"You can't force me to join your cult," Dale said, failing to keep his voice calm.
That same laughter sounded in his mind, even louder this time. Instinctively his hands reached up to cover his ears. Despite this doing nothing to stem the sound, Dale held his hands there until the laughter subsided.
"This interview is over," the woman said, standing up.
Dale then felt himself forced to his feet by her magic. He glared at her before reluctantly turning to leave. He stopped right as he reached the door and turned back around.
"Can I ask what I did wrong? I made sure to follow all of Jazia's rules exactly."
"Jazia's rules were only meant to ensure you could keep your head under pressure. By accepting the mission you surrendered your life to our cause. Now no more questions. I have business to attend to." The woman motioned him out, and Dale obliged.
Jazia was waiting. Without a word she pushed past him to enter the room and shut the door.
Dale stood on the landing taking deep breaths. He ran his hands over his face and through his hair in an attempt to help himself focus. He sighed as he remembered Kelly waiting at the base of the stairs and knew she would get suspicious if he delayed his return.
His mind raced while he made his way down the stone steps. There was no way on the planet that Dale was going to actually join this organization. Joining secret societies was Warren's thing, not his. He tried to force his anger away and simply focus on forming an escape plan, but with little luck.
"I see you survived." Kelly's voice pulled him from his thoughts.
He stared at her and wondered if she had been given the choice to join or if like him, was forced into it through lies.
Dale reached the bottom step and was still too caught up in his mind to give a response to Kelly.
She didn't say anything more as she led him back the way they had come only twenty minutes before. They reached the door which led back to the main room, but Kelly paused and turned to face him.
"Look, I know you're probably a bit upset right now, but it's not so bad here," she began. "I think once you spend a little more time with us, you'll really start to like it"
Dale looked at her for a moment and his expression softened. "Thank you for trying to help." He didn't really want to talk about his feelings at that moment. "Maybe you can show me around so it feels a little more like home."
Kelly smiled and nodded. "Of course! And we're getting another new guy so hopefully it will be less awkward for you."
"Another new guy?" Dale asked, his surprise evident. "Does he know that this is a lifetime job?"
"Oh, I doubt it. No one chooses the Shadows," Kelly explained. "They choose you."
"And once you're chosen, you don't get any other choice," Dale finished for her.
"It's the safest way to keep things running."
"It's not fair."
"That's life."
Dale broke eye contact and took a deep breath. This conversation wasn't going well, so he backtracked a bit. "So when will we get to meet the new guy?"
"Well the recruiters already brought him in, so now we just have to wait for him to wake up."
"The recruiters? Is that who kidnapped me too?" Dale said.
"It's not kidnapping. We call it escorting."
"By knocking me unconscious?"
"Well, as they say, potayto, patahtoe." Kelly smiled.
"So is kidnapping new team members the recruiters only job?" Dale replied, hoping to get enough information to start forming an escape strategy.
"They also gather information on potential candidates and ensure the new teammates, uh, stay put," she answered.
"Stay put?" He paused for a moment. "So they're also in charge of making sure I don't run away or try to leave?"
"Exactly. And in the unlikely event someone does manage to get away, the recruiters track them down and return the traitor to face their dues."
"And what are the dues?"
Kelly opened her mouth and then closed it again without saying anything. Dale waited patiently for her response.
"You should ask Jameson about that. He's more familiar with the recruiters than I am," she finally said.
Dale nodded, and Kelly gave him one last smile. "Well, shall we rejoin our comrades and start getting you acquainted with your new home?"
"I guess so," he replied coolly.
She opened the door, and Dale followed her inside.
Jameson stood at the main table guesteruing to different parts. Beside him stood a tall, young man of Hispanic descent. He seemed thoroughly engaged in Jameson's tour, constantly nodding and asking questions for clarification.
The older man stopped his info session when he noticed Dale and Kelly had returned.
"Aye, and now there's two more of the team to meet," he said as they approached the table. They came to a stop on the opposite side of the two men.
"The lady is Kelly. Be extra kind to her as she will most likely save your life a time or two," Jameson told the new person. "And next to her is Dale. He knows everything there is to know about the magical creatures in the wild or on preserves, at least according to his previous employers that is."
"Not everything," Dale said, smiling. He could at least pretend to be fine. "At least not yet."
"Aye, that's fair I guess." Jameson turned to the man next to him. "Kelly, Dale, meet Mateo. Despite his age, he's an expert swordsman."
"I'm not that young," Mateo said, somewhat offended. "I'm twenty-two."
Dale had to resist the urge to bring up the fact that his brother was only a year younger, but the knowledge did help him feel more comfortable around the newcomer. Yet a pang of guilt flooded through him when he thought of never seeing Warren again and getting a chance to explain.
"Well Mateo, I guess it's your turn to meet with the big boss. I'll show you the way," Kelly said very casually.
Dale tried to keep his facial expression neutral as Mateo walked out with her, leaving him alone with Jameson.
"It seems ya passed the test," Jameson said, looking Dale up and down.
"I think I'd rather have failed," he replied.
"No ya don't," Jameson said flatly.
"Why? What would have happened if I hadn't proven myself capable?"
The older man thought for several moments before answering the question. "Ya would have been sent below, to be a slave and work yourself to death."
"They keep slaves in the basement?"
"Technically this whole place is a basement, but yes. The Shadows keep people who aren't fit to be on any of the teams yet know about the organization as slaves to keep things running smoothly. They don't believe in executing people since that's a waste of a good worker."
"But surely some of the slaves try to revolt or run away, right?" Dale was a little less sure about trying to escape with this new information.
The Scottish man looked less comfortable with this question. "Well, they have ways of handling them to ensure that's never a problem."
Dale decided to not push things further. Clearly this line of questioning was suspicious. "I guess that makes sense."
Silence filled the room as Jameson began fiddling with objects on the table. A large map took up most of the space, topped with small markers in different locations. Dale couldn't quite figure out what each piece meant, but didn't feel much like asking.
Time passed slowly as Dale continued to study the room. It seemed like a mix between a weapons stash and planning area. The other table had several neat piles of different adventuring items. The shelves were fully of a mix of artifacts, books, and weapons. In one corner of the room stood a few different types of dummies for target shooting and weapons shooting. A thin mat leaned precariously against the wall, clearly well used. Other gym equipment was piled into a couple of boxes.
"It seems like you guys have a nice little set up here," Dale said casually.
Jameson stopped fidgeting and cleared his throat. "Ya, it handles our needs."
Dale nodded. "Could use a few more decorations though. It needs to feel more homey."
"Well ya'd have to take that up with Jazia. I ain't got much experience in home."
"Do you spend a lot of time here?"
Jameson scoffed. "A lot? My boy, this place is your life when you're not on a mission. We each have a sleep pod down the hall and a shared bathroom, but this is where you do everything from eat, train, and nap."
"Definitely needs more decorations then."
The older man shook his head, a slight grin crossing his face. "Ya taking this better than I thought ya would. I hope it stays that way. You seem like a decent fellow."
Dale paused for a moment, unsure of how to reply. Before he could think of anything, a new voice piped into their conversation.
"I didn't realize your skills included interior decorating," Jazia said from behind Dale.
He turned to look at her. "I actually have awful taste in decorations, but even I can tell that this place is missing something." He kept his voice light and playful, attempting to mask his inner anger which was quickly becoming directed at her.
She smiled, but it felt fake to him. "Well once Mateo and Kelly get back we can start to go over the plan for the upcoming mission. We don't have as much time to prepare as I would have liked since things are getting bumped up by a week, but we'll make do."
Jameson nodded thoughtfully. "Ay. That will make things a bit harder, but nothing we can't handle. Especially with this new blood to liven things up." He came over to Dale and patted him on the shoulder. Dale said nothing, continuing to stare at the table before him and slowly putting together his escape plan. These people didn't know who they were messing with.