In his room Adam sat on his chair, trying to relax as old memories of his times spent in Genomex resurfaced. His elbows rested on the solid wooden desk and his hands were clasped together resting against his bent forehead. Sighing, he closed his eyes and relived those moments that had followed him for years.

"You're talking about changing the DNA structure of humans."

"Don't be such a prude Adam. Think of it as an accelerated evolution. The children of Genomex will be equipped with gifts that will enable them to do great good in this world." Dr. Paul Breedlove's enthusiasm for this upcoming project was apparent with each delighted word that flew from his mouth.

"It will also enable them with the power to do great harm." Adam replied doubtfully, wiser to the ways of the world then his idealistic mentor. "Not only is it a bad idea, it's very doubtful you'll ever find success. This is the acceleration of millions of years of evolution into several years. The plausibility at best is feeble."

"Yet it is plausible. And with the a team of highly trained scientists led by the worlds brightest man, how would we fail?"

Sighing as Paul voiced his thoughts, Adam asked one more question that plagued heavily on his mind. "Even if you should find success, what do you hope to achieve?"

"You worry about cracking the code Adam, and I will do the rest."

It was the first yet nowhere near the last time his friend would broach the subject. Even after Adam had voiced all of his doubts, Paul had been adamant on having Adam lead the team. Accepting that position at Genomex was the greatest mistake he had ever made. He had been blind sighted by his relationship with his sadly departed friend.

At first he tried to justify his actions. It was for the greater good of humanity. A new age was dawning and Genomex would lead the way. But in the end, regardless of the catchy slogans he daily ran through his head, he was playing God.

Mutant X had never been intentionally formed. There was no pre formulated plan that ran through Adam's mind when he defected from Genomex, stealing the precious database that he would later protect at all costs.

One day he was working alone at night and the guilt he had locked in a small container in the corner of his soul over flowed. The beaker in his hand crashed to the floor and the noise, it echoed through his brain. It was in that moment he realized continuing at Genomex would never again be an open option for him. There would be no turning back.

His fondness for Paul did not make him a fool, and as soon as his resolve to leave was made, it was glaringly apparent that he would have to steal the database. His own small way of protecting those lives he had toyed with. An attempt on his part to make up for his past sins.

It was the beginning of a quest for redemption that he would later devote his life to. The day he had found Shalimar the shape of Mutant X began to form in his mind. It was hazy, a wisp of smoke he grasped on to with his life. The first worthy cause he was willing to fight for.

Closing his eyes the guilt once again flooded his body as memories of the part he played in Genomex continued to flash through his mind.

His greatest guilt was his weakness. No one person was solely responsible for the atrocious experiments that were performed behind those closed doors in meticulously kept sterile rooms. But it had been his knowledge that gave Genomex the upper hand. The ability to continue on with projects that might have failed otherwise. And now there was Gabriel to deal with.

"Have you found anything?" A deep hoarse voice asked from the depths of the darkness.

"I'm sorry sir. As to date we've been unable to recover any relevant information on Project E.V.E. The files began to self destruct as soon as we tried to access them. The data we have managed to save is corroded and there is no guarantee that we will be able to reconstruct the file."

"This isn't going to do." He answered, grinning as he watched the agent before him nervously fidget under his intense stare. "You say you may be able to rebuild the file?"

"Only parts of it, and even that is not a certainty." He answered, cursing his ill luck that made him the loser in the pool with the other computer specialists at Genomex.

Reflecting on his options for a moment, Gabriel decided his next course of action. "If there is a way for you to reconstruct the file, I want it done. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes sir."

Watching the agent silently leave, Gabriel ran the picture of Emma within his head once more, studying each detail of her face carefully. A small smile graced his lips as he leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes.

In the pod, aware of all things going around him yet trapped within the prison of his coma induced body, he felt her again. Her mind wandering about the imprisoned souls that screamed out the agonies of hell. Not quite dead, not quite alive, they called to any who could feel them.

"What are you doing here?" A voice harshly demanded. The man in the stasis pod listened in as he heard Tyler question the small intruder.

The young child ignored the adult, fascinated with the feelings that flooded her mind. Slowly she walked towards the strongest voice, her short legs unsteady as she made her trek to a particular pod. Quickly Tyler picked her up, intercepting her before she could take another step.

"What are you doing here?" He asked once more, determined to get an answer out of the seemingly oblivious child. Sighing in resignation as the dark haired child turned her head to once again stare at the stasis pods in rapt attention, he walked towards the main security hall to find who the child belonged to.

"They're scared."

He barely heard her small voice. Straightening his glasses with one finger, he frowned while studying the child, asking her to repeat herself. "What did you say?"

"They don't want to sleep." She looked up at him from underneath her dark black lashes, brown eyes searching his with an intensity he found unnerving in such a young child. Carefully he set her down before him, bending on his knees to look her in the eyes.

"Who's scared?" He asked carefully, unable to tear his gaze from hers. "Who doesn't want to sleep?"

Closing her eyes, her brows furrowed and when her eyes opened Tyler could see clouds of confusion. "He's not scared."

"Why is he not scared?" Tyler asked, an intangible force pulling out words from his mouth, dread of an unseen foe growing in his stomach.

She leaned in, her eyes beckoning him to follow suit as she whispered dark words in his ear.

"He says, you can't hold him forever."

"Jesse." A voice called out from behind him in the middle of his kata.

"What's up." Jesse asked, freezing from the intrusion.

"I just wanted to have a conversation. You busy?"

Shrugging his shoulders Jesse retrieved a small white hand towel from the metal bar and tossed it over his shoulder. "Talk."

"You knew something was wrong with Emma." Brennan cut straight to the point, not wanting to spend time on mindless chatter. "Now what I want to know is how long have you known, and why didn't you tell us?"

A wry smile appeared on Jesse's lips, as though he had been anticipating this conversation since the moment Brennan had spotted the two in Adam's room.

"All she told me was that she was having trouble sleeping." Jesse answered, keeping his tone neutral. "She didn't seem to be any less disturbed then the rest of us. I didn't think it was necessary to bring it to the attention of everyone else."

"And then…?"

"And then I was walking past her room and heard her having a nightmare. I went in, woke her up and she told me what happened. Look," Jesse added, "as soon as I believed that she was in any kind of danger I took her to Adam. I care about Emma."

"So do I." Brennan replied.

Warily Jesse tried to discern the meaning behind Brennan's casual confession. His face impassive without a hint of feeling, Jesse shrugged with resignation and turned away.

"How is she." He asked, leaning on the railing, faced towards the direction of Emma's room.

Making his way next to him, Brennan rested his elbows on the railing beside Jesse, also facing that particular female that had of late constantly occupied his thoughts. "Last I left her, she was fine."

"Shalimar with her?"

"Yeah."

It was still dark out and stiflingly silent between the two, each drowning in their own deep personal thoughts.

"Look," Jesse shattered the quiet with his voice. "It looks like things are going to get messy, I'd like to believe you're going to back me up the entire way." Giving a pointed nod towards Emma's room, he continued with thoughts that have been plaguing heavily on his mind. "Regardless of what happens in our personal lives."

"I'll protect Emma," Brennan answered honestly. "Whatever happens, I'll protect her."

Lifting a corner of his mouth, Jesse made his way to the steps. "Works for me."

She looked so peaceful. Leaning against the chair that had been brought into Emma's room, Shalimar continued to watch over her charge.

"Hey kiddo," She whispered out loud. "You have those guys outside in an uproar right now." Smiling fondly at her sleeping companion, she continued. "I always knew you were a heartbreaker. Guys wrapped around your little finger."

Gold glinted in the darkness as Shalimar thought of Gabriel. Unconsciously squeezing the bed sheets in a death grip, Shalimar focused her yellow tinted gaze on Emma. "Don't worry sweetie, I take care of the ones I care about. Between me and the others, Gabriel doesn't stand a chance. We're going to kick his ass for messing with one of us." She vowed.

"Hey."

Startled from the new voice, Shalimar lifted her head to give Adam a wane smile. "What are you doing here?"

Adam smiled. "Thought I'd relieve you of your shift. Let you get some sleep."

Tilting her head, Shalimar gave Adam a doubtful look. "Doesn't seem like you got any sleep yourself."

"I have a few things on my mind." He answered.

Standing up, Shalimar stretched her arms high above her, uncoiling the tight springs in her body. Yawning she sauntered towards Adam. "You need to relax." She reminded him. "Stop putting that brain of yours in hyper drive." Tapping her head with a slender finger to emphasize her point, she stepped past him and continued on her way. "I'll send Jesse over here in a couple hours." She called out without bothering to stop while on the path to her room. "You're only human, you know."

Shaking his head in wry amusement over his feline comrade, Adam stepped into the dark room, dimly lit from the hallway's light.

Staring into the room, Adam voice a question out loud. "How long have you been up?"

The figure lying in the bed started in surprise.

Smiling, Adam treaded carefully do the bed, sitting on the side beside her. "I'm talking to you." He added lightly.

Slowly sitting up, Emma looked at Adam, a sheepish grin on her face. "How'd you know?"

"I'm a genius." Adam solemnly answered. "I guessed." His lip twitched and broke out into a small chuckle.

Lifting an eyebrow, Emma mirrored his smile. "And here I thought you were going to regale me with a highly scientific and complicated answer I would have no hope of understanding."

"Sorry to disappoint."

"I think I'll live." She answered. Lying back in her bed, she settled beneath her cover.

"What's keeping you up?" Adam asked, digging to the root of the problem.

"Nothing." Emma sighed. "Well, you know, besides the psycho that invades my mind when I fall asleep."

"I could see how that would trouble you." He replied.

"I'm afraid to fall asleep." Tentative, she continued with her deep seated fear. "What if I don't wake up? What if Gabriel finds some way to keep me in a dream state forever. I, I don't think I could handle that." Anxious, she sat up once again, wringing her hands together in unease. "I don't like him with me. It's uncomfortable to have in my head, it's like he knows everything about me. Things I don't know about me. A secret- and he's smirking, I can feel it."

"It's that bad?" Adam questioned, concerned with his young pupil.

Emma's eyes glazed over as she sat in deep thought, staring blankly at the wall in front of her. "He's everywhere. I mean, I see him. And he could be in the corner of a room but I still feel him around me, watching me. The air is different-" Breaking off her sentence she shook herself out of her trance and focused her gaze on Adam. "Let's just say it's not a pleasant experience. One I could live without."

Silently Adam sat, contemplating the words Emma spoke.

"I had another dream." She quietly confessed. "Nothing like that." She quickly continued as she saw the look on Adam's face. "This was different. Normal," she shrugged. "As normal as they go."

Nodding for her to continue, Emma hesitated before asking Adam a question that would confirm her instincts. "Adam?"

"Yes?"

"When you worked at Genomax, did you know Tyler?"

Emma was not prepared for the onslaught of emotions that tumbled from Adam at the mention of Tyler's name. Knowing Emma had been able to feel his emotions, Adam answered her question without ever opening his mouth.

"Your hiding something." Her voice was clear and sure as she stared at her mentor. "Something important."

"I think you should go back to sleep." He slowly spoke, trying to control the raging doubts that were swirling about his head.

Studying him carefully, Emma wisely nodded her head and lay back down on her bed, drawing the covers to her waist. Unable to completely let go of the subject, Adam heard one word before Emma turned to her side and closed her eyes to sleep.

"Tomorrow."

Although he knew she could not see him, he nodded his head in agreement, tiredly wondering how many more half truths he would continue to tell.

The child was silent, withdrawn. Sitting in the corner of the room it was easy for the eyes to pass right past him. Yet when he studied him, he could see the brightness in the eyes of the young boy. It was clearly apparent to all who knew him that this child was an extremely gifted individual.

"Hello Gabriel."

"Adam." Looking at him in surprise when the small pale child answered with his name, the young boy sat silent waiting for Adam to reply.

"How do you know who I am?" He asked carefully, his voice clipped and calm.

"I know a lot of things." Adam swore he heard a glint of malice in Gabriel's voice. "I know you're the man who gave me my gifts." Gabriel replied, his gaze never once wavering from Adam's eyes.

Flustered, Adam nearly took a step aback, disturbed from the quick maniacal gleam that flashed in the young boys eyes.

Gabriel, his first and greatest sin.