Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The sudden ‘friendship’, as some of the staff called it, between the denominated SCP-049 and Dr. Raymond Hamm was an unexpected turn of events even for the researcher himself, when he thinks about how he feels about the plague doctor Raymond always gets to the conclusion it's more of a mix of strong curiosity and even a bit of fascination. Who could blame him? he wouldn’t be working on the foundation if he didn’t have an attraction for the unknown and that plague doctor was the perfect embodiment of it, sure the facility houses even more bizarre and mind breaking creatures but there’s a handful of them capable of holding a conversation during an interview without killing the interviewer in the most gruesome way the human brain is capable to imagine, so to be able to sit with the SCP across the table and ask him all sort of questions was a big opportunity for Hamm, of course he wasn’t suicidal, he wouldn’t do it if the plague doctor didn’t have his hands chained to the table and his movement restricted by two large metal bars that were either grabbed by two guards or secured to the floor.

Speaking of interviews, their usual interview was over and both beings were waiting for the guards to arrive and prepare the SCP for transportation, there was nothing stopping Dr. Hamm from taking his notes and leaving the room except for one thing, the small cupcake that was hiding inside the pocket of his white coat. See, they knew the SCP could eat even tho the research team assigned to him hasn’t see him doing it, they didn’t know how 049 was able to eat considering his ‘mask’ was fused to his skull because the creature doesn’t really enjoy doing it infront of others and doesn’t give a concrete reason when asked about it but they did know eating wasn’t a necessity for him and he simply enjoys eating thin crackers every once in a while.

This spiked Raymond Hamm’s curiosity and while he did request to be able to perform an experiment to try to watch the SCP’s reaction to certain foods, he simply could not wait for all the papers to be signed and approved, it seemed to be taking ages and he was not willing to wait for so long.

“Well doctor, I’ve noticed you only request certain types of food and I was wondering if there was a reason for this”

“Ah, see, doctor, I simply enjoy them and don’t see a point in exploring other options, but I am not against it”

“I see, well I was wondering if you would be interest in trying other types of food, I understand your priority is your current investigation but I thought this could peak your interest considering how different food is now comparing it to things you might have tried before” Raymond watched the creature consider this offer for a moment, a little impatient considering how the guards might arrive at any moment now.

The SCP took a few minutes to think about it, he did wonder sometimes how much things had changed and while he was aware of some of it due to the times he went outside his hiding spot to get new test subjects, he never thought of it in depth. Trying wouldn’t hurt him.

Before 049 could reply the other doctor took the small cupcake out of his pocket and put it on the table close enough for the creature to grab it but being cautious of not touching his hands for obvious reasons.

“Here, just take this as a small gift for our…companionship” Raymond said looking at him with a little smile.

SCP-049 looked at it for a bit before taking it in his hand, he even tilted his head a little like some birds do when they’re curious without realizing, Raymond did take a mental note on it tho.

Not even a minute later the guards entered the room to take the SCP to his containment cell, he quickly hid the cupcake inside his sleeve to not raise any suspicion, as the guards took the now unsecured metal bars off the floor to transport him, 049 looked at Raymond give him a small smile before leaving the room.

Chapter Text

Human behavior has always been something interesting to the Doctor, he studied it briefly many eons ago and the way it changes over time had fascinated him on many occasions. It was no surprise, however, when the Doctor found himself acting in similar ways from time to time but is not like he has a choice, there were no other beings like him on earth after all so it's logical for him to mimic the human behavior that surrounded him all of his life when he wasn't isolated in his laboratory running experiments and only going outside to gather, or rather hunt, test subjects.

One trait that the Plague Doctor saw in many animals was courting behaviors to get a mate, they all have some sort of courtship display no matter what level of cognitive intelligence they have; Some species do dances, some groom each other, build nests, share food or seek for pretty objects to gift their potential mate, and when he thought about it for a second he found that humans were not an exception to this rule because he saw almost all of them do any form of this mating behaviors. He saw people singing love songs to their beloved ones, how some would braid their lovers hair or caress their face with an immeasurable gentleness, gifting clothing either bought with a big amount of thought put into it or made by them from scratch, and while he knew there were other reasons or methods humans get together, he thought of it more as an exception than a rule.

And so it was only fitting for him to feel this strange painful sensation in his chest, having seen this demonstrations of affection displayed knowing it was really hard for him to able to perform them, and one in particular was absolutely impossible.

It was no secret the reason why him and the research could not touch, it was something well written on his file and the Plague Doctor had an almost infinite record of this. If he ever were to write a report on how many lives had come into an end for the nature of his cursed hands he would never finish, there would be piles and piles of files just for his first years of living on this earth.

It actually took him a long while to assimilate his feelings for his “colleague” as he mistook them for a purely platonic alliance between friends, but the deep pressure in his lungs whenever Raymond was on sight just wouldn't let him remain blind, the way his normally cold body would heat up to the sound of his voice on their weekly interviews he started to look forward a lot, and even more the amount of worry he felt whenever the lights went off and the sirens announced the beginning of a containment breach as he exited his now open cell and his first instinct was to search for the researcher instead of doing his routine of curing the researchers and guards that had the misfortune of crossing paths with him.

But that ache in his chest got worst in an almost pleasurable way the day he got all this feelings out of his head and confessed them to Raymond, this of course after making sure there were no cameras or microphones hidden in the cell, during one of those containment breaches; That day he thought he might die once his beloved researcher, instead of rejecting a creature like him, returned his feelings. They agreed to keep it a secret for very obvious reasons but he was happy nonetheless.

It was a bit weird feeling that way for something other than his work but he was making peace with it.

Today there was another containment breach in his side of the foundation, he sat the very not comfortable bed inside his cell and waited for the power to ran out as it usually did so he could get out and look for Raymond; He didn't have to wait long for it to happen, not even a few minutes passed since the alarms started sounding and the lights started to flick until they gave up, the power failed like it always did and his door unlocked allowing him to go out. Sometimes the creature wondered if this was done on purpose considering the foundation, at least due to the knowledge he gain from being there all this time, had a lot of precautions and didn't cheap out when it comes to security measures due to the dangerous anomalies, as they call them, that residence there twenty-four seven. Sometimes that thought made him doubt if perhaps his relationship with Dr. Hamm was only part of a cruel experiment the researchers were orchestrating and that's why he had free roam to see the other doctor during breaches and no one questions it or brings it up.

Pushing his doubts aside the Plague Doctor came out of his cell and went to the spot he and the man usually meet during this times, it consists of a storage room that contains old files, reports and even some cleaning tools due to it being so irrelevant the janitors started using it to store their items, therefore it had no alarms, no cameras, no microphones, no censors, no thing that could uncover their secret meetings. This was yet another thing the being thought was too convenient for it to be a coincidence but he wasn't brave enough to bring it up to Hamm, how could he question it out loud when he stared directly at those gorgeous tired eyes?

When he entered the room after making sure no one saw him, he saw Hamm already sitting on the ground waiting for him and he felt relieved, some days he would arrive and saw the room empty and, being the impatient person he is, would rush out to look for his partner until he finds him or comes back to the storage room after almost an hour of searching to find him waiting there; This was of course followed by the researcher telling him to calm down, that he wasn't fragile and helpless but this did little to soothe his worries, after all Hamm wasn't like him, the Doctor didn't age nor did he get weak by something other than injuries, but Hamm did, and his lover was already near his 60s, he knows what aging can do to a person and so he wasn't taking any risk on losing him so soon.

The researcher sensing his boyfriend, god did it felt weird to call him that not only due to the Doctor being something logic couldn't explain but also because it made him feel like a teenager, relax upon seeing him made the old man smile softly.

“Do you remember what we talked about, Doctor?” He asked watching his lover sit down in front of him on the ground while maintaining his distance, they didn't want to take any risks of the deadly hands accidentally touching him.

“I know, my dear, but how can I be so sure you'll be safe if I'm not watching you? I have been around this site for enough time to know a lot of things can happen” Even after all this time knowing each other and the relationship they had, the Doctor never once dropped his formal tone no matter how many times Hamm told him it was fine to do so, he really began considering maybe that's the only way the SCP knew how to talk.

“I'm not that old and I've been working here years before you came, I promise you I know how to take care of myself” He reassured him knowing those words will not be enough to prevent his partner from getting anxious whenever they are not together, but he could still try, besides he can see his body relaxing from his voice alone so he considers that a win. “I do have something to show you tho”

Hamm had to held back a chuckle when the Doctor crook his head a bit to the side like he always did when something caught his attention, it was as adorable as the first time he saw him do it. He decided to not keep him waiting more as he knew the 049 could be a bit impatient, he put one of his hands on the pocket of his lab coat and pulled out the desired object; Two thick white leather gloves

The bird-like creature stared at it like it was a puzzle needed to be solved, honestly he was waiting for it to be food, sure he doesn't need to eat but it doesn't stop him from enjoying it. Before he could ask about it the researcher began to explain.

“I figured since we discovered through last week's experiment your…’curing’ touch only works with direct skin on skin contact with your hands we could try to use this so we could, you know, touch” A soft yet lovely smile adorned his lips while explaining his idea to the SCP who seemed a bit taken back by it.

“I…Doctor please don't mistake this as me doubting your intellect or something similar but how could we be so sure it's safe for us to do this? What if it doesn't work?”

“We won't know if we don't try”

“What if it accidentally comes off and I touch you with my bare hands?”

“We'll make sure it's secured tight, see it has strings attached to it so it doesn't come off by accident, besides I chose white for a reason, your hands are very dark, therefore we will know if they aren't covering them enough”

“But what if–”

“049” The researcher interrupted his partner's worried ramble and the way he called him by his serial number instead of the usual pet names caught his attention enough to listen. “I've thought this through for a long time and I want to do this, please, trust me”

A big part of him wanted to say no, to get away from and cut off the relationship if it meant keeping him safe from any possible incidents that could happen to the doctor. But how could he say no to those beautiful, dark brown eyes? And how could he get away from that soft voice that seduced him like a siren to a sailor? He couldn't. The creature knew damn well how he'd wanted to touch him, to caress his face and wrinkles, to touch that hair and confirm his theory of it being soft, to know what it was to have those warm hands against his skin, and even tho he knew he wouldn't get to sense the majority of it due to the leather restricting the sensation of the contact, he still wanted to give it a try, for that was better than never embracing his partner in the eternity of his life.

“Very well, as you wish mon étoile” He answered, still having lots of doubts but one gaze to the excited smile his partner had upon his reply and they were silent.

Raymond left the gloves on the ground in between them for the Doctor to take, he waited patiently as he watched the SCP put them on and tie the strings tightly around his wrists, then it was time.

While Raymond was waiting with excitement the Doctor was not so sure, yes he agreed to it but he was still worried about it going wrong, he also didn't know if the heaviness in his chest was due to his concerns or the fact that the one thing he's been dreaming about lately was going to become a possibility that same day. Sensing the creature's distress Hamm stretched a hand towards him.

“Why don't we start slow first? I don't want you to feel pressured about this, just take my hand whenever you feel ready to” SCP-049 nodded in reply and waited a few minutes just staring at his lover's hands, he has been waiting for this moment for so long he can't bring himself to move, but the researchers words calm him a bit.

After a moment the bird-like creature extended his own hand to reach Hamm's in a slow and cautious movement, the tension for both sides was rising the closer their hands got, and as soon as the tip of their fingers touched and saw that nothing happened, they both sighed with relief, sure Hamm was confident about his plan but he still didn't know if it was one hundred percent safe, he had seen enough things in his job to know there wasn't a guarantee he was gonna die anyways. But he didn't, and now his smile grew a little more.

“See? I told you it would be fine”

The creature felt an intense happiness inside him, although the thick fabric didn't let him know how the skin of his lover felt to the touch it was still something. The SCP took it a bit further and tried to hold the other's hand but the position they were in made it difficult.

“Come here you big raven, sit next to me” Said the amused Doctor at the excitement of his lover and watched him st next to him on the ground completely eager to be close to him, apparently he wasn't the only one who was waiting for this moment.

While they sat there in silence with their hands intertwined the Doctor recalled the things he knew from mating behaviors and human's traditions surrounding the topic, he still wished to do that and more with his beloved but for now the faint warm feeling of Raymond's hands against his was more than enough.

Chapter Text

On Monday, everything was normal.

Everything was running smooth as always inside the facility, it was as normal as a place like that can be, not a single anomaly escaped that day, not a single researcher or dumb resident was harmed in the middle of whatever experiment they were running that day, everything was as usual in the unusual building. But not everyone shared that sentiment.

There was something wrong with Dr Hamm today.

049 couldn’t point out what it was, but something was just really off about the other doctor.

Nothing peculiar happened between them, their weekly routine of sitting and talking during the interviews, him sharing details about his recent experiments with the animal corpses the Foundation was so kind to give the SCP, Dr Hamm writing down some notes about his never ending rant and occasionally asking questions remained undisturbed. Still, there was something bothering him, SCP-049 stared at the man in front of him, analyzing his features like he used to do every single time the researcher wasn't paying attention, except this time his gaze was vastly different from his usually affectionate one, it was cold, his eyes scanned every single aspect of the other’s body looking for any anomaly.

There were no wounds, no scratches, no new wrinkles than the ones he already had, no new gray hairs aside from the ones the SCP had already counted, the image 049 had deeply ingrained and carved inside his mind of Dr Hamm remained undisturbed. So why was he feeling so uneasy around him?

“SCP-049?” His attitude did not go unnoticed by said researcher, while it was not uncommon for the creature to have sudden behavioral changes, he was an anomaly after all, an Euclid at that, but that didn't make it any less worrying.

The plague doctor snapped out of it and looked at the man in front of him, just no longer in the same meticulous manner.

“Ah…Apologies, sir” The creature felt slightly embarrassed knowing that he wasn't as discreet as he thought he was, that was a mistake he often made much to his dismay. All those years of blending with the dark of the cold streets in France, patiently waiting, collecting whatever material or helpless subject he needed for the night, sadly didn't help him when it came to masking his behavior in front of others, years of isolation can do that to anyone, even more when the majority of interactions you have during the day at your current situation are almost clinical, full with experiments, parameters and paperwork.

“Is everything okay?” It was now time for Hamm to stare, being careful as to not come across as judgemental, or as anything that could set off the SCP for that manner, he had quite the reputation of having a short temper, it was part of what made him so unpredictable even if they already had some of the SCP's possible triggers written down in his file.

No matter how human-like SCP-049 behaved, there was still an eerie sensation surrounding him and following him to every room he walked into. And no matter how much love Raymond’s heart held for him, the researcher could also not stop feeling that way around the entity.

“It's nothing, I promise”

049 hoped that sensation would go away soon, it wasn’t the first time experimented with something like that and he was sure it would dissipate just like it did most of the time.

On Tuesday, he could not rest.

It was late at night, or at least he thinks it was due to the lack of staff and the dimmed lights on his cell. When was the last time he saw the sun or the moon in person? He can't remember, 049 got so used to the artificial bright white lights bothering his eyes every single day, and he got used to humming or singing softly while performing his operations so he could ignore the annoying faint buzzing that kept distracting him, every single time he complained about it they treated him like he was crazy, there was no way no one else was able to hear it. SCP-049 missed so much about his life outside these concrete walls, even if he spent the majority of his days secluded and hunching over a table dripping with blood, he still missed being able to make the choice of living like that, he missed so deeply how the sun felt on his skin and how good it was to eat a cooked meal at a campfire on a summer night, even if he didn’t need to eat he still appreciates the little pleasure and comfort it brought him.

Lying on that uncomfortable prison bed was not helping him at all, if anything it was making it so much worse, it wasn’t as strong as it was in the moment but it was still there, that unnerving sensation he felt around Dr Hamm didn’t go away, it was so familiar, he could swear he’d felt like that before but he couldn’t tell when, not knowing the meaning behind it was driving him crazy. It clearly wasn’t about their ‘relationship’, they still held their, hopefully secret, meeting during breaches, the white gloves that allowed them to touch were hidden deep inside his leather bag and sometimes the entity put them on so they could remember more clearly how Raymond’s warm hand felt pressed against his, or how blissful it was to softly caress his hair, or how those brown eyes stared at him with a profound love while his hands gently held his face, 049 had seen so many things in his long, long life and yet Hamm’s gaze was the most beautiful thing he ever saw. But now, that horrid, disgusting sensation invaded all of those precious memories.

It made his chest hurt and burn and it made his throat close, like he had a noose tied around his neck, it felt just like the metal collar he was forced to wear every time he was allowed (He hated that, he hated that he had to be allowed to do things) to get out, and his wrists hurt just like when they secured the handcuffs too tight and didn’t even bother to ask because hardly anyone in there cared for his discomfort. He felt like a caged animal.

On Wednesday, a breach occurred.

His footsteps mixed with the howling sirens as he walked, almost ran, down the hallway looking for that one utility room they always used, it was so odd of him to ignore all of the personnel that were too unfortunate to not find a safe place to hide as soon as the alarms started. It was, apparently, a massive breach, which explains his urgency to get to their meeting place. Who knows what kind of creature got out this time? The doctor would never forgive himself if he found out his precious researcher got harmed in the horrid ways he’d heard.

When he got there the room was empty.

“It’s fine” He thought, feeling his pulse already accelerating and his jaw clenching. “I always get here early, Hamm shall be on his way”

The creature sat on the ground as usual to wait for his lover, putting his knees in a way that allowed him to rest his head on them. And so he waited, and waited, and waited, and waited. With every passing second turning into minutes and minutes turning into hours, 049 was barely holding it together, his hands were shaking and his breathing was irregular, and to make matters worse that rotting, suffocating feeling was ravaging his mind once again. It was brutal and unforgiving like a forest fire, it invaded his sensations, his eyes, his nose, his hands, his mouth, it possessed him like the creature was just a vessel for its venom.

By the time the staff discovered him and tried to bring him back to his cell, he was already a mess, his body shaking and sweat dripping down his ‘face’, and it got so much worse when those annoying commanding voices started ordering him to be still and let them handcuff him. Loud, so, so loud, everything was too loud and cold, and they just wouldn’t stop yelling, and he couldn’t stop himself, and he didn’t want to stop. He was so out of it and so aware at the same time, the warmth of the blood on his hands felt so welcoming and nice, before the reinforcement came and managed to sedate SCP-049, he had already taken down and transformed the initial squad that tried to get him locked down again.

On Thursday, he was questioned a lot.

Sitting behind a reinforced glass window, a researcher’s voice tried to talk to him, they asked several question regarding what happened yet he couldn’t find a response, he got asked why did he ignore all the people he encountered on his way, replied with silence, he got asked why did he choose that specific room to spent all those hours, replied with silence, he got asked why did he kill (No, not kill, cure) those men if he behaved so well before, replied with silence. And the questions just kept coming until the researcher in charge got tired and dismissed him.

“Pardon me, good sir…” The SCP’s voice was finally heard and it caught the attention of everyone observing him behind that glass.

“Do you finally feel like talking? It’s rare to see you be so silent”

“...About Dr. Raymond Hamm, is he alright?” Him blatantly choosing to ignore the previous questions to ask about the head researcher of his file was definitely interesting.

“I’m not answering that unless you answer all our questions, 049, you can’t cherry pick what you want to answer or not” Once again, they were met with silence, the entity refused to speak and he was sent back to his confinement.

On Friday, he was questioned again.

He sat in that icy-cold, unfriendly room, both of his hands cuffed to the table and the metal collar had chains that were also attached to said table, which was also reinforced so it stays in its place. The voices coming from the speakers made his head hurt like it was being split open, it was beyond irritating, the metal touching his neck and wrists wasn't helping and that awful faint buzzing in the background was driving him insane. No matter how many times they tried, all their questions were met with silence.

It's not like he even had an answer to any of that, honestly, not even he knows why he decided to lash out at that instance, or why he ignored everyone else on his path. The only thing he was certain about was his worry for Raymond and that suffocating feeling that did it company.

On Saturday, he was sitting inside his cell.

His head felt like it was filled with cotton and his body felt so numb, like he wasn't inside his own mind at all, the only thing he could sense was the harsh cold of the floor and the blinding white led lights above his head. The researchers decided to just let him be until what they called his ‘temper tantrums died down, he heard them whisper that maybe he'll calm down enough to be ‘trustworthy’ on his next scheduled interview with Hamm.

Hamm, Dr Raymond Hamm, alive and well.

Why was that thought giving him anguish instead of relief?

And on Sunday, his body felt more like his

He was aware, too aware, he wanted to feel numb again, he wanted to tear his own skin apart and feel his own blood paint the infernal gray concrete walls that kept him trapped. He was trapped, he was alone, he was cold, he was hot, he was feeling everything and nothing all at once and it hurt but it was so, so good, and so, so wrong, his hands felt like shaking and staying still, his breathing was erratic and calm and fast and slow. And it was too much and not enough and that bothersome, annoying, torturous and infernal sensation refused to go away, it grew stronger and stronger like it was feeding off of his pitiful state.

SCP-049 had a vague idea of what was going on and he refused to accept such a thing, he laid on the ground of his cell and waited for their meeting.

And then Monday came once again.

The guards secured his handcuffs and collar, and brought him to the same room as always, and those same brown eyes stared at him as they always did, and he was greeted by the same kind smile that always welcomed him, and the smile had so, so much worry hidden behind it. SCP-049 sat on the same chair he always did and they talked like everything was normal, and that dreadful feeling was still filling up his chest and adding enough pressure on his heart to make it explode. Except this time he knew exactly what it was, he could see it so clearly now, he felt it so many times in his lifetime while he walked collecting the leftovers of the hundreds of battlefields he witnessed and he wanted to believe that it was all an illusion.

“...Pardon me, sir, are you…feeling alright?” 049 looked clearly anxious, Raymond made sure to discreetly write notes about that on the papers he was holding on the clipboard.

“ Yes, a bit tired maybe, but I’m okay…Is there something wrong, doctor? Anything we could help you with?”

But how could he be wrong about something that was part of his own nature? How could he be wrong about something he dedicated thousands of years to? How could he feel that same sweet, putrid, rotting smell coming from the person he loved the most and not be in denial? He knew, he knew days ago and he knew what he had to do.

Everything happened so fast, he can’t even remember when did the chains on his collar snap, or at what point did the handcuffs give up, all he remembered was his lover’s eyes stare at him with a terrified expression.

“Please, doctor, don’t be afraid, this is…for the best”

Hamm didn’t even have the chance to alert anybody, his hand barely reached the in-chamber button that would have activated the emergency system when it was too late, there were no sirens, no alarms, no guards coming to help him, he just felt the worst pain of his life, like all of the cells of his body were dying at once and in less than 2 seconds he was gone.

As he laid his body on the table in the middle of the room that annoying buzzing started to rumble on his ears, that wouldn’t do, this had to be the most delicate procedure of his career and he wouldn't be able to if that pesky sound kept distracting him. SCP-049 took a deep breath, pulled his scalpel out of his bag and calmly chose something to recite while he worked.

“O Christ our lord, who art the Physician of salvation”

His steady hands removed the lab coat, then the sweater his lover chose to wear today, if only the circumstances were different. He would have cut right through the clothing like he was used to doing with the rest, but then again, this was no normal operation, he wanted to be as delicate as possible.

“Grant unto all who are sick the aid of heavenly healing”

He cut into his skin, pulling muscle apart to reveal his insides, the scenario he found was such a pity, the infection had spread beyond repair as that sickness often did, it was part of its cruel, unforgiving nature. But the doctor wouldn’t falter as he was more than certain that below all that rotting, sick and pestilent residue was hiding the most breathtaking organism his eyes had ever seen, a perfect body from the most perfect man.

“Look upon all faithful people who are sick and who love to call upon Thy name”

His hands were extremely careful when he started to remove the doctor’s spleen, his thyroid, his kidneys, his gorgeous lungs, his oh so lovely pancreas and his magnificent stomach. He made sure to be delicate when he started to reorganize them until they were all in the right places, and he made sure to clean them twice using his handmade chemicals, vials and tools to be certain that he got rid of any residue of that horrendous plague before putting those precious organs in the parts they were always meant to be in.

“And take their souls into Thy keeping”

049 took a moment to appreciate the perfection of his bone structure, he cleaned every single one of his ribs using a soft brush dipped in one of his many infusions, the beauty hidden below the putrefaction was revealed with each stroke and he carefully removed some of them so he could reshape his dear doctor’s corpse into the form he desired. He had to work quickly, even if the alarm system wasn’t activated he knew someone would come eventually and he couldn’t let his love go to waste.

“And vouchsafe to deliver them from all sickness and infirmity; through Jesus Christ”

His more than experienced hands were very meticulous while handling the thread and needle, they worked fast and steady while maintaining all the care SCP-049 put into the whole operation, but like all performers know, sometimes the finale can be the most difficult part of the show, he didn’t want to take any chances nor leave room for any mistakes, this was the most raw and pure and honest and sinful act of love he had ever done. He worked on Raymond’s body like he was building a cathedral, like a devotional act not for the god he was reciting a prayer to, but to Raymond himself, he hope his voice could reach him into whatever afterlife he was in and he could forgive him for the brief suffering his hands caused him, he prayed he understood this was all for the greater good.

“Amen”