His cheekbone burst into pain as he slammed into the wall. He blinked blood from his sight. His head felt like a jumbled mess. Somebody ripped his shirt as they wrenched him off the wall to throw him into a shelf. He crashed into it; he felt his ribs crack and he wheezed at the pain. Things clattered onto the floor amidst manic laughter. Knox felt his ankle twist under him when he sank onto the ground, coughing. Someone aimed a kick at his bruised ribs. Knox winced. There was stinging sound going through his ears. Knox opened his eyes to see red flowing into them. Someone pulled him up and shoved him onto a chair. Knox let his head fall back. A smooth palm cupped his chin and Knox flinched away from the touch. He shoved at the owner of those hands, earning a hard slap across his face. Knox let out a pained moan.

"Well, 101. We finally meet again." He froze when he recognised that voice. The smooth fingers were on his cheek again. Knox's eyes shot open.

"Burke," Knox slurred, twisting away from the touch. He could faintly see Doc Barrows held at gun point. Charon was nowhere to be seen. Knox felt sick.

"Come now, you didn't push me away when you were begging me not to blow Megaton up." Knox felt heat travel up his cheeks. "How you've changed, my love-bird," he cooed and Knox cringed. "Your skin… now covered with such… marks…" His familiar touch trailed over his torso and Knox pushed the hand away. "Did your ghoul give you this scratch?" Burke traced the scar over his lips.

"Get your hands off me," Knox growled. Burke grinned lewdly at him.

"Oh, but you like this, don't you? Living with zombies can't possibly satisfy your…" Burke pressed a knee against his groin. Knox hissed. "Every urge. I bet not even your fuck slave –"

"He's nobody's slave –"

"He's mine now." Knox's eyes widened when Burke pulled out the contract from the coat he wore. Fuck. FUCK. His blood ran cold at the sight of it.

"What the fuck did you do to him?" Knox whispered. His limbs weakened in a heartbeat. He'd never forgive himself if Burke put his dirty hands on Charon. FUCK. He was supposed to make sure Charon was safe from evil bastards. Who knew what this fucker could do to him? Who knew what this fucker would make him do?

"I told him not to kill you. Not yet."

"I swear if you hurt him–"

"Patience." That hand pressed against the wound on his temple and Knox winced. "There are things we need to discuss." With strength, Knox shoved Burke off him, making a grab for the contract. Immediately, hands slammed him back onto the chair. He struggled till someone socked him against the eye and he saw stars. His wrists were pulled back and tied behind the chair.

"Told you we should've tied the little shit up."

"Stay out of things you don't understand –"

"You're making out with your boy toy. Stick to the program, Mister Burke."

"I'm sure your Commander Jabsco wouldn't appreciate you talking back to me. As it is, I'm the one who put the price on his head." Knox felt the hands on him again. "This cure you and your doctor are trying to find…I want it."

"What the fuck are you talking about? " Knox drawled, feeling blood dribble down his chin.

"I know that it's to reverse the effects of ghoulification." Burke was tracing patterns onto his chest in languid strokes. "If I price it right, I'm sure it will be very helpful to me. Especially since I no longer have a zombie-free home… thanks to you…"

"Well, I don't fucking have it," Knox hissed.

"Oh I know. I'm just telling you my plans." The firm fingertips stopped their ministrations and dug into his skin. "You really should be more careful where you dispose your test subjects, especially when it's a feral ghoul sprouting a full head of hair." Well, that explained why the body was missing when Knox checked it. "And those carved up bodies, my love-bird," Knox groaned at the affectionate term. "I wouldn't have thought that you were the butcher himself. You leave every scene a mess; it's difficult for my men to clean them up." The fingers left him and a fist struck his jaw.

"20 mercenaries, you sick fuck… You butchered 20 men." Knox was disoriented. "I want your head on a fucking plate!"

"Gentlemen, your yelling isn't helping anything." Burke ran a finger down Knox's chin in soft soothing strokes. Knox coughed and blinked his eyes open, trying to focus on his captor. His whole face was numb. "Of course, I understand what those organs were for, now. For developing that cure. Isn't that right, Doctor?"

"Please don't–"

"Doc, better me than you, yeah," Knox slurred, more blood dripping from his lips. Doc Barrows shook his head. For a moment, he thought that maybe this was what his Dad saw through the glass when he told Knox to run. Doc, at the moment, looked so helpless. Burke took off his glasses and gave Knox a huge grin. His eyes, though, were full of a kind of bloodlust. "I know you need Doc Barrows but don't you fucking dare hurt my …Don't hurt Charon."

"You have a soft spot for these zombies, don't you?" Knox spat blood on the clean suit, earning another hard slap on his left cheek. Knox growled low in his throat at the sting. "Pity. And you have such a talented tongue…and those hands of course. You're forcing me to make a very difficult decision, love-bird." Somehow, Knox doubted that the decision would be difficult to make. Burke laced his fingers through Knox's hair and wrenched his head back, baring his long column of throat. Knox wheezed. "I think I'll leave that decision up to you." Burke placed a kiss on the side of his lips and commanded the Talon mercenaries to untie him. As soon as the restraints left his wrists, Knox was dragged and thrown through a door. Knox landed like a ragdoll against the wall. He groaned at the ten kinds of pain radiating from his every muscle. He scanned the room he was in. It looked like it used to be a freezer where meat would be hung before being packed. What'd he expect? They were, after all, in a meat packing factory. How ironic. After so long butchering humans like meat, he was probably about to become the same. On the side of the freezer, there was a thick, dirty pane of glass where people could see into the room. Burke was smiling at him from the other side of the glass. Knox cringed.

He swung around when he heard heavy footfalls behind him only to be kicked in the stomach. He doubled up in pain. The Talon mercenary placed a 10 mm gun on the floor and walked away. Knox picked it up; there was one bullet. The metal door opened. Knox forced himself up. He winced at the pain that shot up his legs. Steadying his hands, he pointed the gun at the door. He froze. Charon stepped into the freezer thing.

"Fuck no," he hissed at the sight of his injured bodyguard. There was a deep, dark gash across his left arm. He was bleeding profusely from that cut. Those pale eyes held an unreadable swirl of emotions. His stance was hostile yet there was something else underneath that, something warmer when he stood in front of Knox. Knox saw the way his pale eyes ran over his body and its many bruises. Knox didn't want to look at his own body.

"Here's the deal. Your life or your slave's." Burke said. Knox's throat ran dry when he realised what the 10 mm pistol was for. "Kill him before I make him kill you," Burke sang. The pistol in Knox's hands grew heavy. Knox felt his heart stop.

In front of him, Charon's gaze hardened. It was almost the look he usually gave raiders as he aimed his shotgun at them; daring, stoic and unafraid. Unflinching. Unfailing. A challenge. Then he shrugged his shoulders and stood up tall. He was in his calm stance. A drop of blood from his gash dripped onto the metal grate on the floor. How the fuck could you be calm, man? It was as if…he was actually waiting for that shot to happen. He was expecting Knox to shoot him. Something like anger flared up in the pits of Knox's stomach as he watched how the pistol was still pointed at his former bodyguard. The grip was still unwavering even though his knees were trembling, even though he knew he wasn't going to shoot. How could he? This was his bodyguard. This was Charon. Sure, he knew that he couldn't have Charon forever. But… he slept in the same room with this man. They shared cigarettes. They fought together. They did almost everything together. And Knox's heart wouldn't allow him to pull the trigger. He'd rather hurt himself then do anything like this to his very loyal employee.

An unfamiliar sigh escaped his lips.

So this was it. The last time he'd ever see Charon. The last time being alive would mean anything. The last time for… anything, really. So many of his questions still hadn't been answered and they weren't ever going to be answered anyway, weren't they? In the back of his mind, he reminded himself that this was the way to go. This was the way he always wanted to go. At the hands of his own bodyguard. What better hands than his own former bodyguard's? Not that he wanted to be betrayed. Just that there was no one more deserving than Charon to watch his life drain out from his body. It was an honour. Knox smiled a small sad smile.

"Charon…" He half-expected his bodyg- his former bodyguard to tell him to 'Talk to Mister Burke'. "I shoulda… kept that contract close to me always so you wouldn't have to put up with shit like that. Fuck. These men…they're scum…and I put you to this… I… I'm sorry. You deserve a much better employer than him…Or me." Knox coughed. "Cause you're the best, ya know."He watched the way Charon clenched and unclenched his fists. The ghoul was exuding a very conflicted aura right now. A glance at Burke told Knox that no one else could tell this just by looking at them. "You remember the first thing I said to you?" No response. "I said that I wanted you to fuck me up." Knox felt the tremor travel through his frozen fingers when Charon's pale eyes roamed over him. Charon growled. "Charon?"

"What is it, Knox?" The gruff voice saying his name broke him. How ironic that in the last moments of his life, it was the first time Charon said his name. A pained smile made its way to his face. And now, he was ready to die.

"Don't fucking hesitate. I ain't your employer no more." Knox dropped the gun to the floor. He staggered to the wall and leaned against it. Charon just stared at him. He stared back.

"How touching." Burke cleared his throat. "Now, ghoul. Hurt your former employer." Charon straightened his back at being addressed. His aura changed into something intense as he continued staring at Knox. Knox shuddered at the mix of emotions he felt from that look alone. "Then, shoot him."

"Yes, Master." In two strides, Charon had wound a tight grip around his neck. No hesitation whatsoever. Charon smashed a huge fist against the side of his face, then slammed him against the wall. Knox felt every impact crash through his body. He threw Knox on to the floor. Knox swung around. A bony knee dug sharply into his back and he landed on his face. He coughed blood, feeling his bones shift within his body. A twisted hand pulled him up and shoved him onto the floor again, his cheekbone shattering. This was fucked up, alright. Charon must really hate him. Charon was fucking inhumanly strong. Then the hands left. Charon turned him over. Knox felt like puking. His vision was blurred…

And…his heart was beating so loud now in his ears. So fast. Myocardium. Evil bastards had dead hearts, right?

Charon's pale blue eyes travelled over his abused body before he disappeared.

When Charon returned into his vision, Knox saw the pistol in his hands. He didn't even have time to register what was happening when Charon fired the shot. The bullet ripped through muscle, right through his body because he felt it exit his back and into the floor. He gasped, choking on a scream at the pain. The fucking pain. Worse than anything he had ever felt. Worse because this was Charon. Knox reminded himself that this was what he wanted anyway, right. That this was what Moriarty was supposed to feel. This was what Ahzrukhal felt. Knox felt blood trickle down his cheek as he jerked at the last traces of life. He was losing lifejuice. His breathing got shallow even as he gulped oxygen like baby mirelurks out of the water. He was bleeding and his senses were on high alert but…he had never felt freer. Weightless, even. Numb. There were scenes of his life flashing before his eyes. Like Dad. Like Amata. In the Vault. But the pain never left and the choking breaths hurt his whole being.

Charon knelt down beside his head. Their eyes met and a kind of electricity in the air stunned him. The conflicted unreadable feeling Charon exuded was still there. He didn't blame his ex-bodyguard. Charon lived bound to the contract. It didn't matter if they shared smokes did it? A shot was a shot. And employers were replaceable. Knox tried to smile but Charon leaned over to fumble the pockets in his pants, the one where the box of cigarettes was. Knox let his body sink onto the ground, no longer fighting. Then Knox stilled as the copper scent of blood filled his lungs and something dripped onto his lips. The ghoul's bleeding wound hovered over Knox's mouth, brushing them. Charon grunted impatiently.

It took Knox a split second to realise what Charon was offering.

Lifejuice.

Knox made a tentative lick over the wound, feeling a tremor in the muscle. When the hand didn't move away, Knox pushed his tongue into the gash, catching the lifejuice greedily. His tongue tingled and he sighed softly. The copper, the heady rustiness, and something foreign in his mouth; they grappled at his need for more. This want mingled with the pain in his body and the sensation intoxicated him. Charon pressed the hand into his open mouth now, giving fully to him, letting him drink. Knox sobbed against the wound. Knox drank long and deep, like he was inhaling a smoke. For some reason, he kept feeling like he was slowly losing breath even though he felt himself slowly heal. He felt faint. Charon grabbed the ever present packet of cigarettes in his pocket and pulled his hand away. Knox's vision blurred a bit more even as he tried to focus. He wanted to thank. But his mind swirled into emptiness and everything went black.