A:N Hello, my good friends. Now for even more.

Sy: Am I gonna come back soon?

M: So long as you don't piss me off you MIGHT. Ok?

Syrus: Fine. Now to go and read really mushy fanfics of an undisclosed Anime.

Mana: "Throws ninja stars at Sy" Not sure why we're back but whatever. You sleep. Not read. *Half glare half huntress type stares*

M: You two are scary. I'm getting the fuck out of here! "Appears at beach" And I'm at a beach? WTF? Oh well. "Lies down, singing Love Is A Loaded Gun by Alice Cooper and The Night by Disturbed. Halfway through hears random thud" Yep I'm glad I got out of there. "Carries on"

Mana 2 chapter 9 – The Heretics

Zane woke up groggily, looking around himself noticing that he has been chained to the wall of a damp rarely used dungeon. The last victim having been reduced to a skeleton. Zane – using his knowledge of anatomy from his studying humanoid biology at Torchwood – could tell said person had been an overweight man, of apparent Caucasian decent (or at least this planet's nearest equivalent) who had been starved and lost all that weight in a very short space of time.

"Not exactly the best omen for me." He said before dreaming in a pain-induced haze.

The man stared at Zane curiously. He'd expected more from the best Earth anti-alien squad.

"And you say he was found with the Stormchild?"

"I'm certain, Lord Valier. The pair of them came from the machine dressed in normal clothes but the man seemed unusually hyperactive for one of our kin. He said his name was Zane Wallace." The lackey explained scared if he said the wrong thing he'd end up a corpse.

"Very well Major Helios. Call Private Jadeite and Commander Neuron now. Tell them to come armed. They need to test something for me." Valier said his tenor voice spreading through the darkness covered room, the menace evident.

Helios bowed and disappeared as Valier growled then cackled madly, an evil insanity surrounding the man who had once been the world's greatest soldier.

The group of people dragged Zane from the dungeon, the shadows shielding them from being recognized by Kara and Valier. Or any guard. There were four of them, two of each sex but all of them desperate to fight the darkness. After an hour or two they arrived at their base. It was a dilapidated wreck of a building. With peeling gold paint, covered in decades of graffiti, its only sign of occupation being a small symbol on the door carved to look like a parakeet with a kaio symbol above it, the symbol being no larger than a mole spot. The four placed Zane in a chair then proceeded to wait for the man to wake up.

The two men looked similar in stature, both built like Olympian runners but that was where the similarities ended looks wise. The first was fierce looking, with fiery red hair, eyes almost purely white like a soulless void, nightmarishly pale skin, a katana forged during the colonial wars on his back and a small scar running along his cheeks in the shape of a series of circles, hence the codename of Spiral Scratch. The other man was far less aggressive looking. He had jet black hair, kind green eyes, sparkling like emeralds in the night sky, alabaster skin and a sweet demeanour. His nickname was Aino, named after the surname of the subject of his unknowing infatuations, dear Minako.

The two females were close by. One of them was a nurse; she had goldish red hair, sweet yet dark violet eyes, tanned skin, her fair share of curves and an aggressive temper when angered. Her nick was Lark, due to the fact that she wrote stories that were often comedic or adventurous.

The final of the rebels, the last of the females was the second in command, the three leaders being elsewhere. She had ebony hair that flowed like a waterfall; sky blue eyes that trapped anyone in their depths, pale skin yet not sickly so, a handful of curves which gained her a little too much attention from the opposite sex and a semi-permanent smile. Her nickname was Royal Flush for a reason she never disclosed to anyone, only saying she wasn't good at poker.

When Zane finally came to, he moaned at the pain in his arms caused by the chains in the dungeon earlier on. His eyes wandered around his surroundings, slightly confused. Before he could develop theories, Lark waved her arm in front of his face for his attention.

"Hey there sleepyhead. You feel ok? Don't worry, we're friends. What's your name then? You must be special for our leaders to go to all this trouble."

Zane focused on the lady, shaking his head when his vision swam again.

"I'm a little dizzy but ok. God those chains did hurt like hell. You part of Deanna's group then? I'm Zane Wallace, a friend of Mana's. How about your name? I assume you're the medic then?"

She was a little shocked but trusted him enough to be truthful.

"That's good. A few hours rest should bring feeling back to your arms. Yes Deanna is our leader. A seasoned fighter when she needs to be. Hi there Zane then. I'm known as Lark. Mana? You mean the Stormchild? And bang on with that diagnostic, Doc."

They chuckled lightly at the bad joke.

"Thankfully you don't need any help. The others will all be doing some kind of boring job. Watch out for the guy with the sword though. It's a bad thing to anger him I can tell you. All I'd recommend for you is to stay here and relax. Anything you need, just call for me ok?"

"Ok Lark. I'll try not to bother you guys too much." Zane answered, not wanting to bother Lark or any of the others.

"Nonsense!" She exclaimed, smiling warmly. "Any friend of the Stormchild is our friend too." She smiled again, hugging on impulse before heading out of the room leaving Zane alone with his thoughts.

"Hmm, she seems nice enough. If the others are anywhere near as good natured as she is, then that Valier must be this planet's Hitler" He thought. She's kind of cute too in a way. A rouge element in his brain stated.

"Shush." He hissed. "I can't think like that. 1: I hardly know her and prying would be wrong. 2: I don't want to fall for a gal on an alien planet. 3: Ummmm…." He said, unsure of a third reason. "1: Just do it slowly. You'd get to know her over time. And it's not like she's 15 or anything. She must be at least your age at most 2 years older. 2: Why not? If it means you and hopefully her are happy then who cares? 3: Ummmm? What kind of argument is ummmm?"

"Shut up."

"No. You're sulking. I WIN, I WIN, I WIN!" His mind teased, ignoring all good sportsmanship.

"FOR GOD'S SAKE, SHUT THE FUCK UP!" He yelled out loud, resulting in a worried glance through the door from Lark.

"You ok Zane?" He calmed as he saw the worry in her face.

"Sorry Lark. Umm if I get angry in my head I usually spout stuff without knowing." She was less worried but still confused. "If you say so." He looked at her again.

"I promise it's nothing bad ok?" He smiled kindly, receiving one just as kind in return. "Ok Zane I trust you." She hugged him, receiving one back. "Thanks."

After she left he ranted in his head.

"God I almost didn't get out of that shit hole. Damn you hormones!" But a voice silenced him. "But you are too old to blame feelings solely on your sexual drive now and why would you care if you didn't like her?"

Zane's mind battled on that subject for a long time, eventually giving up. "Ok FINE! I have a kind of crush on her I guess, but I have only just met the girl and besides, even if I did eventually tell her, she won't like me back."

"You never know, Zaney boy." Was the only response.

"Zaney boy? Ok I hate that name."

He sat there, singing gently for another hour or so until Lark came back.

"Feeling back yet, Zane?"

He nodded numbly, a palpable silence intruding, Zane mulling an odd query in his mind.

"That's good. Now the feeling is back in your arms, I'd better get you some food."

"I guess you should. Ummmmm…." He answered, almost but not quite daring enough to mention the musical tones and nature of her voice.

"Oh screw it!"

"Lark, you don't sing by any chance?"

I walked out of the TARDIS, encountering people and blending in well. Eventually I reached the tyrant's base, whacking the guards in the neck to knock them out for a long time.

"Just as well Dad taught me Venusian Aikido when he did. Now here I come, you jesters. Let's see how the tyrant deals with a stormchild's fury!"