Chapter Six: Nightmare Reborn

It wasn't until later that night, after Chloe's mother had invited us to stay for dinner, that Chris and Felicity returned. Fliss seemed to have calmed, and she managed to look me in the eye without blushing or flinching. Chris was carrying a package under his arm, and I assumed these were the explosives his cousin had promised to give him. Chloe hurried him upstairs before her parents saw the package, and they stashed it in her bedroom. I went up to join them, and Felicity, after a moment's hesitation, followed me.

Once the four of us were inside the bedroom, Chloe pushed the door shut and said, "Talk quietly; my mum and dad might overhear."

"What do you have there?" I said to Chris, who was sitting on the bed, unwrapping the parcel.

We gathered round as he lifted out three small explosive devices, "My cousin said three should be enough."

"How powerful are they?" Fliss asked.

"Powerful enough," said Chris. "To be honest, I don't know. My cousin assured me these would do the job, and he's got no reason to lie to me."

"Do you know how to use them?" I said.

"Yeah, he's shown me before. Attach the plastic explosive and connect it to the detonator. They're triggered by remote control, so we can set them off as we soon as we get to a safe distance."

"When are we going to do this?" said Fliss.

"Tonight," I said. "Once Chloe's mum and dad go to sleep, we'll sneak out and go to the estate. I can remember the way down to the lab…we set the explosives, then get out. Constantine won't be pleased; with luck, we can use that to our advantage, and finish him once and for all. Once he's dead, and the stuff in the lab is destroyed, it's over."

"What if there's somebody guarding the lab?" Chloe asked. "He knows you got in before, so he's probably wary now."

"That's possible," I said. "All right, if there's someone on guard, we take them out, as quietly as we can. Unless it's Constantine himself, in which case we may need to rethink the plan. Alternatives might include distracting him in some way, or finding another way into the lab."

"We ought to split up, in case we get trapped," Fliss suggested. "If we go in a group, we might get surrounded."

I frowned, "Well, Chris has to go into the lab, since he's the only one who knows how to use the explosives. As for me, I need to be where I can intercept Constantine."

"I'll go with you," Chloe said – it was a statement, not a suggestion or a request.

Fliss glared hatefully at Chloe, "Can't you look after yourself? Has he got to hold your hand all the time?"

Chloe blinked, confused and a little hurt. I looked at Felicity. She was avoiding my eyes, and looked at the floor. I wasn't sure what had provoked that little outburst. Jealousy perhaps?

"So what are you gonna do, Fliss?" Chris asked, oblivious.

"I'll go with you, I guess," she said without enthusiasm.

"All right," I said. "I'll stay awake tonight and wake you all when it's time, so you can catch a little sleep if you like. Chris, since we're such perfect gentlemen, I'm assuming we'll sleep downstairs tonight, and let the girls have this room."

"I don't want to share with her," said Fliss. "I'll sleep downstairs."

I shrugged, "OK. Chloe, is it all right if I share with you?"

"Of course. We are en – in love, after all."

Quick recovery. She'd been about to say 'engaged'. It wasn't time to tell Chris and Fliss about that yet.

A few hours later, and all was quiet. From the light of the bedside lamp, I glanced at the clock. 3am. Chloe, lying awake beside me, whispered, "Are they asleep yet?"

I projected my senses out towards her parents' room, and nodded, "Yup. We'll need to move quietly though."

We got out of bed, both still fully dressed, and I grabbed my jacket from where I had left it on the back of Chloe's chair. As I was putting it on, my arm brushed against an unfamiliar weight in the inside pocket. I frowned – I couldn't remember keeping anything in there – and put my hand to find out what it was. My heart almost skipped a beat, as my fingers brushed against the cold glass surface of the five test tubes. I pulled one of them out.

"What's that?" Chloe hissed.

I glanced at the label on the side of the test tube: GRAVITUS. So this was Constantine's own blood sample. I'd completely forgotten that I'd taken these out of the implantation machine in the laboratory.

They're from the machine in Constantine's lab, I telepathed, deciding silence was the best option just now, I think the machine can take the mutations from a blood sample, and implant them a person's DNA.

Would that work? Chloe was thinking.

I don't know if that's exactly how it works, I said, it took my father sixteen years to perfect the process, so it must be a bit more complicated than that.

Why do you have them?

To stop Constantine from using them, of course. Without them it means he can't implant himself with any new mutations. Unless…

Unless what?

I forgot there's another way the machine can work. If you put a second person inside, it will transfer their mutations to the person who's using it.

That's why he wants to capture us alive. So he can steal our mutations.

Probably. Another reason for us to destroy the lab. Come on, we'd better not waste any time. Let's go and wake Chris and Fliss.

As we left the bedroom, treading as quietly as we could, I felt Chloe tapping my arm, and I looked round to see her pointing to her head. For a moment I didn't understand what she wanted, then I realised she was asking me to read her mind. It was too risky to talk out loud, so this was the only way to communicate. I read Chloe's mind, and her thoughts popped into my head.

Why was Felicity acting like she hated me? Chloe asked.

I hesitated in replying, Chloe…something happened. Something I don't really want you to know about.

I thought we had no secrets from each other!

We don't. That's why I'm going to tell you.

So what happened?

Felicity kissed me.

She what?!

Right after I healed her arm. She grabbed me and kissed me on the mouth.

Chloe was shocked, But why would she do that?

I don't know. Maybe she's fallen in love with me.

So she hates me because she wants you, and I'm in her way.

Possibly. I don't know. Chloe…what she did, kissing me, it doesn't change anything. I still love you. I still want to be your husband.

I know. It hasn't changed anything for me either. I still want to be your wife.

We had reached the bottom of the stairs, and I went into the living room. Chris was reclining in the armchair, snoring loudly enough that it was a wonder Chloe's parents were still asleep. Fliss was curled up on the sofa, her chest rising and falling rhythmically, but making no sound. For a moment I let my eyes rest on the sleeping Felicity, admiring her long, blonde hair; her gorgeous visage; her perfectly shaped, proportioned figure; her long, slim legs; a body that had passed out of childhood, and was about to enter womanhood. She was a vision of beauty, and, like the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden, one I could not have.

I put my hand on her shoulder and gently shook her awake. It took a moment or two before she gave a sharp intake of breath and her eyes snapped open. She looked up at me, giving me a cute but uncertain smile. I put my finger to my lips, and she nodded. Fliss stretched her arms, put her feet on the floor and stood. I walked over to Chris, marvelling once more at the loudness of his snoring. Idly I considered that if I had a death duel with Constantine in this very room, we'd probably still be drowned out by Chris. I tapped him on the shoulder, and he awoke instantly.

Chloe was waiting outside in the hall, holding the package of explosives, which she passed to Chris. I opened the door as quietly as possible, and we filed out into the darkness of the night. Chloe shut the door behind her, and we hurried away from the house, into the street, in the direction of the Matthews estate. Fortunately there was nobody else about at this time of night, nobody to enquire what four teenagers with three explosive devices wrapped up in brown paper might be planning to do. I was counting on police presence to be sufficiently low as to not be a problem.

When we got closer to the estate, I began to push my senses out, trying to pinpoint the location of our enemies as accurately as I could. I frowned. Something was wrong. Something…didn't feel right. Chloe saw my look of confusion, and whispered, "Is something wrong?"

"I'm not sure," I said. "I'm trying to use my telepathy to locate them. I can sense Constantine's presence, but it's weird. He feels…different…somehow. Different from before. I can detect him by his brain pattern, and it isn't the same as before. It's definitely him, but it's changed slightly."

"Weird," Fliss agreed.

"And I can't sense Antaeus anywhere."

"Maybe they've sent him out with a job to do," Chris suggested.

"I suppose that must be it," I agreed.

"Where are they, exactly? Is anyone guarding the lab?"

"I don't know. I'd need to get closer before I can pinpoint them that closely."

It got me thinking. If Antaeus had been sent out with some task to accomplish, what was it? Did it involve us in any way? Had he been sent out to find us? What if Constantine had found out where my house was, and sent Antaeus to find us? No, that didn't sound right. Antaeus alone would have stood no chance against the four of us, and Constantine knew that. He'd have gone himself if he wanted to confront us. It had to be something else. I couldn't think what it might be, and eventually I just shrugged to myself. It could be anything. Antaeus might have been sent out to an all-night takeaway for some food, for all I knew. Even bad guys had to eat. Still, it wouldn't do to have him return and catch us unawares. We'd have to keep an eye out for him. Currently his absence meant that any potential battle would be swung in our favour.

We were now standing outside the gates of Constantine's property, and I concentrated once more. Good, I was now close enough to get an idea of where each of our enemies was located.

"They're all in bed upstairs," I said. "Ocelot's sleeping. Constantine and Nightshade are together, they're…um…not sleeping. I think they're a bit too preoccupied to hear anything, though. Let's go."

I tried the gates. We were in luck; they pushed straight open. Obviously the electronic circuits that held them closed had still not been repaired after the electric pulse Felicity had given them yesterday. The others followed me inside, and we moved through the darkness and the silence towards the manor building. The windows and doors were closed and, I imagined, locked. I would need to find another way in this time. Chris, however, was already a step ahead of me. Standing by the front door, he changed to liquid, and seeped through the tiny gap between door and frame. We waited a few moments as he re-coalesced, then the door was unlocked and unlatched from inside, and Chris let us in.

"All right, Neil, lead the way," he hissed.

I thought I remembered the route to the lab, but after one wrong turn, I realised I was mixed up somewhere. Fortunately, the next turn I tried took us straight to the staircase that led down to the basement. We went down, and I approached the false wall. As before, I looked through it, and used my mind power to hit the switch that opened it. The door slid open silently, and we went inside. I led them through the door to the right, into my father's laboratory.

"Here we are," I said. "Let's get to work. Chris?"

He unwrapped the package that held the explosives, and moved towards the implantation machine to place the first charge.

"What do these machines do?" Fliss asked curiously.

"I thought I told you earlier," I said, but gave her a brief description of each of them anyway.

Chris had placed the first explosive on the side of the implantation chamber, and moved over to the cryogenic freezing pods, where he placed the second charge. Fliss, being Fliss, couldn't help wandering over towards the implant chambers to take a look inside. It was the second machine she tried first – the machine in which would be restrained the mutant whose powers were to be transferred – and I felt the shock registering in her mind, just before I heard the noise that came from her throat, halfway between a gasp and a scream. Chris instantly looked over to see what was wrong.

"Look!" Fliss gasped, pointing at the machine. "In there!"

The three of us went to her side to look.

Antaeus.

He was lying inside the second machine, clearly dead, the restraints needlessly holding him down, one of the syringe-needle things still stuck inside his upper arm. This, then, was why I hadn't been able to sense him. The dead could not be sensed by my telepathy.

"What happened to him?" Chloe asked in shock.

For a moment I was too confused and surprised to think, and I just stood staring at the mammoth corpse inside the machine. It didn't make any sense. Why would Constantine kill one of his underlings? Could they have had an argument? Surely he wouldn't have killed Antaeus…after all, Antaeus was the only one in Constantine's group who possessed a healing ability, something Constantine couldn't afford to throw away. No, there had to be something else to it. For a start, why was Antaeus inside the secondary implant chamber?

Then it hit me, "Constantine must have used the machine. He must have transferred Antaeus' powers to himself."

"Of course," said Chloe.

"He must have wanted to make himself stronger," I said. "He must have decided he couldn't wait until he caught us. Maybe he thought we were too dangerous and he had to become more powerful. Antaeus must have died in the process…or maybe Constantine killed him because he thought he didn't need him any more."

Therein lay one of the differences between Constantine and myself. In many ways we were the same: both used in our fathers' experiments, both implanted with mutations as new-born babies, both unaware of the truth about our past until we were in our late teens, both angry at our fathers (had Constantine killed his?), both now grown into immensely powerful individuals, both determined to destroy the other.

But that was where the similarities stopped. Constantine wanted me – and any other mutant who might pose a threat – dead, so he himself could rise to power. I had never wanted to kill anybody unless I had no choice. He was on the side of evil, fighting solely for personal gain and power. And me? I wasn't sure I was entirely on the side of right, but I was certainly fighting for what I thought was right. I didn't want to have supreme power or reign on high, but I had to make sure that Constantine – and anyone else for that matter – couldn't. No matter what their intentions, they would eventually be corrupted by their power and start to misuse it.

I looked down at the dead figure of Antaeus once more. Constantine had used him, and killed him, for his own selfish purposes. Another difference between us. I valued my friends – Chloe, Chris and Felicity – for who they were, not for the powers and skills they brought to the group, or how I might use them to my own advantage. Yes, I was more powerful than all three of them put together…but that most certainly did not give me the right to act as if I owned their lives.

The temptation to misuse my gifts, to think only of myself and not of others, was always there. A day did not go by when I didn't consider what life might be like if I changed my mind, and began using my powers to further my own desires. It was an attractive prospect, being the world's most powerful man, to be able to do whatever I liked to whoever I liked, to shape the world and its future the way I wanted. I could be an emperor, an emperor controlling the entire planet, just as Constantine wanted to be. And I could have Chloe by my side –

– but Chloe would not want that. Chloe didn't want to be an emperor's wife, and bear an emperor's heir. She just wanted to be who she was. She did not care how powerful I was or became, she loved me for what I was like as a person. And that, above all else, was the reason why I did not give in to temptation. There was simply no need to put myself forward as some kind of god. I already had everything I wanted: the girl who had agreed to be my wife, and the daughter she would bear. That was enough to make me happy. Once Constantine was out of the way, I would forget about everything, and settle down to start a family with Chloe. Thinking about Constantine brought me back to reality: Fliss was saying something…

"So Constantine stole Antaeus' powers?" she asked. "Exactly what powers did Antaeus have?"

"He had the same healing power as I do," I said. "My father tested it on me before giving it to Antaeus. He also had superhuman body strength, including immunity to pain."

"So Constantine has those powers now?"

"If it worked…yes."

"As if he wasn't powerful enough," Chris muttered.

"Can we still destroy him?" Chloe asked nervously.

"We have to believe we can," I said. "It will be more difficult…much more difficult…but we have to believe in ourselves. If we lose our belief, we lose everything."

Chris nodded his agreement, and Chloe looked slightly more confident. Fliss was still looking down at Antaeus' dead form, her eyebrows knit together in thought.

"Neil," she said. "You've never really explained this to me properly. You say your father tested these mutations on you before giving them to Antaeus?"

"Yes. He used me to test whether his experiment would work. He implanted me with my mutations, saw the procedure had worked, but realised he had made me too powerful. He didn't want me as a potential rival when I grew up, so he tried to kill me. The Professor stopped him, took me to live with my grandparents, and you know the rest."

"So the mutations Antaeus had – and the ones Chameleon, Inferno and Mindstorm had – you've got too, because they were tested on you first?"

"Yes. Some of them I can't actually use – they're dormant. My body accepted some and rejected the others – now those ones are just flowing around uselessly in my bloodstream."

"What are you talking about?" said Chloe. "You've never told me this. I didn't know you had dormant mutations."

"The Professor and I talked about it recently," I said. "You remember how Chameleon could camouflage himself? And how Inferno could breathe fire? Those are two mutations that my father implanted in me, but my body rejected, and hence I've never been able to use them. Antaeus' body strength mutation is another one."

"How do you know all this?" Chris asked. "How do you know you've got them if you can't use them?"

"Because, logically, my father would have tested them on me before using them on anybody else. Once we realised that, I gave the Professor a sample of my blood and he analysed it. There are eight mutations detectable in my bloodstream, only five of which I can actually use."

"So the other three are just completely useless?" Fliss asked.

"Not necessarily. If I had any children, they might inherit them, and be able to use them."

Chloe looked up at the mention of children, and her hand unconsciously moved to touch her abdomen. She was doubtless thinking about the baby inside, and the powers it might have inherited from either of us. We already knew that telepathy was one of them. I was looking forward to having the opportunity to find out what, if any, others there were, as our child grew up.

It was then that I was aware of the noise in the background. I looked up, trying to work out where it was coming from. Then I realised it wasn't a noise that had grabbed my attention; it was in fact the absence of a noise that had been there before: a quiet, subtle noise that I only now noticed because it had stopped. Then there came another sound from behind me, and I turned around. What was it? Where was it coming from?

It was the cloning machine. What was it doing? It must have been running in the background while were in the lab. Now the noise it had been making had just stopped. I moved nearer to the machine to try and see what was happening. The hatch on top was closed, and the machine was silent. Cautiously I took a step closer, and put out my hand to touch it, when something happened. I jumped back in surprise as the hinged top of the chamber began to rise, and a white gas of some kind rose from within, obscuring my vision.

Felicity gasped, "Oh my…I think there's somebody in there!"

I had instinctively moved away from the machine when it began to open, and I leaned forward slightly to peer within. As the gases began to clear, there was plainly a naked figure lying inside the machine. I pushed my senses out to check whether or not they were alive. Yes – I could sense a consciousness – the person was alive.

"Who is that?" said Chloe. "What are they doing in there?"

I felt a horrible sense of dread beginning to permeate my heart. Was it my imagination overacting, or did I recognise this person's brain signal? Was it a person I had known once, back when I was just starting to use my telepathy?

"Constantine must be testing the machine," was all I said.

Then the figure began to move. First their fingers twitched, then they gave a slight moan, then their head moved, and they sat up. As long, jet black hair cascaded down over bare shoulders, the feeling of dread exploded and immersed my entire body and mind. Chris tensed, and as the nude figure turned to look at us through dark, piercing eyes, Chloe screamed. I tried to keep my own fear under control. I hadn't been mistaken. I had recognised this person's mind. For the face that stared back at us was the face that had haunted my nightmares for four months, the face that represented my greatest of all fears, the one face I had hoped and prayed I would never see again.

Mindstorm had returned.

A/N: once again, please leave a review to let me know if I'm doing a good job. I'd also be interested to know who (if anyone) your favourite character is. Thanks for reading.