Things They Won't Talk About Later //Tundra and Verdana//

[Verdana]

Things were looking pretty hopeless for Shay. She was bound, gagged and in a chokehold, with weapons at her head and neck. Her victims-turned-captors were taking no chances. Shay had a sudden suspicion... She reached out with her mind, one of the skills she could actually count on in the fate-forsaken land, and probed the thoughts of the man holding her. Only, she didn't. Because there was a great big iron shield in front of it. She poked and prodded, but it was no use. The mind was sealed up tight. Shay's feeling of foreboding grew as she ventured into the minds of the other men. Locked tight. They hadn't known how to do that before. She'd never had any trouble penetrating their minds on previous visits.

That left only one theory.

Someone was helping them.

Someone who really wanted Shay dead.

Unfortunately, this left her at a bit of a dead end, strategy-wise. She was cornered and couldn't predict what the men would do next. She only had one option open to her, and she hated it. She closed her eyes, and tried to sink into the back of her own mind.
Come on, she urged. Get out here.
Nothing.
She pulled back harder, but the presence in the back of her mind wasn't budging.
I thought you didn't want me to die!
Of course, the voice didn't respond. Shay was at a bit of a loss for what to do.

She swore in her mind, and prepared to improvise.

But, oh! Perhaps she didn't need to. There was a hush, a mutter. Shay caught a familiar word.
Kuar.
Apparently he, like Shay herself, had a reputation which preceded him. And he was coming. Shay felt an irrational twinge of relief, before remembering that she didn't know Kuar from a grain of sand. He wasn't Vlad. He didn't come back to rescue her. He came back because that was what she ordered him to do.

But why was he staying? Why hadn't he left? Because they had a common enemy, of course. The one who had gotten Shay into the mess she was in, undoubtably. Two was better than one. In theory. In theory. Back he was, though, and although Shay wasn't facing him, she could hear him causing trouble. Someone fell. Kuar met her eyes. He was not impressed. Neither was she. In her opinion, this was his fault. He brought Demion to her. In any case, Kuar got her released. The man holding her abruptly get go. Shay tried to gulp air, but there was a cloth in her mouth so she started to choke instead. She tumbled forwards, still bound, and tried to struggle to her feet. What was he doing? He should be leaving. This wasn't his problem.

Shay couldn't decide if she was grateful to him, or resentful of his presence.

She'd decide as soon as she was untied.

[Tundra]

Kuar flicked his tail impatiently as he watched Jonah's eyes widen in horror and drop Shay. The man obviously knew Kuar's reputation here, not to mention the fact that he had been singled out of the entire crowed. Kuar growled seeing Jonah begin working his way quickly to the door. Kuar only had to say two words without even moving a singer finger "Stop him." At those words most of the men of the bar jumped up and gripped at Jonah, grabbing whatever they could before dragging him back and sitting him down on one of the chairs forcefully.

Kuar reached down gripping the bindings on Shay's arm as he lifted her to her feet. Easily his claws cut though the material they had used to bind her, and the reached up and removed the gag they had placed on her. Jonah on the other hand was currently getting the crap beaten out of him by bar people, each one cursing up a storm how he should have just listened. Kuar finally walked over, the group parting to reveal Jonah, with two forming back eyes and a bloody lip. Kuar flicked his tail saying "See here, your on my turf Jonah, these men? they know I don't kid, now, if you don't give the money up, your going to end up in a ditch somewhere." Kuar's eyes glowed lightly in the dimly lit room, his own mental powers reaching out and gripping at the barrier ringing it until finally it gave way. He made quick work finding who had helped the man. And of course it was Demion. This didn't surprise him, but it also told Kuar Demion was keeping watch on the jobs they took.

It bothered Kuar that that Demion was indeed taking such measures to try and kill them. Though he didn't account for the reputations Kuar and Shay had built over time. This could be advantageous, but at the same time hindering. He sighed pulling his mind back out and looking at Jonah with a look of amusement. Though he wasn't amused at Jonah, just the tactics of this Demion.

[Verdana]

Jonah might have been fine, but then he did something foolish. He made a break for the door. Then Kuar gave an order. At first, Shay thought that he had somehow planted people in the bar, because more than a few patrons proceeded to get up and deftly disable the fat Scot. Shay watched in astonishment. How had Kuar gotten such obedience? The people in the bar must have known him. An entirely new feeling of foreboding began to blossom in her chest. She was missing something important, but she couldn't figure out what it was. She knew that she'd remember eventually, but also suspected that by then she'd be wishing that she'd remembered it earlier.

A muffled yelp slipped out from under her gag as Shaygrin was hoisted to her feet. She smelled feathers and meat. Her bonds were cut, the gag removed. She spat it out. Her mouth was dry and her wrist, which she had sprained in her fight with Kuar, was throbbing horribly. Her mood was not brilliant, to say the least. She rubbed at her hand, scowling. Somehow, she had to turn this around, and make it look as if she had planned the whole thing. However, all plans went out the window when he mentioned his turf. His turf. Oh, by the blade... And she'd been... There was no time to think about that. She'd just ignore it. Maybe he wouldn't realise. If he did... Well, she'd have to deal with that then.

In any case, it was her move. She had been watching Kuar's mind tactics (clever, very clever indeed) and had slipped in as he slipped out. Demion's work. But that was of no further consequence. She had a job to do. She strode forwards. The stubble had been wiped from her face, and she reverted to her female voice and body language. She knelt beside the battered man.
William is not very impressed with you, Jonah. Not at all. It would be easier for all of us if you just surrendered the money.
And, typically, it was then that the Power decided to intervene. Shay felt it push forwards. She slipped back, and the body's eyes went blank and blue. The body grew very slightly, and in a voice like a black hole, it said,
Would it not?

Instantly, the Power surrendered the body, but it had done its job. Jonah wailed and gibbered that the money was hidden in his mattress, upstairs in the inn. Shay straightened, nodded. She turned to Kuar and barked,
Watch him, as if he was under her command. She brushed against his mind.
Go with it, she urged, and clacked her way upstairs. She found Jonah's room by smell, and the money, to her surprise, was exactly where he'd said it was. She took the debt she needed, and some extra as a finder's fee. On an afterthought, she took the rest as well.

She wandered back downstairs, and towards Jonah again.
Well done, she said sweetly, caressing the fat man's face. Her knife was in her hand in a flash. She stabbed him deftly and with precision, right under the chin. The blade snicked through his nerves and slid out through the back of his neck. He was dead before he could scream. The man's lackeys stepped forward, but with the reluctant shuffle of men whose motivation is rapidly dwindling. Shay gave them no chance to run. She killed them all in the same practiced fashion. It was her signature. She was proud of it.

The men in the tavern were wise, and had tactfully vanished by this time. As Shay cleaned off her bloody knife, there was not a sound. The patrons had left.

When she had cleaned off every stain, she looked up. Her eyes were dark and furious.
Let's go, she snapped, without really knowing why she said it. Two was better than one, after all.

In theory.

[Tundra]

Kuar wasn't pleased really when he noticed Shay take the same appearance she had back at her base. This time her voice changed, the words slipping almost like venom from her mouth. Kuar flicked his tail his eyes darting around the room to make sure none of the residents were going to intervene. When Jonah cracked, spewing out the information needed, Kuar couldn't help but smirk slightly. Kuar flicked his tail when he heard Shay say watch him, then mentally emphasize the point saying for him to go along with it. Kuar had no real intentions to go against it, other then the fact that it made it look like Shay was in charge.

When Shay returned, she walked up to Jonah and said something, and within a flash of an eye, Jonah was dead. Kuar had started to move to react when Shay jumped dispatching Jonah's men as well. The bar cleared very fast, every one of them not even taking notice of Shay. What they did take notice of was the fact that Kuar's posture had changed from the casual stance to one of annoyance, and hostility. Kuar within a few seconds was on Shay pinning her to one of the walls. She had made a huge mistake, and Kuar would make sure she knew this. His claws dug into her wrist, as he turned her around fast slamming her face into the wall. Her arm was twisted behind her back and his teeth ever so close to her neck. "Bad Idea Shay, a real bad idea. I did not say you could kill them, your on my turf" A growl escaped Kuar's throat as he dug his claws even deeper. His tail blade slipped out from under his cloak and ran up Shays side stopping at her throat, the light gleaming off its edge.

"If it wasn't in my better interest to keep you alive now Shay, you would be dead, in a ditch, rotting" His tail pulled back but not before running lightly over the skin of her neck. It was obvious something was up, this wasn't Kuar's normal state of mind, even his aura he gave off would feel different. It took him a few, but he forced himself back to normal and let go of Shay. He growled again before picking up the bodies of the dead and tossing them into the allyway not far from here. He ran his claws along the wall as he walked back to Shay. His tail flicked in annoyance as he looked at Shay, taking a clean rag from behind the counter and wrapping her wrist. "Your going to need antibiotics, and your place is to far, time to pay a visit to mine" At that he basically grabbed Shay and bolted into the air...after going outside of course. His wing beats were strong and fast, and before one could even survey their surroundings he landed cleanly onto a balcony and ran his claws along the seam of the door. They suddenly opened, reviling a heavily decorated living room.

It was elaborate, the walls having paintings of known assassins, and also underneath then golden name tags stating if they were dead or not. Surprisingly, Shay was indeed there, but her name tag was red, symbolizing rival. Not far from her was indeed a painting of Conis, his brown eyes and black hair clean and combed. Kuar paused for a bit looking at the painting before walking over to the table. He flicked a switch and one of the paintings flipped over revealing medical supplies. Kuar sat down in one of the chairs in the room and said "tend yourself this time...I'm not in the best of moods..." His claws dug lightly into the wooden arm of the chair he was in, and it was obvious it wasn't the first time it had happened either. None the less Kuar seemed to be trying to control something, an anger maybe, but right off the bat one could not see he was trying to control another state of his mind.

[Verdana]

Whack!

Before she knew what was going on, Shay had been grabbed and was slammed viciously into a wall, face-first. She felt her nose grind against the wood, but more importantly, felt her already-battered wrist being twisted. It took all of her self-control not to yell out in pain.

So much for hoping that he wouldn't realise what was going on. He'd known. He'd known the whole time.

The tail, pressed into her neck, released. Shay was alive. Shay was lucky. She had a sneaking feeling that... Nope, feeling was gone. Wiped out by the sheer agony in her wrist. If it wasn't broken, it was very close to it. However, even that couldn't distract Shay from Kuar. He smelled different. Felt different. The Power stirred. Shay tensed, preparing to try and keep the malevolent mind-growth at bay, but the tickling feeling subsided as the Power crept back into its hole, or wherever it was that it resided. Shay watched her unlikely ally-opponent, frowning. He seemed to be pulling himself under control, but Shay did not trust herself to speak. It may have made things worse, or she could have whimpered. Either would have been pretty bad.

Kuar approached her. Shay cringed, and then felt foolish for doing so. In any case, the creature simply wrapped her wrist. It hurt. A shudder ran through her, but she gritted her teeth and bore it stoically. Kuar released her wrist, and said something. Before Shay could take in the implications of it, she was scooped up, and they flew off.

Shay was not afraid of flying, but nobody likes to be taken by surprise. She yelped once, and then shut her eyes tightly. She didn't want to see what was going on. In fact, all she wanted to do was to escape, but that was out of the question. She couldn't fly, and it was a long way down. It felt too familiar. She hated it because she liked it. She had been carried so often, just like this... But Kuar was not who Shay's body was determined to turn him into. Shay did not allow herself to relax, and only opened her eyes when the two of them landed.

She looked into the living-room with interest, despite the pain in her hand. Portraits lined the walls. She observed Kuar's back as he walked away, lined by faces. She recognised some as assassins. Others she did not know. She saw her own face, and subconsciously traced the line of the jaw, the tilt of the nose. That wasn't what she looked like, was it? She had almost forgotten.
There was another face which brought back a keen pang of remembrance. Shay tensed. Her eyes widened. That was Conis. That face. She had run into him once. On his turf.
His turf.
That would mean...
Oh. She understood. It didn't make her feel any better.

She took a step forward, and then swayed. She felt a pressure in the back of her head. It was a horribly familiar sensation.
Kuar... she got out. It was a weak little call, the whisper of a child who feels like they're going to be sick. The lack-of-control feeling was very similar.
She felt it coming. She fought. It let her fight, but it won. It always won. Shay reached out, her eyes wide with horror...

And the Power stepped into her body.
The Body needs no tending.
The Power stepped forwards. It never ran. It never needed to. It got exactly where it needed to be, when it needed to be there. Its walk was a predatory stalk, completely upright, completely featureless. Its motions were as bland as Shay's face, its blank blue eyes never blinked and went on forever. It moved the body's mouth, but there was a feeling of formality to this, as the words seemed to echo from the listener's own head. The voice itself was neither male nor female. It was not a voice, and yet the voice of millions. As it moved, the Body grew taller. Shay's bones crackled in protest, but the Power had no concern for this. It lengthened the Body until it matched Kuar's height. It would be easier that way.

It a heartbeat, it was in front of Kuar. It slammed one hand into the demon's chest, and with strength partly of Shay's body and partly borrowed from some unearthly source, it flung him and the chair across the room. The chair met the wall and burst apart in a shrapnel of splinters.

The Power did not smile. It stood, watching.

Well met, Undoer.

[Tundra]

Kuar sensed Shay's shift this time, he barely had time to react before be found himself flung backwards. Moving his hands with speed he actually blocked Shay's attack, but still flew backwards from the sheer force emitted from the blow. He slammed into the wall, his wings screaming in pain as they took the full force of the impact. His breath was knocked out of him, and he seemed to hover in the air for a bit before falling to the ground with a thud. He was trying to get together in his mind what had just happened, splinters still landing on the floor around him. He looked up, his eyes normal for a few as he looked up at Shay. His tail flicked as his anger grew more, and even now one could feel the foreboding feeling that that may not have been the best of ideas. Kuar's eyes lit up with furry, a blue aura now emitting off them. His tail whipped slicing though the wall, and right though one of the beams. As Kuar started lifting himself off the ground. His claws flexed, his fangs bared, his eyes locked on what he now saw as prey.

Within seconds he was on Shay, or the power, they were the same to him right now. His claws sank deeply into her flesh and his fangs came down onto her shoulder, blood gushing into his mouth. His tail warped around her arm and gave a sharp twist, the distinct sound of a popping bone emitted the air. He sprung back off her and faced her a growl leaving his throat, his eyes filled with hatred. How could she think she could get away with that? no, Kuar would kill her, there was no turning back now. His claws flexed as blood dripped to the ground. Jumping forward again he slammed into shay, his wing flying open throwing her back against the far wall. The wall cracked, the paintings fell to the floor. Kuar didn't care, he was to pissed to care. He tried so hard to regain control, but the anger, it, it was to much. He growled again his eyes locking with hers as he said though a growl "Undoer? I'll undo you! Your life is mine!" He lunged forward ready to make a killing blow.

[Verdana]

The Power and Shay observed Kuar together. The Power felt nothing. Shay felt horror. Locked in the back of her mind, she was forced to watch as her body beat up her only ally. She felt nothing. She had no connection to her own form. But she watched, and she knew that it was going to hurt when she returned.

Kuar stared up at the body. His face registered shock, then indignation, and finally fury, plain and simple. His eyes began to glow, and then Shay understood. Oh. It was provoking him! But, why? Why would it do that? Surely it wouldn't go to all that effort just as light entertainment... Would it. It dawned on Shay that it would indeed do that. The Power seemed to think that Shay's body was there for its amusement. If not that, the times when the being took over the body seemed completely random. But there was no time to consider that.

Kuar was attacking.

The Power felt nothing as the creature that was once Kuar plunged its teeth into the body's arm. Shay, on the other hand, felt nothing but knew with dreadful certainty that she'd be feeling plenty later. Blood gushed out of the Body, and the Power was ready for that. It let the being which it called the Undoer have a taste, to whet its appetite, and then it stopped the blood. A few droplets hung in her air, and then the blood near or on the Body's arm was sucked back, sloshing wetly inside the cut, but never venturing out of it. The Body needed blood, so the Power would keep the blood in the body. In a warped way, it made some sort of sense. In a very not-alive way. The Power treated the Body with the sort of care that something gives when it has no idea what to do. It helped in the short term, but was rather damaging in the long term.

Shay winced at every blow her body took. The Power didn't seem to be fighting back. It did not stop Kuar when he dislocated her shoulder and elbow ('Oh, and that's the arm with the broken wrist! You fiend!' Shay thought). It did not stop as Kuar slammed her body into the wall. Shay heard a crackle. It could have been a rib. What did the Power mean, 'Undoer'? Its names seemed oddly fitting, but at the same time a bit random. This one made no sense whatsoever. Kuar evidently didn't like it. Then again, he didn't like anything right then. He lunged forwards, evidently ready to kill Shay. Shay's mind could not stop watching. It wasn't as if she had eyes to close.

But, finally, the Power was making a comeback.

No. Its voice was no louder or softer than ever. It was a richly empty monotone. Those blank, bland eyes fixed onto Kuar's, and recognition momentarily shone.
That is not Ordained.

It reached out a hand. This hand happened to be the one attached to the very-much-wounded arm. That's lovely, Shay thought grimly, as Kuar met it. The bones ground together. The arm twisted, but the Power did not let the arm buckle. With sheer force of will, it slid the bones into vaguely the right places and held them there. This was a rather unhealthy state of affairs, and Shay winced as her wrist cracked in two and the edges of her bones fragmented. The arm did not move, but the Body slid back, pressing very hard against the wall.

No, the Power repeated.

It clenched its fist.

A jet of sheer force blossomed from the closed hand. Shay felt her own supplies being accessed and mercilessly drained. 'So that's how it does it,' she thought, staring in wonder at the vast source of magic at her own disposal. However, the Power was diminishing that source swiftly. It flung Kuar away from it, into the wall. Shay heard a crack. Next, the Power lifted the splintered bits of chair. They blazed red-hot, but did not catch alight. They swivelled, until the sharpest of their edges pointed at the demon and, like a flurry of arrows, they were released. The Power wasn't done yet. It lifted a chair, and mercilessly flung it after the pieces of wood.

The Butterfly Empress and the Undoer are to reach an alliance. This is Ordained, it stated with its usual cold vagueness.

[Tundra]

Kuar growled as his chest met squarely on Shays broken arm. He could feel the bones not only break, but shatter under the pressure of his body. He felt Shay's body slip backwards as he went at her with his claws. But it was as soon as he started to bring his claws down that be found himself flying backwards and into the wall once more. Kuar let out a cry of pain as his wing snapped, the frail bones shattering with little effort. His own body may not be hollow boned, but his wings were. His teeth ground together and blood dripped down his white feathers.

It took him a few to actually collect himself enough to be able to do anything, but just then he felt the splinters cut into his skin. Kuar hissed in pain and suddenly flames erupted in the air around him. Any fragment of wood that was near him just burst into flames, and dissipated as the flames did. Normally, this would not have happened with Kuar in this state, but his mind knew his body needed to be unharmed.

Kuar growled raising himself to his feet, his wing hanging limp behind his body. he stumbled slightly his body sore from being thrown twice now. He looked at Shay and growled flicking his tail as he literally just batted the chair that was fly at him aside and out the window they had come though. His eyes focused down into slits as he stared at Shay, his prey. This, entity seemed to think it could win. Kuar couldn't have that, He had never lost, never. Even in training he had never lost. Kuar kneeled down to all fours before suddenly lunging forward with speed blinding to the eye. He landed square on Shays chest, the impact popping his own shoulder out of place, but he didn't care. His other arm reached for shays neck, the claws almost making contact before suddenly changing course and clawing into her skull instead.

They sank under the skin and tore forward leaving clear cuts that began to seep blood. His tail on the other hand whipped up and was heading to deal a death blow to Shays heart. Kuar himself was fighting..with himself. He didn't want this, he didn't want to kill Shay. It was not her provoking him, but his feral side saw Shay as the enemy. He closed his eyes not wanting to see the blade make contact with her heart.

[Verdana]

And then there was fire. Shay mentally backed away, horrified. Fire. She didn't like fire. She liked water and cold. Heat and fire were not on her list of priorities. However, although she shuddered and winced, the Power didn't even twitch. The Power didn't care what damage was caused to the body. It pressed on regardless. Kuar batted the chair away effortlessly, and came towards the Body. Shay didn't like that. He had a force field of Fire. She wasn't sure whether flesh would do the same thing as the wood splinters had, but she really did not want to find out. Unfortunately, the Power didn't seem too worried.

Kuar crouched down. 'Oh dear,' thought Shay, a second before the demon pounced. It landed on the Power's chest. There were several more ominous cracks from her ribs. 'Could you not have stopped that?' Shay asked the Power, annoyed. Typically, it did not answer. At least Kuar had taken some damage too. His shoulder was out of its socket. His arm shot towards her neck. Shay didn't like that.
'Do you mind?' Evidently, the Power did, because it didn't stop the arm. Shay lost sight of the arm, but a slight jolt indicated impact. Ouch.

In the meantime, the tail was coming. Shay could not look away. However, she was watching Kuar's face. She saw his eyes close, and suddenly she understood. He was like her. Not exactly, but he wasn't in control either. His body was doing things that he couldn't prevent. Her heart filled with empathy. She understood exactly how he felt. It was horrible, it was frightening and it was painful.

That's what the Power had been waiting for.

As the tail flew towards Shay's neck, a hand shot out and Shay recognised it as her own, the fingers warped with the Power's presence. It grabbed the tail and was soon joined by Shay's uninjured arm. The hands tilted. There was a cracking sound as the bones in the tail broke. But the Power wasn't done yet. It took the tail, and pressed the tip into Kuar's brow.
The Butterfly Empress and the Undoer are to reach an alliance. This is Ordained, it repeated with the patience of a creature with lots of time on its hands. One hand gripped Kuar's shoulders, holding him firmly in place. The other hand traced the blade slowly down over Kuar's face.
It is Ordained, it said again. There could be no confusion.

[Tundra]

The air went silent just before the second his tail would have made contact. The air vibrated with the sound of cracking bones and Kuar let out a gasp of pain followed by his knees buckling from the pain that shot up his spine. What happened next only broke Kuar's will to fight. He felt, his own tail blade dig into his skin and the blood trickle from the wound. He backed off, there wasn't much more he could do. His hand was clasped over his eye, the blood seeping though the center of his fingers as he growled, the glow in his eyes flickering almost as it disappeared, or more faded to near nonexistence. It was still there though, the anger, the rage, but it wasn't in control. Not anymore at least. He pulled his tail close to himself , his wings folded as best they could, despite one being broken. Kuar backed away, almost cowering as he stumbled to a safer location. Anywhere away from Shay right now was safer, at least this was how his feral mindset saw it. He looked back at Shay with almost a look of fright, but still defensive. He didn't want to fight anymore, no, his feral self was slowly receding back into its cage.

Kuar flicked his tail, and growled in pain as the as the broken bone stabbed at him. He was breathing heavily as he looked at Shay and said through breaths "I don't....I don't understand....I....why...why did you cause that..WHY..." His voice wavered slightly in anger, and pain. His body looked exhausted, and was definitely in pain. He cowered away from Shay, not really knowing what to do right now. He wanted so bad to hurt her back, for hurting him, but...it wasn't her. He knew this..He looked back at Shay saying "What...are you..I know.....know your not Shay...your..something else..." He kept his hand over his eye not even wanting to think about the damage that had been done there. It was demoralizing to have your own weapon used against you, no matter what way you looked at it.