(Eight)
Elsewhere that same morning, Seth lay in his infirmary bed, warm and cozy with Fallen's arms around him. He was excited, nervous, thrilled and generally blown away to actually be outside the system again. He was never one to sleep much and he was restless, his fear forgotten in his wonder of the place around him. He had slept for a couple of hours then spent rest of the night peering around him in the gloom, already eager to explore. Fallen had been exhausted from everything she'd gone through the last couple of days and was out cold next to him.
He decided he couldn't wait any longer and gently eased himself out from under her arms. He slid his feet down to the floor and tried to stand up. His legs were shaky and he didn't feel very strong, but if he held his hands out and supported himself on the furniture he was okay. He ran his hands over the black hologram power cubes and shivered with pleasure as Fallen's power seeped into him, making him warm and happy. The shaking in his legs dissipated.
It was dark in the lab, but the light from the hallway was streaming in. As long as he didn't look directly into it, he could see without being blinded. He shuffled his way awkwardly from the infirmary to the open lab and looked about in wonder at all of the equipment there. His movements were sloppy and awkward, he still had to learn to move around, something he had never mastered in the few times he had come out before. He was determined not to let it stop him now. He crept closer and ran his fingers lightly over the machines, marveling at them and wondering what they were.
Some of them he recognized, but most of them were a mystery to him. There were computers and scanning machines. He saw a large printer and a photocopier as well. That was new. He slid his fingers over it as if it would speak to him if he touched it kindly enough.
Things were going to be very different now for him. In the computer, his every wish was granted by merely thinking about it. His thoughts were actual codes and computer commands. Out here, he had to walk to his destinations. These machines would not give up their secrets to him without coaxing. As if in response to his musings, his curious hands found a stack of books. It was too gloomy for him to read the titles, but their mere presence made him shiver with joy at the thought of all he could learn.
And he wanted to learn it all. He wanted to know how Henry hooked up the phone to the ship and if he could fasten a cable line as well. He wanted to learn all these books and then cruise Henry's massive computer. There was magic in there, he could feel it. He wanted to learn the Earth Internet and ride its many highways just as he had the Dognan's. The humans here were not as advanced, it would be so easy. He would learn and he would be useful. He would make his home here and they would never leave. He would use those resources to find his brother, he would find a way. He was smart, he was clever. This world would give up its secrets to him.
Seth startled when he heard a noise in front of him and was suddenly blinded as the light for the lab came on, halting him in his tracks. He gasped sharply and crouched down submissively, covering his eyes and whimpering in fear. It had been a mistake to leave Fallen, his protector, behind. He was too vulnerable now, he was horribly exposed and defenseless. He cowered, waiting for the worst.
"Oh, excuse me!" Henry apologized and dimmed the light. He had heard someone moving around in his lab and went to check it out. He wasn't quite ready to face the public, he was dressed in loose boxer pajamas and not his usual dignified self. He was surprised to find Seth walking about, he figured the pilot would be too intimidated to go far. "I didn't expect you to be exploring so soon."
Seth eased his crouch but still covered his eyes. When he saw it was Henry, he calmed down and smiled with relief. "I–I couldn't sleep."
"With so much out here to explore, I can see why. I see you are still sensitive to light. Here, try these."
Seth blinked up at him and reached out. Henry had given him a pair of glasses with dark lenses. They were a little large for his head, but they were an instant relief. "Thanks."
"Here, let me help you," Beast offered and helped Seth to stand.
As the big blue man's hands touched him, Seth felt a vibration of his love and concern. They had all grown quite close from working so hard on the codes. Seth was surprised to feel it, he thought only Fallen and Kimble could send him vibrations. He didn't see the shines as Kimble did, but this he could feel and it made him smile again. This one loved him and he was safe here from harm.
Henry moved him carefully along to the work table and set him in a chair. "Better?"
"Yes, thanks."
"Are you cold?"
"Just a little."
Henry went and brought him a soft warm blanket from a shelf of bedding supplies nearby. He wrapped it around Seth's shoulders and gave him a gentle squeeze. "There, that should be better."
"Thanks." Seth continued to look about him in wonder and then the most lovely smell came wafting over from where Henry had gone to next. "What is that?"
Henry laughed. "Coffee. Would you like some?"
Seth grinned. "Oh, yes! That smells wonderful."
(break)
Fallen woke a few minutes later and when she felt Seth was gone, was instantly concerned. She calmed down when she heard soft voices coming from the lab and then a laugh that could only be Seth's. She grabbed the cubes and walked with them over to where Henry and Seth were seated. Seth was bundled comfortably in a blanket, a half full mug of steaming coffee in front of him. His movements were still sloppy and he used both hands to raise the cup. He saw her there and beamed his sparkling smile at her.
"Those glasses suit you," she said with a laugh. "An albino Stevie Wonder."
"Who's that?"
"Never mind," she said and sat next to him, pulling her chair in close. "I love you," she whispered and kissed him.
He leaned into her and relaxed as she embraced him. "I love you, Fallen. Thank you for bringing me out, both of you."
Henry smiled, their love and intimacy making him feel warm. "It was my pleasure. I would like to keep you here in the lab for a while and do some tests. Nothing painful, don't worry. I would really like to compare your readings to Kimble's."
Seth lowered his eyes. "Why? He's dead. The Quitter killed him. That's what you all believe. Even Remy thinks it's so."
"I've been an X-man almost all my life. I've seen many things. You have no idea how many friends I've seen resurrected from the dead. I often wonder if being a mutant makes you impossible to kill."
"So...You think he's alive?"
"Let's just say that I'm keeping my options open. He was ristled into something new, plasmaed into something different again. The way I see it, he's really quite resilient. If he is still inside of his body in some small way, I believe he can be resurrected. Your love for him is very strong, so is Remy's. If we ever get our hands on him, the two of you will bring Kimble back."
Seth smiled, warmed by Henry's faith.
Henry looked up as Scott poked his head in the door. Scott smiled and gave Seth a small wave. "Hey there. Feeling better?"
"Yes, thanks," he replied, returning her smile.
"Have you guys seen Logan?"
"He was drunk and upset last night," Fallen offered. "Maybe he took off."
Scott frowned at that. "Probably. Hope it's not for too long. We need everyone here. There was another bombing last night."
"If I see him I'll let him know you were looking," Beast said, shaking his head at the senseless violence. Scott departed and Beast looked at Fallen with concern. "I hope where ever he is, he's okay."
She just smiled at him and said with some humor, "I thought there wasn't anything that old warhorse couldn't handle."
Beast chuckled softly. "Probably. Don't forget he is still human, you know. He feels quite a bit more than he lets on. He grieves for Kimble in his own way. I hope he returns soon. I don't like it when we're not all accounted for."
That wasn't the only reason. He had finally run the DNA scan Wolverine had asked for. He had run a match for Molly's DNA against the whole data base as was routine. The return gave a bit of surprise. Creed's DNA came up positive for paternity but he also got a return on another relation match. That it was there was no match for the shock of who that match turned out to be. Henry cross-checked Creed's DNA for the relation and it turned up again, a sign of its reliability. Sabretooth had a blood relation in this building and it wasn't just Molly. Considering how long he'd had the two samples, he was amazed he hadn't found this out before. For whatever reason, there hadn't been an excuse to look. Henry had held on to the information, not sure what to do with it. He at least wanted to discuss it with the Professor. He didn't know if it would lead to trouble. Henry wanted Logan here when the news got out.
Seth gave out a small cry of happiness and Fallen turned to look as Maylee came rushing into the room. It seemed like ages since she had seen her foster daughter and Fallen was pleased to see her. Maylee had dived right into her academic career with zest and was already scoring very high grades. Henry had given her plenty of extra credit work and was true to his word about overseeing her continued medical training. Fallen had let her go, letting Maylee forge her own destiny and become her own person. Maylee had been told of Seth's successful rescue but had been told to wait until morning to come down and see him. He needed some time to adjust. Maylee hadn't been able to wait any longer and came down here as soon as she was cleared. She came to Seth quickly and gave him a huge hug, tears of joy streaming from her eyes.
"I've missed you so much!" she cried, squeezing him without mercy.
"I've missed you, too," he replied, enduring her grip. Her love vibration came into him, powerful and bright. Seth shivered, still unused to this. The vibrations were very pleasant, they made him feel warm and happy, content from knowing he was truly loved. It was still unnerving, almost like getting a static shock. Was this going to happen every time he was touched by someone? If he could feel the love so well, what would happen if he touched someone who hated him? He didn't want to know.
Maylee looked up at Fallen and greeted her with a smile. "Momma."
Fallen was smiling now and crying softly. She saw the love there and was grateful to have her family close to her again. "Good morrow, May. It's been quite a night."
"You said we would stay until Seth came out. Tell me we're not leaving now, Momma. I don't want to go."
Fallen laughed. She, too, had heard about the small love interest going between Maylee and Max. "Don't worry, dear. I'm not going anywhere. Kimble's still out there and I won't leave him."
"Henry thinks he still alive," Seth said, his eyes filled with hope.
It made Fallen a little sick to see it. She didn't share Henry's optimism. Kimble had been too fragile, too out of sorts when he was here. It wasn't hard for her to see him as being truly gone. She kept her reservations to herself, knowing Seth really needed his beliefs to cling to.
"I hope you find him," Maylee said to Seth. She was smart enough to realize Fallen's doubt and played along with it. She herself had never been that fond of Kimble. He had saved her life in what seemed like a dream, a place too far away now to be real. She had accepted him then, giving him her respect, but she feared him too much to ever truly give him her love. If he never returned, she wouldn't mourn the loss. He had hurt the ones around him so badly, his inability to fit in had taken its toll. She knew Fallen had started using some drugs again. It wasn't much, but still enough to worry her. Perhaps with Seth now free, Fallen would stop and things could smooth out and become normal for them all.
Henry looked up when he heard a soft grunt from his doorway. Molly was here. She often came down to use the gym in the mornings and would stop by to say hello. She smiled at them in greeting, but cocked her head in confusion and signed, Where's the guy that's supposed to be in the bed?
Beast was doing his best to learn sign language but he still had a lot of catching up to do. He got up to come closer, but rather than repeat herself, Molly tugged on him and pointed to the bed where Joseph usually was. Henry pulled back the curtain and stood there, stunned. The bed was empty. The restraints dangled from the rails, picked clean by a man with the smallest of telekinetic abilities. Oops.
"Well, that's embarrassing," he grumbled and took a quick look around. The bathroom door was open and the light off. He walked out to the hallway and looked out. The empty hallway mocked him.
"What's wrong?" Fallen asked from behind him. She had seen him looking a little lost.
"I seem to have lost someone. Joseph is missing."
"Well, he couldn't have gone far. He doesn't have clearance for the elevator, right?"
"The security panel was wrecked last night, remember? I didn't think anything of it because Joe was so out of it. Looks like his condition was a sham. Our dear Clansman is on the loose."
Molly tugged on Beast again. I can track him.
Henry shook his head at her. "What?"
Molly sighed impatiently and sniffed really, really loudly. She made exaggerated searching movements and tugged on him again.
"Okay, okay. I get the point. Let me get dressed first."
He left to dress and Molly wandered back into the lab to wait with Fallen. She saw Seth and grunted at him, signing with her hands.
"Sorry, Molly. Seth here won't be able to understand you, either," Fallen apologized.
"Why not?" Seth asked. He was curious about her, he had met so few of the residents here because he had been trapped on the ship. Fallen didn't get many visitors.
"Molly speaks with her hands," Fallen explained.
"It's a language, right? There must be a file for it. Henry can upload it to the Dragon. It would only take me a minute to learn."
Molly's smile brightened considerably. There were very few people she could directly communicate with here and it was the main reason she wasn't part of the regular school. She was actually handicapped and the school wasn't really set up for it. The Professor was working on it, but it would take some time.
"I'm sure Henry must have a file for it. If he doesn't, Karen will," Fallen offered.
"All set," the good doctor said, coming out of his quarters. "Shall we?"
They headed upstairs. Seth wanted to come along so Fallen carried him as she had before, up on her back like a child. Molly laughed when she saw this.
"What?" Seth said, laughing as well. "Doesn't everyone new get a ride?"
Molly shook her head with a smile and kept going. They were joined upstairs by Karen, much to Henry's relief, he wanted a translator for Molly in case she actually found something. It was a likely possibility, Molly followed Joseph's trail easily. She worked his scent out through the garage and a few steps beyond, but stopped, puzzled. She signed rapidly, grunting softly for emphasis.
"What?" Henry asked to Karen.
"She said his tracks just stop cold right here. It's as if he disappeared."
"Maybe he was nabbed," Fallen suggested. "Don't you guys have cameras set up?"
Beast nodded. "Yes, but I can't imagine who would want him. Either way, if he didn't get far enough out to trip the alarms, he might not show up on the cameras as well. I'll review the tapes anyway." He turned to Molly and gave her a slight bow. "Thank you, young lady. You were most helpful."
Molly beamed at the compliment, she was happy any time she could do something useful.
Henry sighed in frustration at Joseph's departure and went back into inside. He had his work cut out for him this morning. It was going to be a long day, he could feel it already. Maylee had to go to class so she gave Seth and her foster mother a kiss before leaving as well.
Seth didn't want to go back into the house, it was a beautiful morning and he was eager to explore. Fallen could tell. She walked over to the picnic table in the back and set him carefully down onto the grass so he could check out the new world around him. Molly and Karen joined her, both of them curious about the new arrival. Karen sat at the table with Fallen, but Molly wanted to get down on the grass, too. The two adults watched over the others as if they were children.
Seth was enthralled. It was brighter outside than it had been in the house, but the glasses Henry had given him made it easy on his eyes. He lay down and buried his nose in the grass, smelling it. Molly imitated him just to play and he laughed. She was fascinated by him. She could see he was new, new to this place and everything in it. It was funny to watch him touch everything for the first time. She laughed again when he tried eating the grass and made a face from the bitter taste. It wasn't anywhere as good as Henry's coffee.
Grass is for cows, silly! she signed.
He cocked his head at her and Karen translated. He looked at her in confusion. "What's a cow?" This time everyone laughed and he felt a little put out. "Henry has to get me some books. I don't like not knowing what anything is," he said with a pout.
I have some books, I could teach him, Molly suggested. It was a relief to her to have someone who knew less than she did, it made her not the bottom guy on the totem pole anymore. It would also be a way she could be useful like she had been today.
Karen translated for her and said, "I'm sure you could teach him lots of things. I think it would good for both of you."
"Where do you think Joseph went?" Seth asked. "I didn't think he liked it here enough to want to go anywhere."
"I think he was tired of hanging out in Henry's holding cell," Karen suggested. "He'll turn up. He can't have gotten very far."