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The Great Below	By : Lennith Category: +S through Z > Star Ocean 3 Views: 3841 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Star Ocean 3, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 2
- 3
Title: The Great Below
Author: Lennith
Rating: Probably NC-17. Anyone who knows my work knows I am a lemon-monger and Cliff and Albel release inner kinks in me XD
Pairing: CliffAlbel
Disclaimer: Although I am a huge fan of all the Star Ocean games and manga, I have nothing to do with their creation! I make no money off of this! The only purpose in writing this fic is to release my own demons. So sue me if you want. I�ll only plead insanity XD
Warnings: This fic is YAOI! Man on man action. Chances are, if you don�t know the term yaoi just leave now. Although I enjoy throwing my crazy ideas out there into the fiction world, I don�t want to be responsible for melting the brains of innocents. This fic has mature themes: violence, nudity, possible gore, definite language, and SEX.
A/N: Wow, I can�t even begin to say how pleased I am with how this fic is being received! I�ve even been getting reviews indicating that I�m converting CliffFayt and AlbelFayt fans to the wonderful world of CliffAlbel! That makes me so proud! A large apology to my readers for my slowness to update. I�ve determined that this summer is NOT a vacation at all, and I�m horribly busy. To reassure everyone, all of my fics are still in the works! I have no intention of abandoning them! I�m expecting this fic to be rather short� At this point I�m thinking it�ll be five chapters all together. BUT! If people want more, I�ll write either a sequel or another fic once I�m through with it. Although I�d rather write CliffAlbel stories, if you really want me to try my hand at another pairing I�ll think about it. Just drop a review with your thoughts! Thank you again to my fabulous reviewers!

Just a warning: This chapter will contain more citrus. Don�t like mansmut? Sorry, scoot off to someplace else~
Flashbacks are still in italics and between breaks of stars! Thanks for reading~
Ixi
Destiny of Choice.
Ocean pulls me close

and whispers in my ear

The destiny I�ve chose

is all becoming clear
Albel awoke with a start, becoming fully aware the moment his eyes fluttered open. His memory always lapsed as soon as he escaped the clutches of sleep, and he frowned slightly at the ceiling that greeted him mutely. It wasn�t his ceiling. A mumble followed by a muffled chuckle from the other side of the room jogged his memory back into place. Pulling himself up onto an elbow he glared at the bed against the other wall of the inn room. Cliff was laying on his side neatly, facing him with one of his pillows being mercilessly squeezed in his arms. The idiot grumbled, giggled, and snored in his sleep, his blonde hair even more mussed than usual. Although the average person would have thought the great leader of Quark�s compromised position to be amusing, even cute, Albel merely snorted and glared at him angrily.
He�d already awakened to this behavior once, but last time he�d been the pillow. Somehow Albel had managed to escape that suffocating grip and snuck out of his own room when the digital numbers on the wall had flashed 5:42 in lime green. He�d thought he�d escaped trouble when the man had simply rolled over and continued his grumbling, but trouble had come later that day anyway.
ixi
�Albel, hold up a second,� a clear young voice rung against the metal walls of the spacecraft.
Albel rolled his eyes, but stopped his aimless walking, turning to face his pursuer.
Fayt caught up with him in a matter of seconds, a frown bordering on a scowl skewing his feminine features.
�What did you do to Cliff last night?� he asked, crossing his arms in disapproval.
Albel�s heart gave a treacherous thud, though he kept his face a cool, blank mask. �What do you mean?� he answered with another question. He�d only considered Cliff as a danger. He hadn�t thought anyone else in their pathetic little band to notice anything, as long as Cliff didn�t go about blabbing and he hadn�t thought that was the Klausian�s style. Heaven forbid his reputation as a ladies man be tarnished by revealing that he�d just had Albel�s cock in his mouth the night before. Albel ignored the tightening in his stomach that came with the memory.
�Don�t pretend like you don�t know what I�m talking about,� Fayt admonished, his voice rising with anger. �Did you think we wouldn�t notice the scratches on his face?! I can think of only one person on this ship who would leave that kind of mark. Not to mention the bite on his neck and bruises and scratches on his arms.�
Albel allowed himself a broad smirk. Knowing he marked the man pleased him somehow. �That�s his own fault,� he replied simply, enjoying watching Fayt getting angrier by the second.
�He came out of your room this morning,� Fayt continued lowly. �And something�s bothering him. I can tell. What the hell did you do to him?�
Albel eyed him curiously. �Are you jealous, whelp?� he asked in a silky murmur. His sneer widened as Fayt was taken aback. He didn�t care if he was admitting what he�d been hoping to hide. If Cliff was going to mess with him, he�d happily get back at him by causing trouble with Fayt, who Albel had always assumed to be Cliff�s lover. That was the excuse he gave himself, anyway. Anything but to admit to himself that he was being possessive of the Klausian.
�W-What are you talking about?� Fayt�s scowl melted into wide-eyed sputtering, obviously confused if Albel was implying what he thought he was.
Albel had the look of a satisfied cat with a belly full of canary. �I would worry more about what he did to me than what I did to him, if I were you,� he purred, turning to continue his interrupted stroll down the hall. He chuckled to himself maniacally as he could hear Fayt struggling to force out a response to that.
�Mine.�
The determined word rang through his mind, though he was immediately disturbed by the thought.
At the end of the hall a door slid open with a hydraulic whirr, a hulking figure of black leather and blonde hair stepping through it. The man hesitated when he spotted Albel, then strode quickly forward to meet him.
Cliff stopped a few feet ahead of Albel and rubbed the back of his neck nervously. �Good morning, Albel,� he greeted loudly. Albel eyed him over with a smirk. It was true; his cheek had a thick strip of bandages covering the scratches and the angry mark of his bite stood out prominently against his tattooed neck. Feeling rather amiable now that he�d fucked with Fayt�s head and gotten to see his handiwork, he graced the hated man with a greeting in return.
�Afternoon, maggot,� he said sourly, wicked smirk still steadily in place.
Cliff frowned, his mouth a grim line. �You left this morning,� he said in a quieter tone, sounding almost whiny.
Albel snorted. �Of course I did.� With that he continued to walk down the aisle, passing the Klausian.
A firm grip caught his wrist, halting his progress. �We need to talk,� Cliff said evenly. Albel could feel the unease and anger starting to well within the other, simply from his touch and the sound of his voice.
The Elicoorian glanced back over his shoulder haughtily. The smirk was gone, replaced by the cold look of indifference he usually sported. �There�s nothing to talk about. If you need to talk, go talk to your little� friend.� He emphasized the last word with both innuendo and distaste.
To his pleasure Cliff�s face darkened with anger, fury chiseling his face into the one that Albel enjoyed the most. �What the fuck is wrong with you? Why are you acting like this?�
Albel�s brow furrowed, annoyed at the sharp pain in his wrist, feeling the tendons being pressed down to bone. �You�re a joke. You disgust me,� he said smoothly and freed himself with a sharp jerk. He continued to walk down the hall, feeling Cliff�s gaze boring into his back. He made a rude gesture with his newly released hand as Cliff cursed and then left to tend to Fayt, who�d been watching the exchange from further down the hall where Albel had left him.
Albel frowned as Cliff let out an extra loud giggle. He�d been laughing too, at that moment in his memory, but the laughter hadn�t lasted long. After the encounter with Fayt in the hallway, Albel�s life had become one of avoidance: avoiding Fayt, avoiding Cliff, avoiding conversation, avoiding confrontations on the matter, avoiding feelings and even avoiding thoughts. Even solitude gave him no peace. Either his mind would start blabbering things he didn�t want to believe or Cliff would find him. Those situations would usually lead to him being pressed against a wall and various exchanges of saliva before a fight would break out. It didn�t help that his mouth had a habit of saying things he didn�t want to say, either harsh words he didn�t really mean or giving away what his traitorous mind had been bubbling.
�Albel�� Albel flinched, thinking that Cliff was awake but the Klausian merely mumbled a few more words and then rolled onto his back, still deeply asleep. Albel�s frown deepened. This had to stop. When Cliff had been gone his mind had still been plagued by his presence, but at least he had had his solitude. But he�d come back. And he probably would again. Something had to be done.
A polite rap on the door interrupted his train of thought. With a slight hiss of annoyance Albel rose, slipped on his pants and answered the door to find a black brigade lieutenant. The underling fidgeted under his icy stare. �Albel-sama, excuse the intrusion, but there is an emergency that requires your skill,� the soldier said in a rush, seeming afraid to breathe.
Albel narrowed his gaze in annoyance. It certainly hadn�t taken anyone long to figure out where he was. �The mission details?�
The soldier flinched, knowing he�d been stupid not to offer them. �Here, general.� The timid man passed the scroll over hurriedly.
�What�s goin� on,� a voice yawned from over Albel�s shoulder. The soldier flushed, surprised to see his general in the company of a sculpturesque man clad in only tight black underwear. He looked from Albel to Cliff with both suspicion and fear before excusing himself in an embarrassed stutter and fled.
�Put some fucking clothes on, maggot. Now that worm has the wrong idea in his useless, empty head,� Albel snarled, ripping the seal on the scroll to read the mission.
�What�s wrong about the idea?� Cliff drowsed, draping himself over Albel�s shoulder. The contact of their bare flesh sent a jolt down Albel�s spine. He elbowed the Klausian in the stomach to cover his reaction. This had to stop before�
�Ouch, you�re such a bastard. Have a little mercy, I just woke up,� Cliff wheezed once he was able to breathe, rubbing his abused abs tenderly.
�Just get dressed,� Albel hissed, waiting for his heart to slow and his mind to clear before he started to read the contents of the scroll.
�Don�t get your panties in a knot. We�re both men,� Cliff huffed, but obeyed as he started to climb into his pants. A large grin spread over his face as an idea came to him. �Or is that the problem? My pheromones getting you randy, �Bel?�
�If you value your limbs, I�d shut up now,� Albel replied through gritted teeth. This just had to stop. As he read the description of the mission, a rather risky and tricky one, an idea came to him. He balled it up and tossed it into a trash bin. �How�d you like to bust some monsters?� he offered, turning to his companion.
Cliff grinned and ground his fist into his other hand. �Now you�re talking. I�m in.�
�Good,� Albel said with a smirk in return.
ixi
�These things are actually kind of tough,� Cliff grumbled, rotating his arm to loosen his muscles. The going wasn�t much easier than the monsters. The two men were tramping through a rough and mostly unpopulated section of the Duggus Forest, which was freckled with steep cliffs and deep sinkholes. The forest itself was so thick that it pressed around them with an eerie feeling of claustrophobia. �I would have thought that there�d be next to no monsters, since we defeated Luther.�
Albel merely grunted. �Just because this world was recreated doesn�t mean that it�s perfect. These things are created from the people�s fear, and after what happened they have plenty of things to fear.� He was searching the ground, checking the terrain carefully. After hours of putting up with Cliff�s rambling and monsters constantly attacking, he found what he�d been looking for and stopped.
�I suppose you�re right about that,� Cliff agreed as he caught up with Albel. �What is it?� He looked around as well, though there seemed to be nothing out of the ordinary. �Why�d we stop?�
Albel smirked. This was it. He would soon be free. �Nothing,� he said lowly, pulling Cliff close. He swallowed up what little distance was left between them and pressed his lips to the Klausian�s and engaged a raw kiss. Cliff was immediately surprised, for Albel had never initiated a kiss, but after a moment returned the affection with fervor. It was no tender thing; more of a bruising of lips and a desperate clashing of tongues than a kiss as simpering females would describe it. Albel closed his eyes, allowing his heartbeat to race to a bloodlust tempo. Just this once he allowed himself to enjoy it, for it would be their last.
�Goodbye,� he said silkily as he pulled back, and without further ado, shoved the larger man backwards. Cliff shouted as he found himself tumbling down a steep slope that had been hidden by the thick trees and brush. He was about to yell when he felt something tighten around his ankles. When he tried to brush it off, they only wound tighter. As soon as Cliff registered they were vines, more snapped around his arms and waist and started dragging him further down the slope. Once again he tried to struggle and only found himself further entangled. He glanced over his shoulder, down the slope, and saw a menacing creature with a gaping maw filled with snapping teeth at the bottom of the pit. The situation finally registered. He was in deep shit.
�Albel!� Cliff screamed, looking back up the slope to see the Elicoorian watching him coldly. �Damn it, don�t just stare! Help me!�
To his horror Albel shook his head and turned away. �Don�t you walk away from me! ALBEL!!!� Cliff growled, as Albel�s figure disappeared into the trees. He tried to shout again but found his voice silenced. Not only that, but he could feel poison quickly invading his system. Soon his vision went blurry and despite his best efforts he could hardly move. He struggled as best he could, but it was a losing battle. He was being dragged down to the monster�s mouth at an alarming rate. The thing snapped its jaws menacingly, emitting a high-pitched squeal.
Cliff had never felt helpless in his life. He�d always been able to count on his own quick mind, finely honed instincts and almost limitless strength and stamina, but now it seemed his end was near. His life continued to ebb away painfully; the venom taking its death-hold, his thinking reduced to a downward spiral and the vines cutting further into his bleeding flesh. He vaguely observed just how stupid it all was. After all the risks he�d taken in his life, all the seemingly unbeatable opponents he�d fought he was going to meet his doom in the clutches of a mindless monster. His fatal mistake was obvious. He�d given his love and trust to a devil.
Love. The word hadn�t entered his mind until this point, but now that it had it was a far more cruel pain than his body dying around him. With a ragged exhalation of breath, the last of his physical reserves and will left him. His persistent struggling ended, and he could feel the hot, acrid breath of the monster on the soles of his boots. Cliff let his eyes close, once more wondering why Albel hated him so much and praying that Mirage would somehow forgive his stupidity. His hunch had been wrong this time.
The sound of a struggle interrupted his epitaph. Although he opened his eyes, his vision was too blurred to make much sense out of the rapid movement and the painfully intense blurs of green, red, and purple. The creature gave a death-knell and suddenly the bonds that had already cut through his leather garments and been cutting into his flesh went limp. He heard and felt a blade hack through the vines, expertly missing his flesh.
�Get up,� a distorted voice ordered him, something that he assumed to be a foot kicking him when he failed to respond. With a curse from his savior, Cliff felt himself partially lifted from the ground, partially leaning on someone and partially being dragged. He was dropped twice and after the second fall he blacked out.
Cliff came to again when his face was slapped harshly. He groaned, surprised that he could once again use his voice. Before he opened his eyes he assessed the condition of his body quickly. The poison seemed to have been diverged from his system. The bitter taste in his mouth suggested he�d been given an antidote. Despite that, he was still perilously close to death. The poison had already done its work and left him with very little vitality. The slap came again, this time to both cheeks and harder. With a faint yelp, he opened his eyes.
To his utter shock, Albel was looming over him, his face cold and irritated. His vision still lapsed into blurs, but at least he could see. Confusion, pain and rage filled him along with the visage.
�So, you decided to wake up. Here,� Albel murmured and thrust some berries into his line of sight. Cliff lolled his head back and forth weakly in a negative. He was still too weak to chew them himself. Even keeping his eyes open seemed a tremendous effort.
Albel sighed in annoyance and cursed, shoving the restorative items into his own mouth and chewing hurriedly. He then forced Cliff�s mouth open, placed lips over lips and forced the congealed mass into Cliff�s waiting mouth. Albel drew away quickly as Cliff swallowed with a bit of difficulty. The Klausian was relieved to feel his wounds tingling with relief and some of his strength returning to his battered body almost instantaneously.
Albel sat upright and shifted his weight impatiently. �Well? Can you take more yourself now or must I continue to feed you like a mongrel?�
Cliff�s relief was overwhelmed once again with a dangerous, simmering fury. �Just give me the fucking berries,� he growled. �And basil. I can hardly move.�
Albel handed him the items, which Cliff laboriously raised to his mouth and ate, chewing and swallowing quickly. It took one more serving of blueberries after the second dosage for him to finally feel replenished.
�Well,� Albel said, finally standing up and brushing himself off disdainfully. �Let�s head back to to�wwwwwwwwwwwwnnnnnnn!!!�
The final word was stretched as he was suddenly tackled in the midsection, his body hitting the ground with a breath-wrenching thud. Before he could get his wits about him the heavier man had him efficiently pinned and a stone-crushing punch was landed on his jaw.
�You. Tried. To. KILL. Me,� Cliff screamed gutturally, following up his first punch with two more.
Albel�s world spun in a haze of white pain, stars dancing before his eyes. �S-stop!� He was sickened by the weakness in his own voice. He gasped as the punching ceased, but wrathful fingers closed around his throat.
�Why should I?!� Cliff�s breathing came in ragged heaves, his vision clouded with red rage. �You fucking bastard, you were going to leave me for dead!�
�But I� saved you� didn�t� I�� Albel wheezed, his eyes beginning to bug out from the intense pressure.
Cliff hesitated, taking a few more deep breaths before reluctantly releasing Albel�s windpipe and leaning back, still straddling the Elicoorian. �Yes, you did,� he admitted, voice still dark and distrustful. Albel inhaled gratefully, sucking the air in greedily. His face and neck felt like they�d been crushed to smithereens, but at least he could breathe now. As Cliff thought about the incident while giving Albel a moment to recover, it really didn�t make any sense. Albel had deliberately shoved him into certain death and walked away from his cries for help, only to rescue him at the last moment and then nurse him back to health. �You�re not getting out of this,� Cliff ground out, once it seemed Albel was able to function again. �You�re telling me why.�
Albel fell silent, eyes darting as if wishing he could escape the situation.
�You�re telling me NOW,� Cliff growled, raising his fist back menacingly, �or I�m going to beat you with my bare fucking hands until you�re permanently disfigured!�
Albel winced, his body tensing reflexively. He knew that was no empty threat. �What are you asking me?�
Cliff slapped him hard against the temple, the other�s avoidance feeding his steadily growing hatred. �I was asking you who cuts your hair. What the HELL do you think I�m asking?! I�m asking you why you tried to kill me and why you saved me!�
Albel blinked blurrily, the hit to the temple befuddling him momentarily. �It had to be done. You�re a threat to me,� he said quietly, feeling emotional pain blending with the physical.
Cliff�s eyes narrowed spitefully. �I�m a threat to you? What have I ever done to you? I�ve always watched your back, tended you when you�re ill or injured when nobody else would. Is that threatening to you?�
Albel grimaced, shaking his head slightly. He shivered as he felt Cliff�s hands return to his bruising neck, the thumbs gently pressing his chin upwards without constricting his airway.
�Answer me,� the blonde growled. �How am I threat to you? I disgust you so much you�re afraid of killing yourself just to be rid of me?�
�N-no, you just��
�You just hate me so much you want me dead?�
�No, I��
�Someone showing kindness to you sends you into a murderous rage?�
�You make me weak!� Albel finally shouted over Cliff�s endless babble. He covered his eyes with his arm, wishing he hadn�t admitted it, wishing he could disappear. Above him Cliff shut up, shifting his weight as the words sunk in.
�I make you weak?� he repeated, as if testing how the words sounded to interpret them.
�Yes,� Albel replied miserably. �Now let me up. Get off of me.� Cliff�s fingers tightened slightly around Albel�s throat as a reprimand.
�I told you, not until I understand. How do I make you weak?� To his displeasure Albel hesitated to answer, still obscuring his face. �Answer me or I will hit you again,� Cliff demanded. His manner softened slightly at the sight of Albel�s uncharacteristic submissiveness, but his near-death experience was far too fresh in his mind for coddling.
Albel truly didn�t want to answer, but as he felt Cliff�s weight shift as he prepared a punch, he decided it wiser to speak. �Having feelings for people makes you weak!� Once again he�d let his mouth get ahead of him, and regretted the very breath.
The fingers loosened once more. �You have feelings for me?� Albel didn�t need to see his face to read his expression. The words were spoken with incredibility with a slight undercurrent of hope.
�Get off of me,� Albel grumbled. This was sure to be the worst day of his life. Hell, the torture chambers seemed like a luxurious alternative.
�You didn�t answer my question,� Cliff said with obvious exasperation.
�Enough questions get off of m�� Albel�s words were cut short by Cliff�s lips. This time it was a kiss of testing, slow and deliberate. Though Albel reflexively opened his own mouth, Cliff seemed content with just a brush of lips, sucking on his lower lip before pulling away, leaving Albel far more confused and worked up than if it�d involved tongue and a clashing of teeth.
�Did it ever occur to you that caring about someone could make you stronger, not weaker?� Cliff asked quietly, his fury finally sated. Albel hesitantly pulled away the arm he�d been hiding behind, giving the Klausian an icy glare.
�No. And why should I believe you? That sort of reasoning could only come from your feeble mind.�
Cliff graced him with an impish grin. �Well, I am the strongest person you know. So if I were you I�d take my advice. Having someone to believe in, someone worth fighting for can make you stronger than you could imagine. For example, would you have been able to defeat the monster you almost made me a snack for single handedly under normal circumstances?�
Albel thought on that, and knew the answer was �no� though he didn�t respond.
�See, I told ya so.� Cliff stood up, to Albel�s utter relief. He was sure his bones were going to crack under the strain of the Klausian�s weight if he�d been pinned much longer. To his surprise, Cliff�s prior anger had seemed to melt away, leaving a foolish smile on the older man�s face. He ignored the hand offered to him and got up on his own steam, wincing as the movement refreshed the pain of his Cliff-induced injuries.
�What the hell do you look so happy about, ingrate? I still just tried to kill you,� he hissed, applying some salve to his rapidly swelling face.
�Only you would react to the warm and fuzzies in a homicidal fashion,� Cliff snorted. �Well, I suppose I�m happy �cause I finally know I have a chance.�
Albel graced him with a look of utter irritation.
�Aww, thank you honey. Your sneer just warms my heart,� Cliff teased with only a touch of sarcasm. �Anyway, let�s go back to town. I don�t want you shoving me down any more holes.�
Albel sniffed disdainfully, but followed the retreating black-clothed figure. As the forest continued to press around him, he bit his lip in self-reproach. The secret was out now, and there�d be hell to pay. He could feel blood rising to his face as he imagined the torturous days facing him. He frowned thoughtfully at the back of Cliff�s neck. Unwittingly he�d chosen his path this day, little had he known this morning that it�d be the opposite one he�d planned.
To be continued�

A/N: Sorry kids! I was planning to throw in some rough jungle-sex after the attempted murder, but as I was writing the chapter it just didn�t seem appropriate. Of course, now that Professor Cliff has the green light, he�ll be putting Albel through some rigorous �healthy ways to express affection that do not involve murder� studies, mwahahaha! Sorry that all of my updates are taking so long! Please have patience with me! If you really want to burn me in effigy, go ahead� but it probably won�t get the chapters out faster. Thank you to my readers! I hope you have turned to the CliffAlbel side, my young apprentices! I�m planning on two more smut-filled chapters for this fic. Once again, I�ll be happy to hear suggestions for another SO3 fic to start on after I�m done� the only problem is that I have two s.CRY.ed fics and a Harry Potter fic also in the works, so it might be a bit, unless I�m very inspired! Thanks again~
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The Great Below