Disclaimer: I don't own Mutant X or X Men.
Discoveries
Chapter 17
While both Beasts were off discussing experiments and technological advances, Brennan sat back and watched as his older self reclined on the roof and closed his eyes. It still gave him shivers to think of going through all these years without Shalimar. He was startled from his thoughts by his own voice.
"She is still so beautiful." Brennan lay there with one arm draped over his eyes. "Even more beautiful than I remember." His voice was deep and sad.
"What happened?" Brennan had to know.
"Thomas didn't tell you?"
"All he said was that she contracted a virus while on our honeymoon. It made her sick but she recovered. Then when she was pregnant it resurfaced and she ---," he found it even too painful to say. How could he live with it?
"Died." Brennan finished. He sat up and looked at his younger self. "The virus and infection weakened her. She died in my arms while she was trying to deliver Shawna. She never saw the baby or heard her cry. I almost lost them both. I went wild with grief. Adam had to sedate me. It took weeks just be able to speak again. Evie and Kitty took care of the baby. I couldn't even look at her without breaking down." Once he began to talk it seemed to just flow. Speaking to himself was just as natural as thinking out loud. "Slowly I began to rebuild my world around Shawna. Even in the mansion with all these people around, it's just been me and her. But now she's getting older. She's in love but she's afraid to tell me."
"How do you know?" Brennan asked softly.
"I know the look of a feral when she's found her alpha male. Her eyes sparkle when she looks at him just like Shal's did --- when she looked at me." His voice dropped to nearly a whisper.
"Tell me what happened exactly. I'll make sure it doesn't happen again." Brennan was determined not to become the man before him.
"There are no guarantees and you can't change history," Brennan sadly replied.
"With a little foreknowledge I can prevent whatever it was and save Shal." Brennan left no room for doubt. "I'll do anything. You know that."
"In the end there was nothing I could do nor could have done. I've been over it a million times. We were on one of the islands and hiking some little known trails. She loved to try to get lost but with her senses it never happened. The next day she began running a high fever and we went back home. After two days of being delirious she recovered. Adam said that it could have been anything from a bug bite to a poisonous plant that she brushed against. We never knew. For two years we forgot all about it. Then when she was in her third trimester, it resurfaced and the rest is --- my nightmare that I can never wake up from." Brennan lay back quietly and didn't say anything else.
"Then the answer is simple," Brennan stated as he relaxed. He saw his own face crease as it stared back at him. "You couldn't have known but now that I do, I can change it. We just won't go to Hawaii. Shal really wanted to but knowing what she knows now I'm sure she'll be willing to choose another place. I won't lose her."
"I hope it works out. If you can change our history you won't have to live like I did." Brennan began to feel something that he'd almost forgotten. Hope.
"Just tell me one more thing," he smiled at his older self.
"What else do you need to know?" he asked confused.
"Who is he?" He suddenly became the overprotective father of the daughter who wasn't even born to him yet.
"Ferals attract. It was a good thing my relationship with Shal was solid by the time we met Logan. I'm sure she would have been with him otherwise. I have no doubt she loved me but---well, you know how close they were--- I mean are." After everything that happened since the other team arrived, Brennan finally smiled.
Both Logans were at one side speaking quietly as their girls were at a small distance. "She's still a beautiful woman." Younger Logan commented as he looked at the woman that was now Mrs. Logan.
"She was always beautiful," the older man replied. "That's why you're gonna marry her. There isn't anyone in the world who can compare to her."
They turned to watch the children at a distance doing their jobs. Jimmy, Bryan and Mikey were working on the defense system as Hannah stood at a slight distance scanning from side to side. "Tell me about the kids. I could easily see myself married to 'Ro but,"
"But you never thought you'd make a decent dad," the elder completed his thoughts. "The day they were born was almost as special as the day I married her. We didn't know there were twins until they were there. They were so in tune with each other that they acted as one. Even their hearts beat together. That's why Hank didn't even know. They're incredible." The men watched as the twins stopped what they were doing and turned to look directly at them. "They know we're talking about them."
"How? They can't hear us from all the way over there," the younger man stated.
"Don't bet on it, bub. The twins have better hearing than you do." He smiled as his children looked at him. "I'll tell you the facts. Trying to catch them in the act of their mischief is gonna run you ragged. They know you're comin' before you get out of your chair." They laughed when they saw the twins throw their hands up in frustration as they listened to their father tell on them.
Their laughter caught the attention of their girls. They turned to see the women's approach. Then the older raised an eyebrow at his wife and with an evil smile he turned to his younger self. "I know what I can tell you that will benefit me greatly. This is something I had wished I'd known much earlier in our relationship."
Younger Logan turned and was suddenly very interested.
Mrs. Logan saw the look in her husband's face and gasped, "Logan, don't you dare!"
Without a second thought, the elder whispered to the younger his secret and then sat back proudly. "She loves it."
Logan smiled at his girlfriend with the new knowledge locked away for safe keeping.
"You brute." Mrs. Logan punched her husband's arm when she got closer.
"Come on, Darlin'. You know you love it and I only wish I'd have known sooner. Think of all the fun we will have had in our history now."
"You are incorrigible," she leaned into his arms.
"I know, Darlin'. That's why you stay with me." He pulled her close and kissed her.
Both Scotts stood at the ready as they looked at all the destruction around them. "I can't understand how they were able to accomplish this." Young Scott gestured all around him. "They should never have been able to get close enough."
"The last five years have been the worst---well---you'll ever have. The Brotherhood is more convinced than ever that they should rule the world now that they were able to convince a good deal of new mutants to join them. At one point it seemed as if they didn't even know who new mutants were. Then somehow they found out and suddenly they had 1000 possible new recruits."
"Thomas told us the underground was compromised. I didn't realize that was the turning point."
"Adam was crushed. He blamed himself for overlooking something and failing all of them. We still don't know how they did it. The only thing we know is that they were able to crack the system in one of the safehouses and set up a loop that pulled from Sanctuary the next time that it connected for a security sweep. Once they had the files they began poisoning their minds against Mutant X and against Adam. To prove their strength and intent they began causing trouble worldwide. We were stretched too thin to really deal with it properly."
"What about the other teams? Weren't they helping?
"Even with our allies on all the continents, they began to overwhelm us. Whenever something happened, each team sent a contingent to deal with it. We've all gotten to know each other pretty well. Most of the time we were successful but it only served to give the Brotherhood the information they needed."
"Why isn't anyone here, helping?"
"We're the last major base of operations hit. They were successful in scattering everyone else and destroying their homes. That's why Mutant X is here. They were one of the first. No one has had enough time to regroup."
"We have to stop the Sanctuary breach."
"Good luck. We don't even know when it happened."
Shalimar and Shawna were sitting in the garden. From the time they left the war room Shawna was asking questions. "What was it like when you first found out you were a mutant? Daddy told me a lot about you as I got older but can you tell me?"
Shalimar cried inside to know the girl in front of her was such a stranger. She tried to smile and began to speak. "It was very difficult for me. My parents weren't willing to accept a child with my abilities and put me into an institution. I grew stronger and eventually broke out. I survived by myself for a little while but when I was 15 Adam found me and took me in. I've lived in Sanctuary ever since." She watched as different emotions played on the young girls face as she listened.
"Wow, I knew how Mutant X got started but I didn't realize why you were alone," she sadly stated.
"I'm glad when your powers manifested you were in a much different environment." Shalimar reached out and took her hand.
"I never felt rejected. I knew they were coming and was anxious at times for them to start. Aunt Evie tried to explain to me some of the more unpleasant changes I would go through but when they actually started---," Shawna put her head down. "I know she tried but she's not feral. Uncle Logan and Hannah came more often during that time. They helped. It seemed easier to talk to them. Hannah is a year older than me but her powers started when she was even younger. It helped a lot to talk to her while my body was going through all the changes."
Shalimar gathered her into her arms in what seemed to be the most natural thing she had ever done. "I'm sorry I wasn't there for you. I remember those changes and how I felt. I used to get so mad, sometimes."
Shawna just rested in her mother's arms. She had dreamed so often of what it would have been like to have her mom to hold her through her tears. "At first I lashed out at everyone in Sanctuary. Daddy tried to explain and comfort me but there were times I couldn't sit still long enough for him to hold me." She pulled away gently and sat back up. "That's where Uncle Logan came in." She smiled at the expression that crossed her mother's face.
"Logan? What could he do that your father couldn't?"
"Fight with me." She stated simply. "He was my uncle. I loved him and was taught to respect him. I especially loved to play with him more than anyone else when I was real little.
When he started visiting during that period though I shied away from him. I thought my problems were all female issues. I didn't understand how my feral nature involved my mind as much as my body. He understood completely. He began to provoke me to the point of fury. I never argued with him before and tried to run away. He chased me down and wouldn't stop until I gave in to the rage. By the time he went home I always felt a little better.
The worst was a time when I was at the height of the changes. He knew it. Somehow he always knew how far to push me. This one time, though, I thought he was crazy. He provoked an argument then followed me when I ran to my room. The family all knew what would happen when he came over. Every visit they watched as our arguments became more heated. Everyone knew what he was doing but me. They all expected what happened next." She put her head down and tears began to fall.
"Hey, it's ok." Shalimar put her arm around her. "Tell me what he did."
"When he got to my room the door was locked. I refused to let him in. He left. I decided I wasn't leaving my room until he went home. 5 minutes later he was phased through my door. He unlocked it and opened it and I saw Uncle Jesse on the other side. I screamed at him. I couldn't believe that he of all people would turn on me like that. Tension in Sanctuary was at an all time high. I didn't find out until later that everyone was watching. Uncle Logan just growled at me and began arguing again. I curled on my bed and tried to block him out. He looked around my room and saw all the pictures I had of you." She looked up to meet her mother's eyes. "He started talking about you. He told me that when you first met he tried to take you from daddy. He told me that he fought with you and that you were a weakling; that as a feral you were a runt and he expected something like a virus to kill you. You would never have been brave enough to die in battle."
Shawna saw her mother pull back and display shock at his words. "He said what?"
"I was already furious. I couldn't let him talk about you that way. I attacked him. He got away from me easily and said that I was as weak a fighter as you were. I lost sight of everything. All I knew was that I wanted to kill him for bad mouthing you. He ran and I chased him. We ended up outside. He led me all over the mountain. When he let me catch him I punched and kicked with everything I had. Finally, I collapsed in exhaustion and cried."
Memories flooded Shalimar's mind as she thought back to almost the exact scenario in her life.
"He sat and held me for an hour as I cried myself to sleep in his arms. He carried me home and put me to bed. When I woke up the next day he and daddy explained what happened. Now whenever I really get on Uncle Logan's nerves he threatens to take me out on the mountain and we laugh."
"I'm so sorry I wasn't there for you." Mother and daughter hugged again until they were rudely interrupted.
Just then everyone received a blanket alert. The Brotherhood was making its comeback.
Discoveries
Chapter 17
While both Beasts were off discussing experiments and technological advances, Brennan sat back and watched as his older self reclined on the roof and closed his eyes. It still gave him shivers to think of going through all these years without Shalimar. He was startled from his thoughts by his own voice.
"She is still so beautiful." Brennan lay there with one arm draped over his eyes. "Even more beautiful than I remember." His voice was deep and sad.
"What happened?" Brennan had to know.
"Thomas didn't tell you?"
"All he said was that she contracted a virus while on our honeymoon. It made her sick but she recovered. Then when she was pregnant it resurfaced and she ---," he found it even too painful to say. How could he live with it?
"Died." Brennan finished. He sat up and looked at his younger self. "The virus and infection weakened her. She died in my arms while she was trying to deliver Shawna. She never saw the baby or heard her cry. I almost lost them both. I went wild with grief. Adam had to sedate me. It took weeks just be able to speak again. Evie and Kitty took care of the baby. I couldn't even look at her without breaking down." Once he began to talk it seemed to just flow. Speaking to himself was just as natural as thinking out loud. "Slowly I began to rebuild my world around Shawna. Even in the mansion with all these people around, it's just been me and her. But now she's getting older. She's in love but she's afraid to tell me."
"How do you know?" Brennan asked softly.
"I know the look of a feral when she's found her alpha male. Her eyes sparkle when she looks at him just like Shal's did --- when she looked at me." His voice dropped to nearly a whisper.
"Tell me what happened exactly. I'll make sure it doesn't happen again." Brennan was determined not to become the man before him.
"There are no guarantees and you can't change history," Brennan sadly replied.
"With a little foreknowledge I can prevent whatever it was and save Shal." Brennan left no room for doubt. "I'll do anything. You know that."
"In the end there was nothing I could do nor could have done. I've been over it a million times. We were on one of the islands and hiking some little known trails. She loved to try to get lost but with her senses it never happened. The next day she began running a high fever and we went back home. After two days of being delirious she recovered. Adam said that it could have been anything from a bug bite to a poisonous plant that she brushed against. We never knew. For two years we forgot all about it. Then when she was in her third trimester, it resurfaced and the rest is --- my nightmare that I can never wake up from." Brennan lay back quietly and didn't say anything else.
"Then the answer is simple," Brennan stated as he relaxed. He saw his own face crease as it stared back at him. "You couldn't have known but now that I do, I can change it. We just won't go to Hawaii. Shal really wanted to but knowing what she knows now I'm sure she'll be willing to choose another place. I won't lose her."
"I hope it works out. If you can change our history you won't have to live like I did." Brennan began to feel something that he'd almost forgotten. Hope.
"Just tell me one more thing," he smiled at his older self.
"What else do you need to know?" he asked confused.
"Who is he?" He suddenly became the overprotective father of the daughter who wasn't even born to him yet.
"Ferals attract. It was a good thing my relationship with Shal was solid by the time we met Logan. I'm sure she would have been with him otherwise. I have no doubt she loved me but---well, you know how close they were--- I mean are." After everything that happened since the other team arrived, Brennan finally smiled.
Both Logans were at one side speaking quietly as their girls were at a small distance. "She's still a beautiful woman." Younger Logan commented as he looked at the woman that was now Mrs. Logan.
"She was always beautiful," the older man replied. "That's why you're gonna marry her. There isn't anyone in the world who can compare to her."
They turned to watch the children at a distance doing their jobs. Jimmy, Bryan and Mikey were working on the defense system as Hannah stood at a slight distance scanning from side to side. "Tell me about the kids. I could easily see myself married to 'Ro but,"
"But you never thought you'd make a decent dad," the elder completed his thoughts. "The day they were born was almost as special as the day I married her. We didn't know there were twins until they were there. They were so in tune with each other that they acted as one. Even their hearts beat together. That's why Hank didn't even know. They're incredible." The men watched as the twins stopped what they were doing and turned to look directly at them. "They know we're talking about them."
"How? They can't hear us from all the way over there," the younger man stated.
"Don't bet on it, bub. The twins have better hearing than you do." He smiled as his children looked at him. "I'll tell you the facts. Trying to catch them in the act of their mischief is gonna run you ragged. They know you're comin' before you get out of your chair." They laughed when they saw the twins throw their hands up in frustration as they listened to their father tell on them.
Their laughter caught the attention of their girls. They turned to see the women's approach. Then the older raised an eyebrow at his wife and with an evil smile he turned to his younger self. "I know what I can tell you that will benefit me greatly. This is something I had wished I'd known much earlier in our relationship."
Younger Logan turned and was suddenly very interested.
Mrs. Logan saw the look in her husband's face and gasped, "Logan, don't you dare!"
Without a second thought, the elder whispered to the younger his secret and then sat back proudly. "She loves it."
Logan smiled at his girlfriend with the new knowledge locked away for safe keeping.
"You brute." Mrs. Logan punched her husband's arm when she got closer.
"Come on, Darlin'. You know you love it and I only wish I'd have known sooner. Think of all the fun we will have had in our history now."
"You are incorrigible," she leaned into his arms.
"I know, Darlin'. That's why you stay with me." He pulled her close and kissed her.
Both Scotts stood at the ready as they looked at all the destruction around them. "I can't understand how they were able to accomplish this." Young Scott gestured all around him. "They should never have been able to get close enough."
"The last five years have been the worst---well---you'll ever have. The Brotherhood is more convinced than ever that they should rule the world now that they were able to convince a good deal of new mutants to join them. At one point it seemed as if they didn't even know who new mutants were. Then somehow they found out and suddenly they had 1000 possible new recruits."
"Thomas told us the underground was compromised. I didn't realize that was the turning point."
"Adam was crushed. He blamed himself for overlooking something and failing all of them. We still don't know how they did it. The only thing we know is that they were able to crack the system in one of the safehouses and set up a loop that pulled from Sanctuary the next time that it connected for a security sweep. Once they had the files they began poisoning their minds against Mutant X and against Adam. To prove their strength and intent they began causing trouble worldwide. We were stretched too thin to really deal with it properly."
"What about the other teams? Weren't they helping?
"Even with our allies on all the continents, they began to overwhelm us. Whenever something happened, each team sent a contingent to deal with it. We've all gotten to know each other pretty well. Most of the time we were successful but it only served to give the Brotherhood the information they needed."
"Why isn't anyone here, helping?"
"We're the last major base of operations hit. They were successful in scattering everyone else and destroying their homes. That's why Mutant X is here. They were one of the first. No one has had enough time to regroup."
"We have to stop the Sanctuary breach."
"Good luck. We don't even know when it happened."
Shalimar and Shawna were sitting in the garden. From the time they left the war room Shawna was asking questions. "What was it like when you first found out you were a mutant? Daddy told me a lot about you as I got older but can you tell me?"
Shalimar cried inside to know the girl in front of her was such a stranger. She tried to smile and began to speak. "It was very difficult for me. My parents weren't willing to accept a child with my abilities and put me into an institution. I grew stronger and eventually broke out. I survived by myself for a little while but when I was 15 Adam found me and took me in. I've lived in Sanctuary ever since." She watched as different emotions played on the young girls face as she listened.
"Wow, I knew how Mutant X got started but I didn't realize why you were alone," she sadly stated.
"I'm glad when your powers manifested you were in a much different environment." Shalimar reached out and took her hand.
"I never felt rejected. I knew they were coming and was anxious at times for them to start. Aunt Evie tried to explain to me some of the more unpleasant changes I would go through but when they actually started---," Shawna put her head down. "I know she tried but she's not feral. Uncle Logan and Hannah came more often during that time. They helped. It seemed easier to talk to them. Hannah is a year older than me but her powers started when she was even younger. It helped a lot to talk to her while my body was going through all the changes."
Shalimar gathered her into her arms in what seemed to be the most natural thing she had ever done. "I'm sorry I wasn't there for you. I remember those changes and how I felt. I used to get so mad, sometimes."
Shawna just rested in her mother's arms. She had dreamed so often of what it would have been like to have her mom to hold her through her tears. "At first I lashed out at everyone in Sanctuary. Daddy tried to explain and comfort me but there were times I couldn't sit still long enough for him to hold me." She pulled away gently and sat back up. "That's where Uncle Logan came in." She smiled at the expression that crossed her mother's face.
"Logan? What could he do that your father couldn't?"
"Fight with me." She stated simply. "He was my uncle. I loved him and was taught to respect him. I especially loved to play with him more than anyone else when I was real little.
When he started visiting during that period though I shied away from him. I thought my problems were all female issues. I didn't understand how my feral nature involved my mind as much as my body. He understood completely. He began to provoke me to the point of fury. I never argued with him before and tried to run away. He chased me down and wouldn't stop until I gave in to the rage. By the time he went home I always felt a little better.
The worst was a time when I was at the height of the changes. He knew it. Somehow he always knew how far to push me. This one time, though, I thought he was crazy. He provoked an argument then followed me when I ran to my room. The family all knew what would happen when he came over. Every visit they watched as our arguments became more heated. Everyone knew what he was doing but me. They all expected what happened next." She put her head down and tears began to fall.
"Hey, it's ok." Shalimar put her arm around her. "Tell me what he did."
"When he got to my room the door was locked. I refused to let him in. He left. I decided I wasn't leaving my room until he went home. 5 minutes later he was phased through my door. He unlocked it and opened it and I saw Uncle Jesse on the other side. I screamed at him. I couldn't believe that he of all people would turn on me like that. Tension in Sanctuary was at an all time high. I didn't find out until later that everyone was watching. Uncle Logan just growled at me and began arguing again. I curled on my bed and tried to block him out. He looked around my room and saw all the pictures I had of you." She looked up to meet her mother's eyes. "He started talking about you. He told me that when you first met he tried to take you from daddy. He told me that he fought with you and that you were a weakling; that as a feral you were a runt and he expected something like a virus to kill you. You would never have been brave enough to die in battle."
Shawna saw her mother pull back and display shock at his words. "He said what?"
"I was already furious. I couldn't let him talk about you that way. I attacked him. He got away from me easily and said that I was as weak a fighter as you were. I lost sight of everything. All I knew was that I wanted to kill him for bad mouthing you. He ran and I chased him. We ended up outside. He led me all over the mountain. When he let me catch him I punched and kicked with everything I had. Finally, I collapsed in exhaustion and cried."
Memories flooded Shalimar's mind as she thought back to almost the exact scenario in her life.
"He sat and held me for an hour as I cried myself to sleep in his arms. He carried me home and put me to bed. When I woke up the next day he and daddy explained what happened. Now whenever I really get on Uncle Logan's nerves he threatens to take me out on the mountain and we laugh."
"I'm so sorry I wasn't there for you." Mother and daughter hugged again until they were rudely interrupted.
Just then everyone received a blanket alert. The Brotherhood was making its comeback.