"So," Finn clears his throat awkwardly, "Is everyone here a Mutant?" He asks, finally.
Doc shakes his head. "The only ones without powers are Flo, Lizzie, Luigi, and You two." he nods at the other two agents at the table.
Holley frowns, "Why are there so many Mutants in Radiator Springs?" She asks.
Doc shoots Sally a look, but she keeps her face blank. "Not sure how much we should tell you..." He answers wearily, "We've had government agents here before... it didn't end pretty."
Holley bristles, "Is that a threat?" She asks, voice suddenly poisonous and filled with heat.
"Yes." Lightning replies simply. Holley stares at him dark and angry, opens her mouth to retort and promptly shuts it when Siddeley tugs at her shirt sleeve. He shakes his head and she backs down, but she's still fuming.
"We're a package deal." Finn finally says, "They know whatever I know."
The older man rolls his shoulders a bit, "Radiator Springs was founded by Stanley, Everyone knows that. Only a select few know that he was a mutant- and a rather powerful one at that. His power, well, he called himself a beacon. His presence attracted Mutants from all over the world, and when he created Radiator springs it wasn't to be a tourist stop, but a safe haven. When the government started to chase after Mutants Stanley sent them away, hoping that as long as they were spread out they would be safe. When things calmed down again, he turned his powers back on and began to rebuild.
"As it turns out, only three of the people he sent away survived. Maters parents and Lizzie, his girlfriend at the time. Stanley grew too old for his beacon to reach far... but we still came. He helped us hone our skills... Then Stanley died and they opened the interstate And soon enough Radiator Springs dropped off the map. No more new mutants... until some idiot came speeding through and tore up our road." He smiles fondly at the racer who has the decency to look a bit sheepish, "He got us back on the map... and we've been helping mutants when we can. Giving them directions to other safe havens or helping them with their powers... but they never seem to stay." Doc looks a bit thoughtful, "That's it, I guess." He finishes.
"Okay." Finn says, taking a moment to process the information, "What's everyone's powers?"
"Regeneration." Lightning says casually, as if he were talking about the weather, "Which is why I was able to save you back there."
"But what about all the stray bullets?" he had seen them shoot past them in a flurry of gray metal, so who had stopped those?
"That was Fillmore. He can generate low level Force Fields, big enough to cover us, but he wasn't strong enough to get them to reach you." Sally responds, "And I can bend minds." She adds as an after thought.
"I've got x-ray," Doc says, "But it gives me such a bad headache I don't use it much. Mater can- well, he's basically an airbender. Guido's got super speed, Ramone can dream walk, Sarge's got geological manipulation. He can cause earth quakes and create sink holes, things like that. Red... he can make you do whatever he wants, but he's got to say it to you. He's had a few bad accidents happen before, so he mostly keeps his mouth shut." Doc frowns a little.
"What does bend minds mean?" Siddeley speaks for the first time, and his tone is heavy, but curious.
"Exactly what you think." Sally replies evenly, "I can make you feel sad or mad or angry. I could fabricate a memory out of nothing, and I can take memories too." She says finally. "And i'm not afraid to. If you three turn out to be the bad guys... if you try to ruin what we've so painstakingly created... The last thing you'll remember is nothing."
Her voice is soft and genuine, Like she's stating a fact. Lightning leans on her a little bit, "I love you." He says, awestruck at how amazing she is. She smiles at him gently.
"And the Sheriff?" Finn asks.
"Sheriff can sense active Mutant genes." Doc comments, "Which means your powers have just manifested."
"Wait, just manifested? If the genes were in me all along shouldn't I be able to access them even when i was young?"
"Not necessarily," Doc half-answers. A beat passes as he gathers his thoughts, "Some mutations are dormant, some aren't. When they're dormant its like they're sleeping, you wouldn't know they were there unless you looked very closely at your genetic makeup, but under certain moments of high stress or injury the mutations will wake up to help. You caught a grenade and your power knew what to do even if you didn't. Very rarely are mutants born with their powers, usually they manifest when they are needed." He explains, "After the first time they can be trained and honed for personal uses."
Finn nods in understanding, "So powers manifest under specific circumstances? How did your powers manifest?"
Every mutant at the table shifted uncomfortably, not willing to share their stories. "Sarge was in the army." Doc says simply, "there were a lot of stressful moments in combat. Perfect place for powers to manifest. Red was born with his, and as for Ramone... well, every kid had nightmares. So he learned to just walk out of his and explore others. Mater got caught in a dust storm when he was 12 and created an air pocket to survive in, Guido wasn't a popular kid in school, and running fast was kind of a necessity for survival back then.
"As for me, I got stuck in the sewer when I was around 8 and my X-ray helped me figure out when i needed to call for help." He finishes, then motions for Sally to go.
She cast a look at Lightning and he rests his hand on her arm, "After their powers first appeared they, and there parents, were taken to a facility to cleanse them of it." Lightning begins, "Sally's hadn't manifested yet, but her parents were both telepaths. They were taken in and so was Sally. Her parents cast themselves into her mind to help her cope with everything. then they killed her parents and snapped the connection. He powers awakened and she liberated the entire camp." she's holding his hand tight, "Mine showed up when I turned... I cant remember anymore, but I was very young. Maybe 3 or 4 and someone dropped me out of a 3rd story window." Lightning frowns hard, "My parents turned me in and I was sent to a camp in Ohio, I think."
"So, you all went to these... camps?" Siddeley asked, horrified.
"No, Mater was protected with Stanley and Ramones was very inconspicuous." He replies slowly, "But for the most part, yes." he finishes.
"How long..." Finn struggles to organize his thoughts. He feels like a thousand ponds of weight had settled on his chest, "How long did the camps run?" He asks, finally.
Doc detects the hitching in his breath and leans forward, worried. Could there be other side affects with his power? Did awakening his powers also awaken some weird consequence in his body? Was he rejecting the mutation? but wouldn't that have gone into effect earlier if his body rejected it?
Lightning hummed a little in thought, "I was in one of the last camps closed down... the ones with the really high ranking mutations and shit. It was closed when I was around 10. and the first camp was started around, what, 50 or 60 years ago?" he asked.
Finn felt his whole body shudder. He could only imagine what they were like. His stomach rolled and in the span of a few seconds he simultaneously burst into tears and passed out.
His two friends bolted up in shock, worry shining on their faces. Doc sighed, "He's fine." He calmed them and himself, "That's totally normal with new mutants. fluctuating hormones and narcolepsy to help the body adapt." He was just glad it wasn't something more serious. but if the sudden sleeping was happening it meant his body was accepting the mutation fairly well.
Lightning yawned loudly, "He's got the right idea." He comments to Sally before laying his head down on the table and finally letting his overwhelming exhaustion knock him out.