He walked down the corridor, his every step making a clear sound.
Arriving at the laboratory he stood in the door opening.
He watched as Wilhelm wrote something down in his notebook. He shifted his gaze.
In the steel table lay a man, still alive. Clearly he was about to be experimented on.
"Sir, I'm done with the cleaning."
Wilhelm stopped what he was doing and turned to look at him.
"Great! I need your help, come over here." As Wilhelm said this he walked over to the steel table.
Rhys felt something was wrong but walked over.
"What can I help with, sir?"
Rhys watched the man on the table, he was tied with leather straps, with his mouth covered. His eyes moved around frantically, clearly he was scared.
"Here, use Crucio on this man." Wilhelm said as he touched the man's shoulder.
The man's eyes which had been frantically moving before finally found a target. He looked at Rhys and started making muffled sounds.
Rhys had seen enough of this over the past month to know he was begging him.
"I still haven't learnt the spell, sir." Rhys responded, and lowered his head.
Wilhelm went quiet for a second.
"Why don't you try anyway?"
Rhys nodded. What could he do?
He took out his wand and aimed it at the man. He felt a bitter taste in his mouth.
This person he didn't know, was he just going to inflict pain on him?
Sigh.
He steeled himself and focused. After a deep breath he moved his hand and waved his wand.
"Crucio!" He shouted.
A red light flashed, a red shadow flashed past and hit the man.
The room fell silent.
Nothing? No screams of pain?
Rhys lowered his hand.
"Sorry sir."
Wilhelm was quiet, he turned around and looked at the table with the metal instrument.
It was completely quiet except for the sound of breathing.
Wilhelm was the first to break the silence.
"Why don't you try again?" His voice calm.
"Remember you want him to feel pain, you want him to scream."
Rhys gritted his teeth and once again aimed his wand at the man on the table.
He closed his eyes and imagined the man screaming in pain, he conjured as much will as possible, I want him to be in pain.
His breathing quickened, he felt it! He was close!
All that was left was sufficient emotion. He tried to conjure all the hate and anger he could.
He thought of all the gruesome things Wilhelm had made him do, the betrayal of the man he killed… and the consequences of this spell's failure.
Finally.
"Crucio!"
The room lit up in red, the light was stronger than last time.
But… in the end, it wasn't enough.
The man didn't make a sound.
Rhys felt a headache come on, forcefully throwing a spell like this without having mastered it was a terrible idea.
Not only did the spell not succeed but you also got backlash.
He took a few quick and deep breaths.
"Sorry sir, I've failed you."
Wilhelm looked down at his notebook and shook his head.
"No… It's fine."
Then he went silent.
Rhys's labored breathing was all that could be heard. Was he allowed to leave?
"Sir…" but before he could finish his sentence Wilhelm cut him off.
"Maybe you need first hand experience?"
Rhys was confused, what did he mean?
He looked at Wilhelm and at some point he had turned around.
"Sir?"
Wilhelm twisted his hand and his wand appeared.
Before Rhys could register what was happening Wilhelm raised his wand and said.
"Crucio!"
Rhys watched as the sinister red light enlarged in his field of vision.
Crap!
Before he could do anything a mind numbing pain flashed through him, he felt how his hands started to twitch.
Then came his legs, they lost all strength and he collapsed to the ground. As he fell he also dropped his wand.
He crashed into the ground and heaved for air. His breath was unstable as he felt how his chest spasmed from the pain.
He felt drool flow from the corner of his mouth as his saliva glands kicked into overdrive from the excessive force in his jaws.
"Feel it… understand it."
"This is what you're missing."
Rhys tried to look at Wilhelm but his vision was starting to fail, wherever he tried to look a black spot would spread. He just couldn't see.
He followed the words and tried to focus.
Endure. Endure! ENDURE!
He yelled in his mind as he tried to focus on the spell.
He couldn't, what was he supposed to understand!? He tried to look at Wilhelm with his peripheral vision.
That's when he saw it. The smile.
And finally… it clicked.
Crucio wasn't about anger nor hate. It was pleasure.
Pleasure in the suffering of others, it was sadism.
He tried to gain control of his body, his wand, he needed it.
His eyes swept over the ground in front and he saw it. Right in front of him.
Slowly he reached out his hand, the movement sent currents of pain flashing through his arm, into his entire body.
Argh~
He felt how his hand gripped the wand, he moved his hand closer to his body and looked at Wilhelm.
Raising his hand, he aimed his wand at Wilhelm. He thought of bringing him pain, the same pain he felt, he imagined how he would feel seeing him laying on the ground, spasming.
If he could… he would return this pain tenfold.
Just as he had a clear image in his head, did he glance at the man on the table and quickly aimed his wand at him.
"Crucio!" His saliva flew all over the floor as he squeezed out the incantation.
A dark red even stronger than Wilhelm's filled the room, and a red shadow flew towards the man on the table.
Rhys heard a gut wrenching scream echo in the room.
"Ahhh~"
The man on the table spasmed and his screams soon turned into a low gurgle… like the last few breaths of a dying person.
His eyes had long since rolled back into his head, revealing only the white of the sclera.
"Haha! I knew you could do it! Now you understand."
As Wilhelm's laugh rang out Rhys also felt the pain in his body disappear.
He took a deep breath, then raised his arm to use his sleeve and wiped off the saliva on his face.
Wilhelm walked up and grabbed his shirt then pulled.
Rhys felt how he was lifted to his feet.
"Good job." Wilhelm said.
"I wasn't sure it was gonna work, but your talent is better than I've given it credit for."
He waved his wand and sent out a cleaning charm.
Rhys shakily put away his wand.
"Tha… thank you sir." His voice was weak, and his tongue didn't want to listen.
Wilhelm nodded.
"You've done well, go back and sleep, tomorrow you will help me with my experiment."
Rhys nodded and slowly walked out of the laboratory, his legs shaking with every step he took.
Every time his feet touched the ground, waves of pain would flash up along his legs.
He reached the hallway and leaned against the wall.
What… just happened? No. He knew what happened… that was the problem.
The whole thing felt like a dream. Had it not been for the terrible pain still coursing through him, he might have convinced himself this was all a dream.
He swallowed the excess saliva in his mouth and slowly made his way out the basement, using the wall as support.
...
Enjoy.
CHAPTER END.