"Speech." Thought. Words.


The wind whispered the pallid queen?s return through the dank forest of Tortuga, carrying the musty aroma of blood along with her own scent. She had new wounds to lacerate her practically imperfection-free body, but the minor injuries she had received failed to keep her from her current and urgent mission that was now her main priority. Surely she had escaped the premises of the battlefield after admitting her own defeat and without witnessing the outcome of the brawl for Neo?s release from Tortuga, but within her, she already knew what would become of Nnoitra. He was old and his opponent an estimated two years of age, so being at her prime would be a huge advantage for the girl. Thus, it was only assumed that Neo would be forced back into that damned Valhalla pack ? but not without word from Morphine.


She twisted her way through the labyrinth of vegetation, her movements swift and her pawsteps very audible due to her disregard for everything else aside from the current situation. She was beyond livid with the way things turned out, not so much because of her discontent with admitting to her own loss, but with the fact that it had been a double-blow to Tortuga?s esteem and that the traitorous Cyanide would be allowed to keep her life in exchange for her service to Valhalla. The mere thought made Morphine?s upper lip curl in disgust; she did not believe Valhalla was heroic for changing the fate of the traitor, but rather how perfectly deceitful that they had been. They had no use for Cyanide?s talents in the assassination department ? no ? if anything, they only saved her to gain the pack another servant, not for the girl?s well-being. As much as she loathed that factor, she had to hand it to the brutish goliath she had battled for putting on quite the show for Cyanide; perhaps even the Machiavellian herself might have been persuaded with his seemingly heroic actions.


As she reached a clearing in the forest, she paused, allowing her claws to rake the earth beneath her as she went over the course of her future conversation within the safety of her own mind, attempting to decipher just how to win the young male over. He was young, so persuading him with her silver tongue would most definitely be a simple task, but she first needed to deteriorate any respect he still held for his former pack and family. Satisfied with her mental conversation and too intent on it to relieve Viridiana of her duties of watching over the pack, she tilted her skull back, allowing a curt howl to emanate from the ?O? created from her lips in summon to Neo. He would show ? she was certain of it. After all, he seemed so eager to please the pack that he had only just migrated into.

this thread is meant to be set right after the fight for neo & cyanide.

The call came for him as he slept, curled against Luce as always with his head resting on her back. His ear twitched at the noise, snapping him from his dream world. He stepped away from his ivory lover and stretched out his body, careful not to wake her. Truly this was bliss. A life with a woman he loved, in a place that saw only his potential. A place where they had taken nothing and given him everything. Paradise. He kissed his mates forehead gently, caught a quick drink from the cascading waterfall, and then he was off. Off to find the alpha that had summoned him. Hurried legs brought him to the female, he was blissfully unaware of what had transpired, that he no longer belonged to Tortuga, that his family had arrived to once again rip him away from his happiness and drive him to hate them further. "Morphine!" He called happily. "What troubles you?" He asked. To be called by an alpha was truly unexpected, it could go both ways, either good or bad, although considering his track record it had to be good. He had trained night and day to become the greatest warrior Tortuga had ever seen, he had found a mate that cared for him, and come winter would bare him beautiful cubs. No, obviously Morphine had called him there to congratulate him on all of his success, all of his accomplishments, all that he had gained since he joined. Words words words This is speech

"Speech." Thought. 1117.


As her summoning howl subsided, drawing the woman into an eerie silence since her call hushed the crickets that had previously been chirping around her, she began to pace the grassy face of the clearing, her muzzle pointed downward and her steps swift as she mused over what had just occurred approximately half an hour ago. How would the boy take to it when she announced his fate? Surely it would not go well due to the short fuse she had been warned he possessed, but she contemplated over whether or not the young male would be so enraged that he'd lash out at her. If he did, there was no doubt in her mind that she would retaliate in the worst of ways, though she would do her best to refrain from maiming him, as he was no longer a part of Tortuga and was not subject to their brutal torture. If she had happened to dish out major injuries to the boy if he reacted in the way she could only expect him to, then there would be repercussions with Valhalla that Tortuga was not nearly prepared for. Not at that moment in time, anyway.


A halt in her pacing was made as her ears twitched with the sound of nearby pawsteps, and she pivoted to face the direction it had emanated from, neutrality washing over her bloodstained visage that had formerly portrayed bitterness as she awaited Neo's presence. He trotted in at a brusque pace, a blissful bound in his step that the white witch only assumed was there because of the new mate he had acquired. His scent was evidently encased with the strong perfume of Luce, another Tortugan female that Morphine believed to be deceiving the young male whom she had beckoned. How far was the woman willing to go to completely brainwash the young male? Or had she actually fallen for the infatuated whelp?


Whelp was an understatement -- Neo had filled out quite decently since his arrival at Tortuga. He seemed to have obtained some muscle to his otherwise lanky figure; perhaps he was taking himself seriously in his duties and desired to truly aid Tortuga in any way he possibly could. If she had not been shrouded with the new worries that now plagued her mind, she might have commended him on his efforts or even his new wife, but she was far too absorbed in those horrid thoughts to do so. As he called her name out, his vocals cheerful, her tail swept upwards in greeting from its position sticking straight out from her rump and retained the lifted stance as she assumed superiority over the Raekar, her ears swiveling forward as he inquired the reason for his summon. She did not speak immediately, but rather took one last moment to gather her thoughts, building a dramatic suspense in the process.


"I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I figured you'd rather hear from me rather than a secondhand source on what has occurred." Her vocals were laced with a solemnity that her interior lacked, though she figured she was far too convincing with her facade for the male to depict the true emotion that lingered within her. She averted her gaze from the male's, her silver and metallic eyes losing their glitter as she made her way over towards the brute, step by step, her gait lumbering. "There was a call for the higher-tiered of Tortuga to the battlefield about an hour ago: a challenge for a member of ours from the Valhallan king." She paused then, allowing that information to sink into the boy's brain. She had provided him with limited information on purpose; she wanted him to believe that his former king desired to have him back into Valhallas ranks -- to grant him a glimmer of hope that his family truly wanted him back, and then to take it away so abruptly that he lost the iota of respect he still held for them, if any. "Now, I was sure they wanted you; you're family, are you not? If they loved you, they ought to have wanted to fight for your release. But I was shocked when I arrived on the scene to find the king challenging for Cyanide: a complete stranger to him! Hm! It's peculiar...how intent he was on having her when he knew you resided with us as well..." She trailed off, her pupils dragging to meet with the boy's again as she awaited his reaction to the matter. She desired disappointment and rage, but would the male supply her with it?


Regardless of his reaction, she'd continue, now within feet of where Neo stood. "You were brought into the conversation via Nnoitra, who claimed how you thrived in our ranks, how much potential you truly possess, how happy you are to be residing within Tortuga with your new wife. It was after Nnoitra relayed your happiness that another Valhallan piped up, challenging for you. She seemed important somehow, though she was young... Brown face, blue eyes," she described the girl idly, wanting him to be able to recognize the woman she spoke of, hoping the bitch meant something to the boy. "It made me wonder: do they want you to be miserable? I mean, they only wanted you once they heard how satisfied you were with your new life... Who would want their family to be unhappy?" she shook her head in disbelief at this, displaying her discontent with the whole matter for the male. She was doing an adequate job thus far in her own mind, she just hoped the boy was playing her game the way she wanted him to.


"Kaien was outraged with her challenge and immediately stood up to fight for you, but, as I was already battling for Cyanide, Nnoitra did not wish for the both of us to be injured at once. That would leave us vulnerable, you see, to have two alphas hurt at once," she explained for the male in case he would somehow see to object to the partial lie she had conjured. "Nnoitra is old..." she spoke tentatively after a good pause, the tone in her voice dropping to one of sorrow, and she averted her gaze from Neo again. "I'm sorry to inform you this, but the girl has defeated Nnoitra... You are Valhalla's again." She concluded her speech with a sigh, carefully bracing herself, but making certain not to make any abrupt movements to clue the boy to her apprehension. She was not finished with the boy, of course, but she awaited his response, her attention never wavering from his body and facial features.

The smile fell from his face slowly. Horror crept over his features as the words assaulted his ears. "You are Valhalla's again."He drew back, his tail tucked between his legs "No....How could they?" He whined "How could they do this to me?!" He cried, wheeling over to a tree and ripping the bark from the base. "Why do they torture me?!" he howled, digging his claws into the tree and ripping into the wood."I hate them! I hate them all!" he roared. He was in a flurry of rage, lashing out at the trees and rocks around them, but never morphine. No. he had no fight with her, his battle was with Chrysanthe. The damned bitch had always hated him, always wanted him to be miserable. Now she had taken the last bit of joy he had in life, she had killed him. Taken everything he ever loved and cared for. Words words words This is speech

"Speech." ? ? ? Thought. ? ? ? 397.


The counteraction to her speech was met by greedy pupils that thirsted for any trace of disappointment or a flicker of rage but were quenched by the complete and utter horror that warped his developing countenance, giving him a malevolent aura that emanated from the intricately-patterned hide of his and touched the bland and pallid fur upon her, causing the ends to bristle in excitement and triumph. She had managed to deter that single iota of respect he held for his family before it germinated and blossomed back into an undying love and willingness to be close again; she had yanked the metaphorical bud from the very earth it was planted in so that there would be no future chance for it to grow again. Despite the fire that kindled within her chest, spreading its warmth throughout the remainder of her body, the woman?s expression was static and apathetic even as his inner turmoil surfaced in the form of disbelieving vocalizations and then an array of attacks to a nearby tree, equivalent to a child?s temper-tantrum. He did not, however, turn the full fury of his childish wrath upon his queen, who, while watching the entire scene unfold, did everything within her capability to chock back the chortle that had quickly surmounted within her throat. Although amusing his immature fit was, the white witch could not help but feel somewhat appalled that anyone could house such a temper ? especially one that she was about to offer a difficult mission that bade for utmost patience.


?Well, your body belongs to Valhalla, anyway,? she mused aloud, her pupils sweeping over the male whose claws were raking down the face of a tree, mutilating the bark there, as she pivoted away from the brute, her pupils now swinging upwards as she waited for the male?s undivided attention. A statement like she had just made was sure to pique his interest, and she had faith that it would even through his tantrum. Once she was certain she had captivated his attention once more, she continued, her tone still holding a bit of sorrow to them: ?Your mind, your heart, your soul ?? whatever?s left of it, ??Can still belong to Tortuga, see.? She would continue no further and would await his reaction before she allowed her plot to surface. The Grand Reveal would be something marvelous, she would ensure that.

"And it always will" he snarled, head pressed against the tree. "But there's not much that will do for me around those shit stained whelps." snapped. All it would do would frustrate them as they attempted to break him. Attempted to drive him further into ruin than they already had. Words words words This is speech

"Speech." Thought. 302.


?Listen,? she demanded abruptly as her patience grew thin with the younger male, pivoting back in his direction as she snarled her command. Of course, had she been in his place, the white witch would be none too pleased with being enslaved to a pack she wanted nothing more to do with, but she felt as if the male wasn?t fully understanding what she was attempting to hint at. ?You will not belong to Valhalla for much longer, boy.? Her stoic fa?ade was wearing off at this point, the twitching of her upper lip granting the male an insight to her evident frustration with the entire situation. Losing two Tortugans in one night had stirred far too much displeasure up within the queen for her to maintain the serene nature she normally retained, and with the new addition of Neo?s tantrum and obliviousness to the underlying meaning to her words, it was physically impossible. ?We will retrieve you; I can promise you that under my rule. Do realize that it won?t be a challenge like your superiors posed to us, and none must know of it! You keep my promise to yourself and your mate alone.? Her teeth clicked together as her jaws snapped shut, hoping that her abrupt outburst and her promise had fully captivated his attention and had soothed his worries at least minimally. Her vow to the young male had not been a bluff, however, she would only hold true to her claim if he went through with the plans she had developed on the way back to Tortuga?s domain.


?In order for us to be able to do that, I beg your patience. I have a plan, a plan that revolves around you. I need you to adhere to that plan and make no alterations to it. Understood??

really sucky & short; sorry.

He sat with his back turned to his queen, tail thumping against the ground with agitation. "I'm listening." He said quietly. He needed to calm down, he needed to relax, just enough to hear his vital role in Morphine's plan. "They can torture me until my howls reach The Wall, they will never get your plan from my lips." He swore, turning his head to look at the female, the faintest hint of a snarl still playing across his lip. Words words words This is speech