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Brennan came to as a rag was being held under his nose. He quickly jerked his head up. He was groggy, but considering he'd assumed he was dying the last time he'd been awake, he felt almost... better than usual. Tired, but strong.
"Good, you're awake," the young doctor from earlier said, pocketing the obviously drugged rag that had been used to bring him around.
Brennan groaned. His arms were stretched up over his head, his wrists cuffed and suspended from a hook which hung from the ceiling. His feet just touched the floor, and he straightened himself up to relieve the strain on his arms.
He was dressed once more - loose white pants and a white shirt. He now matched the building, all the walls also being white. He looked at the young man who was still with him. "What's your name?" There were better questions, such as what the hell was going on, but he decided to try for something that might actually be answered.
"Jordan," was the short reply.
Okay, that was a start. "I'm Brennan," Brennan said, trying to get Jordan to view him as more than just a test subject.
"I know who you are, Mulwray," Jordan said coldly before shining a penlight into his eyes.
"And I see you've already decided you don't like me," Brennan commented.
Jordan stared at him. "You're a criminal, a member of the outlaw gang known as Mutant X."
"We're the good guys," Brennan defended himself. "Just who do you think you're working for? Eckhart is the criminal."
"Mr. Eckhart is a government employee. He's only trying to help your kind."
"My kind?" Brennan repeated. The way Jordan said it, he might as well have said freak. "You're no better than us. Geez, what are you, like 17? You're just a stupid kid who doesn't know anything. You get an after- school job working for Genomex and suddenly you've got a God complex."
Brennan stopped talking and mentally scolded himself. He'd really chosen a great way to go about getting Jordan to sympathize with him. "Sorry," he finally said. "It's not your fault Eckhart is playing you."
"You're very outspoken," Jordan told him. "Mr. Eckhart clearly explained things to me when I signed on to intern here."
"Yeah," Brennan scoffed. "I'm sure he did."
Jordan glared at him for a moment before offering him two small pills. "What are they?" Brennan asked.
"Pain pills," Jordan informed him. "We do try to be as humane as possible."
Brennan spit in the outstretched hand. "Pass."
Tossing the pills onto the floor, Jordan gave him another disgusted look before turning to leave. Eckhart and the guard from before entered as he was about to go out.
"Is he able to resume testing?" Eckhart asked Jordan.
The intern nodded. "He came through the procedure perfectly. His initial rejection of the strand hasn't caused any ill effects," he told Eckhart before storming out.
Eckhart casually strolled over to Brennan. "Congratulations on costing me a small fortune, Mr. Mulwray. You continue to torment me even while unconscious."
Glaring at him, Brennan tossed out a, "Anything I can do to make your life more interesting."
Eckhart looked to the other man. "You may begin," he told him before also exiting.
"So what's next on the agenda?" Brennan asked his guard. In response, he received a hard backhand to his face. After spitting the blood from his mouth, he asked, "What the hell was that for?"
The man struck him again. Brennan's head whipped to the side and he lost his footing. He slowly got back into a standing position. "Is this a 'don't speak unless spoken to' kind of thing?"
The next blow was delivered to his stomach, effectively silencing him. When he recovered from the hit, Brennan didn't say a word. He just waited.
Another punch followed the last and Brennan was forced to gasp for air. Shit, that hurt. He looked up at the man. He hadn't spoken that time. "You need to decide what rules we're playing by here."
That remark earned him several more hits, one right after the other. And he still couldn't figure out what the point of this was.
-----
Brennan eventually lost track of how many times he'd been hit. He'd stopped talking entirely, but the blows continued. The other man never said a thing.
Slumping against his restraints, Brennan just allowed the punches to fall. He was on verge of passing out.
As the man drew his hand back to deliver yet another blow, the door opened and Jordan entered. "He's had enough."
The assault stopped and Brennan leaned his head back, taking deep breaths and trying to combat the pain. It was finally over.
Jordan moved to take his pulse, and Brennan found himself staring at him. "You call this humane?" he mumbled.
Jordan removed his hand and refused to look at Brennan. "Let him down, then take him to his room."
The second Brennan's hands were released, he sagged, collapsing. Jordan actually moved to catch him instead of letting him drop to the floor. Brennan leaned heavily on him, slight aftershocks from the abuse wracking his body.
Then his arm was gripped and he was pulled to his feet. He thought he detected a hint of remorse in Jordan's expression before he was led out.
-----
As soon as Brennan was inside the room, the door was locked behind him. He instantly sank the to floor and rested his head on his knees.
"Brennan!"
He looked up as Emma rushed over to him. He hadn't expected to be allowed to share a room with her. He gave her a faint smile.
She was immediately by his side, lifting his face toward the light so she could inspect the bruising. She pushed his hair back and stared into his eyes. "Are you okay?"
"It's not that serious," he told her, trying not to let on how much pain he was actually in.
Noticing his cuffed hands, she touched the metal before slipping her hand into his. "What did Eckhart want?"
Brennan just shook his head. That's what he didn't understand. "I don't know." He leaned against the wall, then decided he needed to lie down. The room was empty, connecting only to a small bathroom. They'd have to sleep on the floor.
As he moved, his shirt shifted and allowed Emma to catch a glimpse of the bare skin at his waist. She instantly reached for the edge of the shirt.
He tried to stop her from looking. "Em, don't."
She pushed aside his hands and lifted the material anyway. His entire chest was marred with bruises. She fought not to cry. "Why would they do this?"
Brennan couldn't answer that. He'd been tortured without a reason. "He didn't ask me anything."
Brennan's head swam a bit then, and Emma seemed to notice. "Are you sure you're okay?"
"Been better," he mumbled before promptly passing out.
-----
The pain was gone and he felt content. Brennan stirred slightly, feeling the warmth pressed against his side. Emma was sleeping next to him. This felt... good.
Brennan took a deep breath as the vale of sleep slipped away. He didn't wish to wake. This dream felt so right. He wrapped his arms around Emma, realizing that they were still cuffed, and she snuggled closer with a faint sigh.
Unable to hang on to his dreams, Brennan settled for watching Emma sleep. She looked peaceful. But they couldn't stay like this. Eckhart would return for him, and he needed to shed the haze of sleep and be ready.
Gently, he slipped Emma from his arms and got up. He walked to the small bathroom and turned on the sink, splashing water on his face. That would have to do since there was no shower.
He stared at his reflection in the mirror. That wasn't right. He leaned closer to the glass and touched his face. There was no bruise on his jaw. He quickly felt his forehead, discovering that cut to be absent as well.
He stepped back. This was a bit too peculiar. Hesitantly, he pulled his shirt over his head and let it gather around his bound wrists. Then he noticed the figure in the mirror, watching him. He turned to face Emma.
Slowly, she reached out and laid her hand on his chest. Then her gaze darted to his face. "I don't understand."
"Neither do I," he said, looking in the mirror once more.
All his injuries were completely gone.
-----
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