Slither Me Timbers (Open)

by **Cinder** on July 6th, 2011, 2:55 am

Season of Summer, Day 5, 511 AV Mid Day

A large growl slowly erupted from the shadow spanned bridge that entered into the floating city. It didn't come from the mouth of a four legged beast, or even a two legged one. In fact it echoed right from the belly of the beast, or man that paused silently at the center of the bridge. A small frown formed over his mouth as he pressed his hands over his stomach and looked down at the unhappy torso. It had been a few days since Cinder had a full meal, and now that it had digested the protests had begun once again. In his travels he'd been stuck with preying on the wilderness, but it always left him unsatisfied. Full, yes, but there was always that craving that he'd been unable to curb when it came to some lowly beast that could only comprehend it's own basic instincts for survival. Thankfully though he had finally come to the city he had been looking for for over a month now. No one could ever accuse Cinder of being good with directions. Amidst a hunt he could track down any prey he was aiming for, but when it came to actually going from point A to point B the man was... helpless.

In the near distance he could hear the lively bustling of the city, the water lapping at it like a cauldron waiting to stew it's victims. Perhaps his imagination was beginning to join with his stomach. Cinder shifted his attention away from the water and allowed his red eyes to scan over the unique buildings before he walked into the new domain. He was curious about the city and what might await him. The knowledge of the lax laws on weaponry made him curious about how many people could actually use these weapons. It looked more like a city built on wealth rather than one built on protection, but it was something of a new adventure to him.

Fingers laced behind his back as he walked curiously through the city, ignoring another annoying growl that uttered menacingly from his stomach. One woman walking by turned her head at the sound, raising a brow of uncertain curiosity. He tilted his head the side, shaggy bangs falling across his red eyes, shading them as he twisted his lips into a sweet teasing smile, "Clearly the stomach protests Madam. Might you lend me a helping hand of direction to where I might solve this problem?" His voice uttered softly, husky without allowing the s's to extend in an unnatural accent.

With her help she pointed out the nearest pub that would temporarily sedate his stomach, but more promising sedate his enjoyment for a warm hit of liquor. At her closeness he could pick up her scent which unfortunately sent an unsettling revolution down his throat. He hoped for people living in a city surrounded by water that more might be more promising in their cleanliness. For the moment he would enjoy the mind seducing liquor and perhaps find something more interesting in this town for him to pick on. It had been quite awhile since he was able to do so.

Entering the pub he went to the back of the room where the tender stood and sat down. He avoided the cold alcohol that would send his body into a drowsy state and instead went for the warm liquor that burnt as it slid down his throat. The sensation was like flames delicious licking at his insides, coiling in his belly, making his eyes close lazily for a moment as he held back a small hiss of delight. Ahh, how Cinder did enjoy civilization for it's commodities.

by **Vyxenne** on July 6th, 2011, 3:33 am

She rarely smelled snake in the city. It was a distinguished scent, and she could almost hear the prolonged "s" in the natural accent of the Dhani. She was confused about the why it was here, but what she was concerned about was the fact that it was here in the city.

She wasn't a guard or anything, but when someone/something unusual happened she liked to keep in the know. She walked into the pub and walked directly to the back, ignoring the drunken idiots along the way. Yes, the scent of snake was stronger here. She walked up to stranger and started talking. "Who are you, and what are you doing in Ravok? Shouldn't you be in a nest, like the other Dhani?" She was quite small, actually, and you could very well tell that she was a girl, demanding answers from a Dhani, of all things, but she was strong and forceful, and she wanted to know why the hell he was here.

He had red eyes that sharply contrasted with the rest of his face. She noticed his fangs, only just different from her elongated canines. He smelled very strongly of snake, with a slight trace of human mixed in. Overall he was attractive, but she couldn't let that distract her.

After thinking for a second, she realized that having a Dhani as an accomplice would help. She knew they were strong, fast, and dangerous. He was very well stronger, faster, and deadlier than her, and could probably snap her neck any second now. But she wasn't a coward. She had things she wanted to know, and she didn't want her new home city to be overrun with snakes.

She just stared into his red eyes until he answered, or killed her.

by **Cinder** on July 6th, 2011, 4:07 am

Perhaps his guard was let down by the liquor that was melting his nerve endings. The warmth of the drink was nearly hypnotic on his insides, relaxing his nerves, and temporarily relieving his stomach of the need for a good hunt. He did enjoy testing his own limits and seeing how patient he could be with waiting until the last moment to find the perfect prey. When he was in a town overrun by beasts of all kinds he had the pick of the litter, and it would be greedy to just grab one for no reason other than to sedate his own desire. He was a glutton yes, but by god he never would like to be considered greedy.

So perhaps it was the liquor, or perhaps it was how upfront the girl was to him as she came up and spoke directly to him. His eyes flickered over her petite body and to the human bartender who visibly stiffened at the mention of Dhani being in his pub. It seemed that his kind was one to be wary of where ever he went. Ahh, how he enjoyed that thought. Cinder turned back to the girl, lifting the cup up to his lips and taking a sip. His lips curved up into a devilish grin, eyes flickering up to meet her own amber pools as the points of his canines glinted in the dim light. He set the glass down and leaned closer to her, silent as time past by in silence. Cinder tilted his head to the side, his hair brushing her shoulder as he breathed in the sent of the petite female. Like a snake his tongue flickered out, running gently across the side of her neck to the tip of her ear lobe before he whispered in her ear, "Hmm, I knew foxes were curious, but I thought they were a little more tactful than that sweetheart."

Leaning back against his seat he smiled mockingly at her and motioned for her to sit down as he grabbed his drink and took another swig from the glass. "As for the answer to your questions, why should I answer? You barge into my peaceful drinking time as if I've done something wrong. Little girl have you ever heard of manners, or does your kind lack in that category?" He asked playfully, the deep red pools of his eyes wandering slowly over her body, sizing her up. Cinder had caught himself from surprise, and while he was no longer taken aback, he was thoroughly amused by the young woman's tact... or lack there of.

by **Vyxenne** on July 6th, 2011, 5:07 am

He was clearly surprised. For a bit, at least.

The way he looked at her was unsettling, like she was his next meal. She knew he was trying to trick her, seduce her, lull her into a sense of false security. But she couldn't let that happen. She didn't want to turn into his next meal!

The way he whispered in her ear, though, gave her goosebumps.

She tried to keep her head, no matter how alluring he was. She tried her best to ignore his comments about Kelvics and her being a 'little girl'. She sat down and ordered a drink from the antsy bartender. He was clearly different from other Dhani, in the fact that he wasn't in his nest where he belonged. And she didn't think that normal Dhani flirted with what they wanted for their next meal. She tried to keep a clear head though, and she only sipped her drink. What was up with this guy?

She felt people looking at in her direction, probably from the mention of "Dhani." She heard unsettling murmurs among the people in the pub, and a few had already left. Then she felt a stronger pair of eyes on her, scanning her up and down as if she were a prize chicken or a show horse. That made her feel very uncomfortable, and she tried her best not to show it. She looked at him again, but this time she started talking. "What the hell are you doing here? Looking for your next meal? And stop looking at me like that. I'm pretty sure that a mix of fox and human flesh is not an appetizing combination." She tried to keep herself from looking anywhere but his eyes, to show that she wasn't fooled by his soft voice.

by **Cinder** on July 6th, 2011, 5:38 am

Fear rippled through as rapidly as the mention of his species was uttered. It sent a delightful shiver down his spine, eyes seeming to glaze over in a trance of hunger for a moment before he blinked and focused his attention on the girl again. His fingers ran over the rim of the cup in slow lazy circles as he waited for her to speak debating on what he should do. It was a rare treat that prey walked up so stubbornly to him. Cinder had always felt a certain attraction to bravery, especially stubborn bravery. Although this was a new one. He'd had people walk up to him boldly, but not when they knew exactly what he was. Color him intrigued.

It seemed she finally got herself straightened out again and finally went against him as confrontational as before. Her last comment made him laugh out right, which caused a few scrapes of chairs to be heard through the pub as people jumped. "You are funny little one." He leaned in closer to her and spoke more softly, adding, "But you are wrong. It's a rather delightful combination... taste wise. You should try it some time." Leaning back again he picked up the glass and finished off the rest of the alcohol before slamming the cup down and pausing for a moment before debating on whether or not he should have another drink. He was more interested in keeping his head out of the cloudy haze more liquor would give him.

"But seeing as how you are so very persistent," Cinder purred out lightly coming back upon the main topic, "What is the point of divulging in information if you aren't giving any of your own. I could just be passing by, looking for a good drink before I head out on my travels... or I could be here for another reason. Now if you are so insistent, I could tell you what I'm doing here, but to do that would mean I might have to include you in my plans." He grinned, running his tongue across his sharp canines and over his upper lip as he tapped the empty glass. "Personally you are perking my interest for a good old fashioned fox hunt."

He smirked and looked away from the girl, turning his head to the bartender and motioning for one more drink, deciding against his original decision. He took the new found liquor and tipped his head back, closing his eyes and draining a quarter of the burning liquid down his throat, enjoying the sensation before he spoke up again, eyes still closed, as if concentrating, "So tell me little one, what is your name. I'll give you mine if you give me yours."

by **Vyxenne** on July 6th, 2011, 5:59 am

She tried to stay focused on his eyes, to not get lost in his words. It was difficult. Very difficult.

Personally, she didn't want to try cannibalism on another one of her kind, and she was annoyed that he kept calling her a little girl. But she felt something tugging at the back of her mind. He would make a better ally than an enemy. His voice was lulling her in and out of concentration, messing with her thoughts. Even his eyes seemed to be trying to seduce her into becoming his next meal.

She had never felt this kind of attraction before. Especially to someone who wanted to eat her. But his red eyes were unusual, exotic. He definitely smelled better than the majority of Ravok, him smelling like clean human, blood, and snake. She finally let herself look at the rest of him. His hair was blonde, almost white. He was wearing a red snakeskin jacket, and she didn't want to know what or who exactly that was made of.

"My name is Vyxenne. And since you so obviously want to make a meal out of me, go ahead. But I'm not going to give you the joy of chasing down your prey. I'm going to stay right here." She suddenly felt sleepy, and it was getting harder and harder to resist the seduction. "What are you waiting for? Kill me. Kill me while I'm weak." She closed her eyes, and losing balance, fell over onto the hard floor.

by **Cinder** on July 6th, 2011, 6:36 am

It seemed that of the two, he was far better at holding his liquor than she was. He was enjoying teasing the girl though. This was increasingly more amusing than he had ever expected when he first entered the town. Although Cinder wasn't too sure what exactly it was that he had been looking for in this town. A challenge yes, but right here wasn't much of a challenge, at least not physically. She had however accomplished something that most people had a hard time doing with him; keeping him interested beyond a point of talking food. She was a quirky little creature, and he was bemused.

Even with his eyes not on her at the moment he could still feel the girls eyes wandering down him, having finally had the eye contact broken enough for her to size him up, though not in the way he had with her. The next thing she did caused two reactions. With her somewhat louder than average tone and words several people had stepped up nervously. He could see a few people slowly reaching around to their cloak or pants, while others walked out of the pub. The bartender was still too nervous to say anything, but he too clearly had the same desire that everyone else in the bar had, for the Dhani to leave. The little girl didn't help him much either.

When she fell he raised an eyebrow of slight alarm before cocking his head to the side and looking down at her crumpled form. Setting his glass down he stepped off the stole and leaned bent down brushing a few strands away from the fox girls face, "Well Vyxenne, it's your lucky day. I've had enough unsatisfying stationary meals in the past month. I don't feel like adding another to the menu. But..." his fingers brushed across her lips and trailed down to her cheek and neck. Sharp nails paused at her throat, "I might change my mind." before he moved his hand down and grabbed her wrist, pulling the unbalanced girl up with a snap of his wrist and throwing her small frame over his shoulder. His one hand held her legs while the other lifted the back of his jacket fingers gliding of the cold steal of the chain wrapped blade that sat tucked against his spine. He wasn't dumb enough to be unarmed in a city like this. people were skittish, but sometimes bravery could take over.

This was not the place though. Men and women alike remained seated, uncertain of what to do. Many kept their eyes glued to the table as if trying to become invisible. In the back of his mind their was an insatiable desire to drop the girl, turn around, and commence tearing through the drunk civilians as if they were nothing but stand still cattle. His mouth almost watered at the idea of blood staining the walls and mingling with the liquor like a tantalizing spice. It was tempting... taunting, but instead he pushed the door open with his foot and left the dark room entering into the side street before he quickly slipped into the alley and set Vyxenne down onto the ground. He kicked her in the foot to make sure she were awake before crouching down and staring straight into her eyes.

"You are a silly woman Vyxenne, but intriguing none the less. I can't quite tell if you are incredible smart, or just hopelessly stupid. He leaned closer to her, placing one hand past her head and against the wall as he blocked her leave, "What exactly are you trying to look for here, messing with a Dhani? And my name is Cinder, so we can stop calling each other names that we abhor now."

by **Vyxenne** on July 6th, 2011, 6:57 am

It hurt when she fell, but the way he roughly picked her up didn't help much. In fact, it made things worse. She was rolling in and out of consciousness, often for a few seconds before she fell unconscious. The next thing she knew, she was being roughly carried out of the pub and into a dark alleyway.

He set her on the ground, kicked her in the foot, and started talking to her. She barely heard the words, and she wanted to succumb to the warm darkness. He leaned closer, and she could feel his breath on her face. She tried to talk, but her efforts failed. His face being so close to hers, she could see the narrow slits he had for pupils, instead of the round holes that humans had. Black spots covered her eyes, and she knew she would probably faint soon. All the better, she wouldn't feel it when she was being killed.

She didn't try to escape, because she knew it would be hopeless. She could barely see anymore, and all she could feel was the cold ground of the alleyway and his breath on her face. She finally forced out a few words in the haze that was her mind. "Dhani...don't...belong...here..." With that, she took a deep breath and fainted, maybe from mere exhaustion or maybe from the exhilaration of being so close to becoming a meal. Either way, she slumped over and lost consciousness.

by **Cinder** on July 6th, 2011, 7:27 am

Perhaps she had knocked her head too hard when she fell onto the ground, or maybe her body and found a loop hole through the need for fight or flight and added the third f... faint. He frowned softly as the girl past out and let out a small hiss of air of sudden frustration. His stomach growled again and the smell of the girl was starting to taunt his senses. Even though he had washed her taste off of his tongue with a glass of alcohol he still could taste the soft skin against the sensitive muscle. He wasn't the type that would prefer males over females for fighting or visa verse. He was rather unbiased with who he chose to fight and who he chose to eat. One thing he did not enjoy doing though was killing a helpless victim. He wouldn't eat a sleeping victim and he wouldn't eat children. To Cinder that made him more of a beast and less of a creature of choice. Just because he was a cold hearted killer, didn't mean he had no moral codes.

Still, he couldn't help but lean in, her pulse beating slowly as he took another deep inhale of her scent. His hand wandered down from the wall and over her soft skin, the sharp tips of his nail brushing away hair and exposing her bare throat. His stomach growled low and deep. What discipline he had was lacking in the moment as his tongue ran over the beating artery, tasting the bead of salty sweat. One finger scraped over her shoulder and just nicked it enough to draw a pin point of blood. Right there he could have killed her, and he felt on the brink of doing so. He pulled himself away and brought the blood touched finger to his mouth, licking away the red spot before he growled deep in the back of his throat and pushed himself up quickly, glaring down at the girl. Clearly there was hesitation in him. He was hungry, but he had been intrigued. It had been awhile since he had met someone for whom he didn't find revolting.

"Stupid, stupid girl" Cinder growled quietly before he leaned down and scooped her up, less violently than before. Collecting his composure the red eyes stared down at Vyxenne for a moment before he sighed and walked into the street. This was not turning into what he had planned, but for some reason he could just leave this witless fox girl on her own. For all he knew a Myrian might storm into town and she would probably storm right up to that beast as well. He doubt she would have the same luck two predators in a row.

Opting for a cheap inn as he'd already planned to stay in a real bed for the night he found the closest one to them. As he walked in the innkeeper gave him a quizzical look, [b]"Too much to drink,"[b] He stated with a small shrug, shifting Vyxenne against his shoulder to reach around to his pocket for some small coins to pay for the room.

Once paid and handed the key he walked up the stairs to the second floor and walked down the hall to the last door on the left. Pushing it open with some strain coming from the door he finally managed to get into the room and immediately plopped the girl down on the bed before he took his jacket off and set it down on the small table before taking a seat at a chair and turning to the bed, waiting to see if the girl might arouse, and debating on what he should do, and why he was doing this. One part of him had the thought of dinner in bed, while the other had darker ideas. The only reason this ticking time bomb hadn't been set off yet was due to the fact that he just couldn't decide what he wanted to do. Like a kid caught in a candy shop with a few coins to spend he was just far too indecisive.

by **Vyxenne** on July 6th, 2011, 8:01 am

It was so warm. The darkness covered her like a blanket, protecting her as if she was in a safe and peaceful place. Like Heaven. Was she dead? But then she remembered, there's nowhere peaceful and safe and warm for her anymore.

She vaguely felt something soft underneath her, and she was slowly rocked back into consciousness. When she opened her eyes, she was on a bed. It was soft and warm, but she hadn't slept on a bed in months. Was her past life just a dream? She wanted to fall back asleep, but she felt cold eyes staring at her. Cinder. It was all real! Did she really confront a Dhani? What a stupid thing to do! What was she thinking? Why was she on a bed? Who's bed was it?

She unconsciously shifted into a Swift fox and started licking herself. When she turned her head a certain way, she cringed. She curled up on the bed, and she didn't care what she was doing or why. She wanted to fall asleep and disappear from the world. But that would mean dying. She suddenly cared whether or not she became a meal for a Dhani.

Then something hit her. Why wasn't she dead yet? Shouldn't she have become dinner by now? Or was he waiting for her to fight back? She unconsciously shifted into her human form again, but this time she was naked. She quickly got off the bed and changed into her clothes before he saw her. Or, at least, all of her. She sat on the bed and pondered what to do next. She could escape, in which he would obviously be able to catch her and have a chase like he wanted, or she could sit there and he could have dinner in bed. She didn't like either ideas, but she decided to sit there to avoid overtaxing her strength and because she didn't want to give him what he wanted.

She was suddenly aware of the sights and smells around her, and she could tell that the room smelled snake, fox, human, blood and alcohol, not a very pleasing scent, but it didn't matter. The walls were whitewashed but dirty, and the floor was rough on her bare feet. She shifted uncomfortably as she waited for the Dhani, Cinder, to do something.