In Darkness We Trust

Chapter Three

In Darkness We Trust

Blinding pain.

That was what he first felt when he woke up. That and sick to his stomach. A headache was now pounding in his head. Going to put his hands on his head, Adam was surprised to find them bound by rope and cloth. A tug revealed both wrists had been bound to his ankles as well. Whatever had tied him up was smart."What the?" he whispered. Groggy from sleep, Adam took a moment to realize that he sat in complete darkness. Not being able to make out his surroundings, Adam felt the beginnings of fear rise into his stomach.

"So you have woken up." a gravelly voice whispered from the other end of the room, echoing against walls.

"Who are you? Where have you taken me?" Adam called, his voice quivering slightly.

"You threatened my life." the voice said in a matter of fact tone, something crunching in the background. It now seemed closer to him, not as far off as it had been moments before.

"What in the fuck are you talking about man?" he asked, voice pitched higher than he would have liked.

"The knife." this time the voice came from right by his ear. Adam swung his head and still saw no one in the dark. As if a shadow, his unwanted host swooped in and out of range. The voice came from his other ear this time, lingering for a moment as its hot breath washed over his face. "To threaten a persons life should never be taken lightly. It's only gentlemanly."

"Gentlemanly?" Adam could not help but snort. "Dude, I suppose you pull out chairs for ladies and open doors for old folks too. Chivalry is dead you dumb shit."

The voice growled, the sound of it sending a chill through Adam's spine. Now in front of his face, he could feel the things hot breath on his face, and could smell a hint of meat and blood on the things breath.

"What manner of man are you?" it asked, voice no more than an echoed hiss. The breath washed over him once more, the warmth reminding him of standing near a furnace. Yet the only warmth Adam could imagine coming from this man's mouth was that of fresh blood and hellfire.

Adam swallowed the lump in his throat, trying to stay calm.

"No answer?" the voice now sounded teasingly calm, almost gentle. Adam felt his reserve give away and he shut his eyes in fear. "If you can not tell me what manner of man you are, then I must assume a man you are not. So, Worm, I take my leave of you." The breath dissipated from his face, and the disembodied voice started to fade away. "If the rats have not eaten you by the time I get back, we shall have a chat about the fate of your well being."

"Wait!" Adam called out, not wanting to be left in the dark by himself, no matter how unwanted the company.

"Goodbye for now Worm." the voice faded to nothing, leaving Adam in the gloom alone.

*****************************

Some insurmountable time later, Adam awoke. The first thing he noticed was that he could now see where he was. Hundreds of candles were lighting the area around him. One hand was loose, the other now tied to his leg, which were both tied together with a makeshift rope of old torn clothes. Beside him sat a plate of bread chunks and a few apple slices.

"Eat." the voice was back, but now Adam could see the cloaked figure sitting at a table at the other end of the room. Candle light wavered in and out, making the figure at the table waver in and out as if some ghostly specter. It was tearing pieces of bread off, and chewing them slowly. The hood of the cloak was down, revealing a head shrouded in shadows except for two red eyes glowing out of the gloom.

Afforded a look at his surroundings, Adam found himself in a concrete room, books littered what little area he could see in the unreliable candlelight. Books on every available inch of the floor in the room, and thousands more candles, unlit, were placed here and there. Some were stacked on books, others jammed in jars and broken cups. The bottoms of some of them were melted, then stuck against the wall or floor. Many settled on the tables and shelves that lined the wall of the place, some of them were bookshelves, others were just boards resting on bricks, or old milk crates shoved together. Tables were set about the room, covered to spilling over with books, jars and odd tools. Things bubbled and churned on the tables, all many colors and mixes of odd ingredients.

Adam shook his head, looking once more towards the creature sitting at the table on the other end of the room. He cleared his throat, trying to think of something to say, anything to kill the silence.

"What..what are you?" he asked, trying to understand exactly how bad of a situation he had found himself.

"I," the creature paused, eyes closing. "I have no idea. To tell the truth, I do not know."

"What the fuck man? You don't even know what kind of freak you are?" Adam burst out. He regretted his brash words seconds after they left his lips. Something slammed on the table, and the creature stood up. A clicking noise echoed across the cement floor, and bounced off the walls growing louder as he got closer and closer. Cloak billowing around his large frame, the creature moved silently towards Adam. The fear he had felt earlier was now growing bigger and bigger. It grew from an uncomfortable churn of his stomach to a large urge to release his bowels and kidneys. The creature stared at him, its diamond shaped red orbs boring into him as if he were clear as glass.

It stopped right in front of him and settled on its knees. Cloak pooled about him, the creature squatted next to Adam, staring at him contemplatively.

"A freak." the creature let out a noise that sounded somewhat like a chuckle. "What should I do with you?" it drawled, seemingly asking his opinion.

"Let me go." he asked, voice cracking with fear.

"Perhaps," the thing smiled, a mouth full of pure white sharpened and elongated fangs lighting up from under the shadows of the cloaks hood. "I should eat you. I tire so of fruit and bread."

"No." Adam shivered.

"Or, should I take your hide and set it at my chair?"

"Please." he whispered.

"No?" the smile faded like a light dimming. "None of these will do? Why, then tell me what is worth my while to let you go."

Adam swallowed the lump that had moved into his throat. He thought hard, his pounding head making thinking diffcult. First he decided he needed to see the full gravity of his situation. Was this guy just fucking with him for kicks, or was he some sort of freak twisted by years of abuse and dirt, or some creature from hell who thirsted only for human blood?

After a moment to gather his thoughts, Adam spoke. "Show me what you look like." he demanded, trying to make his voice steady.

"Why should I do that, Worm?" the creature snarled.

"If I am to meet my death, I want to see what it is." he stated, hoping it was nothing to bad. This thing seemed to like the whole chivalry thing, and if he acted brave maybe the thing would let him go. Adam silently prayed to God, or whatever deity chose to listen to him that day that he was right.

No response came from the creature. Finally, it let out what Adam could have sworn was a sigh. "If you wish. I only say, what is seen can never be unseen. Be careful what you wish for, Worm." Clawed hands reached up and pulled the cloak from his face. The hood fell back, and the creature shook its head, letting it's hair settle against its shoulders.

Adam nearly screamed. What looked at him from inches away was unlike anything he had ever seen before. Gorge rose in his throat, and he suppressed it with a small gag. "You...you are a....a...a beast!" he muttered out, finally losing control of his kidneys. The hot wet stream rolled down his leg, darkening his lap and sending a puddle of urine onto the floor.

The creature yanked its hand from the floor as the stream touched it. A look of disgust crossed its face, and with a low growl it replaced the hood on its head.

"I warned you Worm." It turned, facing the wall. "Now tell me," once more it looked over at him, its eyes slits of red in the darkness. "What do you offer me? Hmmm?"

For a moment he was still as death, searching his brain for something, anything a monster like that would take. Eyes wide, Adam was silent as the grave.

Snarling, the creature whipped around and snatched Adam's face in one large black claw. "Tell me!"

Finally managing to speak, Adam garbled out his last defense. "My, my girlfriend. You can have her."