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Darkness. That’s all I saw. A faint drip echoed in the cold room, clear that it was empty – other than the chair I was in. Rough fabric stayed on my head, and I tugged at the chairs, only to find my arms stuck – same with my legs. It was scratchy and rough, so most likely rope.
And then I heard it.
Outside of the odd drip into a puddle, there was the bang and screech of metal on metal. A bang onto a metal pipe, and the screeching of something against it. The metal bounced, and it only grew closer, soon coming in with even footsteps – boots, presumably.
My breathing began to quicken, panic finally setting in. I continued trying to tear my wrists free from what restrained me, but it only made everything worse. I couldn’t see, all I could hear was the ominous banging and steps, and that goddamn annoying water leak.
Everything continued to echo with my grunts and heavy breathing, until the noises stopped. Well, the water kept going, that was the only constant. I went still, terrified to move with the silence. Something was definitely going to go wrong, I could basically smell it in the air – although all I could smell was the putrid stench of my own body odour.
Something creaked– I think it was the door– open, and I could see the little bits of light from the outside world coming in, before being plunged back into the darkness. That’s when I knew something was wrong.
Whatever was on my head got snatched off, gasping for a breath. A light flicked on, and goddamn it was bright. I squinted as I waited for my eyes to adjust it, but the light didn’t do anything for me to see my situation.
I took in where I was– tied by strict rope to the chair, a medium sized room that looked more like a black abyss than anything, the small water leak from one corner with a little bit of hard-to-see moss growing, and someone or something in front of me. I couldn’t see them well, other than the faint bits of skin from ripped jeans above fishnets, and the shine of clean leather on her boots and top.
My stomach sank. My brain was running on overdrive, but one constant thought remained. This better not be who I think it is. I think she saw my reaction well, and a sadistic chuckle escaped her. She most definitely saw my panic, how the colour drained from my face as I realised who it was.
“Remember me?” Her voice was sweet– too sweet, it almost made me sick. I could hear the smirk in her voice, oh how she was enjoying this. I groaned a little, leaning back into the chair and letting my head fall back.
“What? Not happy to see me again?” She was being overly dramatic– that, I knew. She made herself sound so offended, hoping to get a kick out of my feelings once again. But I wouldn’t let her get that this time.
“Ali, stop playing games. It’s not funny anymore.” I said, hating how concerned with her my voice made me feel. I hate that it didn’t hide it.
“Hmmph.” She responded, twisting up her baton to inspect it. “Where’s the fun in that?” She asked, a malicious smirk forming. This was probably one of the worst situations I could’ve been stuck in.
“I told you, you wouldn’t be rid of me that easily.” Her mood shifted, everything seemed to with the energy floating around us. She wasn’t mad, or offended, or malicious, or insane. No, I’m…I can’t put my finger on it. But something was definitely off – as if the whole situation wasn’t crappy itself.
“You were lurking within our communications system. I know you were.” She stopped twirling her weapon around in her palm, instead staring dead at me. She wasn’t joking around anymore. She was serious now, and my heartrate spiked slightly.
“So…Why did you do it?” Silence met that question, but that annoying water drip kept going. Could that just stop for 5 minutes? That was the thing that was pissing me off more, but I tried to stay focused.
“Do what?” Playing dumb was an idiotic idea. She wasn’t messing around here, and if I said the wrong thing I was dead, deleted from existence, removed from memory. And yet I still asked that stupid question.
Her face dropped further – as if that could happen more than it had– and she let the baton down to her side. “You know what.” More silence. “You stopped the trade into the city, nearly killing off most of our towns. You planted seeds in the other nations that we were corrupt, plotting against Arden to continue to take over each nation. But you didn’t think of the consequences, did you?”
She began to circle around me slowly and placed away the baton, allowing her hand to trail the metal around me. My breathing picked up, though I remained silent as she continued to walk around me. “Do you know what it feels like to be dead?” The question cut the silence like scissors, sending a chill down my spine. Psychotic woman.
“It’s empty, cold. Lonely . Something quite like this if I were to leave you alone.” She was now behind me, her hand tracing the chair and slowly moving to my shoulder, moving around as she did.
“Have you ever died?” I asked, knowing it would’ve been a dumb question. Why would she have died? How would she be here if she had? She let out a chuckle, shaking her head. Her normal energy was back – sadistic and irritated.
“Silly question for someone so close to death itself.” I froze. What did she mean by that? Surely she wouldn’t kill me…though I shouldn’t be acting as if I’m surprised. “Of course I have, as a side effect of your own poor, rash decisions.”
Within a matter of moments, her grip on my shoulder tightened, though now on the other side and she placed the tip of her gun underneath my chin, tilting it up slightly. I could now see her face – still beautifully intact, pale and her purple eyes gleaming with malicious mischief. I hated how she was still so pretty, despite everything that’s happened.
“Would you like to meet death?” She offered a smile, as if I was being offered cookies from a girl-scout. This was anything but sweet or innocent. This was a crazed smile of insanity. She’s reached rock bottom and come back unscathed physically, but her mind is in pieces too small to ever fix.
“Preferably, no.” Her smile faltered into a childish frown, acting as if she was so offended by my comment. Then it shifted when she saw me not buying it, not playing along to her little game, and her expression hardened.
“Hm, pity.” she hummed, only tightening the gun to my chin, forcing my head back further. “Too bad I don’t care about your opinion here.” She held her finger on the trigger, ready to pull. My breathing intensified, heavily keeping it through my nose and not my mouth. I couldn’t risk anything more, and the gun pressed up began to ache.
“Traitor.” She pulled the trigger. A loud bang rang out, and my ears began ringing, everything quickly fading into darkness as unconsciousness swept me like a tidal wave.
I kept my gun there just in case, though once he finally fell limp my grip on his shoulder loosened, eventually dropping to my side with my gun following suit in the other hand. Blood trickled down from the wound, crimson and shiny under the light that began to fade, flickering every once in a while.
I only just now noticed the hum it produced, the silence deafening. Finally, he was gone. Disgusting traitor. I grimaced towards his dead body, turning to leave the room. My job was done. I can let the others clean this up.
But once I got to the door, opened it a little, I paused. My group won't find him first. Not here. Those dirtbags that call themselves heroes will. Maybe I could leave a…message for them. I took out my notebook, tearing off a page and writing on it before turning to my other page, crossing off his name.
Hitlist:
Markus
Daphne
Solidity
Cooper
Allison
Troy
Stellar
Phoebe
Taylor
Charles
Maliah
Malik
I shut my book in an instant, pleased with my work so far, though I knew I had a long way to go. I placed it away, along with my pen, and took the note in one hand, walking over to Troy’s body. I placed it in his shirt pocket, making sure it could be seen for them when they come back.
I warned you. Good luck next time, traitors.