[ he makes himself look. it's not a trick of the light, it's not a weird effect of the shapeless robes. matt is as slender as keith, shoulders and arms and fine-boned hands, except for the distended shape of his stomach and maybe, maybe, the faint swell of his chest.
and matt is right. some part of him had already known. it's not a shock, it's a slow crackling touch of cold horror. ]
They… you. [ his voice sounds like it's coming from far away, vague and empty. ]
You're doing that for them. They're using you for that.
[ like an incubator. like an experiment. he thinks, hysterically, of every sci-fi horror movie he's ever seen about aliens terrorizing people to put things in them only to burst out of the bloody wrecks of their bodies.
somewhere far away, he can feel blue’s sudden awareness of his complete terror, coming alive in her hangar, lifting her head and roaring furiously; he can hear an alarm begin to blare in the distance.
he might faint, he thinks blearily. good thing he's already on his ass or his knees would've buckled under him.
then the black paladin is in the lion bond with him, steadying him. it's weak at this distance but the quintessence infusions are changing his sensitivity, making him more receptive. zarkon whispers quiet to him, dismissing his fears and the images in his mind, replacing them with other fleeting pictures. nests and kits and proud mothers, protective sires. feelings of safety, security.
he might still faint, honestly. he can hear how quick his breathing is, and he must be washed unhealthily pale. ]
no subject
and matt is right. some part of him had already known. it's not a shock, it's a slow crackling touch of cold horror. ]
They… you. [ his voice sounds like it's coming from far away, vague and empty. ]
You're doing that for them. They're using you for that.
[ like an incubator. like an experiment. he thinks, hysterically, of every sci-fi horror movie he's ever seen about aliens terrorizing people to put things in them only to burst out of the bloody wrecks of their bodies.
somewhere far away, he can feel blue’s sudden awareness of his complete terror, coming alive in her hangar, lifting her head and roaring furiously; he can hear an alarm begin to blare in the distance.
he might faint, he thinks blearily. good thing he's already on his ass or his knees would've buckled under him.
then the black paladin is in the lion bond with him, steadying him. it's weak at this distance but the quintessence infusions are changing his sensitivity, making him more receptive. zarkon whispers quiet to him, dismissing his fears and the images in his mind, replacing them with other fleeting pictures. nests and kits and proud mothers, protective sires. feelings of safety, security.
he might still faint, honestly. he can hear how quick his breathing is, and he must be washed unhealthily pale. ]