Toby pulled into his aunt and uncle's driveway, relishing in the crisp Virginia air. Maddie and James had invited him over for dinner and if he were honest, he was dreading it.

Ever since he'd left Nolan and Grace the day before, his conscience was at war. He knew they would try to stop Colossus on their own. If Howard knew what they were up to...

Toby shook his head and clamored out of his rusted Ford. He walked up to the Winlow's old-fashioned porch, a tinge of nostalgia filling his memories. He'd spent a lot of time here in his younger days. Since Maddie and James never had any children, he usually filled in as their surrogate son...whether he liked it or not.

He rang the doorbell and waited.

When Maddie answered the door, tears were already filling her eyes as she gave Toby an unearthly tight squeeze

"I'm so glad you're okay!" She said and held him at arm's length. Her gaze suddenly turned fierce. "You are okay, aren't you?"

"I'm fine, Maddie."

"Well come on in, I've got dinner cooking. They serve some weird stuff in Greece; it's about time you got a good meal."

She stepped aside and Toby entered.

James came from downstairs, his head as bald as ever and sporting a bushy beard. "There he is! The man who survived the Kavala EMP."

"Ha. Yeah..." Toby had been trying not to think about it.

They gathered at a circular table that was entirely too small for all the food Maddie had prepared. A ham sat in the center surrounded by corn, salad, soup, and cake.

"So what are you two doing off of work?" Toby asked, realizing it was a Wednesday. "Does the CIA not operate in the middle of the week?" He teased.

Maddie and James exchanged glances.

James sat up and folded his beefy hands together. "We...resigned."

Toby froze. "What? Working for the CIA was your dream."

"Was is the correct term." James replied, his brow settling low on his forehead. "They made us issue the missile strike when everyone knew you were in there. These are dire times...and they were making us do things to compensate for it."

"We couldn't do it anymore." Maddie said, her voice spiking a notch. "We could've killed you, Toby. And Nolan. Howard was forcing us to go against every moral we have." She gave a shrug. "It just wasn't worth it."

"Hmm." Toby nodded. His time in Kavala seemed so distant. His life in the States was like a fog now; he was still getting used to it. "Have you heard from Katie?"

Maddie smiled. "Oh yeah, she called here almost every day since she heard about the attacks. Didn't want her fiancée to be trapped in a city with crazy bombers. We didn't tell her about your mission or anything, of course."

"Good."

"So what did Nolan decide to do?" James asked.

Toby looked up, but then averted his gaze. "He decided to leave. Probably back in the US by now."

James rubbed his beard thoughtfully. "Huh. Wouldn't have thought that. The reason he joined in the first place was to clear his name. Hasn't exactly done that yet, has he?"

Toby shook his head, an uneasiness growing inside. Should he tell them? After a few moments passed, he straightened in his seat. "Nolan didn't agree with the CIA's tactic of trying to manually take out the EMPs...and then using biochemical devices if that doesn't work."

Maddie nodded. "I can understand that."

"But..." Toby continued with a hint of trepidation in his voice, "he's not just leaving the operation. He's going to try to stop Colossus on his own."

Maddie gasped. "By himself? How? What's he thinking?"

"He can't do that. That would be going against the CIA. And Howard approved?" James deadpanned.

Toby hesitated. "Well..."

Maddie buried her face in her hands. "Oh no..."

"You're not serious." James sighed.

"He has help." Toby offered weakly. He had to give Nolan a little credit. "The hostage we rescued, Grace."

"Like that makes it any better." Maddie groaned. "They're both gonna die out there. Either by Colossus or Howard, I don't know."

"You can't tell anyone." Toby added quickly. "If the government finds out, they'll have both threats on their trail."

Maddie reached over and placed her hand over Toby's. "And I thought he'd be the one to keep you straight." She gave an exasperated sigh and slumped back into her chair, worry creasing her features. Toby had seen that look a million times. "What's going to happen to him out there?"

"It depends on what he does. " Toby said softly. "He might not be so stupid to try and bring down Colossus single handedly. He might just take a look to see if there's a better option."

She shook her head slowly. "I just hope he doesn't get himself killed. Or Grace, for that matter."

Toby turned to James. "You haven't said much."

James folded his arms and leaned back. "He can't do it on his own."

"Right."

"He needs help. Intel. Someone who works close enough to Howard to get the information he needs." James looked at Toby. "Maddie and I can still get into any file Nolan needs...hack nearly any system."

Toby couldn't believe his ears. "You're talking about treason here, James."

"I saw the footage of Kavala. If more EMPs go off...we're done for. If America drops acid on innocent cities, there will be even more chaos. I still think Nolan's crazy...but he might be on to something."

"You'll get arrested for who knows how long!" Toby said. "You can't do that."

Maddie steepled her fingers as if she were actually thinking about it too.

James turned a steely hazel gaze on him, the one that once made Toby shrink back. "Nolan has a point. He's wanting to avoid both sides altogether. If we could accomplish that..."

"We'd reach the ultimate goal." Maddie finished. She licked her lips and then it was her turn to drill holes into Toby. "But we'd need you."

Toby slumped back into his chair, shoving a hand through his short blonde hair. "So many things could go wrong, not to mention that this is super  illegal..."

"Toby," Maddie said, "This is beyond us...beyond the government. In this situation, no one is our authority. If no one steps up to intercede for the millions that will die either from the hand of the government or Colossus, no one wins. All I'm saying is that we have to try."

Toby bit the inside of his cheek. He couldn't imagine going against his superiors. He never had. Ever since he was little he'd followed his dad's ordered. He needed to follow the rules to be accepted.

"What are you thinking about doing?" He asked carefully.

"You have a good footing in the CIA." James said, "You can gather intel for us. We'll need the whereabouts of Nolan first, which will be difficult considering Howard probably thinks he's drinking lemonade in Florida right now. But maybe if we find out where Egor is, Nolan will be close by."

Toby rubbed his prickly chin. "I go back to headquarters tomorrow. I'll try to find something."

A grin made its way across James' face. "So you're in?"

"Well, I thought it was about time I called some of the shots."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Egor peered down at Nolan and Grace with a grin. "Good morning, comrades. I hope you've enjoyed your stay here so far, yes?"

Nolan glared up at him. "The bed was a little hard, but other than that it was fantastic."

Egor made eye contact with both the female and male soldiers standing nearby and they immediately unlocked Nolan and Grace's chains and jerked them to their feet. They proceeded to place modern handcuffs around their stationed in front of their waist.

Pain rattled Nolan's ribs, but he refused to show it. The man holding him in place paid no worry to the gash in his forearm, either.

They were led down a long hallway that was made of faded brick and passed a yellow sign that was horribly faded and almost unintelligible.

Grace paused for half a moment to look at it. "Arbeit macht frei." She murmured, her brow bent.

As they were prodded forward, Egor called over his shoulder, "So you read German, Miss Evans. I'm impressed."

"What does it mean?" Nolan asked.

"It means "work will set you free"..." She hesitated. "They were posted in...in concentration camps during the war."

"And knowledgeable in history." Egor glanced at Nolan. "She's a keeper."

"But that would mean..." Grace's voice trailed off.

"Indeed it would." Egor finished. "Birkenau concentration camp, to be exact. I needed a place to keep my well-esteemed prisoners, so I chose the finest facility I could."

"You're sick." Grace hissed.

"So I am." Egor said, coming to a stop in front of a chipped red door. Strange scratch marks were etched into the wood and the handle of the door was barely attached.

"Marian," Egor nodded towards the female soldier, who gave a salute and yanked Grace down the hall.

"Hey!" Grace growled.

Nolan watched as she was led into another room diagonal to the one he was standing in front of. A sudden pang of fear drummed inside of him. "What're you going to do to her?"

A cruel smile cast a strange twinkle in Egor's eye. He opened the door and gestured for Nolan to come in.

Nolan glanced across the hallway where Grace had been taken, but was quickly forced by the other soldier to move forward.

He walked into a dank room that had once served as an office. A beige file cabinet sat in the corner and a fold-out table was placed in the center of the room. With a tin light fixture dangling from the ceiling, the room would have been the perfect setting for a 1940's-style interrogation, if it weren't for the flat-screen television hooked up in the corner.

Egor sat down in one of the chairs and gestured for Nolan to sit in the other.

Once Nolan was settled, Egor waved the soldier out of the room.

The soldier looked startled. "Sir—"

"We'll be fine." Egor said. When he was gone, Egor folded his hands primly on the tabletop.

"I assume you want to know why I brought you here?"

Nolan firmed his jaw. "I can only guess. Let's see, there's the possibility of murder, of course, torture, getting information, making me do something against my will...basically, we have an array of possibilities here and I can't wait to see what you have in store."

Egor laughed dryly. "You never cease to amuse me, Mr. Clay."

"Happy to oblige."

"Ever since my family was slaughtered, the sheer corruption of man has become clearly evident." Egor said, his tone smooth and relaxed. "I want to reform the world, of course, but that isn't all. I want every man, woman, and child to see what horror their neighbor is capable of."

Nolan met his smoldering eyes and held it. "You're trying to play God, Egor. You can't control the earth by bringing its people to their knees. Do you think they'll get better of you turn everyone against themselves?" Nolan tried to keep the desperation out of his tone. "Can't you see what you're doing? You're destroying society and creating chaos...for what? Power? Greed?"

"Freedom." Egor replied. "I relish in chaos. I'm liberating people from the idea of a common good." He gave Nolan a measured stare before getting up. He picked up a remote before turning on the TV.

Grace was sitting in a room identical to the one Nolan was placed in. A dignified woman in a business suit sat on the other side of the table with pointed glasses balancing on the bridge of her nose.

Grace's face was a mask. Her soft curls were frizzy and disoriented, but her posture was erect, and her eyes alert.

At least she was okay...for now.

Egor sat back down and crossed his arms as if he were getting ready to watch a football game. For some reason, that made Nolan nervous. Why would he want him to watch this?

"What type of military weapons is the government going to use to combat the EMPs?" The woman asked in a thick British accent, glancing down at a file in front of her.

Grace didn't move or speak.

"Alright," the woman continued, as if Grace had answered her question, "How did you obtain the files from Hungary?"

Again, Grace was unresponsive.

"How did you escape your third hostage situation?"

Why was she switching questions? A growing worry formed inside of Nolan.

Finally, the woman put her own file aside. "Miss Evans, you don't realize the grave mistake you're making right now. My employer needs this information, yet you refuse to give it to him."

"Maybe because I strongly disagree with what he'll do with that information." Grace replied curtly.

The woman, gave a haughty laugh. "And I'm assuming you know what's best for our countries?"

"Actually, I know Dimyan Egor is the worst thing for it."

The woman's thin lips formed a straight line. "You're making a mistake."

"So are you."

The woman got up and opened the door that lead to the hallway. On the other side was a woman, maybe about thirty years old. A guard stood behind her with an AK-47.

Grace eyed her carefully as the young woman was shoved forward into the room and forced to her knees. Her slight frame shook with fear. "Please, please..." She blubbered.

"Who is she?" Grace asked nervously.

"One of our other hostages,"

The woman on the ground was sobbing loudly, begging to be let go.

"Don't hurt her." Grace said.

The woman crossed her arms and drew nearer to Grace. "If she dies, we wouldn't be the ones killing her. It would be you."

"Why do you need to know what kind of weapons the government uses? Why does it matter?"

"And why should we tell you?" The woman snickered. "But you really should've answered the question.

Nolan saw the hostage's eyes widen for half a second before blood exploded from the side of her head.

He instinctively jerked to a standing position, his eyes glued to the screen. The woman convulsed once before growing still, a pool of red forming beneath her skull.

Grace screamed and lunged for the woman. The guard quickly caught her arm, but Grace swung around and elbowed him in the face.

"How could you?" She shouted, as the guard yanked her arms behind her back. "I swear that the next body on that floor will be yours."

The woman frowned.

Why were they doing this? What did they really want? Nolan turned to Egor, ready to pluck that black beard off his face. "Why are you doing this?" He demanded. "You don't really care about what the government does, so what is it?"

Egor stood up lazily. "I enjoy watching people break." He gestured toward the TV. "This is a demonstration." His features turned cold and sharp. "We are just messing with her, Clay."

Nolan clenched his fists. "Messing with her? You're doing this for fun?"

"She exploited me in Hungary. Now that the government is involved, it makes my job harder. Now, I could have killed both of you without a problem. But where's the satisfaction in that?"

Nolan dove across the table and grabbed a fistful of Egor's shirt. He shoved him against the beige wall and pressed the small chains in between his handcuffs against Egor's throat.

"You are a twisted man." Nolan snarled.

Egor gagged but managed a dry laugh. "See what men become..."

Nolan immediately released him and delivered a bone-shattering swing to his jaw. "Men aren't like you."

The door swung open and two soldiers burst in, guns raised. Nolan dropped to the floor and tumbled for the table. He grabbed the bottom two legs and heaved the table across the room with all the strength he had. The table crashed into the soldiers with enough force to knock them down.

Nolan half ran, half crawled towards them and grabbed an AK from one of the soldiers. He shot them before they could recover and turned towards Egor.

He was slumped against the wall, the side of his face already swollen. He flicked his eyes up at the TV, drawing Nolan's gaze with it. Grace was on her knees now, head bent down, while the business-looking woman held a knife against her arm. They were talking too quietly for Nolan to hear, but the woman pressed the knife down and ran it slowly down Grace's forearm.

Nolan aimed his gun at Egor, but stopped when he heard footsteps coming from outside. He tried to pull the trigger, but the gun was jammed. He didn't have time to fix it.

He turned and ran out into the hallway, taking shallow breaths. His ribs throbbed with pain as he open fired on three guys rounding the corner.

Clenching his jaw, he made his way across the hall and barged into the room diagonal to him.

The guard standing over Grace instantly moved out of the line of fire when he heard the noise and leaped to the door, slamming it into Nolan with surprising force.

"Argh!" Nolan grunted, quickly trying to gather his bearings as the world tilted beneath him.

Grace took the opportunity to kick the back of the other woman's knees and bashed the cuffed part of her wrist into her temple.

The guard attacking Nolan advanced and raised the butt of his gun to hit him. Nolan rolled out of the way with a grunt and shoved his own gun into the guard's shin.

He cursed in some language Nolan's didn't know. Nolan didn't waste any time in shooting him in the head.

He stood up abruptly, dizziness clouding his vision. He saw the woman wrestling Grace into a submissive position, but Grace yanked the woman's high-heeled shoe off her foot. She stabbed the stiletto point into the woman's eye.

Nolan grimaced as the woman screamed.

"That's for being a worthless piece of crap." Grace muttered, yanking the shoe out and standing up.

She went over to the fallen guard's body and retrieved a pistol, cocked it, and finished off the woman who was still groveling on the floor.

Finally she turned to Nolan with a trembling sigh. "You're alive..." She said weakly.

Nolan managed a grin, though his vision was beginning to blur. "Don't sound so disappointed." He peered out the doorway, half expecting a fleet of soldiers to be marching down the hall.

It was clear.

He turned back to Grace and did a once-over. "You okay?"

Grace examined her forearm that was drenched in blood. "Yeah. You?"

"Fine."

"You don't look fine." She said, "You're really pale."

"I said I'm fine." He snapped. "Come on, we have to get out of here."

"Hold on, we need to get these cuffs off." Grace searched each drawer and found a small set of keys in the file cabinet.

Once their chains were unlocked, they made their way down the hall silently, guns ready. Nolan quickly filled her in about his meeting with Egor.

"I can't believe he has his base in a concentration camp." Grace muttered. "So messed up."

And disturbing. Nolan mentally added. He wondered how many people had died there, erased from society like a blemish. He also wondered what all the captives back then were thinking. They probably didn't see any hope in the vast darkness...and they'd died with that dismal thought. All because of one man.

Sounds familiar...

"Where do you think they are?" Grace asked as they came to the base of a stairway.

"Who?"

"The hostages." She replied bluntly. "You saw the woman they killed. There's more somewhere."

Nolan shook his aching head. "We can't risk being caught again."

Grace's brow knitted with confusion. "What?"

Nolan stared at her with almost the same amount of perplexity. "There's no telling how many people Egor has stationed here. And I left him alive, so he's probably alerted everyone aboveground."

"Nolan...there are people in here. There's no telling what will happen if we don't rescue them." Grace said, severity in her tone. "I'm not leaving them to be killed."

"You have to think on a larger scale."

"Like what the government is doing?" Grace retorted. "I don't know about you, but I can't walk out of here knowing I've left behind someone who is going to be slaughtered."

"Just listen—"

"No," she interrupted, "not this time."

Nolan ran a frustrated hand through his hair. "There isn't a choice here. Our goal is to take down a system that's about to destroy thousands of people. If we stop to save a few, we put that entire plan in jeopardy."

Grace firmed her lips.

Nolan reached out to take her arm, but she jerked back, her eyes like steel.

"We're the only ones who care about what happens to the little guys." She said. "What we're doing is nearly impossible. If we lose and I'm lying on the ground dying, I want to know that I did the best I could...saved everyone I could. If I die fighting for whatever's on the larger scale, then I was never fighting for the right thing in the first place." She gestured towards the stairway. "This is the right thing."

She straightened her posture and readjusted her grip around the hilt of her pistol. "So that's my plan." She shrugged.

Nolan stared hard at her determined features. Finally, he sighed. "Okay, fine."

"I didn't ask you to come with me."

"I know."

Grace's lips twitched into a smile. She took a step forward, but the hesitated.

Nolan noticed a hint of sadness settle in her gaze as she gave a nervous laugh. "You're not half bad, Clay." She said. "Let's go rescue some hostages."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Helloooooo  everyone! It's me! I'm back! *cheers* I've missed posting so much, but I think I've broken through this dreadful bout of writer's block for the moment!

~What are your thoughts on the chapter?

~What do you think about Toby, Maddie, and James' new plan?

~Do you think it's a good idea to rescue the hostages?

Thank you SO SO SO MUCH for your patience these last couple of weeks! I hoped you enjoyed the chapter ^_^ {Don't forget to vote, comment, and share!}