In Fox's Jaws - TICCI TOBY

Chapter 3 - Feeding

My eyes widened. 'A proxy?' I thought to myself, mind yet again racing with possibilities. Proxies are usually referred to in tech, acting as a gateway between the person and the internet, simultaneously acting as a firewall, but how does that relate to me? They must have read the look on my face, or my mind; I couldn't be sure which, because without missing a beat, the spindly spider was responding.

"Proxies, as they have been aptly named, are essentially my helpers. You perform tasks for me that would be too, I would say impossible but that wouldn't be the right word, too trivial for me to perform myself." The emaciated man looked over at Tobias.

"Take for instance, this one here, Tobias." He turned his expressionless gaze over to the man in the striped jacket. He was going to speak again, before being interrupted by Tobias.

"I told you to call me Toby, Operator." He lifted up his goggles, his eyes narrow as he glared at the being before fixing his gaze on me. He was almost afraid, as if his act of defiance towards his superior would result in something horrific.

"Yes, well." The being continued, "Think of Toby here as a dog, his purpose is to fetch, retrieve, and be obedient to my every command." The emphasis on the word "Toby", laced with snake-like venom, caused the lights to flicker faster, as my vision and feeble grasp of consciousness suffered the consequences.

Toby looked down, shifting his goggles back over his eyes to shield from the dehumanizing comments it made. In that moment, I almost felt a pang of sadness for him, my empathetic nature truly shining through for the man who just kidnapped me.

"You shall be doing the same, fetching anything I ask of you, whether it be new recruits, information, or whatever I need of you." The slender man paused before finishing, "Oh, and, you'll also be trained to attack for me, like a good proxy should."

My heart skipped a beat, not in excitement, but in complete and utter terror. My mouth was dry, both of saliva and a response to his statement. How would I even react to that? That my life is now at his disposal, his every whim my bible.

It was terrifying to say the very least, adrenaline coursing through my veins, causing my body to become restless. I soon began tapping my foot against the concrete beneath me. Both of the creatures in the room with me eyed me up, as if waiting for me to say something. They were growing impatient, I could tell by the thick air clouding my lungs, seemingly damp with frustration.

"Well? Are you going to fucking speak or n-not?" Toby growled angrily, his arms crossed in front of his comparatively scrawny form.

I hid my face from him, turning my head to the side as I responded,

"W-Well, I...don't really have a choice in the matter just..." I trailed off, a shaky, heavy breath creeping out of my lungs.

"Please, don't kill me." I looked up at Toby, begging for my life, eyes watering and voice cracking and failing. In the flashing of the lights, I could barely make out his eyebrows furrowing. I wasn't so sure why, did he pity a poor pathetic creature like me? Like watching a cat with a limp try to run and pounce? That must have been it; It couldn't have been anything but that.

I struggled in my seat, shying away from both the men in the room, but to little to no avail.

"Good to know that you're aware of your place. Tobias, I shall relay more instructions regarding the girl soon." The lights quivered heavily, my grasp of consciousness dangling by a thread. It was ready to snap under the tremendous amount of pressure, and I squeezed my eyes shut in a feeble attempt to remain awake.