A Slaying Song, Tonight [Invite]

[Elric Vlarintos]

"Happy Anniversary," Elric said to nobody in particular. There was something reassuring about hearing his own voice. It sounded so terribly old after everything it had been through. What was it now? Eleven years? Each of the years before this had spent this evening moping in the woods hoping that something would change. Some fleeting hope that he might die out there in the cold and when he woke up everything would be the same horrid life it was before. The truth was that it didn't really matter where Elric went, his life would always be miserable.

And yet he had no reason to cry or complain. No, his life was candy, sunshine and rainbows compared to those of some other people. There were a couple of deep-seated issues buried deep in his psyche, but those couldn't reach him anymore. They didn't hurt him unless he gave them permission to hurt him. Christmas Eve was the one day of the year when he let the pain loose. It was that pain which always drove him to wander out in the numbing cold just so he could forget about it for a bit. It was that same pain that always tugged at his heartstrings in there was a snowstorm on the twenty-fourth of December and left him in terrible disappointment.

During a brief moment he had off he had tried playing Vivaldi's Winter to calm himself, but it just brought the tension of the season to the surface of his mind. Piper wouldn't really approve of Elric going out in the woods in the middle of winter, but maybe she was still in the hospital.

Not that it mattered. He wasn't out in the woods. Elric was crawling about in the Snake Bite Dungeon at the moment. An unusual place to haunt, especially for a human. Preparations were necessary for tonight's celebration, and he had prepared himself a wonderful little room for the festivities. Now it was just time to find the guest of honor.

Elric sneaked up and through the hallways. It was just late enough that most Boogies had gone to bed and most slaves retired as early as they could manage the night before Christmas. Not a creature was stirring... but Elric really wished to find one that was stirring. Perhaps he'd stop by the kitchens. If nothing else, he'd be able to grab some bait for his horrid prey of the evening.

Elric quietly opened the door to the kitchens and heard the slight sound of a commotion. Perfect. His quarry seemed to be rifling through the stores to get a bite to eat. Something of a midnight snack to fix his appetite. Elric whetted his lips with his tongue for a moment. It had not occurred to him before how dry his mouth had gotten. He probably wouldn't be able to manage a whisper, let alone a death threat if he wanted. His hands reached for something metal in his coat. "Hey there, you," he somehow managed to say in a raspy voice.

[Doctor Nationis]

A jar of jam smashed on the floor before Elric spoke, smearing the ground with jelly. The purple ooze spread itself out as the small goblin rummaged through the storage. A small hunk of dried meat lay within it's maw as he dug around, glowing yellow eyes piercing the shades of darkness. The jerky he chewed at the moment was alright... wasn't human, but alright. He was searching for the good stuff! Granted, the barrels full of salt was empty from many feasts that boogies had decided to give themselves. Not many believed in this holiday, but a chance for great food and free gifts would not be passed up.

His ears perked up as he heard someone speak behind him. At the sudden intrusion Agony lifted his head and hit the shelf above him. Giving a yelp, he dropped another jar, this one holding Wonderland apples. The aroma slowly filled the air as the goblin eyed the human before him. The thing hissed and swiped at the air with his small claw. Turning on his heel, the lanky creature retreated further into the pitch black pantry.

There was something odd with the familiar this eve. Instead of his classic nudity he had a leather satchel with him. It was worn, torn, and obviously not his. The condition was bad, but not bad enough to have been in the little menace's possession for that long. There was also a soft tinkling. Glass hit glass as he moved around in the darkness. Chitter chatter from his obscure language echoed in his make shift cave. It was followed by a high pitched laughter. What could Agony possibly be doing?

[Elric Vlarintos]

From the confines of his coat Elric pulled a rusty old knife as the goblin retreated into darkness. His nostrils flared for a moment as rank smells entered his nose and offended his senses. The creature was foul in most every sense of the word. Elric's face remained calm and silent as he tried and spot the creature scampering in the dark. It was fortunate for the little monster that Elric's eyes were not nearly so well adjusted.

His eyes looked at the mess upon the floor and he shook his head lightly. Some poor slave would have to clean up this troublemaker's mess. Some slaves had to deal with this troublemaker on a regular basis. Elric wasn't one of those slaves, but he hoped that Agony and he would get to be really close very, very soon.

"What are you doing back there that's worth giggling over?" Elric asked, though he sounded mostly disinterested. He flipped the knife over in his hands and bent his knees slightly before advancing a little bit towards the darkness. A long time ago he had learned not to be afraid of the dark. It was something to which humans always returned. It was a mistress that humans had no choice but to put their faith into. Faith founded upon the fear that other creatures better adapted to the darker environs would not find them.

For just a brief moment Elric wondered how well that little pest could see in the dark. The creature was tiny and didn't look like it could really intimidate anything less timid than a rabbit. And yet, it was an unfortunate pest.

[Doctor Nationis]

Silently Agony found his way through the many jars and jugs and containers. He held the satchel in one hand and walked easily with three limbs. The muffled glass was clearly heard by him, but not as well to the human senses. He had managed to crawl back to Elric, to the side and above, but not on the top shelf. The yellow eyes glowered at the man. Who was this? Did it matter? He probably tasted yummy. This human also looked mean, angry, and more angry... Huh, almost reminded him of Iugo.

Shaking the thought away, he quietly took off his pack and retrieved his items. Unscrewing the top off the alcohol he had snatched minutes earlier, he set to work. Though the palace showed little evidence and there were almost no stories of it Agony was proficient at setting things ablaze. Seconds later, he had his molotov cocktail. Grinning at it, he crawled on his belly to the human. The poor, hapless, yet-to-be-cooked human.

Once at the edge of the shelf, he lowered his lanky arms, one holding his bomb and the other a real treat: A lighter from the human world. In a single attempt he managed a light, both the bottle and the lighter at eye level with Elric. He touched the flame to the cloth he stuffed down the neck of the bottle, the light growing brighter right before Elric's eyes. An evil glint appeared in Agony's eyes.

"BUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUURN!"

The creature shrilled, raising the bottle back to--

Without thinking, Agony had crashed the bottle on the shelf above, pouring himself with the alcohol and fire. The shelves and food caught fire quickly, all that was doused in the nearly impressive attack. Shrieking in pain Agony threw himself to the ground and rolled around in a frantic pattern before managing to pick himself up. Engulfed in flames and wails of pain, the goblin ran past Elric and toward the sink, filled with dishes and dirty water. Clammering as fast as he could, the thing threw itself into the water, the fires finally leaving it's flesh, the sickly sweet smell of decay in the air as his skin rotted instantly. Yet another mystery about this familiar.

Agony burst his head out of the soapy water, breathing heavily. His body hurt, he had less skin, and he had a feeling that his one shining moment was gone forever.

[Elric Vlarintos]

Elric frowned as he approached the darkness. Something wasn't quite right and he actually stopped his advance. He squinted as he tried to find the sneaky little monster hiding in the shadows, but there was no such luck. It might get messy if the little thing leaped out at him with a broken jar or something.

Was that a scuffling he heard just a moment ago? Elric darted his head to one side, but still failed to notice where the goblin was hiding. "The ceiling?" he muttered to himself. Maybe not on the ceiling, but the shelves. A sinking feeling fell into his gut as he realized that the creature might have just sneaked around his position without him noticing. Elric shifted his position and placed his back against a wall. At least now he'd be able to see the creature coming.

Before he could get his back to the wall Elric saw the glow of a flame. He felt a tingling sensation run down his back as his skin grew cold. The creature was going to burn him and and the entire kitchen. Elric tried to snatch the bottle away, but the goblin pulled back to throw the Molotov.

It smashed and the fire spread readily across the liquid now that it was open to air. Elric panicked for only a brief moment before grabbing a bucket of sand kept in the kitchen specifically to extinguish grease fires and threw it on the burning shelves and food to try and smother the fresh flames before they spread too quickly. This was miserable and Elric did not fancy the idea of cleaning this mess up himself.

Speaking of mess, where was that miserable cretin now that he had lit himself on fire? Running, screaming and flailing about until he jumped in a sink full of dishes left to set overnight for easier cleaning in the morning. Elric's face turned into a genuine sneer as he took a few long strides towards the creature that was just pulling itself out of the sink. His left hand was free and grasped hard at the back of the creature's neck.

He shoved the much smaller Agony back under the water and held him there against the bottom of the sink for a moment while he tried to remember if these sinks had food processors. They did not, though Elric suspected a bit of bone might jam it even if it had been a choice. So instead he held the creature there for a moment before lifting it up and then slamming it back under again after just a long enough moment to take a breath of air.

His heart was pounding and he could feel the blood in his veins. This was exciting and the experience seemed to put everything into a sharper contrast. Elric could swear that he was even a little better able to make out the details in the dark. Maybe he had spent far too long trying to fight the simple fact that he harbored a monster, much like everyone who ever felt that desire to solve their issues with violence. The proof would be in whether or not he felt guilty about this later.

He lifted up Agony once more and slammed the handle of the knife hard against the back of the goblin's head. That ought to show him for trying to light Elric on fire. They'd get to the other grievances soon enough.

[Doctor Nationis]

Agony's eyes shot up to see Elric when he breached the surface and he regained his oxygen. The goblin pointed a finger at the man and started a rant of his gibberish, which may have well lasted a whole ten minutes, if he was allowed to continue. Thankfully for all ears, Elric had grabbed him by his scruff. That alone let out a yowl of discontent. The yowl quickly turned into bubbles as he was shoved under the water. His skinny legs and lanky arms pushed off whatever they could find to get him back above the water, but it was no use.

The green claws eventually made their way above water, scratching at Elric's arm as best he could. The wounds would be an inconvenience at best. The legs moved to the edge of the sink, actually leaving only his head under the water. The awkward position did him very little good. He'd learned over the years that flailing did not good and that sometimes one could gain a small victory by actually attempting to resist the captor... or master.

With his lungs burning, he felt adrenaline and panic fuel his muscles and he pressed with all his might the legs could muster. The grand effort broke past Elric's limits as he rose above the water, gasping for air. He felt himself lift up! He was actually beating Elric in his struggle? The confusion increased as he felt his feet lift off the sink. Had he achieved the power of flight in his attempt to escape? Oh, no... Elric was just holding him up. Well, that was kind of...

NOT THE WATER AGAIN!

Having merely gasped above the water Agony felt his lungs already burn again. The torment... the pain! Bubbles leaked from his mouth as he gave up his previous attempts and panicked. How could he survive this?! The claws finally latched into Elric's arm, not wanting to just leave mere marks, but a scar, or eight. The nails dug past the skin, keeping him well attached to the boy as he was lifted up again.

Was he to go under again? Would he meet his end from slowly not being able to supply himself with air? An explosion of pain hit his skull, making the beasty black out almost instantly. The green thin groaned quietly as his consciousness left him. The claws were already hooked and remained in the boy's arms, everything else limp. At least he wasn't drowning.

[Elric Vlarintos]

Elric mumbled something at the apparently unconscious monster in his arms. Agony was not struggling any longer and had turned into dead weight, in a manner of speaking. Still, Elric had to give the creature some credit for the struggle. It has scratched and torn at the sleeves of his jacket and in the last moments of its struggling had punched holes directly through the fabric and into his skin. They felt shallow, but Elric still felt the blood flow once he pulled the claws out.

He dropped the creature to the ground for a moment and stared at the mess around the pair. Someone would have to clean this up, but he imagined that no one would really think twice about the damage here. The kitchen would have been a mess even if Elric had not interrupted Agony. Assumptions might be made that something got overly rowdy during an evening raid of the food stocks.

Elric cleaned his wounds with a cloth and a bottle of spirits before wrapping his arms like he was applying bandages. Once the cloths were secured around his arms he looked at the beast lying on the floor. When the goblin was unconscious, Elric almost felt a twinge of guilt for what was going to happen. Almost... except the filthy little monster deserved everything that was coming to it and it just happened that Elric was the first person with the guts to carry out the punishment.

He slung the creature over his shoulders like a hunter bringing home his kill. Wordlessly his steps carried him from the kitchens and to the deeper parts of the palace. Silent steps were taken near the late night stalkers and other peculiar people who insisted on wandering about in the late, late evening. He was sneaking towards the dungeons to find a place where no one would mind the screams.

He had prepared a room for just the two of them. Agony's bed was a wooden table to which Elric could tie the monster down with chains and ropes. With some effort the creature might be able to rock the table from one side to another and Elric could not come up with a way to weigh the table down enough to prevent this, but he doubted it would do the little monster much good anyways.

Elric splashed a small cup of water across the creature's face in hopes that it might bring the creature back to consciousness. The dank cell wasn't much, but it would have to work. Elric had removed his coat and tossed it over a box. After all, this was going to be messy and he wanted to avoid cleaning up as much blood as he could manage. It was surprisingly warm down in the basement and Elric was sweating with anticipation. He licked his lips and his fingers twitched ever so slightly as they tapped against metallic tools. He was shaking with anticipation.

[Doctor Nationis]

Agony immediately began screaming as the water made contact with his face. The high pitched wail was well practiced and tuned, his small body making full use of the rocking table. The little lungs powered on, going for longer than what one would assume such a small monster could go on. Some would find it curious that he could go on for so long and others question how his senses were so keen on sending him into a panic at the moment of consciousness. Those silly enough to ask need to remember that Iugo Nationis is the master of this goblin. Far from kind in any manner, the beast had become accustomed to waking up screaming out of conditioning. The panic response was always close to follow, as Iugo sometimes liked to toy around with his familiar a second round. He wasn't called Agony for nothing.

The goblin thrashed and struggled, the chains almost muted by the sounds of his cries. The yellow eyes darted around in hopes of some way to free himself. They rested on Elric, confusion setting on his face before his cries and screams were redoubled. The table shook back and forth with the small creature. The slim creature's own immediate safe was put on hold as he lifted himself off the table and used his body to try and break the sturdy wood beneath him. This did not work and only left him with bruises to show for it.

The goblin's panic turned into rage as soon as minutes of struggling gave him nothing in return. Hissing and using his own fowl tongue, the goblin spat at Elric's feet, his thick spit missing him by inches. The anger died away quickly as his ears twitched at a sound. It had no pattern but it shook Agony to his core. Twisting and turning his head and body as best he could Agony tried to look around the room, leaving little to be unspied upon. He heard him and his fingers drumming, but where was he?! His master always played with his own metallic toys before he killed something. Had... had he done something terribly wrong?

Agony was reduced to whimpering with his pointed ears pressed flat against his skull. He hadn't stolen from master recently... Why was he doing this?! And why was this boy here?! He he found a human more capable than he?! His mind was frantic with thoughts as opposed to his body which was visibly shaking in fear.

[Elric Vlarintos]

The little creature stirred and then came the screams. Elric felt his fingers tighten around the handle of the rusted knife as the sound pierced the still silence. It could all be over with just one stab, assuming the goblin shared enough physiology with most animals for Elric to find a lethal position to insert the blade. Even as he considered the thought he slowed the act down in his mind. A powerful thrust would end it too quickly. He wanted to do this slowly.

Doing it quickly would ruin the moment. His fingers released the tension on the blade and instead grasped at a thick piece of cloth. Perhaps a gag would be necessary if the little monster did not quell its screaming fit. Elric's sneer turned into a smirk as he stared at the struggling familiar. "So it seems monsters can fear too."

The little monster had settled down, but taken care to spit at him. The soaring mass of spittle had missed Elric, but the gesture did not go unnoticed. Neither did the nervous darting eyes looking about the room. "What's wrong, little Agony? Looking for someone else? It's just us." Just the two of them, and they were going to spend some time getting to know one another.

Elric took a few steps with the rusted knife and he raised it above Agony for a moment before pausing and taking a moment to consider the tool. "You recognize this, don't you?" His eyes wandered down from the blade to the bandages around his arms. Agony had inflicted some pain upon his captor. "Let's start with the hands and feet."

Elric twisted and turned as he reached out and grabbed the goblin's wrist and pressed the chilled and rusted blade against goblin flesh. He tugged lightly on the blade and felt how it glided across the flesh. It seemed the doctor did not take very good care of his tools. Elric let out a soft sigh. "What, oh what am I doing? You haven't done anything wrong, have you? You're just an animal that has been doing what comes naturally to you."

For a brief moment Elric's grip loosened. Suddenly and rapidly the grip squeezed down tight again and the blade was pressed hard into leathery goblin flesh. The steel blade did not cut so much as tear through Agony's hide as it was pulled across the horrid thing's flesh. Elric's nose crinkled at the smell of blood. Elric swore that the ichor dripping from the fresh gash could be called anything but blood.

Elric repeated the motion a few more times while bending the hand back and forth to find a weak point in the wrist. Underneath all of that warm and dripping ooze and the flexing muscles he found something lighter in color. It might possibly be bone. He wedged the tip of the blade inwards and pried the opening a little wider. Suddenly a new flood of ooze came out of the opening as the blade severed a vessel of some kind. "You must forgive me. I'm just doing what comes naturally to me."

Something gristly held the bones and muscles together, but Elric slowly cut and pried it away from the stump. He stared as the place where the hand once was and glared at the meat. "You don't even look appetizing on the inside," he muttered before grasping at a hatchet. Normally he would have used the smaller axe to split small pieces of firewood, but tonight he'd use it to be chopping something altogether different. Unlike the knife this tool was sharp.

"I hope you forgive the sloppy performance. I'm still trying to find my place here. I really should thank you for being such a good assistant." Elric licked his lips for a moment as he gave pause. "I forgot to check. Do you even understand me? Scream twice if you do."

He raised the hatchet high above his head and then brought it down against the little goblin's ankle. The sharp blade sank deep into the parting wrinkles of flesh and muscle before reaching hard bone and embedding its head there. Elric had to reach down to grasp at the foot so he could pry the hatchet head free for another swing.

[Doctor Nationis]

Just the... two of them? The way this human spoke only unnerved the goblin more. There was always a sense of safety when Iugo was around, that being that he wanted Agony to live so he could still carry out his business. And if Iugo wasn't involved... The eyes widened as the slow mind linked thoughts together: This was going to be the worst night of his life. And of course he began screaming again, the intensity only meant to attract those nearby. Of course it would echo and bounce off the walls, but what was new? It was the dungeon! Iugo has dragged many souls down here and...

Whimpering when the blade touched his skin, Agony let out a sigh of relief. Elric must have changed his mind! As soon as he brain processed this it began notifying him of the pain that wracked his wrist. The goblin screeched this time, flailing in his bonds as the human did his work. The table would shuffle around as he put all of his weight into trying to get away, but it was no use.

The thick, dark yellow liquid dripped slowly out of his wounds, some even spurting up and threatening to splash on Elric's face. It oozed slowly out of the stump, Agony's screams reduced to heavy panting as shock set in. He stared at his arm, bringing it as close to his face as he examined the wound. His claw was... gone?! The panting quickened as it struck him at what had happened. He'd suffered broken bones from Iugo and various angry boogies but those healed. This way... permanent.

Another wail passed between his fanged teeth, howling in sorrow at the loss of his hand. The mourning turned into anguish as the hatchet came down onto the ankle, not only digging into his bone but cracking it, audible a moment before his voice retaliated. The desperate being turned to his shoulder, sinking his own fangs into his flesh, tears now drenching his sickly green and leathery skin. Insanity had gripped it's feeble mind and could only find escape from releasing it's secured limbs and wriggle away from it's bonds. From there he could then crawl down the corridor and to his beloved Iugo.

Yes... Iugo could save him. Iugo would always protect him. Iugo would be angry if he died... Already his vision was blurring, partially from pain, the other from blood loss. His cries between gnawing of his muscles and bone were muffled to begin with but started to lose intensity as all of his energy seemed to flow out in proportion to the pus-like substance that was Agony's blood.

[Elric Vlarintos]

It was already so disgusting and it was only going to get worse. Whatever ichor dripped from Agony's veins did not look like blood at all, and it only reinforced the image that Agony was not a being worth feeling pity over. "Your entire body is a sore... a pimple just begging to be popped." Elric choked a little bit as he brought the hatchet down again. He didn't really care whether or not Agony could understand him anymore. Unintelligible screams were not even screams for mercy. The creature would have its mercy once it was finally dead.

Elric's hand worked steadily at chopping through the flesh, but each time the blade got caught against the bone. Finally he gave up and slammed the axe down hard higher up in the leg, lodging it somewhere in Agony's femur, he suspected. What he wouldn't give for a nice, hot fire right now. Then he'd be able to experiment with the potential of cauterizing the wounds as he made them. Less blood and more pain were two qualities he potentially would have loved to see work in action.

Instead, he was stuck just grabbing a large and heavy length of metal. It was a prybar and Elric was able to wedge it into the little goblin's open wound. Without care or caution he just started to pull the bones and flesh apart at the joint. Screams echoing off of the walls the entire time. Elric wondered if the little monster might pass out from fluid loss or from lack of air to the lungs first.

After the sickening snap Elric grasped at the axe once more and finished chopping off the foot. With two extremities removed Elric pondered quietly how he might end the screaming himself. A gag would work and let him continue on the conscious beast, but for the most part he had gleaned what he could from the monster. A stab to the chest in the right place might end it immediately; it would also be the most humane action he could take.

Elric's hand reached for a saw instead. There might still be one last thing he could learn. It'd probably ruin a cervical vertebrae or two, but that was the price of self discovery in this case. A hand slammed down on the creatures head and grasped it by the flesh while he tried to hold it still. The teeth of the saw tickled across the edges of Agony's tender neck flesh. "Give me one last good one, all right? I want to remember this moment."

Elric gently slid the saw back and forth as the teeth chewed their way slowly into the flesh. This was the starting point, a groove of sorts. Normally you had to do this to keep the saw from sliding around too much as you tried cutting through harder materials such as wood. Elric doubted that it would do him much good here, but it was the only way he knew how to saw.

The tool tore through hide and flesh with free-flowing ichor dripping from the slowly deepening wound. Elric felt a change of density and ease in the blade as it cut through what he presumed was Agony's windpipe or esophagus. He could only be certain it was the windpipe at the moment it went all the way through, for the screaming would then cease. Vessels that carried the creature's ichor and its bones were next. The bones felt more like wood and Elric imagined he might have been able to cut through them much more quickly than he was. Right now he could take his time.

[Doctor Nationis]

The howls of his namesake rang louder with each chop, the yellow sludge pouring between his tiny, needle-like fangs as he tried to escape. He didn't need hands! He didn't need feet! Agony needed to escape with his life! He bravely ventured forth to try and remove another limb, assuming Elric was just going to take off his other foot in the process. With his amazing speed without a hand, arm, or feet, this human had little chance to catch up with the woozey familiar. How much blood wa pooling along the floor? How bad was the odor from the fowl pus?

The chopping of his leg caused his cries to renew, tearing a bit of his own shoulder out, dangling between his pointed teeth. The goblin cried out with each strike, unable to do anything but clench his claws, both attached and on the floor (it lay twitching and possessed). The legs kicked as much as possible, but Elric's brute strength was far more than necessary to keep his pathetically slim leg still for him to do his work. Was he done? Was there finally sweet relief to this torment? A life being deformed was still life! Tears rolled down his green cheeks, groaning in suffering, his foot held by half the meat remaining and a notched bone. The axe in his thigh didn't even bring forth a yelp, as he rolled his head, vision becoming hazy.

The pry bar woke him up, glowing eyes, dimmer than usual, opening up for Elric to see the amount of torment Agony was feeling. The cracking of bone separating made the little humanoid go limp, making no more efforts as a swift chop took another part of his body away from him. His small, tight chest, ribs easily seen, rose and fell slowly, in a rhythm that would herald nothing else but death.

The rough grab of his head woke the dying being from what it thought was it's last slumber. The eyes no longer glowed like they used to, only a sickly yellow as they saw the sheet of metal enter and almost leave his vision. The eyes tried to widen once more as it felt it's neck being severed. It was a torn feeling... Horror filled Agony as he knew his life would soon come to an end. Yet, as he felt his neck open up, the rapid breathing he had taken up turning into gasp and finally bursts of wind as he lost control of his windpipes, relief washed over him. The pain was unbearable and he wished that he had been dead hours ago if he knew what was to happen. The lethal blades cut into his spinal cord, the goblin immediately going limp as the damage only became worse, but he would be long dead before Elric finished the dastardly deed.

Agony only had one last thought before he died: He would never, ever, ever have to deal with Iugo Nationis again.

[Elric Vlarintos]

It was done. Everything seemed so sharp and defined. The knife called adrenaline had cut through the dream haze of this Wonderland. Elric had not even realized that the world had ever seemed hazy before just now. His hands were shaking, and now that he was not so terribly focused on what he was doing with Agony he suddenly felt a rising urge to retch. The stench was unbearable.

He coughed and gagged for a moment before opening up a box or two. He stuffed severed body parts into separate boxes. When he came to the hand, he paused for a moment. As an afterthought he cut one of Agony's center digits free from the rest of the stump. That might be useful for later.

It was messy work, and when Elric was finished he had no desire to touch his face or clothes with his filthy hands. And yet, he would have to put on the jacket. Elric considered it briefly and realized that his jacket was already at the end of its life now. Piper had pulled it back after the library incident, but the bloodied holes where his arms had been punctured earlier were beyond saving. The coat was simultaneously stained and damaged and it was not worth patching.

He zipped the coat up and pulled the collar closer to his neck after putting it on. Then he moved towards the boxes. He had to dispose of the evidence. It was likely that no one would think twice about most of the materials down here, but he'd rather not leave a rotting body in the dungeons. Given how horrid it was now, he couldn't fathom what it would be like once decay set in.

Everything moved so strangely now. His eyes had adjusted to the dim lighting and he could see just from the reflection of moonlight from the snow. Everything seemed to be in sharp contrast, the cold included, so he would have to work quickly.

A box with an arm buried here and a leg there. He had enough materials to set one box aflame (the one with the torso) and leave it be. He quickly got rid of pieces until a sound in the distance disturbed him. Elric did not wish to stay and find out what it was, so he tossed the final piece, the creature's head, into a nearby pond. It broke through the thing layer of ice on the surface and floated for a moment before sinking to the bottom steadily and with many bubbles.

Elric fled the scene of the crime as quickly as his numb feet could take him.