Mason Eckhart stood next to his desk, staring out the view window at the
stasis pods below. He heard the automatic door open behind him. His eyes
shifted slightly under his glasses, but he kept his face to the window. It
was obvious that he was looking at the reflection of whoever had just
entered.
"Please, sit," he said, turning around, motioning for the chair in the corner.
"You wanted to see me?" The man, in his mid-twenties, wore black jeans and a white shirt, topped off with a long leather jacket. His manner was that of pure arrogance. When he sat down, he crossed his legs in an arrogant manner. He even had the audacity to chew gum, distorting his features.
"Do you mind?" Eckhart stayed straight faced.
"Yeah, I do." The man smiled maliciously. Suddenly, he jerked out of the chair and dropped to the floor, jerking suddenly. Eckhart got up slowly and moved around the desk, a waste paper basket in his gloved hand.
"You may want to spit that out before you choke on it." He held the bin to the man's face, who spat out the gum rapidly. "That's better," Eckhart said. He switched the remote in his hand to 'off'. The man's subdermal governor ceased to cause him pain and he slowly, timidly, rose to his feet. "Don't presume that you are here because of your own doing," Eckhart continued. "I control you," he said, motioning to the governor. "The only reason you are here and not in stasis is you 'gift' is useless on any human, but dangerous to other New Mutants." He walked back to the window, where a stasis pod was being selected from the others and was going through the 'defrosting' stage. "It has come to my attention that we have in our possession, a New Mutant who knows the location of Sanctuary, the headquarters of Mutant X. In fact, he supposedly helped build it. I need you to cancel out his powers until I get a subdermal governor on him."
"Why didn't you put one on him when you put him into stasis?" Eckhart turned around, straight-faced, rolling the remote in between his fingers. "If you don't mind me asking, sir," he added quickly. Eckhart put the remote back into his pocket.
"This mutant was captured before we had perfected the subdermal governors."
"You mean he's a first generation?" The man cocked his eyebrow. He could swear he saw Eckhart smile briefly.
"Correct. He even knew Adam as a 'friend'. A close personal friend. So, even if he couldn't give us the location of Sanctuary, and he managed to hold out long enough. . ." The man rubbed his neck, there was no way anyone could hold out for long against a governor. ". . . then Adam would come after him to save him, where we could make a trap." He looked at the man again. "Your power would come in useful again, in disabling Mutant X for my men to capture them."
______________________________
Emma deLauro was enjoying herself for once. Too much had happened with Mutant X lately and she was glad to let her hair down. She listened to the trance music as she danced away, not a care in the world. Ever so often, she would glance to Jesse, sitting over by the bar, at one of the Proxy Blue terminals, drinking and idly playing with the computer. She'd motion for him to come over and dance, but he just shook his head and motioned that he couldn't dance. What kind of person can't dance, thought Emma. Well, Jesse for one. This time though, she decided that he should have some fun as well. For trance music you don't need to dance, he could get away with just jumping up and down, especially as so many people were so drunk that that was all their legs would let them do in the way of dancing. She walked over to the table he was on and began to pull on his arm.
"I told you," he said, "I can't dance."
"That doesn't matter," she replied. "You only need to. . ." she was interrupted as she was struck by a vision. It was painful as she was sensing a great amount of pain and fear. She saw a young man with white hair. He was running through the darkness, trying to reach a light at the end of the darkness. The light had the club's name on it, the club she was in right now. The overwhelming pain made her collapse and she dropped to the floor, caught by Jesse before she hit the ground. People began to move away from him.
"It's okay," he said, "she's just danced herself tired." His expression said otherwise. He scooped her up in his arms and quickly carried her outside for some fresh air. When he got outside, she woke up again.
"Hey." He spoke softly.
"Hey yourself." They looked at each other for a moment, but were then distracted by running footsteps, echoing down the quiet streets. A young man with white hair ran down the street towards them. He stopped next to them.
"Help me," he said in an English accent.
"He's the guy from the vision I just had." Emma put her hand to her head. The man looked at her hand, and the ring upon it.
"You're Mutant X!" He seemed relieved. He sighed slightly. Suddenly, GSA agents came running around the corner. The man turned round to reveal a subdermal governor imbedded in his spinal chord, but he was out of range for them to use it against him. He held out both hands and waves of distortion emitted from his hands. Suddenly, all of the agents were running in slow motion. The man was slowing time in front of him, but he was already starting to falter as pocket of 'real time' shifted in the waves, giving the illusion of the agents speeding up and slowing down. He turned to Emma and Jesse. "Tell Adam 'The stars make the night sky glow'. Now go. I can't hold the back much longer." His powers ceased to exist. They just stopped. He looked back at the agents to see the same man who was there when he first woke up in the stasis pod. He dropped to his knees, beaten. Emma went to read him, but her powers were blocked.
"I can feel my powers inside me, but I can't access them."
"No time for that now," Jesse spoke. "We've gotta go."
"We can't leave him," Emma said, turning around to see the man already swarmed by agents. A few coming after Jesse and her.
"We can't help him if our powers don't work. He gave us a message, and he made it clear that it was important that we give it to Adam, now lets go!"
Emma looked back one last time, the agents getting closer, the man with the white hair being kicked while he was on the floor. She ran and Jesse caught up quickly, getting into the Audi and driving off as the agents watched them drive off.
"Please, sit," he said, turning around, motioning for the chair in the corner.
"You wanted to see me?" The man, in his mid-twenties, wore black jeans and a white shirt, topped off with a long leather jacket. His manner was that of pure arrogance. When he sat down, he crossed his legs in an arrogant manner. He even had the audacity to chew gum, distorting his features.
"Do you mind?" Eckhart stayed straight faced.
"Yeah, I do." The man smiled maliciously. Suddenly, he jerked out of the chair and dropped to the floor, jerking suddenly. Eckhart got up slowly and moved around the desk, a waste paper basket in his gloved hand.
"You may want to spit that out before you choke on it." He held the bin to the man's face, who spat out the gum rapidly. "That's better," Eckhart said. He switched the remote in his hand to 'off'. The man's subdermal governor ceased to cause him pain and he slowly, timidly, rose to his feet. "Don't presume that you are here because of your own doing," Eckhart continued. "I control you," he said, motioning to the governor. "The only reason you are here and not in stasis is you 'gift' is useless on any human, but dangerous to other New Mutants." He walked back to the window, where a stasis pod was being selected from the others and was going through the 'defrosting' stage. "It has come to my attention that we have in our possession, a New Mutant who knows the location of Sanctuary, the headquarters of Mutant X. In fact, he supposedly helped build it. I need you to cancel out his powers until I get a subdermal governor on him."
"Why didn't you put one on him when you put him into stasis?" Eckhart turned around, straight-faced, rolling the remote in between his fingers. "If you don't mind me asking, sir," he added quickly. Eckhart put the remote back into his pocket.
"This mutant was captured before we had perfected the subdermal governors."
"You mean he's a first generation?" The man cocked his eyebrow. He could swear he saw Eckhart smile briefly.
"Correct. He even knew Adam as a 'friend'. A close personal friend. So, even if he couldn't give us the location of Sanctuary, and he managed to hold out long enough. . ." The man rubbed his neck, there was no way anyone could hold out for long against a governor. ". . . then Adam would come after him to save him, where we could make a trap." He looked at the man again. "Your power would come in useful again, in disabling Mutant X for my men to capture them."
______________________________
Emma deLauro was enjoying herself for once. Too much had happened with Mutant X lately and she was glad to let her hair down. She listened to the trance music as she danced away, not a care in the world. Ever so often, she would glance to Jesse, sitting over by the bar, at one of the Proxy Blue terminals, drinking and idly playing with the computer. She'd motion for him to come over and dance, but he just shook his head and motioned that he couldn't dance. What kind of person can't dance, thought Emma. Well, Jesse for one. This time though, she decided that he should have some fun as well. For trance music you don't need to dance, he could get away with just jumping up and down, especially as so many people were so drunk that that was all their legs would let them do in the way of dancing. She walked over to the table he was on and began to pull on his arm.
"I told you," he said, "I can't dance."
"That doesn't matter," she replied. "You only need to. . ." she was interrupted as she was struck by a vision. It was painful as she was sensing a great amount of pain and fear. She saw a young man with white hair. He was running through the darkness, trying to reach a light at the end of the darkness. The light had the club's name on it, the club she was in right now. The overwhelming pain made her collapse and she dropped to the floor, caught by Jesse before she hit the ground. People began to move away from him.
"It's okay," he said, "she's just danced herself tired." His expression said otherwise. He scooped her up in his arms and quickly carried her outside for some fresh air. When he got outside, she woke up again.
"Hey." He spoke softly.
"Hey yourself." They looked at each other for a moment, but were then distracted by running footsteps, echoing down the quiet streets. A young man with white hair ran down the street towards them. He stopped next to them.
"Help me," he said in an English accent.
"He's the guy from the vision I just had." Emma put her hand to her head. The man looked at her hand, and the ring upon it.
"You're Mutant X!" He seemed relieved. He sighed slightly. Suddenly, GSA agents came running around the corner. The man turned round to reveal a subdermal governor imbedded in his spinal chord, but he was out of range for them to use it against him. He held out both hands and waves of distortion emitted from his hands. Suddenly, all of the agents were running in slow motion. The man was slowing time in front of him, but he was already starting to falter as pocket of 'real time' shifted in the waves, giving the illusion of the agents speeding up and slowing down. He turned to Emma and Jesse. "Tell Adam 'The stars make the night sky glow'. Now go. I can't hold the back much longer." His powers ceased to exist. They just stopped. He looked back at the agents to see the same man who was there when he first woke up in the stasis pod. He dropped to his knees, beaten. Emma went to read him, but her powers were blocked.
"I can feel my powers inside me, but I can't access them."
"No time for that now," Jesse spoke. "We've gotta go."
"We can't leave him," Emma said, turning around to see the man already swarmed by agents. A few coming after Jesse and her.
"We can't help him if our powers don't work. He gave us a message, and he made it clear that it was important that we give it to Adam, now lets go!"
Emma looked back one last time, the agents getting closer, the man with the white hair being kicked while he was on the floor. She ran and Jesse caught up quickly, getting into the Audi and driving off as the agents watched them drive off.