Kotetsu hadn't given up on trying to get out of whatever torture chamber he had been locked in, but pain racked his body every time he tried to move a muscle, and his head was pounding. The plastic band that bound his hands behind the chair he was strapped to cut into his skin. Heavy shackles weighed down his legs. Being uncomfortable and in pain was nothing new for the veteran hero, but being attacked hourly in a pitch black room with no windows and no warning was frightening. He would grit his teeth and after a while they would return to whatever god forsaken hole they had come from. Alone again, Kotetsu would think of his daughter. He had been driving to her dance rehearsal
before he had been captured. Hell, he had been there. Walking through the crowd, finally going to see his daughter dance, finally going be there for her like the father she deserved. And just when he had finally found her face in the crowd, a sharp pain in his neck and sudden drowsiness had overcame him.
What happened after that?
Where was Barnaby? Why wasn't he here yet? What were the rest of the heroes doing? Sometimes he imagined he could hear their voices coming from just outside the room. Sometimes he would close his eyes and see the body of his dead wife, Tomoe. Then he would open them in a panic and he would still see her.
His torturers didn't give him any food to eat. They would just drench him in water every few hours
to keep him awake. He was beginning to hate them. Hate. The heat and the intensity of the feeling was new to him. It burned through him and made his blood race. Some part of him was frightened of the hate, and of the horrible doubts that plagued him.
After one of his beatings, the lights had turned on, blinding him. It had taken a while for his eyes to adjust but when they had, he could see a boy about Barnaby's age looking down at him smugly.
"You look terrible, Wild Tiger." The boy's voice and tone brought snakes to mind even though both were outwardly pleasant. Kotetsu's response was slightly delayed, but when it came it was hoarse and raspy.
"I wish I could say the same about you."
"Tsk tsk. Now is that anyway for a hero of justice to respond?" He gave a signal and Kotetsu heard a sharp blow followed by searing pain on his back. His body jerked and the bands around his wrists dug deeper into his flesh. Stars burst in his field of vision. "Now seems like a good time to tell you that you have been selected to take part in a little experiment of ours. I call it "What It Takes To Break A Hero". Criminals everywhere would pay good money to find out, and with your powers gone you're a perfect candidate." Kotetsu tried his best to express his feelings of gratitiude and appreciation with a snarl. The boy took a step back. "Ooo scary. So defiant despite all you've been through... I guess it's time to bring out the big guns. Gus, bring the newspaper article!" The sounds of shuffling feet and rustling papers followed. Someone, presumably Gus, thrust a newspaper article at the boy with a large hammy fist. The blond hair boy smiled at the article like it was one of his favorite and then held in front of Kotetsu's face.
"Dance Studio Burns To The Ground. Such an apropos title. Wouldn't you agree, Wild Tiger-san? I think you'll recognize the town." no. no. no. ..!
"WHERE'S KAEDE, YOU BASTARD? WHERE'S MY DAUGHTER?" Desperate and shrill, the words echoed inside the tiny room as he strained against his binds. Something sent electricity coursing through his body and slumped in his seat. Still glowering at the horrible boy in front of him. Hardly a boy, hardly a man, more like a monster. He hadn't flinched when Kotetsu had lunged at him, only quirked his lips in a smile.
"I think that's enough for today gentlemen. Let's give Wild Tiger san some time to digest." He went to follow his men but paused at Kotetsu's side. "You should probably try to get comfortable here, Tiger san. Your friends have already abandoned you." He whispered something else but Kotetsu wasn't listening. Kaede dead? That's not possible. This world can't keep turning without her. My daughter... not a fire. She didn't die in a fire. She didn't die without me there. She didn't die afraid and alone and...
"I'm scared, Daddy. Save me." Kotetsu threw his head back and screamed.
Next Day
The blond haired boy came into visit Kotetsu sometime later. There was no way to tell the difference between night and day in the room. Kotetsu remembered screaming for hours. Every time he stopped, he could hear his daughter begging for her father to come and save her. He heard her whimpering, scared and alone. He looked at the boy with haunted eyes. He struggled to get his tongue to move properly to form words.
"What are you going to tell me today, brat? Did my partner place a bid for my organs on Ebay? Is global warming my fault because I didn't try hard enough to save the ozone layer?... Did Santa Clause die?" A sardonic grin spread across his face as he braced himself for a shock. It came.
"It's good to know you still have your sense of humor, Tiger san."
"Hardly."
"But you make a good point. What am I going to do with you? I have you tortured 24/7. I tell you the Dance Studio your daughter was in burned to the ground. I even told you you've been abandoned and no one is coming to save you. What do I have to do to break you, Tiger san?" They stared at each other for a few moments in silence.
"... Wait, did you actually expect me to answer that?"
"Was I not clear enough?" Kotetsu waited for a blow. When none came, he pretended to think of an answer.
"You know..." He paused for effect. "I think if you jumped off a cliff I would get really choked up. Maybe even cry. You should go and test out that theory. I'll wait here." Disappointment flooded the boy's face. And then went the electric shock. If Kotetsu had to take one more of those he wasn't sure he'd be able to stay conscious.
"If you're thinking about falling unconscious you can forget it. We have plenty of adrenaline that wil wake you right up. Considering your wounds, I'd rather not increase your heart rate too much so try not to force our hand." Force our hand? For an instant, Kotetsu imagined the boy writhing in flames. Screaming in agony. He imagined watching as the boy begged him to save him. And he imagined himself smile as he walked away.
He shook his head with enough force to make him dizzy. Heroes of justice didn't think such thoughts. He'd be just like Lunatic if he left a criminal to die. It wasn't like him. But then, that was the point of the experiment wasn't it? To find out how much it took to "kill" Kotetsu Kaburagi. For that day's session, the boy brought in a TV and turned on the news. Barnaby was saving people. All by himself. There was no mention of a search party for Kotetsu. He thought about all the times Barnaby and the newscasters said Barnaby was better off on his own. Better off without his aging, bumbling partner. The blond haired boy watched it with him. Sitting on the floor like a child. Careful to avoid any blood that had sprayed or dripped. At one point, he noted, "You know, I've been watching you for a while. And I've always thought that you'd make a much better villain than a hero." He spoke earnestly. Like he hadn't said it to get a reaction out of him or to torture him.
Kotetsu studied him for a moment before saying, "For a long time, I thought the same thing."
The boy looked up at him curiously, "And now?"
"I have no powers now." The boy smiled. It made him look handsome and charming. It made his passing resemblance to Barnaby even more disconcerting.
"Neither do I. But I still think I make a pretty good one." Silently, Kotetsu agreed. The kid had played him like a violin, and he had let him.
Next Day
"Hey, the torture last night was a little lax. Don't tell me you guys are tired already?" Shock. The boy raised an eyebrow in annoyance and Kotetsu realized he hadn't given the signal to taser him. Well that was a nice surprise.
"Today we're going to introduce you to your roommate. She's been here for a few days but she was told not to bother you or you know..." A young girl was dragged into Kotetsu's field of vision. "She'd lose another ear." Pure horror made his blood run cold. It was true. The young girl was missing an ear. Her
blond hair had been shorn off and she was covered from head to toe in blood and dirt. Her eyes were wide with fear and hunger. Her small body shivered under the firm grasp of Gus. The boy looked at her with amusement.
"Tiger san, meet my sister, Alice. It seems our parents got into a horrible and completely accidental car crash after their car was accidentally sabotaged and poor Alice was placed under my loving guardianship. Gus here has grown especially fond of her." I don't like this.
"Oi oi. What is this? What are you doing?" The boy grinned. "Go ahead and show Tiger san how fond you've grown of her, Gus." The girl screamed and tried to run away. Gus picked her up and slammed her on the ground. Her head hit the concrete with a loud crack and she was silent. Kotetsu yelled and struggled. She was around Kaede's age. Gus tore off her clothes and- He screamed as flames
enveloped him. Kotetsu recognized them immediately as Lunatic's. The boy did too. He ran for the door only to find it blocked. "Wait, Lunatic! I'll take care of him." Lunatic grabbed the boy but did not kill him. He took in Kotetsu's ravaged body and the unconscious girl on the floor.
"Oh, and how are you going to take care of this monster? With your brand of justice?" Kotetsu grimaced, both at the pain and at the sight of the flaming corpse next to the little girl. She was still breathing, at least.
"Free me and you'll find out." Flames melted his shackles like butter and Lunatic stroked the plastic binds around his wrists. It was enough just to melt them. Kotetsu stood up and said, "Take off your shirt. Your sister needs some clothes." The boy took off his shirt frantically and handed it over. Kotetsu gently covered the girl before he approached Lunatic. "I want to torture him. I want to cover him and water and then hit him with a taser. I want you to light him up in flames so I can watch him burn... Does that disappoint you?" Lunatic glanced at the little girl at the floor.
"In other circumstances, it might have. But not now." The boy broke out into maniacal laughter.
"We did it. You're broken. We broke you, Tiger san! The experiment was a success! You-" His words gave way to shrill screams as Lunatic's flames enveloped him.