The New Exiles
By The Uncanny R-Man And Agent-G
Shout Outs-TheLegendaryManHimself: Yeah that's where I was going with The Power, like a supped up version of the Force and you'll see what became of Guardian.
Winblades: I guess you're just going to have to see what's going to happen.
Episodic: I figure it would, and I tried for a DBZ style fight since those fights are major and I love watching them. Yeah the good guys don't always win and they'll have to pick up the pieces. You really know a guy names Adam who is like that…that is weird.
Ruby631: Just read on and you'll like what had happened. Everyone will have to heal both physically and emotionally from that fight.
X-Over: I think you got a little confused. First off that Darksider wasn't working for the Dark Circle and that guy was killed and technically the DC only attacked Guardian, not the Exiles.
Aaron: Yeah I wanted to shake things up a little and remind the team that sometimes they do lose.
Booyah: I'm not familiar with Warhammer sorry but no, we already got the next few members planned out.
Red Witch: I have no idea how I'm going to top it, I honestly don't. Doesn't mean I won't try I do love a challenge now and then
CHAPTER 22: RECOVERY
-The Complex-
In the green tank of the healing tank in the intensive care unit of the Complex a body floated in the liquid helping the person to heal. There was a long scar on the chest and battle damage all over the body including burns on the face, front and arms and legs of the body but those were slowly healing. The hair was also singed off and the person was barely alive.
The Doc, the holographic medical expert looked over his patient and Alfred the other transparent holographic figure that represented the Complex AI looked at the person in the tank. "I'm glad you managed to pull him out at the last second. Any longer and he would have been killed." The Doc said to his counterpart.
"I wish it had been sooner, he was barely alive when we got him back and that energy blast was close enough to burn him pretty badly." The AI said feeling horrible about how their creator was like this. It was times like this he wished he didn't have emotional programming.
"Still you it was a good idea to keep an eye on his vitals through the Recall Device." Doc was trying to make his friend and 'brother' as it were to feel better. Since they both had the same creator, even though his program was originally from Starfleet he had been reprogrammed into a new and improved AI.
"Yes, well when I lost the signal I used the quantum scanner to find life forms. His was the only signal and when I found that giant energy spike I decided to pull him out." Alfred thought back to when the Guardian named Adam was brought back and he was bleeding and burnt pretty badly. He had been rushed to the medical area and thrown in a healing tank as soon as possible. He had already been in it for five days and things were looking up, but he still hadn't regained consciousness.
Alfred found himself feeling very stressed. The thought of his creator the person responsible for his very existence dying was unsettling. He knew it might happen but to actually go through it was tough. The Doc was also feeling the strain but his medical programming helped him to deal with it more. "How is the rest of the team holding up?" He asked hoping to change the subject a little.
Alfred sighed, or gave the impression since he didn't breath. "They're…healing. At least emotionally now."
Elsewhere-Blink was in the look out tower looking over the ocean. She had been thinking lately of their latest defeat. It had been so long since they had felt a blow like this, working for Guardian and all the success she realized made her forget that you can't win all the time. In fact the last time they had been beaten that badly was against Hyperion. That man was too powerful and they only beat him by luck. She remembered him looming over her and tried to burn her to death with that heat vision thing of his but she made a small portal and it came out behind him at his spine paralysing him.
She snorted at that. How ironic since she had been paralysed but the medical technology here saved her from being that permanently. She knew that her team had been out classed and there was no way they could have won, but still it was her team. She was supposed to look after them and care for them. Seeing her team beat up like that was hard to take. It was times like this that she doubted herself. In fact she was sure everyone was. Everyone for the past few days had been quiet and kept to themselves.
Vincent had either been in the training rooms or brooding alone. She was sure he felt helpless and weak after that. Being the most powerful of the team and he was taken out so quickly was a blow to his confidence and to his honour she guessed. She knew he had this thing for looking out for others and protecting them, but not being able to protect his team was a hard hit for him.
Considering how much he lost she couldn't blame him. She knew she would have to talk to him about not beating himself up, and he would do that same for her and boy did she need his support. But for the moment…she'll just continue beating herself up a little longer.
Vincent was in a training room going at a punching bag. He was wearing a grav belt to increase the gravity he was feeling to not only give all his muscles a great workout but also it was harder to move like he was in water. It also made sure his blows didn't go right though the punching bag or send it flying into a wall. He was sweating and bare from the chest up.
He still had all his scars even though the Doc said he could removed them, they were a part of him for so long they were just as a part of him like his arms or legs. His body strained and sweating, he put everything into a punch and cried out in pain and held his arm. He had pulled another muscle.
He'd been doing that a lot lately. He kept pushing himself to his limits and then beyond them. Pushing his body beyond its limitations. He knew that the Doc would chew him out for this again but he needed to improve to become stronger. He wouldn't let the others down like he had; he would be able to protect his friends the next time. This wasn't just a matter of pride for him, but of honour.
That and the last time he had been weak he had spent three long horrid years in a living hell as an experiment. He swore that he would never be weak again after he escaped and learned of his abilities. But now…now he felt weak for the first time since he was a child…and he didn't like that feeling.
The garden-Morph was sitting out in the garden also brooding. He considered going to see Rahne to cheer him up but he didn't want to worry her about what had happened. Although he was tempted, seeing his team like this didn't put him in the mood. That and even though their relationship wasn't exactly normal, he was finding that he cared for her. In fact the last thoughts he had before blacking out was about her and how he never would see her again, he thought he was with her just because of the sex, but it was more then that too.
She was someone he could relate to and seemed to be on the same wavelength with. And he knew someone like that didn't come around very often, and that he was happy with her too. He was wondering just how long it had been since he started to feel this way about her when Jono interrupted
his thoughts when he sat down in a chair near him.
"Hey, how ya holding up mate?" The British mutant asked him.
Morph shrugged. "About the same I guess…I thought Erotica would have been here when she heard you were injured?"
Jono shrugged. "Never told her…I…Didn't want to worry the bird. I know she gets scared at times when I go on these missions but she doesn't say so. Since she knows what it's like and all."
"You going to see her?"
"Later tonight, I just need to see her now ya know? I mean at least Doc gave me a clean bill of health although the memories of that fight are a little jumbled and I can't seem to remember anything in my life until I was eight."
Morph's face fell. "Oh man…You lost that much?"
Jono nodded. "It could have been much worse the Doc told me, I could have been killed or in a permanent coma like Thunderbird." He saw Morph wince at Thunderbird's name, he knew that he and Blink went to him every now and then and just talked. "Sorry mate I didn't mean anything by it."
"I know…" Although on the inside he wondered if his old friend would ever wake up and he was having doubts that he ever would. They still hadn't told TJ and was wondering if they should. It might be easier on her if they didn't tell her, sometimes ignorance was bliss. Beside she was trying to make a new life for herself and after everything he knew she didn't need this hanging over her head.
Haven City-August was on her way to see someone. She had been thinking about this for sometime but she kept on ignoring it and was hoping it wasn't true. But after nearly dying she realized that she had a second chance and was too scared to try it. But he had to get this out of her. She was in a vehicle on her way to Haven City. Luckily she and the others had taken driving lessons for a few of the vehicles and she was currently flying over the forest and soon found the city in the distance.
She was nervous as hell but she needed to tell him. Her right knee was now better even though she knew her kneecap was now fake, a synthetic it felt real enough. She was just lucky a few of the others got it worse. She flew the slim silver vehicle through the sky lanes and landed it on a street outside of a large building. It was an apartment complex and she was here to see him…to see Kurt Wanger.
Of course it wasn't the Kurt she had been engaged to but another one. He too had lost his version of her and together they had started to see each other. They had started to be there for each other both healing together from their losses knowing that only each other knew how the other felt.
She had been spending a lot of her free time with this Kurt and she had thought it was because it was nice to hear that voice, to see that face again. There were still nights that she woke up from nightmares of seeing her Kurt and friends murdered and sometimes when she was alone she broke down and just cried.
Standing outside his apartment building she was starting to rethink things and decided to walk around the block. She thought of how similar and yet different these two were like and how she felt about this Kurt. She was still walking for five minutes and was so deep in thought she didn't notice it raining. She didn't care she had to make a decision she had to know if what she felt was just her transferring her feelings for her Kurt onto him or…or if she was falling in love again with Kurt, only with another.
'Is this my second chance with him? Was I brought here to try and get the happiness I was denied back home?' She asked herself. She thought about it and it was clear to her…she did love him. He had all the qualities she had fallen in love with and he was still different and unique. She had to tell him.
She went up to the door dripping wet and pressed the call button. "Ja? Hello?"
"Kurt." August said weakly, she was scared that he wouldn't feel the same and might be freaked out by this but she needed to tell him.
"August? Come on up." There was a buzz and the door opened and she walked in. She took the elevator up to his floor and knocked on his door. Kurt was surprised to see her dripping wet.
"Mien Gott, please come in, let me get you some towels." He ported off and came back with a few towels.
"Thanks." She said weakly, she dried herself off and looked uncertainly at Kurt. He could see there was something she wanted to say and that she was nervous about something. "Kurt…I need to tell you something." She looked away not being able to look at him.
Her heart was pounding. "Ever since we met I enjoyed being with you. The time we've been together has not only helped me to get over my loss but…I liked it very much too."
"Ja, I have too." He said warmly to her.
She smiled even though he couldn't see it. "But some things different now…you see I've come to realize something…I'm falling in love with you…I know it's kind of weird and I know you're not my Kurt but I'm not falling in love with you because you look, sound and act like him. I'm falling in love with you because you have the same things that made me love my Kurt. You have such a kind and noble soul, your kindness…your beauty…" She was starting to cry now and was glad he couldn't see her face but Kurt did see her shoulders shudder and heard her voice.
He touched her shoulder. "I know you most likely don't feel the same way, I'm sorry for this but I had to say something, I'll…I'll leave now…" She turned to walk back out the door thinking she had just ruined her friendship but felt him grab her arm and pulled her back to him, right into a kiss.
At first she was too surprised but then she responded and increased the pressure and intensity. When she pulled back she saw tears in his eyes too. "I feel ze same, I zought you vouldn't feel ze same so I stayed quiet. I vas afraid I vas betraying ze memory of my August…but I can't help but feel ze same."
August felt as if her heart was flying at that moment, she hadn't been this happy since the day her version of Kurt had proposed to her. She kissed him for a long moment then when she pulled back looked into his eyes. "Kurt…I need to get out of these wet clothes…where's the bedroom?" She hoped she wasn't rushing this but she wanted him in that moment more then anything.
She smiled and in smoke and brimstone they vanished out of his living room and it wasn't long until both of them didn't need their clothing.
Back in the Complex-Dare was sitting in her room thinking about the fight against the Darksider. Dare thought that she had got over the pain of losing her eye but after the Darksider plucked out her good eye, the pain soon resurfaced. That entire day of seeing nothing at all not only brought a new understanding about her father but it also terrified her.
The Doc gave her two new eyes, cloned ones and she could see again and she was glad for it. Luckily April was there to comfort her, even thought the young mutant had gone through her own pain during the fight.
April looked over at her friend. She felt concerned, as she had never seen Dare act like this. April had always known Dare to be a carefree and happy young woman.
"Karen please, talk to me about this." April said, as she looked her friend in the eye. "It'll make you feel better if you talk to someone."
Dare looked back at April with a sceptical look.
"What is there to say?" She asked. "I got another eye plucked out and it hurt."
"But you have new eyes, right?" April replied. "At least you've got depth perception again now." She added with a sweet little smile.
A small smile spread across Dare's face, April could always make her heart melt when she smiled like that.
"Do you mind? I'm trying to brood. I can't do that if you're making me feel good."
April smiled once more and laid her head on Dare's shoulder. Ever since Dare had invited her around for dinner, they had a sort-of relationship with each other. There wasn't any kissing involved, just a little holding hands. That was all right with Dare however, just as long as she was with April she was happy.
Dare's mood soon lifted as she put her arm around April's waist.
"You know, I'm glad I've got somebody like you." She said.
"Me too." April replied. "I've never been as happy as I am with you."
"Aww, you're so cute." Dare grinned. "When I broke up with May, I never thought that I'd love again but, here I am loving you."
"Y-you love me?" April asked, somewhat surprised, nobody had ever said that they loved her before.
"Uh-huh." Dare replied. "You're not freaked are you? I hope I haven't said too much." Dare told her hoping she didn't go too far and ruined what she had with her.
'N-no, it's just a little surprising is all." April said. "Nobody's ever said that they loved me before…"
"The first time's always the best, huh?" Dare asked.
"What makes you think there's going to be another time?" April replied. "You're the only one for me."
Dare just grinned happily and kissed April gently. April was initially surprised but soon found herself returning the kiss.
Heather's room-In their room Heather and James were in bed just holding each other. Both of them had waited so long to be together and they only had a week together and they were both scared that they nearly lost each other. Heather had noticed how quiet James had been. "James what's wrong honey?"
He sighed. He knew he couldn't fool Heather and that she wouldn't let it go. "It just that…when I made that suit I wanted to become more then just the science guy on Alpha Flight, I mean back there I was a team leader and with the exception of going nuts worrying about you…I never felt so useless until that fight."
"You're not useless."
"I feel that way. I mean my suit is trashed and without it…hell even with it I didn't do so well." He aid depressed. "I was taken out so fast and you…you nearly got killed."
"We all nearly got killed and were taken out quickly."
"I know I just…I just feel out of my depth…maybe…maybe I should hold back…at least for until I'm ready and I have something planned too."
"Planned?" Heather asked him.
"Yeah I'm going to upgrade my suit with all the technology around here. I want to start studying the technology here too and hopefully my new suit will give me an edge."
"You really want to do that?" She knew that it was his suit that gave him his abilities and also she was worried that he was losing confidence. "You're a smart man with a lot of courage James, the suit is just an extension of you, and it doesn't make you what you are."
He looked over at his wife and smiled. "Think so huh? Well…I still want to take sometime off from missions, maybe help out in the labs. At least for awhile." Heather hugged him close to her, she knew that he wasn't originally a field member of Alpha Flight and this was still new to him. She just hoped that he got his confidence back.
Back with Blink and Vincent-Blink had found Vincent in his room looking at some pictures that he kept. She knew they were people that were from his old life that were now dead. She sat down next to him looking at a picture of him as a child with a priest and two other children. One a boy and another a blond girl. "I wasn't able to save any of them."
She placed an arm around him. "I know…I wasn't able to safe all my old friends, or Thunderbird or Magnus…I know what it's like." There was a moment of silence between the two of them.
"Can we skip the part where we tell each other that we did our best, that we can only do what we can and that sometimes we lose." Vincent asked her.
"You mean the little pep talk we give each other that only makes us feel a little better but inside we still feel like crap and still beat ourselves up about it and go right to the part were we have sex and just find comfort with each other?" She asked him with a little smile on her face.
He put the picture down and caressed her cheek and moved in and kissed her softly. "Yeah I can go for that."
"Me too."
Back in Haven City, August was in Kurt's arms and in his bed. She felt so warm with not only his fur against her skin but from the feelings of love she felt from him and he held her. She had thought this moment would never come again in her life and it felt just so right to be here and to feel that familiar feeling of Kurt. She had actually cried a little after they had finished it was just so wonderful; this moment was the happiest moment of her life in such a long time. She was afraid it was just a dream and that she would wake up.
She just snuggled up closer to him enjoying this moment for everything it was worth. As she fell asleep she never felt so safe and so peaceful since she came here. It was also the first night in a long time she fell into a completely blissful sleep.
NEXT UP CHAPTER 23: RETURN OF NOCTURN