#99ares

It took awhile for it to stop flustering him to the point of breathlessness.

The suggestive, quite often teasing, tone that always seemed to pass Ares’ lips so casually was startling at best, somehow consistently taking Gael by surprise despite the fact it was a common occurrence, making him pause or tense, teeth digging into his bottom lip with something near a complaint on his tongue. “Why do you always say it like that?” He mumbled under his breath, a rhetorical question as he already more or less knew the answer, frown tilted downwards slightly, turning away from his work desk to face Ares, arms crossed almost protectively over his chest. He tried not to seriously contemplate the insinuation in the words but Ares made it difficult, never missing a chance to give the most obnoxiously blatant pair of ‘fuck me’ eyes as a side dish just to watch Gael’s face flush red down to his chest, tinted ears and annoyed expression.

Half the time he wondered if he was making fun of him, and the other half of the time he was aware that Ares definitely wasn’t joking. Somehow the latter was worse than the former, at least as far as Gael’s sanity went.

As Gael studied Ares, watching him make his way to stand far too close, he gave into the instinctual urge to reach out and touch him. His hands pressed to the front of his shirt, always dressed far too dark and dangerous like a warning sign, and suddenly he had a thought that he hadn’t experienced since his last break up a little over two years ago, throbbing in his skull and making him release a sigh out loud; things would be much easier if he had better taste in men.

He tried to act as if he wasn’t compelled by the offer, just as he did every time it came to the table, hesitating where he stood, hands pressed to Ares’ chest, lightly fisting in his shirt, less than a bodies width away, a clear uncertainty in his expression. His eyes didn’t quite meet the proto’s in his wash of thought before finally opening his mouth again, a slight huff on his breath, an eye roll equal parts fondness and annoyance; decisiveness. He stepped back, a small smile teasing on his lips, slightly raised eyebrows. “You know what would really make it up to me? Fixing that hole you left in the wall behind the door, that would be great.”

SEND ME ‘☾’ FOR AN AESTHETIC OF OUR MUSES, OR SEND ME A ‘⚡’ FOR A MOODBOARD OF OUR MUSES. – accepting

                                ares & gael -- moodboard 1                            

      ----- i’m not going to call you that       ------- give it time, kitten, you will

Send ‘’🍺‘’ + a question and my muse will answer it while they’re drunk – accepting

gael balked, a sort of shocked expression presented with a disbelieving laugh. “what are you trying to say? you think i’m like,” he waved a hand like he was trying to express something, “sleeping around but not giving it up to you of all people? you make it sound like saying no to you is easy.” he sounds exasperated and almost whiney, like he wants to be offended, but some part of him finds it sort of funny, the idea that ares thinks he would have that level of self control if it weren’t a part of his morals, the way his mind worked and processed the concept of sex. 

“i guess i should be like, flattered that you think i’m getting laid like that? that’d be a lot less embarrassing. god, it’s been like… two years? two and a half?” he shakes his head, face running red with both intoxication and embarrassment, hiding his face in his arm. it was a fact he most likely wouldn’t have admitted to ares sober, if anything just not to sound ridiculous, almost feeling stupid, like it was something he’d be judged for. “it’s not, like, you, y’know? well, it is, actually, but like i’m not… i don’t know, i haven’t even like… kissed another person in well over a year except, y’know, you.” he says it slowly, expression almost like he wants to drop dead on the spot, not wanting to keep talking but unable to stop himself. “it’s not that i’m prudish, though, or i don’t like mean to be i’m just… i’m working up to it, i want to, like really want to.” he sighs, almost pouting, his cheek resting on his forearm as he slouched over the table.

“it’s not like cause of you though, like i’m not holding out on other people cause you’re around like, not really, i just don’t want…” he stopped himself from saying ‘anyone else’ like he’d intended to, instead just cutting himself off entirely. “y’know what? forget it, this is really embarrassing, i don’t know why i’m telling you this.” he refused to meet his eye, looking just about anywhere but at ares with an almost painful laugh. “but i guess, like, in simple terms you are getting special treatment, just in the opposite way then you think you are… i don’t know, i need another drink, i don’t wanna remember this conversation ever again. let’s not talk about it anymore.”

@99ares​.

it feels like it’s only been hours since she got back only to be sent back out to fyrestone once again. honestly, if they want her so badly, she might as well make them come out to the valley. overcome the danger hidden among the sand dunes and they’ll prove themselves to be worthy of a sandstones harlot. unfortunately, that isn’t her decision to make.

she sits in the passenger seat, gazing out the window as her assigned escort drives through the valley. aside from the two of them, there’s no one else in the car. between them is a gun, should they run into trouble on the way. it’s a safety precaution, one she has the luxury of never having to use before.

the image of fyrestone up ahead becomes a tad bit clearer. it’d only take a few more minutes til they arrive. then she spots a suspicious blur from the driver’s window. before she can warn her driver, a loud bang resonates in the air and she’s thrown forward as the car skids to a sudden stop. something warm splatters on the side of her face, the air suddenly filled with the smell of iron.

lux turns to look at the girl in the driver’s seat and a scream is lodged in her throat when her eyes land on the grotesque wound on her neck. her escort is dead — and she’s next. “no, no, no, this can’t be happening.” she mutters, clenching her fists so tight that she can feel her nails puncture crescents into her palms. from the driver’s window, the dark blur becomes a silhouette she can barely make out as it approaches. there are others trailing behind it.

scavengers.

immediately, she scrambles for the gun, which had fallen to the floor. she’s only fired a gun twice in her entire life, seeing as there were always others who’d do it for her. there’s no one here right now though. no, she’s all alone, vulnerable and absolutely terrified. but she isn’t going down without shooting at least one of those bastards.

“a sandstones lady, hm?”

her head whips up and she immediately scoots away, back pressed against the passenger’s door as she stares into the eyes of the scavenger outside the car. his grin is wolfish, a predator who’s cornered their prey. fuck.

“the boss will like you a lot, y’know?” when he leans in, her arms act on their own accord and point the gun at him. the look of surprise in his face leaves as quickly as it came and he grins that stupid wolfish grin again. she narrows her eyes, tensing her arms and placing her finger on the trigger. ( maybe, just maybe, if she can stall him enough, someone would arrive. )

movie quotes meme: accepting

“you mean the place where all the garbage gathers? we’ve been here for a while now, ares, time for you to get with the program.”

zachary tilts his head to look over at the proto when he joins him at the bar, a little smirk pulling at the corners of his mouth. it’s the first time he’s visiting this particular bar, and apparently according to the proto it’s the worst one fyrestone has to offer.

he doesn’t quite mind. shady places like this tend to ensure his trade keeps being necessary, and an evening spent hanging about the bar might just throw a few new patients or customers into his lap without him having to go through any effort whatsoever.

“one would think that this type of place is still a step up from garbage for the likes of you, though,” he adds to his earlier words after a moment, as his attention goes back to his glass of liquor. picking it up, he pours the remainder of its contents down his throat, then motions the bartender to give him a refill.

the skepticism displayed by said male in the beginning when a guy in a dirty shirt and hoodie showed up asking for expensive liquor has disappeared entirely after zachary pulled out a wad of cash and paid in advance with it for a couple of these drinks, so he gets his refill soon enough without any questions asked - just the way he likes it.

turning his attention back to the proto, zachary takes in the man’s current attire to check out whether ares is working or simply enjoying his own night out in town. as expected, the proto’s clothes give him no further information on which of the two it is, and so he allows his gaze to wander on further to the rest of the bar, taking in the current visitors.

movie quotes meme: accepting

“i usually prefer that, yes, because it tends to stop you from blabbering on and on.” zachary responds as smoothly as if he has always expected this question and has long prepared to give it a proper answer.

then, he lifts his head, eyes locking with those of the proto who still sports that smug ass grin on his face, with that look in those eyes that zach often wishes he could punch without breaking any fingers.

sadly he can’t.

so he hits in the only way he is capable of doing without sustaining injury; through wordplays and well-aimed comments.

@99ares

Gael tended to stay to his own devices, electronics breeding electronics with hands in two different walks of life; one blood and one metal. He bent over open wounds of silicone flesh and cut wires splintering out, the workshop always too hot with the air buzzing with electricity, the never ceasing sound of humming robotics and shaking machines, careful fingers and stilled hands. He was always working, if not on repairs then advancements, disconnected parts plugged into consciousless machines, changing and rewiring with a careful precision and sharp focus. Hours passed easily that way, the feeling of purpose and progress, slow and steady with his bottom lip caught between his teeth, chewing the flesh as he catered to the smallest details with care, squinted expression with tiny pieces of an eyeball; a mechanic with tweezers and meticulous motions instead of an artist with small brushstrokes. 

Attention like that was cut short with a slam, the rattling crack of his door hitting the wall, an unfriendly mental image of the preexisting doorknob shape embedded in his plaster greeting his already busy mind. The tweezers dropped and his eyes closed for the briefest second, something symbolic of a thrill flooding over him momentarily as the mechanic knew he could place that sound anywhere. It was frustrating, for such a destructive noise to come with the rush of excitement, an almost indistinguishable glee that rung with that horrible sound, the fluttering feeling in his chest that shook to life was surely bad for his health, the stuttering in his heart that came with the recognition. It was perhaps fitting, however, for one of the things that kept him safe to be destroyed by another, leaving a trail of broken everything in his wake, he stood like his own iron lock. Daresay, Gael would be the first to admit he felt safer with Ares, door unlocked and even cracked open, perhaps a sign to welcome strangers into his home, then with steel bars at his windows or an alarm tone blaring through the night.

Still, he only sighed.

“Ares, please, the door.” He said, voice almost weary as he turned to meet his eyes in the doorway, the first thing he was always drawn to like a magnet of the opposite pole. He could never explain the jump in his stomach, how he felt like melted sugar even through the slight ring of annoyance, the presence making him nervous, his usual focus sloppy for just a moment as he missed the details of his entrance, the importance of it, as his mind immediately rushed to assess the damage, to touch him and repair him before he even knew if anything was wrong. Then the silent moment passed in a second and his eyes fell to Ares grasp, a huge chunk of machinery and wire in his arms and hands with a head that was still in motion, mouth opening and gaping even slightly and Gael’s own face flushed white, the natural response humans have to gore applying to the shredded android and causing him to balk, eyebrows drawn tightly.