A/N: This story is dark. I can't be evil, so Card does it for me. It does have a plot, though. In the future it may contain slash (shounen ai, yaoi, m/m, what-have-you) because that's what the characters are whispering at me; but nothing explicit, just love between two characters. Review or not, I don't much care. I'm just enjoying myself and FP is how I back up my files.

Chapter One:
You Belong To Me

Card breathed in deeply, enjoying the thick smell of blood and death that filled the air. He slammed his axe into the ground, barely listening to the sound as the blade sunk into the muddy earth, and walked through the battlefield, eyes focused on the horizon. The crunch of bones and squish of flesh beneath his boots were not as enjoyable as the screams and begging that his victims had given him before he had cut them down, but they were satisfying nonetheless; he contented himself with them, amplifying them by stomping heavily as he walked. Besides, it wouldn't be long before he heard those lovely sounds again--the cries of pain and hopelessness tinged with hope that made him feel alive again.

Once he had traveled a fair distance away from the point he had marked with his axe, he turned, and unsurprisingly, saw the deadly weapon spinning towards him, aimed for his chest. Once, he would have cried out or frowned, but now his face remained emotionless as the blade sunk into his left shoulder.

The axe's momentum combined with the hellish agony of the wound made him fall onto his back, sad red eyes crying tears that matched the color and texture of the dark red blood that was flowing from his shoulder. It was always the same; no matter how many he killed, the curse remained. He pulled the axe out, wondering why it had hit his shoulder instead of his heart. Perhaps I finally have no heart, he thought. Many years ago, the thought would have depressed him, but now, it was almost comforting; it meant progress.

He felt something damp and sticky on his leg, and looked down. The fabric of his pants had been torn off to reveal the lower portion of his leg, and the ghostly white skin was marred by a deep gash that was currently being probed by a clammy brown hand. The pain as the calloused fingers ripped and clawed at the wound was unbearable, worse even than his injured shoulder. Card groaned and pulled himself into a sitting position, slapping at the hand and cursing as he wondered how this man had survived. He was very annoyed with his most recent failure to break the curse, and he had done enough killing for that day, to do more would make it feel like a chore. Besides, he didn't want to go to all the trouble of hacking through the pile of dead bodies just to kill a man who would undoubtedly die in any case. Card was very thorough; when he fought, no one and nothing left the battlefield but him.

But even when he had gotten to his feet, the hand continued to flail about, as though seeking to cause further damage. Staring in fascination, Card saw that the hand was attached to an arm that seemed to become a pile of bodies once Card's gaze reached its elbow. He almost laughed, it looked like a monster from the Fairy Realm, something that the Queen would create to amuse herself by sending it to attack Human villages. Thoughts of the Queen reminded him of the curse, and he frowned. Annoyed, he swung his axe at the mound of corpses, knocking them aside one by one until there were only four left.

One of the remaining bodies stirred, then became still. Card had used up his last reserves of energy with his tantrum; he fell to the ground on all fours, breathing heavily and trying to keep his stomach from emptying itself on the bloodstained grass. Suddenly he found himself being pushed to the ground; he let out a yell as the breath left his body and his vision blurred. A heavy weight pressed against him, the once-flailing Human hand now clutching Card's throat, crushing it slowly, painfully.

"How does it feel, Fairy? How does it feel to have to struggle for every breath?" The pressure on his throat increased, and Card moaned and shifted his weight, trying to free himself; it was no use, his attacker refused to budge. "That's it, take back some of yours, you monster. You like causing pain so much, you should enjoy a taste of it for yourself."

Card hissed and whispered a repel charm, sending his attacker flying into the air; the soldier hit the ground with a breathless curse. They both lay still, gasping for breath, too battered to rise. As soon as he had recovered a bit, Card dragged himself to his feet, wavering a little. "You know nothing of pain, you filthy Human." He held out his hand and the axe flew to it from where he had dropped the weapon after pulling it out of his shoulder. "But you soon will."

Due to his injured leg and an over-nourished flair for the dramatic, Card walked slowly and purposefully toward the fallen soldier, using the time to gauge his opponent. The soldier was far from impressive, not any more or less muscular or tall than any of the other Humans that littered the ground, with dark hair matted to his head with blood and sweat. Card sneered contemptuously and spat on the ground, it was just another Human; for a brief moment he had thought he'd come across some kind of pre-destined hero of prophecy--they cropped up every now and again, with Humans--but it was just some lucky idiot who'd managed to get himself lodged under his companions before he could be killed directly.

The soldier coughed and rolled onto his side, curling into a ball, either unaware of Card's approach, or simply indifferent. It made little difference; Card was soon standing over the soldier, lifting his axe into the air, he prepared to bring it crashing into the Human's skull.

But before the blow was struck, the Human turned his head, catching Card's eyes and holding them as if through an enchantment. They were a startlingly light shade of brown, almost orange, and completely absent of fear; Card stood there, amazed as he searched those eyes, finding nothing but pride and hate. The words of the Queen and her courtiers when they had laid the curse upon him reverberated in Card's head, deafening him from the inside out; he made a reckless decision. He let his axe fall to the ground, sinking into the earth beside the soldier's head; despite the closeness of the blade, the soldier remained resolute, not even blinking as he continued to stare at Card, although the emotion in his eyes changed to include confusion.

Shaking his head, Card let go of the axe and backed away from the soldier. "Get up," he commanded. Quietly, the Human complied, using the axe handle to pull himself up. Then, for the second time that day, Card received an almost predictable attack from his own weapon, although this time the weapon was not acting of its own malicious will. Calmly, he reached out a hand and grabbed the axe handle, effectively stopping the Human's attack; he could have taken the blow, but he was not in a hurry to add to his injuries.

The soldier growled and tried to wrest the axe away and attack again, but Card held fast, using his other hand to punch the other man in the stomach. Doubling over in obvious pain, the soldier started coughing and fell to his knees, but gripped the axe resolutely.

"Stop this foolishness," Card ordered, his voice betraying a small hint of anger. "Or I might change my mind."

The coughing subsided a bit, and the soldier looked up, his orange-brown eyes flashing. "Change your--what the hell are you talking about?" He spat blood on the ground and wiped his mouth with one hand, then returned that hand to the axe handle, tightening his grip so that his knuckles turned white.

Card sighed, this Human was a slow one; perhaps the old ways were waning among Humans as they never would among the Fairies. "I spared your life. You belong to me."

Growling, the soldier let go of the axe and leapt at Card again, knocking the Fairy onto his back once again, furiously pummeling him until he was pushed off and entrapped in a spell of binding. He fought against the spell, hissing through clenched teeth, "I belong to no one. Do you hear me, Fairy?! No one!"

"You may not respect the laws of Nature," Card said as he retrieved his axe and tied it to his back. "But you are still subject to them." They were both severely wounded and wouldn't be able to cover much ground; he would have to draw a pentagram and teleport them to a nearby village. But first, he would have to make sure that this soldier wouldn't betray him. "I don't know how you managed to survive a battle against me, neither do I care. I'm searching for something, and you will help me find it."

"Like hell I will."

It took all of Card's will to refrain from striking the soldier again, but he managed it; another wound would do neither of them any good. "I could have killed you just now, but I willingly spared you. That places your life in debt to me." He grinned wickedly. "I own you. And until I release you, you will do as I say."

Closing his eyes, the soldier let his chin drop to his chest. Voice cracking with defeat, he asked, "And if I don't?"

"Then you will suffer a fate worse than death. And you had best not take such a curse lightly." This last was said with a sad reminiscence. It was sound advice, advice that Card now wished he had heeded.

"...What are you searching for?"

The question took Card by surprise; he hadn't thought to convince the soldier so quickly and with such ease. Perhaps his decision had not been so reckless as he had first thought. "All in good time. First we must seek medical treatment."

The soldier looked up and opened his eyes; they still blazed with wild hate and burning vengeance. "You'd better watch your back, Fairy. Once I'm healed, I'll do my level best to end your life--and my imprisonment." He threw his head back and laughed at Card's surprise. "Oh yes, I know the old ways. If you die, my debt is erased. And you can die."

Perhaps I can. "I'd like to see you try," Card sneered. "Although I doubt you will live to see the result of any kind of attempt to murder me. What would you have me put on your grave, soldier?"

"The name is Gareth Miroslav, if that's what you're hunting for, Fairy."

Card raised an eyebrow. "Miroslav? Peace and glory are hardly elements I expect you experience in your life. You are poorly named, soldier."

"Tell me about it. I'm not exactly gentle, either." Gareth tested his bonds again, wincing as Card willed the invisible cords to bite deeper into the soldier's skin. "What am I supposed to call you? Hellhounds eat you if you want me to call you Master."

So Human parents were just as inept as Fairies in naming their offspring; Card's true name meant 'fortunate in love'; a more inappropriate name than the one the soldier had given as his own. He wondered if Gareth's parents had harbored similar hopes for their son as his parents had once had for him. Loosening the spell a bit, he answered, "Card."

"That's even stupider than mine."

Feeling oddly defensive, Card scowled at his newly acquired servant. "Card is not my true name. It was given to me by a fortune teller." She had been the first to mistake him for a Human, and he had only spared her because she had put right her horrifying error with kindness before he could retaliate with violence.

"Ooh. Mysterious," Gareth said sarcastically. "So what's your 'true name' then?"

Tired of this conversation, Card sneered and said acidly, "You could never hope to utter my true name, Human." He spat the last word out as though it had a bad taste. He would have to remind this one of his place, again and again; Humans were entirely too free thinking these days. One would think that with the masses of them that Fairies went to all the trouble of killing, the remainder would learn a little respect.

Gareth yawned mockingly and gestured to his body with his head. "All right, Card. Now if you'd be so kind? I think I'm getting more cuts just being locked up in this."

With a grudging snap of his fingers, Card released Gareth from the spell, catching the Human as he fell to his knees. This action was rewarded with a caustic, "Better watch out, I might start to think I'm more than an animal." He frowned and ignored the comment; resting Gareth none-too-gently on the ground. Card dipped two fingers in the blood of one his wounds and drew the pentagram, being careful to inform Gareth of what he was doing. Magic often upset Humans, some to the point of panic, and although that was normally a source of great amusement for Card, it would be terribly inconvenient if his servant was constantly getting upset at what--to Card--was perfectly normal. Although even after having two spells used at him in a short amount of time, the soldier seemed to be unfazed.

Once the spell was completed, Card lay on his back and closed his eyes, letting the black light of the teleportation spell wash over him. Soon they would be in a Human village, where they could get their wounds treated. Suddenly, a thought registered in his increasingly foggy brain that he knew should have come to him much earlier. Before they both disappeared, he turned to Gareth and asked, "How did you know that I'm a Fairy? My wings are gone."

With a yawn--apparently the sleep spell that was drawn into the pentagram was already taking effect--Gareth shook his head and said, "No they aren't. They're right there, in plain sight," then rolled over and fell asleep.

Dazed and almost frightened, Card buried his face in his hands and forced himself to give in to the lethargy that was tempting him. His last waking thought was, But they tore my wings off years ago...