb acuteness. No! No, he can't! Blood like lemon and red wine fought as the shot back blasts smashed the two against three and rock. Something entwined as air sucked and pulled from their chests. -- He was there, for the briefest moment, he could see, smell, hear it all at a small cloth covered table where a meal had been made and set before him. What... Momentarily thinking before the voice his ears drank like wine poured through his soul. Hand, his hand, found way up the soft cotton of the baby pink and white thin striped button up shirt. Pulling it clutch under his fist while sipping in the breakfast scene. "So messy," His eyes darted up to see the familiar red waves, pulled back in a weak braid with a band to keep her bangs from her eyes. She- what- "Just like your father it seems, ah," The gentle chuckle as she used picked up a napkin and wiped away mush from the small being in the highchair near her. Hair dark, eyes a warm honey like hers that he wanted to pour over his attention constantly. "But, I suppose you are both lucky that I love messes." This was not where he was meant to be, the strings that bind were meant to entwine with something, not show him whatever this was. For the clothes they wore, the furniture he saw, the meal, and the people were not of his own. -- "Are you manic!?" Salt hitting her nose as harsh as the older woman's voice screeched "And you're a rotted corpse." Coughing back as the fresh air returned to her lungs. Mae-Hui rolled over onto her stomach with a sharp glare courtesy tossed the old woman's way. Scoffing as her wrinkled fingers gripped then ripped at Ekashiba's shirt to expose his chest beneath. "Idiot girl! Those ingredients were rare and a moons like those do not come very often." "Then maybe don't try to sacrifice my party to some deaf non-existing god!" "Psh- he wouldn't have died, but now I have two which will make reviving difficult." "Weren't you listening old woman, your god is not real!" "The lady of the weave is very much so alive you twat! She took your threads did she not? But now she can not come as it is meant to be one body- which you idiots are not, though one mind maybe."
Tagging the following: Whoever would like!
reblog with a spoiler for your wip with zero context. no context allowed.
— Joplin Spider (Gorillaz)
Jevoi leans on the railing, looking out on the endless sea of stars. As much as she needs that tome, her mind keeps wandering off. That demon has crawled into her mind like a weevil. Yesterday keeps playing in her mind.
"You're trickier than I thought," says Tanglepork, her gun pressed to Jevoi's back. "Hiring staff to humiliate me, didn't see that coming."
G: Ya're welcome.
"You can clearly see, I-"
"Shut up," growls the sheriff, jabbing her hostage with the gun's barrel, "Where is it?"
"With a horny sea hag," says Jevoi, "That coven's probably used it all already."
"Stop ly~ing~," sings Tanglepork, "If you don't have it, you know what ha~ppens~."
"Diablo mio," a voice rings out; it belongs to Angustias, who is slithering down the dock. "What are you doing?"
"Arresting a criminal," says the sheriff, flashing her badge, "Stay~ back~, de~mon~."
Angustias glares at the gnome. If she's going to do anything, she has to take initiative. She subtly coils her body. As fast as she can, Angustias conjures her six swords and leaps toward the gnome, swinging wildly. One sword cleaves off the gnome's gun' barrel. Another, the hand holding it. One slices open the back. Another, the belly. One stabs a knee from behind. The last, up the butt.
A: A rather unsatisfying fight, I'll admit. After that- J: She died on the spot. L: Is that so? D: That's how the mean sheriff died?
Tanglepork's screams are trapped in the unseen bubble surrounding the trio. For all Jevoi's dismissiveness and daughterly angst, she has learned some of her mother's spells. The sheriff uses her remaining hand to try to hold her organs in as she collapses to the floor.
"A lizard who's a wizard?" Angustias less asks and more blurts in confusion.
"No," says Jevoi over Tanglepork's softening sobbing, "I'm ...an eldritch... trickster?"
"Still sounds like a nerd," says Angustias, reaching down into Tanglepork and pulls an organ up, still attached to a tangling mess of the sheriff's "pork", so to speak. "Let's play a game, the first of you two that identifies each organ gets a point."
"Kidney," says Jevoi.
"Correct," says Angustias, crushing it.
"That's not fair," whimpers Tanglepork.
Angustias drops the kidney and pulls up another. "Liver," Tanglepork tries to yell.
"Yes." Angustias sets it back in. As she does, she notices Tanglepork attempting to wiggle something out of her vest pocket. The demon stabs another sword into the gnome, this time, in her shoulder. "I know your kind's tricks." Angustias tries to pull something else out of the gnome, but it's small and buried. "What's this little thing?"
"An ovary?" asks Jevoi, glancing around nervously. "You should stop before we get caught. Just kill her already."
"Just one more," says Angustias, eyeing Jevoi with a mad fire in her eyes. "I'm finally getting why so many demons are into this." She pulls another organ up. "Besides, the gnome can't die from this."
"Please, don't crush my bladder," cries Tanglepork. She clinches her eyes and focuses on her magic. "Optica-"
Angustias punches Tanglepork in the jaw, the force cleaving the gnome's tongue off and shattering her teeth. "No spells!" She shoves the bladder back in.
Tanglepork attempts to speak, but the message is lost in the spray of blood.
Jevoi takes a step back. "I think your game's over, An-Angustias."
"Fine, it's a draw," whines Angustias, "Adios, p**a." She shoves the gnome's severed hand and gun into the open wound and flings her off the side of the ship.
Tanglepork slams into the magic sphere protecting the ship, her cracking against it, and slides down the side, leaving a bloody smear behind her.
Jevoi looks over the railing. "You really think she'll survive that?"
"Yeah," she says, "Gnome's can only die of boredom."
"That's not true," says Jevoi, turning toward Angustias, "That just how they die of age. They're still mortal. If you cut them, they still bleed."
"Oh," says the demon, now licking Tanglepork's fluids off the deck, "Eh."
Jevoi gawks at wild messy display and licks her own eyes.
A: Yes, she died immediately and we disposed of the body. J: Then we went back to Angustias' cabin. L: Yeah, here we go. J: Don't be weird, Mum. We just talked about- L: Then why ya telling me this? D: Did you ever get your book? J: Yes, after the cruise, we- L: One hook at a time. Next yarn: why I killed that old wolf. J: I suppose, you could entertain us over desert. Here comes the cake. D: Oooooooooooooooooooooo! Cake.