Blood Diamonds
The Dreamer reclaims his throne for another evening, and steers us out into the stars, to a lone planet in a sea of uncharted systems. We see Hades Paradise, a mist-covered sattelite lit by rainbow neon, where the Debauchery hangs thick in the air. We go deep, past the surface casinos and the high-rise brothels, through the network of underground clubs and drug dens, to the deepest halls of the planet's elite...
The Virgin Whore watched as Ruby pushed a knife against her throat, breaking the pale, frozen flesh there, but drawing no blood. The Android emitted an annoyed chirp, her knife sawing deeper, but to no avail.
Virgin Whore: "Nothing there, pet. No blood to spill. No fear you can pull from the depths of this heart."
Like a child stomping an ant, Ruby stabbed her in the side of the head. The Virgin Whore blinked. Ruby stepped back in alarm.
Roarin' Ruby: "I don't like it. Scream!"
Virgin Whore: "I only up the volume for paying customers, I'm afraid." She pulled the knife from her head, and handed it back to Ruby. By the time the tool had passed hands, the wound was gone. Ruby shivered -- a vibration that shook her metal parts from head to toe. Virgin Whore: "I've been watching you, Ruby. You've made quite a mess up there..."
Roarin' Ruby: "I made fun. Rule #2!"
Virgin Whore: "So they tell me. But we don't delight in carnage here. We focus on the softer pleasures -- pleasures of the flesh." Ruby twitched, her knife hand rotating 180 degrees, but never inching any closer. Roarin' Ruby: "I want the key."
Virgin Whore: "As I told you, I don't have what you're looking for."
Roarin' Ruby: "LIAR!" The knife went up to her throat again, circuits firing off a mix of violent commands, but inhibited by some internal protocol. Virgin Whore: "I'm a three strikes kind of woman, pet. You've already earned two. So are you paying, or going?" It was like talking to an invalid. Instead of replying, Ruby dropped the knife, catching it in her other hand, and stabbed towards the Virgin Whore's belly. The blade stopped an inch before flesh, pinkish-red mist building around the blade, and climbing toward Ruby's hand. The poor Android attempted to flee the Debauchery, but suddenly found herself surrounded on all sides, as the mist poured between her armored plates, sliding along circuitry, and diving into her sparking core. There was a low scream, and then a pop, and the assassin was gone. The room filled with a slow clap, as a half-naked, undead noble stepped from behind a curtain. Hades: "Just like that? A little anticlimactic, don't you think?"
Virgin Whore: "She'll be back. Although next time I won't be so forgiving." Hades threw up his hands in a placating gesture, stepping closer as he talked, the smell of lilacs and rotting meat filling the room. Hades: "Well, I told her the rules. What happens, happens... However--"
Virgin Whore: "However?"
Hades: "I did happen to overhear a tasty bit there in the middle. About a key?"
Virgin Whore: "What need have I of keys, Lord Hades?"
Hades: "Precisely what I was thinking..." Hades leaned close, his cold, dead fingers rising to caress the Virgin Whore's face. She stayed still and kept her eyes empty, a set of skills that her served her well in her descension through paradise. Hades: "Anything you want to tell me?"
Virgin Whore: "You look lovely today, Lord Hades." The Lord of Sin smiled, his teeth a pearly white, and patted her on the cheek. Hades: "Sweet girl." As Hades turned to leave, the smile left his face, and she spotted a hint of ugliness in those eyes. That deep and powerful desire, the core of what was truly Hades, where the mists of Debauchery became stormclouds, and called for a love that would never be his. The sweet kiss of Death. Hades slammed the doors behind him, and the Virgin Whore sighed, releasing the tension from her shoulders. The vision fades...
Virgin Whore: "I only up the volume for paying customers, I'm afraid." She pulled the knife from her head, and handed it back to Ruby. By the time the tool had passed hands, the wound was gone. Ruby shivered -- a vibration that shook her metal parts from head to toe. Virgin Whore: "I've been watching you, Ruby. You've made quite a mess up there..."
Roarin' Ruby: "I made fun. Rule #2!"
Virgin Whore: "So they tell me. But we don't delight in carnage here. We focus on the softer pleasures -- pleasures of the flesh." Ruby twitched, her knife hand rotating 180 degrees, but never inching any closer. Roarin' Ruby: "I want the key."
Virgin Whore: "As I told you, I don't have what you're looking for."
Roarin' Ruby: "LIAR!" The knife went up to her throat again, circuits firing off a mix of violent commands, but inhibited by some internal protocol. Virgin Whore: "I'm a three strikes kind of woman, pet. You've already earned two. So are you paying, or going?" It was like talking to an invalid. Instead of replying, Ruby dropped the knife, catching it in her other hand, and stabbed towards the Virgin Whore's belly. The blade stopped an inch before flesh, pinkish-red mist building around the blade, and climbing toward Ruby's hand. The poor Android attempted to flee the Debauchery, but suddenly found herself surrounded on all sides, as the mist poured between her armored plates, sliding along circuitry, and diving into her sparking core. There was a low scream, and then a pop, and the assassin was gone. The room filled with a slow clap, as a half-naked, undead noble stepped from behind a curtain. Hades: "Just like that? A little anticlimactic, don't you think?"
Virgin Whore: "She'll be back. Although next time I won't be so forgiving." Hades threw up his hands in a placating gesture, stepping closer as he talked, the smell of lilacs and rotting meat filling the room. Hades: "Well, I told her the rules. What happens, happens... However--"
Virgin Whore: "However?"
Hades: "I did happen to overhear a tasty bit there in the middle. About a key?"
Virgin Whore: "What need have I of keys, Lord Hades?"
Hades: "Precisely what I was thinking..." Hades leaned close, his cold, dead fingers rising to caress the Virgin Whore's face. She stayed still and kept her eyes empty, a set of skills that her served her well in her descension through paradise. Hades: "Anything you want to tell me?"
Virgin Whore: "You look lovely today, Lord Hades." The Lord of Sin smiled, his teeth a pearly white, and patted her on the cheek. Hades: "Sweet girl." As Hades turned to leave, the smile left his face, and she spotted a hint of ugliness in those eyes. That deep and powerful desire, the core of what was truly Hades, where the mists of Debauchery became stormclouds, and called for a love that would never be his. The sweet kiss of Death. Hades slammed the doors behind him, and the Virgin Whore sighed, releasing the tension from her shoulders. The vision fades...
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