Selene heard the blow land, and the hair on the back of her neck stood on end. Something wasn't right. She propelled one sparring partner off the training platform, landing in a crouch, she swung her right leg around, tripping up the approaching fighter and turned in time to see Rathmore's victorious smirk.
"This one needs to be rehabilitated."
Rafe. What have you done this time?
Selene watched, expressionless, as the only human she had ever trusted was dragged away, three tasers and a gun aimed at him, despite the fact he would co-operate, he always did. He wouldn't fight or struggle. 'That's what they want.' he'd always say, 'They want me react, to show weakness, beg for mercy. They want me to fail their standards. They want me to give them a reason to get rid of me. Permanently.' So Rafe would let them take him to 'Rehab'. Again.
'Rehab' was the same for most of The Appropriated. Solitary, beatings and humiliation. Just enough to remind you that you were to obey, enough to crush whatever piece of soul you had shown.
But it was unspoken yet understood by all, that for Rafe 'Rehab' was a very different thing. It was strongly suspected that when it came to Rafe, when Rathmore said 'rehabilitation' it actually meant 'torture' carried out by Rathmore himself. The rest of them were usually dealt with by lackies. Unless, of course, Rathmore was feeling particularly bored or villainous. No one knew what happened to Rafe in 'Rehab' - not even Selene. He refused to tell me, all he'd say is that it would never work, they would never get what they wanted. He would never let them win. They were trying to break him, turn him into the beast they wanted, into the monster that he could never be.
Rafe was the strongest 'soldier' Rathmore had. He was the best fighter with the most strategic of minds. He should have been Rathmore's favourate, and he would of been, that was the plan. In the beginning, when Rafe's talents became apparent, Rathmore saw the potential for a perfect warrior; a right-hand man; a prodigy. He had such high hopes for Rafe's future, for his own future. But, soon enough, Rafe's humanity, heart and uncrushable spirit became as apparent as his physical attributes. Rathmore quickly realised that his 'perfect soldier' could, in fact, be the undoing of him, so, every day since, he had made it his mission to break Rafe completely. The only thing that rivalled Rathmore's determination to succeed, was Rafe's obstinate resolve to make sure Rathmore failed.
As Rafe and his Rehabilitation parade disappeared through the door, Selene was attacked from both sides. The two burly men she had bested moments before had come for revenge. Between the two of them, they pinned her to the mat. She looked at them both and smiled. Upon seeing said smile, the proud looks on the mens' faces faltered. That smile, on Selene, meant one thing and it wasn't going to end well for either of them.
No comments:
Post a Comment