Entry for Mika's contest.
The Prologue was originally going to be longer but if I did add the rest on it would have been too long and also I like having epicness and cliff-hangers too.
Disclaimer: I do not own anything TMM related. Basic Plot line isn't mine either
Well, enjoy.
Prologue
The darkness was frightening in this place and he found it especially chilling. He was caged up in a small room with four, filthy walls and a set of rusted, bloodied manacles in the farther corner of the room. Outside the tiny window, he could see nothing but the blackness and the metallic mesh that sat over the glass. He found the place so claustrophobic that he barely managed to find the room to allow his lungs to expand and welcome in the refreshing air that stank of cleaning substances.
Tonight, there was a suspicious taste of metal in the air and an eerie silence to follow it. He knew better than to welcome in the silence, even at his young age. He had been there long enough to know that the silence was never a good sign around here. It seemed that everyone had the same churning he had in his stomach as the sounds of shoes had rippled through the air hours earlier. It had been two young men, one blonde and the other brunette, stalking after a doctor who showed them up a certain path. The boy himself didn't know what the men were talking about, but it was something big.
And it would probably have something to do with one of them.
Tonight, he told himself, tonight someone will vanish. Curling up into a tight ball, the boy pressed himself further back into his room, not wanting him to be the victim of the night. He would either enter and never come back out, or he'll come back out a changed person. He accepted the fact that if he was chosen, it would more than likely be the first point – nobody would want to keep him, right? He wasn't useful to anyone, right?
Upon his mental notes, there was a loud click of a heavy lock opening from a metallic door – his door. His eyes flushed with panic and he brought his legs out, kicking his small frame back and back until he bumped into the cold wall. He shivered upon the sight of the doctor dressed in his clean, white uniform and the flicker of blonde behind him. The blonde man was alone this time – minus the doctor – and stood at the door with his arms folded, his azure eyes riddled with malice and curiosity.
"That one?" He questioned, nodding his head in the young boy's direction as he cowered in the corner. The doctor smiled and nodded, his yellowed teeth flashing darkly.
"Yes. He's got the right type you want. Though, you might wanna ignore his..." The doctor trailed off. He spun to the blonde and pointed a crooked finger to his ears, before he turned back to the boy, still trying to back off from the pair as much as he could. The doctor strode over to him, crouching down and hauling the boy up by his dark hair. The little boy winced and thrashed out at the man, who held the boy out a distance, threatening to hoist him up off the ground. "Rascal, ain't he? I suppo-"
"Don't hurt him. I want him to go through with this untainted" The blonde commanded in a cool tone, adjusting the collar of his black shirt. The doctor stammered for a while, trying to explain something to the blonde, who clearly wasn't listening. The blonde stared at the small boy for a moment, before turning and stalking out and into the dim corridor.
The boy blinked, unsure of what was happening as the doctor's firm grip on him vanished and was now a simple hand pressed lightly onto his shoulder, beckoning for him to carry on. The boy surprisingly obliged to go on, stepping at a fast pace out of his room and into the atmosphere of the world outside. The doctor seemed somewhat surprised at first, his misshapen face creasing as he looked down the bridge of his nose at the boy. He noticed the boy glancing around rapidly, as if searching for something. This continued until they landed on the blonde male. The doctor grimaced. The man who showed him some kindness, of course he'd be eager to follow suit, the doctor concluded.
The boy raced after the blonde, almost slipping over on the tiled flooring as he pursued him. The blonde didn't seem to notice him as he continued out of the corridor and down the descending stairs. That is, until he felt a tug on the back of his shirt. The older male froze and glanced over his shoulder, looking as though he was expecting something or someone else – until his eyes landed on the small boy.
The blonde blinked and examined him. He actually never got a good look at the boy when locked up in his cell, but now he could see everything clearly. The boy looked about six, maybe seven and reached just up to his hips. Thick, black hair stuck out in several directions, only some strands clinging to his sweat ridden face. His blue eyes were slightly glazed over, yet the blonde could still see the desperation inside of them. Dressed up in a white shirt that was far too big for him and a little pair of shorts underneath, the boy matched the dress code of the place completely – minus the belts being snaked around him. He could also see the point the doctor was making when he motioned to his ears – there weren't any. Instead, two stumps stuck out on either side of his head, plastered over with white bandages.
"This child is-"
"He can still hear you" The doctor spoke, finally catching up to the pair.
The blonde looked up to the doctor and then back down to the boy, whose grip was growing more firm by the minute.
"But barely though, the whole of his ears aren't there, minus what remains of the channel and his ear drums – although they are damaged. It's a wonder that he can hear anything at all" The doctor spoke professionally, cleaning his glasses on his white coat as he did.
"Then, why is he locked up here?" The blonde questioned, looking at the boy with kindness.
The doctor scoffed. "No offence, sir, but society these days won't allow it – you know what it's like. You're not perfect enough, if there's something noticeably missing, you're mad, that's how it goes" The doctor spoke with fake sympathy as he eyed the near death boy.
The blonde turned away, not at all bothered by the boy clinging onto him and proceeded down the stairs, ensuring to keep a pace that was safe to the small child. The three continued down the stairs, ignoring doors that passed into other corridors. Some of these doors were bordered up in such a way that only staff could go inside. The little boy clung tighter to the blonde as they passed these doors, all echoing with eerie voices and noises. Sometimes, the doctor would bang his fist on the doors and order silence from those on the other side, very rarely getting quiet as a reply. The little boy noticed the old man's eyes flare up with rage as his fist hit the doors and pushed himself to have a tighter hold on the blonde.
"This is it" The blonde eventually spoke as they, finally, approached the end of the staircase. Before them, dead on the end of the stairs, stood a huge, metal door. The door was covered in mesh and barricaded with several signs portraying words such as "Do not disturb" and "Specialised Personnel Only". There was no light in the place outside the door at all, not even in the small gap beneath it. It was just complete blackness. As the blonde stepped hastily towards the door, pulling the boy involuntarily with him, the doctor who had plucked the child from his room disappeared off into the darkness and left with the sounds of his heels tapping against each step, slowly fading away later.
The boy looked behind him, gawking up at the tower of stairs above him, before whimpering and burying his face into the other male's back. The blonde sighed, twisted the door-knob and hauled the heavy door open. "I've brought one, the doctor said he's the type we want" He announced to what seemed to be thin air.
Peeking past the blonde, the child surveyed his new surroundings as the door slammed shut behind him. There was light in the room after all, though it was rather dim and gave the air a cold feeling. Before the two of them sat two desks, all piled up with different heaps of paper and used pens scattered across their wooden skin. Behind them stood a long, thin table stacked up with open books, glass vials with different coloured liquid within them and a variety of clothing and clothing materials. There stood a man. He seemed rather tall, a bit taller than the blonde man and had chocolate coloured hair that sat between his pointed shoulder blades in a ponytail. He was dressed up in a black shirt, just like the blonde man; however he allowed his sleeves to roll all the way down to his wrists, unlike the blonde who had them to his elbows. He also had a smart, black tie on too and a pair of clean, ironed trousers.
The brunette turned to them, a thick pair of glasses on his nose and a vial in his hand. He smiled. "Well, how about that for timing, Ryouta. It is ready just now" He spoke, a proud tone reeking in his fragranced breath. The blonde, Ryouta gave his friend a small smile and a nod. He turned and crouched down to the boy, placing his hand's onto his shoulders. With a flicker of his blue eyes, he read the name tag that was sewn onto the boy's shirt: "Child K".
Ryouta ruffled K's hair lightly and rose back to his feet, grasping the boy's hand tightly. Together, they marched across the room and behind the lengthy table enveloped in test tubes and clothing. Behind the table there were a few beds, all with leather, belt-like, straps lying across them. K stopped and took a timid step back. Ryouta immediately turned to him. "It's OK," he spoke, moving his mouth in such a way that the boy could try to read his words. "You're the right type, you shouldn't feel anything. Don't worry, I'm going to run some tests to make doubly sure that you are – with your consent of course" Ryouta finished his sentence, his lips pursing to a close as the boy nodded, looking as though he didn't understand at all but was still willing. It was better than being locked up in one, lonesome room for the night.
At that moment, Ryouta tucked his hands under the boy's shoulders and hoisted him up, spinning him around and setting him onto the edge of the bed. The boy sat with his hands between his knees and legs kicking back and forth freely. Ryouta turned to the brunette, producing a piece of cotton from his trouser pocket and holding it out. The brunette retrieved a near-by vial and tilted its contents onto the cotton before retreating back slightly. Ryouta then turned back to the boy, pressing the cotton against the inside of the boy's arm and rubbing it in circles afterwards.
Only seconds later did the blonde accept something that scarred K from the brunette. A syringe. He scrambled back on the bed, stopping when his body rocked and nearly fell back over off the bed. As Ryouta approached him, his head shook vigorously, more of his dark hair sticking to the sweat on his face. This time, instead of offering comfort, Ryouta nodded his head towards little K and the brunette swept over, grasping the boy's shoulders securely and held him still. Ryouta took the boy's wrist and pulled his arm towards him. K squirmed and closed his eyes, teeth gritting, waiting for pain. Only for none to come.
K glanced at his arm and rubbed at it where blood seeped out as Ryouta and his companion did studies on the blood that they had taken. A smile soon crossed their lips.
"It's perfect" Ryouta commented, glancing at K. "At last; the first mew trial is in order"