After the visit to Feliciano's house, everyone reported back to the meeting room. Nothing had been found at Antonio's house other then signs of an entry and what Antonio hadn't cleaned up from Feliciano's 'kidnapping'. Everyone had been shocked with the discovery at Feliciano's house. No one could believe it had been Feliciano all along. Romano, Hungary and Roderick took the news the hardest.

Mei was worried about his younger brother, Kiku. She knew he had been close to Feliciano so he probably went to go see the Italian after the meeting. Mei winced to imagine Kiku being chained to a dark dungeon with skeletons and rats in the corners. Her poor little brother had endured much but he always had the support of someone else. Now that he was stuck in a dark place because of a person who had most of the time done the comforting in the past he must feel so betrayed. That is, if he was even still alive.

"What should we do now ? We know Feliciano did it and we have an address but should we really go rushing into a building with no plan?" Roderick asked.

"Of course we should! Mein bruder's in there!" Gilbert exclaimed. Mei glanced at Romano and saw him sitting blankly in a chair. The poor guy, this must have been such a shock. It was obvious that he wasn't aware of his surroundings or didn't care because Bella sat extremely close beside him and was holding his hand. Romano just allowed her to do it, staring off into space.

"Excuse me, aru! This could be a life or death situation! If we have an address we should go, aru! Any time we waste could be their lives!" Yao pointed out.

The others seemed to consider it.

"I agree! Feliciano has obviously changed so we can't predict what he's going to do. It's best to get Ludwig and Kiku out of that building before anything horrible happens!" Alfred said. After learning of how serious the situation had been, the American had been surprisingly serious. He hadn't said 'hero' or 'hamburger' since going to Feliciano's house and he had been supportive and kind to Romano.

"What if we see Feliciano though ?" Arthur spoke forward. A long silence lapsed over them. Nobody wanted to hurt the sweet Italian but nobody wanted him to hurt anyone. Romano stood up and looked over at the group, surprisingly calm.

"If anyone sees Feliciano, try to catch him without harming him. Hurt him only if it's absolutely necessary ." Romano said glaring at everyone in a silent threat. He sat back down. Bells resumed to hugging him. Romano shooed her off but she didn't listen and Romano left her go, not having the energy to fight.

"Romano," Arthur said gently. The Brit had been surprisingly kind and gentle to the elder Italian. "Aren't you going to come too?"

Romano shook his head, "No. I'm going to go see Antonio." He said his golden eyes saddening. He enjoyed his visits with the Spaniard but every time he left he felt as if he was leaving part of his heart behind.

Alfred stood up. "Ok. So now that everything's settled, everyone remember to stay on your toes and watch each others backs. Try to catch Feli without causing him any harm and rescue Ludwig and Kiku." Alfred said. No one objected and they all headed out to go to the address. Little did they know that Feliciano had purposely left the address out for them to find.

-meanwhile .....-

Silence. There is nothing but silence. Ludwig and Kiku are both too exhausted and in pain to talk. The first few days of Kiku's arrival were filled with both of their labored breathing. Then their wheezes died down to silent gasps.

Feliciano had came in once for their weekly beatings. Now, he had two people to beat so he was there twice as long. Kiku watched first as Feliciano beat Ludwig; kicking his ribs, punching his face, spitting insults at him. All the while, Kiku watched helplessly as Ludwig was beaten almost to unconsciousness by his lover. Kiku knew Feliciano beat Ludwig first so Kiku could watch and see what was going to happen to him.

Kiku knew it would hurt, but he didn't imagine the searing pain each strike would bring him. With every kick, his back scraped against the pole, aggravating his burn wounds. Feliciano punched his face. Kiku's eyes nearly rolled back but he forced himself to stay conscious. If Ludwig could then he could as well.

After Feliciano had left, both Kiku and Ludwig's breathing was even more labored. He coughed dryly, spitting up blood. He groaned lolled his head forward.

Kiku stared at the floor, not having the strength to look up. His neck and back burns hurt and the stick was rubbing his skin raw. He had only been there a few days but he was already so exhausted from one beating. He couldn't imagine how Ludwig must feel. Ludwig had been there longer then him and had been the closest to Feliciano. He felt all the pain sharper then Kiku did, emotionally and physically.

He knew Feliciano wanted all the nations to be destroyed. There was no way he can get revenge on them all without getting hurt in the process.

Feliciano must have been driven crazy by his desperate, hidden feelings. Even though he was subjecting Kiku and Ludwig to so much pain and neglect, Kiku didn't want Feliciano to suffer further. Kiku could now see past Feliciano's mask and see how he was still in so much pain. He could tell by the crazed look in his eye when he came to beat him, the force behind each blow and the tone behind his insults.

He needed to find a way to get him and Ludwig out so they could get to the other countries and warn them. Kiku knew Ludwig was mentally exhausted so it was up to Kiku to get both of them out of the building safely.

Kiku tried to think of a way to get himself out of his bounds. Once he was free, he could get Ludwig free and help him out. There would no doubt be armed guards outside the door but if they could beat them they could take their weapons. The only problem was they were both extremely weak and they didn't know the layout of the building or surrounding area or how many guards were in the building. They'd have to be smart about this and be extra careful.

The door cracked open and a figure stepped in. Kiku looked up and winced at the light. He couldn't make out the figures of the person silhouetted by the light. Kiku's heart jumped in his throat, pulsing against his neck thinking Feliciano had returned to beat them. He breathed out when the man stepped in with a bucket in his hand. He walked over to Ludwig.

Spooning a large spoon into the bucket, the man practically shoved the water down Ludwig's throat. Ludwig gagged and coughed harshly. Some of the water must have tickled his throat. Without waiting for Ludwig to finish coughing the man continued to shove the water into Ludwig's mouth.

Ludwig only coughed more spitting up some of the water into the mans face in an attempt to gag the water out. The mans face twitched in anger and he punched Ludwig's stomach. Ludwig doubled over in pain, vomiting onto the floor. The man looked in disgust and took the water away, not allowing Ludwig to rinse the bitter taste from his mouth and leaving him to wheeze.

The man walked over to Kiku and did the same to him. Kiku coughed as the dirty water flooded his mouth. It tasted like sand in his mouth but he was so thirsty that he would drink almost anything. He took a few sips before he got an idea.

He swung his leg up in a large arch gracefully and connected his heel with the mans head. The mans head hit the floor and he was out. Kiku hooked his foot around the bucket handle and drug it to him. He banged the bucket on the floor until the handle broke off.

He moved the handle in reach with his foot and picked it up with his teeth. He turned his head and dropped it behind his back, catching it in his hand. He carefully stuck the metal in between the ties and loosened the string so he could stand up on shaky legs and maneuver the metal easier. Soon he had the intricate knot figured out and had freed himself. He rubbed his wrist before moving onto Ludwig.

Ludwig slumped forward, caressing his raw wrists tenderly. Kiku bent down, wincing at his burnt skin and helped Ludwig to his feet. Kiku then searched the man for a weapon and found not only a sword but also a gun. He handed the gun to Ludwig who took it with trembling hands.

"Ludwig, we're getting out of here now but we need to be quick and help each other." Kiku said, gently slapping Ludwig's cheek to get the German to focus on him. Ludwig's eyes focused on him and he nodded. Kiku patted his shoulder awkwardly and hurried towards the door. Ludwig followed close behind him. Kiku put his hand on the door knob and counted down on his fingers from three. On zero he opened the door and jumped out.

He cut down the guard on the one side of the door. A gunshot from the other side signaled him that Ludwig got the other guard. Kiku bent down and took the guards sword and gun. He kept a hold of the sword and gave Ludwig the other gun.

Kiku pointed down the hallway to the right and hurried down the corridor. He could hear Ludwig's loud footsteps behind him. Up ahead, rapid footsteps hurried towards the two. Japan readied his sword as a group of four guards rounded the corner. Ludwig began firing at guards away from Kiku. Kiku expertly used both swords to ward off the guards; skillfully spinning and twisting as years and years of swordsmanship sprouted into his head.

Soon all the guards had fallen and there was not a scratch on Ludwig or Kiku that had been caused by them. Kiku paused to take a breather. Ludwig looked more alive then he had been earlier but Kiku could tell the German was extremely tired. He began to have doubts on their escape. Feliciano probably had tons of guards everywhere and he himself was probably somewhere in the vicinity. Kiku knew for a fact that neither he nor Ludwig would be able to hurt him, much less kill him.

"Lets continue, Ludwig-san." Kiku said. Ludwig gave him a jerky nod. The pair continued down the hall. They came upon several guards either in groups of two or three. As they neared the exit, Ludwig and Kiku sped up. Adrenaline pumped through their system, giving them the extra burst to get to the door. Suddenly, a large group of guards ran from a hallway by the door.

Kiku stopped immediately and kept his sword poised for attack. Ludwig came to an awkward stop behind him and started firing at the guards. Several of the guards rushed to attack Ludwig but Kiku intercepted them and fought them before they could even touch Ludwig. Kiku heard a low grunt and recognized it as Ludwig's. He abandoned his position to look behind him.

Another large group of guards had flanked him and Ludwig. While they both had their back turned they attacked Ludwig. Kiku quickly attacked the closest one to him and tried to get to Ludwig. No matter how hard he fought, Ludwig only seemed to get further away. Kiku's heart sinked to realize that he and Ludwig wouldn't be escaping. A flash of anger irrupted in his eyes. He wasn't going to back down. He would fight until his last breath.

He kept fighting but his movements were slow and delayed from exhaustion. He could see Ludwig from the corner of his eye and knew the German was even weaker then he was. He was aware of Ludwig's legs giving out on him as a muffled thud sounded in the hallway.

He tried to get to Ludwig's direction but a guard slammed into his back. He stumbled to his hands and knees, unable to catch the cry of pain that slipped past his lips. He tried to crawl but someone stepped on his fingers and someone else was kicking him. His arms trembled. With one last kick, he fell awkwardly to his side.

His limbs flailed, his mind unable to grasp that there was no ground beneath him. A boot rolled him onto his back and stepped on his chest. A sharp pain pierced his chest followed by a crack. Kiku gasped in pain, his yell choked, each breath hurting his chest. The guard chuckled and kicked his side making his body flood with red hot pain. He could just barely keep his eyes open. The pain was much too great.

Kiku began to feel his consciousness waver. This is the end! He tried to turn to his side so he could crawl up but someone kicked him down again, sending a fresh wave of pain through his body. Kiku held back bile that shot up his throat. He closed his eyes as unconsciousness pressed on him, that or a boot.

Another wave of pain shot through him. His body was numb and he didn't know what was happening. The only thing he was aware of was that the waves of pain ceased and a gentle pair of arms carefully lifted him into a warm chest. Kiku kept his eyes closed. He unconsciously leaned against the warm chest as his savior gently rocked him like a baby.

He let out a long breath as unconsciousness finally closed over his senses like a suffocating, black veil.