The Emerald Dragon - Subaru in the Crusch Camp!

Chapter 8 - Motherly Love

"I'll tell you one hundred times, I'm not a...witch cultist, and I don't know what...that is." Subaru stammered between breaths, as he denied the title he was given.

"Brother, facts are facts. The world doesn't always give you a wonderful hand to play." Orphe said as he was preparing another tool.

"I don't give a shit about what kind of facts you believe. I just want to get out of this chair with Scarlet in tow." Subaru yelled as he pulled back against his restraints.

"Awww, the Witch Cultist cares about his Spirit because he can't take over Lugnica without it." Orphe's face suddenly turned serious "Not going to work here."

-Flashback ends

He had very little time without Orphe at least being near him. So right now he was blessed for Orphe to have needed to take care of something, as it gave him the thing he needed the most right now. Time to think.

Without knowing it, Orphe destroyed what Subaru could do best. Die. He was given plenty of food and water. Orphe always forcefully made him drink some blood which healed any damages he may have sustained from the torture. It was truly hell as he was also completely chained in a way where he couldn't move. He tried biting his tongue off, but he'd always fail.

So, all he could do here is wait for a chance that would never come.

Subaru was never one for religion. His parents just never taught him anything about it, so he never understood it like everyone else, but now he finally understands religion. When people are in situations that are out of their control. When all they can do is despair. That's what religion is for, at least to Subaru. As such, it felt like he prayed to every god there is before anything happened.

"Zeus? That's it... That's the last one I can remember." Subaru thought. He finally had nothing more to say, as he was done with every god he could think of. Nothing changed, but it staved off giving up.

"What's this feeling..." Subaru muttered. A form of warmth spread through his body. Unlike everything else in this god-forbidden place, the warmth felt comforting. He felt it once before, but he couldn't pinpoint where he felt this warmth.

A foreign thought entered his head. He was spooked by the sudden thought until he realized who it was from. "Contractor...you...are...here."

The words of the spirit he long thought gone reappeared within him. Scarlet materialized in front of him, ready for action.

"Scarlet... is that you?" Subaru let out his pathetic question, but even with his disgusting actions towards his Spirit, Scarlet gave Subaru a spin around his head. He always enjoyed when it did that.

Subaru put on his fake smile and began to advance his goal. "Hahahahahaha, I can't believe you came for me." His urge to laugh caught both himself and Scarlet off guard. "Well, at least you came at the right time..." Subaru flashed a weak smile before continuing with his sentence.

"Hey... Scarlet. Would you mind...killing me? Preferably in a painless way." His eyes reared towards the ground as he could no longer bare to look at his spirit. Resorting to assisted suicide, he truly was useless. He couldn't even kill himself, that's how much of a burden he was to everyone around him. Just a boy that leeches off of others' kindness.

He couldn't tell what the spirit was thinking. If only Scarlet had a body to move, a mouth to speak, and a face to show. Even with these limitations, Subaru could imagine the face that it would make. A scorn, and a glare. Those were the only things he deserved.

"Kill...you?" Scarlet's hesitant voice entered Subaru's mind. When Scarlet spoke in the past, it always had a neutral tone. Never any fear, pain, happiness, or any other emotion he could think of. He assumed that spirits couldn't have emotions, but he finally heard it... or thought it? Whatever, he felt the emotions. Fear, nervousness, hesitation. Subaru didn't know why Scarlet was emotionless before, but it was now. All due to his nature of being a shut-in. A failure.