Disclaimer: Don't own 'em, wish I did, but until I win the lottery, I'll just have to make do with borrowing them.
AN: Sorry it took me so long to get this up. I was having computer problems. Thanks to Axe to Grind for informing me of my formatting problems. Hopefully those have been fixed. Again thanks to my reviewers, you guys are addictive!
Chapter 5: Set Up
Jesse, Shalimar, and Brennan tensely surveyed the crowd of moving bodies surrounding them. "Why is it that the GSA agents always want to pick up people at nightclubs? We have to watch so many more people," Jesse complained.
"They can't stand to see people having fun," Brennan replied. "Besides, if someone disappears in this place, it will be a while before anyone actually notices they are missing. It gives them a head start." His eyes scanned the dance floor.
"Speaking of fun," Shalimar spoke up. She nodded her head in the direction of the bar. Emma and Derrick sat on high bar stools, sipping drinks. Emma was laughing at something he had said. "I wonder if she'll think we're keeping an eye on her, given our discussion yesterday." She had just finished speaking when Emma's piercing blue eyes focused on her team. She shook her head in mock surprise and threw a smile and wave in their direction before turning her attention back to her date.
"Think we should ask her to help us find Adam's elusive new elemental?" Jesse asked.
"Nope, she deserves a night off. Besides if the GSA show up, we may be cutting her night short as it is," Shalimar answered. Suddenly her eyes went unfocused and her breath left her in a little gasp. A moment passed and when she turned to her teammates, her eyes were glowing feral orange. "Surprise, surprise. Emma just sent me a warning, GSA agents are surrounding us, I think. If I'm understanding her correctly, she thinks we are the quarry. I think we've been set up."
Brennan looked toward the bar. Emma and Derrick were moving calmly but quickly through the crowd. They were headed toward the front door. Jesse, Shalimar and Brennan started to follow. They never made it. The front entrance was suddenly filled with GSA agents in their black suits and earpieces.
Emma and Derrick turned quickly toward a side wall. If he remembered correctly, Jesse thought there might be a fire exit to an alley located there. "I think Emma has the right idea," he started to follow after her. They had a little head start and the five of them converged at the door.
"Emma, what's going on?" Derrick was asking.
"There's no time to explain. I'll fill you in later," Emma answered tersely. As Brennan reached forward to throw the door open she laid a hand on his sleeve. "Wait," she concentrated for a moment. "We've got trouble. There's GSA on either side of the alley."
Brennan nodded and pushed open the door. The fire alarm blared out over the music and the GSA men behind them were swamped by panicked people trying to get out of the building. "That'll keep some of them busy," Jesse commented as they stepped into the dim ally.
The four members of Mutant X fanned out into the street, Brennan and Shalimar on the right and Jesse and Emma on the left. Derrick stood uncertainly between them.
Jesse took a moment to use his impenetrable form to shove a very large trash receptacle in front of the fire door. "That oughta slow them down a little more," he commented under his breath.
"Adam," Shalimar said, activating her comlink. "We could use a pick up here."
"On my way," came Adam's disembodied voice.
And that was all the time they had. Emma pushed Derrick up close against a wall and carefully watched the fight around her. To her right she watched as Shalimar used a wall for momentum to slam one of the black suited men in the face with a slim booted foot. Two more closed in on her while Brennan was waiting for one of the three circling him to make the first move. Fortunately, the ally was narrow and helped to keep the number of agents to a minimum. One of the agents circling Brennan threw the first punch which he easily dodged. His own powerful fist flew out to drop the first of his opponents, without a pause he spun and kicked out at the second who fell into the third, but they were just down, not out. However, Emma thought that he seemed to have them in hand so far. Her attention was focused on the row of men behind them. They all carried electric tazers that were already glowing with deadly purple shock waves. A mere moment's concentrated thought was enough to cause one of the men to see Shalimar's face on his partner's body. Quicker than Emma could blink, the tazer struck causing a domino affect in the second line.
She quickly focused on her left. Jesse was trying to hold off about six agents on his own. So far, one was huddled on the ground nursing his fractured hand and as she watched, two others went down, victim to tazer bolts that went through Jesse's phased form. That still left him vulnerable to three others when he ran out of breath. Unfortunately, there was a telepath in this group, so her little trick wouldn't work again. Emma stepped up, next to her teammate and with a well timed punch managed to take out the telepath, just as he was gearing up an attack against Jesse.
Emma glanced around quickly, as soon as they sent one agent down it seemed as if another three rose up in his place. Echkart wasn't taking any chances this time that Mutant X would escape.
Fortunately for them, Mutant X had one other team member. Just when Emma thought they would be taken, the Double Helix unshielded above them. Emma felt a little tingle as her com link was activated. She hurried back to Derrick's side just in time. A strange sound pulse was sent out by the craft. Emma and the others watched as all the GSA agents fell to their knees in a stupor. In moments, the group boarded the Double Helix and it turned towards Sanctuary.