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It had been a few weeks since the events in Orebeoa and for many presents that day, life had seemingly gone back to normal. The victim was now long gone and only still mourned by those who knew him before his cruel end. The accusations slung between the groups of scared members of the crowd had been long forgotten by those who had been so convinced of the truth within their words at the time.
Timaeus of Valaoritis had been no exception. Being a young twelve-year-old the events of that day had quickly faded from his memory in favor of other events; one such being the return of his family to the capital city of Midas. With the pathway in and out of the mountains that little Tim called home being so grueling, trips outside of Eubocris were few and far between for the lad. So, needless to say, he was excited for the change of scenery and the sheer excitement of being in the crowded urban environment was enough to push the events of that fateful day and his terrifying encounter with a certain Thanasi woman from his mind. However, now and then, the young boy couldn’t help, but let his thoughts wander back to his words that day… more specifically he wondered if the claims he had said had any truth to them.
One such instance came in the early morning, shortly after Timaeus escaped the confines of the family’s city residence. He had intended to explore the narrow alleyways and sheer rock faces that the City offered as a natural playground for curious boys like Tim. It hadn’t taken much convincing for his mother to let him go that day as even amid such a busy city, there was a sense of safety for the family and the unspoken promise that nothing would happen to the boys while they were here. Just as long as they returned before nightfall, the Valaoritis parents would not worry. However, as Tim wandered the streets of the upper levels, searching for the next big adventure, his thoughts churned over where he had first heard that the Thanasis were witches.
He didn’t know where it had been or why rumors like this were told as truth to the boy, but the child was still utterly convinced that the family was a coven in disguise. After all, Timaeus had seen nothing to contradict this, especially not that day where Nethis and Mihail tried to intimidate him into silence. As far as he was concerned, it only strengthened his belief as the two had resorted to tactics such as fear and embarrassment to silence him. Even he knew, as naive of a child as he was, that this was not a good sign of someone’s innocence, especially when the pair were being accused of partaking in such dark crimes. Surely, if they wanted to share the truth, they would use a different method than forcefully quieting someone, wouldn’t they?
As right as Timaeus was, he didn’t understand that this was the way that the family dealt with threats to their reputation. It was the only thing they knew to do and there was no extent that the family was not willing to go to if they felt as if someone posed a danger. Perhaps if Timaeus knew this and knew how seriously the Thanasi leader would take the parroted words of a twelve-year-old, the young boy would have questioned the supposed safety the upper levels presented. Maybe he would have thought to duck away into the nearby bushes as the sound of a slow-moving carriage could be heard turning the corner on the isolated road could be heard approaching. Or possibly he would have forgone his disinterested game of kicking a rock up the pathway, just barely moving out of the way of the oncoming horse-drawn vehicle, but remaining within arm’s reach.
But he didn’t because he didn’t know.
He didn’t know of the danger he was in, after having been quietly labeled as a liability that needed to be dealt with sooner rather than later. Nor did he know that he was being watched by unseen eyes, just waiting for the perfect moment to strike as the carriage came to a slow stop near him. Timaeus didn’t know that the moment had come as he was now isolated and no one would search for him for several hours at least.
Nethis of Thanasi was on the hunt and little Timaeus was the prey.
Only the gods could save him now.
This character is currently a work in progress.
Check out their information page here.
This character is currently a work in progress.
Check out their information page here.
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TRIGGER WARNING: Kidnapping & Child Endangerment.
It had been a few weeks since the events in Orebeoa and for many presents that day, life had seemingly gone back to normal. The victim was now long gone and only still mourned by those who knew him before his cruel end. The accusations slung between the groups of scared members of the crowd had been long forgotten by those who had been so convinced of the truth within their words at the time.
Timaeus of Valaoritis had been no exception. Being a young twelve-year-old the events of that day had quickly faded from his memory in favor of other events; one such being the return of his family to the capital city of Midas. With the pathway in and out of the mountains that little Tim called home being so grueling, trips outside of Eubocris were few and far between for the lad. So, needless to say, he was excited for the change of scenery and the sheer excitement of being in the crowded urban environment was enough to push the events of that fateful day and his terrifying encounter with a certain Thanasi woman from his mind. However, now and then, the young boy couldn’t help, but let his thoughts wander back to his words that day… more specifically he wondered if the claims he had said had any truth to them.
One such instance came in the early morning, shortly after Timaeus escaped the confines of the family’s city residence. He had intended to explore the narrow alleyways and sheer rock faces that the City offered as a natural playground for curious boys like Tim. It hadn’t taken much convincing for his mother to let him go that day as even amid such a busy city, there was a sense of safety for the family and the unspoken promise that nothing would happen to the boys while they were here. Just as long as they returned before nightfall, the Valaoritis parents would not worry. However, as Tim wandered the streets of the upper levels, searching for the next big adventure, his thoughts churned over where he had first heard that the Thanasis were witches.
He didn’t know where it had been or why rumors like this were told as truth to the boy, but the child was still utterly convinced that the family was a coven in disguise. After all, Timaeus had seen nothing to contradict this, especially not that day where Nethis and Mihail tried to intimidate him into silence. As far as he was concerned, it only strengthened his belief as the two had resorted to tactics such as fear and embarrassment to silence him. Even he knew, as naive of a child as he was, that this was not a good sign of someone’s innocence, especially when the pair were being accused of partaking in such dark crimes. Surely, if they wanted to share the truth, they would use a different method than forcefully quieting someone, wouldn’t they?
As right as Timaeus was, he didn’t understand that this was the way that the family dealt with threats to their reputation. It was the only thing they knew to do and there was no extent that the family was not willing to go to if they felt as if someone posed a danger. Perhaps if Timaeus knew this and knew how seriously the Thanasi leader would take the parroted words of a twelve-year-old, the young boy would have questioned the supposed safety the upper levels presented. Maybe he would have thought to duck away into the nearby bushes as the sound of a slow-moving carriage could be heard turning the corner on the isolated road could be heard approaching. Or possibly he would have forgone his disinterested game of kicking a rock up the pathway, just barely moving out of the way of the oncoming horse-drawn vehicle, but remaining within arm’s reach.
But he didn’t because he didn’t know.
He didn’t know of the danger he was in, after having been quietly labeled as a liability that needed to be dealt with sooner rather than later. Nor did he know that he was being watched by unseen eyes, just waiting for the perfect moment to strike as the carriage came to a slow stop near him. Timaeus didn’t know that the moment had come as he was now isolated and no one would search for him for several hours at least.
Nethis of Thanasi was on the hunt and little Timaeus was the prey.
Only the gods could save him now.
TRIGGER WARNING: Kidnapping & Child Endangerment.
It had been a few weeks since the events in Orebeoa and for many presents that day, life had seemingly gone back to normal. The victim was now long gone and only still mourned by those who knew him before his cruel end. The accusations slung between the groups of scared members of the crowd had been long forgotten by those who had been so convinced of the truth within their words at the time.
Timaeus of Valaoritis had been no exception. Being a young twelve-year-old the events of that day had quickly faded from his memory in favor of other events; one such being the return of his family to the capital city of Midas. With the pathway in and out of the mountains that little Tim called home being so grueling, trips outside of Eubocris were few and far between for the lad. So, needless to say, he was excited for the change of scenery and the sheer excitement of being in the crowded urban environment was enough to push the events of that fateful day and his terrifying encounter with a certain Thanasi woman from his mind. However, now and then, the young boy couldn’t help, but let his thoughts wander back to his words that day… more specifically he wondered if the claims he had said had any truth to them.
One such instance came in the early morning, shortly after Timaeus escaped the confines of the family’s city residence. He had intended to explore the narrow alleyways and sheer rock faces that the City offered as a natural playground for curious boys like Tim. It hadn’t taken much convincing for his mother to let him go that day as even amid such a busy city, there was a sense of safety for the family and the unspoken promise that nothing would happen to the boys while they were here. Just as long as they returned before nightfall, the Valaoritis parents would not worry. However, as Tim wandered the streets of the upper levels, searching for the next big adventure, his thoughts churned over where he had first heard that the Thanasis were witches.
He didn’t know where it had been or why rumors like this were told as truth to the boy, but the child was still utterly convinced that the family was a coven in disguise. After all, Timaeus had seen nothing to contradict this, especially not that day where Nethis and Mihail tried to intimidate him into silence. As far as he was concerned, it only strengthened his belief as the two had resorted to tactics such as fear and embarrassment to silence him. Even he knew, as naive of a child as he was, that this was not a good sign of someone’s innocence, especially when the pair were being accused of partaking in such dark crimes. Surely, if they wanted to share the truth, they would use a different method than forcefully quieting someone, wouldn’t they?
As right as Timaeus was, he didn’t understand that this was the way that the family dealt with threats to their reputation. It was the only thing they knew to do and there was no extent that the family was not willing to go to if they felt as if someone posed a danger. Perhaps if Timaeus knew this and knew how seriously the Thanasi leader would take the parroted words of a twelve-year-old, the young boy would have questioned the supposed safety the upper levels presented. Maybe he would have thought to duck away into the nearby bushes as the sound of a slow-moving carriage could be heard turning the corner on the isolated road could be heard approaching. Or possibly he would have forgone his disinterested game of kicking a rock up the pathway, just barely moving out of the way of the oncoming horse-drawn vehicle, but remaining within arm’s reach.
But he didn’t because he didn’t know.
He didn’t know of the danger he was in, after having been quietly labeled as a liability that needed to be dealt with sooner rather than later. Nor did he know that he was being watched by unseen eyes, just waiting for the perfect moment to strike as the carriage came to a slow stop near him. Timaeus didn’t know that the moment had come as he was now isolated and no one would search for him for several hours at least.
Nethis of Thanasi was on the hunt and little Timaeus was the prey.
Only the gods could save him now.
With all the events that transpired in Oreboea, Nethis carefully sifted through everything that was said towards and about her on repeat. The Lady laid on her back as she relaxed in the temporary housing of Kotas mercy, though she sat up to look down to find her darling black adder Scylla in her carefully sewn basket. Nethis gently reached in to grab underneath the belly of the serpent, slowly bringing her into her embrace and allowing the adder to wrap herself on her arm. Nethis took a gentle finger as she felt against the black scales of her serpent. The black adder flicked its tongue as it smelled the scents lingering in the air, before turned to face its lady with its serpentine eyes. Nethis shared her gaze with her serpent as she spoke, “Oh my darling Scylla, the mess we are in… My enemies are everywhere,” Nethis said as she held her adder closer to her face, “Even now, I reside as a guest to a house that wishes the blood of my House, and to be honest… We too feel the same about them.” Truthfully, House of Kotas was the least of their concerns, because when it comes to Evras’s safety she understands that the Prince will do what he can to protect her.
“Truthfully, Scylla, I am not too worried about the Kotas House, Zanon should do right by his wife and child, the only heir to his name….” The Kotas House shouldn’t join in on the slander of the Thanasis given he is married to one, though that hasn’t stopped members of other Houses from their public suspicions of witchery. The Thanasi House has always held an ambiguous stance with the political world, so there is room to assume the daughters of Dionysos are magically inclined and capable of murder. Nethis is capable of many things, though she doesn’t need magic to get anything done and it is amusing to Nethis the sisters must be witches to kill. Truthfully, if anything involved the Thanasis, more than likely it will not be left in the middle of the road for everyone to see. Not even Evras, despite not being capable of murder, would even dare do something so imbecilic. Evras would be more so inclined to contact Thea or Nethis for such motives, because the both have experience in making someone disappear.
Anyone who has dared to speak ill of the Thanasi House are faced with a swift call to action, so that it is understood that public harassment or embarrassment will be met with retaliation. Nethis can be a powerful ally as well as a powerful enemy, so it would be wise to pick poisons lightly when dealing with the Lady of House Thanasi. Nethis mind began to trail on the little spat by the twit of Valaoritis, she could recall what was said in her presence, though she was surprised to hear that there was more to hear. Mihail told Nethis everything that the little Noble said about their House and specifically what was said about her little brother. Harassment will simply not do, Nethis will not tolerate such disrespect of her House, especially not when it has already been addressed. The young Lady held her serpent up, before gently placing her back in her casket, before she closed the lid. Once she returned her serpent did an idea materialize in her mind as a small smile appeared on her face. Apparently, Timaeus did not gathered the importance of her scolding, therefore she must enforce her hand a little more.
Nethis stood from her bed to leave her quarters to find someone of her guard, “Find me a pit, fill it with snakes – I do not care where you get them, just have them inside that pit.” Nethis instructed one guard, before turning to another,"Ready a carriage and find Timaeus of Valaoritis, and wait for a missive to bring him to the marked location. We shall leave momentarily... And must I say that this must be kept within the shadows and out of light? Bring someone else with you to assist, make sure you are not seen. There is enough shit going and this does not need to be getting out.”
-An hour later-
Nethis waited in an all-black cloak that covered body from head to toe, which kept her identity anonymous. Secrecy is important, given the criminal act Nethis was about to commit. The only thing visible was her half of her face, though icy blue eyes and raven-black hair was concealed from view. Nethis sat inside of a carriage as she awaited the arrival of her men with the precious cargo as a missive was sent not to long ago to arrive at the disclosed location. Nethis is sure they are within the woods, and her carriage sat close to the pit because she could hear the several hisses of snakes that was almost soothing to her ears.
This character is currently a work in progress.
Check out their information page here.
This character is currently a work in progress.
Check out their information page here.
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With all the events that transpired in Oreboea, Nethis carefully sifted through everything that was said towards and about her on repeat. The Lady laid on her back as she relaxed in the temporary housing of Kotas mercy, though she sat up to look down to find her darling black adder Scylla in her carefully sewn basket. Nethis gently reached in to grab underneath the belly of the serpent, slowly bringing her into her embrace and allowing the adder to wrap herself on her arm. Nethis took a gentle finger as she felt against the black scales of her serpent. The black adder flicked its tongue as it smelled the scents lingering in the air, before turned to face its lady with its serpentine eyes. Nethis shared her gaze with her serpent as she spoke, “Oh my darling Scylla, the mess we are in… My enemies are everywhere,” Nethis said as she held her adder closer to her face, “Even now, I reside as a guest to a house that wishes the blood of my House, and to be honest… We too feel the same about them.” Truthfully, House of Kotas was the least of their concerns, because when it comes to Evras’s safety she understands that the Prince will do what he can to protect her.
“Truthfully, Scylla, I am not too worried about the Kotas House, Zanon should do right by his wife and child, the only heir to his name….” The Kotas House shouldn’t join in on the slander of the Thanasis given he is married to one, though that hasn’t stopped members of other Houses from their public suspicions of witchery. The Thanasi House has always held an ambiguous stance with the political world, so there is room to assume the daughters of Dionysos are magically inclined and capable of murder. Nethis is capable of many things, though she doesn’t need magic to get anything done and it is amusing to Nethis the sisters must be witches to kill. Truthfully, if anything involved the Thanasis, more than likely it will not be left in the middle of the road for everyone to see. Not even Evras, despite not being capable of murder, would even dare do something so imbecilic. Evras would be more so inclined to contact Thea or Nethis for such motives, because the both have experience in making someone disappear.
Anyone who has dared to speak ill of the Thanasi House are faced with a swift call to action, so that it is understood that public harassment or embarrassment will be met with retaliation. Nethis can be a powerful ally as well as a powerful enemy, so it would be wise to pick poisons lightly when dealing with the Lady of House Thanasi. Nethis mind began to trail on the little spat by the twit of Valaoritis, she could recall what was said in her presence, though she was surprised to hear that there was more to hear. Mihail told Nethis everything that the little Noble said about their House and specifically what was said about her little brother. Harassment will simply not do, Nethis will not tolerate such disrespect of her House, especially not when it has already been addressed. The young Lady held her serpent up, before gently placing her back in her casket, before she closed the lid. Once she returned her serpent did an idea materialize in her mind as a small smile appeared on her face. Apparently, Timaeus did not gathered the importance of her scolding, therefore she must enforce her hand a little more.
Nethis stood from her bed to leave her quarters to find someone of her guard, “Find me a pit, fill it with snakes – I do not care where you get them, just have them inside that pit.” Nethis instructed one guard, before turning to another,"Ready a carriage and find Timaeus of Valaoritis, and wait for a missive to bring him to the marked location. We shall leave momentarily... And must I say that this must be kept within the shadows and out of light? Bring someone else with you to assist, make sure you are not seen. There is enough shit going and this does not need to be getting out.”
-An hour later-
Nethis waited in an all-black cloak that covered body from head to toe, which kept her identity anonymous. Secrecy is important, given the criminal act Nethis was about to commit. The only thing visible was her half of her face, though icy blue eyes and raven-black hair was concealed from view. Nethis sat inside of a carriage as she awaited the arrival of her men with the precious cargo as a missive was sent not to long ago to arrive at the disclosed location. Nethis is sure they are within the woods, and her carriage sat close to the pit because she could hear the several hisses of snakes that was almost soothing to her ears.
With all the events that transpired in Oreboea, Nethis carefully sifted through everything that was said towards and about her on repeat. The Lady laid on her back as she relaxed in the temporary housing of Kotas mercy, though she sat up to look down to find her darling black adder Scylla in her carefully sewn basket. Nethis gently reached in to grab underneath the belly of the serpent, slowly bringing her into her embrace and allowing the adder to wrap herself on her arm. Nethis took a gentle finger as she felt against the black scales of her serpent. The black adder flicked its tongue as it smelled the scents lingering in the air, before turned to face its lady with its serpentine eyes. Nethis shared her gaze with her serpent as she spoke, “Oh my darling Scylla, the mess we are in… My enemies are everywhere,” Nethis said as she held her adder closer to her face, “Even now, I reside as a guest to a house that wishes the blood of my House, and to be honest… We too feel the same about them.” Truthfully, House of Kotas was the least of their concerns, because when it comes to Evras’s safety she understands that the Prince will do what he can to protect her.
“Truthfully, Scylla, I am not too worried about the Kotas House, Zanon should do right by his wife and child, the only heir to his name….” The Kotas House shouldn’t join in on the slander of the Thanasis given he is married to one, though that hasn’t stopped members of other Houses from their public suspicions of witchery. The Thanasi House has always held an ambiguous stance with the political world, so there is room to assume the daughters of Dionysos are magically inclined and capable of murder. Nethis is capable of many things, though she doesn’t need magic to get anything done and it is amusing to Nethis the sisters must be witches to kill. Truthfully, if anything involved the Thanasis, more than likely it will not be left in the middle of the road for everyone to see. Not even Evras, despite not being capable of murder, would even dare do something so imbecilic. Evras would be more so inclined to contact Thea or Nethis for such motives, because the both have experience in making someone disappear.
Anyone who has dared to speak ill of the Thanasi House are faced with a swift call to action, so that it is understood that public harassment or embarrassment will be met with retaliation. Nethis can be a powerful ally as well as a powerful enemy, so it would be wise to pick poisons lightly when dealing with the Lady of House Thanasi. Nethis mind began to trail on the little spat by the twit of Valaoritis, she could recall what was said in her presence, though she was surprised to hear that there was more to hear. Mihail told Nethis everything that the little Noble said about their House and specifically what was said about her little brother. Harassment will simply not do, Nethis will not tolerate such disrespect of her House, especially not when it has already been addressed. The young Lady held her serpent up, before gently placing her back in her casket, before she closed the lid. Once she returned her serpent did an idea materialize in her mind as a small smile appeared on her face. Apparently, Timaeus did not gathered the importance of her scolding, therefore she must enforce her hand a little more.
Nethis stood from her bed to leave her quarters to find someone of her guard, “Find me a pit, fill it with snakes – I do not care where you get them, just have them inside that pit.” Nethis instructed one guard, before turning to another,"Ready a carriage and find Timaeus of Valaoritis, and wait for a missive to bring him to the marked location. We shall leave momentarily... And must I say that this must be kept within the shadows and out of light? Bring someone else with you to assist, make sure you are not seen. There is enough shit going and this does not need to be getting out.”
-An hour later-
Nethis waited in an all-black cloak that covered body from head to toe, which kept her identity anonymous. Secrecy is important, given the criminal act Nethis was about to commit. The only thing visible was her half of her face, though icy blue eyes and raven-black hair was concealed from view. Nethis sat inside of a carriage as she awaited the arrival of her men with the precious cargo as a missive was sent not to long ago to arrive at the disclosed location. Nethis is sure they are within the woods, and her carriage sat close to the pit because she could hear the several hisses of snakes that was almost soothing to her ears.
Timaeus was stupid enough not to realize something was wrong when the carriage pulled to a stop next to him. He just kept moving along the road as if nothing was wrong, completely unaware that he was no longer alone.
At least until a pair of men jumped from the carriage and seized the young noble lad.
Being strong for his age, Timaeus put up one hell of a fight. As he was lifted from the ground, he kicked and swung his arms about as he writhed in their grips. Hardly any of them landed their mark, but that didn’t matter as their mere action alone was enough to challenge the ironclad hold they had the boy. In a matter of a few seconds the boy was more akin to an animal than a human, flailing about wildly as he screamed his head off, but it was all for nothing. Although Tim didn’t know it, these men were not unfamiliar with the task the eldest Thanasi girl had sent them on. They had made men several times bigger than Timaeus disappear, so as much as he moved about and tried to attack them with fists, teeth, and nails; they were hardly phased by it. Within a matter of seconds, Timaeus was lifted from the roadside and roughly tossed into the empty carriage.
Landing roughly on the floor of the vehicle, the boy was too stunned with what had just happened to scramble to his feet and make a dash for it while that door remained open. He was too dazed to process what was happening and just when he had gathered his wits about him, the door slammed shut; plunging the windowless, makeshift prison into darkness. A loud, reverberating scraping noise vibrated through the walls as Timaeus threw himself against the door, trying to force it open, but it was no use.
The door was locked. He was trapped.
His fists pounded against the door as he screamed at the top of his lungs, shouting demands that his captors would heed no attention to. “ LET ME OUT! OPEN THIS DOOR!”
The only response he received was a sharp lurch forward, knocking the child down back onto the floor as the carriage sped from the scene of its terrible crime. Even though he couldn’t see the outside and know for sure how fast they were moving, he could tell that it was at a much faster pace than before, bringing Timaeus from the false safety of the upper levels to the gods only knew where. The boy continued to scream his lungs out, desperate to get out of the darkness and to get away from these two men who had so brazenly taken a noble child, but it was like no one could hear him. There was no acknowledgment of his screams. The carriage never slowed its pace nor did either of the two men bang on the cabin to tell the boy to shut up. He was utterly alone and at their mercy.
To his credit, Timaeus kept yelling and attempting to open the locked door until his energy gave out on him. There was nothing he could do as the carriage moved at breakneck speed, traveling for what easily felt like hours, but was probably only a fraction of that. After a while though, the carriage did slow to a stop and the lock on the outside slid open. Before Timaeus could even make a break for it again, the larger of the men grabbed him once again and forced his arms behind his back. With a thick rope, the man bound the boy's hands, severely hindering any escape attempt as he was practically dragged from the carriage and back into the harsh daylight.
Timaeus was almost blinded by how bright it all was, especially after spending an hour in sheer darkness. But his captors did not care for the hiss of pain that came from the boy as they roughly shoved him along towards the one who had hired them to collect the young boy… or better yet they did not hear it. Not over the louder hiss reverberating throughout the woodland Timaeus now found himself in. The young boy looked around wildly for the source of the thousand little hisses that created a crescendo in the otherwise silent environment.
Instead of finding the location of the snakes, his eyes settled on a figure cloaked all in black save for two piercing blue eyes that peered out from the fabric. Just one look at them was enough to send a chill down Timaeus’s spine, encouraging him to fight harder against the two men, to find and escape, but not even his fear was strong enough to go against the might of the two men who had clearly spent their lives in the mines.
However, they were growing tired of this little lord’s squirming so the impatient one put an end to it by drawing a knife at his belt. Grabbing the boy by his shoulder and pulled the blade against his throat while spitting out, “ That’s enough of yer squirming. Now stay still!” Feeling the cold stone against his flesh was enough to draw Timaeus to a halt as the man lead him over to the figure, clearly meant to hand him over to whoever this stranger was.
However, the knife did not leave his throat just yet as he watched this stranger’s gaze appraise him as Timaeus silently prayed to every god he could think of that he could escape this and not end up as some sort of sacrificial lamb or whatever it was these monsters had planned for him.
That was the worst part of it, he had no idea what was going to happen to him. Was he going to be gutted like a fish and have his entrails read like they contained some sort of sick prophecy? Or was he being sold on the black-market for slavery? Was he going to be held for ransom? He didn’t know.
Against his better judgment, the impulsive twleve-year-old blurted out, “ What is going on? Why won’t you let me go!” Although he was desperate for answers, all he got was the tip of the blade pressing further into his neck as the man hissed for him to shut up. A small whimper escaped him as he felt a small trickle of blood form at the point where the stone dug into his skin.
Gone was the bravado he had that day in Oreboea and instead, a scared child stood in front of Nethis. Eyes wide and terrified of what was to come, but most importantly, completely unaware of the price he was about to pay for the crimes he had committed.
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Check out their information page here.
This character is currently a work in progress.
Check out their information page here.
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Timaeus was stupid enough not to realize something was wrong when the carriage pulled to a stop next to him. He just kept moving along the road as if nothing was wrong, completely unaware that he was no longer alone.
At least until a pair of men jumped from the carriage and seized the young noble lad.
Being strong for his age, Timaeus put up one hell of a fight. As he was lifted from the ground, he kicked and swung his arms about as he writhed in their grips. Hardly any of them landed their mark, but that didn’t matter as their mere action alone was enough to challenge the ironclad hold they had the boy. In a matter of a few seconds the boy was more akin to an animal than a human, flailing about wildly as he screamed his head off, but it was all for nothing. Although Tim didn’t know it, these men were not unfamiliar with the task the eldest Thanasi girl had sent them on. They had made men several times bigger than Timaeus disappear, so as much as he moved about and tried to attack them with fists, teeth, and nails; they were hardly phased by it. Within a matter of seconds, Timaeus was lifted from the roadside and roughly tossed into the empty carriage.
Landing roughly on the floor of the vehicle, the boy was too stunned with what had just happened to scramble to his feet and make a dash for it while that door remained open. He was too dazed to process what was happening and just when he had gathered his wits about him, the door slammed shut; plunging the windowless, makeshift prison into darkness. A loud, reverberating scraping noise vibrated through the walls as Timaeus threw himself against the door, trying to force it open, but it was no use.
The door was locked. He was trapped.
His fists pounded against the door as he screamed at the top of his lungs, shouting demands that his captors would heed no attention to. “ LET ME OUT! OPEN THIS DOOR!”
The only response he received was a sharp lurch forward, knocking the child down back onto the floor as the carriage sped from the scene of its terrible crime. Even though he couldn’t see the outside and know for sure how fast they were moving, he could tell that it was at a much faster pace than before, bringing Timaeus from the false safety of the upper levels to the gods only knew where. The boy continued to scream his lungs out, desperate to get out of the darkness and to get away from these two men who had so brazenly taken a noble child, but it was like no one could hear him. There was no acknowledgment of his screams. The carriage never slowed its pace nor did either of the two men bang on the cabin to tell the boy to shut up. He was utterly alone and at their mercy.
To his credit, Timaeus kept yelling and attempting to open the locked door until his energy gave out on him. There was nothing he could do as the carriage moved at breakneck speed, traveling for what easily felt like hours, but was probably only a fraction of that. After a while though, the carriage did slow to a stop and the lock on the outside slid open. Before Timaeus could even make a break for it again, the larger of the men grabbed him once again and forced his arms behind his back. With a thick rope, the man bound the boy's hands, severely hindering any escape attempt as he was practically dragged from the carriage and back into the harsh daylight.
Timaeus was almost blinded by how bright it all was, especially after spending an hour in sheer darkness. But his captors did not care for the hiss of pain that came from the boy as they roughly shoved him along towards the one who had hired them to collect the young boy… or better yet they did not hear it. Not over the louder hiss reverberating throughout the woodland Timaeus now found himself in. The young boy looked around wildly for the source of the thousand little hisses that created a crescendo in the otherwise silent environment.
Instead of finding the location of the snakes, his eyes settled on a figure cloaked all in black save for two piercing blue eyes that peered out from the fabric. Just one look at them was enough to send a chill down Timaeus’s spine, encouraging him to fight harder against the two men, to find and escape, but not even his fear was strong enough to go against the might of the two men who had clearly spent their lives in the mines.
However, they were growing tired of this little lord’s squirming so the impatient one put an end to it by drawing a knife at his belt. Grabbing the boy by his shoulder and pulled the blade against his throat while spitting out, “ That’s enough of yer squirming. Now stay still!” Feeling the cold stone against his flesh was enough to draw Timaeus to a halt as the man lead him over to the figure, clearly meant to hand him over to whoever this stranger was.
However, the knife did not leave his throat just yet as he watched this stranger’s gaze appraise him as Timaeus silently prayed to every god he could think of that he could escape this and not end up as some sort of sacrificial lamb or whatever it was these monsters had planned for him.
That was the worst part of it, he had no idea what was going to happen to him. Was he going to be gutted like a fish and have his entrails read like they contained some sort of sick prophecy? Or was he being sold on the black-market for slavery? Was he going to be held for ransom? He didn’t know.
Against his better judgment, the impulsive twleve-year-old blurted out, “ What is going on? Why won’t you let me go!” Although he was desperate for answers, all he got was the tip of the blade pressing further into his neck as the man hissed for him to shut up. A small whimper escaped him as he felt a small trickle of blood form at the point where the stone dug into his skin.
Gone was the bravado he had that day in Oreboea and instead, a scared child stood in front of Nethis. Eyes wide and terrified of what was to come, but most importantly, completely unaware of the price he was about to pay for the crimes he had committed.
Timaeus was stupid enough not to realize something was wrong when the carriage pulled to a stop next to him. He just kept moving along the road as if nothing was wrong, completely unaware that he was no longer alone.
At least until a pair of men jumped from the carriage and seized the young noble lad.
Being strong for his age, Timaeus put up one hell of a fight. As he was lifted from the ground, he kicked and swung his arms about as he writhed in their grips. Hardly any of them landed their mark, but that didn’t matter as their mere action alone was enough to challenge the ironclad hold they had the boy. In a matter of a few seconds the boy was more akin to an animal than a human, flailing about wildly as he screamed his head off, but it was all for nothing. Although Tim didn’t know it, these men were not unfamiliar with the task the eldest Thanasi girl had sent them on. They had made men several times bigger than Timaeus disappear, so as much as he moved about and tried to attack them with fists, teeth, and nails; they were hardly phased by it. Within a matter of seconds, Timaeus was lifted from the roadside and roughly tossed into the empty carriage.
Landing roughly on the floor of the vehicle, the boy was too stunned with what had just happened to scramble to his feet and make a dash for it while that door remained open. He was too dazed to process what was happening and just when he had gathered his wits about him, the door slammed shut; plunging the windowless, makeshift prison into darkness. A loud, reverberating scraping noise vibrated through the walls as Timaeus threw himself against the door, trying to force it open, but it was no use.
The door was locked. He was trapped.
His fists pounded against the door as he screamed at the top of his lungs, shouting demands that his captors would heed no attention to. “ LET ME OUT! OPEN THIS DOOR!”
The only response he received was a sharp lurch forward, knocking the child down back onto the floor as the carriage sped from the scene of its terrible crime. Even though he couldn’t see the outside and know for sure how fast they were moving, he could tell that it was at a much faster pace than before, bringing Timaeus from the false safety of the upper levels to the gods only knew where. The boy continued to scream his lungs out, desperate to get out of the darkness and to get away from these two men who had so brazenly taken a noble child, but it was like no one could hear him. There was no acknowledgment of his screams. The carriage never slowed its pace nor did either of the two men bang on the cabin to tell the boy to shut up. He was utterly alone and at their mercy.
To his credit, Timaeus kept yelling and attempting to open the locked door until his energy gave out on him. There was nothing he could do as the carriage moved at breakneck speed, traveling for what easily felt like hours, but was probably only a fraction of that. After a while though, the carriage did slow to a stop and the lock on the outside slid open. Before Timaeus could even make a break for it again, the larger of the men grabbed him once again and forced his arms behind his back. With a thick rope, the man bound the boy's hands, severely hindering any escape attempt as he was practically dragged from the carriage and back into the harsh daylight.
Timaeus was almost blinded by how bright it all was, especially after spending an hour in sheer darkness. But his captors did not care for the hiss of pain that came from the boy as they roughly shoved him along towards the one who had hired them to collect the young boy… or better yet they did not hear it. Not over the louder hiss reverberating throughout the woodland Timaeus now found himself in. The young boy looked around wildly for the source of the thousand little hisses that created a crescendo in the otherwise silent environment.
Instead of finding the location of the snakes, his eyes settled on a figure cloaked all in black save for two piercing blue eyes that peered out from the fabric. Just one look at them was enough to send a chill down Timaeus’s spine, encouraging him to fight harder against the two men, to find and escape, but not even his fear was strong enough to go against the might of the two men who had clearly spent their lives in the mines.
However, they were growing tired of this little lord’s squirming so the impatient one put an end to it by drawing a knife at his belt. Grabbing the boy by his shoulder and pulled the blade against his throat while spitting out, “ That’s enough of yer squirming. Now stay still!” Feeling the cold stone against his flesh was enough to draw Timaeus to a halt as the man lead him over to the figure, clearly meant to hand him over to whoever this stranger was.
However, the knife did not leave his throat just yet as he watched this stranger’s gaze appraise him as Timaeus silently prayed to every god he could think of that he could escape this and not end up as some sort of sacrificial lamb or whatever it was these monsters had planned for him.
That was the worst part of it, he had no idea what was going to happen to him. Was he going to be gutted like a fish and have his entrails read like they contained some sort of sick prophecy? Or was he being sold on the black-market for slavery? Was he going to be held for ransom? He didn’t know.
Against his better judgment, the impulsive twleve-year-old blurted out, “ What is going on? Why won’t you let me go!” Although he was desperate for answers, all he got was the tip of the blade pressing further into his neck as the man hissed for him to shut up. A small whimper escaped him as he felt a small trickle of blood form at the point where the stone dug into his skin.
Gone was the bravado he had that day in Oreboea and instead, a scared child stood in front of Nethis. Eyes wide and terrified of what was to come, but most importantly, completely unaware of the price he was about to pay for the crimes he had committed.
He really was little more than a boy. It was the first thought Nethis had after Timaeus was unceremoniously dragged in front of her at knifepoint. Had she more of a heart, had she not resolved to abandon it four years ago, she might have pitied or forgiven him even for that alone, despite words that ought not be said and certainly said too loudly.
In some fashion, she could acknowledge it was almost like punishing Mihail and she loathed the idea of that. Yes, there was some hypocrisy in this, in the way such a sentiment belonged to a heart, but she regarded it differently; what she felt for Mihail was classed as familial loyalty, which was a different thing altogether than where pity belonged.
Plus, the trouble was, Mihail knew better how to mind his tongue in public and certainly never spoke of witchcraft—though that was likely more to do with being raised amongst those typically accused of it—so the similarities began and ended in their youth. As such, what it all boiled down to might have been this: Timaeus was an easy target and he caught her years too late for her to be forgiving; heartbreak belonged to the past and she had already thrown away the pieces left behind.
He had spoken adult words and laid accusations where they didn't belong. In answer to that, it seemed ridiculous that she should be forgiving when the world was anything but.
Instead, there was brutality in all of this, in the knifepoint that rested against his throat and her choice of who she'd asked to carry this out for her. She had no weakness for sentiment or a little boy’s fear and neither did the company she and Timaeus were presently keeping, though that was putting it generously since Nethis really only saw them as tools, useful in accomplishing her end. As such, pushing the knife deeper into his throat and eliciting blood had not been to her specification per se, but it certainly did not displease her. His outcry was pitiful, but this was not company well suited for it. For her part, she merely regarded him—and this whole moment—with cold eyes and a marked lack of sympathy.
A fleeting moment followed where she thought that if she had not gone to the trouble of all this already, she might have considered ridding him of his tongue instead, if only to save them all the trouble of having to continue listening to him. Considering that, it was hardly a surprise she decided to ignore what he said and his question for one of her own, one of the few she really had in this situation.
"Do you remember me?" she asked him, tone surprisingly pleasant. But then, she could afford to be that when there was punishment behind her awaiting and a knife at his throat.
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He really was little more than a boy. It was the first thought Nethis had after Timaeus was unceremoniously dragged in front of her at knifepoint. Had she more of a heart, had she not resolved to abandon it four years ago, she might have pitied or forgiven him even for that alone, despite words that ought not be said and certainly said too loudly.
In some fashion, she could acknowledge it was almost like punishing Mihail and she loathed the idea of that. Yes, there was some hypocrisy in this, in the way such a sentiment belonged to a heart, but she regarded it differently; what she felt for Mihail was classed as familial loyalty, which was a different thing altogether than where pity belonged.
Plus, the trouble was, Mihail knew better how to mind his tongue in public and certainly never spoke of witchcraft—though that was likely more to do with being raised amongst those typically accused of it—so the similarities began and ended in their youth. As such, what it all boiled down to might have been this: Timaeus was an easy target and he caught her years too late for her to be forgiving; heartbreak belonged to the past and she had already thrown away the pieces left behind.
He had spoken adult words and laid accusations where they didn't belong. In answer to that, it seemed ridiculous that she should be forgiving when the world was anything but.
Instead, there was brutality in all of this, in the knifepoint that rested against his throat and her choice of who she'd asked to carry this out for her. She had no weakness for sentiment or a little boy’s fear and neither did the company she and Timaeus were presently keeping, though that was putting it generously since Nethis really only saw them as tools, useful in accomplishing her end. As such, pushing the knife deeper into his throat and eliciting blood had not been to her specification per se, but it certainly did not displease her. His outcry was pitiful, but this was not company well suited for it. For her part, she merely regarded him—and this whole moment—with cold eyes and a marked lack of sympathy.
A fleeting moment followed where she thought that if she had not gone to the trouble of all this already, she might have considered ridding him of his tongue instead, if only to save them all the trouble of having to continue listening to him. Considering that, it was hardly a surprise she decided to ignore what he said and his question for one of her own, one of the few she really had in this situation.
"Do you remember me?" she asked him, tone surprisingly pleasant. But then, she could afford to be that when there was punishment behind her awaiting and a knife at his throat.
He really was little more than a boy. It was the first thought Nethis had after Timaeus was unceremoniously dragged in front of her at knifepoint. Had she more of a heart, had she not resolved to abandon it four years ago, she might have pitied or forgiven him even for that alone, despite words that ought not be said and certainly said too loudly.
In some fashion, she could acknowledge it was almost like punishing Mihail and she loathed the idea of that. Yes, there was some hypocrisy in this, in the way such a sentiment belonged to a heart, but she regarded it differently; what she felt for Mihail was classed as familial loyalty, which was a different thing altogether than where pity belonged.
Plus, the trouble was, Mihail knew better how to mind his tongue in public and certainly never spoke of witchcraft—though that was likely more to do with being raised amongst those typically accused of it—so the similarities began and ended in their youth. As such, what it all boiled down to might have been this: Timaeus was an easy target and he caught her years too late for her to be forgiving; heartbreak belonged to the past and she had already thrown away the pieces left behind.
He had spoken adult words and laid accusations where they didn't belong. In answer to that, it seemed ridiculous that she should be forgiving when the world was anything but.
Instead, there was brutality in all of this, in the knifepoint that rested against his throat and her choice of who she'd asked to carry this out for her. She had no weakness for sentiment or a little boy’s fear and neither did the company she and Timaeus were presently keeping, though that was putting it generously since Nethis really only saw them as tools, useful in accomplishing her end. As such, pushing the knife deeper into his throat and eliciting blood had not been to her specification per se, but it certainly did not displease her. His outcry was pitiful, but this was not company well suited for it. For her part, she merely regarded him—and this whole moment—with cold eyes and a marked lack of sympathy.
A fleeting moment followed where she thought that if she had not gone to the trouble of all this already, she might have considered ridding him of his tongue instead, if only to save them all the trouble of having to continue listening to him. Considering that, it was hardly a surprise she decided to ignore what he said and his question for one of her own, one of the few she really had in this situation.
"Do you remember me?" she asked him, tone surprisingly pleasant. But then, she could afford to be that when there was punishment behind her awaiting and a knife at his throat.
Being a fairly active child, Timaeus was able to keep squirming about long after other children would have given up. What could be said? The Valaoritis were fighters and even the youngest of their brood was no exception to this.
However, his flailing came to a sudden stop when the cloaked figure spoke. Even though Timaeus couldn’t see much of their face beyond their cold, icy blue eyes that held no sympathy to the boy’s plight, the Valaoritis boy knew exactly who was standing in front of him. After all, he knew that voice. The boy had heard this woman speak at the few court events the twelve-year-old could attend and during the countless times Timaeus had watched Mihail run to this woman for comfort. It was a voice that haunted the occasional nightmare Timaeus had as a young boy when his parent’s empty threat of this monster coming to get him and his siblings if they didn’t behave followed the boy into his dreams. It was a voice that scared him because the woman who it belonged to was absolutely terrifying.
“ Nethis” Timaeus sputtered out. His expression had gone slack with the shock that he would encounter Mihail’s oldest sister out here. Clearly, it wasn’t clicking right away in the young boy’s mind that the Thanasi was the one who arranged for him to be snatched away from the safety of his home. It was just simply unfathomable to him that another member of the Colchian Nobility would kidnap one of their own. Especially given that the victim was just a young boy, barely a few hours older than her own brother. No normal person would do this sort of thing.
But that hinged on Nethis being a normal person.
Which she was most definitely not.
Nethis of Thanasi was a witch. Timaeus knew this to be true. After all, how many times had he heard his own parents say as much when they thought their middle child wasn’t listening? As far as the little boy was aware, everyone knew this to be an obvious fact -- which was why he had been so emboldened to say as much during the chaos in Oreboea. He just didn’t know any better. Little did he know that this whole ordeal was about teaching him that harsh lesson.
However, the reminder of the so-called fact of Nethis belonging to a coven was enough to have the boy kick off again. He began to flail as best as he could in the burly man’s grasp, but he could only do so much while his arms were bound and Tim had a knife pushing into his throat. Despite his best efforts, his movements were constrained, but his voice was not. So, the boy did what little boys like him did best.
He screamed.
Absolute. Bloody. Murder.
It was a blessing that the group was alone here in the woods because the boy’s shrieks were absolutely ear-splitting. He only a second to do so before the child was reminded of the threat of the knife as the burly man holding him pushed it into his throat. However, that split second was more than enough to possibly stoke the rage of Nethis given what he had cried out about.
“ I won’t let use me in your spells!”
It was truly a dumb thing for Timaeus to shout, given that he was at the complete mercy of Nethis and her goonies. However, the boy was now rightly terrified that he hadn’t been taken because of ransom or to be sold into slavery overseas. No. With Nethis present, it was more than clear to the child who still believed in the validity of witches that he had been taken because their spellbooks called for children in the recipes. His young, overactive imagination was now utterly convinced that he was able to find himself strapped down a stone table where he would be sacrificed for the coven’s dark magic.
The prospect of this was so terrifying that he kept thrashing about and pushing back against the man in a desperate attempt to get away. The man, for his credit, kept a hold on the boy as he glanced up at his employer; wondering what she would do in response to this boy continuing to shout about witches.
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Being a fairly active child, Timaeus was able to keep squirming about long after other children would have given up. What could be said? The Valaoritis were fighters and even the youngest of their brood was no exception to this.
However, his flailing came to a sudden stop when the cloaked figure spoke. Even though Timaeus couldn’t see much of their face beyond their cold, icy blue eyes that held no sympathy to the boy’s plight, the Valaoritis boy knew exactly who was standing in front of him. After all, he knew that voice. The boy had heard this woman speak at the few court events the twelve-year-old could attend and during the countless times Timaeus had watched Mihail run to this woman for comfort. It was a voice that haunted the occasional nightmare Timaeus had as a young boy when his parent’s empty threat of this monster coming to get him and his siblings if they didn’t behave followed the boy into his dreams. It was a voice that scared him because the woman who it belonged to was absolutely terrifying.
“ Nethis” Timaeus sputtered out. His expression had gone slack with the shock that he would encounter Mihail’s oldest sister out here. Clearly, it wasn’t clicking right away in the young boy’s mind that the Thanasi was the one who arranged for him to be snatched away from the safety of his home. It was just simply unfathomable to him that another member of the Colchian Nobility would kidnap one of their own. Especially given that the victim was just a young boy, barely a few hours older than her own brother. No normal person would do this sort of thing.
But that hinged on Nethis being a normal person.
Which she was most definitely not.
Nethis of Thanasi was a witch. Timaeus knew this to be true. After all, how many times had he heard his own parents say as much when they thought their middle child wasn’t listening? As far as the little boy was aware, everyone knew this to be an obvious fact -- which was why he had been so emboldened to say as much during the chaos in Oreboea. He just didn’t know any better. Little did he know that this whole ordeal was about teaching him that harsh lesson.
However, the reminder of the so-called fact of Nethis belonging to a coven was enough to have the boy kick off again. He began to flail as best as he could in the burly man’s grasp, but he could only do so much while his arms were bound and Tim had a knife pushing into his throat. Despite his best efforts, his movements were constrained, but his voice was not. So, the boy did what little boys like him did best.
He screamed.
Absolute. Bloody. Murder.
It was a blessing that the group was alone here in the woods because the boy’s shrieks were absolutely ear-splitting. He only a second to do so before the child was reminded of the threat of the knife as the burly man holding him pushed it into his throat. However, that split second was more than enough to possibly stoke the rage of Nethis given what he had cried out about.
“ I won’t let use me in your spells!”
It was truly a dumb thing for Timaeus to shout, given that he was at the complete mercy of Nethis and her goonies. However, the boy was now rightly terrified that he hadn’t been taken because of ransom or to be sold into slavery overseas. No. With Nethis present, it was more than clear to the child who still believed in the validity of witches that he had been taken because their spellbooks called for children in the recipes. His young, overactive imagination was now utterly convinced that he was able to find himself strapped down a stone table where he would be sacrificed for the coven’s dark magic.
The prospect of this was so terrifying that he kept thrashing about and pushing back against the man in a desperate attempt to get away. The man, for his credit, kept a hold on the boy as he glanced up at his employer; wondering what she would do in response to this boy continuing to shout about witches.
Being a fairly active child, Timaeus was able to keep squirming about long after other children would have given up. What could be said? The Valaoritis were fighters and even the youngest of their brood was no exception to this.
However, his flailing came to a sudden stop when the cloaked figure spoke. Even though Timaeus couldn’t see much of their face beyond their cold, icy blue eyes that held no sympathy to the boy’s plight, the Valaoritis boy knew exactly who was standing in front of him. After all, he knew that voice. The boy had heard this woman speak at the few court events the twelve-year-old could attend and during the countless times Timaeus had watched Mihail run to this woman for comfort. It was a voice that haunted the occasional nightmare Timaeus had as a young boy when his parent’s empty threat of this monster coming to get him and his siblings if they didn’t behave followed the boy into his dreams. It was a voice that scared him because the woman who it belonged to was absolutely terrifying.
“ Nethis” Timaeus sputtered out. His expression had gone slack with the shock that he would encounter Mihail’s oldest sister out here. Clearly, it wasn’t clicking right away in the young boy’s mind that the Thanasi was the one who arranged for him to be snatched away from the safety of his home. It was just simply unfathomable to him that another member of the Colchian Nobility would kidnap one of their own. Especially given that the victim was just a young boy, barely a few hours older than her own brother. No normal person would do this sort of thing.
But that hinged on Nethis being a normal person.
Which she was most definitely not.
Nethis of Thanasi was a witch. Timaeus knew this to be true. After all, how many times had he heard his own parents say as much when they thought their middle child wasn’t listening? As far as the little boy was aware, everyone knew this to be an obvious fact -- which was why he had been so emboldened to say as much during the chaos in Oreboea. He just didn’t know any better. Little did he know that this whole ordeal was about teaching him that harsh lesson.
However, the reminder of the so-called fact of Nethis belonging to a coven was enough to have the boy kick off again. He began to flail as best as he could in the burly man’s grasp, but he could only do so much while his arms were bound and Tim had a knife pushing into his throat. Despite his best efforts, his movements were constrained, but his voice was not. So, the boy did what little boys like him did best.
He screamed.
Absolute. Bloody. Murder.
It was a blessing that the group was alone here in the woods because the boy’s shrieks were absolutely ear-splitting. He only a second to do so before the child was reminded of the threat of the knife as the burly man holding him pushed it into his throat. However, that split second was more than enough to possibly stoke the rage of Nethis given what he had cried out about.
“ I won’t let use me in your spells!”
It was truly a dumb thing for Timaeus to shout, given that he was at the complete mercy of Nethis and her goonies. However, the boy was now rightly terrified that he hadn’t been taken because of ransom or to be sold into slavery overseas. No. With Nethis present, it was more than clear to the child who still believed in the validity of witches that he had been taken because their spellbooks called for children in the recipes. His young, overactive imagination was now utterly convinced that he was able to find himself strapped down a stone table where he would be sacrificed for the coven’s dark magic.
The prospect of this was so terrifying that he kept thrashing about and pushing back against the man in a desperate attempt to get away. The man, for his credit, kept a hold on the boy as he glanced up at his employer; wondering what she would do in response to this boy continuing to shout about witches.
He said her name with surprise. On the one hand, in a fashion almost generous, Nethis could understand; things like this hardly happened on the regular and certainly not to boys like Timaeus. Noble blood tended to earn one certain privileges, and not being abducted on an early morning seemed like it ought to be one of them. Then again, perhaps not; so far as Nethis knew, such a sentiment had never been explicitly said. Of course, the logical explanation for that was that it hardly bore saying, but logic was not the only domain within which fact could be interpreted. The less ethical regard, one that held unspoken and unwritten meant unofficial, suited her far better here. Perhaps that meant it would only work the once, but if that was the case, then so be it. There were always other avenues for further manipulation and she would gladly spend this opportunity here.
If Timaeus was going to mouth off about witches and go so far as to name her one in public, then it followed he ought to expect her to act the part, no?
Apparently not. Instead of properly estimating the consequences for his words, he underestimated her. It didn't matter that he was a twelve-year-old boy and to expect he might fully comprehend what he wrought was unreasonable. It was insulting, she was insulted.
There was time yet to make him pay for that, though, especially seeing as there was a situation to handle first in that he refused to quiet, instead opting for screams that were almost unbelievably loud. This was nothing that could be called a shock and had been well accounted for in the form of their current location deep within woods and the early hour, but that made it no less irritating.
Still, she was nearly certain that they would remain undisturbed, no matter how loud or long he screamed, so she refused to play into it. If she had learned one thing from Mihail over the years it was this: children made a spectacle of themselves for the sake of earning attention and reaction.
He already had the former, but she refused to give him the latter in any form that might satisfy him. Underneath his screaming, she spoke, opting for a deliberately even vocalization, equally as pleasant as the question she had asked him moments before, "Go on, Timaeus," Nethis said, "Scream and carry on. I can wait until you completely tire yourself out."
The invitation was well taken up; he continued and she simply stared at him, expression plainly bored. Her gaze only narrowed, returning to cold displeasure when he put words to the wordless, a reminder of the lesson she intended to teach him. Here, her gaze briefly shifted to the man holding him, voice taking on a dangerous edge. "If he continues to misbehave much longer, cut out his tongue. I tire of watching this, of hearing about witchcraft and spells that do not exist."
There seemed little point in attempting to be less monstrous; this moment was well made for it and her intended lesson would stand with or without the threat of extra mutilation.
The man nodded an answer and shifted his grip about the knife and the boy a little as if to better position himself to carry out the task, which hardly surprised her. Given the expression on the man’s face, the fact that Timaeus’s screaming had to be louder for him with the proximity of positioning, and the boy’s refusal to simply still Nethis suspected that much longer would, in fact, not be so if she truly left it to his discretion, especially since Timaeus seemed to lack much in the way of sense.
She could live with that outcome, but it wasn't quite preferable; she knew how she intended her part in this to end, but she could hardly control fate. If, by the grace of the Gods, Timaeus was found after she left him here alive, dead or somewhere between, it seemed better not to maim in a fashion that could come back to haunt her.
Too much of this already bore facets that could be attributable to her, to the Thanasi and he was still only a child.
Yet, there was a knifepoint at the hollow of his throat and this was a moment that was something of a crossroads. What followed was not entirely up to her; she would only follow Timaeus' choice. Either he would hear the threat and quiet or the threat would become reality.
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Check out their information page here.
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He said her name with surprise. On the one hand, in a fashion almost generous, Nethis could understand; things like this hardly happened on the regular and certainly not to boys like Timaeus. Noble blood tended to earn one certain privileges, and not being abducted on an early morning seemed like it ought to be one of them. Then again, perhaps not; so far as Nethis knew, such a sentiment had never been explicitly said. Of course, the logical explanation for that was that it hardly bore saying, but logic was not the only domain within which fact could be interpreted. The less ethical regard, one that held unspoken and unwritten meant unofficial, suited her far better here. Perhaps that meant it would only work the once, but if that was the case, then so be it. There were always other avenues for further manipulation and she would gladly spend this opportunity here.
If Timaeus was going to mouth off about witches and go so far as to name her one in public, then it followed he ought to expect her to act the part, no?
Apparently not. Instead of properly estimating the consequences for his words, he underestimated her. It didn't matter that he was a twelve-year-old boy and to expect he might fully comprehend what he wrought was unreasonable. It was insulting, she was insulted.
There was time yet to make him pay for that, though, especially seeing as there was a situation to handle first in that he refused to quiet, instead opting for screams that were almost unbelievably loud. This was nothing that could be called a shock and had been well accounted for in the form of their current location deep within woods and the early hour, but that made it no less irritating.
Still, she was nearly certain that they would remain undisturbed, no matter how loud or long he screamed, so she refused to play into it. If she had learned one thing from Mihail over the years it was this: children made a spectacle of themselves for the sake of earning attention and reaction.
He already had the former, but she refused to give him the latter in any form that might satisfy him. Underneath his screaming, she spoke, opting for a deliberately even vocalization, equally as pleasant as the question she had asked him moments before, "Go on, Timaeus," Nethis said, "Scream and carry on. I can wait until you completely tire yourself out."
The invitation was well taken up; he continued and she simply stared at him, expression plainly bored. Her gaze only narrowed, returning to cold displeasure when he put words to the wordless, a reminder of the lesson she intended to teach him. Here, her gaze briefly shifted to the man holding him, voice taking on a dangerous edge. "If he continues to misbehave much longer, cut out his tongue. I tire of watching this, of hearing about witchcraft and spells that do not exist."
There seemed little point in attempting to be less monstrous; this moment was well made for it and her intended lesson would stand with or without the threat of extra mutilation.
The man nodded an answer and shifted his grip about the knife and the boy a little as if to better position himself to carry out the task, which hardly surprised her. Given the expression on the man’s face, the fact that Timaeus’s screaming had to be louder for him with the proximity of positioning, and the boy’s refusal to simply still Nethis suspected that much longer would, in fact, not be so if she truly left it to his discretion, especially since Timaeus seemed to lack much in the way of sense.
She could live with that outcome, but it wasn't quite preferable; she knew how she intended her part in this to end, but she could hardly control fate. If, by the grace of the Gods, Timaeus was found after she left him here alive, dead or somewhere between, it seemed better not to maim in a fashion that could come back to haunt her.
Too much of this already bore facets that could be attributable to her, to the Thanasi and he was still only a child.
Yet, there was a knifepoint at the hollow of his throat and this was a moment that was something of a crossroads. What followed was not entirely up to her; she would only follow Timaeus' choice. Either he would hear the threat and quiet or the threat would become reality.
He said her name with surprise. On the one hand, in a fashion almost generous, Nethis could understand; things like this hardly happened on the regular and certainly not to boys like Timaeus. Noble blood tended to earn one certain privileges, and not being abducted on an early morning seemed like it ought to be one of them. Then again, perhaps not; so far as Nethis knew, such a sentiment had never been explicitly said. Of course, the logical explanation for that was that it hardly bore saying, but logic was not the only domain within which fact could be interpreted. The less ethical regard, one that held unspoken and unwritten meant unofficial, suited her far better here. Perhaps that meant it would only work the once, but if that was the case, then so be it. There were always other avenues for further manipulation and she would gladly spend this opportunity here.
If Timaeus was going to mouth off about witches and go so far as to name her one in public, then it followed he ought to expect her to act the part, no?
Apparently not. Instead of properly estimating the consequences for his words, he underestimated her. It didn't matter that he was a twelve-year-old boy and to expect he might fully comprehend what he wrought was unreasonable. It was insulting, she was insulted.
There was time yet to make him pay for that, though, especially seeing as there was a situation to handle first in that he refused to quiet, instead opting for screams that were almost unbelievably loud. This was nothing that could be called a shock and had been well accounted for in the form of their current location deep within woods and the early hour, but that made it no less irritating.
Still, she was nearly certain that they would remain undisturbed, no matter how loud or long he screamed, so she refused to play into it. If she had learned one thing from Mihail over the years it was this: children made a spectacle of themselves for the sake of earning attention and reaction.
He already had the former, but she refused to give him the latter in any form that might satisfy him. Underneath his screaming, she spoke, opting for a deliberately even vocalization, equally as pleasant as the question she had asked him moments before, "Go on, Timaeus," Nethis said, "Scream and carry on. I can wait until you completely tire yourself out."
The invitation was well taken up; he continued and she simply stared at him, expression plainly bored. Her gaze only narrowed, returning to cold displeasure when he put words to the wordless, a reminder of the lesson she intended to teach him. Here, her gaze briefly shifted to the man holding him, voice taking on a dangerous edge. "If he continues to misbehave much longer, cut out his tongue. I tire of watching this, of hearing about witchcraft and spells that do not exist."
There seemed little point in attempting to be less monstrous; this moment was well made for it and her intended lesson would stand with or without the threat of extra mutilation.
The man nodded an answer and shifted his grip about the knife and the boy a little as if to better position himself to carry out the task, which hardly surprised her. Given the expression on the man’s face, the fact that Timaeus’s screaming had to be louder for him with the proximity of positioning, and the boy’s refusal to simply still Nethis suspected that much longer would, in fact, not be so if she truly left it to his discretion, especially since Timaeus seemed to lack much in the way of sense.
She could live with that outcome, but it wasn't quite preferable; she knew how she intended her part in this to end, but she could hardly control fate. If, by the grace of the Gods, Timaeus was found after she left him here alive, dead or somewhere between, it seemed better not to maim in a fashion that could come back to haunt her.
Too much of this already bore facets that could be attributable to her, to the Thanasi and he was still only a child.
Yet, there was a knifepoint at the hollow of his throat and this was a moment that was something of a crossroads. What followed was not entirely up to her; she would only follow Timaeus' choice. Either he would hear the threat and quiet or the threat would become reality.
Despite what Nethis seemed to believe, Timaeus was not screaming his head off to get a reaction out of her. The young Colchian noble honestly couldn’t care less if his shouts would cause her blood to boil or bring her already fraught temper to a raging inferno. He honestly could not have cared less about his ear-splitting wailing affected this monster before him. Not when he was carrying on out of the hopes that there would be someone, anyone, nearby that could hear his cries for help. This was his only form of hope as he knew that there was no way he could wriggle out of the grasp of her henchman. Timaeus also wasn’t foolish enough to believe that he could reason with the eldest of the coven either. The boy felt that he had no choice but to yell his lungs out and while he still had that hope that there might be someone in these woods close enough to hear them, he had to carry on. He didn’t have any choice.
However, that whole idea hinged on the fact that some random woodcutter would be brave or powerful enough to stand up to Nethis of Thanasi on one boy’s behalf. Even if there had been someone in the woods who was close enough to listen in on the traumatic event that was occurring, there was no one in Colchis who would be capable of doing such a thing. She was just far too powerful to dream of that.
It didn’t phase him for a moment that Nethis seemed unbothered by his hollering. After all, he wasn’t yelling to get the reaction out of her. His words about spells may have been directed towards her, but the intention that she thought he sought just wasn’t there. Timaeus wasn’t her brother. He wasn’t having a fit over some toy or sweet. He was afraid for his life and being left in such a powerless position gave him no other options for saving himself. As wrong as the woman was in her judgments of Timaeus’s actions, she was right in one regard. Timaeus was quickly tiring. If she cared enough to pay attention, she might have noticed how he had stopped squirming so vigorously. His legs were no longer thrashing about as they kicked at nothing, but empty air. Instead, all of his energy seemed to be focused on carrying his voice as far as it would go into these mysterious woods. Though even that was starting to fade as well as the boy screamed himself hoarse. He wouldn’t physically be able to keep it up for much longer.
Nethis seemed to miss these signs that the boy’s ruckus was coming to an end as she turned to the goonie latched onto Tim. His blood ran cold at her words, promising that if he didn’t silence himself he would soon lose the ability to ever speak again. Timaeus knew that the woman was a witch and a rather particularly evil one at that, but would she truly go far enough to cut out his tongue? The sheer notion of it was so unfathomable to Timaeus (after all, how was one supposed to go about their life without a tongue) that the mere threat alone was enough to startle the twelve-year-old into a dumbfounded silence. Finally, an eerie silence settled over the woodland whose serenity felt so wrong in the wake of the horror that was happening in this small clearing.
Even though the boy had stopped screaming, the henchman wasn’t seemingly satisfied with how the noise level had decreased. It seemed to be that he was far keener on settling on a far more permanent solution than simply stopping up his ears when the captive lord tried to attract help. In one swift motion that left no chance for the tired boy to wriggle out of his grasp, Nethis’s accomplice shifted his grip so one of his rough hands rested on the boy’s jaw. He pulled downwards, exposing the shiny teeth and offending tongue within. Given how loudly Timaeus had been carrying on, the fleshy pink muscle must have seemed like an oyster’s pearl to the man who’s patience with Timaeus was thinner than that of Nethis. Tim tried to wriggle away, clamp his jaw shut, and basically anything else that could get the bastard to let go of him. However, it was like the henchman seemed to have an iron grip on the boy’s jaw, not giving the boy any slack as he drew the knife away from Timaeus’s throat and closer to his jaw.
This threat succeeded in drawing gurgled noises of fear from the boy. His current position made it impossible for Tim to form any actual words, but the intent of what he was trying to say was made clearly enough through his widened eyes and a sudden burst in energy as Timaeus began to kick at the man again. The shift in how the goonie was holding him made it possible for Timaeus to finally connect with the man’s shin with a dull thump. The action wasn’t strong enough to get the vile creature to drop him, but the sheer shock of it was enough to get his hand off of Tim’s jaw.
Not wasting this moment, Timaeus was quick to cry out, “No! No! I’ll be quiet! I swear -- just don’t!” This was quickly drowned out by a string of curses from the henchman as he tried to gain the upper hand on the boy again, but true to his word, Timaeus didn’t take the opportunity to start screaming. Instead, small mutterings of protest were all that was heard from him as Timaeus shifted his head back and forth, trying to prevent this evil man from getting another hook-like grip on his jaw. Luckily for Tim, the lack of him screaming seemed to be enough to convince the man that it wasn’t worth the fight as he readjusted his grip to where it had been before as he made a threat of his own ‘Then stay quiet, you little shit.’ The man’s patchy beard practically scratched at the boy’s skin as he growled this threat into the boy’s ear.
If Timaeus wasn’t completely terrified at this point, he might have glared daggers at the man. However, the threat of cutting his tongue out was so effective in weakening the boy’s resolve and sapping at the last few bits of energy left that the Valaoritis didn’t dare risk it. Who knew if the witch and her henchmen would be keen on threatening to take his eye next if he did such a thing? No, it was almost shocking how quickly Timaeus had done an about-face, practically sagging from sheer exhaustion as he tried his best to keep his neck pulled back and away from the knife.
There was no point in fighting back anyway. The man holding him was too strong and there was nothing that Timaeus could do in order to escape. His inability to summon help also did nothing to help this feeling of despair that was quick to settle over the boy. This was hopeless. He was hopeless. All he could do was pray to every deity he knew that someone would take mercy on him and save him from the claws of his witch before him… but not before the boy had summoned the nerve to ask two very important questions about this whole predicament as he was still firmly in the dark of how his own parroted words had encouraged the Thanasi woman to steal him away from Midas and drag him into the woods for gods knew what purpose.
“Why are you doing this? What did I even do?” His voice was heavily dripping in the despair that was now replacing the desperation that had been there just a few moments before. There was nothing that Timaeus could do to escape. He was caught in the claws of a witch and he had no hopes of them loosening any time soon. Not until Nethis was done in seeking her fun by terrifying this young noble boy into never speaking ill about her house again.
This character is currently a work in progress.
Check out their information page here.
This character is currently a work in progress.
Check out their information page here.
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Despite what Nethis seemed to believe, Timaeus was not screaming his head off to get a reaction out of her. The young Colchian noble honestly couldn’t care less if his shouts would cause her blood to boil or bring her already fraught temper to a raging inferno. He honestly could not have cared less about his ear-splitting wailing affected this monster before him. Not when he was carrying on out of the hopes that there would be someone, anyone, nearby that could hear his cries for help. This was his only form of hope as he knew that there was no way he could wriggle out of the grasp of her henchman. Timaeus also wasn’t foolish enough to believe that he could reason with the eldest of the coven either. The boy felt that he had no choice but to yell his lungs out and while he still had that hope that there might be someone in these woods close enough to hear them, he had to carry on. He didn’t have any choice.
However, that whole idea hinged on the fact that some random woodcutter would be brave or powerful enough to stand up to Nethis of Thanasi on one boy’s behalf. Even if there had been someone in the woods who was close enough to listen in on the traumatic event that was occurring, there was no one in Colchis who would be capable of doing such a thing. She was just far too powerful to dream of that.
It didn’t phase him for a moment that Nethis seemed unbothered by his hollering. After all, he wasn’t yelling to get the reaction out of her. His words about spells may have been directed towards her, but the intention that she thought he sought just wasn’t there. Timaeus wasn’t her brother. He wasn’t having a fit over some toy or sweet. He was afraid for his life and being left in such a powerless position gave him no other options for saving himself. As wrong as the woman was in her judgments of Timaeus’s actions, she was right in one regard. Timaeus was quickly tiring. If she cared enough to pay attention, she might have noticed how he had stopped squirming so vigorously. His legs were no longer thrashing about as they kicked at nothing, but empty air. Instead, all of his energy seemed to be focused on carrying his voice as far as it would go into these mysterious woods. Though even that was starting to fade as well as the boy screamed himself hoarse. He wouldn’t physically be able to keep it up for much longer.
Nethis seemed to miss these signs that the boy’s ruckus was coming to an end as she turned to the goonie latched onto Tim. His blood ran cold at her words, promising that if he didn’t silence himself he would soon lose the ability to ever speak again. Timaeus knew that the woman was a witch and a rather particularly evil one at that, but would she truly go far enough to cut out his tongue? The sheer notion of it was so unfathomable to Timaeus (after all, how was one supposed to go about their life without a tongue) that the mere threat alone was enough to startle the twelve-year-old into a dumbfounded silence. Finally, an eerie silence settled over the woodland whose serenity felt so wrong in the wake of the horror that was happening in this small clearing.
Even though the boy had stopped screaming, the henchman wasn’t seemingly satisfied with how the noise level had decreased. It seemed to be that he was far keener on settling on a far more permanent solution than simply stopping up his ears when the captive lord tried to attract help. In one swift motion that left no chance for the tired boy to wriggle out of his grasp, Nethis’s accomplice shifted his grip so one of his rough hands rested on the boy’s jaw. He pulled downwards, exposing the shiny teeth and offending tongue within. Given how loudly Timaeus had been carrying on, the fleshy pink muscle must have seemed like an oyster’s pearl to the man who’s patience with Timaeus was thinner than that of Nethis. Tim tried to wriggle away, clamp his jaw shut, and basically anything else that could get the bastard to let go of him. However, it was like the henchman seemed to have an iron grip on the boy’s jaw, not giving the boy any slack as he drew the knife away from Timaeus’s throat and closer to his jaw.
This threat succeeded in drawing gurgled noises of fear from the boy. His current position made it impossible for Tim to form any actual words, but the intent of what he was trying to say was made clearly enough through his widened eyes and a sudden burst in energy as Timaeus began to kick at the man again. The shift in how the goonie was holding him made it possible for Timaeus to finally connect with the man’s shin with a dull thump. The action wasn’t strong enough to get the vile creature to drop him, but the sheer shock of it was enough to get his hand off of Tim’s jaw.
Not wasting this moment, Timaeus was quick to cry out, “No! No! I’ll be quiet! I swear -- just don’t!” This was quickly drowned out by a string of curses from the henchman as he tried to gain the upper hand on the boy again, but true to his word, Timaeus didn’t take the opportunity to start screaming. Instead, small mutterings of protest were all that was heard from him as Timaeus shifted his head back and forth, trying to prevent this evil man from getting another hook-like grip on his jaw. Luckily for Tim, the lack of him screaming seemed to be enough to convince the man that it wasn’t worth the fight as he readjusted his grip to where it had been before as he made a threat of his own ‘Then stay quiet, you little shit.’ The man’s patchy beard practically scratched at the boy’s skin as he growled this threat into the boy’s ear.
If Timaeus wasn’t completely terrified at this point, he might have glared daggers at the man. However, the threat of cutting his tongue out was so effective in weakening the boy’s resolve and sapping at the last few bits of energy left that the Valaoritis didn’t dare risk it. Who knew if the witch and her henchmen would be keen on threatening to take his eye next if he did such a thing? No, it was almost shocking how quickly Timaeus had done an about-face, practically sagging from sheer exhaustion as he tried his best to keep his neck pulled back and away from the knife.
There was no point in fighting back anyway. The man holding him was too strong and there was nothing that Timaeus could do in order to escape. His inability to summon help also did nothing to help this feeling of despair that was quick to settle over the boy. This was hopeless. He was hopeless. All he could do was pray to every deity he knew that someone would take mercy on him and save him from the claws of his witch before him… but not before the boy had summoned the nerve to ask two very important questions about this whole predicament as he was still firmly in the dark of how his own parroted words had encouraged the Thanasi woman to steal him away from Midas and drag him into the woods for gods knew what purpose.
“Why are you doing this? What did I even do?” His voice was heavily dripping in the despair that was now replacing the desperation that had been there just a few moments before. There was nothing that Timaeus could do to escape. He was caught in the claws of a witch and he had no hopes of them loosening any time soon. Not until Nethis was done in seeking her fun by terrifying this young noble boy into never speaking ill about her house again.
Despite what Nethis seemed to believe, Timaeus was not screaming his head off to get a reaction out of her. The young Colchian noble honestly couldn’t care less if his shouts would cause her blood to boil or bring her already fraught temper to a raging inferno. He honestly could not have cared less about his ear-splitting wailing affected this monster before him. Not when he was carrying on out of the hopes that there would be someone, anyone, nearby that could hear his cries for help. This was his only form of hope as he knew that there was no way he could wriggle out of the grasp of her henchman. Timaeus also wasn’t foolish enough to believe that he could reason with the eldest of the coven either. The boy felt that he had no choice but to yell his lungs out and while he still had that hope that there might be someone in these woods close enough to hear them, he had to carry on. He didn’t have any choice.
However, that whole idea hinged on the fact that some random woodcutter would be brave or powerful enough to stand up to Nethis of Thanasi on one boy’s behalf. Even if there had been someone in the woods who was close enough to listen in on the traumatic event that was occurring, there was no one in Colchis who would be capable of doing such a thing. She was just far too powerful to dream of that.
It didn’t phase him for a moment that Nethis seemed unbothered by his hollering. After all, he wasn’t yelling to get the reaction out of her. His words about spells may have been directed towards her, but the intention that she thought he sought just wasn’t there. Timaeus wasn’t her brother. He wasn’t having a fit over some toy or sweet. He was afraid for his life and being left in such a powerless position gave him no other options for saving himself. As wrong as the woman was in her judgments of Timaeus’s actions, she was right in one regard. Timaeus was quickly tiring. If she cared enough to pay attention, she might have noticed how he had stopped squirming so vigorously. His legs were no longer thrashing about as they kicked at nothing, but empty air. Instead, all of his energy seemed to be focused on carrying his voice as far as it would go into these mysterious woods. Though even that was starting to fade as well as the boy screamed himself hoarse. He wouldn’t physically be able to keep it up for much longer.
Nethis seemed to miss these signs that the boy’s ruckus was coming to an end as she turned to the goonie latched onto Tim. His blood ran cold at her words, promising that if he didn’t silence himself he would soon lose the ability to ever speak again. Timaeus knew that the woman was a witch and a rather particularly evil one at that, but would she truly go far enough to cut out his tongue? The sheer notion of it was so unfathomable to Timaeus (after all, how was one supposed to go about their life without a tongue) that the mere threat alone was enough to startle the twelve-year-old into a dumbfounded silence. Finally, an eerie silence settled over the woodland whose serenity felt so wrong in the wake of the horror that was happening in this small clearing.
Even though the boy had stopped screaming, the henchman wasn’t seemingly satisfied with how the noise level had decreased. It seemed to be that he was far keener on settling on a far more permanent solution than simply stopping up his ears when the captive lord tried to attract help. In one swift motion that left no chance for the tired boy to wriggle out of his grasp, Nethis’s accomplice shifted his grip so one of his rough hands rested on the boy’s jaw. He pulled downwards, exposing the shiny teeth and offending tongue within. Given how loudly Timaeus had been carrying on, the fleshy pink muscle must have seemed like an oyster’s pearl to the man who’s patience with Timaeus was thinner than that of Nethis. Tim tried to wriggle away, clamp his jaw shut, and basically anything else that could get the bastard to let go of him. However, it was like the henchman seemed to have an iron grip on the boy’s jaw, not giving the boy any slack as he drew the knife away from Timaeus’s throat and closer to his jaw.
This threat succeeded in drawing gurgled noises of fear from the boy. His current position made it impossible for Tim to form any actual words, but the intent of what he was trying to say was made clearly enough through his widened eyes and a sudden burst in energy as Timaeus began to kick at the man again. The shift in how the goonie was holding him made it possible for Timaeus to finally connect with the man’s shin with a dull thump. The action wasn’t strong enough to get the vile creature to drop him, but the sheer shock of it was enough to get his hand off of Tim’s jaw.
Not wasting this moment, Timaeus was quick to cry out, “No! No! I’ll be quiet! I swear -- just don’t!” This was quickly drowned out by a string of curses from the henchman as he tried to gain the upper hand on the boy again, but true to his word, Timaeus didn’t take the opportunity to start screaming. Instead, small mutterings of protest were all that was heard from him as Timaeus shifted his head back and forth, trying to prevent this evil man from getting another hook-like grip on his jaw. Luckily for Tim, the lack of him screaming seemed to be enough to convince the man that it wasn’t worth the fight as he readjusted his grip to where it had been before as he made a threat of his own ‘Then stay quiet, you little shit.’ The man’s patchy beard practically scratched at the boy’s skin as he growled this threat into the boy’s ear.
If Timaeus wasn’t completely terrified at this point, he might have glared daggers at the man. However, the threat of cutting his tongue out was so effective in weakening the boy’s resolve and sapping at the last few bits of energy left that the Valaoritis didn’t dare risk it. Who knew if the witch and her henchmen would be keen on threatening to take his eye next if he did such a thing? No, it was almost shocking how quickly Timaeus had done an about-face, practically sagging from sheer exhaustion as he tried his best to keep his neck pulled back and away from the knife.
There was no point in fighting back anyway. The man holding him was too strong and there was nothing that Timaeus could do in order to escape. His inability to summon help also did nothing to help this feeling of despair that was quick to settle over the boy. This was hopeless. He was hopeless. All he could do was pray to every deity he knew that someone would take mercy on him and save him from the claws of his witch before him… but not before the boy had summoned the nerve to ask two very important questions about this whole predicament as he was still firmly in the dark of how his own parroted words had encouraged the Thanasi woman to steal him away from Midas and drag him into the woods for gods knew what purpose.
“Why are you doing this? What did I even do?” His voice was heavily dripping in the despair that was now replacing the desperation that had been there just a few moments before. There was nothing that Timaeus could do to escape. He was caught in the claws of a witch and he had no hopes of them loosening any time soon. Not until Nethis was done in seeking her fun by terrifying this young noble boy into never speaking ill about her house again.
Two misses and a mark. Nethis’ logic and understanding—things directly born via interacting with Mihail who was a different sort of child than Timaeus—might have been wrong, she might have allowed circumstances to miss that the fight would end on its own regardless, but it mattered very little when she still ultimately found the words that hit the mark she wanted.
Funny how an effective threat could change everything, most of all because they each of them knew it was truly a sincere thing; considering there was a pit with snakes already dug, considering she had seen to it that he was abducted off the street, considering she intended to simply abandon him and let bigger forces than herself decide whether he even continued to live beyond her punishment—not that Timaeus knew that yet—there was no reason why she should or would stop her man from following it through for her if that proved necessary. After all, the threat was a means by which to free him toward the brutality she had seen him and wanted for this particular errand.
Coldly, she simply watched the protracted struggle between the man and Timaeus. Obviously, she was both interested and invested in the outcome and she still minimally preferred that the threat remain just that if only because she didn’t quite favor gore and it would fit badly with the picture she knew someone else would stumble upon, but she still felt it was not up to her—even though it obviously was—and was instead dependent on Timaeus.
Ultimately, the fingers in his mouth struck her as farther from accomplishing the aim of her threat than she imagined it felt for Timaeus. There was a long way to go from forcing a mouth open to being able to keep it open and wield a knife within it, but that was a detached, adult consideration, one she felt confident in thinking Timaeus was wholly incapable of. Still, she might have cautioned against it, considering she foresaw that the changing grasp was going to give Timaeus the opportunity to secure something closer to freedom if there was any fight in him, but she never got a chance before that played out, ending in failure and something that finally read as true resignation.
Thank the gods for that, seeing as it had taken long enough to get here.
The threat that served as the final nail in the coffin, so to speak, wasn’t hers, but she didn’t mind that. It was the natural conclusion to the moment and what she would have said herself had she needed to. Still, it did give her a moment’s pause in that they both knew his place wasn’t really to speak in this; it wasn’t what she wanted from him.
Given that he had, it forced her to actually stop to consider him as a third player in this rather than an extension of herself. A man could only be pushed so much—sometimes they were rather weak creatures in what they were willing to tolerate, by her view, considering what she would swallow in any given moment for the ultimate advantage—and Nethis suspected this was going to end with him doing something more impulsive than moving toward making good on the threat if she didn’t circle this toward closed soon. It was somewhat irritating to have to accommodate him into the pacing she wanted to play at, but there was no helping the circumstances. There were prices to pay for desired brute strength that she could never manage on her own, and though one of them was surely gold, another was in acknowledging them as people with limits rather than tools.
It was time to draw this to a close then for the sake of shorter tempers than her own or if not for that then certainly because a quick glance toward a gradually brightening sky told Nethis she wanted to be gone from these woods sooner rather than later and there was a minimal amount of tidying needed before they could depart. True, the woods were ideal in that by virtue of what they were, they disguised a great deal of their presence here, but she didn’t tolerate sloppy work and would do what she could to ensure there was nothing that could definitively tie this to her.
Timaeus’s wholly despaired questions provided the avenue that she needed, while also providing some emotional satisfaction, though that mattered very little (or maybe it was everything and she was fooling herself in trying not to value emotions). She had made this situation so if she had been forced to provide herself an avenue toward completion that didn’t flow half so well, she would have done so.
"Words have consequence, Timaeus," Nethis returned, deciding to keep it simple owing to his immature age and the way her previous warning—apparently—had not made enough of an impact. "Here lies yours. I do not tolerate disrespect toward me and mine and I will not allow your pattern of harassment toward Mihail to stand any longer. Should the gods somehow see fit to allow you to continue your sorry little life after this, I will end it myself if I hear anything else I dislike from you about me, my family or from Mihail. That is not a threat so much as a promise, one you will have ample time to consider."
She had thought she would want an apology, want him to beg her to just let him go home, but the truth was she was less in the mood to drag this out than she had been when she started. There was less satisfaction in it than she had anticipated there would be, but she was also reasonably sure she’d recapture the feeling with an ultimate end to this. As such, she flicked her gaze back to the man holding him, tilted her head in the direction of the pit with snakes and gave him an order he—no doubt—would be pleased with. "Dump him."
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Two misses and a mark. Nethis’ logic and understanding—things directly born via interacting with Mihail who was a different sort of child than Timaeus—might have been wrong, she might have allowed circumstances to miss that the fight would end on its own regardless, but it mattered very little when she still ultimately found the words that hit the mark she wanted.
Funny how an effective threat could change everything, most of all because they each of them knew it was truly a sincere thing; considering there was a pit with snakes already dug, considering she had seen to it that he was abducted off the street, considering she intended to simply abandon him and let bigger forces than herself decide whether he even continued to live beyond her punishment—not that Timaeus knew that yet—there was no reason why she should or would stop her man from following it through for her if that proved necessary. After all, the threat was a means by which to free him toward the brutality she had seen him and wanted for this particular errand.
Coldly, she simply watched the protracted struggle between the man and Timaeus. Obviously, she was both interested and invested in the outcome and she still minimally preferred that the threat remain just that if only because she didn’t quite favor gore and it would fit badly with the picture she knew someone else would stumble upon, but she still felt it was not up to her—even though it obviously was—and was instead dependent on Timaeus.
Ultimately, the fingers in his mouth struck her as farther from accomplishing the aim of her threat than she imagined it felt for Timaeus. There was a long way to go from forcing a mouth open to being able to keep it open and wield a knife within it, but that was a detached, adult consideration, one she felt confident in thinking Timaeus was wholly incapable of. Still, she might have cautioned against it, considering she foresaw that the changing grasp was going to give Timaeus the opportunity to secure something closer to freedom if there was any fight in him, but she never got a chance before that played out, ending in failure and something that finally read as true resignation.
Thank the gods for that, seeing as it had taken long enough to get here.
The threat that served as the final nail in the coffin, so to speak, wasn’t hers, but she didn’t mind that. It was the natural conclusion to the moment and what she would have said herself had she needed to. Still, it did give her a moment’s pause in that they both knew his place wasn’t really to speak in this; it wasn’t what she wanted from him.
Given that he had, it forced her to actually stop to consider him as a third player in this rather than an extension of herself. A man could only be pushed so much—sometimes they were rather weak creatures in what they were willing to tolerate, by her view, considering what she would swallow in any given moment for the ultimate advantage—and Nethis suspected this was going to end with him doing something more impulsive than moving toward making good on the threat if she didn’t circle this toward closed soon. It was somewhat irritating to have to accommodate him into the pacing she wanted to play at, but there was no helping the circumstances. There were prices to pay for desired brute strength that she could never manage on her own, and though one of them was surely gold, another was in acknowledging them as people with limits rather than tools.
It was time to draw this to a close then for the sake of shorter tempers than her own or if not for that then certainly because a quick glance toward a gradually brightening sky told Nethis she wanted to be gone from these woods sooner rather than later and there was a minimal amount of tidying needed before they could depart. True, the woods were ideal in that by virtue of what they were, they disguised a great deal of their presence here, but she didn’t tolerate sloppy work and would do what she could to ensure there was nothing that could definitively tie this to her.
Timaeus’s wholly despaired questions provided the avenue that she needed, while also providing some emotional satisfaction, though that mattered very little (or maybe it was everything and she was fooling herself in trying not to value emotions). She had made this situation so if she had been forced to provide herself an avenue toward completion that didn’t flow half so well, she would have done so.
"Words have consequence, Timaeus," Nethis returned, deciding to keep it simple owing to his immature age and the way her previous warning—apparently—had not made enough of an impact. "Here lies yours. I do not tolerate disrespect toward me and mine and I will not allow your pattern of harassment toward Mihail to stand any longer. Should the gods somehow see fit to allow you to continue your sorry little life after this, I will end it myself if I hear anything else I dislike from you about me, my family or from Mihail. That is not a threat so much as a promise, one you will have ample time to consider."
She had thought she would want an apology, want him to beg her to just let him go home, but the truth was she was less in the mood to drag this out than she had been when she started. There was less satisfaction in it than she had anticipated there would be, but she was also reasonably sure she’d recapture the feeling with an ultimate end to this. As such, she flicked her gaze back to the man holding him, tilted her head in the direction of the pit with snakes and gave him an order he—no doubt—would be pleased with. "Dump him."
Two misses and a mark. Nethis’ logic and understanding—things directly born via interacting with Mihail who was a different sort of child than Timaeus—might have been wrong, she might have allowed circumstances to miss that the fight would end on its own regardless, but it mattered very little when she still ultimately found the words that hit the mark she wanted.
Funny how an effective threat could change everything, most of all because they each of them knew it was truly a sincere thing; considering there was a pit with snakes already dug, considering she had seen to it that he was abducted off the street, considering she intended to simply abandon him and let bigger forces than herself decide whether he even continued to live beyond her punishment—not that Timaeus knew that yet—there was no reason why she should or would stop her man from following it through for her if that proved necessary. After all, the threat was a means by which to free him toward the brutality she had seen him and wanted for this particular errand.
Coldly, she simply watched the protracted struggle between the man and Timaeus. Obviously, she was both interested and invested in the outcome and she still minimally preferred that the threat remain just that if only because she didn’t quite favor gore and it would fit badly with the picture she knew someone else would stumble upon, but she still felt it was not up to her—even though it obviously was—and was instead dependent on Timaeus.
Ultimately, the fingers in his mouth struck her as farther from accomplishing the aim of her threat than she imagined it felt for Timaeus. There was a long way to go from forcing a mouth open to being able to keep it open and wield a knife within it, but that was a detached, adult consideration, one she felt confident in thinking Timaeus was wholly incapable of. Still, she might have cautioned against it, considering she foresaw that the changing grasp was going to give Timaeus the opportunity to secure something closer to freedom if there was any fight in him, but she never got a chance before that played out, ending in failure and something that finally read as true resignation.
Thank the gods for that, seeing as it had taken long enough to get here.
The threat that served as the final nail in the coffin, so to speak, wasn’t hers, but she didn’t mind that. It was the natural conclusion to the moment and what she would have said herself had she needed to. Still, it did give her a moment’s pause in that they both knew his place wasn’t really to speak in this; it wasn’t what she wanted from him.
Given that he had, it forced her to actually stop to consider him as a third player in this rather than an extension of herself. A man could only be pushed so much—sometimes they were rather weak creatures in what they were willing to tolerate, by her view, considering what she would swallow in any given moment for the ultimate advantage—and Nethis suspected this was going to end with him doing something more impulsive than moving toward making good on the threat if she didn’t circle this toward closed soon. It was somewhat irritating to have to accommodate him into the pacing she wanted to play at, but there was no helping the circumstances. There were prices to pay for desired brute strength that she could never manage on her own, and though one of them was surely gold, another was in acknowledging them as people with limits rather than tools.
It was time to draw this to a close then for the sake of shorter tempers than her own or if not for that then certainly because a quick glance toward a gradually brightening sky told Nethis she wanted to be gone from these woods sooner rather than later and there was a minimal amount of tidying needed before they could depart. True, the woods were ideal in that by virtue of what they were, they disguised a great deal of their presence here, but she didn’t tolerate sloppy work and would do what she could to ensure there was nothing that could definitively tie this to her.
Timaeus’s wholly despaired questions provided the avenue that she needed, while also providing some emotional satisfaction, though that mattered very little (or maybe it was everything and she was fooling herself in trying not to value emotions). She had made this situation so if she had been forced to provide herself an avenue toward completion that didn’t flow half so well, she would have done so.
"Words have consequence, Timaeus," Nethis returned, deciding to keep it simple owing to his immature age and the way her previous warning—apparently—had not made enough of an impact. "Here lies yours. I do not tolerate disrespect toward me and mine and I will not allow your pattern of harassment toward Mihail to stand any longer. Should the gods somehow see fit to allow you to continue your sorry little life after this, I will end it myself if I hear anything else I dislike from you about me, my family or from Mihail. That is not a threat so much as a promise, one you will have ample time to consider."
She had thought she would want an apology, want him to beg her to just let him go home, but the truth was she was less in the mood to drag this out than she had been when she started. There was less satisfaction in it than she had anticipated there would be, but she was also reasonably sure she’d recapture the feeling with an ultimate end to this. As such, she flicked her gaze back to the man holding him, tilted her head in the direction of the pit with snakes and gave him an order he—no doubt—would be pleased with. "Dump him."
Timaeus was completely lost when the Thanasi woman began to speak of the crimes that had condemned him to the woman’s ire in the first place. Disrespect? Harassment? What on earth was she talking about? The Valaoritis boy hadn’t done any of that! Not when he didn’t see his comments as all that outlandish. The things he had said about Mihail was just normal insults that boys their age were supposed to throw at each other.
This was where the problem with getting Timaeus to see that what he had done was wrong. There was a big difference between the Thanasi and Valaoritis households handled insults like the ones that Tim had tossed at Mihail. With her mother dead, Nethis managed the Archontiko to her liking and everyone had to bend themselves to meet the standards that she set. As she was fond of Mihail, the young woman wouldn’t tolerate any sort of mistreatment of the boy. He was effectively coddled in the absence of their ill father and didn’t have the influences that Timaeus did in his own household. In Eubocris, the twelve-year-old was the middle child of three boys in a family that put as much value into their legacy as soldiers as they did into the upkeep of their noble reputation. Letting the boys sort out their own problems was seen as an important step of them growing up so any complaints they may have had about one of the others (including from their cousins as they were just as rough-and-tumble as the boys could be) calling them names were waved off. It was so common for Tim to use the same insults that he had lobbed at Mihail on his own brothers that they really didn’t seem that mean anymore. It was just typical banter during the many mock-war games they played in the courtyard, so he would hardly count his comments as harassment. They were just normal and it wasn’t his fault that Mihail was so sensitive that he couldn’t see them in the same light as Tim did. Seven hells, if Mihail’s reaction wasn’t so comical, Timaeus would have probably stopped caring a long time ago.
If the situation that Timaeus was currently in wasn’t so dire, this is something he probably would have lobbed right back at the insouciant woman. It was only thanks to the knife at his throat that he didn’t make some wise-ass comment about how Mihail just needed to toughen up. After all, if Nethis was so deadset on handling Mihail acting like a little girl in such a hyper-masculine society, she would never be able to dig enough pits to punish all those who would make fun of the Thanasi boy for his decisions… and there would be others. There was no way in Hades that Timaeus would be the only one to call him girlish and weak. Nethis might not have realized it, but she was setting up the boy for failure if she thought that this was an appropriate method of dealing with the naysayers. Not to mention that the whole of Colchis already thought that the whole lot of snakes were witches. Nethis was fighting an endless uphill battle if she thought that she could make the entirety of Colchis shut their mouths about the flaws of her house.
“But I didn’t--” Timaeus started to say, trying to counter the claims that Nethis was making. However, the Thanasi woman didn’t give him much of a chance to defend himself or even make it clear that he didn’t see his actions as wrong. Not when she was already ordering her henchman to toss the boy into the pit of snakes that had gone all but unnoticed in the midst of screams and threats about taking tongues. Now Timaeus didn’t know what was in in the pit or how far down the hole went. All he knew was that he wanted nothing to do with it, especially right on the coattails of Nethis implying that his fate would be left to the gods.
“No! Gods, please no!” Timaeus screamed as he began to thrash about again, not caring about the shallow cuts that were being made along his neck as the knife scraped against his pale skin. They didn’t even seem that threatening anymore as the second man who had brought Tim here, remaining back in case the boy wriggled out of the first man’s grip, stepped forward and hauled the boy up by his feet. The one who tried to take his tongue just a moment prior put away the blade and adjusted his hold on the boy as the pair dragged him over to the pit. “Nethis! You can’t let them do this! I’m sorry! Okay, I’m sorry!” The boy continued to scream, but his cries fell on deaf ears. His own actions up until this point had ensured that there was not a modicum of mercy for him in anyone.
Breaking the promise he had given earlier in order to keep his tongue, Timaeus continued to call out, to beg for mercy as the two henchmen counted down and reeled the boy back. In truth, Timaeus couldn’t even hear the noises that he was making over his own heartbeat thudding in his ears as he caught the eyes of the cold-hearted woman who had orchestrated this cruel punishment for the boy who didn’t even know that he had done anything wrong. If his blood hadn’t run cold from the sheer terror of feeling the henchmen toss the boy forward, sending him flying through the air as he fell down, down, down into the pit; it might have when he saw how blank her face was. As if she was bored by the spectacle of what could very well be the boy’s death before her.
Perhaps if she could have seen the panic in his eyes as he raced towards the bottom, frantically pulling at his bound hands as he tried to spread his arms out to lessen the blow that was to come, she might have smiled. Or maybe she did when Timaeus finally landed with a sickening thud that resounded through the air and the eerie silence that followed as the Valaoritis boy had finally stopped screaming -- though not of his own accord. His mouth fell slack as he hit the floor of the pit headfirst, sending his brain careening around the thick bone of his skull, effectively knocking the boy out and erasing any memories he would have of this event if the goose egg-sized bump forming on the side of his face was anything to go by.
Though if she stepped past her henchmen and peered over the side of the pit, it wouldn’t be the sight of Timaeus’s limp body or the small puddles of crimson forming beneath him from where his body had decimated the snakes who were unlucky enough to be crushed under him that would bring the psychotic woman joy. Not when the surviving creatures in the pit reacted to the boy who had come to join them. They crawled all over him, biting him with harmless fangs as they went. It must have been poetic justice to see the limbless creatures swarm the boy who had been such an annoyance to the Thanasis and see how his little body twitched and jerked at every place where the skin was pierced. Yet, just like how Timaeus had been helpless to the fate that Nethis had set before him, the extent of his head injury made it impossible for Timaeus to escape from the bites in his unconscious state.
Oh, it had to be a wonderful sight indeed, especially as Nethis would know that if the boy would survive his concussion and the shock of what happened; he would awaken dazed and confused. He would not know how he ended up a bottom of a pit with a bunch of wriggling reptiles crawling over him. He would awaken in a nightmare come to life and he would have no means of escape until his desperate mewlings would attract the attention of some woodcutter who could fish the noble boy out and send him home with no recollection of the events that had transpired in the woods. The boy would be punished and Nethis would escape unpunished. It had to be a perfect ending for her… especially that she was certain that despite his childish ways and foolish bravado; Timaeus of Valaoritis would forevermore be afraid of the snakes that lived in Colchis.
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This character is currently a work in progress.
Check out their information page here.
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Timaeus was completely lost when the Thanasi woman began to speak of the crimes that had condemned him to the woman’s ire in the first place. Disrespect? Harassment? What on earth was she talking about? The Valaoritis boy hadn’t done any of that! Not when he didn’t see his comments as all that outlandish. The things he had said about Mihail was just normal insults that boys their age were supposed to throw at each other.
This was where the problem with getting Timaeus to see that what he had done was wrong. There was a big difference between the Thanasi and Valaoritis households handled insults like the ones that Tim had tossed at Mihail. With her mother dead, Nethis managed the Archontiko to her liking and everyone had to bend themselves to meet the standards that she set. As she was fond of Mihail, the young woman wouldn’t tolerate any sort of mistreatment of the boy. He was effectively coddled in the absence of their ill father and didn’t have the influences that Timaeus did in his own household. In Eubocris, the twelve-year-old was the middle child of three boys in a family that put as much value into their legacy as soldiers as they did into the upkeep of their noble reputation. Letting the boys sort out their own problems was seen as an important step of them growing up so any complaints they may have had about one of the others (including from their cousins as they were just as rough-and-tumble as the boys could be) calling them names were waved off. It was so common for Tim to use the same insults that he had lobbed at Mihail on his own brothers that they really didn’t seem that mean anymore. It was just typical banter during the many mock-war games they played in the courtyard, so he would hardly count his comments as harassment. They were just normal and it wasn’t his fault that Mihail was so sensitive that he couldn’t see them in the same light as Tim did. Seven hells, if Mihail’s reaction wasn’t so comical, Timaeus would have probably stopped caring a long time ago.
If the situation that Timaeus was currently in wasn’t so dire, this is something he probably would have lobbed right back at the insouciant woman. It was only thanks to the knife at his throat that he didn’t make some wise-ass comment about how Mihail just needed to toughen up. After all, if Nethis was so deadset on handling Mihail acting like a little girl in such a hyper-masculine society, she would never be able to dig enough pits to punish all those who would make fun of the Thanasi boy for his decisions… and there would be others. There was no way in Hades that Timaeus would be the only one to call him girlish and weak. Nethis might not have realized it, but she was setting up the boy for failure if she thought that this was an appropriate method of dealing with the naysayers. Not to mention that the whole of Colchis already thought that the whole lot of snakes were witches. Nethis was fighting an endless uphill battle if she thought that she could make the entirety of Colchis shut their mouths about the flaws of her house.
“But I didn’t--” Timaeus started to say, trying to counter the claims that Nethis was making. However, the Thanasi woman didn’t give him much of a chance to defend himself or even make it clear that he didn’t see his actions as wrong. Not when she was already ordering her henchman to toss the boy into the pit of snakes that had gone all but unnoticed in the midst of screams and threats about taking tongues. Now Timaeus didn’t know what was in in the pit or how far down the hole went. All he knew was that he wanted nothing to do with it, especially right on the coattails of Nethis implying that his fate would be left to the gods.
“No! Gods, please no!” Timaeus screamed as he began to thrash about again, not caring about the shallow cuts that were being made along his neck as the knife scraped against his pale skin. They didn’t even seem that threatening anymore as the second man who had brought Tim here, remaining back in case the boy wriggled out of the first man’s grip, stepped forward and hauled the boy up by his feet. The one who tried to take his tongue just a moment prior put away the blade and adjusted his hold on the boy as the pair dragged him over to the pit. “Nethis! You can’t let them do this! I’m sorry! Okay, I’m sorry!” The boy continued to scream, but his cries fell on deaf ears. His own actions up until this point had ensured that there was not a modicum of mercy for him in anyone.
Breaking the promise he had given earlier in order to keep his tongue, Timaeus continued to call out, to beg for mercy as the two henchmen counted down and reeled the boy back. In truth, Timaeus couldn’t even hear the noises that he was making over his own heartbeat thudding in his ears as he caught the eyes of the cold-hearted woman who had orchestrated this cruel punishment for the boy who didn’t even know that he had done anything wrong. If his blood hadn’t run cold from the sheer terror of feeling the henchmen toss the boy forward, sending him flying through the air as he fell down, down, down into the pit; it might have when he saw how blank her face was. As if she was bored by the spectacle of what could very well be the boy’s death before her.
Perhaps if she could have seen the panic in his eyes as he raced towards the bottom, frantically pulling at his bound hands as he tried to spread his arms out to lessen the blow that was to come, she might have smiled. Or maybe she did when Timaeus finally landed with a sickening thud that resounded through the air and the eerie silence that followed as the Valaoritis boy had finally stopped screaming -- though not of his own accord. His mouth fell slack as he hit the floor of the pit headfirst, sending his brain careening around the thick bone of his skull, effectively knocking the boy out and erasing any memories he would have of this event if the goose egg-sized bump forming on the side of his face was anything to go by.
Though if she stepped past her henchmen and peered over the side of the pit, it wouldn’t be the sight of Timaeus’s limp body or the small puddles of crimson forming beneath him from where his body had decimated the snakes who were unlucky enough to be crushed under him that would bring the psychotic woman joy. Not when the surviving creatures in the pit reacted to the boy who had come to join them. They crawled all over him, biting him with harmless fangs as they went. It must have been poetic justice to see the limbless creatures swarm the boy who had been such an annoyance to the Thanasis and see how his little body twitched and jerked at every place where the skin was pierced. Yet, just like how Timaeus had been helpless to the fate that Nethis had set before him, the extent of his head injury made it impossible for Timaeus to escape from the bites in his unconscious state.
Oh, it had to be a wonderful sight indeed, especially as Nethis would know that if the boy would survive his concussion and the shock of what happened; he would awaken dazed and confused. He would not know how he ended up a bottom of a pit with a bunch of wriggling reptiles crawling over him. He would awaken in a nightmare come to life and he would have no means of escape until his desperate mewlings would attract the attention of some woodcutter who could fish the noble boy out and send him home with no recollection of the events that had transpired in the woods. The boy would be punished and Nethis would escape unpunished. It had to be a perfect ending for her… especially that she was certain that despite his childish ways and foolish bravado; Timaeus of Valaoritis would forevermore be afraid of the snakes that lived in Colchis.
Timaeus was completely lost when the Thanasi woman began to speak of the crimes that had condemned him to the woman’s ire in the first place. Disrespect? Harassment? What on earth was she talking about? The Valaoritis boy hadn’t done any of that! Not when he didn’t see his comments as all that outlandish. The things he had said about Mihail was just normal insults that boys their age were supposed to throw at each other.
This was where the problem with getting Timaeus to see that what he had done was wrong. There was a big difference between the Thanasi and Valaoritis households handled insults like the ones that Tim had tossed at Mihail. With her mother dead, Nethis managed the Archontiko to her liking and everyone had to bend themselves to meet the standards that she set. As she was fond of Mihail, the young woman wouldn’t tolerate any sort of mistreatment of the boy. He was effectively coddled in the absence of their ill father and didn’t have the influences that Timaeus did in his own household. In Eubocris, the twelve-year-old was the middle child of three boys in a family that put as much value into their legacy as soldiers as they did into the upkeep of their noble reputation. Letting the boys sort out their own problems was seen as an important step of them growing up so any complaints they may have had about one of the others (including from their cousins as they were just as rough-and-tumble as the boys could be) calling them names were waved off. It was so common for Tim to use the same insults that he had lobbed at Mihail on his own brothers that they really didn’t seem that mean anymore. It was just typical banter during the many mock-war games they played in the courtyard, so he would hardly count his comments as harassment. They were just normal and it wasn’t his fault that Mihail was so sensitive that he couldn’t see them in the same light as Tim did. Seven hells, if Mihail’s reaction wasn’t so comical, Timaeus would have probably stopped caring a long time ago.
If the situation that Timaeus was currently in wasn’t so dire, this is something he probably would have lobbed right back at the insouciant woman. It was only thanks to the knife at his throat that he didn’t make some wise-ass comment about how Mihail just needed to toughen up. After all, if Nethis was so deadset on handling Mihail acting like a little girl in such a hyper-masculine society, she would never be able to dig enough pits to punish all those who would make fun of the Thanasi boy for his decisions… and there would be others. There was no way in Hades that Timaeus would be the only one to call him girlish and weak. Nethis might not have realized it, but she was setting up the boy for failure if she thought that this was an appropriate method of dealing with the naysayers. Not to mention that the whole of Colchis already thought that the whole lot of snakes were witches. Nethis was fighting an endless uphill battle if she thought that she could make the entirety of Colchis shut their mouths about the flaws of her house.
“But I didn’t--” Timaeus started to say, trying to counter the claims that Nethis was making. However, the Thanasi woman didn’t give him much of a chance to defend himself or even make it clear that he didn’t see his actions as wrong. Not when she was already ordering her henchman to toss the boy into the pit of snakes that had gone all but unnoticed in the midst of screams and threats about taking tongues. Now Timaeus didn’t know what was in in the pit or how far down the hole went. All he knew was that he wanted nothing to do with it, especially right on the coattails of Nethis implying that his fate would be left to the gods.
“No! Gods, please no!” Timaeus screamed as he began to thrash about again, not caring about the shallow cuts that were being made along his neck as the knife scraped against his pale skin. They didn’t even seem that threatening anymore as the second man who had brought Tim here, remaining back in case the boy wriggled out of the first man’s grip, stepped forward and hauled the boy up by his feet. The one who tried to take his tongue just a moment prior put away the blade and adjusted his hold on the boy as the pair dragged him over to the pit. “Nethis! You can’t let them do this! I’m sorry! Okay, I’m sorry!” The boy continued to scream, but his cries fell on deaf ears. His own actions up until this point had ensured that there was not a modicum of mercy for him in anyone.
Breaking the promise he had given earlier in order to keep his tongue, Timaeus continued to call out, to beg for mercy as the two henchmen counted down and reeled the boy back. In truth, Timaeus couldn’t even hear the noises that he was making over his own heartbeat thudding in his ears as he caught the eyes of the cold-hearted woman who had orchestrated this cruel punishment for the boy who didn’t even know that he had done anything wrong. If his blood hadn’t run cold from the sheer terror of feeling the henchmen toss the boy forward, sending him flying through the air as he fell down, down, down into the pit; it might have when he saw how blank her face was. As if she was bored by the spectacle of what could very well be the boy’s death before her.
Perhaps if she could have seen the panic in his eyes as he raced towards the bottom, frantically pulling at his bound hands as he tried to spread his arms out to lessen the blow that was to come, she might have smiled. Or maybe she did when Timaeus finally landed with a sickening thud that resounded through the air and the eerie silence that followed as the Valaoritis boy had finally stopped screaming -- though not of his own accord. His mouth fell slack as he hit the floor of the pit headfirst, sending his brain careening around the thick bone of his skull, effectively knocking the boy out and erasing any memories he would have of this event if the goose egg-sized bump forming on the side of his face was anything to go by.
Though if she stepped past her henchmen and peered over the side of the pit, it wouldn’t be the sight of Timaeus’s limp body or the small puddles of crimson forming beneath him from where his body had decimated the snakes who were unlucky enough to be crushed under him that would bring the psychotic woman joy. Not when the surviving creatures in the pit reacted to the boy who had come to join them. They crawled all over him, biting him with harmless fangs as they went. It must have been poetic justice to see the limbless creatures swarm the boy who had been such an annoyance to the Thanasis and see how his little body twitched and jerked at every place where the skin was pierced. Yet, just like how Timaeus had been helpless to the fate that Nethis had set before him, the extent of his head injury made it impossible for Timaeus to escape from the bites in his unconscious state.
Oh, it had to be a wonderful sight indeed, especially as Nethis would know that if the boy would survive his concussion and the shock of what happened; he would awaken dazed and confused. He would not know how he ended up a bottom of a pit with a bunch of wriggling reptiles crawling over him. He would awaken in a nightmare come to life and he would have no means of escape until his desperate mewlings would attract the attention of some woodcutter who could fish the noble boy out and send him home with no recollection of the events that had transpired in the woods. The boy would be punished and Nethis would escape unpunished. It had to be a perfect ending for her… especially that she was certain that despite his childish ways and foolish bravado; Timaeus of Valaoritis would forevermore be afraid of the snakes that lived in Colchis.