Both Torin and Cameo were making attempts to catch their breaths. He opened his eyes to take in once again the sight of her splayed across his bed completely naked. Her skin was still flushed, her hair were everywhere around her and a thin layer of sweat covered her slightly tanned skin.
He pulled on his pants and he had just zipped them when he noticed the woman in the dungeon had woken up. She had opened her eyes but laid still. She didn't scream, didn't cry, and didn't fight for release. Torin cocked an eyebrow.
He pulled on his shirt too and started working on his gloves, shielding every inch of exposed skin. "Take a look at this" he gestured to Cameo, who had started getting dressed too. She looked up from buckling her boots and walked closer while smoothing her hair out with her fingers. Gods she was beautiful, he thought.
"Interesting enough" she noted. "Gonna check it out". She bent to grab something from the floor, and went for the door. She opened it but didn't exit. "Oh, and Torin…?"
He turned around and something landed on his lap. She smirked, blew him a kiss and was gone the next instant. He looked down and- oh, Heavens… He took the lacy garment in his hand and brought it closer to his face taking a rich breath. The scent was all Cameo and Torin closed his eyes in delirium.
Cameo walked down the hallways of the fortress and towards the dungeon. Strider noticed where she was heading and followed suit. "Any change?"
"She is quiet and unmoving"
"Oh, come on. That's no fun!" he complained. And she could empathize. She had an urge of her own to beat something –or someone- down.
She didn't voice her agreement, but rather nodded her head, instantly wondering if Strider was even looking at her. Throwing a glance over her shoulder she found out that he was indeed looking at her. Huh, guess the back didn't count, did it?
"I handle this. You go find Kaia" she told him, knowing full well Defeat would throw a feast for a little challenge.
He pressed his lips in a thin line but didn't budge. Didn't stop following her either.
Shaking her head, Cameo unlocked the cell and walked in, Strider close to her heels. She knew Torin as watching too.
"And by the Gods, Somebody, at last" the woman smiled a smug smile, despite the chains around her wrists.
"Who are you and what do you want?" Cameo demanded looking at her dead in the eye. The blonde stared back at her, a little confused. Then she shook her head around, in a lost fight of throwing her platinum hair away from her face.
"Your voice…" she whispered, almost sympathetically. Then, her gaze held something that Cameo couldn't decipher... maybe she was calculating her moves to escape. Maybe she was just too taken away by Misery's effect on Cameo's voice.
"We can do this either the easy or the hard way, so answer me" Cameo demanded again. She held her expression composed, despite the woman's words.
"Fairly, I am called Leilah. Leilah the Tamer, if you will. Verily, I am a warrior like thee and I have come to thy home to request thine aid"
"In what" Strider pondered, holding a knife in one hand and slapping the flat of the blade on his other palm.
"That I shall not reveal until necessary" This made Cameo wonder if this Leilah had lost it. Come on. She was being held in a dungeon, her wrists tied over her head, kneeled on the ground and she was making a play?
Misery jumped and demanded a go at the female. Reaching out her mental touch the demon searched for any king of emotion, any tinny weakness to use- the she-demon recoiled. There was no hint of emotion, no… anything...
In the meantime, Strider had jumped forward, kneeled on the floor and held the tip of the blade against the woman's neck.
"I have naught to lose, warrior, shall you press that blade further" the prisoner stated in a flat and blank voice.
"How can we trust you?" Cameo asked.
"If you would release my hands, I would take an oath, here, in front of you"
"And how do we know you won't pull any shit and try to get away?" Strider.
"You can't" she answered simply. Then, as Strider and Cameo exchanged glances she added "or are you afraid you won't be able to take me?"
Oh, damn them all to hell. Clear, unmistakable challenge. Cameo had lived with the keeper of Defeat for too long to be able to tell. Unleashing a throaty growl, Strider freed the woman's wrists and she had been at least waiting for a smug smirk. Only the woman brought her fist over her heart and took a vow.
"I, Leilah the Tamer shall not bring any harm upon thine home. There. Satisfied?"
Which made Cameo wonder… Where was the catch?
"Did she-" he was abruptly cut off.
"No" the keeper of Defeat snapped. "And let me assure you, that Defeat is throwing a feast to have a go at her."
"We've got to make her talk" Torin said.
"Really" Strider snapped. "Don't tell me."
Uh. And currently the woman was getting settled to her room, both Kaia and Cameo close at her heels. Gods only knew, the Harpy was fascinated by her, but Torin had seen the look in Cameo's eyes. She thought something was wrong, and was probably working on finding out what exactly.
And Lucien hadn't been really happy with the new arrangements. They had to take chances though, if they stood any chance at using this woman for their benefit.
The door to the entertainment room opened and closed again, a very troubled Cameo leaning against it. She crossed her arms over her chest and brought one hand up to rub the bridge of her nose. He took a moment to study her –indeed, clothed- profile.
Infect…
No.
I need to touch her…
How about you just shut the fuck up? The bastard was trying to lure him into the feminine temptation in front of him, and tempting it was, but he knew better than to give into his demon's provocations.
Just a single touch and she's ours…
As tempting as it was.
Forever…
Ugh.
"Well?" Strider demanded, and her head snapped towards their direction. Those bottomless silver eyes of hers stabbed him straight through the heart of his and in contrast to the other warriors in the fortress, he enjoyed the pain. A pain even Reyes, the keeper of Pain himself, wouldn't withstand.
"She's solid as a rock. Hell, you saw for yourself what her reply was with a knife at her throat, Strider." Strider flinched and Torin almost glared at him. He knew it hurt her each and every time somebody did that, even though she wouldn't admit it.
"There must be something we can trigger. Everybody had an Achilles' heel" Torin pondered, instead.
"You didn't feel what I did when Misery reached out to her" Cameo shook her head.
"What would that be?" Now he was curious, alright.
"Nothing, Torin. I felt… nothing. Believe it or not, she's hollow on the inside. So…" She paused. "Empty" she finished on a raspy breath.
"Damn…" he muttered, doing some arm-crossing of his own after he swept one gloved hand through his hair.
"Uh-huh. That pretty much sums it up." With that she sighed and went back to silent mode, only retreating from her position against the door and collapsing on the couch. She perked one elbow on the couch's back and rested her forehead against her fingers, which made him wonder if Misery was on it again.
A breeze rushed through the room, and then switched to warm before going back to ass-freezing cold. He could have sworn the world was spinning and colors were blasting everywhere in a random pattern. A quick glance at the others confirmed that indeed he wasn't hallucinating.
But even he doubted himself as a thick mist of black smoke appeared in the center of the room. And as if in one of those creepy movies, as the mist started to dissolve the slender frame of a woman replaced it.
And Torin was left gaping at the green haired woman that took form. Her deep green hair fell straight as a pin to her hips and her milky white skin illuminated the moonlight that fell upon her from the open window. As her snake-like golden gaze turned to him, he found himself immobilized.
Shit… Disease thought.
Damn straight, buddy.
