Disclaimer; Back to the ranch! Back to the plot! Back to the 'I-own-nothing-but-the-plot-an-the-Ocs'!

Lance, Lina and Xi were asleep when the conversation happened.

"Matt?"

He looked up. Stacy was standing a few feet away. She looked concerned and sad. Mostly sad. Beneath the bravado, she more scared than anyone else.

"When do you think Gloom will be back?"

"If isn't back soon, I'll tear this whole damn base apart till I find him."

"About the Dain thing? Is that the name of-…?" She gestured fruitlessly, trying to find right word. Matt/Dain made a confused circular gesture with his hand. Stacy nodded, apparently understanding where he was going with the gesture. "Yeah that."

"Yes. Yes it is."
"How do you know?"

He rolled his blue eyes. "It's construct."

"Then how do know?"

"…Second nature."

"Pfft. Goth."

"Pfft. Semi-nonwilling-bimbo."

Back Misfit Manor

"Toddles?"

"Yeah Al?"

"Why are all the other boys watching T.V. and you're in the kitchen at this God-forsaken hour?"

"It's 11:23 p.m. Althea. It's hardly late."
"Well?"
"I'm just getting popcorn. We're watching a discovery channel specials about ghosts and poltergeists, Bigfoot, lake monster and paranormal stuff."
"Cool. Mind if I sit in?"

"Shipwreck, Wanda, Roadblock, Raven and Spirit are there. No one's gonna mind."

They went into the room. After much scooting over and a minor argument between Pierre and Pietro over who got to sit on who's lap, the credits ended at 11:27. Then came on a short 3-minute add.

Shipwreck asked, "Isn't that Xander Wheadon? Didn't we do some body gaurding for him and his wife a few years ago?"
"Yeah that's him and his wife Kim." Replied Roadblock.

Onscreen, Xander was asking the audience for help finding his daughter Evangeline for a 3 million reward.

"Poor guy. They've been running that on every channel all day. He most love his daughter allot. He's a philanthropist, closet mutant supported and an all around nice guy." Spirit sighed.

"Why is he a closet supporter?" Asked Raven. "He should just come out and be done with it." She winced. "Sorry. That came out reeeeaaaly, re-ly wrong."

"Well, for starters, if he came out, he'd lose all ability to do any business at all." Said Arcade cynically.

"And he'd lose all his stock due under-handed share broking." Cut in Wanda.

"Not to mention the lynch mobs." Finished Fred.

Raven seemed deflated. "There go any dreams I had of being a fashion designer. No one would dream of doing business with me. What lynch mobs?"

"Yeah, they still do that, but don't count your dream dead yet." Althea reassured her. "It could still happen."

They watched in silence for a time. It was the documentary about poltergeists and ghosts. There were a lot of interesting facts. Finally the T.V. announced:
"After these messages, we'll look into a case that's close to home. In Illinois, a boy goes into a coma. That's about when the blue lights start."

"Think this kid could be a mutant?" Asked Wanda.

"Watch and out." Replied Shipwreck.

Over the next segment, a boy whose face and name were bleeped was shown in coma and in several clips where he levitated off the bed, the bed glowed blue and had objects fly around. It ended with an explanation that after 3 weeks in a coma, he had been abducted and had been missing for a week.

"Well that was pointless and came nowhere near getting us a new member." Pietro complained.

"Okay it's 12:00. Get to bed kids." Shipwreck commanded.

"But-"

"No."

"Please-"
"Nope."
"Dad!"
"Go now or forever rest in K.P.duty."

"Going!"
"Pietro! Pierre! To your own beds! BedSSS!"

"Your no fun anymore."

"That's the point. Go."

"Commander!"

Cobra Commander's cowl was casually covered with coins. (A/N: like the alliteration, anyone who's reading this?)

"Uh… Commander?"
"Like the new look?"

"It's very …interesting. Two things. One: Darts sent two mutant soldiers-"

"TWO LOUSY USELESS-"

"Incredibly powerful fighters. Commander, I given Valentine and Rafael."

Chun-Li watched the cobra physician examining the small boy. He was wearing an inhibitor collar. He had sad red eyes. They were the only part of his face you could see. The rest of his body was covered in an invulnerable, fungi-like shell. Chun's heart went out for the boy. Project Warpie could use him. But she wouldn't force him. He was attached to that what's-his-name Goth boy. As soon as Celery saw him, she would develop a humongous crush. The oddest things turned on that little green haired girl. Oh well. There were others. There always were others. Like Elizabeth. Chun smiled at the memory.

"Something amusing?"

The emotionless voice of the physician cut through her reverie.

"No. Just a figment of imagination. It will never happen again." Chun-Li assured the physician nothing was wrong. She was rising quickly through he ranks. She didn't want a simply physician ruining everything.

"Destro! What was the other thing you wanted to tell me?"
"Well Commander, we've made some more progress on Z project. We have a suitable Capricorn adept."

"This is fantastic. Celebrate! I'm going to party so hard it'll make Serpentor II look like a non-party-person."

"Before you get so wasted you send the UN three billion care bear plush toys-"
"That was only once!"
"-Perhaps you should consider that we now have five and a half 'volunteers.'"

"Five and a half? There's Saggitair-…Pices-…Tauro-…Capricor-…Gemi-…We only have 6! If Gemini is technically two people, then… FIVE!"
"Five and a half, my liege. The body we abducted is positive for the right kind of genetic instability."
"Prefect! Now all we need to do is get our little friend in the cells into it."

Well, this is getting fun. There 's an error in here somewhere. But the plot is starting Whoo Hoo. Remember, there are no coincidences. Everything happens for a reason hint hint. RW, can you help me get some more publicity?