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esp_dragonFandom: Original
Summary:
The world of Torpin is open, dragging in Others from different worlds. The majority of them are monsters, prone to violence. There are some, however, that are not, and are able to live amongst the human population, if allowed to. Marland should know; he's one of them. His job is to hunt and stop the Others that seek only to destroy what's around them. On one job, a human Other drops through a portal, an event which Marland has never heard of happening before. And that's not the only thing different about the human...
Rating: T
Notes: Contains swearing.
Any questions or clarifications, just ask. (Unless it’s, you know, plot-related. XD)
Genre: Urban fantasy
Word count: 1,902
Total word count: 4,656
Status: Work in Progress
It didn’t matter anyway. Marland left the room, and headed towards the kitchen. In the fridge… yeah, not a lot in there. The most he could really do was make a couple of sandwiches. A few minutes later, Marland made his way back to the spare room, peering around the door. Huh. Shodin was asleep, the trousers he’d been wearing a wet pile on the floor. He put the plate on the bedside table, picked up the wet clothing and took it out. He wasn't affected by the temperature of clothes, but he WAS affected by the smell. Returning, he closed the spare door and locked it.
It was too early in the morning now to go out and buy more food. Ugh. That was one reason why Marland hated summer. He'd do it tonight, when he woke up. Marland headed to his own room, curled up and fell asleep straight away.
* * *
Marland's ears twitched as he woke up, scanning for anything that wasn't supposed to be there. All right. Safe. Cracking open an eye, he checked the window. There was still some light coming in through the cracks of the heavy drapes, but it wasn't that bright. He stretched, claws digging in to the mattress. He pulled them out carefully, not wanting to create bigger holes than what were already there. Then he went to the spare room to see if Shodin was still awake.
Wary, he opened the door slowly, waited a few seconds and then nudged it open. Shodin was sitting on the bed, blanket curled around him like an extremely big robe.
"Good... evening?" Shodin hazarded, sleepy eyes flicking towards the window. He then stiffled a yawn. "I think I just woke up."
"Same." So Shodin didn't know he'd been locked in then. The bandage looked like it had stayed on all right while Shodin had slept - it hasn't twisted or come off at least.
"I was wondering... Why was the door locked?"
How did he-? Right. The door would have made a noise when he'd unlocked it. "I don't trust you."
A blink, and Shodin no longer looked as tired. "Why not?"
Well, he'd have to tell him at some point anyway. "You're from another world. I don't know you, I don't know what you can do. I don't trust you."
Another blink from Shodin, and he slowly started to frown. "I'm from another world?"
Marland nodded. "Torpin's... 'open'. That's what people say. Portals open up randomly and drop people from different worlds here." He waited.
"But how do you know I'm from another world?" And there was the start of it.
"Because I saw you getting dumped here."
"Oh." Shodin looked at him closely. "Are you...?"
"I wasn't born here."
"Ah, all right."
And that seemed to be it. Again. Did he never react to anything? "You believe me?"
Shodin nodded. "I don't have that much reason not to."
Marland stared. Shodin was a little too easily trustful of people. "I could be lying."
"Hmm. But I don't think you are."
That... just seemed so different to Marland. "I don't get it; WHY do you trust me?"
The puzzled look was back. "Should I not?"
"Not really." Argh. "I've locked you up here." And Shodin knew that. He should have been trying to get out already.
"And you explained why. You also brought me here and tended to my wounds, so I don't understand why you think I should be mistrustful."
WHY did he have such a reasonable voice? And locking him up was a perfectly good reason why all the other things he'd done could be ignored. Just where the hell was he from if he could be that naïve? "I'm NOT HUMAN."
"... Okay?" A considering look. "I don't see how that affects things."
Marland's ears went flat, an almost whine escaping his throat. If he ever let Shodin out on his own, the human would end up dead one way or another.
Shodin settled himself further in his blanket nest, one finger trailing the mark along his wrist. "You're not the one who did this to me."
"... You don't know that." He couldn't know that, not with his memory completely gone.
He smiled at him, but they didn't touch his eyes. "I don't think you'd use... whatever made these marks."
And again, he couldn't know that. They were most probably made with restraints, though the one that had been around his neck had left weird marks. Marland's lips curled back. “Yeah?" Shodin was so - freaking - stupid.
Shodin shrugged, the movement almost hidden under the blanket. "There would be scratches and finger marks instead."
Marland paused at that. That... was actually true, to some extent. “But-“
"Marland," Shodin interrupted, "are you TRYING to make me not trust you?"
His ears flattened and he lowered his head briefly. "No. I just - want to know why you are."
"And you're constantly attempting to poke holes in whatever I say." Shodin sighed. "I think, unless you attempt to kill me, which you've had enough time to do, there isn't much that could make me want to not trust you."
"Tsh. That's stupid."
Another shrug. "Maybe I am; I don't know, do I?" The small smile was back, Shodin looking at him through this hair. A shake of his head and it was out of his way. "So... what can you tell me about these 'portals' then?"
"You wanna know how to get back?" Hah. The humans had been trying for freakin' YEARS to do that and had failed miserably. They just accepted that portals opened, and Others came through and, generally, there was nothing that they could do about it now.
"Well, I think that would be quite hard for me to do, considering how I don't know where my home IS." He chuckled softly, tucking his hair back. "No, I'm just curious... about everything, I think."
Marland looked at him, unsure. Fine. "I don't know much about the portals - just that they're here, they open up randomly, and dump whatever's closest to them on the other side here." Usually living beings, sometimes inanimate objects, but they weren't talked about so much since they weren't as obvious.
"So, what happens then? To the people who come through?" It was like Marland had all of Shodin's attention, his entire focus on him.
A rustle from his wings as he shifted the position he was standing in. "They get killed, most of the time."
Shodin's eyes widened, his mouth open. "What? Why?"
"They're Others; they're DIFFERENT from the humans here, so that means they're DANGEROUS." Marland laced the words with loathing, his teeth bared, ears flat. "But," he added grudgingly, "they have a point. A lot of the Others that come through the portals destroy anything they can get in contact with."
"But not all," Shodin said quietly, studying him closely.
"No."
"Hmm. That explains why you expect me to hate you." Another shake of the head. "I may not know you, but, I won't hate you just because of what you are."
That, Marland could possibly see. Maybe.
"Are there specific groups of people who track these... Others down then?"
He wasn't going to stop asking questions, was he?
"There are. Different kinds."
"Such as...?"
No, he wasn't going to stop any time soon. "There's the government groups, and there's the ones that hunt them out on their own." A small shrug. "I'm in the second group." Because at some point, he was going to ask ANYWAY.
There was a look of concentration on Shodin's face. "I see. Why do you do it?"
And THERE was a growl starting up in his throat. The questions were starting to get a little personal. "Can't do anything else."
"Do you have anyone else with you when you-"
"No," Marland snapped, the rumble getting louder.
And there was finally a break. “That isn’t safe.”
Marland growled at him. “I don’t care.”
He could see the idea forming in Shodin’s head, as the frown lines smoothened out. “I could-“
“No.”
“Why not?”
“I don’t know you, you’re human, and you’re injured.”
Shodin huffed. “I don’t understand why being human affects your decision.”
“You can’t defend yourself.”
A raised eyebrow. “You don’t know that.”
Marland snorted. “Neither do you.”
Shodin tilted his head at that. “You have a point there, but if we don’t try-“
“It’s not worth it.” Marland continued before Shodin could protest again. “You don’t know what Others are like, what they can do.”
“And you do?”
“Yeah.”
“Only because you have the experience to know about them."
"Okay, fine, but you're human - unless you've got a weapon, you can't do anything." But there was something wrong with that, something that Marland KNEW but he couldn't quite remember.
"So," Shodin started, frowning slightly, eyes wandering away, "just to clarify: you won't allow me to leave, and you won't allow me to help you, because you don't trust me."
"Yeah."
"Then, what do I do? Shodin asked, glancing back at him. "Be kept here indefinitely?"
Marland blinked. He actually hadn't thought about this properly. He'd been expecting Shodin to attack him, or that he would be forced to kill Shodin for one reason or another. He hadn't thought about what he'd do if Shodin didn't do those things.
And then something changed. Shodin took a deep breath, and then his entire body posture changed, no longer relaxed, his muscles stiffening as he clenched his hands, his spine curving over his crossed legs. His eyes narrowed, glaring at him.
"Why do you not trust him?" Shodin spat. It wasn't Shodin though. The voice was different - not different enough to have come from another person, but it was lower than the one Shodin had been talking with. And that was when it clicked - this had been why he thought Shodin wasn't so completely harmless.
"I don't trust him because I don't know him." And how many times was he going to say that now?
The... whatever it was (possessor?) hissed at him, straighted out, unfurling from the covers. "You should trust him."
Marland's ears flicked forward. "Why? Because you told me to?" He bared his teeth, loosening his stance at the same time.
At that, the possessor tried to snarl at him, but Shodin's throat wasn't up for it. It sounded there'd been something caught in his throat instead. "Then you will keep him here, against his will." The glare deepened, and the possessor bared his own teeth. "I will NOT allow that to happen." The possessor raised a hand, flexed in to the shape of a claw, and Marland could see the light that was starting to twine its way down from his shoulder to his hand.
Shit. He wasn't just a telepath, he could do other magic as well.
The possessor was a leap away, where, by the time Marland got to him, it could already be too late to stop whatever Shodin was doing. With his own magic though... Marland called his magic to him, the flames leaping to his hand as easily as they always did. It was only because Marland had been keeping an eye on the possessor that he saw his eyes widen, his magic fading before it had fully formed, though they left a trail in Marland's vision that wouldn't go away fast enough.
Summary:
The world of Torpin is open, dragging in Others from different worlds. The majority of them are monsters, prone to violence. There are some, however, that are not, and are able to live amongst the human population, if allowed to. Marland should know; he's one of them. His job is to hunt and stop the Others that seek only to destroy what's around them. On one job, a human Other drops through a portal, an event which Marland has never heard of happening before. And that's not the only thing different about the human...
Rating: T
Notes: Contains swearing.
Any questions or clarifications, just ask. (Unless it’s, you know, plot-related. XD)
Genre: Urban fantasy
Word count: 1,902
Total word count: 4,656
Status: Work in Progress
It didn’t matter anyway. Marland left the room, and headed towards the kitchen. In the fridge… yeah, not a lot in there. The most he could really do was make a couple of sandwiches. A few minutes later, Marland made his way back to the spare room, peering around the door. Huh. Shodin was asleep, the trousers he’d been wearing a wet pile on the floor. He put the plate on the bedside table, picked up the wet clothing and took it out. He wasn't affected by the temperature of clothes, but he WAS affected by the smell. Returning, he closed the spare door and locked it.
It was too early in the morning now to go out and buy more food. Ugh. That was one reason why Marland hated summer. He'd do it tonight, when he woke up. Marland headed to his own room, curled up and fell asleep straight away.
* * *
Marland's ears twitched as he woke up, scanning for anything that wasn't supposed to be there. All right. Safe. Cracking open an eye, he checked the window. There was still some light coming in through the cracks of the heavy drapes, but it wasn't that bright. He stretched, claws digging in to the mattress. He pulled them out carefully, not wanting to create bigger holes than what were already there. Then he went to the spare room to see if Shodin was still awake.
Wary, he opened the door slowly, waited a few seconds and then nudged it open. Shodin was sitting on the bed, blanket curled around him like an extremely big robe.
"Good... evening?" Shodin hazarded, sleepy eyes flicking towards the window. He then stiffled a yawn. "I think I just woke up."
"Same." So Shodin didn't know he'd been locked in then. The bandage looked like it had stayed on all right while Shodin had slept - it hasn't twisted or come off at least.
"I was wondering... Why was the door locked?"
How did he-? Right. The door would have made a noise when he'd unlocked it. "I don't trust you."
A blink, and Shodin no longer looked as tired. "Why not?"
Well, he'd have to tell him at some point anyway. "You're from another world. I don't know you, I don't know what you can do. I don't trust you."
Another blink from Shodin, and he slowly started to frown. "I'm from another world?"
Marland nodded. "Torpin's... 'open'. That's what people say. Portals open up randomly and drop people from different worlds here." He waited.
"But how do you know I'm from another world?" And there was the start of it.
"Because I saw you getting dumped here."
"Oh." Shodin looked at him closely. "Are you...?"
"I wasn't born here."
"Ah, all right."
And that seemed to be it. Again. Did he never react to anything? "You believe me?"
Shodin nodded. "I don't have that much reason not to."
Marland stared. Shodin was a little too easily trustful of people. "I could be lying."
"Hmm. But I don't think you are."
That... just seemed so different to Marland. "I don't get it; WHY do you trust me?"
The puzzled look was back. "Should I not?"
"Not really." Argh. "I've locked you up here." And Shodin knew that. He should have been trying to get out already.
"And you explained why. You also brought me here and tended to my wounds, so I don't understand why you think I should be mistrustful."
WHY did he have such a reasonable voice? And locking him up was a perfectly good reason why all the other things he'd done could be ignored. Just where the hell was he from if he could be that naïve? "I'm NOT HUMAN."
"... Okay?" A considering look. "I don't see how that affects things."
Marland's ears went flat, an almost whine escaping his throat. If he ever let Shodin out on his own, the human would end up dead one way or another.
Shodin settled himself further in his blanket nest, one finger trailing the mark along his wrist. "You're not the one who did this to me."
"... You don't know that." He couldn't know that, not with his memory completely gone.
He smiled at him, but they didn't touch his eyes. "I don't think you'd use... whatever made these marks."
And again, he couldn't know that. They were most probably made with restraints, though the one that had been around his neck had left weird marks. Marland's lips curled back. “Yeah?" Shodin was so - freaking - stupid.
Shodin shrugged, the movement almost hidden under the blanket. "There would be scratches and finger marks instead."
Marland paused at that. That... was actually true, to some extent. “But-“
"Marland," Shodin interrupted, "are you TRYING to make me not trust you?"
His ears flattened and he lowered his head briefly. "No. I just - want to know why you are."
"And you're constantly attempting to poke holes in whatever I say." Shodin sighed. "I think, unless you attempt to kill me, which you've had enough time to do, there isn't much that could make me want to not trust you."
"Tsh. That's stupid."
Another shrug. "Maybe I am; I don't know, do I?" The small smile was back, Shodin looking at him through this hair. A shake of his head and it was out of his way. "So... what can you tell me about these 'portals' then?"
"You wanna know how to get back?" Hah. The humans had been trying for freakin' YEARS to do that and had failed miserably. They just accepted that portals opened, and Others came through and, generally, there was nothing that they could do about it now.
"Well, I think that would be quite hard for me to do, considering how I don't know where my home IS." He chuckled softly, tucking his hair back. "No, I'm just curious... about everything, I think."
Marland looked at him, unsure. Fine. "I don't know much about the portals - just that they're here, they open up randomly, and dump whatever's closest to them on the other side here." Usually living beings, sometimes inanimate objects, but they weren't talked about so much since they weren't as obvious.
"So, what happens then? To the people who come through?" It was like Marland had all of Shodin's attention, his entire focus on him.
A rustle from his wings as he shifted the position he was standing in. "They get killed, most of the time."
Shodin's eyes widened, his mouth open. "What? Why?"
"They're Others; they're DIFFERENT from the humans here, so that means they're DANGEROUS." Marland laced the words with loathing, his teeth bared, ears flat. "But," he added grudgingly, "they have a point. A lot of the Others that come through the portals destroy anything they can get in contact with."
"But not all," Shodin said quietly, studying him closely.
"No."
"Hmm. That explains why you expect me to hate you." Another shake of the head. "I may not know you, but, I won't hate you just because of what you are."
That, Marland could possibly see. Maybe.
"Are there specific groups of people who track these... Others down then?"
He wasn't going to stop asking questions, was he?
"There are. Different kinds."
"Such as...?"
No, he wasn't going to stop any time soon. "There's the government groups, and there's the ones that hunt them out on their own." A small shrug. "I'm in the second group." Because at some point, he was going to ask ANYWAY.
There was a look of concentration on Shodin's face. "I see. Why do you do it?"
And THERE was a growl starting up in his throat. The questions were starting to get a little personal. "Can't do anything else."
"Do you have anyone else with you when you-"
"No," Marland snapped, the rumble getting louder.
And there was finally a break. “That isn’t safe.”
Marland growled at him. “I don’t care.”
He could see the idea forming in Shodin’s head, as the frown lines smoothened out. “I could-“
“No.”
“Why not?”
“I don’t know you, you’re human, and you’re injured.”
Shodin huffed. “I don’t understand why being human affects your decision.”
“You can’t defend yourself.”
A raised eyebrow. “You don’t know that.”
Marland snorted. “Neither do you.”
Shodin tilted his head at that. “You have a point there, but if we don’t try-“
“It’s not worth it.” Marland continued before Shodin could protest again. “You don’t know what Others are like, what they can do.”
“And you do?”
“Yeah.”
“Only because you have the experience to know about them."
"Okay, fine, but you're human - unless you've got a weapon, you can't do anything." But there was something wrong with that, something that Marland KNEW but he couldn't quite remember.
"So," Shodin started, frowning slightly, eyes wandering away, "just to clarify: you won't allow me to leave, and you won't allow me to help you, because you don't trust me."
"Yeah."
"Then, what do I do? Shodin asked, glancing back at him. "Be kept here indefinitely?"
Marland blinked. He actually hadn't thought about this properly. He'd been expecting Shodin to attack him, or that he would be forced to kill Shodin for one reason or another. He hadn't thought about what he'd do if Shodin didn't do those things.
And then something changed. Shodin took a deep breath, and then his entire body posture changed, no longer relaxed, his muscles stiffening as he clenched his hands, his spine curving over his crossed legs. His eyes narrowed, glaring at him.
"Why do you not trust him?" Shodin spat. It wasn't Shodin though. The voice was different - not different enough to have come from another person, but it was lower than the one Shodin had been talking with. And that was when it clicked - this had been why he thought Shodin wasn't so completely harmless.
"I don't trust him because I don't know him." And how many times was he going to say that now?
The... whatever it was (possessor?) hissed at him, straighted out, unfurling from the covers. "You should trust him."
Marland's ears flicked forward. "Why? Because you told me to?" He bared his teeth, loosening his stance at the same time.
At that, the possessor tried to snarl at him, but Shodin's throat wasn't up for it. It sounded there'd been something caught in his throat instead. "Then you will keep him here, against his will." The glare deepened, and the possessor bared his own teeth. "I will NOT allow that to happen." The possessor raised a hand, flexed in to the shape of a claw, and Marland could see the light that was starting to twine its way down from his shoulder to his hand.
Shit. He wasn't just a telepath, he could do other magic as well.
The possessor was a leap away, where, by the time Marland got to him, it could already be too late to stop whatever Shodin was doing. With his own magic though... Marland called his magic to him, the flames leaping to his hand as easily as they always did. It was only because Marland had been keeping an eye on the possessor that he saw his eyes widen, his magic fading before it had fully formed, though they left a trail in Marland's vision that wouldn't go away fast enough.