Part 2
Adam Kane tapped another command into the computer terminal he was working at and swore under his breath at the resultant change in the data displayed on the screen in front of him.
"A problem?"
He looked up to see Shalimar Fox gazing quizzically down at him and lifted a hand to rub absently at the back of his neck as he smiled ruefully back at her.
"Oh, I don't know. Maybe. Just some reports that don't seem much on their own, but when you add them together could prove to be something big."
"Big enough that we need to go do something about it?" Shalimar asked, the prospect of action lighting her brown eyes as clearly as the yellow of her feral state.
Adam laughed at her enthusiasm. "Maybe," he repeated. "Perhaps we should try and find out." He stood and activated Sanctuary's internal comms system, asking the other members of his Mutant X team to join them. Two came back quickly, but the third... He called again, frowning at the silence that greeted him.
"Don't worry, I'll find him." Shalimar flashed him a knowing smile, patting him on the shoulder as she brushed past and left the room.
**
Dark-suited warriors leapt into sight, one after the other, surging towards him with violent intent clear in every move despite their expressionless faces. As each one launched his attack Jesse responded, grunting at the impact of each block and counterpunch, fists and feet flying in a whirling frenzy of aggression. One by one, his opponents fell away, only to be replaced by another, and every time he felt the adrenaline surging even more strongly through him, numbing the bruising force of contact, pushing him to up the tempo even more. But not once did he even consider using his powers to enhance his chances of success, preferring the use of defence only as a natural part of his offensive capabilities rather than as the be all and end all of his armoury.
"Hey, save some of those bad guys for the rest of us."
Distracted by the unexpected intrusion on his concentration, he looked round sharply at exactly the same time his current opponent sent a looping punch towards his head. Too late he caught the movement out of the corner of his eye and tried to duck, but the blow still collided solidly with his temple.
Momentarily dazed, he went down on one knee, blinking desperately to clear his fuzzy vision enough to dodge what would have to be the coup de grace. Somewhere ahead he saw a polished black shoe heading for his face at speed and his instincts screamed at him to move. But before it could reach him it suddenly winked out of existence, and with a groan he sagged forward, panting, to cradle his sore head in his hands.
Warm fingers pulled his away to prod gently at the point of contact and he flinched away from them.
"Ouch!" Shalimar's voice continued, sympathetically. "That's gotta hurt."
"Yeah, well," he said, pushing himself to unsteady feet and glaring at her, "you shouldn't go sneaking up on people like that!"
"Yeah, well," she repeated back at him playfully, punching his arm lightly, "Adam's been calling you for like ten minutes. What's got you so wound up? You don't normally get that immersed in training simulations. And what were you doing with the safety level down so low?" Her dark eyes surveyed him with quiet concern.
"What? Don't you think I'm up to it?" he demanded rebelliously. "That only you and Brennan can handle the real thing? I can take care of myself, you know - in case you hadn't noticed."
"Hey!" she protested. "It's me, remember? I'm not one of the simulations - no need to get all macho with me!"
He froze, staring at her almost transfixed for a several seconds, then he took a deep breath and raised fingers to touch at the reddening mark along the side of his face again with a sheepish smile. "Sorry," he offered. "Just kind of got caught up in the moment."
Shalimar tilted her head to one side, a slight frown creasing her forehead. "I could see that." She took his arm and tugged him towards the dojo stairs. "Looks like you had a bit of steam to let off, there." Pulling him down beside her, she settled herself lithely onto a step and shook her blonde mane back over her shoulders before fixing him with a beady gaze. "So... want to tell me about it?"
He glanced at her cautiously, not wanting to give anything away until he knew where she was coming from. "About what?"
"Whatever's been bothering you the past week. I'm betting Emma's sensed something, though she's not saying anything. But I know you, Jess, better than anyone. I can tell when something's wrong."
Jesse looked away, a horde of unwanted emotions stampeding through him with such violence he could hardly breathe. 'Why now?' he wanted to yell. 'Why not weeks ago when I was struggling so hard with my new powers, when I started to realise how little you all understand me, how much I was changing without any of you giving me credit for it? Why couldn't you tell then how wrong things were, been there for me instead of leaving me to cope on my own while you went and had fun. Fun with Brennan... with Emma, even... but not with me. Why...?'
But instead he bottled the words and feelings away, not wanting the confrontation they would inevitably cause, not when he was already feeling so emotionally battered by the visions haunting his dreams. With a crooked sideways grin, he said teasingly, "Oh, you do, do you?"
"Well, yah!" she retorted in similar style. "After all, I did see you through all those teenage tantrums you threw."
"Hey, I did not throw tantrums!" Jesse pulled back to glare at her in mock indignation, enjoying this increasingly rare opportunity of having Shalimar to himself, to have her company and her attention without one of the others around to distract them. Well as he got on with Emma and Brennan, much as he appreciated how the addition of their talents enhanced Mutant X's ability to succeed, there was a part of him that yearned for the days before they arrived, days when there'd only been the two of them in Adam's family, when things had been simpler and he'd been totally confident in both his abilities and his place in the world.
But those days were gone, and though he knew he should see this as something positive, a change for the better, a challenge to be savoured, there were times when he just wished things the way they'd been.
Shalimar leant back against the step behind, eyes sparkling mischievously and a sly smile curving her lips. "Oh no? So, what do you call massing your way through the garage wall because Adam wouldn't let you have the Audi to take - what was her name? Cindy? Mindy? - to Florida for the weekend? Or that time you packed your bags, swore you were going to run away and join the circus because I had to come bail you out of your first fight? Or..."
"OK, OK, you've made your point," he said hastily, fighting the flush he could feel rising in his cheeks at the reminders of his youth.
"Aw, did I make you blush?" she giggled, sliding one arm through his and hugging him to her, tactile as ever. "It's no biggie - didn't make either of us love you any less."
And he couldn't help the way his heart leapt at her words, the warmth they engendered in him. He returned her affectionate smile, all embarrassment lost in the welcome feelings of family and belonging.
"Which is why," she continued, "we're worried about you." Her expression turned serious. "So, what's got you so down?"
His smile slipped only a notch but he knew she'd notice, knew she'd see through any excuse he offered. But he tried anyway, not wanting to allow the terrors of the night to hold any sway over him here, determined to banish them as far as possible from his waking world in the hope that would get rid of them permanently.
"I'm fine," he assured her, seeing the scepticism light her eyes. "No, really. I'm... I just didn't sleep too well last night. You know how it is..." He shrugged, hoping perhaps that the partial truth would convince her it was nothing to worry about, and indeed, after a few moments of careful scrutiny, she sighed and squeezed his arm again.
"Bad dreams, huh? Yeah, had my share of those."
He started at that, wondering how much she actually knew, but she seemed to miss his reaction as she leant over to plant a kiss on his cheek.
"Just remember I'm here if you need to talk, OK?" She came smoothly to her feet and stood looking down at him. "Now... I think Adam needs us to go do some checking on something?"
"No rest for the wicked," he muttered as he took her offered hand and let her pull him up and down the steps after her.
Adam and Emma awaited them in the hi-tech computerised centre from which Mutant X kept watch on the world, along with the fifth member of the team. Brennan Mulwray, his relaxed air belying the electricity he could conjure up at will, waved a languid hand in greeting from where he sat, long legs stretched out in front of him and feet resting on the desk.
Emma smiled a welcome to them both, but Shalimar couldn't help noticing the way her eyes sought out Jesse's and the look that passed between them, a question and answer that she couldn't read but that made her more certain than ever that something was up. And she was surprised at how much that hurt. Not just the fact that the nearest thing she had to a little brother wouldn't confide in her now like he used to, but that it seemed he felt he could talk to Emma, a relative newcomer to their lives. She tried to tell herself it was probably just that the telempath's powers made it easier for her to understand how he was feeling without him having to put it into words, something he - in common with most men, she thought - didn't do so well. But it still felt strangely like a betrayal from one who'd always shared everything with her.
Adam waited a moment, aware of some undercurrents but unsure what they meant, then cleared his throat. Four pairs of eyes swivelled his way, but it was Jesse he addressed himself to. "Good of you to join us," he began with more than a touch of sarcasm, but the obvious evidence of combat marking the molecular's face, along with something else, some tension which seemed out of place in his usually laid-back protégé, made him hold back the rest of the mild reprimand he'd been vaguely formulating. In any case, he thought, now wasn't the time, not with all the others here. And, seeing that he had their attention, he made a mental note to talk to him about it later and launched into his briefing.
"I think we have a situation in the making," he stated, his gaze sweeping across the watching faces of his people before returning to the workstation he was standing beside as he hit a key. "I've been picking up seemingly disconnected stories of people going missing across this South-Eastern area in the past few weeks." He waved a hand at the main viewscreen and the graphic display indicating where he meant. "It wasn't until a couple of the names came up on our New Mutant database that I began to wonder if there might be a connection after all. And when I add in some vague rumours about a new paramilitary group who've apparently been seen hunting down unspecified individuals, even dragging them from their homes, it starts to feel to me like something big."
"So..." Shalimar's mind was now completely focussed on the implications of what she was hearing, "what're you thinking? That these guys are hitting mutants?"
Adam shook his head. "I don't know, not yet. But that's what we're going to find out."
"Cool," Brennan said, swinging his feet to the floor and standing up. "Let's go."
"You're not going anywhere - at least not right now." Adam had to smile at the elemental's conviction that action was the best route to knowledge, knowing how he - and probably the others - was going to react to his next words. "What we do first is some checking." He wasn't disappointed; the groans, particularly from Brennan, were clearly audible, but he went on regardless. "I want background checks on the other missing people, see if there's anything unusual about them, anything that might have made them targets. Oh, and some deeper digging on that group - if they're something more than a figment of the imagination, they have to have a home base somewhere." He looked round at them, expectantly.
"Well? What are you waiting for? The sooner we find out whether there's anything in this, the sooner you can get out there and do something about it!"
****
Adam Kane tapped another command into the computer terminal he was working at and swore under his breath at the resultant change in the data displayed on the screen in front of him.
"A problem?"
He looked up to see Shalimar Fox gazing quizzically down at him and lifted a hand to rub absently at the back of his neck as he smiled ruefully back at her.
"Oh, I don't know. Maybe. Just some reports that don't seem much on their own, but when you add them together could prove to be something big."
"Big enough that we need to go do something about it?" Shalimar asked, the prospect of action lighting her brown eyes as clearly as the yellow of her feral state.
Adam laughed at her enthusiasm. "Maybe," he repeated. "Perhaps we should try and find out." He stood and activated Sanctuary's internal comms system, asking the other members of his Mutant X team to join them. Two came back quickly, but the third... He called again, frowning at the silence that greeted him.
"Don't worry, I'll find him." Shalimar flashed him a knowing smile, patting him on the shoulder as she brushed past and left the room.
**
Dark-suited warriors leapt into sight, one after the other, surging towards him with violent intent clear in every move despite their expressionless faces. As each one launched his attack Jesse responded, grunting at the impact of each block and counterpunch, fists and feet flying in a whirling frenzy of aggression. One by one, his opponents fell away, only to be replaced by another, and every time he felt the adrenaline surging even more strongly through him, numbing the bruising force of contact, pushing him to up the tempo even more. But not once did he even consider using his powers to enhance his chances of success, preferring the use of defence only as a natural part of his offensive capabilities rather than as the be all and end all of his armoury.
"Hey, save some of those bad guys for the rest of us."
Distracted by the unexpected intrusion on his concentration, he looked round sharply at exactly the same time his current opponent sent a looping punch towards his head. Too late he caught the movement out of the corner of his eye and tried to duck, but the blow still collided solidly with his temple.
Momentarily dazed, he went down on one knee, blinking desperately to clear his fuzzy vision enough to dodge what would have to be the coup de grace. Somewhere ahead he saw a polished black shoe heading for his face at speed and his instincts screamed at him to move. But before it could reach him it suddenly winked out of existence, and with a groan he sagged forward, panting, to cradle his sore head in his hands.
Warm fingers pulled his away to prod gently at the point of contact and he flinched away from them.
"Ouch!" Shalimar's voice continued, sympathetically. "That's gotta hurt."
"Yeah, well," he said, pushing himself to unsteady feet and glaring at her, "you shouldn't go sneaking up on people like that!"
"Yeah, well," she repeated back at him playfully, punching his arm lightly, "Adam's been calling you for like ten minutes. What's got you so wound up? You don't normally get that immersed in training simulations. And what were you doing with the safety level down so low?" Her dark eyes surveyed him with quiet concern.
"What? Don't you think I'm up to it?" he demanded rebelliously. "That only you and Brennan can handle the real thing? I can take care of myself, you know - in case you hadn't noticed."
"Hey!" she protested. "It's me, remember? I'm not one of the simulations - no need to get all macho with me!"
He froze, staring at her almost transfixed for a several seconds, then he took a deep breath and raised fingers to touch at the reddening mark along the side of his face again with a sheepish smile. "Sorry," he offered. "Just kind of got caught up in the moment."
Shalimar tilted her head to one side, a slight frown creasing her forehead. "I could see that." She took his arm and tugged him towards the dojo stairs. "Looks like you had a bit of steam to let off, there." Pulling him down beside her, she settled herself lithely onto a step and shook her blonde mane back over her shoulders before fixing him with a beady gaze. "So... want to tell me about it?"
He glanced at her cautiously, not wanting to give anything away until he knew where she was coming from. "About what?"
"Whatever's been bothering you the past week. I'm betting Emma's sensed something, though she's not saying anything. But I know you, Jess, better than anyone. I can tell when something's wrong."
Jesse looked away, a horde of unwanted emotions stampeding through him with such violence he could hardly breathe. 'Why now?' he wanted to yell. 'Why not weeks ago when I was struggling so hard with my new powers, when I started to realise how little you all understand me, how much I was changing without any of you giving me credit for it? Why couldn't you tell then how wrong things were, been there for me instead of leaving me to cope on my own while you went and had fun. Fun with Brennan... with Emma, even... but not with me. Why...?'
But instead he bottled the words and feelings away, not wanting the confrontation they would inevitably cause, not when he was already feeling so emotionally battered by the visions haunting his dreams. With a crooked sideways grin, he said teasingly, "Oh, you do, do you?"
"Well, yah!" she retorted in similar style. "After all, I did see you through all those teenage tantrums you threw."
"Hey, I did not throw tantrums!" Jesse pulled back to glare at her in mock indignation, enjoying this increasingly rare opportunity of having Shalimar to himself, to have her company and her attention without one of the others around to distract them. Well as he got on with Emma and Brennan, much as he appreciated how the addition of their talents enhanced Mutant X's ability to succeed, there was a part of him that yearned for the days before they arrived, days when there'd only been the two of them in Adam's family, when things had been simpler and he'd been totally confident in both his abilities and his place in the world.
But those days were gone, and though he knew he should see this as something positive, a change for the better, a challenge to be savoured, there were times when he just wished things the way they'd been.
Shalimar leant back against the step behind, eyes sparkling mischievously and a sly smile curving her lips. "Oh no? So, what do you call massing your way through the garage wall because Adam wouldn't let you have the Audi to take - what was her name? Cindy? Mindy? - to Florida for the weekend? Or that time you packed your bags, swore you were going to run away and join the circus because I had to come bail you out of your first fight? Or..."
"OK, OK, you've made your point," he said hastily, fighting the flush he could feel rising in his cheeks at the reminders of his youth.
"Aw, did I make you blush?" she giggled, sliding one arm through his and hugging him to her, tactile as ever. "It's no biggie - didn't make either of us love you any less."
And he couldn't help the way his heart leapt at her words, the warmth they engendered in him. He returned her affectionate smile, all embarrassment lost in the welcome feelings of family and belonging.
"Which is why," she continued, "we're worried about you." Her expression turned serious. "So, what's got you so down?"
His smile slipped only a notch but he knew she'd notice, knew she'd see through any excuse he offered. But he tried anyway, not wanting to allow the terrors of the night to hold any sway over him here, determined to banish them as far as possible from his waking world in the hope that would get rid of them permanently.
"I'm fine," he assured her, seeing the scepticism light her eyes. "No, really. I'm... I just didn't sleep too well last night. You know how it is..." He shrugged, hoping perhaps that the partial truth would convince her it was nothing to worry about, and indeed, after a few moments of careful scrutiny, she sighed and squeezed his arm again.
"Bad dreams, huh? Yeah, had my share of those."
He started at that, wondering how much she actually knew, but she seemed to miss his reaction as she leant over to plant a kiss on his cheek.
"Just remember I'm here if you need to talk, OK?" She came smoothly to her feet and stood looking down at him. "Now... I think Adam needs us to go do some checking on something?"
"No rest for the wicked," he muttered as he took her offered hand and let her pull him up and down the steps after her.
Adam and Emma awaited them in the hi-tech computerised centre from which Mutant X kept watch on the world, along with the fifth member of the team. Brennan Mulwray, his relaxed air belying the electricity he could conjure up at will, waved a languid hand in greeting from where he sat, long legs stretched out in front of him and feet resting on the desk.
Emma smiled a welcome to them both, but Shalimar couldn't help noticing the way her eyes sought out Jesse's and the look that passed between them, a question and answer that she couldn't read but that made her more certain than ever that something was up. And she was surprised at how much that hurt. Not just the fact that the nearest thing she had to a little brother wouldn't confide in her now like he used to, but that it seemed he felt he could talk to Emma, a relative newcomer to their lives. She tried to tell herself it was probably just that the telempath's powers made it easier for her to understand how he was feeling without him having to put it into words, something he - in common with most men, she thought - didn't do so well. But it still felt strangely like a betrayal from one who'd always shared everything with her.
Adam waited a moment, aware of some undercurrents but unsure what they meant, then cleared his throat. Four pairs of eyes swivelled his way, but it was Jesse he addressed himself to. "Good of you to join us," he began with more than a touch of sarcasm, but the obvious evidence of combat marking the molecular's face, along with something else, some tension which seemed out of place in his usually laid-back protégé, made him hold back the rest of the mild reprimand he'd been vaguely formulating. In any case, he thought, now wasn't the time, not with all the others here. And, seeing that he had their attention, he made a mental note to talk to him about it later and launched into his briefing.
"I think we have a situation in the making," he stated, his gaze sweeping across the watching faces of his people before returning to the workstation he was standing beside as he hit a key. "I've been picking up seemingly disconnected stories of people going missing across this South-Eastern area in the past few weeks." He waved a hand at the main viewscreen and the graphic display indicating where he meant. "It wasn't until a couple of the names came up on our New Mutant database that I began to wonder if there might be a connection after all. And when I add in some vague rumours about a new paramilitary group who've apparently been seen hunting down unspecified individuals, even dragging them from their homes, it starts to feel to me like something big."
"So..." Shalimar's mind was now completely focussed on the implications of what she was hearing, "what're you thinking? That these guys are hitting mutants?"
Adam shook his head. "I don't know, not yet. But that's what we're going to find out."
"Cool," Brennan said, swinging his feet to the floor and standing up. "Let's go."
"You're not going anywhere - at least not right now." Adam had to smile at the elemental's conviction that action was the best route to knowledge, knowing how he - and probably the others - was going to react to his next words. "What we do first is some checking." He wasn't disappointed; the groans, particularly from Brennan, were clearly audible, but he went on regardless. "I want background checks on the other missing people, see if there's anything unusual about them, anything that might have made them targets. Oh, and some deeper digging on that group - if they're something more than a figment of the imagination, they have to have a home base somewhere." He looked round at them, expectantly.
"Well? What are you waiting for? The sooner we find out whether there's anything in this, the sooner you can get out there and do something about it!"
****