Of all the things I had seen in my lifetime, of all the atrocities I had myself committed, it never ceased to amaze me when something came along to make all those memories, those experiences, pale into dust. I nearly dropped my gun and lost my lunch as the rich sticky scent of blood clogged my nostrils. Blood... Oh, God, there was so much of it. Understand this: I am not a squeamish person. I have spilt blood quite freely on occasion--some of it my own, most of it other people's. This was different. This was no spilt battlefield. This had been someone's idea of sadistic pleasure. It sickened me to think that someone had actually gotten off on this. Moreover, it made me want to blow this whole damn base to hell but not before I'd found the perpetrator. No, death by explosion would be too good and clean for that person.

I had accomplished my mission. I had found Duo Maxwell. Or what was left of him.

Some bastard had tied him spread eagle with ropes running between the walls. I shuddered, thinking how much it looked like a crucifixion--like the kind Duo had said the Christian God had suffered. Blood was dripping down those taunt ropes, making the only sound that could be discerned in the room. Pit, pit, pit came each drop. He'd been bleeding for some time, I thought as dispassionately as I could manage, judging from the amount of blood pooling under and around his body. How could anyone bleed that much and still have anything left to drip? I thought, throat convulsively tightening.

He was shirtless, that alabaster skin of his now chalky in death. He looked like he had been flogged. Oozing streaks broke his smooth flesh, crisscrossing the length of his chest and back. My lips curled in disgust as I caught a flash of white peeking out of those raw wounds. Bastards, I thought with more emotion than I'd allowed myself to feel in a long time. They'd beaten him until they'd struck bone. Shit. That long mane of hair that he was so proud of hung loosely, gleaming dully in the dim light, hiding his face. My hands were actually trembling as I brushed some of that hair back. I gasped, seeing for the first time, the blood coating his chest, originating from a smiling line across the cords of his throat. His eyes were glassy with a blankness that only the dead can possess. I studied him, noting that one of his shoulders was out of joint--perhaps it had been broken when they'd tied him up and started whaling on him. Or maybe it had already been broken and they'd enjoyed his screams of agony when they'd trussed him up like some damn sacrificial lamb. Damn. Son of a bitch, I swore, wanting nothing more than to scream profanities into the night. But I didn't I have time for that. My distraction was only going to last for so long.

Removing my knife from my hip pack, I set about the task of cutting him loose. It wasn't easy, especially when I cut through half of the rigging and he started to fall forward, the weight of his body causing gravity to take effect. I caught him, trying as gently as possible to lay him down. I don't know why really--I mean, it wasn't like he could feel it anyway. I could drop him and he wouldn't feel a damn thing. Shit, maybe I am getting soft. I wasn't exactly pleased to discover this--not now, not when I needed to be cold and ruthless to get us both out of here.

I was sweating by the time I'd managed to hack through the ropes binding him and I wiped at the beads of perspiration on my face. I breathed heavily, wishing there were windows I could throw open, anything to dispel the cloying scent of death in the room. Rising, I went around the room packing a few explosives here and there to cover out escape and mostly because I wanted to erase this place from existence. Finally there was nothing left to do but pick Duo up and leave.

People would like for you to believe that dead bodies are light--as if they lose some of their weight when their soul goes fluttering off. Hnn. So far as I can tell that's just writer's license. Duo was damned heavy despite all the blood loss. His long limbs made it difficult to keep an adequate hold on him. Finally I just gave up and hoisted him on my back as if he were a small child to be given a piggyback ride. I could feel his blood soaking through my clothes and sighed inwardly. Ruined clothing was the least of my worries. I sincerely hoped I had managed to throw the military installation into enough confusion by my earlier tricks because if we got stopped by someone I was going to have a hard time aiming my gun and carrying Duo at the same time.

Good thing I packed enough explosives in this base to blow it to hell, I thought humorlessly as I crept out of the room and down the hall.

****end teaser.