When Vox woke up the next morning, Mammon was predictably nowhere to be seen. He wasn't surprised but he couldn't help but notice the bed was a lot more comfortable than he remembered and saw that he had a thick blanket draped over him.
As he came around he noticed that his room had been redecorated while he was sleeping, the cell looking more homey and comfortable than it had been before.
Vox stood up and noticed a note on his desk with a box inside.
Dear Vincent,
I noticed how tired you were the other night and I decided to upgrade your living quarters. I hope you don't mind. You've been rather obedient yesterday and I felt the need to reward you for your efforts.
Rest easy, I have a fair few business meetings and as much as I'd love to spend time with you, I have to prioritize my duties just like anyone else. In exchange, I'll be giving you gifts to accommodate your stay in prison to make it more enjoyable.
Sincerely, your Dearest Master, Mammon
Vox rolled his eyes,'At least that gives me a break from him in the meantime. Wonder what that fucker gave me…hopefully it's nothing too awful..'
His gaze turned to the box Mammon had left in his cell and opened it. When he pulled out the box he saw what appeared to be personal care products like soaps, hair brushes and even deodorant. All the products seemed to be made by Mammon himself and he could see they were all of high quality.
Normally he wouldn't think too much of it but the shower of the prison was pretty bad hygiene wise and Mammon giving him these was probably the biggest favor he could ask for. It wasn't freedom but he supposed that it was better than nothing.
He was also given a satchel to place them in. Vox gathered the items accordingly before patiently sitting on the bed and waiting for the guards to unlock his cell door.
They eventually came around and when he stepped out of his cell the guard immediately noticed his bag and demanded,"What are you doing with that bag? Did you steal supplies? You better return those right now if you don't want to get hurt…"
"My Master, Mammon, gave them to me," He explained, raising his hand up to show him the sigil on his hand.
The moment the guard saw the sigil he immediately relinquished his hold on Vox and stammered,"Oh…I see, you're the one the warden told us about. You're Mammon's property. I apologize for the rude introduction. Feel free to carry your things er…"
"Vincent."
"Vincent…Alright then, feel free to carry your things around. Sorry for giving you any trouble. Come along, I'll lead you to roll call…"
Vox was slightly bewildered by the special treatment given to him all the sudden. He wasn't quite sure what had happened but if he had to guess, Mammon had informed the ones who ran the prison of his 'status' as his property and they were likely under strict orders to not harm him else they would face his wrath for it.
It was strange but he figured that Mammon had done him a huge favor granting him this special privilege. Perhaps he could use this to his advantage…
Regardless, he'd think about it later. He still had to attend roll call and as a result he had to meet up with those who deemed him as a traitor…
Taking a deep breath he followed the guard who led him to where the rest of the populace was. When Vox arrived, he could see his former allies looking at him, faces filled with contempt or hurt, sometimes even a mix of both depending on who he was looking at. The feeling was stronger in others and it was obvious who despised him.
"Well well well, look who FINALLY decided to show up,"Angel sneered,"The blonde traitor finally arrived. Took his sweet time too.." He then noticed the bag and scowled,"And look, he's even allowed to carry a bag. Wonder if being Mammon's whore had anything to do with that. Guess riding Mammon's cock suddenly gives him special privileges that the rest of us ain't worthy of…"
Vox grit his teeth,"Quiet skank. No one asked for your opinion…"
"Strange, I don't remember asking for permission to speak jackass. I don't need to grovel before your feet just because you and Val were in cahoots back at home because none of that shit matters down here. You have no power over me and I sure as hell ain't kneeling to a traitorous bastard like you.."
"I'm not a traitor-"
"That mark on your hand says otherwise," Angel retorted,"You fucking sold us out. I know I shouldn't expect any sort of decency from an Overlord but I'd expect you to give a shit about your pigtailed friend enough not to jeopardize this entire group but I guess I was wrong on that front…"
"You shouldn't expect anything good out of him, Angel,"Alastor informed,"Vox is nothing short of a scoundrel and I don't need my sight to see that. I've known he was like this for years and yet he still manages to amaze me at how horrible he is. I warned Charlie not to trust him and yet he ignored my advice.."
"She," Angel said.
"I beg your pardon?"
"Charlie is a girl…"
"She is?" Husk asked,"Since when?"
"Since always," Angel said,"And you wanna know what else she's been hiding from us? That she's Lucifer's daughter. She's been hiding it from the rest of us the entire time, the only ones who even knew were Vag's and those sirens. Speaking of which, Vaggie, why didn't you open your mouth about this?"
"I promised Charlie I wouldn't tell…" She said,"Though I suppose now that the cat's out of the bag there's no use in hiding it any longer. Now I'm worried about where she could be…"
"Oh don't worry, Charlie's just fine, she's living up in luxury with Lucifer and his folks. Fuckers up there think she's their daughter and are treating her like family. No doubt she's living in the lap of luxury right now while the rest of us rot in this goddamn dungeon."
Vaggie narrowed her eyes,"Angel, Charlie wouldn't leave us in here without intent to break us out. You know that…"
"The chance of Charlie getting all of us outta this is pretty slim and who knows how long it'll take? We'll be gray and old by the time Charlie manages to successfully get us out of this place…"
"I don't want to stay here for the rest of my life…" Niffty whined.
"Well you can thank Vox for that one," Angel spat,"He's the reason we're even in this mess. I hope you're proud of yourself, TV, because you really fucked us up over now. You must be real proud of yourself, aren't ya? Go choke on a dick, Vox. I can barely stand the sight of you and I swear if I those stupid guards weren't watching you'd be dead where you fucking stand right now…"
Vox was ready to reply when he suddenly heard his name get called and said,"Here!"
Shortly afterwards he heard Velvet's name and he tried to wave to her from afar in hopes that her attitude from the other day had improved. The pigtailed woman stared at him for a moment before sending him a judgmental glare and turning her back on him, arms folded over her chest.
He cringed, sensing the betrayal and sadness in her eyes. She didn't trust him anymore and his hand lowered in response before sighing.
'So much for trying…'
The warden then began shouting at them to head to the showers and everyone headed into the showers that matched their biological sex.
Vox entered the shower room with the other men and undressed himself. Vox positioned himself away from everyone else and showered in one of the rustier showers in order to divert attention from himself as he allowed the water to sprinkle above his head…
He then discreetly pulled out one of the soaps he got from Mammon and began washing himself, grabbing a blue bar that smelled like a starflower.
As he scrubbed himself, he could feel someone watching him from a distance and turned his head slightly, not even bothering to look behind him as he said,"I know you're there, Husk. There's no need to hide…"
The elder man stepped out into the light. He hadn't noticed it until now but Husk looked a lot different without all that makeup that he wore back at the circus.
His hair had more gray spots(likely from the dye finally coming out) and was less organized than before. That didn't even mention the blemishes and stretches in skin that the makeup had hidden being gone, now looking slightly older than before. You could see the years weighing down on him and the misery in his eyes was far more visible than it had been before.
It was like seeing his real face. Without all the glamor and blush, you'd think he was a different person…
"You're staring, Vox…" He said, snapping the blonde out of his trance with his gruff voice.
"Sorry…" He mumbled before continuing to scrub himself. He figured ignoring Husk would cause him to get the hint he wasn't in the mood to talk but the older man continued to stand by his side, not moving an inch from his position.
He then sighed,"What do you want?"
"I wanted to talk to you…" The gambler admitted,"We didn't really get a good chance to speak with each other and I felt the need to make things clear to you before we leave…"
"Look, if you want to tell me that you hate me you can go right ahead. I won't stop you…"
Husk frowned,"I'd rather not, you seem like you've got enough hate on your shoulders as it is. Piling on won't , I'm not angry with you.."
"You aren't?" Vox asked skeptically,"Are you just telling me that to make me feel better or something? There's no need for a to lie, Husk…"
Husk scoffed,"Believe me, we both know that I'm not the type to hold back and I sure as hell wouldn't spare your feelings if I was pissed at you. Would've tore you a new one before you even knew I was here…."
"So why are you here?"
"First of all, I wanted to see what was in your bag. By the way…can I have one?"
That was…unexpected. Still, he saw no reason to not to share…it wasn't like he was going to use all of them in one day now was he?
"Sure..just don't drop it…" Vox handed him a soap that vaguely smelled like fresh almonds.
Husk began scrubbing his skin,"I just wanted to tell you that I don't believe you sold us out…"
Vox blinked,"Wait…you don't?"
"Never believed it for a second," He stated,"Only reason I didn't speak up earlier was because I didn't want to deal with the others badgering me for still holding out hope for ya…."
"But why? Why didn't you fall in line with all the others? Even Velvet's given up on me yet you still have faith in me? What gives?"
"Because I've known you enough to know that you'd never sell everyone out like this for Mammon," He retorted,"Now don't get me wrong, I know your a scummy bastard but I know you sold your soul for a reason and that you didn't anticipate it'd get this bad. But I do have to ask, did you do it for her?"
"Hm?"
"You know, Helsa…did you sell yourself for her?"
He remained silent, diverting his gaze to the side. He refused to answer the question directly, too ashamed to admit the truth…
"You don't need to answer, your silence speaks for you," He replied softly,"I know you liked her…"
"What's it to you, Husk?" He asked as he scrubbed himself with the soap,"There's no point in dwelling on that. It hardly matters now, especially since she was just using me…"
"How do you know?"
"Mammon told me. He told me the real reason their parents gave them away in the first place. She had an entire diary recording our encounters and her personal thoughts. That cold-hearted bitch was just fucking using me like every other guy in her life. And to think I thought I was special, to think I thought that she cared. All that kindness she displayed to me…it was all an act and I fell for it. I fell for it like a complete dumbass…"
"Love can make people foolish, Vox. You're not the only one who's been played like this. Remember, Helsa's been doing this for centuries. You're not her first victim, she's done this to countless men over the years, the only difference is that you found out before she could finish the job."
"She may as well have," He said,"She's broken me, Husk. Even more than Val has. Because at least with Val, the worst I had to recover from was a broken screen and some insults. But Helsa didn't even bother trying to hit me, no, she pretended to be nice to me. She made me think she cared and I believed her. I believed she cared…and look where it got me. Where it got us all…" His hands trembled as he clenched them,"I sacrificed everything for her…and now look at me? I lost everything, Husk…I don't even own my soul anymore. I'm bound to Mammon and there's nothing anyone can do about it…"
Husk tensed up, he wasn't entirely sure what to do in this situation. He reluctantly reached out and touched Vox's shoulder only for the former Overlord to flinch away,"Vox..I'm…I'm sor-"
Vox scoffed,"Don't bother. There's no need to apologize. It's not like you're the one who did anything wrong. There's no need to feel sorry for me. I don't deserve sympathy after all the things I've done in my life. I deserve everything that's happened to me…"
"Even the things Mammon did to you?"
"What do you mean?"
"Vox, I need you to be honest with me. Did he force himself on you, yes or no?"
Vox paused for a split second, he thought back to the times he and Mammon had pain…the pleasure, the passion. He then thought about the spare moments of kindness he displayed towards him…
He asked whether he wanted it and to be frank…he wasn't quite sure. Mammon let him have his say and the Greedy Lord only continued when he made subtle or direct moves to go on ahead but when it got into the deeper parts of sex, it felt like he had so little control over the matter of what he wanted.
Because by then, Mammon was already dominating everything within him and he was more or less just along for the ride and allowed Mammon to do as he pleased, albeit with slight protests whenever he was going in too rough.
"I don't know…"
"What do you mean you don't know? It's a yes or not question, Vox. You don't have to be scared. I won't tell anyone what he did to you. Just be honest with me…"
"I don't know," Vox repeated,"Look, I know it's not the response you want to hear, but I really just don't know…."
The expression on Husk's face was one of frustration and concern. He and Vox were far from friends but it felt wrong that he couldn't give him a concrete was worse than him saying no because at least that was a response, 'I don't know' could entail many things and Husk didn't want to think about all the things that sick bastard had done.
Before Husk could strike up the conversation again, the two men heard footsteps approaching from behind and immediately quieted down. Angel Dust and Alastor showed up already fully dressed and having dried themselves off.
"What the fuck are you doing back here, Husk?" Angel asked flatly before glaring at Vox,"And most importantly, why are you talking with that traitor? Were we just not good company or something or were you desperate for a good fuck that you decided to stick your dick into that blonde sellout? Ya know if you wanted a good time you could've just asked me instead of resorting to that bastard…"
"We're weren't having sex," Husk said flatly,"I was just…talking to him…"
"Oh sure you were, two frustrated naked guys in a cruddy shower were totally just talking to each other, totally not fucking each other behind closed doors!" He snapped,"Do I look like I was born yesterday, Husky? At least be honest, if you fucked this blonde bastard you should at least own up to it."
"Because I am being honest,Angel. Vox and I didn't it have sex. Now back off. There's no need to escalate the situation…"
"Oh I'm the one whose escalating shit now? Funny, I don't remember you saying jack squat about Vox earlier, tell me, were you in on it too? Or are you just so cucked by him that you don't see that he's just using you? You ain't nothing to him, of us are! Don't let his innocent lamb act fool ya, he's nothing but a two-faced liar who's only out for himself. He don't care about you, he don't care about me, he don't even care about that pigtailed psycho!"
"Velvet is not a psycho, Angel!" Vox hissed,"Do not call my friend that you godforsaken whore!"
"Friend? You think that crazy bitch considers you anything now? She can't even look you in the eye, Vox! Ya wanna know why? Because even crazy social media obsessed psycho bitches ain't a fan of so-called friends who stab them in the back! In case you haven't noticed, Vox, you don't got no damn friends anymore and you don't deserve SHIT after what you've done to us!"
"Fuck you, you goddamn skank!" Vox shot back as he grabbed Angel by the hair,"You think just because your Val's favorite whore means you can talk down to me!? You don't know the first thing about me!"
"I know enough about you to know you ain't shit!"Angel snapped as he headbutted Vox, causing him to scream in agony.
"What is going on here!?" A guard shouted, coming around to see Angel and Vox at each other's throats,"You two, enough funny business! This is no time for roughhousing! Release each other at once."
Vox and Angel growled before reluctantly separating from each other.
"Hasn't anyone told you not to start fights?" The guard criticized,"I swear, you prisoners act like undisciplined children. And where are your clothes? Get dressed this instant!"
Vox and Husk quickly obeyed and rushed to put their clothes on. After they were done dressing up, the guard told them to line up with the other prisoners and that they'd be heading to the courtyard for physical labor…
When they got outside, all the men were handed pickaxes for breaking rocks out in the courtyard.
Husk began chipping away at the rock he chose, breaking it down piece by piece. Time passed rather slowly and Husk could feel sweat developing under his brows. The sun was beating down on them and it was downright exhausting.
"I'm too old for this shit…" He grumbled, wiping the sweat off of his brow.
As he was mining, he noticed something odd out of the corner of his eye. He saw Alastor was struggling with the task of mining. He wasn't even holding the pickaxe properly, handling the metal part while wacking the wood against the rock…
It was only then that he remembered Alastor's blindness. No doubt that cuff around his wrist was restricting his ability to sense things and while he could still walk, he had trouble doing menial tasks without assistance.
Niffty was always there for him…but prison separated them from each other due to their biolgical sex and he still hadn't adjusted to the chage properly.
The sight was slightly humorous if he had to be honest. The feared and all powerful Radio Demon, one of the most feared creatures in Hell struggled to even carry a pickaxe…
It was truly a sight to behold and a part of him wished he had a camera to savor the moment.
Just then, Al suddenly tripped one of the rocks, crumbling to the floor as he dropped the pick-axe. He let out a pained screech, hissing in agony as he struggled to help himself to his feet, unable to retain his balance.
Husk tensed up a little, he was tempted to help but he knew Al had an dislike for being touched. He made it very clear when they first met that touching INITIATED by him was fine but everyone else had to ask first else they'd hear from him about it(and not in a pleasant manner mind you).
So he slowly made his move by asking,"Hey Al…need a hand?"
"I'd appreciate it…" He mumbled.
He took that as consent and he lifted Alastor up to his feet. He handed him his pick-axe in the proper manner. He expected that to be that but was caught off guard when Alastor hung closer to him and sniffed him.
"Uh…Al, why are you sniffing me?" He was a little worried Al was thinking of sinking his teeth into his flesh since the bastard was still a cannibal.
"You smell…like almonds…Why is that?"
Oh…that's why he was sniffing him. He smelled like soap and speaking of smell…yeah…Al was anything but pleasant in that moment..
He smelled like the grime in the showers and Husk was certain the water wasn't providing enough fragrance to hide his natural body odor.
"Vox gave me soap from his satchel. Mammon gave it to him for some reason and he's been carrying it around in his bag."
"How come he's allowed to do that? No one else is allowed to take things from our cells…"
"Mammon's orders. Vox has special privileges and while it's not much, he still has advantages over the rest of us…"
"Lucky scoundrel…" Al muttered,"Even in this prison he gets better treatment than the rest of us. Good for nothing traitor ..."
"Al..he's not a traitor…"
Alastor scoffed, believing the claim to be absurd,"The evidence points to the contrary. Do not believe what that pompous Television says, he's merely just trying to play with your emotions to make you sympathize with him…"
"Alastor, I get you and Vox have your little rivalry going on, but I'm telling you, he didn't sell us out. He's about as much of a victim of the Deadly Sins as the rest of us are. Not all victims look alike, some are more obvious than others…"
"I know,"Al said,"I knew someone like that once. He worked with Satan…he brought us to him and acted charismatic yet when I got to know him, I realized how trapped he was beneath that bastard's boot and when he had enough..Satan killed him in an attempt to end Niffty's life."
"Did you consider him a friend?"
"I guess so. We were acquaintances but I suppose he must've gotten attached to me and now that he's gone, the only thing I have left of him is his horse. At least I did before Iwas locked up here. Who knows where Bombproof is by now…"
"I'm sure he's fine Al…" He said,"Say…do you want me to ask Vox to give you a bar of soap?"
"That would be nice.."
Husk headed toward Vox and said,"Hey Vox, you have any soaps in there? AL wants one…"
"Can he come over here by himself and ask?" Vox retorted as he mined another piece of rock,"He's blind, not mute. He can speak for himself can't he? Or does he need someone else to assist him for such tasks?"
"Vox, don't be a dick. Just give me one of the soaps. It's not like you're using all of them…"
He sighed before handing him a bar from his bag, Husk took a sniff and said,"It smells like…wood…"
"Take it up with Mammon. I can't help what kind of soap he buys. I say you should take what you get…"
"Whatever…" Husk then said,"Hey Al, this one smells like wood. Do you care?"
"I don't have a particular preference," He admitted,"So long as it works, it is fine…"
'Good thing he's not picky about these sorts of things…' Husk thought to himself. He then noticed Angel Dust glaring at all of them as he said,"Ain't you all supposed to be working?"
"It doesn't hurt to keep up on your hygiene when you can, Angel," Vox growled,"I doubt a skank like you would anything about that though…"
"Fuck you, I kept myself sparkly clean back at home. Smelled better than a bouquet of roses."
Vox then sniffed the air and cringed,"Certainly don't smell like it now. You definitely need soap.."
"Oh shut up, not all of us are lucky enough to have the privilege of being Mammon's cocksleave," He growled,"Just because you get rewards for selling people out doesn't mean the rest of us get to have it."
As Angel said this, he was still eyeing the bag. Vox took notice of this and smirked,"Oh I see…you still want it though, don't you? Tell you what, Angel, if you apologize I'll consider giving one to you…"
Angel grit his teeth, he may have wanted it but he sure as hell didn't want to beg Vox for something as small as a bar of soap,"That ain't happening asshole.."
"Suit yourself then…" Vox shrugged.
"HEY!" A guard snapped as he cracked the whip near the ground they stood at,"GET BACK TO WORK ELSE YOU'll BE MINING TWICE AS MUCH ROCK WITH NO TIME TO REST! NOW GET TO IT!"
Everyone groaned before getting back to work and chipping away at the rocks piece by piece.
Seviathan sat in his cell boredly. Being a siren meant he wasn't allowed to see the outside world for obvious reasons, mainly due to his lack of legs. They weren't even given a cell that had special requirements, they just tossed him in here without a pool of water so he could at least swim within his confinement.
To say the least…it sucked..it sucked a lot.
Not only were he and Helsa kept in different cells but it was pretty cramped. It was worse than the circus(And that was saying something). At least in the circus they had a fucking tank, this place didn't even seem to accommodate those who were accustomed for aquatic life.
Because of his lack of mobility, the guards had to feed him directly, giving him a bowl and whatever slop they fed the other prisoners. He wasn't quite sure what the food was made of(no doubt cheap grains and whatever leftovers were left from the royal family's dinner table if he had to make a guess).
The place was absolutely miserable and it made the carnival look like a trip to the amusement park.
At least he got to go outside, in here he couldn't even leave the damn cell, let alone see the outside world. And the idea of speaking to another person was out of the question, he doubted anyone even knew he and Helsa were down here and the others sure as hell weren't going to get clearance to visit them anytime soon.
Speaking of his sister, he wondered how she was taking confinement. Truth be told he was a little uncomfortable at the notion of being alone, he and Helsa spent so long together in the same living space that being apart did make him feel uneasy.
Maybe it was the boredom talking but at least when his sister was there he could at least 'talk' to her(even though he couldn't hear her voice). He still hadn't quite adjusted to her muteness and her silence bugged him. Sometimes he'd forget she was even there unless she made any sudden movements simply because of how quiet she was…
He never admitted it aloud but he did regret saying those damn words, especially since Helsa couldn't communicate to him directly even if she wanted to. Now that they were in jail the hopes of them ever getting out of here decreased dramatically and he was far from pleased…
Seviathan jumped a little when he heard footsteps approaching. They didn't sound like the guards from what he could tell and he could already feel a bad feeling stirring within his body as a hush of fear came over him.
In front of the cell was his Father..or rather the other version of him to be exact. He stood tall, wearing a black and green suit and a hat just like the one his original father wore. Like normal, his eyes were burning with disappointment and anger, a feeling Seviathan had seen far too many times in his life…
He stepped inside, not taking his eyes off of him as he growled out,"Boy…"
"Father.." He said back to him, trying to hide the fear in his voice. He then gathered the courage to speak once more,"Why are you here?"
"You know why I'm here, Seviathan," He hissed,"You and your sister seem incapable of keeping out of trouble. No matter what we do with you, you two are INCAPABLE of learning from your lesson! Do you two realize how much trouble you've caused us!?"
"You're the one who sent us to a circus just because you and Mother can't parent properly…"
The next thing Seviathan knew he was suddenly hit in the face. Seviathan hissed, it was like getting hit with a truck and Frederick wasn't pulling any punches. It may have just been one hit but it was a powerful one at that.
'He hit's just as hard as my original Father does…' He thought, recalling how Frederick hit him prior.
His Father wasn't around in his life all too often but when he was, his presence was rarely if ever a good thing.
Sometimes the personal tutors called Frederick from work because Seviathan was misbehaving and he came to 'correct' his son's behavior by leading him into a closed off part of their palace to punish him and then lock him inside for days..maybe even weeks before one of the maids let him out after his father grew tired of hearing his cries and bagning from the other side.
He wouldn't know, time blended together in that time frame. All he knew was that after he and Charlie broke up, he had attempted to explain to his father that it wasn't his fault and that he was sorry for failing them. He had only wanted to make his father proud and upon losing Charlie's hand in marriage, he was hoping he could make it up to him…
Long story short..it wasn't pretty.
After that, Frederick mostly ignored Seviathan but when he did interact with him, he more or less acted as if those events never occurred and Seviathan had done his best to bury those memories into the back of his mind until now since it would ruin their perfect family image if anyone found out.
"Are you even listening to me?" Frederick snarled as he grabbed Seviathan by his hair, yanking it upward and eliciting a cry,"Answer me, brat!"
"I can hear you…" He grumbled,"Loud and clear, Father…"
"Then why don't you act like it?" He then sighed,"You know what? Nevermind. That's not even important anymore. I just cannot believe Bethesda and I created such disrespectful spawn! We raised you two in the best environment and how do you thank us!? How ungrateful can you two be!? We let you go unpunished after you two finally decided to come back from an immature 'runaway' scheme and yet after all these years you two still can't keep yourselves out of trouble! We thought if you were given space you'd settle down but I suppose we were wrong about that.."
Seviathan tensed when his alternate father glared at him.
"And to think I thought Helsa was the less problematic twin, yet now all the sudden she's developed this troubling behavior of mingling with the peasants and trying to seduce one. Had she just killed him shortly after we wouldn't have cared but when she started visiting him and being friendly…that's when I read the journal I quickly foresaw her getting attached to her prey. I wonder…where did she get the idea to go to the surface anyway? She couldn't have thought of that on her own, she was always obedient unlike you. Perhaps she needs to be punished as well. Such a shame, we actually preferred her to you, it'd be a shame to have to raise my hand against her but I suppose there's a first time for everything…"
The younger male's eyes widened, he knew all too well of what being 'punished' entailed. He knew his sister had no experience with physical abuse, the most punishment Helsa ever got in her life was a stern talking from Bethesda about how to be a proper Princess but it never came to the point where they felt the need to use physical violence on her.
Helsa was a conniving and cruel temptress her parents wanted her to be. Seviathan on the other hand, while physically and academically capable, made one mistake that ruined any chance of improvement with his parents and was treated as an incompetent fool for years to come by outsiders and family alike.
He always strived for his parents' approval(and a part of him still did, as much as he despised admitting it) yet got very little in return…
And now there was the chance Helsa would likely suffer like he did. Normally he'd just toss her to the sharks but he felt scared, not for himself, but his twin's sake. He knew Helsa likely wouldn't take too well to physical violence being inflicted on her.
But he had been through enough to know the routine. She had no experience and she'd likely react poorly to being handled in such a manner…
He took a deep breath and said,"Because I told her to."
"You what?"
"I told Helsa not too long ago that she should head out on her own and explore the world on her own. She claimed she was bored so I saw no reason not to imdule and give her an idea…"
It was a lie. And Seviathan knew he was digging his own grave doing this but he figured what Helsa didn't know wouldn't kill her. She hadn't noticed the damage his father did for years, what was the chance she'd notice now?
"You..you little brat. This is all your fault! If you had just kept your mouth shut we wouldn't even be in this mess!" He pulled even harder on Seviathan's hair,"I cannot believe you! How dare you fill your sister's head with lies!"
Seviathan snarled as Frederick kicked him in the ribs and beat him up until he could barely move. It didn't take much given how strong his father was and he seemed to just barely keep himself back from breaking any vital organs in his alternate son's body.
"Pathetic..I cannot believe this is the best we could do. Even after all these years we put into raising you, you still cannot do as you're told. You know how much easier it would've been if you just did what you were supposed to do? If you were just obedient like a good child? Is it so much to ask for you to be obedient? Is it just impossible for you to not screw up?" He then sighed and he firmly gripped Seviathan's chin"You should consider yourself lucky. I care enough about you not to end your miserable life. Because unfortunately, as irritating as you are, you are still my son and I can't have you die…"
When he separated from the younger siren he scowled, Seviathan wincing as he prepared for another blow. Instead, Frederick looked at his watch and sighed,"My, my, look at the time. It's already approaching noon. Perhaps I should go get something to eat…"
Seviathan's stomach rumbled, it had been a while since he had eaten and the mention of food did make his appetite start acting up.
"You cannot have any."
"Why?"
"What makes you think you deserve any food after what you've done? You're still on punishment, Seviathan, especially since this entire thing is your fault. You and your sister will be staying here until further notice."
"And how long is that going to be?"
"Until we consider letting you out. It won't be anytime soon so don't hold your breath. We still need to fix all the damages you two have done to our reputation, no thanks to you. I hope you enjoy your cell, son, because you are going to be here for quite a while…"
Frederick then slammed the cell door behind him and left, leaving Seviathan alone in the cage, loneliness returning once more. He felt cold, hungry and scared. But beneath all of that, he felt…proud..
He had lied to the latest version of his father and he believed him and as a result, Helsa more than likely had been spared from a beating. Sure, he was in extreme pain and he likely wasn't going to be sitting up straight anytime soon, but considering he was confined to a cell without legs,mobility was hardly a concern anymore…
It wasn't enough to make up for her lost voice but he figured that protecting Helsa would at least make up for the damage he had done by inadvertently rendering her mute. Until he could bring her voice back, he felt it was only right to try and keep her safe.
He wasn't entirely sure why he cared this much, perhaps it was out of obligation or out of genuine care, but one way or another, he decided it was best to keep Helsa out of harm's way for as long as he could, at least until her voice could be restored.
That thought was the only thing giving him any sort of comfort as the time passed and when he got tired, he eventually laid on his side to gain some rest as he ignored the gnawing feeling inside of his stomach that bothered him to no end, the pain his body aching heavily.
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Enigmus-288: Charlie does at least have the power of political influence on her side. It's not perfect but it's the only thing keeping the group from having their heads on a platter so that's something...