'Air. I need air.' It was impossible to so much as gasp while a blend of slop and dirty water paraded down his throat from an overused, worn out funnel. The only option was to bear through it. Swallow every bit these villains tried to pour down into his gullet and hope that he had enough air stored in his lung to withstand to the end. It was beyond difficult to manage without getting so much as a warning to prepare before mealtime was thrust upon him. It didn't exactly help that the concoction tasted downright awful. But he had to pull through. He had to live. Getting freedom was an option. Right? But who would get freedom? And who would get out alive?
The boy's small fist tightened around the bars in front of him as his lungs protested with a painful burn. He couldn't help it. He was running out of air. He didn't have the stamina that most kids his age had. Since birth he has always been on the more sickly side, so getting through their rare meals – if it could be called that – almost never happened. His body instinctively inhaled mere moments before the funnel was ripped away and the firm hold of his jaw was released.
As the adversaries moved on to the next sullen kid, his grip instantly slackened as his body slumped over to let out painful coughs. His stomach lurched and he retched, clasping both hands over his mouth, trying desperately to suppress regurgitating. They already had to live in small cages, surrounded by bodily fluids and, unfortunately, the occasional deceased youth before one of their captors eventually noticed, or more like they finally made an effort to actually remove said affliction. It was traumatizing when the first one died, when the second one died, but when it wouldn't seem to stop, everyone become immune to it. They become emotionally detached when the thought of death crossed their minds. It appeared to be, almost painstakingly obvious, that it was the only way to escape. Sometimes he also thought about it. Just die. That'd be the quickest way to get free of the pain and abuse and the every second filled with desolation.
He felt pressure against his back. It wasn't one that caused him to turn away, but rather one that he could turn to. It was the only thing here that was familiar to him. The only thing that kept the dark thoughts at bay. Thus, he choked back his bile with tears in his cerulean eyes from the effort, before he glanced over his shoulder to look at the other who had placed a comforting hand on him. "Ciel…" the boy breathed, voice barely at a whisper.
Ciel flashed a small smile at him with matching eyes making contact with his own. It was pretty remarkable that he could even crack a smile in a situation as misfortunate as this. He removed his small hand from his back while the boy shifted so that they were facing each other, reaching out to take a hold of one of the boy's hands as he whispered, "We'll be okay." The words sounded genuine. At least Ciel was trying to reach the boy, trying to make him feel some sort of comfort and ease. But, to the boy's ears, they just came across as painful lies. Would they be okay? Could they make it out? Or, for how much longer will they be 'okay'; would they stay alive? The boy couldn't mirror the others smile, which caused him to avert his eyes to their hands that remained clasped together. It's almost as though he felt a sense of guilt for not being able to wear the exact smile that Ciel had. As long as he has known Ciel, he had always been more cheerful than most. Always searching for the good in every situation. But what good could truly be found here?
Responding on point was Ciel, "We are together." It was as though he had read the boy's mind, replying to his thoughts. He peeked back up at Ciel, yet again feeling a sense of guilt. How could he forget? How could he be so selfish and so self-absorbed to push the only good thought out of his mind? To let his mind be consumed with darkness, casting out even Ciel. When everything else had been taken away from him. When the Phantomhive manor was decimated and the parents residing there had perished. All that was left was Ciel sitting right here beside him, sharing an identical fate. "Don't worry. I'll protect you." Ciel continued to wear that soft smile, gradually putting the boy at ease.
'That's right. I still had you.'
The next morning seemed to be louder than any other that he had experienced this month. He woke up pressed against the bars of the cage in the corner with Ciel leaning against him as always. But what was different was the racket that stirred him from his sleep. He sat up, rubbing his eyes until they were able to focus. There were more adults around than usual, and they all had strange masks over their eyes and dark hooded capes hanging on their shoulders. Cage doors were being ripped open, hinges screeching, and kids were being dragged out screaming.
The boy's eyes widened in fright and Ciel, who was awake at this point as well, was for once mimicking his stirred up expression. The boy knew deep down inside that it wasn't just his overactive mind, but that something was definitely astray if the usually chipper Ciel was showing clear signs of trepidation. And when the screams of a dying child echoed throughout the room made it that much more obvious that today was going to be a nightmare never to forget.
The boy's arms instinctively reached around Ciel, clinging desperately to him. 'Please someone…' he mentally began praying to any higher good that might still exist. Blood began to spill from around the room and the cages surrounding their own slowly, but surely started to become emptier and emptier. Lives of the children that they were trapped with, for what seemed like an eternity, were quickly fluttering away as quick as a candle being snuffed out.
And for what purpose? Why bother keeping them trapped here? Why even bother feeding them? Why did they have to stay alive for a fate such as this? 'Please.' Their lives seemed so insignificant while grown men continued to massacre child by child with no remorse. It was actually the complete opposite. They had this look of anticipation as though they were excited about something yet to come. Similar to how a child acts when waking up on Christmas knowing that an unknown, special something was awaiting downstairs. What they were expecting, was beyond the boy's understanding.
'It doesn't matter who!' More pleas flooded his head while words couldn't spill from his lips. There was nothing to say. There was nothing to do. They were trapped and their lives, to these adults, were meaningless. They were backed into a corner like a cat trapping a rat, with no resources to turn to. The only thing he could do was beg and hope that these people would get their fill before landing upon the two of them. However, their cage door was being opened and the child unfortunate enough to be closest to their grasp was first to go. He clutched all the more tighter to Ciel who was returning his constricting embrace.
Ciel turned into him, letting his back face the opening of the cage as men reached in for another child. 'It doesn't matter how!' Tears welled up in his eyes that were still burning with terror and he buried his face against the other's shoulder, tears instantly wetting Ciel's dirtied shirt. He couldn't look anymore. Doom was already breathing down his neck, carving a new sense of fear into every inch of his skin. He knew the inevitable was coming and it was too painful to bear.
'Save us!' It was then, with that last desperate desire that he felt Ciel being pulled from his hold. His protection was being ripped from his world; the only thing that kept him alive through these painful days. "No!" The boy finally found himself screaming at the top of his lungs as he ineffectively held on to the other with every ounce of strength he had remaining in his tiny body. He couldn't let the one thing he had left slip away. He couldn't let them take Ciel without putting some sort of fight up.
However, the brute strength of the men with many years beyond his own made his efforts practically meaningless. Ciel was jerked backwards with hands outstretched reaching for the boys, causing him to fall face first into the hard ground from the struggle. "Ciel!" He flung his small body upward, only to roughly meet the gate slamming in his face.
"No!" Ciel screamed as a man on either side of him easily picked him off the ground. Ciel's resistance made no difference in comparison to their combined force. "Don't take me away!" They carried him completely off the floor, taking him to the center of the room kicking and screaming. They seemed utterly unfazed by the fuss the young child was making. By how many kids they went through with ease, it's no surprise that this one made no difference. They still had that thrilled look plastered on their faces with an ugly grin.
The sight of Ciel moving further and further away, and desperately struggling made the boy's heart ache worse than it ever had before. "No, Ciel!" he screamed as loud as he could, voice cracking and straining from the exertion. He was hoping senselessly that by some off chance it would change something within the villain's now pinning down the other. And if not with them, that there would still be someone to come and help just in the nick of time. The boy had to hope there was still a chance. If he didn't and just gave up, he wouldn't be able to go on let alone forgive himself.
It was when one of the men pulled out a newly stained, sharp knife, did it feel like time had slowed down. That blade was looming over Ciel threateningly. The boy's eyes widened, focusing only on the blade, willing it with his whole being for it to stop. Despite all the praying and hoping, he still had a hunch that the fate that befell the other children was now going to be shared with Ciel and then to himself.
His gut feeling was proven right when the knife dropped as fast as a guillotine blade, diving into Ciel's stomach. He wasn't sure if Ciel screamed or fell silent as the life within him bit by bit flickered away. To him, his whole world came to a dead stop and he could have sworn that the room grew darker; grew colder. He wasn't able to even focus on the words being spewed about around him. Everything was taken away from him and he now had nothing left. His life was surely to be seized as well. That was okay though wasn't it? What did he have to live for? Did he have a purpose to keep going? If so, then what was that?
"You have given a big sacrifice."
The voice was much closer than the boy was anticipating. It was clear and direct, but for some reason it sent chills down his spine initiating him to glance up at the figure before him. He had no words to describe this 'being'. Sinister? Ominous? A demon? The devil? Whatever it was, it was not from this world. Was this his vanquisher? Maybe this was the being he was beseeching all along…yet a second too late. Nonetheless he found himself intensely focusing on the words being spoken to him.
"Now it's your choice whether to make a contract with a demon and have your wishes granted or not. The price to cross the river has already been paid."
A demon. That was what this being was. It felt reasonable to be scared; to feel terrified. And yet, with his previous horror, he couldn't find it in him to feel any fear of any kind. If anything, he felt intrigued. He felt a new desire that outweighed any other possibility. He could ask for anything he wanted from this fiend. That thought completely overshadowed the price. The way the boy saw it, he was going to be a goner either way.
The choice was simple. "I…I want power…" he breathed in a soft, but evident snarl. The thoughts of the past month flowed through his mind and it enraged him. It fueled the fire within his decision even more. "The power to take revenge on the ones that did this to us!" Said people were protesting, demanding that he be silenced. He didn't care. He has made his verdict. They couldn't stop him now that he would have a demon on his side. "Demon! I'll make a contract with you!"
"So you're abandoning the light for the path to hell…fine. Well then, let's mark our bodies with the contract seal. The more visible the place where your seal is, the stronger the power. So, where do you want-."
"Anywhere is fine." He rushed, not knowing what the adults would do in this demanding conversation. He wanted – no. He needed to get to the point. He craved to make them suffer like they made them suffer…like they made Ciel suffer. This was his reason to fight. To destroy the ones that put his life through the wringer. If his life was as good as gone, then he might as well get what he wants out of it, even if that meant selling his soul. "I want a power stronger than anyone else's!"
"You're quite greedy, despite your small body. Well then. I shall put the seal on that big eye of yours, filled with despair."
The demon was suddenly at his cage in the blink of an eye. The boy's face was then gripped tightly, covering his right eye. All at once, the fear he should have felt upon meeting, hit him all at once like a freight train. His eyes widened and he instinctively tried to lean back, to get any distance possible between him and the figure, but the grip kept him in place. And before he knew it, searing pain ripped through his small body from the concealed eye. He screamed out while internally willing for it to be over with. The pain was greater than he had ever experienced. Even when he was released, he was still throbbing with pain.
"Oh well aren't you a very small master. You have summoned me. This fact will not change for eternity. What has been sacrificed will never be returned. Now…choose."
The voice brought him back to his senses. Despite the fact that he was still hurting, he knew what he needed to do. He gripped the metal of the cage tightly and shouted, "This is an order! Kill them!" As the order was demanded, the boy clearly saw the gleam in this beast's smirk. It was one filled with delight. Delight that was similar to his captor's moments before he had made his appearance. But this time, that joy was for his own benefit and no one else's. He watched in a sort of trance as the dark figure jumped from human to human, slaughtering them one by one. It was almost too quick to keep track of the demon dancing among the blood of his foes.
Once the deed was done, the demon reappeared at his cage and ripped the door right off his hinges, letting the metal soar across the room. As he stared at the opening, he wasn't sure what he felt. He was content with those people being disposed of and he was pleased to finally have the door to freedom open, but what now? He had nothing left. His family was taken away from him and the warmth of his home felt like a distant memory.
"Now come."
The boy looked up at the figure waiting for him amid the mess. He had nothing left, but he did have a demon on his side. It was a start to his new beginning. He crawled out of the cage and stood up slowly, adjusting to the feeling of standing after a month of being able to only sit. He braced himself against his cage and let his gaze stay on the middle of the room. He stepped past the demon and limped over to the platform, leaning against it and staring at what lay motionless upon it.
His heart ached for Ciel. It hurt to know that he would no longer be able to see his smile or to hear his comforting and cheerful words. He couldn't help, but feel that Ciel deserved to be in this world still. He would know what to do. This Ciel who had so much more potential than he had ever even hoped for. He who had so much more purpose and vitality in this world. He who would take over the Phantomhive house.
"I'll take my master's name."
He was jerked from his inferiority from the sudden impatient words, but the demon made him remember. He was his new beginning. He had a chance to start anew. He gently touched the bloody hand of Ciel, slipping the ring off of his thumb and clutching it in his hand. He had made yet another big decision in this new life of his. "My name is…Ciel. Ciel Phantomhive. The one who will inherit the house of Earl Phantomhive," he said determinedly, shaking off any pessimistic feelings he once felt. He would leave them in this room with the truth.
"Fufufu…I see, that'll be fine. Then I should take a form suitable of being in service to an earl. Well then, give me any order. My little lord."