A/N: I finished Power of Six about a week ago and really enjoyed it. To pass the time between now and the release of Rise of Nine, I decided to write my version of what could happen. I hope you enjoy it- if you do, or even if you don't, please leave a review for me.

DISCLAIMER: I do not have any Legacies, I am not an Elder of Lorien, and I am not Pittacus Lore. (not that my writing is good enough for anyone to confuse us)

Sam is sitting in his cell, staring at the wall. Two Mogadorians approach, holding a table between them. They punch a code into the wall and the force-field disappears. Sam stands up momentarily, but sits down when he sees the gun one of them is pointing at him. The lead Mogadorian steps away from the table, revealing an array of what can only be instruments of torture. He barks at Sam, who stands up. His arms and legs are taped to the wall, and he makes no move to resist. The Mogadorian picks up a knife and holds it to Sam's face.

"Where is Four?" he demands.

Sam says nothing. The knife slashes across his face, opening a gash in his cheek.

"Where is he?" yells the Mogadorian.

Sam is bleeding badly, sweat running down his brow and mixing with his blood. Despite the pain he must be in, when he speaks it is with defiance.

"I'll never tell you."

The knife descends again, and everything goes red.

My eyes snap open.

"How long was I out?"

"About an hour and a half." replies Nine, without taking his eyes from the road. I'm glad he's the one driving- I really needed to sleep. I look out the window and see snow everywhere. I turn to look at him "We're in Pennsylvania, heading north like you said." he says, answering my unspoken question.

"We need to go back," I say, "We need to go back and get Sam."

Nine sighs. This isn't the first time I've said this. When he speaks, however, it is in a surprisingly understanding voice.

"Look, Four, we don't have the firepower to go back in there. We're both powerful, but neither of us has our Master Legacies, and we'd have to fight thousands of Mogs in their home territory." He takes a deep breath and continues. "Besides, you have to realize something, Four. The only people who matter now are the six of us. You're next in line to be killed, and you can't- we can't afford you putting yourself in unnecessary danger. I know it's tough, but that's what my Cèpan told me. They captured us, they tortured him but he told me to continue the fight, that he didn't matter. The fate of our people is in our hands. Not Sam's, not anyone else's. It is up to what is left of the Garde to save Lorien."

He turns and looks at me, but I've long since tuned him out. He turns back to the road and keeps driving. I close my eyes, hoping for a sleep without premonitions. Sleep eludes me, but images fill my head nonetheless. This time they're happier ones.

I see Six doing laps in the pool, Bernie Kosar alongside her. I see us training in the backyard, me suspended four feet over the pool. Then I see us after the walk in Florida, only this time the house doesn't erupt in flames. I stay in that moment for a while, enjoying it, and then I reluctantly allow my mind to wander again. This time it's Sam who I see, sitting next to me in the car.

"I see you guys flirting all the time, literally, all the time, in front of me. You know I like her, and you still do it. You still don't care."

I see myself say the same words I am thinking.

"I do care. I do care that you like her."

I feel bad for Sam. I really do. I just can't help myself when I'm around Six.

I open my eyes. Nine is passed out on the seat beside me. I look around frantically. I can't see any Mogadorians, but I light up my hands nonetheless. Nobody's there. I breathe a sigh of relief and shake Nine awake.

"Nine! Nine!"

He opens his eyes groggily.

"What is it?"

"What do you think it is? You can't just fall asleep like that without letting me know! What if the Mogadorians had found us? They would have killed both of us easily. One of us always needs to be awake so we can keep an eye out for Mogs!"

"Sorry. I was just really tired." he says with a yawn

I roll my eyes. The guy who walks on ceilings and enjoys fighting for his life is tired. "That's fine, but if you need to sleep, wake me up!"

"I tried. It was like you were in a trance or something. I tried to stay awake until you snapped out of it but I couldn't."

Oops. I feel a bit guilty about staying in those moments for so long. I shouldn't have left Nine to make sure we were okay. Still though, I assumed I could be woken up if it was necessary. I'll need to remember that for the future.

"Okay. Do you want me to drive? We need to get to a motel or something. It's way too dangerous for us to be out in the open like this."

"Sure."

We switch seats and I start driving. For some reason driving has always relaxed me. I feel more free when I'm driving, like the Mogadorians disappear for a couple moments. Of course, walks are good for that too. Tonight though, I just want to find a place where we can sleep for the night. Thankfully, I spot a motel almost immediately. I pull into the parking lot and quickly look around. There are a couple cars, but thankfully no figures lurking in the shadows. I know I've been really jumpy lately, but we need to stay safe. The lobby is nearly empty as we walk up to the desk. The guy running the room reservations is too busy drinking to question my ID and gives us a room. We both fall asleep almost immediately.

I'm walking on Lorien as it was the day before the attack. Everything is lush and green, and I can hear birds chirping in the trees. I walk over a hill and see somebody standing there. They aren't human.