Pain shot through Relena's head when she opened her eyes. Her vision was fuzzy and distorted. As she gradually regained her senses, she could smell wet concrete and cardboard. She blinked several times, pushing herself into a sitting position. Her vision cleared, and she looked around.

She was inside a small, damp room on a dirty, old cot. Several springs in the cot had torn through the fabric and were jabbing her in the backside. She tried to rub her temples, at least until she realized her hands were bound in front of her with a thick rope. She shook her hands, trying to loosen the rope, but it was tied too tightly. She rocked herself until her feet were hanging over the side of the cot. Her bare feet touched the cool concrete floor, which was slimy beneath her toes. Relena cringed.

There was really only one explanation for where she was and what had happened.

She had been kidnapped.

"Damn it," she muttered. "Not again."

Relena stood up and moved around the room, trying not to slip in whatever fluid covered the concrete floor. She edged to the only door and tried to peer through the window, but it was too grimy and warped to see through.

Just as she stepped back from the door, she heard the rattle of chains and the sound of a key scraping in a lock. The door swung open, and two people stepped inside.

One was a tall woman with dark hair and a wicked smile. The other was a small, pudgy man carrying a tablet. He was balding, and his face was beet red. Relena shifted her gaze between the two of them.

"Who are you?" she asked, tilting her head to the side. "What do you want with me?" Her voice was disinterested. She saw a frown flick over the woman's face before it was replaced with the previous wicked smile.

"Hello to you, too, Relena Darlian," the woman said, taking a step closer to Relena, who took a step backward.

"This isn't my first rodeo," Relena said. "Just tell me what you want so I can get out of here."

The woman laughed.

"It's not that easy, unfortunately," the woman said. She crossed her arms over her chest and shifted her weight. "You're very important to my mission."

Relena sighed.

"I've heard it all."

Again, a frown appeared on the woman's face.

"Shut up," the woman spat. "I don't have time to deal with your stubborn attitude."

Relena shrugged her shoulders.

"Then let's get on with it," she said.

"Fine, if you're so eager," the woman said. She turned to the short man who was still standing in the doorway. "Get the serum."

"Are you sure, ma'am?" the man asked, his voice wavering.

"Do I look unsure?" the woman growled. The man shook his head and waddled from the room, muttering to himself. She turned back to Relena. "You have information that my organization needs, and you're going to give it to us."

"What kind of information?" Relena asked, trying to keep the woman talking. She knew the Preventers were likely mobilizing to rescue her. Her best chance to make it out of this situation was to keep her captors happy.

"We know about your involvement with the Gundams," the woman said, pacing the room. "You know who the pilots are, and we need to know."

"That information was lost," Relena said.

"Bullshit," the woman said, snapping her head in Relena's direction. "I know it's bullshit, and you're going to tell us their names."

"They disappeared after the Eve Wars. I have no idea where they are now," Relena said.

The woman rolled her eyes. Before either of them could speak again, the pudgy man returned to the room. He carried a syringe with him in one hand, which had a cap over the needle. The woman's wicked smile returned as she plucked the syringe from his hand.

"Just a quick prick. You won't feel a thing," the woman said as she approached Relena, who tried to back up but found her back pressed against the cinderblock wall.

"Truth serum?" Relena asked. "That's so overdone." Her heart was pounding in her chest now. She couldn't protect her friends from the woman if she were injected with truth serum, which was supposed to be illegal. Not that criminals cared.

"This isn't truth serum," the woman said. "It's much more fun."

In a swift movement, the woman slammed the syringe into Relena's arm and pushed down the plunger. Relena shrieked, trying to get away, but whatever flooded her veins was taking over. Her vision went dark, and she slipped to the floor.