Disclaimer:

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I own nothing here, except for Kia (X5 462). Note, there is a bit of nasty language, but nothing worse than what has been on the show. I have attempted to stay true to form. Reminder, this is a work in progress, so things may change some from here on out. (Note: this will not end as Season 2 did. ~Freak Nation was a truckload of crap to me. Just my opinion.~)



Credit where credit it due:

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Donna Lynn, wherever you may be, this is partly your work as well, thank you for posting the challenge. I have made some changes to the original.



Dedication:

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To all the Nuns at the CoJ. I love you guys. And a special dedication to Miro - my beta. I love you Dahling. You are the best.



Author's Note:

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Please note that Spy Ops is another division of Manticore. (How else are they going to get their Intel?) I hope this doesn't cause any confusion. Please, no Hair Dryers allowed - it is only fiction for fun.





Chapter Seven: Psy Ops



The ride was silent and endless. The reflection he examined in the glass was beginning to wear on his nerves. He closed his eyes, envisioning Rachel's face and the explosion. Even with his speed and agility, he was unable to prevent the inevitable. And now, what would be his fate? He would have rather placed himself in that car instead of seeing the betrayal in her eyes as she fought him on the steps of the Berrisford Estate an hour earlier.



Suddenly, a chirping phone pulled him from his thoughts.



"Jones"



"Here it comes. Shoot him. Then bring him back so we can pick him apart!" 494 mused.



"Yes Sir. We have him. We are about twenty minutes out. Understood." As the dark agent slapped his phone shut, he turned and glared at 494.



"What?" He questioned.



Smoothly, Jones responded. "Nothing, nothing at all."



The silence continued for the remainder of the journey. As they approached the gate, Jones motioned to the driver, "Take a right, Frank. He needs to be debriefed immediately, per the Lieutenant's orders."

His palms began to sweat. Bugs were crawling in his tousled hair. 'This is not good.' Typically, he would not have to brief the Lieutenant until he was able to make a full written report.



As they turned the corner, he sensed exactly were he was going. A tall white marble building loomed in the distance. It was where all soldiers feared to go. Psy Ops. Rumors swirled about shocking stories of the rogues that had been sent there and never returned to duty.



As the building grew larger, two X5's were waiting to greet them. One of the series was a dark haired male, about the same size as 494. The other was female and was strikingly familiar.



Filling his frame, he cleared his throat and reached for the door's handle. "Well, it was nice knowin' ya, Frank."



He slowly pulled up on the handle and stepped out. The X5s were on him before he released the door. "Hey guys. I am not going to fight, so don't worry about it."



The dark haired male quickly countered, "We have our orders. Come with us."



494 gave a toothy grin to the guy. "Yeah, that is what you say to everyone, I'm sure."



~~~~****~~~~****~~~~****~~~~



Looking toward the heavy steel door of the building, he could almost make out a figure. As they inched closer, he could see the stubby Lieutenant on the steps adjusting his tweed sports jacket.



"Ah 494. I see you have met 475 and 463." He grinned.



"Yes, Sir."



The grin faded turned to a furrowed brow. "I must admit 494, I am disappointed with your performance. What possessed you act in such irrational manner? You were told what you were to do. Do you have a problem following orders?"



"No Sir. No problem with following orders."



"So, what made you do what you did?"



"Sir, I do not know how to answer your question."



"I don't have time for this game, 494. Do you know why you are here, at Psy Ops?"



"No Sir."



"We located your twin, 493. His corpse was recovered near a small church outside of Seattle. After a comprehensive autopsy, it was brought to our attention that his DNA may have had some tags that pointed to his disturbing behavior. Therefore, we believe it is in Manticore's best interests that we evaluate you. Besides, your conduct on this mission brings us a huge amount of distress."



"Sir, permission to speak freely?"



"No. There will be no further discussion on this issue. Please take him to the Lab so the analysis can begin." He quickly trotted down the steps and abandoned the three X Series at the doorstep of the building.



~~~~****~~~~****~~~~****~~~~



Being pushed into the building by 475 and 463, a strong odor of antiseptic and paint attacked his nostrils. This environment was way beyond a hospital and his body was fully aware of it. The two escorts lifted his legs from the floor to reduce the vice-like grip they had on his arms to move his body along more efficiently.



His breathing grew rapid as his eyes locked on the double doors at the end of the corridor. Adrenaline filled his veins and his body stiffened.



"But I didn't do anything wrong!" His voice cracked.



"494, we have our orders. Don't make this any more difficult than it has to be." 463 replied smoothly.



Suddenly he twisted his body to unclamp the grip of the two X5s. Landing on his hands and knees, he quickly pushed himself off the floor and began to run down the hallway. As he reached the door he came through moments before, his feet disappeared from underneath his frame and he hit the marble floor. Rolling on his back, he winced as sharp sting attacked his side. He shifted his eyes toward the pain and witnessed a hypodermic needle withdraw from his ribs. His muscles relaxed and he became lifeless.



A female emerged from the corner. "Take him down to the chair." A few strands of her long dark hair had fallen into her face from attacking the escapee. She waived in the direction of the double doors with the syringe still in her hand. "I will be there in a minute." She slipped the cap back on the syringe then disappeared again from the X5s sight.



The pair lifted the limp form off the cold marble and effortlessly hauled him down the corridor. As they approached the end of the corridor, the doors automatically opened allowing access to the room.



The body was tossed into the chair with little care. His head bobbled for a moment as the assistants quickly strapped his appendages before the drugs wore off.



~~~~****~~~~****~~~~****~~~~



Slowly his pupils were able to focus. 475 and 463 were gone, but in their place were two white coat clad females. They cautiously moved away from him as they noticed that he was aware of their presence.



Moving his attention way from the coats, he focused on the other immediate surroundings. A small sliver tray was positioned to his right. The tray was standard hospital equipment, but the contents lying upon it were not. To his left was some sort of antique-like machine with electric nodes stacked neatly on top that seemed to be wireless. The relic resembled something similar to a lie detector, but he figured Manticore was more adept than that considering the nodes. But then this was Psy Ops and anything was possible here.



~~~~****~~~~****~~~~****~~~~



Bouncing into the room with the syringe dangling from her fingertips, the dark haired female quizzed one of the occupied assistants. "Well, what do you think? Do you honestly believe that this X5 will carry the same genetic markers as his twin?"



"Mia, we have no clue," one snipped. " Dr. Chase hasn't had a chance to evaluate 494 yet. Will you relax a bit? This is not going to be that difficult for you."



Puckering her face she whined, "I don't know. According to the file, this one has had some problems. His last two away missions got 'uuuugly'."



The automatic doors abruptly split, catching the girls' attention. A tall woman with dark skin and hair to match strolled casually into the room.



Dryly, Dr. Chase addressed the youthful assistants. "Please allow myself and Mia a moment alone with the subject."



~~~~*****~~~~****~~~~****~~~~



Awake for the whole exchange that took place moments ago, 494 began to scrutinize this Mia person. 'Why is she here? Obviously she ain't a shrink the way she paraded in here.'



Moving the tray way from the right side of the chair, Dr. Chase approached him slowly. "My name is Dr. Chase, and I have been assigned to evaluate your mental status. This is my assistant, Mia. She is an X5 that has been chosen to assist me for your re-indoctrination."



He licked his cracked lips. "Re-indoctrination?"



Straightening herself, she recited, "Re-indoctrination is the process of bringing a damaged solider back to the basics and making him or her fit for duty again. The process is estimated to take up to six months, depending solely on progress made by the individual."



"I don't understand. I thought this was because of 493. What is this damaged solider and fit for duty crap?" His features hardened.



Dr. Chase slowly moved away from him and motioned for Mia to answer.



Mia bounced her way to the chair and put her face up to his. "Hi! Your progress will be monitored and when it is believed that you will no longer pose a risk for Manticore or yourself, you will be commissioned for duty." She grinned at him and turned to Dr. Chase for approval.

"Well, enough small talk. We have a lot to do, so lets get started."



~~~~****~~~~****~~~~****~~~~



His body lay limply on the musty mattress. At this point, the rats in this basement could have gnawed off his legs and he wouldn't have cared. His head throbbed and black and blue marks were beginning to appear on his forearms. Whatever those two were pumping into his veins, it was killing him slowly. He could have sworn that they were laughing at him at one point. Unfortunately, this was just the first day of this torture.



And what made the day even more pleasurable was when they brought out the old films. He remembered those from the good old days in Wyoming, where they were played in heavy rotation after the twelve X5's ran. All he could see flashing in his mind's eye was DUTY… MISSION… DISCIPLINE. He dared not to sleep, as those two harpies may come back and throw him in that chair again for round two.



'Why are they doing this to me?' He thought he knew, but now that was just a fuzzy thought. The only thing he could remember was that something went wrong, but when?



~~~~****~~~~****~~~~****~~~~



Day after day, he was dropped into the chair like a piece of meat hitting a grill. And by the time they were done with him, he wished they would kill him. That had to be easier than this re-indoctrination that he was facing day after day. First it was lasers, then the drugs. What next?



~~~~****~~~~****~~~~****~~~





Dr. Chase was already preparing the hypodermics when the guards brought him in and dumped him into her device of insanity. His arms were already so severely damaged from the needles that she made a mental note to use his legs if necessary.



Turning to her subject, she addressed him. "So how are you today, 494? Comfortable?"



He regarded her with an empty stare. His eyes did not blink. She shifted her attention to him, observing him from a distance. If his chest had not been heaving up and down, she would have thought he was dead.



"Dr. Chase, what would you like me to do?" Mia chirped as she tilted her head to the left and the right, trying to catch 494's attention without success.



Flipping through her file, Dr, Chase finally heard her words. "Oh, yes. Let's try something a bit different today, shall we 494? I am sure that you are getting tired of the films and drugs."



'You have no idea.'



Stepping over a pile of cords on the floor, the Doctor approached him and began to remove the restraints that had been cutting of his circulation for the better part of the last month.



"Today we are going to begin with having you do a mission in a simulated environment, and if you successfully complete our virtual mission, no drugs. If not, well, you know the drill."



Dr. Chase motioned to Mia to assist her with removing his abused body from the chair and slowly guide him to a door that he had not noticed during all of his visits to this unholy place.



The pair gently guided him through the doorway and propped him against the coarse brick wall and slowly closed the door behind them. Blackness occurred for a few seconds until his eyes adjusted.



"Now, notice that you are in a dark room." Dr. Chase's voice echoed in his ears. "This is where your mission is going to start. Find the door and then follow the simulation from there."



~~~~****~~~~****~~~~****~~~~



The room that he was in was dark, but not completely black. His enhanced vision lacked the ability to make out the floor plan of the room. There had to be some sort of trick to getting some light in this place.



Fumbling around, he found what felt like a switch. Flipping it up, light flooded his retinas. His eyes burned momentarily from the intensity, but then adjusted. The welcomed light provided an opportunity to survey the room. To his dismay, he was in the same room in this virtual world that he had just left in the real one.



He glanced at the chair. It was empty here except for a tan envelope. He slowly crept over to the chair and gingerly picked up the packet.



Tugging on the seal, it revealed a handwritten note on a piece of pink stationery. 'Hello 494, this is Mia. I will be leaving you notes such as this during this mission. Please make sure that you read them so you know what to do. Now, you need to get out of here. Toodles…Mia'



494 groaned to himself. 'I can't believe this. I am taking orders from the Sorority Sister? I am as good as dead!'



Evaluating where he was, he slowly began his exit out of the building that was holding him captive. He noticed that this simulation was strikingly familiar to the actual building he was in. The walls, the floors, and even the shadows were the same. This was amazing.



He slid down the corridor and approached the heavy steel door that he recalled as the front door to the building and stopped. He suddenly realized that there was going to be an obstacle of some sort on the other side of this door. He pondered for a moment on how he was going to handle the situation and then a pink piece of paper slid under the door.



'Hey, wise choice. Okay, open the door.'



As ordered, he slowly opened the steel door. The sunlight made his eyes wince. He hadn't seen the sun in over a month, and he now recalled that fact. Holding his hand over his forehead he peered out into the distance. It appeared that there was a person standing off into the distance, waving to him, urging him to come. Figuring it was Mia, he swaggered out of the building and began the trek across the campus.



He made it about ten feet before his legs were taken out from beneath him. He snapped his head to see the face of his attacker and his heart skipped a beat. He appeared to be face to face with himself.



"Now, cockiness isn't going to save your life, you know." Barked the Clone.



"What the hell is this?" He barked back.



The Clone swung his arm around 494's head and placed him neatly in a headlock. "This is 'yourself' telling 'you' to be more careful. Don't 'you' want to get out of this joint?"



Throwing his head forward, he pulled his clone to his knees and flipped him over his back. His action created the reaction of the clone loosing his grip and falling flatly on the ground.



"Good counter, I wasn't expecting 'you' to fight back, considering how weak 'you' have become." A small smirk flashed across his perfect features.



Annoyed with this arrogant copy of himself, he dusted his hands of him and began to stomp away, avoiding any additional contact.



A tapping on his shoulder reminded him that the Clone was still there. As he turned, his fist made direct contact with his reflection's face and the simulation ended.



"So, you didn't care for him, I guess?" Dr. Chase's soft voice whispered in his ears.



"Am I supposed to answer that?" He snapped.



"Yes, please do 494. Enlighten me." Smoothing her tone even more.



His thoughts rushed him as he stood in the darkness. "I wasn't expecting it. Why would you think that making me stare at a carbon copy of myself would help me?"



Stillness ensued for a moment, followed by exposure from the darkness. Dr. Chase stood in the doorway with a look of satisfaction. "The reasoning behind him was to make you aware of your surroundings, remember your training. Following orders is one thing but to carry them out is another." She swaggered across the room to meet his glare. She gently reached out and smoothed several strands of flyaway hair.



He delivered a puzzled look to her. "So, is all this really because of my crazy twin or is it something that I did on a prior mission?" His gaze clouded and a vague memory tickled is brain, but the only item that he could conjure up was a gun in a footlocker.



He mood shifted. "I am not at liberty to say. Mia help 494 back to the chair. I have a few more tests I would like to run before we call the guards."



Mia bounced into the room and swung her arm around his waist. She could feel his muscles constrict from her contact, and if it was either unwanted or happy greeted. Unsure, she gave her usual toothy smile and began pulling him back into the observation room.



~~~~****~~~~****~~~~****~~~~



Dr. Chase attention turned to her assistant. "Mia, hook up the monitors. I want heart rate, and brain waives. If he spikes today, then we know that we are making progress."



Mia wheeled the monitor to the head of the chair. She glanced down and caught his eyes looking her over. A lock of his matted hair was pasted against his forehead and obscuring his vision. Gracefully, she swept it way and gave him a small smile. There was no reaction to her gesture.



She continued diligently placing the nodes on various places on his body carefully making sure that each connection was secure.


"All done, Dr. Chase. What else would you like me to do?" Mia chirped in her pretentious tone.



Dr. Chase stood still for a few moments before she responded, staring blankly at her subject. "Well, lets try a simulation without the drugs again and then evaluate his performance, then go from there."



He was beginning to welcome the darkness that the virtual room was providing on what was becoming a daily basis. The drugs had become less frequent, allowing his strength to almost fully return. Dr. Chase hadn't even let Mia touch him in weeks, which made him ecstatic. That squeaky voice and hyperactivity was wearing on his nerves, drugs or not.



Light flooded his eyes again. He crouched down as low as he could get, remembering that in the last simulation, he was struck from behind because he was just standing there, not anticipating any action as soon as the program was loaded.



Observing his location, he realized that he was in a heavily wooded area with overgrown bushes and grass that came up to his chin. Slowly inching his way up to a large boulder, he peered around it. Seeing nothing threatening, he rose from his current position to get a better look of the area.



As he rose, he heard a voice, a horribly familiar voice that he could not place.



"So, 494, almost back in the real world again after five and a half months of torture?"



He swept the area, trying to pin point the location of the voice.



"Now don't tell me that you have been so drugged up that you forgot about me? I would be so disappointed, especially after what you did to me."



Trying not to allow his faded memories interfere in what could be his last virtual mission, he looked above him into the trees.



"I see you found me, congratulations!" A tight grin formed across a face. "You know, I kinda thought you were appealing when I saw you in your cell the night before we left on that intel mission and I didn't say anything to you. Probably would have been better off if I did, then maybe you wouldn't have shot me." 462 dropped out of the tree next to him, staring directly into his bewildered stare.



"I don't know who you are…what do you want?"



"Not much really, just the last six months of my life back. You know Wyoming is kind of shitty this time of year." She gave just enough distance between them so that their noses didn't touch.



Offended that she was in his personal space, he stepped back just to watch her match his stride till his back was against a tree.



Confused and unsure of how to react to her rage, he smoothed his furrowed brow and addressed her as politely as one could when pinned to a tree. "What the hell is the matter with you?"



She slapped one of her hands on the tree directly next to his head and leaned in on him. He could smell the cinnamon scent of the gum she was smacking as she began to speak.



"If you could only understand how much pressure is put on to someone who always seems to out perform themselves mission after mission and then have it taken away by some jacked up pompous ass, then you might understand why I am just a bit unstable! " Her stance became even more rigid as she spoke.



'What would be the most appropriate way to get out of this situation?'



He glided one hand up to the side of her face and softly brushed her cheek, closed his eyes and whispered. "I'm Sorry."



Opening his eyes, Dr. Chase began forcefully pulling the nodes off of him. She motioned to Mia that the session was over without saying a word. She scanned the printout of the machine. A small smile tugged on her lips.



"Well, look at that. Progress. Congratulations, no drugs today."





~~~~****~~~~****~~~~****~~~~



On this particular morning, the gorilla-like guards did not haul him to the chair, but instead took him from the basement to barracks on campus and gave him some down time to shower and shave.



Setting the razor down on the lip of the sink, he gazed into the mirror. He was proud of the fact that he made it through, but he was unclear on why they picked apart his brain. His memory was faded about most of the experience but all he knew that is was an experience that he would not want to go through again. Stepping away from any further thought on the subject, he picked up the razor and tossed it into the garbage can attached to the wall.



~~~~****~~~****~~~****~~~~



The balding Lieutenant was patiently waiting for Dr. Chase outside the Psy Ops building for her arrival. "Well done, Dr. Chase. You say that he is fit for duty?"



Annoyed that he was anxiously sitting on her doorstep, she quipped, "Yes, Lieutenant, 494 is fit for duty." She strode past him and proceeded to enter the building, hoping that the small little man would not follow her.



"Wait, Doctor. I have a few questions for you."



She hauled open the rusty door to the building. "If you have any questions, please refer to my report." Quickly, she disappeared behind the door signaling for him to leave.



~~~~****~~~~****~~~~****~~~~



He was a proud man, and admired him with the highest regard. As he fumbled through Dr. Chase's report, he could see his own reflection in the glass, a smile spreading infectiously across his features.



Beaming, he gently opened the door to the room. 494 glanced up to the Lieutenant and stood at attention.



"Sir."



He waved his hand still smiling. "At ease. I must say 494, it is nice to have you back for duty. I have several things I need one of my finest to address."



"Looking forward to whatever you have in mind, Sir." A small glimmer appeared in his eye.



"Excellent. Sit down and lets get started."



~~~~****~~~~****~~~~****~~~~