Chapter 16
"What?!"
"What do you mean?"
"Wait, I don't understand."
The voices attacked Jesse simultaneously. Brennan, Shalimar and Lexa started asking questions at lightening speed. Jesse tried to calm them, but his own mind was still circling. He couldn't hear what questions were being asked, let alone answer them.
After a few moments Katie, who had no idea what all the commotion was about, took control. Placing two fingers in her mouth, she let loose a piercing whistle, effectively silencing the four mutants.
"I have no idea what's going on, but breakfast is ready. We can all sit down at the table, and discuss this like grown-ups." She handed a plate of scrambled eggs to Brennan and a platter of homemade cottage fries to Lexa. "Shalimar if you'd be so kind as to grab the juice out of the fridge. Jesse, have a seat. You need more than toast and an orange at the rate you've been going."
Stunned into silence, the other four carried out her orders. Once they were all seated at the circular breakfast table, Katie said. "Now, Jesse, what the hell is this all about?"
"This has to do with our expiry dates."
Katie raised an eyebrow at Shalimar. "And what exactly are those?"
Shalimar squirmed in her seat. "Well, I told you that our powers are the result of unexpected mutations from Adam's genetic manipulation. Later, Adam discovered that the mutations created instabilities in the genetic structures. Basically, there's a date – the expiry date – when a mutant's genetic instability will cause them to self-destruct. Jesse's date passed almost a month ago. So, something happened to stabilize his structure."
Katie digested this new information. She seemed to be doing that a lot lately. She shifted her attention to her brother as he spoke.
Jesse had swallowed the toast he'd been eating. "Right. Turns out Adam knew the exact dates, but he never told us because he wasn't sure he'd solved the problem. And he didn't."
Brennan piped in. "But how is that possible? Obviously, you're still alive."
"Well, that's where it gets a little tricky. You see, the genetic structure of a mutant starts with –"
Lexa interrupted him. "Jesse. You're being cryptic again. If Adam didn't fix your genetic structure, how did you survive your expiry date with an instable structure?"
Jesse wiped his hands on his napkin. "Oh, I never said my structure wasn't stabilized. It's completely stable. It's just that Adam didn't do it. I did."
Lexa's brow furrowed in confusion. "Okay. I lost you there. You're going to have to explain this one."
Jesse noticed the new bandage on Brennan's arm, exposed by the sleeveless t-shirt he was wearing. "It might be easier to show you." He took a sip of juice from his glass as he stood. Moving over to Brennan's side, he gently removed the bandage, exposing the raw wound.
"Jess, what are you doing?" Brennan asked. He and the others watched him with curious stares.
"Just watch." Jesse placed his hand tightly over the wound in Brennan's arm. He then phased both his own hand and part of Brennan's arm. Then he quickly massed them.
"Ow. That really hurts." Brennan automatically flinched away
Jesse ignored the comment, tightening his grip on Brennan. He phased the hand and arm once more before returning them to normal density. "Oh, give it up. It doesn't hurt that much."
"Maybe not to you. You do it all the time. For those of us who don't change our density on a regular basis it kind of stings. Can I have my arm back?"
"Sure." Jesse removed his hand. He went over to his seat and sat down heavily.
The others looked at him. "What was that all about?" Shalimar asked.
Jesse merely gestured to Brennan's arm. Following his gaze, the others froze.
"How did you do that?" Shalimar ran her fingers over the spot on Brennan's arm were the wound had been. Now, though, the skin was smooth. There was no trace of the nasty burn that had been there a few moments ago. Brennan flexed and stretched his arm. Even the slight nagging pain was gone.
"May I explain now?"
The others nodded, their attention rapt.
"Okay. Now, as I was saying the genetic structure of a mutant starts with slow mutations. They develop to the point of classification during puberty. There's a second growth spurt for mutants when those growth hormones stop being produced, which usually happens in your 20s. I think we all remember those."
The mutants at the table nodded. Katie listened to the information, but also watched the others. She was amazed. These people had such different lives. Not only did they have to deal with 'normal' things like money, food and shelter, but also they had to deal with a whole underground culture in which their very lives were in danger. And not just from enemies but from their own bodies.
"Now, Adam ran a test about a month before he disappeared. The test involved adding another C-G base pair to the 938th gene. Brennan was the control for the test, so it wasn't added to his genetic sequence. Emma and Shalimar didn't show any reaction at all. It seemed like the additional amino acids acted any of the other thousands of base pairs on the human genome that don't seem to do anything. My test results showed an increase in a pituitary hormone; Adam dismissed it because, as the youngest member of Mutant X at the time, I was likely still going through the end of the hormonal growth period. From what I could tell, it was a completely random reaction; the extra base pair merely increased the amount of time the hormone prosoletine was in my system.
"Now, in a normal person, that wouldn't have been a problem. The person would have ended up a little taller, or something. In a mutant, however, the extra exposure to prosoletine increases their mutant abilities. In my case, since I'm a molecular, it makes sense that it would to amplify my ability to manipulate molecules. It seems I now have the ability to manipulate and rearrange the molecules of the things, in addition to changing their density. However, from what I can tell, it's limited to the human body. I've had the ability for a year; it's just been so subtle that I never noticed or questioned it.
"And this is how you fixed own genetic structure." Lexa had been following his explanation closely.
Jesse nodded. "Subconsciously, I knew what my genetic structure needed to look like in order to be stabilized, and I knew what it was. Ever since I learned about the instability of our genetic structures I'd been studying them. I just didn't know how to fix it using technology. But my subconscious did. Every time I phased or massed – any time I actively used my powers, I was unconsciously readjusting my genetic structure. A similar thing happened whenever I got injured. After I got shot, I had completely recovered in four days, even though Doctor Robinson thought it would be two weeks. After the Dominion torture session, my hand was a mass of bruises – but I had to do some phasing and massing later that night – and it helped. The next day I could type just fine. The only drawback is that it tires me out quickly and I need to sleep. Hmm…I'm lucky I didn't accidentally 'fix' the mutation that gave me my powers. Actually, I guess that would be impossible – the mutation couldn't fix itself." Jesse's thoughts started to digress.
"How did you figure this out? Like you said, Adam dismissed the test result as bogus. How did you figure out what its real effects were?" Katie seemed to be the only one capable of asking questions at this point. The others were still processing the information, trying to get a grasp on how this would affect their lives and their mission.
Jesse's attention snapped back. "Like most major scientific discoveries, it was an accident." He shrugged sheepishly. "I lost my temper and broke a dish. I cut myself cleaning it up. I phased my hand through the cupboard to get a band-aid. When I took my hand out, I noticed the cut had gotten smaller."
Shalimar finally found her voice. "Are you sure that's how your structure was fixed?"
"As sure as I can be without Adam's help. I ran a dozen different tests half a dozen times, checking the structure. Plus you saw the evidence for yourself." He motioned to Brennan's arm. "I guess it's a good thing – I can help other people and myself in fights. But it means that Adam didn't find the cure. I'm sorry, guys."
Brennan put his hand on Jesse's shoulder. "Hey, it's not your fault." He thought for a moment. "You used your powers to heal the burn on my arm, right?"
Jesse looked at him as though he'd grown a second head. "Yeah. You saw me do it."
"Well, your 'new' power obviously can be transferred to other objects just like your phasing and massing. Do you think you could do more? I mean using your power to heal our genetic structures?"
The despair that had settled in Jesse's eyes lessened. His eyes darted back and forth as his mind mulled over the proposition. "It might be possible…" Jesse tapped his finger against his chin, but then his face fell. "The problem is I don't know exactly how I fixed my genetic structure. If it can be done by adjusting the bone marrow, the source of new blood, it might be possible… but it would take a significant amount of energy – it's such a detailed part of human anatomy, and it's even more complicated with mutants… But if I had to go through every single cell, it would take an incredible amount of time and energy…And it would have to be done in a single session because non-moleculars can't withstand molecular manipulation of that kind for extended, repeated or prolonged periods of time. If I tried that, and it took too long, I'd die from oxygen deprivation and energy loss before it was finished and the patient would die too."
"Is there a way for you to find out how you did it?"
He let out a breath. "I don't know, Shal. But I'm going to do my best to find out." Jesse tried to infuse his voice with enthusiasm, but found it difficult. He had just spent days searching for an answer. Instead, he had managed only to create more questions and take away the hope that they might be cured.