WARNING: This chapter has been rated M for Mature. If you are younger than 13 years old ('cause if you aren't you're going to read it anyway), do not like guts and gore, or are uncomfortable reading mature content, please consider skipping from the end of the paragraph starting with "Ah, so you're awake…" to "It's painfully obvious." I am not responsible for any complaint you may have toward the decency of this chapter. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.

I want to let you all know that this chapter was supposed to end in suspense. But I know I hate reading stories that end like that, so I ended with a little tid-bit of story to quell any hate you may have had toward me for ending the last chapter in suspense. Okay, it's more than a tid-bit, but whatever. I don't see you guys complaining!

………

Chapter 12: Torture

Consciousness joined Chris like a weight dragging down her body. She tried to sit up, but could not. Her arms ached and were numb, and her body refused to move. She opened her eyes, but could see nothing.

Blackness swirled around her as though she were the center of a tornado. It was above her and below her and everywhere at once. She groaned.

"Ah, so you're awake…" spoke a voice that swam around the black void. She was spinning, spinning in the nothingness that surrounded her. She felt nauseous. Suddenly a light, brighter than even the sun, it seemed, lit in front of her like an anchor. Her spinning world came to a jarring halt, and she could not hold in the contents of her stomach.

She finally realized it was her head that was spinning, and she was still. She was against a wall, upright. A little more experimenting told her that her arms were chained to the wall, and she was hanging from them. She shook her head gently, and found that it helped clear her head. Something came to her lips, and after finding it to be water, she drank.

"Where am I?" she finally spoke, now that her voice could be heard. Something slammed into her gut, and her breath whooshed from her lungs.

"Do not speak unless you are asked a question, Miss Lightfellow." Chris struggled to breath, to remember where she was, and how she got there. She tried to see, but the blinding light left everything else with a glare. She managed to make out boots standing next to the light.

She remembered she and Percival and Borus… no Percival had left; it was only she and Borus. And they were looking for something… no, someone. The prisoners… the Zexens who were imprisoned! With that, all memory returned to her head. And right now, she asked her self, where am I now? The answer came quickly as she remembered the last words she had heard before the dark.

"I'm looking forward to working with you, Miss Lightfellow."

Now she realized. She was about to be tortured for information. She licked her lips. "If… if you're going to torture me," she managed, "why give me water?" The voice chuckled, and her suspicions were confirmed. It was the man in the cloak who was about to torture her.

"Because I want to hear your screams. They really do bring me pleasure." The man chuckled to himself again. Chris did not speak. "Now, we might as well begin." She heard the slap of plastic; perhaps he was putting on gloves. "You see this light," he started, and she could almost see a hand motion toward the blinding glow, "this is the power of a modified lightning rune, created in a process perfected by my scientists. It slowly saps anyone in its rays of energy, and the more energy it saps, the faster it takes in energy. So answer my questions quickly and I will end its use. If you do not cooperate, I can't say how long you will live." He clapped his hands together. "Now, what are you doing in my city?"

Chris struggled against her restraints. She did not want to answer him. She did not want to tell him anything. But she knew she had to make the decision as to whether she would resist and perhaps die, or go along with it and escape. The voices in her head decided unanimously. She would resist; it was the only good she could do for Zexen anymore. She could not lead now, she could not fight, she could not stand in the enemy's way. But she could resist. "I never… knew this was… your city." She again felt pain in her gut, and her breath poured out of her. It was a few seconds before she could breath again.

"I will ask again. What are you doing in my city?"

"Sightseeing," Chris managed to wheeze. "It's all the rage––" Suddenly her right hand seared in pain. Chris gasped, all the nerves in her body screaming. She thought it the rune, but she saw a hand. The cloaked figure had reached out and grabbed her hand, his thumb on its back and his other four fingers on her palm, squeezing. She cried out in pain. Then it ceased. She took many deep breaths.

"I know all about your rune troubles, Lightfellow. I know how it's been causing you pain. It was easy to amplify it with a little undetectable poison. That poison still goes through you now, for your foolish menders were unable to detect it. I don't know why you cannot control the rune, but all the better reason to use it against you." He paused, as though considering whether or not to continue on the subject. "Now, let's try a different question. What are the current locations of Hugo and Geddoe? And of the True Runes you know of, who currently controls them?"

"When you say Hugo… you do mean my uncle, right?" There was a stinging sensation in her cheek and she was slapped. Blood trickled down her cheek and jaw where the man's nails had sliced her skin. She in return spat on the man's boots. He seized her chin and held it up to his face, though it was shrouded in the shadow of a hood. She glared defiantly into the space where she guessed his eyes were. She could almost seem him glaring back, thinking. The man released her chin and began to laugh.

"Fine, girl, we'll play it your way. Enjoy the state you're in now, Miss Lightfellow, because when I'm done with you, you won't be able to find your limbs." Chris braced herself. She knew there was no turning back now, and should she fall unconscious, she may never wake up. She could already feel the effects of the strange light, and she would have to think carefully about what she did. "Now, where are Hugo and Geddoe? Did you contact them for help?"

"I do not know," she said honestly through gritted teeth. Pain! It exploded in her left arm as though the orange ribbon she had at one point worn had grown teeth and began to tighten. She saw soon enough the glint of steel. She bit her lip, eyes wide, to try not to show how much it hurt. Her arm fell limp, and no matter how hard she tried, she could not flex it, even move it. She was afraid that her own weight would pull it off completely (for she was hanging, you must remember), and she attempted to relieve it of her weight. She could feel hot liquid spilling down it, onto her shoulder and neck. She whimpered.

"Where is the rest of your camp located? We know you could not be foolish enough to only be in an encampment of five-hundred. So where?" Chris almost chuckled.

"You could check… in Brass Castle and… and Budehuc Castle," she inhaled shakily. "You are bound… to find some of my… troops there." This time it was below her breasts where he sliced. There was a sickening scrape as the man's weapon hit her rib. She gagged on pain. The blood from her arm mixed with the blood from her abdomen and ran down her like a red dress. She felt the flap of skin above her stomach fall loose. She was on fire, burning from within as the pain throbbed with every heartbeat. Dizziness met what was left of her eyesight. "Bastard…" she barely managed to remove from her throat. She did not feel his slap; the pain from elsewhere blinded her to it. She was sure that her arm would come lose at any moment, and her innards would come spilling out onto the floor from the wound to her body. I am going to die… she thought shakily. I am… really going to die… Her eyes began to roll as the throbbing became overwhelming. She could not breath.

The man spat, then laughed as though it were all a joke. "It's painfully obvious," he said, his pun reaching Chris from miles away, "that you have been trained for torture. I suppose I cannot get anything out of you, even if I were to sever every limb on your body." His voice echoed off of invisible walls before they met Chris's ears. She had no more energy, she was dizzy from blood loss, and had a hard time fighting for consciousness. The man's voice was overpowered by a steady thumping, bum-bum… bum-bum… bum-bum… The beats began to slow, getting louder and louder. Bum-bum… … bum-bum… …bum-bum… Once again the darkness swarmed around her, and all senses were lost; she could not see, hear, taste, feel, or smell.

"Chris…! CHRIS!" She heard her name being called above the sound, but it was quickly drowned out by the beats. They slowed and slowed…

Bum… bum…. …. … bum… … bum… … …

… until they stopped.

……

Borus strode across of the cell. When he reached a wall, he turned. He did not care where he was. He only cared that he did not know where Chris was. "Goddess damn them, damn them all!" he muttered in anger. "If only I knew that she was okay… Perhaps she will be smart and cooperate with them…" He paused in his pacing. "Damn wishful thinking!" He whirled around and kicked the back of the cell. Why had they not interrogated him? Why did she have to volunteer? He screamed inside his head at the sinking feeling inside his stomach; he did not like it, he did not want it, and I sure as Hell don't need it! He stopped his movements when he heard the creak of a door opening in the room. Across from his cell, the two knights that had been caught lay unconscious. From what Borus could see of them, they were okay, if not a little bruised. They had been imprisoned in the 'second' dungeon. Too bad we were shown to the first… He turned his attention back to the sounds of feet walking down the aisle.

Two black-clad guards carried a body wearing red clothes to his cell, opening the door and throwing the body in. After locking the door, they departed down the hallway. Borus approached the body warily. He did not recognize the man with short hair from the back. He grabbed a red sleeve and turned the body over and gagged when he saw who it was. And the pit of his stomach seemed to laugh at him, as if saying "Ignore me, will you? See what you get for it!"

"Oh Chris…" he collapsed at her side, adjusting her still body. Her shirt had been white; now it was red, soaked all the way through. Her once long and beautiful silver hair had been cut short as if to mock her after death. He checked for a pulse, and grew frantic when there was none. He checked again. And again. "Damn it, no! No, this can't––" He tried to use CPR, a practice that was taught to every knight. But no amount of the action could bring breath into and out of her lungs.

Borus smashed the hard dirt floor with his fist as his world crumbled before him. The Silver Maiden of Zexen, the Goddess of mortals, the light in the dark, Christine Lightfellow, was dead.

And there was nothing such a simple nobleman as Borus could do about it.

……

A soft wind fell against her face. She rolled over in the comfy featherbed and pulled the covers tighter over her shoulder. So tired… I just want to sleep… She felt comfortable in this strange place, where the wind blew gently and everything was a comfortable white, and all her worries were forgotten. She felt as though she were in the arms of Sadie herself. She began to fall asleep, when she heard her name.

"Chris," the voice called softly, oddly familiar and homey. "Chris, you must wake up. You cannot sleep just yet. You cannot forget." Chris murmured unintelligible words of protest. "No, you cannot sleep five more minutes. There is no time. No time for one minute, let alone five." Chris turned over, away from the voice, pulling the covers of her bed over her head. "If you do not wake up now, all will be lost. You cannot forget your worries. Everything you had lived for, all for naught."

Chris stirred at this. "Mmm… had lived?" she questioned through a yawn.

"That is right. You are no longer living, or, not naturally, anyway. Please get up, my little Chris." Chris opened her eyes and was greeted with the soft white that surrounded her. She turned toward the voice, but could only see a transparent silhouette.

"Your little… father? Is that you?" she asked of the shadow. The head nodded. Tears filled Chris's eyes. Tears of hate for his abandonment; tears of joy for his appearance.

"It has been a while, has it not? But there is no time for small talk. People need you now Chris. Your worries are not meant to be forgotten. You must remember. The rune, it keeps you alive now, because it knows there is no one else. But this is only temporary."

"Why would the rune keep me alive? I can no longer control it. What use am I to it anymore?" The whiteness began to blanket her again, and her father's voice came more urgently now.

"Chris, you never truly lost control over the rune. It is the rune that has lost control over you. Runes use emotion to decide an attack. But you have always kept your emotions pent up inside you. When you used the rune, it forcibly released your emotions, and then found them overpowering after being kept for so long. That is why it lost control, Christine, because your emotions overpowered it…

"It keeps you alive now because it thinks you can still do something to stop the madness of that man." His voice became a little clearer as the whiteness moved away. "Just because I am dead does not mean I am truly gone, my little Chris," he said lovingly. "I live with you in the rune, as do all other had-been bearers of the True Water Rune. We will all fight alongside you; you will never be alone. But you must feel. You must not hide the emotions you have for others, such as the knight who weeps for you now. Embrace them instead, and use them to your advantage!"

Chris found herself pulling away the covers in an urge to get out of bed and into action. The whiteness lifted away completely, replaced by a gentle blue aura. But her shadow-father held up a hand to slow her down. "You are about to wake to a world of pain. If you do not stay awake after that, the rune will have no energy to spare for you. We had-been bearers root for you, Chris. And I, your father, love you very much. Should you need me," he shouted as he moved away into the backdrop, "call for me with the rune and I will come."

"Thank you, father…" Chris whispered, then called it out at the top of her lungs in hopes that he would hear her. She still sat on her bed, her feet dangling over its edge. She took one deep breath before plunging into the blue.

"The cold," echoed his voice, "the cold will plague you no more."

……

The pain was immense. Her arm and torso were on fire, and white zigzagged across her vision like lightning. She felt herself being pushed back into nothingness, but refused to go. She held on to her consciousness for her dear life, and grasped it firmly before attempting to do anything else. That done, she now experimentally opened an eye; It worked! She opened her other, but it shut quickly on reflex. It seemed to be raining. Drops fell from above and landed on her face, rolling down her cheeks. She used her open eye to look up, and found that she was indoors. A large blurred blob was above her left side, and it took some strain to focus on it.

It was in fact Borus. And he was… weeping? Yes, she saw, it was his tears that she felt on her face. She suddenly felt guilty for making him suffer. She remembered her father saying something about feelings for him. She knew he was right, and forced herself to admit it no matter how much she did not want to. She knew it would interfere with her work, but she also knew she had no choice in the matter. Her right arm, her good arm, moved slightly. Then she brought her hand up to his chin, and he started at her touch.

"Ch-ch-Chris?" He backed out of her vision momentarily before moving back into it closer to her head. "You're… by the gods, you are alive…" His eyes glistened, filled with renewed hope.

Chris licked her dry lips and tried to speak. It came out rasping, but she swallowed and it became better. "Back up…" Borus looked at her as though she had just asked if Roland had told that joke. But he shook his head and stood back. Chris flexed her right hand before calling on the healing power of her rune. She let the rune read her emotions, and for the first time in what seemed like forever, the rune began to work. Joy consumed her.

Its blue aura spread around Chris like a large Christmas light, and Chris felt her pain begin to depart. She put all her energy into the healing, knowing that she could not stop with the job half done. After what seemed like hours, there was nothing left to heal, or no healing left, and the aura disappeared. Borus approached her again, but now she was asleep. They both knew there was no featherbed now, but to Chris it felt like the softest featherbed the world had to offer.

………

Well then. Only a few chapters to go, though I may regret saying this. How was that? There was no way I could have possibly described the pain Chris went through, because I would have to be the story teller of story tellers. And I am not. But it was darn painful, let me tell you. I'm looking forward to comments and reviews, and any predictions you guys may have. Don't be shy, say a what's on your mind.

Also, if anyone can guess what is going to happen in the next chapter, they will be able to view the next chapter (as long as you are a registered user on FFN or supply your email) before it's posted! Good luck, and may the best guesser win.