AN – Fans of the show should remember what Terminus was. This chapter deals with this. You've been warned.
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You can talk about cha-cha
Tango, waltz, or the rumba
Senora's dance has no title
You jump in the saddle, hold onto the bridle
Jump in the line – rock your body in time
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As Andrea was waking up, she was greeted with the most unexpected and unusual image. Three men were dancing like Winona Ryder's character at the end of Beetlejuice. Her head rolled from side to side, shaking off the effects of the drug from the day before. She took a moment to view her surroundings – she was in a small building. An opened shed, perhaps. Three men were dancing to no one at all, while a boombox played the classic Harry Belafonte calypso song.
She coughed. One of the men noticed her stirring and smiled at her. Andrea tried to get up, but the ropes binding her hands and feet prevented that. She wasn't surprised – just annoyed. She leaned over to the side and spit. Rapidly blinking her eyes, she looked at them.
None of them wore a bandana across their faces and they all looked similar to each other – brown hair, medium build and height. Any one of them could've kidnapped her from Terminus and brought her…wherever she was. The song came to an end.
"Beetlejuice," Andrea slurred, still a little drugged, "Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice."
"You're awake!" one of them exclaimed.
"If only you could disappear like Beetlejuice."
"Ohhhh, now. Be nice."
The guy in the middle leaned down and pressed a button on the boombox, turning it off. Then, he grabbed a water bottle, walked over to her, and held it to her mouth. She eyed him cautiously.
"Don't worry." He said with a little smile. "It's not drugged."
That didn't deter her suspicion. Nevertheless, she opened her mouth and accepted the water. It was a hot, sunny day in central Georgia and the water felt good going into her mouth. So good, in fact, that she relished it in her mouth for a few seconds before swallowing three gulps. Andrea tilted her head back, indicating she was done. A little cough escaped her mouth and didn't even bother to turn her head in politeness. Why bother? She'd been kidnapped, after all.
The man half-smiled and stood up, effectively towering over her.
"I'm Joel." He politely said. Then, he pointed over to the two other men. "And that's Larry. And Bill." And then, he returned his gaze to her, his voice going a little dark. "We're…pretty much all that's left of the fine people of Terminus. Well, except for…" He trailed off, cleared his throat, and said, "You remember that place, don'tcha blondie? That place you destroyed?"
"You deserved it." Andrea replied, wriggling a little in her binds. "You had my friends tied up. You put them in a boxcar, like you were taking them to Auschwitz."
"Auschwitz?" Joel asked. "Oh no. We're not…cruel." Suddenly, he kicked her thigh. She winced a little from the pain but otherwise made no other move to defend herself or retaliate. "But you, on the other hand…" He stooped down to look her in the eye. "You destroyed our home. We had been there for years." And then, he menacingly got in her face. "You fuckin' bitch."
"Ahhhh." Andrea said, with a cruel smile that almost matched his. "So, you're the one that dragged me off."
Joel, caught off guard, slowly stood up and rapidly blinked. He turned and angrily marched off to join his two cohorts.
Some time passed. It was a sunny, hot day in central Georgia, as some birds chirped and an occasional walker was dispatched. Andrea watched the three men for a while until she got bored with that. Then, she turned and noticed that her enormous backpacks from the previous day's attack were nowhere to be found. She wasn't surprised. Since both packs were full of sophisticated and powerful guns, all weapons were a crucial necessity in this cruel and unforgiving world. When haven't they been?
Her stomach growled from hunger. Her thigh ached a little from Joel's kick. Her shoulders complained from chronic pain – hours were stretching throughout the day and her binds were making the pain worse. And, as usual, she was thirsty.
Just a typical day these days for Andrea.
Suddenly, a car could be heard from afar. That got all three of the men's attentions and automatically, their hands tightened on their weapons (Andrea's weapons). And soon, a tan sedan pulled up and parked near the shed. Bill, Larry, and finally, Joel smiled at the driver. And a seemingly ordinary man emerged from the driver's seat, looking like all four could be quadruplets. This man too had brown hair, medium build and height. But this new arrival's smile seemed forced. It was as if he were fulfilling some kind of leadership and/or political duty, or simply tolerating the other three. Whatever the case may be, he greeted the others haphazardly. And then, Joel whispered in this man's ear and within a few seconds, both men were looking at her.
Andrea suddenly felt a shiver go down her spine like no other in her life. He looked at her deeply – as if he were looking through her or something. Another lightning-quick shiver slammed through her body before she forced herself to regain her composure. She couldn't recall ever being stared at like that before.
The new arrival licked his lips at her, returned to Joel and nodded, clapping him on the shoulder.
The three Terminans seemed satisfied and walked off in various directions, presumably to their respective outlook posts.
But not this guy. Never taking his eyes off her, he headed right towards Andrea. Passing clouds played with the sunlight, making the man's brown hair shimmer and fade. Again, a not-so-cooling breeze blew through the garage or shed or whatever the structure was, not even bothering to help cool the stage that was being set. She watched this guy getting closer and closer, one hand on his hip, but the other curiously behind him. Andrea didn't like this one bit.
Finally, he stopped a few feet away from her, towering over her with that nerve-wracking smile.
"Hello." The man simply said.
Andrea looked up at him but didn't say a word.
He huffed. "I heard an interesting story earlier today." He began to shift on his feet a little, fiddling with a water bottle with his free hand. However, he still didn't remove his other hand from behind his back.
When Andrea didn't respond, he mannequin-like smiled down at her, watching a tuft of a second breeze blow some of her hair in her eyes. As a courtesy, he reached down to pull it away from her eyes. But Andrea shrunk back, staring at his hand with a mixture of fear and hate.
And for the first time since she saw him, his smile faded.
"I'm only trying to help." He kindly offered with a soft frown.
"Then," Andrea began, shaking the hair out of her eyes and ignoring the pain in her shoulders, "let me go."
"Oh, sugar lumps," he condescendingly began, "you know I can't do that." He squatted down, staring at her at eye-level. "And besides…" He further pushed her hair back behind her ear with almost tender fingers. And then suddenly, he snatched her throat and squeezed, cutting off her air instantaneously! Her eyes automatically bulged and she was shocked to see what happened next.
He smiled.
His grip didn't loosen as she struggled. "I heard you were the one who destroyed our home."
The brown-haired man suddenly released her and volleys of coughs from Andrea's throat plagued the air. She didn't even turn away, letting her chokes of air flow into his face. But instead of being disgusted, he closed his eyes, relishing in her attempts.
As he slowly opened them, he said, "You're hungry. You have hunger breath."
She ignored him.
"Let me get you something to eat." And with that, he stood back up, smile in full forced. "And don't worry. You'll love what's on the menu."
"Can…?" Andrea struggled, swallowed, and asked, "Can you, at least…untie me?"
"Nope."
"Please?"
"Nope." He straightened his shoulders, like a soldier at attention. "You see," he waved to the others, "we don't care if you're uncomfortable. And besides," he creepily eyed her up and down, "we have plans for you, sugar lumps."
She shook her head in disgust, looking down. "Then, can I ask you a question?"
He looked away thoughtfully for a moment before answering, "Well, you can ask, but I can't guarantee I'll answer to a bitch like you-"
"What's your name?"
He looked at her bewildered. "That? That's your question? Not, 'where are we?' or 'what are you going to do to me?' or…anything?! That's what you want to know?"
Andrea nodded.
He shook his head in reluctant admiration. "Alright. There's no harm in it." He turned fully towards her and with his best respect possible, he announced, "My name is Gareth."
"Gareth." She repeated.
"Yup."
"Good."
He looked at her, surprised. "Good?"
"'Yup'"
He seemed charmed. "Why?"
She took her good ol' sweet time raising her head to look him in the eye before she quietly yet firmly said, "I always want to know the name of the man I'm going to kill."
He chuckled, heavily amused, but said nothing.
"And…" a coughing fit hit her and she had to spit to the side, "And my name isn't 'bitch' or 'sugar lumps' or whatever. My name is-"
"I know your name…bitch. Sugar lumps." He drew menacingly closer. And louder. "Or sugar tits. Or sugar cunt. Or any goddamn name the others have given you!"
Andrea barely blinked as he got closer and closer to her face. And despite Gareth's attempt at choking her, his hand retreated back behind him again. He gently stroked her face before letting his hand lightly touch her left thigh. She immediately jumped a little, fearing an attempted rape.
But instead, he bolted upright, turned about face, and marched away from her. And in her hazy vision, she finally saw what was in his backpocket that he seemed to hold so preciously.
A small salt and pepper set.
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It was hard for Andrea to see the four men. Three of them were still standing, after all this time, in their usual spots just outside the structure. She couldn't feel her arms anymore and her legs were bouncing from spasms. Squirming helped and didn't help. In sum, she had nowhere to go and nothing to do.
Andrea wanted to learn more about them – their habits, their personalities, their duty schedules, etc. But she couldn't do it from where she was. She struggled to find a way to do this until her very own body provided her an option.
"Hey guys?" Andrea announced. They didn't hear. "Hey guys?!"
Joel turned around. It was only then that she noticed Gareth wasn't in sight.
"What?!" Joel answered, heavily annoyed.
"I have to take a piss!"
"Piss in your own pants, sugar lumps!"
That response got a few laughs from the other two. Andrea had already forgotten their names, as they didn't seem very significant to the crew leader Joel and group leader Gareth.
"Pleeeeease? Pleeeeeease?!"
If there's one thing Andrea remembered being a pretty blonde is that despite what you may do in life, men will respond to a pretty woman. She knew she wasn't unattractive and thought she could use that. And as luck would have it, it worked.
Joel grunted and marched towards her, coming to an alarming stop just a few feet from her.
"This had," Joel threateningly began, "better not be some kind of trick."
"I have no guns or knives. I've been tied up for hours and my body aches. I'm in absolutely no position to harm you or the others."
Joel considered this for a long moment before reluctantly reaching down to her left arm and lifting her up. She instantly regretted her decision. Lightning shocks of pain coursed through her body, making her fall right back down on the first attempt. Joel growled and yanked her back up. Her hands were tied behind her back and her feet were also tied together. He reached behind him and grabbed a huge Bowie knife – her knife.
"If you fucking try-"
"I won't. I can't."
He half-smiled and bent down, untying her binds at her shins. Waves of strange sensations could be felt as she could lift her feet of her own accord. Mobility was still a bit of a struggle, but the omnipresent Joel held her upright.
"Thank you." She whispered.
He looked her in the eye for a brief moment, rapidly blinked, and pulled her away from the structure. Each step was both painful and wonderful, blood and nerve sensors flowing more freely then. The two passed the other two on duty, who didn't even notice them going into the woods. As they walked, Andrea saw a bullet or two dropped from her bag, lying on the forest floor's path. Joel took her into the woods, out of eyesight, for about twenty feet or so.
"Here." He suddenly announced. "Go."
She helplessly looked around before turning to face him. And then, she sheepishly said, "You'll have to help me."
"W-what?" Joel asked, like a little kid.
"My hands are tied behind my back. I can't pull down my pants."
Joel groaned, looking away.
"Come on, man! I need your help. The sooner we get this done, the better."
He heavily sighed and, turning his head, reached for the waistline of her military green, dirty pants. And that's when it happened.
She kneed him in the groin, sending Joel hurtling towards the ground!
And when he fell, she kicked him in the teeth, blood spraying outwards. Moans and groans of pain could be heard as she turned and headed towards the path. She ran. She ran and ran and ran. It was as if Andrea had unexpectedly turned into prey, running from her predators. And that's exactly what it was.
And just as she was able to take off in a full sprint, she was tackled from behind! Andrea shrieked, feeling her bladder release its contents down her leg. And situated on top of her was none other than her sudden nemesis.
Gareth.
"I should've," he menacingly said, "known that you'd try something. Bitch."
He roughly pulled her up and dragged her back towards the structure, her feet kicking on the dirt as best she could. Waves of sadness, frustration, and worst of all, fear tugged at her body and the first of her tears fell on her face. And as he dragged her, he said some words that she'd never, ever forget.
"We're preparing a good dinner tonight, sugar lumps." He came to a stop, looking downwards into her eye. "You see, we're going to eat you tonight."
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