Pink: We shall go back a few hours, to the time when the prison van was entering the underground complex. The van stopped moving. Their abductors got out and left them. The girls sat silently, Rebecca and Teresa huddled together and leaning on one side of the partioning steel mesh, Pink leaning on the opposite side, as close as possible to the other two. "My parents don't know where I am. They're going to be worried sick." said Teresa, eventually. "I'm sure they will find out soon." said Rebecca, out loud. [Horatio does know, doesn't he?] she also said, over the link. [Right up to the moment when the van's door closed.] said Pink, [Also, remember, whoever has kidnapped us is bound to be watching us, and listening to us. So don't give away the fact that we are able to have private conversations.] [Ok.] An indeterminable period of time later, the van started moving again. Unbeknownst to the girls, it was driven into a large truck, which then drove up and out of one of the exits. The person planning all of this must have been slightly paranoid, or was just extremely careful. The truck drove to a warehouse, where the van was transferred to another truck, and after a few hours, the new truck then drove to another warehouse, where the process was repeated. It culminated in the final truck driving over the bridge and causeway, passing both the school and the police station, and it ended up in another underground complex. In other words, Earth Watch Prime, for all of his advanced technology and his almost omniscient view of the city, did not have a clue where they went to. "Ok, you can wake up now." said a voice. Rebecca and Teresa groggily opened their eyes. Their bodies ached from lying on the hard floor of the van, and their stomaches ached from hunger. Pink woke almost instantaneously, and was not suffering from lying on the floor. But she pretended to be in the same state as the others. There were four or five guards at the front door of the van, and another three at the back door. In other words, Pink, for all of her superior strength and speed, did not have a hope in escaping without risking her friends. At least they were no longer kept apart. The three were shepherded down corridors, and down a lift, then another corridor and finally into a cell. The two humans were too dispirited from emotional shock and hunger to make any complaints, and Pink was still pretending to be the same. The cell had a double bunk on one side and a single bed on the other, all firmly bolted to the walls and floor. At the back was a plastic curtain, currently drawn back, showing a toilet, a sink and a shower. In the front were a small desk and a single bench chair. In other words, they had the luxury suite, even if it did not have a spa bath. A little later, a different guard, a female, returned with three meals on a tray. She handed them over and left, without saying a word. They all sat on the single bed, three miserable girls in a line on the bench, and ate breakfast. It was not anything special, just porridge, toast and a piece of fruit. But it was not atrocious, either. Pink surveyed the situation. Teresa is shell shocked and barely coping. Rebecca is hanging in there, mainly because she can communicate privately with me. I'm OK, for the time being, but... Well, if we get out soon then it's no problem. And we have no radio link to Prime or the others. She could feel the panic rising in her. She had never in her existence been without Prime's voice, always ready in the background to lend support or to give information. And now she was almost alone. She was so thankful for the presence of Rebecca over the radio link. She composed herself. They finished breakfast, and then, for lack of anything else to do, they washed the dishes as best as they could in the hand sink and stacked them on the desk. An hour later, they had another visitor. A middle-aged man, carrying a clipboard and what appeared to be a number of orange jumpsuits. "Hello, ladies. I am the prison supervisor, here to give you your orientation briefing. I hope you found your breakfast satisfactory?" His voice was friendly, with a touch of a foreign accent. He was polite and professional. "Please get us out of here! I want to see my mum!" said Teresa. "Unfortunately, I can't do that; all I have authority to do is to make sure that you are looked after in the proper manner while you are here..." "But why are we here? We have been kidnapped!" said Rebecca. "I can't pass judgement on that, I can only go by what my superiors tell me. Believe me; many of the other prisoners go through the same sort of anguish as you do. You need to compose yourself and accept that this is your life for the time being." Teresa was crying by now. The man reached into his coat pocket, and produced a small packet of tissues. "Here, use these." he said, handing them over. "Well, can't we at least have some visitors? Aren't other prisoners allowed to receive visitors and send letters out?" said Pink. "Maybe in the future. But for the time being that is, unfortunately, not allowed." The man was courteous, kindly even. But he remained firm. "Also, I am required to remind you by law that this cell, and the corridor outside, is under constant video and audio surveillance." After that, he gave them his standard introductory spiel, put down the orange jumpsuits onto the desk top, then he politely bid them good day. He took the used dishes and spoons away. They sat on the single bed again, Teresa clutching Pink’s shirt and crying, Rebecca patting her back. "Actually, he was very nice about it all. It's just that he is not budging from his assigned job as prison supervisor." said Pink. "Why can't I at least talk to mum?" cried Teresa. The supervisor, as he went about his other duties, was thinking the same thing. "That's Pink and Rebecca, who saved, what was it, fifty thousand lives or something? So what are they in here, for, anyway? And why the explicit orders to keep their presence secret?" He sighed, and kept on obeying orders. A female guard brought them lunch and tea, and in both cases took away the washed dishes afterwards. During the first visit, she was regretful but firm, and managed to get them to change into the orange jumpsuits. So she also took away their school uniforms. And in the early evening, they had a visit from another guard, a youngish man. As they opened the door and stood there, looking at the teenage girls, Rebecca muttered "what now?" "Well, well," he said, "Three little girls in a row." "Huh?" said Pink out aloud. [He isn't acting like the professional guards we have seen so far. He's more like a thug!] she said privately to Rebecca. "Oh" said Pink again. She now recognised him. The man who was roughing up Molly way back when she and Blue where just starting their relationship. "That's right, it's me." he said. He moved into the cell, towards the ladies who were currently sitting on the single bunk. He tried to tickle the chin of Teresa, but she backed away in horror. "My, my, you're certainly a cute one... Perhaps I will take you to the next cell. It's currently empty, you know." "Also, don't bother trying to catch the attention of the unseen watchers. I know how to turn off the cameras and microphones, this little section of the prison is now no longer monitored." Teresa came close to fainting with terror. She gripped Pink's arm so hard that even Pink felt a small amount of pain. Pink, galvanised into action, spoke up, "No! I mean, ah, please don't hurt Teresa." "Don't worry, you're the one I'm supposed to, ah, look after." the man said, pointing to Pink. "Although you are on the skinny side, so perhaps I could go for Teresa after all." The man giggled as he said this. Pink was close to panicking herself. Not for her own safety, but for Teresa's and Rebecca's. In retrospect, she would realise that she could have just used her strength there and then. But she was fixated first removing Teresa from his attention. So she started saying the first things that came into her mind. "Well, I'm, err, not experienced, but, ah, I'm sure I could, ah, learn how to, ah." She listened to what she was saying, and could not say anything more. [Pink, that sounds absolutely pathetic.] said Rebecca over the radio link. [I know. I know. I can't think of anything else.] However, it must have struck some chord with the man. He grinned. "You know, I think I like that idea after all! And I'll be doing someone who's famous!” So he grabbed Pink, and she allowed herself to be dragged out of the cell. The door closed behind them. Rebecca: Teresa wrapped her arms around Rebecca and started to wail. And Rebecca hugged her and patted her back and said "There, there. It's going to be all right. There's more to Pink than you know." "What do you mean?" Rebecca did not answer. From Teresa's point of view, Rebecca seemed to be focusing her attention within herself. After a little while, Rebecca's mouth curved upwards in a grin. An evil grin, with not a trace of merriment. Rebecca began chuckling. The sort of chuckling that the evil overlord does when his plans to dominate the world are coming to fruition. Normally, of course, Rebecca was a kindhearted girl, generous and loving. But her psyche had taken a beating in the near past. First, the misadventure with Lex, then having to stare at a suitcase nuclear bomb and wonder if it was going to go off at any moment, and finally being imprisoned without warning. She had a few bad feelings inside her waiting to be released, given the correct situation. "Go for it, Pink!" said Rebecca. The current situation was idea for releasing them. Rebecca started clapping. "Love it! Love it! Give him hell!" "R-R-Rebecca... What's going on with you?" said Teresa. She was staring at Rebecca's performance, and wondering if she was going to turn dangerous. At least, it was taking her mind of her own situation. "Ah, right. Teresa, don't worry. They're coming back to here, and Pink is fine, fine. Shame about the man, not!" The cell door opened. The man marched in and stood against the double bunks, followed by Pink, who closed the door behind them. Pink looked fine, although she had a look of disgust on her face. [I feel a sick] she said direct to Rebecca. As for the man, well, he looked somewhat frayed around the edges. There were scorch marks on his clothing, he had a few interesting looking bruises beginning to show, and he trembled as he stood there. Looking straight ahead, avoiding the gaze of Pink. Think of a mouse that the domestic cat has been 'playing' with for the last twenty minutes, and you might get the idea. "Well," said Pink, "It looks like I have, after all, been learning how to do something new. Like how to train this sub-human, teaching him how he should act when around ladies like us." "Huh" said Teresa. "It's horribly distasteful, though." said Pink. [Actually, I don't have any idea of what we should do now.] she said direct to Rebecca. [I can't see how this helps us to escape, since we are still deep within some prison complex and there's bound to be multiple check points to pass through to get out.] At that precise moment, the choice was taken out of their hands. There was a knock, and the cell door opened and the prison supervisor walked in. "Sorry for the disturbance, I'm just checking up on the security systems..." At this point, he saw the guard standing to one side. "And what the fucking hell are you doing here? Err, excuse the language ladies, but, you do not have authority to be in the female block!" "Is that so?" said Pink, with just a touch of sarcasm. "So I take it he also doesn't have authority to drag me to another cell and try to rape me?" "What? Err, is that so?" said the supervisor, talking directly to the man. He stood there, avoiding his eyes. "Well, tell him!" said Pink. "Yes! Yes! That is what I was trying to do." said the men. The supervisor looked at the man. He was a reasonably big man, but right now he currently looked like a small child standing before a menacing, growling dog. The supervisor turned his head to the other way and looked at the dangerous - ah, looked at Pink, a girl, the shortest and skinniest person in the room. The girls could read his face with ease, he was obviously thinking something like "There is something weird going on." Pink, watching him, had a small brainwave. "Actually I have a black belt in both karate and aikido. Which is how I was able to subdue him." "Ah, that explains it. It think. Err, anyway..." he said. "You, get out and wait in the corridor. I will speak with you later." he said. He got out. The girls relaxed, just a bit. "Err, sorry about that. Are you sure you're OK?" "Hmm, yes. said Pink. "Ah, this is extremely irregular, ah, but, well, I'm not responsible for recruiting him, that's for sure. With the change in the political system, we've had a few non-professionals foisted upon us, and this one is the latest. Ah, well, if I promise to make sure that he never enter the female block again, perhaps, ah, you can refrain from mentioning this to anyone else?" "Oh, indeed?" said Rebecca. She was still in her evil mood. "And why are you protecting that low life scum? Are you protecting your own backside, perhaps?" "Err, the fact is, hmm, I've just been promoted to this level, and, what with all the societal turmoil, well, I have a family to support and, ah, this is a good job..." Pink had an exchange with Rebecca over the link. [I think it is a lost cause trying to get him to help us get out of here. He's too committed to his job. And besides which, as a professional prison guard, he is a decent one. So let's not get him riled, hmm?] Sigh, [Ok, but we can't let him off the hook entirely, can we?] said Rebecca. Out loud, Pink said. "I think I can see where this is leading to. We agree to stay quiet about antics of this goon, and perhaps in return we get a few extra treats? Say some special snacks?" "And books!" said Teresa, speaking for the first time. It was agreed. They would keep quiet. He would see what he could do about some privileges. He also added, "If he is responsible for the security surveillance going down, then there is only one way he could have done it. So I will be switching it back on as soon as I get out into the main corridor. And, of course, I shall be taking him with me. And revoking his security passes. He can stick to the service area and wash dishes and stack laundry bags from now on." He stepped out and closed the door. Immediately Pink started speaking "Teresa, don't ask anything now, but when we go to bed, say out loud that you are feeling really home sick and ask to sleep in the same bed as me. I can then whisper to you some explanations." They lay, face to face under a sheet and blanket, on the single bed. Rebecca was in the lower bunk on the opposite side of the room. The light was dim, presumably enough to allow the security cameras to work, but only just. Pink put her mouth up close to Teresa's ear, and explained that she was a robot. "Ah, yes, yes, we all called you the pink robot..." "Yes, but I really am a robot. Here, reach out with your hand and feel the steel pipe of the bed frame." said Pink. "Right, now I put my hand next to yours, and I will squeeze the pipe just a little. Can you feel the dent?" continued Pink. Gulp. "You dented a steel pipe?" said Teresa. Very softly, of course. Rebecca, listening from the other bed, said over the link, [I can just hear you whispering, but not the actual words.] Pink put her hands back under the sheet. She pointed her two index fingers towards each other. There was the brief flash of a DC electrical arc. Very brief, as Pink wasn't about to blind Teresa. "I can send electricity through my fingers. This, together with my strength, is how I really subdued that ugly specimen." "Oh, right, OK, I'll try to believe you. I'll try. It may take some time. But, in that case, why you can't use your strength to escape from here?" "If I was by myself, I might be able to, although I wouldn't be all that sure. But with you to, I can't. I can't protect you and also get all three of us out." "Also" continued Pink, "I can communicate with Rebecca without any else hearing. I'll prove it. Tap your finger on the back of my hand in some irregular pattern. I'll pass it on to Rebecca, and she will tap the wall in the same time." Tap, tap, on the back of Pink's hand. Tap, tap, in synchronicity, as Rebecca tapped the wall. Teresa did more taps. No matter how irregular, Rebecca followed. Pink held Teresa's hand. "As long as we are together, we can cope. We have abilities they don't know about. It may take some time, but we will get out, and we will get out without getting broken by the experience." "Ok, thanks, I'm so glad I have you two here." Pink: They settled down to sleep, Teresa remaining where she was. And Pink had an extra little conversation with Rebecca. [There is something that could go very wrong. My next maintenance was scheduled for just the day after we were abducted, about now in fact.] [Oh, so your limit is closer than I thought. About two months isn't it?] said Rebecca. [Sorry, it's worse than that. Normally I would last three months without a maintenance body swap before things start to go really bad. But that's assuming I could charge myself from an electric source for the final two months. Which I can't do, now, of course.] [Oh shit. So what is your limit?] [About four weeks from now.] With that depressing news, they went to sleep. As usual, Pink went to sleep in three seconds. Rebecca mentally invoked the appropriate command to her radio implant unit, and was asleep in less than a minute. Teresa would have lain awake for hours, worrying about her predicament, except that she was exhausted. Within ten minutes, she was also sound asleep. All that the security personnel, monitoring the cells, saw was three teenage girls, two huddling each other, doing their best to escape the cares of the world, at least for the night. Early the next morning, Pink was the first to wake. She lay there and suddenly remembered; what did the man mean by saying "You're the one I'm supposed to look after." "Supposed to?" Pink decided to keep that in mind.