*”Choice is what enables us to tell the world who we are.” – Barry Schwartz*
****
*Kiya***
My body demanded sleep after my panic attack. The cell was cold, but Phoebe was warm. She held me close and I rested my head on her bosom as I slept. Our cuffs were removed when the blonde-haired woman from earlier checked on us, conveniently ignoring the puddle of vomit in the room’s corner.
She said nothing.
There weren’t any windows in our holding cell, making it easy for us to lose track of time. We didn’t know how long we had been down here. The sunset from earlier was a distant memory, so perhaps it was nightfall?
I went from trainer to kidnapee in twelve hours.
It was just the three of us, Violetta, Phoebe, and me, trapped in this dark place. But it didn’t mean we had to be miserable. We made use of our time through conversation.
Violetta’s an avatar like us. Of Amphitrite, the Goddess of the Seas. She awoke several years back but has a tough time connecting to her true self. Sadness ached in my heart as she talked about it. Her past was painful, something Phoebe and I understood.
Was it common for avatars to have shitty childhoods?
Another hour rolled by, or what seemed like an hour, when the cell door opened again. This time, the blond woman had a man flanking her right. He was dressed…oddly. Who wears a violet and black suit in this place? Especially one with a tailcoat? In his hands were three dresses of assorted colors.
“Get up.” With little resistance, the three of us stood with our backs pressed to the wall. “You three are to change into your new clothes.”
The blond woman held the cuffs as the man tossed the dresses to us. Thick strapped and passed the knees. I didn’t like it. The only difference between this dress and the slave dress I burned five years ago was that this was pure white.
Not only that, but they sewed crystal rhinestones all around the chest area, swirling around where my breasts were to be. Phoebe’s dress was purple, and Violetta’s was blue, both plain. Why was mine so different?
“No.” Violetta snapped. “I’m not wearing this.”
“Don’t be difficult, girl.” The man warned, red eyes narrowing on Violetta’s form. “Wear the damn thing and come peacefully.”
“Fuck being peaceful!” She threw the dress to the ground. “You expect me to strip down and change in front of you and her?” She pointed to the blond woman. “Like hell, I will! I want out of this place!”
I didn’t see it coming.
I don’t think Phoebe or Violetta saw it either.
In a blink of an eye, the man was behind Violetta, restraining her arms behind her back. It was like watching a bird trying desperately to escape its trap. The woman continued to be combative, profanity springing from her mouth. I think she recited the entire Urban Dictionary.
“Lady Nadia.” Nadia, the woman with tired eyes, fished something out of her dress pocket and held it up for
us to see.
It was a syringe!
She quickly walked over to the pair and plunged the needle in Violetta’s neck, injecting her with a clear liquid. My fellow avatar’s combativeness soon ceased, she looked like a shell of her former self. She didn’t faint or fall, she became… compliant. Horrifically obedient.
The man looked our way. “Unless you two want the same treatment as your friend, get dressed.” We watched as Nadia clasped cuffs on each wrist and helped to drag Violetta out of the room, like two people taking care of their drunk friend. The door shut behind them, leaving Phoebe and me alone.
Neither of us said anything. The shock was too great. Did they drug her? With what?
There was shuffling beside me, I turn to see Phoebe stripping down to her underwear, “This is worse than I thought.”
“Phoebe, what the hell is going on?” I demanded, clutching the white fabric of my dress. “Do you know what just happened?”
“You know how sedatives work in hospitals? Well, that thing they injected her with was a kind of sedative. I don’t know if it was natural or concocted with dark magic, but I’m not in the mood to find out.” Her breaths were shaky as she slipped on her new clothes. “It’s like I’m reliving my childhood.”
“Hey,” It was my turn to comfort her, “We’re going to get out of this. They, whoever the hell they are, can’t hold us here forever.” To access the complete chapters for free, visit Jo b n1 b.c0m Giving hope to my friend was the only way we would get out of this with our heads intact. We didn’t know what these people were capable of, and judging by what they did to Violetta, they were capable of a lot.
We were going to have to fight our way out of here.
I hoped the others back home were working on our rescue. Because of the distance, I couldn’t connect to any of them. Many of them were injured during the ambush. I hoped they were doing alright.
My chest ached at the thought of Neron and that horrific injury he received when he sacrificed himself to protect me. That big, perforating hole in his stomach left a lasting image in my mind. My hands were no longer sticky, the blood was dry. However, that didn’t make the situation better. I wanted, desperately, to wash away the reminder that I couldn’t save him.
*If Neron died after I disappeared*….
Shaking the horrible thoughts out of my head, my clothes, merely a sporty top, and leggings were discarded to the side as I donned the white dress. It brushed my knees, revealing the faded scars on my calves.
There was something about wearing this dress that felt perturbing. A sensation lingered, crawling up my skin like a spider. Artemis growled deep within me at this foreign feeling. Protectiveness was her best trait, and she was ready to commit.
After five minutes, Nadia and the man came in with cuffs. “Arms out.” He demanded.
Phoebe, trembling in fear, held out her arms first. Thick, silver cuffs clamped around her wrists and instantly, I could see my friend weaken. She was half the woman she is, like all her power drained away. I, too, became accustomed to the feeling because when the cuffs were clamped around my wrists, I felt less than half of the werewolf I am.
Artemis whimpered weakly, her howl less than a newborn pup’s. That’s when I knew. It meant these cuffs were meant to weaken me. Weaken *us*. Weaken *the avatars*. Every avatar in this facility had these cuffs, making them susceptible to whatever command these brutish folks have. These people know we have the capability of freeing ourselves, and they took extra precautions to make sure it didn’t happen.
*Oh, Goddess*.