Evening My Lovelies :D

Good news (though not for our boys) The whumpage is back :D

Notes On Reviews:

Debbie (Guest): Thanks for the review - Good timing for you then :) Ortiz definitely isn't planning anything nice having taken Athos too. Things are about to get painful and intense for our boys. Enjoy the new chapter! x

CaroH: Thanks for the review - Pretty much *shrugs* :D Enjoy the new chapter! x

Tidia: Thanks for the review - It was kinda calm considering what I have planned :D Our boys are in need of help thats for sure and I doubt it'll be too long before Treville realizes that. Enjoy the new chapter! x

Deana: Thanks for the review - Yep :D Enjoy the new chapter! x

ploiuiu: Thanks for the review - Worry not I wont keep you in suspense over Athos & D'Art's situation. As for Treville... At this point he knows nothing, though he's getting suspicious given the length of time it has been without word. Help may... or may not be coming at some point :) I have some more whumpage to enact before any possibility of rescue or escape can happen. Enjoy the new chapter! x

romirola: Thanks for the review - You're right to be :D Enjoy the new chapter! x

pain in the mikta: Thanks for the review - Probably not fun for our boys but its fun for me to write :) Enjoy the new chapter! x

Lilac Lavender: Thanks for the review - :D I'm happy you liked the banter bit, I couldn't resist adding it in there :) I think what Ortiz said that D'Art said at his father's grave might come up again when they all have their 'chat'... purely because I think it might be cute lol. Ortiz most likely realizes that it's only a matter of time before more people come searching for the musketeers... plus he's eager to get his documents back, hence not letting them rest for very long. Glad you're excited, I quite like this chapter I hope you do too :) Enjoy the new chapter! x

A reader (Guest): Thanks for the review - :D I just couldn't resist the banter between the two so I'm glad you liked it :) We get a bit more in tomorrows chapter though it's not as lighthearted. Worry not our boys will make sure D'Artagnan knows how much he is loved now and how he's no longer alone and everything when they finally get to safety. Hope you like what I've concocted for Athos :D Enjoy the new chapter! x

Hugs & cookies to you lovely people who follow/favourite/review/read... Love you all!

Enjoy!

xxx

Chapter Fifteen: Testing The Bonds Of Brotherhood - Athos

Waking up the first thing that registered in Athos's mind was the pounding pain in his head, it felt like when he used to wake up after a particularly bad night that included an overindulgence of wine.

The difference this time was that he was not waking up in the relative comfort of his own room where there would most likely be a tonic left beside his bed from Aramis to help with the headache.

No… This time he awoke in a cell not unlike the one he had spent the last several days sharing with his brothers. This time he awoke shirtless with his arms pulled tight above his head as he hung from the beams on the ceiling.

But worst of all he awoke to the sight of his little brother, unconscious, in exactly the same position as him, though the position of his arms meant that his oversized shirt had lifted slightly, allowing the now shocked swordsman a brief glimpse of what his baby brother had endured before they were all reunited.

He could only see a small part of D'Artagnan's waist but the part he did see was a sickening shade of dark red from where the blood from his wounds had dried over deep bruising. The fact that the blood seemed to cover the boy's entire front terrified the musketeer and he found himself unable to look away.

"Well look who's finally awake" teased Ortiz as he moved into Athos's line of sight, completely obscuring his view of his brother. Gripping the musketeer roughly by the jaw and forced the swordsman's head to the side, allowing the Spaniard a clear view of the spot where his swords pommel had impacted with Athos's head. "That's going to bruise" he remarked lightly before pushing Athos's face back as he removed his hand.

"Not that it's going to matter that much to you soon anyway" he shrugged, turning his back on the chained musketeer to inspect D'Artagnan's condition.

"And why is that?" growled the swordsman. He already knew the answer but the way the Spaniard was looking at his brother – the sadistic glee in his eyes, set the man's teeth on edge and forced him to ask a fairly obvious question in the hope of distracting the man's focus away from D'Artagnan.

"Because we're going to have some fun," sneered the Spaniard as he turned back to face him, ignoring the death glares the musketeer was giving him.

"It's a shame the others couldn't join in," mused Ortiz, smirking when he noticed the stoic musketeer bristle at the not so subtle threat against his brothers. "But I felt that a one on one situation would work better for you"

Athos was inwardly glad that his brothers would not be there to witness whatever hells Ortiz was about to inflict on him. He knew both of his friends well enough to know that they would stop at nothing to try to reach and protect him if they were present and whilst he loved them for that he knew neither man was in any physical condition to do so.

Porthos was recovering from a vicious beating that left him with at least two broken ribs, a healing shoulder and a concussion. Should he try to fight to reach him Athos knew that he was at risk of jostling one of his broken ribs, which could lead to him inadvertently puncturing a lung and the swordsman didn't think he would or could survive seeing his brother slowly drown in his own blood.

Aramis, despite the man's attempt to brush it off, was in a large amount of pain from the shot to the shoulder he received. Athos had noticed that it looked like it had started to bleed again when the medic had reacted to D'Artagnan getting pulled out of Porthos's arms. His typically vibrant friend was now worryingly pale and so Athos could only imagine the damage his sharpshooter friend could do to himself if he watched what was about to happen.

"Of course you could stop this before it even happens" offered Ortiz with a smirk that told Athos that the Spaniard knew full well what his answer would be and was actually looking forward to what would follow when he gave it.

Glaring daggers at the man before him, Athos spat in his face.

Ortiz growled as he wiped off the spit with a handkerchief. He was about to retort when both men froze as a soft, pained groan emerged from D'Artagnan.

While D'Artagnan returned to full consciousness Ortiz had moved to a table behind Athos, leaving the musketeer in the dark as to what was about to happen.

"D'Artagnan" Athos called softly, knowing full well what pain the boy's head would be in.

"…'Thos?" came a quiet, slurred reply, followed quickly by a whimper as the Gascon's mind finally caught on to the pain his body was in.

It took a few moments but eventually the Gascon opened his bleary eyes. Seeing his mentor and brother hanging in chains in front of him with a grim, yet determined, look on his face sent the young musketeer in a state of panic and he began to thrash about in an attempt to reach his brother. Only to them cry out in pain and attempt to curl into himself when the action aggravated his many wounds – most notably his still dislocated shoulder which was now an inferno of agony for the young man.

"You should be more careful with your wording in the future cachorro (pup)" mocked Ortiz as he sauntered over to D'Artagnan whose breath was coming in short sharp bursts as the pain of his body began to overtake him. "I wont kill them, yes" Ortiz nodded, relishing the sight of the boy in pain. "But you said nothing about hurting them" he laughed before moving back to the table.

From his spot in the room Athos watched D'Artagnan's face fill with guilt as Ortiz spoke and he wished dearly to comfort his brother but knew any attempt to do so would be used against he pair of them with whatever Ortiz had planned.

Unfortunately he was unable to do anything as his whole body went rigidly tense as a loud howl of pain tore its way from Athos's throat.

D'Artagnan who had not seen Ortiz move closer to his brother restarted his attempts to get free as soon as his brother screamed. Although this time he pushed himself through the excruciating pain in his body as he focused on the now panting form of his brother. His efforts were forced to cease however when one particular thrash had his vision darkening for a moment as the pain in his body skyrocketed.

"…Why… Are you doing this?" panted Athos, wanting to bring Ortiz's attention back to him as he had noticed the sickening smile that had grown on their captors face when D'Artagnan had let out a heart-breaking pained whimper.

"You know why musketeer" sneered Ortiz, a smirk forming on the man's face before he sharply twisted the dagger he had just plunged into Athos's shoulder, the smirk growing as the musketeer was unable to hold in his scream as the pain the action caused him.

"Your little brother" spat the Spaniard as he glared at D'Artagnan, "stole from me"

D'Artagnan, who had now somewhat recovered from his earlier escape attempt decided to jump into the conversation, knowing full well what his brother was going to ask but not wanting to risk what might happen to his brothers should Ortiz learn that they knew what the documents entailed.

"They… Don't specify lo'ation or date" slurred the musketeer as he fought to contain the whimpers of pain that were lodged in his throat, "…They shou'dn't be… of … con'equence"

Ortiz said nothing for a moment, simply stood slightly behind Athos and glared at the musketeer.

"Think hard boy, it'll come to you" snarled the Spaniard as he yanked the dagger out of Athos's shoulder, frowning slightly at the grunt the action drew from the man… He didn't want grunts he wanted screams, smirking he realized he would just have to work harder.

The guilt in D'Artagnan's eyes intensified as he saw the pain reflected in his mentor's. Forcing himself to look away before he saw the blame and judgment in them, which he was sure would finally break him, D'Artagnan closed his eyes trying to mentally read the documents he had taken from Ortiz's study. He remembered little about them other then the threat the represented to his Captain and King.

It took him a moment, during which Ortiz's was worrying quiet, before D'Artagnan's head shot up, understanding now burning in his eyes. "They implicate you," he whispered, having remembered the Spaniard's signature and seal on the letters

"Well done" Ortiz growled, sending the boy a dangerous smile before thrusting another blade in Athos's other shoulder

"NO!" the Gascon screamed, his voice weak and hoarse, as he could do nothing but watch as his beloved brother and mentor writhed in pain, all whilst biting his lip so hard it drew blood in an attempt not to scream.

The musketeer was determined not to give Ortiz the satisfaction of hearing him scream. The first scream had been unintentional, the pain and the surprise of the attack catching him off guard before he could ready himself.

"Well that's no fun" sulked Ortiz as he slowly twisted the blade, "Why don't you scream for me musketeer, after all your little runt did when we did this before" he added, twisting the blade further.

"What!" growled Athos, all pain forgotten as he looked alarmed at D'Artagnan, who had hung his head at Ortiz's words, ashamed at his inability to have hid his screams when he suffered a similar attack several days previous.

Then D'Artagnan froze, panic and fear written clearly on his face for the world to see as he stared wide-eyed at Ortiz.

"Course we didn't do shoulders then" Ortiz commented, loving the look of fear in the troublesome Gascon's eyes. "But variety is the spice of life, or so they say. So we're changing locations" staring right at D'Artagnan he added, "But the rest will stay the same"

To Athos's amazement and slight worry D'Artagnan seemed to pale even further at Ortiz's words. He could tell from his protégé's terrified reaction that some serious pain was about to come his way and as such he closed his eyes as he tried to mentally prepare himself for whatever it was that was about to happen.

"…You can't!" D'Artagnan screamed, his voice full of panic, fear and even a slight pleading tone.

"Then tell me where they are" explained Ortiz as he gave the blade in Athos's should one last sharp twist before pulling it free, earning him another grunt of pain before the musketeer let his head hang to his chest, panting deeply.

D'Artagnan watched Athos attempt to manage his pain with guilt and pain growing in his eyes. The young Gascon let his eyes flicker to the floor where drops of his brother's blood were now splattered on the floor. Breathing deeply and praying his brother would live to forgive him he pulled his gaze up to glare at Ortiz. "No"

"Then you have sealed his fate," stated Ortiz coldly.

The without giving either chained man the chance to respond he turned and grabbed a poker that had been placed in the small fireplace and pressed it hard against Athos's stab wound.

Whilst Athos had been preparing himself for pain he was unable to steel himself for the pain that followed. Scream after scream tore from his throat as he thrashed against his bindings in a fervent attempt to escape the burning of his flesh.

After several minutes, which felt like hours for the injured musketeer, the poker was removed, though the pain it had brought remained. The experience left the senior musketeer gasping for breath as sweat mixed with tears and dripped on the cold stone floor.

Placing the poker back into the fire Ortiz leaned against the wall, watching on with amusement as D'Artagnan pleaded with his mentor for forgiveness.

"I'm sorry 'Thos" D'Artagnan sobbed quietly, both wanting and not wanting his mentor to raise his head and look at him. "I'm so so sorry"

This went on for a minute or two before Athos had regained enough control over himself to raise his head. The sight that greeted him was of his little brother, paler then he had ever seen him with tears streaming down his face.

"…Not your fault" he wheezed out, his voice slightly hoarse from screaming. He knew his brother needed more than that to believe him but it was all he could muster at the moment.

"Oh I really think it is" scoffed Ortiz as he moved closer D'Artagnan, noting amusedly that Athos had attempted to growl at him for doing so. "On the plus side" he added, gripping the bottom of D'Artagnan's shirt, "Now you match" he smirked, pulling the shirt up high enough for Athos to notice, with growing horror in his eyes, the numerous fresh burns that littered his little brother's torso.

"D'Artagnan" Athos brokenly whispered in disbelief as he stared, unable to pull his horrified gaze away from his brother's mutilated skin.

Before D'Artagnan could offer up any empty words of assurance or comfort to his brother Ortiz had clamped a hand down on his still dislocated shoulder, pulling a muffled scream from the boy as he bit down hard on his lip.

"Now then" Ortiz smirked, moving to stand back near the fireplace, "Tell me where it is" he ordered, his frustration at the musketeers' stubbornness clear in his voice.

D'Artagnan looked at his mentor, desperately wishing he could say yes and save his beloved friend from anymore pain. Athos seemed to understand this and offered the boy a single eyebrow raise, silently reminding him what would happen should he give in, before shaking his head. The swordsman refused to endanger those in the city unaware of the coming danger in favour of a slightly less painful death.

"…No" D'Artagnan whispered brokenly, tears streaming down his face, his eyes never leaving Athos's own – even when the man had closed his own when the burning poker was placed on his other stab wound.

This went on for hours. Ortiz would verbally taunt them for a while, trying to turn the two men against each other before getting bored and either stabbing or cutting Athos's back with a variety of daggers and blades. All before asking D'Artagnan for the location of his documents – forcing the near broken young man to refuse and sentence his brother to excruciating pain… every… single… time

"Curse the stubbornness of musketeers" spat Ortiz several hours later after Athos's body had finally been overcome by the pain and pulled the man into the abyss of unconsciousness.

Striding up to the barely conscious D'Artagnan, who he noted was still staring hopelessly at the chained swordsman, he added, with as much spite as he could infuse his words with, "We shall have to see if that remains true for the remaining two, wont we?"