On that day, Leo understood what insanity really means. There were no elves or dark elves in this camp. Any of these beings could be described as wild animals. Events he had seen caused him to feel sick for a short time.
("Fuck, where did I end up here? How can such a place exist, this is true hell. Even Zaphiel can't compete with sights like this. How twisted can you get?!")
Unfortunately, this was just the beginning for Leo. In this night he hardly managed to sleep but he refused to let it get him down. The time he forced himself to observe everything he needed to use as quickly as possible. Guards were scarce in front of the prisons, let alone in front of the building in which their warden was staying. Things looked very strange and yet Leo had a theory that he didn't like at all. He knew he had to be on his guard at all times. One false step and he would end up in this very hell as well. He may be able to fight back and kill 3-4 guards, however, at the end of the day, he was just one man. Early the next morning, he once again heard a speech from the warden.
"Dear ladies and gentlemen, today is a particularly beautiful day because we are about to get growth. I know you and I were getting bored, but now we have new friends and toys. This doesn't mean I'm going to throw you away or break you, as each doll in my collection has meaning. As long as you are good, you can stay here and enjoy my presence. Very well, it's time for the morning greeting: show our new friends the kindness that awaits them."
A group full of dark elves entered through one of the gates. They were all tied up and aggressive. As they looked into the faces and the fake smiles on their faces, even they felt frightened. One of the prisoners recognized his sister and called out her name loudly. But instead of answering, she kept her smile and remained silent. The new captives fought back with force, but it didn't help.
"Hey, don't be so rude. We' ve given you such a wonderful welcome. Do you not know the concept of hospitality? It seems I have to teach you some manners, so let's start right away. How about one of your friends join our game? That way you can watch how to teach someone manners!"
One of the guards picked up one of the shackled men and threw him to the ground. As he looked up he saw the overseer hold his sword towards him slashing. The blade pierced his back, his raging screams made no difference to the faces of the prisoners. The tied up dark elves too could only watch powerlessly as one of their brothers was killed in agony.
"You rotten bastards! I'm going to fucking kill all of you! Just what is wrong with you guys back there? Join us in the fight and we will be victorious!"
"Oh, you will? Well, my beloved dolls disagree!"
This time, the supervisor gave them the sign that they were allowed to speak. At once, loud voices rang out, all saying the same thing.
"Why should we fight? We like it here, we feel comfortable with our masters. They give us joy so we do the same. There' s nothing like serving them!"
"What are you talking about...? Have you forgotten who we are and who they are? They have been our arch-enemies for centuries and you want to follow them? Are you out of your minds?"
Leo watched everything from a distance and saw them fail.
("Isn't it obvious? You can't save them so shut your mouth please. I don't need more victims but a key.")
"Enough talking! Those who are rude should be punished! Take them to our playground."
The group was taken to a small training ground. Before them were targets for long-range weapons as well as figures for close combat training. However, these figures were not made of wood or hay, rather they were made of flesh and blood and by the smell they were a few days old.
One of the new ones threw up at the sight. The others could also hardly look at how their people were being used as targets or dummies. Their bodies were completely torn, slashed and destroyed. Gradually, only skin and bones were visible.
" Wow, who has defiled this beautiful place? Guards, clean up this mess! As for the root cause...you are the first to play with us."
While cursing the elves, one of the prisoners was used as a target. Before being chained, the previous player's destroyed cadarver was unhooked and disposed of.
"Stop stop, what are you doing?! Didn't I just say that all my dolls have value? Just because they are broken doesn't mean you have to just throw them away. With a bit of time and patience they''ll soon look as good as new again. Just clean up what's left and take it to the hall."
Entirely emotionless, the supervisor examined the corpse from close up and touched it. Then he smiled and let the guards carry out his order.
"Very well, but now it's time to let our replacement join the game. Who wants to play with him? If you're good, you'll even get a reward from me."
At once, many prisoners came forward to participate in the game. He selected a boy and a girl and gave them both a weapon. At any moment they had the opportunity to attack their tormentor but neither of them even made an effort to harm him.
"Let's get started, this game is called "Targeted". Both of you have been given your bows and 10 arrows. The one who gets more hits at the end is the winner. Head shots count double points. Commence!"
They both tightened their strings and fired their arrows in the direction of the tied dark elf. The warden had deliberately chosen the two children since they were not experienced in combat. Thus, the tension for a hit and his death grew even more. The first arrows narrowly missed, with the 4th arrow the girl hit his arm. He cried out in pain while the girl had her head patted by the attendant. With a smile she continued this torture. She hit again with her 6th arrow, this time in his right leg. Up to that point, the boy did not hit anything.
"Aargh, you bastards, you are all going to regret it. Very soon you'll be rotting under the ground - urgh".
Finally, after 8 arrows, the boy landed his first hit, and what a hit it was. His arrow went right through one of the target's eyes. Breathing slightly, he tried to curse them, but in the next second another arrow stuck in his head, this time, the one from the girl. Then they both hit their target once more until the game was over.
"Let's take a look, the score is 5 to 3. With this you have won, young lady, your prize is an additional ration of food."
As the little one laughed the boy grew more and more envious, forgetting the rules for a moment. He complained for a second before anxiously closing his mouth...but it was too late.
"Is someone not happy with the game or the result? Was it not fair for you? Well, if there's one thing I don't like, it's sore losers!"
He took one of the arrows and pierced the boy's chest. He gasped up blood before the overseer hammered the arrow through him again. After a couple of seconds, his lifeless body fell to the ground.
"Oh lord, what a mess. I guess our little puppet had a flaw in it. I hope no one is a killjoy?"
His slaves only cheered him on while the tied up dark elves only further cursed him.
"YOU FUCKING ASSHOLE! I WILL KILL YOU IN THE WORST WAY POSSIBLE!"
His brothers followed his call but it didn't help. They were still in a very bad situation with no chance of escaping him.
"Asshole? That's not my name, no, my name is not Asshole. If you want to curse me, then do it right. I am known as Lord here, but you can still call me the "Dollmaker". Doll maker, yes that sounds good, I like it hahahaha. Guards, take them to our cozy chambers. Naughty people need to lighten up before you can deal with them normally. Guards, I hope you put my dolls in their proper place! I will now devote myself to my work, I do not want to be disturbed! Remember to give our little winner her prize! As of tomorrow, we will introduce our guests to this place, we want them to feel comfortable."
Leo noticed that they were led into a large hall, however, not without fighting back. One of the dark elves managed to bite the hand of one of the guards and spit blood in his face.
"You fucker, do you want to die already?"
Just before the guard could hit him, the warden stopped him and gazed at the attacker in amazement.
" I just wanted to keep an eye on you, but it looks like we've got ourselves a real doozy. Behold, what hatred, what fighting spirit, what vain hope. What is your name little sheep? Huh? You don't want to talk? Then we'll have to do it the old-fashioned way!"
He grabbed a dark elf next to him and held a dagger to his throat.
"Nadal! My name is Nadal! Are you satisfied now asshole?!"
"Oh, I nearly am if there wasn't just one problem."
Instead of putting the blade away, the warden decided to slit the dark elf's throat despite his answer. He then held the still gasping for breath dark elf right in front of him. He had to watch with his own eyes as one of his brothers slowly died.
"Why?! Why did you kill him anyway?! I answered your question, didn't I?!"
"I don't know...I just felt like it, he suddenly bothered me and I fixed the problem. I just felt like it, he suddenly bothered me and I fixed the problem. Hey, I'm not happy about it either, you know, but I hate problems. So tomorrow we'll start to clean it up and turn you troubles into wonderfully kind beings."
After locking them in the warehouse, the warden went to his mysterious room. From far away Leo saw that the new group was still very lively and that they had fighting spirit in them. From far away he saw that the new group was still very lively and that they had fighting skills. He had to somehow manage to free them so that together with him they could destroy this hellscape. However, he had a very bad feeling about what the end would really be. He circled the area to get a complete overview of the area. Over the course of the day, he saw 10 guards located outside the buildings. He was sure that there were more guards waiting inside the buildings, however there was no turning back now. Leo knew that if he took a little more time to plan, he would come up with a better one. But the events that had unfolded before his eyes were beginning to weigh on him too. So he waited until nightfall and searched for a starting point. Tonight there were no gladiator games nor any other matches. Eventually he decided to go to the great hall first. As he approached, he suddenly felt dizzy and unwell. Abruptly, gruesome past memories of the dark elves trapped here replayed. As he was about to faint, the white glyph in his hand lit up and removed his bad condition.
("What the hell is this thing?")
In front of the hall stood two guards. These were not highly trained and looked anything but fearsome. It was easy for Leo to sneak up on and subdue them. Without thinking for a second, he killed them on the spot and hid their bodies. One of them had the key for the lock to the warehouse. As soon as he opened the big gate, he was met by a sickening stench, as if something was rotten. One side of the hall was occupied by the prisoners, the other side was piled with the corpses of several dark elves. What was happening here pushed Leo to his limits, yet he had to stand his ground. He made himself known to the dark elves and was unlocking their cage.
"Don't make any noise or we'll be in trouble. I am not an enemy so rest assured."
Nadal, the apparent leader of the group made it clear to the others that Leo was here to free them.
"I'm not even going to ask how you got in here. How many guards are still here?"
"About eight other soldiers are outside right now. As you can guess, I need your help. In terms of weapons, there are two swords outside. We will have to kill the other guards for more. I got a plan, if we follow it step by step we should all be armed soon."
" Normally I don't trust strangers though now is not a better time. So, what are you going to do? Do it quickly, who knows what that bastard is doing right now."
"It's like this: You take care of his guards while I take care of him. I know you want revenge but I'm in far better shape than you and I know the way. I'll tell you where the enemies are.
"...let him live if you can...he shall not meet death that soon."
"Before we move out let me tell you this: everything here is worse than it looks. This may be hard to accept, but don't expect any help from the prisoners. They all come from your people, but their identities were taken from them long ago. Whatever you see, stay calm and do not let your anger guide you. At worst, you will have no choice but to fight against them.
"That's not going to happen! They would never raise their hand against us!"
" But if they do, then don't hesitate if you want to keep your lives! This is not about pride or loyalty, this is about pure survival! Let's go, start the operation!"
Leo realized that the whole group was ready to fight, and so he showed them the location of the other soldiers. They needed to proceed as silently as possible. But Leo soon learned that this came naturally to the dark elves. He saw one guard after the other die while sneaking into the main building. The door was not locked, allowing Leo to enter without any problems. The fact that two guards were waiting for him, however, was something he had not expected.
"Intruder! How did you get in here? I thought everything was safe here?!"
From their reaction and their incompetence in combat, Leo realized that there was more going on than he thought.
("Why does everyone think they are safe when there are so few soldiers? This shithole holds even more secrets than I thought.")
Having no problems, Leo managed to disarm and overpower them. He saw tears running down their cheeks as they begged for their lives. Immediately remembering back to yesterday, he stabbed his sword through their mouths and pierced their chests. Everything looked very run down from the inside. Nevertheless, he again could smell that rotten disgusting stench. He followed this smell until it became increasingly stronger. He quickly found himself in front of a large door behind which he could hear the warden humming happily. Immediately Leo kicked the door in and tried to confront the "doll maker". However, within the room he was completely overwhelmed by the sight. In fact, after a few seconds, he felt so sick that he actually almost threw up. Rather than being fearful, the puppet maker welcomed Leo as his guest.
"Well, do you like my artwork? You know, I worked on it for a very long time and yet there is so much more room left."
Actually, the room was much bigger than Leo thought. At this point, he understood why he called himself a "doll maker." Bodies of dark elves hung on three walls, at times just their bodies or their heads. Worst of all was the sight of the back wall. His pleasure was to make dolls, so he would take different body parts from different dark elves and sew them together to make a doll. The other three walls contained only the individual parts for his work. The eyes were pulled out and the finger were cut off. Quickly, Leo recognized the remains of yesterday's victims. Their expressions were pure terror. Blood ran down the walls, single parts must have just been hung up. Many buckets full of water but also blood were on the floor. Some there to wash the corpses, others to bleed out his victims. Already on the table of the doll maker lay the next body which consisted of 4 different parts, just the head was missing for the doll. Leo felt dizzy but his rage quickly freed him from this state.
"You fucking freak, how can anyone do something like that?!"
"How do you mean? Well with a little talent and a lot of practice. The first attempts I made were very ugly, almost impossible to look at. Having said that, here I present my beauties, my masterpieces, whose sight I get to enjoy every day hahahaha."
"You are insane, nothing but a sick lowly vile creature!"
"Now don't be a downer. Just look at how much work goes into it, the dedication to detail and the perfect condition. There' s no one else who can do the kind of work I do."
The dollmaker lost himself in his words and began to speak with passion.
" Behold and be astonished, at last the dark elves have found a use. First, they are domesticated and robbed of their wits until they finally receive the honor of being made beautiful by me. It was a lot of effort to gather all these games and toys. We all have so much fun and yet you just want to ruin everything!"
Leo stopped listening to his words and charged at him. Different from the soldiers, he knew how to defend himself and blocked Leo's blows with his dagger, which he usually used to cut off the heads. During this struggle, he was laughing out loud.
"Yes, take a look at yourself, that hatred in your eyes! Truly a beautiful sight, outstanding!"
Leo got serious and soon made sure that the fight ended. He managed to disarm his opponent and finally pierce him with his sword. While sinking to the ground, he held onto Leo.
"Urgh, hahaha, you are truly a killjoy. Who am I going to show off my work to now? What about my toys, what will become of them...hAhA I'm just kidding, my career will keep going!"
Suddenly he snapped his eyes open again and grabbed Leo's hand. His eyes lit up red and his arm turned black, spreading the color to Leo's hand. He started screaming loudly and went down. His opponent's wound stopped bleeding and began to close. The dollmaker had a power even Leo didn't know. If he failed now, Leo would die or worse: end up as a puppet on the wall of this monster.