Kihonne: Hey guys! I'm back! So, this is a pretty long chapter, well longer than most of mine, but I don't think anyone's going to complain about that. Anyway, before I get on with the chapter, shout out time!
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MoonlitShadowsoftheHumanSoul: LOL, you are probably one of the most interesting reviewers I've ever had. And I totally agree that hitmen could be very useful. And I liked Marcus okay in the series. Mainly, I just thought that he would be an interesting character to write because he had so much potential. I plan on exploiting that in this story. And I do plan on checking out the story, but it's been a busy week for me.
Choas: I like BRASE stories too. I'm a big fan, however I do not write Brase. So, sorry, but this isn't a BRASE story. But they totally do make a good couple.
Dreamer4evera: Thanks.
AntriLover5: You'll definitely like this chapter then. There's a number of fight scenes. And I'm glad you liked the flashback.
KyoumouDBZmjj8: Thanks, and those are my two favourite powers. I like the fact that they totally contrast each other, especially for the twins. And Adam and Chase aren't going to be pleased, but it will be a little more interesting when the girls find out what Marcus and Douglas did. I think someone's going to have some explaining to do…
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Kihonne: Anyway, Vivyanna, you're doing the disclaimer today.
Vivyanna: Whatever. Kihonne doesn't own Lab Rats, just this story and all of the OCs.
Vivyanna's POV
I rolled my eyes as I watched that new kid, Chase, paced impatiently in front of the cell door. What an odd kid. Why would he be impatient for the fights? Alex and I had tried to explain it to him. On Friday, we would fight and we would fight until our opponents could not fight back. And sometimes, some people would keep hurting the downed kid.
But this guy, this guy couldn't wait. I knew he was desperate to see his siblings (he'd asked both of us daily for any news we had about them), but this was ridiculous. I had the feeling he wouldn't last long here. He wasn't like the other kids that had been brought in here. He was…different.
"Would you quit pacing? It's driving me nuts!" I exclaimed. Chase stopped where he was and turned to face me.
"Sorry." He muttered. I rolled my eyes, and looked at Alex. He was sitting on his bed, looking at the cell door as if he might be sick.
"Quicky." I called. He looked at me and I smiled reassuringly at him. "Relax. I'm sure you'll do fine."
"Last time we fought, I woke up the next day in the infirmary with a fractured wrist." He reminded me, rubbing the now healed wrist. I bit my lip and tried to think of something to reassure him. Comforting people wasn't really my thing.
"Right. But don't forget, you're small and fast. Use that to your advantage." I advised. "They can't hurt you if they can't catch you."
Alex nodded and I glanced at Chase. I felt a stab of sympathy. No one came out of their first fight without a scratch. "As for you, stay on your feet. If you go down, you'll end up dead."
Chase narrowed his eyes at me, trying to see if I was being honest or sarcastic. "Thanks." He replied cautiously as three guards appeared at our cell door. I got up.
"It's about time." I said loudly as they opened the door. I got a slap on the cheek for my rudeness. The agent that hit me grabbed my wrist and forced a shock bracelet onto it. The same thing happened to the others. We were then forced down a hallway to our right. We were led into a large, white room. In the middle of the room was a large cage, big enough for two people to brawl in it.
Three people were already waiting for us. The first was Rhyder, a tall boy with shaggy brown hair. Next was Robot Boy, the devilishly handsome Marcus. Or, at least that's what my sister says about him. I'd never really noticed. The last person was the girl from the shower room, the one with brown hair.
"Chase!" The girl exclaimed. She sped over at a speed only Alex could match, and threw her arms around him. He hugged her tightly.
"I'm glad you're okay, Bree." He murmured. I smirked at the reunion, then jogged over to Marcus. He glanced at me, then at Chase.
"Don't tell me your friends with him." He said, glaring daggers at the boy. I turned to see Chase staring wide eyed at Marcus.
"You two know each other?" I questioned. Marcus nodded reluctantly.
"It's a long story, but yeah." He replied. I frowned.
"We've got time." I gestured at the half empty room. Marcus shook his head.
"Stay out of it, Vivyanna." He warned me. I nodded in understanding. If Marcus had dark secrets in his past, that was perfectly fine. I did too, things that I wouldn't even tell my sister. I had no problem with him keeping his secrets.
"You know that you guys are being stared at, right?" A joking voice asked. I spun around to see Roxanna standing behind us. I hadn't even heard her come in. "Seriously, you've got a few of fans." She told us, gesturing at Chase, Bree, and a tall, dark haired boy. I figured that the guy was Adam, Chase's older brother.
"Yeah, Marcus knows them." I replied dismissively. Roxanna and Adam weren't the only people here. Everyone's favourite redhead, little Mira, was standing with Alex, who was telling her something with this excited look on his face. Rhyder was watching them with an amused smirk.
I couldn't help but smile at the scene. Watching Alex look so animated made it almost possible to forget we were in this hellhole. I think that was the point to this relaxed atmosphere. They wanted us calm and collected before we were forced to fight.
Suddenly, the doors swung open, and the atmosphere changed completely. A tall boy, with short black hair and brown eyes walked in. We all froze as his cold, calculating eyes swept over us. "Derek." I muttered under my breath.
One of the agents, Special Agent Maybank stepped forward. I saw Chase and his brother tense as he approached the cage. They'd probably had him this week. "Freaks!" He used the usual insult to get our attention. "Let's begin. The first fight will be between numbers…3862 and 4378!"
Those were Alex and Rhyder's numbers. Two agents led them to the cage and they walked in. The rest of us settled by the side of the cage, watching them.
"On three. One, two-" Alex never could wait for three. He sped at Rhyder, who dodged it as if he'd been ready for it. Of course he was. Damn psychic. He raised his hands and Alex went flying into the back of the cage. The little guy flipped in mid air and was already running the second his feet hit the ground. I smiled, proud of the kid. If anyone ever asked, I would lie and say I taught him that.
Alex jumped at the last moment, kicking Rhyder in the chest. He stumbled back, but didn't waste anytime. He used another telekinetic wave to send Alex to the ground. Before he could get up, Rhyder was already on him, kicking him in the stomach.
"Winner!" Maybank announced. Rhyder stopped immediately and waited as Alex picked himself up. They both left the cage and I ran over to Alex.
"Where are you hurt?" I demanded. Alex shook his head.
"Just a bruise. Rhyder couldn't really hurt me." He replied. I nodded. Rhyder wouldn't hurt a little kid. It just wasn't in his nature. In fact, I was glad that Alex had fought him. The kid was like a brother to me, and I trusted Rhyder enough to know that Alex was safest with him.
"Next up are the numbers…" Maybank continued, "…1907 and 1450."
I frowned. "Who's 1450?" I asked, confused. 1907 was Mira, but I hadn't heard the other number before. Adam looked up, a little surprised.
"I am." He replied. I glanced at Marcus.
"What's your bet?" I asked as Adam and Mira were led into the cage. Chase and Bree walked over to the cage, standing a few feet away from us. Chase sent us an uneasy look.
"Adam's not too bright, but he's strong. But he's also not likely to attack Mira, so he's done for." Marcus decided after a moment. I looked back at the fight.
Mira was in the middle, trying to look innocent, while Adam was standing there. I could see the conflicted look on his face. He didn't want to fight her. But that didn't mean he had a choice.
"One…two…three!" Maybank counted down. The second he hit three, Mira opened her mouth.
Most of us had the sense to cover our ears, but Adam, Bree, and Chase were all new. They didn't know about her abilities.
A high pitched, blood curdling scream filled the room. I grimaced, the torturous sound hitting my ears. It felt as if my ears were going to explode.
But if I thought it was bad, I could hardly imagine what it was like for the newbies. They all hit the floor, clutching their ears. I think they were screaming too, but I couldn't hear them. Suddenly, the sound stopped as Maybank gestured for Mira to stop.
"Winner." He announced. Mira nodded and skipped over to Adam. He was still on his knees, a dazed look on his face.
"Chase, are you alright?" I turned to see Bree kneeling next to her brother, a concerned look on her face. He looked like he was about to pass out, his hands still over his ears.
"Hey!" I called, drawing their attention. "She's done now. You can get up."
Bree sent me an angry glare, but Chase stood up on shaky legs. He rubbed his ears and muttered something to his sister.
"The next fight," Maybank continued as if we hadn't just had our eardrums destroyed, "will be between numbers…1483 and 6973."
Roxanna tensed next to me, as did Bree. I glanced at my sister.
"Kick her ass." I whispered. Marcus nodded.
"She's fast, but you're a better fighter. Think Alex, but bigger." He advised. Roxanna nodded and smiled at us gratefully as she followed Bree into the cage. I walked over to Chase and leaned against the cage for a better view.
"So, how do you know Marcus?" I questioned, curiously. Just because I knew not to ask Marcus the question, did not mean I was just going to let the matter rest. Chase looked at me, surprised.
"You don't know?" he asked. I narrowed my eyes at him.
"Would I ask you if I did?" I retorted. He never answered, because Maybank had started the fight. We both watched in nervous anticipation as our two sisters circled each other.
Bree made the first move. Marcus was right when he said she was fast. She ran at my sister at full speed. Roxanna was fast to though. Instead of jumping out of the way, she froze the floor solid.
Bree stumbled slightly and couldn't stop herself from crashing into the cage wall when Roxanna side stepped her. She spun around and glared at my sister.
"What, never learned how to skate?" Roxanna teased lightly. I laughed. Bree raised an eyebrow, then sped at Roxanna. Roxanna tried the same trick as before, but Bree was anticipating it. She leapt into the air and tackled Roxanna to the ground.
Alex hooted as the two girls started wrestling on the ground. I sent him a glare and shook my head. Alex could be such an immature little boy sometimes.
A blast of ice hit the cage next to me, bringing me back to the fight. Roxanna jumped to her feet, Bree on the ground under her. But Bree kicked her legs out, tripping Roxanna. She landed on her hands and knees just as Bree tackled her from behind and had her in a headlock.
"Come on, Roxy!" I urged. But it was too late, Bree pinned her to the ground, not letting her up. After a few seconds, Maybank gestured that the fight was over.
"Winner!" He announced. Bree got up and left. Roxanna followed a little slower. I ran after her as she sulked over to Marcus.
"Stupid little…" She muttered to herself.
"It's fine Roxanna." He assured her. "I've fought and lost to Bree before. It's no big deal."
"You have?" We both looked at him, surprised. He nodded.
"Yeah. Anyway," he said, changing the subject, "who's left?"
"You, me, Chase…and Derek." I replied, trailing off. Marcus nodded.
"Okay, so if we're lucky, Chase will fight Derek, and then it'll be you and me." We both knew that Derek was a brutal fighter. I sighed.
"But how often are we that lucky?" I questioned.
"The next fighters are…5109 and 6723." Maybank announced. I blinked in surprise.
"Apparently, a lot." I said as Chase and Derek stepped into the cage. Maybank looked at them, and smirked.
"On three…one…two…three!" Derek wasted no time attacking Chase. He leapt at him, only for Chase to grab his fist and stop him. Uh-oh. Chase didn't know. Derek's powers worked through physical touch.
Derek backed off, smirking. Chase frowned, unsure of why he was smiling. Suddenly, Derek's hands opened and a small plasma ball appeared in them.
"Whoa, what?" I looked round at Marcus. I wasn't the only one surprised.
"What's going on?" Bree demanded, running over to us with Adam at her heels.
"Derek can borrow a person's powers or abilities." Roxanna explained.
"But Chase said that he was super smart!" I objected. "I'm pretty sure that plasma balls aren't included with that."
"Derek can borrow abilities?" Bree demanded. "Why didn't you warn Chase?"
I stared at her. "It's not my job to tell him everything. He's got to figure it out by himself ." I backed away as Derek sent a plasma ball at Chase. Chase dodged it and it hit the cage right above our heads.
Derek sent another shot at Chase, but he deflected it with a force field thing. I looked at his siblings. He jumped at Derek, kicking him three times, once in the face and twice in the chest, all while levitating in mid air. We all froze, staring at Chase wide eyed as he touched down and backed off.
"He just hit Derek." Alex whispered. He and Mira had come over to us during our conversation. "No one hits Derek."
Derek was apparently thinking the same thing as he wiped a blood smear from under his nose. He looked at Chase with this murderous look in his eyes.
"You little punk!" Derek flung himself at Chase, all the while shooting plasma balls at him. Chase didn't get his force field up in time, and was thrown back by the numerous plasma balls attacking him. He hit the cage wall roughly, but Derek wasn't done. He punched Chase in the face, then kicked him the one place you should never kick. Chase slid to the ground with a groan, but Derek kept kicking him and kicking him.
"Do something!" Bree shouted at Maybank. He continued to watch the fight with a vaguely amused gaze. Finally, I'd had enough.
"Derek! Stop!" I ordered. He ignored me. I narrowed my eyes, focusing, and his sleeve caught fire.
"Ah!" He exclaimed, jumping back. He threw his jacket off, stomping on it to put the fire out. It was just the distraction Chase needed to scramble back a few feet. Unfortunately for him, he passed out before he could get far.
Derek looked up from his smouldering jacket and stared at me. Two agents opened the cage door, and ran over to Chase while Derek stormed out. Alex and Mira made themselves scarce as he approached me.
"How dare you!" He hissed. I gulped nervously, but held his gaze.
"He was down. You won. The fight was over." I said as calmly as I could. Derek looked outraged.
"The fight is over when I say the fight is over." He growled, grabbing me by the throat. He pushed me to the nearest wall, his grip tightening. I raised my hands to my throat, trying to pull him off. I could see a group of agents leading the others away, although it was clear that none of them wanted to move. One of the agents were literally carrying Alex back to the cell.
I looked at Derek pleadingly, starting to feel dizzy. "De-rek…" I gasped out. "Plea-ease!"
He didn't care. Through the black dots that swam across my vision, I saw him smile .I desperately tried setting him on fire again, but he had borrowed my invulnerability to the flames. They did nothing.
Just as I lost consciousness, a hand grabbed Derek by the shoulder. I felt myself fall, but I didn't remember hitting the ground.
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"How dare you try to escape!" Maybank stood before me, looking absolutely furious. I'd only woken up a few seconds previous, and had nearly had a heart attack when I'd found him standing above him. "Did you honestly think you could?"
We managed to stay away for three weeks, so yeah, I sort of did. But I knew better than to say that aloud. Maybank played with a remote in his hands. "Well, I should probably thank you." He continued. "You brought us another subject."
Marcus. He'd been caught, just because he was hanging around with us. "Sir, where's my sister?" I asked. He backhanded me across the face.
"You'll speak when spoken to, do I make myself clear?" He demanded. I nodded quickly. He glared at me when I didn't reply.
"Yes sir." I said quietly. Maybank suddenly got a gleam in his eyes. I didn't like that gleam.
"Escape attempts, fighting back against the other agents, speaking without permission…you need to be taught a lesson." He smiled coldly at me. "The Chair."
I froze as two agents walked towards me. "No. No, please sir. You….you can't! I'll be good. I promise! Just…no!"
They dragged me kicking and screaming. But before they could bring me into the room, everything started to get dark. There was a loud shouting in the background.
"Vivyanna, wake up! Vivyanna!"
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I shot up with a gasp. I was lying in a cot, in the middle of a tan coloured room that smell of antiseptic. There was a desk by the door, which was probably locked. I was in the infirmary. Chase was standing above me, a concerned look on his face. "Are you alright? It sounded like you were having a nightmare."
I closed my eyes, trying to slow my breathing. Why did I have to think of that now? Really, having that dream fresh in memory was the last thing I needed right now. Especially now.
"I'm…fine." I managed to get out. I rubbed my sore throat, my fingers resting on the bruises that were already forming. I opened my eyes and glanced back at Chase. "You're shirtless." I commented.
It was true; his shirt was at the edge of the cot next to me. His ribs were wrapped up in soft, white bandages. He grimaced and sat down on his cot. "Yeah. Got a couple of cracked ribs thanks to Derek." He replied. He frowned, then added, "Thanks, by the way."
"Forget it." I muttered. "But next time, stay on your feet. I was serious when I told you to do that."
Chase seemed annoyed. "I wasn't trying to lose." He muttered. I rolled my eyes.
"It doesn't matter if you were trying to win or not. What matters is the fact that you got your ass kicked and I got my ass kicked trying to help you. And I'm not going to let that happen again." I replied.
"I didn't ask for your help." Chase snapped.
"You're right. I should have let him beat the shit out of you." I told him. "It might have toughened you up."
"I don't need to toughen up." Chase argued. I looked at him in the eyes.
"Actually, you do. All three of you do. Well, your sister's managed to beat Roxanna, so she's okay, but you and your brother need to get stronger. Adam could have won if he was willing to attack Mira. She's not very good at hand to hand, and he's much bigger. But he hesitated. And if you hadn't backed off after you got our first kick in, you might have won too." I informed him. He looked shocked at what I'd said, but I didn't care. "Look, you're not going to survive in here long unless you're willing to do anything to survive."
"Even if that means becoming like Derek. Or you." Chase added, looking at me coldly. I grit my teeth together.
"I'm a survivor Chase. I'm not ashamed to admit that. I actually want to live." I said back. Chase rolled his eyes.
"This isn't living! This…" he trailed off, searching for the right words. "This is torture. Maybe you can survive this, but this is no way to live."
I know I wanted to say. I don't want to live like this either. I just want out.
Instead, I laughed. "Well, if you've got an escape plan, let me know."
Chase didn't have an answer to that. I knew he didn't. I felt slightly guilty about what I was planning. Yeah, sure the guy was annoying, but maybe he deserved to know…
Suddenly, the door opened and a short, blonde eighteen year old woman walked in. She looked at me with amused sea green eyes. "Am I interrupting something?" She asked. I shook my head.
"No. It's good to see you Sarah." Sarah Jones was one of the three medics in the facility and by the far the nicest person I'd ever met. Seriously, you couldn't find a nicer person. The only reason she even worked here was because she was desperate for the money.
Her parents had died a couple of years ago, leaving her and her kid sister all by themselves. Sarah had taken the government job because A, she couldn't afford med school anymore and B, she needed the money to support her and her sister.
Sarah smiled at me, then at Chase. She grabbed a glass of water off her desk, then pulled the chair around so she could face me. I lifted my head towards the ceiling so she could examine my neck.
"So, what did you do to upset Derek this time?" She inquired.
"Oh, you know. He hates me, I hate him. It's a deep, deep hatred." I told her, not looking at Chase.
"Right, don't tell me. Well, I hope you got a punch in before he tried to kill you." She glanced at Chase. "Ninety-five percent of my patients were sent here because of him."
"I can tell why." He replied, rubbing his ribs with a grimace. Sarah removed her hands from my neck.
"Alright, the bruising doesn't seem too bad and you can still talk, so I think you're fine. But if you have trouble breathing, ask to be brought back here." She told me. I nodded and she handed me the glass of water. I took a greedy gulp. This water was cool and clean, unlike what the guards usually gave us.
Sarah turned to Chase. "Okay, lift your arms above your head." She ordered. He did as she asked, a pained look on his face the entire time. "Alright, Chase, you've got two options. You can either go back to your cell with Vivyanna here, or you can stay the night and I can give you some meds. But if you do stay, you could still be forced to fight tomorrow. And the last thing you want is to fight while you're drugged up."
Chase thought about it. "I'll go back to my cell." He decided. Sarah nodded approvingly.
"Good. Now you two, try and stay out of trouble." It was useless saying that – this entire place was trouble. Sarah stepped outside the door as Chase pulled his T-shirt back on. Two agents, Colledge and St. Jean, walked back in with Sarah.
"Get a move on." Agent Colledge ordered. We both nodded and started to follow him and his partner out the door. Suddenly, I stumbled over Sarah's outstretched leg.
"You're so clumsy!" Sarah exclaimed, kneeling down to help me up. She whispered in my ear, "Tuesday, midnight."
I didn't acknowledge that I'd heard her in anyway. We were brought back to our cell, where Alex waited for us. He sped towards me and Chase as the door was closed behind us and tackled the both of us in a hug.
I didn't say much, especially not to Chase. Instead, I grabbed my now cold dinner and climbed into bed. I ate in silence, and waited patiently for both boys to fall asleep. Alex lost consciousness first, but by time Chase was out cold, it was almost midnight.
Eventually though, I was the only one up. Quietly, I dug the small ear piece out of my mattress. I clicked it on.
"Guys?" I whispered. Three voices replied that they were awake. I sighed. Good. If all of us were here, I wouldn't have to repeat myself.
"Four days from now, at midnight. We're gone." I whispered, my mind completely focused on the plan.
Kihonne: So, what did you think? I'm sort of nervous about the fights. I'm not very good at fight scenes, but I think those turned out okay. Anyway, I definitely want to hear what you guys think. I'll be back next Thursday with chapter 5.