"Kim…" Wesley repeated between sobs. "Kim…Kim…Kim…"
Wesley sat in the darkness, dried tears covering his face. His hands remained chained behind his back and only the cold hard ground supported him. With no real signs of light, Wesley had almost forgotten what it was. He had no other choice but to relive the last real images that he had seen, which was his girlfriend's death. For some strange reason, it was the only thing his mind could recall. Every time he tried to picture something more calming, it was as if an outside force blocked those signals.
He was nearly blinded as an intense flash of light flooded the room for an instant. Then it was dark again. In the moment of light, the only thing he could make out was a couple of silhouettes.
"Where the hell are we?" a voice asked, echoing throughout the room. "I thought the spell was supposed to bring him to us."
"I guess it backfired," a second voice responded. "I thought it was going to bring him to where we were. Maybe it took us to him."
"It's completely dark in here," the first voice said. "You have a flashlight?"
"Do I look like I carry a flashlight around with me?" the second voice snapped. "Of course I don't have a…wait, did you hear that?"
"Hear what?" the first voice asked.
"Shhhhhh," the second voice said quickly. "Sounds like somebody is crying."
Matthew and James were so caught up in trying to figure out where they were that they did not notice Wesley was in the same room, sobbing quietly to himself. He had neither the will nor the energy to make his presence known. For all he knew, this was just another illusion designed to further break his spirit. He continued to rock back and forth in the darkness, ignoring those around him.
"Hello?" Matthew called out. "Who's there?"
"Wes?" James asked. "Are you here?"
The two stopped talking to focus on the third voice in the room. In an area with no light at all, they only had their ears to guide them. They both heard a soft whimpering sound, followed by a few sniffs. Overall, the sounds were very quiet, almost inaudible. From what they could tell, whoever this person was seemed to be extremely exhausted. Matthew began to walk around the area, trying to make his way to the source of the unknown sound. After a few steps, he reached his hands out and felt someone's head. Using both his hands, he could feel the dried tears covering the person's face.
"Jimmy," he called out. "Follow my voice. Whoever's here is in trouble."
"Hey," James said, fumbling around blindly in his pockets before pulling out his cell phone. "I forgot about my phone. It's not a lot of light, but it should do the job for now."
Reaching Matthew, James opened his cell phone and turned it to the brightest setting. He waved it in front of himself and Matthew before turning it to the source of the third person. He and Matthew gasped as they saw their youngest brother reduced to his weakest. His hands were chained behind his back , his eyes were hidden behind a blindfold, and he was in a heap on the ground, not seeming to care about his situation any longer.
"Oh my God!" Matthew exclaimed, lifting Wesley to his feet and removing the blindfold. Wesley's unwillingness to stand made Matthew have to work harder to hold him up. "Are you alright? What happened?"
Wesley did not answer. His eyes were half open and he looked away from both of his brothers. Matthew vigorously shook him, trying to get his attention. Matthew tapped into his powers and grabbed the chains securing Wesley's hands. They became transparent at his touch and fell through Wesley's hands, harmlessly to the ground. Noticing his hands were suddenly free, Wesley jerked away from Matthew and threw his hands out, attempting to freeze both him and James. His brothers both jumped a little at the sudden movement, but did not respond to Wesley's power.
"It's really us," James said slowly, trying to reassure Wesley. "You're safe now."
"J-Jimmy?" Wesley asked between soft sobs, his voice a little louder than before, although still clearly hoarse. "Matt? Are y'all here for real?"
"Yeah," James answered. He grabbed one of Wesley's arms while Matthew grabbed the other one and they supported his weight. "You okay?"
"I…" Wesley began, "I let…Kim…"
"We know," Matthew said cutting Wesley off. "You don't have to talk about it now. Do you know where we are?"
"Or how to get out of here?" James added.
"Damn," Matthew said, coming to the realization that the spell was a one-way trip. "Maybe we could make up another spell to get out of here and back home."
"No thanks," James insisted. "After your first screw up we'd probably end up under the ocean if you made up another spell."
"There was nothing wrong with my spell," Matthew argued. "It did what it was supposed to do, didn't it? We found Homeboy."
"It was supposed to bring him to us," James countered, "not take us to him! Now we're stuck who-knows-where with no way to get out."
"Everything happens for a reason," Matthew said, "which means there's a reason we ended up here instead of him coming to us. Maybe we have our own way of getting back home."
"How?" James asked. "Without a spell, the only other way for us to get out of here would be if…"
"Are you kidding?" Wesley asked, getting the gist of the conversation between his brothers. "I can't. Believe me, I've been trying."
"We know," Matthew urged his brother, "but this time you kind of have to. It's the only way for us to get out of here. We'll help you."
"We will?" James asked absent-mindedly.
"Yes!" Matthew barked under his breath. He looked at Wesley. "Just uh, take a deep breath and concentrate. Focus on our house, the living room. Imagine us all going there. Try to take your mind to a place where you can relax and focus."