Warning: The NC-17 rating on this is for violence and non-con sex.
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Part Six - Visions of Hell
When Chakotay arrived in the spirit world, he was met by his spirit
guide, as always. Today, however, she didn't greet him in her usual
manner, by coming over to stroke against his leg. Instead, she looked at
him seriously and said, [We must hurry.]
Chakotay looked at the wolf. [Will you take me to Tom?] he asked her.
[Yes. Now, come. You do not have much time,] she added urgently, then
turned and walked into the forest.
Chakotay didn't hesitate, but hurried after her. Soon they were running
through the woods until they came to a clearing with a small cabin.
Here, the wolf stopped and looked at Chakotay.
Chakotay halted as well, and when he looked around, he saw a beautiful
falcon. It was sitting in a tree, staring at the cabin, and if a falcon could
look worried, this one did. Chakotay turned his head and looked at his
guide, whose attention was focused on the bird. Chakotay got the im-
pression that the two predators were somehow communicating.
After a moment, the falcon turned to study Chakotay for a while. [Tho-
mas is in there,] it finally said, looking back at the cabin. Then it looked
back at Chakotay. [If you wish to help him, you must enter.]
[But you must be warned,] the wolf added. When Chakotay looked at
her, she continued. [What you will see, if you choose to enter, will not
be pleasant.]
Chakotay nodded. He had expected that. Then he looked from the wolf
to the falcon and back again. [What is in there?] he asked.
[The answers Thomas is seeking,] the falcon answered. [That is all I can
tell you.] It seemed to hesitate, then added, [Also, when you are in there,
you cannot interfere with what you see. You are only an observer.]
Chakotay nodded again, then asked, [How do I find Tom?]
[You will find him,] the falcon answered. [And when you do, you must
convince him to leave with you. It might be difficult, but if you fail,
Thomas will be lost in there forever,] it added.
Chakotay nodded for the third time, then started towards the cabin where
Tom was. As he reached the door, Chakotay heard his spirit guide's
voice. [Child,] she said. [You must not forget, the exit is through the
golden door.]
[The golden door,] Chakotay repeated. [I'll remember that.] Then he
took a deep breath, opened the door and stepped inside. The door closed
behind him, leaving two spirit guides alone with each other, waiting for
their charges.
***
Chakotay stood in the cabin's only room, looking around. There was no
one else present and Chakotay frowned, puzzled. Tom was supposed to
be in here, wasn't he?
Suddenly Chakotay spotted a door in the darkest corner of the cabin. It
was glowing golden and Chakotay headed for it, remembering his
guide's words. When he reached it, Chakotay hesitated, strangely un-
willing to go through, afraid of what he'd find when he did.
Taking and releasing a deep breath, Chakotay straightened his spine and
squared his shoulders, then reached a hand out and opened the door.
When the door was open, Chakotay tried unsuccessfully to shake off his
apprehension before stepping through.
He only took a few steps through the door before he stopped, blinded by
the bright light in this new place. As his eyes adjusted, Chakotay heard
the door closing behind him and quickly turned around, only to find that
the door had disappeared. Fighting down his panic, Chakotay turned
again, then gasped in shock when he saw where he was.
Chakotay stood immobile as he took in the scene in front of him. He was
standing it what appeared to be a torture chamber. Chakotay slowly
looked around, and recognized a number of the torture devices from the
Federation history database. Something one of his friends in the Acad-
emy said had made him curious, and Chakotay had searched the data-
base for ancient torture devices.
Most of the devices in this room were used on Earth in the seventeenth
to nineteenth centuries. In one corner stood an Iron Maiden, a man-high
thing. The victim was pushed into it, and then the front was closed
slowly, causing the spikes on the inside to sink into various body-parts.
It caused the victim great pain, and if left in it, the victim would bleed to
death in a couple of days.
In another corner stood a pyramid-shaped device on the floor. Chains
hang from the wall. Chakotay frowned in concentration for a moment,
then he remembered. It was called a Judas Cradle. The victim was
hoisted up in the chains, and lowered onto the point of the pyramid in
such a way that his or her weight rested on the point positioned in the
anus, in the vagina, under the scrotum or under the coccyx (the last two
or three vertebrae). The executioner could vary the pressure from zero to
that of total body weight. The victim could be rocked, or made to fall
repeatedly onto the point.
Chakotay shuddered slightly in discomfort. It was amazing what the
human race had been capable of just 700 years ago, he thought. Taking
another deep breath, Chakotay steeled himself and continued his inspec-
tion of the room. There were some devices that he didn't recognize, but
which looked like they were as effective as the Iron Maiden and the Ju-
das Cradle.
Then Chakotay spotted a table a few feet from where he stood. It was
filled with smaller devices, and Chakotay recognized two of them. The
first was a thumbscrew, a simple and very efficient instrument. It was
used to crush the knuckles, phalanges and nails of fingers and toes.
The other instrument Chakotay could identify was called a cat's paw. It
was about as large as four fingers of a man's hand, and attached to a
short handle. It served to rip the victim's flesh to shreds and to strip it
off the bones, in any part: face, abdomen, back, limbs, breasts.
Tearing his eyes away from the table with it's horrifying instruments,
Chakotay once again looked around the room. This time he noticed the
mattress along the opposite wall and the naked figure lying on it, its
back to the rest of the room. Chakotay squinted his eyes, trying to iden-
tify who it was. When he failed, Chakotay silently started to move
across the room.
When he was close enough to see the person clearly, Chakotay stopped
abruptly and stared. "Holy Spirits," he gasped quietly. It was a man, and
judging by the blond hair and the familiar form of the back, it was Tom
Paris. But that wasn't what had made Chakotay gasp. It was the wounds
and bruises that completely covered the normally pale back that had
caused Chakotay's shock. Not to mention the obvious signs of a recent,
and brutal, rape.
Before Chakotay could do anything, the only door to the room opened,
and a man entered. Chakotay watched as the other man moved across the
room to where Tom lay. He passed Chakotay as if the Commander
wasn't there, and stopped beside the mattress. Looking down at Tom
with hard eyes, the man smiled cruelly. "Thomas, get up!" he ordered
coldly.
Chakotay studied the man carefully, but didn't recognize him. He was
about Harry Kim's height, had light brown hair, green eyes and the
coldest, most cruel expression on his face that Chakotay had *ever*
seen.
When Tom didn't react to his demand, the man moved his foot back,
then kicked Tom hard in the small of his back. Tom didn't even flinch.
He just lay motionless on the mattress, not making a sound. The other
man cursed and kicked Tom again. "Thomas, don't ignore me. You
won't like the consequences if you ignore my orders," he stated.
That got a reaction. Tom slowly rolled over to face the man. When Tom
was on his back, he looked up at his tormentor and, despite the many
wounds and bruises covering his body, Tom smirked. "And you think
I... enjoyed the things you've done to me so far?" he asked sarcastically.
"Maybe not," the man answered. "But if you ignore me again, I'll put
you in the Judas Cradle, or maybe the Iron Maiden. And believe me,
you'll enjoy *them* even less." He paused to let his words sink in, then
ordered, "Now, get up!"
Tom hesitated for a moment. Then he sat up, slowly and painfully.
When he vas vertical, Tom sat for a minute, gathering his strength be-
fore he rose to his feet and looked at the other man. "Well, now I'm up,"
Tom said. "So, what have you planned to do to me *this* time, Gerald?"
Gerald smiled unpleasantly, gripped Tom's arm and led him over to the
pole in the other end of the room, Chakotay following closely behind
them. Once they got to their destination, Gerald chained Tom to the
pole, then finally answered the young man's question. "You'll find out
what I have planned for you soon enough, Thomas Eugene," he said
with a nasty smile.
Tom turned his head as best he could, looking at the other man, not
seeming to see Chakotay. Tom had his best hotshot, fly-boy expression
plastered across his face, the one that drove Chakotay up the wall. "I
don't doubt it for a moment, Gerald *Hector*," he said in a tone that
perfectly matched his facial expression.
Gerald seemed to find the expression and the tone as annoying as Cha-
kotay usually did. He narrowed his eyes and for the first time since he
entered the room, Gerald looked angry. "I'm gonna break you yet," he
hissed through clenched teeth.
Tom laughed mockingly. "I wouldn't count on it, if I were you," he said
with a taunting smile. "You've had me here, what? Three days? And you
haven't broken me yet."
Gerald's expression changed into one of fury and he lifted his hand, as if
to hit the chained man. Then he let it fall to his side again, and without a
word, Gerald walked to the door and left the room.
As soon as the door closed after Gerald, Chakotay moved closer to Tom,
intending to unchain the other man and get him out of this place. How-
ever, when Chakotay got close enough to Tom that he should be able to
touch him, Chakotay discovered that he couldn't do anything. He
couldn't touch Tom, or the chains, and Chakotay realized that this was
not the Tom Paris he had come here to find. This was obviously the
scene that his spirit guide had told him that he couldn't interfere with.
Chakotay closed his eyes and cursed under his breath. Although this
wasn't strictly *his* Tom Paris, Chakotay wanted to help the other man,
get him out of here. His heart pounded with fury at the sight of Tom's
abused body and he wanted to hurt Gerald for doing this. When Chako-
tay had listened to Tom and Gerald's conversation earlier, he'd admired
Tom's 'Fuck-you' attitude, while at the same time wishing that the
young man would show some sense and stop infuriating his tormentor.
When Gerald had said that he was going to break Tom, it had taken all
of Chakotay's formidable self-control not to jump at the man and beat
him to a bloody pulp. It would've been a waste of time, of course, but at
the time Chakotay hadn't realized that he couldn't interfere. Not that it
would have mattered if he'd known. He knew it now and it *still* took
all of his self-control not to try and find Gerald and beat the shit out of
the bastard.
Suddenly Chakotay remembered the Tom Paris he was supposed to find
and get out of here. With one last look at the one chained to the pole,
Chakotay looked around the room again, this time searching for Voy-
ager's senior pilot.
At first, Chakotay couldn't see anyone else in the room, and he frowned
in concern. 'What if Tom wasn't here?' he wondered, then caught a
flash of blond hair and a tiny movement out of the corner of his eye.
Turning towards the far end of the room, Chakotay spotted a large chest
with a person sitting beside it. Chakotay quickly strode towards the
trunk, knowing that it had to be Tom.
When Chakotay reached Tom, he saw that the pilot had pressed himself
into the corner of the trunk and the wall, and was staring into the room
with a vacant expression. Chakotay crouched down in front of Tom,
blocking the young man's view of everything else. Tom didn't react, and
Chakotay realized that the other man was in shock and had retreated into
his own mind. The Commander sighed, knowing that he had to draw
Tom out of this condition, but also knowing that it would be difficult, to
say the least.
With the outmost care, Chakotay reached out a hand and gently touched
Tom's arm. "Tom," he said quietly, trying to get the young man's atten-
tion. It didn't work. Tom didn't even flinch, and Chakotay wondered
how he was going to do this. He had no intention of failing, but he didn't
know how to draw Tom out of his own mind.
Suddenly there was the sound of a door opening and closing, and Chako-
tay knew that Gerald had returned. Chakotay turned slightly to look at
the man who was responsible for hurting two versions of the man Cha-
kotay had come to respect, the man he was highly attracted to, the man
he... Chakotay cut off the thought, not wanting to go there. Right now,
there were more important things to think about. Like how to help Tom.
As his thoughts wandered, Chakotay had studied Gerald. Suddenly the
Commander started when he noticed why the other man had left the
room. Gerald was heading towards the pole, carrying a riding crop. Cha-
kotay's eyes widened. Surely the man wasn't going to...
Chakotay's half-formed question was answered when Gerald reached
the pole, lifted his arm and let the riding crop lash across the other
Tom's still-bleeding back. Chakotay inhaled sharply and gritted his
teeth. Every instinct in him was screaming for him to do something, and
Chakotay fought hard to stay where he was, and not run over to kill Ge-
rald. The only thing keeping Chakotay motionless, crouching in front of
his own Tom Paris, was the knowledge that he couldn't actually hurt Ge-
rald.
Gerald lifted his arm again, and once again the leather strap landed on
Tom's back. And again. And again. Over and over until Tom's back
looked like a giant open wound. Only then did Gerald stop, and even
from where he sat, Chakotay could see the anger and frustration on Ge-
rald's face. Chakotay could understand why the man was frustrated.
Tom hadn't made the slightest sound while he was being whipped, and
Chakotay had to admire him for that.
Gerald stood in silence and watched Tom for a while, then he suddenly
threw the riding crop on the floor and turned to head towards Chakotay
and the silent man behind him. Even though Chakotay knew that Gerald
couldn't see them, he still shifted slightly so Tom was completely hid-
den behind him.
When Gerald reached them, he opened the trunk and looked into it for a
moment, obviously trying to decide which of the items in it he wanted to
use. After a while, Gerald shook his head and closed the trunk again.
"No, I think I'll *enjoy* his body again," he muttered, chuckling quietly
as he turned to walk back to the man he held prisoner.
At Gerald's words, Chakotay ground his teeth, and his hands curled into
fists as he fought the nearly uncontrollable desire to attack and kill the
other man. However, Chakotay was distracted from his murderous rage
when Gerald's chuckle made Tom whimper behind him.
Chakotay quickly turned around to look at Tom. The young man's va-
cant expression had been replaced with one of sheer horror, and when
Chakotay reached a hand out and touched the pilot, Tom recoiled vio-
lently, trying to press himself further into the corner of the trunk and the
wall.
Chakotay grimaced and silently cursed himself for not realizing that, of
course Tom would recoil from his touch. Quickly removing his hand
from the other man, Chakotay spoke quietly but intensely, hoping that
Tom would recognize his voice. "Tom, it's all right. It's just me. Chako-
tay," he said gently. Tom didn't move, but he seemed to be listening, so
Chakotay continued. "Come on, Tom. You know me. You know I won't
hurt you." For what seemed a long time, Chakotay kept repeating his
words, telling Tom who he was, and that he wouldn't hurt him.
At first Tom didn't seem to react, then he suddenly slowly blinked and
focused on the man in front of him. "Chakotay?" he whispered uncer-
tainly.
Chakotay sighed in relief. "Yes, Tom," he answered.
Tom frowned in confusion. "Where are we?" he asked, still in a whisper.
"We're in the spirit world," Chakotay told him softly, slowly lifting his
hand to gently touch Tom's cheek. "Remember?"
Tom frowned in confusion for a moment longer, then his expression
cleared. "Yes. I came to find out about my nightmare, didn't I." It was
more a statement than a question.
"That's right," Chakotay said. "Do you remember what happened?"
Tom nodded uncertainly. "My spirit guide brought me to a clearing in
the forest. There was a small cabin. She told me that I could find my an-
swers here." Tom looked questioningly into Chakotay's eyes. When the
older man nodded encouragingly, Tom continued. "She warned me. Said
that it would be unpleasant, but that I couldn't interfere. I remember that
I hesitated before I opened the door. When I came into the cabin there
was no one else there, only a door. I walked over to it and hesitated for a
long time before I opened it and went through it."
Tom hesitated and bit his lip, then went on. "I really didn't want to go
through the door, but I needed to get answers, so I did it anyway. When I
had walked through it, I was blinded by a bright light. That's all I re-
member," Tom finished. Then he looked questioningly at Chakotay.
"Why are you here? I always thought that you weren't allowed to inter-
fere with someone else's meditation."
"You're right. Normally, I wouldn't intrude in another's meditation, but
this was an emergency." Chakotay saw the confusion return to Tom's
face, and explained. "I was sitting across from you, waiting for you to
finish. Suddenly you got an apprehensive expression on your face,
which quickly turned to determination. Then for the longest time your
face was expressionless, before you went pale and looked shocked. But
the shock was quickly replaced with fear, and then sheer terror."
Chakotay stopped speaking for a moment, not wanting to tell Tom the
rest, but knowing that he had to. Tom deserved to know. After running a
hand through his hair, Chakotay quickly finished his explanation. "I
tried everything I could think of to bring you out of the meditation, but
nothing worked."
Tom looked at his XO. "So you got worried and decided to come in after
me," he concluded with a slight smile.
For a split-second Chakotay returned the smile, then it disappeared.
"Yes, I got worried," he admitted. "But I didn't decide to come in after
you until you started to scream."
Tom's eyes widened. "I screamed?" he asked.
Chakotay nodded. "For a long time. When you finally stopped scream-
ing, you got so quiet that I was afraid that something had happened to
you," he explained. "*That's* when I decided to come here and get you
out."
Tom had just opened his mouth to speak again, when the two men heard
someone screaming in pain. They turned around and saw the other Tom
Paris bent over a table. Gerald stood behind him, brutally forcing his
cock into the young man's ass while resting his hands on Tom's bleed-
ing back.
Chakotay heard a quiet gasp from behind him and quickly turned to look
at Tom. The young man was staring at the scene before them in horror.
Tom whimpered and closed his eyes, and Chakotay took the younger
man in his arms and pressed the blond head against his shoulder, pre-
venting Tom from seeing any more. Not that it helped much. They could
still hear the other Tom's screams of pain, and Gerald's cruel laughter.