Chains

Tedsa woke with a start and heard the rattle of his restraints before he felt their grip. Heavy metal cold-ringed his wrists, two stiff collars joined by dense linked links of more heavy metal. He groaned.

'So. You're awake then.'

Tedsa grunted, nudging himself into a sitting position with his elbows.

'Do you know where you are? Why you are here?'

Tedsa frowned. 'Are those trick questions?'

The man looked surprised, his otherwise blank face gave little away. His body didn't move as he spoke. 'Well, no. No.'

'At least you're not asking me how I feel.' Tedsa said, a little attempt at grim humour his only way to stem the growing sensation of panic. This wasn't right, he knew that much. And he didn't know where he was or why he was there. Why would he know? The last thing he remembered was drinking with some whore in a bar downtown somewhere. 'That bitch.' he spoke with a bitter realisation, the realisation that when a gorgeous creature comes up to you and appears to want to spend time with you then there is always, always a catch. He'd have been happy to pay cash but this, what was this anyway?

'Yes. I'm afraid you were dooped.'

'Dooped? Do you mean duped? Say, where is your accent from anyway?' Tedsa was stalling for time, trying to find out any information he could, trying to look around himself to assess his chances of escape. As far as he could see he was pretty well trapped. But, in his experience at least, there was always a way.

The man rose from his simple wooden seat and turned his back on Tedsa, heading towards the wall. He turned again and leaned back against the wall, solid plaster with several layers of thick paint sloshed haphazardly against it. 'Nowhere you've ever heard of.' he said as his body melted through the wall and disappeared.

'What the...'