Right on cue, Ward storms into the room.
Jemma already knows he wants information about Maveth and opening the portal, but the scene still forces her to relive each part all over again.
Ward approaches her with single-minded focus. "You will tell me everything I need to know. Right. Now."
He backhands her so hard she tastes blood on her teeth. She doesn't have time to register the pain before he grips her chin so tightly she worries he'll break her jaw.
"You understand me?! DO YOU?!!"
Jemma tries to squirm away, but Ward keeps her locked in place.
"Oh no you don't," he mutters. A sadistic grin spreads across his face. "You're not leaving until I get what I want."
Ward picks up a stun gun from the table and turns it over in his hands. "These—" he laughs— "hurt like a bitch. You've ever been hit with one?"
It takes quite a bit of willpower, but Jemma musters the energy to break away from the script of her memory.
"Yeah," she bites. "By you, actually."
She only has the force to weather four words before her memory cows her back to the predetermined path.
"I think you'll like it," Ward says.
She braces herself for what comes next. "I don't think I wi—"
Ward thrusts the stun gun into Jemma's gut and turns it on at its highest setting.
Jemma doubles over, high-pitched screams ripped out of her.
She tries to grit her teeth, but the pain blinds her. It consumes every cell in her body and lights them on fire. Her vision becomes black and spotty, and her lungs refuse to bring in any air.
