Caretaker ran down the hall of Whumper's base, they had maybe minutes before the guards found them so they had to move fast to get Whumpee out.
As they passed through a second hallway, there might as well have been 20 doors, all filled with beaten down individuals, strapped in chairs. Caretaker paused in horror, realizing that if that was only in two hallways, how many more could possibly be in the entire base?
They shook their head and said they'd be back for the rest but for now, they had to get their Whumpee.
They ran and ran until they found Whumpee. Whumpee looked awful. They were strapped in a chair, head hanging down, head shorn like a sad little sheep. Their eyes, filled with the horrors of what they'd witnessed, stared ahead vacantly.
Caretaker banged on the window and yelled their name but Whumpee didn't even acknowledge their name being called. Caretaker wondered if that was more of the disassociation or if they couldn't actually hear anything as part of their torture. They unlocked the door and embraced their weak friend. Whumpee didn't react.
"Whumpee! Whumpee! Buddy, it's me! Caretaker! I'm here to get you out! Hold still." They said that for good measure, not that it mattered. Caretaker noticed that Whumpee was still catatonic as they sawed through the leather straps. Caretaker scooped their underweight body out of the chair and Whumpee moaned in pain after not moving their limbs for gods knows how long.
Caretaker started running with them in bridal carry down the halls as they tried to remember how to get out. "I know, I know, I'm so sorry that you're hurting but you'll feel better once we get you out of here." Caretaker whispered as they ran. Whumpee, still staring out where their head fell, made small squeaks of pain at each footfall of Caretaker's.
They saw the door and ran for it but as soon as they set foot in the vestibule, the doors locked automatically and metal shutters shot down from above, trapping them in.
"NO! NO WE WERE SO CLOSE!!" Caretaker banged on the shutters with one hand and shifted Whumpee to a shoulder carry. At this point, Whumpee's dirty face was streaked with tears as they knew what would come next.
A sickly-sweet gas was pumped in and as much as Caretaker fought it, they were soon down for the count, slumped over with Whumpee slumped on top of them.
Some time later, Caretaker awoke to a buzzing sensation near their face. Someone.. was... shaving their head? Their eyes fluttered open to see they weren't wearing their original clothes either. They were in a plain white gown that Whumpee wore as well, along with the other captives. As they felt the sensation of control return to their body, they tried to lift their head to look around, only to get a face full of Whumper's ugly grin.
"I am not to be trifled with, Caretaker. Whumpee knows this, don't you, Whumpee?" Whumper stepped aside to reveal a bloodied Whumpee, shaking in a wheelchair, strapped in place with new leather straps.
"NO! LEAVE THEM ALONE, WHUMPER, I-it's it's not them you w-want. It's me. It's me. Let them go and I'll stay." Caretaker hated how their voice shook.
A low chuckle echoed from Whumper's throat. "You think you're in any position to be bargaining with me? You're even dumber than I thought! First, you break into my base, expecting to escape, and now this? You're so innocent. And just for that, we'll start your stay here with separating you until I decide you can be united again. I will, however, allow you to listen to their screams since you miss your Whumpee so badly. Henchman! Please play recordings of my time with Whumpee, 24 hours a day until I say otherwise."
With Caretaker's (Second Whumpee's) mouth hanging open in disbelief, Whumper wheeled Whumpee out of the room backwards so they could see the fear in each other's eyes.
