- I don't care if this doesn't fit in with the MAR story... I just want to try an idea that struck me suddenly one night as I stared upon Peta's insane smirk. Hope you like -Reg.
Insanity
The night fell fast, enclosing the stone walled building below in its shadowy fingers. The darkness hugged tightly and let no light from the waning moon to pierce its blackness. A burst of cold wind whipped around the street before the building. A tall figure stood on the corner, staring up at the dungeon-like building, not shivering in the wind. He watched the final rays of the golden sun disappear over the hills in the distance and walked to the building's door.
He closed the door behind him with a sharp bang. The room he now stood in was large and cold, slime dripped from the ceiling and down the stone walls. Small fire torches burned dully in steel braziers. No one was in this place. The young man took a torch from its brazier and swept down across the room, his footsteps echoing through the empty space. He smirked to himself as the hollow sounds of distance screams reached his ears as he came to a door. He opened the door. Beyond the door were stairs that led down into a black void. He briskly moved down these stairs. He reached the bottom and looked around. It was a narrow corridor with many doors on either side.
The young man walked calmly down the hallway, glancing briefly in the barred doors. He caught glimpses of people screaming and thrashing on the ground, people lying dead, people eating the dead people. All of this didn't seem to deter the young man, he just smiled a cool calm smile. For this man's name was Phantom. THE Phantom that commanded the army calling themselves the Chess Pieces. He came to the last door.
He unlocked the door and entered a small dungeon. The walls were rock, the ground was dirt and the bed was a straw pile in the corner. Phantom closed the door behind him and stared into the darkness. He heard movement, a small scraping noise and a sound like rusty chains dragging across the ground.
"Come here... I know you are in here, little one," Phantom spoke, no fear showing in his voice. The scraping noise stopped and silence echoed through the room. Phantom heard ragged breathing, and a thumping of a heart beat.
"Come to me... Follow me..." Phantom said in his silky voice. He moved the torch across the room and found what he was looking for.
Curled in the corner was a heap of rags, shivering and twitching. It looked up and Phantom saw the other man for the first time. His skinny body was strapped in buckles and chains that cut into his bare arms and legs, drawing blood. An old, rusted muzzle was tied to the man's face, hiding his mouth. The man lifted himself up and dragged himself over the floor to Phantom.
The young man smiled and reached out.
"Hello, little one..." he said, touching the man's head.
The man grinned and laughed suddenly. He fell backwards and landed at the Phantom's feet. He stared up at the younger man with interest. Phantom grabbed at the man's muzzle and lifted him off the ground with surprising strength. The man gaped.
"Come with me," Phantom said simply and dropped the boy again.
He turned and left the room, the man following him closely. 'Good, the boy is following me... That was easier than what I thought it was going to be... Now comes the hard part of getting him sane enough to follow me all the way...' Phantom thought, soft laughter rolling from his lips.
"What do they call you, little one?" Phantom asked the older man as they walked down the street. The man wasn't speaking, he was just grinning to himself as if he knew something funny he wasn't about to tell Phantom.
"Little one, do you have a name?" Phantom repeated quietly to the as if he couldn't understand him. The man stopped and grinned up at the moon. He reached out as if to grab it in his pale fingers. "Mister Moon, how I love you," he sung.
Phantom smiled to himself. He bent down over the man, who stared up at him with his wide eyes. "Are you the Man who lives on the Moon?" he questioned in a small voice. Phantom laughed. He grabbed the man's muzzle and lifted him again.
"When I ask you a question, I expect you to answer it," he hissed in a dangerous voice. He brought the man's face right up to his own and stared into those lamp-like eyes. The man stared past Phantom. Smiling, he stroked the outline of the moon.
Phantom lost his patience with the man in his hands and chucked him to the ground. The man skidded across the stone path and landed in a heap. He gasped in pain, but didn't cry out. He heard laughter. He looked up to see Phantom approach him, chuckling.
"I asked you what your name was... Now answer me or I'll be tempted to hurt you again..." Phantom said as he bent over to pick the man up. He placed him heavily on his feet and brushed him off.
The man suddenly threw himself around the younger man and hugged him tightly. "You're the Man from the Moon..." he mumbled.
Phantom sighed. "If you don't have a name then I will name you," Phantom said, stroking the man's face. The man looked up at Phantom, soaking in his warmth. "I will call you Peta after the boy that was born from under the light of the full moon." He watched the man's face for recognition. He smiled.
"You like that name, don't you?" Phantom asked. Peta nodded.
"Then what's yours?" he asked. Phantom tapped his nose.
"I'm the Man from the Moon," he laughed. Peta laughed with him.
Phantom took Peta aside and led him down the street without another word. He watched the older man from the corner of his eye and thought, 'I just know he will be a valuable member once I rehabilitate him...'
- I'm writing up chapter 2... I posted this story ages ago, but I wasn't happy with it. I'm posting it on again, because I feel I should put it on again, just to give it some justice. Please review.