"How the hell am I going to find them?!" Kurtis asked himself. "I
don't even know where to begin to look!"
Larson said, "Whoa, Kurtis, calm down. There has to be some way we can find them. I just don't know how."
"I might be able," Lara's mom offered.
"Is there any place you think he would have taken her?"
"Hello?"
"Kurtis sighed, "I don't know. I have to think about it."
"HEY!!! I said, 'I might be able to help.' Are you going to listen or not?"
"Yes! Just tell me!"
"Well, I heard glen talking on the phone in his room. He said something about a Kay-reel."
"Karel?"
"Yeah, Karel. Is that helpful?"
"Did he say anything else?" Kurtis asked her.
"I don't remember. Let me think a minute." The three of them sat there thinking. Kurtis drummed his fingers on the table impatiently. "He mentioned some thing. ... A Gunderson. Do you know what that is?"
"Gunderson is a man. And unfortunately I know him. What did he say about Gunderson?"
"That's who he was talking to," she told him. They started thinking again. The phone rang.
Kurtis answered it, "Hello?"
"We'll let Lara go as soon as you give up. Meet us at the old Lux Veritatis Training Facility in one hour," a man (probably Glen) said and then hung up.
"Get me the keys to Lara's motorcycle, get some guns and ammo, then follow me in Lara's car. I need someone there in case something really bad happens. You've got five minutes to load up." He took the key and walked out the door.
Lara woke up and realized she was hanging by chains around her wrists. She heard the door behind her open. "Hey, whoever you are, let me down," she growled. A man came around into her view; she saw it was Glen. "Glen!" She tried to kick him; of course, he was too far away. "You did this, didn't you?! You stupid jerk! Get me down from here!" He grabbed her legs so she couldn't kick anymore. She let out a frustrated sigh, "Where am I?"
"You're in an old Lux Veritatis Training Facility. It hasn't been used in years," he told her. "I bet you didn't know there was one around here."
"Why am I here? Where's Kurtis?!"
"Kurtis is on his way. I just came to see if you were awake, and now that I see you are, I'll be going." He left her yelling threats and kicking at him.
Kurtis felt like it had taken him forever to get there. Larson followed in one of Lara's cars. "You stay here," Kurtis said to Larson. "I'll get Lara. Hopefully, it wont take too long; but if anything happens to me, just get her the hell out of here."
"Aw," Larson complained. "I want to save her and be the hero."
"There's no time for that shit. You got the bag of ammo and all that?"
"Yeah."
"Give it to me."
"Right here? This isn't exactly a good time or place to-"
Kurtis interrupted, "That's disgusting and I'm not gay either, you freak. ... Anyway, I'm going now. You stay here." He took the bag from Larson, slung it across his shoulder, and went through the large doors. On the outside, the Lux Veritatis Training Facility looked like any other building (well, any other building that just happened to be in the middle of nowhere), but the inside made Kurtis feel like he was in a prison, though he was not sure why. A lot of the equipment used to train here was destroyed before the building was abandoned. He had come here once when he was little. Konstantin came to talk to the leader of this facility and brought Kurtis with him. But even being inside the place didn't stir any familiarity. Kurtis decided to start from the basement and work his way up.
In the basement there was basically nothing but faded blood stains on the walls. The room was small and dark. His father once told him that every Lux Veritatis Facility had a place to take care of traitors. For this facility, this room was that place. The blood obviously showed that. Since nothing remained here, he went back upstairs.
The first floor consisted mainly of sleeping quarters. Kurtis always felt lucky he didn't have to go to a training facility; Konstantin trained him. He remembered spending a lot of time locked in the basement, however, practicing his telekinetic power. He was often locked up down there. Konstantin was always so fixed on training Kurtis to be an initiate. It didn't matter to him that Kurtis wanted no part in it. So, they began working on Kurtis's psychic abilities when he was three or four. Konstantin got extremely frustrated with Kurtis when something wasn't done right. Then he'd get locked up in the basement. His father wasn't a bad person; Kurtis just wasn't particularly fond of him. He shook the memories from his head and finished checking the first floor. Still nothing. He was beginning to doubt whether they were even here.
The upstairs had a main hall that lead to all the different rooms. Most were large, empty rooms. One of the doors he came to was locked. He rammed his shoulder into it until it busted open. Lara glanced behind her and saw who it was. "Kurtis! Get me down," she yelled to him. He aimed his Chirugai at the chains. "Kurtis!" Something struck him in the back of the head, but he only fell to his knees. He rolled away, and turned, pointing his gun at the man that had just hit him. He wasn't surprised to see Glen.
Kurtis scoffed, "Figures. All right, you got five seconds to get her out of there. Now." Glen smiled and knocked Kurtis's weapon from his hand, then shoved Kurtis against the wall. He pushed Glen away from him using his ability, and hit him hard in his chest. Glen threw himself at Kurtis, so they both fell to the ground. Again, Kurtis was hit in the back of his head. This time, however, he was knocked out.
"What are you doing?!" Lara yelled, not long later. Three men were carrying her squirming body into another room. A chill ran down her spine, causing her to become nervous. "Where's Kurtis? What did you do to him?" They set her down on a steel table, and wrapped, sharp metal bands around her wrists and ankles. She could barely move, but kept fighting anyway.
Kurtis rubbed the back of his head. He knew that he got hit, that was obvious, and swore he heard Lara give out a scream. Whether it was about him or not, he wasn't sure, he just hoped she was unharmed. He could barely see anything in the dark, damp room. He could hear the muffled sounds of people talking. The wall in front of him (or at least he thought it was a wall just a few seconds ago) started lifting, revealing prison-like bars blocking his path. Lara was lying on a table. He called to her, "Lara!"
"Kurtis! I can't move!"
"Hold on." He reached at his side for the Chirugai and found it gone. "Shit!"
"I see you're up now. About time," Glen said, stepping in the room. He paced back and forth in front of the bars as he spoke. "You know you're in our way. I have an order to kill you, which I will do. But, I'm giving you the chance to give up without a struggle. Of course, you'll die either way."
"Oh really?" Kurtis shook his head. "And how do you expect that to happen?" Glen snapped his fingers. There were four men, one to each wheel, and as they began to turn them, the metal around Lara's wrists tightened. Kurtis had heard about this before. It was torture device for traitors. The metal would eventually become so tight that it would crush the bones. Lara let out a painful scream. "Stop! Leave her alone," Kurtis practically screamed. "Let her go! You've got me..."
As I predicted. Let her go," Glen said. Lara didn't move. She wasn't seriously hurt, but she felt she couldn't move. She locked eyes with Kurtis and wondered why.
"Kurtis," she whispered, but he couldn't hear her. The men picked her up and carried her off.
"We'll spare her life. I'd rather use you for the sacrifice anyway." Glen opened the door, and Kurtis was grabbed before he could do anything. Glen stuck him with a needle and a burning sensation ran through his body. Within a few seconds, he lost consciousness.
Lara broke out of the room she was thrown into and knocked out the guards. She searched the first floor until she found a small, black bag. It contained Kurtis's weapons as well as her own (plus ammo). She holstered her weapons and slung the bag across her shoulder. Outside, Lara heard a car driving off. She jumped on her motorcycle. "I'm going after them," she told Larson when she noticed him. "You go back to my house." Before she could object, he took off.
Larson said, "Whoa, Kurtis, calm down. There has to be some way we can find them. I just don't know how."
"I might be able," Lara's mom offered.
"Is there any place you think he would have taken her?"
"Hello?"
"Kurtis sighed, "I don't know. I have to think about it."
"HEY!!! I said, 'I might be able to help.' Are you going to listen or not?"
"Yes! Just tell me!"
"Well, I heard glen talking on the phone in his room. He said something about a Kay-reel."
"Karel?"
"Yeah, Karel. Is that helpful?"
"Did he say anything else?" Kurtis asked her.
"I don't remember. Let me think a minute." The three of them sat there thinking. Kurtis drummed his fingers on the table impatiently. "He mentioned some thing. ... A Gunderson. Do you know what that is?"
"Gunderson is a man. And unfortunately I know him. What did he say about Gunderson?"
"That's who he was talking to," she told him. They started thinking again. The phone rang.
Kurtis answered it, "Hello?"
"We'll let Lara go as soon as you give up. Meet us at the old Lux Veritatis Training Facility in one hour," a man (probably Glen) said and then hung up.
"Get me the keys to Lara's motorcycle, get some guns and ammo, then follow me in Lara's car. I need someone there in case something really bad happens. You've got five minutes to load up." He took the key and walked out the door.
Lara woke up and realized she was hanging by chains around her wrists. She heard the door behind her open. "Hey, whoever you are, let me down," she growled. A man came around into her view; she saw it was Glen. "Glen!" She tried to kick him; of course, he was too far away. "You did this, didn't you?! You stupid jerk! Get me down from here!" He grabbed her legs so she couldn't kick anymore. She let out a frustrated sigh, "Where am I?"
"You're in an old Lux Veritatis Training Facility. It hasn't been used in years," he told her. "I bet you didn't know there was one around here."
"Why am I here? Where's Kurtis?!"
"Kurtis is on his way. I just came to see if you were awake, and now that I see you are, I'll be going." He left her yelling threats and kicking at him.
Kurtis felt like it had taken him forever to get there. Larson followed in one of Lara's cars. "You stay here," Kurtis said to Larson. "I'll get Lara. Hopefully, it wont take too long; but if anything happens to me, just get her the hell out of here."
"Aw," Larson complained. "I want to save her and be the hero."
"There's no time for that shit. You got the bag of ammo and all that?"
"Yeah."
"Give it to me."
"Right here? This isn't exactly a good time or place to-"
Kurtis interrupted, "That's disgusting and I'm not gay either, you freak. ... Anyway, I'm going now. You stay here." He took the bag from Larson, slung it across his shoulder, and went through the large doors. On the outside, the Lux Veritatis Training Facility looked like any other building (well, any other building that just happened to be in the middle of nowhere), but the inside made Kurtis feel like he was in a prison, though he was not sure why. A lot of the equipment used to train here was destroyed before the building was abandoned. He had come here once when he was little. Konstantin came to talk to the leader of this facility and brought Kurtis with him. But even being inside the place didn't stir any familiarity. Kurtis decided to start from the basement and work his way up.
In the basement there was basically nothing but faded blood stains on the walls. The room was small and dark. His father once told him that every Lux Veritatis Facility had a place to take care of traitors. For this facility, this room was that place. The blood obviously showed that. Since nothing remained here, he went back upstairs.
The first floor consisted mainly of sleeping quarters. Kurtis always felt lucky he didn't have to go to a training facility; Konstantin trained him. He remembered spending a lot of time locked in the basement, however, practicing his telekinetic power. He was often locked up down there. Konstantin was always so fixed on training Kurtis to be an initiate. It didn't matter to him that Kurtis wanted no part in it. So, they began working on Kurtis's psychic abilities when he was three or four. Konstantin got extremely frustrated with Kurtis when something wasn't done right. Then he'd get locked up in the basement. His father wasn't a bad person; Kurtis just wasn't particularly fond of him. He shook the memories from his head and finished checking the first floor. Still nothing. He was beginning to doubt whether they were even here.
The upstairs had a main hall that lead to all the different rooms. Most were large, empty rooms. One of the doors he came to was locked. He rammed his shoulder into it until it busted open. Lara glanced behind her and saw who it was. "Kurtis! Get me down," she yelled to him. He aimed his Chirugai at the chains. "Kurtis!" Something struck him in the back of the head, but he only fell to his knees. He rolled away, and turned, pointing his gun at the man that had just hit him. He wasn't surprised to see Glen.
Kurtis scoffed, "Figures. All right, you got five seconds to get her out of there. Now." Glen smiled and knocked Kurtis's weapon from his hand, then shoved Kurtis against the wall. He pushed Glen away from him using his ability, and hit him hard in his chest. Glen threw himself at Kurtis, so they both fell to the ground. Again, Kurtis was hit in the back of his head. This time, however, he was knocked out.
"What are you doing?!" Lara yelled, not long later. Three men were carrying her squirming body into another room. A chill ran down her spine, causing her to become nervous. "Where's Kurtis? What did you do to him?" They set her down on a steel table, and wrapped, sharp metal bands around her wrists and ankles. She could barely move, but kept fighting anyway.
Kurtis rubbed the back of his head. He knew that he got hit, that was obvious, and swore he heard Lara give out a scream. Whether it was about him or not, he wasn't sure, he just hoped she was unharmed. He could barely see anything in the dark, damp room. He could hear the muffled sounds of people talking. The wall in front of him (or at least he thought it was a wall just a few seconds ago) started lifting, revealing prison-like bars blocking his path. Lara was lying on a table. He called to her, "Lara!"
"Kurtis! I can't move!"
"Hold on." He reached at his side for the Chirugai and found it gone. "Shit!"
"I see you're up now. About time," Glen said, stepping in the room. He paced back and forth in front of the bars as he spoke. "You know you're in our way. I have an order to kill you, which I will do. But, I'm giving you the chance to give up without a struggle. Of course, you'll die either way."
"Oh really?" Kurtis shook his head. "And how do you expect that to happen?" Glen snapped his fingers. There were four men, one to each wheel, and as they began to turn them, the metal around Lara's wrists tightened. Kurtis had heard about this before. It was torture device for traitors. The metal would eventually become so tight that it would crush the bones. Lara let out a painful scream. "Stop! Leave her alone," Kurtis practically screamed. "Let her go! You've got me..."
As I predicted. Let her go," Glen said. Lara didn't move. She wasn't seriously hurt, but she felt she couldn't move. She locked eyes with Kurtis and wondered why.
"Kurtis," she whispered, but he couldn't hear her. The men picked her up and carried her off.
"We'll spare her life. I'd rather use you for the sacrifice anyway." Glen opened the door, and Kurtis was grabbed before he could do anything. Glen stuck him with a needle and a burning sensation ran through his body. Within a few seconds, he lost consciousness.
Lara broke out of the room she was thrown into and knocked out the guards. She searched the first floor until she found a small, black bag. It contained Kurtis's weapons as well as her own (plus ammo). She holstered her weapons and slung the bag across her shoulder. Outside, Lara heard a car driving off. She jumped on her motorcycle. "I'm going after them," she told Larson when she noticed him. "You go back to my house." Before she could object, he took off.