Meanwhile the irangels were recovering from earlier, changing shirts and getting ready for bed. Justin noticed Cole sat contemplating on his bed, elbows out and hands on his thighs. "Something on your mind?" he asked, sitting beside him.

"She. Took. Everything. From. Me," Cole said roughly, heavily enunciating each word with restrained anger behind them. "I had a job, a girlfriend, I even went to school to work on graduating with honors. Then she suddenly comes into my life in her fancy Bugatti, presses a stinky napkin to my face to make me feel like passing out, then shoves me in her car and drives off like we're going to Disneyland! A stranger I never met before just dunked a whole thing of permanent glitter on me and locked me up in a room with three other sparkly guys. Is that not messed up or what?"

"It is," Justin said noncommittedly, keeping his voice neutral. "I don't know why she's keeping us prisoners here. It's very wrong what she's doing."

"I didn't ask for any of this," Cole continued to vent. "I had everything going for me, and she just snatched me up for no reason."

"She has a reason," Justin told him. "A very bad one."

Just then Keith came over, asking, "You guys by any chance got any bud? Muscle relaxers, maybe?"

Cole punched him. "You better not be kidding me," he told him sternly.

"Got any balls is what he should've said," Camdren called from where he was laying in bed.

The cold, dangerous look in Cole's eyes were all that Keith needed to shut up and stay shut. He retreated to his own bed, staying quiet the rest of the time.

Justin sighed with relief. Glad Cole's keeping some sort of order here, even if he is very bad-tempered, he thought. He decided to tell Cole some positive news.

"I figured out a way to get us out of here," he said, getting everyone's attention. He pointed at the frosted wall. "I figured if all of us used our strength, we could knock it down. It's not as strong as that iron door."

He could see the three guys thinking about it, evaluating what other few options they had. At last, Camdren said, "Well, it's the best any of us has thought so far."

"I say we wing it," Cole said with a small smirk, the closest thing to the first positive emotion he expressed besides anger and frustration. Justin took it as a good sign and glanced at Keith, who said, "I have a better idea. How bout the element of surprise?"

"Meaning?" Cole asked, turning to him now.

Keith pointed at the dent in the wall caused by Camdren getting smashed into it. It was near the door adjacent to the frosted wall. Suddenly, as if all were in some sort of silent agreement, the men threw themselves against it, creating more and more dents until the wall started crumbling down. They tumbled into the open, right in the large walkway adjoining the other rooms of the building. The men got up and straightened themselves, brushing pieces of wall off them. Tori was nowhere to be seen.

Justin and Cole started moving forward, Camdren and Keith behind them. They toured the building, going in all kinds of rooms and doorways.

They were startled to see four people in the cylinders in the transformation room, still unconscious as the elements seeped into their naked bodies. Three of them were men; one of them was a woman. The four just stared at the new four for a long moment.

"Oh my god," Camdren whispered while Cole's shocked eyes took on a narrowed look.

"She's turning more into Iredescents," Justin said in a quiet voice. He had already explained to them about what they had all become.

"Is she planning to raise an army or something?" Keith asked. He took a step towards one of the cylinders to take a closer look.

"Don't touch anything," Cole suddenly said, stepping away from the room. He seemed shocked and disgusted at the same time. "Let's go."

They followed him out the door and into the large hallway again. While Camdren and Keith paused to get something out of the kitchen, Cole went in Tori's office and stopped when he saw the framed picture of Nate on her desk.

"That her boyfriend?" Cole asked Justin, who had come up beside him.

"He was her boyfriend until she turned him into an irangel. Then he broke up with her and left," Justin explained. "His name is Nathan Shaw."

"He was on the news a while back for robbing a gas station's cash register," said Cole, remembering. "Looks like she only nabs those with a criminal background. Even fell in love with one."

Justin looked at another framed picture of Nate, this time a smaller one on the same shelf as the printer. "She still loves him."

"How do you know?" Cole turned to Justin, curious.

"She doesn't admit it, but it's written all over her face." Justin sighed. "You think maybe there's a way to reach him so he could possibly help us?"

"No, we help ourselves. We don't need any outside help," said Cole. But he seemed to be thinking over what Justin told him.

Justin continued looking around, noting the expensive furniture. "I think she bought all this from IKEA."

"Maybe," Cole said distractedly, picking up a binder and flipping through its contents. Bored, he put it back and turned to join the others in the kitchen.

They were still eating when out of nowhere Tori walked in, her presence silencing the small quiet chatter. Justin noticed she had her arms full of bags and realized she had run out to do some grocery shopping.

Tori gave no sign that she was surprised or angry. Instead, she just said, "Hey, guys" and placed the bags on the countertop. As she was unloading groceries, Cole got up and placed a hand on her shoulder, attempting to turn her around so he could see her face. As Tori did so, a bolt of electricity shot out at Cole, zapping him to unconsciousness. Tori reflexed her arm, revealing a hidden electroshock device in her hand.

"Touch me and you will meet the same fate." She smirked and glanced down at the little device in her hand, obviously a modification of the original model. "Tasers work as well on irangels as it does on humans."

A horrible feeling swept through Justin like a thundercloud over him. He sensed that something bad was going to happen. The way she acted so calm when she saw us was unsettling to me. I think maybe she wanted to see if we could break out. It was as if –

As if she were expecting it. Were we just an experiment to her?

His thoughts were interrupted when Camdren asked rebelliously, with a hint of sarcasm, "Oh yeah? Tell me, do knives work on irangels as well?" He threw a kitchen knife at Tori, who ducked out of the way to avoid getting stabbed. She pointed the electroshock device at Camdren, shocking him from a distance. He yelped and fell to the ground unconscious.

Keith tried to run, bolting out of his chair and hurrying towards the door, but he was shocked next and knocked out as well. Tori turned to Justin and shocked him too before he had a moment to react or say anything. As he fell, Tori glanced at each of the four, secretly impressed not by the fact that they had broken out, but how they had broken out.

Iredescents really do have nearly impenetrable bodies and can withstand so much, she thought, amazed once again. Tori picked up each of them, starting with Justin, and brought them individually to their shared bedroom. After placing each on their own separate bed, she went over to the lab room to place her handgun on a top shelf before going over to the transformation room to check up on the new four.

The transformation process already completed on time like expected. Tori proceeded to go ahead and place them on the beds beside the original four. After Tori left, it took a while before the original four finally started waking up. Cole woke up with a nasty headache, groaning and holding a hand to his head as he rose. Sparks flew out of his body, startling him. He drew back, wide-eyed. They'd flown out like welding sparks.

Next to him, Keith looked like he had nausea and wanted to throw up. Camdren was wide awake and alert, looking around in surprise, his eyes widening when he saw the new four laying on the beds to his side. Justin recovered quickly and followed Camdren's eyes, reeling in surprise.

"Dude, the new four," Camdren said quietly, his eyes still wide and stunned as Justin got up from the bed. Cole and Keith started getting up too, quietly gathering around to see the new four, who were all dressed in slim form-fitting black shirts and jeans.

There were three guys and a woman. The very first female irangel they had seen besides Tori. She wasn't very good-looking, certainly not gorgeous like Tori, but the new ethereal part of her shone through, making her somewhat better looking than she would have had she remained human. While Tori's hair was a beautiful blonde, this woman's hair was a mix of toffee blonde and brown. Her eyes were closed. Her skin shimmer was a pretty blue, giving a new look to her light skin. She had beautiful shimmery light pink wings that looked lacey.

The guy beside her was built, had dark brown hair, a darker olive skin tone, and looked like he liked to work out. His skin shimmer was an iridescent color-shifting indigo green. His wings were glaring red with shocks of silver and bright deep green underfeathers.

The guy beside that guy had chestnut brown hair, a slimmer body, and a very handsome appearance. His skin shimmer was a warm red with hints of gold and orange, a very pretty iridescent color that perfectly complemented his Caucasian skin. There were glasses on his bedside table, indicating he wore them when he was human. He had wings in a beautiful rust orange red color, reminding Justin of fall and autumn leaves. To Cole he looked like a Bath & Body Works fall candle in Iredescent form.

The final guy, the one who was on the bed right next to Camdren's bed, had short coal black hair and very pale white skin with a gold shimmer to it. He looked like his body had a certain curve to it, as if he were a swimmer or athletic person. It wasn't as muscled and firm toned as the built guy's, but it certainly meant he wasn't involved in anything either. There were no wings on him, making Justin think that perhaps they had dematerialized or remained hidden, like a cocoon. Maybe he hadn't yet turned into a butterfly, he thought, noting the similarity in the term he used.

Cole glanced at the door, but Keith told him, "It's locked, of course. Tori would never leave it open for us."

"No, the hole in the wall is already fixed," he said, pointing at the part of the wall where they had all smashed through to get free. There was no sign of any damage. Not only had it been resealed, but a special super-thick extra wall surrounded the entire room now. It was even a slightly different color than the original wall.

Justin understood instantly. "She had that extra wall already prepared and was waiting for us to break through just to test our strength. She had the new wall put up to prevent us from escaping again. She had already built that new wall; it was just hidden and released from underground mechanisms."

Cole stared at him for a long moment, his mind racing. Then his attention turned back to the new four as they started waking up.

Justin stretched his arm out, stepping back while saying, "Guys, get back. Give them some space. They're gonna need time to adjust to their new bodies."

The original four stepped back, allowing the new four to wake up. They stared either dazed or confused at themselves before they directed their attention at the original four, wondering where they were and what happened to them.

The built guy immediately got out of the bed, taking on a menacing demeanor. He looked at the four standing close to the cylinder wall and said, almost barking, "What are you sparkly punks doing standing there, looking stupid? Is this some kind of joke?"

Cole's eyes narrowed. "Unfortunately it isn't a joke, and you're a sparkly punk yourself. Remember the woman who brought you here? Well, she's locked us all here, and she's probably out grabbing more people to turn into these sparkly punks called irangels. Irangels are a term she came up with to humans who have turned into alien beings called Iredescents."

He waited for that to sink in for a minute, the other guy's eyes turning from aggression to bewilderment, the other new ones looking surprised, then continued, "Like us, you guys are no longer human. We are Iredescents called irangels: Tori's term for humans who turned into Iredescents. In other words, we're aliens now. Aliens called Iredescents."

The woman spoke up, saying, "So you're saying this is permanent?"

"Yes," Cole answered, his voice firm and to the point. "Now that you guys are here, I would like to establish a few things before we give you some time to get used to your new situation. First things first, what are your names, and how did Tori nab you?"

"I am Millian Boyden," the bedside table glasses guy said first, his voice nice and pleasant. His eyes were violet. "I was put in prison and stayed there for a month before Tori convinced the police to let me go with her. I had burglary and theft charges pressed against me for stealing jewelry from rich old people so I could pay off my college debt. I was in school for business, but I collected a lot of debt. I have no way of paying it off, so I thought stealing jewelry from people's houses and selling them would help me pay off at least some of the debt."

Yup, he definitely isn't a criminal, Justin thought, feeling somewhat glad. Millian looked twenty-four, around Cole's age. The built guy was nearing his mid-thirties. The woman might be older than him, though it was hard telling. The pale guy was the oldest of them all.

Cole regarded Millian with some empathy. "I am Cole Matthews. I was in school before Tori ruined my life." He pointed to Justin, saying, "Justin Lauders was in prison for murdering his foster parents and some other people." He indicated Camdren next, saying, "Camdren Mueller and Keith Hearves. Camdren was known for rape and sexual assault, and Keith was doing drugs."

The pale guy spoke up next, saying with a noticeable accent, "I am Velo Cristimo. From Croatia. I was in prison for arson. When I got out, I went on a killing spree in a mall. I was a well organized and dangerous shooter. The police didn't catch me, but Tori did. I swear, it looked like she had sought me out and was waiting for me to hide before she approached me and knocked me out with a tranquilizer."

"That's new," Keith muttered. "She just held a smelly napkin to our faces and we passed out from chloride or whatever the chemical gas is called."

"She bailed me out of prison," Justin said. "And drove me in her Bugatti."

The woman said, "She threw a rock at me and made me drop to my knees before pressing a napkin to my face. I didn't wake up until now and realized I am in a room full of men."

"What is your name, anyway?" Camdren spoke while eyeing her curiously. Justin quietly kicked his foot in disapproval. Camdren pretended to ignore him.

The woman pushed her hair back and said, "Elisa Lovisatt. I am a thief who stole designer handbags and sold them for profit. I am from Germany."

"I am Eamon Drewlock," the built guy said, less hostile now that he was warming up to everyone. He smirked, saying, "I have a long history of crime, mostly motor vehicle theft and rape. I was involved in a few gang fights. I was on the run after a motor vehicle theft involving a Corvette. Then I saw a red Maserati pull up to me and a hot woman driving it. She flirted with me, calling me handsome and saying all kinds of nasty things to me. I flirted back, got in, and kissed her, thinking we were gonna have sex, but then I passed out while we were making out in the car, and I woke up to this."

Something burned inside Justin just then. He felt jealous for some reason, dismayed that Tori would kiss another guy. Though they hadn't kissed nor done anything like that, Justin felt something for Tori and didn't like this guy intruding in.

Justin knew Tori had rented that Maserati for the very purpose of trapping Eamon, knowing he was a criminal involved in car theft. A fiery anger burned in him at the thought of Tori flirting with another guy and the guy flirting back. He knew Tori was someone who either carefully planned out each person she nabbed or nabbed them at random, and she had chosen to approach this guy in a flirty manner. That angered him to no end.

Camdren saw Justin's hands start to bunch up into fists and placed a hand over his, giving him a weird look. Justin unclenched his fist, taking slow deep breaths to control himself, though his narrowed eyes remained fixed on Eamon. Cole noticed the exchange but chose to focus his attention on the new four, saying directly to Millian in a conversational tone, "What school did you go to?"

As they started talking, Eamon noticed Justin staring hard at him. "What's on your mind?" he asked, a bit thrown off.

"A lot of things, actually," Justin answered, not taking his eyes off him.

Camdren pulled Justin to the side, away from Eamon. "Hey, guys. Let's get something to eat, shall we? Tori left us a nice basket of cheese, fruit, even a wine bottle. How nice is that? Dude, she even got fancy wine glasses for us," Comdren remarked, going over to where Tori had placed all the food on a small glass rectangular table next to the bathroom.

Justin chose to let Eamon go for the moment. He vowed to severely harm him should he kiss Tori again. Keith, Elisa, and Velo joined Camdren at the table while Eamon went over to Cole and Millian, joining in with their conversation that had diverted to the subject of college exams.

Justin glanced at the door, hoping Tori would let them out soon. He realized he hadn't flown yet, not even once. What's the point of having wings if we can't fly? he thought, feeling a twinge of frustration at Tori for keeping them so locked up. Is she trying to hide us from the world? She can't keep us trapped here forever. Maybe I can convince her to –

"Come over here, Justin," Keith called out to him, interrupting his thoughts. "This cheese is so good. There's bread here, too."

As Justin sighed quietly and began going over to them, he heard Elisa say happily, "I haven't had good red wine in, like, forever. This must be from the Czech Republic; it says so on the bottle. So rich and smooth. And absolutely delicious."

Cole, Millian, and Eamon started heading over to them to join in on the food and wine. Justin picked up a slice of yellow cheese with tiny holes in it. Cole was beaming, looking happier than Justin had ever seen him. It's rare I've seen him smile, Justin thought, starting to smile too, glad to see Cole happy. It made him feel good to see them all loosen up and feel normal again, like they weren't trapped in a room they were all forced to share.

Above the room, a tiny surveillance camera showed Tori everything that was going on in the room. She sat back, a glass of red wine in her hand as well, as she watched the irangels talking, chatting, laughing, and enjoying themselves for the first time since their captivity. She too was glad, and while she was happy that they were all getting along, she felt a small pang of loneliness, wishing Nate was here.

Tori stood up after a few minutes, setting her wineglass on the table as she went to her office room and sat down at the cushiony leather chair. She looked at the picture of her and Nate in the Swiss mountains. It was her favorite picture. All her favorite memories contained in that one photograph that beautifully captured her lover's glittering brown eyes, his close-cropped hair, the soft melty snowflakes on his shoulders, his flannel shirt and dark tan khaki brown jacket, the perfect curve of his lips....

He was so happy as a human. He hated being an irangel. But he is so perfect now. Why can't he see that? He was simply stunning as a human, and irresistible as an irangel. Tori's mind wandered to her fantasies of sleeping with him, how their wings would wrap around each other as they made love, their shimmery skin in contact with each other, the smoothness of her legs against his, his model-like body on top of hers as they kissed, her fantasies that never became real....

Tori sighed, bowing her head as she quietly wept.

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Music:

"Longers (Pessimist Remix)"
by Antidote

"Prey For Me" and "Love & Meth"
by Korn

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