Summary: Kimble's decision to help Seth comes with a terrible price and one poor Cajun thief is caught in the middle. Part 13 of the Game.

Rated M for profanity, violence and some sexual content.

Disclaimer : I do not own the X-men or any of their associated villains, but the Siskans, the Dognan, Jael and the Outkasts are mine. Please do not use them without my permission. Thanks. :)

Updated 10-29-13 to add (break)s as needed and to fix the usual crap.

(One)

So now, here we are. I have discussed my past and now we've moved to the present. What happens now? Well, I for one have made a critical decision – a Game this may be, but I won't be playing by their rules. No, instead I have made up a few of my own.

You see, I now believe that everything that happened to me in my past – Quishnalay, the Muzla, Trishnar and yes, even David, have led me here to this point. They prepared me, made me strong, got me ready for the fight to come. And it will be a fight, the fight of my life. I know how I will win, too. I will use the dreams. I will watch and I will dream and will watchfully dream some more until I figure out whatever the heck it is I am supposed to do and this time, I will not fail.

So where to begin? Well, at the beginning of course. The dream that comes the most starts out the same way - I am in my Black Room, the viewing window spread out wide to reveal the large blacktop tarmac where the big Blackbird planes are now kept, looking out on the red sandy dunes of Arizona. A blue double sided arrow shimmers at my feet.

I step through and all is quiet and still. I have not been corrected for making my choice. This is how I know the fight will be here. Like I said, everything that happened before has brought me here. Quishnalay had to make me, the Muzla taught me to fight, Meckland shattered me and forced me to dream. Trishnar saw to it that I was repaired. It's a shame that David had to die, but it was his death that made me run. I ran all the way to the Arizona desert. To the place where all of this will come to a close.

It will not find me unready.

Now that I've decided on my role for this silly Game, it's time to plan my strategy. It's time to get down to business. It's time to dream and pay close attention. The dreams don't come to me as one solid continuous play, I get flashes of images, and now it will be up to me to properly decipher them. Those images will give me clues – hopefully – of what it is that I am supposed to do.

The paths will help me. As much as I hate them, I have to have paths to have any kind of security. I need those choices that say I can screw up and do it all over again until I get it right. I'm lost without them.

So here I am. I am standing alone out on the tarmac looking ahead. I look down, expecting to see another double sided arrow shimmer at my feet but there is nothing. "Get moving, you big chicken," I chide myself with my usual impatience. The paths will come, I just have to go to where they begin it seems. I take a step forward and that's when it happens.

I am instantly slammed with a sudden torrent of images. They blur past my eyes, too fast for me to have any hope of deciphering them. This is not a correction, though it is similar. This is the forward rush of time and I've experienced this only just a few times, usually when something really bad is going to happen. Something beyond "Hey, I've lost my teddy bear or my ring down the sink." Something like the Game.

When this happens, it then becomes my job to sift through though images and try to glean clues of what is to happen and what I must do. I wait until the stream ends and begin my sift. I know that the more I dream, the more images I will be able to sift and then connect into something usable. For now, this is what I have to start with. I see —

An expanse of dark pavement - the tarmac that is spread out before me.

A crumpled pile of white, a body lying broken on the ground.

A child running towards it, her mouth open in a soundless scream. It's Angel. I recognize her from the video phone message she shared with Kimble.

I see a flash of metal, a bladed weapon of some kind.

The child falls and then there is blood. So much blood, more than that tiny body should ever be able to hold.

I scream and then it comes, the message :

This is what will happen if you fail.

Before I can respond, I see another series of images, like a slide show on Crack. This is the correction. I haven't done anything wrong – yet. This is just a warning to let me know what will happen if I fail in my assigned task. I see an ocean of dead bodies, most of them uniforms of black with golden Xs on the sleeves. I see a massive explosion and then — Famine, Death, War. The world is suddenly sucked out from under my feet and I see the Earth as if from space. I get only a momentary glimpse of it before it explodes, taking me with it.

Nothing like a little pressure to get this right, eh?

(break)

Fallen stood against the construction trailer, watching as the Jeep pulled up. Kimble was driving now and Seth was curled up in the passenger seat. He looked rumpled and sleepy cute, like he had just woken up from a nap. The brothers had been gone for just over a half hour, long enough to panic her.

She was quiet now, but inside her heart was breaking. Seth was going mad. He was going to split as Kimble had. She just knew this is what was happening. It was the only explanation for what was going on. She didn't know what to do or how exactly she was supposed to handle this. She looked up into Seth's face as they came to a stop. He was smiling now, his face serene. He got out and swayed a little unsteadily, wobbly on his feet as he blinked in the bright Arizona sun. His glasses were off, something odd that she noted right away.

She wasn't the only one upset, Remy rudely walked past her, his face a contorted mask of barely controlled fury. Kimble had been gone too long, long enough to frighten him into thinking the pilot was working his way back to a holding cell. It had taken all of Aiden's considerable will to keep the thief from breaking in on the two Siskans. Remy was relieved Kimble and Seth had returned, but now that relief was washed away by his indignation. He went up to Kimble's ear and hissed in a savage whisper, "What de fuck you doin', eh? You know you ain't supposed to go nowhere! You in trouble enough wit'out dis!"

Seth placed a hand on the irate thief's arm. "I'm fine. We're fine. It's okay. Don't be mad."

Gambit looked at him, looked at him close. The change in the young Siskan was profound, enough that he backed right off. Seth's shine wasn't even close to what it had been not even two short hours ago. It was a bright sparkling blue with no hint of black, brown or red. It was perfect. Lushna-esk perfect. Something it had never been before.

Kimble's on the other hand seemed dimmer, less bright. Tired. But maybe it was just the light out here. "Kimble, what did you do?" Remy asked, the light already dawning inside his head. No, that was impossible! Kimble wouldn't dare!

"I'm fine," Seth insisted, doing his best to get Kimble off the hook. It wasn't easy, he was somewhat mesmerized by all the colors racing though Gambit's shine. He didn't know what they meant, only that they were beautiful. "We're both fine."

Remy growled, deciding. He retreated, figuring now was not the time, but his ever watchful eyes didn't miss the way the Seth was openly gaping at him. "We goan' ta talk about dis. All t'ree of us."

"Right," Kimble hastily agreed, just wanting to please and to get out of all of this scrutiny. "Jus' not right now. He needs ta gits out of the sun, all right?"

Remy stepped back and watched as Kimble moved Seth towards the trailer. It was true that Seth looked a million times better, but why did that make him feel so uneasy? The thief couldn't help but think that something was terribly wrong. Yeah, they would talk later all right.

Kimble shuffled his brother into the trailer. As Seth passed by his waiting Mistress he shot her a look she knew all too well - I have to talk to you.

Her heart filling with dread, Fallen followed them both inside.

Kimble lay Seth down on the couch and turned on a nearby fan so it was blowing cool air over him. He set Seth's glasses on a nearby table, careful with them. "He gots a little hot. He jus' needs some rest, is all," he said to Fallen, hoping she would believe his lie.

Trouble was, he was a terrible liar. She knew it as soon as it left his lips. What did this mean? She felt cold, not wanting to think about the possibilities.

Kimble nodded at her. "Me an' Aiden'll finish up outside. Jus' sit with him, keep him company."

She nodded and crouched next to her Siskan, her face a mask of worry. Kimble passed her on his way out, running his fingertips over her head and sending her a vibration of comfort. Yes, he was still wary of her, but he needed her calm to keep her mind off of her anger. He closed the door and was gone.

Seth lay comfortable now, his eyes glassy. He was still high from the Kundatesh and could see Fallen's shine shimmering brightly around her. The fan was cool against his skin and her loving touch on him was so good. He smiled from all of these new and enhanced sensations tickling his senses.

"You all right?" she asked softly.

"Yes, Fallen. I know why I was so crazy now."

She shivered from fear, but asked, "Why?"

"It's the Kundatesh."

She laughed nervously. "What?"

"The Kundatesh. It's what Kimble just did to you just now. When he touched you. It's been coming out of me and I didn't know what it was until today."

She still didn't understand but asked, "So, are you going to be okay now?"

"I think so. I hope so. I just have to learn how to control it. Kimble said it can be dangerous. That people can get addicted to it. I think...I think maybe it's why he was with that Sabretooth guy for so long."

"Maybe the Professor can help you," she offered uncertainly. She wasn't comfortable with what Seth was saying. This story was a little too convenient and sounded contrived, like Seth had been fed a series of lies that he now believed as truths. What had Kimble done?

Seth just shook his head. "This is a Siskan thing. Kimble understands. He can help me."

"What happened today?" She knew Kimble was lying and that Seth was saying impossible things. She wasn't sure she wanted to know, but Seth's calm gave her some assurance. If he was better, how bad could it be?

Seth swallowed and disobeyed his brother's warning. He broke his promise by saying, "Kimble lay with me." He would never be able to hide anything from her so he just didn't try.

Fallen couldn't hide her surprise or her pain. Of all the possible scenarios she had imagined had happened that morning, that hadn't been one of them. Her breath was gone, her heart shattered by the betrayal. She backed up with a pained whimper, but he grabbed at her. "Don't be mad at him, Fallen, please. I made him do it."

"Why?" she sobbed, the tears spilling from her eyes.

"Because I've been going crazy. It's been happening for a while now, I just didn't know what it was. This Kundatesh, it's been coming awake and it...it reaches out to others that have it. I had a sickness, one that Kimble fixed by being with me. This sickness, it's real, Fallen. Aiden wrote about it in his diary, that book I was translating, the one I told you about. It's all true. All of it. You see, Aiden touched me that first day he was here-"

"Aiden!" she snapped, growing angry now. She had distrusted this stranger from the get go. This only justified it. Kimble was so different now that Aiden was here. This had to be his fault.

"No, Fallen. It's not like that!" Seth blurted out, trying so hard to make his Mistress understand. This was so big, so very important. He had to make her see. "He's got the Kundatesh really strong and it just made it worse for me. I wanted Aiden to help me with the sickness since he knew about it, but he said no. I was upset today because Aiden...because Aiden refused me. He did it for you. He knows I've been going crazy and he wanted to help me, but he held back because of you and Kimble. He sent Kimble after me and I told Kimble I would make Aiden lay with me if he didn't. I made him do it, Fallen. This mess is all my fault, but you've got to understand. This isn't because I don't love you, I do. I love you more than the whole world."

"But I'm not enough, am I?" she whispered sadly. She was trying to work the mess that Seth had dumped on her lap. It was like some kind of terrible soap opera. The only part that made sense to her was the idea that Seth had been tricked into cheating on her. He had been duped into thinking he needed something she could not provide. It hurt so very bad. "I'm a woman and I'm not enough."

"No. It's not your sex, Fallen. It's the Kundatesh. I had to feel it. I had to have it wash over me. It opened the door inside my head and now things are different. The screaming I had inside is gone. This power was trying to bust out of me and now it has. Don't you get it? I'm Lushna-esk, just like Kimble and Aiden are. Kimble helped me get it all straight. I'm okay, now. I really am."

Fallen stood up and he watched her go, thinking she had finally understood. He couldn't have been more wrong. He could see the shines now but didn't know how to read them. Hers had turned dark and cloudy, but he didn't know what it meant. She stopped at the door. "I think you believe this, Seth. I know you've been lonely and you feel like you want to belong to them, to the others like you. It's so easy to say it's a power...a feeling that you now magically share. The fact is you're very naive. You've been manipulated, toyed with. Sex can't cure anything, not by itself. Kimble told you a lie."

"Fallen, no. Come here, I'll prove it."

She looked back at him and he saw in her face what Kimble had meant. She didn't understand and wasn't about to. He watched in horror as she walked out and slammed the door. He scrambled to follow, but he was still in shock from his changing and not quite steady. He made it to the door and was blinded by the bright Arizona sun the moment he opened it. Compared to the darkness of the trailer, it had been too much to bear. Just the same, he could see well enough to observe what she did next.

Remy was still unsettled even as he watched Kimble take Seth inside the trailer. He hadn't liked the change in Kimble's shine and he wasn't the only one. Aiden had seen it too, but wasn't sure what it meant. While he could see that Seth's condition had been corrected, he didn't understand why Kimble's shine looked so dim and faded. It shouldn't have been like that. Something was wrong.

Gambit returned to the snack table and to his iced coffee, grumbling in irritation to himself. With all the trouble they had going on, the last thing he needed was for his Siskans to get twitchy. He had his hands full already keeping watch out here for Jael, never mind any trouble from within.

Aiden stood next to him, bumping against him gently in apology for all this, his eyes never leaving the trailer door. He hadn't wanted to Remy to get angry, but couldn't deny that the morning's disturbance was worth it. Seth was much improved and he no longer had to worry about that. Maybe Kimble's weariness had come from so strenuous a session. Maybe he was worrying too much.

Or not. Kimble came out of the trailer a moment later, looking nervous and scared. He said nothing to Remy or Aiden but moved away and back to work. He couldn't hide the fact that he was upset any more than he could hide his lies to Fallen. He wasn't interested in talking about what had just taken place - Aiden had started to walk over, but Kimble met his eyes and shook his head. He wanted to be left alone. At least he stayed in sight, working where he could be observed instead of running off as Seth had done. Aiden settled back as he had been, his arms crossed, unhappy. Kimble's shine hadn't improved, it had only grown worse.

Remy felt Aiden's unease, feeling the tension in the area grow and spread out like some kind of stink bomb had gone off. He couldn't escape the feeling that something bad was about to happen. He didn't have to wait long.

Gambit and Aiden both jerked in surprise when the trailer door slammed suddenly open and Fallen came out in a rush. She wasted no time - she walked right up to Kimble where he was working and she slapped him viciously, cutting his face with her claws. "What? One Siskan wasn't enough for you? How dare you? How could you take advantage of him like that? He's just a child! You raped him, you child molesting bastard!"

Kimble had already started to retreat and began to cry before she had reached him, seeing from her shine that Seth had wasted no time in breaking his promise. Flushed with guilt and shame, he stood and took the blow with a sharp cry of pain and humiliation, but didn't retaliate or make any move to stop her from striking him again.

Fallen couldn't contain her rage, especially when he didn't resist her. She tackled him, pinning him under one arm, and punched him viciously, driving her fist into his belly, using all of the force of her hurt and rage. All of her pent up fury spilled over and she struck him again and again, punishing him without mercy.

Kimble didn't fight her though he was more than capable. All the while, he turned to look across at Seth who stood in the trailer doorway and their eyes met. You promised me you wouldn't tell her, you promised me and you lied, that look said. It's all ruined now just like I said. This is all my fault. When felt he had taken enough Kimble finally tore himself away from his former Mistress and danced away, shaking and coughing as the tears poured down his face in a flood. Unrepentant for the beating she had given him thus far, Fallen pursued him, not letting him get far.

At the first sign of the attack, Aiden and Remy both came at a run. The snack table hadn't been far, but it wasn't close enough for them to keep Kimble from being struck. Aiden was enraged at Kimble's treatment and being much faster, he got to Fallen first and snatched out, forcefully capturing a tiny white wrist in his hands. His anger was too great, he never felt the bones in her arm snap as he snarled, "Back off! Dat'sz enough!"

Fallen's reaction to the pain was immediate. She released a powerful defensive burst of Ristle energy from that arm, zapping him hard enough to burn and injure the hand that held her. "You insensitive, Siskan prick!" she shouted, pushing him back. "You back off, asshole! Get back or I'll melt you down, I swear it! I'll slag your fucking Siskan ass, I don't give a shit! You stay away from Seth! Both of you! You come close to him again, I'll kill you!"

Aiden howled in agony and fell back, his hand and wrist black and smoking. The fingers of that hand had melted into one gooey mess, no longer resembling anything human. The pain was unbelievable and all he saw was red. He started to charge her again, seeking only retribution, but Remy had come up fast, grasping him tightly and trying to subdue him before this could escalate any further. It was a hard battle, Aiden's mind was a blank wall of fury, he was momentarily insane with anger.

Kimble had enough. He ran forward and tore Aiden away from Remy, knowing the thief would never be able to hold him for long. Kimble vaulted into the air, hauling a burnt and protesting Aiden with him.

Seth meanwhile had collapsed in the trailer doorway, unable to stop the horror that had played out before him. He broke down into wracking sobs and wailed, covering his face with his hands. He thought if he had told her the truth she would understand, but it had all gone wrong. This wasn't supposed to happen.

"Es'pere, Fallen, wait!" Remy demanded, stepping in her way. She had turned back to the trailer and Gambit feared Seth was going to be beaten next. Her shine was all violence and anger, he had never seen it so black. "What's goin' on!"

Her response was two raised fists, the fact that arm was badly broken didn't stop her from charging her hands with Ristle, backing him up just fine. "Stay back! If you had anything to do with this, you will pay. That's a fucking promise!"

Remy had backed up but he hadn't backed down. "Don't you lay a hand on 'im, Fallen! Not one finger! Set' is just a child!"

"Of course he is. My child! My Siskan! And no one is going near him again!"

Gambit could only move aside and let her pass, there was no way she was going to talk about this. At least he was content in thinking she wouldn't abuse him, her vibrations had changed as she spoke, she had told him the truth. Besides, he had to figure out where Kimble had gone. He snarled a curse and pulled the tracker from his pocket, grabbing his radio as well. He called for back up, moving away.

Fallen ignored him. She stomped back up to Seth and shoved him back inside the trailer, slamming the door on the gawkers who had come running. She tossed Seth into the bathroom like a bad dog, determined never to let him out of her sight again, and slammed the door shut on him, using her body to lock him inside. She fell against the door, bawling herself now and leaving him all alone and broken on the other side. Kimble, that sick fuck. He knew better! How dare he do this!

Seth howled and slammed himself against the door. He just knew Kimble was going to break, the look on his face was evidence enough. He demanded to be let go, but Fallen contained him easily. His anger surged. How dare she treat him like this! Like he was a piece of property with no rights. He howled and raged and howled some more, but it was no use. She was in control.

"Kimble!" he sobbed in vain. "Kimble!"

(break)

Kimble flew out across the desert and over to a nearby stream that was fed by an underground spring. This time of year there was actually some water in it, the fact that it existed at all was part of the reason the Professor had chosen this spot. The water ran deep underground and the Complex was taking advantage of it through secret technologies the intelligent mutants had devised over the years.

Oblivious of all that, Kimble hovered over the convenient stream and dumped Aiden down into it, deliberately soaking him where he was burned. Aiden landed with a grunt at the rough handling, but the water felt good on his hand. The skin there was black and the pain was horrible. He lay it in the water and drank some as well, feeling better. His rage had subsided during their brief flight and he was back to thinking coherently.

Kimble wasn't so lucky, he landed on the shore and paced, still bawling helplessly. This whole thing had blown up beyond repair, just one more impossible situation in an endless stream of many. No matter where he turned, disaster struck. He was cursed through and through, there was no other possible explanation for the way his life crumbled with every step he took. No matter who he tried to help or who he tried to love, it always blew up in his face.

"It isz not your fault," Aiden tried, seeing Kimble's deepest despair.

"Yes, it is! It always is! It always happens ta me like this! I hurts evraone I loves!"

Aiden staggered to his feet and sloshed through the water towards him. When Kimble turned skittish and backed away, Aiden put his hands up in a gesture of patience. "Easzy, Keem. Disz wasz Aiden'sz idea, neh? Sztupid it wasz, Szet' too young, too much luv wit' 'isz Misztressz, him. Aiden should 'ave lay wit' de boy. Den all ze trouble be wit me not you."

"Nobody should have laid with the boy!" Kimble snarled. "It's fucked now, don'tcha ya understand? Fucked!" His body was shaking badly now and he heaved, vomiting up a puddle of gel.

Aiden stepped back, distressed. This was not good. Kimble was trashed in spite of all of this being for Seth's benefit. This had blown up in a way he hadn't come close to foreseeing. Kimble's shine was so dim, so very dim and now shot with black and grey. How could this possibly get any worse? "Easzy now, Keem. Disz not your fault, you. Relax."

Done with conversation, Kimble just shot him a nasty look and took off into the sky, leaving him behind. Aiden was safe now from Fallen's wrath and close enough that others would find him. Right now all Kimble wanted was to be left alone.

"Keemble, wait!"

It was no good. His lover was gone. Aiden fell back to his knees, feeling the red hot tears threatening again. What a complete disaster.

See? See what you get? Father said, standing close by with his arms crossed. I told you this was nothing but trouble, you getting involved in the lives of others.

"Aiden didn't do not'ing! Szet' wasz in trouble! It isz dem who don' undersztand!"

So selfish you are, and so foolish. You had to interfere, you couldn't leave it alone. You think with your cock, instead of your brain! Sex wasn't necessary to fix Kimble's brother and you know it, you just decided on your own that this was how it was to be handled! Foolish, foolish, Dreamer! We have a job to do here, one that had nothing at all to do with Seth and his little problem! How is fooling around and causing trouble going to accomplish what we came here for!

Aiden started to say something more, to protest further in his own defense, but froze. He saw a ghost appear next to Father, only this one wasn't Talalanay. It was hazy and unclear which meant it was real and not one of his hallucinations.

The Dreamer had seen real spirits before, though not often. Tillamay had been the first but she wasn't the last. He had seen remnants of those who had lived, people that he had known personally. These spirits were vaporous, never as bold as his own private peanut gallery, and he always understood what it meant when they appeared – that they were dead and going somewhere he could not follow. That he was seeing this again only meant this bad day had gotten far, far worse.

The ghostly image coalesced and became a little more clear. He saw Babette's face, saw her bend down towards him in farewell, and he began to weep. "Non! Not my Babette! Non! It'sz not fair! Non!" He lay his head down into the water and sobbed, gradually growing still as he went into shock. He let the spell take him and lay like a dead thing, like a creature who didn't belong here and never would.