106- Torturous Recompense

"Fucking hell, Uru!" Quayleigh shrieked as she stumbled back. "That's nasty. Get back in your dimension before you get blood on the floor! And why are you covered in blood? Actually, never mind, just go upstairs and wait for me in the shower."

Slipping back into the void, Uroxuz moved about the condo ignoring all manner of obstacle, be it couch, table, or structure. Floating up through the ceiling, he pushed through the walls, and entered into the large master bathroom. Leaving his dimension, he coiled up in the shower and curiously tapped at the glass wall before sniffing the air and examining the metal showerheads. He hadn't fully understood Quayleigh's reaction to his arrival, and once he had confirmed his surroundings, he laid down to contemplate the tone she had taken.

To him, she had sounded angry, but he wasn't certain that she was angry at him. He knew that he had only done what he had been told to do, and even though it had been Tauluthet that had ordered the ripe fruits demise, she had been contemplating it earlier in the day. And that lead to him wondering if she was still feeling unwell and if it was the fault of whatever the now mushed fruit had been playing with.

"Uru," Quayleigh said once she had entered the bathroom wearing nothing but her undergarments. "Sorry I snapped at you down there, but you are an absolute mess."

Looking down at his hands, he was certain he had licked them clean, and she sighed as he looked up at her. Her eyes were heavy, she was slow to move, and her shoulders hung lower than normal.

"Your hands are the cleanest part of you," she spoke quietly, and motioned to the mirror.

Turning to look at his reflection, he saw that his scales were coated with the muddy crimson of his enemy's blood. He hadn't noticed or cared as this had never before been a problem. Eating had always been a clean thing. Bite. Tear. Swallow. But this had been different. This had not been clean. This had been messy.

"I don't need the details." He turned to the touch of her hand beneath his chin while she spoke. "But is this the Magister's?"

"Yes," he replied and felt her fingers twitch against his scales.

"Did you do this because of me?"

"Not because. For. Make him suffer as she has. That is what he ordered of me," he replied, her hand slipping away as she sunk to the floor and closed her eyes.

"Thank you," she whispered, "thank you for making him stop."

Lowering his nose to her cheek, he bumped it gently. He liked how it felt when she was against him and he liked that his action made her smile, even if the sadness in her eyes refused to fade.

"Uru, you're going to get blood on me," she protested as he lowered himself further and pressed his head into her chest. "Uru, what did I…" She sighed and draped herself over him. "Never mind. It's not like I couldn't use a shower. Besides, I've always wanted to bathe in the blood of my enemies."

He enjoyed the way she rubbed at the sides of his face, especially the way the warmth from her hands seeped through the small sensory scales located behind his eyes. Even as he had several more of these special scales spread around the tip of his nose and the outer edge of his boney head plate, the two nearest his eyes were the largest and most sensitive. Every touch made the end of his tail curl in delight as her warmth radiated down the length of his body rolling like waves through his entire nervous system. This was the only sensation he had experienced that came close to the intensity of her taste or brought him near equal enjoyment.

He heard her giggle as she laid limp against his head. "Earlier today, did you cut me off on purpose when we were alone in my room at the MET?"

"The small one approached. I could not wait and risk him hearing your words that were meant for me."

"Did you know what I was going to say?"

"You said, 'Late tonight, when he's alone.' I could feel your intent but should not presume to know the words you would speak."

"I was going to tell you to enjoy a good meal," she admitted as she sat back on her knees and rubbed at his nose.

"Ripe, plump, and fresh. Seasoned…" he abruptly stopped remembering that she hadn't wanted to hear the details.

"You did good, Uroxuz. Thank you for protecting me."

Her words made him shudder in delight, his lips falling open into a grizzly smile. Her approval making him feel light and fuzzy on the inside.

"Alright, time to get cleaned up," she said as she stood and made her way over to the panel on the wall.

He watched as she pressed several of the buttons and then without warning, something struck him from above. Startled by the sudden spray of water, he threw himself against the back wall, his heart pounding as he gasped, his arms outstretched and pressed against the tiles.

Quayleigh burst out laughing as he struggled to avoid the chilly water.

"Sorry! Sorry!" she continued to laugh, "I should have warned you, but that was priceless!" She snorted as she tried to settle herself.

"Torturous thing! Why does it sting?" He cried out as he shook his head and clasped at the sides of his head.

"Sting?" Quayleigh quickly shut off the water and rushed towards him. "Where? Where does it hurt?"

"Constricting agony. Sharp and searing. Ice to flesh," he relayed as she cupped her hands over top of his.

"I'm so sorry. I didn't think the cold would bother you like this," she said slipping her hands beneath his and began to massage at his scales.

"I heard shouting. Is everything alright in here?" Tau questioned as he ran into the bathroom.

"Yeah, sorry. It was my fault. The water was too cold, and I didn't warn him. I wasn't thinking," she explained.

Her voice was soft as his blanket and the heat of hands was the comfort found beneath it. Even Tau's presence had not lost him her attention, and the pain melted away.

"Is that better?" she asked as her thumbs stroked across his scales.

"Yes, delightful," he answered swaying slightly to her touch.

"Are these shinier scales sensitive to temperature?"

"It is sight without eyes," he said as he lifted his head and closed his eyes the world revealing itself through dots of light. "The lighter, the brighter, the colder and closer. The shapes of things in hues of the sun." Opening his eyes, he looked down at her. "This does not hurt."

"So, it was the contact?"

"Yes. Contact hurts or soothes," he said as he placed his hands back on the sides of his head.

"Then I suspect you are actually going to enjoy this, once the water gets warm."

"And you would dare to shower with someone that isn't me?" Tau questioned, causing Quayleigh to turn around and face him.

"There's no need to get jealous. I'm not showering with him. I'm helping him shower. There's a difference. I'd be giving him a bath if we had a big enough tub, but since I don't see a swimming pool around here, this is going to have to do. Also, unlike with you, I'm not entirely naked. Uru, come over here by the door so you don't get splashed again."

Moving across to the other side of the shower, he tucked himself tightly against the wall as far away from the shower heads as he could manage, and once he was in position, Quayleigh turned the water back on before stepping out into the bathroom.

"Give it a little bit of time and then test it with your hand. Then tell me if you want me to adjust it," she told him before turning her attention to Tau. "There is always the option of you joining us, but as soon as we're cleaned up, I really need to lay down for a while."

"Are you certain you don't want me to handle this?"

"No, it's fine. It's not like I don't need the shower now too. I can't exactly jump into bed like this."

"No, I suppose you shouldn't," Tau said as he swept her hair back over her shoulder.

"Could you do me a favor and go and get some extra towels from the closet and a couple of face cloths before you strip down and join us?"

"I'll be back in a minute," he replied before leaving the room.

"Tested the water yet?" she asked as she came back into the shower.

"Not yet," Uroxuz replied and watched as she stretched out her hand, letting the water run over it.

"I think it's perfect but tell me what you think."

Shifting closer to the water, he extended his arm and unfurled his fingers allowing them to be enveloped by the flow. Retracting his hand, he rubbed the water between his fingers and over his palm finding it to be much to his liking; it was warm, like her. Dunking his hand back into the flow of water, he filled his palm, lowered his head and dumped the water onto his sensory scale. It didn't sting or hurt, but rather filled him with a comforting, relaxing heat.

"Is it warm enough?" she asked as she turned and stepped back into the shower.

"Yes," he replied, watching her run her hands up over her head and down her neck, her fingers scrubbing away the blood that had found its way onto her body.

"Well come on in then," she urged him forward as she grabbed his hands and tugged at him.

Lowering his head, he moved forward through the water falling from the showerhead above. Blinking his eyes, he shook his head, only to have her quickly grab a hold of his nose.

"Careful. You almost smacked your face on the showerhead," she said as she turned him around, moving him back through the water. "Can you stretch out and lay down under the water for me?"

Following her instructions, he coiled himself up under the flow of water and closed his eyes, immersing himself into the experience, the lights dancing around him, taking various shapes, bright, intense, and blinking.

"Here you are." Tau's voice came from the entrance of the shower causing Uroxuz to open his eyes. "I put the towels on the counter," he said as she took one of the facecloths he was holding.

"Alright, head or tail?" she asked, turning around to face Uroxuz as Tau, who was completely naked, stepped up beside her.

There was something sinister in their eyes that caused him to slink back, uncertain of what was about to happen as Quayleigh grabbed a black and blue bottle from the shelf on the back wall. A potent fragrance soon filled the shower as she popped open the lid and poured a thick, bright blue, liquid into the cloths they were holding.

"Head," Tau smirked while massaging the cloth until a white foam began to erupt out between his fingers. "Sorry my friend, but this is long overdue."

Quayleigh and Tau spent the next several minutes, turning the water off and on, covering him in bubbles, rubbing and scrubbing in between, as they attempted to remove the blood from Uroxuz's body. Quayleigh had to stop more than once to step away as the bits of bone and fleshy remains dislodged from under his larger scales, causing her to gag and cringe.

"Nope, that's it, I'm done," she gagged one final time, dropping the red stained cloth near Uroxuz's hand as she buried her mouth into the inside of her elbow.

Looking down at the cloth, he could see a smooth, slimy, pink blob of something fleshy sticking out from beneath its edge.

"That's brain. That's a piece of fucking brain," she complained as she leaned against the back wall with her eyes closed. "Never, and I mean NEVER, come back to this house like this, EVER again! I don't fucking care how bad someone deserves whatever the hell it is that you did, but just don't!"

"I am sorry," Uroxuz replied, the way she was struggling causing him to feel uneasy.

Something had made him want to reach out and comfort her, but he tucked his hands inward seeing how much she was struggling to be near him at the time.

"Hey, why don't you let me finish up with this?" Tau asked, moving over to her.

"Yeah, except that I still need to shower. I feel dirtier than I did before we got started," she replied as she turned and leaned her head against his shoulder.

"It's fine. Go use the shower in the guest room. I'll take care of this."

"Shit," she groaned, "I completely forget there was another shower here."

"You're exhausted. It's understandable," Tau chuckled as she stood up and cracked her neck and back.

"Alright, I'll be in the other shower," she stated as she stepped around him and moved up in front of Uroxuz. "When you're done, dry off as best you can with the towels, and then stretch out on the bedroom floor for a bit. And I'll see the both of you later."

Quayleigh gave him a quick kiss on the nose before turning around and leaving the shower. Picking up a towel, she wiped her feet and left the room, shutting the door behind her.

"She is upset," he said as he turned and looked back at Tau.

"You did come back in a gruesome state. Humans don't seem to handle seeing their insides very well," Tau remarked with a smirk. "It's clear you handled that filth as I requested, but did you take care of the other matter?"

"Yes. I took the things he toyed with to pretty Cole. Then I returned and peeled the ripe, fragrant, fruit. Plucked flesh from bone. Left nothing whole. It quaked and shrieked as I devoured it. I have not tasted such a thing before; seasoned ripe fruit, fit for our lord's table."

"I'm glad you enjoyed it. Despair and agony truly are some of the best seasonings."