Rated: T for mature themes and language. Comments, criticisms and suggestions are welcomed!
Chapter Eleven
Jack came back to awareness surrounded by a strange, penetrating warmth. Tendrils of pain rose up to lap at his belly and across the plane of his back, but receded just as quickly. He did not attempt to move, fascinated by the sensations and wondering where he could possibly be. If there was pain, then surely he must have been hurt, but could not recall when or by what. He remained in this odd limbo for a time, the warmth and the pain warring over his skin -- now waxing, now waning, now waxing once more -- a teasing dance of sensations designed to drive him mad if he let them. But no, he would not let them touch his mind. He would simply be, and then they could not bother him overmuch.
Perhaps because of his attentiveness, the cycle of feeling suddenly shifted. He sought the mental equilibrium which had simply let him float amid gentle sensations, but it was not to be. Pain flared more sharply across his shoulders, driving his mind from its sanctuary. He gasped at the shock of it, and the sound of his own voice made him aware of other sounds as well.
There was a fire nearby, crackling hotly. He felt the heat of it on his face and shoulders, but it did not account for the warmth surrounding the rest of him, which puzzled him greatly. There was also a voice.
"Easy, Jack. It's okay. Be still now."
It was a woman's voice. A woman? And she knew his name. But shouldn't it have been a man?
The pain across his shoulders expanded further and blazed a path down the length of his spine. The surrounding warmth did nothing now to help ease the pain, and it frightened Jack. He tried to move away from the pain but could find no leverage. His body slid through the warmth, drawing the heat further up his chest and back, but the pain persisted. He twisted his body, and the warmth fled one side of him and scaled the other. His belly flared into pain along with his back now, causing him to emit another gasp.
"Please, Jack. Please be still. I'll go quickly and then we'll be done here. Shhh, be still."
Jack did not know that voice, and he sure as hell didn't believe a thing it said. All he knew was that he was vulnerable, he hurt, and he needed to get away from the warmth which now brought only pain. Pressure joined the warmth on his body. Something was run up and down his sides, across his chest and around his neck. The motion was repeated, but this time the pressure grazed the places where he hurt. He turned his head and tried again to move away. His body rocked forwards, but slid back just as quickly. What the hell?
He reached out his hands, grasping for purchase, but his fists merely closed around wetness. A dawning understanding brushed at his mind but fled before it could take hold. He opened and closed his fists, marveling that he could feel something, but could not contain it. The pain continued to build in his belly and his back, now joined by a stinging across his thighs. The scratching pressure had moved up and down his legs, twisting around his feet and behind his knees despite his efforts to avoid it, awakening sensation in his wounded legs. He rocked away again, more violently now. As before, the movement did not free him, but it did bring to life a throbbing ache at his very center. Panic began to creep in to his mind.
Jack reached out again, and this time his hands brushed metal before closing yet again on a warm nothingness. Metal? Had they caged him? Oh, good lord, no. He began to struggle in earnest now, feeling hands grasp his arms, pressing down on his shoulders. No! The pain in his back burned hotly, hampering his efforts to free himself. He kicked out his legs, and cried out when his feet met solid metal. He was caged! He tried to gain leverage on the hard surface with his feet but hands were on his legs now. The voices grew louder, calling his name, demanding he be still. No, no, no!
Jack was tiring as his awareness burgeoned. There were too many hands, and the pain had grown too much. He was naked and vulnerable, surrounded by a cloying warmth which hindered instead of soothed him. He tried ducking back away from the grasping hands and suddenly found he couldn't breathe. Water! He was surrounded by water! He choked, sputtered and began coughing harshly. The hands grasped more firmly on his arms, keeping him in place. Several female voices now pleaded with him to be still, to be patient, to let them finish. He shook his head, emitting an angry moan of denial.
"You're safe, Jack. Don't fight us, you're safe."
Safe? This wasn't safe. Safe was something else entirely. Someone else. Safe was not a woman, it was a man. Safe was a very angry man who stood up for him, who had been worried about him, and who had promised to watch out for him. Where was he?
Jack was too tired to fight the hands and the pain anymore. He needed the safety only one person could give him. When his brain finally gave him that name, he threw back his head and screamed as loudly as he could manage.
"Bobby!"
He gasped for more air, tears now burning his cheeks as the pain continued to burn throughout his body. Oh please help me!
"Bobby!"
