A/N 1: [insert very long, very boring definition of 'stuff', ranging from plotbunnies to flames] can be send to hack_heaven@usa.net. Yes, that's an e-mail address. No, I don't bite ^^

A/N 2: Bunny Angel: That'll be explained in one of the upcoming chapters ^^ Trust me ;)

Italics indicates thoughts/telepathy

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Chapter Seventy-Eight: Dante's Inferno

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For a moment it was completely silent, Hal's words still echoing in their minds as they caught up with the implications of what she'd just said.

"Shit!" Zach was the first to break the silence, his angry curse summing up the thoughts that went through everyone's heads. They had been this close to getting away safely, without putting themselves into further risk, and then...

"How many?" Blade's question was curt, his own anger suppressed until they were out of danger, knowing from painful experiences that any decisions ruled by anger could very well be fatal.

Hal hesitated, a frown marring her face as she remembered her visions. "Two teams, as far as I can see. One at the front, one guarding the back door. Maybe more...I'm not sure."

"Weaponry?"

"Standard." Hal's reply was automatic, the question anticipated. She knew the drill, knew what her teammates needed to know, and had learned look for it the first time around, rather than having to use her powers again. "I saw tranquilizers, too, but that's to be expected."

"You said the back door was guarded?" This time the question was from Ryan, and Hal nodded. "So they've been warned that we might try to leave that way," Ryan concluded with a sigh. "Damn."

"And that's probably not the only thing they've been warned about," Kyle said, frowning. "They probably have our files, too."

Blade smiled faintly, but the humor never reached his eyes. "Of course they have. They're not stupid. They know exactly what to expect from us. The only advantage we have here, is the fact that they only expect the four of us. They don't know we're not alone."

"And we can get there others here, too," Ryan added, then continued at the questioning looks he got from the four. "They're nearby...if I contact them, they should be able to get here within a couple of minutes."

Blade nodded. "Good. We'll need the backup. The cops expect us to show up - we can't get away unnoticed." We'll have to fight our way out. The unsaid remark hung heavily in the air, all of them very much aware that there would be no easy way to get out of this. The only option left was to fight, and the chances did not look good. "We'll need a distraction once we get out of here, though."

Pale eyes turned to Zach, and the boy nodded before heading over to a window, taking a casual look outside. His eyes scanned the area, judging the distance from the entrance to any useful objects within reach, and he nodded slowly. "I can hit a couple of the cars - they're close enough for that."

Ryan frowned at the words, and walked over to Zach, surveying the area as well, not looking for the vehicles, but for the people who operated them, his eyes coming to rest on the SWAT team that was getting ready. Hal had been right - they'd already been there, but they had been hiding in the dark vans among the police cars, efficiently preventing anyone from noticing them before it was too late. "Even if I knock out the guards by the entrance, I should still have enough strength left to knock out the first of the SWAT team - them, and some of the police-men. The back-up team is too far away to reach, but knocking the closest ones unconscious will buy us some more time."

Blade nodded, reluctantly agreeing to Ryan's idea. He didn't at all like to admit that Ryan might be useful after all, but in this case he couldn't argue against it. Besides...they would need all the help they could get.

He set the camera on the floor and removed the guns, then did the same thing with Kyle's camera, before handing one of the guns to Jordane. He tossed another to Hal, which she easily caught, and then he paused before handing the last one to Kyle. Zach wouldn't have much use for a gun in this situation - he needed his hands free to use his powers, and the kind of energy needed for this kind of thing was likely to leave him too drained to aim properly. Kyle accepted the weapon with a slightly surprised look, but didn't comment - he was the best choice that was left, they both knew that.

"So we blast our way out?" Hal asked, frowning slightly.

Blade raised an eyebrow. "Is there a problem?" he asked, watching the girl.

Hal paused for a moment before replying, knowing that for once, Blade wasn't referring to her powers. The comment had held something - a nuance that hadn't been there before, his voice just a bit colder, more challenging, too faint a change to pick up unless you were looking for it. This was solely about control, and Hal wasn't stupid enough to challenge that.

"No." She looked away briefly, backing down, and Blade nodded slowly.

"Good." His eyes rested on her for a moment longer before looking away, and Hal realized that just as she knew that she'd changed over the past week, Blade had noticed it, too, and seen something new in her that he didn't like at all.

Ryan moved closer, the motion breaking the suddenly tense atmosphere between Hal and Blade, and he sent the two a pointed look. "Let's go."

For a moment Blade looked like he was going to object, more out of principles than anything else, but settled for a brief, annoyed glare at Ryan before looking at his teammates again. "Zach."

The boy snapped up, knowing what was being asked of him, and the first, faint tingle in his hand appeared as he drew on his powers, small, blue snakes of electricity appearing, caressing his hand as they moved.

A grim smile crossed his lips as he headed down the hallway, towards the entrance. He was only vaguely aware of the others following him, most of his attention focused on his powers. It wouldn't be easy - the cars were a bit away, and the blots of energy quickly lost power once he'd thrown them at something. Summoning enough energy to make the blots strong enough to make the cars explode would take all the concentration he could spare.

The first, dull throbbing appeared under his skin, growing increasingly stronger as the small, blue snakes grew larger, more demanding, their touch biting painfully into his skin.

They turned around a corner and found themselves in the lobby, but before the guards could react to the danger that Zach so obviously posed, they collapsed on the ground, hit by an invisible force. For a second Zach felt something touch his mind, numbing it momentarily as Ryan's control almost slipped, then faded, leaving his head clear again.

The pain grew stronger, and Zach clenched his fists, hoping to distract himself from the constant bites he felt from the energy he'd summoned. He knew it would leave burns this time - there was no way it couldn't - but it didn't matter. The only thing he could focus on was the raw energy in his hand, and the knowledge that if he failed, his failure was likely to cost them all their chance of escape.

"Zach..."

Hal's warning as they approached the door sounded muted and oddly distant as it fought its way through the haze of pain that engulfed Zach's mind, and he was only vaguely aware that he nodded in reply. He stopped just before he reached the door, the walls still obscuring the vision of the cops outside, then felt the searing air hit him hard as the doors opened. There was no rational thought behind his motions, only instinctive movements, a drop of sweat rolling down his forehead as he focused one last time, then unleashed the blot, and-

-The roar was deafening as a white van across the street exploded, for a brief second completely surrounded by bright blue energy, before the biting snakes reached the fuel-tank, sending a cloud of debris and burning fuel into the air, completely engulfing the car beside it.

The cops reacted instantly, guns drawn, but before they could fire, they collapsed on the ground, struck down by the same invisible force that had claimed the guards in the lobby.

"Go!"

Zach felt Hal grab him, dragging him out the door, his mind still covered in the haze of pain, his every movement feeling slow and clumsy as his body reacted to the sudden loss of strength. Hal all but dragged him along, trying to snap him out of his daze before the remaining cops arrived - they were still too far away from any cover, too exposed if anything happened. The sound of gunshots pierced the air, and Hal tensed, expecting to feel the pain of a bullet tearing through flesh and bones, but as she looked up, she saw the bullets frozen in the air mere feet away from her.

She looked at Kyle, silent gratitude in her eyes, then turned her attention to the approaching cops again, seeing several of them collapse on the ground - some as Ryan sent another mindbolt at them, others as Blade and Jordane raised their own guns and fired at the humans.

They reached the undamaged cars across the street, taking cover for a moment, and Hal was grateful to see that Zach was finally starting to clear up enough to become aware of his surroundings again.

"The others should be here any moment," Ryan reported, part of his mind constantly aware of the others' location.

"We'll need a distraction, then," Blade decided, his eyes narrowing thoughtfully. "Zach - can you handle one more car?"

Zach looked up, the haze slowly fading from his mind and he nodded, against his better judgement. He'd never pushed his body this far before, but he didn't have much of a choice. He drew on his powers again, feeling the pain bite into his skin as the electric snakes appeared. Time seemed to stop as the energy grew stronger and Zach got up, only vaguely aware of the bullets that Kyle had frozen in the air before they could hit. He clenched his fists tightly again, then sent the second bolt of energy towards a police car, hearing the roar of an explosion as it hit. He gasped as the energy left him, almost too drained to remain standing, the sound of screaming and of gunshots only a dull hum in his ears.

"They're here!" Ryan's words cut through the chaos around them and Blade's head snapped up, eyes coming to rest on the two vans that turned around a corner. "The others are nearby - they'll meet up with us later," Ryan continued, answering the unasked question.

The two vehicles came to a screeching halt, and Hal got up, all but dragging Zach with her, pushing him into one of the cars, all too aware of how exhausted the boy was. Blade looked at them, quickly checking that the two were safe, he himself already moving towards the other van with Jordane. Another couple of gunshots, and Kyle froze the bullets again, the strain starting to become visible in his motions, too, his reactions slower, the bullets getting just a bit closer each time. Finally they reached the relative safety of the second van, and quickly got inside, Kyle deliberately waiting until the others were clear, keeping the last, few bullets from hitting.

Finally he got into the van and closed the door hard behind him, and Ben sent his teammates a brief look in the rear-view mirror before hitting the speeder, getting away as fast as possible.

Blade didn't notice any of it, though, his attention completely on Jordane who was resting against him, her skin warm against his.

Too pale... He stroked her cheek, and she looked at him, her eyes blank and not completely focused.

"Blade...?" Her mind was spinning, an odd numbness biting at the edge of her awareness, leaving behind a blissful sense of nothingness. She tried to fight against the darkness, but her mind was too exhausted to do much to keep it at bay. She made one last try at fighting it back, for a moment almost succeeding...and then there was only darkness.

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