What felt like hours to Roach eventually led to Ghost quieting, heavy breaths the only noise in the room. He dared to open his eyes to see Ghost being supported by the straps on his arms and chest, body fully limp against them. His hair covered his eyes and face more than before, Roach unable to see if there were any traces of pain left. Ghost eventually rolled his head up enough to open one eye and look around the room until he met Roach's gaze. They kept eye contact for a moment before Ghost dropped his head with a sigh.

"Ghost? You ok?" Roach asked quietly. He received no response for several moments before Ghost gave a barely perceptible nod. Roach could see his lips moving, a steady stream of words passing through but no sound to make them audible. He paused for a moment before he shook his head, frowning before he continued to hold what looked to be a one-sided conversation with himself. "Dude?"

"S-sorry…" Ghost stuttered out. "You 'kay?"

"Yeah, dude, I'm fine. Think the concern needs to be directed towards you after your who knows how long drug trip." Roach pointed out. "Dunno how long you were under this time, I think we both got hit before they took us out of our penthouse suite. Our host should be back in a few minutes, he was waiting for you to come out of it." Ghost gave a small nod before hanging his head again, body sagging with exhaustion. A few minutes passed in silence before the door slid open again, Gonzalo walking in with a large towel. With a sparing glance to Ghost, he threw the towel over Roach, covering his head and leaving him blind. "Hey! I like to see, thanks!"

"How are you feeling, Simon?" Gonzalo asked, ignoring Roach's outburst. "You seem to be recovering well. Any ill effects to note?"

"Y-yeah...hafta see your miserable face." Ghost mumbled. Roach sniggered under the towel. The sound of harsh footsteps approached him, apprehension locking his body still as he tried to listen for a hint. Barely perceivable sloshing and a startled sound from Ghost was Roach's only warning before he felt water pour over him.

"Try not to breathe too deeply, Gary. I have heard that asphyxiation through this method is horribly painful." Roach didn't process the words, panic as his breath was cut short. He tried to turn his head away, but a hand held his head down forcefully, letting the water stream into his nose and down his throat. His body immediately tried to cough it out, trying to inhale but getting more water in response. His chest burned in need for oxygen and he could see spots dancing behind his eyelids.

"Stop!" Ghost's hoarse call was met with what felt like more water being poured onto his face, Roach trying to pull free from his bonds to rip the towel off his face. The panic became all encompassing, he couldn't breathe, he couldn't breathe-

The towel was mercifully removed from his face and Roach gasped for breath, coughing out the water still in his throat. He glared as Gonzalo, a smug smile on his face.

"That was not very long, Gary. Maybe fifteen seconds at most? I recall a time when Simon endured for forty two seconds."

"Go fuck yourself." Roach gasped out bitterly. Gonzalo gave a shake of his head before casually flicking the saturated towel back over Roach's head. More water poured quickly. Roach, who was in the process of cursing Gonzalo more, was left with less breath than before.

"I do have a few questions for you, Simon. Please be patient with me." Gonzalo said loudly over Roach's gasps.

"Sod off!" Ghost spat back bitterly. Roach wished Ghost hadn't said anything, because it was as if Gonzalo had decided to pour the water faster. Rather, he would be thinking that if the panic he was currently feeling wasn't all he could actually think about.

Gonzalo finally pulled the towel off, and Roach started to cough again, trying to take deep breaths to calm himself. He could feel the others staring at him, keeping his eyes closed to avoid the looks. Instead he let his body go limp, trying desperately to calm down. He knew how waterboarding worked, he had training when he joined the One-Four-One. Practical training. Roach held the off-kilter record of staying under the longest. There were several reasons his call-sign was "Roach", after all.

"I see this isn't as effective of a method that we are used to seeing." Gonzalo sounded overly disappointed. Roach cracked an eye open to look incredulously at him.

"I mean, what do you expect?" He asked hoarsely. "You know we're special forces of some degree. Why wouldn't we go through something like this as training?"

"I guess we could up the ante as it were." Gonzalo reached under the table Roach was strapped to to retrieve a box. "I do have a few other instruments here we can use. Simon, I did not forget about you, but I feel that Gary needs some...special attention. You are contributing, of course. But Gary needs some of what they call an attitude adjustment."

"Like I'll do anything for an arse like you." Ghost grumbled bitterly.

"Willingly, you would not." Was Gonzalo's lofty reply. Ghost gave a low growl of annoyance. "However, with the discoveries from our new drug we can certainly make that happen. Eventually the goal is to increase the effectiveness to where those even like Gary would not be able to resist. We could start from scratch again, which I feel we will have to do. But for now, we can only adjust our current formula."

"God I fuckin' hate you."

"The feeling is mutual, Gary. Rest assured that our time together is not as enjoyable as you would like to believe." Gonzalo opened the box, moving items around before pulling out a stun gun. He held it up, inspecting it before placing it down and reaching back into the box. A familiar knife was pulled out, a suspicious glint in Gonzalo's eyes as he looked it over. Satisfied, he placed it down on top of Roach, moving the box back underneath the table. "Do you like experiments Gary?"

"No." Was Roach's tense reply as he eyed the knife that had given him his several new scars.

"Shame." Gonzalo tsked. He picked up the knife, placing the tip on Roach's hip. A short command had the door slid open with Jorge coming in with a wicked grin. He stood near Roach's head, carrying a large jug of water. "I have an interest as to why your call-sign is 'Roach.' Care to enlighten me?"

"Not really." Roach scoffed. He could feel the prick of the knife as it barely pierced the skin. "But you can ask a different question, like why the sky is blue. I asked you before, but I really know the answer." Gonzalo looked up to Jorge, giving a quick nod before Roach's vision was covered with the towel again, water pouring slowly. Roach tried to suppress the sudden anxiety rushing through him, breathing out slowly to combat the water trying to go down his nose. His effort was for naught, as the sudden electric shock had him gasp in pain, water flooding down his throat. The pain made his body twitch involuntarily, causing the knife to dig deeper and cause more pain. It was a vicious cycle as Roach tried to quell his fear, only to fail miserably as he felt his heart racing.

Everything stopped at once, leaving Roach to heave and gasp to catch his breath, feeling all eyes on him again. Two felt predatory and Roach opted to close his eyes to avoid their stares as he took deep breaths.

"Why is your call-sign 'Roach', Gary." He kept silent. The knife twisted slightly, a gasp of pain escaping him. "Answer the question."

"Fuck off." Roach spoke through clenched teeth. The retaliation he received was a press down and another twist of the knife at the same time the stun gun made contact with his lower stomach. The spasming from the electric current coursing through him had the knife press in harder, and Roach couldn't hold back the cry of pain. He grit his teeth together, trying to keep it together as it stopped again.

"The more you resist the one simple question the worse it is for you. Of course, that brings me to Simon. I did say you were contributing." Gonzalo looked over his shoulder to see Ghost, who couldn't hold back the fury from appearing on his face. "Why do they call you 'Ghost', Simon? I feel like it stems from an earlier comment you had said, that one could not kill a ghost? Was it due to you simply not having the motivation to live and are currently going through the motions? Or unwillingness to connect with people on an emotional level?"

"Sod off." Ghost snarled out.

"Seems I have struck a nerve." Gonzalo smirked, twisting the knife in Roach's hip with more force than before. Roach couldn't hold back the agonized cry, cut short as the towel covered his face once again. Jorge poured for several seconds, Roach gasping and coughing in an attempt to breathe.

"Stop!" Ghost finally snapped out, worry plain as day on his face. He watched as Roach thrashed, the knife pushing in deeper. It was five inches deep, the wound widening as Gonzalo twisted it. The towel was pulled off, Roach's breathing haggard as a quiet whine escaped him. He could only stare at the ceiling, feeling himself slightly slip on his grip on reality as his mind tried to ignore the pain.

"Ready to answer my question, Gary?" Gonzalo's face hovered over him, Roach blinking slowly. "Why are you called 'Roach'?" He watched Gonzalo, not answering quickly enough for his tastes. The stun gun was pressed against Roach's stomach again, body jerking as the electricity flowed through him. When it stopped, Gonzalo's face hovered over his again.

"Roach, mate. C'mon." Ghost quietly prompted Roach to look his way. Roach turned his head slowly, almost vacant eyes staring back.

"Sir, I can't." Roach could barely speak up. The look Ghost gave him was horrified. "Sir, I'll fail, I can't go back."

"Gary." Gonzalo spoke sharply, grabbing Roach's face to twist his head and make eye contact. "Why are you called 'Roach'." The knife dug deeper, Roach letting out a sob as he clenched his eyes in agony. The grip on his face tightened, knife twisting sharply. Roach let out another cry, unable to help the tears. He was going to be kicked out, he didn't have anywhere to go back. He was trying to pass this test so hard, he couldn't crack. But fuck if it didn't hurt. He got this far, how much more was there? They weren't supposed to use bladed instruments for training, right?

"Roach." Ghost spoke softly. Roach tried to look his way, the grip not allowing him to turn his head. "Focus mate." Roach bit back a sob. Why was his new lieutenant being so nice? He was supposed to be training him on interrogation techniques and how to avoid succumbing to them. Did he not pass this? He didn't answer the question. What if it was part of the training?

"The faster you answer me the quicker the pain stops, Gary." Gonzalo spoke in a hushed tone. The hand that was gripping his face went to cradle the side of his head, Roach wincing at the shift. "Answer me, Gary."

"It's ok sergeant, you may answer him. You won't fail." Ghost spoke quietly. Roach turned to look at him, Ghost's face paling as they made eye contact.

"Promise, sir? I can answer?" Ghost gave him a hesitant nod. Roach let out a breath, looking to the man above him. "I have eight purple hearts. Severe injury multiple times on the field gave me the nickname before I transferred. It was also my nickname from childhood. From my brother."

"See, now was that so hard? Thank you for answering truthfully." Gonzalo seemed to vibrate with glee as he turned to Ghost. "Thank you for contributing with your part, Simon." Ghost glared at Gonzalo, switching his focus to Roach. His eyes were hazy with pain and confusion. Ghost felt his heart sink when Roach made eye contact. He wasn't all there, dissociating to when they had gone through the waterboarding training before Roach joined the One-Four-One.

"Roach, mate. You alright?" He asked quietly. Roach didn't answer verbally but his facial expressions looked as if he didn't understand the question. He went to open his mouth to speak, but it became a shout of pain as the knife in his hip was twisted before being pulled out by Gonzalo. Roach sobbed in agony, each noise twisting Ghost inside. He knew there would have been a point where this would have happened to Roach. To start happening not even a month into their time gave him more anxiety as to what was to come.

"Not the reason I was expecting, but I believe it makes sense. The amount of scarring Gary had before he joined us certainly makes it plausible. Though I do not think he is in the mindset to be lying to us, do you agree Simon?" Gonzalo approached Simon, one hand gripping his face to force eye contact. "Interesting to me is that he has a prior memory of a similar event where you were the...interrogator before. Does the special forces still employ waterboarding onto their recruits as a training exercise? This opens up a whole new avenue to explore." Ghost held back the desire to spit in his face, instead showing his disgust at both the implication and the touch. "Such malice. We shall let Roach rest back in his cell. You and I, however, have some catching up to do." Gonzalo motioned for Jorge to take Roach as he moved away from Ghost and returned to his box. Roach had his gaze wander to the ceiling, where the vacant look didn't dissipate as Jorge removed the straps, pulling him up and shoving him out the door. Roach gave a fleeting look to Ghost, who had given him a reassuring look before the door closed. Before he could speak up, Ghost felt a small prick in his arm, terror rising in his chest. He felt something brush over his lips before the fog swiftly pulled him into its dark depths.

Whooo ok so it was four months. Eugh...so. How about that 'rona?
Please keep y'all selves safe at home, don't take risks and stay healthy.
(My husband and I are taking as many precautions as possible to keep ourselves safe, we both have family immunocompromised and I myself am as well. But at least this quarantine let me write a bunch more)