Of Blight and Misery.

Author: DOXOlove
Word Count: 4,080-ish.
Rating: NC-17 (M/M Undead, bizzare situational, not for the non-adventurous.)
Notes: ATTENTION: CONTAINS WOTLK LORE SPOILERS. You don't have to read into the lore to enjoy the story though. Grand Apothecary Putress and Seth related. (more about this original character can be found here; http://community.livejournal.com/wow_fanart/335889.html#cutid1 ) Takes place in New Agamand after a unfortunate event with a Blight Cannon. I am so shameless.


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Of Blight and Misery-


New Agamand is a small settlement established on the south end of the luscious and expansive forests of the Howling Fjord. In the distance lie the Alliance establishment of Valgarde, even further north, the ominous Vrykul pinnacle; Utgarde Keep.It only took several years to complete this Forsaken settlement, but the studies and work that entered and filled the black buildings was not as youthful.

For many years The Royal Apothecary Society had been deep in thought and experimentation with the idea of procuring the 'New Plague'; a force so devastating and destructive, that it could wipe out their scourged enemies and the living as well. Grand Apothecary Putress is at the head of all the new plague operations, his brilliance and cunning taking shape in the ever growing destruction his understudies attempt to create. By necessity (one could almost say curiosity), Putress establishes his current force of operations in New Agamand itself. There he overlooks the progression of his plagues, blights, and the many experiments that went along with them.

Putress only brought a few person ell with him; several understudies with the ability to work with the machines and devices used to hold the plagues, and one particular, strange undead that he referred to as 'his personal assistant' (Said undead would scowl whenever those words were used). His assistant wore plain Apothecary robes, but his shock of sea blue hair and golden orbs under a furrowed brow emanated disdain and loathing. An ever lasting frown etched itself into the muscles surrounding his thin jaw, his expression never changing, no matter who or what was being spoken to.

"Seth," Putress begins, striding in front of his 'assistant' in the courtyard, "Have you any news of the experimental blight vessels I asked for yesterday?" he holds his arms behind his back, his brow less gaze peering slightly over his shoulder at the person he was addressing.

"To the wonderful codd that was in charge of selecting our mechanics," Seth drolls, looking straight forward and away from Putress, "I would bless their families with excruciating undeaths and many unfavorable curses." He sighs inwardly, looking down at a small piece of parchment, "...After several hours, they managed to construct a core that did not fall appart at the touch, yet still have to incorporate a triggering mechanism."

"Were they successful?"

"Am I a foster mother, master? The hell if I know. They should have, unless they found a deep new appreciation for the wilderness and spent their night bonding with Shoveltusks."

"A simple 'I don't know' would have sufficed."

"Hmf."


The two proceeded to their destination in silence after that, taking in the sights of other experiments and mechanisms needed to help foster their blight. Strange ballistas made of Skulls, bone, and wood stood ready along the perimeter of the camp. Massive tanks of glowing liquid lined the black houses accompanied by random workers and Apothecaries. They worked diligently through random explosions and crashes, failed experiments wailing or melting in front of them as they jotted down the results on parchment.

At the opposite side of the encampment was a mess of mechanics, toiling over large container-like contraptions, the others taking notes and measurements of the containers and ballistas near them. The newly acquired presence of Putress and Seth, sent many of them 'urgently away', knowing that any mistake made in front of their superiors would cost them. The unfortunate few that remained were in for a surprise when the two dark presences loomed over their shoulders,

"Are you done?" Putress questioned a green goggled mechanic prodding one of the containers. The mechanic nearly jumped out of his skin when he was addressed, almost tipping the canister over.

"S-sir! We installed the trigger and safety lock to the bottom of the canister..." The mechanic tipped the vessel over to show them a large protrusion on the underbelly, littered with several blinking lights and buttons that may (or may not) have been important.

"Will it hold the blight?"

"Yes sir."

"How large of an area will it impact?"

"About a three-hundred yard radius, sir."

"Mmm.. Small, but will do. You can adjust it later. Get one ready for me."

"Sir!" The mechanic clumsily bows and turns around to grab the canister and carry it away. The Grand Apothecary smiles and tilts his head towards Seth,

"Think it actually works?"

"Doubtful." Seth crosses his arms and turns his head towards the direction the mechanic ran off to, "Varimathras wont be pleased when we return in urns."

"You're awfully negative today." Putress smile fades, his only response a small 'hmf' from his assistant. Seth was never a 'bundle of joy', but his negative attitude and presence threw even the most optimal person for a loop. Putress knew the man was extremely intelligent and powerful, yet really had no motivation outside of his ordered work and studies. Seth still remained an inexplainable mystery for the man that thought he knew everything.

Only several minutes passed before the mechanic returned to them with the large vessel, now glowing a bright neon green in the center. Putress' smile returns as he sees the glowing capsule, his yellow orbs widening,

"Splendid. Fire it at the Vrykul village over there," He points his finger in front of him at a strange village several hundred feet away; the massive lodgings lined with heads of wooden and metal dragon statues. The mechanic nods and orders a few others near them to prepare a ballista with precise coordinates. It takes them a few minutes to turn the large machine they way they need it, and another few to ready the cannister.

"Uh, Sir, we have a problem.." The same mechanic from before has his brows furrowed deep into his googles as he looms over the side of the ballista, "The saftey lock... Wont unlock."

"An unlockable lock? Afraid you'd explode yourself?" Seth's hand is now massaging the side of his forehead out of irritability, "Why put one in there when you can't even make it work?"

"It-it was working a few moments ago.."

"Then it will work now. Move over." The blue haired undead pushes the mechanic away from the side of the ballista, disgruntled that he has to do someone else's job. He tilts the canister over to examine the buttons and surface again. The large protrusion in the center seemed to be pulled into the vessel. He taps a finger on it and turns his head,

"This comes out?" The mechanic nods at Seth reluctantly, Seth then turns his head back to the canister and taps it a few more times. Nothing happens. He taps it harder, listening to the metal vibrate, his irritation growing further. Seth eventually growls at the canister and bangs his fist on it, something inside of the vessel makes a large metallic clank in the liquid, then he hears the popping of the metal center returning to its normal state.

"Fixed?" He rests his arm on the vessel and raises his other to showcase the back of it.

"Y-yeah...That looks fine, b-but sir it may.."

"We've waited long enough. Stand back." Seth eyes the ballista for the lever quickly, making sure Putress and all of the others around them are a secure distance from the machine. Once found, he turns his head to the side to look at his master and the bemused smile on his face; he had a small hand-held telescope perched over one eye in the direction of the cannon's path. The side of Seth's mouth quirks slightly as he pulls the lever....

CRACK

There was a small explosion as the vessel left the ballista, a corner of its casing shot backwards at the Apothecary in a raging streak of green, the rest of the cannister soaring through the sky towards its appropriate destination. The shrapnel and blight seared through the right side of Seth's jaw, piercing the flesh and traveling diagonally to impact in his upper left rib. The shock sent the Apothecary soaring to the ground, skidding a few feet before rolling onto his back in a crumpled heap.

Putress frowns, watching the vessel land in the Vrykul village with nothing but a loud 'thunk', no explosions or green mists radiating from it. "Well, that obviously didn't..." he lowers his telescope and looks down at his fallen assistant, "...Work, dear God. What happened to you?"

"Shit...!" Seth wheezes through a clenched jaw, his hand shakily coming up to the wound on his face. He tries to raise himself, but an inexplainable weakness and pain.... Pain he should not feel, enters his body. It burns into the impacted parts of his flesh, the skin surrounding the right side of his jaw and the tear of his robes near his chest are smoking, a green tinge licking the exposed flesh and bone, the growing burn radiating slowly through his body. He couldn't get up. He brings his other arm shakily to the sky, wincing, "P-putress..!"

"This isn't good." The Grand Apothecary kneels down and grabs a hold of the wandering ligament. He takes his other arm and digs it underneath the crumpled figure on the ground, hooking it around the right side of his waist. A wave of unfamiliar nausea hits the wounded undead as he's lifted from the earth and is forced to stand upright,

"I'm not losing this one. You clowns better DAMN WELL FIX that defective vessel by the time I return, So help me, the same blight will visit you in your sleep." Putress snarls at the mechanics, supporting Seth's growing weight by guiding him from waist and shoulder. The mechanics recoil and flee from his path, the Apothecary teeming with newfound rage,

"We're going back to my quarters. Force yourself to walk until we get there." His voice is low, not filled with the same malice as he spat with the mechanics but a guttural slur as he aids his fallen assistant back to his quarters.


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Seth is left on a bed in the corner of a dimly lit room. He stares vacantly up at the ceiling as he feels things he thought he would never have felt again in undeath. Blind pain radiates from his face and chest, sending a fire down his arms and stomach. His limbs are heavy and his thoughts clouded. 'So this is the blight we've created..' A part of him is pleased that the effects are torturous enough for even the undead to enjoy. With or without him, the Apothecaries would eventually gift the world with the same treatment, only a thousand times worse...

His thoughts are interrupted by a familiar figure barging into the room. The Apothecary is carrying a slew of small metal instruments and corked vials full of different colored liquids, he lays them on a nearby shelf and turns his attention towards Seth,

"You are lucky it was mostly shrapnel. However, you can never be sure..." He takes a small metal tube and flicks the side of it. An eerie purple flame spouts from the top of the tube as he holds it close, "I need to cauterize the impacted areas."

"Fire..." Seth whispers hoarsley, "I'll..."

"Catch on fire, I know, I'm not that stupid. Arcane flares still singe flesh where you point it, but have a less of a chance to trigger a chain reaction..." He holds the flame close to Seth's face, the blue haired undead's lips thin.

"Well... Usually. But you have no choice." The purple flare slowly comes in contact with his jaw, the flesh and bone smoking away and crumbling to ash as he carefully traces the tainted wound. It only took Putress several minutes to trace the gash on his face, but now his brow furrowed as he looked at his work...

"I need to strip you." He says plainly. Seth turns his head towards him, the words just notably sinking in,

"...What."

"It hit your chest, I saw the smoke." Putress flicks his hand over a scorched gash on the left side of Seth's robes.

"...."

"Oh, get over it."

Putress helps remove the robe and upper part of of a reluctant Seth's clothing, all the while the blue haired apothecary stares daggers at his master, his jaw clenched tight... Putress' deductions were of course correct; A large gaping hole nestled above and exposing his left upper rib, the residue from the large piece of shrapnel pulled farther down into his abdomen, partially ripping away more skin to show glistening dark red rot.

While Putress worked on searing away the tainted skin, he chouldn't help but notice a variety or other scars littering his assistant's body; the deep consumption of the plague that killed him left him with black bones and thin skin on his left arm, gnarled and painful scars on his right. He observed Seth quietly, his expression neutral and unchanging... Seth left his dark gaze on Putress the entire time, ready to (try and) get the hell out of there when he was finished.

The arcane flare vanished and the smoldering flesh was finally void of any of the blight's taint. Putress left Seth for a moment to busy himself with the variety of instruments on the desk,

"Done...?" Seth dared a question he knew he would get an unfavorable answer to.

"Drink this." Putress holds a medium sized vial full of bright pink liquid in front of Seth, who accepts it without question. He could move his arms again and the pain had dulled slightly, making the small movement bearable. Seth downs the liquid quickly, only to be met with another vial, "...And this." The second vial was filled with an opaque blue liquid that swirled radiantly together with hints of violet. The second vial was drank and the wounded apothecary sank back into the bed, closing his eyes for a moment...

"We.. Can never be sure it's gone." Putress returns to Seth's side and sits on the bed, a frown surrounding his inquisitive face, "There's only one other way to make sure the plague still isn't in your body."

Something happened. Deep inside of the blue haired Apothecary, he felt things awaken he hadn't felt in years; the burn began to amplify once again, something inside of him began to move... Seth shuddered, then gasped softly as an unfamiliar warmth spread from his rotten organs...

Warmth.

"What..." He breathed, his mouth quivering, "What did you..." then it hit him. It was moving, slowly, easing out and away from slumber, so foreign. "My blood... Is moving."

"Correct." Putress smiles. He leans in further to make close eye contact with Seth, "But that's not all..." Deathly close to his assistant, his words were breathed into a faltering gaze that was slowly becoming more and more uncomfortable...

"You can feel everything."

His hands, the now needed air that filled his decrepit lungs, the heat and cold of another body close to his... His nervous system was working. Seth shudders again, now trying to pull himself away from his master in one frantic movement. The rush of the movement caused a strange vertigo, collapsing his body back onto the bed as the muscles of his right arm and hand spasmed uncontrollably,

"F-fuck!" he sputters, clutching his spasming arm in the other, his mind racing, heat racing straight to his chest--- He was then met with strong arms grasping either sides of his shoulders, wild golden orbs staring deep into his own.

"Calm. Down." Putress spoke the words fluidly, sternly. The Grand Apothecary stared fiercely into his pupil's confused face, his thin lips pressed together only lifting to speak slowly, "Freaking the fuck out isn't going to help. You'll have a heart attack and be dead again. This time for good. It also spreads the blight faster, this isn't how we have to get rid of it."

Seth takes in a ragged breath. He is furious, shaking, and utterly confused to be feeling all of this all at once. He swallows dryly, "H-how.."

Here's another answer he would not like.

"We need to sweat it out."

"...."

"It's the fastest, most reliant way to purge toxins from the body. I'd throw you in the steam room or the Hot Springs if we were close enough... But that isn't an option. There's very little time left."

Putress' grip on Seth's shoulders loosens, his hands gently encircle either side of his assistant's quivering face, bringing his forehead to rest on his, "I don't want to do this to you." He whispers, closing his eyes, "...But I still need you." His lips gently meet Seth's, pressing down on them lightly as he feels the lower Apothecary tense.

For one awkward moment, Seth's newly animated blood and nerves completely froze. This has never happened to him before. He did not desire intimacy, yet he could not force his body from the interaction that just transpired. He felt a new wave of warmth flow over him, the living nerves in his body tingling, focusing their attention on the hands caressing his face and the lips intertwined with his own.

This is wrong. This is wrong. This is wrong...He couldn't stop it. His jaw unclenched and he finally gives into the touch, the warmth wandering further as he spread his lips to accommodate the other, shuddering a heated breath into his master's mouth. Putress did not smile, he did not laugh. Instead, he carefully brought the rest of himself on top of the bed, on top of Seth, lowering himself gently over his wounded body. His hands wander to Seth's neck, trailing until they rested in the middle of his chest,

"You.." Seth breathes quietly, "You can't feel this, can you...?"

Putress breaks away from Seth's mouth so his face could be seen; his normally pallid flesh of his face was tinted a soft beige, beads of sweat forming on his brow, "My calculations are always...Correct. I wouldn't be a credible master if I myself did not try my serums. I took them before giving it to you, I wanted.. To make sure I wasn't just killing you faster." He feigns a lithe smile, pressing his face close to Seth again, "It's not just torture for you."

Seth's eyes widen. Did Putress just openly admit to CARING about someone else? No. That wasn't it. There was something else Putress needed Seth for, this was only for show. They planned to destroy the world, destroy each other in the end, free the disgusting filth that littered Azeroth from their pitiful forms of existence. There was only one justice, and it would be theirs. There had to be reason other than what he has just heard... Seth takes it in silently and eventually nods. Nothing more needed to be said on the subject.

The Grand Apothecary presses his lips against Seth's again, this time, they were met openly and without hesitation. A tongue wandered into the other's mouth, causing a heavy sensation to build in Seth's chest. It was strange, he did not remember pleasure feeling this way when he was living... Did he indulge in such a thing? It's choking presence built up inside him until it escaped his mouth in a low, guttural moan. A slight smile was brought to Putress' lips, finally seeing his Apothecary relax into his sensations. However, he had to make him sweat, and toying with his lips alone wasn't enough... His hands roamed the pallid body below him, gently tracing his new and old scars, pressing his bony fingers into the crevices of muscles and joints. This caused Seth to squirm and gave him the unthinkable urge to push harder into the other's mouth. Heated breath shuddered over their lips, laced with voice and blind lust..

He could feel it all now; his body began to glisten with sweat, the heat rising in places that were long since dead... The heavy pressure in his chest remained--- Suddenly, he felt something different. Something a little less comfortable... Pain. He could feel pain stab the various parts of his body that suffered severe decay or injury. It mixed in with the soothing heat, bringing a greater fire and pressure to his chest. Seth gasped and broke away from Putress, his moan contorted into a sound of pain and confusion. Putress sighed,

"When I said you could feel everything... This is what I meant. This will be agonizing." His tone is placid and deep, watching Seth's face contort with pain,

"It feels..." Seth gasps again, his lips curving.

"...So fucking good."

Putress laughs, loud and animated, "I knew you were a goddamn masochist!" His grin is wild and eyes are wide, "Let's see how long you last."

"Try me."

-------------------

Seth has no idea where his pants went after that, and was quite amused watching his master struggle to remove his own clothing in a hurry, his entire body flecked with the unfamiliar beige and plague wounds of his own. 'It must hurt ever better for him.'

Putress forcefully presses down on Seth's arms and brings his mouth to the nape of his neck. He sucks long and hard on the flesh, his tongue making sure to touch every inch of skin near it. The pleasure of having someone sucking on his skin and the pain radiating from dead nerve endings and tainted insides caused a white euphoric sensation deep within him. He made strange sounds out of pain and pleasure, whatever his gibbering jaw wanted to push out. Fluids, both sweat and saliva built up and dribbled its way out of the exposed part of Seth's jaw.

The Grand Apothecary did not focus one place too long. He needed to feel everything... A devilish look in his eye meant he had better plans.

"I wonder if this still works." He mused idly, slipping one hand slowly down Seth's abdomen to latch itself onto an overly sensitive organ Seth himself forgot he still had. Seth gasps at the touch, his blood starting to flow towards the targeted area slowly...

"S-sylvannas be damned..." Seth groans, his hips pushing into the hand that slowly stroked his cock, the friction sending a new wave of heat, pain, and sweat coarsing through his body. Saliva flowed more freely from his jaw, the translucent liquid meshing with the trail previously left behind by Putress. The higher Apothecary was amused by the reaction he received from his experiment, so he began to press his ribbed fingers deeper into Seth's member, his breath hitching when he dared a glance at the other's face;

Seth lay there with his hands digging into the sheets so hard, the whites of his knuckles shown through. His face was a mixture of pain and lust; eyebrows furrowed deep, his orbs hazed, mouth partially open to shudder ragged breaths as shiny liquid and sweat oozed out of his open jaw onto the flushed canvas of skin and scars. Putress' body reacted before his mind did. He shifted his weight over Seth, straddling his bony hips, pressing his entire needy body on top of him, capturing his mouth once again in a heated kiss. All the while stroking Seth's cock, his free hand flew up to wrap itself in Seth's long hair, pulling as his hips bucked into the other, his own cock grinding against thin skin. This procured guttural moans and noises from the other, helplessly drowning in a perfect euphoria.

It was so disgusting. Their decayed bodies pressed against each other, fluids and blood flowing abnormally through the undamaged parts of their decay. They were living in a moment of sin. Desires denied to undeath, and even to the living. It turned Seth on more than anything, the pain and pleasure of death filling his very being.

Seth couldn't take it anymore. He let out a loud moan, tainted with the sounds of agony. His body released what it could before fully relaxing into a breathless heap under his master. He breathed long and hard, his eyes clenched tight as his clouded mind soared over faint vertigo and dull throbbing.

"That... Wasn't very long." Putress mused aloud, trailing his hand through the fluids left behind from his experiment.

"...Shut up." Seth growled, the heavier feeling of ache washing over the warmth.

"At least I got you to sweat. I could have just told you to masturbate, but that would have been no fun for me."

"You're disgusting."

"I know." Putress smiles cheekily, he then lifts himself off of Seth and over the bed, "The serum may last a few more hours, but you aren't dead, so that means we got everything out." Seth nods, then sinks his head back into a pillow, exhausted. For a moment, he let everything that just transpired sink in, the thoughts forcing him to bring a hand up to massage his forehead out of habit.

"Something needs to die." Seth growls irritably, letting out a forced sigh.

"I'll make sure the blight cannons are working tomorrow." Putress lets out a small chuckle, pulling the final bits of his robes over his shoulders as he walks out of the room.

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