Disclaimer: I don't own any of them except Rosalie and Misha.
Author's note: Thanks for the reviews guys. This chapter's come a bit sooner than usual probably because I was on a roll, and the reviews spurred me on. I'll have to keep considering the pairings cos I'm not completely decided yet.
Chapter 5: Sparks fly
As she woke up, she saw Emma's worried face leaning over her.
"Are you OK?" Emma whispered. "Sorry I had to do that again, but..."
"It's OK," Rosalie interrupted. "I know why you did it. I'm far too dangerous to stay around here. You have my word that I'll leave as soon as I can get my stuff together."
"We don't want you to go, Rosa," Emma insisted. "I can help you with your control. It was a mistake to ask Brennan to try that, his control isn't exactly the best either," she smiled.
A tear rolled down Rosa's cheek. "Why would any of you want me around? I'm destructive, out of control and a liability. The story of my life."
"What can I say? We seem to have taken a liking to you. Besides, Adam believes everyone can be saved. All I need you to do is agree to give it a go."
Rosalie looked at her gentle face. How could she turn down people who were standing by her time and again, even after she's nearly killed two of the team?
"OK," she whispered.
&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
A number of weeks passed, and Rosalie was getting on well with her new training. This consisted of Emma, her friendly telempath, helping her sort out and work through all the emotions she had been coping with on her own, the ones making her flip out and hurt people unintentionally. She had sorted out her volatile temper to a manageable level, and was now able to train alongside Shal and Jesse without any unwanted sparks flying from her fingers. She thoroughly enjoyed these training sessions as it also helped her work out her anger through physical exertion, and although she was nowhere near as quick and agile as Shal, she could now give Jesse a run for his money.
"So you ended up sitting on Jesse's chest?" asked Emma in wonderment.
"Yeah, it was fun!" replied Rosa. "It's getting easier and easier to beat Jesse without powers."
"What about your powers, how are you getting on with them? Any more control over the force of the burst?"
"I try, but I can't seem to get the hang of it, Em. I don't even think about it, it just happens, and before I know it, Brennan's on his back again."
"How are your sessions with Brennan coming along?"
"Not good. All the techniques you explain go flying out of my head when I face him."
"What happens?"
"I don't know. I feel hot and bothered, my skin tingles, my fingertips ache, and before I know it, they're glowing and ready to fire. He seems just as uncomfortable around me as I am around him too. There's something about him that makes me want to blast him, and he knows it. He unsettles me. I think he does it on purpose."
"That doesn't sound like Brennan," mused Emma. "Well, OK, it does," she corrected herself, "but only with people he knows well. He wouldn't do that to someone so obviously irritated by him. Especially as you could so easily kill him without meaning to."
"Then there's the sparks," Rosa continued. "This is so corny, but every time we touch, it's like he's burning me. A bit like static"
"That's odd. Have you talked to Adam about this?"
&&&
"Sparks?" asked Adam.
"Yeah. I mean, I know she doesn't like me, but sparks? How does she do that? And is it dangerous?" asked Brennan.
"I wouldn't have thought it was dangerous," explained Adam, "probably a side effect from the fact that your mutations are extremely similar. It's also strange that no one's complained about anything similar concerning her energy. She doesn't spend as much time with you as she does with the others."
"That's why it's so strange." Brennan looked concerned.
"Is there anything else about her that's out of the ordinary?"
"Where do I begin," started Brennan. "Everything. The way the flames appear without her summoning them, the way she floats around whilst we're sparring, the way her emotions seem to be on a roller coaster." His voice became softer. "The way she looks at me with such hatred in her eyes, her faces changes when she sees me."
"Remember she's having a hard time coming to terms with her sister's defection to Genomex."
"I know, but it's only me she's got the problem with. That hasn't got anything to do with where her sister's loyalties lie."
"If I remember correctly, she's also had several problems in her relationships with men."
Brennan raised an eyebrow. "Rosalie?" His curiosity got the better of him. "What sort of problems?"
"From what I can gather, her mutation became what it is today only recently. According to my records, she had previously only been able to create warmth. The first time her fire-shooting mutation became apparent was after a particularly physical argument with her then partner."
"Physical?" Brennan was shocked.
"It appears he was a large, strong and dangerously violent man. He hit her regularly, until one day, she found a new way to hit back. These mutations usually manifest themselves at times of high emotional stress, so this wouldn't be out of the ordinary."
Brennan was still stunned. "That would explain so much," he eventually said. "Explains why she hates me, but why not Jesse?"
"You're taller, physically bigger and more imposing. And maybe there's something about you that specifically reminds her more of her past than Jesse." Brennan was silent. "Don't let this get to you, Brennan. She'll have to come to terms with it in her own way," reassured Adam. "In the meantime, give her space, and rest assured that the sparks aren't dangerous."
The computer bleeped urgently, and Adam turned his full attention to it as Brennan turned to leave.
"Hang on, Brennan. Looks like we have a problem. An attack on some new mutants in the centre of town. Take the team and see what you can do."
"I'm on it," called Brennan as he ran out of the lab.
&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
This was the first time Rosalie had been on a team mission, and she was excited and a bit nervous about it. She needed to show them that their training had been worthwhile, and that she could control herself better than before. She owed it to them.
"OK, guys, we're approaching the area, so keep your wits about you," warned Brennan.
It was an unnecessary warning since the sounds of a fight were all too audible. They split up into twos, Emma and Jesse, Shal and Rosalie, and Brennan went it alone, and rounded the corner. It was evident that the fight was coming to an end, as there were two figures being tied up by several GSA agents, and a third one still fighting, but losing.
Brennan wasted no time and went forward, blasting several agents in his path. Emma and Jesse made their way towards the captives, hoping to free them, also fighting the agents in their way. Shal turned to Rosalie.
"You OK?"
"Yeah," Rosa nodded. "Doing great. let's go."
She leapt into action, using all the techniques Shal herself had taught her, and engaged an agent in a fight as Shal did the same. Her mind was solely on the battle in question as she threw her fire bolts. A number of agents went down thanks to her blasts, and before she knew it, the fight was almost over and Brennan was behind her.
"Jesse's got the new mutants, now let's get out of here!"
"But there are still agents here," she protested.
"We've got what we came for, now we leave," insisted Bren, and so with a last fireball in the agents' general direction, she turned to follow her teammates.
"Not so fast!" came a female voice from behind them. Rosalie turned, recognising the voice.
"Come on, leave them," insisted Shalimar, but Rosalie was glued to the spot. A woman stood in front of her, small and slim with dark cropped hair and dark piercing eyes.
"Those mutants are ours!" the female agent continued.
"Misha?" The agent froze. Her eyes flashed.
"Rosa," she said. The two women were facing each other, neither moving a muscle. "We've been looking for you, Rosa."
"Misha, what's happened to you?"
"You're with Mutant X?" Misha spat. "Leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Mason, however, thinks you'd be a fine addition to our group. Come with me."
She leaned over to take her sister's arm, but Rosa pulled away.
"No, they've become my friends. They can help us both."
"I don't need help! Not the help that Mutant X can give. I've been highly trained to kill, and Mason's given me a place on his team. We could use someone with your powers."
"We? You've become a killer, Misha. This is not you."
"This is the new me, and you'd better believe it," she snarled with a smirk. "So if you won't come with me, I'm afraid I'm gonna have to kill you too."
Suddenly a crate flew up from the floor and came crashing towards her. Quick as a flash, Rosalie blasted it into splinters.
"Misha, don't!" More crates few towards her and she blasted them out of existence too.
"You can't stop them all forever, and I have all the time in the world big sis!"
Rubbish cans and debris came towards her rapidly, and she could see out of the corner of her eye that Brennan was behind her preparing to send energy blasts of his own towards Misha.
"No! Don't hurt her!" yelled Rosa, and that lapse of concentration was enough for a piece of debris to catch her on the side of her head. She felt the warm blood trickling down her temple at the same time as she felt the ice coldness running through her veins. It had started again, she couldn't control the energy accumulating. but it felt different this time. Icy cold, not red hot as it usually was.
From the floor, she could see Brennan was struggling with Misha's missiles. He couldn't keep up with her much longer. She got up slowly, and before she could control it, cold white light erupted from her fingertips and was sent flying towards Misha.
The last thing she heard was a scream from Misha, and Brennan crying out her name, before she passed out.
&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
Hmmm, I think I'll leave you guessing as to what's happened, although the clues are there, so I wouldn't be surprised if it was completely obvious! I'm still open to suggestions on the pairings, so please keep reviewing. The score currently stands at Jesse/Emma 3, Jesse/Shal 4. I'm not promising that I'll stick to the majority, but good reasons for the pairings may sway me. Keep them coming!
Author's note: Thanks for the reviews guys. This chapter's come a bit sooner than usual probably because I was on a roll, and the reviews spurred me on. I'll have to keep considering the pairings cos I'm not completely decided yet.
Chapter 5: Sparks fly
As she woke up, she saw Emma's worried face leaning over her.
"Are you OK?" Emma whispered. "Sorry I had to do that again, but..."
"It's OK," Rosalie interrupted. "I know why you did it. I'm far too dangerous to stay around here. You have my word that I'll leave as soon as I can get my stuff together."
"We don't want you to go, Rosa," Emma insisted. "I can help you with your control. It was a mistake to ask Brennan to try that, his control isn't exactly the best either," she smiled.
A tear rolled down Rosa's cheek. "Why would any of you want me around? I'm destructive, out of control and a liability. The story of my life."
"What can I say? We seem to have taken a liking to you. Besides, Adam believes everyone can be saved. All I need you to do is agree to give it a go."
Rosalie looked at her gentle face. How could she turn down people who were standing by her time and again, even after she's nearly killed two of the team?
"OK," she whispered.
&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
A number of weeks passed, and Rosalie was getting on well with her new training. This consisted of Emma, her friendly telempath, helping her sort out and work through all the emotions she had been coping with on her own, the ones making her flip out and hurt people unintentionally. She had sorted out her volatile temper to a manageable level, and was now able to train alongside Shal and Jesse without any unwanted sparks flying from her fingers. She thoroughly enjoyed these training sessions as it also helped her work out her anger through physical exertion, and although she was nowhere near as quick and agile as Shal, she could now give Jesse a run for his money.
"So you ended up sitting on Jesse's chest?" asked Emma in wonderment.
"Yeah, it was fun!" replied Rosa. "It's getting easier and easier to beat Jesse without powers."
"What about your powers, how are you getting on with them? Any more control over the force of the burst?"
"I try, but I can't seem to get the hang of it, Em. I don't even think about it, it just happens, and before I know it, Brennan's on his back again."
"How are your sessions with Brennan coming along?"
"Not good. All the techniques you explain go flying out of my head when I face him."
"What happens?"
"I don't know. I feel hot and bothered, my skin tingles, my fingertips ache, and before I know it, they're glowing and ready to fire. He seems just as uncomfortable around me as I am around him too. There's something about him that makes me want to blast him, and he knows it. He unsettles me. I think he does it on purpose."
"That doesn't sound like Brennan," mused Emma. "Well, OK, it does," she corrected herself, "but only with people he knows well. He wouldn't do that to someone so obviously irritated by him. Especially as you could so easily kill him without meaning to."
"Then there's the sparks," Rosa continued. "This is so corny, but every time we touch, it's like he's burning me. A bit like static"
"That's odd. Have you talked to Adam about this?"
&&&
"Sparks?" asked Adam.
"Yeah. I mean, I know she doesn't like me, but sparks? How does she do that? And is it dangerous?" asked Brennan.
"I wouldn't have thought it was dangerous," explained Adam, "probably a side effect from the fact that your mutations are extremely similar. It's also strange that no one's complained about anything similar concerning her energy. She doesn't spend as much time with you as she does with the others."
"That's why it's so strange." Brennan looked concerned.
"Is there anything else about her that's out of the ordinary?"
"Where do I begin," started Brennan. "Everything. The way the flames appear without her summoning them, the way she floats around whilst we're sparring, the way her emotions seem to be on a roller coaster." His voice became softer. "The way she looks at me with such hatred in her eyes, her faces changes when she sees me."
"Remember she's having a hard time coming to terms with her sister's defection to Genomex."
"I know, but it's only me she's got the problem with. That hasn't got anything to do with where her sister's loyalties lie."
"If I remember correctly, she's also had several problems in her relationships with men."
Brennan raised an eyebrow. "Rosalie?" His curiosity got the better of him. "What sort of problems?"
"From what I can gather, her mutation became what it is today only recently. According to my records, she had previously only been able to create warmth. The first time her fire-shooting mutation became apparent was after a particularly physical argument with her then partner."
"Physical?" Brennan was shocked.
"It appears he was a large, strong and dangerously violent man. He hit her regularly, until one day, she found a new way to hit back. These mutations usually manifest themselves at times of high emotional stress, so this wouldn't be out of the ordinary."
Brennan was still stunned. "That would explain so much," he eventually said. "Explains why she hates me, but why not Jesse?"
"You're taller, physically bigger and more imposing. And maybe there's something about you that specifically reminds her more of her past than Jesse." Brennan was silent. "Don't let this get to you, Brennan. She'll have to come to terms with it in her own way," reassured Adam. "In the meantime, give her space, and rest assured that the sparks aren't dangerous."
The computer bleeped urgently, and Adam turned his full attention to it as Brennan turned to leave.
"Hang on, Brennan. Looks like we have a problem. An attack on some new mutants in the centre of town. Take the team and see what you can do."
"I'm on it," called Brennan as he ran out of the lab.
&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
This was the first time Rosalie had been on a team mission, and she was excited and a bit nervous about it. She needed to show them that their training had been worthwhile, and that she could control herself better than before. She owed it to them.
"OK, guys, we're approaching the area, so keep your wits about you," warned Brennan.
It was an unnecessary warning since the sounds of a fight were all too audible. They split up into twos, Emma and Jesse, Shal and Rosalie, and Brennan went it alone, and rounded the corner. It was evident that the fight was coming to an end, as there were two figures being tied up by several GSA agents, and a third one still fighting, but losing.
Brennan wasted no time and went forward, blasting several agents in his path. Emma and Jesse made their way towards the captives, hoping to free them, also fighting the agents in their way. Shal turned to Rosalie.
"You OK?"
"Yeah," Rosa nodded. "Doing great. let's go."
She leapt into action, using all the techniques Shal herself had taught her, and engaged an agent in a fight as Shal did the same. Her mind was solely on the battle in question as she threw her fire bolts. A number of agents went down thanks to her blasts, and before she knew it, the fight was almost over and Brennan was behind her.
"Jesse's got the new mutants, now let's get out of here!"
"But there are still agents here," she protested.
"We've got what we came for, now we leave," insisted Bren, and so with a last fireball in the agents' general direction, she turned to follow her teammates.
"Not so fast!" came a female voice from behind them. Rosalie turned, recognising the voice.
"Come on, leave them," insisted Shalimar, but Rosalie was glued to the spot. A woman stood in front of her, small and slim with dark cropped hair and dark piercing eyes.
"Those mutants are ours!" the female agent continued.
"Misha?" The agent froze. Her eyes flashed.
"Rosa," she said. The two women were facing each other, neither moving a muscle. "We've been looking for you, Rosa."
"Misha, what's happened to you?"
"You're with Mutant X?" Misha spat. "Leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Mason, however, thinks you'd be a fine addition to our group. Come with me."
She leaned over to take her sister's arm, but Rosa pulled away.
"No, they've become my friends. They can help us both."
"I don't need help! Not the help that Mutant X can give. I've been highly trained to kill, and Mason's given me a place on his team. We could use someone with your powers."
"We? You've become a killer, Misha. This is not you."
"This is the new me, and you'd better believe it," she snarled with a smirk. "So if you won't come with me, I'm afraid I'm gonna have to kill you too."
Suddenly a crate flew up from the floor and came crashing towards her. Quick as a flash, Rosalie blasted it into splinters.
"Misha, don't!" More crates few towards her and she blasted them out of existence too.
"You can't stop them all forever, and I have all the time in the world big sis!"
Rubbish cans and debris came towards her rapidly, and she could see out of the corner of her eye that Brennan was behind her preparing to send energy blasts of his own towards Misha.
"No! Don't hurt her!" yelled Rosa, and that lapse of concentration was enough for a piece of debris to catch her on the side of her head. She felt the warm blood trickling down her temple at the same time as she felt the ice coldness running through her veins. It had started again, she couldn't control the energy accumulating. but it felt different this time. Icy cold, not red hot as it usually was.
From the floor, she could see Brennan was struggling with Misha's missiles. He couldn't keep up with her much longer. She got up slowly, and before she could control it, cold white light erupted from her fingertips and was sent flying towards Misha.
The last thing she heard was a scream from Misha, and Brennan crying out her name, before she passed out.
&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
Hmmm, I think I'll leave you guessing as to what's happened, although the clues are there, so I wouldn't be surprised if it was completely obvious! I'm still open to suggestions on the pairings, so please keep reviewing. The score currently stands at Jesse/Emma 3, Jesse/Shal 4. I'm not promising that I'll stick to the majority, but good reasons for the pairings may sway me. Keep them coming!