IceAndWave/Wounds

Wounds

In which the knife is twisted, an escape is attempted, and hope dies a little more...

The 19th Day of Ascending Air, Realm Year 764

Time blurs, perhaps mercifully, in the whorehouse. Men and women arrive, use Venia and leave, sometimes as many as fifteen times in a day. Oriel looks after her as best she can, cleaning the Dragon-Blood, tending to the minor cuts and bruises she gets from some of the rougher "clients".

Venia saves all her acting human moments for Oriel, trying to encourage her and just slowly working to get those few links free, an exercise in tedium that at least is far better than the other one she's subjected to.

Late on one day, the last client arrives without much ceremony. The door opens and then closes, Venia not even caring enough to lift her head up. The sound of rustling silk in unusual, but the voice, the voice cuts hard and deep, "Hello, Venia." It is Wisel.

Venia doesn't even look. "Wonderful. I am hallucinating now. As if this wasn't enough of a nightmare."

"Rumours filtered down from the Threshold about a Dynast in a whorehouse." Wisel moves into Venia's line of sight, "I didn't think it would be you, but..." her eyes disdainfully take in her younger relative's appearance, "I can't say I'm surprised."

Venia bites her lip hard. Wisel doesn't go away. "You're... you're real. Oh no...."

"Yes. I'm real," she strokes her hand down Venia's face, "And you... you're a whore now, it would seem. An interesting choice of career."

Venia stares at the hand, stunned momentarily into silence before suddenly launching into somewhat raspy High Realm, rapid and almost incoherent. "I didn't! Bastard... fat bastard pig working with the Dead... collared me, no Essence... exiled, allies far away..." She turns her gaze to Wisel's face. "Get me out of here!"

"Why would I do that?" Wisel's face hardens, "I had you sent up here in the first place, and you want me to release you? You never did know how to handle your enemies, Venia."

"Wisel, please... whatever I did, it isn't worth this... I was still trying to assist the House even here... I can make it up to you!"

"Venia, dear... what makes you think that we want you back? Particularly after confirming rumours reach certain ears regarding the possible identity of the Dynastic whore." Wisel leans down, but not so close as to be within even Venia's reach, "Besides, the damage it will to do Belar will be quite useful."

Venia can't even glare balefully at this point, the treachery far beyond what she would have expected. She just kind of slumps defeated, tears running down her cheeks. "Just... just kill me, you bitch. I can't stand this place, all I ever wanted was to go home... and... and... please."

"No. I don't think so, not when I've just bought a half interest in this... establishment," she looks around disdainfully. "House Cynis no longer requires your services, Venia."

"I didn't think anyone would work with the Dead like this. Certainly not one of my own house..."

"Deals with the devil are our stock in trade, particularly while the Empress is away."

"Mrm... she was doing it too..."

"Interesting," Wisel nods, "But not enough to free you from here. You were supposed to be resourceful, Venia. Get yourself out of here. And the next time you make an enemy, either kill them outright or make them your slave. Anything else is asking for trouble."

"I will keep that in mind when I piss on your grave."

"Such crudity. The Threshold has affected more than your body, I see." She picks up her robe, wrapping it around her body, and reaching for the door, "I'll leave you to your new life." And she leaves, the rustle of silk the last sound she makes.

Venia tries to roll over and curl up away from the world by reflex, unable to despite her most furious tugs on the chains. She sobs, suddenly alone more than ever in the silence.

The door opens again after a few minutes, and Oriel shuffles in. Her normally beautifuly face is marred by a fresh black eye, and there are obvious tear tracks down her cheeks. "Lady Venia," she whispers, "I've got your food."

"Keep it."

She walks slowly around the bed, putting the tray down, and looking at her charge, "Oh, Lady Venia... what did she do to you?"

"Nothing, and everything. I can never go home again..."

"... Neither can I."

Venia shakes her head. "Birds of a feather, eh... Destroying any good name I had left, expelling me from the House... all to get back at her sister. And it's like I never even Exalted..."

Venia looks over at her. "Can you find someone else to take charge of me? I don't want you hurt over what I am going to do."

"What... what do you mean?"

"I expect that killing customers is frowned on here."

"If you do, he'll just gag you."

Venia shrugs. "Probably. But it's all I've got left. Maybe I can infuriate one of them into finally killing me... I've got nothing left to live for, Oriel. I know four people in all the north, 2 of which I can't even face. I have no family, I have no job. Just a bunch of merchant nonsense waiting for me in Tideholme if all of that hasn't been taken away. There's nowhere to go."

Oriel sighs, sitting on the bed, "I saw one girl who hurt a... client. He gave her to a pirate ship. They raped her to death." She turns to look at Venia, "But you're Exalted, you heal so much faster than we do, Lady Venia." She rubs her bruised eye.

"I will have to try harder, then. There is nothing else for me to do. Wisel could keep me here for over a hundred years like this. I won't let that happen."

"I..." Oriel whispers, "I dreamed that I was rescued, last night. I was free again. And then I woke up and had to take one of Yola's regulars, because she's too pregnant." She cries, "Don't die, Lady Venia. Please don't die."

Venia growls a little at her, looking away. "If I do, rest assured it will be taking this place down with me. Now go on, get out of here."

Oriel sighs, and leaves Venia alone, chained to her bed in the dying light of the day.

The 2nd Day of Resplendent Air, Realm Year 764

"Get her! Get the bitch!" the shouts ring out across the whorehouse as Venia runs into the maze of tight corridors and tiny rooms that make up the majority of the buildings structure. Burly men, some of the clutching parts of themselves, chase after the naked Exalt with angry expressions.

Venia has no idea where she's going, but at this point, it hardly matters. She goes careening around corners and driving down hallways, jagged fingernails scratching lines in the wall as she grabs onto the walls to fling herself in a new direction instead of slowing to turn.

The thin, frightened faces of the whores poke out of their rooms, disappearing quickly when they see Venia's half-crazed face. Two of the guards suddenly emerge from a side corridor, one of the swining a hefty stick at the Dragon-Blood's stomach.

Venia puts a hand on it, cartwheeling to lock her ankles behind his neck, snapping her body like a whip to hurl him forwards at the other guards. She rolls back up to her feet, facing the other guard with a slightly bloody grin.

The guard hurtles down the corridor, bouncing off the walls before coming to a rest on his face, the other guard drops into a more cautious stance, fists at the ready. The owner yells again, "Any of you fuckers mark her permanently and I'll make you eat your balls! She's worth more than any of you! Just grab her!"

Venia flips him off without even looking, not willing to risk the dive over the guards. She feints a couple of times, genuinely pleased to see the guard flinch before she steps up and unleashes a vicious soccer kick to the balls, driving her jagged-tipped fingers into his throat when he bends over. She shoves him down and backs away slowly, trying to find a way out.

The guard crumples to the floor, twitching, but more appear, leaving Venia boxed in at a junction in the corridors. "That's it! We've got her now!" the whorehouse owner's voice rises with obvious glee.

Venia looks to one side, and looks to the other. She looks back forward, steely gleam in unmatched eyes as she stalks forward. The first guard doesn't even grab at her until she's almost past him as she makes her way directly towards the owner with deadly intent clear on her face.

Even so, doing it was a bad mistake, as she spins to catch his arm and snaps it brutally backwards over her back, an elbow to the temple knocking him out for his troubles. The next one to rush her gets a fine mist of blood spat in his face, blinding him momentarily and long enough for her to spin his comrade by the ruined arm into him, sending them both skidding down the floor at the onrushing guards behind her.

The guards ignore their comrades, rushing Venia with force of numbers. Fists slam into her back, her stomach, her face, the beating going on for long minutes, until she is barely unconscious and seeing through swollen eyes.

Venia still kicks and fights as long as she can, fingernails raking and teeth biting until she's held into place, a rather difficult feat considering how she twists and turns at angles that would break a normal person's joints in two.

She is held splayed by angry men, looking up at the owner who spits in her face, "If you weren't worth so much I'd give you to a pirate ship for that. As it is... well, you'll regret doing that." He kicks one of the men, "Get Geddis, I want this bitch ringed. And make sure you rivet the manacles this time!"

Venia returns fire, raking her teeth against her tongue and hocking a big wad of blood and phlegm at him. "Won't work. I will get loose, and you will die. Count those heartbeats dearly, you don't have too many left."

Back in her room, Venia is forced onto the bed, her wrists and ankles shut into manacles that are hot-rivetted shut. Some of the metal sparks dance on Venia's skin, creating little clouds of steam from her sweat. Then someone, presmably Geddis, arrives.

An ugly man with half his face lost to a horrible fire, he looks at Venia and drools slightly. The owner, behind him, says, "Don't get carried away. Just the nipples, for now." Geddis nods and extracts a long needle from a kit, placing it in the flames of a brazier with heavy tongs until the metal glows red.

Venia raises an eyebrow, then another. "You simply cannot be serious."

Geddis doesn't say anything, instead extracting the now orange needle and, wearing heavy leather gloves, moves to the side of Venia's bed and then forces the searing-hot spike through the Exalt's left nipple.

Venia hisses. "This is a bloody party trick. Let me at a few more of your men, you can have the eyebrows and navel."

A large iron ring is forced through the cauterised hole and squeezed shut, before Geddis repeats the procedure on the right. The owner glares at Venia, a dark lust in his eyes, "This is a warning. Eyebrows and navel are just the start of your worries. You don't need to be able to get off, whore."

"I'm not sure any amount of piercings could help you with that. Short and shorter still."

"We won't just use piercings," he looks at Geddis, "Good job. You can have any one of the girls you like, usual deal." Geddis nods and drools in response.

"Oh, joy. Got some nice candles? Maybe a bit of ever-frozen ice? I'm still a bloody Cynis, no matter what that dragondamned bitch says!"

"Careful, bitch!" He stalks up and grabs one of the rings, twisting it viciously against the seared flesh, "You really don't want to piss me off. I ain't gonna kill you, you're making me rich, but I can make you wish I had." He releases her nipple and smacks her hard, "She works til midnight," he says to a guard, "Bitch cost me a lot of money today."

Venia pants, opening and closing her eyes against the pain. "Better kill me now. You can't break me, and you can't contain me forever. And you're sending drunken clients in here with me. I should thank you for saving me the hassle of finding them to tear out their throats."

Not saying anything, the owner leaves with his guards, and a few seconds later Oriel rushes in, her face covered in tears, "Oh, Lady Venia... what have they done to you?"

"Party tricks and cheap threats." She works her mouth to try to get some moisture back in. "Breaking's not about what they do to you, you know. Nobody can force it. You have to give up. I'm not. Not yet." She turns her head to Oriel. "You doing alright?"

Oriel nods slowly, "As well as I can, here." She reaches for a damp cloth and begins wiping Venia's face clear of the sweat and blood (hers and others'). "Do they hurt?"

"'Course. That's the point... be a good hurt if they had anyone waiting who deserved them. Just little bits of flesh, not important." She twists, pressing her cracked lips to Oriel's in a soft kiss, lips growing a little less rough as it continues until she rolls back. "Been weeks since I had a proper one."

Oriel sighs, returning the kiss gently, before returning to cleaning her charge.

Venia closes her eyes, trying to rest a while. "Thank you, Oriel. Not sure if there's anything I can do, but if there is... just ask."

Oriel nods, not trusting herself to words right now.

Venia sort of tunes her out from then on, trying to plan her way around the rivets and etch the corridors in her mind. Can't cover every exit with enough guards... all just mortals anyway...

The rings in her nipples, unsurprisingly, attract attention from the customers of the whorehouse, and every day they are bruised and abused by men (and sometimes women) who like to play roughly with them.

Venia occasionally comments that if they're going to be there, they should at least not look like crap. Though this too likely gets ignored. If nothing else, she almost comes to ignore their presence, mechanically going through the responses demanded of her to get these minor distractions from her plans done with their messy business and out.

Oriel cleans her as best she can, keeping the imprisoned Dragon-Blood company during her free time, and occasionally providing some physical comfort when things have been particularly bad.

Venia loathes having Oriel see her like this, but remains surprisingly comforting and sane when she's around, retreating back into her shell as soon as the door shuts. She finally gets impatient and simply bites a chunk out of a client's neck when they get too rough with the ugly iron rings.

The beating that follows this is long and brutal, the guards using their clubs creatively on Venia, leaving her bleeding from between her legs. From that time onwards, while she is "working" Venia is gagged solidly.

Venia chews idly on it, only wishing she'd gotten a little farther to kill her target. It's annoying that she's running out of options to hurt people with.