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Finally, he found the corridor widening out as he approached what looked like an open cement and gravel field between buildings: overall, the whole situation disagreed with the reptile's senses. It was a twenty minute walk at his fast pace to here... the walls were high and the passageways narrow... and now he could see the glint of two rows of metal sheeting leading up on a very steep incline: probably aluminum or tin from what it looked like.

Then he looked up, and maybe twenty feet above was the flat roof... and standing there was Lone, grinning widely and with his hand holding onto the collar of Mary's shirt, the feline gagged with a plain wrap of cloth and tied with thick ropes, her eyes staring at him, wide with fear, regret and pain... and then three other figures walked forwards, a female on one side of the wolf and two others he recognized on the other. Cherry, Vampire, and Tinman: the last three remnants of the Goth Legion... although Tinny looked like he was about to pass out from fright. Vamp and Cherry might be able to sneer and glare like they had nothing to fear or worry about... but the Tinman had never been that good at hiding his true emotions, and he'd always been a useless coward in so many missions.

But now, here they were, aligned against him with the wolf, and the reptile tilted his head as they merely examined one another, seeing the changes over the years: Cherry, who was perhaps the worst match-up for him in terms of combat, looked like she had grown a bit more muscle but also filled out more in all the right places... she set off a deep spark of lust in him, and the Drakkaren knew that he'd have to make sure to rape this dominating bitch at least once or twice for daring to do this to him. The issue, of course, would be beating her in combat.

She was a vicious fighter, especially with her long-ranged whips... and she'd upgraded one of them since the last time, from the sharp metal gleam it gave off, instead of the luster of leather. Probably weapon-defeating now... and that was definitely a bad thing when paired with her strange mental talents.

All of them had been chosen for the GL for two things: their abilities, and their brutality. Cherry was not only a devastating fighter and nearly impossible to land a blow on because she was fast, agile and frighteningly flexible - it was because she was also precognitive, and had worked furiously on her body to make it powerful enough to deal out lethal blows when she saw the chance and flexible enough to dodge whatever attack she saw coming. If you were within one hundred and fifty feet of her, she could predict about where you were going to come in from, with a fifty percent chance of being wrong. If you were within a hundred, the chances of her prediction went up to seventy. Within fifty feet, she knew ninety-five percent of the time exactly what you were about to do. And within ten, she had never, ever been wrong.

Even if her precognition failed, she still had another vaunted talent: "Third Person," as they had jokingly referred to it as while thinking of all those shitty hack and slash video games out there. If she was given the time to concentrate, she could somehow change her mode of vision from her eyes to slip back behind her, as if extending her spirit out of her body; it always faced the same way she was facing, but it was as if she was looking at her back from five feet away, broadening her field of vision to a surprising degree and even preventing opponents from sneaking up on her from behind... although it created a new vulnerability at the exact front of her body.

On top of the fact she had strength that would let her struggle gamely against Zerrex in any form of physical grappling, she was a pain to take down: but that also wasn't to say that the others were no threat in comparison to her... she just happened to be the worst match up for combat. Vampire, the brutish black wolf, was another difficult subject, and the reptile couldn't help but savor the irony - of course it would be the toughest of the Goth Legion that survived.

Vampire, however, drank blood roughly as often as Zerrex drank a non-alcoholic beverage while in Elliot's: not to say it never happened, it was just rare and when it did occur, it usually had a point to it. One of his abilities, after all, was to drink an opponent's blood... and for a few hours, his saliva would change to match their DNA: a passive defense mechanism that stopped anyone from ever wondering what the hell had sucked out the blood from their buddy's body. And he could live off blood if he chose so to indulge himself... but in Vamp's own words, "living off blood is like living off beer; it's fun at first, but after a while you get real sick of the hangovers in the morning and the fact it runs through you faster than it goes down."

No, the real issue with Vampire wasn't his huge, showy fangs... but the fact that although his brain controlled the movement of his entire body, he was composed of what you could call a group of symbiotic orgasms, everything in his body with its own form of intelligence and all too willing to keep the community spirit going by defending against attack as best it could.

For instance, the very cells in Vampire's body would tighten together and harden, forming a quasi-armor that would protect him from most weak attacks. If he was stabbed, his internal organs would literally do their best to move out of the way of an invading object. If he was cut, major arteries and veins would literally shift downwards, seeking safety as the flesh of his body swarmed upwards to try and protect the major components of his body. If he was bleeding from a major wound, his blood flow would stop as veins inexplicably tied themselves off. And even if he was shot in the head, if something pierced his brain... his very mental synapses would somehow send the signals that controlled his body, personality and memory into his much-thicker-than-normal spinal column, and his brain cells would slowly regenerate... as all other parts of his body would.

Then, to make him even worse, he had three circulatory systems, meaning he had triple the amount of blood to lose before he even became woozy from loss of the precious liquid, as well as several other biological side effects that was pleasant for him and nasty for everyone else; even his very organs were mutated, giving him a triple-heart, two livers and a series of other organs that would continue to function and keep his body running even should he have the other set destroyed. And then again, his regeneration was stupendous, repairing things that should have been irreparable, mending organs that should have been rendered completely useless, knitting together veins or crushed sinew without any explanation.

Because of both his extreme regeneration ability and massive physical mutations, the black wolf also rarely became tired... and he also had superb strength with all the muscle he was constantly developing. Of course, it was impressive... but nothing special, like Cherry or Zerrex. In short, he would be problematic more because he was incredibly difficult to kill... but the reptile figured he knew how. After all, nothing survived for long if you cut its head off... and that was definitely one thing the black wolf couldn't regenerate.

Finally, that left Tinman... who was a coward, physically frail, but could to some extent shape all the metals and minerals around him into whatever he wanted or move them as he desired. Nothing so supreme as creating Excalibur from a block of titanium... more like making small tin-origami knives and darts, as well as making very minor changes in heavier metals, like bending or twisting them.

Of course, no one had known his other ability, which was to absorb the powers of those around them... so long as they were non-physical. And he kept these powers permanently... which turned him into a kind of jack-of-all-trades, albeit a crappy one, as the powers he absorbed were usually one-tenth of their original strength or less.

So he could use very minor telekinesis, manipulate the elements to a very pathetic extent, had weak precognition and some small regenerative ability... after all, when he had first been enlisted, he had often spent days with headaches or ill with some cold... but then, after a week or two training with Zerrex and Cherry and all the rest, he had started to gradually grow stronger than his original pencil-neck form - he'd gone from the kind of guy who couldn't shoot a gun without falling over to the kind of guy who hit himself in the face from the recoil: a moderate improvement. And of course, he'd stopped being so sickly.

Tinny had always been the omega of the group... the coward who got in the way on missions and always caused trouble for everyone else when he'd gotten caught snooping or broken down while in the middle of a fight. So he had always been delegated as the medic and the communications expert of the group, lacking the finesse to be the technology wizard or the cruelty to be the mad bomber type. Everyone had always figured the only reason he had been placed in the Goth Legion was so there was an even ten people... and so they had someone who put a total balance in on the scales, the flat zero to Zerrex's perfect ten.

However, it still wouldn't do to underestimate him, although it looked as though he was all but clinging to Vampire, as Lone held up a neon-blue plated gun... one that Zerrex recognized as Cherry's preferred sidearm, a fifty magnum that shot piercing rounds. Then he put it against Mary's head as Zerrex's eyes widened and he snarled slightly: but apparently, that was more than enough for Lone, as he yelled in a cracked voice: "This is the start of my payback, motherfucker! Everyone's gonna suffer, you're gonna die for what you did to me, you ugly fuck!"

And then he pulled the trigger, and the sound of the gun firing shook Zerrex's world as Mary's skull imploded on one side and everything inside it came out the other: brain, bone, blood and gore blasted over the rooftop, as Lone stared with what the reptile thought was horror and revulsion at what he'd done, and whatever little extra dramatic speech was lost as the wolf dropped the handgun with terror and began to tremble, backing away as he saw Zerrex not falling to his knees in misery but merely snarling with greater fury as he began to walk forwards towards the incline... and then Lone fell over and vomited as Tinman ran forwards and rose his hands, his features a frightened snarl of concentration as the sheets of metal trembled the sheets of metal that composed the almost-ramp shuddered and then rose to form a flat wall, and Vampire yelled furiously: "The fuck are you doing, Tinny, trap the fuck so we can blow it!"

Zerrex snarled again, looking back and forth as he set aside the strange, inner agony he felt at Mary's death... the feeling like his heart had been torn from his chest, and the only way he knew to respond was to stay alive so he could deal with these fuckers later, on his own terms: yet, even as he spun around and realize there was plastic explosive stuck on all the walls, and a massive gate of steel on one side of what he came to realize was the sole entrance to the place, he felt one single thought reverberate in his head: you were right, Mary. I do have feelings. I did care about you. Looks like you won the bet...

With that thought chanting through his mind, Zerrex turned and ran as sharp-edged sheets of metal hailed down towards him like giant, deadly playing cards, cutting into the ground not because of weight and the strength they were thrown at, but merely because the edges were so damn sharp and from the force of gravity... but then he was gone and through the gate, charging back down the alley, knowing he couldn't deal with them here, in this maze of horrors they had built for him, as he heard rapid footsteps pounding not behind him, but on a preset course above before Vampire jumped out at the head of the alleyway and lunged at him, holding small, narrow knives between each finger of his right hand as he threw a punch.

Zerrex simply drew the sword his hand was on, not even pulling it fully out of the sheath as he sidestepped: the wolf's hand collided with the blade, and he shrieked and dropped his knives, grabbing his wrist as he pulled his hand back, cut deeply between the first and second fingers and spouting blood before he was knocked onto his side as the Drakkaren's foot lashed out and connected with the side of his head, slamming him into the wall and knocking him senseless to the ground before the reptile continued on as he heard footsteps continuing to stumble-run forwards, realizing that much of this place was made of metal, that every gate was steel held by damaged steel latches, and that if Tinman had a moment or two he could trap the Drakkaren in any given passageway... and so instead of pausing to continue the battle, the reptile merely ran as Vampire struggled to his feet.

Before the black wolf could catch up, however, Cherry dropped in front of Zerrex next, both whips snapping up over her shoulder before she snarled and aimed high as the reptile immediately leapt towards one side of the narrow passage and kicked off the wall, then the next one in line, trying to reach the top of the high walls by repeatedly shoving off each surface; the whips, however, lashed out at his projected position with perfect accuracy, and although the reptile was able to dodge the chain with a twist of his body, the second wrapped tight around an arm as he rose it to avoid being lashed across the face by the long weapon.

Cherry immediately grinned as she grunted and hauled, her muscles bulging against the tight confines of her jacket before she stared as Zerrex shot both legs out, stopping his fall as his feet dug into the wall on either side of him, just able to bridge the narrow gap before she was sent flying with a shriek of surprise and dismay as the reptile grabbed the end of the whip and snapped it violently upwards from his end this time. Cherry immediately yanked the whip free from the Drakkaren's arm and allowed herself to fly high into the air instead of being dragged up and probably snapped back down by the giant: she obviously flew higher than intended, however, and panicked at the apogee of her flight - but instead of watching her crash land, the reptile merely started sprinting again as he saw Tinman standing at the edge of a building roughly ten meters away, staring frantically back and forth as he tried to work his powers against the raised metal gate over the exit of the alley. However, when Zerrex gave a sharkish grin coupled with the enraged glare of those who are on the brink of a psychotic snap, Tinny let out a scream of fear and actually toppled off the rooftop.

Zerrex ignored him when he ran out of the mouth of the alley: the badger was curled up in a heap and crying raggedly, cut and bruised from falling on top of a pile of broken furniture. Instead, he merely continued to sprint down alleyway after alleyway, through courtyards and intersections alike, until he heard a roar from behind him as he reached an open area that was less than a hundred meters away from the exit out of the industrial district: one long, narrow passage and then the fairly open, fairly long broken field of metal and scrap, in other words.

The reptile immediately drew a sword in reverse position and put his hand on the hilt before slamming a foot into the ground and shooting backwards instead of forwards, and then Vampire screamed, his reaching arms going out past Zerrex as his eyes bulged and blood flew from his mouth, the sword ripping through his midsection as the powerful, huge body of the Boss slammed backwards into him: his legs, however, tried to continue to run forwards, not getting the point, and thus tangled and caused him to trip forwards, almost landing on top of the Drakkaren - except that the reptile then jumped forwards as he let go of the sword for a moment, spinning around to catch it in his other hand and rip it free from the wolf's body in a hard sideways cutting motion that tore open the stomach of the black-furred lupine.

It should have left his guts in a heap in front of him, but instead of that he only got a view of them pulsating and literally snaking around inside the wolf's body as he grabbed his head, stumbling backwards and screaming in agony again as blood burst from his muzzle, his sunglasses cracked and hanging askew on his features before his eyes bulged open again and his arms spasmed out as Zerrex stepped forwards and laid into him with a rapid series of slashes with the sword, making long diagonal and horizontal cuts back and forth, tearing his trenchcoat apart and shredding the rawhide bandolier and belt of the lupine before he stomped a foot down in an axle and spun around to land a kick to the ripped-open stomach of the wolf, sending him flying back to land heavily on his ass. Whatever else, Vampire had gotten more than rusty - but before he had a chance to get back up, Zerrex leapt forwards as he pointed the sword towards the ground and stabbed the katana hard enough to bury it through the thick-muscled chest of the wolf and then two feet into the ground, pinning him as he stared up at Zerrex with both agony and fury, grabbing at the sword and trying to yank it loose as he panted, hissed and growled, eyes rolling in a frenzy of pain and humiliated rage.

However, before he could get up, Zerrex turned and grabbed the first thing he saw - a metal pole that had broken off messily at one end. Immediately, he spun it so that the pointed, broken tip was facing down, and before Vampire could react, he stabbed it through his calf, again digging it deep into the ground and making the wolf howl in pain, spasming on the ground as the reptile quickly dug another makeshift spear of metal from the scrap pile beside him: this one looking as though it came from a road sign.

The reptile didn't bother to examine it however, instead shoving it down through his stomach as Vampire strugged, slowly yanking the sword free from his shoulder - but then Zerrex stomped down on his arm and put a broken piece of metal dowelling through his hand, making him shriek - and then the shrieks were cut off when the reptile shoved another pole through his throat, holding his head down.

The wolf's breaths rasped in and out before he let out a breathy scream as Zerrex stomped on his chest and yanked the sword free, snarling as he looked around - it was messy, but he'd taken too much time as it was to bind Vampire to the ground. As the black-furred lupine kicked and bled sluggishly onto the broken earth, the Drakkaren gave him one last look before turning and sprinting away as he heard approaching footsteps - in this jumble of metal poles and debris, he wanted to be caught neither by the Tinman nor Cherry: both of them were far more intelligent than Vampire was, after all.

After that, he made it out to the last courtyard without incident... but then he heard the stagger-stomp of feet and he turned around to see that once more, Vamp was chasing after him, clutching his torn-open stomach, foaming slightly at the mouth and with black and gray fur saturated with his blood as he panted harshly, hands holding what looked like the first pole the reptile had put through him: it only took Zerrex a moment and a glance over the wolf's shoulder to verify that running from him again wasn't an option - firstly, he would probably jam that makeshift spear in his bike if he tried to jump on the vehicle and take off... secondly, there was no sign of Cherry, and the Tinman was far behind, clutching at his stomach and leaning heavily on the wall. It seemed that at least two of his enemies were done, one probably kayoed from a very long fall and the other exhausted from overuse of his powers... and then, as Vampire lunged and stabbed at him with the pole, Zerrex swayed to the side and reached his hands out to grab the middle and end, yanking it free from Vampire's grips and then smacking him upside the head with it, making him yelp and grab his face and sensitive muzzle before the reptile spun the pole around his body and shifted his grip to the other side, both hands grasping the end as he shoved the broken pipe of metal through the shin and ankle of black wolf and then deep into the ground behind him.

Vampire fell heavily, his ankle twisting and snapping as he shrieked in pain again, Zerrex jumping backwards to avoid his clawing hands before he merely lay there, panting hard and struggling slowly, hands grasping uselessly at the earth as he looked up at Zerrex, then, ridiculously, hissed: "That fucking hurts, Ravenlight!"

Zerrex merely snorted, then he raised his muzzle in the air as he stared at the bloody and battered wolf without pity or mercy. "We both know you're pretty resistant to pain, Vamp... but I guess being gutted and holed enough times in twenty minutes to make you competition for Swiss cheese will screw up anyone's day, huh?" he paused, then before the black wolf could reply, added darkly: "Go to sleep."

Then one of the Drakkaren's booted feet lashed out with enough force to crack the wolf's lower jaw and send his entire upper body arching into the air before he flumped down, knocked unconscious from the force of the blow. The reptile knew, however, that it wouldn't last very long... and now Tinman was almost here, and despite the panting and obvious tiredness on his features, Zerrex didn't want to take any chances - a metal yard was not the place to fight him. So instead, he turned and ran, heading out through the break in the fence and then running for his bike, not bothering to undo his swords as he hopped on and started the engine in one liquid movement, then he gunned the engine and shot off, away from the industrial district and on his way back home.

This time, he'd been lucky: they had underestimated him, but next time they'd not only be ready for him... they'd be looking for payback for the complete humiliation the reptile had laid into them with. That made them doubly dangerous... but they would also be careful, because at the same time they'd realize that not only were they dealing with the old Captain Ravenlight in high form... they'd be dealing with a pissed off Boss of the city who wanted to take revenge for the war that Lone had dared to start and the innocent he had dared to hurt.

With that thought, an image of Mary rose to his mind, and the reptile's snarl deepened as his emerald eyes turned from cold to agonized, his expression harsher than any demon's fire and more full of wrath than any vengeful god. He would not allow Mary's death to be in vain, whether it was justice or retribution or simply bloody revenge. He would not allow such an innocent soul to die, and it wasn't just because it hurt him and she had been something to him... but because...

No one that innocent... should have ever been brought into this... the reptile thought... and then he hissed through his teeth as the dark side of him recoiled at this. Then, slowly, he nodded to himself as he sped towards his home, echoing it in his mind, tasting it and finding that the bitterness, the hate, but the strange amount of honor inherent in it was... to his liking. The innocent... shouldn't suffer for my sins.

It didn't take the reptile much longer to reach his home; his thoughts had perhaps carried him a bit too deep, a bit too far. He snorted quietly as he pulled up into his driveway, feeling both irritated at his lack of concentration on the road and his sudden touchy-feely emotional jump... after all, he could've been ambushed anywhere by any soldiers that were laying in wait...

And, as if to prove a point, the reptile felt only a moment of shocked instinct yelling vainly to duck as he caught a flash of movement at the edge of his vision: a moment later, a hooked metal claw collided with his face, then snapped backwards, leaving a deep-gouged tear down his muzzle, taking a flap of flesh and scale with it as the reptile toppled sideways, knocking his bike over as he tried to get his other leg back and barely managed to stop from falling, instead kicking off the foot under the falling bike and slipping the other leg just over the seat to avoid becoming tangled in the motorcycle as he felt his face dripping blood, felt it soaking the collar of his shirt as he raised his bare hands, seeing Cherry, snarling, fifteen feet away, but likely with about that reach, holding both the chain and leather whips ready as she grinned and tilted her head, then spat: "I figured you'd retreat here, so I made sure to give you a proper welcome back home, asshole. See, funny thing about Vamp and Lone and Tinny, they don't seem to notice when you leave for a few minutes to hotwire a car and drive it off into the bushes. And apparently you underestimated me, Ravenlight, 'cause a fall like that isn't going to take me out that easy."

Zerrex snorted, then he reached his right hand down for his sword - but it found nothing, and then he snarled a bit as Cherry smiled icily and held up the leather whip, waggling it back and forth as she said softly: "I do have two of these, boss. And even I'm not stupid enough to put myself at the double disadvantage of giving you two weapons and fight you on your home terrain... you with one sword should be challenge enough."

"You learned too good, looks like." The male Drakkaren replied softly, then he cross-drew his left sword with his right hand and held it up, arm bent upwards and sword on a diagonal in front of his body, tensing his form as he drew one leg back slightly... before he dropped a bit as Cherry snarled and abruptly ran forwards, the reptile lunging backwards to try and maintain distance as he saw her suddenly jump, raising the whips behind her shoulders as one booted foot hit his bike... and then sent the more than half-a-ton of metal flying directly at the reptile even as he continued to rapidly back-step, his eyes widening but the snarl of his features undoubtedly filling with some form of dark joy at the fact he was facing off against an opponent who was not only a threat to him but a worthy foe.

The reptile reversed his momentum, slamming a foot down behind him and then kicking off, spinning in midair as he folded one knee upwards and thrusted the other leg out, smashing his combat-foot clad boot into the seat of the motorcycle and sending it flying back at the female: but before he could even land, her whips had already wrapped around the huge metal machine as the female Drakkaren roared and spun on the spot, her muscles bulging and slightly tearing the seams of her too-tight jacket as she dragged the motorcycle out of its trajectory and around in a circle before flinging it back at her combatant: Zerrex, however, had done a more showy kick than necessary for a reason instead of just showing off.

He didn't try to land on his feet: instead, he came down on one knee and the stretched-out leg, and he allowed his body to tilt, catching himself on the elbow of his left arm as he pushed his right straight out ahead of him - less than a moment later, one of his most treasured physical possessions flew over his head and crashed to the ground behind him, and it made the reptile's eyes darken as he felt rage starting to rise in him as well, despite the strange joy he was taking in being able to fight Cherry this one last time.

She charged in, but then leapt into the air as Zerrex shoved his hand into the ground and swept both feet out in a wide, violent sweep kick, his body spinning fully three hundred and sixty degrees before the reptile ended up on his back, Cherry in the air above him and lashing down at him with the leather whip to bind him while she brought the chain up above her head, spinning it once to add momentum and hopefully deal out a blow to his neck or skull - a lethal strike, in other words. But again, Zerrex got his left arm up in time, and Cherry snarled as her eyes widened, her precognition telling her to immediately let go of the whip as Zerrex yanked it hard backwards - but then she could only let herself fall as the reptile grinned at her from the ground, snapping the leather whip around and then catching her in the face with the handle even as she tried to spin her body in midair and lashed out with a counterstrike from the chain whip.

He gave her a bloody nose and threw her leather whip probably onto the roof or far beyond when he let it go - she tore open a gouge on his chest and safely landed on her feet before shoving backwards and gaining distance from the former Captain of the Goth Legion as he performed a backwards roll and handspring from the ground to land on his feet, a good twenty feet between them as they both stared at each other and panted slightly, then Zerrex rose his sword and Cherry snapped her whip at the huge male, snarling as it failed to elect so much as a twitch. Zerrex merely gazed into her eyes with blood and battle lust... and she thought, definite other desires as well, as the reptile's grin widened... and she couldn't help but return that same glare as she reached up and threw her torn leather jacket off, revealing her smooth but muscular arms as she twirled the whip above her head and let it fall over her shoulders and wrap slightly around her body, one hand clutching the handle of the whip above her head, the other extended outwards, palm facing the other lizard as the huge male snorted, then he slipped his sword down the front of his shirt, blade outwards, and pulled before shrugging his shoulders and shedding the sliced-down-the-front shirt from his form, revealing the enormous musculature upon his bare chest. Then he pushed one leg slightly forwards and brought the other back, one arm bending in a slight L and the fingers extended in a claw-like formation, his other arm straight out and holding the sword in a direct line towards Cherry. This was one of their oldest duel formations... the snake charmer and the savage beast.

Then Cherry spun on the spot, moving towards Zerrex and the liquid grace with which she moved her body causing the heavy chain whip to lift harmlessly from its position around her form, unraveling as she pulled down and lashed it around it a wide forwards arc, the claw singing through the air as Zerrex backstepped and changed his stance, bringing the sword close to his body and raised defensively as he then quickly went into a roll to the side as Cherry brought the long whip striking downwards before snapping it back towards her body, swaying to the side slightly to avoid being hit by her own weapon as her hands expertly and easily traded the handle behind her back, and then she crouched and lashed out with a low, wide arc at shin level as Zerrex lunged forwards from his crouch, sword held out before his eyes widened and he was forced to kick into the air... and Cherry grinned as she switched the chain whip back into her right hand and stayed in the crouch, snapping the whip around in a three-hundred and sixty-degree spin and raising it above her head.

Zerrex snarled and shoved his sword out as he twisted his body around, but the metal claw on the end of the long whip caught his side and dug another deep gouge as he ended up back to Cherry for a moment, in close enough range to strike her with his blade but, before he could even think of doing so, the chain whip had wrapped taunt around it and then the female Drakkaren expertly twisted the handle and yanked hard, snarling and snapping the blade off near the hilt, sending a vibration through the broken katana that caused Zerrex to drop the sword as he spun to face her with a snarl and widened eyes, watching as she snapped the whip backwards and seeing now how the hook had been designed to purposefully catch in the chain links, how the chain whip was wrapped around the blade to hold it so that still roughly a foot of it was uncovered but the metal links had otherwise wrapped tight side-by-side and shortened the range of the whip greatly... but he was close, and she was bringing the whip around in a helicopter around her head, eyes full of burning rage and her muzzle opening in a furious shout of simply: "Die!"

The Drakkaren did the only thing he could: he brought his right arm up to the side and snarled as agony ripped into the limb, feeling blood explode as the blade bit almost halfway through his thick arm... but then it stopped after striking the bone, and that left Cherry gaping with horror as instead of freezing up, like another normal person would do, Zerrex leapt forwards even as Cherry tried to snap the whip back - but this time, the whip failed and the too-late snap only caused the metal hook to come undone from where it was buried, the chain links falling from the broken sword that was buried in Zerrex's right arm as he shoved it forwards in a hard punch that Cherry's precog let her dodge at the last moment, the blade scratching over her muzzle as the hook missed her face, her back arched and her arms flailing outwards as she almost overbalanced... but then she screamed in agony as Zerrex grinned savagely, finding pleasure even in the intense pain that burned through his arm as he made the pain worse but better at the same time, as instead of drawing the hook back, he twisted his arm as he stepped forwards, closing his form with Cherry's bent back body and sent the blade shoving deep into the junction between shoulder and neck, shattering her collarbone and causing her to shriek a scream that was music to the Boss of Comfort Town.

For a moment they were frozen like that - the roughly three foot, broken katana blade buried in Zerrex's profusely bleeding arm, his fingers twitching and hand not responding properly, but the blade jarred loose of where it had lodged... although now instead it was deeply shoved into the shoulder of the female reptile, who he was leaning over, she bent backwards and her arms now sagging downwards, her eyes staring stupidly upwards and jaw open, gaping, drooling a bit as she saw with unmatched clarity the next attack that was about to come and she knew she couldn't stop, her back bent as it was, the whip fallen from her hands, which were too far away to even think about blocking the strike in time, Zerrex's huge body over her own tall form... leaned forwards... looking almost as if they were some strange dance partners - although Zerrex's hand would have to be around her waist to make it seem like she hadn't just attempted to dodge his attack. Then the attack she'd expected came, and despite her strongest efforts, she screamed again as Zerrex's left elbow slammed into her gut with all the force the male could muster.

But the scream was barely a whisper as she felt something rupture inside of her and her eyes bulged, blood, drool and other substances flying upwards out of her muzzle as her stomach tried to eject its contents from the force of the blow, her arms spasming outwards as she felt the reptile's feet hook her own out from beneath her at the moment of impact... and then she was slamming downwards, and the sheer shockwave that the blow sent through her body sent the katana blade flying from her shoulder and his arm as Zerrex stayed balanced over her, his elbow down, his eyes cold and calm now, but that horrible, sadistic grin on his features as his tongue slowly licked over his own muzzle, his torn-into arm held out as Cherry collided with the earth hard enough to leave a crater around her body. She writhed on the ground, her arms wrapping around her stomach as she gurgled, eyes glazing over and seeing nothing as black and white shapes danced in her vision, and then she vomited again, spewing up more blood and ichors than anything else as it puddled on the ground beside her, seeping down into the cracked earth as she lost track of everything, struggled to breathe in whispery, hard breaths, and then finally some sight came back into her eyes as she stared up at Zerrex, seeing he had straightened and wrapped his torn short around his arm in a compress as she managed to whisper: "You've never... hit me that hard before, even when... we dueled... I always told you to... you always said you gave me everything you had..."

"I lied." Zerrex responded shortly, looking down at her as he placed a foot on her neck, above her large bosom, and then he ground his heel down against her, making her eyes clench and jaw snarl as he looked down at her with a mixture of cold rage and a strange, betrayed hatred. "I never wanted to hurt you, Cherry. After all. I did love you."

Cherry looked up at him with hate in her eyes... tinged with some other emotion now... but then she clenched her eyes shut and bowed her head, underside of her muzzle pressing against his boot as she rasped: "Fuck... you..."

Zerrex looked at her, his muzzle twitching... and then he snarled and drew his foot back before dropping to his knees, straddling her as she looked up at him; he put his arms out on either side of her body, then slowly leaned his head down as he looked into her eyes, almost muzzle-to-muzzle with her as he replied in a soft, dangerous voice: "Fuck you? You'd like it, bitch." Then he paused before reaching one hand inwards and grabbing one of her breasts roughly, making her snarl and spasm, but she was unable to struggle, unable to look away, even after he easily tore her shirt down and then pushed his hand back against the swell of her breast, through her bra. "You think I can't feel the excitement at that prospect through your body? One last fuck with me, getting raped but this time for real, by your Master, your Captain, the one guy who dominated and controlled you like no one else ever could dream of doing?" He stopped, then suddenly he got up to his knees, and Cherry found she still had enough consciousness left in her broken body to be surprised and... and hurt, at the revulsion he saw crawl over his features as he took his hand away from her and looked down at it, before he looked up at her, muzzle setting and... a strange new emotion coming into his eyes before he leaned down again, and this time she took in a hard breath as his hand settled on her bruised face, his eyes locked with hers, and then suddenly they were both trembling, both remembering the past, both knowing why she'd come here as they stared eye-to-eye... and before Cherry could run to hide again, could pretend she felt nothing, that she came here to kill Zerrex only because she hated him now, not because she wanted it to be quick and clean and she knew that if Ravenlight was going to die, he'd want to die in a duel with someone who was worthy enough to kill him, not by some coward with a gun or bomb... before she could convince herself again that she had only been with him in all those years in the GL because he was a good fuck and had a massive cock, he said quietly: "I still love you, Cherry..."

"You..." she whispered, staring at him with terror in her eyes, more frightened of the calmness and the fact that he was revealing his emotions, unmasking himself in front of her than the prospect of death... and then suddenly, he was lifting her up instead of killing her, his arms slipping under her as she moaned in pain, and the feelings of déjà vu - this had happened before in the past, after all, and several times he had come to pick her up after she'd bitten off more than she could chew... but she had done the same for him, and they'd laughed about both - crumpled the little resistance she could defend as instead she wrapped her arms around his neck and she began to tremble violently, pushing against his chest as all the armor and masks she had worn over the years fell off and she could only curl up in his grasp, remembering all the time they had spent together, all the buried memories of their secret love and affection, remembering all the good and altruism and niceness they had shared... and forgetting, for the first time in her life, all the teachings of sadism and cruelty that the Goth Legion had bestowed upon them both and only curling up in that embrace as she let out another moan of inner conflict and pain from her ruptured stomach.

Zerrex carried her quietly inside, then he lay her down on the couch before going to the bathroom and retrieving what he referred to as his 'emergency kit;' a small, flat box that contained every essential for the medically-versed soldier... except painkillers. Zerrex didn't hold with drugs, after all... and seeing as how he had been through enough sadism and torture sessions in his life - as well as caused about a thousand times more and seen perhaps a million times worth that - to kill a horror movie psycho, even the massive slash in his arm was no longer bothering him as much... but that could be due to the shock of seeing Cherry, his ex, after all these years. Not of having her attempt to kill him, that just brought the pain of betrayal but no surprise... but the shock that her eyes told him she still loved him... and that she was only trying to kill him for some reason other than money or even revenge. For perhaps... that strange honor they'd always shared.

He returned to the living room, feeling a strange mental agony that overwhelmed the physical aches of his body - pain he was all too used to from working with the Goth Legion for all those years of hellish brutality - as he thought of Mary... but then he glanced at Cherry and put those thoughts aside for now. There would be time to mourn later, but for now... he had to take care of the female Drakkaren.

He didn't know why, nor did he pretend to... training, after all, was insisting that he go, find his other katana, and cut her head off with it. Or that he just break her neck; whatever way he preferred, just so long as he killed her and did it quickly, before she recovered. But as she looked at him with those sapphire eyes that were struggling with their own conflicts, he realized she had the same question burning in her soul; why didn't he kill her? So instead of just leaving it, as he unwrapped the t-shirt from around his arm and then brushed his hair back - wincing at the pain in his cheek as he scraped the huge open gash by mistake - he looked at her and just let himself speak as he would, staring quietly with: "I've spent five years here, now, Cherry, and everyone has come to know me as the Boss... as the cruel, sadistic bastard who is the true ruling force, at least behind Comfort Town... but over the years, something in me started to change..."

Zerrex spoke as he slowly began to stitch his arm up - not only did it take his mind off the pain, it gradually began to explain to him the exact reasons why he'd begun to act so strangely, why he'd been developing... emotions and tendencies he'd formerly thought of as 'weak...'

He told her about meeting Elliot, and Cindy... he told her about his jobs, his process for them, and about the division between Comfort Town and Apple Villa... he told her about his dreams, hopes, aspirations, something he could share only with her, he felt... he told her about Mary, and he told her about Lone and the issues that had begun to arise in Baskin's Grove, and the conflicts between them. He told her about what he'd experienced in warmth, love and affection... all while tending to her wounds, slowly stripping her naked as she stared at him with a strange desire burning in her eyes, and then, after he finished dressing her wounds and bandaging her up, she'd silently taken the suture kit from him and begun to stitch up the other deep gash on his chest - he hadn't even noticed it... most likely because his concentration on talking and the pain in his arm swallowed everything else up.

So she'd bandaged him up, like old times, even as he continued to talk stumblingly of the philosophies and the feelings he'd encountered... and then Cherry had stripped off his pants and boots, and then his boxers, even as he continued to speak - now slightly haltingly - and then she had put her arms around his neck, kissed him deeply and said in a near-silent voice: "I don't care. I won't pretend to understand. But I just know that I want to be with you... because you're all I've thought about, and when I see you now, I know that you're the only one who has ever mattered to me."

Then she'd pulled him down onto the couch, and she'd kissed him and touched him in all the right places, apparently having never forgotten any part of his body, her hands exploring his form as his touched hers. She traced his masculine breast, his firm, chiseled abs, his crotch and inner legs... he massaged her firm, large breasts, down her sides and stomach, gingerly traced her inner thighs and the cleft of her vagina with one finger. She moaned quietly and rubbed into his hands, rolling her firm breasts against his palms and bucking her hips against his fingers as they dragged gently over the lips of her sex. Then her hands moved to gently play between his legs, massaging his testicles, squeezing the huge navy orbs as the other stroked his half-erect shaft to full life, making the male grunt quietly as she dragged her palm against the thick, huge flesh and gently planted her hand against the head, swiveling it slowly and causing him to slowly thrust forwards. Then he rolled atop her, grinding the thirty-two inch length against her body as he panted quietly down onto her face, hands settling on her breasts, squeezing them roughly and rolling them slowly apart, upwards, together as Cherry bucked her body against him, her hands clutching his hips as she moaned quietly.

The reptile bore his weight and flesh down upon her, pinning her against the couch with his body as he slowly thrusted his humongous length up her stomach, nudging it against her breasts as her eyes stared up at him hungrily, her hands sliding down to squeeze his tight buttocks before roving inwards, moving over his powerful abdominals and chest muscles before one hand went under his muzzle and the other stroked the undamaged side of his face, guiding him down to share another hungry kiss with her muzzle, working their jaws together passionately as their tongues wrestled and fought to pin each other, her hips bucking in slow rhythm up against him as he dragged his massive length back and forth over her bruised body. Their eyes were closed, their bodies hot, their mouths working, their sounds hungry as they worked together in desire that was both true and dark.

He reveled in her body and what he saw only as beauty, and then he drew back, panting quietly, jaws open as his eyes opened and stared down at her: Cherry's own opened slowly, half-lidding, then she murred deeply as she looked deep into his emerald irises, bucking herself hard against him and reaching up to grab his shoulders, making him grunt quietly as she jerked him down towards her, opening her jaws and giving an almost animal whine of want as she rubbed herself slowly against his huge, veiny shaft, her legs spreading wide on either side of him... and Zerrex growled quietly in return, slowly reaching one hand down from where they had settled on her firm, luscious breasts to grasp his own thick shaft, pulling back and then gently positioning himself at her entrance, rolling his hips slowly, gently... teasing her with the head of his huge cock as she groaned quietly and bucked forwards, trying to sink herself on the gargantuan length. Then Zerrex grinned slightly, looking into her eyes as he flexed his muscles, both hands moving to grasp her hips as he whispered: "Oh, that's right... I don't have to be gentle with you."

He pushed into her, grunting as he thrusted his huge length violently forwards and penetrated more than half of his giant cock through her tight lips and into her passage, making her howl and arch her back, eyes clenching shut and jaws snapping open as her claws dug into his shoulders deep enough to draw blood, her huge breasts shoving up against his body as Zerrex bared down on her with a bestial growl and rocked his hips forwards again, his toeclaws digging against the couch for purchase as he shoved his lower body forwards and his muscles flexed as he rammed his immense, thirty-two inch member into her, making her scream again, her head rocking from side to side as she felt his hands digging painfully into her hips. Then one moved from her hip to grab a breast roughly, squeezing the nipple between two fingers before merely groping her crudely, Zerrex's hot breath washing over her face as he pistoned his gigantic length forwards a final time, this time ramming it home entirely and making her shriek once more. She bent backwards even further, arching against the couch as her legs clutched his sides and her fingers clawed down his shoulders, letting his blood flow again as his wrecking-ball testicles smacked her anus with enough force to cause her entire body to jump. Then, as suddenly as Zerrex had thrusted into her, she began to buck her hips against him, tilting her head back up and shoving herself down, a snarling grin on her features as her eyes glared up at him challengingly despite the immense, thick warmth buried in her, stretching her, despite feeling blood running from her vagina. She growled, then her grin stretched wider, showing off her sharp teeth as she panted out: "When did you turn into such a fucking pansy bitch? I want it hard, you fucking bastard... fuck me hard, asshole..."

Zerrex looked down at her, feeling his animal side rising in him, feeling an erotic heat that he hadn't felt or been able to indulge in forever, and he couldn't help but give a deep growl in return before bearing down on her breast with one hand hard enough to make her scream... and then moving his fingers to violently twist and jerk back on her nipple, making her scream louder and arch her back against him, her eyes full of pain but also hot, dark lust as she continued to grin despite the rush of agony. Then he began to thrust violently as he settled his hand roughly back onto her bruised breast, panting hard onto her face as he leaned his muscular, immense body down over hers and pummeling her body with his cock, making her cry out again and again, as her arms wrapped around his thick neck as she buried her muzzle forwards under his muzzle, her jaws snapping at his throat as drool ran from her maw and she bucked her hips powerfully in return.

Her body jounced with every thrust, her breasts jiggled violently as he rammed in and out, in and out, his flesh penetrating to the hilt between her bleeding, stretched lips every time and then drawing back as far as he could before ramming home again, thick cockhead burying somewhere deep in her body as she shrieked and curled up against his masculine form, sandwiched between him and the couch. Her limbs grasped his strong body as tight as they could, her tail spasming as his testicles collided again and again into her anus, the pain immense but the dark pleasure that stemmed from that and the sex so much greater... the need for this kind of sex, the feeling of him above her, dominating her like an animal... she had missed it. Oh, how she had missed it, how she didn't want to admit it but it felt like she was truly back where she belonged... her jaws opened, then snapped down on the junction of his throat and shoulder, making Zerrex release an animal snarl above her and sit up slightly to ram her with enough force to send them both moving forwards, slamming her against the arm of the couch and making her scream even as she bit down and drew blood, tasted his life stuffs. She moaned, then shrieked, drawing her mouth back, feeling small drips of blood falling onto her body, rolling between her roughly-abused breasts as his hand continued to feel and work one in his strong fingers, feeling his huge testicles bashing into her again and again, and most of all, his girthy penis ripping into her depths over and over.

She opened her mouth, releasing another cry as she felt herself bent slightly, her head forced up by the arm of the couch, the springs creaking and screaming under the force, the furnishing rocking from the power of the reptile's thrusts... and she cried out and begged for more, for harder, harder, harder... something Zerrex responded to immediately, grinning violently, his eyes full of not want now but a need for this interaction, slamming her with his huge cock again and again. Already he felt his huge shaft stiffening up, his orgasm maybe already too late to stop and certainly too late to deny as he shoved his body down onto hers, as he dug his fingers along her side and made her scream again as he sank the claws on his other hand partially into her firm breast, her body bucking up against him with extra strength as he felt a distinct tightening on his massive flesh.

Cherry moaned loudly, rocking her hips forcefully up against the Drakkaren above her, feeling his gigantic shaft stiffening like metal inside of her as she felt her own orgasm drawing close. She shoved her body close to his, screaming loudly as he brought his other hand up to her free breast and now grasped both of them, feeling a bit of his drool falling onto her as he panted hotly, feeling his eyes roving over her expression as she clenched her eyes shut in a burst of agony and pleasure that came from her depths as the gigantic cock rubbed and stretched her, touched every sensitive part of her vagina. It only served to bring her closer to orgasm... in fact, it shoved her over the edge, causing her to shriek and open her eyes, dropping all pretense of resistance. She was only able to stare into his eyes, crying out again and again as she held herself as close as possible, then she buried her muzzle forwards under his again and released a loud scream of ecstasy as she felt herself clenching down against the gigantic cock of the reptile, unleashing a burst of her juices down the massive shaft that was rapidly thrusting into her, the walls of her passage squeezing into the thick black member as Zerrex groaned above her, hitting his own orgasm, pushed on by hers.

He pummeled her with his massive cock, working it furiously in and out as she shrieked again and again, her passage clutching him tight enough to make every drag back and penetrating shove forwards difficult... but that too only made it more pleasurable for him as he rapidly worked his gigantic member in and out of her, feeling her fluids rushing down and spurting out around the sides of his deep-tearing penis. He growled, grinning down at her, hands moving from her breasts to wrap around her body and squeeze her up against his form, making her shriek again as he tore into her deeper and deeper with his immense penis before arching his back and working even faster, letting out a loud, animal roar of ecstasy as his fluids released, his steel-stiff shaft pumping rapidly and sending loose a torrent of his thick white seed into her.

She screamed again, feeling her body crushed up against Zerrex's muscular form, back cracking as his strong arms flexed and held her tightly against him, her legs spasming and hips bucking wildly as his fluids burst into her and filled her up with blast after blast of his thick load. She shrieked at the pleasure and pain that tore through her body, feeling his navy blue orbs smacking into her again and again as his obsidian member tore deep into her passage over and over, vagina devastated from being so violently torn into by his cock as Zerrex released another animal half-cry above her... then he finally began to slow, his hips pumping his thick member a few more times in and out of her spasming vagina, his seed leaking around her as she moaned and sank back against the couch, trembling hard, feeling blood leaking from much of her body and mixing with his - many of the other reptile's wounds had reopened as well. They lay together, panting hard, the reptile's thick member still buried inside her vagina... and then she slowly grinned, closing her eyes before whispering: "You're still hard..."

"I rape for a living... it has a lot of pleasant side effects on one's libido." Zerrex responded quietly, his voice slightly roughened by his animal sounds before he cleared his throat and grinned in return, eyeing her hungrily before he murred deeply and made a slow thrust, causing Cherry to buck against him and moan quietly. "What say we... try something else, now, then?"

So after he'd fulfilled their strongest desires, probably not helping her heal at all... he carefully rolled over, making Cherry moan at the movement of the giant penis inside of her passage, then she opened her eyes as he gently moved his hands to her stomach, lightly pushing her upwards to sit up on his huge girth before taking her hands, squeezing them and staring up into her eyes as she straddled him on the bloody couch, their bodies splattered with the same stuffs and Zerrex's deep-slashed arm bleeding again as well as several of his minor wounds... but now everything was different from before, from the animal hungers, the lust for dark sex, the need for pain as well as pleasure to fulfill all their desires... and she could only stare down into his emerald irises with her own light sapphire eyes for a few long moments before a strange smile broke over her features, and she found herself whispering a quiet "yes" without even pausing to think, before her training or the brutal nurture that had been ingrained into her could take over.

He was gentle, and she'd moaned and swayed with him as she rocked on him, and her eyes had filled with warmth as he lit up a part of her that no one else ever had for all the years they'd been separated through fucking or killing or groping... as he appreciated her in a way that made her feel like everything was going to be okay, as he turned sex from a weapon to a slow and luxurious pleasure for her... and it was good, it made her happy, and that happiness easily killed logic and training. She bounced slowly on his massive length, moving lazily and luxuriously, her mouth agape, eyes staring with deep bliss into the reptile's emerald irises as he slowly moved from laying on the couch to sitting on it, back against the cushions, his hands gently squeezing and rubbing up and down her sides. They moved together passionately, blissfully, the thirty-two inch penis stretching and widening her but no longer ripping and pummeling the female.

She panted quietly, her hands reaching up to grasp his shoulders as the strong muscles of her legs flexed, guiding her up and down his huge length as she rocked her head from side to side slowly, moaning quietly, feeling only the strange warmth and the girthy black cock inside of her, filling her up so wonderfully, so pleasurably, and for once without any trace of that dark eroticism that had for so long been their soul source of sexual joy. No sadism this time... no, only warmth and... would she dare call it love?

She moaned, her hands squeezing down into his shoulders as she began to rock herself faster up and down the gigantic shaft, her passage squeezing his immense obsidian member as she stared down into the eyes of the male Drakkaren, bouncing on his huge shaft and feeling him rocking his hips in time with her movements, his eyes moving from the jiggling of her breasts to staring into her eyes as his hands grasped her hips. Their gazes locked, their bodies moved in perfect, hot synchronization, and the pleasure they shared only continued to grow, becoming larger, hotter, stronger...

Cherry moaned loudly at the feeling of the reptile plunging up into her again and again, arching her back but maintaining their eye contact as Zerrex grunted, squeezing her waist tightly as he began to move himself with even greater strength in and out of her tight lips, their sounds of erotic bliss mixing into a chorus. With both of them already made sensitive from their previous rough bout, and the extra lubrication of the fluids both had released, the ecstasy of the exotic - to them, at least - form of sexual play was only inciting another powerful orgasm.

Zerrex released another loud, animal groan of bliss as he began to ram his stiffening rod of flesh even harder up into Cherry's gripping but slick vagina, pounding his black penis into her again and again as she moved herself harder up and down the great shaft, her own cries rising in volume and bliss as they rocked together, her lips and passage clenching against his girthy member as it became harder and harder inside of her, the chorus of their cries joined by the wet squelch of his thrusts as they moved together passionately.

Then their eyes opened wide before shutting almost simultaneously, Cherry beginning to vocalize loud cries of bliss as she moved herself hard up and down his steely length, her shrieks of pleasure drowning out the low groans of bliss from Zerrex as he began to piston powerfully upwards while she bore down against his shoving cock. She cried out, feeling her passage contracting against the massive length ripped up inside of her, her breasts bouncing with every movement of her body as Zerrex's claws dug lightly into her hips, the clenching of her passage sending him over the edge as her juices flowed down his cock.

He bucked his entire body upwards slightly, letting out a loud half-roar of pleasure as his thick black penis began to release burst after burst of his hot semen, pouring it forth upwards into her as she rocked her body on him, hilting his thirty-two inches into her form every time as her passage clutched him with amazing force. Cherry cried out again and again, her eyes opening wide as she leaned forwards over him, feeling the veiny penis throbbing and blasting his hot load as she dropped down against his chest - both of them too engulfed in the pleasure to remember their wounds, and not noticing the pain anyway - and then forced her muzzle down on his, rocking her hips almost violently to urge more of his seed forth.

He felt her mouth working furiously at his, felt her tongue forcing forwards, seeking entry, and he eagerly accepted her, working his own jaws powerfully back as his hands moved up, arms wrapping tightly around her form as he began to thrust harder, making her scream into their locked muzzles even as they continued to kiss, tongues wrestling as her juices flowed down and his seemingly-endless amount of seed spilled into her... and then finally, he began to slow his shoves and she responded by halting her hips, her body trembling with the aftereffects of their double, forceful orgasms, panting and moaning still into his mouth as the kiss continued for a few moments.

Then it broke, and she pulled back, their eyes opening and locking, her large bust pressing down into his muscular chest, his hair sweaty and hanging in his eyes as they gazed at each other for a few long moments... before Cherry moaned quietly as Zerrex pulled slowly back, more than half of his gigantic cock slipping free before he hilted himself lazily again, both of them trembling with the erotic tremors it caused to roll through both their bodies as some of their mixed fluids spilled out... and finally, Zerrex pulled slowly back as he gently grasped her waist and guided her up, his fat, long cock sliding free of her with a small flood of a variety of juices before falling with a wet smacking sound onto his muscular abdominals, then Zerrex murred with a pleasantly-surprised wince as Cherry lay down on him, sandwiching the massive length of meat between their hot bodies, both of them panting softly in the aftermath. They didn't need words to express their gratitude to each other, to apologize for what they'd done, or even to understand the why and motive behind their actions. That wasn't important. What was, was the here and now.

Then, they'd lain together quietly as Zerrex stared at the ceiling, Cherry curled on his chest and her eyes closed, her arms around his neck, both of them naked... and then he said softly, as one of his hands gently massaged her back: "You know, Cindy has a lot in common with you... other than your first name, I mean." He paused, then they exchanged a quiet smile as he added: "Except for the obvious lack of bloodthirstiness, slutty tendencies and her complete and total innocence."

"Well, she's apparently a Drakkaren who looks kinda like me, and you said she was born from rape, and her mother was murdered when she was young... and she's a waitress, and I did that for a while, too." Cherry responded softly; then she smiled a bit as Zerrex gently stroked her face, squeezing him around the neck. A long time ago, she'd come to terms with her violent past... as Zerrex had with his. Neither of them felt any need to get into it... just to point out the obvious similarities. "But why?"

"Well..." Zerrex hesitated as he looked down at her, then he wrapped his arms around her waist and squeezed her down against his muscular chest - it hurt both of them a bit, but the pain only added to the distinct warmth that was between them... the knowledge that they could hurt each other, attempt to kill each other, be apart for so many years... and yet come back together loving and cuddling and kissing and fucking on the couch like a pair of teens. Pain was just another added flavor to the mix, at least when it wasn't the deep ache the reptile felt in his arm. "How long are you going to stick around here for?"

Cherry smiled at him... but it was a warm smile instead of the hell-smile she'd been using for the last decade or so, and it softened her features and made her all the more beautiful as she rubbed her body against the male's, large bosom pressing warmly to thick-with-muscle chest. And when her eyes lit up with it, it made them surprisingly beautiful and luminescent. "Well, even though you probably ruptured my fucking spleen or something, I can't just leave you to die and fight alone..." she glanced down, then added quietly, seeming almost embarrassed as a blush crawled over her features. "Actually, to be... to be honest, I... I don't want to... ever leave you again."

She looked up at him lamely, as if expecting a reprimand or retort: that had never been the way things worked, especially in the Goth Legion: they had been steady partners, but only when the situation allowed it... or they didn't feel like going off with someone else for a while. But as Zerrex looked at her with softness in those emerald eyes, she realized once again that this was nothing like the military anymore or the organization... but she couldn't stop the surprise or touched smile when Zerrex nodded and said gently: "I'd be honored to have you around, Cherry... forever. And I'm sure..." he stopped for a moment, then continued quietly: "I'm sure Cindy will too."

The female looked up at him and tilted her head, frowning a bit. "Huh? But I thought she lived with Elliot."

Zerrex nodded again, then he smiled a bit and spoke in a stumbling, embarrassed but quietly-firm voice: "After... after what happened to Mary... and coming to terms both with... that and what I feel and what she feels - oh um, that's three things, sorry - and realizing some other stuff... I... I think it'd be best if she stays around with me and stuff, because... it would be good for all of us." He stopped and looked down at her, looking lame.

Cherry, however, was looking up at him with nothing but warmth in her eyes, marveling at the bravery with which Zerrex was attempting to tackle his emotions... and she couldn't help but feel amused at how well he was managing her, himself, and even this Cindy... before she frowned and asked: "Wait...is Cindy here already? Because when we did a sweep of the house, we found no one else here..."

The male Drakkaren laughed a bit and smiled at her, then he nodded before jerking his head: Cherry shrugged, then she got to her feet, and the two quietly got dressed - Zerrex in pants, Cherry in pants and a bra - and then the male began to lead her through the house before he paused, and silently reached a hand out to her.

The female stared at it for a moment, not understanding... and then she felt that strange softness again as she realized what the reptile wanted, reaching out her own hand and quietly taking the male Drakkaren's before letting him lead her through his home in silence, squeezing his hand tightly and feeling a distinct warmth and protection flowing through her being as they walked together, him too holding onto her with a grip that was almost painful.

They walked downstairs... and then Cherry broke then silence with a quiet snort as Zerrex pulled back the secret shelf. She couldn't help but smile slightly at this. "Well, no fucking wonder we didn't find anything... you went all secret agent shit on this place."

"Screw you, Cherry." Zerrex retorted, then he reached up and put a hand over her mouth as she began to speak: "I know, we just did. No, we can't do it right now. Yes, maybe with Cindy later."

The Drakkaren's eyes danced mischievously as they walked now into the earthen hallway, glancing back and forth as she asked in a pleasant and sensuous voice: "If I grab her and you know, restrain her... will you rape her for me?" she paused, then grinned up at Zerrex. "Actually, seriously... can I help you out with this job shit you're talking about? I think that some of them could be quite enjoyable."

Zerrex looked down at Cherry with amusement - whatever else, despite his newfound feelings and emotions for those close to him, he was still with her on the treatment of prey as toys. "Cherry, the next job I get involving rape, we'll do everything you want to them, how about that?"

"Perfect... you're making me all hot again, Zerrex." the female Drakkaren all-but-purred in return, then she blinked as the lights turned on and squeezed the reptile's hand in reflex. Zerrex merely gave a smile and a bit of a snicker, to which the other replied with a tilt of the head and a mildly amused look up at the larger male. "Fuck off."

Zerrex merely shrugged, not bothering with all the possible replies that entailed - Cherry would just hit him with a better comeback, after all. The fact she was not only smart, she was precognitive made it rather hard to win against her in a verbal battle as much as anything else. Instead, he merely opened the door and led her inside, then pushed open the door to his office to see Cindy sitting quietly behind the desk. She looked startled to see him, and as if she'd spent most of the last two hours or so crying... and then, as she got up, trembling and looking disbelieving, Zerrex walked in hand-in-hand with Cherry, and she stopped beside the desk, merely staring before Zerrex held up his other arm and motioned to her - the female actually looked uncomfortable now, but she couldn't help but give the faintest of smiles as the two studied each other and the male introduced them both in a few simple but effective words: "Cindy, this is Cherry. Cherry, this is Cindy." He stopped, then he glanced from one to the other before saying quietly: "Cindy... I want you to stay here with me. I-"

But before he could say any more, Cindy ran forwards and threw herself into both of them, crying hard as one arm wrapped around either Drakkaren, both of them looking shocked... but then Zerrex put his arm tightly around Cindy's waist and, following his lead, Cherry did the same, looking both uncomfortable and shocked as Zerrex smiled faintly at her, then he quietly bowed his head down beside Cindy's to kiss her forehead and whisper quiet, comforting nothings as she pressed between them.

After about ten minutes, Cindy ceased to sob hard and now was merely crying silently as she pressed hard against Zerrex... but the moment Cherry tried to pull away, she began to tremble and she shook her head vehemently before simply looking over her shoulder with those big, hurt eyes... and Cherry had bit her tongue before nodding and slowly pressing close again, wrapping her arms around her waist and quietly rocking with her as Zerrex moved his arms to tighten around both of them, looking softly from one to the other before he finally managed to usher them all upstairs - Cindy only complied when Zerrex offered to carry her, and Cherry couldn't help but stare in wonder at the lengths to which the former Captain Ravenlight was going to for this young girl.

Once safely curled on the couch between Cherry and Zerrex, Cindy stared at her trembling knees and laced her fingers together in her lap as she rocked back and forth, then she finally whispered: "I figured out the combination to your safe. It's my name."

Zerrex started, then he looked down at her as Cherry stared at them both, not liking the expression of apprehension on the male's features at the young female gave a faint laugh, and then the formerly-known-as Cynthia Blossom winced as Cindy continued: "It's full of... a journal booklet and a series of log books for something called the Goth Legion... and it's all... bad things you did, in and outside of the military." She stopped, then began to tremble harder as she stared at her hands with burning intensity and a strange kind of lost sorrow in her eyes. "And one of the first entries is from a few days after your twentieth birthday, when you were at a party, and some girl had been hitting on you... and you said you... did things to her and..."

And oh, but he remembered that, now that she mentioned it... it was the first time he'd raped his own species after all. And it was rather memorable... since he hadn't just 'done things' to her but raped her savagely enough to leave her for dead... but he'd forgotten that he'd kept a journal of his experiences. Then his mind suddenly clicked, adding up Cindy's trembling state with the mention of what was actually his second or third, not first rape... and then he swallowed before asking in a trembling voice: "Oh... is... the name..."

"Amy... Amy was all that you called her... but... you gave stats..." Cindy's voice filled with pain and anguish as she looked down, trembling hard now. "Petite... five-eight... nice tits, in your words... but it was the small, hook-shaped scar you mentioned, 'cause it was so deep on her hip... that was what gave it away..." Then she stared at the ground before barking laughter and... instead of pulling away when Zerrex tried to put an arm around her, desperate to make her feel better, she crushed her body close against his and began to cry again as she sobbed: "And you know what? I can't help but feel happy... happy... that you're my duh-da... that you're my daddy... because now I've met you... and I love you more than anything and I just can't seem to hate you... and the only thing I feel sorry for is the fact that we had sex..." And with that confession out, she buried herself against Zerrex's chest and began to cry, reaching up her hands to batter against his strong muscles weakly before wrapping her arms around him and giving full vent to her misery.

The reptile could only sit and hold her quietly against his chest, feeling turmoil rolling and rollicking through his body as Cherry looked back and forth from one to the other with distinct discomfort on her features - this, after all, was a situation that she herself couldn't imagine; and somehow, despite her callousness and her lack of compassion for anyone but Zerrex and herself... she felt herself sympathizing with the poor, battered innocent, for the female in which yes, she did see some of what she thought of as her weakness reflected and brought to life.

And when she looked at Zerrex's features, she expected to see some form of amusement or a certain dark pleasure, feeling oddly embarrassed at her lack of both: however, all she saw on his face was a mixture of the emotions she expected least... pain, sadness, and what looked like a mixture of loss and despair. The Drakkaren looked at her with deep feelings burning in his emerald eyes, and when Cherry looked from one to the other, saw the changes that this little girl had instilled in him and was continuing to cause... it made her both jealous and... incredibly amazed. After all, this had been the leader of their unit, not just for his cunning and experience, but for his violence, sadism and complete and total ruthlessness. This was the male who had taught her how to enjoy taking pleasure in pain, how to rape other females as well as sexually-abuse males, how to heighten sexual pleasure to the max by inflicting a lethal wound at the moment of climax, but enough so that they would scream and spasm and fight all the more even as they released both life and whatever else.

Zerrex, when having a bad day, had made her look as threatening as she did Tinman. She had never been able to compare to him in terms of violence, especially sexual violence - and no, it wasn't just because he had a cock. It was because Zerrex's carnal side was perhaps one of the most twisted things she had ever seen, and she knew that for him, everything revolved around power, sex, and all sorts of combinations of the two.

The Drakkaren had never shown actual emotion like this for anyone other than her... and never so deep, ever. She knew from experience that when the lizard had shown emotion, it had been only under the most severe or strenuous of circumstances, or when Cherry herself had broken in some way, shown some weakness... but then she took a quiet breath as she looked at the two, her eyes softening as she rephrased that though in her head: despite her dislike of such weakness as revealing one's own true self... she couldn't help but marvel at it and be impressed by how, despite the way Cindy gave in to her feelings, her memories, despite how she'd broken down entirely... there was still a subtle kind of respect for the way the female was handling herself and still continuing to hold to the Drakkaren, still holding on to the male who had raped her mother and let out another miserable cry of "Daddy!"

"Cindy..." Zerrex whispered, looking down at her with pain contorting his features, and then a miraculous and frightening thing happened as he clenched his eyes shut, then opened them as a single tear fell down his cheek, looking up at Cherry as he cried that single, silent tear that broke the last vestiges of her old training and her want to return to the cruel, sadistic life: it made her feel some locked gate in her break as she looked down at Cindy, then she instinctively leaned forwards and, before she could stop herself, wrapped her arms tightly around them, one curling around Cindy's waist and the other Zerrex's neck as she bowed her head forwards, and heard the second murmured, near-silent word: "Daughter..."

For the longest time, they sat together like that, Cindy continuing to quietly cry, Zerrex trembling and his stoic nature broken, Cherry feeling conflict between her training and a gentler nature that was rising up in her at the sight of the female who was so innocent despite her past, and the cruel Boss that had started to do everything he could to change his very nature.