(Fourteen)
Logan watched Remy fall and start to break without being able to comprehend any of what he saw. Yeah, Gambit was an emotional kid, quick to laugh, quick to hurt, but he had never seen him lose control of himself like this on a mission before, not like that. Remy had been upset at Nine because of Peter's reminder of the Morlocks, but this was different. This was a mission, on the floor working, and not a private moment of reflection. There had been no obvious explanation for the way Remy was reacting now, the kid hadn't been touched by any of the participants, but when Zander went down, so had Remy and the pilot as well, though he had come to Remy's aid.
"What the hell is going on?" Logan complained. "Why is Gambit all fucked up?"
Henry was close by. "My best guess would be that our dear Gambit must be linked to Kimble in some way. See, he fell just as Kimble did. He's reacting the same way that young girl did before and now as Zander did here as well. They must be bonded empathically if not telepathically as well. It's the simplest explanation."
Logan felt horror at the idea. Kimble or Zander - or whoever the hell the Siskan was that given day - may have deserved the beating, but Remy sure hadn't. He knew it must have been awful, they both had crumpled in perfect time, the perfect image of mutual misery. He was angry and frustrated that he was helpless here and couldn't do anything to help his teammate. He glared at Seth on the screen. "Can't ya stop this? Remy's gettin' his ass kicked!"
"Sorry, sir, but I'm locked out. Whatever Sheyman did locked both me and Kimble out. Neither one of us can stop it."
Seth wasn't looking much better than Remy at this moment. He had spent most of the playback hunched over with his hands hovering about his ears, his eyes red with tears he was fighting back. He wasn't able to watch all of it, Zander's vicious beating in particular. Kimble had told him nothing of his past so all of this was new to him. He wasn't prepared for any of it, his personal aversion to violence making this very painful for him. He forced himself to stay active and not shut down because Fallen might need him. If not for that, he would have closed own long ago.
Logan wasn't happy with Seth's answer and started growling again. He was unconsciously making fists with his hands, doing his best not to pop claws. If Remy came out of this damaged, someone was going to pay.
Next to him, Bruce made a small noise and turned his head away, ashamed. He'd had no idea what effect his drawing out the game had had on Zander. He didn't realize the depth of the hurt Justin's blows had caused, it never occurred to him that the Siskan could feel physical pain. He was like everyone else and figured that if Kimble wasn't real, his emotions weren't either. He felt horrible now, responsible, because he knew what was going to happen next. What a fool he had been.
Joseph saw him and kicked him with a sneer, ready to accuse. "Little faggot boy! Those men died because of you!"
"You never said how you knew Zander, Bruce. Now I can see why," Valentin added.
"It wasn't my fault!" Bruce whimpered.
"Too late for that now, son. Those men are dead and all because you couldn't control your pathetic, disgusting, pig rutting lust. You fuckin' queer boys make me want to puke!" Valentin complained, his loathing all too plain in his voice.
"Quiet, boys. The rest of us want to listen," Henry ordered, his voice stern.
Beast had been leaning on the cage, nervously listening to Wolverine growl. He was in the isle at the outside edge of the cage room, near to his teammate. His fear was that Logan wouldn't be able to control his frustration and start lashing out.
He was painfully aware of Remy's situation, but couldn't bring himself to blame Kimble for it. Just as he understood that Remy was linked to Kimble somehow, so too he saw the pilot's distress and recognized it for what it was, the Siskan hadn't intended for Remy to be there. Beast just hoped that Remy's X-man training and survivor instincts would help him through everything that was going on. He wasn't looking too good right now and Beast could see Kimble wasn't exactly enjoying this either. It gave him some comfort to see Kimble trying to reassure Gambit in spite of his own suffering, it gave Henry faith in Kimble's loyalty to his new friend. It could be worse for Remy right now if the pilot had given up and thought only of himself.
Henry was watching the files, but was also trying to keep an eye on everyone out here. He was a doctor and in charge for now. Maylee could have helped him out, but she was a child and he was concerned for her as well. What a fright she had had, seeing Kimble stabbed like that. He didn't believe that as a child, she should be seeing all of this, certainly not the sex file that had played. Unfortunately, there was no place for her to go. He certainly didn't want her left alone, either. He also knew that she'd seen Valentin at work regularly or at least the aftermath. She had been calm and quiet through it all, that none of this seemed all that surprising to her had saddened him a little. He hoped there wasn't too much more of this. The best thing for them all was for this to end so they could get past it and go home.
From her spot in the isle, Fallen was silently crying, the tears streaming down her face. In all the time she'd known him, she'd never witnessed Kimble break down and cry like Zander did. Zander's misery was more than she could bear. She pulled Kimble's lifeless body up into her lap and held him as if he could feel her love if she only squeezed him tightly enough.
"Kimble, wake up! Wake up!" she cried to him, demanding his obedience. If she could wake him up, maybe the files would stop. Her efforts were in vain.
