Hey everyone. It's been a while as I've turned my back on writing fanfiction, but I've decided to have some fun and to take my mind off a few things.

This story is AU so expect some OOC-ness as I will probably get it wrong. Usual stuff, I own nothing apart from my OCs.

Enjoy…

Less than five minutes before the gears of the magnificent golden clock, turn to click into place to strike the midnight bell. Then will the giant doors of the Red Cathedral swing open for King Aamon to make his usual entrance. Everyone goes silent at this point as they hurry to dust off whatever dirt landed on their clothing on the way here.

Shadow squinted his eyes as he looked ap at the giant clock right above the alter, just one minute to go. This was the day Shadow detested but for appearances sake he had to attend the gatherings of the King's court. Every son and daughter of Aamon must be present at this time. He supposed it wasn't worth kicking up a fuss as all he had to do was stand there and pretend to look interested in whatever trollop spewed from Aamon's mouth.
Not this time, though. On the far-left side of the alter was something wide, tall and covered with a white sheet. Shadow could everyone as they stared at it, some gazed with curiosity and others not so much. Even Rouge waited in anticipation, until she jabbed a finger into his rib.

"You should stop doing that" She said quietly, her arms crossed after she pulled back her long black glove. "Father won't like it"

Doing what? Oh right! He had his finger wrapped in the gold ribbon of his uniform again. For others it was fidgeting but it brought Shadow comfort even though it was not a good look. It was either fiddling with the smooth material or tap his foot, Shadow was not a lover of standing still.
He crossed his arms to control the urge. "What do you think is under there?" he asked. Shadow didn't want to start conversation, but it was the only way to distract himself besides fidgeting.

Rouge didn't even turn her gaze from whatever hid under the sheet "No clue"

Her response was odd; Rouge had the ability to talk until his ears bled. Although some days she was quiet and kept to her sisters. Her quietness could be from the tension in the air but either way, Shadow never gave it much thought.

"Hurry up" He mouthed as he looked up at the time again. Shadow was the curious type and he also was impatient. He looked over the seats, Silver isn't here.

Just as the midnight bell chimed, everyone turned their heads as the doors swung open in their usual overdramatic fashion. Like always, not a second too soon. It was a fair assumption that Aamon stood behind the doors until the last second. Mephiles, a black and grey Demon, flanked him like the lap dog he was.

The crowd turned silent as everyone stood, it had gotten so quiet that the clock's ticking was audible throughout the room. No one would mutter a word.
Aamon gave no one any second glances as he made his way to the alter, his long black cape dragged behind his feet. Aamon was a tall, crimson furred Demon with a muscular build. He was also pretty blessed in his hight and towered about a foot over Sirless, the Crown Prince and Shadow's oldest sibling.

The King's sons and daughters were to stand beside each other in order of birth, the eldest born stands closest to Aamon as the youngest was furthest away. It started with Sirless then to the bat triplets; Rough, Shura and Lilith, and ended with Shadow. Only the triplets shared a mother.

Aamon approached the alter stared down at them as a gesture of dominance. The Princes and Princesses gave him a bow that would be recognised as respect by those in the cathedral seats. It was all submission.

At the alter of the Red cathedral, the King of Xenith will address the happenings of the month and the plans for the next one. Usually it was the same old news: rebels caught, questioned and executed. Aamon's favourite part was always the execution part of the story. He stepped up on to the alter and turned around to face the rows of Demons. "You may sit" He said, and everyone sat back down, apart from his offspring who had no chairs behind them.

Usually, Mephiles stood on the other side of Aamon but this time he walked right over to the white sheet. He gave Shadow a quick smirk on the way. "Die in a fire" Shadow wanted to say.

With his white gloved hands clasped behind his back, Aamon began "Good evening, I would like to thank you all for coming" The Demons seated before them had the choice to attend, but it was mandatory for his sons and daughters. "I see you are all looking forward to the unravelling of our new invention"

Damn right they are.

Aamon gestured to Mephiless, who then grabbed hold of the white sheet and was about to yank it off until Aamon told held up his hand "Not just yet." He turned his attention back to them "As you may have noticed, we have more reports of Ecto related deaths in the past few months"

Shadow rolled his eyes; he was sick of hearing about it. From what he heard, Ecto is a hallucinogenic drug that came in a small capsule with white powder inside. Can be swallowed, snorted or if one wanted the fix right away, injected. It causes frightening hallucinations, accelerated heartbeat and always ended in death. Ecto was not created for a good time and it was capable in killing a Demon. There have been no cases where the taker has survived the trip. Another murder weapon, basically.

"In the past, I have clearly stated that the penalty for having this drug in your possession is death. Though more cases have come to my attention. Therefore, I've called for a new measure" Aamon nodded towards the grey and black Demon. A wide grin grew on Mephiles's face as he pulled the sheet away "Designed by yours truly"

Shadow's eyes narrowed in speculation, but he also felt a knot form in his stomach, it was more than he expected. Aamon's "new measure" was an angled wooden table supported by metal polls, it had wheels at the bottom for transportation and long chains in all four corners, thick leather straps attached to them. Two large wheels and a turning handle at the back, underneath the table. Yeah…this was designed by Mephiless, no doubt about that.

It obviously had more than one use, but the main purpose appeared to be dismemberment. Shadow supposed the old-fashioned guillotine wasn't exciting enough for Aamon anymore. He found it vile, disgusting and he wanted to see how it worked.

Strapped on this new contraption was a wax figure with no distinctive features, it's wrists and ankles bound by the leather.

"The prisoner will be interrogated of the whereabouts of Ecto and how it became in their possession." As Aamon was having a grand time in explaining the functions of his new toy, Mephiless began to slowly turn the wheel. Already there was strain of the wax figure's limbs. "If the prisoner decides to talk, they will be released and sent to the guillotine. If not…"

Mephiles turned the wheel faster and Shadows siblings, himself included, flinched as a loud "pop" echoed off the cathedral walls. So, they went through the trouble of constructing make-shift bones to go with it. Some of the Demons before them covered their mouths, even Sirless looked disturbed. As more strain was added to the figure, the hard wax began to stretch. First, it was the legs that gave in to the pull and tore off, then came the arms. Now it was nothing but a head and a torso.

Shame they didn't add fake blood, but the message was clear as crystal: don't be in possession of Ecto.

Shadow had to remind himself that Aamon was looking out for the safety of his people and the regular citizens of Zenith. He was searching for whoever had the formula of this drug to stop the distribution. Ecto is an unpleasant death sentence but it was worth a lot of money and a token of power for some. Shadow was aware of that, but this contraption seemed unnecessary. Was it really for safety of Zenith or was it something more than that?

The crowd was quiet with some murmuring in the seats further back. Was he expecting an applause? It was hard not to imagine a real person in place of the wax figure as it was ripped apart, with the blood and the screaming. Aamon looked damn proud of himself.

"Questions?" Aamon asked.

A Demon with dark purple feathers and a short beak seated on the second row, raised his hand "Does it have a name?"

The King answered "Not yet. The name of our machine will be chosen by the Princesses"

Rouge and Shura looked at each other, as Lilith scowled at Mephiless for destroying the figure she spent an awful amount of time working on. Not that it looked that impressive anyway, the demonstration would have been terrifying if the wax model was more authentic. What would one call a machine that breaks people apart?

A few more questions about the new machine: was it only for prisoners caught with Ecto? For the time being, yes. Aamon had other methods of interrogating prisoners and later executing them. Someone had asked Shadow's question, a lilac coloured cat in the third row raised her gloved hand. It was Blaze, had she been there this entire time? He never noticed.

After Aamon jerked his chin up towards her and unlike the others who remained in their seats, she stood up to ask her question. Many disproved of her boldness "As execution by the guillotine is public for viewing by the court, will this machine offer the same experience?"

Shadow quietly scoffed, but he had no right to judge. He had the same morbid curiosity for watching as the guillotine's blade came down on someone's head.

"No" Aamon slowly batted down his hand as a gentle command to get Blaze to sit back down. "It will be used privately within the dungeons as all interrogation methods are"

If it was intended for private use, then why show case it in the first place? Doesn't matter, it's not like he wanted to see more anyway.

The rest of the assembly went by in a blur as Shadow's attention was lost. The dancing red Demons in the stain glass windows were more interesting to look at. Almost everything here had the same crimson colour apart from the grey brickwork. It wasn't called the Red Cathedral for nothing. Its hosted weddings, funerals and every month, these stupid assemblies. Why must they start at midnight? Shadow wasn't tired or in a hurry to get anywhere, but it was annoying. Better than early in the morning, he supposed.

"You are all dismissed" Aamon said with a wave of his hand then walked down the stairs of the alter. Always last to turn up and the first to leave. Mephiles went to follow him but along the way he gave Shadow another quick smirk. It was not friendly; he was being smug. As Maphiles was turning the wheel earlier, Shadow noticed the occasional glance in his direction. "Seriously, die in a fire"

It wasn't a good look to leave for the door so edgily, but he did so anyway. Aamon's lap dog had pissed him off and he wanted to get out of here. Shadow pushed open the single door by the far end of the alter, which revealed a long and dimly lit corridor. Sirless called after him but he was ignored. He'll just tell Sirless he forgot to feed Rosa, that will be his excuse for his sudden departure. Right now, he wanted to see what occupied Silver enough to miss the assembly. Shadow had something interesting to tell him.

Phew, this took longer than it needed. Reviews are much appreciated. I always check for mistakes, but some may have slipped through.

From Quick Speed, I bid you farewell!