(Three)
The nearest medical station was close by Kimble's living quarters, it was only four doors down. Each floor had its own station and Henry was in charge of them all in the lower levels. His main area of operations wasn't far, the labs where Seth and he worked were in the next level down from Kimble's apartment and restricted to all but the senior alphas.
Remy made the trip quickly, giving his back to Jerry, the guard Logan had sent to tag along. Jerry tossed Kimble down onto the nearest bed and covered him up with a blanket while Remy dumped out his pockets of drugs on the night stand in a rude display of his displeasure. Kimble was out cold and snoring the whole way, oblivious to what was going on.
The nurse in charge of the station came in to check on what was going on when she heard Gambit's noise. It was unusual for someone to just barge in like this. "What happened to him?"
"Nuthin' major. 'E just need to sleep," Remy snapped a bit rudely. He was furious at Henry and Kimble for keeping their secrets. He was Kimble's closest friend, the one who looked after him the most, he had a right to know what was going on. He was outraged at Wolverine for his lack of understanding. He was upset and dismal at the thought of Kimble being locked up again. All of this was so unfair. "Jus' send 'Enry in when 'e ever shows up, s'il vous plait."
"He's already here," Beast said, walking past her into the room. He saw Remy's fury but said nothing as he went to the bedside. On his way in, Beast had passed the table and seen what Gambit had dumped there. He started checking on Kimble, waiting for Gambit to explode. It wasn't long.
"What you doin', pumpin' 'im full of dat crap? I t'ought 'e was okay!"
"He is okay. Look, I know you're upset but you have to understand. His plasma addiction was quite serious. He gets depressed. That time he got high last year was the worst, why do you think Neal put in for that transfer? He couldn't take Kimble following him around anymore. Kimble didn't handle Neal's departure very well. He came to me for help and I did my best to make it easier for him. A good number of those drugs are old, from well before we even moved here. None of them were effective, I can't fathom why he kept them. He asked me for help and I did what I could for him. He was doing much better until now. This is going to set him back quite a bit, I'm afraid."
Jerry stepped forward, taking advantage of the moment to say, "Logan says this one goes in the lockup after."
"Whatever for?" Beast asked, looking at Remy.
"Cause 'e's an ass," the Cajun replied without missing a beat.
Jerry snorted in anger. "The boss has every right. This guy's a closet sicko. Been cuttin' himself up with knives."
Henry's eyes widened in alarm. "He's been doing what?"
Remy took a step closer and said, "Kimble need a chance to explain all dat. Logan ain't givin' 'im one. He want 'im locked up and Karen to do another evaluation."
Henry sighed. "I don't see how it could hurt, Remy. If Kimble's having trouble adjusting maybe he just needs a time out. I'll see that he gets a fair shake, you know that. First, let's see what this boy's been up to."
Kimble growled as Beast shined a light into his eyes and he tried to shove him away. Henry gave up with a sigh and walked out, returning with a cup. He made Kimble drink from it and Kimble instantly began to shiver and weep, curling up into a ball.
"What's dat?" Remy wanted to know.
"It's a coolant. The plasma heats him up too much, causing his inner core to degrade. He's given me lots of practice over the years, our boy. I've brought his tonics along from Westchester and this as well. This will bring the temperature of his inner core down. Unfortunately, it will also kill his high."
"No...no..no..." Kimble whimpered as his insides chilled down and the wonderful orange bliss of the plasma high fizzled out. He shivered and snatched at the blankets, trying to get back some of the warmth he was losing.
Remy helped to cover him up and lay a hand on his face, letting him know he was still there. "Easy, dere, Kim. You gonna be all right."
"Don't let him cover up," Henry ordered, gently taking back what Remy had done. "He has to cool down." He began to tug on Kimble's clothes, stripping him down.
Kimble wiped at his eyes and blinked up at him, becoming a little more aware. "Wha-what happened? Where the fuck am I?"
"You're in Med Bay," Henry answered calmly, unfazed by Kimble's coarse language. "You've had some trouble today."
"What?" Kimble tried to sit up, but couldn't control his shivering enough to get straightened up. "Where's Angel?"
"She still in school. You just sit tight, eh? Logan's got a crew dere wit 'er."
Kimble sniffed and blinked, hopelessly confused. As he was cooling down and clarity of thought was returning, he began to remember what had happened. He had been coming down from his morning sun and he got a little sidetracked. He had seen someone. Someone he recognized but never thought he had see again. Mary. Mary was there and she had touched him - heat and warmth and wet and love - and then Zander was screaming something, some kind of warning, but then he was high and then... Then he had woken up and the apartment was a mess - something bad had happened. There were cops in his place, Logan's men. Why? Why did they ask him about Mary? Why had Mary pushed so hard to get him there? It didn't take long for Kimble to finish the thought.
"Angel!" Kimble bellowed in a deepening roar, rising quickly, his shivering instantly forgotten.
"She okay! Stay down!" Remy ordered, shoving Kimble back down onto the bed. It was hard going, Kimble was showing uncommon strength and was fighting him the whole time.
"Keep him down! I'll get a tonic to sedate him!" Beast said to Gambit, but it was a wasted effort.
Kimble was continuing to shout and struggle with increasing fury. "Mary! Mary, you bitch! I'm cummin'! Cummin' fer you! Oh, you picked the wrong boy ta mess with, ya fuckin' cunt!" Kimble howled, his voice making the last and final change to someone else's. Zander shrugged off the last of Kimble's high and rose to his feet, using his telekinetic power to move Remy aside like he was nothing.
Remy grabbed at him feebly, in shock from Zander's sudden appearance. He had long since thought the Punisher was gone. He hadn't seen or heard from him since Kimble had been worked on by the Games Master years ago. The Punisher was probably the one personality that Remy truly feared - not for himself, but for others – Zander was the one with the sword and Remy had seen him use it more than once to deadly effect.
Zander was much too fast and crafty to be ensnared by the thief. He gave Remy another telekinetic shove, slamming him and Henry both into the wall and out of his way. He glared at them in his fury and snarled, "Nice try, boys. Kimble's fucked up again and as per usual it's up ta me ta fix it. Sit back and watch the show, it's gonna be a real scorcher!"
Not one to be easily intimidated, Jerry decided to have his turn. He was a telekinetic as well and he sent out a restraining shield, but wasn't prepared for the strength of the Punisher. Quick as a wink, Zander justified Gambit's worst fears by producing his sword in a flourish. One flick of his wrist and orange flames raced up the blade, bringing it to its full glory. Combined with the powerful stance and ripped muscle of Zander's nude body, he made quite the impressive sight, but he wasn't about appearance alone. Zander hacked at Jerry's shield with his weapon and the minor annoyance was gone, shattered into pieces. Satisfied, but still finding his way blocked, he took another step towards Jerry, his eyes full of malice.
"Jerry, non! Back away!" Remy shouted, not wanting to see Jerry blown to chunks. "Just let 'im go or 'e gonna kill you!" He couldn't believe how fast Zander had reacted and with such confidence. Zander stood tall, flexing his large arm muscles as he gripped the hilt of his sword and waved it about with such skill. This was not the gentle Kimble Gambit had known, not one bit. "It ain't you 'e wants, Jerry! Back it up and just let 'im go right on by! Maintenant!"
Jerry backed it right up, yes he did indeedy, his eyes wide. His shields were some of the toughest and the Siskan had cut through it like it wasn't even there. He also couldn't believe the change in the Siskan. The outward appearance might be the same, but between the change in the voice and body posture and the malevolent gleam in Zander's eyes, it may as well be someone completely different.
Zander grinned at him, a sneer full of teeth and evil intent. "Yer a smart boy, all right. Logan trains his pups well. Now you just keep right on bein' smart and I'm gonna keep right on walkin'. Nice an' easy now."
Jerry didn't move as Zander walked past him and to the doors. Not bothering to open them, Zander howled a savage challenge and the doors to the Med Bay splintered and exploded out into the hallway, shattered by a powerful telekinetic blast. Zander walked slowly, gracefully out into the corridor, his sword still blazing. He stood and spread his arms out, sniffing the air and seeking Mary out with all of his senses.
Just in time to see it, Logan came running. He had been on his way to check on Kimble and he had heard Zander's first bellow. "What the hell is goin' on!" he hollered when he saw Kimble, then skidded to a halt, unable to hide his surprise at the damage the pilot had caused. One look at Zander in all of his telekinetic glory revealed the depth of his problem. This was going to be bad.
Years ago, Logan had called for Kimble's destruction. Not because he hated the guy, but because even before Zander had learned to Channel like this Wolverine had seen what Kimble had been capable of - that as much as the Lover could love, the Punisher could kill effortlessly and without remorse. Wolverine's pleas had been shot down and ignored. Before him now was every reason he ever had for never changing his mind about that. The Lover he had never feared but this was the first time he had ever seen the Punisher in full Channeler mode. It was intimidating and Logan knew he wasn't going to go down easy. Twice in the past Zander had turned his wrathful eyes on Wolverine, twice Logan had been "punished" for his transgressions. The first time Zander had merely burned him on the shoulders. The second time Zander had shot him full of high caliber bullets, a shooting that was so violent and vicious and vindictive, Logan almost didn't survive it. Even in spite of that, Logan was still sure Zander could be taken down. It was just that it was going to be one royal pain in the ass to get the job done.
Logan saw Remy come staggering out of the Med Bay, stumbling on the debris Zander had created. He snarled at the thief, "Gambit! What the fuck is goin' on?"
"It's Kimble! I t'ink he's Zander! He's goin' for Mary!" Gambit shouted just as Zander picked his direction and jumped up at the ceiling.
Zander's intent was to phase up through the floor, escaping his pursuers and further locating his prey. What he hadn't counted on was the tracking device inside his own body, the modified probe that he had been asked to swallow when he arrived here. It was a locator sure, but it had also been equipped with a safety that wouldn't allow Kimble to phase it out of his body. In fact, it kept him from phasing entirely.
Zander hit the ceiling hard and bellowed in fury when he didn't pass through. There was damage though. He came down, landing miraculously on his feet and was followed by a small avalanche of debris that coated him in plaster and broken wiring from the light fixtures above. Zander thrashed as he was pummeled from the wreckage, his fury increasing by the minute.
"Zander! Wait!" Remy tried, hoping to use the moment to keep Kimble in place. "E'spere! Just calm down! We gonna take care of Mary! You don' need de sword! Just calm down!"
Zander wasn't about to be cheated out of his revenge so easily. He howled once more, throwing out another telekinetic pulse. The lights in the hallway shattered violently, sputtering glass and sparks and forcing everyone in his way down to the floor. It went dark in the corridor, but Zander's sword was still flamed and glowing brightly as he stomped his way past them, heading for the elevator. Frightened people scrambled out of his way, sensing the ultimate power of this strange being. The Punisher stopped at the elevator doors but didn't bother with the call button. He plunged the sword through the doors instead, melting a crude circle in the middle and forcing an opening in a matter of seconds.
While Zander was busy at this, Logan tried to use the opportunity to charge him, but Zander shrugged him off without even looking back. With his telekinetic rage in full force, he smacked Logan back ten feet without ever raising a hand in his direction. Wolverine collided painfully with Jerry who was right behind him and snarled himself, frustrated that he was so useless. He had never been really effective against telekinetics, once off his feet he was in trouble. It was clear someone was going to die and he wasn't going to be able to stop it unless he got some backup and soon.
Zander shoved his way through the opening he had made and disappeared up through the elevator shaft, bringing the glow of his sword with him.
"Where's he going!" Logan growled in the black. A second later and the emergency lights finally came on, giving some dim light.
" 'E t'inks Mary's after Angel!" Remy replied, gasping through the dusty air, Zander had made quite the mess. Gambit could see well enough in the gloom and didn't waste a moment's time before reaching for the tracker's reading box that he kept in his coat pocket. Being in charge of Kimble demanded that he keep a reader for the device, he never knew when Kimble (or now perhaps someone else!) was going to freak out and take off. The locator was keyed into the security boxes installed all over the Complex, it was too easy to track him.
"First Level!" Remy shouted and scrambled to his feet. That made sense, it was the level where all the kids went to school. They might not know what Mary looked like, but if they got to Angel first maybe they could stop this from getting worse. Gambit took a few steps towards the elevator but saw that the damage was too severe to use the same route Zander took.
"Gotta take the stairs!" Wolverine shouted, already on his way.
"Don't bother, mon fruends," said a soft voice with a heavy German accent. There was the soft stench of brimstone and they startled just a bit as Nightcrawler, the resident teleporter, stepped out from the shadows next to them and gave them a lift.
Wolverine grinned gratefully, happy that his friend had reacted to the situation so swiftly. He would be needed now. Kurt was a teleporter, having the ability to carry a couple passengers if he had a mind. He was also among Logan's new security crew and Logan was never more grateful than now to see him, he would eliminate their travel time. They reappeared just outside one of the large Common Areas for the First Level. Here was a communal gathering area where mutants could sit and mingle.
They made good time, Zander had just entered the same room from the opposite direction, snarling as he sought out his target. "Mary!" he called out, his voice a rough deep roar.
Everyone in the vicinity fled or shrank back to the walls. No one had ever seen a mutant quite like this. He was a white winged menace with clear murderous intent, buck naked and screaming with fury. His sword had fizzled out some from its use on the elevator, it was glowing and no longer flaming. It didn't matter. His large tattoo blazed own his front, announcing who he was, and he charged forward with a commanding presence, leaving no doubt that he was not to be interfered with.
One figure dressed in dark robes tried to dart out the back exit, but it was too late. Zander saw her quickly and turned in her direction. He ensnared her in a telekinetic grip and tossed her up into the air like a rag doll, like a cat would a mouse. He spread his wings and vaulted up in front of her, raising the sword for battle. He recharged it fast and quick, orange flames ripped down the blade, crackling with a fury matching Zander's own.
"Kimble, no!" Mary cried out, terrified beyond belief. She remembered Kimble as the passive human dog Sabretooth had made of him, not this preternatural monster whose eyes blazed with unmistakable fury. She had also seen this sword before, just once. Years ago, she had watched in shock and surprise when he had used the sword to kill one of Sabretooth's men. The man had been huge, but Kimble had burst him apart like a ripe tomato. She never figured Kimble would turn on her like this, but now that it was here, she realized there would be only one possible outcome from this confrontation.
Zander confirmed her suspicions by shouting, "Kimble is gone! There is only me now, you silly bitch! Just who did ya think ya were fuckin' with, huh? Creed's little whore? Guess again! I am La ShaRain karesk LaRoo! The Guardian of the Angel! And you, darlin'? Yer so much smokin' meat!"
"NON!" Remy shouted but it was in vain. Zander had thrown up powerful barriers all around himself and his intended prey, blocking off all interference. No one was going to stop the Punisher from fulfilling his duty to his tiny Mistress.
It was true that Zander wasn't about to wait for anyone's permission to do what he thought needed to be done. He plunged his glowing sword into Mary's chest and her body burst into flame. The sword was actually a telekinetic shield carved into that particular shape. When Kimble was transformed like this, he Channeled all of his stored plasma energy through it, incinerating his victim. Mary could produce the plasma herself, but that didn't mean she was immune to it when struck with it like this. She screamed and flailed as her body burned. Zander wasn't without mercy. He yanked his sword free and beheaded her with one powerful stroke.
The ShaRain dropped down to the floor and watched with satisfaction as her remains fell before him in smoky ruins. The sword fizzled out, no longer needed, and with it, the last of Zander's energy. His wrath expelled, the Punisher's vengeful personality faded away and the meeker Kimble spirit stood in his place, bewildered in this big room, not quite sure how he had gotten there. He took a step back in shock and looked down at what Zander had done, starting to shake. He recognized the Punisher's handiwork and the victim as well. He was filled with guilt and sorrow, he had warned Mary that anyone who got close to him would die and here it was, the reality of it slapping him in the face again. He was weak now that Zander had used up all of his reserves and then some. The plasma sword was his best weapon, but it required him to give most of his stored energy to wield it. He was as good as starving now. With that starvation came an inability to keep up any of his telekinetic powers as well. The barriers fell and Remy and the others were free to rush into the room. Exhausted now, Kimble's eyes rolled up and he crashed to the ground, too wasted to maintain consciousness.
"Everyone get back!" Wolverine shouted, instantly taking charge. No one argued with the intimidating little man. They all shrank back or fled, giving Logan and Kimble all the space they needed. It wasn't everyday that any of them would see a winged mutant freak out and incinerate some woman no one had seen before.
Logan grabbed a fire extinguisher and sprayed it over Mary's body, dousing the last of the flames. She was obviously dead, but he didn't want the fire to spread. The stink was horrible and he gagged as he looked at Kimble. Remy was at his side and Logan asked, "He okay?"
"I t'ink so. 'E all wasted wit no power."
"Good!" Logan said without an ounce of concern or pity. "Get his sorry ass down to the holdin' cells, right fuckin' now!"
" 'E got to go in de sun. He got nuthin' left!" Remy protested.
"All the more reason! Get him out of here!" Logan ordered to his men. They had just arrived from the lower level. They rushed to obey him and Remy was left to stand there helpless as his Siskan was taken away. There were some fights he could fight, but this wasn't one of them. Not after what Zander had done. Gambit bowed his head in frustration and followed them out.
Seth and Fallen were on their way in from the landing strip when they heard all the commotion. They had come in from a trip from Westchester and some time had passed, the alarm that had sounded from Zander's violence had long since been shut off. The fervor and excitement hadn't died down any, however. Word of the events had spread through the Complex quickly and everyone was talking about it.
"What's going on?" Fallen asked someone as she neared the First Level Common Room.
The young man, human looking except for a lovely pair of ram's horns on either side of his head, looked up at her companion nervously and said, "The guy who looks like him just killed somebody."
"Kimble? Do you mean Kimble?" Seth stammered anxiously, immediately beginning to tremble and shake.
"Don't know what his name is. Only that he looks like you, but with black hair."
"Oh, God!" Fallen muttered with some concern. She sounded worried, but under it all was a powerful vibration of anger and loathing Seth could feel. / He's gone and done it again! Sometime's I really wonder what I did bringing him out. He should have been left behind, not Seth. Things would be so much better now. /
Yes, but then you would be dead, he wanted to reply to her, but still didn't want her to know what he could feel. When Kimble had finally been freed from Fallen's computer system, the first thing he had done was save Fallen's life. It was something Seth thought his Mistress often forgot. Just the same he kept quiet, the vibrations he was feeling from her were a secret he would keep for a while longer. He was just profoundly disappointed that Fallen felt this way about his brother. At one time, the two of them had been the best of friends.
"What happened?" Seth repeated. "Do you know any details?"
"No. Only that he used some kind of sword and it blew her apart."
"What did they do with him?" Fallen this time.
"Mr. Logan arrested him and took him away."
"I have to go see him," Seth said with conviction, turning to look at his Mistress. "He must have been very upset to have done this. He'll need me."
"You're not going anywhere," she asserted with all of the authority of a Mistress, grabbing his arm to keep him in place. "I forbid it. If he's gone nuts I don't want you anywhere near him."
"But he's my brother!" Seth protested. He looked to the young man for help, but their informant backed away and left, not wanting to be involved in their argument.
"I know perfectly well what he is!" she said, vibrating next, / He's an asshole and a killer! I won't have you near him! He won't be corrupting you with his madness!
"Fallen! Wait!" Seth tried to protest as she suddenly tugged him along towards the elevators. They had to pass by where the event occurred to get there and the first thing Seth noticed was the terrible smell. There was smoke in the air carrying an undercurrent of burnt meat. The area had been taped off with yellow tape and there were security officers from more than one squad milling about, keeping the onlookers at bay. Among them were some of the Complex's personal firemen, one of whom caught Fallen's eye.
"Well I'll be damned," she murmured to herself, slowing down her relentless towing of Seth. "That's Bob Kenna."
As if in unspoken answer to her question, a small young pilot came chirping their way. This was no well made pilot like Fallen was, this was an escapee from Jael's camp long ago. She was a tiny, dog like thing, dressed in a strange fitted fire coat that allowed her wings to protrude from her back so she could work and still fly. She jumped up against Bob and he held her arms as he would that very same dog and tried to keep his balance. "Meer!" she cried loudly right into his face. " Meer no see up high!"
"Fire's all out then?" he questioned, his smile broad as he looked into Meer's pale blue eyes with affection. "Good girl!"
"Meer good! No see fire!"
"Excellent," he replied, patting her head.
"Well, hello there," Fallen greeted, coming closer and dragging Seth along with her.
Bob Kenna turned and smiled at her. "We meet again."
"I see you got a better job offer than the City."
"Your Professor's a real nice guy. Besides, things were getting to hot outside for Meer. She was making some of the guys at the station nervous. I wasn't ready to give her up."
"I don't blame you," Fallen replied, pulling Seth up against her. "This is Seth."
For one moment, Seth felt a surge of anger when no other words followed her explanation of him. He felt there should have been more, considering how tightly she gripped him, like he was as much her property as Meer was Bob Kenna's. 'My husband' would have sounded so nice right then, though she had never once addressed him as such. 'My Lover', 'My Soul Mate'. Anything besides that strange dangling silence.
"It's good to meet you, Seth," Bob said, extending his hand. If he noticed Fallen's rough handling of her Siskan, he made no remark about it.
Seth took the offered hand and gave it a nervous shake, soaking up a vibration he didn't want. / Ah, yes. She's got a pilot like me. He's a handsome fellow. I wonder what he does for her?
"I'm one of Henry McCoy's students," Seth replied quickly, being very bold. "I've done most of the set up work on the computer and security systems here."
Fallen arched an eyebrow, uncertain why Seth felt the need to qualify himself to this stranger. He was never one to do more than nod at new people when he was introduced.
Bob smiled at Seth broadly then."Excellent. I've been needing to talk to somebody like you. We've got these bugs in our computer system here that are driving us nuts - "
He was abruptly cut off as Fallen tugged on Seth again, saying,"We really must be going. It was so nice seeing you again!"
Seth barely managed to blurt out his E-mail address and a promise to look into helping Bob out before he was shoved into an elevator. "Hey! That guy was trying to talk to me!"
"You're not going anywhere but home!" Fallen snapped.
"No, I have to see Kimble!"
"Forget it! Now just shut up!"
Seth cringed, always frightened by her wrath and displeasure. It hadn't happened often, her snapping at him like this.
"I have a right," he insisted softly, his anger not allowing him to back all the way down.
Her wrath surged, coming in a vibration that nearly choked him. She opened her mouth to speak, but said nothing, gritting her teeth instead. They came to a stop at their floor and once more he was dragged along, her grip on him so tight, she was cutting him a bit with her claws. "Ow! Fallen, you're hurting me!" he cried out, but he was ignored.
She stopped at their door and then they were inside. She towed him through the apartment and tossed him into the bedroom like a naughty child. "Stay here or I'll bar the door with a shield!"
"But, Fallen!" he almost screamed, angry tears of hurt streaming down his cheeks.
She didn't reply but slammed the door shut in his face.
"Fallen!" he did shout this time and flung himself against the door. It didn't budge, she had kept her promise and locked him in.
Seth might look like a pilot, but it was only an outer image. He had no special abilities other than feeling emotional vibrations he didn't evan want. He couldn't fly as his Mistress did or make the Ristle energy. She had locked him in and here he was forced to stay.
"I hate you!" he screamed, giving vent to his pain. He had never once said this to her, but then he had never been in so much anguish.
"You don't understand," came a soft reply from the other side of the door.
Seth took a step back, he hadn't realized she was still so close. He wiped at his cheeks, still sobbing. "I don't understand what?"
"I won't let you break. Not like he did. I'll keep you safe and away from it all. You'll be safe here. Away from him."
"Fallen, please!" he begged, striking the door with his fists in his frustration. "Let me go see him. Nothing's gonna happen to me!"
"Don't you see?" she said with a sob. "It's already begun. You're not yourself."
"Not myself? You've got me locked up like a dog!"
"I'll let you out when you're calm. Then we can talk about this," she said and this time he heard her move away.
"Fallen!" he howled and thumped against the door with his fists again. This time there was no reply from the other side.
Seth tore away from the door, shaking with a hurt and rage on a scale he had never before experienced. He wasn't quite sure what to do with himself, but no matter what Fallen said, he wasn't breaking. How could he be? He was lucid and thoughtful in spite of this great anger. He wasn't insane, far from it. He sat on the edge of the bed and snatched at the phone, his rage increasing when he heard that Fallen had disconnected it.
"I'm smarter than you, Mistress," he said with a sneer.
He got up and found his pack, the one that held his computer. There was a cell phone, one Remy had given him a few years back. "If you ever need me," Remy had said. "Never know, fils. When you might be someplace you can't get out of, call me. Gambit be dere fo' you."
Seth had never had many occasions to use it, but he had called Remy more than once in the middle of the night when he was feeling stressed or blue. Not once had Gambit ever complained, no matter how late it was. He was always there, sleepy and full of soothing words. Seth dialed quickly and listened as it rang... and rang... and rang.
"Shit!" Seth muttered, unhappy. He dialed again, this time Henry's Lab extension.
"McCoy," Beast replied, picking up right away.
"Oh, thank God!" Seth said in a half sob.
"You okay?"
"Yeah," Seth replied, trying to regain control. How nice it was to hear a friendly voice on the other end. He hadn't realized just how alone he was feeling. "Is Kimble all right?"
"He's fine. He's low on power and asleep in a holding cell, but Remy is here looking after him."
"Tell me what happened?"
Briefly, Henry gave him a run down on the morning's events, trying to leave out the juiciest bits, knowing Seth was upset so easily. "The thing to remember is that Kimble is fine."
"I want to see him."
"Logan has him isolated and under arrest. No one is allowed in. When he wakes, Remy will talk to him, find out what was going on in his head. I know this is hard for you, but you're just going to have to wait, coming down here will be a waste of your time."
"Can you have Remy call me? On the cell."
"Certainly. Are you sure you're all right?"
"Yeah, just worried about Kim, that's all," Seth said, not being entirely honest. He and Beast were friends, but he didn't want to go on a Mistress bitch rant with him, he wanted Remy for that. Gambit was Siskan enough to better understand.
"Of course. Try to get some rest, you sound tired."
"I am," Seth replied, feeling it. His anger had fizzled out during his conversation and he felt sleep come on him heavily now. "Thanks," he replied and hung up, making sure to set the phone on vibration instead of ring, he didn't want Fallen to hear it. He curled up, tugging the blankets over himself and closed his eyes, his hands still gripping his phone like a lifeline out of hell.