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Chapter 78
Ari P.O.V
I woke up, cold and stiff. I opened my eyes, and noticed that I had some sort of metal bracelet on each wrist. I couldn't see anyway to get them off. I knew that they were blocking all my mutant abilities except my healing factor, and my heightened senses.
"Ari? Is that you?" A voice asked. I knew that voice.
"Cari?" I asked, my head shooting up. I saw her resting against a wall, several feet away from me.
"It's me. I don't know where we are, but I don't like it." she said.
I looked round, and had to agree. The cell was dark, with only one hatch at the bottom, which was currently closed.
"Stryker's not dead." I said.
"What?" She asked.
"He turned up at my Uni. Kidnapped me, after having his men shoot Victor."
"He took you right in front of Victor? Man that's suicidal!"
"I know. His men grabbed you in the airport, right?"
"Yeah, why?"
"That's nearly as bad. Logan was probably waiting for you right?"
"Yeah. Hell, they may as well have done to me what they did to you." She said.
"Yep." I said, nodding.
The latch opened, and something rolled in. It was a metal cylinder from the looks of it. The latch shut, just as a gas started to come out of it. It went up my nose, and into my air passageways, knocking me out.
When I came to, I was strapped down to something. I looked down at my body to see that I seemed to be strapped to some sort of metal plank. I looked to see Cari was tied to another plank several feet away, suspended above a large tank of water. She looked round and our eyes met. I knew that I was in the exact same position as hers.
Suddenly, my stomach dropped as I was plunged quickly into freezing cold water. I struggled against my bindings, unable to breathe. The bracelets obviously stopped my ability to breathe under water too. I knew the bracelets were preventing me using my abilities.
After a minute or so, I was out of the water, coughing and spluttering, and trying to suck in some desperately needed water.
"Now that you two know what will happen if you don't answer my questions, and answer them to satisfaction, let's start to get to know each other, shall we?" Stryker's voice came.
"Fuck you Stryker!" I said.
"Now, now, Arianwen! Behave." He said, in a patronizing voice.
"Why the fuck should she you prick?" Cari snarled. I could hear the slight breathless tone to her voice. I wasn't the only one to have been dunked.
"I think that you two are forgetting who's got the upper hand here." Stryker said.
We were dunked again. When we were back up, Stryker began talking again. "Now, I need to know all the information you have, on the X-Men, and the Brotherhood, focusing on two specific Ferals."
Cari and I exchanged glances and then looked back up at the ceiling. There was no way we were going to betray our mates in any way.
"Mae hen wlad fy nhadau yn annwyl i mi," We began to sing.
Gwlad beirdd a chantorion, enwogion o fri;
Ei gwrol ryfelwyr, gwladgarwyr tra mâd,
Tros ryddid gollasant eu gwaed!"
We were dunked again. As Stryker began talking, we went into the chorus.
"Gwlad! Gwlad! pleidiol wyf i'm gwlad!
Tra môr yn fur
I'r bur hoffbau,
O bydded i'r heniaith barhau!"
We were dunked another time.
"Hen Gymru fynyddig, paradwys y bardd,
Pob dyffryn, pob clogwyn, i'm golwg sydd hardd;
Trwy deimlad gwladgarol, mor swynol yw si
Ei nentydd, afonydd, i mi!"
"Stop singing and answer my questions!" Stryker ordered. We just carried on, ignoring him in his growing rage. We were dunked again as we finished another chorus. We sung, coughing as we did.
"Os treisiodd y gelyn fy ngwlad dan ei droed,
Mae hen iaith y Gymry mor fyw ag erioed,
Ni luddiwyd yr awen gan erchyll law brad,
Na thelyn berseiniol fy ngwlad!"
Dunked once more and then;
"Gwlad! Gwlad! pleidiol wyf i'm gwlad!
Tra môr yn fur
I'r bur hoffbau,
O bydded i'r heniaith barhau!"
"What the hell are they singing? Dunk them again! This time double the time!" Stryker yelled, and once more we took the plunge.
We sung several songs, including Calon Lan and Sosban Fach, just to piss him off because we knew he couldn't understand them.
"Sir, they're all welsh songs." One of his men said. "The first song was most probably, Land of My Fathers, the Welsh National Anthem."
"Damn it!" Stryker said.
I felt exhausted, and I was shaking from the cold. All I wanted was to sleep. I felt so weak right now, physically at least.
"Brand them like the animals they are, and then throw them back in their cell." Stryker said.
Cari and I were pulled off the boards, and dragged away. Neither of us were in any state to fight back right now. I felt one of the men pull my top up, exposing my hip. Suddenly, I felt a fierce burning. I screeched in pain.
"Ari! Stop whatever you're doing to her!" Cari yelled. Suddenly she was screeching in pain to.
"CARI!" I screeched, trying to get to her, but I was held in place. I was consumed by darkness once more.
When i came to, Cari and i were back in the cell. I looked down to my side, and lifted up my top, and looked at my hip. There, lay a brand. It looked like a bar code. I pulled my top back down, and started to cry. I heard Cari shift, and she pulled herself over to me. She wrapped her arms round me and hugged me. I clutched at her, taking comfort from my best friend, and sister.
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