"I can't find them," Sean said, jogging back to the mansion breathless, "If they were anywhere within a mile they would have heard me calling."
Moira shot a concerned look at Charles. He returned it. She knew he wanted to be out there searching the grounds himself because she felt the same thing. However, she stayed with him to work the walkie-talkies that had been distributed through the party.
However, no one knew how far into the woods Lorna had gone. No one even knew if Alex had found her. Charles' wheelchair would hinder him greatly as they went through the woods. Now that it was dark that risk was doubled. Visibility was greatly decreased for everyone except Hank with his feral senses. If Charles was hurt then the whole rescue party would have to stop.
Instead it was up to Mystique to head the search through the woods she had played in as a child. Erik was with her, trying to make sure that nothing had happened to his daughter. She shifted David on her hip. Moira understood. If something had happened to David she would be trying to move heaven and earth to get him back.
Hank jogged up the path, looking worried. He stood beside Sean and wiped his forehead with the back of his hand.
"I found where they were," he said, "I could smell them there."
"And?" asked Charles.
He shifted.
"They fell and there were markings where they were dragged off," he said, "I smelt something chemical in the air too; some sort of tranquilizer. Their trail is faint; I think whoever it was had some sort of overland transportation. They were definitely professionals."
She started and gripped David tighter.
"I found this," Hank said.
He proffered what looked like the glass covering to a watch. All around its rim were small markings. Moira recognized it.
"Standard issue for watches, so agents can recognize one another," she said, "I think that's from the CIA."
"I recognized it too," said Hank, "But I think it's a scientific division. I used to have one of these."
"Stryker then," Moira said, her face hard.
"I'd know if he'd found us," Charles said.
He closed his eyes and bit his lip.
"I'll need to tighten security," said Charles, "Call Erik Moira. Tell him that his daughter and Alex have been taken, and that we're going to investigate the nearest CIA facility."
The throbbing in his neck woke Alex. He groaned and opened his eyes. It was then that the other parts of him that hurt clambered for attention. His arms and legs both ached. His chest was cold and he realized that his shirt had been removed. Alex tried to touch his chest but something held him back. When he turned to look he found that he was hooked into some sort of contraption. Cuffs and needles were poised over his skin. His head had been put into a fixed position over a metal backing. On his chest were needles so thick that they looked like knives.
"The hell?" he said.
"You're awake. Good."
The lights turned on, momentarily blinding him. A woman in a white lab coat and heels came into the room. She smiled brightly at him and unclipped a pen from a clipboard.
"Now then, Mr. Alexander Summers," she said, "I hear you have a special talent."
"Get lost lady," he snapped.
"Ooh, temper," she said, "That's something the prison wardens wrote about. That and your love for solitary confinement. That's good; this is the ultimate solitary."
"Yeah, whatever. Who are you?" demanded Alex.
"You can call me Dr. Jackson," she said, still bright, "Or Martinique. Yes, Martinique is so much less formal. And if anybody hears you they'll think you're just being strange. They all call me Maria you see."
"O-kay," said Alex.
He looked around the room. It was small and bare, like a cell with several tanks like they carried oxygen in. Panic set in when he couldn't find Lorna.
"Where's-"
Alex stopped himself. The longer they went without knowing who she was the better.
"Where's Polaris?" he asked.
"The green-haired girl?" Martinique said, "Oh, her. We were going to have her in here earlier, but she woke up earlier than you. Still drugged but put up quite the fight. Metal, who knew? I had to hit her quite hard to put her under again. Then we had to give her a double dose of drugs and move her where there wasn't any metal."
His throat started to constrict. Oh God this wasn't good.
"You know, I hear my boss was looking for a girl with green hair," said Martinique thoughtfully, "Apparently she got spirited away along with another little mutant to God only knows where. I wonder, is she the same girl?"
"I have no idea what you're talking about," he said coldly, his heart hammering.
Tucking her pen behind her ear she shrugged.
"Doesn't matter. I'm through doing Stryker's dirty work. This is my pet project and I will do with it as I please, thank you very much."
"Whatever," said Alex, trying not to show his relief, "You didn't answer my question. Where is she?"
"Who?" asked Martinique.
"Polaris!" he snapped, half in irritation and half in frustration.
"Oh, the green-haired girl," Martinique said, "You should have said. She's next door; not hooked up to the same machine you are. Still hooked up, but to a much friendlier contraption. But never fear, we're connected through the air vents."
She pointed cheerfully.
"I didn't install it; I'm not sure why all these cells are so well ventilated. But it's convenient, because it means that you two lovebirds can talk to each other," said Martinique, "My sister found you two hugging pretty ardently."
Martinique grinned and put on a look of mock scandalization.
"Sneaking out of the mansion for some private time were we? And in the woods no less. You have no class Mr. Summers."
"Go to hell," he snapped.
"Temper again," said Martinique, tapping her clipboard, "We've been looking for you, or someone like you, for a long time. Do you know what you emit through your pores?"
"Lasers," he snapped, "want a demonstration?"
"By all means," she said, delighted, "It will be sucked up through all those little needles and put in the tanks. You see, it's not lasers. It's cosmic radiation. And my family needs it. So if you'd be so good as to use your power as much as possible the machine will just suck it up. You'd have to release it voluntarily or it won't work. Now it will be very painful, but no gain without pain."
She giggled.
"And you will, of course, die after a few days of this. But we can't help that," she said, "When you die we'll just go looking for your brother. I hear he can do the same thing as you, but through his eyes. That will certainly call for a readjustment of the needles. How interesting."
"You leave Scott alone psycho," he snapped.
"We'll have to get to him sometime," she said, "We'll have to get every cosmic energy emitting mutant. Depends how much we need really. You might even have enough energy to meet our needs for the time being. What do you think about that?"
Alex started to wonder if he was dreaming. It certainly did seem like a dream, except for the fact that Lorna was in it. Whenever she was in his dreams she wasn't in the room next door.
"You really think that that's going to convince me to help you?" he asked, "Because it doesn't seem like much of an incentive to me."
"No, I didn't think so," shrugged Martinique, "I thought I could torture you out of your little skull into doing it. My family is into old school. Eye for an eye old school. I can create illusions, part of my mutation."
He stared at her.
"If you're a mutant then why are you doing this?" he demanded, "You work at a facility that tortures other mutants!"
"Um, because I want to?" she shrugged, "And if it makes you feel better, you're the only test subjects here. But I have no need to create illusions now. I was given a much more sophisticated method of doing this. Besides, the more I torture you the less time you'll last."
From her pocket she took what looked like a thick gray box with a switch, dial, and a button. Tucking her clipboard under her arm she folded out an antennae. She flipped the switch and then turned the dial up. With a smile that made shivers go up his spine, she pressed the button.
Through the vents he heard Lorna's screams. It was all he could do not to call out her real name.
"POLARIS!" he screamed.
Martinique laughed. He turned his gaze on her and struggled against his bonds.
"Let her go you crazy bitch!" he yelled.
"Temper again," she said, raising her voice to be heard over Lorna's screams, "Look, I'll turn it off if you emit your cosmic energy like a good little prisoner."
His head pounded. He didn't want to give in, but he could still hear her screaming.
"I'll do it!" he yelled.
She pushed the button. Lorna's screams subsided into loud gasps.
"Now that wasn't so hard," Martinique said, walking over to a switch on the wall, "Now, when the needles go into your chest, blast as hard as you can until you can't anymore. We'll end when you pass out or just about. Then we start another day. Understand? If you don't we'll have Polaris serenade us some more."
Gritting his teeth in shame he nodded. Martinique flipped the switch. Needles pierced his flesh, stabbing through his muscle. He bit back a groan, determined not to show her how much this was hurting him. When the ones went into his chest he couldn't resist gasping. The last thing on his mind was using his power but Martinique jiggling her switch box.
He concentrated and let his power flow. It felt like the needles were stabbing into him further, twisting in deeply. They heated up like hot irons. Alex couldn't help the screams that tore out of his throat then. From somewhere off the distant thought came that, if he had been able to hear Lorna's screams, then she was probably able to hear his too.
A/N: This scenario is based on something that happened to Havok and Polaris while they were with the Starjammers and had been captured by Vulcan. Everything was neatly arranged so they could hear each other screaming. Marvel can think up some real dark stuff, can't it?