Skylar could tell a few things when she woke up, even before she opened her eyes.

Firstly, she was with someone else, and that someone was pacing around in front of her. She could tell after listening for a few seconds that it was Chase. His footfalls had their own unique pattern, forming a trail of distress and confusion across the dirt she lay on.

She could also tell they were in a cell, some kind of prison. It could not have been very big, because every four steps Chase would turn around and begin his rather short journey back across the cell, passing within a few feet of her face each turn.

Finally, she knew they were on her home planet, Caldera. She could tell this because the dirt she lay on had the warm, earthly smell of lava rock, and the air around her held an feeling of smoke and homeliness.

Once she realized where she was, Skylar jumped up so suddenly that she caused Chase to yell in surprise.

"Sorry," said Skylar hurriedly, as Chase righted himself and regained his composure. "How did we get here?"

"I'm not sure," admitted Chase. "I'm not even sure where we are."

She had been right about the cell. She was surrounded on three walls by jagged lava rock, and one wall, the side where Chase was blocking, was made up of solid steel bars.

At that moment, a door somewhere behind them opened. There were footsteps, then it slammed shut. The echo of it closing could be heard for a few seconds afterward, bouncing off of the hard red rock that surrounded them. Footfalls were coming closer. Skylar shoved Chase aside and looked out of the bars of their cell. The room before them was a small cavern that looked like it had been part of the lava tubes of the planet. The tubes twisted and turned in all directions, branching far and wide out of her line of sight. The sounds echoed throughout the cavern so wildly that it was impossible to tell which tunnel the sounds were coming from.

"Who's there?" asked Skylar, calling out into the tunnels. "Let us out!"

The footsteps did not falter, nor did they gain speed at her outburst. They continued their steady pace forward. They were getting closer and louder, but she still could not tell exactly where they came from.

"Skylar, where are we?" hissed Chase. "What's going on?"

"Shut up," snapped Skylar. "I'm trying to see-"

"Why, that's no way to treat our guest, Skylar," came a familiar voice.

Scarlett came into view, stepping out from behind a jagged outcropping in the wall. "The boy's only asking a few simple questions. No need to get snappy about it."

"I'll snap whenever I feel like it," said Skylar. "Why did you take us here? What's going on?"

Scarlet laughed. She propped herself against the back of the cavern across from the cell and observed Skylar with faint amusement. "What's with all the rush? Don't you want some time to catch up? I haven't see you in what, a year?"

"It hasn't been long enough," spat Skylar.

"Ouch, you still stuck on that whole Annihilator thing?"

"A bit."

"Well don't be," said Scarlett. She pushed herself off the wall and approached the cage. "That was a long time ago, can't we just put it all behind us?"

"You and Experion set me up! The Annihilator attacked me and damaged my"-Skylar threw a fugitive look at Chase-"Powers, and you two did nothing."

Scarlet sighed. She took up a stance in front the cell and folded her arms across her chest. "Yes, that was a bit of a misunderstanding. The blundering fool was supposed to remove all your powers, but I suppose he wasn't ready for your"—she also threw a look at Chase-"Unique form of superpowers. Kinda threw him for a spin."

Skylar glared at her. Meanwhile, Chase was getting impatient.

"Skylar, and-other, Skylar. Is anyone going to tell me what's going on? Or am I going to have to guess?"

Scarlett shifted her gaze to the other bionic. "And if you were to guess, Chase Davenport, what would you think is going on?"

Chase was surprised, but he thought for a moment for answering. "Well I suppose you two know each other, and you want something from either Skylar or me or both of us, and I guess you're not going to let us go until you get it, right?"

Scarlett smirked. "Very intelligent, Mr. Davenport," she mocked. "Of course, I heard you were. It's that chip in the back of your neck, isn't it? Gives you all your brains? I wonder how strong you would be without it."

Chase narrowed his eyes.

Scarlett shifted her gaze to Skylar. "Some of us just rely so much on these upgrades—these chips-its just isn't the same as true power, is it? Power that real Calderans have; power that's part of us."

"Careful Scarlett," warned Skylar. Scarlett threw back her head and laughed.

"You think I care about keeping your little secret anymore, Skylar?" asked Scarlett. "I brought you back here, because we thought you might be useful to the cause. But I don't care for the lies anymore; you're not a true Calderan, and you never were. These are you people." Scarlett nodded her head to Chase.

"What are you talking about?" asked Chase.

"Quiet, she's just trying to rile us up," said Skylar. Scarlett smirked again.

"Bionics are so temperamental," she said, as she began to back out of the room. "I suppose I shouldn't overload you with too much information at once; I wouldn't want to fry your wiring. Just think about where you want to stand when the war comes; I'll be expecting an answer soon."

And with that, Scarlett turned on her heel and made her way out of the cave.

"Skylar?" asked Chase after she had left.

Skylar slowly turned to face him, taking a deep breath.

"What was that all about?