I am ASHAMED it's coming up on a year since I posted a chapter. SHAME ON MY FAMILY! XD Hopefully not that I have, in fact , graduated from college *happy dance* I can find time to manage updating regularly. I don't want to make any promises only to disappoint so...I won't. But know I'm trying guys. I have the next chapter completed and the one after that started so hopefully I can stay ahead of myself. Unfortunately the main thing keeping me down now it writers block. I just have to get through the chapter I'm on and I should be golden.

Also, I'm tired of rude people so I'm disabling reviews for the foreseeable future. I don't mind criticism but 'hatin' just to hate is rude and I don't appreciate it. Have a problem with thing? PM me.

ALSO!
Things I DO plan on explaining/ covering in future chapters:

- How Alex's clothes work (- biggest thing people ask me about XD)
- Actually 'curing' Blacklight
- NYZ situation

Probably forgot something in that list but that's all I can think of for now...
3 to the readers

"I'll ask the question again Ms. Miller. Where were you when the outbreak first occurred in 2009?" The voice was hard but with the slightest forced softness to it. It echoed around in her mind, pinging around in her skull like the ball in Pong. She forced her eyes to open just barely into a squint and they burned at the brightness that met them. The pain in her head felt like someone had left a knife in it while whatever she sat on felt like it was made out of barbed wire. Truth be told, the room wasn't bright at all but actually rather dim. In fact, the trooper across from Morgan had to use a small light to read the papers in front of him but to her the light was like a miniature sun. Her legs and arms were tied to the chair in an attempt to keep her from thrashing but at this point she would never have thought about doing so. She was slowly starting to realize what exactly at happened before her massive black out.

These men weren't like the soldiers that had consumed Gentek. These men seemed twice as large with an almost hooded uniform and thick looking armor. Their gas masks were modified and their eye lenses seemed to glow. On their left arm was a blade like piece of armor that one could only assume doubled as some sort of weapon but all these details were still lost in a bit of a haze for Morgan.

"The outbreak of '09 Miss Miller…you were where?" The man pressed again. Morgan forced her eyes to focus then, even through the glaring light of the lamp as.
"I had just started working for Gentek…not in New York." She groaned, shutting her eyes back quickly before allowing herself to fall back against her chair. Shocks rolled up her spine causing her to shake; the feeling very similar to the aches one got with the flu.
"The Maryland branch?" The voice pressed as she gave the slightest of nods. "What information on the outbreak did you have access to during that time?" The little amount of patience the voice had seemed to be wearing off. Probably do to Morgan's pathetic response time.
"Nothing." She breathed weakly. " I watched the news….read the paper….. I was just a lab techie at the time…" She moaned. Conner's military work there was not something that needed to be mentioned. Least she thought so.

"Did you, now or then, have any personal affiliation with the city?" The stupidity of the question resonated more clearly to her. Enough so that she leaned forward once again and managed a very potent glare.
" Its New fucking York…I've been there a few times, I might have a college friend who lived there." She hissed as the man sighed. "I think EVERYONE has been 'affiliated' with the city at one point or another." She nagged as the man looked down and scribbled someone on the stationary in front of him.
"I am referring to the possibility that you had immediate family or regular contacts in the area the time of the infection?" He restated as the two stared each other down. At this point she was stuck with two options: Keep up the lies and hope they didn't have Conner's military records.
Or
Confess to her brother's time and hope they didn't do something horrible to her.

Either way she didn't see ending as a win-win situation.
"No. I didn't know anyone in the area…" She said with yet another groan before letting her head roll back. Her hair was starting to stick to her face no matter how many times she moved which was slowly starting to drive her insane. They tickled her face, mostly her cheeks and nose and with the inability to stop it…it was like Chinese water torture. She tried blowing the hairs away with an exhale but they stayed firmly in place. The breathe was weak but the strain left her coughing softly which only sent aching pain back into her head.

"When did you first come in contact with Alex Mercer?" He asked then as his voice got a little harder. Morgan cracked an eye and looked at him before leaning forward once more. She had hoped her hair would fall forward but…it didn't. It stuck to her face but this time mostly around her eyes. Damn it. At this rate she would develop a twitch. The man cleared his throat, showing his impatience and eagerness for an answer to his question she was ignoring. This was what they had been after from the start… "We have reason to believe he has been in the Maryland area for some time now, where has he been staying?" He added as he waited for her to respond. Morgan just glared, eyes sending beams through her hair as she zipped her lips and flat out refused. These gutless bastards would kill her as soon as they got what they wanted. She hoped that if she kept some sort of loyalty to Alex that when the came time he might even try to save her.
"Miss Miller?"

"Fuck off." She hissed as she looked away and shut her eyes. The man sighed, very deliberately putting his pen down and reaching for a manila file he hadn't touched yet. Morgan peeked when the pain subsided some and realized it was something from Gentek. It looked official like a record or transcript of some kind but her eyes still refused to focus properly.
"Miss Miller…do you recall the application process for Gentek?" He asked with an eerily happy tone.
"Not off hand." She grumbled as she tossed her head back some to try and move her hair again. Not only did it fail but her head burned in pain. For a second she thought she had somehow ripped her cranium open it hurt so badly. She moaned and quickly let her head hang forward once more which allowed the pain to ebb away.
"Well from what I can see here it's quiet a process. College and high school transcripts, intern and field work prior to a job and then they still make you work as an assistant for a year before giving you a proper position…" He was looking through forms before pausing. "They even make you go to a shrink…" He chuckled and started to read over what she could only assume was her own evaluation. Morgan was distracted then when a door behind him opened and two new men entered. They were dressed just the same as her interrogator but had large, automatic weapons hanging at their sides. In addition they were carrying a rather large looking box which bore a dark painted label: Blackwatch. She watched as they set it up on the table rather close to her and began to remove what was inside. Her focus on them drowned out the ramblings of her interrogator which sounded like a soft buzzing now. Out from the crate came many wires followed by something that reminded her of a car battery. However this was clearly much more high tech. It supported large central monitor, some switches and dials all around it. What finally made her look away was when they began attaching the wires to the box and long, thin needles to the wires.
"It says here you have a fear of electrical shocks…" Her interrogator hummed as they locked eyes again. "Mind explaining that?" He asked as he rose and started to take over the assembly of the strange machine.

"I…I um…" Morgan's heart was racing and her mind struggled to focus. It was time to wake up. "When I was younger I…my parents and I were on a trip out west when a bad storm came in…" She watched the man, his head nodding as he listened and he began flipping dials on the machine. "…the lightening was everywhere. It fried a tree in front of our hotel room and even blew out the Tv in the room. I just…" She rambled, words pouring out in hopes of stopping what was beginning to appear before her eyes. "I've never liked being around it…even those little electro ball things kids will touch and watch the bolts follow their hands…"
"Oh yeah…? My son has one of those." The interrogator laughed as he shooed all but one of the assembly men out. He seemed to take back over for the interrogator and flipped one final switch allowing the machine to hum. "So even those scare ya?" Her interrogator asked as his eyes settled on Morgan. Her own were like saucers in the dark, her body starting to lightly tremble as her mind connected the dots. She nodded then watched as he took a few of the needles in hand and started to approach her.
"So Miss Miller…about Mercer…" He hummed as he stopped at her side and moved a needle between his fingers.

She didn't say anything at first, still refusing …until he lurched for her. The first needle went into her forearm while the second he poised above her bicep. Her throat tore as she screamed while her eyes burst with tears.
"OKAY! Okay please just…just wait please…" She sobbed as she put her head back and thought. The first needle burned worse than her head wound which terrified her. If it was burning now and the machine wasn't on…then what was it for? Maybe this would be the worst of it and it was on; nothing but a low throbbing? She could handle that! The thought of more needles was not something she wanted however so she figured maybe…half truths? "I…I met him…I…he showed up about 6 months ago…" She muttered. "He was just…in my house. He broke in I think." She explained as she looked up to the interrogator.
"And…what did he want? What did he say to you?" He asked as he ran the tip of the needle along her arm. She cried out again and the tears poured as she prayed he wouldn't stick her again.
"He…he wanted me to c-cure him…to figure out the virus..." She explained before watching in horror as he started to slowly press the needle into her skin.
"What else…?" She was screaming as he asked but she still managed to hear his question.
"He said if I didn't help he'd kill me! That if I told anyone he would kill me and I had to help him cure the Blacklight virus!" She sobbed before attempting to wiggle her chair back from him. It was too late though, the needle was already secure in her bicep.
"What do you know about the Blacklight Virus…?" He hissed, voice finally starting to sound truly threatening. By now Morgan was too shaken to speak much more. Her voice choked with sobs and little whimpers of pain as she avoided looking at her arm.
"What do you know Ms. Miller!" The man roared then as he grabbed her chair and shook it. Morgan shook her head no though, looking up through her hair to give him a weak glare. She could stand this…this low throb was nothing. He was showing her that he was scared now and it gave her heart enough courage to fight back.
"Go to hell…"
No matter what she did…no matter what she said now they were going to make her life hell and she knew it. There was also a chance now that Alex would kill her for telling them this much and frankly? She'd rather die at his hands than these bozos. He'd make it quick.

Furious, her interrogator stomped away from her to the man in charge of the machine. He grabbed several more wire extensions, all attached to needles and returned to her as he proceeded to place them: one in each thigh, two in her other arm, one in her chest and one on the back of her neck. By the end of it all she was a sobbing, shaking mess who wished for death at this point. She just wanted this all to be over, for this horrendous nightmare to reach its end and for her to wake up. However it was far from over at this point.
"Now…" The man was trying to compose himself again, having sat back in his original chair as he tapped his pen to his notepad. "We know you and Mercer have been working together. That's fact. What we want to know now is where. Is. He?" He hissed as he stopped the tapping and stared. It took Morgan a minute to sober up but she finally calmed her tears long enough to reply.
"I have no god damn idea…"
"Ms. Miller we know-"
"I KNOW YOU KNOW! Okay! I have no fucking idea where he is! We were separated! The last time I saw him was almost an hour before you freaks grabbed me!" She shouted, falling back into some soft cries. The man stayed silent and looked to his partner at the machine. The interrogator moved to press the com button on mask when Morgan realized something and looked up smirking.
"You guys…have no idea where he is….do you?" She smirked through her tears. She had found her hope. Alex was still loose and knew she wasn't at home…would he bother to come look? He had to…He had promised… "He is going to find me you know…" She continued as the men across from her grew stiff. "He will…and he will completely fuck up your shit…"
"Shut you mouth." Her interrogator hissed as he stood.
"Someone's scared…" Morgan hummed as she watched. Her interrogator turned to the man at the machine then and for a moment said nothing…until….
"Tier 4." He hissed as the man nodded and moved his hand to the dial. Life was again in slow mo for her as the dial clicked softly. It was subtle, the needles burning a touch more before it grew stronger and stronger with every click.
"No, wait NO!" Morgan yelped when she realized what this thing actually did. But it was too late. The only sound left in the room was the sound of her screaming.

As the hours passed conditions only grew worse. More questions were asked but no answers received from Morgan who was, quiet literally, in her own personal hell. They tortured her for hours, cranking the machine all the way up to the 8th tier which left her enter body numb for a few seconds after the initial shock. Finally they had to stop and that was only because she was reaching exhaustion and pushing things any further was dangerous. They couldn't let her die just yet so after forcing some water into her system they dumped her in a secure cell and went to review the tapes. The troopers all gathered around to watch the show, wondering what their personality analysts would have to say about 'Mercers bitch'. They started from the beginning and right away they picked up on her unease.
"Her reaction to the New York question is suspicious; I think she's hiding something Colonel." One analyst informed Morgan's interrogator. Naturally he was there reviewing the tapes with a few of his men who he felt could handle the information.
"Adams! Pull her family records. I suspect we might find someone close to her living in NYZ around the time of the infection." He called to one man who saluted and left the room. They continued to watch and it was agreed upon that she was definitely hiding more information.

"She acts like she knows more than most should about Blacklight and the entire NYZ operation Colonel, I would suggest we take a look at her evaluation again and see if we can't find another means of loosening her tongue. You got her to confess about how she met Mercer so you're on the right track." Another analyst suggested as they paused the tapes.
"I'll be sure to do so, you wait here." The Colonel told them before turning to the other troopers. "Alright the freak show is over. Get out of here and find Zeus! The bitch might have a point and he could be on his way here now! MOVE!" The men hurried out, all heading away before one random trooper veered off from the group. He wasn't unnoticed either.
"Hey, Stevens where are you going!?" A fellow trooper asked as he paused. Both men were left behind by the squad.
"Man I have to piss like a race horse…I'll catch you outside." Stevens huffed as he continued to edge away.
"Oh…alright man. Well…shit hurry up. If Colonel catches you, you'll have hell to pay so just hurry your ass up."
"Yeah yeah…" Stevens headed off then, dashing down hallways and passing through two doors before slowing. He had reached his destination.

He flashed his ID to a pair of ghoulish guards outside the cell chamber who hesitantly let him in. Inside there were about four cells, two on each side but only one was occupied. He was careful in his approach, eyeing each cell casually before pausing at one. He peered inside to where Morgan lay on the floor with an IV in her arm. She appeared to be unconscious, motionless and on the concrete floor. Blood had pooled around each spot an electro-needle had been inserted as well as a mild burn wound. All in all it almost looked like bruising from far away but it was clear to a trained eye it was much more. On top of that her head was streaked in blood from where she had been knocked unconscious at the house. It still remained open but the bleeding was slowing down.

"Shit…" Stevens sighed before putting his thumb on the bio lock scanner. It clicked and a green light came on as the door slide open. He hurried in, dropping to his knees at her side as he tried to wake her. "Hey….hey Morgan…Morgan!" He hissed as he gave her a little shake. She may have been exhausted but hadn't dared to allow herself to sleep. Her eyes snapped open and when she saw Stevens glowing mask she yelped and scrambled back.
"S-stay away from me you freak! I mean it!" She wailed. Enough of the troopers had been making crude remarks and threatening to get her alone for some 'one on one'. She was not about to be taken advantage of and was willing to fight back. She struggled when the trooper rushed at her and put a hand over her mouth. She continued to shout but her cries were all but silenced behind the hand.
"Morgan! Hush…" Stevens hissed, his form shaking before dissolving away and revealing the only person who allowed her to relax.
It was Alex.

Her eyes welled up again as she said his name against his hand then threw her arms around him. He let it go this once and allowed her hug to hug him. He even pulled her a little closer in hopes of moving things along.
"I'm getting you out…but first that IV..." He muttered after a moment as he helped her sit up the moved to that arm. He told her to look away; Morgan doing so as he carefully removed the needle and quickly applied pressure to the spot.
"I'm going to get something to wrap your arm…" He reasoned as he started to leave but she stopped him as she snatched his sleeve.
"I don't there is anything out there Alex, just get me out of here…please." She begged, her voice making something in his chest hurt. She had just gone through so much hell and he knew it. He had seen it all in the video review…
"Alright." He sighed as she picked her up gently in his arms. Morgan put her own around his neck as she rested against him.

"I'm okay…even if I pass out." She added as they started to walk out of the cell. He gave a weak little smile for that, assuming that she had been joking but her eyes were already closing as he walked. He had to get her out of here and checked on…properly. Once out of the cell he remembered the two guards he had left outside. He frowned, gently setting her down so she could rest against a wall. She shut her eyes and covered her ears as Alex moved 'remove' the problem. As he passed through the doorway he phased his hands, the giant claws tearing into the men's armor easily. They gasped and grabbed at Alex before slumping back against the wall. He ripped his hands from their chests as their forms sliding down the walls leaving a bloody trail. From here Alex figured he could wing it. He phased his arms back to normal as he returned to Morgan. Once she settled he took off running. He pushed his speed, going as fast as he dared and doing his best to avoid detection.

Despite his great speed the camera's caught them and sounded the alarm. Morgan about died when the sirens started going off, the women shouting and covering her ears with her hands. Alex rushed faster, barreling through doors and even slamming through a few. They ended up in a warehouse of sorts with tons of docking and loading bays for military vehicles. Alex had only one worry as he surveyed the area; Tanks. When he had first entered the base to find Morgan they were inactive but now that alarms were blaring he worried. Luckily they appeared to still be unarmed though their drivers were scrambling to get them into action. He kept low, no one seeing them as he continued to search for an exit. It ended up being the nearly unconscious Morgan who spotted their best option. She tugged on his hood, the man looking down and following her gaze up to a tiny but doable sky light. He smirked some, muttering something about 'dumb ass repetitiveness' before moving to make the jump. For once, luck was on their side and it was only when they were airborne that they were noticed by the soldiers.

Alex turned his back as they smashed through the glass, shielding Morgan from the pieces before landing on the roof. However with their position exposed the tanks were starting to roll and even the Blackhawks were starting to purr from their landing pad. Alex tore across the roof, tearing up pieces of the concrete as he did so. Bullets began to fly from mounted turrets as they neared the edge of the roof but something more impressive soon rose in their way. A well armed and manned gunship rose to block their path, Morgan yelping as the blades kicked up wind, dust and nearly hit them both. Alex flinched back, throwing it into reverse as he watched the bird. He caught the eyes of someone in particular, the Colonel who he could have easily killed in the review room. He was shouting at the pilot to take the shot and subsequently take them out. The pilot, however, was hesitating. He was arguing that the missiles could collapse the building on their own men still inside. As they argued the gunship spit bullets Alex. He tore around behind a ventilation system, placing Morgan at his feet before throwing up his arms and forming shields. The bullets were already tearing through ventilation system so this was the only thing keeping them safe now. With bullets coming from all around Morgan balled up at his feet, not sure what on earth would be coming next.

But Alex knew and he just prayed it wouldn't back fire too devastatingly.
"Stay low and close!" He called over the noise before taking a deep breath. He had to concentrate, trying to hold the shields as long as possible. He shouted, throwing his arms out as he the Devastator free. Morgan stayed at his feet, only peeking out as she watched the mass of tendrils shoot out from him in every direction. The turrets were hit first and ripped to shreds. The gunship was hit second and at first, only faltered. Then the tendrils got a hold of it, wiggling in through the layers of steel and wires. The top rotor ground to a halt before partially bursting into flames. The back rotor stopped completely before a tendril tore it completely from the tail of the craft. After that the ship plummeted down from wince it came. The entire moment went by in slow mo for Morgan but at the same time she could have blinked and missed it. Alex scooped her back up once the air fell quiet and took off as he felt the roof under his feet give a little. He leapt from the edge and landed just on the other side of the perimeter fence before taking off down some back alleys and back towards the city which was just off in the distance. Morgan peeked over his shoulder at the wreck of the gunship, not sure if anyone was coming out of that but…then again you never really knew. She just felt this twisted satisfaction that she had been right. Alex had come back for her and completely wrecked their shit.

Many miles away in a small compound two men conversed. Neither knew of Mercers return, knew Morgan's name yet the matter in which they discussed was of extreme importance.

"So…explain this to me again Flint." A sharp voice hissed. Its owner he leaned back in his office chair before running a hand back through jet black hair that. Vincent Owen while 42, still sported solid black locks that hadn't changed since his birth. He sat now sitting at his desk, looking over a mess of papers and piles of blurry, unidentifiable photos.
"It appears that the infected are regrouping. They're…reorganizing…" Flint sighed as he looked over the papers he had spread across the desk between himself and the Blackwatch General. "General Owen, sir, they…they're becoming more aggressive." He sighed as he looked up from his hands. The second man in the room was Lieutenant General Logan Flint. Strong looking he, unlike Owen, was beginning to have peppering in his otherwise brown hair. Admittedly this was fully thanks to the recently added responsibilities he had been given. Not only was he a Lieutenant General for the NYZ Marines but now he was the official "go-between" for his troops and Blackwatch. Despite all that his bright greens eyes had yet to loose their spark but even though he was 3 years older than Owen.

"They have gone through waves of aggressiveness before, usually before we break another hive and gain more ground. What makes this any different from all those times before?" Owen asked as he leaned back forward to look over the papers the lieutenant had brought in.
"Well for one…we have sightings of drastically new creatures; things that don't even come close to what appeared in the first outbreak." Flint pushed some photos forward for Owen to look at. He hadn't lied, there were some rather frightening creatures captured in the shots. Some that still appeared human and others that…were hardly so.
"I see…and the geeks in the lab?"
"They should be receiving some samples to analyze this evening. Hopefully we can find out if the strain is evolving further or if this is just a temporary spike in activity." Flint said. "For our sake I hope it's the later…remember those unstable monsters that popped up a few weeks ago?" Owen laughed and nodded.
"Oh yeah…. Really freaking looking but hit'em with incendiaries and they blow like a zit." He chuckled as Flint smiled in return. Perhaps it was a little twisted to talk about things like this but…for the two it was the only way to keep sane. Most of the troops were like this and chatter about 'killing monsters' was as normal as talking about the 'big game'.

Both men looked over the files for a time in silence, sipping coffee and thinking.
"Do you think it's just that? A spike?" Owen asked as Flint looked to him.
"In total honesty sir?" He began. "I…I don't know. It actually reminds me a lot of the freaks we first saw when we came after the bomb." He admitted. "After all…the geeks have been saying for months now they thought the virus was evolving and it was only a matter of time before it completely changed. It could have finally caught up…"