Sorry for the late update. Writer's block and school. Sorry.

Chapter Twenty-Three: Breakthrough

"Let. Me. Go." Laurie growled, writhing in the grip of the enemy behind her. It had her tight in its large hand, keeping her off of the ground, legs dangling uselessly. Every now and then Laurie would try to kick backwards, but she eventually gave up. She was just hurting her legs. Her ribs ached with every shaky breath that passed through her lungs. It was like dealing with the Constrictai all over again. Would she suffocate before her captor brought her to wherever they were headed?

The two entered a building and Laurie grit her teeth, squirming yet again. She strained her neck to look downwards, seeing her own reflection in the gleaming tile floor beneath her. Laurie frowned. The building she was in, she recognized it now. This was all part of the plan. His plan. He wanted her to be scared. He thrived on the fear and pain of others. Laurie made up her mind right then and there.

She would refuse to give in to him.

If she buckled under the stress now, then she knew she would regret it. The others would too. Lost in her own thoughts, the red head did not pay attention to where her captor was taking her until she was stopped in a darkened room, the only light coming from diodes on objects that lined the walls. Her captor released her and Laurie fell to the floor, inhaling deeply and grimacing as her chest rattled, causing her to wheeze.

"So fragile," teased a familiar voice. "Maybe I should just kill you now."

A chill ran through her body, but the Ninja of Wind tried to keep a grip on her emotions. "Then do it," she challenged, slowly getting to her feet and clenching her fists down at her sides, trying to stand as tall as she possibly could. I will not break.

He laughed, shattering Laurie's confidence. "Your true thoughts betray you. They're written all over your face, girl." There was something that scurried in the darkness on the opposite side of the room, echoing his laughter, but Laurie tried to ignore it. "We are not strangers, little Garmadon. We've come face to face on a couple occasions before. Death is not something that you would wish for. Beg for."

A screen on the wall flickered to life, displaying the static image of someone that Laurie had not seen, or even thought about, in the longest time. As she continued to stare at the screen, her ice blue eyes welled up with tears. A knot grew larger in her stomach, twisting like a dagger, before the image vanished, bathing the room in eerie low light once more.

"I can see the guilt in your eyes. It's because you let her die, right in front of you."

Laurie swallowed hard. "There was nothing else I could have done to help," Laurie argued, trying to shrink into herself, make herself as small as possible. Trying to keep all of her emotions in check. He was trying to break her. She would not break.

"It's all about self-preservation. It's a natural instinct for all beings," he said. "You don't want to die. Neither do I." He watched as the girl glared up at him and he chuckled. "You will help me."

"Like I'd ever do that." She took a step backwards and scoffed, hitting something hard before spinning around, coming face to face with someone she had seen maybe an hour ago. But now he was drastically different, towering over her and staring down with deep red eyes. "Wha... Is that you, C-"

"Well, I wasn't giving you a choice now, was I?"

Laurie shot up, looking around the room she was in. There was a desk filled with papers. A large window off to her right. An empty alabaster chair across from her. A plethora of plants huddled in the corners of the room, though she could not tell if they were real or fake. Regardless, Laurie recognized everything. "Doctor," she yelled, shifting to move off of the lounged chair she had awoken on. But she stayed where she was. Laurie glanced down and felt her blood run cold.

She was cuffed to the chair with thick leather straps.

Gritting her teeth, Laurie pulled against the restraints, knowing full well that any attempt at escape was useless. "I know who you are, Doctor," she called again, her voice strained. Sweat beaded on her forehead, slowly trailing down the sides of her face. "You can't trick me anymore! I'm going to tell the others all about you and then you'll wish Lloyd had finished you."

"Goodness, it's worse than she thought it was."

Dr. Voler closed the door to the room quietly behind him, a small smile playing on his lips. "Your mother called me because you were having a severe mental breakdown. She told me she had managed to sedate you with some strong herbal tea recipe that she had gotten from a friend. When I arrived to collect you, to bring you back here, everything seemed normal enough to me." His dark eyes locked with Laurie's and he gave a soft sigh. "I thought your mother was blowing things out of proportion, but now I see that she wasn't joking." The psychologist strode across the room before leaning back against his desk. "You've completely lost it."

"No, I know more than ever now," the red head argued, accepting her imprisonment. "You've been using me this whole time. You've been picking my brain, finding my weaknesses, trying to exploit them." Laurie stared up at the ceiling before turning her attention towards the city. Her friends were out there, living normal lives and finally being able to relax. She was not going to let anything jeopardize their happiness. "But it stops now. I know everything, Overlord."

The man sneered and crossed his arms over his chest. "You know nothing," he said. "You're completely delusional. So we might have to run some tests, just to make sure everything is okay up in there." He pointed to his own head and gave a deep chuckle. "Of course, I'm sure you know how the results will turn out."

"I refuse all treatment and testing," Laurie said, her expression stern. "I'm sure you'd get into a lot of legal trouble for proceeding without the consent of your patient." She could outsmart him, she knew she could. Maybe Kai would show up at the monastery to ask to see her, and when her mother could not make up a legitimate excuse for her disappearance, he would know something was wrong. He would come look for her, right?

Wait a second. This is wrong...

Laurie had often found her mother to be misguided in her decisions. Sending Lloyd to live and learn at a boarding school for bad boys. Taking Laurie with her on her travels and excavations. Withholding the true nature of her father's disappearance for years and then turning up unannounced, trying to make room for herself in her children's lives once again. Misguided, yes, but Laurie's mother was not evil. She never held any ulterior motive towards her family, not really. So why would she be doing this now?

"Because...it's not my mother," Laurie whispered to herself, tensing up. "She's not my mother." Then who is she?

"It wouldn't matter because your mom signed the proper consent forms already," the doctor smirked. "I can do whatever testing I wish. There's nothing you can do about it."

But Laurie was not listening anymore. She felt anxious, but not about the inevitable testing that she would be subjected to. This was wrong. All wrong. And she was just now beginning to realize that. It was not just her mother acting differently than she would have. Everything around her just seemed off. Kai felt wrong. The atmosphere felt wrong.

"Have the headquarters always been here?" Laurie's eyes widened. She had asked Kai that question when she had found herself on the outskirts of Borg Industries. But why? Why would that matter at all? Why would that even come to her mind? It felt odd, like she was trying to look at something that was hidden behind a pane of frosted glass. Just think...

"So, will you come quietly then, Miss Garmadon?"

Laurie refocused her thoughts, aware of her surroundings once more. Dr. Voler was standing beside her, the smile on his face unwavering. A chill swept through the air, goosebumps rising on Laurie's bare arms. "I'd be willing to go with you, yes," she answered plainly, a mischievous gleam in her ice blue eyes. "But first I would like to ask you something."

The man grunted. "Fine, I don't see why not. Go ahead. Ask away."

"Weren't you the one who told me that the first step to my recovery was to realize that what I was hearing and seeing wasn't actually happening?"

She watched the man scowl, his features growing even darker. "Why you little-"

But Laurie just smiled and closed her eyes, jerking her arms up quickly. The leather restraints snapped and she heard the yelling of the doctor, but it grew softer as the moments passed. Laurie suddenly felt stronger, more capable. She was not going to let this false world hold her down any longer. How she had not seen all the inconsistencies around her still eluded her, but the Ninja of Wind was happy that she figured it out before it was too late.

Could she be physically injured in a world that she truly thought was her own?

The girl opened her eyes, consumed by the bitter cold of the Birchwood Forest, cheeks burning with frigid chill and tears. Kai had her tight in his grip, the Sword of Fire pushed up painfully against her throat. He glared at her with crimson irises and she felt her muscles stiffen.

Could she be physically injured? Laurie was about to find out.

I'll shoot for an update on April 4th, guys. Thanks for reading and your continuing patience.