Thread: ~ Love of Pain~ {Houdini}

Eyes shut... eyes shut.... e...y...e...s .......... SHut......... eyes shut....... E...Y...E...S... shut..... Hearing the whip crack next to her, but not on her own back she took a ragged breath knowing it was only going to be a matter of time. The whip cracked sharply twice more, again off to her right. This time the hash crack was accompanied by a loud shriek... eyes shut... eyes shut... eyes shut... The temptation to open her eyes and look was almost overwhelming but she had already done that once and dearly regretted it. The sight that had met her was bloody and beaten, he probably had at least three days of torment on her. It was a sickening reminder of what her fate would be soon enough. The whip striking against her back was sudden and unexpected. If it had only been one strike she would have been strong enough to suppress the scream, but the blows kept coming without pause. When finally the whip missed a beat her mind paused in shock. Holding her breath a moment longer she finally heard the whip crack a little further away. Laila rested uninterrupted for almost an hour before she felt movement on her chains and heard the clicking of the locks release. Lifting her head ever so slightly she felt hands on her wrist pulling her backwards till she twisted around into a sitting position. Immediately she was yanked to her feet, and promptly fell to her knees. Almost a week tied in one position and the numerous beatings had left her weakened. The guard did not wait for her to regain strength, instead he half carried, half dragged her through the room. Three rooms later she was still trying to figure out if she was dreaming or if this was the end. Finally he turned left, pressing her against the door jam as he opened the door and pushed her in ahead of him. She tripped over a chair that was to the right of the door and he did not bother catching her. This the one? Feeling a hand gently run over the top of her head and through her hair she thought it was the gentlest anyone had touched her in weeks. Then a sharp twist of his wrist brought her head back at a sharp angel, cutting the thought from her mind. He continued to pull till she was in a sitting position, with her head still tilted upward. The way he held her she had the vague idea he was less than an inch from breaking her neck. Open yours eyes... Look at me... Ever so slowly she opened her eyes, the first time in nearly a week. The light made it hard for her to focus on him and her eyes watered slightly. When he eased his grip on her hair she thought she must have been doing something right. Staying as still as she could manage she focused her eyes on his jaw, trying not to look defiant or defeated. Those are the green eyes I saw on the battlefield...... On your way out, send in the healer. Laila watched him slowly back away from her and move back to the table he had apparently been working at before her arrival. The guard simply disappeared back out of the door. As he sat down he gestured to the couch several feet from her. There was a temptation to stay where she was, it was closer to the door but he was being pleasant so far and she hoped to keep him that way. After several long minutes of half crawling half dragging her bruised body across the floor she managed to pull herself on the the couch, laying face down. Only a short amount of time seemed to pass before the door opened without even a single knock. The young man came in without a slight hesitation. Nodding what passed as a greeting to the other man in the room, his attention immediately turned to her. She was almost proud of herself when she managed not to flinch as he came closer. Kneeling down next to her without a word he quickly went to work examining the bruises through the tattered remains of her clothing. The easy way or the hard way.... It seemed an odd question to her, especially since she had not done any resistance or struggle. Her docile posture should have been answer enough for him, but the slight turn of his head towards the other man gave her a sinking feeling. Whatever the signal was it was too subtle for her to notice but the healer must have understood because he was smiling when he gave her his full attention again. Now can you behave or am I going to have to use chains to keep you cooperating? I... I... I can..... can cooperate...... The slight tingle of magick in the air mad the little hairs on her body stand up. Pulling her arms on the couch with her, she folded them under her head to avoid temptation. Sometimes healing could hurt, sometimes it was pleasant. At the hand of her enemies she was guessing it would be the first, not the later. Moving her face so she faced down she took one last deep breath to steady her self. Three hours later sweat covered her body and she was barely conscious. If she had not been on the receiving end she might have appreciated the skill. The self control that it took to behave as expected had taken its own toll on her mind as well as her body. Her mind had nearly taken all the pain that she could take for one day. And the self restraint of laying still and simply absorbing that kind of suffering had left her ready for the final blow to break her will. The healer had undone the physical evidence of the long hours of beatings, bruises, cuts, scars, and torture. Despite her best attempts she had screamed several times when he healed the deep knife wounds on her lower back. For most of the session she had managed to lay near perfectly still and resisted the urge to try and stop the source of the pain. The physical wounds, the infections they had caused, as well as the scars that would eventually replace them were completely healed to new pink skin. The price of such a healing was not only the physical pain he had caused by forcing the skin to heal at an accelerated rate, but also being nearly completely drained of energy and strength. The pain was just under the surface, waiting for her to try to move. At the moment she would have almost preferred they had continued to beat her, the pain had not been nearly so bad. There was talking somewhere behind her, but the words didn't make sense to her. With what little logic that was left to her she came to th conclusion the person was not speaking to her. So she did not give it much effort to further to try. Sweet darkness felt like it was within reach and she tried to wait patiently for it to take her. During the healing session it had stayed just out of reach, a credit to the man. Once again the darkness never had the chance to take her. A hand pressed into her ribs pulling her toward the edge of the couch. The thought of resisting or trying to catch herself only came after she was laying on the floor. A hand on each of her wrist pulled her into a sitting position with her back pressed against the couch. Then hands started to strip her clothes away. After a few useless hand movements she realized she did not even have the strength to struggle. Sitting unresponsive and barely able to stay upright on her own, it was no time before the remnants of her blood soaked clothes were stripped. To her surprised the water that ran over her skin was warm and the hands were gentle. Opening her eyes slightly she did not recognize the woman that sat with her, washing away blood, dirt, and sweat. Her body was still covered with dirt and blood from the battle days ago, plus the blood from the last few days of beatings. The womans patience and kindness was a stark comparison to the cold and cruel hands of the healer. Letting her focus drift off to the side she did not close her eyes but she did not want to see the look on the womans face. It was a more pleasant thought that the woman was being nice, rather than simply doing as she was ordered. A heavy blanket was draped over her shoulders when the bath was complete. It didn't seem to dry her skin as simply to cover the fact that she had no clothes on. Next the woman began untangling the mess that had become of her dark hair. Days ago at battles start it had been pulled into a tight braid, but the helmets movement had loosened much of it. Along with everything else that had happened to her since then. It seemed to take a lifetime for the woman to comb out her hair. Washing it seemed to go smoothly as well as the final combing. The woman braided her hair in a series of small tight braids close to the scalp. After finishing the last one, the woman patted her shoulder gently and stood up. For a moment she thought about thanking the woman before the door closed but on second thought it seemed like thanking the healer for his assistance. Closing her eyes, she didn't dare try to lay down, so she did the next best thing and let her head lay back against the couch. It had not crossed her mind to look for the man responsible for her current presence, he had been lost in the shuffle of people and last few hours of constant help.