K I N G • KLAUS MIKAELSON [1]

ghost world

RIVER rolled over from his place on the ground, his body throbbing with pain. He opened his eyes, his left eye stinging as he tried to force it open. Through blurry vision, he managed to spot Damon across the room coming back to consciousness. Damon was also suffering, chained to a dining chair, a stoker from the fireplace protruding from his chest, his sunlight ring resting on the ground. River recognised the familiar sight, it was the same sight that he had witnessed when he had shoved the fireplace stoker through Mason Lockwood's chest.

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me" Damon groaned.

River groaned, looking around the seemingly empty rest of the room, a feeling nagging him, the feeling that they weren't alone.

"Stefan!" River called, pulling himself into a sitting position, leaning against the door frame.

"Low blow, Stefan" Damon managed "Low blow"

The footsteps sounding revealed Stefan's presence as he moved into sight, an expression of humour and confusion on his face as he surveyed the pair of them.

"What the hell happened to you two?" He questioned.

"Whatever twisted ripper game this is, leave me out of it" Damon snarled.

"I didn't do this" Stefan argued.

"Quit screwing around!" Damon retorted.

"I didn't" Stefan repeated.

"He didn't" River breathed carefully, each breath causing a sharp pain "Klaus compelled him not to hurt me, he couldn't have"

"It's pretty messed up though, isn't it?" Stefan spoke, checking the chains that held his brother down.

"Yep" Damon agreed.

Stefan grabbed hold of the stoker, ripping it from Damon's abdomen, the vampire loudly shouting as the pain spiked before fading back down to nothing. Stefan pulled at some of the chains, snapping most of them, leaving the rest for his brother.

"Yeah, not to worry" Damon spoke as Stefan moved away "I'll just untangle myself"

Damon managed to pull the chains from him, the curtain suddenly falling from the window, the sunlight streaming through, Damon's skin sizzling as his shouts of pain resonated.

-

River sulked moodily in the passenger seat, silent as the car came to a stop before his friends, Caroline and Bonnie.

"Blondie, witchy" Damon greeted, receiving an eye-roll "I think you got your voodoo wires all crossed when you got rid of Vicki Donovan"

"What do you mean?" Bonnie wondered "Why?"

River pulled the sunglasses from his face, revealing the purple bruises forming on his face, the sickly colour decorating his eye socket, cheekbone and around the split in his lip. They all accompanied the identical bruises that scattered the less visible places on his body.

"River!" Caroline gasped.

The boy sent a sarcastic smile as he lit up a cigarette.