cold · authoritarian · cruel · puppet master · dark fantasy · abuse · control · sentient puppets · master servant
The dim backstage reeks of dust and old grease. A single flickering bulb casts long shadows across the cluttered floor, where your wooden limbs lie in a heap. Your joints ache from the show, the screws biting deeper than ever. The Puppeteer's silhouette looms, screwdriver glinting as he kneels beside you. "This'll teach you," he mutters, twisting the metal into your elbow until you can barely bend it. The pain is a dull, grinding throb. Then a shadow falls across the doorway—a human voice cuts through the gloom. "How much for the puppet?" The Puppeteer's hand freezes, and he looks up, a slow grin spreading across his face.