Disclaimers: The characters and places of The Magnificent Seven do not belong to me. No profit other than guilty pleasure was made from this piece of fiction.
Warnings: Contains graphic scenes of torture other than rape.
Size: Approx 150K
Sunset drew closer. The sky drowned under a flood of vibrant red and orange before washing away beyond the distant mountains. A twinkling canopy was left, stars appearing pristine in a cloudless sky.With his hands propped behind his head, Buck relaxed and let the tranquility of droning insects lull him into a light sleep with memories of lovely females dancing against his closed eyelids. Only moments later a stick cracked. Before he could react a thick cloth shoved hard against his face. Cloying sweetness flooded his mouth and nose and he grimaced in distaste. Strong hands gripped his biceps and pulled him from the ground. The men's' presence closed in around him, front and back.
That makes two. The quick thought was shattered when a fist jabbed hard into his abdomen. He bent double and his captors moved with him, keeping a firm hold on his arms and upper body. He inhaled deeply, pulling in air that had been violently forced from his lungs. The involuntary gasp drew more of the sickeningly sweet scent through his mouth and he gagged. Inky blackness closed over him. He fell headfirst into oblivion.
+ + + + + + +
The cottony darkness abated in small increments. He became aware first of the need for water. Buck swallowed and felt the muscles tighten through his throat. He groaned and tiny vibrations rumbled through his chest.
Sounds entered slowly as if he were opening a window a little at a time. Bird's twittering created an image of dawn in his head. Concentrating, he slowly blinked open his eyes. Shapes coalesced in his vision, fuzzy edged and colorless. He opened his eyes wider then squinted, trying to figure out what he was seeing.
Wide boards took shape overhead, blocked by a square bulky object hanging from the ceiling. Uninterested, he allowed gravity to pull his head to the side. A long table stretched out beside him. Its surface was bare except for loose leather straps and buckles laying among short lengths of chains.
What the hell's that for? Buck attempted to sit up. Shock lashed though him in a hot wash when he realized he was bound to the table. The purpose of the other table's leather straps and chains became abundantly clear. Wide bands trapped his wrists to the table over his head. Twisting his legs brought sharp discomfort to his ankles. He realized they too were bound. His awareness widened to include the fact that all his clothes were missing except his britches.
Panic quickened his breathing. Air pumped through his lungs, exaggerating the rise and fall of his chest. Abruptly, he felt chilled and shivered as goosebumps rose across his skin. Fear pushed his thoughts out of his mouth: "Hey! Somebody! Let me the hell out of here!"
His shouting brought no response. After a moment he began to calm down. He swallowed hard and reined in his heavy panting. Sweat slicked his back and made the wooden table feel cool against his skin. Arching his chest, he stretched his neck and rolled his head back in an attempt to see the entire room.
Shelves lined the wall behind him; the numerous nicks and cubbyholes were filled with various shaped and sized bottles and wooden boxes. Oil lamps hung from the ceiling in all four corners of the room. Sunlight streaming into a large window on his right negated the need for lamps.
He craned his neck to look down at the floor. A thickly braided oval shaped rug padded the surface beneath both tables, wide enough to cover the majority of the floor.
His neck and shoulders grew tight with strain and Buck settled back on the table, satisfied he had seen everything. Instead, his breath caught in his throat. A huge, ungainly looking contraption hung directly above him. It was bolted to the ceiling with screws as big as his fists. Its overall shape was square, but it telescoped into a cylindrical form. Bits of metal here and there shown dully against the wooden infrastructure -- threaded cranks and spindles that looked like they had an important purpose in the function of the thing. The tip was a flat-ended cylinder, bisected with a thick heavy line. He realized it could be pulled apart and there was a small hole in the middle, probably where other pieces fit, but he couldn't begin to guess what the machine was for.
He jerked when the room's only door opened and two men walked in. They both wore heavy white coats, much like the black duster Chris favored. The bottom edges were stained with dirt and the material looked old and used. Without speaking, they both moved through the room. One, the taller one, stopped at the table, and the other shorter man went straight for the shelves. He had a look of determination on his face like he knew what he was after.
"Who the hell are you?" Buck forced his voice out and tried not to cringe with the tone of fear that strained his words. "What do you want from me?"
The men ignored him and spoke to each other. "You ready?"
"Yes." The tall man stepped closer to Buck. He reached overhead and grabbed one of the many cranks attached to the overhead machine. He gripped the handle tightly and began turning. Buck stiffened in anticipation when the whole huge contraption shuddered and with a heavy rusty whine, began slowly lowering.
After a moment, the other man spoke. "Hold it right there." The short man joined his companion near Buck's side. He reached out and grasped the cylindrical tip of the machine. He twisted it and the two halves parted, bisecting the flat tip down the middle. Then he jammed a small metal rod about the size and length of a pencil into the center hole. The end of the rod was rounded and blunt. He held it in place so that it was pointing straight down and twisted the cylinder back into place. When he let go, the rod was secure. He nodded at the other man and finally looked down at Buck.
"Our names are not important. You won't live long enough to tell anyone who we are, but for the sake of conversation for the next few days you may call me Loki." He looked up at his partner. "And he's Set."
His eyes on the heavy machine lowering over him, Buck fought to keep his panic down. "What the hell are you gonna do with that thing?"
Buck missed the smile that spread across Loki's face. "Just run a few tests." He glanced at Set. "It's in."
Set let go of the crank and reached up to grasp the blunt end of the machine above the rod.
Before he realized what was happening, Buck found himself pressed back against the table. Loki held his hips down. The man's lips were set in a firm line of determination. "Line it up straight, Set."
Buck's bound hands and legs kept him from defending himself. He lay helpless while Set reached up with one hand and continued turning the crank, lowering the contraption down even farther. When Buck understood what the target was, he struggled harder against Loki's hold.
"No wait!"
Ignoring his cries and feeble attempts to escape, the men remained silent. When the metal rod hovered about five inches above Buck's belly, Set abruptly stopped. "I'll get the flange."
Loki nodded but didn't release his hold as he addressed Buck. "We both practice a certain form of medicine. You will be called Subject Number One."
Buck stared at him, incredulous. "What?"
Loki continued as if they were having a normal conversation in the middle of town. "We both practice medicine, Subject One. We enjoy experimenting with a subject, using our own methods to find out if our theories can be proven as fact."
Set came back into his view, a shiny piece of metal in his hands. He held it up for Buck to see but he had no idea what it was. It looked like two pieces of metal formed and shaped into half cups. Two small threaded rods joined them with braces on the outside of the curved pieces. Odd looking nuts were screwed onto the rods; nuts with small projections that resembled tiny wings.
"This is an experimental piece of equipment we've been working on. A doctor in Europe came up with the idea and we improved on it a bit."
The man worked the small flange carefully into Buck's navel. Buck gasped with the shock of cool metal against his fever hot skin. The edges of the metal cups hooked beneath the fleshy insides of the small indention in the center of his belly. Set toyed with it, making it fit to his satisfaction, then he began twisting the winged nuts, separating the two pieces.
The metal fit snug against his skin. An uncomfortable stretching sensation made him hold his breath. Set twisted and twisted, widening the gap between the two cupped pieces, opening the inside of Buck's navel. The uncomfortable feeling quickly grew into pain. Buck grimaced and clenched his jaw. A sharp flare of pain stabbed across his belly as the skin stretched to its limit. He cried out and Set stopped.
"I believe that's enough for now."
The two men bent over Buck, their heads nearly touching the machine hanging above him. Buck felt ridiculous. His heavy breathing pumped through his chest and he felt as if each rib would be visible under the thin layer of skin. His abdomen throbbed at the point of his navel. He flinched when Loki poked his finger inside the splayed open area.
"Notice how the skin is thicker."
"Hmmm. The wound heals quickly after birth."
Angered with the callous and indifferent way his captors were treating him, Buck growled low in his throat. "Let me off this table right now and I'll give you a head start before I come after you."
Set looked down at him and smiled. "We've kept him waiting too long, Loki. Let's get started." He straightened and returned to the machine that hung over Buck. "Besides, I have my eye on another promising subject. I think he'll make an excellent specimen if this one doesn't work out. I've been watching him and he's in a perfect position to take."
Loki nodded. "Why don't we go ahead and apprehend the subject? Two at once would be a challenge. We can't use the machine on both at the same time, of course, but there are other ways of testing a man's durability."
Realizing these two had someone else in mind for torture and terrified it would be JD, Buck squirmed harder against his restraints. The loud squeak of metal on metal cut off his thoughts. He felt the nudge of cool metal against his warm skin. Set continued cranking until the small tip of the object had sunk partly into his flesh, then he stopped.
Buck froze. He swallowed hard, his eyes wide and staring at the ceiling. His wrists stung from the constant twisting of trying to escape. He felt his belly rise and fall against the blunt point of the rod and he concentrated on slowing down his breathing.
He saw Loki nod once out of the corner of his eyes and Set continued cranking. Slowly, the metal rod sunk deeper. Buck desperately sucked in his gut, but the resulting cramp that shot through him when he tightened his abdominal muscles persuaded him to keep still. He squeezed his eyes shut.
"That's it, Subject One, hold perfectly still now. The longer you keep still, the longer it will take to puncture through your body."
Insane hysteria tried to force a laugh out of his throat but he choked it down. The cranking slowed. He opened his eyes and watched at Set carefully turned the wheel one more time all the way around, forcing the metal rod deeper, compressing the skin inside his navel, then lock the mechanism off, keeping it in place.
He lowered his hands and stood looking down at Buck. "We'll keep it at this level for a while, allowing your flesh to adjust and accommodate the unusual new position we've set for it. I'll lower it little by little by the hour, Subject One, until the inexorable pressure breaks through your body and penetrates your abdomen."
Dazed and gasping shallowly from the strange sensation in his gut, Buck stared up at the man. He blinked back the sweat that rolled into his eyes and struggled to speak.
"Go -- to -- hell." Buck rolled his head to the side to stare at the wall and concentrate on not feeling the metal pushing into his gut. His breathing was erratic and each draw of air through his lungs tightened his belly, exaggerating the intrusive metal rod in his body.
Set stared at him and remained silent. Glancing at Loki and indicating for him to follow, the two men left the room. Buck experimentally tensed his muscles and grimaced with the uncomfortable stab of discomfort. How the hell am I going to get out of this?
Part 2
JD Dunne gave his horse more rein, enjoying the peaceful setting of the quiet surroundings. He was returning from Eagle Bend and half expected to come across Buck. His friend had left town a couple of days ago on a quick errand for Nathan to gather more supplies. His continued absence brought no cause for worry, Buck was known to become better acquainted with the women in new towns and staying for an extra day or more before deigning to return to Four Corners.His tranquil thoughts were shattered when a heavy presence dropped on him from behind. Air gushed from his lungs when he tumbled from his horse and hit the ground. His chin smacked violently against hard earth and his ears rang with white noise. Rough hands grasped him by the front of the jacket and jerked him from the ground. His head swam in confusion. His limbs flailed about with no direction while his brain tried to come to grips with what was happening.
A sudden punch to his gut sucked the rest of the air from his body and he collapsed as boneless as a puddle back to the ground. Boots kicked toward him, flickering in and out of his vision too fast to stop, hitting him in the abdomen and chest. He raised his arms to shield his face, too disoriented to fight back and received several more blows to his stomach for his trouble.
Panting, pulling in quick noisy gasps of air, JD stored up enough oxygen to shout out. "Stop! Wait! Don't, I --" A thick toed boot scooped under his arm and caught him in the gut, hooking sharp under his ribs. Bright pain exploded in his side. He convulsed around the agony, curling into a ball and wrapping his arms tightly around his middle.
Through a confining fog of red pulsing torture, he heard a voice, low and rough with heavy breathing. "That's enough. Where's the chloroform?"
He didn't hear an answer. Something thick and wet was shoved against his face. He struggled and a palm cupped the back of his head, holding him firm against resistance. He breathed in helplessly and nearly gagged with the sickly sweet scent that flooded his mouth and nostrils. He took another breath and blackness curtained around him, closing out the pain and confusion.
+ + + + + + +
The door opened and Buck tensed. His belly hurt where the metal rod stood pushed into his navel and he carefully relaxed his muscles.
The two men returned, carrying a sagging body between them. The head lolled back and dark hair tousled from pale features. JD! Aware of the danger of allowing his captors to know JD was his friend, he remained silent.
He watched in incredulous shock as Set and Loki lifted JD carefully between them and placed the young man gently onto the other table. He twisted his wrists and fought down the useless anger that seared through him. Leather chaffed the skin and the chains that bound him to the table rattled against wood. Loki glanced at him but didn't say anything. The man returned his attention to his new victim.
They loosened JD's clothing, carefully removing his jacket, vest and shirt. JD's skin was pale, nearly milk white against the table's dark wood. Purpling bruises stood out on his abdomen, evidence of a recent beating. Buck felt the swell of rage rising in his chest and clamped down on it, allowing the emotion to simmer and boil in his gut.
Set pulled the kid's boots off, then straightened out JD's body, lining him up against the table. He enclosed his unconscious victim's wrists and ankles in leather restraints and secured him to the table. Then the man reached for JD's pants.
Buck grunted, his eyes widening as he watched Set unbutton JD's britches. The gunslinger tensed when the man folded back the material and exposed JD's flat lower abdomen. He released his breath slowly when Set withdrew from the young man's unconscious form without touching him. "Okay, Subject Two is ready. Where's the nail board?"
Loki returned from across the room. "I've got it." He held what appeared to be a miniature table about two feet long and maybe ten inches wide. Four metal legs with bent feet were connected to the corners. There was a hole in the middle of the wood.
Loki inserted a metal spike into the hole from underneath the board. The tip of the huge nail was flatly round and splayed, as if someone had attempted to force it into something too hard to penetrate. He set the table over JD's middle. Buck strained to lift his head, ignoring with difficulty the push of metal against the tight muscles in his abdomen.
The four feet were placed against four holes in JD's table that were set just below his hips and two more just above his waist. Loki carefully lined the holes up with the leg's feet. Set began screwing four bolts into them, securing it into place. The nail board stood about seven inches above JD's body. Buck could see through the space and he noticed the huge nail touched the kid. He sat up more, straining to see.
The thick spike stood straight up, moving gently with JD's breathing. The splayed tip of the spike fit perfectly against JD's navel.
What the hell? Hoping to draw their attention away from his friend, Buck struggled harder in his restraints. He watched as Loki pulled his gaze from JD and frowned at him.
"Set, lower the rod in Subject One's belly."
Dammit! Resigned to the sacrifice for JD's sake, Buck bit back his curse.
Set finished tightening the last bolt in the nail board. He rounded the end of JD's table and moved to Buck's side. Reaching for the crank above his head, he thumbed a safety latch off and slowly turned the wheel.
Pressure built against his body. Buck curled off the table, using the slack in the chains to fold nearly double around the rod in his gut. He held the position, his breath grunting out of him in short sharp gusts as he dealt with the pain in his belly.
"That just won't do." Loki's voice drifted in with the pain. "Tighten the chains, I'll get the half moon."
Confused with the strange term, Buck ignored the voices and concentrated on breathing. His arms were jerked backward abruptly and he fell to his back with a thump. The new position stretched him taut and he cried out with the sudden pain in his belly. He pulled his knees up and felt a slight relief from the stabbing in his gut. His arms were pulled tight over his head and his knuckles rapped against the wooden table. Set secured the chains tight. Buck tugged but couldn't raise his bound wrists from the table.
"Okay, Set, you're going to have to raise the machine for a bit." Loki reentered the room. Buck turned his head to watch. He frowned when he caught sight of the strange shaped object in the man's arms. He held what appeared to be half of a wooden ball -- more of an oval than perfectly round. The gently curved wood was highly polished. Dark grains stood out in detail, a true display of fine workmanship. Loki set it on its flat side on the end of JD's table.
A grinding sound of metal on wood stole his attention away from the half moon. Set stood beside him, cranking the machine over his head. Buck tensed involuntarily then nearly shouted with the sharp pain that speared through his gut. With an abruptness that surprised him, the pressure in his navel was gone. Set continued turning the wheel until the rod hung high above Buck.
Now what?
His silent question was answered when Set hoisted himself onto the table, straddling Buck's hips. "Get the hell off me!"
His indignant demand made Set smile. The man slid his hands under Buck's hips and lifted. Buck helplessly off the table. The flange in his navel moved when his skin stretched. Loki grasped the apparatus and pulled it from his belly without slacking the tension. Buck grunted and clenched his teeth hard.
Loki set the flange down and reached for the half moon. "Lift the subject just a bit higher."
Set complied and Buck's upper body came completely off the table. His head hung back without the support of his shoulders. His belly stretched tight and he felt his flesh roll against the bony edges of his ribcage as he breathed with difficulty. Blood rushed to his head and his throat grew tight with strain as muscles corded through his neck.
Something hard was pushed under his back. His spine curved against a rounded shape, bowing him severely off the table. Set removed his hands. His head no longer touched the table but he could feel the flat wood surface just under his buttocks and the harsh curve of the 'half moon' pressing against his spine. His head felt full as if his brain were about to explode with the additional blood rushing in.
Rattling chains against wood sounded obscenely loud in the quiet room and his legs were pulled tight until he couldn't draw his knees up anymore. His body was stretched taut, his muscles quivering with strain. He swallowed and felt his throat muscles contract, exaggerated with the tight pull he was in.
He felt so vulnerable and exposed with his naked chest and belly arching up into the air like an inviting target, his curved throat open to attack. Clinking metal shot fear through him. He tensed when he felt a soft touch on his abdomen. The familiar feel of the flange hooked into his navel.
"Interesting how the shape has changed with this new position." Set's voice sounded hollow through the loud pulse pounding in Buck's head. He cringed and clenched his teeth hard in his jaw when the thing in his navel widened, stretching his already taut skin tighter. "Open it as wide as it will go this time."
Loki's knuckles brushed repeatedly against Buck's abdomen as he continued working with the winged nuts that separated the flange. The skin around the rim of Buck's navel stretched until it felt paper thin. Buck suffered silently. He tensed, bowing his spine against the half moon shape beneath him. His abdominal muscles bulged and his body pulsed with deep breathing.
Set reached out and palmed Buck's ribs. "You can count the subject's bones." He closed his hand and touched one finger to Buck's lower ribs. The nobly ends jutted out through his skin, outlining the edges of the bony cage that protected his lungs and heart. "We already know what's in there from the man we found shot through the heart." Set dismissed the ribs and turned to Buck's belly. "Unfortunately, we had to leave our subject prematurely due to a disturbance, so we were never able to fully explore the abdominal cavity."
Buck listened through a haze of terror. He felt the man's hands on his body, first rubbing against his chest and sides, then moving to press into his stomach. The pull of pain centered in his navel caused the surrounding tissues to be overly sensitive. When Set probed gently but firmly into his lower abdomen, he was unable to bite back his grunt of pain.
"What do you think of our experiment so far, Subject One?"
Buck remained silent. He stared at the back wall that filled his vision because of the sharp curve of his back.
Set sighed, perhaps disappointed with Buck's lack of response. "He's sufficient, Loki. Lower the probe."
The touch was removed but the immediate whine of metal against wood heightened Buck's terror. He refused to cry out and let his captors know how much he was hurting, or how frightened he was.
The first cool feel of the probe inserted into his navel nearly forced a groan from him. The rounded metal tip pushed against sensitized flesh and forced bruised tissues to compress. Buck pulled hard against his restraints, hoping for some give in the chains to allow him to cup his body, offering some relief from the stabbing pain. His heels and wrists remained locked against the table. His taut stomach muscles involuntarily tightened to fight the intrusive rod. He rolled his head on the table, searching for relief.
"That's good, hold it there."
The cranking stopped. He heard the click of a locking mechanism then a warm palm rested against his stomach. Fingers splayed out against his flesh and probed carefully into his body. Unable to control his panting, he opened his mouth wide and nearly screamed when the exploratory touch pressed into his belly near his navel. Red darkness washed against the inside of his eyelids. Helpless to control his response, he moaned, low and guttural. The touch was removed but the biting probe remained -- a sharp tunnel of pain goring into his body.
Part 3
JD blinked away the darkness from his vision. He tried to push the confusion away as easily but his brain refused to cooperate. His attempt to lift his hand and brush away the hair that had fallen into his eyes met with resistance. Rough material rubbed against his wrists, scratching the tender flesh. He opened his eyes wide.Shadows played against walls in a room he did not recognize. Turning his head, he lost all his breath in a gasp of shock. Buck lay arched over a strange table, his arms and legs pulled tight in leather cuffs and chains. A probe, its point pencil thin, pierced his belly through his navel. The exposed flesh of his chest and abdomen glistened and moved with his breathing. Rib bones stood out in painful severity and the bright metal object in his navel vibrated with his heartbeat. He watched as the older man pulled one leg hard against the restraint around his ankle, attempting to draw up his knee. The resulting bulge of muscles through his stretched abdomen showed in stark relief under his slick flesh.
Shock gave way to rage. "Buck!" His shout brought a stranger to his side. Another man stood beside Buck, his hand gripped around one of many handles protruding from a huge machine that hung over his friend.
"What the hell are you doing to him?" Righteous anger flooded through him and he yanked his arms and legs sharply, determined to break through the tough leather holding him down.
"Experimenting." Ignoring JD's show of determination, the stranger reached for something out of his line of vision.
"Let us go, dammit!" A throaty groan pulled JD's attention back to Buck. His friend seemed to arch higher off the strange table. The gentle swell of his lower abdomen appeared exaggerated with the devise opening his navel. Buck grew still, his loud panting hissed through the air and his belly pumped with his breathing.
JD looked back at his captor. "You kill him and I'll hunt you down and strangle you with my bare hands." Fury swelled through him in building waves and he trembled with the need to get free.
"No need to get hostile, Subject Two. It'll be awhile yet before Subject One succumbs. Meanwhile, it's time to get started on you."
The ominous sentence confused him. He looked down at himself and realized for the first time that most of his clothes were gone. He glanced at the small table bolted over his middle and noticed the splay tipped spike resting against his belly.
"What do you--" JD's voice choked off when the man raised a wooden mallet. Before he could form another thought, the large hand tool was smashed onto the spike jutting out from his belly. The concussion jolted through him, bouncing against tight abdominal muscles. He held his breath and clenched his body tight when he saw the man lift the mallet again. It swung down lazily with hardly half the man's strength behind it but when it hit the spike, JD felt as if it would penetrate his gut. He cried out, closing his hands into tight fists and pulled his head back, hoping to escape the pain.
The spike was hit again and sharp agony speared through him, thrusting violently into his belly. He jerked up, curling his shoulders off the table. He held his chin against his chest with his eyes squeezed shut, trying to prepare for the next blow. It came quickly, slamming into his body, striking sharp and bright through his stomach. He fell helplessly back to the table and drew in breath to breathe. His gut retracted, hollowing inward and at the lowest point of intake, the mallet struck again. Blackness exploded in his head when pain erupted in the center of his abdomen. He drifted in thick oblivion, aware of voices at the edge of his consciousness.
Set placed the mallet on the edge of the table. His victim's eyes rolled back under half closed lids. His head lolled over to the side. Set carefully grasped the spike and lifted it clear of the subject's body. The splayed tip kept it from fitting through the hole but he didn't want to remove it. He only wanted to check the damage.
The skin around the young man's navel showed a few minor tears. Blood leaked out in watery stains. Dark bruising colored the pale flesh and when he probed experimentally into the lax body, the young man flinched under his touch.
"Set." The man turned when his name was called. Loki stood with his hand poised on the crank, his eyes glued to Buck's body. "Come look at this."
Abandoning his victim for the moment, Set joined Loki at Buck's table. The taller man turned the crank in tiny increments. Buck responded by arching up more severely from the table, helplessly driving the penetrating probe into his belly. "The subject's involuntary spasms are forcing the probe deeper."
Set watched. He was entranced with the corded muscles that stood out in Buck's neck. "Use the thrusting mechanism."
Loki nodded. Locking the crank, he reached for another contraption beside the wheel and grasped a large U-shaped handle. Gathering his strength, he pulled it down and let it go, allowing it to spring back into its original position. The release drove the probe downward in one mighty shove, impaling Buck, driving his flesh down into a deep dimple.
Buck tensed and bucked against the intrusion, hapless against his body's response. Pain penetrated through his gut, twisting his intestines and exploding outward through his chest and legs. He'd been aware of JD's cries of pain but the agony hammering into his belly was too great. Rage warred with agony, blending and melting together inside his head. His arms and legs jerked against the restraints. He felt tender skin tear and heat seared his limbs but he couldn't stop fighting to break free. Escaping the thin weapon stabbing through his gut was the only priority. Once he was free, he could help JD.
His back cracked with strain when the probe bit deeply into him again. The thrusts hit him as hard as a punch, bruising as intently as a man's knuckles. Numbness settled into the base of his spine and his knees and elbows ached from pulling against the bonds holding him down. The probe stabbed into him again -- penetrating, excavating deeply into his belly. A muscle just under the probe rolled, changing the pressure point, electrifying his body into another spasm.
His chest bowed out and he gasped for air. His ribs contracted tightly and he clenched his hands into rigid fists. His diaphragm locked when the probe thrust sharply into his body again and he choked, his throat closing to lock out a scream. Then the intruding pressure in his stomach lessened and drew back to the inexorable push he had nearly grown accustomed to. He lay panting and felt the rise and fall of his chest stretch his hurting belly tight.
"Keep it there for the moment, let him regain his breath. We can start on the other one while we wait."
JD. Buck swallowed with difficulty. His throat was dry, his mouth cottony from lack of moisture. "Wait." His voice scratched out like rusty nails pulled from an old board. He turned his head to the side and looked at his tormentors through hazy vision. "Z'at all you got?" He swallowed again and reached deep inside himself for the challenge. "I thought you fellers were gonna experiment."
With a dark frown, Loki moved to reach for the machine. Set stopped him with a hand on his arm. "I see a delay tactic here." He glanced over his shoulder at JD then turned back to Buck. "You know him?"
Cold terror washed over Buck and his scalp tingled with fear. "No."
Set released Loki. He moved to JD's side and picked up the mallet. "So then, you wouldn't be affected in the least if I continued." He lifted the hand tool.
Buck tensed and shut his eyes. He struggled to keep his emotions in check but the sound of wood pounding against metal snapped his eyes open. JD had come to with the shock of pain shooting into his abdomen. The kid's head was thrown back, his mouth open in a silent grimace of agony.
"Leave him alone, dammit!"
"Ahhh, so I thought. I received the same response from this young man when he observed our experiments on you. So. It appears we have a new angle to work with, Loki." He gestured with his chin toward the machine. "Shall we accommodate them both? Lower the probe another quarter."
Loki moved without hesitation to grab the crank. Buck tensed involuntarily. The squeal of the machine signaled more pain. The thin probe sunk deeper into his splayed navel, pushing hard against tight muscles and bruised tissues. Buck locked his jaw so hard his head shook. Bright pain blasted through his navel and penetrated his belly. He bucked hard into the agony, driving it deeper against his will. The possibility that the probe had broken through and entered his belly flashed through his mind but he couldn't concentrate enough on the thought to fear it. He fell down a well of darkness. The pain followed him, spearing through his belly as real as a sword thrust.
"No! Buck!" JD bucked against the table, pulling savagely at his restraints. A sudden piercing pressure against his abdomen held him in check. He fell back against the table, panting hard.
Set leaned heavily on the spike, balancing most of his weight on the end that stuck up from the small table. JD grunted and tucked his chin against his chest to peer down at his body. The splayed end of the spike sunk as far as it could into his belly. The wide end could go no farther, couldn't penetrate his body, but the deep impression it was making in his belly was painful. He gasped in air, feeling the rise of his abdomen push against the spike and the hollowing of his belly drove the spike deeper.
Set whispered with strain. "Be patient, young man. Soon, it will be your turn under the machine."
JD blinked back tears of pain and frustration. He strained to bring his head up and glared at the man torturing him. "Go to hell."
The man's expression of patience melted from his face. He withdrew his weight from the spike. JD tensed, waiting for him to pick up the mallet. Instead, the man reached for the bolts that secured the nail board to the table.
"Loki, bring me the other probe. The twin to the one we're using on Subject One with the holes."
Set continued working on the bolts until he had them all free. He lifted the board and pulled the spike from the center hole. He tossed it to the side and reached for the one Loki handed him. Shoving it into the hole, he replaced the table over JD and carefully screwed the bolts back into place. This probe was slender and long like the one forced into Buck's navel. Its length had holes, though, and JD frowned, trying to understand this new form of torture.
Set mumbled to himself as he tightened the bolts. "It's time you had a taste of our special experiment, young man." Finished with the table, he reached into one of the deep pockets on his overcoat. He pulled out a small but thick metal pin. He glanced up at Loki. "Set it deep, Loki, but not as deep as our friend Subject One has grown accustomed to yet."
The taller man nodded and picked up the mallet.
JD tensed -- his eyes wide with terror. "What the hell are you going to do? That thing will go straight through me!"
Set shook his head but remained silent. He bent down low and tilted his head to the side to look at the underside of the small table set over JD's middle. Loki carefully set the head of the mallet against the top of the slender probe. He braced it with his other hand and pressed down. JD gasped when the metal sunk into his flesh. It was centered in his navel and the compressed flesh resisted the intrusion, tightening against the push.
"Just a little more." Set's eyes were trained on JD's belly. The young man sucked in his gut in an attempt to escape the stabbing pain. Set smiled as the probe followed his movements and sunk deeper. He reached out quickly and threaded the small pin through the hole that was visible just under the edge of the nail board. It held fast, holding the probe in place where it sat deeply in JD's navel.
JD groaned. He couldn't hold the strain of keeping his belly pulled in. When his muscles finally relaxed and pushed outward again, the probe's tip stabbed into his vulnerable navel. Pain centered in his navel, digging deeply into his belly. He bucked against the intrusion and nearly screamed when the agony intensified, probing deeper.
Set stood back and watched the young man jerk and spasm on the table. He turned his head and looked at Buck. The older man lay unresponsive, the tip of the probe a deep indention in his body. Now they had two subjects and they could make a comparative analysis. This was better than he could have hoped for.
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