Resident Evil

Children of the Seraphs

By: Xenogears

Chapter six

In no way do I own the characters of Capcom's legacy, Resident Evil. They are used for non-profit purposes, only for entertainment. The characters Ryan Joseph Davidson, Anna Yamaguchi and Mark belong exclusively to me and may not be used by anyone without my permission. The stories Resident Evil: Silver Blood, Resident Evil: The Seraphs and Resident Evil: Children of the Seraphs are also copyright by me, and may not be used in any way without my exclusive written permission.

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Ryan ran across the street. This time, it was a green light, so no cars had to stop from almost running into him. He passed the American War Memorial and the Oakton Park field house, and took the concrete path into the playground. He didn't notice that the path was icy in spots. As he ran, he slipped on a patch of ice. With a sudden "Whoa!" he landed on his back again, the back of his head hitting the concrete.

He cursed harshly, and then got back to his feet. He could kill for some Tylenol. Glancing around, he noticed that he hadn't gotten more than one block from his home.

He limped to a bench and sat down, dusting the snow from his pants and the bench. There he sat, for how long he didn't know. He went through two cigarettes. After he threw his second cigarette in the snow, he heard a crunching of snow nearby. Someone was coming.

He looked up toward the sound and saw two people walking toward him. When they were about fifteen feet away from him, he recognized them. Go Eun and her sister, Mi Yon, were speaking to each other in speedy, high-pitched Korean. Both were in his culinary class and were Anna's friends. Go Eun was a fluent English speaker, while her sister had only come to America about three months ago. Fortunately for Anna, Mi Yon spoke almost fluent Japanese.

They both stopped when they saw Ryan.

"Ahn yung, Ryan." Go Eun said.

"Ahn yung." Her sister said.

Both gave a slight bow. From listening to them speak with Anna, Ryan guessed that "ahn yung" meant hello in Korean.

"Yeah...ahn yung, or whatever." Ryan deadpanned.

Go Eun hesitated for a moment, and then sat down next to Ryan. "I know what happened with you and Anna."

"The whole school does, by now."

"Not exactly, though it may seem that way."

Ryan looked at her blankly. "What do you want?"

"I just want to know why you did what you did."

Ryan breathed a long breath.

"Why?" He clenched and unclenched his hands. "I panicked. I mean, how would you feel if you just learned that you're going to be a parent at your age?"

Go Eun translated what had been said for her sister, and Mi Yon said something after she had finished. Go Eun then turned back around to face Ryan and said, "But that doesn't justify what you did."

"Nothing justifies what I did!" Ryan shouted. Couldn't the girls see he was despondent? "I...do you know what I've been going through for the past four days? Abuse from her! I've...I've tried to apologize to her. I've tried to reason with her. Hell, I've tried to talk to her. She won't listen to me! She...she just brushes me off, or slaps me, or...something. Nothing gets through to her!"

Once again, Go Eun translated for her sister, and then spoke to Ryan. "You've got to understand that she's just--"

"Stubborn? Hard headed? Inflexible?"

"Uh, yeah," she said, looking to the side and thinking for a split second. "Also, you have to know that you've really hurt her. The last time she came to school, she was really all venom. Give her time is all I can say."

"Whatever."

Go Eun was about to translate for her sister, when Ryan told Mi Yon what had been said in Japanese. They seemed surprised that Ryan had a grasp of the language.

"So what will you do?" Mi Yon asked him in Japanese, using the Kyoto dialect.

"Stay away from her for the time being. That's just about all I can do," Ryan responded in the same language, but in a Kanto dialect.

"You aren't going to give up on her, are you?"

"Hell, I'm worried she'll give up on me."

Ryan then got up and started to leave. "I'll see you two in Mrs. Kiraly's class on Monday, eh?"

"Yeah," Go Eun said. "Ahn yung."

"Ahn yung," said Mi Yon.

Ryan then realized that "ahn yung" must have the same effect as "shalom", meaning both hello and goodbye.

"Yeah. Ahn yung."

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Later that night...

As Ryan walked down the street from the Howard CTA station, he couldn't shake the suspicion that someone was following him. He knew that this wasn't all that good a neighborhood, but he didn't exactly think he would get shot from behind. He shrugged off the feeling, and kept walking.

"You really should go back to her, Ryan."

Ryan spun around. No one was there.

Ryan reached for his Beretta 92, which wasn't there. He cursed silently, and continued cautiously on his way.

"Seriously. I knew from the first time she saw you she was taken," the voice continued. "She would always talk about you in a way that suggested that she might have something for you."

Ryan spun around again, and, once again, found no one there.

"I think that she fell for you before you fell for her."

"Who are you?!" Ryan shouted.

"An old friend."

"Where are you? Show yourself!"

"Up here."

Ryan looked to the bus shelter next to the train station entrance, and found a young man of about nineteen standing there. He jumped down and landed about ten feet away from Ryan.

Ryan suddenly gasped and jumped back, once he saw the face. That black hair. Those brown eyes. The clothing. It was if his worst nightmare had come true. Mark. Ryan materialized his Katana, and went into a defensive fighting stance.

"I-I k-killed you..." Ryan stammered. "I f-fuckin' k-killed you..."

"So you thought, Ryan." Mark looked at Ryan's weapon. "I'm impressed. Your powers have developed quite well, just as I expected. That's a mighty fine blade you have there."

"And I'd love to show it to you up close if I have to. Draw your weapon!"

"I didn't come here to fight." Mark said in a matter-of-fact tone.

"Then what? Have you come to make fun of me or something?"

Mark casually leaned against the bus shelter. "On the contrary. I have come to tell you that you must go home. You've got to go back and see Anna."

Despite himself, Ryan lowered his guard a little. "Wh...what? How do you...?"

"That's not important. All I know is that you've got to go back home. If not to see her, then at least for a place to stay."

Ryan lowered his weapon all the way, but still kept it in his hand.

"I can't. She...she hates me."

"Not true. As I said before, she was taken the first time she saw you. And her attraction grew into love for you. The same goes for you, I know."

"How do you know if that's true?"

"Because I saw how she looked at you. I saw how you looked at her. I heard her talk. When I brought up the conversation about 'the person she met,' her eyes lit up, and I saw a small, barely visible smile. She told me only the things I needed to know, except for the last part when she said, 'I'll really hate myself for doing this to him.'"

Ryan was speechless. Could this be true?

"Even today, I'm sure she still hates herself for making you one of us. But, then again, that was one of the factors that brought you two closer together. Now, she's expressed her love for you, and is even carrying your children. She's given a piece of herself to you, and you've given a piece of yourself to her. There's no way to return that, no matter how hard you try. No matter how much it may seem she hates you, trust me. She doesn't."

All Ryan could manage was, "Damn..."

"Just go back to her. If you can't talk to her, fine. At least have a roof over your head. Be near her. Give her time to correct her mistakes."

"Yeah...you're right..." Ryan said slowly, as if suddenly realizing something. "By God, you're right."

"Now come on, kid. Get up and go..."

Ryan's vision suddenly went blurry and Mark's voice sounded strangely indistinct.

"What the...?"

"Get up, kid..."

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"Get up, kid. Do you want to freeze?"

Ryan's eyes slowly opened, and he saw a bearded man in his early fifties standing over him. He groaned and looked around. He was slumped in a corner in the bus shelter for the 97 CTA bus at the Howard station. He was using newspaper as blankets, and his forearm as a pillow. Ryan had run away from the house and needed a place to sleep, so what better place than a bus shelter?

"Mark...?"

"No. Not Mark. Now you wanna get up?"

"Urgh...a dream...? Man...it was too realistic..." Ryan muttered to himself. "Hey. You got the time?"

"Uh, yeah...10:50."

"Ten minutes until the last bus...thanks."

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"I'm really starting to worry, Chris..." Claire said to her brother. "He hasn't been back since this afternoon."

"Give him time. He'll be back."

"That's what you said two hours ago!" Claire said sternly. "If you're not gonna help me find him, then fine! I'll go myself!"

Claire went for her coat, calling for Anna, who appeared in the doorway seconds later.

"Let's go, Anna."

"Where?"

"To look for Ryan."

Anna frowned.

"He's still not back?" Anna scoffed. "Idiot! No. I'm not going. If he doesn't have the sense to come home, then that means that he doesn't want to be found."

"What if he's hurt or something? If he's been mugged? What if he's bleeding in a gutter somewhere?"

Anna crossed her arms over her chest.

"Then good. He gets what he deserves."

Claire and Chris went wide-eyed. Did she have a shred of decency left in her? Claire had had enough with her. She fast-walked over to Anna, grabbed her roughly by the arm, and thrust her coat at her.

"What are you doing?" Anna protested.

"I've had it up to here with you, Anna! I know you're not getting along with Ryan right now, but that doesn't give you the right to wish harm on him, or worse!"

"The hell it--"

"Shut up! I'm not done with you yet!" Claire yelled, sending Sherry into the living room with Leon behind her. "You're going with me to look for him! Period! End of story!"

The front door suddenly opened, and Ryan stepped in. His eyes were emotionless blanks, his face slightly pale from the cold. He walked in, took off his jacket, and hung it up, following with his hat. He tried to walk past the gathering, but Claire reached out and stopped him. She spun him around and looked into his eyes, and embraced him tightly.

"My God, Ryan," she said, on the verge of tears. "Are you trying to scare us to death? We thought something had happened to you. Won't you call or something next time?"

"I'm sorry for going out like that. I just needed time to think."

Claire finally let go of him, and one by one everyone welcomed him home. Then there was only Anna left to give her hello. She looked somewhat relieved, but that was only shown for a split second. There was a pause from Anna, then she puffed up and nearly shouted, "You...you...baka! Why the hell didn't you tell us anything? Not that I care or anything, but do you know that you had Claire and Sherry on the verge of a nervous breakdown? Why don't you use your damn head!"

Anna turned around and stalked off to her room. Ryan wore a little smile. He was pretty sure she really was worried about him, though she would never admit to it.

'I guess you're right, Mark,' Ryan thought. 'She really does still care about me.'

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By now, Anna was the only one left awake in the house. Tomorrow, she wouldn't be going to school, as Claire wanted her to take at least one day off because of her being pregnant. "Stress isn't a good thing to have in your condition," she had said. Whatever.

That, of course, could be changed on Tuesday, for she was going back to school for as long as she could. After all, she wanted to graduate with above average grades, and all that catch up work she would have to do would come back to haunt her. That, and she was a little fed up with Claire.

She had decided to stay up, partly because she wasn't that tired, but more because she had a lot on her mind. She read her yet unfinished novel, John Updike's Rabbit Redux, then went on to watch TV for about an hour. It was almost one o'clock when she finally decided to go to bed.

On her way up the stairs, she heard a sound from Ryan's room. It was muffled, but audible.

"Anna..."

Anna frowned. It was Ryan's voice -- just the way it sounded...Was he masturbating?!

'I swear to God, if he's jacking off, thinking like that about me...'

Then the thought occurred to her, she could suddenly open the door and give him the most embarrassing night of his life. So, she put her hand on the doorknob, turned it quickly, and flung open the door. She stood there, hands on her hips, expecting him to have a surprised and mortified look on his face. But that wasn't what she saw.

Ryan was lying in his bed, tossing and turning, mumbling. Obviously, he was having a nightmare.

"Anna..." he called again, in the same breathless tone.

Anna tiptoed to the foot of his bed. Looking around, she noticed how much she missed his room. Sure, she had only been here a few times, but she just liked being here. It made her feel a little more at peace. She bent down to him, sat on her heels, and started listening to him.

"Please..." he mumbled, barely audible. "Don't...Anna...don't leave me...stay..."

A sudden pang of guilt hit her and went straight to her stomach. She was causing this much pain to him? The strong, unbreakable, Ryan Davidson was pining for her that much?

"Anna..." he repeated, this time louder, more desperate. "Don't go..."

She could barely see it, but she was sure it was there. A single tear came dribbling out of each eye and onto his pillow.

She reached out with her mind and into his dreams. She was careful not to make her presence known; she just wanted to take a peek. What she saw was her, being cruel and heartless, cursing him and putting him down, turning her back on him in front of crowds of people, all of them laughing at him. He was on his hands and knees, begging like a dog, all sense of pride lost, imploring her to stay with him, not to leave him and his pathetic life.

She stopped. She couldn't take it. He was falling apart. This she could see. He wasn't showing it, and he might not even have known it, but it was happening, and it would eventually take its toll on him.

In her psychology class, she had read about what the effects of such a thing could have on a person. It could range anywhere from total nervous suicidal breakdown, to the person closing him/herself off from the rest of the world, showing his emotions to no one for the rest of his life. Those things, and all that was in-between, weren't anything like Ryan's personality. She didn't think such a situation was possible for him, but here he was, showing all of the symptoms.

'I...can't believe how much this is hurting him...I guess that Nozomi was right...he really does...love me...'

She looked at him again, his expression twisting into one of fear.

'How could I do something like that to a person like him?' Anna thought. Thinking back on that first year together, she realized that she had had a crush on him, nearly from the start. 'Never thought he'd have a crush on me, though.' She had never been popular; she had always put people at a distance. Of course, she had changed before she had met him, but still...

'What does he see in me?' During her more introspective moments, she wondered if she even really deserved someone like Ryan, someone so kind and caring, so sure of himself. 'When he isn't being an ass...' Anna thought ruefully.

She looked at him again, and his expression once again twisted with anxiety.

"No..." he breathed, sounding like a helpless child. "Please..."

Anna placed her hand on his head and he seemed to calm down a little. His expression melted, and he stopped tossing and turning.

"It's okay, Ryan," she whispered. "Sleep. Dream good dreams. I can't...I can't forgive you, or myself, yet, but I will, soon. So just give me some time, okay?"

"...Time..." he mumbled.

"Good night, Ryan."

She then gave him a peck of a kiss on the forehead and got up to leave. Just after she took a few steps, he mumbled something else.

"I love you..."

Her heart jumped into her throat and butterflies started to swarm in her stomach. She stopped, shut her eyes tight, and left his room. She softly closed the door, and then rested her forehead against it.

"I'm sorry..." she whispered.

A tear slid down her face and dropped onto the carpeted floor. She leaned against the door, and the tears started to stream out. She slid down the door, sobbing. Within a few seconds, she sat with her back to his door, breaking down like she never had before. It was one thing to have her think that he hated her, but it was another to realize that he really didn't, that all the crap she put him through was simply torture for him, and that she still needed time to think about what to do.

That, and the realization that she loved him.

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Just down the hall, out of vision of their mother, Adrian and Nozomi were watching the scene unfold before them. When they heard their father mutter "I love you" in his sleep, and then after they saw their mother's reaction, they couldn't help but to give each other high fives. After all, they were so close to getting their parents back together. After awhile, Anna eventually went back to her own room.

"So she finally came to the realization, huh?" Adrian said.

"Uh-huh. Okaa-san is finally taking the steps on her own."

The two walked down the hall, towards their mother's room.

"So how long do you think it will be?" Nozomi asked her brother.

"Oh, I'm gonna take a shot in the dark and say...a little over a month?"

Nozomi smiled.

"Can't wait."

Then, like specters, they walked through the wall to their mother's room.

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Five weeks later...

The tension between Anna and Ryan had been going on for a long time. The first week, there had been silence and Anna had spent a night or two crying. The rest of the time, they had pretty much gotten along, but neither of them had admitted to being sorry. On the second day of the fifth week, and after much encouragement from her unborn children, Adrian and Nozomi, and a little rational thought, Anna decided to end the fighting.

She would apologize to Ryan for the weeks of treating him so badly. Ryan would apologize again for starting this whole mess in the first place. It was time for her to forgive him, and for him to forgive her. For now, though, she needed to relax at Café Express.

It was 1:30 on a Friday afternoon. She hadn't been to school for the past month, due to her pregnancy. She wanted to keep it a secret as long as possible, telling Ryan to tell anyone that asked that she was very ill and would be out for a long time. She wasn't behind in her schoolwork, thanks to Ryan, who had also managed to cut a deal with her teachers to give her a lighter load of homework. But she still missed her swimming team.

As she walked in the door, she attracted a few stares from the customers, but thought nothing of it. She wore a long royal blue sundress with spaghetti straps and had tied up her hair.

She placed her order at the counter and waited.

'Something doesn't seem right...' she heard the voice of Nozomi say.

She glanced over to her left and saw the little girl looking at her, wearing pig tails and the same white dress with red flowers. When this had first happened to her a month or so ago, she was quite surprised, but she found out that she and Ryan were the only ones who could see Nozomi and Adrian when they appeared, and that they could respond in thought as well as speech.

'What is it, Nozo-chan?'

'I...don't know how I can explain it...something just seems wrong...'

'It's probably nothing.'

'I bet you're right. Just my imagination, neh?'

'Yeah, sis is just getting delusional again,' Anna heard Adrian say. He stood over to her right, his arms crossed over his chest, grinning.

'Stop it!'

'Delusional! You're delusional! You're gonna need a shrink!'

'Shut up, Adrian!'

'Stop it, both of you!' Anna shouted in thought/speech, inwardly smiling. 'Don't say that again, Nozomi!'

'Gomen, Okaa-san.' Nozomi said. She then bowed and disappeared.

'Don't treat your sister like that, Adrian.'

'Yeah, yeah...'

God, he's so like his father! Anna thought, then to her son,

'Don't "yeah, yeah" me. Wakata ka?'

'You can speak English you know.'

'WA--KA--TA--KA?!'

'Hai! Hai! Wakarimasu, okaa-san! Can I go now?'

'Yes, but don't you go bothering your sister, or else.'

Adrian mumbled something and then vanished from Anna's vision.

'Those two...' she thought. 'Such a handful...and they're not even born yet.'

Anna smiled. Taking care of her kids was a tough job, but at least she could implement this "training" when they became five or so. Something told her that she would definitely need it.

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Ryan and Sherry had just walked into the kitchen, quite worn out by their basketball game.

"You played pretty well, Share," Ryan complemented.

"What do you mean? I was the worst on the team! I hardly scored a single basket!"

"So what? Some people are only good at D, and others are only good at O. How many times did you steal the ball? How many shots did you block?"

"...A lot."

"There you go."

Ryan opened the fridge and rummaged through it.

"How about a hard lemonade?" he offered.

"What's a hard lemonade?"

"Dunno. I guess that it's just a really powerful, really sour lemonade."

Sherry smiled and rubbed her hands.

"Sure."

They both took a glass bottle, and twisted off the cap.

"Bottoms up," Sherry said as they took a drink.

As soon as the liquid touched their tongues, they both started spitting it out.

"What...what the...hell is...this?!" Sherry gasped between gags.

"Hard! It's alcohol!" Ryan exclaimed.

It suddenly occurred to them what the "hard" in hard lemonade stood for.

"Ugh..." Ryan said. "I'm throwin' this away."

They both went into the back alley and threw the bottles into the dumpsters, and listened to them shattering to tiny little bits.

"Next time, why don't you actually read the label?" Sherry said.

Ryan gave a grumbled response, and they started to walk back inside.

"You know," Sherry told him when they reached the back door, "you should really think of getting back with Anna."

Ryan froze in place and turned to Sherry. He looked saddened.

"No," he said. "We've been getting along on slightly better terms lately. I won't screw this up now that we're so close. It would be safer for her to make the first move."

"I bet that she's waiting for you to make the first move. I don't know if you know this or not, but I can hear you sometimes silently cry yourself to sleep."

Ryan went on the defensive. "I-I-I'm just practicing for the drama classes!"

"Then why do you constantly mutter Anna's name when you're 'practicing', and even do the same when you're sleeping? And since when did you take up drama classes?"


Ryan had no answer for that.

"Look, everyone in the household, both Anna's friends and yours know that you love each other. Why not take a chance?"

"Because it could set her off again. I'm not going to lose her for another five weeks!"

"I don't think that'll happen. Just try it. If she really does flip out, I'll convince her that I was the one who put you up to it."

Ryan remained silent, listening to the afternoon sounds of summer. He seemed to be in a sort of trance, looking off into the distance, as if he were trying to recall a long lost memory.

"I...I do love her. That's why I don't want to endanger this relationship."

Sherry was beginning to get frustrated. Had he been listening to a word she was saying?

"That's why you need to try! I hate to say it, but her being pregnant has made her somewhat emotionally vulnerable. This is the best time that you can get on her good side. Besides, she's going to be too busy taking care of...what will be their names?"

"If I remember correctly, she wanted our daughter named Nozomi. I picked Adrian for our son. Ha! I can't believe I actually said that. Son! Daughter! Ha!"

"Right. So, what are you going to do?"

Ryan thought for a moment.

"All right," he said. "I'll take you up on your suggestion. I just hope it works."

"Good. It makes me glad to see you two so happy with each other."

"I thought you were jealous."

Sherry flushed with embarrassment. "That...that was a long time ago. Personally...I thought that she was going to take you away from me or something."


"What? She wouldn't do something like that. You and I both know that. Besides, you're my little sis. I wouldn't let something like that happen."

Sherry smiled. "Where did sis come from?"

"Dunno. I just consider you my little sister." Ryan then gave her a wide grin. "Got a problem with that?"

A little giggle bubbled out of Sherry as he wrapped his left arm around her shoulder.

"No. Of course not."

"Good, 'cause I always wanted a little sister to boss around."

"Hey!"

Sherry playfully punched him in the shoulder, and they both chuckled as they walked inside.

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He was first suspicious of the fact that Anna was coming in to the Café more often, and so he got himself a job there. Though he couldn't deal with the thought of working at a place that wouldn't call on any of his advanced abilities, he needed to get his revenge, no matter what the cost.

It took awhile, but he soon found out she was carrying the children of Ryan Davidson. Just having one half-Seraph was enough -- even though by his calculations it wouldn't matter if the child was half human or not; the full effects of the Seraph powers would be passed on -- but the thought of the first full natural-born Seraph sent pangs of joy through him. He never thought that Anna would be so irresponsible as to start a family at such a young age, but he saw it as probably the greatest thing he could ask for. Not only did it make getting his revenge somewhat easier, it gave him the opportunity to obtain a rare specimen. No one knew what would happen when a Seraph was crossed with two types of Elements, especially opposing ones.

He decided to wait until the fifth week to try anything, and judging by his calendar, it was time. But when will she come in?

"Excuse me," came a female voice. "Can I please have a hot chocolate? Extra syrup please. Oh, and I'd also like five lemon knots with that."

When he heard the voice, he turned from the counter with a smile he couldn't suppress.

Another counter person took her order, then Anna went for the women's washroom.

When the hot chocolate was finished, he took out a vial he had been hiding, and made sure no one was watching. The vial contained a black liquid that was odorless, and tasteless, at least to a human. A Seraph could notice the difference. But if she takes just one sip, isn't that enough?

He quickly poured the liquid into the glass, and stirred it into the hot chocolate. It was black at first, but it soon changed to the color of the chocolate. He almost tasted the spoon, but stopped himself just in time. And waited.

Anna came out of the washroom soon after, and took her drink. He made sure to hide his smiling face from her until she was at her table.

'Any minute now...' he thought with glee.

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Anna came to the counter and paid for her drink. She walked over to the spice bar, chose cinnamon, and shook a little into her drink. Picking up the cup, she made her way between the tables at the far end of the Café and slowly sat down, then she withdrew a book from her backpack and started reading.

After a few minutes of letting her hot chocolate cool down, she took a sip. It was slightly bitter, but it didn't make that much of a difference to her. After a few more minutes of reading, the words in her book began to look a little blurry. Anna adjusted her glasses, but found that it simply got worse. A feeling of nausea mixed with drowsiness overcame her.

She got up to walk, but found that she didn't have the strength to.

'Mom!' She heard Adrian exclaim in dread. 'What's wrong?!'

She fell to the floor. Her vision was clear enough to see the faces of people crowding over her, and when she found that she was looking at probably the last person she wanted to see, she wanted to scream. Though he had his hair cut a bit and he seemed to have had a little plastic surgery, his identity was undeniable. It was Dr. Jared Vickers.

She wanted to scream to get the man away from her, to arrest him, that he was a mad scientist who was bent on killing off most of the human population.

But she couldn't. She was too drugged to even speak. Her eyes slowly closed and the darkness overcame her.

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Chris checked his watch. It was 5:38. Anna was three hours late. He glanced over at the people in the room.

Leon and Claire were keeping straight faces, but Chris could sense their unease. Sherry was drumming her fingers on the table top. Ryan was pacing back and forth, stopping once in a while to attempt a mental link with Anna. He couldn't connect, so he continued pacing around the room, not knowing what to do. Finally, he stopped and shouted in frustration,

"Where the hell is she?!"

"Calm down!" Chris said. "Shouting won't help anything!"

Ryan growled, and seemed to go into deep thought.

"Hey!" Leon said suddenly, upon realizing something. "Doesn't Anna go to that Café in Evanston all the time?"

Everyone bolted for the door. They didn't need to be convinced of a better place to look for her.

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When they arrived at the Café, it was just starting to close, due to something that had happened earlier. When they asked the owner what had happened, he had explained that a pretty pregnant girl, who was one of his regular customers, had suddenly collapsed on the floor. Ryan almost jumped over the counter.

"Where did she go?" he asked in a very controlled voice.

The owner looked scared, and was reluctant to answer. When Ryan sensed this, his eyes flared up with a wild rage and he almost grabbed the owner by the collar, just as he had done to the senior at school a few weeks ago, when the adults had restrained him.

"Control yourself, Ryan!" Claire said. "I know you're worried about her, but you have to calm down!"

Ryan's rage slowly subsided, and then he asked the question again, in a much calmer manner. Once again the owner hesitated, but he answered.

"One uh my workers," he offered in a hesitant, thick 1920's Chicago accent. "Said 'e would uh...take 'er ta da nearest hospital, ta save som' time."

"Do you know what made her collapse?" Claire asked.

"Na, sorry."

"Which hospital did he say he was going to?"

"'E didn't say."

"Are you absolutely sure?"

"'Ey! I'm positive. My mem'ry ain't 'dat bad."

Ryan cursed silently.

"We could go home and call the police for all the nearest hospitals," Leon offered.

"Let's do it," Ryan said. "Quickly."

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The group had walked through the door, and Ryan went ahead of the others to pick up the phone.

Riiiiinnnnggggg!

The sound made everyone jump. They stared at the phone as if it were a prop in a cheesy horror movie. Chris was the one to finally pick it up.


"Yes?...Hold on," he said into the phone. "Ryan. For you."

Ryan walked over to Chris and picked up the phone.

"Hello?"

"Hello, Ryan." It was a familiar voice in an ominous tone.

"Who is this?"

"My, you have such a bad memory. Don't you remember me?"

"No! Stop playing games. Unless you know where a certain someone is, I don't have time for you."

"Oh, but I do."

Ryan's eyes widened in surprise. "What?"

"You're looking for Anna, yes?"

"Where is she?! Who are you?!"

"Think back to Carlton."

Ryan went into thought. The only other person that he could think of besides Anna and the house crew was Mark, and he was dead. So that left--

"Vickers!" Ryan seethed though clenched teeth.

"Correct."

"What have you done to her?"

"Nothing yet. Not for long, though."

"You place a hand on her, and I'll tear off your balls and feed them to the CPD's K-9 unit!"

Vickers gave a menacing laugh. "Why don't you try me, Davidson?" he mocked. "Why don't you come to rescue your damsel in distress? Why don't you show me what my greatest creation can do?"

"You bastard! YOU'RE DEAD! I SWEAR IT ON MY NAME!"

Vickers ignored his outburst. "There is a cell phone and GPS in your mail box. Take it and I will lead you to where I am."

Ryan wasn't going to let Vickers have the satisfaction of hanging up on him, so he slammed down the receiver. Ryan could feel the electricity flowing through his arms, sparking in his hand.


"Who was it?" Sherry asked.

"Vickers."

"Who?"

"The man who made me what I currently am. The man who made me his lab rat!"

"Dr. Vickers...?" Chris slowly asked. "That guy that we never met in Carlton?"

"Yeah. He's taken Anna. I've got to get her back..."

"Well then, what are we waiting for?" Sherry said. "Let's get going!"

Everyone split up into separate directions to get ready, except for Ryan and Claire. When they were alone, Claire spoke.

"You love her, don't you, Ryan?" Claire asked in a very serious tone.

Ryan looked away, his eyes squinting a little, and thought of something to avoid her question.

"He said he placed a cell phone and GPS in our mail box. Once we get that, he'll guide us to the labs."

"Answer me, Ryan."

He gave a mumbled response, and Claire knew that she would get nothing else out of him.

"I'm gonna go help Leon get the equipment ready," Claire said. "Please. Wait for us, okay?"

Ryan then looked down at his fist, bursting with electricity. Without warning, he pointed a fist toward a window, and a bolt of electricity leapt forth, surprising Claire a bit. The bolt vanished with no physical effect on the window, but it rattled the window frame a little. He would have his way with Dr. Vickers.

No matter what.

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Claire could still hear the rattle of the window in her mind. She was on her way to help Leon with the gear, when she stopped to talk with Chris. He was checking his sidearm.

"This isn't good," she whispered.

Chris gave her a blank look. "Yeah, no shit."

Claire put a hand on his arm. "I've never seen Ryan like this. Who knows what he's capable of?"

He fastened his shoulder holster and shrugged. "We've dealt with crazy stuff before."

"Not like this," she pressed. She stole a backward glance toward the other room, but it was silent. She turned back to her brother. "We don't really know what he can do. We don't really know what either of them can do. And those children?"

Chris watched her for a moment, then blurted: "That's really what's bothering you, isn't it? The kids."

Claire hugged her arms and paused thoughtfully. She looked down at her feet. "I think they should have been more careful. I don't think they're ready to be parents." She raised her head and locked eyes with him quickly. "But, God, Chris -- those babies have nothing to do with this. I don't want Ryan to do anything stupid, but it this Vickers has done anything to hurt those babies, I swear--!" Her voice hitched.

Chris forced a smile that he didn't quite feel. "Don't worry, Auntie Claire. We'll find Anna."

She stared over his shoulder and tried to see Ryan. "He really cares about her," she murmured. "I think he even loves her." She paused again, and a look of deep-rooted fear crossed her face. "Chris, what if..."

He craned his neck to look at her. "Come on," he said, and she looked at him again. "We don't have much time. Go help Leon."

She nodded, then turned and was away.

Chris patted his sidearm, and went back to the living room to collect Ryan.

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Chris watched as Ryan stared at the wall, constantly clenching and un-clenching his fist, speaking to himself in Japanese.

'He's got to be really pissed...I know that I couldn't understand how he feels...'

Ryan then took a deep breath and stopped his previous action, but kept on speaking. He then sat down on the couch and, with a deep sigh, ran his hands though his hair in an attempt to control his rage.

'He's using all his self-control to keep his anger inside,' Chris thought. 'Don't worry, kid, we'll find Anna. She'll be okay. Then you two raise a family together, and all will be right with your world.'

Even though Chris thought those words, he had to admit that he doubted himself.

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Dr. Vickers stared long and hard at his subject. Anna Yamaguchi. When she was awake, she was attractive, yes; but when she was asleep, words could not describe her.

Vickers studied her every curve and body structure, and sighed. 'She is such a prime example of human -- no, Seraphim magnificence...' He thought. 'Such a waste to defect to the wrong side. To the side of the...humans...' Vickers snorted at the last word in his thought.

They were in an operating room, and she was strapped to a table so she couldn't have moved even if she were awake. It was several minutes before she awoke, grumbling.

"Welcome back to the world of the living, Ms. Dav--, I mean, Yamaguchi."

Her eyes shot open, and she tried to move, finding it impossible. She was in restraints. She grunted in anger, then realized who was standing at her side.

"Vickers? What the hell are you doing here?"

"To get revenge on you and that Davidson. You both killed my finest creation, and destroyed my labs! My virus research!"

"So? You deserved it! You're a crazed psychopath working for a company that makes trillions on the suffering of innocent people every year, and you always manage to cover up its dirty work! Work that goes far beyond human standards. Playing God! Much like you are now!"

Vickers cocked his head to the side.

"Me? God? I never quite thought of it that way..."

"What do you want with me?"

Vickers moved in close and touched her stomach. Horrified, Anna flinched from his fingers and tried to move away, but she couldn't.

"Because of this, Anna. Do you know that you are carrying the first natural born Seraphs? You should consider this an honor. You're making history."


"You'll be history once Ryan gets here," Anna seethed.

"You're counting on him? Ha! If he even makes it here!"

"You seem to forget that he's a Seraph, and you're just a simple little man."

"You seem to not realize that there is a certain chemical I released into the ventilation system that will keep him from using his Seraph powers," Vickers said, smiling. "Oh, and the same goes for you, if you would notice."

Anna tried to concentrate and use some acid to melt the straps keeping her to the table, but there was a mental block in the way. No matter how hard she concentrated, she couldn't get anything to happen.

"See?" he said.

Vickers then cupped her head in his hand. "Such beauty..." he commented as if he were in a trace.

"Get your hand off ME!"

Vickers complied. When he did, she spit in his face.

"Well then," he said, reaching for a cloth in his lab jacket. "Let's get down to business."

He wiped his face clean of the saliva, then walked over to Anna, and placed his face point-blank with hers. There he stood for a few moments, until he placed his mouth on hers, and attempted to stick his tongue down her throat. Anna tried to resist, but found that she couldn't. When he had finished, Anna gagged and spit off to the side.

"You sick son of a..."

"You should feel lucky, Anna. I could share you with my whole entire staff, but I decided to save you for myself."

He then groped her breast in his hand. Anna felt a sickening feeling wash over her. She suddenly noticed how vulnerable she was.

"Let's have a little fun, eh?" he said with a sadistic smile.

"Get away from me!" she hissed.

Vickers simply ignored her and kept at what he was doing. Anna closed her eyes tightly and screamed as she was forced to endure the most frightening experience of her life.

Author's note: Yes, Dr. Vickers is a sick twisted bastard. That's the way I wanted him to come across as. I kinda didn't want to write about what he did to Anna, but in my mind, it felt like it had to be done. I apologize to anyone how may be offended by it. Let me assure you that I feel that people who do things like this either need serious help, or need to be taken care of all together.

By the way, sorry this took so long, but my editors and I were very busy.

And a komah wah yo to Go Eun and Mi Yon for letting me use their names. It saved me about thirty minutes plus thinking up names. That and they just sound cool. :)

Go eun Kim (KO-uhn-khim)/Korean name

Mi Yon Kim (ME-youn-khim)/Korean name

Ahn yung (Said as exactly as it is spelled. Place a stress on the 'ung' part of 'yung', and the 'g' sound is cut a little short)/Depending on situation, it can mean, "Hello" or "Good bye." If you add a "haseyo" (HAH-say-yo) to it, then it becomes more polite.) (Korean)

Gomen (Go-mehn)/A simple way to say "Sorry" in Japanese

Baka (BA-kah)/Idiot, fool

Wakata (WA-ka-tah)/[do you] Understand? (A more "superior" way to say "Wakarimasu" (Do you understand?). DO NOT use it with people who are older, or of higher-status than you.)

Draft: 6/30/01 (9:02PM)

Final: 3/14/02 (8:26PM)

Ja matta ne!