Test Subject Tumble [MISSION]

Hunter nodded curtly as he pulled the mask over his head. He had sneaked out of the house so much as a kid that this felt natural. It was just like old times: get in, get the booze for some teenager who's gonna pay you, get out. Of course, the only guard back then was a drunken woman passed out on the couch, and now there was something at stake. He took off his gloves and shoved them in his back pocket. He snuck in as soon as Richard opened the door, taking a long look around. It was extremely... institutional. It looked sketchy enough, if that was anything to go off of. He looked around for the first stairwell and began moving slowly towards it, his eyes on the walls for cameras. He pulled his hood over his head, though it seemed unneeded with the mask, it was a habit.

ooc:sorry bad post. In school.

Connor stretched the mask over his head and moved around his jaw to adjust the feeling of the felt against his skin. His green eyes watched as Richard slipped past the door and opened it from the inside. His footsteps were soft as he followed close behind Hunter. The autumn student focused on the metal in the room. Most of the walls had metal pipes running through them with random pieces of furniture spread throughout the room. A new source was consintrated in the top corner of the next room. "There is a camera in the room on he right. I can take it out if you guys want." His voice was barely over a whisper but loud enough to reach his team mates.

Matthew put on his ski mask and followed the rest inside. Upon Connor saying that there were cameras nearby, he nodded. "Please. We need to go as unnoticed as possible." he replied in the same whisper. He grabbed his metal balls from his pockets and quickly coated his arms in the material. He needed to be sure he could defend himself in a pinch and the metal would do nicely. He placed the metal back into his pocket as he waited for the metal manipulator to do his stuff.

Looking between the students, Richard's eyes finally settled on Connor who had offered to take out the camera. It was probably a good idea, but Richard couldn't help but have a bad feeling about it. As he looked around, the place looked too... oh, what was the word? The pure white walls and lackluster furniture made the halls and rooms that they passed look really uncomfortable. An assortment of instruments and machines that could be seen in each room as they walked made him feel uneasy. It felt too much like a hospital with a dark twist. The only way he could think to describe it was an old fashioned mental institution with a modern twist. Nothing looked ethical or friendly by any means. No wonder they were supposed to come and rescue the test subjects. "Go ahead and take it out. The less we're seen the better. We'll just have to make this mission quick. Who knows how long we have until someone realizes the camera is down?"

OOC: You fuckers went and died >:C Except you Shad, you cool~

IC: With the camera taken it, it immediately set off an alarm. "Oh fuck," he hissed under his breath. Immediately guards surrounded the group. Using the strength the metal gave his arms, he shoved Connor and Hunter out the door. They need to escape and he knew Richard could get away easily. The Winter knew he was going to have to fight his way out. He readied his fists. The first guard tried to rush him with a taser and was immediately met with a fist to the elbow, shattering the bone. The guards looked hesitantly before rushing towards the boy. Matthew fought off at least a dozen guards with brute force alone before they overran him, knocking him out quickly with a tazer placed on his head. He fell to the ground and his vision became hazy and he succumbed to the darkness.

The blaring sound from the alarm immediately made Richard's heart stop as he froze in place. "Shit, shit, no no no!" he cried as they were quickly surrounded by a number of guards. Stepping back to distance himself from those surrounding them, the guardian's first reaction was to look behind him to see how the others were. Thankfully, he had looked back just in time to see Matthew shoving the other two out of the door to safety as the guards closed in on the two of them. For a short time, Richard was able to hold off some of the guards with a small blade he had attached to his hip. He knew how easy it would have been to get out, but there was no way he was gong to leave Matthew here alone. Easily dodging tasers and slashing out with his dagger, he was fairing pretty well until the horrifying sound of one taser hitting its target caught Richard's attention. Turning around, his gaze quickly fell onto Matthew who was now lying on the floor unconscious. With a sharp gasp, Richard quickly tried going after his friend. "Hang on, Matthew!" he shouted, turning around to push the guards off of the student. However, as he did so, his focus had shifted too much and within seconds, a hard crack landed on the back of the guardian's head, instantly forcing him into unconsciousness.

ooc; no one told me we were skipping grizzly. I've been good with posting ;A; This is why I have skype

Connor's face grew warm and butterflies filled his stomach. An uneasy feeling ran down his spine as he lifted up his hand in the direction of the camera. He felt the metal crush in an instant within his grip, metal pieces slowly floating to the ground as Connor kept control of them. Pride washed over him and his lips formed a smirk, all of his training has been put to good use. Besides he was almost a senior, he's been training for two years at Beata, plus more at home. The metal-benders thoughts quickly vanished as the ringing of an alarm filled his ears.

Green eyes scanned the building furiously as guards started to flood into the area. "Shi-" His word was cut off when he was quickly shoved outside with Hunter. His brows furrowed with anger and his knuckles turned white from clenching them too hard. "What the fuck?!" Finally, an opportunity for him to freely use his powers but he was shoved outside by a teammate. A teammate. Connor placed his hand against the warm metal door, slowly bending it under his grip. His voice came out harsh as he turned his head towards Hunter, "I'm going in to help them. You do you man." With that he kicked the door and the metal imploded giving him a full view of the scene.

Guards fought viciously side by side against Matthew and Richard. Well, at least Richard. Matthew was passed out cold, face against the ground. The metal from the door formed around Connor's hand, giving him a metal glove, as the rest of the metal shards floated around him ready to be used. The autumn student ran in next to Richard and took out an oncoming guard with a single blow of his fist. Shards of metal flew into the battle impaling a few guards, making some of them fall to the ground. A loud grunt caught his attention as he watched Richard fall. A guard stood over the guardian's body, fairly pleased with his work. Connor clenched his metal fist and slammed it against the man, blood covering the once clean metal. If he wasn't pissed then, he was definitely pissed now. The student swiftly turned around only to find himself eye to eye with another guard who placed a taser against his chest. Electricity filled his thoracic cavity spreading down to his arm against the now sparking metal. His vision grew blurry and darkness filled his mind. The autumn student fell to the ground next to his other fallen teammates.

When Matthew woke up, he was strapped down to a table. The metal on his arms had dissipated, and he couldn't touch anything around him to get out. He struggled against the leather straps that were holding his wrists and ankles in place. No such luck. After tiring himself out, he finally stopped struggling. Why was he here? Where was he? Looking around the room, all he could see were metallic walls and a door. "Let me out!" he screamed to the empty room, almost sure there'd be cameras.

After a few more hours of useless struggling, the door opened and a man walked in. "Wie geht es den Patienten heute?" the scientist asked, getting close to Matthew's face. Anger welled up inside of the Winter and he spat in the man's face.

"I don't speak German you fuck," he said angrily.

"Zat is painfully obfious," was the man's only reply. "Nehmen Sie den Jungen in den Testraum." When the scientist said that, two men came in and unstrapped Matthew's arms and legs. He tried to fight back but was quickly knocked out with a quick punch to the nose. One of the guards hefted him over their shoulder and carried him down the hallway, to the "testing room." Things were only going to get worse from there.

OOC: tl;dr Richard doesn't talk.

It was dark. His head throbbed has he tried to open his eyes. Even as he blinked, the light barely faded into view. Everything was blurry as Richard’s vision finally started to come back to see a bright white room filled with all sorts of equipment. It was a cold room covered with metal and tools. The lack of windows to it was just as disconcerting as the giant silver metal door across the room. As he focused, he finally remembered that they had never left the complex. In fact, they had barely gotten into it when he lost consciousness.

Glancing at his surroundings, everything finally made more sense. The sterile walls and floor along with all of the wires that hung from the ceiling shook his nerves. When he focused on exactly what kind of equipment festooned the room, it shook him down to the core. All sorts of poking things, drilling things… and were those scalpels? They covered trays that sat on top of carts that littered the room. He could only wonder what these people were up to but he didn’t want to stick around to find out.

Without much thought, Richard tried to stand up only to feel the cold sting of handcuffs that were latched way too tight around his wrists. Immediately, the progress he had made getting to his feet came to a halt as he was forced back down into the chair. With a suddenly frantic look, Richard looked behind the chair to see the handcuffs welded to the back to the steel chair he was stuck to. It only took a second for his heart to calm right back down as he stupidly remembered how to use common sense with his own ability.

Relaxing, he was just about to let his hands slide out of the cuffs until the large heavy door opposite of him clicked and swung open with a loud, protesting creak. Moving through the door with a ghostly grace was a rather bland looking man with thick black-rimmed glasses and almost-buzzed hair who looked to be in his mid-forties. A lab coat was draped over his tall frame and a clipboard was tucked into his side as his piercing green eyes stared straight at Richard. He didn’t say a word as he stopped just shy of a few feet from the guardian, simply watching. At first, all Richard could do was stare back. He looked at the man with a nervous, quizzical look, studying his face before the awkward tension was too much and his gaze shot to the ground.

Even so, nothing was said. No expressions were traded, no shifting of weight—the silence between them was practically deafening. Richard could only wait for the man in front of him to speak. It felt like hours went by before the scientist’s words shattered the air.

“So…” the man said, his head looking towards the ground for a second as he took a couple of steps toward Richard. “You’re from that school in the States, aren’t you?” The accent was a little difficult to understand but it didn’t take long for the guardian to figure out what he asked. However, he stayed silent as he looked back up at the scientist with a blank stare. Why should he answer any of this guy’s questions after what he had put Richard through? Several minutes went by with nothing between them. The man stood there, his eyes sizing up the guardian in front of him.

“Hmph,” the man huffed before pulling the clipboard out from under his arm. He studied it for a moment as he pulled a pen out of his pocket and furiously scribbled down some notes. Richard was surprised to see a lack of irritation on his face but somehow that made him more nervous. “Subject is not speaking…” With a few more scribbles, he looked approvingly at his observations before clicking the pen and putting it back where he found it. “Now, may I ask… what is your ability? All Beata students have them. What is yours?”

The way he spoke so casually was throwing Richard off. It almost seemed friendly. The man’s voice was smooth, deep, and a little comforting with the tone he used. It was unnerving considering the situation Richard was in. He had no idea how to respond to it. Part of him wanted to reply but part of him also wanted to jump out of the chair and run until he couldn’t run anymore. After a few minutes, he ultimately decided against both options.

The silence that continued to fill the room made the air thick with tension, but the guardian was pretty sure it was one-sided. The scientist seemed all but as he stood patiently awaiting any kind of answer to his questions, but after a few more minutes of nothing, the scientist pulled the pen back out and began writing again. “Subject appears to be stubborn or unable to speak.” With another click, the pen was back in his pocket.

With an exaggerated sigh, the man put down the clipboard on the closest cart. He stood there for a moment, his gaze locked onto the words written in a near illegible handwriting. Richard looked over at the board as best as he could, trying to read the chicken scratch. He had nearly forgotten about the pain in his head until his eyes tried in vain to focus on the words. Cringing at the pang in the back of his head, he was suddenly taken aback when the scientist turned in a flurry of his coat, grabbing Richard by his forehead and slamming it on the back of the chair he was sitting in. Instantly the calm and casual man had turned furious, staring down at Richard with a terrifying intensity. “I see you don’t want to cooperate. But here’s the deal. You’re a little bit stuck, and if you want to leave here in one piece, I suggest you start answering me.” The darkness that coated his voice almost made Richard tremble, but he did his best to hide it.  

As soon as the guardian’s head struck the chair, his whole body flinched, pushing against the handcuffs that kept him in place. His eyes were wide from terror as he stared deep into the man’s gaze in fear for his life if he even tried to look away. His breathing picked up, pushing through his teeth as his jaw clenched so tight his face began to ache. He could even feel his heart jumping into his throat as he tried to stay calm. Yet, even with the threat, Richard said nothing. He couldn’t give anything away. Who knew what this man would do with that kind of information?

More silence. The only thing that could be heard was Richard’s shallow breathing until he closed his mouth and consciously controlled how much air he took in. Within a minute, however, the man released his grip on the guardian’s head and walked back to his clipboard with a smirk and a humorless chuckle. The pen came out again. “Subject shows signs of fear yet remains silent. Whether this is out of courage or stupidity, I’m not sure yet. There is still more research to be done!”

Cold air brushed Connor's face as he laid limp in a chair. His head was tilted over, staring at his lap, his eyes closed with a faint breath every so often. The calming atmosphere sent a shiver down the winter's spine as he awoke with a jolt of energy. His green eyes were wide with exhilaration as he searched the room. Smooth white walls laid before him, a perfect cube, but at one corner of the room was a small metallic door. Connor inhaled sharply, the cold air tickling his nostrils. He raised his hand to run it through his hair only to be stopped by thick leather straps that held him down to the metal chair.

Panic swelled up inside of the Beata student as he began to look for a way to escape. 'The chair is metal, perhaps I can bend out of it. But how would I get out of here? Who took me here?' Questions swelled his brain as he waited frantically for someone to enter the room. The hinges of the door squealed with movement as a man made his way in. A white coat was draped over his body and a clipboard was tucked under his arm, a pen clicking constantly in his right hand. Do not panic. I'm doctor- Well, never mind. All you need to know is that I'll be taking care of you from now on.

Anger swam in sharp green eyes, "Where am I?" He shouted across the room. A pain erupted in his chest as he said his hoarse response. The pain trickled down to his arm, causing him to wince. His shirt was tattered and burnt, a pattern of electricity covered Connor's arm from where the taser reacted to his metal. His metal. Connor shut his eyes and focused around the room for any source of metal, tools and equipment were stacked on a cart and his own chair was made out of metal. Hope danced in his chest but quickly faded as he realized he had no way of getting out of here or finding the exit.

"The same facility that you broke into. Doesn't seem like you got very far." The man gave the winter a smirk as he pulled his clipboard from under his arm. "My friends, where are they?"

"Same facility. You're quite curious aren't you? Well, lets use that talkative attitude for something useful, shall we?" Connor flinched at the doctors harsh tone, what did he want with him?

Questions overwhelmed his head, pulling him away from reality. He didn't want to be here. This was his first mission, not a wish for death. The dark haired man raised something from his coat pocket to his mouth, a small static could be heard as he clicked a button. "I'm going to need a bit more help in here." His gaze returned to the metal bender, "So, you have a power right? Mind telling me what it is?" The student stayed quiet as he glared across the room. "Trust me kid. If you want to make it out of here in decent shape you better start talking. And from what I can see you're already in pain." His pen glided over to point at Connor's chest and arm drawing his attention away from the door, which clicked open, two more men entering in all black.

Matthew woke up in pain. Everything hurt but he couldn't remember what happened. A doctor in a lab coat came in and injected a drug into his neck. The needle pinched but soon he was out again. What happened next Matthew only remembered as if he were a ghost outside of his body. Scientists were surrounding his restrained body on a table and they were prodding him with needles. He could faintly hear himself scream, but there was no pain. Not yet. His gift reacted to everything that touched his skin. Somehow they were controlling his gift. Then his vision faded.

The next thing he remembered was pain. Nothing more than pain. He couldn't see anything. He couldn't feel anything. The only thing he could hear was himself screaming from the intensity of the pain. Everything soon faded again.

The next thing he knew the table that he had been laying on was upright, although he was still strapped to it. His wrists and head hung loosely. His whole body was on fire and he couldn't move. He felt himself shaking and his throat was raw from the screaming. More doctors streamed in and he lifted his head weakly. "Why are you doing this?" he asked in a voice barely above a whisper. The doctor who had originally spoken to him looked at him dead in the eyes.

"Because vee can," came the cold voice. "Begin." The scientists began the torture again, shocking and poking and prodding and cutting. After a time this torture became all he knew. The Winter wasn't sure how long it went on, but he wasn't sure how much longer he could last.

It wasn't long before the torture turned mental as well as physical. A device was strapped to his head that would send electrical shocks through his brain every time a button was pushed. The intensity could be changed as well. Some days were more intense than others, although Matthew, in the state he was in, had no sense of time. He barely felt alive. This method of torture went on for days and days. Soon the days turned into months and finally it happened. Matthew couldn't take it anymore. He finally decided enough was enough, and everyone who didn this to him was going to die. He screamed at the top of his lungs, although not from pain this time. He struggled against his bonds with the renewed vigor of someone who has lost it all. His gift went berserk as well. The metal table was against his bare back and the material soon coated itself over the boy's entire body. The metal's increased strength helped him break free as scientists and guards came rushing in.

The first guard to reach him immediately stopped dead in his tracks as one punch from the Winter made his chest implode. Guards quickly surrounded the boy but they all went down one by one. One of the scientists, however, had a "killswitch." A button was pressed on the scientist's watch and it sent an electrical shock through the boy's mind that quickly incapacitated him. The metal quickly shrunk into nothing and he was left back where he started.

When he woke up next he was in a bare room and he was chained to a wall. He screamed and shouted and tried to break free but the walls and floor would send an electrical shock every time he tried to use his gift. He didn't know how long he remained there, but he didn't care. He didn't care about anything anymore. His mind was broken. Nothing would be the same, and it was for the scientists' safeties rather than Matthew's that he was chained up. They may have created a monster, but they couldn't control him. Not yet.

No matter how hard Richard tried, he could not get his heart to settle back down. His pulse filled his ears making it hard to hear around him. He wanted to calm down enough to concentrate and find a way out, but he couldn’t bring himself to focus long enough. He did know that he could simply get up and walk out but that wouldn’t help the others. He needed to get everyone. He couldn’t leave anyone behind; he could never live with the guilt.  Plus, he was sure that Headmaster Wright would never let him see the light of day again. Besides, there was no way at this point that he would give any kind of information to this guy in the room.

“Now, will you tell me? How about we start with something simpler. What is your name? If you want this to be a two-way street, we can do that too. I’m Doctor Smith. You are…?” Dr. Smith casually leaned against the cart he stood by, waiting for some kind of answer with his arms crossed in front of his chest.

This time, Richard could only glare at the doctor with annoyance covering his expression as he finally gained control of himself once again. After several seconds of silence between them, Richard spat at the ground just at Dr. Smith’s feet. In retrospect, it probably wasn’t the best idea, but he didn’t care.

The doctor’s eyebrows raised at the act of defiance as his tongue visually swiped over his teeth behind his lips. “Such an insolent young man.” He turned around and wrote more down on the board. “Subject is beginning to react. He still remains silent even after some… words of encouragement but has stooped to spitting at me.” At this point, irritation drowned out all facades the scientist was trying to keep up.

Before he could do anything else, however, an alarming beep went off on one of the machines on the right side of the room. With a small gasp and an almost shocked look, all of Richard’s attention turned to the source.  It was only when paper spilled out of the top with words upon words filling it with black ink did the guardian relax again. He hadn’t realized just how on edge he had been feeling until this point.  

“Oh! Looks like you won’t have to answer my questions,” The doctor said, crossing the room in just a few cheery strides. Picking up the sheet of paper, his eyes scanned it for the information he was looking for. The guardian could only watch with anticipation as the scientist looked over the paper several times with an ever-growing grin on his face. The longer he took the more Richard was filled with dread on whatever information was covering the pages.

“Yes, this is good. This is very good!” Throwing the papers down, Dr. Smith ran back to the left side and grabbed a landline phone hanging on the wall. He entered a number quickly, grabbing someone on the other line almost immediately. A few mumbled words were exchanged before the phone was back on the wall. With a mischievous grin, the doctor waltzed back to the cart he had stood against and carefully picked up one of the instruments sitting on top. In a sharp, fluid motion, the object left his hand and aimed straight for Richard. The guardian only had a split second to react, a sharp gasp escaping his throat as he saw the needle fly through the air. Shutting his eyes and holding his breath, he waited for the impact but unfortunately felt the usual feeling of it flying through his body, clanging on the chair and falling to the floor.

Richard’s reaction couldn’t have been better. Dr. Smith’s grin turned into a giddy smile. “Great! This is far better than I had imagined!” With a skip in his step, the doctor turned back to his board and scribbled some more. “Subject has the ability to become intangible. This will make for some very interesting tests!” When he was finished, the pen was put down as the doctor looked back at Richard with a whole new excitement about him. “If you were wondering, we ran some blood tests before you woke up. I wasn’t expecting it to be done so soon. This is marvelous!”

Suddenly Richard’s jaw dropped as his stomach felt like it had fallen through his body. The defiant look he originally wore fell to terror and disbelief. They were able to figure that out through blood tests? As soon as his expression changed, it hardened again into a bout of anger. Closing his eyes and breathing a moment, he finally gave up and pulled his hands out of the cuffs, sitting in the chair while staring at the doctor. “I would call bull shit on that machine of yours but…” he muttered in a raspy voice. He hadn’t realized that sitting there without speaking would dry his throat out so bad. “So now that you know, I guess I can make my exit.” He stood up, watching the doctor for several seconds, trying to figure out exactly how he would react. It was the smug look on his face that kept Richard from moving any farther.  

“Mm, see, I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” Dr. Smith retorted rather quickly. “We have something you might want to have a look at.” Almost as if on cue, the large metal door creaked open again, this time revealing a boy in the doorway who was quite obviously a few years younger than Richard. Instantly, the guardian was taken aback at the terrible sight before him. Everything about the boy screamed abuse. He was short, freakishly pale while near paper-thin skin hung on his bones like a drying rack. His head was shaved clean and his brown glossy eyes were sunk deep into his face.  Thin, white, cracked lips stretched across his face in a neutral expression while all sorts of dark scars ravaged the boy’s body creating a deep contrast on his white skin. After studying the boy, Richard wasn’t entirely sure how the kid was still standing on his own two feet. This must have been one of the test subjects they were supposed to rescue because he sure didn’t look like he belonged here.

Dr. Smith glanced between the two boys in satisfaction. This had suddenly become too easy. “Okay, Subject 82, bring them in.”

The icy look was one full of hatred. Anger swelled in his gut as he tugged at the leather straps holding him down to the chair. Two more guards entered the room, one with a nasty cut against his cheek and the other with a small limp to his walk. "Don't worry. They are just here in case things get out of hand." The doctor placed his clipboard down on one of the near by carts and picked up a bottle of clear liquid. "You would like to know where your friends are, yes? Well, I can help with that. In fact if you cooperate I can let you all go." His dark brown eyes scanned the beata student for any sense of hope or relief.

Connor pushed against the straps once more, this time leaving a red mark that would definitely leave a bruise. "How can I trust you?" The angered student asked. The doctor erupted with laughter after the naive comment. "How can you trust me?!" He asked between laughs. He made his way over to Connor and grabbed his collar, "Because. What I say goes. Do you understand?" Connor sat back into his chair and spat into the doctors face leaving a trail of saliva down his pale skin.

"Now you shouldn't have done that." He released his grip on the metal bender and proceeded to wipe his face with his coat. A guard came charging up to Connor, fist in a ball. For a moment his world went white, but soon came into focus with a burning pain that erupted on the side of his face. One punch after another left his cheek bleeding a drool colored in red slipped out of his mouth. "That's enough you idiotic brick head! We need the subject to talk not to go unconscious."

Connors head slumped over coughing up the blood that was clogging his throat. "What do you want from me?" The doctors face lit up, "Oh! I thought you'd never ask!" His grin quickly returned to his face as he raised the clear bottle, "See this bottle here? Well. It's not very fun. So all you gotta do to avoid it is answer my simple little questions, got it?" The white coated man swung the bottle in the air for Connor to see, waiting for his answer. "I said GOT IT?!" His voice much more demonic than before.

The metal bender only managed a nod as his eye contact broke away from the mans. "Good~ Then let us begin."

Aside from the sharp silence, there was only a faint, creaking echo, the ghastly whine of the heavy metal door as it had begun to swing open, allowing fresh light to poor into Richard's prison room. An enormous man stood in the doorway, barely able to fit through the frame, and in his shadow stood a lone woman. Her hair was a matted mess of dirty blonde, skin pale and only covered with a thin gown, which offered no comfort or warmth in the cold laboratory.

Whilst her body was clean of any black and blue patches, there was something off about the way she stood, wavering around; like her own two legs would give out at any possible moment. She kept her gaze low to the tile floor, sleepy, obedient, withdrawn into herself until that split second she dared to let curiosity get the best of her. For a heartbeat, she looked up, hazel eyes locking with the young man watching her.

"Ahh -" She let out a pathetic whimper, the subject behind her giving her a sharp shove. She went crumpling down onto the floor, hiding her away and shaking like a leaf.

The doctor once again looked between the boy and Richard for a moment. “So, what do you think? Did we choose the right one?” His voice still held excitement for what was to come.

Richard couldn’t take his eyes off of the girl that lay in front of him. As soon as her eyes locked onto his, a sharp pang of fear tightened in his chest and made his stomach drop. His body quickly locked up, frozen in place at the sight of Brailynn sprawled on the floor in terror. How did they get to her? She hadn’t even come on this mission. This was impossible! Glancing at the doctor, he panicked. “How? How did you get her? Tell me how you got Brailynn here!” He shouted, feeling his fists clench in frustration as he desperately tried to figure out how on earth they manage to grab her.

The smirk on the doctor’s face only grew as Richard spoke. “Let’s just say that we have our ways,” the scientist responded, pushing off of the cart and standing straight again. “Now here’s the deal. Since we cannot physically hurt you right now, or much less keep you from escaping, we have the next best thing. Miss Brailynn here seems to be very close to your heart. She will be your motivation to cooperate with us. Do as we say and she doesn’t get hurt. Screw up and… well, we’ll see where that road takes us, won’t we?” A wink from the doctor sent chills down the guardian’s spine.

Richard’s face turned from anger to helplessness in a second. He looked around, trying to figure out any way that he could grab Lynn and escape. Yet, in the back of his mind, he knew that he couldn’t. He had no idea where they were nor did he know how to get out. There was no hope. He couldn’t let them hurt Lynn. He glanced first at the small boy across the room, then at Lynn who was still unconscious on the cold hard floor, and finally his gaze landed on the doctor who was patiently awaiting some kind of feedback from the guardian. With a look of defeat, his face fell to the floor and his shoulders slumped. “Fine…” He muttered. “Do what you want with me. But don’t you dare touch a single hair on her head!”

The doctor smiled as he stood up straight and began walking toward the door, his eyes beaming with excitement. “Very well. I think we can make that work. Now, we have some tests to run. Follow me.” As the large door screeched open again, he looked behind him at the small boy. "And don't forget to bring our guest!" The singsong way he spoke only made Richard clench his jaw in anger as he reluctantly followed behind the doctor to their next destination.