Disclaimer: Falling from the Path has cover art finally! It was provided by Kibbitzer, and is called Loki-Tesseract. You can find Kibbitzer's work on Deviantart.
No Warnings
Chapter 18:
Eli yawned as she waved goodbye to Tony, Pepper, Rhodey, and Happy. They were seeing her off. She had long flight to look forward to. Blue eyes looked at Tony's private jet with trepidation. The last time she went to the other side of the planet she met and fell in love with an alien hell bent on taking over the world. She didn't want a repeat of what happened last time, in any way, shape or form. Not that Eli was able to love anyone other than that hell bent alien, but she would prefer not to have any drama, especially the kind that bring destroyers of the world.
Eli buckled herself into the comfortable chair. Hopefully, this time around nothing terrible would happen. At least, she was going to make a pit stop in Illinois, so she could pick up that college kid who had all the answers to the mysterious pirate map. Then they would make a fuel stop in New York, and then it would be a straight shot all the way to London.
Eli watched the earth go by from the high altitude. She had flown before, but there wasn't anything quite like seeing the earth from this high up. It was beautiful. The changing of terrain from desert to fields lulled Eli to sleep. She dreamed of a cylindrical prison and a very heated moment with it's occupant. She woke when he was was thrusting inside of her, and Eli wasn't all that happy about waking up at such a... pivotal moment; but she was informed that the plane landed at O'Hare in Chicago. Eli made sure that Her hair was perfect, and she reapplied her cherry red lipstick, before she put on her designer sunglasses and walked off of Tony's plane.
There were photographers and reporters waiting for her in the airport. They probably thought that she was Tony; they certainly didn't stop taking pictures, they were even calling her name. Eli smirked a little. She knew she looked good. The college student waiting for her at the jet's terminal wasn't is as fashionable as Eli was, and the girl couldn't help but judge a little. It was only a little.
The girl was taller than Eli was naturally, and she was a little pudgy, in a Marilyn Monroe kind of way. Eli had to admit that if the girl was wearing more form fitting clothes she would be sexy. If only; the girl was wearing an oversized brown coat and a pair of blue jeans that were worn and torn at the bottoms. She was wearing a cute pair of black boots though. In fact, Eli kind of wanted her boots.
"You must be Rachel Turner. I'm Eli Potts." Eli held out her hand to the blonde. Rachel smiled brilliantly.
"Wow, I feel underdressed. It's nice to meet you, Eli." Rachel said as she looked at Eli's navy blue dress and matching pumps.
"Don't worry if what you found is true, then you'll get to see me get all kinds of dirty. If you don't mind, let's go get some lunch, I'm starving." Eli joked.
"Oh, thank god you said something!" Rachel exclaimed happily. "I was running late this morning and didn't get the chance to eat, and I didn't want to eat without you, cause that would be rude, and now I could easily eat a horse."
Eli laughed, "I like you. I think we'll get along great. You can pick where we go, but let's get something here in the airport."
"Since I'm on a college budget, we're getting Micky D's." Rachel lead Eli to the McDonald's in the airport. "So, what made you want to pursue a career in history?"
"Well, I met a man called Erik Lensherr. He was a Holocaust survivor; and he, Raven Darkholme, Hank McCoy, Charles Xavier and several others were involved with the Cold War, the Kennedy assassination, and several other events. I learned a lot from them, but what I learned wasn't always the good side of history; I've learned some very harsh truths in the world. I just found the struggles of human beings to be interesting. I have a unique point of view, just like you do, and everyone else here. We have to learn from what those before us had to live through, so we don't have to make the same mistakes that they did." Eli said.
"That was impressibly philosophical of you." Rachel said with thought. "I just grew up listening to stories about the past, and read the diaries of my ancestors going all the way back to the seventeen hundreds. I can't tell you how many love letters that I've read."
"Were any of them steamy?" Eli asked half seriously. Rachel snorted with amusement.
"A few." Rachel said then ordered. "I'd like two McDoubles, a McChicken, all of them with Mac Sauce, and a medium fry. Oh, and I would like a large orange drink, if you would."
"That'll be six twenty-one." the woman behind the desk said. Rachel paid and waited for her food and Eli to order.
"Hi, what can I get for you?" the woman behind the counter was several times nicer to Eli than she was to Rachel. It was probably because Eli was wearing designer clothing.
"Two McChickens add ketchup, two large fries, and a large Coke. And a mango-pineapple smoothie, a large one." Eli ordered.
"You said that you know Erik Lensherr." Rachel said quietly.
"Yes, I met him when I was young." Eli answered.
"He's Magneto isn't he?" the blonde whispered before setting her brown eyes on Eli's blue ones. Eli narrowed her eyes for a moment before she answered.
"Yes, I met him when I was young; his second in command saved my life. I owe the two of them a great deal, but I think they went about their goals a bit wrong." Eli explained.
"A bit?" Rachel asked questioningly.
"You have to remember that Erik was a Holocaust survivor, and his second in command was nearly murdered by her family. Violence is always met with violence; and on the off chance that it isn't, it overpowers the opposing force and either oppresses it or destroys it. It's human nature, that everyone needs to work on overcoming and do things diplomatically. Like Hank McCoy." Eli explained. Rachel thought for a moment.
"They could have done it differently," she said finally. Eli watched the blonde with a critical eye.
"You're right, they should have, but they didn't and nothing can change that now." Eli said as she took her food. "Do you mind if we eat in the jet? If I stay in here too long, I'll be recognized as Tony Stark's ward."
"Right."
Eli lead Rachel to Tony's jet. They walked in silence, each in deep thought. Eli was contemplating reading Rachel's mind, but she told herself that she wouldn't do anything to invade her privacy, at least not in the mutant sense.
When they were seated in the jet Eli spoke, "You should probably know that I am a mutant. I used to be a very powerful mutant, but recent events have left me weakened, but I still have some power." Rachel stared at Eli for a long moment.
"What can you do?" she asked.
"All kinds of things. My real name is Enigma, and I'm the most powerful copycat mutant. Well, I was." Eli explained. Rachel was taking apart one of her McDoubles and was putting her McChicken in between the two patties before taking a bite out of the new sandwich.
"My brother joined the Brotherhood of Mutants and was killed during the attack on Alcatraz. I can't see how someone like him could ever be justified." Rachel said finally.
"I was a member of the Brotherhood of Mutants when I was younger. Mystique pulled me out of a dumpster, she saved my life. I was with them for almost four years. I left them when I was eleven; I went to Charles Xavier's school for mutants, I was there for almost a year when he found what was left of my human family. They took me in, but I always felt out of place. Pepper was already finishing high school, and I think her mother was a little afraid of me.
"You're right, there are things that Magneto has done that cannot be forgiven, but there are mutants in this world that owe him their lives. In fact, if Magneto didn't exist, then the way of life as you know it wouldn't even be possible." Eli said.
"I don't have to like it…" Rachel pouted. Eli laughed.
"Trust me, I don't like it either, but if it makes you feel better, Magneto was hit with an inhibitor and he is no longer an all powerful mutant." Eli said with a little more joy than she thought she should have. Eli knew that the Worthington Labs inhibitor was going to fail sometime in the near future, but Magneto could do with some squirming.
"You said that you can copy mutant abilities. What kinds of things have you copied?" Rachel asked. She was suddenly enthusiastic about Eli's super powers. Eli smiled and shifted her appearance to Rachel's.
"Some of my favorites are Mystique's ability, Shadowcat's, and my personal favorite, Wolverine's accelerated healing. It saved my life more than once." Eli smiled at the thought. "My genetic mutation is what inspired me to get my doctorate in biology. I graduated in a quarter of the time that it would for an ordinary person. But it does have it's disadvantages, like all mutations."
"Do you think your abilities will be able to help us with our research?" Rachel asked.
"I'm not is as strong as I used to be. I won't know until we need it. You're very… understanding about me being a mutant. Most people are wary of mutants; to the point that they refuse to even associate with them. Is it because your brother was a mutant?"
"I took the Cure," said Rachel. "I was a mutant."
Eli nodded and somehow managed to keep her mouth shut about the cure being faulty. The pilot came into the cabin of the plane. "We'll be taking off in about fifteen minutes, Miss Potts."
"Thank you," Eli said to the man, before she turned to Rachel. "Are you ready for this?"
"My entire future rides on us finding that map. Now is better than never." Rachel said with a bright smile. Eli was getting whiplash at how fast Rachel could go from happy to angry to depressing and then back to happy, but that was something that Eli could live with.
At some point before getting to the airport in New York Eli fell asleep. She was thankful that she didn't dream of anything in particular. Occasionally she would dream of of fields of flowers and towers. Like the ones that she would have when she was a child. The one where she was Rapunzel and she would let her hair down for her prince. It was nonsense, but it was her favorite dream when she was young. Now that she was older it was a silly thought. At some point in her life, she stopped wanting to be the one that needed to be rescued. She wanted to be the rescuer.
Eli groaned when someone was shaking her awake. "Eli, Eli, your phone keeps going off."
Eli took her phone from Rachel's hands. "Hello?"
"Eli, it's Becca. I wanted to let you know that your proposal to the board has gone through, and that you're going to need to meet the board again when you get back to the States." said friend. Eli groaned.
"Alright, alright. I'll look at my schedule when I get settled into the hotel. I'll call you back when I figure it out." Eli hung up the phone without another word and allowed herself to go back to sleep. The brunette briefly wondered if Rachel was bored before she fell back into slumber.
London was chilly this time of year and it had Eli regretting wearing a dress. She was going to have to change when she gets to the hotel. Rachel followed closely behind the shorter woman. Rachel was looking around wide eyed at everything. Eli wondered if this was the first time that Rachel had been outside of the States. Eli could sense Rachel's surprise when they came upon a small bed and breakfast that was quaint.
"This is my favorite bed and breakfast in London. It reminds me of a little cottage, and not many people know about this place." Eli explained as she knocked on the door. "The owners are very kind, and they love having visitors." An older woman who looked to be sixty opened the door. When the elderly woman saw Eli she smiled brightly.
"Eli, dear, it's so good to see you," the woman said happily. "John, Eli is here!"
"Mrs. Hudson, I'm so glad to see you. I don't want to bother you or Mr. Hudson, but I was hoping the large rooms upstairs are still available for my friend and I to use while we're in the city." Eli said with a smile.
"Of course, of course," Mrs. Hudson said while ushering the two girls inside the home. "I'll have the rooms clean and proper in a jiffy."
Eli smiled at the use of the word jiffy. The brunette had gotten the woman stuck on the word the last time she was here. "Thank you so much, Mrs. Hudson." An older gentleman came down the stairs to meet the girls in the foyer. He was balding on the top of his head. "Hello, Mr. Hudson, how have you been?"
"I'm as fit as a fiddle, and don't let the wife tell you otherwise." the old man laughed. "And have you been well, Eli?"
"I've been recovering from a severe case of the flu, but the doctor gave me the all clear a few weeks ago. I'm doing quite well now." Eli explained. Mrs. Hudson fussed with Eli for a moment, putting her hand on the small woman's forehead and took her pulse. Eli laughed and insisted that she was feeling much better than what she was feeling a few months ago. It took a little convincing to get the older woman to calm down. Mr. Hudson was shaking his head at his wife.
"Let me introduce you to my friend and colleague; this is Rachel Turner. Rachel, this is Mr. and Mrs. Hudson." said Eli.
"It's nice to meet you," Rachel said shyly and stepped up next to Eli. The elderly couple welcomed the college student with arms wide open, and Rachel felt embarrassed at how kind the two were being to her. Eli said that she would get used to it. The had settled themselves into the two large rooms after Eli showed Rachel how to open the wall divider between the two rooms.
Eli looked for the classic V.R. on the far wall, but the Hudsons had covered the old gun holes carefully and completely. Eli smiled fondly at the little bed and breakfast's history. "Jarvette, I'm going to set up all of the equipment in this room, and I can ask Rachel to keep all of the material artifacts in her room. I also want you to start a file titled 'The World Map'. Once we get started, I want Rachel to have access to the file as well. Be sure to make back ups of the file as well." Eli groaned as she felt tired again. She was going to force herself to stay awake until after dinner.