The Godsfall Chronicles

Book 1, Chapter 121 – An Accord

Cloudhawk vanished! His sudden disappearance had thrown the labs into chaos.

Academician Roste had no idea how it’d happened, but he could guess. Cloudhawk hadn’t really escaped – rather, he hadn’t run. He had to have used some mystical technique to vanish, something science had no way to explain. He put the blame on the abilities of the demonhunters.

When he received the news, Roste immediately locked down the laboratories. He didn’t vent his anger at Chimp; that was the way of weak men. He needed his director to lead the search. Roste didn’t believe people could just disappear so Cloudhawk had to be hiding somewhere. If they had to tear this place apart to find him they would!

Under the Academician’s orders, Chimp started to canvas the area. No closet, box or corner was ignored.

The day past with countless people combing over the lab with a fine-toothed comb, twice. Not a single trace of the wastelander was found. Chimp was beyond furious as he led two scientists with him to a cage.

“Bring me the whip!”

A strikingly beautiful woman was locked away inside the prison. Her hands, which had been chopped off, looked recently reattached and the wounds to her body had healed well. Her wrists were bound by two heavy locks and her ankles were tied to her waist with chains. She was left with no way to move.

Hellflower’s talents lay in her weapons mastery. Physically there was nothing she could do, so they felt no need to keep her sedated. There was no way she could free herself from her restraints.

Her hair was tousled and messy. Her pretty face was pale and bloodless, making her seem alluringly delicate.

When Chimp stepped into the cage he immediately laid into her with the whip. Her unblemished skin split beneath the lash. His blows rained upon her chest as well, tearing gashes in her clothes and damaging her supple flesh within.

But Hellflower was a tenacious woman. She gritted her teeth and didn’t give him the joy of even a single grunt. Chimp was spent after only a few lashes and stood before her panting heavily. Slowly she raised her head to look at him, her face pale and sweaty, and split in a derisive sneer. “Let me guess. Judging by how upset our dear director is, I suspect something’s gone wrong with Cloudhawk.”

“What do you know about Cloudhawk’s abilities? Tell me everything!”

Her eyes were full of scorn and contempt. It was like she didn’t even regard him as human, he was like a moving pile of shit. She almost giggled. “It looks like my hypothesis was correct!”

“You dare laugh at me?!” He drew his dark and indecent eyes over Hellflower’s curves. With a wave he summoned the scientists forward. “I don’t think you’ll be laughing for long.”

They approached with a box and retrieved from within it a large syringe. A pale yellow fluid sloshed inside. When she saw what it was Hellflower’s mocking smile vanished. “What are you planning to do?”

Chimp felt back in control when he saw the smile flee from her face. He chuckled darkly and replied in an enigmatic voice. “The mechanism of this drug destroys the synapses in the brain, causing permanent damage. Any memories, emotions and untrained skills will be lost, and you will lose the ability to make any independent judgments. You will serve between my legs as a slave, a bitch anyone can ride. I have to say I’m looking forward to it.”

Hellflower knew this was the Academician’s ‘brainwashing’ drug. The damage it caused was irreversible, and once injected she would became whatever sort of slave Chimp wanted her to be. She would much rather choose death!

“Are you ready to talk?” Chimp stank with confidence and pride. No one could resist his questioning, especially not someone as self-centered and faithless as Hellflower. “What are Cloudhawk’s powers!”

“I don’t know.”

She had spent the most time with the young demonhunter. Chimp was certain she was his answer. As her words hung in the air his face darkened, more depraved. He approached her step by step, then reached out a hand and stroked her face. “You won’t talk? That’s fine, we can take our time.”

Hellflower clenched her fists. “I really don’t know!”

“Turning you into my sex puppet would really satisfy my craving. It’ll be such a shame not to see this expression on your face anymore. Now may be my last opportunity to try the real you, before I take it away.

“You – get your hands off me!”

Chimp grabbed her collar and tore, revealing what was beneath. The angry bleeding welt where he’d struck her with his whip only made him more excited.

Chimp fumbled with her pants, filling Hellflower with rage and embarrassment. She cursed and struggled but even so her clothes were tugged down, revealing her firm buttocks. She couldn’t fight him, she was only making the pervert more excited. He couldn’t hold himself back any longer, he needed to feel all the pleasures her body had to offer.

Moral chastity wasn’t a privilege wasteland women enjoyed, but she could think of nothing worse than becoming a sex slave for this pig and his equally perverse friends. It was a hell she couldn’t endure.

She would rather die, if given a choice. But she wasn’t given a choice.

The other two scientists stood nearby, watching expectantly. Hellflower was the most enticing beauty in the whole base, no straight man would give up his chance to have his way with her. After Chimp has his fun perhaps he would let them have a go. It would be a rare delight.

No sooner had the thought crossed their minds than the two men screeched and hit the ground, wracked with convulsions. Both of them frothed at the mouth and their head stood straight on end as every fiber in their body felt like it was set on fire. Chimp had his pants halfway down his legs when he saw what was happening. “What’s going on?!”

A guard approached, the electric gun in his hand still crackling with sparks as he pointed it toward the lab director. Chimp was shocked at first, then in a rage began to shout at him. “Which unit are you with! You actually dare –“ The threats died in his throat when he saw the guard’s face clearly. His eyes got so wide they threatened to roll right out of his head and he stumbled back until the bars of the cage wouldn’t let him flee any farther.

A cold grin spread across Cloudhawk’s face. “Surprise, motherfucker.”

Chimp answered with a high-pitched wail and tried to run.

“You absolute dick, you think you can run?” Cloudhawk took a large stride forward and buried his knee in the director’s stomach. The lustful man curled up like a broiled shrimp whimpering as though his organs had been pureed. Cloudhawk gave him a sharp smack for good measure. “I said I was gonna whoop your ass, didn’t I? Fuck, I didn’t think I’d get lucky so soon, but here you are. Die you sack of shit!”

Chimp blubbered through a face full of tears. “No-no-no! No, please! I don’t want to die!”

Cloudhawk was unfazed, however, and raised his hands.

Hellflower stopped him. “Cloudhawk, hold on.”

He turned his head to look at her. She was in a tough spot, haggard and messy with most of her clothes ruined but still beautiful. Her unfortunate situation could easily arouse a man’s darker desires.

“You don’t think we should spare him, do you?” Cloudhawk was surprised by her mercy, but he was resolute. “If I could kill him ten times it wouldn’t pay back what he’s done to me over the last week. He dies today.” How could Hellflower not want this disgusting man dead?

“He can still be useful.” She saw Cloudhawk looking back at her with a dumb expression. “So have you had enough of an eye full? Help get me out of these shackles!”

Cloudhawk gave Chimp a sharp kick to the ribs. “Keys!”

Hellflower had nearly lost hope, but suddenly Cloudhawk had appeared just in time. The young man was Roste’s most cherished treasure, whose worth was far beyond her own. She knew Roste had to have stationed any number of guards to watch the boy, including many of his transformed freaks. Clever and calculating as the Academician was, how could Cloudhawk have gotten free? Something didn’t seem right!

But however it happened, Cloudhawk had risked himself to save her. Hellflower was grateful. “Did anyone see you?”

“The lab’s in chaos and I’m dressed as a guard, people are running all over and not paying any attention. For now no one knows where I am.”

When her shackles were removed Hellflower tenderly rubbed her wrists. She searched the unconscious scientists and found a gun and some ammo. Cloudhawk might not have been discovered yet, but they couldn’t take this situation lightly. It wouldn’t be long before someone discovered there was a problem and once the old man came for them things would go from bad to worse.

Cloudhawk’s daring rescue wasn’t entirely altruistic. “You got a plan? We’ve gotta get outta here!”

By now she had recovered her typical poise. “The two of us aren’t strong enough ourselves. We need some help if we want a shot of getting out of here alive.”

Cloudhawk immediately thought of someone. He grabbed a fistful of Chimp’s clothes and dragged him back to his feet. He gave him another punch to the face before snarling the question at him. “Where’s Hyena?”

Chimp hesitated, unwilling to answer. But when Cloudhawk lifted his fist for another punch he knew he wasn’t going to get away with silence. Quivering, he answered. “Don’t- don’t hit me. H-he’s here, next door!”

“Hellflower, do you really want to keep him alive?”

“He may be a piece of shit, but he’s been here a long time. He has people who listen to him, and maybe they’ll listen to us. We can use them to fight the Academician. Maybe, with Hyena’s help, we can actually fight back!”

She’d nearly been raped by this weasel, but her gaze was calm and steady like nothing had happened. Her mind was already making plans and countermoves. This level of poise was almost unnatural. She was the most mature and composed woman Cloudhawk had ever met both physically and emotionally.

She returned the brainwashing syringe to its box and handed it to Cloudhawk. “Take this. Let’s go!”

With the box in one hand and Chimp in the other, Cloudhawk followed Hellflower down the hall. Although her clothes were in tatters she was no less threatening. She kicked open the door to the next room and charged in. With her hair flailing she looked like a Valkyrie.

Bang-bang-bang!

She fired several rapid shots, too fast for anyone to strike back. The guards were dead before they hit the ground.

In the center of the room, submerged in a glass tank floated Hyena. He was unmoving but still awake. Hellflower raised her hand and fired a couple rounds into the rank, shattering it. Glass and fluid poured free, and a figure coated in bristling black fur leapt out right after.

Half man and half beast, Hyena swept past. Neither Hellflower nor Cloudhawk could react before he had them both by the neck. He lifted them off the ground and squeezed as he fixed them with murderous green eyes. “You two actually came back here to let me go? What makes you think I won’t kill you!”

Hellflower didn’t seem scared of him or the threat of having the life choked out of her. She fought out her response through her half-crushed windpipe. “If you kill us you’re giving up your shot to get out of here. You’ll end up just like the others, a puppet soldier!”

Hyena’s fierce visage twisted into a snarl.

He loosened his hands.

Cloudhawk gasped for breath, acutely aware of how dangerous this guy was.

Hellflower explained the situation. “The Academician is stronger than either of us could imagine. Fighting alone we don’t stand a chance, but maybe together we can put that old man down. I know you aren’t my biggest fan, and I don’t much like you either, but we need to put that aside and come to an accord.”

Chimp became flustered. “You’re doomed! You can’t fight the Academician, you’ve got to give up this foolish idea.”

Cloudhawk’s animosity toward Chimp was particularly keen. “Who the fuck asked you to open your whore mouth? Shut the fuck up!”

Hellflower stood in front of Chimp. “I know you’ve got a lot of people here who listen to you, and I believe you’re an intelligent man. You need to make a choice; you help us, or you die.”

Chimp gave her a pained look. “Why are you so dead set on fighting the Academician?”

Her response was delivered in even tones. “Everyone should be allowed to make a decision based on what they believe. I cannot pledge allegiance to that mad man. I suggest you think carefully before answering.”

Hyena picked Chimp up in his bone-crushing hands. “But don’t. Waste. My. Time.”

“Don’t kill me. Don’t kill me!” Chimp’s face was red and he sputtered in abject fear. Hyena’s twisted half-beast face so close to his scared away any courage he had. “Alright, I promise I’ll do whatever you want. I’ll call all my people together in the lab. Cloudhawk’s equipment is there, too. I’ll take you!”

He really was a rotten bastard!

Hyena unceremoniously threw Chimp to the ground with a look of utter disgust.