START OF CHAPTER ELEVEN
Inverness, the Farm, Chamber A-12...
"Oh..." Brafez coughed, staring eye to eye with a Bellua Beowulf. Or, if a Bellua Beowulf had a child with a tank. The Grimm was covered head to toe in bone-plating, white spines bristled in curiosity. Several three-inch holes had been bored into its armor, with the space around the holes muddled by black liquid. Tubes hung from the ceiling, their couplings coated in the same liquid on the Grimm, feeding into a large glass tube filled with black ichor. Chains were attached to it's ankles and wrists, which were then fed into holes in the metal floor.
The Grimm raised its head and howled, confirming his suspicions that this was the Grimm that had been howling.
He wasn't just content with putting it out of its misery, no. He had to know the whole story. Brafez gently inched around the Grimm, reaching the other side of the barn and looking around, his eyes resting on three small cages. The sound of claws moving made him spin around, taking out Fenrir. The Grimm was inches away from his face, whimpering like a sick dog. He lowered his axe, turning back to the cages. There was a tarp covering them, obscuring their contents.
The Beowulf growled, making him flinch. He inched forward, taking the tarp in hand and pulling it. The rough material fell apart in his hands, but whatever was under it was too dark to make out. Brafez looked around, spotting a light switch. He walked over to the wall and pulled the switch, blinking as the harsh lights turned on. The Beowulf whimpered again, this time with a hint of rage. Brafez returned to the cages, and he fought to choke back a gag. Inside the cages were dead Beowulf pups, each with holes bored into their chests and necks, black ichor coating their pelts.
"I...Monty..." He turned back to the Grimm with sorrow in his heart, understanding why it had howled. The Beowulf looked different now, with fur instead of armor covering its hide. Brafez looked into its blood-red eyes, seeing a glimmer of life still left in the ancient beast. He looked at a control panel against the back wall, with a terminal next to it. Brafez walked over to the terminal, hacking into the machine and reading the reports.
/R25: SUBJECT FELICITY CAPTURED AS OF JANUARY 27, XXVII. TESTING CONFIRMS SUSPICION OF PREGNANCY. AS OF JUNE 23, MMDCCLXI, FELICITY HAS GIVEN BIRTH TO THREE PUPS. RECOMMEND REMOVAL OF PUPS FROM MOTHER TO STUDY PSYCHOLOGICAL REACTION.
/Mangeele: Begin draining the Grimm of Dark. Start with the pups, then move onto the adult. Study reactions to the pups' deaths. Report back once the process has been completed.
/R46: PUPS DRAINED OF DARK, BEGINNING TO MOVE ON TO THE ADULT. AT THE TIME OF DEMISE, THE ADULT WENT INTO A BESERKER STATE, KILLING TWO STAFF AND ADORNING HEAVY BONE PLATING. ALL ATTEMPTS TO BORE THROUGH THE BONE HAVE FAILED. REQUESTING DALARIUM DRILLS TO PROPERLY GAUGE THE BONE'S STRENGTH.
/Mangeele: The drills will arrive in three days. Determine the bone's hardness and then begin the draining.
/R50: DALARIUM DRILLS HAVE FAILED. THE DRILL BIT BROKE AN INCH INTO THE BONE, REQUESTING UNOBTAINIUM DRILLS.
/Mangeele: Please do not refer to Graphene as "Unobtainium", it's unbecoming of oneself. The drills will arrive within the week, keep me posted.
/R65: SUCCESSFULLY BORED THROUGH BONE PLATING. EXAMINATIONS REVEAL THE BONE PLATING TO BE THREE INCHES THICK AND TWO TIMES AS STRONG AS DIAMOND. RECOMMEND IMMEDIATE EXTERMINATION OF SUBJECT FELICITY.
/Mangeele: Negative on extermination. Keep studying the Grimm, and try using electric shocks. If anything happens, report back.
/R66: ELECTRIC SHOCKS SUCCESSFUL. SUBJECT'S BONE PLATING RECEEDED INTO THE SKIN, AT WHICH POINT DRAINING WAS STARTED. DIFFERENCES IN PERSONALITY WERE RECORDED WHEN THE BONE PLATING REGREW, WITH THE ADULT BECOMING MORE AGGRESSIVE THAN WHEN BONE PLATING RECEEDED. FURTHER TESTING REQUIRED, WILL UPDATE AS PROJECT ADVANCES.
/Bill: Jimmy, if I'dda known that Grimm pussy was this good, I would have gone native looking ago. You HAVE to try it!
/Jimmy: Hey dickweed, you're here to drain Grimm of Dark, not fuck them. Get your shit together, because next time I'm not covering your ass.
Brafez pulled away from the screen, looking back at the Grimm. He noticed out of the corner of his eye that the cameras within the barn had been deactivated, but for what reason, he had no clue.
"So, your name's Felicity. Well, I'm Brafez. Nice to meet you." He muttered, as if thinking the Grimm would understand him. But, to his surprise, she nodded her head and walked over to him. "I...Yes. Hello? Mind telling me what you're doing?"
Felicity nudged his hand with her forehead, with Brafez reluctantly scratching her head. She growled happily (well, as happy as she could be, given the circumstances) making him smile at her antics. The Grimm heard footsteps outside the door with her advanced hearing and shoved her head into his stomach, throwing him across the room and into the shadows. The doors parted seconds later, a North Vytalian drawl enteren' the room. (Fun Fact: Northern Vytal in my story is Texas. Cause why not.)
"Oh Felicity! Daddy's home." Bill exclaimed, drunk beyond belief. The Grimm huffed annoyingly, and raised her rear into the air. Bill stumbled back, raising his eyebrows. The Grimm had never been this compliant.
What followed next Brafez had trouble understanding. First he heard a particularly loud squelch, then short breaths, and by that time he had stopped listening and was looking for a way to stop it. A bucket rested in front of his feet, and Brafez looked at Felicity. She nodded her head discreetly and he kicked the bucket, bouncing it off the wall and into Bill's head, knocking him out. Brafez got to his feet and ran over to the unconscious man, grabbing him under his armpits and dragging him across the room, resting him against the wall. He found an empty bottle of beer in the corner and stuffed it into Bill's shirt pocket, just to make a convincing argument as to why he should be fired.
Brafez turned to Felicity, who gave him a suggestive shake of her rear. But, because he was only eight years old, he didn't take the hint. Thankfully, because I wasn't narrating that shit. He tilted his head and shrugged, walking to the front of the Grimm and petting her nose. A portal appeared next to him, Welsha stepping out of it.
"Hey Bru. I see you've met Felicity?" She inquired, scratching the Grimm behind her ears.
"Indeed. I'm guessing you've met before?"
"Yeah, around October. Saw her being brought in and after a few follow-up missions we became two peas in a pod. So, why are you in here?"
"I want to get her out."
"Oh, and how are you going to do this?"
"I-Well, I'll... I'll think of something."
"Uh-Huh. Tell me about it when you think of one. If you're done here, we should be heading home. It's getting close to bed-time."
"How long have I been here?" Brafez muttered, looking at his watch. "Huh...12:47? That doesn't make much sense."
"You're right, it doesn't make sense. You lose track of time around Felicity." Welsha explained, opening another portal. "What feels like minutes are hours. She's good for therapy...in case you still need some."
"I...thanks. I'll look into it. What should I do about the unconscious man against the wall?"
"Oh. Didn't see him there." Welsha quipped, looking at Bill, cringing at the sight. "I see you've set up the scene quite convincingly. I've taught you well."
"Thank you. The proper authorities will come in the morning, see him passed out, and hopefully fire him. When that happens, I'll file for his position and work it out from there."
"You forgot something." She pointed out, leaning against the wall.
He thought about it, and then thought some more. And some more. He couldn't think of anything.
"I'm stumped. What I miss?" Welsha smiled and ruffled his neatly combed hair, Brafez shaking her hand off and huffing.
"Nothing." She quipped, waving goodbye and hopping through the portal. Brafez looked at Felicity and patted her head, following behind his adopted sister. The portal closed soon after, and Felicity turned her attention to Bill. The night would be long before the dawn. She had plenty of time.
END OF CHAPTER ELEVEN
