Disclaimer: This is a
work of fan-fiction. The here fore used characters belong rightfully to Marvel
or Wildstorm and I just borrowed them. The only profit I hope to achieve with
this is the pure pleasure of the reader, so no copyright infringement intended.
Please do not sue me, I don't have money and won't be getting some from this
story. Some of the dialogue used in the story was taken from WildC.A.T.s/X-Men,
The Silver Age and it is also not mine.
Author's
notes:
The story is the sequel to Breaking the Law and starts right where the other one
has ended. It also refers to the WildC.A.T.s/X-Men Crossover The Silver Age and
it is set at the beginning of the comic book.
Please send
me feedback at Sonja.Triebel@web.de, I really want to know what you think of my
work and I am grateful for your opinion and insights.
"So, mon ami…whatcha in for?"
The man in the cell near Remy's looked up. He was shackled like Remy had been before with heavy chains, at least until Remy had gotten rid of his. The man was blond, muscular and had a tattoo of a rising cobra with a roman seven on his upper arm. He turned to face Remy and looked puzzled at him with his blue eyes.
"Huh?"
"Whatcha in for?" Remy repeated his
question. He rose and went over to the bars, out of his pocket he fetched a
crumpled package of cigarettes. His clothing too was torn just like the others
and his reddish brown hair unkempt. Remy ran his fingers through his hair to
bring some order into them and showed a friendly smile while he still tried to
figure out the other man.
The name of the blond prisoner was
Cole Cash, but it wouldn't be him in the end, who would introduce himself to
Remy. He also began to scrutinize the inmate of the cell next to his, he found
his eyes a bit unnerving, the red on black like those of a being not from this
world. He seemed to be quite young and Cole didn't consider himself much older
than him. If he judged by his looks, he must have been here for a while.
"Does the term "solitary" mean
anything to you?" Cole answered with a question and hoped to have nipped the
other's interest in the bud. He didn't want anything but to be left alone with
his thoughts. Although he felt a silent curiosity awaken in himself concerning
what must have brought such a young and innocent man into prison, and for all
into a prison in the middle of the south American jungle.
Cole himself knew exactly what had
brought himself here and he also knew a part of the why, but if he kept
thinking a bit harder about this, he didn't know so well what reason it had
been that hade made him join the military and how he had ended up with Team 7,
the elite force unit he had belonged to.
The boy, Cole mustn't have been that
older than him, but he couldn't stop seeing him as a boy after all he himself
had seen and done during his time in the military, didn't look like a soldier
to him, and most of the other prisoners here either were soldiers of fortune or
some other scum that crawled through the jungle. He didn't seem to be the type
to follow orders to him, with his pretty face he probably wouldn't have
survived the drill Cole had behind him during his military training nor would
he have had any chance in real combat not to mention war. No, he really didn't
look to him as a soldier and for a mercenary he also was too young. He more
seemed to be a boy who still had every option open life had to offer for him
but still he was sitting here, and had been shackled like Cole was, he had
noticed the chains lying now on the floor.
"Means somet'ing to me, doesn't tell
me why ya in solitary or here at all", Remy returned. He was well aware, that
the stranger scrutinized him and a bit surprised for he seemed not
uncomfortable because of his eyes like so many others before. He must have seen
other things so he would not be scared off by what marked Remy so obviously as
a mutant. In prison anyway they all were equal. No, if he was in the military,
he probably had seen a lot of other things before.
Remy himself was also pretty sure
what it had been that brought himself in prison and he had spent enough time
here to know that he wanted to get out of here as fast as possible. To his
regret he still hadn't come up with a plan on how to manage that, to escape
from here and Remy would leave the use of his powers, over which he still
hadn't gained complete control, only as a last option. He couldn't risk that
they wouldn't work in the needed moment or went out of control like they had
gone once before. Remy shuddered at the thought of this one time and at what
had happened then. He had almost killed a lot of innocent people and himself by
the time he had managed to get his control of his powers back with the hardest
concentration and efforts. For that it was a welcome distraction to talk to the
other man in the nearby cell, even when he didn't look to be the talking type.
But Remy was curious to know what might have been his story.
"What can I say, been the wrong time
at the wrong place and did the wrong thing", it came from the other cell after
a while. Cole thought of the answer he had given to the boy and came to think,
that it hadn't been the whole truth, as hard as he wished to be honest with
him, well the part with done the wrong thing was definitely a lie. It had certainly
not been the wrong thing to save the innocent men, women and children from
being shot in cold blood by the madman who had hired him as mercenary a while
ago, right before he came here. It had been the reason for him ending up here
and probably be here for a long time; Cole had lost track of time on how long
he already was in this prison. If he thought about it now, he was the right
time at the right place and had done the right thing, but that was hard to
explain and the boy probably wouldn't understand it anyway. But the boy with
the strange eyes only nodded sympathetic, as if he could understand well, and
Cole asked himself once more, what it must have been that had lead him into
this rat-hole.
"Why are you here?" Cole wanted to
know and went to the bars. He glanced directly into these unnatural eyes and
found great pain lying behind them, understanding for him but also a certain
pride.
"Why ya wanna know dat?" Remy asked,
he had felt that the man had hidden something from him, but that his answer
would be all, he would be hearing from him. And he had felt some pain in his
answer too.
"You asked me, only thought it
fair."
Remy nodded and had to admit that
this guy was right. It was only fair if he told him, too.
"I am a t'ief", he finally answered.
"Stole in de wrong house from de wrong person."
Remy decided to also leave it to
this answer. It was to a certain point the truth, he had been arrested for
stealing from a very influential person who thought to teach him a lesson and
send him here, but he didn't have to tell him, what kind of truth really was
lying beneath this answer, namely how he ended up stealing from this
influential person in the first place, what had brought him this far south.
He didn't have to tell the stranger
that his family, or more those he thought for his family had betrayed him,
deceived him and in the end exiled him.
The woman he loved was lost for him
for ever and that also was a pain that sat deep inside, it was too fresh right
now. Remy remembered well that on the day of their wedding he had been forced
to kill her brother in self-defense, something that had given the mark for the
change and something he wanted to be undone more than anything else. His face
still followed him when he closed his eyes just like the faces of all the
others, his love and his family, who had cast him out. It would be better for
all if he left, that's how they tried to sweet talk it, but Remy knew better.
It was more a welcomed opportunity for them to get rid of the hated stray dog,
that to add was also a stinkin' mutant. Even his father, no adoptive father he
corrected himself, although he had always seen him his real father, had agreed
to that, that Remy had to leave, to ensure the peace between the Guilds, for
the good of everybody else. It had been easy for him, easier than it had
looked, Remy had been able to feel that all were extremely relieved to have
gotten rid of him.
That was the family who had taken him in, when he had lived on the streets.
That was the family who had given him a home when he had none. That was the
family of which he had been proud to belong to, to have earned his place among
them. That was the family for whom he would have done everything and had been
so proud of being a part of.
That couldn't have been his family,
for a true family would have never betrayed and deceived him like they had done
and it did hurt Remy even more because he could feel their emotions so clearly,
could read so well that they hadn't considered him worthy enough being a member
of their respective family, no matter how hard he had tried to belong to them.
Remy on his part had done always
everything for his family, for it was the place he belonged to and who had
given him a home when he had needed one and so he had left, to bring back peace
to the family whom he after all still brought deep feelings to and loved. He
had gone to make sure, that the man he was allowed to proudly call father was
able to bring back peace to the family and the Guild business. And when he had
finally gone, he could feel that his father had felt deep inside him a silent
guilt, which would grow and become more nagging to have let Remy down and that
made him hope, to be one day able to return to his home, his family.
"Dat's all", Remy added, he didn't
want do reveal more. "We have somet'ing in common den, bot' bein' de wrong time
in de wrong place and now we are in dis hole."
"Looks like that", Cole replied, in
his stomach he had the feeling that the boy didn't tell him everything but that
he wouldn't hear more whether he asked for or not. Well, he respected his
privacy and didn't ask further. He himself hadn't told him the whole truth too.
Cole had seen the pain in his eyes and wondered now, if it could have something
to do with why he was here. Nobody should have to endure such pain in these
young years, but on the other hand nobody should have experienced the things
Cole had seen or done.
At the end, they both were victims
of a change that had fulfilled itself within them as well as in the people who
surrounded them. He had become a mercenary because of this, a man who did
almost anything for money and who could be bought if the price was right. The
boy had become because of something Cole didn't know a thief, someone who stole
from others and probably would do anything for a good enough reward. Both had
ended up here, because of different reasons and it was not certain whether they
would ever find a way out. It was possible that they would always remain the
victims of some change, for this was something that would never change.
The boy got himself a cigarette out
of his package and held it in his hands. Cole gestured him to give him one too.
"Light?" Remy asked and the tip of
the cigarette began to glow as it was being charged kinetically and lit up that
way.
"Nice trick", Cole remarked, he had
never seen anything like this before, but in the eyes of the boy something
flashed. He still seemed unable to see him as anything different but a boy. Had
the service in the military made him that old?
"I don't do tricks", Remy returned
and gave Cole the cigarette. He lit himself another one up and inhaled the
smoke then blew it into the dark close cell.
"Oh. Then how'd you get out of your
shackles?" Cole wanted to know, Remy simply shrugged.
"Maybe I just ain't as dangerous as you
are", he answered, grinning broadly.
"Maybe", Cole doubted that much in
the light of what he had seen him do with the cigarette He asked himself why
the boy still was here when he possessed such abilities, and the only reason he
came up with was the fact that he probably didn't have any control over it, at
least not an exact one. Cole knew well what it meant to have no control over
ones powers.
Remy watched the other one, in a
certain way his emotions seemed to be honest and Remy knew that he was thinking
about him, probably wondered what that was about his powers, and he felt a
slight understanding for himself coming from the other man. But the man hadn't
been completely open to him, at least concerning the reason for his
imprisonment. Remy did want so much to trust somebody again and he counted on
that the other wouldn't betray him, there were no signs of it.
Remy just wanted to help him get out
of his shackles as the doors opened with a loud creak and a stranger appeared
in the door. They couldn't see him very well, all they were able to make out
was that he was wearing a eye patch over one eye and had a lit cigar in the
corner of his mouth.
"Which one of youse guys is Cole
Cash?" he asked them with a rough voice, one that didn't allow any protest.
"De ugly one", Remy shot back and
grinned. He must have come for the other because beside them no other prisoner
was there. And it was nice to know, that the other one now had a name he could
attach the face to, even if he was likely to never see this guy again.
"That don't narrow it much down",
the stranger replied, he must have lost his sense of humour some time ago or
have had a drastic chance concerning it. He gave the other the choice, made
Cole an offer to help him with doing a job for him and being free in return for
it or to rot in this place. It was something, the other, Remy knew now his name
was Cole, couldn't refuse, he himself would have given anything for an offer
like that, even his soul at this time. Cole accepted the offer and left the
stinking prison cell with the stranger. Remy was left alone in the dark cell.
Cole silently wished the boy luck
and that he too would get a chance to get his life back, get back the control
over his life. Somebody that young shouldn't rot in a place like this, shouldn't
even end up here in the first place. He hoped, that for the boy too would come
the time when he no longer would remain a victim of the changes life had but
could profit from them and he hoped that also for himself.
~/~
Remy asked himself, what it probably
could have been that Cole hadn't said, the thing that had brought him into
prison, but his thoughts soon returned to the more urgent question at hand,
that occupied him: How could he get out of here?
After quite a while, Remy didn't
know how long that had been, for he had lost his sense of time some time ago,
the door opened again with the creaking sound and a dark clothed stranger
entered the room. An eerie aura surrounded him but he still demanded authority
as he stood there. What caught Remy's eye was the fact that he was unnaturally
pale, his eyes sparkled diabolically red and the mark of a red diamond was on
his forehead. As the stranger smiled, he displayed two rows of sharp white
teeth. Remy pretended to ignore him but instead he studied him closely out of
the corner of his eyes. Because nobody else was there with him and it didn't
look as if the stranger would keep him company in one of the free cells, he
must have come because of him. As a matter of fact, Remy didn't believe that
any cell could probably hold the stranger for long.
"I have been following your career",
the stranger began without introduction, his voice sounded surprisingly soft,
though it had a distinct metallic underlying.
"Nice for you", Remy returned. What
use could he possibly make out of this, all he wanted right now was to get out
of here and not listen to the ramblings of this guy.
"You have special abilities, which
could prove very useful", the stranger ignored Remy's sarcastic answer.
"Tell me somet'in' I don' know
already."
"I could have good use for a
man with your abilities and your
reputation", the stranger stepped near until he stood right in front of the
bars. Remy felt his glare rest on him. He felt the uneasiness rising, he had
felt since the arrival of the stranger. But the offer sounded quite tempting.
"You could do me a favour and I will
do you a favour in return and arrange you to be released", the man ran his
fingers tenderly over the cold steel bars, Remy couldn't get rid of the uneasy
feeling that kept his hold on him.
"Why are you still here anyway? You
could have blasted your way out of here any time you wanted. Oh, I understand",
he said slowly. "You cannot control your powers and fear to loose control over
them, am I right?"
Remy resisted the urge to nod, he
had the strange feeling that this stranger knew much more about him than he was
willing to tell him or Remy liked him to know. But how could he have gotten
that much knowledge, about him and his powers, and what was it he wanted from
him?
"I can also help you, to control
your powers", the stranger continued, well aware of Remy's anxiety. "If you
will do me a favour and carry out something for me, do a job for me."
"What do you want from me?" Remy
finally wanted to know, his uneasiness growing to infinite proportions.
Something very eerie surrounded the stranger, but Remy didn't want anything
more right now than to get out of his cell. And to achieve that, he would have
sold his soul to the devil right now.
"You will carry out a mission for me
and for that I will get you out of prison and to add to that, I will help you
gain control over your powers. That is more than fair as payment, don't you
agree?" the stranger smiled, a smile that made shivers crawl over Remy's back.
He swallowed hard and showed all the protests of his instinct in the background
of his mind.
"Okay", he said after a while. Remy
didn't ask, what it might be, what kind of favour or job the stranger wanted
him to do, the only thing he wanted was his freedom back. After that one job
for the stranger it would be done for him and if the man could help him, to get
control over his powers Remy saw that as a bonus. Only one job and he would
never see this strange man again and he was out of his cell, back to his life.
Each fibre of his mind screamed in
alarm, not to trust that man, but the desire to leave this cell as fast as
possible was stronger than any reason. Remy so much wanted to get his life back and would do anything for that. He
wanted nothing more than to bring control back to his life, that he could be in
charge of his life again. Only one job, what else could there be?
"Excellent", the stranger opened the
cell doors that swung open with a light screaming sound. Remy stepped
hesitatingly out of the cell and smiled.
This was his chance for a change, to
start a new life. He would start again from the beginning, bring order in his
chaotic life after he would have finished this man's job for him. He would have
his freedom back, to decide over his life again and someday he would be able to
return to his family.
"Who are you anyway?" Remy asked the
stranger, it was of interest for him, who his mysterious saviour was, but after
all it didn't matter to him for Remy was already planning on never seeing him
again afterwards. At least in this he wanted to listen to his instincts and
feelings.
"My name? Ah, sure, my name is
Essex, Dr. Nathaniel Essex. And I am convinced that we indeed will be having a
very cooperative and productive partnership in the future."
~Fin~
(inspired by WildC.A.T.s/X-Men The Silver Age, page 1-2)