Gray
*
"It has been done sir." Kane informed him, taking a knee before him.
"Did she come willingly?" Gray questioned, gaze sharp as he watched his toy bowing at his feet, a faint smile quirking at the edge of his mouth.
Kane shook his head, a deep sadness in his eyes that almost made him want to pity the young man.
"I take it you used your latest invention?"
Kane glanced up at him, surprised by his interest, nodding.
"How did it work?" Gray questioned, indeed interested in his toy's weapon.
The invention of the narcotic grenade had been a major upgrade to his arsenal and Gray had personally seen to it that its creator, Kane had a position in his court as weapons master.
This had been his first mission beyond the wall. A failure in Gray's eyes but that was to be expected for such a new recruit.
"Well sir, it took effect faster than I hoped and the effects lasted longer than expected." Kane replied, watching Gray, a faint frown on his face.
"You have a week to win her over," Gray said, pleased with Kane's response, "if you can not manage in that time, I will have to take custody of her."
"Of course, Supreme Leader." Kane said, bowing and leaving the room.
This should be interesting.
Gray tapped his nails against the armrest of his throne, thoughts zipping around his head as he regarded the closed door.
She sure has been a headache.
Gray sighed, leaning back in his throne, rubbing a hand down his exhausted face. He truly hoped this alliance would work, the security of his empire depended on it after all.
Barking out a summons, Gray scowled at the servant who bowed before him.
"Keep an eye on Kane." He ordered, waving the stammering servant away once he was done with him.
This must be done, he knows that.
Yet... doubt clouded Gray's mind.
Could Kane be trusted to do what must be done?
Gray remembered how close they had been before her banishment.
He hoped that placing her in his care wouldn't be a dire mistake.
Only time will tell.
Raven
*
The world was fuzzy when she awoke, like her mind was coated in cotton.
Raven blinked at the fuzzy figure sitting beside her resting place.
Kane?
A spark tried to force its way through the muddled haze of her drug induced stupor. The spark of anger faded away not long after appearing and Raven settled back against the comfort of the bed she lay on.
Where am I?
"Good morning." Kane said, watching her with a sharp eye, examining her condition to see if the drugs had mellowed her out long enough to have a civil conversation without her trying to kill him, as she undoubtedly would had she not been drugged in the first place.
"Morning..." Raven replied, blinking at the young man beside her, trying to shake the fuzzy feeling in her head. "why do I feel...weird?"
Kane winced.
That was quick.
"We gave you a dose of poison wyvern toxin," Kane explained, "it'll wear off in a few hours."
Wyvern... toxin?
Raven gritted her teeth, that little spark once again rising only to be quashed by the toxin.
"Why?" She asked, her voice weaker than she would have liked.
"You were very... unpredictable when we first found you," Kane said, gaze cool as he spoke, "we figured you could use some time to disconnect from your aggression."
Ah... its coming back to me.
Raven shook her head, fighting to hold on to the little angry spark that prodded at her mind. It slipped her grasp.
"Raven?"
"What?!" She snapped, squeezing her eyes shut against the world, heart pounding as she fought the toxin.
"I'm sorry you're here." Kane said, voice quiet.
The spark slid away.
"Why?" She asked, a faint wisp of anger entering her voice.
Kane narrowed his eyes, wariness setting him on edge as he watched the girl before him struggle against the poison in her system.
She's stronger than I thought.
"The Supreme leader wishes to speak with you by week's end," He said, "I suggest you figure out where your loyalty lies by then."
Raven watched as the young man who she now viewed as her enemy stood, casting her one last wary glance before leaving.
The door to her room had been left open a crack. Clearly beaconing her into the warmth of the desert canyon she knew her old tribe inhabited.
Sighing, knowing she had no choice but to leave her room since there was no point in sitting there with only her thoughts for company, Raven threw back the wolf pelts covering her and pushed the door open further, peering out into the outside.
What she saw was surprising. She wasn't in a one room hut as she had expected, but in a sprawling complex of twisted halls and endless rooms. Setting off into the depths of the complex, Raven realized that the sheer size of it had to be bigger than the width of the canyon she had lived in for nearly a year before her banishment.
It took some navigating, but she found a balcony on the second floor of the complex that overlooked an actual city. Raven had never seen a city in Scorched Earth, would have never thought it possible, but here it was, laid out before her.
"Amazing, isn't it," Kane said from behind her, "the Supreme leader united the land, building this city for his people."
Raven had no words.
Kane walked up beside her, reaching out to touch her hand which rested on the rail of the balcony. Even in her drug induced state Raven recoiled, reluctantly accepting it when he settled for standing by her side.
"Would you be interested in a tour of the complex?" Kane questioned.
As much as she wanted to refuse, Raven knew it would be wise to get a sense of her surroundings, maybe find a way out if she could.
"Sure." She said, tone clipped.
Kane took her acceptance as a good sign, pushing back from the railing and gesturing for his old friend to follow him.
Teeth bared in a feral smile, Raven trailed after him, moving to walk by his side.
"I'll show you the rooms on the floor that you'll be staying," Kane said, "I can show you the rest of the complex tomorrow."
Why not show me all of it...?
Raven knew why.
The supreme leader didn't want her knowing how to get out of the complex, never mind the city itself. Speaking of...
"Kane?"
"Hm?"
"Is Mae still supreme leader?"
Kane stopped, face impassive.
"Kane?"
"Gray is supreme leader." Kane said.
Raven stared at him, almost forgetting to breath.
"Gray?!" She demanded, "how did he get elected."
Kane gritted his teeth.
"That's something you can discuss with him come the end of the week." He said, tone short.
Raven snorted in derision, almost amused by her old friend's words.
But really?! Gray?
"I won't go near that snake if I can help it." Raven said, taking the lead when Kane still refused to move.
"You don't have much say in the matter," Kane responded, narrowing his eyes at the young woman before him.
"What? You think I can't escape this prison?" Raven teased, eyes glinting.
Her amused smile faded when her old friend didn't return her jest.
"Things have changed Raven," He said, moving to stand by her side, reaching for her hand.
The reality of the situation returned to her and Raven edged away from her old friend, distancing herself from the uncertainty that came with being close to him.
Things were indeed different, including the aura that surrounded her old friend. A darker, more confident aura that had the hair on her arms raising.
An aura of danger.
Kane saw it, felt it the moment he lost his hold on whatever past they had shared.
"Raven?"
No!
"Don't touch me," She said, "not after..."
Kane clenched his fist, lowering his hand, gripping at the threads of their torn relationship.
"I want to believe... I want..." Raven struggled for the words to express the emotions within. "I want to know if the man I knew is still in there... because the man I was captured by wasn't you..."
Kane sensed the tense atmosphere, the weight of his friends words, knew the answer was important to her.
More reason not to say anything...
"Come," He said instead, moving on down the hall, "we only have a little farther."
A great weight crushed down on her chest.
Breathing became difficult... much too hard.
"No..." She said, shaking her head, "I'm not going anywhere with you."
Kane stopped ahead of her, gazing ahead, refusing to look back at her.
"Unless you want me to put you back under, you will walk with me back to your room." He said.
Raven could see the tension in Kane's shoulders, the anger and frustration.
What she didn't see was pain or regret. The two things that meant Kane was still the same person who she had once been so close to.
Taking a small step backwards, Raven narrowed her eyes at him.
"You're dead to me." She said, edging away further down the hall.
Kane said nothing in response, standing in the hall, gazing at the sandstone ahead of him.
"If you follow me I will kill you."
Turning her back, Raven walked away down the hall, leaving Kane standing stoically in the hall behind her.