Disclaimer: I do not own any rights to the characters of Mutant X, Tribune, Fireworks, etc.
Claimer: I created and own the character of Alanna Phillips.
Shalimar yawned; hardly paying attention to Adam's speech as she sat on the counter top, having just been woken up by Adam's summons via her comring, and given her late night out it hadn't been too welcome.
"I just got some information about a new mutant in the National Park upstate." Adam continued, the others paying slightly closer attention than Shalimar. "I've also gotten a lead that the G.S.A. is currently scouring the area, nothing is confirmed yet, but I think they're searching for this young feral." Adam turned to Shalimar, his lips hinting at a smile as she yawned again. "I want all of you to go, we don't want to take any chances with the G.S.A. right now." Adam looked at Shalimar and Emma pointedly. "I don't know how long this feral has been out there, she may have gone wild. Emma, Shalimar, you two especially are going to have to use your abilities to catch her."
While Adam turned his attentions to the computers, pulling up data on the area and loading the coordinates into the Double Helix's database, Brennan smiled as he walked over to Shalimar; "Late night?" he asked softly with a hint of sarcasm. Shal smirked, now fully awake, "Yeah, I'll probably get a cat nap in-route." Both turned to Adam as he turned around, giving them their last instructions, "We need to prep the Helix for flight in an hour."
Jesse and Brennan headed towards the hanger, Jesse looked back over his shoulder at Shalimar, "If someone please would make me some coffee? " he requested before exiting the room. Shalimar rolled her eyes, "What do I look like? A Dunking Doughnuts waitress?" she asked the ceiling. Emma smiled as she walked out of the room, going to the lab for the Helix's first aid kit.
Adam looked behind him at Emma's approach, zipping the heavy-duty first aid kit shut. "Finished." He stated as he handed the kit to Emma. "Hopefully we won't have need of it." Adam said, as he pulled up data on one of his lab computers. "I'm cross-referencing the missing persons database with our records so we can make a match." Emma walked the door with the kit as the computer pulled up a file from their database; Adam read the information that was provided as he loaded a copy onto the Helix's database for them to read in-flight.
Shalimar grumbled off-handedly, just in case Jesse walked in, thinking about going shopping after the mission as she made the coffee. While the coffee was brewing she browsed for the thermos, finding it just as the last bit of the coffee flowed out. Pouring it into the thermos she thought about inviting Emma along just as she passed the kitchen doorway, hauling the first aid that Adam always required. Emma paused a moment, looking at Shalimar; "Something you would like to ask?" she asked with a slight smile and a raised eyebrow. Shalimar grinned, screwing the thermos lid on tight. "Feel like doing some shopping after the mission?" she asked as she walked out of the kitchen, towards the hanger with Emma. "I could use some more shoes." The redhead said with a grin.
Brennan looked up from his seated position at the women entering the Double Helix with an eyebrow cocked. "What are you planning now?" He asked, knowing the looks on Shalimar and Emma's faces. Shalimar grinned, setting Jesse's thermos of coffee in his seat and sitting in her own seat, "Just a shopping trip." She replied as Emma placed the replenished kit in its place and sat across from her. Brennan rolled his eyes, "That's all we need, more shoes." Jesse grinned as he moved from the back of the Helix, trying to unscrew the thermos. "Um, Shal would you mind?" Jesse asked as he handed her the thermos. Shal smirked, unscrewed the top and handed it back. He poured himself a cup of coffee, sitting in his chair while drinking the coffee with one hand and flipping some switches with the other.
"Everyone onboard?" Adam asked, his face appearing on their video screens. "We're ready to go Adam." Jesse affirmed finishing his coffee as the Helix lifted off, shooting out of Sanctuary. "Okay, I've loaded some files on this new mutant I want you all to read." Adam's image said over the screen, quickly replaced by the information as his voice continued reading aloud for Brennan, who was watching the controls.
"Her name is Alanna Philips, a fifteen-year-old feral and telepathic-empath Psionic. Her last known residence was with her adoptive parents, Samuel and Lisa Phillips. Her birth parents died in a house fire when she was three; her birth name has never been uncovered."
Emma watched Shalimar closely as Adam talked, aware that she got emotionally involved in these missions. "Reports say that she was reported missing two weeks ago by the Philips couple." Adam finished just as Brennan started to lower the Double Helix into a large clearing that was surrounded by woods. The team quickly disembarked from the Helix, scanning the tree line for signs of the feral youth or agents. "Think we should split up?" Shalimar asked as she sniffed, smelling burning wood.
"There's a fire," Shalimar said before she ran towards the source of the smoke not thinking, the team following after a moment. Heat and thick smoke started to pour down the path, a red glow illuminating the trees ahead as they chased after Shal, coughing in the waifs of smoke that crossed their path. Soon they burst through a wall of smoke into a clearing that was cut- off in the center by a wall of flames, Shalimar standing in the center, the rising heat lifting her hair as she shivered in spite of the blistering heat, staring into the flames.
Emma scanned the area as they entered the clearing, pinpointing six agents, two terrified ferals, Jesse and Brennan. "She's in other half of the clearing!" Emma shouted above the flames, as Brennan and Jesse dragged Shalimar away from the wall of fire. Shal controlled her shivering as the four grouped away from the flames to plan their attack. "There's a pyrokinetic that's controlling the fires." Shalimar yelled, explaining the firewall. An enraged scream tore through the woods, muffled by the blaze. Emma scanned again, driven into action by the scream, focusing on the agents and searching for the pyrokinetic. Finding him she sent a psi-blast towards the agent, and was rewarded when the wall of flame immediately dropped.
Shalimar ran into the clearing, leaping onto the nearest agent with a flying kick as Brennan shot a flare of electricity at an agent. Jesse managed to land a punch before a large branch came flying down from a tree and swung at him and he instinctively massed. Emma shot another psi-blast at a large agent as the remaining agent leveled a gun at the redheaded figure and fired as she leapt to the side. The tree limb shattered on Jesse, sending shards of woods everywhere. Emma felt stinging pieces of wood pierce her skin and a searing line of shared pain across her stomach. Shal, Brennan and Emma all dropped to the ground as they heard the limb burst showering them all with splinters.
As soon as the rain of wood stopped Brennan got to his feet, quickly glancing around the clearing with Jesse before they rushed to their teammate's sides. "I'm ok," Shalimar said as Brennan helped her up, as Jesse did the same for Emma, and looked for signs of the agents. "They're gone, one of them opened some sort of transportation portal as the branch hit. You could see Genomex through it." Jesse said as they rushed towards the girl.
Shalimar crouched by Alanna and turned her over onto her back, knowing she was bleeding freely from a wound, as she smelled the coppery tinge of blood. A slash across her t-shirt showed that it was across her lower stomach, accompanying the many cuts from the wood, several visible healing bruises across her face and arms, and some minor burns. Alanna groaned, trying to sit up as she opened her eyes, looking fearfully at Brennan and Jesse. She started to struggle against Shalimar's hands, "If you don't kill me I'll do it myself. I'm not going back to Eckhart alive." The teen growled as she glared at Brennan. "We don't work for Eckhart." Jesse replied, taking a step back from the panicky and furious feral and raising his hands. "Don't you think we would have used the sub-dermal governor already if we did?" Brennan asked. Shalimar felt Alanna stop struggling and relax slightly as she spoke. "If you were from Eckhart you would know that I smashed the controllers for it."
Emma moved closer to the girl, empathically trying to calm her to keep her from going into shock as she tried to get a better look at the gash. "It's ok, we're Mutant X. We've come to help you." Emma told her as she stooped beside her. "I'm going to need to take a look at a cut you have." Alanna nodded, responding to her empathy, "Ok. Hurts a lot for a cut though." Emma lifted up the shirt bottom clear of the wound, revealing several old scars along with the new lacerations. "That big guy had claws and I got too close." She explained before they could ask. Brennan spoke as he saw the worst of the damage; "We need to get her to the Helix." Emma nodded, getting up, as Brennan walked over and scooped the girl up. "Wait." She protested; pointing to a large Siamese cat without a tail crouched beside a boulder. The cat walked over and followed as they jogged back to the Helix. "I can walk by myself." Alanna protested. Brennan grinned at Shalimar as they jogged back to the Helix, "You sound like someone I know." Shal shot him a glare as she jogged along.
