Author's Note: Discovering more about Dren and his character

"Back off Zoey, you don't know what he's capable of!" Elliot snarled keeping a tight grip on Dren's hand.

"I'm a Mew Mew leader, if I can't handle an injured Cyniclon how do you expect me to save the world?" She retorted angrily and he scowled at her response. The atmosphere of the scene made her stomach twist uneasily, she hadn't previously noticed all the machines, vials of liquids and scanning machinery. It made her sympathize with Dren deeply, it was as if he were a common lab rat...or an alien undergoing vigorous testing.

"Let Wes go, come on...and I swear on my word as a Mew Mew I won't let them carry on." She told the alien approaching him slowly. Her heart beat rapidly as she saw Wesley's wound bleed continuously, the blood seeped onto the table and dripped off it in fat drops onto the floor with a gentle tap, tap, tap noise. "Please Dren...we need Wesley, don't do this." She stared hard at those mysterious eyes of his, and he stared back hostilely.

He then released the arm to spit out blood and hiss at her with anger. Elliot and the Mew Mew team quickly grabbed Wesley out of harm's way. "You sicken me. The lot of you." He rasped aloud and licked his lips clean of remaining blood. It tasted foul and rank but it served to energize him crudely after his ordeal. The humans watched him with a repulsed fascination as he licked his hands clean and tore at the metal restraints freeing his legs, only to drop heavily to the floor.

He eyed them all with venom, "Foul creatures. Not even Cyniclons resort to the means of torture as you did "Elliot"." He spoke darkly with hatred coating each word, his amber eyes a vortex of passion. Elliot looked at him in the eye, the cool blue hue holding its own against the creature.

"That was no torture but I did what I had to. Earth needs defending with information and the only way to do that is through you." He replied evenly and Dren regarded him as nothing but dirt and sniffed huffily.

"Elliot, you have to let him go!" Bridget spoke aloud, breaking the tension in the lab.

"She's right...look at him. He looks ruined." Corina murmured and paled slightly as Dren shot her a venomous look. "What have you been doing to him?" She whispered eyeing up numerous bruises and puncture wounds on the body.

"I say keep him." Rennee voiced aloud, "Look at him, he can't do much else, or get any worse." She added coolly. They had all noticed how weak the Cyniclon seemed, the pale half naked form shuddered from its exertions and there wasn't a sense of superiority anymore as if he had been stripped of pride. Dren knew what was coming and hadn't a scrap of magic left inside him.

"Don't say you didn't have the chance to escape." Elliot said coldly, he had a small tranquilizer gun in his hand now and despite all Dren's snarling and fang baring, the dart's head still sunk into its victim.

"Hold it!" Zoey yelled grabbing the teen's arm as he made to move towards the body that was slowly sinking to the floor.

"What? Go back to the cafe." He told her sharply but she didn't let go,

"You can't do this, it isn't right. Aliens have rights too." She snapped at him, surprising herself with her determination.

"If your love for Cyniclons goes so deep, then you may as well take up his feeding and cleaning duties after your shift in the cafe." He told her sternly, clearly his patience had wore thin.

"No, I don't want to clean the-"

"Then get out. Now all of you get back up topside, I need to deal with Wesley first." His authority was clear and he sent them away, Zoey left with a furious blush that he was allowed to treat the Cyniclon as so.

"It's not fair! Even Dren of anything has feelings and a conscience, he's not just an animal that can test things on and hope he lives!" She screamed to her friends once the lab door had closed, Kikki gave her a hug and muttered condolences.

"It's only been one day Zoey." Rennee told her blandly, "He'll live, he's not a defenceless or voiceless rabbit that needs protection." And she walked away having stoked Zoey's anger even further.

"I'll go with you later and we'll see if he's okay." Bridget muttered holding her leader's shaking fist. The teenager's body quaked at the injustice she had witnessed, little did she know it but her encounters with the Cyniclon had forged a bond between them. A strange, twisted bond that Dren could see only too clear with his heightened senses.

"Why care so much for him? He's the enemy." Corina told her nonchalantly and watched as Zoey stomped off, her anger preventing words from forming an answer.

Dren however was now being bundled bodily into the cage, his partly naked body was cold to Elliot's touch and the teenager marvelled curiously at the alien. His entire body was pale and hairless. The skin was young and smooth yet the muscles beneath it were hard and toned. "Here are some clothes for you to dress in after you wake." Elliot said stiffly and dropped a pair of jeans and a vest on the floor before draping a woollen blanket over the body. He looked across the cramped lab and saw that Wesley had finished bandaging himself.

"Well...eventful as today was, I think we need a talk with Zoey." He suggested after Elliot had locked and switched on the cage's defences.

"I agree, she can't interfere with our tests otherwise we'll be badly disadvantaged against this race of aliens." Elliot said grimly casting the fallen form one last look before exiting the lab.

It was pitch black when Dren finally awoke. He was weak from having little to no nutrition and from his failed attempt to escape. With a groan he righted himself, already his eyes had adjusted showing him that the room was empty of humans. "That's a relief...I don't think I could have stood another round of constant pricking and scans." He thought grimly and put his palms on the floor as he sat up.

He felt the clothes around his hands and sniffed at them cautiously. With a snarl of disgust he clenched them tightly and threw them at the bars where they crumpled into a singed heap. "Dren?" Came a hushed whisper, and the hairs on his nape stood up as his senses alerted him to the direction of the voice.

"Dren?" Came the voice again and he peered through the grey mass of darkness to the door, where a scratching noise came from.

"Who's there?" He snapped, crouching low to the floor. Another few scratches and then came a resounding click. The door swung open and Zoey stood there with a thin torch. He could tell it was her from the shadowed outline and the scent as she came closer.

"Hi there..." She began quietly and Dren snarled at her in reply. She kept her distance from the cage but set down a small back pack and her torch. "I brought you some food." She whispered.

"Save it human, I don't need trash like yours." He sneered and turned so that his back faced her. His disinterest seemed to embolden her and she drew closer to the cage.

"What happened to sunshine, and kitty cat?" She replied testily, "My name is Zoey remember." She replied briskly and rolled fruit in between the bars of his cage. And she carefully pushed a block of cooked meat into the cage. Dren heard the soft thump of food as it rolled around him, one apple bumping into his leg, and he looked at it hungrily. The aching dull of his body demanded sustenance. But his stubbornness wouldn't allow him to eat it while she was here.

She waited a minute to see if he could or would eat it but he didn't move an inch so she sighed and made a mental note about how slim Dren was, the bones of his spine were just about visible in the torch's light. "Well, I'm off now before Elliot catches me. A little thanks would be nice." She added with a sniffle.

"You came of your own accord Zoey, there's no need for me to show thanks." He snapped to her with a growl. She promptly left with a small goodbye and closed the door. Soon as she was gone, Dren set about absorbing the life energy of the fruits, he instantly felt rejuvenated. As for the meat, he sniffed it cautiously. There was never or rarely an occasion to eat meat within his own species and he did not relish the salt or protein it would saturate him with if he chewed it, for it could not provide the taste of life energy in the form of a dead lump so he cast it aside and pushed the lifeless fruit out of the cage careful not to burn himself. "She is a strange human, whatever is she thinking? Bringing me food...Elliot will be furious but she still did it. I mustn't be used to this charity, it's almost as degrading as this cage. I'll have to find some of my sweet charm to get under the skin of blondie tomorrow..." He mulled over his thoughts for a while before dropping back into sleep.

Elliot and Wesley were not too surprised by the pile of rotten fruit beside the cage, as they had an inkling Zoey would have returned. What did surprise the pair was that Dren was dressed in the clothes provided and was stood up in the cage waiting for them. "So...what do you think?" He asked them with a smirk, "I think they fit me rather well." And he gave a small twirl before his eyes darted to Wesley's arm where fresh bandages were wrapped around his bite wound.

"I trust you had a pleasant night." Elliot commented with a frown, stuffing his hands in his pockets.

"That I did, Zoey brought me some very refreshing appetisers. But if you don't mind...I want more..." He told him with a fanged smile, "Otherwise I shall have to seek sustenance of another kind." And he eyes Wesley deliberately. Oh how he loved how the humans shuddered in uneasiness. The piercing amber eyes then darted to Elliot who had to look away from the queasy feeling it gave him, once an alien, always an alien.

"Fine. I'll bring more fruit if you want." And he turned to the door.

"Oh and if you can find me live prey that'd be even better." Dren said in a sweet tone that sent Elliot shivering,

"What you're going to do to any "live prey" I don't want to know." The teen snapped exiting the lab hurriedly.

"My, my , my he doesn't have much of a stomach for delicacies does he?" Dren stated with a grin as he turned his attention to Wesley.

"I don't think any human has." Came the simple reply. The man turned towards him holding a metal bangle, "Hold out your wrist." And the Cyniclon obeyed with a deep scowl. Wesley clamped it onto him with an apologetic look, "Don't blame me, I didn't make this." And Dren eyed him oddly.

"ARGH!" The Cyniclon then cried out as needle like pricks sank into his skin, he grabbed his arm tightly, the nails digging deeply into his veins. "What is this!" He snarled backing away as Wesley approached him again. Blood seeped down to his hand in a thin trickle that soon stopped as Dren licked it up. The pain subsided but he was aware of needles imbedded into him, they itched inside the bangle put he was unable to scratch at them.

"It'll stop you using your powers, with just enough sedative to keep you partially docile." The man told him with a weak smile, "I stayed up for a few hours designing it to your DNA after Elliot made it of course..." He received a sharp hiss in reply. Dren couldn't risk pulling it off for it had gone in deep and he didn't want to rupture anything he couldn't fix with magic, which he didn't have at this time.

"You're kind is really despicable." Dren told him after composing himself, he flexed his hand a little and felt the pain subside a little.

"We're a nice race of people, you just happen to need restraining." Wesley told him pointedly and turned away to comb his long hair into a pony tail tied with a bow. Dren watched him with fascination, he couldn't help it. Human routines were oh so very fascinating, all the pointless motions at preening oneself, and the impractical long hair...it was all very different. He saw Wesley turn round and he hastily licked the back of his hand to wash his face with it, very much like an animal would do without access to bathing water.

"Perhaps you'd like a bowl of water and a cloth?" The man suggested kindly and knelt by him.

"No." Dren retorted and proceeded to groom, teasing out any knots in his dark green hair with his fingers.

"Very well." Wesley replied with amusement at the Cyniclon and exited the room, just as Elliot came back in accompanied by Zoey who had her arms full of fruit.

"You can drop the food in through the bars Zoey, but don't touch them. They'll burn you." Elliot said indicating towards Dren. He sat back down on the chair and proceeding to sift through data concerning the alien, leaving her free to talk to Dren.

"So kitty cat you came back with more food." He said shifting closer to the bars. She narrowed her eyes at him,

"You've changed your attitude from last night." And sat on the floor with the fruit in her lap to roll oranges and apples towards him.

"You have no idea what starvation does to a guy. That measly amount of blood from Wesley was barely a mouthful." And he delighted in seeing her express disgust towards him.

"That's...gross." She finally uttered and concentrated on dispensing the fruit to him. He caught each one in his palm but hoarded it all into a corner.

"Oh come now, I was starving, stripped of power too. And no one came to rescue poor little Dren." He said with a toothy grin, there was the familiar edge to his voice and the eyes once again pierced through Zoey, making her wonder what he could see inside her heart.

"I'm sure you could have gotten out eventually." She replied not wanting to get caught in one of his teasing jokes that made her blush inside. He made a "Pah" noise and scowled deeply,

"Believe me, if it wasn't for these toxins in my body my magic would have returned to me already and you would all be paying dearly for insulting a son of Cyniclons." He snarled at her angrily. The hate in his eyes went deep and she was slightly taken aback at the vicious reply.

"Ah ha...I knew our sedative had that effect. Rendering completely devoid of magic...I'll have to make a note of that." Elliot said with a smug look that caused Dren much anger.

"You'll pay for this human!" He snarled and launched himself at the bars in a desperate action. Zoey leapt away from the cage, fearful of the self harm Dren was putting himself through, fearful because it was a sickening scene.

The Cyniclon was launching himself at full throttle at the bars that glowed red at the contact. His clothes were now charred and singed giving off a bad smell. But it was the thud of the body from the force that unsettled Zoey. Dark bruise patches formed against his pale skin, and streaks of light burns scorched him and he roared with the inhuman element of his voice after a few minutes of bashing around. Finally admitting defeat.

With an angry hiss he turned away from Elliot who had watched him with great amusement. Thrusting his palm open he quickly absorbed the life force of the fruit in his cage. Relishing the fresh and exotic tastes he now felt he took a deep breath and turned back to face Zoey.

"Do I make you feel ill my sweet?" He asked him with a dark sense of pleasure as the bruises began to fade and heal and the pungent aroma of rotten fruit filled the air. She quailed as if trying to hold down her breakfast and bolted from the room without a word. Elliot wrinkled his face with distaste at the rotting and matted vegetation that lay around him, it seemed a clear, if surreal image, that this is what Cyniclons would do to planet Earth if they won the war.

"Can you not consume food normally as we do?" He asked him sharply tossing the ruined fruit into a bin as Dren pushed it out to him.

"What you call "normal", I call strange." Dren replied. And Elliot regarded him with curiosity for a while, the alien had spoken wise words and shown ignorance on his behalf.

"Well if you told us more about you perhaps I would understand more." And Dren made a scoffing noise in reply.

"Even if I told you, your tiny brains wouldn't be able to comprehend it and it'll just confuse you even more." He sneered, mocking Elliot's intelligence. The blonde haired teen binned the rotten fruit and dusted his hands calmly.

"Try me. I'm one the best minds of the 21st century, I'll even set you free if I don't understand." He said calmly and took a seat facing Dren.

It was the Cyniclons turn to feel unnerved, he hadn't counted on Elliot being an intelligent human with such gall to challenge him. Licking his fangs he gently racked his brains for something to befuddle Elliot with though he knew he wouldn't be set free. "How about information about magic?" The teen asked, "I'm really quite interested in that."

"And spill the source of my power to the likes of you?" Dren hissed back, "No, I don't think so...let me think of something that'll really make your hair stand on end." The human waited patiently and Dren racked his brain, he'd never been a strong thinker but a magic weaver yes...

"Here's a little tid bit about my supreme race." Dren told him with a leer, "During a full moon and when a nearest planet is a dusky red in the sky, we walk to a cliff held on the highest rock face possible. And there we bring a chosen Cyniclon. It has to be a girl younger than thirty, with magic strong in her blood...We sacrifice her to the universe with a knife formed from slate and infused with the blood from trees. And it can't just be a normal stab. You need to get the blade deepy into her organs and twist it, she has to smile to the heavens before dying, otherwise it won't work. As a community we drink her blood. Then we burn her body after gutting it and removing the organs. Every year all the magic weavers do this." He had spoken in a hushed voice and had sent goose bumps all over Elliot.

But the human remained an impassive face and tapped absent mindedly at the chair's arm as he considered the information. "So you do something similar to cannibals or the Aztecs..." He finally murmured, his brow creasing in thought.

"No...We don't eat the flesh or absorb her life energy, nothing so vile." Dren replied with a cold laugh at the idea.

"Just the blood and stabbing...but why? And why a child?" Elliot asked him. But Dren only gave him a wicked smile.

"By asking questions you're telling me that you don't understand." He said with some satisfaction and the blonde haired teen gave a sigh.

"Is it because she is pure? And that your race of creatures is based on magic before fractioning off into specialities, and it is a ritual you follow like a religion?" Elliot asked him, reeling off possibilities.

"Not so close. But it's a sickening ritual." Dren told him with venom. "I don't enjoy it as much as I enjoy the idea of it." He then retreated to a corner of the cage that was shadowed so he could hide his features. And Elliot decided that this was all the information he was going to get from him today.

Dren lurked in the corner, from Elliot's body language he saw clear as day that the human was interested and he expected nothing less. But as for being set free...It was clear the only way out was to break out with an opportunity. He wasn't approached by anyone else for the remainder of the day so busied himself with magic. He spent a good few hours straining his mentality to activate the magic that flowed through his body, but it was too strenuous. The trickle that he had only allowed him to absorb energy otherwise he'd have to gain energy the primitive fashion through eating. A way that seemed very bland and provided low nutrition compared to life energy.

"So...Dren?" And he snapped his eyes open to find the green haired girl looking closely at him through her glasses. It was the meek and fearful one...she'd be an easy mind to twist he thought with an inward smirk.

"Yes what is it?" He asked irritably, feeling more and more like a pet on display with each visitor, Bridget shrank away from the sharp reply. Behind her Wesley stood on watch in case he went through another unexpected twist of anger, licking his fangs to emphasize the dryness of his mouth Dren proceeded to speak in a calmer tone. "Bridget...yes. The green haired meek, watery one."

"Yes...you're not wrong about that." She replied in small voice, she looked at him curiously drinking in his features and attitude before he barked,

"What do you want?"

"Well, I was actually hoping you'd come out and join us for dinner." She said softly and Dren swallowed once.

"Dinner?" He echoed and repeated the word again as if not quite understanding.

"Yeah, dinner...we humans eat it in the evening." Bridget said, "Elliot thinks it's a bad idea but, the Mews Mews have decided that...it'd be cruel of us to leave something with intelligence and a voice down here while we ate."

Dren felt the curved tip of his ear as he thought about his options. "This may be the only way for me to escape...the thought of dining with humans is repulsive...it's far too convenient." And he gave a small shudder before looking back at her. "I accept." He finally said with a small frown.

"You'll have to stick out your hand for me, so I can tie this to you." Wesley said approaching him with some ribbon strap made from Kevlar. Dren issued a continuous growl that was so low it sounded something similar to a roll of thunder, but still he put his wrist out to Wesley unwillingly, who knotted the fabric around him. "Now be careful with this, it's a really strong material and if you pull to hard, it'll only cut in and hurt." He told him kindly with a smile.

Bridget then opened the cage door and murmured for Dren to come out. He did so cautiously, feeling something like a prisoner, and after Wesley tied the other end to his own wrist they led him towards the door where Elliot stood with a grim look. He said nothing but moved aside so that they could pass, the alien shot him an angry amber look with his eyes and Elliot returned it with a cool look from his eyes. "Hi there Dren." Came a chorus of subdued and wary voices from the centre of the cafe.

"What is this?" He snapped to Bridget who jumped slightly and sweat dropped as she explained that they were all here to participate in the meal, though all the girls had transformed into their Mew Mew forms. "Clearly you all seem to feel threatened." He commented dryly taking an empty seat at the front of the table. Wesley sat down close to him though the table was at a right angle then,

"We thought that you'd be interested to see how humans function at social events." He said with a smile and gave Dren a steaming bowl of rice in which the alien sniffed at.

"You should know that he doesn't eat like us." Elliot said scathingly and sat down besides Bridget leaving a gap between the Cyniclon and him.

"Oh and I suppose the greatest mind of the 21st century knows everything about my eating habits." Dren replied mockingly and picked up a pair of chopsticks in which he crammed down the hot food into his mouth. Everyone watched him with a strange sort of fascination, the speed at which he ate was tremendous and once he finished, within a matter of seconds, he had a smug grin on his face directed at Elliot who looked away deliberately. "So Mew Mews...don't you all want to eat?" He said lightly looking at the five faces peering pointedly at him.

And they all turned away muttering amongst themselves. "Oh don't mind them." Wesley said with a laugh at Dren who brushed away a grain of rice stuck to his cheek. "They're just curious."

"As I am of them." Dren replied almost politely. This long haired human didn't give off a sense of hostility and his body language wasn't that of a fighter, more of a nurturer. Therefore in his mind, this weak sap deserved a degree of courtesy seeing as he had bitten him already.

"How very courteous of you to say so." Wesley remarked with a gleeful expression.

"What I don't understand is you're dual digestion system." Elliot voiced aloud, he hadn't touched his food but merely stared at Dren.

"What's so hard to understand?" The Cyniclon replied, wolfing down another bowl of rice Wesley had filled for him.

"The fact you eat by absorbing-"

"You absorb stuff!" Kikki demand jumping onto the table with an excited grin on her face, even Dren's eyes widened in alarm. "SHOW ME! SHOW ME!"

"Kikki! Behave yourself!" Bridget squeaked in alarm and tried to pull the girl off the table. Dren blinked once and gave a little cough and stood up.

"Ahem." The Cyniclon pulled the fruit bowl towards him. He thrust his palm above it and proceeded to leech it dry of life energy, relishing its pure spirits rushing into his veins and a grin spread across his face. The girls watched fascinated as Elliot scoffed at the act.

"...All the fruits are dead." Zoey murmured in awe and looked back up at Dren who gave her a wink and sent chills down her spine. She hurriedly looked away as the Cyniclon sat back down, apparently having consumed his fill.

"That was amazing!" Kikki yelped with glee, "Ooo but if you can take the life away from fruit does that mean you can do the same to a human?" And she ended in a hushed voice. And immediately the atmosphere became frosty as they waited with baited breath for an answer.

Dren looked around him aware of the hostility emanating from the girls and Elliot, where as Wesley merely observed. "I suppose I could...I can rip out a soul..." And he stood up slowly and began leaning forward to Kikki who was stood squarely on the table. "I can tear it out from their hearts and twist it into a crystal capsule. To leech their life would be far too easy..." And he was precariously close to her face, she fell backwards onto the table with a soft thump narrowly missing a dish of beef. And he reached a clawed hand above her face. "All I have to do is reach for the magic inside of me."

"Don't do it Dren." Warned Wesley and the Cyniclon felt the Kevlar strap tighten around his wrist as he leant most of his body across the table.

"You're life would be so easy to drain...can't you feel it within you Kikki? It sparkles so bright..." Dren whispered baring his fangs to her, there was a collectively held breath around the room. She shook quietly against his words and he reached down to pinch her cheek. "It's a shame you're a Mew Mew otherwise it would already be forfeit." And he sat back down with a smug grin as everyone gave a sigh of relief. "Not to mention the idea doesn't appeal to me. You humans are not very tasty."

"Phew...For a moment there I thought you were going to try to." Zoey said with a nervous laugh, as she helped Kikki back into her seat.

"Why bother with humans when you provide me with juicy fruits to devour. Such good servants." Dren replied simply and half closed his eyes, apparently content.

"I think you should go back to your cage now." Elliot said after a while, "I don't like the idea of you being out here so long."

"Well seeing as you feel so threatened by me Elliot, I'm afraid I have no means to say no." Dren said in a teasing tone of voice and got up from his chair. "Oh just a minute." And he felt for the strap around his wrist. "This is your strongest material? Watch closely genius." And with a sharp click of his teeth he snapped the Kevlar leaving his hands free.

"Kevlar in our world can stop bullets." Elliot said calmly as Dren sneered at him whilst walking towards him.

"Then you better hope you humans come up with something stronger because I'm not a strong Cyniclon." And the alien disappeared into the kitchen, presumably to enter the basement where the cage and lab was set. His statement sent scowls and worry across the entire Mew Mew crew, each of them fussing over how strong the Cyniclons could get.

"I'll go and lock him up." Elliot stated following Dren. He found the Cyniclon at the lab door waiting patiently. "So what's with the terror spreading?" He asked him coolly.

"Nothing in particular. Just thought that I should remind you who is a higher species." The alien gave a high laugh and gripped the fabric of his vest. He raised it to his nose and inhaled deeply. Elliot cast an eye over the scorched marks of charred fabric and met with the alien's eyes, "Maybe a change of clothes would be nice." Dren commented with a leer at him knowing that he had touched a nerve.

"I'll see about it." Elliot commented dryly, opening the door to the lab where Dren entered it leaving a malicious grin on his face before disappearing down. The alien obediently went into the cage and the teenager put a hand on the lock button, pausing for a moment.

"What's with the hesitation?" Dren drawled and gave a stretch showing off his lean body much to Elliot's annoyance.

"I was hoping to run some more tests tomorrow." He said aloud and pressed the lock button down. "I'm hoping for your co-operation seeing as these tests require you to be fully conscious and ... no sedation." And Dren narrowed his eyes. "So I don't want my prize subject running off with Zoey into the sunset."

"So that was the purpose for this dinner tonight...not because the Mew Mews wanted to accept me into their little cosy family of freaks, but because you wanted to see how well I would respond under supervision of your entire team." The alien gave a hollow laugh, "Sure I'll humour you. It'll be a laugh and I never miss an opportunity to show myself off..." A little taken aback that his intentions had been discovered the teen shifted awkwardly.

"Then I look forward to it." He replied quietly and exited the lab, switching off the lights as he went.

Note : I hope this wasn't too boring :S I was hoping for a build up to the next chapter when someting major happens :P