Clouds Are No Place for Shoes

[Reiner Dornkirk]

CLOUDS ARE NO PLACE FOR SHOES (Part I)
Continued from
End of the Line
33 Searing 123 Steel
The ruins of The Hobbled Gobbler

“What the fuck are you doing in here? Talkin’ to yourself?” Reiner swung around the corner, leaning on what remained of a doorframe to regard the scene before him.

“Ew! What is— er, was that thing?” He pushed off the panels to walk on the balls of his feet close enough to get a look at what remained of the thing’s head. “Well done, you. I remember when these things started popping up taking jobs from hardworking humans for schillings so our factory families all had to take pay cuts… Nice suit, though, huh?” Reiner’s expression turned to one of confusion at that strange detail. He opened his mouth to speak more, but suddenly his face went slack. If Kuno inspected it, he would soon be blinded as that pale visage was spotlit by a stark, severe glare from above as, descending, Kuno would see the answer to his prayers.

► Show Spoiler

“Wily child, how well thou dost work.” Adorned in naught but shadow that wove across her torso, occasionally revealing a flint of silver chain but naught of flesh, The Dea Imperatrix descended from on high. A bare foot, skin as pale as Reiner’s but with a preternatural glow, would slight upon the ash-blanketed ground. Long raven hair framed a face striking and severe and silver white eyes fell to the fallen demon.

“This one was an architect of Zaichær’s misery. I diminished him. It is meet that thy hand should deliver the coup de grâce.” She took graceful, balletic steps toward Reiner. Did her feet even touch the ground? They left no prints, so light and subtle were her steps.

“Thou hast been too long neglected, but ne’er forgotten.” She grazed her fingertips through Reiner’s hair where it protruded under his cap. “I would leave thee with two boons and one task to yield a third. First…” Her attention turned sharply from Reiner to Kuno.

“Long hast thou borne the pendulous Chains of a hapless birth, but e’en thus hindered hast thou forged shackles that bind others.” A telling glance to Reiner at this danced promptly back to Kuno.

“And much hast thou Sacrificed in pursuit of Domination. For service unto Me, I do hereby bequeath the Sacræ Dominationis Insigne: The Sacred Emblem of Supremacy.” She nodded her head and it was done. It felt like nothing, in itself. No sting of pain nor surge of pleasure burst through his left ankle as a silver incorporeal fetter of æther rounded it.

“This next gift is for thee and thy city withal… A force to preserve and protect your realm. One that shall align the whole of the land under the view of him that doth rear it.” She lifted both hands and parted them, an elliptical glow surged to blinding, and when it faded a platinum oval lay in her palms.

“A realm wracked with chaos such as this doth want for such a steadying force. This be a seedling of Order, as thou dost interpret the concept. Mind it with care. Keep it somewhere hot. I know this realm hath no dearth of furnace-burning heat. Ply it well, and this child of Draconis Platinum who dwelleth within shall be thy ward. Rear them with care and they shall be Zaichær’s defender and a keeper of Order in the North, where all who enter their realm shall be bent toward their lofty Will. A Will which thou shalt shape” She handed the dragon egg gingerly to Kuno, then swept around to stand at his side. Before them she weaved her shadows into shapes, forming a three-dimensional map depicting Zaichær as a smoking ruined skyscape and trailing a path eastward, where she marked the vague landscape with the specific protrusion of a volcano from whence more plumes of smoke wafted.

“Of the three architects of Zaichær’s doom: one lieth at thy feet, another sateth me, enchained as she be by mortals, whilst the third and most egregious malefactor… a homegrown betrayer that did commit unholy treason most foul… lieth imprisoned at Mount Kaladon. His pow’r is vasty, but raw… divine in nature. He was unfit to wield it and so I claimed what was useful to Me, and the rest is thine to gripe. He will be known to thy masters as 'Florian' and when they learn what he hath wrought they shall delight in My justice. Remember Kaladon. Seek it out and the third of My gifts will be in thy reach.

"My name need ne’er be invoked for Me to feel the worship of mortals who serve Me. Use this trinity of boons to broaden my reach and erect Mine holy church with bricks of faithlessness ‘pon the foundation of ‘New Atheism’. Let them call Me ‘nihil', even as they serve My dogma… as this one did.” She observed, glancing down to Franky’s corpse.

“We shall grow strong together, thee and Me, My silver-tongued sweeting.” She began to levitate, floating behind Reiner. “Learn thy pow’r, mind the babe and seek the betrayer. We shall meet again ere long.” And the shadows that wreathed her enveloped the goddess. She was gone, and Reiner blinked.

“What good tailor even opens his doors to those things?” Reiner wondered, wrinkling his nose in distaste. “Their sweat stains must be insaaaaane.” He tilted his head, "You all right?"

[Rune]

Kuno grinned as Reiner arrived as if on cue to praise his commanding officer and it felt almost as if Varvara herself had sent him a little boon of praise in recognition of his offering. The lopsided grin he offered in return was one of his most charming, if also one of his most vicious.

"Could'na survived this long without being in league with the Mistspawn, not wearing a clean suit." He spat on the body but his smile did not diminish. Dropping to one knee he began wiping his blade clean on the front of the suit jacket. Glancing back at Reiner, another clever rejoinder on his lips he paused in both action and speech as his friend went lax and then...

Kuno wanted to look around, to find a bit of writing or some numbers that he could use, as he did when he wasn't sure if the horrors he was seeing were real or just another nightmare. Except this was no horror and no dream of his could possibly come close to...

He did not rise, but he did turn enough to be directly facing the embodiment of his faith, She that he had worshiped, sacrificed for and to, since a child. Being there on his knees felt right, but he did not duck his head or divert his eyes. If She was showing Herself to him, then he would See.

Though he nodded Kuno spoke no word, for he had spoken to Her thousands of times over the majority of his life, and if She truly had come then it was his turn to listen. His expression warped from vicious amusement to equally vicious pleasure when he heard Her. He had been right, had always known he had been right but, He Had Been Right. Kuno was acknowledged, Kuno was praised, Kuno would be rewarded. The kneeling lieutenant was far and away too clever to imagine that theirs was a relationship between equals but it was a reciprocal one, it always had been.

Though he felt nothing in the traditional sense when She stretched out Her hand he somehow knew when Her mark claimed him. As the aethereal cuff closed about his ankle he knew it for the chain it was and yet... And Yet. He had never felt so free.

Even with this gift beyond his knowledge to request his Lady was not yet done with her servant. The light of her next gift seared his eyes but he did not look away even when he was forced to blink afterimages away to see what was being given. An egg? The hairs all over his head tried to stand on end as the realization of what she had placed in his outstretched hand washed over him. Mists of the Moritasi, Kuno held a dragon's egg.

There was no time to consider more the implications, for, in a moment She was giving him another gift, more than one. Though Her Task and its Reward were both of utmost importance She also gave him information, things that even the Minister and Generals didn't know. Things, he suspected, that no one within Zaichaer knew, perhaps that no mortals at all did, except now Kuno.

He did not know the names and could only guess at what much of what She said meant but he had the means to fill in the rest. It was enough, more than, it was,

"Everything," He whispered, surprised he had any voice at all, "They may call you Nothing, but You will be Everything."

Whether She was close enough to hear with what ears Her form had mattered not, She always heard his prayers.

Kuno was given only a moment before Reiner, totally forgotten during the Divine encounter, reasserted himself. Knowing he must look like he'd just seen, well, a God, Kuno tried to clear his throat and turn his look of ecstasy to one of disgust. Slipping the bulky egg into his largest pocket as best he could he finished cleaning goblin off his bayonet and stood.

"Alls well that ends bastards like him, eh?" If his bravado was a little forced he hoped Dornkirk would imagine it was from the depths of his disgust.

Hours later he gave his report directly to the Minister with Reiner at his side. They had explored extensively and everywhere they went the Mistspawn were dead, from the hulking abominations to the tiny slinking ones that tried to slip into your shoes and into your skin. They weren't the only ones telling the tale either, every squad that had been on the ground or flying low enough to see it was saying the same.

Theories were being passed by word of mouth through the streets of the Sky Islands by the time the pair were released to clean up and find some supper, but Kuno knew the truth. Silently he praised Varvara, The Lady of Chains for delivering Zaichaer from the spawn, and for delivering it into his hands. It might be decades before his homeland bent the knee to his mastery but from the moment She had shone down on him from above he had lost all doubt, Zaichaer would be his.

[Reiner Dornkirk]

CLOUDS ARE NO PLACE FOR SHOES (Part II)
Continued from
Future Abundant
34 Searing 123 Steel
The Dornkirk Sky Islands

"Vielen Dank!" Reiner grinned. If he'd even noticed that Stefan had said something that might be interpreted as a slight, he showed no signs of noticing it. There was far too much good in profusion to focus on microaggressions. He was a lieutenant with a future, he had the family of his dreams and, at long last, Zaichaer had a future! Part of him was already down on the ground, as he jogged over to meet Kuno, not even halting his gait as he initiated his salute.

"Kapitän!" He said, nearly plowing into the man. "I didn't even have to ask permission to sit out the dinner! He just offered!" Reiner had been eager from pretty much the moment the Mistspawn began to melt to the ground (or at least from the moment he'd processed what that portended) to celebrate. Not the way fancy folks celebrated, but to properly party like a Grungie on holiday. The solemnities for the fallen and the responsibilities to the family were behind him. Both had been necessary and appreciated, but this was something else. Of solemnities and responsibilities there had been no dearth in the year since the appearance of the Breach. Reasons to celebrate? Those had been fewer, and the end of this abject era was certainly a good excuse to let loose in ways that Zaichaeri rarely did. Reiner would accompany Kuno onto the ship, practically skipping up the gangplank as they prepared to set off for the mission of the year: The party to end all parties.

Some time later
Fort Cathevelle

► Show Spoiler

The impromptu festivity was audible from the air. It had begun with small pockets of jubilation in different parts of controlled Zaichaer, as the news spread. It didn't take long for such potent word to spread, and soon the surviving brass of the now-tarnished Brass City gave leave to use the recently secured and conveniently central Fort Cathevelle as a gathering place. Reiner wasn't sure how long the party had been raging, but even from far above one could see and hear that it was very much underway.

"Heilige Scheiße!" Reiner grinned, peering down from on high, with a cigarette in one hand and a bottle of doppelbock in the other. "Good thing we're arriving by air! We won't have to fight through the crowds to get close to the action." The landing pad was, after all, centrally located and, of course, partitioned off from the party proper.

"Plus we'll be instantly popular on account of we're in uniform and we're bringing more beer!" He put his cigarette between his lips, and put his arm around Kuno's slender waist as they looked over the edge and a cheer erupted from below as the crowd saw the approaching vessel. "Shee?" Reiner lisped through his cigarette as he lifted his beer bottle to toast those ovating them below.

[Rune]

Kuno threw his arm around his young friend as he nearly ran right into him without a thought for who might see. Zaichaer was a land of precision and protocol but it acknowledged that sometimes one must let loose the fetters and celebrate what all their hard work had accomplished. If every in their history there was a day for doing so, it was this one.

"Well Hazzah to that! I knew there was some reason he must be in charge." It was teasing as lighthearted as Kuno had ever given, no bite to it at all. Had he been any jollier he would have been laughing instead of speaking and his grin held back, if not nothing, little enough. Without releasing Reiner the lieutenant, no, the Captain, turned them both to walk up the gangplank directly following the last of the barrels of celebratory assistance they would be accompanying down and pulled shut the hatch behind them.

Tonight, they were free. Kuno more than anyone else, and though none but he would know his private reasons for believing so, everyone could agree that the future, was finally looking bright.

In recognition of the contributions of the various holdout bases that had remained on the ground, or been retaken before the Fort had the little ship made a few stops to drop off a barrel or case of bottles depending on the size of the contingent stationed in each. Unsurprisingly, the little pockets of celebration had not waited for their delivery to begin appreciating the knowledge that, unless someone drank far, far too much, none of them would be dying that night. Who could blame them? Not Kuno, certainly, and they landed long enough to share a toast with each of the groups before heading back into the air.

Thus, as they began their final descent onto one of the small landing areas atop one of Cathevelle's towers Kuno wasn't compromised, but he was beginning to feel the loosening of the spirits moving through his system. He did laugh when Reiner exclaimed his surprise at the level of celebration already underway. The sun wouldn't set for another hour at least but there was literal dancing on the pavement of the largest courtyard below and that was close enough to dancing in the street to count.

"What?" He called over his shoulder as he shut down the airship engine and unstrapped himself, "Forgot how we do it in the East End?"

They weren't in the East End, but the majority of the people below were from there he was sure. If anyone who had once considered themselves fancy folk and above such frivolities were in for a treat and maybe they'd learn that all their stuffiness only meant they lost out on the real point of life.

As the pair gathered up the remaining libations and loaded them onto a conveniently waiting cart to be rolled down the ramp that circled the tower he felt no fear of where Reiner might get off to in the night and thus was exhibiting none of the controlling demeanor that often accompanied their outings into mixed company. The reason for this was wrapped, unfelt and certainly unmentioned, around Kuno's left ankle. He wasn't sure how to use the gift of his patroness as yet but that was only a matter of time. Each time they touched he could feel tiny strands of power reaching from him to wrap around Dornkirk. Even now, not touching, he could feel the littlest inkling of connection between them. If Reiner ended up running off after a skirt that night, well, he would always come back to Kuno now. He belonged to Kuno, divinity had declared it so.

Yes, the newly minted Captain was all but beaming as they rolled down the final turning and were greeted by the acclaim of their peers. More than a dozen people rushed in around them, some fellow officers to congratulate them on their new ranks, some young women from the Islands who had seen them standing in their glory to receive said same new ranks, and some simply to collect and distribute the gifts from on high.

[Reiner Dornkirk]

Reiner blinked at Kuno for a moment upon being asked whether he'd forgotten how they partied in the East End.

"...I mean, yeah, kinda!" He replied with a wan chortle. Kuno might have mistaken this for a haughty allusion to his recent rise in the social ranks by being embraced as a Dornkirk, but that wasn't even on Reiner's radar at the moment. He was more thinking of how long it had been since there'd been something worth celebrating... truly celebrating on the level of this survivors' blow-out below. He hadn't forgotten how to be an East Ender because he was too far in the clouds. He forgot because the East End, the West End and everything else had been decimated to such an extent that it felt like another life to think on his youth there. And that had only been a year or two ago.

Reiner would help with he carts of libations, though at one point he did take the opportunity to ride atop one of the crates as it rolled the last few feet of ramp on its own momentum. He hopped off gracefully, and pranced a few steps, presenting the bounty like some carnival ringmaster with a corresponding flourish.

"Don't be shy, Überlebenden! Come one, come all!" He said, as he grabbed a crowbar and crawled up the wheel of the cart to shove it between the boards, "I think Zaichaer deserves a drink, don't you?" He used his body weight to crack open a crate of kegs, at which point other men- now lower ranked than himself, took over and he jogged back over to Kuno.

He could hear the oom pa pa of music in the distance as he beamed, boyish and bright as the silvery moon.

"I'm feelin' kinda crazy tonight. I don't even know where to start! The energy is just amazing. I've never felt like this in my life. It's over! It's really finally fucking over!"

[Rune]

A cheer of affirmation went up at the assertion that Zaichaer did, indeed, deserve a drink, one that Kuno joined in with an imaginary toast as he had yet to find a mug or a bottle of his own. This predicament was quickly solved as the kegs were tapped and bottles opened by a rough and ready group of men. They might have only known their way around the family trade or the handle of a mining pick a year before but now, to the man, they held themselves with the casual confidence in violence of men who knew their way around a weapon as well as they knew the consequence of using one.

Watching them as a beer bottle was pressed into his hand Kuno thought there wasn't likely a man over the age of twelve left in the country who didn't know what it felt like to take a life to defend his own. Zaichaer had been strong before, and what had been taken from them was a tragedy, but, though he knew better than to say it aloud, the captain thought that maybe what had been gained was worth what had been lost. Burning off the bad blood, culling the weak, maybe, when all was rebuilt, the 34th of Searing would turn out to be a blessing.

With this thought in mind, he lifted his bottle in salute, partly to his fellows, and partly to his Lady, before taking a long pull. Reiner's returning words seemed to reinforce his own thoughts and he passed the bottle over answering,

"Drink first, then we're going to dance, my friend, until one or the other takes us off our feet!"

Perhaps they would stop for food at some point, but Kuno had sampled the street food offered on the Islands above quite extensively so he wouldn't be hungry for hours yet and by then, who knew, maybe he'd been too full of alcohol and good cheer to even care. Throwing an arm around Reiner the elder man led the way over to where the band was striking up and groups of men and, more importantly, young women, were beginning to gather. Spotting several that he knew well enough to embarrass their mothers he stepped up to the little group as bold as brass, tipping his captain's cap to them and earning himself an appropriate 'ooo' of partially teasing admiration.

"Ladies," He greeted, as proper as you please, "Who wants to remind the Lieutenant here how we celebrate in Zaichaer?"

A quick glance between the pretty young faces showed a general interest, but one in particular was both blushing and making bold eyes so he singled her out,

"Alright, Mieke, why don't you have a go, and if you can't manage it, we'll see who wants to see if they can do it better." Friendly challenges always went down well when spirits were high and gender made no difference.

Egged on by the other girls giving an additional 'ooo' as well as a good bit of giggling the named girl, bright-eyed and buxom, held out her hand for Reiner's as the first few couples entered the empty space everyone seemed to have agreed was to be used for the dancing. Kuno tipped his hat again to a slightly older girl, more his own age, who he knew could flash her skirts and show off as well as any and that was all he was looking for. He wanted to look impressive and enjoy himself without having to worry about his partner. The lady took his hand, tossing a triumphant look over her shoulder at the remaining girls and followed him out onto the cobbled stones. The light of the late afternoon sun still shone and, despite the broken seasons, it was actually warm for once. Before the night set in, Kuno hoped to be a good deal warmer.

[Reiner Dornkirk]

Reiner chuckled in answer to the affirmation and took a final pull on his cigarette, tossing it before the stampede of revelers making for the freshly delivered kegs. With his now undivided attention upon Kuno, he nodded.

“I like your priorities, Kap.” He replied with a nod, “I’m on it!” He declared dutifully though, looking at the mass of bodies now swarming the beer, he wished he’d taken advantage of his position to get another drink before the crowd could gather. Still, the spirits were so high, that what might have become a hostile free for all was anything but. A grateful man with the build of a stonemason recognized him as the beer-bringer and made sure to get two drinks in his hand within a matter of minutes. He delivered one to Kuno, before sipping his own.

After a few toasts causes the first round to go down apace, he fetched another before Kuno led them toward a group of girls.

The party, being impromptu, didn’t have a proper lineup of entertainment. There were murmurings that a singer who’d made a name for herself traveling between bases during the conflict was going to be flown down later in the day to serve as a sort of last-minute headliner, but the band that opened the event was composed of enthusiastic amateurs. It was clear from their demeanor that they’d never been blessed with so engrossed a crowd… that is assuming any of them had played together before today. It was entirely possible that they’d just been the ones with gumption, instruments handy and the basic ability to play them.

As Kuno put him up on the proverbial auction block, Reiner’s eyes widened and his pale cheeks pinkened. Embarrassed though he was, he shouldered it without comment and offered his hand to Mieke, drawing her out onto the dance floor to cut a rug.

Reiner was tipsy enough to forget about the surroundings and focus on his partner and aligning their steps in a complementary fashion.

“I like your dress!” He had to yell over the band, which made the compliment sound more zealous than he intended. “One good thing about being a soldier is you never have to guess at what to wear to a special occasion. It’s all, well… uniform.”

[Rune]

The night spun on much as the newly minted captain had predicted. When they had danced themselves thirsty with various partners they paused, followed by a mixed gender gaggle of folks close to their own age as they went seeking additional drinks. When this cycle had repeated several times, and the partners each danced with had gone through similar changes, Kuno decided he was hungry and fetched sausages on sticks for himself and the first of his chosen.

If jokes were made between them as they filled their mouths with hot meat and the juices ran down, it was all in good fun. They wandered for a bit, hangers-on hanging on, trying what other food was on offer and, as they did, Kuno could see the value of a society where everything was free. A younger version of himself would have worried as to what providing treats and drinks for such a group was doing to the contents of his wallet. Now, he didn't even consider not indulging; holding out sweets for one pretty girl or another to try and catch with her mouth or passing around bottles of liqueur to be shared.

Money was not likely to be a worry for him going forward, not with his new rank, even if things should return to the capitalistic system of before the disaster. But it had been so nice to realize that, for the first time in his life, he hadn't had a thought about how he was going to afford something in a whole year.

Whenever things began to go fuzzy around the edges he would stop drinking for a while and move more, burning the alcohol from his system enough that he could still be in control without burning away so much that he lost the buzz in his blood. Over the course of the evening he began to push at the mark, hidden but very present, that now encircled his ankle. Began to tap into it when he made suggestions to the inebriated group around him. None of his pushes were anything awful, or even outside of the scope of the situation, but they were things that the person might not, themselves, have decided to do. He pushed a shy man to ask a girl to dance, pushed a girl who had said she was done drinking to have another, and another, pushed a man who was obviously intent on not letting anyone else dance with his girl not mind when Kuno pulled her away.

Each use was a little thing but each assured him that his ability was real, present and applicable inside the minds of others. The power was headier than the drink, by far, and his mood remained as high as the Islands. As the stars came out and the party became wilder, resisting the urge to nudge people into doing things that they would be ashamed of in the morning became more and more tempting. Part of him longed to see just how far his Goddess' gift would go, another part wanted to retain embarrassing and shameful displays for himself, for blackmail. But, what the hells, everyone deserved to share in his good fortune, at least for one night. Besides, the girl who had first claimed Reiner as her dance partner had been sticking to his side a little too intently through the evening. If she wanted to show herself off, well...

He began to push the group, without any aether involved, into a rowdier mood, getting the men a little handsy and the girls pressured to accept such behavior. It wasn't difficult, under the circumstances, and it was only a matter of time before shoes and stockings were being discarded and buttons loosened. When the moment was right he reached again through his emblem and, a moment later, Meike's was flashing her pretty little chest as general entertainment.

He laughed, both from delight and because of her obvious and immediate embarrassment as a dozen voices whooped and began asking for more. Her discomfort was delicious, her blushes like candy in his brain. Kuno gave Reiner a playful look that said both 'aren't we having fun!' and 'she might be good for a night out but not the sort one should settle down with'.

Men liked to play with girls, and Reiner was no exception. That was alright, so long as that was where it ended.

[Reiner Dornkirk]

Reiner reveled as Kuno compelled. The captain would learn a few things about his newfound abilities as he plied them. One thing he would soon realize was that it took more thought, focus and effort to influence people he didn’t know well, unless they were soldiers of lesser rank. Amongst them, he could feel the chains that already existed and tug them where he pleased. With other strangers, he needed to forge new chains of control. The direct “chain-of-command” that existed in the military was a clear cut thing, unlike the more ambiguous tethers a soldier might claim over a civilian citizen. However, once a new chain was forged it it became easier to influence that individual, even if he didn’t know them well. All of this seemed to suggest one thing that vindicated Kuno’s preexisting worldview: Accruing authority over others would enhance the power of his Emblem, even as it enhanced his power in society. To ascend over others was to forge chains of command that would feed him and, in so doing, feed Her.

Unwitting to all of this, Reiner was content to over-indulge in all the offerings of the event. He didn’t wax thoughtful on the matter as Kuno had. His mind wasn’t focused on the advantages of socialism, but rather on getting what he could while he could. He didn’t think of the greater implications of the evening’s offerings, he just binged as much of them as he could. By the time Meike started to delve into exhibitionism, a wide-eyed Reiner was content to bury his face in her bequeathment until he needed to come up for air or, more likely, beer. When he did so he would be sure to inform Kuno that this was the…

“BEST! PARTY! EVER!!!”

[Rune]

The things that Kuno was learning about the gift of his Goddess fit well into his own philosophy on hierarchy and ownership, or, it might be said that his views fit well with Her's.

Forcing the girl to do what he'd wanted had been more difficult than the suggestions that he been placed into his soldiers, but once she had succumbed he could... feel her? Sort of. He could feel the connection he had formed to her, feel that he could reach out through that same connection without the intense level of effort it had cost him to form the chain to begin with. It was a very valuable thing to know. The ramifications; that he might, with effort, form a chain to anyone, to use and manipulate later, spread out in the Captain's mind. He would have an army, not of soldiers, though those would be in it, but of thralls. In time he could be...

But no, it was not the night for planning. This was a celebration.

Laughing along with the others as Reiner took advantage of the situation Kuno had presented him with he wasn't even upset by the continued interest in the girl. She was, in a small way, his creature now, and if he wanted to use her to keep Reiner's attention, he would. The blur of alcohol over the evening was beginning to creep in at the edges, but Kuno wasn't nearly as far gone as young Dornkirk, so he had time. If he made note of any physical reaction to being exposed to an exposed young women in any of his companions, note was all he made.

Eventually, much later, people began to disappear, either pairing off into dark corners to express the desire that knowing one would live had on the desire to reproduce, going to find a bed, or simply slumping down wherever seemed best, or nearest, to sleep off the good times. When this became the general inclination Kuno slung an arm around his inebriated companion and said,

"Come on, Reiner, lets find somewhere to pass out." If there were objections he pretended not to hear them, and if any of the female persuasion looked like they might intend to invite one, or both, of them somewhere more private his glare was enough discouragement to put them off.

Where he led was into the fort, down the corridors that they themselves had cleared of abominations and into the office that had served as their bolt hole while they sent reports and awaited the next wave. There were still pallets tucked against one wall, but sleeping was not what the Captain had in mind. Not yet, at any rate. When they arrived he pushed the door closed behind them and pushed Reiner gentle against it. Taking hold of the chains that he had been seeding into his friend for longer than he had actually held his Emblem he pulled them tight, even as he leaned so close physically that their noses touched.

"Now," He shook Reiner a little, just because he could, because he'd waited, because he'd earned it, "you are going to do what you've wanted to do since you first crawled into my bed."

It was violence, when he pressed their mouths together, and when he allowed it to end, he tasted blood.

"Because I am kind, I'll let you use your mouth." Shoving Reiner to his knees Kuno grinned, sharp enough to catch the light, "That's right, be a good kleine Schlampe and in the morning, you won't remember a thing."

It was a promise, but it was also an order, which he sent menacing through the chains that bound Reiner to him. He would enjoy this, and he would pay nothing for it.