Nighshift 23: Entry Room

[gun-fire.livejournal.com]

[ from here ]

While her commander opened the door into unchartered territory for her, she listened for his reaction, knowing he would see whatever was inside first.  In the meantime, her attention swept the wide hall behind them, not wanting to give up her guard prematurely.

He wasn't wasting any time, it seemed (though caution was never wasted time to her), and she followed him in, almost back-to-back with him. Trusting his reaction in place of her own, she didn't turn around until the door was shut in their wake.

Comments

[gun-fire.livejournal.com]

Riza's anger, a truly rare but potent force, flared to hear the words Psycho Mantis was making her say. How dare he speak to him like that; how dare he assume such callousness of the colonel of all people; how dare he force those implications on him.

But it wasn't only that. In all the years she'd known him she'd never faced him like this, never been so close that she could smell him, never had her hands on him. She had never even dreamt it, though any other woman would have by now, regardless of the necessary boundaries. And yet that was where Psycho Mantis had put her, forcing her to exhibit the female characteristics she ignored in her daily life.

And she could only see what Psycho Mantis was directing her to see, and at this nearness, she couldn't help but take full account of the eye she wouldn't ask about . . .

No. She built her resistance again. Even if it was hopeless, she couldn't remain an idle witness while this thing used her to degrade the colonel. She found she'd been hoping he would be the one to push her away, but she couldn't leave that burden to him.

Again she tightened her resolve, harder this time, like jamming a rod into the gears of a machine.

Get out, get out, get out!

[psionicfourth.livejournal.com]

For a second, Riza's body suddenly shot up like a puppet on a jerked string, swaying limply, teetering on the end of her feet, arms hanging by her sides - the faintest gasp escaped her lungs as her head rolled back.

She was resisting, and she was good.

No!! Mantis wailed, clawing back, trying to suppress Riza. Already his vision, through her eyes, was blurring - his mind was being forced out.

So he clung, and eventually Riza shifted back into natural movements, although he was still aware of the great gust of her anger threatening to blow him away.

He tried her voice again; a thin sound came from her throat.

Shaken, he ordered her to speak again.

"" he started, still choking over her words (he had to keep control no no no no). ""

As he stepped her back, she wobbled like a drunk, no longer standing straight.

"" he gasped, ""

A sudden surge of anger dropped her knees into a sway, and he corrected her stance.

"" he continued, almost sadly. "" He extended a long, trembling finger, but had no idea himself if it was trembling because of the lack of control or because of his own anger. ""

Her spine arched violently; he gasped a little, correcting her stance again.

"" he screamed at him. "" he spluttered, Riza fighting off his vocal control, ""

[muted-flame.livejournal.com]

The lurching of her body made Roy feel slightly sick. He wasn't certain if he had ever seen someone move in quite that way, most likely because it wasn't actually physically possible. Mantis was controlling each limb, causing her to swing around like a puppet.

He wondered if she was aware of what was happening. He hoped she wasn't, that once this was over she would open her eyes and ask what had happened. Though when Mantis explained that she was fighting back, Roy had to accept that she hadn't been that lucky. He knew she was trying her hardest, and he could only hope that she would soon be able to fight him off completely.

But then Mantis was yelling at him, accusing him (in her voice) of the destruction he had caused. This man could see into his head, see just how much he had done (secrets he kept from everyone, the Rockbells, oh hell) --

Roy tensed at the mention of his homunculus eye. Hawkeye probably already knew, but to have someone come out and say it that bluntly... He grit his teeth, not knowing how to respond to words that he couldn't deny.

For so long, that screaming had kept him up at night.

This was just a strategy of Mantis', though, to set him off guard. He wished he could fight back somehow, but the only other physical body in the room now (he had heard others, but they had been smart enough to not linger) was Hawkeye, and attacking her certainly wasn't going to do any good.

[gun-fire.livejournal.com]

Riza was under no delusions concerning the deeds of a soldier at war. She knew what her colonel had done there, and she knew how great his wrongs had been. The orders that had been given were not grounds for absolution, and the blame could not be shifted. This was what it meant to be a soldier: not just to dirty one's hands, but to stain them.

But Colonel Mustang shouldered that responsibility as few were willing to do. He sought to right something that could never be right, but his struggle was part of the ideal, it was part of the Amestris they both wanted. And she, knowing she amounted to little on her own, chose to support him in that struggle.

Psycho Mantis could deal the colonel no insult he didn't already know. There was no need for further punishment.

Riza's anger solidified in a deep will to protect him. She was on the edge of control: though it continued to slip from her grasp, she had at least felt it again as it escaped her. And now, knowing it was possible, she reached for it again with determination, trying to fill herself and her senses to capacity so that there would be no room for the unwelcome. The accusation of the homunculus eye still rang in her memory, but there was little that could change him for her.

[psionicfourth.livejournal.com]

He tugged and pulled at her, trying to stay in control, but there was a jerk and a twist and he lost his grip - his vision blanked and his head pulsed in pain. He let out a long rasping scream, too disorientated and weakened, the sudden shock causing his invisibility to melt away. He was revealed, blind, and vulnerable, for a fraction of a second -

[muted-flame.livejournal.com]

There he was! Roy did not hesitate this time, his hand gripping around his lighter, flicking and sparking it.

His left hand started to glow with a light that filled a good portion of the room, and then a ribbon of fire was shooting toward Mantis.

Would it hit? Or would he dodge? And how about Hawkeye? Did that mean she had beaten him out of her?

Before he could even get the chance to see if his attack hit, night ended and the ground dropped out from under him.