Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Deceit's POV

Dark, twisting hallways appear before him. Deceit shrinks, his back pushed against the wall as he stares into the menacing corridors. He hears maniacal laughter coming from right over his shoulder and whips around. Nothing is there, but the wall is gone.

"Darling..." A voice growls from the end of the newly opened hall. Deceit feels adrenaline force his legs to move, running in the opposite direction.

His breath comes in short gasps of freezing air. Deceit can see his own breath turning to frosty mist as he exhales and begins to wonder why it is so cold. Fingers numb from the sudden change in temperature, he continues running, hearing loud footsteps chasing from behind.

Deceit looks behind him briefly, seeing the shadow of a man dance along the walls. He turns back just in time to stop himself from running straight into a dead-end wall. His numb fingers clench the wall, feeling the malicious presence of someone approaching from behind.

Dread leaks into his body and grips his stomach fiercely like a wild animal. The footsteps stop right behind him as he feels hot breath against the nape of his neck.

"Turn around, puppet." The voice hisses against him, voice dripping with sweet sadistic pleasure. He finds himself obeying this order, slowly turning around to face whoever might be there.

It's exactly who he thought it'd be. Who else could it be but Lust? The one side who took pleasure from torturing him incessantly. His golden eyes and glittery hair fill Deceit's vision, watching him playfully.

Deceit presses himself against the wall as Lust leans into his ear with a wide grin.

"I'm going to use you as a toy for my sadistic desires... You will let me do whatever I wish to do to you, my little plaything... " Lust whispers into his ear, becoming so close that Deceit can smell his cheap cologne. Deceit inhales sharply as Lust grabs both of his wrists and pins him against the wall. Deceit tries his best to force his body to fight back, but it simply refuses. It is becoming what Lust wants; a toy that cannot refuse.

"That's all you'll ever be... my little pet." Lust coos, their faces so close that they almost touch. Suddenly, his smile drops and his eyes go dark with the desire to hurt.

"Get on the floor on your back, pet." Lust demands, stepping backwards. Deceit obeys once again, the cold floor reaching his suddenly-bare back. Without hesitation, Lust kicks hard into his side. Deceit muffles a scream, trying not to anger his former captor with loud shrieking. Lust never liked it when he shouted too much, but he loved to hear Deceit's helpless pleas.

Lust stomps down on his chest, blowing any remaining air from his lungs completely. Tears enter his eyes, feeling fresh aching tear into his chest cavity mercilessly. Lust continues to attack his torso, making sure that every kick landed between his ribs. Suddenly, Lust has a red power drill in his hands, staring down at his victim with anticipation. Deceit wordlessly shakes his head in desperate denial, but nothing would ever stop Lust. Lust crawls on top of Deceit, sitting on his lower torso. He jams his drill into Deceit's side, poking right into a rib that pleads to be left alone.

"Beg me not to, I want to hear you plead." Lust demands of him, straightening out his drill to allow more pressure downward. Deceit feels his face flush with heat and shame, throat choking with helpless desperation.

"I SAID BEG!" Lust screams at him, digging the drill deeper, but not breaking the skin. Deceit yelps in fear, choking up the courage.

"Plea-please don't--" Deceit pleads him, shaking beneath his captor.

"You can do better than that." Lust eggs him on, forcing more out of him.

"Please- please don't hurt me-- I beg you-- please don't- don't do it--" Deceit forces himself to say, truly meaning every single word. Lust smiles pridefully down at his victim.

"Good boy..." Lust purrs, running his fingers through Deceit's dishevelled hair in a humiliating fashion. Deceit hears the click of a button suddenly.

The roaring of the drill coming to life fills his ears as Lust's drill tears into him, penetrating his rib almost instantly, forcing a guttural shriek to rip through his insides as agony---

Deceit shrieks, eyes flying open as he sits up. He's sitting in his bed, shaking from the nightmare. He has to ensure that he is indeed in his cave-like room, and not in the shadowy hell hallway that just a second ago stretched out in front of him. Cold, damp, stalactites hanging from the ceiling. Yup, this is his room.

Deceit cups his hands over his face, tears forcing their way into his eyes easily as he sits there sobbing quietly. This happens every single time he wakes, and that nightmare wasn't nearly as bad as they usually are. He would've normally felt and seen that drill go all the way in.

Deceit hates living like this, constantly haunted and brought to tears by his captors, who only he remembers. He can't even talk to anyone else about it, because the light sides have repressed it all. That leaves only him left to live with the memories of torture and abuse.

He spends most days locked inside his room, no one there to fill the lonely void he's trapped in. Occasionally, he is pulled into the real world by Thomas, to be interrogated harshly by him and his sides. With his current mental state, Deceit sometimes unknowingly causes Thomas to also lie out of panic or paranoia. They usually scold him for this and solve Thomas's problems without trouble.

As if on cue, he feels Thomas calling out to him. He tries to hold on, trying to fight back, but Thomas calls the shots. If Thomas wants him out there, he must go. He feels himself sinking back down, still clinging onto his own fragile reality.

Deceit appears suddenly, standing in a new spot by Logan. He has to remind himself to act like himself, as to not force any repressed memories out. That's another thing he struggles with, constantly protecting their own fragile memories. If they remember, Lust and Rage get out, simple as that. 

"What is it this time?" Deceit asks them sarcastically. 

"Nothing. Why did you ask him here?" Virgil demands, clearly annoyed with the appearance of a dark side. Virgil is dressed in his stitched black/purple sweater, dark eyeshadow messily packed underneath his eyelids. His bangs hang in front of his face.

"I wanted to know who caused that last night!" Thomas exclaims, gesturing to Deceit once more. Deceit honestly doesn't know what they are talking about, but Thomas doesn't look so good. His eyes are dull and tired, heavy bags weighing them down. He is dressed in a robe, and his hair is bedraggled.

"Indeed. Deceit, are you aware of what occurred last night?" Logan asks him next calmly. He is dressed in his usual black shirt and jeans, glasses neatly sitting on his face.

"What-? No?" Deceit denies.

"Liar! He's lying!" Patton shouts out childishly, pointing at him. Patton is wearing his grey puppy hoody, his hands pulled through the sleeves like paws.

"Look, could someone please explain what I am being accused of?" Deceit spits at them, patience growing thin very rapidly.

"Last night, Thomas struggled to fall asleep due to troubling thoughts about hurting other people," Logan informs him. Roman rolls his eyes, crossing his arms in annoyance. He is wearing his white garb, a sparkling red sash wrapped around his shoulder.

"Way to sugar coat it, teach. What Logan meant to say was torturing people." Roman clarifies. Deceit visibly stiffens at Roman's words.

"Torturing?" Deceit stutters in disbelief, his mind immediately turning to the thought of Lust.

"I wouldn't call it torturing..." Patton mutters, clearly in denial. Virgil huffs in discomfort, wanting to stop talking about it.

"Well, what else do you call breaking someone's ribs with a lead pipe?!" Roman exclaims to Patton. 

Deceit's heart falters in his chest at the clear connection to his past torture. Lust had taken a lead pipe to his ribs, broke multiple of them, and continued to break them throughout the span of that month. This can't be a coincidence. Something is wrong.

"Deceit? Hello?" Logan waves a hand in front of his face, breaking his trance. Deceit blinks repeatedly, staring back at them all.

"Do you know anything about this? Did you cause this?" Roman interrogates him.

"No, of course not!" Deceit hisses back, insulted by this accusation. Why on earth would he have tried to remind Thomas of Deceit's horrible punishments and abuse he had suffered? More importantly, what is causing Thomas to even think about that? Did Lust and Rage escape? Are they just screwing with him?

Are they coming for him?

It's all too much, Deceit can't do this. He just needs to go back to his room, where he is safe. Where he thinks he is safe, at least.

"I- need to go now." Deceit says, allowing himself to sink down.

"Oi! No, you aren't! What have you done?" Thomas demands, pulling him back up through his want to keep Deceit here.

"I haven't done anything!" Deceit fights back with a serpent-like tone.

"We know it's you Deceit, you're a dark side!" Roman accuses him with arrogance in his voice.

"Ever consider that it might be one of you?" Deceit hisses at them all, tired of being pointed at as some pervert who caused Thomas to think about this.

"One of us? Why are you trying to turn us against one another?" Virgil seethes at him, hatred dripping in his voice. Deceit glares at him deeply.

'You deserved it...' Virgil's voice from the past rings out, causing Deceit to grind his teeth together.

"He could be right. Roman, you are imagination, after all, maybe it was you?" Logan switches their attention to Roman, who gasps in shock.

"Me? You're the one who is always researching bones and anatomy!" Roman flips the accusation on its head. Logan looks taken aback.

"That is for scientific research!" Logan retorts, offended by Roman's quick allegation towards him.

"Guys, just calm down--" Patton tries to interject, but is cut off sure enough.

"Scientific research of torturing people!" Roman yells back.

"Hey! Listen to Patton!" Virgil shouts out to Logan and Roman.

"Don't get me started on you, emo! We all know you tend to be dark, so it could've been you!" Roman accuses, causing Thomas to finally step in.

"Hey, pump the breaks Princey! Virgil is not evil, okay?" Thomas defends Virgil, who has his arms crossed and stares Roman down.

"What if it's just you, Thomas? What if you're just twisted?" Roman now targets Thomas.

Deceit doesn't know what to do as they all break into an argument. Soon enough, it wasn't just Roman doing the accusing. He was most likely the first due to his insecure personality. Deceit hears his own name being thrown around but doesn't care enough to listen. He knows it wasn't him, but who was it? Who is trying to bring them back? More importantly, why?

"We're all missing the point here--" Thomas tries to speak, but can't seem to be heard as they all tear each other apart.

"--being overdramatic, blaming the rest of us for what you did--"

"--is a dark side! Why aren't we questioning him? He did this!"

"If we could all just calm down an--"

"--arrogant and foolish--"

Deceit notices a strange shadow behind Roman as they all yell at each other and occasionally him. He feels a chill creep into his blood as he tries to spot what it might be.

"Guys--" Deceit calls out to them quietly, watching the shadow carefully. Soon enough he sees a face right behind Roman's shoulder. He's a side, that's for sure, sharing the same face as the rest of them. He has a mustache and brown hair with frosted grey tips.

"Who is that?" Deceit mutters to himself as their eyes meet. He feels his stomach drop like he's on a rollercoaster as the unknown side lifts a mace above Roman's head.

"Roman--" Deceit calls out, but Roman is too occupied fighting with Logan and Patton, who seemed to have paired up against him. Deceit now sees that the side is wearing an outfit exactly like Roman, but it's black and green. There seem to be teeth hidden around the green sash. His eyes sparkle with mischief, and he winks at Deceit.

"Roman!" Deceit yells at him, grabbing his attention finally.

"What do you wan---" It's too late. The unknown side smashes the morning star down onto Roman's head. Roman immediately goes down, head spinning with darkness. He collapses face-first onto the ground.

"Roman!!!" Patton squeals, watching his friend hit the ground.

"Boo!" Hisses the side as he takes Roman's spot.

Who the hell is this? Deceit thinks to himself, hands curled tightly into fists at his sides.

Deceit freezes, automatically feeling that the side across from him is most definitely a dark side. 

Chapter Text

Deceit's POV

Deceit and the other dark side stare at each other for a moment, trying to read each other. Deceit can't seem to understand who exactly is standing across from him. Some sort of reincarnation of Lust? The way he's staring makes it seem like it is. The other sides seem too shocked to say anything for a couple of seconds before they immediately jump at the side's throat.

"What have you done? Who are you?" Thomas demands, gesturing to Roman, who lays unconscious on the ground. 

"Hmmm, how to put it?" The side taps his finger against his lips, thinking of the best way to approach an introduction.

"Ah, I've got it! I am Roman's slimy, smelly twin brother!" He declares, nudging Roman with his foot. Roman grunts in response, completely oblivious to everything around him. 

Smelly, no kidding. Deceit can smell him from the other side of the room.

"Roman's twin? What are you talking about?" Patton questions him. Logan's face suddenly lights up like he totally understands.

"You're the other half of Thomas' creativity." Logan announces, looking to the side for approval.

"Exactly, dork! I am the darker side of creativity! I have all of the juicy stuff!" The side declares, copying one of Roman's poses exactly. Deceit is still wary of this strange new dark side, thinking that there has to be more to him than this. Why did he know about the ribs? Coincidence? Deceit hopes so, the alternative being so horrifying to think of.

"Deceit, do you know him?" Logan interrogates him next. Deceit doesn't hear him at first, mind thinking back to the nightmare from this morning.

"I want to hear you plead." Lust's voice coos within his head, sending a shiver down his spine.

"Plea-please don't--" He feels flushed all of a sudden, hot with embarrassment from his own shaky voice as it replays.

"Deceit?" Logan calls his name once more, pulling him out of his daydream.

"Hmm?" Deceit jerks his head up, looking back at Logan. He hears Virgil huff with frustration.

"Do you know who this is?" Logan asks once more.

"No- I don't." Deceit replies honestly, glancing at the side in suspicion.

"Ah, yes. We haven't been properly introduced." The side approaches Deceit, holding out a hand to him. Deceit eyes his hand wearily. 

"I am Remus, your fellow dark side." He says his name, causing gasps of shock to come from everyone else. Deceit slowly takes his hand in his own, shaking it politely. He just wants this to be over so he can return to his hell room.

"I am Deceit." He says his own name back.

"Oh, I know. I've heard many good things about you, darling..." Remus exclaims cheerfully with a hint of malice in his strange voice. Deceit rips his hand away from Remus immediately, stomach filling with butterflies that eat at his insides.

Deceit freezes in his place, eyes widening at those words. Remus knows about Lust and Rage, everything that happened between them all. It's not possible, but somehow, he knows. Where did he even come from? Hell itself?

"So, you are responsible for the intrusive thoughts then?" Logan questions Remus, who smirks at Deceit's bewildered expression. As Logan argues with Remus, Patton quietly creeps over to the couch and grabs a pillow and blanket. He then kneels down before Roman, who is still unconscious, and slips the pillow underneath his head. He also drapes the blanket over him, noticing a shine of blood on the back of his head.

"They are not intrusive thoughts, Thomas. I simply brought a memory to light." Remus explains to Thomas, sneaking glances at Deceit mischievously.

Deceit's gloved hands clench into balls at his sides, shaking immensely with tension. What is he trying to accomplish by doing this? Hurting Deceit further with mentions of his past abuse? It feels as if Lust had never left.

"It's not a memory. Memories are events remembered from past experience. Thomas has neither had his ribs broken, or broken someone's ribs." Logan defines quickly with a sassy adjust of his glasses.

Deceit's teeth grind together as he hears the cracking sound of his own bones breaking. They cracked like he had stepped onto a weak sheet of ice, sending Deceit into the ice-cold water and trapping him underneath it. His stomach does flips, hearing the crackling sound over and over again.

"Maybe you haven't, but somebody has..." Remus states, his stare returning to Deceit's pale, half-scaled face.

"Deceit, what is he talking about?" Patton asks nervously to him, noticing the clear implication. Deceit glares back at the dark side, a familiar feeling of dull hatred entering his chest.

"I have no idea..." Deceit lies, a bitter tone biting in his words. Remus smirks back at him with a toothy grin. He can feel the light sides staring at him, but he honestly couldn't care less about them right now. He has a much bigger problem, and its name is Remus.

He needs time to process all of this. He needs to be alone right now. After that terrible nightmare this morning, he needs to just be by himself.

"I'm done with this, handle it yourself." Deceit says to Thomas coldly, allowing himself to sink back down into the mind palace.

"Hold on a second, we aren't done with you." Logan grabs his wrist and pulls him back out roughly. His hand is clenched around the scar of the brand that Lust had given him on his wrists, which remains hidden by his sleeves. As he is pulled back up, his heart immediately skips a beat out of fear.

Lust grabs both of his wrists and pins him against the wall. He struggles helplessly, feeling his lifelong abuser's fingers clench around his wrists powerfully, taking full control for himself. Deceit struggles to shut down the vision, hopelessly thinking of something else to distract him.

"My little pet.." Deceit hears the voice of Lust say in his head as the memory replays.

"Don't touch me." Deceit mutters in his head to the vision, wishing he had fought back in the nightmare. He can almost feel Lust's hands on him, leaving a sick taste in his mouth. He's lost all sense of reality, fully engulfed in his own mind.

"Don't touch me!" He demands again to Lust, feeling Lust pull him up by the wrist. That's strange, wasn't he just pinning Deceit against the wall? Deceit feels anger and desperation rising in his chest, ready to lash out like a cornered animal.

"Don't touch me!" Deceit shouts out loud, ripping his wrist away from Lust. Blinded by sudden want for revenge, Deceit grabs Lust by his blue, striped tie and pulls him close threateningly.

"If you ever grab me again, I'll break your hands, understand?!" Deceit hollers at Lust, who surprisingly has an expression of fear painted across his face. Deceit stares into his petrified brown eyes that are hiding behind black-rimmed glasses.

His grip on the tie loosens, eyebrows narrowing in confusion at the fear shown by his former captor. Lust was never afraid of him, even at the end.

"This isn't Lust..." Deceit thinks to himself, finally focusing on the side's face. 

Glasses. Goddamn glasses. This isn't Lust, it's Logan!

Deceit quickly releases Logan's tie, eyes widening at his deduction. Logan looks absolutely terrified, caught off-guard by the sudden outburst. Deceit steps back from Logan, feeling ashamed with his immediate loss of self-control and reality. He can feel them all staring at him like some monster, but he can't bring himself to look up. 

"I--" Deceit stutters, looking back up to Logan. He can't figure out how to apologize. How could he explain what had just happened without talking about Lust? It's better that he just doesn't try. 

Deceit sinks down into the mind palace, face hot with embarrassment.

Patton's POV

Patton watches Deceit leave, mouth agape from the whole scenario. His eyes go to Logan, who is still frozen by shock.

"Are-are you okay, Logan?" Patton asks him gently. It takes a moment for Logan to recollect himself.

"Yeah-- yeah I'm fine. I just- it's- fine..." Logan responds, stuttering slightly as he tries to catch his words. Patton feels the sudden urge to run over to Logan and embrace him, but that's crazy. Logan hates to be touched, it will only make it worse. But why is Patton yearning to hold Logan? Sure, he has a crush on Logan, but why does it feel so natural? Like he's done it before. Like it would be normal.

Patton gives into these thoughts and approaches Logan, arms held out to him. Surprisingly, Logan does not hesitate in accepting the offer, embracing Patton.

Patton holds onto Logan, feeling strangely comfortable. It almost feels like their hearts are beating in sync with one another. It feels like this is how they were meant to be, together. Like they had finally found each other after being lost for so long. 

Both Patton and Logan stiffen and quickly release one another. Patton stares at Logan, wondering if he had felt the same thing. 

"Tha-thank you." Logan stutters before walking back to his spot, flustered by the strange trance he had been in. Patton nods in acknowledgement of his thanks, unsure of what to say that wouldn't make it awkward.

"Oooh, you two are just adorable! I can imagine you two getting along just fine..." Remus winks at Logan with a stupid smile. Logan's eyebrows furrow in confusion, not understanding his implication.

"Can we get back to the issue at hand?" Virgil harshly demands, gesturing to Remus. Patton looks over to the anxious side, who has been growing more tense as this goes on.

"Yes- right, Virgil is right." Logan straightens himself out, eyes meeting Remus's. Logan adjusts his tie, eyes blazing with determination and confidence.

"Let's debunk this, shall we?" He says with a smirk, the support of everyone behind him as he faces Remus.

Deceit's POV

He appears back in his room on his knees, hands on the cold ground as he heaves in multiple breaths. He can feel tears rapidly approaching, throat tightening like someone is choking him.

Deceit screams out in sadness and frustration, hands slamming onto the ground hard. He shakes, sobbing to himself as his fists unclench, all of the rage turning to despair in seconds. He can't keep losing control like that, it's drawing way too much suspicion. But he can't help it, the visions feel to real. He can't do anything to stop them.

Deceit hears a quiet splat on the ground beneath him and sees a small dot of wet concrete. He realizes he is crying and quickly wipes it away as if someone was watching him. He should be able to cry alone, but he feels such extreme shame every time. He's Deceit for God's sake, he shouldn't be crying like this.

But he just can't stop. He buries his face in his gloved hands, uncontrollably weeping and whining to himself. Every time he tries to stop, his breathing turns into choppy sobs and inevitably transforms into full-blown howls of anguish and despair.

This goes on for at least twenty minutes, Deceit being completely controlled by his emotions. 

"Have I come at a bad time?" A voice asks teasingly from behind him. Astounded, Deceit whips around and finds Remus in his room. Deceit quickly gets to his feet, turning his back to Remus so he does not see his wet, tear-stained face. He quickly tries to wipe the remaining tears away, mortified by the sudden change of events. Deceit has padlocks and doorstops at his door, so how did Remus get in? 

"How- did- you get i-in here-?" Deceit asks, muffled sobs hidden between his words, making him stutter slightly. 

"I am the being of intrusive thoughts! I can get into anywhere." Remus declares proudly. Deceit blinks away the last tears and turns to face his invader, arms crossed over his chest defensively.

"What do you want?" Deceit asks, finally regaining control of his voice.

"I wanted to properly introduce myse---" Deceit feels his patience wearing thin with these lies. Does he really think he can fool Deceit of all people? No. He is here for one reason; to humiliate Deceit further.

"Just cut the crap, okay?" Deceit seethes at him, eyes almost glowing with anger. Remus is shocked, but also seems amused.

"What are you doing, trying to bring back their memories? Do you know who you're messing with?" Deceit interrogates Remus, jabbing a finger into his chest threateningly.

"I don't fin--" Remus begins to say, but Deceit isn't finished yet.

"How do you even know about them? Where the hell did you come from?" Deceit hisses at Remus, his paranoia showing.

"You created me. Your repression of them gave me a physical form." Remus explains to him with a grin. Deceit paces back and forth, fingers pressing on his temples. What does all of this mean? Are they back? Is there any way he can run away? Unlikely.

"Listen darling, they aske---" Deceit whips around, getting right in Remus' face.

"Don't call me that." Deceit spits harshly. Remus chuckles under his breath, noticing the immediate flip of tone.

"They asked me to check on you. To determine if you were a threat to our plan." Remus reveals to him. Deceit feels the blood in his veins freeze.

"Where are they? Are they coming? Who have you spoken to!?" Deceit yells at Remus, panic raising the volume of his voice.

"You'll find out soon, darling." Remus smirks at him slyly, turning on his heel and walking to the door. Deceit watches in horror as Remus takes out a small key, shows it to him with a grin, and begins unlocking the many padlocks on his door. Each one clangs onto the floor as he tosses them away. It doesn't take long until Remus has completely shed his door of all locks and defence mechanisms. He slips the key back into his pocket.

"Be seeing you soon." Remus coos at him before slipping out of the door.

Deceit drops to his knees, his unlocked padlocks scattered around him. They remind him that no matter how hard he tries or what he does, Lust will capture him anyways.

Lust will capture him anyways.

Chapter Text

Deceit sits motionless, looking at the numerous padlocks around himself. He can hear Remus' footsteps echoing away from his room. It is clear to Deceit what Remus will now do, find some way to make the light sides remember. Why doesn't he just appear to them and tell them everything? Is there more to it than that? 

He can't let this happen again. He can't let Lust and Rage come back.

Deceit rises to his feet, wiping a tear from his cheek roughly as he faces his unlocked door. He takes a long breath and forces himself to walk towards the door.

Deceit opens it slowly, peering outside to the inky darkness of the hallways. He looks to the right and sees Remus turn the corner, disappearing from view. Deceit quietly slips out of his room and speedwalks after him.

It doesn't take too long for him to catch up, now walking several paces behind Remus as to not attract his attention. He leans into each step, making sure his black dress shoes don't make any noise as he sulks in the shadows. Remus begins to whistle a song that Deceit does not recognize as he walks/skips down the twisting halls. Deceit doesn't know where exactly they are going. Maybe Remus' room? He also doesn't really know what he wishes to accomplish by tailing Remus, but it's better than being alone with nothing but his tortured mind. He has to find a way to stop this. The mere thought of Lust coming back makes him nauseous with anxiety.

Deceit continues to stealthily follow Remus for about 10 minutes before they turn one last corner. Nothing could have prepared him for what he found.

He has to clamp his hands over his mouth to stop a sharp inhale, eyeing the broken down building. 

It's his childhood house. The house that he was tortured in for decades, and then again not too long ago. It looks so much different, so much more withered. The nice grey brick is now darker and chipping. What used to be a proud oak door has been warped by water, now having green mould on the sides. The windows are all broken, some even boarded up. It's like an abandoned mansion. 

Remus, still whistling, swings the door open and prances in. Deceit stares up at the house, urging his legs to move. He has to go inside and figure out what Remus is doing. But he can't move. He idles, thinking back to the last time he was here. They had just locked Lust and Rage in the cellar and were about to leave. He remembers dread hanging over his head as he turned away from this place, knowing he would suffer from the trauma for the rest of his life. He remembers thinking that he was never going to return, no matter what.

He should have known that he would return here. It seems like an inevitable fate. Somehow he always ends up back here. Deceit just stares up at the house. He can't help but fear what comes next. What sort of traumatic episode will he suffer if Deceit walks through those doors? Better yet, does he have a choice? 

Tears swell in his eyes as he forces his legs to move now standing directly in front of the door, smelling the sour scent of rotting wood. Deceit pushes the ajar door open, wincing as he hears it squeak against the rusted metal. 

 Deceit steps in before he can stop himself.

He immediately feels his heart rate increase, pounding against his chest as if it hopes to escape. Much like himself, it is trapped inside.

Deceit has to hold his hands over his mouth as he walks through the second door and into the main room, a room he could not forget. In the centre of the room the fireplace has gone out, the wooden logs cold and charred. There are four chairs surrounding the extinguished fireplace. Three of them look like they have not been used in months, but one is still stained with his blood. The two shades of red are almost indistinguishable, but looking close enough, Deceit can clearly see his own vital fluid seeped into the very fabric of the chair. Deceit clenches his teeth in tension, feeling a vision near the surface of his subconscious.

He can remember being shoved against the chair, the feeling of his gooey wounds stick to the fabric hungrily. He feels phantom pain tingle across his back as he remembers how it felt to peel his skinned back from the chair.

Deceit looks away from the stained chair, tears burning in the corner of his eyes.

He looks down at the hardwood floor, noticing that it is also speckled with blood in various places. He can remember what each speck of blood is from.

Deceit hears mumbling to his right and turns to see a staircase leading down to the cells. He walks down stealthily, careful to not make a single noise. He draws nearer, heart almost flatlining as he notices the door immediately. It’s the cellar door. His cellar door. As he gets closer, he listens to Remus’ conversation. He hides in the shadows of the usually bright hallway. The lights have all gone out, save for one at the center at the hall.

“--introduced myself to them…” Remus says to the door. A strange, raspy voice cackles back at him.

“And…?” Deceit’s eyes widen, the noise in his head going silent as he recognizes the voice. He remembers that voice spitting insults at him, all while beating him into the ground mercilessly. It has an edge of anger hiding underneath his scheming tone, waiting to be released by the smallest thing.

It couldn't be anybody else but Rage.

"They did not believe me. Logan kept talking about some 'White Bear Experiment' bullshit, and I couldn't reveal you. I couldn't make them remember you.” Remus mumbles into the crack of a door, frustration and bitterness creeping its way into his usually creepy voice.

"And what about Deceit? Was he there?" Rage asks, more demanding than asking. Deceit shudders at his own name, afraid of what he might hear. He watches as Remus edges away from the door slightly.

"He was there, Thomas dragged him there. They blamed him for the nightmare." Remus answers sheepishly, seemingly not knowing how Rage will respond. Deceit watches in stale anticipation, waiting for Rage to start screaming.

"Did you confront Deceit as I asked you to?" Rage interrogates, his voice growing in volume.

 "Yes, I did."  Remus responds.

 "How did he seem?" Deceit grinds his teeth together painfully, not wanting to hear how Remus will describe the mess he walked in on.

"When I walked into his room, he was on the floor sobbing to himself. He is a pitiful disaster." Remus describes to Rage. Rage immediately bursts into maniacal cackling, pounding his fist against the door. Deceit feels another rush of humiliation has he reluctantly listens in.

"Perfect..." Rage states.

"Simply perfect." Deceit can almost feel him smiling behind the door, imagining the hellish reality that is now Deceit’s life.

"He won't be a threat. I bet you at this moment he's cowering in his bed, crying to himself as he tries to run away from the memories that have been carved into his subconscious." 

'That's where you're wrong.' Deceit thinks to himself, wishing that Rage could hear him. Wishing that Rage knew he was rebelling against them.

'I'm not letting this happen again. This will not be my fault again.'

'They will not remember.'   Deceit's eyes narrow in determination as he leans against the wall, watching Remus step side to side as he stands in front of the cellar door.

"What do we do next?" Remus asks Rage from the other side of the door.

"It's simple. Go to each of them separately, make them remember. Without each other there, they are weak, they will fall easily into your hands. Make them all remember and Thomas will remember. We will be set free, and we will take control from them." Rage describes in a dreamy tone, which seems to excite Remus. 

"Now leave." Says Rage dismissively.

Deceit hears footsteps descending back into the cellar slowly. Remus spins on his heel towards the direction of the exit, which also happens to be the direction of Deceit. 

Adrenaline quickly pumps through his body as he sprints back up the stairs. He tries his best to make no sound, but the clacking on the stairs seems to echo so loudly. Has Remus heard him? Is he chasing close behind? He doesn't want to look. He feels like a child fleeing from a dark basement, nearly falling over himself.

In a flash of dull colour, Deceit is rushing for the door. He leaps for the handle of the door and flings it open roughly, nearly pulling it off the hinges. He slams into the second door, shoving it open and freeing himself into the brilliant blackness of the outside realm.

Deceit stares back at the darkness, disoriented with nerves. He doesn't know where he is or what direction leads to his room. He feels familiarity seep back into his clouded head. Deceit exhales in annoyance at his own stupidity, of course he knows the way. He begins to walk into the darkness, imagining a map inside of his mind.

"I thought I heard somebody..." Remus calls from behind him teasingly. Deceit whips around, glaring at Remus darkly.

"Why do you want to bring them back? Do you even comprehend the hell they put me through?!" Deceit shouts at him, not backing down from this fight. He's not wounded anymore, he will fight back now. He will fight as long as he is physically capable of doing so.

"Doesn't it bother you that they get all of the power over Thomas? I can't even put naked men in dreams! What's the point of dreaming without naked men?" Remus explains to him. Deceit's eyes narrow in suspicion. He's lying, of course he's lying. 

"I'm not buying that bullshit. What's the real reason? What did they promise you?" Deceit demands of him, stepping closer in a threatening stance. Remus' expression changes to a darker, more serious one.

Remus keeps his mouth shut, eyes sparkling with intrigue.

"Fine, you don't want to talk? Then just listen..." Deceit hisses, leaning closer to the dark side.

"I will not let you bring them back. Understand? I will be one step ahead of everything you do." Deceit threatens him, eyes going dark with wrath. He means every single word. He cannot relive all of that terrible, terrible pain. He'd sooner end his own life.

Deceit turns on his heel and begins walking back into the dark halls. He hears metal scratching against pavement from behind him. Deceit turns back around, hairs standing erect on his neck. 

"Oh, Dee! May I call you Dee?" Remus calls after him, letting out a low laugh as Deceit's gaze settles back onto him. Remus is now holding a lead pipe, smiling mischievously at him. 

"You want to stop me? Want to stop us? Well then, come to me." Remus demands, pointing the lead pipe at him.

Deceit notices lines of maroon stains on the rusted pipe. No, no this isn't any pipe. This is his pipe. The pipe that broke into his rib cage like it was made of paper mache. His hands crumple into shaking balls at his sides, torment dancing in his eyes.

"Who the hell are you?" Deceit chokes out, barely noticing that his eyes began to water out of fear.

"Your worst nightmare..." Remus states, voice dripping with arrogance and false-confidence. Something's not right with him. Well, other than the smell and seemingly twisted mind. That didn't sound like him talking.

Before Deceit knows it, Remus is advancing towards him, lead pipe hanging at his side.

Deceit just barely throws his arms in front of his face as the pipe is swung towards him. It strikes against his forearms, a sick vibration shaking up the entirety of his upper body. He clenches his jaw tightly in response to the pain, a scream dying in his throat. 

If Remus wants to hurt him, he's gonna have to try harder than that.

Deceit ducks beneath another strike, shoving a foot into Remus's chest and kicking him back. He stumbles backwards, a sick grin twitching at his lips. His yellow eyes flash with amusement. Remus raises the lead pipe and lunges for him once again. Deceit jumps out of the way, heart leaping into his throat as it hits the very corner of his capelet. He's not quick enough to dodge one that slams right into his side.

Deceit screams out, agony blossoming from the one spot. He swears he hears a crack.

Deceit shakes his head. No, it doesn't hurt enough to be broken. This isn't like before. He looks back up but doesn't see Remus. Lust stands in his place, golden-yellow eyes staring at him pervertedly.

No, it's not Lust. Lust is locked away, Lust is gone. Deceit urges to himself, hands wrapped around his side as a vision threatens to unfold. He feels the heaviness of iron shackles around his wrists once again. He sees the world around him darken like he's back in that dungeon.

No! You're in danger! You can't do this now!! Deceit begs his mind, feeling himself going numb as a vision develops. If he doesn't do something, the vision will devour him completely.

Primal instincts force him out of the half-trance state as the lead pipe swings towards his other side. Deceit quickly catches the pipe before it smashes into his ribs once again.

Remus' eyes widen in astonishment as Deceit rips the pipe out of his hands and throws it to the side.

Before Remus can do anything, Deceit throws his fist right into his abdomen. Remus doubles over with a grunt of surprised pain, looking up at him with a wrath-filled expression.

Remus lunges at him, grabbing him by the arms and throws him back into the wall. Deceit feels Remus push him against the wall, something that Deceit remembers very well. He quickly headbutts him and spins them around so that Remus is now against the wall, nose bleeding from the hard impact. Remus slams a foot into his stomach and throws him back onto the ground. Winded on the ground, Deceit tries to get up, but Remus slams a foot down onto his abdomen. He wheezes, tears flaring in his eyes as Remus crawls on top of him, holding his wrists down onto the pavement. Remus backhands him hard before repeatedly striking his face.

Fresh pain broils across his face as noises of static begin to swarm his head. His vision flashes every time a strike comes. Remus continues until Deceit begins coughing up blood. He feels it drip down from the corner of his lips.

Remus' grip loosens on him, noticing that Deceit no longer seems to be a threat. Deceit can see that he had done some damage on Remus, his lip being extremely swollen and nose bleeding. But, it's not enough. Really, will it ever be enough? Deceit isn't done with him yet.

"You put up a fight, I'll give you tha--" Remus' mocking turns to guttural screaming immediately as Deceit bites down hard on his forearm, his sore jaw aching in protest from the intense pressure. The taste of blood greets his tongue, and this time it is not his own.

Remus rips his arm away from Deceit, staring at the bite wound. The teeth marks have torn deep into his flesh, blood now dripping from the injury. Deceit takes the opportunity to thrust his foot hard into Remus' crotch.

Remus screams even louder and rolls off of Deceit, laying on the ground beside him. Deceit slowly gets onto his feet, spitting blood to the side as it collects inside his mouth warmly. He stares down at Remus with no pity, watching him roll on the ground in anguish. Dull anger flares in his chest as he looks down on the dark side, blood running bitterly cold within his veins. Deceit kicks him hard in the stomach repeatedly until Remus no longer makes any noise.

Deceit stands above him, an unbearable emptiness opening like a chasm in his chest. He realizes that he's beginning to act like Lust, causing pain without remorse. How long until Deceit starts torturing people on his own? 

He shakes his head, clearing the thought. Deceit will never, ever become Lust. 

Deceit stumbles backwards, giving Remus one last look of hatred before turning around, limping towards his room once again while gripping his side tightly.

Chapter Text

Remus' POV

Remus lies on the ground, watching Deceit walk down the hallway and away from him. He finally gets his breath back after the beating, letting out a raspy laugh as Deceit disappears around the corner.

'Tougher than he looks-' Remus thinks to himself, feeling the bite-mark on his wrist sting as the air meets it.

Remus sits up, a laugh crawling its way from his tight throat. He had not seen that coming. He thought it would’ve been so much easier to take out Deceit, but he’s got some fight in him. It doesn’t really change anything, he still needs to incapacitate him so he can go for the light sides. Looks like Remus will have to use his new trick that the dark sides showed him. He only didn’t use it before because Deceit seemed like a pushover, but he should’ve known that he would be on edge and ready to fight back.

Remus takes a couple of minutes to get onto his feet, leaning against the wall to get his breath. He should start moving, the dark sides won’t like that he is taking so long. Especially Lust.

He hasn’t spoken to Lust, only Rage. Rage told him that Lust was too busy brainstorming ideas for Deceit, or something along those lines. Remus is a little scared of Lust, he won’t lie about that.

Remus pushes himself off of the wall and begins walking the direction that Deceit had taken. 

It’s finally time to release the repressed memories.

Deceit’s POV 

Deceit shuts the door behind himself and pulls the lock over it. 

Hopefully, Remus has learned his lesson, but Deceit gets the feeling that he’s not the one in control of all of this. Remus is merely a pawn, isn’t he? At least for now, Remus will leave them alone. He’s bought them a couple of days at best.

Deceit collapses onto his bed, exhausted by the fight with Remus. He brings a hand up to his bottom lip, feeling a hot and swollen cut. His side is stiff and sore so he lays on his back, staring up at the ceiling blankly. He should just close his eyes and try to rest, but he can’t bring himself to do it. He is terrified of the nightmares and how real they feel every night. It’s better for him to just lay there, keeping himself awake until he is unable to.

Deceit’s eyelids drop slightly. He pulls them open, adrenaline shocking his limbs like he was falling. 

He lays there for a while longer, finally succumbing to a sweet slumber.

“There we are...” A voice says under its breath. Deceit squirms slightly, feeling someone loom over him. Half-asleep, Deceit’s eyes flicker open. He sees Remus at the side of his bed, smiling. 

Finally realizing the severity of the situation, Deceit tries to push himself up but realizes he can’t move his arms. He looks to the side in a panic and sees that his wrists are chained to his bedposts. 

“What the hell?” Deceit exclaims in confused terror, eyes flicking back to Remus.

“Sorry, Dee. Had to make sure you wouldn’t try to stop me again.” Remus apologizes teasingly, crossing one leg over the other carelessly. 

“What are you talking about?” Deceit demands, twisting his wrists around in their chains. A lukewarm feeling of familiarity greets him. 

“Well, I think it’s time that the light sides start remembering some things they may have forgotten, don’t you think?” Remus whispers to him with a knowing grin. Deceit pulls at his restraints roughly, legs kicking out helplessly as he tries to raise himself up a little higher.

“No! No- you can’t!” Deceit stammers, the chains cutting into the scars on his wrists as his entire body weight is forced into them. 

“It doesn’t seem like you can stop me.” Remus mocks him. Deceit swallows hard, limbs shaking as he tries to calm his voice. 

“You won’t be able t-to. They won’t listen to you now.” Deceit claims more to himself than to Remus. Surely the light sides won’t believe him?

“No, they won’t. That’s why I am going to show them.” Deceit feels his skin drain of colour completely, mouth dry with fear. 

“I’ve got a new trick, and you are the perfect guinea pig.” Remus leans closer to him, eyes flashing with insanity. 

Deceit struggles to get away from him, but it’s no use. Remus lays his hands onto Deceit’s shaking chest. 

“Ready?” Remus snickers under his breath, closing his eyes in focus. Deceit lays there silently, watching Remus carefully. 

His body begins to relax as the adrenaline leaks out slowly. For just a moment, Deceit thinks he might be alright. Remus is just crazy, right? Whatever he's trying to do isn't working. 

'Everything is fine. Everything is under control.' Deceit lies to himself, struggling to control his shakey breathing.

Deceit suddenly feels himself pulled under into a dreamlike stance.

Deceit is on his knees, shaking palms turned up as he stares at the ground beneath him.

"Wha-what?" He mutters, looking up to see he is back in that dark hallway from his dreams. He sucks in a startled breath, starting to scramble to his feet as he searches for Lust's face in the shadows.

Deceit feels himself drop, the floor beneath him melting away to reveal a seemingly bottomless pit. He screams out in terror, butterflies eating away at his insides as he plummets further down.

He lands and the wind is blown from his chest, back colliding harshly with the hard ground. His mouth is open in a soundless scream, his arms wrapped around his torso as shooting pain makes its way up to his spine and down his arms. He feels a sudden weight come down harshly onto his chest and looks up to see Lust standing over him, a boot pressed down onto his body.

"Why hello there, darling..."

Remus' POV

Remus watches as Deceit's eyes move underneath his eyelids. It worked. He unleashed a full nightmare of Deceit's trauma within his mind. Remus doesn't know how he did it, but he did. With Deceit out of the way, he can go to the light sides and uncover some of their intrusive thoughts.

'Let's get started, shall we?' Remus thinks to himself, grinning in anticipation as he walks away from the quivering body of Deceit.

Remus decides to start off with Logan, just out of spite after being completely shut down by the logical side. He giggles quietly as he grabs the handle of Logan's door. It was surprisingly easy for Remus to get inside their palace in Thomas' mind, probably due to the fact he is the embodiment of intrusive thoughts.

He turns the handle slowly, not wanting to wake the unconscious side inside. The door swings open, making close to no noise. Remus admires the office-like room for just a moment, feeling it was bland and not spicy enough. He spots a bed to the side of the room. He sees the fall and rise of the covers on the small bed, deducting that Logan was underneath them. 

'Perfect.' Remus thinks, tiptoeing into the room quietly. He stands over Logan, watching him sleep with playful eyes.

'If only you were single...' Remus jokes to himself in his own head, unable to stop a mocking grin from reaching his lips. Remus lays his hands onto Logan, his uncut fingernails a stark contrast to the clean, white covers.

He does exactly what he had done to Deceit, crawls deep into Logan's mind and drags those repressed memories to light. It doesn't take long before Logan's face is twitching with horror, fingers clenched into balls.

Logan's POV

It's subtle, a faint memory of a past life. He's conscious, or half-conscious at least. Logan can't open his eyes, but he's aware that he's trying to. His world is black, covered by the fogginess of repression.

Suddenly, it flashes into life. The darkness moulds and twists to take the form of faces he doesn't recognize. It's a side, that much is easy to tell. Those yellow eyes are not ones he recognizes.

Yellow.

Yellow eyes. The eyes of a monster. The eyes of Lust.

Logan's heartbeat races, remembering the feeling of blunt beatings that dragged on for far too long. He hears a whimper. His whimper.

A sound pierces his eardrums, ripping through his head like a jagged saw blade. Logan sees a flash of white, and then a body on the ground. He realizes that the sound was a gunshot, and when he looks down, he sees a smoking gun in his hands. Logan tries to scream, but he can't. The body stirs before going still.

Did he kill Pride? 

Pride. The name hits him like a blow to the stomach. He remembers Pride, how could he forget murdering a side? It was defence. He was defending Patton. He would've done anything to ensure Patton was safe.

Patton. The name of the moral side floats across his mind sweetly, like the soft breeze that carries the salt from the sea. His heart bloats in his chest, warm and defying as it reaches out, begs him to go to Patton.

Logan shuts it down, confused and afraid. He is scared, utterly alone as he tries to make sense of these forgotten memories. Forgotten people. Forgotten love-

He clenches his eyes hard, refusing to believe it. He doesn't feel that way about anything, it's not possible.

But he remembers a kiss, delicate yet tender. He recalls promising Patton that he would still remember after the smoke cleared.

No, this is wrong! He forgot, how on earth did he forget?! He needs to be with Patton!

The visions change again, back to the darkness of a dungeon long forgotten. He sees Lust and Rage, eyeing him hungrily. He holds his breath as they draw near, the intention of pummeling him written across their grinning faces.

Deceit's POV

He can't bring himself to scream, stricken into complete silence by the appearance of Lust. Lust pulls out a drill that he was hiding behind his back, grinning madly as he stares down at his soon to be bleeding victim.

"Where were we?" Lust begins to lower, one hand pressing down onto Deceit's chest to keep him down. Deceit begins to fight back, screaming but making no sound as his hands grab helplessly at Lust's shirt as he tries to push him back.

"No-no don't-" Deceit pleads lowly, body tingling with adrenaline that flutters so helplessly in his veins.

"Stop moving." Lust sneers at him, his teeth bared in an animal-like fashion. Deceit feels his limbs drop emptily to his sides, sobs already welling inside his throat. Tears roll down his cheeks, lips quivering as he tries to not make any noise. He doesn't know why, but he hopes staying silent will make it stop. He knows it won't, not until he's a bleeding, screaming, crying mess of a man.

Lust painstakingly slowly brings the lifeless drill down. Deceit feels the cold tip meet his bare torso, digging into one specific rib.

Deceit squeezes his eyes shut, waiting for the agony to begin. This is going to hurt like hell.

Without warning or hesitation the drill springs to life, the sharp metal rip easily penetrating through his flesh.

An inhuman, bloodcurdling scream shreds it’s way out of Deceit. He feels agonizing vibration as the metal head reaches its destination, his rib. 

Lust clamps a hand across his mouth, cutting the unending shriek short. Deceit squirms pathetically, his body begging him for the relief of this terrible pain. The head of the drill can’t seem to get through the tough layers of bone. 

Lust laughs sadistically, readjusting his weight even harder down onto the hand drill. That was all the encouragement it needed.

The drill begins to chip away at his insides, slowly carving a hole in his rib.

Remus’ POV

Remus decides to go to Patton next. It’s incredibly easy to squirm into Patton’s room, which is colourful and childish. He lies asleep in a big, fuzzy bed surrounded by stuffed animals of a variety of sizes. Photographs of fond memories are plastered on his walls like awards. Predominantly, they are of him and Logan.

He does what he had done to Logan, simply lays his hands onto Patton and forces his way into his thoughts.

Patton’s POV

He’s dreaming of all of Thomas’ sides. They sit around him, all smiling sweetly as they watch movies together. Logan sits next to him, which makes his heart giddy with unrequited love. Even Virgil looks happy in this dream, smiling as he discusses conspiracies with Thomas. Roman, Logan, and himself are all discussing animals they find cute (or fascinating in the case of Logan). 

Suddenly they all stop talking. The room falls into an eerie silence, the conversations from seconds ago already fading into obscurity. All of them are looking directly behind Patton. He swallows hard, fear creeping into him as he slowly turns his head.

In the darkness is the silhouette of a man. The only thing visible is his eyes, which glow with a yellow hue. They are golden, sparkling with the intent to hurt. As if on cue, another set of eyes appears beside the first. They are deep maroon, bloodshot with wrath that Patton cannot seem to comprehend. 

One last figure appears beside them. He is slouched over in pain, leaning against the wall. Only one eye of his stares back. One yellow, slit eye illuminates in the dark. Patton recognizes it immediately.

It’s Deceit of course. But something is different about him. His eye is glazed with pain and dread.

Patton looks back to his friends for comfort, terrified of the dark figures.

His friends are no longer there. They stand at the other end of the room, staring at him in disgust.

He cannot call out to them, no sound comes out. Patton tries to approach the group, but Roman steps in front of them all protectively. He notices they are staring at his hands.

Patton looks down to see that he is holding a black whip that is coated in blood. He shrieks silently and tries to drop it, but his fingers refuse to let go.

He looks back at Deceit, searching for answers. He can finally see the sides now, they’ve stepped out of the shadows. Patton sucks in a breath, finally deciphering that it is Lust and Rage. But, Patton was supposed to forget them, wasn’t he? It’s still quite foggy, but he remembers being afraid of both of them.

His eyes meet Deceit once again as the devious side drops to his knees, and then onto his stomach. His now-visible back is laced with fresh wounds. Wounds from a whip. 

Patton looks back down at the whip, and up at Deceit in disbelief. He couldn’t have done this! He would never hurt anyone! No, this isn’t true, he never did this. This never happened, this is some trick.

It all comes back. Patton remembers that he sacrificed Deceit to the will of Lust and Rage in order to save Roman. Lust grins back at him as Patton stumbles backwards in total denial.

Lust grins, taking a step towards him. Patton turns and runs in the direction of Logan, searching for safety from him.  

Logan is kneeling weakly, face painted with bruises and blood. Patton shrieks, dropping onto his knees and taking Logan into his arms. 

'I love you.' Logan mouths to him, face convulsed in pain.

Logan loves him. He forgot that they had been in love. He had kissed Logan before they left. 

Patton has to get back to Logan.

Lust immediately appears right behind Logan, a hand on his quaking shoulder.

Patton screams, trying to reach for Logan to save him. Lust is going to hurt him.

He hears the rattle of chains and feels his own wrists pulled back. Patton looks to his wrists to see he is shackled to the ground. He tries repeatedly, but he simply cannot move. 

Logan’s eyes call out for help as Lust cackles behind his head.

Patton watches helplessly as Logan is beaten before him.

Remus' POV

Next is Virgil. It is a little harder to get into his room, mostly due to the fact that he is so shut in on himself. But no matter, Remus still gets in. The room is dark, hues of purple and black lining the furniture. It's covered in silky fake spiderwebs that have a ghastly colour in the dark. He spots Virgil curled up on an old couch, a thin blanket draped over himself. 

Remus tiptoes over to him, knowing he will most likely be more aware than the others. He gets close enough and sees Virgil's restful face in the limited light. His eyeshadow is a little smudged in some areas, probably from rolling over.

Remus lays his hands on Virgil's arm, smirking to himself as he focuses hard onto his mind.

Virgil's POV

Virgil looks around as bright white invades his senses. He squints, not accustomed to this amount of light. The walls around him look almost like white couch cushions. No, not cozy or warm, but suffocating and noise-cancelling. It's a padded room, one you might find in an asylum.

Virgil tries to stand up, only to shriek before being dragged back down onto his knees. He looks down at his shin to see it completely twisted and bleeding. A stifled cry of shock escapes his chapped lips as he stares wide-eyed at the horrific injury.

He doesn't know what is happening, but he hears footsteps approaching from outside his room. He stares at the heavy steel door, waiting for someone to come through. It's very difficult to quiet the noises of total agony that fight to be heard from deep within his chest.

It opens slowly, revealing... someone? He walks towards Virgil, pulling out a syringe from behind his back as his deep red eyes flash playfully. Virgil tries his best to inch away, but his shin is so badly shattered that every single movement makes his vision pulse brightly with the threat of losing consciousness.

He's not going anywhere. Virgil looks back up at his advancing attacker and pleads for him to stop, but the words carry no sound. They merely float through the air silently. The side cackles, tilting his head to one side.

Virgil feels a primal instinct kick into full gear. He rolls onto his stomach and begins to crawl away from him, shrieking every time he has to pull his lower body along. It's no use, Virgil knows that Rage will still catch up to h---

Rage. That's his name. Rage was the one who...trapped him inside a cell and injected him with hallucinogens until it drove him insane. But he forgot? How?

No, it was the plan. They locked Rage and Lust down in the cellar and repressed the memories. They shouldn't remember, why does he remember!?

Is he the only one? Is he alone?

His thought process is cut when Rage crawls ontop of Virgil, pinning him stomach-first onto the ground. He cries and pleads, hands pounding against the floor as his black eyeshadow runs down his face along with tears.

Virgil feels the prick of a needle entering his neck. His head immediately goes foggy, the sound of Rage's laughter growing more distant and fuzzy.

Please--not again-- Is the only coherent thought Virgil has before succumbing to the hallucinations.

Deceit's POV

The drill shakes his insides as it powers through him. He moans and groans out of pure agony against Lust's hand, which refuses to leave his mouth. The noise of the drill stops abruptly. Deceit feels the metal piece ripped from his side, forcing a whimper from him. Blazing torment burns into the bloody hole and settles deep within the bottom of his stomach. He cries out in unendurable pain, feeling Lust wipe one tear free from his cheek. 

Without any warning, Lust backhands him hard. Deceit sees spots of bright colour explode in the very corner of his eyes as the impact meets him. He stares up at Lust dazed, in pain and confused.

"Wake up." Lust demands him, baring his teeth. Deceit has tried. Through the immeasurable amount of time being tortured, Deceit has tried so hard to wake himself up, but it never works. He tries to squeeze his eyes shut and open them again, only to open them to the face of Lust.

"I said..." Lust jabs a finger into the freshly opened circular wound from the drill. Deceit howls against the palm of Lust's hand, arching his back in a hopeless attempt to fight back. He feels Lust's finger scrapping against the insides of the raw, bleeding injury.

"Wake up!" 

Deceit's eyes fly open as his consciousness returns. His breathing comes in heaves, heart racing from the moments before. He's back, but Remus is gone. He must've left to make the light sides remember.

Deceit doesn't have much time.

He pulls at his chains feebly, hearing the metal scratch together. If he even manages to get out, where will he go? He won't be able to get inside the light sides palace as Remus can, well not in the amount of time he has left. He looks over to the black analog clock to his right and deduces he was in that dream state for about half an hour. A lot can go wrong in half an hour.

Deceit needs to go back to the source. He has to go back to that cellar and make sure they don't come out. 

But first, he has to get out of his restraints. Deceit looks around, neck straining as his eyes scan the floor and cabinets for anything; a bobby pin, a knife, anything at all. Deceit's eyes find a small silver key that is several paces away from his bed. Remus must have dropped it. 

He will need at least one hand free if he is going to reach it. Deceit takes a deep breath, knowing what he must do. He has to dislocate his thumb and slip through. He winces at the thought of hearing it pop out of place, but he sets his mind on it. He would rather endure one self-inflicted dislocation than hundreds of broken bones at the hands of Lust.

Deceit holds a breath in as he fidgets slightly with his hand, pulling his thumb in such a way that bends dramatically, almost lying flat on his palm. He then pulls on the cuff so that it slides up to the very point that is too wide to let him slip through, the beginning of his thumb.

Deceit sucks in a breath, knowing full well this is going to hurt like hell. It's worth it in the long run. To ensure Lust and Rage never escape, he would do anything.

Before he gets the chance to talk himself out of it, Deceit tugs downward hard on the handcuff, bending his thumb as the metal meets the knuckle. The final nail in the coffin is a swift twist of his wrist, which gets his thumb caught into a dangerous position and pulls it too far, popping the joint out of place by tearing through ligaments and tissue.

Deceit lets out a long shriek, vision going fuzzy as he hears the crack of his joint being twisted out of its socket. Torment shoots it's way down his forearm, hand and arm shaking with agony. Tears begin rolling down his pale face as Deceit pulls harder on his restraint, feeling his thumb being squeezed underneath the metal. It crackles and pops before finally freeing itself, releasing one hand from the shackles.

Deceit looks down at his hand, immediately sickened by the disfigured form that has taken his thumb. A protrusion pushes against the skin, a sick blue and purple colour as it bleeds underneath. He forces himself to look away, moaning quietly between his clenched lips as he tries to stop the noise. He blinks repeatedly, trying to force the tears away. He almost can't find the willpower to start getting up for that key, but he forces himself to. He can't endure Lust, not again.

Deceit flips his legs over the side, one hand still chained to the bedpost. He sees the key sparkle on the ground and gets off the bed. He takes a step and cannot go any further, the chain isn't long enough. A whimper of desperation releases from his clenched teeth as he edges towards it, wrist panging with pain as he pulls too far away.

His foot barely manages to graze it, pulling it closer. Hope swells in his chest as he edges it closer and closer until it is directly beneath him. He slowly lowers, feeling his own heartbeat in his wrist as he gets onto one knee. His shaking, injured hand gently picks up the small silver key. Deceit stands back up, shaking as he forces the key inside the lock roughly. He tries to turn it, but his thumb pounds with torture whenever he puts pressure on it. He bites down on the inside of his cheek and forces his thumb to move, twisting the key all the way. Hastily, Deceit pulls and twists his wrist out of the remaining restraint, freeing himself.

He starts toward the door, cradling his hand as he makes his way back to the cellar.

Remus' POV

Roman is the last one. After this, Thomas will remember everything. Lust and Rage will return, and they will give him what he wants. Honestly, Remus doesn't really know why he's doing it, but he feels an urge to oblige. It's strange but comforting. It feels like fate.

Remus enters his brother's room, noticing immediately the fairytale castle theme he was going for. It's typical and frankly very predictable, but Roman always is. Remus doesn't bother sneaking, he knows Roman is too heavy a sleeper to hear him. 

Remus places his hands around his brother's wrist, grinning at his restful guise in the dark as he forces the repressed memories out.

Roman's POV

He is in the middle of a sweet fairytale adventure when Roman's dream turns sour. The white horse he was riding on his gone, along with the rich atmosphere of bright lime-green trees and huge crumbling castles. He is left in a fairly empty room with no windows, only one door with a huge padlock. He looks around in confusion, feeling he was sitting on the ground. Roman tries to stand up, but he just can't, almost like he is frozen in place.

He hears a strange whisper-like sound to his right faintly and leans in.

"Wo--le-"The voice chitters quietly, so quietly that Roman only makes out a couple of sounds. 

"Wor-th--ss-"Roman's eyebrows furrow in frustration and suspicion. What is it trying to tell him? Worths? 

"Wor-th-l-e-sss---"His heart drops as he deciphers the word 'worthless' from the voice. What is worthless? What is it talking about?

Suddenly, Roman is no longer sitting up, he is on all four. His face is wet with tears, though he does not know why he was crying.

"What are you?" A familiar voice demands. He feels a faint stinging run across his back in lines, hearing footsteps circle him. Roman is suddenly very aware that he has no shirt on, feeling vulnerable.

"Worthless." Another voice returns the answer. It's strange, it has a hiss of Roman's own voice.

"Good." The harsh one praises, walking in front of Roman. He looks up, seeing Rage fully. 

Roman stares at him, mouth agape as he watches Rage flick the whip around playfully. He gets the sudden urge to look away, but he can't. He is in a trance, staring at the side he should not remember.

"How important are you to Thomas' wellbeing?" Rage demands him with a mocking smile. 

"Not a-at all..." A voice responds in obedience. Roman stiffens, his eyes widening at the sudden realization.

That's his voice.

It all comes back. Rage used to condition him in this way, forcing Roman to degrade himself or be whipped mercilessly. Rage's smile widens, noticing the shift in the atmosphere.

"You remember..." He hisses with a sneer.

Roman is frozen in place as Rage draws closer, whip raised in his hands and preparing for a devastating slash.

Deceit's POV

Deceit basically slams into the warped door of his old childhood home, forcing it open. He's rushing, forcing his legs to move as quickly as they can. He pushes the next one open as well. 

Deceit has no time to stop and catch his breath. He needs to get down there before it is too late.

'Hurry.' He urges himself, dislocated thumb still pressed into his chest in an attempt to get the pain to stop. He can worry about fixing it later. Right now, he can only afford to focus on one objective; stop the dark sides from coming back.

 He quickly makes his way down the stone steps and into the corridor lined with cells.

'Come on, come on...' His legs are numb with adrenaline as each step brings Deceit closer. He turns into the doorway of the cellar.

Deceit inhales sharply, his eyes meeting the open door of the cellar.

"Oh no, no, no---" Deceit repeats like a prayer, stepping back from the open prison where they had locked Lust and Rage.

Deceit bumps back into someone and spins around quickly.

Yellow eyes stare back at him, sparkling with sadistic intent.

"Why hello there, darling..."

Chapter Text

Deceit's POV

Deceit stares at Lust, jaw hanging open as he still tries desperately to make sense of the situation. This can't possibly be real. He waits for himself to wake up and realize it was all just one of those torturing dreams, but it doesn't happen. It doesn't matter how many times he tells himself it isn't real, it won't change the fact that he's most definitely awake.

Lust wordlessly begins to advance towards him, a huge grin of pleasure spread across his face. He's just itching to get his hands on Deceit after all this time, isn't he?

Deceit slowly steps backwards, stricken into silence by the sudden turn of events. What the hell is he even supposed to do? Run away? Fight back? Yeah, like he could take on Lust. He may not be injured or crippled any longer, well save for his thumb, but that doesn't mean he is in any shape to be fighting anyone. His best option is to run, but how far can he make it? Where does he even go?

The answer is simple; anywhere but here.

Deceit darts to the left before Lust can grab at him. He sprints as fast as he can, vision tunnelling on the staircase up to the main floor. Deceit skids to a stop as he spots Rage standing in front of the stairs, arms crossed threateningly.

"Where exactly do you think you're going, hmm?" He spits at him with a mocking sneer. Deceit's heart thumps faster and faster as he looks around, trying to figure out another route. His eyes begin to water helplessly when he sees no exit but the one that Rage is blocking. He spins around, seeing Lust just inches away from his face. He tries to jump back, but Lust is too fast. He grabs Deceit by the wrists and rams him back into a wall.

"No, no! Let me- go!" Deceit yells at Lust, squirming in his hold desperately. Lust leans into the spot between Deceit's neck and shoulder, and takes a deep breath, seemingly smelling him. Deceit, frozen completely still in horror, feels a warm exhale on his skin as Lust laughs evilly against him.

"I've missed you dearly..." Lust grins at him, eyes twinkling with pleasure and excitement. Deceit doesn't want to even think about what he has planned. He most likely spent 4 months simply scheming about torture methods and ways of humiliation. Rage appears beside Lust, dark eyes cast at Deceit with a look of disgust.

"You've missed him? Hah! You're obsessed with him." Rage teases Lust, jabbing an elbow into him. Deceit visibly flinches, keeping his eyes trained on Lust cautiously. His heartbeat refuses to slow down, his skin crawling with pure terror. He doesn't realize he's holding his breath until his chest burns with the desire for oxygen. He has to do something. Maybe spending four months in the cellar changed them? Maybe Deceit can extort a weakness? Only one way to find out... he just hopes it won't anger them.

"Lust---" Deceit begins to say, but he doesn't get the chance to plead his case. Lust immediately hushes him, drawing his face closer to Deceit's own. Deceit turns his head away, but Lust pulls it back roughly, causing him to whimper out of instinct.

"Oh yes, this is going to be very fun, I can already tell." Lust purrs at him, chuckling as he feels Deceit pull against him. Lust leans closer into Deceit's ear.

"I'm going to break you." Lust whispers into his ear. That's really all Deceit needed to hear before he begins to fight harder. He cries out for help repeatedly, hoping someone might hear. There is no response, only the conjoined laughter of Lust and Rage.

He feels so alone, so utterly alone. He can't do this all again. He just can't handle any more torture.

'Just don't think about it.' He urges himself, fighting up the courage to break free again. He knows that he can probably wiggle out and make a run for it, but this is not just someone, this is Lust. He has been haunted constantly by this side.  

Their laughing taunts him insistently, swelling murderous wrath in his chest like fire. This is his last chance to fight free, knowing that Lust is going to hurt him so badly he won't be able to even walk, let alone escape.

He has one shot at this, so he better make it count.

Deceit brings up a foot and slams it hard into Lust's abdomen, causing only an amused grunt to come from Lust.

"He's got some fight in him, doesn't he?" Lust mocks him, smiling madly at his attempt at escape. 

"Help---" Deceit begins to scream out again, but it gets cut short when Lust slaps a hand against his mouth. He uses his free hand to pin both Deceit's wrists above his head.

"It's no use darling, no one can hear you..." Lust whispers to him. Deceit shudders with anger and blind fear, screams for help dying in his throat. He's not done yet, Lust isn't taking him without a fight.

He goes still, faking submission into his eyes and face. Lust notices this act of yielding and loosens his grip.

"Good boy..." Lust purrs, fingers loosening around his mouth, but still planted there. If Deceit can't fight back with his arms and hands, then he'll use something else.

Deceit pries his mouth open quickly and clamps Lust's fingers with his teeth, biting down as hard as he can. Lust shrieks out of surprise from the sudden sharp pain, pulling his hand away from Deceit's mouth quickly.

"Ohh, you're going to pay for tha--" Lust is cut off immediately when Deceit slams a foot into his stomach once again. Lust's grip is too loose to hold on, so he goes flying backwards into Rage. 

Deceit peels himself off of the wall and sprints for the stairs once more, hearing Lust and Rage swear under their breaths as they regain their surroundings.

"Hey, get back here!!" Rage shouts, breaking into an immediate dash after him. Deceit races for the stairs, hearing the sound of impending doom behind him as the two dark sides make for him.

Deceit springs up the stairs, but miscalculates one step and gets his foot caught on the last stair. He falls face-first onto the main floor, groaning out of pain. His elbows ache from the hard landing, most likely skinned completely from the concrete floor. Deceit disregards this pain and climbs up to his feet again, bursting into a run almost immediately. He throws both doors open, hands pulsing with pain from the rough impact. He flies out of the house and into the dark outside world.

Deceit keeps running, despite his legs begging him to stop. He turns his head to look behind him, seeing both Lust and Rage come out of the door after him.

Suddenly, he slams hard into something in front of him and flips onto the ground, rolling repeatedly as all of the air in his lungs is pushed roughly out of him. Deceit moans, agony pulsing from the back of his head. He brings a shaking hand to a patch on the back of his skull, wincing as his fingers brush against wet hair. He looks at his fingers to see them covered in blood. He squeezes his eyes shut, head spinning and dancing with confusion and pain. He looks to his side as he hears someone swearing under their breath.

Remus is on his knees a few feet from him, looking dazed. Deceit must've slammed into him while not looking where he was running. He immediately remembers why he was running as he hears the laughter of Lust and Rage approaching him. 

Deceit whimpers as he turns himself onto his stomach and begins to lift himself up onto all four. His head pounds with torment, forcing tears into his eyes as he gets onto all four with a heap of effort. He quickly attempts to stand up but feels a strong kick into his side throw him back onto his back. He whines, squinting from pain as he looks up at Lust, the result of his immediate downing.

Lust slams a foot onto his chest, keeping Deceit pressed against the ground. Deceit groans, feeling the gash on the back of his head meet the unforgiving ground once again.

"I almost feel pity for you, love." Lust teases him, staring down at the defenceless side. Deceit is too stunned and in pain to truly realize how dire the situation is, but he knows that he's going to hate himself later for it.

"I can't wait to see you bleed for me." Lust grins at him, scanning his entire, shuddering body with immense pleasure.

"Nicely done, Remus. You stopped our escapee." Rage praises Remus, who remains on the ground, holding a hand to his head.

"Ugh, yeah--right, who are you again?" Remus asks, squinting as he looks up at Rage with a confused, unknowing expression. Rage observes Remus with a look of confusion.

"You.. you don't remember us?" Rage asks for clarification as Remus looks around with a blank face. Deceit squirms slightly underneath Lust's weight, unable to really move or fight back. His body has drained of adrenaline and the will to live, leaving nothing more for him to feed on. He's so goddamn dizzy it makes him think he might be concussed from hitting the ground so hard.

"No, where am I? Who are you all?" Remus questions again, sensing that they were fellow dark sides, but not remembering anything. Deceit finally keys into the conversation, hearing the genuine confusion in Remus' voice.

'What the hell? How can he not remember causing all of this?' Deceit asks himself, hands trying to lift Lust's boot off of him. Remus meets his gaze, face lighting up with recognition.

"Wait- I know you, you're Deceit, right?" Remus asks him, trying to piece together a timeline of events in his head.

"Wait, Lust. Look at his eyes." Rage points to Remus. Deceit looks to his eyes as well, noticing they are a deep brown. But, Deceit swears that he remembers Remus' eyes being yellow. Yellow like Lust's.

"Oh, I see..." Lust mutters under his breath with a smile. Deceit doesn't understand what they have discovered.

"I remember coming to meet you, Deceit. But, I was drawn to this...place... I thought this is where your room was... " Remus winces, trying to focus on the foggy memories of weeks past.

Deceit notices that Rage and Lust are wordlessly sneering at each other at the expense of Remus. What did they do to him?

"But, I saw...you, not Deceit." Remus points at Rage, eyebrows narrowed in perplexity. 

"And then..." Remus looks down once more, trying to pinpoint the next event. His eyes widen as he silently remembers exactly what happened next. Deceit notices his face go pale with fear as he stares back up at Rage.

"Erm.. right. So, I should...be going now." Remus says, flustered by his sudden revelation. He begins to stand up but falls right back down when Rage thrusts a foot into his shin. Remus shrieks, landing on his stomach.

"I don't think you're going anywhere, friend." Rage mocks him, standing over Remus with a sneer.

"I don't understa--" Remus states through clenched teeth, yelping as Rage kicks him hard in the torso.

"We controlled you, sweetie. Don't you remember what you did? You set us free." Lust tells him, giggling under his breath.

Deceit now finally understands what they had done. Lust and Rage must've drawn him into the house and taken control over him. They used him to make the light sides remember. That is why Remus shared such resemblance with Lust, he was being controlled by Lust.

Remus never had any motive, which is what confused Deceit before. It makes so much more sense now, not that it really matters anymore. He should've known, he should've noticed the signs. Either Deceit is completely ignorant or blind, or both.

"You don't have to do thi--" Remus pleads helplessly as Rage kicks him once more, rolling Remus onto his back. He cries out as Rage climbs on top of him, holding him onto the ground by the collar of his black garb.

"We can't have you wandering around causing trouble. You're coming with us." Rage pulls his fist back, readying himself to pummel Remus unconscious.

Deceit first hears Remus call for help before Rage fully descends onto him with all of his might. He squeezes his eyes shut, body trembling with terror as he listens painfully to the shrieks of Remus. It doesn't take long before Remus goes silent, but that doesn't stop Rage. He flinches at each sound of Rage beating a seemingly unconscious Remus.

"There we are..." Rage finally stops, standing up and admiring his handiwork. He stands beside Lust, looking down at Deceit with a malicious sneer.

"What do we do with this one?" He asks Lust. Deceit immediately begins struggling once again, to no avail of course. He is already too beaten down to fight back anymore, body exhausted from the constant terror he endured over the past forty-eight hours. Lust grins down at his pale, sweat-drenched face.

"I've got some ideas..." Lust says, eyeing Deceit as he imagines all the horrible ways he will torture him.

Logan's POV

Logan finally wakes up, chest heaving as he sucks in multiple deep breaths, trying to calm himself.

"Patton..." He says breathlessly, swinging his legs over the side of his bed and forcing himself to stand. Logan doesn't even bother changing out of his pyjamas, which are a cool blue with black sleeves and have a pattern of Bohr-Rutherford diagrams. He throws his door open and sprints down the well-lit hallways, making his way to the dining room.

He finally reaches the dining room, but their long table is empty. Patton should be up by now, shouldn't he? What if he's in danger? Logan spins on his heel, anxiety creeping into his normally-rational brain as he starts towards Patton's room.

"Logan?" Patton calls out from behind him. Logan spins back around, eyes meeting Patton. He is also in his pyjamas, face pale with fear. Heavy bags hang from his eyes. 

"Patton!" Logan exclaims, feeling relief flood him. He rushes to Patton and pulls him into a tight embrace. He feels Patton stiffen under his touch.

A terrifying thought wiggles its way into Logan's mind. What if Patton doesn't remember Lust and Rage as he does? How can he be so sure that the others have also had the same hellish epiphany? Worse yet, what if his strange behaviour forces them to remember? He can't take the risk.

Logan quickly releases Patton, mind rushing with many theories and predictions.

"I'm sorry--I don't know what came over me." Logan lies to Patton, piercing his heart painfully as he watches Patton carefully. Patton's eyes immediately fill with tears as he throws his arms around Logan again.

Logan freezes, not knowing the correct way to handle this. It seems like Patton remembers, but how can he be so sure? 

"Patton, are you alright?" Logan asks him cautiously, rubbing his back in an attempt at comforting him. Patton sobs into his chest, shaking in his arms.

"I ha-had a night-nightmare--" Patton whimpers to him. Logan stiffens at the mention of a nightmare. Patton usually gets one a month, but it never merits this sort of response.

"About what?" Logan asks cautiously. He can feel Patton go still, the only movement he makes being the jerks in his chest as sobs continue to fight against him. Patton quickly releases Logan, wiping his eyes. Logan watches as Patton shows him a forced smile.

"Oh- nothing--just the usual." Patton lies to Logan, drying his eyes with the sleeve of his long-sleeved puppy pyjamas. Logan feels that he may be lying, but he can't trust his own instincts right now. He is paranoid, exhausted, and tormented. how can he be so sure that Patton is lying? They both turn to the noise of footsteps approaching from down the hall.

Roman trudges towards them, eyes heavy with sleep and fear.

"Roman, you- look-- tired-" Patton makes out his words, trying to calm down as to not draw any attention. Roman opens his mouth to say something but clamps it back down.

"No- nothing, I'm fine." Roman says to them before taking his seat at the table. Patton does the same, followed by Logan. He sits there, unsure if he should try to ask them. It isn't worth the risk of them remembering. Lust and Rage cannot come back, that is a fact. He will have to swallow his own fear and trauma in order to protect the others, just like Deceit had done.

Deceit, that's right. He's been living in constant terror for 4 months, ever since the traumatic torture of Lust and Rage. Logan plans to go visit Deceit later today, to ask for tips on how to hide the trauma from the others.

Right now, all Logan can do is pretend to be okay.

Chapter Text

Deceit's POV

Lust grabs him by the collar of his black capelet and pulls him up onto his feet, laughing lowly at his immediate screams of agony and terror.

"St-stop--" Deceit demands harshly under his breath, head burning with hard, concussive pressure.

"No, no, darling. I've been waiting far too long to see you again. I will do with you what I please..." Lust mocks him with a coy sneer, their faces almost touching as he pulls Deceit in closer. Deceit feels hot tears fill his eyes, hoping desperately to himself that Lust won't see. Rage comes back out of the house, shaking his head in disappointment. He had left 10 minutes ago to check how the house looked after all this time.

"Our house is completely ruined. Must've fallen apart when Thomas and his light sides forgot about us." Rage walks up to them, amused eyes meeting Deceit's sheet-white face.

"Oh right, thanks for that. That whole repression in the cellar act was a really great idea." Rage teases him, an underlying threat laced in his seemingly-playful words. Rage places a firm hand on Deceit's quivering shoulder, gripping it hard. Deceit understandably flinches, only causing them to burst into menacing giggles.

It is like it all finally clicks. Deceit feels his heart pounding against his chest, nearly breaking out of his body. Is it too late to break free? To fight? How can this battle already be over? How could he have already lost? 

"We could always go back to my room for a while until we find a better spot..." Lust suggests, noticing the empty look of complete dread pasted onto Deceit's face. Deceit watches Lust admire his helpless features.

"Your room? Pfft, it's an advanced torture chamber, not a room." Rage jokes with Lust. Deceit freezes when he hears those words. 

'Advanced torture chamber?' He thinks to himself.

'How could it be more advanced than the other one?' Deceit feels a shiver run down his back, not able to imagine something more high tech and efficient.

"Come now, I'd love to show it to Deceit..." Lust begs Rage.

"No--! Don't- don't!!" Deceit begs them desperately, hands gripping around Lust's wrists. He yelps suddenly, unclenching one hand due to the shot of agony that goes through his dislocated thumb.

"Alright fine, but only because I'd like to see Deceit suffer more than anything else right now." Rage accepts, intently watching Deceit's expression break into one of bleak terror.

"You don't- have to do this-" Deceit says through clenched teeth, still being held up by Lust. They both laugh at his words as if it was the funniest thing they had ever heard.

"Oh yes, we do. Deceit, do you forget what transpired months ago? You betrayed us, locking us in that damn cellar. You made a very, very drastic mistake." Rage seethes at him, teeth bared aggressively.

Deceit chokes on his sobs, his hands desperately clenched around Lust's wrists.

'This can't be happening. Tell me this isn't real.' Deceit begs to himself. 

"Don't look so down, darling. You wanted us to find you, didn't you?" Lust mocks him.

'I wanted it? I wanted this??' Deceit feels hot anger flood his veins.

"What- the hell are you-you talking about?" Deceit seethes at them both, watching them exchange knowing grins.

"So quick to anger, aren't you? I'll have to fix that..." Lust purrs, disregarding his question and pulling him even closer. Deceit pushes back against Lust, wanting more than anything to just get away from him. 

"Come now, Lust. Lead the way, I think you and Deceit should get reacquainted, don't you?" Rage gives him a sly smirk. Lust pulls Deceit's arm behind his back and wraps an arm around his throat. Deceit wheezes when Lust pulls it tighter, clawing at his arm. His head pounds in sync with his heartbeat.

"Let-- let go of me---!" Deceit orders breathlessly as Lust begins forcing him down the corridor, step by step.

"Sorry, what was that?" Lust stops their advance, teasing Deceit from behind his ear. His eyes tear up, dread and dismay finally settling after all the excitement. He can't go back, he just can't.

"Ple--please don't-- do this--" He croaks, feeling a tear slide down his cheek.

"I want to hear you say my name. Beg me not to hurt you..." Lust demands. Deceit squeezes his eyes shut as he feels Lust's hot breath against the back of his neck. He wishes that somehow he would just drop dead now.

'Just follow his rules, please just do it.' Deceit pleads himself, forcing his own pride down. He's not going to escape again, not like this. He's got no goddamn choice but to follow through until an opportunity arises.

"Please--Lus-Lust-" Deceit stutters, feeling his face go hot with shame. Lust tuts his tongue, shaking his head in disappointment.

"Ah, ah, ah! You can do better than that, I know you can... I've heard it... Try again." Lust orders him with one of his signature sick smiles. Deceit feels his arm tugged harshly behind his back, making him suck in air through his teeth to stop from screaming out.

"Oka-okay, -just give me-- a minute--" Deceit asks through short gasps of breath, trying to calm the pressure in his head and arm. Lust snorts in amusement.

"Stalling won't save you, love. Beg, now." Lust commands him, readjusting his hold on Deceit so that their bodies are touching. The sound of Deceit's heartbeat swirls and pounds inside his skull. He bites down on his temper, trying to force the words out. His mouth doesn't want to respond, simply clamping shut in denial that any of this was happening.

"Hey, what part of that did you not understand?!" Lust shouts at him, twisting his arm harshly. Deceit yelps out in pain.

"Beg NOW!" Lust yells to his quivering prisoner. Deceit finally reaches his limit, unable to take anymore yelling or humiliation.

"Alright-- al-alright." Deceit states, squeezing his eyes shut as yet another tear slides down his face. He feels Lust's presence behind his head, waiting in anticipation.

"Please--please L-Lust, don't- - hurt- me--" Deceit stutters terribly, voice shaking with effort and strain. If he wasn't so paranoid at the moment, he would hate himself for giving in so easily. Just a few days ago he was fine. Tortured by his past, but still fine. It only took about 2 hours for his entire mind and body to break down once again to the will of Lust and Rage. 

"Oh yes, this will do just fine..." Lust coos with a threatening chuckle. Deceit lets out a strained exhale, voice quivering. Maybe that will satisfy Lust for the time being? God, he hopes so. He doesn't know if he can handle much more right now.

"Are you done with your toy yet? We should get moving." Rage teases him. Deceit sees that Rage has lifted Remus to carry him over his shoulder. 

"We should. I am so eager to see how Deceit will like what I have planned." Lust mocks him once again, making Deceit's skin crawl with panic and dread.

Rage leads the way, Remus hanging limply over his shoulder as he is carried away.

"Come along, love." Lust whispers into his ear, laughing when Deceit whimpers and jerks his head away.

The four continue down the dark hallway, the shadows holding only what Deceit assumes to be the unknown.

Deceit tries desperately to escape from Lust's grip to no avail. Every wiggle, every movement causes Lust to scold him and twist his arm tightly behind his back. 

He finally sees the outline in the darkness of what looks to be a vault-like door embedded into the dark velvet-like shadows.

It's a huge, steel door. What looks to be face and hand scanners are placed beside it, seemingly to unlock it. Deceit stares wide-eyed at the door, wondering what horrors may lie beyond it. He doesn't want to find out. 

"Unlock the door, Lust. Don't want to keep your pet waiting..." Rage mocks them both. Lust smirks back at him before shoving Deceit forward. He loses balance easily and is unable to catch himself with his arm being behind his back. He tumbles onto the ground, the world spinning around him as he skids across the floor.

"Watch him, will you?" Lust points to Deceit before going up to the door, placing a hand onto the scanner.

Deceit lifts his head, groaning quietly under his breath from the pain. He stares at the corridor stretching out before him, his one-way exit and escape from them. He hears a beep as Lust unlocks the first lock. He brings a hand to the back of his head, feeling gooey hair stick to his fingers. He looks back to his fingers and sees his own blood coating the skin. He winces, the gash stinging with his touch.

Deceit hisses through his teeth, tears forming almost immediately. He needs to get out of here, now.

Deceit manages to get onto his knees, one hand holding his head faintly as the world spins and melts into blurs of black and grey. His arm is sore from being pulled taut for so long.

He's endured so much torture before, how does this hurt so badly all of a sudden? He should be able to fight through this to get away, but it's just so much pain like his head is being squashed between two hard walls. Why has he gotten so weak all of a sudden?

Deceit hears another beep, his time is running out. He slowly tries to get onto his feet, legs trembling with effort as he manages to get up.

"Hey! What do you think you're doing?!" Rage scolds him harshly. Deceit's head jerks up to meet his eyes, eyes wide and glazed with panic. He forces himself to move, sprinting towards the dark hall. For a minute, his chest lifts with hope, thinking he might be able to get away.

"Lust! He's running!" Rage warns.

"Heh, he won't get far." Lust snickers under his breath. Deceit hears this, but disregards it, continuing to sprint towards the dark wall of shadow.

A faint, yet nagging thought comes into his mind. Why aren't they running after him?

He doesn't get much time to react before he slams right into a hard, concrete wall. He is thrown back, the back of his head colliding with the unforgiving ground. His vision looks like static, swirling above him as if taunting him that it is free and he is not. 

He hears laughter, but it sounds like it surrounds his head. Or, like he is hearing it from the back of a hall, listening to the faint reverberation of soundwaves bouncing off of a stone tunnel.

Another beep, this one is distant and sounds a little different. Deceit stares up at the ceiling, hearing the sound of a door sliding open mechanically. Footsteps now approach him, but he's too stunned from the sudden impact to do anything. He whines, squinting as Lust appears to stand over him.

"Sorry, did I not mention that a black wall was there? My mistake..." Lust mocks him, shaking his head in fake pity as he stares at Deceit's dazed, half-scaled face.

"Did you really have to do that? A head injury makes you so much more numb to every other thing I have planned." Lust scolds him gently as he looks down at Deceit. Deceit moans under his breath, shutting his eyes tightly in an attempt to make the bone-chattering agony calm.

"Oh well. I'll see what I can do." Lust kneels beside him, cocking his head to the side teasingly. Deceit thrusts a hand to hold Lust back, not realizing that it is the hand with a dislocated thumb.

"What's this now?" Lust teases, grabbing a hold of his injured hand. Deceit's eyes flash with panic, a whine escaping his lips as he tries to pull his hand away.

"Ah, I see. You dislocated your thumb to escape the handcuffs that Remus put you in..." Lust deduces, admiring the swollen, disfigured thumb.

"Why don't I pop that back into place for you?" He threatens, clenching his fist around the injury tightly.

"No! No, don't!!" Deceit shouts, blind panic overriding his ability to remain calm. Lust leans into his face, his grin fading from his face and his normally bright-yellow eyes going dark.

"Think about that the next time you try to run from me..." Lust hisses at him. With one swift movement, Lust jerks his thumb back into place. Deceit hears a distinctive pop, followed by the sound of his own hollering. He tries to pull his hand back into his chest, but Lust keeps a tight hold on him. He feels tears run down his face, his thumb throbbing and panging with agony. Lust pulls him up by his black capelet, laughing as he continues to scream. He watches as the colours meld around him, eyes snapped open as he is pulled into Lust's room.

Deceit is dropped onto the ground roughly. The lights flicker on before blaring into his sensors. Deceit cradles his injured hand into his chest, face contorted in pain as he tries to take in his surroundings.

It looks like the entrance to a bunker. No, it is a bunker. The main hall is tight, claustrophobic even. It is lit with painful artificial light, painting light onto the sleek concrete walls. It looks new, untouched.

It feels exactly like a place that Lust would spend his time in.

"I'll go put Remus somewhere more comfortable. Where are the cells?" Rage asks Lust. 

"That left hall is filled with them, all of the doors are cells." Lust smirks, gesturing proudly to the hall.

"Of course they are. Go get started on the snake and make sure to record it, I don't want to miss any of it." Rage demands with a grin before carrying Remus off into the left hallway. Deceit doesn't understand that last line. Rage had only tortured him to get information, never for amusement or pleasure. Why did it change all of a sudden?

Deceit is all alone with Lust. He hates to admit it but he misses Rage's presence, he felt somewhat more comfortable having another person there. Now that he is alone with only Lust, he is unsure of what he might do.

"Let's get started, shall we?" Lust laughs into his ear as he pulls Deceit along by the collar of his suit.

They continue into the center hallway, which is longer than he might have expected. There is a double door at the end, which has another hand scanner. Lust presses him against the wall and holds him there as he puts his hand on the scanner. It beeps twice, followed by the sound of a door unlocking.

Deceit feels his heart rate increasing out of panic, watching helplessly as the doors slide open. Lust peels him off the wall and shoves him through the doors.

Deceit stumbles as he tries to catch his balance but ultimately falls onto the ground once again. His skull presses around his brain at all angles, causing a growing migraine to worsen by the second. Better yet, he tried to catch himself on the ground with the wrong hand, worsening the agony that resides solely in that area.

Lust walks through, smirking at the pathetic excuse of Deceit on the ground as the door behind him locks automatically.

"Come on, get up and take a look at all of this..." Lust grabs at Deceit again, heaving him up onto his feet. Deceit moans breathlessly, tears stinging in his eyes.

He does as he is told and takes a look. 

It is advanced, no doubt about that. It's bigger than the last one, being the size of an entire cafeteria. Like the one before, this torture dungeon has countless places to chain a victim by the arms, neck, wrists, or ankles. The centrepiece seems to be a large, thick metal table. Above it looks like a rectangular hydraulic press that is positioned just above the table, seemingly to press down onto a person.

Weapons hang from the walls. Everything from cowpokes, to dense iron pipes and baseball bats. There are ropes and chains littered about. He sees a few other things, but he doesn't know what they do our how they are supposed to work. He's too overwhelmed and dazed to take it in. A voice in the back of his head keeps warning him, telling him to get out before it is too late.

This voice obviously doesn't realize that he has no way out and no way to fight back.

He looks back to find Lust, seeing that he is fidgeting with a tripod and camera. The red light turns on, insinuating that it is recording.

"There we are... all set." Lust turns back to him with a sneer. Deceit tries to edge away as he steps towards him, but he's not fast enough. Lust grabs him once again, pushing him onto the ground as he adjusts himself overtop of Deceit to sit on his lower torso.

"Let's get this shirt off of you, shall we?" Lust tears his capelet off and throws it to the side. Deceit groans and struggles slightly, but he's far to concussed to make a real effort. He also grabs the black bowler hat and throws it away across the floor. Deceit's yellow gloves are removed before Lust begins to unbutton his dark purplish-brown suit.

"Lus-Lust--" Deceit begs, eyes going in and out of focus as he stares up at his abuser. He feels the shirt pulled open, air meeting his bare chest. 

"No-no--no, don't-!" Deceit mutters like a prayer, eyebrows furrowed as he looks up. Lust slips his arms out, snickering under his breath. He then rises off of him for just a moment and flips him over onto his stomach. Lust grabs the shirt from his back, leaving his upper-half completely naked.

Lust snorts in amusement as his eyes meet lines of shiny, puckered skin. Scars from the whipping that transpired months ago.

"Remember these? Ah, fond memories, aren't they?" Lust mocks him, running a finger along one of the longest scars that trails all the way down his spine. Deceit flinches, feeling Lust's finger trace the scar playfully. His nails scrape against the floor helplessly, the feeling of shame meeting him again like an old friend. He can't get up, Lust sits directly on his lower torso. He's completely trapped underneath him.

"You are all I thought about for 4 months straight, you know that?" Lust whispers into his ear, his nail reaching the numb, yet alive skin. Deceit whines quietly, eyes squeezed shut as he tries to ignore whatever Lust is saying.

"I've gone through the scenarios over and over again. But, none of them will compare to the real thing..." Lust coos to him. Deceit begins to shake, trying desperately not to cry. His face burns under Lust's close inspection.

"I bet you never slept a night without dreaming about all of us." Deceit winces, feeling Lust's sneer against the back of his head.

"Now, why don't I fix those healed ribs for you?" Lust mocks him with a snicker. Deceit shrieks, flailing about as Lust finally gets off of him and begins picking him up.

"You-you can't do this again!" Deceit shouts, grasping at some sort of leverage that he could use to save his ribs from being broken again. Lust simply cackles at his words, easily resiting every twist that Deceit does to get free.

"Oh I can, and I will." Lust mocks him, throwing him against the waist-high metal table in the centre of the room.

"No-!" Deceit yells out again, trying to push himself off of the table to no success. Lust easily lifts him onto the table, holding him down as he clamps the nailed-down shackles onto his shaking wrist. One gets locked in, but that doesn't stop Deceit from using his free hand to push and claw at Lust, trying everything to keep him away.

"There we are..." Lust says, slamming Deceit's free arm down and shackling that one beside his head aswell. Lust then moves down to his legs, which kick and thrust in every direction as they helplessly flail. He grabs Deceit's right ankle and shoves it onto the table, pulling a cold metal clamp over it and chaining it down. He does the same to the other ankle, despite Deceit's attempts to be free.

He finally comes back up to Deceit's head and pulls two pieces of thick metal over his neck, which connect perfectly to form one cuff over his neck. Lust whistles as he turns a small silver knob, tightening the sick device so that it nearly chokes Deceit.

"St-stop-- too- tight-" Deceit croaks, his trachea being pressed on harshly by the collar.

"Oh sorry, tighter?" Lust teases him, fingers still holding the small knob threateningly. 

"No--no-!" Deceit shouts as Lust turns the knob again, making the shackle so tight that it cuts off his airways. Deceit begins panicking, eyes wide as he realizes he cannot breathe. He arches his back, trying desperately to suck in oxygen, but being unable to.

Lust laughs wickedly as he listens to the silent panic of a suffocating man. He finally loosens the knob, cackling along as Deceit coughs repeatedly before breathing in deeply, lungs burning. The restraint around his neck is still very tight, but at least Deceit can breathe. He won't make the mistake of trying to correct Lust again.

Deceit is now completely held down and shackled to the table, still pulling desperately at his restraints. They do not even do so much as budge. His entire torso is left vulnerable. His chest shakily rises and falls with his frantic breathing as he tries to calm himself down. His headache has grown worse through all of the fighting back.

"That took a lot more effort than it needed to." Lust teases him, standing directly beside the table.

"But you know what?" Lust leans in, his lips dangerously close to Deceit's ear. Deceit can't pull his head away, the metal collar around his neck being nailed into the table.

"I like it when you fight back..." He whispers closely into Deceit's ear, who shivers fearfully at the words. It makes Deceit sick that Lust gets pleasure from all of this. He swallows hard, feeling his body shake under the tight restraints.

"Are you ready?" Lust asks him mockingly, knowing he doesn't have a choice. Deceit's jaw clenches tightly as he stares up at the metal block above him.

"Just- get your damned pipe and ge-get it over with." Deceit snaps, voice strained from the pressure of the collar.

"A pipe? Hah! That's too old fashion, darling." Lust appears over him again, holding what seems to be a rectangular remote.

"What- are you talking about?" Deceit hisses to his captor, dull anger rising in his voice. Lust merely snickers at him like it's so obvious what he's talking about.

"Here, I'll give you a hint." Lust shows Deceit the remote, which has 2 center buttons, one with an upwards arrow and one with a downwards arrow. Lust sneers at his victim as he presses on the downward button. 

Deceit's gaze turns up to the metal block once again, staring in quiet horror as it descends slowly towards him.

"No- wait-- wait--!" Deceit shouts, squirming in his restraints as he watches the metal plate lowering threateningly. He screams for Lust to stop.

The noise of the hydraulics ceases as Lust presses another button on the remote, stopping the metal momentarily.

"It's a hydraulic press. It will descend onto you and press down on every single one of your precious ribs..." Lust informs him with a sweet, sick tone of amusement. He doesn't give Deceit a moment to retort before he presses the button once again, sending the hydraulic press down once again.

"No- no Lust-- stop!! Please-- stop-- stop it!!" Deceit howls, twisting and pulling against his metal straps. He can't do anything to stop it as it comes closer and closer, nearly touching his bare chest now.

It comes off once again, hanging motionlessly above him.

"What- what do you want?!" Deceit demands to Lust, panic choking his normally silky voice.

"What do I want? I'm not quite sure what you mean, darling." Lust raises his eyebrows at Deceit expectantly, waiting for an answer.

"Las-last time you did this, you wanted- information on- on the light sides-. What do you want from me- now?!" Deceit hollers, hands curled into quaking fists as he stares up at the hydraulic press.

"Oh Deceit, you poor, poor thing..." Lust sets the remote down and proceeds to run his fingers through Deceit's dishevelled hair in false pity. Deceit stares up at him, confusion and shame mixing in his mind.

"I don't want anything from you, love." Lust reveals with a sadistic sneer, his fingers exploring Deceit's dark hair. Lust's other hand strokes his scales on the left side of his face in a humiliating fashion. Deceit stares up at him, mouth agape but no noise coming out. The sound of rushing blood silences itself in his head, leaving the room painfully quiet.

"I am merely doing this because I want to see you in pain..." Lust whispers to him sweetly, smiling at the expression of dark terror that comes over Deceit's face. 

His words sink in. Deceit can't do anything to stop the pain this time. At least before he had a choice, a back exit. He could confess to them, and they would stop, simple. But this time, this time he is completely powerless to the will of Lust. They have changed the rules on him. Now, he doesn't get to play at all, they are playing him.

Lust cackles while he presses the button once again, setting the press in motion once more.

Deceit screams and begs for Lust to stop, but these heartwrenching pleas fall onto uncaring ears. The press now makes contact with his chest, the cold metal sending shivers across his skin. The press doesn't stop there, it continues to put pressure onto his chest indefinitely.

At first, it is a dull panging, barely there as it squeezes him against the table. He hears Lust's cackling as it continues downwards onto him. Screaming becomes nearly impossible soon enough, there being too much pressure on his chest to allow the strength to shout.

It stops again. Deceit feels tears running down his face, bitter agony spreading across his chest and up to his spine. His face contorts into an expression of total pain.

"Let's see here... We are at about 150 pounds of pressure at the moment." Lust says, reading a screen to the left of the table. Deceit cannot respond, simply groaning lowly out of torment.

"Starting to hurt, isn't it?" Lust mocks him with a sneer.

"It takes about 450 pounds of pressure to crack the ribs. But, that is if they are healthy and undamaged. I'd say yours would be closer to... 400?" Lust estimates quickly, keeping his eyes trained on Deceit's shaking chest.

"Why don't we add another hundred and find out..." Lust mocks him, turning on the machine. Deceit lets out a long, uninterrupted scream as it presses down harder onto his chest. It hurts like hell, erupting a blazing pain deep within his chest that yearns to be freed. Deceit fears for just a moment that the hydraulic press might just squash right through him, killing him on the spot. Despite half-hoping it would happen, Deceit knows it won't. Lust is too smart with his torture to accidentally kill him.

"There we are, 200 hundred pounds. How are we feeling?" Lust teases him with a sneer. Deceit shakes, breathing coming with difficulty due to the immense pressure. Torment pangs through each of his ribs, which threaten to crack.

"Ple-p--- please--" Deceit manages to choke out, face red with either shame or effort. Or both.

It comes to life once more. His moans break off into choppy sobbing, physically unable to take any more of the terrible pain. The metal presses against him, smashing his back and spine into the table as it descends harshly into his creaking ribs. His ribs are being bent dramatically by the pressure despite trying to resist, he can feel it. How long until they all simultaneously break? He screams through clenched teeth, eyes tightly shut as pain blossoms and takes over his entire nervous system uncontrollably like a wildfire.

"300. We're getting close~" Lust informs him, chuckling at his pathetic shrieking. Deceit can hear a knocking at the door, but it doesn't concern him at the moment. His vision is blurry as he stares up at the ceiling, nearly shattering his teeth as his entire body tenses out of pain.

"Sorry dear, give me just a moment." Lust turns the machine off but leaves it pressing against Deceit with roughly 300 pounds of pressure. Deceit hears him walk away faintly through the sound of rushing blood.

"Ah, Rage. You're just in time." Lust greets, opening the door for who Deceit guesses is Rage.

"I see you're using the hydraulic press? Good choice... How far along are you on the ribs?" Rage asks, following Lust back to the table where Deceit is silently suffering under the hellish torture.

"We are at 326 pounds currently." Lust fills him in.

"And the camera?" Rage asks, gaze still fixed on Deceit's tear-stained face.

"Recording as we speak." Lust responds with a grin.

"Perfect. Mind if I say something to him real quick?" Rage asks, drawing closer to Deceit.

"Be my guest. The longer it takes to break the ribs, the more painful it is." Lust snickers under his breath as Deceit's groaning continues, the shudder of a whine found in his voice. Rage stands over Deceit and leans closer so that their faces almost touch.

"Do you want to know why I am doing this?" Rage asks him, hands folded behind his back neatly. Deceit can't respond, the pain being too great. He merely stares up at Rage, his teary eyes begging him for the agony to stop.

"I'm doing this for Pride, who you helped to kill. Remember that?" Rage bares his teeth, face split into a menacing smile as recollection dances across Deceit's eyes.

He spins on his heel and walks back to Lust. Deceit's heart pounds against his aching ribs as the machine spurs back to life. It presses down on him further and further, so much so that Deceit thinks it might never stop. The pain is indescribable, burning him from the inside out through stabs of sweet, sweet agony. He plunges down into its inescapable pit of torment, swirling around in its vortex as it swallows him whole, leaving nothing left of himself except for the screaming and whining of pain.

Suddenly, he hears multiple cracks and feels the structure inside his chest jerk and pop out of place. His vision goes completely white as a loud, inhumane shriek shreds through his throat and into the world around him. Despite his ribs already being fractured, the press continues onto him, causing more sounds of crackling to rise inside of him. It is pushing down on shards of bone, which agonizingly poke into his insides.

Deceit continues to howl, the torment being simply too much to keep it inside. Agony pounds in sync with his heart as his shattered ribs contract with each breath and scream.

"Ah, they've broken!" Lust exclaims, turning off the machine before it kills Deceit. The hydraulic press begins to lift upward, decreasing the insane amount of pressure that threatened to split him in half.

It lifts off of him painstakingly slow, continuing to worsen the horrid throbbing. He hears the sound of snapping ribs colliding with one another, able to move once again with the decrease in pressure. It finally lifts off of him completely, yet the pure twinging pain remains the same. He thought that less pressure would relieve some of the agonies, but he was sadly wrong. He continues to howl and cry, sobbing loudly as his disfigured chest pangs and writhes in torment.

"Took less pressure than I thought. Only 379 pounds to break an entire ribcage." Lust mocks Deceit, setting down the remote.

"Has he ever screamed that loud before?" Rage complains, sticking a finger into his own ear to quiet the noise.

"I don't think so. Here, I can help with that." Lust comes beside Deceit again and clamps a cold hand over his mouth, silencing his screaming but not his moans or sobs.

"And this footage should make for some great entertainment." Rage taunts Deceit, turning the camera off after stopping the recording.

They both go silent, standing over Deceit and watching him squirm and whine with agony, tears sliding down his face carelessly.

"Do you think he's ready for more?" Rage asks Lust with a huge, evil sneer.

"It's not really up to him, now is it?" Lust responds simply.

"And what about the others?" Rage inquires, seemingly talking about the light sides.

"They'll have their turn soon enough..."

Chapter Text

Deceit's POV

Deceit lies on the metal table writhing with agony, only sobs and moans of pain slipping through his lips that peel against his teeth. He squeezes his eyes shut tightly, feeling Lust's eyes scan his quaking, splotchy chest that is painted with maroon splats, bleeding underneath the skin from the (re)broken ribs.

Lust's fingers trail down his sides, feeling for which ribs have broken.

"2, 3, 4..." Lust counts aloud, his fingers pressing against each crack to count them. Pain tears into Deceit's chest wildly, his shattered bones begging for Lust to just leave them alone. Every poke to another cracked one causes a sharp whimper to come from Deceit, who is trying desperately to not make any noise.

"5, 6. Ouch, 6 broken ribs, hmm? We were both wrong, Rage." Lust jokes with Rage, finishing his count. Despite being done counting the injuries, Lust's fingers continue to run along his bruised sides playfully.

"What's next now?" Rage asks eagerly, sneering as Lust circles the table. Deceit can barely listen to his words, head ringing and rushing with the sound of pressure and blood.

"I've got some ideas..." Lust smirks down at his prisoner, who looks minutes away from losing consciousness. Deceit's body jerks roughly out of panic when Lust begins to unshackle his many chains and restraints. His wrists and ankles are free, but he doesn't move them at all. He's in too much agony to really be fully aware of what was happening.

Lust goes to his neck last and releases him fully. Deceit, feeling that he was free, immediately begins to lift himself up, but drops back onto the table harshly when his chest throbs and dances with torment. He lets out a tortured shriek, tears fighting their way into his eyes with ease.

"Want to help me lift him off the table?" Lust asks to Rage, taking a hold of one of Deceit's wrists tightly. Deceit groans under his breath, twisting slightly in pathetic resistance.

"With pleasure..." Rage responds, a pinch of manic found in his unusually calm voice. He roughly grips his other wrist.

They both begin lifting him off of his back into a sitting position. Deceit immediately begins to holler, his freshly broken ribs singing with convulsion. They manage to get him up, despite his shrieking and slight resistance. Deceit feels his broken bones crunching together like they were being compressed on. By a hydraulic press? 

His face is red with strain, beads of sweat forming. His hair sticks to his forehead flatly, eyes flashing brightly with the slight detection of danger. The thought passes his mind that they are taking him back to a cell to let him rest for a little while. Lust and Rage used to do that after every method was used. It gave him time to become used to the pain, learn to tolerate it as best as he could. He learned in those very few hours without torture how to mask it all, how to act like it didn't hurt.

They had just broken his ribs, surely they are done for today. Isn't that enough sick pleasure for them?

Deceit doesn't get much longer to think about it before the 2 dark sides are lifting him off the table by his arms, extending his aching torso in a painful manner. He howls in agony, trying to pull his arms away to no use. How he wishes to merely curl into a ball and cradle his fresh wounds. 

Lust and Rage manage to get him off the table, supporting his weight by putting their arms around him. He doesn't stop groaning, physically incapable of making himself stop. It hurts too badly for him to swallow the noise. They slowly walk him away from the table. Deceit doesn't watch where they are going, merely letting his head hang down as he stares at the white concrete floor moving beneath him. They will take him to a cell and leave him there, simple.

Suddenly they stop moving, simply hovering in one spot. He feels Lust's arm abandon him, nearly causing Deceit to fall over as one crutch-like support is ripped away from him. He hears the sound of chains clinking above him. Deceit looks up and sees chains hanging by the ceiling. At the end are cuffs for a prisoner's wrists, attaching them to the ceiling as to leave the entire body to the punisher's desires.

Deceit feels his heart leap into his throat as Lust grabs a hold of his wrist and jerks his arm up towards the shackle.

"W--wa-wait--" Deceit stutters terribly, trying his best to pull his hand away from Lust as his body quakes with the sense of danger. He is scared, confused and in pain. He doesn't understand what is happening. Shouldn't he be put in a cell by now? What are they doing?

"Don't waste your breath, love." Lust mocks him in a sing-song voice, tugging his arm back hard and nearly pulling it out of the goddamn socket. 

"N-- no- no--! W-ha---" Deceit tries to say, but it takes too much breath to talk right now. Breathing already comes with enough difficulty, nevermind speaking. He feels a frigid cold metal shackle clamp around his shaking wrist tightly, securing one arm to the ceiling.

Deceit immediately begins squealing with terror, incomprehensibly begging them to stop as he tries to break free from Rage. His entire chest creaks with the effort of breathing, setting his entire body aflame with terrible, unrelenting pain. He feels Lust jab an elbow into his mangled side, making his vision go completely white as he screams at the top of his lungs. He barely feels the other restraint shut around his wrist, completely engulfed by the raging torment that burrows into his sides like molten iron, melting through skin and bone alike.

He struggles in his restraints, clinking the chains against each other as he tries desperately to be free.

"Hold still, would you? Won't help your ribs to be struggling like that." Lust mocks him. Deceit watches as Lust walks to stand behind him. His gaze returns to the ceiling, watching as his chains wriggle and swing with movement as he continues to squirm in resistance. Every move brings hot tears into his eyes, making a groan come from his throat pathetically from his own self-inflicted pain.

Lust cackles evilly as he reaches around Deceit's neck, holding a cloth rag in both fists and positioning it just in front of Deceit's lips threateningly. Before Deceit gets the chance to plead any further, Lust forcefully pulls the cloth rag into his mouth, parting his lips dramatically as it rests near the back of his throat. He tries to speak, but with the rag gagging him, it is near impossible. The only sound he makes is a chain of worthless grunts of despair.

He hangs there powerlessly as Lust pulls the gag tighter around his mouth, tying it into a double knot behind his head. He is rendered completely silent, unable to retort or beg at all. Lust walks back around, standing in front of him now as Rage sits back, watching the whole abuse take place with a silent, amused sneer.

Lust hums to himself carelessly as he turns and walks over to the nearest wall which holds all of his deadliest weapons. Deceit groans out in torment, his body aching from the position of hanging from the ceiling he has taken. He watches with wide-eyes as Lust takes a long knife and walks back over to him with a grin.

Deceit feels his words get silenced by the rag, which drags all of the moisture out of his mouth. Lust giggles maniacally, his stare not leaving Deceit's pale, terrorized face as he tosses the large knife between his hands. Up close Deceit can now see that the knife has a serrated blade, ready to carve into his skin with little effort. 

"Oops, almost forgot one thing!" Lust exclaims, pulling another black rag from his pocket. He repositions himself behind Deceit once again. Deceit stiffens like stone once Lust reaches around his face once more, this time holding the dark cloth in front of his eyes. He wails silently as Lust pulls the black cloth over his eyes, tying it behind his head and blindfolding him. Deceit's head jerks around, trying to catch some sort of light, but finding none. He can't see anything.

Deceit feels Lust's presence behind him still. He feels incredibly vulnerable, hanging there being unable to speak or even see where it is that Lust is about to cut him, slicing that terrible blade into his flesh. He inhales sharply as Lust leans into his neck, lips grazing against his sensitive warm skin as he lets out a long, sadistic laugh. Deceit shivers in discomfort, feeling Lust's hot breath against his pale flesh.

He lets out a muffled whine as Lust's cold fingers trail up his sides, grazing against the bruises lightly, but still sending flames of agony flaring in his tortured sides. Deceit feels humiliated, being basically manhandled by his captor at this moment. He's simply grateful that he cannot see the cocky sneer of Rage, who is almost definitely enjoying this. Lust soon starts trailing the knife's edge down his side lightly, scratching him ever so gently, but sending full hot panic through his body.

"Would you start already?" Rage demands to Lust, who cackles in response to his eagerness. Deceit can hear that Rage is somewhere in front of him.

"No reason to rush, is there? He's not going anywhere..." Lust whispers closely into his ear, causing Deceit to jerk his head away roughly. He struggles for a moment, only stopping when the pain in his sides gets too bad to breathe anymore.

He hears a low laugh before Lust's hands finally abandon his body, stepping back slightly from him. Deceit lets out a long exhale through his nose in relief, feeling that Lust was not right against him any longer.

The first cut comes unexpectedly from behind. The jagged edge of the horrendous instrument slashes into his flesh with a sickening sound. Deceit cries out, the volume of his scream lowering significantly as it reaches the gag. He continues to howl as Lust saws it into him further, making repeated motions in the one slash, laughing as he arches his back to try to get away to some extent. Lust then slits the knife out from his body with one swift flick, forcing a muffled groan of agony to come from his victim. Deceit tries to scream but makes little to no sound. Somehow not being able to cry out makes it hurt worse.

Lust giggles dementedly, running a finger over the deep, bleeding cut. He can feel blood trickling down the cut that is now embedded into the flesh on his back. Lust swings at him again, dragging the sharp, crooked metal across his skin hard. It digs in deep and continues in one long stroke across his entire back. Deceit hollers with that one, a stinging fire lacing his back as his skin is cut open like butter. He barely notices that he is crying, sobs being lost in the sound of muffled shrieking as the jagged edge is once again ripped cleanly out of him. He can feel that this one went deeper than the others, probably hitting sensitive tissue and muscle

Deceit feels Lust grow closer to him once again as he bites down hard on the gag, trying to stop the sobs from coming to no use.

"You like that, huh?" Lust mocks him, digging a finger into the widest cut and twirling it around in exposed tissue. Deceit wails, teeth clamping around the cloth instinctively as he feels Lust's finger explore his insides. Searing bursts of agony pulse and shake around the slash, intensifying with each jab from Lust. With each second, the pain amplifies past what Deceit thought was possible. His vision pulses in time with his heartbeat, hot torment burning in his chest as he constantly squirms, tears easily finding their way in his eyes.

Lust finally takes his finger out of the raw, bleeding wound. He doesn't waste any time. Lust jabs his weapon into Deceit's right side, sending the sharp blade straight into his ribcage with ease. A scream is stuck taught in his throat as he inhales quickly. He is no longer screaming, only a choking sound as his body tries to react to the agony. It doesn't know how. It's done all it can, screaming and crying. It can't do that anymore, it's too much.

Lust quickly drags the blade up his side, splitting into more skin as it curves against the ribs. The pain comes once more, digging into him as if digging a grave. Breath comes and goes. The movement of his chest throws razor blades at his insides, which bounce and twist at every living part of him, feeling like it was cutting him up from the inside out. His body pleads for the sharp stinging to cease, but it refuses to stop. Deceit's vision weakens, the corners ebbing with swirling darkness as he stares against the blindfold. 

Lust sharply twists the knife inside of his skin, sending the pain alive once again. It takes on a life of its own, attacking everything that he is or ever will be. It tears into his back like a rabid wolf, teeth gnawing into his lively skin and quickly peeling it off, exposing all tissue and muscle. It rams into his chest like a train, making no attempt at stopping when it sees Deceit lying helplessly on the tracks. It hits him hard, sending him into beautiful anguish as the train rolls over his mutilated sides again, and again, and again until he can no longer breathe. The pain clamps down hard onto him and refuses to let him go until he is a mere shell of what he used to be.

"Alright, no more playing around. Let's get to the fun part..." Lust exclaims from behind him, making Deceit jump out of his skin. What the hell does he mean 'playing around'? These are deep, deep gashes. How much more could he possibly do?

He suddenly regrets asking.

Lust quickly slashes the knife against his back repeatedly, each cut being deeper than the other. Deceit screams into his gag, feeling the jagged blade hack into his skin over and over again. Tears bitterly run down his face, soaking into the cloth that keeps his lips parted. The agony licks up his back like a scorching flame, eating hungrily away at the tender, soft skin that pleads to be left alone. Every slash forced a moan from Deceit, as that is the only noise he is capable of making. Thoughts come to his scattered mind, but none are able to be fully completed. He is left with puzzle pieces, some without ends and some without beginnings. It's a puzzle that doesn't fit together, one that is impossible to solve.

The pain takes on its newest form; A bird of prey. It digs its deadly talons into his back, gripping onto his exposed tissue and muscle tightly. It lowers its sharp beak into Deceit's back and begins to peck away at the flesh covering him. Soon enough it is fully attacking him, talons releasing only to grab onto new, untouched parts of him. It sends him into a trance, one where only one thing is allowed to exist; complete and utter agony.

Lust's manic fit finally ceases. He breathes heavily, watching in pleasure at the mess of deep cuts he has created on Deceit's scarred back. Deceit continues to groan and cry long after the cutting stops, feeling the hot blood trickle down his spine. The gashes dig into him agonizingly, forcing his head into a spiral of darkness as he threatens to lose consciousness simply from the pain.

He grimaces as Lust tears the blindfold off of him, walking to stand in front of him once again. Light infiltrates his pulsating vision, revealing his captor's face to him. Deceit comes to realize that his entire body is shaking from the torture. He can hear the sound of drips splatting against a wet surface. He looks down and sees that the floor is splattered with his blood, coating the ground in a dark maroon shimmering sheet of liquid. His vision loses focus, everything around him going blurry.

"It's not enough...it's not enough pain." Lust mutters darkly, still staring at him with his knife in hand. Lust quickly pulls the gag out of his mouth, releasing a long, raw scream. He cuts it short, shoving the edge of the knife against Deceit's mouth, who's teeth clamp around the blade in fear. The blade bites into the corners of his mouth. Deceit stares wide-eyed at Lust, who is no longer smiling evilly but has a blank look. He pushes the knife harder against his mouth, definitely cutting into the sides of his lips. Deceit screams in protest, terror flashing in his distant eyes. If he so much as moves his head, that knife will carve him a new, permanent smile.

"No, no... you still need to be able to speak..." Lust pulls the blade out of his mouth a little too roughly, nearly slitting his cheek in half. Deceit is rendered completely silent, terrorized by this new version of Lust.

Lust's face lights up, a smile twitching at the corner of his lips. He clamps a cold hand around Deceit's now-bleeding mouth, silencing his moan of fear. He then presses the knife against his chest, blade already cutting into him. Deceit yelps, heart racing as he comes to realize what Lust intends to do.

Lust cackles as he deeply slashes across Deceit's chest, grinning with satisfaction as Deceit begins to scream. The serrated edge soon meets his broken ribs, cutting so deep into his side that it grazes against the shattered bone. Deceit continues to shriek, torso twisting and arms swinging as he tries to get Lust off of him. 

"Wait--Lust-" Deceit hears Rage call out as Lust slides the knife out of him and quickly rips it into another part of his skin. Deceit can feel his vision shaking, focus blurring as the scene around him begins to unfocus completely.

"Lust!" Rage screams, but Lust cannot hear him. He is in his own trance, carving wildly away at Deceit's vulnerable chest. The pain begins to fade dramatically, only now being able to feel the metal of the knife as it slides in and against his bleeding body. His head becomes light, darkness creeping into the corners of his eyes. His eyes droop shut. He feels the numbness of death crawling into him. He's aware enough to know that he's dying, he has simply lost too much blood. Plus the broken ribs and heavy concussion, he was already a dead man walking. A faint smile tugs at his lips, almost like he is happy the end is near.

Lust's POV

"Lust, stop!!" Rage throws his arms around Lust and pulls him away from Deceit. Lust kicks and swears at him, reaching towards Deceit.

"No-! I'm not done with him yet!!" Lust hollers at Rage, manic eyes trained on his bleeding victim.

"Look at him, Lust! You're going to kill him! He's dying!" Rage screeches, finally breaking Lust out of his trance with those words. Lust blinks a couple of times, eyebrows narrowing as he looks at what he did to Deceit. His eyes widen, noticing that Deceit's skin is as pale as fresh snow, his head drooping down to his chest. 

"Hey, hey!" Lust yells at him, running back up to him when Rage finally releases him. Lust pulls his head up by the chin, seeing his eyes are closed. 

"Deceit, wake up!" Lust slaps him hard, but Deceit does not move. He is completely unconscious, lips parted only slightly as faint breathing comes from him. 

"We need to get him down now, he's lost too much blood." Rage demands, shoving a key into the shackles and quickly pulling them open. He catches Deceit, who limply falls onto him, head lulled to the side. Rage begins to carry Deceit out of the room with the intention of saving his miserable life from the claws of cold death.

Lust simply stares at the puddle of blood on the ground, body numb as he drops the knife onto the ground. 

"Lust, we need to go now!" Rage yells to him, dragging Deceit to the door. Lust does not respond, merely watching as the light dances in the pool of the blood he has spilled. He feels no regret, no mercy. Yet he nearly killed the one side he needs the most. What is happening to him?

"Lust, if you don't help me now, your toy will die. Do you understand?" Rage says to him in a calm, yet stern voice. Lust shakes himself out of it and rushes after Rage. He lifts up Deceit's legs, and they both carry him out of the torture chamber that now is stained in Deceit's blood.

Chapter Text

Logan's POV

It's been a long, hard day. Logan lays in his bed, eyes snapped open as he searches for Rage and Lust in the shadows of his room. He shivers and squints as the sound of a gunshot meets him again. Another sound, the sound of Pride hitting the floor.

Logan shakes the illusion away, biting down hard on the inside of his cheek in frustration. It's the middle of the night, he can't sleep. He tried to go to Deceit's room earlier, but couldn't manage to get in. He needs Thomas to take him there, of course, but Logan can't risk them remembering. He needs to talk to Deceit, to share memories of torment with the only person who remembers it all. He can't bottle it up inside, it's already tearing him apart. How Deceit had done it for months he'll never understand.

Logan exhales deeply, deciding that he will try again tomorrow.

If tomorrow ever comes, that is.

Deceit's POV

He moans quietly, teeth clenching together as he feels the pain returning. His head is groggy, nausea coating his tongue and throat. His eyelids slowly open, allowing light to meet his eyes. He is staring up at a white ceiling that is speckled with pot lights. Deceit hisses through his teeth, feeling his knife wounds contract with his breathing. He can barely breathe, laying on his back as his broken ribs press against his lungs.

"You're up?" A voice asks him from behind. Deceit immediately inhales sharply, rising up on his elbows as he looks for who he can only assume is Lust.

His panicked, dilated pupils find Remus sitting against a wall, hands up submissively.

"Woah, woah. It's just me." Remus tries to calm him, but Deceit continues to glance around, searching for his abuser. 

Deceit can tell he is in a cell, that goes without saying. A heavy iron door is imbedded onto the front wall. The cell is about the size of a bedroom, only having one raggedy mattress in the corner. There are a couple of places to chain a prisoner to the wall or floor. It is lit brightly, blaring into his eyes and worsening his growing headache.

Deceit looks over to Remus, who stares at him with pity in his eyes. Deceit groans deeply before dropping back onto the ground, unable to keep himself up for much longer. He stares up at the ceiling, throat tight with pain as a tear slides down his cheek. He is honestly disappointed that he is still alive. He thought for sure Lust had killed him with that. How did they even save him?

He lifts his head up slightly and sees that steri strips are taped across each cut, holding the huge gashes together weakly. The wounds look clean at least, swollen skin puckering each slash. Blood seeps through each cut slightly, gooey maroon fluid staining his pale skin. 

Deceit drops back down again, yelping when the huge bruise on the back of his head hits the ground. His hands shake at his side, agony lacing back into him like poison. It eats away at his skin like acid.

"Are you okay?" Remus inquires, trying to be helpful. Deceit does not respond. Does it look like he's okay?

"No.. no that was a stupid question." Remus apologizes when no response comes from the terribly injured side. 

"How-how long have I been- out?" Deceit asks, voice tight and strained with pain.

"I don't know, several hours at least." Remus answers him, leaning back against the wall with a sigh. Deceit looks to the side at Remus with tired, bloodshot eyes.

"Oh right, I just remembered," Remus says, his face lighting up. Remus lifts himself off of the ground and walks over to Deceit.

"Lust asked me to give you these when you woke up." Remus reaches inside his pocket and pulls out two large, white pills. Deceit stares at them in his palm, eyebrows narrowed in suspicion.

"For wha-what?" Deceit demands, eyes flicking back up to Remus, who has kneeled beside him.

"He said something about an infection, I think?" Remus informs him. Deceit snorts in dark amusement, pinching the two pills between his fingers and rolling them into his shaking palm.

"Ty-typical..." Deceit mutters hatefully under his breath. Lust wants to keep him alive of course. Maybe he shouldn't have lost control of his sadistic needs and cut him within an inch of his life.

Deceit chucks the two pills across the cell, watching them fly through the air before hitting the door and dropping to the ground. He won't take them, he won't prolong his own life.

"You--you aren't going to take them?" Remus asks him sheepishly. 

"Yea-yeah, and keep-keep myself alive fo-for Lust? No-." Deceit tells his fellow dark side, staring back up at the ceiling. He hears Remus sit down next to him.

They sit in silence for several minutes, only the shaky and wheezy breathing of Deceit being heard. Deceit does feel safer with Remus with him, even if Remus is the reason that this is all happening. Deceit can't blame him for that though, he was being controlled. 

"Have they said why I am being held here?" Remus inquires to Deceit. 

"No." He responds truthfully. He has no idea why they have kept Remus, probably to ensure that the light sides don't find out. The light sides... 

The light sides, how could he have forgotten? They must remember by now, they must be coming for him....right? 

Deceit continues to think about Thomas and his light sides, trying to predict when they might come for him and Remus. Not that it matters really, the light sides wouldn't be able to take on the dark sides anyway. Lust and Rage are far too smart to be bested once again. Besides, Rage is hellbent on revenge for Pride, so he might go for the light sides before they even get a chance to try.

"...Is there any way we can get out of this?" Remus asks, dread spilling into his voice as he gazes forlornly at Deceit. Deceit looks back at him with empty, distant eyes and shakes his head slowly. Remus looks back down, eyebrows furrowed in frustration and despair.

They both perk up as they hear playful whistling outside of their cell. A beep sounds out as a scanner is passed. The sturdy, steel door slides open, revealing Lust, who carries a red first-aid kit in his right hand. He steps in, smirking as the door slides shut behind him.

"Ah, thought you might be awake." Lust greets him with a sweet smile, eyes sparkling with mischief at the sight of his terribly injured victim. Deceit's eyes flash with terror, recalling the brutal torture clearly. Lust takes a step in, stepping on something that makes a cracking sound. He looks down and moves his foot to see the two white pills cracked into pieces, white powder spilling out of them. He looks back up at Deceit with a sneer.

"So, you didn't take the medicine. Now, why would you do that?" Lust asks Deceit with a sly, knowing grin.

Lust snickers under his breath, approaching Remus and Deceit. To Deceit's surprise, Remus shuffles in front of him slightly in order to protect the cut-up side.

"Oh, you've made quick friends with my favourite toy, haven't you Remus?" Lust teases Remus.

"What are you going to do to him?" Remus demands to Lust meekly. Lust snorts, rolling his eyes.

"Relax, I'm just going to check on his injuries. Wouldn't want him dying, now would I?" Lust winks over Remus' shoulder at Deceit, gesturing with his other hand to the first-aid kit. Lust moves closer, but Remus refuses to move.

"Well..? Are you going to move?" Lust asks patronizingly at Remus, hands on his hips. 

"I don't want you to hurt him- you nearly killed him last time." Remus defends Deceit further. Deceit feels somewhat safer, finally having someone in his corner. He doesn't really know why Remus is protecting him. They barely know each other.

"That was... a simple mistake." Lust says after exhaling slowly through his nose in anger. Remus is pushing him too hard, soon enough Lust will just snap.

"A mistake? You hospitalized him." Remus retorts again. Deceit grinds his teeth together, wanting to quiet Remus before he gets himself hurt. Deceit can't afford to lose his only ally.

"Quiet you! Move out of the way before I make you..." Lust shouts at him, glaring down as he takes a powerful step towards them. Remus straightens his back against the force of Lust, looking up at him defiantly.

"I won't mov--" He begins to say once again.

"Jus--just-- stop, Remus. Let-let him." Deceit intervenes before Remus challenges further. He knows that Lust most likely won't hurt him. Any further pain will risk Deceit's life, and Lust couldn't bare to lose his precious, precious toy.

Remus looks back at him, eyebrows raised in surprise. Deceit nods weakly, telling him that it's alright to leave him. Remus shuffles away from them, leaning against the wall as he watches carefully.

Lust snickers, giving Remus a victorious glance to the side as he kneels to the side of Deceit. Deceit continues to stare at the ceiling, obviously refusing to look at Lust. 

"Now let's see, shall we?" Lust runs his fingers across his deeply injured chest, tracing around one particularly gaping cut playfully. Deceit sucks air sharply through his teeth, hands clenched into fists as a trail of tingling fire trails behind Lust's finger. He hears himself whimper, eyes burning against his eyelids as he shuts them tightly, trying to quiet the urge to scream.

"Yes... it's too early to tell if they are infected. I'm sure they are, the knife wasn't exactly...sterile." Lust talks to himself, studying the bleeding, red wounds. Lust then places his hand against Deceit's forehead, cackling evilly when Deceit flinches under his touch.

"High fever. This is why you needed to take that medicine, darling..." Lust scolds him, gently stroking his soft hand against Deceit's pale, decolorized scales. He smirks at his victim while turning to the side and unlocking the first aid kit. He takes out a yellow bottle of pills that look like the ones Deceit threw across the room.

"Now, take your meds. We don't want you dying, now do we?" Lust says as he opens the bottle, spilling out two chalk-white pills onto his palm and holding them to Deceit. Deceit turns his head away from the medication, refusing to take them. He doesn't want to prolong his life. He just wants all of the torture and humiliation to be over.

"Not participating, eh? That's fine..." Lust leans into his ear, making Deceit quiver against the ground.

"We both know I just adore seeing you struggle." Lust whispers sweetly, holding the two pills against Deceit's lips threateningly. Deceit moans desperately, keeping his lips tightly shut and peeled against his teeth.

"Come on, open up or I will make you." Lust threatens. Deceit still refuses to open his mouth, disregarding the threat completely.

"As you wish... " Lust coos in a sing-song voice. He sneers down at Deceit's pale, sweat-glazed face as he jabs a finger into the deepest cut in his chest. Deceit's mouth snaps open as a shriek rumbles through his throat, Lust's finger twisting around in the cut. Deceit arches his back out of pain, ribs panging in protest from the quick movement.

"Stop! You're hurting him!" Deceit hears Remus shout to Lust.

While his mouth his open, Lust shoves two fingers into his mouth, placing the pills at the very back of his throat. Deceit gags involuntarily as Lust's finger jabs against the back of his throat before pulling out. He then slams his hands over Deceit's mouth so he cannot spit them back out. Deceit begins to choke, his body desperately trying to eject the foreign objects as they fall into the back of his throat.

"Lust, stop! He's choking!" Remus demands as he lunges at Lust, trying to pull Lust off of him.

Lust spins around for just a moment and grabs Remus by the collar of his black and green garb. He then slams his fist against Remus' nose, definitely breaking it as he shoves him back into the wall with a cackle. Remus shouts out in pain as his head collides with the wall, falling flat against the floor as his hands go up to his now-crooked nose, which bleeds terribly.

Lust returns to Deceit, who coughs and croaks, unable to breathe as the dry pills stick to the sides of his throat like glue. Lust throws a hand back against his mouth as Deceit tries to spit them out, body shaking and panicking with the threat of suffocation.

"Ra--Rage!!" Remus calls out for the dark side, holding one hand to his nose to try to stop the bleeding. 

"Swallow them, darling." Lust orders him with a sick smirk, watching Deceit's eyes flush with tears as his head fills with the sound of TV static. 

Soon enough, Deceit's will to live overrides his will to die.

Deceit swallows hard, feeling both large pills quickly slide down before getting caught one last time. His gag reflex fires once again, this time rushing warm saliva into his mouth as a warning. He forces the sudden flush of spit down his throat, and it carries the two pills along with it, into the rest of his system.

Once his throat is cleared, Deceit begins coughing and hacking, taking deep gulps of breath as he shakes with adrenaline. Lust giggles at him, still leaning over him as he observes his features.

"Good boy...now how about I tear open a few of these wounds to let them breathe?" Lust mocks him in a pleasured tone. Deceit immediately shrieks as Lust's finger presses against a semi-closed cut on his chest. He squirms and struggles, hands clenched around Lust's wrist weakly as he tries to stop him. Lust quickly digs a nail into the cut and drags it down quickly, splitting his skin open with ease. He screams in utter agony, stinging torment exploding from the reopened cuts that plead to be left alone. Tears run down his face as Lust's hand goes to another one and begins to split it open, only getting half-way.

Suddenly, the cell door slides open. Deceit looks up for help, seeing Rage standing in the doorway through blurred, teary eyes.

"What the hell do you think you're doing, Lust?" Rage demands angrily, stepping into the cell and closing the door behind him. Lust immediately pulls his hand out of the wound and stands up to face Rage.

"Oh, just giving him the medicine, as you asked." Lust says innocently as if he wasn't just abusing Deceit.

"I told you to give him the pills, not choke him with them and then reopen his knife wounds." Rage challenges, glancing over to Remus, who looks dazed but aware.

"But he didn't take--" Lust begins to defend himself, but Rage doesn't want to hear it.

"We agreed that we wouldn't touch him for at least a couple days, did we not?" Rage asks, taking a threatening step forward.

"Yes but--"

" 'But' nothing, Lust. You almost killed him last time, alright?! Look at him!" Rage demands, pointing to Deceit. Lust's jaw clenches tightly, eyes falling to the ground.

"I said look!" Rage yells again. Lust forces himself to turn around, looking at Deceit as he lies on the floor, trying to catch his breath.

"He's as white as a sheet, his ribs are broken, he's suffered major blood loss, and he has a ridiculously high fever. If you push him any further, you will kill him." Rage lectures sternly, pointing out the many signs of Deceit's weakness. Deceit lays there still, his head lulled to the side as he tries to make the pain stop by pretending it doesn't exist. His ribs pang into him like a drill, making his breaths incredibly small while the opened cuts send dancing flames across his skin.

"Pfft, he can take more of--" 

"He can barely breathe, Lust! I know we both want to see him suffer, but if we kill him, nothing good comes from it! We will lose everything we worked so hard for! Again!" Rage hollers at Lust, advancing at him until their faces nearly touch. Lust doesn't have a response, simply glaring back at the fellow dark side.

"Now get out. Logan is nearly in our trap, I can't have you screwing this up." Rage scolds him, stepping to the side to let him pass. Lust's eyes flick back to Deceit momentarily, as if this was his fault.

Lust walks to the cell door and places his hand against the scanner. It beeps and opens.

"Lust." Rage calls out to him. Lust stops walking but doesn't turn around.

"You don't come in here alone with him again, are we clear?" Rage orders to Lust.

Lust doesn't respond as he walks away, the door shutting as he leaves.

Chapter Text

Deceit's POV

Deceit watches faintly as the door shuts. Rage turns to face him once again, an unreadable emotion plastered on his face as he looks down at his prisoners.

"My apologies about Lust. He's a little...overstimulated lately." Rage apologizes teasingly, watching as Deceit rests his head against the floor. He tries to focus on breathing as it distracts him from the main issue; the pain.

Deceit glances over to Remus, who is leaning back against the wall pinching the bridge of his nose to stop the bleeding. He wishes he could say thank you, but talking would require too much effort. Besides, he won't say anything with Rage here.

"Now, you two stay here and relax, will you? I've got a trap to spring on our favourite light side." Rage says more to himself than the other two. He bends down and picks up Lust's first-aid kit and spins on his heel. He strolls out with confidence in his step.

The door slides open and shut before Deceit can even blink. He's left alone with Remus once again.

Logan's POV

"I love you." Logan hears Patton whisper into his ear sweetly. 

"I--" Logan tries to respond, but hands immediately slap against his mouth and pull him backwards. Another pair of cold hands wrap around his throat and squeeze, cutting his airways off. Logan reaches out for Patton, who is slowly stepping away from him with wide, terrified eyes. Logan's eyes water as Patton turns and runs, disappearing into the surrounding shadows like mist.

He struggles hard against the mysterious force, fingers clawing at their grip to no use. His legs kick out blindly, panic finally overriding his usually rational senses. He can't breathe. He's going to die. His chest burns with desire and pain, throat closed almost completely.

'Stay awake.' He begs himself faintly, feeling his eyelids droop slightly.

'Stay...' The thought trails away as his eyes shut completely, head lulling to one side.

"Awake!" Logan shouts as he shoots right out of bed, sitting up as he glances around with wide eyes. He sucks in breath greedily like he won't get the chance to breathe again. His heart hammers against his chest as his head drops into his hands.

Logan sits there sobbing to himself silently. It only took one night to completely unravel his sanity to reveal a vulnerable man. He needs to speak with Deceit. He needs someone to talk to, who will understand exactly what he is going through.

Logan wipes his eyes dry and puts on his glasses that were resting on the night table next to him. He proceeds to swing his legs over the bed and push himself up, walk over to his dresser and pick out his usual outfit, slipping it on rather quickly. Without delay, the logical side swings his door open and sets off on his journey to find Deceit.

Rage's POV

"How do you plan on doing it anyway?" Lust asks Rage, breaking their silence. They are sitting in a surveillance room in the vault, watching the live camera footage from Deceit and Remus' cell. The two prisoners aren't doing much. Deceit is writhing on the floor, face contorted into one of total pain. Remus is sneaking glances at Deceit, pity and guilt found in his eyes.

"Plan on doing what exactly?" Rage responds, not knowing what Lust is referring to. 

"Capturing Logan, of course. How are you going to pull it off without drawing attention?" Lust reproaches the question, not peeling his amused eyes from Deceit in the video.

"Simple. I don't have to do anything but open the door for him." Rage says, finally pulling Lust's attention from the screen.

"You know I don't like riddles, Rage." He scolds playfully with a smirk. 

"Logan will obviously go to Deceit for help. I will let him come into our realm, and I will be waiting for him in Deceit's room." Rage explains to the fellow dark side, taking a glance at his black watch to time how long it will take for Logan to wake.

"And what exactly do you plan on doing to him?" Lust continues to question, spinning his chair back to the screen.

"I will make him pay for what he has done." Rage snarls, staring off into another direction.

Suddenly, Rage's breathing gets heavy, intense even. His eyes narrow, vision flaring pinkish as he imagines that scene once again. His hands curl into fists at his side, nails biting into his palm. His toes curl within his steel-toed boots.

Logan is the one that fired the bullet. Logan will pay for that. He  will  pay.

"--Rage?" Lust repeats himself, pulling Rage from his wrath-induced trance.

"Yes- what?" Rage demands, shaking his head slightly to bring himself back to reality.

"Your...hands..." Lust points down at them. Rage narrows his eyes at Lust in confusion and glances down at his own hands.

Dark maroon veins spread out across the back of his hand like a spider web, trailing up his fingers in a crackled design. It looks as if they glow under the skin, pulsing with what he can assume to be a firey heat. Curious of these new marks, Rage pulls up the sleeve of his black suit. The veins creep up his arms, thick and pushing up against the skin.

"Strange..." He mutters to himself, tracing the sporadic lines with his finger. He turns to his right and looks at his reflection on a turned-off screen. He sees very clearly that the veins continue to run up the sides of his neck, stopping before his jawline.

"What do you think?" Rage asks Lust, watching as the veins slowly fade away from his body. In seconds, it was like they were never there to begin with.

"Hot." Lust replies with a playful grin.

"Sorry?" Rage chuckles, eyebrows narrowed as he looks into the face of his oldest friend.

"It's hot, sexy." Lust follows that with a teasing whistle. They both break into manic giggling that trails off after a minute or two.

"Oh lord, what happened to us in that cellar, Lust?" Rage asks through a chuckle, wiping tears from his eyes.

"I have absolutely no idea." Lust responds with a grin, eyes flicking back to the screen. The position of Remus and Deceit hasn't changed, but Deceit looks like he's fallen asleep or unconscious.

"He looks so peaceful when he sleeps... So utterly numb, unfeeling of any pain. Must be his favourite part of the day." Lust observes his prisoner, eyes sparkling with mischief. Rage simply watches on as Lust trails a finger down the computer screen with a sick grin.

"Want to see something funny?" Lust asks Rage, face split into a devious smile. Rage watches as Lust slides a couple of sliders to the max and presses down on one of the buttons on the control pad. 

Without delay, an alarm sounds from the footage on the screen. Rage observes as Deceit is ripped painfully out of his numb rest, thrown back into the loud and dreadful reality he is a part of. Deceit squirms on the ground, throwing his hands over his ears to protect them from the seemingly deafening noise. Remus has done the same, turned completely white out of terror from the sudden alarm. 

Rage hears Lust laughing sadistically to himself as he releases the button, cutting the noise short. Deceit is now wailing out of pain, arms wrapped tightly around his torso as he rocks back and forth.

"Poor thing, almost makes you feel bad for him, doesn't it?" Lust smirks mockingly at the screen as if Deceit could see him.

"Almost." Rage replies with a grin.

Logan's POV

Logan trudges down the cool hallways of their mind palace. It's early, almost 4 in the morning. No one else should be up yet. Even Virgil goes to bed earlier than that, usually around 2 or 3. It's good for Logan, he can't risk seeing anyone else tonight.

He walks quietly into the main dining room, watching the moonlight cast a silvery glow onto their long table. A faint hint of dawn is found in the sky outside, light blues and yellows being swallowed by the dark navy of night. Stars dot the sky like rhinestones on velvet, pulsing with a bluish light. Logan swallows hard and turns away from the window, ready to continue on.

He jumps back as he nearly walks right into another person, a muffled shriek escaping him. Logan instinctively widens his stance defensively, watching as the shadowed side steps into the silvery lighted room.

"Logan?" Virgil mutters, letting the moonlight reveal his face. 

"Jesus Virgil, you scared the hell out of me." Logan exclaims, throwing a hand against his own chest to calm his rapid heart.

"Sorry... thought I was the only one up." Virgil apologizes with a raspy, tired voice. His eyes are red and bloodshot from fatigue, almost like he has been keeping himself awake for some reason.

"Why are you up this early?" Logan whispers to him, adrenaline still shaking out of his body. Virgil shuffles awkwardly, eyes looking away from Logan's own.

"Couldn't sleep. I was coming down here to get a glass of milk or something." Virgil responds, hands shoved inside the pockets of his skeleton hoodie. Logan's eyes narrow, noticing that Virgil keeps glancing away.

'Lying. He's lying.' Logan deduces swiftly, taking notice that Virgil's stance is a little off, almost like he's leaning away. Logan opens his mouth to confront Virgil about this, but he snaps it shut once again. He doesn't have time for this, he needs to see Deceit. Virgil is probably just sneaking around for the fun of it.

"What are you doing awake?" Virgil reverses the question. Logan was afraid of this, he doesn't really have a good answer for that.

"...Just preparing for today. We've got a lot of work to do for Thomas." Logan lies, keeping his eyes on Virgil and voice steady as the falsehood leaves his lips. Virgil doesn't seem convinced, but he also doesn't seem to care.

"Yeah, right. Say hi to Patton for me, will you?" Virgil says nonchalantly as he walks past Logan. Logan's eyebrows narrow in suspicion at the strange statement.

Virgil has no reason to believe that Logan is going to see Patton. Why would Logan go to him in the middle of the night? It's not like they are dating or anything.

Dating. Logan's heart freezes as he spins to face Virgil, who continues to stroll away.

"What are you implying?" Logan demands, suspicion rising in his voice. Virgil turns back around.

"Hm?" He mumbles, rubbing his eyes tiredly.

"You said 'say hi to Patton for me'. What are you implying about me and Patton?" Logan questions relentlessly. He watches as Virgil's eyes widen in surprise.

"Sorry- I-- didn't mean it like that. I.. I was just- you are going in that direction -it was a joke." Virgil stumbles helplessly, trying to recover with many different explanations. Logan exhales guilty, mentally kicking himself for snapping at Virgil like that. He made a joke, nothing more. He doesn't remember anything, how could he? Then again, how could Logan?

"It's quite alright, I just- I didn't get it." Logan covers quickly. Silence lingers between the two light sides.

"Goodnight, Virgil. Sleep well." Logan says before turning around once again and walking down the straight corridor.

"Yeah...you too..." Virgil mumbles after him, watching him speed-walk away.

Rage's POV

"You do understand why I had to take you out of that cell, don't you?" Rage asks, breaking their silence. Lust turns away from the screen to face Rage.

"Of course I do. Doesn't mean I have to like it." Lust teases Rage with a smirk, leaning back into his own rolly chair. Rage does the same, snorting in amusement.

"How long do you think it'll take for him to heal enough to continue?" Lust asks, staring back into the screen.

"Couple days at least with water and meds should do it." Rage responds, checking his watch once more. 4:07 AM, almost time. He can feel it coming.

"What happened today with him?" Rage asks, remembering that he never really asked before. 

"He didn't want to take his meds, so I gave him a hand...down his throat." Lust jokes with an evil snicker.

"Didn't want to take his meds? Why? They most certainly help with the nausea and headaches." Rage questions further, also examining the footage.

"I watched the footage back about an hour ago. Deceit said he didn't want to prolong his life." Lust says victoriously like he had conquered a great dragon.

"Congratulations, you've made your pet completely suicidal." Rage mocks Lust, no amount of pity for Deceit found in any part of him. Deceit very well deserves it.

"Why thank you, thank you." Lust bows his head in acknowledgement of his victories. Rage, still snickering, checks his watch once again. 4:10 AM, time to get into position.

"Alright, it's time. Prepare another cell, will you? I will return with company." Rage says, standing up from the chair and slipping on his black/maroon suit jacket.

"How do you know it will only be Logan? You could be walking right into an ambush for all you know." Lust proposes the scenario.

"Please, they've all just been harshly reminded of the torture from months ago. All of them will be convinced only they remember. Roman and Virgil will be sleeplessly trying to come to terms with what happened to them and Patton will be in complete denial, leaving only one side left." Rage explains, pulling the cuffs of his shirt down neatly.

"Logan." Lust answers, with a half-smile, seemingly impressed by Rage's scheming.

"And Logan will do the most logical thing anyone could do, seek out support in the form of another victim. In this case, that is--" Rage continues on, fixing his hair slightly with his fingers.

"Deceit, my darling pet." Lust finishes his sentence, grinning back at the screen.

"Correct. Now if you'll excuse me, I've got a date." Rage says, pulling open the glass door and exiting the room.

Logan's POV

He finally made it to the edge. Well, that's what he calls it at least. Really, it's just the end of their mind palace, appearing to be nothing more than the end of a hallway. Logan glances at the digital watch around his wrist. 4:15 AM, it's time. There are certain times within Thomas' sleep when he enters REM sleep, or 'rapid-eye-movement', the place in which dreams become more real and vivid. This is also the birthplace of nightmares. For the mind palace, in these certain windows of time, the light side and dark side realm sort of intertwine, but only for a moment. It's a long shot, considering he would need some sort of link to the dark side's realm, like a direct invitation from Deceit. It's still worth a try.

Logan places his hand against the wall and shuts his eyes, focusing hard on his breathing. He feels it suddenly, a pull from the wall to him. His eyes snap open in surprise as his fingers tingle against the wall. 

Logan is being accepted into the dark side of Thomas's mind palace. He honestly didn't expect this to work. Deceit must've unknowingly desired for someone to enter.

Logan sucks in a deep breath as the world goes pitch black around him, plunging him directly into the twisted world that inhabits a half of Thomas's mind.

He opens his eyes, seeing that he is directly in front of Deceit's door, exactly where he needed to go. The riddle that used to hang on the door is gone, leaving just a blank, dark oak door embedded into the wall of shadows. Logan swallows hard as he brings his fist up to knock on the door. Logan knocks once, pushing the door open just a crack. It should be locked, why isn't it locked? Deceit had always been so secretive, surely he wouldn't just forget. Especially now that he has demons to hide from, demons from the past.

"Deceit?" Logan calls out against the door, butterflies suddenly erupting within his insides as nervousness crawls up his spine. He slowly opens the door a little more, being greeted by a wash of damp, cold air. It feels like an invasion of privacy, but Logan doesn't really care at this point. He steps into Deceit's room, the feeling of being watched implanted in the back of his head.

Logan slowly steps in, scanning the room for the dark side. It looks the same as it did all those months ago; Bed centred in the far back, surrounded by a moat of rainwater, ivy dripping from the walls, stalactites hanging from the ceiling. It's eerie, to say the least.

"Deceit-" Logan nearly trips over something but manages to catch himself. He looks down and sees dozens of padlocks scattered across the ground.

"Jesus..." Logan mutters under his breath, guessing that Deceit fell into a state of constant paranoia. Why else would he have an excessive amount of padlocks? Better yet, why are they all unlocked? 

Logan carefully steps around them as he continues into the room. He notices two pairs of handcuffs hanging from each bedpost. He approaches the bed, observing the silver restraints in confusion. In the corner of his eye, he sees a blinking red light. He turns to face it fully, noticing the faint outline of some sort of machine standing at the darkest part of the cave. He steps towards it.

Logan gets close enough to see that it's a camcorder, seemingly recording thanks to the dead giveaway of a flashing red light. He carefully lifts the device from the stand it rests on and flips it in his hands to look at the screen. The timestamp at the bottom of the screen says it has been recording for 17 hours and counting. A chill crawls up his spine as he stops the recording, wondering why on earth Deceit would have this here at all. What happened to him?

Logan goes back to the album on the camcorder and clicks on the only video. Opening the video he immediately sees hands setting up the camcorder, but they are not gloved hands. Logan swallows hard as he presses play on the video.

"There we are..." A familiar voice says as the hands place the digital camera, seemingly on the stand, and straighten it. Logan squints, trying to place that voice. The unknown figure laughs lowly as he steps away, revealing himself. Logan inhales sharply in surprise as the black and green garb come into view, the mustache on the side's face twitching as he grins at the camera.

Remus. 

Logan leans in, watching intently as Remus turns around and steps out of frame, revealing Deceit's bed. Logan notices the faint movement of breathing in the bed, thick covers rising and falling in motion. He sees Deceit's face amidst the pillows, his eyes softly shut as he rests. Logan follows the outline of his body and sees that his wrists are cuffed to the bedposts.

"Oh god..." Logan mutters, unable to look away. This video will tell him what happened to Deceit, he has to keep watching.

Remus steps back into frame, now standing at the side of Deceit's bed, watching him intently. Logan looks behind him very briefly just to check if someone is watching him, feeling the warning shivers tiptoe up his back.

Logan watches Deceit begin to move, eyes fluttering open. His face drains of colour almost immediately when he sees Remus.

"What the hell?" Deceit hisses, pulling his arms from the bedposts to realize that he can't move them at all. Logan clenches his jaw, hands shaking slightly as he grips the camcorder tightly.

"Well, I think it's time the light sides start remembering some things they may have forgotten, don't you think?" Remus's voice says through the video.

The world around Logan seems to fade completely, the only thing he can focus on being the video that was left behind. It was Remus. Remus made him remember everything about Lust and Rage. How? How could he have done this?

Logan sees Remus place his hands on Deceit, closing his eyes in complete focus. Deceit looks terrified, hands clenched tightly as he twists his wrists in the restraints. Like a switch goes off, Deceit goes limp. His eyes fall shut, head lulled to the side. His eyes move rapidly underneath his eyelids, relaying to Logan that he had been forced into a nightmare of some sort? Remus then smiles to himself before walking out of the room, leaving Deceit chained to the bed.

Of course. Remus is the side of intrusive thoughts. He brought those memories to light, forcing Deceit into that trance to relive it all. He must've done the same on Logan, that's why Logan remembers.

Then it hits him. Patton's strange behaviour, Roman's immediate denial, Virgil's remembrance of Logan and Patton's relationship. They remember too.

Remus did it to all of the light sides.

Logan begins to hyperventilate, the camcorder shaking in his hands as he breaks into a cold sweat. How could he not notice? How could he not see?! 

Logan quickly begins to skim through the video, trying to find out where Deceit had gone. 30 minutes in, Deceit wakes up heaving in breath, face lit with panic. He struggles in his restraints for a good 10 minutes. Logan sees Deceit pulling one of his hands in a strange way. Surely Deceit knows he can't slip through those cuffs?

He wasn't trying to. Logan hears a loud pop before Deceit screams in agony. Logan throws a hand over his mouth in surprise, eyes watering as he watches Deceit pull his now-dislocated thumb out of the cuff, freeing one side. He continues to unlock the other with a key on the ground and stands from the bed. Cradling his hand to his chest, Deceit walks out of the room without noticing the camera at all.

"Oh god, oh god no." Logan repeats in disbelief, starting to feel sick as he finally looks up from the camera.

"I-I have to show the others-- there's still time to stop this." Logan says to himself breathlessly, turning around.

"No, I don't think you will..." A menacing voice calls out to Logan from the other end of the room. Logan's head snaps up in the direction of the voice, finding himself staring right into the amused eyes of Rage.

"Greetings, Logan. We have a score to settle, don't we?"

Chapter Text

Lust's POV

Lust watches Rage leave, a sly grin twitching at his lips as he hears Rage's footsteps quiet until they are gone. He snickers to himself, turning back to the footage of Deceit and Remus.

"Your protector has left, my darling..." Lust whispers at the screen, trailing his finger down it once again. He watches Deceit's body shaking as he lies facing the ceiling, jaw clenched as tears run down his face endlessly. His face is extremely pale, the muscles in his face fluttering slightly as he tries his best not to cry out.

Lust rises from his seat, eyes still fixed on the live-recording.

"You're all mine until Rage returns." Lust growls lowly with a sick sneer.

"Let's play together, shall we?" Lust cackles to himself as he pushes away from the desk and spins on his heel, leaving the surveillance room for Deceit and Remus's cell.

Logan's POV

All possible words fall apart in his mouth before they get the chance to string into sentences as he stares at Rage, jaw dropped open.

"Y--you-" Logan stutters, terror wiggling its way into his mind. The dark sides are back, there's no doubt in his mind about that. Only one coherent thought comes to him as he is observed by the coal-red eyes of Rage;

They are all in terrible, terrible danger.

"That's right, it's me." Rage mocks him with an evil grin, taking one threatening step towards the light side. Logan stumbles backwards until his back meets the cold, wet wall of Deceit's cave.

"You remember me, right?" Rage teases him, still advancing towards Logan. Of course, he remembers, how could he not? He spent days in that torture basement being beaten mercilessly by Rage.

Logan swallows hard, body shaking with the camcorder hanging limply in his hand. His fingers stay clamped around the device, not wanting to let go for some unconscious reason.

"Heh, look at you. The brilliant, cold Logan has turned pale as a ghost at the sight of his old friend." A shakey whimper releases from his throat as he presses himself harder against the wall, watching helplessly as his former captor continues to step towards him, amusement lighting his bright eyes. Rage is now inches from Logan's face, looking down at the logical side with a sense of superiority and victory. He leans into Logan's ear closely.

"I am going to make you pay for what you did..." Rage whispers viciously, the words coated in intent and urgency. Logan knows exactly what he is referring to; Pride. It seemed strange to Logan that Rage would care so much about Pride being gone, making him guess that they must have been closer than it seemed.

Logan's eyes flick to behind Rage's head, looking to the door to freedom. If he's going to make a run for it, he has to be quick. He's got one shot at this, he better make it count. Logan swallows hard, subtly pushing himself from the wall to give himself more room to spring into action.

Logan swiftly forces one foot to the left, letting his body carry in the maneuver as he lunges forward. He hears a low, taunting chuckle come from Rage, who immediately grabs him by the tie tightly and slams Logan back into the wall face-first, dropping the camcorder to the ground as the right frame in his glasses cracks dramatically. Logan's groan turns into a shriek when Rage grabs his right arm and pulls it taught behind his back, twisting his wrist slightly so that the tendons squeak and threaten to tear.

"Pathetic, absolutely pathetic. I honestly expected better." Rage scolds him from right behind his head, his nails digging into Logan's forearm as he tightens his grip. Logan feels blood slowly drip from his browbone, most likely a stray glass shard that found it's way into his skin.

"They'll come-come looking for me.-" Logan insists breathlessly, his heart thrumming in his chest. Rage jerks Logan's arm further up his back, forcing a sharp squeal from him as his arm begins to pang terribly.

"Oh yes, I am counting on it." Rage hisses evilly, making it sound like he has everything already planned out.

"That comes later. First, I've got some work to do on you." Logan's back arches as his other hand claws at the wall helplessly.

"You may want to close your eyes." Rage suggests to Logan, who stiffens in confusion. Close his eyes? What, so Rage can drag him off to some sick torture den?

"Why-why on earth would I listen to you-?" Logan snaps at the man behind him, feeling as Rage's hand secures its position on the back of his head.

"Because this will blind you if you don't." Rage snickers, fingers clawing in Logan's dark hair tightly.

Logan sucks a deep breath through his teeth, quickly shutting his eyes tightly, the world spinning out of his control as Rage pulls his head back roughly before forcing it forward, slamming his head and face against the wall with incredible force. Logan feels his glasses shatter against his face, forehead cracking against the wall as shards of his eyewear are easily driven into his skin. There's not much time to register the pain before his head is pulled back once more, only to be belted back into the concrete wall. Logan is completely numb, body absolutely susceptible to every single one of Rage's movements. Logan feels himself forced backwards, skin tingling in warning as he is flying forwards once again, skull crashing into the wall one last time.

Suddenly, Rage abandons him completely, letting him drop to the ground. Logan's head lulls to the side, bright red blood dripping from his broken nose, cut up forehead and face. His vision flashes brightly, sun spots stained into the inside of his eyelids. Blood drips down his throat like a broken tap as he loses consciousness altogether.

Rage's POV

Rage watches Logan slide down the wall, crumpling onto the ground. His face is now a bloody mess of deep gashes and glass shards. The frame and arms of his glasses are mangled completely. Rage smirks down at the unconscious side, hoping it hurts just as much as it looks.

"Well now, didn't last too long, did you?" Rage says to Logan, knowing full well that he can't hear him. Rage bends down and clamps his hands around Logan's ankles, beginning to pull him away from the wall. 

He sees the veins once again, but they are darker this time. He tilts his head in curiosity, studying the strange marks closely. Rage shakes his head, insisting that he has far too much work to do to be worrying about a bunch of lines on his skin. 

Rage continues to drag Logan across the floor, leaving a trail of shiny, reflective blood behind as he makes for the door.

Deceit's POV

Deceit is trying his very best to not make any noise, as to comfort Remus just a little. Remus must be able to tell how hard he is trying, sneaking glances when Deceit squirms on the floor, hands locked into tight balls as he holds his breath, releasing it only when the urge to scream softens just a little. He had almost fallen asleep when a deafening alarm came on, nearly making his ears bleed. Deceit had nearly jumped up at the sound which terribly contorted his many broken ribs, making the agony near unbearable now. Not to mention the deep slashes across his back that sting and burn with every breathing moment of his torturous existence. He is crying, that much is easy to tell. It's almost impossible to keep the screaming inside, but trying to stop the tears would be like trying to stop a freight train going at full speed. Every once and a while he whimpers slightly, but Remus doesn't seem to hear. If he does, he never says anything. What could he say anyway? Nothing. Nothing could make this any better. No words can calm the bone chattering agony. No amount of pity will change the past, erase the torment and humiliation. Just like no amount of begging will prevent the future.

Deceit faintly hears the door opening through the pressure in his head as he holds his breath tightly. He exhales as he lifts his head up slightly, body rattling as every last drop of energy is used to move. He immediately recognizes the shape of Lust standing in the doorway.

"Hey-! You aren't supposed to be in he--" Remus begins to shout to Lust, who immediately lunges for the dark side. Remus is silenced by Lust's hand, pushed against the wall as Lust tuts his tongue in disappointment.

"You've made a drastic mistake, making an enemy out of me..." Lust threatens softly, staring into Remus's wide eyes with a devilish grin. Deceit watches helplessly as Lust shoves a syringe into Remus's neck with his free hand, pushing down hard onto the plunger, injecting the drug into the side. Lust drops Remus, laughing lowly as he slides down the wall, eyes flickering shut as he tries to remain conscious.

"No-" He mumbles, hands falling limp onto his lap as the drug takes over. 

"De-Dee---" Remus tries to say his name but loses consciousness before he gets a chance to finish.

"There we are, all alone once more..." Lust whispers to Deceit, taking one step towards the shaking side. Deceit groans quietly as his heels scrape against the ground, trying to get away from Lust. He doesn't move at all, his body simply too beaten and drained of life.

"This is how it was always supposed to be, just me and you... No one in our way.." Lust continues on, taking another step. Deceit whines quietly, blinking tears out of his eyes as he makes another attempt at moving.

"This is really all I ever wanted, you know." Deceit can barely make out his words, sliding his back up but stopping when the pain becomes too great. He cries out this time, unable to keep it inside as the horrifying claws of complete agony wrap around him again. He goes still, chest shaking as he tries to breathe through the pain, tears streaming down his face as he stares up at the blurred image of Lust looming above him.

"I never cared for Rage's plan to get revenge for Pride. I honestly don't really care Pride is dead." Lust now stands directly beside him. He kneels down, observing as Deceit reluctantly comes to terms with not being able to get away. Deceit keeps his eyes looking elsewhere, guessing that he couldn't stand to stare at Lust at the moment.

"As long as I own you, I am perfectly happy." Lust declares to his 'possession'. Deceit's chest quivers constantly as the burden of breathing becomes harder and harder due to the immense stress.

Deceit feels Lust slowly lift one of his hands up gently, the one with the dislocated thumb. He tries to pull it away, but Lust keeps a strong grip on his wrist, tutting his tongue in disappointment at his instinctual act of self-defence.

"Oh come now, why on earth would I hurt you?" Lust mocks him with a sneer, fingers caressing his prisoner's hand softly.

'Yeah, that's a damn good question.' Deceit thinks to himself bitterly, forcing his eyes away once again. If he could muster up the breath to be a smart ass, he would. Or, is that just a pathetic excuse for being completely broken? Is he merely in denial?

Of course, he is.

"Now, why don't I break a couple more of these fingers?" Lust teases him, running his free hand across Deceit's limp fingers. Deceit inhales sharply at the threat and tries to sit up, but falls right back down when his torso refuses to bend any further. He cries out, his scream raspy and low as it rips through his dry throat. 

"Shhh, it will be over soon..." Lust whispers to him, clenching around his shaking middle finger.

Deceit feels it instantly once Lust forcefully jerks Deceit's finger to the side sharply. He hollers, feeling the bone bend past the point of return and hearing a distinctive pop within the appendage as it fractures. His vision is white-hot as he tries to pull away from Lust, who continues to press the fractured finger down long after it broke. He finally manages to twist his wrist and pull away, handshaking terribly as he clenches it to his chest. He sucks in another breath, readying to scream once again. Lust slaps a hand over his mouth, leaning over him so that their faces are close together, close enough that Deceit feels heat coming from him.

"By the way, if you keep yelling, I'll keep breaking them until all 10 are completely shattered, then we move on to toes." Lust warns him, his pupils dilated in insane and sadistic anticipation and eagerness. Deceit shakes his head in a silent plead, wide eyes staring up at Lust in complete terror.

"So sorry, Darling. But it's not up to me, it's up to you to stop yourself from screaming or making any noise at all. You need the practice." Lust says, fake-pity found in his words. Deceit bites down hard on the inside of his mouth, tears falling down his cheeks consistently, almost like he had been crying since the moment he came to existence.

"Now, I'm going to break another since you already yelled." Deceit shakes his head once again in utter despair, silently hoping to himself that somehow Lust has some amount of pity.

"I'm going to release my hand now, alright? Don't make any noise...or else..." Lust threatens Deceit with a cocky grin, finally lifting his hand from Deceit's mouth.

Once his lips are free, Deceit feels his throat tighten as a scream prepares to release. He tries so goddamn hard to keep it in, but it's no use. It's just a small whimper, barely audible, but it's noise, and it's from him. Lust chuckles lowly at his whine and at the face of realization that comes soon after.

"2." Lust says to him mockingly with a sneer, numbering how many of Deceit's fingers he plans to break.

"N--no- plea-pl--" Deceit struggles to get the words out, managing to make a mere shell of what a sentence should be.

"3." Lust adds another.

"Lus--L-" He croaks, voice quivering just as much as the rest of his body.

"4. You're up to a whole hand including the one you already dislocated, Darling." Lust warns him, grabbing his wrist once again and pulling him closer. Deceit feels another plead coming up, but it's no use. It will only hurt him more. He bites down hard on his tongue as he pushes the urge to beg back. Lust observes him for about a minute, seeing if he would crack again. He doesn't, multi-coloured eyes staring up at the ceiling.

"There we are, not so hard, was it?" Lust jeers, hand clenching around his pointer finger. Deceit stiffens and shuts his eyes tight, waiting for the snap to sound. He just wants it to be over, for it all to end already.

"Remember, no noises..." Lust coos at Deceit, adjusting his grip ever so slightly.

Deceit nearly bites clean through his tongue as Lust tugs the finger to the side, sending a deep crack through his distal phalanx. He can feel his face flush with heat as he holds his breath, nearly passing out as he tries to keep it inside. The constant crying gives his true emotions away, as well as how his lips are peeled against his teeth tightly, face contorted into one of great effort and strain. He eventually exhales, chest and throat collapsing under the need for oxygen. His throat is tight as he swallows, the sensation of fresh tears reaching him immediately. The two fingers pang in unison, copying the beat of his heart.

"Good, very good..." Lust purrs at him, his hand already moving to the dark side's ring finger.

"I really hope you don't plan on getting married, you might not be able to fit the ring on with the swelling..." Lust breaks into a cackle as Deceit sucks in another breath, preparing himself for another break.

It's more fluid this time. He doesn't feel the pop, just the sudden movement and the agony right after. It gets harder to keep the noises inside as each one breaks, more pain coming to slowly nibble away at his tolerance. He's reaching his limit, he can feel it. He doesn't even get the chance to exhale before Lust goes to his pinky finger, tweaking it hard to the right. The little finger easily fractures, more severely than the others. 

It's too much. Each finger is now pulsing with heat, an unstoppable fire that threatens to burn him alive. He feels his hand shaking, unable to process the amount of torment. His chest is extremely tight, feeling that it may just shatter if he continues his silence. He swallows hard, lips quivering. Lust sees his eyes darken as the realization hits him. He can't keep it in, he just can't. 

The dreaded scream finally comes from him, dragging out until no breath remains in his lungs. Lust simply smirks as Deceit inhales deeply, his heart jumping against his chest. He holds his breath again, trying to salvage the situation desperately, but he just can't. He exhales, choppy moans escaping with his breathing.

Lust releases his horribly mangled hand, tutting his tongue in mock-sympathy. Deceit feels Lust pick up his left wrist, snickering lowly.

Panic takes over, instilling deep terror into the mind of Deceit.

"No--no Lus-t-- don't-!" Deceit begs loudly, trying to pull his hand away, but Lust's death-grip makes it impossible.

"You're up to 2 on this hand already, do you really think it's a good idea to be pleading?" Lust teases his squirming victim, whose skin has gone so pale it is now translucent.

Lust's fingers clench around his left thumb.

"N-- Stop- -stop- -plea--" Deceit squeals at the top of his lungs, his legs kicking out as he tries everything to just get Lust to stop.

"3. Keep going, Dear, almost your whole hand!" Lust cackles manically in deranged pleasure as he twists Deceit's thumb ever slightly to the right. Deceit can't even put together words anymore, simply resorting to full out hollering at the sheer indication of another broken finger.

"Oh, 4! One more, come on!" Lust exclaims excitedly with a huge, raving smile. Deceit loses all sense of logistic reasoning and pushes too far.

"LUST PLEASE- PLEASE- GOD NO- STOP- -PLEASE DON'T--- DON'T-!!" Deceit howls, his throat burning rawly with the amount of talking he has forced himself to undertake.

"All 5, huh?" Lust leans in closer as Deceit goes fully silent.

"Lucky me..." Lust doesn't move away as he yanks Deceit's thumb so far to the side it makes stars appear in his eyes. The thumb cracks and pops several times as literally every tendon and ligament squeak and tear instantaneously. 

He can barely hear his own yelling, but judging by how much his throat hurts, he knows he has completely lost all control over his vocal cords. His other hand moves to clench around Lust's arm, but immediately drops back onto the ground when the slightest movement makes his bones shake with agony.

"Looks like we'll be moving onto toes next." Deceit hears faintly through the sound of his own screaming. In the corner of his bloodshot eyes, Deceit sees the door of the cell open.

"Lust!" Rage's voice booms over them both. Lust immediately releases Deceit's hand, jumping to his feet instantaneously.

"Care to explain what you two were doing?" Rage demands, a murderous undertone lying in his words very deliberately.

"Care to introduce me to your friend?" Lust says mockingly, pointing to the unconscious body of Logan, who Rage has set down right outside of the door.

"Don't avoid the question." Rage grumbles gravely, eyes darkened as his gaze swaps from Deceit's to Lust's.

"I was giving him his medicine." Lust lies quickly. Rage crosses his arms over his chest impatiently.

"If I check those tapes, is that what I'm going to see?" Rage demands, pointing to the camera in the corner of the room.

"You can try, but someone disabled the cameras." Lust gives Rage a sly, knowing grin.

"Someone?" Rage growls. Lust fluidly approaches the fellow dark side, leaning into his face with a grin.

"Yeah....that might've been me." Lust mocks him, insanity lingering in his stare.

"I ordered you to stay out of here until he healed..." Rage scolds angrily. Deceit, who has not stopped whining through this whole interaction, sees strange black lines crawling up Rage's neck.

"Yeah? I don't take orders from you, you're not Pride." Lust seethes at the dark side. Rage stiffens at the mention of the dead side, teeth bared savagely as Lust begins to walk past him.

"Oh, one more thing." Lust says, stopping to lean into Rage's ear.

"Knock next time, will you? Since you interrupted us, he still owes me 4 fingers." Lust hisses sadistically, smirking as he notices Rage's jaw clench. Deceit watches Lust stroll out of the cell, whistling to himself as he steps over the unconscious light side.

Once Lust leaves, Rage immediately drops to Deceit's side.

"What did he do to you?" He insists, scanning Deceit's pale, tear-drenched face.

"Fingers... he said fingers..." Rage reaches for Deceit's hand and pulls it up. Deceit immediately shrieks sharply, ears ringing as he threatens to lose consciousness.

"Jesus..." Rage mutters to himself, examining the swollen fingers that are bent drastically out of place. They are all deep purple and blue, sharp protrusions poking out from multiple places.

"He's gone completely insane..." Rage mumbles, staring down at the mangled hands of Deceit. Deceit finds his eyelids drooping shut, the ringing in his ears growing louder and louder. His body has finally reached its limit, unable to physically or emotionally hang on to the painful reality any longer.

Deceit feels himself slip away from consciousness.

Chapter Text

Rage's POV

Rage watches as Deceit's face relaxes, losing all sense of reality completely as he slips away from consciousness. He tears his eyes away from the pathetic excuse that has become Deceit, bitterness lacing his mouth.

He should've known this would happen. How could he really have thought he could control Lust? No one can control Lust.

He would be lying if he claimed not to enjoy seeing Deceit bleeding and broken, but if Lust continues this way with their prisoner, he will almost definitely perish before he gets the chance to suffer enough. Really it will never be enough for either of them. 

Rage glances over to Remus who is also unconscious, though from what Rage is not sure. 

Rage rolls his eyes and steps around Remus, making his way towards the open door where Logan is still laying. He decides to speak to Lust later, for now, he has much more important things to worry about. 

He steps in front of Logan, whose face is still bleeding. His forehead is bruised pretty severely, and the cuts have become gooey and congealed. Rage smirks as he takes hold of Logan's ankles and drags him into the cell. 

"You are in for a world of hurt once you wake up." Rage snickers to the unconscious side, dropping him onto the ground with the intended force to make sure he feels it when he wakes.

He spends a moment staring down at Logan, watching the rise and fall of his chest. His eyes flick back to Deceit, who looks like he is having a tremendous amount of difficulty breathing, which makes sense. He notices how red and swollen the knife marks have become, shiny with tight skin and greenish-yellow pus. They're infected of course. The steri strips weren't enough to keep them closed.

Rage lets out a long exhale as he stares at the very wounded side.

"I should patch you up, shouldn't I?" Rage says aloud with a bitter, reluctant voice. He exhales once again and begrudgingly walks over to Deceit's unconscious body. Deceit won't wake up for at least another 30 minutes, so he should just carry him. 

Rage kneels down and slips a hand underneath the side's legs and one arm around his back. Without much effort, Rage lifts Deceit up into his arms. The side is lighter than he expected him to be, but that is mostly caused by dehydration and malnourishment. It seems like Deceit never really got his diet under control, his ribs showing through the skin. He must've been too traumatized to even feed himself most days.

That thought forces a grin onto Rage's face. He deserved it, he deserves all of it. But for now, Rage has to patch up and clean his oldest enemy. 

Rage carries Deceit through the door and into the bright hallways.

"Don't want you dying too soon, now do I?" Rage mocks the unconscious side with a snicker as they head towards the infirmary.

Logan's POV

"Ugh-god..." Logan hears himself say, eyes squeezed tightly shut as a massive headache takes over his every thought. His body feels heavy like he can't move at all. He slowly opens his eyes, feeling the pain pounding into his head double immensely. 

Concrete walls fill his vision. They are smooth, shiny even. He tries to sit up a little, but the agony forces him back down onto the floor with a shriek. His forehead is blistering with pain, making him wonder what exactly happened to him. He slowly brings up a hand to his forehead, his fingertips grazing against the hot skin. He suddenly brushes against a sharp shard that is poking out of his skull. He winces, exploring the shape with his fingers as he tries to pinpoint what exactly is punctured into his skin.

Glass. It's the glass from his eyeglasses. He remembers very faintly feeling Rage slam him face-first into a wall, but it is all very foggy after that. 

"Sh-shit--" Logan curses under his breath, feeling more shards of glass poking into his forehead. It stings terribly, but at least he can see.

"You're awake?" Somebody says across from him. Logan jerks himself up into a sitting position, disregarding the immediate wave of hot torment that pounds at his skull at every angle. He finds himself looking at Remus.

Logan quickly shoves himself back into a corner, pressing himself against the wall.

"Yo-you..." Logan hisses at the dark side, whose mustache twitches with confusion.

"Sorry?" Remus asks, looking for clarity. 

"It was you. You brought them bac-back, didn't you?" Logan accuses the side venomously. Remus opens his mouth to respond, but it doesn't look like he knows what to say.

"It's...hard to explain.." Remus claims, rubbing his arm awkwardly as Logan attempts to carve a hole into the side of Remus' head with his eyes alone.

"How could you?" Logan mutters hatefully, teeth grinding together as the migraine comes in waves to pull him back into the tide of torment.

"I didn't! Well, not really." Remus defends himself. Logan stares expectantly at Remus, waiting for the dark side to explain himself

"Lust.. well... controlled me. They made me free them and then they shoved me in here." Remus explains to Logan, whose face remains completely still with doubt.

"I don't believe you." Logan hisses bitterly, tearing his eyes away from Remus.

"You have to! Why-would I release them?" Remus insists. Logan's cold glare finds his eyes once again.

"Where did you even come from? Why are you here?" Logan keeps allowing his emotions to slip past his control, being too stunned and tired to really force himself back into the cold reasoning that he holds dear.

"I came from you, don't you see?" Remus raises his voice in frustration, causing Logan to flinch out of traumatic experience. 

"This is your fault! Did you really think repression was a good idea!?" Remus shouts at the logical side with an edge in his voice. Remus looks away, his frosted grey tips plastered onto his forehead from sweat. Logan keeps a steady gaze fixed on the dark side, watching him very carefully. He doesn't seem like a threat, even less so, he seems pathetic. Logan can't really talk, he must seem absolutely pitiful to Remus as well. 

They both turn their torsos away from one another, untrusting of each other. Besides, Logan has more pressing matters to worry about, one being the concussive, almost skull-cracking pain that pounds into his head. The other is Rage, who is no doubt ready to snap him in two.

Deceit's POV

When Deceit comes to, he immediately knows he is no longer in the cold, damp cell. The ceiling above him is a stark white contrast to the cement one before it. The ground also feels softer to some degree. He moves just a little, sucking air through his teeth as his ribs beg him to just stop moving. He gives in to this demand, letting himself sink into the more comfortable grounding beneath him.

"Ah, welcome back." A voice welcomes him from beside his head. He jerks to look to his left, seeing Rage

 In dazed confusion, Deceit stares up at his captor. The fogginess fades in his nerves, unveiling a pang of hurt in his torso, head, and hands. He holds his breath to keep the scream from coming out, tears already glazing his eyes. Rage hasn't even started to hurt him and he is in this much pain? He is in a lot of trouble.

Deceit lifts himself up just a little to take in his surroundings, grinding his teeth together in an urge to stop the shriek from passing his lips. The 'ground' was, in fact, a hospital bed he is now laying on. The room is quite small and has shelves of medical supplies such as; Splints, gauze, pills, syringes etc..

He must've looked bewildered as Rage chuckles shortly after.

"Relax, would you? I didn't bring you here just to hurt you some more." Rage jeers.

"Well, not entirely... This is going to hurt." Rage grins down at Deceit, whose eyelids keep flicking, threatening to lose consciousness. 

"Now, I am going to patch you up and rehydrate you." Rage informs him, still looming over his quivering body. Deceit can barely believe the words he is hearing. Why would Rage be helping him? Healing him?

"Oh don't look so surprised, you know that I can't let you die. Let's just get one thing straight..." Rage grabs a hold of Deceit's jaw firmly with his veiny hands, chipped nails digging into his sensitive skin. 

"I'm not doing this out of pity or empathy. You should know by now that I don't have either of those. I am doing this because if I don't, you will die and my entire plan will fall apart. Got it?" Rage growls into his face so closely that Deceit can smell the cigarette smoke on his breath. It never really occurred to Deceit that Rage smoked, but it made a weird sort of sense.

Rage doesn't bother waiting for an answer, he knows that one won't come from Deceit. He releases his grip and places his hands behind his back. An idea suddenly pops into Deceit's head. No empathy or pity? Maybe not pity, but for sure empathy. He is doing all of this for one reason; to avenge Pride. That merits some sort of empathy, a level of emotion that makes Rage seem mouldable. Something changed within Rage when Pride died, for better or for worse Deceit does not know. He can hardly manage to string together a train of coherent thoughts, so manipulating Rage would have to wait.

"I am going to set your fingers so they heal." Rage tells him with a slightly softer tone, not by much. Deceit immediately tenses as Rage grabs hold of his hand.

"No--sto--" Using his free hand, Rage shoves a clean white rage into his mouth, silencing his plead.

"Now this is going to hurt like hell, so bite into that rag. I don't enjoy your screaming as much as Lust does." Rage teases him as one hand wraps around his thumb, which pangs in response.

"Ah, this one is already set. That was nice of Lust, wasn't it?" Rage then goes to his pointer finger. Deceit screams into the rag in the terrible anticipation of bone chattering agony that would soon overtake him.

Rage doesn't bother prolonging his terror. He quickly jerks the finger back into place, making a sickening noise as the joint pops into its rightful area. Deceit sees his vision go completely white as he arches his back, teeth clamped hard around the white rage as he shrieks into the dense cloth.

"Next one." Rage gives him a warning, which Deceit would sort of appreciate if he wasn't so close to being unconscious once again. The noise comes, this time being louder as it is his middle finger. The scream comes out as a gurgled choke, eyelids falling down as the pain becomes too much once again. He doesn't even try to hold on to his reality, letting himself slip away as Rage's warm fingers clamp around Deceit's ring finger.

He's only freed from the pain for a maximum of two minutes before his eyes fly open once again. He immediately groans into the cloth, a groan that soon transforms into a howl as his entire hand blazes with agony. He whines and screams, unable to do so much as lift a finger on that hand.

"Ah yes, I'm just moving on to the next hand. Relax, would you?" Deceit can't tell if Rage is teasing him or is actually being serious. He assumes the first.

He feels Rage grip his left thumb, which is the only broken finger on that hand. Deceit's consciousness fails once again as the thumb is pulled harshly back into place.

Deceit blinks the darkness away once again just as the rag is released from his lips. He lets out a low groan, feeling the wetness of tears rolling down his cheeks from the entire ordeal. Rage doesn't waste any time before he is grabbing at the first hand again. Deceit manages to make some noise that sounds like 'stop', but it only results in a laugh from Rage.

Rage slips on 5 splints to each of his fingers and tightens them, ensuring they will not shift out of place. He places one other splint on his left thumb also. Deceit remains mostly silent as any amount of breathing or yelling only causes him more pain that emanates from the very bottom of his chest and radiates across his entire body. By remaining calm it saves him some of the agonies. Besides, he can't fight back anyways. Why would he? Rage is, in a way, helping him.

"See? Wasn't so bad." Rage mocks him with a chuckle as Deceit's face goes red with his effort of not screaming out.

"Unfortunately, the fun part is over." Rage says with a dramatic exhale as he moves closer to Deceit. Deceit moans out in pain when Rage lifts his front up a little and makes him sit up. His ribs creak together painfully, causing a whine to come from his chapped lips.

"Try to hold still. This is just as embarrassing for both of us." Rage asks him ironically. Deceit can hear the sloshing of liquid behind him and turns his head just a little to see what exactly Rage was going to do. Rage has another cloth, one not soaked completely in Deceit's saliva, and is pouring rubbing alcohol onto it.

Rage is going to clean Deceit's wounds.

It stings terribly, making him instinctively reach to grip the hospital bed's covers. He immediately stops when his splinted fingers whine with horrible pain. He feels Rage (surprisingly) gently pat the soaked rag against each deep cut, letting the alcohol sterilize each wound. 

Deceit whines once again, his ribs aching terribly.

"Just a little longer." Rage assures Deceit in a strange sort of parental tone. Deceit stiffens at the gentle words, confused by the sudden care that Rage treats with him. The wet cloth goes up to his shoulders now and around his sides, some stinging and burning worse than others.

"There, should be clean." Rage gently allows Deceit to lay back down onto the bed. 

Deceit is simply stricken into silence by the gentle care. Rage could very well have dragged that cloth against each cut roughly, rubbing it raw and then slam him back into the bed, but he didn't. Why? Somehow the fact that he didn't do that makes it worse than if he did.

Deceit watches wide-eyed as Rage soaks another clean cloth and begins padding against the numerous cuts on his chest. Rage seems lost in his own head, mind wandering far away from this infirmary room in Lust's vault. He looks...content? His eyes are softer, lips slightly parted as he focuses only on his task of healing Deceit.

How did the tone of this go from torturous fun to uncomfortable helping so quickly?

"I'm going to wrap your torso in gauze now to keep it clean, or at least until Lust gets his hands on you again." Rage lifts him up again, helping him this time. Still completely taken aback by the sudden changes, Deceit stays absolutely silent as Rage carefully wraps his torso with clean, medicated gauze. 

"Whoops, sorry about that Pride." Rage says as he tugs the gauze a little too tightly, causing a whine from Deceit. 

Now they both freeze. Deceit hears Rage grind his teeth together and clears his throat. He continues wrapping Deceit's horribly cut up torso without another word.

Deceit feels Rage clip the wrapping together, keeping it bound around his chest.

"Drink." Rage demands overly harshly, holding him a cup of water. Deceit reaches for it, but his shaking hands simply cannot withstand the pain long enough. He needs a drink so badly, his throat as dry as the Mojave desert. He whines, tears flushing his eyes as he reaches once again.

"Ugh, fine." Rage rolls his eyes and stands beside Deceit, bringing the water cup to the deceitful side's lips. Deceit tilts his head as Rage tips the cup, letting the cool liquid soothe his burning throat. The cooling sensation coats his throat with a calm, numbing feeling. The cup is soon drained of its contents, making him immediately disappointed. Rage notices the look and automatically takes the cup from his lips and turns to place it underneath the tap. He turns the nob and fills it once again.

Rage allows him another drink, which he holds just a little out of reach of Deceit's mouth. Startled, Deceit sees as Rage holds two pills in front of his lips.

"Open." Rage demands him without explaining what they are. Deceit is hesitant, of course. Rage scoffs at him.

"They are painkillers." He informs Deceit, gesturing to them again. Deceit slowly, against his better judgement, opens his mouth. Rage places the pills on his tongue and tilts the water into his mouth once again. The pills go down smoothly with the water, much better than when Lust forced them down his throat. The cup is drained once more and Deceit almost feels like he could stay conscious for longer than a couple of hours now. He is refreshed, rejuvenated.

"Come on, let's go back." Rage insists, helping him off the bed.

Neither of them says another word as Rage carries him back to the cell. 

Logan's POV

Just as Logan was dozing off finally, the cell door opens loudly. He jerks himself awake, immediately pressing himself against the wall. Remus has done the same.

"Ah, awake are we?" Logan sees Rage and Deceit. Deceit looks absolutely terrible. His skin is freakishly pale, his scales have dulled to the point where they are nearly invisible, an entire hand has all of his fingers in splints, and his torso is wrapped tightly with white gauze. 

Deceit's eyes meet his own. Logan is honestly relieved to see the dark side, but Deceit doesn't return the feeling. He simply looks away, not out of anger, but simply because he doesn't seem to care. Rage walks Deceit back into the cell and sits him down at the back.

"You should all get to know each other, I've got things to attend to." Rage begins to leave, but stops right in front of Logan, looking down at him.

"I'm coming back for you..." Rage growls at him with a sinister look in his eyes. Logan swallows hard, shaking out of pain and terror as Rage exits the cell, locking the door behind himself.

The three sides are left with one another.

Patton's POV

It's the next morning. Patton didn't get any sleep last night as he was twisting and turning, running away from threats that weren't really alive, but were alive in his dreams. It's almost 7 in the morning and no one is to be found. Patton is sitting at their dining table, head resting on the table for just a moment. He won't allow his eyes to close however, having a newfound terror for his unconscious mind as it replays the trauma he suffered months ago.

He winces slightly as the faces of Lust, Rage, and Pride enter his mind.

'No! No, I don't want to think about you!' Patton demands childishly to his thoughts, but it only seems to strengthen them. His eyes water as he lifts his head from the table, unsure of how much longer he could handle being all alone.

Logan. He just wants Logan here. He needs Logan here.

Patton's head suddenly perks up when he hears footsteps approaching the room. He rubs the stray tears from his face and immediately forces a smile into his lips. A faint feeling of disappointment sinks in his gut when Roman comes into view. At least he isn't alone anymore.

"Morning Roman, you're not usually up this early!" Patton exclaims in an overly enthusiastic voice, trying to hide the slight tremor of fear that seems to shake his vocal cords.

"Hmm? Oh, right. I couldn't sleep." Roman says, barely lifting his eyes to meet Patton's. Roman slips into his chair, blank eyes not leaving the table. Patton feels a shiver creep up his back, noticing that something was obviously very wrong with Roman.

"Are you okay buddy?" Patton asks in the sweetest voice he can muster. Roman lifts his head slightly, finally returning his gaze. He looks pale, heavy bags staining the skin underneath his bloodshot eyes. His hair is in dismay, which is already unusual for Roman, who never leaves his room without looking his absolute best.

"Would--would it be alright if I wasn't okay?" Roman asks meekly like he was afraid of the answer that might come. Patton's eyes widen, mouth hanging open in surprise. He hadn't expected that. A sudden jolt of panic runs through his veins as another thought squeezes into his mind; What if they all remember too? What if he's not the only one who has had the hellish epiphany?

"Uh- yeah- yeah of course! Yes, we all have bad days." Patton quickly recovers, forcing the look of utter astonishment from his face. Roman does not seem to relax at his comment, face still scrunched into a look of despair and fear.

"Right, sorry." Roman backs away from the conversation, looking back down at the table. His eyes dart, almost like he was trying to decide something.

"So- what's for breakfast?" Roman asks Patton, voice immediately raised into a higher, more cheerful tone. It has an underlying shake of panic, almost like he's hiding the words he wanted to say so badly under his tongue. 

Patton watches a forced smile come from Roman and immediately knows that Roman remembers the trauma they all went through many months ago.

After all, Roman isn't the only one who would put on a fake smile, now is he?

Chapter Text

Deceit's POV

Deceit sits up against the back of the cell wall as it allows his broken ribs to be relieved of pressure. It isn't much of a relief, but at least it is something. Besides, the painkillers Rage gave him will work in about 20 minutes. He just has to wait the pain out. 

His eyes are closed as he breathes in through his nose and out through his mouth, controlling the white-hot waves of agony that roll over him in pulses.

"Deceit, what is going on?" Logan asks to Deceit, who forces himself to return his gaze. Deceit stares at Logan, waiting for another question. He can sense one coming. He also observes Logan's facial injuries which he didn't see earlier. They look bad, red and swollen, scabbing over gooily.

"Where did he come from?" Logan gestures to Remus with his head, who immediately sits up at the accusation.

"I came from you, dork. You repressed these memories, and I became a side." Remus intervenes, which is good because Deceit honestly wasn't going to answer. He's far too broken, too fragile to bother answering. It doesn't really matter anymore, nothing does. He knows he's not getting away from Lust.

"Yes and then you forced us all to remember, I am aware." Logan snaps at the dark side quickly. Remus tilts his head in suspicion, trading quick glances with Deceit, who is equally confused. How did Logan know that? Logan must've noticed their bewildered expressions.

"I saw the camera in Deceit's room." Logan informs them. Deceit's eyebrows narrow, looking back over to Remus who doesn't seem to understand.

"A camera? I don't know what you're talking about." Logan snorts in dark amusement, staring hatefully at Remus.

"You set up a camera in Deceit's room. You filmed yourself tying him down and forcing him to remember. I saw it all." Logan admits, noticing how Deceit turns away from them both.

'They filmed that? Filmed my self-inflicted dislocation, my nightmares?' Deceit questions himself, a warm, putrid taste filling his mouth. He was being watched all along, how could he not notice that? Well, he had more important things to worry about.

"I don't remember a camera..." Remus furrows his eyebrows, trying his hardest to uncover the past. Logan rolls his eyes very obviously.

"Please. You don't remember? Bullshit. You're responsible for all of this." Logan spits at the side.

"No-" Deceit mutters breathlessly, careful not to move too much as the words release. He keeps his splintered fingers still on his lap as to not irritate them further, despite the panging that pulses within each cast.

"Sorry?" Logan asks, trying to clarify if he had heard the right word come from the terribly brutalized side.

"It's- not Remus's faul-fault. He was be-being controlled b-by Lust." Deceit forces every word out, which takes a great deal of energy and effort, both of which he has a deficiency.

"You seriously believe him? After what he has done?" Logan hisses at Deceit, whose skin has a film of sweat. In the back of his mind, he is faintly wishing for the medication to take effect sooner.

"He's righ-right Logan, this is ou-our fault." Deceit stutters with power in his voice, causing Logan to finally shut his mouth.

"We decided- to repress them-. We should've kn-known this w-wou-would happen. In repress-ing them, we h-have only made them more dangerous." Deceit declares to Logan, struggling to string the sentence together as his throat and voice quiver in unison with the pulses of pain.

"What do they want from us?" Logan demands, his voice sounding more like that of Patton than himself. He's grown so emotional that lately, the two are indistinguishable.

"Isn't it obvious?" Deceit snaps at him in his signature snake tone. The other two sides stare at him in surprise, not having heard him speak so clearly and confidently in the past several hours. Deceit sighs, biting his lip to keep a shriek inside when his chest moves a lot more than he intended.

"Rage wants revenge for Pride." He informs them, finding it difficult to speak without stuttering. He can now manage to do it for short sentences, making him think that the painkillers have begun their work.

"And Lust--well--" Deceit trails off, head lowering slightly along with his eyes.

"He just wants me-" He says, voice choking slightly, though for what reason he does not know. Deceit swallows hard, teeth clamping together as the memories begin to intrude his mind. The sound of his fingers breaking, how he obeyed Lusts' every word in hopes that he would save himself some of the pain enters as well. His hands shake in his lap, making him curl his toes in pain.

Lust got what he wanted, didn't he?

Silence lingers as thick as fog between the three sides. Deceit closes his eyes again, letting his head rest against the cold wall.

"We have to get out of here." Logan announces after several minutes, struggling to get to his feet. He slams a hand against the wall to keep himself up as he threatens to lose consciousness. Remus and Deceit watch as Logan runs his hands up and down the wall, looking for a crack or button of some sort to release them.

"Logan, there is no way out. I've already checked." Remus tells the logical side, but that doesn't stop Logan from trying. Deceit can hear him mumbling to himself as he continues to feel every part of the wall, sliding across when he finishes one section.

"No-no there's always a way out. Approximately 12.7% of all prisoners manage to escape jail worldwide, surely this isn't as secure as a jail." Logan mutters to them both. Deceit feels pity sink into his stomach for the light side, knowing that Logan has descended into catatonic denial.

"12.7%? That is barely anyone, Logan." Remus tells him, but that doesn't stop Logan.

"Okay, okay easy. Walls made of concrete obviously, similar strength to steel with a density of 150 pounds per cubic foot-" Logan is completely gone, replaced only by the ramblings of a mad man. He's pulling random facts out of his brain trying to tie together some sort of escape plan that is most definitely impossible. It's hard to watch for Deceit, considering Logan was the only light side he respected.

"Breaking a slab of concrete requires approximately 687 pounds of force. It's humanly possible, many martial artists do it daily-" Deceit and Remus trade pitiful glances as Logan steps back and observes the concrete wall next to the door.

"But how thick is the wall is the question? Is it reinforced concrete?" Logan suddenly spins towards the two dark sides.

"How thick is the wall? You saw it, didn't you? How thick?!" Logan demands them, watching Deceit and Remus exchange confused, skeptical looks.

"Logan--" Remus tries to get through, but he can't manage to be heard through Logan's own thoughts.

"I could probably sustain at least two full punches before all the fingers on one hand jam. That's not bad- no- no not all- not bad..." Logan slaps a hand against his forehead and nearly falls over. Deceit recognizes the dizzied expression as a concussion.

"Logan ju-just calm down--" Deceit tries to calm him, but he can't stand up, he can barely manage another word without wincing from the torment.

"No- no I can figure this out-I--I" Logan trails off. Deceit immediately sees the sheen of tears enter his cold, brown eyes.

"I---" Logan suddenly drops onto his knees, his face collapsing into his hands. Deceit sees his shoulders shaking as he begins to cry.

Rage's POV

Rage finally makes his way back to the surveillance room. He needs to talk to Lust about Deceit, just to get him to give him a break. He can't lose another dark side, he just can't. For his plan of course. Nothing more than that.

Rage presses the button outside of the room and watches the door slide open, stepping inside. Lust is watching a video, what Rage only assumes is the live surveillance feed from Deceit's cell.

"Lust, we need to talk." Rage demands to the dark side.

'I'm going to wrap your torso in gauze now to keep it clean, or at least until Lust gets his hands on you again.'  Rage was about to say something, but he freezes as he hears his own voice coming through the screen.

"Wait- what are you watching? What is that?" Rage orders, stomping up to stand beside Lust, who is grinning as he watches the video. Rage is stricken silent as he sees what Lust is watching so intently; video footage from the infirmary room. He was watching the whole time Rage was patching up Deceit. He saw everything.

"Oh good, you're here for my favourite part." Lust exclaims to him, pointing to the footage. Rage's jaw clenches tensely as he watches himself pull the white gauze around Deceit too tightly, causing Deceit to whine quietly, his body shaking.

'Whoops, sorry about that Pride.' Rage clenches his fist as Pride's name leaves his lips in the video. Lust pauses the video and spins around in his chair like a stereotypical villain, now facing Rage.

"Such a strange mistake you would make, isn't it? I mean, why would Deceit remind you of Pride?" Lust asks knowingly with a sly smile. Rage stumbles back slightly, catching his balance. It was one mistake. One. It didn't mean anything at all, it was a slip-up.

"I misspoke." Rage states stubbornly, watching as Lust rises from his seat elegantly.

"Oh, is that so?" Lust coos, now circling the dark side playfully.

"It was very strange, you know, seeing you treat Deceit with such...empathy." Lust whispers into Rage's ear, making him flinch slightly.

"Unlike you, I know when my victims are about to die." Rage spits back at Lust with a fiery look.

"And what if that was Logan, hmm? Would you have treated him with such care?" Lust questions him, coming full circle to stand directly ahead of him. Rage doesn't have a response. Of course, he wouldn't have. He would've bled Logan like a pig until he was on the brink of death, skin going grey as all the life drips out of him. Then and only then would Rage give Logan the bare minimum of what he needs to live, only so that he can live on in complete agony.

"That's what I thought." Lust states victoriously with a smug smirk in his direction.

"Deceit's not Logan, that's completely different. He's--" Rage begins to defend his strange choice to treat Deceit with care but is cut off.

"A traitor. You seem to forget quite often that Deceit is mainly the reason that Pride is dead. He may not have pulled the trigger, but he did let Logan out of his cell and put the whole thing in motion." Lust declares, approaching to stand just inches away from Rage's face.

He's right, of course, he's goddamn right. Deceit might as well be the one that pulled the trigger. But still, some part of Rage wants to protect Deceit.

It's insane, he knows it is. He hates that goddamn side, how he betrayed them, locked them away for months, killed Pride. He would give anything in the world to see Deceit stripped of every ounce of confidence and self-worth he has left.

But another part of Rage is... sad. It sees Deceit as someone else, someone he knew a long time ago. Someone who got hurt trying something very stupid. Someone who needed to be healed after he was beaten to a pulp constantly by Thomas's own self-hatred. Someone who needed Rage to be there because nobody else was there. 

Rage shakes these thoughts out of his head, frustrated with himself.

"Listen to me Rage." Lust grabs Rage roughly by the shoulders, forcing their eyes to meet.

"Deceit is a traitor, do you understand? He deserves to be beaten, you know he does." Lust whispers to him. Rage nods along with Lust's words.

"Do you know how you can avenge Pride?" Rage feels Lust's grip tighten around his shoulders.

"Do you?" Lust repeats, shaking him slightly. 

"By letting me torture that treacherous little snake." Lust seethes, his voice dripping with hunger. 

"You're going to kill him, Lust. Do you realize that?" Rage bites back, making Lust drop his hands from his shoulders.

"Oh please, I know his limits." Lust claims.

"You do, do you? Last time you nearly stabbed him to death. He is only alive because I saved him from you." Rage spits at the dark side, who rolls his eyes sarcastically as if he doesn't care.

"That's what this is about, isn't it? You need somebody to save, don't you? Someone to care for?" Lust accuses Rage, whose eyes darken murderously.

Rage immediately grabs Lust by the collar of his shirt and pulls him close, teeth bared like an apex predator.

"You better shut your mouth right now before I make you." Rage threatens with a low, gravely voice.

"I'm not an idiot Rage, you thought I never knew?" Rage squeezes his fists harder, nearly choking his fellow dark side by the collar of his shirt.

"You don't know what the hell you're talking about. " Rage growls, sounding more animal than human as his vocal cords grind together angrily.

"Oh, I know a lot more than you might think..." Lust grins at him mockingly. Rage releases Lust with one last snarl and stomps out of the room, slamming the door behind himself. He can hear Lust laughing as he leaves which only makes him angrier.

His vision is bright with anger, the hallways shimmering strangely through his eyes. When he looks down, he sees that the veins have reappeared, crawling up his arms like cobwebs in every direction. They are getting worse.

He's got more important things to worry about. There is a light side sitting in that cell that he is just itching to get his hands on.

Deceit's POV

Deceit is jerked roughly out of his half-sleep as the cell door slides open noisily. He sees Rage standing in the doorway, eyes nearly black with anger. There are clear veins trailing up his arms, visible due to his rolled-up sleeves. They continue up his neck, stopping just before his sharp jawline.

Their eyes meet. Deceit immediately flattens himself against the wall, basically holding his breath as Rage steps in, still watching Deceit. Deceit can't read his expression, which is honestly new. Rage has always been predictable and frankly obvious, but lately, he is becoming more and more of a mystery. The door closes behind him, enclosing them all together.

Rage's head snaps to the side, seeing Logan cowering in the corner.

"You're coming with me." Rage demands with an evil sneer. To Deceit's surprise, Logan simply stands up without a word and trudges towards Rage with his head down. Rage also seems surprised, eyeing Logan with a hateful, yet pleased look. Suddenly, Logan's facade drops. He immediately pushes Rage back, who barely stumbles as Logan makes for the door. It all happens so fast that Deceit can barely register Rage grab Logan and pull him into a chokehold.

"Nice try." Rage snarls over his shoulder as Logan claws at his hold.

"Deceit--- Deceit hel--" Logan begins to cry out for Deceit, but Rage silences his cries for help with one hand.

Rage and Deceit's eyes meet once again. Deceit sees a flicker of... pity? Guilt? No, recognition. Rage casts his eyes away, his jaw muscles fluttering ever so slightly as if he is deciding something. Rage glances to the corner of the room very quickly without moving his head. Deceit follows his look to see that he was looking at the camera hidden in the shadows, barely visible.

"What did you say, Remus?" Rage growls to Remus suddenly, who has stayed completely silent the entire time.

"What, me? I didn't say--" Remus begins to say. Rage throws Logan to the side very harshly, causing Logan to slam into the concrete wall. He immediately slides down, a whisper of a groan leaving his lips.

Rage then grabs Remus by the collar of his black, princely garb and slams him back into the wall. Deceit watches as Rage leans into Remus's ear and whispers something. Whatever he said only made Remus more confused, his mustache twitching with suspicion. Deceit watches as Rage stealthily slips one of his hands into his own pocket, pulling out what looks like a bottle of some sort. He carefully places it into Remus's hand, whispering one last thing into his ear before releasing him. 

Remus continues to stare wide-eyed at the dark side as he spins around and takes hold of Logan again, who tried his best to crawl away. Rage doesn't say another word before dragging Logan out of the cell, who cried out for somebody to help him as he was ruthlessly taken against his will.

"What is it? What did-- did he say?" Deceit stumbles over his words slightly. Remus slips the small bottle into his black garb as he walks over to Deceit, his back to the camera.

"He.. gave me painkillers.. for you." Remus tells Deceit. Deceit can feel his jaw drop open in bewilderment, staring at Remus as he waits for some sort of punchline. Surely this is a joke? Then again, Rage did give him some before? Why was he helping Deceit? Just to screw with his head?!

"He told me to give them to you whenever it started hurting again.. but to be careful about the cameras. Lust is watching." Remus whispers to him, making a gesture toward the camera with his eyes.

Remus takes a seat beside Deceit, who is completely stunned by the side's words. It just doesn't make any sense. One minute Rage is helping Lust break his ribs, and the next he is protecting him from Lust, giving him medicine to stop the pain. 

What is the point? Why did Rage call him Pride? Why is he suddenly so invested in his wellbeing? Deceit almost wishes that he would just go back to normal. It feels so strange to have his captor caring for him.

"He also said that you should get some rest now.. before..." Remus trails off, making Deceit look to the side at him. His eyebrows are furrowed in confusion.

"Before Lust comes in here again." 

Chapter Text

Patton's POV

Patton pushes himself up from the table, causing Roman to do the same. They both stare at each other hesitantly, trying to determine whether or not to say anything at all.

"Do you--" Roman cuts himself off before finishing, eyes scanning Patton's face for some sort of indicator that he in fact remembers. 

"Do...do you?" Patton asks in an unsure tone. 

"Remember?" They say at the same time, eyes widening as they hear each other whisper the same word. Patton can feel warm tears invade his vision very quickly.

Roman and Patton run around the table and embrace each other. Patton shoves his face into Roman's princely garb, audibly sobbing as he finally lets the fake-guise of happiness drop.

"Patton- Patton it's okay-" Roman tries to comfort him but can't keep his voice steady. Soon enough they are both crying, holding on to each other like scared brothers.

Patton finds himself being reminded of Logan, the warmness of his embrace. His eyes, his face, everything was perfect about him. His kiss--

Logan, Logan must remember too. Virgil, even Thomas? They all remember, don't they?

"Wait--wait!" Patton pulls away from Roman, tears still staining his face. 

"The-the others?! Have you- have you seen them today?!" Patton demands. 

"No.. no I haven't, I just saw you." Roman admits to Patton, who feels his heart running laps around his chest. Roman's face suddenly drains of colour, staring back at Patton with wide, brown eyes.

"Logan..." Patton mutters tear-jerkingly under his breath. 

"You go to Logan, I'll go to Virgil?" Roman offers, trying to force the panic from his voice, which has the illusion of being confident. Patton silently nods, his eyes welling again, puffy and red. 

Without another word, Patton and Roman sprint of in opposite directions.

Deceit's POV

Deceit doesn't remember dozing off. He slowly blinks away the pull of sleep when he feels someone shake his shoulder. 

"--ceit, wake up!" He hears Remus urge him. Deceit comes to realize that Remus has been saying his name for a while now, but it merely translated into his dreams as a voice in the darkness. Gaining control of his vision, Deceit sees a blurry image of Lust standing in front of him. His heart thumps against his chest feverishly as he looks to his left, seeing Remus's face fill his vision. He realizes that he is leaning most of his body weight into Remus, and has his head resting against the dark side's shoulder. Deceit jerks himself off of Remus quickly, making him hiss air through his teeth as his sides pang.

His face flushes red as he hears Lust chuckling at him. He keeps his mismatched eyes down as it is the only act of defiance he is capable of. 

"Oh look at you two! The snake and the rat..." Lust mocks the two dark sides with a smirk. 

"You think that's insulting?" Remus snorts, staring up at Lust with a defiant sneer. Deceit tenses as he feels Remus lean forward.

"At least I'm not some little man who gets off on kinky torture..." Remus jeers to Lust. Deceit clenches his jaw, wanting to shut Remus up before he gets both of them hurt. More so Remus, as Lust is going to hurt Deceit anyways.

"I know what you're trying to do, rat." Lust retorts, stepping closer to them both.

"Oh no please, whip me, darling... go on.." Remus continues with a sick smile, his moustache twitching devilishly as his eyes sparkle with deviance. If Deceit could move enough to quiet Remus with one hand, he would. Doesn't Remus realize who he is teasing? Will it be worth it once Lust takes him and breaks every single bone in his body?

"Remus- stop." Deceit urges the dark side, only causing him to laugh.

"What is he going to do, hmm? Hurt me? I'd like to see him try." Remus challenges further, completely disregarding Deceit's warning.

"Stop." Lust says with a strange, amused smile. Deceit shuts his eyes tightly, waiting for the sound of Remus's skull slamming into the wall to greet him.

"What? Can't control your urges?" Lust kneels down in front of Remus, still smiling knowingly.

"You're a terrible actor." Lust replies simply. Deceit whips his head back around to Remus, whose smile has dropped.

"...Acting is not my specialty. That's Roman." He mutters under his breath, eyes downcast. Deceit stares at the scene in confusion, not understanding where his confidence went.

"You see, my darling, Remus was simply trying to entice me to torture him as opposed to you." Lust explains to Deceit, finally turning his gaze to his favourite pet. Deceit stares wordlessly at Remus, who refuses to return his gaze. 

Why would he do that? Try to save him? Remus put his own life on the line in order to save Deceit even the smallest bit of pain. They barely know each other, what is his motive? What is he hoping to get out of this?

Deceit forces his head away, face convulsed in confusion and anger as Lust begins to cackle once again.

"Why?" Deceit snarls under his breath, loud enough so that Remus can hear. Remus looks to his side at Deceit with a hurt expression at his sudden anger.

"Why? Maybe to help you?" Remus snaps at Deceit.

"I didn't ask for your help." Deceit growls back, glaring at the dark side.

"You didn't have to! You'd think I'd just let you get hurt without standing up for you? Why is it so crazy to think that someone for once would be willing to step in?" Remus shouts at him. The corners of Deceit's lips twitch with wrath, baring his teeth.

"For once?! You don't know me!" Deceit yells loudly, making his ribs creak with agony. He keeps a tight moan trapped within his throat, not taking his eyes off of Remus. To his surprise, Remus looks away.

"Now, why don't I take dear Deceit for a nice bath, hmm?" Lust declares after letting the two dark sides sit there in tense silence for about a minute. To Deceit's surprise, Remus does not object. He stays completely silent, staring at the ground with a hint of despair in his manic eyes.

Deceit doesn't bother objecting anyways. What was the point in wasting his precious breath on pleading? Besides, maybe it wouldn't be so bad. Rage's painkillers are working wonderfully, turning all of his terrible agonies to mere numbness. The pain is not totally gone, but he assumes it never will be. His ribs hurt the worst, biting through the medications with every breath he takes. As for his fingers, as long as he doesn't move them, the painkillers ensure he doesn't feel them.

Deceit sucks air through his teeth as Lust stands and lifts him up by his arms. 

Lust half-carries him out of their cell, leaving a silent Remus behind.

Patton's POV

Patton skids to a stop as he reaches Logan's door. 

"Logan!?" Patton shouts against the dense wood, pounding against the door. He waits in tense silence as no response greets him.

"Logan, are you there!? I'm coming in!" Patton yells to the other side, his voice quivering like a child's as his hand grips the doorknob tightly. He turns it and it gives way. That is already a bad sign. At night Logan always locks his door. 

Patton lets the door open slowly and peers inside, seeing that Logan is nowhere to be found. His throat tightens as he scans the room repeatedly, but still finds no trace of him. His glasses case is empty, making Patton think that Logan left early this morning.

Patton turns and throws the door open, sprinting back down the hall to Roman.

Deceit's POV

Lust takes Deceit to a door that he doesn't recognize. It wasn't the torture room, that's for sure. The entrance to the door is a little more spacious than any other in Lust's underground bunker, and the door itself is wooden.

"Now this, my darling, is my personal bathroom. Care to join me?" Lust snickers and retrieves one of his arms from around Deceit's waist to pull out a small key from his pocket. He slips the key into the lock and turns it, causing a click to sound. Lust turns the knob and pushes the door open.

From what Deceit can see, it's no more a bathroom than it is a torture chamber. The walls are white marble, swirled with pearly greys and blacks. That is, however, the only pleasing attribute of the room. The bath lays center on the white tile. It is an elegant tub with gold ornamental feet and decorations. Deceit's heart jitters in his chest when his eyes meet the shackles that are welded into the porcelain bath. He also sees a walk-in shower with a padlock on the glass door and a large drain beneath it to catch the water. A dial is connected to the wall away from the shower, which supposedly controls the temperature of the water in the cage-like chamber.

"Oh, sorry. Did I say 'my', I meant 'your' personal bathroom." Lust whispers very closely into his ear, blowing warm air on his skin. Deceit feels completely powerless as he is dragged in by Lust very easily, unable to fight back.

"Let's start off with a bath, shall we?" Lust guides him to the bath, giggling beside Deceit as he shakes in his grasp. 

Deceit begins to dig his heels into the slippery tile to no success as he remembers the freezing bath from months ago, only succeeding in amusing his abuser more. 

"Now, now Deceit. It's just a bath, nothing to worry about." Lust pushes him against the bath, curling his arm around his neck. He pulls it tight, leaning into Deceit's neck with a smirk. Deceit clamps down on his tongue, breathing as shallowly as he can as Lust forces him to step into the bath. He whimpers quietly as Lust pushes him down so that he lays in the tub.

Deceit sits into the empty bath, ribs aching as his back lines up against the hard shell of the tub. He stares up at the ceiling, eyes watering as Lust picks up one arm and holds it down against the edge of the tub. Lust feels no resistance from his prisoner as he clamps the shackle hard against his wrist. Deceit's hands shake, broken fingers aching terribly as they move.

"Relax...relax darling. I'm not going to hurt you." Lust coos from over him, one hand turning the silver knob on top of the faucet head. Water splutters between his bare legs, splashing onto his skin with cool water. He keeps his head tilted towards the ceiling, trying his best to not look at Lust, who is staring down at him.

The water begins to turn warm, nearly hot as it covers his calves. Deceit hates to admit how good it feels to have the steamy water splash against his sore body. Lust begins unwrapping the bandages that Rage secured around his torso. Soon enough, all of his unhealed wounds are revealed to the open air. 

"Beautiful, aren't they? Absolutely perfect..." Lust teases, running a finger along his back around the cuts playfully.

"I don't know why Rage would want to cover these up." Lust finally stops touching him, but not for very long. Lust's hands are soon clamped around his shoulders as the water rises to his waist.

"Then again, Rage has changed, hasn't he?" Lust whispers into his ear. Deceit jerks his head away with a sharp inhale, hands instinctively clenching around the bath tub's edges. The black shorts he is wearing are now completely submerged.

What is Lust even trying to accomplish? Is this supposed to hurt? Why is he being so gentle?

"But you already know that, don't you?" Lust fingers compress against his shoulders, filling him with an empty, grey feeling. 

"I don't kno-know what you're talking about." Deceit spits, teeth bared as the water begins to climb up his back. In seeps into each cut with ease, stinging like lemon juice or vinegar. Deceit arches his back, making his chest pound. He shrieks quickly, clamping his teeth down in order to silence it.

"Shh, shhh... it's fine, it will stop hurting..." Lust assures him, his cold hands now sliding across his shoulders to caress his neck softly. Deceit keeps completely still as the faucet continues to spew water. He gasps loudly as Lust's hands wrap around his throat, squeezing ever so gently.

"That was very nice of Rage to do, wasn't it?" Deceit hears him hiss behind his head. Deceit disregards this comment, too focused on the anticipation of strangulation. The water has risen to half of his back. More and more of his cuts begin to sting, making his eyes water. The smallest whine manages to slip out of his tight throat but can barely be heard through the running water. In a more positive note, the hot water has calmed the constant twinging in his ribs, soaking them in a brilliant bath of bliss.

Lust turns the water off just as the level reaches his mid-back. His lower half is completely covered.

"Especially since he was so gentle with you." Lust says, his giggly, mad nature completely fading. His voice is now steady with a cold edge, a scary comparison to his overly dramatic, almost flirtatious tone.

That's when it hits him. How does Lust know about everything that happened between him and Rage? Surely Rage wouldn't have told Lust, evident by how he slipped painkillers to Remus with his back to the camera. That alone proves that Rage no longer trusts Lust. 

Deceit swallows dryly, throat contracting against Lust's cold fingers.

"How--how d-did--" Deceit stutters, a cold wash of terror zipping through him like lightning.

"And the painkillers too, how so very kind of him." Lust's hands clench around Deceit's throat slightly, making Deceit flinch very obviously. The water nearly splashes out of the bath at his sudden movement.

"You see, dear, I have cameras everywhere in this place. I saw everything." Lust hisses into his neck in a sharp voice.

"Now, what do you think, hmm?" Lust's hands suddenly abandon his body and reach to the side of the tub. Lust pulls two bottles of what seems to be body wash and shows them to Deceit from behind him.

"'Vanilla milk and honey' or 'sleepless nights'"

Rage's POV

Rage is dragging Logan along in a chokehold, making his way back the way they came towards the torture room.

Logan chokes every now and again when Rage tightens it too far, but he doesn't care. Logan could go unconscious in his arms and it wouldn't stop him.

He finally reaches the torture chamber in Lust's vault and doesn't waste any time before opening the door and pulling Logan in.

Roman's POV

"Virge?" Roman shouts against the door, one hand on the faded gold knob on his black painted door.

"Virgil, I'm coming in!" Roman warns and tries to open the door, but realizes it's locked.

"Damnit." He curses under his breath. He knocks on the door again.

"Virgil!" He yells louder this time. No response still.

"I am breaking this door down if you don't open it!!" A deep-chilled fear begins to crawl up his body from toe to head.

"I warned you, Virge. Just...just stand back." Roman tries to keep his voice steady but fails. He has a very bad feeling about this.

He steps back and takes a breath. With one powerful step forward, Roman slams the heel of his boot into the wooden door, just below the knob and keyhole. The impact makes his bones shake with pain, but it works. The door swings open, slamming into the wall as shards of wood scatter from the broken lock mechanism.

Roman quickly makes his way into Virgil's shadowy room.

It's more of a basement than a room as it has no windows and smells dusty. There's a couch off in the corner that looks pretty old. It has a bushel of blankets, all scattered across the couch along with a pillow that is half-falling off.

"Virge, where--" Roman spots a faint light coming from another room to his left. He walks towards it carefully, scared of what he might find.

"Virgil, are you in there?" Roman spots a shower curtain and deduces it must be Virgil's bathroom. He steps in and peeks into the room slightly.

"Virge---"

Roman sees Virgil lying on the floor with his wrists slashed.

Deceit's POV

"Maybe 'sleepless nights', seems on theme with you." Lust tosses the other bottle to the side, picking the bottle with the deep violet shade and a label that has a picture of the night sky with gold stars.

"What-what are you doing?" Deceit demands, forcing authority into his voice that quivers with each heartbeat. Lust sets down the soap for a moment and dips a clean yellow sponge into the water from behind Deceit.

"Aren't you curious?" Lust asks him, pulling the sponge out of the hot water.

"Curious?" Deceit says back to him, utterly lost in their conversation. Lust must have truly lost it now.

"He called you 'Pride'. Don't you find that.. strange?" Lust now brings the hot, steaming sponge to Deceit's back. Deceit whines as the slashes carved into his back sting with fiery heat.

"Don't you?" Lust's chilling voice demands once more, peering over Deceit's shoulder to stare at him.

"It was a- a mistake." Deceit says, darting his eyes away from Lust's. He doesn't know why Rage called him Pride. It doesn't make sense that Deceit reminds him of Pride, they are nothing alike. Maybe Rage has just completely lost his mind.

"A mistake? Of course, it was. But, haven't you wondered why?" Lust disappears behind him once again, finally moving the sponge off of the one cut. The coarse texture of the sponge ensures that it hurts.

"Then why don't I tell you a story?" Lust's sponge abandons his skin. Deceit can feel himself sweating from both heat and stress as Lust rises and comes to stand where Deceit can see him beside the bath.

Rage's POV

Rage throws Logan onto the ground, blowing all the air out of the light side. He stares down at Logan, who squirms as he tries to regain his breath.

You took him. Rage thinks, hands curling into fists. He can feel the veins popping up against his skin again, but he barely registers it. He doesn't care about anything right now except for making Logan pay.

Rage grabs Logan by the collar of his black polo shirt and pulls him up. Logan can't get the breath to scream out as Rage quickly tugs him to the two chains hanging from the ceiling that is a little away from the hydraulic press. The cuffs are stained with Deceit's blood, having cut into his wrists fairly deeply. He ferociously pulls Logan's arms and locks both wrists into the stained cuffs, leaving him hanging from the ceiling and totally incapable of self-defence.

"Rage-- st-" Logan begins to beg, setting Rage into a complete fury.

"Don't even speak, I don't want to hear a single word your pathetic mouth can mutter." Rage seethes at the side he hated so much. Logan's mouth hangs open, but no sound comes out.

Rage stomps to the wall that hangs all of Lust's instruments and takes a chain whip down.

Deceit's POV

"You see, Pride was very... sensitive around the time of Thomas's development. It began at the age of 12." Lust begins to tell his story, hands folded neatly behind his back as he delves into his own past.

"I'm sure you remember what Thomas was like in his early teens. He absolutely hated himself. There wasn't a single part that he liked about himself, except maybe you. He did lie quite often to himself about his sexuality." Deceit listens intently with narrowed eyes. He remembers only some of his childhood, only the worst parts. Vague memories of what Thomas was like is there, but it is merely what he assumes to be true. He never really saw Thomas until he was revealed to Thomas. Deceit had always been around of course, but his disguises were usually not dropped.

"But you see.. self-hatred can be painful to certain sides. And I don't just mean emotionally, but physically too..." 

Rage's POV

Rage brings the whip composed of chain down hard onto Logan's back once again, ripping through the back of his shirt this time. He cries out coarsely as it strikes his spine.

His vision blurs together, feeling only the movement of his arm slashing the chain against Logan repeatedly. His arm goes numb and sore as the chains are quite heavy. Logan is screaming loudly as he pulls against his restraints hopelessly. His shirt is now ripped to pieces, and the skin showing is bright red and in some places is bleeding.

Not bleeding enough.

Deceit's POV

"Every day we would all meet for all three meals. Pride started showing up with bruises on his face and body, but he claimed to have fallen down the stairs. I didn't buy it, but then again, I didn't really care for him." Deceit squirms in the balmy water slightly, unsure of where this story was going. Who was hurting Pride?

"Do you remember when Thomas was bullied in Grade Seven? That's when it got worse. Pride started showing up with cuts lining his face, and he walked with a limp most days. I honestly thought it was Rage who was beating him. I mean, what else is there to do when you get bored? Besides, Rage was always looking for an excuse to slam one of us against the wall, mostly me." Lust goes on in a reminiscent tone, a grin twitching at the corner of his lips. Why is he even telling Deceit this?

"It was around that time that I began to see that whenever Thomas hated himself, it physically hurt Pride. It makes sense if you think about it. That's also when Pride stopped showing up for meals."

Rage's POV

Logan's back is a mess of deep bruises and harsh cuts. Rage throws the chains onto the ground and pulls Logan down from the shackles on the ceiling. Logan shrieks as he meets the unforgiving ground and trails off into a long pained groan.

He stands over Logan, who tries his best to crawl away. His vision shakes with complete blind wrath, veins pulsing against his skin. His heart drums like a war melody in his chest, shaking his sanity. 

"You killed him!" Rage screams as he slams his heel down onto Logan's right elbow powerfully. Logan howls in agony as the ligaments connecting his elbow to his forearm tear completely. He then continues to repeatedly slam his foot into Logan's stomach.

Deceit's POV

"Eventually, Rage stopped showing up too. You were in the cellar, so I had nobody to play with. I decided to tail Rage to see exactly what he and Pride were doing without me. What I found was something I could have never created even in my own twisted fantasies." Lust walks his fingers across Deceit's arm playfully.

"I found Rage helping Pride. He was tending Pride's wounds very carefully as to not hurt him. They were talking too, mostly about Thomas and how they would get their revenge someday. Then while Rage was blotting rubbing alcohol against a scrape on Pride's face, Pride leaned in and kissed him."

Rage's POV

"You took him away from me! You killed the only person I've ever loved!!" Rage hollers, feeling hot tears slide down his face as his foot slams back down onto Logan's elbow. He hears a snap and deduces some part of his right arm broke. Logan goes silent quickly after the snap, almost definitely passing out.

Rage heaves in a breath that quickly turns to sobbing. The tears won't stop coming now, no matter how hard he tries.

"Why are you helping me?" A younger Pride asks him. Rage can't escape the memories, so he simply drops onto his knees and gives in.

"Why wouldn't I?" Rage responds as he wraps one of Pride's sprained fingers into a splint.

"No, I'm serious. Why do you keep doing this for me?" Pride asks again. Rage was afraid of that question if he's being honest. He just likes to be around Pride, to help him. It's an unusual feeling, but a welcome one.

"Because you- Look I don't know, alright?" Rage snaps at the dark side. He immediately feels terrible at his own harsh tone.

"What was it today?" Rage asks, changing the subject completely.

"Thomas's friend called him gay. I woke up with a sprained finger and a bruised chest." Pride tells him, watching the careful precision of Rage's work as he clips the gauze to keep it from unravelling.

"Mind if I take a look?" Rage gestures to Pride's deep violet shirt. His kingly cape is tossed to the side as it initially got in the way. Pride obliges without hesitation, slipping off his long sleeve to reveal deep patches of bruises with the same colours of a sunset.

"It-- uh-- " Rage trails off, feeling his face burn as his eyes meet Pride's bare chest. He clears his throat and swallows, unable to find his words.

"Something wrong?" Pride says in a playful tone, watching as Rage's face turns completely red.

"No- no nothing, it's looking good- fine- I meant fine." Rage recovers before picking up the rubbing alcohol once again.

"There's not much I can do for that, but the scrape on your face I can help with." Rage tips the bottle over while covering the top with a cotton ball, soaking it completely. He sets the bottle down and moves a little closer to Pride. Rage looks up at his fellow dark side, admiring his nearly perfect facial features. His eyelashes are longer than that of the other sides, and eyebrows are plucked neatly every morning. His hair flutters softly on his forehead and is swept to the side. His eyes shine, coloured with sweet golden-honey. 

Rage snaps himself out of it and leans closer, bringing the cotton ball up to the scrape. Pride sucks air through his teeth, wincing from the pain.

"Sorry..." Rage apologizes quietly, pulling away for a moment. 

"I'm not." Pride teases him with a smirk, drawing a little closer. Rage can't keep his eyes off of his lips, wondering what they would feel like.

"I-- I don't un--" Pride closes the distance between them, pressing their lips together.

Deceit's POV

"They--they were--" Deceit stutters, not believing him. It would explain why Rage was so gentle with him, and why he mistook him for Pride. But, the first time Deceit saw them together again at that dining table, they weren't flirtatious, far from it. They were competitive, slighted by each other almost. Rage certainly didn't seem like he liked him, let alone love him.

"Yes, in love. It was entertaining at least, especially when it fell apart." Lust kneels beside the bath now, caressing Deceit's broken fingers softly, making them burn.

"That was when you escaped, something changed within Pride. He was no longer injured by Thomas's self-loathing, he became... cold. He believed to be better than either of us, and told us that he would be the one to gain control of Thomas. That was the last thing we ever heard from him, up until a few months ago." Lust taps against Deceit's fingertips playfully, chuckling slightly when he notices goose flesh explode across Deceit's skin.

"Rage was never the same after that. He refused to talk about Pride and soon enough, he left too. That's when I made this vault and started tracking you." Lust stands once again, looming over Deceit.

Deceit is completely speechless as he watches Lust circle behind him once again, placing his hands back on his shoulders.

"Now that brings us to our problem..." Lust breathes into his neck, causing Deceit to immediately tense.

"You see, I don't enjoy having other people touch my favourite pet." Lust's hands claw around his throat and tighten.

"We are going to have to teach you a lesson about accepting help from other people." Deceit holds his breath as Lust's face appears in the corner of his vision.

"It makes me very, very jealous..."

Chapter Text

Deceit's POV

"Hmm, no. Maybe not this one..." Lust says over his shoulder, showing him the 'sleepless nights' soap once again before tossing it away. Deceit grimaces as it hits the ground.

"How about... this one?" Lust holds an unlabeled bottle in front of Deceit. The liquid inside is a sickly yellow colour and has strange white participles floating at the bottom. What seems to be fruit seeds are floating on the top of the fluid.

"Here, take a guess of what's in here." Lust forces it right under Deceit's nose. Deceit tries to pull away from the bottle, but Lust just follows his movement by drawing it closer. Deceit takes a sniff and immediately is taken aback by the smell. The hairs in his nose burn, eyes watering as the sour, choking smell meets him. He makes a choked noise, jerking his head away from the strange solution. 

"Good, huh?" Lust cackles as he pours the unknown liquid onto the yellow sponge.

"It's a mixture I came up with, composed entirely of lemon juice and salt." Deceit freezes as Lust lists of the ingredients. Lust chuckles right behind his head, noticing his terrified silence as he sets down his concoction, sponge still in hand.

"L--Lus-" Deceit stutters meekly before being silenced by Lust's free hand.

"No, no, no darling... don't go begging me not to hurt you. Especially when I'm this angry with you." Lust hisses into his ear with a grin. 

"Now let me tell you, this is going to hurt very very badly." Lust sneers against his skin, stroking his scaled cheek too-gently with his thumb. Deceit shakes in his grasp, tears already invading his clear vision in anticipation of the worst.

Lust squeezes the soaked sponge above his back, letting the terrible liquid immediately slide down his skin and into his cuts. Deceit immediately arches his back, screaming against Lust's hand as his wounds ooze with agony. He hears Lust let out a low chuckle as he presses the sponge against a particularly deep slash. Deceit hollers once again, tears falling from his eyes and dripping into the bath below.

Lust finally releases his hand from his prisoner's mouth, releasing a long, pained scream from Deceit's throat.

"Shhh, shhh..." Lust runs his fingers through Deceit's dark hair intimately. Deceit unconsciously obeys his command to quiet down, his screams lowering significantly in volume before transforming into low groans of torment. His back laces with pain, digging deep into the knife slashes with ease. The acid in the lemon juice feels like it's burning his skin away.

"Don't want to waste our breath, now do we? After all... you're going to need it..." Lust's fingers stop exploring his hair. Deceit lets out as startled whimper as Lust's fingers latch into his hair, tugging his head harshly backwards for just a moment. Deceit screams loudly as Lust forces his head forward, plunging him into the steaming bathwater.

His eyes burn as he opens them, mind trying to decipher where he was. His broken ribs achingly crunch together as he is forced to bend forward. He can feel Lust readjusting his grip on Deceit so that most of his bodyweight is forcing the dark side underwater. He must be preparing for some heavy resistance. Deceit moans against the water as the liquid scalds his terribly cut up chest. He screams, feeling the hot water force itself into his mouth and down his throat as he tries to breathe. His wide eyes stare into the bottom of the tub, mouth open in a soundless scream as he tries to force his head up. His chest burns with the immense absence of oxygen. His body begs him for the air that he cannot provide, forcing him to inhale water through his nose as it tries everything in its power to continue living. 

Fear closes in on him like a cornered animal, causing him to lash out harder than before. Just as he thought it couldn't get worse, he feels the rough texture of the sponge come back down on his exposed back. Bubbles erupt from his mouth as he howls against the water, draining his body of breath that he doesn't have to spare as he feels the lemon juice invade his cuts roughly. Lust rubs the sponge onto his open wounds with incredible force, making him feel like he was being skinned alive as the granular salt shaves down his skin, getting caught in many of his cuts. His legs kick and jerk, splashing a lot of the water out of the bath. He simply cannot gout out from underneath Lust.

Suddenly, Lust pulls him out of the water by his hair, yanking many strands out of his scalp at the overly harsh movement.

"Say it! Say I OWN you! Say you belong to me, your master!" Lust hollers at him, a quick change in tone from moments ago. Deceit couldn't obey even if he wanted to as he sits there choking on the water he swallowed. Lust gives him no more than a second before shoving him back underwater with less air than he began with.

The sponge is dragged over his back again in a sawing motion. Deceit feels his broken fingers clench around the bath instinctively, releasing immediately when they ache and pang with complete blind agony. He cries into the water for help, eyes stinging as the bathwater slowly becomes more concentrated with lemon juice and salt. Screams jump at his chest repeatedly as he struggles to keep his limited breath inside of him. He begs for Lust to stop inside his head, unsure of how much more he could take.

As if on queue, Lust pulls him out once again. Lust holds his chin up as water spills from Deceit's lips, a gurgling noise coming from the nearly-drowned side.

"Only I am allowed to touch you, understand?! You're mine!" He bellows into Deceit's ears, making his eardrums quiver. Lust shoves him under once again, now pouring his concoction onto Deceit's red, irritated back. He pulls him up once again, fingers refusing to let go of his drenched hair.

"Say it, darling. Say I'm your master." Lust breathes into his neck, watching in pleasure as Deceit coughs and chokes out water. His coughing soon turns into the wailing of a tortured man as his ribs ache from all the movement, screaming, and terrible posture. Deceit barely heard Lust's order over his own wailing, eyes burning from the sour water they were forced into. His back is bleeding once again, skin peeling and cuts widened from the harsh rubbing.

"Say it!!" Lust yells at him with no regard for his inability to breathe properly. Deceit can't stop screaming and crying, the agony is too much for him to possibly handle. He can feel tears continuing to drip down his face, nose running terribly. His skin has gone completely white and balmy. His eyes are bloodshot from the lemon water in the bath. The heat of the water he recently adored has turned sour, making him overheat completely. It's getting harder and harder to breathe. 

"I warned you, I really did my darling." Lust mutters to him in a disappointed tone, fingers seizing his wet locks once again. Deceit inhales sharply, trying to find the ability to speak in order to stop Lust from dunking him back underwater.

"St--o--s" Is the only sound he manages to force out, throat tight with pain. Lust merely snorts in amusement at his effort, jerking his head back very roughly so that Deceit stares up at Lust, who stands over him with the sponge in hand.

Lust smirks down at his utterly frightened expression.

"You belong to me, got it?" Lust demands with a crazed smile. Deceit nods rapidly, face splitting into a grimace as the pain grows beyond his tolerance level. He just wants it to be over. He would do anything to make it end.

"Good.. good.." Lust purrs at him. His hold on Deceit's hair abruptly tightens once again as his smile widens, taking up most of the space on his face. Deceit's mouth snaps open, releasing a dry shriek as the agony rolls over him once again, phantom claws scrapping its long nails along the cuts in his back. Lust silences his crying by shoving the lemon juice-soaked sponge into his mouth sadistically. Deceit doesn't have time to feel surprised before Lust pushes his head underwater. Trying to breathe is a war he is losing. The lemon juice rockets down his throat without another thought. His throat burns as the sour fluid attacks him without a second thought. Water pushes into his nose and down his throat. An immense pressure hammers behind his eyes as he thrashes against the force of Lust. His ear canals shake with pain along with the rest of his body. His fingers refuse to release their grip on the bath, no matter how much it hurts. He can feel his consciousness slipping as his limbs slowly, refusing to keep up with the desperate demands they are being sent from his brain. His stinging, irritated eyes begin to close, mouth beginning to release its vice-grip on the sponge lodged into his mouth. Soon, he will drift away from this horrible reality. Soon, he would be freed from this endless cycle of pain. Soon...

Lust pulls him back out of the water, tearing the sponge out of his mouth as he notices Deceit's pale, bluish complexion. Deceit gags and chokes, vision blurred as he lurches forward and vomits into the bath. He continues to cough and croak, the inside of his nose burning from inhaling so much water. His throat feels like it's been completely skinned, and he swears he can taste blood. The sick mixture of lemons and vomit fills his mouth, making him gag over and over again. His fingers finally release from the edges of the bath. The agony ricocheting through his entire body is simply unrelenting. Deceit wails, barely noticing that Lust's hands are back on his shoulders.

"Beautiful, just beautiful darling..." Lust coos into his neck, barely being heard over Deceit's relentless sobbing and screaming.

"Now, remember this the next time you let somebody else touch you, understand?" Lust says, unlocking the heavy shackles around his shaking hands. Deceit's blubbering grows louder as Lust lifts him out of the bath. 

Deceit is carried out of the balmy room, his weight supported entirely by Lust, who continues to run a hand up and down his back repeatedly.

Patton's POV

Patton sprints down their lit hallways, flying past the many empty doors as he runs for Virgil's room.

'Just calm down... it's going to be alright.' Patton convinces himself, legs going numb from all of the running.

'I'll get Virgil and Roman, we'll get Thomas, and we'll find Logan. Everything will be alright.' He continues to ramble in his own head, skidding to a stop as he nearly darts straight past Virgil's room. He notices the door is open and guesses Roman is already inside.

"Roman? Virgil?" Patton calls out to the darkness as he steps into Virgil's room.

He suddenly hears a scream come from the bathroom. It sounds like Roman's voice. Patton feels his heart skip into his throat as he darts over to the bathroom, the only source of light in the entire room.

"Roman, is everything---" Patton's eyes meet Virgil's body on the ground. His hands immediately go over his mouth as a childish shriek leaves his lips. 

Virgil is laying face first on the ground, deep slashes cut into his wrists in a verticle line. Beside him lays a bloodied razor blade, which his fingers are softly clutching.

"VIRGIL!!" Patton screams at the top of his lungs, tears immediately attacking the corners of his eyes. Roman drops to Virgil's side, placing two fingers underneath his jawline.

Patton backs into the door, hands refusing to leave his mouth as he stares wide-eyed at Virgil.

"He's--he's alive!! He's alive!!" Roman exclaims repeatedly in complete surprise. He grabs a towel down from the towel bar to his left and presses the fabric against one of Virgil's bleeding forearms. Patton stays frozen in place, heart barely beating as he tries to register what is happening.

"Patton! Patton, the other wrist!!" Roman shouts at him, snapping him out of his trance. Patton immediately grabs the other towel in the corner of the room, holding it tightly against the deep wound. He watches as red seeps through the clean white towel hungrily.

"What--what do we do?" Patton asks Roman, who's face has gone as white as the towels.

"I don't know-" Roman stutters, eyes darting around as he searches for some magical object that could save Virgil.

'Logan would know.' Patton thinks forlornly to himself.

An idea pops into his head as logan enters his mind. His face lights up.

"Wait--wait Logan has a first aid kit, right?" Patton asks Roman, whose eyebrows lift in acknowledgement.

"Yes-- yes he does! I always thought--he was paranoid for having one--" Roman rambles as Patton ties the towel tightly around Virgil's arm. 

"Hold that one too, okay? I-i'm going to get it- okay?" Patton stands shakily. He turns and runs out of the bathroom as Roman nods and puts pressure on both wounds.

Deceit's POV

Lust and Deceit reach his cell once more. Deceit hasn't stop wailing, no matter how hard he tried to silence himself. Surprisingly, his rubs hurt far more than the slashes that were just drenched in lemon juice, but they come to a close second.

He's almost happy to see his cell, knowing that he would be able to get away from Lust for just a little while.

Lust scans his hand, allowing the cell door to slide open quickly. He walks Deceit into the cell, still holding on to him. Deceit spots Remus standing in the corner with a strange emotion plastered onto his face. It looks like dread mixed with courage.

"I hope you learned something today, darling." Lust whispers closely into Deceit's ear, his teeth grazing his earlobe. Lust lets out a cackle as he shoves Deceit forward, causing him to collapse immediately onto the ground, slamming into the wall as he rolls across the floor. He cries out dryly as his back meets the concrete, his irritated cuts only worsening with the harsh contact. Lust continues to look down at him on the ground, his body shaking from torment. Forcing his eyes from Lust's pleasured gaze, Deceit's eyes fix on Remus.

Remus gazes at him with an expression of strange despair. He nods quickly at Deceit, eyes full of determination.

Deceit watches wide-eyed as Remus immediately darts out of the cell door that Lust left open.

Lust spins around as he hears footsteps leave their cell.

"Oh you poor thing, you have no idea what pain you just caused..." Lust chuckles as he confidently strolls out of the cell and after Remus, walking at a pace less than speed-walking.

'What the hell is happening??' Deceit thinks to himself, his screaming finally stopping out of pure bewilderment. Remus had just abandoned him, leaving him to fend for himself. How could he do that?

His wide, teary eyes find that the cell door has remained open. Why didn't Lust close it? He must think that Deceit is far too broken to possibly escape from him, both mentally and physically. 

Deceit lays there for several seconds, trying to decide whether or not to take the risk. What exactly does he have to lose? If Lust catches him, he will ensure that Deceit never walks again. And if he stays here, that will happen anyway.

'Screw it.' Deceit clenches his teeth together as he begins to get up. On all four, his ribs pang and shake with agony, forcing a deep moan from him. Using the wall as support, he pulls himself up onto his feet, tears soon streaming down his face as his legs shake with effort.

Deceit can feel his balance failing. With a loud groan, Deceit flings himself off of the wall, lunging towards the door. He makes it a couple of large steps before throwing himself onto the ground. He finds himself directly in the doorway, half in and half out. His hands quiver as he pulls his lower half out of the cell slowly. He goes into an army crawl, ever single movement dragging a muffled shriek from him as his ribs feel like they're being ripped from his body. Flipping onto his back as quickly as he can, Deceit pulls his left leg out, preparing to kick off the ground and pull the rest of his body out of the cell.

Deceit has no time to react when the cell door comes quickly down onto his right shin, which couldn't get out of the way fast enough. He lets out a guttural scream as the metal door slams into his shinbone. Pain blossoms from his right leg as his tibia is nearly snapped in two by the heavy door, which refuses to budge. He quickly throws his hand with the broken thumb over his mouth, muffling his cries. If he keeps it up, Lust will hear him, that is if he hasn't already. Breathing heavily through his nose, Deceit attempts to pull his leg out from under the door to no success. Sobbing into his hand, he tries again, but it refuses to be let go. He can feel his shinbone bending, causing torment to explode from his leg. The longer it stays under the door, the more damage it will do. He tugs once more, wailing against his hand when it fails. His frantic, broken mind finally figures out a way to get out from underneath the door. He has to turn his leg to the side quickly and pull it out. With a couple deep breaths, Deceit twists his ankle hard and jerks his right leg out. It works. His bare leg slides out from under the door, an immense pressure being lifted as the cell door slams down onto the ground hard. The pain in his shin doubles immediately once it is released, making Deceit howl as agony pounds within his bones.

Deceit can feel himself trembling, tears refusing to stop crawling down his pale face. His less injured hand goes down to feel his shin and touches a hard jut sticking out of his skin. His vision immediately goes dark red, head going completely numb as it meets the ground once again. The pain slips away as he loses consciousness.

Patton's POV

Patton and Roman have been sitting by Virgil for hours. They finally tended to his wounds with Logan's first aid kit. Neither of them knew what the hell they were doing, so the wrapping is a little crooked. Bloodied gauze is sprinkled around the hallway in front of Virgil's room. They had pulled him out of the bathroom and into the lit hall, as they couldn't stitch his wounds in the dark. The stitching was done by Roman since he so often likes to make his own costumes using a sewing machine. They now sit in the hall, watching Virgil rest. He hasn't woken up at all, not even during the amateur 'surgery'. They both know they cannot stay here forever, they need to get to Thomas. But for now, they can't leave Virgil's side. Until he wakes up, Thomas will just have to deal with it on his own.

Chapter Text

Deceit's POV

When Deceit finally regains his consciousness, he honestly wishes he hadn't. His right leg flares with torment, a stabbing pain puncturing into his shin like nothing he's ever felt before. He moans out of anguish and despair as his eyes meet the white ceiling of the hall. It doesn't take long for him to realize that he has been crying the entire time he's been unconscious.

He cries out sharply, lips pulled against his teeth as his head spins dizzily. He suddenly remembers why exactly he is laying outside of his cell. He had tried to escape. 

His heart jolts as it all comes back to him. He tries to sit up, immediately falling back down when his ribs jab into him agonizingly. Deceit doesn't know how long he's been out for, too long most likely. Lust will be coming back any minute, and he will find his darling toy on the ground after trying to escape. He will be furious if he finds Deceit like this. 

He looks to the side, seeing that the cell door is shut. If it wasn't locked, he would very well crawl back into the cell and pretend like nothing ever happened. He groans in helplessness, wishing that he hadn't even tried to get away in the first place. He should've known better than to risk Lust's wrath again.

It does him no good laying there scolding himself. He's chosen his path, he has no way back now. He has to get up and get out of this place.

Deceit grinds his teeth together as he lifts himself up onto his elbows, chest panging with effort as a whine slips through his lips. His eyes meet his right shin. He can very clearly see a huge piece of his bone jutting out of his calf. The area around the protrusion is cherry red, blood steadily collecting around the broken bone that ripped through his skin.

He suddenly feels sick to his stomach as he stares in silent shock at the fracture. He whines quietly, tears streaming down his pale face. He didn't know it was that bad, he couldn't have known. He doesn't know what to do now, he can't get away, he can't even walk. He shuts his eyes tightly, every plan of escape immediately leaking from his mind. Now he only thinks of what Lust will do once he finds him like this. He drops back onto the ground, letting his chest uncurl to rest. He sobs as quietly as he can, an occasional low scream ripping through his throat as the fracture in his leg pulses and shakes with pain.

"Well now, what do we have here?" A voice calls out to him from down the hall. Deceit lifts his head wearily, seeing Lust and Remus. Remus looks pretty beaten. His lip is split painfully wide and his broken nose is now set back into place, bleeding again.

"I honestly didn't expect this from you my darling, I thought you learned your lesson." Lust says lowly, a slight twinge of anger found in his mocking voice. Remus immediately struggles to free himself from Lust's chokehold, only resulting in Lust to choke him harder.

"I'm afraid you've made me very angry, love." Lust snarls at his very crippled prisoner. Deceit considers making a break for it, but how could he possibly tolerate the agony of standing, let alone sprinting, on a broken leg? He can sustain a lot, that much is true, but trying to run on a shattered bone, screaming every time he nearly crumples to the ground? No, that he cannot do.

He hears Lust open the cell door with one hand. He watches as Remus is shoved in roughly.

"Wait-- Decei--" The door slams on Remus before he can finish calling to the dark side. Deceit whimpers as Lust turns to him again.

"Now, what is this?" Lust asks him, intriguing poking into his voice as he spots the very obvious bleeding fracture that he didn't see before. He snickers at Deceit, kneeling down and jabbing a finger into the exposed bone. Deceit cries out in anguish, wanting nothing more than to protect himself, but his completely mangled body keeps him fully vulnerable to Lust. He can't even lift his hands up to plead for Lust's forgiveness.

"How did you manage that, hmm?" Lust inquires, standing over him again. Deceit doesn't respond but manages to silence his own shriek by covering his mouth with the less-crippled hand.

"Now, if you think that a compound fracture is enough punishment, you'll find yourself dearly disappointed..." Lust hisses to him, stepping back a couple of steps from his wriggling captive.

"But that comes later, darling. Right now, you get your pretty-self over here, get on your knees, and show me how sorry you are." Lust demands, pointing to the tile right in front of him.

Deceit winces up at the ceiling as Lust slams his foot down impatiently, frustrated with his resistance.

"NOW!" He shouts loudly, making Deceit shake harder than he already was. He cries against his hand as he hears Lust walk around to him and sees him kneel down. Lust tears Deceit's hand from his lips, making him cry sharply as his broken thumb is shoved into the ground.

"Listen very closely, love..." Lust whispers directly into his face, so close that he grazes Deceit's lips with his own.

"I am going to make you suffer for trying to leave me, that is inescapable." Lust continues, his hot breath invading Deceit's nose.

"But let me tell you right now, if you don't get up and do as I say, I will break your other leg too, and maybe an arm just for my own pleasure." Lust's eyes are dark, his teeth bared angrily as he seethes into Deceit's face. Deceit can't even move, too terrified to even breathe or blink.

Lust stands without another word and returns to his previous spot. He crosses his arms impatiently, eyeing Deceit with a glare of warning.

"I said NOW" Lust screams at him, pointing to the tile once more. Deceit flinches at how loud his voice grows, the walls seeming to shake with the volume.

Deceit knows that Lust isn't lying, he will break him if he doesn't obey. He writhes on the ground with tears in his eyes, teeth clenched together as he comes to terms with what he must do. He has to get onto all four and drag himself over before Lust follows through with his threat.

Deceit stifles a cry as he tries to roll onto his stomach but ultimately falls back into his starting position. He takes a deep breath as he rocks to his side slightly and forces himself to flip over, using the momentum to carry himself onto his stomach. He wails frailly as the exposed bone is pressed onto the ground along with his terribly injured chest. Wasting no time, Deceit forces his hands under him, fingers aching as they scrape along the floor into position. He begins to lift himself up, forearms shaking with effort as he makes it halfway up. He brings up his left knee, stabilizing himself. Taking a couple deep, shaky breaths, Deceit drags his right leg into the same position. He lets out a terrible scream as the fracture drags along the ground and immediately is pressed against the floor under his weight. His entire body shakes as he begins to turn himself, hands leading the way as his torso screams in protest. Every movement drags a choked shout from him, making his throat sting sourly. Now facing Lust, Deceit forces one hand forward and carries the momentum with his left leg, only dragging the other leg when he is stable. He sharply cries out as tears drip from his cheeks, his broken shin flaring angrily as it is forced under him again. 

"I don't have all day..." Lust threatens him. With a loud cry of agony, Deceit forces himself to move faster. He throws his hands out one at a time and drags his legs after him. When he's finally in front of Lust, he is a shaking, crying mess. Through his blurred vision, he sees Lust's signature combat boots.

"On your knees, love." Lust orders him, knowing that his arms are taking most of the pressure off of his broken shin. Deceit slowly takes his hands off of the ground as he lifts himself up, putting his entire weight on both knees. He groans out weakly, sweating from the amount of effort it took to get this far. His broken shin shudders with agony, making a sharp cry come from him. 

"Now, apologize for what you did." Lust seethes at the weak side, looking down on him. Deceit whines shakily as the pain threatens to take his consciousness from him once again. He tries focusing on Lust's words, knowing he must do what he says.

"I--I- I'm sss-sorr--" Lust suddenly grabs him roughly by the hair and forces his head up so that their eyes meet, pulling out strands of his dark hair.

"Look me in the eyes and apologize." Lust hisses at him, baring his teeth angrily. Deceit whimpers quietly, throat tight with agony.

"I'm-- I'm sor-- ss- ssorry--" Deceit apologizes trembly, words coming out with a snake-like hiss. Lust leans into his face, still gripping his hair tightly.

"You know what?" Lust whispers closely, glaring at him.

"I don't believe you..."

Lust very quickly releases his head and lifts him up from under his arms. Deceit squeals as his broken leg is forced to straighten.

He lets out an anguished cry as Lust drags him past the cell and back towards the torture chamber.

Patton's POV

They've been sitting here for hours waiting for Virgil to awaken. Patton is growing increasingly tense as he constantly thinks of Thomas. It's around 12pm now, Thomas should be awake. He isn't, not yet at least. That in itself is strange, he was supposed to wake up early to edit some videos with Joan and Talyn.

All of these thoughts disperse as Virgil groans, eyes flickering open.

"Virgil!" Patton exclaims in relief, startling the side slightly. Virgil stirs on the ground, confusion seeping into his eyes.

"Patton-- Roman?" Virgil asks hoarsely, looking between them both. 

"Yes, we're here Virge." Roman insists with a sad smile. They are both kneeling at his side comfortingly.

"What--where am I?" Virgil demands, lifting himself up slightly before Patton gently pushes him back down.

"You're outside your room, in the hallway." Roman informs him.

"What happened?" Virgil inquires, looking between the two sides for an answer. Patton and Roman exchange looks of nervousness.

"Um- -we found- you in your room." Patton softly begins to explain to the side. He sees Virgil's eyes darken as his memories finally resurface. His eyebrows narrow bitterly as he looks to his bandaged, bleeding wrists. He drops his head back onto the ground, eyes looking away from their faces.

"You should've let me die." Virgil hisses at them.

Deceit's POV

They finally reach Lust's favourite room; the torture chamber. Deceit was screaming and crying the entire way as Lust forced him to walk on his broken leg.

Lust opens the chamber wordlessly by scanning his hand. He shoves Deceit in first.

Deceit lands winded on the ground, wailing from the impact to his broken ribs. 

"What are you doing?" A voice asks Lust, who closes the door behind himself.

"I could ask you the same." Lust retorts sharply. Deceit lifts his head and sees Rage. His eyes are red and puffy like he's been crying. Logan lays unconscious beneath him, his arm bent in a way it wasn't designed to.

"I'll ask you again Lust. What are you doing to him now?" Rage demands, stepping towards them both. Deceit feels strangely more safe with Rage in the room with him.

"Our darling Deceit tried to escape from his cell." Lust hisses with a glare in Deceit's direction. Rage sighs in disappointment, his eyes meeting Deceit as well. 

"And I assume he just broke his leg by himself?" Rage counters as he spots Deceit's terribly twisted compound fracture, causing Lust to snort in amusement.

"Yes actually, he did." Lust says with a dark chuckle, dark eyes sparkling with mischief. 

"So what now, hm? You're going to punish him further? Do you really think he hasn't learned his lesson?" Rage demands, crossing his arms in disapproval. Lust walks up to Rage, getting very close to his face with an expression of empty fury.

"I will do whatever the hell I want to him. He tried to escape me, so I will ensure he never tries that again..." Lust seethes at Rage, pointing a finger into his chest. Rage steps back from Lust, looking to Deceit very briefly.

"Now get out, and take Logan with you. We need the room." Lust orders him, pointing down at the unconscious light side. Deceit sees Rage's jaw flutter with anger, but he remains silent. Wordlessly he bends down and picks Logan up.

"Very well, Lust. I have more important matters to attend to anyway, Thomas is waking." Rage spits back. Giving one last look to Deceit, he opens the door and walks out, Logan limp in his arms.

Lust stands silently for a minute, breathing heavily as his hands curl into shaking balls. He turns to face Deceit again, hands returning to normal.

"Let's get you ready, shall we?" He says in his usual voice, an underlying tone of pure wrath biting behind his words. He takes hold of Deceit once again, pulling him up to his feet. Disregarding Deceit's immediate wailing, Lust drags him over to a waist-high metal table. He pushes Deceit onto the table and slams him down.

Deceit wriggles simply because he cannot stop himself. Lust grabs his wrist and slams it down onto the table, cuffing it tightly as his prisoner twists and turns out of agony. He does the same to his other arm, a snarl pinching at his lips. He moves down to his ankles next, locking the left one first. For his right leg, he makes sure to slam it down as hard as he can, making Deceit's split bone chatter in pain as a shriek shreds through his throat.

Suddenly he is back up to his neck, pulling a metal shackle over his throat and tightening it harshly. Finally, Lust tugs another metal cuff over his mouth, which he tightens until Deceit no longer makes any noise. Cold metal presses against his lips threateningly. He shakes terribly in his restraints, bones shaking with pain.

"So, you thought you could get away from me, hmm?" Lust growls to his captive, moving to the other side of the table where his legs and feet are pinned down. Deceit fears that Lust is going to touch his broken shin, making a cold sweat break out across his body. He whines against the metal, tears continuously streaming from the corners of his mismatched eyes.

"I'll make sure you'll never walk again on your own..." Lust suddenly abandons his table, fiddling with something beside them. Deceit can't see what he's doing, unable to turn his neck to look.

Lust reappears over him holding a blowtorch. Deceit's teary eyes widen as he spots the tool, silently shaking his head in complete horror as Lust sneers at him.

"You had your fun darling, now it's my turn." Lust goes back to his feet, which remain completely still.

Deceit hears the blowtorch come to life, making him immediately break into muffled screams. He doesn't know where Lust is going to burn him, making him jittery with terrible anticipation.

He feels it very suddenly on the bottoms of his feet. He whines quietly, wincing as the slow burn goes against the sensitive skin. Deceit finally understands what Lust meant. How could he walk with burned feet? It's a very simple answer, he can't. That's the point. He will never escape again simply because he won't be able to withstand the pain of walking on 3rd-degree burns.

Deceit pulls up from the table with a toned-down scream as the blowtorch blazes against him, tearing deep into his skin. His throat is raw and stinging as he continues screaming against the metal, unable to make proper amounts of noise. If he could beg Lust to stop, he very well would. His toes clench together as scorching pain washes over him. He tries to pull his left leg up, but the touch restraints ensure he is completely vulnerable. Lust keeps the flame in one spot, ensuring that the burn goes as deep as possible. Deceit can hear his maniacal laughter cut through his quiet shrieks of agony. His legs twitch as he continuously tries to pull away, the skin on the bottoms of his feet sizzling as the burns dig deeper into his tissue. His vision blurs together like a Picasso painting, his screaming finally silencing as his consciousness fades slightly. The noise of the blowtorch stops, and Lust appears over him.

Lust slaps him hard, jolting him awake.

"Hey! Stay awake, I want you to feel everything!!" Lust hisses into his face, watching his widened, horrified eyes with pleasure. He disappears again, turning on his blowtorch once more. The blazing agony doubles once it reaches his skin again. His back arches, his crying suppressed by the metal. He sweats, his entire body going hot with pain as his feet ache and burn. His broken leg pangs with torment from all of the movement, but he simply can't stop himself from trying to pull away, no matter how hard he tries.

He should've tried running away. 

He can't get away from Lust's punishment now. 

Roman's POV

Roman and Patton feel Thomas is awake now, for how long they don't know. Roman feels a need to go to Thomas to ensure he knows what is going on.

"He is awake now." Roman says to the group. Virgil barely shows any sign of understanding. He doesn't seem to care about anything else but his own memories.

"We should go to him." Patton states, standing up finally. Roman stands aswell, but Virgil makes no movement whatsoever.

"Virge, we can't leave you here." Roman insists, holding out a hand to help him up. Virgil turns away from him with a scowl. Patton looks down at his friend with worry shown in his eyes.

"What? Afraid I'm gonna try to kill myself?" Virgil snaps back at Roman with a harsh tone.

"Thomas is in danger, Virgil. If they...the dark sides are back, he can't lose a light side." Roman counters him sharply.

"Why don't I put you in my room, Virge? There you are safe and you can get your strength back." Patton suggests sweetly, trying not to offend the side to the best of his ability. There's nothing even remotely sharp in his room, so Virgil will have nothing to harm himself again.

"Fine." Virgil finally succumbs.

Deceit's POV

Another slap is what wakes him again. 

"Hey!! What did I say about nodding off!?" Lust screams at him, slapping him again on the other side of his face. Deceit feels nothing but agony boiling his one foot, making him cry into the metal. Lust disappears, going back to his feet with the blowtorch in hand. He turns it on and drags it along his right foot. Deceit fulls his right leg tensely, causing the fracture to grind together painfully. He can do nothing but scream and shake as Lust horribly cripples him.

Patton's POV

He steps out of his room after putting Virgil to rest. He looks to Roman, who nods at him. Together they ascend into Thomas's view.

They appear in his living room. Thomas is pacing back and forth in front of his couch, eyes red from crying.

"Thomas?" Patton calls out to him, taking his usual spot in front of the curtains.

"Patton! Roman!" Thomas exclaims, looking to them both with teary eyes.

"What happened--? Why do we remember? What's going on? Where is Logan and Virge?" Thomas begins questioning them, not even giving them a chance to answer.

"Woah woah, slow down kiddo." Patton tries to settle him, and it seems to work for the most part. Thomas takes a couple of deep breaths and looks to them for an explanation.

"We don't really know what happened, Thomas. We just-- we all woke up with these memories that we were supposed to forget." Roman tells Thomas.

"Logan's gone and Virgil.. well.." Patton trails off, throat choking with sadness.

"Is Virgil gone? Where is he? Is he okay?!" Thomas questions anxiously, panic sinking into his stomach.

"No, no! He's fine.. now." Patton assures Thomas, who stares at them in confusion.

"Thomas, there's no easy way to say this, so I'll just say it," Roman warns him, clearing his throat.

"Virgil tried to take his own life." Thomas stumbles backwards, eyes wide with horror and mouth hanging open.

Deceit's POV

Lust finally finishes with him, putting the blowtorch away as his prisoner continues to cry and whine long after it's over. But it's not over for him, the burning feels no different from when the torch was on it. It hurts like they were dipped into the very mouth of hell, flames licking his skin as heat burrows into his tissue with ease.

"There we are... all better now, aren't we?" Lust coos to him, running his fingers through Deceit's hair gently. He wipes off a single tear with his thumb, grinning down at the shaking side with pleasured eyes.

"I'm sure you've learned your lesson now." Lust says as he begins unlocking the many shackles keeping him pinned to the table. Once the one around his mouth is released, he lets out a loud cry. Once they are all removed, Lust lifts him off the table, carrying him with one hand under his legs and one around his back. 

"Put your arms around me." Lust orders him, feeling Deceit slip from his hold. Deceit can barely hear him, quivering in his hold as agony rockets through each and every part of his body.

"Now, or I'll make you walk!!" Lust yells at him, forcing Deceit to finally obey his command by weakly wrapping his arms around Lust. He would feel total shame if he wasn't so distracted by the scalding that eats away at his sanity.

Lust carries him out of the torture chamber and towards his cell.

Thomas's POV

"Are they back?" Thomas asks breathlessly.

"We-we don't know, Thomas." Roman responds truthfully.

"What do we do if they've returned? How do we stop them again?" Thomas demands to his sides. Patton looks down at the floor with an expression of dread. 

"We need to confront them I think. We need Logan back." Roman suggests, making Patton's face suddenly light up. That's right, Thomas had forgotten that they were in love.

"So how do we find them?" Thomas asks. They stand silently for a little while, each one digging deep into their memories trying to figure out where they might've gone if they were back.

"Wait-- Lust." Roman exclaims suddenly, drawing attention from the other two.

"I remember he was obsessed with Deceit. We could go to Deceit's room and try to find him? If they have returned, surely they would've gone for Deceit first, right?" Roman offers. 

"Yeah- yeah I think that would work! How do we get there again?" Thomas says excitedly, looking between his sides.

"If Logan is in their realm, we should be able to follow him since we have a link to him." Patton explains to Thomas, eager to get back to Logan.

"Roman, get your sword. We're going to get Logan back."

Deceit's POV

Lust carries him back to the cell that he nearly escaped from. He opens the door and carries him inside to the back wall, setting him down gently. Deceit immediately sees Remus sitting against the wall and spots Logan laying on the ground, still unconscious. Lust didn't keep the door open this time, ensuring that he closed it behind him.

"Now, to punish you." Lust says in the direction of Remus, who presses himself against the back wall.

Suddenly, the cell door opens, revealing Rage.

"Dish out your revenge later, Lust. Thomas and his sides are coming to get Logan." Rage demands to Lust.

"It's time to put our plan to work." 

Chapter Text

Deceit's POV

"Go start setting it all up then, I want to discipline Remus before they get here." Lust demands to Rage. Deceit barely registers that the light sides are coming. What exactly are they going to do anyway? Beg the dark sides to let Logan go? No, Lust and Rage have something planned. Something big.

"Do we really have time for that?" Rage retorts shortly, causing Lust to simply grin back at him.

"Do you really want Remus trying to escape in the middle of our big show? Besides, he needs to be completely obedient, does he not?" Lust retaliates quickly. Deceit puts his hands over his mouth, trying to keep the screams inside. His toes curl, crinkling the scalded, tight skin on the bottoms of his feet, tears crawling down his face. Deceit hears Rage exhale in frustration.

"Fine, but you will follow my lead when they get here. Got it?" Rage challenges, jabbing a finger into Lust's chest. Lust merely smirks back, eyes shining.

"Deal." Lust snickers back. Rage glances very briefly at Deceit, just quickly enough to see how much pain he is in. He turns and leaves, a hint of pity found in his dark red eyes. The door shuts behind him immediately. Deceit flinches at the sound, imagining the door slamming down onto his shin and snapping it in two. 

Remus flattens himself against the wall as Lust approaches with an animal-like snarl. He then lets out a defeated exhale and slumps over.

Lust kneels down in front of the dark side, pulling out a pair of handcuffs that were clipped to his belt. Remus wordlessly holds out his wrists, casting a guilty look to Deceit, who writhes on the ground trying to stop from screaming. He only manages to muffle a pained groan that breathes against his hands.

"Look at you... Feeling guilty?" Lust taunts at Remus, clipping one cuff around his wrist tightly. Remus yelps quietly when the metal cuff cuts into his wrist. 

'Feeling guilty? What, for leaving me to rot while he tried to escape?' Deceit thinks sarcastically to himself, barely able to focus on their words. He wants to pass out so badly that he began holding his breath, hoping he could choke himself out. He is forced to breathe once more when a rush of despair and agony takes over, forcing a moan against his hands.

He can't really blame Remus for leaving him. It's Deceit the dark sides want after all, Remus is a mere captive. Someone who was in the wrong spot at the wrong time. 

Lust locks the second cuff to a metal loop on the cell ground, chaining Remus to the floor. Remus doesn't fight back, he simply stares up at Lust in silence. He does look guilty, face riddled with remorse.

"I'll be back shortly.. Don't go anywhere..." Lust teases him with a smirk, opening the cell door very briefly to let himself out before closing it again.

Remus sits there silently, listening to Deceit's muffled groans of pain that quickly transform into choppy, thick sobs. Deceit can feel Remus staring at his injuries, looking at his extremely red and bloodied feet, the edges of his skin charred black from the blow torch. Deceit guesses that he is now looking at the bone peeking out of his calf, the skin around the fracture swollen and stained with gooey, congealed blood.

They both wait anxiously for Lust to return.

Thomas's POV

"Found it. Left it in the Dragon Witch's cave again, sorry." Roman declares, rising up with his samurai sword in hand. It took him a little over 15 minutes to find it. Thomas doesn't know why he even asked Roman to get it. Could it hurt the dark sides? Give them at least some advantage? He hopes so.

"Alright, then we're all ready?" Thomas says to them both. 

"Let's teach those morons a lesson." Roman says with a dramatic pose, his sword crossed over his chest nobly.

"..." Patton continues staring at the ground, his usual bright brown eyes dulled with anxiety and despair.

"Patton?" Thomas calls out to the side, who jerks his head up immediately. Thomas is surprised when Patton does not fake a smile.

"What if we can't do it? What if they capture us again?" Patton asks, despair leaking into his sweet voice like tar taking over honey. Thomas is stricken into silence for a moment and looks to Roman for support. Roman's eyes fall onto the ground, memories of torture spread across them clear as day.

"We can do this, guys! It's different than last time." Thomas tells them, trying to make them confident to no success. Virgil rises into their view. He stands near the stairs, arms still wrapped in fresh gauze.

"Is it?" Patton says forlornly in sync with Virgil, eyes jolting up to the side immediately in surprise. 

"Virgil, you should be getting--" Patton begins to say before he is immediately cut off.

"Are you guys seriously going after them without a plan?" Virgil hisses at the three, bangs falling in front of his face.

"Look Virge, we don't really have time for this. Logan is in trouble--" Thomas begins to explain to the anxious side firmly.

"You're going to get us all captured again, do you realize that?!" Virgil shouts, cascading silence over the room.

"And what exactly do you think 'that' is going to do?" Virgil mocks, pointing to Roman's sword.

"Scare them?" Patton says meekly.

"Scare them?? We are talking about the dark sides, right? The ones who nearly killed Patton to get their way?" Virgil argues, gesturing to Patton fiercely. Thomas swallows hard, feeling his anxiety rise as Virgil gets more and more paranoid.

"This is obviously a trap. They've planned something." Virgil states, stumbling slightly but catching the railing to support himself.

"And what makes you say that?" Roman inquires with a tone of stale sarcasm, clearly thinking that Virgil is merely overthinking.

"I don't know I just-- It's a gut feeling!" Virgil insists, teeth bared at Roman.

"Well we aren't just leaving Logan there, okay? What do you want us to do, Virge?!" Thomas shouts, heart-pumping fearfully within his chest. Virgil falls silent, unknowing of an answer for Thomas.

"We just- we need to confront them and negotiate with them." Thomas says in a despondent voice.

"Thomas-" Virgil starts.

"No, Virge. No. No more smoke and mirrors, no more tricks. We face them head-on." Thomas cuts Virgil off, making his firm decision. Patton and Roman both look up to Thomas in bewilderment, soothed by his sudden remorseful, yet confident, choice.

"Fine, but I am coming too." Virgil states, arms crossed defiantly.

"No Virge, you need rest." Thomas declines, noticing how he seems faint and paler than usual. He won't be safe there. Besides, they can't afford to have him as a liability.

"You need me there, Thomas. We need to outnumber them completely." Thomas stares at Virgil, weighing his choices. It's true, with Virgil there they are stronger. But he's hurt, even now he is struggling to keep his balance. 

"Virge, no-"

"You can't.. you can't leave me alone again." Virgil finally declares, swallowing hard as he avoids everyone's gaze.

"Last time you left me alone, they took me away." Thomas feels guilt drop into his stomach like a cannonball. He hadn't even considered that. 

"Alright fine.. just.. just promise me you'll stay back beside Roman." Thomas insists, agreeing against his better judgement. Virgil nods in agreement, a faint sheen of tears invading his eyes.

They each take a deep breath, looking between each other tensely.

"Ready?" Thomas asks them. They all nod, swallowing out of fear. Thomas shuts his eyes and focuses on his darkest thoughts. Before he knows it, he is sinking down into the realm of the dark sides.

Deceit's POV

Lust strolls back in holding a smallish green metal toolbox. He closes the cell door and stands over Remus, looking down on him with a devilish sneer. Deceit heart leaps weakly in his chest as Lust snorts and walks towards him, leaving Remus's side.

"What are you doing?" Remus demands, voice choked with suspicion as he watches Lust kneel down at Deceit's side. Deceit quivers on the floor, staring up at Lust with teary, pained eyes. He is petrified, unsure of what was happening. He doesn't understand what Lust is doing, or why he is near him now.

"Isn't it obvious?" Lust teases, placing the toolbox beside himself. Deceit visibly flinches as Lust opens the rusted metal lid. He can't see what is inside from his angle.

"Wait-- " Remus stutters, watching in terror as Lust pulls out a small hammer with one hand, and 4 sharp pins with the other. He places them at his side, smirking down at Deceit, who still has his injured hands covering his own mouth. 

"I know what you were trying to do, Remus. I'm not stupid." Lust spits at him mischievously, bringing his eyes back to Remus. Deceit's eyebrows furrow as he strains his neck, spotting the hammer and pins on the ground next to him. It all clicks very suddenly. Lust is going to hurt him right here, right now. He doesn't know how, he doesn't know why. He just knows it is going to happen.

"Lus--Lust do-don't- don't--" Deceit stumbles over his words, taking his hands from his mouth and placing them gently at his side.

"Shhh..." Lust coos at him, placing one finger over his dry, chapped lips.

"You weren't trying to escape Remus, you were distracting me so that Deceit could make his escape." Lust reveals, removing his finger. Deceit doesn't make any noise, merely staring at Lust in bewilderment.

"You're wrong-- I was--" Remus stutters, clearly lying. He is pulling desperately at his one restraint, trying to get to Deceit.

"No, I'm not. You ran straight past the exit vault door. You kept running to give Deceit more time. You knew I'd leave the cell door open because I believed Deceit would have learned his lesson." Lust shoots Deceit a threatening glare. Remus's mouth hangs open in disbelief. He snaps it shut and looks away from Lust.

Deceit sees his embarrassed face and knows that Lust is telling the truth. Deceit's head meets the ground again, staring up at the ceiling. Why would he do that? Why does he care?

'Why?'

'Why?'

'Why??' Deceit keeps asking himself, finding no answer.

"I think it's time to tell dear Deceit the truth, is it not?" Lust teases Remus, whose head snaps back to face him. The skin around his cuff goes white as he pulls hard against it.

"No- No Lust- we had a deal-!" Remus shouts, slamming his free fist against the ground.

"That 'deal' was voided the second you tried to help my pet escape..." Lust seethes, his demeanour completely changing into one of furious rage. Like a switch is flipped, Lust sinks into his original posture and mood.

"Now, Darling, sit up and pay attention." Lust snaps in front of his severely wounded prisoner's face. Deceit can't physically get up, Lust must know that. 

"Alright fine, I'll help you..." Lust begins to stand up threateningly.

"No--no! No- I'll- I can-- I'll do-- it-" Deceit stutters, mind racing from blank panic. He watches as Lust sits back down beside him, expectant and amused eyes trained on him.

Deceit bites the inside of his cheek as he begins to lift himself up on his forearms. His ribs pang and shake from within him as he tilts himself up. He yelps as he kicks against the floor, backing himself against the wall. He pushes himself up and allows himself to sit up against the wall. Deceit's shaking hands lay in his lap, throat tight with pain as he swallows steadily to control himself.

"Good boy... now listen and try your best to stay conscious.." Lust orders him, noticing how his eyes flick up slightly. Deceit jolts himself awake, letting a groan slip through his lips as he tries his best to focus on Lust. 

"Now, should I tell him, or you?" Lust mocks Remus, who looks about ready to leap at Lust.

"Lust- don't do this-" Remus pleads him with a tone of urgency.

"We've been playing you, Deceit. Remus is not who you think he is." Lust tells Deceit, whose eyes widen in response. Doubt creeps into his mind as he stares at Remus, who he thought was trying to help him.

"Sides don't appear out of thin air, darling. Remus has been around just as long as anyone else. He wasn't 'created' or given a physical form by Thomas's repression of us. That was merely a lie. A lie that me and Rage thought best to continue." Lust begins to explain. Remus guilty looks away from Deceit's stare. What does Lust have on him? What are they not telling him?

"When we saw him for the first time, it was around the time of Thomas's adolescence. You wouldn't remember, you were in the cellar. Remus had been living across from Roman's room, they were twins of course. He was a dark side living in a light side's world. When Remus came to us that day, he was furious..." Lust continues, keeping an amused stare on Remus, who has merely dropped onto his knees in defeat as Lust's story develops.

"He was tired of living in Roman's shadow, being unknown to Thomas. He wanted to use his creativity, to be a part of Thomas instead of being repressed. Turns out you were what was holding him back, my Dear. With you lying to Thomas about his darker sides, Remus was completely unable to do anything. He was fully repressed by you, and it made him absolutely despise you when we told him. So, he decided to help us out." Lust turns back towards Deceit with a sneer.

"He helped us hurt you." Lust states simply.

Deafening silence caves in around Deceit, seeming to quiet his own rapid heartbeat. For a second, he doesn't believe it. Remus's face is one of shame, which tells Deceit everything he needs to know. Lust is telling him the truth.

"Remember all of those sleepless nights out of the cellar when you couldn't quite shake the thoughts of your trauma? That was all Remus's work, his power over intrusive thoughts. He hoped that it would make you finally submit, but you proved to be more stubborn than we anticipated. That went on for a while." Remus finally meets his gaze, flinching at the hurt found within Deceit's eyes. He begs for Remus to tell him that Lust is just screwing with him, but it doesn't come. 

For the first time in his entire existence, Deceit had an ally. A person he could depend on. A person who could help him. 

Now even that has been taken from him. Remus was never his ally, was he? He was merely helping Deceit to cure his own bruised consciousness. He lied to Deceit over and over again, and Deceit didn't notice at all that something was wrong. He barely knew Remus, yet Remus was so willing to sacrifice himself to save Deceit from some of the pain. Deceit should've known that it was all an act, a selfish show of faith to help himself get over his horrendous actions from so long ago.

Deceit should've known.

"I- I'm sorry- Deceit, I just... I didn't..." Remus trails off as Deceit jerks his head away, tears of betrayal forming in his eyes.

"I didn't know what- what they were doing. I thought I was giving you nightmares, nothing more. I-I didn't know." Remus insists, trying to explain to Deceit, who is unwilling to listen. 

Deceit spent weeks in his room desperately trying to sleep, but being kept awake by Remus. He had nearly been driven to insanity through sleep-deprivation alone. How could Remus do that to him?

'He's just a sadist like the rest of them...' Deceit thinks to himself, grinding his teeth together as he lets out a quiet groan.

"The only reason Remus has tried helping you so many times is that he feels guilty for what he did so long ago. He never cared for you, only pitied you." Lust hisses closely into Deceit's face.

"That's not true-! I just wanted- to help you, I really did." Remus argues helplessly, trying to get Deceit to understand.

"Then why did you beg me not to tell Deceit about what you had done, hmm?" Lust challenges him. Remus doesn't have a response.

"You hurt him then, just like you hurt him now." Lust says, suddenly grabbing Deceit's less-injured hand, the one with only a broken thumb. Deceit immediately tries jerking his hand away in fearful anticipation with a shriek.

"Stop-stop it! What are you doing?!" Remus screams as Deceit pleads shakily for Lust to stop.

"I am punishing you, Remus." Lust sneers, grappling Deceit flat onto the ground as he tries to fight back. Lust roughly flips Deceit onto his stomach and crawls on top of him, sitting on his lower back as Deceit shrieks and flails against the ground. 

Deceit sobs helplessly, not understanding what he did wrong to be tortured again. He doesn't want more pain, he doesn't deserve more pain. He already paid the price for trying to escape. It cost him the ability to walk.

"Stop! He didn't do anything!! I am the one that ran away, hurt me!" Remus demands, throat choked with guilt as he pulls against the chain locking him to the ground.

"Guilt is a much more painful punishment, is it not? You tried to help Deceit escape, so I'll torture Deceit some more. You will forever know that this is your fault." Lust cackles to himself as he slams Deceit's wrist against the ground, watching his broken thumb twitch in agony.

"Hear that, Darling? This is Remus's fault..." He whispers closely into Deceit's ear, easily holding him down as he constantly squirms and struggles. He can barely breathe as he is rammed against the ground under Lust's weight.

"No- No Lust- -please-!!" Remus cries as Lust picks up a sharp pin that was beside him. He takes the pin and jabs it beneath his prisoner's pointer finger's nail. Deceit yelps, noticing the sharp edge pierce just barely underneath his nail.

"And what do we have here?" Lust mocks, bringing a small hammer in front of his face. Deceit can basically feel his soul leave his body at the sight of the hammer. Lust is going to hammer that pin underneath his nail, isn't he?

At this revelation, Deceit becomes completely hysteric. He screams loudly, stripping his throat completely as he tries everything to escape from underneath Lust. His broken fingers clench into balls, but he can barely notice the agony through his own panic.

"Lust stop!! Don't- don't hurt him! Please, please stop!!!" Remus howls, cutting off his own circulation as he tries to break free.

Lust responds with a cackle as he slams the hammer into the pin, forcing the sharp object completely underneath his nail, piercing into his nailbed smoothly. Deceit yells until there is no oxygen left in his chest. He can feel his nail being pulled up from his nailbed as Lust hammers down on the pin.

"NO- NO- STOP!!" Deceit can barely hear Remus's pleas through his own screaming. Before he knows it, Lust is shoving another pin underneath his middle finger nail. Deceit head hits the ground as Lust bangs the pin underneath his nail. Tears flood down his face as his screaming continues. Deceit just wants it to stop, he would do anything to make it stop. Sobs jump at his chest, breaking his yelling as they force themselves out.

"Now, now Remus. No more screaming or I'll do his other hand too." Lust threatens. 

"He didn't do anything! It was me! I tried to escape, torture me!!" Remus bellows, disregarding Lust's threat completely. Deceit begs Remus to shut it before he gets Deceit hurt any more than he already has. Lust's warnings should not be taken lightly, Deceit learned that the hard way.

"Remus, this is your last warning..." Lust warns him with a mocking cackle.

"Stop- stop hurting him! Torture me you freak!!" The room goes silent, save for Deceit's wailing.

'God no, please no.' Deceit pleads in his head, eyes squeezed shut.

"Sorry, Darling. It looks like we're doing both hands." Lust coos to him, sneering at Remus.

Deceit feels another pin prick against his ring finger. He kicks his feet against the ground, only hurting himself further as his compound fracture scraps against the ground. Lust slams the hammer-head into the pin, laughing as he watches the silver pin appear under the nail as it is forced further and further in. Remus has come completely unglued, screaming at the top of his lungs for Lust to stop.

Nausea pools into Deceit as Lust moves onto his pinky finger. He wails desperately, saliva dripping down his chin from the constant crying. He nearly throws up when the hammer rams the pin in, splitting the nail in two as it pokes through at his cubicle.

"Shh, shh, just one more....on this hand.." Lust taunts him evilly, running his hands through Deceit's hair as he picks up another pin with his free hand. Lust snickers as he moves onto his already broken thumb. He feels Lust tear the splint off of him, making the fractured finger ache. He shrieks as the hammer thrusts the deadly sharp pin into his already mutilated finger. Lust gives it another wack to push it in as deep as the others.

Deceit can feel Lust grab hold of his other hand. He whimpers as his tortured fingers burn like hell itself, pooling blood beneath his entire hand. Lust tears off each splint one by one until he is completely shed of all protection.

There is only one thought that manages to cut through the deafening static of his mind;

'This is Remus's fault'

He doesn't get much of a chance to think about it before Lust is jamming a pin underneath his thumbnail. He opens his mouth to plead Lust, but he is too late. A scream erupts from him as the pin is forced into his nailbed with one swift hit. His eyes flicker up, feeling his consciousness slip away.

'Please..please just..just let it end... Let me go unconscious...' Deceit begs his body as his eyes softly close. 

"Hey, stay conscious!!" Lust shouts at him, jolting him awake before he could fully slip away. He moans under his breath, throat tight with pain as his fingers bleed and ache. He can feel each pin lodged underneath each nail, piercing into the very, very sensitive skin.

"We still have 4 fingers to go, love. Stay up or else..." Lust warns him, teeth grazing against Deceit's earlobe as he whispers closely into him. Deceit whines pathetically like a beaten dog as he tries to hold on.

Deceit lurches up as yet another pin jabs beneath his nail. He can hear Lust laughing maniacally as he hits the pin three times, securing it completely. His broken fingers throb in sync with his frantic heartbeat.

'No more.. please.. no more..' Deceit begs to himself as Lust prepares his middle finger. Pins and needles explode up his right arm as Lust bashes the safety pin in. He audibly gags, basically hearing the nail rip up from the nail bed as Lust wiggles the pin underneath the nail playfully. 

"STOP HURTING HIM-- STOP!! PLEASE!! I AM BEGGING YOU!!" Remus screams, finally transforming his yelling into proper words. He hasn't stopped screaming through the entire thing.

"Hmm, sounds like Remus wants two pins in this nail." Lust mocks, chuckling under his breath as he shoves another thin spike under the same nail. 

Deceit hollers louder than he thought was humanly possible as the already mutilated nail is ripped clean off of his nailbed by the extra pin. His wailing turns to very loud, very pained sobbing as air meets the raw spot where a nail should be.

Remus finally stops trying to save Deceit as he watches Lust pick up Deceit's bloodied nail and toss it to the side, snickering under his breath. He doomed Deceit, there's nothing he can do. This is his fault.

Deceit tries to hold on to his conscious state, but it slips through his fingers like water. He can't hold on forever.

Lust begins to move on to his ring finger but stops when he notices Deceit's screaming suddenly stop. Deceit feels himself slipping away, eyes slowly closing as he finally succumbs to the desperate claws of---

Deceit is jolted awake almost immediately as Lust presses his thumb against where his pointer finger nail should be. It stings like acid as Lust rubs the very raw skin in a circular motion. Once he is sure Deceit is conscious, he hammers the next pin in, enjoying his extreme wailing like it was his favourite song. Colourful shapes explode in the corners of his eyes as Lust finally gets to the last finger, jabs a pin underneath the nail, and slams it in with the head of the metal hammer.

Deceit writhes on the ground, wailing in pure agony, finally pulling his terribly mutilated hands away from Lust and tucking it beneath himself. Lust stands up, looming over Deceit as he watches in pleasure.

Suddenly, the cell door opens. 

"Lust, they're here--" Rage begins, walking into the room. He trails off as he spots Lust standing over a moaning, quivering Deceit.

"Good, just finished up." Lust says with a smug smirk, putting the hammer back into the toolbox. Lust's fingers are coated in Deceit's dark blood.

"Well, hurry up. They should rise up right outside the vault." Rage demands, quickly walking over to Logan. He kneels down and lifts Logan up, who has remained unconscious ever since their session together.

"Bring Deceit and Remus, meet us outside." Rage orders as he walks out of the cell, obviously trying to not look at Deceit. Lust snickers under his breath as he approaches Remus. He unlocks the handcuffs with a small key, sneering when Remus makes no attempt at moving. He is completely paralyzed, staring at Deceit with teary, wide eyes.

Lust walks back over to Deceit and lifts him up, laughing loudly when Deceit howls in agony. Lust wraps an arm around him, supporting most of his weight, but still forcing him to walk on the burned soles his feet. He shrieks, feeling the cold ground make contact with his 3rd-degree burns. Tears drip endlessly down his pale face. He can hear blood dripping from his fingers and splatting against the ground as the pins remain lodged underneath his nails.

"Come along, Remus." Lust demands, helping Deceit walk to the door with one arm wrapped around his back, pressed against the irritated knife slashes. Remus stands silently and walks ahead of them without uttering a single word.

A wail is forced from Deceit's lips every time he is forced to take a step, especially on his right leg which burns with fresh pain as he is pressed on to walk on his fracture. Blank steel walls pass him, but he can barely stay focused. His mind is scrambled, pain overriding his every single function. The air burns his mutilated nails, stinging like thousands and thousands of wasps.

Slowly they make their way to the huge steel door that leads to the outside realm. Lust quickly scans his face and one hand, unlocking one lock after another until it finally opens. No light is let in, only opening up to a dark world outside. As they walk out, Deceit spots Rage and Logan. Logan is finally conscious again and has his arms cuffed behind his back. Logan cries into a gag, body shaking as he kneels on the ground in front of Rage. His broken arm is bent sickeningly as it is chained in a painful position behind him.

"Stay there." Lust says, pointing to a spot beside Rage. Remus obliges quietly, trudging over to take his spot. Lust guides Deceit to a spot beside Logan.

"Kneel." He whispers into Deceit's ear. Deceit whines as he tries to obey this order, slowly bending down as to not hurt himself further. Lust huffs impatiently and slams a foot behind his knee. Deceit immediately drops to the ground onto his knees, screaming out into the dark abyss that closes around him as his bloodied hands slam against the ground. He feels Lust jerk both of his arms behind his back, cold hard cuffs immediately closing around them both. He yelps as Lust pulls a gag into his mouth, parting his lips. He ties it tightly around his prisoner's head, completely silencing his screams, but not his sobs or groans of agony.

He can hear Lust walk away from him, making him relax slightly. He continues crying into his gag, unable to stop himself.

"Stick to the plan.." Rage growls to Lust, who snickers in response. 

The light sides rise up into their realm, appearing in front of all of them.

Chapter Text

Patton's POV

When they rise up, Patton can't see anything. He thinks for a moment that his eyes are closed, but they aren't. He is reassured by the presence of Thomas, Roman and Virgil, who all rise up with him.

"Where--?" Thomas mutters, glancing around blindly. He can only see the sides beside him, which emit a small amount of light in the suffocating inky darkness. Patton feels a chill creep up his spine, feeling eyes trained on the back of his head. He spins around and yelps loudly, seeing 5 sides standing fairly distant to them. It's Lust and Rage. At the sight of their faces, Patton's knees shake and nearly buckle.

"Thom-Thomas--" Patton whispers breathlessly, tugging at Thomas's sleeve like a child reaching for their parent.

"What is it Patton-" Thomas turns around, voice trailing off as he spots the dark sides. Virgil and Roman now face them as well, stricken into silence through terror alone.

That's when Patton sees Logan.

"Logan!!" He exclaims, eyes tearing at his state. Scabbed gashes line his forehead, and his eyes are dull and distant. Once Logan sees Patton, life seems to breathe into him. Patton hears him try to say his name, but Logan can't with the gag in his mouth.

Beside him is Deceit, who looks even worse. His skin is paper-white, green scales dulled completely. Tears roll down his cheeks as he sobs into the gag. He isn't wearing a shirt, so Patton can immediately see the terrible bruising that splotches across his torso, along with deep, scabbed slashes that are scattered around his skin. He is shaking terribly.

Patton can't help but feel relieved that Logan isn't as hurt as Deceit is.

"Well, it's been a while, hasn't it?" Rage says to them all, stepping forward towards them.

Deceit's POV

Deceit can feel them all staring at him, pity found in their eyes. He so badly wants to curl into a ball and hide from the word, a pathetic beaten dog licking his wounds. He honestly doesn't know where the dark sides are going with this, and he doesn't want to find out. Lust isn't giving him a choice in that regard.

"Did you miss us?" Lust mocks the light sides, advancing with Rage. Deceit hears Lust snort in amusement when Roman readies his sword, pointing the sharp edge at the two.

"What have you done to them?" Thomas demands, straightening his back to fake courage. Deceit visibly flinches as Lust comes up behind him, placing both hands on his shoulders. Rage takes a spot behind Logan.

"Oh, I really don't think you want to know..." Lust teases, gripping Deceit's bare shoulders. Deceit groans in agony, his entire body set aflame. He can feel blood continuing to drip off of his fingertips, splatting onto the hard floor beneath him.

"How are you back? How did you do this?" Virgil snarls at them, hate blazing in his eyes.

"Remus back there helped out, he set us free." Rage explains, gesturing to Remus, who stands silently at the back wall in front of the large vault, despair and guilt found in his expression. 

"But enough of that, It's time to talk about what happens now..." Rage says with a sneer.

"You see Thomas, I am going to give you a choice..." He begins, looking between both Deceit and Logan.

"You will choose who you want to save, either Logan or Deceit. I will let you take whoever you choose home, but you will leave one behind with me and Lust, and we will do what we please with them." Deceit feels an unfamiliar feeling of hope swell in his chest at the thought of being rescued from Lust. It is crushed immediately when he remembers who he is competing against; Logan. His eyes water, knowing that Thomas would never choose him over Logan. Deceit's too broken anyways, why would they want him? Physically and mentally he is gone. The side Deceit used to be was gone the moment he woke up with Rage, chained to a pole and completely unaware of the true danger he was in so many months ago. He is useless now, he is broken past fixing. Logan is cared about, Logan is loved. Deceit will never know what that feels like. To be wanted. To be needed. Thomas doesn't need Deceit.

"You're bluffing..." Thomas insists with a snarl, hands curled into fists at his sides.

"Oh, am I? Try me..." Rage advances, standing a few feet from Thomas. Roman basically jumps to Thomas's side, pointing the sword at Rage's throat. Rage barely even notices, keeping a trained smile on Thomas.

"This is madness..." Thomas hisses.

"No, no, this is revenge." Rage seethes, baring his teeth, their faces nearly touching. Roman's sword is now pressed against his throat every so slightly, only because of how close Rage grew.

"Revenge? For what, besting you?" Thomas challenges him, pushing him too far. In a flash of movement, Rage grips Roman's sword by the blade, cutting into his own palm as he tears the sword from the light side. Roman lunges for his sword but stops mid-motion when Rage flips it around in his now-bleeding hand, pressing the blade against Thomas's neck.

"For Pride! Remember him? The side that Logan killed? The side you took from me?" Rage shouts into Thomas's face, finally breaking Thomas's confidence as he pushes the sword hard against him. Although Thomas's mouth remains one line, Deceit can see the fear settle in his eyes like ash falling to the ground.

"..." Thomas doesn't know how to respond, and Deceit can't really blame him. Rage blinks repeatedly as dark veins begin crawling up his neck once again. He shakes his head slightly, seemingly dispersing thoughts of murder as he steps backwards, the sword hanging from his hand.

"Us.. you took from us." Rage corrects himself quietly. Patton shows a flash of strange pity in his eyes for Rage as Thomas brings one hand up to his throat, making sure he isn't bleeding.

"So, Thomas, choose. Choose which one to save, knowing that whoever you leave behind will be subject to terrible, terrible pain for the rest of their life." Rage whispers closely, no longer smiling as he tosses the sword behind himself. Deceit hears Lust laugh from over his head as Thomas stumbles backwards, faced with a horrible decision.

"And..and if I refuse?" Thomas inquires. 

"Then you will never see either of them ever again. You will doom two lives instead of one." Rage growls, eyes dark with hatred as he spits the rules of his little game.

"Pick a side to save, take them home. You will never hear from any of us ever again, our score will be settled." Rage assures as Thomas weighs his options.

"And how are we supposed to trust you after all you've done to us?" Virgil seethes angrily. Deceit notices the bandages wrapped around his forearms, deducing that he must've tried to take his own life. Lust sees Deceit looking at Virgil's wounds, his nails digging into his skin. Deceit inhales sharply, feeling Lust's lips graze his ear.

"Don't get any bright ideas..." Lust threatens him, knowing how often he must think of taking his own life.

"You don't really have another choice, now do you?" Rage says to Virgil with a half-smirk that quickly fades away. Patton's gaze remains fixed on Logan, tears rolling down his face, yet he remains silent. Virgil huffs, crossing his arms stubbornly.

"He's right..." Virgil mutters.

"Can..can we at least have some time to discuss this?" Thomas inquires meekly to Rage, who grins at his request.

"Please, take all the time you need... " Rage coos, walking away from them to stand next to Lust. The light sides all circle around Thomas, their voices still loud enough for everyone to hear.

"You better be right about this, Rage."  Lust threatens Rage in a hostile tone.

"Oh, I am." Rage says with a chuckle, eyes trained on the light sides.

"So, you said you were going to punish Remus." Rage states, his eyes meeting the bleeding, absolutely disfigured fingers of Deceit.

"I did." Lust declares simply with a proud tone. Deceit feels his cheeks flush with heat, wanting to plug his own ears so he couldn't hear either parties talking about him. 

"And exactly how did that merit shoving pins under Deceit's nails?" Rage demands angrily, gesturing to their prisoner's bleeding hands.

"I have my ways." Lust states, offering no more explanation. Deceit hears Rage exhale sharply in frustration.

"What? Look, Remus is completely obedient. It worked." Lust says, gesturing to Remus, who remains silent in the same spot he was told to wait in.

"Are we really going to discuss this?!" Deceit hears Virgil raise his voice sharply, causing the group to go silent.

"Virge, it isn't that simple-" Thomas begins to explain.

"No, Thomas, I'm pretty sure it is! You've got to choose between a dark side and a light side. It's a simple choice!" Virgil demands authoritatively.

"But how could we do that to Deceit? After everything he did for us?" Roman insists, gesturing to the beaten side. Deceit flinches at the mention of his name.

"And what exactly did he do for us?" Virgil snaps.

"He set us free, don't you remember? He saved Patton!" Roman continues to defend the dark side, which honestly surprises Deceit more than anything else.

"No, Logan saved Patton. Deceit tried to save himself, nothing more!" Virgil argues back, causing Roman to fall silent. Deceit feels a sharp hatred for Virgil, but can he really blame him? It makes the most sense to choose Logan. It doesn't make sense that they are still discussing it. They've clearly made their decision. Why are they even discussing it further? Are just stalling for time because they don't want to condemn Deceit to a fate worse than death itself?

"I'm sorry Thomas- but I agree with Virgil.." Patton says meekly, trying to keep his voice quiet so that Deceit doesn't hear him.

"Patton..." Thomas says, disappointed in his moral side.

"We need Logan more.. I need Logan-- that's the truth." Patton insists, continuing to glance over at the side he loves the most. Logan does not return his looks, merely staring down at the floor.

"I suppose... I suppose you're right." Roman concedes, rubbing his temples in a seemingly remorseful way. Thomas sighs deeply, looking between each of his sides.

"Logan?" He asks them, watching them all nod, starting with Virgil and ending with Roman. Thomas swallows hard and approaches the dark sides once again.

"Ah, you've made your choice then?" Rage asks, stepping forward as well. Lust remains behind Deceit, caressing his shoulders pervertedly until Deceit shakes with disgust and fear.

"Yes, we have." Thomas responds, eyes trained on the ground guiltily.

"And...?" Thomas's eyes meet Deceit for just a moment. They shine with apology and remorse. Deceit looks away, biting down on a hopeless sob that fights to free itself from his throat.

"We choose..." Thomas trails off, readying himself to say the name. 

"Logan." He states, eyes downcast to hide his shame. Deceit's eyes water as Lust's face leans into his view.

"Aw, you poor thing... Nobody wants to save you..." Lust coos with a grin. 

Rage approaches Thomas, his hand held out to close their deal.

"I guess you're stuck with me..." Lust purrs closely into his ear, laughing lowly at his tears of humiliation and despair.

Thomas hesitates at the sight of Rage's hand. His hand rises slowly, shaking as it approaches the hand of the devil himself. Their hands meet, shaking as they close their deal, sealed in the blood of the side that he condemned.

Rage snickers as he spins on his heel, walking towards Logan. He pulls him up roughly from underneath his broken arm, causing Logan to scream out. Rage drags Logan over to the light sides, pushing him into their hold. Roman, Virgil, and Patton all rush to catch Logan, who seems barely aware of what was happening as they help him stand.

"Pleasure doing business with you..." Rage says to Thomas before spinning around, walking back towards the vault. Lust snickers as he pulls Deceit up, making him cry out in agony as his burned feet reach the ground.

"You won't hear from us again." Rage calls out to them as he opens the vault door, disappearing from view as he steps in.

Deceit is led towards the vault by Lust, who continues to laugh lowly as he drags his prisoner back into hell.

"Deceit-!" Thomas calls after them. Lust stops in his steady track, but doesn't turn Deceit around.

"I am-- I am so sorry--" Thomas apologizes, voice choked with sadness. Deceit bites down on his lip, stifling a desperate whimper. He shouldn't have bothered apologizing, there's nothing to apologize for. He made the right call, even if it hurts Deceit to admit that. He is too broken to help them heal. He can't even heal himself.

Lust snorts in amusement as they continue into the vault, Remus walking ahead of them obediently.

Without another word, the vault door closes, leaving Thomas and his sides standing outside in the dark.

Lust brings Deceit and Remus back into their cell. Remus walks in without a word, sitting down against the wall. Lust walks Deceit into the cell, setting him down in the corner of the room on his knees. Deceit cries into his gag as Lust begins taking off the handcuffs, his hands brushing Deceit's mangled, broken fingers.

"Oh, you want to keep them on? No problem, Darling." Lust stops trying to remove them, simply leaving them on. He laughs as Deceit whines into his gag, trying to beg Lust to take them off. It hurts like hell to have his arms behind him, torso twisted in such a way that his ribs sing with torment.

"And how about the gag, hmm? If you keep whining, I'll just assume you want that to stay on as well..." At Lust's words, Deceit immediately silences his begging and whimpering, biting down hard on the gag to stop it from coming out.

"See? Good boy..." Lust coos, untying the gag and taking it out of his mouth. Deceit lets out a sharp yelp once it is removed, his voice quickly turning into constant wailing.

"Alright, now you two get along. I've got to discuss some things with Rage..." Lust says as he rises, leaving Deceit kneeling on the ground, hands cuffed behind his back.

"You're--you're not going to uncuff him?" Remus asks Lust.

"Oh I'm sorry, do you have a problem with that?" Lust threatens, getting right in his face. Deceit doesn't hear Remus say another word.

"That's what I thought..." Lust hisses, turning around and walking out of their cell, locking the door shut behind himself.

Deceit manages to turn himself over, grunting and shouting out as his exposed bone is squashed under his entire weight. He sits against the wall, hands bound behind his back still, starting to get sore. He cries softly to himself, not caring that Remus is here. He just had his last, very small amount of hope ripped from his chest and shattered on the ground. He shouldn't hate Thomas for picking Logan, but he does. He knew it was coming, but it still hurt like hell when Logan's name left his lips. It shouldn't hurt. He keeps telling himself that. But it does.

Deceit whines to himself, sobbing uncontrollably. He's been bottling it up for so long that he feels like if he keeps it in any longer, he would crack.

"Here, let me help. Your pain medication must've worn off." Remus says, standing up and walking towards him, taking the pills out of his garb.

"Ju--s- --stay-- ba-" Deceit can't say the words between his uncontrollable crying. His sobs jump out of his throat against his desperate attempts to stop. He doesn't want Remus anywhere near him after learning what he did. 

"Here- just open your mouth-" Remus holds the pill in front of his face, the same way Lust did. Deceit pushes himself back, crying out from the pain as he tries to get away. Remus just keeps trying, seemingly trying to prove how he is on Deceit's side.

"Sto-stop it-- just stop!!" Deceit screams, finally reaching his limit. He breaks into crying once again at the effort it took to demand so loudly for Remus to just leave him alone.

"I'm sorry!! I just--" Remus trails off, dropping the pill back into the bottle. He turns and walks away, his head down as he slides down the wall.

"I am sorry, Deceit..." Remus apologizes to him, staring blankly at the wall with saddened, glossy eyes. 

"I didn't--I didn't know-" Remus urges, burying his face in his hands.

"I didn't know what they were doing, I just-- I wanted to be seen. When you lied about me to Thomas, you made me invisible to them. I was all alone, watching my brother who never knew I even existed. I just-I thought it was just nightmares to scare you.. I didn't know it was like this. I wanted to be-be seen--that's all." Remus mutters guilty.

Deceit can't listen to this right now, he just can't. He's drowning in his own pit of sadness and anger, being dragged down into a dark, dark abyss of despair.

"I just wanted to help you..."

"I am so, so sorry--" Remus chokes. 

The two dark sides cry together on their own, their sobs melding together until they are indistinguishable.

Chapter Text

Thomas's POV

They all watch in baited silence as the vault door shuts behind Lust and Deceit. Thomas is completely numb with guilt, picturing the terribly wounded side being dragged along by Lust. Whatever happens to Deceit is his fault. Whenever Deceit is beaten, drugged, or mutilated, Thomas is the one doing it. Thomas gave them Deceit in return for Logan.

"Thomas!" Patton's voice cuts through his own thoughts. Thomas looks up to the side, realizing they've been calling his name repeatedly.

"We have to get Logan out of here." Patton urges, his voice choking with extreme sadness. Thomas looks to Logan, who is crying uncontrollably, one arm shaking violently.

"But-- Deceit-" Thomas stutters, sobbing involuntarily. Virgil grabs him tightly by the shoulders.

"Deceit is gone, Thomas! He's already gone! You need to focus now and save Logan!" Virgil shouts at him, shaking him to break him out of his trance. Thomas looks between his sides with teary eyes.

"We- we- left him- he's going to-" Thomas trips over his words as sobs break his sentence.

"Thomas you need to listen to me. You need to take us back for Logan's sake. Close your eyes." Virgil coos firmly, still gripping him. Thomas's eyes dart around their faces, wide with horror and grief.

"Thomas, close your eyes, now." Virgil urges. Thomas swallows hard, shutting his eyes.

"Okay, now focus on getting us home. Focus on what you need to do, Thomas." Thomas keeps his eyes squeezed shut, picturing his living room. He knows what he must do, but it seems near impossible to keep his thoughts trained on his task. Dark guilt continues to creep into his mind until all he can think of is Deceit, alone in a cell, awaiting his inevitable torture.

'No, no. Stop!' Thomas shakes the image out of his head.

'You need to save them. You couldn't' save them before, so save them now.' Thomas's mind clears, completely focused now. 

'Come on.' He says to himself, feeling him and all of his sides sink down.

They successfully leave the realm of the dark sides, preparing to enter the real world.

Rage's POV

Rage sits in the surveillance room, blankly staring into the wall.

'Soon they will pay... soon.' He thinks to himself, lips curled back into a snarl. His hands crumple into fists, the black veins once again shooting up his arms. He exhales deeply, his anger dissipating into terrible grief as he pictures Pride dead on the ground, his usual tan skin fading as the blood leaked from his body. He never got to say goodbye. 

A flashback comes, but Rage doesn't fight it. The only time he gets to see Pride's face is in his dreams now, so the flashbacks are very welcome indeed. He simply closes his eyes and lets himself be pulled into a better world.

"Oh, and one more thing." Pride's voice calls out to Lust, who holds a limp, wounded Deceit up.

"Either you come back with the information I need, or you both don't come back at all." Pride orders authoritatively. Rage sees Lust's eyes shine with uncertainty, his grip tightening around the deceitful side.

"I'll have him singing within the hour." Lust replies, clearly doubting himself. Rage and Pride watch as Deceit and Lust disappear down the stairs to the torture chamber. He is finally alone with Pride after all this time. He doesn't even know what to say.

"So, you really think this will work?" Rage asks, trying to edge his way into conversation with Pride.

"Most certainly. Thomas and his sides will come for Deceit, thinking he is the one behind all of the strange changes. We let Deceit go, they confront him, and we go from there." Pride tells him, hands folded behind his back as he stares down at the slightly shorter side. Rage can't help but marvel at his pristine features and blondish hair.

"...Something on your mind?" Pride asks him teasingly with a smirk. Rage tears his eyes away from Pride, heart thumping against his chest.

"Are we really not going to talk about 'us'?" Rage snaps back at him, blushing slightly under the careful watch of Pride.

"What is there to talk about?" Pride mocks him playfully, stepping closer. Rage steps backwards, eyes blazing fiercely.

"Are you joking?! Pride, I loved you, and you left!!" Rage screams at him. Rage sees a flash of guilt cross over his eyes, despite his rosy lips still maintaining a smile.

"So, you don't love me now?" Pride coos, grabbing Rage by the hips and pulling him in closer, their faces nearly touching. Rage's eyes flick down to his lips, feeling himself lean closer as their hearts beat against one another passionately.

Suddenly, Rage pulls away from Pride, tearing his hands off of his hips.

"No! No, I'm not doing this again, Pride! You abandoned me, you were the only side I ever cared about. I fell apart when you left!" Rage shouts, jabbing a finger accusingly into his prominent chest.

"Oh for god's sake, we both knew it couldn't last forever. I had to go, you know that." Pride defends himself, crossing his arms and rolling his eyes.

"You could've told me, you could've said 'goodbye' and that we'd see each other again. But you didn't, because you didn't care." Rage snarls, looking away from Pride in disgust.

"You know, I did this all for you! I kidnapped Deceit and got in touch with Lust, just to give you the perfect plan to take over Thomas. I only ever wanted to see you again, and now... now I wish I hadn't." Rage growls at him. They both fall silent, looking away from each other.

"I'm sorry, alright? You're right, I should've said something. I just wanted to leave, okay? I was held down there, unable to soar." Rage flinches at his apology, glancing to him once again. He wanted to hear an apology, he won't deny that, but he didn't expect it to hurt so badly.

"And If it's any consolation, I loved you too, and I missed you every day we weren't together." Pride mumbles, kicking the ground as he avoids Rage's surprised look.

Rage throws his arms around Pride, pulling him into a tight embrace. Pride stiffens at first, but soon wraps his arms around Rage in return. They stay like this for just a moment, feeling as if no time passed at all.

Rage lets go of him, turning to walk away. Pride quickly grabs him by the collar of his suit and pulls him in once again, pressing his lips onto Rages. He grunts in surprise, wide eyes meeting Pride's face. His face burns brightly, fire dancing along his lips fiercely. He begins melting into Pride, eyes starting to close softly.

'But what if he leaves again?' Rage thinks to himself, eyes shooting open once more. He's not ready for that hurt again. He never got over being abandoned like that, and he won't survive if it happens again. 

Rage pulls his face away from Pride, cutting their kiss short.

"No, no I'm not ready to do this again." Rage demands, pushing himself away from Pride slightly, but Pride refuses to release his hands, still gripping the collar of his maroon suit. Pride leans into his ear.

"Oh, I'm not asking..." He whispers hotly. Rage feels himself pushed back against the wall, Pride's hands at the side of his head.

Their lips connect once more. This time, Rage doesn't fight back. He doesn't care anymore. He still loves Pride, he always has. He melts into Pride's kiss, all doubts washing from his mind as their hearts beat in sync.

Rage opens his eyes once again, tears now streaming down his face. He runs his fingers through his hair, lips quivering with grief, almost feeling Pride's warmth against his face. With a sob, Rage puts his head down on the desk, crying into the wood. 

He would do absolutely anything to be with him again.

And they will pay for taking him away.

Patton's POV

It's the next morning. After Thomas got them home, Patton immediately took Logan to his room, setting him down on his bed. He wasn't really conscious, babbling incoherently as Patton tried to ask a couple of questions. Patton gave him some painkillers and put a sling around his broken arm. Logan woke up a couple of times last night, crying out the name 'Rage'. Patton just gave him more medicine and watched as he went back to bed. Patton, on the other hand, got no sleep. He was so worried about Logan being taken away from him once again that every single noise made Patton jump to Logan's side, ready to defend him.

"Pat-Patton?" Logan groans, finally awake. Patton jumps to his feet immediately, running over to the side of the bed. He had been sleeping on the floor, giving Logan his entire bed.

"Yes, yes I'm right here!" Patton says, standing over him. Logan is pale, eyes teary. The gashes on his forehead are scabbed over mostly, except for an especially deep one that Patton had to remove glass from.

"It-- hurt-hurts-" Logan cries. Patton's eyes water as he takes a pill bottle from the side and pours two bluish gel pills into his hand. 

"I know, here- take these." Patton helps him sit up and places the two pills in his shaking hand. He then hands him a glass of water. The glass has the scratched up image of Spongebob, faded by time. Logan shakily takes the medication, draining the cup of water and returning it to Patton. Patton watches as his eyes close once again. He begins to step away, stopping when Logan grabs him by the wrist with his good arm.

"No- no please- don't go-" He begs tearjerkingly. 

"I'm not going anywhere, I promise!" Patton persuades him honestly, eyes tearing by the state of the side he loves. Logan's hand slides down to his own, intertwining their fingers together. Patton smiles sadly down at him. He feels Logan pulling him towards the bed, very gently as he is very weak.

"What is it, Logan?" Patton asks him, thumb rubbing the back of Logan's hand.

"La-lay down- with- me?" Logan asks, his eyes trying hard to stay open. Patton can't help but feel his heartbeat increase.

"Yeah- yeah of course-" He says, releasing their hands for just a moment. Patton carefully gets into his bed, slipping underneath the warm covers. Logan's hand finds his once again. Patton feels Logan rest his head on his chest, completely unconscious again. Their hands remain entangled.

With Logan in his arms, Patton drifts off into sleep peacefully.

Deceit's POV

It's the next morning, or at least he thinks it is. He didn't sleep at all. The agony kept him up all night, screaming and crying into the darkness. Even now he writhes on the ground, hands still cuffed behind his back. He lays on his back, hands under him completely. They've gone completely numb from lack of circulation.

He whimpers in despair when he hears his cell door open.

"Good morning, my darling!" Lust declares, closing the door behind himself.

"Morning, Remus. How'd you sleep?" He chuckles, seeing Remus leaning against the wall with tired eyes staring back at him.

"I thought since you were such a good boy yesterday, you deserved a little treat today." Lust kneels to his side, holding a red box with a large white cross on it. It's a first aid kit. Deceit flinches, whining slightly as Lust's hands come on him. 

"But first, we should get you uncuffed, hm?" Lust says, flipping him onto his stomach. Deceit does his best to stifle a pained cry, knowing that Lust will just keep them on like last time. Lust whistles as he takes the cuffs off, seeing the scars of past burns still wrapped around his wrists. Deceit's arms fall to the ground once they are released, panging terribly with torment. He cries against the cement as Lust forcefully flips him over again, taking massive pressure off of his broken ribs.

Lust opens the first aid kit, taking out some rubbing alcohol and cotton balls.

"Now, try not to move too much or make any noise." Lust orders, dunking the cotton into the bottle of alcohol. He grabs one of Deceit's aching hands, bringing it up. Lust dabs the cotton ball against his thumb, causing a shriek to come from Deceit.

"Darling, what did I say about noise? If you aren't careful, I'll just let your beautiful fingers get infected." Lust threatens him, running one hand through his dark hair. Deceit's eyes water, teeth clenched tightly to keep himself quiet. He can't even imagine how much they would hurt infected.

"Good, good..." Lust coos, dabbing the cotton against his thumb once again. It burns terribly, the stinging liquid invading underneath his nail swiftly. Plus, the blood is running back into his fingers once again, bringing back the ache and burn. Another touch of the cotton ball is too much, making him cry out loudly.

"Alright fine, I'll just let them get infected. You asked for it." Lust snickers, throwing the cotton back into the kit along with the bottle of rubbing alcohol.

"I'm also just going to leave the pins in there, just a little treat for you..." Lust says. Deceit starts to wonder why he even came in here with a first aid kit. It's pretty clear to him that Lust is not actually going to help him at all. At least Rage actually helped to some extent.

"Now, let's get you sitting up." Lust pulls him up from underneath his arms, making him cry out as his torso stretches. Lust leans him against the wall as he takes out a roll of gauze.

"Keep still, got it?" Deceit simply stares up at the ceiling, tears rolling down his cheeks as he begins wrapping the white gauze around his extremely bruised sides. He tugs hard on the first rotation, making Deceit whine loudly.

"Ah, ah, ah... don't make any noise. If you're extra good, I'll give you a shot of painkillers." Lust coos in a sweet tone. Deceit longs for painkillers, he just wants the pain to stop. He could've taken them from Remus at any time, but facing the consequences should Lust find out wasn't worth it.

Lust continues wrapping it around his torso, ending each rotation with a harsh tug, compressing his ribs together painfully. Although tears continue their steady track down Deceit's face, he remains completely silent, lips peeled against his clenched teeth. He won't make any noise whatsoever. He can see Remus is watching Lust carefully, trying to hide the fact that he was staring. He can hear Lust snickering sadistically, administering another harsh tug. He expected a noise to come from Deceit, but it doesn't. Deceit is biting down so hard that he thinks his teeth will shatter at any moment. His head and jaw start to ache in response to the pressure, but he has to keep biting down to keep a shriek from coming out.

Lust finally finishes, securing his masterpiece with a silver clip. Deceit lets out a quiet groan, finally releasing his breath after holding it in for so long. Lust snickers evilly to himself, standing up as Deceit catches his breath. Lust begins putting away the gauze, shutting the first aid kit.

"Wait- what are you doing?" Remus questions. Lust laughs, turning to him with a smirk.

"You promised to give him painkillers." Remus demands. Deceit looks up as Lust turns back to him, looking down at him with a sadistic smile.

"Yeah, I lied." Lust says, watching fatal despondency fill his eyes. He should've known it was a trick. He looks away, trying his best to muffle his sobs of sorrow. He really thought that, at least for a little while, the pain wasn't going to be so bad. That hope has been taken from him once again.

"You- you can't do that!!" Remus shouts, standing up to face Lust, who merely sneers back at him.

"Fine, let's play a game." Lust declares, opening his first aid kit once more. He takes out two needles. One is coloured green, one is coloured blue.

"Inject yourself with this and I will give Deceit a shot of morphine." Lust says, tossing the green needle to Remus, who barely catches it. 

"It- it's not labelled." Remus says, turning the needle over as he searches.

"I know what it is. So, do we have a deal?" Lust asks, flicking the cap off the blue needle. Deceit eyes Remus with a conflicted expression. He doesn't want Remus to hurt himself for him.

"What is it?" Remus demands, looking quickly to Deceit.

"That is a full shot of potassium chloride... in other words.." Lust continues with a malevolent smirk.

"A lethal injection." Remus's eyes widen, looking down at the green needle he holds.

"It- it's going to--" Remus stutters fearfully.

"Yes, it will kill you. And it doesn't contain the sedative that usually is used, so you will feel inexplicable pain before dying."

"No---no--n" Deceit tries to make out words, but his throat is so dry and skinned it makes it near impossible.

Remus goes silent, staring at the needle as his jaw clenches tightly.

"And you'll give him morphine?" Remus clarifies, looking back up to Lust.

"St-top-" Deceit pleads, holding up a shaking, mangled hand towards Remus.

"Yes, I will. He will be pain-free for 8 to 12 hours." Lust promises, twirling the blue needle around in his hands. Remus takes a deep breath, his eyes meeting Deceits once again.

"I'm sorry for what I did to you, Deceit. I truly didn't- know--" Remus chokes with sadness, tears showing in his eyes as he flicks off the cap of the needle.

"Rem-us--" Deceit begs, beginning to cry himself. He doesn't want to be alone. He barely knows Remus, but he just feels so much better with someone else here.

"Do one thing--for me?" Remus sobs, rolling up his sleeve.

"St-stop him-" Deceit begs Lust, who simply sneers in response.

"Forgive me- for what I've done to you?" He says, now fully crying.

"Yes- yes of cour-course-" Deceit promises to his fellow dark side, nodding. Remus smiles at him sadly.

"I really- really wish we- we got to know each other in better circumstances." Remus chuckles, swallowing hard as the needle edges towards his vein.

"Stop- don't- do this--!" Deceit begs him, pushing off the wall. Lust slams him back, not letting him go to Remus. 

"Goodbye, Deceit-" Remus says as he plunges the needle into his vein, injecting the lethal dose of potassium chloride into his body.

"No--NO!!" Deceit screams, throat burning. Lust merely laughs as Remus tosses the empty syringe away, resting his head against the wall.

"Wow, I didn't expect that.." Lust chuckles, turning back to Deceit as Remus closes his eyes, preparing himself.

"Alright, well, a deal's a deal." Lust grabs Deceit's arm and jerks it to a straight position. Deceit barely feels the prick of the needle, watching Remus wait to die. His one friend is gone. He's dead. Remus killed himself to give Deceit half a day without any pain. How could he let this happen? How could he be so weak?

Remus is dying because of him. 

Deceit beings crying uncontrollably, watching the dying side through teary eyes. But suddenly his body goes lightly limp like he can't move his limbs. 

Lust breaks into maniacal laughter, tears forming in his eyes. Remus's eyes flicker open, glaring at Lust.

"What-is so funny?" He asks, voice sounding tired and drowsy.

"Did you really think I'd kill you? Do you know how pissed Rage would be if I disturbed the balance between light and dark sides?" Lust mocks him, wiping tears of laughter from his eyes. Remus stares back at him in confusion.

"What did--" He begins to ask.

"What did I give you? Propofol, a general anesthetic." He says, watching as Remus's eyes start to flicker shut. 

"And I didn't give you morphine, darling. I gave you Pancuronium Bromide." Deceit feels himself start to slide down the wall, now laying flat on the ground. He couldn't stop himself from dropping, unable to move at all. Panic dances in his eyes as Lust looks down at him with a smile. He can't move. Why can't he move??

"It's a simple injection that causes the full paralysis of muscles for a short amount of time..." Lust bends down to his side, one hand caressing the scaled half of his face. Deceits eyes water, unable to scream at all as Lust's face gets closer.

"So, I'll do whatever I'd like to you, and you can't squirm or even scream, while still being completely aware of everything that's happening to you..." Deceit can't shake his head, he can't talk, he can't even jerk his head away from Lust. Wide-eyed, he stares up at Lust. Lust grows closer, their lips almost touching.

"Let's have some fun, shall we?"

Chapter Text

Deceit's POV

Deceit stares up at Lust, completely paralyzed by the terrible drugs. His eyes water as Lust begins to lift him up, snickering mischievously as his prisoner comes to terms with being unable to move. He tries to scream out, only to realize that no noise comes from his mouth.

He is completely vulnerable.

"Look at you, darling.. finally what I've always wanted you to be." Lust coos, lifting him up with ease by under his legs and back. He leans into Deceit's ear, snickering at his inablitly to jerk his head away.

"My toy.." He whispers with a sick grin.

Tears flood into his eyes as he is carried out of the safety of his cell in the arms of his captor towards certain agony. 

Deceit watches the walls pass him slowly, recognizing the path they are taking. They are going to the torture chamber, aren't they? Of course they are. Lust whistles to himself playfully as they reach the door to the torture chamber, qucikly scanning his hand. The door opens to them, revealing a room too familiar to Deceit.

Through the entierty of their journey here, Deceit has tried everything. He's tried kicking, screaming, wriggling, all to no avail. He remains completely still, lips parted slightly as his body gives in to the will of Lust. Only his eyes move, darting in all directions out of panic. They are widened and bloodshot.

He watches Lust carry him inside, heading towards the right corner of the room. He can see a waist-high metal table with an overhead light and a tray of silver, seemingly horrifying tools. 

"Here we are.." Lust purrs, lifting him up onto the table and laying him flat on his back. Deceit finds it hard to breathe as gravity works against him, pressing him onto the table as his broken ribs pang and twinge with every single breath.

"I bet you're wondering why I had you paralyzed, hmm? I mean, you can barely fight back on your own.." Lust speaks to him, fiddling with tools that clang against the metal table. Deceit was wondering that, to be fair. Lust has always been able to read his mind, hasn't he?

Why freeze him like this if he's already so vulnerable to begin with? Some sick game? Or is it out of necessity? A terrifying stream of thoughts enter his mind, all guesses of what Lust is about to do to him. None of the guesses were even close to what Lust had in mind.

"Well, it's very simple. I don't want you to bite off my fingers." Lust mocks him, looking at him knowingly. He then holds a pair of pliers in front of his prisoner's face.

All thoughts diminish immediately, Deceit's mind falling silent as he stares at the tool. His eyes widen, flicking back up to Lust's sneering face. It is a look that can only be interpreted as 'God no, please I beg you, don't do this'. Even if he could speak, his pleas would fall on uncaring ears. The ears of the man who is about to pull his teeth out with a pair of pliers.

"I'd say we have... one hour or so before the drug wears off. How many teeth do you think we can extract in that time?" Lust taunts him, pressing the cold pliers against his prisoner's unmoving lips. Tears already pool from his eyes, pupils shrunk drastically in fear.

"I'm only joking, darling..." Lust leans into his face, eyes flashing hungrily.

"I'll only take a couple." He whispers, grinning at the immense terror shown in Deceit's wide eyes.

"Now open up, my dear." Lust coos, grabbing his chin and jerking it open. The taste of bitter metal enters his mouth immediately when Lust shoves the pliers against his tongue. He peers into Deceit's mouth as if deciding which ones to pull.

"How about..." Lust hums to himself, poking the metal pliers against his back molar.

"This one." He purrs, looking into Deceit's eyes once more.

'No, no don't let this happen!' Deceit pleads himself, feeling trapped in his own body. It's more terrifying than anything he's ever encountered, being unable to control his own body as Lust hovers above him, threatening him with perhaps the worst form of torture thus far. He always had an ability to push back against Lust, even if it hurt him more, but somehow this is worse. Knowing he can't move, knowing that Lust can do absolutely anything he pleases. It's almost too much to bear. 

His head rushes with adrenaline, making his vision shake. He can't seem to breathe anymore as he is over taken by a full panic attack. His heart pounds in his ears at a quick, almost unsafe rate. On the inside, he is full out panicking but on the outside, he is completely still. Lust's perfect, obedient little toy, ready to please his master with his pain.

'Toy..' A voice mocks him in his head, making him feel nauseous with disgust. He is forced out of his head as Lust's pliers close around the tooth tightly, making it ache slightly with the amount of pressure. He winces, wishing he could scream or bite down, anything to defend himself.

"Get ready love, this is going to hurt like hell." Lust warns him mockingly, making direct eye contact with his motionless toy prisoner.

Lust's sick pliers grip hard on the molar and tug upwards, shifting it slightly. Tears flood his vision as the urge to scream wells in his throat, feeling like bile rising. Deceit can hear the roots ripping in his jawline as Lust jerks the pliers once again, exploding agony from that entire side of his mouth. He tastes his sour blood begin to fill his mouth, coating his tongue in a sick metallic flavour.

"One more should do it, darling.." Lust purrs to him with a sick sneer.

Lust adjusts his grip, and with both hands, pulls hard against the molar, finally ripping the roots completely and pulling the tooth out of his mouth. Deceit's vision flashes, a strange, very quiet wheeze being the only sound he made. A deep, agonizingly empty whole now drills into his gums, making his entire mouth pang and twinge in total agony. Tears spill down his face, eyes puffy and red as his vision blurs together.

"See? That wasn't so bad, now was it?" Lust chuckles to himself, placing the tooth on the tray. He turns back to Deceit with a sadistic sneer, eyes studying him closely.

"Oh, you poor thing... I barely recognize you without all the screaming.." Lust coos, wiping a tear from his check patronizingly. He continues to caress Deceit's face, hands stroking his scales. Hot humiliation rises, burning his cheeks brightly as he shakes in his own skin, unable to express how much agony that caused him. His tongue explores the area, finding only a hole where his molar should be. He nearly passes out as the realization strikes him, eyes rolling back into his head when jabs of sharp pain jab into that area. 

"Hey, come back to me, darling!" Lust snaps in front of his face, watching his distant eyes open once again. He winces, agony drilling deep into his jaw like Lust was still inside that hole, pliers pulling at exposed gums. He wants to clench his hands into balls, curl his toes, arch his back, do absolutely anything to control the pain, but he can't. He lies there staring up at Lust with tear-flooded eyes, praying for a relief that won't come.

Lust wipes another tear from his cheek, watching him suffer internally with great pleasure. His warm hands soon abandon Deceit, reaching to the side to pick up the pliers once again. Deceit's eyes widen drastically, begging Lust not to. Even his usually-threatening snake eye has dilated, expressing extreme fear and pain.

Without a word, Lust's pliers are in his mouth once again.

Rage's POV

Rage has his head down on the desk, the wood below him wet with tears as he thinks of Pride. His heart aches painfully within his chest as he tries to silence his sobbing. He doesn't want Lust to hear. He couldn't handle Lust using this against him, not now. Not when they are so close to revenge. The light sides will finally feel how much it hurts to have someone you love so dearly ripped away from you. Unfortunately, for his plan he needs Lust.

'Wait.. Lust...' Rage's head snaps up from the table, eyes widening. He left Lust alone with Deceit. 

'Oh no, no no, no!" Rage stands quickly, running towards the door and throwing it open. He wasn't thinking straight. He should've noticed Lust's absence! How long has he been alone with Deceit and Remus? Too long, way too long. Almost an hour now. A lot goes wrong in an hour. Lust is going to kill Deceit if he does anything more to hurt him.

"No, no broken ribs weren't enough for you, were they?" Rage hisses to Lust in his head, sprinting down the halls.

"Oh no, no you had to cut him within an inch of his life, break all of his fingers, shatter his shin, shove pins under his nails will a goddamn hammer, and god knows what the hell you're doing to him now. You sadistic son of a bitch..." Rage turns into the hallway that has Deceit and Remus's cell.

"If he dies now, everything we've ever done will be for nothing.." Rage snarls under his breath, skidding to a stop in front of the door. He slams his hand against the scanner, watching the green beam run over his palm. He swallows hard, scared of what he might find on the other side.

Suddenly, the scanner beeps abruptly, flashing red.

"What the hell?" Rage hisses, trying again. It does the same thing, refusing his entry. He glares in confusion at the device, remembering very clearly that it was working perfectly before-

Before Lust had time alone to do whatever the hell he wanted. Lust locked him out of that cell so he couldn't protect Deceit.

"That slippery little fu--" Rage begins hissing at the door, hands clenched into fists at his sides.

"Ra-Rage, is that you?" A voice calls from the other side.

"Deceit? Deceit are you alright in there?" Rage responds, slamming a fist against the door as if to threaten Lust inside.

"No, no it's Remus- Deceit's gone, Rage- Lust took him away!" Remus says with urgency in his voice. 

"Damnit, did he say where they were going?" Rage questions from the other side.

"I don't- know.. he.. drugged me I think.." Remus mutters, sounding like he just woke up. Rage spins on his heel, staring back down the hallway. If Lust was taking Deceit anywhere, it would be the torture chamber, right? It must be.

Rage darts away from the cell, sprinting down the hall towards the torture chamber. He hears Remus calling his name but ignores him completely. He's got a dark side to save from certain death.

Deceit's POV

Deceit is at war with his own body, begging himself to get those damn pliers out of his mouth.

"Hmmm, I think.. this one." Lust mocks him, poking the top right molar on the upper side of his mouth. Deceit's eyes dart quickly side to side, looking for a way out but finding none. Lust's pliers grip the tooth threateningly, worsening the already-unbearable pain.

Suddenly, Deceit hears a pounding at their door.

"Lust- Lust you twisted little bastard, are you in there?!" Rage bellows against the door, sounding like he rammed it with his shoulder. Lust immediately sighs, taking the instrument of great torture out of his mouth. Deceit feels his heart flutter with relief.

Lust walks away from the table and towards the door. Scanning his hand, the door slides open, revealing a very, very angry Rage.

"How can I help you--" Rage cuts Lust off, picking him up by the collar of his black shirt and basically throwing him against the wall.

"I leave you alone for an hour, and you lock me out of their cell and take Deceit away to be tortured to death?!" Rage screams at Lust, who merely smiles back, mischief flickering in his yellow eyes.

"Pssh, he's fine. Look at him." Rage's eyes flicker over to the motionless Deceit, who is trying to look at him, but can't turn his head. Rage's eyes snap back to Lust, teeth bared as he drops him to the ground and stomps over to where Deceit lays. 

Their eyes meet. Deceit sees Rage's eyes shine with tears strangely, his anger only growing. 

"What the hell have you done to him? Why isn't he moving?" Rage snarls, watching blood leak from the corner of his mouth. His eyes meet the bloodied tooth to the side of the tray, along with a pair of pliers that are stained with blood.

"Pancuronium bromide. It's a drug that I gave him, he's completely paralyzed. But, he can feel everything." Lust purrs over Rage's shoulder. 

"You sick fuck, you don't even realize that you're killing him..." Rage growls at Lust, eyes shining with pity for Deceit.

"Oh, and you weren't when you first kidnapped him and whipped him for hours??" Lust bites back, arms crossed defiantly.

"That was different..." Rage insists lowly, staring murderously at Lust.

"Different how? Because Pride was alive?" Lust mocks him, a twist of madness in his voice. Rage immediately grips him by the shirt once again, tugging him closer with a predatory hiss.

"We needed information from him, this is different... This is just because hurting him makes you feel something for once..." Rage hisses closely into Lust's face. Lust's smile drops, lips tightening into a thin line.

"That doesn't matter right now... does it? What matters is how you proceed with this little interaction.." Lust begins, a smile returning to his lips.

"You see, I'm the only thing that can help you get the revenge you want for Pride, so you might want to be a little nicer...." Lust threatens, sneering at Rage. Restraint flickers in his eyes as he releases Lust slowly, swallowing hard as he glares at him.

"See, now that's better." Lust coos, brushing himself off. He strolls over to the side of the table, looking down at Deceit.

"You can't keep doing this, Lust. It's going to kill him, and you'll be empty once again." Rage mutters, looking over to Lust.

"No, no I won't kill him. I take the best care of him, isn't that right, darling?" Lust purrs, stroking a hand against his scales once more. Deceit's eyes water with humiliation, blood pooling inside his cheek. He forces it down, nearly gagging as the rush of warm liquid slides down his throat.

"Just-- just don't take too many out, alright?" Rage insists, turning to walk towards the door with pity and guilt lingering in his voice.

"Well, why are you leaving so soon? Don't you want to have some fun with us?" Lust mocks him, picking up the pliers once more.

"I've got some things to do, just come to me when you're done. We need to start our plan--" Lust cuts Rage of with a cackle.

"No, I don't think you're understanding how this is going to work..." Lust says, grabbing Rage's shoulder and turning him around.

"If you want my help, you're going to pull a tooth from our favourite side over here." Lust insists, placing the bloodied pliers into Rage's hand.

Deceit's heart sinks in his chest, watching the figure of Rage from the corner of his eye. Surely he won't do it, right? He's been so helpful lately, like he's on Deceit's side. Surely he won't hurt him... right?

Then again, Rage had no problem torturing him before this all happened. Deceit shuts his eyes tight, trying to keep the small amount of hope alive as his own pessimism begins picking it apart.

"... You mustn't be serious." Rage utters in disbelief, fingers not yet closed around the pliers.

"Oh I am, and if you're serious about getting revenge, then this is what you have to do." Lust whispers into Rage's ear, sneaking glances at the panicking Deceit.

"I'm not one of your puppets, Lust! I won't play your games!" Rage snaps, fist closing tightly around the pliers. Deceit feels slight relief, but it soon fades when he realizes that Lust is just going to pull another one himself.

"You need me, Rage. You know you do. So, play by my rules, or watch all of your planning go to waste." Lust threatens, lips twitching into a sneer. Silence lingers in the room, making Deceit suddenly doubt Rage's empathy. He'll surely choose Pride over him, won't he? Even if Pride's long gone, Rage loved him. He's willing to do anything to avenge him.

"...If I play by your rules, you play by mine." Rage points a finger into Lust's chest.

"You immediately go do what I told you to do, and I will tend to Deceit's wounds." Rage bargains with a dark glare. Lust's smile twitches madly at the thought of Rage touching Deceit again. Lust looks away, meeting Deceit's eyes once more as if this was his fault somehow.

"Fine. We have a deal." Lust turns back around, offering his hand to Rage. Jaw clenched tightly, Rage accepts his handshake.

Lust walks to the other side of the table, elbows leaning on the metal as he watches with an insane gaze. Rage approaches Deceit, pliers in hand. His eyes are ones of guilt as he stares down at the crippled side. Deceit's wide eyes beg him not to, tearing slightly as he wishes for the ability to speak. If Rage could hear his begging, he's sure he wouldn't go through with it.

"For Pride..." Rage mumbles under his breath so that only Deceit can hear it. He quickly pries Deceit's mouth open, trying not to look into his terrified, betrayed look. Rage forces his head back so that he can clearly see the top row of Deceit's teeth, all stained with his own blood. Rage swiftly clamps the pliers around the top left molar, tightening it hard. He just wants it to be done so that both of them don't suffer.

Unlike Lust, who had to tug several times to rip the tooth out, Rage takes one hard pull and the tooth rips clean out of the gum. Deceit's vision immediately fades as he hears the distinctive ripping, like ripping up weeds from the grass. He can feel his eyes roll back into his head, vision going dark as his consciousness is torn from his grasp gradually.

The pain is too great for him to possibly hold onto his reality. He slips away, blood pooling in his mouth as his jaw pounds with agony, empty, painful gaps where two teeth should be.

Rage's POV

Rage throws the pliers back down onto the table, causing all the tools to clang loudly.

"There, happy now?" Rage snaps at Lust, who is sneering.

"Absolutely, Rage. I'll go put some motivation in our dear light side, hmm?" Lust smirks, walking towards the door. He stops, just as he is about to exit.

"Oh, and Rage?" He calls out. Rage doesn't turn, but he listens.

"Take good care of Deceit, will you?" Lust says in an unusually sweet voice, but Rage still gets a feeling that Lust is hiding his bitterness.

"He's going to need it..." Lust mutters as he walks out.

Chapter Text

Deceit's POV

He groans deeply, his body feeling incredibly hot. He is shaking violently, hearing what sounds like splashes.

"Ah, you're up." A voice says over his head. He whines, tears flooding his closed eyes immediately. Memory comes back in bits and pieces at first, remembering the drugging. His tongue explores his mouth, which tastes particularly metallic. It meets a gaping hole where a molar should be, making his heart immediately jump. He is quaking once again, voice jittering along with his movement.

"Hey, can you hear me?" The voice asks, snapping in front of his face. With a great deal of effort, Deceit's eyes slowly open, meeting the face of Rage. Deceit immediately brings up a shaking hand, trying to protect himself. He is relieved to feel himself move once again.

"Relax, I'm not trying to hurt you." Rage assures him, seeing his immediate act of defence. Deceit brings a shaky hand up to his cheek, feeling his wet palm against the swollen area. He tries to speak, only making a choking noise of despair as his tongue meets another gap. His hand drops back down, splashing water into his face. He begins closing his eyes once more, head lulling to the side of the ceramic surface.

Suddenly, his eyes snap open once more. Water? He fearfully looks down, seeing himself lying in a bathtub, soaking in balmy water. His broken leg is out of the water, resting straightened against the edge of the tub. He quickly looks around, seeing himself in Lust's bathroom. No, his bathroom, as Lust so lovingly declared. 

At the revelation Deceit immediately shrieks, trying to stand up to no success.

"Woah, relax. What the hell is your problem?" Rage scolds him, pressing him back into the bath. Deceit screams and flails against him, splashing much of the water outside of the bath and onto the floor.

"Stop- stop you're going to hurt yourself!" Rage shouts at him, but Deceit simply can't listen. He can feel Lust behind him, scrubbing his sick lemon juice concoction into every one of his wounds. He feels saliva rush into his mouth, nearly gagging as the flavour of sour salt enters his mouth once again.

"Deceit--" Rage tries once more, but his voice cannot be heard through Deceit's terrified shrieking.

"STOP!!" Rage hollers at him, finally getting through to Deceit, who immediately falls silent. Deceit's hands involuntarily grip the bath, releasing with a yelp when the broken bones ache.

"I can't help you if you keep screaming!" Rage scolds him, making Deceit glare daggers at him.

"Sor-sorry- - help m-me? You ju-just ripped a too-th out of m-me!!" He shouts, slurring his words strangely. Come to think of it, everything looks strange to him. Fuzzy, even.

"...That was.. different." Rage looks away from him, clenching his jaw tightly. Silence lingers between the two, only the sound of wheezy breathing being heard.

"Look, I'm not discussing this with you... I am going to take the pins out from underneath your nails now." He warns, taking hold of Deceit's right hand. He immediately flies into panic.

"No- no - stop it-- stop!!" He screams at the top of his lungs, making his vision shake. His movements are incredibly delayed as he tries to pull away, everything sounding funny as water sloshes against the side of the tub. His head lulls back dizzily, vision dancing with colourful static.

"Wha-what- havee- you d-oone?" He asks, his words melting together with ease. Something is wrong, he can feel it. He feels vulnerable, numb.

"I gave you morphine. It'll help with the pain." Rage tells him, reaching beside himself to grab a pair of tweezers.

"Noo- no--oo o-o-" He pleads, trying to stitch his words together.

"Shhh, just give it a minute, it'll be fine." Rage assures him in a gentle tone, gripping his hand tightly as he pinches one of the pins tightly with the tweezers. He remembers very vividly that Lust wanted to keep the pins in, wanting to ensure infection. When Lust sees him, he's going to be absolutely furious.

'You let Rage help you again, didn't you, Darling?' Deceit already hears him say in his head. He whimpers under his breath just thinking of his cold, dead eyes. Eyes filled with anger and jealously that someone else touched his precious little pet.

Suddenly all he can think of is what Lust will do when he finds out. He's going to absolutely destroy him. He's going to skin him alive.

"Sss-stop it- Rage- -please- -plea-pleasssee-" He cries, trying to form words desperately. Rage shakes his head, rolling his eyes.

"It's morphine, idiot. You won't feel anything, probably." Rage assures him, continuing his work. Deceit shrieks as he feels a sharp pain, the pin sliding neatly out from underneath his nail.

"Okay, maybe a stronger dose?" Rage says, turning to the side as he picks up a syringe. Deceit flails and struggles to the best of his ability, spilling at least a litre of water out of the side.

"Would you stop? It's going to help!" Rage insists, grabbing his forearm tightly, bringing the needle closer.

"Plea--please st--stop-stop it- he's going- Lust is --goiinng to ki-killl me--!!" He finally screams, just as the needle pokes his skin slightly. Rage immediately inches the needle away.

"What'd you say? What do you mean?" Rage asks him. Deceit's eyes fill with tears, breathing turning quickly into sobbing.

"He-- he doesn't like it- whe-when pe-people help-help me--touch me- even-" Deceit explains in small words, shutting his eyes quickly as a wave of nausea threatens to overtake him. 

"...." Rage goes silent, looking down at him.

"He'sss- he's gonna- -hurt me--" Deceit whines quietly, starting to cry again. After a couple minutes of silence, Rage speaks again.

"It doesn't matter. He's going to hurt you anyways." He declares, picking up the tweezers once more.

"No-- NO YOU- YOU'RE GONNA MAK--MAKE HIM ANGRY--" Deceit hollers, trying to pull his arm away desperately. Rage isn't listening to him anymore, proceeding to pull another pin out. Deceit arches his back, making his broken ribs pang and twist with torment as he screams. Rage quickly pulls out several more pins, making his drugged-mind dance with confusion and pain. Without a word, Rage is gripping his next hand, swiftly tugging a sharp pin out. Fresh pain burrows into his hands as blood drips down from his fingers.

"STOO-PPP" He begs once more, getting his voice back only for it to transform into howling. Rage doesn't listen, jerking each pin out smoothly until all of his fingers shake with terrible pain.

He whines and cries quietly to himself, entire body shaking with adrenaline and fatigue as Rage puts the bloodied tweezers down. He grabs rubbing alcohol and cotton balls, quickly soaking one in the disinfectant. He dabs it against his right pointer finger, making him hiss instantly. He shrieks as Rage continues this procedure across each hand, cleaning each wound. He leaves the worst one for last, his middle finger on his right hand, which had the nail completely ripped off. As the disinfectant reaches his raw, bloody skin, Deceit lets out an earsplitting cry, his vision immediately fading once more.

He sinks into the hot water, tears refusing to stop crawling down his face. Rage continues to wrap each finger in a thin layer of medicated gauze before slipping splints onto all 10. The 4 that weren't broken before were now jammed due to the hammer.

"Alright, fingers are done, mouth is done..." Rage says, going over a checklist in his head. Deceit's tongue rolls over the two gaps, feeling stitching that keeps the gaping holes closed.

"Ah right, the fracture." Rage walks to his broken leg, gripping it softly as Deceit immediately cries out in fear.

"Rage-Rage sssto-sstop!!" He screams in desperation, jerking his leg painfully, making his words trail off into a yelp of agony.

"I could probably set it back into place, clean the open wound, stitch it shut, and put a splint on." Rage rambles, creating a plan of how to fix the compound fracture. Deceit becomes completely unglued, twisting and struggling in the hot water as a cold, feverish sweat breaks out on his entire body.

"STOP- SSSTOP FOR- GODS SAKE-- SSSTTTOP" Rage's eyes finally meet his.

"I'm trying to help you, can't you see that?!" He shouts, tired of Deceit's constant resistance.

"No- no you aren't! You're do-doing this for you-yourself-- for PRIDE--!!!" Rage's eyes immediately darken with wrath, staring him down.

"Excuse me?" He asks threateningly, mannerism completely changing at the mention of the dead side. Deceit swallows hard, his dry throat contracting painfully. 

"You couldn't save Pride--couldn't save the side you loved- so you help me to- to feel like-like he's still here! He's not! He's DEAD!" Deceit shouts. He sees Rage bare his teeth angrily, veins crawling up his neck and stopping just before his jawline.

"Now, that, Deceit, was the wrong thing to say..." Rage hisses at him, glaring him down.

Deceit's breathing hitches in his throat as Rage puts both hands down on the compound fracture, putting his entire weight down onto the bone as he snaps it into place.

Deceit's vision immediately fails, not even a whine slipping out as he loses consciousness.

Lust's POV

Lust sits down in the surveillance room, smirking to himself. It's time.

He's only doing this to hold up his end of the bargain. He doesn't care about Pride at all, it's easier he's dead anyway.

He exhales peacefully, closing his eyes and clasping his hands together. 

'Oh Logan, my dear, you've got no idea what's coming, do you?' He thinks to himself mischievously. 

Closing his eyes, with a smile on his face, Lust digs deep into Logan's mind and takes control.

Logan's POV

Logan's eyes snap open, blinking in the limited light. The pain in his arm is completely gone. He sits up robotically, mind filled with static.

'What's happening...?' He thinks to himself, not feeling in control of his own breathing.

'Hello there, Logan. Remember me?' A voice says in his head. His heart thumps against his chest, recognizing the mocking tone of Lust immediately. He watches as his legs swing over the side of the bed.

'What the hell? What's going on??' Logan thinks, feeling himself stand up against his will. Lust releases a laugh that reverberates inside his skull.

'What's going on? Oh come now, you're the brilliant Logan, take a guess...' Lust mocks him with another chuckle. Logan watches himself look to the side, watching Patton sleep. 

He's being controlled by Lust.

'----' His thoughts go silent, watching Patton's chest rise and fall, a faint smile painted on his rosy lips. 

'Poor little Patton has no idea what's coming...' Logan's heart falters, watching as he approaches the sleeping side.

'What are you going to do to him?' He questions anxiously, watching as his own hand goes to Patton's throat, a finger tracing it playfully. He feels sick to his stomach.

'That's not the question, dear. What are *you* going to do to him?' Lust says, snickering. 

'This is a nightmare, nothing more than a nightmare..' He says to himself, tears burning in the back of his eyes.

'Wouldn't you like to see his pretty pink throat slit open?' Lust asks him, making all the noise in his head disappear.

'No--NO- NO STOP!!' Logan screams, hearing Lust's maniacal laughter as he steps away from the bed, carrying Logan out of his room. Walls pass him, leading them to what Logan knows is the kitchen. He hollers at Lust, incoherent sentences that make no sense. He tries to gain control of his body, but he can't. It doesn't matter how hard he tries, he can't take back control.

Logan watches as he walks towards the kitchen, eyeing a knife block. Desperation and terror flood through his veins as he is forced to approach it.

'Eeny..' Lust starts singing mockingly, his fingers dancing across each knife.

'STOP-- STOP IT-- LET ME GO!!'

'Meeny..' His fingers tap against the thinnest blade, moving onto the next.

'LUST-PLEASE'

'Miney..' His fingers dance across yet another knife.

'DON'T HURT HIM- IM BEGGING YOU- I'LL DO ANYTHING--!!!'

'Moe...' His fingers stop at the largest knife in the block. Logan feels dizzy with worry as he watches himself pull the knife out, gripping it tightly as Lust laughs in the back of his head.

'LUST-- LUST PLEA--' His thought process is cut short when another voice enters the room.

"Logan--? What are you doing up so late, you should be sleeping.." Virgil asks him, entering the kitchen.

'VIRGIL--- VIRGIL HELP- PLEASE-' He tries to scream, but no sound comes out. He feels a grin reach his lips.

"Oh, and what are you doing up? Here to grab a knife and cut yourself some more?" He says to Virgil, whose mouth drops open immediately as he pulls his sleeve down, hiding his arm in shame.

"--Logan--" He says, throat choked with shame and tears as they invade his vision.

"Here, take this and do us all a favour, hmm?" Logan offers him the knife with a mocking look. Virgil looks away from him, jaw hanging open as tears spill down his face. He turns and sprints back down the hallway, throwing his hood over his head.

'Oh, I hope he kills himself, don't you?' Lust mocks him with a giggle. 

'Well, let's go take care of Patton, shall we?' Logan watches through teary eyes as he walks back down the way he came, knife in hand.

'Lust--Lust please---' He tries to plead calmly, but Lust won't listen. He walks back into the room, approaching the side of the bed with a smile on his face.

'Ready to kill your pretty boyfriend, Logan?' Lust teases him, forcing the knife towards Patton's throat.

'LUST PLEASE- PLEASE JUST KILL ME- DON'T MAKE ME DO THIS-' He cries in his head at Lust.

'Sorry, darling. Boss's orders...' The knife makes contact with Patton's throat gently. Logan watches in horror as Patton's eyes flicker open.

"Mmm-mm-- Logan--?" He asks, voice raspy with sleep as he sees a figure standing over him.

'Ooh perfect, he's awake...' Lust coos with a low, sadistic laugh.

'PATTON- PATTON RUN- PLEASE- I'M NOT IN CONTROL- I'M GOING TO HURT YOU-- -RUN!!!' He tries to say, but the words don't come out. He feels himself smile, watching as Patton's eyebrows narrow in confusion.

"Logan- what's going on-?" Patton begins sitting up but stops when he feels the knife against his throat. Logan watches as his fingers pull down on the lamp's string, cascading them in light. Lust wants Patton to see exactly who is going to kill him.

"Logan---" His eyes fill with fear, staring up at him.

'NOO- PATTON -- PLEASE!' 

'Say goodbye!!' Lust cackles maniacally, forcing his grip to tighten on the blade.

Logan's world slows down, vision flashing white.

He feels Patton beside him, head lulled onto his shoulder. They both stare at Deceit, who is quickly unconscious on the ground of their cell. It didn't take long for him to pass out surprisingly. Logan is just glad that Deceit agreed to free Patton so they could be together. 

Patton is asleep on his shoulder, most of his weight leaning into Logan. Logan sits there, smiling like an idiot in love. He never could understand love, not even in a scientific manner. How could one person produce so much dopamine in another's brain? He thought it was stupid, illogical to let one little thing make you so goddamn happy. But here he is, happier than he's ever been in his entire life. He is in a goddamn torture dungeon, but it doesn't matter. It all slips away when Patton is with him. 

He chuckles to himself, face flushing with heat like he's sitting in front of the sun itself, holding the entire world in his arms. His world. Logan pulls Patton tighter, hearing him hum with happiness in his sleep. Tears of happiness sting in the corners of his eyes. His chest is light, feeling that if gravity wasn't holding him down, he might just fly away. He would be alright with that. He'd be alright with anything if Patton is in his arms.

He would do anything to keep Patton safe, anything.

He feels his hand preparing to slice the knife across Patton's throat. 

'You won't hurt him..' Logan says in his head, hand beginning to shake. Patton's teary-eyes fill him with the strength to fight back.

'Hmm, still have some strength, don't you?" Lust fights back, stabilizing his hand once more.

'YOU WON'T HURT HIM!' Logan screams, pulling his hand away as Patton's face flashes into his head briefly. 

'Heh, stronger than I thought...' Lust's voice is full of effort, straining himself to push the knife further. 

"YOU..." Logan screams out loud, body shaking as he fights to gain a little control, knowing he can't hold on forever.

'What the hell?!' Lust exclaims, feeling Logan slowly pulling the knife away.

"WON'T..." Patton's eyes are wide, deciphering that Logan is taking back control. He can see his eyes shifting from yellow to brown repeatedly.

'You can't beat me!' Lust insists, his yellow eyes flashing hungrily.

"HURT..." The knife edges away from his throat a couple of inches. Logan can feel Lust slowly gaining control again, this won't last. When Lust gets control back, Patton will die. He can't let that happen. He won't let that happen.

"HIM!!" He screams at the top of his lungs, flipping the blade around and thrusting it into his own abdomen.

Lust's POV

Lust inhales sharply as the knife punctures through Logan, returning to his real world. He looks down, seeing he is no longer Logan, but himself. 

"Wow, that little shit really did it..." He mutters to the air around him, lips curled back into a snarl at his defeat. At least one light side will die now, not the right one, but one nonetheless.

He stands with an exhale, walking out the door to tell Rage what happened.

Deceit's POV

His eyes flicker open, a moan immediately releasing from his throat. The light above him is blinding, making him squint. His leg boils with pain, shaking him terribly. Sweat drips from his brow, along with tears. He has been crying, but for how long he doesn't know.

"You're lucky you stayed unconscious, the fracture took more work than I thought it would." Rage says from over him, cleaning off a drill that is stained in blood. His blood. Deceit suddenly feels sick, nausea coating his senses like thick syrup. 

Suddenly, footsteps approach them. 

"Ah, there you are. Wanted to try out the bathroom, hmm?" Lust says, walking to lean over Deceit, staring down at him with a threatening smile. Deceit basically flinches at the grin, seeing a flicker of hate in his eyes.

"Want to know something interesting?" Rage asks, his face blank with dull anger.

"Hmm?" Lust inquires teasingly.

"Deceit is absolutely terrified of this bath. Would you know anything about that?" Rage demands, crossing his arms threateningly.

"Patton is still alive, Rage." Lust says, avoiding the question. Deceit can see veins immediately appear, pushing up against Rage's skin.

"....What?" Rage snarls, eyes basically turning black with hate.

"You didn't hear me, idiot? Patton. Is. Still. Alive." Lust mocks him, talking to him like he's 5. Rage slams his hands down on the metal tray that holds all of his tools, making Deceit flinch.

"HOW?!!" Rage screams at him. 

"Logan took control and stabbed himself so I couldn't hurt Patton." Lust tells him, smiling in his wrath.

"YOU MORON, HOW COULD YOU LET THAT HAPPEN?!" Rage hollers at him, Lust's smile only infuriating him further.

"Oh, why don't you try controlling a side and tell me how easy it is?" Lust mocks, his smile turning into a snarl as well.

"NOW WHAT, HMM? MONTHS OF PLANNING LED TO THIS, AND YOU'VE RUINED IT!" Rage swings at him, but Lust catches his fist without flinching.

"Relax, would you? Logan will still die." Lust says to him, rolling his eyes. Rage tears his hand away from Lust.

"How do you know he'll die, hmm?! They could save his ass!" Rage shouts.

"Well, you will have to go over there and make sure he dies, won't you?" Lust mocks him with a condescending half-smile.

Without another word, Rage stomps out of the room.

Deceit hears Lust laughing, appearing at his side. He grabs Deceit by the jaw tightly, bringing their eyes together.

"Now we have some alone time..."

Chapter Text

Patton's POV

"Logan!!" Patton screeches in shock, watching as Logan plunges the knife into his own abdomen. Logan's eyes meet his, shining with tears as he jaw hangs open, no sound coming out. 

"P-P--atton-- " He croaks, blood spilling between his lips. His eyes flick up, shutting as he collapses onto his knees weekly, hands weakly clenched around the knife. Patton screams out in terror as he jumps up from his bed, dropping to Logan's side. He lays Logan down on his back, watching as he loses consciousness. Bile rises up Patton's throat at the sight of Logan, but he swallows it immediately. He needs to save him.

"Patton-! Patton whats going on--" Roman calls out, darting into the room with Virgil followed close behind. He gasps in horror, freezing in place.

"He-- he- -stabb-ed hi-himself--" Patton sobs terribly, watching the colour drain from Logan's face. Roman rushes to his side, staring down at him in shock as Virgil remains frozen in the doorway.

"I don't know- know what to do, what- what do we do?!!" Roman exclaims in panic, wide eyes meeting Patton's. Virgil quickly comes to their aid.

"You need- to remove the object- and put- put pressure on the wound." He declares, hearing Patton squeal as he grips the knife tightly.

"But- but he'll lose too-- too much blood!" Patton exclaims in worry, shaking all over. 

"If- we leave it- in, we can't-stop the bleeding. Get some towels, now!" He insists with a forced voice of calm. Roman jumps up and comes over holding at least 5 towels. He slowly slides the knife out of Logan's skin, hearing the disgusting sound of squelching as it releases more blood.

"Quickly- put pressure on the wound!" Virgil demands, tossing the knife to the side. Patton leaps into action next, pressing down hard on the wound. He watches as blood seeps through the fabric greedily, turning the once white towel red. Roman holds another one on top, pressing down on top of Patton's hands as they try desperately to stop the bleeding. 

"Hold- hold on- baby- please-- please don't leave me--" Patton whispers to him, tears rolling down his cheeks as they apply another towel.

Deceit's POV

"I warned you, darling, I really did..." Lust coos, circling around the tub playfully.

"I tri-tried- Lust, I promi-promise, I tried to stop him-" He pleads desperately, warm tears filling his eyes.

"Well, you should've tried harder..." Lust pulls him up from under his arms, making him cry out as the fracture bends at a very drastic angle. He takes him out of the bath and drags him to the corner of the room. Deceit screams, wet feet slipping as he tries to dig his heels into the floor desperately.

"Shh, no fighting back, dear. This will be over sooner if you just let it happen." Lust purrs, unlocking the glass door to a small step-in shower. He shoves Deceit in, who immediately hits the wall and drops onto his knees with a cry. He slams the door, locking it again. There is no handle on the inside. The shower is hardly big enough to fit him, forcing him to curl into himself, his ribs panging in sync with his heart. If he could stand up, he would. He shakily looks up and sees a menacing shower head hanging over him.

"Lust--Lust please--" Deceit begs, pressing his hands against the glass desperately as Lust merely watches him with a sneer. He pulls his hands away when they sting with pressure.

"Oh, you are just too cute when you beg. It almost makes me feel bad for what happens next..." Lust reaches to a metal handle on the wall. With a sadistic sneer, Lust tugs the handle out, turning to shower on. Cold-ish water rains down on him, somewhat soothing his half-infected back. He stares up in confusion with an expression that reads "Is this supposed to hurt?".

"Heh, don't judge it yet, darling..." Lust jerks the handle to the left. The water immediately goes hot, pouring down on him mercilessly. He screams loudly, cowering on the ground as the water burns into him. He keeps crying out, his skin boiling on his back as steam wafts up from the ground.

"..Oh, does that feel nice, Dee? How about this?" Lust pulls the handle all the way to the left, it's hottest temperature. He pounds his hands against the door, shaking the broken bones as his body yearns for the pain to stop. He tries backing into the corner, but he can't get away from the trajectory of the water. He curls into a ball, shrieking at the top of his lungs as steam forces itself down his throat and into his lungs with ease. The burned bottoms of his feet hurt the worst, feeling as if they were under the abuse of a blowtorch once again. 

"I warned you, darling.. I warned you.." Lust paces in front of the shower, watching him boil alive as he tuts his tongue in disappointment. Deceit can barely hear him over his own shrieking.

"I'm--I'm SORR-SORRY--!" He apologizes, willing to do anything for him to turn off the water. He feels himself shaking as cowers on the wet floor, a rain of fire searing the mutilated skin on his back.

"That's what you said last time, love. I thought you would've learned your lesson, you poor poor thing.." Lust stops in front of the glass, watching as he cowers, skinning his throat completely as he screams incessantly.

"I- I --did - I did ---I PROMISE--!" Lust cackles at his words, kneeling before the shower with a sick smile, watching the skin on his back turn bright crimson. 

"Then why did you let him touch you?!" Lust hollers, his smile fading immediately as he pounds a fist against the glass. Deceit continues to cry, face split into a sickening grimace as he tries his best to stop.

"I tr-tried to stop- him-- please-- PLEASE-- TURN- TURN IT OFF--!" He begs, wrapping his arms around himself. He has nowhere to hide from the water. He can only hope that Lust will believe him and take him out.

"No, dear. This is your punishment, you betrayed my trust... Don't bother begging, it won't get you anywhere." Lust sits in front of him, watching in sick pleasure as he becomes completely unglued. Deceit pounds on the glass door, shaking the unstable bones in his fingers. When that doesn't work, he flips onto his back, the boiling water raining down on his chest and face now. Still screaming, he slams his foot into the door. It won't budge. His tries again, his ankle twisting painfully as he hits it at a very harsh angle. The bottoms of his feet sting like they've been dipped in acid.

"PLE-PLEASE -- LUST- I'M --- I'M BEGGING-- YOU-!" He screams, throwing his hands over his face to stop the water. It still continues to burn into his eyes, making them water more than they already were.

"How bad do you think the burns will be? Do you think we'll get to fourth-degree?" Lust teases him, watching intently as he returns to curling into a ball, trying to subject the least amount of skin to this torture.

"MAKE-- MAKE IT- STOP-- P-PLEASE- -PLEASE- STOP--!!" He cries once more into the tile beneath him, steam wafting up from the floor.

"No, not until you learn your lesson, darling..."

Patton's POV

They managed to stop the bleeding just barely. Logan now lays in the bed, skin pale from all of the blood loss. They did what they could using the first aid kit, stitching up the wound and wrapping his torso in gauze. Patton sits beside the bed, watching Logan intently with a tear-stained face. Logan's breathing is very shallow. Patton is glad he's unconscious, not wanting him to feel any pain at all. It was Lust who did this, he knows it was. Logan's eyes were golden-yellow as he held the knife against Patton's throat. Logan had saved him by sacrificing himself.

Patton holds Logan's hand gently, rubbing his knuckles with his thumb as he leans on the other hand.

"I love you... so so much.." He whispers softly, his eyes watering slightly as he stares at Logan's face, watching hair fall in front of his eyes gently as he stirs. Patton carefully places the hair behind his ear, smiling softly as his heart swells in his chest. He stands and kisses Logan gently on the forehead. He swears he sees Logan's lips twitch into a smile for just a moment. Patton sits back down, resting his head against the bed as his fingers remain entwined with Logan's, closing his eyes gently.

Rage's POV

Rage is done. He is done with playing these little mind games, he's done relying on anyone other than himself. All he wanted was for Logan to feel the pain that he did, the pain of losing someone you love. That sort of pain drives you insane, shakes your sanity until it shatters like a broken mirror. He can feel his cracking.

He doesn't care about any of that anymore, he just wants revenge. They could kill him after for all he cares. A life without Pride is a life not worth living anymore. He would have ended it already, but he needs to get revenge for Pride. Then he can rest, only then. Soon... soon..

Rage forces his way into the realm of the light side, standing down one of their many long hallways. He doesn't know his way around, but that won't stop him. He will tear this entire area apart until he finds Logan and kills him in front of Patton. He will then leave Patton to live with the grief. His vision reddens with fury, beginning to make his way down the hall. He feels the veins pulsing violently against his skin, but it doesn't bother him. He's grown accustomed to them now. Between Lust's incompetence and the light sides, he's reaching his limit with stupidity and delays. He worries about Deceit slightly in the back of his mind, fully aware that he just left him alone with Lust. He doesn't care at this point. Everything he worked towards is destroyed, everything he planned flushed down the toliet. 

Rage just has to take it into his own hands now.

Deceit's POV

After an unknowable amount of time, Lust finally turns the water off. He didn't do it out of kindness or pity, merely because he saw that Deceit was close to losing consciousness. He doesn't want to give his pet even the smallest ounce of peace.

Even with the water off, it still burns like hell. He is curled into himself, laying on the wet floor of the shower, loudly crying to himself as the agony burrows into his tissue with ease. His back feels like it's bubbling with heat, but he's sure that's just his imagination. He doesn't even look up when Lust opens the door, expelling the trapped steam into the rest of the room. He is being suffocated by the hot air, wanting nothing more than fresh air.

"What, no 'thank you'?" Lust mocks him sternly. Deceit doesn't answer, completely lost in a thick haze of pain.

"If you're not thankful, I'll just turn it on again..." He threatens, causing Deceit's head to immediately snap up, eyes glazed with terror. Swallowing, he forces down his non-existent pride.

"Th--tha-tha -- thank y-you-" He stutters through moans of anguish.

"You're very welcome, darling. Anything for my favourite plaything..." Lust runs his fingers through Deceit's soaked hair. If Deceit wasn't in so much pain, he would be mortified. At this point, he doesn't care anymore. He'd let Lust lick him clean across the face if it would make the pain stop. 

"Let's get you out of there.." Lust says, pulling him out of the shower by his arms. Deceit cries out weakly as his terribly scalded back drags against the ground. He gulps in cold, pure air, squeezing his eyes shut as he quivers against the ground. Lust roughly flips him onto his stomach, examining his back.

"Oh, absolutely perfect, this will definitely blister..." He coos, running a finger across his terribly burned skin, laughing when Deceit yelps.

"Have you learned your lesson now?" He demands bitterly, cold eyes meeting his. Deceit nods quickly, throat choked with agony.

"Very good..."

Patton's POV

Patton drifted off fairly easily considering the circumstances. What woke him is the sensation of being watched. He sees red and immediately thinks of Roman.

"Ro-Roman-?" He says sleepily, lifting his head. His heart leaps when he finds Rage standing directly in front of him. He inhales sharply, seeing that Rage is holding a knife at Logan's throat.

"Don't even think about calling for help..." He hisses, his eyes dark with anger. Patton stands up immediately, both hands covering his mouth, afraid that he might call out without thinking.

"This wasn't how this was supposed to happen... this wasn't how it was planned." He snarls to himself.

"Rage--Rage pleas-please-" Patton pleads quietly, eyes tearing up.

"No! Shut your mouth! You were supposed to die!" Rage hollers at him, making him flinch.

"Logan was supposed to kill you-- only then would he feel the pain I went through!" His eyes seem to water slightly, but he doesn't care anymore.

"The pain of watching your soulmate die!!" Tears roll down his cheeks, black veins pulsing deeply. Patton inhales sharply, finally understanding.

"You-- you-- were together-?" Patton stutters.

"Yes! Yes- and Logan shot him!" Rage screams, pressing the knife harder against Logan's throat.

"But-but Pride was- was going to kill me- he didn't have-have a choice!!" Patton pleads desperately.

"- It doesn't matter now.. he's gone. Pride's gone, and now Logan has to die too.." Rage clenches his jaw firmly, turning his attention back to Logan.

"No- no please- just- focus on me-" Patton reaches out to Rage with a quivering hand, flinching as he snaps his gaze back. Patton is sure that the others must've heard the yelling. He just needs to bide his time.

"I am -- I am so sorry for what happened to Pride- I really am-" Patton apologizes genuinely, seeing Rage's lip quiver at the mention of Pride.

"But- killing Logan will not achieve anything--" Patton tries to persuade him, stepping a little closer.

"Yes, it will-! It will avenge him!" Rage bellows with a growl, eyes flashing murderously.

"it won't- make the pain go away- though-" Patton says softly, swallowing hard as he takes another step. Rage flinches slightly, eyes darting back to Logan.

"It won't calm all-all of the wrath, it won't sile-silence the memories--" Another step. Patton sees hesitation dance in Rage's eyes. Patton hears faint footsteps coming down the halls, and Rage doesn't seem to notice. 

"But- but I can help- you. I can- I can try--" Another step closer. The footsteps are right outside his door now.

"Just- hand me the knife-" Rage begins taking the knife away from Logan's throat slowly. Before he can react, Rage grabs him and puts him in a chokehold, holding the knife to his throat now as he turns to face the door.

"Nice try, Patton.." He growls, watching the door swing open to reveal both Roman and Virgil.

"Patton!!" Virgil exclaims in horror.

"Think- think carefully about this, Rage. If you hurt him, you won't make it out of here alive." Roman warns, holding his sword threateningly.

"You think I wanted to make it out of here alive?" Rage sneers madly, tears rolling down his cheeks.

"Patton, do me a favour, will you?" Rage says bitterly, lips quivering as his grip tightens on the knife.

"Tell Pride I'll be there soon when you see him..." Patton inhales sharply, sensing that he was about to die. He shuts his eyes tightly, the world around him seeming to freeze as impending death creeps towards him.

Suddenly, Rage grunts in agony, his grip loosening around Patton. The knife drops to the ground. Patton easily twists out of his grasp, facing him once more. Rage's eyes flicker shut as he falls onto his knees and then onto his stomach. Logan stands over him holding a bloody lamp, which he had bashed into Rage's head and knocked him out.

Logan had saved his life yet again.

Chapter Text

Rage's POV

Rage's head pounds with torment, shaking his vision as he groggily opens his eyes. The light burns into his retinas carelessly, making him squint.

"He's up!" He hears a voice announce. Opening his eyes fully, he sees Patton, Roman, Virgil and Thomas all standing in front of him. They seem to be in Thomas's living room. Looking down, he sees that he is on his knees with his arms bound behind his back. He groans deeply, head spinning with pressure.

"What- is going on-?" Rage asks, his voice strained with dizziness.

"...This won't work, Thomas." Virgil mumbles, glaring daggers at Rage, who is still trying to get his bearings.

"It's the only way, Virge. I'm sorry..but.. but we can't just leave Deceit there." Thomas responds to the side, who looks away immediately, growling.

"Why not? He deserves it..." Virgil spits darkly.

"No-kiddo, I don't think he does. Thomas is doing the right thing." Patton says softly, trying to comfort Virgil.

"Sorry to interrupt... but can someone tell me what the hell is going on?" Rage seethes, drawing everyone's attention back to him.

"... We are going to offer you to Lust in return for Deceit." Thomas informs him. Rage laughs lowly at his plan, knowing Lust would never ever give up his precious pet.

"You- idiots... you really think he'll ever let Deceit go?" He continues laughing as Thomas bites down on the inside of his cheek.

"It's worth a shot. I saw the way you were looking at him, Rage. You feel guilty. Don't you want to save him?" Rage's smile drops as he thinks back to the beaten side. It's true, he does feel guilty. He can't help but see a shimmer of Pride every time he looks at Deceit. He had done everything he could for Deceit. He even left Remus with a fresh first-aid kit. That will only numb the pain, it won't stop the torturous force of Lust.

"... No one can save him now." Rage mutters quietly, shaking his head as he thinks of what Lust might have done to Deceit in his absence.

"No, we can. And you're going to help us." Thomas insists, poking a finger into Rage's chest.

"You do remember that I just tried to kill two of your sides, correct? If I manage to get out of these restraints, I will kill them without hesitation..." Rage threatens, causing Patton to immediately flinch.

"Which is why I won't release you. I just need you to get us to Lust. That's all I am asking of you." Thomas says gently. Rage throws his head back, cackling loudly.

"He's not going to give you Deceit, it doesn't matter what you offer, moron. Lust will never ever let him go..." Rage snarls at them, pulling at his restraints as his arms begin to get sore.

".. I have to try. He deserves at least that. He needs to know that we are at least trying..." Thomas mutters quietly, tears shining in his eyes.

"..." Rage feels a familiar feeling of pity rise in him. This is all his fault, isn't it? He let Lust out knowing what he was going to do. But then again, at the beginning at least, Rage wanted to see Deceit tortured. It felt good to get revenge, but it turned bittersweet so quickly. He saw Deceit like he saw Pride, just a side who was getting hurt for something they couldn't control. He wanted to help, he truly did, but revenge took priority. And even now, he has failed again. He can't bring Pride back, so what's the point of getting revenge anymore? It's true, he hates these goddamn light sides and their hypocrisy, but Deceit... Deceit never deserved any of this, did he? He didn't do anything wrong. He was merely a pawn who got swept up into the game. 

God, what has he done? He left Deceit there alone with Lust. He saw the look on Lust's face before he left; one of murderous jealously. How could he do this again? He knew what was going to happen, but he decided it was more important for Logan to die.

Deceit didn't deserve this.. Rage was wrong. He made the wrong choice, he should've never done this. He could've just looked for Pride on his own. Maybe they'd still be together, maybe he wouldn't have died.

"Damn it..." Rage growls under his breath, tears stinging in his eyes. He can feel them all watching, but he doesn't care anymore. He couldn't save Pride, but maybe... maybe he can save Deceit still.

"...Your plan won't work. I have a better one. "Rage lifts his head again, meeting Thomas's eyes.

"Give me back to Lust and wait outside the vault. I'll come back out with Deceit and Remus. You can take them home, and I'll take care of Lust." Rage tells them. Thomas stares at him for a moment, hesitant to trust him for obvious reasons.

"Are you JOKING, Thomas?! We are not trusting him!!" Virgil shouts, gesturing to Rage. 

"But he's--" Thomas begins before being cut off by Virgil.

"Don't you remember what he did to me? To US? He tried to kill Patton and Logan!! He tortured all of us, he can't be trusted!!" Virgil insists loudly, tears running down his face.

"I'm with Virge on this one, Thomas.. I mean, how can we trust him? What if- what if he's leading us into a trap?" Roman says, shaking with the thought of being chained up again.

"But-- but Deceit--" Thomas sobs quietly. Patton steps in, wrapping an arm around Thomas as he begins crying harder.

"Kiddos... I know we can't trust him.. but we have to, just for a little while." Patton looks to Rage, whose eyes are full of disbelief and confusion. For Patton out of all of them to be trusting him is strange.

"Patton- you can't be serio--" Virgil starts.

"It's gonna be okay, kiddo. But right now, we have to work together.. okay?" Patton says soothingly, rubbing Thomas's back in circular motions as he begins to calm down again.

"When I look at Rage, I see genuine guilt. I believe he cares for Deceit, even though he may not understand it. We can trust him to save Deceit, I know we can." Patton smiles slightly at Rage, still looking hesitant and fearful. Rage's mouth hangs open as he stares up at Patton in complete bewilderment. He had just tried to kill Patton. How could he even begin to trust him?

"Alright Patton... I- I trust you.." Roman says, eyeing Rage carefully.

"Oh you've gotta be kidding me--" Virgil shouts loudly.

"Virge, I need you to stay here with Logan. Someone needs to watch him." Patton says softly to Virgil, whose eyes flash with betrayal and hurt.

"Patton you can't do thi--" Virgil starts again.

"That's an order, Virge. " Patton shuts him down again. Virgil scoffs sadly, staring at all of them with a look of hatred as he sinks down.

"... Thank you, Patton." Thomas says, wiping his face free of tears.

"You'll take us there, Rage?" Patton asks as Roman lifts Rage off of the ground, his arms still tied behind his back.

"Just so we're clear, I'm doing this for Deceit, not for you..." He spits at them all, eyes blazing. He takes a deep breath and sinks down, taking them into his realm.

Deceit's POV

Lust tosses him back in the cell with no regard for his safety. He rolls across the cement ground multiple times before hitting the wall, crying out breathlessly as pressure is forced against his broken ribs and shin.

"Take a breather, dear~. You'll need it.." Lust shuts the door and locks it, walking away laughing. Deceit cries against the cement, gripping the floor beneath him weakly with splintered fingers.

"Jesus-- what has he done to you?!" Remus cries out, running to his side. His burned back stings against the floor, forcing tears down his face.

"I--it-- hurt--hurtsssss--" Deceit hisses raspily, trembling all over. He starts to suspect that the morphine has worn off as his jaw is once again panging terribly, drilling deep into the stitched gaps in his gums where teeth should be.

"Shh.. shh I know, I can help." Remus takes the first-aid kit out from underneath his garb. He sets it beside Deceit and opens it slowly. Deceit immediately cries out in terror, inching away from Remus slightly.

"No, no relax, Deceit. Rage gave me this before he left. It will help, I promise. This is morphine." Remus takes out a syringe, flicking it briefly to get the air bubbles out.

"No--! No-Remus- if-- if Lust finds-- out-- he will- he will be furious--!!" Deceit pleads helplessly as he tugs his arm away from Remus quickly.

"He won't find out." Remus insists.

"Pl-please-- Remus--" Deceit cries softly, voice choked with pain.

"Okay, okay I won't push you. Just--just at least let me give you morphine, it will stop the pain." Deceit goes silent for a moment, weighing his options. Is relieving the pain really worth the consequences should Lust find out again? A better question, how much longer can Deceit suffer like this? There is not a single part of his body that doesn't hurt. Shouldn't he be allowed to give in and have some relief? 

In a moment of brief weakness, Deceit nods his head. Remus exhales in relief and carefully takes his arm again, searching for a vein. He finds one and plunges the needle in carefully. He sets the empty syringe to the side and watches as Deceit inhales sharply as the drug burns in his veins. He shuts his eyes tightly, waiting for the ease.

"It'll work in just a minute, take it easy." Remus says softly, brushing Deceit's slightly-damp hair behind his ear.

"Can... can you tell me what he did?" Remus asks meekly, wanting to know how to help him better. Tears squeeze out of the corners of his eyes as the memories come back. 

"He--he-- pulled- t--teeth-" He whines quietly, sobbing gently as he clearly remembers the sound of the roots being ripped out of his head. 

"--my back---" He mutters, breaking off into choppy crying. Remus looks away from him, lip quivering.

"Is there-- is there any other way I- can help you?" Deceit shakes his head. 

"Just--just don't l-leave-- me-. Ple-please-?" Deceit begs him, opening his eyes briefly.

"No, no of course not. I won't, I promise." Remus assures, scooting closer to Deceit. Deceit feels his body relax, veins burning slightly as a wave of nausea rushes over him. He exhales deeply as he feels his pain go numb. The world slows down around him.

For now, he is at peace.

Rage's POV

They rise up in front of the large vault door.

"So.. how are we going to do this..?" Thomas asks meekly, turning to Rage.

"Untie me. I'll walk in there, get Deceit and Remus, and bring them back out. You all wait here." Rage demands, looking to the vault.

"What if Lust finds you?" Patton inquires.

"I plan on it. He locked me out of their cell, I'll need a way to get in. I'll make up some bullshit excuse and get in. Now untie me, the longer we wait out here, the higher the chance that this all goes wrong." Thomas nods to Roman, who cuts off the rope with his sword. Rage rubs his wrists sorely as he begins walking towards the vault.

Rage scans his hand swiftly, hearing the door unlock. He walks in, hearing it slide shut behind him. 

"Lust?" He calls out to, hearing his own voice reverberate against the walls.

"Ah, Rage. How'd everything go?" Lust asks playfully, approaching from down the hall.

"Patton's still alive, thanks to you. Logan is recovering as well... I tried to sneak in but they found me, tied me up.." Rage growls, showing the marks around his wrists. Lust looks down at his wrists sneering.

"How'd you escape?" Lust demands with a grin.

"They left me unattended with Roman. He's easily manipulated, but I'm sure you know that. But right now, I need someone to beat." Lust's eyes light up immediately, a sneer spreading across his face.

"Oh yeah, well we've got two candidates; Remus or Deceit." 

"Hmm, I'm thinking Deceit..." Rage says with a matching sneer.

"What happened to not hurting him anymore, hmm? I thought you lost your edge..." Lust mocks him teasingly.

"I got it back... Now stop wasting my time and take me to him, will you?" Rage orders, pointing down the hall.

"As you wish.." Lust leads him down the hall, humming to himself playfully. Rage's smile drops as soon as Lust isn't watching. Lust scans his hand and the door slides open. He sneers immediately as Deceit lifts his head up.

"Have fun~" Lust cackles as he walks away. Rage walks into the cell, hearing the door slide shut behind him. He walks over to Remus and Deceit, kneeling before them both. 

Deceit's POV

"...Is the red light blinking on the camera?" He whispers to Remus, who looks up at the camera. 

"No." Remus tells him. Rage lets out a long exhale, swallowing hard.

"Alright. I am getting you two out of here. The light sides are outside waiting for you." Deceit makes a noise of confusion, lifting his head up again.

"You're-- you're letting us go--?" Remus asks, stunned by the sudden change of events.

"Yes. Now get up, carry Deceit. We need to go now before Lust realizes his mistake." Rage stands again, glancing at the door behind them.

"Th--they---came- back-- for-- for us-?" Deceit slurs, his words slowed by the morphine.

"Mhm. They are outside as we speak. We need to go." Rage helps Deceit stand up, wrapping one of his arms behind his neck. Remus does the same, and they both support Deceit's weight. Deceit would be screaming if it wasn't for the morphine as their clothes stick to the horrible burns on his back. Rage opens the door with one hand and they both walk Deceit out of the cell. 

"We need to hurry, walk faster." Rage urges, picking up his pace. Deceit uses one leg to assist them, the fractured one merely dragging along. His heart pounds furiously as his eyes frantically scan the hallways, waiting for Lust to appear. They finally reach the main doorway. Rage scans his hand and the vault door slides open, revealing the light sides waiting for them. Thomas's eyes light up at the sight of the dark sides.

"Deceit!" Thomas exclaims in total relief. Deceit's eyes tear at the sight of all of them, lip quivering as all of the emotions he's bottled away threaten to break open.

"Here, take him. It won't take long for Lust to realize he's gone." Rage orders. Roman immediately runs over and helps hold Deceit up, gazing cautiously at Remus. They edge away from the entrance to the door towards Thomas and Patton.

"...Thomas?" Rage says, facing them.

"...Take care of him, will you?" Rage pleads, his eyes not leaving Deceits face.

"Of--of course, what- what are you going to do?" Thomas inquires.

"You won't see either of us again, I can assure yo---"

Rage's sentence stops strangely, mouth still hanging open. His eyes water as he bears his teeth. He stumbles forward, hands reaching behind him. Deceit watches him with wide eyes, feeling that something was wrong.

"No.. I don't think you'll see Rage again, that's for sure..." A mocking voice calls out from behind Rage. Deceit's heart freezes in his chest, eyes watering immediately as a noise of despair comes from his lips.

"L--Lu-Lust--" Rage chokes, blood dripping between his lips as he turns around shakily, revealing a knife poking out of his back. It is lodged in his upper back to the right side.

"I'm afraid I cannot allow you to take my pet, Rage..." Lust coos, shoving Rage backwards. He flies back onto the ground, the knife pushing further into him as he lands rather harshly. Gasps sound from all of the sides. Patton shrieks as Rage chokes, blood spurting from his mouth.

"R---R-Rage--n--no-- " Deceit drops from their hold, crying out as he slowly crawls over to Rage.

"Aw poor baby~ Did I just kill your protector?" Lust mocks him, watching with pleasure as Deceit starts to cry.

"Deceit--Deceit I'm --I'm so -- so sorry--for everything -I ever did- to you-" Rage chokes, taking deep breaths as blood creeps up his throat. 

"Pleas--please, forgive m-me-" Tears spill from Rage's eyes as he stares into Deceit's.

"Ye-yes--of course--" Deceit tells him, lips quivering. He can feel Lust eyeing him hungrily, but he doesn't care right now.

"--Ple-please--say it--" Rage begs him, shaking hands pulling Deceit closer by his shoulders.

"I--I forgive you--Rage-" Deceit says truthfully, watching as Rage's eyes flicker with relief. Silence lingers between them all for half a minute. Tears spill from Rage's maroon eyes as recognition shines in his pupils.

"--Pride-- is- is that you--?" He asks, a faint smile twitching at his lips as his skin drains from colour. Deceit stares down at him in confusion.

"I've-- missed- you--" Rage caresses Deceit's cheek gently with one shaking hand. Deceit lets out a sob of despair, trying to keep it together.

"I-I missed you- t-too-" Deceit says, following along with his delusion. These are Rage's last moments. The most he can do is go along with this. He doesn't know why he even cares. Rage did this to him in the first place. Kidnapped him, whipped him bloody, left him with Lust for weeks of torture on end. But, he does forgive him now. He will hate himself later for this, but right now, he can't help it.

"I- I love--" Rage's head lulls back, eyes still open. Deceit waits for the last part of his sentence, but it doesn't come.

"..Rage?" Deceit chokes, feeling Rage's hand slide off of his face.

He's dead.

Deceit makes a choked noise of despair, trembling terribly.

"Now.. if you think you're taking my pretty toy away from me, you're wrong." Lust begins walking towards Deceit.

"No--no--!" Deceit cries sharply, kicking away. Lust's eyes darken, sneering at his prisoner darkly.

"Oh? Back to refusing again, are we? How about we pull a couple more teeth and see how you feel after..." Lust continues walking at him teasingly as Deceit cries out for help from Thomas and his light sides.

Remus jumps in front of Deceit, taking a defensive stance against Lust.

"And allowing Remus to help? Tsk, tsk, dear, such a foolish mistake." Lust tuts his tongue.

Suddenly, Lust drops his knees with a loud scream of pain. He clutches his chest tightly. Remus stares at him in confusion, but Deceit recognizes it immediately. Rage has been killed, a dark side. What happened when Pride died will happen again.

"Re-Remus-- it-- it's gonna--" Deceit's sentence quickly gets cut off as a shriek shreds through his throat. He curls in on himself, feeling as if his organs were being pulled out of him. His ribs desperately beg for him to fix his posture, but he can't. He feels like if he doesn't hold his chest, his heart might just explode right out of his skin.

"Deceit- are you alright?! What's going on?" Remus demands in fear, dropping to his side. Deceit can't hear him over his own yelling, tears spilling down his face.

"Somebody help hi--" Remus begins screaming as well as he undergoes the same pain as both Deceit and Lust. He pounds the ground beneath him with his fists. Deceit can faintly hear the voices of Thomas, Patton and Roman. He can't make out their words.

He feels someone's hands on him. Looking up briefly, Deceit sees Roman. Roman's lips are moving, but he can't hear anything. He feels Roman lift him up from the ground, one arm around his back and one underneath his legs. Patton and Thomas both go to Remus, pulling him up and helping him walk as well.

The pain suddenly ends, but his sides still ache with torment. He continues whining, teary eyes meeting the figure of Lust. Lust growls deeply, getting up on all four.

"Thomas-- Thomas we have to go now-!" Patton pleads.

"Okay-- okay give me a minute." Thomas shuts his eyes, eyebrows furrowing as he tries to focus on the light sides' realm.

"Thomas, quickly! He's getting up!" Roman demands, voice dancing with urgency as he supports Deceit's weight. Deceit stares helplessly as Lust gets onto his knees, blazing eyes meeting Deceits.

"Where-- do you think-you're going--darling?" He hisses breathlessly, clutching his chest as he gets onto his feet. 

"Thomas!!" Roman shouts urgently. 

"You-- you think you'll ever--escape me-?" Lust snarls, a deranged smile pulling at his lips.

Thomas and his sides begin sinking down, preparing to enter the realm of the light sides.

"DECEIT!!!" Lust hollers, lunging at them all.

The last thing Deceit sees before sinking down is Lust's face inches from his own, arms reaching out to drag him back into that vault.

Chapter Text

Lust's POV

Lust growls deeply when he looks down, seeing that his arms are empty. Deceit is gone. He made sure this would never happen. He took every precaution. How could he have let Rage in? WHY? NOW HIS TOY IS GONE, AND IT'S ALL THEIR FAULT!! 

"They're all gonna pay for this..."Lust bares his teeth, turning back towards the vault which no longer holds his pet.

He's going to make them all regret what they've done.

Deceit's POV

Deceit twists out of Roman's hold in a blind panic, falling to the floor. He cries out loudly, shaking with fear as Lust's face remains painted on the inside of his eyelids.

"Hey, hey you're okay- you're here with us-" Patton tries to soothe him, dropping beside him on his knees. Deceit wraps an arm around himself, crying uncontrollably as he finally comes to terms with being free.

"Remus, are you alright?" Roman asks.

"Yeah- I'm perfectly fine..." Remus spits, glaring at Roman, who looks away confused.

"Thomas, what do we do with Deceit? He needs somewhere to rest." Patton asks, keeping a concerned gaze on Deceit.

"I don't want him to be alone, ever. We can't risk losing him to Lus--" Thomas immediately stops before the name comes out of his mouth. Deceit wouldn't have heard him anyway, he's too consumed in his own mind.

"Maybe with Logan? I'm always there already. I can bring in another bed for him." Patton offers, eyes lighting up at the idea. 

"Yeah- yeah okay that works, go quickly. He needs medication and help." Thomas nods, causing Patton to sprint off.

"Erm--Deceit, we're gonna get you somewhere comfortable, okay?" Thomas offers, placing a hand on the shaking side's shoulder. Deceit immediately jerks away from his touch, crying out in fear.

"No-no! It's- it's me, Thomas. We want to help you, Deceit." Thomas tries again but refrains from touching him when Deceit shrieks.

"Here, let me. He trusts me." Remus kneels in front of Deceit.

"Deceit, hey. They're gonna help lift you up, alright?" Remus says to him softly, snapping in front of his eyes. Deceit looks up at Remus, comforted by the sight of his friend.

"Is it alright if me and Roman lift you and take you to Patton's room?" Remus offers him, awaiting his consent. Deceit wordlessly nods, shaking as he tries to stop himself from crying.

"Okay Princey, stop standing there being useless and lift him with me." Remus orders, wrapping an arm under Deceit. Roman hesitates for just a moment due to his words.

"... I have a name, moron." Roman hisses under his breath, lifting Deceit up in sync with Remus. Together, they support his weight completely.

"Oh yeah, and who was it who made Thomas take pictures of his crushes in secret, and blamed it on Patton?" Remus grins as the memory flashes in Roman's eyes.

"How do you know that--" Roman begins asking with wide eyes.

"Enough!" Thomas yells loudly, silencing both of them. Deceit quivers at his raised voice.

"We need to help Deceit, now. We don't have time for you two to argue." Thomas says sternly, beginning to walk down the hall to Patton's room. 

Roman and Remus silently follow, supporting Deceit's weight so he doesn't have to walk on the fracture.

The door to Patton's room is already open. Patton is leaning against the wall, face red with exertion as he heaves in breaths. There is a second bed next to Logan's.

"You alright, Patton?" Thomas asks.

"Yeah, of course kiddo, just tired from pushing the bed over here." He says through deep breaths, trying to calm his heart. Remus and Roman lay Deceit down in the bed.

"Oh, so you brought them here afterall..." Virgil mutters hatefully, a glare darting between the two dark sides. He is sitting in a chair by Logan's side.

"Virgil..." Thomas mutters, shaking his head. He seems to not want to distress Deceit further.

"How long are we keeping them here before we send them back?" Virgil hisses, standing from his seat. Deceit throws a hand over his own mouth to stop a cry from coming out at the thought of going back. It already feels like he hasn't left. Every time he closes his eyes he sees Lust's sick grin. His lustful eyes scanning Deceit's broken, bruised body.

"Virge, they are staying here with us." Thomas insists with a voice of authority. 

"Oh, and you think Lust is going to let you keep his pet?" Virgil snaps, gesturing to Deceit.

Pet

Pet

Pet

The word echoes through his head. He can feel Lust's hands on his skin again. He shivers as he whines sharply, shivering as memories of abuse threaten to overtake him.

"What did you just call him?" Remus hisses, taking a step towards Virgil with his hands curled into balls.

"I called him Lust's pe--" Deceit is pulled out of his trance when Remus throws a fist into Virgil's face, making the light side collapse to the ground with a cry.

"Do you have any idea how much that hurts him?! Do you even know what he's been through?!" Remus screams, grabbing Virgil by the collar of his hoodie.

"He is so much stronger than you'll ever be..." Remus growls closely into Virgil's face, who remains frozen in shock as his nose starts to bleed.

"Now get the hell out, and if I ever see you in here again, I'll snap you in two.." Remus shoves him backwards flat on the ground. Virgil quickly scrambles to his feet, holding his nose. He stares at Thomas, waiting for backup. When none comes, he looks to Patton, who immediately looks away.

"Wow..." Virgil hisses at the room with teary eyes before leaving.

"... I'm sorry about that, Deceit. He's just--adjusting." Thomas apologizes, feeling guilty over Virgil's actions. 

"Are you alright with watchin--" Thomas begins asking Remus.

"I'll take care of him." Remus states, pulling up a chair beside Deceit's bed. Thomas nods awkwardly and steps out of the room. Roman leaves as well, not wanting to be with Remus.

".. Do you need anything, Deceit? Painkillers, bandages, anything?" Remus asks him. Deceit silently shakes his head, lip quivering. He shuts his eyes, trying to sleep.

"Are- are you sure? I'm not sure how long the morphine will last." 

"... I-injection-- or oral-?" Logan asks, laying in the bed next to Deceit. He opens both eyes, staring at Remus for an answer. 

"Oh--erm- injection-" Remus answers, taken off guard. He thought that Logan was completely unconscious.

"Four- hours- he'll be fine f-for another three hours." Logan closes his eyes again. Patton smiles down at Logan, holding his hand gently with tears in his eyes. Logan's eyes snap open again, looking over to Deceit.

"Are- your wounds dressed? They- could get infected." Logan states blandly, watching Deceit stare at him in confusion.

"What did he do to you?" Logan asks point-blank. Deceit flinches visibly at the question.

"He's not ready for that--" Remus tries to protect him, but Logan is insistent.

"If you don't -tend to his wounds, he will d-die." Logan grunts in pain as he tries sitting up.

"Oh no, no Logan you should rest." Patton tries to keep him down, but Logan brushes him off, sitting up fully.

"I'm fine, ba-baby." He insists, making Patton go speechless at the nickname. He smiles widely and looks away, face flushing pink.

"I-- I--" Deceit stutters, looking away from Logan instantly. He's not ready to talk about what happened. Hell, he'll never be ready.

"Logan, he won't even tell me. He's not ready, don't push it." Remus says protectively.

"If we-we don't act quickly- it will get infected-" Logan says, slurring just a little.

"Let it go, nerdy wolverine. He'll be fine." Remus dismisses him, looking away.

"Deceit- the morphine m-made you not feel it- but I assure you- it will hurt like hell once it wears off. You- you should have it treated now instead of later." Logan tries convincing Deceit, who won't meet his gaze.

"That's enough, Logan. You aren't helping!" Remus yells, standing up.

"Hey kiddos, let's just calm dow--" Patton tries interjecting, but he is ignored by the two parties.

"Like you're helping him! Repression doesn't work, Remus! I wo-would know- I caused all of this!" Logan shouts guiltily.

"..What are you talking about?" 

"I did this--to all of us. I suggested repres--repressing them. I was wrong. It only ma-made them angry, hungry for revenge. I did this to Deceit- -I just want to help." Logan trails off, biting his lip as it begins to quiver. The room falls into silence.

"...He--he broke six r-ribs..." Deceit begins, closing his eyes tightly as tears begin rolling down his cheeks.

"No, Deceit you don't have t-" Remus tries comforting him.

"No-! No- I do-. Logan-isss -right- , I can't-repress thi-this again." Deceit insists, taking a deep breath to soothe his jittery nerves. Remus goes silent, watching his friend in horror.

"..He- he broke most-most of my fingers, shov-shoved pins under my nails, cut-cut me with a k-kk-knife.." Deceit continues, reliving each instance as it comes out of his mouth. He can hear the popping of his fingers jerking out of place. He can feel the sharp pains drilling beneath his nails again. He can feel himself bleeding out, skin turning grey as the knife wounds drain him of all the blood he had.

"He pulle--pulled teeth-" He cries sharply at the memory of that specific one, a hand going up to rub his jaw. Logan begins speaking but stops himself immediately when Deceit starts to say more. He thought that it was done.

"-He- burned- the bottoms o-of my feet- oh god---" Deceit whimpers, shaking all over. He can't stop, he has to get it all out.

"Deceit-- you can- stop-" Remus tries soothing him, noticing how the entire bed shakes.

"He- poured sc-scalding water over my- my back for- for an hour-" Deceit feels the room around him slip away, leaving just him and Lust in that awful torture chamber.

"He humi-humiliated me over and over and over again--until--until I- I couldn't even- look him in the eye-eyes anymore-" Deceit's hands curl into fists, his fingers panging with agony. He disregards the pain.

"--Deceit- that's enough." Remus attempts to get through to him, but Deceit is fully gone.

"He dr-drugged me so --so I couldn't fight back-- so I couldn't disobey hi-him." Deceit bares his teeth as sobs come out of his mouth, voice choked with despair.

"You can stop, Deceit. I have enough infor--" Logan steps in next, but cannot be heard.

"God-- he touched me--caressed my face while he-- he scrubbed- salt and -lemon juice into my wounds--" 

"Deceit-" Patton tries next, but he's beginning to cry as he watches the dark side become completely unbound.

"He got-got so angry when- when Rage hel-helped me--or even touched me-He made- made me promise to never- never let anyone help me-" 

"He-- he told me- I would never leave him- that he would come back and- and drag me back into -that- that hell--" Deceit inhales sharply out of panic, his eyes flying open as he stares at Remus.

"He's- he's coming- isn't he--? Lu-Lust is coming fo-for me?!" Deceit shouts in a blind panic, eyes darting around the room as he searches for his captor's face.

"Hey- no-! No- he's not coming back- I'll keep you safe-!" Remus insists, reaching for Deceit's shoulder.

"I don't want to-- to go back--! Ple-please don't make me- me go back--- I don't want to!! " Deceit screams desperately at Remus, tears running down his face.

"What-- no! Hey, listen to me, Dee." Remus grabs his face my the sides, looking into his eyes.

"You aren't going back. I won't let him take you again. You are safe, okay? He will never ever hurt you again, I promise." Remus assures, wiping a tear from his face with his thumb. Deceit sobS again, feeling his heart slow.

"--Pr-Promise--?" Deceit stutters, blinking tears out of his eyes.

"Promise." Remus promises once more, looking at him deeply before releasing his face. Deceit stares at the wall sniffling.

"I am.. I am sorry. I was wrong.. I shouldn't have pressured you into doing that.. I didn't know--" Logan rambles but immediately snaps his mouth shut when he realizes he's talking far too much. Patton wipes stray tears from his face, sniffling as well.

"--No-- no it's okay-- it helped." Deceit says to him truthfully, feeling like a weight was lifted off of him.

"...Really?" Logan inquires with a bewildered expression.

"Yeah-- than-thank you." Deceit thanks him with a small smile.

"Oh-- erm-- you're welcome--" Logan stumbles to properly respond. Deceit merely lays his head back, closing his eyes.

"....We really- should treat the burns. They can get infected very easily--" Remus shushes him, watching Deceit finally start to drift off.

Logan's POV

Logan watches in silence as Deceit falls asleep. 

"...What jus-just happened?" Logan whispers to Patton, who is beaming at him.

"You helped him." Patton responds proudly, holding Logan's hand in his own.

".. The burns really will get infected. The longer we wait--" Patton quickly kisses Logan on the lips, cutting his sentence short. He pulls away again.

"Shhh. Let him rest." Patton gently runs his fingers through Logan's hair. Logan smiles slightly, world slowed by his own pain medication.

"....Did I do good?" He asks meekly to Patton with a shy smile.

"Yes, yes you did baby. Now get some rest, you're still injured." Patton coos, pulling the covers up to Logan's chin. He shuts his eyes, smiling slightly.

"I love you, Patton." He slurs slightly, head feeling light.

"I love you too, Lo." Patton kisses him quickly on the cheek as he drifts off into peaceful slumber.

Chapter Text

Deceit's POV

He groans deeply, eyelids shut tightly. His entire body is burning and aching, the fuzzy feeling of relief vanishing completely. He squirms slightly on his side, trying to get more comfortable as he tries his best to fall asleep again. He cries out loudly this time, tears burning in his eyes as they shoot open, staring at the pitch-black room around him. He clenches his teeth tightly, stifling the urge to scream as he wraps his mutilated hands around his sides.

His eyes dart over to Remus, who is slumped over in his chair, asleep. Deceit struggles to keep the suffering inside, not wanting to be a nuisance. Besides, he doesn't need help. He can take care of himself just fine.

He's fine. It doesn't even hurt that bad. 

'It doesn't hurt.'

'It doesn't hurt.'

'It doesn't hurt.' He lies to himself repeatedly, face pulled into a grimace. Another moan forces its way out of his clenched teeth.

He can do this. Hiding his pain is his specialty. He can act like it doesn't hurt. He can do it. 

Deceit whines shakily, feeling his body quiver. His hands abandon his sides, now applying pressure on his aching jaw. The fresh stitches burn with pain, setting his entire mouth aflame.

There are too many sources of pain. His ribs hurt the worst by far, refusing to give him even a moment of peace. He tries his best to hold his breath, breathing making the pain double instantly. His shin comes to a close second as the sound of the cell door slamming down onto his leg fills his ears. His back stings against the covers beneath him, feeling the skin blister into tight patches. Deceit's hands are next, an infection festering beneath the bandages. The bottoms of his feet are also blistering, his toes curling as the tight, burned skin sizzles like the blowtorch was still on them.

"No--no---" Deceit whines, tears rolling down his face as he tries to stop thinking about it. He knows that these memories of torture will eventually lead to the thought of Lust.

Deceit can't do this. He was wrong. There's too much pain, too many memories. He can't do it.

"Re---R---Remus--" Deceit chokes, a shaking hand reaching out for Remus's shoulder. He can't reach him, his torso hurting far too much to sit up or scoot closer.

"Pl-please---" He begs louder, a shiver going down his spine.

'Beg me not to hurt you...' Lust's familiar threat echoes through his head. He whimpers at the voice in his head, crying so hard that he can't speak. Every sob makes his chest jerk, closing off his throat in pain. 

"Remu-Remus-- wak-wake up--" He hisses, feeling like he was trying to breathe through a straw. His chest his heavy, almost as if someone is sitting on him. He whines again, swallowing hard. He can't take anymore, he needs their help. He needs relief.

"R--Remus-- pleas-please!!" Deceit shouts as loud as he physically can, voice cracking dryly. Remus's eyes finally start to flicker open, a sound of confusion coming from him. He lifts his head slowly.

"Deceit-? Did you say something?" Remus asks to the barely visible figure of his friend, voice drenched in exhaustion.

"He--help me--- pleas-please-" Deceit begs him desperately, whimpers breaking his words as he wraps his arms around himself.

"What's going on?" Remus demands in a panicked voice, fumbling for the light switch on the lamp. Light burns into both of their eyes, making Deceit flinch. 

"... Deceit?" Patton says sleepily, lifting his head off of Logan's bed. Logan remains completely unconscious.

"Are you alright? What's going on?" Remus asks him, standing up immediately.

"I--It-- h--hurts---ss-s--" Deceit cries in a pathetic voice. 

"Shit-shit-" Remus curses, running fingers through his frosted-grey tips. Patton stands as well, yawning. Remus spots the first aid kit on the ground and quickly drops to his knees, opening it. He rummages through the bandages, bloodied stitching, tubes of burn gel, gauze, cotton balls and rubbing alcohol, unable to find a single bottle of pills.

"Patton, where do you keep your painkillers and stuff?" He demands as Deceit continues to cry. 

"It should be in that first aid kit." Patton says sleepily, still half-awake.

"There's none in here, where did they all go?" Remus stands once more, searching the room. Deceit finds it harder and harder to breathe, heart jittering weakly in his chest.

"Erm- I don't know..." A confused look crosses Patton's face. 

"Well think, would you?! He's suffering!" Remus urges him, gesturing to a shaking Deceit.

"Hold on, hold on." Patton shuts his eyes tightly in focus, trying to remember.

"Morphine?" Logan asks them all, eyes opened. He isn't sitting up, lying on his back with his hands covering the wrapped stab wound.

"Sorry?" Remus asks him in a confused voice.

"It's --it's starting to hurt again, I need morphine." Logan says, inhaling sharply. He looks over to Deceit, who is fully engulfed by his own agony.

"He needs some too, hurry. Give it to him first, I can wait." Logan orders, shutting his eyes as he breathes deeply.

"Logan we-- we don't know where the painkillers are." Patton says to him meekly, eyes tearing up.

"We must've run o-out. I put- a refill kit in the- front hall closet. There sh-should be more supplies as well." He informs, trying to keep his voice steady. He groans deeply, eyes tearing.

"Okay- okay we have to go get it. Patton, let's go." Remus immediately makes for the door, Patton following close behind.

Deceit and Logan are left alone together, both crying because of the pain.

Remus's POV

Patton leads him along their long hallways. It's still dark out, not an ounce of light found in the black velvet sky outside. It must be 1 or 2 in the morning.

"This way." Patton says, taking a sharp turn to the right. 

"Wait--" Patton slams a hand on Remus's chest, stopping him. 

"What--" Patton shushes him, shakily pointing to a figure that is rummaging through the closet. Remus feels a shiver crawl up his skin, trying to make out the side. He doesn't have the time to sit here watching them, Deceit is in terrible pain.

Remus takes a couple of steps towards the dark figure.

"Who are you?" He demands threateningly, feeling Patton behind him. The figure makes a startled gasp, dropping the bin that he was taking out on the ground. Virgil stares back at the two sides, mouth open in shock.

"Virgil? What are you doing?" Patton asks, stepping towards the side. 

"What are you doing with a dark side?" Virgil spits, glaring at Remus. Remus merely huffs in frustration, approaching the closet.

"Move, freak." Remus hisses, pushing him to the side as he begins to rummage through the closet. Patton drops to his side as well, searching for the syringes or the oral tablets.

"....If you're looking for the morphine, you won't find it." Virgil says darkly, crossing his arms over his chest. Remus freezes at his words, slowly standing up.

"Excuse me?" Remus seethes. Patton stands as well, staring expectantly at Virgil with a shocked expression.

"I flushed it all down the toilet. It's gone." Virgil states cooly.

"...." Remus stares in silence at Virgil, lips twitching with fury.

"You did WHAT?!" Remus hollers at Virgil, grabbing him by the collar of his hoodie. Patton squeals in disbelief, teary eyes looking away from Virgil.

"Why--Why would you do that-? "Patton asks him meekly, voice choked with sadness and desperation. 

"Deceit deserves to suffer for what he did to me! He doesn't deserve our medication or our help!!" Virgil shouts, ripping himself out of Remus's hold. 

"Virge-- Logan- Logan needs it too-" Patton sobs, tears running down his face. 

".... I'm sorry, Patton. It needed to be done." Remus's hands curl into tight fists at his sides.

"You're a monster, you know that? Do you have any idea of what he's been through? Do you even know the extent of his injuries?" Remus hisses closely, taking a step towards Virgil. Virgil steps back slightly, glaring at the dark side as he hears Patton continuously cry.

"He deserved it." Virgil seethes into his face, eyes flashing with fury.

"What--what have you done, Virge? Wha--what have you become--?" Patton sobs terribly, stepping away from the light side in terror.

"I'm doing this to protect us, Pat! Lust is coming for him, and when he gets here, I don't want him to hurt any of us for helping his pet! He shot Rage for helping him, I won't let the same happen to any of us!! " Virgil defends himself, trying to make Patton understand. He reaches out for the crying side, who jerks away immediately.

"Patton, help me take the rest of the supplies. We aren't leaving it here with him." Remus bends down, picking up a large box of gauze. He begins stuffing various other materials into the box. Patton grabs one too, following his lead. Virgil stares down at them, not saying anything. Once they gathered everything they could physically carry, they both stand up. Patton sniffles as he walks back towards Logan's room.

"...You think that Deceit and I are the monsters, but you're wrong.." Remus bares his teeth, lips twitching with anger.

"The only monster here is you..." Remus spits at him. Virgil doesn't say anything, his expression unchanging. Remus turns and follows Patton, not looking back.

Deceit's POV

It feels like they've been gone for forever. The minutes drag on in unendurable pain. Both him and Logan are crying very openly now. When the door opens again, relief pools into his veins. Every second they spent alone was torturous and terrifying. If Lust walked in, there's nothing either of them could do.

"Remu--Remus- -thank go-----" Deceit makes a choking noise of horror when he sees not Remus standing in the door, but Lust.

The dark side merely smiles, eyes flashing with pleasure at the sight of Deceit, who can feel his skin drain of colour.

"Logan-- LOGAN--!" Deceit screams, looking to the side. Logan's eyes flick open immediately, eyes wide with shock.

"LU--LUST--!" He warns, pointing to the doorway.

As the name leaves his lips, his eyes turn back to the door. Lust is gone.

"--What are you-talking about?" Logan says, startled by the outburst.

"Deceit! Deceit is everything alright?!" Remus barges into the room followed by Patton.

"Lu--Lust--he's here-- he was here!!" Deceit squeals, his chest hurting from how much exertion is forced on him. Remus looks around in the room, finding no one. Logan stares back at Remus with a look of pity.

"Deceit, Lu-Lust wasn't here." Logan says, inhaling sharply through his teeth as another wave of nausea runs over him.

"No-- n-no he was- he was standing in the d-doorway--" Deceit screams, face going completely pale. 

"We would have seen him, Deceit. Lust was not here." Remus sets down a large box, casting a pitying look over to Patton. 

"Why--why aren't you li-listening to m-me!? He's -- he's here for me!" Deceit, holding his sides tightly.

"Deceit-" Remus tries to speak, but Deceit can't hear him through his own rapid thoughts.

"No--No he's here! He's here- and he is coming for me!! HE'S COMING FOR ME!" He insists, voice cracking with dryness and horror.

"Deceit, he's not--" Patton tries next.

"Are-- are you working for him-- now?! What did-- what did he offer you!?" Deceit shakes with fear, tears rolling down his face uncontrollably.

"What--? Deceit, no one is working for Lust-!" Remus spits back at him, offended by the allegation.

"You're lying!" Deceit cries out sharply as he swings his legs over the bed.

"Deceit- what are you doing? Don't get up-!" Remus demands, running over to his side. Deceit whines out again as he attempts to stand up. His broken shin easily buckles under the pressure. He gets pulled to the ground with a shriek.

"Deceit, Jesus!!" Remus drops to his side, putting his arms under him and begins lifting him back up.

"No-- no-- I won't go back! I won't-- I won't let you--!!" Deceit claws at him desperately, his injured fingers screaming with pain. Remus disregards him, lifting him back onto the bed.

"You need to stop--" Remus tries to calm him, anger lingering in his voice.

"I WON'T GO BACK----"

"ENOUGH!!" Remus hollers at him, cascading the room in silence. Deceit flinches at his raised voice, hands up to defend himself. He shakes with terror, whimpering as he awaits a strike.

"That's--that's enough, Deceit." Remus lowers his voice significantly, looking extremely guilty. 

"Lust isn't here, okay? He's not here, you're safe.." Remus insists gently. Deceit slowly lowers his shaking hands, staring up at Remus in hesitation. Remus exhales heavily, taking a seat beside his bed. Patton slowly walks over to Logan, slightly shaken.

"The-- the morphine- Patton, we ne--need it." Logan urges him, teeth clenched as pain burrows into his abdomen.

"...It's gone, Logan." Remus mutters without lifting his head. Deceit begins to cry uncontrollably again, unsure of how much longer he can take it.

"What--what do you mean it's gone?" Logan hisses.

"Virgil flushed-- flushed it down the toilet." At Patton's words, Deceit cries harder. Why? He thought he would be safe here, feel peace for the first time in so long. He will never feel relief, will he?

Logan goes silent, shutting his eyes tightly as his face pulls into a grimace.

A knock comes at the door. Deceit's eyes fly open, inhaling deeply. 

"It's-- it's him--" He whispers in fear, looking at Remus with wide eyes. Remus slowly stands up, walking towards the door as quietly as possible. Patton quickly takes his place beside Logan, stance widened defensively. Remus grabs the handle and slowly turns it. They stand in baited anticipation, watching the door with careful eyes.

Remus swings the door open, hands pulled into tight fists. He nearly clocks Roman right in the jaw, who stands in the doorway in surprise.

"Erm-- hi?" Roman mutters fearfully, stepping away from Remus. 

"Jesus..." Remus exhales deeply, body flooding with relief.

"What do you want?" He asks, swallowing hard as he tries to calm his nerves. Deceit quietly begins to cry again, hugging himself tightly to stop the pain.

"I have something for you guys." Roman sticks a hand into the side of his garb, pulling out a couple of small rectangular boxes.

"What is this?" Remus demands as Roman hands him the boxes.

"It's morphine. I took the last two boxes before Virgil could get rid of them." Remus stares down in disbelief at the morphine pills. Deceit inhales sharply at the mention of the pain medication, tears of relief filling his eyes. He whines under his breath, a faint smile tugging at his terribly chapped lips.

"So, I hope it helps." Roman starts to walk away.

"Wait--" Remus calls out after him. Roman turns around, staring at him silently.

"Do- do you want to come in?" Remus asks meekly, gesturing to the room.

"If that's alright with you.." Roman replies with a small smile. Remus steps back into the room, allowing Roman to follow before closing the door behind him. 

Remus fumbles with the box of meds, quickly opening it. He takes out two pills, handing one to Patton.

"Thank you so much, Roman." Patton gushes, tears of joy spilling down his face. He hands the pill to Logan, bringing a half-empty cup of water up to his lips. He swallows the pill greedily, draining the cup of water.

Remus gives morphine to Deceit, placing it into his shaking palm. Deceit places the pill on his tongue. Remus brings a tall glass of cool water up to his lips. He gulps it down, eyes softly shutting as it soothes his irritated throat. The glass is quickly emptied.

"T-th-thank you- Roman--" Deceit tries his best to speak, shutting his eyes tightly as he waits for the medication to do its work.

"Of course- I'm just glad I could help-" Roman struggles to accept his gratitude. Remus tucks the pillboxes into his garb, protecting them from Virgil.

"...Remus?" Deceit says, opening his eyes once more.

"Yes, what do you need? More water? Something to eat?" Remus asks, immediately appearing by his side.

"... I am sorry-- for not- not trusting you." Deceit apologizes genuinely, voice broken by grunts of agony.

"Hey- no, don't apologize Dee. It's alright." Remus assures him with a smile.

"Th--thank you-- for being-being here with me-" He chokes, eyes tearing up as his lip quivers. 

"Hey-- hey, you're welcome. Don't cry-- everything is going to be okay." Remus says gently, wiping a stray tear from his face. Deceit nods, still crying. He lets out a shaky breath, shutting his eyes again. Remus steps away from his bed, watching him slowly drift off. When he looks over to the side, Logan is already out.

"...Thank you, Roman." Remus thanks him, looking over his shoulder at the side.

"You're-- you're welcome-- Remus-" Roman looks away, surprised by Remus.

Remus sits down, watching as Patton slowly lays his head on Logan's bed, holding his hand tightly.

Remus's POV

Remus stares at the floor beneath him. Roman sits by the door, staring off into space. He always does that, disappearing into his own fanciful imagination where things just make more sense. Remus grinds his teeth together, feeling the urge to confess rising in his chest. He deserves to know they are brothers, does he not? He won't be happy, that's for sure. Who would ever want Remus for a twin? 

He sighs deeply, working up the courage to say it. It's been weighing on him this whole time. If he's learned anything from Deceit, it's that you need to let things out, not keep them inside broiling.

"Roman, I have to tell you something that you aren't going to like." Remus says, breaking the hour-long silence.

"Yeah-?" Roman takes a couple of seconds to respond, taken off-guard. Remus takes a deep breath.

"....I am your brother." He admits. 

Roman stares at Remus, eyes wide. He waits for a punchline, but it doesn't come. 

"What are you talking about?" Roman chuckles slightly, worry rising in his chest. 

"I am your twin, Remus. I am the dark side of creativity." Roman looks away, tears burning in his eyes as he stares at the ground.

"You're...you're my brother?" Roman stutters, disbelief peaking in his voice.

"I'm sorr--" Remus begins to apologize, but gets cut off immediately when Roman stands up and throws his arms around Remus, embracing him tightly. He freezes, taken off guard by his reaction.

Remus smiles slightly, patting Roman's back. All that time he spent alone, all that time he wasted wishing Roman could see him led to this. He has a brother now, not a mirror image. A brother, a real brother that he can talk to, that he can feel.

"Why-Why didn't you ever come to me?" Roman asks, pulling away.

"..I could see you, Roman. You couldn't see me because of Dee, he kept me hidden from you guys." Remus admits, looking over to the weak side who stirs chaotically in his sleep.

"... You spent your childhood all alone?" Remus nods silently, lip quivering at the memories of isolation.

"I'm sorry.." Roman apologizes lowly, pity lacing his voice.

"It's not your fault, it's not anyone fault. That's all in the past." 

"I hardly know anything about you! Tell me everything." Roman scoots his chair closer to Remus, beaming at him.

"I thought--I thought you were going to be angry." Remus admits, confusion creeping into his eyes.

"Angry? Why would I be angry? I have a brother! Another side of creativity! It's awesome!" He exclaims, staring at Remus proudly. Remus returns a wide grin, acceptance making his head feel fuzzy with happiness.

"Now, tell me everything about you!" Roman waits expectantly, eyes shining.

"Well..." Remus begins to tell his story, heart burning in his chest happily.

Chapter Text

Virgil's POV

Virgil stomps back to his room empty-handed. He had planned on taking all of their medical supplies and hiding it in his room. He would, of course, give some to Logan, but not Deceit. He's just trying to protect them all, why can't they see that? If Lust comes back and finds out that they were helping him, he will be furious. Virgil refuses to watch one of his friends die at the hands of that monster.

Besides, Deceit deserves to suffer after what he did. Every time Virgil closes his eyes, he sees Deceit limping towards him, a syringe in hand. He could have fought back, he could have tried. But he didn't because he was too weak. Virgil suffered because Deceit was too weak.

Virgil huffs and slumps into the couch, holding his head in his hands.

"I'm just trying to protect them..." He hisses to himself quietly, tears stinging in his eyes.

"We should just give Deceit back to Lust." He exhales loudly, rubbing his eyes free of tears.

"Why yes, yes you should..." A voice coos from the darkness of his room. Virgil's heart leaps as he quickly stands up, eyes darting around the room.

"Who's there?!" He demands, voice shivering as his knees threaten to buckle. 

"...And that's exactly what you're going to do..." Lust steps out from the shadows, smiling evilly at Virgil. Virgil finds himself completely stricken into silence.

"Why hello Virgil, care for a chat?" 

Roman's POV

"And then they blamed you!" Remus says between bursts of crazed laughter. Roman is laughing as well, tears in his eyes.

"I can't belie-ve it was you-- my god." Roman giggles, wiping a tear from his eye with a wide smile. They have been talking for hours now, reminiscing on the past. Remus had intervened a couple of times in Thomas's life, but since nobody knew about him, they all blamed it on Roman. 

"I never heard the end of that. I got in so much trouble from Patton." Roman shakes his head, still chuckling under his breath. Remus's smile drops immediately when he hears Deceit moan shakily. Roman watches as Remus stands and goes to Deceit's bedside.

"Re--Remus--?" Deceit croaks dryly, eyes flickering open.

"Yes- Yes I'm right here, what do you need?" Remus insists gently.

"Are-- are we--we safe still-?" Deceit asks, slurring his words.

"Yes, of course we are silly." Remus promises him with a small smile, gently patting Deceit's hand. Without another word, Deceit drifts off again. Remus smiles one last time and leaves his side, taking a seat across from Roman once more.

"...What was that?" Roman asks quietly as if Deceit could still hear him.

"Must've been a nightmare." Remus looks away from Deceit, a worried expression on his face.

"He's never going to be okay...is he?" Remus asks Roman, meeting his gaze. 

"No, not completely. But with time, wounds heal." Roman says with a sad smile. Remus nods, looking to the ground.

Virgil's POV

"You see, Virge, I need my darling Deceit back..." Virgil flinches at the use of his nickname. He watches Lust carefully, ready to sprint to the door should he try anything.

"And I am going to need your help with that." Lust stops pacing back and forth, grinning at Virgil with his arms folded neatly behind himself.

"My-- my help?" Virgil stutters, voice quivering with fear.

"If you help me, I will leave all of you alone. I just want Deceit, you should know that by now. Everything will go back to normal in your lives, you will never see either of us again." Lust describes to him dreamily, his smile widening.

"How can I trust you'll keep your word?" Virgil challenges, snarling at the dark side.

"Oh please honey, I'm not Rage. I don't care about any of you, frankly. I just want my pet back, and if you refuse, I will kill each and every one of you until I get him..." Lust threatens lowly, his eyes darkening as he steps towards Virgil. Virgil stumbles backwards, catching himself right before he falls over. Lust chuckles at his immediate fear.

It's an obvious choice, right? Deceit's life for all of theirs? Numerically it makes sense. They don't need Deceit, nobody needs him. He is a worthless traitor. He is a monster. He deserves this. 

Virgil weighs his options briefly, already having made up his mind. Could he risk the possibility of Lust going after each and every one of them? He knows that Lust is obsessed enough to kill all of them just to get Deceit back. Virgil won't let that happen. He won't trade the lives of his friends for the life of one dark side.

He will make this decision for them.

"...What do you need me to do?" Virgil asks lowly, eyes trained on Lust's sneering face. He feels hatred boiling in his veins for the side across from him, nails digging into his palms deeply. if he wasn't so absolutely horrified by Lust, he would've attacked him. It's better this way. Both Lust and Deceit will be gone... but what about Remus? He will have to go too.

"Very good..." Lust coos, smirking as he peers at Virgil's expression of determination and horror.

"I just need you to get Patton and Roman out of the room where Deceit is being kept. I'll handle everything else." Lust's smile fades as he stares off away from Virgil, lips curling at the thought of seeing his treacherous pet again.

"Fine. But I have a demand as well." Virgil straightens his back, trying to show authority and control. Lust merely laughs at his effort, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Oh really? And what would that be, hmm?" Lust teases him with a grin.

"You have to take Remus too. I don't want him here, he's causing trouble." Virgil D̤̹͍̃̃̾emands.

"Ho ho, the emo has a bite... I didn't expect that one..." Lust mocks him again, sneering devilishly at the light side.

"Don't worry, once Remus sees that Deceit is gone, he will come after us. I will lock him away somewhere, you have my word."

"Do we have a deal?" Lust offers his hand, a smile refusing to leave his face. Virgil swallows hard, raising a shaky hand and gripping Lust's sealing their deal.

"Perfect... I'll have my pet back in no time. Oh, take this. You'll need it later." Lust places a small gold key into Virgil's palm. Virgil stares down at the key in confusion, barely hearing Lust begin to exit his room.

"You know, we make a pretty good team..." Lust cackles as he winks at Virgil and leaves the room, slipping through the door quietly.

Roman's POV

The two brothers sit in silence now, Iistening to the faint snoring of Patton. Roman honestly wanted to talk more with Remus, but he seems quiet now. Roman looks to him, seeing that his eyes are slowly starting to close. Remus's head begins to fall, but he quickly jerks himself awake. He clears his throat in embarrassment, seeing that Roman saw.

"Why don't you take a quick nap, hm? You look completely exhausted, when is the last time you slept?" Roman asks his brother, a tinge of worry in his voice.

".. I'm fine. I need to watch over Deceit, protect him." Remus demands, his eyes slowly drooping shut once again. He growls in frustration, rubbing his bloodshot eyes furiously to force himself awake again.

"I'll watch him, Remus. You need sleep." Roman offers.

"...You.. you will?" Remus looks back up, seeing Roman smile warmly.

"Of course, why wouldn't I?" Remus seems taken aback by the generous offer, smiling again at his brother.

"Thank you, brother." Remus thanks him genuinely, leaning back into the chair. He shuts his eyes, letting his body have the rest it craved for.

Roman breathes deeply, sitting up straighter. He will not fail these two dark sides.

Suddenly, a knock comes at the door. Remus shoots awake once more, staring at the door in surprise. Roman stands up defensively along with Remus as the door cracks open, revealing Virgil.

"Hey.." He greets to Roman, casting a cold glare to the dark side beside him.

"Jesus Virgil, you scared the living daylights out of me." Roman exhales deeply, a hand on his chest to calm his racing heart. Remus slumps back into his seat, watching Virgil with careful eyes.

"I need to talk with you and Patt." He says, eyes flicking over to Remus. 

"Can't this wait until morning, Virge? It's like 2 in the morning." Roman yawns sleepily, causing Remus to yawn as well.

"No, it's urgent." Roman huffs and walks over to Patton, who is asleep with his head on Logan's bed. 

"Hey padre, wake up.." Roman whispers to him, gripping his shoulder. He's trying not to wake Deceit or Logan, they need as much sleep as they can get.

"Hmm..?" Patton grunts sleepily, opening his eyes. He smiles at the sight of Roman and lifts his front half off of the bed.

"What's up, kiddo? Nightmares again?" He asks.

"No, Virge needs to talk with us." Patton's eyes meet Virgil, who is standing in the doorway still. 

"Oh- oh okay." Patton stands up and stretches with a deep breath.

"What's going on?" Patton asks Virgil with a forced smile. He still seems angry from the whole morphine ordeal, which is understandable. Roman can't help but think that this is what Virgil wants to talk about.

"Not here. Can we talk in my room?" Virgil asks them, casting a very obvious suspicious glare at Remus, who merely scoffs.

"Erm- yeah okay.. Remus could you watch--" Patton begins.

"I'll watch Logan too." Remus cuts him off with an assuring nod.

"Thank you, kiddo." Remus stiffens at the nickname, but Patton doesn't seem to notice. Virgil growls lowly as he steps out of the doorway. Patton and Roman follow after him, shutting the door behind them as they leave.

Virgil walks ahead of the other two sides, hands in his pockets as they make their way down the hȀ̼͎̘̓̎ll. He sharply turns into the entrance of his room and opens the door. He looks back at them with an expression Roman can't read and disappears into the room. Roman and Patton follow him, glancing at each other worryingly.

"So, what's going on Virgil?" Roman asks the side, who shut the door behind the other two. Roman hears a click like a lock turning, but doesn't think much of it.

"... I've done something you aren't going to like." Virgil starts.

Remus's POV

Remus is now wide-awake, exhaustion lingering in the back of his mind. He is alone here, meaning he must act as Deceit's sole protector. He just hopes Roman can return quickly, he doesn't know how long he will manage to keep this level of alertness. 

He is curious about what Virgil wanted to speak with them about. Probably something about Remus and Deceit, or maybe he's feeling guilty for taking most of the morphine away.

Remus exhales loudly, leaning back into his chair. Fatigue is seeping back into his body. He can't remember the last time he actually got some rest. No, he hasn't slept for continuous hours since Lust drugged him with an anesthetic. If he shuts his eyes for a little bit, it won't do any harm, right? What are a few minutes of shuteye going to risk?

Remus lets his eyes slowly droop shut, a faint smile of relaxation on his face now. It's slightly cool in this room, but he'll manage. Just a few minutes, that's it. He won't fall asleep, he won't.

Suddenly, his head snaps up along with his eyes. Remus watches in confusion as he feels himself slowly begin to stand up against his will.

'What--what the hell?' He thinks to himself, thinking that this was nothing more than a dream. He begins to walk towards Deceit's bed, every step being forced like someone else was controlling him.

Controlling him, someone else is controlling him.

Remus stands over Deceit now, unable to even put coherent thoughts together.

He feels his mind slip away, merely becoming an empty vessel for whatever force is controlling him.

Deceit's POV

Deceit squirms in discomfort, feeling someone staring down at him. His eyes flicker open, meeting Remus's face. 

"Re--Re-mus, what are- are you doing?" Deceit asks coarsely, blinking the sleep out of his eyes. He groans quietly, the fuzzy feeling of morphine numbing his pain. 

His eyebrows narrow when he doesn't hear a response come from Remus. Deceit looks up at him fully, eyelids snapped open.

"Remus--?" Deceit inquires, heart fluttering in his chest. Remus's face is completely still, eyes unmoving off of Deceit's face. His yellow eyes seem so dead, lifeless---

Yellow. His eyes are yellow. The colour of a monster. The colour of Lust.

"-R--Re-Remus p--pl-ease-" Deceit stutters terribly, heart basically faltering in his chest. Remus's face remains blank as he leans down and begins to lift Deceit up. Deceit immediately begins screaming for help, pushing and clawing at Remus as he is lifted up against his will.

"No--NO! H--Help--!" He shrieks, body aching from the constant squirming.

"--What is going on..?" Logan asks sleepily, staring in confusion as Remus struggles to keep Deceit in his arms.

"Log--Logan--it's Lust-- he's being contr-controlled by Lust-!" Deceit screams at Logan.

"Oh--oh my god--" Logan stutters, watching in frozen horror as Remus's yellow eyes flick to him. He sneers at Logan and winks before pulling the door open.

"Patton--PATTON--!" Logan wails for his boyfriend as Deceit is carried out of the room.

Patton's POV

Patton hears Deceit's screaming first. Him and Roman both look back at the door in woR̦̻̃̃ry.

"What was that?" Patton asks fearfully, waiting for the sound to come again. Deceit cries for help desperately from the other room.

"Jesus-- that's Deceit! Something is wrong!" Roman declares, sprinting towards Virgil's door with Patton following close behind. He grips the door handle and tugs on it, but the door doesn't budge.

"What the--it's locked..." Roman mutters in confusion, seeing a small keyhole in the handle.

"Virgil, open the door! Deceit is in trouble!" Roman insists, shaking the handle violently.

"..." Virgil doesn't respond, merely watching the two sides.

"VIRGIL!! HE'S IN DANGER! OPEN THE DAMN DOOR!"

Deceit's POV

"Remus-- Remus please--!! Wake - wake up!!" Deceit elbows him hard, trying to break him out of this trance that Lust has him in. Remus doesn't react to this plea whatsoever, he is completely gone. Deceit keeps screaming out names, trying to get anyone to help him. Where the hell is everyone?! Surely they can hear his cries for help, why aren't they coming? Do they not care? Did they set this up?

He takes a deep, shaky breath. No one is coming, are they? He has to save himself now, he has no protector anymore.

Deceit sneakily tears off the splints on his right hand's fingers. He pulls off the wrapped gauze, his eyes meeting his jagged, sharp nails that are disfigured and purple. He takes a deep breath, lip quivering as he prepares for intense pain. Deceit quickly reaches up and scratches deeply into the side of Remus's face, screaming at the agony. Remus screams and drops him onto the ground, hands going up to the bleeding wound. Deceit cries out sharply as he meets the hard ground. He lies there winded for a couple of seconds before he begins to crawl away, his broken shin leaving him fully crippled and unable to stand.

Deceit wails with each movement, the morphine unable to numb the pain of moving to this extent. He hears a faint animal-like growl come from Remus, who stomps after him. Deceit can't crawl away fast enough, he knows that.

"--HELP M--" Deceit gets cut off when Remus kicks him hard in the side, releasing a long shriek. Remus keeps kicking him, every single one landing between his ribs. Deceit can't make any noise now, throat closed off completely. He tries to curl into himself, shaking arms wrapping around his torso. Remus doesn't give him a break, merely lifting him up again. This time, he carries Deceit over his shoulder, leaving him completely powerless and unable to hurt him at all.

"Rem-Remus stop!" A voice echoes through the hall. Remus silently turns around, seeing Logan at the other end of the hall. He is clutching his broken arm tightly, knees shaking with the effort of standing. A gleam of sweat shines on his forehead from exertion. In his hand, he holds Roman's sword limply. 

Remus scoffs and flings Deceit back onto the ground. Deceit moans against the ground, hands curled into fists as tears collect crisply in his eyes.

"I'm--I'm warning you-" Logan threatens, pointing the sword at Remus, who slowly advances towards him with a mocking grin. Deceit's vision is fuzzy as he forces himself to start crawling, every single movement threatening to take his consciousness away. If he loses consciousness, he's in a lot of trouble.

Logan quickly slashes the sword down, gasping in shock when Remus catches the bL͚̮̦̓͂̃ade with his hand, nearly slicing it in two. He groans deeply, laughing as he tears the sword out of Logan's hands. He throws it to the side carelessly, eyes trained dangerously on the logical side. Remus lunges for him, grabbing him harshly by the broken arm. Logan cries out immediately, lowering further onto the ground as tears spill down his face. Remus twists his arm drastically, making him cry out louder. He releases the side, who goes completely silent when he hits the ground.

Deceit cries out loudly, pulling himself across the ground desperately.

'Please- just let me get away-' He begs tearjerkingly to himself, sobbing as he starts to move again.

'Don't make m-me go back-- I can't go -- go back--' Remus grabs him once more, heaving him over his shoulder again. Deceit squeals, slamming his fists into Remus's back.

Patton's POV

"DECEIT! DECEIT!!" Roman screams against the door, hearing the commotion from right outside. He checks his shoulder into the door, but it doesn't budge.

"Don't bother yelling, he can't hear you. These walls are soundproof for the music I play.." Virgil mutters to Roman, hands in his pockets.

"VIRGIL!!" Patton screams at Virgil, grabbing him by the collar of his hoodie.

"PLEASE--! PLEASE! DECEIT IS IN TROUBLE!!" Patton shouts into his face, tears streaming down his cheeks.

"I KNOW! I'M DOING THIS FOR US!!" Virgil screams back, ripping Patton's hands off of him. Patton stumbles backwards, eyes wide with horror as he stares at the light side.

"Where's the key?" Roman demands, hearing no response. He growls and begins tearing Virgil's room apart, looking for a key to the door.

"It's Lust-- isn't it? He-- he came back for- Deceit--" Patton mutters, sliding down the wall.

"What have-- have you done- Virge? What-- have you done??" Patton sobs, tears running down his face.

"Damn it!!" Roman curses as he shoves a dresser over. He runs his fingers through his hair, eyes meeting the door again.

"Patton--Patton I need you to help me break down the door." He demands, pulling Patton up to his feet. Patton stares at him, crying openly.

"Hurry!" Roman pulls Patton to the door.

"Okay- on three-" Patton composes himself, sniffling as he follows Roman's lead.

"One."

"Two"

"Three!" The two sides ram into the door.

Deceit's POV

"Pl-please Remus-! Please- WAKE UP--!" He pleads, voice cracking with desperation.

"You- you promised to protect me! You pr-pro--promised we'd be-be safe!!" HI̛̩͖̟̓̇s voice echoes through the halls, head dancing with pressure and dizziness.

"..." Remus doesn't respond. His silence is horrifying.

"I nee-need you-- Remus-- I need you now m-mmore than ever-- please wake up--" Deceit begs him, words being interrupted by sobs.

"Pl-pleeasse Remus-! I can't- i can't go back!! Don't ma-make me go back-- pleasssee- -pleassee-" He breaks off into the forlorn crying of a doomed man, knowing his words aren't getting through to Remus at all.

"Well, well, well... It took you long enough.." A voice coos from ahead of the two sides. Deceit goes completely silent, recognizing the voice instantly. 

"No--no-no-no-- no-nnoo--" He whines under his breath, wishing that he would just drop dead.

This can't be happening. There's no way this is real. This has to be a nightmare. It just HAS to be. If this is real life, he doesn't want it.

"Remus, drop my pet, would you?" Remus obeys this command instantly, dropping him harshly. He steps away from Deceit, who is whimpering terribly as he clutches his ribs tightly. Lust appears above him, not even smiling. His eyes flash with ferocious anger, lips curling into a snarl.

He immediately slams a foot down onto Deceit's chest, pressing him against the ground as a shriek shreds through his throat.

"Hello again, darling. Having fun being an escapee, are we?" He growls lowly, eyes twitching with insane wrath. 

The pain is too real for this to be a nightmare. This is real. Lust is back for him right here, right now. Deceit actually thought he was safe with Remus. He put his guard down and allowed somebody else to protect him. What a mistake that was. He should've known. He could've prevented this, he knows he could've. How could he be so stupid?! How could he be so careless!? He knew Lust was coming but he didn't want to even think about it! He was caught so off guard because he just refused to let himself even imagine the possibility of Lust coming for him. And because of that, he is screwed once more. This is his fault now, this is on him.

"I warned you, dear... I warN̢̹̙̱͉̔͒̈̀͂ed you so many times..." Lust's boot rises off of his chest, only to press down onto his neck, nearly cutting off his airways. Deceit stares up at Lust in quiet horror, breathing coming with immense difficulty.

"Pl--plea----" 

"Oh sorry, were you trying to say something?" Lust presses down harder, nearly crushing his larynx. Deceit's mangled hands wrap around his boot, trying to alleviate some weight, but they hurt too badly to really accomplish anything.

"You left me... I warned you about leaving.. I warned you about accepting Rage's help. He's dead now, and anyone else you accept help from will die too..." He threatens closely, leaning over the shaking, sheet-white side.

"I was so good to you, baby... Why would you disobey me? WHY?!" He shouts now, watching Deceit flinch and break into desperate crying. He finally takes his foot off of Deceit's neck, watching him roll onto his side and cough dryly with tears running down his face.

"Oohh, I am going to make you regret leaving... I am going to make you feel pain like you've never felt before..." Deceit curls into a ball on the ground, shaking out of agony and terror as Lust looms over him threateningly.

"I am going to make you wish you were dead..." He hisses, watching as Deceit becomes fully unravelled. He cries uncontrollably, nails digging into his scalp.

"Remus, cuff yourself with these." Lust tosses two pairs of handcuffs to the side, who catches them. He sits down and presses his ankles together, chaining them together tightly without a second thought. He does the same to his wrists, managing to clip it shut by hitting them against the ground.

"Perfect..." Lust coos. 

Suddenly, the yellow hue drains from Remus's eyes. He blinks repeatedly, shaking his head groggily as he returns to reality. 

"What the hell-?" He says lowly, looking at the handcuffs that are locked around his wrists and ankles.

Deceit shrieks sharply as Lust lifts him up, locking him in a chokehold. He is forced to stand on his broken shin, knees shaking horribly as his hands grip Lust's forearm tightly.

"Lust--! Let him go!" Remus demands, slurring his words slightly. He dizzily tries to stand, but the cuffs around his feet leave him fully immobile.

"Sorry dear, you aren't coming with us. Isn't that right, darling?" Lust hisses into Deceit's neck, his teeth grazing his soft skin. Remus inhales sharply through clenched teeth, finally feeling the deep scratch marks embedded into the side of his face.

"What the hell have you done to me? To him?!" Remus shouts, teeth bared. 

"What did I do? Honey, why don't you ask yourself that question. You're the one who dragged Deceit out of that room to me... don't you remember?" Lust teases him with a sinister grin, holding Deceit tightly.

Deceit stares into Remus's eyes, tears filling his immediately. How could he do this to Deceit? To the one person who he swore to protect?!

"No- no you're lying!" Remus demands, tears spilling down his face. Lust cackles as Remus's eyes widen, looking down at his hands.

"NO-- YOU BASTARD-- YOU CONTROLLED ME AGAIN!" Remus screams in furious anguish. 

"Oh yes, and what a fine job you did kicking my dear pet's ribs in..." Lust mocks him, running a hand up Deceit's bare chest. He shudders with humiliation and pain, looking away from Remus. 

"N-nno-- I was-- I was supposed-- to protect him- I--I promised we-- we were safe--" Remus stumbles terribly over his words. 

"Yeah? Guess what...." Lust leans over Deceit's shoulder, sneering maniacally at Remus.

"You lied..." Lust spits, beG̞̟͍̑́͂̿ͅinning to sink down with Deceit trapped in his arms.

"No-- NO!" Remus reaches out to the two desperately, heart leaping into his throat.

"DECEIT!!" Is the last thing Deceit hears before he is pulled under with Lust, returning to the dark side.

Patton's POV

"One."

"Two."

"Three!" Patton and Roman slam into the door for the twentieth time. It finally breaks open, sending the two sides sprawled against the floor outside of Virgil's room, lying on top of the broken-down door.

Patton immediately pushes himself up, looking down both ends of the hallway for Deceit or Lust. He sees a figure lying on the ground.

"Roman-- someone's there-" He points to the figure, struggling to get onto his feet. Gripping the wall, Patton pulls himself up. He immediately sees that the figure is Logan, lying unconscious on the ground.

"LOGAN!" Patton shouts, sprinting over to him. He drops to Logan's side, shaking his shoulder.

"Logan, baby, wake up.." Patton urges, hearing a moan slip through his lips. 

"Dece--Deceit--" Logan mumbles, wincing from the pain of his arm. 

"What happened? Where is he?" Roman urges him.

"He's in--in danger--" Logan points to the end of the hall. Roman immediately sprints off into that direction, running as fast as he can possibly force himself.

Roman's POV

Walls fly past him, legs burning with exertion as he dashes down the hallway, past the kitchen. He immediately sees the darkened figure of Remus sitting on the ground, but no sign of Deceit or Lust.

"Remus! Remus what happened?!" Roman demands, skidding to a halt. Remus is staring blankly at the ground, tears dripping down his face.

"Remus?! Where is Deceit? Is everything okay?" Roman shouts this time, shaking his brother by his shoulders. Remus's empty eyes flick up to Roman.

"He's gone-- He's gone--" Roman stares at Remus, mouth hanging open.

"Lust took-- took him away-" Roman slumps onto the ground, running his fingers through his hair.

If he just moved a little faster. If he was stronger, Deceit would be safe. 

Roman failed.

Patton's POV

Patton helps Logan walk, an arm supporting his weight. Virgil follows slowly behind them, hands in his pockets as he stares at the ground.

"Roman!!" Patton exclaims, seeing the twins slumped on the ground.

By Roman's expression, Patton can tell that he was too late.

Deceit is gone.

Chapter Text

Deceit's POV

Deceit rises up with Lust into the dark side's realm, still trapped in a chokehold. Lust stays completely S̨̭̉͌ilent as he puts an arm under Deceit's legs and scoops him up, supporting his weight fully.

"No-NO- I WON'T GO BAC--BACK!!" Deceit screams, wriggling pathetically in his grasp. Lust squeezes his torso harder, making his freshly captured prisoner squeal in agony.

"I'm warning you, love... Don't make me angrier than I already am..." Lust threatens hotly into the crevice of his neck, tightening his grip further and further until Deceit can barely breathe due to the pain in his chest.

Deceit can't do this again. He can't mentally or physically handle being tortured mercilessly by Lust anymore. He won't go back.

Deceit fakes submission, going still in his captor's arms. Lust merely snorts proudly, relieving the pressure. He begins to carry Deceit down the halls, making his way back to the vault.

Without warning, Deceit quickly reaches up and jabs his broken finger into Lust's eye.

Lust immediately screeches, dropping Deceit to the ground as his hands clasp over his injured eye. Deceit lands harshly, knocking all the air from his chest. Despite not being able to breathe, Deceit flips himself onto his stomach. He starts pushing up onto his knees, crying out frailly as pressure is rammed against his broken shin. He knows he's going to have to run for it. He doesn't even want to think about how much that will hurt, but it's his only way out. It's either this or Lust, and he would sure as hell attempt an escape instead.

"Oooh, you little bastard--" Lust growls, rubbing tears from the eye. Deceit stabilizes himself with his better leg, whining as he forces weight onto the other one as well.

Deceit almost makes it up onto his feet when Lust kicks him back down onto his stomach. Deceit cries out as Lust roughly flips him over and sits directly on his lower torso, squashing his broken ribs under his weight. Lust stares down at him, one eye going milky red from minor bleeding. He continues screaming despite his chest urging him to stop.

"Now listen here, darling... Stop fighting back or face the conseq---" Deceit mindlessly reaches one hand up in a desperate attempt to save himself, digging his naI̡͎̖̥̔̿̌͘ls deep into the side of Lust's face. Lust yelps quickly, lips curling back into a snarl as he tears Deceit's hand away from his face, pinning both of them above his head with one hand.

"NO-- NNN-OO H-HELP- SSS--SSOMEONE -- HEL---" Lust slams a hand over his mouth, cutting his desperate pleas short.

"SHUT YOUR WHORE MOUTH!" Lust hollers closely into his face, four prominent inflamed scratches appearing on the side of his cheek. Deceit's wide eyes stare up at Lust, glazed with fear.

"YOU LEFT ME, AND YOU WILL PAY FOR IT!!" Flecks of spit land on Deceit's face as Lust becomes completely unglued. Deceit sobs against Lust's hand, tears streaming down the sides of his face. Lust exhales deeply, eyes flickering with rage as he uses all of his weight to keep Deceit down, despite Deceit not fighting back anymore. The adrenaline has left his body, leaving behind a void of desolate despair. It's over, isn't it? He can't fight back. He can't get away. Lust breathes heavily from on top of him, eyes blazing as drool dribbles down his chin.

"I will teach you how to obey me again..." Lust growls lowly, watching as Deceit whimpers against his hand in despair.

"I was going to take you back to the vault, but not now.. now you deserve somewhere much worse.. much less sterile.." A menacing grin tugs at the corners of his mouth as he stares to the side, an idea popping into his head.

"Now.. I am going to let my hand go.. If you do so much as speak, I will make you regret it..." Lust hisses, focus turning back to his prisoner. Slowly, his hand releases from Deceit's mouth. Deceit swallows hard, unsure of whether he should screaM̖̜̙̂͂̑ for help or not. Surely Remus and the light sides are close by, right? They must be. They saw him get abducted from right under their noses, surely they are coming after him. If they are nearby, they would find it hard to navigate these dark halls. He should let them know where he is by yelling out, right?

He already can feel the regret seeping into his tired body, but he pushes it away. He has to do this, he has to at least try to save himself.

"HEL--" Lust backhands him hard, cutting his scream short. Deceit breaks off into choppy cries of anguish, some sounding like 'please' and others being mere incoherent babbles.

Lust grabs Deceit roughly by the hair, tugging strands out of his scalp painfully. Deceit squeals in surprise and pain, shaking hands wrapped around Lust's wrist to try to pry him off. He begins dragging Deceit down the hallway by his hair, disregarding his shrieking completely. Deceit kicks desperately, his shin aching as he tries to find some footing to stop Lust.

"Every. Single. Time." Lust hisses under his breath, pulling Deceit along. He doesn't even flinch at the scratches that leave his hand bleeding.

"Oooh, you have not felt pain, Deceit... You don't even know what I am capable of doing to you..." 

"Ple--pleassee--" Deceit shrieks as loud as he can, voice choked terribly.

"Silence!" Lust shouts back at him, tugging his hair harshly.

Deceit keeps struggling, being dragged to what he can only assume is hell.

Remus's POV

"What the hell happened?" Roman demands, rǓ͔̳͖̺̊̈̇͟͝ ̛͔̼̜̤͐͗nning his fingers through his once-neat hair.

"I d--don't know--" Remus stutters terribly, tears in his eyes. Roman huffs and begins lifting Remus off of the ground, who is still cuffed.

"N--No-- we can't-- truss-trust him!" Logan insists, voice choked with pain as he clings onto Patton.

"...What are you talking about, teach? He's my brother, he would never betray us, we can trust him." Roman insists with an unknowing smile. Remus stiffens at Logan's hateful gaze. He knows exactly why Logan is staring at him like that, like he's to blame. 

"No- Roman, I saw him t--take Deceit away- I tried to stop him. He- he-" Logan clenches his jaw tightly, glancing at his terribly twisted arm. Patton gasps dramatically, staring at Remus in shock.

"No! No it--it's not like that! I was being controlled!" Remus insists as Roman drops him to the ground once more, a look of betrayal on his face.

"Exactly--! You're Lus-Lust's puppet, he could ac-activate at any moment!" Logan accuses, pointing at him fiercely.

"No, Logan, it's not like that! I swear! You have to let me go-- I have to save Deceit!" Remus shouts, pulling desperately at the metal chains around his wrists.

"He can't even control him-himself! How can we-we trust him?!" 

"Let him go." Virgil says from the very back of the group, his voice ̛͔̼̜̤͐͗Ļ̫͕͇̿͊̕͠ow and dark.

"Wh--what?" Remus stutters. Virgil pushes past Patton and Logan with little effort, kneeling to the side of Remus. He shoves a small gold key into his shackles, unlocking quickly. He hands Remus the key once he tears the cuffs off. Remus immediately unlocks the ones around his ankles as well.

"How-- how did you have the key?" Remus asks in suspicion, rising slowly from the ground.

"Lust gave it to me." Virgil states simply, folding his arms behind himself. He seems... confident?

"... Virgil, it's time to tell us what you did." Patton says to him, hiding Logan behind himself protectively.

"I traded Deceit's life for ours. Lust promised to leave us all alone if he could have Deceit, so I gave him a hand. All I had to do was keep you two locked up for a little while, he did the rest." 

"What the hell Virgil! Why would you do that?!" Remus shouts angrily, getting right in his face. Virgil remains completely still, unmoved at all.

"To protect us from sides like you. Aren't you the one that caused all of this anyway? Why do you care?" Virgil hisses back. Remus immediately grabs Virgil, moving to slam him against the wall. Somehow, Virgil manages to twist out of his hold, pulling his arm behind his back and rams him face-first into the wall.

"Virgil!!" Roman shouts at the sudden conflict, hearing Remus growl angrily in pain.

"Don't test me, rat." Virgil hisses, bearing his teeth.

"That's enough!" Roman pulls Virgil away, letting Remus peel himself off the wall. He rubs his arm, glaring at Virgil.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Remus demands, causing Virgil to merely laugh.

"Well, aren't you going to go save your friend? You're the one who put him in danger after all..." 

"Fine. Who's coming with me?" Remus turns to the other 3 light sides.

"I will." Roman steps towards Remus but Patton pulls him back by the sleeve of his shirt.

"No, Roman. You can't go." Patton insists.

"What? Patton, we need to get Deceit back-"

"You're not safe with Remus, Roman. What if he changes again? What if he turns against you and we aren't there to sA̰̅ve you?" Roman ponders Patton's words for just a moment, conflicted over the whole ordeal.

"Please Roman, we need to save him.. "Remus whispers desperately.

"... I'm going with him Patton. I'm sorry, but I need to." Roman tugs his arm away, standing beside his brother.

"Roman-- Roman wai--" Patton cries out, but it's too late. He and Remus both sink down without another word.

Deceit's POV

"Head up, beautiful, we're here." Lust mocks Deceit, finally releasing his grip on his hair. Deceit raises a shaking hand up to his head, feeling the gooey strands of hair stick to his fingers. He's bleeding. Lust kneels down and lifts his head, making him look at the building in front of him.

It's his C̠̞͛̇̅͢hildhood home. The exact one he was held captive in so many months ago. Why on earth would Lust bring him back here, this place is a nightmare in itself. It looks even worse than when they had left it, now being able to smell the scent of rotting wood.

"Since you wanted to escape so badly from the other spot, I thought I'd let you see how well I was treating you.." Lust gestures to the building that is falling apart. Deceit swallows hard, throat singing with pain from the constant screaming. He honestly didn't think it could get any worse, but somehow it has. At least the other place was sterile and bright, but this... this is a living hell. The walls are basically falling apart, a retched stench creeping from the rotting materials. The house creaks and whines like something or someone is inside. It's a disgusting mess of rotting wood and memories.

Well, now he has no way out and no one coming for him. His screaming certainly didn't alert anyone. Now... now he has to beg like his life depends on it. Best case scenario Lust just flat out kills him or takes him back to the vault. 

"L--Lust--" The name dances along his tongue with difficulty when Lust's eyes meet his own.

"Hmm?" He mocks him, a grin tugging at his lips.

"I--I-- I am ss-sssorry--" He apologizes meekly, beginning to cry again. His entire body aches like hell, the morphine unable to numb it as well from the constant moving.

"Oh? And what exactly are you sorry for?" Lust snaps, his grin disappearing immediately. His eyes blaze angry, all mocking nature disappearing from him completely. Deceit flinches at his sudden hostility, never having feared Lust more than this.

"F--ff--for--" He stutters, whining under his breath. Lust merely scoffs and quickly grabs him by the thR̨̠̾̍͌͢oat, lifting him off of the ground slowly as Deceit chokes and claws at his hands desperately.

"FOR ESCAPING, HMM?" Lust yells into his face, his grip tightening until he cuts of the dark side's airways. 

"FOR LETTING THEM HELP YOU?!" Deceit croaks, body desperate for oxygen as Lust's hold only tightens, threatening to crush his larynx.

"FOR DISOBEYING MY EVERY GODDAMN ORDER?!" Deceit nods rapidly, just trying to appease him. He can feel his face going red with exertion.

"SAY IT! SAY YOU'RE SORRY! BEG ME TO NOT HURT YOU AND MAYBE I'LL GO A LITTLE EASIER!!" Lust loosens his grip just enough to allow Deceit small gulps of breath and the ability to talk. He takes a couple of seconds to breathe, every breath being raspy and sore.

"NOW!!" He shouts, his fingernails digging into his neck.

"I--I'm ssss--sss-- so-sorry--!" Deceit shrieks, tears rolling down his face out of fear.

"FOR WHAT!? SAY WHAT YOU'VE DONE!!" 

"F--ffor -- escaping- -for disobeying-- you-- for every-everything-!" Deceit cries, sobs interrupting his voice as he chokes with despair. Lust stares down at him in silence, eyes narrowing.

"Guess what?" He leans into Deceit's ear, his teeth grazing his earlobe.

"I don't care..." 

Lust pulls Deceit up holding him by the throat as he forces his prisoner to stand on his broken shin.

"But-- but-- you- you said--!" Deceit cries desperately, screaming at the top of his lỦ̖̠́ngs as more and more weight is forced on the broken bone.

"Yeah? I lied..." Lust pushes him to the door, watching in amusement as Deceit immediately topples over the first step and hits his head hard against the top step. He groans deeply, vision swimming with static as Lust walks over to him slowly. He whines under his breath, shaking hands gripping at one of the steps desperately.

"But you know a lot about lying... don't you, darling?" Lust grabs him by the shoulders and pulls him up.

"'Oh I am so sorry, Lust! I promise I'll never ever let Rage help me ever again-!'" Lust quotes him mockingly, matching his voice. Deceit struggles slightly in his grasp, desperate for the agony to stop for just a moment.

"Lu--Lust--" Deceit pleads quietly.

"'Oh no, but the MINUTE I get the chance to escape, I'll do it despite your EVERY. SINGLE. WARNING.'" Lust lifts him up effortlessly, carrying him in both arms.

"I--I a---" Deceit tries his best to apologize, to do anything before this gets so much worse.

"'OH and I'll keep fighting back, OVER AND OVER AGAIN because I don't understand how this WORKS by now!!'" Lust shoves the door open roughly, making it loudly creak. He kicks open the second one, carrying Deceit into the childhood house he knows so well. Deceit would rather be anywhere but here.

"Don't worry, my darling Deceit.. I'll fix this little issue between us..." Lust carries him through the living room where 4 velvet chairs hold their post. His blood has seeped into the hardwood, growing mould and rot.

If he could cry for help, he would.

Lust carries him down the long stone stairs where he had received a terrible concussion so long ago.

"Oh yes... I can fix you. I'll do such unspeakable things to you that you'll never ever disobey M̛̖͙̍ͅe again..." Dark hallways dance along his vision, the damp, cold air sticking to his pale skin like glue.

"Yes.. right here." Lust pushes a door that is slightly open already. 

The room is very dark, so dark that Deceit can't see the walls. He doesn't know exactly how big the room is. Lust drops him to the ground harshly and flicks on a light. The light flickers on, showing Deceit that the room isn't nearly as big as he thought it was. It's.. tiny compared to the others. There are chains hanging from the ceiling in the centre of the room, but nothing else. It is completely empty.

Lust snickers to himself evilly as he lifts Deceit up again, hearing him cry out as his torso extends painfully. He proceeds to tug Deceit's right arm up to the chains, shackling it tightly to the ceiling. He does the same to the other, finding that Deceit has stopped resisting. He hangs his head down, crying silently. 

"Hey.. hey.. don't cry, darling.." Lust lifts his head up, grinning at his desolate expression.

"Once all your painkillers wear off, we are going to have

so

much

fun..."

Chapter Text

Deceit's POV

Deceit hangs limply from the ceiling, arms going incredibly sore from supporting his entire weight. His head hangs down, wallowing in the dead silence around him. He's been hanging here for at least an hour and a half, Lust wanting to wait until the morphine was worn off. It wore off 20 minutes ago, but Deceit is trying to pretend like it's still working. It's getting harder and harder to swallow the desperate screams of a man in complete agony, eyes tearing up warmly as he clenches his jaw tightly. He honestly didn't realize how dependent he became on morphine. Without it at all, he is in complete hell, entire body set aflame. 

Lust watches him intently, sitting on a chair across from him. He hasn't moved an inch for the past hour, merely waiting for a sign to show that the drug has worn off. Maybe if Deceit can keep this up for a little longer, Remus will come to save him. Remus, the exact person who is to blame for this. He tries hard not to hate Remus for this, but he can't help it. Those dead, cold eyes carrying him back into the arms of his torturer... how could he forgive that? Yes, yes he knows that Lust was controlling him... but still. How could he not save him from this? How could he not break free for him?

These memories overtake him, making him forget to hide the pain. A grimace creeps onto his face with ease, making him immediately panic. His widened, panicked eyes make contact with Lust's. Lust raises an eyebrow at him, leaning forward.

'No, no hide it. Hide it, you moron.' Deceit hisses to himself, lip quivering involuntarily as he forces the grimace away. He looks away from Lust, watching him tilt his head mockingly in the corner of his vision.

"Oh? Is someone's medication wearing off?" Lust mocks him, standing up from his seat. He steps closer towards his hanging prisoner, watching him with amused eyes.

"Nnn--No---" Deceit lies through clenched teeth, knowing in the back of his mind that he's completely blown his disguise.

"Oh, darling... are you lying to me?" Lust cups his face gently, rubbing his cheek with his thumb. Knots tie into Deceit's stomach, face burning as he stares at the ground with tears shining in his mismatched eyes.

"I'm nn-nnot ly-lying, L-Lus-st-" He stutters terribly, trying to salvage his cover.

Without warning, Lust slaps him hard. Stars flash in the corner of his eyes, vision shaking with the sudden impact. Before he can ever recover, Lust backhands him once more, this time on the other cheek. 

"Don't you dare lie to me, sweetie..." He threatens, grabbing hold of his throat tightly.

"And did I give you permission to say my name? No, I've been far too lenient with you.. from now on, you call me master." Lust hisses into his face, nails digging into his skin. Deceit stares wide-eyed at him, choking silently as his chest burns with desire.

"Now, why don't you hang here and try to comprehend your broken mind while I fetch us some toys?" Lust finally releases him, glaring darkly as he coughs and inhales shakily, tears running down his face from the encounter.

Without another word, Lust walks out of the room and down the hall, closing the door behind himself. Deceit stares at the door wide-eyed, taken completely off-guard by the sudden change in temperament. Something has changed in his captor.. something much more spontaneous and dark. His mood flips so easily it scares Deceit. One moment he is smiling and mocking him, the next he is glaring at him and backhanding him hard.

Deceit lets his head hang down, crying gently. He groans in agony, finally able to release all of the tension in his chest from keeping it in for so long. It doesn't really matter now anyways, Lust knows he was hiding his pain. At least he bought himself some time for Remus to come.

Remus is coming for him... right? 

The door opens once again suddenly, pushed open by a trolly that Lust is pushing. Lust wheels it over to him, smirking as his confused gaze lowers.

The cart is stocked full with Lust's favourite 'tools'. There's everything from a flogging stick to blood-covered, rusty pliers to baseball bats, to even a cattle prod.

Deceit looks away from the cart, shaking his head slowly in disbelief and terror.

"N-no--no-- no--nn--nno- th-iss- isn't ha-happening-" He M̱̜̝͎̅̆͗͞utters to himself, lip quivering as his eyes fill with fresh tears.

"I'm afraid it is, my dear. Now, where do we want to start?" Lust's eyes scan his quivering, exposed torso and then trail up to his face. His eyebrows raise like he has an idea as they meet the side of his prisoner's face.

"Hmm... I wonder what's underneath those beautiful scales of yours..." Lust caresses the scaled side of his face, snickering under his breath as Deceit jerks away at his touch.

"Lu--Lust no-- please-! Anything bu-- but tha--" Lust slaps a strip of duct tape over his hurting mouth, the stitched gaps slowly tearing open as he talks more and more. He whines desperately against the tape, eyes begging Lust not to.

"What did I tell you to call me, hm?" Lust shakes his head in disappointment, tutting his tongue.

"We have a lot of work to do, love..." Lust grabs a thin knife from the table, smirking at his struggling prisoner. His face was basically the only part of him that was unharmed thus far, he doesn't want to lose that.

Lust grabs him by the jaw tightly, holding his head so that he can no longer pull away. Deceit whimpers helplessly as the knife pokes against a scale threateningly. He is shaking, turning completely pale as he continuously tries pulling his head away to no success.

"Tsk, tsk. It will do you no good to be carrying on like this. Stop fighting back or I'll make it worse." Lust hisses closely into his face, eyes gleaming with anger and the need for revenge.

Deceit doesn't stop struggling, simply desperate to make it stop or to find help in some way. He has to make it stop, he just has to. He hears Lust sigh deeply, growling slightly.

"You'll never learn, will you?" With a quick flick of his knife, Lust drives the blade deep underneath multiple scales. Deceit screams deeply, muffled by the tape. He feels hot blood sliding down his cheek, gushing easily from the torn scales.

"Remember this, will you?" Lust's fingers clench around the edge of the peeling scales, ready to tear an entire patch off. Deceit screams pleas into the tape, eyes wide with fear and horror.

"Remember this the next time you fight back or disobey me..." Without warning, Lust quickly tugs upward, pulling a large number of scales up from the skin on his cheek. Deceit's vision flashes white, a series of horrified sobs leaving his choked throat. 

Lust rips the patch of scales sideways, tearing it up from gooey, bleeding skin. He chuckles dementedly, dangling the bleeding patch of skin in front of Deceit's eyes.

His scales. His goddamn scales. The one part of him that showed who he is, who he's always been. The one part unaffected by Lust, maybe a little dulled and discoloured, but they were fine. They were the last piece of the true Deceit, and soon enough they will all be gone. He is gone. The last piece of who he was is gone.

He tosses it to the side, peering closer to the large, freshly skinned area on his cheek.

"Hmm, interesting... you'd never expect there to be scales underneath too. They are incredibly light green, almost skin coloured. Well, it's hard to tell from all the blood.." Lust chuckles, poking the extremely raw spot with his finger. Deceit flinches away, jerking his head out of Lust's hold as blood continuously falls down his face.

"Oh? Did you forget what I just said, pet?" Lust's hand curls around his throat, pulling them face to face once more. Deceit whimpers quietly, tears stinging the bleeding mess.

"Well, I'll just have to take more of your precious scales off then." Lust grabs hold of the thin blade once more, sneering. Deceit immediately becomes unglued, tugging and pulling at his restraints. He even brings up his good leg, slamming a foot into Lust's abdomen. Lust grunts, stepping back slightly as the kick blows most of the air out of him.

He inhales sharply, grip tightening on the knife until his knuckles turn white.

"Now I'll take them all off, dear. I warned you..." Lust grabs hold of him once more, fingernails digging so deep into his neck that it starts to bleed. Deceit cries against the duct tape, legs flailing as he tries to kick Lust again. He manages to kick him in the shin once more.

"Darling, if you kick me one more time I swear to god--" It's too late. Deceit kicks him again, this one harder. 

Lust steps away once more, dropping the knife onto the trolly. Relief pools into his blood, feeling as if he had just saved himself.

His eyes widen as he watches Lust slowly pick up a steel bÄ́͜t, poking it into his frightened prisoner's chest. Deceit whimpers at the cold contact of steel, his teeth clenching. The gaps in his mouth pulse with drilling agony at the sudden tension.

Lust gives him no indication of threat before he takes the bat in both hands and slams it against his good shin. The bone shakes agonizingly within him. Deceit shrieks into the tape, pain running up his spine from the terrible impact.

"Don't." Lust slams it into him again, making a terrible sound of ringing as the steel makes direct contact with the sore, cracking bone.

"Fight." Another strike comes before Deceit can even do so much as scream.

"BACK!" One last hit, this one causing a terrible cracking to come from within his shin. Deceit hollers into the tape, his voice easily breaking off into choppy, pained sobbing. Lust grips the steel bat tightly, not noticing that a large dent has appeared in the side of it from how hard he was hitting his victim.

"Do you understand me??" He demands, hitting his other, already broken shin once. Deceit's vision threatens to fail as he lurches forward in his chains, nausea coating his throat and tongue.

"Hey, answer me!!" Lust hits the broken shin again, hearing Deceit wail against the tape in utter agony. Deceit nods quickly, desperate for the pain to stop.

"Good..." Lust tosses the bat to the side, picking up the knife again. Deceit continues to moan and wail, both legs now completely broken. He truly is crippled now, there's no way he can walk on TWO broken legs. He won't get out of here without someone's help.

Still crying and barely conscious, Deceit does not pull away when Lust grabs him again. Lust's knife finds a place underneath the scales on his forehead, the next ones to be completely removed. His cries of torment merely louden as the knife slices underneath them with a repetitive sawing motion.

"See? You can be such a good boy when you want to..." Lust coos with a victorious smirk, continuing his torturous work. Hands covered in Deceit's dark blood, he pulls the next patch off completely, hearing it rip up from the dermal layer underneath.

He laughs lowly, tossing that one to the side as well. The air stings the incredibly raw skin on his face.

"One more.." The knife now explores his jawline and the scales embedded into the lower part of his face. Deceit merely squeezes his eyes shut, waiting for the mutilation to be over. He can't afford to fight back anymore. Hell, he physically CAN'T fight back.

'Just be over, please let it be over soon.' He begs to himself, wishing that he'd go unconscious soon.

Lust makes sure to take his sweet time with the last one, sawing the blade in and out at a painstaking pace. Deceit has not stopped screaming, thankful that the duct tape muffled it. Lust wouldn't like how loud he's screaming. It finally comes off, being deeper than the others.

He probably looks like a monster now, not that he didn't before. Now it's worse, but that is the least of his worries at the moment. 

His head begins to roll down, blood dripping from his face and splatting on the ground as his eyes droop shut. 

"Hey, hey! I'm not done with you, S͖̀͂͟weetheart.." Lust pulls his head up by the jaw, grinning maniacally at his despondent eyes.

"We're just getting started here..."

Remus's POV

Remus and Roman rise up in the dark hallway of the dark sides. He glances around, trying to catch his bearings.

"Ugh, god I hate everything about this place..." Roman mutters, arms crossed over one another to comfort himself. Remus notices that Roman is keeping a fair distance from him, which he can totally understand. It doesn't mean he has to like it.

"Here, this way to the vault. He must've taken Deceit back there." Remus beckons Roman down the hall, breaking into a swift jog. Roman dashes after him, following close behind. He can't run as fast as he'd like to due to the surroundings being so goddamn dark.

They continue jogging towards the vault, hearts beating with anxiety and energy.

Deceit's POV

Lust hums to himself playfully as he begins uncuffing Deceit. Deceit begins hoping he's in a better mood because he forgot all about the whole escaping ordeal, and not because he is excited to torture him some more with some terrible method. One arm comes loose, but Lust doesn't support his weight like he usually did. He merely let's Deceit hang from the ceiling from one arm, screaming as it threatens to dislocate with all of the weight being forced onto his joints. Deceit screams into the duct tape that is still secure around his mouth, gripping his forearm tightly as he feels the bones shifting within his arm. It would be so much better if he could actually stand and save himself the agony, but alas he doesn't get the luxury of STANDING. He can do no more than hang limply, screaming as he begs Lust to release him within his head.

"Oh I'm sorry, is that uncomfortable?" Lust snickers to himself, about to unlock the second cuff. Relief already begins to pool in his chest, ready for the agony to end.

"You know what.. I just had a fun idea." Instead of releasing him, Lust rips the tape from his mouth, releasing a series of loud wails and cries. His throat stings as he continues to scream until all the air in his chest is gone. The relief is heartlessly jerked away from him as Lust steps away from him, taking a seat once again. Deceit groans deeply, tears running down his face that burns with exertion. His arm literally feels as if it is going to be ripped painfully from the socket.

"You need to learn a lesson on how to quiet your crying and screaming dear... So here's the rules." Deceit listens intently, still wailing, waiting for a chance to finally let it be over. Despite knowing he can't stand, he still tries, only to succeed in hurting him further.

"So, I want you to be quiet for a good 5 minutes dear... When you do that, I will let you down. If you don't, well.. you're gonna be up there long after your arm dislocates, so I'd get working on it if I were you." Deceit for a moment can't believe the words he had heard. Silence his screams for 5 minutes? After Lust had just BROKEN his leg and MUTILATED his face?! He mustn't be serious, this is some sick joke. It has to be, this isn't real. This can't be real. Please don't let this be real.

"Lu--L--!!"Deceit begins to plead, but soon breaks off into pained groaning and hollering once more, hearing the sigh come from Lust.

"Firstly dear, you are to call me master, remember? Secondly, pleading will do you no good, now stay quiet or else..." Deceit clutches his arm tightly, crying to himself as he works up the courage to go silent. Lust quickly pulls a timer out from a drawer on the cart, holding it in front of Deceit teasingly.

"I'm waiting dear, I'll start the timer when you shut your pretty mouth..." It's not going to end until he does this. Just follow the rules. It's so simple, just do what he says.

Deceit clamps his mouth shut, teeth singing in pain with the amount of pressure being forced on his lower jaw. Deceit hears the faint click of the stopwatch being started through the intense pressure that loudly spins in his ears.

It is impossible to keep it all inside, he can't do this. Not with his arm slowly threatening to completely pop out of the socket, not with his broken legs kicking helplessly at the ground as if to magically gain the ability to walk.

A small whimper slips through his tightly shut lips.

"Oh, too bad dear. Not even 15 seconds, pitiful." Lust mocks him, clicking the stopwatch. Deceit immediately hollers at the top of this lungs, Lust's name mingled in with incomprehensible words.

"You're gonna want to do this faster, dear. T̤͗rying to stay silent while hanging from a dislocated shoulder is impossible, but I'll let you hang there until you go unconscious long after it dislocates." Lust warns him, leaning back in his chair carelessly.

"L-Lust ple-please-- I can't--" Lust stomps down hard on the ground, threat dancing in his eyes as Deceit yet again calls him by name. The empty spot in his heart where his pride should be pangs horribly as he prepares to degrade himself so much further.

"Mm--masster--pl-pleasssee---plea-please-" Deceit hisses helplessly through clenched teeth.

"Ooo I love hearing you say that dear, but it's not going to work..." Lust mocks him with a stupid smile, watching him with pleasured eyes.

Deceit tries again, holding his breath in his cheeks. He knows for sure that he can't hold his breath for 5 minutes, but he's sure as hell gonna try. If he passes out, he's silent, right? He hears the click of the stopwatch, insinuating that it has started.

'Come on, come on. Please, please, just go unconscious before it dislocates.' His chest burns with desperation, wanting so badly to just let it all slip out. 

'You don't need air. You don't need it.' He shuts his eyes tightly, tears running down his cheeks involuntarily, mixing with blood and sweat. His lips quiver, wanting more than anything to let out a long, exasperated groan of pain as every area of his entire body pulses and throbs with fire.

"You're doing very good... almost a minute." Lust coos to him mockingly, watching his pained and horrified expression with great happiness.

'A minute...' He can already feel his head go light, throat contracting over and over as it tries to suck in a breath that he won't let come in. He would just let out a breath, but he knows for sure that some amount of noise will slip with it.

He swallows hard, body shaking as his fists finally begin to uncurl, a strange floating feeling coming over him. 

It's coming. Soon he'll be numb. Soon, he can rest for a while without Lust's face constantly filling his vision. Soon...

His eyelids droop shut slightly, a shallow breath releasing from his chest silently.

Suddenly, he hears a horrible pop come from his shoulder. His entire arm shifts down, dislocating at the very last minute. Deceit's eyes snap open once more, hollering as loud as he can as his entire body weight is forced upon a dislocated joint.

"So close darling, so close.. Well, we just have to wait for you to pass out now, don't we?" Lust teases him, throwing the stopwatch to the side. He knows for sure that Deceit won't be able to suffer through this one silently. He can handle a lot, that is true, but this.. this is what broke the camel's back.

"P-PLEAS--PLEASEE-- L-LLL-LUSST IT--IT HURTS!!" He shrieks loudly, gripping the arm with shaking, broken fingers.

"Ah, ah ah! Just for not calling me my title, I'll keep you up there for 30 minutes." Lust tuts his tongue in disappointment, standing in front of him with his arms crossed.

"Lu--Lust LE--LET ME-- ME DOWN- PLEASS-PLEASE I AM--BEGGING YO-YOU!!!" Deceit cries, entire body shaking from so much agony. Lust merely chuckles, grabbing the roll of duct tape once again. He tears off a piece and slaps it across Deceit's mouth, hearing his muffled cries for help.

"Now, now. Quiet down, will you? I'm trying to watch.." Lust sits back in his chair, watching his suffering prisoner with pleasure and amusement.

Deceit knows that it won't stop until he's long unconscious.

Remus's POV

Remus rushes into the vault, which was carelessly left open. He suspects that Lust was very distractE͒͜d and didn't remember to close it. His mind must've been buzzing with so many ways to punish Dece--

No. No, Remus doesn't want to think about that right now. He doesn't want to know what the hell that monster is doing to his one and only friend.

Roman following close behind, Remus darts quickly to the right, sprinting down the bright white halls at a reasonable speed. He immediately recognizes all of it, the memories coming back being nothing but bad ones. Ones of sacrifice, regret, self-loathing, pain... 

He growls lowly, shaking the memories out of his mind. He can't afford to be distracted right now, he needs to get there before Lust hurts him any further. It's not too late, right? They've only been gone for an hour at most.

...A lot can go wrong in an hour..

Remus skids to a stop in front of the open cell he knows so well.

"Deceit?!" He shouts, stepping in.

It's empty. No one has been here for a long time, not since they escaped.

"No, no no.." Remus stumbles backwards, tears invading his eyes.

"Where-- where is he? Is he somewhere else in here do you think?" Roman asks, looking around.

"No.. we'd hear him screaming if he was anywhere else..." Remus backs against the wall, holding his head in dizzy disbelief. He had let Deceit down so easily.

"They could be anywhere now." Remus says, tears choking his voice. Roman's eyes light up like he has an idea.

"Yes, they could be anywhere... but they aren't, are they? There's only one place that Lust would take him." Remus looks up, eyes widened.

The childhood house of course, where it all started and where it will all end.

"Come on!" Roman insists, pulling Remus to his feet.

Together they run back out of the vault, navigating the dark hallways.

Deceit's POV

Agony is the only thing he feels when he comes to again. The humiliation and self-hatred haven't set yet. He hasn't even processed Rage's death, and what his final words meant. His break from all of this agony was so short that it feels like it never happened. Did he merely hallucinate being safe? Did Lust hurt him so bad that he fell into a coma? No, Lust would never make such a mistake, he's too smart with his torture. If only he were so lucky to have a terrible mistake happen so he could leave this world and all of the pain behind. It won't happen, Lust will never let him die. Deceit will never escape again, Remus isn't coming. The light sides must've sacrificed him to Lust. Why else would Patton and Roman be missing all of a sudden? No, they did this, didn't they? They made sure to get rid of him so that they could keep each other safe. And to think he started to trust them...

These thoughts plague him until it's too much to bear. He whimpers quietly, his head heavy with nausea and fatigue.

"Ah, awake are you?" Lust teases from directly above him. His eyes flicker open, immediately filling with tears at the sight of Lust. Lust laughs lowly as Deceit's face curls into a grimace, a long groan slipping out of his throat as his entire body pangs and throbs in time with his heart. His arm is hot, almost numb. An intense pain haunts him from his shoulder, but the rest is completely numb like it had been turned to jelly.

"Hey, wakey wakey! I'm not done with you!" Lust slaps him hard, breaking him out of his dreadful trance. He clutches his dislocated arm with a shaky, throbbing hand, crying out loudly.

Lust shows Deceit the pair of rusty, blood-stained pliers, making his prisoner immediately go silent with terror.

"How about rip all of those nails off, hmm--" Lust suddenly cuts his sentence short, listening intently. Deceit hears the faint sound of a door opening. They are here. Someone is here to help him.

"Hm, they've arrived faster than expected..." Lust sighs in annoyance, placing his pliers to the side. Deceit lets out a breath of relief, hope swelling in his sore chest as fire eats away at the side of his face where his proud scales used to sit.

"Don't get too cocky now, my darling..." Lust hisses, pulling a chair into the center of the room.

"You are going to help me with something..." Kneels down at his side, smirking. Lust covers his mouth with one hand and begins lifting him up with the other. Deceit cries into his hand, body wanting nothing more than to just NOT MOVE.

Lust tugs him up and sits him in the chair, hearing him whine as his broken ribs pang in resistance. He then slaps a piece of duct tape over his mouth, cutting his crying immediately once he lifts his hand.

"Now listen closely, love. Here's what I need you to do." Lust stands in front of him, smirking at the complete mess he made of Deceit. He doesn't even need to chain him up anymore, he can't walk.

"They are going to walk in here, it will be the twins because no one else would be stupid enough to come. I made a promise to a certain emo that I intend to keep. Roman will walk out of this building relatively unharmed, but Remus will not.. He will spend the rest of his days locked up somewhere, rotting." Lust paces in front of his prisoner.

"Now, I need you to draw their attention. Tell them I've gone to get more tools from the vault. Give me enough time to get behind both of them, knock out the light side and capture the dark side. It's very simple, dear." Lust circles him, placing his hands on Deceit's bare shoulders. Deceit quivers at his touch very noticeably, making Lust snicker.

"And if you do anything stupid.. like warn them... Roman will not leave here alive. I am merely doing this to keep a promise to someone who helped a great deal in getting you back into my hold." Lust appears in front of him again, kneeling before him.

"Do not test me, love. I will gut Roman like a pig in front of you, and then you will suffer far more than humanely possible. Do you understand me?" Lust hisses closely, his lips grazing against the duct-tape secured around his mouth.

Deceit stares teary-eyed at his captor, faced with a horrible decision. Can he really risk Roman's life for possible freedom? No, no he can't do that. It's not even possible. Best case scenario is that he will escape for a couple of days at most, only to be dragged back here. Another voice in his head claims that 'He can't hurt you more than he already has'. It is completely false. The more injuries he sustains, the worse all of the pain is. Lust is going to huR̺͔̰̲̿̌͡͠t him either way, but.. but Deceit does not want to risk learning which methods are the most agonizingly painful.

"Do you understand?!" Lust shouts, breaking him out of his own head. Deceit quickly nods, whimpering out of fear at his sudden change. 

"Very good... very very good.." Lust coos, stroking the raw, bleeding side of his face. Deceit groans into the tape, shaking all over.

"Don't do anything stupid, got it? I can promise you that disobeying me will result in amputation of a hand..." Lust threatens, tearing the tape off of his mouth. At the threat of amputation, Deceit goes completely silent, as if any movement or sound would trigger him. He shivers at the thought.

Lust stands and moves into the darkest corner of the room, becoming entirely invisible, save for his gleaming eyes.

"Don't screw this up..."

Chapter Text

Deceit's POV

Deceit stares at the closed door, swallowing hard as the taste of metal lingers in his mouth. Steady drips of blood gently trickle down from the open wounds on half of his face. His shaky breathing fills the room, feeling Lust's gaze burn into the side of his head. He groans deeply, broken legs pounding with pain that shakes his entire body. The urge to scream tickles at the back of his throat, but he locks it inside so tight that his broken chest creaks with pressure.

He doesn't know what the hell to do. 

Remus and Roman will burst through that door any second. Can he risk disobeying again? No. Will it merit any sort of freedom? Most likely not. So it's not worth it. 

He keeps telling himself that it won't be worth it in the end, but he can feel his heart pounding at the thought of escape. Surely Lust can't take on both Roman and Remus at the same time, right? RIGHT?

... Wrong.

Lust would do anything to keep him here, he knows that.

Before, disobeying Lust gave him a surge of control and energy, a feeling that he may not be as broken as Lust thinks. It felt good. It felt right. Even if the consequences made him regret it, he could still be a little proud for standing up against Lust.

But now? He's conflicted. What does that make Deceit? A coward? A traitor? A pet?

He's unsure.

Remus's POV

Remus skids to a halt in front of the large, broken-down house. The front doors are open. Lust and Deceit are here.

"Come on!" Remus whispers to Roman, darting towards the entrance. Roman isn't following him anymore, he cannot hear the footsteps.

"Roman, are you--" Roman is staring up at the house, tears rolling down his face. His lips quiver, hands curled into balls.

"Roman?" Remus steps towards him, a worried expression meeting his face.

"... I never thought I'd come back here. After what they did to me... what they did to all of us.." Roman roughly wiP̝̦̎͠es a tear from his face.

"Roman, listen to me." Remus grips his shoulders, forcing his teary eyes to his own.

"Right now, there's someone in there that needs a hero. Deceit needs your help right now. I know it's hard but--but we have to be quick or there won't be anything left to save of him." Remus urges Roman gently. Roman sniffles, wiping his eyes dry. Pain lingers in his pupils, but his face becomes one of determination.

"Let-Let's go." He says, forcing his voice to remain still even though he is clearly afraid.

Remus immediately releases his brother and runs for the door, barging in quickly. Roman hesitates but follows him nonetheless.

It reeks of suffering and death in the house, making Remus scrunch his nose in disgust. He inhales, ready to yell out Deceit's name. Roman quickly covers his mouth with one hand.

"No, it would be better to catch him by surprise." Remus nods as Roman releases his hand.

Remus's head perks up as he hears faint moaning and crying coming from downstairs.

"Do you hear that?" Remus asks quietly to his brother. They both fall silent, waiting for more noise.

Then it happens, a faint cry for help. The voice is cracking, desperate and fearful.

It's the voice of Deceit.

Remus and Roman glance at each other with wide eyes before sprinting down the long steps into the basement.

Deceit's POV

Deceit cries out sharply for help at Lust's request. According to Lust, "They are taking too long, don't they know we've got things to do? Call out to them. NOW."

He obeyed Lust's command, wanting to call out for help truly. That cry for help was not just him obeying an order, it was a last testament. The last call to who he was, who he wishes he still was. He is still unsure of what to do once Roman and Remus come through that door. He wants so badly to yell "BEHIND YOU!", perhaps saving Roman in just a pinch. They overpower Lust, free him, and he is free for the rest of his life.

But these thoughts are mere wishes of a damned man. He is unsure of what he will do once their faces appear at the door, but he hopes he will do what is right. What he thinks is right.

He freezes, body going strangely numb as footsteps near his door. Lust still lingers in the corner, eyes gleaming with threat. 

He needs more time, he can't do this right now. He doesn't have a decision. He NEEDS more time!

Deceit watches as the door opens, dread pooling into his stomach.

Remus's POV

Remus throws the door open, eyes scanning the dimly lit room. He inhales sharply, relief rushing through his body has he sees Deceit sitting in a chair, staring wide-eyed at the two sides.

"Deceit-Deceit are you--" Remus's words fail as his eyes meet the mangled half of the dark side's face, which drips blood steadily. Pale scales can be seen from underneath all of the blood, but they are... different? Younger? 

Deceit wheezes helplessly, shaking all over in humiliation at his current state.

Remus's jaw clenches tightly, grinding his teeth together in anger. He is going to pull Lust apart limb by limb for doing this. Remus's eyes scan the room. searching for Lust but can't seem to find him.

"Where is Lust, Deceit?" Remus asks the mangled side.

Deceit's POV

"Where is Lust, Deceit?" The dreaded question finally comes. The words he wants to say so badly are caught in his throat, nearly suffocating him. The only noise he ends up making is a series of desperate, pained moans and crying as his broken legs twitch and seize with agony.

"He's --- He----H--H--" Deceit shrieks involuntarily, choppy moaning breaking his words. Roman steps into the room slowly, eyes searching for the figure of Lust.

He's running out of time. In just a few seconds, Roman will see Lust.

"H--he's-" Deceit struggles to speak, panic rushing through his veins as he glances to Roman.

'COME ON! SAY IT! SAY THAT LUST IS IN THE ROOM! SAY THAT YOU'RE ALL IN TERRIBLE DANGER!!' None of these words come out, only a shaky whine as hot tears spill down his face, mixing with blood and sweat.

"---H--" Deceit snarls in frustration, beginning to openly sob. His throat is tight, making it hard to breathe. 

'PLEASE GOD JUST TELL THEM! SAVE YOURSELF! DISOBEY HIM, DO IT! DO IT, PLEASE!! PLEASE!!" Roman's eyes are nearing were Lust hides. Deceit quickly glances to the spot, flinching at the look of pure menace. He can tell without seeing that Lust's lips are curled into a dark snarl, waiting for Roman to see him because of Deceit's failure.

'Do not test me, love. I will gut Roman like a pig in front of you, and then you will suffer far more than humanely possible.' Lust's voice echoes through his head from moments ago. A cold shiver runs through his blood and across his skin.

'He can't hurt you-- if you tell-if you tell them, he can't hurt you--'

'Don't screw this up...' Lust's voice hisses through his skull.

'NO, NO YOU DON'T OWN ME!' Deceit makes a desperate choked noise, entire body shaking with adrenaline.

'Don't. Screw. This. Up.'

'THEY CAN SAVE YOU, THEY CAN HELP! DON'T-DON'T LET THIS HAPPEN, PLEASE!'

Roman's gaze falls directly on Lust's figure.

"He-- hh-he lef--left to g-get sss-ssomething in the vault-!!" Deceit shrieks, immediately breaking into helpless crying. Roman's eyes meet Deceit's once more, not having seen Lust's eyes. But at what cost?

At what cost?

Deceit's heart pounds in his ears as he sobs uncontrollably, feeling all senses become numb by the sudden realization of what he has done. 

"Alright- okay, we have to get him out of here now before Lust comes back." Roman says to Remus. 

"No."

"... I'm sorry?" Roman turns to his brother with a confounded expression. Deceit continues to cry and scream, unable to hide the pain any longer. His broken legs ache in beat with his jittery heart. He only wishes to go unconscious now, drilled holes panging terribly in his mouth from how hard he's been clenching his jaw.

"We wait for Lust here and we kill him." Remus grabs a knife from the tray of torture tools. Deceit's eyes snap open at the sound of metal clanging, widened eyes meeting Remus's.

"Ki-KILL him? This wasn't the plan at all, Remus!" Roman exclaims.

"The only way Deceit will ever be safe is if he is dead." Remus's eyes grow glossy with tears as he stares down at his frightened friend, whose face has become a portrait of the abuse he has suffered for years.

"As-as long as I live, Dee, Lust will not hurt you again." Remus promises him, placing a hand on his shoulder. Deceit jerks away from his touch out of instinct, immediately feeling terrible about lying moments ago. His eyes are hot with tears as he stares up at his friend, a person who betrayed him mere hours ago. But somehow.. somehow he still cares for Remus. Still needs Remus here with him.

He has made a terrible, terrible mistake.

"--C-Come cl--closs-clossser--" Deceit pleads Remus, raising a shaky hand to him. Remus obeys immediately, lowering himself to eye-level with the mangled dark-side. Deceit quickly clutches the back of Remus's neck and pulls him closer, stopping jṲ̰̓͐st before their lips meet. He prays that Lust believes he is merely trying to distract them.

"W--w-what are-- are you doing?" Remus stutters, clearly flustered by the sudden action as his face blushes a deep shade of red. Deceit's lips quiver as he swallows hard, staring Remus in the eyes directly.

"I- I lied-- Remus- -I lied-" Deceit whispers, hoping Lust won't hear him.

"Wh--"

"Do--Don't sp-speak ba-back, just l-listen--" Deceit stammers quietly, their lips brushing against one another.

"Lus-Lust is in the co-corner behind you- waiting for an opportunity to s-sss-strike-" Remus stiffens noticeably.

Deceit releases Remus, who stands up straight once more.

Suddenly, Lust emerges from the shadows and grabs Roman, pulling him into a tight hold with a knife at his throat. Remus spins around immediately as his brother cries out in surprise, pointing his own knife at Lust.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk.. now didn't I warn you dear?" Lust tuts his tongue in frustrated disappointment, glaring at Deceit. 

"Nn--n-no! I did--I didn't tell-- tell hi-him Lu--" Deceit stops himself, nearly saying his name again. He whines desperately, swallowing hard.

"I d-didn't tell him, master." Deceit forces it out, taking deep gulps of breath as the pain in his legs slowly drives him mad.

"Oh is that so? Remus, what did he say to you?" Lust asks Remus, digging the blade slightly into Roman's neck. Roman inhales sharply, gripping Lust's forearm tightly,

"Answer me, rat! If you lie to me, I will slit your brother's throat open, don't tempt me..." Remus glances to Deceit's wide, paralyzed expression.

"..He was- he was just- telling me-"

"You're terrible at lying, did you know that? Tell the truth now or say goodbye to your dear brother forever." Lust growls, cutting the knife deeper. Roman inhales sharply, shutting his eyes as he waits for the end of all things.

"... Fine, he warned me you were there." Deceit inhales sharply, Lust's eyes meeting his once more.

"Y--You MORON-- DO Y--YOU REALISE W--WW-WHAT YOU'VE DONE!?" Deceit screams at Remus, tears cascading down his red cheeks.

"Well, what do you suppose I do instead, hmm?!" Remus snaps back at him.

"YOU LIE! YOU - FUCKING LIE!!" Deceit hollers at him, flecks of spit flying from his now-bleeding mouth as talking tears open stitches.

"I'm sorry we're not all liars, Dee!" Tears flare in Remus's eyes.

"WELL I'M SORRY YOU WEREN'T STRONG ENOUGH TO SAVE ME FROM HIM IN THE FIRST PLACE!!" Deceit becomes completely unglued, saying what has been nagging him this entire time. Remus gasps deeply at his words, staring at him in shock.

"YOU PROMISED, REMUS! YOU PROMISED TO KEEP ME SAFE, YOU GAVE ME HOPE!! YOU LIED!!!" Remus takes a step away from Deceit, tears running down his face.

"I--I--"

"WHAT?! YOU'RE SORRY?! FOR WHAT, HMM?" Deceit slams his broken hands down on the chair, growling deeply.

"FOR DRAGGING ME BACK TO LUST, OH SORRY, MY MASTER?!" Deceit lets a scream rip through his terrible injured throat as he pulls himself up from the chair slightly, lowering immediately when his legs cannot withstand the weight.

"FOR-- FOR KICKING ME WHE-WHEN I WAS DOWN?"

"Deceit--"

"FOR GETTING ME HURT SO MANY TIMES?!" Deceit cries out weekly, doubling over as his hands wrap around his torso tightly. One hand goes up to the skinned side of his face, caressing the skin around it gently.

"... Do you even--even realize the--the h-hell- he will put me throug-through because of you--?"

"..."

The room falls silent, only the sounds of crying and whimpering coming from Deceit being heard.

"Are you done?" Lust asks sarcastically, unamused by his meltdown.

"Because of you, Roman is going to die." Lust announces, hearing the shocked cry of Roman.

"Wait-- wait what!?" Remus exclaims in petrified confusion, spinning back around to face Lust.

"No--nn--no- -I'm ss-ssorry!!" Deceit shouts, watching in horror as Lust's knife digs deeper in.

"ENOUGH!" Lust shouts at him, making him flinch terribly.

"I've had enough of hearing your sorry's and it won't happen again's. You seem to not understand your role as my pet, as my victim, as my toy!" Lust screams at him, eyes darkening with rage.

"Your disobedience will cost you a life this time..."

"N--NO! L-Let m--me pro-prove that-- that it won't happen again-- let me mak-make it uP̟̟̏͘ to you-! Ple--please, M-M---Mas-Master." He struggles to finish saying Lust's new title, feeling his heart sink in his chest with humiliation.

"... Now, that does sound fun, doesn't it?" Lust sounds.. intrigued. Deceit hates it when he sounds like that.

"Remus, cuff yourself to the floor over there, we're going to have some fun..." Lust gestures over to a small metal loop protruding from the floor, a place to chain someone up. 

"No! I'm not playing your games, Lust! Release my brother and Deceit or I will kill you!" Remus demands, pointing the knife at him again. Lust merely raises an eyebrow at the dark side.

"Listen to me, or I will kill him out of spite, understand?" Remus clenches his jaw tightly before dropping the knife to the ground. He exhales deeply and walks over to the table, picking up a pair of handcuffs.

"I'm feeling deja vu, aren't you?" Lust mocks him with a shrill cackle as Remus cuffs one hand to the loop, leaving him immobile. Deceit suddenly wishes he could go back, change everything that just happened. Unfortunately, he cannot change the past. Now, he must please his master and hope that it's enough to save Roman's life. He can't let Roman die because of a stupid mistake. He should've known that Lust would see right through his scheme. He shouldn't have cared so much about such a traitorous side.

Lust pulls Roman to the side, biting the blade between his teeth as he pulls Roman's hands behind his back and chains them together and throws him to the side. Lust then places the knife on the tray and stands across the room from Deceit, arms folded behind his back.

"Alright my darling~, to start us off you're going to walk yourself over here and kneel before me." Lust points to the ground in front of him with a sick smile.

Deceit's eyes widen with horror, white noise filling his head.

"Do not make me wait..." Lust crosses his arms over his chest, tapping his foot impatiently.

Deceit swallows hard, pushing himself up from the chair. He immediately cries out when he puts even the smallest amount of weight on his shattered shins.

"10." Deceit looks up to Lust with a confused, pained expression.

"9."

....

"8." 

He's counting down.

He's COUNTING DOWN.

Deceit feels his heart leap into his chest as he immediately rises up once more. He grunts with exertion as he puts more and more weight on his shaking legs, whines slipP̯̰̔̉ing through his clenched teeth.

"7."

He drops back down again with a sharp cry. He can't do it.

"6." No. His mind cannot handle another dead side because of his arrogance. If Roman dies because of him... it will break him fully. He will lose his mind.

Deceit cries out loudly this time, not caring that everyone is watching. He pushes up, widening his stance as he prepares to completely release from the chair.

"5." Deceit gives one final push with a holler, finally making it onto his shaking, broken legs that twinge and blaze with the purest form of agony. He takes one step towards Lust, the world moving in slow motion around him as his knees threaten to buckle from underneath him.

"4." Another step. His legs pound with torture, bones crackling and rubbing against one another.

"3." He's almost there, one only a couple more. Come on, come on.

"2." He's not going to make it at this pace, but it's as fast as he goes. He's been screaming nonstop, unable to keep it inside as he is forced to walk on broken shins.

"1." Deceit quickly throws himself as far as he can, crying out sharply as he lands directly in front of Lust, face down.

"You're cutting it close, dear.." Lust's hands explore his dark hair playfully as he sobs into the ground.

"The next tasks won't be so easy..." Lust snarls, gripping the back of his hair tightly, hearing him inhale sharply in surprisȨ̳̯͆̆͒̏͜.

Deceit cries out helplessly, his scalp still incredibly sensitive from being pulled so harshly. Lust tugs his head up, forcing his prisoner up onto his knees. Soon enough he is brought back up onto his feet, crying out sharply. Lust throws him back against a wall, basically holding him up against it. If Lust wasn't holding him so tightly, Deceit would surely crumble onto the floor like a house of cards.

Lust slaps a hand over his open mouth, cutting his crying short.

"Here's the next game, dear. You will not fight back, do you understand? Any hint of resistance and I'll sever Roman's head from his body." Deceit looks past Lust, seeing Remus's completely pale complexion as he watches everything unfold. He is strangely silent, and Deceit is grateful for that. He doesn't think he could handle it right now.

"Oi, pay attention!" Lust demands, backhanding him hard. Deceit grunts as Lust presses against him threateningly, towering over him.

"Do you understand?" He insists again, eyes blazing. Deceit nods rapidly, eyes teary.

"Good..." 

Without warning, Lust grabs Deceit by the jaw and pulls him into a harsh kiss. 

Deceit's eyes snap open, pulling away immediately as disgust pools into his stomach. He hits the wall with the back of his head as he tries so hard to break contact.

"Wh---What the he--he--hell?!" Deceit cries, face flushing bright red as he feels the entire room's eyes on him.

"Ah, ah, ah! No resisting, love." Lust's hand wraps around his throat, pulling him closer again.

"S---SSS-SSTOP!" He shrieks desperately, shaking with humiliation. He nearly gags at the thought of their lips touching once more. What the hell was that? Why on earth would he do that? Just to humiliate him?

"Tsk, tsk, tsk.. I told you not to resist." Lust harshly throws Deceit to the side, hearing him hit the wall and smirking as he walks towards Roman. Deceit is too stunned to even do so much as lift his head.

"No-- No leave him alone!" Remus pleads, pulling against his restraints as Lust grabs a knife.

"Unfortunately, I don't want our game to end... I am having simply T̡̠͚̓́͊̈͜oo much fun." Lust drops to Roman's side, immediately grabbing him and wrestling him to the ground, which isn't hard since Roman's hands are still locked together. Roman's screams fill the room as Lust presses him against the ground stomach first, positioning the blade of the knife right above his pointer finger.

Deceit lifts his head just in time to see the knife chop straight through Roman's finger, severing it at the base.

Roman becomes completely unhinged, screaming and crying incomprehensible nonsense as he twists and turns from underneath his attacker. Lust chuckles to himself as he rises off of Roman.

"YOU SICK BASTARD!" Remus shouts, tears running down his face as he pulls against the cuffs.

"You're just picking up on this now?" Lust cackles to himself as he gags Roman with a rag, not wanting to listen to his cries anymore. He walks back over to Deceit, who has gone sheet-white at the situation. His wide, empty eyes are glazed with horror, mouth parted slightly. 

This is his fault. 

Again.

"Now, let's try this again, shall we?" Lust pulls him up once more, hearing him whine desperately.

"Do. Not. Fight. Back."

Lust forces their lips together once more, chuckling against him as he shakes and whines. Deceit squeezes his eyes shut, just wanting it to be over. He tries to think of literally anything else, ANYTHING. The sound of his own bones snapping in two, the feeling of his precious scales being ripped from his face, the horrible crunching of broken fingers and shins, the smell of burnt flesh, the sound of boiling skin, the noise of suffocation.

But nothing, nothing can distract him. Deceit just wants it to all be over.

Lust shoves his tongue inside his mouth, making Deceit gag as he trembles against the wall, feeling Lust explore his mouth playfully.

Lust finally allows them to separate, staring at Deceit in pride like he had just conquered a beast.

"Now this.. this is what I call broken in..." Lust chuckles sadistically, caressing his terribly blushing cheek. 

He can safely admit that he has never felt so humiliated and disgusting. 

"Guess what?" Lust leans into his ear, smirking.

"You taste good..." 

Deceit visibly flinches at the words, hearing Lust's maniacal laughter bounce off the walls of the very small space. Muffled crying comes from Roman, who clutches his bleeding hand tightly.

Lust forces Deceit down so that he is sitting against the wall, broken legs rushing with agony as the feeling finally comes back. He honestly wishes it hadn't.

Lust whistles playfully as he walks to the trolly of tools and picks up a pair of rusty pliers. He chucks them at Deceit, who just barely throws his arms up to protect his face. He cries sharply, hearing the pliers drop to the ground after they slam against his forearms.

"Now, pull off each of those pretty fingernails of yours." Lust orders him, gesturing to the pliers. Deceit whimpers terribly, hesitating before taking the tool in his hands. Lust seems surprised by how quickly he responded, usually he hesitates for a good 3 minutes.

He doesn't want to do this, god he would rather do anything. Well... almost anything.

He swallows hard, the taste of Lust staining the inside of his mouth. His pride is hurt far past repair. He can't stop thinking about it, picturing it. His stomach feels queasy at the mere thought as he constantly relives the memory of what transpired no more than minutes ago.

...At least the pain will help him forget for a while.

Deceit clamps the pliers down onto his thumbnail, crying out as the already mutilated finger pangs in protest. He takes a quick breath before tugging hard, ripping the weak nail from the nailbed. He hollers loudly, tears invading his vision with ease as his voice breaks into the crying of a tormented pet.

The pain sure did make him forget about everything, the only problem being that it hurts so badly he might throw up. He thought he could handle it, he thought he could but he can't. He can;t do this 10 times.

"10."

. . .

No, no Lust can't possibly think that he can rip them all off in that little time--

"9." Deceit stares up at Lust with a heartwrenching expression of reluctance and dread. Lust merely raises a cocky eyebrow, smirking at him as if he deserved every second of pain he is forced to live through.

"8."

"STOP! Ju--just let me take some of the pain for him! Let me do it!" Remus begS̢͇̮͙̗͗͛͒̆̇ Lust, not having been silent since Roman was punished for Deceit's actions.

"7."

Deceit's head goes silent, no noise is heard. Not Roman's crying, not Remus's yelling, not even Lust's amused laughing. He needs to do this now, right now. The one finger is pulsing terribly with the entire power of hell drilling into his nailbed. He dreads what it will feel like once all of the nails are removed.

He takes a deep breath and immediately screams at the top of his lungs, tearing off the next nail. It makes a disgusting ripping noise as he makes quick work of it, dropping it to the ground. His vision blurs threateningly.

"6." If he goes unconscious and can't finish the job, what will Lust do? He doesn't want to find out. He tears the third one off, audibly choking as he finds himself unable to properly breathe.

"5." His throat is raw from constant screaming, blood dribbling out of his mouth as he pulls the fourth. The pliers nearly slip out of his hands as they are now covered in his blood, shaking terribly as they grip onto yet another nail.

"4." The last finger on one hand is done, but he's nearly out of time. He's no longer screaming, just making the groaning noise of a man on the brink of unconsciousness. God it hurts. He has never in his life felt so much pain at one time. He has to keep going, to save Roman. 

"3." It takes two tugs for the thumbnail on his second hand, making him cry out weakly. 

Faster, faster, faster. He has to work faster or all of this will be for nothing. No coherent thoughts reach his mind anymore, leaving it merely a babble of strange noises. He tugs another two nails off quickly, feeling his eyelids flicker shut.

"2." There's only one left, due to the fact that Lust had ripped one off, himself. Deceit struggles to grip the last one, constantly being pulled out of his own body as his pain tolerance is easily broken.

"1."

Panic floods into his system, eyes snapping open. He clamps the rusted pliers down on the last nail, his pinky, and pulls hard. It doesn't give way right away, mostly due to the fact that his hands are shaking so badly and hurt so much. He pries it upwards, feeling it rip up from the nailbed with a pop.

He drops the pliers, head spinning as his eyes threaten to close. 

"Such a good boy..." Are the last words he hears before he falls to the side, losing his consciousness.

Chapter Text

Deceit's POV

His eyes snap open, vision blurred by water as he looks wildly around. Deceit is underwater, that much he can tell. He looks up, seeing the surface above him surrounded by a grey, brick tunnel? No, no the opening of a well. He's trapped in a well. He makes a choking noise, chest burning with the desire to breathe. He quickly brings up both arms, clawing at the surface of the water desperately, but something is wrong... he isn't moving.

Bubbles explode out of his mouth as he lets out a panicked scream, wide eyes staring up at the taunting sheet of water above him. He looks down below him, seeing only what can be assumed as an endless gap down to the bottomless well. His heart beats rapidly as he kicks against the heavy liquid making noises of choked desperation as his fingers reach out to the surface.

Something cold grabs his ankle, tugging him slightly downwards. Deceit stares in disbelief below him, seeing nothing at all but still feeling cold, sharp fingernails dig into his ankle.

Another tug. Bubbles erupt once more from his throat as he starts kicking wildly at his invisible and somehow nonexistent attacker. How is he supposed to defend himself against something that he can't see?

Deceit screams for help, all of the air being pushed out of his chest. His limbs thrash uselessly against the frigid liquid, feeling an intense pressure behind his eyes. His numb lips form words like 'help' and 'please', but do not have the air to complete his requests. He is pulled further down, his ears drilling with agony as he goes lower and lower. His body begins to slow, shutting down from lack of oxygen.

His vision darkens, body tingling from his toes up to his head.

Suddenly, Deceit's head is pulled out of the water, allowing him to cough up water endlessly, feeling it flow between his lips.

"STOP IT! STOP IT, HE'S AWAKE!!" A voice screams, deafened by the water trapped in his ears. Deceit splutters, sobs jumping at his throat as pain returns to him quickly. He glances around wincing, totally shocked and too out of it to realize where exactly he has awoken. The completely raw side of his face stings terribly from being wet, just as it was starting to go gooey it was unfortunately ripped open through thrashing and yelling as he was drowned.

Remus and Roman are watching him with pale, shocked and guilty faces. Roman is still crying, holding his bleeding hand which is missing a finger. Deceit hadn't realized before but it is indeed his right hand.. his dominant hand. He will never write or paint again with that hand again.

He's still with--

"Morning, darling~~" Lust whispers closely into his ear, still gripping tightly into the back of his hair. 

Lust. He's still with Lust. His lips are numb, tingling from the near-drowning experience.

Lips.. a kiss.

He instantly almost gags as he remembers the feeling of Lust's lips against his. Oh god, oh god he doesn't want to think of it anymore.

'Stop, stop just think of literally anything else!' He begs himself, warm tears falling down his face instantly.

His tongue shoved down his throat, pressing him against the wall--

'No! NO! Erm-- The pop of a shoulder being dislocated, the rip of fingernails being torn off--' He squeezes his eyes shut, trying to distract himself with the other traumas he has endured.

'Everyone watching, eyes on the two of you as he kiss---'

"Sh---Shut up!" Deceit shouts out loud, desperate for the memories to stop.

"... I'm sorry? Did I just hear that correctly?" Lust tugs his hair tightly, bringing their eyes together. Deceit's eyes slowly widen as he reaL͉̱̪̔̕izes what he had said out loud.

"--N--no! No-- I wa-wasn't t--talking to y--yyou---" Deceit stammers, watching as a smile twitches at the corners of Lust's mouth.

"Oh? Who were you talking to then, sweetie?" Lust mocks him with dark, amused eyes.

"My--myself! Myself-- I was-- I wanted to-- to-- stop thinking about the kiss----" His blabbering immediately stops, face going hot with humiliation as he mentions what had happened. The room goes silent, but he can feel Lust staring down at him.

"Oh, is that so?" Lust's face grows closer to his own, smirking evilly as Remus and Roman stare on in helpless defeat. Deceit shuts his eyes tightly, trying for the first time to focus more on the agony in his entire body than on Lust's presence. The pain makes all of his thoughts disperse instantly, which he appreciates greatly.

"Hehehe... if you're good, I won't give you another.." Lust threatens him gently, finally releasing his head. Deceit lets out a strained exhale, shaking from the sudden rush of cold. He shivers slightly, feeling his bangs stick flatly to his forehead.

"Now... are we all ready to continue our fun little game?" Lust exclaims to the group with his signature sadistic smile.

Patton's POV

Patton helps Logan back into bed, a worried expression not leaving his face.

"Are you sure you'll be okay?" He asks. Logan nods wordlessly, grimacing intensely as he tries to hide how much his arm is hurting.

"I-I'm fine Patton--" He whines quietly, shaking all over.

"Oh no, my poor baby!" Patton exclaims, sitting by his side and taking hold of his hand.

"How do I help?" Patton asks him urgently, tears flaring in his eyes.

"Deceit- Patton- you need to go help him--" Logan urges, clenching his teeth tightly.

"What? No, no I'm not leaving you Logan. Roman and Remus can-- can handle it!" Patton shakes his head rapidly.

"And- and what if they don't? What if something bad happened, and you're here- looking after the idiot who let him get away-!" Logan shouts. His expression immediately breaks as he lowers back onto the bed, face still with shock at what he had said.

"... You couldn't have done anything more for him, Logan-- You couldn't go after them both, not in your condition." Patton urges comfortingly, rubbing his hand with his thumb as their fingers remain entwined.

"... My condition.. my weakness. How-- How could we let this happen again, Patton? He was supposed- supposed to be safe here, and now he's gone." Logan wipes a tear roughly from his own cheek, lips quivering and curling back into a snarl.

"Hey, hey.. We did the best we could and we would've protected him if not for-- for--" 

"For me?" Virgil cuts in, having walked silently into the room. Patton immediately releases Logan's hand and spĮ̡̟̰͂̊̒͡ns around, hands out to protect Logan.

"What? You think I'm going to take him away?" Virgil mocks Patton with an unamused stare.

"--Virgil, it's best if you leave right now." Patton says, keeping his voice still.

"Because I made the right choice that no one else was strong enough to make?" Virgil exclaims angrily, crossing his arms.

"That was not the right choice, Virgil! Deceit did not deserve that, NO ONE deserves that!" Patton shouts, stepping closer.

"I was protecting you, all of you! Lust told me himself that he would kill each and every one of us to get to Deceit!" Virgil challenges, teeth bared.

"You're lying to us-- and to yourself. That is not why you did it." Logan says through clenched teeth, opening his eyes once more.

Deceit's POV

"No- Lust that's enough. Just- just let Roman go, okay? You don't need him here to hurt Deceit." Remus urges Lust, avoiding a hurt glance from Deceit, who quickly looks away. Lust merely snickers to himself as he drags the bucket of bloodied water away. 

"I like having an audience... Besides, it raises the stakes a little, does it not?" Lust begins whistling to himself, walking back to his cart of horrible instruments. Deceit groans deeply, his eyes meeting his own self-mutilated fingers. He lays back, staring up at the ceiling as he continues to moan, clenching his teeth tightly as his legs throb and pang. His dislocated shoulder hurts as well, but not nearly as bad. Hell, everything hurts. There is not a part of his body that is free of pain anymore. His mouth, his hands, his scalp, his legs, his feet, his arms, his goddamn face...

"Ooh, yes this is absolutely perfect..." Lust purrs, pulling out a long metal rod with some sort of flat, square edge.

"Take a look, dear." He shows the end to Deceit. There is an inscription on the metal reading "Lust's Pet".

Deceit's eyes widen as he comes to realize what it is; A branding rod.

"Ah yes, I remember making this... such fond memories. If I'm not mistaken, I made this during the period you escaped from me..." Lust's smile fades, eyes darkening as he examines the rod. His eyes flick back to Deceit's, a smirk returning.

"Fond memories... aren't they?" Lust snickers to himself, leaning carelessly on the rod.

"I'm gonna go heat this up real quick.. don't move my dear.." Lust cackles as he walks out of the door, leaving it open tauntingly as he knows that Deceit cannot walk, and the others are chained up.

"Deceit-- Deceit you need to look for a key somewhere and get us unlocked. This is our only chance!" Remus insists, glancing around the room as he pulls up from the chains. Deceit remains completely motionless, staring up at the ceiling as whines of pain slip through his tight lips.

"Look-- I know your hurt-- but we have to get out of here! Do you want to be tortured like this forever?!" Deceit winces at his words, baring his teeth as he tries his hardest to not break into uncontrollable crying.

"... Deceit please. Please-- do this for us if not for yourself. I--I don't think he will keep his word- I think he plans to kill Roman anyways-" Remus begs the mangled side, beginning to cry himself.

Deceit still remains silent, listening to the faint crying of the two brothers.  

He cannot afford to disobey anymore. It will get Roman killed. It will-- he doesn't even want to know how much worse it could be.

But he knows.. he knows it could be so, so much worse... somehow.

Footsteps approach from outside, eventually revealing Lust once more. The end of the metal rod is glowing with heat, turned to a colour of whitish orange. His eyes immediately tear up as he lowers back onto the ground, raw and bleeding fingers clutching the ground beneath him.

"Heh, I'm pleasantly surprised that you didn't try to find a key or anything of that sort..." Lust coos to him, standing over him now with the rod in both hands threateningly.

"Oh, I almost forgot the best part..." Lust places the rod beside him on the ground, laughing as Deceit jerks away from it instantly, hearing the metal sizzle right beside his head.

"Come here my dear, you'll have to be hanging for this one.." Lust pulls him up by his dislocated arm, hearing him scream and cuss as he grabs hold of Lust's shirt tightly for support, trying to alliV̪̠̺̅͋͑iate some pressure.

"Oooh~ Getting handsy, are we dear?" Lust mocks him with a grin. Deceit wants to let go, he really does, but the pain in his shoulder is almost too much to bear. His grip locks around the fishnet fabric, continuing to scream as Lust walks him over to the center of the room. Both arms are chained over his head to the ceiling, and for a moment he thinks he might pass out. With both the pain of putting weight on both his legs and a dislocated shoulder, he doesn't think he can handle that much at once.

His eyes droop shut, a shaky exhale leaving his body as the screaming finally ceases.

"Ah, ah, ah! Hold on my darling, don't want to lose consciousness just yet now do we?" Lust tuts his tongue in disappointment, raising his head by his chin. Deceit can't help but let his head drop again, resting against his chest as painful breaths come and go. He faintly hears Lust sigh deeply.

His head jerks up immediately when Lust kicks him hard in the knee, making a guttural shriek rip through his throat.

"STAY UP!" Lust demands loudly, baring his teeth at his prisoner. Deceit continues to whine, gagging on his own sobs as he shakes with pain.

"Good boy..." Lust whispers into his ear teasingly, chuckling as he steps away. Deceit watches in horrified confusion as Lust starts slipping on what seem to be grey rubber gloves. He bends down and takes out a long strip of--

of--

...

A long strip of barbed wire.

Lust must've noticed he was watching as he immediately smirks.

"This stuff is sharp, my dear. Wouldn't want to cut myself, now would I?" Lust approaches him, holding the ruler-length strip of barbed wire in both hands.

"But you..." Lust eyes him with a hint of excitement in his eyes. 

"Wha--what-- are -- are you going- to do to-- to me?" Deceit stutters, his eyes not leaving the barbed wire.

"Well.. I know how loud you're going to scream when that nice hot brand presses into your skin.. so I thought I'd bring a gag along.."

"A---A g--gg--gag--?" He stammers, swallowing hard.

"Oh yes, my darling... a gag." Lust begins laughing sadistically as he walks behind Deceit. He goes still, silent, waiting for that hellish wire to meet his lips.

Lust brings it around in front of his face, standing behind him as he leans over his shoulder.

"No cries for help or pleas?" Lust teases him, amused by his silence. Deceit doesn't respond, merely watching the barbed wire with all of his attention. 

"Ah I see, just want to get right into it? Very well.." Lust slowly brings the barbed wire closer to his face, chuckling behind his head as Deceit does everything humanely possible to pull his head away. It stops right before his lips tauntingly.

Without warning, Lust pulls the barbed wire into his mouth harshly, nearly splitting his face in two. He screams as the corners of his lips are cut terribly by the metal barbs and twists of sharp, knife-like material. Lust twists the wire behind his head, tying it completely.

"Now the thing with this clever gag is that it won't quiet you, no, no no! If you want to feel less pain.. you have to force yourself to stay quiet instead.." Lust declares loudly into his ear, cutting through his screams. Deceit immediately hears this and quiets himself to mere loud whining, tears running down his face. Surprisingly, it does help. The barbs are still stuck in his skin, stabbing both the inside and outside of his mouth, but they dig no deeper in. He can feel blood spilling from his lips now, the taste of metal invading his senses.

"See? Clever, isn't it, my dear... Now here's the fun part." Lust takes hold of the rod, which has retained its heat completely. He walks to stand in front of Deceit, looking his broken, bruised body up and down with a proud smirk.

"I'm going to brand you and you have to keep quiet, unless you want a new... permanent smile.." Lust warns him, watching his eyes widen, pupils shining with dismay. He swallows hard as Lust brings the brand closer to his side, hovering above his upper ribcage. Deceit can already feel the heat emanating off of the scalding metal. He swallows hard, the slightest movement digging the metal barbs deeper into his mouth.

The brand is pressed into his skin without warning. Deceit couldn't possibly keep quiet, there's just no way. He screams loudly, the pain in his mouth equal to the sizzling skin. He bites down hard on the barbed wire beneath his teeth out of instinct, allowing the sharp metal to dig into the roof of his mouth and his gums with ease.

"Oh yes.. this will look so nice." Lust says, barely being heard through the screams of a suffering man. He applies more pressure on the brand, making sure that the design comes out perfectly. The surface is a little bumpy due to the many broken ribs protruding against the skin, but he makes do.

"And... done!" Lust takes the rod off of his skin, smiling at the satisfactory smell of burnt skin and hair. Deceit continues to cry and shriek, holding the metal tightly between his teeth. 

"It's perfect, darling.. just perfect.. Don't you two want to see--" Lust looks over to the two brothers to see Remus covering his ears and hiding his face in his lap, and Roman shivering on the ground clutching his hand. 

"Look. At. The. Brand." Lust orders the two, pointing to his work proudly. Remus shakes his head in his lap, refusing to give in.

"If you don't want to watch, I will just have to do it again..." Lust threatens, watching Deceit's expression break from engulfed pain to white-hot fear.

"N--NNO-- no-- don't-- don't, I'll p-ppay attention--" Remus promises, his head shooting up immediately.

"Good.. now tell me, what do you think?" Lust gestures to the brand again, watching Remus's eyes intently.

"It--It l--looks g- great--" Remus stammers, shaking all over in disgust at his own words and anger.

"It does, doesn't it..." Lust smiles sadistically, watching his prisoner hang from the ceiling motionlessly, chest shaking with sobs and screams that continue to echo through the room.

"Now, only a few more dear.. yes.. a few several more should do.."

Patton's POV

"You don't know what you're talking about..." Virgil snarls at Logan.

"It-It's fairly simple, you see? It's called displacement, wh-when a certain party-- releases their anger and pain caused by one person onto-- a much less threatening target." Logan explains, words broken by moans of agony.

"In this case- Lus--Lust hurt you badly along with--Rage- but you're terrified of th-them, so you choose to target Deceit--who you now blame for everything despite him being-- completely beaten into-- into complacent nature-" Logan continues, wincing every once and a while. Virgil remains completely silent, crossing his arms over his chest as he stares down Logan.

"That's not true--" He spits, but is quickly cut off.

"But in-- in doing so, you;'ve actually convinced yourself th-that Deceit is deserving of-of pain no one should ever go through. You've blinded yourself, Anxiety. You've gone too far n-now. You even helped Lust, --the one who is a-actually to blame." Logan finishes with a sharp glare at Virgil.

"I--" Virgil looks away, eyes wide with... realization? Guilt? Patton can't tell.

He doesn't get a chance to say anything before Virgil throws the door open and darts out of the room.

Deceit's POV

Lust had taken him down from the chains, sitting him up against the wall facing Remus and Roman. He had also had the manners to remove the barbed wire, but he did so without care. Deceit's mouth still bleeds, aching and stinging with horrible sensations. The brand is no better. He hasn't looked at it, he doesn't want to. He can't handle it right now, or ever really. He doesn't want to see Lust's goddamn name and pet name for him permanently carved into his side. If he doesn't look, it doesn't exist. As long as he doesn't look, it never ever happened. Just like the kiss. As long as he doesn't think about it, it never happened. But it happened.

"Now, for the next little segment of our game." Lust slides a knife in front of Deceit. Deceit stares down at the blade with wide, empty eyes.

"How much blood are you willing to lose for Roman's life, hmm?" Lust mocks him, lifting Roman off of the ground. He holds a blade to Roman's neck threateningly, sneering down at Deceit. Roman is still seemingly in shock, but soon realizes the position he is in and tries struggling, only stopping when Lust holds him tighter.

"LET HIM GO, YOU MONSTER! YOU DON'T NEED HIM!" Remus screams at Lust, the cuffs digging deeply into his skin as he pulls up from the ground.

"No.. I don't think I will. Now, shut your mouth, rat, or I might just kill him because you're annoying me..." Lust spits to the side without even looking at Remus. Remus falls silent, pleading eyes meeting Deceits.

Deceit's shaking hands pick up the knife, seeing his reflection briefly in the clean metal. His eyes water, seeing the empty spot of blood and raw scales where his proud, green scales should be. The corners of his mouth are mangled, along with his lips and the inside of his mouth most definitely. 

But.. the worst part is his eyes.

They are the equivalent of staring into an empty well. His reptilian eye has... faded in colour. What used to be proud green is now dull, barely bright anymore. It doesn't look threatening at all, it looks... terrified.

His eyes are a perfect mirror, reflecting exactly what he feels inside. Empty.

"Don't make me start counting again, get cutting..." Lust threatens him. Deceit looks to Roman, considering if he was even worth the pain. If Lust kills him now, what will he hold over his head? Remus? Everyone else?

... Does he even care if they die at this point? Better yet, do they even care if he diĒ͔̫͙̹͋͆̾s? 

Deceit continues staring at the knife, no longer at his reflection. With a deep exhale, he raises the knife onto his forearm.

Then it hits him. The thing he has in his hand could end it all. End it right here, right now. No more pain, no more Lust, no more kisses. He considers for a short moment what it would do to Lust.. to the rest of them. Lust would almost definitely kill Roman and Remus, and go on to kill the others too. If he is stopped, it wouldn't matter. Too many sides would be gone now, Thomas would fall into ruin.

It's a selfish decision... a VERY VERY selfish decision. By doing this he would be putting literally every side at risk. He is a horrible side for even considering this. But for some reason, he just doesn't care anymore. 

A smile twitches at his lips, the hint of a giggle escaping his throat.

"What's so funny, darling? Is this amusing?" Lust demands, cocking his head to the side teasingly. Deceit grips the knife tighter, a smile growing wider as he breaks into full-blown laughter.

"Answer me before I come over there and make you..." Lust threatens darkly.

"Y--You haven't realized- yet-- have you?" Deceit says through laughter, not caring how much it hurt his chest.

".... Realized what?" Lust inquires darkly, baring his teeth in frustration as Deceit continues cackling at his expense.

"Y-You're an idiot!" Deceit spits between loud howls of laughter, tears running down his face.

"Excuse me?! What did you just say to me, pet?!" Lust makes a small cut in Roman's neck.

"Dec-Deceit be careful--" Remus says to the side, but he doesn't care anymore.

"How-- how have you not realized yet--?!" Deceit inhales sharply with a whimper as the agony washes over him again.

"What the hell are you talking about?!" Lust screams at him, reaching his limit with his prisoner.

"Y--you know what you-you never give a man wh-who has nothing to lose--?" Deceit asks, his grip on the knife tightening.

"..." Lust waits for him to finish, expression one of total rage as he thinks of all the ways he is going to make Deceit pay for this little outburst.

"A knife..."

Deceit grabs the handle of the knife with both hands, turning the blade towards himself, and plunges it deeply into his abdomen without hesitation.

Chapter Text

Hello my twisted friends! So, I do have some bad news for you guys. I will not be updating the fic today. I've got some family over for Canada Day and I think I should spend some time with them while they are here. ALSO, I slept a good 4-5 hours last night, so staying up till 1am writing this is not going to work. I did start writing the chapter early, it is I'd say a third done. It's just this next chapter is going to be extremely important to the entire story, and I do not want to rush it at all.

I'm so sorry my friends, I hope you can forgive me for making you wait another week. This also means I won't be responding to comments tonight, but tomorrow defintetly.

Sorry guys, Love you as always and I will see you in a week!

PS:

To make the wait easier in some way, I will tell you this. 

Deceit is not dead.

Chapter Text

I am so so sorry for this.

I am going on hiatus from this story. I've been trying for days and days to write this chapter, but they don't turn out right. They seemed rushed and not as descriptive as is expected of these. I have to go on hiatus. I can't write these chapters right now, I'm not sure why. It just feels like a chore now, not something I enjoy doing. It just isn't making me happy. I really did enjoy writing these chapters and honestly looked forward to them every week, but there's a point when you just lose interest and that is what is happening. And not just with this story either, in Sanders Sides as a whole. I don't think I've cosplayed Deceit or any other side in about a month honestly.

Now I know I could easily write up a really cheap ending instead, just having Deceit die and leaving it there, but that is not what I want for this story. I promised a happy ending, I will not give you a rushed one because I care too greatly for this community that shaped around my mediocre writing.

I don't know when I'll be back, I'm sorry I don't have that information. It takes a long time to get over these creative blocks and loss of passion.

I can at least promise that this story will be finished, maybe not soon, but it will be. I care so greatly about this series, it will not go without its promised happy ending.

I will also still be writing! Same stuff, angst and hurt, maybe no comfort this time as that was a pretty big complaint I got most of the time in these. It will not be sanders sides, it will most likely be Welcome To Nightvale, a new passion of mine if you've seen my tik toks.

So, this is goodbye for a while my dearest friends. If you want to stay updated on what I do, or anything about me really, I'm @Callmestar78 on Tik Tok, I do some cosplaying over there. I love you all to bits, and our paths will cross again!

Y̥̼̳͔͒͗͑͝ȅ̞̻̳̂s̖̺̝͈̟͋̃̌̕͞.̧̠̊̈́.͉͆͗͜ ͉̠͚̄̽͘ő͎̖u̺̯͐͝r ̲̤̗̇͑̇p̯̏ả͈t̰̟͒̓̚͜h́͜s̰͙͠ ͓̘̌̃ẃ͇͎̐ĩ͍̻͉͂̈́l̢̖̺͒̽͐l̮̳͊͑ ̧̺̻͈͇̆͂͐̍͞c̜͞r͚̝͓͊̎̚ŏ̡̗̯̦̅͂͞s̠͖̫͎̈́́̒̌͜͠s ̝͎̀͂͒ͅa̡̾g̥̰̩̤̥̐̅̀̾͡a̠̲͕͆̒͜͡i̤̿n̨̗̑̋̕ͅ ̙̗̦̏͆͝i̱̍n̳̘̫͖͒̾̾̈́̓ͅd͉͈̤̬̒́̓ė̮̋͜e͎̘̪͎̓̄̉d̡͓̙̱͋̈́̇͗.̛̣̲͗.̝͎͚̾̌͋̾͢.̣̞̉͊