Chapter Three
Dee straightened his back, arching it backwards with a sigh.
Cerberus was gone, or at least he thought so. The thundering voice was now gone, leaving him alone to worry over his fate.
The sound of water drumming water echoed around him as small water globules dropped from the ceiling, down into the shadows below hitting what Dee guessed was another source of water.
He closed his eyes tiredly, trying to call his memories of what he thought was last night, but he couldn't concentrate, something else was occupying his attention.
It was the shadow; moving swiftly and quietly around him. Dee blinked in surprise. It wasn't a shadow; it was fog, or smoke. Thick, gossamer smoke flowed around him shifting rapidly. A vague shape of a hound's head formed from behind. Two brightly lit eyes stared at him, pouring white light onto his figure. Like a deer frozen in the headlights.
"Doctor... you're in quite a mess..." Cerberus' voice boomed. The creature solidified in front of him, the black mass of smoke centering itself at the rim of the cage. Muscles were suddenly visible; showing brutal shapes of strength and bone, legs adorned with three claws each, a long, sweeping tail, and a large muscled body. The head quickly condensed, revealing the true charm of the creature. A head of a hound stared right at Dee, bald black bone gleaming slightly in the dark. Two holes occupied with strange white pebbles lit the creature's perfect jaws, where lines of razor sharp teeth covered with black foamy saliva were perfectly ordered.
The mesmerizing creature was translucent; made of nothing but waves of airy fog, darkness and fears.
When the creature opened its mouth to speak, ghostlike saliva poured slowly onto the floor of the cage, rolling towards the man slumped at the rear of it.
Dee winced back. The black fog was cold. So cold, that at its touch his skin instantly turned blue.
"The Elders are trying to decide whether to torture you now or in a few hours... after you become cold... hungry... scared..." Cerberus savored each word delightedly before letting it out into the open space. The cage vibrated with each word the creature pronounced, sending cold shudders across Dee's spine.
"They wouldn't dare," Dee said aloud, hoping his own voice would encourage him.
Cerberus' laugh was bitter. It was like a drum was rolling across the wall, thundering and shaky. "There are fewer things than you could imagine the Elders would not dare to do... one of them isn't your protection."
"Enough." It was like a warm breeze has suddenly erupted out of nowhere. The torch still hovering in Dee's sight flickered and flared, its light dancing wildly at the abrupt wind.
"Return to the shadows, creature of death," the voice spat. Cerberus muttered gently, and silently returned to the shadows of the cave, where the light of the single torch didn't reach.
"The Elders have decided a temporary punishment for your crimes, Dr. John Dee." Dee blinked in surprise. A man's voice echoed around him, warm and young. Somehow, that voice was vaguely familiar.
Dee stood up on his knees, his head brushing softly the ceiling of the cage. Swallowing hard, trying to keep his voice calm and steady, he spoke. "And what would that be?"
"We are trying to find traitors, such as you," the voice explained emotionlessly. "Knowledge is what we seek, and people who have knowledge are a valuable tool."
"Indeed they are..." Dee murmured uncomfortably. He despised being treated as some kind of tool that can be simply thrown away.
In the past, he had been serving the Elders. Unquestioning. Loyal. The Elders championed him over others; he was their royal servant, or as few had claimed; a useful tool.
A useful tool.
Too many times he has been called a tool, a weapon. He was pushed to the edges of his sanity because of the Elders, and since the events that took place at San Francisco's bay... he wouldn't let himself be used again. Ever.
Ever since he escaped the California area, he was on the run, eluding the Dark Elders remaining servants, finishing arguments and fights before they even started. He had had to be cautious about his every move; even the slightest whiff of his aura would have attracted any Elder and Immortal in the continent there.
And then... Dee shook his head in anger. Something wrong occurred at a small dinner party. Only he couldn't remember anything from that night; where, when and how. Was he with someone? Had he been accompanied at the event?
Suddenly, the door to the cage opened with a click. Dee stirred awake, away from his thoughts, and his eyes snapped open in horror. He immediately fled backwards
A wry smile spread on his lips.
It had been a very, very long time, since he felt as terrified as he was now. He could actually feel the fear and terror coursing its way through his veins, freezing his limbs, sticking an expression on his face stuck between horror and forced bravery.
A hand jumped out of the shadows, thin and white, covered with a translucent black glove, grasping his somewhat scorched tie, pulling him towards the rim of the cage. Two dark gray eyes stared at him fiercely. Behind them, Dee was able to sense only one thing; Anger.
"I wouldn't feel any relief now... certainly not hope..." the voice hissed. Dee's expression was probably satisfying, because the figure hidden in the shadows laughed lightly, his laughter bouncing from wall to wall, airy and freed.
"Do you remember me?" the figure demanded.
"No," Dee whispered quietly. He didn't know him. Unfortunately, he couldn't even try to remember, now realizing only that the voice was familiar, but he had never seen that man before. The hand brought him even closer, and now he was able to see the vaguest hint of a smile smeared on its pale face.
"John..." the young man whispered slowly, eyes distant in the past, "If you only knew what I had in store for you..."