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On with the show!

THICKER THAN WATER

Chapter 6: Dealing with the Aftermath

            An invisible force kicked the gun out of Eckhart's hand.  He cursed angrily, looking around frantically for whomever or whatever had stolen his glorious moment.  Eckhart ordered his agents to locate the source.  He soon found himself knocked flat on his back.

            "Dammit, who's there?" Eckhart demanded of the air.

            "Do I really have to answer that?" the female voice replied.

            "Danielle," Adam tried to keep the smile from his face. 

            Eckhart reached for the gun, but it was kicked away.  His eyes briefly fell on Adam's smug expression.  Eckhart narrowed his eyes.  "Well, I still win.  Dylan is still mine."

            "I wouldn't count on that one," Danielle replied with a smirk none of them could see.

            Eckhart got to his feet.  "Let's go.  Now."  The GS agents filed out.  "This isn't over, Adam."

            "No, it never is," he returned.  Danielle unstealthed after they had gone.  "How did you know?" he asked her, as she unbound his hands.

            "Emma.  She used her ability to tell me that your little sister was here and that some assistance may be required.  I thought, 'Hey, I haven't seen Dylan in a long time, maybe I'll go visit.'"  Danielle looked up as three new mutants entered; two carrying Jesse between them, and the other Dylan.

            "Oh, thank God," Adam breathed out.  He took Dylan in his arms.

            The new mutant looked to Danielle, then back to Adam.  "Uh, Adam, she's—"

            "She's fine, trust me."

            "But she took a bullet in the chest—"

            "No, Jesse took the bullet in the chest.  Dylan saved his life.  Her mutant ability allows her to absorb others' wounds, and then she heals herself," Adam explained, looking up at Shalimar, Brennan, and Emma.  "Danielle, make sure those three are all right."  He turned to the mutants holding Jesse.  "You two, please follow me."

            Once inside the lab, Adam laid Dylan down on a cot.  The others did the same with Jesse, then waited for further instructions.

            "Get me some swabs and bandages out of the cupboard over there."  Adam ordered.  He carefully removed Dylan's shirt.  She was bleeding a lot from the wound she had claimed from Jesse, yet her skin did not lose its colour.  He knew that her body was repairing itself, though the process was slow.

            The blond haired mutant looked at Dylan uncertainly, as he gave Adam the bandages.  "She doesn't look so good," he murmured.

            "She'll be all right.  She just needs time to rest and repair."

            The mutant nodded.  "Should we go?"  He indicated the other who was present.

            "Yeah, I've got it from here."  Adam nodded.

            "What should we tell the others?"

            "That they're both going to be fine."

            The two new mutants left Adam alone with his sister and Jesse.

            "Thank you," Brennan breathed out, pressing the ice pack Emma had handed to him against his left eye.  He hissed as the cold penetrated the pain.

            Shalimar stared into space.  She could not get the full-motion image of Jesse getting in front of Adam, taking the bullet in the chest, and then being down on the floor, bleeding to death out of her head.  Impenetrable Jesse.  Permeable Jesse.  Human after all Jesse.  Tears welled up in Shalimar's eyes.  Tears that came unbidden, but were impossible to fight.

            Danielle sat beside the feral.  "Adam says Jesse'll be fine."  She patted Shalimar's knee.

            Shalimar's thoughts were coming out in words, "I've always been protective of him.  I've always had his back.  He's never actually needed me before."

            "I know it's hard, but there was nothing you could have done.  Eckhart had you all right where he wanted you.  But none of that matters now because everyone's fine.  And Jesse is okay."

            "It's not okay."  Shalimar shook her head.  "Eckhart never should have been able to get inside Sanctuary."

            "Adam'll figure that out later."

            "We can't stay here.  It's not safe anymore."

            Adam entered the room.  "Shalimar's right.  It's no longer safe here.  Danielle, take them with you to a safehouse."

            "What about you?  You can't stay here either!" she protested.

            "I have to stay here.  At least until Jesse and Dylan regain consciousness."

            "No, I'm not leaving you here alone and unprotected.  We'll all stay.  Jeremy and Cole can help you rewire Sanctuary's defense systems so that Eckhart can't get back in, and—"

            "That's not the point, Danielle," he snapped, but caught himself.  He was not angry with her; she and her group of six new mutants had saved their lives.  "I'm sorry."  She nodded, she understood.  "The reason Sanctuary was safe was because no one knew exactly where it was."

            Danielle nodded.  "So, we clean house for awhile, spread the word that Mutant X has cleared out, let those who would snoop the vacated premises do so, and then you can come back.  No one would expect it."

            "That's in the future.  For now, please—"

            "No, Adam," Emma cut him off, concern etched on her face.  "We're not leaving you.  We'll stay as long as we need to, for Dylan and Jesse, and then we'll all leave together."

            Two other psionics were present, both telepaths.  Orin and Teeko came up with the idea in the same instant, and they shared it with Emma, verbal expression beyond use.

            Emma glanced behind her at the new mutants.  "We can make them forget," she stated for the tohers benefit.

            "What?"

            Teeko moved forward.  "Orin and I can combine our abilities to make the GS agents forget what they have seen.  They will not know that they have been here."

            "Eckhart as well?"

            Teeko glanced at Orin and they nodded in sync.

            "So do it," Shalimar said.  "Now, before they decide to spread the word."

            "Yes," Adam agreed.  "Please."

            "We will need to be left alone," Orin stated.  The two departed in search of quiet solitude.

            Shalimar folded her arms over her chest.  "What do we do now?"

            Adam put his hand on her shoulder.  "All we can do is wait."

            Shalimar nodded disdainfully, knowing he was right.  "What about Jesse?  You said he'd be fine, but how?  He was dying, Adam."
            Recognizing the fear and distress in her eyes, Adam pulled her into a hug.  "Now, you listen to me, Shal.  There was nothing you could have done to prevent what happened.  Eckhart caught all of us with our guard down, and even though it should never have happened we can't change the fact that it did.

            "When I said Jesse was fine, I meant it.  Dylan has a new mutant ability unique to her.  I've never seen it in anyone else, and you can imagine how many new mutants I've encountered over the years.  Dylan is able to absorb another person's injuries, completely healing them.  Although she appears, then, to suffer from the very same ailment, she simply loses consciousness—almost like she's in a coma—until the wound heals.  She can only absorb new injuries, not diseases or health conditions."

            "You're saying she can't cure cancer," Emma put in.

            Adam nodded, "Yes, exactly.  And unfortunately."   He gave Shalimar an extra squeeze before releasing her.  "Now, how about we remove those governors?"

            Emma nodded emphatically.

                                                                                    ***

            Jesse slowly regained consciousness.  First he became aware of a soft mattress beneath him, then a blanket over him.   His brow creased as he wiggled his fingers and toes.  He opened his eyes just enough that he could see where he was:  Medical.

            And then a different awareness crept into his brain.  He was alive.  He was alive, and nothing hurt.  He had been shot in the heart when he had thrown himself in front of Adam.  Jesse's hands went to his chest, seeking the wound that should have killed him.

            Jesse sat up cautiously, in case the pain he expected returned in a sudden flurry of fire.  But it did not.  He was fine.  In fact, he was better than fine.  It was as though he had not been shot at all.  And yet—

            Jesse's breath hitched in his throat as his roving eyes fell on Dylan, lying unconscious and bandaged on the cot next to his own.  "Oh my God," he barely whispered.  He looked around Medical, as if the answers he sought lay in the equipment surrounding them.   He got up and moved closer to her.  "But how…?"  Tears burned his eyes.  Jesse reached over and took her hand in his.  He heard the swish of the sliding door and then footsteps as someone—Adam—entered.  "I don't understand."

            Adam did a quick scan of Jesse with one of his medical gadgets.  "Her new mutant ability allows her to absorb wounds."

            "Eckhart shot me."

            "Yes, and she saved your life.  Now she's healing."

            "If he had shot her, would it heal the same way?"

            Adam shook his head.  "If he had shot her, she'd be in as much trouble as me.

            Jesse didn't think too much about that.  A lone tear crept down his cheek.  "But she'll be alright now, though, right?"

            Adam nodded, "Yes.  She'll be fine.  But I don't know how long it'll be before she wakes up."

            Jesse nodded in return.  His brain was half reviewing what Adam had said.  Dylan had saved his life by using her new mutant ability to take away the wound that should have left him for dead.  He could almost feel the warmth drain from him as he remembered the pain as he had lain on the floor, blood seeping out of his chest.  Adam's hand on his shoulder did not ease the fear Jesse felt as he relived those terrible moments before he had passed out.  Feeling the life slowly drain from his body was not easily forgotten.  "You said that the guard shot Dylan."

            Adam stiffened.  He had slipped, but had not thought Jesse had caught on.  Apparently he had.  "Yes, I did."

            The new mutant turned his head to face the other.  "But then she would have died, as you said you'd thought she had."  Adam nodded again.  "But that can't be what happened, can it?"

            Adam shook his head, then went over to the counter to retrieve a syringe.  "I'm going to take a sample of your blood."

            Jesse wasn't interested in that.  "The guard shot you."

            Adam hesitated, but there was no point denying it now.  "Yes," he plunged the syringe into Jesse's vein.

            The new mutant didn't seem to notice. She healed you."

            "Yes."

            "Saved your life."

            "And I left her behind, Jesse, yes.  I didn't know.  I swear I didn't know.  I wish to God I had.  I never would have abandoned her if I'd known, I—" Adam turned away, losing control of his guarded calm.

            Jesse said no more, feeling guilty for being angry at Adam, and for picking off the fragile scab covering the other man's barely concealed pain.  As Adam collected himself enough to run a few tests on the sample he had taken of Jesse's blood, Jesse remained next to Dylan, still holding her hand.

            Danielle poured Shalimar, Brennan, Emma and herself a cup of freshly brewed coffee.  Each muttered their thanks.  Brennan took a sip of his, feeling the warm liquid flow through his body.  It was nice to take a break from feeling plain sore all over.  He had taken a real beating from the GS agents.  He caught Emma staring worriedly in his direction and smiled, though through the bruises and swelling it lost its pleasantness.  "I'm fine," he reiterated.

            Emma nodded, but remained silent.  She absently sipped at her coffee.  Shalimar cradled the mug in her hands, but did not drink. 

            Danielle sighed.  This was a tough room to be in, but she felt it best to leave Adam to himself until Dylan woke up.  "Chin up, you guys," she said, hoping to ease the group's troubled minds even a little bit.  Danielle tried to think of something different to say, since hearing 'everything is going to be fine' was getting on all their nerves.  "Teeko and Orin have done these memory wipes a dozen times before. "

            "On GS agents?" Brennan inquired.

            "A few."

            Emma sat up straighter, sensing the return of the other psionics.  Orin and Teeko entered the kitchen.  The former took a seat between Danielle and Emma, while the latter poured two mugs of coffee.

            "It is done," Orin informed the other new mutants.

            "They know that they were here, but not how to get back.  It was the best we could do," Teeko explained, placing one of the mugs of coffee before Orin.

            "I hope that's enough," Shalimar sighed.

            The two psychic new mutants glared at her.  "It's more than enough," they said as one.

            Teeko leaned back against the counter.  "He's awake.  You should go to him."

            "Jesse?"

            "Of course."

            Shalimar rose from her seat, casting a glance at Emma, who smiled encouragingly in return.  The feral hurried to Medical.  Shalimar discovered Adam pouring over lab tests and their results, while Jesse sat next to Dylan's sleeping form.

            "You are awake."  Shalimar could barely contain her joy as she crossed the room.

            Jesse smiled when he saw her. "Yeah."

            "Well? How are you?"

            He shrugged.  "It's like it never happened."

            Shalimar was disappointed that he did not get up to embrace her.  She patted his shoulder, casting a glance over her own at Adam.  He seemed oblivious to anyone else in the room.  "I was worried about you."

            Jesse nodded.  "I know."

            Adam half heard them conversing and decided the tests could wait.  He self-consciously left the room.

            "I am . . . so sorry, Jess," her voice broke.

            "There was nothing you could do, Shal.  Eckhart had us beaten."

            "But he shouldn't have.  I—we let our guards down as soon as Dylan showed up."  Shalimar shook her head.  "We should have known better."

            "Don't you dare pin this on Dylan.  How was she—or any of us—supposed to know Eckhart's plan?"

            "I'm not pinning it on anyone.  I'm just trying to understand.  And I keep seeing that image of you slowly dying . . ."

            Jesse remained silent, remembering.  "I had to do something, Shal.  Or it would have been Adam."

            She nodded.  "I know, I just . . . I've never felt so helpless before in my life, Jess.  Everything Mutant X had built and maintained over these last few years was about to be destroyed in a matter of seconds, and none of us could stop it."

            "But we managed to avert disaster.  We have Danielle to thank for that."

            Shalimar nodded.  "Yeah, I guess we do."

                                                                                                ***

Brennan stood leaning over the railing on the balcony.  A soft, cool breeze mussed his hair.  He inhaled deeply, enjoying the peace and quiet.  After the events of the last twelve hours he was content to have some time to himself.  And he was happy to be alive.

Echkart's GS agents had surprised him in his room at the time of their attack.  He had fought them off to the best of his ability and the effort had left him in bad shape.  The right side of his face was puffy and purple, as was most of his body and three of the fingers on his left hand were broken.  He counted himself lucky that worse damage had not been procured.

            "Am I interrupting?" Emma inquired from the doorway.

            Brennan half-smiled at the twinkling stars.  "I think you know the answer to that."

            Emma slipped an arm around his waist.  "It's a beautiful night."

            "Hard to believe we almost lost everything not six hours ago."

            The telempath nodded, leaning her head against his chest.  They remained silent, enjoying each other's company.