Chapter 6
For several moments Nagi debated on whether or not he should remain in the room or leave, but in the end he decided it was probably safer to remain with them at the moment. Just in case they should change their minds and attempt to kill each other.
"What makes you think that I wouldn't have believed you before?"
"You never do!"
"Since when?"
"Since always! You never listen to what I am saying until you want to hear it! That is hardly my fault! It's common sense!"
Nagi cleared his throat, halting their argument. "Rosenkreuz requested our presence in our orders around this time. Perhaps it would help to go and see if we can determine what it is that is going on rather than arguing about whether or not Brad would have believed you or not."
The youngest of them and the voice of reason even against such chaos, but that could have been because he was the only one that had not begun to feel to affects that they had. Brad's short temper, Schuldig's agitation, Farfello's increased insanity and loss of self, and what had Nagi to show for it? Nothing, other than a sense of approaching dread and doom, which was not all that unusual for him.
"I don't trust them," Schuldig warned, betraying his nervousness in his fidgeting hand.
"None of us trusts them, Schu, what makes it different for you?" There was almost soft curiosity in Brad's voice as he watched him twitch, his expression twisted into a combination of fear and anger and something that was wholly indescribable. "Does it have anything to do with - "
"Let's go." The red head brushed passed Brad as if he weren't even there; it was Nagi's arm he grabbed for support as he wrenched open the door. Schuldig spared the boy a glance, a small one, because his dark eyes had turned to him, questioning the faint tremor he had felt pass through him. The elder merely shook his head, unable to reply.
They traveled silently down the long empty hallways, followed by Brad who seemed as cool and uncaring as usual, except for the fact that he seemed decidedly more alert than normal. No one else would have noticed it, certainly Schuldig, in his own panic, didn't, but Nagi saw it all too clearly. It should have made him uneasy, as well, yet he could not bring himself to care, even then. They were Schwartz - they would work it out. They always did.
Rosenkreuz was waiting for them and rather impatiently at that. The leader once again greeted them, the other members of Rosenkreuz remaining silent, nameless figures behind him. Nagi noticed that the woman who had brought Farfello's meal was absent, but he was uncertain what to make of it.
"Come with us, we have some tests we want to run." Quietly they followed; what else were they to do? They had, as of yet, no solid evidence against them and perhaps this was as harmless as they were tying to make it sound. Esset was still profitable to work for and that, by default, meant going along with Rosenkreuz even as much as they disliked them.
"Welcome to Rosenkreuz Laboratories," he introduced as he pushed open a door to reveal a cold, sterile environment with large computer and whirling masses of electronic confusion. Schuldig blanched at the doorway, either at the name the man had uttered or because of the imposing and frightening appearance of the area before him, none could say. It almost seemed as if there was a flash of recognition in Schuldig's shimmering green eyes, but that could have been just the way the light reflected off them.
They entered slowly, cautiously, Schuldig sticking close beside them looking ever more uncomfortable as they went. Nagi glanced at Brad, attempting to determine if it would be better for them to leave now and forget about all of this, perhaps even leave Esset permanently, but his leader's expression was completely blank. He was just as shocked as they were and he had no more idea of what they should do, which made it quite a problem.
There was a short laugh from the man in charge of Rosenkreuz, a man he was beginning to hate even though he couldn't put a name to his face. There was probably a reason for that, too. He doubted he would have gotten his real name even if he asked, so perhaps it was better not to be left with some ridiculous code name. "You've been here before, haven't you Schuldig? Well, this should be familiar then."
Hate and fear darkened Schuldig's eyes as every muscle in the red-head's body seemed to tense up, his distaste at the machines around them evident. Nagi was surprised, but apparently Brad was not; had Schuldig been a member of Rosenkreuz before Schwartz had been formed and if so, why hadn't he ever mentioned it? Maybe he didn't consider it very important, but if he didn't trust his own formal team mates then there was something seriously wrong with them! That was a good indication that they should leave immediately! What good was being in Esset if you were afraid of those you had to work with, heavy paycheck or not?
But Brad stood unwavering and though he trembled, Schuldig stood firmly by his side. It didn't make sense, but Nagi had always trusted them and though they had been in some tight spots before, they had always gotten out safely. So he stayed, his eyes and expression utterly blank in the stance of a broken, obedient doll. That was all he had ever been.
So it was that they were systematically separated, several members of Rosenkreuz herding Brad in one direction, Schuldig being dragged in another, and he was quietly lead to yet another section. Nagi noticed that while Rosenkreuz had no problem hauling his other friends around like mere baggage they had made no motion to touch him in any way at all. It occurred to him that they feared him because of the injury he had so easily caused before and that they believed they had to walk on eggshells around him. That was rather interesting, though they might have acted differently had they known he was unlikely to act without Brad's permission - verbal or nonverbal - unless they happened to make him angry in some way, noting of course that that was nearly impossible. After all, he had abandoned most of his emotions a long time ago and it took a lot to get any sort of response out of him.
Nagi was strapped into some sort of device that they said would measure his reflexes his abilities and that they would be carefully monitoring his progress. He was given some basic tests that he did half heartedly, purposely holding back as he had no idea at all what they were planning on doing with this information. Then they moved on to more advanced things, exploring his telekinetic abilities and the range of things that he could do. It was harder to hold back during those tests as telekinesis was as natural to him as breathing, but he did anyway.
Rosenkreuz was not to be trusted. He knew Schuldig's judgments were rarely wrong, no matter if his abilities were intact or not. And that was another strange thing that needed to be explained - why was it that his telepathy was being blocked and how exactly did Esset and Rosenkreuz fit into it? As for Brad, it was hard to tell in his foresight was working or not, since it was an erratic gift and maybe they were doing something to him, too. If that was so, then they would have to be blocking it for a reason, not wanting him to see the outcome of whatever it was they were doing. That made them dangerous to them, but what could they do but wait and see what it was?
Several hours passed and then Nagi was released and allowed to leave the Rosenkreuz Laboratories. He found Schuldig pacing outside of the door nervously, a more sedate Brad at his side. Quietly Brad turned and they both fell into step behind him. Schuldig had something he wanted to say, but they would not say it here or in the compound at all.
Their room, he realized belatedly, could very well have been bugged.
No one stopped their progress as they left the compound, but they were all certain they were being watched by someone, somewhere who was making sure they had not intentions of leaving. Out in the open air they felt safer, even as the sunset and the world began to darken around them. Finally Brad halted in a clearing and asked simply, "Well?"
"I hate them," Schuldig growled, low in his throat like an agitated feline. "They seemed - they seemed HAPPY that I wasn't able to use my telepathy and I just know they are doing something and we have to figure out what it is because this is driving me insane! More than that, though, I don't think we should be here at all. Something is not right here."
Brad raised an eyebrow at his lover. "We noticed," he remarked dryly, before glancing at their youngest member. "What do you think?"
"They are planning something and I don't like it. I think we should leave now, before it's too late."
Their leader seemed to consider this and the fact that Schuldig and Nagi seemed to be in perfect agreement, but in the end it was his decision. "I want to see what they are up to. I would say you were just over reacting, except - " Brad's eyes landed on Nagi for a moment, leaving the words unsaid, but there was an unspoken consensus; Nagi was practically in capable of over reacting and the few times he had, it had been with good reason that being due to extreme emotional stress.
Schuldig looked crushed. "We aren't leaving?"
"No. I want to see how this turns out." It might have been selfish, but he felt confident that he could handle anything Rosenkreuz or even Esset dealt. He had done it before and it did not seem so impossible a task for him to do it again.
"Damn it, Brad! You know what they are capable of! You know what they did to me! We shouldn't be here at all!"
"Exactly, which is why you are in no condition to judge what is happening at the present. You have enough unresolved issues with Rosenkreuz and I am sure with a little bit of effort we can discover what is happening, perhaps destroy their base, and still come out with a reasonable profit." He shrugged. "We have been leading up to this point and I don't think we really need Esset anymore, but that doesn't mean they still can't be useful."
Schuldig bristled at his comments, his eyes narrowed to evil green slits. "You just don't want to admit that something is happening that is out of your control, because it IS out of your control and if we don't act now it could be too late. Let's forget Esset completely. We don't need them at all, to be useful or otherwise!"
It would have been perfect if it had started to rain, with roaring thunder and flashing lightning in the background, for Schuldig seemed on the verge of tearing Brad's throat out. There was no storm, though, and the storm within Schuldig ceased abruptly when he felt a tug at his sleeve. Looking down into dark eyes, he melted. It was so uncharacteristic of their boy to reach out to anyone at any time and it made him forget everything else around him, including Brad. "Nagi?"
"What did they do to you?"
"Esset, you mean? Through those bastards, Rosenkreuz?" A nod. He took a moment to draw a steadying breath, his eyes drifting toward his lover reluctantly. He knew, though they had never spoken of it and Schuldig himself had tried to push it out of his throat entirely, never confiding in a soul. This was their Nagi and that made it different. "It's not pleasant, love, but I think you already know that." Another nod as Nagi allowed himself to be pulled against Schuldig's firm chest in a comforting embrace. "Well, I'm not sure exactly where to start, but - "
In surrounding area, not far from where the trio was standing, a lone figure in dark clothing crouched in a concealed hiding place, his bright eyes watching the scene with interest. The redhead had not sensed his presence and the lot of them generally seemed unhappy about something. Odder, still was that they were out in the open, seemingly unprepared for an attack. Their conversation he found most peculiar, as he had never thought that Schwartz could possibly be redeemed and yet apparently they did not trust Esset anymore than he did.
What surprised him, though, was the obvious love between these men, despite the tension that existed due to their current circumstances. He thought he might faint when he saw the vicious redhead pull the demon-child (who, admittedly, did not look so much like a child anymore, nor really anything like a demon either) into a hug. His heart tinged at the scene, reminding himself of Weiss and the companionship he had lost by leaving them as he had. Ken used to hug him like that. Gods, he missed them.
But, no, he shouldn't think of that. He still had a mission to do and he had to find out if, perhaps, Schwartz would work with them against Esset. It was apparent they had no love for them or for this Rosenkreuz organization.
First, he wanted to hear what Schuldig had to say.