"An ounce of loyalty is worth a pound of cleverness." - Elbert Hubbard
Aiken
My Mistress sleeps on her throne, head resting in crossed arms, shinny purple nails digging into the flesh of her wrists. She sleeps troubled and she sleeps scared, but she does sleep.
And you know how come?
It's how come because I'm here, and it's okay, and nothing that can be fought's never ever going to hurt her so long as I can fight.
She stirs, her head rolling to her shoulder, and I stare, my ears held down, hoping hard she wouldn't wake up so soon, and she keeps sleeping. I'm balled up on the floor, my legs pulled up to my chest and my tail over my nose, one hand touching the base of my Mistress's throne.
Most of the other Inujin are dead, because we were stupid and worthless, but the Lady Frigid hid a few away when Furiza got tired of us and killed the rest -- I think Mama said that was Frost idea in the first place, but he's gone now.
The Lady Frigid's my Mistress, but they both kept me safe, and that's been right since I was a pup. She gived me a blaster for my arm, and metal claws to tip my fingers and cover my own that can cut through anything -- super plastic armor, bodies, you name it -- like it ain't nothing at all. He always had a pat and good food cooking.
So I'm going to die before anything touches her -- I won't even give that Saiyajin a chance.
I didn't hear Uragiru coming until the door hissed open, which means I was being very bad in not paying enough attention. It caught me by surprise, so I wanted to growl, but it died in my throat and ran down to my belly when I thought of what the Lady Frigid would think if she heard me. My Mistress says I must act civilized and respectable at all times or she shalln't keep me. That's what she says. If she heard me do that she'd be angry.
I stood, waving to Uragiru silently. She tried to talk, and I held a claw to my muzzle, watching my Mistress out of the corner of my eye, scared she'll get woke up. She needs to sleep more. And eat. She never eats enough.
I walk outside the room, slipping through the automatic double doors, while waving for Uragiru to follow. I can tell she don't like it, but I don't care; I won't have my Mistress bothered.
Then when we're in the hall, just like she's teasing me, Uragiru says "We approach Earth. Wake Lady Frigid."
"Now? She hasn't hardly slept at all!" Uragiru makes me nervous -- she never smells right -- but my mistress trust her, I think. The Lady Frigid cannot be wrong.
"She'll be angry with you if you don't wake her with time enough to get ready, you know," she says. She's thin and blue skinned and small but stronger than me anyway. I hate her.
"She will?" I looked at the closed doors nervously. I don't want her mad at me. "But what does she have to get ready for, so soon?"
She smiles. Fake smile. I hate fake liar smiles. Thinks she's smarter than me. "Just to die. The Super Saiyajin's going to kill her."
I listen close for sounds behind the doors, hoping the Lady Frigid was awake and had heard. But my Mistress is never around when Uragiru says things like that, and she's not now.
"Lady Frigid's going to kill that Saiyajin," I said. "She told me that's why she's going." My shoulders bristle under the pads of my armor and I hold my tail high and stiff. Challenge. Just you tried to say otherwise.
"Hope springs eternal," she said. Then when I bared my teeth because I didn't get it but thought it might be an insult to my Mistress, she added "Whatever you said, Aiken-chan."
"What I say -- damn straight. She'll kill him, or I will if she likes."
Uragiru shook her head softly, her short blue hair waving. "Wake her." And she turned her back to me, heading down the hallway.
Uragiru's okay most of the time, but sometimes I want to jump on her shoulders and rip her throat out with my good teeth. But that would make my Mistress so angry, I don't even know.
She's lying anyway -- No one's going to kill my Mistress. But just to make sure, I'm going to kill that Saiyajin before he can ever ever ever get near my Mistress. She'll see.
And I know how to know what he looks like too. Because I know that they have tails, and not pretty shaggy ones like mine -- just short, dark furred, worthless little things. I'll just kill the one with the tail, and there won't be no trouble.
Tail hanging low, I went back into the Lady Frigid's throne room.
My feet are nearly as good in fighting as my hands, and I like being able to use them. But my mistress says it wouldn't look good for me to go around barefooted all the time, so I'm wearing boots. They press against my claws bad, and make them sore, but it's okay. I move across the carpets toward my mistress, the boot's soles leaving prints in the purple shag that puffed back up and disappeared again.
I couldn't hurt her if I tried -- and I never never would -- but I slipped my metal claw tips off just the same as I stopped in front of her. I reached out, intending to touch her shoulder, then freeze. I smell blood, and see it, on the edge of my Mistress's lip, a thin line running down her chin. More on a silk hanky, wrinkled and balled up on the arm of her throne.
I'm scared.
I'm scared to touch her now, so instead I said, "Lady Frigid?" softly. That should have woke her up -- it's never taken much, but she now don't move at all. I repeated her name more loudly, afraid my voice is shaking, and add, "We're almost there, I think..."
My Mistress doesn't wake slowly. One second her head is leaning to the side against her shoulder, the next she has straightened, looking at me, her eyes open, awake and clear. She stood, one quick and flowing movement. "Are we?" she said. "All right then," and she headed toward the doors.
"Lady Frigid," I began, then got nervous when she turned to stare at me. "You've got a little... On your chin..."
"Oh." She rubbed the dried blood away with the side of her hand. "Better?" I nodded, but couldn't ask why the blood was there or where it had come from.
My Mistress started out again and I follow her.
Aiken
My Mistress sleeps on her throne, head resting in crossed arms, shinny purple nails digging into the flesh of her wrists. She sleeps troubled and she sleeps scared, but she does sleep.
And you know how come?
It's how come because I'm here, and it's okay, and nothing that can be fought's never ever going to hurt her so long as I can fight.
She stirs, her head rolling to her shoulder, and I stare, my ears held down, hoping hard she wouldn't wake up so soon, and she keeps sleeping. I'm balled up on the floor, my legs pulled up to my chest and my tail over my nose, one hand touching the base of my Mistress's throne.
Most of the other Inujin are dead, because we were stupid and worthless, but the Lady Frigid hid a few away when Furiza got tired of us and killed the rest -- I think Mama said that was Frost idea in the first place, but he's gone now.
The Lady Frigid's my Mistress, but they both kept me safe, and that's been right since I was a pup. She gived me a blaster for my arm, and metal claws to tip my fingers and cover my own that can cut through anything -- super plastic armor, bodies, you name it -- like it ain't nothing at all. He always had a pat and good food cooking.
So I'm going to die before anything touches her -- I won't even give that Saiyajin a chance.
I didn't hear Uragiru coming until the door hissed open, which means I was being very bad in not paying enough attention. It caught me by surprise, so I wanted to growl, but it died in my throat and ran down to my belly when I thought of what the Lady Frigid would think if she heard me. My Mistress says I must act civilized and respectable at all times or she shalln't keep me. That's what she says. If she heard me do that she'd be angry.
I stood, waving to Uragiru silently. She tried to talk, and I held a claw to my muzzle, watching my Mistress out of the corner of my eye, scared she'll get woke up. She needs to sleep more. And eat. She never eats enough.
I walk outside the room, slipping through the automatic double doors, while waving for Uragiru to follow. I can tell she don't like it, but I don't care; I won't have my Mistress bothered.
Then when we're in the hall, just like she's teasing me, Uragiru says "We approach Earth. Wake Lady Frigid."
"Now? She hasn't hardly slept at all!" Uragiru makes me nervous -- she never smells right -- but my mistress trust her, I think. The Lady Frigid cannot be wrong.
"She'll be angry with you if you don't wake her with time enough to get ready, you know," she says. She's thin and blue skinned and small but stronger than me anyway. I hate her.
"She will?" I looked at the closed doors nervously. I don't want her mad at me. "But what does she have to get ready for, so soon?"
She smiles. Fake smile. I hate fake liar smiles. Thinks she's smarter than me. "Just to die. The Super Saiyajin's going to kill her."
I listen close for sounds behind the doors, hoping the Lady Frigid was awake and had heard. But my Mistress is never around when Uragiru says things like that, and she's not now.
"Lady Frigid's going to kill that Saiyajin," I said. "She told me that's why she's going." My shoulders bristle under the pads of my armor and I hold my tail high and stiff. Challenge. Just you tried to say otherwise.
"Hope springs eternal," she said. Then when I bared my teeth because I didn't get it but thought it might be an insult to my Mistress, she added "Whatever you said, Aiken-chan."
"What I say -- damn straight. She'll kill him, or I will if she likes."
Uragiru shook her head softly, her short blue hair waving. "Wake her." And she turned her back to me, heading down the hallway.
Uragiru's okay most of the time, but sometimes I want to jump on her shoulders and rip her throat out with my good teeth. But that would make my Mistress so angry, I don't even know.
She's lying anyway -- No one's going to kill my Mistress. But just to make sure, I'm going to kill that Saiyajin before he can ever ever ever get near my Mistress. She'll see.
And I know how to know what he looks like too. Because I know that they have tails, and not pretty shaggy ones like mine -- just short, dark furred, worthless little things. I'll just kill the one with the tail, and there won't be no trouble.
Tail hanging low, I went back into the Lady Frigid's throne room.
My feet are nearly as good in fighting as my hands, and I like being able to use them. But my mistress says it wouldn't look good for me to go around barefooted all the time, so I'm wearing boots. They press against my claws bad, and make them sore, but it's okay. I move across the carpets toward my mistress, the boot's soles leaving prints in the purple shag that puffed back up and disappeared again.
I couldn't hurt her if I tried -- and I never never would -- but I slipped my metal claw tips off just the same as I stopped in front of her. I reached out, intending to touch her shoulder, then freeze. I smell blood, and see it, on the edge of my Mistress's lip, a thin line running down her chin. More on a silk hanky, wrinkled and balled up on the arm of her throne.
I'm scared.
I'm scared to touch her now, so instead I said, "Lady Frigid?" softly. That should have woke her up -- it's never taken much, but she now don't move at all. I repeated her name more loudly, afraid my voice is shaking, and add, "We're almost there, I think..."
My Mistress doesn't wake slowly. One second her head is leaning to the side against her shoulder, the next she has straightened, looking at me, her eyes open, awake and clear. She stood, one quick and flowing movement. "Are we?" she said. "All right then," and she headed toward the doors.
"Lady Frigid," I began, then got nervous when she turned to stare at me. "You've got a little... On your chin..."
"Oh." She rubbed the dried blood away with the side of her hand. "Better?" I nodded, but couldn't ask why the blood was there or where it had come from.
My Mistress started out again and I follow her.