"Don't be like that. No one likes spoiled meat."
Ernesto didn't hide any of his contempt for the asshole in front of him. Okay, so that is a lie; he just couldn't do it even if he wanted. The only thing free on him were his eyes, everything else was quite tightly wrapped up.
Let it not be said that Uther and his women had taken this lightly, at least on the surface.
Ernesto had been able to fight back a little bit after being caught. He ALMOST managed to punch one of the twins. Was it Polly, or was it Ester? Either way, the other had grabbed him and twisted his arm while his original target had grabbed his face, piercing both cheeks with her claws. It hadn't been a deep cut, but it had been disgusting. Not the wounds, but the tongues of both women licking him up as the meat they saw him to be.
His mother had been treated just slightly better, and that meant not being outright harmed. She had tried to fight the other woman off, only to be discarded by her and then being grabbed by Uther before she could move away.
Not like it made things any better.
Uther had grabbed Mireya by the waist and had been more than clear that he could disembowel the older woman with a simple sleight of hand if he so wanted to. He had gone so far as to tear the clothes without damaging the woman to show off that, at least, for now they were safe… Until they were eaten.
But that didn't mean they were going to be free.
Ernesto had been tied up to a chair in every which way possible while Mireya was spared having arms, legs and everything else tied down, instead just being forced to sit down and having a singular rope holding her in place. Not like Ernesto thought his mother would do much like that. Mireya was a sobbing mess while Ernesto glared at the man in front of him.
A fancy dressed Cannibal. Uther was an ashen blonde haired dapper asshole wearing a smoking and always looking prim and proper. He had been a volunteer to join this little colony, this 'expansion' of Rosie's domain. He had never complained, his smile always as open and wide as most other Cannibals around. But he had made himself a nuisance.
He was always close to one of Ernesto's family members, eyeing them all up, sizing them. The family had noticed very early on and they had informed Rosie, though the Overlord had done nothing. She had admitted that the man was 'a bit of a problematic case' and that he was 'hungry for more than he had', but she had also been adamant when saying that Uther was not stupid.
Clearly, Rosie had been mistaken.
His two women weren't much better, but they surely weren't worse than him. Polly and Ester were redheads that acted more like blonde bimbos; big tittied, thin and with asses for days, but not very bright. In a land where women were far tougher than those on Earth, and more often in the lead, the two white clad women with opera dresses were little more than sycophants, but extremely skilled, faster than they should in those garments and clearly as strong as the average demon woman to be sure.
Also, apparently, good cooks if the smell from the kitchen was any indication. Shame that they were as rotten as Uther and clearly intended to use what was being cooked as a tasteful addon to today's dish: Ernesto and his mother.
"Come on now." Uther, despite his personality, had a great and suave voice. Sadly his face spoke of just how little he thought of the person in front of him. "Don't be like that. Think of it as feeding your guests a proper meal, just as I said."
"Fu kn gh srw 'ff!"
Unsurprisingly here, but Ernesto was not in the mood to entertain bullshit.
Although he had to bit down a scream when he felt his shoulders being pierced.
"Behave, dear." Polly spoke in a candid, sing-song tone as she sunk her claws on Ernesto's flesh. It didn't go deep, but she made sure to make it hurt. "It is not good to have such a potty mouth."
"Indeed my dear Polly, indeed." Uther smiled, his fangs clear on display. "And we have been waiting for this for far too long I am afraid."
Ernesto let out a grunt the moment those claws were off of him.
He was fucked.
Also, his mother was sobbing uncontrollably now. Not surprising, but it also didn't help any.
Seeing the scene in front of him was macabre enough. He was aware that most Cannibals that moved here had brought their things; furniture, a few trinkets and the like. Uther? He and his two sluts had decided to bring skeletons, trophies and photos of them enjoying past meals.
Living* past meals.
Most Cannibals only ate people alive when they were pieces of shit, generally Sinners, usually to torment them. Rosie had been more than candid when sharing these kinds of things. More often than not Cannibals had the decency of killing whoever they were going to eat, even in places where they didn't have a 'Tithe', like Rosie did here. It was just good manners for them.
Clearly, Uther lacked that if nothing else.
And right now, with them sitting at a table clearly set for something much, much larger than your usual meal, it was very obvious what was going to happen. It didn't help any that Uther was inspecting the silverware in his possession with a critical eye while Polly sang something to herself, clearly without worry and eagerly awaiting for her sister to have everything ready for the 'real main dish'.
"Why are you doing this?" Mireya finally spoke. Ernesto would've preferred if his mother remained silent. He didn't want HER to be hurt. "Rosie is going to find out, no matter what happens to us." But while his mother was crying and terrified, there was something there: She was not going to be broken. "You aren't going to get away with this."
"Rosie is an ignorant woman that has lived for too long as little more than a parasite in the society she created." Uther didn't seem to care. Mincing words was obviously not something he was willing to do either. "I am going to enjoy my meal with my two dears, then I will take care of her." He was also beyond flippant and, while Ernesto hadn't dealt with Rosie as much as his cousin Carlos had, or some of his other family members, he had seen enough to know that Uther was spouting bullshit that he, somehow, truly believed to be fact. "So don't bother me with such ignorant words. You were left as you are because you were behaving. Don't make me regret my decision."
Ernesto was grateful to see that his mother clamped down after. He highly doubted Uther would outright kill her, but Mireya could, COULD, be mouthy when she felt she needed to.
Perhaps it was strange to say, but Ernesto didn't want to have to bury his mother. They were in Hell now. If they played their cards right they could life forever. He wasn't scared, not as long as he could keep his mother safe and, if possible, happy.
So all he could do was pray for her to keep it down. He would think of something. Ernesto knew he just needed ti-.
"It is ready~!"
Oh no…
Ernesto wished he could scream. He wanted to yell 'FUCK!' as hard and as loud as he could. But the rope and muzzle in his mouth made it impossible, not that it would've worked well in his favor. Polly was looking his way with a wicked grin and Uther had a self satisfied look that would've made a mad scientist proud.
"Well, that was faster than expected. Then again good money buys quality." And the way he looked Ernesto's way almost told the young man Uther only thought of him as nothing other than some 'product'.
With that thought in mind Ester came into view. She held the biggest grin Ernesto had seen on a Cannibal that wasn't Rosie or Evelinde. A scary thought considering Ester and Polly both had not one, but two rows of teeth.
To call them piranhas crossed with sharks would be an understatement.
"Bring the me-!"
A loud bang silenced the woman.
But no, she wasn't dead. The shot cut a few locks of her hair and made every Cannibal in the room stand to attention though. It was enough for Uther's silverware to go flying, the knife landing on Ernesto's lap.
As the scene unfolded around him Ernesto began to move and squirm. He was ignored by the Cannibals, but not his mother, and certainly not his grandfather who had come to the rescue right on time.
And as Manuel began to speak Ernesto managed to get a hold of the knife. Now he only needed time, because focus and dexterity both were boosted by adrenaline, panic and the desire for a quick and brutal dose of revenge.
"You get the fuck away from my family."
Manuel growled those words in a way that neither Ernesto nor Mireya had ever heard. It was gutural, beyond angry and ready to tear someone's heart out. He had brought his rifle from somewhere and was now aiming at Ester once more while Uther and Polly both stayed far too close to Ernesto and Mireya for him to take a risk.
"I am not going to ask again." Manuel got his finger to hug the trigger again. "I know full well that these bullets can kill a Sinner. They will go right through you lot."
The atmosphere changed in a second. Ernesto took a chance to look at the bullet hole. It was sparkling slightly, spewing smoke. It was one of those holy fullets then? It would for sure do a hellborn without much trouble.
He also saw something on the side, out of the corner of his eye. It looked like a mass of flesh, blood and bone for a second, then it reformed. Sadly for Ernesto, he didn't see it well enough, nor did he care. This could get beyond bad in a moment, so he went back to cutting.
Everything but him seemed to stop. His mother almost looked like she wasn't breathing. His grandfather was aiming and ready to shoot. Uther and his women were calculating how to pounce without losing anyone.
Then Ernesto heard a crunch.
He didn't stop cutting, not even when he felt like he went through one of the ropes and stabbed his leg. There was a time for worrying and it was not now. But he DID look, and he saw that Uther's chances were as gone as his life, or it would be in a moment.
Rosie's hand had stabbed right through his chest. His ribcage had exploded, spreading gore and blood over the table, while Rosie's usual smile was gone and hate overcame his features.
"My, my, dear Uther." Rosie's voice had its usual charm, but the woman's expression showed none of that. "I think you have overplayed your hand at last."
Ernesto felt the ropes slack off the moment Uther's women sprang into action and another shot was let go.
It was now do, or have someone die.