Project Death: Resurrection by Danielle Thamasa
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I tried to ignore Samuel as he stood in the room, only stepping in the hall if he had to speak with another one of the Leaders. He barely said anything to me while he was in the room, instead allowing the silence to settle around us. It seemed so thick that it made it practically impossible to do anything. I had given up on trying to get out of this and instead I focused on how I would warn Thanos if he came after me.
The time moved slowly and I lost track of everything. I had no idea how long it had been since I had last had anything to eat. Samuel would not give me anything. In fact, I was unsure if or when he would even allow me to use the restroom. The lack of food or drink had helped manage that particular issue so far, but soon enough it would come to a point where I would not be able to hold it in anymore. I assumed he wouldn't let me that privilege since we were most likely in the Resurrector facilities and I knew them well. This policy I understood—even if I didn't agree with it—as I was considered to be their "enemy." Unfortunately that meant I would have to relieve myself in the bed, and that thought alone was enough to make me gag.
"Sir," a young Resurrector said, popping her head into the room. "There's a…man here to see you. He insists that he speak to you immediately."
Samuel looked over at the door and nodded, a smile on his face. "This is earlier than expected. Of course. Thank you."
She gazed at the ground, shifting uncomfortably where she stood. "There's more, sir." Her voice was soft. I realized she was afraid of something. Naturally I wanted to believe it to be a fear of the Angel of Death being so near but deep down I knew it was a fear of someone much more powerful. "He wants to meet with only you and he demanded that you bring Tamesis with you."
No! It really was Thanos. I wanted to ignore what I felt and ignore what he told me. Despite our feelings he had to realize that our job, our duty was the most important thing. Nevertheless he had actually come here. I didn't want him to; I wished I could yell out for him to leave but my throat was dry and I had no idea what Samuel had done to this room or to me for that matter. I let out a deep breath. This wasn't going to end well and I didn't want to see it occur. Thanos wanted to meet with only Samuel and that was a ridiculous demand. The Leaders did not meet with others, especially enemies, alone as it was too risky. Of course it would certainly even the odds for Thanos if he only had to meet with Samuel.
No, that was ridiculous. Why did I doubt Thanos? I knew better than to underestimate him. For a long time now he had worked in opposition to the Resurrectors, even though he was greatly outnumbered. Still, the Balance was maintained so that alone showed how powerful Thanos really was.
Samuel still glanced at the door. "Very well. Tell our guest I will meet with him in the conference room in a few minutes."
I focused my gaze on the Leader before me. What was going on here? There was no advantage to meeting Thanos alone like that; in fact it seemed more of a disadvantage. The girl left the room and Samuel turned to look at me. I noticed a glint in his eyes and it made me wonder what was going on, what tricks he had up his sleeves. For some reason he did not look worried about this, as if he had planned that this was how it would happen. He moved over towards the bed and looked down at me.
"You will not interfere with this meeting. Unfortunately he wishes for you to be there, which may work in my favor considering what we are after." He unhooked my bonds from the bed but re-did them behind my back after he forced me to sit up. "You should know that if you try to help him then both of your lives will be lost."
I looked at him, thinking he was more horrible than I had ever thought. How would both our lives be lost? They were against death so how could they kill us? Then again, considering everything I had heard from Samuel so far it was always possible that he would make an exception for us. There had to be some way to make this right, but until I could figure out something, I would have to simply go along with Samuel. I nodded slightly, hoping that he would believe I wouldn’t say anything with a threat hanging over both my head and Thanos’s.
"However, knowing what you are like and based on how you have acted in the past, this is probably the safest option," he continued.
I was going to ask him what he was talking about but before I got the chance he had jerked a gag into my mouth with such force that I growled at him. Great, to keep me from doing or saying anything, he had me bound and gagged. There wasn’t much I could do now and I was sure that I made a pitiable sight, looking very much like a damsel in distress. Somehow I had to warn Thanos, get him to understand that I did not want him to save me. I was a lost cause and I could accept that. His coming here was a huge mistake; he should have left me to whatever fate was in store for me.
Samuel grabbed me and shoved me forward, off the bed. I fell with no way to catch myself. I landed on my right side and winced at the sharp pain that seemed to cover that entire side of my body, a pain that only seemed to act up even more as I struggled to sit up. As was to be expected, Samuel did nothing to help me, and just stood there looking down in either glee or disgust. He was actually becoming harder to read as some of his true evil nature came through. After a few moments of struggling I slowly maneuvered onto my knees and then rocked myself up so I could stand. Samuel wasted no more time. "Go," he ordered, shoving me towards the door. I glanced over my shoulder at him and glared, not approving of this treatment. As I looked at him I noted that he didn't seem to care about what happened to me, or what injuries he caused to me on the way.
He marched me to the conference room and shoved me inside. I stumbled for a few moments, and when I straightened up I noticed Thanos standing on the other side of the room. His eyes widened ever so slightly as he looked at me. It was clear why Samuel had not cared about my appearance; he wanted to get a reaction out of Thanos. That also explained why he felt secure enough in meeting Thanos on his own. I wanted to yell at Thanos, to tell him to leave but I couldn't due to the stupid gag in my mouth.
"What is the meaning of this Samuel?" Thanos asked. "Is this how you like to treat those who do not hold the same beliefs as you do?" I could hear it in Thanos’s tone; he was furious and barely holding it underneath a veil of poised calm.
"This is merely a precaution against someone who knows our facilities well and has a tendency to break the rules. We were not going to take any chances with this one." Samuel stared across the room at Thanos. It was then that I noticed how stiff Samuel’s posture had become. It was almost as if he was trying to intimidate us, to make us think twice before acting against him, though I could see that Thanos was not that affected by it. "You demanded this meeting. What is it that you would like to discuss?"
"I did nothing to call this meeting. You did that yourself when you and your fellow Leaders decided to capture my employee."
"It was an effective method for getting your attention, though I must say that you are slacking in your work. This one is not as well suited for the job as your previous ones. It was actually quite simple to bring her here."
"I do not put much faith in your beliefs of how well my side is doing. Our numbers are increasing by the day as we ensure the Balance, making certain that those meant to die are actually allowed to pass on. And if our numbers are up then that means that you are slacking in your jobs. I would think twice about slinging around comments about our work ethic." How could he put together such well-phrased and calm responses considering everything that was going on? My opinion of Thanos definitely grew in that moment and helped me to understand how he had managed to refrain from revealing his feelings since I had taken up the position of Angel of Death.
"Nevertheless, we have never been able to bring in your Angel of Death before and she put up almost no fight at all. Perhaps she isn't as appreciative of your side of matters as you think she is. It is obvious that she did much better when she worked here with us, preserving life so people may live the full lives they deserve to."
"They may deserve it but that does not mean that they will get that opportunity. I can see you
He smirked. "I would think that would be obvious by now. I want this all to end. And the easiest way to do that is to keep you from having an Angel of Death."
Thanos barely moved; I only noticed the slightest twitch in his forearm muscles. "If that was the case then you would have already disposed of Tamesis. Perhaps you would like to try that again." His voice was so even that I marveled at how calm he appeared.
"However, it is different with this one, is it not?" Samuel asked. "You care for her as you have not for any of your prior Angels of Death. You barely spent any time with them so it was of no consequence when you lost them. They were easily replaced. I do not think you will find the same to be true of Tamesis. You will forever find yourself comparing the new ones to her, holding them up to a different standard, wishing them to be a better companion to you when not out working. It amazed me that you were able to hold out as long as you did. Losing her would devastate you and I would not be the least bit surprised if it took you several weeks more than normal to fully train her replacement."
Throughout Samuel's speech I noticed Thanos tensing up more than usual. Samuel seemed to be rather intuitive about all of this and it raised several questions. There was clearly a long history between the two men and I didn’t fully understand what grievances they held against one another. Even more than that I wondered why this was getting a rise out of Thanos. He had to know better; he had to know that this was all just a trap. We both knew how Samuel would manipulate people and situations to his advantage.
"No!" I tried to yell through the gag but it only came out as a muffled cry of garbled nothingness. Samuel turned, glared at me for a moment with a look that felt as if it could kill, and that was when I felt the sharp slap that almost knocked me to the ground.
Thanos jumped forward ever so slightly because of that and Samuel only chuckled. "Even if you wanted to try and deny my theory, I have just proved it there."
"Leave…her…alone," Thanos said, his voice almost sounding like a growl. I could see that he had clenched his gloved hands into fists and for a moment I thought he would lunge at Samuel and punch him. I couldn’t say that Samuel didn’t deserve it; in fact he probably deserved to be beaten a few times.
"We captured her and we can do as we please. She is at our facility and you don't have nearly enough power to defeat all of us in order to help her escape. You've lost."
It was as if I could see the wheels turning in Thanos' mind while he stood there, his gaze traveling from Samuel to me. No, he couldn't be thinking that. It was so stupid and it wasn't worth it. He had to think of the Grand Plan. There were much more important aspects than me; surely he understood that. He was the one who taught me that concept. I barely shook my head but it was apparent that he didn't see it, lost as he was in his thoughts.
"A trade then?" he inquired. "You let her go now and leave her alone."
"Surely you would have to have something substantial to offer in her place for me to even consider such an option."
He let out a breath and nodded. "I do…Me."
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