Summer's Saga

It's been a rather uneventful day. The sun has risen, and the morning birds songs have long been silenced. Most days like this you could laze about to your hearts content, perhaps on some grassy knoll. Bask in the sunlight and let the gentle breeze overcome you. A pleasant thought. Not pleasant enough, however, to make the floor any less uncomfortable. You've been locked in this cage for several days (five maybe six? You can't recall). Calling it a cell would be far to complimentary. A blanket is the only thing that you did not wear in. A blanket of the scratchy, wool kind at that. The weighted shackles, restrictive and quite annoying in their own regard. You've seen no soul, except for one rather dour impersonal fellow, who seems only interested in watering in feeding you. Much like a pet dog. Which is about what the food tastes like you would give to a dog . Not being a total loss, at least you have some time to yourself. Granted it's in a cage, but in retrospect it's about the same, just with fewer voices around. Not to mention you don't find the story of how you got here going over well. That girl practically threw herself at you, hardly your fault. You remember them carting her off to the hospital for anemia, around the time you were being shoved into a patrol car. Some people might misunderstand these things, you've learned.

You were given the courtesy of a reasonable place of interment for the better part of a hour before you saw some gentlemen in suits appear in front of you. Without so much as a word, the whisked you away to the hole you are now in. At gunpoint, nonetheless.

All of this is summarily interrupted by the distant sound of the door opening the guard must use, but a bit off schedule. Instead of the stout uniform clad man, comes around a much different individual. He has a rather pale complexion, rather frail looking. He is dressed in a fine Italian suit, of pure silk, bright red quite eye-catching. He adjust his tie before standing at attention in front of the door. Round spectacles adorn his face, though set a bit low to do much of any good, you imagine. His hair is unusually long, silver and straight. He himself seems quite young being thirty at most. He stands for moment silently, until the door clicks shut, off in the distance.

"Mr. Summer is your name correct?", he speaks in a gentle yet firm voice. A very practiced sort of thing politicians often use when addressing the plebian. He has no discernible accent, perhaps a bit of English influence.

The guy gets a long stare for his trouble. "You get one warning, and it's for my own convenience, not yours: Keep treating me like an animal, and I intend to behave like one. And I'm good at that. Not saying I'm a threat or anything, but this is the last helpful thing I will say from inside this cage."

"I will have to keep that in mind." He begins to pace a bit, hands behind his back. A slow shuffling gate from one side of the gate to another.

"Well, let us talk business. I need your help. Also, I imagine that you don't want to be incarcerated for much longer. Perhaps, we can reach and agreement that suits both our needs. Interested?"

He stops and looks directly at you with an austere gaze as possible.

"No. Open cage, then agreement. Animals don't do business. Don't care if you stick me straight in a cell, long as it's a people cell, but you will get nothing you want while I'm locked in this thing."

"Very well. I trust you will not try any funny business.", he says with a bit of smirk. He produces a key in his hand with a flick of the wrist, seemingly out of thin air. You hear the tumblers clack and clang, and with a turn the door creaks open.

Dan pushes the door open, then shuffles out in his shackles, carrying his untouched food. He takes a moment to stretch and his attitude immediately changes to cheerful.
"Oh, don't worry. I'm not about to run for it. You bastards would just shoot me in the back of the head. Dog meat? It's nice and cold."
He holds out a morsel for his visitor to take.

He gives a slight chuckle, with a somewhat devious grin across his face.

"I have eaten already unfortunately, so do please enjoy." He turns a way staring at the lone window at the end of the dark concrete hallway.

"Well, I am not at liberty to speak about quite all of that business, but there is other business which need to be spoken about." The room at this moment seems to fall dead silent. Even the musty air becomes unnaturally still, as if in reverence. He takes on a decidedly more dour expression.

"I should start by saying I am from F.B.I., or the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Of how much importance that is remains for you to decide. That aside, the fact of the matter is I am in need of someone outside of the agency, and is of your moral inclination. If you are willing to cooperate then I can safely say any criminal wrongdoings you have perhaps committed will be expunged from any records. It'll be as if you never existed, and will be free to start anew. Of this I am certain. Unfortunately, I am not certain of what may happen otherwise."

He wanders toward the window a few paces and then stops and looks back, turning straight at you. Arms folded behind his back he takes a deep breath.

"Perhaps, fate brings us together this day. What do you think?"

"Nope, I don't think it has and I doubt we'd agree about what my moral inclination is, but yeah, looks like I'm in. What's the job?"

"Good to see you are a sensible man." he speaks with a moderately condescending tone. You can't be sure if he actually he thinks of himself that highly, or he is just trying to annoy you.

"There is a group we have been investigating for sometime. We know quite a bit about them, but unfortunately the opposite is true as well. We need someone on the outside to act as a proxy. That is where you, my good sir, come into picture. There is a certain meeting, a soiree of sorts, that we would quite like to have prying eyes upon. You need merely to attend, and keep an eye on things. We will arrange for you entrance and the rest involves a good deal of sitting around, and avoiding inquisitive minds. You report what you saw, in detail, to us. Sound simple enough?" The question coming across as more a gesture of courtesy, than a request.

"So I go to a party, tell you what happened and you let me back on the street? Too simple, too good to be true. Tell me what you actually want; what I'm really committing to here. Then maybe I'll attend this "certain soiree".

"I suppose it would do good to mention that this people are quite dangerous, and will not take kindly to the sort of thing we are trying to do if you are indeed caught. The hold no qualms against disposing of those of whom they feel betray their "circle of secrecy". The fact that I had arranged for you to be brought to this hole, and have arranged this meeting in person is a testament towards their influence. If something were to happen, I will make sure to place flowers upon your headstone if it is any consolation." His expression changes little with his last remark.

"In truth it is nothing more complicated than that to it. I express my apologies for presenting such a mundane task to you, but it is of the upmost importance I assure you. Sadly, I must say I am at a crossroads of desperation, and such I am turning to you." He stands solemnly the pompous smirk long gone from his face. He turns and paces back and forth a bit, seemingly gazing side to side like examining works of art in an exhibition hall at haste, upon the blank concrete walls.

[spoiler]From what you can tell, it doesn't seem like he is outright misleading you, or being coy about the situation. Still you don't fell as if you should place your faith upon his words all the same.[/Spoiler}

Dan furrows his brow and looks past the man's head for a few second, considering what he's been told, then he speaks: "All right, but I got a lot of questions first: Who are these people, what am I looking for, how likely do you think it is I'll die, what happens if I fail to get you what you want, what happens if I change my mind, who would I be working for and finally, why does it have to be somebody of "my moral inclination?" He counts the seven questions off on his fingers.

"And indeed they shall be answered, but this place is perhaps a bit inadequate for those needs. Let us go somewhere, with a bit less of an... overbearing atmosphere to it. A know a quite little restaurant that would be quite suitable. Also, the pasta is exquisite."

He seems very intent on avoiding further questioning at the moment. He seems to have a bit of that smirk returning to his face, as well as the coy remarks.

"My treat of course."

"Excellent. I could use the air. Get these things off of me and lets go." Dan shakes his shackles.
"Weird how you'd already eaten just now though."

"I guess you could say I have a fickle appetite." He walks to the sole door resting at the end of the hallway, and knocks on it twice. The door creaks open slightly, a tinge of fresh air filling the dank, dark hallway. With a snap of his fingers, the shackles and chains all fall to the ground, with a loud clang. You can't say you're quite sure how that worked, but now the skin worn raw from the iron finally can breathe once again. He gestures you to follow and swings the door open wide, which stays in place by some mechanism you can't quite figure. A blinding light bathes the doorway, and the man waltzes slowly forward disappearing in the light.

Dan looks down and mostly closes his eyes. Bright lights are bad enough when he hasn't been stuck in the dark for however long. He chuckles. "Show off. That's much better though. Your people are in touch with me woman, right? She does know what happened to me?" He follows as he talks.

As you approach the door the light changes slowly from godly blinding sort, to the more run-of-the-mill fluorescent sort, annoyingly bright just the same. This room is surprisingly neat and tidy and quaint, with White speckled walls and tile running all around There is only 1 chair and a counter to take note of with not so much as a potted plant or window to be seen. There you see the man seemingly patiently waiting, as if at a bus stop. You quickly take note of the two, significantly larger, and unpleasant looking gentlemen in the room. The wear as near as you can tell identical gray polyester suits, neatly pressed standing at attention. They seem to pay no real mind to you, with eyes hidden behind silver frames and dark tinted lenses. The man begins to head for another door, nearly identical to the one behind you. As he reaches the door one of his associates pushes open the door for him, you finally catch a faint glimpse of the outside world through that door. He stops for a moment just beyond the threshold.

"We have done our best to keep the situation in your favor. You sudden disappearance has been accounted for, and your integrity will remain intact. Unfortunately, we cannot allow you to contact her quite yet, I am sure you understand."

"Long as she's not at home terrified about where I am or something. What story did you put out?"

The man turn around to face you, with a rather amused look upon his face.

"I assure you everything has been arranged to suit both your needs and wants, as much as our own." He snaps about-face and exits the building into the gentle glow of evening light outside. One of the gray suited men follows him out, the other standing just beside the doorway, seemingly waiting for you to take your leave.

Dan follows. "Oh dear. Why am I not looking forward to finding out what you mean by that?"

"You will know soon enough, if all turns out as planned.", and with that he seems to care to say nothing further, disappearing beyond the doorway. Your first step into the fresh air is rather remarkable, thrown off by how keenly barren the surroundings are. As far as they eye can see nothing but flat plains, only in the far horizon do some trees break the flatness. The evening air is quite welcomed all the same, as well as the first sunset that you have seen in quite some time.

That aside, your carriage awaits a quite impressive looking vehicle, the model you are rather unsure of. A sleek, black, monster of a car obviously meant to create an impression of some sort, which is quite lost on you. One of the men stands at a door swung wide open, the other ushering you to enter the vehicle.

Dan has a good look at the car as he gets into it. "So where is this?"