Finally the pain and confusion was too much to handle. Iris gagged violently. Fortunately she hadn't eaten much. Her body felt as if it was on fire, not just from pain, but a heat from within. A strange fog wafted off of her as the ice shell melted all at once. Everything went dark as she passed out.

The monitor hooked up to her through the wires registered a brief energy spike, then went quiet again as Iris reverted to her normal blonde self.

The tower of stabbing crystal was beginning to get too large for the cell, The top of the tower had reached the cieling, and shimmering viens had begun to spread across both floor and cieling of the cell. The tower would now seem like some strange tree, with eerie yet beautiful roots and branched.

From the trank of this tree however, blades continuosly stabs and slashed , as if defeding itself from and unseen enemy. The plaxiglass was taking such a beating that it could never perfectly regenerate itself, making it hard to seem perfectly through the mess of scratches and cracks.

The tre eventually spread itself across the cell, as if claiming it for itself and making the cell part of it, by consuming it. By as the cystal veins made their way across the plexiglass, they would begin to quiver slightly, as if struggling to go further. The random slashes and stabs from the trunk of the magnificent try would slow, and eventually stop all together. A strange humming would ensue from the vibrating tree, and it struggled to consume more, against some property unseen.

Then, with a defening crash, the tree would shatter entirely. Thousands of crystaline shards would rain within the cell, bounce around as they crashed to the floor, and eventually settle upon the floor. Nestled within the bed of shards, nails curled up form would be seen. The sensors that were still attached to his body would pick up regular ital signs. The only thing that would be stange on the sensors would be the extremely high oxagen content, and total lack of CO2 in the cell...

“Oh the humans were just there to see how any of your mutations might affect them.” Syn gestured to the other cells as she was talking about all the captives. She noticed Iara was trying to avoid direct contact with Syn. Instead she was focused on Jack even when talking to Syn.

She took a step back and pulled Jack back with her. “Excuse me for a moment.” Syn escorted Jack back to her room and once again pacified the girl with her pheromones. She figured there was more than enough recorded data on the reactions of the captives. Besides, she didn’t want to overload them for too long.

Returning back to Iara she looked her over. She was definitely a feisty one. The wicked black and red haired girl released her pheromones again, but this time to pacify Iara. “Don’t worry everything will be ok. I have no plans to kill any of you.” She started ushering the girl back to her cell. “In fact, all of you will be released...” Syn placed Iara back in her cell before finishing her sentence. “…when the time is right.” Looking around at the other captives she could see Jack’s power wearing off and everyone returning to normal.

Iara began to feel inbelievably relaxed and calm as Syn talked to her. She didn't even put up a fuss as she was placed back in her cell she only looked up as she sat crossed-legged on the ground and meditated as Syn left.

Iara's head slumped forward and her eyes fluttered closed. She rested for the first time since she got there.

Mettaliar got up slightly and rested on one knee. He could see wood particles and metal scattered throughout his cell. Whoever this Jack girl was she deffinatly was some mutant. Mettaliar felt a little burning sensation raise up after the whole stab-the-electric-cell-incident. He stood up look at the other captives before feeling something wet roll down his face. He felt it and looked at his fingers to see them staind crimson red.

Oh crap! he thought to himself. Apparently the wound didn't heal again and now he was sure his face was covered in blood. He immedietly ripped a part of the bottom of his shirt off and, like before, covered the wound up since the cloth was long enough to make an eyepatch that went around his head to cover the wound better.

((OOC Ok I'm cheating and advancing the timeline a little bit. Everyone except Iris and Sentinel have been drugged and released back into NYC. Iara I'm sure my brother wanted you to have your bike so you have it back. So now all conversations will be between Syn, Iris and Sentinel only unless some of The Order shows up. In the mean time Iris and Sentinel feel free to talk to each other.))

It had been a couple days since the release of the captive mutants save for two special ones. These two would prove to be very useful in coming events. Little did Iris and Sentinel know that their experience with Jack was but a small test for another set of plans.

(OOC: Sorry for the long post, lol)

Iris rubbed her eyes wearily. Life as a captive was quickly wearing her down mentally. Even closing her eyes did nothing to help. All she could do was relive the past couple of days.

She’d woken from what she thought was a nightmare, head pounding, stomach and back aching. Momentary panic had set in when she realized that the other cells were empty. She and Nail were the only ones still locked up. What had happened to the others? Iara and the calm guy? And the dragon man? Worse yet, why hadn’t it happened to her and Nail? The images and possibilities her imagination came up with were enough to keep her from sleeping.

Then there was the blood. The human that had been in the cell with her was gone when she awoke, but a large red-brown stain on the ground wasn’t. And she couldn’t remember what had happened. All she remembered was being cold, and scared out of her mind.

“You all have been brought here to see how you react with another mutant.....you could call it an allergic reaction of a sort....” Syn’s words replayed over and over again. Whatever ‘reaction’ Iris had had,, she hoped it didn’t have anything to do with that stain. Yet, somewhere in her subconscious, she knew it had.

Iris gulped, her throat again dry, and shifted her position for the umpteenth time that hour. She wished, just once, she could rest a bit. Unfortunately, when her imagination wasn’t giving her panic attacks, her dreams were. They were full of screaming giants in white lab coats, all of them seemingly angry with her, for a reason that stayed just out of her reach. They poked and prodded at her, like an old timey alien abduction movie, until she was weeping like a baby. She’d try to tell them to stop, but all she could hear was It.

She shuddered. That awful, rushing, howling wind from her nightmares. It never quieted, never left her alone. She looked at her palm, almost able to see the sparkling opal jewel that It seemed to be linked to. If this Jack person was linked to her losing control of her powers.....

Iris shook her head to clear her mind, but only succeeded in making her perpetual headache worse. She glanced across the hall to see if Nail was holding up better than she was.

Nail sat against the side wall, on the padded portion of the room that was supposed to be a bed. He picked up a shard that was placed next to him, and tossed it to the far corner of the room, where a large pile o shards had built up. Most of his time had been devoted to pushing the thoughsands of pointy shards to the far end of the room, though here and there some were still scattered about.

They hadn't cleaned his cell out, and nail didn't expect they ever would. He didn't mind. It gave him something to do. He looked down at his hands. They seemed to have aged. Just by moving around all those shards and dealing with the pricks and scratched, his hands seemed scarred and old.

Iris didn't seem well at all. Nail hadkept himself sane simply by keeping his mind off the situation. Sure, he knew they were the only ones left, and the possibilites of the situation, but he refused to fully take in the situation. All Iris had to do was look at a blood stain in an empty cell.

He hadn't been concious to see what happened, but again, he hadn't given himself the oppurtunity to think about it. when he did, he stayed positive, convincing himself no one was hurt, and everyone went home safe and sound.

Just watching Iris made there situation that much clearer. But he knew one of them had to keep them strong, And it might aswell be him.

"Hey Iris," He shifted closer to front of the cell, as if this would somehow bring them closer to eachother, "That guys fine. I saw a couple guys help him outand give him first aid. Dont worry about it."

For all he knew, it was a lie, be he hoped that he was telling the truth.

"Hey, when we get out of here, I'd like to go to central park again with you. Go for a walk. Hopefully then we won't be rudely interrupted."

"Hey Iris, that guy's fine. I saw a couple guys help him out and give him first aid. Dont worry about it."

She managed a weak smile. "Thanks Nail. I'm glad know that." She didn't believe him at all, but she appreciated the effort. She sighed. "Did you make all of those?" she pointed to the pile of crystals he kept moving around, attempting to think not-so-gloomy thoughts. "They're beautiful."

"Hey, when we get out of here, I'd like to go to central park again with you. Go for a walk. Hopefully then we won't be rudely interrupted."

<"Glad one of us is still thinking positive,"> she thought.

Iris smiled and nodded. "I'd like that." Inwardly she wondered if she'd ever be able to pass a tree without jumping at her shadow.

Nail picked up another of the shards that was nearby, and apraised it carefully.

"Beautiful huh... I geuss so..."

He chucked it a cross the room into a far pile against the wall, causeing a miniature avalanche on the pile and sending more shards rolling across the floor towards him.

"They're a bit of a pain in the ass..."

He picked up another and tossed it up in the air, catching it and repeating the proccess.

"Looking back on it, I'm surprised this kind a thing hadn't happened to me sooner... I'm a freaking treasure mine. I geuss I've just been lucky enough to avoid that kind of attension until now..."

He paused in his procces, then fliped the shard into the air, caugh it in mid flight and through it into the far wall. The shard stuck in the plastic for a second before it was forced out by the healing process.

"I knew I couldn't hide it forever, so I had to learn to protect myself if anyone wanted to use me... but apparently I wasn't good enough"

He was rambling on, and he knew. Something about being locked up for days made you alittle more talkative than usual.

"They're a bit of a pain in the ass..."

“Bet they’d make a killer Eiffel Tower, or ship model.” Iris watched him use the shards like darts. “Nice aim,” she remarked.

"Looking back on it, I'm surprised this kind a thing hadn't happened to me sooner... I'm a freaking treasure mine. I guess I've just been lucky enough to avoid that kind of attention until now..."

Iris leaned back and closed her eyes. Her thoughts drifted back to the park. “It’s not your fault Nail. I never should have been using my mutation in public like I was. These...people...” she bit back what she really wanted to call them, “never would have known if I hadn’t.”

“I knew I couldn't hide it forever, so I had to learn to protect myself if anyone wanted to use me... but apparently I wasn't good enough."

“Hiding. Always hiding!” Iris smacked a fist against the wall, and jumped slightly as it shocked her painfully. She opened her eyes and rubbed her arm, an annoyed frown on her face. She sighed. “It’s not that you weren’t good enough, either. It’s hard enough just surviving as a mutant in this world. But having to fight these jerks on top of it...” she waved her hand, indicating their captors, then sighed. “It’s no wonder humans don’t like us.”

She ran a hand through her blonde hair. She wrinkled her nose slightly. “Ugh! What I wouldn’t give for a shower right now.” She turned to look at him again. “Any idea why we’re still here?”

“Ugh! What I wouldn’t give for a shower right now.”

Nail absentmindedly lifted his arm and gave himself a smell and nearly gaged. Being a guy who had been on the road for awhile, he had somewhat gotten use to not haveing a shower every day, but even this was getting pretty bad. He could't imagine how Iris must be feeling.

“Any idea why we’re still here?”

"Maybe it's because they like us? I dunno. I don't even know were the hell we are! We could be 600 feet underground in brazil for all I know... If we knew who these people are, or find out what this place even is, we could probably get a better geuss..."

He started to stack a couple crystals like Iris had segested, strting out with a simple log house structure, and starting to balance shards against it to make it look like a strange miniature cathedral.

"Maybe it's because they like us? I dunno. I don't even know were the hell we are! We could be 600 feet underground in brazil for all I know... "

Iris shuddered a bit. "God, I hope not."

"If we knew who these people are, or find out what this place even is, we could probably get a better guess..."

”Somehow, I don’t think Syn would be that helpful. Not that I’d trust anything she told us anyway,” she grumbled.

For a while she watched him start to stack shards. Eventually she groaned dramatically, and covered her face with both hands. “How can you not be going stir crazy right now?”

"Because I'm lucky enough to have something to do... Keeps my mind off the bigger issues..."

He looked up at her, trying to find a way to help her.

"The best way to keep ourselves from craking up is probably what we're doing right now. Just talking... Here huh..."

He looked back down at his shards, continuing to build, but also thinking about a topic.

"What do you love to eat? If you could have any food right now, what woud it be?"

"Now that's torture." Iris chuckled, then answered without hesitation, "A pack of oreos and a large strawberry milkshake. Either that or a venti white chocolate mocha from Starbucks." She smiled at him. "How 'bout you?"