Whee! Okay, thankies to these linkies: Luna-Kitsune-Blu, Lenipez sideshow, Krimzon 1, Miss Yunie, Miss Mandy, dude, Daypaw, dOMITUPSYK, Krazy Jimbo, Cherrii, Jaks-Girl, and Kaytee.
Re: Scientific jargon- most is based on actual biological-medical concepts. Except in this chapter there is something called a "biocritical" line. I made that up. Because it would take way too long to explain how it works without interrupting the flow of the story.
Enjoy!

Number 75 had regained some color in his cheeks. After his shower Müssala had thrown him a clean set of clothing. Now he stood, watching her with his huge blue eyes. Every few minutes he ran a hand through his wet hair, flicking water purposefully onto the bedside instruments. A huge KG saluted behind him, gun in hand.

"You need anything else, ma'am?"

"Taetra," Müssala snapped. She glared at the soldier. "You will stay and make sure he doesn't cause any trouble."

"I got wall duty in half an hour, Taetra."

Müssala paused. "Erol has given me permission to use the Guard in case a subject needs restraining," she said carefully. Hopefully this natz licker isn't stupid enough to question me.

The KG nodded and shifted the gun to his other arm.

I don't have enough hands to set this up and keep you still, boy-o. She glanced at him. He had picked up a tool from the counter and was looking at it curiously. The Guard seemed to be trying to decide if this behavior was considered "trouble."

Müssala pulled the mattress off the bed. The frame beneath was metal with a body-shaped cavity lined in plastic. Hundreds of holes were bored along the sides of the cavity. Müssala flipped the vacuum switch and the bed made a strange swooshing sound. Number 75 looked up. Müssala ran a hand over the bed. Suddenly it was pulled down and stuck to the holes. She wiggled it. Good. She flipped the switch back and the noise stopped. "Get on," she nodded her head at the boy. He blinked. "Get on the bed!"

The KG pushed him with a gun and the boy climbed into the plastic cavity. "Where are the restraints?" asked the KG.

"We can't use metal restraints when doing E Factor," said Müssala. She rolled the boy's long sleeves up and turned his arms over. The insides of his elbows were smooth. The faint patterns of his veins were visible through his skin. "When you flip this," she pushed the switch and raised her voice over the swooshing sound, "a partial vacuum is created inside the bed, rendering the subject immobile."

The boy yelped as his body was firmly positioned and pressed into the cavity. He tried to curl his biceps and bend his legs, but they were stuck to the bed. Whimpering, he tried to turn his head. Strands of hair had been sucked into dozens of holes, and they were almost ripped out of his scalp when he moved. He frowned and resigned himself to watching. Suspended above him hung a huge metal ball, wires and tubes hanging off it.

Müssala snapped on a pair of gloves and pulled a pair of long needles from their paper wrapping. Reaching up, she selected two thin hollow tubes trailing off the suspended metal ball and snapped them into the needles. She inspected their points. Amazing- these aren't broken. Damn Praxis, always cheaping out on the equipment. "You must stand back, at least behind that red line on the floor," she told the guard. "You don't want your armor near this when I turn it on." The KG nodded and took a few steps backward. She ran her tongue over her laced teeth. "I also can't be near the bed. I'll be in there," she jutted her chin at a glass enclosure in the corner.

"This is the Central Processor," she said, pulling a few wires from the metal ball. The boy strained his eyes, unable to tilt his head. Müssala taped them to his neck and forehead. "It's a metal sphere with two independently operating hemispheres. This is quite painful, 75," she said. "It has to be done after every treatment, though, so get used to it."

Müssala pushed one needle into his elbow. Number 75 screamed. She wiggled it into position and slid it up his arm, towards the shoulder. The boy gasped, unable to move or retaliate. Müssala turned the clamp at the end of the needle. "One more, stay calm," she said, puncturing his other arm. The KG pulled up his mask and winced. The boy screamed again as she twisted the long needle into his muscle tissue. Trickles of blood ran down into the plastic arm-shaped cavities.

Müssala ripped her gloves off, snatched the ECF, and ran behind the glass enclosure. The KG scanned the floor for the red line and stood behind it. Müssala tapped the control panel and watched the vitals monitor. His heart rate was moderately high. "Signs of distress," she squinted at the other rising and falling lines. "Three? Your biocritical level is already elevated. Hmm…"

Welcome to the Central Processor, part of the Dark Warrior Instrument Matrix. You need level Axe Morbid clearance to proceed. Please enter password.

Thank you for entering password. Please hold while we verify your password.

Thank you for waiting. All clearance complete.

Welcome, Taetra Müssala.

"Vackting security drisch," Müssala muttered. She flicked through the various menus and pulled up the E Factor Determination Protocol. "Yeah, yeah, new subject, first time, start slow…"

The upper hemisphere of the Central Processor started spinning. The lower hemisphere, with all its trailing wires and tubes, remained stationary. Purple sparks flashed as the top spun. Müssala pulled up the E Factor graphic, its counter set to zero.

"What's that?"

"Mar's chodeiz!" Müssala turned. The KG had joined her in the glass cubical. "Don't you ever sneak up on a Taetra!" He shrugged. She scowled. "Don't touch anything." She waited while the computer slowly brought up all the automatic meters and ranges. Maybe I can put this moron to good use. Without Slitter here it'll be hard to read all these anyway. "See this?" she pointed to the vitals monitor. "The axis on the side goes up to eleven. If this line," she pointed to the steady biocritical line, which throbbed at three, "goes above ten, tell me immediately." The Guard nodded. "The Central Processor monitors heart rate and breathing and all that, but those aren't as important as this line." If your biocritical line goes above ten for too long, it doesn't matter how hard your heart is pumping. The body goes into shock and your cells boil in your own exothermic output.

"What's that?" the KG pointed to a scaled graphic on the screen.

"The amount of dark eco the subject is exposed to," Müssala said. "We aren't putting any into him now, we're just seeing how much we could before it killed him. That's what E Factor is." She tapped the screens, pulling up old values and looking through charts for earlier subjects. "If the treatments are successful, his E Factor should increase every time. This scale goes to ten. We've had a handful of subjects who graduated to more extreme measures. That requires a different machine and set up," she grinned. "This boy-o should be no exception."

The KG nodded. "Er… no eco's going to come out of him, right?"

Müssala rolled her eyes. "The needles are insulated. The eco won't ever technically leave the machine." She typed in the final code sequence and the Central Processor filled with dark eco. They watched as it flowed down the hollow tubes, paused at the clamps, and into the needles. The boy screamed.

The E Factor needle jumped and slowly started rising. Müssala scanned all the charts and levels, pushing buttons and taking notes. "Keep your eye on that biocritical level," she hissed at the KG. He turned and watched it.

"It's at four."

Müssala nodded. The room got warmer and the Processor spun. She glanced up. The boy's skin was blue in the light of the Central Processor. The monitor beeped and she slowed the eco concentration. "There's increased vital signs, normal. His body temperature is still in a safe range. Good." She bent forward. "That's interesting."

"Five, Taetra ma'am." The KG removed his mask and fanned his face with it.

Müssala frowned. "The needles weren't broken," she muttered. She tapped a few more screens and lowered the concentration further.

"Six."

"The Processor is having difficulty containing the dark eco," said Müssala. Flippin' seaweed kitties, it's hot. "I've never seen that before."

"Is that bad? Seven."

"I don't know. I think it's a good omen for the Dark Warrior Program." If those needles don't hold, dark eco will break out into his body. E Factor determining eco is blended differently than the ore. I don't think it would hurt him… She tapped another monitor. "Body temp finally starting to go up."

"Eight."

The E Factor needle shuddered at 7.15 and kept rising. "Impressive," said Müssala.

"Nine!"

"Oh Female of Blackness, this is your technician of glory."

"Slitter! Shut up! Nine in E Factor!" Müssala cursed for not turning it off before the procedure. She tried to shut off the comm, strapped to her waist, by banging it against the wall. Her hands were busy flying over the controls. Of course the skáhgadah calls when we're about to hit ten!

Slitter made a noise indicating just how he felt about being left out of the procedure. "Just calling to warn you, Vixen Lady. Your absolute favorite KG of all time is coming shortly."

"Nine point five," said the soldier, looking uncertainly at Müssala's comm.

"And I've been meaning to tell you. I don't think I get paid enough. You know what they told me when I signed up for this? 'A raise every six months.' I've seen farmers pull more money from a yakkow's ass than my paycheck-"

"Get the vackt off the vackting comm!" She glared at the KG and he pushed End Call.

Müssala closed out of a few charts and held her finger over the Abort key. She and the KG waited, watching the biocritical level climb. A few bolts of electricity sizzled down the hollow tubes and they smelled burning cloth. The boy screamed.

Come on, come on, Müssala grit her teeth. Her eyes flicked back and forth between the E Factor chart and the biocritical line. I don't want to smell any of this boy-o's flesh burning. A trickle of sweat ran down the side of her face.

"Taetra!" The KG pointed. The boy was writhing on the bed.

Müssala's eyes widened. "He shouldn't be able to do that!" He kicked his legs, making a choking roaring noise. His voice had started to go hoarse. Thank the Hora Quan he can't move his arms.

"Ten!"

Müssala slammed the button with her whole fist. The Central Processor whined and the upper hemisphere jolted to a stop. Dark eco flowed back up the needles and into the lower hemisphere. The boy yelped and coughed. "E Factor is 8.1!" That'll show crocodog-vackter Erol. This one will need to use the upgraded machine sooner than I thought. Müssala stuck the ECF chord into the main monitor and programmed it to accept all the new data.

The boy panted, frozen once more against the bed. Müssala pulled on a new pair of gloves and pulled the needles out. They were covered in blood. She wiped some of it off and saw the eco burns on the inside. "The diameter has increased," she said, holding one up to the light. "It's as if you were trying to absorb the eco, 75," she wiped his elbows clean and taped them. "Well done, boy-o."

He coughed and glared. Müssala flipped the vacuum switch off and the swooshing noise stopped. His arms jerked, as he had been trying to pull them up the whole time. She gripped his right hand and pulled him up. "Sit, now. Don't move. Remember what happened to 62." The KG stood at the other side of the bed. Müssala pulled the wires off the boy's face. He blinked. His back cracked as he sat up and swung his legs around. "Very good." Müssala glanced at the bed. Blond and green hair clogged the holes in the head cavity. "Ripped out your own scalp," she scolded. "Not too smart, boy-o."

Number 75 touched the back of his head with his other hand. His eyebrows cinched together as he felt the blood and tiny wounds. He made strange breathy noises. The tiny muscles in his face twitched.

Müssala tossed the needles into a biohazard container and pulled the boy off the bed. He swayed, hands gripping the sides of his shirt. The sleeves had long, broken burn marks running their length, white in the places where the fabric had been rolled. Müssala pushed his arms aside. He cried out but she ignored it. She yanked his shirt up and ran one finger down the axis in his skin. "Hot," she said. "You're a channeler, aren't you?"

He blinked at her and tried to pull his shirt down.

"Wherever you were from, you could use eco. Is that right?"

He nodded, still swaying unsteadily.

Müssala let go of him. "You," she said to the KG, "put him in that chair over there and watch him." She wiped the inside of the plastic cavity clean. "We've got to wait 'til Erol gets here before we put 75 in his cell."

"And why is that, exactly?"

Müssala jumped. She turned around slowly. "Ah, commander," she pulled her gloves off and glanced at the door. Why didn't it beep when he entered? That natz-rammer. He must've shut off the warning tone. "I see you don't have any of your KG boyfriends with you this time. Feeling bolder?"

Erol scowled. "Watch your mouth, woman." He glanced at the KG guarding the prisoner.

"I'd like to request that 75 have his own cell."

Erol held up his bandaged hand. "I see. You want a favor from me after doing this? You must be dumber than I thought."

Müssala smiled at his hand. I hope all your fingers are broken. "No," she said. "I am making a reasonable request, which is perfectly within the limits of the Dark Warrior Program to grant."

"What with all the other subjects dropping like flies," snickered Erol.

Müssala grit her teeth. "So you know there are vacancies. I want 75 to go without contact from the others. They will talk, and though he can't, letting prisoners communicate with each other is never recommended."

"Hmm… let me think about it," Erol put his undamaged hand to his chin and looked at the ceiling. "Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm."

Müssala tapped her metal foot on the floor. Clang-clang-clang. "His E Factor is extremely high and we haven't even begun the treatment. This boy is very promising. He will be the Dark Warrior."

"Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm." Erol looked around the lab, grinning.

Müssala narrowed her eyes.

"Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm."

"Erol!"

"Oh, I'm sorry," said the commander. "Was I wasting your time?"

Müssala was silent.

His grin twisted into a sneer. "No. Number 75 cannot have his own cell. He will share one, just like all the others."

Müssala looked away, chewing the inside of her mouth. You stupid vackting piece of Perpetuan drisch. "What do you want?"

"The time line. It says when the treatments will occur and when the boy will be ready. You should've sent it to me last night," he walked past her and sat on the edge of the bed. Müssala resisted the urge to jab him with one of the used eco-burned needles. "The Baron wants to know when he can expect to terminate you. Gotta get the paper work done first, you know." Erol picked up one of the wires from the Central Processor and rubbed it between two fingers. "Illegal assassinations take time to clear. You have to pay off the morticians and all that."

"I will not be terminated," hissed Müssala. "This one is the Dark Warrior."

"Where's the god damn time line, Müssala?"

"I'll get it to you!" The time line? You idiot! It's a minor detail and it's not even required! "Don't waste my time with this drisch! How am I supposed to get things done when you keep coming in here?" Müssala turned her back to him and walked over to the glass enclosure.

Erol grinned. "I want everything on this one," he said. "Not just the time line. I want all the paper work, all the readouts. Every time you go near this boy I want to know what's happening. Twice daily updates, just like it says in the rules. We wouldn't want you slacking off on the most important subject, would we?"

Müssala scrunched her eyes shut. She swore internally. Looks like I'll need Slitter after all. I was hoping to do this one on my own. Ugh. Curse you, Erol. I don't want to waste my time doing every single regulatory step. You won't even read all of it. She thought of all the write-ups he now required. I'll be up every night. Hmm… this can go two ways… "All right, Erol," she said, unplugging the ECF screen. "You will have updates daily. In fact, I'll put out my first Requirements List tonight." She grinned. I require every top-of-the-line instrument the Baron hasn't got.

Erol looked at her sideways. "Good," he said finally.

"Anything else?" Müssala walked over to the boy and slapped a white sticker on his shirt. She wrote "75" on it in permanent ink.

"I was supposed to race tomorrow in the Pre-Festival races," Erol said, "but due to certain disabilities," he held up his bandaged hand, "I am unable to attend."

"Shame," said Müssala.

"Your pay has been slashed by thirty percent." Erol stood and grinned. "Money always makes me feel better. Did you know that? Eco in the bank," he nodded. "I feel better already."

Müssala turned to the KG. "Put him in with 70. Comm me when you're done." The KG nodded, saluted Erol, and left, pulling the boy after him. Müssala watched the door shut. It beeped. She made sure her comm was ready to accept calls and turned to Erol. "I don't give an ottsel's ass if you cut my pay. I still earn more than you. And if you don't have anything else to tell me, get out. I have a lot of work to do."

"I can't wait to hang your head on my wall," Erol said, getting up from the bed. "You're hardly more than a Metal Head yourself, aren't you, Taetra?"

"That much closer to Perfection," she replied. "Get out, Erol."

"Or should I take your hands?" Erol glanced at his own. "Seems I could do with a new one." Müssala bent her arms back and stood on her heels. Erol laughed. "You're like an animal trying to look bigger when it's cornered. And what's up with your foot? Is it really all metal?" Before Müssala could retort, he jumped down and pulled her skirt up to her knees. "Hey, it is. Why-"

CLANG

Erol doubled over, gasping.

"What did I tell you about touchin' a Taetra?!" Müssala punched him in the back of the head. "If you weren't the vackting Commander I'd kill you myself!"

"Not… likely!" Erol jammed a taser into her leg. She cursed as electricity coursed through her metal-laced body. Erol grunted and stood, rubbing his lower stomach.

Müssala reached for the Central Processor to give the electricity a way out. The wires and tubes whipped through the air. Panting, she shook her head as the last of it dissipated.

"Fool," she said. "A baby could take more than that."

Erol glared at her. "I'll have you, Taetra," he spat.

"So that's what this is really about? You have a strange way of showing interest, glakkickh. I thought after our last encounter you'd have gotten it through your head."

"I always get what I want," said Erol, making a fist. "In the end, woman, I always get what I want." He turned and left.

Müssala made rude hand gestures at the door. It closed without a sound. I'll have to remember he can sneak in without warning. She thought of the door to her quarters on the second floor of the KG fortress. If he tries anything, the wrath will be on him like a hatching baby 'Quan on its brothers.

She sat down with the ECF in her lap and updated the file for Number 75.

GN: ?

G: M

R: Haven

Mother: EP?

Father: mutt

PE: Complete

E-F1: 8.1

EE: mp high

T: Pending

Tx: Pending

RDs: Pending

Notes: All E Factor readouts attached to this electronic submission

Müssala punched the keyboard as she typed the last sentence. "Be up all damn night doing this," she said, and began sifting through the readouts from the Central Processor.

Whee! All that doom and we haven't even begun the actual torture yet! Another chapter done. It was loooooonnng. School starts again tomorrow so I have no idea when the next chapter will be done. Thank you and please review!