THE MOMENT
Glenda woke without stirring. She didn't know where she was; but, she knew she was in an unexpected situation. She took silent inventory without opening her eyes. She sent a Whisper to her team Captain; but, no response came. Her wrists were cuffed and she was on a flat surface that she guessed was an indoor floor. A voice was talking; but not to her. She listened while she thought. She had been outside at the park talking to one of her Zeros. It was a different version of her from an alternate universe and they came to an agreement; then, Glenda turned her back on the doppelganger. Did she lie? Did she betray herself? As she considered her abduction she realized the voice was just a news anchor. No one had responded to it and it droned on in a monotone voice about nothing she was familiar with. She risked opening her right eye. She was laying on her side and she managed to do it discreetly with a quick peek, then shut her eye again.
She was in a white room, at least the floor and two walls she saw glowed with gentle white light. She also saw a red translucent wheel with a golden wheel hub. Her first instinct, along with the news coming from that direction, was that it was a TV cart; an extra fancy one. Whoever captured her had money. At least that seemed to eliminate her Zero. She learned as much as she could and decided to test the situation further. First, an attention-grabbing groan, then she sat up fast and alert. If her captor didn't know she was military personnel, they would see she was quick and able anyway.
"Well hey there sleepyhead!" The voice came from the TV she assumed was there. Its form was still a surprise. Glenda was familiar with the most advanced tech in the multiverse. She knew all about nanomachines and holograms and she expected more from her abductors. A large, bulky, wood-paneled CRT sat on the elegant golden cart decorated with red flame-like accents. "Careful not to tug on your restraints too hard; they can really chafe the skin. You thirsty? Want a snack?' The questions kept coming as she tried to catch up. It was the same news anchor she'd been listening to; the voice was the same. He was a middle-aged man with a toupee, mustache, and a suit louder than his exuberant voice. He leaned over the news desk as he addressed the camera. He was talking to her.
"I'm pleased as punch to be your captor today! Let me know if I can make you more comfortable!" Glenda glanced around to take everything in. The white room was empty except for her and the TV on the cart. And, it notably wasn't plugged in anywhere.
"I'd be more comfortable without these," Glenda was testing the waters more than anything. The news anchor was conversing as if he expected her to respond and she was curious how he heard her.
"Oh, gosh...," his smile disappeared and an expression of embarrassed worry took over. ".... I feel stupid now. When you say it like that, I feel like I have to reconsider my whole approach. And here I was worried about it chafing. Boy, talk about missing the point, right?" he chuckled and Glenda remained silent; but, she did smirk. There was enough humor about the situation that she didn't feel immediately threatened. After she expressed her amusement, the cuffs disintegrated off her wrists.
"Who are you? Why am I here?" Glenda asked as she rose to her feet. The stranger seemed content to give her a little bit of freedom. There were no doors or windows in the room; she couldn't have left without permission.
"I'm your captor," the camera zoomed out as he climbed over the desk and sat on it with crossed arms. "You're here because I captured you. After you wowed me with your genius courtesy tactics, I thought you'd be a little quicker," he chuckled. Glenda giggled too. She couldn't put her finger on it; but, something about him put her at ease.
"Let me put it another way; who hired you to kidnap me? I know you didn't plan this out yourself," she said. The man on screen grinned and pointed at her.
"There's the smart cookie I was looking for. You're right; but, you're also wrong. I didn't plan this out and no one hired me. It was my idea; but, I had an A.I. plan it out for me. It's no one you know, don't waste time thinking about it. ANYWAY," he loudly changed topic. Glenda was still wondering though. She only knew one A.I. It hadn't even crossed her mind until the stranger insisted it wasn't someone she knew.
"You're here because I'm bored. And, I got permission to make fun for myself; I picked you for that." From any other stranger, and almost any other situation, Glenda would have felt threatened. But, he spoke so casually and with such cheer in his voice that it was impossible to imagine him as a threat. Plus, it helped that he wasn't in the room. That could have led to its own worries; but, Glenda preferred to look on the hopeful side.
"I don't appreciate being abducted, I'm not sure I want to play whatever it is that qualifies as fun for you."
"That's fair, that's fair," the stranger nodded. "But, since you're already here, I think it's also fair if I say, you have to," he smirked. "If you want to leave, that is."
"Or what? I'm a prisoner forever?" He laughed at her question.
"Of course not! I'm your 'Captor', I captured you to entertain myself. 'Prisoner' implies I'll be taking care of you for an extended duration. If you're not entertaining...,' He shrugged and pretended to look around the doorless white room. "... you'll barely qualify as an afterthought."
"Oh," Glenda finally felt sufficiently threatened. "Alright, tell me about your game or whatever," she said.
"Games are boring, I crave...," he stood upright and posed with one hand raised in the air, and the back of his other hand on his forehead. "...DRAMA!"
"What? What drama?"
"I'm going to state a one million percent known true fact," he said. "After that, you may leave," he turned and gestured at something off-screen. A black portal, her exit, opened next to the TV.
"That's it? You just wanted to tell me something?" he nodded. "Okay, sure. Let's hear it," Glenda shrugged. She wished they'd gotten to the point sooner. At least, she wished that until she heard the fact.
"Alpha Squad is hiding things from you," he said. As soon as he finished speaking, the TV turned off.
"What? WAIT!" He had taken her mind completely off the team, she assumed he knew nothing about the top-secret squad she was in. "HEY!" she bumped the TV but nothing happened.
"Thanks for nothing...," she whined and collected herself for a moment before striding through the portal.