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He had returned.
And he had not asked permission to come unto her lands.
@Damien, in the eyes of the law, had betrayed the Dark Brotherhood, the woods and the wolves within upon his unknown departure. There was no excuse. He had left by his own free will with not a single word, no indication that he was taken against his will, and she could not forgive it.
Why would she? They would never forgive her, listen to her appeal, if she would dare play the same game.
They would not even let her approach the borders, yet, the dark prince was as welcome as God on earth despite his unanswered crime. And yet they still idolised them in a way she would never understand. Did they not know they were loyal to a man who had only been born into a legacy, not one that he had achieved for the sweat of his brow? She ruled a pack of morons, blind to the mirage of a man who had achieved nothing without her backbone. Her sweat, her blood, every bruise on her body and every scar embedded unto her coat was a sacrifice she had made of the dark pack. And what did they give her in return? The threat of an impending revolution with little to no facts to support their accusations. Perhaps the only thing the had against her was the idea that she might one day slay the most recent Spiderlings in their sleep, but if she did, it would not be for their satisfaction; Potema's children were born under her rule without her consent, a plot behind her back, an inconvenience in a time where wolves would starve in the coldest, bleak nights. She had ever reason to end them, and as any leader would -- the right. Damien had given that up upon his decision to take an unwarranted vacation and had insulted her rule by returning, a traitor by law, as if he still owned the woods. It was disrespect by the highest degree, perhaps his second mistake after revealing that he lived.
Her mercy was reserved for none, and least of all, Damien. Damien who had undermined her and suppressed her, even in light of all she had accomplished before him. Nemesis would have it no more; no more of slaving away for a group that would never admit to her worth, never thank her for her effort. None had before, and none ever would. Even if it mean leaving the forest that did not deserve her, she would have what she deserved. Throwing back her head, she calls for the man who will sit at the bottom of her ranks until his trial was made and his story clear. But regardless of his excuse, Damien would not see the top of the tier for some time. He had failed to act as a Dark Master should, and because of his rather large misstep, prove himself incapable of levelling up to the standard that was expected from a leader of the Dark Brotherhood. Nemesis had always managed to come out on top, and it was for good reason that she did. Damien just was simply not as good as he pretended to be, and did not deserve the loyalty that he received and seemingly throw away. And she, did not deserve the distaste recieved by a group she had lay down everything for. Throwing back her head, she summoned his presence, and with it, the annoucement of his new and deserved title: disgrace. The Dark Master would hear the traitor's cry, and he would beg at her feet for his crimes.
Her mercy was reserved for none, and least of all to a man who had come onto a position of power by her backbone, who had suppressed and mocked her, and who had fled away from his responsibilities, leaving her to pick up the pieces of a pack that despised every move she made. Did she blame him? Oh yes, she did. And she would rot in her grave before he could grasp the light of power again.
[/td][td valign=center] [/td][/tr][/table]And he had not asked permission to come unto her lands.
@Damien, in the eyes of the law, had betrayed the Dark Brotherhood, the woods and the wolves within upon his unknown departure. There was no excuse. He had left by his own free will with not a single word, no indication that he was taken against his will, and she could not forgive it.
Why would she? They would never forgive her, listen to her appeal, if she would dare play the same game.
They would not even let her approach the borders, yet, the dark prince was as welcome as God on earth despite his unanswered crime. And yet they still idolised them in a way she would never understand. Did they not know they were loyal to a man who had only been born into a legacy, not one that he had achieved for the sweat of his brow? She ruled a pack of morons, blind to the mirage of a man who had achieved nothing without her backbone. Her sweat, her blood, every bruise on her body and every scar embedded unto her coat was a sacrifice she had made of the dark pack. And what did they give her in return? The threat of an impending revolution with little to no facts to support their accusations. Perhaps the only thing the had against her was the idea that she might one day slay the most recent Spiderlings in their sleep, but if she did, it would not be for their satisfaction; Potema's children were born under her rule without her consent, a plot behind her back, an inconvenience in a time where wolves would starve in the coldest, bleak nights. She had ever reason to end them, and as any leader would -- the right. Damien had given that up upon his decision to take an unwarranted vacation and had insulted her rule by returning, a traitor by law, as if he still owned the woods. It was disrespect by the highest degree, perhaps his second mistake after revealing that he lived.
Her mercy was reserved for none, and least of all, Damien. Damien who had undermined her and suppressed her, even in light of all she had accomplished before him. Nemesis would have it no more; no more of slaving away for a group that would never admit to her worth, never thank her for her effort. None had before, and none ever would. Even if it mean leaving the forest that did not deserve her, she would have what she deserved. Throwing back her head, she calls for the man who will sit at the bottom of her ranks until his trial was made and his story clear. But regardless of his excuse, Damien would not see the top of the tier for some time. He had failed to act as a Dark Master should, and because of his rather large misstep, prove himself incapable of levelling up to the standard that was expected from a leader of the Dark Brotherhood. Nemesis had always managed to come out on top, and it was for good reason that she did. Damien just was simply not as good as he pretended to be, and did not deserve the loyalty that he received and seemingly throw away. And she, did not deserve the distaste recieved by a group she had lay down everything for. Throwing back her head, she summoned his presence, and with it, the annoucement of his new and deserved title: disgrace. The Dark Master would hear the traitor's cry, and he would beg at her feet for his crimes.
Her mercy was reserved for none, and least of all to a man who had come onto a position of power by her backbone, who had suppressed and mocked her, and who had fled away from his responsibilities, leaving her to pick up the pieces of a pack that despised every move she made. Did she blame him? Oh yes, she did. And she would rot in her grave before he could grasp the light of power again.
the only way to keep your people loyal is
to make certain they fear you more than they do the enemy
to make certain they fear you more than they do the enemy
shakes uncontrollably
The first days back in Blackfeather Woods had been the most confusing in Damien's life yet. Not Ghian, the stranger of the Quarry anymore, but not the old Damien, heir of shadows either; the dark prince was lost in time and space, and the faces around him were taking too long to make sense again. Potema was the only thing that Damien could completely relate to his past, his anchor to reality and his very reason to even be back. But he'd come to realize that his return meant a lot more than he initially intended.
Slowly, Damien had delved into the dark depths that was his memory, and one by one images of his past displayed like blurry, decontextualized frames, leaving Damien to connect the dots of what was his tightly knotted life in Blackfeather Woods before the incident. Nemesis was one of those blurry images, and Damien had restrained himself from asking Potema too many questions that might rise suspicions. He hadn't decided whether he could trust her, or anyone else in Blackfeather Woods for that matter, and so her call for him in the middle of a cold winter night unsettled the dark prince to the core. He did not reject the meeting, instead walking out of the dark caverns that served as their shelter to meet the ruling mistress. Whatever the reason, there was a feeling deep in Damien's gut that this was to be a darker night than most.
Slowly, Damien had delved into the dark depths that was his memory, and one by one images of his past displayed like blurry, decontextualized frames, leaving Damien to connect the dots of what was his tightly knotted life in Blackfeather Woods before the incident. Nemesis was one of those blurry images, and Damien had restrained himself from asking Potema too many questions that might rise suspicions. He hadn't decided whether he could trust her, or anyone else in Blackfeather Woods for that matter, and so her call for him in the middle of a cold winter night unsettled the dark prince to the core. He did not reject the meeting, instead walking out of the dark caverns that served as their shelter to meet the ruling mistress. Whatever the reason, there was a feeling deep in Damien's gut that this was to be a darker night than most.
![[Image: Q3CYoOl.png]](https://i.imgur.com/Q3CYoOl.png)
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He arrived, as cocky as ever, slauntering before her without a whiff of humility. A snarl crackled through her maw at the insolence. But he did not speak, perhaps a wise choice on his part. Any word in defiance to her summoning would not help his trail of redemption but send him farther back down the rocky road of regret where even he would learn submission. And she did not hesitate any longer to make her point known, her voice serene yet held the weight of a thousand curses in each word. “Per the rules of Blackfeather Woods, your departure is your first offence. You are a branded traitor who should have sought my approval before admitting yourself into this territory. You have no claim to the Blackfeather hierarchy anymore. Your return is unlawful, and so is anyone’s approval of it,” It was by the laws of Blackfeather Woods that all deserters should be severely scrutinized upon their return, however it seemed, all had simply accepted his presence, not bothering to make her aware of his audacity. They had broken their own rules, all for a man who had provided them nothing but betrayal. “Explain to me what you think you’re doing here, and submit,” She rose higher per each word that escaped her lips, for he had not shown her a spec of respect since arriving in her presence. Never before had he shown her his point of weakness, not even in that moment when futility was expected. Nemesis, at that moment in time, was his superior despite what he may believe. His mother's laws made it so, and she had little doubt he would disobey even the most ego-flattening of them all, in light of her coherence to the laws laid down by Meldresi herself.
[/td][td valign=center] [/td][/tr][/table]the only way to keep your people loyal is
to make certain they fear you more than they do the enemy
to make certain they fear you more than they do the enemy
She spoke of betrayal, of desertion, of abandonment. She spoke of the rules that Meldresi herself had brought with her to Blackfeather Woods and laid down as the core of their philosophy, and deemed Damien a traitor. At first, the shadow prince took it calmly, listening to what she had to say and addressing her with the respect he supposed he should show to a colleague. But she had made herself the opposite. She had blatantly stripped him down of his rightful claim to Blaclfeather Woods as though she really had the power to do so, and that was the drop that filled the very small glass that was Damien's tolerance.
"How dare you?" he growled coarsely as his face grimaced into a scowl. He was not about to take the bitch's insolence, for as high up in the ranks as she sat. Nemesis was not the blood of Melonii, and no matter how hard she tried, or how little the dark prince remembered of her, she could never get as close as a mile to the ideals of perfection in which Damien held his mother and often himself. Nemesis was not fit to take the scepter of his mother's empire, and as long as Damien stood and blood pumped through his veins he would protect his mother's legacy with every fiber of his body.
Nemesis' progressing self confidence was met with Damien's own. His eyes of ice, devoid of any form of regret, were anchored to the usurper's own, and his chest inflated and his tail rose high above hers. He was claiming what was his, despite having come to her presence with no intention to do so in order to tend to his nieces and nephews' needs. But she had forced him to do so by showing her true colors. Nemesis was no longer someone he could trust, not around his family, nowhere close to his home, and the next would be the last moments she spent within Blackfeather Woods if she did not submit to him.
"I have nothing to explain to you, and you're out of you mind if you think I will grant you the pleasure of giving me orders," he resolved, taking daring steps closer and making himself larger as he approached. "The only traitor here is you. You dare accuse me of betrayal, to my own kin, to my own family, while you're the one who stands in a stolen rank. Slander, theft, insurrection. Per the rules of Blackfeather Woods you have committed high treason and are not to be shown mercy," he dictated, well acquainted with the rules of the Dark Brotherhood and Blackfeather Woods.
"How dare you?" he growled coarsely as his face grimaced into a scowl. He was not about to take the bitch's insolence, for as high up in the ranks as she sat. Nemesis was not the blood of Melonii, and no matter how hard she tried, or how little the dark prince remembered of her, she could never get as close as a mile to the ideals of perfection in which Damien held his mother and often himself. Nemesis was not fit to take the scepter of his mother's empire, and as long as Damien stood and blood pumped through his veins he would protect his mother's legacy with every fiber of his body.
Nemesis' progressing self confidence was met with Damien's own. His eyes of ice, devoid of any form of regret, were anchored to the usurper's own, and his chest inflated and his tail rose high above hers. He was claiming what was his, despite having come to her presence with no intention to do so in order to tend to his nieces and nephews' needs. But she had forced him to do so by showing her true colors. Nemesis was no longer someone he could trust, not around his family, nowhere close to his home, and the next would be the last moments she spent within Blackfeather Woods if she did not submit to him.
"I have nothing to explain to you, and you're out of you mind if you think I will grant you the pleasure of giving me orders," he resolved, taking daring steps closer and making himself larger as he approached. "The only traitor here is you. You dare accuse me of betrayal, to my own kin, to my own family, while you're the one who stands in a stolen rank. Slander, theft, insurrection. Per the rules of Blackfeather Woods you have committed high treason and are not to be shown mercy," he dictated, well acquainted with the rules of the Dark Brotherhood and Blackfeather Woods.
YOU GET MY 600TH <3
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She shook her head, perhaps out of mock, but for the sake of his own idiocy, she could not convey her compassion for his own misguided beliefs. "But was I the one who disappeared, who left without a trace? Was I the one who did not bother to notify anyone of my departure, nor howl to let the Brotherhood know you had been taken against your will, becoming a traitor by the very definition?" He raises his hackles and she raises her voice, for it is by simple logic that he is in the wrong. No amount of dispays of domincance would change the fact that he had gone, and simply ignoring his indiscretions instead of working to put himself back in the clear was yet another fault in itself; another reason she did not trust him. How could she trust him with her home and the wolves within if he could not think clearly enough to save himself?
Her canines grind together as she seethes quietly, retraining herself enough to not let the full extend of her fury show. “You are the one who left, not me,” Potema had been demoted, and Cicero had proven in less amount of words that his interests did not extend to leadership. The hooded man had seemed to sink even further into the shadows at Damien's abandonment, and she did not trust him as the Dark Master purely for his inability to do anything for anyone in setting aside his own selfish intentions. And so, she had promoted her son, the only one of her council who had proven to be of worth not only to her, but to the Brotherhood. The rest of the collective so-called Brothers and Sisters had failed to step up to the plate, even when it was supposed to be their ife's mission to do so. It was a disgrace not only to what their mother had built, but the very gods the claimed to serve. And yet, they stood upon their pedestals looking at her with eyes full of shame.
“The world does not stop because you go missing, Damien, and I will not abandon my duty to fit your needs,” She finished, ignoring his display of attempted superiority. She would not fight him, there was no need. Nemesis was the Dark Master, she would not oblige the traitor just as she had refused Miraak's foolish challenge. Instead, she spoke without selfishness, for it was not by choice had she fallen upon the task of leading. Had she desired the title as much as Damien believed she did, she would have taken it long ago. Instead, she simply had to wait. Wait and do nothing until the brat forfeited everything himself. Had she lifted a finger to contirubute to his disapperance? No. Should she -- would she -- trust the man in such a vital position again? No, and no leader would; he would not have obliged her the same curteousy and neither would she. He had not earned it, and he had not even bothered to take the nessicary steps to earn his forgiveness.
“You were gone for months, I did not have to steal a thing,”
[/td][td valign=center] [/td][/tr][/table]Her canines grind together as she seethes quietly, retraining herself enough to not let the full extend of her fury show. “You are the one who left, not me,” Potema had been demoted, and Cicero had proven in less amount of words that his interests did not extend to leadership. The hooded man had seemed to sink even further into the shadows at Damien's abandonment, and she did not trust him as the Dark Master purely for his inability to do anything for anyone in setting aside his own selfish intentions. And so, she had promoted her son, the only one of her council who had proven to be of worth not only to her, but to the Brotherhood. The rest of the collective so-called Brothers and Sisters had failed to step up to the plate, even when it was supposed to be their ife's mission to do so. It was a disgrace not only to what their mother had built, but the very gods the claimed to serve. And yet, they stood upon their pedestals looking at her with eyes full of shame.
“The world does not stop because you go missing, Damien, and I will not abandon my duty to fit your needs,” She finished, ignoring his display of attempted superiority. She would not fight him, there was no need. Nemesis was the Dark Master, she would not oblige the traitor just as she had refused Miraak's foolish challenge. Instead, she spoke without selfishness, for it was not by choice had she fallen upon the task of leading. Had she desired the title as much as Damien believed she did, she would have taken it long ago. Instead, she simply had to wait. Wait and do nothing until the brat forfeited everything himself. Had she lifted a finger to contirubute to his disapperance? No. Should she -- would she -- trust the man in such a vital position again? No, and no leader would; he would not have obliged her the same curteousy and neither would she. He had not earned it, and he had not even bothered to take the nessicary steps to earn his forgiveness.
“You were gone for months, I did not have to steal a thing,”
the only way to keep your people loyal is
to make certain they fear you more than they do the enemy
to make certain they fear you more than they do the enemy
Frustration evokes a huff off of Damien's maw as it becomes clear that Nemesis will not respond to Damien's instigation the way he intends her to. He knows he would overpower her in a physical encounter, that it would be easy for him to take his throne back if he gets to literally tackle Nemesis down from her position, but she knows it too. She holds her ground with resolute will, and Damien fails to get the slightest of emotional brinks from her.
Nemesis might have very well been key part of Damien's rise to power. He knew very well that had she been on Burke's side that day Damien's chances at succeeding on overthrowing his step-father would have been slim. But that was not the case anymore. Nemesis had a weak standing on Blackfeather Woods regardless of Damien's absence. He had his siblings, he had his uncle; Damien was even confident that he could count Kove and Nyx --Nemesis' own husband and daughter-- on his side at this point... And what did she have? Atshen? He had barely survived Damien's wrath. The new recruits? That was not enough. Damien had the upper hand now and the rightful claim to Blackfeather Woods. He had even found a way to produce a more reliable future for the Brotherhood through Potema's pups, so why did the pack even need the usurper alive?
I do not ask permission. Especially not to you!he hisses, cutting the distance even shorter with a daring step.
Nemesis might have very well been key part of Damien's rise to power. He knew very well that had she been on Burke's side that day Damien's chances at succeeding on overthrowing his step-father would have been slim. But that was not the case anymore. Nemesis had a weak standing on Blackfeather Woods regardless of Damien's absence. He had his siblings, he had his uncle; Damien was even confident that he could count Kove and Nyx --Nemesis' own husband and daughter-- on his side at this point... And what did she have? Atshen? He had barely survived Damien's wrath. The new recruits? That was not enough. Damien had the upper hand now and the rightful claim to Blackfeather Woods. He had even found a way to produce a more reliable future for the Brotherhood through Potema's pups, so why did the pack even need the usurper alive?
The pack knows it's rightful leader,he claims with a growl, holding back the drive to strip Nemesis down from her eyes.
Dare you insult me like this again and I will unleash the wrath of Sithis upon you myself,he decrees stubbornly. His voice grows deeper and lower as he speaks, hackles raised, his tail held high as standard for his claim. Damien's muscles shake with contained rage and his eyes lock on the traitor's face. Nemesis' next action would dictate her fate. For once Damien was not asking to be reinstated as Dark Master. He was giving Nemesis a chance to do things right and himself some time to figure things out and prepare to take what belonged to him. For now Damien was only demanding the respect he deserved, but should she fail to comply Damien would not hesitate to take action.
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