Epilogue
Once again, Jay found himself immersed in total darkness...a darkness that would soon be shattered.
"Can you hear me?" Solon's grating voice echoed within Jay's mind. "Wake up, Jay!"
A crushing blow to Jay's face brought him to his senses, if only a little. He opened his eyes and immediately noticed Solon's cruel eyes leering at him.
"Hello, Jay. Do you know where you are?"
Jay took a moment to study his surroundings. He was on a wooden table, bound to it with chains in the spread-eagle position. To his left was a lava pit with a cage hanging over it. To his right was a table with many small instruments strewn across it. Jay knew them all too well; they were instruments of torture.
Jay was already in pain from the torture at the Ruins of Frozen Light. He dropped back onto the table with a series of heavy rasping breaths. He was exhausted, but he resolved to himself that he would not give his captors any more pleasure in torturing him.
Solon grasped Jay's chin, looking him in the eyes. "Have you figured it out yet? Can you guess what's going to happen to you?"
Jay turned away from him.
"Don't ignore me, Jay! It won't save you!" Solon threw another hard backfist to his face.
Jay coughed several times, then went back to his heavy breathing. "Moses..."
"He looks disoriented," Cashel pointed out.
"Hmm..." Solon looked down at the poor boy, who took some more heavy breaths, his chest heaving in and out. "You're right. But no matter. Cashel, watch me molest him at the highest level."
"I can already feel my blood boiling," Cashel remarked.
Solon raised his hands, and his fingertips gave off a red glow, which quickly spread throughout his hands. He grinned as he glanced at the helpless victim on the table. Jay continued his heavy breaths, only semi-aware of what was happening. He could only sense the hands that slowly descended upon him.
Solon planted his hands firmly on Jay's upper body. Jay gasped in between heavy breaths as he felt the incredible burning sensation. He no longer had the energy to fully cry out, but his level of suffering was the same, if not greater than he had felt before.
"Do you feel it, Jay?" Solon asked, grinning. "Do you feel the burn?"
"M...Moses..." Jay whispered in between gasps. "H...Help..."
Solon caressed all over Jay's body with his burning hands. Jay continued his writhes of agony, although there was nothing he could do to stop it or escape.
Solon finally stopped the caresses, but Jay still felt the scorching effect. Solon held up his hands again, and they now began to glow blue. Jay was completely oblivious to everything but the burning sensation in his body.
"Can you feel the heat, Jay?" Solon taunted. "Well, allow me to cool you off."
He began to caress Jay's body again, but now his hands were ice cold. Jay let out a series of short screams in between his heavy breaths.
"That's it, Jay! Cry more!"
Jay paid no attention to the taunts as he tried desperately to escape this frigid grasp. Solon backed off again and simply watched the apprentice suffer from the lingering effect.
"Moses..." Jay muttered once again.
Solon shook his head. "Tsk, tsk, tsk. I don't know why you keep calling out that stupid bandit's name. You should realize by now that he cannot save you."
"Moses...!" Jay called out with the remainder of his strength.
"Shut up!" Solon threw another hard backfist to Jay's face.
"Oooh, that had to hurt," Cashel remarked.
"Does it hurt, Jay?" Solon asked. "Tell me that it hurts. I'll be sure to keep it up."
"Le...Leave me..." Jay said weakly. "L...Let me go..."
"You poor unfortunate soul," Solon cooed. "Let me make it up to you with this."
He unsheathed his sword, placing the blade lightly on Jay's body. Jay tensed up as he felt the blade's cold bite. Grinning, Solon dragged the blade ever so gently down the boy's body and down his left leg. He then stuck the blade within the white slip and dragged the blade back up the inside of the leg, pulling up the slip.
Oh Nerifes... Jay thought. He's going to rape me...
"Moses..." he called out once more.
Solon slid his hand up Jay's body and then cupped his chin. "Go ahead and keep crying out. When I'm done with you, the only name you'll be calling out is my own."
Tears began to streak down Jay's face. "Moses..."
Before Solon could go any further, Moses burst into the room with Giet at his side.
"Yahoo! Caught ya red-handed this time!" he yelled. "Come on, bring it!"
Solon paused for a moment before straightening himself. "Moses...I'll reward your persistence."
"Solon, what are you saying?" Cashel asked.
Instead of answering, Solon turned back to the poor apprentice. "Well, Jay, it's been fun. I'll come back for you when I come up with some new juicy ideas."
"Like hell!" Moses snapped. "You ain't gettin' him again!"
"Oh, I will," Solon said. "But for now, we must take our leave. Come, Cashel."
"Very well," Cashel said, disappointed.
"Hey!" Moses yelled.
Solon and Cashel vanished in a puff of smoke. Moses was about to explode, but he remembered that he had something much more important to worry about.
"Jay!" Moses went over to the table, quickly unlocked the chains, and threw them aside.
Jay opened his broken eyes. "M...Moses?"
"Yeah...it's me," Moses said. "What did they do to you?"
"Everything..." Jay muttered. "You stopped Solon before...before..."
"Shh, don't talk no more." Moses reached into his sack and pulled out Jay's star-spangled clothes. "Here...I brought your old clothes."
He took Jay gently by the arm and helped him sit up. The first thing he noticed were the bloody, swollen whip wounds on Jay's back.
"Those bastards are gonna pay for this!" Moses growled.
"Moses..."
"Here, lemme help you get dressed."
Moses pulled out Jay's shorts and carefully slipped them on under his slip.
"Moses...I didn't give in..." Jay said softly. "There was one thing...one hope that I held on to..."
Moses took Jay's jacket and carefully put it on, pulling his arms through the sleeves.
Jay continued his story. "The hope that I held onto...was you. I kept waiting...I kept hoping that you would come for me."
Moses stood up and grinned. "Hey, you can always trust me 'n' Giet! Now let's get the hell out of here and fix you up with some crystal eres. Here, Giet, gimme your back."
"Woof!" Giet stepped up to the table, standing erect. Moses placed Jay carefully on the galf's back, and then they left the fortress.
-----------------
Solon and Cashel returned to the Legacy's bridge to reflect on the fun they'd had.
"Why did you let him go!?" Cashel snapped. "We were so close; we could have killed him at any time!"
"I never had any intention of killing him," Solon responded. "If I kill him, who would I have to torture?"
"Well, there's always the Merines."
"No...she's too weak, too frail. It wouldn't be any fun. But Jay...he's tough. I know he'll make it last. You saw it yourself, did you not?"
"Yes...but if you don't want to kill Jay, what will happen when the Commander finishes off Senel and his friends?"
"I've already asked the Commander to spare Jay. Once I have him, there'll be no need to stay within his ranks anymore."
"But you could have taken him now!"
"If I took him now, it would only be a matter of time before Senel's group rescues him. Letting him go was the only way to get that stupid bandit out of our hair."
Cashel stroked his chin. "Hmm, you do have a point. But as long as Jay is alive, he poses a threat to the Commander."
"That won't be a problem," Solon said. "Once Senel's group is finished, I'll take Jay back to the mainland, where not a single soul would lift a finger to save him. Those meddling Oresoren wouldn't dare leave the Legacy either."
"Ah, that's true too. You know, Solon, catching Jay seems to be your only objective."
"Yes, it is."
"But why? You only joined the Commander just to get Jay? Why would you go to that trouble?"
Solon gave him an ice cold stare, indicating that he was quite serious. "Cashel...would you laugh if I told you that I love Jay?"
Cashel was taken aback. "You must be joking!"
"Do I look like the joking type?"
Cashel paused, as Solon certainly did not look like the joking type.
Solon walked up to Cashel, getting right into his face. "Mark my words. I love that boy. I want him back! One way or another, I will get him back!"
He turned and left the room, leaving Cashel thoroughly stunned. Cashel's eyes widened, for no one else could have struck fear into his frigid heart.
"Consider them marked."