Business or Pleasure? [M]

[Zero]

@Midnight

M for eventual violence.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Merchant Lord Alfieri Zu'hal was a man no longer quite in his prime, the man's belly sagged from too much wining and dining and not enough getting off his thickening ass. The man thought himself clever, but it was a wonder he had managed to build any kind of business empire, even waning as his might be.

Zenith regarded his master with a detached sense of loathing. Humans were inferior creatures as a general rule, but this one would be made to squeal like the fat little pig he was. Honestly, the demonic aura that surrounded the beastly, inhuman form of Zenith should have had such a lowly worm quaking in his boots and begging not to be gutted and consumed. As far was he was concerned, his master was little more than meat for the grinder.

Shame the contract stopped him from fulfilling such violent desires to maim and torture. Zenith could not harm his master.

Not directly.

All he had to do was bide his time. It was not as if this was the first master he longed to see destroyed. Indeed, Zenith wasn't aware of a master that he hadn't eventually plotted out a doom befitting them. For now he stood in his glory, passive and yet somehow still threatening as his master's other slaves skirted around him, watching him with terror in their eyes.

A meeting was to take place here on the terrace; some woman that his master seemed to have a vendetta against. Zenith's very presence was acquired by this particular fat swine as a show of force against this noblewoman, this rival business dealer. If all he had to do was stand there and look intimidating...it was a task he was well suited for even if it bored him to no end.

Perhaps he would be allowed to play with her...

Dark lips peeled back from white fangs as he grinned maliciously at the thought of being allowed a new toy to make scream.

[Nightmare]

Lady Cynthia Arun was on her way to a meeting with a business competitor. She looked simply extravagant. Her gold armor, as little of it as there was, shined brilliantly in the sunlight from being freshly cleaned. The diamonds in it sparkled like stars and the thin cloth she wore like a cloak blew gently in the light breeze.

In reality, Cynthia wasn't quite sure why she was attending this meeting to begin with. The man was upset that Cynthia had begun stealing his business and was hoping to work out some kind of arrangement, as far as she was told. She had very little interest in reaching a deal, unless it was extremely beneficial for her.

She arrived at the estate and was greeted at the gate by a young slave, who told her to follow him to meet with his master. She followed in silence, looking around the estate as she walked. It was nothing particularly special, at least not compared to hers. After a few minutes she lost interest, simply following  the slave to the terrace. When they arrived at a set of doors, the slave stepped aside and motioned for her to go through, so she did.

[Zero]

Just when the boredom seemed to become unbearable, Zenith tilted his head, crimson eyes narrowing as he felt the arrival of their guest. Now that was interesting. The fat man had failed to mention that it was a dragon that he quarreled with.

His senses heightened and strained as he watched the entrance to the terrace with anticipation. It had been far, far too long since he had encountered another dragon - a creature far more worthy of his attentions, whether those intentions were good or ill was to be seen. After all, he was still bound by his contract, and not all dragons had sense enough to acknowledge just how impressive he truly was.

When the doors swung open his master had not even the grace to stand to greet their guest, instead the porkly man gave a smug smirk that the woman had been summoned successfully to his home. "Lady Arun, I'm almost surprised that you made it. Come have a seat, there is fruit and wine to refresh us as we discuss why you are going to stop interfering with my business."

The pudgy man gestured to Zenith, who despite his size had been standing in such a place as to be hard to notice when one first entered. Crimson eyes burned with a clear malice as they regarded their master. "My newest slave will serve your wine."

It took a great deal of effort to remain impassive. Truly, the feat was Herculean. Zenith was not just some slave to be used like one might any other. His purpose was far grander than that. Still, his eyes wandered over the form of this so-called Cynthia Arun appreciatively. Most of her flesh was exposed, the dragoness barely wore a thing at all.

Not that he did either. An unimpressive sarong hung low on his hips and fell below his knees. The fabric was plain and without ornamentation. It served it's function of covering his "private" area for "modesty", and little else.

Zenith moved surprisingly gracefully for a creature that looked so large and cumbersome as he lightly stepped over to the table and lifted the pitcher of chilled wine his master had been steadily emptying most of the morning. His eyes remained fixed on the lady as he filled a goblet for her and offered it with a tight smile that was truly a barely contained snarl.

"Isn't he magnificent? With him I will intimidate or eliminate all my further competition." Lord Alfieri seemed entirely unaware of just how insecure his hold over Zenith truly was. The fool actually believed that he could treat the dragon like a trained monkey.

[Nightmare]

Cynthia waited until the man offered her a seat to take one, walking in a slow and dignified manner over to the seat that had been provided for her. She laughed at the statement he made, unable to tell if he was cocky, arrogant or both. "Oh, is that so?"

Cynthia had noticed the other presence just before the man had called him over, turning as he talked to look at the other being. He was definitely draconic, which was easily discernible by his various inhuman qualities, such as the long horns and the scales that adorned his body, as well as his tail and wings. She half ignored the man as he began to talk again, not even looking in his direction but instead looking with nothing less that delight at the creature in front of her.

She gave the dragon a wicked smile as he handed her the goblet of wine, turning back to the merchant lord when it was in her hand. "You act as if you can control him. If you truly believe that, you are more arrogant than I previously thought."

[Zero]

Merchant Lord Alfieri was so preoccupied with his assumed victory in his dealings that he didn't even notice the way that his guest was eyeing his coveted new slave.

Zenith kept his tight smile and simply bowed his head. Obviously he could see the way she was looking at him. The estimed guest seemed far more pleased with his presence than intimidated, which was fine with him. After all, she was quite a succulent little dragoness. He would have loved to let one of his claws lightly trace along the curve of one of her horns, but he didn't have permission to touch.

Pity.

Now he really wished to play with his master's guest, although the games he had in mind changed considerably. She was far too fine a specimen to damage.

"I have a contract that says that I can control him, Lady Arun. He is mine and must do as I say. Let me demonstrate!" Alfieri turned to Zenith with an arrogant smirk. "Slave, kneel."

Zenith's eyes burned brightly, the crimson flashing dangerously as he moved to kneel beside Cynthia, as he had not moved from where he'd served her wine. It was a challenge to perform the action with the inhuman nature of his limbs, but he managed to accomplish the task with grace.

"Slave, whom do you serve?"

"I serve you, my master. As agreed upon in the contract my service is yours...unto death, of course." Zenith's eye actually twitched. He would kill the man this instant if he only could. How dare a human force him to kneel.

[Nightmare]

Unto death. Cynthia thought, repeating what the other dragon had said in her head with a smile on her face. She was sure that could be arranged if this man tested her patience. If the merchant lord thought this dragon would be enough to intimidate her, he was sorely mistaken. For now, she would let him maintain his illusion of control.

She crossed her legs to get comfortable and took a sip of her wine. "Very well. Let's continue, shall we?"

[Zero]

The heavyset man seemed quite confident that Zenith was making an impression on his guest. Who wouldn't be eager to stay on the good side of a man with a dragon like his? Of course he was entirely overestimating just how much of a threat his "slave" was to someone like Cynthia Arun.

"You are only the first. Every competitor will come to understand that I am to be the only Merchant Lord dealing with glass in the entire delta. Those who think otherwise are about to suffer great misfortune. Property destroyed, slaves killed, wives and daughters maimed...you get the idea, I'm sure. You are an intelligent and admirable woman, yes? Surely you see that your threats can no longer threaten a man like me." He seemed to very much like hearing himself talk.

Of course Zenith thought his master quite small-minded. Why stop at only having his competitors back off? With such a force as him at his whim, why...his master could make demands of others. See a pretty woman? Take her, who would stop him? Ah, but he was thinking of himself and what he would do.

[Nightmare]

Cynthia made eye contact with the fat merchant. "Is that a threat, human?" she said, leaning forward in her seat. "Your 'slave', as you somehow find it fit to call a superior being, could never defeat me while he was limited by being in your 'control', which in reality you have very little of."

She laughed now, looking over at the being next to her. "Surely you're a much more magnificent creature than this man even knows."

She then looked back at the merchant lord. "Don't test my patience, whelp. I assure you it will not work out in your favor."

[Zero]

Zenith tilted his head slightly, eyeing his master's guest critically when she made the bold claim that he could not "defeat" her. His lips twitched with the effort it took not to challenge her on that statement. He would love to test his might against her - although he certainly did not think the delicious little dragoness could actually pose even a minor threat to him.

Of course he thought very highly of himself, regardless of his current station as this unworthy pig's slave.

"How dare you, freak bitch. This is a human world. Beasts like you should be put in their place or put down like the filthy, rabid mongrels you are. Zenith, your master commands you to teach this lizard her place - kneeling!" The rather impassioned speech was given with great articulating arm gestures and a red face.

Zenith didn't move from his kneeling position beside Cynthia's chair, simply looked at his master with those sinister crimson eyes and a malicious smirk.

"Don't just sit there! I command you to teach this whore respect!" The fat pig's face was even more red.

"I only have to serve you as long as you're alive." Zenith said darkly, and with barely contained amusement.

[Nightmare]

With that comment, Cynthia rose from her seat and held up her right hand with her palm facing the sky. Sparks of lightning began to arc between her palm and the clouds above them. "A human world? Your race is the plague that will bring this world to its death unless it is controlled."

Cynthia lowered her hand, causing the lightning that had been sparking to form a ball in her palm. "A dragon would never follow the demands of an insignificant whelp like yourself. Perhaps if I hadn't known that, I would have been intimidated by this beautiful creature beside me."

She then reached out her hand so her palm was facing the merchant lord and released a lightning bolt at his chest, sending him to the ground in a series of convulsions.

[Zero]

Beautiful, prideful, elegant, and eloquent - my, my, my but wasn't this one a real treat? Zenith let his eyes rake over Cynthia with amusement and approval at her words, and actions. There was a certain level of delight in his expression as he watched the arching lightning that so wonderfully bent to the will of the female beside him.

In particular he enjoyed hearing her call him beautiful. He was rather vain, to be sure. Although watching his master, or former master, writhe on the ground in the throes of death. Of course that left him with a tiny little problem.

Zenith rose from where he had knelt, giving his dead master a final glance before turning dark eyes back onto the woman. Standing he had to look down at her, but few were as impressively huge as he was. "I should thank you for releasing me, but now I find myself in a delicate position."

He waved a clawed hand and shadows formed in front of them before drawing back to frame what looked to be a piece of parchment with a great deal of demonic writing upon it. "You see, I was only here on contract. Without a master to hold my contract I must leave this world. A very disappointing outcome to my day, to be sent back to my prison right after discovering a magnificent jewel such as yourself, but unless there is another willing to enter into a binding agreement..."

Well Zenith hardly thought more needed to be said. She was an intelligent creature, she would figure it out.

[Nightmare]

Cynthia grinned when the dragon told her his situation."I would be honored to form a contract with you..."

She paused, thinking for a moment. "You do have a name, yes?"

[Zero]

"Zenith, but don't be too hasty to accept before the price has been agreed upon. I highly doubt a creature such as yourself would pay what a human tosses aside so carelessly." The contract remained before Cynthia, but he moved forward, stepping over to the still form of the dead merchant lord. He placed a hand before the man's face and an ethereal, misty substance rose from Alfieri and Zenith drew it into himself.

"My masters usually have my service unto their deaths, and then their souls are mine, but what does this succulent little dragoness offer? Given your position you will likely live for a very, very long time. That is many, many years of service, Mistress." Very many years guaranteed to freely wander between his home and this world - at her digression, of course.

Far from perfect to still be at the whims of another, but at least it would be a dragon thing time. She would be far more sympathetic to his plight and needs.

[Nightmare]

"What do I have to offer?" Cynthia started, thinking for a moment, "Well, I assume you mean aside from being able to live as a dragon, superior to these filthy, disgusting humans rather than a life of servitude to one of them."

She let out a soft laugh. "What is it you desire, then? I am sure it is complete freedom, though from my understanding I cannot offer you that. So, what do you seek in its place?"

[Zero]

"Complete freedom, what an idyllic dream." Zenith mused. Ideally that would be excellent, but to his knowledge it was impossible to gain freedom through his contract - or by any means, for that matter. Still, she offered a lovely point.

The words on the parchment began changing, rewriting the contract to suit the new master. "Yes, I rather like the idea of being placed in a more suitable position, one of authority and privilege above those lesser beings. It has been far too long since I was able to enjoy a more luxurious existence in this world."

Zenith made a soft rumbling sound, something between a growl and a purr, but a sound of pleasure regardless. "You will give me power and luxury, allow me to live a life worthy of a creature such as myself, and thirteen souls a year - whom those souls belongs to will be left to your discretion, although I will say that the younger and more innocent the soul the more pleasing it will be to me. In return my life and service are yours, for as long as you live."

Which would be a very, very long time as long as she did not draw his ire.

[Nightmare]

"Of course. Power and luxury are only befitting of creatures such as us." Cynthia said with a smile. "The souls, well that shouldn't be a problem. I'm sure it can be very easily arranged."

[Zero]

"Then I believe we have reached an agreement." The contract finished its transformation, Alfieri's name had already disappeared and now there was a blank space at the bottom awaiting the name of his new mistress.

"Speak your true name, and acknowledge our contract." As soon as Cynthia did so her name would appear and the contract would become binding.

[Nightmare]

"I, Xyntharia, accept this contract." She said, watching as her name took place on the paper. She then waited for Zenith to be finished with whatever else he needed to do.

[Zero]

The shadows returned, seemingly devouring the contract before they vanished, taking the parchment with them.

"Xyntharia, what a lovely name for a lovely creature." Zenith mused quietly, lips pulling back into an almost unsettling grin. "I am at your command, Mistress. What would you ask of your servant first? This hovel has found itself suddenly without a master to claim it. You know for such an ugly, fat man he has a rather lovely young daughter, only just ripe for plucking. I believe he was going to marry her to a man in the spice industry, but wouldn't she be put to better use as a new toy for my Mistress?"

And for him, but there was no need to be greedy. He could share.

[Nightmare]

"I like the way you think, Zenith." She said. "I must admit, it is nice to have someone who shares my beliefs around."

She grinned and let out a laugh. "Naturally, she shall pay for her father's insolence."