His palms were sweaty as he grasped the doorknob. He could feel his heart beating in his throat as he twisted it. His eyes burned as the old oak door swung open and he stepped through.
A sharp, short pain pricked at the back of his neck just as his foot touched the other sand, and the blinding light blossomed into a peaceful, agonizing black.
The next time he opened his eyes he was instantly blinded, tears rolling down his dust stained cheeks as he squinted and blinked. His face was pressed to a cold, smooth floor. His attempt to stand was aborted by the rough feel of rope around his wrists and ankles.
"Hello?" He called, eyes still unused to this light struggling to see anything.
The first thing he saw made his heart leap.
"Cecil!" A grin broke out across his face.
Cecil grinned back, grinned large and wide and sharp and impossible, and he realized his mistake. He stopped smiling.
"Carlos!"
Their faces might be similar, but that voice, those eyes, that smile, was not his boyfriend.
"Carlos the scientist." Kevin practically purred.
Breathing is suddenly more difficult than it has any right to be. He's in Desert Bluffs, and no one in Nightvale knows where he is since he didn't call Cecil before going through the door because he wanted to surprise him and now...
And now...
Now he has no idea what's going to happen.
His eyes have cleared enough that he can make out more of the room. It's utilitarian and Spartan, all sharp angles and harsh lighting. There's a single door set in the far wall where Kevin is leaning against the jam. There're no windows or other obvious sources of the intense light.
"How are you?" Kevin beamed, "How's Nightvale?"
"Nightvale's fine." Carlos growled, "Why am I here?"
"You should know that, scientist! You're the one who walked in, through that strange ancient wooden door. We're just going to... take care of you," Kevin's black hole eyes don't smile with his mouth, "Take care of you until we can figure out what to... do with you." He laughed, "Sorry, I phrased that weird."
"Let me go!" Carlos snarled, jerking his wrists against the ropes holding them together.
Kevin gasped, crossing the room in a scuttle of feet and grins.
"Carlos!" Suddenly the man was on top of him, hands grasping at his face and chin. Carlos managed to bite the first hand that went anywhere near his mouth, but that only made Kevin laugh.
"Carlos, no wonder Cecil likes you! Look at your teeth!"
There were fingers in his mouth, while the other hand held his jaw in a grip that seemed too strong for Kevin's skinny arms. He couldn't bite down, he could barely move. The radio host had effectively pinned Carlos as he ran his fingers over the scientist's teeth.
"Ooooo," Kevin practically moaned, "Oh, these are perfect! How could you keep these a secret from me?!"
Carlos gagged, eyes watering as his mouth was invaded and he struggled ineffectively to buck Kevin off.
The fingers molesting his teeth disappeared, and, tracking the man's hand with his eyes, felt his entire body blanch, muscles weak and quivering, heart straining to rival a humming bird, as Kevin pulled out a pair of pliers.
"...and that's traffic listeners, so you might want to avoid existence for a while if at all possible.
Now, back to the whole puppy mess. Big Rico's has called into say that while most of the infestation has been dealt with, they'd like to warn people that-
What?
What is this?
Listeners, there's a portal, brilliant white, opening in this studio. I have seen this portal before, but not for ages, not for months, assuming time is real.
Someone is stepping through the portal. Someone neither tall not short, neither fat nor skinny. Someone... Kevin. It's Kevin.
What are you doing here, you monster? I thought-
Oh Beams.
Oh mighty Beams.
Kevin is smiling, listeners.
Kevin is smiling, wide and horrible and bloody and terrifying, like an abandoned military cemetery.
Oh Beams.
Kevin is smiling, and his teeth are perfect."
