Darkness. All you could see was darkness, but the dizziness was still there. The wound at the back of your head was throbbing, aching, and someone was running their fingers through the blood trickling from it. You couldn't tell who with the blindfold on.

"Can I use my chainsaw?" A voice asked. Frank's. Clearly giddy and presumably talking about hacking you to pieces.

"Fuck no. You don't have to deal with the fuckin' mess, I do." Someone replied. Sounded like Mikey.

"Can't we... I don't know, man. Maybe just snap their neck this time?" A more mature voice asked. Ray.

"Snap their neck?" A very familiar voice asked, followed by high pitched, unhinged laughter. Gerard.

"They're not a fuckin' chicken, Ray. They have to suffer for the sacrifice to work. You know that. We've had this talk a thousand fuckin' times. Grab me my damn knife kit, will ya?" Gerard groaned impatiently as it sounded like someone was fumbling with something.

"Hurry the fuck up! I've been dying to hear how this one screams. You recording, Frankie?"

"For fuck's sake, this one is so silent. I think they went into shock, Gee."

"Ain't a big deal. Nothing that stabbing them won't snap them out of."

Ropes, chains, zip ties? You wondered what they'd use as your body was pinned on top of a cold, metal surface. Something clicked around your ankles and wrists. Handcuffs.

Deafening silence followed. Suspension. The calm before the stabbing, then --

SMACK

Something hits you square in the face. It feels hard and crumbly. Smells moldy. A rotten piece of the ceiling?

"Diamond Veneer Plaster... Diamond... Spiritual enlightenment... Purity... Synchronicity." Gerard's voice seemed to be reading at first, then just mumbling to himself.

"The fuck are you on about, Gee?" Frank asked with a slight chuckle, but stifled it.

"It's a fucking sign, Frank! We're not supposed to kill this one... Diamond... A diamond in the rough, maybe? Spirit is trying to tell me something. Send a message."

"For fuck's sake, it's just a brand of ceiling plaster, dude--"

"Shut the fuck up!"

Bright light blinded you then. Frank holds a flashlight over your head. Gerard's face comes into focus, furious and conflicted under the pale foundation.

"You have five fucking minutes to tell me why I shouldn't carve you up."