Rated: Fiction M - English - Romance/Adventure - Chapters: 208 - Words: 492,526 - Favs: 1 - Follows: 3 - Updated: Mar 30 - Published: Jan 8 - id: 14315791
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Love's Labors, Part 17
For several long seconds, the two of you silently face each other down. Despite how well the vampire holds her icy, alluring composure, you can see the fear lurking in her eyes. Fear that you could destroy what she cares about, in a way that goes far beyond the merely physical.
Eventually she speaks, her voice heavy and bitter. "So then, demon. What must I do for you? What is your price, to keep Moghi from learning the fate of the Queen who she truly loves?"
You can hear the pain she feels in having to admit it out loud. Like the Vampire Queen is pounding a stake through her own heart with each word. You can hear the pain... and the guilt.
"Moghi can't know..." she continues, her voice dropping to barely above a whisper. "She would destroy herself if she found out. Trying to fight against Melca. Trying to save the real queen, even without any chance of success. She would be so furious. Furious enough to try to storm the very gates of the Divine Realm by herself, if she knew. But... I can't let her experience that pain. I can't let her throw herself away for nothing. She's... all I have left."
Her shoulders slump, just slightly. And though the motion is small, you can't remember ever seeing anyone look so empty, so hollow before.
She wants to shield her loyal servant from realizing the true horror of what happened to the original queen. The queen who Moghi thinks she's still serving. But the cost is that this queen had to play her role. Knowing all the while that the adoration Moghi shows her is based on a lie. A lie that she hides every day, knowing how betrayed the other vampire would feel, should her deception come to light.
The impostor queen keeps up the unlife that she's discovered—too late—is an act. Even while sharing the same memories, the same feelings as the original woman.
You consider your options. The ideal reply would be to inform the queen of your true aims. But you can't risk being so explicit when Melca might be watching. Instead, you walk forward and place a comforting hand on the vampire's shoulder, injecting sympathy into your voice.
"Don't worry," you say. "I have no desire to hurt Moghi. In fact... I understand how she feels. The reason I came down here in the first place was because my mistress is in same position you remember being in. If I can't find some way to save her from these heroines... If I can't find some way to convince that bitch Melca not to remove her immortality..." You look away, letting your voice trail off into strained silence.
Out of the corner of your eye, you can tell that the queen is looking at you with surprise, like she's reevaluating her impression of you a bit. You continue to play into the similarities between your situation and Moghi's, knowing it's an emotional weak point for her. "I'm sorry I made that threat. But... I just... needed to make sure that you wouldn't harm any of us. If I fail here... If Melca takes Lily, like she's taken so many others..." You exhale. "There's nothing I wouldn't do to keep that from happening again."
The Vampire Queen considers this in silence. You've crafted your words to strike directly at the core of her deepest regrets. And you can sense that they're having a strong effect. After what seems like forever, she speaks again... and it's astonishing how little regal pretension is left.
"Melca won't be satisfied with anything your 'Lily' does for her, you know," the queen says in a small, sad voice. "Not truly. You may be able to placate her for a while. But it'll never be enough. She'll always demand more from her. More war. More victories. More slaughter. Even when it makes no sense. Even when your armies are already too far extended."
The vampire wraps her arms around herself, a shiver running through her at memories not truly her own. "I think... some perverse part of her wants to see her Witch Queens despair and fail. I think she can't stand to see anyone escape torment, not even on her own side. Just so long as they succeed enough that her playground isn't jeopardized. Just so long as they succeed enough that Kovora itself isn't ever in danger."
Her words reinforce your own suspicions that the imminent threat to Kovora—along with the lack of a new heir—is why Lily has gotten away with as much defiance as she has. But the queen's words are also a sobering reminder of Melca's psychotic sadism. A reminder that you can't know for sure exactly how much leeway you have, before the goddess' mercurial instability overwhelms even her concern for her own base of power.
You step closer as the Vampire Queen stands there in that vulnerable state, your hand sliding up from her shoulder to caress her cheek. Her eyes widen... but you do not use your aphrodisiac, not just yet. And she realizes this.
Instead you look straight at her once again, putting all your inhuman charisma into absolute, mesmerizing confidence. "Can you trust me?" you say, looking deep into those crimson eyes. "Can you trust me that I won't let it end that way? That I will make it work? For everyone?"
That's as close as you dare get to your true plan while not on holy ground. The Vampire Queen doesn't know how to respond. She doesn't even know how much to truly expect from you. There are probably any number of ways this could go wrong for her and Moghi. But then again... she also knows the blackmail you could be holding over her head, if you did want to force the issue.
And... however unlikely... however improbable... there is also the hope that you're holding out in front of the ruler of this hollow, lifeless imitation of a kingdom. The hope that something might change for the better.
Not that hope is an entirely uncomplicated emotion for her, though. In fact, if anything, you can see even more fear lurking in her eyes now than before. "I..." she begins, uncertainty in her voice. "This proposal, I suppose it... could have some merit."
Then she takes a deep, shaky breath. "But before I make my decision, I will ask again what I asked at the start. And this time I must have a straight answer. What exactly do you desire from us?"
It's a good question. How closely do you desire to bind this potential new ally? What is your ultimate goal, now that the sympathy you've shown her has eased tensions, at least a little bit?
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