太陽王入陣曲！

—

I’m sorry but I cannot allow reposting my fanart on other social media. Please refrain from inquiry about reposting.

[rubs my face against you like a cat]

' i thought the saying was usually " break a leg ? " his whisper is murmur-soft against ozymandias's supporting shoulder , and when he weakly laughs , the sound of it tattered and broken up into gasps , he visibly winces and grimaces in a sharp and excruciating pain . ask him if he'd do any of this again , and he would have answered without hesitation that he wouldn't . ask him why he had done it in the first place , and he would have answered that any reason still was beyond him .

' though ... you're still fine , right ? ' not too banged up , plenty healthy enough to carry even a great , broken black bird back to the others whose better healing magics could fix him up in practically a blink . if only for now , all that he had to do was endure --- that included any of the rider's chiding , too .

' i don't know what went wrong . everything had to be abandoned halfway . the numbers didn't match the reports , i don't know where they got the extra reinforcements from . and daisuke ... ' even i , ' started to worry . ' about you . the cool of his cheeks leans itself against the other , a fatigued , red-winter chill to egypt's warm sands . ' phantom thieves shouldn't be any good at mass-murder , see ? but we can't be beat at performing and serving as a distraction . i didn't chase a thrill , here ... they chased me . '

what could have been a guffaw is muffled into a wretched little snicker , all pride over his near-fatal mischief . ' in other words , close , but no dice . the fact i'm here now means i still didn't get caught , as expected of the great me . ' maybe that cocky smirk in the midst of broken bones and bleeding wounds is the most infuriating of all . and yet , his eyes still slowly shut in the other's grasp and carry . the long tips of his wings drag along the ground , while his voice drifts like he were already falling into a deep , deep sleep .

' i appreciate the concern , but you should save it . because right now , i don't regret anything . i just want to rest until this pain in my ribs goes away . '

Sphinx Awlad by D-ik Factory

" do you need... uhhh... like a jacket or something... "

❝HOW NICE OF YOU to worry so, but I assure you, I am perfectly fine.❞ People were so odd nowadays about seeing a bare chest. Well – it was more than a bare chest that was out on display, but that wasn’t important. ❝I hope I was not too much of a distraction.❞ Lies. He hoped he was.

Mary Oliver, from Long Life: Essays And Other Writings originally published in 2004

at first , surprise --- and then disappointment seems to sink fresh into his features . he thinks things might have been easier had ozymandias been able to say yes , but even then , weren't the niwa's own circumstances painfully unique ?

' in the first place ... ' his words slow down and he hesitates , but gathering up some courage , he tries again . ' ... i'm not a true servant . somehow , i've managed to live for this long , but --- ' couldn't ozymandias understand ? for a human to fall in love with an existence so fleeting , and one that , if ever reborn , re-summoned , be it in another place or another time , would never remember him . a love like that to some would be nothing more than a waste , and once undone , it could have been treated as if it had never even existed in the first place .

' i know that servants are just supposed to be stories . you aren't --- the real humans , or people , that once were . everyone keeps telling me , a servant is just made up magic and spiritrons and mana ... and it's different . from me . ' cells and blood and yes , of course , his curse . ' that's why --- i don't know . even if i get a crush , i don't know if it's alright for me to pursue it . ' a breath . ' i ... don't want to hurt someone . ' even by , possibly , liking them ... that was the sort of boy that the niwa was .

❝AN UNDERSTANDABLE FEAR, DAISUKE. Do not feel ashamed to have these thoughts. A Servant falling for someone will always end the same way. When all is accomplished, they will fade away. Our time is always borrowed, yet even so…❞ He paused, leaning in just a little more, ❝since we are here, why is it that we cannot enjoy this life in full once more? Cannot love again even knowing that it is short? Cannot eat and sleep despite knowing we have no need for it? Regardless of whether we are mere phantoms conjured by magic, the fact remains that we still feel like anyone else.❞ Pain felt was genuine despite their bodies not being real. To be crushed by an enemy, to be devoured, incinerated, so on and so forth, felt real. It was for these reasons that it was a kindness that upon each summoning, a Servant couldn’t remember a previous battle, and if they did, it was a hazy thing like trying to recall a memory one had when they were eight years old.

     ❝You are far too hard on yourself…and far too selfless besides. For once, do something for yourself. That is the greatest advice I can offer you.❞ Even now, Daisuke refused to even ponder the thought of being selfish. Always, always did he have another in mind. This was not necessarily a bad thing…until it negatively affected your own happiness. ❝Before writing off anything, why not ask the other party their thoughts on this? You need not tell them your feelings. Just see where their own mind lies before making a decision.❞

" It's definitely one way to put it. " he would remark before continuing his explanation. " I'm sure you've done your research about what I did to their former chairman after his promotion that lasted for like, what, five minutes? However long it takes t' fall out of a building after getting a bullet in your mouth. " He will let out a small laugh as he recalls the look on Dane Vogel's face.

" Anyway, his successor and I wound up working together after a former friend of mine tried t' murder us. We wound up agreeing to lay off each other after that, and generally try and keep the peace between both groups. We kept in touch, but it was until at least a year or so after the fact where he called me up with a proposition; how would we like to enter a partnership and really elevate the Saints into the next level? And thus, the Saints/ULTOR Media Group was formed. "

" Now, I ain't entirely sure about the legality when it comes to something like that. Is my gang and all of its resources owned by ULTOR, or is it mostly the IP? Cause I mean, I guess merch is one thing. But I don't wanna find out that everything that makes us who we are is under some weird copyright law. So, yeah. I guess we are in their pocket. " He gives off a shrug.

" But it's not even just that, y'know? Most of us in the Saints straight up don't trust these assholes. Like, if it's not one of us hearing rumors about these guys tryna work shit out with people we consider enemies, it's all of us thinking we don't have much of a future if we're still under their thumb. No real sense of freedom. And I mean, sure, we should've seen that coming from a mile away. But when you're given the chance to really spread your influence on a global scale, you sure as hell are gonna try. "

MURDER. SOUNDED PRETTY LEGIT. This might shock someone else upon hearing, but really, none of this was remotely new information to Ozymandias. Things like this rarely avoided being…messy. This was especially so in regards to someone else taking over for someone else. Humming softly to show he was listening, he leaned forward a little more. ❝You’re wise not to trust ULTOR. They have a tendency to make things seem like it’s fair, but in actuality, they’re the ones who have the most to gain. Surely you have seen this, or at least, to an extent, noticed something was off? You’re a sharp man, Boss. I trust that you know this partnership of yours can only end in you and your people being rung dry of all that you’re worth.❞ Those with discerning eyes knew better than to put too much into that particular organization. Only those unaware or desperate would, although he supposed to an extent, perhaps this man across from him had felt that way. Desire to take care of his gang meant that he would make choices that initially seemed beneficial…

     But this did make him wonder – would they be able to pull away from them in that case? Doubtful ULTOR would be willing to part with someone who could be deemed as usual as the Boss. Those were his thoughts at least. Maybe things were already going in the Boss’s favor for all he knew considering he only had a piece of this puzzle and not the entire picture laid out in front of him. ❝Since you are still under contract with them, in a sense, how do you plan on wresting yourself from their ever powerful influence?❞

Gabriella's heart raced, pounding against her ribs like a prisoner desperate for escape. Ozymandias' keen gaze pierced through her facade, his words echoing in the depths of her troubled mind. She had hoped to keep her affliction hidden, to bear the burden alone without burdening others with the weight of her suffering. But his probing questions left her exposed, vulnerable in ways she hadn't anticipated. The darkness festering within her, the insidious presence of eldritch parasite, threatened to consume her from the inside out. Its tendrils coiled around her essence, draining her strength with each passing day.

She wrestled with the urge to confide in Ozymandias, to unburden her soul to the one who had come to mean so much to her. Yet fear held her back, fear of rejection, fear of being seen as weak or tainted by the darkness that plagued her. As the witch gazed into the eyes of the pharaoh, she saw not judgment, but genuine concern etched in the lines of his face. It was a stark reminder of the bond they shared, forged through trials and tribulations beyond the comprehension of mortals. But still, she hesitated, torn between the desire to protect him from the horrors that lurked within her and the longing to seek solace in his unwavering presence. In the end, she offered him a faint smile, a feeble attempt to mask the turmoil raging within her soul.

"No," she finally whispered, her voice barely above a whisper. "No one else knows...yet." Her admission hung heavy in the air, a fragile thread connecting them in the darkness that threatened to engulf her. She couldn't bear the thought of burdening the others with her plight, couldn't bring herself to shatter the illusion of strength she had carefully constructed. The weight of her secret pressed down upon her, threatening to crush her beneath its suffocating embrace. Yet even as she struggled to contain the turmoil within, a glimmer of hope flickered in the recesses of her mind.

"If...if something were to happen to me," she began, her voice trembling with uncertainty, "there's another...another Master candidate who could take my place. Ritsuka." The name hung between them, a reminder of the fragile balance they tread upon, of the uncertainty that loomed on the horizon. "They will have to make due without me when that time comes." Gabriella's heart ached with the knowledge that she could no longer bear the burden alone, that she needed him by her side now more than ever. But still, she couldn't bring herself to reveal the full extent of her suffering, couldn't find the words to articulate the depths of her despair.

HE NEED NOT BE told of Gabriella’s pain to know it existed. She struggled – he knew this, could feel this was the case. To the extent of what that was, though, not even he could say. There were no words of comfort that he could truly give because at the end of the day, she had to deal with all this on her own. Words of comfort were but fleeing things, he knew. They were a balm against the wound of one’s heart, yet that was all it was, a balm. Had he the ability to properly assist her, then he certainly would. Alas, this was outside of even his scope of powers. An eldritch god with questionable goals… Her unease, her fear towards this uncertainty, was understandable…as was her hesitation to tell any others about what she currently struggled with. As Gabriella continued to speak, he listened to her for a time, although when she was finished, only then did he break the relative quiet that had come to linger.

     ❝They will be kept in mind…but rather than thinking of a potential future where you are ‘devoured’ in body and soul by this being out among the stars, instead, let us focus on the now. Right now, you are still fighting with them. Right now, you are still…you. That is what matters most.❞ He would keep her away from looking into that lingering darkness in the distance, and instead, continue to stand in what light still existed. It might not do much in the end, for Gabriella might still fall victim to what might be inevitable. For the time being, though, for as long as there was fight still present in her, that was what he wanted her to keep in mind: that she could still fight and to not make it at all easy for the other party out of pure spite to remain herself. ❝You will overcome this, Gabriella. One way or another, you will. That is what you must think of as you continue to walk forward. Nothing else but this. After all, it takes a special person to call forth someone like me from the Throne of Heroes.❞

Freshly summoned and quickly left to her own devices, what an odd situation to find herself in.

Though the master seemed a happy child, they were busy being pulled every which way to perform various duties. They seemed upset at only being able to welcome her but also excited, quick to inform her of the other citizens of Uruk currently within their ranks. Apparently, there were three versions of her honored king somewhere within the walls of their fortress. She had to admit she was a bit excited to see that.

So far what few halls she had strolled through had yet to have anyone cross her path though.

"Oddly quiet for a place that I was assured was bustling with others."

❝OH…YOU ARE CERTAINLY new.❞ It was not uncommon nowadays for Ozymandias to leave his usual seclusion, but out of the times that he had, it was safe to say that never did his eyes fall upon anyone who looked like this woman. Most of the time, his interest in new Servants was a bit abysmal unless there was something about them that caught his eye, but in this case, his fascination was held for the sheer fact he didn’t know who this was. As soon as he received his answer, however, most of the time, that fascination would trickle back into nothing unless something was said or done that captured it again. Such was the fickle nature of a king, and one that many had come to know since his summoning. ❝Who might you be? I cannot say that I have laid eyes upon one such as yourself.❞ That, and surely Nitocris would have apprised him of any changes within this building---  

"You probably don't care, huh?". You're right, I absolutely do not. 

❝ Do you always speak as if auditioning for a low-budget porno? ❞ Snarky words to hide the fact that he'd forgotten his handcuffs at home and lacked any legal authority to make an arrest as a private investigator. He suspected Ozy was well aware of this, judging by how smug the guy was acting. But Kurama was determined to keep up the lie.

❝ You might not be aware of many things—like my capacity for mercy, for one. So I’ll let you off with a warning—but next time, I’ll frame you for a crime you didn’t commit. ❞

❝HAH, REALLY COMING FOR the throat today, hm?❞ That meant his previous words must have taken a jab at the other’s pride. He and Kurama were quite similar in that regard, and equally as petty. ❝Did I so happen to strike a nerve?❞ he cooed, eyes narrowing slightly in a way that was difficult to read, yet vaguely ominous all the same. Was he displeased? Was he just searching for exactly where to strike? It was hard to tell. ❝It is fine to admit your attraction, you know. It is not as if the world will suddenly up and end for a mere sober admittance.❞ He laughed, arms crossing over his chest. ❝My, what a sensitive soul you are, Kurama. I would almost call that endearing.❞