a northern wind

Cpt. Eden Lys, 24, Toronto {indie multiverse RP blog, mun is 25}

[ask-eric-divergent-deactivated2]

Eric wasn’t sure if Eden was trying to be intimidating or not, but she certainly wasn’t. She looked only more confused that she had been a few moments ago and Eric could tell that she still wasn’t certain who’s side he was on. The answer was neither if he was honest. He was a selfish creature, doing only what he thought benefitted him best. 

“Because to everyone else but the two of us, she will be dead,” he said, slicing the knife quickly across the back of Killian’s arm, his hand still in her hair to keep her still. With anyone else, Eric couldn’t see her going down without a fight, so he was going to make it look like one. The blood stained the cloth on the table and the carpet as he kept his eyes on Eden.

[a-northernwind]

Eden’s eyes turn to cold steel again and she reaches for the gun tucked into the back of her jeans. She’s not playing his game. If Killian calls for her guards, it’s Eric they’ll shoot first. Clicking the safety off, Eden holds the gun parallel to her thigh. She has no intention of harming either one of them unless they force her hand, but she has a door to get through. And no one is going to stand in her way. Edging her way around the table, she keeps her eyes on the two of them steadily.

“I’m taking the rest of her family out of the city...do what you want with her...but I’d suggest that both of you be on a plane to Chicago by the time I get back.” It’s underhanded, but a threat all the same. She knows Toronto’s military will march for her and Gabriel, the man who oversees everyone’s training, before they lift a finger for Eric. He’s still the enemy to them. A snake the queen made the mistake of letting into her garden. With no leverage over her head for the first time in her life, Eden can’t see a reason not to protect the city she so desperately wants to fix and keep it from falling into Eric’s hands.

[ask-eric-divergent-deactivated2]

Eric smirked and barked a short laugh, as if what she said was so unfathomably hilarious. Eric didn’t make friends, and to think they could grow to that level only amused him.

“It can, and it does. But I do have a habit of keeping up my habits so being used to your company is a good enough reason.”

Eric sat at his desk and clicked back on his computer screen. “Should we discuss anything else?”

[a-northernwind]

Rolling her eyes, she can see they’re back to their usual dynamic. She says something smart. He’s an ass. She feels a headache coming on. 

Moving towards the door, she fights hard not to march out as she might have in Toronto (where she’d always been the one to pull rank over men like him). Here she must wait to be dismissed. 

“I think we’re done. I’ll wait for your word on the queen’s response.”

[ask-eric-divergent-deactivated2]

Edens hesitation doesn’t go unnoticed with Eric. He sees the logical though process he goes through in his own mind, only more lively on her face. “You know, you could always go with him.” They both knew it was out of the question, and to be honest, he only offered the suggestion to see if she would openly react to it.

“I’ll contact her tonight. All we need is a reason for you to come with me.”

[a-northernwind]

Her mind had gone down that road for a brief .8 seconds when first deciding to help Bastian escape with his children. But the truth was, Killian owned her. The same way she owned every life born in Toronto. In that way Eden was tethered to her orders, like any good soldier. 

And when the queen was dead? There was no use trying to pretend she could leave the city then. Maybe someday. When things looked better for Toronto’s people. But murdering the Keiserinne would be in vain if she ran and never looked back after. It would be nothing more than a petty revenge kill and it would never be able to turn back the clock. It would never mean she could go back and refuse guard training. Go back and become a doctor. Go back and be open, kind and happy instead of cold, calculating and paranoid. It wouldn’t make anything right. No, if she was going to do this, she would fight for the people of Toronto and give them a real life. 

Shaking her head in dismissal, Eden turns her focus back to Eric.

“I’m your head of security...I’m also something of your right hand here. Tell her you’ve grown used to my company. That we’re friends. That can’t seem so impossible.”  

[ask-eric-divergent-deactivated2]

Eric pressed his finger over the monitor, closing to screen so that he could focus more on Eden and his conversation. He only had the one screen that kept the camera view of outside his office. He wasn’t stupid enough to leave them alone and expect no one to come knocking.

“I’d rather we do it sooner. Killian won’t find it suspicious if I decide we need a day or two together and she knows I enjoy her hunting fields much more than my own. As for you, I’m sure we can come up with something.”

Eric didn’t care about the children and he was content to let Eden decide what was good for them. However, he couldn’t pass up the opportunity to fuck with her. “What about Bastian?”

[a-northernwind]

Frowning, Eden hesitates without even realizing it. Once Bastian has escaped Toronto, he's gone forever. There is no maybe, no someday, no future for them. She realizes then that some foolish, silly part of her had believed all along they'd eventual have some sort of peaceful, happy ending to all of this. But she shakes her head and swallows the fact that they won't.

"Him too. His children will need him...they'll be happier. All of them. Away from her. Away from the city. I'll get them out." Her attention is tugged from her emotions after a moment as all of his words fully sink in. "You'll contact the queen and ask to see her?" Chewing her lip, she nods slowly, liking that plan if she's honest. If there's one thing Eden knows Killian can't resist, it's having attention lavished on her. Eric wanting to come to her of his own accord would satisfy her ego nicely and put her off her guard.

[ask-eric-divergent-deactivated2]

“You tell me. Do you feel comfortable with a hunting accident or does that put you too close to the scene? I’m confident I can sneak in and make it look like a successful suicide. Either way, I’m certain her guards will choose loyalty to me over her. Once it’s done, you won’t have anything to worry about…although there is the matter of succession…of her family.” 

Hearing her get herself back into control and so ready to commit murder and treason only made his smirk wider. Running Dauntless was what he wanted, but he felt he was missing the thrill he wanted - no needed. Being locked up for months had brought his monster out much more than it had ever been and he was becoming bloodthirsty, almost enough to be reckless. If he had been raised in Dauntless and not Erudite, Eric was sure he’d get himself killed in this. 

Being from Erudite, he knew how to reign himself in enough that his wants wouldn’t make him too restless. Though he couldn’t help running through so many possibilities of the scenario. While suicide was the reasonably, least messy way to go, he couldn’t help but picture Killian bloodied at his knees. 

“I want to be as close to it as possible. If you want to have a hand in it, I don’t mind a partner.” 

Eric stepped away from her, glancing at his monitor for a second. “As for her family, I don’t care what happens to them, you can take care of that. And succession. Any suggestions?”

[a-northernwind]

Shrugging, she moves to the window again. It doesn’t surprise her that he wants blood on his hands. He’s just as crazy as the queen. Eden’s only concern at the moment is Bastian and his children. A tiny crease wrinkles her brow as her mind works the problem before her.

“They’re a bit one in the same. Killian has a daughter. Though she’s just a child, she does inherit the monarchy by Killian’s law. I can kill the queen. I can’t kill Bastian’s children. But I might be able to smuggle them out of the city. Perhaps...try to make it look as though they were afraid and fled for their lives, expecting a revolt from the people after the queen’s death...or something. We have time to think. We should wait until you’re invited back to Toronto. Make the whole trip look as if it’s on Killian’s terms so she won’t be suspicious.”

[ask-eric-divergent-deactivated2]

“Anyone would be after 12 plastic surgeries.” Her head tilts, eyes usually a cold blue-grey now lit up with a fiery edge. “You’re too used to the girls here. You think she can hold her own. You think she’s as tough and smart and fearless as the Dauntless that surround you. She’s not. She’s fickle. And spoiled. Careless. Delusional. The woman has it in her head that she’s a fucking goddess. Not in a symbolic way. Legitimately, Eric. She’s convinced herself that rulership is her divine right. You slept with her once. Obviously you made her come. Doesn’t mean you know her.” 

There was a certain look Eden had during this conversation that Eric enjoyed. She switched from her calm, calculating self, into a more passionate version of herself, something Eric didn’t think he’d ever seen. Eden was always so thought out, her points always so factual. 

The subject they’d geared towards was one he hadn’t put much thought into. For now he was content, maybe even happy, to be back at Dauntless and solely in charge of it. But with Killian in charge, he was sure he would lose patience soon, if Killian’s empire didn’t collapse before then. Perhaps a coup wouldn’t be much of a terrible idea. 

Focusing back on Eden and her apparent disgust of Eric at the moment, he sat back in her chair, waiting for her to finish before he spoke. 

“I don’t have any delusion in my head that she’s Dauntless, Eden. You forget, I was raised in Erudite, I know how to read people. You’re right, I don’t know her, not nearly as well as you do. It’s probably why I like her. From what I’ve seen, she is smart, she is tough, however she is just as spoiled and careless as you see her to be.” Eric stands and walks around to Eden, standing as close to her as she can in order for her to stay in the spot she was in. His arms crossed and his voice lowered, a smirk tugging at his lips. 

“So what do you suggest we do about it?”

[a-northernwind]

Mildly embarrassed at the loss of her temper, Eden can feel heat in her cheeks. She’s typically so in control that losing that grip, even for a moment, is mortifying. But his words help her disarm again and she breathes deep. Nodding slowly, her arms curl over her ribs as she puts her mind back to work again. 

“You tell me. Do you feel comfortable with a hunting accident or does that put you too close to the scene? I’m confident I can sneak in and make it look like a successful suicide. Either way, I’m certain her guards will choose loyalty to me over her. Once it’s done, you won’t have anything to worry about...although there is the matter of succession...of her family.” 

[a-northernwind]

“Because. You do like me more than her.” The words spill out before she can muster the strength and sense to stop them. She’s not even 100% sure they’re the truth, but they’re what her gut tells her. Of course, he’d enjoyed Killian in bed. Of course, the queen was probably more fun. Maybe he even enjoyed her company more. But forced to choose between them, she had a hard time believing he’d back the Keiserinne and betray her altogether. What did he see the end game of that decision bringing him? A fairy tale ending as he ran off into the sunset with a psychopathic narcissist? 

[ask-eric-divergent-deactivated2]

Eric let a laugh slide through his teeth. He was infuriating her and he loved it. It was almost cute watching her rub her temples in the attempt to get rid of the headache speaking to Eric gave her. 

“Physically, you’re seriously lacking compared to Killian.” Eric let his sentence sink in, hoping to see a blush creep over Eden’s face. She was so easy to embarrass and the talk of sex as casually as Eric spoke about it made her squirm. 

She was definitely wrong. Eric liked Killian much more than her - in bed, in power, just in general. However, Killian was far more controlling than Eric would have liked, and Eden had fair points on how she ran things. When faced with the choice, even Eric wasn’t sure who he’d pick - someone who gave him what he wanted, although she’d eventually ruin all of it, or someone who would possibly leave him to reign. 

“It must tear at you not to know what i would do, doesn’t it?”

[a-northernwind]

Nose wrinkling, Eden slowly lifts her head and eventually her eyelids follow. They had been discussing regicide and treason. How did he always find a way to turn the conversation so off course? 

Still, she’s taken the bait before even realizing it. Sex appeal isn’t something Eden has worked at ever in her life. She’s never had a reason to wear sexy clothes or worry what her hair looks like or figure out how to put make up on. Growing up a trained, skilled soldier has made her nimble and quick, a light stepper and capable of being soundless in every movement if necessary. But she doesn’t have that unspoken sort of grace that Killian has possessed naturally since birth. Men don’t fall at their feet when she walks past. Nobody would ever mistake her for anything other than human. Still, she knows she’s beautiful. And honestly, she would never want to look like Killian. But the idea that she’s somehow less than Killian enrages her. 

“Anyone would be after 12 plastic surgeries.” Her head tilts, eyes usually a cold blue-grey now lit up with a fiery edge. “You’re too used to the girls here. You think she can hold her own. You think she’s as tough and smart and fearless as the Dauntless that surround you. She’s not. She’s fickle. And spoiled. Careless. Delusional. The woman has it in her head that she’s a fucking goddess. Not in a symbolic way. Legitimately, Eric. She’s convinced herself that rulership is her divine right. You slept with her once. Obviously you made her come. Doesn’t mean you know her.” 

[hekacute-deactivated20141230]

I touch myself whenever I think about you. More specifically, I rub my temples because I get a headache because you’re awful. 

[thesedarkcafedays]

Catherine Chandler → 1.12 Cold Turkey

[ask-eric-divergent-deactivated2]

A cruel smirk plays on Eric’s lips as he listens to Eden talk. He’s incredibly surprised at how calm Eden is and the length of time she’s obviously thought about this. Anymore than just one suggestion means she’s thought about it.

“The first one could be pulled off, but do you honestly think anyone would believe it was an accident if I was with her? And besides, if I help you take her off her throne, I can’t guarantee I wouldn’t just keep her to entertain myself with. And who’s to say I wouldn’t betray you myself, decide that I enjoyed Killian running things much more than I like you?”

[a-northernwind]

Sighing heavily, Eden lets her head fall back. Nobody could talk her into a headache like Eric. Rubbing at her temporal lobe, she lets her eyes fall shut, too tired to try and untangle all of the variables right now. It’s not worth it to try. There’s no way they can actually take out the queen. Like he said, who would rule in her wake? Certainly not either of them. 

“Because. You do like me more than her.” The words spill out before she can muster the strength and sense to stop them. She’s not even 100% sure they’re the truth, but they’re what her gut tells her. Of course, he’d enjoyed Killian in bed. Of course, the queen was probably more fun. Maybe he even enjoyed her company more. But forced to choose between them, she had a hard time believing he’d back the Keiserinne and betray her altogether. What did he see the end game of that decision bringing him? A fairy tale ending as he ran off into the sunset with a psychopathic narcissist? 

[ask-eric-divergent-deactivated2]

“I think the fact you don’t fear for your life around me offends me just a little.”

Eric was caught off guard by her admitting she knew how she would kill Killian. Eden had come to him in Toronto, begging him to bring her to Chicago with him so that she didn’t kill Killian. But this had obviously been a long thought out plan since she knew exactly how she would kill Killian and he was curious to find out.

“So then, let’s focus on that last part. How exactly would you kill her?”

[a-northernwind]

He has a twisted sense of humor, but somehow he still gets her to laugh. Only Eric would find her lack of paranoia and anxiety around him the least bit offensive. 

Falling into one of the chairs across from him again, she folds one leg over the other and plays with her fingers as they sit in her lap. She doesn’t mind getting this off her chest, assuming they’re talking in theoretic terms just for entertainment anyway. 

“That’s the easy part. You and I go back to visit. You go hunting with her. There’s an accident in the woods. It sounds cliche but there aren’t any cameras in the woods. It’d be so easy. Our other option is faking her suicide. But that could get messy. She’s tried it before though. Twice. Nobody knows that except Bastian and a few of the guards. But he wouldn’t be suspicious if she slit her wrists in a hot bath.” 

[ask-eric-divergent-deactivated2]

“Do you honestly think if I took over in her place I wouldn’t do the same thing? Tell me, Eden, would you prefer her on the throne, or me? And since you’re so passionate about how Toronto should be run, why don’t you tell me exactly what you’d do if you were to manage to overthrow her. Would you take her place?”

[a-northernwind]

Mildly embarrassed, she shakes her head and looks away from him. The thoughts have always been there, but she’s never lost her temper and spoken them out loud like that. Pushing away from the desk, she moves to start pacing again. 

“I...” She wants to be honest with him. Figures, she can be. That’s one thing Eric has going for him. He hates being agreed with for the sake of saving face. Killian surrounds herself with sycophants. Eric can’t stand them. Shaking her head again, she turns to face him. “I know you wouldn’t do any different. I’d prefer you on her throne, by a slim margin only because I don’t fear for my life every second when I’m around you. But it would be trading one devil for another. I...I haven’t given thought to my own leadership. I’m no good at politics. I don’t even want to be. But...I know how I’d kill her. I designed her security system. I could infiltrate it easily. And I have plenty of ideas for the city.” 

She leaves Bastian out of her speech on purpose. Of course, he’s a reason she wants the city out of Killian’s grasp. Of course she still loves him. But he’s never been the driving force of her hatred for the queen. He’s never been behind her discomfort with aiding in oppression. She doesn’t want Eric thinking for a second that her intentions are as selfish as his own might be. She doesn’t want him thinking they’re alike at all. 

[ask-eric-divergent-deactivated2]

Eric smirked and tapped his fingers. “Sounds like you’ve thought about overthrowing her once or twice judging from the tone of your voice.” He leaned forward, smiling. “Tell me, have you thought about overthrowing her just so you can publically have Bastian?”

Sitting back, he considered his answer to her questions. “I suppose I haven’t thought much of taking her out of power. I’m content where I am for the moment being. However, if I were to take her out of power, I would probably put myself in her place, at least until I was bored. I can’t say I’d enjoy all the work of someone in her position.

[a-northernwind]

Her nose wrinkles, mildly offended at the suggestion that her moral center, bravery and intelligence amount to nothing more than romantic desires. 

“I can live without Bastian if I have to. I don’t like it, but I’m strong enough to live without almost anything... I struggle living with the thought that I know what she is. I know how badly her people are suffering. And day after day, I do nothing but serve the people who keep them low. Toronto could be so much more than it is. It could be a beacon of humanity in the wake of wars that nearly wiped out our entire country. But she chooses to keep it in its most base and violent form. For what? So she can play goddess up on the mountain? It’s sick.” 

Eden doesn’t often talk at all, let alone this much. But Eric seemed to have hit all the right nerves, because the words flow out of her passionately without letting up until even she is surprised. 

[a-northernwind]

“What if you could choose? Who would it be?” She tells herself she’s just asking to ask. They’re just talking. This conversation holds no real weight. But under the lie, she knows already. The thought of taking Killian out and reforming the rats nest she’s ruling is always heavy in her mind. It has been for months. She’d hoped by leaving Chicago, all thoughts of regicide would fade and the desire to kill even her would shake off. But if anything, it’s gotten worse. 

[ask-eric-divergent-deactivated2]

“If I could choose what exactly” 

Eric sits back down in his chair. He had assumed the conversation wouldn’t last long, but he wasn’t minding talking to Eden like this. Eden wasn’t much one for conversation with him and sometimes he thought she genuinely disliked him, not that he cared. He did wonder often times what she was thinking, however. He wasn’t comfortable in Toronto, and perhaps Eden wasn’t here in Chicago. But he had no intention of letting her go back, she was his now. He would stay in Chicago unless she pissed him off or he no longer needed her.   

[a-northernwind]

Wandering around to his side of the desk at her own lazy pace, Eden shrugs.

“If you could choose who your queen was. Or King or...” She sighs softly, relaxing back against his desk as she reaches his side. Folding her arms over her ribs, her eyes stay on his. “Whatever they’d be called. It wouldn’t matter, I guess. If you could rearrange things, take her out of power and put someone else in her place...would you?” 

[ask-eric-divergent-deactivated2]

“She’s similar to me is what I noticed first. She’s selfish, purely in the place she is because it suits her. The ability she has to do pretty much whatever fits her entertains her. Power is a conquest for her - it’s something she thrives on. But she’s bored. With all the power she has, no one bothers to stand up to her, to threaten her. It gets boring if you don’t have opposition.” Eric smirks a tad bit, remembering his last encounter with Killian. “That’s why I entertain her. I don’t do well with authority that I didn’t choose myself, and I didn’t choose Killian. I overpower her in so many ways.”

[a-northernwind]

Shaking her head in complete awe at the egocentric narcissism both Eric and Killian possess, Eden has to fight hard not to laugh. Well, at least he’s not wrong. The queen and Eric are similiar alright, there’s no disputing that. 

“What if you could choose? Who would it be?” She tells herself she’s just asking to ask. They’re just talking. This conversation holds no real weight. But under the lie, she knows already. The thought of taking Killian out and reforming the rats nest she’s ruling is always heavy in her mind. It has been for months. She’d hoped by leaving Chicago, all thoughts of regicide would fade and the desire to kill even her would shake off. But if anything, it’s gotten worse. 

[ask-eric-divergent-deactivated2]

“Any other important little tidbit I could use against her if needed? We can delve into more personal facts about her later on. And I suppose you won’t have a problem telling her I’ve decided to send reports once a week?”

[a-northernwind]

Rolling her eyes at his last comment, Eden can’t help a dark chuckle from escaping under her breath. In the end, she doesn’t have a choice. He let her come to Chicago with him. She has to be willing to do his dirty work for him. But it amazes her how damn shameless he can be about expecting it. 

“You’re the king.”  Nodding reluctantly but respectfully, she leans against the back of a chair that’s facing his desk. She may not love how Eric runs things, but she’s still too much of a soldier to resist orders.  “I’m curious now. How do you see her?” 

She knows of course that Eric and Killian have slept together. But she can’t quite figure out the relationship they have. Does Eric genuinely like Killian? Does Killian give so much power to the man because she truly believes him capable of carrying out her will or does she simply favor him? See him as a god, the way she sees herself as a goddess. Do either of them respect or admire the other, or was it just a one night fling for the hell of it?

[a-northernwind]

“Not at the moment…” Dragging in a breath, she prepares herself for the betrayal she’s about embark on. Not so much of Killian. But of Bastian. “The King…Killian’s husband. He’s her cousin. Nobody knows, not even their children. Which is probably for the best. But, he told me himself. Killian tells everyone she left the Western Trace by choice. That she was trying to give hope to those left behind after the rich and powerful took shelter in the mountains. It’s a lie. They were both kicked out after they were discovered to be lovers. Killian simply made the best of her situation.” 

[a-northernwind]

Trying to organize all the information in her brain, Eden nods a bit. Her fingertips skim a leather chair as she wanders closer to his desk again. 

“Bastian was eighteen then. He’d been training to be a surgeon. There weren’t many of those in the Traces, so he had access to medical supplies not many other people had. Together, with the help of a few people who left with them, they stole four truck loads of medical supplies. And along the way they gathered more. That’s what Toronto is built on. After the wars, everything was gone. People had nothing. I know it wasn’t like that here. But beyond Chicago, most of the country was a mess. People were desperate for even the most basic supplies. Pain killers. Antibiotics. Insulin. Proper medical care.

“Killian sent the word out. Anyone who wanted medicine could have it if they came to work for her. That’s the only payment she’s ever taken. Free labor. Except from the guards. From her military. We get paid, our medical is free. We’re treated like kings in Toronto, it keeps anyone with a gun loyal to the crown. Everyone else is just slave labor.”