Runaways Remix: Pride and Joy

Issue Seven

Tommy's Roadside Rest Stop (Closed For Repairs)

5:43 A.M.

"So, where do we stand?" Alex asked the assembled group.

They were currently arranged in a rough circle around the open back doors of Chase's van. After receiving the call from Mrs. Yorkes, he had ordered Karolina to pull off the moment she got the chance. The girl had noticed the closed rest stop, and had pulled in.

"We have a hostage situation. Simple as that." Hannah's holographic form glowed on Jake's shoulder, arms behind her back in proper military style. "The Yorkes and Hayes, and possibly the other members of the Pride, have taken High Value Friendly Molly Hayes prisoner, and are demanding that if we fail to turn ourselves into their custody within the hour, they will execute her. Same goes for if we go to the authorities."

"But...their bluffing, right?" Karolina asked quietly. Jake could see the fear and confusion that he had been feeling recently evident on her face. She was pacing as well, and kept adjusting her jeans and shirt, which had seemingly grown and shrunk respectively during her recent dousing in magical water. Despite the situation, Jake felt a small tingle of warmth shoot up his back. Now if her pants would just fall down all the way...

"I doubt it." Gert's voice broke Jake out of his inner thoughts, ironically echoing his own personal negative voice. "We've seen them kill one young girl. Who knows how many times they've done this."

"At least seventeen." Hannah chimed in. The group looked at her in shock. "We know this had been going on since just before we were born, and it would be a good assumption that every meeting was like the one you witnessed. As the oldest of us is seventeen, they've had at least that many rituals. So seventeen sacrifices."

"So at least seventeen." Gert continued. "What's one more?"

"But this is their daughter!" Karolina spread her hands out for evidence, causing her pants to fall to about her hips. Jake raised his eyebrows at the skin underneath.

So she does have tan lines, he thought. He laughed disturbingly in his head.

"Didn't stop my mom!" Nico added to the conversation. "Unless you've forgotten, she stabbed me with a...an oversized magic wand!" She touched her chest again, in the place Jake had come to guess was where her mom had jabbed her staff. It was, despite his hopes of minutes earlier, not on her solar plexus. "I don't think blood relations mean anything to them right now."

"So we can't just walk away." Alex started pacing as well, going in an opposite direction of Karolina. "We have to take this seriously."

"So what do we do?" Nico pondered.

"The police are out," Gert scuffed the dirt under her feet. "Mommy dearest specifically said-"

"We know." Jake finally joined the conversation. "They'll kill her. Hannah just said that."

"So what else is there?" Karolina cried, throwing up her hands in frustration, causing her pants to lower and her shirt to rise, followed by Jake's eyebrow. "Give up? Surrender to these psychos?"

"Maybe there's another possibility..." Alex said, crossing his arms. Chase jumped into the debate at this point.

"Yes, thank you!" He shouted, obviously excited. "We should totally got to go into some hardcore hiding. You know, like Saddam-style." He slapped his hands, still wearing the Fistigons, together. "Like I said a couple hours ago, I know this sweet-"

"Forget it." Jake snapped at Chase, cutting the boys rant short. "There is no way in hell we're retreating and hiding. Only the weak retreat." Suddenly needing something to do with his hands, Jake reached inside his coat and brought out his pistol, beginning to fiddle with it. "And if there's one thing I know for sure in this whole Grunt-shit crazy night, it's that we aren't weak." He finished with the pistol and put it back.

"Then you'll probably like what I have to offer, Jake." Alex stepped in closer to the group. "I say we do the opposite of retreat; Let's charge into Molly's place and rescue her."

"Hell yeah I like it!" Jake cried, standing. He strode over to Alex and clapped him hard on the shoulder. A little to hard, apparently. The boy sank to his knees with a grunt as Jake touched him. Jake quickly let go of him and he rose again.

"That has got to be the smartest thing you've said all night, Wilder." Jake finished, smiling.

"Smart?" Gert looked at Jake and Alex in disbelief. "How is that smart? The last time we dealt with our 'rents, we almost died!"

"Oh really?" Jake growled. "You're just saying that cause you got scared shitless and hid in a corner."

"Well sorry if I'm not a semi-human one man killing machine." Gert replied, scowling.

"True, but our parents weren't trying to kill us." Jake continued, not the least bit put off. "If they had been, we wouldn't be here. We're too valuable to them. That's the reason we're in this situation with Molly; they want us back. Alive."

"So how is throwing ourselves at them makes any sense?" Gert countered.

"You don't have to come, Gert." Alex interjected. "None of you do. It was my mistake that led to this. I was the one who thought we should leave Molly home to keep her out of danger. My mistake, and I'll be the one to fix it."

"Yeah, sure." Jake snorted. "If there's a fight going down, I'm in. Ain't nothing going to stop me."

He stopped, realizing something. "That, and unless you intend to free Molly by joining her on the Great Journey, you're going to need some backup."

"Jake's right." Karolina added. "You don't have any powers."

"Well none us do." Gert pointed out. "Well, except you."

"But you've got a dinosaur." Nico reminded her. "And Jake is, well, Jake. And Chase has-"

"A really fucking big problem!" The teen in question muttered from the side of the group. Jake glanced over to see him fiddling with the metal gloves on his hands. "I can't get my dad's stupid gloves off! I'm never gonna be able to wipe my own-"

Chase was cut off violently as, with a sudden roar, twin jets of fire erupted from the holes on the back of his gloves. Everyone looked at the smoking devices, Chase included.

"Oh." He said simply, stunned. "That totally ruled."

"How the heck did you do that?" Karolina pondered. Chase shrugged.

"Dunno. It just sorta...happened." He looked down at the Fistigons again.

"Impressive..." Hannah muttered. "Those flames were in the hundred Kelvin range, but I'm not reading any fuel sources or ignition points in the gloves."

"Kelvin?" Karolina and Chase asked simultaneously.

"It's a degree of temperature measurement, like Fahrenheit or Celsius." Hannah explained. "But better. More scientific. In simple terms, those flames are hot enough to instantly incinerate the flesh off someone and flame-cook the skeleton."

"Nice." Chase whistled, holding up his right glove.

"If those things are so powerful..." Nico thought out loud. "And he figures out how to use them, we could have a good chance of taking on Gert and Molly's parents."

"Yeah..." Jake stopped mid-sentence as a vision flashed into his head; Chase, cackling like a maniac, spewing flames into the living room of Molly's house, with himself at his side, adding to the inferno with a flamethrower. He shook himself free of the site and focused again on the real world.

"We?" Alex sounded surprised. "So your coming then?"

"Hey, it's like you said earlier." Nico tilted her head to the side slightly. "We've got to take care of each other, right?"

"Yeah." Alex replied quietly. Next to Nico, Karolina shifted.

"Well, if Nico's in...," She said, grasping her left arm with her right.

"Count me in, too." Gert said, rising off the back of the van. "I'm not going to let you stomp my 'rents without me."

The rest of the group turned to Jake, who smiled slowly.

"You even have to ask?" He said sarcastically.

"I'd be happy to provide tactical support for the operation," Hannah chimed in. "It's been way to long since I got to do any field work."

"Hell-fucking-yeah!" Chase shouted in jubilation "Pre-dawn raid, bitches!"

"Thanks, guys." Alex said, with a hint of pride in his voice. "I'm sure if we do it right, we can get Molly out safely." He paused, overtaken by worry or gratitude in his friends. "I mean, we've took down four of our parents before. Why shouldn't we be able to do it again?"

"Now were talking." Jake muttered himself. The rest of the group nodded in agreement.

"Alright then." Alex strode back towards the van, issuing orders as he did. "Chase, can you drive again?"

"Sure. Headaches mostly gone."

"Then get us to Molly's place. Fastest way. Everyone else, get in. Hannah?"

"Here. Orders?"

"Get me as much information on the target house as you can. Blueprints, pictures, the works."

"That it?" Hannah sounded surprised. Alex blinked.

"Sorry," He said sheepishly. "I'm new to this. Too much?"

"To little." The AI smiled broadly. "I can get us a live, real-time 3-D scan of the place. Thermal, sonic and radiological scans too."

"Do it." Alex turned to Jake. "And I might need you to check the place out for us with that armor of yours when we get there."

"Can do." Jake grinned, cracking his knuckles.

"Good. Now come on. Let's roll." Alex, followed by Jake, climbed into the back and closed the doors, just as Chase started the engine.

This is so going to rock, Jake decided.

Opposite the Hayes Residence

5:56 A.M.

With the engine of his van barley ticking over, Chase parked across the street from the Hayes's house. After a quick scan of the house by Hannah to see if their arrival had been noticed (which it hadn't), they filed quickly out of the back. Alex told Chase, Nico and Karolina to form a perimeter (after explaining what was, and where they were supposed to go), after which he and Gert clustered around Jake, who now had his armor on again, minus the helmet, and was using it to project a rotating hologram of the house. Within, several human-shaped blobs of red were visible. Hannah narrated from his shoulder.

"I count six lifeforms," She reported, pointing to each blob in turn. "Four match normal adult human parameters, most likely the Yorkes and the Hayes, one is radiating the same energy wavelength as Karolina does, so that's probably one of her parents, and the last one's probably Molly."

"Probably?" Alex asked in surprise. Hannah scratched her chin.

"Yes. There's something strange about the reading." She motioned at the smallest blob, in a room at the back of the house. "It usually matches an 11-year old girl, but every couple seconds it...well, switches, for lack of a better word."

"To what?" Alex probed.
"Not sure," Admitted Hannah. "Doesn't match anything I've seen or that's in my database. I can tell you it's close to human, but that's about it."

"So it may not be Molly." Alex said slowly. "That's no good. We need to be sure."

"I can get a more detailed scan, get a positive ID...but I need to be closer."

"How close?" Gert asked, looking down at the hologram and scratching her head in thought.

"Within fifteen meters. Forty-five feet or so."

"I know the size of a meter, thank you." Gert muttered. "The real question is, how do we get you close enough to scan?"

"There's only one person who can." Alex turned to Jake, who nodded, understanding his request before he voiced it. He understood why. Hannah was in his head and armor, and she couldn't move without him. So, for her to get closer, he had to get closer.

"I can do that." He stood up and stared down at the hologram before him. He found himself surprisingly calm. Like making a scout run into dangerous territory was old hat for him. "Where outside the house is closest to Molly's room?" He asked. Hannah motioned, and a small section in the back yard, a couple yards from a swimming pool, lit up in red.

They have a pool. Sweet, didn't know that, Jake thought.

On closer inspection, the point was on a rise behind the house, surrounded by trees and shrubs. Jake approximated the distance from Molly's room (which was also lit up in red) and the point. It was almost exactly fifteen meters.

"Does distance matter for the scan? That seems a bit far." He wondered.

"Not really. Within the fifteen meter radius, its all the same. Anything outside that and it starts to go fuzzy."

"Fine." Jake turned around (the hologram staying in place as Hannah shifted it to the back of his armor) and reached inside the van, coming back out with one of the Sniper Rifles and something Hannah had explained as an Advanced Oracle scope. He slid the scope onto the top of the rifle and latched it in place. "Don't want to get close if I don't have to."

"A sound plan." Hannah agreed. "One more thing, though."

"Oh?" Jake turned back again, this time returning from the van with several ammo clips for the rifle.

"We don't have anyway to communicate with the rest of the group."

Jake, instead of feeling surprised, as would be expected, felt frustrated. He suddenly found himself missing something he couldn't name.

"What, my armor doesn't have a COM system?" He asked. Hannah snorted.

"No, of course it does. It's MJLONIR. The problem is that the rest of the group don't have anything to pick it up with."

"No problemo, babe." A voice spoke from the shadows. All three teens wheeled towards it, which was suddenly lit up as a pair of lights built into Jake's chestplate activated.

"Chase?" Gert asked in shock. "Aren't you supposed to be on watch?"

"I was. But then I saw something, and came back to tell you, and heard your problem with the radio."

"What did you see?" Probed Alex.

"The inside of the house." Chase grinned maniacally. "I remembered their weird goggles I was wearing when my dad nailed me. They're like, X-Ray or something."

"And..." Alex prompted.

"Well, I used them, and I saw into the house. It looks like there's no-one at the back or the side. Their all in the house."

"They don't see us as a threat." Alex murmured. "Good. That will make the operation go much smoother."

"Okay then..." Chase blinked.

"You said you had something to deal with our radio problem." Jake stated. Chase jumped for a moment, then nodded.

"Yeah. My dad got me these cool two-way radios recently. Can't remember why, but I've never used them."

"We can use them to talk to each other." Gert realized.

"Yes, but how does that help us with Jake?"

"I can modulate the COM in Jake's armor to the two-way's frequency." Hannah piped in. Alex nodded in approval.

"That will do." He turned to Chase. "Get the others. Tell them we're setting up soon."

Chase nodded, and ran off to get Karolina and Nico. Alex turned back to Jake, who was putting the Sniper Rifle on his back before grabbing his helmet.

"Play it safe, Jake." He said. "If you run into trouble, don't hesitate to run. No playing hero."

"Sure." Jake secured his helmet with a hiss of environmental seals. The moment he did, the hologram deactivated, plunging the group into darkness.

"If you need help, call us. We've got your back."

"Thanks." Jake nodded his appreciation to Alex. "But I won't need help."

Something pulsed in Jake's Motion Tracker; four yellow dots approaching from his 10 o'clock.

"We're back." Chase called cheerfully as he and the three other teens exited the bushes. "So, what's the plan?"

"We need some more intel." Alex crossed his arms. "Jake's going to get close and let Hannah get a clean scan of the target. See exactly what we're up against."

"I'm going with him." Karolina burst out. The rest of the group looked at her in surprise.

"You sure that's a good idea?" Nico questioned. "I mean, this could be dangerous."

"Yeah." Chase grinned sarcastically. "It's dark. And there could be boogie men out." He chuckled, before making spooky ghost noises until Nico elbowed him in the ribs.

"I can handle it." Karolina crossed her arms, daring anyone to disagree with her. "I'm just taking care of Jake. Like you said we needed to do, Nico."

Nico grumbled, but relented. Alex looked like he was about to say something, but Jake cut him off.

"Works for me." He said happily. "Besides, I could use K's powers."

The group looked at him in confusion.

"I'm out of flashbang grenades." He explained. "If I run into trouble, I can yank Karolina's bracelet off and buy myself some time. That, and it'll work as a flare to you guys. You see that shit light up, you come running."

"Cool." Karolina bounced on the balls of her feet, obviously ready to move out. Jake reached inside the van for a final time and handed her what looked like a stubby telescope.

"Spotter scope." He explained to her. "Can't just have you sit next to me and look pretty."

Karolina accepted the device, then followed Jake as he began his trek towards the hill. Before he left, Alex called out to him.

"Good luck, Jake." He said. "You too, K."

"I don't need luck." Jake replied quietly. "I make my own."

Then they dissipated into the plant life behind the Hayes house.

Fifteen Meters Behind The Hayes Residence
5:58 A.M.

"Sierra Firefly One to Alpha Team, we're in position. Repeat, in position." Jake reported through his helmet. "Beginning scan now. Over." He smiled under his helmet, relishing the chance to use the mental lexicon of proper military radio speak he'd picked up over the years.

"Good." Alex's voice crackled over the other end of the line, slightly distorted by the differences in Jake's several-million dollar COM set and the $35 two-way radio he was connected to. "Give us another call when you're done. Over."

"Roger that. Sierra Firefly One, over and out." Jake shut down his COM with a satisfying click. After a second, he grunted and hauled his helmet off. Sweat dripped off his face, a product of the combination of the heat of the fabled California night, black MJLONIR armor that had all it's non-essential systems (including the heating/cooling ones) shut down to increase stealth, and the adrenaline howling through his veins. He wiped his hand across his face, the titanium-weave under-suit covering it coming away soaked.

"Yuck." He muttered, flinging it away into the grass.

"Hmm?" Asked Karolina, laying next to him. She turned her head and looked at him with questioningly.

"Nothing." Jake turned back to his Sniper Rifle, which was propped up on it's built-in bipod before him. It was in order, extra clips laid out on the side.

How's the scan coming, Hannah? He asked his AI.

Fine. And, for your information, "clips" is the incorrect term for those. "Magazines" is the correct one.

Ah. Thank you for that little tip. How far's the scan, exactly?

35 percent. I'd estimate it will be done in five to ten minutes.

Any way to speed that up?

Sure, if I stop talking to you and focus all my processing power on it.

Do it. I want to get the hell out of her ASAP.

Jake waited for a response, but realized one wasn't coming. Hannah was doing what he asked. He turned to check on Karolina, who was looking through the spotter scope. All was in order. Jake turned back to the rifle, placing his eyes to the scope. Unlike modern sniper scopes, which required the user to close one eye and squint, the Oracle line had a large screen at the back, so the sniper simply had to hold the rifle at eye level to use it. It also featured several different vision options, including low-light, thermal, and VISR (Which Hannah had informed Jake stood for Visual Information System, Recon, and was the thing that had activated in his helmet during the fight in the Stein's workshop). Jake turned this last option on. The world jumped into digital focus, everything outlined in yellow. A red outline in a window on the lower floor of the house showed that one of the adults had decided to use the restroom. Everything was quiet.

Sweat dripped into one of Jake's eyes, forcing him to blink. He was about to wipe it away, but Karolina got it first with the cloth they'd brought with them for that purpose.

"Thanks." He said.

"Sure." Karolina paused for a moment, before drawing in a deep breath. "Hey, Jake?"

"Yeah?" Jake twisted a dial on the scope, adjusting the brightness. After setting it, he turned to face Karolina.

"You remember earlier tonight, at Alex's place?" She asked quietly.

"Technically, that was yesterday." Jake blinked. Had it really been only a couple hours? It felt like days. Maybe even weeks. "What about it?"

"Well, I told you I was scared. By all the weird stuff you guys were doing."

"Yeah..." Jake couldn't figure out where she was going with the conversation.

"I was wrong. That wasn't fear." She drew in another breath. Jake noticed her hands were shaking. Karolina tried to start again, but choked. It took Jake a moment to realize she was laughing.

"Sorry, it's just... I don't know how to say this."

"Take your time." He replied soothingly. He glanced at his helmet, lying top-down near him. The scan bar showed 53 percent. Karolina cleared her throat and started again.

"What I felt then wasn't fear. That was just...confusion. I know what fear is now." She looked at Jake, and he could see that same emotion echoed in her blue eyes. "I felt it, during the whole thing with me and the bracelet and, well..."

"What?" Jake rasped. His mouth suddenly felt dry. He pulled a canteen from his belt and took several long drinks.

"I wanted to die, Jake. Really, I did." Karolina swallowed hard, prompting Jake to hand her his canteen. She drained half of it, then tossed it back. "Finding out I was an a-" She choked again, continued. "Not human scared me so much I wished I was dead."

"Urmph." Said Jake. He couldn't think of anything coherent to say.

"That's pretty much how I felt." Karolina shifted, pulling away from the spotter scope to look at Jake. He noticed her eyes were wet. "But then I found out I could fly and..."

"You found you didn't really want to die." Jake guessed. Karolina nodded.

"Well, yeah. The whole things to do, places to see, stuff to try deal."

"Right. Sure. Been there, done that." Jake gestured for her to continue.

"I realized then that there was one thing I really wanted to try. Well, I guess two things. But I've already tried one." She slipped a strand of hair behind her ear. "So, well...I figured that I should try the other. And I was wondering if you could help me."

What the hell is she talking about? Jake pondered frantically. I really hope it's not what I think it is...

"Sure, I guess." He said to Karolina. "What exactly do you need help with?"

"This." Faster than Jake could react (even with his augmented reflexes, a problem Hannah later blamed on a mixture of Jake's split attention and Karolina's strange later-discovered ability to boost her own movement time to not just inhuman but in-Spartan levels), Karolina reached out, pulled Jake over to her side of the hill, and kissed him.

The kiss didn't last long, ten seconds at the most, and was so sudden that Jake almost didn't register it. When he did, he relaxed, closing his eyes. The moment he did, two things flashed into his mind; visions, memories, he wasn't sure.

In both, he was in the same situation; kissing someone. But that was about where the similarities ended. In the first, his attention wasn't on his partner, but his hand. More specifically, the large military-style knife it held. A flash of light, a hand-jarring thunk and a splash of something warm and red. A strange noise that might have been a scream. Then silence.

The second, he was obviously paying attention. He could count the brilliant red hairs on his partners head, sense her hands around his waist. He had something in his hand again, but it wasn't a knife. At least, it didn't look like one. But he used it as if it was, gently cutting the straps of the girls dress from her bare back. A sigh, a rustle of loose cloth and a whisper in some language he didn't understand. An unadulterated scream, maybe of pleasure. Then once again, silence.

Jake snapped back into reality as Karolina pulled back. He jerked in surprise, causing him to fall onto the patch of grass below his rifle. It took him a full three seconds to recover.

"Urk." He said, the moment he had breath back.

"Oh crap. Are you okay?" Karolina asked breathlessly, obviously concerned.

"I'm fine." Jake raised himself off the ground with a creak of armor. "Just wasn't expecting that."

"Sorry." Karolina blushed. "Probably should have said something."

"Nah." Jake waved his hand dismissively. "Surprise makes it better."

"Really?"

"That's what I heard." Jake leaned back against the hill, unable to help smiling. His body felt like it was filled with hydrogen. Lighter than air. A sudden thought struck him.

"Wait, you said "two things". If I'm the seconds...what's the first."

"Oh, yeah." Karolina looked at her feet, bringing her toes close enough to touch. "Well-"

Before she could finish, a small alarm went of in Jake's helmet. He grabbed it from it's resting place and scanned the HUD. The scan was complete.

"Tell me later." He said, slipping his helmet on. "Scans done. Now we have a hostage to rescue."

"Right. Molly." Karolina got up, brushed herself off, and grabbed the spotter scope. Jake did the same with his rifle. He turned on his COM.

"Alpha Team, this is Sierra Firefly One. We have the scan and are RTB. Over."

"Well done, Jake. Let's see what we have. Over."

"Roger. We are Oscar Mike as we speak. Over."

"Oscar Mike?" Alex sounded confused. Jake smiled under his helmet. Apparently, he knew more radio talk than the groups leader.

"On the move. Over."

"Right. Just get here."

"Wilco. Over and out."

Jake shut off his COM and turned to Karolina, who was staring at him.

"Come on." He motioned for her to follow. She fell into step beside him.

"Jake, about the kiss..."

"Later. After we rescue Molly."

"Alright. Just...if the group asks..."

"It never happened?"

"Yeah."

"Fine."

In silence, they walked off into the foliage.

Opposite The Hayes Residence

6:10 A.M.

When Jake and Karolina rejoined the group, Alex was in the middle of a planning session with the others. As they approached, he noticed them and stopped.

"Good. Your back. Did you get the scan?"

"No, I spent the entire time writing the next great Halo novel from my own experience." Jake said sarcastically. "Of course I got it. I said so on the radio, didn't I?"

"True. Let's see it."

Jake nodded, and moved back to his position at the back of the van. His armor lit up again as he did, the hologram of the house reappearing. Next to it, a small set of readouts glowed. Alex looked at them, but Jake could tell he didn't have a clue what they meant. Apparently, Hannah noticed to.

"The scan came up positive," She explained, appearing on Jake's shoulder again. "It's Molly, without a doubt. And I found the reason for the fluctuations." She pointed to a section of one of the windows, showing a line graph. She indicated a large spike above the rest of the data points. "This represents Molly's brain waves. The spike is where she tried to wake up, but something stopped her. My guess, based on what I've gleaned on the Pride's members, is that her own parents are using some kind of telepathic ability to keep her asleep during this whole thing."

"So they could have been bluffing." Karolina muttered. "I mean, why else would they keep her down for this? They still care enough for her not to know she's a hostage."
"Or they're doing it to make her easier to kill." Hannah added. The group looked at her. "If her parents are using telepathy on her, all they would have to do is mess with the right part of her brain and she never wakes up."

"So we know the stakes." Alex said, beginning to pace. "We know Molly's there, and we know how many people we face. We can get Molly out of here." He paused, then turned to the group. "And I have just the plan for it."

"Lets hear it then!" Chase called. "What you got for us?"

"Here's how it's going to go..." Alex leaned in towards the hologram and began to explain. As Jake listened, he found himself nodding.

Impressive. For a human, anyway. Hannah said to Jake. It's certainly worth a try.

No. Do, or do not. There is no try, Jake quoted.

Then let's do it.

Just Outside The Hayes Residence

6:28 P.M.

(Unofficially Titled Operation: MOLLYHAWK T-2 Minutes)

"How about you, Delta Team? Yo u in position? Over" Alex's voice came through Jake's COM system. Jake had piped it through his external speakers so Gert, sitting next to him in the foliage surrounding Molly's house, could hear it. She, her dinosaur, Hannah and himself were Beta Team, the second of three teams in Alex's plan. Alex and Nico were Alpha, and Karolina and Chase were Delta, the ones being currently addressed by Alex. With his HUD set on VISR mode, Jake could see both teams easily in the dark, Alpha near the van across the street from the house, and Delta hidden not far from where Jake and Karolina had been half an hour earlier.

"Dude, we've in position. And we remember the plan. Just like the last billion times you asked us." Jake heard rustling over the link, which a quick glance at Delta's position proved to be nothing more than Karolina shifting in the grass. Chase continued. "Now can we know this role-play crap off and get on with this? You're killing the battery on my radio."

"Roger." Alex paused, signified by the hiss of static over the connection. "This is Alpha Team, proceeding with Phase One." He terminated the connection, and Jake could see him and Nico begin their approach to the house. Begin being the right word, as they stopped in the middle of the street. Jake could see that Alex was deep in conversation with Nico. Next to him, Gert shifted to get a better view.

"Hmmm." She hummed. "It would seem Romeo has finally decided to approach Juliet."

"Huh?" Jake wondered out loud. Gert rolled her eyes at him.

"It's Shakespeare."

"I know that. I took college-level English classes last year, remember? I mean, what's with the reference."

"You seriously don't know?" Gert raised her eyebrows. Behind her, the dinosaur snorted and scratched it's head with a three-clawed hand. "You haven't noticed them dancing around each other for the last year and a half?"

"No, not really." Admitted Jake. "Never really cared, actually."
"You and me both." Gert muttered. "I've been trying to ignore it for a while, but when the dancers are some of your only friends..."

"No avoiding it." Jake finished. Gert nodded.

"Yeah. Of course now it's just a matter of time till-oh, there they go." She sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose, where her glasses cut into the skin. Jake, who had turned away from Alpha Team to talk to Gert, turned back, confused. Though he'd been sort of expecting it, he was still surprised to see Nico latch onto Alex's mouth, grabbing the side of his face and shoulder in the process.

Unable to think of anything else to describe the sight, Jake said "They look like a Flood form gone wrong."

"I was going to say leeches fighting, but that works." Replied Gert. Both teens shuddered.

"What the hell is going on with everyone tonight?" Jake wondered out loud.

"Relationships are like time; they themselves cannot be sped up or slowed down, but the viewers perception of them can be. Confusion and fear for one's life are the best lubrication to use to accelerate them, as are they the grime that clogs their wheels." Gert quoted.

"Haven't heard that one before." Jake admitted.

"Wouldn't be surprised. My mom thought that one up."

"Ironic considering they're both time travelers."

"Ironic indeed." Gert smiled, the first time Jake had seen her do it the entire night. It faded as she noticed something. "Looks like our lovebirds are on the move." She noted. Jake checked. Sure enough, Alex and Nico had broken apart and were moving up the driveway to the door.

"Then so are we." Jake stood up quietly, followed by Gert and her pet. Still silent, they followed Alpha Team's progress, hidden by the plants on the left side of the driveway. All according to Alex's plan. Within moments, Alpha Team arrived at the doorstep, and Jake and Gert slid into hiding, just out of sight of the door. The left side of the house from the doorstep had relatively few windows, most leading to closets or bathrooms, which allowed Jake and Gert to sneak up undetected. Jake nodded to Alex, who returned it before ringing the doorbell. Jake gripped his weapon, a silencer and scope-mounted modification of the M7 Submachine gun line officially know (according to Hannah) as the M7S. He'd retrieved it from his bag earlier, during the planning session when Alex explained the need for stealth. Silenced as it was, it would be perfect for the task ahead.

The second the doorbell rang, Jake heard a voice call from inside the house. His armor booted up it's vocal recognition system, though Jake didn't need it. He knew the voice belonged to Mr. Hayes.

"Standby, people!" He shouted, obviously to the other adults in the room. "The prodigal children have returned."

Seconds later, the door itself opened, obviously by Mr. (no, Doctor, Jake remembered) Hayes. Though Jake couldn't see Molly's dad, he heard him.

"Mr. Wilder, Ms. Minoru...do come in. And quickly, if you don't mind. I'd rather not have the neighbors see us and have to mind-wipe them again".

Alex and Nico followed Dr. Wilder in. Jake motioned behind him to Gert, telling her to get ready. She nodded. They inched closer to the door.

Neither teen was quite sure was happening inside (Alex, Nico and Mr. Hayes seemed to have moved deeper into the building, just enough for their voices to be reduced to murmurs, and the doors had privacy glass). Jake leaned closer in, pressing his helmet to the door. He couldn't hear much, just snippets of sentences. Something about "playmates", "safe", "quid", "business", and "snap."

Then, quite clearly, though obviously strained, Jake heard Alex's voice;

"Beta Team...Phase...Two!"

"Lets go!" Jake howled. Rearing back on one leg, he executed a door breach, bringing his other foot down on the place where the two doors met, where they were weakest. The doors literally exploded under the force of his armor-boosted kick, sending shards of glass, wood, and metal everywhere. The blast apparently caught Dr. Hayes (who, Jake noticed, was wearing his costume from the night sacrifice, a red and black vest style affair with a cape and a mouth cover, of all things) unaware, as Jake's foot only stopped moving as it came in contact with the good doctor's back. With a grunt, he tumbled to the ground. Jake threw himself out of the way, turning in time to see Gert's dinosaur burst through the remains of the door. It leapt at the floored Dr. Hayes, who screamed. Gert followed it inside, with Jake on her tail.

"You alright?" She asked Alex and Nico, who were keeling on the floor for some reason.

"Yeah, fine." Replied Alex. "Just make sure that your pet keeps the good doctor occupied."

"Can do, boss." Gert saluted Alex, then moved to keep an eye on her dinosaur and it's victim. Alex continued issuing orders, heading for the stairs as he did.

"Nico, you keep an eye on stuff down here. Jake, you come with me. We're gonna-"

Alex's sentence ended with a loud crack as, without warning, a large, thin ax swung around the door. He ran face-first into the flat end, lost his glasses, and dropped like a stone.

"Alex!" Nico howled.

Shit, is he okay? Jake asked Hannah.

He's fine, but I'd be more worried about us right now, replied the AI. That's a samurai battle ax.

A what?

A weapon from an alternate past. Combines the best features of a katana and a battle ax. Very dangerous.

Jake was about to respond when the ax's owner came around the corner; Mr. Yorkes, with his wife at his side. Both wore their Pride uniforms (as Jake had come to think of the costumes each of the members wore), which consisted of what looked like turn-of-the-century English wet weather gear, topped with goggles and ear muffs. The ax Alex had just run into was placed on the floor in front of Mr. Yorkes, who used its handle as a hand rest.

But of course, Jake thought. Who else would have weapons from alternate time streams?

"Girls, I must say I am disappointed." Mr. Yorkes said, amazingly calm despite the fact he'd just knocked Alex out cold. "Call me old fashioned, but all this fighting seems most unladylike."

"Then maybe you should worry about the Spartan on their six, old man." Jake said boldly, before Nico or Gert could reply. To back up his statement, he raised his M7 to his shoulder and placed the sight over Mr. Yorkes head. "Now how about you step away from my friend, or we'll see how well those fancy duds of yours handle a couple dozen rounds of 5mm Full Metal Jacket spray."

If Mr. Yorkes was intimidated by Jake's threat, he didn't show it. He did the exact opposite of a fearful reaction; he laughed. Quietly, as if amused by Jake's bluster and bravado.

"Oh Jake. You truly are your father's son." He said, smiling warmly. "You even favor the same weaponry. That is your father's M7S, is it not?"

"Uh..." Jake stuttered, caught off guard. He hadn't been suspecting something like this. "What does it matter to yo-"

He stopped as he felt something tap his toe. Glancing down, he saw something that made his blood run cold;

A grenade, spinning slowly away from him.

Jake looked up, shock filling him. Had he not been wearing a helmet, everyone would have noticed it echoed in his eyes. He noticed Mrs. Yorkes putting her hand under the cape she wore over her coat. He guessed she must have chucked it.

Speaking of grenade...Jake glanced down again. It was still there, but it hadn't gone off. In fact, it seemed to be spinning slower than it had been. With relief, he recognized the effects of Spartan Time. With no time to lose, Jake did the only thing he could think of to get away; he threw himself backwards, rolling on his back and continuing.

The grenade detonated, a brilliant flash of light and a crackle of energy. Jake stood up from his roll...

And promptly fell back down, slamming into the wall hard enough to leave a dent. He slid down, unable to move. Arcs of what appeared to be lightning coursed over his armor, making his skin tingle. To his right, Nico stumbled back towards the couch opposite where the door had been, holding her eyes. She'd gotten caught by the grenades explosion as well. Jake tried to stand up, found he couldn't move. He was stuck.

What the fuck? He wondered angrily.

Electromagnetic Pulse grenade! Every thing's shorted out! Hannah cried. Sith, we should have seen that coming!

You mean this thing isn't EMP hardened?

It is, but you have to set it up. We haven't had the time. I'll try and reboot your armor.

Please do.

Hannah fell silent, hopefully working. With nothing else to do, Jake focused on the confrontation between Nico, Gert, and her parents.

With him out of the way, the Yorkes seemed to have focused on their daughter, who, despite her attempts at the contrary, was obviously scared of them. She'd backed up away from them as they had moved closer to her, placing her back against her dinosaur.

"Well, looks like you found your inheritance." Mr. Yorkes said to his daughter, using the same voice he'd been talking in for the past couple minutes. "Funny, last time I checked, your mother and I weren't even dead yet."

"Yeah, well that...that can be changed." Gert stuttered. "Your murders. I've got no trouble sic...siccing this girl on you.

Again, in response to the threat, Mr. Yorkes laughed. His wife joined him this time. Jake clenched his hand in frustration, wishing he could get in on the action.

"Convincing, Gertrude." Mrs. Yorkes said calmly, speaking for the first time in the confrontation. To Jake's amazement (and, apparently Gert's, considering the gasp that followed), she reached out and scratched the dinosaurs head. Instead of attacking her Jurassic Park-style, the dino closed it's eyes and snuggled up to Mrs. Yorkes.

"Unfortunately," She continued, "This creature was genetically engineered to be unable to harm a member of your immediate family."

Amazing, whispered Hannah. The gene-tech from their home time must be incredible.

Less gaping, more rebooting, Jake ordered her.

"So now that we have that explained," Mr. Yorkes added to his wife's talk, "Perhaps we can all settle down and work this-"

For the third time this hour, a sentence was interrupted violently. This time, it was Mr. Yorkes, who was cut of by Nico. Having apparently shaken off the shock of the grenade blast, the gothic Asian girl joined the fray by bellowing at the top of and charging at Mr. and Mrs. Yorkes...unarmed.

Damn it Hannah, get this thing back up before the stupid bitch gets herself killed! Jake howled through his mind.

Almost got it... There was a crackle, and with a jolt Jake found he could move again. He rose...

A moment to late. With a cry of "No!", Mr. Yorkes swung his ax up on instinct. The blade caught Nico across the chest, easily slicing through her hand-made black outfit and slicing into the skin beneath. The force of the blow sent her onto the floor in a spray of blood, next to Alex's still-unconscious form. She didn't stir.

Silence reigned. Everyone stared at Nico's form, the Yorkes included.

Suddenly, Jake found himself breaking that silence.

"You bloody son of a bitch!" He howled, jumping to his feet. The Heat returned to his body, filling his veins. His heart pounded, breath rasping in his throat. His vision clouded red, and sanity began to slip from him. With a roar, he charged at the Yorkes.

Unlike Nico, who had attacked them out of desperation, Jake's assault was a tactical maneuver. He knew (or at least thought he knew) what he was doing. Though he was unarmed, he doubted Mr. Yorkes ax could penetrate his armor. And if it did, he and the armor would survive. Earlier, Hannah had explained that one of the additions to the MK X MJLONIR was a self-repair system. A single ax wasn't going to do any major damage. If anything, it would leave Mr. Yorkes open for a counterstrike.

He didn't, however, think of any of this as he ran forward. The only thought in his mind was that Gert's parents had hurt his friend, and now they were going to pay with their blood. At the very least.

As it turned out, the former thoughts were unimportant anyway; Jake, in his enraged mood, moved faster than he'd ever before, so much that he reached the Yorkes before they could react. With another scream, Jake struck.

Catching Mrs. Yorkes in the stomach with an elbow shove as he passed but not slowing down, Jake rammed into Mr. Yorkes with the force of a freight train. Though his target was fit, and weighed several dozen more pounds than Jake, the sheer force of the Spartan's charge lifted Mr. Yorkes off his feet. The two continued across the room, only stopping when they collided with the wall, which cracked and dented from the impact. Mr. Yorkes roared in pain, until Jake shut him up with a viscous punch to the stomach. Stunned from hitting the wall and the punch, Mr. Yorkes didn't react when Jake boldly grabbed him by the collar with one hand an threw him across the room. As luck would have it, he landed on his wife, who was just beginning to rise, clutching her chest where Jake had elbowed her. They both went down. Jake, out of enemies for the moment, felt the Heat and rage leave him. His vision cleared, and he focused on Gert, who was looking at him in amazement.

"Don't just stand there!" He shouted at her. "Check on Nico!"

Gert, snapped out of her daze by his voice, nodded. After a moments thought, Jake reached into his belt and tossed a can of some form to her. She caught it.

"Biofoam." He explained. "It should keep Nico from bleeding to death if the cuts to bad. Just spray it in there, it'll do the rest."

"O-okay." Gert said, shakily. She quickly moved to Nico's prone form. Jake, satisfied that his friend would be taken care of, turned back in time to see Mr. Yorkes charge at him with ax in hand. Calmly, he

stepped to the side, and put his foot out in Mr. Yorkes path. Behind him came the thump of his victim hitting the floor. Jake popped his visor open just long enough to spit, then turned to face the downed Mr. Yorkes. The Heat and rage returned as he did.

"Well now we know why you think fighting is unladylike." He spat. "We've been fighting for less than five minutes and your already done."

"On the contrary, young man." Mr. Yorkes replied. "I am, as you young people like to say, just getting warmed up."

With a yell, he swung his ax back up, a blow that would have caught Jake's neck if he hadn't dodged. As it was, the ax snagged on Jake's shoulder plate, allowing Mr. Yorkes to haul himself up and throw a punch at Jake's face. Though he could have dodged it, Jake let it come. The blow rebounded of his faceplate, doing not damage to it and coinciding with a soft crunching noise from Mr. Yorkes hand. Gert's dad stumbled back, clutching his injured appendage, leaving himself open for Jake to land another blow to his midriff. This time, he followed up with an uppercut to the jaw, lifting Mr. Yorkes off his feet completely and sending him several feet back.

Something, a feeling, made Jake turn away from Mr. Yorkes. As he did, he found himself face to face with his M7S, held in the hands of Mrs. Yorkes and aimed at him.

Jake didn't even say anything. He just moved. In less than a second, he crossed the gap between them, grabbed his SMG, yanked it free of Mrs. Yorkes grasp, and slammed his fist into her face. She went down, clutching her nose. Jake whirled back around, just in time to catch another ax strike from Mr. Yorkes on his left gauntlet. His armor cracked, but only slightly. In the seconds the two opponents stood facing each other, they disappeared as the armor repaired itself. Jake suddenly found himself laughing. A cold, inhuman noise, like something a Sith Lord of Star Wars might make.

"Fool." He spat at Mr. Yorkes. "Do you really think you can stop me?"

From his right gauntlet came a loud clicking noise. A glance over at it showed the plates sliding back, allowing a blade to unfold and emerge from within. Jake leapt back, bringing his new weapon up in a guard position. Mr. Yorkes looked at it and coughed once. Jake noticed he had blood running from his nose.

"So. I see you have your father's distorted sense of honor as well." He said thickly. Jake depolarized his faceplate just long enough for Mr. Yorkes to see his vile grin.

"So I do." He replied. Then he swung his right arm in a wide strike, which Mr. Yorkes caught and repelled.

The next couple minutes (Jake wasn't sure how long, too busy fighting as he was) passed in a blur of strike, counterstrike, stab and parry and other swordplay moves Jake couldn't name. Strangely, as he fought, Jake remembered a song he had heard at some point, possibly during one of his many late-night Halo binges, either playing the games or reading the books over again. Sung by the Sick Puppies , if he remembered correctly. Some semi-dated band from Australia. Fittingly, it was titled "You're Going Down". Jake found himself attacking to the beat and actually singing the lyrics at several points.

But despite the showiness of the combat, there really was not contest. Jake could have ended the fight (and possibly Mr. Yorkes life) by simply activating the identical blade Hannah informed him was in his other gauntlet and stabbing it through his opponents chest. But, either because some still normal part of him didn't want to be a murderer, or because he had the strange sense of honor mentioned by Mr. Yorkes, he didn't and let the fight continue, until at last he wrapped his blade around the handle of Mr. Yorkes ax and sent it flying across the room. It stuck to the wall, quivering. Mr. Yorkes backed away, hands held up in surrender. Jake kept the blade pointed at him.

"Now, I have a few questions about your little group." He growled. "Your going to answer. Play nice, and I won't gut you like an Energy Sword-wielding Elite attacking a Drone."

"I wouldn't be so sure your in a position to be making threats, Jake." Mr. Yorkes said. Jake blinked, and was about to ask what he meant, when the answer literally hit him on the head.

With a thunk, something hard and cylindrical crashed into his helmet. Jake guessed it was another grenade. He started turning around, and was about to mention to Mrs. Yorkes (who was probably the grenade's thrower) that it wasn't going to do anything now that he was ready for EMP's when the grenade detonated. Instead of energy, it released something brown, sticky, and cold. In seconds, it coated most of Jake's armor, hardening and making it impossible to move.

Oh great, now what's this shit? Jake roared in his mind. He looked down at his hands, stuck in mid-turn. The substance was strange, unlike anything natural, but Jake realized he'd seen it somewhere before.

Carbonite! He growled. The same crap Han Solo had been frozen in for a couple months in Star Wars. He clenched his only free hand angrily.

"You've certainly made a mess, Mr. Hunter." Mrs. Yorkes said from behind him. Jake's rear-view camera showed her helping her husband up. "And I must say, you have obviously inherited your parents fighting skills. As well as their anger. I suggest you take the foreseeable future to think about what you've done. Maybe when you calm down, I'll let you out of that block."

"The only way I'll calm down is if you rip my heart from my chest, bitch." Jake snapped. He waited for her to walk around to his front, Mr. Yorkes in tow, then opened his visor enough to spit in her face. Mrs. Yorkes wiped his saliva off her face, then started at him with hard eyes.

"Well, I was hoping you would see reason," She said quietly. "But apparently you aren't interested in that. It would seem I need a mores stern measure of discipline."

"Think again." Said a voice from behind the Yorkes. Everyone (including Jake, to the length that he could) turned to see Nico, once again on her feet. She was pale, even more so than she'd been earlier, and the rip in her clothes was bloody, but the massive cut across her chest was filled with the distinctive yellow bubbles of biofoam.

And clutched in her left hand was her mother's staff.

The appearance of this object apparently shocked the Yorkes more than the fact that she was still alive.

"Where...where did you get-" Mrs. Yorkes stammered. Nico cut her off by raising the staff.

"Freeze." She ordered. But she didn't speak in her own voice, to Jakes surprise; her word echoed, as if two Nico's were speaking in unison, and it had a strange, bass rumble to it. It reminded Jake of this machinima he'd seen made using Halo 2 where this hacker's voice sounded the same every time he changed the game, usually by saying something witty or fitting for the changes (like "How about two for one?" before bringing a pair of Plasma Rifles into existence)

But what shocked Jake even more than the voice was the effect; Mrs. Yorkes literally froze, stopped in mid-sentence and motion. A white aura seemed to surround her. Mr. Yorkes looked at his wife in amazement, before collapsing with a grunt to the ground. Behind him stood a red-faced Gert, holding a chunk of wood from the door.

"Nice." Jake said.

"Thanks." Gert breathed out loudly. She turned to Nico. "You alright? You look kinda pale. And what the hell did you do-"

"Later, Gert." Nico replied quietly. She looked down at the Yorkes. "Keep an eye on them. And when Alex wakes up...tell him we're on to Phase Three."

"Sure." Gert nodded, then sat down on the couch, apparently exhausted. Nico turned to Jake, who was still stuck in carbonite.

"You need help getting out of there?" She asked. Jake shook his head.

"Nah, I got this." He flexed, putting the force of his muscles at a certain point. With a crack, the carbonite fell to the floor in chunks. He brushed himself off, then stood up and retracted the blade on his arm.

"Lets do this."

Molly Hayes Room

6:42 P.M.

( Operation: MOLLYHAWK T+12 Minutes)

Jake and Nico both moved quickly moved up the stairs, Jake in the lead. He reached the top silently, and slid into the large open space to the right of Molly's door. He noticed it was open. He didn't like it.

"Okay, here's how this shit's goin' down." He whispered to Nico. "I'll lob a flash grenade in there, then run in and pulverize anyone still on their feet. Then you come in as soon as I've cleared it, grab Molly, and-"

"No." Nico interrupted him. Jake blinked in surprise, but the authority in Nico's voice stopped him from continuing. Where the fuck had this come from?

"Alright, what do you suggest?" He asked.

"I'll go in first. You cover my back." She gripped the staff harder. "Mrs. Hayes is probably in there. When I go in, she'll try to do something to me telepathically. If she does, I need you to distract her and break that spell."

"Okay, sure." Jake nodded. Though he didn't like how much danger Nico was putting herself in, he thought the plan sound. "How should I distract her?"

Nico paused for a moment, thinking. Then, an evil smile spread across her face.

"Surprise me." She replied.

"Wilco." Jake took up a covering stance on the side of the door. Nico, seeing him in place, moved into the room. In the sudden quiet, Jake heard something coming from the room; a lullaby, sung by Molly's mom.

For some reason, Jake found the innocent words chilling. Trying to shake it off, he tried to remember if their target was a doctor too. It didn't come to him, so he focused instead on the unfolding drama within.

"Hands off her, witch." Nico spat. Mrs. Hayes stopped singing.

"Isn't that the pot calling the cauldron black, Nico?" She asked sweetly. "You're the one who looks like they should be burned at the stake.

"You people-" Nico started to say, but Jake failed to hear the last of it as Hannah cut in for the first time in quite a while.

Jake, I'm getting energy spikes!

What? Where from?

I don't know! They're like nothing I've ever scanned!

Well full shield or whatever! Put up every defense this armor has!

Understood. Going to full Omega-Two Readiness now.

The moment Hannah finished talking, Jake heard a scuffle from inside the room. Then Nico's voice, strained like Alex's had been at the beginning of the mission.

"Now!" She shouted.

Jake swung around the door, SWAT style, instantly scanning for Mrs. Hayes. He saw her, standing over Nico, who was on her knees again, arm raised. He also saw (but didn't really register) the fact that her eyes seemed to be glowing pink. Not bothering to think about it, Jake brought the butt of his M7S up and slammed it into Mrs. Hayes chest. He would have shot her, but he could see Molly directly behind her, asleep in her bed. A single bad shot could seriously injure her, maybe even kill. And that was something they didn't want happening.

His victim stumbled back, coughing. Jake's strike had forced her away from Molly, allowing Jake a clear line of sight. He raised his SMG to his shoulder one more.

"Stand down." He ordered. "I don't know about you, but I'd rather not have poor Molly here wake to the sight of your brains spraying over her wall."

Mrs. Hayes responded by spitting on the ground and glaring at him.

"So, not even his own flesh and blood is safe from Hunter's quest for the ultimate weapon," She growled.

What the hell is she talking about now? He wondered.

"Yeah, we he found it. That's me, right here." He said out loud. "And unless you chill, I'll show you just how-"

"Nico, Jake?" Came a soft voice from Jake's right. Jake couldn't turn all the way around (weapon being aimed at Mrs. Hayes as it was), but his rear-view camera activated again. The speaker was Molly, who had apparently just woken up. This wasn't surprising. Anyone who could sleep through what had just happened wasn't normal. Or had just pulled a massive overnighter.

Despite the situation, Jake found himself chuckling at the pajamas she was wearing. They even had a matching hat.

Then he noticed the small trickle of blood coming out of Molly's right nostril.

"What did you do to her?" Nico cried, noticing it as well. To both teens amazement, Mrs. Hayes seemed as surprised as they were. She even apparently forgot the gun Jake was holding at her.

"Nothing!" She cried, hurrying over to her daughter's side. "Molly, what happened?"

"Huh?" Molly wondered, confused. Then she noticed the blood. "Oh jeez." She muttered, wiping it away with her finger. "This is what I was trying to tell you..." She looked up, eyes full of confusion.

"Something's wrong with my body." She said. Then, as if to prove her sentence true, her eyes lit up. The same color as her mom's.

That one moment, when Molly's eyes changed from the emerald green that would entice any boy she wanted once she got old enough to the inhuman, brilliant, glowing pink of her parents, scared Jake more than everything else had that entire night. He found himself fearing for his life, from something he didn't know but still understood completely.

Shit, they rigged her! He howled to Hannah, raising his SMG in Molly's direction. They turned their own fucking daughter into a biobomb!

No, it's alright! Hannah replied, relief evident in her voice. I'm not getting any rad counts. She's clean.

The how the fuck do you explain this?

I think...I think she's a mutant. Like her parents.

Oh, well that's good. Jake felt himself relax. Biobombs (whatever the hell they were) were something to worry about. A mutant...not so much. Hell, wasn't he technically one?

Molly's mom and Nico seemed to be taking this harder than he was, he noticed. Both were staring at Molly in shock.

"Shes...shes..." Nico stuttered.

"No, she can't be a mutant." Mrs. Hayes said quietly, probably more to herself than any of the other three people in the room. "We had her scanned at birth. I thought she was negative. I thought-"

What she thought, Jake never found out. With a cry of "Shut up!", Nico slammed Mrs. Hayes in the back of the head with the staff. Her victim crumpled without a sound.

"Nice." Jake noted. Nico shrugged, and looked down at Mrs. Hayes still form.

"Your lies end right now." She spat. Turning to Jake, she nodded. Jake, guessing what she wanted, stepped over and aimed his SMG at the still form on the floor.

At that moment, Molly decided to make her feelings on the events known.

"STOP IT!" She howled. Jake whirled around, followed by Nico...

And came face to face with something he wouldn't forget for a very, very long time.

Molly stood on her bed, fist clenched around her sleep hat in anger. Her eyes still glowed pink, but the coloration had intensified, as if fed by her anger, so that Jake could barely see any of the actual eye. It seemed to have spread as well, and now her hair was softly glowing as well, each strand billowing as if electrified.

"GET AWAY FROM MY MOM!" Molly howled again. Both Nico and Jake stepped back.

Fuck, could this night get any worse? Jake wondered.

End of Issue Seven