Men who play games of war and soldiers born from circumstance...
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Pupiless mismatched eyes quickly find the unconscious man and Bal’thial pauses for only a moment at the sight of his Queen’s Harbinger submerged halfway beneath the steaming watery pool before he continues on and moves directly behind him. So she had taken from him while he slept it seems... he’s finding the thought more distasteful than anything he’s seen his Mistress do before. Squatting down, white braids spill over his shoulders as he slips his hands below the water’s edge, careful of leathery wings as he hooks his arms beneath Kso’ppghiel’s before he pulls back to lift him free. Heated liquid streams from the other man’s naked form to soak him as he props the blonde up with one arm before slipping his other down towards a built thigh. With the slightest bending of his knees, the tall Captain hoists the other up and slides his wet form over his shoulder before turning to carry him back into the room, the water trailing behind them in a steadily dripping stream. Io’fayl stands as he returns with the completed mask in hand as she’s moving to meet them halfway. “Stand him.” The Captain complies, easing her Harbinger down before lifting him under his arms to hold him upright, his wings propped between them to either side. She moves in close, her free hand trailing down the unconscious man’s form before bringing it back up to his jaw to lift his face to hers. Words that break her spell soon stream from full lips. Kso’ppghiel gasps as he takes his first conscious breath in days, the pain wracking through his healing body hitting him immediately. He struggles in the grip that holds him but Bal’thial keeps his arms back, preventing him from much in the way of movement. The confusion on his face is obvious, followed by anger when he realizes where he is. “Kincaid…” Io’fayl’s voice causes pupiless white eyes to snap forward as the bane of his existence steps back. “You need to seal your wings, or you will hurt yourself further when the mask is replaced.” The Harbinger simply growls in response before renewing his attempts to pull himself away from the one that holds him, finding it useless as the white haired Captain’s grip remains tight. Kso’ppghiel’s gaze shoots back to meet mismatched eyes while he continues to struggle uselessly, the anger burning inside met only with a neutral distance. “It would be wise to listen to your Queen.” He says quietly. Before Kso’ppghiel can argue further, the mask is shoved over his face and the enchantment placed. The effects of the additional charms are immediate. White eyes glaze over and the blonde’s head swims as if he is drunk. His entire body feels heavy, almost too heavy to move. The grip behind him goes slack and he falls forward almost instantly, caught again before he actually reaches the floor. “Do you understand now?” Io’fayl’s voice rings throughout his head, yet he can barely focus. “You will hurt yourself if they are left out. It would be a shame if you injured them beyond repair. Will you seal them if I allow it?” Kso’ppghiel curses silently beneath the mask. He hates this woman with every ounce of his being but he has no choice if he ever plans to escape. If he cannot fly, he will never be able to make it out the front door. A slow, forced nod leaves him, angry that he has to do anything she says. A pleased and triumphant smile crosses Io’fayl’s lips and she speaks the words that release the mask. Clarity immediately rushes into the blonde’s consciousness. He wants to fight and run away but he’s still too dizzy from the new effects of the mask coupled with the head injuries he’s still healing from. A very quiet, tired stream of words leaves his lips, the spell hiding his wings behind a magical seal. The effort takes too much from him and before he realizing it, the mask is coming back at his face to lock him away once more. He attempts to pull back, but he’s not fast enough and his world soon fogs over. The smile on full lips widens. “I think perhaps I would like to see what you are capable of teaching this one.” Rust colored eyes move from her fallen Harbinger to her Captain. “He is property, a dog, never let him forget. You may discipline him so long as the injuries are not permanent. Take him down to Gran’hein, have him fitted with a collar, chain him to you but return him to me at night.” She steps forward, her fingers running under Bal’thial’s jaw line to bring his face forward. “I wish to see improvement in his obedience daily.” “And you will have it.” The tall Captain says simply, the wicked smile gracing Io’fayl’s lips only widening when to their sides, glazed pupiless white eyes manage to slide up and fill with defiant disgust. Slipping her fingers away, she turns and dismisses Bal’thial with a quick flick of her wrist, moving her naked form back towards her bed and seating herself right after. Fire filled rusted eyes practically light up as she watches her Captain turn and wrench the other man up before pushing him forward towards the closed wooden doors. As the doors open, Kso’ppghiel spills out into the hallway to land on the hard marble face first and the moment he hits, he refuses to get back up. It’s bad enough he’s got the mask on, he’s still healing and that apparently he’s someone’s dog now but to add insult to injury, he’s wet and has no clothing on. If the Captain wants him to move, he’s not going to make it easy. The doors are closed behind and instead of the rough hands he expects, grabbing and pushing him along, all he feels is soft linen as it’s draped over his form. The blonde man pulls his face from the floor to look back, finding Bal’thial standing above him without his tunic and a very impatient look painted on his face. Clawed fingers fumble their way through the sleeves and the relief in Kso’ppghiel’s face is visible despite himself as he covers his naked form. “Get up.” Bal’thial demands flatly just as the Harbinger finally manages to get heavy arms completely through the sleeves of his wet garment and he finds it almost difficult to stand in place while the one below him struggles with the simplest of things. He’d taken a gamble to play off the one thing he knew would feed his Queen’s obvious obsessions towards breaking Kso’ppghiel down further and it had paid off, earning him some time he hadn’t had before. And now that he has it, he plans to use very wisely. “I have carried you enough today.” White eyes narrow and slide up to meet the Captain’s gaze as the stationed guard around them does their best not to gawk at the unrelenting pair before the softest flicker of a smirk forms on full lips, his next words spoken very low. “Either get up and come with me now, or return to our Mistress in there.” “I hate you… all of you.” Kso’ppghiel forces the words out as even the movement of his lips takes a considerable effort. He may hate the man, but at least this one was sane, unlike the woman in the room behind them. The blonde crawls over to the nearest wall, using it as leverage to help himself stand. It’s as if his whole world were under water, every movement like fighting a current that beckoning for him to simply give up and lay there to let it take him where it may. Clawed fingers grab him by the upper arm just as he makes it to his feet, forcing him forward and to the staircase as his stumbles are completely ignored. Flight after flight of winding marble stairs pass by as the white haired Captain forces Kso’ppghiel down towards the weaponry far below, every movement the blonde makes and each step taken difficult beneath the weight of the enchantments that hold him down. Time and time again he stumbles, only to have the grip on his arm constant and his entire body’s weight supported by the silent man at his side. Just as bare and leather clothed feet alike touch the third floor landing, the strain of movement causes the Harbinger’s legs give out from beneath him. He slips quickly from Bal’thial’s hold and goes crashing towards the floor but before he completes the fall the other man is there to catch him. The sounds of metal adornments and charms alike ring throughout the empty hallway and soon as glazed white eyes slide up to meet blue and green, the Captain’s voice a near whisper in the increasingly heavy air. “She would not have gone to these measures if you had listened to me and controlled yourself in her presence…” “Perhaps she should not have taken something that did not belong to her in the first place…” The blonde practically spits the words out and wrenches himself out of Bal’thial’s grip. If he is going to walk, he will do it on his own. Even in this state he will not rely on anyone, especially this man. Kso’ppghiel leans on the wall as he moves the rest of the way down, followed closely behind by the Captain until they reach the forges below. Bal’thial regains his grip on the other’s arm once more despite protest and weaves him through the various fires and workstations, his bare feet and the bottom of the Captain’s tunic becoming dirty with soot and ash. Gran’hein raises an eyebrow at the two men as they come through his door. He doesn’t need to be told who the one the tall Captain escorts is, he can tell just from his features alone -even those obscured through the mask. He finds it a damn shame she had to cage him like that. Caramel colored eyes shift towards what he recognizes as new charms dangling from the metal and he frowns while raising a thick hand to point at them. “That’s a bit much… poor thing’s going to be the walking dead.” His gaze travels to glazed, white eyes. “As he already is…” “Unfortunately this-” Bal’thial nods to the man he’s propping up and the mask that locks a good portion of his face away. “-is only the beginning. She wants him collared, preferably one he will not be able to break.” The larger man scoffs. “I don’t think a Ranga in that mask could break a twig.” He looks over the one in front of him with a trace of sympathy. “I’ll do what she asks, but I refuse to add any more magic to what he’s got on…” Gran’hein thinks for a minute. “Actually, I may be able to nullify some of the effects of the enchantments. ‘least make him able to stand upright.” He looks around at the rest of the forge behind them. “You think if you take that off him, he’ll behave for a few minutes while I work on it?” “He will behave.” Mismatched eyes narrow and slide to his side to meet a glazed white gaze filled with hate. “In one way or another.” Tightening his grip around Kso’ppghiel’s arm, clawed fingers slip up towards the chains that secure the mask to pointed ears before he drags his hand behind them to take hold. The white haired man slides his face in close a moment later to whisper the spell that will allow him to unhook the latch, the closeness of him causing the Harbinger to flinch even as he’s sliding the mask free. Kso’ppghiel gasps slightly as the magical weight is lifted, the stifling air from the forges not much better than the suffocating breaths he’d taken behind the mask. Clarity returns to him in one huge rush that almost sends him buckling to the ground despite Bal’thial’s hold, the room spinning all around. The Captain moves to close the door to the workshop and Gran’hein simply sits with his arms crossed, staring at the blonde in contemplative silence. Either man could easily take him down and he knows it. Kso’ppghiel slumps to the dirty ground, finding himself far too tired to fight. Caramel colored eyes stay locked on the defeated figure and he finally gets up from his table, moving towards a stack of raw metal and grabbing a piece to toss into the smoldering forge. “Frightening how similar they look.” Pliers work the metal under the coal as tired white eyes shift up to meet his, confusion dancing within. “I can see why she’s obsessed, now.” Mismatched eyes slide back to rest on the broad man as the Harbinger’s confused gaze remains trained on him while he works and he shakes his head in the slightest. “Our Queen’s obsessions are based in many things as far as her new Harbinger is concerned.” A smirk forms on Gran’hein’s lips and he turns his head to meet Bal’thial’s serious gaze. “It would be best Mastersmith, to keep talk to a minimum while you work and leave certain things unsaid.” “The boy will have to know someday, it isn’t fair to him, but I also know what that information might do and I’d prefer he stay conscious instead of bogged down with enchantments or dead.” Gran’hein smiles as he pulls the molten metal out of the fire and begins pounding. “I’ll keep my mouth shut… for now.” His attention turns to Kso’ppghiel. “I understand your plight, Io’fayl’s not the best keeper to her Harbingers now, but there’s a lot you can learn here.” He flicks his head towards Bal’thial. “Especially from that one. I’d listen to him, he’s knows Io’fayl almost as well as I do and he can keep you out of some bad situations.” “She is insane…” The blonde grumbles in annoyance. He’s essentially being told to behave by everyone he meets, as if he were a child. “That she is…” Gran’hein smirks. “That she is… but she’s not stupid, boy, and she’s not someone you want as an enemy. Play her game, and she’ll give you what you want as long as she thinks she’s in control.” The metal on the anvil begins to take shape, the large man weaving some of his own enchantments in to cancel out the mask’s own. “As I had said.” The white haired Captain smirks as he crosses his arms beneath his chest and leans back against the closed worn door behind. “You will be able to gain some freedoms back, including the use of those swords so long as you control yourself in her presence. It is a relatively easy game to play once you learn what can and cannot be said or done.” A snow colored eyebrow arches as pupiless white turn to meet mismatched eyes. “Though you seem to have problems with simple things like control so I suppose it is a good thing she has ordered you into my charge after all.” Kso’ppghiel bares his fangs, turning in Bal’thial’s direction and throwing his tired body forward in an attempt to wipe the smirk off his face. The Captain easily pushes him back and the blonde haired man stumbles, falling to the floor once more. Gran’hein simply shakes his head as he dunks the metal into a barrel of water, hissing steam rising to the ceiling immediately after. “Both of you, knock it off. You’re not children so stop acting like it. I’m not averse to shoving this anvil up either of your asses, so behave.” The larger man checks over his handiwork before walking forward and grabbing a hold of Kso’ppghiel to hoist him up and stand before him. The smaller man struggles but Gran’hein barely notices as he snaps the metal collar around his neck, smirking as clawed fingers instantly attempt to tear it off. “I’d leave that there, you’ll see once the mask is back on.” White eyes barely have time to shift over to the one approaching behind before he finds the mask being placed back over his face. Clawed fingers tear free of the collar in an attempt to stop what he knows to be coming but his movements are too slow and seconds later, the spell to secure it is streaming from Bal’thial’s lips. The Captain’s blue and green gaze stays locked with his and to the Harbinger’s surprise, he finds his thoughts less heavy than they had been before. Taking a step back, the white haired man turns to Gran’hein with a slightly impressed look painted on his face. “As always, your work is flawless Mastersmith.” The larger man simply smiles as he grips Kso’ppghiel’s shoulder lightly, turning him to meet his gaze. “Once our Captain here deems it appropriate, come see me. I have much I’d like to talk with you about.” He ignores the blonde’s confused look and shifts his attention back to Bal’thial. “I would prefer to be the one to tell him, as I knew the man best. Sav’real only knows glimpses.” Gran’hein pushes the Harbinger forward towards the door. “Take care of him, Bal’thial, don’t hurt him too much.” A rich, rolling laugh escapes him as the white haired man nods before he watches the two walk off. Stifling heat hits them both as they leave the broad man in his workhouse behind, and Bal’thial once again weaves them through deep coal fires and bustling workers towards the entrance far beyond. No word is shared between the pair as they clear a few flights of winding stairs, the Harbinger soon realizing he’s being led back to the floors up above...
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