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[brother_nature]

@banditking

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[loosestrifes]

( It's strange, the way fear mixes with anger at all of Chobe's actions and words. As he's stared at (or through?), as he's made fun of, taunted and played with— Esikko's fingers curl tighter into his palms, trying to keep a lid on the rage that's threatening to overflow.

After all, he's in no position to be aggressive. The vials he'd slipped into his pockets to take here just in case had already proven useless with how quickly he'd been grabbed, and this whole meetup was just to toy with him, to string him along? He's seeing red, he's so angry, and logic falls further away as he struggles to ground himself and focus on the actual words coming from Chobe's mouth. )

You're cocky— ( But the words seethe out like steam, even if his body is frigid from his own icy blood, and he reaches out foolishly to grab a fistful of whatever cloth Chobe has as a top right now. As if he could be threatening himself, as if he could do anything more than a pathetic push or slap. )

Because you're cheating, right? With a body like that. One you weren't born with.

It pisses me off. ( His glare is sharp enough to kill, even if he has nothing to back it up with. Pure anger, deep rooted and projected onto an easy target, enough to make his hands tremble with each breath. )

I'd love nothing more than to rip that power right out of your chest.

( Bottle it for someone else. Wipe that stupid smirk off that stupid face. )

[brother_nature]

[He doesn't flinch, letting Esi take hold of a piece of his jacket...or what's left of it. It's charred, tattered, and Chobe just hasn't bothered to buy another shirt or garment. It makes Chobe's cocky, toothy grin all the more baffling that he can stand with such confidence looking the way he does. A torn and ragged self assured brick of a thug, a stark contrast to Esikko's polished, princely stature.

His eye narrows slightly, considering him, before he takes a step closer, spreading his arms, exposing his bare chest.]

Aaah, so that's it. Kind of a boring answer--the weak willed prince, envious of those with power! I've seen it time and time again. You're right, I'm definitely cheating. But the world doesn't give a shit if you play fair, as long as you win, right?

So why don't you try it! Right here, right now. Rip my heart out where I stand, if you can. Claw right through my chest if you're determined enough. I won't even fight back.

[Then, a darker expression, his voice lowering to a gravel.]

But if that ends up not being the answer you're searching for, not one that satisfies you? You owe me.

[loosestrifes]

( He's not wrong, fully, that Esikko is searching for power, envious of power. He's restarted his lifetime more than he can remember in search for it, and no number of gods eaten seems to ever be enough— those memories blur hazily between the flashes of his rage, and Chobe's extended arms and step forward make his heart beat even harder in his own ears, tempted to pull the glass shard from his pocket and stab right into him.

There's someone else he'd like to bottle this power for, though he's sure it would be refused, anyway. Still, it's just irritating to see in the hands of some asshole flaunting it around. So his greatest motivation? He just wants to stomp it out. He wants to find some way to grab at the core of this asshole and watch fear flicker in his eyes for the first time in who knows how long. )

I don't owe you anything.

( His grip on that charred jacket slips, but just to press his cold palm into Chobe's chest for an irritated shove, ignoring the flashes of gore he can just imagine. )

What could you want, anyway? From a "weak willed prince," as you say? You're toying with me, but it's only because you don't feel threatened. You'll regret that, you know? You've made it clear that the real heart of yours I should rip out isn't in your own chest.

( Implications of brother threats before he even knows he's here, yes, but he's too angry to think, too stuck on what to do, tempted to follow up and actually start ripping at flesh, but holding himself back if only because they are literally in a public stairwell. )

[brother_nature]

[A sly grin. Esikko's catching on, but not quite there yet. He chuffs, lazily letting his arms fall to his side.]

What could I want from you, huh? You don't got much to offer. Weak, frail, temperamental, shit for conversation, probably barely a good fuck--I might freeze my dick off in ya, hah!

[Crass as ever. He casually takes a few steps around him, like the laziest of sharks circling prey, with each movement being easily misconstrued as an attack or mere curiosity. His tongue is still flapping though.]

You really don't got the guts to take any shit into your own hands directly, do you? Can't seize the day even if it might end in failure. That's why you won't ever grow, little prince. Maybe that's why yer family booted you out, who can say. Just no potential, yeah?

So what I was offering was a way out, a compromise. I don't kill my own men, ya see.

But I guess you're back on the chopping block. I don't feel like getting into it today, but I will kill you. Slowly, painfully, so much so you'll beg the fucks here not to bring you back.

I'll make sure to make the occasion special, and might even show ya something cool! All just for you.

[loosestrifes]

( Today has been especially infuriating, especially exhausting. Try as he might to stand there calm and cold, Chobe's circling puts him on edge, and any movements made to look like starts at an attack could easily earn a flinch from him. He seethes with his exhaled breath, flexing his fingers into his palm before an airy laugh falls out. Here, he lifts a hand to scrub at his own eyes, the red crescent marks beneath them almost shining in their intensity. )

How personal... That sounds so personal, you know?

( His voice lifts with something like amusement as he drops his hand away in a dramatic gesture, swooping towards Chobe. )

I get it, I do. Speaking down on me, belittling me, promising a tortuous end— go ahead and try that when you want.

( There's a smile as another laugh drips out, but his eyes are just as angry, just as frustrated. Even still, he takes a step back from this circling, throwing another hand out in a gesture. )

Because I've already gotten under your skin, haven't I? Because if I'm so weak and frail... why is it that you were left so helpless, right? I saw the look in your eyes; you wanted to kill me there, not wait. You had no choice but to wait.

( With a scoff, he turns on his heels, ready to just leave. He's not getting any more out of this, he knows, and he's not ready for any sort of fight, even with his cocky words. )

You've made an enemy of more than just me. Any torture you'd like to put me through, if you can even manage, will be returned and more~ I do hope you're ready for that.

1/2

[brother_nature]

. . .

. . .

. . .

. . .

[He doesn't need to respond. Chobe has nothing to prove, and he's already confirmed he has something Esikko wants. Whether that be for himself, or just to rip it away from Chobe's "undeserving" hands out of spite, it doesn't matter. He's not lying, he truly doesn't feel like killing him today. Too much to catch up on, too much to plan. He wants it to be a memorable, agonizing affair for the prince--a quick bout of torture won't do. So he should let the prince walk away, cherish those last words and eat them later. Not to mention, there's a game going on! He's having a pretty good day.

Except. . .]

[brother_nature]

[It's fast, it's abrupt, and there's not a single plant to be seen. Just as Esikko turns, Chobe reaches out to grab his arm, far more tighter than any of his vines, nails digging in thru fabric, before slamming him against the wall. He's quick to follow up, face dangerously close, and that eye now focused and cold. He brings his hand to his neck to squeeze, a slow choke, demonstrating his strength doesn't come solely from a magic trick.]

I don't think you get it, little prince. So! Need to make sure you understand one vital bit of that story. You didn't leave me helpless, something else did, something you'll never be able to fathom. And if not for that holding me back, if not for me being out of my damn mind, I'd have ripped apart your chest and made sure you could see me swallowing your heart before you could choke on your own blood.

[That madness being the overwhelming stress and loneliness from losing his brother to this shitty casino in the first place, what pushed his parasite over the edge and let the cruel, feral instincts of his suit take over. The one and only weakness Chobe is allowed to have is Toma, and he'll die over and over before he lets a pathetic beast like Esi think he has even an ounce of influence over him. Esikko truly did save several people that day by freezing him, giving him time for his mind to push back the flower's influence, but it also served as a brief prison to collect his thoughts, and mentally paint a much, much bigger target on that insufferable elite. ]

You were saved by that madness and nothing more. You try to take credit for it again, and patience be damned. Maybe I'll get to see how they bring people back to life up close and personal.

As for whatever bitch you feel like siccing on me. . .tell them I'll always be in the basement waiting. I open the door for everyone. Consider this? An invite.

[He'll finally release him, only for another vine to slink from his back. This one is full of thorns, and with a swift crack, it slaps across one of Esi's hands, embedding a large, painful thorn in the back of his palm. A parting gift, and invitation for any who dare challenge him for the prince's honor.

He doesn't wait to see how Esikko might react, beginning to walk off. If the prince has any last words, he'll hear them, but he has nothing else to say on his part.]

[loosestrifes]

( Esikko isn't stupid— he knows when he's in too deep, when he should shut his mouth for the sake of his own neck. But there are countless times when he presses that anyway, tries to push here or there to find weaknesses until they work. This was, unsurprisingly, a poor attempt. He was expecting backlash, too. A comment, a sneer, even one of those vines to grab his ankle and trip him going up the stairs, or something equally embarrassing.

This is a lot worse— but it's also a lot better, too, right? Not that he can think in the moment about how he's struck some sort of a nerve here, somehow. His thoughts race in circles, Chobe's words clear even over the rush of his own heartbeat in his ears. His hand reaches up to try and claw at that hand around his throat, but his nails don't do much to the rough skin of Chobe's hands, and even if they did, he knows it wouldn't last. His eyes do meet Chobe's one good one for a moment, a cross between fear and that same sharp anger still lingering.

But when he's freed, he doesn't have words. He staggers with a cough, trying to reach for his neck as he begins to breathe again, but that vine slaps it away just as quickly, leaving him bumping back into the wall with a hiss and clutching at his own hand. His skin is red where he was grabbed, delicate as it is, both on the arm and the neck— a funny contrast to the TRANSGRESSOR mark on his neck that's more visible with his braid now disheveled.

He does shoot Chobe the dirtiest glare imaginable, trembling with a mix of powerful emotions, but— no, he can't talk back to that. He'll have to just turn and leave with his metaphorical tail between his legs, still coughing, and decide if he even wants to send anyone he actually cares about towards a freak like this, or deal with it on his own. Ugh. )