Sacrifices (Cayenne - Kell - Satu)

[Satu]

Hatred! Hatred! Hatred! Hatred! Hatred! It beat stronger and closer, and more forceful. Her Heart met it, it had no choice and she choked it in, as Hatred swelled inside her. But her Heart matched the heaviness, built upon it, and grew in blackness, before it had chance to whither her away in fear and sorrow. Looking down, the Konti’s eyes shifted as her head turned to look at the Myrian slowly. Kell would not have recognized his companion’s fierce stare. The niceties they had shared were but a disappearing dream to the HeartSeer. Already that carefree girl was gone. If his back was not to her, he would have seen the gentleness transformed and changed before his eyes in the space of a few minutes. The Myrian would not let her pass. And Kell stood in her way, blocking her from the Myrian. Always, others sought to confine her! To hold her against her will! Poisonous Hatred churned in her Heart and through her veins! They would try to-… No! She tore her mind away from unwanted thoughts and memories! The woman’s swords were on them, leveled at them. The Heart beat wildly, then beat renewed with Hatred! She had once given in and… now she would force her way through into the Jungle. But Kell, the Drykas stood in her way… The Hatred, the threat, the words… all combined to tax Satu’s mind and Heart. “No!” she shrieked in defiance at the Myrian, “No! We were invited, and shown the way!” the Myrian, so animalistic, frightened her in an unknown way Satu could not name. But Satu was sure she knew things that others did not, and her thoughts were in turmoil. “We will not turn back, you are WRONG! My blood is sacred here, you can not spill it! We are Stronger than you know…” her breathing was labored and her head spun strangely. The Konti’s strong hand reached out and gripped Kell’s shoulder for support, “Kill him? He is my companion. Why would…” She faltered and looked at Kell and back to Oni. Oni was a cannibal; she had heard the stories... But then it registered, Oni knew.... She knew what had happened in the Wildlands! Satu’s head shook, back and forth, eyes wide. “What do you know?” she demanded, white hair a wild, shimmer about her head as it moved, “Who told you! Deanna? Lies! It is lies!” and then she spat at the woman who had moved closer. She almost couldn’t see straight with the Hatred that consumed her, Emotions fuelled her movements and her hands shook as she reached for the only comfort in her small world, the suvai.

[Satu]

Hatred! Hatred! Hatred! Hatred! Hatred! It beat stronger and closer, and more forceful. Her Heart met it, it had no choice and she choked it in, as Hatred swelled inside her. But her Heart matched the heaviness, built upon it, and grew in blackness, before it had chance to whither her away in fear and sorrow. Looking down, the Konti’s eyes shifted as her head turned to look at the Myrian slowly. Kell would not have recognized his companion’s fierce stare. The niceties they had shared were but a disappearing dream to the HeartSeer. Already that carefree girl was gone. If his back was not to her, he would have seen the gentleness transformed and changed before his eyes in the space of a few minutes. The Myrian would not let her pass. And Kell stood in her way, blocking her from the Myrian. Always, others sought to confine her! To hold her against her will! Poisonous Hatred churned in her Heart and through her veins! They would try to-… No! She tore her mind away from unwanted thoughts and memories! The woman’s swords were on them, leveled at them. The Heart beat wildly, then beat renewed with Hatred! She had once given in and… now she would force her way through into the Jungle. But Kell, the Drykas stood in her way… The Hatred, the threat, the words… all combined to tax Satu’s mind and Heart. “No!” she shrieked in defiance at the Myrian, “No! We were invited, and shown the way!” the Myrian, so animalistic, frightened her in an unknown way Satu could not name. But Satu was sure she knew things that others did not, and her thoughts were in turmoil. “We will not turn back, you are WRONG! My blood is sacred here, you can not spill it! We are Stronger than you know…” her breathing was labored and her head spun strangely. The Konti’s strong hand reached out and gripped Kell’s shoulder for support, “Kill him? He is my companion. Why would…” She faltered and looked at Kell and back to Oni. Oni was a cannibal; she had heard the stories... But then it registered, Oni knew.... She knew what had happened in the Wildlands! Satu’s head shook, back and forth, eyes wide. “What do you know?” she demanded, white hair a wild, shimmer about her head as it moved, “Who told you! Deanna? Lies! It is lies!” and then she spat at the woman who had moved closer. She almost couldn’t see straight with the Hatred that consumed her, Emotions fuelled her movements and her hands shook as she reached for the only comfort in her small world, the suvai.

[Kell Northwind]

Kell remained steadfastly silent as the Myrian raged at the two travelers. He had no idea what a dreyhan was, but judging from the warrior's tone during the rest of her speech figured it was most likely derogatory. Though he could not ignore the passion of the Myrian's words, Miss Satu needed to get through this jungle and so he would do whatever was necessary to ensure the Konti succeeded in her quest. Unfortunately these Myrians seemed uninterested in any type of diplomacy. And threatening Stormrunner for no reason as the last straw for him. The good cheer dropped from Kell's eyes and his face firmed up in determination. Placing his hand gently over Satu's on his shoulder he turned to her, forcing a smile for her sake. "Do not worry my lady, I promise I shall remove this woman from your path."

Turning back to the Myrian he took a couple of steps forward and drew Gale from it's sheath at his hip. The yard of inch wide steel glinted dully in the dappled jungle light. "I don't believe I caught you name," he called to the Myrian in front of him, "But you are clearly proud of those swords of yours. And since Miss Satu would never kill her own companion I have a proposal for you." He swished is sword through a few flourishes. "You and me battle. If you win I will submit to whatever you wish of me, however, when I defeat you your lackeys," Kell swept his sword out to the side in the generally direction the arrows had come from, "Allow us to travel unmolested through this jungle." Kell took up a defensive stance halfway between Satu and the mysterious Myrian.

[Cayenne]

“You are not a Myrian. Your blood is not sacred here,” the mud-covered female’s Disgust swelled and crashed against Satu like the monstrous waves that slammed into the beaches of Mura in one of the rare storms that came up from time to time. “We know your kind. I do not care if Konti are prized pets beyond the jungle. This is Falyndar. The weak feed the strong.” When Satu spat at her, she neither flinched nor moved. Indeed, she didn’t even blink as saliva dripped down her mud-covered cheek. Her white teeth gleamed against her darker skin as she grinned ferally when she saw the Konti reach for the suvai. There was a flash of Amusement that had gone as quickly as it had come. They wanted to challenge her… better and better.

“I am called Oni of the Jagged Blade,” Oni told Kell when he mentioned her lack of forthrightness with regards to her name. “Know my name so your soul knows it when you go to Lhex. Remember it when he sends you back as a worm to be eaten by a songbird.” She leveled the two swords, one pointing at the Drykas, and one pointing at the Konti. They were of similar sizes, curved, each side of them honed to a razor sharp edge. They were shorter than Kell’s weapon, but longer than the pronged suvai Satu wielded. “I accept your challenge and the terms you lay out. But the difference between us, human, is that I am not afraid to meet my Goddess. Are you afraid of meeting Dira?” Using only the blade she pointed at him, the Myrian lunged for him, her long limbs closing the space in the space of a breath, the blade aimed at his throat, the other sword still aimed at Satu, as if she was waiting for the Konti to join in.

It may not have occurred to Kell that Myrians fought other races to the death – not simply to their yielding – with a savagery few ever saw the likes of in a ‘civilized’ society. But, chances were, he might well find out.

[Satu]

Emotion rocked Satu, “You do not know what I am! I am no pampered pet; I have purpose!” Disgust. Amusement. Hatred. It came from Oni, and it came from the trees that surrounded them. Satu’s head pounded. The cannibal’s emotions threatened to smother her. Never had she felt the darkness circle her Heart as she did now! At one moment she closed her eyes tightly, palms pressed against her temples, “Oni!” The name rang in her ears. Her Heart and her mind began to feel jumbled and confused. Kell challenged the woman, and Satu’s hands dropped away from her head as she listened to their exchange. The Drykas was Strong Hearted, but the Myrian’s Heart was… Volcanic... It had to stop! Urgently, the Konti pushed Kell’s shoulder, “Be Strong Kell! Be Powerful! Show her your Strength! That they will let us pass!” It was not Oni that needed to feel Strength. It was Satu. The world had changed once again, and she needed to feel Strong in order to retain the tentative hold she had on her sanity. She begged him, “Do not fail me, Kell!” He had to prove himself! Somehow, Satu found her gaze returning to the warrior woman, over and over. As if she were beckoned, Satu felt the Power in her Heart leap to match it. It beat within her. Birds called and Satu backed into a broad, green leaf. “Don’t let her win Kell, don’t!” she said under her breath. But again the woman drew her awareness and Satu's impossibly blue eyes watched, sensing unknown danger and something undefined, before the Myrian leapt viciously at her companion.

[Kell Northwind]

Oni of the Jagged Blade, so that was this strange Myrian’s name. Kell eyed the woman’s two wicked looking swords as she gave air to the usual bluster that most professional warriors seemed to feel necessary before a battle. It was something that Kell never really understood. After all, it was generally quite foolish to claim prowess before you had achieved it. More so if you failed in your attempt. He let the words roll off of him, though he did admit they were quite dramatic. His Konti companion on the other hand seemed to grow increasingly distressed with each word. For that, more than anything else, Kell wished Oni would simply shut up. One of the blades Kell studied was suddenly pointed at him, the other, much to his displeasure, Oni leveled in Satu’s direction. Odd, Kell thought, how the blades didn’t appear all that jagged to him.

Still patiently holding his defensive stance, Kell examined Oni’s own. He had never battled a foe with dual swords before and was a little unsure of how to fight this strange savage. He didn’t let his uncertainty wash across his face however. It wouldn’t do for Miss Satu to think him wavering. Well, if he didn’t know how to engage on such as Oni, he would simply have to make it up as he went along. That, it seemed, was increasingly becoming the theme of Kell’s life. Kell’s mind drifted back to his life with the clan, back on the sea of grass. His father, lacking any productive skills, had sought to teach his son the one thing he knew. Swordplay. ‘Son,’ he had often said after soundly thumping Kell about the sparring ring, ‘If you ever feel you might even possibly be doing something your enemy expects, do something else.’

So Oni lunged. A piercing strike aimed at Kell’s throat. It seemed that the Myrian wished to waste no time in finishing their duel. Parry or dodge, she wished to throw him on the defensive. Not a particularly subtle strategy, nor a new one, but still quite effective. Kell had no desire to start this fight at such a disadvantage. So as his father had often lectured, when presented with two expected options, Kell chose the third. Pushing off with his frontward foot, Kell stepped slightly to the side and straight toward Oni, closing the distance with her charging form. As a swordswoman herself, Kell doubted that Oni would expect him to voluntarily step within the inside arc of his sword. Kell hissed as the Myrian sword bit into the tip of his left shoulder. Ignoring his own sword for now, he shot his empty left hand forward, fist clenched. Kell aimed his fist just above Oni’s gut, he had been punched there once and it had produced quite an effect on him. Hopefully it would have a similar effect on her as well.

[Cayenne]

A lesson Myrians learned early was that when fighting, one didn't waste time against an enemy they knew very little about. It wasn't easy to tell from a glance what sort of stamina one had, but the woman would have made a decent bet that in the humid depths of Falyndar, it didn't match hers. She, however, was not about to waste time finding out. If his skills eclipsed hers, and she lost this fight, then she wanted to be able to stand before the Goddess-Queen with the knowledge that she had nothing to be ashamed of with regards to an untimely death.

That, of course, was a worst-case scenario.

One didn't back away in a fight. When using blades, the best thing to do, Oni knew, from learning when she was old enough to walk was to close the distance and not give them the opportunity to get in so close that your opponent could use them. Her swords were shorter than Kell's - which meant he needed more of a range than she did to use the weapons properly with any effectiveness. So his stepping closer to her suited her just fine. That he didn't back away, that he didn't cave and run, Amused her even more. But the emotions that came from her indicated that this all business to the savage assaulting her companion, and to those, however many, that spied upon the fight from all around them.

Silly human male.

The humidity pressed down on them, heavy and oppressive like the darkness from the thick canopy that blocked out so much of the sun's warming light. There was nothing open, here, not like the plains of Cyphrus when the only thing that was concealed was in the grass around you. Here, there were more than enough places for things to hide in. Oni wasn't shy about physical contact, if he had hoped she might have been - quite the opposite, it seemed, because as she twisted her body to face him, abandoning the stance that had had a blade pointed at Satu… giving the Konti an apparent opening if she dared to chance taking it - because not only did Kell's fist hit air, the tip of Oni's second sword bit into his side. "Is your heart pumping?" Oni hissed. "I look forward to devouring it. They are always juicier when your prey has had a chance to run around..."

[Satu]

Kell took a defensive stance, and though he did not appear uncertain, Satu could feel uncertainty flowing within him. The emotion shocked her, but Oni lunged suddenly, strong and fierce; and the Konti’s Heart abandoned her companion and flew to the Myrian. The woman was Amused, and she pierced Kell’s shoulder quickly with one of her swords. Satu felt Pain at the moment of impact and she gasped in horror, not for the Drykas’ injury, but for his perceived betrayal. Why was he not confident like his opponent? Her head twitched. The HeartSeer did not want to remember the lesser feelings of being bested, or being used, or Pain. Never again! But here was Kell, mirroring emotions she did not want to ever want to see again! It was too soon. Too soon since she had been released form Opportunity, and too soon to see Weakness, though it was there before her. Because of Kell! Why had she even trusted him? It made her gasp to think of his betrayal, and she began to view him as the enemy. A small part of her said, help him, but it was too small to make much difference. The other part called him unworthy, while her eyes turned to daggers and her hands dropped to draw her suvai, slowly and silently. He was not strong! But Weak! “Pain is for the Weak!” she said to herself as she stood behind and to the side of the man as she lowered herself gracefully into the Beginner Stance. Satu forgot about Oni just paces from her, for that woman radiated Control, and power was there for anyone with eyes to see. The Konti also forgot about the others in the trees around her, though she felt the pressure of their Aggressions and Angers upon her Heart Vessel. Filled with their overwhelming emotions, Satu walked the fine edge of sanity. But Kell had offended her, just as greatly as if he had made a personal attack upon her body, and that was enough to push her over the edge. If Kell were to turn to look upon Satu’s face, he would not recognize it as the same gay Konti he had traveled through the Jungle wilds with. She whispered, “You said you would protect me... You vowed to-” but Denial and rage grew within her and there was no containing them! She acted without thought and she lunged at Kell, turning the suvai in a deadly arc. She would put an end to this! Kell would pay! The first suvai was used as a feint to distract him, while the second, with her dual wield aimed for a slashing attack. “You have caused me much sadness!” she yelled. Pressure threatened to consume her! And she moved to strike again.

[Cayenne]

OOCI made the decision to continue this thread, since Kell seems to be gone.

When Oni’s sword gouged Kell’s side, the man backed up, still trying to fend off the first one against a woman who, it seemed, was dead set on killing him. That was a dawning moment, a moment when everything changed: the realization set in that this duel wasn’t until one of them yielded. It would be over when one of them died. To get passage through here, not only would he have to kill this woman, he would have to kill each and every one of her companions… and any other that they found lurking through here. It proved to be a daunting task, and even despite his Uncertainty, he lunged again at an opponent who was no longer where she had been a moment ago. The warrioress danced around him, it seemed, her feet moving quickly over the mossy floor of the sweltering jungle, the white bone blades everywhere, cutting him into pieces as she tested him, waiting to see if he had any other tricks to pull out. Satu felt those eyes on her, those dark, commanding eyes that just dared her to change sides even as Oni deftly blocked the sword and forced it down without looking directly at him. In her heart, Satu knew that she would be next to taste this domineering, powerful woman’s wrath if she continued to support the Drykas man.

As the Myrian blades ripped and gouged, the Aggression, the Triumph, the Pride, the Satisfaction, even Delight and ever-present Amusement swelled all around Satu. She knew they were there, and the wild surge of emotions threatened to push her over the edge of the line that she teetered on now. “Miss Satu,” he gasped at her feral yell as she moved to attack him, and Oni stopped, not even winded as the Drykas moved to try to fend off the raging Konti. He was slow, though, with the wounds already inflicted on him as somewhere nearby, his mare screamed as her reins and bridle were caught, unable to go to her rider’s rescue. The tri-pronged blade gouged his chest, and he struck for her lower torso, the blade swinging wildly more out of his inability to control it now, and to try to force her to back up, than any desire to hurt her. Shock and Betrayal poured off out him, even as the Amusement of the surrounding savages grew even more, goading her on.

But none of it was as alluring as the Satisfaction that came from Oni of the Jagged Blade.

[Satu]

Satu did not think in terms of ‘them or us’, or ‘him or her’. It was Kell’s Uncertainty, and Oni’s Confidence that were forefront in her mind. Nothing else mattered, not even the savages that surrounded them in the jungle trees. The Drykas’ Weakness spurred her on and the Myrian’s Aggression kept her moving. So focused was her madness, the rest of the world was narrow, non existent. Kell tried to block her, he called her ‘Miss Satu’, but she no longer remembered that joyful Konti. “You lied! You would leave me defenseless! There is no protection from your traitorous Heart!” But Satu was not a helpless girl; her own attacks were neither timid nor weak, for she would show him what fight was, and he would learn! If it killed him, he would learn! Slow from his injuries, the suvai fighter laughed as the suvai struck his chest and sent its poisons coursing through his blood. He swung and she danced as if from another world, moving swiftly about the slow moving man. The suvai moved like fans in her hands, her arms in a wide arc. One and then the next swirled in the humid air, a blow aimed across his arm, and a swipe towards his neck. Eyes ice cold, the madness was easy to read as Satu followed each of his movements intently. She frowned, disgust evident on her scaled, exotic face. He could neither defend nor attack properly in his weakened state! “You insult me! Try harder! Harder!” She shrieked in her native Kontinesse as the Myrian emotions consumed her fragile HeartSense and overwhelmed it further. Yet, Oni’s sweet Satisfaction sat in her Heart. There was no need to look at the warrior woman. Satu felt what the Myrian felt; the properness of culling the weak, and the satisfaction of righting the wrongs that had been down to her in Opportunity.