• Closed • The Enemy of My Enemy

Good Ole' work! [Max]

Almund is a thriving township with a dark side. With houses made from the wooden bodies of decommissioned ships, there are many opportunities here, coupled with many dangers.

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The Enemy of My Enemy

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70th of Zi'Da 717

The Trial had been young, with a massive cerulean dome of blue painted with pasty white clouds above their heads. Early, on the brutal cold came along and swept through the Trees, and various buildings throughout Almund. The Zi'da was beautiful despite it being the forewarning of a vile Cylus to come. The several inches of snow nearly covered his knee-high boots, and with his every step the crunch of snow echoed about the streets. They were emptied, and several homes were alight with visible candles in several windows. People who had the desire to remain warm and did not have the intention of being cooled beyond reason remained in the comfort of their homes. Merces on the other hand had never been one of those people. A protagonist is someone who defeats the odds, and goes against the grain rather than behaving in a normal manner like everyone else did. Even in the brutal cold where hands trembled, bodies shook, and the flesh became frost-bitten he had no time to rest. White mist exited his lips with every breath he took, and the wind did not chill him as it normally would. It refused to touch him, and while he questioned the motive behind the lack of contact at first; he truly did not care. The elements were wild, and spontaneous. They did as they pleased just as he would and cared little for the opinion of others; they were forces after-all and not meant to befriend the typical person.

With several hesitant steps he approached one of the several infamous locations in Almund. “Port Diablo” he spoke aloud as he read from his journal the name of such a location. This had been the area that flourished with ships, secrets, and various trades. People from all over Idalos came to visit this location, and he had been another one of the many. Odd individuals like himself who took advantage of the cold, windy and hailing weather walked about. While the remainder of the town had been silent, this place buzzed far more loud than a colony of bees. The feathers of his extravagant looking cloak fluttered, and shook off snow with each of his steps. There were several men and women alike who carried he same sorts of weapons. Cutlasses, dread-locked hair, decorative beads, and the smell of ocean air accompanied those individuals. They obviously lived a life filled with travel, adventure and exploration, but he did not have the desire to approach anyone who so openly displayed their arms. They spoke with heavy accents, and wore thick layered clothing with abrasive boots as to not slide around the deck of a moving ship.

Yet, with his flaming eyes one of them grew intrigued and approached him hesitantly. The Biqaj seemed to have known all too well what sort Merces had been. She was beautiful, with blonde, beaded lengthy hair and an imperfect body type. She had wide hips, a slender stomach, large breasts, a flat backside, thick thighs, and muscular calves. She was a woman who had obviously been battle hardened, tired and bored. The young woman had been clad in nothing more than a top which left her navel exposed to the elements. It had been made of fur and had white sheep hide surrounding the neck, her boots, gloves, and trousers too were made of a various combination of animals. A survivalist, a combatant, and a ferocious woman all at once? She wanted something from him, and did not stop her continuous gaze until he ceased all motion. Merces approached her with caution, and both hands tucked into the pockets of his leather shorts, beneath his feathered cloak.


There he stood, black clad in his simplistic leather armor and he had been the one to initiate their exchange of words. With white steam that exited his lips in between words he spoke. “Hello there, I am Merces. I noticed that you had a rather intrigued look on your face. What is it you desire?” He spoke confidently, clearly, and audibly as several other individuals bypassed the two engaged in conversation.

“I am Velatha, Your eyes are what made me stop and look at you. Not every person walking around Sca'voris have eyes that are entirely too bright. Your eyes are unlike any other pair I have ever seen, and they tell me you are powerful, yeah?” Velatha spoke aloud and did not bother to be anything other than blunt with him. She had been obvious with her choice of words, and required a favor. With a single hand placed about the circumference of her cutlass's hilt; she stood her ground before the sorcerer.

Merces took a moment to think, but he had been given no time. A cutlass rested against the very flesh of his carotid artery long before he had the opportunity to speak. She had been far more than capable of defending herself even against the likes of him. “You're going to do me a little favor yeah? There are a band of fools who leapt aboard my ship! They stole from me, and you're going to go get em'! Otherwise I will behead you, and the remainder of my Crew will be here to pick up the pieces! They were headed towards a place called the... Sweetwine woods. Go find em' and they could not have gone far considerin' this only happened a few bits ago yeah? Go, now!” She voiced aloud, and Merces felt his heart race at her every word. She had not only been stolen from, but she had been equally as deadly with a sword as he had with magic.

“Dead or alive?” Merces spoke aloud as he pushed away the cutlass, and stepped backward.

“Either or, They'll die if you bring them to me, and they'll die if you kill them first.” Valatha spoke as she turned away. She returned to her ship, and Merces ventured off to find the band of individuals who made the unwise choice to steal from a pirate. Who in the right mind would dare tread upon a ship that does not belong to them, let alone steal from a pirate?


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The Enemy of My Enemy

Max had been on a path of bad, bad choices. At least that was the most mild description of her recent deeds. For the second time, her hopes of living a legitimate, good life had gone up in literal flames. Murderer. Liar. Cheater. Thief. These were the titles only she and Mercy knew she garnered. The reality had initially been a tough remedy to swallow, and the Rusalka found that the bold flavor of whiskey and the high of Almund-grown drugs were the best methods to escape it. Like most benders, this one was particularly expensive. The Mixed Blood quickly found herself lacking the funds for its upkeep, and naturally, that was an excuse no dealer wanted to hear.

Rather than lose her neck, Max and her degenerate peers had come up with a less bloody solution: a heist. Just as they'd promised her it was easy. No one even managed to catch her face, of that much she was sure. While the merry gang of bandits set to slinking onto their target ship like rats, Max served as a nonchalant look-out from the streets of Port Diablo. With her hood up and an empty bottle clutched in hand, she looked no different from the rabble she huddled in beside. Sailors trekked back and forth before her eyes. None so much as offered her a glance. And while she lounged, thieves looted the precious cargo that would surely secure her freedom from their debt.

Just a few more bits. Then I'm out.

"Oi, the fuck?" a sailor standing before Max murmured to himself. He pivoted in place and turned his back to the rabble. The Rusalka leaned over to see around his figure, her heart sinking when she spied the flutter of a bandit's scarf briefly appearing above deck of the targeted ship. When it appeared again there was no downplaying it. The sailor tore his sword from his sheath and began to march toward the dock.

Shit! Time's up, boys!

Max rose from her seat with bottle in hand and smashed it over the back of the sailor's head. As he stumbled with immediate disorientation, the girl gave a loud, urgent whistle before she literally planted a boot to the man's ass. His tumble into the icy waters elicited a distraction as heads suddenly turned at the sound of splashing water. The rest of the rabble seemed either too drunk, starved, or high to rouse themselves to action. In any case, the thieves got the message and the mad-dash from the ship commenced. Max was long gone from where they'd last seen her, but there was little worry for separation. Prudent planning had brought the heist to fruition to begin with. Their rendezvous was predetermined. Soon they'd all meet up at a wagon to take them to Sweetwine Woods. That is...unless someone deterred her from ever making it.
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The sorcerer had been given directions; find and kill those who stole from Velatha. They were brave thieves, and had obviously been experienced at stealing. However, that meant they had to be ferocious combatants too. Why did Merces always end up with the difficult tasks rather than the easier ones like helping an old lady? Why did this city still crawl with pirates, thieves, murderers and no good men? Port Diablo filled with ships owned by criminals that had no low profiles, and seemed to be proud o their criminal heritage. Velatha had been no different than the remainder of them; she had combat experience, sailing experience, and had been entirely too intimidating to be a woman. The curious sorcerer stepped off in the direction of the Sweetwine Woods. The criminals certainly could not have gotten too far away in mere bits. However, anything was a possibility and they may have incredibly fast horses, or some odd sort of magic that allowed them swift transportation. What he truly wanted to know was why Max had not reached out to him all trial? Especially when there were jobs to be done, and criminals to be caught?

“What the fuck?” Merces spoke aloud as he continued to dash toward the Sweetwine woods. They had only been a short distance away, and thus several bits passed before he arrived. What he stood over were large tracks from several people. If he had to fight a band of murderers all at once he would have no choice. They were to be killed and or brought back alive so that they could be killed, but the sorcerer was no stranger to death. Why did people have to make unwise choices based on their lower standard of living? Working was a much easier option than stealing, or murder; although taking from the more fortunate was faster. They wanted nel without all of the difficulties of every trial spent committing blood sweat and tears.

Merces was no expert at tracking, but one can make the assumption that large footprints were easy to follow. Tattered cloth, and even drag marks from what could have been a wagon or anything else in between had been left in the soil. The sorcerer took a squatted position, and stared at the tracks for a moment only to look off to the west where they lead. There they were, and they had not gotten far just as Mercy predicted. However, they were ahead of him by several feet and he did not know whether or not he had the appropriate power to stop them. The sorcerer sprang upright and sprinted toward the multitude of adversaries only to manifest a small amount of fire in front of them.

The blue flame danced about violently, and the sound of crackling flame echoed about the vicinity. The fire remained blue despite its sudden spread across the path before them. With a few trills allowed for it to spread, The sorcerer coaxed the flame into a bonfire size, and it continued to spread across their path. The fire continued to become large at an exponential and obviously unusual rate, only to become towering flames the size of a Pyre.

“You fucks will die for what you have done! All of you!” He exclaimed at the top of his lungs as his heavy leather boots struck several leaves and gave away his location. The extravagant feather cloak might be noticed on sight by Max. There were none like it, and his lengthy always damp hair did not waver among the heavy breeze. Wind still refused to touch him, but that had been the least of his and their concerns alike. The sorcerer was going to brutally murder them all for endangering not only his life, but the lives of many had the Pirates gone in search of them instead.


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She was sitting along for the bumpy wagon ride among her new thieving acquaintances. Each had dipped their hands into the proverbial honey pot, laughing while coins slipped between their fingers and their reflections shined back at them from shiny, valuable prizes. Max couldn't give less of a shit about their loot. It wasn't like she was going to see a single Nel of it. Such was the price for her debt, though the cheap quality of her current company should've been enough punishment. At least now that she helped the gang (which was little more than a scrappy group of childhood friends) she'd sleepier knowing they'd likely leave her be.

Maxine was lazily gazing ahead of the horses drawing the cart when flame flickered before her very eyes. Her brow furrowed at its sudden manifestation and blue color, and it wasn't until it rapidly spread before them that the thieves noticed it at all.
"Shite!" their lead hollered as he tugged the reins of his horses to a halt. His fellows murmured their agreement, the rising fire dancing in their curious eyes before panic broke out. None of them needed to be academics to understand there was nothing natural about the barrier. Then came the voice.

Merces?

The rest of the thieves launched out from the cart and drew their swords. Maxine followed suit. She squinted her eyes in attempt to verify the identity of the figure charging toward them. While it was hard to see the fast approaching face, there was no mistaking the feather cloak was Mercy's. The moment she spotted the familiar clothing, a terrible feeling overcame her when it should've been relief. She spun around with wide eyes to the towering fire and then looked to the bandits. For several moments she wasn't there anymore. Instead she was back on that road, watching in horror as the mage indiscriminately burned men alive while she watched. This time she was on the very wrong side. And Merces looked like he intended on making good on the promise he'd shouted at them.

Maxine let her instincts do the work. Without forethought, she swiveled behind the nearest thief to take him hostage with a sword at his throat.
"Mercy!" Max yelled, hoping the mage might recognize her voice before she went down in literal blue flames.
"What the shite!" her hostage cursed her, finding his inclinations to struggle thwarted by the steel edge digging into his throat.
"Oi! No mercy! We figh', ya coward!" another thief obliviously chastised her, sword raised before him.
"It's Max!" she added for good measure. Now the glances were turned toward her, and the thieves began to realize they might've just found themselves surprisingly out-maneuvered. As far as Max was concerned, the thieves never had a chance at surviving this encounter. Not while their hunter was Mercy.


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Rather than continuously charge at the band of theives; his brisk movements slowed to a walk. He did not make a single attempt to be stealthy. Stealth was for cowards who lacked the confidence to combat their adversaries head on. Mercy had always been confident, and often more arrogant than he should have been. There were reasons for such arrogance though; he never fought alone, and the elements always remained alongside him. The sorcerer did not talk to the elements anymore; those were the ways of an amateur defiance mage. He was far more experienced than the vast majority of those delusional men and women. The sorcerer believed firmly that while he was not the best mage in existence; he certainly could be if he continued to progress. These elements were an extension of himself, much like a blade in the hands of a swordsman.

A blade that would cut down all of those who dared to stand in the sorcerers way. These thieves who stole from Velatha were to die. Mercy and his flame would be the executioners, and the process of their annihilation began at a distance. The wagon needed to be secured; as it was what the bandits wanted to protect rather than themselves. Although his relationship with the earth had not been the best one the sorcerer needed it to move. With a deep breath and the use of coaxing; a novice technique to coax an element from where it previously existed, he struck. The earth shook beneath their feet, and shifted in the same moment it began to shake. Finally several trills later the entirety of the wagon sank and the wheels had been buried in earth that transitioned from a soft state to a hard state. These pathetic lifeforms that were worth no more than the dispatched wood of their wagons insulted him.

They leapt from the wagon as if to challenge him, but they had not come prepared as he did. The sorcerer came armed with anger, and the elements; which had been about all he needed. However, the marvelous show of blood and charred bodies ceased for a moment. He heard a familiar voice, and in an instant his anger became outright fury. She took part in nearly killing him, stole the cargo from a pirate, and caused all of the chaos that would soon take place? Mercy would make her suffer the consequences of her actions too. When his life was at risk; he cared little for anyone other than himself as she was not “His girl”. She told him that he did not need to protect her, that she would be fine on her own. All of the events of the past would soon haunt her.

He took several more paces toward the multitude of adversaries without so much as a hint of panic. He refused to display how truly angry he had become. His jaw clenched, his eyes widened and became emotionless an almost overwhelming sense of calm overtook him. The rise and fall of his chest increased as his rate of breathing rose. Something strange seemed to leap from the pillar of flame he brought about a moment ago. A small amount of cerulean flame sprang forth and leapt into the ether which surrounded his person. It seemed to feed from the ether and circle him multiple times; his relationship had become more powerful. The sorcerers kin seemed to have a desire to protect him as he would it. The blaze in his irises did not waver for so much as a split-trill, and the games begun all at once.

The one who drew the blade first and decided to be the loudest of them all would be the first to die. The sorcerer coaxed the flame to leap onto the surface of his leather armor. However it took a somewhat more lengthy process to burn. Merces made an observation as he continued to pace forward in complete and total silence. The leather fused with the flesh of his leg as the flame crept up the remainder of his armor. It seemed to be far more fire retardant in comparison to regular cloth, or cotton or hide. However, the fact that it burned without a quarrel and caused the man to scream at the top of his lungs made no difference.

“I'm going to kill you... and then you.... and.. you too... “ The sorcerer spoke as he pointed at each of the bandits.

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Everything was going to be fine. She and Merces were close in, well, every way two people can be. They worked together. Slept together. Murdered together. Sure, he was in a fiery rage and apparently picked up an affinity for the earth by grounding the wagon, but none of that mattered. She had no doubt he'd reign in his display of terror when he saw and heard her voice, especially when he noticed she'd changed sides the moment he arrived. It would just be another unfortunate, unplanned killing spree they'd be enacting together. Just like old times. At least that's what Max was thinking. She was thinking that even as he set the first thief on fire, alighting vocalized fear in every one of them as they watched the burning man scream.

But no. Her presence didn't bring him any joy or relief like his brought her. Instead it seemed to only amplify his raw anger and blood lust. The way he looked at her made her heart plummet through her feet. Panic took the place of any illusions of salvation. What had she done to merit this response from him? The last time she saw him, she was violently protecting him more so than herself. After all, he was the one that had burned all those men alive they were working with on the job for the Guild through The Kennel. It was his plan to steal the Nels and leave no survivors that she was roped into seeing through. Without her, who would've come up with the convincing lies? Who would've helped him clean up his mess to make sure he was never incriminated? Perhaps she should've ratted him out to Dana and Gibney after all.

It was too late for what ifs and wishes for the power to time travel. Death was here, and it was coming for her in the form of the only other person she cared for other than herself. As much as that notion hurt, it would seem like nothing compared to the fire he'd will to violently consume her. When his finger gestured toward her followed by his threat to kill her last, something within her started to boil. It should've been aimed at the man who had just vowed to brutally end her life. That would've made the most sense. Instead, her gaze turned to the man to her right with a furious gleam.

"Fuck you, Ed!" Max spat before drawing the length of her sword across the throat of her hostage. At the sound of her cursing and the gurgling of his dying friend, Ed glanced her way with a beet-red face. Torn between rushing Merces, running his own sword through Max, and falling to his knees to comfort his friend while he passed, Ed sputtered his a flustered, wordless reaction. In the end he resolved to remain in place with sword raised. A mix of anguish and anger filled her gaze.
"Oh, fuck me?" Ed shouted back.
"Yeah, fuck you! Instead of giving me a few more trials to get my wages from The Kennel like anyone else would, you force me into this bullshit job to help you steal from Port Diablo pirates. Now I'm about to fucking die over a couple sacks of Nel and some shiny silver candlestick holders!"
"Yeah? Well you just killed Todd so fuck you, too, Max!"
"If he wasn't about to burn all of us alive, which is your fault, I'd pull your balls out through your mouth!"
"Well, if you're so sure we're going to lose, why don't you offer yourself up to him to spare you, you slut!"
"Ha! Funny you mention that, I've been hooking up with him all season. Now look at him! You pissed him off so much, not even that's going to help me is it? I'm jealous of him because he gets the satisfaction of killing you, which is what I should've done to avoid this whole thing to start with!"

The last remaining thief stood there blinking, watching as his friend crumpled to the ground in flames as his life extinguished. His sword hung limp at his side. They were dead. They were all going to die. He seemed to be the only rational one that knew that, and rather than spend his last moments arguing with his peers or pleading with Mercy, he fell onto his knees and began to mumble prayers to some of the many gods.

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Such a shame so many of them had to die together, especially when all of them were thieves. They were the worst kind of people, and deserved a painful death. Someone would collect all of their corpses eventually right? They were a band of cowards who refused to so much as raise a blade to strike him with. Why did they not fight him at all and act so intimidated that they could hardly speak. Why did they not so much as attempt to escape his wrath? Finally the man that he set ablaze first went up in flames entirely, and rather than attempt to fight he simply said his final prayer. The immortals cared nothing about humans, and were selfish.

They did nothing to protect him, and yet he remained so faithful as to pray his last words as he transitioned into death? The sorcerer reacted in the least expected manner possible, and unleashed a cacophony of laughter. He approached the man as he was scorched alive prior to his death, and raised his right leg. The scent of his charred flesh began to suffocate him, and his screaming prayers had been answered. The sorcerer slammed the heavy heel of his boot into the young mans forehead. He fell backward, and continued to burn as Mercy took up a position on the left side of his corpse.

“Your fucking gods won't save you.” He spoke aloud and then looked to the man that Maxine entered an outburst and argument with. The topic began with a simple “fuck you” and Mercy watched the chaos unfold. Maxine tore into his ego time and time again he was the one who planned the entirety of the ordeal. This man had been the reason Max had to suffer the consequences of her actions, and brought about all the death. Had Mercy simply not stumbled upon Velatha none of this would have happened. Why did he go in pursuit of thieves that had nothing to do with him, and assist a pirate of all people? These two were a pair of fools together, but when Merces heard the word “slut” exit his lips his anger had been fueled yet again.

“Did you just fucking call my woman a slut?! I will fucking destroy you like the pathetic worm you are. You ugly piece of shit! Your life is forfeit!” He stared at the man who seemed to have a somewhat good quality long-sword on his person. Merces felt the fire embrace him, and approached the man slowly, cautiously, and suddenly sprang an attack. The sorcerer threw a punch toward his tunic and if it did in fact land the man would be set ablaze. This had been the discovery of a new ability; conflagration which could set material ablaze with ease. The man attempted to strike back with the blade only for the “Guardian” to implode into a sheet of flame surrounding the two. What would he do, and how could he avoid both the strike and the flames simultaneously?

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Another dead and abandoned by his deities. All that remained on Merces' warpath was Ed and Max. Two easy, quick, satisfying deaths and his job would be finished. If the sound of their screams as they burned weren't about to be music to his murderous ears, perhaps the silence in the wake of their ends would be. It would be a sweet release for the two victims at this point anyways. They were filled with loathing, both for themselves and for each other. Hatred was all they had left to keep at bay the knee-knocking, intense fear and hopelessness that waited in the wings to receive them. All the time they argued could've been used to beg for their lives or attempt to negotiate for them. Perhaps it was best to die and preserve what dignity remained before they dissolved before Merces on their knees with folded hands.

It seemed that Merces was about to facilitate their demise when something from the screaming match caught his undivided attention. Max stopped her childish bloody sword-waving tirade against Ed to silently watch Merces. Her eyes were wide, jaw a bit agape. One moment he was promising to bring her death and the next he was defending her honor. The whip-lash would've usually been more than she could handle, but since this time it was to stay his blade a few more bits from her, a smiling guffaw broke from her instead. Ed nearly trembled in the wake of Mercy's reaction to his jab. The thief turned with sword in hand to face the mage. His fingers wrapped tighter around the hilt. He swallowed hard, but made an internal vow to make a strong stand.

When Mercy came for him, Ed responded with a battle cry that rose above the sound of crackling blue flame that still laid behind him. For the swordsman, he couldn't have prayed for anything better than for the powerful mage to seemingly make the mistake of trying to punch him. Ed stepped aside with sword raised to counter by lopping off the hand that dared to strike him. Instead, he found himself triggering the "Guardian" he never could've anticipated. An explosion of sorts wrapped the two in flames whose heat Max could feel on her face. She felt a wave of panic strike her again, but this time it wasn't anything like the existential one that plagued her before. As soon as the flames died down again, she rushed forward against her own better judgement.

Ed laid at Merces' feet reeking of charred flesh. He twitched with short, ragged breaths. His blackened fingers still clutched at his sword as though he had a mind to survive when he had so clearly lost. Max strode past him to get a better look at her lover. Miraculously, he appeared mostly unharmed. She shouldn't have, but there was nothing controlling her impulses at that moment. She reached out to touch him, righting his beloved cloak about his shoulders in hopes even that subtle, caring gesture wouldn't set him off immediately. Maxine looked up at him and offered a small smile despite herself. There wasn't the usual playfulness in her demeanor, no devilish spark in her eyes when she met his gaze. Presently, there was just a deep, deep melancholy.

"Here we are again," she said to him, nearly laughing. "Merces and Max...surrounded by a bunch of burned bodies." She ran her hands down the front of his chest, paying attention to the sensation of the feathers on his clothes running against her fingertips. "You're going to kill me now after all, won't you?" The corners of her mouth twitched at him. "After all...you did promise, remember?" Maxine cleared her throat and shook her head as though she could will away her fear and anxiety with the gesture. She reached down to take his hands in hers and led them up to cup her face. "It's okay. Maybe it's better this way that it's you." Max bit her lip, forcing the tears that threatened to well away. Her last moments would not be spent crying or pleading for her life. Her thumbs rubbed at the backs of his hands. She took a deep breath, steadied herself, and gazed upon his face. "It's like that stupid saying. Never one..."

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Merces watched as his final victim remained alive for several trills after the onslaught by sheer power of will. The sorcerer wanted to kill Maxine for what she had done; firstly she involved herself in a heist without him. Secondly, she did not tell him where she went this trial, and failed to communicate with him why she left. Thirdly, she assumed that because she screamed aloud that he would hear her, and spare her. She could have been killed with his initial motion to cut off the bandits path. Why did she pretend as if she had not risked her life yet again? This was how he earned a living, and how he remained alive through the seasons. Why did she attempt to toy with his only source of income?

The foolish thief had the audacity to swing rather than fall and die in a blazing inferno. Humans were disgusting creatures, and always chose the wrong methods. Murder was righteous retribution, and cleansed Idalos of those who no longer deserved to live. Mercy was to be the judge, and condemn women and men alike who were parasites. The sorcerer was an executioner, and answered to the call of justice when the time came. There were two types of people who existed; those who rise when others flee, and those who cower in the face of death. Darkness plagued every individual on Idalos in some fashion or another, but there were the few who rose against it and fought. Mercy was one of the men wise enough to realize that death is a gift.

With every man he killed the sorcerer learned something new about humanity. Some begged and pleaded for their lives, others fought until their last breath. However, there were people like Max who chose to do neither of those things. She accepted her fate, and although his psychopathic tendencies compelled him to slay her where she stood he could not. Max had been far more than any ordinary woman. She stood alongside him in battle, and protected him from certain death at the hands of Dana and Gibney. She was the Sun who lit the path upon which he walked, and He had become the Moon the pierced the veil of darkness.

I should kill you.


Merces battled against the blood-thirst within him, and his jaw clamped together so tightly that his gums bled. “Here we are again” she said in a tone that Merces considered sarcastic. Who could laugh in the face of certain death other than Max? Did she know how much danger she had been in, and just who she dealt with?

But I love you..

The sorcerer thought to himself as she asked whether or not he would slay her too. While he did promise to kill every thief that stole from Velatha; he lacked the strength to take her life. She took his hands within hers, and used them to cup her face. She truly accepted death and rather than attempt to escape she embraced it. Merces was destined to kill her, and if he wanted to set her ablaze he could have.

I'll never hurt you, Max.


Merces snapped out of his berserk state, and with a deep inhalation followed by an exhalation he watched. She fought the multitude of emotions all at once, and forced them away rather than allow tears to run down her face. Although she had murdered before, and killed by his command she was in fact a human. She spoke of some “Stupid” saying that had been more meaningful than she may of realized.


I'll never part from your side.


The pair of firm, warm hands that once cupped her face moved about to stroke her hair. The sorcerer stepped closer to her, and wrapped his arms around her shoulders. He did not want to harm her, she did not deserve to die. Unlike the other thieves she had not committed any true crime to his knowledge, not even in the past. Merces embraced her as if to confess his love for Max, but never once did the words exit his lips. As her head came to rest upon his chest, The sorcerers visage closed in on her ear, and he whispered a few short words.

“Without the other.”

The mission had ultimately been a success, and Merces told Velatha that Max assisted him in the recovery of the cargo.

Boxcode Credit: Poppy
word count: 740
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Muse
Prophet of Old
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Contribution

The Enemy of My Enemy

Your review is ready!
So, this is the first Merces/Max thread I've actually reviewed! How exciting to read through the whole tale, and what an explosive relationship y'all have (pun intended). I'd say poor, unfortunate thieves, and yet I'm not sure there was any good vs evil in this battle. It just was what it was! Nicely written conflict and it was interesting to crawl into both of your headspaces here.

Max

Points

XP:
15 | These points cannot be used for magic.

Fame:
-3 Aiding thieves, -10 Lots of murder, -2 RIP Todd and Ed

Loot

N/A

Injuries + Overstepping

N/A

Knowledge

Skill Knowledge:
Blades: Slitting a Throat
Deception: Switching Sides
Deception: Manipulating Real Emotions to Escape Wrath
Intimidation: Taking a Hostage with a Blade
Stealth: Hiding in Plain Sight
Stealth: Creating a Distraction to Make a Getaway
Unarmed Combat: The Element of Surprise
Unarmed Combat: Easiest When Attacking from Behind
Unarmed Combat: Sending an Enemy Down with a Foot

Other Knowledge:
Merces: Intended to Kill You
Merces: Controls Earth, Wind, and Fire
Merces

Points

XP:
15 | These points can be used for magic.

Fame:
-10 Lots of murder, -7 Consorting with Pirates, +2 Sparing Max ;)

Loot

N/A

Injuries + Overstepping

Knowledge

Skill Knowledge:
Defiance: Guardian
Defiance: Conflagration
Defiance: Coaxing a Bonfire into a Pyre
Defiance: Guardians are Protective
Defiance: Wind No Longer Touches Me
Intimidation: Wielding the Elements to Strike Fear in the Enemy
Unarmed Combat: Leading with a Punch
Unarmed Combat: Kick Them When They're Down

Other Knowledge:
Max: Consorted with Thieves
Max: I Hate You, I Love You
If you've got a question or concern or if I've missed anything, don't hesitate to PM me!

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