Vision

Chapter five

Chapter 5:

The Cause

The two men are teleported to a dark cave. As Jack enters, he remembers how his parents had died. It was dark, cold...but painless. He had made it out of the car before it sank. He’d always been a good swimmer. He could hold his breath for a long time in the water. His record was seven minutes and thirty-seven seconds. The troubled man strokes his short beard. He peers through the darkness as he carries on walking.

“What were those things, really?”   Walters asks.

Dave chuckles to himself, silently, “They were demons. You were in the Bottomless Pit.

“Right. So…what were they, really?”

Dave shoots him an agitated look as they continue to walk. He turns his head forward and rolls his eyes.

“That’s some attitude you’ve got there,” laughs Jack.

“I should say the same to you.”

The two men approach a small, circular room in the centre of the cave. Big Dave takes Jack to a triangular table with three chairs on each side and Jack takes a seat.

“That’s my chair,” groans Dave.

“Don’t worry about it, love,” a tall, British lady says, approaching them from within the darkness. “You can let him have that chair for a few minutes, can’t you?”

“That is my chair,” he says again.

They both take a seat next to the small table. Dave eyes Jack with a constipated look on his face. Jack doesn’t pay attention to him.

“Before Dave takes you to your accommodations, we have a few questions for you…” the lady explains.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t get your name,” Jack says impatiently.

“First of all, what happened before you were in the hospital,” she continues. “Anything…strange?”

“Well, yeah. A truck drove right into me. I’m not really sure who was in the wrong lane. I’m pretty sure I was in the right lane,” he answers and hesitates to tell her of the rest. It might nothing, anyway.

“Is that all?” she asks.

“Yes,” he lies.

“Okay,” she says, “question number two. Who was it that took you into captivity?”

“I can’t remember properly… I think it was a guy dressed as a doctor.”

She bites her lip. “A doctor…right. Final question. Did the…” she hesitates. “Did the...”

“It’s alright, Nancy. I already told him,” Dave whispers.

“Right. Did the demons--”

“Wait a minute. That crap is true?! I thought he was making it up.” Jack exclaims.

“Listen, Jack—”

“No, you listen. How the hell do you even know who I am?”

“We’ve been monitoring you. Just—”

“Monitoring me?! How is that even possible?!”

“ENOUGH!!!!!” exclaims Big Dave as he stands up from the chair and slams his fists on the table. Both Jack and Nancy fall silent. He sits down again and gestures for Nancy to continue.

“D-did the demons have any captives?”

“Y-yes. Some poor old guy named Stanley.”

“St-Stanley? Are you sure that was his name.”

“Yeah, pretty sure. What’s it to you?”

“No, nothing.”

Jack sighs for a moment. “Look…I…Why did those…demons take me prisoner?”

“Because…” she answers, as she gets up and starts to leave the room, “you are special. Even if you don’t know it, yet.”

Jack gazes at her until he has completely lost sight of her. What could she have meant by that? No one had ever said that about him before.

“Ah, dude?” asks Dave. “Could you please get up from the chair? I want to clean it.”

Jack gets up and shakes his head no as he does so. Dave takes his handkerchief out of his left pocket. He wipes the chair with it and as soon as he is finished, he takes Jack to his room, as promised by Nancy.

 “There’s food and water on the table over there in the corner. If you need to go, the bucket’s right over there,” says Dave, as soon as they get to Jack’s room.

Jack looks at him in horror and disgust. “Kidding,” says Dave. “The bathroom’s right through that door over there.”

Jack immediately goes to lie down on his bed. These people are fighting for a cause. He just can’t tell if they’re allies…or threats.