The Animal In Me

"Why can't i just throw a rock?" Lex felt unusual holding the slight blade. It was well balanced, but he missed the earth feel of boulder against his calloused hands. "It's just as deadly when I throw it." Still, he went through the slow motions of throwing the dagger, using one finger to guide the flip of the blade without actually throwing it. In his hand it felt like nothing, like he was prepared to hurl air through more air. "This feels silly."

"Rocks are barbaric, don't be an idiot." Liliya rolled her eyes, moving to his side. She grabbed the blade in his hand and showed him the proper way to hold it. "This is how to hold if you're going to throw it." She guided his hand into a slow flicking motion. "You have to let it go at precisely the right moment, or you'll fuck it up." Stepping back, she stood next to him. "Watch, then you go." Liliya took her blade, and flung it at a tree in the distance. It lodged itself deep into the bark, almost to the hilt. "Now you."

Taking the blade in hand, Lex practiced the movement slowly with his wrist, trying to master the movement before tossing the knife. "This is not going to go well," he said. Taking a slow pull back, Lex flicked his wrist and hurled the dagger through the air. With breakneck speed it spun and clanged against the tree, taking a large piece of bark off the trunk and ricocheting to the ground several feet away.

"Well... it might have broken a bone at the very least."

The Huntress had a stoic look on her face as she retrieved the blade. "A Hunter with a broken bone does nothing. A Hunter with massive internal bleeding is something we can work with." She picked up the blade and walked back to him. "Do it again. You're not letting go at the right time and you're giving the blade too much spin. You was silent and deadly, not.. Whatever it is you're doing."

"Depends on the bone," Alexandre muttered as he took the bad in his hand. He could not understand the core mechanics of stealth when I pertained to fighting a person. Animals followed set patterns, always reacting the same ways. They were simple and predictable. Humans, however, we're not.

It took three more tries to actually get blade pointed the right direction when it his the tree trubk, embedding itself deeply into the wooden pillar. "There we go."

"Maybe if you break the spine or get them in the skull." Liliya rolled her eyes, and pulled an arrow from her quiver fitting it on her bowstring. "You've got the concept, now, hit the arrow." She pulled the string tight, and the arrow go, hitting the dead center of the tree. "Target practice. You're not done until I say so."

The concept of 'target practice' made Lex scowl a little. "Target practice? I'm not a soldier, or a Hunter." Lex marched to the tree trunk and picked up the blades that were embedded in the bark as well as those that had clanged uselessly to the forest floor. But despite his protests, the monster-man continued hurling the sharp projectiles at the tree, never stopping to rest. His endurance was mighty, though not nearly enough to be considered a huge advantage. It was there, however, and was a nice perk, given his current state.

Liliya scowled, crossing her arms over her chest. "You don't need to be a soldier or a Hunter to have more than one skill. You can use it for hunting, or do you usually just pick up a boulder and smash your preys head in like a barbarian? Or maybe you break into houses and steal their meat? Don't be ignorant. Just because I'm trying to teach you new skills doesn't mean I'm trying to turn you into me." She paused, smirking. "You'll never be as good as me anyway, so why would I waste my time?"

"Oh of course not. No one can ever compare to Liliya Wolfsbane." Perhaps it was presumptive, but it seemed an appropriate title, given their current plan. The tone he used might have been a bit off-putting, given his frustration, but he could see that she wasn't trying to be mean. She was pushing him to improve; even if he thought it to be unreasonable, she was at least being helpful and not trying to take on the world all by herself. Lex continued to hurl the daggers, improving visibly, albeit very slowly. "I am just a fan to playing up strengths instead of making up weaknesses. I am built to brawl. You are built for finesse and accuracy."

"I am a bull. You are the hawk."

"But a bull with well aimed horns does significant damage, as does a hawks talons. Perhaps you should remember that, Alexandre." Liliya rolled her eyes, but could see his improvement. He wasn't going to be perfect every time, but even with her training it would help immensely when it came down to taking out Oleksy. "You can stop if you want, as long as you remember to see past my fathers tricks when it is his turn to die."

Lex took the words of wisdom to heart, remembering them as best he could. Liliya had done a good job motivating him; he found that, while tedious and irritating, he wanted to learn well, to earn a smile or a compliment from Liliya, as if it were a great treasure. He did not speak his response, but started down the trail again, the daggers still in hand. As they walked, he would randomly throw a blade at specific targets, focusing on accuracy more than strength. A well-aimed throw could do more damage than a strongly-thrown knife.

Before long, Lex's pace slowed as they neared a clearing. Just past the edge of the woods, over a tall hill and sitting atop a cliff was a small, dark structure, with turrets reaching high in the sky. There wasn't much light coming from the castle, but a few orifices were dimly illuminated on the eastern wall.

"There it is," Lex said softly, fearing that the very ground beneath their feet had ears and would alert the doctor to their presence.

Liliya stared ahead at the doctors "lair" of sorts, her expression impassive. The whole area gave off a sinister, dead feeling, as though it was the last thing anyone would see. Even if it were just an innocent passerby. As she stood, silent, she listened and was not surprised at the lack of noise: no forest animals, even the slight breeze seemed to make little noise in the trees.

"Enough practice. Now is the time for stealth and planning. I imagine there are creatures I have never seen before hidden here, and I know Oleksy is waiting for us, along with your doctor. Remember what I taught you."

With her bow at the ready, she crouched into a fighting stance, and waited in silence. The air stilled, and so did she. If it were not for her breathing, and her hair moving in the slight breeze, she would have looked like a statue

Alexandre nodded solemnly. "Yes, even things I have not seen. He has undoubtedly been busy since my departure. He had time to make new monsters." Lex was nervous about entering the lair as they were, but what other choice did they have. As long as the doctor and Oleksy still lived, neither himself nor Liliya were ever going to be safe or find peace.

Lex pushed those dark thoughts away and focused on how to get inside. "There's a few ways to get inside, relatively undetected. On the south side there is a water wheel. We could swim underneath the wall and grasp the wheel. It's a long swim, he water and steam will do the rest once we reach the wheel." To illustrate his description, Lex pointed out at the castle's bottom walls where the water wheel could be found.

"We could also try to sneak through the back gate. It's left open most of the time, as workers are constantly going in and out. It is, however, heavily guarded. The only other way would be to scale the wall, but being seen means certain death."

"Certain death, unnecessary murder, or swimming." Liliya mused. "I think we go for a swim unless you're feeling particularly vengeful." If she could help it, she didn't ruthlessly murder people she did not have a personal vendetta with. Though she was tense and ready nonetheless.

The familiar feeling right before a good hunt filtered through her veins; adrenaline, and excitement pushed its way through her, and without waiting for Alexandre to respond to her query, she pushed towards the water wheel. She moved silently, effortlessly up towards her destination all of her senses on high alert. Her targets knew she was coming, they were expected, and she was not one to disappoint.

Sliding into the water, Lex swam silently with only his head sticking out of the water. Though he was nowhere near as graceful as his counterpart assassin, he did manage to keep from making a raucous making his way to the wheel. Following Liliya up, Lex climbed off the churning apparatus and into main structure. The interior looked like one would imagine an old castle belonging to a psychotic doctor and inventor. The walls were rough stone and were damp to the touch in the humid air. The smell of rot and decay permeated the air, pungent enough to threaten the contents of any normal person's stomach.

Once inside, Lex took the lead, as he was most familiar with the castle's hallways and rooms. He had become intimately familiar with a few of the traps and secret entrances as well, though he was worried that the doctor might have already sealed them up or set ambushes there.

After only a couple of turns, Lex stopped and listened, closing his eyes to allow his imagination to determine what he was hearing.

"Footsteps..."

"Something ahead. Big..." Lex whispered into Liliya's ear, afraid to speak any louder. If they could go undetected, but still terminate the creation, their odds of survival would only increase.

Liliya halted in her steps, silently reviewing every possible way to kill or silence whatever awaited them ahead. Lex had said it was big. Process of elimination and logic reasoned that it had good hearing, but was slow. Arrows were out. They were fast but big enough to be swatted. Daggers were in. Small enough to be thrown, but could make a whistling noise if thrown the right way. It could also be swatted out of the air. The only logical way to terminate was to do it by hand. With a dagger.

Shoving her bow, and quiver full of arrows at Lex, Liliya proceeded to move down the corridor, her steps completely soundless; holding a dagger in her mouth, she seemed to vanish in the shadows, disappearing from sight. When she had eyes on the monster, she leapt into the air, twisting her body so that she landed on the beasts shoulders. One hand clamped down over its mouth as she drove the dagger hilt deep into its skull. The only sound that was made was the gentle thud as the creature slumped forward, and the squish as Liliya removed her dagger from its head.

Lex was on the move as soon as the monster fell. Though much larger than the friendly monster, Lex was able to grab it under its arms and drag it away from plain view. With the first obstacle dispatched, he took point again, leading Liliya into the first of many large rooms. "Coldly efficient, very effective," he said to Liliya with a smile. Despite the violence in the act, Lex noted the grace and intricacy of the maneuver. One wrong move and she would have been paste all over the castle hall, but like a cat, she seemed to have more than one life.

Slowing down as they reached the first door, Lex put his ear to the wood, listened for a moment, then slowly pushed it open. Inside was a variety of scientific equipment. Tables, medical instruments, and steam powered machinery cluttered the room, though there appeared to be no living beings inside. The monster picked his way carefully through the mess, trying not to disturb anything.

"This is where I was created. On that very table. I remember the echo of my screams and the doctor's voice, calmly telling me that I was going to be his instrument... his puppet."

Liliya took mental note of the room, and the path they had taken to get there. If they needed a fast escape she liked to know where to go. Her eyes scanned the room for entries and exits, possible places to set traps and possible ambush spots.

"I am coldly efficient. I do not drag things out unnecessarily." Except, of course, her fight with Lex. She could have taken him out, could have separated his head from his shoulders the night they met. Instead she gave a warning shot, put herself in danger. She turned her back on everything she knew for this monster. Lili reasoned it was because she owed him her life, but it was deeper than that.

"The only screams going to be heard this time are those of the Doctor. You will be freed of your chains to this man."

"Not if I have anything to say about it." Lex muttered under his breath. If he had a hand in the doctor's demise, his death would be slow and silent. There were all manner of ways to kill someone without making a single sound while drawing it out as long as possible.

Their path was easy enough to pick through; it was cluttered but not overly complicated. In the event that they needed a quick escape, they would be able to pass through the room relatively effortlessly, depending on the reason behind the sprint. Lex used his keen sight to watch for traps, though even he could not see everything, including the unfamiliar stench of sulfuric acid laying in wait for them. One boot on a pressure stone was all it took for the flow to begin. It was slow and subtle, not a torrent like one might imagine.

Impossible to detect, the acid quickly began to rush over their boots. Looking down and putting the pieces together, Lex did the only thing he could think to do. Grabbing Liliya by her arm and her leg, he lifted her off the ground and tossed her forward, landing her just outside the acid bath. The monster-man jumped to the side, also clearing the acid but not before his boots had been eaten almost clean through. Tearing the leather shoes from his feet, he looked down to see the bottom of his feet already beginning to blister. Despite that, he stood stubbornly and looked to Liliya.

"I have clumsy feet..."

Liliya stumbled on her feet whirling around to face the monster, a frown on her face. Setting off a trap without even knowing it was going to make their journey even more dangerous. Her keen eyes scanned the room, but didn't see any other traps, though not all of them were visible.

"Try to not be so clumsy. Do you need something for your feet?" Liliya didn't want to continue if he wasn't in a good condition to do so. Not only would it hinder them, but if he was in pain they could be more easily captured.

Grumbling under his breath, Lex tossed the ruined boots into the acid to slowly dissolve. To stand hurt quite a bit, but it wasn't the worst pain he'd ever felt by far. Shaking his head, Lex straightened out and regarded Liliya cooly. "No, i'll be fine. Let's keep moving." Though his words were even and thoughtful, there was murder in Lex's eyes, the look of a killer who had no remorse for the actions in which he was preparing to partake.

Though he did not limp, the pain in his feet was intense and damaging. The sensation was something akin to stepping on hot coals or razor blades. But still he pressed on, flexing his fists as he prepared for whatever else might come their way.

It wasn't long after the acid bath that the next obstacle appeared. A hulking, hideous monster, Alexandre grunted and spoke a single world aloud. "Maul," he said with an obvious tone of frustration. The beast was basically bipedal, with a giant mouth in the torso full of sharp serrated teeth. It had no head nor eyes, though it apparently had no trouble tracking them. Next to Maul was a smaller creature, though still tall compared to a human. This one was less bestial and more... creepy, as if it were created from the doctor's own nightmares.

With long claws on his fingers and toes and a beak rather than a mouth, the thing looked like a cross between an eagle, a mole, and a human. Lex immediately dashed for the smaller creature charging through Maul with his shoulder leveled to knock the thing off balance. Grak, the crossover monster, made a swipe with his clawed hand, but found only cloth dangling from his claws. Lex had jumped past him, hooking his hand around the things neck and pulls him down to the ground. A brief twist broke Grak's neck, freeing him up to deal with Maul.

Before anything could be done, however, a number of cloth pouches pelted the three remaining organisms in the hall. Each pouch contained a powerful airborne sedative, capable of tranquilizing a bull elephant with just a few breaths. Immediately it entered Lex's lungs, saturating his blood vessels with its toxin. The last action he could take brought his eyes to Liliya, whose chest had the brown powder clinging to her like wet hair. Alexandre hit the floor hard, completely unconscious.

Lili stood dumbfounded, her eyes wide. The two creatures were unlike anything she had seen before. Monstrous. Abominations. This doctor had to be stopped. Watching Lex take down one with relative ease, she prepared herself for the attack on the bulkier one. But none came. Instead they were assaulted with pouches filled with powder.

What kind of pathetic attack was that? Liliya frowned, searching for the origin of the throw, when the world seemed heavier on her shoulders. Lex dropped. The creature, Maul, dropped. Struggling to keep her eyes open the Huntress fell forward on her knees. Gasping, she fought hard to remain conscious, but to no avail. Within seconds the girl was out cold, lying flat on the ground.

*****

Liliya woke in a cage, sometime later, her mind groggy, her body heavy. Her weapons had been removed, so she was defenseless.

"Stupid daughter mine. You did not honestly think you could sneak in here?"

The voice that cut through the fog was cold, heartless, and fluently Russian. Oleksy.

Alexandre awoke with a start, gasping to draw air into his ravaged lungs. Coughing raggedly, he fought to focus on his surroundings. Everything spun in different directions, causing all manner of havoc with his insides. Struggling to move, Lex found himself completely immobilized, strapped to a mostly vertical table with chains and heavy leather belts. Despite his enhanced strength, the bonds would not be broken.

"Tsk tsk tsk... you have been a naughty boy, haven't you Alexandre?" Lex felt his stomach bottom out, recognizing immediately the doctor's voice. Turning his head, his gaze fell upon the incarnation of his nightmares, and fear began to grip him all over again. "You've caused me quite a bit of trouble, you know. That is something I just cannot allow."

"I will kill you," There was fear in Lex's voice as well as authority and anger. "Mark my words. No matter how long it takes, I will be the one to end you."

"Oh i'm not worried. And soon enough, neither will you. You see I believe in taking care of all my problems all at once. For example, I have you here, finally returned to me. Not only that, but you brought me a lovely little Wolf, one that i've had my eyes on for some time. Now i'll get to take care of both of you at once, and what better way to handle that than have one of my creations do it for me?"

It was then that Alexandre caught the familiar voices from the other side of the room. Turning toward them, he spotted Oleksy, his Russian tongue flapping toward a cage, inside of which was a weaponless Liliya. Lex struggled again against the bonds that held him, but to no avail. He felt drained; his mind began to cloud. "What... what have you done to me?"

"Just a little bit of reconditioning. Don't worry, it won't last forever."

"I will find a way out. You know I will." Liliya scowled, but she felt fear well deep inside of her.

"You will not. At least not until I have finished with you. You have been dishonorable to your family name. Shaming all who had Hunted as Volkov." Oleksy stepped aside to show Liliya the view: her companion strapped to a table, the doctor leaning over him.

"Alexandre!"

"Tsk, tsk. Growing attached to Targets?" The elder Volkov growled. "Perhaps you were not yet ready to leave the nest after all. Your punishment will be one of a lifetime. But for now," he stepped back, and smirked. "I have other things to take care of. I'm going to let you watch you... Friend... Die before I punish you."

"Liliya!" The panic in Lex's voice was clear to everyone in the room. Again he fought his restraints, the only goal in his mind being to free her from her cage. For a time it seemed like his renewed state would prevail, but the straps and chains were simply too thick. Soon his mind began to fade into the background while the more animalistic side began to resurface. The part of him that the doctor had fabricated in order to turn him into his own personal killing machine was taking over.

In a matter of minutes, Lex had become passive and docile, staring blankly forward without the slightest resistance against the board he had been strapped to. The doctor smiled, turning to Oleksy with a wicked grin. "This is how I raise my children, my friend. Total obedience. Now that he is back under my control, we can use him however we like. He will be a benefit to your family business."

Turning back to the cell, the doctor focused his eyes on Liliya. "As for you, my dear, I imagine right about now you're wondering what is going to happen to you. I've negotiated a deal with your father that I think will be to our mutual benefit. Your mistakes with this... thing... will be kept secret and your reputation restored. If... you agree to be my wife. Say yes, and all will go back to the way it was. Refuse, and I will let your friend end your miserable existence."

The Huntress felt a dark, burning hatred unfurl in her chest, her deep green eyes boring into the man before her. With a scowl on her face, without batting an eye, with no hint of hesitation, Liliya spit in the doctors face.

"I would rather die than marry a pathetic weasel like you." Her voice was stone cold, and dangerous. She didn't care what they did to her, she didn't care if she died, she didn't care that her reputation would remain tarnished, and she'd be a laughingstock. There was no way in hell she was going to marry a man with no regard for others. She'd rather burn in Hell.

"Disobedient wench." Oleksy sighed, waving at the doctor. "Do what you will. I no longer care."

With a scowl, the doctor wiped the spittle off his face, rubbing it on his sleeve, already stained with blood and sweat. It was clear that he had been wearing the document for quite a while. Turning his face to Oleksy, then back to Liliya, a devilish grin began to stretch across his worn, tired features. "You may die with that decision, but death won't be the end of it. I always get what I want, even if I have to reanimate your corpse to serve as my personal sex slave." The doctor licked his lips as he imagined such a circumstance, seemingly unphased that by the fact that he would be having intercourse with a dead body. "You'll still be in there, inside that mind of yours, only you won't have any control. You'll feel everything, yet be totally incapable of doing anything about it. You will be mine, regardless of your decision."

The doctor turned away from Liliya, leaving his threat hanging in the air as he moved to the bench to which Alexandre was strapped. He undid the bindings and unlocked the chains, letting him stand on his own. "Now then, who is your master?"

"He is bound to you, Doctor."

"Again, whom do you serve?"

"You, doctor."

Again the doctor grinned. "Good boy. Now then, do you see that woman in the cage there?"

"Yes, he sees her," Lex said, his voice hollow and cold.

"Kill her, but leave her torso intact. No sense in damaging the good parts."

Without hesitation, Lex pushed off the table and made his way to the cage. The doctor unlocked it only once Lex was ready to enter, then immediately shut it behind the monster man. Nothing stood between them any more. In Lex's eyes, there was no murder or malice, no hatred or affection. There seemed to be nothing behind those eyes other than the most basic thoughts needed to maintain his balance and to follow orders.

Shuddering at the thought of being that disgusting pigs sex slave, Liliya felt fear begin to creep up her spine. Even more so when Lex responded to him as if he wasn't in there at all. Where was the Lex she knew? The one she had grown close to? The one who knew her like no one else? Backing away slightly, she shook her head.

"Lex... Alexandre!" She tried to get his attention, to snap him out of it. Lex was going to kill her and there was nothing she could do about it. Liliya wasn't going to fight him back, she wasn't going to hurt him. She couldn't.

"Don't do this. You don't have to do this. Snap out of it! Lex!" With no weapons, and little space to move around, Liliya feared she wouldn't last long against him.

'I have to snap him out of this. I don't want to be a... Sex slave...'

Like arrows fired at a castle wall, Liliya's words bounced harmlessly off Lex's brain. If he heard them, he ignored them completely, though it was completely possible that he just did not hear her. He advanced slowly toward the girl, forcing her deeper into the cage, until her back was against the bars. Outside the cage, the doctor watched with glee in his eyes and a giggle in his smile. He was thoroughly enjoying the show, and eagerly anticipated the bloodbath that was sure to follow.

Reaching out, Alexandre grabbed Liliya's arms and pulled, spreading them apart as far as they would go without dislocating or breaking them. With controlled obedience he lifted, bringing her feet off the ground as he stretched her.