Crimson Midnight

Title: Crimson Midnight
Chapter: 1/?
Authors: Bleeding Star Goddess and Uppertorso
Beta: The wonderful Whisperelmwood
Rating: NC-17
Pairings: Well, it's all OC but anyways Zabius/Lerrias, Chrodin/Athemes, (past) Azith/Prymis

Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by Jhonen Vasquez, various publishers including but not limited to Nickelodeon Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.

Warnings: This story and the chapters in it will take place in an Alternate Universe with original characters and will involve xenophile situations, romantic and sexual relationships of the homosexual nature as well as the heterosexual nature. Similarly, torture, angst, sexual content, gore, violence, murder, genocide, adult language, and attempted rape will be within the content of this story.

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Chapter 01: All Good Little Girls and Good Little Boys

Her steps did not "click-click-click" against the cold gleaming purple metal of the corridor for she glided across the tiles with elegance and poise that belied her insanity. Her clothed arms tightened gently around the two smeets in her arms. The legendary black and his twin were fast asleep and clinging strongly to one another, both well aware they would find no true comfort from any Irken except each-other.

"Oh no my little lovelies, oh no, oh my," she purred as she twirled and swayed closer towards her chambers.

She passed many doors that led to various other labs, and the tiny insignificant scientists that did not garner her attention were scrambling out of her zigzagging path. They were in frenzy around her feet, none brave enough to meet her cold ice blue eyes as they hurried from room-to-room.

She was humming, paying them no mind but she stopped when a small lilac-eyed Irken - no more than two feet tall - who was weak and scrawny fell into her path. The beast was tired from having done the noble cause of serving his Master and Council for a month down in the labs with little food and even less sleep. The feeble waste of resources had grown so weary that its legs had finally collapsed beneath its nonexistent weight.

Her eyes narrowed and her curled antennae flattened tight like a vice against her head. One of the smeets in her arms let out a small whimper as her claws began to dig into their bodies.

All the other tiny Irkens in the corridor just continued with the task assigned to them, no one daring to help their fallen comrade. A few of the taller Irkens, one's who were barely five feet tall and just as hungry, just as tired, just as weary - taller Irkens who were no better than the shorter ones but were stronger and wiser were heading towards Athemes and the smeets in her care.

"What is this?" she hissed, drawing out the "s" within her words. "A bug a bug, why, there's a bug on the rug. Lice, lice, lice, how sad how sad." A few of the smaller Irkens winced but continued to do their assignments in the chemical acidic air of the metal confines of the corridor. Athemes tilted her head, sneering. "Itsy-Bitsy spider was climbing up a tree..."

The small purple Irken whimpered but he was far too tired to beg and unable to garner the strength to get on his knees and plead. Athemes' sneered as she stepped closer, making her steps purposefully "click-click-click" against the metal tiles.

"P-P-Pl-Please C-Coun-Councilor-" the creature whimpered, his jaw "ratta-tat-tatting" as his eyes were wide with perceptible fear.

"Along came a breeze and blew it next to me..." she continued to sing.

Another step closer and the whimpers grew stronger.

The smaller Irkens focused solely on their tasks now, praying to the gods that the single-mindedness of their unremitting chores would block out the tangible knowledge of what was about to happen next. The taller ones - the ones that had finally reached Athemes - looked on with either gleams of resignation or pleasure within their fatigued eyes.

"Out came the foot," she lifted her leg, the cold metal sole of her boot resting atop the quivering, whimpering, crying flesh of the small Irken's skull "and squish it went goodbye," in one fell swoop she pressed her heel down, the resounding "CRACK echoed against the hollow panels of the corridor as blood splashed and splattered across the floor. Athemes grinned, eyes agleam with maddened joy, with hunger, as she watched the spilt blood of the worthless creature blot atop the bodies of the small sleeping smeets within her caring arms. "That itsy, bitsy, spider... you knew it had to die..."

She gazed at the crushed skull and flowing blood with the same curiosity one might examine a stain on the wall that had appeared without its source being known.

"Oh dear oh dear, oh me, oh my," she hissed, looking up to lock eyes with a dark blue-eyed taller scientist, the other flinching and looking down and away immediately. The air was rich with the scent of death and the hall was silent with slaughter. "It seems," her voice was soothing, tender, motherly, and easily heard in the thick carnage quiet, "that someone fell down and broke his poor little crown," she started gliding through the masses, all parting for her, darting away, tumbling over one another to get out of her course. In the thickness of the silent hall her steps went "click-click-click." "Clean it up or you'll all go tumbling after!"

She did not look behind her as those in the corridor scrambled faster yet to clean up body and blood. There was no respect for the dead as the body was dumped down a garbage shoot after organs had been removed for advancement in study. Two, possibly three insignificant specks followed her to clean away each bloody boot-print she marked across the floor.

With each step she finally reached her chambers, gleaming metal doors greeting her, beckoning her. She grinned before she entered, the smeets still safely tucked in her arms as the "whiz-biz, pop, crack, snap!" of chemicals and experiments was the only, multi-colored light in the rooms. The smeets were still fast asleep as if the blood of a bug in the empire wasn't dabbled on their cheeks.

"Ah sweet little smeets, all cutely sleepy-sleep. Yes, yes, we'll put you to bed, you'll stay with me till you chambers are done being painted red."

The door slid shut behind her, and she walked into the main greeting room where couches smelled more of blood and acid than cloth. She twirled and glided before she gently set the smeets down on the couch before flopping down on the floor in front of them. She heard her door open again already knowing who it was for only one ever visited.

"I wish you wouldn't track blood across the floor Athemes, it distracts the scientists in your sector from their tasks."

She did not turn to face him but instead, she leaned in closer to the smeets, purring gently as she rested her head on the cushions, stretching out her neck as if she were on the chopping block of the guillotine.

"You shall be legends, poison, and water," she soothed.

Eyes of the deepest green, so dark and cold they seemed black, but not a true black, narrowed. Chrodin leaned against the back of the sofa, his eyes filled with amusement.

"My, what a combination Athemes," he purred but not bothering to touch her.

She glanced up at him, ice-blue meeting, locking, knowing, with his dark green. And then she just tilted her head to rest her check against the couch cushion.

"And the empire came crumbling down, down, down."

He leaned over the back of the couch, gazing down at the legendary true black, the first ever in all of their evolutionary history, and the legend's twin.

"Lucky for me you aren't able to see into the future, Athemes. Still, he will have a role to fill."

"If he cannot, will not?" she asked as she looked past him and into the threading of her couch seats.

"If he cannot, than he is of no use to me, and I do not keep those who are useless. And if he will not? I will make him."

Athemes grinned, she rested her claws atop the seats, her antennae perking and brushing against the smeets' bodies.

"Around the universe, and back again."

"Until they learn common speech they are both useless to me, install their pak fail-safes and then run some tests on both of them." He gazed down at them, pulling lightly on Athemes' antennae.

She looked up, annoyed before resting her head back on the couch. He frowned and pulled again, harder, harsher, yanking them and forcing her to rise to meet his eyes. She hissed as her claws struck out against his cheek. He gave a tight smile, amused before letting go, stroking the side of her face.

"Now, that I have your attention, see to it the Black's twin is tested on infront of the Black, Athemes."

Athemes just stared at him, annoyed. She watched the trail of blood running down his cheek, smirking. He pulled again on her antennae, bringing their faces close.

"Tell me you understand Athemes," they said in unison.

Athemes' smile widened and Chrodin looked on with amusement.

"Very well, you have your orders. Get them done."

Chrodin released her antennae and left, the door sliding close behind him as she watched his departing.

Athemes then turned back towards Zabius and Lerrias, smiling gently, cooing sweetly, she adored them and despised them already.

"Going to be gods yourselves, yes," she hissed, "god of war, god of blood, king of slaughter... Yes, yes, going to be, going to be, and the walls came crumble-tumble-humbling down."

And as she spoke, Zabius and Lerrias just kept on sleeping, splattered with blood of the empire, and clinging tightly to one another.