Disclaimer—See Chapter One
A/N: I just finished writing a very long wrap-up chapter, so now I just need to write the final chapter! Thank you all for your continued support. Each chapter easily takes me at least ten hours to write as I'm a horribly slow writer and a perfectionist to boot, so if not for your kindness, I think I would have given up long ago. Thank you Rain, MxFan214 (first one to guess!), kerry, hi, Saphire Ravven8 (Lol, not sure! They are stuck in a cave after all!), CatJerica (Wow, great thoughts! I never even thought of some of that!), Fiery Feral, AliasFan-MutantKitty (So happy you noticed that, thank you!), Mayra, Redhead2. Thank you! Here's another long chapter for you, I hope you enjoy!
Traveling Souls—Chapter Thirteen
Many a time over the years, Adam had seen his team fight, had seen them engaged in battle. It unnerved him every time. The mixed emotions of protective fear and swelling pride had always struck him as ironic. He felt the familiar rush of emotions now as his team gathered together, Brennan pulling back from hugging Shalimar, Emma's head snapping up and seeing Michael as he smiled back lazily. By silent assent, they formed a line, Jesse a step ahead of the others. They all faced Michael.
None of them saw the seven new men creeping out of the office and toward them from behind.
"Stupid." Michael disdainfully informed them, body shimmering and then disappearing as he blended into the rock.
Shalimar sensed the advancing agents the same time as the shots rang out. Her cry of warning was abruptly cut off as she dropped to the ground. Emma crumbled beside her, and then Jesse as he gasped, inadvertently releasing his breath.
Time slowed for Adam as Alex whirled, massing in front of Brennan. Brennan lashed out, electricity crackling loudly as it struck one of the men. The agent's weapon dropped to the rock floor with a clatter, calling Adam into action as the remaining men spread out.
"Go after them!" Adam hollered, bending over Shalimar, fingers trembling as they pressed into her neck. A strong pulse surging back told him she was still alive. His eyes darted around his three fallen team members. No blood. His shoulders slumped in relief. They had just been stunned. "They're fine—go!" He screamed again, glancing up as he saw Brennan and Alex hesitating. "Go!"
Brennan's eyes were locked on Shalimar. Adam saw them harden in rage and fear, narrowing, and then he was gone, Alex pulling him along as he stalked after the men. He rose, moving to check on Emma, freezing when he felt the cold barrel of a gun being pressed into his neck. His eyes closed in frustration as hands searched him, and the disk was pulled out of his jacket pocket. He made to move toward Jesse, sighing as the barrel pressed harder. "Alright," He raised his hands, sinking back to the ground next to Emma.
"Call them back." The hammer of the gun clicked in his ear.
In the space of the seconds it took for Adam to get caught, the cave had turned into a battle ground. He drew a deep breath, about to bellow out an order to stop when it suddenly occurred to him that Brennan and Alex were winning. He hesitated, mouth snapping shut, taking a gamble. "No." He ignored the cursing of the man behind him, heart slamming in his chest as he kept his eyes locked on Brennan and Alex. They were outnumbered, but they seemed to have something the other agents did not. Both of them seemed to have an uncanny sense of where the other was at any given time, moving fluidly as they fought. Fierce and aggressive, Alex attacked while Brennan parried, working together as they quickly recognized in each other familiar patterns in new forms. Their bodies shifted, flowed, adapted. He could see it building, could see it in the unthinking block, the parry in motion before the other's attack was barely started. Each absorbed the other's ability, blows swiftly increasing until they moved seamlessly side by side, hands moving faster than thought, bodies reacting in a violent tango. Twice, Adam winced as one of Eckhart's agents whirled in attack, only to strike their own side instead.
The gun jabbed harder into his neck, a command barked into his ear, but he barely heard it, staring in awe at Brennan and Alex as they continued fighting. It was as if they were not limited to just one dimension, as if they had years to learn each others thinking. Darkness, tunnels, and boulders that represented obstacles to their stumbling opponents were tools to them as they fought, leaping and twisting with deadly perfection. A shuffle sounded behind him, and the pressure from the gun suddenly released. Startled, he glanced up to see Shalimar standing over the fallen agent, dusting off her hands as she kicked the gun from his limp fingers. She looked dazed, but determined as she placed a hand on Adam's shoulder in quick reassurance, brushing past him to join the fight, fingers digging painfully into his skin as she abruptly jerked, knees buckling beneath her. He caught her even as he heard the mocking echo of the shot that brought her down.
"No!" Brennan roared in anger when he saw an agent just beyond his reach aiming his gun, head turning just in time to see Shalimar falling out of the corner of his eye. He broke free of the fight, starting toward Shalimar, knowing Alex would get the agent.
He wasn't wrong.
With a howl of rage that brought shivers to Adam's spine, Alex struck out with a massive fireball, instantly striking the remaining agents.
Except the one that shot Shalimar.
He dropped his weapon, backing down a side tunnel with hands raised as Alex stalked after him, paling as he backed abruptly into a dead end wall of tumbled rock.
Alex smiled tightly as he realized it was the caved-in wall hiding the facility's dark secret. Human remains. His hands lifted, flames flickering.
"Shalimar!" Brennan slid the last few feet on his knees, not feeling the biting pain as he desperately pulled her into his arms.
"Brennan, it's alright…they're using rubber bullets…they must want us alive for some reason!"
Brennan barely registered Adam's voice, wind from the abyss screaming cruelly, teetering on the edge as it crumbled beneath his feet. He clung to her limp body, grinding his teeth.
"Brennan!" A hand grabbed his shoulder, and he growled blindly, almost missing the grunt of pain beneath him. He groaned when he finally heard the sound, felt her fingers digging into his back. Adam's hand released his shoulder, and he pulled back, tension leaving him in a rush as he found Shalimar's eyes. They were open, smiling at him.
It was the last thing he saw.
Creeping silently through the earth and following the path of least resistance, methane had spent itself into the atmosphere over the years until thwarted, trapped beneath the surface by heavy layers of impermeable rock and soil. Unable to go any further, it had swirled in ever deeper concentrations until the day someone unknowingly released it.
And created a spark.
In a searing blast of heat and light, a shockwave exploded outward from the side tunnel.
They heard the explosion a bare instant before they felt the flames.
There was no time to run.
Agents were smashed against the rock walls, lungs ruptured by the concussive change of pressure, bodies seared by the steadily increasing temperature of the flames just behind.
Jesse had just opened his eyes in time to hear the explosion, hands grabbing Emma and Brennan as he cradled Shalimar, feeling Adam's hands on his shoulders and massing, praying he could spread the effect far enough among them as flames overtook them. Instinct had caused him to react before fully cognizant, and he struggled to hold his breath, lungs burning for air all too soon.
The ignition collapsed the tunnel entrance and sealed it with several tons of debris, the rumbling vibrations of the earth shaking the whole of the cavern. Flames raced from one end of the tunnel to the other, eagerly consuming methane and oxygen in a howling rush. Partway down another tunnel, the forward flames finally slowed, left with no place to go as building pressure bubbled gases away from the blast.
Jesse released his breath with a gasping sob, dropping to the ground with exhaustion as something landed near his face. It took a moment before he could make out what the object was.
A human skull.
Emma screamed, scrambling backwards in numb horror as the gleam of a femur bone protruded from the wall inches from her head. Paralyzed by fear, Shalimar hadn't moved, her terrified whimpers striking Brennan's ears as the roar of the fire dissipated, left with nothing to burn in the rock and slate cavern.
Except for the bones that had been thrown outward and toward them from the force of the blast. Driven into the wall and littering the ground around them, they burned in gruesome reminder.
Adam cursed under his breath, staring in disbelief. He hadn't made the connection. At least a dozen bodies, Jesse and Alex had guessed. The tunnel had been closed for over two decades. Methane was odorless, but was the primary gas created by rotting flesh. He should have known. His hands began to shake.
Jesse gagged as fire consumed the remaining brittle hair and flesh, vomiting as heat caused the decomposing skull to split and snap before his eyes. He groaned, wiping his mouth as he pushed himself back, forcing his eyes away from the gruesome sight, wincing as his eyes landed on the femur bone instead. "What the hell happened?" His voice was raspy in the eerie silence.
They looked at each other in shocked confusion, eyes wide and grim.
"Alex." Adam finally made the final connection.
Shalimar visibly flinched at his words, shoving a fist into her mouth, remembering. He had been in the tunnel when it exploded. She staggered to her feet, gasping as pain racketed out from her bruised chest where she had been shot.
"No!" Brennan pulled her back down and then released her, on his feet and halfway down the burnt tunnel before anyone else could react.
"Brennan!" Shalimar found her voice, screaming his name as he disappeared into the darkness. "No!" She leapt to her feet, frantically struggling as Adam's arms wrapped around her from behind, hissing as he inadvertently pressed against her bruised body.
"Wait!" He grunted as she twisted out of his grasp, reaching for her again. She only made it three steps before halting, Adam slamming into her as she unexpectedly stopped. He lifted his eyes, heart pounding, utterly spent with relief when two figures ran out of the blackness. He raised his hands to cup Shalimar's shoulders in comfort, but she was already gone, racing through the smoldering murkiness to meet them halfway. Adam was again struck with a feeling of awe as he watched the two men run side by side, simultaneously leaping over tumbled rock without breaking stride in perfect wordless communication.
Shalimar staggered to a stop, mouth open in silent surprise as she was struck with sudden awareness, watching Brennan and Alex. She hadn't really seen them together yet, hadn't noticed it before.
They moved the same.
They smelled the same.
She knew she had felt the same sense of familiarity and comfort from them, she just hadn't realized it was for a reason.
"Shal! Run!" It took her a moment to notice the panicked expressions on their faces as they neared her, diving for her as she hesitated, distracted.
Brennan sailed above her, grabbing her, twisting his body into a roll to soften the blow as he dragged her down to the ground. "Jesse! Mass!" Brennan shoved Shalimar beneath him, managing to bark out the order before Alex threw his body over theirs, knocking the wind out of him just as another fireball roared toward them. He felt searing heat seconds before Alex massed, realizing just how close they had been to the secondary blast. It seemed to last forever, but it was only moments before the head of the blast slowed, flames eagerly racing above them, but quickly dying out from lack of material and oxygen. Alex waited a few moments more before releasing his breath, pushing off Brennan with a painful grunt.
"Shalimar!" Brennan rolled off the feral, scrambling to his knees, cupping her face as she shakily sat up. "Shal?"
"Brennan?" Her voice was a hoarse whisper. Her head was down, eyes averted.
"It's ok, I'm here." He ran a shaky hand down her head, smoothing wild curls, pushing stray strands behind her ears, desperate to see her face as she leaned into his touch.
"Hey Bren?"
"Yeah?" He ducked his head, finding her eyes.
"Let's get out of here."
His heart ached at the vulnerability on her face, knowing how much she would hate it. "You got it." He caught her lips in a gentle kiss, pulling her up with him as he rose to his feet. He nodded at Alex, and then they were on the run again.
The underground facility had lost its lighting, lightbulbs shattered from the blasts. But once they moved past the destroyed office and caved-in hallway, they found the rest of the facility surprisingly intact, standing strong against the earthquakes and explosions. It was a silent, bedraggled group that finally sat down in sheer exhaustion in one of the labs.
Brennan groaned audibly in appreciation as he lay down on one of the beds. It didn't matter that it was old and musty, it felt like heaven to his bruised bones. His eyes closed only to pop back open a moment later, holding out a hand to Shalimar as she stood next to him. She gripped his fingers, sinking down on the bed, hip brushing against his shoulder. He started to sit up, but she stopped him with a gentle hand on his chest.
"Rest."
He smiled at her soft whisper, settling a hand on the small of her back as she leaned into him. Her hand stayed on his chest, curling into shirt.
"Now what?" Jesse scrubbed his face with tired hands as Emma slumped against him. "Whatever we hoped to find in the caves is lost now."
"What happened anyway?" Emma didn't even bother looking up as she spoke, she was too tired.
"I don't know," Alex shifted his feet uneasily. "I threw fire into the tunnel after the bastard that shot Shalimar, and it hit that dead-end wall. The next thing I know, it exploded."
"Methane gas." Adam spoke wearily, letting his heavy pack fall to the floor. "I believe the explosion was caused by gases created from the decaying remains you found back there. It must have built up, trapped by the cave-in until Alex inadvertently released it."
"Oh." Jesse looked sickened at the thought.
"Maybe we should try playing the disk again, Adam." Shalimar wiped a hand across her nose, leaving a streak of dirt on her cheek.
"I can't."
They all looked up sharply as Adam gritted his teeth in frustration. He had sunk to the ground, pulling his knees up and burying his face in his hands. They rarely saw their leader rattled, and it unnerved them now. They exchanged uneasy glances.
"Adam?" Emma winced as she stood up, hand pressed to her side as she crossed over to him, resting a hand on his shoulder.
"They took it from me." Adam shrugged, looking up, arms dangling across his bent knees. He watched with bleary eyes as Jesse struggled back to his feet, sudden remembrance rousing him. He rose smoothly to his feet, frustration forgotten as he switched roles. It was the doctor in him that next spoke, reaching for Emma. "You were shot, how are you feeling?"
She hissed in pain as he pressed a hand against her stomach, face twisted in silent pain as he examined her for a moment.
His brows knitted in concern as he looked at the rest of his team. "Jesse, come here."
The molecular sighed, reluctantly coming forward, flinching as Adam lifted his shirt. A deep purple bruise was already beginning to form across his chest.
Adam pressed his lips together tightly. At least this was one thing he could heal. "We're fortunate, it could have been a lot worse."
"Fortunate?" Jesse's brows winged upward as he tugged his shirt back down.
"Shalimar?" Adam turned his attention on the feral next.
She shrugged, not moving. "I'm fine."
"You were hit twice." Brennan swung his long legs over the side of the bed as he sat up, cursing himself for forgetting.
She didn't move. "Just one more bruise."
Brennan shook his head at her matter-of-fact tone, framing her face with one hand, thumb stroking the gentle curve of her cheekbone. Her eyes were liquid warmth as they stared back at him, and he pulled her close, resting his forehead against hers.
"As soon as we get out of here—"
"Yeah, I know." She smiled at his whispered promise, hands rising to cup the back of his neck. Warm lips brushed unobtrusively against his for a brief second and then were gone, pulling away before the others could notice.
"So now what?" Jesse broke the silence, repeating his words from earlier. He watched as Adam dug through his pack, lost in thought. "Adam?"
Adam looked up at Jesse's prompting, pulling out the heavy bronzed tree statue. He set it on one of the counters, staring at it.
"Adam?" Shalimar hopped to her feet, crossing over to him.
"Do you have an idea?" Alex stepped up behind her, watching.
Adam didn't look up, fingers stroking the cool metal. "I wonder…" He gently pressed his thumb into the center indentation where the disk had fit. There was a click, and then gasps all around as another shimmering hologram appeared, of a much younger Dr. Shaw this time. Alex took a step back, and Shalimar placed a comforting hand on his arm as the image began to speak. They were shocked when it addressed Adam directly.
"Adam, if you are hearing this, it means I have sent you back here, for only your print can release this message." There was a shuffle and the doctor paused as he glanced over his shoulder. When he turned back around, his face was nervous. "I did it, Adam, I cracked the genetic code." He swallowed, throat tight. "But I have recently learned that others have been using my work as well." He leaned forward, almost whispering. "There have been rumors of—of experiments, creating life just to destroy it again, even of hidden caves. They are corrupt, evil. I've heard rumors of the existence of a list of names, but I do not know." He shook his head. "I suspect Genomex is funding it. Because of this, I have decided to hide my own research. This goes way back, Adam, further back than either of us could have ever imagined. I believe it's tied to the prophecy, the one we tried so hard to prevent. I have learned that our efforts were not entirely successful. The baby, he didn't die, Adam. We were deceived by Eckhart. He kept him for the prophecy, for his own gain to power. I fear what he plans to do." He paused for a moment as background noise startled him before starting up again, voice low and urgent. "The baby Adam, the baby is the key. Go back to where it all started. You found this message, I know you can find the research as well. Only you, Adam, I trust only you with my work."
The message ended abruptly as the young Dr. Shaw glanced over his shoulder once more and then cut the transmission. Adam's eyes had closed during the message, brows creased with concentration and pain. He wasn't surprised to find everyone staring at him when he reopened them.
Brennan finally broke the silence, voice bitter. "Well, are you going to tell us or do we have to ask?"
Adam's chin lifted imperceptively. "Alright, you deserve some answers." He paused, glancing at each one of them, ending on Alex. "Yes, I knew Evan Shaw. He was my partner before I left Genomex."
Brennan grunted in disgust. "Let me guess, you worked here."
"Yes."
"I knew it." Brennan turned pointedly to Shalimar, but pressed his mouth shut at her look.
"Why didn't you tell us, Adam?" Shalimar kept her tone neutral, not ready to cast judgment quite yet.
Adam recognized it, and threw her a brief smile. "I didn't know if it was connected."
"You must have known when you found the statue." Jesse's eyes were locked on the bronzed tree. "How did you know about it anyway?"
Adam's mouth twisted slightly. "Adam and Eve."
"What?"
Adam sighed. "Our colleagues jokingly called us Adam and Eve. Dr. Adam Kane and Dr. Evan Shaw, taking from the tree of life, like Adam and Eve in the garden."
Jesse nodded in understanding. "So the statue?"
"It was an inside message from Evan, he knew I would remember."
"You could have told us sooner." Brennan didn't want to give up his anger quite yet.
"We have more important things to worry about right now," Adam ignored Brennan's piercing glare. "We need to find that research, and we don't know how many more of Eckhart's men are still out there."
"He said you would know." Alex spoke up for the first time, voice quiet.
"What?" Adam turned toward him.
"In the message, he said you would know where the research was hidden." Alex lifted his eyes, expression inscrutable. "What else do you know? Did you know about this research or this--this baby he mentioned? Is it me? Do you know how I'm connected to all this?" He flinched, a flash of memory being relived, of faint screams terrifying his childhood mind. Rage surged and he took a step toward Adam, relaxing his tense stance only when Shalimar squeezed his arm, stepping slightly in front of him.
Brennan's eyes darted between them. She was using her body to block Alex from Adam. He jumped to his feet, walking up to her.
"Everyone just take it easy." Jesse stepped up as well. "Obviously we all have a lot of questions, but Adam's right, now is not the time."
Adam turned away, effectively putting his back to all of them in a show of authority. "We need to keep looking." His tone bode no argument.
"Where do you think he hid it?" Emma's soft-spoken voice eased the tension in the room as she addressed Adam. "Do you have any idea where to start?"
Adam hesitated in the doorway, not turning around. "I don't know." He stepped through the door, the darkness swallowing him whole.
Wordlessly, Alex followed him. The rest of the team looked at each other, shrugging, boots clipping loudly on the slate floor as they followed one by one through the door.
After Emma's fourth sigh, Jesse had had enough. He was grateful for the relative darkness as he reached out, pressing his fingers into the small of her back as they continued to walk. "What is it?"
"Hmm?" She glanced over her shoulder as he drew up along side her.
"I know something's bothering you."
Emma glanced sharply at him again. To his surprise, her expression was one of pain. She looked back down, staring at the musty hallway as Adam led them around a corner. Her brow furrowed as she finally answered in a low voice. "There's so much emotion here, I'm having trouble sorting it all."
He took a moment to process that. "Good or bad?"
She smiled slightly, making a curious, helpless gesture with one hand. "Both."
Jesse paused, pulling her around to face him. Her eyes, usually so clear, so full of gentle humor, were clouded with confusion. "Emma, are you ok?"
"Yeah," She resumed walking, aware of Brennan and Shalimar right behind them, comforted when Jesse again hurried alongside her, fingers finding the small of her back. "There's just a lot of secrets here, Jess."
He grunted under his breath, arm sliding around her waist in silent understanding. Her fingers shook slightly as they curled into his, wondering how much she should share. She stayed silent as they walked. There were so many degrees of emotion coming from so many different directions, but she had grown used to that over the years, so it didn't particularly bother her too much. She recognized all their open thoughts, respected their hidden boundaries. It was the blankness she felt from within that scared her.
"Bren, what's wrong?"
Shalimar's hand on his arm some time later pulled Brennan from his thoughts. He shook his head. "Nothing."
She frowned, pulling him aside, glancing at the others as they continued on in the darkness. "Talk to me."
"It's nothing." His eyes softened as he looked down at her. "Just thinking." His fingers reached up, wiping a streak of dirt off her cheek.
"About?"
He chuckled in chagrin when she pressed him further. "Ok, ok." Dirt gone, he ran the backs of his knuckles down the side of her face, marveling at the smoothness of her skin. "I was just thinking about those bones and how they must be tied to the experiments Dr. Shaw mentioned."
"Yeah, ok." She nodded, waiting for him to continue. The idea was horrific, but they had encountered many terrible things over the years. She shuddered to think they could take such things for granted. She watched as he opened his mouth and hesitated, only to close it again. He shook his head, struggling for words, and she was shocked to see the deep anguish in his eyes. "Brennan?"
"I think it's tied to the mist, Shal."
"What? What do you mean?" She reached up and cupped his face, pulling it back toward her when he tried to look away. "Brennan?"
"They're souls, Shal."
Her hand dropped limply at the words. "What?"
He looked away. "The mists, it's—it's the souls of all those people. They've been following us, haunting my dreams. They want us to know they were murdered."
Shalimar snapped her mouth shut when she realized it was hanging open. Emma maybe, but not Brennan. Brennan was the last one to believe in such a thing. "But Adam said—"
His head whipped back around at her words. "I don't care what Adam says, it's not just nitrogen." He clutched her arms, stance taut. "You saw it, the way it moved."
"But—"
"It looked at us, Shal, at Alex and me. It had a face. We both saw it."
Stunned, she stared back at him.
He smiled slightly at her expression, eyes seeming to grow darker as his face tightened. "Sounds crazy, I know."
She didn't want to hurt him. "No, I, ah—"
"You said you loved me."
What? Her knees buckled slightly, leaning heavily on his arms as he caught her, continuing to speak.
"When I was dead, you said you loved me, and then you kissed me, right as Adam pulled you away."
"H—how—?"
He hesitated, mouth working. "I think for a moment, I really died. It was like I was a part of it, part of them."
She again found herself staring up at him.
"Am I crazy, Shal?"
The agony had returned to his eyes, bringing a physical ache to her heart. She licked her lips, mouth dry. "No," She managed to whisper. "No."
He groaned, pulling her to him, lips finding hers, insistent. There was an intensity in him that she'd never known before, and she found herself surrendering to his embrace, hands landing on his head and drawing him closer. She was aware of the hunger in his embrace, and she pressed closer against him as he held her. Abruptly he released her, whispering her name hoarsely. She looked up at him, and she knew the strength of her feelings showed in her eyes. She couldn't seem to hide them or control them. Brennan's own eyes kindled as he stared at her, and he took a deep breath, pulling her to him again. Her arms circled around his neck, and for long moments they clung together.
"We'll figure this out, Brennan, it'll be ok." Her eyes closed fearfully.
This was just the beginning.
There was so much more for him to discover.
