It came to pass that Brooklyn got nauseated with every meal now and he was only fed every other night. Brook didn't want to eat but he was forced to. He only had one meal on those nights.

Demona liked seeing her male in discomfort. She rather liked him that way. It was hard for him to make decisions when he felt like crap. She was feeling like she was in paradise. She had a feeling that something special was happening inside her despite her daily changes.

After a few weeks, Demona bought a pregnancy test from a store and her body had long ago adapted to being a human. She had to do things that gargoyles didn't always do. But she followed the test's instructions during the day at her home and it came back positive. Even though Anton had told her she was pregnant, she wanted to see if a pregnancy test was accurate too.

She looked hard to make sure she wasn't misreading it. Pregnant.

It made Demona smile widely. She was going to be a mother again! Brooklyn was going to be a father too, but it was something she didn't want him to know, at least not right away. It wasn't that she knew he wouldn't be a good father, it was just that how this child had been conceived was not how Brooklyn would have imagined fathering a child.

Demona was only three weeks along. It was still too early to say anything, and she wanted it to make it past a certain time before she said anything about it. She would go on as normal for now. But she wanted to give Brooklyn his next meal for a reason to go see him.

….

Brooklyn felt so miserable being in his cell. He wanted to get air under his wings, feel the wind in his face and in his hair again. Just all over him. He was constantly bored and restless. Watching television was his only entertainment. He would lay on his new bed a lot.

He suddenly heard footsteps coming down to see him. He sat up. His nose also picked up the scent of some food. He swallowed. Right now, he felt fine. Brooklyn really wasn't in the mood for more pain.

It turned out to be Demona. "Good evening, Brooklyn. Time for you to eat again." She came down with a big grin on her face. She had a large tray of beef and noodles on a plate and some bottled water for him.

The smell was tantalizing to him, making his belly feel famished, but he knew what would happen. He put a hand over it. "What do you keep putting on my food, Demona? What are you trying to do to me? I can't even eat anymore without feeling like wanting to puke it all back up again." Brooklyn demanded sternly.

"We aren't doing anything to your food, Brooklyn. It's just normal cooked food. I ate some myself a while ago and feel fine." Demona replied. "I'm sure it's nothing."

"I don't want the food but will take the water." Brook stated. In reality, he did want it.

"You will take the food too, unless you want to be force fed again." Demona threatened him. She held up the remote. His eyes lit up and he yelped when he felt a jolt on his throat. He held it. "You are going to do as you are told. Be glad you're getting fed at all." She warned him.

"Fine." He glared at her.

She unlocked his door and put the tray on the table in there for him. Then she left him to it but sat down on the stairs. "I'm not leaving until I see you finish up your meal." Demona said.

"Demona, what is it you want with me? Are you just wanting to torture me for all those times I attacked you or something?" Brook demanded. "Can't you just let me go?"

"No. I have you here for a purpose and it may still be a while until I tell you." Demona replied.

"Or are you going to rape me again?"

"I would think that you would want to mate with me. I know you must have had a crush on me way back in the tenth century." She figured with a grin.

"That was a different time, and you were a different female then. You were trusted back then even though you still hated humans." Brooklyn retorted.

"It was still me, Brooklyn. And I bet you just wanted to mate with me too on the night in this century when I got you to see things my way before you betrayed me?" Demona mocked him.

He glared at her. In a way, he had that he remembered, but he wasn't going to let that stop him from trying to get her to release him or stop her from harming him again.

"You lied to me about the spell, Demona! No one should have to live as a slave! I won't be your slave either!" He snapped. "You also don't believe that humans can be our allies."

"Goliath is the one who lied to you, Brooklyn. He will be the death of you and the clan one day with his trust of these humans. They'll never give you the gratitude you deserve for saving them. Humans will always see us as enemies." Demona proclaimed.

"That's what we'll keep fighting to achieve. Just stay away from me."

"Eat your food before it gets cold." Demona ordered.

"No." He growled.

Demona then held up the remote. Brook saw it and she pressed it. She grinned maliciously as she saw his eyes widen. His breathing picked up.

"AHHHH!" He cried out as he was shocked some more and held his throat. It knocked him onto his bed, writhing. It burned his skin.

She soon stopped it after a minute. He was left panting. His ears were flattened and his eyes glowing from the shock of pain. His hands held his neck.

"You disobey my orders, and I can make the punishment worse too, Brooklyn. Now, are you going to do as you're told?" Demona demanded, threatening to use the remote again.

Brooklyn couldn't help it that tears were in his eyes. He nodded.

"I can't hear you."

"Yes…" He managed to say weakly.

"Now, get up and eat your food, now!" She snapped at him.

Brooklyn knew he didn't have a choice. He didn't want to be shocked again. He also didn't want force fed either. Maybe it wouldn't happen tonight.

He reluctantly got up and went to the table to sit down and eat the food his enemy gave him. He first opened the water bottle and took a drink. He was so thirsty. But he had to ration it. Then he took the fork and began to eat the beef and noodles.

The food was good, no doubt about that, but it was what would happen after that worried him. He hated that Demona was over there on the stairs staring at him while he ate.

He started feeling some discomfort part way through eating. It made him wince. "Ugh!" The food was barely half gone. He had to stop eating. "Oh, there it is again!" Brooklyn leaned over to his right, his hands grasping his stomach.

"Where is what again?" Demona asked.

"Pain… in my stomach!" Brooklyn rasped. "It hurts!" His face was clenched in pain, wincing.

Anton had told Demona that he had put some devices inside the red male to test him. "How bad is it?" she asked. "How would you rate it? Ten or one? Ten being the highest of pain."

"Agh! One hundred!" Brooklyn stood up and made his way to the bed to lay down. "This is why I can't eat, Demona. There's… something wrong!" He laid down on the bed on his back. "I want my moms!"

Demona felt a little sorry for him at his words. She got up and unlocked the cage, going in. "It'll be alright, Brooklyn. I can also be your comfort too, if you let me." She said gently. "Here."

Brooklyn looked up at her as she was in with him. "No. Please no." He pleaded. She pushed into his leg and raised him from on his back. "Agh!" He winced. She took him into a hug.

"It's alright, Brooklyn. I'll hold you. I know it hurts and it'll soon pass." Demona told him gently. "But don't even attempt to think you are getting out of here or I'll make sure there is a punishment worse than just a collar shock." She warned him. Then she said, "Just put your arms behind my arms."

Brook did as instructed. His head laid near her neck. He could smell her scent. It was different than the last time he had been close to her. But for some reason, her just holding him while whatever was wreaking havoc inside his stomach did bring some relief to him, making him feel like a small hatchling again.

Demona liked this feeling, of him holding her. She had a gentle motherly look on her face looking down at the top of his head. Then she felt some liquid on her chest. It was obvious he was crying. He whimpered from his pain.

"Pleeeease… make it… stop…" Brooklyn was breathing hard. His right hand let go of her arm and it went to his belly.

"Just try to take deep breaths, Brooklyn." Demona said gently. "Can you tell me what happens after you eat? Is it certain food, or anything?"

"Any food! Oh, it really… hurts!" Brook winced, grabbing more onto her with his left hand.

"How bad?"

She felt his hand down on his stomach, gripping it tight. "Like… ugh… something's trying to… tear me up… on its way out of me!" Brook exclaimed. "Starts high… and it gets lower soon after… It hurts… all night!" From what he was describing, it was like he was being poisoned night after night.

"And you feel better the next night, right?"

He managed to nod while crying. "It… really hurts!"

Demona hadn't seen Brooklyn like this for over a thousand years. Him feeling sick was extremely rare. Perhaps this was enough punishment from this way. Or perhaps it was time to have Anton take a look at what it was really doing to him. But she knew she couldn't leave him when he was like this. He was now driving his talons into her skin. She knew he wasn't making this up.

"I need to report this." Demona said.

"Don't leave me!" Brooklyn begged her.

"Of course not, little one." Demona talked like a mom to him. She then grabbed a radio from her belt. She pressed a button and held it to her face while keeping an eye on him.

"Sevarius, report to Brooklyn's cell immediately, and bring your exam supplies." Demona ordered. "Over."

"I hear you, Demona." Came the reply from Sevarius. "Over."

"Gonna get to the bottom of this." Demona told him.

Soon, Sevarius and some men arrived to the most shocking sight before them. Demona was holding the young red male as if she cared for him. They thought she wanted him to suffer for his insolence.

"What seems to be the matter with him?" Sevarius asked.

Brooklyn turned to the voice. He winced as another jolt went through him.

"He has some really bad stomach pains." Demona spoke up on his behalf.

"We'll need him to lay down to examine him." Anton recommended.

"Okay. Come on now, Brooklyn, just lay back." Demona began to lay him down onto his back.

"Agh! Oh, it hurts!" Brooklyn held onto her tightly.

"I know, but just lay down now." She said as she moved up higher towards his head. She kept a grip on his arms to keep them out of the way. She let him keep a hold of her. It let the men get closer.

"You better not try anything, you red devil." Anton warned Brooklyn.

Brooklyn was in too much pain to think of fighting back. He watched as the evil man came up to the edge of the bed and Anton looked at Demona, grinning maliciously. She nodded.

Anton put his hands onto Brooklyn's stomach. His hands were cold, and he instantly felt the belly flinch. He began to press down.

"AGGGHHHH!" Brooklyn instantly cried out. "STOOOOOOPPPP! OOOOWWWW!" He thrashed instantly. "Don't hurt me anymore!" He screamed loudly.

"Oh, I'd say he's got it bad." Anton stated.

"Stop it, please! It's… eating my guts!" Brooklyn was crying hysterically. Demona had to desperately grab his arms from trying to attack Sevarius to hold him down.

"Stay still, Brooklyn!" She exclaimed.

"I'd say the red devil deserves that pain." One of the men blurted out.

Brooklyn looked at the man through sad eyes. "You try having pain that's eating your insides!" He rasped at him.

Anton then directed, "Is the pain worse here? Or here?" he asked, first pointing to the upper belly, then the lower belly.

"All of it!"

"Did you bring the ultrasound?" Sevarius asked.

"Right here, Boss." Another man replied.

"I'm gonna do an ultrasound on you, Brooklyn. I have to see what the source of the trouble is." Anton declared.

"Will it hurt?" he asked.

"Not much. But the probe has to be pushed into your skin to be able to get a decent picture."

The ultrasound machine was brought forth. Brooklyn watched warily.

Some gel was collected and some of it was applied to Brooklyn's belly, making him flinch. Then the wand. It was first applied onto Brook's upper stomach.

Brooklyn winced as the wand was pressed onto his belly. It was up in beneath his ribcage. His ribs would also be in the way.

Anton was getting a good look now at where he had injected the first device. He was seeing it now on screen. As he grinned, he saw something wasn't quite right. It looked like there was a hole in his digestive tract. Could it have an ulcer or something? Then he checked down lower to where the other device was in the intestine. As he looked, Anton was seeing quite some inflammation in Brook's digestive tract.

"Are you seeing anything, Sevarius?" Demona asked.

"The one in the upper place says that it might be an ulcer in the stomach. The lower place spot should be that but then, so far what I can see." Anton proclaimed.

"So, what are you going to do?" Brooklyn asked, deeply concerned. He was worried about what they were going to do to him. He winced from another jolt.

"It's possible it could go away on its own, but best to do some treatment. We'll try some antibiotics and antacids. If that doesn't work, we may have to do something more… invasive." Anton smirked at the red gargoyle.

Brooklyn didn't like the look at that evil man's face. A chill went through his stomach and down his spine. It would be just like a scientist to want to dissect him or something. But if his health was taking a bad turn, surgery would be needed. Stone sleep could only heal so much.

Demona also gave a certain look to Anton. She liked the feeling of Brooklyn 'needing' her. A cloth was handed to her, and Brooklyn grabbed it to wipe the gel off his belly.

The men left to begin the treatment plan. Demona stayed to keep Brooklyn company.

"Are you alright now, Brooklyn?" Demona asked.

"I don't want surgery. I hope stone sleep can heal this." Brooklyn was allowed to sit up. He tossed the cloth at the wall, holding his aching belly.

"If it doesn't heal, you might need surgery. I know stone sleep heals almost anything, but if this has been persisting, something else is at work here, my young one." She advised.

"I'm not your young one. I don't want surgery!"

"They can make you do anything they want, Brooklyn. Don't forget that you are mine now." Demona sneered at him.

"I'm not yours either!" He snarled at her. "Just go away!"

"We could always make that pain intensify too." Demona proclaimed maliciously.

He turned to her. "You were one of us once. How can you do this to me?" He asked sadly.

"I have my reasons. And there just might be some curiosities that Dr. Sevarius has that he has never been able to see before. There are going to be some tests for you while you are here too. But for now, we'll see how you respond to treatment of this first." Demona explained. "And you better take the medication when it's presented if you want to get better."

Demona got off the bed and left the room too. Brooklyn hated feeling all this stress. It was possible the stress was getting to him and causing the pain in his stomach, or so he thought.

Anton and Demona wanted the young male to keep on feeling that pain. And it would keep on happening.