On The Edge

[Mistay]

There was no relief from the silence of the night. No breeze to stir one's thoughts away from evil. No flicker of light in the utter darkness. Evverything dimmed by shadows. This was not a description of the surroundings. Nay, it was a description of Jakean's bleak thoughts. He lay under the shadow of an ancient oak, panting heavily. New blood dripped slowly from several raw gashes on his side. The caked blood on his claws revealed that his wounds were self-inflicted. Drool spilled from his opened muzzle as he twitched. There was no point to life.His eyes held nothing but blank darkness. There was nothing left to feel anymore. He had drained himself of any will to live, any energy to keep going. If he closed his eyes now, they would never open. But that was what he wanted. Just to fall asleep and never wake up, never feel the scathing gaze of his reflection, never have to face another day of torture. His nose twitched. There was no one nearby. No one was looking for him. Why would they? He was worthless, nothing but a blemish on the face of the earth.

And yet, some tiny instinct, so deep within his mind he couldn't recognize it for what it was, kept him alert. What if someone did come? What if he still had a chance?

[Vyn]

Kaeobi drifted noiselessly over the vast expanse of the Verboten Copse, lured in by the scent of death in the air. Lately her loneliness had been almost too much to bear and Kaeobi was in desperate need of a lift.

Gently Kaeobi began a low downward spiral, drifting toward the smell of death and the air of despair. Finally, a few feet out of the canine's line of view, the quiet Puppeteer touched down to the earth.

Sighing, morose eyes tinted ever so faintly with curiosity, the youthful Requiem glided toward the bleeding Rust. As she moved she began to hum a low mournful song, an old funeral hymn that she'd heard as a child.

"Hello..." She whispered, voice lost in perpetual sorrow. "You're not dead yet are you?"

[Mistay]

Jakean turned his pupilless gaze towards the soft-spoken Chiroptae. Her question almost startled him. Was he dead? No, it didn't appear that he was. Pity.

"No. And yet all I wish for is to close my eyes and never wake up. And I can't even have that bloody wish!"

His voice was layered with bitterness born only of age. He wasn't being dramatic, or vying for anyone's attention. This was just him, his way of thinking. He shuddered, shock begining to take over from his loss of blood. His vision blurred, swam before his eyes.

That humming...is that her? Why is she humming?

And yet, he strained to listen, to hear that mournful melody, so in tune with the inner churmoil racking his mind. He wanted to listen...

[Vyn]

Kaeobi smiled, punctuating her hymn only to respond to the dying creature before her. An electric tingle danced along the tip of her mind, but she remained sullen, as morose as ever.

"Very few wishes ever come true..."

The chiroptae's remained hushed, as if she were lying in wait of something tantalizingly wonderful. Of course, to her it was. To him it was death, perhaps it was just as sweet for him?

Kaeobi doubted it.

Standing on the brink seemed to fill the suicidal with a new burst of life. So strange, how a glimpse of the void could send so many reeling back with such a fierce grip on life. Blinking, Kaeobi noticed the canine's attention focusing more sharply on her, not physically of course...he was notably too weak for that. Mentally, or spiritually, then?

Yes, listening. The Requiem smiled faintly and raised her humming a timbre, allowing the dying one a chance to hear the song she'd composed for him.

"What is your name?"

The question surprised her, but she had to admit she'd been feeling quite lonely lately. Even for her own isolated standards.

[Mistay]

The Canine willed hiw mind to focus, to crystalize the image before him. The little Chiroptae was right - now he was clinging to life with a fervour unheard of by those who live a life of happiness. And yet, this feeling was not unfamiliar to him. He had been to the brink and back too many times to count, and his hollowed, bleak eyes betrayed this fact all too well.

He almost was able to lift his head with the straining of his pricked ears. Such a beautiful melody she carried with her sad voice. He wanted to live, just to hear the end of this song. But his bubble of calm burst at her question. His name? His name! What was his name? His brain scrambled to pick of the pieces of his broken mind, and he was able to find that crucial word amongst all his swirling thoughts:

"Jakean."

And then, he surprised himself, and found even more words!

"And who are you?"

[Vyn]

The humming continued, her useless little requiem. She probably should have let it end when she realized he was not yet dead, and probably would not die. Yet, she could sense his interest, see the flicker of his ears as they listened to her song. Kaeobi wasn't used to such interest, and she inwardly admitted that she enjoyed it.

In fact, she enjoyed almost as much as when similar such songs sent her victims into a panicked descent into death.

A small smile humored her expression, though bleak eyes remained so.

"Jakean, hm?" A few more notes added to the melody, twisting ever so slightly, as if personalizing to the one not yet deceased. Perhaps she would sing it again when he finally let the chords that held him together snap. "I am Kaeobi."

[Mistay]

OOC: So sorry I haven't replied faster! Eeep, been so swamped! I swear, soon! But I don't want to do a crappy reply...-hides-

[Vyn]

(It's okay. I don't mind waiting. ^^; Everyone's busy around the holidays.)

[Mistay]

Jakean concentrated on the simple strains of the Chiroptae's voice. Her name seemed like the most beautiful word in the world. He said it aloud,

"Kaeobi."

He wrapped it around his mouth, tasting it. It rolled off his tongue like butter. Perfect. At least to his twisted, suicidal mind it was. It seemed he always managed to be found at the last minute. Some poor soul took pity upon him and stopped him from ending it once and for all. Or, as in this case, merely happened to find interest in a potential death. This pity, this constant saving, provoked within him a feeling of uselessness. That he couldn't even save himself was a sad fact indeed. His leg gave an involuntary twitch. See? He couldn't even control his own body. But then again, why would he want to? He was just as much a blemish now as he was before she came.

His hardy nature, physical strength alone, allowed him to lift his muzzle off the ground to fill his eyes with the sight of her. Not as a lover would do to his beloved, more like a murderer would do to his victim. As if to see them one last time before the end. But he couldn't seem to move his legs quite yet. That would change once he got some food in him. But first, he had to know one thing. Narrowing his eyes, almost accusing, he growled,

"Why did you come here?"

[Vyn]

Kaeobi tilted her head, hollow eyes peering down upon the suicidal Rust. She said nothing as he echoed her name, allowing him time to savor it, for that was exactly what he was doing. The action was simple, but she'd seen it before.

The suicidal needed a reason to save themselves.

They could find it in the most simple of things, so long as it presented itself to them before the abyss swallowed them. Today, Kaeobi had come seeking a peek of death, and had become a savior. How ironic.

Kaeobi was still humming, wings tucked tightly around her body. Occasionally he eyes would close as if seeking an inner muse's advice as he continued the melancholy strains of her requiem. Upon returning open she found a stranger sight than she expected, accusation? Now what had she done to warrant that?

Had Kaeobi been one of those depressives that lacked in self-confidence what they did in joy, she might have recoiled in hurt. As if the accusation were knives to her delicate flesh, but Kaeobi just watched him with the same deep morose in her pupil-less eyes.

"Why?" For a moment she let her Hymn fade off her tongue. "Because I wanted to watch you die."

[Mistay]

Because I wanted to watch you die...watch you die...you die...die...

So this is why she came? Not because she saw a tortured soul crying out for help, not because she felt a tug on her heartstrings. Because she wanted to watch him die. Because she would find pleasure in his death.

Jakean wanted to feel anger, he wanted to feel cheated, to feel his angst wash over him once again. And yet, he felt strangely comforted. She didn't mince her words to save him. She hadn't even really meant to save him, so how could she? She spoke to him something he hadn't heard in a long, long time: the truth. This bouyued him ever so slightly.

"Indeed. It would have somewhat of a spectacle, then? I'd most likely have done the same, Kaeobi."

He spoke, this time without any trace of former accusations, or bitterness. He suddenly wanted very much for her to stay.

[Mistay]

{{Vyn, are we continuing this thread?}}

[Vyn]

(Yeah, I'll be replying to this later today for sure... ' Sorry about the long wait 'n' all. For some reason I've had it in my mind that I was waiting for you to reply o.O not the other way around.)

Kaeobi watched the Rust without speaking, though she had once again resumed her funeral hymn. Alas, it was pointless, as he was very much alive even if he was rather weak at the time being. Nearly dying took a lot out of you, or so Kaeobi would assume.

His words wrenched a faint smile from her, though the humming didn't stop until she was forced to pause and speak.

"A spectacle indeed. To watch death embrace another."

A delighted shudder rushed up the Chiroptae's spine, and her faint smile lightened momentarily into something lovely. Very few realized the beauty that could be found in sorrow, though Kaeobi was one that did.

If only because she'd had no other choice but to accept the persistent misery which clung to her soul...Or rather, the misery she held in place of a missing soul.

"When the time finally comes, and my flame is snuffed...I'd enjoy your presence, I think."

A strange comment for most, but Kaeobi was a strange one as it was. Death to her was a wondrous thing. As beautiful as it was enchanting and she was not in the least afraid to go. However, she did not plan to be the object of her own demise.

She'd live through her misery from one death to another, and when she finally died it would be as glorious as all the deaths she'd ever witnessed. Quietly she suppressed a giggle, for even she was aware that this would be an odd subject to giggle at in front of the suicidal.

[Mistay]

{{Ahh it's perfectly alright. I did the same to you before.. x.x So it's only fair. xD}}

Jakean's wandering ear picked up the strange melody of the sadistic song she had begun to hum once more. He found himself following along, adding his own gruff harmony to her depressing tones. Of course, he was also forced to stop when she did, as it would sound rather funny with only the harmony. But it seemed sad, almost, to stop the song that inadvertantly saved him.

He devoted his full attention to her when she spoke, even going so far as to close his eyes to block out the distraction of sight. He liked the way she spoke. It was pleasing to his tired mind. Sorrowful. And yet, not. It seemed that she was indeed one of few that found no sadness in death. And so she managed to see only beauty. An odd concept for him, as he had almost always thought of death as being brutal and final. Which it was. At least, for him. And then again, it was a savior, a way out of this cruel world.

He shook his head as much as he could manage, trying to clear his muddled thoughts. Her words only muddled them more. She'd like him there when she dies?

"I hope, if only for my sake, that is not anytime soon. But it a great compliment to me that you say that, I think. Do you plan to die soon?"

To any other, it would sound as if he were inquiring about the weather, so utterly devoid of emotion was his voice. After an attempt, Jakean always felt that his emotions were drained. Often, these times were the happiest for him, because he lacked the energy to care anymore, about himself. He just had enough energy to care for something else, and thus, he was happy, at least for the time being,

[Vyn]

Kaeobi flicked on long ear slightly at the sound of Jakean's gruff harmony. Even with a very sensitive ear for pitch and music, she felt that their voices blended nicely. However, she was fine with the occasional breaks, for it gave her time to locate the next chord and continue her song.

In Kaeobi's world, death was anything but final. Charming, beautiful...but it was not the end. For a race of soulless beasts, there was nothing to fear in the abyss. Those with ghosts returned in one fashion or another at sometime or another. Of course, one day she would finally get tired of the circle and the abyss would be a welcome home. She would one day simply fade away, and that would be it.

There was no brutality to be found there.

Then again, as a Requiem she had always had a strange adoration for death.

"No...not really." Her voice was vaguely dreamy...thinking too deeply about death did that to her a lot. "Someday though...someday we'll all fade away."

Inquiries of death was as common to her as discussing the weather was to others, though her responses were filled with the strange jubilation she felt at the sight of watching death in action.

However, she knew enough about Suicide to understand Jakean's lack of emotion. With the abyss so close, the weary were sucked nearly dry in their attempt to resurface. Kaeobi had never been there, but Jakean was not her first suicide rescue.