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Bionic	By : FantismalSpider Category: +G to L > Hikaru no Go Views: 3132 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Hikaru no Go, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 6
- 7
- 8
I�m terribly sorry for the delay in getting this chapter out
to you, but here it is, after a long wait.

If there�s anything that seems overly confusing about this
story or just a bit off, PLEASE let me know. I could be making
it vague on purpose, or, more likely than not, I could be forgetting to put in
something that I have in my mind but haven�t yet put out for you to see. Thank
you for helping me in that way.

Traits:

C#: Clone, and then the number of the clone

H: Human (indicates half-Bionic, as half-Bionics
genetically have all traits of their parents (but may not show them all))

F/M: Female/Male

A: Connective (Augmentation/Amplification �
boosts strengths of others)

C: Calculating (really really smart)

F: Flexibility (agile and bendy)

L: Linguistic (good with languages)

M: Morphable (able to manipulate self/environment)

P: Psychic (supernatural or mental abilities)

Q: Speed (Quick � 50 mph for pure Bionics)

R: Regenerative (Fast healing)

S: Strength (physical strength without bulky
muscles)

<><><><><>

Bionic -
Beginnings

<><><><><>

�Did you hear that?�

�Hear what?� Ashiwara looked around, as if he could see the
sound Isumi was referring to.

�That crying. I think it�s over here�� Isumi slipped into
a dark park, Ashiwara close behind.

The two had been sneaking through the city, walking into
supermarkets and lifting the food they would need for the next few weeks. They
did their �shopping� at night, so the darkness could give them some small
cover. On their way back to the old warehouse, they had passed a small park.
Isumi now stood under one of its three scraggly trees. �I could have sworn it
was here,� Isumi murmured.

Ashiwara placed a hand on Isumi�s shoulder. �Isumi, it�s
good to see you taking an interest in the world again, but we probably should
get this food back to Saeki and Kurata.�

Isumi shook his head, looking up at the tree. �But it
sounded like-� Frightened gold eyes stared back at him, rendering him
momentarily speechless. �Like Waya,� he finished, his voice a hoarse whisper.

Ashiwara looked up too, spotting the boy in the tree. True,
he had an uncanny resemblance to Waya, but Ashiwara had seen Waya killed with
his own eyes. �Isumi, that can�t be Waya.�

Isumi just ignored Ashiwara, easily climbing the tree and
sitting on the same branch as the boy.

<><>

Le Ping backed away from the boy on his branch, scrubbing
tears off his cheeks with the back of his hand. This person was a stranger,
and most strangers Le Ping had encountered in the past few days were mean and
had yelled at him. This boy, however, was talking in a soft voice, and he
smiled at Le Ping like Yang Hai had.

Hesitantly, Le Ping crawled along the branch. He placed one
hand on the other person�s leg, watching his face to see if this was okay. The
other boy responded by placing one of his hands in Le Ping�s hair, another
thing Yang Hai had done. Le Ping smiled weakly at him, climbing into his lap
and wrapping his arms around the other�s neck.

<><>

The moment the boy climbed into Isumi�s lap, he knew he
wasn�t holding Waya. This boy was too small. He didn�t feel right in Isumi�s
arms, and he smelled wrong, like antiseptics and latex gloves. Still, he had
Waya�s face, Waya�s hair, and Waya�s unusual gold eyes. And he was scared.
Isumi held the boy close, wondering if Waya had a brother or if he had been
cloned and just never told Isumi.

�Isumi! We should go � you can bring him along, but we
really need to get back!�

Isumi stroked the boy�s hair. �Do you want to come home
with me?�

The boy just stared blankly at him. Isumi sighed and moved
the boy out of his lap. He climbed out of the tree, hearing the boy making
distressed sounds. When he reached the ground, he held his arms toward the
other. �Come on down.� The boy made another distressed sound, his fingers
kneading the branch he knelt on, before he shakily got to his feet and jumped
toward Isumi.

�Oof!� Isumi caught the boy and hugged him before setting
him down. He gave the boy a bag with some of the food he and Ashiwara had
taken, and took the boy�s other hand. He then picked up the rest of the
groceries and smiled at him again. �Come on, let�s go home.�

<><><><><>

Kuwabara frowned slightly as he looked around the cell of
the half-Bionic HMCLR. At first glance, he couldn�t see the boy that was
supposed to be here, but a more thorough look revealed a slightly shivering
mass wedged between the toilet and the corner of the room. The boy had wrapped
his thin blanket around him in an attempt to protect himself from the guards
who came in and regularly broke his limbs. Either that or he was trying to
hide from the world. Rape and isolation could make a child want to do that.

As much as Kuwabara didn�t want to cause the boy any further
stress, he needed to examine him. Ogata and Catalonia had come to him,
alarmed. Something seemed to have gone wrong with their attempt to radically
change his mood. As the leading expert on Bionics, it was Kuwabara�s job to
figure out just what that something was.

Kuwabara slowly made his way to the little blanket-wrapped
figure. He gingerly bent over, just enough to lift the blanket away from where
the boy�s head was. �Hello there.� Large gold eyes stared at Kuwabara, and
the old scientist was left momentarily speechless. It had been a good eighteen
years since he had last seen eyes that unique shade of gold. Kuwabara knew
immediately which Bionic had mothered this child. �What�s your name, boy?�

The boy looked around, then back at Kuwabara, confusion and fear clearly
written on his face. �W-Waya Yoshitaka,� he whispered, his voice raspy from
disuse.

Kuwabara laughed slightly, causing Waya to jump and pull
even farther away. �Your mother was Aya,� he chuckled. �Waya Aya.� Waya
continued to stare up at Kuwabara.

The scientist stepped back, giving Waya some room. �Come
on, Waya-kun. You need to go in for a check-up. And don�t worry, nobody will
hurt you this time.�

Waya continued to look frightened, but he crept out from
behind the toilet and walked in front of Kuwabara, still holding the blanket
tightly around his shoulders. Kuwabara figured that the boy was obeying more
because he was desperately in need of some form of human contact � Ogata and Catalonia, while bright kids, didn�t understand that this boy was a child and needed to be
able to talk to people and have someone or something he could trust. Kuwabara
was probably the first person who actually spoke to Waya and listened to what
he responded.

�Climb up here,� Kuwabara said, patting a padded bench
before picking up a clipboard with Waya�s information. �You�ve been sick
recently, throwing up, right?� Waya nodded, looking at his lap rather than the
scientist. �How long?� Waya shrugged. �About three months?� Waya seemed to
think about this before nodding once. �Do you remember what happened three
months ago?�

Waya reacted to that, curling his legs up to his chest and burying his face
against them, clinging to the blanket. Kuwabara looked disgusted. Three
months ago, Ogata and Catalonia had given the order for Waya to be raped. Of
course, they hadn�t called it that. �Experiment 557 to evaluate effect of mood
on regenerative ability.� Kuwabara snorted and opened the door to the little
room they were in, calling to a guard. �Bring me FCPR.�

After the guard left, Kuwabara turned back to Waya, but
didn�t approach the boy. First, Waya needed to be calmed down, comforted. Then
he could examine him. �Do you know Shindou Hikaru? He�s about your age, talks
to himself, has blond and black hair?� Waya�s only response was to lift his
head a little, his eyes barely visible over his knees. Kuwabara took this as
an affirmative. �Hikaru�s parents live here, Matsuo and Mitsuko.�

The door opened and a woman in a wheelchair rolled in.
�Kuwabara-sensei! How can I help you?�

Kuwabara gestured toward the bed. �This is Waya Yoshitaka � I believe he�s a
friend of your son�s, Mitsuko. Waya-kun, this is Shindou Mitsuko.�

Mitsuko gasped, one hand covering her mouth when she saw
Waya. �Oh, you poor thing! What have those cruel scientists done to you?�
She rolled over to Waya, gently pulling him off the bench and into her arms.

As Kuwabara had hoped, Waya didn�t resist Mitsuko, letting
her cuddle him. Perhaps it was her calming influence. There was something
about her warm brown eyes and soft smile that made people relax. Perhaps it
was merely the fact she was a female. If raped by men, a strange old doctor
was probably the last person Waya wanted touching him. Or perhaps it was the
fact that Mitsuko was a mother, and Waya a child. In any case, Waya was soon
clinging to Mitsuko, his face buried in her shoulder, as she stroked his hair
and whispered softly in his ear. His sobs were muffled, but Kuwabara could see
the boy�s shoulders shaking as Mitsuko rocked him.

When Waya eventually stilled in Mitsuko�s arms, Kuwabara
made to cross the room, but Mitsuko shook her head. �He fell asleep� you�ll
only scare him worse.� She smiled at his dark head. �Hikaru would be about
his age. I miss my little boy. But I have Aya�s son to hold now.�

�Those eyes are a dead giveaway, aren�t they?� Kuwabara
laughed. �Aya had the prettiest eyes. Even Kouyou agreed.�

�But Kouyou-sensei also disapproved of meddling with our
genes to merely change hair or eye color,� Mitsuko pointed out. �Although some
of them did turn out beautiful � Aya�s eyes, or Kyo�s red hair/violet eye mix �
others were just odd. Hikaru�s an example of that, with his two-tone hair.�

Kuwabara shrugged. �We had to give you some sort of color, or you would
have all just been bland albinos.�

Mitsuko just smiled. �Then you scientists would probably make us wear labels,
so you could identify us.� Kuwabara laughed. �But anyway� what happened to
Waya-kun?� She looked down at the boy in his arm. �Why did they call you in
to test him? I thought you only worked in the Biodome.�

�He�s Aya�s son, and he�s sick. That alone should explain
things.� Kuwabara studied Waya�s file. �It started about three months ago,
according to Ogata and Catalonia-�

�Ogata and Catalonia are in charge of this child�s
well-being? No wonder he�s traumatized!�

�Don�t let them hear you say that,� Kuwabara warned with
another screechy laugh. �But you�re right, they haven�t done a very good job.�

�What did they do?�

Kuwabara shook his head slightly. �Waya-kun was raped as part of an
experiment.�

�They didn�t!�

�To see if a drastic change in his mood affected how quickly
he could recover.�

Mitsuko looked horrified as she hugged Waya closer, trying to protect the boy.
After a moment, she gasped, staring at Kuwabara. �When I was carrying Hikaru,
he had a uterus� could Waya�?�

�That�s what I was thinking,� Kuwabara said grimly. �I was
going to run an ultrasound on him, see if there�s a baby. It�s the only thing
I can think of that would make a regenerative Bionic show signs of an illness.�

�He�s just a baby himself� oh, he�s waking up.� Mitsuko
looked down as Waya started to stir

<><><><><>

Waya was no stranger to pain. He had been suffering nearly
non-stop for eight years. Although the first five years of his life were hazy,
Waya knew that the memory of his first day of school would be burned into his
mind forever.

He didn�t remember what he had actually done at
school that day. It wasn�t important. It was what happened next that he�d
never forget, even if he wanted to. He had climbed off the bus, feeling like
he was such a grown-up now, and had run home, his green army-print backpack
bouncing against his back. �Mommy, Daddy, I�m home!� he had called, as he ran
inside. �Mommy? Daddy? I�m back! Back from school!� Waya had figured they
were in their room, doing grown-up things. But he was a grown-up now! He made
a beeline for their room, pausing in his rush only to open the heavy wooden
door.

His father had been a very large man, even more so to a
five-year-old Waya. He remembered freezing in the doorway, staring up, up, up,
to where his father was holding a rope that had been tied to the ceiling fan. His
gold eyes followed the rope down, to where it was wrapped around his mother�s
neck. �Mommy?� Her eyes were closed, her mouth a thin line. There was no
trace of her usual smile and cheer on her face. �Mommy?�

Waya�s father had frozen too, when Waya ran into the room. He started to move
again at the same time Waya did, catching Waya up in one large arm as the child
ran toward his mother. �Your mommy�s tired. Leave her alone.�

�She looks sick!� Waya squirmed in his father�s grasp,
trying to get down. �She looks hurt! Mommy! Mommy!� Waya�s father shoved
him into the master bedroom�s large closet, locking it as the boy climbed back
to his feet. Waya tugged at the handle and pounded on the door. �Let me out!
Mommy! Mommy!�

By the end of the first day, the frantic pounding on the
door had been replaced by muffled sobs and the occasional kick. Waya�s father
cracked the door open long enough to throw Waya a six-pack of bottled water,
deflecting Waya�s attempts to escape with his foot. By the end of the first
week, the closet was quiet.

Waya blinked, shielding his eyes from the harsh light that
filled the closet as his father opened the door. He was curled up in the back,
one of his mother�s dresses wrapped around him like a security blanket. His
father�s lip curled in a sneer as he took in the state of the closet. Waya had
pulled all the clothes off the hangers and ransacked the shoe racks, trying to
find another way out, a source of light, or something to eat. He had made a
little nest of his mother�s sweaters to sleep in, and his father�s clothes
served him as a bathroom. The six bottles of water were scattered around the
floor, empty and dry.

�Here. Eat.� Waya�s father set a bowl on the ground near
his feet.

Waya crept toward him, looking between the food and his father as he approached.
When the man didn�t move, Waya picked up the bowl and began to drink the soup
his father had brought. He wiped his mouth with his sleeve when he was done,
turning bright eyes up to his father. �Is Mommy still tired?� His voice was
slightly raspy from the lack of fluids, but there was still a childish
innocence blanketing Waya. He knew about death, but death didn�t happen to his
mommy. He knew about abuse, but his daddy wasn�t abusive. That sort of thing
didn�t happen to him and his family. His daddy was just trying to keep him
from bothering his mommy while she got better.

Waya watched as his father knelt down, reaching out to pat
Waya�s head. �Your mommy�s still exhausted.� He moved his hands down, rubbing
Waya�s shoulders. �But you�re being a good boy, staying quiet and out of her
way. A very good boy� what�s this?� He lifted Waya�s left arm, studying his
wrist. �Yoshitaka, what�s this on your arm?�

�Where?� Waya stared at his arm, trying to see what his
daddy was talking about �What is it?� A hint of panic was starting to creep
into his voice. �Is it bad? Daddy?�

�I can fix it, Yoshi. I can fix it� but I have to hurt it
first. Will you let me make it better?�

Waya nodded frantically. He couldn�t see anything wrong, but if his daddy said
his arm was bad, then his arm must be bad. �Fix it, Daddy, please fix
it, I don�t wanna die!�

His father looked up at him, scowling slightly at the
mention of death, and took Waya�s skinny wrist in his own large hands. A bit of
pressure and a sharp twist was all it took for Waya to wail and jerk his arm
away, cradling a broken wrist against his chest. �Daddy!�

�I had to hurt it, Yoshitaka. I told you that. Now it can
get better. Let me see it.�

Waya sniffed, scrubbing tears from his eyes with his good arm while shakily
extending his left arm back toward his daddy. �Is it better?� A terrible look
fell over the older man�s face as he felt Waya�s now-unbroken wrist. Waya
whimpered, the trust he had in his parent starting to fail with that expression.
He carefully pulled his arm back, still feeling the pain from the injury, even
though it was healed. �Daddy?�

His father rose to his feet and kicked Waya, knocking him
back into the closet. Waya barely got to his feet again before the door slammed
shut and the lock clicked back into place. �Daddy! No!�

Only two years later did Waya learn that it was not him who
had been sick or hurting, but his father. A sort of warped Munchausen�s
syndrome by proxy disorder, he was told. His father would hurt him in an
attempt to get attention, to one-up doctors, or to assume the role of a caring
parent� but Waya had managed to thwart him by healing so fast. If his broken
wrist healed before he even left the closet, if the food poisoning was gone
less than ten minutes after eating, if the burns had healed and bruises faded
before the candles and candlesticks had been put away, then Waya�s father could
not rush him to the hospital, could not get that attention from the doctors.

Over the last few months in the closet, however, Waya�s
injuries stopped healing. His father kept him supplied with just enough food
and water to stay alive, but his body had run out of energy to mend what was
left of it. Bruises lasted for weeks. Broken bones were twisted; his limbs
appeared to have three times as many joints as a normal person.

By that point, however, Waya had stopped feeling the pain.
Or rather, had stopped acknowledging it. Hurt was such a constant feeling that
it was as normal as breathing to him. Hunger, thirst, and loneliness were the
same. He no longer noticed, no longer cared.

Three days of constant eating, of being surrounded by people
� doctors, nurses, and police � was exactly what his body needed to reenergize
and mend itself, and Isumi�s love and devotion proved invaluable to mending
Waya�s outlook on the world.

But now, in these labs, Waya�s fragile trust had been
shattered for a second time. Doctors, doctors who in Waya�s mind existed to
help and heal those in need, would take Waya aside and break his arms. They
would poke and prod and send in strange men to touch him in ways that made him
feel disgusting, made him feel unworthy of living. And when they weren�t
hurting him, they locked him in a small, hard room, all alone. Only too easily
could Waya clutch the threadbare blanket around his shoulders and envision the
dark closet and his years of isolation. Only too easily could he picture his
father in the position of the doctors, existing only to hurt and ignore him.
With no one to talk to, no way to count the days, Waya had simply shut out the
world. The closet, these labs, there was no difference. The only thing Waya had
left was a yearning for someone, anyone, to come and end his constant
suffering.

He hadn�t expected his savior to come in the form of an old
man dressed like the doctors, or a younger woman in a wheelchair. When Kuwabara
had first spoken to him, Waya had to take several minutes for it to register
that the man was talking to him, not above him like Ogata and Catalonia did. Not only that, but he called Waya by his name and didn�t try to touch him or
hurt him.

And Mitsuko� Waya never considered his mother among those
who lost his trust. His father, yes. Doctors, yes. Older men in general (from
his experiences at the orphanage), yes. But never his mother. By extension, no
mother had lost his trust yet. It was easy for him to climb into Mitsuko�s lap
while she encouraged him with gentle tugs, to cling to her when she wrapped her
arms around him, and to release his pain in the form of muffled sobs as she
whispered in his ear how wonderful he was, and how much she adored him.

He hadn�t even realized he had fallen asleep until he yawned
and opened his eyes, noting that the corner he usually tucked himself into had
been replaced by a soft body. He jerked fully awake, almost falling out of
Mitsuko�s lap, but her strong arms kept him safe and her soft smile calmed his
nerves. She laughed lightly as he let out a relieved sigh and snuggled close
again, having craved a mother�s hug ever since his first day of school.

Mitsuko cuddled him a little longer, but she eventually pulled back a little.
�Waya-kun, Kuwabara-sensei would like to run some tests on you, to see why
you�re sick. I promise you, he will not hurt you, and he�ll stop if you say
you�re feeling too uncomfortable, okay?�

Waya was tempted to say no right then and there, as he glanced over his
shoulder at the monkey-like Kuwabara, but he looked back at Mitsuko. She ran
her hand through his hair, looking hopeful. �Please, Waya-kun? I don�t want you
to have to suffer. I�m sure he can make you better.� Waya bit his lip � those
were along the lines of what his father used to tell him. But Mitsuko was a
mother, and she had promised Kuwabara wouldn�t hurt him. He took a deep
breath and nodded quickly, as if to get it over with. Mitsuko beamed at him and
hugged him, kissing his forehead. �Thank you, Waya-kun!�

Waya climbed onto the table like Mitsuko asked him to. She
leaned forward, spreading the blanket he had brought with him over his legs and
waist. �Kuwabara-sensei�s going to need you to lift your shirt up-� Waya�s eyes
grew wide and he clamped his arms around his stomach, trying to make sure
Kuwabara would do anything. Mitsuko rested one hand lightly on his arms. �He
needs you to lift your shirt up so he can test your belly. You can keep this
blanket wrapped around your waist. He won�t touch you there.� She seemed to
know exactly what he was thinking about. Waya took another shaky breath,
reaching out with one hand toward Mitsuko. The woman took Waya�s hand in both
of hers, squeezing and stroking it reassuringly. �It�s okay, Waya-kun. You�ll
be okay. I promise. Kuwabara-sensei won�t hurt you. I promise.�

Waya knew his hands were trembling as Kuwabara moved to his
side, pushing up the shirt. To his credit, the old doctor was careful not to
disturb the blanket covering Waya�s waist. �This will feel cold and wet,"
he said, beginning to smear something on Waya�s stomach.

Waya bit his lip, turning his head to the side to look at Mitsuko. She reached
up to stroke his hair. �You�re doing great, Waya-kun.� She squeezed his hand
and smiled at him. �You�re doing wonderfully. Just keep looking at me, you�re
doing just fine.�

Kuwabara pulled out a small object and began running it over
his stomach, but Waya did his best to ignore him and focus on Mitsuko. He
squeezed her hand, his breathing quick and irregular. �Look at this.�
Kuwabara�s command drew both their attentions away from each other. He was
pointing to a screen where a small blobby shape could be seen.

�What is it?� Waya�s voice was quiet and he reached out with his other hand to
grab Mitsuko�s. For some reason he couldn�t explain, the image on the screen
frightened him.

�It�s� a baby�� Mitsuko looked down at Waya. �It�s your baby.�

Waya just shook his head. �No, no way. I can�t have a baby. I�m a boy.�

�You�re not just a boy,� Kuwabara said, still running the
object in his hand over Waya�s stomach. �You�re a very special boy.�

�Bionic?� Waya had heard that word used by Ogata and Catalonia, but he wasn�t
sure what it meant.

�Yes, Bionic. Half-Bionic.� Kuwabara looked at him with
one eye. �One thing it means, in your case, is that you can have babies, just
like a girl.�

Waya swallowed nervously. �But� I can�t have a baby.� He knew babies came
from sex, but he didn�t think he�d had sex. Sex was something to do with
people he loved, like Isumi, and it was supposed to be great. The only thing
he could think of was what that one man had done, a while ago� He shuddered
violently at the memory.

Kuwabara set one hand on his chest to keep him still, and Mitsuko leaned
forward to stroke his hair. �I�m so sorry, Waya-kun,� she murmured. �I�m so
sorry. You shouldn�t have to feel like this. No one should.�

Waya shook his head furiously, screwing his eyes shut. �No,
no, no, no! I�m not having a baby! I�m not!� He heard Kuwabara flick
something, and a thumping sound, slightly like horses galloping, filled the
small room.

�Your baby�s heartbeat,� Kuwabara said. �Your son�s heartbeat.�

Waya stilled, opening his eyes and listening to the
unfamiliar sound. He freed one hand from Mitsuko�s, placing it on his bare
stomach, not even noticing the gel Kuwabara had placed on it. He had grown
even thinner in the months he had lived at this place, but his stomach had
started filling out again recently. It was nowhere near what he�d consider
fat, but there was a definite bulge. �My son?� There was a tremor to his
voice as he turned to look at the monitor. �I�m going to have a son?�

Beside him, Waya heard Mitsuko shake her head and murmur, �He�s just a baby
himself��

Kuwabara, however, nodded. He pointed to the screen.
�Here�s his head� here, you can see his heart beating. And here � that�s how I
know it�s a boy.�

�Kuwabara.� Waya, Kuwabara, and Mitsuko all turned to the door at the sound of
the new voice. Ogata stood in the doorway. The light glinted off his glasses
as he pushed them up his nose with one finger. �Kuwabara, what are you doing?�

�Testing the boy, just like you wanted me to,� Kuwabara
replied, shaking his head. He turned away and began to put away the ultrasound
equipment. �You should go talk to your ophthalmologist, Ogata-kun, if you
can�t see properly.�

Waya had pulled away from Kuwabara and yanked his shirt down, ignoring the
gel. He clung to Mitsuko�s arm, staring fearfully at Ogata. Mitsuko moved to
shelter him from the younger doctor�s view.

�That�s not what I meant, old man. Why are you testing it
with a Bionic in the room? And FCPR of all of them! You know it was among the
rebels � do you want this Bionic to attempt to take your life?�

Kuwabara laughed, shaking his head again at Ogata. �I figure if I�m nice to
him now, he�ll remember and spare my life when he rebels.� He peered up at
Ogata. �After all, he�s human. He�ll remember shows of kindness.�

�It�s a tool, no more.� Ogata spared Waya a quick
glance before turning his full attention back to Kuwabara. Mitsuko took this
chance to draw Waya into her lap, turning the back of her wheelchair to Ogata.
�But did you figure out why it was malfunctioning?�

�Listen to yourself, Ogata-kun. Talking about a living, breathing, human being
as a tool and malfunctioning.� Kuwabara fixed a one-eyed stare at Ogata. �It
really wasn�t all that difficult to figure out that this little boy has become
an expectant father as a result of your little �experiment.��

�A father? But that�s impossible � no, the one
second generation Bionic... that�s incredible!�

�What�s incredible?� Dorothy Catalonia appeared behind
Ogata in the doorway. �Ah, Seiji, you found them.�

�I wondered when you�d be showing up, Dorothy.� Kuwabara
folded his hands in his sleeves. �I was just telling Ogata-kun how the boy was
pregnant� and so young too� Only fourteen, according to his chart��

Dorothy tossed her long blonde hair over her shoulder. �Don�t try the guilt
game with me, sensei. I know perfectly well that thing isn�t human�
though the child might be.� She tapped one finger against her chin. �What do
you think, Seiji? It would be three-quarters human� majority rules?�

Ogata nodded. �Yes, the baby would be human.�

Dorothy clapped her hands together. �Ah, but it�s just a fetus right now!
It�s not officially human until the end of the second trimester � and it�s only
been three months! We can still test it, figure out just how much of the
Bionic genealogy is being passed down� won�t this be exciting?� She pushed past
Ogata and walked to Mitsuko�s side, where she grabbed Waya�s arm and tried to
pull him out of Mitsuko�s arms. �Release it, FCPR.�

�I�m sorry,� Mitsuko whispered into Waya�s ear before releasing him. She could
not refuse a direct order from a scientist, not if she wanted to survive long
enough to possibly see her son again.

Waya couldn�t believe that Mitsuko had practically handed
him over to Catalonia. He tried to cringe away from the scientist, but she
wrapped her arms around him and held him close. �Such a good Bionic,�
she praised Mitsuko. �Now let�s get this thing back to its room.�

�Wait.� Kuwabara opened both eyes now. �For the best
health of the baby and the Bionic, I recommend it is moved into the Biodome
immediately. A cell is hardly suitable for an expectant father.�

Dorothy waved her hand dismissively. �It�s a chance we�ll
have to take. If the other Bionics were exposed to this half-breed, they might
decide that another rebellion is in good order. We don�t want to lose what few
we have left. Come on, Seiji, let�s go.� Dorothy all but dragged Waya out of
the room and back to his cell. He looked back once, seeing Mitsuko wheel
herself into the hall and watch him be carted away, pressing one hand to her
mouth, but then he was pulled around a corner and didn�t see her again.

<><><><><>

Hikaru sat cross-legged on one of the go salon chairs,
slurping juice loudly from a glass as he watched Touya playing go with one of
the regular customers, an older man who had known Touya�s father. The three of
them and Ichikawa were the last in the salon for the day. �You�re such a dud,
Touya.�

�Excuse me?� Touya scowled up at Hikaru. �Like you
know what you�re talking about� oh, wait, that�s right, you do know
duds, being one yourself.�

Hikaru stuck out his tongue at Touya. ��Snot what I meant, and you know it!�

Touya picked up a go stone and studied it, considering flinging it at Hikaru,
but he decided it would be sacrilegious to the game and instead placed it on
the goban with a loud pa-chi!

Hikaru snickered. �Look at you, trying to be all high and mighty and ignoring
me. The Great Touya Akira, that�s what they�ll call you, all right!�

Hikaru, you know, you could be a little nicer. Riling Touya up in the
middle of a game isn�t very sporting of you, even if you�re not playing.

Oh, hush Sai. It�s okay � I�m just trying to get him to
finish the game faster. Watch.

Sure enough, Touya forced a resignation from his opponent in just three more
hands and turned to glare at Hikaru. �You�re cleaning up the stones!�

�Yeah, yeah, whatever.� Hikaru waved the other player away
and began sorting the stones. Touya, despite what he had just said, began to
help automatically. After the other player left and Ichikawa told them to
behave while she ran out to buy dinner for the three of them, he spoke again.
�Touya� you�re not really special, are you?�

Touya looked up at Hikaru, clearly puzzled. �What are you talking about? My
go is ��

Hikaru waved a hand, accidentally scattering a few stones on
the floor. �Oops� but no, I�m not talking about your go.� He crawled under a
chair to pick up the stones. �I�m talking about your Bionicness.�

�My Bionicness?�

Hikaru pointed at Sai. �Yeah, like how I can see and talk to Sai, and how he�s
solid to me. That�s my Bionicness. But you can�t see Sai, despite you being
psychic. And you can�t change into anything or walk through stuff, despite
being morphable. The only thing you have going for you is you�re pretty smart,
and really good at go. But that�s not always really useful.� He crawled out
from under the chair and dropped the last few white stones into the proper
goke.

Touya fell silent, scooping up a handful of black stones and
watching them pour back into his goke. �I can do something else��

�You can? Really?� Hikaru watched him.

Touya nodded, biting his lip. �It�s weird. A bit like radar. Father was
teaching me� before he died.�

�Oh.� Hikaru shook his head. �Well, if your dad could do
it, then it�s not Bionicness.�

�He couldn�t do it. Mother could do a little of it, but I
could do it better.� Touya took a deep breath. �Except, when I do it, I
can�t� see anything. Or hear anything. Or feel anything, for that
matter. So� I�m really defenseless.� He glanced up at Hikaru through his
black bangs. �Which is why I don�t really do it. Especially not now, with
people shooting at us.�

�I can watch over you!� Hikaru sat across from Touya,
grinning. �Sai can watch the door, and I can sit here and stare at you to make
sure no one disturbs you! And then you can show me your Bionicness!�

Touya pushed some of his hair behind his ear, studying
Hikaru, and then he nodded slowly. �Okay� I guess.� He pulled his chair
closer to the goban. �Ichikawa-san went out to get us dinner, right?� Hikaru
nodded. �Okay, I�ll find her, then.� He took a deep breath, closing his eyes,
and let it out through his mouth. His left hand was resting on the table, his
thumb and index finger pressed against the lower corner of the goban. His
right hand was in the goke. �Ichikawa-san,� he breathed. �Five miles.
Moving, four times.� He took another deep breath, and after he let it out, his
eyes snapped open, his entire body rigid.

Hikaru gasped � Touya�s eyes were completely black. Completely.
Even the whites of his eyes had gone black. Touya�s right hand suddenly
flashed out, slapping a black stone onto the goban before returning to the
goke. Exactly sixty seconds later, his hand flashed out again, picking up the
stone from the goban and moving it to a different spot. He did this twice
more, each time his hand striking as swiftly as a serpent. After his hand
returned to the goke following the fourth position of the stone, Touya went
limp. His eyes closed and he slumped in his chair, his fingers slipping out of
the goke. A moment later, he shook his head and straightened up. When he
opened his eyes, they were his normal blue-green.

�Wow.� Hikaru had no other words.

That was... Even Sai was speechless.

Touya twisted his hands together for a moment, slightly
blushing under Hikaru�s awe-struck expression. He pointed at the solitary
stone on the goban. �So� that represents Ichikawa-san. The tengen is where I
am, and it goes out five miles.� He swept his finger around the edge of the
board to show Hikaru the five-mile limit. �I did it moving, which means every
sixty seconds � or sooner if I specify � I do another radar sweep thingy and
update her position. I can do it stationary, and I can do lots of people �
groups of people. I can look, for example, for all the go players in a
five-mile radius, or all the people over fifty years old.� He dropped his hand
back into his lap and glanced up at Hikaru. �So� that�s my Bionicness, I
guess.�

Hikaru shook his head. �And you never thought you were anything but completely
human?!�

Touya�s blush deepened slightly and he looked at his hands.
�No� Mother could do it too, a little, and I could do it� I just thought it was
normal.�

�Touya, you�re positively crazy.� But Hikaru was grinning as he said the words,
leaning forward to look at the goban. �So, can you do bigger radiuses too?�

Touya nodded. �Yeah, I just have to specify. I can�t do smaller radii than
half a mile though� I can�t do detail stuff.�

�What about buildings, can you find buildings, or just people��

Ichikawa found the two boys hunched over a goban when she returned, seemingly
discussing a game, despite there only being one stone placed. She just
shrugged, not understanding the mind of teenagers anymore.

<><><><><>

�It�s better than the rooftop.� Tsutsui stood in the middle
of a tiny apartment, looking around. The ceiling was water-stained, the walls
smelled musty, and Tsutsui really didn�t want to look too closely in any of the
dark corners. But the ceiling covered the entire apartment and offered much
more shelter than the open sky, and the walls kept the rain and wind outside,
where it belonged.

Mitani glanced around and crossed over to the small window.
He curled up on the wide sill and stared out at the dirty building across the
street � such a wonderful view. �We�ll be able to see if the police
come.�

Tsutsui nodded, moving to one end of the big room where a
kitchenette was � a sink, stove, small refrigerator, and a few cupboards and
counters. A brief inspection revealed nothing moldy or rotten left by the
apartment�s former occupants.

�But it�s so crappy.� Mitani drew his knees up to his
chest. �And it smells funny.�

�It�s all we can afford,� Tsutsui replied. �We�ll get used
to the smell, and it really is better than nothing.�

Living on the rooftops of Tokyo had offered the two boys a
mobility that came in handy when trying to escape from the police, but the
exposure to the elements and simple fact that Tsutsui was a horrible climber,
even with Mitani�s help, led them to seek shelter in a place with stairs. And
a toilet. Tsutsui had put his job-hunting on hold to track down an affordable
apartment. Although they actually could manage to get into a better-kept
place, the landowner of the Lower Dells complex didn�t ask questions. He
didn�t even raise an eyebrow when two very young teenagers approached him for
an apartment. He merely gave them some papers to sign, and after money was
exchanged, two keys.

The keys opened the door to a shabby, one-room, one-bath apartment.
Tsutsui turned on the light in the bathroom and sighed in relief � the bathroom
was cleaner than the kitchen. �We�ll need to get some cleaning supplies,� he
said, returning to the main room. �Food, bedding, clothes��

�Curtains or blinds, to block the view in. Soap. A dead-bolt.� Mitani looked
over at the door with its cheap lock. �Maybe a couple dead-bolts.�

Tsutsui took a deep breath and forced a smile on his face.
�We�ll manage.� He had never imagined living in a place as cheap as this, or
paying for it with money from Mitani�s prostitution, but they�d make do. And
once they got Kaga out of the prison he was in, and he got a proper job and
could get Mitani out of that man�s bed, then maybe this place could become
their home. In the meantime, he couldn�t let Mitani see how helpless he was
feeling, how pathetic to not be able to provide for the younger boy and keep
him safe. He needed to be strong for Mitani � God knew Mitani had the worse
lot at this time.

Mitani looked over at Tsutsui, offering him another forced
smile in return. �Yeah. We�ll get by.� With a dead bolt on the door and the
window covered by curtains, Mitani would be able to have a place to hide from
the world, from Zama. They had a shower now, so he could try to scrub away the
feeling of Zama�s hands. And once Kaga came here, his presence would just fill
this apartment and be a source of strength for Mitani to draw from. But until
then, he�d keep smiling, keep being strong, so Tsutsui wouldn�t see for sure
just how much Zama was affecting him, so Tsutsui wouldn�t feel so bad about
what he was doing. Maybe� maybe if he smiled enough, if he forced enough cheer
into his face and voice, he�d feel a little in his heart.

<><><><><>

Identified Bionics:

Ashiwara Hiroyuki HMA??

Fujiwara no Sai MCLR

Hong Su-Yeong HMQ??

Ichikawa Harumi FARS

Isumi Shinchirou HMM??

Kaga Tetsuo HMCPS

Ko Yong-Ha HML??

Kurata Atsushi HMP??

Le Ping C13HMCLR

Mitani Yuuki HMF??

Saeki Kouji HMMP?

Shindou Hikaru MACCPPR

Shindou Matsuo MACP

Shindou Mitsuko FCPR

Touya Akiko FCMP

Touya Akira HMCMP

Tsutsui Kimihiro HMAC?

Waya Yoshitaka HMCLR

Waya Aya FCLR

Yang Hai MCFL

As a note, someone said that most of the Bionics were
morphable. That�s actually not true � only Isumi, Saeki, and Akira so far have
been identified as morphable. Most of the Ms in the above list are referring
to the gender � M is male Bionic, HM is male half-Bionic, C#HM is clone of a
male half-Bionic. Sorry if there was any confusion on that behalf.

Horizont � Ogata shows up again. Really, he needs to get
away from Dorothy and spend more time with the Bionics, like Kuwabara. But for
now, he�s just doing his job.

Stranj100 � Infiltrating the labs actually wasn�t as easy as
Mitani made it out to be. At this point, the details will be revealed in a
later chapter. Mitani�s just one of the luckier Bionics � his skills work well
together and are useful when it comes to evading capture and infiltrating
compounds. Waya�s language skill, for example, wouldn�t be nearly as useful.

As for the Bionic kids uniting� it would be so much simpler if they did that,
wouldn�t it? You�re right, they are superior to humans, and the kids
are superior to general Bionics. But they�re still just kids, scared children
on their own in a hostile world. Planning to overthrow a government facility
isn�t at the tops of their to-do lists right now. And the Bionics that
survived the rebellion are being kept pretty down-trodden and submissive

Besides, if they united and overthrew the scientists now, I wouldn�t have much
of a story to tell, would I?

~Crawler
- 6
- 7
- 8
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