The Devils Den

[clouds just clouds]

There was no way. No way. No absolute way he could do this. He stared in utter horror at the cup and then flicked his gaze up at Rorik. Either do this, or have pain. "I-I'll try." Which was true, he could try. Mostly his nonsexual tendencies had to do with his shyness, but it also had to do with the fact that he rare felt the need for some release.

That wasn't necessarily the problem. Once the bonds were removed--some of them--he propped himself up, and then sat up to rest his head in his hands. He didn't even respond to Rorik. One hour.

The major problem was that he was too frightened to even think of getting any samples. He felt too exposed, too frightened, too... not in the mood. "Gods, my Gods..." He couldn't even think of beginning. "He's going to kill me..."

(wecanskip XDDDD)

[Bakery]

Rorik threw open the door and slipped into the darkness of Drexel's testing room. He said nothing for a minute, only rudely flicked on the lights to their brightest setting.

"Let's make this short, shall we? I can't stand you and would love to dissect you until you were nothing but screams echoing down the hall. But for the sake of what I need done I will prevent myself from such actions." he growled through his teeth, his glare increasing as he stepped forward. "I need a sample of your genetics. Before, however, I need to know if you have been sexually active at all previously and if you have ever been tested by a doctor for common diseases." Rorik blurted out tediously, sighing as he walked around Drexel's secure table.

"Of course if you don't comply I can just do the tests on you myself- as well as the procedure. That won't be pleasant for either of us, though." he growled and yanked up another clipboard- the one he had written the information for Drexel on- and waited until he responded.

[clouds just clouds]

Drexel smirked at Rorik's presence. "Hello," he spoke into the darkness. "Rory, it's nice to-" The light caused him a momentary setback. He cursed silently and squeezed his eyes shut for a few moments, wincing at the pain. He chuckled as the pain subsided and his eyes got use to the new light. His eyes narrowed at Rorik. "You mean you want me to [CENSOR]?" A smirk curved his lips. "Why do you want to make it so short, Rory? I love your company."

His eyes followed Rorik around the room and his smirk widened. "Rory, just admit it to yourself, you want me to resist. This certainly is a knew development, really. I can't say Callaghan returns your feelings. I'm actually a virgin, surprisingly. Not unless, if you count [WHOLE LOTTA CENSOR THAT DESCRIBES DIRTY ANONYMOUS ACTIONS]."

By the end of it, Drexel was chuckling. Even Callaghan might have blushed at his use of language. "And yeah, I went in for a check up recently and I'm perfectly healthy. As sterile as ever. So, am I suppose to [CENSOR] with my hands tied up and just hope something happens, or do you have a plan for this?"

[Bakery]

Rorik listened, unaffected by Drexel's foul mouth. Not even an eyebrow raised. Just a look of impassiveness. Apathy.

"I would ask if you kissed anyone with that mouth- but seeing as your mother is dead and you have little to no experience with anyone who can even be considered a passable being who has the right to exist, I'll refrain." he spat with a smirk, scribbling down on the clipboard afterwards. Once that was done, he moved behind the table Drexel was tied to and tightened the straps he wasn't going to release. "Try anything funny and I will end your life without a second thought." he assured quietly, having no patience for any of this fool's games.

Of course, he could do so now and clear the world of the genes he would pass on- but decided against it. What genes were passed on had no affect on him- only the ability to pass them on is what he was looking for. These tests could always go awry and end the lives of the poster children- but Rorik was only observing- not rooting for a certain outcome.

The life of a scientist was never easy.


Once that was done he began to walk out of the room- having tightened only the straps in use and released those needed. "One hour. Any longer and I'll kill you." he reminded with a hiss, turning his head to glare sideways at Drexel.

Gods he looked so much like that worthless Callaghan.

He hated Callaghan.

[clouds just clouds]

"Who says you have a right to decide who is a passable being who has the right to exist?" Drexel spoke tightly, but there was a smirk on his lips. He winced when the already tight bounds were tightened. Parts of his body were already beginning to feel a bit numb, but with his hands free, he would be able to loosen them once Rorik disappeared.

"Good bye, Rory~" Drexel sang as he left. "I'll be thinking of you." His smirk grew into a wide grin. Just to get on Rorik's nerves, he began to undo his pants, slowly and in a teasing way as he watched Rorik in the eye. Anger boiled beneath his cool surface and he whispered, "I hope when you dream tonight, I'll be in it. And I hope you have a nightmare." It didn't matter if Rorik had shut the door or not.

He meant what he said.

[Bakery]

Rorik said nothing and continued on down to Seraphina's room- making sure to change his gloves before stepping foot into the room. He gave a whistle as he walked in the room, going along with a tune mindlessly as he strolled toward Seraphina, a grin growing on his face.

"Hello there...Did I make you wait too long? I'm sure as the Kings bitch you aren't used to waiting- a spoiled brat who always gets her way hardly can ever be patient, I'm sure-"

"Do you ever stop talking?" Seraphina hissed quietly, her voice dangerous and low.

A big bark for a dog who was restrained from biting...

"Never." Rorik hissed back and peered down at her. "Let's get to the point of this, shall we? I will be extracting what I need from you- which is an egg from your...Well. I'll skip the vulgar language for now."

Seraphina glared at him, her face strong with anger- not revealing a lick of the fear she felt.

"Choke on your own bile you slithering snake." she spat and Rorik gave a big grin as he grabbed her chin with one hand, gripping her face harshly.

"Only after I've done what I want with the King's favourite playthings." he gave a short chuckle. It was dark and low, bone chilling to those who couldn't contain the fear it set off. "Now then...Have you been active sexually? Been to the doctor to get tested? If so, are you diseased? What diseases do you carry within you?" he asked darkly.

Seraphina wanted to scream, wanted to spit and kick and escape- to make sure the others were okay- but she couldn't. Behind the hard mask of anger she had been frozen with fear. The icicle fingertips of it raked beneath her skin, nearly tearing through to her face.

In these moments, the dark cold within her, she'd wanted to whimper. Wanted to cry and ask him to just let them go- to weep until the earth would swallow her whole- to somehow be far, far, far away from this place and Rorik..

To be with Rucian...

Seraphina closed her eyes and turned her head away- ignoring the man completely.

"Answer me." Rorik snapped and yanked her face back forward, snarling as he spoke. "Or I'll give the King plenty of scars to find on your deformed body."

She had to work with him...Had to comply. As much as she didn't want too- it was a matter of getting it over with or suffering for it.

"Yes. I'm not diseased." she said dryly, her tone flat.


"...Very well. I'd almost be surprised if it wasn't you." he sneered and released her face, almost smacking her head away from him in disgust.

~



Khalida didn't even need to know what was going to happen. She'd been in this position before- about two hundred years ago. When she had first escaped from Rorik- this was one of the similar events that had pushed her over the edge.

To be here again...It was a torture all its own. The waiting was new- before she had been the only one to be tested on...That she knew of. Now, with the others to be worried about- she prayed to the Gods they wouldn't be too tortured by this. She could handle this- but for them to be traumatized would crush her..

The door opening didn't make her flinch. The footsteps didn't make her flinch.

His eyes, the exact same colour of her own, the ones that haunted her in her sleep and terrified her very existent...They made her flinch.

So when his face crept closer to hers, his fingers trailing along the bindings and the bare skin of her arm not covered by her shirt, she couldn't help but feel that her body attempted to pull away- her heart shattered from the furious beats it had undergone within her ribs.


"Now...There is no need to ask you those silly questions, is there? I already know...And you're already prepared, my love..."

Oh Gods...

Please just kill her now...

[clouds just clouds]

A part of Drexel thought it would be amusing if he unstrapped himself and put the cup in a corner, then strap himself up again. The other part was too afraid to even try to pull off a stunt like that. Rorik had been looking for reasons to hurt him, and doing that would surely give him a reason. The only probably was that he wasn't sure how long it had been. Not wanting to look at the cup anymore, Drexel had dropped it off to the side.

His hands felt dirty. His entire body felt dirty. In fact, he felt sick, dirty, and afraid. Closing his eyes, he let himself remember times when he was just a child, when he would get afraid and run for Callaghan. At first, when Callaghan had brought him to those large banquets, Drexel had been quite shy. He hide behind Callaghan and hug onto his legs, or even Seraphina.

One time he tried to hide under Rucian's robe. That didn't end too well.

A bitter smile lifted his lips and he felt tears bite his eyes. One tear leaked out but he forced the others to stay within. He couldn't cry, not here, not then. Gods, he felt so damn guilty. If he hadn't lost his cool...

Clenching his teeth, he covered his head with his arms and laid like that. He would have time to think about that later. If there was a later.

---

Gods, it had taken a while. Almost too long. He was worried for a long while that he wasn't going to get anything done, and then Rorik would try to do it for him. He had to stop thinking that, or nothing would get done. Eventually, though, it had to have taken him at least fifty minutes (hoping it wasn't an hour). With the cup away from him, he stared down at his hands.

An overwhelming amount of emotions swelled over him and his hands blurred before him. Calix clenched his teeth tightly and wrapped his arms around himself, clutching his sides. Fear warped around him and caused panic to squeeze his lungs. Anger pounded his head. Sorrow twisted his stomach. Disgust tickled his ribs. All sorts of emotions wrapped around him, and he reached the point of a break down.

Just before all the emotions could cause him to scream and cry, everything slowly slipped away, shutting down. At last, numbness came over him and he stared blankly at his hands, watching has his hands come into focus once again. Nothing. He felt nothing. Or at least, he didn't let himself think of these things anymore.

He built a wall up around him. Blocking out memories, everything. A shell.

[Bakery]

Rorik typed away at a laptop, making note of the time. He had the samples now and all the tests were done..

This was the first step into a new world for all Verengeith. A world of possibility that cast away the rotting shell of a dead end evolutionary line.

"Finally..." Rorik breathed with a smile creeping up to his face. It wasn't sadistic or cruel but an actual smile of satisfaction, a scientist finally achieving a long awaited result.

Finally having these results and these wonderful subjects to have it tested on was astounding- never before had things really come together like this...He could almost taste the final result...

"And with this...They won't be able to kill me." he whispered to himself and smiled further, the edges of his darkness now taking over and turning the smile into something sinister.

Starting with the poster children would sure upset the higher ups- they'd want him hung for everyone to see after what he was going to do- that was nothing new. But once they knew what he had put into them- once they knew exactly what he had done..

Well...

Forgiveness wasn't anything he expected. But this would at least prolong his own existence in a way. It was a service that needed to be done- even if he had to break a few backs and spill a drop of blood or two along the way.
~

“Like sleeping children...So vulnerable..” Rorik chuckled to himself as he moved toward the bags of medication that kept three of the four test subjects unconscious. He took the large bag down and carefully poured in the larger bottle of the new solution he had just made up into it.

If the youngest, Calix, was awake, Rorik would turn to him with a wordless, all toothed, grin as he walked over to him. Although he had kept him awake- he had still long since attached Calix to a bag of medicine to keep him just barely conscious. For anyone it was enough to keep their mind running but their body unable to move, a lower dosage of what the other three were getting.

Through the tubes the liquid dripped into their blood streams. It was a purple liquid, violet and illuminating beneath their skin as it made its way into their systems.

It slowly faded as the bag emptied the last of it.


Now it was time to move the bodies...



The car he drove was foreign to Rorik. Not that he ever really drove cars, but it was enough to make him drive with care.

The road was pretty much the same as he remembered. It wasn't too busy- a car here and there was all he had to worry about really.

He wasn't without someone to speak to either. He had kept Calix awake- and now that the tests were done he had slowly taken him off of the low dosage, decreasing it so he could regain enough consciousness along the ride. Though, he hadn't said a word to him- and if he had spoken he didn't respond. He had nothing to say, save for the end of the trip.

Slowly pulling to the side of the road a few hundred feet away from the King's estate, Rorik turned to Calix and turned off the car.

“I have done something to all of you that has never been done before without the death of those tested on. Consider yourselves lucky- this is a strange gift and I am not one who often gives much of anything...Wait ten minutes before going inside. Tell them exactly who did this to all of you- and warn them that if any try to come after me I won't hesitate to slaughter them with glee.” he gave a sick smile and took the keys out of the ignition and tossed them into Calix's lap. “If any problems come up don't be frightened- I will be watching.”

And with that, he was gone.


Psuedo apologizes for the quick and crappy post ;~;

[clouds just clouds]

In the existence of his empty shell, sometimes emotions would flare up and skip across his surface. Sometimes it would be fear, other times anger. His body parts wouldn't listen to him. He couldn't even get his finger to twitch. It took all of his effort to even blink. Rorik's words caused anger to flare inside of him, but just like a rock skipping across the surface of water, it disappeared beneath the black depths.

He wished Rorik would just let him sleep, to be put out like the others. Though, Calix knew that Rorik wanted to be given credit for all that he's done, so that everyone else knew of his brilliance. If Calix hadn't fallen into his emotionless state, he would have felt irritation. Instead, he stared blankly. At times, he wouldn't even look at Rorik when he came close by. All he needed was to have his eyes glazed and then he could be considered dead.

***

Sitting in the car, he made no move for conversation. Instead, his head was turned away from Rorik so he wouldn't have to look at him. It was too close, sitting in a car with the very man who captured him. It felt more intimate. Even as the sights around them started getting more familiar, Calix didn't allow himself to hope, or to feel.

When the car came to a slow, Calix could help his heart that began to quicken and stutter in his chest. He closed his eyes when Rorik started speaking to him, as if that very action could make him stop. His voice, his words... his face. Everything about Rorik made him angry, afraid, weak...

The keys made him flinch. Finally, he turned his head and brought his emotionless gaze up to Rorik's. He didn't respond. There was nothing he could say that could be a response to what he said. Maybe if he weren't so frightened, or weak, he could have said something clever.

It took a few moments for Calix to realize he was alone.

Staring in front of him, he began to count, since there was no other way to count time. "One, two..." A tear slipped from his eye when he reached sixty, and he put up his pointer finger to signify one minute. All of it felt unreal. Were they really free?

Another tear slipped when he put up another finger.

After all that had been done to them, what was suppose to happen? What now? Calix clenched his jaws tightly, putting up another finger. His thoughts swarmed and shook as the walls he put up slowly began to break away and crumble. Before they could all break down and leave him breaking down in the car, the tenth finger went up.

The tears sliding down his face were constant. For a few moments, Calix sat there, waiting for Rorik to slide back in and laugh at him. Shakily, Calix stepped out of the car, letting out a whimper when his twisted ankle sent flaming agony up his leg. Squeezing his eyes shut, Calix took a few breaths and counted to ten. With the car keys tight in his hands, he closed the car door and began to slow trek back to Rucian's house.

[THE END]