Contents
23. Twisted Rage
Overview
Kharon storms the dungeon to find Augustus has mutilated the Hermes doctor who violated Alexis and insists on prolonging his suffering. Hearing the doctor’s vile motive, Kharon executes another prisoner in rage and confronts signs of Alexis’s past trauma. Augustus forces resolve: their risky plan accelerates to “protect” Alexis and secure Sparta, while darker motives linger.
Summary
Kharon descends into the dungeon in a fury after Alexis’s near-death on the mountain, his powers surging as he searches for the Hermes doctor responsible for violating her. He finds Augustus in the shadows, standing over the doctor’s mutilated, but preserved, body. When Kharon offers to scatter the remains to prevent regeneration, Augustus refuses, intent on prolonging the doctor’s suffering.
Pressed, Augustus reveals what the doctor confessed: the violation was deliberate, driven by prurient curiosity about Spartan women. The revelation blanks Kharon’s thoughts and ignites his rage. Without hesitation, Kharon guns down another chained prisoner across the room, but the act brings no relief.
Still reeling, Kharon recalls that on the mountain Alexis vanished when he yelled—mirroring his own disappearances—and concludes someone hurt her badly in the past. He falters over their unnamed plan, fearing it could compound her trauma. Augustus cuts him off, insisting the plan must proceed faster because Alexis needs their protection.
They reaffirm their pact, repeating “We will protect her,” even as Kharon intermittently silences the remaining prisoner with gunfire. Their vow crystallizes under the guise of duty—“for Sparta”—while a darker, unspoken ambition lingers between them, summed up by Kharon’s invocation: fortune favors the bold.
Who Appears
- KharonRages over Alexis’s near-death; finds Augustus’s mutilated doctor; kills another prisoner; suspects Alexis’s past trauma; recommits to the plan.
- AugustusMutilates the Hermes doctor and insists on prolonging his pain; reveals the assault was deliberate; demands accelerating their plan to protect Alexis.
- Hermes DoctorMutilated captive; confessed to violating Alexis out of voyeuristic curiosity; kept alive for extended torment.
- Unidentified PrisonerChained captive whose noises trigger Kharon’s rage; shot repeatedly until silenced.
- AlexisOffstage but central; her near-death and hinted past trauma drive Kharon’s fury and the decision to hasten the protection plan.