This chapter's song is A New Moon by The DashDub.
~Luna Laila's POV~
Listener wishes to assign me to a different guild, but I switched with Noctus. Who in Nirn doesn't want the chance to get even? Hopefully, he's there. I just hope that she doesn't know, mother's so protective of me, it's almost ridiculous. It would be, except for the fact that we're practically all the other has, and it's not exactly the most fun to be alone in a Family, exclusive because your mother is the Listener, the most revered and honored person in our extensive Family.
I sigh, waiting for nightfall. She wanted a synchronized attack, leaving no guild about to respond to other's distress signals. The lacrima around the building are set up, blocking any signal that might be trying to get through on either side. They'll likely just dismiss it as what it is- something blocking the signal. It happens all the time, thanks to our interference and the Grand Magic Games, which, of course, we'll be participating in this year. Not mother, of course, although she could, technically, but she doesn't want to. She will let me, though, as I practically begged her for it all last month, when the announcement happened that it would take place next week, five from the announcement.
She caved easily. I'm her only daughter, after all.
The signal comes through for me, and I laugh shortly, quickly, and pull on my mask and summon up my siblings, two from the past that is beyond me, but not my mother. I have a Daedroth on standby, if I need it, and enough offensive spells to destroy this place- no, to level it.
My grin threatens to escape into a laugh, and my armor goes up, flaring around my body with purple magic, and the Helpers, as I call them, resonate with their combined magic.
The armor's wicked, with a visor over my eyes and the cloth under that, covering them fully, with my mask secure over my nose and mouth. It's a bit difficult to breath in, but you get used to it after practically living in it since birth. The boots and gauntlets are spiky, made of solid, enchanted ebony, muffling my steps and giving me an advantage in nearly every combat situation with a boost to my armor skills and one handed weapons, although it's mostly for my daggers, both of which are at my side.
My hair's in a ponytail, flowing freely in the breeze, and with a click of my tongue, metal ascends from my visor, forming a helmet and covering every single strand of my hair with a protective coating. It's actually very unwise to have long hair in battle situations, so that's why I make a potential weakness into a weapon. Hit with my hair in its armor, you're going to be down for the count.
The body of my lovingly hand-crafted armor set is jet black, non-reflective, and is as light as air to me, but also enhances my speed and stealth skills. I almost wanted to borrow my mother's Ebony Mail, but I doubt she'd approve or let me. Besides, Boethiah would've wanted me to kill mother for the honor of wearing it. A cloak, black on the outside and red on the inside, covers my frame completely, except for my head.
All in all, I'm ready. But is this guild?
This, Fairy Tail?
I think not.
I walk through the doors, which were silent until now, and find a calm guild, at least, calm after days of fighting. My sensory magic detects several things of interest here. A burly blond man being bandaged up by a petite busty blonde girl, who's chiding him while he's looking around grumpily. Two of them are still wrestling, one with blue-black hair and another with strawberry blond hair, both barely old enough to know any magic. Two older males sit together, talking, before shouting and then getting into a fight. Their parents?
My quizzical expression is hidden completely, and I don't give any indication of anything out of the ordinary. A midget, however, spies me, and my senses almost recoil in shock at how strong he is. Come to think of it, so was the blond couple. There are several more hot spots, but those are the strongest, almost blinding me until I hear him talking.
"Welcome to Fairy Tail! What can I help you with? Do you need anything?" he says, coming up to me smiling.
I reply, "Yes…"
"Well, what can I help you to do?" he responds, looking at me with a strange expression on his face.
"Wait… you remind me of…."
He doesn't get the chance to say who before my magic whips out of control, sending him twenty feet up, through the roof, and slamming him down again. A tentacle grows almost uncontrollably, and grabs onto as many members as it can, breaking the roof like that old tale with a boy named jack and something like a goose or a hen or something. I'm not sure, and the battle is on, so I don't have time to spare thinking about it.
The two blondes spring into battle, and my senses dull slightly when they come near, although I can tell there are now two more than there should be in this guild hall when this began.
Familiar battle noises sound out when I call out my siblings, and they take down the ones that weren't here before in a flash, sending them back to wherever they came from, then starting on the next ones to attack.
Interestingly enough, they don't even attempt to talk to me, and easily, they push me, so I push back. Harder.
'You must be able to push the world harder than it can push back.' my mother's voice resonates in my ears, telling me advice about my power, and I grin, ripping off my mask and moving them away from me, not with the power of the Voice, but with my own magic, working against them and pushing them harder, much harder, than ever before.
"Unbelievable," someone breathes, and I don't even hesitate before sending a dagger towards them, hearing it hit my target and the inevitable escape of breath in surprise. They'll be dead in a few minutes, hopefully.
One of the men scream at me, calling out, "Karyū no Hōkō!"
I feel the power behind it, yes, the heat, and I respond by slamming my body into him after running at him for a small amount of time.
"I curse you with the power of the soundless!" I shout out, bringing out two long needles, almost daggers with the same level of sharpness, and strike him with them, right in his ears, leaving them there.
I land and let my cloak fall off my shoulders, singed, but wearable. However, I don't want to have this on me while fighting off any entire guild, one that's quite hard to defeat, being in the running for the Grand Magic Games for all of the years I've been alive, and even before that.
People gasp as they look at me, and I smirk, getting into my element, first fending off the attackers of the guild members and the killing the ones pinned down by my tentacles that I summoned with a flick of my wrist and the barest sound coming from them. The Dragon Slayers are quickly put out of commission by me, with the stunt I pulled with the Fire one easy to do again, and again, and again, from different angles. I almost think that Fukuro would have had an easier time wrapping up this guild.
Erza Scarlet's voice cuts through the rabble, ordering silence and calm, the guild respecting her while she requips into some armor that is probably very slutty- I've heard about her choice in attire- and not nearly as protective as my own, with some weapon at her side that she thinks will kill me, or at least defeat me.
"We have done you no wrong. Cease this immediately!" she cries out, voice strangled at her anger inside her, at me, for attacking her comrades.
"Oh, but you have done something to me. Something absolutely horrible. Do you know what that is?" I hiss at them, getting my magic gathered in one fist so I can slam it into my main adversary.
None of them respond, and my two guardians, still with me, let me know through our bonds that they're looking around the hall, mostly at each other.
"You took my father." I whisper, and move towards the figurehead of the guild, slamming my right fist into her and sending her flying away from me, her body being enveloped in tentacles thanks to my magic, and the blessing from Hermaeus Mora.
"You insolent, little children, couldn't handle when one of your own went off!" I whisper, getting this rage out of my system by hitting as many guild members of this stupid, putrid guild as possible.
Out goes some people, crashing through the supports, and I smile, until I'm hit with something that feels like a train.
"MOOOOOO!"
"What in the name of Sithis?" I mumble, and feel around with my sensory magic, finding a Celestial spirit, Taurus, out in the guild now. How did I not feel the presence of Celestial magic beforehand?
I take out some new magic, instead of the tentacles, because they seem to be avoiding them now, and throw it down, listening to the sweet sound of a typhoon coming into the building.
Most people are swept away, except for several, and one of them chooses to try to drown me in her own body.
"HOW DARE YOU ATTEMPT TO HURT MY GRAY-SAMA!" she shouts out, and the water, where it touches my skin, is boiling hot, burning me.
"Lightning Strikes Before The Thunder!" I cry out (7), and she's paralyzed by the resounding electrical output that stuns her. I smirk as I get out of her hold, and encase her in tentacles, not before punching her into the wall of ice next to us, probably formed to keep me from getting away.
With no more contenders stepping up to fight me, I take out yet another spell, and with the water left over from the typhoon and the rain woman, I freeze it, bringing over more and more from the outside, freezing it as well, and everyone in it.
I pull back my fist one final time, and push the world harder than it pushes back.
Two guardians at my side, I leave the town, the destroyed remnants of the guild the only reminder that I've been there.
That reminds me….. I summon my cloak again, wrapping it around my body securely, and buy a ticket out of this hellhole of a town.
Listener's POV
I smile, looking upon my newest domain, finally conquered like the coward it is, yielding to my dominance.
"Hello, there, my Champion," says a voice behind me, and I turn, drawing in an appreciative look at the figure approaching me.
Ever since the night of... Then, I took to talking to Molag Bal more than ever, even helping him find a way into the mortal realm. If anyone has a claim on my soul besides Sithis, it is most definitely him.
His power crackles in the air beside him, and his eyes glint with amusement. Horns, jet black and proud, sprout from his hair, a red black, sleeked back and neat. A crisp black outfit fits his form admirably, and his fingernails are black, perfectly trimmed and gleaming.
"Hello to you too," I reply, not taking my eyes off him. I might be his champion, but it can be a shaky position.
"I have been thinking about your newfound power…" he trails off, coming close and leaning over the balcony with both hands firmly on it, surveying the landscape.
"And?" I reply, my mouth dry, but I dare not show weakness in front of him.
He grins over at me, and in a second, he moves, trapping my body between him and the railing.
"I do like your dominative streak, but, I think it would look better on me." The Daedric Prince growls out, licking his lips eagerly. He sighs, however, and lets up, knowing that I wouldn't let him, and although that itself wouldn't stop him, he knows about the Mates. It's not something he likes interfering with. It can get... Messy.
"Do continue your work, Champion. I'm looking forward to it."
He disappears slowly, only his eyes lingering, then vanishing completely after a few more moments.
A silent sigh of relief is let out, and I look back at the land, now nearing sunrise. I hiss in pain at the natural light, and dramatically leave the balcony, cloak flaring out behind me.
"Decimus, status report." I call out as I enter the Sanctuary, our most secure location, with six Black Doors and a highly advanced weapons system, powered by lacrima and a rotating roster of eagle-eyed mages.
The man in question looks up, and smiles softly at me. His crows feet wrinkle his eyes, and it warms my heart much more than I thought possible by that sight. He hasn't smiled like that at me in a long time.
"The attacks were successful, one hundred percent. We're now the seat of the government on this isle, and the coups elsewhere have been just as successful, except for High Rock, which had to kill the reigning king, but he has a son who has been injected with the serum. It's working and we have remote control over him as of two hours ago."
I sigh with relief, glad it all went smoothly. I haven't planned something this big since I had to assassinate the last reigning Emperor of Tamriel, three dynasties after the Medes. All of them were quite horrible, and none were very honorable. I did like Titus…. he was so respectful of our positions.
"Wonderful. Thank you for your help, Decimus. Could you distribute the rewards to everyone in the Black Hand, and the bonuses for all those who participated?"
He nods, and his eyes light up again when he catches the eyes of someone behind me. In a second, he's out running to greet the monstrously sized male, and I smile sweetly as I watch the normal man embrace his behemoth of a partner, Fukuro.
I love them together. They're so sweet, it's almost sickening, but in a purely good way. Like you've eaten too much sugar, but not enough to throw up.
"You're okay!" Decimus squeaks out, and immediately blushes while lowering his voice. I chuckle under my breath at their antics, while Fukuro tilts up his lover's head with his massive hand and taps him on the nose with his beak. The two are too adorable.
Nothing halts their little love fest until Noctus and Nightshade come in, and I feel some tension leave my muscles as I see them enter the Sanctuary.
Noctus, however, speaks first, while Nightshade is, like me, caught up in the boys' PDA, thinking it as cute as I do, and I know that Noctus wishes to do so too. (8)
"Listener, may I speak to you? In private?" she asks, standing close to me and whispering so as to not alert Nightshade.
"Of course, Noctus. This way," I speak, and motion towards a small room where we won't be disturbed, at least for a little while.
"What is it you wished to speak to me about?" I question, sitting down on top of a barrel. It's a storeroom, rather small for our usual stockpiles. I have them arranged every place we have, in case of siege.
"Nightshade…. went over my head, and disobeyed your direct order. I couldn't talk her out of it, but she… she went after the Fairy Tail guild. She tricked me into taking the wrong teleportation lacrima, and she took the train to the town to avoid being caught by the safety nets you installed. I am sorry, Listener." she says, regretful.
I nod silently, and stand up. "Thank you for bringing this to my attention. I'm grateful for your loyalty, and, you will be doubly rewarded for bringing this to me. You are a good sister."
She nods once, and walks out, although I see the spring in her step that tells me she's pleased. She's done her duty, and done it well.
I step out of the room, curtly shutting the door, and walking right past the woman in question, grabbing her hood and dragging her away from the ongoing affection battle between Fukuro and Decimus.
Too much.
"What happens when you disobey a superior?"
"You risk incurring the wrath of Sithis." she responded, and I smiled sweetly at her, ruffling her hair affectionately.
"Good."
"I wanted revenge. Is that so much to ask?" Nightshade states, looking at me.
"When you risk your life and the mess with the ones who actually had the assignment, yes, it is!" I sigh, massaging my forehead with one hand.
"You wanted it as much as I did."
"No, Nightshade, I did not. You are supposed to follow your leader."
"Which is you."
"Your superior was Noctus. You disobeyed her order, and mine. I'm sorry, but you have earned the Wrath of Sithis." I say, and her eyes grow wide, panic flaring up.
"Wha-"
I hold up a hand, stemming her flow of protests before they start. "This is the order of things. You are confined to your room for the next week, until His Wrath is upon you and you have either survived, or died."
I left the room, escorting her to her room, letting her inside and then barring the door and locking it doubly.
"Orion, please guard Nightshade's door." I call to him, once I finish locking it and checking to see she is still inside.
The man obeys, a longbow and a magic sniper rifle strung across his back with a pouch for bullets and a quiver. He is a master marksman, and made a name doing public kills from over a mile away until we recruited him.
He is the best shot we have, especially with the guns. No one better.
She'll make it out alive, though. I know she will.
In my office, I find a calming canis root tea, which can only mean one thing. Neloth has something for me.
His newest apprentice, Nanaia, is a bright girl, and is one of the best makers of canis root tea I've ever met, but Neloth always finds fault in her, probably due to the fact that she has a hard time understanding him when he goes off on his rants. She can follow them to a certain extent, but not even I can completely understand them. I get the gist, but she gets a lot more. Magical theory is her thing.
Anyway, she's standing nervously by my desk, uncomfortable with being here when she could be doing research, and I have to suppress a sigh. Neloth's not the best teacher when it comes to interacting with people on a good level, or even a level that's totally correct.
Neloth's in a chair by the fire, with a scowl on his face as he stares into the flames. I let out the sigh, accepting the canis root tea and going to sit by him.
"So, Neloth, what are you thinking about this time?" I question him, blowing on my tea to cool it.
"You. Do you know this is the largest risk you've ever taken?"
I smirk. "Tell me something I don't know."
"There's a magical field directly connected to you that arches over this land and back to the tether." piped up Nanaia, who quickly shut her mouth when Neloth flicked his hand at her in an annoyed fashion. I smiled at the girl, letting her know she could relax.
Neloth had that look on his face that he had when he knew he had to phrase his words carefully. He may be an ancient Telvanni wizard, older than me, but he knows I wouldn't hesitate to kill him beyond a few fractions of a second. (9)
"I am… concerned for your state of mind, Listener. It's not exactly what totally sane people do when they try to conquer every land on a continent, let alone rule them from a shadow government while running numerous operations including thievery, drug trafficking, murder, and a protection racket. You are usually much more careful than this."
I smile a bit as I sip my tea. "Nanaia, would you mind stepping out for a bit? I'd like to talk to Neloth alone."
She startles at that, but complies with a single nod of her head, swiftly exiting the room.
I set down my tea, and then turn to Neloth.
"With all due respect, Neloth, I'm a little desperate. I know what you said is true; I can't and won't deny it, mainly because it is one hundred percent true. This does, however, have a purpose. With one fell swoop, I've brought the people of this world liberation from their governments, and their corrupt forms of living. I'm a hero to the people who had no voice."
"Yes, but now you have almost absolute control over everywhere."
"And power corrupts, doesn't it? Neloth, I've been around for hundreds of thousands of years; I know that. I have seen so many things while you've been locked up in your own little world, going through apprentice after apprentice in a vain attempt to study something else, something new, and make a difference. I know what your spells for the last decade and a half have been trying to do to me; you wish to return me to my innocent state of mind where I knew right and wrong clearly, where everything else was perfectly fine in black and white, but who we knew was wrong seemed right, and who was right seemed wrong. Frankly, Neloth, if I had any more good left in me, I wouldn't have done this."
The Dunmer looks at me, and sighs. "You've gone too long without contact."
I slump back in my chair, staring into the fire. "I'm going insane, Neloth, and this was the only way I could assure both the Black Hand's position in the future, or the fact that he'll come back to me."
"And you doubt the latter?"
I chuckle, gazing at my companion. "Of course I do. Why do you think I destroyed his guild especially? If I didn't, he wouldn't try anything. Now he has a motive. And he'll either die, or be restored to me."
"You act as if he is your possession." Neloth observes, and returns my gaze.
"For all intents and purposes, Neloth, right now, he pretty much is. You'll understand when you find your own Mate. Speaking of which, here." I hand Neloth the chest that we opened together, Bickslow and I, all those years ago. My mood turns nostalgic, but I quickly shake it off. "Do you have anything else you want to talk about?"
"No, that was it." he says, no longer looking at me or the fire, but at the miniaturized chest on his lap, so precious it holds the fate of him and his mate in his hands, literally.
I nod, but don't get up, not moving at all but to breath, just gazing into the warm fire that is burning hot as dragonfire, but I can barely feel it.
I can't feel anything anymore.
(7)- Sound magic is incredibly useful- keywords can start a chain reaction.
(8)- She locked them in a closet once for 3 days, alone, to try and get them together. It worked, eventually, because the two got extremely close, after they almost killed her for doing that, but they did get together. Everyone was really pleased, especially since it decreased the sexual tension in here. It gets rather thick sometimes, being as close as family.
(9)- I've come very close on several occasions. It's dangerous to piss me off- even more so if you have a history of doing so.