Rating: PG-13

Genre: Angst, Action, Horror

Timeline: Set sometime in the TV series. Aya-chan isn't awake and Persia isn't dead. That's all that matters.

Summary: After a mission nearly fails a team member is lost. With Sena and Kyo replacing their lost teammate, Weiss must quickly become a functioning team again if they hope to survive.

Disclaimer: Own nothing, make no profit. This is fanfiction...this should be obvious...

A/N (edited March 2008): Ok so sometime between when I originally posted this and now, ff. net decided to eat the quotation marks on the first four chapters. I only found out because I was looking over some of my stories. Hopefully I've fixed the problem. I'm not sure what caused this since I didn't have the problem when I first uploaded it. I apologize for the inconvenience.

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The Replacement

Chapter 1 - Murphy's Law

Icy rain poured down in sheets, soaking though his heavy coat. Yohji shivered. Somehow he just knew he was going to catch a cold from all this. Heck, they all would. Except Ken. Ken was always one of those disgustingly healthy types.

He shifted slightly in his perch, trying to ease the growing numbness in his toes. Idly, he wondered how he had gotten into this mess. Oh yeah, the mission. Getting in had been the easy part. Getting out... well that was proving to be a different story. Who would have thought that the crime lord's followers would keep fighting after he was dead? A simple mission. Yeah, right. Since when were mission's ever simple? People had a habit of fighting their hardest when their lives were on the line.

This time their target was a man dealing in shady business with experimental drugs. He had been slipping them into the mainstream supplies, and then watching the devastating effects that they had on innocent people. Somehow it oddly reminded him of Musafami and Schirient. Yohji thanked his lucky stars that neither was involved.

Kritiker suspected that their target might not have been working alone. A mission regarding that was pending. In the meantime they were to eliminate the known culprit.

His radio crackled to life, snapping him out of his reverie,"Balinese, Status."

"Short and to the point as always, eh Abyssinian?" Yohji couldn't keep the smirk out of his voice, "Currently this kitty is up a tree with some nasty dogs below."

"Balinese..." Aya did not sound amused.

"I'm serious," Yohji dropped the light tone, "I'm up here hiding in a tree while dogs and guards roam about below. Thankfully they haven't found me yet." He fell silent as a dog passed by below, "How is everyone else faring?"

"Bombay is in the air vents, Siberian is making his way around the labs, and I'm in a closet."

Yohji chuckled, "I could have told you that last part."

Balinese Yohji could hear the sub-arctic glare. He grinned to himself, it was always much more fun (and safer) to tease Aya when he couldn't do anything about it.

"Abyssinian, Balinese, Siberian, I think I have a way to get us out," Omi's voice came over the radio.

"Hurry up and tell us then, the situation isn't going to get any better you know."

"No kidding, the irony might give me lead poisoning any minute." A dog bark could be heard over the radio.

"What does lead poisoning have to do with irony?" Ken asked, bewildered.

"...I'll explain it later. Now what about this escape plan? I'm wet and I'm cold and getting sick would put a serious damper on my social life. Not to mention my work schedule, " he added that last part for Aya, aka Mr. Diehard-Business-Man.

"Well what we need is a diversion. Something like an explosion or a fire. Anything to draw their attention immediately. Siberian, can you find something in the labs to set off?"

"No problem, I see a bunch of bunsen burners right over--" He was cut off by the crack of a gunshot. They heard the telltale sharp intake of breath that always accompanied an injury.

"Siberian! Report!" Aya's clipped tones responded first.

"Don't worry, it's just a scratch."

More gunfire.

"Get ready guys, we should get some fireworks here pretty soon. I'll meet you all back at the shop okay?"

"Siberian, situation report," Aya was not going to let Ken dismiss the sounds he knew they were hearing.

"Just a few trigger happy guards, nothing I can't handle," It might have been his imagination but Ken's voice sounded strained.

"Are you sure your all right?" Omi must have noticed it as well.

"I'm fine. Don't worry about me."

"Alright... but be careful okay?" Omi didn't sound convinced, and for that matter neither was he.

"Will do. Get ready to make a run for it." Moments later, a resounding KABOOM rocked through the building. As predicted, the guards all went to investigate the explosion. The assassin sprang from their hiding places and raced for the edge of the compound.

"Balinese clear."

"Bombay clear."

"Abyssinian clear."

"Hey Siberian?"

"Almost clear, be out in a minute."

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Wearily, Aya entered their living quarters above the Koneko. A quick survey told him that he had been the first to arrive back. Somehow he usually did when they arrived separately. He always took the most direct route back. There was also the matter of his driving habits...

After taking a quick shower and bandaging up the minor wounds he had gotten, her settle out on the couch with a book to wait for the others to return.

Returning separately was not something he enjoyed, though sometimes it was nessary. He like to know all his teammates were present and accounted for. Perhaps he was being a bit paranoid and overprotective, but it was just the way he was. It was also part of what made him a good field leader.

Moments after he had settled down Yohji returned. Barely acknowledging Aya, Yohji somberly went up to his room. Omi returned barely five minutes later. Unable to fight off exhaustion any further, Aya drifted off to sleep on the couch, his book resting in his lap...

"Aya!" He shifted slightly in his sleep.

"Oy! Aya!" Who kept yelling for his sister? He wished she'd hurry up and answer them so he could rest already...

"Aya! Wake up!" Oh yeah... he was Aya... He found himself being shaken... He didn't like it.

WHACK!

Before him stood Yohji... with an imprint of his book on his cheek. Whoops. Ah well, he only hit him in the head, he'd be all right.

"Hey! You didn't have to hit me you know! Geez! You sleep like the dead!"

Do not.

Glancing over at the clock Aya noted that it was only 6 a.m. Wait... Why was Yohji the one waking him up?!

As if reading his train of thought, Yohji responded," Someone reset my alarm clock and hid it yesterday, so relax, it's not a sign of the apocalypse." Yohji cast an accusatory look at Omi.

"If I hadn't you never would have gotten up in time," Omi grinned from the doorway.

"I do hope you know, I'll get you for that."

Omi chose to ignore the promise of revenge, "Kind of funny though, you actually get up on time and Aya is the one that oversleeps. Well as close as Aya gets to oversleeping."

"I take it back, it must be a sign of the apocalypse."

Aya frowned at that. It wasn't as if he planned to fall asleep on the couch. If they hadn't taken so long to get back last night he wouldn't have either. He would have been sipping some tea and reading the newspaper by the time Omi was hitting his alarm clock for the third time.

"Where's Kenken? He ought to be here enjoying this early morning party," Yohji had a mischievous glint in his eye as he contemplated the less than pleasant ways to wake up their final comrade.

"Probably still asleep. He's as bad as you when it comes to mornings."

"Well we should remedy that now shouldn't we? What do you think we should do? Ice water? Or just go for the good ole kick onto the floor? Hmm? I think the kick." Yohji sauntered up the stairs, with Omi trailing behind to break up the inevitable fight.

Aya sighed and went up to his room to get ready for work. He was just coming back down stairs with the thought of cooking breakfast when he was nearly run into by a worried Omi.

"Aya! Have you seen Ken?"

"No," Aya shook his head, shoving away the nagging feeling that arose.

"I can't find him anywhere..." Omi's brows creased with worry, "I can't think of anywhere he could have gone so early..."

As callous as he may seem at times, Aya cared fiercely for each of his teammates. Giving in to what he a perceived, and hoped was an irrational worry , he quickly strode down to the basement. Perplexed, Omi followed.

Throwing open the doors to the weapons locker. His eyes widened at the sight. Ken's claws were missing.

Omi spoke the conclusion they both came to, "He didn't come home last night..."

Aya found his voice, "Tell Yohji, I'll contact Manx."

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