GI Joe/Marvel universe crossover.
I don't own Marvel or Hasbro.
Silence
Chapter 10: Suspicions and Hard Lessons
Time: 20:03 Zulu, Wednesday; 00:03 local time, Thursday
Location: The GI Joe Pit
The Silent Master sat, for once and perhaps only for the moment, at peace with the world. The ninja sat cross-legged on top of the motor pool, which was in turn on top of the Pit. He smelt the faint scent of ocean water and oil and in the distance, the night lights of New York City twinkled on into the night.
His brother was free.
It was a mantra that he silently repeated. Tommy's free. It had been nearly two hours since Hawk had informed him and Jinx of the circumstances surrounding his brother's escape. After the younger of the Arashikage cousins had left the general's office, Snake Eyes had also been informed of Hawk's intention to contact Charles Xavier personally about Storm Shadow, as well as about Beach Head and Lifeline.
Somewhere, in the city twinkling so tantalizing at him, Thomas Arashikage was free.
Snake Eyes smiled.
Scarlett had immediately sensed that something had happened. Hawk had given him permission to inform her about Tommy, knowing that she was practically a member of the extended Arashikage clan anyway. The beautiful red head had smiled at him, equally relieved that the wayward ninja hadn't intentionally betrayed them.
His smile faltered, only to be replaced with a dark scowl.
He'd been brainwashed. As if Tommy's life hadn't been difficult enough, he'd just escaped Cobra only to be sucked forcefully in again. Someone would pay for that.
A tiny crack of noise caught his attention, but he purposely ignored it. He'd tensed the first time it had happened and had even drawn his sword. Lifeline had appeared briefly, sheepishly apologizing. Apparently Beach Head had sensed the ninja's change in mood and had sent the medic to make sure he was alright, although spy was a more technically accurate term.
Snake Eyes had been greatly amused, as the other man had no idea how he'd been detected. The ninja had given the by now patented 'I'm a ninja' answer, which was partly correct. However, the real answer was that the medic made tiny telltale cracks of noise, almost like miniscule thunder, when he used small bursts of superspeed. It wasn't terribly noticeable, unless you were someone like Snake Eyes who had been trained to hear small things.
The fact that Lifeline's mutant powers weren't foolproof made him insufferably pleased. He now had further ammunition to use whenever the medic was balking on training.
His lips twitched up into a brief smile. The X-Men were going to have their hands full when Beach Head and Lifeline showed up, especially if Storm Shadow was still present.
He grinned widely at that.
There was no point in being angry at the moment. Cobra would be dealt with later. For now, he was simply thankful that his prayers had finally been answered. Hawk had told him that he planned to tell the rest of GI Joe about Storm Shadow, partly to clear his name and partly to use it as an example of the good things that mutants could do.
The ninja hummed silently to himself, unconsciously choosing an old Johnny Cash song that his father had favored. Or perhaps he had heard Beach Head humming it recently. If the ranger had one thing in common with his deceased father, it was a similar taste in music.
"There will be peace in the valley for me some day
There will be peace in the valley for me dear Lord I pray
(There'll be no sadness no sorrow no trouble I see)
There will be peace in the valley for me (for me)."
Yes, for the moment…even if only for the moment, his heart was at peace.
Time: 03:20 Zulu, Thursday; 07:20 local time, Thursday
Location: The GI Joe Pit
"Move it you dang maggots!"
An amused Nick Fury puffed on a cigar as an Alabama accent bellowed at the GI Joe team scrambling across an obstacle course. He blew out a puff of smoke as he watched one of the ninjas nimbly make her way through a 'mine field'. While the other soldiers weren't as agile as the small woman, there was a clear reason they were GI Joes. They were the cream of the crop. Fury would take any of them for S.H.I.E.L.D.
"Damn it Dusty! Cobra's not going to sit around while you lollygag through a firing zone! Drop n' give me fifty!"
The desert trooper in question grimaced, but dropped to the ground. Despite his failure to meet the bellowing ranger's expectations, he was without a doubt quicker than the average Green Beret or SEAL. No doubt it had something to do with the drill leader pushing him to work harder.
Fury wanted Sneeden. He'd read his files and now he'd seen the man's training. S.H.I.E.L.D. could benefit from having the ranger, even if only for a few weeks to run its agents through the grinder. There was no way Abernathy would willingly give him up though and now the X-Men were about to get their hands on him. Of course, once Sneeden began training with other mutants, Nick fully expected that his training methods would improve and adapt to handle potential combat with mutant powers.
"Impressed?" a voice behind him asked. Speak of the devil…
"They're GI Joes," Fury answered. "I wouldn't expect less of them Abernathy, especially since they're yours." Hawk grinned slightly at him, clearly proud of the men and women under his command. Fury respected that. The general had good reason to be proud.
"I want him," Nick finally said bluntly. Hawk looked sideways at him. "I don't care if it's just one or two weeks," he added.
"And how do I know 'one or two weeks' wouldn't turn into a permanent loan?" Hawk asked carefully.
"You don't," Fury smirked. "But honestly, that man wouldn't willingly leave your team. I can tell just from watching him."
There was another puff of smoke.
"My second in command got a hold of Stark," Hawk said after a moment. "After he's cleared for security, we'll have him take a look at the weapons shipment we picked up from Cobra." Fury nodded at that, still watching the soldiers running through the obstacle course.
"What kind of man is he?" the general asked, trusting the other man's opinion.
"A pain in the ass," Nick Fury smirked. "But good at what he does. Be careful Abernathy, you might be trying to recruit Stark by the end of this."
"Tony Stark? In GI Joe?" Hawk asked, raising an amused eyebrow.
"You've got two mutants-one that's a superpowerful pacifist, a gourmet chef who's also a gunner, a sailor that thinks he's a pirate, a former supermodel, and god damn ninjas. He'd fit right in," Fury said dryly. "Besides, his best friend's a Marine. That's got to say something."
The S.H.I.E.L.D. director allowed his eyes to find a young man climbing up the A-frame as if he were Spiderman.
"What's his name?" he asked, nodding towards the A-frame.
"Kamakura," Hawk answered. The general gave him a knowing look before adding, "You can't have any of my ninjas."
"You don't need three ninjas Abernathy. Four, if Storm Shadow comes back."
"Is S.H.I.E.L.D. that hard up if you're trying to steal my people?" Hawk asked, somewhat irately.
"Nope, just want the best of the best," Nick replied.
"So do I. Get your own damn ninjas."
Time: 09:30 Zulu, Thursday; 13:30 local time, Thursday
Location: The Xavier Institute of Higher Learning
From the personal files of Charles Xavier:
Moira's death has left a hole that can't be replaced. I had hoped that we were finally taking a step forward with her and Dr. McCoy's invitation to speak at the world summit. However, I fear that her assassination by Cobra, as well as that organization's offer of "asylum" to mutantkind has brought unforeseen difficulties in the near future. I am concerned for those mutants who are no doubt seeking out this terrorist organization at this very moment. Unfortunately, the conflict between Magnus and I seems to have polarized the mutant population and mutants are now seeking out Cobra as a third alternative. Magnus does not yet know that the deaths at the G8 Summit were a Cobra operation. I hope he will be amenable to work with us on this issue.
Fortunately, some good seems to have come from this disaster. Jean and I have removed the last of the brainwashing in Thomas Arashikage's mind. Unfortunately, the internal wounds go back much further, back to the time when his uncle the Hard Master was murdered, and the murder blamed on him. My heart goes out to the pain he has been put through. Judging from what we have pulled from his mind, I am concerned that Cobra may try to capture him again. He was too useful a tool for Cobra Commander to let go willingly. Additionally, I fear that those mutants currently fleeing to Cobra will be subjected to the same mind control and experimentation under the man called Dr. Mindbender.
In the short time he has been with us, Mr. Arashikage has made vast improvements, though the scars will take time to heal. Logan has taken a personal interest in him, even though they have so far spoken little. Last night Thomas was able to sit down and watch a movie with Kurt and actually enjoy it. I suppose it doesn't need to be stated that the movie in question was one of Mr. Wagner's beloved Errol Flynn ones. Thomas's apology to Henry also lifted an emotional burden as well. Afterwards, the two men spent a few hours talking about any number of subjects, ranging from Marcus Aurelius to discussions of their families. This morning, Remy, Kurt, and Rogue managed to talk him into playing a game of basketball with them. Even though his shoulder is still injured from Logan's claws, he is in excellent physical condition. Kurt and Thomas made quite the unstoppable team. Mr. LeBeau is now also of the belief that ninjas are in fact part monkey.
Needless to say, I am quite pleased with the interest and compassion that my X-Men have shown Mr. Arashikage. Ororo and Jubilee have offered to take him on a tour of this school this afternoon. I think this is a splendid idea.
Additionally, through Nick Fury I have learned that GI Joe, Thomas's former unit, is now aware of the circumstances surrounding his second defection to Cobra, as well as his freedom. Mr. Fury has also alerted me that the commanding officer of the GI Joe team, General Clayton Abernathy, will be contacting me shortly about Thomas… as well as about two mutants under his own command. If possible, I should like Thomas to be able to speak with his friend, or rather, brother. His friend Snake Eyes, or Mr.…
Charles Xavier stopped dictating when he sensed Logan approach his office door. The professor saved his file and telepathically welcomed the other mutant to come in. He immediately sensed that his friend wished to speak of the ninja currently in their care.
"Good afternoon Logan," he greeted. "Please have a seat."
It was mere protocol, really. Logan would take a seat even if he told him not to. However, the gruff man respected him enough to wait a few seconds before settling himself into one of the leather chairs in front of the desk.
"How's the kid?" he asked, cutting straight to the point. Charles sat back in his chair and interlaced his fingers, looking at the other mutant.
"Much better. The brainwashing has been completely removed. The scars, as you know, will take longer to heal," he said simply. Logan merely grunted. The Canadian sat quietly and Charles waited patiently for him to speak what was on his mind. He'd learned from long experience that Wolverine hated to be prodded.
"I'm worried about him," Logan finally said. "Cobra's goin' to come after him again. Heck, the US government may come after him to recruit him. The kid ain't ready to face either one of those." So Logan had come to the same conclusion.
"He may decide to rejoin GI Joe," Charles Xavier pointed out. "That is where his friends and family are."
"I know Chuck, but he needs time," Wolverine answered. "Cobra knows we have him, they have to." The professor peered at him, looking into his mind. What he saw there pleased him.
"I think your plan is a good idea," Charles finally said. "But I ask that you wait at least two more days so we can monitor him. I think it would also be good if he had a chance to contact the Arashikage clan and his friend Snake Eyes." He half expected Logan to argue, but instead the man nodded his head in agreement.
"Fine. Two days, then we're leaving," Logan answered. Charles nodded.
"Thank you Logan."
Time: 09:30 Zulu, Thursday; 13:30 local time, Thursday
Location: GI Joe Pit
Beach Head scowled to himself, focusing on the small handgun floating in front of him. He slowly dissembled the Beretta, trying very hard not to drop any of the pieces. The ranger had managed to succeed so far, though it had been agonizingly slow and the pieces dipped dangerously close to the desk he was sitting at.
"Okay, now put it back to together," Snake Eyes said. The ranger hid a sigh, knowing this was for his own good. Sweat dripped down his face and into his eyes as he attempted to fit the pieces back together. He'd long since ripped off the balaclava.
"Don't drop it…!"
Clang. The firing pin and extractor spring fell on the desk in front of him and Wayne barely managed to keep the other pieces from falling as well. The ranger gave a frustrated sigh. His head was pounding from the mental concentration. He took a deep breath and telekinetically lifted the fallen pieces back up to hover shakily with the rest of the parts.
Damn it. It hardly took him any time at all to disassemble and reassemble a handgun. He had been at this for what, ten, fifteen minutes? Several more agonizing minutes passed before Wayne managed to successfully reassemble the Beretta, although he dropped a couple more pieces before he finally finished.
The ranger was rather irked at himself. He should have taken it upon himself to come up with this exercise. His inability to control his own powers was causing Beach Head to grow more and more disgusted with himself. How often had he bellowed at the soldiers under his command to work harder and give more than one hundred percent? And here he was only now trying, and struggling, to train the mutant abilities he'd been given.
"You will practice this every day until you can do it as quickly as you can by hand…without dropping anything," Snake Eyes ordered. Beach Head bit back the bit of orneriness threatening to spill out. He needed the training.
"Fine," he muttered, mentally too tired to reply back telepathically.
"You will also only use telepathy to talk to me during training sessions," the ninja replied. Wayne swore softly as he glared at the other man. The two men were currently sitting in Beach Head's office.
"Unless you don't feel like giving me one hundred percent," the ninja said wryly. Beach Head sent him one of his fiercest glares.
"You know you never have to worry about that from me," he shot back. "I ain't a hypocrite!"
"Good, then you won't mind learning the simple meditation I'm about to teach you."
Wait, what? Beach Head hadn't agreed to learn any of that ninja hocus pocus. When the ranger made the mistake of saying just that, Snake Eyes reached out and gave him a good smack to the side of his head.
"Ow! Gawd damn ninja!"
Another smack.
"Stop hitting me! My head already hurts enough, damn it!"
"I'll stop hitting you when you stop being stupid," Snake Eyes chastised, ignoring the furious eyes glaring at him. "It's just a simple meditation, hardly unique to the Arashikage clan. Even Lifeline knows how to do it. How do you expect to improve when you can't even do simple mental exercises?
Wayne Sneeden glowered silently at him, crossing his arms. Oh, the other man was probably right. The ninja could also easily have Hawk order him to obey, though that was hardly necessary, as Snake Eyes was in charge of hand to hand training anyway. However, this wasn't hand to hand training, but Beach Head figured it was smarter to not point that out, or he'd get smacked again.
"Stop being a stubborn bear, it's for your own good," the ninja finally sighed. "Good Lord Wayne, it's just a simple meditation. Even a child could learn it. Storm Shadow learned how to do it when he was five."
Oh that did.
"Fine," Wayne snapped, harder than he'd intended. His head was currently pounding and as he'd unfortunately discovered, Advil didn't much help with telepathic and telekinetic induced migraines.
"I swear," Snake Eyes sighed. "I just get a headache trying to teach you."
"Just teach me the dang meditation already so I can get back to work."
Time: 10:41 Zulu, Thursday; 14:41 local time, Thursday
Location: GI Joe Pit
Lady Jaye wisely averted her gaze when Beach Head stormed around the corner, bellowing at a couple of greenshirts who had accidentally lost control of a Hummer and drove it into his beloved obstacle course. The vehicle had finally come to a halt in the mud pit, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake. The man was already in a sour mood and the two Seals had only made it worse.
"He's in a good mood," Cover Girl said dryly. The two women were both filling out reports in a far corner of the mess hall.
"I'd hate to see him in a bad mood," Lady Jaye quipped back. The two women snickered, knowing full well what a pissed off Beach Head was like. Alison stared thoughtfully after the ranger. She hadn't failed to notice that the ranger had first become irritable after Snake Eyes had spent nearly an hour in his office.
The fact that S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Nick Fury had been watching him with particular interest also hadn't escaped her attention.
"He's tired," Courtney suddenly said. Alison gave her a curious look. "It's weird, I hardly ever see him this tired."
Lady Jaye silently regarded the former model. The tank jockey shifted nervously under the scrutinizing stare.
"What?" she finally asked.
"Courtney," Alison finally said. "Do you still have feelings for him?" The other soldier looked shocked for a moment before a guilty look flitted across her face.
"You're dating Shipwreck," Lady Jaye pointed out, as if that wasn't obvious.
"I know," Courtney moaned softly, staring at her report. "He's sweet, believe it or not. Hector said he'd stop chasing after other women and he has. I think he honestly has feelings for me. He even brings me flowers."
Lady Jaye sighed as she pushed her small pile of papers away and looked at her friend. This was more important.
"Do you want to stay with him?" she asked. Cover Girl bit her lip and avoided her eyes.
"Courtney, it's important. It's not fair to Hector if you don't return his feelings the same way."
"I don't even think he's interested in me," Cover Girl sighed. "I've tried over the years and Beach just keeps pushing me away."
"That's not true," Lady Jaye replied. The other woman looked up her, a glimmer of hope in her eyes. "I'm in intelligence, I know how to read people," Alison continued. "I've seen the way Beach Head looks at you when he thinks no one's paying attention." Which was difficult to see, admittedly. The ranger seemed to have a sixth sense in knowing when someone was watching him.
Cover Girl sat silently, staring at the far wall. Alison watched her for a moment before taking a sip of coffee and staring off into space as well.
It was true; she knew how to read people. That was how she knew that something was going on. Beach Head had become less sociable than he usually was, which wasn't much anyway. Instead, he seemed to be spending most of his free time with either Lifeline or Snake Eyes. She hadn't failed to notice the confused looks on Leatherneck and Gung Ho's faces when the ranger sat with Lifeline and Psyche Out for lunch the other day. The two men seemed irritated and a bit hurt that the ranger was spending less time with them.
Then there was Snake Eyes. Lady Jaye unconsciously rubbed her chin, a habit she had picked up from her husband. It was strange, but it often seemed as if a silent conversation was going on between him and Beach Head. There were times when the two men were together and no words or sign language or used, but yet their body language suggested they were having a conversation.
There were other odd things too. A broken cargo truck. Broken cups in the infirmary trashcan. Beach Head staring at his reflection and muttering something about 'stupid shamans' and purple under his breath. He'd stopped when he'd realized she was listening. She'd also seen Snake Eyes, in an odd moment of irritation, shaking his fist at an amused Lifeline. Lady Jaye hadn't heard what the doctor had said, though his lip movements had looked suspiciously like 'Now you know what it feels like.'
In fact, odder yet, Lifeline had stopped wearing his glasses. When anyone asked, he simply stated that he had switched to contacts.
She suspected the Flint knew something, but of course he couldn't tell her.
Alison looked over at Courtney, who was still staring at the wall. It didn't take much detective work to know that a certain ranger was still on her mind.
"Love's never simple, is it?" she asked. The tank driver gave her a lopsided grin.
"Nope, but it's fun."
The two women laughed at that and Lady Jaye looked back down at her reports.
"Speaking of Beach Head, did you ever hear how he managed to break that truck?" she asked curiously. Courtney tapped a finger on her nose as she considered that.
"No," she answered. "It's weird though. After Clutch finished crying over it…" Lady Jaye snickered. "…and swearing at Beach Head, we began to work on it. There was what looks like a…" Cover Girl suddenly paused and looked chagrined.
She'd been about to say that there'd been what looked like a hand print underneath the back fender, pressed into the metal. They'd included it in on the report, but Flint had sent it back and told them to rewrite it, without mentioning the hand print. He'd also ordered her and Clutch not to mention it to anyone.
"Besides the broken fender and windows, the drive shaft was loose and the coolant tank had also exploded," Cover Girl said instead. "Which of course damaged the transmission." It was true, even if not what she was originally going to say. Flint hadn't ordered them to be silent about the rest of it.
Lady Jaye gave her a considering look. It was obvious that she was leaving something out and that she was probably under orders not to say it.
"It gets weirder," Cover Girl added. "One of the shop mechanics told me that she saw Lifeline meet up with Beach and get into the truck. But according to the official report that we got, Lifeline wasn't with him."
"Probably something we're not supposed to know," Lady Jaye shrugged. "Beach was arguing with Flint about something in his office after that." She didn't mention that she'd seen Hawk and Lifeline walk in to join them as well. Something was going on and the fact that she couldn't fit the pieces of the puzzle together bothered her.
However, she reasoned that as Flint hadn't told her anything, he'd been ordered to keep his mouth shut about the truck. Even though she obviously wasn't allowed to know however, her curious mind still wouldn't stop wondering about it.
She wondered if Scarlett had noticed anything as well.
Time: 11:28 Zulu, Thursday; 15:28 local time, Thursday
Location: GI Joe Pit
Beach Head groaned as he massaged his temples. The ranger was currently sitting on a box down in one of the storage rooms. No one else was in the room at the moment, for which he was grateful. The whole reason he had come down here in the first place was so he could get away from everyone. Or try to, anyway.
Pain. Surprise. Laughter. Anger. Irritation. Lust. Dozens of emotions and sensations flooded into his mind, mixing an ocean that threatened to engulf him. Normally he was able to ignore it. Today, however, his mind was so fatigued and drained that Beach Head was unable to block it out. Unable to take it anymore, he had fled down to the storage rooms in an attempt to get as far away from people as possible.
He couldn't stay there long, unfortunately. Wayne had duties to perform. Hawk had also called a meeting for the Joes to inform them about Storm Shadow.
Stupid Snake Eyes. Stupid greenshirts. Stupid mutant powers. Why the hell did he have to have empathic abilities?
Beach Head took a deep breath, swallowed his pride, and concentrated on the meditation that Snake Eyes had forced on him. It took him several minutes of failed attempts before he felt the pressure in his mind begin to clear somewhat. It wasn't much, but he felt the difference.
Maybe this meditation thing wasn't so bad after all.
Wayne kept concentrating on emptying his mind. Very slowly the distant voices and the sea of emotion faded away until it was nothing more than a faint murmur. His breath slowed and the ranger felt himself finally calming down. After a few more minutes passed, Beach Head finally stood up and began to walk around the storage room.
Now feeling more refreshed, although he was too stubborn to admit to Snake Eyes that he'd actually used the meditation, he turned to leave the storage room. He was once again reminded of why he sometimes hated his powers.
She groaned as the blonde man nuzzled her neck, tracing his hands down her bare back. Sweat dripped down her face as he…
Beach Head bolted out of the storage room, his face flushed bright red underneath the balaclava.
Time: 11:50 Zulu, Thursday; 15:50 local time, Thursday
Location: GI Joe Pit
Snake Eyes froze and stared as a murderous looking ranger stormed into the dojo. Kamakura and Jinx froze as well, not quite sure what to make of the angry cursing, unintelligible due to the strong Alabama accent.
"Yew!" Beach Head finally yelled, pointing an accusing finger at Snake Eyes.
"Oh dear God, what did I do?"
Whatever it was, the ranger was pissed. The ninja was alarmed to see that the ranger was unconsciously causing a nearby rack of weapons to shake violently.
"Wayne…" he warned. The ranger only glared harder at him.
*Leave. Now* he signed rapidly to his two apprentices. Jinx and Kamakura were still gaping at the angry ranger, as well as the shaking weapons. Snake Eyes nearly jumped when Beach Head's eyes briefly flashed with a strange, glowing light.
Snake Eyes pointed in the opposite direction and glared at his students.
*Don't say a word to anyone, just get Lifeline.* He signed at them. The two younger ninjas nodded and retreated quickly. Snake Eyes swore violently to himself.
"Beach Head," Snake Eyes tried again. "Calm down before you start tearing apart the dojo." After a moment, he added, "If it's something I did, I can't apologize if you don't calm down enough to tell me what the hell I did."
He watched as the ranger visibly tried to calm himself. The other man closed his eyes for a couple of minutes. Snake Eyes realized with a surprise that Beach Head was actually using the meditation he had so stubbornly resisted learning earlier that day. The weapons rack finally stopped shaking and the pressure in the room suddenly subsided.
There was a familiar crack of noise as Lifeline suddenly appeared in the room. He looked back and forth between both men before finally sighing.
"Okay, what happened?" the medic asked. Beach Head pointed an accusing finger at Snake Eyes. The ninja gave a helpless shrug, still clueless as to what had happened.
"Yew….Scarlett…" the ranger sputtered.
"What'd we do?" the ninja asked, confused. The mutant swore again before he reluctantly continued.
"Ah was down in one of the store rooms n' got caught in one of her memories she'd left there," Wayne snarled. "Next time, warn me about the places yew two decide to…uh…have sex at."
Snake Eyes stared at him, mortified.
"What?" he asked again, signing as well for the medic's benefit. He felt his face heating up. The ninja heard Lifeline snicker slightly at his side.
"It ain't funny!" the ranger wailed. "Yew know what it's like to walk in to something like that? And it was Scarlett's memory to boot!"
Oh dear God. Snake Eyes had forgotten that the ranger occasionally felt old memories and emotions left behind in places.
"I know it's not funny," Lifeline chuckled. "I've got superhearing you know. I hear everything that goes on in the Pit. You know how hard it is to block out that noise?"
The ninja had thought his humiliation couldn't get any worse. Apparently he'd been wrong.
*You…can hear us?* he signed, wanting to die and sink into the floor. The medic nodded.
"Sound is the hardest thing for me to block. Wayne has a hard time blocking emotions. I have a hard time with sound; I can't just stop hearing things. The best I can do is try to ignore them."
Snake Eyes stood there, staring at both of them. Beach Head had finally calmed down, apparently feeling better that Lifeline had similar experiences, even if it they weren't as bad as actually feeling him and Scarlett have…God damn it.
"Exactly," the ranger added, nodding his head. "I can feel everything in the Pit, even when people are breaking frat regs. It's damned hard to ignore once you feel it."
Oh God….
The ninja slapped a hand to his face, too embarrassed to look at either man. It didn't help that the other two men were equally uncomfortable.
"I'm sorry," Snake Eyes finally told Beach Head, also signing the same thing to Lifeline. "I didn't know." The ranger shrugged his shoulders awkwardly, avoiding the ninja's eyes.
"It's a'right. It's not the first time it's happened."
"Who was it the first time?" Lifeline asked curiously. The ranger groaned.
"Flint."
"He and Lady Jaye are the loudest," the medic said. "I hate listening to them."
"Yeah, they're definitely the worst," the ranger agreed.
"Can we please stop talking about this?" Snake Eyes pleaded. "I'm sorry, okay? It's not like we have a secret, sound and empathic proof room to go to."
Beach Head snorted, but nodded his head. The ninja sighed, still unable to push away the embarrassment.
"We've got another problem," Lifeline said, switching topics. "Jinx and Kamakura suspect something now. They told me what happened. I left them in my office and told them to stay there until I got back."
There was sudden silence.
"I'll talk to them and Hawk," Snake Eyes finally said, his face still burning. Telling Hawk about the incident meant telling him why Beach Head had been upset in the first place. The general had always been good about turning his head and ignoring the fact that the frat regulations were continuously broken under his command.
"No, I'll talk to Hawk," Beach Head sighed. "It's my fault for losing control."
"The meeting's soon," Lifeline pointed out. "We'd better get going, especially if you want to talk to your students before it begins. I'll send them back down here."
The other two men agreed. Snake Eyes paused and wondered if he dared embarrass himself further that day. Figuring that if he didn't say what was on his mind, he risked even greater humiliation.
"Uh…Beach Head…I'd avoid the closet near the fourth level trash compactor."
"Oh Gawd, there too?"
Time: 12:07 Zulu, Thursday; 16:07 local time, Thursday
Location: GI Joe Pit
Kamakura shifted nervously as he and Jinx sat in Lifeline's office. Neither ninja knew what to say. An angry Beach Head was bad enough, but the shaking weapons and the weird light in his eyes had spooked both of them. Their sensei kicking them out and then Lifeline ordering them to stay there…only to just vanish had left them both speechless.
"What do you think that was all about?" he finally dared to ask quietly. Jinx looked over at him and shrugged.
"Maybe they…"
"Had a disagreement that has now been resolved."
The sudden appearance of Lifeline's voice behind them startled both ninjas. Kamakura was fairly sure he nearly levitated out of his chair. They both swung around to gape at the medic, who was leaning against the door and scrutinizing them.
"H…how?" Jinx asked. The doctor shook his head.
"Go back down to the dojo, Snake Eyes wants to talk to you," he said. The two apprentices looked at each other.
"And don't tell anyone about this," the medic added. "You didn't see any weapons mysteriously shaking and I've been here the whole time, understand?" The two confused ninjas gaped at him before nodding their heads.
"Good. That's the story if anyone but Hawk, Duke, or Flint asks you. Dismissed."
The two ninjas wordlessly exited the office.
Time: 12:14 Zulu, Thursday; 16:14 local time, Thursday
Location: The Xavier Institute of Higher Learning
Storm Shadow took a deep breath as he eased into a set of kata. He was currently outside near one of the school gardens, enjoying the fresh air. The scent of lavender drifted over to him as he went through the exercises. His shoulder was still sore, though much better thanks to the X-Men's medical staff.
The X-Man known as Storm had taken him on a tour of the school. Tommy had been greatly impressed by the standards of education the school had, despite the difficulties it had in operating as a school solely for dispossessed mutants. Many of the children had been fascinated by him, especially when they learned that yes, he was a ninja but no, he wasn't a mutant.
A young woman named Jubilee had also joined him. She was in her late teens, probably eighteen or nineteen. He found his lips twitching up into a smile. She'd been more concerned with his lack of civilian clothing and had promised to take him shopping in one of the nearby malls. The young Jubilee had confidently proclaimed herself a 'mall rat', who could find a bargain anywhere.
"How's the shoulder?"
Tommy looked over at the grizzled mutant watching him. He finished his kata before stopping and bowing to the man.
"Much better, thank you," he answered. Wolverine grunted.
"Sorry 'bout the shoulder, Kid," the mutant said. Storm Shadow gave him a surprised look.
"Kid?" he echoed. He wasn't old, but he wasn't exactly young either. Wolverine smirked at him.
"Compared to me you're just a pup," he said. The mutant looked at him a few more seconds motioning for the ninja to follow him.
"Come on, let's take a walk." Still surprised, Tommy followed him. The two men walked in silence as they made their way through the far corners of the school grounds. After a while, Logan finally spoke again.
"Sorry 'bout your uncles. I met them both a long time ago," he grunted. Storm Shadow gaped at him.
"You knew them?" he asked. There was a twinkle of amusement in the other man's eyes.
"Not well. I've got a lot of holes in my memory too, due to the brainwashing I went through. I do particularly remember a brash young man and his fiancée. She was quite the spitfire. I think she was your auntie, the one they call Obake Obaasan."
Tommy felt his eyebrows rise even higher. His aunt? The fabled goblin granny? If Wolverine had met her and the Hard Master at that age…
"Uh…how old are you?" Storm Shadow asked. The mutant laughed.
"I have no idea. I told you, I've got a lot of holes in my memory."
"How do you deal with it?" Tommy asked. The older man paused to look at him, his blue eyes piercing in their intensity. "How do you deal with what was done to you?"
The other man didn't answer for a while. He simply kept walking and motioned for Tommy to follow him. After a while, they came to a secluded section of the school grounds. The ninja paused when he saw an authentic Japanese garden, complete with a small rock garden, nestled next to a tiny stream.
"Like it?" Logan asked. "Made it myself."
Tommy walked around it, careful not to disturb the grains of sand. A tiny Shinto shrine sat next to the rock garden, pristine. He looked over at the mutant in surprise.
"Japan's my second home," he answered. "I wanted to have a piece of it with me."
Thomas knelt down in front of the shrine. The peace of the tiny garden filled him and he felt the last remaining vestiges of tension draining out.
"Stay here as long as you want," Wolverine said. He paused a moment before adding.
"We're going on a trip in a couple of days…make sure to pack accordingly when Jubilee drags you to the mall."
"Trip?" Tommy asked, bewildered. "Where?" The other man gave him a sly grin.
"Canada."
Author's note: I wasn't sure what Jubilee's age would be at this time, as I've missed a lot of Marvel issues. I decided to make her about eighteen or nineteen. I also decided to go with the second Pit, on Staten Island. It probably doesn't fit within this timeline in the canon, but it made the most sense for the story if I used the Pit in New York.
Cobra's been absent the last few chapters, but it'll rear its ugly head again very soon.