"Time to wake up, boy."

Will surfaced from sleep, his head pounding and his eyes blurry. He was sitting upright, tied to a wooden chair. He blinked, and he focused on Russia leaning over him, sandy hair hiding his dark blue eyes, an amused smile brushing his lips. Will snarled and his eyes began to glow.

"Careful, boy." Russia pointed to the floor. "You are within a circle of salt. I would not try a spell unless you wish it to ricochet. I have no desire to clean up that mess."

Will blinked and his eyes cleared. He glared at Russia, hate curling his mouth into a sneer. He glanced around the bland hotel room that he and Russia occupied.

"Where am I?"

"Good question." Russia sat on the edge of the bed, set his elbows on his thighs and his head atop his curled hands and leaned forward. "So, you can cast magic without making a circle? That must be very useful."

Will clamped his mouth shut and held up his chin.

Russia's smile grew broader. "And one of the other girls, she could transport herself from place to place in a blink of an eye. Very interesting. I have never before encountered a human with such abilities." He picked up the dagger that had killed Italy from the bed and twirled it in his hand. "I wonder what skills your other companion possessed. Unfortunately she cannot tell us. She died when she took out Italy."

Will perked up. "Adelina succeeded?"

"Adelina?" Russia stabbed the bed with the dagger. "What a pretty name. Your accent. Is it English?"

Will closed his mouth again and looked down.

"Oh, no, I understand perfectly. You do not wish to talk. But you see -" he picked up a second dagger from the bed, one that had been on Will's person, "- I have been around a long time, boy. Prisoners who have valuable information about enemy combatants are rarely treated well if they do not talk. Trust me. The things I have seen." He leaned forward and brushed Will's cheek with the blade, outlined his ear with the tip. Will trembled. "They were not good things. I have seen the most battle-worn men break down, boy." He flicked Will's earlobe, leaving a small nick. "Do you wish to test yourself? See if you can stand up with them?"

The door of the room swung open. Ukraine stalked over to Russia and slapped the dagger hand away from Will. She held a brown bag, which she tossed on the bed before taking Russia's head between her hands and shaking him.

"What do you think you are doing?" She snapped. "We leave you alone for a moment, and you choose to threaten the boy?"

Russia pushed her away and shrugged, pointing the dagger at Will. "He has information we need about those who wish to kill us. Torture is an acceptable course of action."

Ukraine slapped Russia, stunning him. She crossed her arms, glaring at him. "It is against the rules. No nation can harm a human!"

"But -"

"If you are the brother I know you to be, you will not hurt this boy!" Ukraine grabbed the paper bag and rummaged through it, pulling out a few simple staples - bread, cheese, an apple. She turned to Will, her eyes softening. "I am sorry about my brother. He can be very cruel sometimes when he has a goal. I promise, I will not let him hurt you." She kneeled next to Will and held out the bread. "Go on. It has been many hours since you were put to sleep. You will be hungry."

Will stared at the bread, trying to ignore his stomach's protesting, but the smell of it was too much of a temptation. He took a bite and chewed.

Ukraine broke out into a wide, happy smile. "That's better."

"You're Ukraine," Will said, his voice muffled by the bread.

"That's right," Ukraine nodded. "And what's your name?"

Will glanced away from her.

"Oh, of course. You will not say." Ukraine held up the cheese, of which Will took a bite. "You do not have to say a word. Of course, you will have to remain our prisoner. We cannot let you go free as long as your companions threaten us. But we will treat you well." She shot a disapproving look at Russia.

Russia rolled his eyes and stood. "I will not sit here and watch this sickening coddling," he grumbled. "Do what you will, Ukraine. As for you," he pointed at Will with the dagger, "I recommend that you tell us what you know. There is no other course of action you can take." Russia held the dagger up and slammed it against the radiator. The dagger blade snapped in two, releasing a yellow spark of power. Will cried out in despair. Russia picked up the dagger's shard and walked from the room. "You will harm none of us with this weapon."

Will's head dropped and tears rolled down his cheeks. Ukraine stroked his head and soothed, then frowned and followed Russia. "What did I tell you about torturing the boy," she said as the door closed behind her.

Russia was waiting for her in the hall, holding the dagger and shard in one fist. "How was I?" he murmured.

Ukraine placed a finger on her lips, and they walked down the hall. "Very scary," she said when she thought it was safe. "Like the old days."

"Oh, I was not so bad in the old days, was I?" Ukraine gave him a hard look, which he had the tact to return with chagrin. He knocked on a door. America opened it, looked down the hallway, and ushered them in. The rest of the nations, aside from Germany who lay on the bed, his face pale, crowded around Russia. Russia placed the broken dagger on the small desk next to the entertainment center.

"You were right," he said to China, waving a hand at the shards. "He did not like seeing his weapon destroyed. He broke down."

"Did you discover anything else," England said as he picked up one of the shards.

Russia ticked off his fingers. "He is English. He is powerful, but you know that. His dead companion's name was Adelina. He said 'she succeeded,' which I found interesting. He is fearful. The mere suggestion of torture made him shake." He frowned. "He is very young. And he ate Ukraine's food. He may be holding out for now, but he is not properly trained to be a prisoner of war. He is practically a child."

America crossed his arms. "Do you think we'll be able to flip him?"

"We shall see." Russia shoved his hands in his pockets. "He really, really hates me. Before I began, he gave me a look like I had murdered his parents."

"Perhaps you did," China said flatly. Russia shot him a look and frowned.

"Adelina," Germany whispered. "That's an Italian name."

"And this boy is English," England muttered. "And China's attacker was very much Chinese. No doubt there are others, at least one citizen for each of us."

"The girl Adelina crumbled to dust after stabbing Italy." China took the broken dagger from England. "I believe what we have here is a sacrificial spell. A citizen sacrificed to kill a nation."

"That makes no sense," Russia said, shaking his head. "One dead citizen will not kill a nation, even within a spell. The only way to kill a nation is to either kill every citizen who sees themselves as part of that nation, or change the citizen's minds about who they are to such an extent that the nation must either change with them, or die."

"Yes, we know the rules," China said, putting down the dagger. "But still, the nations have vanished somehow, and these sacrificial lambs that have been thrown at us are part of that." He looked at each nation. "We must discover the source of the spell. It is the only way to find out what exactly was done and why."

"Well, besides interrogating the kid," America said.

"It is likely even he doesn't know everything, America," England said coolly. "China's right - we have to find the original spell circle."

"And when you go searching for it, you will leave me here." The nations turned toward Germany, who propped himself up in the bed. "I can't wander the globe on a wild goose chase. I can barely walk as it is."

"You must be joking," England scoffed. "You really think we'll leave you here to die?"

"Hush. I've been thinking." Germany put on a stoic face. "I bled all over the pavement when I was shot. I saw what Russia did with a little blood. And China said that blood is now the only way they can reach us. Further, I am injured, and damn this body, I am now unable to heal quickly. I am a liability. You will leave me behind."

"I did not wish to say anything," China said carefully, "but now that Germany has spoken, I agree. We have been on the move for two days, and between a hostage and an injured man, we will eventually be caught."

"Well, I can't just let Germany commit suicide," America snapped. "Or worse! What if they torture him?"

"They will not." Russia took a shard of the dagger and quickly cut Germany's palm, drew a circle on it with the blood and touched the center. Germany's eyes rolled back, and he sunk into a deep sleep. "I would like to see them try to break that spell."

The nations stood over Germany in silence for a moment. Then China nodded. "Let's go."