Rimmer burst through the doors of the temple, his legs shaking like jelly. If this thing turned out to be anything like his Self-Loathing beast he wasn't sure what he'd do. Scary monsters weren't his thing; even if they were a weird part of his own mind. But then, the thought of something like that having Lister in its clutches made his blood curdle. He staggered forward and focused on a mighty pair of doors at the far end of the room. This had to be it. Lister...and whatever held him prisoner...were through those doors. He ran towards them, which was quite a difficult feat because his knees were knocking together.
The doors were hewn from thick, heavy wood; and, Rimmer guessed, about twelve feet high. Carved over every inch were nude, writhing figures; performing every sexual act that had ever drifted through Rimmer's conscious – and subconscious – mind. He threw his weight against them with no effect whatsoever. They didn't even rattle. He kicked at them and swore, but this, unsurprisingly, also had no effect. Only one thing for it then....He stood back, cocked the bazookoid and fired.
The explosion left his ears ringing. Sharp splinters of wood stung his face as the doors blew apart. Not even waiting for the smoke to clear, he charged through into the inner sanctum of the temple. And stopped dead in his tracks at the sight that met his eyes.
It was like running into the wettest dream and most hideous nightmare he'd ever had, all rolled into one. The darkest, most twisted fantasy he'd ever envisaged down in the pit of his soul. And then multiplying it by ten. Rimmer had never even imagined the depths of what lurked within his own mind, prowling the winding black paths of his desire. He was torn between a sudden, steel-hard erection and a paralysing urge to scream.
Before him was a low flight of torch-lined steps that led up to a stone altar drenched in blood-red rose petals. And lying naked on top of the altar, chained by a glinting gold collar around his throat, was Lister. And something else...
A beast. A giant hulking red beast that crouched above him. Its huge clawed hands grasped at Lister's bare thighs, lifting and caressing them as it went at him, its mighty back bowed with its thrusts, its head thrown back as it howled with pleasure. Lister writhed beneath it, powerless in its grip, his own soft cries echoing in the cavernous chamber; but Rimmer couldn't tell whether they were sounds of distress or delight. He didn't appear to be struggling - and his hands were free if he'd wanted to - but surely he couldn't be a willing participant in this? Even from here Rimmer could see the crimson trails of claw marks on his skin, the smears of blood across his thighs and buttocks, and Christ, look at the size of the thing...! It must be like being ravaged by a full-grown wildebeest! And even as Rimmer watched, the creature seemed to grow, both in stature and ferocity. It snarled viciously, and as its thrusts intensified, Lister let out a long keening cry that shocked Rimmer into action.
He aimed the bazookoid square at the creature's chest and fired. The impact of the shot threw the beast clear of both Lister and the altar; and it bellowed furiously. Seizing his chance, Rimmer dashed up the steps to his crew-mate.
Lister was semi-conscious, his breathing weak and shallow. Rimmer could see the flowers beneath him were wet and sticky with blood, but their rich colour made it impossible to tell how much. He couldn't tell how badly he was hurt, or where. He ran his hands over his body, trying to work out how deep the scratch marks were and if he was injured anywhere else, but it wasn't easy to think straight when a traitorous part of his brain could only focus on the fact that this was just about his ultimate fantasy; having Lister chained up naked and helpless in his power.
He caught a glimpse of movement out of the corner of his eye. The monster was pulling itself back up onto its feet. They didn't have much time. Rimmer gave him a gentle, but rather panicky shake; "Lister! Lister, look at me!" He saw his eyes open briefly, but they were drowsy and unfocused; there was no guarantee he even saw Rimmer in front of him. "Lister, please! We have to get you out of here! Please, try to wake up!" He grabbed the fine chains binding him to the altar and yanked them hard, expecting them to snap. They didn't. "Damn it!" He pulled again, but they held fast. He decided to try the collar instead, but it was no use. There didn't even seem to be a clasp; it was just a smooth band of gold fastened around his throat.
"You cannot break the chains." Rimmer whirled round to face the beast. It was back on its feet, towering above him, apparently unmarked by the shot. For the first time, Rimmer got a good look at it; and his eyes widened in horror as he stared into his own face. Larger and redder, but undoubtedly his own. For the second time in his life, Arnold Rimmer had to face the reality that there were true monsters within his mind. "Let him go!" he demanded in a low voice. The beast just smiled, baring the slightest flash of sharp teeth. Rimmer's anger flared, "Hey! This is my mind and you're just another part of it, so you do what I say! You let him go!"
"No."
Rimmer seethed helplessly. The beast took two steps forward and he positioned himself between it and the altar. He wouldn't let it touch Lister, not again. "You fail to see the basic flaw in this predicament," the creature told him, "As you say, I am a part of you. And as long as you want him, so do I. With every glance at him, every brush of your fingers against his skin, your desire grows – and so does my power. You cannot defeat me because deep inside there is a part of you that wants this...wants him...too much. Ultimately, your desire will destroy him."
"No!" Rimmer shook his head, "No, I won't let it happen!"
"You cannot stop it. It is beyond your control."
"I don't believe you!"
"You will see."
The creature went to push him aside but he stood his ground. In one swift movement he had the bazookoid up and aimed at its head, "Don't you touch him," he hissed. "Your weapon cannot harm me. You have already seen that."
"It can inconvenience you though," Rimmer snarled.
"Perhaps. But what will you do when you are out of shells? Throw the gun at me? Beat at me with your fists? You have lost. You lost before the fight even started."
With one sweep of its arm it knocked Rimmer flying and he landed crumpled at the foot of the steps. "And now..." He raised his head and saw it bent over Lister, one clawed hand possessively tracing its way down his body. "Where were we?" It leaned down and kissed him on the mouth. Ignoring the pain, Rimmer dragged himself up onto his knees, "GET AWAY FROM HIM!"
The creature turned to him dismissively; "You waste your time. It is over. He will be mine and there is nothing you can do to change it. It is time for you to give in. Accept it and be content with the pleasure you will derive from witnessing it. After all," its eyes sparked wickedly, "This is what I desire. And I am just another part of you." It leapt up upon the altar.
"NO!!!" Rimmer roared.
Suddenly there was an explosion of light in the centre of the room; so bright that for a few moments it whited out the whole chamber. Rimmer shielded his eyes and slowly began to make out a figure within the light. A tall, winged figure, dressed in gleaming golden armour. As he watched, astounded, it drew a glittering sword from the sheath by its side with a chime of singing steel, and charged at the creature hunched over Lister. The monster snarled and leapt at it and the two figures clashed. It was like watching a battle between fire and lightning. They spun and dove, dodged and weaved so fast that Rimmer could barely tell them apart. But then he heard a roar that could only have come from the beast and he saw it staggering backwards, away from the figure of light. There was a wound across its stomach and if he looked closely, Rimmer could make out a suggestion of blood on its opponent's sword.
Growling angrily, it spun to look at the still figure of Lister on the altar and as it did so the winged creature struck it another blow with the sword. That did it. With a spine-twisting howl of defeat, the beast turned and bolted from the room.
Silently, the figure sheathed its sword and went to the altar. It touched Lister's face tenderly, then looked up and beckoned to Rimmer. Staggering from the force of his fall and also from shock, Rimmer stood up and joined it. From a distance it was hard to make much out within the glowing aura of light surrounding it, but close to he could see very clearly. It was himself; or at least...another part of him, in the same way the beast had been. It had his face. "Bring me that tapestry, will you?" It requested gently, gesturing to a long red – rather obscene – hanging, on the near wall. Rimmer fetched it obediently, handed it over and watched as this other part of him carefully wrapped the cloth around Lister like a blanket, then reached down and snapped the gold collar from around his neck; as easily as breaking a biscuit in two. It lifted him up and passed him carefully over to Rimmer; "You will be alright getting back to your ship now," it told him softly.
"That...that thing," he managed to get out, "Did you kill it?"
The figure smiled and shook its head, "No. I just overpowered it. Believe me, you wouldn't have wanted it killed. It might not seem that way to you right now, but that was a very important part of you that you wouldn't want to be without. Perhaps you just need to control it a little better. You'll understand when you think about it."
"And...what part of me are you?" The figure raised its eyebrows, smiling,
"You can't guess?"
"No," Rimmer shook his head blankly. The figure didn't seem offended, it just laughed. "You will work it out," it told him, "Again, when you've had time to think. But I will give you a clue. I'm the only part of you that could have won the battle that just took place. I am the only part of you stronger than he was. It's just that strength was never tested until today."
It looked down at Lister and frowned slightly; "You need to take him back now. He is hurt and will need some medical attention. Quickly."
"But..."
"Quickly."
Rimmer started to back away, "Well, thank you for your help. I...er...Thank you," he repeated again lamely.
"Go," the figure said simply. Rimmer turned and hurried out with Lister still unconscious in his arms.