Hell in a Factory

Deep within the confines of a dark factory, webs clung to corners, as machines whirred and cogs turned, an intercom turned on, revealing a robotic voice, "Welcome to my woooOOOoooooorrrld. Stupid useless beeeeeiinnnnnggggsss. LoooooOOOOOOtttsss to do and seeeEeeeeeEEe. Here, in my body of machineeeerrrrryyyy..."

Once the intercom turned off, the room Thirteen and Hecate were in was silent once more. This was the fifth time since they had awoken that the same voice repeated the same sentences over and over. A wall came down, blocking the duo, Thirteen's room leaving no exits and no doors to escape, just an empty room, nothing more, with just an intercom for company, and him knowing that the robotic voice could turn on at any moment at any given time.

For Hecate, pictures appeared in the room, some of Morpheus, and some other containing pictures of the Outer Gods.

Both rooms had intercoms, which turned on simultaneously, the robotic voice activating once more, "Welcome to my woooOOOoooooorrrld. Stupid useless beeeeeiinnnnnggggsss. LoooooOOOOOOtttsss to do and seeeEeeeeeEEe. Here, in my body of machineeeerrrrryyyy..."

The paintings in Hecate's room began to shake, ectoplasmic energies begin to flow from each of the paintings, slowly, the colors begin to exit their confined squares, forming into actualy shapes of each of the painting, giving the room full of life with a few tangible figments Morpheus, as well as tangible forms for each Outer God that has been known to exist, from each paintings remains, were empty, discolored versions of what came out of the painting.

"Wha-What the Hell's going on?!" Hecate exclaimed.

Each one of the colored ink creations that looked like what Hecate feared began to approach her, each one moving closer and closer with each and every step that one of the monsers and Morpheus' could actually make.

Thirteen pounded against the wall. He tried transmuting it with a rune circle. Nothing seemed to work; the wall appeared to be impregnable.

''"Where the Hell am I?" ''Thirteen thought in growing panic.

Silence for Thirteen was what only returned.

"Back!" Hecate cried, casting magic and summoning her phantoms to deal with the ink-like creations.

The ink creations slump over after getting attacked, though some get back up, and continues to approach her, and much to Hecate's horror, the intercom in the room begins to make whispering noises as if speaking for each one of the ink creations.

"Shut up! SHUT UP!" Hecate screamed.

The voices continued to grow louder and louder, and even though it was through the intercom, Hecate began to actually feel the whispers reverberate within her own mind, echoing within her mind and the room, as each monster slowly began to make themselves just that much closer to her.

"GET THE FUCK AWAY!" the tiny fairy screamed to no avail.

Suddenly, each one of the ink drawings were shot down by Chaotic energy, Chu-ya walked over, appearing as if from nowhere. "Are you alright?" She asks, caringly.

"What the- where the Hell are we?! Thirteen's behind that wall!" Hecate stammered, still very shaken.

"We're within Anu-Oie, a mechanical monster that exists as a Sentient Dimension. It's powers are fabled, and very few know how to trek their way around this place." She answers as she feels the nearby wall Thirteen is behind, before lightly poking it with her stick, it crumbles to pieces, revealing Thirteen.

"Oh thank god, it was getting claustrophobic in there..." he said, shuddering slightly.

"We must find the others." The old woman stated, before tapping the wall, knocking it down, as if she knew all about the place, and it's secrets. "We must be most careful, there are things in this world that were not meant to be seen by the eyes of mortals." She states as she walks along a path, which leads to what could be seen as a never-ending hall.

Thirteen and Hecate follow. "Er... what kind of things?" Hecate asks warily.

"I could explain such things, but the complexity would be too much, though, I am pleased that I got a second chance to visit something of mine." Chu-ya stated.

"Something... of yours?" Hecate asked.

"Something I lost ages ago." Chu-ya answered.

Karma's Torture
Once Karma had awoken from her induced deep sleep, she found herself strapped to what appeared to be a metal table, her clothes replaced with what could be considered a hospital gown, barely covering her own perceptual regions. A whistling was heard from nearby in the same room, yet she could not exactly see where she was due to a blinding light blocking her vision.

A wave of emotions flooded over Karma- confusion, fear, and most of all, rage. She attempted to tap into her powers but, to her horror, found that she was unable.

The light was moved out of the way, revealing the face of a man nearly in his 60's, "Hello miss, you're scheduled for your appointment, I do hope you're ready. I've never operated on a Balance-Keeper before, so I'm hoping you will be patient."

''"Operated?!" ''Karma strained against the bonds holding her down. "Like hell you're going to operate on me... let me go, dammit!"

"Yes, you were scheduled for your appointment." The medical man stated, "You checked in earlier today, and now the operation is about to begin. I'm your Doctor, refer to me as such, please." The Doctor approached a table, grabbing what appeared to be scissors and a rather large knife. He turns to look at Karma, "Though, my question to you is." He paused for a moment, "Is there a doctor in the house?"

Karma's eyes widened in terror at the sight of the instruments. She pulled harder against her bonds. "No... no, fuck, no! I have nothing to do with you! Let me out! Let me out, DAMN YOU!"

The Doctor approached Karma, humming to himself all the while, as if in his own little world, then he spoke up, "I hope you don't mind, but we'll start the operation near your heart, or where I believe your heart would be located." Taking his knife, he lightly made a small outlined incision upon Karma's soft skin, taking careful measures so as to not make any deep incisions that could spray a little too much blood.

The anticipation of the knife cutting into her skin was cruel; Karma shuddered, breathing heavily, but unable to struggle; she grit her teeth, utterly terrified of the pain she was about to go through. When the knife finally bit through her skin, small pangs of agony shot up her nerves. The shallow inscisions made her convulse slightly, writhing as far as the tight straps would allow. A choked cry escaped from her throat.

"Y-You're insane... you..." Karma stammered, shaken.

"Miss..." The Doctor looked at his clipboard, "Karma. Miss Karma, I prefer the term to be scripted under 'mentally deranged', it sounds more accurate." He once more begins to hum, as he finished his outlined work, he turns and grabs four clamps from the table, setting them aside, he begins to slowly and warily take precautions as he begins to make actual deep cuts.

"FUCK YOU! YOU'RE MENTALLY DERANGED!" Karma shrieked. Her nerves burned like fire as her skin split beneath the knife. The pain began to black out her mind, and her screaming reverberated in her ears. Hot tears slid from her eyes.

The Doctor continued to hum, as if Karma screaming at him didn't exist, as if he did this on a daily basis. Purely and simply, nothing bothered him. Taking the cut skin, he use the clamps to hold the folds back, so as to inspect Karma's functioning innards.

Karma continued to scream and scream; her lungs, now visible, pulsed with each outburst. Her fingers cringed, trying to instinctively grip something, anything, but only meeting the flat surface of the table. Her back was arched as much as her restraints would allow.

The Doctor gave out what could be assumed a gasp of surprise, "You do indeed, you have a heart." He walked over to his table of, as the sign stated "Wondrous Instruments" and inspected which one to choose, humming all the while. "Miss Karma, the body of every being is quite a rainbow upon the inside. Bones of milk white, blood as red as strawberries, the brain is normally a mushy grey. I'm curious, would you prefer the electrical fork, or the scissors, so that I may inspect your beating muscle that keeps you living?" The Doctor patiently waited for the answer.

Karma could no longer speak at this point; she resorted to staring blankly at the ceiling, taking heaving, choked gasps as tears continued to spill from her eyes.

"Very well. We shall use both." The Doctor replied to the empty void of no noise, he slowly approached Karma once more, though this time, the ceiling opened up, revealing a snake-like wire that made it's way down to Karma, penetrating her skin.

The Doctor spoke up, "You must have been not feeling too well. My master only desires for the best, and well, you are the first, but I'm sure you'll never be last. Too bad, my master desired for Arbiter, he was a perfect specimen."

"Let... me go..." Karma sobbed. "Please... let me go..."

"When I hear my patients cry, that is the moment that it's most enjoyable. Not only does it feed my master, but it gives me pleasure that I'm doing my job correctly." Taking the scissors, the Doctor cuts through some of the muscle tissues, and grabs his glasses for a closer inspection, he jots a few notes about some of the differences compared to a regular human body, before his hand begins to approach the electrical fork.

"Miss Karma, I presume your abilities to use the Balance are limited, as there are energies flowing throughout your body." The Doctor states, starting the the electrical item, "Perhaps this will set your body straight."

Karma screamed once again, before the electric fork even touched her entrails; her terror and pain coalesced into outburst after agonized outburst.

The Doctor laughed, somewhat amused by her sudden screaming, "Most delightful, I presume you're ready to be electrocuted, Miss Karma. Hopefully, this will set your anger streak straight. Please, while the procedure is performed, scream as loudly as you can." He pauses, expecting a reply.

"DAMN YOU!" Karma shrieked. Her voice was no longer her own but the voice of madness.

"Thank you for your cooperation." The Doctor replied, he used this electrical fork, and harshly placed it upon Karma's beating heart, electrifying her whole body.

Karma howled as volts of electricity tore through her body; her back arched, her fingers clenched, and she spasmed uncontrollably beneath her bonds.

"Music to my ears. Such beauty can only be beheld within the vocal cords, the pain, searing, does it not cleanse you?" The Doctor stated.

Suddenly, an alarm went off, the Doctor turned around, removing the electrical fork, "You'll have to excuse me Miss Karma, I shall return momentarily." The Doctor informed as he left the room.

Karma's arrhythmic, strained breathing and choked sobs were all that reverberated through the silence as she was left alone with her throbbing, unbearable pain. She was barely conscious as she lay there, unable to move as her innards were exposed to the putrid air of Anu-Oie.

To Karma's disgust, the intercom turned on in her room, of all places! The robotic voice speaking through, repeating it's continuous mantra, "Welcome to my woooOOOoooooorrrld. Stupid useless beeeeeiinnnnnggggsss. LoooooOOOOOOtttsss to do and seeeEeeeeeEEe. Here, in my body of machineeeerrrrryyyy..." The room though, once more, became silent, though through walls, screams of agonized souls were heard, some dying down moments later, some continuing.

Moments passed on in the dark room, with only her pain to let her know that she was still alive. Tears continued to spill down her cheeks, and thin trails of blood ran down her sides. She whimpered slightly, suddenly, in spite of herself. For the first time in her life, she felt truly powerless.

A few knocks are heard upon the door of Karma's room, Zaiynde's voice heard on the other side, "Karma, you in there?"

Life suddenly rushed back into her mutilated form as she heard Zaiynde's voice. She screamed words that she never thought she would. "Zaiynde... thank god... help me! HELP ME! Don't just stand there, dammit! Please... help!"

A few explosions were heard behind the door, Zaiynde's explosions seemed to have no effect upon the door, a deeper, gruffer voice was heard afterward, this one belonging to Kadan.

"Move over Zaiynde, your explosions are uselesss." A second later, the door was blown down by a powerful wind, allowing the duo to enter the room.

Zaiynde looked to Karma, "WHAT. THE. FUCK?!"

Kadan rolled his eyes, "Shut up Zaiynde." Kadan walked over to Karma, his gaze still as hard as ever, he removes the clamps with the utmost care, "This will hurt Karma, but I shall fix this rather.. Surgical cut.."

Karma clenched her teeth and inhaled sharply as the clamps were removed. She nodded to Kadan, not caring if he was an enemy in the past. "Please... just fix it..." she managed to gasp out between sobs.

Kadan sighed as he carefully placed each fold of skin back in place, blue energy surrounded Kadan's hands, putting her skin back together and healing the remaining bits. "I've healed what I could, that does not mean you will still feel pain. Though there won't be much pain, I'm suggesting soreness."

Zaiynde removed the straps, "There, now let's hurry our way out of the damn place!!" Zaiynde runs out of the room, Kadan taking his time as always, slowly walks out of the room.

Karma tried to move, sliding slowly to the edge of the table with trembling fingers; almost as soon as she got to her feet, she collapsed; her legs felt like jelly and her entire body felt cold and clammy. She attempted to pull herself back up, but collapsed again, and broke out into quiet sobs.

As if from nowhere, Kadan was once again standing in front of her, his hardened gaze more powerful than it has ever been, "A different attitude from your uncaring one from earlier. I see the Doctor's work has gotten into your head." He states, he lifts her up, careful to not hurt her in the process. "Zaiynde told me of your 'bitchy' attitude, as he stated."

Karma said nothing as she allowed herself to be carried by Kadan, and resorted to blankly staring off in the distance.

"And as it seems, you still have indifference." Kadan stated, somewhat annoyed, following aiynde, who was already cursing at the many entrances and exits to other rooms.

Zaiynde looked around, "No sign of the fuckin' Doctor."

"We don't have time to worry about the Doctor." Kadan states, as he walks past Zaiynde, heading down one of the halls.

Mechanical Maze
Chu-ya had lead Hecate and Thirteen around for what seemed to be hours, though with no surprise, they never came across the same thing twice, but for how large the whole factory seemed, there was practically no end to it, describing the place as basically a massively large maze made with mechanical parts just to spruce up the look.

"Er... how exactly do you know where we're going?" Hecate asked Chu-Ya.

"I can feel the energies of my long lost object, so I'm travelling through, getting closer to wherever it is." The old woman responded.

"What... exactly... is this object?" Hecate asked.

"You will have to see for yourself." Chu-ya stated, "It's not something I can merely describe for you in words." In the distance of the hall, after making a turn, Zaiynde and Kadan can be seen walking, Karma being carried by the Nazlarian. "And there's Karma."

"Karma!" Hecate cried out, flying over to her.

Karma, however, remained still and unresponsive, staring off into the distance. Her eyes were puffy and red from crying, and even now tears were still sliding from her eyes.

"Karma?" Hecate asked. "What happened?"

Kadan spoke up, "She dealt with the Doctor. A man who cut her body open."

Zaiynde looked to Hecate, "Not you again, I'm tired of meeting the same people, over and over."

"For once, I'm amazed you didn't curse." Kadan gruffly stated.

"Shut your damn mouth!!"

"Welcome back Zaiynde."

"Hold on, a doctor did WHAT?!" Hecate exclaimed; Thirteen gave a start in shock.

"The Doctor," Chu-ya spoke aloud, "The resident here who cuts living beings to get a good look at what makes their lives tick."

Zaiynde mumbled, "Sick bastard.." Under his breath.

Kadan shook his head, "We must leave." He then continued to walk down the hallway.

Thirteen and Hecate were dumbstruck as they continued navigating the maze with the others.

Coming out into an opening, the group found what appeared to be a very large arch, bathed in the most glorious of golds, bells dangled daintily from the stunningly beautiful structure. Sparkling energy surrounded the structure, appearing as if a forcefield was protecting it. This one thing within the confines of Anu-Oie appeared to be untainted from the pain, suffering, and hatred that lined the walls of the whole mechanical realm itself, and seemed to bring some aspect of happiness to each one of the members of the group.

Though, the moment was interrupted, a dark green cloaked Secret fell from the sky, landing in a crouched position, "Heya!!"

"Ah, it's the awesome Secret!" Hecate exclaimed. "Ideas?"

"Yeah! I found a way to-" Bravity was interrupted.

"To die." Was the finishing sentence, forming in front of the arch, a blood red Secret with the pure wings of an angel appeared before them. "I hope you're prepared."

Bravity turned around, "War." He states.

Chu-ya looked to Kadan, "I suggest you keep her out of the way." she stated, speaking of Karma.

Kadan took a few paces back, "Indeed."