Rebellion

One Step Closer

One Step Closer

​Chester was scared, he could tell. They'd been locked in this room for a few days and he could just tell that Chester was afraid. The elite that he had been was gone, replaced by a man who just wanted to have a family. Chester had never been asked to be dragged into this. Mike had volunteered but Chester hadn't. He sighed softly as he stroked his hair softly. Dave and Larry were talking quietly. Scott was sitting in the chair in the corner of the room. And then he and Chester were laying on the bed. No one had come to see them and they hadn't heard about anything that was happening. It was pretty dark, the only light coming from the light from the hallway coming from under the door and through some of the unbreakable glass that made up the tiny window. They'd covered all the other windows. The worst part was that Chester was just recovering from whatever sickness he'd come down with so he was weak and tired. He spent most of his time making sure the older man was okay. And then the door opened.

​"How are my guests doing?" Ryan asked. No one answered. They all just glared at the man who had walked in. "Great. Well, I just need Chester to come with me."

​"You wish," Mike hissed, "You're not touching him."

​"Oh I am," Ryan smirked, "You are in no position to argue here. You know what? How about you all come with me? We could use an audience."

​"You're not going to touch him, or any of us," Mike snarled as he shifted so Chester was moved closer to him. Of course, they were a bit outnumbered and soon all five of them were handcuffed and being led down to different rooms. Mike was forced down into a chair much like the one he'd had to sit in before. He was blindfolded and handcuffed to the chair. This was extremely unnerving for him. He waited and then there was a crackling of speakers.

​"Are we good Ryan?"

​"We're good. Whenever you're ready."

​Three other speakers crackled and that was it. It was silent. And then there was a loud cracking noise and a muffled scream. Mike's eyes widened as he realized what he was about to go through. But who had it been? There was another yell that mixed with the second snap on the first speaker. He shook his head and then a third voice was added to the first two and now people were yelling and screaming in his ears. And then he heard it. Over the loud cries of his friends he heard Chester. Moans of pain, whimpers of fear, and screams. This was worse than the other torture. This was happening right now. He felt tears run down his face. The cries echoed in his ears. They were hurting his friends. And then it was silent.

​"Time for round two. I'm glad it affected you so much," Ryan said as he took the blindfold off of him, "It's captain's turn now."

​Mike swallowed. This would kill Dave to hear his men being tortured and he could do nothing to stop it. But that was forced from his mind when he realized that meant he'd have to be hurt for this to work. Sure enough, he was forced to stand up and Ryan shoved him up against the wall. He couldn't move and he felt a knife cut through part of his shirt. And then a burst of pain shot through him as a part of his back was burned. He couldn't help the shout of pain that escaped him. He could feel every bit of this and realized it was such bad karma. He'd done the exact same thing to Chester. But he couldn't really focus on that as the flame moved lower and he screamed again. Tears ran down his face. He couldn't handle this pain.
​He was surprised when he felt the flame next to his ear and he smelled the scent of burning hair mixed with his charred skin. He gasped but didn't dare move in fear of catching his head on fire. He really didn't need that. His back still stung like hell and he felt more tears run down his face.

​"Hey Mikey, smile for the camera."

​Mike turned around and saw Ryan holding up some kind of camera. He was being recorded. He couldn't build up any strength to try and fight back.

​"You'll look so good next to Chester. Just wait until you've seen what we've done to your friends. They'll hate you because this is all that happened to you."

​Mike stared at him but Ryan wasn't done. The man grabbed him and pushed him against the wall. He cut his entire shirt away now and smiled slightly.

​"Chester has a nice tattoo on his stomach, almost looks like a scar. So Mike, how does it feel to be powerless?"

​He gasped as he felt the blade dig into his chest a bit. Ryan smiled slightly at him.

​"You know, when Chester was with us, I actually kind of liked him. We had to be nice to him of course but he had some likeable characteristics. How about we go talk to him yea?"

​Mike's eyes widened as his eyes rose to the wall on the side. It was being lifted up to reveal a window into the next room. Chester was tied up in a chair and gagged. The older man's eyes widened. He looked unharmed. Ryan smiled and got up.

​"Hi Chester, remember that game I showed you? We're going to play it."

​Tears ran down the other man's face and Mike tried to get him to look at him so he could reassure him it would be okay. But Ryan was pacing in front of him which would block his view of Chester every so often.

​"What word? What word to choose......oh I know. Powerless is nine letters. So is this."

​Mike cried out as the blade dug into him again. He closed his eyes and his body arched. The pain went on for a while, he lost track of how the cuts were going so he didn't know what word he was possibly getting. And eventually, Ryan pulled back. Blood ran down his chest in thin lines. His torturer was walking towards the window.

​"I told you Chester," the man said loudly, "I told you what would happen."

​He was taken out of the room and dragged back to the room they'd been kept in before. He gasped as he was tossed carelessly on the bed. Someone was next to him in an instant. He looked up and saw Dave.

​"Where are the others!?"

​"Chester...he was okay. I don't know about the others."

​Dave continued pacing the room. Mike could tell the other man had been crying. Mike swallowed and then Dave smiled sadly before removing his jacket and handing it to him.

​"I can't," Mike said softly, "My back is burned."

​"So is your hair," Dave said before tying the sleeves of the jacket around his back so the jacket started to soak up the blood from his cuts. Mike nodded his thanks and then the door opened. The three others came in and Mike stared at all of them. Scott was cradling his hand where all five of his fingers were bent crookedly. They'd broken each one individually. He winced as Larry came in next. The Irishman was literally missing pieces of his arm. Some of his skin was gone. Mike wanted to throw up as he saw a similar look on the side of his face.

​"Pitching," Dave said softly, "It's an old form of torture for traitorous Irish soldiers. Thankfully they didn't do much on his head."

​Mike nodded and then Chester was led in. He looked fine apart from the fact that he couldn't walk. Mike moved forward a little so he was able to catch Chester before he fell. He helped him sit down before the door was shut. He gasped as he saw what the problem was. Chester's feet were destroyed. The bottoms were burnt and blackened at certain points and they were cut open and bleeding.

​"What have they done to you?" he whispered as he hugged the older man to him. Scott sat down next to Chester and rubbed his back gently. Dave was using pieces of cloth to wrap Larry's wounds in and Mike motioned for him to pass some his way too. He took the piece of blanket from the bed and lifted Chester's foot off the ground.

​"Don't," Chester whispered, "Please don't."

​"It'll cushion them. I promise you, it'll just hurt while I tie it. I don't want you to get infected."

​"Let him help you Chester," Scott said quietly. Chester let him wrap his foot in the piece of blanket even though he was crying and trying hard not to scream. He got another piece for the other foot and tied it as quickly as he could. He glanced at Scott who was looking at his hand. It looked awful. The bones were snapped obviously and he could actually see the displacement of the bones under his skin. It was swelling. Mike sighed and kissed Chester's head gently.

​"We're going to get out of here. I promise."

​"How? They have everyone we care about locked up somewhere and we're all injured."

​"We'll figure something out, I promise. Trust me."

​They were in a lot of trouble. Scott's hand might never heal if they didn't get out soon. Larry definitely needed to get some proper treatment. Dave didn't seem to have much wrong with him though he definitely looked a bit banged up. Chester would need some serious medical attention and he could need some bandages too. He sighed as he hugged Chester tightly.

​"It's my fault. He wanted me to join them. If I did, he said you wouldn't be hurt, I.....I was too afraid."

​"No, you don't ever go to their side. I'll take what they give me," Mike said quietly as he stroked Chester's hair, "You stay on this side right here."

​Chester nodded and then hugged him gently, being careful to avoid the burns on his back and the cuts on his back. Mike realized he was hugging him really intimately. His arms encircling around his neck and his head buried in his shoulder. It was quiet in the room and then Dave nodded.

​"We're going to get out and take over as soon as possible. Next time they come in to get us, we're going to break out."

​Mike nodded, "I agree."

​"Or.....you won't have to wait around and you can come with me."