Chapter 18

--Hope--

Today felt like any other day. Hope was lying in her room awaiting the doctors to take her from her cell for an hour of testing. She had eaten her lunch and lay thinking of the voice she had heard in her head just two days ago. She hadn't lost hope in herself and more importantly, she hadn't lost hope in Leon. Hearing his voice in her mind, if only for a fleeting moment, gave her renewed vigor and a will to survive.

The magnetic locks on Hope's cell door clicked, then a series of deadbolts were thrown. As the door slowly opened, Hope realized the doctor was one she had never seen before. The doctor was carrying what looked like an electric dog collar; the warning band said 4,000 volts. Two guards came in with the doctor and pointed their tranquilizer guns at her as the doctor placed the collar around her neck.

The doctor appeared to be about 45 years old, and had the looked of a military man. She didn't know what they had planned, but already things seemed to be getting worse. She was lead from her cell into another more open room. This room was a 10 foot by 10 foot room, with thick glass windows all around; she surmised it was probably bulletproof. Hope was striped of all of her clothing and left in the locked room by her self.

Scared and alone, Hope attempted to reach out to Leon with her mind. The second she started to feel the familiar sensation of Leon's mind, the collar sparked, almost rendering her unconscious. After she gathered her senses and shook off the feeling, she tried again. This time she received a stronger shock that rendered her unconscious for about a minuet.

Once hope was awake and aware again, she started to think about what was going on. Every time she tried to use her mental powers, she received a major shock. She thought, 'So they want to try and make me Pavlov's dog. I refuse to give in.' This time as her mind reached out to Leon she received the expected shock, except that instead of the results her handlers were expecting Hope felt nothing as the collar put its maximum charge through her. It seemed as if her body absorbed the electricity and a few seconds later, she felt it release. Every electronic piece of equipment within 30 feet of her went dead, including the collar. The doctor furiously took notes, this was the first time any human, to his knowledge, was able to give off an EMP burst.

--Leon--

Three times Leon felt Hope cry out for him, each time he woke a little more. The third time Leon's eyes came wide open, as he jumped out of bed ripping the monitors and the other various intravenous lines from his body as he franticly looked for his clothing. The nurse came running in fearing the worse but then seeing he was awake and not dead as she feared, she scolded him, "You shouldn't be out of bed ... Your muscles shouldn't be able to hold your weight after 3 years in a coma!"

Leon just looked at her and stated, "I must save Hope!"