OCS FFF1

Captains Scarlet and Blue had been sent to an ancient mansion; it had clearly been derelict for some time. There was plaster hanging off many of the walls, some of the ceilings had fallen in, and the building smelt strongly of damp. There was suspected Mysteron activity in the area, regarding an unconfirmed sighting of Captain Black, and the mansion had been an obvious place to investigate. Scarlet was convinced that they had found Black's - or at least some Mysteron Agent's - hideout; his head hadn't stopped aching since he and Blue had arrived on the scene. Despite finding no sign of life, his built-in Mysteron detector continued to "go off".
"Let's face it! This is a waste of time," Captain Blue said at last, becoming frustrated and annoyed. "Why don't you admit it, Paul; there's nothing here. We've been sent on a wild goose chase."
Scarlet shook his head and threw himself down onto an old Ottoman that was pressed against the wall in the old hall, throwing up a cloud of dust. He coughed and waved his arms in an effort to clear the air in front of him. "Then how do you explain that I still feel ill?" he asked his partner. "How can you explain that I detected a Mysteron presence the moment we stepped inside the building?"
"You know what I think! I think you've been working too hard."
"Adam...!"
Blue shook his head and crouched in front of him. "Your built-in detector doesn't always work; who's to say that it can't sometimes go off when there aren't any Mysterons?"
He frowned back at him. "I know what you're thinking - you think that I'm either really ill, or that I'm detecting Mysterons because I expect to detect them."
"That's not what I mean at all!" he sighed and stood up. "O.K., I don't know why you feel like there's a Mysteron around; I can't explain that. All I know is, we've been all over this house and found nothing."
Scarlet frowned back at him. "It's an old house, Adam - more to the point, it's a big old house. If someone wanted to hide in here, they could do it easily enough. Besides which, a place like this could easily have secret passages..."
"Really?" he asked with obvious interest. "Has your home got secret passageways and stuff?"
He shrugged. "I'm not sure. If it does, my parents never told me..."
"Didn't trust you not to go exploring on your own, maybe?"
Scarlet wasn't in the mood for idle chat. His head was aching and he was beginning to feel nauseous. He wanted to go outside for some fresh air.
"Are you all right?" Blue asked, as he groaned and put a hand to his head. Receiving no reply, he sat beside him, putting a hand on his shoulder. "What's wrong? Are you feeling worse?"
He forced a nod. "Feel sick."
"Wait here. I'll get you some water."
As his partner raced away to the kitchen, Scarlet leaned his head back against the cold stone wall. Finding that this brought some relief, he closed his eyes with a long sigh.
The wall that he was leaning on swung inward without warning.

Captain Scarlet scarcely had a chance to yelp in surprise before he disappeared into the hole that opened up as the wall moved. He fell into space for a moment and then found himself sliding down a chute, gaining speed all the time. He closed his eyes and tried to ignore the nausea that worsened as he picked up speed. He lost track of the passage of time as he hurtled downward in the gloom.
Suddenly he came to a stop and struck his head on something hard. His world went even blacker as he lost consciousness.

Captain Black stepped out of the gloom and smiled nastily at the Spectrum captain at his feet. He kicked him roughly, making him roll onto his face. Scarlet didn't stir. He picked his enemy up and took him on through the secret passages under the cellars. He was going to have some fun with Captain Scarlet.

Captain Scarlet was roused by an itching sensation around his ankles. He tried to reach down to scratch at the one that itched the most, only to find that he couldn't move. He opened his eyes and tried to adjust his position, only to find that he couldn't. His headache was still bothering him, but it had reduced to nothing more than a dull ache aside from a pain to the side of his head that seemed to worsen when his eyebrows twitched or he moved his eyes or head. At least I no longer feel sick, he thought.
"I see that you decided to join us at last," a deep voice droned.
He looked up sharply at the sound of the voice. It made his skin crawl as he met the cold gaze of his former colleague, but he kept his nerve and glared back defiantly. "Join you is an interesting way of putting it, I must say! I could give you a list as long as my arm of the things I'd do before joining you!"
"Brave words," Captain Black retorted without any show of emotion. "But what more could be expected from an indestructible soldier?"
"Untie me and you'll get more than a few brave words!" Scarlet thundered at him.

Meanwhile, Captain Blue had returned with the glass of water for his field partner, only to find him gone. He looked around him with a frown. Maybe he had to go to the bathroom, he thought. Or thought he'd better, in case he threw up. He sure didn't look good!
He first checked that his colleague hadn't gone outside for some fresh air, and then headed for the nearest bathroom.
There's no sign of him! he thought with concern. Where could he have gone? He didn't look as if he'd be able to stand without help, and now he's vanished!
The captain returned to the place where he had last seen his partner in case he had come back from wherever he might have gone. He then set down the glass of water on an old side table and set of to thoroughly check the building from top to bottom, calling Scarlet's name as he went.

"What do you intend to do to me?" Scarlet demanded as he watched his enemy. "You won't get any information out of me, you know that. You won't have much time, either. Captain Blue won't rest until he's found me."
Black chuckled sardonically. "Then Captain Blue is going to die of exhaustion," he predicted.
"You know what I mean!"
"And you aren't stupid. You know what I mean, Scarlet. You won't be found until I release you - if I release you."

Scarlet examined his bonds in the gloom. He was manacled to the wall that he was still leaning on. He stood properly, casually checking the chains for strength as he did so. They looked rusty, but felt solid enough. They have to be solid, he thought. Or else they wouldn't have been able to take my weight while I was unconscious.
His captor appeared to be watching him with a callous amusement. "You cannot escape, Scarlet."
"Yes, so I see," he replied calmly. His mind raced as he tried to come up with some trick that the Mysteron agent might fall for, but was unable to think of one. A human being might have compassion enough for him, if he were to feign illness or ask to be admitted to use a bathroom, but he couldn't imagine Captain Black being at all sympathetic. I suppose I'm stuck here until he sees fit to release me or I'm found, he thought with frustration.

Captain Scarlet groaned inwardly, wishing that he hadn't thought about asking to be permitted to pay a visit. I just have to think about something else, he told himself. I'll be fine. He frowned as he saw Black... grin? at him. "What is it?" he demanded.
"I was about to ask you the same question," he said. Yes, he was most certainly grinning. "What's wrong, Scarlet? Are your chains too tight? Good."
I was right about his showing me any degree of sympathy or concern, then, he thought. What Symphony told us about the Mysterons having compassion was utter rubbish! He straightened up and stood to attention, ignoring the throbbing pain to the side of his head. "I feel fine, thank you. I only want to know what you plan to do with me, and for how long you think you can keep me here. Spectrum knows where I am, even if they don't know exactly where to look for me, and it's only a matter of time before they send in reinforcements."
Black shook his head. "They will not find you here. You are our prisoner, Captain Scarlet."
The Spectrum Captain closed his eyes as his head swam. The blow to my head must have been worse than I thought! He rested his injury against the cold, damp wall behind him, only to find that it didn't help as much as he'd hoped.
"Oh, your head is aching," Black said with an unpleasant smile as he straightened up again. "Would you like something for it?"
Scarlet shook his head defiantly. "No, thankyou. I'd rather not swallow anything that a Mysteron were to give me."

"Suit yourself," the Mysteron replied. He pulled a radio from his pocket and switched it on.
"I don't understand it, Colonel," Captain Blue's voice said. "I can't find a trace of him, and he's not answering my calls."
"Could he have began a search of the grounds alone?" White asked
"I doubt it, Sir; he looked pretty bad to me."
There was an audible sigh from the Colonel. "Blue, you know as well as I do that Scarlet's... illness, for want of a better word, is down to his built-in Mysteron detector, and that the attacks can come and go very quickly. I wouldn't be at all surprised if he recovered while you were busy, saw something suspicious and went off alone."
"I guess that's more than likely, Sir; but it still doesn't explain his disappearance."
"Continue your search for him, Captain Blue. Reinforcements will be with you in half an hour."
Scarlet grinned triumphantly. "Hear that, Captain Black? In half an hour, you'll have Spectrum officers searching the house from top to bottom!"
He stared back at him coldly but didn't comment.

The Captain beamed. "Are you going to release me, now?" he asked cheerfully. "I would if I were you."
Black continued to glare at him and then turned and walked away.
Captain Scarlet waited until he'd slammed the door of his cell and then tried to find a more comfortable position. His arms were beginning to ache from being suspended by the wrists either side of his head, and the chains on his ankles didn't allow much movement either. "I hope Captain Blue finds me soon," he muttered under his breath. He tested the strength of the chain again, but it did nothing but add to the pain in his wrists and ankles and frustrate him further. He looked around for something that might be useful to him, but there was nothing that he could see.

Captains Ochre and Magenta stepped from their SPC and hurried across the grounds; out of the wind and rain. Captain Blue opened the front door for them as they approached.
"You can tell we're in England," Ochre muttered.
Blue rolled his eyes. "You brought the bad weather with you, Captain," he retorted. "The sun was shining, when we arrived here."
"Can tell he's got a Brit for a partner, can't you?" he joked to Magenta.
The Irishman ignored his field partner and turned to Blue. "Where did you last see Captain Scarlet? We might as well start there and split up."
"You should've been a detective, Captain," Ochre remarked with a grin.
Magenta smirked at him. "It would've been a waste of my talents."
"I'm sure glad you two are gonna split up," Blue told them with a shake of his head.

Captain Scarlet tried to look at his watch, but it was hidden by the shackle on his left hand. I wonder how long I've been here, he thought irritably. The aches in his arms and stiffness in his legs was becoming unbearable, even though he was moving almost constantly. He wished that he could sleep. It might have cleared his head a bit, or even helped the pains and stiffness in his arms and legs. It might even help me to forget about my other problem, he thought as he tried to cross his legs. It's getting hard to ignore.

Something hit Scarlet on the top of the head. As he looked up , a large drop of water hit him in the face.
Terrific, that's ALL I need! Twisting, he tries to avoid the drops to no avail. Great, he grumbled, what else can happen?

Suddenly he gets a crawling sensation going slowly up his left leg. Looking down, he sees nothing at first. "I must be going slowly crazy. There's nothing there.

Suddenly a giant cockroach appears, slowly making its way up Scarlet's leg. His eyes widen at the sight of the intruder and he tries to shake it off.
Now I know how Burgundy feels about wasps.

"Get off," he hissed at the offending insect. "Go on, go away!"
The bug merely made its way up to his hip and crept onto his belt. It seemed to like the feel of the leather. It followed it around to his empty holster.
He shuddered as a drop of water hit the back of his neck and ran down his collar. "This is torture!" he groaned.

The cell door opened and Captain Black entered. He tilted his head slightly to one side. "What's wrong with you now?"
Scarlet couldn't help trying to cross his legs again. The discomfort, worsened by the constant dripping water, was becoming unbearable. "Isn't it obvious?" he snapped. "Or aren't you remotely human, any more?"

Black didn't reply; he continued to watch his enemy. He showed no reaction at all. Scarlet narrowed his eyes, deciding to put Black to the test.
"Surely even you can't leave me like this?" Scarlet asked him. "Don't Mysterons have to eat, drink sleep and... take care of other such needs?"
No response.
"I'm sure you know what's going to happen eventually, if you don't allow me to... to... meet my needs soon."
Still no response. A human would have laughed or something!

Captain Scarlet frowned at him. "At least say something!" he thundered.
"I think you're ready," the Mysteron said quietly.
"Ready for what?"
Black stepped forward, stopping in front of him. "I'll let you relieve yourself if you give me the information that the Mysterons seek..."
He stared back at him. "I can wait, thankyou."
"So can I," the Mysteron told him. "There's no hurry, Scarlet. You are here until we get what we want out of you. We can choose whether or not you eat or are given water, we can choose to unchain you..."
Scarlet looked away. He'd been prepared for situations of the sort from his time in West Point to the training he received when he joined Spectrum. As much as he disliked being uncomfortable, he wasn't about to meet Black's demands.
"You do what you think best," he said at last. "Just bear in mind that if you leave me here like this, it'll be you that will have to deal with the consequences."
Black smirked unpleasantly. "Do you think I care?" he asked. "What do you think the prisoners that were in here before you did? Used the en suite?"
Scarlet glared back at him but said nothing.
"It is up to you, Scarlet," he said. "Just don't think about it for too long."
As the Mysteron turned to walk away, the captain called him back. "Wait a minute! We're in a very old part of the house... Assuming that this ever was a 'house'... Is there actually any plumbing down here at all?"
"You will find out, if you co-operate."
"I'll take that as a 'no' then."

"There's no sign of him anywhere!" Captain Magenta reported as he joined Captains Blue and Ochre.
Ochre sniffed and glanced out of the window. "He wouldn't hang around out there in that rain, would he?"
"It wouldn't worry him, if he was tailing someone," Blue told him. "In fact, the rain would be a welcome screen - look at it!"
The downpour obscured the trees surrounding the grounds in mist. It was hard to see anything clearly.
"He'd answer our calls, though," Magenta said. "I mean, the sound of his voice would be covered well enough - it'd be like standing under a waterfall!"
"That's true," Ochre agreed. "No point in going out there to look for him, is there?"
Blue frowned. "Unless he's hurt..."
"He'll be all right," Ochre told him with a smile.
Magenta frowned. "Where did you last see him, Captain Blue? Let's take one last look around there."
"All of us?" Ochre asked with a frown.
He shrugged. "Unless you want to start looking for him out in the grounds."
Ochre grinned and took Blue by the arm. "It's a great idea! Let's go look at the place he was last seen!"

"I'll show you the place he vanished," Blue told them. "Then I'll go and look around the grounds. I don't like the thought of him out there in that if he has been hurt..."
The lights dimmed, making them all look up.
"What's that?" Ochre asked.
Magenta shrugged. "Probably lightning, effecting the electrics..."
"That or there's water getting into the wiring, somewhere," Blue began.
Thunder crashed overhead and seemed to roll for an eternity.
"No, it's a thunderstorm," Ochre said brightly.
Blue shuddered. "Then I'd best find Captain Scarlet -I doubt retrometabolism and electrical storms'll mix well."
Magenta stared at him in horror. "You're right! It could hurt him!"
"Or at least make him sick," Blue returned.
Ochre snorted. "Have you seen it out there? You could get sick!"
"I don't care! Captain Scarlet's taken bullets for me, Captain Ochre - I think catching cold is nothing."
Magenta was about to argue but then changed his mind. "Alright, Captain Blue. You win."
"Thanks. Call me if you find anything," Blue said as he headed for the door.
"Sure," Ochre replied. "You let us know if you need any help."
Blue nodded. "S.I.G."

A fork of lightning ripped the sky in two as Captain Blue stepped outside. The rain soaked him to the bone within seconds, enabling the wind to chill him with ease. He wished he'd waited for the storm to relent a bit before venturing out, but the thought of Captain Scarlet lying hurt somewhere in the downpour kept him from turning back. He looked about him, hoping to pick out some red amongst the various shades of grey from the mist and heavy rain.
"Captain Scarlet! Are you out here?"
Only the sound of rain and thunder greeted him. He hunched his shoulders and strode towards the trees that surrounded the gardens of the old building.

In his cell, oblivious to the lengths that his colleagues were going to to try to find him, Captain Scarlet shivered. "It must be raining hard outside," he muttered as he looked about him. The cell was full of puddles and the walls had water running down them. He fidgeted and tried to find a welcome distraction from his discomfort - the cold and damp didn't help in the slightest. "It's all in the mind," he told himself. "I just have to think about something else."
It wasn't easy. The nagging feeling was getting stronger by the minute. He knew he could wait a long time, but he had no idea how long he'd been in the cell.
The door opened and he looked up sharply, expecting to see Captain Black standing before him.
"Hi," Captain Ochre said quietly as he stepped forward. "We've been looking all over for you!"
He forced a smile. "It's good to see you, Captain."
Ochre grinned back. "It's good to see you, too. Captain Blue's gonna be relieved - and annoyed!" he chuckled and shook his head. "He half-drowned himself, searching the grounds for you!"
"He what? It must be tipping down out there!"
He nodded. "Yeah, it's pretty stormy."
"I hope he's alright!" he shifted uncomfortably.
"Are those chains hurting you?"
He shook his head. "I'm getting a bit stiff though," he admitted.
"What about your head?" Ochre asked. "It looks kind of painful."
"It isn't hurting as much as it was," he replied. "I'm hardly aware of it now." This was because of the other nagging feeling that seemed to be attracting his attention much more than the throbbing to the side of his head, but he wasn't about to tell his colleague that. He'd take care of that need when he was free. He shuddered as the cold and damp worsened the feeling even more.
"You're cold!" Ochre gasped. "Wait here. I won't be long, I promise." he patted his shoulder and left the room.
"What choice do I have?" he muttered as the door closed behind him. "If I could unfasten these chains, I would have long before now!"

Captain Blue shook rainwater from his fair hair and sniffed miserably. "Trust you and Ochre to find a secret passage after I stepped outside," he grumbled at Magenta.
"Hey, at least we let you know the moment we found it - you could still be out there dodging lightning bolts!"
"Yeah, I guess I should be grateful," he admitted grudgingly.
Magenta was about to reply when his epaulettes flashed. He cast them a quick glance before answering. "Yes, Captain Ochre?"
"I've found Captain Scarlet, but he's been left chained up in a dungeon down here. The place is filling up with water from the rain outside, and it's pretty cold - I want to get him out as fast as possible."
"And you're telling me because...?"
Ochre sighed irritably. "I can't find anything to pick a lock with."
"Want me to come down?" Magenta tensed, hearing Ochre gasp quietly. He kept quiet.
"Boy! That was close! Someone just came out of the wall, not a stone's throw from where I was standing! If it wasn't so dark down here..."
"Keep out of sight, then," he told his field partner. "Wait for me where our secret passage comes out, OK? I won't be long."
"S.I.G.," Ochre replied quietly.

Captain Scarlet was running out of patience. It was now impossible to ignore what he had to do, the need was making him shake.
"Come on Ochre," he muttered. "It's going to be to late in a minute!"
He heard the door in front of him open and raised his eyes with a thankful smile. Then he saw who was there.
Captain Black smiled back ever so slightly. "Are you ready to talk yet?" he asked him.
Somehow he managed to keep still. He didn't want his enemy to now how bad his need was. He tried to tell himself he could wait until Ochre got back, but he was starting to doubt that.
"Come on, Scarlet, you must have some useful information you can offer me," the Mysteron tried to coax him.
"Sorry," he said after a moment. "I think you lost your leverage."

Captain Magenta shot from the chute that he had ridden from the secret passage above and into the waiting arms of his field partner.
"Woah there!" Ochre whispered good-naturedly. "You almost hit your head on that stone," he nodded to the large block that was protruding from the wall dangerously close to the end of the chute. "Looks like someone already has!"
Magenta stood shakily, feeling somewhat giddy after the disorientating trip to the basement. "Where's Captain Scarlet?"
"Follow me," his colleague advised. "But keep quiet and alert - there could be hidden passages just about anywhere!"

Captain Magenta jumped as Ochre pushed him back into the shadows. They had just hidden themselves when a man stepped out of a concealed passage not far ahead of them and headed in the direction that they had been heading in.
"That's the direction of the cells," Ochre hissed. "We'd better follow quietly."
The two men crept forward nervously, being careful not to make a sound. Both silently hoped that their colleague was alright.
The man in front of the spectrum officers stopped short of the cells as Captain Black strode into view. Captains Ochre and Magenta quickly ducked back and listened quietly to the exchange as it took place.
"Has he said anything, sir?"
Black seemed to sneer in the dimness. "Scarlet is a stubborn idiot, but we will break his will. Thirst, hunger and exhaustion will get through to anyone eventually."
"There are some who try to be heroes, that won't allow themselves to be broken, sir. What if he won't give in?"
Black smiled nastily. "Then he will perish alone in his cell," he replied. "Even he can't last forever without food or water. All bodies need fuel."
"What about the men up there searching for him?"
"Forget them," the Mysteron told him. "One of them has already began to search the grounds. As time moves on, they will think that he is outside."
"You know best, Captain."
As Captain Black and his subordinate headed off in the opposite direction to them, Captains Ochre and Magenta slipped inside Captain Scarlet's cell.
"That was weird," Magenta remarked as he handed Ochre the nail he had ripped from the floor boards above them. "The guy that was talking to Captain Black didn't sound much like a Mysteron."
"What...?" Scarlet raised his head tiredly. His head felt much worse now that he had less to distract him.
Captain Magenta moved to his side to inspect his wound while his colleague set to work on the shackles.
"There was a guy talking to Black," he explained. "He sounded more like an employee than a Mysteron agent."
"Strange," Captain Scarlet slurred.
"Ugh!" Ochre gasped suddenly, interrupting.
Magenta frowned at him. "What's wrong?"
Instead of answering him, he frowned at Captain Scarlet. "Why didn't you tell me you had to go to the bathroom?" he demanded. "I would've helped!"
"I thought I could wait," he replied with difficulty.
Magenta chuckled quietly. "We'll have to see about getting you nappies!"
Scarlet frowned and closed his eyes but didn't attempt to reply.

Ochre shot Magenta an annoyed glance. "He's probably got hypothermia," he pointed out. "That can make you want to... go pretty bad."
"I guess you're right," he agreed, before apologising to his English colleague.
Scarlet nodded slightly but didn't reply.
"Are you feeling OK?" Captain Ochre asked him with concern.
"Yes, great!" he replied sarcastically.
Magenta patted his arm. "Just hang in there; we'll have you out of here real soon."
He tried to smile, but he wasn't sure whether he managed it or not. He was far too groggy.