Ken looked away from the computer screen as the Lone Gunmen signed off.

Nothing.

There was nothing on Sammie anywhere, not even a missing persons report, Galactor had to be behind it.

But why would they want Sammie? Ken mused as he sat they lost in his thoughts.

Since they had found out that she was missing they had all begun to search for her, he decided that he did not want Dr.Pandora left alone in the state that she was in, so at first he asked Jun to take care of her, and then he decided to stay and look at the police reports.

Joe and Ryu had gone out into the streets to make contact with some of the people they knew from the Resistance, and Jun had just put Dr.Pandora in bed with sleeping pills so she would get some rest from the trauma she had been through that day.

Ken sat in the seat with his head in his hands trying to figure out what his next move would be when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked up at Jun. The raw emotions of the day and unanswered questions were wearing him down, and Jun must have seen it when she looked at him and smiled softly.

Ken got up and walked over to a wall and gently banged his head on it, Jun was not far away and he knew she worried that she would not be of use to the team without her bracelet and he turned to face her leaning on the wall.

Ken stood there leaning against the wall looking at Jun, not knowing what to say; at one time he would have reacted more harshly to a team member losing their bracelet.

He remembered how Dr.Nambu responded to them when he lost his bracelet. Then when Jun lost her shoe and how hard they all were on her, this time he knew it was not through carelessness, he witnessed the shot that cut it from her wrist, and he was wondering if he was softening up to much, maybe he was just growing as a leader.

But the thing was she supported him even when he was not being reasonable with himself, Jun stood there and gave him some reassurance that he would find it. She went over and put her hands on his arms to let him know she had faith in him.

So now he chose to return it.

"Jun…you did a good job today, you keep your head in a bad situation." He tried to tell her that. "We'll find a way to get you back into birdstyle. Would like a re-design of your uniform?" He offered it got a small laugh out of her as she walked over closer to him. She responded like she hadn't heard him.

"Ken." She started seriously. "Did you ever have an older brother?" This question was totally out of the blue, and it took him by surprise. She quizzed him with her eyes, the questioning gaze he had often seen in them when she looked at him before he was thrown into the future.

"No…I was an only child…why do ask? "Then she just dismissed what she was leading too, like it was nothing.

"Ohhh nothing really, just a thought…I...ahh… forget it. Just you always have been familiar to me." Her tone told him she no longer wanted to discuss the subject.

But he could not let it go so easily. "Wait a second Jun; you brought it for a reason." He waited for her to continue.

"You know about the imposter, but this was long before that…before I knew you…I was thinking of a time…. back when I was living in the orphanage, I met a young man once, when I used to go walking on my own as a little girl… it was around the time I met Jinpei, and you know you always reminded me of him…" her green eyes grow distant for a moment.

He just smiled, so he looked like someone from a memory she had of her childhood that was why she looked at him that way sometimes.

"I hope he was a good person…do you remember his name?" Ken asked her, it was good to talk about something other than everything that was happening around them.

"Yes, he was…Well I liked him a lot, and he shared secrets with me that I promised not to tell anyone about, I not sure why now it so long ago…" She actually smiled for a moment and so did he as the moment lightened up a touch, she changed the topic for a moment. "Well maybe one of my dance costumes could be a substitute for a new birdstyle." She offered and this got a laugh out of him. "But then Joe might not like that." She smiled as she said it.

"I might. "He said without thinking, she raised an eyebrow at that comment.

"Sorry." He threw in as an after thought.

"Don't be…Joe will get over it…eventually I hope." She sighed and she looked lost in her thoughts for a moment.

Joe, who was getting jealous about it, was not helping anyone least of all the woman he was lucky enough to have in his life.

"Jun,I'll talk to Joe about it if you want me too," he offered lifting her chin with his finger and searching her eyes, he did not know what he was looking for, but something.

She looked up straight into his eyes, and he went weak at the knees at the intensity of her searching gaze, and the strong chemistry between them.

"No" She responded looking away. "It won't doany good; he'd just get worse about it… I'm sure we can sort it out, things have just been stressful of late that's all."

"I hope so Jun." Ken told her quietly again saying anything but what he really felt.

She was standing so close to him, so close that he could smell the jasmine in her ebony hair as he ran his fingers through it, to get her to look at him. She moved closer to him.

She was standing closer to him now with one leg up against his, his breath quickened along with his heart as the unsaid words lay between them.

She opened her mouth to speak, and closed it again.

He could see that the woman standing before him was strong; she was tough on the outside and soft at her core, she was the heart of the team. That strength was written in her eyes and she had shown it that day in battle and many times before that to him, she did what she had to do and she never complained about it.

He should have stepped away from her at that moment.

Instead he found himself pulling her in closer to him, he just embraced her, as her arms snaked around his neck and she buried her face into his neck.

"I hope we find Sammie soon Ken." She whispered.

"So do I, Jun…we will…" He tried to reassure her as he ran his fingers through her hair without even thinking and he pulled her in closer to him as her breasts crushed against his chest, and he could feel the warm tickle of her breath on his neck.

For a moment she pulled away from him enough to look into his eyes again.

"Jun." He then he remember what he had wanted to talk to her about, that voice he kept hearing…Akiya.

"Remember the other night; you said you were hearing a strange voice in your head." He didn't know quiet were this was going but maybe it was not a coincidence.

She blushed for a moment. "Ken I told you to forget it…its just craziness."

"Maybe it wasn't." he was onto something now he could feel it.

"What do you mean?" She mused as her brows knitted together for a moment.

"Her name is Akiya…" Ken searched her eyes as he could see Jun's pupil of her green eyes dilate as her breath quickened.

"How do you know?" She looked at him in amazement as her lips trembled.

"Because maybe it is not just you…I hear her too." He said softly.

"I'm not going crazy…" she whispered and he could see the flood of relief wash over her face as she embraced him again, this time with tears rolling down her cheeks that soaked into his shirt.

They stood there for a while as she gradually calmed down and they drew slightly apart as Ken offered her a small smile as he looked into her eyes again. They had much to talk about regarding this mysterious person Akiya.

He was about to speak again when he heard a deep voice from the top of the stairway.

"Oh, I see…" Joe's hard deep voice was full of venom as he came down the stairway as his hard steely eyes threw feather shrunkien at the two of them.

Jun moved away quickly from Ken with guilt written all over both of their faces as if they had done something wrong, since it all very innocent between them.

"Joe-"Jun started to say as he put up his hand to her face, and gave Jun and Ken a Condor look that sent goons running. "Don't bother Jun,please just don't…" Joe turned and walked away, and Ken did not miss the hurt look in his eyes.

Jun put her face in her hands. "I'm so lost...I ...can't. "She said with sobs into them.

"This is my fault Jun…I shouldn't have done that...please." He pleaded, knowing the damage he had just done, but what had he really done wrong then other than comfort a friend.

Ken went to put his hands on her shoulders, but she shook her head and walked away…"I need time to think Ken…please." She begged him, and walked out of the room leaving him standing there watching her.

Jun then ran after Joe and he could hear an argument start from the muffled sounds of the closed door of their bedroom.

He turned and thumped a fist on the wall,"shit." He muttered as he clenched his jaw in frustration and pressed his fiord against the wall. He didn't want to come between them.

He looked up to see Ryu with his shoulders slumped and he just looked like he felt sorry for all of them.

"Ken, I think we all need time out." Ryu told him in a pained voice, and Ken nodded agreeing with his co-pilot of the Black Hawk.

"Did you find out anything Ryu?" He asked trying to ignore the sounds from behind the door.

"No boss, no one has anything on her." Ryu shook his head in frustration.

Jun could handle Joe, but he hesitated for a moment, wondering if he should interfere, but then he could only make it worse for her. He vowed to pull Joe aside later that night and give him a good punch in the face for being such an idiot, and then try and talk some sense into him.

"I'm going to check out this amusement park Ryu…you look out for them tonight big guy, if you see anything that looks bad, get out of there…" He looked at Ryu who was still standing on the staircase as he walked past him he stopped and looked at him. "I think after tonight we change locations from that club." Ken headed up the rest stairs leaving the hideout.

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At Go Girls later that night…

Jun was just finishing her routine up on the stage, she down to a small G-string and as she left the pole and went into her final stance she stole a look at Joe, he just gave her a blank look back and she could not read his eyes on the darkness of the club.

She would be on one more time that night, and Joe was finishing his shift early, since it was not as busy that night and the club didn't want to pay the extra bouncers any more than they had too, Ryu wouldn't be far behind him.

But she knew he would wait for her, since Ryu would be taking another car home. It was all done to try and make it look like they were all only co-workers in the club; Joe sometimes purposely offered her a lift home to keep in with act they were all putting on here.

Jun walked into the dressing room for the second time that night, the dancers used this one before, and after their performances and she looked for her clothes. She picked up the bag and began to get dressed in her plain T-shirt and jeans.

At least Joe would be waiting for her outside; he would have been there a while now waiting and brewing she figured…Would it be another fight all the way back to the hideout she wondered.

She was lost in her thoughts about the incident that happened that afternoon, being caught by Joe in a seemly intimate moment with Ken, and Joe going wild over it and not listening to her, nothing happened, and she then tried to tell him about the voice that both she and Ken heard, but he just shut her out and stormed off in solitude.

Jun had just finished on the dance floor, and as usual she was feeling violated by the leering lustful gazes of the men who watched her. That was why she closed her eyes when she took off her clothes during a performance and tried not to make eye contact. Especially with Joe, since they had started to surveillance the night club their relationship had gone down hill dramatically.

He could be protective of her to point of smothering her, but she knew it was also because of the few conversations they had on a future together.

But then Ken came back, and her feelings were now in a state of total confusion.

Her feelings for Ken had always been strong; she had been in love with him forever it seemed, they always had a special connection, something she did not feel with Joe at times, Joe was always forward with his emotions but Joe could be hurtful in his choice of words and he often did not hear her side of things.

He was a good lover, tender at times and intense, and it was felt good to have someone hold her at night instead of the feelings of loneliness and her own thoughts that had been so overwhelming.

But Ken heard Akiya too; she was there a few months after Ken went missing around the time the war started again. Ken believed her and for the first time since Jinpei died, she felt she could really talk about it, and she needed to discuss it with Ken.

Akiya was familiar too, just that Jun couldn't put her finger on it, and Ken was good a solving mysteries like this.

But even before Ken came back there were times still when she would lay awake at night in Joe's arms thinking about Ken, and it was so unfair to Joe, how could she think like that, how could she do that to him, she did love Joe didn't she.

Since Ken walked back into her life the feeling came back strong again.

Joe saw it, and despite how much he had missed his brother and friend, she knew it was tearing him up inside. Jun knew that Joe loved her, and she loved him back in her own way, and that was what made it harder for her to tell him the truth.

Love was such a complex thing at times.

Then of course there was the topic of a future, she wanted a family and a house, Joe wanted to race for as long as he could, living in a trailer. He cringed when she told him she wanted to have children, and that hurt her, what raise them on a race track in a trailer…

Then there were the arguments that followed which he was uncompromising about planning a future together in Utoland in living in a house while she ran her own business once more.

Jun looked in the mirror above the dressing table and wiped off the heavy foundation, her eyes narrowed as she looked in the mirror at the woman who had just entered the room.

She really did not like Cherrie one bit.

"Well,well if it isn't Madame Honeydew herself," Cherrie's under current of sarcasm came out in her voice and her matching smile that flashed in Jun's direction as she walked over and stood next to Jun.

Cherrie was not as popular as Jun and Cherrie and did everything to she could to try and bring Jun down. Jun returned her smile laced with enough of her own sarcasm to send a message to Sherrie.

"Well Cherrie, maybe one day you'll dance well enough for them one day to give you stage name… and a poster."Jun's smile was dripping with honey.

Sherrie lost her smile fast. "I do dance better than you." She whispered close to Jun's ear in a nasty tone." Watch yourself Madame Honeydew; you neverknow what is around the corner."

Bitch! Jun thought as Cherrie went to leave the room. She began to get her things; Joe would be waiting for her outside.

As Cherrie left and the room, Amelia walked in, she was just as bad as Cherrie and they both liked to wear red polish she noted. "Honey… the boss wants to see you." She said in a flat voice. Jun knew what that meant; he wanted her to do another Pole dance before the night was over. Since it was slow and he wanted more customers. But then maybe she could have a look around the back for Egobossler.

She looked at Amelia. "Can you tell Joe that I will be finishing later tonight." She could use the opportunity to check out the boss's office she figured.

Amelia gave her a knowing smile. "Sure Honeydew, Joe is such a hottie, what's he like in bed? Or maybe it's myturn…" She asked and winked as if she expected Jun to answer. Jun just looked at her and walked off, and then she stopped and looked over her shoulder. "It's none of your business Amelia. Besides I have not had the chance to find out…" Then she made her way to the boss's office.

Oscar could be a jerk at times, and when he wanted to pick up a crowd like he did tonight he often wanted another performance of his best girls to keep them coming through the doors.

Joe and Ryu's shift was over, it looked like her's was just beginning.

She opened the door and walked in, the only light that was on was the lamp in the corner. Something felt very wrong and before Jun could turn around she felt a kick knock her to the ground.

She cursed herself for not being more prepared.

Jun moved fast to defend herself against the attacker, she threw a punch in the masked woman's stomach and managed to get her in a headlock, she ripped of the mask. "Cherrie." She hissed at as the Devilstar snarled her bright red lips and dug her red long nails into Jun's arms drawing blood.

That's when Jun realized the woman was not alone, more Devilstars! She thought.

They ascended on her and Jun fought back throwing two of them together and making them unconscious, then she was thrown against a wall by one of them…the brick wall that seemed to vanish and she went flying down a stair case.

I'm on the ledge of the eighteenth story…And oh I scream for you…please come I'm calling…

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Ken had waited until almost closing time to go into the amusement Park, before that he had looked around the outskirts to see if they had missed something.

But now he had the place to himself, except for the odd security guard that was easy for him to dodge.

He walked into a building in the middle of the park, so far his search had not mounted to anything and it was getting very late. He wondered how they were going at the club; he figured he could always go back in as a customer since no one knew him.

He walked into a room full of mirrors and looked around; they could throw you off balance if you were not careful.

He was about to leave the room when he spotted something in the corner next to one of the mirrors.

Ken walked over and picked it up, it was a teddy bear, white with a blue satin bow around its neck.

"Honeybee…" He muttered at the bear. Dr.Pandora had described it to them as she told them about her last moments with Sammie.

"Where is she Honeybee?" He asked looking at the bear as if he expected it to answer him.

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On these hands and knees I'm crawlin'

Jun lost consciousness for a moment when she reached the bottom; she felt nausea in her stomach and giddy as she was still she lying face down. Jun struggled to get up as pain wracked her body from the fall.

Get up! She scolded herself. And she tried again only to be held down by a booted foot.

"What do we have here?" A familiar mocking male voice said.

Jun kept her face to the ground as she went too reached into her pocket for her yo-yo bomb. All she had to do was throw it, and she could have a chance against them and not expose her identity.

"Looking for this?" Cherrie's fake sweet voice rang in her ear. She looked up enough to see Cherrie dangling her communicator before her eyes, as her hand froze before she could reach her yo-yo bomb.

How Cherrie got her bracelet, Jun did not know but the Devilstar had it all the same, and Jun had to get it back.

Jun felt real fear run through her as another booted foot came under her chin and gently lifted her face. Count Egobossler was looking down on her smiling with an evil grin.

"Madame Honeydew…where are the lovely earrings I gave you…Or should I say…More accurately, Madame Swan, of the Science Ninja Team." Then he chuckled coldly as she lay frozen on the ground.

She was surrounded by at lease fifty goons form the boots that she could see, she could take them easily.

Words stuck in her throat for a moment "I'm flattered," she finally managed to say as she was forced to her feet by Cherrie. "But do think the Swan would be a pole dancer?" she questioned as she tried to make light of the situation.

She was in a base that much she could tell.

Egobossler moved in closer to her. "Don't play games with me Swan Jun…We know what you look like, Sammie told our leader, so there is no need for you to deny it." He purred in her ear, they had Sammie Jun thought, but the Joe and Ryu…Ken, were in danger as well and she had now way of warning them.

"Ohh Honey, you looked soooo good tonight, almost good enough to eat my darling." His eyes roamed her body as he gave her a small lusty smile. "It is time for us to get better acquainted, take her to the room we have prepared for her."

Jun felt a prick in her arm and the world started to swim around her as she struggled as the two Devilstars took a strong hold of her arms, Amelia and Cherrie were enjoying this she could tell.

Cherrie gripped her arm painfully hard and Jun clenched her teeth to prevent her from seeing the pain she was causing her, she felt so weak from whatever it was that Cherrie gave her.

They dragged her into a room and Jun felt her stomach tighten nausea griped her more as she looked at the equipment in the room. She fought the sensations and shot a defiant glare at Count Egobossler who seemed to take delight in her reaction.

"Now shall we talk about the location of the rest of your team…And the Resistance of course…Ohhh my dearest Swan?" He said in a breathy voice of anticipation. "I'm going to enjoy this." And he laughed as the door slammed shut behind her.

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Joe had been waiting for Jun for about an hour, he knew she was angry with him, and there had been a lot of the wrong type of tension between them of late between them, and he had hoped to rectify it.

He remembered how she reacted to him a few months before when the discussion came up of what they would do when or if ever this was all over. Jun wanted to get married, which was not so bad…but she also wanted to start a family and open another business, and she wanted to settle down in a house.

He just wanted to hit the racing circuit and get another trailer; He did see the value in getting married since he loved her and he liked kids but had no desire for any of his own.

The truth was he didn't know if he could handle a settled life for very long.

Maybe they could compromise, he buy a bigger trailer, and maybe he might like one kid in the future but he had his reservations there. But Jun did not look happy at his response, and began to fear that she would break it off after that conversation and they had begun to argue more.

He knew that Ken how ever longed for peace and a settled life, but after seeing her with Ken that afternoon, he knew it was over between them.

He loved her with an intensity that he had never felt for a woman before, but he could not hold onto a woman who did not love him back, well at least he thought that was the case. She had told him differently, she had told him that she loved him, but he had doubts that were plaguing him to the core.

She never looked at him the way she looked at Ken, and he knew she never would, so he had to find a way to let her go but how do you stop you heart from beating.

But he couldn't, he just couldn't, and he was getting desperate. This was not like him at all to not be in total control of his world.

Joe was pacing now; he had sent Ryu back to the Hideout to wait for Ken who had been checking out the Amusement Park for signs of Sammie.

That was when he had decided to wait out the front of the club, and he was about to go in and see if she was performing when Amelia walked out the main doors and gave him a surprised look.

"Have you seen Honey?" He asked he never used her real name here.

"Yes Joe I did." She answered giving him her best smile. "She left about 15 minutes ago with an other man a dark haired guy I think, he was very cute…it looks like you lucked out tonight after all…and I thought you had already left." She moved in closer to him, and ran her tongue seductively over her red lips; her blue eyes were looked up at him through her long dark lashes as she flirted with him.

He found it hard to believe Jun would just leave without him, but then she threatened to walk home on the way into the club tonight if he didn't apologize for his behaviour that afternoon. In his pride Joe did not do it, because he was still hurt and angry.

She had done this once before when they had argued but then she told Ryu that she would not travel in the car with him, then Ryu picked her up before she got too far, she was probably walking back now or with Ken.

Why had Ken not contacted him to tell him she was going back with him he did not know, it was a foolish thing to do.

"If you want, I could…do something special for you…Come back to my place…" She purred as she left the invitation hanging as she ran a long blood red finger nail down his cheek finishing at his lips.

"No,I'm not interested Amelia… "Joe said simply, he was not in the mood for this.

Amelia had tried several times since he had started as a bouncer to get him into her bed and she was not the only dancer to try it. She pouted and gave him miffed look as he turned and walked towards his car, he got in and sat in the drivers seat fumbling with the keys for a moment trying to calm himself down.

O.K he would try and apologize tonight for being so hard to get along with at the moment, his thoughts regressed for a moment as she struggled with his emotional state.

Damn it Jun! He thought, as he started up the engine.

He would tell her never to do it again, when he got back to the Hideout, even if he had to wake her up to her how much he disapproved.

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Ken had continued to look around the park, it had been hours and there not one sign that there was a Galactor base hidden there, they were getting better at he thought,

So he had decided to head back, in his mind he was sorting out what he needed to say to Joe, and he was going to head out to his shack the next day to start fixing it up for him to move back there.

He was finally back and a wave of exhaustion swept over him, it had been a long day and he needed rest, so he made his way down into the hideout, he still had to talk to Joe about earlier that day, but it was well past midnight and they all needed sleep just to function.

Ken walked down the stairs with Sammie's teddy bear in his hands to see Joe leaning against the wall, and Ryu was sitting on the couch.

"I didn't find anything at the park on Sammie…I'm going back tomorrow, Joe I need you to come with me…" He stood there looking at the bear for a moment before he looked up at Joe.

"Jun'snot with you?" Joe asked as worry crossed his grey eyes and his expression changed to sheer panic.

"Jun?" Ken questioned. "Why would she be with me?" He questioned as he tossed the bear to Ryu who caught it and sat it on the couch.

They all looked at each other, as it dawned on them; Jun was likely to have been captured by Galactor if she was not with any of them.

"Get moving, we have to go back to the club." But he hardly needed to tell Joe or Ryu.

Fatigue left him as they all bolted up the stairs.