Author's Note: Sorry about the delay! Enjoy! (Or not. Who am I to tell what to do?)
Disclaimer Mock VI: I do not own the show because then I wouldn't have made Brennan act like such an asshole in this weeks episode. That really sucked and rest assured that my story will not do that to him. Anyways, I have another character to add to my repetoire: A doctor of the scientific persuation. And a nameless needle happy thug, but he doesn't count, being nameless, you see.
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With my nose, I was able to follow their van to its destination without keeping them in sight, and the long run helped to cool me down a little. Not a lot, but enough so that I started thinking reasonably again- not about going back, but about how to get Shal out. I realized I couldn't just burst in, guns a'blazin, and started to formulate a plan of sorts.
With my powers and Shalimar's, we could easily get out of anything. But Shal could still be unconscious, which meant that I would have to drag her out of where-ever and fight off potential attackers at the same time, which would be difficult. So I would have to remain unseen, and they couldn't know that Shal was gone until we were away. I wanted to beat those people up, but Shal would have to be hidden away somewhere first...
I saw the van park and ducked out of sight into some bushes by the road. From my hiding place I watched them drag a barely conscious Shalimar out of the back and into a building, and winced. The building was obviously heavily secured. This could be more difficult than anticipated, I thought, brow creased and I crept around to the side of the building, where there weren't any guards. I looked up. Three stories, straight vertical. No problem. In seconds I was on the roof.
The building was the "mass produced" kind designed to be built fast, so while the security had been beefed up, the roof was still made of replaceable tiles that could be lifted, if you were a feral. I slid in and replaced the tile behind me before looking at where I was, and when I did I wished I hadn't. I hate air ducts, I thought, but it served my purpose for the time being. Being extremely careful not to make noise, because in reality, air ducts echo, I crawled to the nearest vent and sniffed. No people. I opened the vent and dropped down, noiseless, then took a bigger sniff. I caught the scents of three people on this floor, including Shal's. I followed Shal's scent.
She was in a room, strapped to a chair by means of metal straps, and she was struggling violently as two men watched her. I caught the sharp smell of blood and realized that the cuffs were cutting into Shal's wrists as she tugged against them.
"Shall I sedate her?" one of the men wondered, hand already reaching for the hypospray like he really wanted to.
"No," the other one said, his voice cold, "She'll wear herself out."
No she wouldn't. "Shal," I whispered, my voice barely audible to me, but Shal's sharp ears caught it, and she froze.
"There, you see," the cold one breathed, "Already she realizes it is futile. Now come. Dr. Hellan has asked that we speak to him." And they left, leaving Shal alone. Or so they thought.
The moment they were out of sight I came out of hiding to stand in front of Shal, trying to imitate the cold one's frozen stance.
"Danny," Shal whispered, relieved. "Thank God. Where are the others?"
I smiled apologetically. "No others. Just me." I flicked a claw out and began manipulating the lock on her left wrist.
She frowned. "Why not others?"
I unlocked her arm before replying and started on the other one. "I lost it." I glanced at her, guilty and expecting a reprimand.
Instead, she grinned. "Good. I don't think Adam would let me beat that asshole up. And I plan to." I freed her other arm and started on her feet, which were held by one lock, though a more complex one than the arms.
"You'll have to wait your turn," I told her, frowning in concentration.
She shook her head. "Nuh-huh. We have a history, Thorne and I. I get first."
"Thorne?" I had almost figured out the lock, but slowed down so that Shal'd tell me before she was free.
"Yeah. Used to be a minion of Eckhart's." She growled and her eyes glowed yellow as she contemplated the man.
"Eckhart? Emma mentioned him. What'd he do?"
Unexpectedly, she grinned at me. "I keep forgetting you don't know. Eckhart ran Genomex, back before the fall. He was New Mutant enemy numero uno, for a while."
"And this Thorne guy was numero dos. Was Eckhart a New Mutant, too?"
"How'd you know Thorne was a New Mutant? Never mind." She sighed. "No, Eckhart was one of Adam's collegues, under a guy named Breedlove."
"As in the Breedlove Clinics? Was that a cover or something for Genomex?"
"Sometimes. Anyways, Eckhart had a problem with Adam because of an accident that collapsed his immune system, which meant he had to wear a plastic skin at all times." I wrinkled my nose at the thought of how that would smell, but didn't interrupt. "Adam defected, which put Eckhart second-in-command under Breedlove, until Breedlove died, when he became first."
I smiled grimly. "What a marvelous coincidence."
She smiled back, just as grimly. "That's what Adam said. But nothing could be proved, because the building burned. But I will bet the steak I've got hidden in my room that Thorne did it."
"No bets there. He smells like a murderer. Bloody."
"My nose isn't half as good as yours and I still get that. They should put ferals in law enforcement." She grinned at the thought, then glared at me. "Aren't you done with that lock yet?"
I sighed and resumed my careful lock picking. A few seconds later, she was free and I barely managed to grab her arm before she walked out into the hall.
"What?" she demanded.
"We should go unseen. We need to know what they're doing," I explained when she would have protested. "Why they need a doctor."
"To set his bones when I'm done with him," she snarled, but saw the merit of my suggestion, and we carefully made our way down the hall and down the stairs, which we simply vaulted down instead of walking. I followed Thorne's scent to a room on the ground floor, where he was arguing with a thin man in a white coat.
"Dr. Hellan, I presume," I muttered to Shal, who nodded. I could barely hear them from outside the thick doors, so I crept around to an air vent in the next room, with Shal behind me.
"We can't waste such a strong feral!" Thorne was saying. "Not until the device is stable."
Dr. Hellan didn't agree. "The control she has over her powers should keep her from regressing."
"That was what you thought about the Foster girl, but we've lost her completely."
"If we'd kept them here instead of in the valley, we wouldn't have lost her, not would we?"
Thorne's voice went dangerously soft. "What are you saying?" Before Hellan could reply, he continued. "You're saying we should have kept twenty homocidal ferals in the facility?"
I didn't hear Hellan's reply, if he made one, having realized the implications of what they were saying, and instantly went cold. These people had done this to me, had made me lose control so that I killed people, so that I ran wild in a valley with others whose lives they'd ruined- and they didn't care. My rage exploded inside of me, and I slammed through the vent into the room, blood on my mind.
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Emma gasped as the wave of anger hit her, and staggered into Jesse, who caught her.
"What is it, Emma?" Adam's concerned face swam next to Jesse's.
She closed her eyes, blocking them out. "I got a hit off of Danny."
Brennan instantly snapped closer. "Where is she? Is she okay?"
"I don't know. She's angrier than I've ever felt her before." The power of the feral's emotions had her confused, and she wrenched her mind away from the contact, but not before catching a glimpse of a familiar face swimming in blood.
"She's going to kill him," she whispered, horrified at feeling such murderous emotions.
"Who? Where? What about Shal?"
"Thorne. She's going to kill Thorne. I don't know where, and I don't know about Shal. Should I try to get the contact back?" Inwardly, she shuddered at the thought, but she would if it would help Danny.
Adam rubbed his temples. "No. No need for you to. If Danny has completely lost control, then she probably isn't thinking about where she is. Try-" Suddenly Shal's voice interrupted.
"Adam! You there?"
"Shalimar," he said, not trying to keep the relief out of his voice. "Where are you?"
"I dunno, some ex-government place. Track my comlink and bring the Helix; Danny's down."
"What happened?" Adam asked.
"Is she alive?" Brennan put in.
"Thorne gave her a parting present of a knife in the gut. It's missed anything vital, as far as I can tell, but she needs medical attention a.s.a.p."
"On it's way." All four of them ran towards hangar. "What about Thorne?"
She sighed. "Don't ask, Adam. Its a mess here. Hurry."
"We are, Shal. Try to keep her stable." As the Helix took off, Adam prayed that they would get there before the authorities arrived- or worse, before Danny died.
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Author's Note: Am I getting good at this cliffhanger thing? I'm tempted not to add the next chapter for a few days... Unless, of course, you reviewers tell me otherwise.
Disclaimer Mock VI: I do not own the show because then I wouldn't have made Brennan act like such an asshole in this weeks episode. That really sucked and rest assured that my story will not do that to him. Anyways, I have another character to add to my repetoire: A doctor of the scientific persuation. And a nameless needle happy thug, but he doesn't count, being nameless, you see.
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With my nose, I was able to follow their van to its destination without keeping them in sight, and the long run helped to cool me down a little. Not a lot, but enough so that I started thinking reasonably again- not about going back, but about how to get Shal out. I realized I couldn't just burst in, guns a'blazin, and started to formulate a plan of sorts.
With my powers and Shalimar's, we could easily get out of anything. But Shal could still be unconscious, which meant that I would have to drag her out of where-ever and fight off potential attackers at the same time, which would be difficult. So I would have to remain unseen, and they couldn't know that Shal was gone until we were away. I wanted to beat those people up, but Shal would have to be hidden away somewhere first...
I saw the van park and ducked out of sight into some bushes by the road. From my hiding place I watched them drag a barely conscious Shalimar out of the back and into a building, and winced. The building was obviously heavily secured. This could be more difficult than anticipated, I thought, brow creased and I crept around to the side of the building, where there weren't any guards. I looked up. Three stories, straight vertical. No problem. In seconds I was on the roof.
The building was the "mass produced" kind designed to be built fast, so while the security had been beefed up, the roof was still made of replaceable tiles that could be lifted, if you were a feral. I slid in and replaced the tile behind me before looking at where I was, and when I did I wished I hadn't. I hate air ducts, I thought, but it served my purpose for the time being. Being extremely careful not to make noise, because in reality, air ducts echo, I crawled to the nearest vent and sniffed. No people. I opened the vent and dropped down, noiseless, then took a bigger sniff. I caught the scents of three people on this floor, including Shal's. I followed Shal's scent.
She was in a room, strapped to a chair by means of metal straps, and she was struggling violently as two men watched her. I caught the sharp smell of blood and realized that the cuffs were cutting into Shal's wrists as she tugged against them.
"Shall I sedate her?" one of the men wondered, hand already reaching for the hypospray like he really wanted to.
"No," the other one said, his voice cold, "She'll wear herself out."
No she wouldn't. "Shal," I whispered, my voice barely audible to me, but Shal's sharp ears caught it, and she froze.
"There, you see," the cold one breathed, "Already she realizes it is futile. Now come. Dr. Hellan has asked that we speak to him." And they left, leaving Shal alone. Or so they thought.
The moment they were out of sight I came out of hiding to stand in front of Shal, trying to imitate the cold one's frozen stance.
"Danny," Shal whispered, relieved. "Thank God. Where are the others?"
I smiled apologetically. "No others. Just me." I flicked a claw out and began manipulating the lock on her left wrist.
She frowned. "Why not others?"
I unlocked her arm before replying and started on the other one. "I lost it." I glanced at her, guilty and expecting a reprimand.
Instead, she grinned. "Good. I don't think Adam would let me beat that asshole up. And I plan to." I freed her other arm and started on her feet, which were held by one lock, though a more complex one than the arms.
"You'll have to wait your turn," I told her, frowning in concentration.
She shook her head. "Nuh-huh. We have a history, Thorne and I. I get first."
"Thorne?" I had almost figured out the lock, but slowed down so that Shal'd tell me before she was free.
"Yeah. Used to be a minion of Eckhart's." She growled and her eyes glowed yellow as she contemplated the man.
"Eckhart? Emma mentioned him. What'd he do?"
Unexpectedly, she grinned at me. "I keep forgetting you don't know. Eckhart ran Genomex, back before the fall. He was New Mutant enemy numero uno, for a while."
"And this Thorne guy was numero dos. Was Eckhart a New Mutant, too?"
"How'd you know Thorne was a New Mutant? Never mind." She sighed. "No, Eckhart was one of Adam's collegues, under a guy named Breedlove."
"As in the Breedlove Clinics? Was that a cover or something for Genomex?"
"Sometimes. Anyways, Eckhart had a problem with Adam because of an accident that collapsed his immune system, which meant he had to wear a plastic skin at all times." I wrinkled my nose at the thought of how that would smell, but didn't interrupt. "Adam defected, which put Eckhart second-in-command under Breedlove, until Breedlove died, when he became first."
I smiled grimly. "What a marvelous coincidence."
She smiled back, just as grimly. "That's what Adam said. But nothing could be proved, because the building burned. But I will bet the steak I've got hidden in my room that Thorne did it."
"No bets there. He smells like a murderer. Bloody."
"My nose isn't half as good as yours and I still get that. They should put ferals in law enforcement." She grinned at the thought, then glared at me. "Aren't you done with that lock yet?"
I sighed and resumed my careful lock picking. A few seconds later, she was free and I barely managed to grab her arm before she walked out into the hall.
"What?" she demanded.
"We should go unseen. We need to know what they're doing," I explained when she would have protested. "Why they need a doctor."
"To set his bones when I'm done with him," she snarled, but saw the merit of my suggestion, and we carefully made our way down the hall and down the stairs, which we simply vaulted down instead of walking. I followed Thorne's scent to a room on the ground floor, where he was arguing with a thin man in a white coat.
"Dr. Hellan, I presume," I muttered to Shal, who nodded. I could barely hear them from outside the thick doors, so I crept around to an air vent in the next room, with Shal behind me.
"We can't waste such a strong feral!" Thorne was saying. "Not until the device is stable."
Dr. Hellan didn't agree. "The control she has over her powers should keep her from regressing."
"That was what you thought about the Foster girl, but we've lost her completely."
"If we'd kept them here instead of in the valley, we wouldn't have lost her, not would we?"
Thorne's voice went dangerously soft. "What are you saying?" Before Hellan could reply, he continued. "You're saying we should have kept twenty homocidal ferals in the facility?"
I didn't hear Hellan's reply, if he made one, having realized the implications of what they were saying, and instantly went cold. These people had done this to me, had made me lose control so that I killed people, so that I ran wild in a valley with others whose lives they'd ruined- and they didn't care. My rage exploded inside of me, and I slammed through the vent into the room, blood on my mind.
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Emma gasped as the wave of anger hit her, and staggered into Jesse, who caught her.
"What is it, Emma?" Adam's concerned face swam next to Jesse's.
She closed her eyes, blocking them out. "I got a hit off of Danny."
Brennan instantly snapped closer. "Where is she? Is she okay?"
"I don't know. She's angrier than I've ever felt her before." The power of the feral's emotions had her confused, and she wrenched her mind away from the contact, but not before catching a glimpse of a familiar face swimming in blood.
"She's going to kill him," she whispered, horrified at feeling such murderous emotions.
"Who? Where? What about Shal?"
"Thorne. She's going to kill Thorne. I don't know where, and I don't know about Shal. Should I try to get the contact back?" Inwardly, she shuddered at the thought, but she would if it would help Danny.
Adam rubbed his temples. "No. No need for you to. If Danny has completely lost control, then she probably isn't thinking about where she is. Try-" Suddenly Shal's voice interrupted.
"Adam! You there?"
"Shalimar," he said, not trying to keep the relief out of his voice. "Where are you?"
"I dunno, some ex-government place. Track my comlink and bring the Helix; Danny's down."
"What happened?" Adam asked.
"Is she alive?" Brennan put in.
"Thorne gave her a parting present of a knife in the gut. It's missed anything vital, as far as I can tell, but she needs medical attention a.s.a.p."
"On it's way." All four of them ran towards hangar. "What about Thorne?"
She sighed. "Don't ask, Adam. Its a mess here. Hurry."
"We are, Shal. Try to keep her stable." As the Helix took off, Adam prayed that they would get there before the authorities arrived- or worse, before Danny died.
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Author's Note: Am I getting good at this cliffhanger thing? I'm tempted not to add the next chapter for a few days... Unless, of course, you reviewers tell me otherwise.