Bucking Bronco
By: Aubrie1234
"D**n it Arthur, you had better pick up!" Alfred glanced back, the phone ringing in his ear. The van was catching up, he couldn't keep running for much longer, he didn't think.
"Hello?"
"Arthur! Did you or your magic buddies use magic last night?!"
"No, I don't think-"
"Are you in the U.S.?!"
"Yes, but-"
"Where?!"
"I was coming to pick you up for-"
"That's great! Now do a James Bond and get over to Virginia's Langley Speedway!"
"WHAT?! How the h**l did you get all the way over there?!"
"I don't have time to explain!"
"Alfred-!" To Alfred's surprise, another black van appeared in front of him, forcing him to skid to a stop. Turning around, he found the other van slowing down.
"JUST GET OVER HERE!" He dropped the phone and stomped on it just as nets were thrown over him. He tried in vain to rip the net apart, but his superstrength was gone. Men in white appeared from the vans and one shot a dart at him. Entangled in the netting, Alfred was unable to dodge it and soon enough, the tranquilizer had him falling asleep.
He sounded panicked. Maybe it's not a prank this time. Arthur thought. He had been sent to pick up Alfred for the meeting in D.C., but upon arriving, Arthur found Alfred's house trashed, like a horse had stampeded through it. Even the alien prick was gone.
What worried the Englishman the most, though, was that Alfred's bomber jacket was still there. That was very disconcerting because the American never went anywhere without it, not even if he was kidnapped, which sounded like he might just have been. But why was he on the other side of Virginia, and without his jacket?
Searching through his pockets for a spellbook, Arthur only hoped he wouldn't be too late, but it was very likely. Just who would want to kidnap Alfred, though? The American had enemies, yes, but there was no reason to kidnap him.
And what of the magic that Alfred had asked about? Arthur knew he didn't do anything last night, and Lukas and Anghel would have told him if they did anything. Wouldn't they? Neither of them had a grudge except for the Twilight thing, and something as petty as that wouldn't have elicited a magical response out of Anghel, Arthur knew.
Finally finding a spellbook, the Briton began flipping through it, saving the rest of his questions for later. Right now, he had to go and help Alfred, if he could.
It had been a few days since he was captured. Light filtered through the trailer his captors had converted into a prison. Speaking of them, they had barely given Alfred anything to eat or drink since capture. And yet, he was so sure they were the cause of what happened to him, which was why they captured him.
He couldn't stand, being chained to the floor of the surprisingly strong prison. Though, it was hard to tell without his superstrength. And even if he had it, he would have been unable to use it, since he had no energy.
Looking up, he already knew he wouldn't be able to see out, as the blinds were too high up for him to look through. He still had the connection to his land, though, and knew they were travelling through Ohio.
There was no way for him to fight back. All of his water, so little of it he was given, was drugged. He was given little food to being with, and the way he was chained down prevented him from moving at all, or at least very little.
Alfred's eyes shot to the door and his hands clenched as he felt the trailer pass into a newly built place, one he wasn't familiar with yet. It had been built only a few days ago, really. All he knew was that it was in the forest, near Youngstown. That wasn't far from the border, but it was still pretty far.
Arthur, Mattie, anyone... Help. The van stopped and boots trooped around to open the doors. He closed his eyes tightly at the bright light that shined in and held back a whimper of hopelessness.
"I can't believe it... He's not gone, but why can't I feel him? We're brothers, I should know where he is!"
"Matthieu, please calm down."
"How can I, Francis?! My brother's been kidnapped! There's no telling what's happening to him!"
"You're not the only one worrying!" Matthew flinched at Francis' raised voice. The Frenchman sighed, running a hand through his hair.
"Arthur is hurting as well, you know. He went to stop it, but by that time, Alfred was gone."
"All that was left was his crushed phone, I know. I'm sorry for blowing up, but Alfred's as much as my brother as he is to you or Arthur. I've always had a good connection to him, but now I can't feel him anymore."
"Lukas said it might be because those who kidnapped Alfred knew what they were doing and have found out a way to block your connection."
"That doesn't make me feel any better."
"I know. Would you like a hug?"
"Yeah." They did so, and when Matthew pulled away, he certainly felt better, "Thank you, Francis."
"Of course, Matthieu. I do believe Arthur needs one, though."
"But he's not going to let anyone get close until he finds Alfred, right?"
"Oui. I could force it on him, but I don't want to fluster him even more than he is now. At least, not until he isn't worried about Alfred."
"I see... But let's get back to searching. I won't get anywhere just pacing like this. If we can't find him using our powers, then we'll need to use our influence."
"Yes, that is the best we can do for now."
"Gallop!" *crack* Alfred couldn't go any faster, didn't they understand that?! He nearly stumbled when the whip hit his side, but continued running the track, wincing at the new wound. He almost let out a whimper as he leapt the hurdles, which stretched his wounds. If he made a sound, he would be whipped again, he knew. All of this with his hands still chained together behind his back, and with his neck chained to the post in the center.
How many more laps do they want?! His sides were heaving, having run so many laps he couldn't count them anymore. His thoughts were answered when the ending siren sounded. Gratefully, he slowed from a gallop to a canter to a trot and finally a walk. Alfred knew he would get whipped again if he collapsed like he wanted to, so he came to a stop when he reached the first hurdles.
This had been routine ever since he had been brought there, the strange men forcing him to run the track until the siren sounded, making it harder each time. If he did anything they thought was wrong, they whipped him. They seemed to like it very much, as his body was covered in whip marks.
Alfred watched as one man took the chain from the post and led him through the facility, back to his cage. As weak as he was, like before, he was in no shape to fight back. In his condition, he could barely walk. He was forced to walk faster when the chain was tugged.
Despite how long he had been there, all he had seen of the facility was the outside, the training dome (as the men called it), and the hallway that was attached to his prison. Nothing more, nothing less. And yet, he was planning an escape. All of it was planned mentally, as he couldn't use anything else. They chained him down back in his prison, after all.
Alfred's plan (so far) was simple: escape and run on adrenaline until he was free. The best place to hide would be at a place with horses, which his captors would expect, so he was trying to think up a new place. He couldn't return home or to the World Meeting building, either. The woods, with all the predators, was out of the question. So were towns. All in all, he had no idea where he could hide. But he wasn't planning to stay here much longer. Who knew what else the men would do to him?
After surprising his captors, Alfred ran as hard and fast as he could. They weren't catching him again. And yet, several hours later (at night), after hiding out in a park with his arms still chained and his neck rubbed raw from the chain that trailed behind, he wondered what would happen to him. It was obvious that his superstrength was gone, so did that mean he wasn't a nation anymore? Would he die? He had died before, but it still wasn't a pleasant experience.
Looking down, his sharp eyes caught sight of a quarter and he got an idea. Stomping the side of it to make it fly in the air, he caught it between his teeth and went looking for a toll phone.
Arthur was tempted to not answer because of the caller ID, but because he hoped it was Alfred, he did. The voice that followed made him glad he did.
"Arthur?"
"Alfred, you wanker! Don't scare me like-"
"Arthur, listen! I don't have much time." the man's voice was strained and rough, as if Alfred had been screaming or something, "I need you to come to Youngstown, Ohio as fast as you can. It's on the Eastern border." Sensing Arthur's impending question, he added wistfully, "I'll answer everything as soon as you come get me. Goodbye, Arthur." As soon as the dial tone sounded Arthur was off, looking for a map of the U.S. and his car keys. It might have been 10 at night in Washington, D.C., but he wasn't going to let Alfred slip away. Not after losing him the first time.
Alfred hid from every car that passed by. He was hiding in an alley near the toll phone, hoping Arthur got there first. The Brit may have not known where to look, but he would check everywhere in town. Alfred knew Arthur's car like the back of his hand, so he wasn't just about to leave the safety of the alley for any car.
Hearing a motor come up, Alfred peeked out. A black van was coming by, so he squeezed himself back into the alley as much as he could. The sweeping lights from the top of the van couldn't reach into the alley, so he was safe. And yet he didn't move or make a sound until he couldn't hear its motor any more, where he breathed a sigh of relief.
D**n them. he thought, D**n them all. He fell to his knees, knowing how close he had gotten to being tortured again. He lifted his head, looking out when he heard another motor come by. It came from a car similar to Arthur's, same color, make, and model, and yet he couldn't be too sure. His eyes widened with surprise and hope when the car stopped and Arthur—his friend, his brother, and now his savior—stepped out.
"Eduard traced the number here." Alfred's ears picked up, "I just hope Alfred stuck around. I have no idea where he could be."
"Maybe over here?" Alfred grinned when Arthur whipped his head around to see the man. Only Alfred's bare chest and the chains showed in the dim light, the rest of his body covered in the alley's shadow.
"Alfred!" Arthur rushed over and Alfred's grin lessened into a smile as the man hugged him. When Arthur pulled away, he tugged at the chains, frowning.
"What happened to you? Did someone discover the nations?" Alfred shook his head.
"No, it's something completely different."
"Do you need help standing?"
"Yeah, a little." Arthur wrapped an arm around Alfred's torso, helping the man stand. Together, they walked out of the alley and Arthur saw something that shocked him.
"Y-your lower body..." the Brit gasped, "You're a centaur!"
"I know." Alfred nearly stumbled and Arthur forgot all about the discovery to help his brother. They walked to the car together, Alfred's four legs dragging in tiredness, and the older bond helped the younger into the backseat of the car. After buckling him in, Arthur found that Alfred had fallen asleep, both his chest and his brown horse body falling and rising in time with his breath. Before closing the door, Arthur ran a hand over the scars and scabbed wounds that covered Alfred's horse body. The younger flinched in his sleep, but didn't wake up.
When I find out who did this... Arthur clenched his fist, also grabbing a tuft of Alfred's horse hair, They will pay. Making sure the man's blond, medium-length tail was tucked into the car, Arthur closed the door and slid into the driver's seat. Looking once more at his brother, he pulled out his phone and began dialing Heracles. The Greek would know best how to handle centaurs, Arthur presumed, and as soon as Alfred was well again, he promised to share what had happened...
I've had this idea for a while now, so I hope you like it! I tried to keep what happened to Alfred a secret until the end, but I'm not good at secrets in my stories. I'm...not actually sure if I'm going to continue this. It could be something someone else could continue, if they wanted, but make sure to notify me first! Anyway, read & review!
