The pounding headache was the first clear thing Dale noticed as he awoke. The next thing he realized was that he was in a chair, tied up. The bindings cut into his wrists and ankles, making it obvious they really, really, didn't want him to escape. Not like he would have been able to break out of the restraints anyway. He was an adventurer for hire, not James Bond. At least, he used to be an adventurer for hire.
Moaning, he opened his eyes, forcing his heavy head to move from its awkward position.
"Well, well, well. Look who's finally decided to join the party," a familiar voice said. That wasn't good. Wincing as he looked in front of him, his vision still blurry, Dale made out the faint figure of Jazia.
"Mmm. Yeah. This doesn't seem like much of a party," he replied, taking in more of his surroundings as his vision cleared up. It was a room he had never been in, but was clearly part of the secret bunker.
"I guess it's not, at least not for you," the girl said, her tone sending fear into Dale's system. He may have messed up a bit more than he thought.
"So what happens now?" he risked asking, unsure he actually wanted the answer.
Jazia smirked. "Don't worry. For the moment it won't be anything too terrible. Depending on how you do, you may not even have to face your dues."
Dale shifted in his chair, the bindings digging into his skin. "What are you talking about?"
"You'll find out in a couple of hours. Until then, however, I thought I'd give you a chance to enjoy some time alone to contemplate your mistakes." The girl turned to leave.
"You could at least untie me. It's not like there's anywhere to go," he called after her. Being held hostage by a covert and recognisably "bad" organization was unpleasant enough on its own.
Jazia looked back at him as she reached the door. "You're right, I could." Without another word, she exited. The sound of the door locking sealed Dale's fate.
Sighing, he tested the restraints on his wrists again. Every shift only seemed to cause the bindings to dig in deeper. It felt like rope, but stronger and thinner. Probably magically enhanced. There definitely wasn't any escape from this.
A general sense of hopelessness settled into him as time passed ever so slowly. His thoughts almost immediately turned to Warren. Oh jeez. Warren. Would he ever know what happened? What if his brother decided to investigate his mysterious disappearance and got too close to the truth? What would the Shadows do to him? Concern for Warren was the next strongest emotion he felt. This was all his fault. Dale cursed himself over and over again for getting into this mess and perhaps taking Warren down with him. Regret came with these thoughts as he realized that he was never the big brother he ought to be. Warren deserved better. After nearly an infinity of these dark thoughts, Dale's only hope came from his silent vow to never abandon his brother again, if-no, when-he got out of this mess. This was the last time he was going on sketchy missions for money. His priority would be his family from here on out.
Right. Now he just had to get out. His skin was already rubbed raw from the small adjustments he'd made while dwelling on his sorrows. He couldn't break out from this. He'd just have to plan for the right moment again. Hopefully this time his escape would go according to the plan. Except this time he had no idea what was going to happen. All he knew is that Jazia would come back.
Leaning his head back, releasing another sigh, Dale realized just how unlikely his escape from the Shadows was at this point. He missed his one window of opportunity. Part of him was honestly resigned to whatever horrific fate awaited him upon Jazia's return. It's not like he didn't deserve it. His record wasn't spotless afterall. Selling your skills to the highest bidder had brought about a few morally questionable situations. This was some payback though.
Trying to pass the time, Dale pushed himself to think of happier times: before he took up adventuring, before his parents died, back when they were all just one happy family. What he wouldn't do to tease Warren about his prom date, or go fishing with his dad, or study The Big Book of Magical Creatures with his mom. Just to go back and relish the little moments he'd never get back.
Right. No time to despair. He needed to come up with an escape plan on the off chance opportunity presented itself. Maybe they'd… No. That wasn't going to happen. He was stuck here, forever.
Ugh. All he was doing now was talking himself into circles of misery and hope. Time to think of something else. Dale began trying to recall the layout of the base from his few trips outside of the planning room and the living quarters. Honestly, unless he managed to get back there, he didn't have much of a shot at getting out of the bunker. The place was a total maze.
Huffing in frustration at his current predicament, he renewed the cycle of "I'll never escape" and "I refuse to die without seeing my brother again."
As his mind spiraled deeper into hopelessness, the door opened once again, pulling him from his dark thoughts. A presence he had felt only once before clued him into who the next guest was.
The woman from the office strode into the dimly lit room, her heels clicking sharply against the cement floor.
"Well, look who just couldn't keep out of trouble," she drawled. The playfulness in her voice sent shivers down Dale's spine.
"Guess that's what happens when you force people to join your murder club," Dale bit back. There wasn't much point to hiding his feelings at this point anyway.
The woman reached the middle of the room, stopping just a foot or so before him. He looked up, straight into her eyes, holding her stare.
"You're something else, you know that, Mr. Burgess." Her hand touched his face, gently caressing his cheek.
He jerked his head to the side away from her fingers. "Don't touch me."
She smiled. "My, my. Someone's still got some bark left in him." Leaning down so her eyes were level with his, she grabbed his face in both hands preventing him from moving away. "Don't worry though dear. I'll make sure to fix that first."
Before the next snarky reply could leave his mouth, the woman's magical presence overtook his entire body igniting pain over every single one of his nerves. The power was so overwhelming, not even a sound could escape his lips as his body shook from the agony.
The woman's voice entered his mind, offering soothing words. Dale tried to shut it out, but the pain was the only other thing his thoughts could grasp. Deciding it was worth the risk, he leaned more into her words, noticing that his suffering eased or at least his perception of it lessened.
As he allowed her voice to have more power over him, the pain continued to disappear. He realized that the speaking was so full of different murmurings, he couldn't make out any actual words. Soon the sound of a thousand whispers, all out of sync was the only thing he felt. All understanding outside of the voice left, his own name quickly forgotten.
Time passed, but all he cared about was the soothing, calming presence in his mind. Nothing else mattered, but the words, the voice. He knew what he was feeling wasn't happiness, rather pure and utter contentment. He couldn't imagine ever giving it up. Eventually the whisperings changed just ever so slightly. Dale felt the words prying deeper, affecting more than his current mood. The woman's voice, split into a million harmonious pieces, penetrated the surface of his mind, digging into things like his memories and thought process. Somewhere, a small piece of him was screaming warnings, telling him to let go before the words could affect any real change, but the calmness of the presence made resistance seem impossible.
The voice continued to pry, but that small part of him which recognized the danger he was placing himself and his brother in took greater hold with the deeper intrusion. Warren. As his brother's name crossed his thoughts, he realized that if he didn't stop this now, his brother was as good as dead. This realization gave Dale the strength to push back against the presence.
As soon as he began to fight against the words, the pain reappeared. Feeling his physical body, still tied to the chair, Dale gritted his teeth and continued to push. There was no way he was going down like this. Slowly, his agony ever increasing, the whispers left. Finally there was only pain, firing through his entire body. Within a few seconds, the world once again went dark, allowing him to leave the torture and voices behind.