A/N: Thanks for the reviews and once again thanks to Tigereyes320 for
pointing out my mistake. So you guys are actually liking it. That's great
cuz I'm stuck but hopefully my muse will come back from vacation but until
then here's a really crappy chapter for all of you who can't wait.
"Richard, you know at dinner?" Erick asked from the other side of the room.
Richard turned around to face the younger boy knowing he wouldn't be able to sleep with this talkative boy in the same room with him. He didn't want to be mean because he had already taken an immediate liking to the boy. He always wondered what it would be like to have a little brother.
"Yeah," Rich answered looking toward the Erick who was busying himself with a rubric's cube.
"Who was that lady? The one my dad and mom was hugging?" He said concentrating on the cube.
Who was that lady, the same question had been running through his mind the whole night. Before his dad could say anything Adam excused everyone from the table. Rich was unanimously voted to be the babysitter for the rest of the night. And although he had questions running through his head he couldn't take an eye off the two siblings or else they would have been at each others throat.
Rich turned on the light to give Erick a better advantage. "I don't know. Why?"
"I was wondering because she looks like you," Erick said throwing the rubric's cube aside and looking at Rich. "I mean for the most part you look like your dad, but I don't know you look like her."
"Erick, my mom died in a car accident when I was two," Rich said getting defensive.
"Whatever. I'm going to bed night Rich," Erick said as if not believing him.
Rich looked at the now sleeping boy and looked up at the glow in the dark star filled room. It still looked like a nursery. He recalled dinner and how everyone was acting. His dad's eyes showed pain, and he wasn't keeping eye contact which was weird because he always kept eye contact.
Richard fell into an uneasy sleep tossing and turning. He woke up sweating and tangled within his sheets. He looked over at Erick who woke up because of his mumbling. Erick had a worried look on his face.
"Are you ok?" Erick asked not knowing that adults had bad dreams too.
"Yeah I'm fine, just go back to sleep," Rich sighed kicking the covers off. There was no way he could get back to sleep. Not with that dream.
He sighed walking to the bathroom in the dimly lit sanctuary. The place was quieter than usual and it felt as if no one was up. He turned a corner and he saw the lab full of adults. Adults his father trusted. His father included. He couldn't help but feed his curiosity. He sat in the darkest corner and heard everything that was going on.
"Brennan is everyone asleep?" Adam asked meaning Rich, Erick, and Brianna.
"Not for long. Rich is having another nightmare. Don't make this long because he might wake up," Brennan replied choosing the corner of the room to sit away from Shalimar.
Jesse and Lexa shared a look as Shalimar's feral eyes glowed at Brennan. Deciding to change the subject he looked up at the screen. "So what are we dealing with? Are people killing new mutants? How about doing more experiments?" Jesse asked looking at the big computer screen.
"You'd think that's why the Dominion needs us. However that's not it. We are dealing with mutants killing humans. The next Hitler if you want to call him or her. Whoever it is had already killed ninety some people." Adam said bringing up the file.
"Wait what makes the Dominion know that it's really new mutants and not some crazy people with no lives?" Lexa asked getting up from the friendly confines of her husband's lap and heading towards the screen looking at the pictures closely.
Look closely at everyone," Adam pointed to the screen.
"Yeah it looks like they've been dissected from the inside," Brennan shuddered.
"That's what the dominion called us here for. They can't get anyone within one hundred feet of these guys. Every time they seem to get close their guys are mysteriously vanish and they find them dead a couple of days later," Adam sighed knowing the hardest part is yet to come.
"So what makes them think we can?" Jesse asked.
"Not you..." Everyone looked confused. Why else would they be there? "See these mutants are around Richard's age..." Everyone looked straight at Brennan who looked straight at Adam.
For years Brennan had kept Rich out of trouble. He went through everything to hide his past. He worked hard to keep Rich out of the Dominions radar and to keep Rich out of the underground. There was no way he was going to put his son in danger. Rich was all Brennan had.
"Wait!" Brennan objected. "You're not going to bring my son into this right? You're not thinking what I think your thinking."
"It's the one way Brennan. I know how you must feel," Jesse said quietly thanking god it wasn't Erick who was needed or even Brianna.
At that moment both Lexa and Jesse felt extremely selfish. Here there best friend's son was about to be put in danger and they were thankful it wasn't their children. What was wrong with them? All the times they needed Brennan he was there in a heartbeat. Where are they now when Brennan needed them the most? Thanking God it wasn't their children.
"This isn't your son we are talking about here!" Brennan said harshly.
"This is OUR son though," Shalimar said carefully.
Brennan laughed out disgusted. "In what fucking way Shalimar do you have the right to call him your son? Because you carried him for six months? I took care of his for fourteen years Shal. Tell me how many times any of you went to his soccer games or baseball or anything? Where the hell were you when he was mutating? Adam was in some god damn place, Jesse and Lexa; well we all know where the hell they were. But I don't care they weren't there because Rich wasn't their responsibility, but guess what Shal he was...and now he isn't.
There was a silence between the five adults. In some way what Brennan said was true. Rich was raised by Brennan single handedly. No one helped. Shalimar was out with her new life. Jesse and Lexa were raising Erick and Brianna. Rich was all Brennan had for over ten years and to take him away from Brennan, well it's just wrong.
"But we care about him," Adam said carefully choosing his words.
"So what? Do we send someone? Do we send Richard out there? He doesn't even know who Mutant X is Adam. What if he gets in too deep? What happens if we can't pull him out? Or even worse what happens if they suspect him?" Brennan asked looking at every single person in the room.
"Everyone's here to make sure that doesn't happen," Adam said calmly.
"We need him. He's part of the team. If not this way Bren, then how? Do we keep killing innocent people because that's what we are going to be doing if we let this keep going," Lexa told Brennan.
"What happens if he can't do it? Brennan sighed sitting down taking his head in the comfort of his hands.
"He will be able to do it," Shalimar said.
"How do you know?" Brennan looked up wanting to blame someone for his anger. "Were you ever there! How do you know what he can and cannot do?"
"I may not have been there Brennan, but I trust you enough to be able to raise the kid the right way," Shal started her eyes once again glowing yellow.
"Then why did you leave! If you trust me why the fuck did you leave me with a kid? You know I couldn't handle it. Shal, you knew how scared I was. You knew I couldn't handle it. You...nevermind just forget it" Brennan sighed knowing he wasn't getting anywhere.
Richard had enough of it. He came out of the darkness and into the lab. He looked at his dad who instantly regretted everything he said. And to well his mom who looked just as confused and hurt as he did.
"So you couldn't handle me? You didn't want me?" Rich said looking at Brennan.
Brennan looked up to see the confusion on his son's face. He found a heart wrenching look on his face as it contorted in confusion. Everyone looked at Brennan and then at Rich.
"I can explain. Please just listen to me," Brennan screamed chasing after his son's retreating body.
"Forget it dad. I'll pretend I never heard it in the morning," Rich said walking faster.
He closed the door firmly to his room. Erick was still asleep. He pretended to sleep when his door opened a few minutes later but he knew he couldn't. Not after what he found out. And for the first time he cried. No noise came out but he cried his eyes out. Tears stained his pillow as he came to grip with reality. His dad never even wanted him. He didn't sleep that night. He whipped the ball at the door using his power to stop it in midair. He was careful knowing not to wake up Erick or anyone else. But he didn't know how to handle it. His whole life just changed.
He heard some noise outside it wasn't big and it took someone like him to hear. But he heard. He dried his already dried eyes and ran his fingers through his hair. Erick was still asleep so he quietly sneaked out of the room letting the little kid get some sleep.
"It's five thirty in the morning. Isn't it illegal for a teenager to be up before noon on a Saturday?" Adam asked looking up at the kitchen clock.
Richard grabbed bottled water from the fridge and sat across from Adam watching him sip his coffee.
"Couldn't sleep," Rich said taking a sip. Sanctuary was quiet. It was only them talking right now. "So what's this place?"
Adam sighed knowing he was the one who needed to answer Rich's questions. He was their leader it was only fair to Brennan. "Sanctuary, it's where Mutant X use to live."
"And my dad and uh everyone else here is...was Mutant X?" Rich asked.
"Yeah."
"So why did my mom and dad fuck up each others life?" Rich asked the one question that's been bugging him since forever.
"Number one, do all of us a favor and don't cuss when Brianna and Erick are awake. Number two, I don't know why your parents ended the way they did. You'd have to ask them. I just woke up one day and Shalimar was gone. Woke up the next you and Brennan were gone." Adam said getting up from the table and putting his cup into the sink.
"I heard everything last night you know," Rich said not looking at Adam.
Adam kept walking with a wise smile on his face. "I know, so I trust you have your decision already."
Rich looked up surprised. Adam knew before he even said anything. "So where are you going?" Rich asked getting up from the table too.
"The med lab. I need to run some test on you, Brianna, and Erick. You want to help me set up?" Adam asked offering an invite.
"Yeah sure, I mean if you want me to," Rich had taken an immediate liking to Adam. He had come to respect him despite the fact they only knew each other for a few hours.
Over the next couple of hours while everyone slept Adam taught Rich all that Rich wanted to know about the lab. He was surprised when Rich caught on so well about everything. In only two hours he caught up with everything the others knew about the lab. He was just as educated.
"Hey why so ear...Hey Rich," Brennan said uncertainly.
"Hey dad you want me to cook you some breakfast?" Rich ask pretending nothing ever happened the night before.
"Uh sure breakfast would be great," Brennan said patting his son on the back as he passed.
"So what'd you tell him?" Brennan asked once it was just him and Adam.
"The truth," Adam told Brennan. "Sit down, I might as well scan you guys while I'm at it."
Brennan sighed and obeyed taking off his shirt to be scanned. "What would the truth be?"
"You owe it to him to tell him yourself," Adam told Brennan. "Quit squirming. You know he knows as much of this lab as you do?"
"For real? It took me like five years to do that," Brennan said.
Brennan wasn't surprised though. He knew his son was smart. Smarter than most kids his age. Rich was different from everyone else is own age. Besides the fact he had different abilities than everyone else his brain was also well it functioned differently.
"So when are you going to tell him?" Adam asked.
"Now," Brennan said getting up.
A/N: I'm sorry this chapter just dragged but I needed to set everything up. I did my part however lets be nice and do you parts. No flames please, just constructive criticsm. I'll spell it right before the end of the story. Trust me. Thanks to all the faithful readers trust me you guys aren't going unnoticed.
~Liz
"Richard, you know at dinner?" Erick asked from the other side of the room.
Richard turned around to face the younger boy knowing he wouldn't be able to sleep with this talkative boy in the same room with him. He didn't want to be mean because he had already taken an immediate liking to the boy. He always wondered what it would be like to have a little brother.
"Yeah," Rich answered looking toward the Erick who was busying himself with a rubric's cube.
"Who was that lady? The one my dad and mom was hugging?" He said concentrating on the cube.
Who was that lady, the same question had been running through his mind the whole night. Before his dad could say anything Adam excused everyone from the table. Rich was unanimously voted to be the babysitter for the rest of the night. And although he had questions running through his head he couldn't take an eye off the two siblings or else they would have been at each others throat.
Rich turned on the light to give Erick a better advantage. "I don't know. Why?"
"I was wondering because she looks like you," Erick said throwing the rubric's cube aside and looking at Rich. "I mean for the most part you look like your dad, but I don't know you look like her."
"Erick, my mom died in a car accident when I was two," Rich said getting defensive.
"Whatever. I'm going to bed night Rich," Erick said as if not believing him.
Rich looked at the now sleeping boy and looked up at the glow in the dark star filled room. It still looked like a nursery. He recalled dinner and how everyone was acting. His dad's eyes showed pain, and he wasn't keeping eye contact which was weird because he always kept eye contact.
Richard fell into an uneasy sleep tossing and turning. He woke up sweating and tangled within his sheets. He looked over at Erick who woke up because of his mumbling. Erick had a worried look on his face.
"Are you ok?" Erick asked not knowing that adults had bad dreams too.
"Yeah I'm fine, just go back to sleep," Rich sighed kicking the covers off. There was no way he could get back to sleep. Not with that dream.
He sighed walking to the bathroom in the dimly lit sanctuary. The place was quieter than usual and it felt as if no one was up. He turned a corner and he saw the lab full of adults. Adults his father trusted. His father included. He couldn't help but feed his curiosity. He sat in the darkest corner and heard everything that was going on.
"Brennan is everyone asleep?" Adam asked meaning Rich, Erick, and Brianna.
"Not for long. Rich is having another nightmare. Don't make this long because he might wake up," Brennan replied choosing the corner of the room to sit away from Shalimar.
Jesse and Lexa shared a look as Shalimar's feral eyes glowed at Brennan. Deciding to change the subject he looked up at the screen. "So what are we dealing with? Are people killing new mutants? How about doing more experiments?" Jesse asked looking at the big computer screen.
"You'd think that's why the Dominion needs us. However that's not it. We are dealing with mutants killing humans. The next Hitler if you want to call him or her. Whoever it is had already killed ninety some people." Adam said bringing up the file.
"Wait what makes the Dominion know that it's really new mutants and not some crazy people with no lives?" Lexa asked getting up from the friendly confines of her husband's lap and heading towards the screen looking at the pictures closely.
Look closely at everyone," Adam pointed to the screen.
"Yeah it looks like they've been dissected from the inside," Brennan shuddered.
"That's what the dominion called us here for. They can't get anyone within one hundred feet of these guys. Every time they seem to get close their guys are mysteriously vanish and they find them dead a couple of days later," Adam sighed knowing the hardest part is yet to come.
"So what makes them think we can?" Jesse asked.
"Not you..." Everyone looked confused. Why else would they be there? "See these mutants are around Richard's age..." Everyone looked straight at Brennan who looked straight at Adam.
For years Brennan had kept Rich out of trouble. He went through everything to hide his past. He worked hard to keep Rich out of the Dominions radar and to keep Rich out of the underground. There was no way he was going to put his son in danger. Rich was all Brennan had.
"Wait!" Brennan objected. "You're not going to bring my son into this right? You're not thinking what I think your thinking."
"It's the one way Brennan. I know how you must feel," Jesse said quietly thanking god it wasn't Erick who was needed or even Brianna.
At that moment both Lexa and Jesse felt extremely selfish. Here there best friend's son was about to be put in danger and they were thankful it wasn't their children. What was wrong with them? All the times they needed Brennan he was there in a heartbeat. Where are they now when Brennan needed them the most? Thanking God it wasn't their children.
"This isn't your son we are talking about here!" Brennan said harshly.
"This is OUR son though," Shalimar said carefully.
Brennan laughed out disgusted. "In what fucking way Shalimar do you have the right to call him your son? Because you carried him for six months? I took care of his for fourteen years Shal. Tell me how many times any of you went to his soccer games or baseball or anything? Where the hell were you when he was mutating? Adam was in some god damn place, Jesse and Lexa; well we all know where the hell they were. But I don't care they weren't there because Rich wasn't their responsibility, but guess what Shal he was...and now he isn't.
There was a silence between the five adults. In some way what Brennan said was true. Rich was raised by Brennan single handedly. No one helped. Shalimar was out with her new life. Jesse and Lexa were raising Erick and Brianna. Rich was all Brennan had for over ten years and to take him away from Brennan, well it's just wrong.
"But we care about him," Adam said carefully choosing his words.
"So what? Do we send someone? Do we send Richard out there? He doesn't even know who Mutant X is Adam. What if he gets in too deep? What happens if we can't pull him out? Or even worse what happens if they suspect him?" Brennan asked looking at every single person in the room.
"Everyone's here to make sure that doesn't happen," Adam said calmly.
"We need him. He's part of the team. If not this way Bren, then how? Do we keep killing innocent people because that's what we are going to be doing if we let this keep going," Lexa told Brennan.
"What happens if he can't do it? Brennan sighed sitting down taking his head in the comfort of his hands.
"He will be able to do it," Shalimar said.
"How do you know?" Brennan looked up wanting to blame someone for his anger. "Were you ever there! How do you know what he can and cannot do?"
"I may not have been there Brennan, but I trust you enough to be able to raise the kid the right way," Shal started her eyes once again glowing yellow.
"Then why did you leave! If you trust me why the fuck did you leave me with a kid? You know I couldn't handle it. Shal, you knew how scared I was. You knew I couldn't handle it. You...nevermind just forget it" Brennan sighed knowing he wasn't getting anywhere.
Richard had enough of it. He came out of the darkness and into the lab. He looked at his dad who instantly regretted everything he said. And to well his mom who looked just as confused and hurt as he did.
"So you couldn't handle me? You didn't want me?" Rich said looking at Brennan.
Brennan looked up to see the confusion on his son's face. He found a heart wrenching look on his face as it contorted in confusion. Everyone looked at Brennan and then at Rich.
"I can explain. Please just listen to me," Brennan screamed chasing after his son's retreating body.
"Forget it dad. I'll pretend I never heard it in the morning," Rich said walking faster.
He closed the door firmly to his room. Erick was still asleep. He pretended to sleep when his door opened a few minutes later but he knew he couldn't. Not after what he found out. And for the first time he cried. No noise came out but he cried his eyes out. Tears stained his pillow as he came to grip with reality. His dad never even wanted him. He didn't sleep that night. He whipped the ball at the door using his power to stop it in midair. He was careful knowing not to wake up Erick or anyone else. But he didn't know how to handle it. His whole life just changed.
He heard some noise outside it wasn't big and it took someone like him to hear. But he heard. He dried his already dried eyes and ran his fingers through his hair. Erick was still asleep so he quietly sneaked out of the room letting the little kid get some sleep.
"It's five thirty in the morning. Isn't it illegal for a teenager to be up before noon on a Saturday?" Adam asked looking up at the kitchen clock.
Richard grabbed bottled water from the fridge and sat across from Adam watching him sip his coffee.
"Couldn't sleep," Rich said taking a sip. Sanctuary was quiet. It was only them talking right now. "So what's this place?"
Adam sighed knowing he was the one who needed to answer Rich's questions. He was their leader it was only fair to Brennan. "Sanctuary, it's where Mutant X use to live."
"And my dad and uh everyone else here is...was Mutant X?" Rich asked.
"Yeah."
"So why did my mom and dad fuck up each others life?" Rich asked the one question that's been bugging him since forever.
"Number one, do all of us a favor and don't cuss when Brianna and Erick are awake. Number two, I don't know why your parents ended the way they did. You'd have to ask them. I just woke up one day and Shalimar was gone. Woke up the next you and Brennan were gone." Adam said getting up from the table and putting his cup into the sink.
"I heard everything last night you know," Rich said not looking at Adam.
Adam kept walking with a wise smile on his face. "I know, so I trust you have your decision already."
Rich looked up surprised. Adam knew before he even said anything. "So where are you going?" Rich asked getting up from the table too.
"The med lab. I need to run some test on you, Brianna, and Erick. You want to help me set up?" Adam asked offering an invite.
"Yeah sure, I mean if you want me to," Rich had taken an immediate liking to Adam. He had come to respect him despite the fact they only knew each other for a few hours.
Over the next couple of hours while everyone slept Adam taught Rich all that Rich wanted to know about the lab. He was surprised when Rich caught on so well about everything. In only two hours he caught up with everything the others knew about the lab. He was just as educated.
"Hey why so ear...Hey Rich," Brennan said uncertainly.
"Hey dad you want me to cook you some breakfast?" Rich ask pretending nothing ever happened the night before.
"Uh sure breakfast would be great," Brennan said patting his son on the back as he passed.
"So what'd you tell him?" Brennan asked once it was just him and Adam.
"The truth," Adam told Brennan. "Sit down, I might as well scan you guys while I'm at it."
Brennan sighed and obeyed taking off his shirt to be scanned. "What would the truth be?"
"You owe it to him to tell him yourself," Adam told Brennan. "Quit squirming. You know he knows as much of this lab as you do?"
"For real? It took me like five years to do that," Brennan said.
Brennan wasn't surprised though. He knew his son was smart. Smarter than most kids his age. Rich was different from everyone else is own age. Besides the fact he had different abilities than everyone else his brain was also well it functioned differently.
"So when are you going to tell him?" Adam asked.
"Now," Brennan said getting up.
A/N: I'm sorry this chapter just dragged but I needed to set everything up. I did my part however lets be nice and do you parts. No flames please, just constructive criticsm. I'll spell it right before the end of the story. Trust me. Thanks to all the faithful readers trust me you guys aren't going unnoticed.
~Liz