The Birth of Ignaius - (Part 2 of the Ignaius-Saga)

Monsters and Abominations

***Mature content warning. This chapter contains explicit description of sexual torture and somem people may want to skip it.***

Now Tanier started to see the effect. He was at the same time scared and fascinated. This was something new indeed. And also something he had no plan for. Not even close. And he was pretty sure that this was just the warm up.

Slowly, Rovik began to circle the table, watching the toxin work its way through Variel's system and into his mind. "Have you ever seen pure terror before, Your Majesty? I'm sure you have seen the fear of many men and women alike, even those who know they are about to die. However, there are very few things that can bring out the truest of terror and panic, because the human mind always has some way to protect itself. I have recently discovered what real fear looks like, and I find it exquisite. Today, I will share that with you, so do watch closely."

The three men present in the room already knew the rules of this game, and they knew what to expect. They would each take Variel one at a time, and Rovik had encouraged them not to rush. They had even drawn straws before hand, so the order was already decided.

Variel was in a world of his own by this point. The voices had become strange, inhuman sounds that seemed to filter directly into his brain, not through his ears. He could no longer see daylight, nor could he describe what he saw. It was dark, but he could see looming shapes, eyes, unrecognizable objects slowly coming into focus, yet becoming no more clear. HIs chest felt so tight that each breath was a chore, raspy and wheezing. His eyes were wide and staring into a sea of slowly forming nightmares.

Tanier watched mesmerized. At this point all games and play had stopped and he was beyond planning and plotting. He didn't care, if he provided the audience that Rovik was looking for. This was ingenious and truly diabolic: Turning the mind against itself and attacking it from the inside.

"Is there an antidote?" he asked, his curiosity pushing everything else aside. Even his hate for Rovik and his actions had died.

Rovik was well aware of the king's interest, but he didn't ruin it by taunting the man. He simply answered the question, sharing information freely as he slowly rolled Variel onto his back. This would allow Tanier a clearer view of the boy's face and the petrified stare.

"No antidote is known to date," he explained. He ran a finger down over Variel's face, and the boy pulled in a shuddering gasp through his nearly closed throat. "The substance wears off after about two hours or so, depending on the dosage. Of course, too much at once will completely break the mind. The victim will either become a vacant shell with no hope of recovery, or the panic and stress will put their body into shock and their heart will give out."

Rovik studied Variel's face a moment longer, then looked to the man who was to go first. "He is all yours. Have fun." His grin could belong to Madness itself.

Tanier had come closer. All restraints were gone. He watched Variel's face with a completely clinical interest and felt a strange sense of freedom. All his hopes and fears had crumbled, broken to pieces and ground to dust by what he saw. Variel was beyond his reach. He had no way to reach him and no way to safe him, if Rovik had miscalculated the dosage. Nothing he said or did could make any difference, for good or for bad. As there was nothing he could do, he felt completely free, as if a huge burden was taken off his shoulders.

At the same time he felt deep resignation spread through him. What was torture compared to this liquid fear that Rovik could so easily pour into Variel - or him? There was no way to fight this. It was like his one and only defense was suddenly wrested from his hands, leaving him clue- and defenseless.