Steve watched hesitantly as flames licked across his skin, not even hurting as it directly touched him. He could feel the heat but his skin didn't burn, he was perfectly fine.

He knew that this only proved what Brenner and all of the scientists suspected: he could adapt. Adapt to any and all situations around him, which sounded complicated to him. Yet, after test after test, he knew what it meant. If he was submerged in water he would be able to breathe as soon as he ran out of his own breath. If he was exposed to fire his skin would become resistant to it. He also could breath in huge amounts of gas or smoke without passing out.

He knew that he would be in awe of his abilities if he wasn't so afraid of what it meant for him.

Brenner, however, seemed proud. He probably never expected results like this. Now he had a mind reader and someone who could be thrown into a pit of lava and come out alive. Though, he hadn't been tested for that. Yet.

Steve couldn't contact Robin, either, and he hoped that everything was okay with her. She had randomly stopped talking to him when he answered a question, and he didn't know what to think about that. He didn't think that she was dead, but anything could happen, couldn't it?

After Brenner was satisfied with the results, the lighter was pulled away from his arm and flicked closed, quenching the flame.

A doctor rushed over to inspect his skin, smiling at the results.

"Minor burns from where we started, but three seconds after exposure there were no residual effects. Incredible."

"Yes." Brenner said, crossing his arms, as if he was studying a hunk of metal, and Steve looked away from him, instead choosing to focus on the ground. He hated this. He wanted to leave, to be treated like a human again, even if he wasn't one anymore. Robin needed to get out of here, too. The longer they were here the more they understood their abilities, sure, but what else did Brenner have planned for them?

He didn't want to stay to find out.

Brenner took Steve's arm, inspecting it for himself, and Steve winced, instinctively pulled it away. The older man's grip tightened, and Brenner sighed.

"Don't fight me, Nineteen. We both know how that turned out last time."

Steve did. He couldn't feel the residual damage from the beating he took, the beating he took before he learned he could breathe underwater, but he could still remember it as plain as day. Luckily he didn't bruise as badly, and with the knowledge he had now, he assumed it was because his skin adapted to the blows and protected itself.

He didn't tell Brenner that. He didn't want to give him an advantage over him, well, a bigger advantage than he had now.

Brenner and the doctor moved to a countertop, no doubt going over the data, and an orderly took a photo of his arm, where a tiny pink line could be seen. It barely hurt. Soon he was left alone, the buzzing of activity around him centered around what he could do, but not himself sitting on the examination bed.

Steve eyed the security guards with their tasers, thinking. From what he could tell, and from what he was told, he had a general idea about his powers. Brenner was oddly open about it, was it maybe because he wanted Steve to trust him? Possibly. But, Steve was taking every victory and chance at hope he could get.

But it didn't matter how he got the information, because he had it. He knew that if he was exposed to something for a couple of seconds he would most likely be able to adapt to it. So, would he become immune to the tasers? Was it possible? Was he already immune, because he had been hit before?

Without thought he quietly slid off of the bed, his bare feet landing on the floor with ease. He glanced around, waiting to be scolded, to be hurt, yet no one paid him any attention.

He knew that this was crazy. Yet, this may be the only opportunity for escape that he had. Steve could see the door ahead of him, wide open, leading to hundreds of rooms, one that contains Robin. He would probably be caught before he found her. It would go bad. He could die. Yet, something about who he was now, what he could do, gave him a confidence that he never thought he would have in this building.

And, if he died? Then he would be free. He wasn't going to try and die, though, he still needed to save Robin.

He took a deep breath, slowly kneeling into a crouching position, as if he was about to run a race. This was a race, he assumed. A race against him, the guards, and the weapons they held. A race that would determine his future from here on out. Possibly even Robin's.

He made sure everyone was looking away, and when he was sure that the coast was clear, he ran.

His feet pounded against the ground as he sprinted past everyone in the room and to the door, screams of protest and shock echoing around the room.

"Stop him!" Steve heard Brenner shout, but he was already beyond the door, slamming the big red button as he ran, hoping that it would close the door. It did, and he couldn't help but smile.

His heart pounded as he continued to run, glancing into every room he passed, searching for Robin. He knew that she would likely be in a room labeled with her number, like his was, but he just wanted to be sure. The bare hallway was a blur to him as he ran by, and he could hear more people running behind him, no doubt able to get the door open.

"Subject on the run." A voice from a loudspeaker proclaimed, a loud siren joining it, and Steve ran faster, sweat dripping down back. "Subject on the run, sedate upon retrieval."

Steve knew that there was no way that he would let that happen. The retrieval or the sedation. He wouldn't let them even touch him.

He wasn't sure if he was thinking at this point, if he was running on thought or instinct, but it was too late to slow down now. He sharply rounded a corner, nearly falling to the ground but righting himself, and ducked as he heard a gunshot ring behind and high above him. A light shattered right above his head, showering him with glass shards, and he knew that he was in trouble. They were right behind him.

Unlike the other hallways, the one Steve turned into was one with labeled doors, and he could see the number one and two beside him, and he knew that he was close to Robin. His cell was in a second hallway, numbers labeled ten to nineteen, so she had to be in the third hallway, right?

"Subject! Stop!" He could hear, someone hoping that he would stop on his own accord, probably. Steve wondered how stupid the guards thought that he was.

More gunshots rang out, and he cried out in pain when he felt a burning sensation in his arm, followed by a warm liquid flowing down his elbow. His vision went blurry, tears flooding his eyes, and he could feel himself loose grip on the world.

No. No. Keep going.

Seconds later his vision cleared, and the pain went away in an instant. He felt another bullet hit him, right in the back, yet he never felt the pain of it puncturing his skin or organs, or the flow of blood that had to have followed. Did he really adapt that quickly? If he wasn't in a life-or-death situation he would've laughed. Bullets didn't hurt him anymore. He couldn't get shot.

Finally, he could see Robin's door ahead of him, and he hoped that she was in her room. He hoped that he could get in. He hoped that they wouldn't get caught. Robin wasn't immune to bullets, at least, as far as he knew, so everything could go wrong.

Steve wouldn't know anything unless he tried.

He bolted to her door, fighting with the doorknob only to find it locked, a keypad being the only chance of unlocking it.

"Steve? What are you doing?" Robin exclaimed, her head becoming visible through the small window. Her voice was a bit muffled because of the barrier between them. Steve threw his shoulder into the door, wishing that he would be able to break it open.

"Escaping! And you're coming!"

"Steve! You need to run!"

"No! I'm not leaving you here!"

Her eyes widened as she saw the guards come into view, and she gasped, backing away from the door instinctively. Yet, as soon as they were about to reach Steve, she appeared back into view, holding her hands to her head and closing her eyes. Steve jumped away from the guards, ready to punch whoever would come close to him, yet none of them did.

The closest man to them, a huge guy with a bald head, dropped his gun, his eyes wide with fear. Steve watched with confusion as he stepped away, breathing heavily, shaking where he stood. All of the other guards weren't faring too well either, it was as if all of them were paralyzed with fear, seeing something so scary they couldn't move.

"What?" Steve muttered, and he looked back to Robin, whose nose began bleeding. She managed a tired smile.

"I got them. Made them scared."

Steve would have to ask her more about it later, but he was thankful that there was no chance that he would get attacked, at least until more people came.

Grabbing the discarded gun from the floor, he slammed it into the keypad, making Robin flinch behind the door.

"Sorry."

"No, it's…" She cringed as more blood flowed down from her nose. "I don't know how long I can make them scared like this."

"Not for much longer." Steve said, an idea forming in his head. "Step away from the door."

Robin obeyed, and Steve held the gun the way he thought he was supposed to, made sure that it was loaded, which, thankfully, it was, and put his finger on the trigger. He pulled it.

His shoulder jostled as the gun fired, putting a bullet in the keypad. Smoke began to snake through the air from the hole, and Steve tried the doorknob again. He allowed himself to celebrate with a smile, the bullet had disabled the keypad and the padlock, allowing the knob to open with ease. Robin rushed through the door, her eyes bright with hope, and she took his hand, running through the halls.

"I had to let the guards go." She said as soon as they were a safe distance away from the men. She was out of breath as they ran, and Steve wasn't surprised. Using her powers like that took a huge toll on her, apparently. Much like El. "I don't know when they're going to start pursuing us."

Steve nodded, his inhales and exhales even. "I think we have a big enough lead on them, but I'm just worried about more coming."

"Where's Papa?"

Papa? It took him a second, and Steve shook his head, knowing that she meant Brenner.

"I don't know. I left him behind when I started running."

Robin led him though the bare hallways, purpose and clarity clearly shown from her movements, like she knew where they were going.

"Do you know where the exit is?" Steve asked, and she nodded.

"I read a doctor's mind, it should be just ahead, but it's a desert outside."

"Could we take a vehicle?"

"I don't think so, I haven't read anything about vehicles from anyone."

"Then we'll just have to keep running."

They could soon hear more voices behind them, but there were huge doors in front of them, and Steve knew that it was the exit. It had to be. The two pushed through the doors, and a gunshot was heard. Robin cried out, whether from pain or exhaustion Steve didn't know, but when the doors were open they rushed outside, getting as far from the lab as they could.

Robin was right. It was a desert out here, with one lone road stretching from the door and into the distance. And it was crazy hot. The sun was high in the sky, and Steve had no doubt that it was going to get even hotter.

The two ran down the road, trying to keep ahead of whatever dangers were coming from behind them, but after some time it became clear that no one was pursuing them. Steve didn't know if he should be worried about that or not.

"Let's take a break." Steve said, seeing how tired and sweaty Robin was beside him, and she nodded, slowing down and stumbling on her feet. Steve rushed to her side, catching her and helping her kneel on the ground. She fell against him, breathing heavily.

"Are you okay?" Steve asked, but as soon as the words escaped his lips his stomach fell. He felt a stickiness on her back as he held her, and he remembered the moment they escaped. Something happened that hurt her. There was a gunshot. Was she…was she shot?

He gently shifted her body so that he could see her back, and he gasped, the bright pool of blood on her medical gown so out of place it made him sick. How had he not noticed before? How bad was it? Was she going to be okay?

"Steve..?" She asked, and he ripped the gown gingerly so that he could see the wound more, and pressed his hands to the wound. He knew that it might get infected, but he had to stop the bleeding. She let out a whine at the pressure.

"It's fine, you're fine, just a small wound." He said, rushing to reassure her. Tears burst into his eyes as he realized that he may lose his best friend, right here on a sandy road.

Was this escape worth it? Worth losing her?

Robin's blood trickled through his fingers and began coating his hands, and all he wanted was for her to be okay. She needed to make it. She needed to.

Please.

"Steve? It…it doesn't hurt anymore." She said after a moment, her voice disjointed. He knew what it meant. She was dying.

"Robー"

"No, it doesn't hurt. I feel fine." She gripped his hand, her eyes meeting his, and she looked super confused, super tired, but okay. Nothing like she should look if she was about to die.

"What? But…you were shot. You have a bullet in your back!"

Robin seemed shocked. Steve was sure her expression was mirrored on his face. He looked back to the wound, eyes widening when he took away his hands and saw a bullet right on the surface of her skin, a bullet that was no doubt further in her body not a minute earlier. The wound was still bleeding, yet it wasn't as bad as before, it was as if she was healing. But how?

"What's going on? Why that face?"

Steve swallowed. "You're…healing. I could just take out the bullet right now."

"That…that makes no sense. Papa never said anything about me having healing powers."

"Me, neither. But, whatever's going on, I'm glad. I can't lose you, Robin."

She smiled tiredly. "I can't lose you either."

He managed to smile back. "Do you want me to take the bullet out? It might hurt."

She nodded. "Please."

Taking a deep breath, Steve gently grabbed the bullet and pulled it out slowly, wincing as she let out a pained groan. As soon as it was out he dropped it on the ground, caressing her back so that she would stay upright, and watched the wound heal nearly instantly.

"Wow." He breathed. "Incredible."

He got to his feet, taking her hand and helping her up, too. He looked behind them, and no one was coming after them, but not for long.

"We should keep going." Robin said, and he couldn't help but agree.

So they did, following the road to what they hoped was a safe place.