Page 14 of Corrupted Torment

Now, he’s set his friends—the ones who enjoy the pain—the task of ruining me further. I don’t know if it’s better to stay and face the monsters in my home or go out and risk the demons. I don’t have much time left to decide. The siren has been ringing for a while now, and the silence will signal their start.

Either way, I am caught, and when it happens, it is guaranteed to hurt.

Aggs had decided against telling me about the siren. It had been her job back in the warehouse that first day. I’ve not confronted the woman about it, or what she said about me down on the beach. Is it worth it with all the trauma we go through?

No new girls have arrived since me, and I have a sinking suspicion that the decision is not down to the men currently waiting in the treeline. Not that I would ever speak those thoughts aloud. Thoughts of the women who took away my choice makes my anger flare. She had no empathy, no kindness inside her dark heart.

I could not move in so much terror as he ripped away my virtue. If they had given me any kind of knowledge, I could’ve at least known not to bother fighting back against a psycho like him. He needs to see the fear and pain, wants to witness the fish struggling on the end of his line. I could have saved my energy.

Though, more likely, I would’ve run, just like I do now.

I can’t give up yet.

CHAPTER6

RAFFERTY

Age Ten

It’s been a strange few months.

Although Aiden’s recovery has been smoother than I could have imagined, he will never fully be free from the dull ache constantly throbbing in his arm. His gold eyes holding a pain no one our age should have to understand. We leave his latest appointment with no further relief, only more disappointment.

Closing the metal door of the medical wing behind us, I stand by him. Keeping him safe from the feral vibes my brothers give off. Moving through our dungeon home, we ignore the smug smiles and whispered words of lounging boys. Knowing that interacting will only bring more pain.

I make sure Aiden stays standing tall, even when he doesn’t think he can. The fluorescent light shining back off the white walls is too bright for how we are both feeling. Our mood is much more suited to the darkness, but we are given no choice but to be bathed in this endless light.

Walking through the first common area of our underground home is a tactical assessment. With so many brothers, it becomes a matter of importance to avoid the majority, not wanting to earn their wrath and have it become problematic.

We already know to steer clear of Devon and his closest accomplices in the gym, a spot known to all of us. The only time when they venture elsewhere is for meals, games, or curfew. The rest of our brothers prefer to spread out across various rooms within our living quarters. Walking through the lounge room gives us an idea of how widespread they are. With so many rooms, it is impossible to avoid everyone.

The quickest option would be to bypass all common areas to our dorms through the main corridor. It’s not for the faint of heart though. If trapped and surrounded there by multiple brothers on the hunt, you’re in for a world of hurt. Two of my brothers fell to Devon’s violence this way, surrounded by his most faithful cronies.

It’s why careful calculation and probability are so essential; to find the safest route to our dorm in peace. The daily task of mapping our home is an endless chore; a challenge we shouldn’t have to deal with. A necessary evil to keep us alive.

The laughter behind us still does not grant me the answer we need to know. I look at Aiden, quirking my eyebrow in question. Ahead to the canteen, or right into the main walkway. We both know better than to go into Devon’s territory.

I watch as his eyes close briefly, brow creasing in concentration as his lips move his unspoken thoughts. Opening his eyes, he indicates the corridor with his hand, and I smile, nodding as we move onward. After all, he taught me the probabilities and I trust his instincts. His only mistake—resulting in his current injuries—thankfully didn’t cost him his life. With such a high price to pay, Aiden had still had luck on his side with me so close by to bind his arm.

A risk he will not take again.

We live on Venatio: an island made up of human lab rats. Like vermin in the sewers, me and my brothers reside below the main facility. Watched over mostly by one doctor. His goal in keeping us is unclear, but it's obvious he has no intention of letting us escape to a world outside of this one.

I know he is doing something to us. It’s clear in the way he studies us. Writing his notes on each of us, pitting us against one another. I don’t like to be used, but to him—to the man who ultimately raised me—I am nothing but a game piece for him to manipulate. To tamper with and control until I do as he deems worthy. It’s endlessly testing my frustrations, especially as I watch him plot his next strategy.

Now, one by one, my brothers are changing. They differ from how they once were. We have always been on the darker side. Have always fought and played our games, but now they seem to crave the violence. A need as potent as food and water. A far more sadistic way of life since the brothers following in Devon’s footsteps grows in number.

It hadn’t been Devon who flung Aiden from the tree that night. It hadn’t just been Aiden that was injured. My brothers prey on the younger of us, the ones who they deem the weakest, like me and Aiden.

The ones who lose the trials.

I’ve asked questions to those I know are less likely to instigate brutality. I am desperate for the truth of what makes them this way. None of them will talk about it. They all give each other knowing looks as if they’re in on some big secret. Are they actually in on it though, or is something happening to them without their understanding?

Whatever is happening to our brothers, I need to find out.

Devon’s strength and speed seems to grow as each day passes and he’s not the only one. I watch as many of my brothers run circles around me and Aiden. We can no longer keep up with them, no matter how much we try. If we try to fight back, or more likely, I try to; they beat us down into submission.

Aiden’s look of defeat has me nudging his elbow, reminding him to keep his chin held high. He knows better than any other that to be seen as weak is akin to a death sentence. His nod reassures my pounding heart. We lost another brother only days ago to the bloodshed of Devon’s making.

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