Stretched Thin (M/M)

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bigsmile21
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Stretched Thin (M/M)

Post by bigsmile21 »

Arthur, or “Agent October”, began to stir. He stretched his arms and legs, or at least tried to. Something cool and rigid pinned his limbs to a surface beneath him, forcing him into a X-shape. He lay parallel to the ceiling, a bright light shining in his face. He was still wearing the clothes from last night’s high-stakes casino venue minus his suit jacket, which housed most of his field gadgets. His head began to throb from last night’s beating; he’d come close to infiltrating the kingpin’s office but got spotted and overwhelmed by security.

He saw his hands were locked to the metal table underneath him with an electronic lock. Identical restraints held his ankles. Arthur still had his wristwatch, which had a lockpick if he could press the crown dial twice to pop it out. Before he could think through an escape, he heard a whirring noise and the metal table angled upwards. Dim florescent lights illuminated wooden crates (marked for Ukraine, Russia, Belarus), stacked boxes, and a large metal door at the far end of the room. He was looking around a basement of a building, possibly underneath the casino. If that was the case, then rescue and extraction may still be possible.

“Agent October,” a deep, gravely voice spoke from behind his vision, “my boys said they found you trying to sneak into my office. How rude.” There was a beeping noise and Arthur’s arms were stretched a bit tighter. His wrist cuffs magnetically moved outward.

“Everyone knows you keep the best goods to yourself, Mathias.” Arthur replied. He tried to keep his cool, knowing these next moments were going to hurt. “Why don’t you just tell me what a casino owner in Vegas has to do with shipping containers prepped for Eastern Europe.” A large hand reached from behind the table and clenched around Arthur’s throat.

“My time is precious, unlike you,” Mathias said, “You can talk now, or later when you’re more…flexible.”

“Employee turnover for waitresses at this place sure is high. Are you a terrible boss or is there something that you want to tell me?” Arthur said. There was another beeping noise and Arthur’s wrists moved further apart. The amount of slack in his shoulders was quickly diminishing. The grip on his throat released and Mathias moved to the door in front of Arthur. Mathias was 7’ tall, wearing a black suit tailored to accommodate his muscles, and had a remote control in his hand. Like most movie villains, he had a long scar across his face.

“I’m taking this remote with me, and fair warning that it’s very sensitive.” He opened his suit jacket and dropped the remote into a pocket. “Going to walk around the high-rollers tables, make sure my guests are doing well. I’m a big hugger. He closed the suit jacket and patted his chest. There was a beeping noise and Arthur’s wrists shifted outwards. “When I come back, I bet you’ll be in a better position to talk.” Mathias turned and walked out the room.

Alone, he assumed, Arthur began to wrestle with his bonds. There wasn’t any amount of give in moving the restraints, but he could pivot his hands within them. He turned his left wrist until the crown dial of his watch was pressed against the table. Two presses and the lockpick popped out. A beeping noise sounded, and the wrist restraints moved outward. Arthur watched in slow-motion as the lockpick sprung from the watch and then magnetized to the table, just out of reach. Okay, this was bad, he thought.

The heel of his right shoe had a second lockpick, but he had no way of reaching it. Maybe he could catch the wrist locks with his watch but looking at the table it was completely smooth. Whatever systems were moving the restraints must have been underneath the table. Another beeping noise sounded, and the wrist restraints shifted again. At this point Arthur had no slack in his shoulders, so from here on it would be painful.

He’d noticed his ankle restraints never shifted. A small blessing, he guessed. There was no sense of time down here, and the wrist restraints blocked his view of the watch. Extraction protocol was to wait 12 hours after loss of contact, so his rescue could still be hours away. He should have kept Mathias talking.

The metal door in front of him opened, but instead of Mathias it was one of his goons that walked through, holding an unconscious woman in his arms. The big fellow, also wearing a black suit, paused when he saw Arthur. He looked around before setting the woman on the floor and moved closer to Arthur.

“Thought the boss would have taken care of you by now,” the man said.

“Turns out Mathias likes to play with his food,” Arthur replied. “Mind giving me a hand?”

“No way,” the man said, backing up towards the woman. Arthur saw the woman began to stir, but the man still had his eyes locked on Arthur in confusion.

“What’s with all these boxes?” Arthur asked, trying to keep his attention. “What would a casino be shipping out? I mean, it takes in money but what would it send out?” There was a beeping noise and Arthur’s wrists stretched again. He let out a gasp in pain.

“Whoa,” the man said, moving closer to Arthur again. “What’s he got you hooked up to?” The woman held her hand to her head as she began to rise. She looked around, saw the door, but then saw Arthur and the goon. Her eyes widened.

“Not sure exactly,” Arthur said, “but it’s a real treat. Not everyone gets such personal attention from Mathias.” The woman was looking around, snuck over to a box and quietly lifted the lid. Another beeping noise sounded, and Arthur’s arms were pulled tighter. He yelled loudly, partly to cover the woman’s shuffling and partly because it was really hurting now. His arms could take maybe another one or two tugs before things started to snap, crackle, and pop. The man jumped at the yell, but kept his eyes fixed on Arthur. He didn’t see the woman sneak up behind him, lift the wooden box lid over her head, and slam it down on top of him.

The man lurched forward, his face slamming into the table next to Arthur’s right side. He groaned in pain before trying to turn around. But his belt buckle was magnetized to the table now, so he got another slam to the back of the head from the woman. He collapsed, unconscious, slumping a bit against the table.

“Agent October, I presume,” the woman said. “I’m Agent November, here for your extraction.” She dropped the box lix and pulled out a set of lockpicks.

“Excellent timing,” Arthur said. “Locks are magnetic and expand anytime Mathias presses the remote, which is on his person.”

The woman moved behind the table, rustled around for a minute, and then Arthur heard another beep. He winced, prepping for another tug, but instead of his shoulders popping he heard the metal restraints pop open. He dropped to the ground, rubbing his wrists.

“How did you do that so quickly?” he asked.

“Just unplugged it,” she said. “It’s magnetic, so it has to be powered somehow.”

“Modern problems require modern solutions,” Arthur said. “Let’s get out of here.”

“Agreed,” she said. “But first, let’s leave a little present for Mathias. He has another ten minutes before he finished upstairs.” She looked at the goon and then back to Arthur. Arthur smirked.

Agent November moved to the unconscious man and unbuckled his pants. Arthur slipped them off and flipped him over, positioning his arms and legs to align with the locks. The man was larger than he was, so he could easily take the next five or so tugs. Agent November moved behind the machine, a beeping noise sounded, and the locks snapped shut over the man’s wrists and ankles.

“Now we can leave,” Agent November said. Arthur gripped the door handle, but pain shot through his arms when he tried to open it. “Very chivalrous, Agent October, but you may want to rest before doing any heavy lifting.” She opened the metal door and began walking through the corridor. A beeping noise sounded, and they heard the goon grunt and begin the realize his situation, just as they closed the metal door behind them.
:)21