Anomie: The Tale of Voldo and Vercci

Author: Xanthos Samurai

Rating: R

Warnings: Yaoi/slash, whatever you want to call it – this fic features two men in a homosexual relationship. Also, violence, cannibalism, coarse language and hints of sadism/masochism. Read at your own risk.

Disclaimer: Voldo belongs to Vercci and Vercci belongs to Namco, so I don't own any of them. TT

Feedback: Please!

Notes: Voldo has always struck me as fascinating and vastly underappreciated... And I've always been curious to know what sort of man would Vercci have to be to merit that sort of dedication and loyalty from Voldo. I have taken a few rather extreme liberties in making up Voldo's past and personality (which is sort of required since he doesn't really have one in the game anyways). In any case, you have been warned...

Strange happenings always occur on the darkest of nights, especially within this world. On this particular dark night, two men would meet for the first time and subsequently irrevocably alter the course of the lives of many other men. One was a Midas, the other a freak, but both were similar in that they had long since given in to the darkness in their souls.

On a filthy street corner in a back alley crouched a man not of men, an animal not of beasts. A pariah since he had been brought into the world, he had made a life for himself scratching in gutters and drinking the blood of creatures even more lowly than himself. The environment that should have killed any other man had allowed him to thrive, like a parasite or fungus, in the worst possible situations. In his own fetid lair he now lurked, waiting for a stray animal of any sort to come along to serve as his evening meal. Sounds of booted steps and of conversation approached his lair and Voldo's sharp ears. Strange. Very strange. He could tell that that the men approaching were of upper class, men who had no business in the slums of the city.

"I don't see why we had to carry out this deal here of all places, Vercci." The voice was hissing and nervous. Voldo raised himself into a half-crouch, ready to attack if they ventured too near his nest. But they stopped at the corner before.

"You don't see much of anything." This voice was low and confident, even bordering on arrogant. "And, my dear Rizzi, this is the only place to carry out business such as ours without too many people growing suspicious."

"What do you mean? There are people everywhere in this scum hole!"

A dog's low growl made Rizzi reconsider how much he raised his voice. Vercci's huge wolfhound accompanied him wherever he went, a char-black shadow in his master's wake. There were tales of men who had offended Vercci and lived the rest of their lives claiming to be stalked by a black hound. Many of these men were mysteriously murdered thereafter.

"Down, Roman. Our friend Rizzi has not done anything yet, including give us what he came here to give." Vercci's dark brown, nearly black eyes glinted as they looked with marble hardness at Rizzi. The smaller man gulped.

"Y-yes, how could I have forgotten? But first, where's my payment?"

Voldo didn't even have to sniff the air to smell the stinking waves of fear rolling off the man's body. With a low, nearly inaudible hiss, he rose from his lair and crept soundlessly to the corner, still out of sight, but able to get a better sense of the men.

"You'll get your payment as soon as I get what I want."

Rizzi reached into his coat pocket and drew out a small parcel wrapped in plain, coarse brown cloth.

"Here. Now give me my money."

Vercci pocketed the parcel and smiled once before sweeping his dark hair back from his face.

"Roman, kill him."

The smaller man blanched. "But wait! I got you the item you requested! We had a deal!"

"And I'm going back on it. Goodbye, Rizzi."

Roman crouched, saliva dripping from his jaws. Rizzi backed away in fear as his eyes darted from side to side, seeing if there was any way to escape. Vercci watched with a smile upon his lips, amused by the man's terror. The smile turned into a frown as a murky shape rose up from the shadows behind Rizzi. A filthy hand clapped over the doomed man's mouth and yanked him back into darkness. Vercci's eyes narrowed slightly as there were sounds of a short scuffle, a crack and then silence.

"What in the Gods' names? Stay." The wolfhound sat, although he glared into the darkness at whatever had taken Rizzi. Vercci eyed the darkness, unafraid of what was in there, making such wet, sticky noises in the shadows. He strode in, determined to find out who or what was lurking there.

The man, Rizzi, didn't taste as good as Voldo had hoped that he perhaps might. He had supposed that human flesh would taste better than the flesh of the vermin that he had been dining on, but it appeared that this man was no better than a vermin himself. Oh well. In any case, it was a good deal more meat than he was used to, so he would be able to eat his fill, no matter how bad the man tasted. Footsteps approached and then Voldo remembered of the other man, the one with the dog. Perhaps he was coming. Perhaps he'd taste better.

"You've deprived my dog of a meal," said the man's emotionless voice. Voldo tore a strip of skin off the corpse's arm with his teeth, then turned to hiss up at the intruder, who was standing at the edge of the nest, looking down upon him. Killing too many at once would lead to problems. Maybe this one would leave on his own.

Vercci looked down upon the gruesome spectacle in the same manner that his ancestors had watched the gladiatorial combatants in the great games of ancient Rome. It pleased him almost, the filthy little lair made of cast aside wood and the next made of rags and the skins of pestilence. But what pleased him most was the man himself – a tall, gaunt man with long emaciated limbs clothed in little but rags stained brown from dried blood. A tangle of stringy hair obscured his face, but Vercci could see sharp features made sharper by slim meals and covered in a thick layer of grime.

"However, it does appear that you did not waste the kill. I applaud you. What is your name?" Asked Vercci.

Voldo wiped the gore from his mouth and eyed the man standing over him. A human had not tried to speak to him in years and he didn't understand what this one wanted now. But again, he didn't see any harm in answering – if the human threatened him, he could merely dispose of him like he had done the other.

"Voldo."

"I see. And how long have you lived this way, Voldo?"

There was no reply from the cannibal. He had no idea how long he had been like this, nor did he care to tell the human even if he did know. Vercci smiled. For some reason, this beast-man named Voldo intrigued him, enough so that he wished to examine this strange specimen more closely.

"I want you to come with me, Voldo. I'll give you a bath, proper meals, proper clothing and a place to stay. In return, you'll serve me as my personal servant. How does that sound?"

What was the human saying? Did it know what it was offering? Was it serious? Voldo peered at the human with his head tilted to the side, much like the dogs he lived with, although his eyes were narrowed with suspicion. If the human was serious, he had nothing to lose. If the human had some darker, more sinister purpose, then he could easily escape. He eyed the man and stood, casting aside Rizzi's corpse.

"I come."

Vercci smirked. Yes, this was going to be quite interesting indeed.

To Be Continued...

Notes: Well, that's it, but it's only the beginning! What does Vercci have in mind for Voldo? We're not quite sure yet... he's quite devious. ;; This is also quite a short first chapter... hopefully, they'll be much longer in the future.