Betrayal - Part 3
Jan 2, 2021 19:41:13 GMT -5
Post by therunawaygirl on Jan 2, 2021 19:41:13 GMT -5
(This is a "short" story, and I plan on sharing more of these to help build my characters. So please, enjoy!)
(WARNING! Blood, torture, extreme violence)
How long had he been unconscious? The noises that echoed around him were as if he was underwater —distant and a mumble. He felt like he was falling deeper and deeper into a dark abyss —fading slowly from existence. His body felt numb, and his eyes heavy. Even though he reached onto the light at the end of his tunnel, Jack didn’t want to fall asleep forever. He was frightened of what laid ahead, if he truly decided to end it all then and there.
It was an option that scared him —enough to deter him from following the light.
“…ack…” a voice grew louder and louder by the second, until Jack could make it out properly, “Jack! Hey —can you hear me!?”
Jack groaned a bit, finding himself struggling to open his eyes. His body hurt all over, felt numb and stung thanks to the many wounds in his body —all of the bruises, cuts and stabs. The feeling of bandages was all over his body —at least, the most exposed parts, like his hands or arms, yet the scar in his face, still bleeding although faintly, was just being kept clean with gel and a cloth. Near him was Elena, sighing in relief as she saw the teen finally waking up. Jack was lying on something, but he couldn’t tell what it was, at all. He tried to look around, but even slightly tilting his head felt tiresome and hurt.
Where was he?
“Elena…?”
“Thank goodness you woke up” Elena said with a caring smile, “I was worried you wouldn’t…”
“Where…?”
“Stay there, okay? You’re really badly hurt.”
“…Right…” Jack looked at Elena, groggily, “Where’s… Liz…?”
“…She ran off” Elena scowled as she looked away, “She’s the reason why you found yourselves in that situation —she sold you off. It was her motive ever since she joined…”
“…” Jack wished he could show any shock —Liz had sold them off?
“Haa… I’m sorry… It’s my fault you found yourselves in that… Had I just assigned any other Navigator, then maybe…”
“…Where’s… Alice…?”
“She’s okay —she’s waiting for you. We… Had to move, though —our main base of operations got found out. We got everyone out, though —they’ll find the base empty by the time they get there.”
“That’s… nice…”
“…I know you don’t want to recall, but…” Elena looked concerned, “What happened… Back there? What… What did they do?”
Jack looked at Elena with his eyes half-closed. His body was completely exhausted —it wanted nothing more than just sleep and recover the lost energy, but the boy was afraid that, if he ended up submitting to that sleep, he wouldn’t break free of it anymore. Elena’s words still felt like he was underwater, but he could make them out regardless. When finally, his brain reacted to what she was asking, Jack’s eyes widened in panic. His lips began to shake as well as his arms, quickly bringing his hands towards his ears, shutting his eyes closed as he tried to look at anything but that.
“Ah —Jack!?”
“Stop!” Jack shouted in a panic, “Please, stop! Just stop!”
“Calm down!”
“Let go!” Jack swatted Elena’s hand as she tried to reassure him, “Don’t touch me! Stop it! STOP!”
The teen’s voice was cracked and hoarse as the tears left his closed eyes, denying Elena to seeing him in such a vulnerable state. He’d turned around, his back now facing the blue-haired woman besides him, all the while she looked completely shocked and lost at Jack’s behavior. He’d never been like this… Even if he was just rescued from something so traumatic, there was a feeling that something else lurked underneath.
The question was what.
Elena allowed Jack to calm down and recover his breath from his recent panic attack. Jack alone let go of his head, but the tears were still there, and he refused to turn to face Elena again. He couldn’t —he’d failed in trying to save those he cared for. How could he face Elena? Or worse, how would he face Alice? The thought scared him, but not as much as death.
“Jack…” Elena’s voice was soothing, but the concern behind it was evident, “What happened…? Brandon mentioned you gave in after they brought people… But he couldn’t see who they were. They’re worried, you know…”
“…” Jack bit his lip, uneasy, “I…”
“…I understand if you don’t want to talk about it, though —it’s up to you.”
“…They shot ‘em…” Jack’s whisper caught Elena off-guard, “They… Shot ‘em… Right in front of me… They were… They were right there… A-and I…”
“…Did you recognize them?”
“…” Jack nodded faintly, “M-My… M-Mom a-and D… Dad…” the teen said, his voice somewhat choking due to the tears he was holding back, “T-They… They brought ‘em in… And t-threatened to… To k-kill them if I…”
“…Jack…”
“I… I could’ve saved them…” the teen finished, still whispering, “I… I could’ve done something to save them… But I couldn’t… I… I didn’t…”
“…” Elena sighed, worried, “It’s not your fault…”
“It is!” Jack shouted, “I could’ve saved them if I came up with something —anything! Anything… Just to divert them… Just to buy time…”
Elena couldn’t say a thing —not after what she learnt. The only thing she could do was be there, but it was as useless as an umbrella after a rain —in the way, doing nothing useful to deflate the situation or even make it better. Jack was in complete denial, blaming himself for something he had no control over. The blue-haired woman couldn’t do much to help him overcome it —it was far too deep of a wound.
They had arrived at their destination —the many military cars and cargo trucks stopping as the healthier members helped those most injured or weakened. Elena was no different —she helped Jack walk, slowly but surely, but the boy hardly paid it any mind. The noises were blurring themselves once more as he felt stepping into another deep abyss on his own. He once more felt as if he was diving underwater —although being dragged into it was a better analogy.
Why was it so hard to remained focused? He wanted to focus on something else —avoid looked at the grim image that had burned into his mind, but he couldn’t. A constant, painful reminder of his failure.
“Jack!”
The teen raised his view as he heard a familiar voice —his sister, Alice, running to meet him. Elena was still besides him, having wrapped one of the teen’s arms around her neck to allow him a point of support. His wounds began to sting again, and the one in his face, still not completely healed, was burning vividly, still bleeding faintly and tainting his lower face red. The girl shivered in shock, once close to her brother, and reached onto the cut only for her fingers to be stained with blood.
“What… Did they do to you…?” the girl asked, her voice shaking and a faint whisper.
“…” Jack looked down, unsure on what to say. He knew Elena was looking, but he wanted her to say nothing. Managing to draw a somewhat uneasy and forced smile, the teen reached for his sister’s head, patting it lazily, “Sorry I worried you…”
“Huh…?”
“I’m back in one piece, though —just as I promised.”
“Jack…” Elena mumbled, looking at the boy she was supporting with concern.
“I’m okay, sis —don’t worry about this” Jack kept on going, forcing a smile in order to hide his true feelings, “I’ll just… Get patched up, and then rest a bit… Just watch —I’ll be back up in a flash!”
Jack tried to laugh a bit, but it came out far too forced and obvious —something Alice caught onto immediately and worried her. Elena sighed, taking the issue herself, and admitting that Jack needed both medical attention and rest. With that said, after receiving a nod from the girl, Elena took Jack to where they were keeping the injured and giving them treatment. Once his sister was out of view, Jack sighed, holding the tears that threatened to choke him back.
He knew he’d forced it, but what else could he do? The emotional scar was far too fresh —he couldn’t approach it, no matter the angle. How was he supposed to tell Alice, if even he himself was in complete denial?
“You shouldn’t have forced it like that…” Elena mentioned, not looking at him.
“I know, but… I don’t want her to suspect a thing…” Jack admitted as he looked down, “I know it’s not right, but… I don’t want her to worry any more… I don’t want to scare her…”
“Still, your—”
“Please, Elena —don’t tell her a thing…” Jack begged, “I don’t want her to know —not now. I know it’s dumb for me to ask this, but… I don’t want Alice to know what really happened… Please…”
Jack’s tone became a whisper as he finished his petition, only bringing a sigh to the blue-haired woman as she looked away. It was tough to refuse that offer, seeing how torn he was about what had happened. He was just a teenager, who suffered through immeasurable pain, both physical and psychological, only to see the two people he wanted to see most dead in front of his eyes.
The concern in Elena’s eyes was obvious —how would it not? Even though she wanted to refuse, something deep inside her heart told her not to do that, instead helping the teen cope with the pain he felt.
“For now… I won’t say a thing. But you’ll need to tell her eventually, before the bubble bursts” she determined, glancing over towards him, “I understand it’s painful to talk about now, but you’ll have to overcome it eventually.”
“I know… Thanks…”
(WARNING! Blood, torture, extreme violence)
How long had he been unconscious? The noises that echoed around him were as if he was underwater —distant and a mumble. He felt like he was falling deeper and deeper into a dark abyss —fading slowly from existence. His body felt numb, and his eyes heavy. Even though he reached onto the light at the end of his tunnel, Jack didn’t want to fall asleep forever. He was frightened of what laid ahead, if he truly decided to end it all then and there.
It was an option that scared him —enough to deter him from following the light.
“…ack…” a voice grew louder and louder by the second, until Jack could make it out properly, “Jack! Hey —can you hear me!?”
Jack groaned a bit, finding himself struggling to open his eyes. His body hurt all over, felt numb and stung thanks to the many wounds in his body —all of the bruises, cuts and stabs. The feeling of bandages was all over his body —at least, the most exposed parts, like his hands or arms, yet the scar in his face, still bleeding although faintly, was just being kept clean with gel and a cloth. Near him was Elena, sighing in relief as she saw the teen finally waking up. Jack was lying on something, but he couldn’t tell what it was, at all. He tried to look around, but even slightly tilting his head felt tiresome and hurt.
Where was he?
“Elena…?”
“Thank goodness you woke up” Elena said with a caring smile, “I was worried you wouldn’t…”
“Where…?”
“Stay there, okay? You’re really badly hurt.”
“…Right…” Jack looked at Elena, groggily, “Where’s… Liz…?”
“…She ran off” Elena scowled as she looked away, “She’s the reason why you found yourselves in that situation —she sold you off. It was her motive ever since she joined…”
“…” Jack wished he could show any shock —Liz had sold them off?
“Haa… I’m sorry… It’s my fault you found yourselves in that… Had I just assigned any other Navigator, then maybe…”
“…Where’s… Alice…?”
“She’s okay —she’s waiting for you. We… Had to move, though —our main base of operations got found out. We got everyone out, though —they’ll find the base empty by the time they get there.”
“That’s… nice…”
“…I know you don’t want to recall, but…” Elena looked concerned, “What happened… Back there? What… What did they do?”
Jack looked at Elena with his eyes half-closed. His body was completely exhausted —it wanted nothing more than just sleep and recover the lost energy, but the boy was afraid that, if he ended up submitting to that sleep, he wouldn’t break free of it anymore. Elena’s words still felt like he was underwater, but he could make them out regardless. When finally, his brain reacted to what she was asking, Jack’s eyes widened in panic. His lips began to shake as well as his arms, quickly bringing his hands towards his ears, shutting his eyes closed as he tried to look at anything but that.
“Ah —Jack!?”
“Stop!” Jack shouted in a panic, “Please, stop! Just stop!”
“Calm down!”
“Let go!” Jack swatted Elena’s hand as she tried to reassure him, “Don’t touch me! Stop it! STOP!”
The teen’s voice was cracked and hoarse as the tears left his closed eyes, denying Elena to seeing him in such a vulnerable state. He’d turned around, his back now facing the blue-haired woman besides him, all the while she looked completely shocked and lost at Jack’s behavior. He’d never been like this… Even if he was just rescued from something so traumatic, there was a feeling that something else lurked underneath.
The question was what.
Elena allowed Jack to calm down and recover his breath from his recent panic attack. Jack alone let go of his head, but the tears were still there, and he refused to turn to face Elena again. He couldn’t —he’d failed in trying to save those he cared for. How could he face Elena? Or worse, how would he face Alice? The thought scared him, but not as much as death.
“Jack…” Elena’s voice was soothing, but the concern behind it was evident, “What happened…? Brandon mentioned you gave in after they brought people… But he couldn’t see who they were. They’re worried, you know…”
“…” Jack bit his lip, uneasy, “I…”
“…I understand if you don’t want to talk about it, though —it’s up to you.”
“…They shot ‘em…” Jack’s whisper caught Elena off-guard, “They… Shot ‘em… Right in front of me… They were… They were right there… A-and I…”
“…Did you recognize them?”
“…” Jack nodded faintly, “M-My… M-Mom a-and D… Dad…” the teen said, his voice somewhat choking due to the tears he was holding back, “T-They… They brought ‘em in… And t-threatened to… To k-kill them if I…”
“…Jack…”
“I… I could’ve saved them…” the teen finished, still whispering, “I… I could’ve done something to save them… But I couldn’t… I… I didn’t…”
“…” Elena sighed, worried, “It’s not your fault…”
“It is!” Jack shouted, “I could’ve saved them if I came up with something —anything! Anything… Just to divert them… Just to buy time…”
Elena couldn’t say a thing —not after what she learnt. The only thing she could do was be there, but it was as useless as an umbrella after a rain —in the way, doing nothing useful to deflate the situation or even make it better. Jack was in complete denial, blaming himself for something he had no control over. The blue-haired woman couldn’t do much to help him overcome it —it was far too deep of a wound.
They had arrived at their destination —the many military cars and cargo trucks stopping as the healthier members helped those most injured or weakened. Elena was no different —she helped Jack walk, slowly but surely, but the boy hardly paid it any mind. The noises were blurring themselves once more as he felt stepping into another deep abyss on his own. He once more felt as if he was diving underwater —although being dragged into it was a better analogy.
Why was it so hard to remained focused? He wanted to focus on something else —avoid looked at the grim image that had burned into his mind, but he couldn’t. A constant, painful reminder of his failure.
“Jack!”
The teen raised his view as he heard a familiar voice —his sister, Alice, running to meet him. Elena was still besides him, having wrapped one of the teen’s arms around her neck to allow him a point of support. His wounds began to sting again, and the one in his face, still not completely healed, was burning vividly, still bleeding faintly and tainting his lower face red. The girl shivered in shock, once close to her brother, and reached onto the cut only for her fingers to be stained with blood.
“What… Did they do to you…?” the girl asked, her voice shaking and a faint whisper.
“…” Jack looked down, unsure on what to say. He knew Elena was looking, but he wanted her to say nothing. Managing to draw a somewhat uneasy and forced smile, the teen reached for his sister’s head, patting it lazily, “Sorry I worried you…”
“Huh…?”
“I’m back in one piece, though —just as I promised.”
“Jack…” Elena mumbled, looking at the boy she was supporting with concern.
“I’m okay, sis —don’t worry about this” Jack kept on going, forcing a smile in order to hide his true feelings, “I’ll just… Get patched up, and then rest a bit… Just watch —I’ll be back up in a flash!”
Jack tried to laugh a bit, but it came out far too forced and obvious —something Alice caught onto immediately and worried her. Elena sighed, taking the issue herself, and admitting that Jack needed both medical attention and rest. With that said, after receiving a nod from the girl, Elena took Jack to where they were keeping the injured and giving them treatment. Once his sister was out of view, Jack sighed, holding the tears that threatened to choke him back.
He knew he’d forced it, but what else could he do? The emotional scar was far too fresh —he couldn’t approach it, no matter the angle. How was he supposed to tell Alice, if even he himself was in complete denial?
“You shouldn’t have forced it like that…” Elena mentioned, not looking at him.
“I know, but… I don’t want her to suspect a thing…” Jack admitted as he looked down, “I know it’s not right, but… I don’t want her to worry any more… I don’t want to scare her…”
“Still, your—”
“Please, Elena —don’t tell her a thing…” Jack begged, “I don’t want her to know —not now. I know it’s dumb for me to ask this, but… I don’t want Alice to know what really happened… Please…”
Jack’s tone became a whisper as he finished his petition, only bringing a sigh to the blue-haired woman as she looked away. It was tough to refuse that offer, seeing how torn he was about what had happened. He was just a teenager, who suffered through immeasurable pain, both physical and psychological, only to see the two people he wanted to see most dead in front of his eyes.
The concern in Elena’s eyes was obvious —how would it not? Even though she wanted to refuse, something deep inside her heart told her not to do that, instead helping the teen cope with the pain he felt.
“For now… I won’t say a thing. But you’ll need to tell her eventually, before the bubble bursts” she determined, glancing over towards him, “I understand it’s painful to talk about now, but you’ll have to overcome it eventually.”
“I know… Thanks…”