Vindicator

Chapter 48

Karma entered through the doorway that Tempest had unlocked for her, and found herself in a space much like her own head when Alessia shoved her aside to take control. To her left she saw the blonde wolf, Tempest, sitting at attention.

"Tempest? I'm going to need you to wait outside. It will essentially be a state of slumber for you, but it will limit the risk to your sanity" Karma explained, motioning to the doorway she just came through.

Tempest tilted her head to the side, clearly confused. "How did you...That door wasn't there just a moment ago!" The wolf exclaimed.

"Magic" Karma said dryly, wriggling her fingers as if casting a spell. It did the trick, the she-wolf was sufficiently freaked out to leave without further questioning. As Tempest ran through the door, it slammed shut and locked behind her.

Karma grinned, chuckling to herself as she moved forward through Tiffany's mind. She waded in far enough to see the physical apparition of Tiffany that she could reach out and touch. For a moment, she considered taking time to sift through Tiffany's memories before she realized what was happening, which would make Karma's life easier. Instead, she opted to take control now, and let Tiffany watch if she needed to check her memories later.

"Tiffany, hello. You may know me as the Spectre...I'm here to take control of your body, so I can help you free yourself and Theo" Karma said by way of a gentle greeting, trying not to startle Tiffany too much.

It didn't work, though, and Tiffany jumped and let out a scream. When she whirled around to see Karma, she let out an over dramatic sob and threw her arms around Karma in a hug.

"Oh, thank Goddess you've come to save us!" She wailed with her poor acting skills.

If Tempest hadn't already given up the truth, Tiffany's behaviour certainly would have told Karma what was going on. Nonetheless, she patted Tiffany's back.

"Yes, I'm here to get you and Theo" she said, prying Tiffany away from her. "I need you to step back, and give me full control. For your protection, I'll put up a mental barrier to keep us separate so I don't risk your mind, okay?"

Tiffany nodded, wiping at the non-existent tears she pretended to have. "I promise, I'll behave and do whatever I need to do" she vowed.

Karma nodded and walked her a ways back, so that Tiffany could still see what was happening but would be too far to instantly attack Karma if she broke free. Once a mental barrier was erected to block Tiffany in, Karma grinned and took control.

When she opened Tiffany's eyes, nobody would have been able to tell that Tiffany's usual blue irises were now a beautiful green. The reason for this was that she had some kind of device over her eyes, and it seemed to be helping her to see despite the blinding light.

"Smart bastards, how'd they rig something like this up so quickly?" Karma wondered to herself. Odds were, this meant that they had been planning something against Spectre before this.

Pushing those thoughts aside, Karma easily navigated the halls to get a feel for the place they were holding Theo. It appeared to be a simple one-bedroom wooden cabin, and all of the walls, windows and doors were covered in some form of material. With the device on her eyes, Karma couldn't confirm that the bright lights were related to the material; but, she certainly suspected as much. As an added measure of certainty, she checked all nooks and crannies of the cabin for anyone else.

"It's just us" Tiffany suddenly piped up. "Daddy and everyone else said I wouldn't be found so I wouldn't need a babysitter. They just locked us in here and made me swear not to let Theo free" she explained.

Karma didn't answer her, and continued her sweep to be sure. Once she was satisfied that all of the other rooms were clear, she went in to find Theo.

Theo was in the single bedroom, on a King-sized bed. He had dried blood on his face, suggesting he'd been beat up but given the chance to heal. He was currently lying on his back on the bed, his wrists each cuffed to a side of the bed with what appeared to be silver shackles. Similarly, his ankles were bound together with regular rope, and then locked to the footboard of the bed with silver chains. A ball-gag was keeping him from speaking, and a thick blindfold covered his eyes to protect him from the blinding lights.