by Quil Carter
“Not if we work fast,” Garrett whispered. “Just find a vein, Nero. Quickly.” He put a hand on my head and rubbed it. “Elish, we’re stitching you up. Try and stay as quiet as you can.” I squinted my eyes and tried to speak, but my mind had forgotten where my mouth was.
Pricks of pain were soon felt all over my body. Ellis was stitching up one side of my head and Garrett the other. Then past Garrett, the flashlight illuminating half of his burly frame, I saw Nero pulling up the plunger of a needle sticking out of his arm, crimson following and filling the barrel. It confused me, even inside of my swimming, disconnected mind, until he grabbed my arm, squeezed it, and pushed the needle into the crook of my arm.
“How many times should I do this?” he whispered to Garrett.
“I… I think five times for now…” he said back, everyone speaking in a hushed tone. “He’s… fuck, he’s lost so much blood.”
“Where’s the other guy?”
“Silas took him.”
My eyes closed but I managed to grasp onto a few strands of my consciousness, I lingered in a half-lucid, half-lethargic state, only the pricks and jolts of pain keeping me in this plain of existence.
I think I was going to die tonight.
But at least I wouldn’t die alone.
I laid there, my body cloaked tightly in pain, pain that rose and fell in tempo, sped up and slowed down, before becoming a continuous throb, one that pressed my body into the ground as if it were a giant foot. After a while, my sight was lost, and all that I could feel was a hand grabbing mine, and all that I could hear was when they cried my name and hit my cheek in an attempt to keep me awake.
“He’s going to die…”
“Stop fucking saying that, he isn’t!”
“Look at how he’s breathing, that’s fucking respiratory distress, Garrett. I’ve seen… I’ve seen dying legionaries sound like that!”
“ELISH?”
“ELISH!”
“He’s getting worse; he isn’t fucking getting better!”
“What the hell are you three doing?”
The hand slipped out of mine and red replaced the blackness that had been slowly spreading all throughout my brain. Missing that hand seemed to light up a dying part of my brain, and I found myself focusing on the voices.
“What does it look like?” Ellis screamed. “We’re fucking saving him.”
“Get out of this room.”
“Fuck you!” Nero cried. “Fuck you, you fucking–”
“NOW!”
There were cries, shuffling of clothing. A hand seemed to clench around my chest and my lungs filled with air that seemed covered in tiny needles. I gasped and tried to cough, but the blood only fell from my mouth, making the inside cold and metallic.
I thought I was alone, but in the deep recesses, my recovered hearing picked up the sound of an additional heartbeat. There were no other noises, just my own battered and dying body, and that single heartbeat that beat in defiance of the mourning silence that draped us both.
Then a hand was placed on my head. It drew my face up and colours began to appear, blurry at first, but as this hand stroked my cheek they gathered to the center of my vision and fit together like pieces of a puzzle.
And when the image was finally complete enough to be seen, I saw in front of me the same cold king that had broken my body with his bare hands.
He stared down at me, no expression on his face. I stared back, and wondered what he himself was seeing in me. Did he see the pain I was in? The fear of the darkness that was slaying the active areas of my brain one cell at a time? Or did he just see the whore he condemned to death struggle for the last remaining breaths that he the monster was going to allow him to have.
I know what I saw in front of me.
And no matter how old I got… I promised myself I would never forget.
“You look at me… and you see a man of no mercy,” Silas suddenly whispered, his voice was a dark animal slinking through shadows, leaving behind no trace but a frigid cold. “You look at me like you know I will let you die here.”
He caressed my sweat and blood-soaked hair, his head tilting to the side. “And why shouldn’t I, Elias? I created you, and I can take back the gift of life I gave you. Never forget that, my love. It is I who own you, it is I who controls you, and it is I…” He cupped my chin. “… who decides what life you will lead. I decide if you will be happy, and I decide when you will be sad. Your life revolves around me, for I created you with nothing more in mind than to be my servant.”
Inside of this shell of pain, I felt anger at his words, and as if it were a moth to a flame, I dove for that anger, clutched it, and found strength in it.
My life… does not revolve around you.
A wan smile broke Silas’s thin lips, but that smile didn’t change the ice I could see so clearly on his body. It was a cruel smile, a smile that told me that if he let me live… it would only be for his own sadistic amusement.
You don’t own me, Silas.
Silas wiped the blood away from my nose and mouth, then I watched as he brought the red-stained fingers to his lips and licked them. “Poor little golden boy,” he whispered. My remaining teeth clenched tightly together as the anger swept me, starting at my brain and rushing through me in the form of adrenaline. “Such a weak, pathetic little wretch.”
Enjoy it.
Enjoy it while it lasts.
He leaned down and kissed me, and when he pulled back there was blood on his lips.
One day.
Silas rose to half-standing, and he slid his arms underneath my cold body.
One day I will be bigger than you.
“You taste like a coward.”
One day I will be smarter than you.
“You fucking little whore.”
And when I am…
“You’re a worthless failure, Elias.”
I will destroy you.
“But for now… I will let you live.”
Piece by fucking piece.
CHAPTER 24
My eyes were shut tight but the sun still found its way through my closed lids, banishing the black and attempting to fill my eyes with red. I disliked seeing the sun so determined to slay the darkness I’d been swimming in, but if I didn’t do what they wanted they wouldn’t leave me alone.
“How long does he have to sit out here for?” Nero asked. He was smoking a cigarette several feet away, a pair of sunglasses over his eyes and a white muscle tee above cargo shorts. It was only the fact that he had a smoke between his lips that I was out here. It meant that Silas was gone; Nero wouldn’t be smoking in front of him.
“Liam said another hour…” Garrett said. My brother was sitting beside a glass patio table with a deck of cards in his hand being tapped against the hard surface. He had a cigarette pressed between his lips as well, one that looked so natural it was as if he’d been born with it. “This is supposed to be healthier than just giving him vitamins… I don’t know, he seems kind of stressed out.” A hand was placed on my shoulder. “Are you okay, Elish?”
I slowly opened my eyes. The bright sun was blinding, making my sensitive eyes squint, but once they adjusted I saw the metal railing with glass balusters, and through the spotless glass, the tall skyscrapers and smaller buildings. I was high in the sky, towering over the city like I was a god upon Mount Olympus, but yet my mind was trapped inside of a dark box.
“I’m fine,” I whispered to him. Garrett smiled at my response. He was just happy to get an answer from me; I don’t think he even cared what that answer was.
I jumped when the sliding glass door behind us opened. I turned towards it, hating how the unexpected noise made my heart vibrate like a tuner, and saw Ellis walking in with two brown bags, both of them with grease staining the bottom. “I got food,” she said with a smile. When she spotted me she walked over and sat beside me on the bench. “I got lots of fries and some fried fish too. I think you should be able to eat it easily.” Ellis looked to Garrett as
he got up and handed him a bag, Nero was behind him jumping up and down on the spot. No doubt excited about the food arriving.
“Thanks,” I managed to say. The mention of my mouth drew my tongue along the two strips of raw, painful gums and the several additional gaps on the other side of my mouth. All of the teeth on my right side were gone, shattered to pieces by the hand of the king, and on my left side, three more were missing.
Fifteen teeth in total. Silas had knocked out fifteen of my teeth. But since the sight of such an ugly, toothless boy would be unsightly for him, I’d gotten surgery while I was in the hospital and now had steel rods implanted in the gums. These would be allowed to heal for three months and then the dentist would make new teeth to affix to each metal implant.
But for now my mouth was a sore, bleeding mess that only strong doses of pain killers could cure. Pain killers that Silas had forbid me from taking, but ones that my brothers and sister had been smuggling to me.
I ate my food slowly. My brain was only starting to accept that the entire left side of my mouth was in ruins. If I didn’t pay attention, I’d shift the food to that side of my mouth to chew, and the reward for my inobservance was a shot of pain as the hot food attacked my swollen gums.
I managed to eat enough to appease my siblings. I hated with a passion the fact that they were looking after me. I was the oldest brother, the heir, it was I who was supposed to look after them. However, deep down I knew that anger was just a protective cloak, I appreciated them for defying King Silas in order to take care of me. I did really love them…
And I was reminded of their kindness when Nero offered me a handful of OxyContin pills and a bottle of cold ChiCola. “Just take like… four,” he said in a low voice. “These are five milligrams. I got you twenty of them at the pharmacy.” I swallowed four without hesitation and put the remaining fifteen in my pocket for later, then Nero helped me to my feet and grabbed the cane they’d bought for me.
I limped into the living room. Everything hurt, but what hurt the most was my genitals. Both of my testicles were dark purple with highlights of red, and the discolouration extended to my inner thighs and the skin around my pubic hair. One of my testicles was even close to black from pooling blood, and there was talk of me needing a tube put in to drain the fluid.
My penis wasn’t as bad but still purple and sore, even Dr. Liam had clenched teeth when he’d seen the extent of those injuries, and Nero and Garrett had both looked ready to faint. Inside I was also torn, but nothing could be done about that. I could feel it though, and walking was near impossible even with the cane.
My whole body was damaged, the purple and red bruises covering me from head to toe mixed in with stitches from being thrown and beaten. It was so bad that I’d admittedly cried more than a few times, the pain unbearable, and it was Ellis walking in on one of those times that had triggered my siblings smuggling me in pain killers.
I looked down at the hand that Silas had crushed, now ballooned to three times the size from the amount of gauze they’d wrapped around it. I had three steel rods in my fingers now, the breaks so bad there was worry I wouldn’t regain full use of them.
My eyes shot to the doorway when I saw it open, and my blood ran cold when Silas walked through. We made eye contact for a fleeting moment before I turned away and began limping as quickly as I could towards the stairwell to downstairs.
I hated that I was scared of him now.
Oh did I ever hate myself.
“Where are you going in such a rush?” Silas’s acerbic, biting voice said behind me. “Got another thirty-five-year-old teacher in your room? You should be happy I knocked your teeth out, Elish. It’ll make sucking cock a lot more fun, just be sure to charge them more for the privilege.”
My face tightened and I locked my remaining teeth. I made it to the stairs, Nero swearing under his breath behind me, and got as far away from Silas as I could.
When I was in my room Nero helped me into my bed and drew the curtains for me. He then fed Hugh, changed his water and litter, and gave me an ice pack for my groin.
“We’ll come check on you in a while,” Nero said to me quietly. “The oxys should be kicking in soon, but if you need anything just ring my remote phone once… I have it on vibrate.” He looked down at me and sighed, trouble cemented into every crease of his face.
“He’ll come around soon…” he whispered, and then he shifted his feet and rubbed his nose. “He taught us that… as soon as a punishment is given, you’re forgiven, right? Remember how he was with Prince? How he held me after… that’s what he taught us. So he’ll forgive you soon.”
I stared up at him, feeling dead inside, dead and made of dirt and shit. “My punishment was me dying,” I said, my voice gravelly and raspy. I had screamed too much while he was beating on me, and my usual voice still hadn’t recovered. “I’m not dead… so I’m not forgiven.”
“No… he… he wouldn’t let you… die…” Look at all of that hesitation, those stalls and breaks in his words. Nero didn’t believe them and neither did I. “Silas loves you, baby. He… I wish I could’ve explained it better but… he’s really fucking weird about us and sex. Crazy even. He wants all of us pure virgins for him… and I think he just…” Nero’s words faded when I dropped my gaze. I didn’t want to talk about it, nor did I want to hear about it.
“I’m sorry, Eenie Meenie,” Nero whispered. His eyes began to fill. “You look so dead now…” He choked and I saw tears spring to his eyes. “I’ve never seen you look this broken.” Nero sniffed and rubbed his nose again, then he turned and walked towards the door.
“It’ll be over soon,” I suddenly whispered.
Slowly my head rose, and when I looked up my eyes met with Nero’s. “It will be, baby,” he whispered back. “It’ll all go back to normal soon. And… chimeras heal fast. And when Silas makes you immortal… you’ll grow new teeth back too, right?”
I shook my head. “Not that,” I said. I looked down at my battered body. My grey cloth pants had travelled up to my knee on my left leg, making the white bandages on my shin visible. I’d also lost several nails on my toes from them hitting either the wall or the table I’d been thrown into. It was difficult for my brain to decide which part to send the pain signals too, even my stomach hadn’t been spared, the damage around my groin had given me intense stomach pains.
“This won’t go on for long, Nero,” I said quietly. “He should enjoy it while it lasts.”
“W-what do you mean?” Nero asked quietly. I heard a bottle crack open then and he began to rub cold lotion on my hot-to-the-touch stomach. A Skytech invention which was supposed to speed healing and cool the body down.
“I’m thirteen,” I said, staring up at the ceiling. There was nothing in me to request of him not to touch me. My priorities had changed vastly in the past several weeks, I no longer card to nip and pick at them. I would be saving my strength for the real enemy. “And once I’m an adult… I’ll be able to fight back. I’ll be able to defend myself from him, take his power away. Once I’m grown up… it will be him who screams underneath my feet.”
Nero paused for a second. “Elish… Silas doesn’t give us many rules… I know he went too far but… you were seriously about to let that guy fuck you. We all saw it…”
I froze up. “Leave me,” I said, my breath catching in my throat. I suddenly felt cold, and claustrophobic with him in the same room as me.
Ryan… he must be dead, but I was too afraid to ask.
“I’m not sayin’ he should’ve tried to kill you… I’m just saying it wasn’t like you didn’t give him a–”
“Leave!” I cried, rising from my laying position. I was punished for it swiftly when a pain shot up and around my body like my blood had become fire. I groaned and fell back onto my bed, a crimson blanket cloaking my eyes and disorientating me.
“Elish?” Nero sounded worried. I felt him pat my cheek. “Your fucking eyes are rolling into the back of… Silas!?” My jaw tightened when he c
ried his name, and when I felt his poisonous presence not too soon after, my body knotted and my mind flared with anger.
I hated him. So much did I hate him.
“Put a pillow over his face and be done with it.” Silas’s snarling voice amplified as he got closer to me. He grabbed my chin and shook it. “Get your senses back, boy.” Then he slapped my cheek, making it sting and throb.
“Don’t touch me!” I suddenly screamed. My arm flew up and I slammed my palm into his face and pushed him back. “Don’t you ever put your fucking hands on me again!”
Silas’s eyes flew open and became drenched in anger. He raised a hand and smacked me across the face.
And I lost it.
I wasn’t sure where I got the energy from, what foreign store I’d tapped into to draw forth this incredible power. But I did, and I took full advantage of the strength it gave me.
The next thing I knew I was on the floor on top of Silas, laying punch after punch into his face. I was screaming at him, words were flying out of my lips, but it wasn’t until Nero was pulling me off of him did I hear my own words.
“You’ll regret this!” I screamed. “I won’t always be small, and I won’t always be helpless. And when I’m fucking grown up I’m going to kill you!” My eyes were bulging out of my head and the pressure in my brain was making me physically shake. I’d never felt such anger inside of me, such emotion.
“I hate you!” I cried, tears springing to my eyes. I was kicking my feet, wrenching my arms forward in an attempt to break myself free of Nero’s clamped hands. “I’m not your fucking slave! I’m not yours to fucking torture!” When he only glared at me, blood running down his nose and collecting in his stubbled facial hair, I reeled with anger. I wanted a reaction; I wanted to hurt him like he’d hurt me. I wanted to make him to suffer like he was making me suffer.
I fixed my tear-filled eyes on the burning green emeralds that stared so hatefully at me, and decided then I would give this tyrant king a reason to hate me.
