I like the hurt

WARNING: mentioned of violence and gore

Everything was a blur. His memory was fragmented, his mind struggling to put the pieces back together. The drums of war filled the air, the cries of battle echoed in his skull. His heart hammered against his ribs as he tore into Jacobites, doing what he did best. Only he didn't do his best. Two enemy soldiers would attack him simultaneously. He remembered the smaller woman, the one that nipped at his ankles like an angry pup, one that he couldn't shoo away. He also remembered the massive woman that attacked him in earnest, her dark coat and beady red eyes. She had managed to sink her teeth into his throat, she had gotten the upper hand. He remembered that moment clear as day. The sliver of fear that raced up his spine. Adeline had been his first thought. Some random soldiers would arrive at their home with the grave news that she was now a widow. He would never see her again. And that was when he remembered his eye. Pain erupted across the right side of his face. The enemy soldier had released her lethal grip on his throat, but her jaws had redirected towards his face. All he saw was the flash of fangs before the world went black.

Brows furrowed as he slowly blinked, trying to orient himself and clear his vision. Every inch of his body ached. His front legs were littered with insignificant cuts and scrapes that would heal. Swallowing hurt though. The sensitive skin at his throat was torn and bloody, crimson staining his snowy fur. He was covered in dust and mud, his coat spattered with blood that was both his own and not. Pale lips were equally stained, his mouth still full of blood. The most alarming though was the blackness that stared back at him from his right away. He could feel the swelling and part of him feared he would never see out of it again.

With a groan, he shifted on the unforgiving floor. A rancid smell filled his nose as he dragged in a ragged breath. He expected the smell of the college, he had been at the front gates. But as the world came into focus around him, he saw the cell he was in. Cold dread crawled through his veins. He had been captured. Unease made his stomach roll. Kenzo was all to aware of the severity of his circumstance. A Lieutenant Major of the Imperial Army was now behind enemy lines. His heart started to race. Once again adrenaline flooded his system, but it did him no good. Slowly, he managed to roll onto his belly, propping himself up his elbows. But his body still swayed, lightheadedness threatening to send him sprawling again. The Verlice man was vulnerable and he knew it.

The real question was whether or not these Jacobites knew who they had sitting in their prison cell. Jaws parted in a weary pant, the result of the combination of stress and pain. Looking around, he found others in the cell along with him, each one trying to regain consciousness and come to terms with their imprisonment. They weren't his concern, mostly because he didn't yet recognize them as anyone close to him.

Kenzo didn't dare try to get to his paws yet. He lingered on the dirty floor, letting the chill seep unwelcome into his bones. He wallowed in a moment of defeat. But he knew he would have to get himself out of here, sooner rather than later. The longer he spent in this cell, the higher his chances were of something figuring out who he was, if they hadn't already. Jaws clenched, though the action was cut short when it brought on a wave of pain from the torn skin at his throat. Desperation tried to rear its ugly head, though it would serve him no good and he knew it. Kenzo tried to get a grip, to quiet his thoughts and slow his heart. Panic wouldn't set him free. Again Adeline rushed to the front of his mind. His wife. His love. Regret clawed at him in a way it never had before. What had he done?




art + code: clae

Being that she was now back to a place where it was considered "safe", she needed something else to heal. Names. She needed to know the names of the wolves that had accosted her so that she could get her revenge. There were a few prisoners she could have met with, but there was one in particular that she could sense was different than them all. Something about him was... off... She made her way through the dungeon area, her eyes looking over each of them. It was funny to her how "trained" soldiers could be taken down by the wolves who stood up for Jacob. She had not seen this one among those who fought, either times. But he was here, so therefore he was a loser. Quinn marched up to the bars of his cell, shouting to him. "You there, state your name." Her voice was commanding, her eyes locking onto him as she stared through the bars. She was not going to leave until he was able to give him the names of the wolves she so desperately wanted.

"If you want out of here, you will tell me the names of the wolves I am going to give you descriptions of." She would not wait for the wolf to answer or acknowledge her, and if he did not - she would send in a guard to rough him up a little. "Cooperate, and you will be fed." She growled lowly as she thought of the wolves who had harmed her. "The first wolf, a female, very large, like unsightly large... should not even be throwing around her weight as she was. Her coat is earthen, lots of browns and tans, with striking blue surrounding green eyes, and two very noticeable scars on her face. One over the left eye, and the other under the right eye. What is her name? I don't care for her rank." She would give him some time, and as she did so, she had a very devious thought run through her mind. What if she told him one of them had died?

The next wolf she went into details with, caused the female to pace before the bars, he voice still loud and commanding. "The next female is of a small build, smaller than I am. Her coat is a mix of burgundy and caramel. Her eyes are green, like an olive." The more she tried to think of the female's actions, her brain racked as it ran around, trying to remember clues and points of what happened that day. "She had an air of arrogance to her, as if we were all lesser than her. But I guess, that is the general consensus of the Imperials - isn't it?" The more she thought of it, she found more traits, "probably a noble-woman, or someone who comes from wealth, but still vile."

When it came to the last one, she only could remember little glimpses of this wolf. "The last female was medium, kinda looked like that of a fox, though I know she was a wolf. But her eyes - they were different. Orange with blue in the center. That's a lot of odd-colored eyes, honestly... In one place. Have you ever considered that before?" She did not trust that he would give her the correct information, so to play a game of wits, she would lure him with a lie. "Two of them are dead, and we need to know who they are."

@Kenzo

code by claerie

WARNING: mentioned of violence and gore

You there, state your name. Her voice was obnoxiously loud. Or maybe it was his splitting headache. She did what he could only assume was her best commanding voice. But the wolf found himself uninspired to give her what she wanted. Bloodied lips remained sealed and he wouldn’t give her a second glance. She dangled freedom that she likely wasn’t authorized to give, in exchange for information. A humorless sneer stretched across his lips. ”We both know you aren’t authorized to release anyone.” His voice was rough. Less than happy with his lack of cooperation, the bars of the cell clanged open as a guard stepped in. A resigned sigh would blow passed his lips. So it would begin already.

An angry looking guard approached him. Kenzo made no effort to get up. The Jacobite man dragged him to his feet, bloodied hands pulling the prisoner up by his torn uniform lapels. A groan was the only thing that parted his lips as he was forced to his paws. Swaying on his feet, the guard sent him tumbling again, landing a strike that would fill his mouth with fresh blood. A dark chuckle parted his jaws before he split the blood from his mouth at the guards feet. Beaten and exhausted, the Verlice sons eyes still gleamed with challenge. He wouldn’t be so easily broken. Under his fathers guidance, Kenzo had received a military education that was better than most. He could bend without breaking.

The guard didn’t linger long, just enough in insinuate that they meant business and he had better cooperate. But of course he wouldn’t. Panting on the floor of the cell, another sharp bark of laughter would crawl up his throat when she promised him food if her told her what she wanted. ”You think food is what I want right now?” Amusement was twisted as he steadily forced himself to mentally step back from everything. If he was going to make it out here, he knew he needed to shield his mind. His body would endure, he was fit, healthy and in his prime.

Intending to antagonize her, a deep sigh would fill the space between them. The sound was exasperated, as if she were a pup asking ‘why’ one to many times. She rattled off a description of a woman and it was easy to identify the wolf. He hadn’t ever met her personally, but Colonel Sylvain was a woman you couldn’t not know. But words never parted his lips. The Jacobite woman continued on, describing a small burgundy and caramel woman. At first, the description didn’t ring any bells, no solider came to mind. But then she spoke of the woman’s arrogance, the way she looked down her nose at the highlanders. For a fraction of a second, his body stilled and he couldn’t stop it. Her description snapped into place like a rubber band. Adeline. It took every ounce of self control he possessed to not react. Thankfully she couldn’t see the way his heart rate shot up or the thoughts that now ran frantic in his head. There was no way it was Adeline, she wouldn’t be caught dead on the battlefield. But they had been at the college… and she frequented the college… It was possible that she had gotten caught in mix while trying to leave. No no no. He tried to tell himself it wasn’t her, there was no way. He knew his wife, she most certainly did not fight.

Kenzo barely heard the final description. He paid the Jacobite woman the same amount of attention as when she first arrived. ”Believe it or not, I don’t know every single wolf in the army.” There was a bite to his voice that suggested she was stupid for thinking he would. Two of them are dead. His blood ran cold. ”Sounds like you should go bother someone else then.” Keeping his voice nonchalant was nearly an act of god. There was a 2 in 3 chance she was dead. And he simply couldn’t comprehend that. So his mind would go blank. He had no confirmation Adeline was even at the college, he had no way of knowing if any of three women were truly dead or not. The possibility though, it was there and it would bring him to his knees. Could his wife truly be dead?




art + code: clae

"Do I know that?" she questioned the male behind the bars of his cell. Yeah he was right, but she was not going to go back on everything she had wanted from him. He would talk. "I..." but before the wolf could answer the prisoner, or fire back with some sort of insult, a guard came in and roughed him up a bit. She had to admit that she liked it, and though she had not called the guard forth, she felt like it was her presence that brought him there. This not only showed that she had muscle under her, but possibly that she was also more "powerful" than he had initially suspected. She stood with an air of arrogance around her, holding her head up high. She smirked as she watched the scene. Did he deserve all that? Probably not, but she could not tear herself away from this moment.

"Maybe not right now, but later you will..." She said as the guard walked back to his station. Her eyes locked on the prisoner. He didn't want to cooperate, and that was fine for now, but she planned to fix that. She would find his weak spot and exploit it. He went quiet for a long while. Not wanting to give her any names or information she so desired. This angered Quinn. She was almost sure that something struck a chord with the male when describing the second wolf, but it could have simply been an adjustment on his part. Light eyes stared at him, analyzing and trying to find anything that would help her situation. "Ummm, I don't think I will. You seem like the type of guy to know things, and I will get the answers I want from you." Quinn was stubborn and not going to just give up because some male told her to. She was going to devise a plan to get the information she wanted, but it would take a moment. "What is your name, prisoner?"

@Kenzo

code by claerie

Bloodied lips lifted in a smirk. She tried to plant doubt. But Kenzo was well trained, he was not so easily broken. Not unless she knew exactly where to press. And for now, she didn't. When their little game was interrupted, she stood there, watching, her arrogance tainting the air of his dismal cell.

Left alone with her, she carried on as if nothing had happened, as if she had not just witnessed another wolf beat him. Kenzo licked his lips, tasting his own blood on his tongue. The unnamed woman spoke again, assuring him that he would want food at some point. It was true, eventually he would find himself starving and he'd have to face all the suffering that came with starvation. "You'll have to do better than that.' He sneered.

She was relentless, he would give her that much. She stood there stubbornly, glaring at him as if her look alone was enough to coax answers from his throat. When she spoke, he laughed, a bit more in earnest this time. She seemed confident in her ability to break him. When the demand for his name came, he only arched a brow at her, as if to say seriously?. Like he was going to just give her his name freely. All it took was one wolf having heard a whisper of his name one time for his cover to be blown. If he could help it, he would take his name to the grave in this hell hole.

"Is this your first time interrogating?" There was a taunting note to his gruff voice. His expression turned mocking. 'I remember my first time." It was all an effort to goad her into a reaction, to get her to fall apart first. He would poke fun at her relentlessly, just as she tried to get him to crack and break.




art + code: clae