Curtis

[Victim Pov]

Curtis Von Cutler woke up to a bad taste and a burning in his arms and feet

He had been having a particularly lewd dream about the seafolk below decks, dreaming of the day she finally accepted his advances and surrendered her body to him. However just as he had been about to begin he was sharply woken by a foul taste in his mouth, feeling as if he just had a dry piece of rotten meat in his mouth

Rousing with a muffled yell of indignation Curtis tried to get out of his bed, only to find himself unable to move, his arms and legs bound, tied with rope that dug into his flesh painfully. Struggling fiercely and searching around the room Curtis found himself alone, the binds holding him growing tighter as he struggled

Flinching from the ensuing pain of rope burn, Curtis stopped moving, instead beginning to circulate his mana as he had been trained, using the teachings he had been given during his brief stint at the Landel mage academy, creating an armor of air around himself like a shell in a mere moment

Now he was safe

His signature spell {Airs Blessing} was invincible and impenetrable to any below Adeptus mage rank! Now, unafraid Curtis began to work his jaw, attempting to push the foul gag from his mouth, only stopping as a voice rang out from the darkness, young and inquisitive

"So that's your ability"

The voice was cold and empty, reminding him of the professors of the academy, as they if too were simply simply seeing him as a science experiment, one ready for operation

Twisting in the direction of the voice, ignoring the cutting of the ropes Cutis stared into the dark of his cabin, sweating profusely, only to find the least likely of opponents

A Child

A Fucking Child

They sat in the dark, sitting on his desk nonchalantly, staring a hole in him. Sporting a glowing purple eye and ragged clothes, they seemed more undead than human. For a moment Curtis simply stared at the unknown child in confusion, dumbfounded by what he was seeing, before he began to laugh. His cackles muffled by the gag

IT WAS A FUCKING CHILD! HE HAD BEEN ALL THAT WORRIED OVER A STUPID KID!

In all honesty, for a moment before casting {Airs Blessing} he had been afraid, petrified even! But now… he was invincible and his enemy was nothing but a child! Likely one of the brats in the slums whose mother or sister he had his fun with, coming for a revenge that would just get him killed

How unoriginal, not the first and not the last

Dropping off his desk the child walked towards him, their eyes staring deeply into his like black stars in the night, eyes filled with loathing and hate. However despite his expectation the eyes remained unchanged as he chuckled and laughed, not shifting gaze or emotion despite how much Curtis silently mocked him, his gaze empty yet somehow emotional

"Why do you laugh?" the boy whispered as he drew closer, slowly stepping towards Curtis's bed. His voice was cold and sharp, like a blade in the night, asking the question as if the actions of the man bound in front of him genuinely intrigued him

Clearly not getting or expecting an answer the boy drew closer, drawing his face near to Curtis's, searching his face for an answer, like a butcher might search for his blade

"Do you believe you are safe behind your spells?" the boy asked, tilting his head and still searching for a reaction, however this time his voice held something that terrified Curtis, despite his assured victory

Amusement

This-this child was amused! They looked at him like a bird might look at a fleeing prey, completely certain that tonight they would eat

Curtis stopped laughing and began to gently tug at his bonds

"Do you believe that you are safe?" the boy asked, his voice filled with the same level of condescension that a teacher may have with a student. The Child, his hair shadowing his fine features and his glowing purple eye staring into Curtis's very oil, lowered his head, getting close enough that he could smell feel his breath on his face whispered

"you are not"

Curtis recast {Airs Blessing}

Walking away from him and towards the windowsill the boy gently picked up the plant Kurtis had resting there, a cactus, one he had bought only recently during a small exploration of the western sea market before walking back to him, nursing the plant in his arms

"{Airs Blessing} a spell that uses mana fluctuations to alter the patterns of the air, condensing it around the user" The boy began to recount, sounding as he were reading off a manual "this spell creates a pillow of hardened air that is impervious to most physical and magical attacks below the Adeptus level, a level only attained by those who have studied at a magic academy for 5+ years or a considered high quality talent"

"Mmhmhmh" Curtis tried to speak, asking how the boy knew his secret weapon, the same ability that had gotten him to the rank of captain and had made him a king among men

Somehow Understanding his words the boy blinked before placing the cactus against his bed table, causing Curtis to notice that the boy only had one hand! He had been captured by a cripple?! He watched as the boy then placed a hand behind his back and pulled out a book, his personal journal, filled with notes and his personal experiences

Looking at the book with some amount of disgust the boy tossed it away, into the fireplace across the room before turning back to him "you really are scum" the boy nodded "i only read the main sections of the journal that focused on magic yet i encountered 7 different times you assaulted women, doing much the same thing you wanted to do to beastly" the boy spoke, his voice filled with frigid malice and contempt

Beasty?... That bitch from below decks!? He was here because of her? Oh when he got out of this he was going to-

"Now then…" the boy began, plucking a needle from the cactus and looking at Curtis with a face so dark that his one glowing eye seemed to shine like the sun "let us begin"