Jaheira1000: Here you go my peeps. Sorry it took so long. Read and enjoy!

Disclaimer: They're doing this to torture us I know it! It's so damn obvious that it's not ours otherwise we'd spend our time animating it, not typing it!

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CHAPTER FOUR: INJURIES

After that very sobering incident with Kai, he refused to even acknowledge their existence. There was however, something strange that made itself know.

When Kai walked, it was as if he was in pain. After about three weeks of this, Rei decided to check him while he was sleeping.

This decision was made because he had noticed several bruises on Kai's arms and face. He only caught fleeting glimpses of them because Kai avoided them like the plague, but he had seen enough to make him concerned.

That night while Kai was sleeping, Rei lightly lifted Kai's shirt to check his back. His hands stilled in shock at what he saw. Whip marks were covering his entire back. There were also bruises and burns present on his back.

As he watched, Rei saw another whip lash open on Kai's back. He yelled in surprise and fell backwards. How could a scar appear out of nowhere?

Kai had jerked awake when he heard Rei shout, and the rest of the team had come rushing into his room. He was without a shirt since Rei had lifted it off completely before seeing the injuries. As a result, the Breakers had a wonderful view of Kai's scars as they came rushing in.

There was dead silence for a moment before they rushed to Kai's side. They were all shocked by his reaction. He screamed in pure terror and pain. It was the shout of a person who not only reached, but surpassed their level of endurance. As that happened, he collapsed once more.

They managed to catch him before he hit the ground and lifted him gently, trying to avoid the worst of his injuries. Max rushed out of the room to call for an ambulance.

They waited anxiously for the ambulance to come. Ever since Kai's break-down the team had matured quite a lot. They had come to realize that who you were was determined by how you were raised as well as your own personality.

After a tense wait in which nobody said a word, the ambulance arrived. When asked, Rei explained what he had seen as well as Kai's current condition.

After throwing an anxious look at the Breakers, the paramedics strapped Kai to the stretcher. Rei joined Kai in the ambulance while the others waited for Tyson's grandfather to take them there.

After they all arrived at the hospital, they were sent to a waiting room to wait for news of their friend. It felt like an eternity before a doctor came to see them bringing news of Kai's condition.

When they saw the doctor, they all jumped to their feet and crowded around him.

"Well, your friend's life isn't in danger, but he has a large amount of injuries nonetheless. The paramedics informed me of his current condition, and I can't say that I'm surprised by what has happened. There have been cases where trauma patients in Kai's condition relive past experiences. In fact, these flashbacks are so realistic that if they are caught in one, they may actually physically respond. Judging by his injuries, I'd say your friend is remembering days where he was whipped among other things." They Breakers paled slightly before Rei managed to scrape together enough courage to ask.

"What else was done to him, and why are the injuries appearing on him physically?" The doctor thought carefully before answering.

"Well, it's kind of a case of mind over matter. The scenes are so real to him, that his mind is actually telling him that it's really happening, which causes his body to react in the same way, as if it's currently happening. As for your other question…he's been whipped, beaten, electrocuted and…raped. We also think that he was experimented on using unknown chemical substances, but we have yet to confirm that." Every time they thought they had heard the worst, something else cropped up to revise their opinions. Kai had been through so much in his life. How could they have missed it? Were they really such terrible friends?

After thanking the doctor quietly for his assistance they went back to their seats. They hadn't even enquired about visiting him because none of them felt like they could face him right now. What would they say? What could they say? Sorry? Sorry wouldn't even begin to describe how they were feeling right now.

All the problems they had in their lives, all the punishments and struggles, they seemed like nothing when compared to Kai's everyday life. They were finally finding out what was hidden behind the mask Kai so carefully wore, but what they found was like nothing they could have imagined.

They had thought his excuse would be that he was worked hard at home, or that he was an orphan, or something of that nature. It had never occurred to them that there are people in this world who had much more difficult lives than they ever would.

Of course they occasionally saw poor people on the news or something of that nature, but they never registered the reality of the situation. It was almost like those things were bed time stories. Things to be said and heard then forgotten about.

They never thought they would have to deal with somebody who they knew in that situation. It was entirely different. You have to consider not only that persons situation in life, but also the events leading up to it. The Breakers were learning a hard lesson, but they didn't deserve to have it easy through this, and nobody knew it better than them…

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Jaheira1000: There you go. Sorry for the shortness, but I hope you enjoy it all the same. Let me know –puppydog eyes- Ja ne:P