When Jacob took Morrighan's hand, he almost expected it to be rough, or slimy, or disgusting in some way. It was quite the contrary, however. Her hand was very smooth and soft, but cold. It was almost as if he was holding onto a bundle of firm, cool silk. As he pondered this, Morrighan worked her magic, quite literally. Mattie took her hand and then Morrighan began muttering under her breath. Jacob waited patiently, knowing what was coming. They were going to teleport. The use of magic in an otherwise mundane world was not uncommon to Jacob now, but it was true that he hadn't revealed the reality of it to Nicholas. Not yet. He had figured his brother had been through enough confusion and disorientation.

Then, as he thought these thoughts, they poofed. "Poofing" left behind a faint mist in coordination to the color of the teleporter's aura. In their case, Morrighan was the teleporter, and she left behind a curious blue mist that neither Jacob nor Mattie got to see because second-hand teleportation was like going blind for a brief period. Second-hand teleportation was a very odd experience. Jacob didn't know if it felt the same to teleport by oneself because he did not possess that ability. But, as they poofed, it felt as if his skin was being melted off by [i]cold[/i] instead of heat. He couldn't see a thing, alternating between seeing pitch blackness and blinding whiteness.

After a few long seconds, it was over. Morrighan, Jacob, and Mattie were all standing in front of an alley. Had it been night, it would have been a very dark, very eerie alley. Morrighan continued to hold tight to both Jacob's and Mattie's hands, and brought them forward into the buildings' crevice. She brought them all the way up to the dead-ending wall and placed each of their hands against it, with her hands over theirs. Jacob had also morphed before. Second-hand morphing. It was easy, it was quick, and it didn't give any foreign or odd sensations. One minute, they were standing at the end of the alley. The next minute, they were standing at the entrance of a gray, brick building.

"He's in there," Morrighan chirped, voice all too cheery and amused. Then, she vanished.

Jacob was alone with Mattie. It was odd. It was awkward. The two stood in front of the door, and Jacob had no idea what would come next. He had never been here before. It was a strange place, and he was with a stranger, a former enemy, or perhaps even a current enemy. However, he wouldn't let the negative vibes from the situation falter his confidence or courage.

"Well," he said. "We have to find out if he really is in there."

He turned the doorknob.

[hr]

It took at least ten minutes for Nicholas to wake up again. He was conscious of another pinching sensation in his outer body, as if being stuck with a needle again. Alice had since abandoned the inner conversation they were having, saying nothing after he'd agreed to help. When he finally awoke, he was not any less disoriented than the first time. There were no longer straps restraining him to the table. He moved his hands in front of himself freely, examining them to make sure that they were really there. Was he awake? Was this real? Was it another simulation? He didn't know what to believe. He was so confused. So dazed.

"Welcome back," came Alice's voice. He looked over to see the redhead removing a pair of latex gloves from her hands and disposing them into a trash bin. "I'm glad we came to an agreement. I hope you know...that this is just for the best. Okay? Your brother doesn't want to help us. That's why...that's why I wasn't going with you all. It wasn't my duty."

Nicholas sat up and looked around. The room looked exactly like a doctor's office, complete with a medical counter and all.

"Where are we?"

"The Underworld," Alice replied simply and calmly.

"Ah."

The Underworld was the name given by mutants which referred to the underground community that most of them had taken shelter in. Where the drugs were distributed. Where there was more destruction to be freely made than on the above world. Even though many mutants had lost their sense of morality, it seemed that they were civil enough to not interfere with the lives of normal humans. Either that, or they were afraid of what might happen should they be discovered.

"So, if you're really going to help," Alice continued, pulling a clipboard out from a counter's drawer. "I need you to sign this."

The clipboard and a pen was pushed toward Nicholas. He grabbed both and tried to read over the document, but curiously found it difficult to read the words. "What's this?"

"To be honest? Soul binding. You're basically selling your soul to the administration of Mexo Laboratories."

Nicholas shook his head, "Is...Is it required? What if I change my mind?"

Alice stepped in front of him and crouched to his eye level, looking at him very solemnly. "You can't change your mind now, Nick. They will kill you."

He found it difficult to swallow now. The pen was gripped in his fingers so tightly that he was almost afraid he'd crush it. With a deep breath, he put the pen to the paper, and paused. "Okay..." he said, staring down at the paper. "Okay..."