A/N: Well I'm going back to school in a few days. Senior year. Pretty exciting.

Now here's the problem. If I sacrifice my soul to school... I'm taking someone down with me. And that's where my characters come in. So... get your heavy throwing items ready, everybody. This shall end in blood. (You know what they say about unlucky number 13. Mwa. Ha. Ha.)

Gracepunk

Darkness was falling as Rogue and Felix strolled into the airship hangar. The hangar itself was abandoned except for a few drones. Felix recognized two of the drones as Righty and Lefty.

When Felix turned to head for airship 22, however, Rogue grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and dragged him in the opposite direction towards a different airship. This one was larger and silver, and it had the number 20 painted on the side.

"Don't you think this one is a bit more noticeable?" asked Felix skeptically.

Rogue didn't answer him. Instead, he signaled to two passing drones and directed them to the ship. They mindlessly turned and began preparing the ship for launch.

Less than a minute later, the ship was up and running.

When Felix stepped inside, he looked around with wide eyes. The ship was far more high-tech than his own, and he couldn't help but feel a bit jealous as the ship smoothly lifted off the ground and effortlessly turned midair before floating out of the open hangar doors and into the darkening sky.

Rogue was standing at the controls, and as soon as they were clear of the treetops, he hit a large blue button on the controls panel. The air around the ship seemed to shimmer for a minute. It took Felix a minute, but then he realized that the ship was silver because of the retro-reflective panels. Now that the cloaking device was activated, Felix realized that the ship would be invisible from the outside.

"Okay," he said quietly, "so they won't see us coming. But how are we going to find them anyways? Last time we had a tracker."

"Remember that kid you brought in?" asked Rogue. "The real skinny one with the striped jacket?"

Felix nodded.

"Well," said Rogue, "he revealed where his friends are."

Felix raised an eyebrow. "He did?"

"Not consciously, but yes," said Rogue emotionlessly.

"So where are they, then?"

"They're heading for an old abandoned building in the forest. It's actually closer to the Dead City than their old hideout. It used to be a library."

Felix nodded, even though he hadn't known about the abandoned library.

"Okay," he said, "but how exactly are we going to find them when it's this dark?"

"Simple," said Rogue. "Just look for their heat signatures, land close by, and wait for one or two to wander away from the group."

"Do you have a thermal camera on the ship?"

"No. I don't need one."

"Oh, and why's that?" deadpanned Felix.

"I have heat vision."

"... What?"

Rogue glanced over his shoulder at Felix, who was standing slumped over with a dumbstruck expression.

"I have two Graces," said Rogue, looking bored. "The electricity, and the heat vision. The heat vision is natural, the electricity was given to me by the Baron. I thought you would have figured that out by now. How else did you think I found where you and Warren hid after you broke something when you were little?"

Felix blinked, surprised. After all these years, he was sure that Warren was the only person he knew with two Graces.

The rest of the flight was silent.

They flew for half an hour before Rogue ordered the drones to stop and land the ship.

"What is it?" asked Felix from his seat near the back.

He couldn't see Rogue's face, but he assumed he was smiling.

"We found them."

They set up camp at nightfall.

"We're close," said Christopher as they set up their tents. "We should reach our destination by tomorrow evening, provided there are no more... delays..."

Across the clearing, Jen turned and shot him a death glare so violent that it made Andrew's hair stand on end.

"Do you think it's safe enough to light a fire?" Ben asked Christopher, looking nervous as the shadows closed in around them.

Christopher thought for a moment before nodding. "Why don't you go find some firewood then?"

Ben gulped, his eye wide. Slowly, he turned and started to walk towards the edge of the clearing.

Andrew saw how scared he looked at the thought of going out in the darkness alone, so he ran up behind him and clapped his hand on his shoulder.

"I'll help you out," he said, smiling at Ben to hopefully ease his nerves.

As he thought, Ben seemed to relax, and they walked deeper into the forest, scanning the ground for anything flammable. Andrew didn't want to risk lighting even a small fire when they were so far from camp.

The further they walked, the less they found. After about ten minutes, they stopped, standing at the edge of a small natural ravine.

"We should probably turn around," muttered Ben.

Andrew nodded. They would touch base with the camp and then go searching a different area.

However, as they turned and started to walk back, they were attacked.

Two large dark figured jumped out of the shadows. One of them clubbed Ben over the head, knocking him senseless. The other figure pounced on Andrew, knocking him to the ground and grabbing his throat.

Andrew started struggling, gasping for breath. He tried to pry the cold hands off of his throat, but he couldn't. Starting to panic, he grabbed his attacker's arms and lit them on fire.

For just a split second, everything went still, and in the fire light, Andrew saw the face of his attacker. And he recognized him as the Gracebeast he had half blinded.

The Gracebeast panicked and jumped back, almost immediately extinguishing himself before the fire could do too much damage. Andrew didn't even have time to sit up before the Gracebeast was on him again. This time he had a knife.

He brought the knife down, but Andrew quickly rolled to his right. However, he was too slow.

The knife embedded itself deep into his lower left-hand side. However, because he had been rolling, his momentum carried through and he continued to move, while the knife remained still, digging through his flesh. Because of this, the knife cut a massive wound in his side that began bleeding profusely. He stopped right on the edge of the ravine and screamed.

Behind him, he heard the other Gracebeast say "Felix, come on!"

Glancing over his shoulder, Andrew saw that the first Gracebeast had an unconscious Ben slung over his shoulder, and he was gesturing for the other Gracebeast to follow him.

Andrew panicked and started trying to move, but the pain was too much. The second Gracebeast, Felix, saw this and promptly kicked him in the ribs. The action sent Andrew forwards, and he tumbled down into the ravine while the Gracebeasts ran off with Ben.

When Andrew finally stopped rolling, he had landed on his back and lay spread-eagle for a minute, just trying to catch his breath.

Ben was gone. They had taken him.

Suddenly, as he lay on the cold forest ground bleeding out, he remembered what Caleb had warned him about. He had told him to stay away from Ben. That they were going to capture him, and that if Andrew was with him, he would die.

Was this what he meant?

His breathing accelerated, which just brought on another wave of pain from the wound. His eyes stung with tears, and breathing became harder. He was getting dizzy.

So this is what dying feels like... he thought bitterly. It hurts...

His vision was fading, and he lost all feeling in his legs. His head was swimming, and his back and side felt wet.

There was so much blood.

He didn't want to die.

Breathing became much harder as the panic and his asthma started to kick in.

Gasping for breath, he painfully looked down at his side. There was a gaping wound there that was spewing blood. It must have been at least five inches long, and half as deep. Had the knife hit something important? How much longer did he have before he bled out?

Judging by the size of the pool of blood, he didn't have long to wait.

He had to do something. Anything! Anything to stop the bleeding.

His mind was racing. A tourniquet wouldn't work. He didn't have any bandages or stitches.

He only had one other option, and it was going to hurt.

But he didn't want to die.

Taking a deep breath, he lifted his left hand and summoned some fire. Normally his own fire wouldn't hurt him, but this time... this time he needed the burn.

Without hesitation, he firmly pressed his burning hand against the wound.

It was the sound that he registered first. The sharp sizzling as he cauterized his wound, how his flesh melted together and the blood sizzled and boiled away.

Then the pain hit him.

He screamed until his throat was raw.

Finally, he pulled his hand away from his side. His clothes were singed, the air smelled of burning flesh, and the pain was still unbearable. The wound itself became heavily bruised almost instantly, and blisters started to form around the cauterized area.

But at least the bleeding had stopped.

Gasping for breath, Andrew let his hand fall away from his side, a small fire still flickering harmlessly in his palm.

He let his head fall back against the ground, and his eyes slid closed. He couldn't go after Ben. He couldn't even sit up.

He felt cold.

Far in the distance, he heard voices. Using his last bit of energy, he forced the little flame still flickering in his hand to glow a bit brighter.

The voices surrounded him.

He recognized Jen's voice. She was right next to him, holding his head in her lab. She was talking to him. Whispering for him to wake up.

He finally opened his eyes and looked up at her. Her eyes were wide and worried, seeming to glow in the dark. The full moon in the sky behind her both silhouetted her and made her seem to glow. She looked beautiful.

She was talking to him. He couldn't hear her though, but he thought he knew what she was asking.

She was asking what had happened. She was asking how bad he was hurt. She was asking where Ben was.

Ben...

"Gone..." he breathed out, not even recognizing his own voice. "H-he's gone..."

Then he closed his eyes and lost consciousness.

Ben woke up handcuffed. He was tied to a chair, and his head was killing him.

Then he remembered the attack. He had no idea what actually happened, but he didn't like that one of the Gracebeasts standing in front of him had a bloody knife hanging off his belt.

Then he realized where he was, just as the airship landed.

"Oh fuck..." he muttered, going pale.

Suddenly, the ropes holding him to the chair were cut, and he was grabbed by the two drones that had been flying the airship. He was dragged out and through a maze of corridors before finally being dragged into a large open room.

The drones dragged him up to the Baron's throne and held onto him, one on each arm.

The Baron looked amused.

"You were not easy to find," said the Baron, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees and his hands clasped in front of him

"Did you ever think that maybe I liked it that way?" asked Ben sarcastically.

The Baron smiled humorlessly and gestured to one of the drones, which brought out one of the hand-held devices and pricked Ben with the needle on the end, drawing a bit of blood. Ben jumped and tried to flinch away, but the drones held tight. Rogue came forward and took the device, taking it to the Baron before quickly turning and leaving the room. Ben wondered where he was going.

The Baron took one look at the device before bursting into laughter. It literally took him five minutes to pull himself together.

"Your name!" he exclaimed, still quietly laughing. "Benedict Silver? What kind of ridiculous name is that?!"

Ben sighed, his expression a deadpan. "Okay," he said tiredly, "you've kidnapped me, and you have the right to imprison me, torture me, and even kill me, but you can not make fun of my name!"

The Baron's laughter finally died away, and he sat back in his throne, smiling menacingly.

"Good to know," said the Baron, smiling. "But we aren't going to kill you."

Ben raised an eyebrow.

"With a Grace like yours, you can be helpful," elaborated the Baron. "See, we need at least one Healer who can heal wounds."

"What makes you think I'd willingly work for you?!" exclaimed Ben angrily.

"Well, if you don't..." said the Baron, letting the sentence hang. He gestured to the drones holding onto Ben. They both moved too fast for Ben to comprehend. One of them forced him to his knees and grabbed his head, holding it to the side. The other drone was holding something just above the exposed skin of his neck. Out of the corner of his eye, Ben saw that it was a needle.

"There's cyanide in that syringe," said the Baron. "You may be able to heal wounds, but I don't think you would fare too well if we poisoned you. So here's your choice. You can either work for us and live, or I could give the order for the drone to stick that needle in your neck, and you die."

Ben gulped, careful not to move his head for fear of accidentally getting stabbed.

"I think I changed my mind..." he said quietly.

The Baron nodded, and the drone pulled the needle away while the other one let go of Ben and pulled him back to his feet.

"Good choice," said the Baron. "But here's the thing. We know you're a wound healer, but we don't know how good you are. We need to know how you react under pressure."

Ben gulped. "What are you saying...?"

The Baron's mouth twisted into a menacing smile.

"We'll need to test your skills."

Suddenly, the door opened, and Rogue walked in, dragging a kicking and squirming Caleb by the throat.

Ben gasped and lunged forward, but the drones held onto him. He noticed that one of them unlocked the handcuffs.

"Here's your test," said the Baron, gesturing to Caleb, who was looking wide-eyed at Ben. "Save your friend."

Ben looked back at Caleb, wide-eyed.

Rogue, who was holding onto Caleb, smiled evilly and pulled out a knife.

Then he stabbed Caleb in the chest.

"NO!" screamed Ben.

Caleb didn't scream. He simply let out a small gasp, his face going pale. He froze instantly, and Rogue pulled out the knife and threw him to the floor.

The drones let go of Ben and he rushed forward, landing on his knees next to Caleb. He quickly yet gently pulled his friend into his lap and put his trembling hand on his chest over the wound.

Caleb was trembling, looking up at Ben with wide terrified eyes.

"Ben..." he whimpered, blood dripping from his mouth.

"Shh, i-it's gonna b-be okay..." he whispered, trying to focus his healing on the wound. It was difficult though, because his vision was becoming blurry.

The wound wasn't healing.

Then he started thinking of Henry.

It was happening again. He was panicking. He couldn't focus.

The wound wasn't healing.

His hands were covered in blood.

The blood was everywhere.

Caleb's eyes were closed now.

His brother was dying.

His brother was dying...

The wound still wasn't healing.

"C-c'mon Caleb..." whispered Ben frantically, his voice cracking. "Just... j-just h-hold on..."

There was so much blood.

Caleb started coughing. Blood sprayed out of his mouth, and the wound. He could barely breathe.

"Ben..." he whispered, his voice almost unheard.

He looked down at Caleb, who was trembling and deathly pale. Blood was dripping out of his mouth, and the front of his jacket was completely bloodstained.

"It... i-it was me..." he gasped. "I t-t-told them... w-where... you were..."

Ben shook his head. "It's okay," he said.

The wound still wasn't healing. Why wasn't it healing?

Caleb shook his head a bit, trying to stay awake. He was remembering his vision.

He had been wrong the whole time. It wasn't Andrew that died. It was him. It had always been him. Dark hair, pale skin, dying after being stabbed in the chest...

Ben couldn't do anything to help him. He was panicking. He couldn't focus. Why wasn't he healing?

He started shaking his head, refusing to accept defeat. He had to save him.

Caleb's cold hand, which was weakly gripping his arm, went limp and fell by his side.

"Ben..." whispered Caleb. "I-it'll happen s-soon..."

Ben looked up at Caleb, whose eyes were glassy and tired.

"What will...?" he asked quietly.

Caleb smiled weakly and reached up. He put his hand on Ben's, and using his own blood, he wrote the number 1031 on the back of Ben's hand.

Ben looked at the number and then back at Caleb.

He could only offer a weak smile before the light left his eyes and he stopped breathing.

Ben couldn't move. He slowly moved his hand, searching for a heartbeat.

Nothing.

There was no heartbeat. He wasn't breathing. The wound had stopped bleeding.

Caleb was dead.

Suddenly, Ben was grabbed from behind and violently dragged away.

"NO!" he screamed, trying to break free. "PLEASE NO!"

He was dragged out of the room, and the last thing he saw before the door swung shut was Caleb's lifeless bloodstained body.

It was the last time he would ever see him.

Breathing hard, he went limp and let whoever had him drag him off. He didn't care if they were going to kill him or torture him.

He had failed, and now Caleb was dead.

He closed his eye, but what seemed like only a minute later, he was dropped in a brightly lit room that smelled of antiseptics. After that, he heard the door close as whoever dragged him in left.

He didn't move for the longest time until someone knelt down in front of him.

"Can you hear me?" asked a quiet feminine voice.

Ben blinked a bit to clear his vision, and he saw a girl about his age looking down at him.

Slowly, he sat up and looked around at all the rows of curtains and tables with medical equipment. He was in a medical bay.

"Come with me," said the girl, taking Ben by the arm and pulling him to his feet. She quickly led him into a back room and sat him down in a chair. Ben noticed she was wearing a lab coat.

"Are you okay?" she asked, looking genuinely concerned.

Ben didn't respond. However, he slowly looked down at his hands, which were covered in drying blood.

Then he started crying.

The girl knelt down in front of him and wrapped her arms around him. He cried into her shoulder until he passed out.

A/N: … What was that I said about unlucky chapter number 13?