Summary: Contemplation on a starry night is an impulse few can resist. What thoughts come to Venom when he is given such a moment? What is his reason for fighting? What does he have to protect?
Disclaimer: If I've said it once, I've said it a thousand times: I don't own blah blah blah. Neither Venom nor the Guilty Gear franchise belong to me. Ditto for Millia-Rage and Zato-1One.
Queen's Quornor: I've been trying to put off writing for Guilty Gear simply because I've already got a ton of fics in progress under the Final Fantasy 7 and Devil May Cry boards. But of late, I've been thinking about the triangle of interactions and feelings between Venom, Zato, and Millia, and this idea just wouldn't leave me alone. This is hardly the first soliloquy/monologue I've written, but I wasn't sure I could get the characters right. I'm not going to write a fic for somebody new unless I'm fairly certain I've got their voice, their mannerisms, etched into my brain. I think I've got Venom now, so here's my first GG fic, written from his POV. This is a bit more long-winded than he is in the games, but then again, it IS only him speaking here. I might do one for Zato next, if I get a better idea of what he was like prior to Eddie's takeover. Millia? Hell no! I know she's one of the more popular female characters for the games, but she's my least favorite of the bunch. Especially considering what she did to Zato... Maybe Testament will be the third. I'm not sure.
Loyalty
I sometimes wonder what the stars see.
Don't give me that look. I am an assassin, yes, but I'm also a human being. I am as entitled to contemplation and philosophical musings as the innocent little civilian, or the happy homemaker. My hands are stained with blood, but that hardly affects my intelligence. So sit down, shut up, and let me speak.
To continue what I said before, the stars see all. They are the eyes of the universe, far removed and unjudging. Impartial observers. We may not see them, but they are always watching.
What were they thinking, during pivotal moments in human history? Did they watch the wars, the births and deaths of nations? Did they witness the evolution of science, the combination of basic truth with ancient arts long scorned by those in the laboratories? Did they weep at the birth of Gears, the destruction of Japan?
Did they mourn the deaths of so many innocents, slain before their time?
The stars observe the Earth and its humans, but they never say a word. Much like those who have passed on, abandoned this mortal coil and left this world to the care of the living. They are always there, always watching, even though we rarely see them. And we must protect their legacy, look after that which they have left behind.
Even now, my thoughts turn to my duty. My loyalty.
My path, my life, has always belonged to Master Zato. The Guild took me in, but my reluctance to take human life would have cost me my own. The Guild does not look kindly upon an assassin unwilling to kill, and even less favorably upon a child with such reluctance. Master Zato was the only one who realized my potential; he stayed the executioner's hand and began to teach me the assassin's art. It is only because of him that I am here today.
Who would have guessed that the 'spineless weaking' would come to rule the entire Assassin's Guild?
Ironic, isn't it? That I gained this position only at the loss of my master.
This power means little to me. I recognize the benefits of my position, the influence I have and the connections that are so vital to my profession. But I am only sitting in the throne for Master Zato. This is his Guild, and a shining testament to his power, his life. It is his, and thus I will protect it.
Master Zato protected me, and made me stronger.
So I will protect his legacy, and expand its business in his memory.
The Guild is not the only thing I must take care of. When the next opportunity arises, I will cleanse his body of that shadow-filth which controls it. Master Zato is gone, and it is nothing short of desecration that the source of his power abuses his empty shell every second of every single day.
I failed my master once. I will not do so again.
Vengeance must also be taken on his behalf. The woman responsible for his death, a woman I once knew almost as a sister, must be punished. Millia is directly responsible for the monster possessing Master Zato's body, and she is a traitor to the Guild as a whole. As chief of the Guild, it is my job to pass judgement on traitors. It is an official matter, but also one of personal concern.
Millia killed the man I love.
Therefore, she must die.
I have never enjoyed taking lives. I have gotten used to it over the years, but I have never learned to like it. Yet I am an assassin, raised and trained to kill. So many believe that would make me a heartless monster simply because I make a living orchestrating the deaths of others.
Narrow-minded idiots.
I kill, yes. I kill men, women, and children at the request of others. But I also love. I never expressed my feelings to Master Zato, and I regret it every single day of my life. He gave his love to Millia, and she betrayed him. If I had told him, he might still be alive, and I at his side. My heart and soul would have belonged to him, if I had gotten to him before that little bitch...
But I was too late, and he never knew. Thus, I will display my love and devotion by avenging him, by protecting his legacy. The beast will be driven from his body, Millia will suffer for her crimes. And the Guild will continue, no matter what Slayer says or does. This Guild belongs to Master Zato; that ancient fool gave it up centuries ago. Whether he founded it or not is of no consequence. He no longer has any right to it or the manner in which it is run. I don't care what he says. If he tries to destroy my master's legacy, I will destroy him.
My loyalty belongs only to Master Zato, as does my love and my life.
He is always watching, wherever he is. Just like the stars glittering overhead, he is far removed from this world, yet always with me. I will not betray the trust he gave me, nor allow this world to forget about him. In Zato's memory, the Guild will prosper.
Enough of this. I have work to do.
So get out of here before I make you.