Demon's Pit and Void

[Hot Champion_of_justice]

A dark and dank dungeon many have come to avoid.
Screams and cries of the tortured and sometimes forgotten, still haunt the halls of this grand place.

Many are usually kept in the pit in cells, but should you earn the ire of the King....there is a place almost forgotten, that is called the "Void"

It is a room down the stairs from the last known cell of the dungeon.

Deep underground, is a room all of black that drains ones energy, absorbs screams of terror and pain, and is a room where a few have died.  

[Hot Champion_of_justice]

Red Gypsy

Haeo

Lareth lead everyone down past the dungeons and onto the long descending stairwell. There was no lighting, but Lareth lead the way easily seeing in the dark.

When the two stumbled behind him, Lareth created several fire balls and placed them along the ceiling to light the way. The burned, but did not scorch or burn the stone.

Eventually they came to a black undecorated door.

Lareth pressed his hand against it and magic surged forward from the door and latched onto his hand. It drew blood from him before the magic released him and it swung open silently.

Inside of the room, the air was so still it was suffocating. A blue flame light hung from the ceiling revealing torturous devices many had never seen before.

Off to the side was a cell with padding on the floor for a bed. He opened it up and the bars hummed as they ignited in black flame from his touch.

"In here."  

[Red Gypsy]

Hot Champion_of_justice

Haeo

Ilea's crimson eyes were wide as they moved through the dungeon then gave a frightened whimper when she was carried even further down, only the flaming balls Lareth had created breaking the darkness that surrounded them. She had no idea what awaited her down here and that was the most terrifying part of it all for her. At least in Goh's dungeon, she'd known what to expect.

The darkness was oppressive, feeling like a crushing weight around her. Then they were inside the Void and her head turned fast as she looked at everything inside, her breathing beginning to increase with her fear.

She watched Lareth open the cell and ignite the bars before the ravens carried her inside and put her on the bedding before releasing her. Then the bindings Shale had around her body were released as well and returned to him, leaving her free to move. She didn't approach the bars of the cell, she knew better than that.

Instead, she sat up and put her back to the stone wall and pulled her legs to her chest and wrapped her arms around them as she shivered in terror, her long dark hair spreading down her back and the only thing covering her now. What had happened to the crimson leather she'd been wearing for the fight, she had no idea.

She shivered as she sat there but not from cold, from her fear. Her crimson eyes were wide as she watched the door to the cell close and jumped when it clanged shut, sealing her in, breathing hard as her fear began to take over her mind.

She simply knew she wasn't going to be coming out of here alive, no matter what Shale thought. This was effectively an Oubliette, a place of forgetting, where one put people to forget about them and let them die slowly.

Down here, as long as that blue flame was burning, she would have to stare at the devices that filled the rest of the room. She would have to look at them and wonder at what they did, knowing that she would be finding out before long. That only increased her fear. The still air in the room wasn't helping either, showing her that once the door was shut and they were gone, they would be taking the air flow with them.

She was used to torture, but nothing like this. She'd been cut and sliced, experimented on in numerous and painful ways, burned, flayed. The list was endless. But in here? This room was more terrifying to her than anything Goh had ever done to her.  

[Haeo]

Red Gypsy

Hot Champion_of_justice

Shale followed wordlessly. He only stumbled once on the stairs, his rushed spell casting and the smooth stone conspired to disorient him briefly. The flames did assist. The golem, of course, did not need any assistance. It could see perfectly no matter the light or darkness. He had crafted it to be a perfect archer after all.

He kept an inward watch on Ilea's condition. He knew that she did not believe that this would be temporary. He also knew that her fear and pain could go quite a distance toward healing the wounds of those she had injured. However, he only allowed his confidence to show through the blood bond until they reached the chamber itself. The fact that the King had to use a blood key to unlock the chamber's seal spoke of the secondary reason for putting her there. If that level of magic was required to open it then Goh would be unable to seek her until she was removed. The torture devices were both intrigueing and, in some rare cases, disturbingly familiar to the devices his family had used to train him in torture resistance. These memories he kept closely hidden, Ilea needed to endure these things unaided. If Shale sought to moderate her punishment it would only worsen both her lot and his own odds of success.

Stepping into the room broke his line of thought. He attempted to keep it concealed but the chamber's nature was to sap the energy of those within. He kept his golem outside to avoid damaging it but he could not help but weave on his feet as he felt a wave of weakness wash over him. A small part managed to slip past his momentarily weakened control of the blood bond. In spite of his spells and golems, he actually stored very little magic in his body at a time. His abilities made him very similar to the proverbial 'glass cannon' This room... a few days here would kill him, even without torture.

His ravens did as instructed, depositing Ilea on the bedding and returning to the hall behind him to perch on the golem for the time being. The restraints returned to him as well but their fundamental form had been altered and they were no longer able to perform any other function. He had them attach themselves to two of the three ravens on the golem without binding them. The combination gave him an idea but he would not be able to think clearly until he was back in a place that did not drain him so badly.  

[Red Gypsy]

Hot Champion_of_justice

Haeo

Ilea said nothing as Lareth told Shale to wait outside the room then stood there staring at her. Her crimson eyes watched Shale move outside the room then looked at Lareth. They kept moving over the various devices but always returned to Lareth.

She could already feel the room sapping at her own energy and had to wonder how long she would last in here. A few days? A week? A month? Longer? She had no idea since she couldn't die unless Shale allowed her to. At least, that was the theory, what she'd been told about the master/servant connection she lived with.

But she'd died numerous times during her treatment under Goh. Yes, he'd revived her each time, but she really had no idea how that part of the connection truly worked. Or if the closing of the door would block that connection and allow her to die anyway.

She knew that in a matter of moments, Lareth would leave. He would close that door and leave her down here alone. In the dark and cold. With nothing to do but stare at those devices and wonder when he would use them on her, wonder what they did and how they were used. She could only guess at the amount of pain they would give her.

A part of her wanted to beg not to be left here, for them not to leave her alone. But as she looked at Lareth's face, into his eyes, she knew that no amount of begging would save her from that, or from anything at all.

She kept shivering, unable to stop it. Her hands moved over her legs then wrapped around them tightly then repeated the action as her eyes danced around the room but always kept returning to Lareth, wondering if he was going to say anything to fill the silence or if he was going to simply turn and leave.

She kept reminding herself that she'd survived everything Goh had done to her, tried to tell herself that she could survive this as well. But she knew the truth. She could see it in the burning hatred and anger in Lareth's eyes. He would make sure that she truly knew what fear and pain were before he was finished with her.  

[Haeo]

Red Gypsy

Hot Champion_of_justice

Shale made his way to the doorway slowly and positioned himself just outside as he had been ordered to. He immediately felt better and, while he was aware of Ilea's extreme distress he knew that he could not help her. Also, he had to prepare as quickly as possible for the trap, yet... his King wanted to hear what he had learned from Ilea's memory first. He looked at his ravens while thinking. How would he guarantee that that room would not block his access to her memories?

The raven golems had proven impressively versatile. Perhaps they would serve yet another minor function. One of the three ravens was still unaltered. He called it to his arm without a sound and began examining it both magically and physically. He found what he was looking for. His staff glowed briefly in his hand as he awakened his blood in the raven, linking it to the blood bond while King Lareth finished... whatever he was going to do at the moment. The link would softly copy all the memories linked to the name 'Goh' and store them within the raven. The strain of such an undertaking would likely destroy the golem within an hour or two but that would likely be sufficient to relate the information to the King.  

[Hot Champion_of_justice]

Lareth watched Ilea and made mental notes. Not only on her reactions, but how Shale was acting. Though the mage did everything Lareth told him, he could see that the wheels in the man's mind were rapidly running.

Did the mage have his own set of plans?

Was the mage only pretending to be loyal in order to get rid of opposition from the other two traitors before he set upon Lareth? Or was he simply naive and honestly was loyal and simply trying to help in any way possible?

Lareth would never know, but he would find out soon.

He looked back to Ilea and spoke softly. His voice not echoing or carrying to far.

"You will come to know true pain and fear while you are here. You will be repaid for all the hurt and misery you and your former master have inflicted upon innocents.

You will not die in this room, but you will wish that you had when I am done with you.

I will come and visit you and we shall 'talk' while Shale works on his spire for you. Until then....i suggest you relish each breath you take....each blink....because soon.....one day soon....you won't be able to do that. And there is no....coming back for you."

Lareth waved his hand and she was dressed in a rough spun tunic and pants. When she was at least clothed, he turned and left the room. He looked to Shale.

"Let us go up top. We have much to discuss."

Lareth led the way upstairs back to the dungeons as the big black door shut and sealed Ilea inside.

((exit))  

[Red Gypsy]

Hot Champion_of_justice

Haeo

Ilea said nothing as Lareth spoke to her, saying nothing she didn't expect. She didn't expect him to dress her, though, and was grateful for the warmth of the rough homespun material.

But when he left, she watched him go then jumped with a soft gasp as he closed the door, sealing her inside.

The first thing she did was look up at the blue flame and noted that it still gave off plenty of light for her to see by, but nothing more. The walls were still kept in shadow, giving the feeling that she was locked in one big shadow. It made her feel very claustrophobic.

After that, she noticed the silence. The sound of her breathing echoed through the room, but she heard nothing else. It only emphasized how alone she was right now. She tried to slow her breathing, acutely aware that she might have only the air that was inside the room since she could discover no other way for air to circulate.

She eventually slowed her breathing and laid down on the pad she was sitting on, curling up to help herself get a bit warmer. But her eyes kept moving and she kept jumping at every imagined sound or movement she thought she saw.

The room was very unnerving and kept her on edge, to the point that she knew she wouldn't be able to sleep. She could at least tell that the bond that was keeping her alive would continue to do so, even if she could feel absolutely nothing from Shale.

So she was very much alone...  

[Haeo]

Red Gypsy

Hot Champion_of_justice

"Yes, Sire." The Baron said quietly.

Shale managed to complete the copy into the raven's blood core just moments before he was called upon to follow king Lareth and the door sealed the room shut and the information flow stopped. He hadn't realized how rapidly he had become accustomed to its presence in his mind until it went silent. He actually missed a step and fell to his knees, hard. He shook his head vigorously and rose to his feet, climbing quickly to catch up to the King. He had never been faced with the prospect of a distraction inside his own head. He began to wonder if it would make his casting more difficult. Some of the more delicate stages of the spire crafting would involve enormous amounts of magic in very unstable states. Distractions could be a serious problem.

For now, he could spare no thoughts for the girl who had been so accidentally added to his head. He had several matters of far higher priority to attend to. First, the needs of his king needed to be addressed. Information of this kind would best be conveyed directly, without the filter or interference inherent in speach. He devoted the time involved in the walk to two things; instructing his golem to attach itself to the movements of the castle guardian and assist in any engagements that may arise, and also the reshaping of the interior structure of the raven's blood crystal core so that it could release the information stored within it directly into the mind of another person according to the request issued by them. He then used his own memory of the king's voice to key it to his command. These precautions flowed naturally from his mind without hesitation.

Then he realized what he was doing. He was watching his back, taking steps to protect himself from King Lareth. Why? It was instinctive. This was not the first man of uneven temper that Shale had lived under. His cautious and overeager stance followed naturally from centuries of habit. He had seen this kind of action before. Even though he knew it was more thoroughly thought out and done for the right reasons, even though he knew it wasn't forever. He couldn't help but be reminded of the way his mother had died. She hadn't even been part of the family when the failed coup had occurred. She had told him about how she was captured during the family's flight from the capital.

She was sealed into a well and allowed to starve to death when Shale was in his twenties because she failed to finish dinner preparations on time. He could still remember the sound of her crying, softly, in the dark.

King Lareth knew what he was doing. He was not doing anything beyond his authority as King. He could do far worse and still not equal the kind of pain caused by Ilea in her past. But... that did not make it easier for Shale to conquer his memories. Between focusing on the spells he was modifying and wrestling with his own inner enemies he had precious little attention left for the world around him until the king stopped.

((Exit))  

[Red Gypsy]

After a few hours, even the sound of her breathing became loud to Ilea and her ears began to ring a bit with the silence.

A few hours more and her body became tired with the constant jumping to imagined sights and sounds and she began to drift off to sleep. But she didn't stay asleep for very long, her fear of her situation ensured that.

She knew she had no choice on what was to happen to her here and her mind supplied plenty of imagined scenarios on what the devices on the other side of the door would do to her. It didn't help much that she could think of nothing that would save her from any of it.

She knew by now that there was nothing she could tell Lareth that would stop him from whatever he had planned for her.

There was no way for her to judge time down here, so she had no idea how long she'd been in here. But she did find herself hungry after a while but silently told herself to ignore it, knowing that only Lareth would be able to open the door, that only he would be bringing her food or water. But she simply knew that he wouldn't be doing so.

She was down here for torture, not as a guest. Things like food and drink, baths, and brushes were all for guests, not prisoners.

But she did admit to herself that she was glad Lareth wasn't a necromancer. If she died down here, he wouldn't be able to bring her back as one of the walking dead Goh had serving him. Of course, her bond with Shale wouldn't allow her to die unless Shale wanted her to, so death wasn't on the table for her.

Which left her with her thoughts again as her crimson eyes moved over the various devices on the other side of the bars. None of those thoughts were comforting. In fact, they were terrifying...  

[Silquestnocte]

A stark white slip of paper wriggled under the door, if there had even been a shred of light, it would have glowed due to it's stark difference from the black that was the pit.

It folded upon itself, turning into a paper airplane, a minuscule item as it's payload. It flitted through the darkness through the bars that held Ilea. Then, it began to glow with the light of black flames. The airplane unfolded itself, revealing a ball of dried herbs, no bigger than the tip of a pinkie. It smelled slightly floral, but bitter.

At the top of the note, there was a small rune written in blood, then a message written out in a steady hand. The paper smelt faintly of soap and the spicy scent of cloves.

Eat this,just chew and swallow, it will dull the pain, and decrease your metabolism so you don't starve to death. I'll try to get some food down to you when I can.

I promise it's not poison, just a bit of something I picked up in Greece. Have faith dollface.
You have caught my attention, simply know that there's someone on your side here, even if it may not seem that way.
-M

P.S. As soon as you finish reading this, take the herbs and drop the paper. It'll burn itself away after a moment. "

Malphas had indeed picked up a bag of tricks while working for Deluge, there wouldn't be anything to tie him to this, after all, right now he was fire-proofing all the tapestries across the castle for the umpteenth time with a group of trusted staff.

Of course, with a bit of self control, he could send little notes like this several miles away on a stiff breeze, but who knew that besides him?

Red Gypsy

Hot Champion_of_justice

Haeo

 

[Red Gypsy]

Silenced Nocturne

Hot Champion_of_justice

Haeo

Ilea froze the moment she heard the paper then didn't dare move as it flew through the room and somehow managed not to get burned up by the black flames that burned over the bars of her cell before it landed right in front of her. She hesitated, wondering if this was something conjured up by the room to torture her mind.

But she looked at the herbs and recognized a few of them in the mix, proving that the words on the paper were true that far. She looked the script over one more time then dropped the note over the stone floor and set the herbs down on her 'bed' to stare at them.

It was tempting to want to dull any pain but she knew Lareth would know the difference. The reason the herbs were tempting to her was for the other property mentioned. She could handle pain, after all. But the pain of starving was one she really didn't wish to repeat.

But what to do? From what she knew of Shale, she should report this immediately. But what she was facing down here? That lead to a whole like of different thoughts that all lead to survival.

So what did she do?

She had no idea what to do. Technically, she should report it all and give the herbs over when Lareth came back. That would be the right thing, according to what she'd learned of Shale, her new master. But Lareth terrified her on a whole new scale and being trapped down here wasn't helping that at all.

Something made her hesitate to take any of the herbs right now so she simply put them on the floor between her 'bed' and the wall. Not exactly hiding them, but not revealing them either.

The whole note thing confused her. When had she ever had the chance to make a friend?

But she'd apparently gained someone else's notice at some point, someone who knew exactly where she was.

She finally pushed it all out of her mind and did her best for what she knew was going to happen all too soon. So she settled herself on the 'bed' and closed her eyes, doing her best not to shiver with her fear and imagined cold.

She didn't wonder what was going to happen to her. She knew it all too well. She was going to die. But not until her usefulness had come to an end. Until then, she knew her life would be pain. It was so familiar. She'd lived with pain since the first moment she'd opened her eyes.

But this time? Oh, this time it was all she could do not to break down in tears. Somehow she managed it, to keep herself in control. But it wasn't easy...  

[Hot Champion_of_justice]

Red Gypsy

The silence seemed to drag on forever but soon the flames of Ileas cell began to brighten some.
Their master had returned.

Lareth entered through the door and looked around as it shut completely behind him. When he sensed nothing was amiss he strode over to her cell casually, his hands in his pockets.

Clothed all in black the only thing that stood out about him was his pale skin and his red eyes.

He stopped in front of her cell and looked down at her.

"Are you ready to 'play' my dear? Because I sure am."  

[Red Gypsy]

Hot Champion_of_justice

The sound of the door opening and closing was like a 'boom' to Ilea's ears after the silence of the room. She raised her head to watch Lareth walk over to the cell and didn't bother to hide the shiver of fear that moved through her at his words.

Truthfully, she wasn't ready at all. But she knew there was no choice.

She got to her feet and approached the door to the cell, her hands gripping at the homespun pants she was wearing. She waited there for him to open it in silence and finally took in a deep breath, reminding herself that she'd been through torture before.

While that helped her steady herself outwardly, it was obvious from one look at her crimson eyes that her fear hadn't abated one bit.  

[Hot Champion_of_justice]

Lareth saw her fear and he couldn't help but feel a twinge of excitement. He crushed the feeling as quickly as he could. He had to remain in control...he would remain in control.

When she said nothing he reached out and touched the bars of flame. They went out at his touch and he opened her cell.

He said nothing as he took her by the hand and lead her out of the cell.

It was strange as he was being gentle somewhat right before he was about to torture her.

He didn't take her to the table that was always in constant sight....no, he took her to a rack that looked painful as the cuffs and chains had spikes facing inward. So when he would cuff her arms and ankles, the spikes would be embedded in her skin.

Lareth whistled as he helped her onto the rack and couldn't help but smirk as when he chained her down, she gave soft gasps as the spikes sank into her soft skin.

Once she was chained he went over to a nearby wall cabinet and unlocked it with a key he produced from his pocket.

When the cabinet opened, she could see the gleaming tools he was going to use on her.

If she thought her former master was terrible....well....she didn't know Lareth's true demonic side.


"Now my dear, here is how its gonna go. First of all, we are going to go over some information I have on your former master. During that time I will be doing on to you, what he did to my beloved when he thought it wise to kidnap my woman.

After that, we will be discussing your future, as I 'play' with you and see how much pain you can actually take.

If you are barely alive or cannot take more than what I expect, then you shall be thrown back into your cell until I decide that I want to dissect you some more. Perhaps a removal of a few appendages? Eyeballs? Hmm.....perhaps your tongue?

What do you think?"