Sorry about the lateness of this chapter - your truly ended up on an impromptu vacation, and was unfortunately unable to finish the chapter before he left for a week of cultural, intellectual, and spiritual growth in various nightclubs on Madeira.

Chapter Four

It was cold. A wet, unpleasant cold brought on by the fine drops of rain that fell around them, covering the world in a thin layer of water, slowly but surely making their way through his waterproof jacket and leaving his clothes underneath uncomfortably damp.

Duthie shivered and pulled his coat closer, looking for heat, but finding very little, his military jacket exchanged for an old, torn coat to make him fall into the surroundings and make him look like the rest of the people in the area, haphazardly made shelters speaking their clear language about this place. He wasn't unused to this sort of place - he'd seen it before, places where homeless and mutants and all things unwanted settled down and tried to make a living - but that didn't mean he had to like it one bit.

Beside him Lacee brushed a lock of wet hair out of her face and pulled her own coat closer as well, probably feeling as uncomfortable as Duthie himself did, but didn't allow it show, too used to hiding her feelings.

"Where is she?" Duthie asked, and his eyes slowly surveyed the area, looking for the girl they'd seen in the file.

"Down by the river, probably" Lacee replied quietly. "She'll want water nearby, just in case she has to fight."

And it made sense, Duthie could see that, but damn it...he was tired and wet and cold, and even the people around here were smart enough to seek shelter from the rain. Why did he have to get stuck with the people who thought that a bit of rain was perfectly fine?

"We found her." The words interrupted his thoughts, the voice unnaturally clear through the small radio in his ear, completely unaffected by static noise and bad transmission, and Duthie shifted uneasily, not entirely comfortable with the way his male teammate manipulated radio waves.

"Where?"

"By the river, as we'd suspected. Under the bridge - they're created a shelter underneath," Harry replied, and if he felt as uncomfortable in the rain as Duthie did, he didn't let it show.

Lacee frowned at his words. "They?"

"She's not alone, love," Harry replied, dry amusement in his voice. "There are about two dozen people or so where she is, but I doubt they'll be any trouble."

"Humans?" Lacee guessed. It wasn't exactly common for a lone mutant to hide among humans - the risk of discovery would be too big - but it usually worked for the mutants fortunate enough to look normal.

"We suspect so," Harry confirmed. "None of them show any signs of mutations, so they shouldn't prove too much of a bother."

Lacee nodded. "Got it. We'll be there in five."

The faint hum from the radio disappeared, and the girl looked at Duthie. "Come on - let's go," she said and headed down the gravel path that led below the bridge, the wide structure itself towering high above them, the sounds of cars crossing the bridge growing increasingly loud as they got closer.

"Won't the other people be a problem?" Duthie asked, not entirely sure about the whole thing. He didn't have their training, but even he realized that trying to take someone down among a dozen people could be a bit of a problem.

Lacee shook her head, wet strands of black hair sticking to her face, and she reached up with a vague annoying look to brush them away. "No really. People like these are used to being unwanted by the cops. The moment we shoot at the target, the others will seek cover, and we'll be able to take her out."

They reached the bridge and blessed shelter from the rain, and Duthie saw his other two teammates wait by one of the concrete pillars, looking only a bit less soaked than Duthie himself felt. Lacee looked around, taking a moment to survey the area, then narrowed her eyes slightly. "Down by the river...she's the one?"

Raine nodded. "She's the one," she confirmed, and Lacee watched the target for a moment longer, rethinking their plan. The target wasn't alone here, and it wasn't like a few more street kids would be that uncommon in a place like this. If she could get Duthie close enough to take her out without having to shoot the girl, then...she frowned thoughtfully, eyes still lingering on the girl. And she had her poison, too - if Duthie could distract the girl, it wouldn't take much to get close enough to use her poison. Sure, the target might die if she misjudged the strength of the poison, but then again, shooting her would pose just a big of a risk.

She nodded slowly, then looked at her teammate. "Harry, Raine - find somewhere to get a clear shot at her. Duthie and I will see if we can get close enough to use our powers. If he takes her out, I'll be able to poison her without too much trouble."

"If you want to knock her out, you'll have to use a weak poison, and they don't work immediately," Harry reminded her, and Lacee sent him a faint, comforting smile.

"I know. If she even looks like she's about to use her powers, shoot her."

The order was cold, uncaring, and Harry nodded in reply, eyes already searching the area for a place to get a clear shot at the girl, but still be close enough to get down to the other half of the team fast if they should need help with the girl.

"Over there." Raine nodded towards spot a bit above the river, half hidden in the shadows from the bridge, and Harry nodded in reply before the two disappeared, leaving Lacee and Duthie alone again.

"Thirty feet, you said?" Lacee looked at the boy, and he nodded. "Good. I should be able to hit her from that distance as well."

She slowly started to move closer to the target, being careful not to stand out from the people around them, and Duthie followed, doing his best to hide his reluctance. He didn't like this. He didn't like this at all, but he was also smart enough to shut up and follow orders - the sooner they got this over with, the sooner they'd be out of the unpleasant weather.

They made their way towards the river, down to target who was thankfully not close to anyone else - the fewer people she was surrounded by, the fewer people they'd have to deal with if something went wrong.

A bit away from the girl Lacee stopped, brining Duthie to a halt as well. "You think you're close enough to hit her from here?"

Duthie frowned, mentally judging the distance. "Yeah...I am," he decided.

A quick look behind them, checking that the other two were in place, and Lacee nodded to the boy. "Work your magic, then."

Duthie focused on the target and drew on his mutant powers, the frown marring his features revealing too well that control was still a struggle, and that he was far from used to actually using his skills. Theory was one thing; practice was something very different.

He could feel the strain on his mind as he concentrated on making the blow strong enough to keep the target from doing anything, from even having the time to realize what had happen, and he felt his control slowly grow stronger, powers expanding in his mind, and-

"What are you two doing here?" The question was sharp, demanding, and tore through Duthie's concentration, and with a sudden surge of panic he felt the power he'd managed to gather disappear again, slipping through his fingers like sand, faded away harmlessly.

Lacee reacted instantly, motions almost too fast to keep track of as she knocked the man unconscious, but despite her quick reaction, they were in trouble, she knew that - they hadn't counted on these people actually keeping track of who belonged here and who didn't, and if one of them had seen through them, then surely someone else would, too. And the target-

Lacee spun around just as the girl by the river did the same, instantly realizing the danger that the two newcomers posed, and suddenly Lacee felt rain against her face, blurring her vision as the raindrops actually changed their course midair, long, thin ropes of rain bending around the bridge, hammering against the ground below.

She looked up, and even through the curtain of water she could still see the water in the river rise obediently into a tall wave, guided by the young mutant, and Lacee noted with an odd detachment that the file had been wrong, that the target's control was better than just 'good', and that someone would probably pay dearly for that mistake, when-

A bullet pierced the air as Harry reacted only seconds after everything had blown up, the metal piercing flesh and muscle, and the rain below the bridge stopped instantly as its source of strength was gone, keeled over on the ground, hands clenching the large bullet-wound in her thigh.

Running, a scream somewhere nearby as someone realized what had happened, and Lacee hoped that they would run, rather than stay and try to help the target. Raine had tried to explain it to her once, explained how people reacted as a group, and how they would usually react to a shooting, and while Lacee honestly couldn't remember the details, she desperately hoped that the girl had been right, and that they would be able to get the target away without any problems.

She hurried down to the river, to where the target was lying, only vaguely aware that Duthie followed her, fingers instinctively finding the pulse. It was fast, as expected, but still strong, and the bleeding from the wound didn't seem bad enough to have been caused by a severed artery - perhaps they'd get the girl back alive after all.

Footsteps as the other two arrived, and Lacee looked up, quickly checking their surroundings.

"The others ran - the areas is clear at the moment, but it won't last for long," Harry said, confirming her suspicions.

She nodded. "Good. Let's get her out of here, then."

Harry smiled dryly, then reached down to pick up the girl, easily carrying her slim frame. "At least she's small," he noted.

Lacee smiled wryly in return. "Yeah...at least she's small."

Another quick look around, noting with relief that the others had yet to come back, and then they disappeared into the rain, heading for home.