The Traitor

Chapter Twenty-Two: A Shocking Reveal

I woke up in a large, empty room- well, empty except for a person standing in one of the many dark corners of the room. I didn't recognize the figure, but I assumed it was a guard because of their defense attire. I groaned and rubbed my head, as the feeling came back into my arms, but that was it. I still couldn't feel from my chest down, including my legs, or else I might've tried to run. What did they do to me and why can't I move? I asked myself, starting my million-question rant, including 'where am I?' 'what happened?' And 'who is behind all this?' 

I heard the guard mumble something into his walkie-talkie and then came a staticy reply. If my mouth could move, I might've asked him what was going on, though I guess it didn't matter, because seconds later a door on the opposite side of the room opened, illuminating that side of the dark room. Then lights came on, temporarily blinding me while three people walked through the open door and towards where I laid on the ground. I realized one of those people was Jasper, the one I had risked my life to save, just so he could betray me. Up until that point, people had been calling me the traitor, when in fact, it had been Jasper the whole time.

He took a confident stance in front of where I was lying on the ground, watching me with dark, deceitful eyes. "Teya, it's so good to see you here," he said in a calm voice as if it were a coincidence that we were both there at the same time. 

I didn't look at him; instead, I focused on scanning the room for a way out; a way that wasn't flanked by guards. Who am I kidding? I can't even stand up, I thought. 

"Don't even bother looking for a way to escape," he told me as if reading my mind. Wait, could he actually read my mind? Because that would really blow away any chance I had at getting out, though I wouldn't be that surprised if he could. "In fact," he mused, glancing over at the guard standing in the corner. "Matthews, pull up the recharging booth." Within two seconds of his orders, a large metal ring came up from the floor around me and continued rising up, eventually morphing from the metal ring to what looked like glowing, blue, electrified bars. The booth— more like a cage— continued coming up from the floor until it reached the ceiling, giving me about a diameter of five feet of space. I wasn't sure what would happen if I accidentally touched the bars, but their appearance alone warned me to stay away from the edges of my allotted space.

Suddenly, I felt something weird take over me, as if all of my energy was flooding back into my system. I could feel myself getting stronger with every second, and the feeling was returning into my legs and torso; even my arms felt stronger. What was happening? Why was I suddenly so strong? I hadn't felt this strong in my entire life, and I wondered what was filling me with energy and how it was all coming back just as fast as it had left me. 

I jumped up from where I was lying on the ground and stood to face Jasper, a satisfied expression on his face.

"Where am I and what's going on?" I demanded to know for the second time that day. If I didn't get an answer right then, I would find out what the bars did and how far my newly found strength could take me. At that point, I already had nothing to lose, and if they went to the trouble of capturing me, they wouldn't give the electrified bars a high enough voltage to kill me, though I didn't know if that was even what they really were.

But instead of answering my questions, Jasper just laughed and began pacing around my cage. I slowly turned to follow him as I waited for his delayed response, which I'm sure he did just to be dramatic and because he knew I probably couldn't do anything except wait for him to reply. "So many questions," he pointed out in the silk-like voice of his. He was clearly enjoying this. That makes one of us, I wanted to say.

"Let me go," I jumped straight to the point, the confidence in my tone surprising me. I wasn't sure when or if I had crossed the line of his patience, but I wasn't about to test it- yet. Besides, he had already won- with me behind bars and him having all control over me. I couldn't do anything that might make my situation worse, though if there was a way, he already knew how to do it.