✦ kingdoms fall, kingdoms rise ✦

[Vivika]

(gif credit) ✦ (back to kitty!) ✦ (xxx)

[Vivika]

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Fire purifies.

And a trial by fire brings forth the truth. Or not.


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[Vivika]

Crimson flames spiralled in a circle, twisting and writhing, waltzing around its… unfortunate victim. Flames that burned, but didn’t scorch. That radiated light, but didn’t blind. That emitted sparks, but without the stinging heat.

Malachi flicked a paw, bending the flames and letting them simmer to a dull green. His eyes wandered, drifting to those wide-eyed souls, those witnesses, transfixed by the undulating flames. And in their eyes…

Fear.

Such a powerful motivator, yet it elicited such idiocracy. Whispers of witchcraft and spells and the most dreaded one… magic. Magic. He shuddered. Who could believe that?

It seemed everyone. Everyone, but the unfortunate… victim in the center.
The tom stood tall, head high and shoulders relaxed. His eyes peered from amidst the curtain of flames, a calm assurance laced within.

Oh, this one was smart. Too smart.

Too aware of the hidden lights hidden around the arena ━ powerful illusions from powerful technology. Technology not magic. It was technology that created the haunting lick of the flames and the ember-like sparks. It was technology that gave him his… ghostly apparition. A trick of smoke and lights. A tool to intimidate. To root out the truth.

And he liked it. Liked the awe, the wonder and the fear so clearly reflected in those eyes, liked the sense of control. He reveled in it.

Life was filled with such possibilities. So many moving pieces and little details; so many unexpected setbacks. To control something, anything, was power. It was like… a soothing shade in the midst of a torrential downpour. A balm to the sting of life's setbacks.

But it seemed this cat knew that too well.
An anomaly. Something he couldn’t control.

It bothered him.

[Vivika]

With a flair of his paw, Malachi doused the flames, signalling for the strange cat to be brought forward. His jaw ticked as he motioned for silence from the crowd. He cleared his throat. “You… cat.” His brows rose. “Or whatever your name is… if you so wish to tell us. Are you ready to speak the truth to the courts? Or face the flames once more?”

“My name is of no importance.”

Malachi sighed. “You do realize what the court accuses you of?” He lifted a paw. “Let’s see… theft, defiance of the court, forgery, identity theft… and let’s not forget murder. And treason.”

The tom shrugged.

“Do you not care?” His voice rose despite himself, whiskers twitching. A breath in. “You could be executed at this very time tomorrow based on any one of these charges and you have nothing to say for yourself?”

The tom said nothing.

He rose to his paws. “You could get yourself out of this and have some say, some direction, in how these proceedings will go. How your life will go and you’re not going to lift a paw to help yourself?” With another sigh, his eyes fluttered shut. “I’m trying to help you. Help me help you.”

A soft snicker. Then, a roll of the eyes.
The strange tom leaned closer, jaws parted to murmur something.

Malachi drew back sharply, a hiss slipping through his teeth. “You came all this way to insult me? To call me some… walrus?” He slammed a paw down on the ground. “I’ll have you know that I am not some━”

“A warrior oc.”

“A what?”

The cat snickered. “You heard me the first time, dear judge. But I don’t suppose you understand, do you?”

He inhaled sharply. “Enlighten me, then.”

“You inquire why I don’t care about the outcome of my life.” The tom’s tail flicked. “It’s because we all are exactly that ━ warrior ocs. We’re all controlled by a single mastermind. A god perhaps, who deigns to look upon us. And in their desire to create, they craft our every move, every outlet of our lives… our wants, our desires and the essence of who we are. We’re shaped by them, crafted with meticulous care and detail.”

“This is ridiculou━”

“Is it so hard to believe? And right now… this god has crafted this exact scenario. They’ve orchestrated the events and pulled the strings for us to commune ━ to have this pivotal conversation.”

Malachi sputtered. “And what? I suppose they gave you divine insight as well? You can’t expect me to believe all of this is a coincidence. That we have no control over the outcome of our lives.”

“Control is merely an illusion, dear judge.” A small smile. “Just like those fancy lights you cling to.”

His jaw ticked. “Get him out of my sight.”

A single nod toward the waiting guards. But the voodoo cat was not done. Not yet.

“... I trust this will all work out in the end. My life is in the hands of the true chess master. Not you.”

And like that, the strange cat was gone.

[Vivika]

Turning on his heel, Malachi strode from the courts, inhaling sharply. By this time tomorrow, that voodoo cat would be gone.

Executed.

He’d feed that little cat and all his conspiracy, cult theories to the Beast.

But a tiny gnawing doubt pulled him up short.
What if this was exactly what that ‘god’ wanted him to do?

The last thing he needed was for him, a judge, to be controlled. He was in control.
But those words came back at him… a sickening pit in his stomach.

[Vivika]

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"Control is merely an illusion, dear judge.
Just like those fancy lights you cling to."


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[Vivika]

as always, a closing post for honesty! thank you so much + i hope you have a good day, ahh! <3

[Vivika]

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│[/color][/size][/right][right][size=85]sweet pringles !! this is a v. neat
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about this length or this box will
break! xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
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this thread has been moved here! <3