Hey everyone! So while writing on Black Dragon, Snowy Moon (and re-watching Darker Than Black once more for the umpteenth billion time), I suddenly was also inspired about what exactly happened during Heaven's War and how the Gate vanished with Bai's power. Since nothing solid was ever stated how it happened other than Bai's power was activated while she and Amber were inside the Gate, but never got as far as Amber and Hei had in episode twenty five. Or how Bai actually fused with Hei either since it seems he wasn't by her side when she activated her power. And I hadn't read any other fics about what happened then either so I decided I'd write something. This is just my take on it so if anyone else that writes fics for Darker Than Black and has their own idea, I'd totally love to read what is thought about it. *grins* Anyway, enough of my blabbering. Hope you enjoy!

Black and White: The Fall of Heaven's Gate

Hei sat there holding Bai in his arms as she paid for her obeisance from using her powers earlier in the night. The small opening in the trees he sat at with his back against a large stump allowed him to look up towards the night sky filled with the fake stars above. Several stars glittered brighter than the others and he knew that their owners were using their powers. A few moments later, a couple of them shimmered before streaking across the sky and fell towards the earth as their light faded out. Two more Contractors had died. At least they hadn't fallen by Bai's or his hand this time.

Looking down at his sister curled up in his arms sound asleep, Hei could feel how tired he was. What he wanted to do right then was close his eyes and rest as well. But he knew that wasn't going to happen. He had to remain alert and protect Bai no matter what. Even if the other day he'd brought his hand up and placed it against her throat after falling asleep in his arms from catching her before she'd landed in the water where dozens of bodies lay from her unleashing her power. More and more he'd been contemplating on ending her life. But if he did that, what kind of brother would he be? He'd already sworn all those years ago he'd protect her like an older brother should, even if she was the one that had caused them to be in this situation they were in now by killing their parents. Then again, it also had been his choice to stay by her side after the Syndicate had found them. Sure, he could have taken their offer to erase his memories of his sister being a Contractor and went back to his family instead of being killed by the Syndicate. But again, what kind of older brother would he be if he just left his sister in the hands of some strangers to be used as some weapon without him being able to protect her? What would his family think about that? They'd certainly want answers but given his memories would be tampered with and erased, he wouldn't have been able to provide them with anything. And what would his parents have thought about that decision as well if they were alive? They'd probably be ashamed of him leaving his sister like that.

No. His choice to stay at his sister's side and protect her had been the best option. Yes, he despised having to kill all the people he had, but it was either kill or be killed. Survival of the strongest while the weakest got eliminated. Anything to protect Bai. As long as his targets breathed, they would always have the chance to come after him and his sister. And the only way to ensure their safety was to make sure the others ceased to exist by extinguishing their lives. After all, he wasn't called the Black Reaper for nothing.

Hearing soft footfalls approaching, Hei reached for his knife that was strapped to his thigh since Bai blocked him from effectively grabbing the ones from his harness easily. He was about to pull it out when he noticed the way the footsteps sounded.

"What do you want?" He turned his head to look over as the person in question came into view from behind him; her long, blonde hair spilling down over her back to her waist. Her amber coloured gaze looked over to him holding his sister before looking up at the stars as a couple more twinkled and shimmered before plummeting towards the earth. His voice was the opposite of the humid jungle air around them.

"Just came to find you," Amber replied still looking up at the stars as the sky to the east started to lighten a bit and turn grey with the coming dawn. "You've got orders."

"What are they now?" He gave a mental sigh wishing for sleep instead.

"There's a Contractor that's been marked to be taken care of about five kilometres from here to the south." Hei gave a small sigh and roll of his eyes before looking to Bai still unconscious in his arms as amber eyes turned to look down at him. "You know I'll watch her for you."

"I know you will." He reluctantly shifted Bai enough so he could lay her down gently on the ground before standing. His starless midnight gaze looked to the slightly older woman before him, standing several centimetres taller than himself. After all, he was still growing, being a teenager but not quite earning adult status yet. He only just had his seventeenth birthday not too long ago; not that he had celebrated it or anything. "Because if anything happens to her..."

"You'll hunt me down and make me regret it, right?" Amber gave him a small, smug smile as she came up to him and leaned in close, placing her hand up on his chest as she lowered her voice ever so slightly while moving her hand slowly down towards his waist in a teasing manner. "Would you really want to hurt the only one that's ever shown you a good time?"

Hei tightened his muscles as she ran her gloved hand down the front of his formfitting black shirt, stopping at the waistband of his pants. A shiver of need ran down his spine at her touch, causing his right hand to twitch a little. Her smug smile tugged up slightly at his reaction before he gave a small snort from the back of his throat and pulled away from her.

"Just watch her." Without another word, he turned and headed towards the south, not amused with having to trek so far in the early morning hours while exhausted as is already. But orders were orders.

Looking back towards Bai laying there curled up on the ground, Amber stood watch as the dawn approached. Several moments passed before Bai stirred and woke up.

"Ngh. Amber?" she asked sleepily as she rubbed her eyes and looked around. "Where's Hei?"

"He's on a mission to take care of another rogue." Amber eyes looked over as the younger girl stood up and stretched.

"Oh. I see." Her voice didn't hold much emotion as she looked towards the sky to the east. "Today is the day isn't it?"

"Yes. Brita should be here right about now." She turned her head a little just as blue light flashed and a tall, pale woman with long, blonde hair appeared. She stood there naked as the blue light faded and her eyes lost their red gleam. "Right on time."

"Oh come here Amber," Brita smirked as she came over and placed a hand on Amber's cheek before giving her a kiss on the other one in order to make her payment. Amber just gave a small, smug smile before looking to Bai.

"Are you ready?"

"Yes I am ready."

"You do know I can't teleport us into the core of the Gate right?" Brita informed Amber.

"I know that. Just go to the place that we already discussed in going." Amber gave her a small smile.

"Alright." Brita held her hands out and placed them on their shoulders as her eyes gleamed red again and the three of them were outlined in blue from her power. Then with a flash of blue, they disappeared with only their clothes left behind.

Appearing just inside the Gate where Amber had previously had Brita go before, the three stood there now naked. Amber calmly walked over to a large sized rock about the size of a basketball and moved it aside. Underneath was a metal box placed into the dirt. She lifted the lid off it to reveal the meteor shard she'd put inside before walking back over towards the other two. Then looking towards her left, she scanned the misty surroundings.

"This way," she spoke up as she started walking towards the spot she had her eyes on. She knew up ahead was one of the ripples that would start taking them closer towards the centre of the Gate.

Making their way along the path Amber took through several ripples, Amber finally came to a stop and glanced around for the next one. Suddenly she turned her head off to her right and furrowed her brow.

"We're out of time." She turned to look at Bai as she held out the meteor shard to her. "You have to activate your power now otherwise the Syndicate will destroy us."

"And Hei?" Bai asked taking the circular glass-like piece from her.

"He's far enough away from the barrier zone. He'll be alright. He should be finishing up his mission right about now."

Giving a nod, Bai looked to the shard in her hands before the red gleam ignited in her eyes and blue outlined her entire body. The shard gave a yellowish glowing as she tapped into it's amplification properties while sensing out all the anti-Gate particles that had accumulated in the air as the sun had risen up into the sky during the trek to where they now stood. Everything around them started to glow blue with her synchrotron radiation as she closed her eyes and focused on what she had to do. Then with a snap of her eyes open, she unleashed her power at the precise moment that Amber also activated her own power.

Looking to Bai and Brita frozen in time, Amber knew she only had moments to spare in order to do what was needed. She reached up and touched Bai, unfreezing her and the shard from time just before touching Brita as well.

"Brita. You remember where I told you where Hei was going to be?" she asked the other woman before her.

"Yes."

"Take us there. And hurry."

"Understood." She leaned forward as she kissed Amber's cheek again while placing a hand on Bai's shoulder as well and the three disappeared in a flash of blue.

Looking to the Contractor laying dead on the ground with one of his knives sticking out of his chest, Hei gave an exhausted sigh. This one had taken a little longer to take care of because he'd been fast and Hei had to dodge his attacks he'd countered with.

"At least it's over now," he muttered to himself as he stooped down a bit and unwound his carabineer and wire from the Contractor's neck he'd managed to finally land, keeping him in place while he had embedded his knife into his chest, straight to his heart. He retracted the wire back into his belt before grabbing his knife and wiped it off. With another exhausted sigh, he slid it back into its sheath before turning and started his trek back to Bai, hoping that by now she would be awake and he could get some rest. He didn't bother taking care of the Contractor's body as he made his way through the trees. That was one of the only perks with being in the jungle like this. The forest, animals, and bugs would take care of the body for him. The other was having plenty of places to hide in waiting to ambush his targets.

Suddenly, about a quarter of the way back, a bright blue light flashed in front of him. He put his hand up slightly as it was very bright. The sudden sense of dread washed over him as he thought of Bai, dropping his hand back to his side, eyes widening at losing her. He started to take a step forward, when a softer blue flash caught his attention just out of his peripherals to the right. He was about to turn towards it when something hit him hard in the back of the head and everything went black.

Looking down at her brother left unconscious, Bai looked towards Amber and Brita.

"You don't have much time left," Amber spoke up.

"I know." Bai nodded knowing she only had moments to spare before her obeisance kicked in. She had already been told by Amber that even with the meteor shard amplifying her power to secure Heaven's Gate, the price she would have to pay would leave her unconscious for a few years. During that time, all Hei would want to do is remain at her side making sure she was safe but the Syndicate wouldn't have it and would effectively want to get rid of Hei and her both. There would be no way for Hei to protect Bai by constantly having to move her around places while in her comatose state and he would end up dying at the hands of the Syndicate. Then the Syndicate's plan to eradicate Contractors and Dolls using Hell's Gate would most definitely succeed. But Amber had told her there was another way to forego her price, make sure Hei remained alive, and protect him all at the same time.

"Don't worry. I'll make sure he is safe once you do it," Amber spoke up as Bai turned her gaze to the blonde haired girl.

"Thank you Amber." Bai gave a slightly sad smile looking from her to Brita. "And thank you Brita."

Kneeling down beside her brother, Bai brushed a little hair out of his face. She gave another sad smile at him as the red gleam in her eyes ignited and blue outlined her figure. The meteor shard gave its yellowish glow as the blue light extended to wrap around Hei's body as well.

"I'm sorry Hei. I'll always love you big brother," she whispered softly, leaning down and gave him a soft kiss to his forehead as her entire body started to change into the same blue light her synchrotron radiation emitted. The meteor shard gave a brighter glow before her form started to fuse with Hei's body that had a similar blue light covering his entire body much like her body had become. Then in a flash of blue light, she was gone. The meteor shard also had most of its outer part disappear along with her, leaving a smaller, yen coin sized middle laying on the ground beside him as the the blue faded from around him.

"Huh? What the...?" Brita spoke up with a confused blink as Amber moved forward before leaning down to pick it up in her hand. The next moment, Amber gave a slight glow before she started to shrink down in size a little and her features reversed in age until she looked no older than Hei around seventeen to eighteen years old.

"It's the remnants of the meteor shard," Amber spoke up, her voice having gone up an octave in pitch. She looked down at the smaller piece of the glass-like fragment sitting in her palm. "Now it's the core of the meteor shard. However, it can only be used once more before it disappears again." She closed her fingers around it before looking down to Hei and knelt beside him, tilting her head a little, placing her other hand against his cheek.

"Now what do we do with him?" Brita asked putting her hands on her hips as she looked down at the unconscious boy as Amber pulled her hand away and stood up again.

"You're going to take him back to the field hospital shortly," the now younger looking Contractor spoke up as she turned her amber coloured gaze to the older looking woman. "But don't use your power." Brita gave a small roll of her eyes but inclined her head at her orders. "Remember to tell them the excuse that you came out to check on Hei and his team and found Hei unconscious after the blue light appeared. And remember that you don't know anything about what happened. Understood?"

"Yeah I understand." She gave a sigh as she dropped her hands off her hips and looked back to the younger boy again.

"He's an important key to our next step so I need you to make sure he gets there alive and unharmed understood?" Brita gave a nod. "Good. Now I'll take my leave to where I told you I needed to go. For now, I need you to stay here and keep an eye on him. I'll send word to you on what to do next when I know it's safe."

"And the meteor core?" Brita raised her eyebrow at her.

"I'll hang onto it for now." Amber gave her a small smile.

"Fine. I'll be waiting," Brita nodded again before coming forward and leaned down a little towards Amber's cheek. Her eyes gave their signature red gleam as she activated her power and blue outlined her before giving Amber a kiss, also being surrounded by blue light. Then, in a flash of blue light, she disappeared with the meteor core.

Looking back down to the unconscious Hei as her synchrotron radiation faded along with her eyes returning back to normal, Brita gave a small sigh and knelt down beside him. What the CIA, MI-6, or any of the other groups like the Syndicate wouldn't give to have him in their hands. Hell, they'd never believe such a young kid like him was the infamous Black Reaper. Even she had questioned how such a kid was able to take down so many Contractors. And being a human no less so he didn't have the same kind of powers against them either. But having watched him in action a few times from a distance, she had to admit, he was pretty good.

"You know, you're pretty cute too," she whispered softly as she brushed more of his hair out of his face. "No wonder Amber took a liking to you." She had to admit, while he was unconscious and his face relaxed, he was cute. For a human. Otherwise, every time she saw him, he had the same dull expression on his face like any other Contractor had. She knew of his reputation of his ruthlessness and being even colder and more lethal than any Contractor she knew of. It was one of the other reasons he'd earned his nickname.

Giving a sigh, she shifted and sat him up before turning and managed to get him up on her back. She was surprised how light he also weighed despite having seen him eat quite a bit as well. Even all the other Contractors along with the humans employed in the Syndicate's ranks were quite befuddled as to how much he could eat. She'd asked Bai about it once and the younger girl said he had always been like that since she could remember, though she'd shrugged it off as an indifference to her.

Making her way through the trees and brush towards the field hospital, she had to admit, now would have been a better time to actually have some clothes on. Any other time, she didn't care about it. But she'd have to make due as she was until she was closer to the encampment. She was supposed to keep an eye on the kid and even if she had left him there to teleport to the hospital and borrow some clothes and return again, there was the chance that someone might come along and harm or kill the kid. Then Amber really would be pissed, even if she had the ability to rewind time. But her payment for doing so cost quite a bit to do and that was something that even Brita knew wasn't expendable for the other Contractor.

Finally seeing the encampment up ahead through the trees, she could see them scrambling around trying to figure out what had gone on with what Bai had done with the Gate. Too bad no one else would know the truth of what really had happened. It was a secret that Amber had entrusted her with, especially with the fact that Bai had fused herself with Hei. She'd also told her that once that had been completed, Hei would be able to tap into Bai's powers just like any normal Contractor could but that he would technically still be human. It had left Brita speechless upon hearing that but Amber wouldn't have allowed her to know about it if she didn't trust her to keep quiet. Hei was not to know about anything at all dealing with what had gone on and Brita would uphold that. Not just for Amber but for Bai's sake as well. She owed the younger girl that much because she had saved her life a few times when she couldn't use her power to escape without needing a kiss first.

Looking around the area, Brita found a spot where she could hide the unconscious boy for a few before using her power to teleport into the encampment to the barracks area where she could quickly grab some clothes. Then, while everyone was still in a panic and running around, she easily slipped through the encampment and made her way back to where she'd left Hei. Thankfully, no one had found him and he still was unconscious. Picking him back up, she made her way back into the camp and straight for the hospital building area.

"I found Hei," she spoke up making her way inside where several others were recovering off to the side in their own beds while several staff members were tending to them. One of the others that wasn't checking a patient quickly came over.

"What happened?" he asked as he directed her to bring him to one of the empty beds and had her set him down. He immediately started checking his vitals.

"I don't know," Brita replied with a shrug. "I went out to check on him and his team several kilometres to the west just as that blue light showed up. When I got to the area they were last known to be at, Hei was unconscious and the rest of his team missing."

"Looks like his vitals are fine," the doctor spoke up as he pulled his stethoscope back and let it hang around his neck. "We'll have to wait until he wakes up to ask what happened to him." He gave a pause and looked at Brita. "Meanwhile, I'll need you to go help with all the chaos going on out there."

"Do you know what happened? What that blue light was?"

"From what I've overheard shortly ago, there was some sort of explosion at Heaven's Gate just before everything around it suddenly just disappeared. But that's all I know right now."

"Wait what?" Brita put just enough of a confused look that any Contractor could possibly attain for certain situations. "Heaven's Gate vanished?"

"From what I've heard, it's gone. No idea what happened to it at all. But I'm sure there will be more reports coming in soon." He turned his attention back to Hei. "For now, even though he doesn't seem to be in any immediate danger of anything, I still want to get him hooked up and monitored. So please, go see if you can help out with what's going on out there."

"Fine. I'll report back later to check on his status."

Turning, Brita headed off to deal with the chaos that Bai's performance of power had done.

Hei felt his senses slowly returning to him as he drifted on the edge of consciousness. He could feel himself laying on something semi-soft and something lightweight covering him. The air was a bit cooler and he could feel the slight movement of steady air off to the side before the sound of a fan came to his ears. Then the sound of a heart monitor near his head beeped in time with the steady throb of his own heartbeat in his chest. Muddled voices started to become clearer as he heard people talking and the smell of antiseptic reached his nose.

Slowly opening his eyes a little, Hei took in his surroundings. He was in the field hospital run by the Syndicate that had been nearby where he and Bai had been. How had he gotten here?

'Bai,' he thought to himself just as his memories came back to him of her sleeping in his arms then Amber coming to tell him of his job he had to do. He'd gone off and managed to take care of the rogue Contractor before starting to head back to Bai when that strange enormous blue light appeared in the direction of Heaven's Gate and Bai's direction. Then that smaller blue light he caught off to his right but then everything had gone black.

Sitting up quickly with a gasp, he looked over with movement approaching him. Instinctively, he reached for one of his knives only to find his weapons harness and thigh knife with its holster had been removed, including his carabineer and wire belt. The sting of the IV needle in his arm from his movements ached but he didn't flinch as he narrowed his gaze.

"Hei it's okay," the doctor that approached him cautiously said putting his hands up, palms facing forward to signify he wasn't going to hurt him. After all, even he knew the reputation that Hei had as the Black Reaper. That had been precisely why he'd removed his weapons knowing when he awoke, he would no doubt reach for them.

"Why am I here?" Hei asked, voice emotionless and cold like always. "Where's my sister?" From first glance around the area, there was only one other in a bed on the far end laying unconscious. Other than that, it was just this doctor before him and two others that were keeping their distance but watching him. The doctor that was speaking with him still kept his distance as well. It was a smart move knowing how deadly he was, even without his weapons.

"You were found out in the field unconscious and brought here right after the explosion at Heaven's Gate," the doctor replied putting his hands down but still continued to stay his distance.

"Explosion at Heaven's Gate?" He furrowed his brow slightly. Had that been the bright blue light he saw? There hadn't been any sound from what he remembered. Usually explosions had sound to them.

"Well, we're not exactly sure what happened honestly," the doctor continued with a grim look on his face. "All we know is that there was a bright blue light and then everything within a fifteen hundred kilometre radius just...vanished."

Hei's eyes widened slightly in surprise at this information. Where they had been stationed at currently was around two thousand kilometres from the centre of the Gate. Had they been any closer, who knew what would have happened to them. But the question still remained...

"You didn't answer my question," Hei spoke up again still in that cold, emotionless tone narrowing his eyes on the doctor. "Where is Bai?"

"We...we don't know." The doctor averted his gaze slightly just as another came in through the door. All eyes turned towards him as he paused in his step, seeing Hei staring at him before coming over towards the doctor holding an open box in his hands.

"Um...sir...we uh...we found these while searching the area," the man spoke up, flicking his gaze towards Hei nervously as he held the box out. The doctor picked up one of the contents in the box. It was a dark purplish black jumpsuit that Hei recognised immediately as Bai's.

Jumping up out of the bed, Hei stumbled slightly as the heart monitor patches came off of him and the monitor made the sound of flat-lining. The IV in his arm gave another sharp sting as the line tugged from being too short. He reached down and pulled it out, not caring about the slight bit of blood that started seeping from where it had been.

"Hei you need to..." the doctor started to say but Hei ignored him as he reached out and grabbed the jumpsuit from him.

"This is my sister's," he spoke up still in the cold tone but now laced with a bit of anger. He spotted the other outfit sitting inside the box and recognised it as Amber's. He reached out and grabbed the doctor by the front of his white coat. "Where is Bai dammit?!"

"I told you, I don't know!" the doctor replied as one of the others that was closer to the door ran for it and called for backup.

"Bullshit!" Hei was pissed now. And he wanted answers.

Suddenly, four men came running in as Hei turned his attention towards them. He narrowed his eyes as they approached him cautiously.

"Let the doctor go Hei," one spoke up trying to diffuse the situation without a fight. Even he knew of Hei's skill with his martial arts when he was weaponless.

"I just want to know where my sister is dammit!" Hei growled angrily just before one of the soldiers made their move towards him.

Shoving the doctor backwards, Hei immediately went into a defensive position as the soldier came at him. Before he got too close, Hei tossed the jumpsuit at him, causing the other to put his hands up to block it from hitting his face. Hei took this opportunity to rush him but the other three came at him as well. Each were able to grab and hold onto him as Hei struggled to break out of their grasps.

"Let go of me dammit!" Hei said still struggling and stumbled backwards towards the bed he had been in. One of the men managed to be shaken off by him and he went to pull away from another guy after kicking him in the lower back of his leg. Hei stumbled backwards again slightly, hitting the heart monitor still with the flat-lining sound going. "I said let GO!"

Suddenly blue outlined him as his eyes gleamed red a split second before blue sparks came off him. The two still managing to hold onto him dropped to the ground while the heart monitor suddenly shut off with sparks coming off it. The small generator that it was hooked up to gave a crackling sizzle as smoke came out of it from having been fried along with the heart monitor. Hei's eyes widened in surprise as he looked to his hands, palms turned up at the synchrotron radiation surrounding him like any other Contractor had before glancing up to see everyone else also staring in wide-eyed surprise at him.

'What the...?' he thought to himself as the blue light began to fade again. Had he just become a Contractor? He looked to the two men laying on the ground at his feet unmoving as the smell of burnt plastic and wiring permeated his nose from the electronics that had been fried.

"Don't move."

Hei turned his attention towards one of the other men that had been shaken off him before he'd unleashed this newfound power reminiscent of Bai's. The man had his gun pointed at him while keeping his distance.

Slowly dropping his hands back to his sides, Hei kept his gaze on the man and the gun. Even he knew he couldn't dodge a bullet from that range and he didn't feel like getting shot. It didn't feel pleasant whatsoever as a memory flickered across his mind from a previous time he'd been shot in the arm while on a mission.

"Move away from the other two slowly and keep your hands where I can see them," the man continued keeping his gun trained on the deadly assassin. Hei kept his eyes narrowed on the man but slowly moved several paces to the side as the other man approached and leaned down while keeping his gaze and gun on Hei. He put two fingers to each of the fallen men's necks, checking for a pulse.

"Are they...?" the doctor that Hei had grabbed earlier asked.

"Dead." The man stood back up still keeping his eye on Hei. "Ryou, go inform the boss that it seems we've got a new Contractor on our hands." The other man that had grabbed Hei gave a nod before quickly heading for the door and left. The man gave a motion for the closest chair by Hei. "Sit."

Still keeping his gaze on the gun, Hei slowly made his way over towards the chair and sat down. He broke his gaze only for a second to glance down to the two men he'd zapped laying on the floor. His mind still was trying to process what had just happened. The power he'd just unleashed was like Bai's with how she'd taken down her targets using electricity to shock them to death. Had he gained powers mimicking his sister's? It was ironic, given how much he had adopted the Contractor's attitude and lack of emotional response towards everything in order to do his job all these years. Him, a human surrounded by Contractors almost all the time on his team, being just as cold and emotionless but also more ruthless than they were, was now a full fledged Contractor himself.

Glancing down to his arm where blood still seeped out of the spot the IV had been, he felt a bit confused. If he now had powers similar to his sister, he wasn't feeling sleepy like she normally did when she needed to pay her price. So it seemed that he didn't share a similar obeisance like his sister. On the one hand, that was a plus. If he were out in the field and used this newfound power, he'd be screwed once it hit because he'd be vulnerable until he woke, just like Bai was. And he trusted the majority of people here to watch over him about as far as he could throw them. The only ones he ever trusted the most were his sister and Amber.

Bringing his gaze up, the doctor he'd grabbed earlier had started approaching him while the other man still had the gun trained on him. The doctor slowly brought his hands up in front of him while holding a bandage and nodded towards Hei's arm to silently indicate he was bringing him one to stop the bleeding. Hei remained seated, keeping his gaze flickering between the man with the gun and the doctor. Once the doctor had secured the bandage to him, he backed off quickly.

Continuing to sit there waiting for Ryou to return with the boss no doubt, Hei still tried to figure out what his obeisance was. He didn't feel inclined to perform any particular actions like he'd witnessed some Contractors having to do. Then again, he did know that some obeisances could take a bit to kick in, especially if they happened to be in the middle of a fight. But it had been a few moments already. Shouldn't something have started happening by now? Or was his obeisance an automatic one like Bai's was and once it kicked in, it couldn't be stopped? It obviously didn't involve him falling asleep but he also didn't feel any different either. All he knew was that some obeisances were tricky to discern sometimes.

Hearing footsteps approaching, Hei turned his head towards the door just as it opened to the head boss of the encampment entering with two of his bodyguards and Ryou behind them. Hazel green eyes turned towards him with a raised eyebrow as the boss approached him then stopped still a good couple of metres away. He glanced over towards the two dead soldiers on the ground off to his left a couple metres from where Hei sat before returning his gaze back to the starless midnight blue ones watching him.

"Is it true what Ryou told me of you becoming a Contractor?" he asked Hei.

"He zapped Haneda and Jason right before all of our eyes," Ryou spoke up as he pointed towards the two just as the boss raised a hand to silence him while keeping his gaze on Hei.

"I want to hear it from him," he spoke as he tilted his head slightly at the young man before him.

Hei kept his gaze on his boss before him. What could he say? Yeah he obviously became a Contractor because there had been no doubt about the power he just exhibited. Was he expecting him to show him a demonstration?

"If it's about those two, then yes, I electrocuted them," Hei replied in his usual cold manner of speaking he always held towards others.

"Electrocuted huh?" His boss raised an eyebrow as he glanced towards the two dead then up to the heart monitor still sizzling. Even he could smell the scent of the fried electronics and plastic. "So you have the same power as your sister huh?" Hei only slightly inclined his head in reply. "And your obeisance?"

Hei remained silently sitting there. He still hadn't noticed anything that he needed to do to make his payment yet.

"Have you paid your obeisance yet?"

Dark eyes continued to stare at hazel green ones silently. This started to irritate the boss with Hei not answering him. He turned his gaze towards the others in the room.

"Has he had to perform anything for his payment?" he asked.

"No sir," the one doctor Hei had grabbed earlier replied shaking his head. "He's only merely been sitting there quietly until you came in, sir."

"Where's my sister," Hei spoke up, getting the boss's attention as with the others again.

"Weren't you with her last?"

"I was given orders from Amber that I was to hunt down and eliminate a rogue Contractor and left Bai in her care," Hei replied with his voice still cold and emotionless. "Once I finished my mission, I was heading back to their position when there was a flash of blue light in the distance." He gave a small pause. "I don't remember anything after that except waking up here where no one has answered my question. Where is my sister?"

"She and Amber have gone missing," the boss replied as Hei gave a blink at his words. "You've been unconscious for three days. Brita was the one that found you unconscious shortly after the explosion at Heaven's Gate when she was sent out to search for you and your team. It seems that you are the only survivor thus far. The rest are either dead or missing. That's all we have so far."

Hei sat there staring at his boss in disbelief. He'd been unconscious for three days? Both Amber and Bai were missing? His entire team was wiped out? Just what the hell happened?

Feeling anger rising within him, Hei clenched his fists tightly closed at his sides as he shifted his gaze down towards the floor. He could feel his entire body shaking slightly at how he could possibly lose Bai like this. Then in a fluid movement as all the rage boiled over, he stood up with his fists still clenched at his sides. Synchrotron radiation surrounded him again as blue sparks flickered off of him and onto the chair he'd been sitting in. It had been one of those metal folding ones and his power shot through it and off the back where a power cord hung down from above to the lights and the generator running them. The lights gave a flicker before the bulbs shattered from the surge of power just as the generator had sparks fly off the surfaces as it also fried from too much power going into it from Hei.

Covering their heads quickly from the falling glass, everyone looked to Hei. Even he had brought his hands up and covered his head as the blue faded from him out of surprise for what he'd done. Then suddenly, Hei felt a small wave of dizziness hit him as he went down to one knee and put an arm across his stomach. The others slowly lowered their hands and looked to him as the blue faded from around the younger boy again. His stomach gave a loud growl and he gave a droll look as he glanced away but made no other movement of fighting against them or unleashing his new powers again.

Sighing somewhat, the boss gave a small shake of his head just as Hei looked back up at him with his usual cold and emotionless gaze. Now that he'd witnessed Hei's power first hand, he could tell that indeed, the young assassin had identical powers like his sister. Though, it didn't seem he was going to get Hei to answer what his obeisance was. Plus he knew how Hei acted when he was hungry. Even if he was a Contractor now and he shouldn't have any such emotions like that anymore, it wasn't like he showed them outwardly anyway. His interactions with Hei before had always made him feel like he was dealing with another Contractor and would have guessed he was one had it not been in his file that he had still been human.

"Come. I'll escort you to get something to eat," he spoke up to Hei; the others blinking in disbelief. He glanced towards the man still holding a gun aimed at the deadly assassin. "Bane, lower your gun." The other man gave him a bewildered look for a split second before slowly lowering the gun back down to his side.

Glancing in his direction before looking back to the boss, Hei was a little stunned at the order but kept from showing it on his features. He couldn't allow anyone to see him give any sort of reaction to that sort of thing.

Standing slowly back up as he dropped his arm back to his side, Hei stood there waiting for the boss to tell him to follow him. Once the boss turned and headed for the door with his bodyguards, Hei followed after him silently. The bodyguards kept a few paces away behind Hei as he followed the boss to get some food on the mid-afternoon day.

Watching Hei scarfing down his food he'd gotten, the boss leaned forward in his seat a little as he clasped his hands together in the air in front of him. Hei only paused for a brief moment in shoving food into his mouth to glance at him.

"If you're curious as to why I escorted you myself," the boss spoke up keeping his gaze on the younger kid before him, "I figured it was the best way to keep Bane from shooting you. You know how he is when it comes to dealing with you already. I don't need him shooting you nor do I need you zapping him, understood?"

Hei looked to him as he chewed his food but kept his usual, stoic look on his face as he inclined his head just enough to acknowledge his orders. He was thankfully starting to feel a bit better now that he had food filling his stomach but he still was pissed off at himself for leaving Bai and at the others not being able to find her. And he was still waiting to figure out what his obeisance was supposed to be. There still had been nothing provoking him to do any particular action and he still didn't feel any different in a sense of an automatic one kicking in. The only thing he felt was a mix of anger and emptiness at the loss of his sister being beside him. So was that his obeisance then? Being angry? He still couldn't be one hundred percent sure just yet. Either way, he wasn't going to say anything about it to the boss. Contractors hated having their vulnerabilities like obeisances known but also were quick to beg to pay their prices if it entailed doing an action oriented one like eating or drinking something in particular, drawing a certain pattern, or writing something down. After all, no Contractor wanted to find out what would happen to them if they didn't pay their price.

"So, can you tell me what your obeisance is now?" the boss asked in a polite manner still watching Hei eat. He really did want to know that way they could have it documented once they knew what Messier code Hei now had with his star. It was their way of keeping tabs on the vulnerabilities of the Contractors they employed and how they would use them in teams or alone. After all, it was important to make sure they performed their duties without being held back by their prices. Especially if it made them vulnerable like Hei's sister became after unleashing her power. That's why they kept him together with her because they knew how skilled he'd become in such a short time in order to protect her from getting harmed.

Hei glanced back to the boss again. He still was trying to get him to tell him what his obeisance was? Well, he was going to be disappointed because he sure as hell wasn't going to tell him. Though, he could always make up some lie about what he had to do. However, then he'd have to make sure to perform said action or make it seem like he was paying for it each time. And that would be a hassle in itself if it required to do something specific when he was in a hurry to get out of a situation. No, it would be better off if he just said nothing. He returned his attention back to finishing up his food instead.

"So you're not going to tell me what it is?" the boss asked raising an eyebrow at the boy remaining silent. Part of him wondered if maybe that was his obeisance with not stating what it was. He'd seen quite a few interesting payments Contractors had to make over the past couple of years though he hadn't heard of any where it involved them to remain silent about their price. "Alright if you don't want to tell me, then fine." He stood up, placing his hands on the table in front of him. "When you're finished eating, I want you to report back to me in my quarters understood?" Hei only inclined his head slightly as he continued to eat.

Turning without another word, the boss left, leaving Hei to finish. On the way back to his quarters, the boss's phone rang in his pocket. He pulled it out as he continued walking.

"This is O'Brien," he spoke up into the phone.

"Sir, we have the star report you asked for earlier for the time you specified," came the woman's voice on the other end.

"And?"

"The star matching up is BK-201 sir."

"Are you sure?" O'Brien paused in his walk and turned to look back in the direction of where he knew Hei was at still eating in the mess hall.

"Yes sir. That's the only star that was active for that short moment."

"Alright. Well thank you for letting me know. That's all I needed."

Hanging up the phone, the boss furrowed his brow slightly still looking in the direction where Hei was. He'd already been given the report that whatever had happened at Heaven's Gate, it had been BK-201 that had the huge spike in activity leading them to believe that the cause of the explosion had come from them. And he knew that that Messier code belonged to Hei's sister, Bai. However, Hei was unaware of which Messier code his sister had to his knowledge. They only used their code names given to them. But somehow, Hei's star was the one that his sister had and yet his sister was missing. It was interesting and puzzling at the same time.

'Hmm...' he thought to himself. 'I'll have to keep an eye on that boy.'

Well that's what I had. I know I kind of left it open ended. And I know that it doesn't state that Brita ever worked with the Syndicate but that she did infiltrate into the American embassy later in the anime. So I figured, maybe it was possible she did have a time she was with the Syndicate but possibly under cover for Amber as well. Again, just my take on everything and all. And with Hei waking up then discovering his powers he now had but no idea why he's not feeling any need for an obeisance to be performed certainly would lead him to keep quiet about not seemingly having one. After all, if word got out he didn't have an obeisance, I'm sure plenty of other Contractors would be surprised and jealous about that (even if they aren't meant to feel emotions). And certainly the Syndicate would be quite intrigued and want to study him more to figure out why he didn't have one either. *grins*
Anyway, hope you enjoyed it and leave any comments and reviews about what you thought! Thanks! *hands out pocky*