Obey

A prequel to Trust.

sss

"Why are we here?" Rudy whispered softly. He took a moment to look at the surroundings. This did not seem like the best place to go for playtime. "It feels...weird."

"Oh don't worry, Bucko." Toroh said with a small grin. "It will be fine. I checked this place out earlier."

Rudy looked over at Toroh. The smile on his face reassured him that his friend knew what he was talking about. Toroh had never let him down before, so why would this be any different? The fact that Toroh was a bit older than him certainly helped him feel safe in his presence.

Still, Rudy couldn't help but feel...uncomfortable with where he had taken him. This warehouse looked pretty old and run down. There didn't seem to be anybody here, and with how it was falling apart... Instinct was telling him to get out of here, to run and find a safer place to play. He remembered what his mom and dad always told him. Stay away from buildings like this; they were just too dangerous. Especially if there were no other grownups nearby.

But Toroh always was one for a bit of excitement and risk. This hadn't been the first time Toroh took him to a place that seemed a bit dangerous. All for the sake of excitement. He had gotten out fine before, because Toroh really had checked and knew what they could do without ending up hurting themselves. This time would not be any different.

He could feel himself relaxing a little. He smiled at his friend and nodded his head. This appeared to excite Toroh. He motioned for Rudy to follow him. Rudy paused for a moment, taking another look at the building's strucuture on the outside. He then pushed himself forward and began to follow Toroh into the building.

The building looked surprisingly stable on the inside. One wouldn't have guessed that the place was a little torn apart. Sure the place did look a bit dusty and there were dark stains and there was a strange, dirty smell. But overall, it looked much better than he would have anticipated.

As Toroh led him further into the warehouse, Rudy looked left and right slowly. He took in the details of this place.

It appeared to be some sort of old factory. He could see some old, rundown machinery that clearly hadn't been used in years. He noticed a crane that was cracked, and a dusty chain ready to snap. He saw a large bowl of sorts with what looked like a large, rusted drill over it. Turning his head to the other side, he took notice of the rows of tables, with large flat machines beside them, ready to crush to whatever was below them, turning them into pancakes. The conveyor belts looked torn in several places, and were clearly useless. And behind them, he could see tall rows of various shelves, many still with rusted and wet old boxes on them, covered in dust.

The place wasn't lit too well. There were still some lights on. He was a little confused, but he guessed that Toroh must have kept them on when he came here to explore. Most of the lights were out and the ones that were on were either dull or were starting to flicker. Rudy felt a little uneasy around the flickering lights and found himself moving closer to Toroh for comfort.

He did feel lucky to have Toroh around. He had defended him from Reggie a few times, as well as a couple other bullies. He had stuck by him and they had a lot of fun together. He even loved his comics, something that Rudy never thought would happen. He was the only person he would feel safe with in this old, falling apart warehouse.

Soon, the two kids made it past what he guessed was the main room. He noticed there was a door along the wall, set between two of the most empy shelves he had seen. One was even leaning to the side a little, and he took notice that part of it had broken down, which resulted in the strange stance. The door that was placed there looked like it was made of metal, but that might be due to the thick residue that was on it, coated in a layer of dust and dirt.

The two boys stopped in front of the door. They stared at it intently. Rudy bit his lip, feeling a level of apprehension grip his heart. Even with Toroh here with him, there was something about this place that felt...strange. He watched as Toroh reached for the doorknob. His eyes turned up and they widened when he saw soemthing.

"Wait.." Rudy whispered. "That sign..." He leaned in a bit closer, tilting his head. "It...says something..."

"It says No Unauthorized Personnel Beyond This Point." Toroh said. "Don't worry. It's fine. I was in here before." He glanced up at the sign. "That was just for when this place was open and running."

"I see..." Rudy still felt unsure, but Toroh's words did calm him down. If all that sign was for was keeping customers and tourists out of private sections of the warehouse, then he was fine. "Are you sure this will be fun?"

"Absolutely!" Toroh nodded his head vigorously. "You will not forget this experience!" Smiling a bit more broadly, he motioned for him to quickly follow. "Now come on! Let's get here before our parents start to wonder where we are!" He grinned somewhat mischeviously. "We wouldn't want them to ruin our fun, right...?"

Rudy clenched his teeth at this. He knew there were good reasons to follow the rules and sometimes Toroh's disregard for the rules got him upset. But he didn't attempt to argue back. Besides, it wasn't like they were going to be in here long anyway. Just a quick little game and they were out. Toroh himself promised that they would only be here for, at most, twenty to thirty minutes.

Taking in a deep breath, Rudy began to follow Toroh through the door. It led them into a long corridor. This was a sharp constrast to the large room they were just in. This hallway felt a bit...narrow, and the edges and corners looked uncomfortably sharp. And the cobwebs in the corners and the large, hideous spiders and the dead insects still wrapped up in the webs... Rudy found himself huddling closer to Toroh for comfort and company as they moved down the dusty old corridor.

Rudy wasn't sure how long they had been walking. He guessed only a few minutes, but it felt so much longer. Just how long was this hallway, anyway? It seemed a little too long, unless parts of this place were closed down and blocked off. Yeah that might be it; he did recall seeing what looked like an indention, and a mark that appeared lighter than the rest. That might be what went on here.

But if that's the case, then...did this place even empty out anywhere? Well, Toroh did say he found a really neat place. He had been here before, and it was only a few hours since then. There was no way that someone from a construction place would have went all the way here, fixed up some blockades, and left in that amount of time without somebody noticing. And certainly not without leaving some sort of trace that they were here.

"How long is it?" Rudy whispered softly. "How long will it be before we...?"

"It won't be too long. I promise. Just a bit further and we will turn a corner." Said Toroh. "We will get there shortly, Rudy."

Rudy smiled inwardly at this. He would be glad when they finally reached the destination. He was curious to see what the big deal was, and why Toroh would take him all the way here just to see it. There had to be a good reason for it. Toroh would never do something like this unless he truly thought there was something worthwhile here.

A few moments later, just like his friend had stated, they had come to a corner. It looked really sharp and he inched himself as far away from it as he could. He and Toroh rounded it and soon headed down a new corridor, which looked a tiny bit cleaner than the other one. This new corridor stretched down far, but not nearly as much as the first one. It had clear openings on the sides. At least four that he could see. This place must not have been barricaded yet.

Rudy had to wonder just what was here that Toroh was so intrigued by. So far, he hadn't spotted anything of interest. Just a dusty old place that could be potentially dangerous if they weren't careful. There had to be something more to this place than he realized. Maybe Toroh found some kind of treasure in one of these rooms? It was possible that something got left behind.

After about a minute of walking down, Toroh suddenly turned to the right. Rudy nearly bumped into him. He stared in confusion for a few seconds, and then he saw what Toroh was looking at. There was a door here, settled deep in a groove. No wonder he didn't see it initially. He watched as Toroh reached over and turned the door knob. There was a slight squeak of the door being pushed inward, and the two boys walked inside.

Rudy was somewhat disappointed by the room's contents. There was hardly anything here except for a few things. There was a single light overhead that was a tad brighter than the others. This seemed to highlight the chair in the center, and in front of that, there was a weird contraption. Something that he wasn't familiar with.

Rudy let out a sigh. He looked over at Toroh. "I don't get it." He shrugged his shoulders. "What is the big deal?"

Toroh smiled at him. "Why don't you go sit in the chair? Get yourself comfortal? I'll explain then."

Rudy looked at him in confusion. Why couldn't Toroh just tell him right now? Oh well, it wouldn't hurt to sit down anyway. His feet were hurting, and it was nice of Toroh to give up the one seat for him. He went over towards the chair and settled himself down. He had to adjust himself a little as it didn't feel all that comfortable. It was better than standing up on aching feet, though.

"So...what is it you wanted to show me?" Rudy asked as he turned his head towards his friend. "You said it was something I would never forget?"

Toroh nodded his head. "Oh yes...you would never forget this..."

Rudy felt a pang of confusion. He had never heard Toroh use that tone of voice before. And why was he looking at him that way? Was he not feeling well? Was he concerned about something? Something felt...off. "Toroh...? What's...?"

Suddenly, before he could finish his question, Toroh held up a remote and pressed a button. In seconds, metal straps shot out from the chair. Rudy let out a few cries of surprise as the metal bands held onto his limbs and body, holding them against the chair affectively. He struggled to get himself free, jerking himself from side to side, but the grip was just too tight.

He looked over at Toroh, his eyes wide in fear and confusion. His breathing grew shaky and rapid. His heart clenched tightly as dread washed over him. He couldn't understand what was happening. What was Toroh doing? Why was he doing this? What was going on?

"What is the meaning of this...?" He whispered softly.

Toroh stared at him for a few moments, and then he let out a chuckle. It was not like the other laughs he gave. This one sounded...mean and cruel. Something he never heard from Toroh before. This caused Rudy to cringe back. His confusion increased, and he struggled to say something. Nothing would come out of his mouth.

"Oh Bucko... How easy you had been.." Toroh said softly. Rudy stared at him in confusion. "Did you really think that our...friendship...was free? Everything comes with a price, Bucko."

Rudy struggled to get one of his arms free. "Wh-Why are you doing this, Toroh? What's..."

Toroh cut him off. "You see, Bucko, I had been merely...testing you."

"Testing?" Rudy whispered.

Toroh nodded his head. He gave him a smile, one that lacked the comfort and friendliness of his other smiles. "You passed the test, Rudy. I do have some use for you."

Rudy couldn't understand what was going on. What was Toroh talking about? What did he mean by 'use'? What was going to happen to him? "B-But.. I thought that..."

"Oh did you think our 'friendship' meant something to me, Rudy? Well I hate to say, but it did not." Toroh placed a hand against himself. "I never liked your comics nor did I ever like you all that much. I tolerated you and pretended to defend you to win your trust, so I can see if you could be used for something...better." He chuckled darkly. "And guess what? I have..."

Rudy's eyes widened at this. He could feel his heart rip in two at the boy's admittance. The friendship he thought he had...it never existed... He could feel his hope being crushed before him, and he couldn't help but feel a small tear form in his eyes.

His body began to shake a little as the fear of the situation began to weigh down on him. The unknown factor made it even worse. He had no idea what Toroh was intending, and his mind began to fill with horrific thoughts of what might be, even if they were ridiculous. He began to struggle against the chair again, hoping that somehow he'd be able to break himself free.

He couldn't believe how stupid he had been. How could he not have realized something was up with Toroh? With all the bad luck he had with making friends, he should have known something was up with Toroh the moment he saw him. Oh why didn't he pick up on it? Why didn't he notice something off about him? Why did he let himself get so carried away and excited about this friendship? If he had only known...

He had been a fool. He had longed for friendship and as such, he opened his heart to this guy. And now look at where that was getting him. This was all his fault. Why did he have to be so stupid?

He watched as Toroh walked towards the strange device in front of him. "Have you ever heard of the metronome, Rudy?" The bound boy shook his head slowly. "Well it's really quite special. It's used for keeping track of time, but it has...another use."

Toroh positioned himself beside the metronome. He pressed his finger against the tip of the arrow. Rudy stared at him nervously, his eyes darting from him and to the metronome.

"You see, the metronome is said to have a rather...hypnotic attribute to it." He pulled the arrow to one side, holding it there. "It can be quite suggestive.."

Rudy's eyes bulged at this. "Y-You're going to hypnotize me?!"

"Ah, I see you aren't as stupid as I thought." Toroh giggled. Rudy flinched at this insult. "But yes... You see, I don't want to give up on you, Bucko. You can serve a much...bigger purpose. That is why I brought you here. I know you won't do any of this on your own, so I want to give you..an incentive."

Rudy shook his head. "N-No..please..."

Toroh just grinned evilly at this. He released the metronome's needle and it began to tick back and forth at a steady rate. "Now...keep your eyes on the metronome, Rudy. Keep following it.."

Rudy shut his eyes and looked away. He couldn't allow himself to get hypnotized. He couldn't allow himself to lose control. Please..no...

A sudden pain on his head forced him to open his eyes. Toroh had grabbed onto his hair and was pulling back as hard as he could. Rudy clenched his teeth tightly as he tried to cope with the pain. He could feel the boy whisper harshly into his ear.

"Keep your eyes on the needle, bitch. Or I will do much worse..."

Rudy let out a frightened whimper at this. He remained frozen at first, but a sharper pull from Toroh coaxed him to open his eyes. Reluctantly, he watched the metronome, his pupils moving from side to side, following its actions.

"Good boy..." Toroh released his grip. "Now..just keep watching it.."

Rudy gave a series of low whimpers as his eyes continued to follow the metronome. Back and forth, left and right, it continued to go. His pupils darted around, trying to keep up with it. The steady ticking of the metronome filled the air, and soon it began to wrap around him almost in a gentle embrace.

He couldn't believe this was happening. He...He had thought he could trust Toroh. He never would have guessed that Toroh would do something like this. He had always seemed so nice before. Even his parents liked him. If anything was wrong with him, his parents would have said something, right? And nobody at school really detected anything wrong with him. Mr. Wilter wasn't stupid. Surely he would have noticed something, yeah?

In the end, he had been duped. Toroh had lied to him this whole time. This realization made his heart feel like it had been shattered. All this time, he thought he had finally found a Real World friend. Someone at school with whom he could relate and have fun. But it really had been just wishful thinking. He had been so desperate for friendship that he had trusted this boy the moment that he stood up for him. He should have known better. He should have exercised more caution.

Now he was trapped here. He had fallen for his trick and he was stuck with nowhere to go. There was no way he could get ouf these binds and he would not be able to convince Toroh to let him go. He was stuck in this chair until this boy decided that he could be let go.

He kept watching the metronome, continuously moving his eyes to keep up with each tick of the needle. He could already feel himself start to feel a bit of something in his head. A small ache from the repeated back and forth motion of his eyes. Then that strange feeling continued, sweeping through his head.

No... He couldn't allow this to happen. He needed to fight back somehow. He had to do something to keep himself from falling under the spell. Maybe if he resisted enough, Toroh would lose interest andl et him go.

"Gah!" Rudy snapped his head back and turned his head away, shutting his eyes.

"No, don't you dare look away." Toroh's cold voice came. "I told you to look at it."

"No...I won't..." Rudy protested.

A snarl came from the slightly older boy. Rudy braced himself for another attack. When it didn't come, he felt a wave of confusion. This was short lived when he felt a breath against the back of his head. He opened his eyes to look, only to feel a pair of hands on his head. He felt his head being yanked roughly until it was facing the metronome again. A cold band was clicked into place, making it impossible for him to turn his head away. The realization that he couldn't move his head caused his heart to start pumping faster, and anxiety swelled up inside his stomach.

He continued to squeeze his eyes shut. But that didn't last for long. He could feel a hand return to his head. He could feel Toroh place his fingers and thumb against the skin of his forehead. He applied pressure and then pulled upwards. Rudy kept clinching his eyelids shut, and soon Toroh appeared to have given up on that. Rudy felt some relief move through him when the boy moved his hands away from his head. He kept his eyes shut, listening as Toroh's footsteps became a little faded. Rudy wondered where he was going.

Suddenly he felt the boy's fingers push against him again. This time, they concentrated on just one of his eyes. He applied more pressure, digging his fingernails against the eyelids. Rudy tried not to yelp in pain. Then Toroh began to stretch them out. Rudy fought against his eyelids being opened. But despite his best efforts, he utterly failed, and he found the light of the room invading his eyes, along with a briefly blurry image of a disgruntled Toroh.

Rudy noticed that he was holding something in his hands. Two small metal things. He couldn't quite identify them. Toroh placed a set in his teeth while the other he held up. He turned it around and stared at it as if to examine it, then he brought the object close to his eye. Rudy's heart pounded as this foreign object got closer and closer. He tried to struggle, but to no avail. In seconds, he could feel the cold object being forced against his eye. Toroh was quite careful with it, using his two hands to adjust it properly and lock it in place.

Once it was fitted, Rudy could feel an odd pressure against his eye. It wasn't something he had felt before. He tried to close his eye but found it was impossible. He took in several quick breaths as he realized that he could no longer move his eyelids. He looked up at Toroh in fear. Soon, the same process was repeated with his other eye. Toroh was a little rougher with this eye, causing Rudy to let out a small yelp of pain. Thankfully it didn't last as long, and Toroh moved away, the metal...whatever they were, holding his eyes wide open.

"Hmph. You look pretty funny like that." Toroh chuckled lightly. He walked around towards the back of the chair. "Now keep watching the metronome."

Unable to close his eyes or turn away, Rudy instead opted for his pupils to face downward. He thought that maybe Toroh wouldn't notice, and if he could just act like he was hypnotized, he could get out of this.

Unfortunately, Toroh had repositioned himself and was staring right at his face. When he saw that he wasn't following the metronome, his face contorted in anger. Rudy shuddered when he heard the boy give a soft growl. Moments later, he could feel the boy's hand over his own. The fingers trailed long his right hand. Soon the strong fingers encircled around one of his digits. He gripped onto it tightly, making Rudy flinch. Then without warning, the boy began to pull his finger back.

Rudy let out a yelp of pain at this. He instinctively tried to shut his eyes, only to apply more pressure against those metal devices, causing him some eye pain. He tried to jerk his head around to no avail. He tried to pull his finger away, but Toroh was stronger than he was, and the finger kept being yanked back.

The burning pain began to creep along his finger, starting at the base and working its way up. It radiated through, even trhough the bone, as Toroh continued to apply further pressure. Rudy gritted his teeth, tears of pain dripping down along his cheeks as Toroh kept up this torture. Rudy to hold it in and bear the pain, but soon this became impossible. As Toroh gave a sharp push, Rudy let out a loud scream, which dissipated into low whimpering.

"Keep following the metronome." Toroh hissed. "Or I will break your fingers one by one..."

Rudy looked over at him, struggling to see him out of the corner of his eye. "Y-You wouldn't..."

Toroh grinned viciously at him. "Do you want to try me, Bucko..?" Toroh turned and looked at his hand. "It wouldn't take much... I just have to bend this finger here a little further..." Rudy let out a shuddering gasp of pain as Toroh applied a little more pressure. "And the finger will break..."

"N-No..." Rudy whimpered softly.

"And I will keep going..." Toroh leaned in a little closer and began to whisper to him. "I wonder how will you can make your shitty drawings without your right hand..." He gripped the finger even tighter, the muscles in his arm tensing up. "What do you say we find out, Bucko..?"

Rudy wanted to continue resisting. He wanted to fight back and continue defying Toroh. He wanted to protect himself from falling into the hypnotic spell of the metronome.

But the threat of pain was forcing him to relent. His mind's natural instinct to avoid pain was convincing him to listen to what Toroh was saying and restart following the metronome, which was still ticking at the same, steady rate. After a few moments, he felt some relief as Toroh let his finger relax a little. The boy still held onto his finger just in case he would try to look away again.

Back and forth and to and fro the metronome went. Rudy followed it like before, fearing what might happen to him if he didn't do this. He didn't dare look away, not even to stare at Toroh, whom he could sense in his peripherial vision. He could just imagine him that a smug smile on his face, that smirk of arrogance and pride at what he had done.

In a few more seconds, Rudy started to hear something gently caress his ears. It was Toroh's voice. The same soothing voice he had come to enjoy, but now it had a more sinister undertone to it. It was hardly noticeable, but it was there. And instead of comforting him, all his voice did now was frighten him more.

"You are going to do exactly what I say, Rudy Tabootie. When I tell you to do something, you are going to do it. When I tell you to come, then you will come. When I give you an order, you will follow it."

Rudy let out a soft whimper at this. He attempted to blink, but his eyes were still held open. His pupils continued their side to side motion, keeping up with the metronome despite a slight increase of shakiness.

"If you do not listen to me, then...let's just say bad things will happen to you. Really bad things... So be a good little boy and obey me..."

Toroh kept speaking in a soft, soothing voice, repeating similar phrases over and over again. He kept the words low, and his face near his ear so he could whisper into it. Rudy couldn't even turn his head away from the voice, nor could he look at Toroh with the terrified expression he was wearing now.

His heart pounded a little harder. He gripped the chair tighter. His mind swirled with rapid-moving thoughts. That voice kept on echoing in his head, intermingling with the gentle ticking of the metronome's arrow. He tried to stay strong and resist it. He tried to fight back mentally and hold onto reality. He couldn't allow Toroh to win. He had to keep struggling back. He just needed to pretend to be hypnotized. He just...

Slowly, Rudy started to feel a little strange. It wasn't a dramatic change, but he easily noticed it. His head felt a little...muggy was the best word he could use to describe it, but even that didn't sound really accurate. He still followed the metronome, but even this felt different. It was almost like he wasn't moving at all, and all around him, he felt...lightheaded, like he was being placed in some kind of white, fluffy cloud.

In that moment, he started to forget what was going on. Well kind of. He was aware he was in a chair in a warehouse with Toroh, but his mind felt as though it was partially shutting down. He tried to close his eyes, but felt a level of confusion when that became impossible.

He was also aware of some kind of voice in the background. At the moment, he was getting a little too confused to fully understand their meaning. However, despite that, he could detect something sinister about the voice. A combination of soft and malice perfectly blended in an audio swirl going around his head.

He became aware of something moving along his eyes. There was a quick sharp prick and then he could suddenly move his eyelids again. The lids became partway closed. He wasn't tired enough to go to sleep, yet he didn't have the strength to open them all the way. His expression became a little dull, his mouth dropping open a little and his breathing coming in slow and steady. His eyes slowly became unfocused, yet somehow still managed to follow the metronome, which he partially forgot why he was following.

This started to feel like a dream to him. There was something almost surreal about this. Everything seemed a bit too cloudly and bright. This had to be some kind of dream, right? A daydream perhaps? A part of him told him that this was really happening and to snap back to attention, but for some reason, he just could not break himself out of it.

Then he could hear the voice again. This time it was more clear, almost booming.

"Are you going to be a good little boy? Are you going to listen to me? Or are you going to need to be punished?"

That voice... Toroh...?

Rudy blinked once and he thought he had seen the image of Toroh's face before him. It looked more demonic than ever, and he could have sworn he saw the eyes flashing red. Despite his rational side trying to tell him otherwise, his emotions were in overdrive. He couldn't stop the wash of cold fear from moving through his body.

"I would listen, if I were you." Toroh said with a soft edged voice. "If you disobey me, then you are going to get really badly hurt. I do not want to divulge on what I will do to you. So why don't you avoid all that trouble and obey me?"

Rudy let out a whimper. The vision of Toroh before him seemed to get larger. He thought he could see large claws coming out of the ground to get at him.

"Come on, this isn't difficult to accept. You belong to me now. You are my slave. If you don't want to get hurt, you will listen to me." Toroh said, his voice still sounding gentle. "You are mine..."

Rudy tried to get away from the haunting voice. He tried to turn himself around and run. But soon he realized he was stuck to something. He couldn't tell what it was in that moment. A chair maybe. But his mind was more focused on trying to get away. As soon as he figured out he couldn't, his heart started to freeze, the pulse rate speeding up. The rapid beats and the chilling hot adrenaline moving through him caused his body to tremble harder.

Why couldn't he get away? Why couldn't he just get up and move?

The voice.. It was that voice... Someone was keeping him here. He could see Toroh again, somehow looking more distorted than before. His eyes bulged as his mind began to fully register what this boy was capable of doing. Even though his logical side would know Toroh was limited in what he could do, at the moment, Rudy felt as though Toroh could do anything and get away with it.

He cringed into the chair he was stuck in. As Toroh moved closer to him, his eyes boring through his, Rudy tried to make himself look smaller and less threatening. He did not want to give Toroh a reason to hurt him. He shut his eyes tightly, clenching his teeth and quivering his lower lip a little. He let out a few low cries as he whispered pleas under his breath.

"Please don't hurt me... Please... I'll do anything..."

"Oh, you will do anything?" Toroh asked. The tone of his voice never changed, and the ticking never stopped. Rudy could feel the cold band being removed from his head, allowing him to move it. Toroh leaned close to him, continuing to speak in a low, soothing voice. "Is that right?"

Rudy stared at him in fear and nodded his head once. "Y-Yes... I'll do anything. Just...d-don't hurt me...please."

Toroh smiled at this. His expression was that of reassurance, but Rudy couldn't help but detect some kind of hidden malicious intent behind those eyes. "That's what I like to hear." He reached over and started to stroke Rudy's hair gently. "As long as you be a good boy and listen to my orders, you will be fine."

Rudy shuddered at the boy's touch, but he did not dare look away. He shed more tears of fear as he watched the boy, waiting to see what he was going to do.

"Shhh... It's going to be okay, Rudy." Toroh wiped away his tears. "Listen to me, and you will be fine." He grabbed his chin a little roughly. "Disobey me..." His eyes narrowed slightly. "And you're in big trouble, Bucko..."

Rudy shut his eyes, crying softly. "I-I'll listen!" He sniffled as he lowered his head. "I-I'll listen..."

"Good little boy." Toroh said, chuckling softly. "Now, I am going to release you. You are to follow me. No running off. Bad things will happen to you if you try to run away. Understand?"

With Rudy's nod, Toroh reached over and began to undo the shackles that held him to the chair. When he did the final one, he roughly grabbed his arm and pulled him out. Rudy stumbled a little as he tried to rebalance himself. Once he did, Toroh released him and he headed towards the door.

"Come along now." Toroh said as he looked over his shoulder. "My boss doesn't want to wait that long."

Rudy looked at him in confusion. "B-Boss...?"

"Oh yes. And aside from me, he will be your boss, too." Toroh turned his head away and started to walk. "Get a move on. Time is a wastin'."

A part of Rudy wanted to run away and get out of here. He was so scared and terrified.. He had to get out of here and get help. He wanted to rush home, curl up with his parents, and cry.

But he couldn't bring himself to do that. No matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't leave. He found himself walking forward, towards Toroh. He couldn't do anything except obey him. He was too scared not to listen. What if Toroh ripped him apart? What if he did something to get him beat up at school? What if he did something to his parents? All sorts of fears of what could happen clouded his mind. And even though some were quite illogical, he couldn't help but dread the possibility of them happening.

He had only one way out. And that was to listen to Toroh. If he wanted to get out of here unharmed, if he wanted to keep himself alive and his family unharmed, he needed to listen to him. With his head lowered a bit and his eyes downcast, he followed Toroh closely behind.

He didn't pay attention to where they were going. He only concentrated on Toroh, making sure he remained in front of him. Toroh moved at a steady pace, and it was a little difficult staying close to him. He nearly stumbled when Toroh would suddenly make a turn. He would soon recover and follow him again.

It didn't take too long before they reached some new hallway. He wasn't sure how long it took to get here or how far away it was from the other room, or even how deep in the building it was. All he was aware of, aside from Toroh himself, was that it was at the end of a long hallway, and there was a light on. He thought he could detect an air of smoke in there.

Following Toroh's gesture, Rudy made his way towards the door, staying close behind Toroh. Despite being fearful of him, he was also feeling dependent on him. He wanted to seek his protection from this boss and chose to stay right behind him. He constantly looked at Toroh to make sure he was doing the right thing. He was so afraid of doing something wrong. What would his boss do to him if he did something to upset him?

They soon entered the small room. It appeared to be an office of some kind. There was a thin sheet of pale grey, a trait of smoking. Rudy could smell it even before he entered the room. He coughed a few times, swiping the air in front of him in order to help himself breathe a little better. He and Toroh went in a little deeper, and Rudy soon took notice of a desk in front, along with a few chairs scattered in the small room.

At the desk, there was a large office chair, the type that spun around. Sitting in that desk was a large, heavy set man. He wore an old, torn business style suit, one that looked easily many years old. His face was a little rounded, similar to his mother's, yet the features were still hard and stern, unwelcome and cold. His hair was thin, short, and black, matching his eyes, which were a dark grey. He was smoking a large cigar, the tip glowing and simmering with the smoke.

Rudy felt intimidated by his presence. The man looked from Toroh and then to Rudy. This caused Rudy to let out a frightened yelp and he found himself grabbing into Toroh's shoulders and hiding behind him. He didn't see it, but this act caused Toroh to smirk.

"So...this the kid you spoke of?" The large man spoke.

Toroh nodded his head. "Yes, sir. He is the perfect fit."

"Hmph." The man got up out of his seat. "Step aside. I wanna get a good look at 'im."

Rudy panicked when Toroh moved away from him. He was about to follow when Toroh's stern look prompted him to stay put. Rudy did his best to hold still, keeping his head low, as the large man approached him. He could feel the man's warmth as he stood in front of him, eyeing him with a scrutinizing eye.

He jolted when he felt the man grab onto him firmly. The man moved him around, his head turning this way and that, as he examined him carefully. He could feel the man's hands move along his body, mostly along his stomach, sides, and arms. The man at one point lifted up his arms one at a time. And then later, he forced his mouth open to take a look at his teeth, and even his eyes were examined.

Rudy shut his eyes and waited for all of this to be over. The more the man continued to examine him like this, the more frightened he felt. He didn't dare try to move or get away, despite how uncomfortable this was making him feel.

He soon felt the man concentrate on his abdomen. The man's hand gently rubbed and caressed his stomach. This action confused him, and he couldn't help but tense up and let out a soft whine. Thankfully the man didn't spend too much time on this and soon patted his stomach a few times before he released him.

"You are correct. He would indeed be perfect." The large man looked down and gave a wry smile at Toroh. "Good job."

"Thank you, Mr. Bator." Toroh said, bowing his head a little in respect.

Mr. Bator moved around Rudy, giving him another look. The smile remained on his face, broadening slightly as he looked at Rudy up and down. "This does solve our little dilemma.. And a few weeks ahead of schedule, too. I wasn't sure how we were going to pull it off without drawing the police, but with his help..." Mr. Bator cupped Rudy's chin, pushing it up gently to look at him in the eyes. "I think we will be able to pull it off."

Rudy couldn't help but shiver, staring at the man fearfully. Just what were they talking about? What did they plan on doing to him?

The man then began to walk way. He moved towards his desk. He started to look for something in the large pile of papers that laid scattered there. Toroh positioned himself beside Rudy, as if to make sure he didn't try to leave. He watched his boss carefully, a curious expression on his face.

"The rogue surgeon I hired said he will be available soon. He has already given the coordinates to the specific location." Mr. Bator grabbed a folder and went over towards Toroh. He handed the child the folder. "This is where your new...playmate needs to be at the date specified."

Rudy looked over at Toroh. He felt his body shiver as he watched his twisted smile spreading across his face, his head nodding in understanding. He could not see the location specified, but that hardly worried him much. He was more concerned about what they were going to do to him specifically.

There were so many possibilities. They ran through his mind rapidly. He tried to ignore them and push them away. He found this to be impossible. The more he tried to fight it, the more chilling he started to feel. Oh what was he going to do?

"Both of you are to remain quiet about this. I know I can count on you." Mr. Bator stared at Toroh for a moment. Then he slowly shifted his gaze to Rudy. "But you, little boy... You better keep your mouth shut about this operation."

"Oh don't worry. Little Rudy here will not utter a word about this to anyone." Toroh gave Rudy a sideways glance, his smirk stretched to one side. "Will you, Bucko?" At this, Rudy immediately shook his head rapidly. Toroh turned himself around and moved closer to him. He placed his hands gently on his shoulders. "You will listen and do what I say, right?"

Rudy bit his lip, and nodded his head quickly. "Yes. I'll listen."

Toroh patted Rudy on the cheek. "That's a good little boy." He moved his hand up and stroked his hair. "You will do just fine..." He looked up at his boss. "See?" He looped his arm around Rudy's shoulders and pulled him close. "He's well trained. He won't be any trouble."

The corner of Mr. Bator's mouth stretched to one side. "That is good. We require strict obedience here." He gave a soft warning glare at Toroh. "He is your responsibility. Do not let him falter. Otherwise, it'll be you who is punished."

There was a brief flash of fear in Toroh's eyes. Something that Rudy never thought he would see. It was gone as soon as it came, and the smile returned to the boy's face. "You do not have to worry about that."

"For you sake, I hope not." Mr. Bator warned him. After a few moments of glaring at Toroh to make sure he got the point, the large man moved away and returned to his seat. He settled down in the leather chair, and rested his arms on the desk. He tapped his fingers together, his eyes furrowed in thought. After a few moments, he motioned his hand towards them and said, "Why don't you the new guy what his upcoming job will be. He has the right to know what'll happen to him."

"With pleasure..." Toroh chuckled.

Rudy gulped at this. He cringed a little as Toroh looked at him. The boy still had him pressed against himself. Rudy didn't bother trying to struggle, despite every ounce of his brain telling him to. He could see the look in Toroh's eyes, which made him shudder.

"Now listen here, Bucko..." Toroh said gently yet firmly. "We are in a...bit of a pickle. You see, my boss here is distributing some...special stuff. Really special stuff. You know, the kind that the police don't like to catch people with."

Rudy quickly realized what he meant. "You're a drug dealer...?" He could feel the back of his head chilling at this. It only got worse as Toroh smiled and nodded his head.

"Yes, we are. Specifically, cocaine. You know how popular that stuff is, and it's what we specialize in. We distribute the goods all over town." Toroh explained. "But see, lately the cops had been cracking down. Getting smarter. The old ways just aren't working anymore. So we need a new way. Something the cops wouldn't even think of. And that is where you come in."

Rudy felt his heart rate speeding up more. "Wh-What do you want me to do?"

"You will meet up with this surgeon. The boss will give you two numbers to recite so he will know that it's you. He will set you up for the transfer. You are going to be given the cocaine bag, and then you will get your family to a specified location, which you will find out about a bit later. When you are there, you will be given the task of joining up with the surgeon again, as he will meet you there. The bag will be taken and you will be given time to recover for any future tranports."

Rudy stared at Toroh in confusion. What did he mean by 'time to recover'? Why was a surgeon required for this? If he was only going to be used for transporting drugs, then why would he...?

Suddenly he felt it all come crashing down on him as realization struck him. He slowly began to piece everything together. His eyes widened at the thought of the surgeon and recovery time, and the bag of cocaine. He took in a few quick breaths, staring at him and wondering if this was some kind of sick joke. They couldn't possibly thinking of...

Toroh's grin broadened. "I think you are getting it, Bucko."

"You... Why would you..." Rudy breathed, his mind racing, having a hard time fully digesting this.

"People like us have done it with animals. But the problem is, that's gotten too cliche. Cops know to look for that stuff. But a little boy..." Toroh grinned. "It's so risky, the cops wouldn't think to look there. They would think we aren't dumb enough to try something like that."

"B-But..." Rudy felt his blood turn to ice.

Toroh placed his hand on his stomach, gently rubbing it. Rudy flinched at this gesture. "You have such a nice stomach, Rudy. Plenty of room to slip in a bag." Rudy widened his eyes. "Oh don't worry. The bag material is quite strong. It won't leak into you, and it'll only be for a few days, or however long it takes for the next appointment to be set up. It'll be out of you and you will recover before you know it. These things have gotten a little safer. You have nothing to worry about."

Rudy couldn't fully trust Toroh's words. He had heard horror stories of poor dogs that were forced to carry drugs inside of them. He knew how well those turned out. He was aware that he would be in the same boat. Despite what Toroh was saying, Rudy found it hard to believe that he would get out of this unscathed.

His body trembled at the full impact of what was going to happen to him. He couldn't believe that these people were going to... No... They couldn't. It was sick and wrong... How could they even think of doing something like this to another living person? How could they begin to believe that this was a good idea? What they were doing was not only illegal, but way too dangerous. His parents may not always be available, but the moment they see him acting funny, they would take him to the doctor and they would find out what was going on. Rudy couldn't hide the symptoms, no matter how hard he tried. He might be good at faking it; not so good at pretending to be well when he clearly wasn't. What did Toroh expect him to do for that?

The realization that this is what Toroh wanted him for, that this was the real reason for their 'friendship', was like being jabbed in the heart with a sharp knife, being twisted inside. He let out a soft whimper, unable to stop his shaking. He could feel tears forming in his eyes. He couldn't believe that he had been such a fool.

He looked over at Toroh, giving him a hurt expression. If Toroh was his friend, he would feel sorry and try to reassure him. But he did neither of those things. He just folded his arms against himself and smirked at him. He looked happy about what he had done, as if making friends with him and gaining his trust was just another job he had to fulfill. Just business...

"You are going to do exactly what I say, aren't you, Bucko?" Toroh asked. "I can count on you, right?"

Rudy gulped at this. He wanted so much to say no. But the fear inside of him spread around, gripping him like a vice. As he stared into Toroh's eyes, that icy fear grew stronger. He could hardly move, hardly breathe. He couldn't even bring himself to shake his head 'no'. Those eyes, filled with so many dark promises... Silently telling him what would happen if he dare say no...

He shut his eyes and lowered his head submissively. "Y-Yes..."

"He really is such an obedient boy. I congratulate you on taming him." Rudy flinched at the large man's 'taming' comment. "From what you said, he was a bit of a slippery one." Mr. Bator smiled as he stared at Rudy with that dark expression. "He will make a fine addition to our team."

Toroh gave a proud smirk at this. Then he tilted his head to one side, a curious look spreading across his face. "Say, boss? Since we aren't going to need his help right away..." He jerked his head towards Rudy. "What should I do with him?"

Mr. Bator looked over at the frightened Rudy. He regarded him for a moment, and then said, "So long as you do not hurt him too badly and you don't do anything too crazy that will get him caught before he can be used... you may have your fun with him."

Rudy stifled the scream as Toroh rounded on him. He backed away from him slowly, his heart clenching tightly, his breathing and pulse increasing. He hunched himself fearfully, pressing himself against the wall and turning his head to the side. He clenched his teeth fearfully and cringed as Toroh placed his hands on the wall at both his sides, keeping him pressed against the wall.

"Oh I have plans for him..." Toroh gave a cruel chuckle as he watched a fearful tear stroll down the younger boy's face. He pressed a finger against his chin. "He is going to be a fun little toy to break..."