Alternate

Chapter 9

It was the pain that woke him up. It pulsed through his entire body leaving no spot untouched. With a grunt, Carl opened his eyes and rolled from his side. It was enough to make tears form in the corners of his eyes. His bruised body nagged him to stay still, but even that hurt and the cold stone floor was not a comfortable place to lay down.

He looked around the small room. A window high above let in a bit of light, allowing him to see the chains attached to the wall opposite to him. The form attached to them was a familiar one.

"Seth, you still alive?" he croaked with a dry throat. There'd been no water given to them since being thrown in their prison.

The chained figure stirred. Carl could hear a groan.

"I'm still here," said Seth with an equally coarse voice.

Carl winced as he pulled himself up and rested his back against the stone wall. His chains dragged along the floor as he did so. "Good to hear that."

Seth dragged himself up with equal pain. His right eye was swollen shut and dried blood was smeared all over his face. "Damn those bastards."

Talking to captain Trez had not taken that long. The story they told had not been a complex one - just a bunch of adventurers bumping into a group of monsters and running away for their dear life.

There'd been no reason not to believe them.

So the captain had let them go after insisting they spend the night. The talks had gone for so long. They'd been given adequate enough rooms instead of being thrown in jail. The next morning they'd walked out free men. Their horses had been given back and everything had looked settled.

They'd started towards the tavern Rand had told them to meet at. They had not gotten further than a few street corners before being jumped by their now captors. They'd been quick and efficient, knocking both men out before they could even draw weapons. Once they woke up they'd found themselves tied to chairs in what looked to be an abandoned building of some sort. There'd been dust on the floor and spider webs hanging from the ceiling. There'd been eight men all together there. They'd asked questions.

Carl and Seth had refused to answer. The answers would have led them straight to Rand and Jen.

Then they'd started using torture.

Neither man had been prepared for it. They had no military training. Both were working ordinary jobs in their real lives. While Alternating had brought them their share of bumps and bruises as well as bleeding wounds, pain was not a constant visitor to them. Neither had the experience to deal with someone actively prolonging the pain they were suffering.

It hadn't taken much to get both of them talking.

"You think Rand is all right?" asked Seth. His speech was a bit slurred because of the fat lip he had. They'd told the men where they might find him. Five had gone out immediately to keep an eye on the place.

Carl shook his head. "I don't know. With the power he now has who knows what he can do. But it's still five men. All it takes is one lucky shot." Talking made his head throb, but it was better than laying down silently, doing nothing. At least talking assured him he was still alive and had his wits about.

Seth spat something out. Even in the dimly lit room Carl could see the red spot appear on the floor. "Fuck those guys. I hope Rand kills every last one of them."

"If he has Jen and John with him, they just might," said Carl. He couldn't deny that seeing the men dead would bring some grim satisfaction. If they ever got out from their prison.