Noctisardor Bypass Sveta v ten' 《Light to Shadow》

@Shadow



The russian had taken his time to remain in the threshold of the dark forest, the "Captives Hold" As the Praetor had called it. But it had been weeks. No visitors had come to see him. No talks had been assigned to him. Nothing. And he would not let his life go to waste.
So the autumn pelted man snuck out of the cage. Again, and again.

This time, as he returned, he felt as though some impending trouble was on its way. Regardless, it was the last time he was leaving the hold.
Or was it?

Ya should answer to the pack meeting thread, it is set after this thread.

Six days, Vector had been gone for six days and he thought the Imperator wouldn't notice him? He had been sneaking off so often lately, and though the Russian thought he was not being watched, the Roman had been hiding in the shadows (a useful skill most Angelus Mortis wolves had, some say inherited by Pluto's blood), silently watching and analyzing the captive's behavior. He had been happy at first, noticing he would be a good asset to Noctisardor Bypass but when he began sneaking off....

This time, it was too much and when he returned, the smell of a female was on him, it was time for Shadow to confront the captive. Hadrian strode forward, stance unforgiving and dominant, silver eyes cold and harsh. "Well...what do we have here..an escaped barbarian captive that decided to sneak back in afterwards, hmm?" he said in an icy tone, barbed wires seeming coiling around Vector now.

"I did."

There was no reason to lie. The russian had no pride. No glory. Why hide anything? As his gaze was averted, and his posture that of his rank, the russet spoke with an emotionless tone.

He knew he would get caught. If anything, he had a feeling this was what he wanted. His brain had pre conceived this situation, and now the events were unfolding. He held no fear. Simply completing another mission.

"I did." said the barbarian, his gaze averted. Good, at least he was minding his manners. The silver male did not speak, instead advanced closer to him, reached out and sniffed him, absorbing the scents that clung onto the captive's coat. Blackfoot Forest. The forest that he and Bazi had went to, the first exploring trip he had as a Swiftcurrent Creek member. She had been the first wolf to approach him, a new recruit and she, a Beta. He had been honored at first, then angered, then just simply emotionless. Grateful she had been nice enough to approach him but the gratefulness soon faded off into a simple awkward friendship. At least he hoped it was one. And now, it was a neutral, perhaps hating relationship and he was actually totally find with it. The less wolves he was close to, the better.

”Blackfoot Forest, huh, Vector?” he said softly, withdrawing and standing directly in front of the agouti male. ”Met someone there too, haven't you?" a icy amused laugh slipped from between the Imperator's lips, chilling the air of the captive's hold. Shadow turned swiftly around and leaped upwards, landing gracefully on a smooth stone boulder that was leaning against a gnarled tree. He gazed down at the captive with glittering silver orbs. It wasn't far away from the ground, in fact it was really close to the ground but provided him with an Imperator-like throne in the midst of the darkness. ”Running out to meet a female? A new girlfriend perhaps? Growing soft aren't you, Vec?” he spoke silkily.

The angel of death surveyed the barbarian for another moment before speaking in a commanding tone ”Come forward,”. Shadow leaped off the boulder and advanced silently towards the dark autumn touched male, his pelt seemingly melting within the shadows before glowing with ethereal light then blending in again. ”You are not afraid of pain or death, Vector, are you? And so you shall not receive those because in the end, they are inevitable. So what should you get instead?”

His brain had several mechanical paths being taken for different results. So many did he man have, the plethora growing with each second.
Flee. Fight. Neutral. Die. Riot. Assassinate. Coordinate. Turncoat. Guerilla warfare.
But the russian silenced his thoughts. His brain deserved a rest.

Vector knew the moment he had been caught, Hadrian would scent the female. And he prayed to whatever deity that was in the heavens, and for the sake of his own Alpha, that she remained untouched. He would she no mercy in the fight if need be, no matter what the cost may be.
Even if it was his own life.
The russet kept the sterling wolf in his peripheral as he moved about, like that of a serpent stalking prey. Vector knew he was going to recieve either pain or banishment, yet he did not sway closer to one or the other. This was his path, and whichever road was presented, he would take whichever suited his tastes.

The platinum lupine sent words to him as if they were weapons, slicing and parrying as he went along. Vector took the hits, unbuffeted.
It did not mean he was not aware of the words that were being hidden, the messages clear to touch.
The Alpha had added a 'too' to his sentence, infering that he also had done what Vector had, previously. Slipping up, are we?

One by one, he effectively and efficiently blocked the concentrated slash of the words.

"I have." , he answered to the running and meeting of others.
"She does not have the title of girlfriend. I have no love towards her. "

The recon almost slipped up and said she had meant nothing to him. It was then, he realized that the silver man was right...he was getting soft. Yet that curse was one he had wrought on himself, and by himself, he would deal with it.
At the command to move, the russian did so immediately, his steps accurate and well placed, as the emeralds stayed so close, yet far from the stones of his leader.

Vector desired to scoff at the mention of fear and death. Fear was something for children. Mladentsy. The only fear he had, was to fear. Otherwise, he knew he was untouched by such emotions.

"Pain and death do not scare me. Yet to be on the receiving end, I know of nothing that could substitute for the two."

He wanted to ask 'who was giving him things' but to answer a question with a question brought back memories of comrades who had their throats shredded.
Discipline.

"She does not have the title of girlfriend. I have no love towards her." The Imperator allowed a cold, mischievous smirk to creep up. "But still growing soft aren't you?" he said, once again in a silky tone. To be honest, although he was seething with quiet anger, a small part of him liked the captive. There was something very Roman-like about Vector that gave him the impression he was a Roman in his previous life, it was only that, that kept him from being shredded into pieces the moment he walked back into his territory. "Pain and death do not scare me. Yet to be on the receiving end, I know of nothing that could substitute for the two." he laughed at that, the same chilling humorless laugh. "Yes, no true warrior should be afraid of pain or death but for the substitute part....." gleaming silver eyes studied the captive in the way a scientist might study a specimen.

Truthfully he wasn't going to physically punish Vector, took too much time and energy to do so. The barbarian would get punished, yes, but not now. Shadow wanted to hear the story instead, of what had happened between him and the female he smelled on his pelt. What did they do? He wanted to see if she would try entering his lands to carry him away, though that seemed......extremely abnormal and probably wouldn't even happen anyways. Vector was capable of looking after himself. And anyways, trespassers were found almost immediately by him, and if not, his packmates. They were efficient border patrollers and trespassers were not to be dealt with gently.

”So, Vector, tell me how she caught your attention. How you two first met, what you did in Blackfoot Forest.” he said in a serious tone as he sat down, curling his tail elegantly around his paws as he leaned against a gnarled tree that bordered the hold. Platinum gaze was even and calm as he gazed into Vector's emerald orbs, waiting for the story to start with a faint flicker of amusement present in his own eyes.

Hadrian had caught into the thin sliver of weakness that the russian usually cringed from. Glupo, he was. Very Glupo.

"Yes, no true warrior should be afraid of pain or death but for the substitute part....." 

The Praetor studied him with a maniacal crisp look in his frozen orbs, and the autumn pelted man continued his bout of unwavering motionlessness. Even as the Alpha questioned him on the show wow, he kept his tone uncaring, holding no attachment to the subject. As he spoke, the russian wondered if this web of needless and unnecessary talk was mandatory before every wolf was sentenced to death.
If so, he rather commit suicide, if it was a waste of time. He rather go back to his tasks of exercising keeping his body fit, honing his already perfected fighting skills, his murder tactics.

"I met her before I joined you. She showed me how companionship helps rather than hurts, and I returned her wasted time by bringing her food. "

It was then, the flicker of silverized form lowered its regal form by the base of a tree, one who was twisted by old time and knaves of weather.
The leader had relaxed. Meaning, he desired a lengthened explanation.
Yebat'.

The assassin stood standing, though his gems trained on the trunk of the withered oak.

"I don't know her name. I didn't bother to ask. It didnt intrest me, regardless. But the devushka sat with me, as I awaited your arrival at the pack borders. She too, desired to join, so a conversation struck. Yet, she had something to attend to, so she left, prematurely, and not too long after, you appeared. "

A imperceptible nanosecond passed, as his efficient brain weaved more lies with truths, the story, flawless.

"I left to see her, again. She was near a den I directed her to, and her form was weak. The form of an loner incapable of taking care of herself. And intelligently, I brought a rabbit for her to sate a bit of her hunger on. We gazed at the heavens, ponderering our futures. I got tired of her endless philosophies, so I left her. And returned home."

"I met her before I joined you. She showed me how companionship helps rather than hurts, and I returned her wasted time by bringing her food." and so the story began. He said he didn't know his name, didn't bother to ask, that it didn't interest him but she sat with him that she apparently wanted to join but had something to attend to and left. The Roman dealt with many lies in his life, he rarely ever did, only did it to help his friends but his ears, brain and eyes could always detect it when someone else lied. Vector was an experienced wolf in lying but he still detected it. Truth with lies, genius but cowardly, dishonorable, the role of a wolf that was afraid. If he had told the complete truth without lies, perhaps he would have gained something but no, he insisted on lying about what happened. Okay, maybe it wasn't all lies but certainly some were and he loathed, despised hated liars.

"I left to see her, again. She was near a den I directed her to, and her form was weak. The form of an loner incapable of taking care of herself. And intelligently, I brought a rabbit for her to sate a bit of her hunger on. We gazed at the heavens, pondering our futures. I got tired of her endless philosophies, so I left her. And returned home." a soft chilling laugh slipped from the leader's lips, harsh eyes regarding the captive with a cold amusement. He did not speak, instead thought about what to do with this bastard barbarian. He had valuable skills that the Bypass could use but his lying deceptive personality made it hard for him to trust him. How was he to send Vector on missions when he felt that Vector would backstab him instead, it was impossible. However he did not want to kick such a valuable wolf out and have him return on an assassin mission to kill his wolves, he wouldn't be able to kill this Roman but he feared for his own. Finally he spoke, his expression never changing throughout the whole tale. "Is that it?”

The silver male advanced forward, having rose to his paws. "Well Vec, you see, I don't like liars even if they speak half the truth while doing so. I like the whole truth.” he began, gazing with emotionless eyes at the dark autumn wolf. "But I don't want the truth from you, but if you ever leave this hold again when you're a captive, you'll be hunted down as for your girlfriend.....”

The russian decided to not follow the savage lust of ripping out the stone resembling wolf's throat, though the fiery desire insatiably curled around his mind.
Stick with the plan.
The plan.
Vector only kept his eyes on the face of his leader, their eyes connecting, though the feel of staring was not present, the respect still held, even if it was at gunpoint.

His lies had been caught, and being taught to expect the worst from every situation, preparing for anything, the russet could not muster to ability to be surprised. If anything, he was delighted his alpha had caught his web. Even if his web was one only master spiders could make it out of, alive.

At the mention of a girlfriend, Vector almost scoffed, but the emotion of such was not present. Shadow seemed to have it dead set in his mind that the white lupine was his mate, but Vector knew it was her safety on the line.
He had to keep his promise to her.

"I do not have a girlfriend. And if I did, it would not be her. You may do whatever you wish to her, but that is an ineffective method of punishment to me, sir."

Just going to quickly conclude this :)

"I do not have a girlfriend. And if I did, it would not be her. You may do whatever you wish to her, but that is an ineffective method of punishment to me, sir." The silver Imperator threw his head back and laughed, a humorless, grim one that seemed to draw the shadows closer towards him. Silver eyes glinted with cold amusement and was that icy disappointment? Shadow sincerely doubted the fact that hurting his girlfriend or friend, whatever that female actually was to him, would be an [ineffective method of punishment to Vector.[/i] Because although the Russian thought himself a wolf without emotions, without love, everyone had someone that they would die to either avenge them, or to defend.

Shadow shook his head and rose to his paws, "It does not do well to dwell in your dreams, best to live in reality." he said, turned and made to leave the hold. "Come to the pack meeting I will hold in a few day's time, then we'll see what to do with you." Then as silent as a shadow and as quick as the wind, he vanished into the darkness of the forest.

Good call

Vector silenced the dull throb in head. A headache persisted, but Vector again, quieted it.
This time of mind games was not a mundane on his 'to do' list. But as a respectful member, he listened. Even if it was in spite.

A meeting was underway soon, and without a blink, he bent his head, a light bow, as an acceptance to the command.
The russian barely expected this meeting to not be another waste of his time, even with the slice of respect he had for the roman.

"Da, Praetor."

Vector watched the steel pelted man melt though the inky darkness, amd then he too, dissappeared in the shadows.