Chapter One
Dr John Dee opened his eyes, a headache throbbing at the back of his head. He blinked once, twice, three times. The gloom around him cleared gradually, blurry images of his surroundings starting to make sense.
He licked his lips slowly, tasting the metallic taste of blood, and the more gentle essence of moisture from the earth.
He was in a cage, lying on its floor; he knew it at the moment he saw the grey metal poles looming around him. The scent that reminded him of a damp cave marred the air with musty unseen vapor. The cage was oddly swaying, and Dee wasn't sure if it was the cage itself, or him, that was bobbing from side to side, like... almost like...
He peered warily beyond the bars, trying to orient himself. Abruptly, he understood where he was. A huge, long cave, so long he couldn't see its end, contained hundreds of cages like his. Each small narrow cage was hung on a thin metal chain, attached to the cave's ceiling by a rusty hook. A single torch, ignited with yellow flames, was hovering in the air just a few meters away from Dee's cage, painting the closest cave wall and the cages with sallow light.
Dee's eyes snapped open with horror, now realizing the full meaning of this situation. Oh, now he was in trouble. Real trouble.
Trying to understand if he was hurt or not, Dee examined his body. He was still in the evening tuxedo he wore only yesterday night, still wearing his black leather shoes and silver watch.
The time was 1:07 a.m. But that meant he was unconscious for... for how long?
Another question popped up in his mind. How did he get there? Where was he?
Dee shook his head, trying to orient himself in the endless space.
Something crept around him, hidden in the shadows.
"Enjoying?" a voice boomed around him, ricocheting from wall to wall, mocking him as it gradually faded. "What a shame..." the voice laughed at him. "And I thought you were one of our best men."
Dee raised an eyebrow in a silent question
"Where am I?" Dee demanded, glad to notice his voice wasn't shaky.
"Ah... where are you indeed?" the voice asked gleefully. "Why don't you take a look around you? What does this place seem like to you?"
Dee's eyes narrowed. He hated being toyed with.
"A prison," he hissed into the dark.
"See? That wasn't so hard. Yes indeed... you are imprisoned. John Dee. I heard many things about you."
"Who are you?" wondered Dee aloud.
"Just a lowly guard..." the voice explained quietly. "But the only guard. No one can escape me," he added proudly, "For I am Cerberus!" the voice suddenly roared, the low shaky tone of a thousand dogs barking and howling thundered across the cave.
Dee bit the inside of his cheeks. In-as-much as the Elders have decided to leave him to the mercy of Cerberus, the Hound of Three Faces, they must want him to stay locked up. For the time being.
"Why am I here?" he asked loudly, his own voice now echoing across the endless gloomy space.
"Ah..." Cerberus snarled pleasantly. "I bet you'd like to know. But that's for the elders to tell you, not me. But don't you worry." Dee could actually hear the smile in that saying. "They aren't planning to kill you very soon."
Dee swallowed hard. Whatever his Elder masters planned for him, it wasn't going to be pleasant. He combed his ruffled hair with his fingers, tying it up into a thick ponytail on his nape. When he removed his fingers away from his head, he saw the merest trace of red liquid.
Where was he? Why was he there? What happened?