The Cage
Authors Note: Hi guys so I am really sorry this chapter has taken so long to get up but as my family put up with my writing obsession all year I try and take a little time off at Xmas. So now we are back with Skye and about to delve into what really happened when she stepped off Dr Johnsons plane.
She woke as if from a coma her body was heavy, her muscles stiff. Where was she? The last thing she remembered was taking off in her Godfathers private jet, they were headed for his home in Hong Kong but something must have gone wrong try as she might she could not remember what had lead her hear. Had Hyde found her? Where were Mark and Miles? Where they OK or where they dead? All these questions swirled round her head as she took in her surroundings. The room was cold and sterile a top of the range lab much like FitzSimmons on the bus. She was chained up in what could only be described as a cage her hands shackled in thick manacles above her head the strain in her shoulders was almost at breaking point. What had she done? How could she have been so stupid? Sure she was mad at Coulson but was this worth it? All she'd achieved was to apparently get herself caught by one of the most sadistic evil scientist guys she'd ever come across and although she'd not been with S.H.I.E.L.D long she'd come across a few.
Then her thoughts turned to the one person she'd avoided thinking about since she left the safety of the bus. Grant. God she needed him now but the chances of him saving her ass this time were slim to none, he'd know she was gone but even if he decided to chase down Dex and come after her he'd never find her here wherever here was. It was a hopeless case, she would likely never see him again and it was all her fault. Even as a child she'd been stubborn, always thought she knew best and look where it had landed her tied up and caged in a psycho's lab with nothing more than her underwear to cover her. It was freezing as well her body shook with the cold perhaps this was one of his torture methods or maybe he was just a pervert. She had a sinking feeling that she was about to find out, footsteps echoed down a hallway and they were drawing closer. She tried to summon up everything Grant had ever told her regarding capture, tried to calm herself it was no good though she was terrified. Her heart was hammering against her ribs and when the double doors began to open at the opposite end of the room, she thought it would burst out of her chest.
There were two men one flipped on the lab lights the glare from the sudden burst of light temporarily blinded her; she must have been sat here in the dark for a while. When her eyes adjusted she was able to get a good look at the two men and her heart sank like a stone and came to rest in the pit of her stomach. One she had expected Dr Hyde was here of course he was, if she didn't know what he was she might have thought him handsome. He was tall at least 6 feet with thick dark hair and dazzling blue eyes and a toned body (think Patrick Dempsey). He looked her up and down with an appreciative leer and then she remembered she was near enough naked. She couldn't even cover her body and the smirk on his face told her he was enjoying her discomfort greatly. Oh God this was not going to end well, a hybrid she may be but she was new to all of this she had no idea how to use or control her powers and as far as she knew she wasn't immune to electrocution even if she could summon her bolts she'd only end up hurting herself. Then man stood next to Hyde was none other than her supposed "Godfather" the man that had called himself Dr Mark Johnson, the man that she had risked everything to meet in the hopes of finding out the truth about who she was and who her parents had been. Tears pricked her eyes but she would not give them the satisfaction of seeing her cry. Coulson had been right the whole thing was a setup and she'd fallen for it hook, line and sinker.
"Well hello there Miss Coulson it's nice to see you are finally awake you had me worried, I thought that our new recruit had slipped you a little too much sedative" Hyde's voice was full of mock concern.
God dammit Miles was in on it too he must have slipped her something when he'd handed her a drink on the plane. They were all in this together, Miles was everything Grant had ever said he was and it stung worse than anything else that had happened to her since the first time she met Hyde. It was Miles she had really trusted in all this when he said he'd wanted to help her she'd believed him. At one time in her life he'd been all she had and although she didn't love him anywhere near as much as Grant she had loved him. What was worse is that Grant had told her on numerous occasions that the guy was no good that he was a snake in the grass. Yet she had trusted Miles over him she couldn't stop the tear that slid down her cheek, Grant would be heartbroken when he found out. This wasn't the first time she'd put her trust in Miles over Grant nor was it the first time he'd screwed her over.
"You were quite the wit last time we met even as I held a knife to your throat, not many women would show such bravery in the face of death. Yet now you have nothing to say, No snarky comment or witty quip to offer us? No why am I here or What do you want?" he chuckled at that it was a terrifying sound.
"Would you tell me the truth if I asked or would you just spout more lies?" she spat.
"Now now I know you must be upset but the deceit was necessary I tried to bring you in myself on two occasions but your uncle and his agents got in my way. Incidentally I am sorry about shooting you, you realise the bullet was not intended for you, you understand. I'm not a fan of guns I prefer a more hands on approach" he smiled at her but it did not touch his eyes "I shall have to improve my aim, but on the plus side I can see that you heal fast. I hope you don't mind but I took the liberty of inspecting your leg myself barely a scratch. It's very impressive"
Her stomach roiled at that he'd undressed her, he'd put his hand on her while she'd be out cold. What else had he done to her? As if he'd read her mind Hyde interrupted that horrific thought "Don't worry Skye your dignity is intact, I like my women responsive"
Grayson or Johnson who had remained silent up until now cut that sentence off "That's enough Aiden, she's not here for your amusement if I see any evidence that her dignity is not intact there will be consequences for all involved" his tone was deadly. Hyde seemed to take in what he said because he fell silent, it was obvious that the man that had called himself her guardian was running this show so it was him she chose to address.
"Why are you doing this to me? You said you wanted to help me, care for me" her voice cracked she tried to be strong but she couldn't help the desperation that slipped past her defences.
"Skye I do want to help you that is not a lie but once you saw my associate here you would have panicked and given that you can shatter adamantium precautions had to be taken. For our safety and yours if you can prove to me that we can trust you we may be able to look into a more comfortable arrangement" he reasoned.
"Why the fuck should I trust you, you lied to me, drugged me then locked me in a cage like an animal. I'm half naked for god's sake in front of god damn pervert and you think I should prove that I'm trustworthy" this guy couldn't be serious.
"Fair point my dear perhaps we should introduce ourselves properly lay it all out on the table I'm sure your uncle gave you a few details but as well all know Phil Coulson has a tenuous relationship with the truth" the two men laughed at that and really what could she say, he had lied to her but then so had they. "My name is Andrew Grayson and I started my career working with your father as a S.H.I.E.L.D scientist my area of expertise was Biochem and theoretical physics I was top of my class at Harvard and then the S.H.I.E.L.D academy like your young friends agents Fitz and Simmons I graduated early. Your father and I rose through the levels quickly until we were made joint heads of research and development. The director at the time tasked us with creating a serum like the one that gave Steve Rogers his abilities S.H.I.E.L.D and the military did not want to be beholden to Stark enterprises especially when the young and reckless Tony Stark took over. They wanted super soldiers and super agents of their own to deal with the ever increasing threats from both home grown supes and ones of a more alien nature. Try as we might we were unable to replicate Howard Starks success little did we know that your father held the key the whole time. In the June of 1989 you were born and although your parents were overjoyed your father could not hide his erratic and paranoid behaviour from me, we had been close friends since our Harvard days. One night when I was over for dinner I discovered the reason for his increasing anxiety. Your mother had been living on this planet for millennia she was able to hide her powers and her true nature from humanity but you were just a child. You were 3 years old you had wanted your favourite doll but by the time your father realised what would happen it was too late. I watched as the doll flew into your outstretched arms you hadn't even called for it you'd just thought of it and it flew to you. I realised instantly that you were special that you had abilities no human should. Your mother and father confessed to me the whole story that night; I knew that you were the answer to all our problems. I tried to persuade your father to see sense all we would need to do was run a few tests use your DNA to create the serum. We wouldn't need to harm you or reveal your identity to others but he would have none of it he planned to take you and run the next day. Your mother would bind your powers and you would flee the country together, I regret what happened next more than you know. That night I went to the then director of S.H.I.E.L.D and explained the whole situation to him it was my hope that he would be able to get your father to see reason. As it turned out that was not his intention and for that Skye I am truly sorry I see now that putting my trust in S.H.I.E.L.D was a grievous mistake" he had the gall to look sad at that before continuing on "the director sent one of his best assassins to dispose of your parents and retrieve you. The former he managed but your mother had hidden you, in the house it took time to locate you and thankfully before he could your uncle and Agent Melinda May intervened they dispatched the assassin and as we now know they wiped your records and dropped you off at St Agnes. The director denied it all when questioned by the council he claimed that I and my staff were acting outside of S.H.I.E.L.D that we were a rogue faction chasing fairytales. Most of my colleagues were apprehended and tried but Aiden and I along with a few others were able to flee the country and set up shop here in Hong Kong. Johnson International is a highly successful company supplying bio weapons and technology to governments across the globe but we are still looking to finish what we started. What your father started all those years ago and you can help us; this does not need to be unpleasant for you Skye. You are a talented young lady especially in the field of computer science you would be an asset to my company. All I ask is that you allow me to run a few tests and help us complete this"
That was a lot to take in, she did not trust either of them and she had no intention of being anyone's lab experiment. She knew her abilities were dangerous the few times she had wielded them she felt invincible but out of control. She'd been lucky that no-one had been killed she could easily have incinerated Coulson or Fitz even Ward had been dangerously close to her the last time she'd wielded her powers. Now they were asking her to let them replicate her abilities in others? Men and women who would probably be no better at controlling them than she was. She only seemed to be able to use them when she was angry and that was only her bolts she'd yet to use any other ability, maybe she didn't have any others Grayson had said she was telekinetic but the guy was a serial liar. As for them being S.H.I.E.L.D.S scape goats yeah she could buy that back then but now? Fury always seemed like a good guy scary maybe but not bad he'd never hurt her or sent anyone after her and he could have. None of this made sense, she couldn't see any way out of this her options were clear to her. She could either give them what they wanted and maybe they'd let her live or she could resist and they'd take what they wanted anyway. If she gave into them though they'd be in possession of one of the most powerful armies in the universe and did she really believe that their purpose was defence? She'd seen the women that Hyde had held captive, he experimented on them and tortured them until they could take no more and when he was done with them he dumped them in the trash like they were nothing.
"I won't do it, I don't care what you do to me I won't help you hurt innocent people Grayson do you honestly expect me to believe this is all about defending earth?" she retorted.
"I had hoped this would be easy Skye, I had hoped you had more sense than your father you are the one at a disadvantage here girl. You don't know where you are, you are locked in a cell that you have no hope of escaping even if you manage to relearn to use your telekinesis, your team have no idea where you are and believe me even if they figure it out they won't be able to get to you. So I tell you what, I'm going to let Hyde here as you have so eloquently called him see if he can convince you to see reason. I'm not the bad guy here in time you will see that Hyde you have 12 hours alone with her why don't you show Skye the hard way then we'll see how defiant she really is" he gave Hyde a wicked smile before turning on his heel and leaving the room.
Skye shook this time with fear, she had never been tortured before sure she'd been threatened and even shot in the line of duty but full on tortured no. She knew that May, Coulson and Ward had all been tortured by the enemy at some point in their respective careers but they were all though as nails agents who had been trained to handle these situations, what was she? She was an orphan hacker, a rookie agent who didn't pay enough attention in training and was never serious and an alien hybrid that couldn't control her powers. What she was, was completely and utterly screwed, she had to endure 12 hours in a locked sell with a twisted psychopath that obviously got off on other peoples pain.
"Well now Skye you and me are going to have some fun" a cruel smile played on his handsome face and he winked at her. The sick son of a bitch actually winked at her.
"Is that what you call it you freak!" she spat.
"That wasn't very nice now was it? You are a bad girl and where I come from we punish bad girls" he walked up to her cell and undid the lock, he slid the heavy iron door back and stepped in. She quivered as he stood in front of her, he drew back his hand and struck her across the face. The man had a powerful slap; pain blossomed across her left cheek as the blood rushed to the surface staining the area an angry red. "That was for your rudeness, you speak out of turn again and it will be twice as hard" his voice was cold and hard like a master addressing a slave. He walked around her so he was behind her; he yanked her back against his hard muscular chest. She didn't feel comforted or protected like she did when Grant held her like this instead she felt sick and scared. She quivered against him, which seemed to please him he ran his hands drown her shoulders, across her stomach and then he wrapped her in an unyielding embrace. If it wasn't for the fact that she was chained up in a cell to an outsider they might look like lovers. He pressed his lips to her neck before whispering in her ear "You're very beautiful Skye, your skin is soft and smooth and unmarked...well for now" he chuckled against her ear. That sent shivers down her spine and not the good kind her blood ran cold. Grayson had said no-one was to violate her dignity but that had been before did that still stand now? Terror spread through her veins like poison "Do you like my hands on you? You naughty little girl what would that boyfriend of yours think?" he tutted at her.
"No I don't like it you sick pervert, he'll kill you, you know. He'll kill you for hurting me" she wouldn't give in she would defy him as long as she could. She wouldn't give them what they wanted willingly. She knew that Grant would try to find her, that he'd come after her or maybe in her fear it was something she needed to tell herself. She had to give them time to find her had to endure whatever this monster through at her.
"Don't get me wrong baby I like your defiance it's refreshing the others always gave me what I wanted right off the back but you and me. You and me are going to play and you're going to like it. You want to play hardball go right ahead because either way I win. You give in we get what we want, you don't I still get what I want. You should also know that I'm counting on that boyfriend coming for you it'll be so much fun. I'll let him watch me play with you, let him see you scream, see you beg for death and then I'll kill him right in front of you" he laughed at the thought, he had this all planned out. He'd played them all, he'd made sure he did his research Skye didn't care what happened to her but he knew that she loved Grant. He knew the minute he threatened to hurt him she'd give in, she'd gone from praying he would come after her to hoping he would stay far away and forget all about her in the space of five minutes.
Hyde took a knife out of the waistband of his jeans he stroked the flat edge of the hunting knife down the side of her face. "Now then Skye let's see just how fast you heal. I don't want to mark that beautiful face" he took the knife and slashed her skin open just above the waistline of her panties, the white lace turned red as blood flowed down from the wound. She cried out and tried to wriggle out of his grasp but he kept a tight hold on her. They both watched in awe as the deep cut began to knit itself back together in less than 60 seconds all that remained was an angry red line. "Well, well you do heal fast, that rules out knife play doesn't it but don't worry I have a better idea" he released her momentarily and strode across the lab to retrieve something. It was metal and circular.
He held it up for her to see like it was a prized possession, she had no idea what it was but the fact that he was overjoyed about it was not good. "This wonderful object is of my own design; it generates a 2000 volt current that passes through the human body. Until now I haven't really been able to use it as it would just kill an ordinary human but you dear Skye are special. Your body generates electrical current so it cannot kill you, you also heal at an alarming rate. This device will not bring death to you girl but it will hurt like hell" he snapped what she now realised was basically a metal collar around her neck. She did not beg she wasn't going to give him the satisfaction, she braced herself.
He walked to what he considered a safe distance from the cage and then he produced a remote. "Now are you sure you don't just want to play nice?"
"Fuck You" she spat.
He triggered the collar her knees buckled instantly as pain erupted all over her body; it was like every nerve in her body had caught fire. She couldn't think, all she could do was feel and scream. She screamed till her lungs burned with the effort, she screamed until her throat was so raw that her screams were just silent gasps. In all her life she had never known such pain or such hopelessness; he left her like that for hours. Eventually when her mind could take no more she blacked out, her body was too strong to give in and she cursed it. He was right the damn thing would not kill her but in that cage in that lab she found herself praying for a death that would not come. Despair set into her soul like rot and part of her died that day. The childlike naiveté that she had once possessed was gone along with her belief that all people had good in them. He was living proof that she was wrong he was evil to his very core, all the time she writhed in pain he just stood and watched her like a child at Xmas. The last thing she saw before the darkness claimed her was his sick twisted smile and she knew that if she made it out of here alive that that smile would haunt her for the rest of her life.
Authors Note: So I know this chapter is very dark but I didn't want to gloss over Hyde or tone him down because he's basically pure evil and this is an adult story hence the M rating. I really hope you liked it and I'll try to get the next chapter up soon.
