Author's Note: This one was a real fighter. I apologize how long it took me to get this one out, but it really kicked my ass for a long time because I wasn't sure whether or not it was too soon to advance the story with some major events. Anywho, enjoy! This chapter clocks in at almost 13 pages and 3,666 words 0_0
Wasteland Survival Part 24
Brown nosing was something that Sarah detested with every fiber of her being, but it had gotten her here. The "here" being the free-roam privileges that Eulogy had granted to her. The feeling of the sun on her skin was amazing, but the fact that she could see Ray and Jericho, even if it was only for fifteen minutes at a time, was even more glorious.
She tried to visit them every day, but Eulogy had taken to making whoever was guarding the entrance to the slave pens, usually Forty or a wicked woman named Carolina Red, make sure that Sarah couldn't speak with her friends as much as she would like. In the past week of her free roam, she had only gotten to speak with them twice. Each visit had ended with her leaving, tears standing in her eyes; but as soon as she got back to her little room near the stairs, the twin dams broke and tears rolled down her cheeks, dragging dark mascara with them if she had worn it.
That was new as well. Clover had shown her how to apply the black eyeliner, even showing her how to make the little wings for cat-eye style eyeliner. The Sentinel wasn't even sure why she wore it. It burned her eyes, but Eulogy and Clover seemed to enjoy it, earning her more of their favor. Ray and Jericho did too; showering her with compliments about how beautiful she was as she stood outside of their little pen.
Despite the outpouring of care from her friends, she refused to cry in front of them. She refused to cry in front of Eulogy and his slaves. She had even refused to cry in front of her own father when she was in the Brotherhood. Maybe it was that she was afraid it would make her appear to be weak, or maybe it was just her own stubborn pride. It was probably a mixture of both, she realized, as she wiped away the mascara that had run down her cheeks.
Sarah stood in front of the massive vanity mirror in the bathroom, scrubbing at her face to remove the makeup. Eulogy's "free roam" still had restrictions. She could not leave before 3 PM, had to be back in for their 6:30 PM dinner, and be home for the night at 9 PM. It was ridiculous, and it made her feel like a troublesome teenager who had to be wrangled in.
"You okay, lover?"
Clover's gentle drawl made the Sentinel jump, the soap that she had been scrubbing roughly at her face with slipping out of her hand and dropping to the floor. She spun to face the other woman, her face still covered in bubbles. "Clover! Don't sneak up on me like that, dammit!"
Clover laughed in her soft tone as she regarded the Sentinel, "It's kinda hard to take you screaming at me seriously when your face is covered in bubbles," the slave paused with a smirk before stooping, picking up the soap, and handing it to Sarah. "Don't drop the soap, Sentinel."
Sarah snatched the soap from the giggling woman before placing it back in its tray by the sink. "Oh shut up," Sarah mumbled before rinsing the bubbles from her face and patting it dry with a towel. The Sentinel put the towel back in its place before sighing at herself in the mirror. Her emerald eyes were irritated, and there were little red blotches on her face from crying. It had been about two weeks since she had apologized to Clover for rejecting her, but the two women had grown even closer. Her tactics for growing close to Clover were paying off, but it was surprisingly easy; the two just naturally got along, despite their differing personalities. Still, Sarah would not admit to crying in front of her new friend.
Clover met her eyes in the mirror, arching an eyebrow. "Have you been crying? Your eyes are all red and puffy. And you've got those little red blotches on your cheeks and forehead," the slave pointed at the Sentinel's reflection, adding emphasis to her observations.
Sarah turned to leave and awkwardly cleared her throat. "No Clover. I just got soap in my eyes."
The slave scoffed and crossed her arms, blocking Sarah's path. "No, no. Don't be like that; is it because they wouldn't let you see your friends?" Her tone became sympathetic and she placed a gentle hand on the Sentinel's shoulder.
Sarah didn't meet her eyes. "I wasn't crying. Just drop it Clover. If you are really my friend, then you'll let me drop the subject."
That worked. Clover's eyes went wide and she instantly began to apologize, "I didn't mean to get into anything too personal for you; don't get mad at me!" To the Sentinel's shock, Clover pulled her in for a tight hug. "Forgive me for being nosy. Please…I don't want to lose you; you're the only real friend I've ever had, Sarah." The slave's voice hitched slightly as she clung to the soldier like her life depended on it.
The normally stony woman was shocked by Clover's sudden mood swing and show of seemingly true emtion, but something inside of Sarah was struck by the slave's heartfelt words. The Sentinel was not a warm, huggy type of woman, but this was her first time really seeing Clover as a person. An overwhelming feeling of guilt struck her as she suddenly realized that she had been rather dismissive of the slave many times. Too many times had she just seen her as a tool for escape; Clover was a human being, no matter how damaged she was. She needed friends just like anyone else. Ignoring the feelings that warned her that she was getting too close with the slave, Sarah gently wrapped her arms around the other woman, hugging her close. "You really look at me like that?"
"Yes," Clover said gently, yet earnestly, her chin lightly bumping the Sentinel's shoulder as she spoke.
Sarah's eyes threatened to tear up in spite of herself; she chalked her feelings up to the fact that the floodgates had been open just a few minutes ago. Still…Clover was being shockingly heartfelt.
"Jesus…I'm sorry, Clover. I didn't realize you thought so…highly of me." She had been called many things in her life. Some of the more demeaning: bitch, sugar-tits, sweetie, blondie; but then there were more respected titles when she grew into her role as a no-nonsense soldier and fearless commander: Private, Commander, Sentinel, etc. But never had she been called a friend; a true friend.
Clover rested her head on Sarah's shoulder, pulling her body flush against Sarah's and hugging her a bit tighter. "I do. Don't ever question my friendship to you like that. I know you don't really know me, and I guess I don't know you that well either…but I don't have anyone. Not really; not like you. You've made me see that!" The slave's voice suddenly changed from gentle and admiring to angry, "Eulogy doesn't care about me, or Crimson, he just fucking uses us! As a matter of fact, fuck Crimson too! She's a fucking bitch!"
Sarah gently pulled away, but kept her hands at Clover's sides, ignoring the slave's second mood swing; albeit this time, it had been into anger instead of fear of losing her friend. The Sentinel's emerald eyes met the slave's of livid chocolate. She kept her voice low, speaking quietly, "Do you see it now, Clover? Eulogy doesn't care about any of us! Do you see now why we have to get out of here?"
Clover nodded quickly, her eyes softening slightly. "I…I don't want to be here anymore, Sarah. I told myself that I deserved this…for what I did before; I told myself that Eulogy saved me from myself. None of that is true though…I'm a shitty person, but I don't deserve this. No one deserves this; especially not you," The slave's eyes were pleading, gentle, and the most human Sarah had ever seen them. There was no twinkle of madness or lasciviousness, just a captured and hurt woman who was terrified and bearing her soul.
Sarah gently brushed Clover's ivory mohawk away from the slave's suddenly doe-like eyes. "Shh, Clover. I don't care what you did before, it doesn't matter now. We are just surviving now, and what matters now is that we get my friends and get the hell out of this place!"
The slave nodded gently. "You're right, lover," she paused before tacking on with an uncharacteristic blush, "you've got brains and beauty." There was that little twinkle of mischief in her eye, along with something that Sarah had never seen before, and couldn't quite place.
Sarah gave a genuine smile and blushed gently, realizing that she was still holding onto Clover's hips, the slave's arms lightly draped around her shoulders. The intimate position was unusual, and it made Sarah slightly uncomfortable, as intimacy and feelings were not her forte; especially when she didn't understand what herself was feeling. Before she could drop her hands from the slave's waist, Clover was pressing her lips passionately to Sarah's; the slave's arms pulling the Sentinel flush against herself.
The Sentinel froze in shock from the kiss, her shock deepening as Crimson stepped into the bathroom, giving a gasp of shock as she took in the intimate sight before her with wide eyes.
Sarah pushed Clover away, emerald eyes wide and meeting Crimson's of a furious brown. "Just when I thought that you two couldn't be any more of a pair of traitorous whores! Now I what you two did all day, locked up in here with each other when I was out with daddy! I fucking heard everything," the dark skinned slave threateningly drew her sword, pointing the tip at Sarah and slowly stalking forward.
"Where's Eulogy?" Sarah managed, backing up until her knees hit the edge of the massive bath tub.
"He's on his way; he sent me home to get ready for bed and wait for him. When he gets here, we'll kill you both!" The slave was shouting in anger, her face flush with pure rage as she stalked towards Sarah, "Maybe I'll speed it up, show you what happens when you betray daddy, then sit around telling secrets 'bout escaping!"
With that, Crimson lunged at Sarah, the deadly point of her sword making a path straight for the Sentinel's throat. Sarah sidestepped the move, causing Crimson to fall into the empty bathtub with a cry of anger. Her forehead clipped the edge of the porcelain, splitting the dark skin and staining the previously spotless bathtub with fresh blood.
Crimson sat up slowly, groaning and holding her hand to her gushing forehead. Sarah innocently raised her hands, trying to calm the slave down, "Look Crimson, I know you're pissed; but this was not what it looked like."
Crimson stumbled out of the tub with a growl and angrily jabbed her sword at Sarah. "Shut the fuck up!"
Clover suddenly interrupted the two, rushing forward and kicking Crimson as hard as she could in the gut. The dark-skinned woman reeled backwards from the blow, hitting the small table covered with various beauty products and making it slam into the large vanity mirror, shattering it. "Back the fuck up, Crimson!" Clover snarled, eyes sparkling with rage and brink on the brink of insanity.
Crimson fell from the table, landing in the pile of glass, the aforementioned glass making a dull crunching sound. Clover and Sarah exchanged a pointed look when the woman didn't climb to her feet after a few seconds.
"Crimson?" Sarah called out, stepping forward tentatively and expecting the dark skinned slave to jump to her feet and take out her pain and rage on the Sentinel. But as Sarah got closer, she could see deep scarlet staining the floor near Crimson's torso. "Oh shit!" She cried out, falling forward onto her knees and turning the other woman over.
A long, jagged piece of the mirror stuck out of the woman's chest, deep crimson flowing freely from the wound; the slave's eyes were glazed over, giving a thousand yard stare into blank space. Sarah looked over her shoulder, panic filling her heart. "Clover! She's dead!"
Clover's jaw dropped as she took in the sight before her; her normally smooth and collected tone uncharacteristically shaky as she spoke. "She definitely won't be missed. But, Sarah…you know what Eulogy is going to think."
Sarah slowly rose to her feet, eyes unable to leave the reflection of themselves in that jagged piece of mirror sticking out of Crimson's chest. "I know. We have to get the fuck out of here. Now."
The two women didn't have time to discuss their plans as the heavy front door of their captor's home slammed and his deep voice echoed out. "Girls! Daddy's home!"
The Sentinel and the Slave exchanged a panicked glance as fear blanched in their hearts. Sarah's mind rushed to think of a plan, going into full Sentinel mode. She rushed towards Crimson, wrenching the sword from her dead fist. She pressed herself against the wall by the door, Clover mirroring her on the other side of the door.
The eyes of the two women remained locked until the moment when Eulogy finally walked through the door. As he stepped through, he was immediately hyperaware that his little paradise was on the brink of chaos. Crimson lay in a pool of her own blood, eyes staring blankly at the ceiling as a piece of the shattered mirror protruded from her chest; he didn't have much time to react to this however, because all he could see was wild emerald eyes.
Sarah gave a low grunt as she hilted the sword in her wannabe master. She was face to face with the wicked man, his brown eyes wide with betrayal and shock. Clover gave a cry of joy and ecstasy from her post by the door, chocolate eyes wide with bloodthirsty insanity. Sarah smirked as fear passed through his eyes, and twisted the sword within him, satisfied with his warm blood running up the handle and meeting her hands.
I won. Don't try to tame a Brotherhood Sentinel, you pompous fuck. The moment was incredibly glorifying, but short-lived. The fear and betrayal dropped from Eulogy's eyes as he took in her wild grin of victory. With a snarl, he raised his fist and punched the Sentinel in the jaw as hard as he could. Sarah fell backwards and onto the cold tiles of the floor, her dress a wild flurry of red around her. Her head cracked the tiles hard, making stars explode in her vision.
Clover's rage spiked as she saw Eulogy strike Sarah down. She rushed him, aiming to leap on his back and gouge his eyes from her perch on him, but he spun around surprisingly quickly. The slave driver grabbed his former lover by her throat and slammed her against the wall, bringing his face close to her own. He spoke through clenched teeth, making spittle hit her in the face, "You want to betray me, huh? You and this stupid bitch!" He paused to slam Clover's skull into the thick tile, splitting the back of her head open, "You stupid fucking cunts killed Crimson! My Crimson! She was worth two of you, Clover!"
Clover clawed at his fist as it tightened around her throat, threatening to choke the life from her. His words still cut her, making her realize that she had not completely severed her attachment to the cruel man. Her eyes darted wildly about and she gagged as his grip tightened.
Sarah shook the stars from her vision, her jaw giving a heavy and pulsing ache when she moved her head. She groaned lowly, spitting out blood and looking up at Eulogy. He had his back to her now as he choked Clover, her eyes bugging out and darting about, panicked. The Sentinel stumbled to her feet, taking off one of her heels and closing the distance between herself and Eulogy before stabbing him in the back with the heel.
The man roared, dropping Clover and spinning around to punch Sarah in the side of the head. Pain erupted in her temple and cheekbone as his sharp knuckles connected with her cheekbone and her temple. The Sentinel's head met those cold, hard tiles again, blackness consuming her mind instantaneously.
Clover choked and spluttered from where she sat on the floor, cradling her throat with both hands and watching Sarah fall with wide and terrified chocolate eyes. Eulogy towered above the slave, brown and livid eyes boring down into her own as she looked up to meet them. The sword still stuck from his belly, a single drop of blood dripping from the handle and landing on her pale leg.
He hauled her up by her biceps, slamming her against the wall. "What the fuck were you thinking Clover? Why the fuck would you help her? You don't even care about her!"
Anger replaced the fear in the small woman's eyes. Defiant as ever, she spat in his face before snarling her response through bared teeth, "You don't know who I do and do not care about. Fuck you, daddy!"
The slave driver's eyes shot open wide as Clover's words, and saliva, smacked him in the face. He backhanded her, making her head crack into the wall again. "You're gonna have a lot of making up to do for this shit! You ungrateful little bitch!" He grabbed her by her short hair, prompting a scream and fists wailing into his side. He started dragging her to Sarah's little room by the stairs, intent on locking her in there.
Clover stumbled awkwardly and painfully along with him as he led her by the hair. "Fuck making up! And fuck you! I want to leave!"
He jerked her into a standing position, his eyes boring intensely into hers as he spoke as coldly as he could, "Fine with me; I planned on selling you anyway and replacing you with Sarah. You're a fucking worthless bitch, and I regret the day that I ever pulled you in here and out of the Wastes. I should've let you stay out there, running with your gang, getting fucked by anyone you pleased, killing and stealing to get your fucking drugs! I made you into someone and you fucked it all up!" He paused to smirk at her, "The next fat nasty fuck that wanders in here wanting a girl to fuck and abuse as he pleases can have you."
Eulogy's words cut her deep and rubbed salt into the wound, she could feel her face twist with hurt as he went on his tirade, but she held back any weaker emotions that threatened to spill over. She grabbed the hilt of the sword that still stuck out of his belly and twisted it in a full circle, giving a sadistic smirk as his screams of agony filled her ears.
The slave driver shoved the slave into the room, her grip on the sword not loosening and causing the blade to quickly rip out of his flesh. The sword clattered to the floor near her as she fell onto her ass, and Eulogy quickly scooped it up, gasping and sputtering in agony as he did so, before slamming and locking the door behind himself.
…
Clover sat there, stunned for an immeasurable amount of time. In just a few minutes, her life had fallen apart while simultaneously being born anew. It was a familiar and terrifying position; one chapter ending and another beginning as quickly as the last died.
The death of Crimson had been significant. The woman that she had spent so much time with, even though most of it was fighting and the other small amount had been times where the two had been forced to get along; was now dead. Crimson's death didn't hurt Clover as much as it shocked her. In all reality, she was quite glad that the other slave was dead.
Eulogy on the other hand…she was taking the loss of his affection terribly. His words still stung, even worse than the split he had put on the back of her skull. Much of her hated him at this point, but he had been her life for a long time. He used to be the reason she woke up, she would've taken a bullet for him before. Before she met Sarah.
The Sentinel had intrigued her from the moment they first dragged her into Eulogy's home. She had been passed out and slung over Forty's shoulder, her clothes looking like she had worn them to hell and back. She was soaked with blood and her several strands of hair that had come out of her ponytail were plastered to her face with the scarlet liquid.
The slave remembered the first time that she had seen her awake too; when she had allegedly jumped off of the balcony above this very room and murdered one of the recruits with a broken arm bone. Then tried to kill Forty and Eulogy with said bone.
Clover smiled weakly at the memory and crawled into the bed that was previously Sarah's. She hugged the flat pillow to her chest, smiling wider as she smelled the Sentinel on it.
Somewhere along the path of Eulogy trying to "domesticate" the Sentinel, Clover had begun to see the woman as a best friend. Sarah could be quite awkward at times, clearly not used to wearing a dress and being hit on by another woman; or joking with said woman, but still attempting it.
The slave's smile dropped as she realized that she had no idea what would happen to her best and only friend. Eulogy was not a man to be crossed, and he sure as hell wasn't a man that you failed at killing…
Author's Note: Well holy schiesse! Some major stuff went down in this chapter! R.I.P. Crimson. You...were not a very developed character XD I tried to show some of Clover's crazy side in this chapter, hence the mood swings, clinginess and slightly insane attachment to Sarah. I also tried to show that she is genuine at times, when she proclaims Sarah as her best and only friend, and when her hatred for Eulogy starts to really sink in.
Some character development with Sarah too; realizing that Clover is a woman with many issues and it was cruel of her to use her as a tool for escape.
On a different note, I wanted to write some sort of special for Halloween, but I was unsure how I should go about doing it. Should it take place in Wasteland Survival, From The Vault, or should I do a little one-shot? Thanks for reading and tell me what you think in your review!