Hammer of Mercy

Hammer of Mercy is a season 3 thread.
== Summary ==
== Full Text ==
Blunt Donz: Blunt peeked around the corner of one of the halls, seeing Haddock’s form. He leaned back, reflecting on the conversation he had with the Warden they day before. Setting his jaw, he opened up one of the side doors and then closed it harshly, walking briskly towards where Stonegit was being kept, knowing that the Warden would have heard the noise.
Blunt stepped into the catatonic boys room. Stonegit’s lips were dry and eyes dulls as he starred blankly at the ceiling. Blunt starred down at him, hissing slightly, and then carefully rolled him over on his stomach, wrapping the pillow case around his head lightly. He gently rested a hand on his head, his eyes shifted slightly, listening closely. He waited until he knew the Warden was close to the door, and then spoke quietly. “Well buddy, I wish I couldn’t gotten to know you. I had hoped the Warden would take my bluff but…well…” he sighed. “Whether I was bluffing or not doesn’t matter now does it? Because I can’t just let you go to Hel because some prick demon wouldn’t give you water…so.”
Blunt pulled out his war hammer. “The best I can do for you now is ensure you go to Valhalla…and do my best to restore your good name.”  
The Warden: The door banged open and the Warden’s essence spilled into the room like black ink clouding water. Haddock stormed over the threshold and stared feverishly between Blunt’s hammer and Stonegit’s head. “WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING?!" Haddock bellowed, the Warden adding her mind-voice so it broke over the man like a crashing wave. He gripped the front of Blunt’s shirt with both hands and yanked him off his feet easily, baring his teeth in his face. The Warden didn’t even register that this was breaking every illusion she had set up, every lie she had made over the past few days. Dark-eyes’ life had been in immediate danger and that she could not ignore. "I have HALF A MIND to seal this house SHUT so we don’t have any more INTRUDERS!!”
Blunt Donz: “Great idea!” Blunt roared back. “That way he can starve and die alone! And rats can eat his corps!” he kicked him back, leering over him, flaunting his superior height. “You’re right…you don’t care…you want him to suffer!” he yelled, holding the hammer up to her face. “I will not have this warrior go to Hel!”
The Warden: "HOW DARE YOU SUGGEST THAT I DON’T CARE FOR HIM!!”
Everything died away instantly and Haddock stepped backwards, the rage on his face transforming into terror.
Blunt Donz: Blunt starred at her, and then sighed in frustration. He walked forward carefully while the Warden was still stunned, and eased her out of the room. He closed and locked the heavy door, leaning against it. “I know what happens now, I know what you’ll do.” Blunt called through the door, his voice grim. “You’ll realize what you said, then you’ll stammer over your blunder, you’ll leave again, you’ll deny your feelings…no matter what, Stonegit still dies of thirst.”
He twirled his hammer. “So I’ll make this easy on everyone but myself. Cover your ears Warden, and don’t let anyone come in until I say Stonegit is ready to be placed on his ship.” 
The Warden: The Warden had only known fear three times in her life. 
Once was when she had seen her father angry. The second was when she had been summoned by that fool sorcerer to be locked in the dungeon, inside a crude stone golem. The third was when she was being dragged to Hel by dark-eyes.
This was the fourth time.
“NOOO!!" Haddock slammed against the door with both hands, making it shake in its frame, but it held strong. Her vessel only panted aloud, but the Warden kept up a wild keening in her mind, terrified of what would happen if she didn’t get it open, terrified of what she might see if he opened the door after the deed was done, terrified of seeing blood…blood…the blood of the madman’s throat, glistening as it ran from his crushed windpipe, body tossed aside like a ragdoll—
LET ME IN! she screamed mentally. The time for pretenses was over. LET ME IN, LET ME IN, OPEN THE DOOR!! Her desire for her porcelain demon-made body surged through her again but she shook the past off angrily and continued pounding on the door, which refused to even splinter.
Clover Rose: Clover had been looking for Stonegit when she heard the screaming - both Haddock’s voice and the Warden’s, although the Warden’s was only in her head. Normally hearing that voice would have sent her running in the opposite direction, but the utter fear in the Warden’s voice instead made Clover run towards the sound.
She came to a halt nearby, seeing Haddock pounding on the door. “W-warden . . why … ? What’s going on in that room?” Clover felt her voice shake, but she tried to remain composed.
The Warden: If the white-cat’s voice was shaking, it was nothing compared to what Haddock’s voice was doing. She dropped a few choked words and then shouted straight into the girl’s head.
Your precious, soulless dark-eyes is going to DIE if I don’t get this door open RIGHT NOW!! She threw a punch at the door, still keeping up her wailing cry. Dark-eyes! DARK EYES! Da–Stonegit, can you hear me!? 
Hot tears welled up in Haddock’s eyes but the Warden wasn’t even aware they were there. She slammed Haddock’s forearms against the door with clenched fists, and slowly put the top of his head against the roughly hewn wood. He stood there, hunched over, unmoving. 
Dark-eyes…
Blunt Donz: From inside the room, Blunt rolled his tongue in his mouth, reaching under Stonegit’s bed, pulling out a crate. “How come?” he asked passively, pulling out a parchment and pinning it to Stonegit’s bedpost. “At least this way you can blame me. Because lets face it, if you don’t take care or him him twenty four seven he will die. And well…” he chuckled humorlessly. “You’ve made it abundantly clear you wont stoop to do such a thing, no matter how you care for him.”
Blunt reached into the crate again, taking out a crisp watermelon. “So now you wont have to run in here one day and find him stinking like road kill, and have no one to blame but yourself. Now you can share the guilt, point a finger, take it easy. Face it girl I’m doing both you and Stonegit a favor.”
Blunt picked Stonegit up, setting him on the floor and placing the watermelon on the bed. He walked across the room, grabbing the room key and opening the window, were he had already secured an escape rope. He clicked his tongue. “That being said, you might want to plug those ears like I suggested.” he flicked his hand, tossing the room key under the door, the item skidding past the Warden and Clover’s feet.
Hefting up his hammer, Blunt brought the hammer down onto the watermelon, splitting it open. Moving quick as lighting, Blunt tossed the hammer aside, and shimmied down the rope.
The note read -“Glad you could make it. Now take care of your friend.” 
Clover Rose: Clover’s eyes followed the key moments before she heard the sound. A small part of her mind told her that Blunt was bluffing - but she didn’t listen to it. Or at least, it seemed that she didn’t. She fell to her knees, screeching wordlessly. Her tail conveniently landed on top of the key, blocking Warden from being able to see it.  
The Warden: The response wasn’t even in words, mental or otherwise. There was a sound akin to an explosion and her grief ripped through anybody that happened to be in the vicinity. Her shriek became a mere ringing in the ears as it pitched past hearing. The Warden’s perception of minds grew fuzzy and red with furious pain, blurring them until she could no longer tell what was alive and what wasn’t. Haddock’s knees buckled and he slid down the door, still pressing his fists against the wood. The odd warped ringing continued and the King slowly looked up, pupils contracted to the point of being invisible. The handle of the door began to glow and burn and he threw himself backwards, shielding the white-cat with his body as the lock blew outward in a halo of splinters and white-hot chunks of metal. 
Body unclenching, Haddock slumped and fell from his knees to all fours, shoulders heaving. When her thoughts untangled, the Warden was gibbering.
I don’t want to go in I don’t want to go in I don’t want to go in I don’t want to go in I don’t want to I don’t want to I don’t I don’t—
Clover Rose: Clover stared at Haddock in absolute shock for several moments, looking from the room to the King. She then slowly reached a hand out and patted his shoulder, looking intensely uncomfortable as she did so. 
I can’t believe it’s come to this …
The Warden: …don’t…want…don’t want…don’t…I…
She almost didn’t feel the pressure on his shoulder. The tears ran, why was it so uncomfortable why did it sting why why why—
Haddock looked up abruptly, eyebrows meeting in a puzzled frown. Do you smell that?
Clover Rose: Clover looked towards the room again, frowning. “Melon?” She got to her feet, deftly kicking the key back before the Warden could see it, and she approached the room, and she put her hands on her hips. She wasn’t sure whether or not to be amused, angry, or both. 
Blunt...
The Warden: The Warden stood, coming up behind Clover and gripping the door’s frame tightly. There was red splattered across the room, all right, but it wasn’t blood. It was the bright innards of a watermelon. Stonegit was still comatose on the floor, sprinkled with little bits of fruit.
Haddock stumbled forward and fell to his knees, cradling Stonegit’s head. “Dark-eyes…dark-eyes, answer me…" His head whipped around to look at Clover. "Find some water," he snapped.
Clover Rose: Clover stared at the King and Stonegit for a moment before nodding and running off to go find water. She came back a few minutes later with a bucket full of water and a cup. "Will this be enough for now?” She asked, holding up the bucket.
The Warden: Haddock clutched desperately at the cup and dunked it into the bucket, dribbling water across the sides and over the floor. He tipped Stonegit’s head up and pressed the mug carefully to his lips, willing him to drink the thread of liquid he tried trailing down his throat.
Hel: The water slid down the boy’s parched throat, and the boy’s muscle memory took over and he begin to drink distractedly, his eyes shifting off to the side slightly. The room froze, the water stop trickling, Clover stopped moving, and the wind outside ceased to push against the wall of the fortress.
“I hope you understand just how important this matter is to me…for me to come here personally," Hel said quietly, seated at the window, taking the image of a young woman in a white gown. "So Warden. Are you really going to water that little plant of yours everyday?”
The Warden: Why? the Warden growled, leaving Haddock’s body where it froze in time and emerging in her true form, tail thrashing. Why is this so important to you? Answer me that. 
Hel: Hel inhaled, and then paused. “No…because there is no good reason why I should. You see this is not like a human demanding something of a superior demon, because sometimes humans can have a trick up their sleeve. This is you…demanding something of a natural order.” she shrugged. “I won’t make you wait to long anyway, just answer my question. Are you going to care for him after this, or is this just a one time thing. After all, you have a lot of people to get back to terrorizing.”
The Warden: The Warden worked her jaw, glancing down at Haddock’s hand where the slightly-marred sigil burned the skin. Then her gaze shifted to Stonegit, and his pale face and hollow eyes.
What have I done to you?
Fine, she grumbled, trying and failing to regain her careless demeanor. I’ll…I’ll look after him. She shifted her weight and looked down. If she could blush there she’d have been aflame. She hated that this deity now knew her secret, and had gotten her to admit it. She loathed it. But she had no choice.
Hel: Hel sniffed. “That’s his first drink in nearly two days. You’re lucky that big oaf had personal goals that required this little pain in the ass to live. Another day and a half and the boy would be just about dead.” Hel rubbed her chin.
“You realize you passed the test, the one that will bring him back…your part at least.Taking care of a person who can’t even eat, drink, use the bathroom, or wash themselves will take up a lot of your time. Time that will give Haddock a window of opportunity to recover and take over. The sooner this happens, the sooner I can test the King, and the sooner you may…might…potentially…if you’re lucky, get dull and dented here back.”  
The Warden: What!?
The Warden looked back up and growled. I need him as a vessel! Don’t you understand? If I don’t have an anchor, I’ll…I’ll go back h…home…
She looked almost pleadingly at Hel. I would rather not experience that. Not again. Please.
Hel: “Well I can give you a setup in my place if you want,”Hel snipped. “Look, that contract is still valid, but not on Haddock’s hand. It will revert back to Stonegit. If he accepts it everyone is ok. If either party resists then somebody’s arm is going to explode.” she added with a shrug.
“You’ll have a vessel, and I seem to recall him promising you a safe place to stay. Now I’ve seen rolly eye back out of a threat before, but not a well intended vow.” Hel tisked her tongue. “However, he’s probably gonna be really pissed at you for acting like such a prideful stick…but I’ll let you two sort that out.”    
Hel started to fade, but paused. “Oh yeah, and just in case you need inspiration to work your ass off, then just remember that you are going to have to help him use the bathroom everyday until Haddock gets better…just in case you want to give his kinglyness a royal boost.”
The Warden: I’m going to have to do WHAT? she exclaimed, twisting her face in disgust.
Hel: “Oh great demon of awe inspiring power…people shit! So get over it!" Hel said. "Now you know if you want to ditch this job and get the kid out alive you and the king need to get on the same page. So don’t make me start giving you the team work speech like you’re in summer camp.”
“Hmmm…I’ll be back tomorrow. If I don’t deem Haddock able I’ll give you another day. Anything longer than that and I’m hopping out for a week. Seven days of changing solid trousers and washing viking armpits should give you plenty of time to ask yourself if that is really what you want to be doing for the months to come." 
The Warden: She’d never really experienced the feeling while incorporeal, but nausea bubbled through her and she looked away angrily, nodding stiffly. Fine. What do you define as able?
Hel: “Well you busted him up pretty badly," Hel said. "But the very fact that he is starting to show resolve again is…fine. Either way, if the king is thinking straight, willing to fight, and even has a whisper of his former pride…then I will deem him worthy of taking my test.”
The Warden: Mind revealing what this test is, before you depart? The Warden raised an eyebrow. 
Hel: “Oh it’s easy,” Hel said with a dismissive wave. “I’m just going to ask him if he wants his bodyguard back…under a certain condition and payment." she added quickly, before vanishing, time returning to normal.
The Warden: The Warden returned to Haddock, grumbling. Dark-eyes appeared to be doing well enough. She finished tipping the drink into his mouth and stood back, shaking Haddock’s head. "I…I need to go for a moment," he growled to Clover. "Take care of him…I will only be a minute.”
And with that, he retreated out of the blasted door, putting a hand to his forehead.
Category:Events
Category:Blunt Donz
Category:The Warden
Category:Stonegit Brotchurn Elmiss
Category:Hel (deity)
Category:BOTGD