Crona awoke to the sound of Nygus and Sid entering. He trembled in apprehension and pushed himself closer to the corner.
"Did you sleep there all night?" Nygus sighed as she set a water bottle next to him. Crona didn't answer, he gazed at Sid with a petrified expression. "Sid won't hurt you Crona. He's a zombie but he still has a brain."
Sid cleared his throat. "Lord Death wants to see you now. I've afraid protocol requires me to put these on you." He pulled out a pair of handcuffs attached to a chain leash.
Unwanted memories surfaced in Crona's mind. Metal restraints. Searing pain. He cried out and curled up in a fetal position.
Crona gasped for air as the thick tongue swirled around his own. Finally, the witch came up for air herself. A trail of saliva dripped from her mouth.
"Pathetic." She whispered as she choked him with her talon hands. Many of the witches liked to choke him until he would almost pass out.
"Please!" He gasped. But the witch pressed harder and stuck her tongue in his mouth once more to silence him.
"Crona!" Nygus shook him out of the memory. "Were you hallucinating?"
"K-kind of." Crona trembled. His eyes popped as he felt the familiar pain in his back as Ragnarok burst through.
"He does shit like that all the time! Just detaches from reality like the little freak he is. Now put the damn cuffs on Crona. I want food! You ate all the food last night you bastard!" Ragnarok screeched as he yanked on Crona's cheeks.
"But you always get the food!" Crona whined. "Ow! Stop that!"
Oh yes...the demon sword. Nygus had almost forgotten about him."Enough!" She whacked the bully swiftly over the head. He looked up, startled, then growled and retreated back into his meister. "Crona, I'm sorry but we can't let you out of this room without handcuffs right now. I know you're scared but if you don't comply we will have to use force. Now stick out your wrists and I promise that we will be gentle."
Shaking violently, the timid boy scrambled to his feet and surrendered his wrists to Sid. Sid made sure that the cuffs were not too tight before beckoning Crona to follow him. Nygus chose to place her hand on his shoulder in reassurance as they walked. They soon reached the door to their destination.
Crona shook so violently that his knees gave way and he crumpled to the ground. Nygus lifted his still limp body by the armpits as Sid opened the door. She dragged Crona in. It was obvious he would not move by himself any time soon.
"Hi!" Exclaimed Lord Death once he saw them. Nygus plopped Crona on the ground in front of him and took a couple steps back. "There's no reason to be afraid Crona." The meister dared to sneak a peak and instantly ducked his head in terror. "Come on! This mask isn't scary! I just want to talk." He looked at Crona for a few minutes of silence and gestured to Nygus and Sid. "I've seen all I need to. Nygus, or should I say, Nurse, take him to Dr. Stein. I want him to find out more about the black blood. But, don't leave him alone with Crona. I don't want that child to be harmed is that understood?" Nygus nodded. "I also want you to take care of any medical problems he might have. And give him some food!"
"Yes, Lord Death." Nygus answered.
"Good. Then you are dismissed."
"Does he need to wear the handcuffs?" Sid questioned.
"Hmmm..."Lord Death pondered for a moment. "No. Only if he is acting dangerous."
"Are you going to walk yourself out Crona?" Nygus asked him. He nodded a little, with his eyes still cast down. Sid turned to Crona and pulled the handcuff keys from his pocket. Crona winced and rubbed his wrists once they were off.
"They didn't hurt did they? I put them on loose." Sid asked, with a puzzled expression.
"No." Crona whimpered.
"Then why did you...nevermind." Sid sighed. He turned to Nygus. "I'll stay behind. I have a few questions for Lord Death."
"I see. Well come on Crona." Nygus gently gripped his left arm and led him out. "We are going to the Nurse's Office. Dr. Stein's office is right next to mine. I'm going to give you a look over before I call him. Ok?"
Crona shivered but didn't respond. His widened eyes were cast down. It was taking all of his self control not to show his panic. He could almost hear his heart beating in his chest. Sure, Lord Death had said that he didn't want him harmed, calming his fear of execution. However, he had also said that he wanted to study the black blood. Images of being strapped down and subjected to Medusa's needles raced through his mind. Were they going to experiment on him as well?
They had reached the main floor of the school. Fortunately, most of the students were in class at this time. A boy was scrolling on his phone outside of a classroom door. He looked up at Crona.
"What is that, Nygus?" He asked with a sneer. Crona shut his eyes and gripped Nygus's arm so hard that it hurt.
"Kicked out of class again I see, Tommy?" Nygus pried Crona's fingers off of her as she kept on walking. However, she wrapped her left arm comfortingly around his shoulders until they reached her office.
The room was filled with file cabinets and rows of medicine and medical instruments. A large desk covered in folders and office supplies sat in the right corner.
"This is the Nurse's Office. There are a few beds in the room to the right in case a student needs to lie down for whatever reason. This is the examination room." She opened the door on the left side of the office that led to a small room with a hospital bed, cabinets, a chair, and a sink. Nygus shut the door behind them. "Have you ever had a physical before?" She asked.
"Huh?"
"Have you ever went to a doctor?"
"Only Medusa."
"I figured as much. Crona I need you to take off your robe."
"What?" Crona wrapped his arms around himself protectively.
"I need to examine your physical health. I'm not going to hurt you. But I need to see your body."
"I c-can't do it."
"Unfortunately, this is something that needs to happen. Would it be easier if I helped you?" Crona gave a small nod. He complied as Nygus pulled off the black fabric leaving him in a pair of white briefs. Nygus wasn't surprised by the scars that painted his body. However, a long, ugly surgical scar that ran down his chest caught her eye. It looked like he had had multiple heart surgeries. Crona gasped as she pressed her cold stethoscope against his flesh. His heart was pounding. She sighed and set the stethoscope on the counter.
"I can't get an accurate reading since you are so afraid. I'm going to give you a sedative injection." Nygus left the room and came back with a syringe filled with white liquid. Crona whimpered when he saw the tool. Scrambling from the bed he pushed himself up against the corner and eyed the syringe warily. "This will make you feel better." Nygus assured him as she grabbed his wrist. "Don't you dare harden your blood." Crona winced as Nygus injected the fluid into his arm. He braced himself for the pain. Nothing happened. Usually syringes were followed by immense pain that was much worse than the prick itself.
Nygus pulled him to his feet and gently pushed him down so that he lay on the hospital bed. He began to feel sleepy.
"Tell me if anything hurts." Nygus gently pressed down on his chest and made her way down. Crona felt surprisingly relaxed despite the uncomfortable situation. That was, until she pressed down on a sore spot. His breath hissed. "That hurts?" Nygus frowned. "That's your liver."
"What does that mean?"
"I don't know for sure yet. I need to take off your underwear for a moment okay?"
Crona tensed.
"Just to make sure everything is okay. I'll try to be quick. It's normal for nurses to check that during a physical." She pulled his underwear down and gasped. His entire genital area was bruised. She pulled the underwear off and put on gloves. Then she carefully spread his legs to take a closer look. Tiny drops of orange liquid dripped from the inside of his bruised and battered testicles. Crona was shaking so hard now.
"P-please don't."
The sexual abuse was obvious. Nygus desperately wanted to comfort the youth but she didn't know what to say. She lifted up his penis to see the opening beneath it. His underdeveloped vagina was even more bruised than the top of his genitals. She spread the lips to reveal a drip of black bloody pus. This was going to have to be cleaned out immediately. She felt a ball of fury well up in her stomach. Had Medusa done this? She slid the underwear back over his privates and disposed of the gloves. She had hoped that she could check his heart rate after the sedative had calmed him. However, the circumstances had made it impossible for him not to panic.
"I need to go get Dr. Stein now." She informed Crona with a stoic expression.