Day 250 - Repeat Offenders - Chapter 12.5 - (1027 words)

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REPEAT OFFENDERS

By Wayne Webb

CHAPTER 12.5

Unfrozen Brian and left behind Ivan were sitting in the kitchenette drinking tea and not talking when the others arrived at the warehouse. Michael walked right up to them and stood in front of them, hands on hips and confronting the two men, both of which he knew instantly to be travelling from another time line, something he thought impossible. He leaned right in towards them, examining as close as he could, almost daring either man to make a move yet both just sat calmly as he eye balled them, not a word exchanged. Then Ivan's expression changed, a raised eyebrow and Brian, who was seated and also sipping tea, took in a harsh breath of surprise, his eyes drawn to something behind Mike's head.


He held his ground, not wanting to fall for the oldest trick in the book, but something in the way they looked made him doubt his decision and he decided to pull out slowly, not looking like the give away expressing had gotten to him, juts in case. Then the realised who it was who was behind him, how much he had lied to him already and that he was now in his home territory and unwatched.


Before he had a chance to do much else though he straightened up and into the crushing blow that was directed at the back of his skull. As he was turning it hit him in a three quarter turn and cracked him on the temple, a small snapping sound was heard and the world went dark, light by stars only.


Brian Prime stood over the falling body of Michael only half believing that he had managed such a physical act. In his hands was a heavy wrench, a cliché but the heaviest and handiest object in the space. He knew exactly where it was in relation to the machine, he had seen it every time they travelled recently, it was near the control panel where he would head to make the necessary 'adjustments' to mark the various travellers as anomalous and prevent duplication.


Or at least that was what he had told them.


Now he had a mess to clean up, ignoring the other two men for the moment he ran to the lockers along the side of the open space near the exit door and retrieved the towing rope from there, bringing it back and then holding it while standing over the unconscious form of Michael. That was where his plan fell apart.


“Fuck.” He looked at the rope and the body, still out but for how long her did not know. He also did not know how to tie someone up, he just assumed that when he came to the point that if he managed to knock the man out, then he would get the rope and tie him up. How he actually did that suddenly seemed very difficult. Was he supposed to tie this man to something? Bind his hands? Tie them to what? What would stop his hands from just forcing the rope off, it needed to catch on something, like handcuffs did on the wrists or the hands. Rope looked oddly soft and pliant, his faith in it now misplaced.


“Need a hand?” Ivan was offering from behind a cup of tea, he offered innocently enough and Brian Prime did not know what to make of it. This was a person they had left behind, left to his fate and one who undoubtedly knew now what was going on, he was very sure that his other younger self would have known. Maybe not all of it, but enough about the machines true method of time travel. There they both sat calmly watching him bludgeon another man, one that Ivan had a close connection with and now as if nothing was out of the ordinary, offering to assist in securing the knocked out former employer.


“Um. Um?” Brian Prime looked at his other self who returned his quizzical look with the stony indifference he knew he was capable of. He had pissed his other self off, that felt certain based on the lack of emotion in his expression. He knew that look, and he knew when he was likely to use it.


“You look lost.” Unfrozen Brian said, “Let the man help you.” He went back to his tea before adding “Then we can talk.” he took a sip, “About this.”


“Ok.” Brian Prime handed the rope to Ivan who rejected it with a small flick of his wrist and got out of the chair he was sitting in.


He moved to the other side of the table and taking one of the chairs from there, swinging it into the middle of the space, next to Mike's unconscious form. He hooked an arm under each of Mike's armpits and physically hoisted him into a sitting position on the chair, pushing him up again when he would slump. “Through there, please.” He politely pointed to the spot and helped Brian Prime pass the rope through the frame of the chair. He took the end and made a loop, threading it back through and making a knot around the frame of the chair. Then he wove the length of the rope around Mike's chest and arms, moving around the back and pulling on it with foot planted firmly in the back of the chair, pulling it tightly.


As he pulled the varying loops and twists pulled upwards and made Mike sit more upright even as his head lolled about from the movement. Holding it tight he would around and through various parts of the chair, binding them to Mike's limbs. Brian Prime watched and nodded at each movement, remembering the pattern and seeing the logic in each move. He was learning how to physically restrain someone by the template that Ivan was setting.


Knowing this unsettled Ivan, and he thought about concealing the rest of the knots with his body in between them, but knew that the lesson had been learned. The next best thing was not to get caught and restrained by Brian, either one of them.