master of puppets [maia]

[SUNIL]

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[atrb=background,http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y216/woogan/SunilTableMiddle.jpg,true] There it stood: the Tower. A massive pillar of haphazardly placed stones stood like a looming, unpredictable giant against a background of volcanic mountains. Pieces of the giant tower were missing, where giant gaps in the walls made due for enormous windows, and often times, the way the winds hit those hollow mouths sent an eerie wail through the stone, creating the illusion of a somber moaning. To anyone on the mainland, this surely would be a place left alone, with a wide radius that no one dared step foot into. But here, in Ombra, it was one of the most well-liked structures, most fitting to the nature of the people who lived here. To Sunil, in particular, The Tower was his favorite place to be. The young man stood atop it today, lopsided stones acting like a halfway functional wall to keep anyone from falling over the side served as a place for him to lean against while he peered out with black eyes in the distance. The day was clear, save for clouds in the distant North, but the mainland’s westbound shores were a shimmering line of green. Sunil reached up and brushed his slate-colored, unkempt hair from his face and narrowed his eyes some. Too much time had passed since he had been there. He could hardly remember the smell of it. The games, the ale, the women… they were listless memories of the roguish young man he had used to be. Though he still harnessed all of his charm that he had two years ago, he had become far bitterer, more brooding, and more calculating. He had little time for childish games now, now that he served as a leader for a group of peoples who had refused until now to look upon someone else as authority. But today, Sunil was not overly concerned with his wishes to go back to those days. He watched the mainland for a different sign: a sign of returning. He had stationed a number of individuals as spies over in the various Kingdoms who served as informational lines to the world beyond their island. There was one in particular that he waited for today. Maia. Younger than him by a number of years, she still served as one of his most trusted and loyal members. Without hesitation, she had abandoned the world both of them had known and followed him to this uninhabited island. Over time, her dedication only seemed to heighten. In Sunil’s distaste for being a formal leader, it was days like these that he enjoyed being seated on his lopsided, stony tower awaiting diplomatic information to brood and scheme upon. Her dual hatred for those that lived in the various Kingdoms always served to refresh him and make him feel younger again, with a newly refurbished energy to go about his original plans. So Sunil waited casually there, where he knew she could see him. They’d met atop this Tower many times before. In today’s grace of patience, Sunil casually scanned the horizon pleasantly, and he drummed his fingers idly on the stone he leaned against. Where his fingers made contact with the rock, tiny sparks of black shadows burst and dissipated, burst and dissipated again.

[serryph]

Maia looked out over the rough waves from the prow of the small sailboat. It was only about 30 feet long, crewed by three men. who had been some of the first to come to the Isle kingdom of Ombra. The sails were a dark grey canvas, to better blend with the waves, and the crew members, like her, were all dressed in black.

Dark-lined eyes peered at the horizon. She had been sailing for three days now, and was finally almost home. Almost to him Her eyes shined with an inner light of anticipation. She was almost home, to Sunil, to make her report of what was going on on the mainland. Her eyes, their red tint gleaming as she stared up at the tower where she would be meeting Sunil in less than a few hours up on the tower. Her mind rattled over the information she had to give him.

A slender hand sat upon the hilt of her knife as her eyes searched the tower. After a few moments, she caught sight of the small figure on top of the stones. A grin flashed over her face, white teeth flashing brightly before her lips closed over them once again. Composure. That was key. She must retain control, icy-stone coldness. It was how she had to be.

She shoved her confusing feelings for her leader under her sense of loyalty and duty.

It took two hours for her to get to shore, and immediately she jumped out of the boat into the water, leaving the men to take it to the small docks in the hidden cove. Here, she could bound up the side of the cliff. She shifted into her polecat form, her slender body cutting through the water swiftly until she reached the rocky shore. Pausing only for a moment, she shook most the water from her fur, and began to bound over the rocks towards the fortress.

Running full out, her dark form sped into the fortress, recognized and left alone by any of those who would have possibly greeted her. As she finally reached the stairs, she shifted to human once more, and ran up the steps, an eagerness in them that she couldn't hold back. Panting slightly, she came out into the open sky, eyes bright as she dropped to one knee swiftly in a quick bow.

"Sunil." She greeted him and then stood, her lips turning up in a smirk as her eyes scanned over him before she caught herself and waited for him to acknowledge her.

[SUNIL]

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[atrb=background,http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y216/woogan/SunilTableMiddle.jpg,true] With the lull of the winds dancing against his angular face, Sunil closed his eyes and relaxed against the stone wall. The smell of sea salt stung his nostrils, but the sound of the waves eased him into a kind of trance. One of Ombra’s most treasured characteristics was the absolute quiet that seemed to fall over it, though the numbers of people who lived there were undoubtedly growing. Even within the city walls, not a soul could be heard from up here on the tower, and if one walked just past the city walls, all that could be heard was ocean and wind. The man felt a sense of sheer adoration for the top of this Frankenstein tower and the solitude it brought him, and for a time, he could forget that once he climbed back down the spiral staircase, other dark eyes would be following him wherever he traveled. When he opened his eyes again, he finally saw what he had been waiting for: a small ship with nearly invisible sails approached on the horizon. The winds carried it favorably today, and within minutes, its size had nearly doubled. Sunil straightened, a grin splaying across his thin lips, and he leaned forward over the edge of the tower to peer down at the docks where it would rest. The sight of the ship had caught others’ attentions, and the dockworkers quickly set about to preparing a space for the ship among the others, hurrying loiterers aside while they gathered ropes and ties. Ship traffic to Ombra was limited; without any doubt, this was the one that held Sunil’s Spymaster. And indeed, it did. Before the ship even hit the shore, the young woman had leapt from the boat and hit the water. Sunil saw her abandon the ship, but then she vanished among the cliffs. There was nothing to do but wait. Idly, the young monarch turned around to face the top of the spiral staircase where Maia would come from, his back leaned against the wall this time. From the way she was hurrying, she either had something important to share, or she had missed his company to the point of desperation. The thought alone made him grin again. She was quick, even for Sunil’s usual lack of patience. Maia emerged from the staircase with a pant and dropped to one knee, a respectful gesture Sunil never minded. He stepped forward, away from the wall, and came to her. The pleasantries of his presence flashed across her face before she became stoic again, but that brief moment was enough to satisfy him. “My dear.” He purred in his usual, sensual way. “It has been a while. Too long.” Sunil cocked his head and flashed a wolfish grin at her. “I hope the Mainland has treated you well?” And by that, he meant more than hospitality. He beckoned her to him with the curl of an index finger and stepped backward to lean lazily against the wall again. His black eyes examined her with an uncanny peacefulness, simply waiting for her to share what she had learned. He didn’t need to ask it from her; they’d done this too many times before for that.

[serryph]

His voice made her shudder slightly, almost imperceptibly, but she knew that he would notice. He was watchful as the panther he could shift into. Maia smirked slightly at his comment of the mainland. "The mainland is as it has ever been. They reject me, if they know my heritage, or my nature, and welcome me as a guest so long as they do not." The underlying tone of his voice hinted at the question beneath the words, but Maia did not want to answer. There was nothing on the mainland for her, at least not until Sunil returned there once again to conquer it. She didn't respond that it had been to long. She knew as well as he that she felt even a few days away was too long, let alone the two weeks she had been gone.

She stepped forward to join him near the wall, heartbeat quickening slightly and her breath catching in her throat. She wanted to fling herself at him, but that would not do. Discipline. He was the master, and obeyed, and she was a loyal servant to his cause. Her own wants could not come in the way of her duty to him. Maia swallowed once before she started her report. "Tyrgere lacks any form of leader. They're a rabble, undisciplined, and drunk on peace because of the ravine they hide behind. But ravens are gossipy creatures, even their shifter counterparts...." There was a sneer of disdain for the shifters of that bird type. She didn't respect the lack of ability to keep a secret. "Caldo will not fight. Everyone is lazy with the presence of peace, and their leader is weak compared to the rage that filled the leaders of old. Aver is quiet. They have a solid leader, and are structured, but still, stuck halfway to rebuilding."

I have missed him... even his cruelty, the way he plays those around him...even me. Ah, darkling... Red tinted eyes scanned over his face, and a soft intake of breath brought his scent to her nostrils. Her report finished, and knowing that the tidbits she had gathered over her short time on the main continent were important, she let them sink in for a moment before she spoke once more. 'All has been well here, darkling?" The nickname she had given him when she had met him slid from her lips without thought. It was what changed their master-servant relationship into the tentative beginnings of a friendship, if ever either could reach that state of trust with each other.

It had only been recent that Maia had felt her position as Sunil's spymaster was secure, without competition. Since then, it had become harder to keep him at bay. Every time she saw him, she wanted to race to him, but running to him and reporting what she had learned was all she allowed her Ice-inherited discipline to allow. Already her passionate fire side had melted some of her coldness away from how she acted around him, made her want to fall against his body at the crook of his finger. She could not allow more than a quick report. I cannot...will not... Besides, he has that thing with Riani... Her thoughts darkened with the thought of the warrior woman who she knew Sunil visited now and then. Jealousy and hatred for the woman burned in her chest whenever she had heard her name on the mainland, and whenever she thought of what she had with Sunil.

Maia blinked slowly, taking a deep breath of the salty breeze, letting muscles relax slightly. It had been tense to be among those she hated, and here, where she could openly show her disdain, was refreshing and relaxing.

[SUNIL]

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[atrb=background,http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y216/woogan/SunilTableMiddle.jpg,true] Maia was a unique individual, without a doubt. The two had met under circumstances of no great importance, and upon laying first eyes on the young woman with multi-tinted hair and mismatched eyes, she had struck Sunil as an individual bent on refusing any sort of affiliation. She had stared at him in the same cold way that everyone else had, with disdain and revulsion. It was funny, now that they were here, two misfit individuals standing atop a tower of a newly formed Kingdom. Sunil the bastard boy, now a monarch, and Maia the cold-hearted, a blossoming woman with a growing attachment for someone she once sneered at. She had become his quickest ally and the closest thing the man had to a friend. Without any doubt, her talents as his head spy were unmatched. But after she had gained the position, Maia started to transform before Sunil’s black eyes. He was well-versed enough in the art of women to know the signs of a fluttering heart, but the way she interacted with him now was unmistakable. Where there once was a cold gaze was now an amiable smirk, and the more Sunil approved of her information, the happier she seemed. Though he took note of this, the Monarch did nothing. He did not reach out to soothe her aching wants, or whisper promises of reward in her ear. He didn’t have to. He simply let an easy, sly smile grace his thin lips, and he relaxed back against the wall to listen to her report. Maia would have her rewards in bits and pieces, when he felt she deserved them. He did not have to ask her to share the information with him; she knew to do that on her own. While he listened to her, he turned his head seaward and gazed back out in the direction he had been before when awaiting her return. Tyrgere, without a leader? His eyes went farther north, from the shores of Caldo to the shores of the neutral alliance. And then there was the interesting news that Caldo had chosen a Monarch that was unwilling to finish the war they had retreated from. Sunil cocked his head to the side and hmmed. He did not speak for a time, mulling over the words she had shared, and only pulled out of thought when her own question ended the silence between them. He turned his head and attention back to her, the furrow in his brow from thought disappeared, and he grinned his wolfish grin. “All has been well. For an island full of rebels and criminals, most seem to be getting along nicely.” A moment of mischief sparked in his eyes, the renewing the Sunil of old. He twisted away from the wall and stepped towards her, close to her, and reached up to cup her chin in his hand. She was fairly tall, but he still stood over her, his eyes ablaze in jovial wickedness. “You have done well, my dear. You should enjoy your time at home again for a time. Your information will be quite useful.” He paused and leaned in close to her, the breath on his lips dancing across her own. “And I have missed you.” His grin became devious as he hovered there, but he chose not to satisfy her. He released her chin and brushed her hair from her face instead, almost gently, before taking a step away. “We will need you here to help plan our next course of action.” He said, reverting back to his original personage. “Even though no riots have broken out yet doesn’t mean anyone else here is worth any time to listen to their dull ideas.”

[serryph]

Maia's stance was relaxed but attentive as he first turned around, having had a small chance to work cool discipline over her body's reaction to the nearness of her attractive leader. Focusing on making her wants unnoticed, his charming grin made her remember the night she had met him. The familiar memory was one she had gone over in her mind many times, and now she remembered how she had hated that smile, hated everything that Sunil had stood for when she first saw him. Charm and wit made one likeable, and that had always made her hate flare.

But apparently, it could win over even her stubborn mindset in the end, when applied nonstop, as it had been for the last two years. She had been loyal only to his cause, but now, she was loyal to him, and no one else. The flash in his eye and his lithe movement as he stepped forward made Maia tilt her head slightly to keep eye contact. When his hand touched her chin, as much as she hated it, she reacted rather than staying still. Eyes fluttered slightly, and she felt frozen, and ready to melt into a puddle at the same time. Warmth spread through her.

Sunil's praise made her eyes gleam, though her expression was fixed in a place neither smile nor frown. Her breath caught as he leaned closer, his scent strong in her nose. But his murmured words with a grin and his hand shifting to push her hair to one side was all that came from it. Then he stepped away and anger at how he could play her as well as any of his other subjects latched onto the familiar partner of hatred, turning her gaze icy as she used the anger to shut down her body's betraying responses.

A spark still flew though. He needed her. Her out of all of the subject he now ruled over, she was worth listening to, and few others. As he returned to business though, so did she, stepping forward slightly to look out at the barely viewable mainland, her eyes burning with the hatred that she felt for its occupants. "I don't believe the majority of the populace we have here have the imagination to truly help your plans along..." She had as much contempt for her fellows on the island as she did for the mainland. Out of anyone, Sunil was the only one she felt something other than hatred and contempt for. She hated him, sure enough, but there was something under that, something she didn't understand.

Swiftly she tore her thoughts away. Plenty of time for thinking about her confusing state of mind later. "What do you wish of me, darkling?" She would not leave without him telling her to, and she did not truly want to leave either, but she knew Sunil well enough now to know that he was not one for too much company.

[SUNIL]

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[atrb=background,http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y216/woogan/SunilTableMiddle.jpg,true] Maia’s reaction to his close proximity caused Sunil to grin all the more. Perhaps he was too cruel to her sometimes… she had served him well, without a doubt. She had been faithful to his cause, and now it was ever-clearer that upon return she came rushing to his side to simply be near him, not just to share her informations and be off again. After Sunil moved away from her, he watched her with a calculating expression briefly, the corners of his lips twitching upward. Her eyes were icy, but that was only because he knew what she wanted and had not offered it to her yet. Perhaps if she played her cards right… he grinned and turned away to think of more pertinent plans at the moment. It had been two years since Ombra was founded. Two short years and a black, illusion-like Kingdom hovered over the volcanic island to overlook the sea, always facing the mainland some miles out. Two short years and more and more individuals were coming to the shores of Ombra in search of belonging somewhere. In two short years, Ombra had become a substantial empire, growing in strength every day, and its monarch was grasping the idea of what it meant to lead not just himself anymore. His black eyes narrowed momentarily, but a dark chuckle passed through him in response to her snide comment. It was clear that Maia wasn’t overly fond with the island’s other inhabitants. But to her question, Sunil tipped her head again and drummed his fingers along his chin without responding for a time. What were they to do now, with this information? He knew she would do anything that he asked her to do. “Nothing.” was his reply at last, and he glanced over at her with his signature look of mischief. “The mainland is apparently doing much of the work themselves.” He leaned forward against the wall, back to his original pose, with his elbows resting atop the stones and his chin cupped in one palm while he drummed his fingers on the lopsided rocks. He didn’t look back at her this time, but his expression clouded over with thought again. “We need numbers before we can do much. More discipline and loyalty. We don’t have an army, or enough skilled shipsmen to carry an army over.” He turned his head again and locked his eyes on her once more. “But the longer we wait, the stronger they get…” his brow furrowed at this, and his thoughtful, sly grin became a scowl. Though Sunil was talented in the arts of mischief and rebellion, he was by no means a war hero. He knew little of the tactics of a true, organized war, let alone one successful enough to take siege over the mainland. He had time to think, but time was always ticking. Every second that made Ombra stronger strengthened their walls, their numbers, and their boundaries as well.

[serryph]

She stepped forward to join him at the edge, leaning against a slightly higher section with her shoulder. The uneven walls pleased her, despite that they were the sign of the unfinished state of the building. But it was, rough. Like him.. Her reddish brown gaze never left Sunil. In fact, her gaze was intense as he spoke, as it always was when he spoke of taking over the mainland.

Her voice was soft, almost a murmur, but filled with her emotions towards the mainlanders, and her passion for the cause. "But they grow weaker in a way too... The rage of the Fire has dimmed, and they are weak... It was, after all, their anger that made them so fearsome to many. Now, they are volatile still, but calm much quicker, and do not fight so much... Their leader is weak... and she keeps the rest of them weak with her..." Maia's lips twisted into a cruel smile.

A thought sent towards the stone shifted it just slightly to cushion her shoulder better than it had a moment before, and she found herself wanting to shape the dark stone into an image of Sunil's panther form. Idly the thought slipped in to have his panther form curled up, comfortable and relaxed, with a small polecat tucked under his chin. Her eyes softened a little, but she caught herself before it was too far along, her eyes icing over once more.

Business still had to be dealt with. After that, she could go carving. "We grow stronger by the day. All that would need done is training. A small force can do a lot of damage when well trained. We've no need to match them man to man or beast to beast. Her voice held a tone of caution in it, unsure how he'd react to her counsel. After all, he was as volatile as herself, and far more likely to act on impulse, since he didn't have her natural discipline.

One hand raised to brush through mutli-tinted hair, tugging on a lock as she waited for his response. She was not sure what to do, as her mind kept straying back to curling against him as a polecat... If only she could understand these feelings!

[SUNIL]

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[atrb=background,http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y216/woogan/SunilTableMiddle.jpg,true] To take over the mainland would be the most satisfying victory the young monarch could ever hope to face. Sunil, the rogue boy, who meant nothing to anyone of power. Sunil, the alley cat that was always pushed aside with a broom. When he was not met with outright disdain, there was fear lingering in the eyes of those who knew a little more about him. Unnatural. He had heard that word uttered behind his back time and time again. In early years, Sunil despised his inability to melt in with the crowds. He had longed for true friends and family just like any other youth. But as time went on, the young man grew comfortable with embracing himself as he was. Through years of honing in on his strengths, he became charming, quick-witted, and extremely charismatic for an individual who never had true, long-lived contact with others. Through years of hard work, Sunil devised a plan that could take down those scornful peoples to their knees, a plan to make them recognize that he was not someone to be scoffed at, or feared because of his differences. Sunil was someone to be feared because he was dangerous. Perhaps they were right. Perhaps he was innately evil. The young Monarch fell into a lull to the sound of Maia’s voice as she murmured to him about the mainland. It was true, of course. If Caldo’s Monarch would not fight, the longer she remained in power, the more comfortable they would become with not raising their spears. Warriors would find other tasks, and scouts would take to searching for women instead of searching for enemies. His black eyes shot over to his companion briefly, and he let a hmmm pass between his thin lips to make it clear he was listening. But then again, Sunil always listened. And when she spoke again of Ombra’s growing power, he straightened his position and crossed his arms loosely over his bare chest, his obsidian eyes narrowing as they faced the horizon. His warriors, too, would need proper training. Of course. But they were not the only ones. Everyone needed training here. That scowl became more prominent on his thin lips. Sunil was not one for sharing fears and worries with others, but Maia was someone he was comfortable enough with to confide in her on a political level. “We lack in experts of every field. Take a look around you, Maia. Do you see any blacksmiths? Any wise elders? Do you see farmers, or seamstresses? Do you see a king who’s led before?” His voice grew increasingly more frustrated with every addition. “No. You see outlaws. Criminals. Misfits. We’re getting by on what we brought with us, not with what we create here.” He answered the question for her, too impatient to have her draw the conversation in a direction other than where he wanted it to go. He turned quickly to face her, suddenly volatile and irritated, and he stared at her with an aggravated intensity that lasted a whole minute of silence. “I am not a seasoned king any more than I am a war hero. Who’s going to train them? Who is capable enough of wielding a fleet of ships over to the mainland?” Sunil let out a short breath and made himself halt there. He lifted his hands and rubbed his temples with his fingers before he let out a resigned sigh. “This is much more complicated than it appears on the surface, my dear. I fear Ombra will not be ready for greatness within our lifetimes.”

[serryph]

His irritation and anger were not unexpected by his closest subject. She let him speak without argument or interruption. Even the minute long silence went unbroken by her, her dark eyes staying locked onto his. His words were all true. They lacked experts. Criminals picked up small skills here and there. One or two knew the basics of pounding metal into a weapon, but none were experts, or even decent. All could fight, only a few could sail upon a ship. There were certainly no elders, and Sunil was at best, a leader, acknowledged as King only because nobody else knew how to run his cause.

She tilted her head as he rubbed his temples, and stood from her leaning position, taking a single step closer to look up at his angular face. "We may lack experts that most places have, but we have advantages that other places do not. We have made it this far without elders, and by the time we have settled into a Kingdom, truly in power over all, there will be plenty of elders from those who have followed you, and those from other kingdoms that have been embraced into yours." Maia was cautious, keeping her voice soft and soothing. It had taken months to learn how to deal with his rages and his irritation when some obstacle blocked his way. Often it was best simply to stay out of his way, but as the only one he remotely trusted, she could not do that.

Instead, she did her best to soothe him, and to make the obstacles smaller. The urge to reach out to him, to touch his skin was almost overwhelming. It was only by pure will she stopped herself from doing so. She could not initiate contact. Such a thing would have to be invited, and not before. Her eyes searched his, the fire within shining in them. "Your path has been riddled with difficulty and complexity. We make it through. You will be the one to bring Ombra to greatness." She looked out over the land that had become her home, seeing the people as ants going about their business. Each and every man and woman who has joined us will do anything you ask. We needn't go all at once. We have brought what we need with us, people. You are as patient as stone when you wish to be, and that patience is what wins campaigns, darkling, not the experts of domestic life." She let her voice fade out, her eyes returning to him, her fervent belief in him and his cause.

A split second passed for her, and her mind raced. She was so close to him, or at least it seemed so to her. She could feel his body radiate heat, and her heart was loud in her ears. Would he calm under her words, or explode? She didn't know, but the unknown made her heart pound excitedly, and he was so handsome, even when angry, especially when angry. But part of her was ready to dodge back from any unexpected blow. One never knew what would happen should Sunil lose his temper.