A/N 1: Ideas for fic and character development, questions, plotbunnies, suggestions, flames, character pictures, ficlets, corrections, additions, comments, and everything in between can be mailed to hack_heaven@usa.net.

A/N 2: Rascal: Normal past? You know, according to psychology, it takes a *lot* to create that fucked up a person...*g*

Sabrin: Don't worry, the muses are helping, all right ^^

VivaGlam: *mildly* Now, now...you can't really blame Vamp, now can you? He just wanted a snack, and you just happened to be nearby...and he gets so awfully bored when he doesn't have someone to play with *smirk*

Italics indicates thoughts/telepathy

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Chapter Sixty-Two: Eye of the Storm

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The world was white - a harsh, white brightness that burned through everything and sent needles of pain through Kyle's head. It was bright, too bright for his sensitive eyes, and Kyle groaned softly. His head hurt, his body hurt, and even the simple gesture of covering his eyes with his hands was a feat in itself.

Slowly, excruciatingly slowly, Kyle's eyes got used to the searing brightness, and he looked around cautiously, not sure what to expect.

The world was white - white floor, white walls, white ceiling...and a large, gray metal door.

Shit!

The room looked suspiciously like a cell, and considering the last thing Kyle remembered before losing consciousness, chances were that it was indeed a cell somewhere.

The sound of movement caught Kyle's attention, and somehow he managed to turn around to look at the area behind him. Suzuka was lying motionless on the floor, her chest rising and falling in slow, regular intervals. A bit away from her, Jordane moved slightly, apparently waking up as well, and next to her, Blade had somehow managed to get on his feet, although his body language showed beyond any doubt that he felt just as miserable as Kyle did.

A flash of pain sent mental claws through Kyle's mind as his body slowly woke up, making him aware of every single place that hurt, and somehow managed to focus the pain right where it would feel the worst.

Slowly, and very careful not to put himself in any more pain, Kyle got up on his feet and supported himself against the wall as he made his way to Suzuka. Right now she was his first priority - the danger that Blade's presence posed would have to come second. Besides, if Blade had wanted them dead, he would have killed them before the failed attempt to escape, Kyle could see that even in his current condition.

Suzuka moved slightly and mumbled something in Japanese, and the tone she used made Kyle thankful that he didn't know what, exactly, she had said.

"Suzuka?" he said quietly and carefully sat down next to the girl.

Suzuka opened her eyes, only to close them again immediately as the harsh light greeted her. She waited a moment, then opened her eyes again, this time slower to give them the chance to adapt to the brightness.

"Where are we?" she mumbled, voicing the question they had all been wondering about.

"I don't know," Kyle replied with a small sigh. Waking up in suspiciously cell-like places was starting to become a bad habit, and one he has more than willing to get rid of.

"Wherever we are, it isn't the same place as before," Blade said, slowly fighting back the unpleasant headache that still lingered in the back of his mind. "The collars are different."

Jordane fought back a small groan as she sat up, and Blade turned his attention away from Kyle and focused it on Jordane instead. He kneeled next to her and asked her about something, his voice too low for Kyle to hear. Jordane nodded, then whispered something in reply, and the faintest hint of a small smile was visible on Blade's face.

Kyle frowned, wondering for a moment about the two, but he had more important things on his mind...namely the almost casual comment Blade had made about the collars.

Kyle reached up and found that a thick, round metal band had been locked around his neck, its weight temporarily unnoticed because of the pain he felt. He let a hand run across it carefully and felt a small inscription in the back of the otherwise flawless metal. Kyle frowned, then reached down and brushed Suzuka's long hair out of the way to get a good look at her collar, hoping to see what the inscription said.

"Kyle...?" she asked, a bit confused. Normally, she would have tried to turn around and see what was going on, but currently she was too weakened to do much.

Kyle didn't reply but merely continued his inspection of the smooth, black collar and finally found what he had been looking for - a small serious of letters in the neck, stamped into the metal. He let a finger run across the letters, then felt his eyes widen.

"Property...of the U.S. Military?" he read, then closed his eyes for a second. "Damn!"

"U.S. Military?" Suzuka asked. "But why would they-?"

Her question was cut off by the deep clang of metal against metal as the mechanisms inside the seemingly solid door shifted to unlock. A moment passed, then the door opened soundlessly, and about half a dozen soldiers walked into the room, followed by a man in his late thirties. The uniform he wore lacked any kind of insignias, but it was impossible to miss the air of authority that surrounded him.

The sudden appearance of their captors forced away the last of the grogginess, and the four mutants got up, watching the soldiers with various degrees of suspiciousness and anger.

"I trust that none of you suffered any permanent injuries from the sedatives?" the man asked, his eyes every bit as impassive as his voice. No emotions crossed his face, but none had to - it was clear to all in the cell that the four meant nothing to him.

He met Suzuka's hateful glare evenly, clearly unimpressed by her, then let his eyes sweep across the four once again, slowly analyzing what he saw. Hatred from the Asian girl - considering her youthfulness, that was only to be expected. A wary look from the younger of the males, cautious, but not afraid. Anger from the other girl, but she seemed to be able to keep her temper in check - that was a bit surprising, but not entirely unexpected. The second man's eyes held a cold annoyance, and he was clearly analyzing the situation, looking for any weakness to exploit - this was no surprise, considering what his file had said.

"What do you want with us?!" Jordane demanded angrily as she was finally unable to withstand the unnerving silence anymore.

The man pointedly ignored her question and sent the four mutants another long, measuring look, his eyes losing none of their indifference.

"My name is Sanders, and you four are currently the guests of the U.S. Military," the man finally began, his body language revealing only what he wanted it to - in this case, an almost careless confidence. Suzuka opened her mouth to tell him exactly what she thought of that, but Sanders cut her off before she could even begin. "I'm sure you've noticed the collars around your necks, and contrary to what you might think, they are not power-suppressive."

He paused for a moment, but was met only by a heavy silence.

"These collars are our insurance of your continuous good behavior," Sanders continued slowly, his eyes constantly watching the four. "Beneath the metal surface is an explosive called thermite, which is strong enough to vaporize iron."

"You're bluffing," Kyle said with more confidence than he felt. "You wouldn't have gone through all this trouble just to kill us."

The words were said as a statement, but in all honesty Kyle was far from sure if he was right - it was, however, a chance he was willing to take. Sanders would have known that they might not believe him, and had probably already a reply planned. And the longer they could keep him talking, the more information they were likely to get about the place they were currently trapped in.

Sanders arched an eyebrow. "Is that a chance you're willing to take?" he asked. There was no reply and he continued. "Are you ready to risk your life - your cellmates' lives - on something as dangerous as this?"

None of the mutants asked the question that Sanders had so obviously been leading up to, but he answered it anyway.

"Yes - your own life won't be the only one at stake here. If something happens to one collar, the others will detonate. If you try to escape or disobey an order, the collars will detonate." Sanders' eyes came to rest on Suzuka, and he continued, never looking away from the girl. "And if any of you try to attack me, you will live to regret it."

Suzuka glared at him, but allowed her muscles to relax ever so slightly, unwilling to endanger Kyle by doing something rash.

Blade watched Sanders for a moment, but the human didn't continue his small speech.

"You didn't answer our question," Blade said coldly. This whole game was beginning to annoy him - it was obvious to everyone that the military wouldn't have gone through all that trouble without a reason, and the lack of an explanation was starting to make Blade more than a bit impatient. "What do you want with us?"

"I will answer your questions when I deem it necessary," Sanders replied, his voice every bit as cold as Blade's. "And right now, the only thing you four need to know, is that we have a job for you, and that your future survival depends on your ability to do that job."

"And who says that we want to accept that job?" Blade asked, arching an eyebrow. Kyle glared at him, clearly wanting to tell him to stop provoking the man, but Blade pointedly ignored him. "I don't work for the military, and I don't intend to start now."

"Yes, you will," Sanders said with finality. "Don't underestimate me, Heron - you don't know what you're up against." There was a hint of surprise in Blade's eyes, and Sanders continued with the confidence of someone who knew that they had already won. "Yes, I know who you are - I know who all of you are. We have a quite impressive file on you, and I'm well aware that death-threats don't matter to you." He paused for a moment, allowing a small smile to show. "But you're not invulnerable - one of your greatest weaknesses just happens to be here as well, and I think it's safe to assume that as long as your partner's life is on the line, you will cooperate with us."

Blade's eyes narrowed angrily, the emotion directed as much against their captor as himself for allowing such a weakness. Much as he hated to admit it, Sanders had a point - had it only been his own life at stake, Blade wouldn't have cared. But with Jordane with him, things were different - her safety was his responsibility, and he wasn't going to let her die because of him.

Sanders met Blade's glare for a moment before turning his attention to the rest, seemingly unaffected by the clear threat visible in Blade's eyes.

"Make no mistake," Sanders finally said, letting his eyes linger for a moment on each of them. "This isn't a matter of whether or not you will cooperate - this is only a matter of how far we have to go to break you."

His point made, Sanders turned around and left the room with his cohort, not pausing to look back. The last of the humans left the room, and the door began to close again. Faint footsteps could be heard down the hallway, then the door closed, the sound echoing through the room with finality.

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