The Forgotten Zodiac

Yes, Werr had obviously been wrong. Werr shuddered, barely holding back a whimper. He had no idea how Cynyr was able to withstand that without screaming. Well, actually, he did know; Cynyr was vastly stronger than he was. Werr knew for a fact that the second he felt any of those knives on his skin, he'd be screaming his head off. He wouldn't be able to hold anything back like Cynyr was. He could only watch in horror, unable to help his friend as he became a bloody canvas to Dark's blades.

When Light loosened the rope a bit, he started squirming again, trying to force his other bonds to loosen. It was the only thing he could do, really...

Dark quickly grew agitated at Cynyr's lack of sound. "This is annoying me." he growled. "Honestly. Why aren't you screaming your head off by now?"

Cynyr glared ferociously, a thin trickle of blood dripping from the edge of his mouth.

Dark returned to his bag, now selecting a bigger blade that was more fitted to the profile of a sword. "Oooh, I've been waiting to use this one!" he said, turning back to Cynyr with a grin. "But first..." He ripped the other blades from the panther's body, finally causing a soft, pain-filled whimper to escape the mage's mouth. "So you can make noise." Dark said, grinning. "Fine then. If this doesn't make you scream, nothing will."

Cynyr clamped his jaw shut, fully expecting more sinister cuts or marks on his body, or for his other ear to be ruined by having some of it hacked off.

He didn't expect Dark to plunge the sword right into his stomach and twist it sharply.

Dark closed his eyes happily as Cynyr screamed violently, blood rushing up his throat and cascading down to the ground from the wound that had been torn into his body. Dark finally backed off once Cynyr's screams had dwindled to nothing but hoarse whimpers. If not for the ropes around his body, he would've fallen limply to the ground.

Light turned to Werr and said "Wasn't that just fun to watch? Yes, I think it was. Now I get to do it to you."

"C-Cynyr!" Werr gasped, before Light looked at him. He struggled all the more, shaking his head quickly. "No!" He yelped, trembling horribly at this point. He couldn't bring himself to look at Cynyr anymore, but he definitely didn't want to watch the damage being done to his own body. So he tilted his head back so he was facing the sky, closing his eyes for good measure as he braced himself to feel blades running through his body.

Light chuckled at this, saying "What's wrong, kid? Afraid of a little pain, are we? That's so...good." He grinned and picked up a small knife, then cut open the front of Werr's shirt to reveal his chest and abdomen. He studied him closely in a disturbing way, then shrugged and said "To heck with this. I'm going to get right to the point!" And he moved the knife forward and cut a long trench from the top of Werr's chest down to just above his navel. It wasn't deep enough to kill him. Light had done it expertly.

It was just to make Werr scream.

Werr did scream, but he forced himself to stop. He clenched his teeth so tightly that he thought one of them might crack. Tears streamed down his face. He didn't want to scream. Like Cynyr, he didn't want to give these freaks the satisfaction. And...he wanted to be strong. He wanted desperately to be strong. But it hurt, it hurt so much, and he knew more was coming...

What's the point in acting strong if you're just going to die soon? Obelisk chortled in the back of his mind. Oh, I'm sorry, did you think they were doing this solely for their own entertainment? Foolish child. Scream, Werr. Don't bother holding it back. Shall I torture you with memories while they torture you with blade? Or perhaps Necropolis' illusions will do the trick again?

Get out of my head...

Hmm, let me think. No.

Werr shuddered as he was forced to remember what all he had seen in captivity. Things his subconscious had locked away as he had come to reality again. The words, his writing them. The feeling of sheer horror and hopelessness as the illusionary Welk beat him again and again, Seria's words, Nate's teasing. Then he remembered Forin, stabbing him through the gut. That hadn't been an illusion. Werr fought back another scream as, yet again, his mind trailed to the image of his mother. Bleeding. Dead.

Light frowned sourly when he saw Werr struggle without his blade touching the boy. "Why does everyone want to mess with my prey?!" he snapped angrily. "Lord Obelisk, I respectfully ask you to get the heck out! I want to hurt him! I've been waiting for this!" And he promptly whipped the blade over Werr's arms in several thick slashes, glaring furiously.

Dark chuckled and said "Oh my. You've made him mad, my Lord." He looked over at Cynyr and reached into his bag, pulling out a small syringe full of clear liquid. He stabbed it into the half-cat's body and pumped it into him, watching as he quickly became active again. "I still want to play with you." Dark pouted, then flinched back when Cynyr snarled loudly at him. "G-get your f-filthy hands off of Werr...!" he hissed, flicking his tail rapidly.

"NO!" Light screeched, cutting several more trenches into Werr's arms. "I won't! What are you gonna do about it, huh cat?! Nothing! You can do nothing!" He cut Werr a few more times, then backed off, panting. "I'll get you more in the morning." he snarled. He turned and stalked off, leaving Dark to shrug and turn to the two captives with a smile. "Okay then." he said, slicing through Werr's bonds and letting him fall to the ground. "Let me fix you both up for the night and you can get some rest." He pulled a small chain that was magically enhanced to be next to unbreakable and wrapped it around Werr's neck, chaining him to the tree. He did the same to Cynyr, though he chained him first before he cut the ropes. Now the two boys could easily reach each other, though the first thing Cynyr did when he was somewhat free was try to murder Dark.

The white-dressed twin jumped back, shaking his head 'no'. "Bad kitty." he said, then walked off to find his brother.

Werr clutched his arms and crawled around the tree, moving as far away from Light and Dark as possible without strangling himself. He looked down at his mutilated arms and let out a sob, shaking and shivering as he curled up in the snow that was quickly turning red.

They weren't just left alone, though. Of course not. Necropolis came back a few minutes later, holding something that looked suspiciously like a human hand. "Oh? Where'd those twins go?" He blinked, looking around. His eyes fell on Werr, and he frowned. "Aren't you supposed to be dead already?" He paused, tilting his head a little one way as Obelisk spoke to him. "I don't think you should keep him alive, my lord. He's worth more to us dead, he'll just be a nuciance if those morons manage to save him again...screaming? What's with you and that? Fine, fine." He tromped through the snow, nudging Werr with his shoe. "Hey, don't fall asleep. The dark lord wants you to scream more, and I'm here to make it happen before Light gets back and starts whining again." Werr scrambled away from him, and back towards Cynyr, shaking his head. He didn't open his mouth, afraid that he really would scream if he did.

Cynyr shifted in front of the boy, growling threateningly. His stomach wound was still bleeding, but whatever Dark had given him had lessened the flow and made it impossible for him to go unconscious. "You s-stay away from him." he snarled, his ears tilted back angrily. He actually stood up, standing firmly in front of Werr. With all of the blood on him and the size difference between him and Necropolis, he made a foreboding figure. "I won't let you hurt him." he growled, flicking his tail several times. Then he got a nasty idea into his head and he used it. "Light!" he called as loudly as he could. "Necropolis is going to...play...with Werr!"

There was silence for a few moments and Cynyr thought his effort had been in vain. Then an explosion boomed out from the forest and Light teleported right in front of Necropolis, looking positively furious. "What part of I WANT HIM don't you people understand?!" he shouted. "I am perfectly capable of making him scream!" He turned and shoved Cynyr aside, knocking the panther over easily, then grabbed Werr and held him up. A knife slid from his sleeve and he stabbed it forward into the boy's leg, growling "If you don't scream right now I'll kill your friend in the most horrible way possible where you can see it and then tear your insides apart while you're still alive!" He slammed the boy back against the tree, hissing "Scream now!"

Dark had followed his brother back and was now repeatedly stabbing Cynyr's arms with a small knife.

Werr did, at last. He desperately tried to push Light off of him, screaming for all he was worth, as loudly as he could. His bloody fingers scrabbled at the blade in his leg as he gasped for breath between screams.. He did manage to nudge it a bit, but that caused him to scream even louder.
You never realize how sensitive and fragile a bone is until its injured. For example, a blade stabbed through a bone can very well be placed awfully high on the list of things that cause physical pain.

Necropolis watched for a moment with a dark look in his eyes, wanting very much to punch someone for that. He had been told to advance upon Werr, it wasn't his fault. Obelisk didn't seem to care, though. Necropolis turned on heel and moved away, not really caring to hear the bloodcurling screams.

Light sneered eviliy, then dropped him and let him sob. He ripped the blade out of the boy's body and said "There. Perfect."

"My word." Dark said, staring at his brother. "I've never seen you this angry, brother."

"SHUT UP!" Light screamed, rounding on his brother now. "You just shut up and leave me alone, brother!" He stalked to the edge of their little campsite and sat down. Dark immediately moved over, wrapping his arms around him in a hug. "Dear brother, I didn't mean anything by that. It's okay."

Light closed his eyes, just letting his twin hold him.

Cynyr sat up and moved over to Werr, easily reaching the boy and having slack to spare in his chain. He didn't say anything, just scooped him into his arms and held him close.

Werr clutched his leg as blood poured out between his fingers. He jerked and shook, the color draining from his face and whimpers escaping from his lips. "I...wa-wanted to...to be strong..." He spluttered, tears slipping down his cheeks still, dripping off of his jaw and mingling with the thick stream of blood pouring from his arms. "Wh...why ca-can't I...be strong...?" He sobbed weakly, feeling empty and pathetic.

Cynyr didn't say anything, just wordlessly placed his hand over Werr's leg wound. His own wounds were already healing slowly, thanks to him being a mage. The magic inside his body repaired any injuries much faster than a normal human, though his were still bad. Apparently, whatever Dark had shot into him had temporarily dulled his ability to heal himself.

Himself.

He concentrated and tried hard to do something good for someone else for once. He had never done something like this before and he sensed that it might not work at all, but he had to try. He slowly pushed all of his magic down into his hand, feeling coldness seep into every other inch of his body. He used his magic to heal Werr's leg all the way, then only managed some of the worse slashes on his arms before he had to withdraw his powers back into his entire body. The pain was terrible, but he withstood it. For Werr. He felt significantly drained once he had finished, knowing that if he regained the use of his powers, he still wouldn't be able to use them for several days. Possibly even a week.

He took cat form, relieved to find that his chain shifted to allow him to do so. He curled up around Werr, starting to gently, almost lovingly, lick the side of the boy's face.

Werr shivered, staring numbly at the spot where the knife wound had been. It was now just a gash in his fabric, and a thin white line that would likely fade in a few minutes. Werr relaxed, closing his eyes. Why did they even bother? He was far more worthless than Cynyr was. Than Cynyr ever could be. Werr pressed himself closer to the half-cat, knowing that the cold could claim his life just as easily as Light or Dark could. He kept his eyes shut and found himself slipping into sweet unconsciousness.

Yet he struggled to stay awake, knowing that the torment would just continue in the form of nightmares. He hadn't had a sleep undisturbed by his horrific dreams since Heather had died. He would be sleep-deprived, if it weren't for the constant healings, which usually lent him enough energy to keep going, as well as healed his wounds.

I really am pathetic, Werr thought before everything faded to black.

((We should just time-skip to the next torture sequence and stay with this group until the others arrive. I had nothing to add on their part. :I))

Cynyr reached out with a thick paw and pulled Werr's legs close to him, making sure that the boy was pressed against his thick black fur. The panther's fur was warm and full, though covered in blood in various spots, and the half-cat himself was a source of heat. He curled himself completely around Werr, more for protection purposes than comfort, and stayed awake for the entire night. The stuff Dark had given him didn't allow for sleep. He sighed as morning slowly dawned, his eyes dull and seemingly lifeless. He bent his head and licked Werr's head soothingly, cat-like and simple. He was actually a fairly nice person, deep inside. The terrible scars on his face meant nothing about his inner being. True, he was cold and not explicitly friendly, but here and now, when Werr was hurting, he became a gentle person that ignored his own suffering in favor of trying to help the boy who had helped him break through his hateful walls.

Werr had been stirring before Cynyr had started licking him. He shivered and opened his eyes, the pain of the gashes on his arms returning. He couldn't suppress a gasp as he felt that combined with his stiff body, which was so due to the cold. It had snowed overnight, leaving a fresh blanket over the red.

The boy is awake. Make him scream for me again. Obelisk's rattling voice called into Light's head this time. Then, when he can scream no longer, make it certain that he dies.

"Are you o-okay?" Cynyr asked softly, flicking his tail up to knock a few sprinkles of snow off of the boy. He had kept them off all night, so he saw no reason to stop.

Light and Dark had both been asleep, resting with their foreheads touching against each other. They both woke together when Obelisk spoke to Light, since Dark had felt his brother wake. Light stretched and yawned, then nodded and said "Whatever you say, Lord Obelisk." He was in a much better mood now.

Cynyr snarled when he heard Light speak, curling closer to Werr protectively. He didn't want to move, but he made himself stand up and push Werr behind him, not about to let these two idiots have their way with him without putting up a decent fight.

Light just stared at him through his black eyes, then said "Dark, get your cat under control. Honestly, you should train him better."

Dark nodded, then snapped his fingers and the chain around Cynyr's neck started to drag him backwards. Cynyr dug his claws into the ground, straining and fighting as much as he could against the crushing pull of the chain. He threw his head back, pulling against the chain, which didn't so much as budge.

Werr knew what was coming. He wasn't of use to Obelisk. He was just annoying, being able to use Cici and whatnot. His mind dully made the connection that Obelisk enjoyed the sound of screaming for some sick reason. So he did have one use.
He could still scream.
But when he couldn't do that any longer...Werr closed his eyes and cowered behind Cynyr. He was wanting to cry again, but he had grown dehydrated from the crying yesterday and the cold night after that.

He could do nothing to stop any of this.

Finally, Cynyr was forced away from Werr, still struggling against the chain that was pulling him. He twisted around so he could continue to face them, though that meant the chain was digging into his throat.

Light walked over to Werr and picked up the weakened boy by his neck, saying "Let's get started, shall we?" He had one of the bloodied knives from the previous night in his hand and he moved it forward, starting to work it in and cut deep patterns into the boy's skin, ripping his skin away from his flesh.

Cynyr roared and threw himself against his chain, but it held fast. The most he did was nearly snap his own neck.

Werr screamed. He didn't even try to hold back this time. He screamed and thrashed as much as he could, but he was weak and tired and it wasn't long at all before his screams gradually reduced to nothing but shuddering gasps and groans. He felt halfway dead already.

Light frowned at him, saying "That was all? Really? Forget this! I'll just kill you and Dark can share his with me."

Dark glared at him, saying "No I won't!"

Light started arguing with him, dropping Werr limply to the ground. Light was preparing a long sword to kill Werr with, despite arguing with his brother over their rights to torture Cynyr, who was still struggling against his chain.

He managed to find a way to shift his chain low enough so it dug into his collarbone instead of his neck. It still hurt, quite badly at that, but it wasn't as bad as his actual throat. He snarled when he saw Light finally move towards Werr with that darkened sword, holding it over the boy as he finished up his talk-fight with his brother.

Cynyr's instantly decided that his own pain was nothing if Werr ended up dead because of all this. In one smooth movement, the panther gathered himself completely onto his back legs, then lunged forward powerfully.

The sound of his collarbone breaking was nothing compared to the clean snap of the chain.

He bounded forward with a roar and slammed into Light right as the twin stabbed downwards with his sword. The result was the blade sinking into the ground mere inches away from Werr's body. He yelped and whipped another knife out of his sleeve stabbing it forward at Cynyr. The panther leapt to the side and he, Light and Dark all started fighting badly, landing terrible blows on each other.