(Seven)
Gambit took a sip from his beer bottle and burped happily as he lay his cards down. "Read dem an' weep!" he teased with a grin.
Logan tossed his cards down, frustrated. They had been playing for a while now and he hadn't won a single hand. He didn't know who was worse, Remy or Maylee. Remy had doled out his useless Clan credits out to everyone evenly so they all had something to bet with. It didn't matter. The two of them had raked everyone else.
Henry checked his hand and showed the cards to Seth up on the screen. He was actually playing for Seth. He had lost all of his credits some time ago. Now it was Seth's turn to be cleaned out.
"I don't get this game," Seth complained. Kimble had visited him in the Black Room a short while ago and gently coaxed him out. He was still a little shaken but was smoothing out and settling down by playing in the card game.
"It's easy," Maylee said, laughing. She put her cards down, four aces, and it was Remy's turn to complain.
"Now dis ain't right. Gambit is so sorry 'e ever taught you, fille."
Maylee just grinned and added the pot of credits to her own considerably large pile with a laugh.
Gambit finished his beer and got up to put his bottle in the recycle bin. He had slept well and was overjoyed when he woke to find he was pretty much back to normal. The only shine he saw was Logan's and it was only just a haze, not really there. He suspected he kept more than just a reliable knowledge of the Siskan language. He just hoped it didn't pop up at a really bad time. He had been forced by Henry to promise to get checked out later when they got home.
He had done a lot of thinking about this strange trip and how all of their life stories now seemed so similar. There was this constant thread of deaths caused and the prices paid. It seemed like they all had some kind of debt to be paid. For the first time, Gambit wondered what skeletons lay hidden in Henry's closet. He had always regarded the large blue doctor as one of the perfect Inner Circle members, the X-men who never seemed to do anything wrong or were tortured by horrible pasts. He would be sure not to pass judgement on anyone too quickly, that was for sure.
He turned as Kimble poked his head in the door. Their hopes had been teased all day by promising vibrations from the floor. The engines were back on line.
Kimble grinned at him warmly and addressed the crowd. "Kin y'all takes yer seats now? We wants ta try a boost. Don' know what's gonna happen sos it's best if yer strapped in."
Logan beamed. This was going to be a good day. "Just give us a minute to handle Joe and Vally first."
Kimble nodded and stepped out. He went into the cage, brushing the top of Bruce's head gently as he passed. Fallen was waiting for him on her stick. She saw his caress and smiled warily at Bruce, still uncertain what he was all about. Kimble went to the window and leaned on the sill, watching his brother in the control room. Seth was starting up the boost sequence. He was very awkward and slow, this was usually something Kimble did. Kimble was giving him verbal instructions but the younger Siskan was still struggling.
"Maybe I should try doin' this from out here," Kimble suggested.
Seth smiled gratefully. "Probably."
Kimble watched as Logan and Henry got the Clansmen settled in their seats. When they were finished, he lowered his head and concentrated, linking telepathically with Lucky.
"Boost sequence activated," Lucky prompted.
"Boostin' in five," Kimble said, his head still down.
"Boosting in five, aye." Fallen touched Kimble's shoulder. "Why don't you get on the other stick. You'll have something to hang onto."
"That stick is fer Second Pilot."
"Well, technically you are my Second and you are a pilot in most ways. I think you've earned the right to be there. Hop on."
He smiled at her. To him this was a privilege and she knew it. As far as he was concerned, she had just promoted him. "Well, all right then," he said and climbed on. It felt awkward and right at the same time. He gripped the stick and concentrated, leaning his head against the post as Fallen had so often done. "Boostin' in two."
"Boosting in two, aye." She looked at the others in their seats. Even though they hadn't really moved much, they had come a long way in five days. Henry smiled at her and waved. She returned it and laughed, happy to get this started.
She looked next to Seth who was watching her, his face full of love for her. He wasn't that busy now so he was taking the time to look her over. He mouthed, "I love you," in Siskan to make her laugh. Kimble grunted with amusement next to her and she smiled.
The boost clock came up on the screen and counted down. Kimble recited, "Ready, steady... Boost!"
Fallen shot off a bolt of energy and grunted as a lance of pain ripped through her brain. Kimble didn't hear her, he was waiting in anticipation for the rush of power from the boost. He was shocked and disappointed when it didn't happen.
Seth felt it, though. All this time, Kimble had hogged the rush. Now that his older brother was out of the system, there was nothing in Seth's way. He cried out and shivered with ecstacy as the heat of Fallen's Ristle burst passed through him on its way through the system. He held his hands up in surprise as he shook and gasped from the pleasure of it, his innocence not having a prayer of hiding it.
"Boost sequence complete," Lucky chimed. "Battery systems boost successful."
Fallen looked up at Seth. "Are you okay?"
Seth looked like someone had slashed ice cold water on him, he was so surprised. "Wh-what was that?" he asked numbly. He looked at Kimble, saw the ironic grin on his face, and understood that Kimble had known exactly what that had been and that he didn't get any of it. Not anymore. "You son of a bitch!" Seth chided with a bitter laugh.
Kimble smiled sheepishly. "Welcome to th' hot seat, kid. Hope ya enjoys it. I shure did when it wuz mine." He looked at Fallen to joke some more, but scowled when he saw blood trickle from her nose. He stepped down quickly and went over to her, cupping her chin to catch the blood. She swayed unsteadily and he carefully pulled her down from the stick. He sat her down on the bed. "You okay, baby doll?"
"I'm okay," she said with a nod, not wanting her protective Second to worry.
Henry and Maylee unbuckled their seatbelts and came over in a rush. Kimble backed off and let them look her over. He turned to Seth. "I wants ta do a med-scan."
"Ready when you are."
Kimble went into the lav and got a Med Strip for Fallen. He put it on her and Seth ran the scan. Lucky read off the results - Fallen hadn't sustained any damage, but her Ristle levels had dropped off sharply. Kimble smiled down at her sadly. "Ya gots ta rest now, baby doll. Ya boosted us good. That'll hafta do fer now."
Fallen shook her head defiantly. "No. We're getting out of here. I'm going to rest and then I'm going to take the Lightning. A full dose. I'll worry about what happens when we get home."
"Cain't letcha do that."
"It's done, Kimble. I can't stay here another day. We're all broken up from fighting and my heart just can't take anymore. There's been too much fighting and I'm not waiting around for anyone else to get hurt. Henry's got full medical supplies at the Mansion. I'll be fine. We're out of here today," she said firmly, finalizing the matter. Kimble could only watch her as she rose stiffly and went back into the lav to her makeshift bed to sleep. He looked at Seth but his brother only shrugged.
"We'll take care of her, Kimble. I promise," Henry said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Perhaps this is for the best. The sooner we get home, the better it will be for all of us."
Kimble nodded, not really wanting to argue. He left the cage and opened the door to the lower level. He wanted only to relax now somewhere quiet. He went into the downstairs lav and locked the door, he had decided to take a shower because it was warm and settled his nerves. He shivered and made his pants disappear. He didn't need to do this, but wanted to explore what he was capable of. He casually wondered what other ways he could alter his skin. He stood in front of the small mirror there and looked into it. He was still uncomfortable with his reflection, but didn't want to let Zander get the best of him.
Kimble concentrated and shivered again. He saw an image in his mind and focused on it. At his command, his wings shrunk down and pulled inside of his body, giving his upper body a human appearance. He smiled at the result and was inspired to do more. He concentrated again. He took an awkward step back as he commanded his legs to straighten and become human as well. They obeyed. He looked down on himself and was amazed. He was still Kimble with his long side burns and white pilot skin, but he looked like a normal human male. Just for fun, he untied his hair and let it fall loose and long about his shoulders. It felt soft and lovely against the bare skin of his back now that his wings were gone. He looked in the mirror again, pleased with the result. He closed his eyes and called up the user codes. He saved the skin as a file so he could call it up later if he wanted to. This human skin might be useful.
He shivered again and pulled his wings back out. He grunted as his legs bent back from under him and he was a pilot again. He preferred his pilot skin, he thought it was much prettier with the wings and furry toes.
Satisfied with his little experiment, he started the shower and stepped in. He moaned and shivered from the delicious heat as the water poured over him, loving the feel of it on his skin. This was so wonderful. He lathered up just to smell the soap Fallen used, he wanted her smell on his body. He loved the feel of his hands on himself as he washed, it aroused him a bit and he considered pleasuring himself just to take the edge off. He hadn't done that since he had been out, it might have saved him some pain if he had he realized now. It was just that it didn't come close to the real thing for him. He dismissed the idea with some regret, but he had other plans and not much time.
He relaxed as he rinsed and let the water pour over him. He concentrated and pulled up the memory file from Zander's fight with Valentin. It made him queasy at first to look at it, but he calmed himself by rubbing the soap over his belly again. The smell of Fallen's soap and his touch soothed him. Like Logan had, he watched Zander fight in the mirror. He concentrated, taking in each movement, every nuance of Zander's actions. He didn't have the fighting files, but he could learn quickly just from watching. He was teaching himself to fight just by reviewing the file. As an afterthought, he called up the memory file of Logan and Remy sparring in the galley from the other day. He ran it to cross check what he had learned from Zander and maybe get a little more.
He wasn't sure why he was doing this but the idea had come to him and once he'd had it, he couldn't get rid of it. It may have come from the vengeful Zander spirit still sleeping inside of him, but he didn't care. He decided to follow his instincts, telling himself this was for just in case. He had no desire to mix it up with anyone for a long time. He didn't deal well with pain. He would only be able to use what he learned from the one practice session with Valentin, but it would have to do for now.
It took less time than he figured to create the user files he needed to access Zander's and the X-men's moves. He smiled and slid his hands down his belly. He closed his eyes and pulled up the sex file with Carnya and Hayden. Maybe he had time for a little fun after all.
