Donovan scrubbed his face with both hands and sighed. When did the world change so drastically? His nephew claimed that science and technology were "generational things" and that Donovan couldn't understand because he was too old. Donovan was pretty sure that his nephew had never heard of chemicals that gave humans magical powers. Still, the world appeared to have a place for human shapeshifters, which meant that someone could make a profit - and Donovan's job was to make sure that someone was Stark.

He looked over the roster again. The scientists had done a thorough job of documenting the forms and powers of the various test subjects. Sonus had already submitted a short list of subjects for his own examination, and Donovan had signed off on it without too much worry. Kayje Sonus wasn't the best soldier Donovan had ever encountered, but he was a shrewd operative. If this group kept him interested, so be it.

Now he had to pick his own group.

His orders had included finding ways to make McFarland's serum work for Stark. This was his first opportunity to get his hands on living test subjects to see how viable they were as soldiers and he needed to make the best of it.

Caleb Green. Picked up while hiking. Telepathic raven. Telepathy would be very useful to a hit squad or any undercover operatives. Donovan highlighted the name.

Heather Rache. Picked up off the Greyhound. Young, but that might make her more receptive to compassion and persuasion. A liger - what was the world coming to? - who could create darkness. He'd seen the effectiveness of that as a fear tool yesterday morning in the cage room. Only time would tell whether it would be effective in the field for a soldier. Donovan highlighted that name too.

Jacinta Winchester. Riding her bike. Another very young one. A cheetah who could manipulate light. Donovan didn't know exactly what that would entail in the long run, but it sounded interesting enough to warrant a closer examination. Not a weapon, of course, but it might interact in interesting ways with Rache's talent. Donovan highlighted that name.

Caden Howard. Snatched in the airport. Another cheetah, this one able to manipulate electricity. That power could theoretically be weaponized and thus quite useful to a soldier. The cheetah part would stand out too much, of course, but that could be fixed in the next trial. Donovan highlighted the name.

There were a few others that would probably merit a closer examination, but they could wait until this group got settled. Four seemed like a nice, manageable number. Donovan glanced over the list one more time, then nodded his approval.

Reaching across his desk he hit the button that would send his voice to the radios of all the guards in the cage room.

"This is Commander Mathews. Subjects Green, Rache, Winchester, and Howard are to be brought to A-Block living quarters. Two guards per subject, one subject at a time. Begin with Green. Keep at least three guards posted in the cage room at all times. Radio immediately with problems. Over."

---

[[OOC: Only the selected characters should reply. This is the 3rd day, so it is NOT happening simultaneously with the ongoing "Not a Dream" thread - adjust as necessary. After Caleb, whoever replies next determines transfer order. You may start in the cage room and use whatever guards you want to move you from point B to point A. You won't see Commander Mathews quite yet (though the guards might mention him - up to you).

A-Block living quarters consist of a small common room and a small common bathroom. There are six "bed rooms" attached with real doors and beds, but not much else. Each room has video cameras and a two way mirror. The only door into the quarters is through the common room. There will not be a guard posted inside the rooms.

Any questions, feel free to ask here or PM me.]]

No guards were close by when Mathews’ order crackled through the radio, and though it was apparent that some order had been given--one of the guards lifted his radio to make a quick, one-word response before nodding at one of the others--Caleb had no clue as to what was going on. When the two guards approached his cell, he eyed them with slight trepidation. The last time this had happened had been when he’d gone to the exam room with that jerk of a doctor. That wasn’t exactly an experience he wanted to repeat.

As the first guard, the tow-headed one who had spoken into his radio, unlocked the cell door, Caleb glanced to his right. He frowned slightly, looking from the girl to the man-turned-wolf, and sighed. He didn’t like the idea of leaving the room; there was no telling what fun new tests these people had in store for him. Caleb cringed inwardly at the memory of being electrocuted. He sincerely hoped these games wouldn’t prove fatal.

Of course, his life was in the hands of his captors ANYway, so he may as well play nice. There was obviously a lot of money sunk into this place; they wouldn’t kill him. Not right away, anyway.

“On your feet, Green,” said the second guard, a man holding a gun and wearing a sour expression.

The sooner he got this over with, the better. Besides, he reasoned with himself, it would be nice to stretch his legs. And best not give them any reason to take their anger out on my body, he mused. If there was ever going to be opportunity to fight their way to freedom, or simply run like hell, he didn’t want to be injured.

He got to his feet a little stiffly, walking out of the cell and taking his place in front of the more obviously armed guard. The blonde shut the door and jerked his head towards the entry way to the room, adding a grunt as if to emphasize his wish for Caleb to follow. Caleb allowed a small, wry smile to cross his face briefly before falling into step.

As he passed Sabra and Abel, he sent them a half-shrug, as if to say ‘here we go again.’ Wish me luck, he thought, though he didn’t think they could hear him in human form. Hopefully he would be back soon.

It wasn’t until the guards led him through the halls that he allowed himself to get worried. Something was wrong. This wasn’t the way they had traveled to the exam rooms before. He frowned.

“Where are we going?” he asked, quietly but not tentatively. The tone was calculated; firm enough that he wouldn’t necessarily sound wear, but soft enough to not be threatening. Now was the time to play nice. He would take his opportunity to fight later.

Predictably, the blonde simply grunted and kept walking. The man behind him, however, elaborated upon his eloquent partner’s response.

“Block A, your new home.”

Caleb let this sink in a moment. Block A. New home. Home? “Wait. What?”

He tried to turn to look at the man, but a rough shove to his right shoulder kept him facing forward. Worry did its best to give way to panic, and it took a couple deep breaths to will away the frantic feeling in his chest.

But…

“What about the others?” he asked, as he was led into a new hallway and up to a door emblazoned with a large A. The trio stopped, and Caleb was able to turn and look at the dark haired man behind him.

“Some will join you. Some will get their own blocks.” The guard shrugged, apparently not caring too much. The leader unlocked and opened the door as his partner spoke. He motioned Caleb inside, and he numbly obeyed.

“ ‘Some?’ ” he repeated as he stepped inside.

“Yeah.” Another shrug. “And some won’t.”

That statement worried him more than he cared to admit. Had he passed some sort of test to get placed here? Or perhaps failed one? And what did the guard mean by ‘some won’t?’ What would happen to the ones who didn’t? Surly they wouldn’t be…

No. They can’t… and then a flicker of doubt. Can they?

“Abel--what about him? And Sabra?”

“Look, Green,” said the blonde, catching him by surprise. Apparently his vocabulary was larger than a few grunts after all. And most interesting of all was the fact that, if anything, he sounded more personable than the brunette had been. “We don’t know specifics. Best you can do is make yourself at home and wait and see.”

That wasn’t was Caleb wanted to hear. What if he never saw Abel again? What the hell kind of goodbye was that, a shrug and a rueful half-smile that he’d forced out of some misguided sense of courtesy, hoping Abel wouldn’t worry too much? And if he didn’t go back, Abel would damn well find a way to blame himself all over again. Caleb frowned. If that had been a last goodbye, it had sucked.

Caleb was getting angry, but he fought down the urge to yell at the men. Still, though, when he spoke again he was able to hear both irritation and worry in his voice. The guards seemed unconcerned, however, and they both stepped back into the hallway as their prisoner glared.

“But I--”

And then the door clicked shut, and Caleb was left standing in silence.

“…Crap.”

Jacinta was taking a peaceful little nap, still recovering from her antics from the previous day. She was curled up into a ball, in the far right hand corner of her cage, just settling into what one would call ‘stage 3’ of the sleep cycle, entering the deep sleep when suddenly…
WHAM! Jacinta immediately sat upright, banging her head against the bars in the process. She immediately grasped the back of her head with her hand, muttering a curse under her breath. What was that? She was groggy and disorientated, not to mention grumpy from her throbbing head, pounding from both the sudden contact to the bars and the head rush that accompanied sitting up so suddenly. It felt like she was lying on the beach when suddenly, a huge wave washed over top of her. Now that she was focusing on that feeling, she was aware that it was still going, like she was still under the wave. Then it was gone. Then another, shorter ‘wave’ passed over her, coming from what felt like, a different source.
“What in the world was that?” she grumbled, tongue like sandpaper in her mouth. Suddenly, two guards appeared at her cage door. When had they gotten there? She hadn’t noticed where they had come from. God, I hate being woken up early. She was vaguely aware of one of the two guards unlocking her door as the other began to speak to her.
“Winchester?” he, she could tell it was a he, didn’t wait for her response. “We need ye tae come out nice an’ easy now. No funny business or else…” the man tapped his hip, where either a taser or a gun was located. His thick Scottish accent took Jacinta a moment to decipher what he was saying, but once she had interpreted it, she immediately understood the threat he had given her. Jacinta gave a meek nod before crawling forward, slowly getting to her feet once outside of her cage. The guard who had unlocked the door, a fairly tall man with dark-ish hair took his place behind her, placing a firm hand on her right shoulder. The guard in front set off at a brisk pace, causing the guard behind Jacinta to mostly push her along as she stumbled away.
As they set off Jacinta woke up a bit more, enough to realise that they weren’t heading towards the examination rooms. “Where are you taking me?” she asked, trying to slow down her stride but miserably failing as the guard behind her just pushed more. The guard who had spoken to her earlier, the one with the thick Scottish accent replied;
“It’s ye lucky day lass. Ye’re gettin’ a new home. Block A’s a beauty.” Block A?
“Why are you moving me?” she asked,
“I donee know. Mathews thinks ye might be a guid investment or somethin’.” Jacinta was about to complain about being called an ‘investment’ when the guard cut her off. “Ane more question an’ then I ain’t talking.” Jacinta shut her mouth before thinking about her next question.
“Am I going to be alone?” she asked, a slight waver in her voice as she contemplated being alone in a place like this. It would be more than enough to drive a person insane.
“Find out yerself.” The two guards stopped simultaneously in front of a door before opening it, and shoving Jacinta inside before quickly closing it behind her.
She wasn’t alone… Jacinta whisked around to find a 30-something man standing in the room.
“And who the hell would you be?”

"Heather Rache," one of of many guards unlocked the cell, "You're coming with me."

Heather blinked and started to rise, but paused, a look of confusion and anger dawning. "I knew one of you stole my wallet!"

The guard looked slightly confused at the non-sequitur. "We have much more important things to worry about than stealing some-"

"Oh, no you don't! I never told you my full name. You must have gotten it from my ID, which was in my wallet, which you claimed to not have." Well, at least they only had my student ID, which doesn't give my age. Maybe if the didn't do research, they'll still think I'm twelve.. She climbed out of the cage with as much dignity as she could muster while wearing a hospital gown for a skirt.

"So, more testing?" She put her arms behind her head in a classic 'I'm not armed' gesture as the guard lead her away.

"You're being moved to Block A"

YES! One step closer to learning what I need to know to get ourselves outta here! "Does the movement to Block A come with pants? Preferably non-exploding one?"

The Guard rolled her eyes. "You'll have to take it up with Mathews"

And a name too! I can hardly wait. All in all Heather practically skipped to Block A.


(OOC:Figured someone overheard her introducing herself)

((PM’d Dante to ask about furnishings of the common room~))

Caleb stared at the door a moment, gritting his teeth and feeling entirely powerless about this whole situation.

Well... Just make the best if it for now.

He turned and glanced around the room, seeing more doors leading out if it. A cursory inspection led to the discovery of six identical, sparsely-furnished bedrooms. The beds were institutional looking, almost more suited for a barracks than anything else, but at this point a bed was a bed and Caleb was somewhat annoyed to find himself looking forward to sleeping in one. Of course, the large mirrors in the rooms made him smirk wryly. He’d seen enough cop dramas to guess that they weren’t simply mirrors. Whether he was correct or not hardly mattered; between the paranoia caused by being trapped in this nightmare and the very real security cameras set in the ceiling, he knew privacy was something he wouldn’t get.

Still, though, the bedrooms calmed him slightly. Six, which meant that there would be five others here with him. Maybe his friend would be here after all. He knew he shouldn’t get his hopes up, but at the moment, anything to cling to was better than nothing.

The only other door led to a small bathroom. It was equally simple, but Caleb did a little mental dance of joy. A quick search of the facilities yielded neither scissors nor razor, though. He hadn’t really expected it, to be honest. There weren’t even toothbrushes at the moment. He supposed whoever ran this place did not want to give them anything mundane that, given unsupervised access, could be used as a weapon… that made sense, Caleb supposed, but it was almost moot. He’d seen large cats and wolves in the other room. Maybe they were banking on disorientation and shock--and fear, given how obviously armed the guards were--to keep the test subjects from being violent in whatever animal forms had been acquired.

He exited the restroom a few minutes later, feeling slightly more comfortable. Looking around the common area, he took in the simple furniture. The room was just as Spartan as the bedrooms were, but, he reminded himself, better than being in a cage. There was a pair of hard couches, and a small table equipped with four chairs… and that was it. At least someone had had the presence of mind to leave a pack of playing cards on the table.

Stretching his arms, he considered sitting down and playing a game if solitaire for lack of anything else to really do when the hall door opened again and a girl was shoved unceremoniously inside. She turned to face him, and he had the chance to register dark hair, a lean build, and almost Mediterranean features--or, at least, coloring--before she started talking.

“And who the hell would you be?” She was young, he saw, though a good two inches taller than himself.

“I’m Caleb,” he said with an attempt at a smile, folding his arms and leaning against the wall behind him. He recognized her from the cage room, he thought, but she wasn’t someone he’d talked to. “And you?”

”I’m Caleb, and you?”

Jacinta didn’t really sense that much of a threat with him. She had learned to trust her instincts recently… He did look familiar… Perhaps he was a fellow test subject? Yes, she was sure she had seen him escorted by guards around the cage room before. Her stance changed from ‘come near me and I’ll kick your ass’ to ‘do something rape-y and I’ll kick your ass’.

“I’m Jacinta, Winchester.” She said, taking her eyes off of Caleb to take a quick glance around the room. Well it wasn’t the four seasons but it was a whole lot better than a cage. Before Caleb had a chance to reply Jacinta started to babble on; “And I’m not Greek, I’m Spanish. Well, at least three quarters Spanish. My mum is half Spanish-half English so that’s where the last name that reeks of English-ness comes from…” Oh shit. She was talking his ear off.

“Oh right, cheetah and light, since our ‘other form’ and power seem to be part of the normal introduction now.”

“I’m Jacinta, Winchester.” She said, and Caleb opened his mouth to give a well-mannered response when she simply kept talking.

“And I’m not Greek, I’m Spanish.” Caleb had a brief ‘oh shit’ moment when she said that; had he commented out loud? “Well, at least three quarters Spanish. My mum is half Spanish-half English so that’s where the last name that reeks of English-ness comes from…”

He found himself watching her with a slightly bemused expression, not quite sure how to reply. She must have been nervous. Judging from her expression, she wasn’t quite willing to trust him, but Caleb didn’t really blame her. If he were in her position, he wouldn’t trust himself either. In this day and age, especially.

“Oh right, cheetah and light, since our ‘other form’ and power seem to be part of the normal introduction now.”

Ah, he mused,so she is another ‘patient’… He was glad he’d remembered the fact that she had been in the holding cells properly. Caleb filed away the new information, from the fact that she transformed into a cheetah and had some sort of power over light, as well as the fact that she was Spanish-English, though he had no clue when or if the latter would come in handy eventually.

“I’m, uh... Irish? I think?” he shrugged, laughing quietly at both the fact that the information was completely superfluous and that he didn’t actually remember off the top of his head. But his grandfather had been named Padraig, as opposed to Patrick, so it seemed like a good guess.

Also, he knew he was a bird, but he didn’t remember anyone telling him exactly what he was. Sabra had called him Mr. Crow, though, so that seemed as good a response as any.

“I’m a crow. I can talk to people with my mind.” He nodded as if it were the most normal thing in the world, though he wasn’t quite sure how he managed to say it without laughing.

About halfway to Block A, Heather realized that trying to mentally map this place out wasn't going to happen. All she was being shown was the main corridor, though she was reasonably sure she could at least get back to the cage room.

The guard opened a door and gestured for Heather to enter. "Thank you" she said sweetly, hoping it confused her captors. She entered the door just in time to hear a male voice say I’m a crow. I can talk to people with my mind.

Inside was a European looking girl about her age and a grown man about 5'6, who was presumably the crow.

"Um, Hi. I'm Heather. Nice to meet you." She introduced herself a little awkwardly. I wish I had been grouped with Joanne or Cass "So, does anyone know if we get clean clothes? Or at least new pants?"

Posted for Cy:

Caden groaned as he woke up; it hadn't been the best sleep, considering it was on flat, hard metal and all. And he hated waking up hungry. I should be glad I've gotten sleep at all, though.... he thought, considering how bad the conditions were, and the fact that yesterday(?) just about everyone was woken well before they should have been. I hate having no sense of time here....

After stretching a bit to get the kinks out (or stretching as best he could in the small cage), he sat leaning up against the back wall and just observed what was going on around him.

After what seemed like an hour of nothing happening besides the occasional scientist coming in and out, Caden thought he heard a radio go off, but couldn't tell what was being said.

A moment later, though, a few of the guards came over and took someone on the other side of the room from their cage. Though this did follow immediately after the radio call, Caden decided after a moment of thought to dismiss the interruption – it wasn’t that much different than all the stuff that happened the first day, why should he take notice?

A few minutes later, it happened again, and Caden basically ignored it again. But then it happened a third time not long after that, and that was when Caden noticed that not only were the guards being very.... methodical about removing these prisoners, but the other inoculees weren’t being brought back.

That really got him worrying. So, he was already on edge when, a few minutes later, another pair of guards appeared in the cage room. He really felt sorry for whoever they were coming for, assuming that whatever was going on wasn’t good.

Then they stopped in front of his cage.

“Alright, cheetah-boy,” said one guard – if Caden hadn’t felt his blood basically turn to ice, he would have found it amusingly annoying the guard called him ‘boy’ when the solider look to be at least a few years younger than he was – “you’re next.”

“Come on now, don’t make us come in there and force you out,” he added, when Caden didn’t move at first, feeling oddly separate from his body. This extra “encouragement” got snapped him back to reality, or at least his body moved him out of the cage to standing between the guards. They started walking, Caden staring blankly into the space in front of him, which was either the wall ahead of them or the back of the lead gun’s head.

“Looks li’ you two-a leadin’ a guy t’his execution, dehr,” commented a scientist (in an unnervingly casul tone, in Caden’s opinion) as he passed the trio in a hallway.

“....Am I?” Caden asked – he thought he has said it right after the scientist had spoken, but in reality there had been several moments’ delay, enough so the lab coat was already around the corner and well out of earshot.

“Are you what?” the lead soldier said, completely clueless about the origin of the question and a bit annoyed at its seeming randomness, but the second guard made the connection faster and answered “Definitely not; we’re just moving you to A-block living quarters.”

Caden had been so worried before, this didn’t really sink in – at least not consciously, though someone looking would have definitely seen a release of tension – he had gotten into such a scared/shocked state he could only think new.... living quarters? Somewhat blankly as they continued walking.

((Sorry it’s taken me so long guys.... Sundays through Tuesdays are bad for me....)) T_T

((Lol no worries Cy))

As he finished talking, the door opened again and another young girl was prodded into the room.

"Um, Hi. I'm Heather. Nice to meet you." She paused, and Caleb noted that she was even shorter than him. She looked about fourteen. "So, does anyone know if we get clean clothes? Or at least new pants?"

“Nice to meet you,” Caleb said, trying his best not to come across as a creepy old guy, especially since the original girl still seemed a little afraid he was going to pounce on her at any moment. The thought made him queasy, but he supposed that it was a valid fear in this day and age.

“No clue on the clothes, though.”

It was awkward being the only guy in the room, and at least twice their ages at that. He was a little unsure how to conduct himself, and, as such, was mentally cursing at whoever had decided upon these living arrangements. Why the hell had they put him in with teenage girls? It made no sense. He sighed, pushing off the wall and dropping into one of the wooden chairs behind the small table. Shouldn’t the girls be with, you know, other girls? Still, though, having a wooden barrier between himself and the others made him a lot more comfortable.

Three rooms down, he thought, glancing at the doors leading to the sleeping quarters. Two left. Hopefully they’ll bring Abel in...

But even as he thought it, though, he didn’t really feel that hopeful. Nothing had been that convenient thus far; why should it start now?

"Um, Hi. I'm Heather. Nice to meet you. So, does anyone know if we get clean clothes? Or at least new pants?"

Jacinta pushed down the urge to tell Heather off about casting the room into darkness yesterday… again.

“Hopefully we’ll get some new clothes. These ones stink.” She said with a forced smile, reminding herself who the real enemies were. You can work out the whole Light vs Dark thing later, right now, you’ve got to focus on getting out of this place, alive… Feeling a bit sorry for Caleb, who was obviously feeling a bit uncomfortable she made her posture more comfortable, relaxing her shoulders a bit and making her stance a bit less defensive.

“Ok now I have some questions.” She turned towards Caleb, who she reckoned, might have checked the place out a bit. “Is there a bathroom, a fridge, a secret tunnel or anything else that we’ve been denied for the past 3 days in this ‘Block A’?”

Nice to meet you, 'Psychic Crow Man' seemed friendly enough, if a little nervous. Understandable, considering the circumstances. No clue on the clothes, though.

Oh well it had been worth a shot. She gave him a warm smile to show she bore the messenger no ill will.

Hopefully we’ll get some new clothes. These ones stink. Her other roommate commented. Oh crap.

She hadn't recognized the face, it was hard to see clearly two cages away. But she knew that voice. Of all the people to room me with, they pick the one who's pissed at me. Maybe it's a safety valve thing. They know using my power will hurt her, which makes me a lot less likely to just throw up a cloud and escape. Clever. I'm so going to kick their asses for it.

"I am so sorry about yesterday." She doubted she'd be forgiven very quickly, but she wanted the girl to know she really hadn't meant to hurt her.

But her new roommate had turned her attention back to Crow-man Ok now I have some questions. Is there a bathroom, a fridge, a secret tunnel or anything else that we’ve been denied for the past 3 days in this ‘Block A’?

She knew it was a long shot, but she gave Crow-man a hopeful look anyway.

“Hopefully we’ll get some new clothes. These ones stink.” Caleb saw the original girl, Jacinta, relax a little, and he smiled faintly in response. He couldn’t argue with her statement. He was going on, what, day three of wearing the same clothes? A washing machine and a shower couldn’t go wrong at that point.

"I am so sorry about yesterday," said the younger one, Heather, somewhat hurriedly, and Caleb found himself slightly confused yet again. But Jacinta continued talking, almost at the same time as Heather had--she probably hadn’t been expecting Heather to say anything, and it ended up one of those moments where you became unsure of who to respond to first.

”Ok now I have some questions. Is there a bathroom, a fridge, a secret tunnel or anything else that we’ve been denied for the past 3 days in this ‘Block A’?”

“Uhm,” Caleb responded eloquently, glancing from one to the other as they both looked at him a bit hopefully. He pointed at one of the doors. “There’s a bathroom in there... no tunnel, though. Unfortunately.”

And then he turned his attention to Heather, frowning as he thought back to where he had seen her in the cage room. Sorry about yesterday…

“Yesterday. The dark cloud? You did that?”

They walked on for another minute or two, Caden still not quite absorbing the relocation information as he was recovering from the fear shock from earlier. He bumped into the soldier in front of him when the two guns stopped in front of some room.
"Watch it!" barked the first guard, shoving Caden back a bit.
"Anyway, he you are, A-block living quarters," the following gun said, pushing Caden (much more gently then the first guard) into the door he had opened. "Play nice with you new friends."
"....dark cloud? You did that?"
Caden stumbled a bit into the room from the push, then heard the door close behind him. A quick glance told him who was speaking - unless either of the two girls somehow had a noticeable masculine voice, which he thought was highly unlikely. Both girls looked to be in their teens, about ten years younger than him he guessed, and likewise the man looked about ten years older.
They were in a common room of sorts with very sparse furniture, and there were several rooms branching out from the common area - he assumed they were all bedrooms of sorts, considering he saw something that looked like a bed through one of he open doors.
The three other people were already having some sort of discussion, he surmised, so he remained standing quietly by the door.

Heather ducked her head. She was never going to live this down, ever. "I was trying to figure out what my power was. I mean, I knew I could transform, but I had no clue what my power was. I was trying out different things and then - darkness. I was actually going for invisibility. I didn't mean to scare anyone, and I really didn't mean to hurt anyone." She sighed. "Who came up with our powers, anyway? I mean, what's the point of all this-" Heather cut off as she noticed someone new in the doorway.

"Welcome to Hotel California." She greeted somewhat cheerfully, reaching out to shake his hand. "I'm Heather."

Darkness, huh? Well, that could be interesting. Especially since the other girl, Jacinta, had said her power was something to do with light. The logic of the two of them being put together made sense in a strange sort of way. Still, though, Caleb wondered why he had been included in this group.

The door opened behind Heather as she spoke, and Caleb saw another prisoner ushered in. Thankfully, this one was male, though he was still somewhat younger than himself--about in his mid-twenties, if Caleb had to guess.

“... with our powers, anyway? I mean, what's the point of all this--” At that point, she noticed the newcomer as well. Without really missing a beat she stuck out her hand to shake his, saying cheerfully, ”Welcome to the Hotel California! I’m Heather.”

Caleb almost laughed despite himself. As it was, he grinned and shook his head. Heather looked a little young to know the Eagles, but he also supposed that Hotel California was one of their more popular songs.

“It’s a lovely place,” Caleb said to the newcomer, still grinning.

And then he sobered somewhat as, running through the lyrics in his head, he came to the end of the song. You can check out any time you want… but you can never leave. It was funny how something that was so non-threatening and entertaining out in the real world became ominous here.

He sighed, rubbing the back of his neck wearily. “...I don’t think I’m ever going to be able to listen to that song again even if we get out of here somehow.”

The short redhead began speaking in response to the man's earlier question, explaining her mishap as best she could, before asking about the source of their powers. "....I mean, what's the point of all this-"
At this point she noticed Caden, cheering up a bit and sticking out her hand in greeting. "Welcome to Hotel California; I'm Heather," she said.
"It's a lovely place," the mad added with a grin; the second line of lyrics started the song playing in Caden's head as he shook Heather's hand. "Caden," he proffered in response. "Nice to meet you."
There was a moment's pause after they dropped hands, then the man added wearily "...I don’t think I’m ever going to be able to listen to that song again even if we get out of here somehow."
Caden didn't quite know why the man's mood changed so quickly until the song playing in his head finally got to the end. "Oh.... Yeah."

Jacinta was following the conversation fine. She was going to tell Heather that she didn’t really blame her for casting the room into darkness until suddenly, she whipped around.
"Welcome to Hotel California. I'm Heather."

Another man had come through the door. Something about him made her keep quiet. Had they met? Nope, but perhaps they had talked… She was about to ask him the very question when Caleb continued from where Heather had left off.

”It’s a lovely place,” Ok now, where they talking in some sort of code now? Suddenly the newcomer spoke, in response to Heather’s introduction.

"Caden, nice to meet you." Wait, where had Jacinta heard his voice before?

“...I don’t think I’m ever going to be able to listen to that song again even if we get out of here somehow.” Ok. Now they were talking in some sort of code. Something to do with a song… They all looked and sounded like Americans, Jacinta quickly went through her memory, thinking of any rock and roll song or whatever that had to do with ‘Hotel California’. Nothing. Her mother had been more of a Beetles fan anyway.

"Oh.... Yeah." Caden spoke again. And then the answer to who he was exploded into Jacinta’s mind.

“Wait a second, are you a cheetah? I mean, do you turn into a cheetah?”

"Oh.... Yeah." said the new guy. Caleb’s response, however, was forstalled by Jacinta’s next question.

“Wait a second, are you a cheetah? I mean, do you turn into a cheetah?”

"Umm.... Yes, I can...?" Caden looked somewhat confused by the question. Caleb grinned at his expression as he snagged the deck of cards from the center of the table. He shuffled them absently, more for want of something to do with his hands than a wish to actually play.

“Why?” the younger man continued.

So it seemed that at least two of the three people in the room with him could turn into cheetahs. Was he surrounded by cats? And if so, why the heck had they included him? A crow and a cheetah were very, very different animals.

Ok, he mused, light and dark I understand. Two cheetahs together? Sure. The overarching pattern was eluding him completely. But there were still two open rooms, so maybe it would make sense when he met the rest of their group.

“Hey, Heather?” Caleb said, breaking into the lull of the conversation in the wake of Caden’s inquiry. “So, uh, what can you turn into?”