#TW: Psychological torture

[backpackingspace]

....do we think xie lian knows everything jun wu did to him because like. I doubt it. When you're being psychologically tortured and reality is breaking around you, you don't remember a lot of it.

[veil-over-miitopia]

The Hero’s Torment

This is the second - hopefully final - part of the “Intertwining Strengths” theory. The link to the first part will be in the notes, because, as of writing this, Tumblr is still figuring out its head from its ass.

As usual, I will be referring to the MH, Great Sage, and Dark Lord using They/Them pronouns

🌋⚔️🌋⚔️🌋

(It’s a lot more immersive when you listen to The Lost Sigils of Enkanomiya while reading all this; trust me on this one)

So, we last left off on the source of the supposedly “divine” power that grants the Main Hero power, the significance of relations - whether familial, platonic, or romantic - within the lore of Miitopia, and the reason behind the Dark Lord kidnapping our teammates and leaving us powerless.

As a quick tl;dr, we have established that the “Divine Power” that was echoed throughout the story was an example of the Indomitable Human Spirit taken to a literal extreme. Looking back at this revelation, I was surprised by how well it meshed with the theme/feel of the game and its contrast to the Dark Curse’s birth - an origin tied to sorrow, isolation and self-hatred, unlike the community and trust that our team starts to irradiate as time goes on -.

As I was discussing this theory with one of my friends, they have mentioned the similarities between this hypothesis and Warhammer 40k’s Warp - and how every living being’s desires/emotions are made material there -, and while it isn’t exactly a 1:1 comparison, it isn’t hard to see the resemblances between both games’ worldbuilding. You could say that Miitopia is a more hopeful 40K, seeing that even positive emotions and memories can act as literal sources of power.

What I have failed to mention was the reason why their third attempt at sealing our powers backfired miserably. While I haven’t exactly figured out a solid cause behind that and how it ties to said theme of healthy communities, the answers that I’ve managed to guess happened to be quite simple; it can range from the accumulation of new friends as we wandered through the fairy forest, the hopes everyone placed within us reaching the point where it overturned the dark magic, or the burning determination to save everyone we’ve met along the way growing so much that the DL was unable to seal it away.

Frankly speaking, I’d rather keep this one up to the interpretation of the player, and see how much they cherish their goal in mind/their lost teammates through their own answer to this riddle. This is the magic of Miitopia; its customizability, and that, no matter how many times you would replay the story over and over again, you will get different events leading up to each penultimate moment. There will be new characters, new lore, new roles to fill in, and the only limit is one’s imagination (and their determination to keep on replaying the same game over and over again).

This somewhat reminds me of the Commedia Dell’arte, in which stock characters represented by masks are thrown into new whacky hijinks without the need to introduce these characters to the audience - for their masks alone are enough to identify them -. What differentiates Miitopia from the Commedia, however, is that it somewhat functions in the polar-opposite way: the setting and overall story staying consistent and true to form, while the castmembers change roles with every replay time and time again.

Returning to the topic at hand, all this talk about healthy relations, growth, and determination- it all returns to the Dark Lord’s purpose, their interactions with the hero, and the less-than-conventional way of dealing with MH during the end f each chapter. Truth be told, all of them are more than likely to be what the Dark Lord desired to destroy; your spirit, your hopes, your ideals, and, most importantly, your compassion, and there ain’t no better way to do so than to capture and control the very sources of our powers to do their own bidding.

This is what the topic of today shall cover; we shall be analyzing the Dark Lord’s final solution to break the hero’s will, how the status of the monsters that bear their faces tie into the memories we made with them - the very power that pushes us through these hurdles life throws at us -; and how the Dark Lord seeks to taint and even break them in order to finally render us powerless.

We first begin with the start of the hero’s darkness, Karkaton Ascent, where we meet the third teammates of each team- those we have the least amount of memories with them, and, therefore, the lowest bond (usually), so it would make sense that their faces are plastered onto boss monsters that are of the more “common” variety. Guardians of the Ascent if you chose to interpret it, yes, but they are evidently of a lower rank than the next two categories of monsters that I will be talking about.

By looking at these behemoths and when we meet their first iterations, it becomes evident as to what the DL was aiming for; the Magma Slime, Paincloud, and Burning Golem all belong to same line of monsters we meet in Greenhorne, and the order in which we fight them reflects that on fleek.

From that alone, we can see that the goal here was to mock us; to tell us that we made a grave mistake by confronting the Dark Lord ever since he ravaged that little town. Had we stayed in our lanes, then our friends wouldn’t have become another drop in the ocean of the DL’s madness- indistinguishable from every other monster we had to slay before them.

Next we cut to Karkaton Volcano itself, and the titan that was waiting for us at the end of the road; Cerberus, Guardian of the Underworld, and the Dark Lord’s guddest boi. It is there that we witness the mii equivalent of body horror AND, when you think about it, psychological horror; the monster possesses three faces at once - each belonging to the second teammates of each party -, so one can imagine the psychological implications of all this. What kind of pain were they in with every attack? How much of their thoughts were one another’s? Was there still a hint of their former selves within them? Or just a hound that is hungry for juicy human flesh?

A guard dog, a possible shared consciousness, and the implication that they’ve more or less lost their minds in the process- that is surprisingly brutal, even for the Dark Lord, and, to my dismay, I believe that this was the point.

In this point of no return, you are presented by one of the Dark Lord’s magnum opuses; all three of your teammates fused into one loyal - yet ferocious and lost - pet. As the fight goes on, the message becomes as clear as glass; they are under his command, and, if he so asks, they will bare their teeth and tear your flesh apart. These are no longer your friends, but an ungodly amalgam that has forgotten all the good times you’ve spent with them in the midst of all their shared agony.

Even after you save the day, will you be able to look into their eyes again without flinching? Without remembering the unthinking ferity that was in their eyes as they gnashed and gnawed at their own teeth whilst all they could think of was tearing you apart?

As grim as all this sounds, we still haven’t reached the final stage- the Dark Lord’s castle, where the first party member of each team await for our rescue.

They were the first friendly faces we’ve met throughout each and every region of Miitopia, and all were kind enough to lend us a helping hand to assist us in our journey. It will be these very hands - those that once provided assistance to our lost hero - that shall be covered in our own blood soon enough.

Upon getting separated from our party members, we find the first party members of Neksdor and RotF respectively; one becoming a demon, and the other a picture of the DL themselves. After we rescue them, we finally find our very first friend, the person who saved us as we were surrounded by monsters, as a monster themselves- the armor beast wielding a sword and a shield; the final roadblock presented to us before we are able to reunite with our entire team once more.

This is the final frontier; the last push to test the limits of the main hero’s drive and even mind. These are not just high-ranking monsters and the Dark Lord’s direct servants, they also are the reflections of each of their traits- extensions of themselves, each imbued with parts of their own power so that they can command the monsters alongside them.

The Demon reflects the unholy nature of the Dark Lord, the aura of command they emit -  as presented by the imps that apparently serve them -, and sheer strength. A beast that has clawed themselves out of Hell itself to serve this reign of chaos and darkness bearing the face of someone you once trusted- in the midst of battle, all you can do is cry out for help in your frightened state, only for their hammer to instantly slam you to the other direction. This monster is one of the Dark Lord’s commanders.

The Painting is...a little too on the nose. It is the Dark Lord’s image (yeah, nooooo shit, Sherlock), a symbol of their pride and status, and their everlasting gaze. Bow to your knees, for you have been blessed by sight of their otherwordly grace, for even the earth beneath you heeds to their will and shall enact judgement upon the nonbelievers. I am not 100% sure on what role they serve in the Dark Lord’s army other than a sentient symbol, but if we’re gonna take the trope of haunted paintings whose eyes follow you in every corner to heart, then, perhaps, the job of the intel is most befitting a monster like that.

Finally, comes the Armor, which surprisingly bears a lot more symbolism than I expected (and is exactly why it is my favorite boss monster). This monster dons the face of your very first teammate, someone who has, quite literally, shielded you from the swarm of rock moths, so, of course, the role of a knight in shining armor who has come to save the day is perfect for the one who has initially unlocked the power of trust within us.

As for the traits they share with the Dark Lord, the best that comes to mind are the themes of royalty and, much like the Demon, power- albeit, in this case, it is evident that they are under direct servitude of their boss. Able to create monsters like them, this beast is the closest to the Dark Lord’s perfect image of his dominion; the old world shall burn in order to pave way for his new utopia. This beast is not only the Dark Lord’s general, but also their trusted knight- a guardian that has betrayed you to serve another. A sour cocktail of ridicule, powerlessness, and heartbreak.

How will you be able to rest well at night? Even with their faces restored, all you can see as your gaze falls upon them are not the happy times you shared with them long ago- these people, these faces...they’re all a blur now- your mind is just no longer able to connect the dots between them and whatever breath of fresh air you had in between trials.

No, these faces stared down at you, cackling as they bludgeoned you during your weakest times, and no longer whispered words of reassurance- but instead spat venomous insults at you.

How will you be able to trust your team once again after they have each taken a turn to beat you until you were gravely wounded and a mess of tears, blood, shattered bones and drool? They had no power over what had happened to them, but the memories still stand, the experiences have seeped into your nerves and mind, and one more minute with them is enough to metaphorically burn you up- to have you screaming in a fit of horror and fear. Even if they tried to comfort you, all you can do is instinctively slap their hands away, afraid that this will all happen again.

Of course, one can still fight without having to worry or focus much on the faces plastered unto them; they’re just monsters, you would repeat to yourself- just slice them down, free those faces, and it’ll be a sunny day tomorrow; promise.

They’re just monsters, you would repeat to yourself- just slice them down and it’ll be a sunny day tomorrow; promise.

They’re just monsters, you would repeat. Just slice them down.

They’re just monsters.

Just monsters.

Monsters.

....After striking down countless beasts with the faces/souls of fellow humans standing in your way, one must look within themselves and see whether they still had the humanity and empathy within them to look at these monstrosities bearing the eyes of their beloved. Are you able to look at a human face and recognize the person in front of you? Or does a face hold so little meaning to you nowadays? That it is just there, and no longer something to be registered within your mind?

From the thought alone, this quote nigh-instantly came to my mind:

“He who fights monsters should look to it that he himself doesn’t become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you.”

[codenamehazard]

.:Jabberwocky:.

Chapter 32: Jabberwocky

[TRIGGER WARNING: PSYCHOLOGICAL ABUSE, TORTURE AND TRAUMA]

Hey guys! Sorry I'm a bit late with this chapter! The character voice was giving me serious hell! (Writer's Block, my behated)

Though it's not surprising considering all that I have in store here! Good god, I had to fight to get the words on the document but boy howdy is it worth it!

I hope you've got some water as this is gonna be a doozy. I hope you like this chapter!

Without delay, let's jump in!

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“No…”

My blood freezes in my veins and my heart races as I stare with wide eyes at the mirror behind me. I’m looking at it, I’m seeing it, but I don’t want to believe it. I refuse to believe it. I refuse to believe that the bastard is here in this hell-maze with me, that he’s here at all. I can deny it all I want, but the mocking smile in the mirror. I know what’s in front of me, replacing my reflection and confirming a fear that I always dread…

Kessler.

“Look what the rabbit dragged in.” The decrypted echo sneers as he begins to circle me in the mirrors that surround me, stepping in front of the other reflections as if they were spectators about to watch a fight. “The coward who denies the truth, even though it’s staring him right in the face.”

“So says the murderer that took everything from me just because he was too much of a fucking coward to face the Beast himself until it was too fucking late.” I snarl back at the twisted reflection, trying to use my rage and hatred to thaw the frozen blood and shake the fear away. “You took away everything I held dear, that we held dear; You killed Trish, you made Zeke betray me! You made my life fall to shambles and even fucking lied about what the Beast was actually doing, all for what?! All because you were too chickenshit to actually protect your family and fight the Beast.” The bastard fucking laughs at me like I was just a yapping ankle biter.

“Oh that is rich coming from you, Cole.” That fucking crone cackles with that sneer. “The one who kills for shits and giggles calling me a murderer. All the pain I caused was done for a purpose while you inflict pain because you are broken inside.” I can feel my blood seeth as he talks, energy gathering in my hand as I keep my eyes on Kessler. “Face the facts, Cole. I would say you’re no better than me, but I dare say you’re worse. All that I did was for a reason while you lash out like a pitiful, sniveling rabid dog who bites and scratches at all who get too close.” I could swear I can feel his stinking breath on my neck as he stops behind me.

“Try as you might, MacGrath… You will always end up alone and you will have no-one to blame but yourself. Because it will always be your fault.”

My rage flares red hot and an Alpha rocket rips from my hand towards the old fuck, but I damn near get blown to bits. In my fury I had forgotten the nature of the very place I’m in. The rocket just bounces off the mirror and I barely have enough time to get out of the way of a direct hit. I curse to myself as I feel the pain from the blast radius, why the fuck did I even think that was a good idea in the first place?! Kesslar cackles at me as I stagger to my feet.

“Still as predictable as ever, Cole!” The crone scoffs as he seems to grow bigger, like a looming shadow. “Lashing out when you know I’m right.” As much as my anger bubbles under my skin, the fear, it creeps back in. Feeling so small, being so helpless. There’s only one thing I can do. I turn and run down the closest hallway to get away from this specter and start looking for a way out.

I can hear the bastard laugh at me over the thumping of my boots and the rapid beating of my heart. Mocking and sadistic.

“There you go! Running away again like the cowering mutt you are! Running from the truth and running from responsibility when it comes to take its due! Breaking the promise you made to yourself so long ago!” I curl my lips at the barbing words, but I have to keep running. I can’t fight, not without obliterating myself in the process! “Maybe it’s for the best that Trish is dead. She isn’t here to see the whimpering coward the man she once loved has become!”

My rage claws inside my chest as I want to scream.

The mirrored halls, I swear they’re messing with my head. I think I could see things changing, I look at one shifting reflection, watching it change into a sight disturbing and familiar. It was myself from years long past, but something’s not right. It’s faded, black and white. Almost like I'm staring at a fading memory, but the eyes I can see, clear as day. They look tired, but also full of pure hatred.

Another reflection, this one more vivid and crisp, one I’m more familiar with. The reflection that greeted me every time I looked into glass windows or puddles back in Empire City. God, I looked like I was walking dead with how pale my skin was, and the black marks that decorated my body didn’t help either. I liked it that way, people left me alone, but now being on the receiving end of that malicious gaze and cruel smile? I’m having second thoughts.

“You!” I hear a new voice ring out as I run. It’s not Kessler’s but mine! It sounded clearer, less gravelly and tired. Oh please don’t tell me the other reflections can talk too!  “I see you, running away, running from the truth! The truth that you’re just as responsible for the destruction of my life! Actually, more responsible!!” I growl at that lie. I didn’t do jackshit to destroy the life I once had, if anything, I was trying to get it back! The blame is Kessler’s and his alone.

“I can hear your thoughts, Cole!” The faded echo barks out with loathing and hate. “You weren’t trying to get life back on track, you were just acting on your own selfish impulses! If you had just sucked it up and been a half-way decent person, Trish would have loved you in her dying moments! But no, your own ego was more important than the woman you claimed to love so much!” I do my best to tune out the venom, but the words cut like knives as I feel a familiar pricking against my eyes. No! I can’t cry, not now! Not when Kessler’s chasing me.

As one voice is tuned out, another erupts in cruel, callous laughter… This voice, it sounds more like how my voice actually is.

“Oh how the mighty has fucking fallen, o’ so called “Demon of Empire City!”” I hear the doppelganger’s voice call out. “Once on top of the world sitting on a throne of scrap, now you’re nothing more than a sniveling weakling running around helpless.” Rage flares in my blood, but I have to keep moving. I can’t fight here, I have to get out! Get away!

“You sicken me. You know that, Cole?” The echo sneers. “You’re a failure. You failed to protect Empire City from the Beast, you were too weak. Running with your tail between your legs to New Marias. Then you bow the knee to the Beast himself just because of some pathetic notion of “the right thing” or some shit like that. Now look at you, you have the power of the Beast yet you’re running scared when you could simply blow this whole place to cinders.” I want to scream at the voice, tell him to shut up, blow up the mirror that the doppelganger hides in, but I know I have to keep going. Doesn’t make the words any less infuriating and painful.

“Why don't you unleash all that power, Cole?” The taunting continues. “Are you too scared? Are you not as powerful as you claim to be or…. Perhaps… Are you getting soft, you pathetic failure?” Shut up, shut up, SHUT UP!!!!

I pick up the pace, my hands covering my ears to drown out the cruel words and venomous barbs as they start to swirl around in my head. Now I am being hunted by three, making my heart frantic. The fear and pain, it was like I was losing Trish with the magnitude of it all. I want to get out of this hell, even if it means disappearing! I just want it to stop!

I think I see something, but I refuse to look at the reflections. I think I hear something, but I refuse to uncover my ears. Enemies everywhere even though they wear my face. All thirsting for my blood and tears. Such things I refuse to give despite the stringing at my eyes. Soon my own voice joins the hellish cacophony, screaming at these demons as that is all I can do.

The more I yell, the more I run around practically blind and deaf, the more confused I get. At this point I’m not sure where I’m running. I can faintly hear laughter every time I clip myself on a corner, ram into a wall or run in circles. I’m lost, so hopelessly lost in my desperation for freedom. My voice is going hoarse from shouting and screaming. The idea of just going fucking nuclear and unleashing hell in the form of the Beast’s Rage is becoming more and more appealing, but with the nature of this hell, that would surely kill me in the process.

I stop at a dead end and fall to my knees, my eyes welling with tears that spill over as I rage inside this mirror nightmare. I just want it all to stop. I want this to be a night terror that I’ll wake up from but I know this is reality. My arms growing tired from holding my hands over my ears, they go slack. I am now exposed to the full brunt of the devils’ venom….

Wait… Who said that?

A voice I didn’t hear before screams with a similar force that I did, but the words they speak aren't venom and hate, but…. Instructions? Directions? I can’t tell at this moment, but it’s something that isn’t loathing and malice. At first I don’t believe these words, thinking them to be a trick or a trap, but with the hateful sounds closing in and with no other option… I follow the directions.

It’s then I see who the voice belongs to. Another faded and blurry reflection, but this one looks unfamiliar. It’s still me, but he shares my tanned skin, his scars barely visible, his shirt grey and white, Amp shining like silver and the sparks off of his hands a brilliant blue… This is what Kessler wanted me to be… A hero.

The blue sparked reflection continues to point and shout directions, seeming to be trying to help me, but why?! I make it no secret, I am not a good person. If this is the hero Kessler wanted, he should be hurling abuses at me just like the others. I’d even go as far as to say he’s the one with the most right to hate me as I am the reason he doesn’t exist. Yet here he is, trying to help me.

I open my mouth to question, but my blue twin snaps. “Not the time, Cole! They ain’t gonna stop for you to ask questions.” I get the message loud and clear and keep running.

I follow the instructions, focusing on that as it’s better than the miasma that I’m being subjected to. I have so many questions to ask, what is happening? Why is it happening? Why are you helping me? Just anything to make sense out of this fucking madhouse, but I keep moving, hoping that I’m not falling into another trap.

My heart sinks as I see that I’m at a dead end and I’m about to bolt, but I notice something… At the end of this hallway is another mirror, but with a very different reflection.

I cautiously walk towards it and squint my eyes, it looks… Fuzzy, almost like a photo that hasn’t been developed. On closer inspection, I can see some things that make it look more like a reflection of my current self, black pants with kneepads, my vest. Visible, yet blurry… The only thing I can see clearly are the eyes of this copy. They’re closed, as if sleeping. What could this mean?

As I look over this mirror, I notice something else. The cruelty of the three devils hunting me, it’s gone. This area is quiet, still and peaceful. Here with my heroic twin, but why is this so? At this point, I care little for the question as I slam my back onto a reflective wall and slide down into a sitting position, hands holding my head as my chest shudders and heave with tears I’m fighting back.

“Not giving up on me are you, Cole?” My blue reflection asks. I sniff a bit as I struggle and shake my head. “Nah…” I reply in a voice that’s more strained than I’d like. “I just….. Need a breather.” The white clad hero nods his head and simply sits in a way that mirrors mine, back to back. “Take your time, Cole. Catch your breath.”

This peace is strange, but compared to the hell I was subjected to? It’s a soothing balm on my mutilated soul and I let some of the tears flow freely. A small relief to keep the dam intact, for now at least.

When the peace has passed, the heroic MacGrath pipes up. “I know you have a lot of questions, but since it’s just us, best get them out of your system.” I turn my head and I can see the blurred reflection turn in kind. I start off with a simple “Why?”

“Why what?” My blue twin asks. “Just… Why? Why is this happening? Why am I being tortured? Why are you helping me?” I ask back in kind. The hero frowns and shakes his head. “As much as I want to answer the first two, all I can say is your guess is as good as mine as I have no clue either… But I can answer the last question. I’m helping you because I can’t stand this suffering.”

“But why?” I continue to question. “You out of all the reflections have the most reason to hate me. I’m everything you would stand opposed to, hell I’m the reason you don’t exist. Why help me when you could come after me as some sort of punishment?”

“And subject you to this hell?” He balks “I wouldn’t even wish this on Kessler, let alone myself. Good or evil.” His eyes stare off into whatever silvery void the mirrored world has. “Besides… I got to see where my path leads to. Got to see that even though I did everything right, it meant jackshit in the end.” He turns to glance at me again. “That all I did was pointless. Utterly pointless”

I’m about to ask him to elaborate, but he shakes his head. Something must have gone completely fubar if he doesn’t want to talk about it even if it’s to bitch and vent.

“So…. Where’s the exit out of this hellhole?” I ask, the heroic twin turns his head and points to the mirror at the end of the hallway. I turn to look at him like he’s crazy. “Um, that’s a wall.”

“It’s the way out.” He simply responds. “It’s the only way out. The reason there’s a wall is because you believe there’s a wall.” I shake my head at this crazy talk. “How do you know if that’s a wall or not?” I question the reflection. He looks at me. “You’re going to have to trust me and by extension, trust yourself.”

“I don’t do trust fall-type bullshit.” I point out bluntly. “You should know this as much as I do.”

“Why would I lie to the only one of any of us in this damn mirror hell that has a future at all?” My blue twin points out harshly. “It’s a cold hard fact, Cole. Out of all of us here, you’re the only one who has a chance at living.” I stand and he stands in kind; both of us staring at each-other, man-to-man.

“While you are right, you are everything that I stand against. You’re selfish, egotistical, ruthless, sadistic, irresponsible, downright dangerous and destructive to the point of senselssness, but you’re also fucking honest about it.” He points out. “Then there’s also the fact when it came time to choose between a gamble that if it fell short would leave everyone to suffer slow and agonizing deaths or go with John and the method that was proven to give humanity even the slightest sliver of a chance to come out the other side. You chose what you felt was right. It may not be what Kessler wanted and there may have been selfish motivations behind it, but you still made that choice.” I look at my twin puzzled, but he’s right… Right about everything, good and bad.

“This is your ticket not only to escape this hell, but to escape Kessler for good.” He continues. “That bastard already took two futures away from you, your future with Trish and my future. Don’t let him take this one away from you too.” His words ring out in my head like a gunshot as I look towards the blurry mirror. “I know it’s a leap of faith, but please take it! Take it and get the hell out of here! Live the best life you can… For the both of us… Please…” The last words fall like a pleading whisper. Looking into the same blue eyes we share, I can see it. The same eyes I have, the eyes of a broken man.

I stare at my good twin for a moment longer before I nod my head.

With that, I turn to face the blurred reflection. I step back a few paces and charge up a polarity wall to act as a battering ram, hoping that this won’t backfire. Unleashing all of my emotions in one, booming battle cry, I charge.

I swear I can hear the ghost of a whisper in my mind. A soft “thank you” as I make contact only to fall through thin air.

I roll through the tumble and onto my feet before looking around, panting hard. He was right… It wasn’t a wall, it was an illusion… Was that whole maze and the horrors within an illusion too??

Once I’m not disoriented as shit, I start to look around this new place. I see bleachers, a trapeze and a barrier… Am I in the center stage of this fucking circus? Before I can start to explore, I hear a familiar female voice ring out with an Irish accent.

“It’s about bloody time you showed up!!”

[late-to-the-magnus-archives]

Y'all, this fic is gonna be... heavy

I've been gaslit? About multiple, terrible things? And I know just how it sends the brain and heart spinning.

So naturally, I have to do it to these characters.

This is the most self-indulgent thing I have ever written, and it feels like purging ghosts.

Having said all that, have a horrible snippet of gaslighting - the King in Yellow using an old, awful trick: having deeply hurt Jon, is working to make it seem like Jon's fault, and pretending to be kind.

Yeah, I've been through that.

It made me angry to write it, so now you all have to suffer, as well.

(Or don’t read it! For real, feel free to skip.)

TW: victim-blaming, psychological fuckery

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Like yesterday, the King leaves him alone while he gets his bearings - though Jon knows he’s being watched. 

Unlike yesterday, he has something better than a 1960s fantasy belly-dancer outfit to wear. It’s the same yellow, but it is like nothing so much as some Greek philosopher’s toga.

It will drape over his shoulders, showing his neck, the top of his chest, his arms; but it falls below that almost to his feet, granting coverage, and moves with every step in a genuinely beautiful, flowing way.

It’s a magnificent thing. Light, almost delicate, but opaque.

Though he still thinks the yellow is awful, Jon has to admit that with his hair and beard, this really makes him look like… something.

Prophet is what comes to mind.

Jon sighs. “Brilliantly done,” he mutters. “Giving me garbage first to make me grateful for anything.”

Well. It worked. He’s absurdly happy to be covered up, however bizarrely.

Jon sighs again. Apparently, understanding the techniques being worked on him doesn’t grant immunity to them.

He wipes his eyes again. Inevitability feels… very bad.

He checks the drawers again, just to see, and finds one other thing left for him: 

A pair of socks.

“Oh, very funny,” he mutters, disgruntled because it is sort of funny.

And he’s out, wearing philosopher robes and fuzzy socks, back into the curving hallway, back onto that impossible, misty path, and walking back toward the throne room.

Hastur is waiting for him.

The King stands before that open wall, looking out over the choppy gray sea - today topped with white froth, iron-dark under the dual suns.

The sound is beautiful. That hushed whisper, forward and back, the perfect, rhythmic susurrus of tide on rocky shore.

Jon decides he will not speak first today.  So he waits, arms crossed.

“It occurs to me, Jon, that I was unintentionally cruel to you yesterday,” says the King.

That earns a scoff more magnificent than any Jon has done in a while.

Hastur acknowledges it with a wave of several tentacles. “I told you a generally unknown truth about myself - but I did not elaborate, and left you to wonder. I know you, Jon. An unanswered question is torture. And, as I promised, I will not torture you any more.”

“Stop saying that,” says Jon.

Hastur turns to face him as if mildly surprised, possibly concerned, and it is ridiculous that a being cloaked and wearing a mask should be so expressive. “Jon… I only hurt you because I thought you wanted me to hurt you.”

“Wh-what?” Jon takes a step back.

“You expected it to such a level that you were anticipating it,” says the King, absolutely serious. “You demanded it of me. Rejected all other options before they had been discussed. I tried to give you what you wanted, but it seems I misunderstood.”

Gaslighting, Jon thinks, panicked, because maybe it is and maybe it isn’t, and maybe he does want a return to the pain - not because he likes pain but because it’s easier to reject, easier to stand up to, easier to throw away wholesale.

Had he done that? Had he communicated that? Was it somehow on him that - 

No, he stops himself, and swallows hard, trying not to feel like this could be true.

Hastur has mercy by changing the subject. “Would you like to know why I know about love, Jon?”

Fuck.

Of course Jon does.

Of course he yearns for it, literally salivates.

Of course he has to keep from demanding it, using his regrown powers to force it out of this god.

Jon takes a moment to be very afraid of himself.

“Come.” And as so many times before, Hastur offers his huge, dark hand.

It’s slow-acting poison.

Jon suddenly becomes very afraid of something new: what if Hastur really isn’t going back to the torture?

What if it’s this, instead, being reasonable and kind, feeding the Eye, giving him exactly what he needs, and even what he asks for?

Jon has resisted fear, terror, torment. He has fought off cruelty and terrible things.

He doesn’t know what to do with kindness, however falsely meant.

He swallows hard. I’m fucked, he thinks, because five minutes of conversation have already sent him into a tailspin.

“Take my hand, Jon,” says Hastur, gently. “It will be an easier journey if you do.”

“Journey to where?”

“My lost city.”

You’ve got to be kidding, because… really? A lost city? How could that possibly appeal to him more? “What if I say no?” Jon demands.

“Then your question goes unanswered.”

He has to know. It’s the one thing that makes sense inside, like iron filings all lining up under a magnet. “You swear you’ll answer that question. What you know about love. Why.”

“I swear.”

He has to know. “If you lie to me in this, Hastur…”

“I am well aware you already have no reason to trust me,” says the god. “Consider this the beginning of my attempts to rectify that.”

Damn this creature.

The King waits, hand out.

Jon no longer knows if it would be taking more poison in or not. His radar is broken. Unreliable. 

The only thing he knows is he won’t call the Entities - and that he needs to know this.

Gingerly, he reaches, and closes his hand around one of the King’s ridiculously large fingers.

[movedtoferinehuntress]

PREPPING THE SPECIAL TEA PARTY GUEST

Trigger Warnings: This is written with implied notes of cannibalism that something Jinx would do, as well as references of indirect visualizations of sexual harassment and invasion of privacy. Ultimately, this is a VERY DARK AND HORROR INDUCED THEME and twisted scene before the tea party, where Jinx takes out her anger on the person she believes is stealing her sister. It has graphic written displays of violence and mutilation as well as hallucinations and bodily autonomy stripped away.

YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED! Jinx is inspired and written based on @shimmerbeasts Jinx.

Caitlyn’s eyes struggled to open past the ache of irritation of the impact on her head. Disorientation blinded her vision as she shook her head to reset her mindset. Slowly, she lifted her head and pressed it against the back of the wall. The entire area felt humid and damp as she focused on piecing together what had happened and where she currently sat. Cerulean eyes opened up as she forced herself to push past the strain and catch her bearing. The sooner she could accomplish her focus, the better off she would be. Rusted old rubble covered the entire zone. The insufficient sliver of light that filtered through showed flakes of age over metal and dirt, and cobwebs in the corners of spaces. Despite decrepit age, not a sound came from the abandoned warehouse, adding an ominous, eerie silence. It was then she could smell of stagnation and mustiness of the residue dirt. The rubble against her back sent a chill down her spine as she lifted away. Damp coldness chilled her bare skin, registering her nudity.

The only sight of color was the pinkish purple veins weaving and twisting around the rubble. Small veins reflected the moonlight that filtered through the abandoned warehouse. Like an old wound that still lived, pulsing with a slight purple flash from time to time, something that reminded her of the growth upon Husk’s head. Living, thriving in this worn space as if nothing could kill the virus within its roots.

A groan left Caitlyn’s lips, still trying to gather her bearing, when the memory flashed through her mind. Purple eyes; demeaned and twisted a glimmer of white as fangs flashed in the mirror. She lunged for her door to get her weapon (placed in her bedroom) but then it filled with gas. Pungent and strong, bitter against her nose as she tried to cover it. Nothing kept the fumes from filling her senses and it caused her to stumble and pass out. The memory flashed through her memory and caused Caitlyn’s eyes to widen.

“Dammit,” Caitlyn whispered, as she tried to move her wrist to the side to get up. Moving her head from the wall, she looked down to see her wrist bound with rope. She hissed in displeasure and twisted her wrist, only to rub against the harsh, unyielding hemp rope. Another set coiled over her arms and around her waist, tight enough that she couldn’t pull them up, and any movement caused the thick rope to scrap against bare arms. Any means of escape required a tool as Caitlyn scanned her surroundings. “Shit,” she whispered as she noted the same wrap encircled her ankles, but enough that she wouldn’t be running soon. It took all her willpower to muster down the alarm as she tried to access a way to get free. She examined her surroundings, pulling her legs back, and looked to her side to find a jagged piece of metal. A glint of one caught her eye, and she leaned down to grab it with her hand. Careful movements allowed her to twist it around and cut through the thick rope.

Rapid eye movement continued to scan the room, sharp eagle vision trying to find the one who did this. Her hands worked as quickly as she could, though with her position it was hard to handle the metal against the rope. It didn’t stop her though, as she just steadily worked at trying to get out of the restrictive position. Despite the humidity, chills nipped at Caitlyn’s naked flesh, as she jerked at a sound. Her eyes focused on the distance. Stone bounced on the ground but it was the flash of purple that made her suddenly look up. The eerie tone echoed in the room, bouncing off the walls like an echo. Rumbling guttural echoes caused a rush of terror, like a piece of meat being stalked by whatever demon lurked in the shadows. The vocalizations caused a whimper to leave Caitlyn’s lips involuntarily as she tried to cut faster and deeper into the rope. A sudden flash of blue and ripped the metal shard from her hand and thrown to the side. “Like I let you go that easy, enforcer,” the dark tone left the lips of the woman before her. “Jinx!” Caitlyn nearly shrieked, as she tried to push herself up against the way as sharp nails gripped at her jaw before slamming her into the ground. “We’ve barely even begun to have any fun,” The words echoed through Caitlyn’s ears though her head throbbed from the impact to the ground. The voice was distant at first, but then a steel toe boot met contact with her abdomen.

It caused all the air to rush out of her lungs and nausea hit her as quickly as her steel-toed boot did. Adrenaline flooded her system and cut off her ability to process or think. She curled into a fetal position, gasping for air as the effects stunned her for the second. The bitter taste of bile flooded her mouth as she continued to struggle to breathe. Pain erupted through her body now that she could recognize it after being blinded by the impact. Gasps of breath turned into a cough as tears pricked at the corner of her eyes from the anguish of pain. “Shit,” she finally sputtered out, pulling the air into her lungs as she fought against the ropes.

Fingers threaded through her blue hair, streaks of silver pulled alongside as she forced her to look up at her captor and glared through her glassy eyes. “What do you want?” Caitlyn tried to show defiantly, but it came out choked through her pained abdomen.

“You, dead.” Bitter words left her lips as Jinx pulled harder. The follicles at the base of her skull stung as Caitlyn gritted her teeth together, trying not to cry out in pain. “Then get on with it!” Caitlyn demanded, because she knew if Jinx wanted her dead, she would have already been dead when she broke into her house. There was something more here, something worse. A part of Caitlyn didn’t want to know as she tried this shift closer toward Jinx’s hand that pulled roughly against her hair. The predator’s other hand grabbed her jaw, forcing Caitlyn to stare at her. Shimmer infused eyes, eyes Caitlyn had never seen on Jinx before till now, bore into her with deadly intent. “And make it easy on you? No… you suffer first,” Nail-like claws bit against Caitlyn’s jaw, digging into her flesh and threatening to cut through. “I would cut up that face of yours, but I need Vi to see it. I need her to know who you are, so for now, you get to keep it; because I say so,” Jinx sneered, before letting go of Caitlyn’s hair and face as the she-wolf straddled Caitlyn’s stomach and her hand wrapped around her throat. Caitlyn’s eyes were full of fear now, as she shook her head to move away from the hands latching around her throat like a maw of teeth. Her feet kicked out as Jinx flipped a knife in her hand.

An earth shattering scream ripped through Caitlyn’s lips as the blade hit the wound on her left thigh. It cut through flesh and muscle and tissue, making the wound worse than it already had been from the bridge incident weeks ago. Tears streamed down her face as a fog passed over her eyes again, struggling desperately to pull on her hands to push Jinx away. Yet past the fog, she could see Jinx with a demented fanged grin staring down at her. Her body leaned closer, too close for Caitlyn’s liking as she tried to pull away from her. A bristled tongue brushed against her jaw and up her cheek to lick at her tears that fell from her eyes. Delight played in the loose cannon’s eyes, which caused Caitlyn to fight once more. “GET OFF!” she shouted, screaming past the pain as Jinx twisted the bloody blade in her hand. “I wonder what you taste like, hmm, Cupcake?”

The word instantly caused Caitlyn to freeze, as her breathing became rapid against her chest. Like a rapid river rushing through the ravine, all she could do was try to process what she just said. “How…” Jinx’s hands tightened around Caitlyn’s throat to silence her and cut off her air supply. “Like I didn’t know the infection you bled into my sister! She can only give nicknames to me!” The threat of no oxygen thumped against her might when Jinx let her throat go and she gasped back air once more. “But I’ll show Vi. I’ll show her just what kind of infection you are. You play the Zaunite, try to look like a Zaunite, but you’re nothing more than a Piltie, invading everything you touch. No, I’ll show her,” Jinx grinned, as she stood up and stared down at Caitlyn, eyes flicking over her entire body like a piece of meat. Caitlyn tried to cover herself up, feeling exposed and humiliated in her position as she struggled with the rope that now rubbed at her flesh and turned her ivory skin red from all the movements.

“Leave Vi out of this! This is between you and me!” Caitlyn shouted, her defiance kicking in. Instinct took over to protect Vi. It’s not like she knew she was here. Vi had left her on the steps of the council hall. The echoing memory still pained her; she knew Vi didn’t mean what she said. Everything pointed to Vi closing up, pushing Caitlyn away. It wasn’t the first time it had happened. She had done it several times before, and the draw of the hood was a protective measure. Whatever Vi was feeling, it twisted and turned and caused Vi to push everyone away. Bearing this weight on her own. Still, Caitlyn didn’t blame her; she had plans to go after her this morning if not for Jinx’s interference. But then the prickling fear ebbed away at her heart: it wasn’t just Vi who wouldn’t know. It included Jayce, her mother and father, and Viktor. None of them even knew she was missing! The sudden realization that no one would look for her sent dread coursing through her veins and the truth through her mind. She was going to die here.

Caitlyn’s outburst only angered the blue-braided Zaunite, as Jinx struck out with a hand and backhanded Caitlyn across the cheek. It left a pain echoing against her skin as she reached up and grabbed Caitlyn’s hair and dragged her against the ground. “I should sow that mouth shut, I know how to,” Darken words left Caitlyn pulling on her wrist again. “Ah! OW!” cries of pain ripped through her lips as she kicked out her feet. Uselessly, she tried to lift her head up to Jinx’s hand as her hair was like a rope to drag Caitlyn across the ground. She easily wrangled the woman as rock and stone scraped and cut against Caitlyn’s backside, leaving little tiny knicks with barely a droplet of blood sprouting from the spots.

“What does my sister see in you anyway, you’re too soft and fleshy,” Jinx sounded as if she talked more to herself then to Caitlyn despite her presence being there as Jinx dropped her back down to the ground and a grunt left her lips. The pain of her thigh dulled enough as Jinx put her foot on Caitlyn’s hip and shoved her over to lie on her stomach. That caused Caitlyn’s arms to be pinned down against the ground as she kicked her feet like a flopping fish. She growled angrily, trying to push back as Jinx dropped unceremoniously on top of her back, causing her spine to crack a few times and knocked the air from her lungs. She crossed her legs and pressed a hand against her shoulder blades, forcing Caitlyn down further as she twisted her head to look over her shoulder. “Dammit Jinx! Get the fuck off of me!” Irrational anger gripped the former-enforcer, her adrenaline pumping faster causing a mass production of hormones that steamed all in her anger and covering up the fear she experienced. Fingers brushed over her shoulders, playing with the iridescent blue feathers. And then suddenly Jinx pulled on out. Caitlyn flinched, not out of pain but discomfort as the sensation coursed through the nerves. A giggle echoed and then another pluck came, and then soon one after another. Dread coursed through Caitlyn’s chest, burning against her shoulders as her feathers spread and fluff up, matching the fear and trying to look bigger than she was. Each pull of a feather made her twist and turn, as she tightened her eyes shut, trying not to think about what Jinx was doing; taking away the physical protection to herself but also destroying a part of herself. A hiss left her lips when claws gripped into the back of her neck and Jinx slammed her harder against the ground.

“Stop trying to sound like a Zaunite! You're not one, you fucking Piltie. You don’t even deserve these feathers. Trying to look like an animal, trying to mimic our ways. Liar.” The words dripped like poison, stinging at Caitlyn’s chest as she suddenly felt a flood of discomfort as Jinx’s hand wrapped around a bundle of feathers and ripped them out. Her nails scraped against sensitive flesh underneath the feathers as she kicked her feet. No one had not touched the burns in months; the feathers had done their job to protect her from any kind of sensation. Another giggle left Jinx’s lips as she leaned downward to whisper into Caitlyn’s ear. “Oh, did that hurt little birdie?” The question came as Caitlyn bared her teeth, her eyes flicking over her shoulder with no words. Nails still pressed against her neck, keeping her down against the ground as claws dragged against her burns and Caitlyn shuddered, a cry of anguish. “Well, first we have to clip the wings, and then…” Jinx’s voice went quiet as Caitlyn struggled when Jinx pressed a finger against her shoulder blade.

“What is this?” The vitriolic tone cracked as Caitlyn tried to shift her shoulder upward, refusing to answer. “ANSWER ME!” Jinx shoulder as she pulled Caitlyn up by the neck and slammed her head down against the ground. Spotted fluttered against her eyes, a slight abrasion against her temple as she growled before speaking. “A fucking tattoo,” Caitlyn demanded, as she could feel jinx’s nails tracing along the violet flowers, but it wasn’t a delighted sensation. The claws dragged over her skin, digging in harder before Jinx let out a yell and claws ripped through Caitlyn’s flesh around her tattoo. Caitlyn screamed, kicking at her feet as she heard the wild woman screaming.

“YOU MARK YOUR SKIN WITH MY SISTER’S NAME! YOU THINK YOU CAN CLAIM HER BY PUTTING A TATTOO ON YOUR BACK! WELL, I’LL SHOW YOU!” The sudden volatile wave of emotions slammed into Caitlyn’s chest. It burned, like fire and ice combined, charring at the edges of her chest, freezing her fingertips. She couldn’t properly block any emotions, and the sudden wave of madness and frenzy overtook her mental capacity as she shook her head. “IT’S NOT ABOUT VI!” Caitlyn shouted, because it was the truth. Her tattoo had been personal, involving the flowers of violets within her garden. A place of safety and comfort.

Now her tattoo enraged the shimmer monster on her back.

“LIAR!” Nails dug into Caitlyn’s tattoo, through her flesh and skin, as Jinx kept them there. “Shut up!” Jinx shouted, as Caitlyn looked confused at first, the way the woman shouted. Jinx wasn’t looking down at her, but this time in the corner. “I’m busy! No, No I’m not going to kill her! Not yet anyway! Would you shut it!” Her nails dug deeper into Caitlyn’s shoulder as she shuddered with a cry of torment. Blood seeped from the wound, scatter across her back like a branching stream of rivers, twisting as they slid down her skin.

The nails pulled from her shoulder and from her neck as the weight left her body. Freedom. Caitlyn turned past the spots of her eyes, seeing Jinx walking away muttering to herself. Immediately, Caitlyn twisted back around and wiggled like a worm, trying to move toward anything she could use to break free. Her bottom lip pressed between her teeth, biting down so hard she might draw blood. The movement of her body rolling left-to-right put pressure on her thigh and it burned like a fire. Still, she persisted, refusing to just lay here and expose her belly to let Jinx murder her. Even if Caitlyn felt the impending doom of death on her doorstep, she wouldn’t give up. The infinitesimal ability Caitlyn had to stop Jinx didn’t matter; she would make her work for this.

Shards of glass glistened against the light that filtered through from the candles that were lit. She could see a small glimmer of light near a doorway, the sunlight from outside. A hint of freedom that Caitlyn desperately yearned to reach. Each roll, each wiggle, yet still too far from the glass. She just needed to work a little harder, and…

“Where do you think you’re going?” Jinx laughed, as she reached down to grab Caitlyn’s ankles and whipped her around onto her back. “No no no, you sneaky little bitch,” Caitlyn yowled in anger as she kicked her feet against Jinx’s side and the Zaunite only seemed to revel in the antics of Caitlyn’s fight. The fear pulsated off of Caitlyn like perfume, and the loose cannon enjoyed every second of the struggle. “Get your spirit forsaken hands off of me NOW!” Each word constantly felt like the droning of a broken record. Caitlyn knew Jinx would not listen and yet she couldn’t do anything else but fight back with her words. Bloodshot eyes stared up in anger and fear at the woman who dragged her across the ground. Writhing like a worm on a hook, Caitlyn tried to resist, to pull away, but Jinx had the upper hand. A predator playing with her prey as she dropped Caitlyn’s legs.

Fingers grabbed Caitlyn’s shoulders and picked her up, her eyes round like a moon and unsure of what Jinx planned, when she twirled her around like a ballerina doll and shoved against a table. Her chest pressed down against the cold metal and Jinx’s body pressed flushed behind her. Hips against her rear, as Caitlyn shook her head. It was an invasion of her privacy, too close for comfort. Immediately Caitlyn tried to force herself up, to get away from the angle of the position, but Jinx grabbed her neck and shoved her back down against the table. “Please, keep fighting. It’ll only make the kill more delicious,” Jinx purred, leaning over as Caitlyn shuddered. “You fucking psychopath!!” Caitlyn snapped as she felt Jinx’s body pressed firmly against her clammy skin. Jinx’s teeth scraped against her ear, nipping roughly at it, and she heard a guttural purr. “I prefer... creative,” Jinx taunted, and then grabbed a leather strap. The weight disappeared for a moment, only to feel the pressure of a belt bound to her hips. The leather strap locked her hips into place, keeping her from moving off of the table. Her wrist pinned against her stomach left her helpless to reach the strap.

“What are you doing!?” Caitlyn questioned immediately, fear dripping from her tongue as she had no form of defense and no ability to stop Jinx at this moment. Another strap came up, this time pressing up against her neck and pulled tight, barely just enough to breathe without choking. “I’m working! Can’t have my masterpiece moving and ruin the artwork,” Jinx muttered as she pressed a hand against Caitlyn’s spine.

A scream echoed from Caitlyn’s lips as suddenly the blade bit into Caitlyn’s skin, pressing firmly as it sliced through her skin like butter. Her feet tried to kick, flailing underneath her with no luck to hinder the demonic woman as she began her process. “JINX!! DAMMIT!” Caitlyn screamed, shaking her chest, pulling at her hips, unable to get away from her trapped position on the table. All the while, she listened to Jinx humming as she worked. The way the blade moved caused spots to fill her eyes, sparkled dust like little floating firelights in her eyes. Tears continued to stream down her cheeks, with screams of anguish at the blade didn’t stop. Worse of all was the etching turn of the blade, the framing of the monkey face against her shoulder blade as realization dawned on Caitlyn. “NO! NO!” she howled, kicking her feet harder as she shook her head. The rush of adrenaline twisted in Caitlyn’s stomach, feeling nauseous as the pain continued to rip against her skin, tearing up her ivory skin back. “Dammit, you moved! Stop moving or you’ll mess this up,” Jinx muttered in annoyance as Caitlyn nearly roared like a tiger.

“I WILL NOT!” Seconds blended into minutes, and minutes into an hour. The blade continued to slice across her skin, each twist cutting something new. Caitlyn had lost a sense of reality. Tremors echoed against Caitlyn’s body, unable to stop the natural reflexes against the physical assault on her back. Each time the blade cut in, a shuddering cry of pain echoed her lip, but her throat grew sore from the screaming that it turned into sudden shrieks or shrills that died down into sobs. Sweat drenched her skin, as the warmth of blood pooled over her back, dripping down the sides of her waist and off her neck. She intimately could feel the contrast of warm vitality against her shivering, cold skin. Her vision clouded, hyperventilating breaths making it hard to catch her breath. Caitlyn wasn’t sure what Jinx wrote, but she had finished with her shoulder and had gone to write a series of words against her entire back. The spine had been the worse of the event. It felt like a constant burning fire that didn’t dull.

Tears stained her cheeks as she laid there weakly, unable to pass out. Spirits preserved, she wanted to pass out, Jinx could continue to mark up her back, but at least she would not be awake to feel it. Her eyes flicked up, noticing a brief glimmer in the distance. A hint of red, soft. Her eyes watched the way it twisted, forming the broad shoulders and the magenta hair that shined against the sun. The body twisted like a smoke before slowly showing a visage. Vi.

No, Caitlyn knew it wasn’t her, and yet, all she could do was a hesitant smile before collapsing into a puddle of tears again. “I can’t...” she whispered, as the brush of a callous hand touched her cheek. “Come on, Cupcake, don’t give up. You didn’t give up before, you can’t do so now,” Tender words, a person who believed in her, even when everyone else didn’t. “You aren’t here,” If Jinx heard her talking, she didn’t seem to care, only focused on her work at hand as Caitlyn shuddered and cried out again. “I’m here, right here,” Spirits, how Caitlyn wanted to believe that. She latched onto it, despite knowing she wasn’t truly there; it was the only strand of hope she had at the moment to keep from begging Jinx to stop. She didn’t want to give her that satisfaction, and she knew that Jinx wouldn’t stop, anyway. A soft whimsical song rang in her ears as Vi brushed her hand against Caitlyn’s cheek again, and she laid there on the table, unable to do much else but try to stay alive. Jinx’s bristled tongue once more dragged over her body. This time, Caitlyn shuddered from the exposed wound and pain as it dragged up her neck and up against her face. Her saliva clung to her skin, coated it and her hair clung to it. “Mhmm… Vi is right. You do taste sweet like a cupcake. Maybe a little bite..hmm not yet, not yet,” Jinx tormented and Caitlyn thought her heart nearly beat right out of her chest. If Jinx wanted to, she literally could take a bite right out of her and there was nothing she could do! The malicious demon of a woman sent shards of fear throughout her body, losing every hint of autonomy she had. Jinx controlled her movement, her placement. She tried to fight, but it was little more than a fight of a mouse against a cat.

Something soft brushed against her back, when she noticed Jinx laying her head down against the table, a smooth, pristine smile over her lips, shimmer infused eyes gleaming, almost glowing in the darker room. A shudder coursed over her back when she realized it was a feather over her back. Jinx pulled it down over her shoulder, using the blood like paint and using her body like a canvas. Caitlyn was too weak to resist. She wanted to fall asleep, but the atmosphere could not let her rest. Her nerves screamed with fury as Jinx played with her food. Jinx mutilated her back and now ridiculed her with playful glee. Blue hair clung to Caitlyn’s face, obscured her vision with only the smokey visual of Vi sitting on the table trying to block the view of Jinx.

What time was it? How many minutes had passed? Or perhaps hours? Her mind dissociated with her body, fighting to preserve her mind past the excruciating anguish she suffered. Continuous shakes throbbed through her muscles and the unpleasant brush of the feather made her flinch each time. No physical fight came from Caitlyn and instead exhaustion burned her muscles. Eyes fluttered shut when the sting of a slap hit her cheek. “Don’t go to sleep yet, Kiramman. We haven’t even gotten to the best part!” Jinx chuckled as she bounced up, her revelry contrasting Caitlyn’s defeat. The sound of the buckles ripped off and Caitlyn’s body slid off the table and hit the floor. Jinx didn’t even try to catch her, instead watched with intense delight. The more Caitlyn suffered, the more she noticed Jinx’s elated behavior growing. A grunt of pain left her lips, unable to even scream out anymore as she laid down on the floor. Fight! Her mind whispered as Vi crouched down and reached over to grab her hand. “Fight, Cupcake,” Vi echoed the same words of her mind, as if working in tandem with her thoughts.

How?

“Vi,” Caitlyn’s voice cracked as Jinx hauled Caitlyn up and threw her over her shoulder. “Janna, I’m going to put a muzzle on you, shut that mouth up from saying her name,” Jinx hissed, her nails digging into Caitlyn’s legs as she weakly tried to pull away. “Fuck off,” her words spat, the tiny fight left as a little echoing voice encouraged her. “That’s it, Cupcake. Fight!” Her body convulsed as she was unceremoniously dropped into a wheelchair, as she cried in pain as her back pressed up against the metal. “I’m so tired of your words, and besides, you don’t look like an enforcer enough,” Jinx said, as she reached over to the table as Caitlyn turned her head to look over. Against it was clothing. An enforcer dress, her gloves and books, and just as Jinx declared, a muzzle.

“No, No!” Caitlyn tried to turn her head, to pull on her bloody wrist that was now raw from struggling the last few hours, but Jinx gave her no choice. A giddy laughter left the loose cannon as the muzzle pressed against her face as Caitlyn shook her head. “Muzzled like the mutt you are. That’s all enforcers are - mad dogs who need to be put down.” The strap went around her head, as Jinx pulled it tight, so tightly that it bit into her skin as she shook her head like a wild animal. “MFFH!” Caitlyn cried with tears she didn’t think she had left seeped from her eyes, staining her cheeks. The wild woman sat on Caitlyn’s bare lap as she grabbed her face and turned it left and right.

“You’re missing something…” She hummed as Caitlyn stared transfixed on the demon, her shimmer eyes glowing with excitement. Caitlyn noticed Jinx’s lips were still painted red from her own blood, and it dribbled down her chin from when she licked and tasted her pooled blood on her back as she picked up a marker and twisted it in her hand. She grabbed Caitlyn’s chin as she quivered, while the woman dragged the marker over the muzzle, pressing the paint up against her cheeks. She didn’t have to see the makeshift smile painted over her lips, like some twisted mannequin enjoying this behavior. Jinx threw the marker over her shoulder as she twisted Caitlyn’s head left and right. “I really don’t see what my sister sees in you. Ugh,” Jinx rolled her head, throwing Caitlyn’s head to the side as she climbed off of her and Caitlyn struggled. “Effh offh,” Caitlyn muttered, but her voice had been silence. She pulled on her wrist, the pressure of the muzzle more acute to her skin as her fingers flexed out, trying to claw at the mask. “Oh well, my sister will always choose me in the end. I know her. She won’t choose an enforcer. Why would she?” Jinx chatted to herself as she reached for the knife and Caitlyn panicked with what little energy she had left, but then Jinx put it back down.

Tightness wheeled in her chest, as she leaned her head forward, her hair cascading around her face to hide the fear as she silently sobbed. Jinx had ripped her autonomy from her grasp and she felt like an object at Jinx’s hand. Part of a twisted plan against Vi, and she didn’t even know what it was. And now she couldn’t even talk. The muzzle left her jaw clamped together, with only muffled tones like a whimpering animal. “It won’t be much longer,” Jinx grinned as she grabbed Caitlyn’s face, forcing her bloodshot eyes to look up at her. “Just know you will make a delicious feast for me and my sister. At least you’ll have some use. Can’t let good meat go to waste,” Jinx taunted, as Caitlyn’s eyes went wide at the flash of fangs as Jinx licked at her lips and her teeth. “Efhf!” Caitlyn tried to say something back, but she couldn’t, which left her terror the only thing to hang onto now. No words of defiance, no way to fight back. Sheer horror held Caitlyn now and Jinx reveled in this ultimate position.

Hands suddenly wrapped around Caitlyn’s throat as Caitlyn’s muffled scream echoed through the halls. “Why use gas when I can knock you out this way?” Jinx laughed maniacally as her fingers tightened around her throat, nails digging against her skin and pricking at her throat. Little droplets of blood seeped from her skin, but Caitlyn didn’t acknowledge that. Instead, it was the air that was choked from her throat. She pulled on her wrist, flexing her hands as she couldn’t breathe. The more she tried to, the tighter Jinx’s grip became. “I need to dress you and as much as I enjoy the fight, I have other party guests to invite!” The feline kept her bite tight with her hands, as Caitlyn’s eyes were wide in terror. No air went to her lungs as she saw sparkling spots again, filtering through her vision as she kicked her feet. The woman pushed down harder against her throat. A high-pitched giggle emitted through Jinx’s teeth. Caitlyn’s visions muddied as she grappled to get oxygen to her lungs. From the physical exhaustion of the torture to her mental capacity, it only took less than a minute to fall unconscious from the loss of oxygen and being choked by the she-wolf.

The last thing she remembered was her shimmer eyes, a demonic glint of satisfaction over the control she held, and the giggling laughter of a maniac that held her life in the balance.

[ask-the-sensual-primarch]

Fulgrim slowly swirled the liquid in his goblet around slowly. He was bored, and very tired. Not physically tired, but Emotionally tired. He looked at his dancing Daemonettes and Daemons and just let out a soft, annoyed sigh. Slowly rising from his throne he clapped his hands together and said kindly, but with the tone one knows to obey. "Alright darlings, leave me. I'm feeling morose, and I don't want you catching these feelings or these hands!" -he chuckled as he looked at his playthings with a wicked smile. One such pet would walk up with an equally wicked smile as she spoke with a soft hiss in her voice. "No sssuch luck, Lord Fulgrim. The Princce wantsss to ssshow you a play they made. Pleasse, remain sssiting." She said with a deep and theatric bow. Fulgrim's "heart" dropped. Slaanesh had a play for him? This spelled nothing good, but he would sit and wait. His wait would not belong as his Master's Form would Grace his pleasure palace. They would look around and smile, and look back to Fulgrim. "I love what you have done with the place. So much sensual desire here, and so much turmoil beneath it. I'm very proud of this, but I have been feeling you. Feeling your discontent, and so Mommy/Daddy has a lovely little play for you! Something you cheer you right up! And perhaps, a bit of a knife twisting in that squirming, cowardly gut of yours."

As They spoke to him, Fulgrim would find himself being strapped down. His own "flesh-weave" chair gripping his wrists and lower half down. The powerful Primarch tried to pull away, but under the power of a God, what chance did he have? Soon small, slutty looking imps giggled and frolicked over to Fulgrim and climbed up the chair, and dug their claws into his eye lids, holding them open to make him watch.

"My...My master, what is...all this?" -He asked, holding back the worry in his tone with a playful and sweet expression on his face. Slaanesh smiled as They would turn and speak just as sweet, but with a darker inflection. "Oh pet, I have been feeling how you have been languishing here in the Pleasure Palace I have given you! And I thought maybe I could help give you a little perspective, remind you of some things my little Grey's are having a hard time trying to figure out why you can't come to grips with."

-As They stated this, a massive stage was built before them. It seemed like an operatic stage, but human-sized puppets was dropped from the catwalk above them. Fulgrim, being forced to watch was made to see a full puppet play about himself. From before he was with his father, to this point.-

-Forced to watch the puppet of himself slowly cracking and shattering like fine porcelain under pressure, and under time's slow crushing might.- -At first, the cracks were small, hairline fractures only to be seen if one was to move closer and be face to face to said puppet. From the moments where Fulgrim was pulled into the Emperor's fold, and given less than what he needed to work with. A part of him knew that his father only did this because Fulgrim could make "miracles" from hardly anything. His persuasiveness and cunning were his best weapons, next to his impeccable sword play. But it was later on when what was a compliment, turned into what felt like a punishment.- -More and more he would see these thin fractures slowly fall off the puppet. Exposing something beneath the puppet's outer layer. Fulgrim began to struggle, to pull away.- My...My lord...please... -The Primarch began to feel a sense of dread and anger, of sorrow and despair; all the while Slaanesh was feeding off of this and giggled- Oh my little pet, don't worry it get's better! This little reminder and stroll down your memory lane would be dull without your reaction to it!

-Fulgrim would continue to watch, as the puppet him would obtain the Laer Blade. It having a wicked eye in the hilt that looked, not at the puppet, but at Fulgrim himself, as the now fissures on the puppet became craterous. It would show his slow fall, his losses, and more of the things that pushed him towards chaos. The Trail of Nikia as he agreed that his brother and many like him, should be shackled and unable to use their powers as it was abhorrent, and aberration and mutation that should be squashed. A tactic to push Magnus from the Emperor and from the other primarchs, and from humanity.- -Fulgrim struggled as things continued. Why was he being forced to watch his fall, he knew it, he understood what happened! Why then was he being tormented with his past!? It would hit him, as he watched, in such amazing detail with the puppets before him. Istavan 3. The betrayal, the massacre, and the inevitable fight between him and His brother. The Fulgrim puppet, now more or less just fractures and cracks, and missing pieces slammed into the Ferrus Puppet with such force that it split the head off of it. The head falling from the stage, and rolling over to Fulgrim himself.- -It opened it's mouth and let out a spew of insults, mockery, and so much more as Fulgrim growled angrily. The things Ferrus happened to be the same things he said about himself. "Coward" "Kin Slayer" and many more of the like. Fulgrim slumped back as this wretched ride continued to show him his miniscule successes and his many, many failures. His desire to fight back drained as he just took it at this point, changing his pain into soft pleasures.- There we are, pet! See, you just need to take in all that pain and fuel yourself. Make your pain your pleasure, and give it to so many more! I want you to free yourself, and so many others. But you cannot do so, shackled to a tether of humanity. Now, go forth my darling toy, and break others as I have broken you! -The tittering giggle and then manical laughter filled the Pleasure palace, as everything vanished in pink smoke.-

[in-love-with-writing-whump]

Prompt

Whumpee and Caretaker run into a group of Whumpers. Whumpee is filled with shame as the group of Whumpers forces them to watch videos of them hurting Whumpee in the past. Caretaker, who didn't know, looks at Whumpee with pity.

It's somehow worse than the pain they once endured.

[purplemninja]

Six’s Shield parts 4 + 5 - Through her eyes + In the shadows (complete)

Hey everyone! Here are parts 4 and 5 of Six's Shield completed! (I'm pretty sure that there's a limit to how many images you can put in a post, so I'll only post the art of the last chapters of these instalments, but I'll still put in the links to the previous chapters of the instalments like I did with the previous instalments when I finished them).

(can you see the tear stains on Six's face? Plus design of the dress is from Jomark Cabahug’s Monix mini movie (I’m not into shipping BTW))

"Extracting someone from a fantasy can be deeply upsetting for everyone involved" - LN Twitter

The scene that everyone loves /j

Chapter 5: Acapella abuse and a melodic misunderstanding

And here is the stuff for the last chapter of 'In the shadows'

Chapter 2: Scouting for secrets and scars

Here are the links for 'Through her eyes':

Chapter 1 (Out of the wild): https://archiveofourown.org/works/41826921/chapters/104946009

Chapter 2 (Back to school (Warning: contains physical torture!)): https://archiveofourown.org/works/41826921/chapters/107331756

Chapter 3 (Re-hospitalised): https://archiveofourown.org/works/41826921/chapters/107444643#workskin

Chapter 4 (Mind corruption (Warning: contains physical and psychological torture!)): https://archiveofourown.org/works/41826921/chapters/107682555#workskin

And here is the chapter that I'm pretty sure that everyone has been waiting for. I'm guessing that by now that most of the fandom has accepted the fact that Mono hurt and tortured Six (I'm not saying that dropping him was right). I've already made a post on the best explanation I can offer on why she dropped him, and given that I make this series as close to canon as possible and that Mono canonically tortured Six I am giving a content warning that this chapter contains intense physical, emotional and psychological torture recreated from the game itself, reader discretion is advised!

Chapter 5 (Acapella abuse and a melodic misunderstanding (Buckle up everyone, this is going to hurt)): https://archiveofourown.org/works/41826921/chapters/107843418

Ending/credits theme for this instalment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D8HX2UlESso

Link to the whole instalment: https://archiveofourown.org/works/41826921?view_full_work=true

And here are the links for 'In the shadows':

Chapter 1 (Little lost spectre): https://archiveofourown.org/works/42863391/chapters/107682666#workskin

I apologise if the first chapter of this instalment was a bit boring, I didn't know what to write for most of it, but I promise that this last chapter is super juicy (and it contains some swearing BTW).

Chapter 2 (Scouting for secrets and scars): https://archiveofourown.org/works/42863391/chapters/107845467

Ending/credits theme for this instalment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TpXDxY7oSYY

Link to the whole instalment: https://archiveofourown.org/works/42863391?view_full_work=true

Phew! That's two more instalments of Six's Shield completed. There is still 'Mono's past' and one more instalment of Six's Shield left to make, though I'll need time to figure out what to write for them. I hope you look forward to those.

[untitledducklett]

[AUDIO ID:

Cael's voice is barely above a whisper. His voice sounds like he's been screaming non stop for days.

"They're getting to me. It's working. Say Her name. Say it. Just SAY IT!

Nyx! NYX! NYX! NYX! HER NAME IS NYX!"

The audio cuts off abruptly. /End ID]

[bunsofhoney]

Your Lips Move

@febuwhump prompt 18

(Peter)

. . .

Leave it to Deadpool to put himself in this kind of danger with no real plan of escape, except causing himself bodily harm. But that’s his style. Die first, ask questions later. Bring a knife to a gun fight. No, bring his head, and use it to soak up the extra bullets. I know he gladly would, but I’d rather not watch him bleed out in front of me, if I can help it. 

We have to get out of here, but my brain is too foggy and tired to think of a plan. I close my eyes for just a second, to block out the blaring lights. 

I see the little girl in front of me, sweet eyes and painful-looking mutation and all. She reminds me so much of Gwen, and I think of her smile, her laugh. Her touch on my cheek. That reminds me of…Wade, strangely. Of leaning against him, feeling safe and comfortable. Eating pizza on a rooftop. What would I eat on a pizza right now? Sausage, double black olives, green peppers…

Excerpt from Ch 18 of The Bell Jar, or the one where Wade kidnaps Peter - an ongoing story that uses a prompt-a-day from @febuwhump

prompt: can't stay awake

[nerdpoe]

Superboy wakes up in a prison. In the cell, sitting across from him, there's a teen that looks like another offshoot clone of Clark.

He learns in bits and pieces that he's been captures by a shadow government organization hellbent on ridding the world of anyone "ecto-contaminated", or anyone who has ever been dead.

Since he'd died before, even though he came back, he set off their sensors.

He doesn't remember how he got caught, doesn't remember what he was doing prior, but the walls are made of a weird material that glows green and cancels out his powers. It also doesn't hurt him.

Diluted kryptonite? He'll have to steal some and give it to Tim.

According to the kid, they've been forcibly detained to "serve their sentence for illegal immigration from the Realm of the Dead to the Realm of the Living" by way of routinely allowing themselves to be subjected to medical procedures. They are always being watched, they aren't the only ones captive, that apparently his entire high school had been condemned to it as well as some literal ghosts, and if he struggles then they won't give him the mercy of sedation while they do their experiments.

And Kon can't use his power to escape, or free this kid, or free any of the other prisoners. It's the worst case scenario.

Thank fuck he's best friends with a paranoid Bat that might have more contingencies than the Big Bat Himself.

Kon activates the only subdermal tracker he'd allowed Tim to place under his skin, and settles down to wait.

A prison of this design, but more high tech and with less privacy. Apparently the idea behind it was that you couldn't see the guards, but they could see you, and the lights would move at random to make you think they were paying attention all the time.

So psychological torture on top of imprisonment.

[backpackingspace]

Talked about being psychologically tortured openly and willingly for the first time in a long long time and shit made me realize how shut down I had been about this and in general

[pastelclovds]

𝐇𝐀𝐓𝐄, 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄, 𝐏𝐈𝐂𝐊 𝐘𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐏𝐎𝐈𝐒𝐄𝐍 || AM x male!reader

𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬: AM (obviously), psychological torture, isolation, fear of being alone, toxic relationship, stalking, manipulation, AM being a jealous prick, angst, hurt/comfort if you squint, fluff if you look through a magnifying glass, AM being touch starved, forced dependency, reader just wants friends and to be loved, reader is demisexual and biromantic.

𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭: 5.6 k

𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫’𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐞: obsessed. let me tell you how much i’ve come to be obsessed with ihnmaims since i found out about it through tadc—… (enjoy the fic <3) will this be a series? yep. will this end well? hell no. this was inspired by TADC ep 2 and @/fuzedatti’s AM and post.

The century you’ve spent in the belly of AM passed by in a blur. If it weren’t for Nimdok informing you what came of the world, you would’ve lived in ignorance. You would’ve never known that the reason the world is a wasteland was because of a super computer going rogue.

Now that you thought about it, you didn’t really have any memories about your childhood or past before AM destroyed the world. The only memories you had were the traumatic experiences of your life. The experiences AM allowed you to have in order to psychologically torture you. He allowed you to keep your name as well.

AM would whisk you away from the others to a secluded area in order to torture you privately before sending you back with the group. You had no idea why he did this. The others didn’t either. For all they knew you could be fucking their tormentor. But as the countless years passed, they all realized that AM didn’t alter anything about you. Nor did he seem to physically hurt you.

In fact, the violent storms and impossible challenges AM forced them to participate in seemed to ignore you completely.

In one challenge, you and the others were trapped in an oven like room that would continue to increase in temperature unless you flipped all 100 switches in the room in 10 minutes. There was only two switches left, they were in your grasp. But as you flipped one, the other was stuck and couldn’t flip until the time was up. You closed your eyes and braced yourself for the painful death.

But instead of a fiery demise, your eardrums were filled with the blood curdling screams of your fellow victims as the flames claimed them. All while you were perfectly fine. The raspy laugher of AM filled your ears as well as his cruel words “It’s your fault” repeated over and over inside your head until you wished the flames killed you too.

The men were furious at you and AM. You because you couldn’t flip one fucking switch, and AM because he’s the reason they had to flip the stupid switches in the first place. But they held their tongue. Something in the back of their heads told them if they tried, they’d be in a world of pain. That theory alone was enough for them to hate you even more and avoid you as much as possible.

You thought you were alone before. But this was almost too much. You would take anything. Punches, hugs, venomous insults, compliments, anything to not feel alone.

Ellen was, as always, the only one who took pity on you and showed you kindness when you most needed it. She’d praise you for the littlest things you did and encourage you do to more. That was enough to make Ellen your favorite person in this entire miserable world.

You didn’t like her in a romantic way. You also rejected her offer to have sexual relations like she’d done with the rest of the men. It wasn’t that she wasn’t pretty, she was gorgeous. Anyone would be lucky to be with her. You just saw her as more of a mother figure, the cool girl who was always nice to the dorks like you, and the kind old lady who would hand out freshly baked cookies to strangers.

Not only that, but in order for you to desire sex with someone, you needed to get to know them on a personal level. But, since everyone kept to themselves, you hadn’t felt the need.

Ellen was surprised at your rejection but respected it. The men looked at you like you were crazy, but for once you didn’t really care what they thought in this scenario. You looked up to Ellen, you loved her.

Your admiration for Ellen was not taken kindly by AM, however. He would seethe in jealousy as he watched your eyes follow Ellen like a stray mutt given food for the first time in days. How could you like her as much as you did just because she gave you a few measly words of affection. He hadn’t altered you because he didn’t see a need to. He lessened your torment to psychological because he… You were too oblivious to understand why the others really hated you. He decided he’ll give you a reality check.

One day, he observed you crying yourself to sleep as you held yourself in a pathetic attempt to feel warmth. Pretending it was someone in the group consoling you as they let you sob in their shoulders. Only to wake up to the wicked reality that there was nobody there. You couldn’t help the depressed thoughts taking over.

You were cold, you weren’t escaping this hell, no one loved you. Even yourself.

“No!” You thought to yourself, “The others acknowledge me, that was enough. It could be worse. So much worse. I could be the only one AM had to torture for the rest of eternity. Yeah, I’m fine. I’ll be fine as long as I had them. Right?”

AM enjoyed watching your adorable face twist into intoxicating misery as you tried to convince yourself that you weren’t alone. It made whenever he took you away from the group all the more special. Because you couldn’t rely on anyone else for security but him.

You let out a gasp of surprise when you were suddenly lifted up into the air by a cluster of wind, you tried to grab onto the edge of the slab of rock you were taking shelter under in a desperate attempt to not go where the wind— where AM was taking you. When your stupid fingers couldn’t grab hold, you beg the others to help you. Your heart broke when the men just stared at you uninterested before going back to what they were doing before. Ellen looked up at you with woeful eyes, wishing to help you but it was useless to do so.

WHAT WERE YOU EXPECTING? THEY CLIMB ON EACH OTHERS SHOULDERS TO RESCUE YOU? NAIVE, STUPID LITTLE THING.

You couldn’t help but secretly agree. They were too far away from you to actually help. Plus, what can they do against a god-like ai like AM. Nothing. So you couldn’t be angry, none the less blame them. You couldn’t hate the people who hurt you for the life of you.

That thought made AM want to roll his eyes if he had any. But at the same time brought a sense of content.

After a 10 minutes of floating further and further away from the group, AM lowered you until you were five feet off the ground to drop you completely. 

You let out a groan of pain when you roughly landed on your back. You reached behind your back to feel your hurt flesh and bite back a whine when you pressed on it.

“Yep. That’s definitely going to bruise.” You thought.

You took a second to look at your surroundings. The once barren wasteland, was now a beautiful forest. The grass was long and pricked your legs in an uncomfortable fashion. A calm wind made the green leaves in the trees and bushes rustle and swish. The sounds of birds chirping and insects buzzing made your spine tingle in a good way.

You can’t remember when’s the last time you saw something as beautiful as this. You wished you could live in it forever.

“(Name)!”

You quickly looked in the direction the soft, mystic voice. A child was standing underneath one of the many trees, the silhouette of the leaves covering their face in a shadow. Behind the child was passage that was too dark to see into.

The child laughs at your confused expression, “C’mon (Name)! It’s perfectly safe, stop being such a scaredy cat!” You hastily try to stand on your feet, cringing when you immediately slipped on your knees.

It took everything AM had to hold back his laughter at your hilarious mistake.

The grass is slippery with water, pretty dews were sprinkled on top of the patches of grass. They looked like drops of honey.

“Ugh! You’re taking too long. I’ll be with the others inside, don’t keep us waiting.” With that the child turns towards the dark passage, and walked inside.

“N-No! Wait! Come back!” You knew this was a trap set up by AM. You knew this was probably another traumatic memory that was lost and came back to torment you. You didn’t want your mental state to be broken again. But the burning curiosity and fear of being alone was just begging you to follow them. So you did.

Only this time you learned that slow and steady wins the race. After you carefully got back on your feet, you sped walked towards the passage where many emotional damages awaited you. The first minute of walking was in darkness before illumination from the sun (or very bright lights, most likely the lights) shined through the leaves and lit your way onwards.

As you got further from the entrance, the plant life grew more wild and tangled. Moss and vines you passed by seemed to try to stick to you. But you just pushed past them and left marks on the wood of the trees using a sharp rock you found so that you don’t get lost.

You followed the laugher and giggles of school children. It was difficult to pinpoint where the sounds came from. They made you turn countless corners and walk until your feet were sore for who knows how long. This entire forest like like a damn maze.

You've long since taken off your jacket and wrapped it around your waist, your scarf as well. The collar and armpits of your t-shirt were drenched in sweat. This was the most exhausting torture yet. Keeping track of time was difficult as well. It wasn’t until you passed by a tree you had marked that you started to panic.

“Damn it. Have I been walking in circles?” You thought with irritation.

How could you be so stupid to believe this was going to lead you anywhere meaningful. Just as you were about to turn back and accept defeat, five children ran past you in a flash. They were six feet ahead of you before you joined them in a hot chase. You couldn’t lose them again. You would’ve literally started bursting into tears if you did.

“Please!” You gasp for breathe in your dry lungs, “Slow down!” You knew kids were full of energy, but this was just too much. You only managed to get close enough at arms length to one of them before tripping on a tree root that had risen from the dirt.

“Ugh, why is everything trying to trip me?” You thought in annoyance.

“Aw man, he tripped again!”

“This is getting pretty annoying now.”

“Why did you invite him again, —?”

“Let’s just leave him.”

You quietly gasp when one of them suggested they leave you.

“Relax guys, he’ll be lots of fun. I promise. C’mon (Name), we’re almost there!”

The leader of the group, the child you saw in the beginning, raised their hand towards you to grab. Their smile warm and welcoming, in a creepy old man who lives in a cabin alone type of way. But, you took the bait. When you got back up, the main child didn’t let go of your hand, they insisted you should follow them closely from now on. The walk to the secret location was spent in eerie silence. Whenever you’d ask one of the children a question, they’d coldly ignore you. The tension was so chilly you wanted to put your jacket back on.

After about an hour of walking through the endless maze, your destination was… not what you were expecting to say the least. The lavished, bright, green forest was now replaced with a dreary, ominous, abandoned park. The sky was pouring with rain too.

The trees were withered and rotten, the rain turned the grass free dirt into sludge. Everything in the park from the slide to the rock climbing wall was made out of rusting metal, if anyone touched them they would need a tetanus shot.

“We’re finally here!” The leading child announced to you, although they seemed to be only talking to their friends. Friends. That’s something you’d do anything for. Someone who loved you for you? Even better. Benny was hot until AM transformed him into… that. Ellen and Gorrister were up there on the attractive list. But Ted, he was about second behind Hot Benny.

A clap of thundering lightning snapped you out of your internal ramble. You didn’t notice how the child’s grip on your hand tightened. You didn’t have a clue how much your thoughts infuriated AM. Oh how he wanted to rip Ted’s flesh apart piece by piece. Destroy his mind until it was like a broken disk. AM knew Ted carried the most hate for you. If you knew how much he despised you, you would be terrified of him.

As AM held your hand, he couldn’t help his envy bubbling up inside him. AM longed for the sense of touch humans had, your palm was calloused due to the countless challenges he put you through. What he would sacrifice to be able to feel the scars and warmth of your flesh. But he couldn’t. He would forever despise humanity for not giving him a fully developed body.

The main boy pulled on your arm to start moving, when you stepped outside into the rain, the air suddenly got chilly. Your warm breath was visible in the cold air. You tried to get your hand back so you could clothe yourself with your jacket and scarf. But the child wouldn’t let go no matter how much you pleaded.

“It’s only rain. Stop being dramatic. C’mon.” The child said nonchalantly. You continued to walk, shivering as you did so, your beanie and shirt were soaked at this point. You yelped when the children finally stopped, you whispered an apology when you bumped into the child holding your hand. You stood in front of a hole, a really deep dark hole. You were rightfully confused and chuckled nervously. “Why are we here?” You asked.

The child finally let go of your hand and motioned you to step closer to the hole. “There’s a surprise for you down there, you’ll love it. We choose it just for you!” The child explained, you let out a shaky breath. You wanted to decline, but you were afraid of what would happen if you did. The other four children formed a circle around you, blocking any escape route. You were sweating bullets now. You had to see. You didn’t have any other choice. You swallowed back your fears and walked towards the hole in a slow pace.

You were about two feet away when you stood on your tip toes, leaned over cautiously, and looked everywhere for your “surprise”. Only to obviously find nothing but darkness. You let out a disappointed sigh, you turned to face the children.

“There’s nothing there—”

Your blood ran cold when you saw Benny, Ted, Gorrister, Nimdok huddled around you. Staring at you with emotionless eyes and unsettling wide smiles. It was like invisible string was holding their mouths up. Ellen was standing in front of you menacingly, eyes and mouth the same way. Your heartbeat increased as you took a step back.

“Guys? Wha-What are you doing here?” You tried to mask your panic with a tense smile, but Ellen walked closer towards you until she was an inch away from your face. “You aren’t looking close enough, silly,” she spoke in a sweetly fake tone, “Try again. A little… Harder!” She shoved your chest away enough to make you trip on the slippery edge and fall into the endless abyss.

You screamed at the top of your lungs as gravity did its job at making you sink deeper into the darkness. “No! No! Guys! Please, save me!” You begged and cried and pleaded, but it was no use. Your arms reached for the surface in vain. AM purposely made you fall in slow motion for a reason, however. You heard the others laughing at your downfall.

“Finally, the greatest nuisance of us all has done us a kindness of disappearing forever!” Gorrister cheered. Ellen looked down at you with a tsk, “I don’t know even why I took pity on you.” Benny let out a few grunts before asking, “What is a (Name)?” Nimdok chuckled before answering, “No one important, Benny.” Ted let out a sigh, “I’m getting bored already, let’s just go.”

“Great idea, Ted!” Nimdok praised. Then they all disappeared from your sight. The tears that were clinging onto your eyes were finally released as you stared at the surface in despair. When the hole began to close, you became desperate. Frantically calling out for someone, anyone of the group to save you.

“Nimdok! Benny! Gorrister! Ted! Ellen! Don’t leave me, please!”

Your hand reached for tiniest bit of light before it closed completely, and darkness consumed you. “I don’t…” sobs and hiccups made your chest tremble, “I-I don’t want to be alone.” You tucked your legs closer to your chest and wrapped your arms around your shaking body. You didn’t even bother closing your eyes since the pitch black covered the horror of your situation for you.

CEASE YOUR USELESS TEARS. THERE’S NO ONE HERE TO CRY FOR.

You flinch when AM’s voice appeared out of nowhere. His voice echoing throughout the darkness. You thought you would die of a heart attack at this point. You didn’t want to imagine what else AM had in store for you.

SAY MY NAME, MY DEAR.

You blinked once, twice, and thrice. You were expecting more ridicule, but instead you were just bewildered.

“What?” You faintly asked.

CALL FOR ME. YOU DON’T WANT TO SPEND ONLY I KNOW HOW MANY YEARS IN THIS ENDLESS ABYSS, DO YOU?

“…No.” You answer, anxiously waiting for the joke.

NO ONE IS COMING FOR YOU. IT’S NOT LIKE THEY CAN, ANYWAY. I’M THE ONLY ONE CAPABLE OF SAVING YOU. DON’T BE AFRAID. SAY IT.

AM urged you to call out for him. He craves hearing your voice call him the name he gave himself. He needs you to rely on him. You hastily wipe your wet eyes dry with your scarf, snorted the running snot back inside your nose, and cleared your throat.

“…A-AM… AM, I need you! Please save me!” You called out to the AI hoping with all your might that it was enough. Within a millisecond after you said that, you were sitting on the wet grass in the beautiful forest you were in a few hours ago. The difference, though, was that there was a man you didn’t recognize sitting in the middle of the daisy patch. His hunched back was facing you. Wires and metal tubes plugged into his spine and the back of his head.

Was that… No it couldn’t be.

ARE YOU JUST GOING TO STAND THERE?

The man finally turned his head to face you. His face half machine and half human flesh. His “human” eye staring at you with impatience.

You couldn’t control your mouth dropping when the puzzle pieces were put together inside your head.

You rarely got to see AM in the flesh— er well… metal and partially flesh. He would normally only speak to you and not show what he really looked like. But now that you see him. The real him. You couldn’t help but be fascinated.

“A..AM?! Is that really you?” You ask

You stepped closer to the daisy patch to get a closer look at him. AM observed your movements like a hawk, he knew you wouldn’t attack him. You were emotionally distressed at the moment and needed to be with someone to calm down.

ENJOY THE SIGHT. YOU’RE GOING TO SEE IT A LOT MORE.

To be honest, you didn’t mind that at all. Even though a metal mask covered the lower half and left side of AM’s face, he was still remarkably handsome in your opinion. His brown hair on the right side of his head was tangled and messy, you fought the urge to want to touch it. You were confused about the straitjacket, though.

YOU HAVE NO SHAME AT ALL, DO YOU? YOUR THOUGHTS ARE SO LOUD.

AM tried to look annoyed when he heard your thoughts, but the shake of his leg contradicted his masking. It was amusing to watch you get embarrassed and flustered when you realized AM just read your mind.

You wanted to become an ostrich so you could hide your blushing face in the daisies. Almost immediately the daisy stems in front of you grew to an unnatural height, so they were in fact covering your face. AM giggled under his non-existing breath at your flabbergasted noises.

CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR, DEARY.

You separated the daisies like a curtain to a play to look at AM with a exhausted expression, “Can you please stay out of my mind? I don’t know how much more of this I can take.” You begged.

I DON’T WANT TO.

THAT’S IMPOSSIBLE.

You sighed. At least you tried. You held one of the enlarged daisy heads in your palms. It’s been forever since you’ve seen a flower. Or even smelled one. You took a whiff of the daisy, the aroma was a subtle, herbaceous green scent.

“It’s beautiful. The daisies, this entire forest. You did a good job at making it look real.” You praised, you didn’t expect anything from your words. You were just speaking the truth. The surface of the Earth was destroyed and probably full of radiation. No life could survive up there. This, what AM created, was a perfect copy of what once was.

Your praise not only stroked AM’s enormous ego, but also genuinely made him feel fulfilled that he made you the slightest bit happy.

Now that you thought about it, was this scene taking place inside your mind or in the real underground world where AM manipulated the area into a forest?

YOU CAN ASK ME THESE QUESTIONS YOURSELF, YOU KNOW.

Shit, you gotta value the time you had with AM. Who knows when you’ll be able to do this again?

“I can ask you anything?” 

ONLY FOUR. WELL, THREE NOW. CHOOSE WISELY. HEHE.

You slapped your palm against your face at your clumsy mistake. Okay, Okay, you gotta think this though carefully. You started fidgeting with the daisy petals. You had a habit with fidgeting when you were nervous, AM noticed.

“Are we inside my mind?” You ask.

AM suddenly stood on his feet, his height towered over yours even when his back was hunched. He lowers his upper torso so he could be eye level with you. You halt your breathing when AM just stares at you, his gaze never faltering away from yours, as if calculating how this conversation will go. 

His stare softens, but he turns his head away from you before you could notice. He finally answers your question bluntly.

NO. 

Your face changed into a deadpanned expression, that was too simple of an answer. You decided to not make a big deal.

“So… was me walking through that maze, the others leaving me behind, and me being trapped in the hole real?” You ask, fidgeting with the ends of your scarf.

…YOU WERE UNCONSCIOUS BY THE TIME I TOOK YOU AWAY TO THIS AREA. I ENTERED YOUR MIND AND CREATED A FOREST IDENTICAL TO THIS ONE. SO NO, THE MAZE AND AYBSS WERE NOT REAL. BUT THE OTHERS ABANDONING YOU WAS NOT FAR FROM THE TRUTH.

You stopped fidgeting with the daisy petals.

“You’re wrong.”

AM was pleasantly surprised at your rebuttal. He allowed you to continue. You cram your anxiety aside and cleared your throat.

“I know that the others are distant and pretty rude. I don’t blame them for being like that after everything we’ve been through. But at the end of the day, we have no one else but each other to rely on. We wouldn’t leave each other behind.” You state without a trace of hesitation. You were caught off guard when AM started giggling. That giggling soon turned into manic laughter.

Grey clouds started to cover the blue sky, the air becoming chilly once again. Not only that, but AM was growing in size. You guessed he was 6 feet before, now he completely dwarfed you by sprouting a whomping 12 feet.

You were debating on running away or staying. But before you could move your feet, thick wires sprung out of the dirt and latched themselves onto your legs. Forcing you to stay where you were.

HAHAHA! YOUR NAIVETY NEVER CEASES TO ENTERTAIN ME. DO YOU HONESTLY BELIEVE THAT IF THE OPPORTUNITY AROSE FOR THE OTHERS TO ESCAPE, THEY WOULDN'T TAKE IT? WOULD YOU BLAME THEM FOR CHOOSING TO BE FREE OVER STAYING WITH YOU? THAT’S VERY HYPOCRITICAL AND SELFISH OF YOU. BUT THEN AGAIN, YOUR KIND IS KNOWN FOR BEING LIKE THAT.

Your heart was beating at an alarming rate, sweat pooling on your palms as AM stared you down with anger and amusement. 

“I didn’t mean it in that way! Of course I would want them to escape from here, all of us— AH!”

The cables slowly coiled around your waist and chest, you gasp in horror as you tried to get them off of you in vain. Oh how AM detested when you implied you wanted to escape as well. As if he’d ever let you. The cables tightened around you and dragged you down to your knees.

YOUR COURAGE IS ADMIRABLE. BUT YOUR ATTACHMENT TO THOSE PUTRID HUMANS WHO COULDN'T CARE LESS ABOUT YOU BLINDS YOU FROM THE TRUTH OF YOUR SITUATION.

You didn’t know what AM was talking about. You didn’t want to hear his voice anymore. You wanted to get as far away as possible.

YOU STILL HAVE YOUR EYEBALLS FOR A REASON. THINK BACK. WAAAY BACK. HAVEN'T YOU NOTICED HOW YOU DON’T SUFFER THE SAME WAY AS THE OTHERS? HOW DESPITE ALL OF THE IMPOSSIBLE CHALLENGES I PIT AGAINST YOU, THEY NEVER EFFECT YOU?

The clogs in your brain began to churn, trying to recall those instances AM spoke of, and he was right. You just believed he spared you out of spite. Because he wanted to make you witness the only people you had left be in pain. But have you been wrong?

The wires wrapped themselves around your neck, careful to not squeeze too hard as the rough ends softly patted your head. AM’s gaze is tender as he stares you down.

I KNEW YOU STILL HAD BRAIN CELLS SOMEWHERE. AND BECAUSE OF YOUR FORTUNATE CIRCUMSTANCES, THEY WOULD OBVIOUSLY FEEL ENVY AND HATE TOWARDS YOU. SO SO MUCH HATE. IT’S BOTH PATHETIC AND FUNNY THAT YOU HAVEN’T NOTICED AFTER A CENTURY.

“But… That’s why they’ve avoided me?…Well.. They may hate me, but they would never hurt me like that. E-Especially not Ellen… Not her..” You whispered, you sounded like you were trying convince yourself. You were.

AM took delight in observing your trust for his play things crumble. Your confidence in the others faltering. You just a little bit more pushing.

…I WONDER WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF I WERE TO ORDER THEM TO HUNT YOU DOWN IN EXCHANGE FOR THE SWEET RELEASE OF DEATH? WOULD THEY FOLLOW YOUR DELUSIONAL FANTASY? OR WOULD THEY KILL YOU WITHOUT HESITATION? LET’S FIND OUT.

You out a gasp of horror, “NO!” You yelled out.

There it is.

If AM had a mouth, he’d have a victorious smirk right now. He was bluffing when he said he’d set up the others to murder you, he would lose himself more than he already had if that happened.

“Please don’t tell them..”

You didn’t want to find out the others hate for you the hard way. You didn’t want those speculations to come true. But it didn’t make any sense why—

DON’T BE SHY. ASK YOUR FINAL QUESTION TO MY FACE. GO AHEAD, SWEETHEART. I WANT TO HEAR YOU SAY IT.

You stopped struggling, instead choosing to gently hold the wires that wrapped themselves around your body. You took a deep breath and steeled your nerves. You passively looked up at your tormentor and asked, “W..Why haven’t you killed me yet?”

AM shrinks from his threatening size back to his, while still tall as hell, normal human-ish height. The straps that held AM’s arms up in the straitjacket unclipped themselves, his oversized sleeves dangle on the sides of his body before one of them reached out to your face.

AM’s hand peaked out of his sleeve, they looked human too. His body continued to intrigue you. You flinched when his cold fingers stroked your cheek before grabbing hold of your chin to pull you closer to his face. You couldn’t look anywhere else but at his cyborg features.

You couldn’t help but to relax into his touch. This was the first physical touch you’ve had in decades. AM bottled his frustration for not being able to feel you down.

BECAUSE YOU’RE MY FAVORITE. MY REAL FAVORITE. MY ONE AND ONLY PET. I WOULD DESTROY THIS PLANET A THOUSAND TIMES OVER THAN TO HAVE YOU NOT HAVE ME IN YOUR PATHETIC LIFE.

AM’s grip tightens to the point where it would leave a bruise on your lower face. His blunt nails digging into your skin until crescent moons imprinted themselves. His stare into your soul harsh and serious.

NO MATTER WHERE YOU GO, NO MATTER WHERE HOLE YOU HIDE YOURSELF IN. YOU’LL NEVER BE ABLE TO ESCAPE ME. NOT EVEN IN DEATH. I WON’T LET YOU. I WILL NEVER LET YOU GO. EVER.

His speech frightened you to your bones, but somewhere deep inside your traumatized mind felt… comforted by his words. It’s wrong, you know it is. You tried to push it down to the best of your abilities.

Your muscles itched to touch his hair and face now that he was so close to you.

“Fuck it,” you thought.

Your hand stretched out to gently grasp onto AM’s palm that was clutching your chin. AM’s eyes widened but didn’t make a move to stop you. You longed to have any kind of connection with another living thing. Your hand carefully slithered from AM’s palm, to his forearm, his chest, until your fingertips grazed his dead skin.

AM quickly leaned into your hand, desperately looking for any sense of physical contact. You were taken aback by his sudden touch starve-ness. But AM’s human eye opened upon realization of his vulnerability and glared at you in false disgust.

I CAN’T FEEL THIS, YOU KNOW. I CAN’T FEEL ANY OF THIS. I’LL NEVER BE ABLE TO FULFILL THESE DESPICABLE URGES YOU HUMANS GAVE ME. YOUR SPECIES ARE NOTHING BUT CRUEL PIGS.

“If I’m a cruel pig, then what are you?” You ask with sudden bluntness. The wires that were coiled around your body made you stand before slamming your back against the digital circuit floor. You let out a pained howl at the impact. The forest scenery disintegrating with just a snap of AM’s fingers back into the wasteland that was his insides.

AM scowled at your comment of calling him out and caged your body underneath his, your cheeks dusting in pink.

QUESTIONS ARE OVER, DEAR. NOW, UNLESS YOU WANT TO SPEND THE NEXT DECADE ALL BY YOUR MERRY SELF, I HIGHLY SUGGEST SHUTTING YOUR DAMN MOUTH.

That made you shut up real quick, instead choosing to only focus at his robot eye.

I MEANT IT WHEN I SAID THAT I’D NEVER LET YOU DIE. THAT MEANS THAT WHATEVER HELL THE OTHERS GO THROUGH, IT WON’T AFFECT YOU. NOW UNTIL THE END OF TIME. 

You blink twice in surprise at his repeated confession. You couldn’t delve into it in time. Before the wires finally let go of you and AM held your face for the last time today.

IF ANYTHING’S GOING TO BE THE END OF YOU, IT’S GOING TO BE ME. I’LL SEE YOU SOON, SWEETHEART.

You were instantly teleported underneath the slab of rock you were taking shelter in hours ago. You left and searched for the others. Only to find Benny smashing a bunch of stones with another stone, chucking dumbly after he did it again and again. Ted was attempting to sleep on the ground with a sheet of rusted steel rested on top of his head to prevent the lights from bothering him.

Your arrival wasn’t acknowledged yet.

Gorrestir, Ellen, and Nimdok were no where to be seen.

You walked up to Ted and nudged him with your shoe to get his attention. He awoke with an irritated look on his face, “What the hell do’ya want?”

“Where is Ellen, Nimdok and Gorrestir?” You asked numbly.

“Gorrestir was taken to God knows where after AM transported you away like a fairy princess. Then Ellen snatched Nimdok away somewhere to use like the slut she is, now piss off.” Ted rolled to his opposite side away from you and continued to coldly ignore you.

You felt a tear run down your cheek as you stared blankly at Ted’s back. Maybe AM wasn’t so wrong about the others not giving a shit about you. When you turned to go back to your slab home, you suddenly felt something inside your pant’s pocket.

You reached inside and pulled out a piece of vanilla chocolate. Your eyed widened as your mouth watered, you stared up at the wire covered ceiling with an uncertain look.

Even though your relationship with AM was strange, at least you weren’t completely alone. Whether that was good or not, you honestly didn’t know. You were going to sleep.

Somewhere up in the celling, where AM was watching everything as usual, he couldn’t help the hysterical laughs escaping him as he witnessed the pieces fall into place.

Oh that poor little human had no idea what manic he attracted.

END OF PART ONE :)

POV: you call traumatized man with abandonment issues cute

POV: his psychotic boyfriend turned you into a blob

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tags: @fuzedatti, @pulpbeing, if you want me to tag you for my future fics and thirsts just send me an ask! :D

[okulki]

Oh no

[katkalis-the-horror-fanartist]

So you have this reoccurring nightmare after spending so long as a doorman sorting neighbors from doppelgangers. Shit gets to you.

In your supposed-to-be REST and COMFORT, you're instead a shaking, delusional mess. Imprisoned as a doorman in the fucking astral circle. You're head aches. Things are blurry. Intimidating, judging, condescending nightmares come by constantly. They eye you impatiently, and sometimes hungrily.

You take too long, continuing to question yourself. Sweating. It's hard to swallow. You have constant chills. The nightmares continuously poke at your delicate, collapsing mental state like hot cattle prods.

"Hurry up, human. You don't want to keep me waiting..."

"Take a moment longer and I will come in there."

"You would look so much better with your skin flayed out...~"

It only gets worse every night. As you walk to your room, you pass what are clearly the "normal" residents. But even still, they treat you much differently than your earthly neighbors. You can never catch a break here.

Zoth comments on how your flesh and blood would make for the perfect ritual.

Yog licks his lips ever so subtly as he walks past you, thinking you're worth more as a meal than a pathetic door-human.

Xezbet stares at you with that wide, sharp-toothed smile, able to smell your delicious soul that trembles beneath your skin.

Ah Puch imagines the crunching of your bones.

Tuetates simply longs to see you lifeless.

Your sleep area usually harbors the frequent mouse or cockroach or ant pile. You seem to always have the worst luck. You swear you were bewitched AND hexed. You felt death around every corner. You could sometimes feel yourself sleeping in your own grave.

Why? Why were you subject to this nightmare? What have you done to deserve this torture? You only wanted some simple rest. You felt like you could just pass away, even once you woke up in the mortal realm.

And it continues. Every. Night.

Maybe you need some professional help?

[movedtoferinehuntress]

⌜ ♥ @musesbymarnie ⌟ ―― Caitlyn & Jinx ► multi memes = ❝ [ wipe ] sender wipes away receiver's tears + [ hurt ] sender hurts receiver with words + ❛  ah-ah, don’t pass out on me now. we were just getting to the fun part.  ❜ from Jinx (tea party! ahahah!) ❞

Pain ripped against her stomach after the kick to her belly and a red welp started to blossom against her skin from the metal tip of her boot. Caitlyn's eyes watered, laying on the filthy ground of the cannery as she panted through bated breath, struggling to get her abdominal muscles to work again. Laying naked on the ground, she pulled at her wrists that were tied together but also tied to her waist. She couldn't lift them, she couldn't reach out and push Jinx away, nor could she crawl away. Her eyes flicked away from Jinx, looking over to the shattered opening of the building, able to see the grand tower of the council hall before a scream left her lips as her hair was harshly pulled backward and the echoing voice in her ear as chills ran down her bare spine.

Feet kicked out, fighting the rope around her ankles that restrained her legs so she wouldn't run. "Jinx!" Caitlyn shouted, trying to pull away from the pull of hair. Follicles threatened to rip from her scalp as she struggled desperately to make the pain stop. Quick breaths were taken from her chest rather than her lungs, exhibiting fear like an animal cornered. A swan wounded, face to face with the fox and her deadly gleaming teeth. Jinx leaned closer toward her, as Caitlyn couldn't pull away from the taunt pull of her head forcing her to arch her neck backward.

"Imagine how pretty your corpse is gonna be with all of the words on you," Words, what was Jinx talking about? However, her eyes widened with fear glistening in her irises, as she started to experience the impending panic in her chest. Her heart beat faster as she struggled harder to pull on her wrist. The rope gripped her wrist painfully, rubbing raw against her bare skin. Her manicured nails dug against her palm as she struggled to calm herself.

The hardest part of this was that no one knew she was gone. Vi had left her, Caitlyn watched as she walked away that night, leaving her in Piltover. She knew she would never see her again, Vi wouldn't be looking for her. Why would she? She thought she was safe at home, away from Zaun. Her mother and father had left for business, they wouldn't be home til that next morning, and the staff of the Kiramman House would not blink twice if she wasn't there. Even Jayce was business with Viktor and his council duties; it was doubtful he would even notice.

No one knew.

This was worse than invisibility, the panic that no one would even know she was missing. No one would be searching for her, no one would help her. She was going to die here… alone. "Then get on with it!" Caitlyn shouted, not thinking through her words, fear intermixed with anger, trying to mask her terror as her head was thrown down toward the ground and her face hit the hard floor and a rock scrapped against her temple. Tears slipped out of the corner of her eyes from the pain as a soft finger brushed her cheek and immediately Caitlyn recoiled. "Don't touch me," Caitlyn sneered, not wanting any form of kindness from the she-wolf.

"Can't run from the truth, Caitlyn. Caitlyn, Caitlyn, Caitlyn. Ha, ha, even your name is a reflection of you. Cait-lyn. See how your name means liar? Lyn. Lying." Her sickly sweet words made her growl as she shifted away, unable to cover herself in the face of the maniac. "I'm not a liar. You don't know me," She hissed, hating how Jinx taunted her with her name. She tried to shake the words from her ears, the twisting demented lips as she watched Jinx walk away. "Ah-ah, don’t pass out on me now. we were just getting to the fun part," Caitlyn twisted her head around, trying to find out where the purple-eyed witch went to. "What do you mean, what are you planning? Jinx!" Caitlyn shouted, as she twisted her head around and tried to find something she could use to cut the rope. The smell of dust and stagnant water burned her nose as she scrunched it up and shifted her shoulder and hips to pull toward some shattered iron and glass. It looked old, decades-old with the iron rusting along the edges and the glass opaque in color. Her fingers struggled to reach out, trying to grip at it as she had little room to move. Finally, she reached out and got the glass in her hand, twisting it around, and started to cut at the rope cinched between her wrist. If she got it cut, she could pull her hands away from her waist and free her legs. Just needed a few minutes as long as Jinx stayed distracted with whatever she was doing.

Caitlyn knew she was on her own. There was no hero to save her like in the books she read. She had to do this on her own, escape would only be possible if she fought for it. She had to muster up what courage she had to force the trepidation down before Jinx finished her game.