Why ?

The forced return

3rd person POV

Carmen is thrown into the helicopter's storage locker, landing painfully on her already injured shoulder, her hands firmly chained behind her and her legs immobilised together. A gag forced into her mouth to keep her silent.  

"Time for you to go back to your enclosure, don't you think Black Sheep?" questions Bellum, smiling wickedly at her as Maelstrom fixes her with a smug look.

She then closes the door and Carmen hears a padlock being locked, presumably an extra security against a possible escape on her part. She shudders as she imagines what awaits her when she arrives at VILE HQ. No doubt torture to make her regret her actions against them. It's unlikely they'll want to reprogram her now that they know the memories can come back thanks to ACME.

The helicopter takes off, her coat and tools removed, she can only wait. Time, however, has a way of passing far too quickly when one is dreading an event. So, after a few hellish hours, she finally feels the plane land, her panic growing exponentially. A few seconds later, the cupboard is unlocked and she sees the entire faculty, all of them watching her. Coach Brunt with obvious disgust for the young thief, Countess Cleo with grim glee, but worst of all Dr. Bellum and Professor Maelstrom exchanging greedy glances at their new captive, silently promising her multiple pains and wounds as revenge. Coach is the first to speak. 

"Vlad, Boris, take her."

With that, they walk away, the Cleaners grab her and start dragging her behind them, taking her to what appears to be an old Scottish castle. Despite her efforts to get them to let her go, she is powerless against them in her current state. 

Entering the new faculty room, Carmen cannot help but admire and dread it. The room is large, much larger than the one they had on the island, with a high ceiling and dark grey stone walls, reminiscent of old 20th century horror films. The place is bathed in a subdued greenish light.  It is as if the room was designed for the Villains International League of Evil. 

Dr. Bellum's approach brings her back to reality. She is holding a thick metal necklace in her hands. Carmen tries to pull away from it, struggling against the Cleaners' grip.

"Relax my dear, this is just a precaution!" purrs Dr. Bellum. "As long as you cooperate nicely, you'll have nothing to worry about."

The Cleaners force her to her knees as Maelstrom gingerly lifts her hair, exposing her neck to the mad scientist. The device is placed there, fitting firmly around it. The collar doesn't stop her from breathing but it's tight enough for her to feel it. The four faculty members return to their table as the Cleaners release their grip. Carmen tries to stand up, only to feel an electric shock run through her body like lightning sending her back to her knees. She lets out a cry of pain muffled by the gag. Gasping, she looks up, and sees Countess Cleo, satisfied, with a small remote in her hand. 

"I don't believe you've been given permission to stand, Black Sheep," she chuckled. 

"Perhaps we should explain the rules a little more clearly to Lambkins as she doesn't seem to have understood" Brunt sneers. 

"If you want your stay to go well, Black Sheep, you will have to respect a few rules. The first of these is to obey us without question. Your little resistance was cute for a while but we won't have the patience for much longer." Maelstrom informs her with a grim joy barely contained in his voice.

"The second is that obviously no escape attempts will be tolerated. Mainly because it will fail but also because you will be severely punished if you try." threatened Cleo. 

"Have you understood now Lambkins?"

Vlad removes her gag, she gives them her darkest look and decides to defy the Faculty. She won't let them do what they want.

"Never! I will never obey you and I will never submit!" she shouts as she tries to stand up.

An electric shock is sent to her again, much more intense than the previous one, making her scream in pain. The tension is maintained for a few seconds before it stops. As the Faculty laughs at her, Carmen hears Maelstrom, who is the one who shocked her this time, inform her. 

"With time and pain, you'll learn, I'm not worried. And in case you haven't noticed yet, you belong to us now, we can do what we want with you, so don't test our limits too much and be thankful that we allow you to live. Oh, and one more thing Black Sheep, each of us has a remote control of your collar so don't try anything stupid against any of us and think you can get away with it."

He has a greedy look on his face that, if anything, scares her even more. 

"Vlad, Boris, chain her in the dungeon while we decide what to do with our little lamb." Bellum tells them as she pulls out some of those screens. 

The Cleaners nod to them then pull her out of the room.