This chapter is what makes the story rated M. Just letting you all know before you start reading; however, if you skip this chapter, you miss crucial parts of the plot.
Aelita loved night time. The way everything sounded and smelled was so much different, so much more peaceful. Although Jeremie had warned her countless times of the dangers that lurked around every midnight corner, begging her to never wander out by her lonesome, her curious self never heeded any attention to his desperate words.
Jeremie had graciously led Aelita back to her dorm that night after they had gone for a walk through the forest together. The rustling of soft grass beneath her feet tickled her ankles, and she loved frolicking through patches of flowers and playing hide-and-seek with him in the bushes. On this particular night, however, something burning deep inside Aelita was begging for her to run outside and examine more of Earth's wonders. As she watched him trot down the hall and exit away into his room, she quickly snuck out of her dormitory and let the door slowly fall shut, the lock clicking into place. She tip-toed down the halls and before long was sneakily running across the hard cobblestone paths of Kadic's campus. Aelita wanted to know more about what the evening was like, and the inquisition flaring inside of her wasn't going to let her sleep tonight before she satisfied her desires.
The moon was full tonight, the glowing orb hovering above in the gleaming midnight sky. There wasn't a single cloud in sight, allowing each and every dazzling yellow speck to vibrantly rest in the rich, deep blue hue that cast above Aelita's head. A breeze gently blew across her, rustling her glorious pink strands against her cheeks and drumming against her ears. The frigid gust of air nipped at her nose and she wrinkled in response, rubbing her hands against her face to produce warmth. She listened in depth as the sound of her heels clicked against the cold concrete of the sidewalks that outlined the streets. Jeremie hadn't taken her to see much of town yet, and what a better time to observe such wonders than at night, when everything else was already so much more beautiful.
Aelita couldn't understand why sometimes people feared the night and acted as if things were so dangerous. To her, there was not a single ounce of danger in sight. How could evil lurk in such beauty? Oh, to be so young and naïve. When the pinkette approached Jeremie with such a question, he always replied the same. "Things are not always as they seem, Aelita."
And tonight, although the innocent girl had yet to realize it, things were not exactly as they seemed.
Most shops were closed, and she was completely alone. She stuffed her chilly hands in the warm depths of her pockets, burrowing deep to surround her naked fingers with the fuzzy cloth that rested inside her jumper. Occasionally, her enquiring eyes observed the neon signs that flashed with such brilliance, delightful and vibrant colors sparking through the window that alerted others the store was still open. She smiled in contentment as her glistening emerald eyes met the sight of a new pleasure around every block. Slender, pink tulips lined some of the windows, adding a little bit of prettiness to seemingly bare brick windowsills. The flowers gently swayed in the breeze, dancing to the rhythm of the wind. Aelita happily removed one of the delicate flowers from it's bed of soil and rock, brushing the petals against her nose and inhaling the decadent perfume of nature. She was happy. Jeremie would be so angry if he knew she was wandering the streets at night alone, but that thought merely huddled in the back of her mind, because for now, she was happy.
As Aelita walked further down the streets, she saw a gap lurking between two buildings, an alley. Most of the shops joined perfectly, intertwining to become one, but for some reason, this one had been separated from the other. What miracles could possibly hide away in the pits of this little hall? Aelita dropped the tulip to the ground and skipped along, exploring the depth between the two structures. A dumpster sat perched against one of the walls. She quickly learned to stray away, as the rotting scent of garbage slid across the wind and made her nose writhe in disgust. Her fingertips brushed against the rough texture of the solid bricks that aligned to create the walls that surrounded her. It scraped at the sensitive tips of her skin, but she almost liked the sensation of a slight scratch.
"Excuse me… Aelita Stones?"
Aelita spun around immediately at the calling of her name. Did someone find out she had snuck out? Was she going to get in trouble? The race of her heart increased, gently patting against her small chest. Her eyes met with the sight of a professional figure towering in front of her. He almost completely blended in with the blackness of the evening. She couldn't even see his face, because he was wearing sunglasses. Who wears sunglasses at night? That's just ridiculous, she thought to herself.
"Or should I say… Aelita Schaeffer." Her name rolled across his tongue as if he achieved some sort of filthy pleasure from speaking it.
Aelita raised an eyebrow at the man, her little voice piping up. "No… my last name is Stones," she confirmed, confused as to why he had called her such a thing. The man, however, seemed none too pleased, feeling as if she was mocking him. He approached her, carefully and slowly, and Aelita for some reason was inclined to cautiously back away. As if out of instinct, almost.
"Why are you backing away from me?" The man's deep voice boomed through the atmosphere of the night. "Are you… afraid of me?"
"No. I'm not afraid," Aelita tried to reassure. The man's serious mouth twitched into a small smirk, and he continued to confront her.
"Well, you're going to be."
At this point, Aelita's heart was rapidly thumping in her chest. She wasn't sure exactly what this feeling was, but the man kept getting closer and closer until Aelita found herself pressed against the cold, sharp wires of a metal fence that blocked off the path behind her. The man stopped only inches away from her. She had nowhere else to go.
"I've been looking for you for a very long time now, little lady. I can't tell you how happy I am to have finally met you."
Aelita's eyes widened and her pupils traced the man up and down. Black suit, black pants, solid black shoes that had been so well cleaned they sparkled underneath the moonlight. Black sunglasses, black tie, all black. Black, black black. There was something in his ear with a little cord that spiraled down into the pocket of his blazer. A microphone? She wondered if the man was some sort of official authority. That thought sent shivers up her spine… Aelita already knew she was in big trouble.
"Who are you?" She asked, her chest rapidly rising and lowering with her frantic breathing.
"You could say I'm a family friend."
A family friend? But I don't have a family, Aelita's thoughts raced through her mind. Her fingers wrapped around the gaps that filled the wire of the fence, clutching the metal behind her.
"You've got some very important information that I just have to get my hands on, Ms. Schaeffer. I hope you can understand." The man stood tall and straight, his posture perfectly vertical. His giant hands slowly slid into the never-ending pockets of his fancy, black trousers.
"Uh… what information?"
"Well, let's start with that toy in the factory you and your friends like to play with."
Her heart sank right down into her stomach, and any shade of pink that had flustered onto her face from the cold had washed away completely. Something tightened inside of her abdomen, almost as if there was a collection of little butterflies gently fluttering away inside of her, bouncing along the walls of her belly.
"I don't know what you're talking about."
The man followed her lie with a chuckle. Something told Aelita he wasn't going to buy it. "Are you sure, Ms. Schaeffer? Are you sure you don't know what I'm talking about?"
She rapidly nodded her head in agreement. The man folded his hands together and smiled at her.
"Alright, perhaps I've got the wrong person. I'm sorry to have bothered you."
He turned around and started to walk away, and Aelita exhaled a huge sigh of relief, letting go of her grasp on the fence and brushing herself off. The feeling of tenseness finally loosened inside of her, and warmth swarmed throughout her.
All of this relaxation quickly disappeared though, as the man swung around and forced her against the brick wall.
His hands were cold and clammy, and Aelita's ribs almost pierced into her lungs as his firm grip pressed against her chest, pinning her against the bricks. The roughness of the blocks scraped against her back, and she no longer liked the feeling of a gentle scratch.
"I'm only joking, of course. I know what you and your friends are up to. I've been watching you for quite some time."
"Put me down! I don't know what you're talking about, so you put me down right now!" He only snickered as her frail limbs kicked endlessly at his thick, muscular legs. To him, it merely felt like raindrops against his skin.
"Do you really want to play this game, Ms. Schaeffer? I'll gladly do the same thing to you that I did to your mother."
"My mother?" Aelita stopped kicking and stared directly at the eyes that hid behind the sunglasses. Again, his mouth curled into a creepy smile. His teeth were crooked and yellow, one of his canines significantly chipped. His breath was hot, smoldering even, and brushed against her neck. She cringed at the unpleasant feeling.
"It was quite some time ago, perhaps you've forgotten what happened. What's the matter, Ms. Schaeffer? You don't remember me?"
"I've never seen you in my life!" Aelita gritted through her teeth as she struggled to break free from his painful grip.
"My feelings are hurt; I can't believe you don't remember who I am, Ms. Schaeffer."
Aelita glared at the man who seemed to take such pride in her helplessness. Her brows firmly pressed together and anger began to course through her veins. "What do you want from me?" she snapped.
"I want you to tell me everything right now. Everything you know about the supercomputer and it's contents. I want you to tell me what your father was up to, and where he's hiding."
"I really think you've got the wrong person," Aelita tried to pass along through a smile. The man slowly removed his sunglasses and tucked them away in the collar of his shirt. His irises had no color. They were as black as his outfit, as black as the night sky. His eyes fumed with rage, but also desire, almost lustful. He scowled at her. The look in his eyes pierced Aelita like a needle, injecting her with terror. She felt endangered, and as if it were a reflex, threw her foot as hard as she could directly into the man's crotch.
The man lost his grip against Aelita groaned in agony, and the terrified girl took her chance and began to charge out of the alley. Gritting his teeth in pain, and now even angrier than before, he lunged after Aelita and forcefully tugged on the hood of her jacket, pulling her backwards into him.
"HEY!" she screamed, flailing her legs and attempting to wiggle out of his grasp. The devious figure threw her against the wall, tightly seizing her arms to trap her against the bricks. "What are you doing? H-hey! Get off of me! GET! OFF!" She pleaded, kicking fiercely at his legs.
"Tell me everything," he demanded, spit sneaking out of the creases of his teeth and onto Aelita's neck. "Right now. Or I'll make sure you'll regret it." His words were harsh, arduous, and cold. This man was not playing around, and Aelita dreaded that she would suffer a serious consequence if she couldn't provide the answers that she didn't even know.
"I don't have anything to tell you!" The man constricted his clutch firmer around Aelita's arms, pinching her skin beneath his untrimmed fingernails. "STOP IT!" she cried, and spat in his face. The man grunted and turned away, releasing one of Aelita's arms to wipe the droplets onto his sleeve.
"Alright," his raspy voice calmly muttered as his head slowly creaked towards the frustrated young pinkette. "You asked for it." A devious grin spread across his face, and Aelita's stomach tied in knots.
"But I can't tell you what I don't know! I don't have a father! I'm an orphan!"
The man's mischievous smile vaporized. "An… orphan?"
"Uh huh…" Aelita timidly choked in her quivering voice. The man, completely un-amused, gently lifted her off of the wall and onto the ground… before fiercely throwing her back against the sharp ridges of the wall once again. She whined from the shock of the edges scraping against her back, tearing at her clothing.
"You don't want to lie to a man like me, Ms. Schaeffer."
"MY NAME IS STONES! NOT SCHAEFFER! I'M TELLING YOU, YOU'VE GOT THE WRONG-"
Smack.
Her words were cut off from his muscular hand forcefully swiping across her face, throwing her head to the opposite side.
"Don't raise your voice at me," the man softly ordered, brushing his nose against hers. She tightly shut her eyes and cringed as his blazing breath rustled against her lips. The man's hands, rough and callused, began to trail up and down the petite arms that he pinned against the wall. Aelita's fearful eyes followed as he began to explore every square inch of her body. He rubbed his abrasive fingers against her neck, her chest, circling his digits around her belly button, and slowly travelling down to her legs.
Aelita had become very, very, uncomfortable.
"What are you doing?" Her voice shook.
"Shhh," the agent cooed into her ears, making Aelita's stomach churn. "I'm only giving you what you deserve. You were awfully rude to me. That's only fair, isn't it? You're quite the fighter. Just like your mother."
"H-How do you know my m-mother?" Aelita carefully asked, fearing her nosiness would get her even more hurt. The man looked up at her and simply winked. Aelita felt as if she was going to puke.
"Why don't you let me show you?" He whispered against her neck before squeezing his firm hands against her bottom. Aelita let out a yelp.
"Hey! What are you doing?!"
"You're not going to make this easy for me, are you?"
"I will if you let go of me."
"You've got nerve, little lady."
He continued to brush his hands against every surface of her fair skin, his slimy fingers gently strolling against her chest and helping himself to her breasts. Again, Aelita yelped.
"STOP!" Something about his actions told Aelita that this was not okay. She squirmed in his grasp and began to flail her little legs, but he paid no attention to her actions or her demands of release. The man grew increasingly impatient, and as he heaved a sigh filled with irritation and intolerance, he grabbed the collar of her shirt and threw her onto the ground. Aelita cried out as her fragile bones slammed against the coarse asphalt of the street. She looked up in terror as the man approached her and placed his oversized foot directly on her chest.
"Please, just let me go," Aelita delicately begged as her panic filled eyes began to well up.
"I'm afraid I can't do that." The man dropped his knees onto the ground and hovered himself over her, his face merely inches from her. His hands began to explore her body again, but this time, less gentle, and more forceful. His pupils dilated as they travelled the nooks and crannies of her fragile frame, and Aelita felt a frigid breeze below as her dress was thrown upwards towards her stomach.
"Stop! Get off of me!" She fidgeted and struggled relentlessly; throwing her fists onto the ground and then pounding against the man's chest, but no matter how strong she was on Lyoko… she was merely a weak, helpless little girl on Earth when put against a man like this. He looked her directly in the eyes, glossed over with lust and evil, as he rubbed against the inside of her thighs and caught his index finger onto the elastic band of her underwear, tearing it straight off.
Aelita didn't know much about her body, or her anatomy, but she knew enough to know that her privacy was being heavily invaded right now. Her heart hastily struck against her petite chest cavity, her abdomen tightening and the butterflies pounding around as if they were caught in a tornado.
"It's such a shame I have to do this to such a pretty little girl."
"Y-you know… you don't… h-have to!" Aelita mumbled through her unsteady voice, hoping to convince him. He only chuckled.
"Oh, but I do. I told you that you would regret keeping your secrets from me."
Pure terror pulsated throughout all of Aelita's body as she heard the jingling of his belt buckle, followed by his heavy black trousers plummeting onto the ground. Go figure, his boxers were also black. The man leaned down close to Aelita's sensitive ears and gently whispered.
"You should have listened to your boyfriend when he told you not to wander in the dark alone."
He was right. He had been watching her for a while. Aelita screamed as loudly as she possibly could, hoping someone, anyone, would hear and come help her. She kicked at him, threw her fists at him, even spat at him, but nothing stopped him as he lowered himself over her, and slowly slid his boxers down to his knees.
"GET OFF OF ME! HELP!" she exclaimed, throwing herself any direction she could, desperately trying to break free. "LET ME GO! GET OFF!"
Her cries for help became muffled attempts at a scream as his giant hand clasped over her vibrating lips. She threw her fists against his grip over her mouth, trying to get him to let go, but it was no use. There was no winning against this man.
"You need to shut your mouth," he harshly commanded.
Aelita clamped her little teeth down onto his hand as hard as she could. The man yelled in pain and responded by smacking her across the face as tough as he could. She hollered out from the burning sensation in her cheeks.
"Please! Just let me go!" her words of desperation became masked by her now heavy sobs as she forced herself to look away from the grueling, menacing man on top of her.
And then came the worst kind of pain Aelita could have ever imagined.
The man, tired of tugging her along and putting up with her fight, shoved himself inside of her as deeply as he possibly could while pinning her to the ground. Aelita opened her mouth and expelled every amount of air cooped inside her lungs in the form of one, excruciating scream, followed by weeping. He laughed at her pain, only motivating him to go even harder.
"STOOOPPP!" She cried out as hard as she could, trying to push the man off of her. Oh how she wished she were on Lyoko right now. If she could at least use creativity, create a barrier between her and the man. "STOP! YOU'RE HURTING ME!"
"I know," the man heavily breathed through his yellow grin. Aelita's stomach writhed. He was getting off on her pain.
Each thrust was more forceful than the last. She felt as if her very insides were tearing apart. As if one of the bricks from the walls around her, hard, thick, and rough, was being shoved inside of her with no remorse. It burned and it stung. As if her insides were blistering up from the friction.
"Please, stop…" she tearfully mumbled, no longer containing the energy to scream. She felt her own life draining from her body. Eventually, she didn't even want to beg, or plead, or fight anymore. She just lie on the cold, rigid ground, and let it happen. While the man muttered words she couldn't understand and grunted with what seemed like pleasure, the tears steadily streamed from her eyes and she incessantly choked out little sobs and cries for help. But it was nothing loud enough for anyone to hear.
And then came the worst part of all. A thick, gooey, and warm sensation surged upwards, feeling as if it was entering her stomach. It made her want to puke. Everything made her want to puke right now. After what seemed like centuries, the brick was released from her. She heard the familiar jingle of the belt as the man stood up and re-dressed himself. Then, he dropped back down onto his knees and knelt down by Aelita's ear.
"Since you decided to fool around, you've earned your punishment. I know who your friends are, and I know where each of them live, and where they spend their free time. I'll find a way to get the information I desire. But for now… you're not going to tell a soul, do you understand?"
Aelita did not look towards the man as he crouched by her ear, his words biting against her ear drum. She merely stared at the sky above her; the once brilliant stars now appeared dull and ugly. The sky was disgusting. The moon was not sparkling. Night time was ugly now. Aelita hated the night. She slowly blinked, only once, and then forced a cracked whisper through her dry throat.
"I promise."
"A promise is a promise, Ms. Schaeffer. I'll see to it your friends suffer a fate worse than you just did if I find out you've opened your mouth."
And the man walked away.
Aelita still did not know who he was, how he knew her, and why he had just done what he did to her. The only thing Aelita knew was that she hurt. She hurt everywhere. The wounded area, torn and bloody, throbbed incessantly… the warm, red liquid trickling down her legs with each hot pulsation of her cuts.
She curled up into a ball and quietly sobbed to herself. The injured pinkette felt as if something had just been stolen from her. She had been robbed in an alley.
This man had committed the ultimate theft.