AN: This is a story idea request that I received from XOXOKISSKISS and I would appreciate you letting me know what you think of it, because I'm still a little unsure. Thanks!

Before the Storm

Chances are, you've never heard of the school called the Ghengis Academy. If you have heard of it, then I guess you have at least a level six clearance, but probably higher than that. To know about the Ghengis Academy is the highest honor; for they never share their secrets, and for them to trust you with their name means that they respect you.

The Ghengis Academy is not a normal school. The young men that train there are the best in the world; one does not simply decide to attend. And once you are accepted into the academy, you don't leave without permission. You train from sunup to sundown, and you become a member of the elite. There are only eighteen Ghengis Academy graduates in our world today, not including the six young men of which this story is about. The Ghengis graduates are the ones that people turn to when no one else can get the job done. They are, in a word, invincible.

The academy itself is invincible. It is a stronghold located in a mountain range that shall not be named. The natural barriers of the mountain are enough to keep anyone away, but they also have a laser grid system along with security cameras and dozens of other traps to snare unwanted people. But if someone did manage to get past all of these security measures, they would not like what they found in the heart of the mountain. Strangers may occasionally go in, but those same strangers never make it out.

….

"What were you thinking, anyway?"

"Not now, Michael," Scotty managed to say through tightly clenched teeth. He was grateful that Michael had been concerned enough to come looking for him, but he didn't want to listen to a speech. Not yet, anyway. He knew that the Sapiêns would be coming in to speak with him later, but he wanted to put it off for as long as he possibly could.

Michael was equally frustrated, though it had far less to do with pain and the knowledge that he would be reprimanded and was due, rather, to the slow going that he was having to endure. He was half-dragging Scotty through the snow, but they kept having to stop so that Michael could cover the drag tracks and try to hide the red streaks of blood that were staining the snow as they moved.

Michael once again covered their tracks and they began moving again. "Just another mile," Michael said, though it was unclear exactly who he was trying to encourage.

"Thank God," Scotty said and then let out a stream of Farsi curse words as his broken leg grazed a hidden rock.

"Potty mouth," Michael mumbled, but he understood. Breaks were a common occurrence at the Ghengis Academy, and he'd endured several himself. He knew the pain that they brought on.

"Were you the one that noticed me missing?" Scotty asked, thinking that conversation would aid in taking his mind off of the pain. It didn't ease much, but he was genuinely curious.

"Sort of," Michael said and stopped so that he could once again cover their tracks. Once he had returned, he put Scotty's arm around his shoulder and they took off again, half a mile still left to go. "The Sapiên came to get us out of our recreational time. You weren't there for the roll call."

Scotty winced. Missing the roll call wouldn't bode well for him. "So, you volunteered to come and get me?"

"Lucky for you," Michael mumbled and let out a breath that turned into white mist in the chilly air. "Drake said that he was pretty sure you'd gone out, though he didn't know what for. No one else wanted to come and fetch your sorry butt."

"Thanks for the sacrifice." The pain was becoming too much and Scotty closed his eyes against the flurry of black dots. "I think I'm gonna pass out."

"Don't," Michael ground out. "I am not dragging your dead weight around. We're almost at the quarter mile mark."

"How are we going to get past the lasers and stuff?" Scotty asked, though he really didn't care what the solution would be. He just wanted someone to fix his leg.

"Not sure yet," Michael admitted and set his friend down. "Haven't thought that far ahead. Why don't you think about that while I go back and cover our tracks?"

"You've gotta be kidding me," Scotty muttered as he watched Michael walk away.

When Michael came back, Scotty readily admitted that he hadn't even tried to think about it. "Can't you just go in and get them to turn them off?"

"We're still going to have to get past the trenches," Michael reminded him. "Unless you want to hike another five miles to get to the other entrance."

"But then we'll have to zip-line!"

Michael shrugged. He was losing sympathy fast, quite honestly. Being out in the freezing cold could do that to you. "Life's full of tough decisions, huh? Tell me what you want to do."

"You're the laser grid champ," Scotty told him. "Can't you figure something out?"

"Sure," Michael said and stood. He pointed to an invisible spot just a few yards ahead. "The first line is right there. The pattern is pretty simple, which I'm sure you already know. I think I can get you through it."

"You think."

"Got anything better?"

Scotty groaned. "I don't know why I had to go snowboarding."

Michael froze and then exploded. "I had to hunt for you for an hour, drag you twenty miles, and now have to get you through a laser grid because you decided to go snowboarding?"

Scotty shrugged sheepishly. "I, uh, I got the board hidden."

"Invalid," Michael grumbled and then heaved his friend to his feet, ignoring Scotty's cries of pain. "Stand on both feet. I don't care if your legs are broken."

Scotty gritted his teeth and did as Michael said.

Michael led him up to where he knew the first line was. "Step over."

"How far?"

"Ten inches."

Scotty glanced back at him. "What if you're wrong?"

"You're right. Why don't you go ahead and tell me where that snowboard is?"

Scotty gulped, but he knew that Michael was just kidding. Michael was the best at the mountain, and everybody knew that. He was going to grow up to be the best graduate that Ghengis Academy had ever trained. His possibilities were endless.

He stepped over and Michael followed close behind. "This will be hard, but follow my lead."

Scotty nodded.

Michael made a series of jumps and then stopped and turned back to Scotty. "Got that?"

It was slow going, but they finally made it around the laser grid. At the base of the mountain. Michael slapped the side while Scotty sank to the ground, close to blacking out.

"Hey, Gibbs!" Michael called. "Wanna send some help out here? Or at least open the door!"

Suddenly, a section of the mountain slid up, revealing a wide, dark tunnel. Michael called out a quick thank you and then slung Scotty up into a fireman's carry. "Come on, man. Stay with me."

"I'm here," Scotty murmured, though he was having to fight the darkness.

Michael began to make his way through the maze in the dark, not the least bit hesitant. Sometimes, he would have dreams about running through these tunnels in the darkness. So, essentially, he could do it in his sleep. It was a part of him. A part of all of them that lived here. Even the graduates sometimes returned and it was always stunning to see them making their way through the tunnels as easily as the students could. Michael knew that this place would never truly leave him.

At the main cavern, Michael began to head for the tunnel that would take him to the infirmary, but he was stopped by the Sapiên's voice. "No. We must talk now."

Michael saw that everyone was gathered, seemingly waiting for him. "Scotty…"

"Will live," he replied. "Set him down and attend to him as we talk."

Michael nodded and did as he was told. "You lost a lot of blood," he whispered, now worried about his friend, his brother.

Scotty nodded his head slowly. "I know."

The Sapiên stood and adjusted his robes. "Now that you are all here, I have an announcement."

Michael took a towel offered to him by Drake and wound it around Scotty's leg, being sure to tie it tight.

"For the first time in history, the students of the Ghengis Academy will be going away from our mountain to train."

Everyone stared in shock.

This simply wasn't done.

The Sapiên continued. "We will be going to the Gallagher Academy."

It was silent until Michael asked, "Where?"