A/N 1: As in the previous chapters – ideas for fic and character development, questions, plotbunnies, suggestions, flames, character pictures, corrections, additions, comments, and everything in between can be mailed to hack_heaven@usa.net
Italics indicates thoughts/telepathy
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Chapter Thirty-Four: Confrontations
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"We have to make sure that someone's awake at all times, in case Cretes tries anything," Jordane said.
Blade, Laetitia, and her had gathered in one of the rooms to decide their future course of action, and what to do with their unwilling guest. They had quickly realized that it would be easier to discuss it if they weren't in the same room as the others, and especially Jhonen. There were still some things that the boy wasn't ready to accept.
"We can take the first shift," Blade said. "Us, Hal, and Aaron. Laetitia, you can the second shift with Jhonen, Pheonix, and Zach. We'll wake you up around four a.m."
Laetitia nodded.
"I agree," she said. "I found some more information on the drug we're giving Suzuka," she continued. "Each dose lasts about twelve hours, but we already knew that. The first damage to the body occurs after about three days. At first it will be temporary and will disappear when the subject stops taking the drugs. After five to seven days that damage will become permanent. More than two weeks of exposure to the drug usually results in death."
"And how much of that drug do we have?" Jordane asked.
"Enough to last about a week," Laetitia replied. "I can probably get more, but I doubt it will be necessary."
"It won't," Blade replied, and the meaning wasn't lost on the others.
In a week she'll be dead anyway.
The sound of footsteps caught the trio's attention, and they looked up from the papers and maps on the table. Jhonen appeared in the doorway and stopped, looking nervously at the carpet, obviously reluctant to enter the room uninvited.
"Yes?" Blade asked, and Jhonen finally looked up.
"I-I wanted to ask if I could talk to Suzuka," he stammered. "She's-she's not acting like herself, and I wanted to know if..." he trailed off, unable to put his feelings into words.
"You do know that she's quite angry with you, don't you?" Laetitia remarked, and Jhonen looked downright uncomfortable.
"Yeah," he admitted and looked away. "I know."
Blade frowned. He had expected that Jhonen would want to talk to his former teammate, but he wasn't entirely sure if he liked the idea. Yes, Laetitia believed that Jhonen would remain loyal, but there was always the risk that Suzuka would be able to talk Jhonen into helping her.
It was a double-edged sword - a confrontation with Suzuka could seal Jhonen's loyalty to the Shadow Alliance for good, or it could turn him against them. But with the way Suzuka had acted towards Laetitia...
Blade finally nodded.
"Alright. Go ahead."
He tossed the key to Jhonen, who caught it with a slightly surprised look on his face. He looked at the key, then at Laetitia who sent him an encouraging look.
"Thanks," Jhonen replied quietly and disappeared down the hallway.
Blade waited until he couldn't hear Jhonen's footsteps anymore, then looked at Laetitia.
"Afterwards, have a talk with him. Let's make sure he won't get a sudden case of misplaced loyalty."
Laetitia nodded slightly, and the subject was dropped.
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It was the sound of a door being unlocked that tore Suzuka out of her half-unconscious state. She scrambled to her feet, unwilling to let any of her captors see her weak. The person who walked through the door wasn't Laetitia, though, but instead some younger, smaller, but no less hated by Suzuka. He walked into the room and stopped about six feet from Suzuka.
For a long moment the two former teammates just looked at each other, neither knowing how to react.
"I'm-" Jhonen finally began, but Suzuka interrupted him before he could get any further.
"Get out!" Suzuka replied with barely controlled rage. "Get away from me!"
"Suzuka, I-I just wanted to tell you that-" Jhonen began again, unsuccessfully.
"Get the Hell out of here, you TRAITOR!" Suzuka screamed and tried to get loose, but to no avail.
"Suzuka, please-you have to understand...I-I couldn't keep fighting for the humans anymore, not after all they've done to us," Jhonen stammered and took a small step back.
"Go to hell!" she snapped and yanked at her handcuffs again, and this time a small drop of blood ran down the back of her hand. Jhonen looked concerned at the marks from the restrains and moved closer.
"Please, stop fighting, Suzuka," he pleaded. "You'll only hurt yourself."
"Why would you care?!" she sneered. "Besides, they're gonna kill me anyway, so what difference does a few more marks make?"
Jhonen's concern turned to impatience, and then anger. He was trying to help her, couldn't she see? And her accusation of the Shadow Alliance - it was one thing to call him a traitor, but to claim that the Shadow Alliance - that *Laetitia* - would execute a mutant in cold blood...
"Who said anything about killing?!" he snapped. "What do you know about them, anyway?! Nothing! Not a fucking thing!"
"*I* know nothing about them?!" Suzuka repeated. "Your psycho girlfriend told me flat-out that she would put a bullet through my brain!"
Jhonen took a step back.
"I'm not gonna listen to this!" he said angrily. "I'm not gonna listen to you talking about something you know nothing about! I was just trying to help you!"
"And what a help you are, you traitor!"
"Traitor? I'm just trying to stay alive! The humans - they want us dead, don't you see?" Jhonen asked incredulously.
"The only thing I see is a cowardly teenage boy who's trying to justify the fact that he betrayed the people who trusted him!"
Jhonen didn't reply. He just looked away, ashamed of himself, and Suzuka continued.
"*We* were the ones who helped you when you needed it most. *We* took you in from the streets. *We* gave you a home. *We* did - not the Shadow Alliance. And now you're going to turn your back on us just because you got a better offer. What a friend you turned out to be," she said scornfully. "We should have left you on the streets!"
Jhonen's shame turned to anger. He wanted to yell at her, to tell her that things were nothing like that, but he forced himself to remain calm.
"I'm gonna leave now - I don't want to listen to this," he said, and he was surprised at how much the sudden coldness in his voice reminded him of Laetitia.
"I think that's a good idea," someone said, and the two former teammates looked up.
Blade stood next to the door, casually leaning against the wall. Both teenagers had been too absorbed in the argument to hear his arrival, and Jhonen had to wonder how much the man had heard. It didn't matter, though, Jhonen decided and shook his head. He was done with Suzuka, done with the Guardians...and he was done keeping their secrets. If they saw him as a traitor, he might as well go all the way.
"Goodbye, Suzuka," he said softly and walked across the room, never looking back.
"JHONEN!" Suzuka shouted angrily, but he ignored her.
"I'm sorry you had to listen to that," Blade said quietly as Jhonen reached the door, and his voice held a note of sincere regret.
Jhonen shook his head.
"I just-I just hoped she would understand, but..." he trailed off.
"...But she's not the type who forgives easily," Blade finished, and Jhonen nodded.
"Yeah."
Blade sent Suzuka a brief look, then focused on Jhonen again.
"Laetitia wants to talk with you," he said and motioned towards one of the rooms down the hallway.
Jhonen nodded, and walked out of the room, doing his best to ignore the pain and anger from the heated argument. Blade waited for a moment until Jhonen was out of sight and then closed the door. Suzuka tried to get out of the handcuffs once again, but failed and settled for an angry glare at her captor instead.
"I see the drug hasn't affected your health...or your temper," Blade remarked.
"I didn't think you cared about anyone but yourself," Suzuka replied acidly, but to her dismay the only reaction from Blade was a faint, sardonic smile.
"Such harsh words from Cretes' pet shapeshifter."
"I'm nobody's pet!" Suzuka snapped, and realized too late that it was exactly the reaction Blade had hoped for. He was analyzing her, looking for a weakness, just like she was looking for something - anything - to use against him.
"Really? Then this whole attempt to kill Jordane and me was your own idea?" he asked, with just the hint of a smirk on his face.
"I wasn't trying to kill you, damnit!"
"And yet you sneaked in here in the shape of a poisonous snake. Care to explain that?"
"Go to Hell!" Suzuka spat.
"Well, you certainly did your best to send me there," Blade remarked. "You might even have succeeded if it hadn't been for Jhonen."
"That traitor," Suzuka muttered angrily.
Blade smirked.
"He belongs to us now, Suzuka. His loyalty, his powers...you can't change that."
"Who says we want him, anyway?" Suzuka snapped.
"You're not a very good liar, Suzuka," Blade observed. "Too open, too...emotional. A shame, really. With your abilities you could have become powerful."
"I don't care about power!"
"Everybody cares about power. It's only a matter of admitting it or not," Blade corrected.
Suzuka didn't reply, and Blade continued.
"Let's drop the games. I want some inside information about the Guardians, and you can give it to me."
"Not a chance!" Suzuka replied, almost challenging.
Blade sighed.
"Drop the heroic facade, Suzuka. Let's make this easy for the both of us: tell me what you know about the Guardians - their strengths, their weaknesses, everything - and in return I'll make sure that nobody will bother you."
"But you're still gonna kill me," Suzuka added disgustedly.
"Yes," Blade admitted. "The difference being that if you cooperate, I won't feel tempted to let Laetitia play with you first."
"How benevolent," Suzuka sneered.
"Considering what Laetitia does to people she don't like...yes, it is," Blade said. "Well?" he asked, and sent the girl a pointed look.
Suzuka just glared at him, the hate obvious in her gray eyes.
"You think I'm gonna betray my teammates? Go to Hell!"
Blade sighed at her stubbornness. He'd expected that kind of reaction from Suzuka, but it never seized to amaze him how small a sense of self-preservation some people had.
"I strongly advise you to think about your situation before you make a decision," he said, and unnoticed by Suzuka, his right hand moved slightly to rest on the handle of one of his knives.
"I *have* thought about it!" Suzuka replied spitefully. "Go. To. Hell!"
The movement of Blade's hand was so sudden and so fast that Suzuka didn't have the time to react before she felt the cold steel of a knife against her cheek, and then a sharp pain as the metal cut through her skin, leaving a long, thin wound behind.
Suzuka gasped, not because of the pain, but because of the unexpectedness of the action. She had never believed that Blade would do something like that - threaten her, yes, but physically hurt her...?
A drop of warm, ruby red blood ran down her cheek and fell to the floor, staining the light gray carpet. Seconds later another followed, slowly creating a dark red, almost black, mark on the floor.
Blade shook his head and caressed Suzuka's other cheek with the dull side of the knife.
"Poor, little Suzuka," he mumbled, almost gently. "So brave, and yet so foolish."
Blade put his hand under her chin and forced her to look him in the eyes.
"Now be a good girl and tell me what I want to know," he said in a deceptively quiet voice.
It wasn't natural to be so calm and collected when you faced your would-be killer, Suzuka knew that much. It meant that Blade was planning something, and she was willing to bet money that whatever it was, it would be bad news for her. She suppressed her fear, and stared back at him without blinking.
"Fuck you," she sneered.
A flicker of anger in Blade's cold eyes was the only warning Suzuka got before he backhanded her violently. Suzuka drew a sharp breath at the sudden pain, and felt the metallic taste of blood in her mouth.
Out of the corner of her eyes she saw Blade move, then felt a sharp pain between her shoulders. She gasped, and the sudden pain made her legs buckle, and she landed hard on her knees. Blade gave her a moment to recover her breath, then reached down and took a solid grip around her arms.
Suzuka winced as she felt his fingers dig painfully into her skin, and she realized that he was stronger than most of them gave him credit for. With an almost frightening ease he pulled her to her feet and let go, and Suzuka just barely had the time to find her balance.
"Tell me, Suzuka...are you afraid?" Blade asked and watched Suzuka carefully.
"No, I'm not!" the girl replied defiantly.
Blade just smirked and reached out to touch her throat. Suzuka flinched slightly and braced herself for another attack, but none came. Instead, Blade just rested his hand on her throat, feeling the fast rhythm of her pulse against his palm.
"Fast breathing...your pulse is racing..." Blade trailed off, and in an instant, the soft pressure on Suzuka's throat had turned into an iron grip.
"You're lying, girl. Don't *ever* do that," he sneered and strengthened his grip.
Suzuka gasped and desperately tried to breathe, but Blade had cut off her air-supply with chilling efficiency. She tried to kick him, but because of the sudden lack of oxygen, she didn't have the strength to do any serious harm. Blade held on to her for a moment longer to make his point, then let go. Suzuka collapsed on the floor, coughing and gasping for air.
"You're sick..." she whispered as she was finally able to use her voice again.
"No. I just do what has to be done," Blade replied. "The Guardians are in my way, and I intend to do something about that."
He crouched next to Suzuka and caressed her cheek, and the girl suppressed a shudder. Blade just smirked, obviously amused by her reaction.
"You'll talk, Suzuka. Never doubt that."
With deliberately casual movements he stood up and walked out of the room like nothing had happened. The door closed behind him, and seconds later Suzuka heard the distinctive sound of a key in a lock.
Another drop of blood rolled down her cheek, slower this time as the wound had almost stopped bleeding. Suzuka didn't notice that, though. She just looked at the bloody carpet in stunned silence, and for the first time since her capture, she truly feared for her life.
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Coming up: VivaGlam's second vignette, as dark and gorgeous as the first ^^
