Author's note: Again I'd like to say thanks to Infedelz for helping to get me get me off my but to finish this story through both motivation and co-writing.

Psionic (R)evolution – Chapter 16

While Duo, Quatre, Soren and Trowa were conducting their part of the rescue mission, Heero, Wufei, and Cole were trying to sneak into the heart of the space barge in order to shut down it security systems and copy any pertinent data on brain augmentation. Unfortunately, it was easier said than done. Even Heero, the perfect soldier, was having a tough time trying to find a way past the constant security patrols that were stalking throughout the barge.

Damn. This Caruthers is pretty paranoid grumbled Cole as they watched another patrol pass by their hiding place.

He should be, Heero commented he knows that he's vulnerable until he has full control over marketable augments and he also knows that we're looking for him. If anything I think the security is rather light.

Thank goodness for that Wufei added smothering a slight grin. Neither one of them were wired right for all this sneaking around. Such things were always better left to Duo or Trowa but neither one of them was available, so there was no point in hashing over situations that could not be changed. It also didn't help that he could feel Duo's temper simmering in the back of his mind like the annoying buzz of a very angry bee.

He wasn't sure if he should be surprised or worried by how easily he formed bonds with his friends and lover. He knew for a fact that he didn't do it intentionally, but still it happened. Even if he was set adrift in the endless void of space he was sure he could point a straight line to each and every one of them and most notably Cole.

He still wasn't sure where he and Cole stood at the moment. A part of him felt like he barely knew her and yet he was more securely attached to her than any marriage vows could ever join them. Cole's thoughts interrupted his musing. At least this way I can keep my eye on you. She said sardonically but there was still a fierce possessiveness in her eyes when she had said it that made Wufei feel rather pleased with himself.

Do we really need to be discussing this now? Heero interrupted both of them not looking at either of them but Wufei could see his eyebrow was raised and he wore an expression of superiority. The young couple suffered a moment of embarrassment that was only compounded by the other's feelings which only echoed back and forth between them successfully chastising both of them.

Wufei gave a mental version of the awkward moment cough then said rather brusquely; well then, we need to get inside that control room. Any bright ideas?

Next to Caruthers, Anna and Shelby, the scientists are probably the most important people here. It's highly doubtful the guard on them will ever let up. Caruthers isn't going to risk losing another science team like the first one. Heero stated as if that would help them come to a quick decision.

We really have no option but to rush in after the last patrol and hope to take everyone inside the room by surprise. Wufei wasn't really all that confident about that plan, but it was the best he could come up with on short notice. It also went with the whole 'nobody would be crazy enough to do that' theme of the whole operation so far.

On hindsight, it was probably a halfway decent plan. What Wufei didn't expect was Heero's reaction to such a plan.

Mission accepted. Those two words were the only warning Wufei and Cole received before Heero charged down the corridor heading towards what they were fairly certain would be the lab area. According to the specs for this type of barge it was the only area big enough for what they wanted to do.

For what seemed like an eternity, the couple simply stood there in shock. Wanton recklessness was simply not what you expected from Heero.

Dammit Heero! Cole yelled as the other two charged a moment behind him through the doors. As they had hoped, the only people in the room were scientists, who quickly surrendered once Heero pointed his weapon at them and demonstrated his willingness to use it. Wufei had to admit that a definite perk to psionic ability was that they already knew they were looking at everyone that was in the room.

As soon as Cole had herded restrained the scientists in a corner and Heero was certain they could handle without him he took off again towards another section of the barge in hopes of finding a spot where he could hack into the security mainframe and disable the security systems.

Knowing his own duty Wufei had already moved over to the computer system and was already working a way inside. Deciding to let the program Heero designed run, he inserted his disk to download anything and everything he could. After that he moved to check out the two rooms that were adjoining the main lab. He already knew they were empty, but one of them was creating an odd blob like sensation. He couldn't call it a person because it didn't even seem self aware. An animal perhaps? Cautiously he opened the door weapon at the ready. It took a moment for the lights to come on after the door was opened for him to register what it was he was seeing.

Chryopods.

Similar to the ones used in deep space exploration but clearly modified. There were five of them and each one was occupied by a young person. It was difficult to tell their ages and genders through the small window on each pod, but judging by the size and the facial features they had to be somewhere between twelve and twenty. The eeriest part was that their eyes were open and staring sightlessly at something only they could see.

Heero, Trowa we have a problem. He stated knowing that Cole and Soren were also listening. I think I found some new test subjects. They've been put into some kind of stasis pod but I'm not sure how to get them out safely. Marching back to where Cole had secured their captives he glared over the lot of them.

Up until this moment they were relatively co-operative. But one look at Wufei's dark scowl and knowing where he'd just come from had them literally cowering in terror.

Carefully selecting the one that was shaking the most, Wufei hauled him up by his collar and smacked him none too gently against the wall behind them.

"You! Tell me how to get them out of there!" he hissed in a low menacing voice.

"Y-y-y-y-you can't! W-w-w- once the p-p-p modificationprogramstarts th-th-there's no tellingwhatwillhappen if it's s-s-s-stopped!" The man blubbers in a hash of stuttered and slurred words. Most of it didn't make any sense but the thoughts pouring off the man did.

"Modification!" he yelled at him again pulling him back and hitting him against the wall again. "You're trying to brainwash them now?" he didn't bother to let the man answer what he already knew.

In order to keep their augments compliant, they used a combination of brainwashing and drug addiction. Individually, there was always the chance that brainwashing could be overcome and the subject could break free of their keepers. Too many narcotics while under treatment usually the ended with the subject having a psychotic meltdown hence the reason for this combination method.

Wufei quickly let go of the man as if touching him made him feel dirty. Going back to the pods he knew from the brief contact with that scientist that the children inside were being reprogrammed to be obedient to whomever their master was while at the same time they were being given small doses of the drug that Caruthers had engineered specifically for the purpose of guaranteeing their obedience.

He felt bile rise in his gut as he moved to disconnect the pods. Soren's warning interrupted him Wufei don't! We might be able to save them just keep them in the pods for now and we'll see if we can find a safe way to extract them later.

Looks like we're going to need outside help. Heero can you contact Relena to tell the Preventers standing by that we'll need a flasher exit than planned? Duo, we need you to either steal the largest shuttle you can find, or secure an airlock for a Preventer shuttle.

Roger.

On it.

Reluctantly, he withdrew from the pods and went to the door to the other adjoining room. Opening the door he tried to brace himself for what he was going to be seeing. He'd already known from his brief touch with Mr. bawling scientist what was in there but even then what he saw when the lights came up would give him nightmares for the rest of his life. The first room was seemingly innocent enough, a room filled with panels and monitoring equipment. Almost as an afterthought he flicked on a recording camera that was attached to his still unused headset to record what he was about to see.

Moving to one panel he opened it to a refrigerated compartment similar to those in a morgue. The compartment was not big, just large enough to house the extracted brain of a previous test subject. A few more panels revealed several other body parts in various stages of dissection. Fortunately for him most of the parts didn't have enough left for him to recognise them from their previous owners. That is until he started moving to the larger panels.

The first real corpse he came across was a boy of about seventeen maybe eighteen. Both his legs were missing, one of his arms as well as a goodly portion of his face. It was all he could do to reign in his rage at the kind of people that felt the right to butcher a person like this in pursuit of their own greatness.

Eventually he came across a body that hadn't been carved up yet. She looked like a young girl, probably fourteen or fifteen years old. She looked like she'd just fallen asleep and couldn't wake up. Her dark hair had been mostly shaved off but he could tell she would have been a lovely girl if she'd been allowed to live.

The anger that Wufei had been tightly controlling seemed to implode in on itself threatening to burn him alive. Instead, with a cry of rage he pushed his suppressed feelings outward.

In the other room still watching the scientists, Cole felt a blast of murderous fury in the mind of her partner. She'd been sensing his growing anger, but wasn't prepared for the mental yell that was soon followed by a vocal one. Wufei had seen the carnage of war, and Cole knew that there were very few things that could throw her lover off balance like that. She already knew a little bit of what he was seeing from their bond, and knowing that little bit she was trying her best to stay away in order to keep her own head level.

Quickly checking to make sure the scientists were secure, she moved to the other side of the room to see if her lover needed aid. The blast of heat and flames that shot out the door sent her ducking for cover. She tried moving in for a better look only to find that she was as close as she could get without getting burnt to a crisp. Near as she could tell the entire room was filled with flames dancing in the air and nothing else in the room was visible. "Wufei!" she screamed then realized belatedly that she could still feel him. His mind had become crystallized into rage and excluded all other thought.

Again she screamed at him this time at the top of her mind. WUFEI! Wufei answer me! Wufei!

Cole waited for a few breathless heartbeats before she felt the solidity of his anger crack and dissipate. Eventually she could make him out in the flames all of which were originating from his body. Everything in the room was either still on fire, or burnt to ash.

Dammit Wufei! What the hell is going on in here? screamed Cole over the fire alarms blaring throughout the barge. When Wufei turned around, she could see tears coursing down his face. Whatever else Cole wanted to scream at him about, she forgot it straight away and, walking up to him, hugged him as tightly as possible, trying to calm him down. Never in her entire lifetime would Cole have expected to see him crying.

It took several minutes for Cole to finally calm him down. When Wufei had finally regained control of himself, he looked around at what remained of the room with a subdued air of satisfaction. They didn't deserve to live and die like that he murmured The least I could do was to treat their bodies with the respect they were never shown in life.

Cole hugged him again and kissed him deeply. We'll make them pay. You'll make sure their deaths weren't in vain she whispered into his ear.

Come on, after that little show we're going to have some company. She warned and the two of them moved to secure the door.

Heero was trying to quietly slide past the guards to a room he was certain would permit him access to the security system. But before he could get anywhere, alarms started blaring all over the place. Crap. He thought to himself be for jumping out at the already startled guards and taking them both down. To others he sent an open question What set off the alarms? he asked.

He wasn't expecting Cole to answer I think we've just found Wufei's secondary ability. Looks like he's a fire starter.

Pyrokinetic. Heero heard Wufei correct. I don't know how I did it though. I think it depends on my emotional state, but I'm not sure yet.

Heero assimilated that information while he tried to override the lock. With the alarms going off it would only be a matter of minutes before one of their parties was spotted. He needed to get and deactivate the security systems now.

Hearing the lock beep he charged headlong into the room with his gun already searching for a target. He'd been expecting a few people to be manning the barge's systems. What he wasn't expecting was finding only one man holding a very serious looking detonator watching him with an air of superiority about him.

Crap. He repeated to himself.