Bound by Blood

[amouri]

The low trickle of water could be heard, as it went on its bumpy way to end in a free fall, turning into moist drops which landed with an irritating 'ploink' every few intervals.
Barry frowned inwardly, his eyes closed.
He was currently not fully conscious, but just dwelling in the waking dreams of his 'standby stance'
With an irritated grunt he roused himself, edging away from the drops that fell onto him.
They gathered on the dusty floor instead, creating a small puddle that grew.
He glanced up to see what the others were doing, and was quite surprised to see 79 and 32 kneeling, both who's orbs were absent.

He glanced the youngest Slicer who seemed to be just fingering his sword whilst his older brother was resting.
Big was absent, probably meaning that he was taking guard duty, a thing they had started up some time ago that they took turns to do.
"Wazzu-" Before he could say more 32 had sent him a sharp glare before closing her eyes again.
Barry was baffled by this, and he turned towards 81 to send him an inquiring gaze.
81 rolled the orbs of his eyes, creating an effect that was confusing in the least.
"They're praying. Geez its just a load of posh if you ask me."
"Well we AREN'T." 32 snapped.
79 opened one eye hesitantly, glancing up at her.
She shook her head and placed a hand on his shoulder, closing her eyes again.

After a few more seconds the silent ritual seemed to be over, and 79 sat down on the floor to pick of a piece of rust which had settled on his dagger.
"32, why on earth are you encouraging that kind of thing? It'll only lead to misery and despair you know. Your 'Great Lord Ishbal' hasn't exactly been in your favor lately has he now?"
32 narrowed her eyes.
"You are nothing but an alchemist. Why should I expect you to understand?"
"Oh I understand. Sure I do. You need to feel all tough-femme to not break down, you have to have something to cling to to avoid dissolving into tears whenever you think of what used to be."
He pointed his trident at her.
"Ain't I right?"
Barry could have sworn there was ice in the air.
32 had stiffened, her eyes wide, but whether it was in shock, anger, or perhaps actually grief...he couldn't tell.
"Why you-you-you-" She choked, balling her hands into fists as she shook with rage.
79 narrowed his eyes in concern, as Barry sent 81 a warning look.
"Oi, that was way over the line mate..." He began.
81 snorted.
"Well its obvious by her reaction that I must've hit a spot. Why kid herself? We're all gonna end up dead sometime anyway, or worse...we won't die at all."
He sent 32 a grave look.
"Trust me hun...just give up all this religious shit. It won't make it better."

The thing that happened then went so fast that Barry hardly got to see it, but only just managed to cover his face with a yelp.
When he peeked out from beneath his fingers 81 was trembling with shock, leaning up against the wall with a dozen arrows sticking out at every available spot, the shafts quivering with a low hum.
32 was huffing with rage, her hands trembling in their grip on the bow she usually had slung over her shoulder, only a few arrows still in her quiver.
She turned, sprinting away until the shadows hid her, her footsteps growing faint.

Barry swore loudly, getting to his feet and glaring angrily at 81.
"Now look what you did! Why'd you have to go on about it like that?! Sure, that ishbal stuff ain't worth my left buttock-"
"You don't have one."
"-thats outta the point, even though its all a load of tricks and lies doesn't mean she can't believe it."
81 sighed wearily, weakly trying to yank out an arrow that had been embedded in his neck.
"Why should she? She has to get her eyes up to the truth sooner or later-"
"If she prays to keep sane, fine. Let her do that. If she went off the rocker, I doubt you'd live another day. Be grateful for that."

79 had gotten to his feet and was glancing at them nervously.
"I know you two might not believe it...but its our culture. Its who we are, who we aim to be. I'd prefer it if you didn't insult it and try to take it away from us. Please?"
Barry couldn't help chuckling at the meek request.
"Alright alright squirt, you go on with your worshipping. Just don't expect me to do it."
81 growled in frustration.
"How should I know she would react like that? She bloody ran off crying! I mean COME ON..."
"Aw zip that cake-hole will ya. She might be much younger than we think she is, she could be really sensitive for all we know."
He sent 81 a dirty look.
"Not that it would stop you..."

He sighed and looked after the place where she had disappeared.
"When she comes back, you bloody well better make up. Or let her hurt you anyway. We can't be enemies, its just not worth it here."
"Er....excuse me...none of you would mind to tell me what the hell just happened would you?"
Barry glanced over to where the Slicer's had been sitting, and was shocked beyond belief that 48 was lying on the ground, slowly rocking to and fro.
49 was nowhere to be seen.

[silverviper2134]

Cliffhanger....never a good thing. Usually it results in death. Hopefully not this time.

[amouri]

D: hell no. 81 just got pwned, and younger Slicer is running off to check if 32 is ok.
There won't be any character deaths for a loooong time.

[silverviper2134]

Okay, that's a relief.

[amouri]

The youngest Slicer walked briskly through the winding halls, slightly on edge mainly due to the situation that had just occurred.
He narrowed his eyes in anger as he recalled 81's words, what a bastard!
Then 32 had fled, he didn't blame her. Even though he wasn't religious himself, he knew how important it was to have faith in something...and if that faith was questioned it was far from pleasurable.
He suddenly stopped, a strange unearthly sound echoing from off the walls.
He stiffened, cursing himself for having left his sword behind alongside his brother.
But then he recognized to his shock the sound as song-not with any particular speech, just an undefined string of notes, flowing together in what seemed to particular pattern.

It was...beautiful. But even though the sound was mesmerizing, the tone behind was not to be mistaken, it was strained and miserable.
Suddenly the song stopped as soon as it had started, and instead he heard a low scuffling, as if from nimble feet.
He cautiously approached, and as he rounded the corner he saw to his surprise 32, in what looked like mid-twirl, her arms above her head and her eyes absent.
He gazed at her in dumb surprise, as he realized she was dancing.
The dance, not unlike the song, seemed to be in no particular pattern, it simply was.
But her movements were quick and sharp, aggressive.
He had a suspicion that she was somehow fighting herself, a battle which he couldn't see how she would be able to win...or lose.

She suddenly stopped, her arms still raised, but silent and still as a stone.
With an audible sigh she lowered them, gripping herself around the elbows in a protective gesture, as though trying to warm herself.
She gazed at her feet, shifting slightly.
He cleared his throat hesitantly.
She looked up, the wariness in her eyes quickly turning dull.
"Oh." she said. "Its you."
He didn't know how to respond to her obviously chilly attitude.
"Are you here just to see whether I'm curled up somewhere crying? Sobbing because 81's a total jerk? Bawling because I miss being human? Sorry to disappoint you mate."

He shifted uncomfortably.
"NO, of course not. I think 81 was a complete ass back there, I'm impressed that you made him shut up."
"What, impressed because I managed it when I'm a girl?"
He flinched irritably.
"NO."
There was a few more seconds of strained silence.
"You...wanna sit?" He asked suddenly.
She stared at him in surprise.
"Just...If you wanted to talk."
She glanced away from him, seeming slightly puzzled.
"Well...alright. Sure."

The creak and rustle of their armour was the only thing to be heard as they sat down, leaning against an old filing cabinet, of which the open drawers seemed to be inhabited by a small nest of spiders.
There was another awkward moment of silence.
"...Why were you singing?"
"You heard me?"
"Hm. And the dancing?"
"You saw me?"
"Yes."

She paused.
"Just...needed to let it out. I wanted to kill 81, but we can't afford to lose companions in this rotten hell. I'd just have added to my own troubles."
"I bet you feel like that a lot." He chuckled.
"What, that I add to my troubles?"
"No, that you want to kill 81."
She sighed with a weak giggle.
"True. He's so tempting to kill though, its like a baby sends out an aura that makes you want to protect it, he's exactly the opposite."
"...So, you danced and sang just to control that anger."
She shifted slightly.

"Yes...Its kinda...not exactly a ritual...but our culture tends to lean against different habits that you create for yourself that you use in different situations. Song is one of them, writing or holding a speech might be another. No matter whether you're angry or happy, its best to channel that feeling to something more constructive, so the energy is not wasted."
"Sounds useful."
"It is. My father used to work with wood whenever he felt something strongly, you should have seen the work of art he made. His witty moments were particularly good, that was when he would make toys for the children of our village."
"So...You were born in Ishbal?"
"I was born and raised in Ishbal. We were a family of women mostly, my father and my uncle were the only males still alive. The rest were aunts, sisters, cousins, you name it. And uncle Goen didn't even live long either...he was crazy with horses, sometimes I seriously would wonder whether he could speak to them or not. Anyhow, he was killed a bull when his stallion Ackbar decided to jump the fence, Goen was trying to get him out when the bull charged."
She sighed. "So it goes."
"I'm sorry to hear."
"No matter, he lived well. Managed to breed some of the finest steeds in the village as well, or maybe even whole Ishbal as he reckoned."

He hesitated.
"Were you...in the war?"
She didn't answer at first, drawing a complicated spiral in the dust of the floor.
"Yes. I was."
she looked up at the ceiling, grinding a small lump of dirt between her fingers.
"The war itself I don't remember much. It was the aftermath that triggers it. We had to seek hiding, on dumps and in sewers, behind mountains and even in a range of caves. Always moving, desperately trying to heal our wounded. I was still young, but I remember well."
Her eyes seemed to darken.
"I swore, that I'd do what I could to make things better, to make the people of Amestris pay for what they had caused. All that suffering...simply because they would not accept that we were different, that we DIDN'T need alchemy to solve everything. They didn't like that. So I...became and assassin. Against my mother's wishes, but I had grown and she no longer had a hold on me. I was trained, and my first kill failed."
She flexed her hand.
"I had to flee, before they caught me. But when I was on my way back, I heard that...that...my mother had followed me. In a desperate attempt to convince me that it was not the right way. She hadn't returned when I got back, and...she was never seen again."

He was shocked to see that her shoulders were shaking, and even more so when she suddenly began sobbing.
"She was...they found her...the guards must've thought that it was HER that tried to...Oh Lord." She sobbed heavily and buried her face in her hands, trembling with grief, with the tears that couldn't come.
He patted her on the back weakly, completely confused as to what he should do.
"Hey...hey, come on, don't do this...Its alright..."
She sobbed pathetically, flinging her arms around his neck, still trembling as though she was chilled to the bone.
His eyes widened in shock, but he sighed as he realized that she wouldn't let go anytime soon.
He kept patting her on the back, all the time mumbling comforting words.

Slowly she relaxed, as the trembling lessened, she was still slightly tense, but the dry sobs had also stopped.
After another few seconds wherein none of them said anything, he had a suspicion she might've shut down.
"Hey...you awake."
There was another silence, and then she slowly pulled her arms back, nodding without saying anything.
"You feel better now."
"Yes. I'm fine. Sorry about-" She paused, oddly flustered.
"Its ok. I understand." He got up with a grunt.
"You up to going back now? They'll think we've been killed or something if we don't hurry."
She nodded, getting to her feet also.
He waited for her to go first, following after.
While they were walking, a question he'd been mulling over for some time appeared again.
"I was wondering...What's your name?"
She looked back at him in surprise, clearly not expecting that.
"...Atalanta."
"I see." It was quite a mouthful.
"Don't tell...81 though. I'd rather not he began using it. A name has far more meaning now than it used to be."
"Yes. Of course."
"...And yours?"
"...Jackhim. My name's Jackhim."

((Shoot me. Younger Slicer needs a name. I gave him one. Bah.))

[amouri]

79 sighed heavily, walking in a circle, following his own faint footprints on the dusty floor.
He had insisted on taking guard duty, even though Big and 32 seemed to be very much against it.
He kind of regretted it now though, he hadn't expected it to be so boring.
There was a faint scuttle as a spider the size of his hand scuttled over his feet on its way towards its nest.
He didn't even flinch.
Long gone were the times where he had jumped at everything, being startled by the slightest shock.
He had been quite a wimp he admitted to himself, but wasn't quite sure whether he should be proud...or just confused that he had become so apathetic.

Maybe it was because it was slowly sinking in...that he DIDN'T have to be scared that a spider or mosquito would bite him, that he WOULDN'T get a bruise if 66 accidentally bumped into him, and that he COULDN'T die if his throat was cut open.
So he guessed that he'd just grown used to the fact that he was nearly invincible.
It was an exciting thought, and he stopped in his tracks to think it over.

Invincible...how would you define that though? I have no skin to be ripped, no bones to be broken, if my arm is cut off the pain won't hinder me...but then again, a normal body heals. If my arm was to snap...I'm not sure if I'd be able to use it again. 81 avoids speaking if alchemy....come to think of it, how come? One should think as an alchemist he would be proud of his deeds...Hm, not that it matters. I'm sure 32 would only react more if his boasting increased...

He sighed again, sinking into sitting position on the floor.
Being an ishbalan, he was brought up on the belief that the change of the natural way things were was a sinful crime. It was completely unspeakable. That was why alchemy was treated with so much suspicion, and at times outright hate. Or fear, as the case may have been.
But now his mind had jiggered something...If alchemy was a sin, was he then a sinner?
His entire existence relied on the small pentagram of blood hidden in his helmet, on the alchemy that bound his soul.
If he existed only because of alchemy, would it not be better if he were dead? Than risk getting punished.

These thoughts disturbed him quite a bit.
Of course the religious texts of Ishbal claim that one is 'forgiven of all ones sins and crimes' but then again, why was hell then so frequently mentioned? If one was forgiven, and given a better chance, why was it necessary to have a place to punish the sinners?
It was all a contradiction...how-?
Suddenly as if out of nowhere, a big fat fuzzy moth swirled around the weak light of his eyes.
As he switched his gaze attentively towards it, the orbs shone brighter, confusing the moth even more.
It flurried to and fro, in spirals of complicated nature in midair, bumping blindly into the helmet.

He shifted not quite knowing what to do.
It gave up, weakly sinking to the ground, its wings fluttering feebly.
He gazed at it.
Is that all we are...confused moths seeking the light? Seeking salvation? Seeking...the truth? What if...there isn't anything, that we're just wearing ourselves out for no good, falling in near faint and dying in the belief that we've earned our way into a better place? If it was an illusion...no-one would be able to tell.
He panicked slightly, trembling as it all flooded to him.
It could all be...for nothing...and we'd never know...
66's words suddenly echoed through his head.
"Fake...Unreal...Illusion...We wouldn't be able to know...The difference...

Suddenly, a flash of movement and a burst of color made him back away with a yelp of shock.
Where the moth had been, a strange, scaly green creature was standing, its mouth clamped shut, bits of brown fluff sticking out at the sides.
He quickly recognized as what might have been a chimera, seeing as it looked mostly like a scaly rat, the small green bumps even coating it's tail.
It hissed warningly, small sharp fangs sticking out, as it quickly munched the mouth to pieces.
He gazed at it in dumb horror.
Seeking the light...and when we fall...weak from our efforts...There they are. Waiting to snap us up. The predators of life...

With a frightened twitch he lifted his head.
Footsteps.
Someone-or someTHING-was coming.

[silverviper2134]

Stop with the goddamn cliffangers! I can't effing stand cliffhangers in stories like these!

BTW, Jackhim....is that an actual name, or did you make it up?

[amouri]

I made it up XD
AND 79's NOT GONNA DIE. I SWORE UPON MY MOTHERS LIFE THAT HE WOULD BE THE ONLY ONE THAT I WOULD FER SHURE NEVAR THINK OF KILLING. He's safe.

[silverviper2134]

Okay, I wasn't sure. But cliffhangers are never a good thing: they usually mean death or something else bad.

[amouri]

"...Oh hallelujah great is the word of God, used in vain by the drunken sod, hoping his love will return and forgive, hoping he soon might have a reason to live..." Envy hummed absentmindedly to the well known drunkard verse, but stopped halfway through.
He frowned.
That mission to Youswell must've really messed me up, hell now I'm even singing those pesty HUMAN songs. Ack, what I'd give to be rid of that old hag... He shook his head in irritation.
He hadn't gathered any information of value, the rumors of the amazing alchemist had merely been of the Elric brat, it seemed he was becoming mighty popular.
Hm...If he really is that good as they claim, he might be an option as well...I must bring it up, it might come in handy later. He thought with a grin.

With a small sigh he walked on, eyeing the cracks in the stone walls with some apprehension.
This place really is going down...I hope we don't have to resort to moving the plan if this place proves to be more dangerous than we thought it to be...
He shuddered.
And I'd HATE to think of if we had to move Greed.

Tucker had been fine fine fine as usual, seemingly he had gotten used to his new form quickly and without complications, that was always good news.
The progress of the red stones and water were going slowly but surely, and even though Tucker had assured him that such things must not be rushed, he was still impatient.

Suddenly, he froze.
Turning around quickly, he stared warily into the shadows.
Nothing.
He chuckled weakly.
"Ah Envy, no need to worry." He shook his head with another chuckle and turned away.
Immediately he felt a soft change in the flow of air, and a split second later a sharp piercing pain was in his throat.
He gagged in shock, as blood welled up in his mouth, choking him.
With a pained grunt he felt the familiar sensation of the thin tendrils of alchemical energy, repairing the damage done to his muscles and his windpipe. As the tissue coated over, it met a hindrance, in the form of a sharp object still embedded in his neck.

He twisted, only now noticing that someone was gripping him firmly around the waist, and he hissed in pain as the knife in his throat was twisted viciously to the right, the resounding scraping sound signaling that the bone was being cut.
The blood welled up in his throat again, and he closed his eyes in pain as thin splinters of bone were pushed through the sides of his neck, the energy of the red stones in his belly immediately trying to repair the damage.

He tried to clear his head, and as soon as he had done so he flipped forward, rolling head-over-heels in an attempt to scrape his attacker off.
He heard a startled yelp, followed by a weak echo, as though the attacker was speaking from inside a shell of-
Metal?!
He staggered to his feet, feeling for the gaping wound in his throat, quickly pushing the bones back into place before they healed, and coughing violently to bring the blood up from his lungs.
He wheezed slightly, though quickly his tension lessened as he sighed in relief at the blissful sensation of his wound healing, everything falling into place.

He spat a clump of blood, which landed on the floor with a splat, and then turned to the attacker.
He wasn't surprised to see that it was one of the armored guardians, though he was surprised to see what looked like grim determination in its reddish eyes.
"What?" He asked in a bored manner, cricking his neck slightly to loosen it up.

It hesitated, not expecting such a relaxed reaction to its assault.
It merely shifted, narrowing its eyes and gripped its bloody dagger tightly.
He sighed. "What, you expect me to fall over dead or something? Surely you're not that stupid. Nice try though, if I had been completely helpless you might have succeede-"

He dodged with a startled cry as it seemed to come out of nowhere, moving with inhuman speed and stealth.
He cursed silently, spinning around to face it.
"Cut it out. I don't want to fight."
"How do I not know you'll kill me as soon as I let my guard down?" It growled.
He lifted an eyebrow.
Its a kid? Great, now I have to deal with fisty little buggars when I should be doing more peaceful things.

"You know what, good point kid. But I don't see any reason in killing you, seeing as you in that way wouldn't learn of your mistake. Be a good lad and do just that."
It hesitated again.
"You're...gonna let me go? Just like that? After I tried to kill you?"
"no, I'm going to let you go with the fact that I WILL kill you if you happen to make the same mistake again."

With a confused stare, it slowly retreated into the shadows, just as silently as it had come.
He waited for a few seconds, wondering whether it indeed was dumb enough to try and attack again, but it seemed to have learned the lesson.

A small hiss caught his attention, and he looked up to see what looked like a scaly rat latching onto the ceiling above him, baring its teeth in an angry snarl.
He frowned, watching it intently.
It spat at him like a cat, and then scuttled into an empty ventilation gap, disappearing out of sight.
Damn, has Tucker let them run free..?
But no, of course it wasn't anything major. Just a labrat, not any of the REAL chimeras were loose. Otherwise he'd give Tucker hell for sure.
He sighed and continued on his way, absentmindedly wiping the last traces of blood from his mouth.

[masterwarlord]

I regret not having read this thing more regularly. Finally decided to come back and catch up on it (Essentially everything on this entire page), and I certainly wasn’t disappointed. Sorry to of dropped off on your commentary for so long. . .I may not be as active as I used to be, but rest assured I’ll still eventually read new chapters. It’s hard not to.

So yeah. Some good stuff here with some juicy development for 32, 79 questioning his morals, and the younger Slicer inching towards a relationship. Of course, we all know how the story ends seeming you’re actually implementing this into the anime so it can’t happen, but that just makes it less shallow and more interesting, if anything. Of course, the latest chapter stars Envy, which gets my stamp of approval due to blatant bias for obvious reasons. What’s more, though, is that you really seem to have Envy’s characterization down. Looks like my RPing with you has paid off, eh? Anyway, I really hope you don’t abandon this great fic because of a lack of commentary. Really good stuff here.

[amouri]

Wow XD
The reason I havent updated this is in ages is mainly because I thought it was becoming too Mary-Sue-ish, and I overall lacked inspiration.
I'll do my best on getting the chapters out now that I know it isn't as bad as I thought xD
>D heh, yes I did actually take a few tricks from your sleeve regarding Envy.

[masterwarlord]

Mary-Sue-ish? You mean just over 32's character? Smeh. It's far from original, but I wouldn't label it as cliche. And even then, if you feel so awkward writing about her, you could always just kill her off or push her off-screen for most of the time. I imagine if she did get removed from the picture things would get a good deal more tense. . .

But I don't really see what's wrong with her in the first place. This is a breath of fresh air in comparison to the many disgustingly bad FMA fanfics hovering around the internet. Most of the ones which are "good" tend to downplay the actual FMA characters, but you've actually still got some in there. I don't see why in particular now you'd feel down on yourself with the fic, these were some of the better parts, IMO.

[amouri]

XD not just 32. Just...the entire thing really. I might be a bit of a perfectionist, seeing as I'm not overall satisfied with ANY of my work.
AH. Kill her off eh? You got that right.

[amouri]

A shimmering thread of phosphorescent light…a rippling wave of crimson, weaving strange and twisted figures, like a mid-thing between flame and smoke…dissolving and reappearing…

Slowly, Barry ‘awoke’.
He sat in silence for a few seconds, trying to grasp what he had seen, but like a dream, it was instantly erased from his memory.
With a sigh he looked around him, comforted to know that the others were there.
Though of course, not like they would leave him.
Slicer nodded quietly to him as he saw the butcher was now fully conscious again.
Barry creaked slightly as he tilted his head in return.

81 was looking extremely disgruntled as he was evidently in the process of checking his armour for weaknesses. Too bad for him, whenever they had had to pass a range of traps, he had rarely been the quickest to react.
And seeing as he was often used as a pincushion for 32’s arrows, he wasn’t looking all that good.
The chainmail had been pierced several places, though ever since a surprise attack from a chimera had nearly torn off his shoulder plate, he had taken to a habit of changing position whenever assaulted, so his shoulder wasn’t too exposed.
His feather, which had before been fluffy and light as air was looking grimy, and more like something out of a chicken coop.
Barry and 49 had secretly taken bets about how long it would take before it was snapped off.
49 said within a month, Barry said within a few days if it were up to him.

79 was sitting on top of a cracked pillar, his legs dangling above them as he gazed up into the stone ceiling above him.
How he had managed to crawl up there, Barry didn’t know.
Big was sitting in his usual position, up against a wall with his heavy arms resting on his knees. Silent as always.

Barry sighed and shifted slightly.
“How long?” He asked wearily.
81 looked up at the well-known question.
“A few hours. Not much.”
In their new life, time was nearly non-existent.
When there was nothing to do, there was nothing to do. After days of silence, every single one of them had become as patient as rocks, no longer fidgeting and grumbling hours on end. Because the bottom line was, there was nothing they could do about it.
They were rarely assaulted, the chimeras were too few and too far to oppose a major threat, and the intruders had nearly become a legend.
There was no saying how long they would have to wait. It was either everlasting boredom, or just learning to deal with it.
So the choice was either to sit there staring into space, or to lapse into the half-conscious dream state which was the closest they could come to sleep.
And the latter was normally the optional choice.

Though seeing as they technically didn’t fall asleep, it meant they could stay in standby mode for unlimited time. It had often occurred that they had ‘slept’ for days without realizing it. They could have perhaps even slept for months if they had not been awakened.

It was a scary thought.

81 looked up again from his body-inspection. “You were moving though. I thought you were going to wake up for a few seconds.”
Barry looked frankly surprised. “I did? Huh.”
“Maybe you were dreaming?” Came the helpful chirp from above as 79 peered down between his knees to add his to the conversation.
Barry couldn’t help stifling a chuckle. “Maybe. I can’t remember much though. It’s just…blank mostly.”
79 cocked his head in mild bemusement. “Blank? You sure?”
Barry thought for a few seconds before answering. “No…of course there’s something…Its not just…nothing…”
“Well phrased 66.” 81 chuckled smugly. Barry sent him an irritated look.
“Oh shut up.”
“But still,” 79 cut in with a hint of weariness. He had become used to the frequent interruptions, but that didn’t mean he could avoid himself getting irritated every time. “You could have been dreaming. You sure you can’t remember anything?”
Barry tilted his head slowly. “Tchach, I dunno…A person. It’s not that clear. A load of red stuff. Dark.”
“Maybe you’re getting a flashback from one of your kills.” 81 said eagerly. “You were the lady killer right?”
Barry swiped angrily at 81 for interrupting again, though 81, used to the routine, ducked quickly and the butcher’s hand hit the wall behind him with a hollow slap of leather.
“Shut it. I’m speaking, not you.” Barry snarled.
Above them, the two faint red orbs of 79’s eyes were suddenly extinguished as the boy face palmed.
81 laughed. “Ok ok fine, so, a lady-“ “I never said it was a chick you retard, just a person.” “-ok fine, a person, geez you know how to bore things up…some dark, and a load of red stuff.” 81 clapped his hands together expectantly.
“Well master of mysteries, how would you interpret a dream like that?”
Barry shrugged irritably. “I don’t care what the dream means; I can’t remember half of it to begin with.” 79, sensing it would turn into an argument again, keenly drew his legs up and out of sight, so he was no longer expected to play his part in the conversation.

“It’s just a dream, we all have them. You’re just looking for a topic you can turn into a verbal conflict.” Barry snapped. 81 waved his hands on each side of his head, making himself wall-eyed. “Ooooh the amazing 66 uses new and difficult words!”
Barry quickly lunged at 81, managing to grab the top of his plume with a triumphant cry.
“Gotcha!”
81’s teasing attitude quickly changed, as he flinched with a whimper as Barry yanked the feather viciously. “Stop! Let go you idiot you’re gonna break it let it go lemme go lemme go lemme go-“ Barry couldn’t help but laugh.
“Geez, you whimp. Fine.” As soon as his grip loosened, 81 yanked his head away with a hiss, and quickly edged out of Barry’s reach. With a low string of muttered curses he fiddled with his neck for a few seconds, before removing his head with a sharp ‘click’.
He straightened out the grimy feather, sending Barry a dirty look. “I’m gonna poke you in the back if you do that again.” Now it was Barry’s turn to pull a face (figuratively speaking). “Ooooh I’m so afwaid of the guy with the fork. I mean, come on. I’ve also got a ‘kitchen tool’ as a weapon, but at least mine’s remotely frightening.”
81 gave an amazingly accurate impression of a scowl. “It’s a trident. They were used in the old medieval times to castrate the enemy in battle, and then used to barbecue the remains afterwards. Some eastern tribes use them as decoration for their roofs as well.
“Wow, is that true?”
“Yeah, just as true as the fact that if you say ‘banana’ slowly, it sounds like the word ‘gullible’.” 81 said drily.
Big couldn’t help shaking his head wearily as Barry slowly muttered the word “Banana.”
“That doesn’t make sense.” He said in a confused way.
81 groaned wearily, burying his face in his hands. “You’re a disgrace to the human race.”

Slicer laughed heartily, followed by the hoarse chuckle of his younger brother.
Barry ducked his head irritably. “Quit taking the mikey. You know I’m not the academic type, the bit about the tribes could easily have been true for all that I know…” His talk was cut off by an indignant hiss and a small rib-bone being chucked on top of his helmet from above. “Hey!” 79’s eyes flashed indignantly from way above them.
Barry chuckled sheepishly. “Sorry lil guy, didn’t mean it like that.” Suddenly it reminded him of something. “Hey…Where’s 32?”
81 looked up. “Er…Dunno.”
Big looked up. Barry noticed this, and looked at the massive armour inquisitively.
Big shrugged and motioned into the surrounding dankness.
“She went?” A brief nod was what came in reply.
“What-she ran? Was she upset?” Big shook his head, and motioned again, a slightly pained expression showing in his glowing eyes.
One of the only expressions that the others had gotten used to which came regularly from Big.
It was at those times when Big was forced to communicate, that the typical Big-expression arose. The pained hopelessness of not quite being completely understood.

Barry narrowed his eyes. “Hm…try being more…specific.” He said hesitantly.
Big gave him a flat sulky look and looked away.
81 sighed. “You tactless jerk.” He rolled his eyes at Barry and then turned to Big.
“Guarding duty?”
Big nodded weakly.
“See? You just have to use your common sense.”
Barry shrugged “Yadda yadda yadda I gettit, now shut up will ya.” He scratched the back of his head. “What were we talking about again?”
“Dreams.” 79 quipped.
“Ah yeah. So 48, 49, you two had any interesting dreams recently?”
Immediately the shared armour tensed up, as they both kept awkwardly silent.
Barry watched them with some surprise for a few seconds, before his orbs narrowed in what would have been a smirk. “Aha. I see.” Barry’s smug manner seemed to unsettle the brothers slightly. “What is that supposed to mean?” 49 snarled protectively.
“No no, its fine, if you don’t feel like telling about any dreams you might have had.” Barry lifted his arms defensively. “I’m not the type to pry into possibly…private affairs.”
“It’s nothing like that!” 49 snarled again.
“As though I would reveal the nature of my dreams to you.” 48 spat in disgust.
A short silence followed.
“Hm…lets just let that last comment hang in the air shall we?” Barry sniggered.

Ignoring the Slicer brother’s outburst of indignance, Barry turned his gaze skyward.
“Oi kid, what about you? You’re the one who seems so eager about the whole dream topic.”
79 was quiet for a few seconds, obviously trying to remember.
“Well… Not really. I think there was something with my sister…” the boy’s tone noticeably became more subdued. “…But that’s probably just because I miss her.”
Barry looked away. “Hm. What bout you Big? You dreamed anything recently?”
Big gave a non-committable jerk with his head and shrugged. “Can’t remember eh?”
Big shook his head.
“What bout you 81?”
“Nope.”
“Daw, c’mon, you must have had something.”
81 looked at Barry as though he was just a tad dumb.
“Nothing.”
“What, just blank?”
“Chyeah.”
Barry narrowed his eyes a bit.
“Hang on…Ok, lets try going back in time for a change, what is the last dream you can remember even the slightest of?”
81 shrugged indifferently. “Dunno. Had a dream about my mother riding a cow with a silver bell two days before that damned ritual, but that’s basically it.”
Barry stared at him. “Holy cow, you can’t dream.” He said incredulously.
“Are you sure your bloodseal is functioning?”
81 sighed wearily. “Oh shut up with the theories again will ya. Dreaming isn’t that important, it’s just the imagination that isn’t held back by logic when you sleep. It’s not like I’ll die without it.”
Barry still seems skeptical.

“Well, it just proves that you’re not normal.” He slipped in, turning to Big once more.
“Don’t ya think big guy?” No reply. This time, Barry saw that Big himself had shut down. The quarrel held in front of him had probably become too boring.
With a sigh, Barry noticed that the slicer brother’s were also immobile, and 79’s dangling legs had once more shifted out of sight.
“Fine, I get the hint.” He mumbled, before slowly falling into the trancelike state once more. What use was it staying awake when everyone else wasn’t?
Just as his eyes faded however, he heard a clatter as a nearby pebble was disturbed.
He immediately opened his eyes, just in time to see what looked like a scaly rat dashing back out of sight.
He shook his head quietly, and once more let the crimson orbs fade.

As the last remnants of the red light disappeared, the small creature stuck out it’s scaly snout, whiffling it to and fro, before letting out a small screech and disappearing once more out of sight.

((IT HAS NOW BEEN OFFICIALLY CONFIRMED THAT 81 HAS A SOUTH-AFRICAN ACCENT.))

[silverviper2134]

New chapter! Yayzles!

[amouri]

YAY

[masterwarlord]

Another good chapter. I'm late as always, but bah humbug. It seems you've finally gone back to the classic formula of just dealing with prison life and giving us a very nice and detailed view as to what it's like. I wouldn't say this one has that much to seperate it from the others, but it was good to go back to the usual scene that makes this fic what it is (That said, the variety you gave us in the past chapters was much appreciated).

[amouri]

This was just a chapter to start up mah muse again, I'm trying to move on with the plot, though of course as you said, the main aim from the beginning was to show what it was like.
You would want to take a note of that chimera btw.

[amouri]

Ok, some info about Bound by Blood.
I am considering re-writing parts of the former story line, due to some thought about the matter.
Amongst those would be the whole <i>Youngest Slicerx32</i> issue.
To be honest, I've got the feeling that CanonxOC can make any story lame, and even though inner squealish Slicer fangirl wants it to be so, I must admit I find 32 a bit too shallow.
I don't want to make matters worse making an impossible pairing just for my own benefit.

That would mean I'd have to cut out ALL hints of Youngest Slicerx32, and seeing as the future plotline kinda needs some kind of touch to it, I'll be developing 81x32, hopefully resulting in that 32 ends up with at least some personality to speak of.
This may take some time, and I'm sorry that new chapters have been kind of slow, I <i>did</i> have one under construction, but I saved it on my USB stick and my cats have been so kind as to have LOST mentioned USB stick.

I'm still a bit unsure of the LustxSlicer pairing, that too just seems to be for my behalf, and I'd like some feedback about the situation in general.
What do you like best about BbB? What would you like to see more of? What do you agree that I could change? Any suggestions?

Not many read it, I know that. But I like writing it, and those few who actually seem to follow it should make themselves heard.

That is all.