Warning this chapter carries elements of child abuse.
Ray looked at the walls of the iron blood keep while the guards marched him towards his father's study.
They were un adorned, except for a few large portraits of people with different shades of red in their hair posing as if they were some type of hero. These pictures were meant to show iron blood family members that had somehow distinguished themselves among their peers.
Under the gold framed portraits, what they did to gain their place on the iron blood walls was written in bronze.
Under one thin man with red hair that nearly reached his waist, and red armor that looked more like a overly stiff suit made for style instead of defense, had the words "protected the first patriarch" written below
his portrait, and under the portrait of a particularly Burley man with hair and a beard the color of blood the words "cut through a dragon in a single blow ."was written below.
Looking at the ax, the Burleigh man in the portrait held Ray had a sudden thought. "You're telling me you had A AX sharp enough to cut a dragon in half yet you somehow didn't have an ax sharp enough to give yourself a haircut." Looking at the other guy in the strange armor, he continued his thought. "Besides what would this guy save the patriarch from a bad hair day."
One might be wondering, what does this have to do with where they were going and the answer is nothing. Ray was just using things around him to take his mind off what was to come. "I shouldn't be this scared
Ray thought his fist clenching in impotent rage. " I've lived for millennia and I've faced enemies. He couldn't imagine so. Why am I afraid."
Eventually, they finally reached the door of his father's study The door didn't look imposing in any real way. It was like any other door in the manner made of would that was nearly mahogany in color, but somehow it's radiated an aura of quiet menace.
"We will stand outside. Your father is waiting within." The guards said as they stepped to either side of the door before looking literally everywhere but at him as it seems to observe the surroundings.
Ray quickly concealed a flash of discussed in his eyes at the guards, words and actions. "I can't believe I ever thought guards were meant to protect." And somewhere deep inside a small part of him thoughts. "I can't believe I ever thought family members were meant to do the same."
He quickly shook the thought off. There was no point in dwelling on something he couldn't change if he tried to. Not that he would anyway.
Quickly gathering his courage, he stayed straight for walking to his fathers door and knocking. "Come in."
The voice wasn't cold, it was empty, desolate almost in human in the hollowness of it.
Ray suppressed another shiver. In nearly a total of 18 millennia of living, he had never met anyone as insane as his father.
Considering the places he had been and the people he had fought in those 18 millennia. That was by no means a small accomplishment.
Finally comprehending his father's words, he quickly pushed open the door before stepping in. His office wasn't opulent no. Not opulent is a Gross understatement. There was nothing that wasn't strictly needed in the office.
"The bastard doesn't even have a chair." Ray thought, as he saw his father with his back to him standing over a desk, and as he said the desk had no chair.
"I heard of your test results." The words were spoken with the same lack of emotion he had used to tell Ray to enter, but Ray knew the words needed a response.
"Yes sir." That was all right you could say because any other answer would've had an unexpected response, and his father didn't take excuses. "They were Unsatisfactory to say the least." Again, the words had no inflection, no hint of his actual mood in them. So Ray responded in a affirmative. "Yes sir."
"and would you happen to know why they were so unsatisfactory" he didn't have an answer, in this life, or the one before he had never found an answer to the question. "I will take that as you don't." The words were spoken in a near whisper, but the sound of it sent the shiver down raised spine, and he instinctively tried to twist to the
side."Too slow, I am too fucking slow." Ray roared in his mind as he saw the fist approaching. When it finally impacted his ribs, a sickening series of cracks sounded out in the air
before he was catapulted across the room by the force of the punch. "You are a disgrace to this family, a waste of space, a repulsive existence, and most importantly you are a disgrace as a air."
With each insult, his father swung again, and with his fourth Circle speed it was impossible for Ray to defend or even see most of the attacks.
There is no way you're my Air That bitch must have cheated on me with someone weaker, with someone inferior with someone unworthy." the blows, didn't slow down, and if anything they seem to grow faster
"or you're just inferior" punch to the jaw
"it would explain why everyone of my airs were great except for you." A backhand to the chest.
"One failure out of 1000. Close" a series of stomps and kicks that broke nearly every bone in his legs simultaneously.
"And it just had to be one of mine."upper cut the force of the blow lifted him nearly 2 m into the air.
"You fucking disgust me." saying that he snatched Ray from the air by his throat. His grip tightening slowly into a blood, began to flow from raised mouth and crunching sounds came from beneath his hand. He's stagnant breath, wafting over raise face Did not help the situation as spittle flew from his mouth with every word.
"In the 800 years of this clan's existence. There has never been a descendent so fucking weak." And with the ease of a man in the fourth ring, he tossed raised limp body towards the door.
He impacted it with a hollow thump before slumping to the ground like a wet rag.
"Get him the fuck out of here before I kill him by accident." After saying that the patriarch of the iron blood clan turned back to his desk and began to sign papers.
The blood of his son still staining his knuckles. Meanwhile, on the ground behind him Ray slumped
Nearly every bone in his body was broken, but his eyes were still open.
They were swollen from too many impacts against a wall, but they were still open and glaring at his father's back. "Never again." He thought rage blazing in his eyes like molten metal never again will I be reduced to this state."
In less than 30 seconds a series of boots hitting the ground sounded outside the study door.
When the door was opened, raise broken body was pushed to the side Leaving bloody smears in his weight as the guards entered the room.
After a moment of looking around, they finally found him, before with no gentleness or care for his wounds, they lifted him from the ground. When they finally left his father's study, he heard their whispers.
"Damn the patriarch actually did a number on him."
"I don't think I don't think even the light elementalist can fix this shit."
"I'm surprised the bastard is still alive."
"All of you shut the fuck up he might still be awake."
"What does it matter if this treatment doesn't show what the patriarch thinks about him then what will."
"He has a point what will the boy do? Tell his father."
At that the corridor filled with muffled snorts of laughter as they walked toward the infirmary with raise body in toe"laugh While you can because in due time, I'll kill every single one of you." Ray thought his thoughts seething with rage.
When they finally made it to the infirmary, Ray was barely holding onto consciousness.
"What is it now? If another one of your guards injured themselves by trying to impress one of the maids in the Manner Riley, I swear I will." A feminine voice drone, before cutting off, as she seemed to have caught sight of Ray
."The failure i presume?"
"Right on as always pixie." One of the guards responded with a tone that was entirely too cheerful for their current situation.
"He seems to have a nasty fall while walking out of the patriarchs office."
"Oh I bet" she said her voice drier than a desert.
"Well move him to the bed in the corner I'll see him later. I have two patients with the flu. I have to deal with first." With that she walked off.
"Wow you heard her boys lay him on that bed over there."The guard Ray now New as Riley said. After a few more seconds he was laid down on a bed that was somehow even thinner than the one back in his room.
Even now his eyes were open by a slither. Every time the darkness tried to encroach on his vision he struggled Against the unconsciousness.
When the healer finally found the time to come over to him, she mumble something about how failures make her life more difficult than it has to be before healing him.
The light ether running through out his body seems to be the last straw as Ray finally was pulled into unconsciousness.