It's Lovely to Meet You

Soldiers were dragging a small boy through the halls towards the dungeon, the boy screaming to be set free and struggling against the soldiers' grip on him. "Let me go! I haven't done anything to you! Let go! Let go!!" He cried, trying to pull himself free as tears began running down his face, "I haven't done anything wrong!!!” His cries fell on deaf ears; the soldiers didn't even seem fazed by his attempts to escape.

A large cougar lead the soldiers through the lower parts of the castle were no one but the ones around him could hear his cries. His armor clicked and clinked against his body as he prowled the halls aimlessly.

"Let go!" The shadows flared off the walls briefly at the boy's cry. As the boy became more and more distressed, the shadows began to grow more and more violent and would fly off the walls and slash at the soldiers. "Let go! Let go! Let go!" The child chanted the words like a mantra, the sclera of his eyes turning black as his panic grew.

The soldier stopped in his tracks as the shadows went to slash at him. Swiftly he turned and tackled the child to the floor, his form changed into that of a human pinning him down with force. With a syringe held in his hands he plunged it into the neck of the child.

The boy screeched when he felt the syringe sink into his neck, the shadows around them went wild and started throwing the soldiers at the walls.

The golden glow of the man’s eyes glared down at the boy as the liquid in the syringe was injected into him. “There…that should quiet you down…” he growled out in a beastly manner pulling the needle point from his flesh.

The boy's struggles grew weaker until he finally went limp, his eyes turning dull and unfocused. The shadows receded to their normal positions as one of the soldiers grabbed the collar of the child's shirt and started dragging him to the dungeon.

Shifting back to his regular form the cougar scowled at the others scattered around the hall. “GET TO YOUR FEET!!” He ordered at the men. Without waiting for them to get back in ranks he too went after the rest of the group to the dungeon.
"Sir, may I have permission to ask a question?" One of the soldiers behind Spades spoke up.

His head snapped around with a warning snarl at the younger rank. “one question. Make it fast…”
"Why did we take the child into custody, sir?"

His expression turned to one of disappointment and he began to walk towards the soldier. “Why are we taking this child in? Did my ears mistake me on what I just heard come from your pathetic mouth soldier?” he bared his teeth at him as he got into his face.

The soldier backed down slightly, "Sir I haven't been told anything, I've just gotten back from the war." The soldier stared right back at Spades, his own gaze unwavering.

“Just got back from the war?” His faced turn to disgust as he began to circle him. “Runt do you even know what the war we’ve been waging is even about…?”

"No sir." The soldier answered, "I was drafted in, and no one from my hometown was told what was going on."

A faint whispering started to come from somewhere; it was barely audible and seemed to echo from everywhere.

“Ever heard of the legend of the heavens?” he hissed out. His ears twitched at the light sound bringing his attention away from the soldier and at their surroundings.

The other soldiers looked around, trying to pin point the source of the sound

The child tilted his head over his shoulder slightly, his visible eye fixed on Spades. His pupil a strained white slit in a sea of pitch black, his mouth moved to form seemingly soundless words. "I've seen your nightmares, I've seen right through you." The voice sounded more like it was coming from the shadows then from the boy who remained still for the locked on stare at Spades. "You think you can hide from your own shadow? Put to sleep what was never once awake?" The shadows under Spades and the soldiers' feet began to stir and rise up into shadow versions of themselves. "I see you~" The voice practically sang the last words as the shadows attacked.

Spades taken slightly off guard he snarled out as the shadows rose up around them. When they attacked him and the troops around him he roared out and began to fight back.

The child fell back against the floor, His body spasming slightly. The shadows continued to attack the soldiers; other shadows tore off the walls and started slashing at them again.

With his armor still upon his body, it protected him from harsh blows from the attacking shadows. Spades claws sparked against the stone floor as he charged towards the child again. “Hold your Ground Men!” He yelled over their screams.
The boy's own shadow reared up in the shape of a familiar snow leopard that stood over him and stared at Spades. "Your shadows tell me things...how could you kill someone who loved you so dearly...you're more of a monster then any sin." The child's head turned towards Spades but the voice still didn't seem to come from him and his expression was still blank.

At the sight of the Snow Leopard he stopped in his tracks just few feet from the both of them. His eyes locked as if in a trance on the famine figure before him. “Hearts…” he whispered as he stood there as if frozen.

The shadow stared right back at him, her eyes sad and full of hurt.

He watched her transfixed, his eyes filled with longing. Suddenly a loud crash from behind him snaps his attention away from her and his eyes turn cold once more as he returns his eyes back towards the both of them, his menacing laugh filling the air. “You almost had me there sin!” He laughed out before baring his fangs at the shadow. “But the one I once loved died to me a long time ago…”

The boy's body shuddered violently as he coughed up what looked like ink. "You're more of a monster then I am." The shadow dropped back into the floor before rising up and attacking Spades in the shape of clawed hands.

He quickly changed his form back into that of a human as the shadows went to attack him.

The shadows began to stab and slash at Spades. Bringing one hand down across his waist he grabbed a container while the shadows were on top of him. Somehow in all the chaos he managed to get the lid off then swung the bottle into the air spraying holy water everywhere.

The boy shuddered and convulsed, the shadows falling to the floor once again.

With his blood dripping to the floor the cougar stood to his two feet and began towards the kid again. The container still gripped tightly in his hand.

The child lay gasping for air on the floor, his eyes back to normal but wide and his pupils dilated oddly, "I....d...don't want..." He choked words out, desperately trying to breathe correctly.

Spades once by the child’s side ignored his breathless words and grabbed him by the scruff of his collar with his free hand. “Pull anymore crap like that, and I will purposely make you drink what is in this bottle…”

The boy's unfocused eyes stared listlessly at the ceiling; all he could manage was a whimper in response as he hung there limply.

“Those who can still walk follow me.” Spades ordered not turning his gaze away from the boy. “Let’s get you squared away in your new home in the dungeon Sloth...” He hissed out at him as he began to drag his body into the internal darkness of the castle.

The child didn't move or speak again; even his shadow didn't seem to move at all.

----

It had been a few months since the ordeal that had gone on near the dungeon, but none of the residences that lived in the castle walls knew or would have truly cared about the ordeal with the sin child. Most of their attention and adoration was on the Virtue Guard and the youngest members of the quad; the vanity twins.

"What do you think is really down there Uno?" Risk hummed, staring at the door to the dungeon then looking at his sister, "Do you think it’s really a monster?" His ears twitched and angled towards the door. Spades as well as their own father had told them to steer clear of the dungeon otherwise the monster would kill them, but kids will be kids. "We should check it out, don't ya think?"

Standing behind her brother with uncertainty clearly plaster on her face as she peered up at the giant doors before them. “I don’t know Risk...” The tiny white fawn stated pushing her vibrant purple mane out of her face. "We've been told not to go in there."

"C'mon, arentcha just a little curious?" He grinned slightly, "Dad 'n Spades'll never know if we peek real quick!"

She frowned at her brother her markings glowing slightly as she tried to cover her fear. “Do you even know me? Of course I’m curious!”

"Then let’s go." Risk stood up on his hind legs briefly and pushed the doors open

The white fawn watched the doors creak themselves open, revealing nothing but darkness behind them. She gulped before walking inside the entrance of the dungeon to where the light reached the darkness. From there she stood, watching it, “not even when it is the darkest night there’s always light from the stars. But this place…” She shuddered, cut off by a chill from the room. “has something wrong with it.”

Risk shuddered as well, peering into the inky blackness, "Well...let’s go on..." He took a cautious step into the shadows, keeping his ears pricked and alert. It was cold in the dungeon but there was no wind, it just felt....dead....

Uno followed after her brother keeping close to his side. Unlike her brother, her ears were laid flat behind her and her gaze remained to the floor watching where each of her hooves stepped as they entered deeper into the dungeon.

It didn't take long before Risk paused and looked around, "Do you hear that?" A faint sobbing-like sound came from farther into the darkness, it echoed off the walls.

Her ears perked up as she listened to faint noise. Who could possible be down here besides? She thought to herself. Pushing past her fears Uno's fur brushed along Risk's as she walked past him trying to locate where the crying was coming from.

"Is that someone crying...?" Risk asked quietly, following her and continuing to look around.

She looked out into the darkness but her eyes were useless down here. “They sound frightened...” She whispered out.

"Yeah but why are they here?"

The young doe stopped looking back at her brother. “I don’t know, but does it matter?” she spoke her eyes glowing in concern against the darkness. “I’m scared just walking this far, they’ve probably been down here longer.”

"Is someone there...?" It was a quiet voice, it sounded pained and scratchy, "Are you going to hurt me too...?"

Uno immediately looked in the direction of where the voice came from. Slightly startled and confused by the voice she crept closure in its owner’s direction. “N-no,” she stuttered then shook her head to overcome her fear. “We haven’t come here to hurt you.”

A pair of mismatched eyes open in the darkness, glowing slightly almost identical to her own but the shades were off. "Are you lying...?" The voice growled weakly, the sound of chains dragging along the floors echoed in the silence.

“I don’t why I would lie to you.” She continued walking even when the stranger’s eyes opened. “My brother and I heard you crying. What are you doing all the way down her-!” Uno’s words were cut off as she had walked directly into metal bars a few feet away from the child in front of her.

The boy looked at them with tired, blank eyes. Blood dripped from the corner of his mouth and the same red liquid could be seen spattered on the walls and floor, "I'm a prisoner...figured that much would be obvious..."

Uno rubbed her now sore head before looking back at the boy. “You’re a prisoner all the way down here…? I've known adults to be taken down here but Children are never brought into the dungeon.” Standing upright she squinted her eyes at where pair of eyes glowed. Her eyes were still no help down inside the dungeon, but her nose and ears helped her see what was going on all around her. “You’re hurt.”

"I deserve it...I'm nothing but a monster..."

Uno ears drooped at his words and she pawed gently at the ground. “I don’t believe even a monster should deserve treatment like this.” Her eyes glowed slightly in the dark as she looked in this “monsters” direction.

"You don't believe a word of that and you know it." The voice growled, as he turned away. "Everyone here is a LIAR!" He shouted the last word, the shadows around them shuddering as if reacting to his heightened emotion.

She was taken by surprise from his sudden burst of emotion and looked back to where her brother stood behind her.
Though instead of running to him which she usually would have done in fear, the young doe turned her attention back towards the cage and sat down on the cold floor before it clearing her throat. “Well you obviously don’t know a thing about me.”

The eyes turned back toward her and glared before disappearing as he turned away again. "You don't know anything about me either…" He snorted; movement could be heard as he curled up in the far corner of the cage.

“You’re right, I don’t know you or anything about you.” She looked down at her hooves for a quick second. “But we could change that.” She looked hopefully back at him and held a hoof up to the bars. “My name's Uno.”