Slave to Sapphire
Chapter 27

Frigid water soaked Iris, dragging her back into consciousness. The pain in her shoulders and wrists was excruciating. Iris’ legs hung limply below her. She strained her neck upwards to see that her wrists were bound together by a chain that hung from the ceiling. The weight of her body caused the chain to press into her wrists so that her hands were red and swollen. Iris kicked her legs and her feet drug across the dirt floor below her. She shifted her weight onto her feet so that she stood, relieving some of the strain on wrists, though her shoulders still ached from being held above her head.

Lucious stood in front of her. The gash across his face now a fine white scar. He saw her studying his face. “The scar will be gone tomorrow,” he stated.

Iris pulled her head back and spat at him with force. A glob of bloody saliva landed on his forehead. His silver and ebony eyes simmered with anger. He wiped the spit away with a handkerchief.

“You can add that to the list of things I plan to punish you for.”

Iris snarled, “It is you who will be punished!” She hurled another wad of spit at him and he narrowly dodged it.

Lucious roared “ENOUGH!!” He advanced toward Iris and gripped her throat so tightly she couldn’t breathe. Lucious then violently tore her life source from her stopping just before she died. He kept her teetering at the spot between life and death. Her legs went limp no longer able to support her. The iron chains biting into her wrist.

Iris’ heart beat erratically and she was cold and hot at the same time. Her body warred between pain and delirium. Lucious leaned in close to her and whispered in her ear, “You wanted too much and you almost achieved it.”

Lucious loosened his grip on her throat and let some of her life source trickle back into her. Iris’s feet struggled to support her weight again. “If your purchase of azure had been successful it would have given you too much power, and that was never my plan for you.”

Lucious released his hold on her throat, and she gasped for air. He punched her hard in the gut; she wanted to curl into herself, but her chained arms prevented her. The punch to the gut caused her to heave at the same time that she was frantically trying to suck in air, she was going to pass out. Lucious grabbed her face and forced her mouth open. With his other hand he sprinkled an iridescent blue powder in her mouth. He released her and stepped back. Iris started coughing, inhaling, and swallowing the azure.

Lucious’ voice was calm when he spoke. “It upsets me Iris when things don’t go to plan, you and I are similar that way. Maddox, Cora, and Sabine were all supposed to die and because of you they escaped. I will make an example of you, of what happens to people who interrupt my plans.”

Lucious looked to a man that Iris hadn’t noticed, standing behind him. “No one is to touch her.” Lucious turned and left the room. The man leered at Iris. He went to the wall and turned the lever that was mounted to a wheel with the chain wrapped around it. The chain slackened and Iris collapsed to the ground. The chain was still connected to the ceiling, but she was now able to lay on the ground.

Iris curled into herself. The reprieve from the strain on her arms was overwhelming. Her throat ached from Lucious’ grasp and she was still struggling to catch her breath from his punch to her abdomen. The pain eased as the azure flooded her bloodstream. Iris was dizzy and her body felt light. She didn’t mind the feel of the dirt floor on the side of her face and the light that streamed through the barred window had an ethereal effect on her surroundings. The man chuckled and left her, locking the door behind him. Iris was happy to be left alone, her rage at Lucious started to rise but it was fleeting. Iris lay on the dirt floor feeling nothing.

She didn’t know how long she lay in the small room with her wrist chained while her consciousness drifted in a sea of nothingness. Eventually the azure started to wear off and her awareness was agonizing. The injuries that she had sustained earlier were searing. The sun had started to set but the dim light through the window felt intrusive. Iris struggled to her knees and fell forward when a wave of nausea hit her. She retched but there was nothing inside of her. She pushed herself into a sitting position and pulled her knees to her chest. She closed her eyes in hopes of easing the headache that was blossoming behind them. Iris had avoided ever taking azure for this very reason. The come down was terrible. The more times a person took azure the longer the come down, eventually the only way to end the agonizing pain that one got once the drug wore off was to get high again.

Iris sat on the floor, her forehead resting on her knees. Her nerves were frayed and her headache piercing, but her mind was clearing. She reviewed everything Lucious had told her. Maddox, Cora, and Sabine had made it out and must be on their way to Volos. The knowledge was a relief, though it meant no one was coming to save her. Maddox would have told them her plans for Lucious, but now that they were aboard the boat it was impossible for them to return to Orinth. With Maddox’s escape and Iris gone from the Palace, Ezekiel had to be aware of her betrayal. Iris hated to think about what it was doing to him. Iris pushed her thoughts of Ezekiel aside. She wasn’t going to be able to kill Lucious in her current state. No one was coming to save her, she needed to escape on her own. Then she would lie low and come up with a new plan to kill Lucious.

Iris cataloged her surroundings. She was in a room with dirt floors; the walls were made of wood and there was a single window with iron bars. The light told her the sun had just set. The noises and spoiled smell that drifted in through the window told her that she was in Scarlet Town. The room was empty besides the heavy chain that was connected to the ceiling and a metal chamber pot. The site of the chamber pot made her aware of her full bladder. Iris stretched out her legs and stood, a burning tingling sensation shot through her legs as she did so and the pounding behind her eyes worsened. Iris swayed slightly once she was on her feet. The side effects from the azure added a layer of difficulty to any plans for escape. The chamber pot was just out of reach. She attempted to extend her leg to reach it, but it was fruitless. Iris tried several other positions in hopes to reach it but failed. Lucious must have instructed it to be placed just so. Iris was forced to urinate on the floor, her humiliation was by his design. Iris returned to her sitting position trying to keep away from where she had just relieved herself.

Iris refocused her mind on what tools she had. She lifted her chained hands behind her head and smiled at the feel of the thin metal hair pin in her hair. She moved her hands along her waist to find the long fork was still secured to her hip. Unfortunately, her dagger had been lost when she threw it at Lucious. Iris looked down at her source stone to see its faint red glow. She opened up her senses so she could feel it, Lucious had only left her with days. Once she escaped, she would have to figure out a way to get more life source. Then she would plan how she would kill Lucious.

Iris studied her bound wrists; her skin was red and angry from the rubbing of the chain. The chain had been looped around her wrists multiple times, binding them together, and the chain was locked to itself with an iron lock. Iris was confident that she could pick the lock but the way her hands were bound made it impossible. The chain on her left arm was above the cuff on her wrist, there was no way for her to pull her left hand free. But maybe she could slip her right hand through the chains. Iris touched her thumb and pinky of her right hand together and tried to wiggle her hand out of the chain. The chain dug into her skin; the sensation was amplified by her azure-primed nerve endings. Iris pushed through the pain and pulled harder, her left hand holding the chain in place while she pulled back on her right hand. The skin on her hand started to tear and her wrist became slick with warm blood. Even with the lubrication from her blood there was no pulling her hand out of the chains.

Iris’ eyes burned with tears from a mixture of pain and frustration. Her odds of escape would decrease with the amount of time she spent in captivity. She needed to get out now. Iris took a deep breath and clenched her jaw. She grabbed her right thumb and took another deep breath. As she exhaled, she forced her thumb out of its socket. She screamed and clamped her mouth shut, willing herself to stay quiet. Iris waited to see if anyone heard her or cared. Several minutes passed; the sounds of the nightlife in Scarlet Town wafted through the window but no footsteps came to the door. Iris’ body was already in so much pain that after the initial shock of the dislocation the throbbing in her thumb was manageable. With her thumb dislocated and her hand still wet from her blood she was able to pull her right hand out of the chains. Iris used her left hand to pop her thumb back into place. She cradled her injured hand against her. “I am strong, I am strong,” she chanted. Iris retrieved the silver hair pin and fork and got to work picking the lock. The pain in her thumb made it more challenging. Iris sobbed with relief when the lock finally fell open. She unwound the chain from her left wrist. Iris returned the fork and pin to her person and crept to the door and waited. She would fight her way out.

Iris waited patiently, the throbbing headache was starting to recede but her body was exhausted, she had not eaten or drank since her dinner with Ezekiel the night before. There were footsteps outside the door and the muffled voices of two men. A key fitted into the lock on the other side of the door, the lock clanked open. The hinges of the door protested and one of Lucious’ men stepped into Iris’ cell.

His eyes dropped to the empty chains, and he closed the door behind him. Iris didn’t hesitate; she sprang forward and wrapped her hands around his thick neck. Before the man could react, she lashed out her senses and yanked his life source from him. He collapsed to the ground, blocking the door. His companion on the other side of the door threw himself against the door to get it open. Iris waited, catching her breath. The door shuddered a second time and a third until the man barreled into the room leaping over the dead man. Iris dodged him and he skidded to a stop, turning to face her. His eyes widened when saw the man dead behind Iris, and Iris reached out with her senses for his life source. She tried to pull it from him but nothing happened. She must need to be touching him in order to manipulate his life source. The man attacked and Iris dropped to the floor grasping his ankle. He was dead before he hit the floor, Iris’ source stone flared to a dark blue.

She crossed the room, stepping over the dead bodies and through the doorway into a larger room. The room was dimly lit with candles. In the center of the room there was a table and chairs with an abandoned card game. Two of the chairs were knocked over and two more of Lucious’ men stood facing her, their bodies tensed and ready to fight. The door to outside and her freedom was behind them.

Iris clinched her fist and crouched, daring them to approach her. There was a whistle and Lucious stepped out from a shadowy corner in the room. He clicked his tongue. “It seems that you have really come to embrace your new talent.”

Iris froze in place. How was she going to get past Lucious? Something heavy hit her in the back of the head and she crumpled to the floor.

Iris awoke to find herself in the small room with her wrist chained again. They had allowed her to lay on the dirt floor instead of stringing her up. Her throat was dry and her head was spinning. The thirst for water was all consuming. A pitcher had been left just in her reach. Iris got to her knees and reached out to the pitcher. Iris struggled to pick it up with her bound wrist and lifted it to her mouth. The water spilled down the sides of her face as she took several gulps before setting it down on the ground. She paced herself as to not drink so much water that she would vomit. Once her thirst was quenched, she sat cross legged. She had failed. Iris focused her mind; her failed attempt was just practice for a successful attempt. Iris inspected her bindings; they had bound her in the same manner. Did they really think she wouldn’t try again? If Lucious hadn’t been there, she would have succeeded. There was no way that Lucious would stay there twenty-four hours a day, he had more important things to do. How could she tell if he had left? Iris’ thinking became sluggish. Maybe she should sleep, she would need to rest up if she was going to attempt another escape. Iris laid back down on her side. Did she still have the hair pin and her fork? She moved her hand to her hip to feel for the fork but movement was exhausting and she no longer cared if her fork was still there. The water had eased her dry throat and her headache, the constant throbbing of the rest of her injuries were starting to ebb. No! The water, there had been azure in it! She needed to make herself vomit it up, but she would sleep first. All thoughts of escape slipped from her mind and she lay there thinking of nothing and feeling nothing.

Iris’ brain was still lost in the thick fog of azure when the door swung open. Lucious and one of his men stepped into the room. Lucious was saying something to her, but his words didn’t make sense. Lucious cranked the lever on the wall and Iris was forced into a standing position with her arms suspended over her head. The position should have been painful, yet it wasn’t. Lucious’ man stepped forward and punched her hard in the face. Iris knew the punch hurt but it was if she was outside of her body watching herself. His fist slammed into her gut and she vomited. The man continued to beat her with a vicious grin on his face. The azure kept her pain receptors numbed. This is going to hurt a lot later, she mused. Why was he so angry with her? Was he friends with the two men she had killed? How had she killed those two men? I am a conduit, a stray thought reminded her. The next time the man’s fist made contact with her she opened up her senses, but they were numbed along with her pain, she couldn’t sense anything.

Lucious said something to the man and he stopped, stepping back from Iris. The man sneered at her a final time and spit in her face. Iris started shivering, it had become so cold. Was she dying? Lucious advanced on Iris. He stood so close to her that their lips would kiss if she tilted her head forward. She should be revulsed with the thought but it was hard to care. Lucious caressed the side of her face.

“Don’t worry Iris, I won’t let you die.” He whispered.

The cold sensation loosened its grip on her. Lucious was healing the more serious injuries from the beating she had just received.

“Death is a kindness I won’t give you.” Lucious stated.

Iris experienced a moment of clarity and was able to feel hatred towards Lucious. She stared into his cold black eyes and flung her head back and head-butted Lucious in his forehead. Lucious cursed and stepped back, a thin line of blood stark against his pale forehead.

Iris was lowered back down to the ground and she sunk back into her azure-addled haze.

The harsh morning light shone on Iris. The azure was almost completely out of her system and her nervous system went haywire as her pain came back. Lucious had healed any potentially fatal injuries from her beating but she was still covered in bruises, cuts, and a few of her ribs felt as if they were broken. With the numbing effects of azure gone the injuries hurt ten times as much as they should. Iris had recovered from many beatings in her lifetime but she had never felt like this. The come down from her second dosage of azure was much worse than the first and it was compounded by her additional injuries. The level of pain was enough to make her go insane and Iris slipped back into unconsciousness.

She came to a second time. The sun was high in the sky and the room was hot. There was no change in her level of agony. Iris didn’t understand how the human body was able to feel so much pain, her nerves were on fire. She could barely think through the blinding pain. Iris looked to her source stone to see it was once again a red color. Lucious must have taken the source she had gained. Attempting to heal her injuries would be suicide. Iris needed to focus on something else besides pain so she scanned her cell. Someone had placed a dish in front of her. In the center of the dish was a small pile of fine blue powder.

A hoarse laugh tore through her dry throat, maybe she had already gone insane. If Iris took the azure her pain would be gone, until she needed more. She deserved this after all of the azure that she had sold to her fellow citizens. The little pile of azure taunted her. There was no way for her to escape in the state that she was in. If she took the azure her body would have more time to heal from its current injuries and maybe the come down wouldn’t be as bad, she reasoned. Iris made a decision and stuck her fingers into the pile of azure, she put her fingers in her mouth and sucked the azure from them. Azure was said to be tasteless but it tasted sweet to her.

Time was lost to Iris. Iris only knew when she was high on azure and when she was in agony as it left her system. There was always more azure available for her when she was desperate for more of it. Lucious’ men brought water for her to drink and a stale piece of bread at one point. She was again forced to relieve herself on the dirt floor while still chained. Iris found that the more times she took the azure the better she was able to gain control of her mind while high. She was unable to feel her source stone with her senses and was still filled with an overwhelming apathy but she was able to have coherent thoughts.

Iris sat on the dirt floor; it was night and her cell was cast in moonlight. She had just taken more azure and her pain was dissipating. Once her injuries were healed, she would stop taking the azure she told herself. Iris tried to think how long she had been chained in this dirt room, had it been days? Was it weeks? She should have stayed sleeping with Ezekiel on the floor that night. No, she had to rescue her friends. She should have gone with Maddox and gotten on the boat. It was her need for revenge that had gotten her in her current situation. Even so she still couldn’t let it go. Her need for revenge was as great as her newfound need for azure. She would make Lucious pay for all that he had done to her.

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