Valve adjusted her stance so that her and Gabbar now stood shoulder to shoulder, a gesture of her approval, however subtle. The bay Arabian was smart not to lay his hand in front of the fiery Iftikhar so prematurely, and Valve let the corner of her lips turn up into a sly smirk as she caught his devious sidelong grin.

“I had the distinct pleasure of crossing her path as well,” she affirmed, letting Gabbar know she did have a sense of what he was dealing with. “She strikes me as a mare who is violent without tact. I feel that it is foolish to fight with only hatred and rage as an accelerant. Such a flame is prone to burning out quickly.”

With a quick flick of her dark tail, Valve decided in this moment it was critical to keep Gabbar on her side and if it were possible, tip his loyalty more in her direction. Iftikhar’s apparent hold on him perturbed her to the point that she wanted to free him of that burden. Gabbar would do her much more good as an ally if he wasn’t constantly peering over his shoulder and expecting war.

Valve believed not in war, but in assassination. Whether it would be Yusuf, whose entire existence brought shame to her bloodline, or even El Aran, who was simply stupid enough to get in her way. There were just some unfortunate souls that deserved to die.

VALVE
slenderman x black heart machine