Consciousness slowly found him, the comforting warmth of sedation slipping away as rough, icy tendrils crept into his mind; flowing down his spine to spread through his extremities, one by one. His fingers twitched, then his toes, until each of his limbs was filled with the prickly sharp cold of awareness.
Phenex groaned when a dull ache started at the back of his head, throbbing in a steady cadence when it reached his temples. Opening his eyes, he looked around, unable to make out much of anything, at first; just dark, fuzzy shadows. Eventually he could see shapes, the blurred outline of a door coming into focus. As his grogginess finally started to fade, he attempted to put a hand to his aching head, only to realize he couldn't.
Am I paralyzed? No...this is something else, entirely, he reasoned. If I were paralyzed, I wouldn't be able to move my fingers. So what the hell—
He glanced at his arms, realizing that they were splayed out on either side of him, thick manacles encircling both wrists. Peering down, he saw that his legs were much the same, feet firmly planted on the floor with his ankles chained so that they were flush against the wall, his body forced into the shape of an 'X'.
Where the hell am I? Wait—of course. He closed his eyes, forcing back an aggravated sigh.
The events prior to his loss of consciousness came back to him with a sickening jolt. His battle with Reeves, how he'd just gotten him down on the ground, preparing to deliver the final blow, when... Phenex growled, the final piece of the puzzle falling into place. His arms shook with barely contained rage, the image of a seductive, dark-haired woman coming to the forefront of his mind.
"Iris." Her name came out a curse. It figured that she had resorted to cheap tricks, launching a sneak attack against him when he'd otherwise been focused on Reeves. Being who he was, her earlier attempt to use her siren song on him had had no effect. Judging from what had followed—and the position he currently found himself in—it was safe to assume that she was a very sore loser, indeed. All it would have taken was a quick stroke of one of her wrist barbs, and whoever dared defy her would be rendered immobile.
And he had dared.
Now we know for sure. He vaguely took notice of the countless shackles lining the dungeon's walls, crusted with suspicious, reddish-brown stains that he could only assume had once belonged to Iris's past victims. Phenex suppressed a shudder at the thought. She and Reeves have been in league all along.
It was something the council had suspected long ago, but for whatever reason, had never been able to prove. Before long—and much to Phenex's confusion—charges had been filed against Hercules, the demigod shipped off to Nowhere before he even had the chance to figure out what had happened.
Thanks to Athian, maybe I'll finally get that chance, he thought. A lump formed in his throat when he thought of the informant. He'd promised Athian amnesty, had promised to keep him safe from Reeves and whoever else might do him harm—and he had failed. And to top it off, now he was stuck here.
Well, that was about to change.
Gritting his teeth, Phenex began tugging against the manacles with renewed vigor, the sleeves of his leather jacket sliding down to reveal the straining tendons of his forearms. Unfortunately, this only caused the manacles to bite into his wrists, blood trickling down his arms in thick rivulets. As soon as the wounds had healed, he tried again, even going so far as to turn himself into a blazing inferno—all to no avail.
What the hell are these cuffs made of? he seethed, panting from the effort. Were they magically sealed against his fire, somehow?
There wasn't time to find out. At that moment, the thick, industrial door on the opposite side of the chamber opened with a bang, the metal reverberating when it slammed against the cinderblock wall behind it. Pale yellow light pooled across the concrete floor, stopping just short of where he was shackled.
A shadowy figure stepped forward, his features obscured by the halo of light surrounding him. With the familiar swishing of his coat, the smart clack of dress shoes against the concrete, and the telltale, raspy chuckle, there simply was no mistaking who it was.
Reeves.
"Well, well." Reeves tapped his open palm with the flat of the knife in his other hand. "Look who's finally woken up."
*
"Torture me all you want, you bastard," Phenex snarled, ignoring the pain of the manacles when he began pulling on them in earnest. "I'll die before I tell you anything!"
Reeves' mouth twisted into a malicious grin, his piercing blue eyes staring mockingly at Phenex from beneath the brim of his fedora.
"Aww, but Phenex, buddy," he simpered, idly twirling the knife in his gloved hands before slicing through the thin material of his captive's T-shirt, removing it to expose his midsection, "where would the fun be in that? The first part of your idea has merit, though. Believe you me, pal—after everything you've put me through? I will be torturing you all I want. Dragging information out of you is just a bonus."
He pressed the tip of the knife lightly against his skin, Phenex involuntarily wincing at the sudden contact. Reeves' eyes glinted coldly, savouring his reaction. Phenex ground his teeth, watching as he slowly drew the tip of the blade from one hipbone to the other; deep, crimson blood trickling from the shallow wound as he pulled the knife away.
Exhaling through his nose, Phenex's gaze flicked from the blood-coated knife, to Reeves' devious grin. Mustering up his strength, he barked out a laugh. "If that's really the best you can do, you're in for a long night."
"Oh, I'm counting on it." Reeves began adding vertical notches along the horizontal gash, Phenex biting his lip to stop from crying out. Every stroke of the knife caused his abdominal muscles to spasm, the sharp bite of the blade stinging more with each nick made.
I'll be damned if I let you get any satisfaction from me, he silently vowed, his breath coming in shallow gasps. When I get out of this Reeves, you're mine. We'll see just how tough you are when I'm torching you!
Several excruciating minutes passed until Reeves, appearing satisfied, took a step back to admire his handiwork. Phenex fought against the sudden desire to sag in his bonds, his arms and legs trembling with exhaustion. Reeves simply chuckled, pulling a thin vial out of one of his pockets and holding it up to what little light came through the rafters overhead. Phenex eyed the viscous, green liquid, the back of his neck beginning to prickle in warning.
"You're probably wondering what this is." Reeves uncorked the vial with one hand, pulling the glove off the other with his teeth. "Well, there's no need for me to tell you. You'll see soon enough..."
Adding a dollop of the substance to the tips of his first two fingers, he pressed them against the gash on Phenex's midsection, spreading it to every inch of the wound and finishing with a sharp prod to the centre. The pain that flowed from that one touch was beyond anything Phenex had ever experienced.
It was like his own fire had turned against him. Phenex inhaled sharply, breath hissing between his teeth as he tried to block out the pain. It didn't work. Whatever Reeves had just used, it seemed to be hampering his ability to heal, preventing the wounds from closing. Every attempt made caused another spasm of pain through his torso, Phenex biting the inside of his cheek to stop himself from crying out.
When Reeves pulled the knife out again, Phenex knew his torment was far from over. Reeves began slicing along his torso with reckless abandon, leaving Phenex no time to steel himself against the new agony being inflicted to the kind already dancing along his midsection.
By the time Reeves had finished covering him in lacerations, Phenex was panting, his defenses beginning to crumble. The knife clattered to the floor, Reeves dropping it in favour of pouring more of the green liquid onto his fingertips. His lips stretched into a sadistic grin when Phenex gave an involuntary shudder.
He couldn't stop himself this time. A guttural scream tore from his throat as Reeves began smearing more of the substance into his wounds; the sharp, burning pain all that existed for him. He hated himself for crying out, hated the unshed tears stinging the corners of his eyes. Showing weakness in front of the enemy was tantamount to throwing his very pride away—and showing weakness in front of Reeves was the worst of all.
Once he was done applying the green liquid to each of Phenex's cuts, Reeves pulled his leather glove back on, and smirking, made his way to the opposite end of the room. There he picked up an insulated tin box Phenex hadn't noticed earlier, no bigger than a shoebox. He didn't know what fresh hell Reeves had in store for him, but he couldn't imagine it being worse than what he was already enduring.
As Reeves presented the contents to him, however, shoving it no more than an inch beneath his nose, he realized just how very wrong he was.
How very, very wrong.
If the searing pain coursing through his torso didn't turn him into a writhing, screaming mess, the ethereal ice in Reeves' hand would change that.
"Now, are you sure you don't have anything you wanna say to me?" Reeves peered up at him, twirling the ice shard in his gloved hand. "Something to do with that little human pet of yours—her connection to the artifacts, perhaps?"
Sweat trickled down the back of Phenex's neck, his body shaking uncontrollably. His wrists were sore from where the manacles dug in, his wounds continuing to throb as the green concoction frothed along the edges, preventing them from healing.
"There is only...one thing...I want to say to you, Reeves," he said, baring his teeth. "Enjoy this while it lasts, because when this is all over? I will show you the true meaning of suffering."
Reeves laughed, shaking his head as he traced the edge of one of Phenex's wounds with the ice. Ethereal ice, if used against a human, could freeze them from the inside out, killing them instantly. But against Phenex? It only added to the slow agony Reeves had subjected him to. Frost coated his flesh wherever the ice touched, the sharp bite of it burning him the way fire did to most everything else.
"You know, you couldn't be more cliché," Reeves declared. Phenex strained against his bonds, crying out when Reeves stabbed the sharp chunk of ice into one of the wounds on his chest, just below the tribal sun tattoo Ra had given him centuries ago. "You may as well be one of those comic book heroes the human children talk about. 'I'll die before I tell you anything!'...'Enjoy it while it lasts...blah, blah, blah...' Ha! Don't make me laugh, firebird! What makes you think you'll survive that long?"
By this time, the sharp, biting cold had filled the entire right side of Phenex's torso, working down through his ribcage and into his navel in a way that he could only imagine was the equivalent of dozens of ice cold razorblades sliding back and forth across his skin; slowly peeling away each layer until all that remained was a searing, burning pain deep down.
All Phenex could do was scream, his throat raw as though he'd swallowed broken glass, each one of his muscles trembling with fatigue. Between the green concoction and the ethereal ice, the two agonies had melded together, forming a single, debilitating torture. Phenex squeezed his eyes shut, unsure of how much more he could take before sweet, merciful unconsciousness claimed him.
Assuming that it ever did.
*
Time lost all meaning. The torture dragged on and on until Phenex thought he would succumb to madness—and then finally, he was granted a reprieve.
If it could be called that. Reeves stepped back, the portion of ethereal ice not imbedded within Phenex's chest dribbling down his gloves and onto the concrete floor. In spite of the agony he'd endured, it was almost worth it, just to see the scowl on Reeves' face. No matter how brutal the torture or how long it had gone on for, not once had Phenex given him the satisfaction of begging.
Screaming? Yes. Begging? Never. He'd said he would die first, and he'd meant it.
It didn't change the fact that he was exhausted, however; so exhausted that he didn't realize anyone else had entered the room until a new voice spoke.
"Calm yourself, my love." Phenex's gaze snapped up to Iris, his mouth twisting into a grimace when he saw her hands resting on Reeves' shoulders. "You're going about this the wrong way. Perhaps it will take a woman's touch to persuade him."
Phenex snorted. "You're no woman, Iris. You're just another monster."
Iris smiled up at him, sickly sweet. "Perhaps, but this monster has held the power of life and death over gods and mortals, alike." She flicked her long hair back so that it settled over one shoulder, eyes dark and glittering. "You would do well to remember that."
"It doesn't matter, one way or another," Phenex said, lip curling. "You should know by now that your kind has no effect on me."
At these words, Reeves seemed about ready to lunge toward him, knife tightly in his grasp. Iris put a steadying hand on his arm, stopping him.
"It's all right, let him say what he wants," she declared, looking straight at Phenex. "He'll tell me all I wish to know soon enough—whether he wants to, or not."
Stepping around Reeves, she stood directly in front of Phenex, bringing one hand up to cup his chin while the other trailed down his side. He shuddered, a wave of revulsion stirring deep within his stomach as she traced the outer edges of each one of the wounds Reeves had inflicted.
"I will give you anything you want, indulge whatever dark fantasies lurk deep down inside of you," she whispered, tracing her lips over the shell of his ear. She pressed against him, her chest flush with his. "Just tell me what I want to know, and all this can be yours...and more."
"The only thing I want is for you to take your hands off me," Phenex ground out, glaring at her.
"You can't tell me you don't like when I do this." Iris nipped playfully at his ear, drawing a hiss of breath from him. "Or this?" She began planting slow, sensual kisses along his jaw.
Phenex tried to turn away, but her grasp on his chin was too strong, holding him in place. "No, I don't," he replied. Catching Reeves' furious gaze over Iris's shoulder, he smirked. "And by the looks of it, he doesn't either."
Iris glanced back. Even from an angle, Phenex could tell she was frowning.
"I already told you," he went on, grinning in spite of his pain, "your tactics won't work on me. Unlike Reeves, I'm not some weak-willed lackey you can win over with your siren's touch."
There was the barest glint of anger in Iris's eyes when she turned back around, her nails digging into his side and jaw simultaneously, breaking the skin. Her anger was tame in comparison to Reeves', however. The Shade took three, quick steps forward, lashing out at Phenex with his blade. Metal bit into flesh, blood bubbling from the fresh wound beneath his elbow and trickling down the length of his arm into the rivets between his ribs.
"That will do, love."
Reeves drew back at Iris's command, a flicker of irritation crossing his face. Judging from the way his fingers flexed around the hilt of the knife, Phenex guessed that he would have liked nothing more than to plunge the blade into his throat.
"Jest all you like." Iris brought both hands to the sides of his face, long nails toying with his sideburns. "Compared to infiltrating the Security Tower, breaking you will be a piece of cake."
It struck Phenex with such horrifying clarity that he couldn't muster up a suitable retort. Forneus unconscious for eight years, the artifacts all coming together in one place...
"So it was you," he said, voice hoarse with anger. "You knocked Forneus out so you could get your hands on the artifacts without anyone knowing. You're the reason he lost more than half of his powers!"
Iris stilled her fingers. "Figured that all out on your own, did you?" Phenex's breath hitched when Iris trailed her fingers down his neck, a wicked smile touching her lips. "Either way, it doesn't matter. The only thing you should be concerning yourself with is what we're about to do to you. I'll give you one last chance to answer. I know the girl is linked to the artifacts: the question is, how?"
Phenex glared at her, pressing his lips firmly together.
"It's useless Lady Iris," Reeves declared. "He'll never submit. We should just kill him and be done with it."
"We will kill him if and when I see fit, and not before." The sharpness of her words was enough to silence Reeves, though his eyes still glinted with jealousy, never straying from her hands as she began tracing the wounds on Phenex's chest again.
"Clearly I've given you far too much credit," Phenex said, wincing when one of her nails grazed a gash beneath his collarbone. "You should listen to your lackey, Lady Iris. He has far more experience dealing with me than you do. Or would your overinflated ego suffer that badly, taking advice from the hired help?"
"Very well firebird, have it your way." All trace of teasing left Iris; her voice soft, lethal. "You refuse to tell us what we want to know? So be it. Perhaps your little human pet will be more...accommodating."
What little satisfaction he'd gained from getting under their skin quickly vanished, Phenex struggling fruitlessly against his shackles. "No, leave her out of this!" he shouted. "Gwen's got nothing to do with this. She's just a human! She's nothing, she's—"
"Oh, I think she's far more valuable than you're letting on, pet," Iris interrupted, her eyes alight with a sudden, keen interest. "And I think, with the right—incentive, the poor little darling could be persuaded to cooperate."
Phenex didn't get the chance to protest. Iris's arm snapped forward, leaving a stinging gash at the side of his neck where her wrist barb had entered. With his consciousness slipping away, Phenex had one last, fleeting thought of Gwen, before darkness consumed him.
*