Aphmau bit her lip as everyone entered the security and control deck. Her friend Melissa said in reassurance; "He'll be fine."
Aphmau just smiled back slightly, worry still traced in her eyes. Shortly after, her friends and husband stood by her as they watched what was about to unfold. She pressed a button and spoke into a microphone that transferred into the room.
"Okay Blaze. I'm going to drop the shield. Be ready."
She glanced at Melissa, not wanting to bring herself to do it. The golden-eyed woman took a deep breath and pushed another button that let the shield dissipate. Everyone observed intently, researchers scribbling down everything sticking out to them.
Blaze stood there, waiting for Garroth to do something. The blonde just sat there, knees close to his chest as his arms hooked around legs. His face was blank and he was completely still. Blaze inched closer and closer to Garroth, stepping into the cell. He stood over him, the blonde looking up at him. His eyes turned red as he finally spoke; "I see you just want to talk then."
The voice was still deep and intimidating. Blaze held back a gulp as Garroth stood to his feet. It was then Blaze saw that Garroth was still shorter than him. Only by a few inches though. That brought down his worry somewhat.
"Where's Garroth?", He asked, gaining some confidence.
"Right to the point? You usually throw in some jokes if I remember correctly,", Shadow chuckled, crossing his arms. "I guess not only your suit has changed."
"Where is he?", Blaze pressed again.
"Why, he's right here,", Shadow smirked, spreading his arms slightly as if to display himself. "Of course, he's a little different but, I'm sure he's fine. He's really good at keeping calm."
"W-What do you mean?", Blaze stuttered slightly, not really understanding.
"Oh! You know when his eyes are blue? That's him. He's just controlling his emotions."
"Why does it only happen when he sees me? You didn't show up when he saw anyone else!", Blaze asked, slowly getting frustrated. He gripped the gun tightly, wanting to end the conversation if he wasn't going to talk to Garroth.
"Trust me. He really has to hold everything back but, oh boy, when he sees you his mind starts running,", Shadow explained, holding his hands together, getting a few centimeters away from Blaze. "An overwhelming sense of anxiousness and fear comes over him and he just can't keep me back. I'm in chains when he meditates. That's what I call it...but, now, he's in chains, calling out." He leans in and whispers in his ear; "He's screaming for you."
Blaze pushed him aggressively back, causing him to fall to the ground. Shadow pushed himself back up slightly, laughing.
"So your solution is hurting him?", He asked, now trying to get into Blaze's head. "It might be me talking but, it's Garroth's body you're invoking pain to." He got to his feet and said; "Let's return the favor."
He threw a punch at Blaze but, it was dodged and caught in the palm of Blaze's hand. Shadow seemed thrown off by the sudden defense and Blaze smirked under the mask; "Those cuffs prevent your magic thanks to the brilliance of my team. They are unbreakable and can only be unlocked by one key that you'll never get. So, how about you become more cooperative and tell me how to fix this?"
Shadow only smiled evilly and said; "There's no way I'm telling you. Soon, my army of followers will arrive and wipe you and this organization out. Even if I did, there would be no time left to save him."
"You're bluffing."
"I wish, for your sake. I'm sorry but, there's nothing you can do. Even with these cuffs, I can easily defeat you verbally. I'll find a way to get into your mind and discover what makes you tick. Just like Laurance so many years ago."
Blaze ran through options in his head of what could work to at least get one word out of Garroth. He asked; "What about his relic? That can stop you. Just like before."
"Oh, it will just kick me out of this body but, I can assure you there's many more victims that I can lure before my plan goes into action. You wouldn't want me to run wild, would you? There's another catch of course..."
"Which is?", Blaze wanted to drain every piece of information out of him.
"Garroth has grown weak. Without me, he might barely stand. If I leave, there's no telling what will happen to him."
Blaze growled lowly as Shadow chuckled again, tilting his head. He grinned from ear to ear, his eyes gleamed with absolute mischief knowing this was bothering the hero.
"But, hey...you never know. There may be a single, short moment when Garroth comes out but, I can assure you Carpenter, I'll be right back,", His voice was barely above a whisper. Some words hissed out of his mouth, stinging Blaze's ears. "You want to know what will happen next? I'll only push down his conscience deeper to the darkest point of no return until there's nothing left. It'll just be me, talking to you, waiting for hell to break loose."
Blaze fought back the urge to hit him again but, he knew it truly was Garroth's body and he didn't want to damage anything important. He just glared daggers at the demon speaking to him.
"Just give up Howler. You won't break me. You're not getting any where today and it's late. So, how about you try again later?", Shadow suggested, raising an eyebrow.
Blaze took a moment but, secretly knew he was right. He called out; "Aph...close the cell again."
He walked out and watched as the shield went up again. Shadow took a seat, breathed in deeply, closing his eyes. His smile disappeared, replacing it with a blank expression. When his eyes opened again, the blue eyes returned. Blaze felt like a gunshot went through his chest, now knowing it was Garroth staring back at him.
"I'll save you Gar...I promise,", Blaze muttered under his breath before exiting the room all together.
•••
"Any ideas?", Washer asked the next morning to the team. The only ones not present were Blaze and Laurance who were training. For Blaze's sake truly to get his mind off of things. "Should we listen to the recording again or has anyone got a solution?"
The room was silent. No one really knew what this was. Travis, Dante, and Katelyn were all stumped as well. At least for starters, Garroth was still somewhat conscious in there. They just had to find a way to break him out or at least get him stronger. Aphmau was standing besides Elizabeth, trying to brainstorm herself. She had a hunch that Shadow wasn't completely telling the truth (shocker) and there was a simple way to have Garroth back. At least in small fragments.
"What if we strengthened those resisters? To maybe weaken Shadow all together?", One of the scientists suggested.
"You heard what he said. He's basically Garroth's lifeline. We can't risk it,", Dante said, immediately knocking that idea down.
"Wait...,", Aphmau trailed off, picking up her tablet. She looked through the list of staff and clicked on one in particular. "What if we were to psychology strengthen Garroth? Maybe give him some mental tools to fight back Shadow."
All members of the team started mumbling, thinking through that idea. Katelyn interrupted everyone and said, proudly coming up to Aphmau; "I think that could be a start."
"But Shadow is a strong being. Garroth Ro'Meave needs more technical assistance-", Another scientist said but, was stopped by Travis. The silver haired genius said; "This is not about who is more 'powerful'. This is a mental problem. Garroth is battling inside his mind. It doesn't matter who has the better magic. Garroth just needs to understand that there's nothing to fear."
"Exactly,", Dante said, holding up his tablet. "It says here that ten years ago, the S.T.F held an interview with Agent Zvhal on what it was like with Shadow manipulating him. He said he was driven by 'negative' emotions and thoughts. Maybe if we helped him, he could weaken Shadow."
"Okay...who do you think could help with this?", Washer asked.
"One person. Lucinda Jewels,", Aphmau started, holding up her tablet with the picture of a tan woman with orange hair. "She helped Laurance, I remember, with building strategies to help his mental health. It was something he needed to become an agent here. If anyone can at least start him on the right path, it's her."
Everyone nodded in agreement and Elizabeth commanded; "Aphmau, inform Agent Jewels on her next task. Next, we need to discuss these apparent 'followers' that Shadow mentioned."
"Ma'am,", An agent stepped forward. She had pixie brown hair with dark, chocolate skin. "Agent Teony reporting for duty. I suggest leading a team down to one of the bases we've investigated in the past to see if any information can be found."
"I'll take that into consideration,", Elizabeth said, quite surprised at the sudden offer. "With that, you are all dismissed."
With that, everyone left the room except Aphmau who quickly sent a message to Lucinda telling her of her new assignment, apologizing about the difficulty in advance.
Word Count: 1566