Ok fellow AF fans, I want to announce…

I, That Valentine Kid, will FINISH The Devil's Backbone in the next 10 days.

Because I need to revise for my January exams and I'd quite like to get into university :D

So, let's continue.

"Paulo!" He heard his name being called but didn't really want to respond; he had the worst head ache that could've possibly been the worst head ache in the history of head aches. Even that thought made his head spin. "Paulo!" There it was, that desperate call again; why couldn't Alex shut up? He was always such a morning guy- first one up and out all the time. Well Paulo wasn't going to get up this time. Alex could just wait. "PAULO!"

"Leave me alone," he muttered and turned on his side, "I'm trying to sleep." It took him a second to realise that his bed wasn't as comfortable as he thought it was. In fact it felt almost as if he was lying on a cold, damp stone floor. Oh, he opened his eyes; he was lying on a cold, damp stone floor. His vision was blurred and he was just looking down at the floor with a dazed expression; what was going on? "Alex!" He called out and the word came out as though he hadn't spoken in years; hoarse and barely recognisable. What was gong on?

"Paulo, can you stand?" He tried, but that wasn't Alex's voice. It was Hex's. Why did they have to confuse him by shouting in the same conversation? Does that even make sense? He didn't think so either. Slowly he stood, feeling came back to his bones and muscles. As did memories of what happened. His vision became clearer as he remembered; someone had taken Li. Captured her, he'd put up a fight but they nearly cracked his skull. He put a hand behind his head and felt his hair was matted with blood.

"Where…where are you guys?" He called out and finally got a good look of the room. It wasn't a room really; it was a hall, huge and grand. He was stood in the middle, underneath a giant crystal chandelier. The room was partially in darkness if it weren't for randomly arranged, lit candles around the place. At the front were a stage and a single chair. There was something odd about the scene though. Luckily all his years with Alpha Force had taught him to take in every detail. He was in Venice, he remembered that, that's why the décor was reminiscent of this place…in the 18th Century. Meaning it was an old building, resulting in fragile infrastructure. Not good. Ah, now he'd figured out what was wrong; everything in the room looked old and damp as though washed too many times but not dried. Everything except the single chair on the stage. That was fairly modern meaning another thing; he was not alone. The walls were so tall, with broken mirrors and pictures; how could a place so beautiful go so unnoticed?

"I'm over here!" Alex shouted and Paulo looked to his right. There was a door in the wall, Alex was barred into another room. He waved at Paulo who raised a still, slightly shaking hand, in acknowledgement.

"And I'm here!" Hex called form the opposite side and Paulo turned left. Hex was in exactly the same situation as Alex. They were all separated by barred doors. He ran over to Hex first.

"They took Li!" He shouted as he ran and reached Hex before trying to push the door open.

"It's no use mate," Hex said grimly, "they've got Amber too." Paulo shook his head before running to Alex's side which, on account of the size of the hall, took a good 40 seconds which was just 40 seconds wasted and it frustrated him; he needed to find Li. And now Amber too! He reached Alex and again tried in vain to get the door open.

"Relax," Alex said coolly, "he's got Lily and Eva still, which can only mean a few things." The look on Alex's face said it all and Paulo reached an arm through the bars to embrace him. It surprised Alex but he gripped back with equal force. "Err, Paulo, these bars hurt a bit." He whispered and Paulo released him. He turned to face Hex and slipped down the wall by Alex's door into a sitting position. He looked up before the other two saw the look on his face and followed his gaze; Alex gasped. "Fuck it." Alex cried and kicked the bottom on the door in front of him.

"What, I don't see it!" Hex called.

"You were wondering where we are, why this place is abandoned and all that?" He thought he saw Hex nod. "Well we're underground; no one looks after this place because when the tide comes in this place floods…we'll drown." He finished before running a hand through his hair wearily.

"How do you know that?" Hex asked and Alex pointed up.

"Look to the walls; there's a darkened line there, indicating where the water fills this place." Hex looked up and indeed he saw the difference in colour between the higher parts of the wall and beneath it.

"Damn." Was all Hex said and the other's smiled. "We're going to drown?" He said uncertainly and Alex shook his head as Paulo looked up at him for some reassurance.

"Not if we get out."

"And how do you expect that will happen?" Paulo asked and put his head in his hands.

"Amnias is a bad guy," Alex said plainly, "bad guys don't just leave you to die, they come and either give you a challenge that's almost impossible, I'm guessing it's got something to do with the girls. Or, he'll talk about how rubbish we all are…and then we drown." They all found it weird that they smiled at this but their smiles faded as they heard clapping. They all looked to the stage at the front of Paulo's room.

"Wonderfully put Alex!" Amnias shouted as he entered with his group. "The bad guy," he chuckled to himself, "not quite how I would've put it-"

"How else would you have said it?" Paulo asked and stood up.

"The mentally deranged?" Hex suggested. The three of them laughed but not as much as Amnias. He was getting into his chair and practically fell down.

"Ow, ow," he said clutching his stomach, "that was funny/." He said but was suddenly serious. "But Alex was right. I've come with a challenge," he said as he sat down and got comfortable in his chair; his men arranged themselves to stand at his side. There were two of them; Alex, Paulo and Hex figured they could've taken them. "Now I asked Hex and Alex if they'd ever heard of The Devil's backbone?" He looked at them both, squinting almost as they were so far away. "Oh this is useless; bring them to me." He addressed his men. One was a rather large man with dark skin, he wore a leather jacket and sunglasses, he would've been intimidating to Alex perhaps, had he not been so comical looking. He reached Alex's cell and used a key to open the lock. Paulo merely stared up at him with distaste until a small, skinny, pale man with a few scratches above his left eye, approached him and grabbed his arm. Hoisting him up and practically dragging him to be in front of Amnias. Alex's door opened and he debated tackling the man but decided against it; it was too risky seeing as Amnias still had the girls. Alex was also dragged up to Amnias where they met Hex; pulled along by the skinny man that brought Paulo. They all stood in a line, waiting to be addressed by Amnias. "So anyways, like I was saying," Amnias thought for a moment.

"Where's Li?" Paulo shouted and was silenced as the large man's dark hand struck the back of Paulo's head. His vision blurred again; he's taken too many hits to the head in such a short space of time.

"Thank you Ken," Amnias said to the man, now named Ken who smiled in return, revealing his one gold tooth. "Do any of you know what The Devil's Backbone is?" He shouted at them and they all shook their heads. "Well then I'll show you!" He cried excitedly and ran to the back of the stage. He emerged a few moments later, pulling along what looked like a black board. On the board was a map of this part of Venice. And in big bold letters, underneath a street highlighted in red, were the words: The Devil's Backbone.

"It's a street?" Alex asked quickly; his mind was already trying to figure things out.

"Yep!" Amnias shouted and jumped back into his chair like an excited child. He took out a silver pointer and pointed to the most southern building in the streets. "This is where we are," he moved the pointed further up, "Here," he moved the pointer down a little further, "is Amber," a smaller building than the one they were in. He pointed to another building further North, "Li is here." Then he pointed to a house that, on the map looked like it was on the edge of nothingness. It was water. "And here is Eva and Lily. With Matt!" He said happily and enjoyed the moment that passed between Alex and Hex; Alex looked at his friend uncertainly and Hex avoided his eyes. Amnias made a mental note to play on this later. "So this," he ran the pointer down the street, "is the Devil's Backbone as Alex so quickly discovered... La Spina Dorsale del Diavolo." He whispered the Italian name for added effect. "It is called so because each house is connected, like how spine's are connected by facet joints. But everyone knows bones can get broken." He paused dramatically and towered above the five people gathered in front of him. "Now no one lives in these places because every day the tide fills half the house! So in a few hours the house nearer the water will fill-"

"Eva!" They all shouted and Amnias looked surprised and a little impressed.

"Well, not as dumb as you all look." He said and nodded at them, "yes, each house will flood, on after the other!" He laughed. "But!" He held up a hand to stop them shouting at him. "There's another little thing; you have to get them all out, racing against water and fire." They all exchanged glances.

"We knew you were nuts Brad," Alex said to him, "but-" The man beside Alex punched him in the stomach at Amnias' nod and Alex doubled up. After a minute of trying to get his breath back, for the wind had been knocked out of him, he stood straight. "Right, fire and water. You were saying?" He addressed Amnias who smiled at him.

"When each building is filled half way, a device will initiate an explosion; destroying the building and part of the neighbouring buildings. It will cause a fire to spread through the town quickly and also trap anyone who was too slow to get out." He laughed again. "Take that for an evil plan!" He shouted in triumph. There was no reaction from his audience. He had expected applause.

"You're a monster." Paulo said simply as the man almost jumped up and down in excitement.

"But at least I'm good looking." He winked at Paulo who merely grimaced. But his statement had reminded Alex of what he had said earlier.

"Why're you doing this?" Hex asked and Amnias shook his head.

"I just want to torture Alex a fraction of what I'm feeling." He said and looked to the man who avoided his eye. "And I know that it hurts so much...seeing the people you love in pain." He said quietly.

"Leave them out of this Amnias!" Alex finally screamed at him. "They've got nothing to do with-"

"THEY HAVE EVERYTHING TO DO WITH IT!" Amnias screamed and moved close to Alex. Alex tried to take a step back but the man at his side held him steady and Amnias came closer, grabbing his hair to force his head up to look him in the eye.

"YOU SHOULD DEAL WITH THE ONE PERSON WHO DID THIS TO YOU!" Alex's throat was beginning to hurt as Amnias' hand moved from his hair to his throat. Hex and Paulo moved forwards but the skinny man held Hex back and the man holding Alex merely pushed Paulo and he fell to the floor. He didn't get back up.

"SHUT-"

"Alex is right," a voice spoke from behind Amnias, "you should take it out on that one person." Lily walked out of the shadows, a gun raised to Amnias' chest. "So here I am."

Oh dear. Lily's not as innocent as we once thought.

Thanks for the wuv!