this is a doozy of a chapter. seriously. but I hope - and I seriously think - you will all like it.
enjoy. :)
~phoenix
-oOo-
"Are you ready?"
Carlos laughs weakly, inspecting himself again in the mirror. "No. But... yes."
Viola looks at his reflection, too, nodding in approval. "You look great. I mean, you look really gross, but for our purposes, that's great."
Carlos swallows and nods. She has done her work on him again, transforming him from Carlos-the-scientist to a presentable copy of Theo-the-Employee. When the Rift's agents had contacted Theo, he had expressed a need to leave Strex immediately, and so they had been forced to bring him back to the base that night. Last night. Now, Carlos is wearing Theo's employee outfit, his keys and identification in his pocket along with some materials to turn him back into Carlos in a few seconds. Carlos takes a few deep breaths and concentrates on keeping his face slack.
You will be fine, Kendall had said only a few moments earlier. You are ready. Just remember that your greatest asset is becoming invisible.
Carlos closes his eyes.
"You're supposed to be at Strex by nine," Raene says from behind them. Carlos opens his now-blackened eyes and turns towards her, sees her supress a little shiver at his appearance. "We're going to drop you off a safe distance from the building. You have to walk the rest of the way there."
Carlos nods. They have been over this already, but it is good to remind him that they have a plan, a cemented plan that will not fail.
They have a plan, that is, until he actually reaches Cecil. After that…
"Are you ready?" Raene interrupts his thoughts.
Cecil huffs. "That's the five thousandth time I've heard that in the past few hours. Honestly? I don't know if I am."
Raene studies him closely. "I think you are." She checks her watch. "It's too late to back out now, at any rate. We leave in fifteen minutes. It's time for us to get going."
"Well," Viola says, causing Carlos to turn towards her. "I guess this is goodbye... for now."
"For now," Carlos repeats firmly, smiling reassuringly. "It's going to be fine, Viola. I'll be fine. Thank you so much for all your help."
Impulsively, Viola throws her arms around Carlos's neck. "You stay safe, okay?" she says as he hugs her back. "You keep yourself safe."
"I will," Carlos says, and hopes he can keep that promise.
/\/\
"This is it."
Carlos blinks. "I can't even see the Strex building."
"Exactly," says Brendan, who is driving. "This is exactly how far we can go while still staying out of their detection. You'll walk the rest of the way."
"What direction?"
Brendan points forward. "Straight towards the sun."
Carlos shivers. "And it won't be suspicious? Me just walking in from the middle of the desert?"
"No. I promise, no," Raene says. "We've watched enough employees just wander in from seemingly nowhere. If anyone even notices, they won't think anything of it."
"Okay." Carlos still doesn't move.
"It's time to go," Brendan says, and Carlos feels a sudden cold chill of terror.
"Carlos," Raene says, leaning forward so she can make eye contact with him, "you will be fine. It has been a month, and you have been training."
It has been a month, rings the words in Carlos's head. It has been a month, and he's going to rescue Cecil.
He opens the door.
/\/\
By the time he reaches the StrexCorp headquarters, there is a line of other employees waiting to clock in, and it is game time.
Carlos drifts into line, keeping his face slack, his exterior appearance betraying none of the terror twisting in his stomach. He keeps calm even as he slides his card through the machine and the picture of Theo pops up. Nobody notices that the man does not match the card, and Carlos makes it inside.
Inside, identical employees in yellow jumpsuits exactly like Carlos's bustle about silently, the occasional orange-clad overseer making their way through the crowd. The interior is worse than Kendall could have prepared him for. The air is thick and yellow, the brightly-colored walls stained with dark blood. Although there are dozens, if not hundreds, of employees moving about, there is almost no sound.
Carlos replays the words of Kendall and Raene in his head as he walks through the crowd, surrounded on every side by people who would tear him apart at the slightest command -
Become invisible.
He blends into the background. He does not make eye contact and settles his features into one of intent concentration. He picks up his pace - maximum efficiency - and follows the instructions Raene has drilled into his head.
The main building will be the busiest, echo her words. This is where he is now, where the hallways are crowded with employees (employees with black holes for eyes and the palest faces he's ever seen).
You need to make your way to the wing of the building they call Human Resources.
Carlos sees a sign for HR pointing down another hallway. He follows the significant flow of people walking down this hallway.
Then you will need to -
"Hey! You!"
The mental instructions are broken up by a call, seemingly pointed his way. Carlos freezes and turns slowly.
There is a man walking quickly down the hallway, a man with a huge, twisted smile and evil, evil eyes, there is a man -
"Are you headed towards HR?" Kevin asks Carlos.
Carlos nods quickly, avoiding speaking. Kevin will not recognize Carlos - Kevin has never seen Carlos - but the terror is thrashing, now, and so is the anger - and if he speaks it might come out -
"Can you take them a message for me?" Kevin asks lightly, his smile twisting even larger. "Tell Lauren that I'm a little caught up with things right now, but I'll be back a little later to spend some time with my client. Okay?"
"Yes, sir," Carlos manages to reply smoothly, smiling largely back. Protocol.
"Thank you very much," Kevin lilts, turning on his heel and walking back towards the main building.
Carlos exhales slowly through his nose, turns back around, and keeps moving. He plays through the internal directions again.
Then you will need to navigate your way to the holding cells. The inside of Strex is like a maze, so listen to these directions carefully. Take a right, then a left, and then go up the staircase at the end of the hallway.
As he walks through Raene's instructions, the crowd of people around him lessens. Eventually his footsteps echo solitarily through the blood-stained walls.
Take another left down a hallway with a flickering lamp. When you reach the end, go up the second staircase. The hall will split off. One of these hallways leads to the holding cells. You'll be able to figure it out.
There is a sign overhead with two arrows. The arrow pointing to the right reads Administration. The arrow to the leftsays Persuasion.
Carlos turns to the left.
The walls are becoming considerably less yellow and considerably more bloodied, and this blood seems - it seems fresh. Fresh, and messier. Carlos swallows.
Theo, thank everything holy, has clearance for the cells. Carlos fingers the key in his pocket that can open the door to Cecil's cell and whatever chains might be holding him there, with one problem - the hallway he is in now has a whole hallway full of heavy metal doors, and he hasn't the faintest which one is Cecil's.
"Can I help you with something?"
Carlos turns to see a heavy, black-eyed guard moving his way. Thinking fast, he says, "Yes, actually. I'm not usually assigned to this vector - I work in Kevin's unit, and he sent me."
The guard's eyes widen in recognition. "Kevin? Does he have a message?"
"Well, not so much a message," Carlos says. "He says - he's not able to come down today. But he wanted me to check in on his… client." He says the word knowingly and hopes to the heavens his words ring a bell.
There is a slight pause before the guard begins to chuckle. "Well, what a treat for you," he says, thumping Carlos heavily on the shoulder. "Go on, then."
He motions towards the hallway. Carlos stalls, and assumes an expression of sheepish embarrassment.
"I… may have forgotten which cell his client is in," he mumbles, rubbing his forehead.
The guard laughs again and moves forward. "Follow me."
They are about halfway down the hallway before the guard stops in front of a cell marked NV-46. "Here he is," the guard says, inspecting the door with a kind of greedy smile. "I assume Kevin gave you the key?"
"Yes, yes, of course," Carlos says, producing the key from his pocket. The guard nods in satisfaction, then glances up and down the hallway.
"You have fun with him," the guard says. "I'll be back in a bit to check in." He walks down the hallway, turns the corner and disappears.
Carlos is alone. Not for long, but for now -
He exhales deeply and puts his hands on his knees. Before he does anything else, he takes out the cloth from his pocket and wipes all over his face. He takes out his black contacts, flicking them to the ground, and runs his hands messily through his hair. He feels like himself again, but feeling like himself is dangerous at this particular moment, and he needs to get Cecil out of there as fast as is humanly possible.
Cecil.
He looks at the door. NV-46.
The key is clutched tightly in his hand. Carlos takes a deep breath and closes his eyes for a long moment, trying to gather himself. He doesn't know what he's going to see in there. He doesn't know - but he knows that he needs to get Cecil out. And this is the time.
The key enters the lock smoothly. Carlos takes a breath as it clicks into place.
The door slides open, shining weak light into an otherwise black room. Carlos peers into the darkness and opens it a little wider.
And he sees him.
"Oh, my god," he says - that's all he can say, in a hoarse whisper that barely escapes his throat. He takes a shaky step forward, feels the world start to tilt haphazardly. "Oh, my god. Cecil."
Cecil's there. He's there, but everything is wrong - he's curled in the farthest, darkest corner, eyes clenched shut, visibly shaking and clutching himself into a tight ball.
There…
There is so much blood.
On the ground. And on the wall. And all over him.
Carlos presses a fist to his mouth and feels tears prick at his eyes. But no - no, this is not the time for that. They have to get out of there. He has to save him.
He takes a few steps towards the corner, leans down a little. Cecil does not seem to be aware of his presence - or at least, he doesn't acknowledge him. When he's this close, Carlos can hear how his breaths seem to wheeze, like he's having difficulty pulling air into his lungs.
"Cecil?"
There is a moment of terrible silence. Cecil does not open his eyes.
"Cecil, it's me. I'm here."
Cecil's hand twitches, but there is no real response.
Carlos extends a cautious hand. He touches his arm.
Cecil's eyes fly open instantly and he cries out - Carlos stumbles away as Cecil scrambles into the corner, holds up his arms and turns away his face -
"P… please… d - don't… don't…" Cecil practically whimpers, shuddering and stuttering through every syllable. "P… please… no…"
"Cecil, it's me, it's Carlos," Carlos says urgently, reaching out a careful hand. Cecil pulls away and shakes his head quickly.
"No, no, no, no, no," Cecil mumbles, shaking violently. His voice is hoarse and weak and wrong. "No, it's not. It never is. It never is. No, no, you're not C - Carlos. L - leave me alone, please, leave me alone."
Carlos stands up straight and walks away, rubbing his face. Cecil is delirious and terrified and he understands that, but they need to leave, they need to be getting away -
"Cecil, Cecil, it's me, you have to believe that it's me," he whispers, returning to the shrinking form. He kneels in front of Cecil and grabs one of his trembling hands with both of his. Cecil pulls away violently at first, but Carlos does not let go.
"I'm here to save you," Carlos says. "Please, look at me. I'm here to take you home."
Slowly, slowly, Cecil turns his head. Carlos forces back a shudder when they make eye contact. There are massive gashes all along Cecil's face. His blonde-white hair is matted and stained muddy red with dried blood. His eyes are vacant and clouded, but when they make eye contact, they seem to come into vague focus.
"Don't hurt me," Cecil whispers. "You… you always hurt the worst. I don't want to hurt anymore."
Every word is breaking Carlos's heart, and he wonders how many times Cecil has seen "Carlos" come in this room. "Cecil, I know it's hard, but you have to believe it's me," he says, searching for a way to prove to him that he is real. "You know me. And I know you - you're Cecil Palmer, you have this weird thing about wearing purple, you're ridiculously protective of the Sheriff's Secret Police, you - god, Cecil, it's me, and I'm here to rescue you." Carlos leans forward and plants a soft kiss on Cecil's forehead, which is caked with dried blood.
Cecil stills underneath Carlos's touch. When Carlos pulls back, Cecil is searching his face with desperate eyes. "You're...?" Cecil breathes, not willing to believe it.
Carlos looks unfailingly back at Cecil. "I'm Carlos."
"...Ca… Carlos," Cecil says, not so much asking as just saying - just - saying. "it's… you."
A relieved smile breaks across Carlos's face. "Yes, yes, it's me," he says softly. He reaches up a hand and touches Cecil's face very, very gently. Cecil still flinches away, but not nearly as bad. "Come on. We have to go."
Carlos starts to move but Cecil grabs for him - or it's more of a fall, really, it's more like he's tumbling into him, and he's kissing him - fully and deeply and desperately.
And this is so, so not the place for this, but Carlos kisses him back.
Even when they break apart, they linger there for a few long moments. Their foreheads are pressed together, their noses brushing. They breath in and out because they need to.
It has been a month.
Cecil has been in this place for a month.
When Carlos speaks again, his voice is very, very soft. "I'm so sorry, Cecil. I'm so, so sorry."
A trace of a smile flickers across Cecil's face. "You came back," is all he says in a broken whisper. "You came back for me."
"Of course I did," Carlos says, brushing his thumb across Cecil's cheek and trying to ignore Cecil's involuntary shiver at the contact. "Cecil, of course I did, I always will. I love you, you wonderful brave idiot. I love you."
Cecil leans in close. They breath each other in for a long moment.
"We have to go," Carlos murmurs, moving away slightly. Cecil leans back and blinks fuzzily at him. "Can you walk?"
Cecil winces violently and shakes his head no quickly. "No," he whispers, "no, they…"
He looks down at his legs, which are bent at wrong, wrong, wrong angles. He doesn't have to say anything else. Carlos nods and swallows and tries not to think about what that means. He moves to Cecil's side and winces because he knows this will be rough.
"Sorry for this in advance," he says quickly. Before Cecil has time to react, he sweeps his arms underneath Cecil's body and lifts.
Cecil bites back a cry at the jolting movement. He burrows his face into Carlos's shoulder, hissing out a pained breath.
"Are you okay?" Carlos whispers.
Cecil swallows and nods slowly. "I'm… in pain. But I'll be okay," he manages. His voice has sounded so wrong for so long that Carlos has to ask -
"Why is your voice so…?"
Cecil looks up and his eyes are bright with tears. "My voice is my weapon," he says. "So they…" He presses a hand to his throat. "They took it away."
Carlos processes this and something clicks inside him. Well… it's less of a click and more of a steeling.
They tried to break Cecil.
They took away everything important to him - his work, his home, his voice… even Carlos.
They couldn't do it. They could never break Cecil. But they tried.
And he's going to punish them.
But first, they have to get out.
He presses a quick kiss to Cecil's forehead and then moves towards the door. They've already spent much too long in the cell, but when Carlos ducks his head out into the hallway, the guard has not yet returned. He starts moving as fast as he can without jarring Cecil, a nearly impossible task; he hears Cecil give little pained gasps with almost every step he takes. It hurts him to do this, but it's the only way to get out.
"Carlos," he hears Cecil say, "if they catch us -"
"They're not going to catch us," Carlos forces through gritted teeth as he turns another corner, picking up speed.
"No, but if they do," Cecil says, clutching a little tighter to Carlos's jacket, "I… I want you to leave me."
"No chance," Carlos replies without hesitation. He trots up a stairway, causing Cecil to curl into himself and press into Carlos.
"Carlos, the worst part of all this has been thinking they had you, too," Cecil gasps. "I won't be able to live knowing I got you -"
"I am not leaving you, Cecil Palmer."
He could be imagining it, but he thinks he sees a tiny smile on Cecil's face.
He turns another corner and tries to pick up his pace. Cecil is much lighter than he should be, but he's still a fully-grown adult, and Carlos is less than athletic; his breathing is labored and his arms ache with the weight. But the sight of Cecil's clothes stained through with blood and the surrounding bright-yellow walls stained with the same redness drive him onwards.
It's when he turns the corner that he finds them.
They are waiting for him.
There are three of them in matching yellow uniforms, all wearing black eyes like bottomless holes on their faces. Two of them have guns. One of them, a woman in front, has a radio. They all have bracing, violent smiles.
"Carlos, run," Cecil tries to say, tries to weakly push away from him, but Carlos doesn't let him go. He just stops. There is a long, heavy moment of silence.
"If you give up now, this whole process will be much more efficient," lilts the guard in the front, tilting her head. "Why don't you hand over the prisoner?"
"No," Carlos says without hesitation.
Her eyes narrow dangerously. "I don't want to do this the hard way." They way she relishes each word makes it seems like she very much does want to.
The guards on her sides cock their guns. Cecil pulls himself up, like he's trying to put himself between Carlos and the bullets. Carlos doesn't let him.
"I won't say it again," the woman says, a snarl fluidly replacing her smile. "Give. Us. The. Prisoner."
"And I won't say this again," Carlos says, lifting his chin. "No."
It's at that moment that there are three distinct pops. The faces of the guards twist in shock, and then go blank. When they fall on their faces, Cecil and Carlos are looking at a dark-haired girl who can't be older than a teenager shakily holding up a tranquilizer gun.
She drops it when she sees them, gasping for air. "You don't have much time. Follow me."
She turns and starts to run. Carlos doesn't think twice about following her, even though the quickened pace makes Cecil hiss in pain.
"Who are you?" Carlos questions as they turn a corner.
"Doesn't matter," she replies tersely. "I'm just a citizen. A citizen of Night Vale. And this isn't right."
Carlos blinks and nods. "You're very brave."
"I just don't like watching…" she trails off. Carlos doesn't miss the glance she gives Cecil and the shiver that follows. "...I don't like watching what StrexCorp employees consider efficiency."
Cecil gives a shuddering, pained laugh at that term. Carlos wonders what that has meant to him for the past month. He's not sure he wants to know.
They run down one more hallway and there's a door. When she flings it open, Carlos sees a glorious stretch of desert ahead of them them, and a car parked before it. He looks at the girl, who's nodding.
"The key's in the ignition. Go," she says, waving them on.
Carlos looks her in the eye. "Come with us."
Her eyes widen. "I can't."
"They'll find out what you did. They'll kill you." Or worse.
She shakes her head. "I'm trusted here. I'll explain it somehow." She blinks, and suddenly her eyes turn solid black. Carlos takes a step back, but she blinks hard again and it's gone. She grins and winks. "Old secret. Don't worry, I'll be fine."
She turns, but Carlos manages to catch her hand. "Thank you. Thank you so much," he says.
She looks at Cecil, whose eyes are pressed close and teeth are clenched in agony. Her features soften and steel all at once. "Of course," she says, "of course. Just stay safe. Just… keep him safe." She nods in Carlos's direction and runs off.
Carlos takes a step out of the facility and feels a wall of desert heat hit him. Cecil lifts his head dazedly, blinking into the afternoon sun. Carlos walks towards the car, glancing behind him, paranoid that the guards will burst out of the door, that it will all be a trick -
But he manages to lie Cecil down in the backseat with minimal movement and finds the key in the car's ignition. He starts it and slams down on the gas, shooting off towards the horizon. It's not until the StrexCorp headquarters has faded completely out of sight that he releases pressure - only slightly - on the pedal.
"Cecil," he says, his voice cracking, "Cecil, we made it. We're okay."
There is no response from the backseat.
"Are you okay?"
Nothing.
When Carlos turns his head, he sees Cecil lying on his back in the back seat, covering his face with his hands. His shoulders are shaking silently, his body racking with sobs. When he moves his hands, Carlos sees tears streaming down his cheeks.
He slows the car to a stop. He gets out of the driver's seat and moves to the back, where he slides in next to Cecil, pulling him into his lap. Cecil curls into Carlos, wrapping his arms around him and clinging to him like a lifeline, his body trembling with silent weeping. Carlos holds him so close, running his fingers gently through his hair and breathing with him. In and out. In and out.
"I was so scared," Cecil finally sobs into Carlos's shoulder. "I was so scared that you would never find me. And I was scared that they already had you. And I was so scared, Carlos, and I'm still - I'm so scared that they're going to find us and hurt both of us - that they're going to hurt you like they were hurting me, that they're going to put me back there and I'll never get out again -"
"Nobody is going to hurt you, Cecil," Carlos interrupts him firmly. "I swear to you. Nobody is going to hurt you ever again."
"I want to believe you," Cecil gasps quietly, "I want to. But you don't know what they can do. You don't understand… the things they do… the things they… say… I can't go back, Carlos, I -"
"You're not going to go back." Carlos presses his lips to Cecil's forehead. "They're not ever going to get near you again." He lifts Cecil's head and looks him seriously in the eye. "I'm not going to let them. I'll die before I let them hurt you again, Cecil."
And he kisses him again. This time, it is slower - it is softer.
It's like a promise.
When they break apart, Cecil nestles his head into Carlos's chest, tears still sliding down his cheeks. Carlos rests his chin on top of his head.
They don't move for a long time. They clutch each other desperately, pressed close. All Carlos can think is one month and safe and Cecil and Cecil and Cecil.
"I promise, Cecil," he finally says, more serious than he has ever been in his life. "I'm going to keep you safe."
When Cecil speaks, his voice is weak and strangled and full of raw and honest emotion.
"I know you will."
-oOo-
so. there's that.
thanks for sticking it out this far, you guys :D there will be much more to come~
reviews are life
thank you all!
~phoenix
