ELEMENTAL CHILD
Chapter 2
"Uh oh. This is not good." Jesse grabbed Brennan's elbow and forced him to slow down. Five minutes ago they landed the Double Helix on a field nearby. They had cloaked the plane from view before walking toward the alley that hid the safe house entrance.
"What?" Brennan followed Jesse's pointed finger.
The door to the safe house stood wide open, like a yawning maw. The lock was splintered. They saw no movement in the darkness inside.
"Uh oh's right," Brennan agreed. He brought his hands together until energy crackled between his fingers.
On tiptoe, careful to make no noise, the two men approached the safe house entrance. Jesse wished Shalimar were with them; her senses were so well honed that she'd have been able to hear the slightest noise from inside. As it was, the safe house appeared abandoned. He wasn't sure if that was a good sign, or bad.
Jesse took the first step down the stairs, ready to mass and protect Brennan from gunfire. Silence reigned the safe house. A single lamp was burning near the bottom of the stairs. Nothing moved in its feeble glow, but it did reveal the wreckage in the room. An overturned chair, a broken table, signs of a struggle and --
"Emma!" Jesse rushed down the last few steps and ran over to his teammate. She lay crumpled on the floor, half-hidden beneath a sofa seat pillow. "Emma?"
He carefully rolled her over. She shifted and whimpered as her eyes fluttered open. "Emma? You all right?" Jesse helped her sit up and whistled at the egg-sized bump on her forehead. "Wow. They got you pretty good. That looks like it's gotta hurt."
"Ow. You have no idea. They took Ashley. The GSA." Her eyes widened and swam slowly into focus. "Oh God, it is so scared!"
"Who? It?" Brennan, having made sure the safe house was indeed deserted, dropped to his knees on Emma's other side.
"Ashley's baby. I can sense it."
"Ashley? Ashley Elliott? The girl that almost killed me last year? She has a baby?" Brennan looked confused. "Jesse said you needed help here but--"
"I told you the connection was pretty bad. How the hell did the GSA know about this place, anyway?"
"They must have followed Ashley," Brennan concluded.
"No. She said she'd been careful. She was quite sure she wasn't being followed." Emma unsteadily got to her feet. Jesse hovered close, ready to catch her if she faltered.
"They might have intercepted your transmission," Jesse said. "If we were breaking up, then perhaps Adam's jamming equipment failed too."
"Well, in any case," Brennan said, picking up a book that was torn in half, "this safe house has been compromised. We better get out of here before they decide to come back." He gave the book a sad look and placed it on what was left of the table.
* * *
Ashley struggled against the manacles that held her in the straight-backed metal chair. The cuffs didn't budge, keeping her firmly in place. She felt nauseated. She'd panicked when the GSA broke down the door and hauled her off. The baby had picked up on her feelings and in defense emitted electromagnetic pulses that were strong enough to interfere with its mother's own abilities. The queasy feeling in the pit of her stomach reminded Ashley of the days when she'd been mutating, causing her to hunger for power in a way that was beyond her control. She hoped this pregnancy wouldn't trigger another mutation episode. Right now, though, she had other, more pressing worries to concern her.
Like the white-haired, pasty-faced man gazing coldly down upon her.
"Miss Elliott. I'd be very interested to hear who the knave is that sired this child you're carrying."
Ashley warranted him an angry glare and pursed her lips. The white-haired guy, whom she thought to be Mason Eckhart, sighed.
"Please. You must realize we have ways to extract that information from you. Ways that are not nearly as pleasant as me asking you politely."
The baby stirred and Ashley swallowed down another wave of nausea as her stomach rolled. "I don't know," she muttered, her tone obstinate.
"You don't know. I see." Eckhart stared at her from behind his tinted glasses. "And you expect me to believe you." His tone grew colder and Ashley shivered. The temperature in the room appeared to have dropped several degrees. "The woman so loyal that she risked her life to save her wayward lover when she believed him to be held prisoner. And now you don't know which mutant aberration is the father?"
"No."
"Very well. It's your choice."
Eckhart gestured at someone behind her. A man she hadn't seen before stepped into her view. He was thin to the point of being emasculated, with a few wispy strands of gray hair vainly attempting to cover his shiny pate. He wore a white lab coat, the kind she associated with doctors.
Ashley's eyes were drawn to a small syringe in his hands, a wicked-looking needle sticking out of its end. "What are you going to do with that?" She couldn't keep the quiver from her voice.
"Get a DNA sample from the child," Eckhart said. He wasn't explaining to Ashley but issuing an order at the doctor. "I'm sure you'll find its father in our databases somewhere. I want to know who he is. And I want him delivered here today. Alive."
"Yes, Mr. Eckhart."
The doctor shoved her sleeve up and jammed the needle into her skin. Ashley screamed in pain and fear. The lights flickered crazily for a moment, before her world turned dark and she lost consciousness.
* * *
"End scan," Adam ordered. The twin beams that illuminated Emma blinked out. Adam studied the screen for a few moments before he turned. Four pairs of expectant eyes were waiting for his verdict. Brennan lounged beside Emma in the other chair, while Jesse and Shalimar hovered near the doorway.
"At least that bump on your head doesn't seem to have any nasty side effects."
"Except for the headache," Emma grumbled and tentatively lifted a hand toward the egg-shaped lump on her skull. She winced when her fingers touched the tight skin.
"Except for that," Adam granted.
"A painkiller will take care of it," Shalimar suggested with a smile.
"No," Emma said. "I don't want it. Painkillers make me all fuzzy. You'll need me to find Ashley."
"I still don't understand why they took Ashley and left you." Jesse walked further into the room and took a seat beside Brennan. "Not that I'm not grateful, mind," he added quickly.
"Because Eckhart wants her baby," Adam surmised.
"But why?" Shalimar sounded confused. "New mutants have had babies before. He never was this interested in them."
"That," Adam admitted with a sigh, "I don't know."
"Because this baby is special," Emma said softly. "Its father is--" Her eyes flickered away for a moment and her cheeks colored a light pink. "Is another mutant," she finished. "Another elemental."
"Is that so?" A deep crease appeared between Adam's brows, the furrow that Shalimar had dubbed the 'idea wrinkle'. "That could explain what you said before, Emma, about this baby's immense power before it's even born. With the right combination of genetic material--hmm." He began walking out of the lab, and the others trailed behind. "We have to find Ashley. We can't let Eckhart get his hands on that child."
"Any idea where they took her?" Brennan asked.
"No. He's not going to put her in stasis; at least not yet, so she could be in any of the Genomex compounds."
"She's at Genomex's headquarters," Emma said, her gaze distant. "In the eastern wing, all the way at the end."
"How can you pinpoint her location so exactly?" Shalimar asked. "You barely know Ashley."
Emma blinked. "I just know, all right?"
Adam frowned at her defensive tone. Shalimar asked a perfectly normal question; the stronger Emma's emotional connection to someone, the better her gift worked. He wondered if her power was growing. But getting Ashley out of Eckhart's hands was their first priority. Emma's powers and what might be happening to them could wait.
* * *
Eckhart returned to his office. On the floor below the large picture window, the stasis pods hummed softly, the occupants dreaming their dreams undisturbed. He didn't look at the pods the way he usually did. Instead, he sat behind his desk, tapping the butt end of a pencil against the immaculate surface of the desk. His thoughts were running at top speed. To catch a pregnant mutant could be very promising, an unexpected boon to Harrison's floundering research projects. And if his suspicions were right, the brat's father was another elemental, like Ashley. Although mutants, like most creatures, tended to attract those most similar to themselves --invalidating the old adage that opposites attract-- it was a rare find for Eckhart to discover a child born from such a union. And for some unknown reason this particular child was immensely powerful. Fortunately, the electrical disturbances that allowed them to intercept the Mutant X communications had forewarned them to its power. If not for the force field his people set up before the Elliott woman's arrival, the entire complex might have blacked out.
The bell chimed, announcing that someone was requesting an audience. Mason dropped the pencil and looked up. It better be Genetta with the DNA results. "Yes?" he called, hitting the button that opened the doors automatically.
He was pleased to see that it was indeed the doctor who entered.
The man glanced around curiously. He had never been inside Eckhart's inner sanctum before. Dr. Harrison usually liaised between the boss and the researchers. Genetta's job was in the hospital and consisted of patching up injured GS agents or prepping captured new mutants for stasis. But Dr. Harrison was out of town, attending a conference in Beijing on biogenetics and hereditary illnesses.
"Dr. Genetta. I take it you have good news for me?" Mason permitted himself a tiny smile, trying to appear friendly. He never realized (nor would he really care if someone told him) that it merely made him look like a python about to devour a mouse for dinner.
"Uh, yes, Mr. Eckhart. I think I do. We managed to extract a DNA sample from the baby. Sir, you wouldn't believe that child's genetic profile! "
"Oh, you have no idea what I believe," Eckhart mumbled. The doctor blinked and glanced at him in confusion. The head of Genomex gestured impatiently. "Go on."
"It took out the scanners," Genetta continued. "Even when removed from the subject, the DNA retained its electromagnetic properties for several minutes. That's why it took us so long: we had to wait until it had exhausted itself."
"The father?" Mason cut to the chase. He wasn't interested in excuses, only in results.
The doctor grinned. "Not a problem," he said. "You were right: the father is in our database. Agents are picking him up as we speak."
"Good." Eckhart nodded and turned to gaze out across the room filled with stasis pods. "Let me know as soon as they bring him here."
* * *
Brennan killed the Audi's engine. Before he could even take the keys from the ignition, Shalimar had jumped out of the front seat. "Let's go, you guys!"
Brennan chortled at her eagerness. Sometimes, Shalimar was like a fidgety cat, with too much energy.
The sprawling Genomex building bathed in the pink light of the rising sun. From their spot along the side of the road, he could see the security guards patrolling the entire length of the main building. A quick count told him there were at least eight. Every time Mutant X invaded the Genomex facility, the other side learned from the lesson and beefed up security. It was getting harder and harder to get in and out without being captured. But not impossible.
"You two cover the west, Brennan said. "I'll handle the guards on the east."
"Maybe we should stick together?" Jesse sounded dubious. "They look pretty attentive." It was still early in the morning, but not so early that the guards were sleepy and could be caught napping.
"Nah," Brennan said. "I can handle it. It'll be quicker."
They split up and Brennan slunk to the east wing of the building. The first guard was easy. He wasn't paying much attention to his surroundings, appearing more interested in the cigarette he held in his fingers. A quick burst of crackling blue fire took him out.
Brennan frowned at the boneless body at his feet. Not much fun this way. He liked a hands-on fight better. He was preparing to jump the next guard, when the soft click of a gun being cocked caused him to freeze in his tracks.
"Mr. Mulwray?"
Tiny strands of energy crackled along Brennan's fingertips. He slowly began to turn around. "Who wants to know?"
Before he could catch more than a glimpse of his attacker from the corner of his eye (carrot hair, dimpled face, one of Eckharts latest recruits), the hammer hit the firing pin and something small came zipping out of the gun's barrel. It hit the side of Brenann's neck, then all went dark.
* * *
Brennan's memories were fuzzy. His head throbbed, and he had a strange taste in his mouth. What the hell happened? He tried to dig up the last thing he remembered from the depths of his mind. Something about a red-headed kid pointing a gun at him. He groaned, as a subtle shift of his head caused it to pound even louder, like someone was trying to hack its way out of his skull with a sledgehammer. At least the kid hadn't killed him.
"Mr. Mulwray. I see you have decided to finally wake up."
That voice. Brennan stilled, taking deep breaths. At last he opened his eyes. "Eckhart." He rubbed the side of his neck where a sore spot itched with the last remnants of the tranq dart that took him out. A horrible thought struck, memories of an earlier capture. While trying to be unobtrusive about it, he shifted his hand a little further to the back of neck. His fingers stilled when they failed to find the little knob they searched for. Brennan was surprised to find they had not put in a subdermal governor. A sense of imminent triumph raced through his veins but he cautioned himself before he could act on it. Eckhart was no fool. If there were no subdermal governor, the man would have a reason. Brennan was sure it wasn't a mere oversight; he knew his opponent well enough to know it wasn't as simple as that.
"You're not going to try and electrocute me?" Eckhart asked, unfazed. "Smart move, Mr. Mulwray. You see, you're imprisoned behind a force field. Can't see it, can't feel it. But your electrical tricks won't work."
Brennan shifted his gaze away from Eckhart and surveyed the room.
A woman slumped in a straight-backed chair behind him. Her hands lay on the armrests, her wrists bruised from the metal bands that Brennan was quite familiar with. The bands were loose now, however, no longer keeping her imprisoned. A swollen stomach pressed against the cloth of her shirt.
"Ashley?"
She glanced up. Her blue eyes were dull and filled with -- with something he couldn't quite determine. He didn't like the look, though.
"Are you all right?"
She nodded, and a tear slipped from her eye. "I'm sorry."
Brennan frowned. "What for?"
"Mr. Mulwray." Eckhart pulled Brennan's attention back to himself. "Now that the happy family reunion is over, I will need your cooperation for some tests. Willingly, or unwillingly."
"What?" Brennan's frown deepened, drawing his brows down. "Listen, Eckhart. I don't know what you're talking about, but if you think you can--"
He faltered when Eckhart's lips split and he began to emit a strange barking noise. Brennan stared at him, for a long minute not comprehending. Then his brain processed the fact that Eckhart was laughing. Brennan had never thought the pale man capable of humor, let alone laughter. It wasn't a pleasant sound, however, and he failed to suppress the shiver that ran along his spine. Whatever it was that Eckhart found so funny, it couldn't be good news for him or Ashley.
"You don't know," Eckhart stated. His features settled back in the familiar scowl. "She never told you."
"Who never told me what?"
"I'd shake your hand," Eckhart said, "but..." He gestured at the invisible force field separating them. "I do have to congratulate you, Mr. Mulwray. According to our tests, Miss Elliott is about to make you a father."
TBC