"I'm done." Cloud muttered under his breath as he fell to his knees. Though it seemed his words were directed more at himself, his expression stoic as emotion remained absent from his face.
His cool demeanour concealing the wrath within. If truth be told, he would rather be dead than in this position. Crouched before his enemy, awaiting the final blow.
Rufus did say he would exterminate him. One way to make someone feel like vermin.
"Not quite." Rufus stated, the barrel of his gun pressed hard up against the ex soldiers head.
The audience was silent, he'd almost forgotten they were there.
Though he wished they weren't there right now to witness this humiliating spectacle.
"I'm sending Darkstar on vacation." Rufus stated, pulling his gun back before holstering it.
Cloud glanced up at the man, not bothering to disguise the confusion in his eyes.
What did Darkstar have to do with anything?
"Which means of course that I am in need of a new pet." Rufus smirked as he appeared to read the younger man's mind.
Surely he wasn't suggesting that he, Cloud, be his new pet…
Rufus didn't give the younger man a chance to seriously consider his words as he suddenly slid a collar around the younger man's neck.
"It suits you."
No it didn't. He wasn't about to become the bitch of Shinra's next tyrannical heir.
"Now, darkstar never wore any clothes, so I guess that means you won't be wearing any either."
If the audience had been silent before, then they were dead quiet now.
No way.
He had to be kidding.
There was no way he was about to strip down to nothing in front of this man of all people. Let alone the entire colosseum audience.
"You'll have to shoot me first." Cloud growled, meaning every word he said as he felt himself becoming the beast he was forced to replace.
"I'm sorry you feel that way." Rufus smirked, raising his fingers into the air before snapping them.
It was a signal, to the Turks no doubt. The executioners of the heirs' dirty work.
He heard footsteps grow steadily louder but he didn't bother to turn around.
"You know what to do." Rufus commanded before turning on his heel and making for the exit.
Reno glanced at Rude, a flash of scepticism exuded across his eyes.
"He can't for real, is he?" Reno murmured, his thoughts spoken aloud before he had the chance to censor them.
"Guess you're coming with us, Mr soldier first class." Reno stated, directing his attention back to the crouching blonde next to him.
"In your dreams." Cloud stated coldly as he suddenly felt his wrists strangled together behind his back.
Damn it.
"No sweetheart, in your dreams." Reno smirked as he twirled his EMR rod around in his fingers as though it were a toy.
In one decisive action he slammed it against the back of Cloud's head.
The blonde watched helplessly as the colosseum, the audience, Dio, his friends all faded to black.
*~.~*
"You're finally awake." Rufus's voice goaded him into his new, undeniable reality.
Barely.
Cloud forced his eyes open as he became aware of a suffocating tightness around his neck.
Damn it.
The events at the colosseum had not been a dream.
Or rather, a nightmare.
This was now his reality.
He tugged at the collar around his neck in a vein attempt to pry it off.
"nuh uh ah!" Rufus waved his index finger at the younger man as though he were a petulant child in need of punishment.
It was only then that he became aware of the fact he was naked.
Rufus had not been bluffing.
Fuck.
"Perhaps you should come sit up here with me, so I can keep an eye on you."
Cloud refused to move. He'd rather sit there on the helicopter floor than in the lap of Rufus Shinra.
"Be a good boy and obey."
Cloud gritted his teeth.
Never.
Rufus's eyes rested upon the blonde, it was clear that he had no intention of withering as the president snapped his fingers.
Cloud barely had time to blink when a set of fingers tightened around his bare biceps, foisting him up onto the seat next to Rufus.
At least from this angle he had a better perception of his surroundings.
His eyes searched the landscape through the helicopter window, but nothing about it seemed at all familiar.
"Where are we?" It was less a question and more a demand for an answer. He didn't care if he aggravated Rufus. Maybe he could aggravate him so much that the president would kill him.
It had to be better than this.
"Darkstar never spoke, so neither do you."
"We're almost there sir." Rude interjected from the pilot's seat.
"Good."
Dammit.
Where was 'there?'
He had no idea where they were headed. He assumed it would be the temple of the ancients.
They did just get the key stone after all.
At least going there would afford him the opportunity to reunite with his friends.
But then they would see him in this state. Cloud flinched at the thought. There was no way he would want them to see him naked and chained to Rufus's wrist like a little bitch.
Cloud felt his heart pound in his chest.
His eyes darted around the helicopter as though hoping to discover a way out.
The open side door.
Maybe he should just jump to his death.
He barely had time to contemplate the idea when Rufus tugged on the chain around his neck.
"Don't even think about it." Rufus stated flatly, as though reading the younger man's mind.
Damn it.
Cloud felt the helicopter descend, any minute now he would be subject to the greatest humiliation of his life.
"Leave the engines running, this won't take long." Rufus commanded as he stepped out of the helicopter, dragging his new pet with him.
Did rufus really expect him to follow behind him on all fours, the whole way through the temple?
He couldn't be serious?
Yet a part of Cloud knew he was.
Despite his best resistance, Cloud soon found himself yanked from the relative safety of the helicopter by one swift tug.
Damn it.
He dare not look up as he felt the eyes of countless Shinra troopers upon him. From the corner of his eye he could see them all forming a line on either side of the president, as though it were a parade. Except they weren't the ones being inspected. He was.
"Where to boss?" Reno asked almost haphazardly as he leapt from the helicopter, landing just behind Cloud.
As if this whole situation wasn't humiliating enough, now he had Reno at his rear. Maybe he should just moon the Turk, leave nothing to the imagination. Cloud allowed the thought to linger, entertaining it before finally deciding to enact it. He spread his thighs further apart before arching his back.
"What are you asking him for? Aren't you the guide here Reno?" Elena interjected.
Silence.
"Reno? Hello Gaia to Reno?"
"Reno?" Rude glanced over his shoulder in an effort to discover why his fellow turk wasn't responding.
His eyes glanced to Reno's before tracing their destination. Cloud's bare opening, put on deliberate display.
"Lead the way." Rufus commanded as though bored with the whole situation. Tseng and Elena took the lead, followed closely by Rude and finally Reno.
The entrance to the temple wasn't far, if you were allowed to walk on two feet, but it was hell on Cloud's knees. The doorway opened up to an atrium filled with a confusing series of stairs.
Cloud sighed, at least he was now out of view of all the troopers. Not that his present company was any better.
"Reno." Tseng began, as though the redhead was about to receive a stern lecture.
"Both your attention span and attitude are appalling."
"What are you talking about? My attitude has always been bad." The redhead seemed genuinely confused at the man's words.
No matter how bad Reno's attitude was, it still paled in comparison to Cloud's.
"You know, I never had this much trouble with Darkstar." Rufus stated, yanking the chain around Cloud's neck in an effort to force the boy to move.
"It seems you require training." Rufus stated as though bored before tossing his end of the chain to Reno, who clearly wasn't expecting it.
"Perhaps some electric shock therapy ought to work." Rufus suggested as his eyes ran over Cloud's bare flesh.
"I just wonder where that EMR of Reno's will wind up."
He wasn't curious. Neither was Cloud. He knew the redhead was sure to shove it up his ass at the president's earliest behest.
"Take him for a spin." Rufus added, talking about his latest acquisition as though he were the latest vehicle in Shinra's line up.
"We're going on ahead."
"What? You're leaving me behind?"
"You have work to do Reno. Best hop to it." Elena grinned, suddenly feeling more important than she actually was as she headed down the staircase.
Reno screwed up his face as though he were a spoilt child about to miss out on all the fun. He watched as the rest of his team disappeared down the spiralling staircase, leaving him in the dust.
"I don't know who he hates more, me or you." Reno spat, clenching the chain in his midst.
"What do you mean? I'm the one naked with a chain around my neck."
The Turk shrugged, he couldn't exactly argue with Cloud about that.
A silence fell between them.
"What are you going to do to me?" It was a question Cloud was afraid to ask, though he would never give Reno the satisfaction of knowing that.
"What?" Reno turned to face the blonde, though it seemed his thoughts were miles away.
His eyes traced Cloud's pale skin as the younger man kneeled before the Turk.
"Probably nothing." Reno sighed before turning away from him once more.
Cloud narrowed his eyes suspiciously, as though doubting that the Turk would allow this opportunity for punishment to pass him by.
But of course he wasn't about to pursue the matter, lest the turk had a sudden change of heart.
"Though if I were you, which I'm glad I'm not, I would practise my obedience." Reno annunciated, as though doubting the blonde would understand him if he didn't.
"And if I don't?"
Reno turned on his heel before squatting down in front of his blonde captive.
"I think you already know the answer to that question." Reno stated, not bothering to mask the smirk forming on his lips.
"Do you enjoy pain? Humiliation? Torture? The president is the master of all those things and not just that, he loves it."
Though, Cloud did have one question burning on his lips.
"Why are you going easy on me?"
"Easy? I'm not going easy." Reno narrowed his gaze as he eyed the blonde dubiously. Cloud couldn't tell if he had insulted the man as he felt the redhead's eyes trace his body as though it were edible.
"Perhaps you should use this time wisely and rest. Your journey has only just begun."
How exactly was he supposed to rest like this?
Yet despite this obvious fact, Cloud lay on the ground and closed his eyes. Perhaps he was still in the midst of a horrific dream and waking up again would end it.
It didn't take much before the blonde felt himself slip away into darkness.
*~.~ *
"Reno!"
Cloud's eyes suddenly bolted open as though he now responded to the name 'Reno".
"What is it boss?"
"Rufus needs you" Tseng stood at the top of the staircase.
"Oh, so he needs me now does he?" Reno was the master of smug as he tapped his EMR over his left shoulder.
What was he waiting for?
An apology?
He would be waiting a long time.
"What about him?" Reno nodded his head in the direction of the blonde.
"Bring him."
Cloud let out an audible groan.
Damn it.
"You heard the boss." Reno stated, giving Cloud's chain a slight yank.
The blonde couldn't deny the sense of dread filling every Fibre of his being as he crawled behind the redhead.
What was waiting for him?
He dreaded to think.
It didn't take as long as Cloud had expected to reach the others.
His eyes scanned the room, it was the Turks vs a dragon and it wasn't going well for the Turks.
A flash of metal danced before his eyes as it fell to the floor.
His umbral sword.
"Don't even think of using it on me. Is that clear?" Rufus stated as he aimed his gun straight at the younger man's head.
"Get rid of that dragon."
By this time the Turks had pulled back, leaving Cloud to face the monster on his own.
Though, that didn't stop him having an audience.
With one swift movement, Rufus undid the collar, setting Cloud free for but a moment.
Long enough to do his dirty work no less.
Cloud rose to his feet, still acutely aware of his nude state and the eyes upon it as he clenched his sword.
Slaying the dragon would prove to be barely a challenge for the ex soldier.
Within moments, its carcass lay strewn about the dungeon chamber.
Cloud took a few moments to catch his breath, or perhaps it was more the taste of freedom he craved.
Either way it was destined to be severed faster than the dragon from its life as Rufus slipped the collar back around Cloud's neck.
"Give me that." The president demanded, tilting his head towards the umbral sword still within the younger man's grip.
Cloud refused to move. This was his one shot at freedom, he wasn't about to give it up that easily.
"It seems Reno didn't discipline you at all." Rufus tusked, his eyes darted to the Turk as though demanding an explanation.
Reno shrugged but remained silent.
Rufus kicked Cloud at the back of the knee joint, forcing the ex soldier to his knees before seizing the sword in one foul swoop.
He tossed the sword aside as though it were rubbish.
"Then allow me." Rufus held out his hand toward Reno, but kept his gaze upon the younger blonde.
Reno didn't require prompting as he handed over his EMR.
Rufus sauntered around the blonde until he reached his rear.
"Crouch on all fours."
Cloud gritted his teeth as he did what was demanded of him with great reluctance.
"Hmm.." Rufus rubbed his chin with his index finger as though not impressed.
"Spread your legs wider."
Cloud refused to obey.
Rufus kicked the swordsman's inner thigh, forcing his legs apart.
"That's better." Rufus remained stoic as his eyes traced the chasm before him.
With one swift flick of his wrist, Reno's EMR was pressed against the younger man's exposed opening.
He wasted no time applying pressure, threatening to penetrate the younger man's body.
"If you disobey me one more time, I will explore the inside of your body with this. Is that clear?"
Another jerk at Cloud's opening forced an answer from his lips.
"Yes."
Whatever Cloud wanted, it certainly wasn't that.
"Good."
"Sir, they are here." Tseng interrupted with a bow.
"Ah, now then, it seems your friends have arrived." Rufus smirked slightly at the naked ex soldier at his feet.
Cloud felt a panic strike his heart.
No.
They couldn't see him like this.
"Perhaps you should give them an appropriate greeting."
Cloud could bet there was nothing appropriate about whatever Rufus had in mind.
"Turn around and spread your legs, show them that special part of yourself."
No way.
Cloud hesitated, it was bad enough that his friends were going to see him nude, but his anus to boot?
"Now."
Cloud froze before feeling a set of arms forcing him into the position.
"You disobeyed me, how disappointing."
Cloud crouched before the president, his ass in the air as though he were begging for it.
"You know what this means." Rufus shook his head as he once again pressed Reno's EMR to Cloud's entrance. Only this time, he broke through the blonde's resistance.
"Argh!" Cloud groaned instinctively, instantly regretting it as the EMR disappeared further into his tight opening.
He had to be silent. He didn't dare give Rufus the satisfaction of knowing he was hurting him.
But the pain…
"Stop." Cloud gritted his teeth as a pain close to agony began to consume his body.
"Oh? Do I take orders from you now do I? Perhaps you have forgotten that I am your master." Rufus stated coldly as he pushed the rod in further, extracting another agonised groan from the boy.
Even Reno was grimacing, how far was Rufus going to take this?
"Please." Cloud hated himself as the plea left his lips, nothing more than a whisper. Yet the entirety of the present company heard it.
"You had best obey me in the future then, hadn't you."
Cloud wasn't entirely sure if the president was actually awaiting an acknowledgement from him but he didnt care. He wasn't going to get one.
"Perhaps I should leave this here to serve as a reminder." Rufus stated before letting go of the handle of the EMR.
The rod remained buried within Cloud's anus as Rufus stepped away.
Cloud felt his body shaking against his will as he felt the eyes of every Turk upon him. He didn't dare look up.
Any minute now his friends would arrive.
He would rather be dead than let them see him like this.