Having his organs removed continuously for days on end, Wu Hai had seen more than a dozen different red gimps. He wondered, 'What sort of twisted bastard would make people run around in such a humiliating attire?' A moment later, his kidneys were taken along with his liver. Just before he was about to bleed out, more of the gas was released.
It was the third time this morning, there was still no reason given for his dissection and their harvesting of his organs. Perhaps it was to distill Wu Hai's power, perhaps it was to find his secrets.
They didn't ask a single question during their moments of disassembly.
"He's still reacting quite well, I estimate we can harvest him a few thousand more times before signs of madness set in but by then his soul would have been broken under the strain. This must happen, I will break his soul without breaking the body, Master has use for him." Ajennic was going reiterating what he had been told to do.
In the back room of a castle, deep within the confines of its walls and depths of its dungeons, eight red gimps gathered around a prisoner and took turns kicking it while they discussed the orders that had been given so far.
"Continue as planned, once he stops reacting and his nerves are cut off, his soul will begin to crack piece by piece. If he has any changes in his mental state, such as an early shattering of his mind, turning him into a drooling fool, don't blame me." The leader red Gimp, a man by the name of Bosaur was unimpressed at the bloody muffles from the prisoner he had just kicked in the face.
"I am not your friend, we've all been chosen for a reason. If such a time arrives that he gives us a position, then, that too will come to pass." Ajennic sneered at Bosaur. "I want a few of his hearts for experimentation." Ajennic had his own way of doing things but such a move had to be approved at the highest of levels. "For my sons honor, I must have at least four.."
"That will cause considerable damage to his psyche, he has to retain a proper brain chemistry. I cannot allow more than three, four is just too much of a risk and the rest of him must be in tact while you remove it less you spoil the meat." Bosaur tore the ears from an Elf he was just beating. "I love my job.."
"I knew it." Ajennic sighed, "You're too easy going, Don't you know the tastiest part of an Elf is always the eyes." Drawing his knife, Ajennic shoved his fingers into the Elf's left eye socket and pulled. With edge of the blade, he slowly started to cut.
֍ꟷꟷꟷꟷ֍
"My Breakfast!" Vector saw the Old man get up, he was thin and and stood straight like a nail.
"Self defense. If I spilled your soup, it was not my intention." Vector tried to play it off but the Old Man wasn't hearing any of it. His aura surged.
Noyuki blipped across the room and landed between the two of them with her arms out to stop them. The Old man grabbed one of Mursayade's hands and spun until she lost her footing. When she was out of the way, the old man was still in the process of twisting, he fluttered across the ground and arrived in front of Vector.
Vector saw the turn and grabbed at the old man's waist quickly. 'Got it.'
The Old man continued to spin but had lost his robes, from underneath, golden muscles could be seen. His clothes fell from his body and his heel caught the back of Vector's knee, knocking him to his knees.
"That was a good idea but modesty has never suited my kind." The Old man laughed and stuffed his foot into Vector's throat, knocking him back onto the floor and pinning him by his throat against the floor. "In life there is always risk, sometimes its better to just keep your mouth shut and fight."
It was a good lesson but Vector wasn't feeling it, he was tasting the toe fungus of the old man and his feet smelled like old leather that was found at the bottom of a trash can.
"You're pretty good old man." Mursayade was a bit stunned at the way she had literally been moved from the impromptu battlefield.
Vector let out an ice breath and the old man jabbed his foot down.
"I didn't say to get up." The Old man rubbed his chin. "You're pretty strong to have trivialized Fapp's attack. Good instincts too, but you're too young, not even a hundred years old yet you come to.." Sniffing around he continued.. "You're not even from Ultinia.. Where are you from?" A sword slowly came from seemingly no where."
Mursayade walked back to the old man, she grabbed his forearm. "That won't be necessary."
Vector flexed his jaw. "Wow, for an old man, you're a nimble one."
Fapp came back in and saw the three of them chatting. He sat at the table with the rest of his group and noticed the soup bowl that had been tipped over now spread its contents across the seat and he was sitting in it. Fapp cursed under his breath a little and wiped the soup from his ass.
The Old man laughed at the situation. "Tell me your name." Staring at Vector, he sheathed his sword.
"Vector." Vector was much happier talking than getting his ass handed to him.
"Your parents really named you that?" The Old man shook his head.
"My parents named me Micheal, people use to call me mike but it is a common name where I was born. Vector is what people call me now." Vector flexed his jaw. "Was it really necessary to put your foot into my mouth?"
"You would have used your breath attack, in a way, I prevented that from happening. Isn't that right?" The Old man waved his hand and swept his energy outward, it cleared the table and bench of soup, flinging it to the floor and wall. "There are people to clean this up, sit down. Explain yourselves, perhaps I will overlook the meal."
"Explain ourselves? You are not my master, nor are you qualified." Vector felt annoyed, he had much better things to worry about but now this old man and his 'friend' had caused him to be in a situation.
"Oh? You believe I am not qualified?" the Old man's look turned green and egregious. "I am General Puyai." He took off his helmet and two large ears flopped out.
'Blue skinned Elves?' Vector eyed the General. "That's quite an achievement.."
"Don't placate me child. Do you know of my race?" General Puyai brushed some hair out of his face and stood in a domineering fashion. "We are the Sutrali."
"You look like an Elf." Mursayade couldn't keep her mouth shut, she had only managed to keep herself from laughing.
"Elf?" Puyai seemed rather interested. "What is an Elf?"
"They look exactly like you, but.. tan skinned or white. You're the first blue elf I've seen." Vector said matter of fact like and it stunned the rest of the group at the table. All of them took off their helmets, all of them were Sutrali.
"We are the Sutrali, obviously, there is something wrong with your white friends. If a child had been born white in my country, we would have just killed it. Why would anyone allow an entire race of albinos to exist, they should have been hunted down and exterminated." Three of them stood up, ready to defend the honor of their Sutrali heritage.
"What difference does it make if someone is a different color than you?" Mursayade was defensive, she had been a victim of race discrimination on Earth, growing up as a white female she regularly harassed and treated as if she was a monster for having been born, scum, because of her skin color. "Take it back." Mursayade's face twitched.
"Take what back? You stupid bitch, you don't know who you're talking to!" One of the men in the back started to move but General Puyai backhanded him into his seat.
"Is this how you believe yourself to be superior?" Puyai shouted at his underlings, "She is right.. Take it back before I allow her to take out her rage on you. Just based on her power levels, you're no match for someone you say shouldn't have even been allowed to be born. As a soldier, you should know when to keep your mouth shut and your mind open."
The General laughed and kicked at the table, spilling all of his subordinate's drinks onto their laps.
"You amuse me, Come. Lets talk." Walking to the next table, Vector sat with Mursayade and Puyai.
"Tell me, what brings you here?" Vector was relieved when Puyai finally started to cooperate, he put his hand on Mursayade's thigh, she calmed down as well.
"I want information, we've come to find out what happens to those taken away by the Eclipsing Empire." Vector pulled a flask of some sort from his waist, he poured some silvery liquid into a cup and drank it.
"Elixir?" Puyai was astounded to see someone drink an Elixir for for recreation. "What sort of information, security? Patrols? Locations? Looking for a specific person?"
"Most of that," Mursayade poured a drink from the flask, drank it and then filled it again. She held the cup in her hands. "I don't drink with enemies." She passed it over to Puyai.
"Sometimes it is better to receive and reflect." Puyai tried to sound profound but in a way he only sounded slightly less greedy when he swallowed the liquid. The moment it his throat, his eyes opened like they were on fire and he slammed the glass down. His eyes looked like they were going to explode out of his head. He heaved slightly in his rush. "What did you just have me drink?"
The three that were at the table next to him stood up and shattered the table, worried, they cried out, "General, are you okay?" Swords drawn, they pointed them at Mursayade and Vector.
Puyai slapped their weapons away. "I nearly soiled myself, where did you get soul water?!"
'Soiled himself?' Mursayade had a wretched look on her face after the General spoke, she was about to speak but Vector's grip tightened on her thigh to warn her.
"That is our good fortune, is soul water of value in this part of the heavens?"
"Soul water is one of the divine condensations of the universe, I've only seen a single drop, that is, until today. To think I just drank an ounces of it." Puyai smacked his lips in satisfaction. "Do yourselves a favor and hide that, you bring out wealth like that again and even I would have a hard time faulting my subordinates for making a move to snatch it. Soul water is.. precious."
"We are prepared to pay for our information needs." Vector took a vial from the bag at his waist and waved it in front of Puyai. "What do you know?"
Puyai snatched the vial and cracked the top for an inspection of its contents. "You give this freely??" Before Vector was able to change his mind, the old General had already stored it in his robes. "Prisoners or Captives?"
"We hadn't offended them, its unlikely that he is a prisoner, more like a captive of opportunity." Vector tried to clear out the question with some specifics.
"If your friend has been taken by the Eclipsing Empire, then he is surely being taken apart slowly. They are well known for taking people apart piece by piece, they will continue to do so until he's been drained of spirit and his soul begins to collapse on itself. Then, he will be turned to a slave like all the rest." Puyai took out the vial and stared at it, twisting it in his fingers, he put it back away.
Puyai looked at Vector. "What are your intentions?"
"Mount a rescue at all costs..." Vector wasn't going to mince his words, he put his hand on the table. "Wu Hai is strong, he will not submit."
"Then he will only prolong his suffering.." Puyai slammed his hand onto the table, his eyes were fixed on them both.