Timeweaver

All Hope is Lost

"Oh good, you're awake." Cat heard the icy voice the second she woke up. She hadn't even opened her eyes yet. Well, there's no point in trying to pretend, Cat thought as her eyelids parted slowly. It was dark, which didn't make any sense. How long had she been asleep?

"Over here, darling." Catalina coughed as she breathed in the musty air. She wasn't outside anymore. Her eyes scanned the room for the woman with the voice that made her shiver. Flame lay a few feet away from her, his white fur glowing in the dim light. He was still unconscious.

Sitting cross-legged under the flickering light bulb that cast a sickly yellow light on the room was a very tall woman. She had stick-straight, platinum-blonde hair that hung down to her waist. She wore a simple green shirt with long, brown pants that swished around her bare feet as she stood up and began to pace. Her pale, blue eyes were as cold as her voice. The face that surrounded them was young and wrinkle-free. It didn't match her voice; she sounded much older than she looked.

"Don't look at me like that, darling," she laughed her horrible laugh, obviously enjoying every minute. After all, she did have Catalina right where she wanted her. The question was why.

"Who are you?' Catalina spat the question at her. She shifted her position to push her short, dirty blonde hair out of her eyes. It looked dull compared to the woman's striking hair, and she hated her for it.

The woman leaned in close and whispered, "Your worst nightmare." Her cackle echoed off the windowless walls. Flame lifted his head.

"What the-?" He stopped when his eyes met the woman's. "Oh no," he breathed, looking like he regretted waking up. Catalina felt the same. How much nicer it would have been to remain forever in a dreamy, comatose state, floating on clouds, her mind filled with images of her family and puppies and unicorns... Too late. Reality - and gravity - would not let her get away that easy.

"Hello, Flame. So good to see you again. Aren't you lucky to have found Catalina?" Cat shuddered at the way the woman said her name. "So many of your fellow Guardians are currently out of work, am I right?"

"You still haven't answered my question," Catalina interrupted their conversation. "'Your worst nightmare' isn't something you want me to call you, is it? It doesn't really suit you, plus it's sort of a mouthful. I'm thinking more along the lines of..." The woman gave her a look so cold, her twenty seconds of confidence crashed to the floor and shattered like icicles.

The woman turned to face Cat and stared at her with her icy, blue eyes. "Tsk, tsk, tsk. Catalina, darling."

"I'm not your darling," she said impatiently, "Just tell me who you are and why I'm here. Please," she added for good measure.

"Look at you, using your manners," the woman applauded mockingly. "If you must know, my name is Gwendolyn. Call me Gwen and I'll kill you on the spot." Cat was tempted to test her, maybe try out Gwennie, but knew the woman was not joking. She probably never had. "Of course, my name won't mean anything to you by tomorrow, Animal Whisperer." The contempt was clear in her cruel voice.

"Don't worry. We'll get out of here. I promise. I've got a few tricks up my sleeve." Catalina heard Flame clearly, but Gwendolyn appeared not to have heard him. Had she even really heard him? Maybe hearing voices in your head was just one of the consequences of being bashed on the head several times in one day.

"Flame?" she thought towards him, hoping he would be able to hear her like she had heard him.

"Pretty cool, isn't it?" Flame asked, or, rather, thought.

"I thought you couldn't read my mind?"

"Not unless your thoughts are directed at me," Flame replied.

"Oh, this could come in handy."

"What are you smiling at?" Gwendolyn asked her.

"Why? It's not going to mean anything to you by tomorrow, Gwendolyn," Cat said, mimicking the woman, although her frigid voice was inimitable.

"Listen to me, you little -" Gwendolyn grabbed the collar of Catalina's wrinkled top.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Flame stretched his chain as far as it would go, but he still wasn't close enough to help. "Gwendolyn, leave her alone. You need her alive." Gwendolyn glared at Cat, and she rushed to translate, mimicking Flame's confident defiance.

Gwendolyn hesitated but let go anyway. "Not for long," she muttered as she stomped up the stairs, pouting like a reprimanded child.

Catalina smiled, satisfied that she had gotten rid of the woman. She continued smiling as she cut free of her bonds with her knife. She had been shocked to find she still had it with her. Apparently Gwendolyn wasn't very observant. Flame's chain was going to be harder to break than her old rope.

"Got any suggestions?" she asked him after several failed attempts to cut through the thick metal. Flame shook his head. "Where are we?" she leaned against the cold, stone wall.

"Gwendolyn's basement," Flame answered. "Hey, listen, I don't think I'm going to be able to escape these chains, but you should get out of here as soon as possible. She wants you, not me, anyway. I'll try to catch up."

"What? No way. I'm not leaving you. We'll think of something." Catalina had only known Flame for a day, but she had grown quite fond of him.

"That's sweet, but..."

"Shh. Be quiet." Cat cut him off. "Sorry," she apologized when she saw the hurt look on his face. She pulled a chair over to the only window in the room. It was high up on the wall, but if she stood on her toes, she could see out. There was no glass in it, but it was barred. There goes escape plan A, Cat thought. There wasn't much to see. Bushes ran along the wall of the house, obscuring her view.

The bushes and trees she could see surrounding the house were all black as night. Dark trunks and branches and leaves that appeared burnt. Hanging on the branches were dark purple fruits that looks bruised all over. The Dark Forest.

"Explain what?" Cat's face lit up as Tabitha's voice rang out. She was alive, but she didn't sound happy. "How you killed someone and you plan to..." Tabitha's voice trailed off. No, no, no. Cat pulled at the bars, but they didn't budge.

"Ugh!" she yelled, slapping the wall. She could hear cautious footsteps approaching.

"Don't just let her catch you!" She heard Flame's urgent voice in her head.

"Why not?" she answered out loud. She was never going to get out of this place. It was all Tabitha's fault. First making her come here then abandoning her. Even though Cat felt like letting Gwendolyn do whatever she wanted with her - after all, nothing compared to the despair that had crept over her heart like a dark veil - her legs dragged her back to where she had been tied up, and she felt her hands fastening the frayed rope loosely around her wrists.

"Not trying to escape, are we?" Gwendolyn peeked her head around the door. Her voice no longer filled Catalina with fear. Instead, all she felt was anger, along with dread as she realized there was nothing she could do for herself now.

"What's the point?" Cat asked, and she really meant it. She felt there really was no hope.

"That's what I like to hear," Gwendolyn said with a smirk. The door closed, sealing the Animal Whisperer's doom.