Pietro felt rage mounting within him as the man spoke of the attack on Tokyo in such a casual manner. It took a lot of self-restraint not to leap out and attack the man in silver, but he knew that if he did then he'd never leave the building alive.
"Brothers, soon we will journey to the Promised Land where our brothers and sisters wait for us." Pietro wondered if this could be the Genoa that Trask had spoken about in his broadcast. "But first, a test must be passed to prove your final loyalty to the lord. You are blessed in that Bolivar Trask himself will be coming to oversee your test himself. Now you must prepare for the coming trials. At the third watch, the tests will begin. Good luck, brothers."
The man in silver left the room and the people in white began to file out as well. Pietro hung back, uncertain what he should do, when a man addressed him. "Brother, you look lost?" The man was tall and heavy-set, his face covered by the hood that all members of the group wore.
"I, uh, I was just thinking about those tests," Pietro lied quickly. "They sound quite dangerous."
"Oh, I wouldn't worry." The man said amiably, putting a hand around Pietro's shoulders and leading him downstairs. "I've heard that there are very few people who fail them. Coffee?" Pietro realised that they were back in the dingy room he had entered first.
"Uh, sure." Pietro watched as the man pulled two mugs out of a cabinet and switched on an old coffee machine, wondering how he could get away without attracting too much notice.
The man handed him a mug after a couple of minutes and Pietro sipped at it. The coffee wasn't particularly good, but it helped wake him up slightly. "So, when did you join?" Pietro ventured.
The man looked like he enjoyed conversation and answered eagerly. "Oh, it was about fourteen months ago - Brother Simic introduced me."
"Brother Simic?"
"Haven't you met him?" The man frowned. "No, I suppose if you're new, you wouldn't have. He's from Eastern Europe, a major figure in the church. He came to see me and his words changed my life. I just can't wait to see the Prophet."
Pietro nodded. "Me neither." Seeing his companion about to ask some questions Pietro hastily excused himself. "I have to go, prayers." He blustered past the other man before he could argue and found himself in the hall again. He hadn't expected anything like this to happen - he just hoped he could pass whatever tests there were. If he could get close to Trask, then he could finish what he'd started in Italy.
"Brother!" a commanding voice sounded from behind him. Pietro turned to see the man in silver robes standing there. "Should you not be at prayers? You trial will be starting soon."
"Oh, of course. I, uh, just forgot where we're meant to pray, that's all." Pietro hoped the man would believe him. The man was silent for a minute, but then said, 'the chapel. At the end of the hall."
Pietro nodded then hurried away before the church leader could question him more. The chapel had about half a dozen people in when he got there; where everyone else was he wasn't sure. Pietro took a knee in front of one of the strange crosses and bowed his head, to keep up appearances. He didn't know how long there was until third watch, and how long he could keep this charade up without being caught.
Luckily third watch came soon, only an hour or so after Pietro had arrived. He knew that it was time when everyone else began to leave, and he forced himself to stand despite his aching knees. He followed the others to the room where they had all met before. Once again the leader in the silver robes was there to address them.
"Brothers, the time has come. We will journey to the testing grounds, where the Prophet awaits us, and you will take the tests to prove your loyalty." The fifteen people followed the man in silver out of the building. By now it was dark outside and they moved unnoticed through the back streets. It took only five minutes for them to reach an old house, which had a large walled garden. Standing in the garden was Trask - seeing him in the flesh again made Pietro's anger flare.
"Welcome, disciples!" Trask's voice boomed around the garden. "By coming here you have been given the chance to come to the Promised Land: to Genoa. All you must do is prove your loyalty to the lord." He waved a hand and two guards appeared leading fifteen people at gunpoint. "You will come with me to Genoa, provided that you kill one of these people."
Kitty stood in the briefing room at Excalibur headquarters. She had been here once before, after Pietro's father had kidnapped her, Erik Lensherr, and now she was here because of Pietro's disappearance.
"Is this all that he left?" Xavier looked up from studying the note Pietro had left. Kitty nodded brusquely and Xavier steepled his fingers. The note was purposefully obscure: 'I'm going to find Trask and avenge them' was all it said. "He didn't mention anything about leaving to you?"
"I told you," Kitty said irately. "I haven't seen him since before the Tokyo attack. He didn't say anything to me."
Xavier nodded, trying to think where exactly Pietro could have been going. What information did Pietro have that would have told him where Trask was? It was incredibly frustrating for Xavier not to know where Pietro could have gone. He glanced down at the file on Trask that lay on the desk and his eyes suddenly narrowed. Trask had last been heard of in Malaysia.
He suddenly looked up at Kitty. "I think I know where Pietro is. He's in Malaysia."
Pietro couldn't quite believe his ears. Had Trask really just asked them to kill a man in cold blood? It shouldn't really have surprised him he supposed knowing Trask's ruthless nature but it did surprise even him.
"Uh… n,not that I want to speak against you, sir." One of the robed figures stepped forward. "But, why must we kill these people."
"A good question," Trask smiled. "These people are wanted criminals. They are all thieves, drug addicts, murderers and rapists. None of them truly believe, and sinners must be punished." Trask motioned to a guard who passed the man a knife. The man looked at it in shock as a prisoner was forced forwards, then the man's expression hardened and he plunged the knife into the prisoner's chest. The man let out a gurgling scream as he collapsed. "There, that wasn't too hard, was it?" Trask asked, and the man shook his head. "Who's next?"
Five people went before Pietro, each one killing their prisoner. When Pietro was given the knife, he gripped it tightly, but when the prisoner was forced forwards he launched himself at the nearest guard, taking him by surprise. Pietro swiftly changed direction and sprinted towards Trask, who was taken aback by the sudden attack. Pietro lunged with his knife and Trask barely dodged it, the knife slashed across his arm.
Hearing the other guard behind him, Pietro turned in time to see a rifle stock smash into his temple. He collapsed, unconscious, and the guard pointed the gun at him. "Do I kill him?" he asked Trask.
"No. Keep him alive. We'll take him back to Genoa with us."
Xavier had assigned Lance, Callisto and Forge to the mission going to Malaysia. He wasn't sure what they'd find there, but if Pietro were in trouble hopefully they would be able to rescue him.
"How do you know he's there?" Kitty demanded.
"That's the only place he could have gone. He must have remembered that information that I told him, and gone there in an attempt to find Trask alone."
"You better be right about this," Kitty said darkly. As he watched the three agents preparing for the mission he prayed that they would find Pietro alive and relatively unhurt. Xavier wanted to look after all the people under his authority - Hank's death in Tokyo had hit him hard, though he didn't let it show.
Lance came up to him. "We're ready to go, sir."
"Excellent. If you find Pietro then report back immediately." Lance nodded and led the other three out of the headquarters. They weren't taking a plane from a public airport; instead they were taking Xavier's private jet. It would take them slightly longer to get to the landing field, but it would allow them a greater flexibility and freedom.
Kitty watched them leave with a feeling of trepidation. Despite all of Xavier's promises that they would find Pietro, she had a very bad feeling about what was going to happen. She couldn't pinpoint what it was, but she had a feeling Pietro was in grave danger.
Thank you for your review DaemonRogue 13 it was greatly appreciated. I hope you enjoy chapter 8!