*A/N* Hello, we're back, I am so sorry that this actually took SO long! I do apologize in advance for the bad quality writing and any repetition or spelling and grammar mistakes. This chapter's trigger warning is abuse of all kinds, if this triggers you, please do not read any part of this chapter. If you are staying, I hope that you enjoy it. Happy reading!
In Elijah's Mind
The next door that the Mikaelson siblings were led into was quite similar to the last. The imagery that started to take place was familiar by now, the same cell, the white tablecloths, the torture instruments, and of course Elijah in the middle. It was almost deja vu at this point, they watched as Mikael entered the room and stalked around their brother in a circle, same old, same old. They heard the drawled "It's been a long time, Elijah" and watched as their father meandered around the cell, tauntingly inspecting metal contraptions.
Eventually, he came to stop next to a chain, they all saw Elijah go stiff. All at once, in perfect synchrony, their eyes traveled down to their brother's hand, right where his ring was, or... should have been. And all together the Mikaelson family had the exact same thought, they were stuck, until nightfall at least, lest their brother scorch away in their very arms. Unfortunately, none of them had time to think it out any further as a rattling sound pulled them from their thoughts and back into what was happening in front of them.
Mikael had tugged down on the hanging chain, causing a shutter behind Elijah to rattle open. The second that the blockade was lifted, sunlight poured in and Kol held his breath as it was bathed over his older brother's skin. Instantly, on contact, clothing and flesh sizzled away and dams fell apart to let rivers of blood run down in streams. Just before his son's body would have burst into angry fire, Mikael let the chain go and the shutter fell back into place.
As their father approached the bleeding, crumpled form on the ground, the same uneasy, sick feeling crept its way into Rebekah's stomach. She watched the way her father held her brother's face in a way that made bile rise in her throat. It might have looked normal to someone else, she couldn't pinpoint it, but something was wrong, it just felt off. It shouldn't feel like that, she tried to reason with herself, Mikael shouldn't be looking at Elijah like that, the sight shouldn't feel like that. But it did, and nothing could ebb the feeling away.
The next door was much farther down the hall, taking them several minutes to walk there. Although Elijah tried to hide it as best he could, they could all tell he was limping badly. The shaky, rattling noise of his breathing didn't lessen anyone's concern either. Even away from the physical world, their brother's body didn't return to its usual, healed state, his subconscious was wounded, more than they even knew.
Inside the new room was an entirely different scene, a cell yes, but not the one they had just left. This new one made the old look like a five-star suite. It was entirely filthy, beyond belief, the dirt floor was wet resulting in an almost ankle-deep mud. A horrid stench hung in the air, almost unbearable, it was so putrid. The small room was only slightly bigger than a closet, and it was so dark that you could barely see a hand in front of your face. Along with all this, it was terribly cold, even Klaus shivered when vampires nor werewolves should feel chilled unless it was very extreme.
It took a while for them to adjust their vision and be able to take in what was being shown to them. The first thing that they actually saw was the cage, made out of shiny metal, brand new, deliberately placed here, bars dripping with a substance that, upon closer inspection, smelled strongly of vervain. It was even longer, despite their enhanced vision, before they could make out the figure inside of the cage. The person had been crammed inside, the space so small that they were forced onto their knees in a hunched over position and no possible way to turn around. The only thing that protected them from the cold was a pair of torn, barely-held-together pants. The sole other piece that covered their skin, although it could hardly be considered "clothing," was a horrid collar, made out of polished metal with prongs that lined the inside, covered in vervain as well going off of the burns around the poor vampire's neck, so that at the slightest pressure they would dig into the throat.
Freya audibly gasped as she took in the sickening view. Nobody could be so barbaric, not even Klaus and she had seen her fair share of what he was capable of. The Mikael behind the previous doors and in the barn was not the person that she had once called Father. He was not the person who had told her stories and tucked her into bed and given her piggy-back rides. He was an entirely different being, a monster, with the same face and name but completely changed underneath.
Mikael couldn't have- wouldn't have- done this, her brain tried to convince her. But the eldest Mikaelson couldn't simply refuse what stood in front of her, as much as she dearly wanted to. She knew those eyes, though these ones were different, these ones were scared and frantic and broken, but they were still the same deep, brown, safe, loving eyes that she had grown to adore so quickly. The person's face was still so familiar, even though it was dreadfully pale now, starved and bruised beyond belief, it was still his face. It was still Elijah's face, still Elijah's eyes, still Elijah in that cage, no matter how badly she wished that it wasn't.
No, this wasn't Klaus, as viscous as the hybrid might be, he would never do this. Sure, stakes, daggers, coffins, those were right up his lane, but that didn't compare to this. The clear marks of torture here? She wouldn't put it past him. The cage? That was pushing it a bit, a cell, possibly, but not a cage. The collar though? The kidnapping? The starvation? No, this memory wasn't from Klaus. But Mikael, not the one from her childhood, the new one that she had met in the barn, the one she had seen in Elijah's memories, the monster? This had his name written all over it.
Rebekah had reached a similar conclusion, her hatred for her father growing by the second. If the rest of her family didn't get to him before she did, the first blow to Mikael would come by her hand. She knew Mikael, reasonably, she did. She had lived in the same house as him for years both as a human and as an early vampire. She and her family had run from him for centuries, been chased by him their entire immortal lives, seen the destruction that he could bring. She knew what he was capable of. But this wasn't just knowing it, she was seeing it for herself. This wasn't the same as before, they weren't just running away, waiting for their father to catch up, and then escaping, that was a familiar game, but this one was all new. This was different from all the other times, none of them had ever been caught before... right?
None of them got to think any further on it as the cell door was suddenly thrown open. A blinding light flooded the room and they could see a looming silhouette standing in the doorway. They all knew exactly who it was without even seeing the man's face or hearing his voice. Elijah knew who it was all too well.
"Good evening, Elijah," Mikael's familiar drawl reached their ears, approaching the cage and their brother inside with heavy, deliberate, purposefully threatening steps, "I saw your lovely little Klaus today."
The form in the cage visibly stiffened at those words, but kept steady and stayed silent. Because even broken down beyond all belief and stripped of every strand of humanity and dignity that he had left, Elijah was still, and would always be, Elijah. Klaus was scared to even think of the things that Mikael and Esther would have to do for his brother to break his vow to them. Wherever that breaking point was, he sincerely hoped that it was never found, because if Elijah could break, then what on Earth would happen to the rest of them?
*A/N* I am sorry, this one was a long time coming and I know it's so short for how long it took. My writer's block is real bad right now so I am trying my best but I just decided that this would have to be good enough for this chapter. I hope you liked it, if you did please do not forget to vote. You can also add it to your library/bookmark it or follow me so that you get notified whenever I release a new chapter. Again, so sorry, I will try to have the next one out faster!
1542 words