Chapter 18: Fire and Fury

James woke up to an abrupt freezing cold squirmy slimey wet smack on his face. He stirred and saw little droplets coming from somewhere above him, blinked groggily to see that they were trickling out of a small but weird object — the conch was held by a kid. The boy's mouth opened in shock before he ran off into the high timber.

He pushed himself up, his breath caught in a gasp as the damaged arm burned with pain and started down the alley after him.

James ran after the boy, his footsteps echoing through the dense woods. The boy was quick, darting through the trees with ease. As James rounded a corner, he suddenly stopped in his tracks, realizing where he was.

"Uh oh... didn't know there was a shortcut back to this place," he muttered, eyes widening as he recognized the charred remains of the village they had burned weeks ago.

Before he could react, villagers emerged from the shadows, weapons in hand. They seized James, tying him up and dragging him towards a makeshift pyre. His shouts of protest echoed through the trees.

Ellie, hearing the commotion, rushed toward the sound, staying low and hidden behind the ruins of a building. She froze when she saw James, bound and struggling, about to be roasted alive. Just as she was about to turn and run for Isaac, a cold, hard object pressed against the back of her head.

"Move, and I won't waste a second blowing your head off," a voice hissed in her ear. Ellie glanced sideways and saw a tough-looking young woman, Raine, holding a gun to her head. The village was still a scorched, smoldering ruin, and the memories of what they had done here flooded back, making Ellie's heart race.

Raine forced Ellie forward, marching her into the village square where the villagers quickly tied her up next to James. Both captives exchanged anxious glances, knowing they were in serious trouble.

Meanwhile, Dr. Isaac woke up with a start, a sharp pain throbbing in his head. He

groaned, rubbing his temples, and splashed water on his face to wake himself up. As he looked around, realizing he was alone, he frowned in confusion. But before he could search for his companions, villagers appeared, their knives at his throat.

"Where is the boy?" one of them snarled.

They had captured Isaac too.

...

The villagers glared at them with hatred, throwing rocks, dirt, and other debris at the crew as they were tied up right above a raging fire.

"You burned our village with fire, so you will die burning from fire!" Raine spat as she began to lower the cage, her expression cold and merciless.

"Okay! Okay! Why don't we negotiate here, huh?" Dr. Isaac called out, trying to mask his fear with a confident tone.

Ellie smirked despite the situation. "He's back," she muttered.

"Yeah, he is," James agreed, his voice tight with pain.

Isaac continued, "Well, you let me down, and I'll tell you where the boy is." He paused, waiting for their response as the whole village went silent.

"What are you doing?" Ellie whispered, her voice sharp with disbelief.

"I'm negotiating here, shut it," Dr. Isaac whispered back, maintaining a forced smile as he tried to keep his composure. "You let me down, and I get you the boy. Do we have an accord?" he asked, raising an eyebrow, hoping his offer would catch their interest.

Raine narrowed her eyes. "Or no! We have the map to the hidden treasure. We can give you that," Ellie suddenly blurted out, desperation creeping into her voice.

The villagers burst into laughter at her suggestion. "Well, Ms. Pretty, no one gives a damn about that map. We all know the boy is the key to freeing us from here and taking the treasure. Going with a map alone would solve nothing," Raine retorted with a sneer.

"Uhh, are we even considering my deal here? I said I can show you where the boy is if you let me down!" Isaac yelled, trying to regain their attention.

Raine waved her hand dismissively. "Let him down and still keep him tied up," she ordered. Two men approached, roughly lowering Isaac from the cage but keeping him bound tightly, even tying his legs together, so he could only hop awkwardly.

Isaac, feeling a surge of defiance, decided to put up a fight. As the two men tried to move him, he hopped and swung his bound arms at them, trying to knock them off balance. The villagers watched, some laughing, others cheering on the men. But despite Isaac's determination, the two men easily overpowered him, shoving him to the ground and pinning him down.

"Alright! Alright!" Isaac gasped, out of breath and realizing he had no chance of winning. "Thomas… he's been captured by Cane and his crew."

"He already has him?!" Raine yelled, anger flashing in her eyes.

"Yes," Isaac admitted, his voice strained. "Should've known. That bastard!" Raine hissed, her fists clenching in frustration.

"But we have a plan!" Isaac quickly added, trying to regain some leverage. "We also want to go get our friend back. Let Ellie and James down, and we can discuss this together. I'll tell you our plan."

"Are you crazy?? After you almost burned down the whole village last time you were here, you expect me to just easily let you go?!" Raine spat, glaring at him with disbelief.

Isaac sighed, realizing this wasn't going to be easy. "Well then, just know that whatever torture you plan to do, the guy with the one arm and muscles there, he can take it all!" Isaac forced a smile and stretched his hand out for a handshake, but Raine ignored it, her face hard and unforgiving.

Raine nodded to the villagers, who immediately began lashing James with whips, burning his skin with hot irons. James gritted his teeth, refusing to cry out, but the pain was unbearable.

Ellie watched helplessly, her heart breaking for James. She turned to Isaac, her voice low and trembling with anger. "I hate you for this," she said, unable to look at him any longer, before standing up and walking away, needing to distance herself from the horror.

After what felt like an eternity, the villagers finally stopped, leaving James with deep, painful welts and burns. He staggered over to Isaac, who looked at him with a mix of guilt and fear.

"I'm sorry," Isaac mumbled, his voice barely audible. "It was the only way I could think of. They had to force me before I finally agreed for them to torture you."

James, his body trembling from the pain, didn't say a word. He just reached down, grabbed Isaac's shirt, and pulled it off, leaving Isaac to shiver in the cold as he walked away.