Lost in a Memory

[Nasira]

As Thomas dragged his heels to where they were, Nasira discerned a knowing look from a ghazi with an orange "sea monster" tattoo on his right arm. She smiled wanly at him and looked away, feeling very sheepish. 

Thomas had the gall to act appalled when Maleficent announced what his punishment was going to be, but the latter's stern face showed no leniency. A law was not good unless there was a penalty attached. What Thomas did was rude. Inexcusable even. He had plenty of time to get ready and get to the throne room well before the meeting commenced. Why put himself through so much grief? Thomas would get no sympathy from her. He needed to grow up.

Maleficent looked at every single one of them, cementing authority in the sense that nobody was safe. Her eyes flashed like cut topazes. Nasira continued to see them long after Maleficent moved on to the next topic. She was not sure whether she was inspired, afraid or both.

[Perthmail]

While Perthmail wasn't entirely sure that Thomas' punishment had fit the crime, it certainly seemed lenient in comparison to what Maleficent could have done. He could almost see the overseer's brain 'ticking' and wondering if they should retaliate for Thomas' back talk but Nasira seemed to drop it for a second. Mortaray's gaze, however, seemed pinned on the youth, like a wolf ready to defend his pack. Then again, when wasn't Mortaray like that?

His hand moved to rub over his tattoo, before letting his crossed arms drop to his sides. His attention was quickly waning away from the meeting. He wanted to get out of there and do something, anything to keep himself busy. This was frustrating, as much as it was important, the pirate king was not exactly patient.

[Mystic]

A large white figure sat only a few steps away from Nasira.
Mystic's blue eyes stared at the poor human that made the mistake of arriving late. Her tail twitched in annoyance with Thomas' words, anyone with half a brain knew better than to talk back to a higher up, especially the one with the most power.

Her gaze shifted to Nasira, then to Maleficent. Mystic wasn't quite sure what to make of their leader, but she knew this woman was dangerous, so it was best not to do anything that would anger her. Even her owner seemed to have at least some amount of respect for Maleficent's power.
Noticing the hint of something being off in Nasira's eyes, Mystic lightly brushed her tail against her owner's side.

[Tabs]

Tabs wasn’t a stranger to those who ruled using fear and intimidation. He was often subject to such abuse at the hands of his Producer. Nothing that was said surprised Tabs, and this was evident in the tiny relaxed smiles that displayed on his screens. His expression wasn’t one of smugness, but rather a look of understanding that he wasn’t hearing a new concept. Sure, maybe he could fake a reaction, but why be dishonest with his allies? After all, Tabs didn’t really expect he’d be accepted anywhere else, so he wasn’t keen on throwing away his public image over something as silly as pride.

Feeling any talking now would be unwanted, he moved the feather of the quill up and let his brush against one of his necks.

[Kula]

Taking a seat to the forefront of the crowd seemed the best route to take for those less vertically inclined. For instance, the more bestial ghazi within the throng. Such was the position of a lioness amongst them; orange in color and emerald of eye, clad in the simplicity of her fur alone. Kula, daughter of the Pridelands' former king Scar, sat proudly with shoulders squared and chin raised. She'd been among the first ghazi to file into the room in anticipation for orientation and had sought a place at the front of the crowd quickly. Anything less than the utmost respect for these human traditions would reflect badly upon the glory of her heritage she felt, a possibility that was absolutely not an option.

Besides, ringside seats were more entertaining when things got good.

The appearance of the humanoid queen within a glory of green flame drew the desired response from Kula, head bowed and eyes wide in awed reverence. Since their arrival within this strange land the cats of the Pridelands had borne witness to many acts of small magics. That did not diminish the affect the sight had on them. Such power these creatures wielded... Mightier than that of the claw, of the fang, perhaps even of the mind. The power to smite an enemy with a flick of the hand or a stray thought. The concept was intoxicating.

The crash of the door drew all eyes away from the addressing of their leader. Raised brows followed the red-haired man as he was bid to Maleficent's throne, but it wasn't until he was dragged to the floor that Kula released a low chuckle. So the show began... It was only right that rudeness be responded to with fierce punishment. This wasn't so much about the individual. This one had become an example to the rest of what they could expect in the face of even the smallest rebellion.

[Maleficent]

The Queen, the Sultana, of the Blackbloods took a moment to pick lightly at the left cuff of her robe, removing a non-existent fleck of dust. Maleficent obviously had heard Thomas's response, he had dared to take her word with anything other than acceptance. But she choose to ignore it, not out of pity or mercy, but to see how the other members of her army would react. She looked for signs of pity, or sympathy. She looked to see if another Ghazi would take the initiative to confront him. She had thought for a moment that Nasira might have rebuked the boy. But the woman seemed to have let it go, as Maleficent had chosen to.

The dark fairy wasn't sure what to make of Nasira just yet. She was highly competent, and powerful. Nasira would make a great ally... if Maleficent hadn't overthrown her brother taking the seat of power out from under him. Ah, well, time will tell if Nasira could be come something akin to an ally. For now, a tool would do.

After the tense pause Maleficent seemed to be satisfied with the supposed state of her robe and returned her attention to the assorted ghazi, "Further instructions and details will come from your overseers, and questions can be directed to them. But I think we all can agree to follow the basic rules and orders. You should be fine."

Maleficent swept her staff, and the chains binding Thomas drew him upright, none too gently. With two more heavy thuds of her staff on the floor, green flames blew up from Thomas, utterly consuming him in moments before dying down immediately.

"Perthmail," Maleficent smiled, her eyes pinpointing the man through the crowd as if there were no one else. She could see his attention waning, perhaps he needed to be engaged more. She would be happy to oblige, "I've sent Thomas to the dungeon. When we are complete here, he'll be assigned under you. Make sure he completes his penance fairly, hm?"

"Now, moving on!" Maleficent circled the head of her staff in the air, the glow of light leaving a trail of illumination behind it that seemed to not disperse. Instead an image formed and then expanded above, easily seen by everyone in the room. It was a map.

"I have two major announcements. For our more experienced warriors, we will be organizing an excursion to Australia," a lick of flame marked a location on Australia, "You'll be gathering supplies, and more recruits. This will be taking place on the 10th. This gives you about a week and a half to prepare. Make sure you are. I won't take any excuse."

[Perthmail]

Her call almost had him jumping out of his own skin, mentally scolding himself by allowing his mind to get distracted. His icy hues snapped back onto the Dark Queen in an instant. His body seemed to stand straighter and at attention knowing her focus was on him, even if it was just for a moment. He didn't care however about the eyes of his colleagues that turned to look at him, he used to that sort of attention. Years of leading his crew through space having had taught him that eyes were always watching you.

His entire focus appeared to fall onto Maleficent and she was all that really mattered in that moment. The demon mages' greying brows knitted together at the woman's words. Babysitting duty? That wasn't what he'd call ideal, but he'd do as ordered regardless. He wasn't really one the type to bitch and moan. Especially with the fact he wasn't top dog there at the moment. He needed to earn his place. So he would.

He gave a nod in response to the 'Sultana'. "Yes ma'am." Came a verbal reply, he then fell silent afterward so as not to interrupt her. 

At the information about heading out in a few days though, he could help but perk up with an almost excited response. A wide cocky grin crossing his lips, finally some action! He hated being stagnant when he wasn't on vacation back in the Eriel Sector of Space. This promised good times ahead for him, not that war was necessarily 'good', but who was he to judge. He was a freaking pirate after all.

[Benjamin]

The whole ordeal regarding Thomas’ disrespect and subsequent punishment, while not lost on the dark-furred canine, was merely watched with mild interest at best. Ben hadn’t been among the first to enter the room when the meeting was called, but he obviously wasn’t the last either. Finding a spot near the front, not too far from two of the Blackblood’s other animal soldiers, Ben had watched as Maleficent made her entrance, awed by the magic she so flamboyantly showed, and had been among those to turn and watch Thomas enter as well, very much late to the gathering.

Benjamin felt for the boy, honestly, but if one were going to be so disrespectful to their ruler, then some form of consequence must be made. Did Ben agree with the punishment given? No, he didn’t. He thought it was a bit excessive considering this appeared to be the boy’s first, and only, offense, but he certainly wasn’t going to be the one to speak up and say as much. After Perthmail had come forward upon Maleficent’s call to deal with the boy, Ben had turned his attention back to their leader, chocolate brown pools staring up as Maleficent continued on with the meeting.

Dark ears perked as the mention of going out scouting for new terrain, and members was brought up. Now Ben was far from being the most experienced soldier, in fact, he would probably only be considered a recruit at this point, despite the few battles he’d been a part of, but he would be more than willing to help should they need him. For the moment, after the excitement of Thomas’ interruption had passed, Ben would merely sit quietly among his peers and watch awaiting further instruction.

[627]

A creature so normally uncouth, rebellious and nigh to listen to one single command was unusually quiet. 627 had quickly taken note of the fact that he was the only alien experiment in the room, a fair amount shorter than everyone else, and somehow... he sensed his compatriots were on an even footing with him. Well, not quite even. But close. His pride wouldn't allow him to place them on a pedestal alongside himself. But he could tell immediately that these people -- these creatures -- were not like the vermin he was used to.

For one thing, they smelled different. Otherworldly. Supernatural. There was something off-putting even in their smell that made the normally chaotic creature think twice. Especially when he saw Maleficent conjure chains out of the ground to pin Thomas to the ground. The sight caused him to giggle a little. Foolish human. What an impressive display of power. He was fairly certain he could not pull chains out of solid stone, much less wrap them around a person. Perhaps this Maleficent was worthy of his respect.

She went on to say that dissenters would be killed. Had he the language, he would have scoffed at the thought. Kill HIM? What a laugh! He was so much stronger than these peons. But... was he stronger than Maleficent? The thought intrigued the red creature. He fixed his eyes on her, peering suspiciously. Would she fight him, he wondered. Prove herself worthy of such respect? Could she do more than conjure chains from stone?

And then flames erupted around the boy. It was such an amazing display that 627 couldn't help cawing and clapping his hands in utter delight, unintentionally paralleling his much more meek counterpart, Stitch. She made flames appear too! So she could conjure fire as well! How delightful! 

[Nasira]

Nasira inaudibly observed "Perthmail" - the ghazi warrior their master picked to keep Thomas on a tight leash. It seemed more likely that she'd choose an overseer for the job, somebody that was above Thomas in rank, and Nasira could only speculate why. Perthmail, who looked almost bored before, instantaneously straightened and gave Maleficent his full, undivided attention. Nasira suppressed a shrug. 

She could not help but think of her late brother now that somebody else was on the throne - somebody he would have never picked to be his successor. But what was she supposed to do about it? It was indisputable that Maleficent surpassed them all. Nasira was not going to make the same mistake her brother did. Maleficent may not spare her challenger's life a second time, and Nasira liked living.

Her mind briefly went back in time to day Jafar lost his throne to Maleficent. Some sympathized with Nasira, and others thought Jafar was a fool to let himself be defeated, but either way, they regarded Jafar and his ilk with a mixture of pity and scorn. Nasira had heard one of them being wise after the duel, saying: "Maleficent is all-powerful; no one has ever defeated her. Jafar should have known that." The thought made Nasira cringe. She hated the idea of people looking down on her family. But they would change their tune once the Blackblood Legion won the war. People would say that although it was Maleficent who ultimately led them to victory, Jafar was the one who brought them all together. It wasn't exactly ideal, but he would, at the very least, be remembered as the founder. The honor of his family would be restored, and once again Nasira's chest would swell with pride when she told people her name.

By the time Nasira snapped back to reality, Thomas had be consumed by green flames (ouch), and Maleficent had materialized a map. Nasira quietly studied it while Maleficent went over the upcoming expedition to Australia.