Chapter Thirteen:
Rebecca Malloy left the library in a rush, hoping to get the armload of books to her car before the sky began pouring again. Her mind was racing with the information she had gathered today and was entirely preoccupied by her studies. Her sense of any lingering presence in the shadows did not register any danger, so it was ignored.
She turned on the radio as she drove back to her home, on the northern outskirts of the city. The music that suddenly blared from the speakers was a mix of loud drums and electronic cords. Rebecca grimaced and changed the channel. The second station was playing similar music and she clicked away again. After the third station only offered more of the same, she gave up on top-forty music and found a talk station.
A pair of late night DJs were debating about the hot topic of the moment, which for every major news station for the past few months had been the 'mutant phenomenon.' Rebecca sighed, bored with the constant rhetoric about 'dangerous mutants', but decided to listen anyway.
"I just don't see what the big deal is, man," the first jockey said loudly, "So what if mutants have to register with the government? It's not like they're being completely segregated from society. They just have to let them know what kind of crazy stuff they can do."
The second DJ shot back with the counterpoint, "Yeah, but the government shouldn't be allowed to force people to be on some list just because they're different or can do freaky things. Hey, everybody does freaky things, if you know what I mean…"
Both DJs laughed wickedly, "Not me, man. Maybe you… Ha, but the freaky things we do don't risk anybody's life, man. I mean, man, I heard there are some mutants that can like, blow shit up with their eyes, man."
"That don't mean there is a bunch of people blowing stuff up with their eyes. When's the last time you heard of somebody being wasted by eye beams."
"Yeah, man, but wouldn't you want to know if somebody could do that? What if you started something with some guy at a bar and he decides to vaporize you? I mean, man, oh, man. It's a totally different way to look at life."
"But, you're talking about they're lives, you know. Everybody has a right to their own private life. It's like seventy years ago when the Jews had to register who they were with the Nazis. I mean, who really gives a crap what religion anyone is. It's all love, baby. Mutants are just like a different level of that."
"Yeah, but people who are in a religion are still, like, normal people. They can't help which church their parents drag them to when their kids."
"And mutants can't help you they are either. It's like being born without an arm or leg, you know. They just have extra arms and legs…"
"And extra eye beams of death, man. Ha, I need some of them in studio for pain in the asses like you…"
"Yeah, yeah, zap this, bitch."
Both DJs were rolling now and moved off the topic of mutants to something more lowbrow so their audience did not get bored. For Rebecca, it was too late for their bullshit and she grabbed a disc and turned on some music more to her taste before the DJs began talking about actresses' breast sizes.
The mutant phenomenon…that was what they always called it.
We're a phenomenon, huh? She thought, laughing to herself and wondering how the world would react to know about some of the other unnatural 'phenomena' running around this dear city.
***
Pulling slowly into her driveway, Rebecca sighed audibly, happy to be home after such a long day. She idled for a few minutes after parking, listening to the last few verses of the song playing in the radio and letting herself relax. Finally she turned off the car and stepped out.
Her car was the only one pulled up to the house, so she figured Sid and Sebastian were out having actual lives, while she slaved away at the library. Rebecca had taken to helping the staff there clean up at night, and the routine had been just that until they offered to pay her for it. So, what the hell? She practically lived their anyway, now they paid her for putting books away for an hour or two. A nice, normal, safe job which her apprehensive uncle approved of.
God, she needed to get out more often…
She stretched after exiting the car, and pulled her hood away from her face. The rain seemed to have ended for the night and she breathed the night air deeply. She gathered her bags and books and headed across the dark lawn toward her house.
As she walked, she did not notice the pair of watchful eyes peering from the rooftop above. Toad sat as still as stone, regarding the woman with silent enthusiasm for the task at hand. He almost did not believe his eyes when she first exited her vehicle.
The first thing he noticed was that she was still looked very young. The second thing he noticed was how completely contented she seemed. Could this really be the same woman from Deathstrike's old video?
A twinge of disappointment hit him. The air of fury so evident on tape seemed absent in the person below.
Toad had planned to meet Sabertooth on the far end of the building before the woman reached the front door, but as he tried to move, he found he could not take his eyes off her. She moved quickly, almost marching, and the braid of her hair bounced lightly against her back. Toad felt his chest tighten in anticipation as she paused to unlock the door of the dark building, and for one moment her face was visible in the light shining from above the door.
He jumped quickly away, stopping finally at the edge of the roof. He peered over at the small deck running along the side of the building. Sabertooth was climbing the wall up to where he sat. Toad listened to the noises from the building below and heard a door snick closed on the second floor. He grinned and leaped down to the highest deck silently.
Sabertooth appeared next to him a moment later and Toad grinned wickedly at the large mutant.
"This is the one," Toad whispered to his compatriot.
Sabertooth sneered back, and Toad knew that expression was as close to a pleased grin as the beast of a man could get.
"Mystique is waiting below with the boy," Toad said, crouching low in the shadows.
"We won't need them," Sabertooth replied in a low growl.
"We'll see," Toad whispered back.
Through the balcony's large glass windows, both mutants saw a dim light appear in the dark room. The young woman in the green hood appeared in the large second floor den and they watched as she deposited her burden on the sofa casually. She did not turn on any other lights as she walked through each room toward the back hall.
Excellent, Toad thought. She seemed relaxed…not expecting anything out of the ordinary. A prey surprised and off guard and easier to catch.
The woman reappeared in the den after a few moments. She was no longer wearing the long coat, and seemed to now be wearing her nightclothes, which were a simple pair of long cotton pants and an oversized button down shirt.
Toad touched his ear piece, "Target is in place."
"Very well."
It was Magneto's voice which replied over the communicator and Toad grinned as their leader spoke again.
"Proceed…"