Chapter 33: "Tour Guides and Thralls"
Annie had been enjoying a more relaxed Scott before everything that had happened in Latveria. A huge part of it, she knew, was that he was so wrapped up in the glow of Chance that he hadn't had time to stress about other things. She even teased him sometimes that she had to fight him just to hold Chance when she wasn't feeding him.
But now, he was anxious, his foot bouncing even when he was holding Chance. So she sat next to him and put her head on his shoulder. Penny for your thoughts.
James should be going with Nate and that whole group, he told her with no hesitation, which meant it was bothering him so much it was top of mind.
She raised an eyebrow. I thought he was.
He's not.
Why not? Azazel has his blood!
You think I didn't already make that argument? Scott sighed and rested his head on hers while Chance chewed on his toy keys. But he's the only one with an open tie to Heaven. And considering the deal he tried to make, we need to coordinate with the other side.
But he's your son.
I'm aware.
Annie frowned as she reached across him to play with Chance. Aren't you worried?
Obviously. Scott let out a long breath. But we need that connection to Heaven. We know where Azazel is trying to go, and we can't get there without help. He's our best bet. He didn't say anything else, but Annie got a brief glimpse through their connection of the tenor of his thoughts. Choices like this, hard calls, were exactly why he had resisted letting the kids on the team.
It wasn't that he wasn't willing to make them. He just didn't want them to.
And, for just a second, she saw a glimpse of the last time he had seen Charles Xavier. And the call he'd been asked to make. And the constant fear in the back of his mind that he'd make the wrong call again.
And maybe he still had a lot of work to do with Craig, even if he had been making progress.
He definitely wasn't going to tell Annie about the near shouting match with James - or anyone else on the team for that matter. It was more important that everyone see him supporting James and making plans to keep him safe than it was for anyone to know the kid refused to consider any other option. And he wasn't going to tell Annie that he was half convinced James had coaching from the other side for how much he'd been channeling Logan. That was between him and James.
Besides, he wanted to give it another go now that Kate was elsewhere. Knowing what he did - and knowing what James must have known and scented - he didn't think James was capable of having a rational conversation when he was that worked up.
Give him time to cool down, and maybe he'd see sense.
Or, at least, that was the thought.
The next morning when he found James - before anyone else was really up and about yet - James still looked like he was chewing over the best way to take someone apart. So, Scott sat down next to him and refilled his coffee without a word, simply sitting there for a moment so they could wake up together.
"Thanks, Dad."
"You're welcome." Scott let the quiet sit between them for a while before he cleared his throat. "We can send you with America after the first check-in."
James frowned at that, his nose wrinkled up. "Absolutely not."
"I know you want to stay, but realistically-"
"Realistically, I'm the intermediary. For one thing. If nothing else, that's a factor. A huge one."
"And the factor I'm considering is that he'll have control of you. The last thing I want you to go through, James, is to be forced to turn on someone you love - and you don't have to."
"I don't see a better option. I can't leave Mia with no backup. And I'm not going to let Tommy hang either."
"If anything, you could be putting another target on her if he knows he can summon you by getting close to her," Scott pointed out.
"He already knows that, Dad."
"He knew that before he had control of you, James. Now, he has a way to bring a servant to him. Have you thought about that?"
"Of course I have," James said, sounding exasperated.
"You'd have Wanda and Billy there with you, and they could get messages the second you had something from the other side to tell us."
"Wanda needs to focus on Billy," James said firmly.
"Wanda is capable of multitasking."
"Wanda doesn't need to worry about anything but the whole group she has with her."
"Are you really going to tell me you don't want to be there with them too?" Scott asked, trying a different tactic.
"That's not the point," James growled out. "I've got Hank putting a tracker in my head that I won't be able to dig out. I'll be a quick way for you to find the creep and Lorna can stop me with a thought."
Scott pointed at him. "You're not thinking clearly, James. You and I both know that what happened with Kate - you don't lose your temper or growl at me that fast when you're not pissed. And you can't be making decisions because you want someone to pay, James."
"It's not about making him pay, Dad - it's about taking him out. He came too damn close to getting what he wanted and I'll be damned if I let that happen." The growl was still rolling easy, and James was getting visibly tense.
"Then don't give him a tool to get there!"
"His next target, if I don't stick around is Frank. You think he and his family can hold up against this guy? You want him taking specs and ideas out of the Richards, who actually know how to make it happen?"
"They also know how to disappear," Scott said dryly.
"I already sent them a text to stay gone. Anyone else he tries to get will run with the stolen blueprints. I have backup they don't." He turned toward Scott fully. "It's not just me running this. Pretty sure it's a matter of malicious compliance."
Scott shook his head. "I know you know how to take care of yourself. And I have full faith in your mom's ability to twist whatever he says."
"Then what the hell is the problem?" James half shouted. "I'm doing what I have to."
"You're putting yourself in danger, and I don't think you're thinking clearly enough to see the loopholes!"
"That's the damn job, Dad. You know that."
"You're growling at the drop of a hat, you're pissed as hell, and the level of care you need to exhibit to navigate the loopholes of demon deals - James, at least take a damn break before you put yourself on the line."
"What do you think I'm doing right now?" James shot back. "I'm not out hunting the guy. I'm not looking for trouble. I'm trying to recharge and be available to share intel. I don't need to hop dimensions to do that." By that time, James was clearly on edge, and having trouble keeping his temper even as far as he was. And when he realized it, he stopped and put both hands on the table to push back slightly, then closed his eyes and pressed a hand to his eyes as he tried to center himself.
"That's what I'm talking about, James. Right there. I don't want you fighting on empty."
James sighed, making a point to cycle his breathing. "It's not that I'm on empty," James said in a metered tone. "It's probably just the freakin' adamantium poisoning."
Scott blinked once and then twice and then swore under his breath, dropping into his seat that he hadn't realized he'd stood from. "Damnit, Logan, I wish you were here," he said half under his breath.
"To be fair, I don't think he knew that's what it was, either," James said in that same metered tone.
"No, but it makes sense," Scott said, dragging a hand down his face. "God knows the fights were worse when we hadn't slept or eaten - poisoning on top of that… damnit, Logan."
"Damning the wrong person," James pointed out dryly.
"Yeah, yeah." Scott waved his hand. He made a real effort to take a breath. "I understand why you want to stay. And in front of the team, I'll have your back. One hundred percent. But I'm also your father, and god knows I know what it is to be used against your family. And I just want to make sure - I just want to keep you safe. If I can."
James leaned into his hand as he considered how best to respond to Scott. "There isn't a way to do that right now," he said. "I will do my best - you know that. But leaving now doesn't do anything to help in the long run. You want to help? Talk Mia into going at the next check in - if you can make sure that sending her won't draw him to her in another dimension."
"That's the worry," Scott admitted. "I've already talked to her and to Storm and Forge, and we can't guarantee that he won't be able to find her."
"I have full faith that Wanda will annihilate that blood tie for Billy as soon as she works it out. But to be honest, I'm a little wary of any more magic right now, okay?" He frowned as he thought it over. "And … I think I have a fair shot at it not being as potent as it should be." He put his hand down and looked as if he was studying Scott, thinking over everything that had happened recently. "'No magic on James' …" He said it in a breath that was quiet enough there was no way Scott had caught it. He blinked a few times, holding his breath before he met Scott's gaze and launched into an explanation. "At Doom's place, Billy put a spell on me to stop more magic from happening to me. 'No magic on James'… thats what he said."
Scott eyebrows shot up, and then, he let out a laugh that it didn't sound like he was expecting. "Hot damn, why didn't you say something?"
"I … forgot about it." James gestured with both hands, talking faster as he thought it over. "He had a little juice and did what he could to keep Doom's stupid spell on me from working … but he phrased it so I think … I might be alright. I don't think he can do anything to me unless Billy lifts the spell."
"That… might actually work to our favor." Scott leaned forward, resting his chin on one hand, starting to smile. "That changes things. Especially if Azazel doesn't realize you're not enthralled."
"I hate that word."
"Sorry."
"There's probably still something there," James said. "I just don't think it's full power. At least, that's what I'm gonna operate under unless I find out otherwise."
Scott nodded slowly. "Even so, keep your mother close to you. That woman could twist literally anything to her benefit; she'd be your expert for malicious compliance, no matter what level of control Azazel has."
"Yeah, she approved of a few of my past ideas," James agreed.
"Perfect." Scott let his hand drop away and then got to his feet to get more coffee. "Let's kill this bastard fast; I don't like how close he is to our family."
"Dad. That's the plan," James said flatly. "Has been from the word 'go'."
"Had to say it out loud." He let that hang in the air between them for a minute before he refilled James' coffee too. "Annie's worried about you, by the way."
"What did I do now?" James asked.
"She knows the full story, including the blood magic concerns, from the projection happening when everyone got back. So…"
James hummed as he picked up his mug. "She's got plenty to worry about making sure you don't do something stupid and selfless in the middle of all this."
"She's got plenty to do because she's going out for the team," Scott said with a crooked, understated smile.
"Oh, so you're worried she's going to do something stupid and selfless in the middle of all this."
"Damn straight I am. You've met her, haven't you?"
"No. Not even once," James said thickly.
Scott chuckled dryly. "You should sit in on a training session with her once she's had more time to train. She and Ororo have been working in their spare time."
"When she's ready, I'll work with her if she wants," James offered.
"I think she'd like that more than you know," Scott said, his smile getting warmer.
"Yeah, well … part of the job, too, right?" He tapped Scott's shoulder with the back of his hand. "When are you gonna spar with me?"
"Whenever you're ready," Scott said, smirking.
"How long do you have to wait after breakfast so you don't get a tummy ache?" James teased.
"You're hilarious. I'm old, not decrepit."
"I'm serious," James said.
"Just meet me down there in an hour. I need to grab Chance for a little bit anyway; rough night."
"Gonna preload on painkillers?" James teased. "Anti-inflammatories?"
"You're very funny."
"Again … I'm serious."
"You're cracking my wife up from across the house, and she's supposed to be sleeping and not eavesdropping," Scott said, shaking his head.
"Because she knows I'm right. You're gonna go bust into that ibuprofen as soon as I turn my back."
"See you there, James," Scott said, shaking his head at him.
"Eat something with it," James called out. "Or it might upset your tummy."
"Up, Mom."
Kate rolled over in her hammock to see that David was trying to get out of the crib they'd set up between hers and Nate's hammocks. America had picked the best beach location in some dimension that she promised was safe to hide away in, and she had been dead to the world asleep until then.
But there was David, peeking over the top of his crib, grinning crookedly and trying his very best to get his leg through the bars of the crib. He wasn't tall enough to actually get out, but he was putting in every bit of effort that she expected from any child of hers and Nate's.
She stretched lazily and glanced at Nate, who had also woken up and was obviously waiting for her input. If she asked, he would take David for her.
It was nice to have the safety net, but she didn't want to use it. She didn't want to need it. So, with a tired smile, she slipped over to where David was and picked him up to toss him into the air and catch him again to set him down.
That was easier to deal with: running after him, throwing him around, playing with him. None of that involved his face too close to hers or the sensation of someone else's skin on hers. And David rarely stayed still; she wanted to make sure to play with him so he didn't feel like she didn't want him, even if snuggles were… a lot to handle.
David grabbed hold of her finger to get her to come with him, and she let him lead her out to the beach. She kept tight hold of his hand once they were at the water's edge, though she noted that Wanda had suddenly appeared nearby, looking frazzled until she saw that Kate had David with her. She had set up a spell so that she'd know the second David was in the water, just in case he escaped someone's supervision.
It was nice to have an experienced mom on a trip like this, to think of things like that.
"I got him," Kate called out, and Wanda nodded but came to sit with her all the same, not far from the two of them as she pulled her hair back into a ponytail rather than trying to tame her bedhead.
"Helps to have a second set of eyes," Wanda said simply.
Kate smiled at that and came to sit by Wanda as they watched David sit in the sand and start to squish handfuls of the sea-wet sand between his fingers, giggling at the sensation. "Thanks," she said quietly.
"I had twins, and I remember dealing with that while trying to be an Avenger."
"How'd you do it?"
"I can't say I did," Wanda admitted with a soft smile. "Not long after the boys were born, my father offered us a permanent place on Genosha, in its leadership. And Pietro wanted desperately to prove he could live up to that trust."
Kate smiled as she watched David switch from squishing sand to watching a small alien bird trying to catch its breakfast, digging and scratching in the sand far from where they were but close enough to have David's attention. "You must miss him," she said.
"Every day."
"I don't know what I'd do without Lexi and Jimmy, and we're not even twins."
Wanda nodded, lapsing into silence before she got up, seeing David look away from the bird toward the water. She scooped him up before he could get into the waves and then looked back toward Kate. "Mind if I take him for a swim?" she asked, already casting a spell so that they were in their bathing suits.
Kate smiled. "Go ahead. I'll put some breakfast together while I'm awake."
"Sounds perfect." Wanda waded into the shallow water with David, pulling him along under his armpits so he could kick and splash in the water safely.
And it was nice, Kate reflected, to have so many people in her family and on the teams who knew what to do. Who had been through hell and were still okay. Kate wasn't even terribly close to Wanda, not like she was with her in-laws or with the Avengers she grew up with. But she didn't doubt for a second that Wanda had her back. And she was very lucky.
And it was nice to get some time away to remember that.
Mia was trying not to be alone, if she could help it. She knew that her grandfather had her blood, and she knew that was a problem for Billy and James. And she knew she was a liability in an even more concerning way.
It had helped, actually, to talk to James that afternoon. He'd come to find her after the fight with his dad (though she didn't know about the fight), and he'd explained his theory that Billy had given him a little extra juice. That was important for her to know, too, because there was no guarantee he'd show up if her grandfather got close to her again.
So, she'd been practicing what she'd say if he did show up. She was a decent actress, but her grandfather scared her, and she wanted to look more assured than she actually was.
And on top of that, not having that safety net of knowing James would come to her had her more panicked than usual. And she was not going to venture out on her own. Not for any reason.
Even with her finals going on, she had talked to Vision about the possibility of an escort. Which was how she'd had Vision lurking in the corner of every single one of her finals for the last few days.
It was weird. And it definitely wasn't how she wanted to end her first year of college.
But after her finals, she was set to meet up with Tommy, and that was worth getting excited about, especially now that they were dating again. He was a bit more discreet with her than they had been when they were first dating, and she understood the reasoning behind that - but that didn't mean she didn't rush to throw her arms around his neck the second she saw him.
Tommy laughed and picked her up in a spinning hug. "Oh, hi!"
"Hi yourself. Are you done with your finals yet?"
"As of this morning. Had time to run back home and pick up something from your dad's workshop, too," Tommy said, pulling out a small bag that had her grinning, because she knew what was in it. With Azazel worryingly hanging around, her dad, James, and Natasha had teamed up to build her a modified version of some Widow's Bites. These sent out a small spray of water from a tube of holy water inserted into the cuffs, and that water was the perfect conductor for the electricity. And James had added something that would send a message to his phone if they were used, so even if the alarm spell didn't work, he had a way to notify someone about the trouble.
Mia grinned as she slipped them on and bounced slightly in place. "I wish Kate was here. She and Lexi have had their own versions of these on and off, and I bet she could help me get the aim just right."
"Why not ask Lexi?"
"She's got finals too."
"Fair." Tommy threw his arm around her shoulder once she had the Bites all set. "So… summer vacation. Any big plans?"
"Yeah - get rid of the family pain in the ass."
"Oooh, good plans. I was thinking more about, you know, a glass boat tour or something…"
"That could be fun," Mia agreed, her tail slowly swaying behind her. "What about … oh, I don't know. Maybe actually taking in the waterfalls and mountains around here?"
"Walking? Slowly? With me? Novel," Tommy teased.
"Woah, woah, woah. Let's not jump to conclusions here, I just meant once we got there we could … actually see them instead of how it's always been before."
"I mean, if that's what you want to do on your first day of summer, I'm down, but for the record, there wasn't a thing wrong with how it's always been before," he said, grinning crookedly.
"No, I'm not saying there is, but I mean in addition to anything like a little makeout session here or there, I would like to see the here or there."
"I mean…" Tommy rubbed the back of his neck. "Fair. Especially if I want you to stick around, you know? You should probably…" He trailed off. "It sounds stupidly corny but, you know, I'm kinda the prince of the place and I want you to like it?"
She nodded slowly. "Mmhmm. And I should know a little bit more about the island itself, too, don't you think?" She bumped him with her hip. "You'd make a really cute tour guide."
"I'm the cutest tour guide," he said, drawing himself up.
"Yeah? Prove it," she teased.
"Okay then. Our tour begins three steps outside of the campus," he said, zipping her over to that point on purpose with a playful grin. "To your left, you'll see the school. To your right, we see the start of the jungles my family has been encouraging to grow more and more so this place isn't just metal like it was when I was a kid."
"Oooh, you think I can ask your dad to share the photos of teeny tiny Tommy when we're not on a tour?"
"If you ask my dad, he will show you tiny streaker Tommy, I swear to God."
"I am not even a little bit surprised," Mia laughed. "All … white hair and zip."
"And a tiny terror, apparently. There are family stories my mom has been holding back that she's already informed me she'll be telling to whoever I get engaged to. Which is a whole thing. She's such a dork sometimes. Like, Billy-level dork."
"I think it's sweet," Mia said, grinning brightly. "Especially the part where she's not sharing it with anyone but whoever gets lucky enough to - well." She cleared her throat. "I think … you were at jungle? Maybe?"
Tommy turned pink for a second before he said, too loudly, "Yep! Jungle!" He winced into a smile. "Anyway, ummm… Okay, so, background. This whole place was metal, and then my mom had kids and informed my grandfather that the island needed to be a place where kids could grow up. So we started importing plants from closer biomes, ya know?"
"I'll bet. Talk about oversight … who wants to live on a metal hot plate on the equator?" Mia asked, still smiling since she knew picking on Magneto was still one of Tommy's favorite defaults.
"Right? I mean, foresight was not his thing," Tommy said, laughing as they walked deeper into the jungle. "So, yeah, I mean, the jungle is getting bigger all the time - because the island is getting bigger. Aunt Lorna has been subtly expanding it all the time because more mutants are born every day, and it looks on the outside like we're seamlessly taking everyone in and no one knows she's just been building and building in her spare time."
"I love that," Mia said. "And I'm guessing your mom has the jungles enchanted to keep up?"
"For the first several years. But she's had Leslie Ann come here and practice. I am about ninety percent sure that Scott asked her to do that so she had a big playground to practice her powers."
"Sounds right to me," Mia agreed, enjoying their chat as they went through the deep green all around them. "So … what about your favorite spots here in the jungle?"
"Well, there's a spot not far from here with a waterfall. Aunt Lorna built that in, and me and my cousins have gone there a few times to just have, you know, family quiet time. Believe it or not, that's hard to come by. And it's close to the palace, so people who come here to be in nature don't usually get that close to interrupt."
"Oooh, yes, that sounds perfect."
Tommy grinned - but didn't zip her there the way he was tempted to. Instead, he walked out to the spot with her, telling her stories about how when he'd gotten his powers, he'd tried them out with errands from his parents to go find cool plants and bring them back to make this place more beautiful. He'd had no idea what would grow well together or anything like that, but his favorite was when he'd gone out of his way to find any carnivorous plant he could get his hands on.
Eventually, they got to the waterfall, which was secluded from view of the walking paths through the jungle. They had to part some ivy to get to the spot, and the waterfall was quiet enough that it might have been overlooked, overshadowed by the sounds of wildlife around them.
Mia let out an audible gasp when she saw the tall waterfall, but her reaction was even better as her tail stilled and she just stared at the loads of vanilla orchids growing nearby. "Oh … wow." She took a few steps forward to look at them closer, a smile creeping onto her features as she saw them in detail. "Mom has wanted to get these to grow for ages."
"Oh, hey, if I'd known that, I would have taken you to the family hiding spot forever ago," Tommy said, grinning to match her.
"This is so cool," she said with a little laugh.
Tommy grinned and dropped to sit on one of the larger rocks near the base of the falls, watching her walk around and admire the flowers. He waited for her to get her fill before, when she looked toward him again, he splashed her with a ton of water he'd been slowly gathering.
She gasped in false surprise before she teleported over and tackled him into the water.
He grinned and pulled her into a long kiss, but before they could get any farther than that, he tickled her side to get her to pull back slightly. "Okay, but this is the family hideaway spot and we all swore this wouldn't be any other kind of spot, just so you know."
"Okay," she said, nodding with a grin. "Then I guess you better find something comparable, tour guide Tommy."
"You got it," he agreed, picking her up to zip off with her to the opposite edge of the jungle, where Lorna had been building it out a bit and so most people didn't know it went out that far. It was new enough that they could see the metal under the sand, but the edge of the jungle met that newer area at a cliff that dropped into a cave or two - where there were fewer mosquitos and a much better chance that they wouldn't get interrupted.
Tommy grinned as he set her down and gestured around them at the way the caves glittered. "My aunt is really good at finding natural metals and building out as much natural stuff as she can. If any of the visiting diplomats ever realized how much precious metal we've got down here…. I mean, makes for a really pretty cave, though, right? I'm getting an A in Tour Guide 101?"
"You are totally getting an A in Tour Guide 101," she agreed, once again smiling at their surroundings and taking it all in.
"Most people don't see this part of Genosha, you know," Tommy said, grinning as he watched her walk around the cave. "I mean, I know I complain about it all the time, but this is home, and I'm proud of it, you know? It's the family project. We all helped."
"It's like nothing else on Earth," she said, still smiling more than she had been in months. "Thank you for showing it to me."
"Hey, if it gets you in this good a mood, I'm sorry it took me this long," he said, wrapping his arms around her.
"I don't know that we would have gotten away with it when your grandfather was in charge," Mia pointed out.
"I don't know. He liked you," Tommy said, shrugging lightly. "He never had a problem with anyone I dated… I think. But he approved of you."
"Well, you seem to be showing off exceptionally good taste…"
"Yeah, what's that say about you?" Tommy teased.
"Um … I always have the best tastes."
"Sure do," he said and pulled her into a long and involved kiss.
They were just getting involved when they heard a familiar sound close by - and just hearing something close to them was enough to get both of them pausing, even if they didn't want to slow down. But the sound was too much like the one Mia made when she teleported.
"Your timing sucks; go away," Tommy said, trying to decide if he wanted to try to pull Mia's shirt back down or not.
"Only if I were interrupting something more fruitful," Azazel shot back, though he was frowning as he looked between the two of them. He was sure he was close enough … the cave shouldn't have been a factor if he was correct about the spell that so far, had drawn James to Mia's defense.
"It was headed that way; go away," Tommy said, though Mia rolled her eyes at him and lightly hit him with the back of her hand as she pulled away to better face her grandfather.
"What do you want?" Mia asked, her tail coming uncurled from Tommy to move frantically behind her, revealing her anxiety despite her narrowed eyes.
Azazel smirked her way. "I suppose at the moment I'd like to know where your little guard dog is."
Mia bared her pointed teeth. "You have his blood. What makes you think I'd keep a spell on my best friend to give you easy access?"
Azazel tutted. "I was under the impression that you were in his protection. I wasn't planning to keep him from defending you."
"And he's under my protection too."
Azazel laughed outright. "Not really a worthwhile endeavor when he's so quick to heal, is it?"
"He's my best friend; I'll always look out for him," Mia said, lifting her chin to meet his gaze more squarely.
He smiled crookedly. "Well, then I suppose I'll simply have to make him heel on my own."
"Good luck with that," Tommy said under his breath - but loud enough he knew Azazel could hear him.
Azazel bared his teeth toward Tommy, only to find himself frowning once more. "What happened to your brother?" he asked, sounding highly suspicious.
"What do I look like, his parole officer?" Tommy gestured to himself. "He does what he wants."
Azazel clearly wasn't about to admit that he couldn't feel the other side of that particular blood tie. Not to someone who could report back to their elder compatriots, anyhow. But … both princes would be a fair enough prize - and excellent leverage if need be. So, irritated, and in no mood to play around, he teleported to just behind Tommy.
Tommy, of course, saw the teleport coming. And his reflexes were faster than the teleport was. All he had to do was not be where he'd just been, side step, and zip around behind Azazel. And just because he could, he tied a quick knot in the guy's tail and zipped over to the opposite wall to kick up against it with his arms crossed. "You got a little something going on with your tail. Dunno if you noticed. Might wanna get it looked at."
Azazel growled and turned his attention to Mia, but she was waiting for him to do so and before he could port to her, she raised the widow's bites and fired. But she didn't stick around to see the end result, either.
Tommy gave her a quick kiss when she teleported to him, but his attention was on Azazel, who had cried out in genuine pain when the electrified holy water hit him and sent him to his knees. "Want to go get backup?" he whispered to her. "I'll stay here and make sure he stays down."
"Very much," Mia agreed - but when she tried to teleport away, she simply reappeared exactly where she'd been looking confused.
"What's the holdup?" Tommy asked, frowning her way.
"I"m trying," she said, wide eyed and frustrated as she tried - and failed once again.
Tommy looked between Azazel and Mia as he realized what the problem was. "Now, that's not fair," he muttered under his breath. Mia was still under her grandfather's control, and he wasn't letting her leave. He grumbled for a second longer, but if Azazel was already giving Mia orders, Tommy knew he needed to get her out. So, he picked her up and ran her straight to Westchester, figuring the distance would solve a lot of problems.
Meanwhile, James and Forge had finished the array of trackers that James wanted Hank to implant into him for when Azazel got a hold of him or cornered him again. They took their creations to the lab where Hank was waiting and ready to help.
"Are you prepared to do this without a fight?" Hank asked James as he and Forge came to a stop in front of him.
James looked over to Forge, and gestured openly. "I mean … I know what you have to do, and I know most of it should be fine…"
"All the same, do the easy ones first," Forge said as he handed over the half dozen or so trackers that would go into the large muscle groups.
James and Hank shared a look before James hopped up on a nearby stretcher and laid back, breathing slowly as he reminded himself that this was his idea … and it was Hank. Not anyone that wanted to hurt him.
And for the first few, that was fine. But by the last few, James was obviously starting to topple into 'panic attack'. He wasn't entirely there, but it was much harder to apply the trackers - and that still left the 'big' one that James knew wouldn't be removable until the fiasco was over and he was put under.
"Perhaps a small break," Hank suggested as James tried to catch his breath and simmer down.
"Yeah, maybe," James said as he got up and started pacing. He had to move … that was just a necessary thing.
"The sooner this is done, the sooner you can relax," Forge said as he looked through what was available to assist them. The fact was - no one wanted to do that last tracker when they didn't have a solid way to stop James from stabbing one of them.
"I know. I'm on board," James said - though every single thing about him spoke to the contrary. And all of that only seemed to get worse when Tyler walked in a moment later looking as if he'd steeled himself for some unpleasant task. James whipped around to find and meet Hank's gaze. "Blue?"
"You're too amped up to do this without few failsafes," Hank said - and to his surprise, James was already nodding his agreement.
"Yeah. Okay. Okay. Ty's strong enough, alright."
Forge and Hank shared a look, and Tyler stopped right in front of James. "Are you sure?"
James was shaking his head 'no' even as he said 'yes', which only had Tyler smirking to himself before he stepped behind James - and on Hank's signal, he pulled James into a pin that tweaked his arms into a position that was difficult to recover from. James was trying to cooperate, but … Hank was right. He wasn't going to go into this easy - even when he wanted to.
Before Hank could even approach them, Forge had stepped in to help stabilize James from moving at all … and in spite of their best efforts to do it quick and painless - it was pretty much anything but.
James held it back as best as he could, but to anyone that might have been watching from outside of that room - it looked barbaric as Hank injected the last tracker deeply into James's sinuses. It wasn't as simple as James had laid it out to be … and once they got started, it wasn't like they could just … stop - though Hank would have done exactly that if James hadn't made it painfully obvious that he needed this.
But that was about when Azazel peeked through the windows - just in time to see Tyler Creed and Forge holding him down in a pin while Hank was all but perched on his chest doing … something to him. James had his claws out and was trying to get out of the pin - half screaming for them to let him up … and that seemed like proof enough to Azazel as to why his newest thrall hadn't come running. He hadn't been able to. And it did look barbaric …
It was an irritation, but … one that would drive the boy mad until he found his way out of their prison and to Azazel. He could wait a bit longer. He knew that this boy was clever enough to find a way out given a chance … With a backward glance, Azazel teleported away - sure that the blood magic would work quickly enough … it always had before.
Only a few minutes passed from when Azazel teleported off and when Hank finally backed off with James positively hyperventilating as first Forge, then Tyler let him go - though they waited until he retracted his claws to do so - and for a long moment, he and Tyler stayed where they were as James got a handle on himself while sneezing repeatedly.
"Ride it out," Forge said as he looked at the laptop that was already keeping track of their devices. "It's not near a nerve, but … sensitive tissues all the same, and it is attaching."
"Great," James said between sneezes that had his head spinning. "Holy crap that hurts-"
Hank looked apologetic and ready to offer to knock him out and remove it now.
"But it looks like it will do exactly as we designed it," Forge said. "Solid signal for power - solid signal for transmission. Looks like that metal skull will be a great antenna."
"Just what I always wanted to hear," James deadpanned, though Tyler was starting to look as if he thought James was coming back around. "Sorry, Hank - it's backing off a little now. I just …"
"No, you were bound to panic," Hank said before he sat down nearby. "I should have pressed to put you to sleep first."
James was starting to calm down enough that Tyler stepped back a bit with an apologetic smile - so of course, that was when Tommy came rushing in, eyes wide.
"Oh hi, you haven't seen an obnoxious demon around, have you?" Tommy asked as carelessly as anyone could ask something like that.
"Have you?" Forge asked, immediately moving to check Tommy for any cuts.
"Uh, yeah. That's why I asked."
"Tommy," Forge started to say.
"Hey, no, it's okay. I got Mia to her mom as soon as we realized he wasn't letting her teleport away, I promise," Tommy said, misreading Forge's concern entirely.
"We were a bit occupied setting James up with a few hard to ditch trackers," Hank said.
"Right, right, how's your nose?" Tommy asked, bouncing from one foot to the other with a lot of nervous energy.
"Um … bloody?" James said. "What do you need?"
"Honestly? Just came to check on you. He straight up told us he was there looking for you," Tommy said. He ran his hand through his hair and then zipped over to be on the other side of James, peeking at the readouts they had. "Oh, also? I tied a knot in his tail 'cause he tried to grab me. So that's fun."
"Nice," James laughed - and it was the first decent bit of amusement he'd had in days.
Tommy grinned crookedly. "He was pissed. Turned redder than usual."
"How sad for him," James said. "I don't know if he's around or not."
"I'll do a quick check," Tommy said, already running off before the sentence was finished, which had the others left in the room shaking their heads.
"Did you know Azazel was here?" Hank asked. "Did you feel the spell Strange put on you at all?"
James shrugged openly. "I mean … I was in the middle of a panic attack, so I was focused on that, but before it would just yank me to her, so … no?"
"Well, that's one part of the theory tested," Forge said. "Billy's spell superceded Strange's."
"Okay but is that because of the chaos magic, or was it the Demiurge thing?" James asked. "And how would you even tell?"
Forge tapped his fingers against the screen he was looking at. "I'm sure there's a way to tell, but I don't know off the top of my head."
"We could ask Strange," James said. "I just don't know how friendly he'll be, all things considered."
"I'll talk to him," Forge offered. "My understanding is that Strange is trying to keep his distance from anyone with blood magic ties while he works up whatever he's doing to undo it. Or at least lessen its pull."
"Sounds like him," Hank said as he looked over the top of his glasses. "And it also sounds like a reasonable action to take."
James turned to Tyler. "He means you. You're his favorite anyhow."
"What, and leave you without someone who can put you on the ground?" Tyler shot back with a smirk.
"I let you," James said, pointing at him. "And you had Forge helping."
"Okay, so," Tommy said, running back into the room, "I didn't see him anywhere, so that's … something. He was definitely here before, though." He looked between the others. "What'd I miss?"
"Go back," James said. "He was here? How do you know? And can anyone tell me what I'm supposed to be aware of, sensation-wise?"
"Right, so, you know, me and Mia were on the beach," Tommy said. "We're, you know-"
"Dating. Yeah, overdue," James said, waving for him to talk faster for once.
"Right. So, yeah, we were kinda-" He glanced toward Forge. "Looking for privacy? Found it. Didn't get to do anything about it because a big, red demon showed up, asked for Mia's guard dog, got mad at me for dodging him and tying a knot in his tail, and then when Mia couldn't leave, I got her out."
"Huh," James said, arms crossed as he thought it over. "Then I guess I need to ask Mia or wait for someone else who can tell me what I'm watching for."
"I mean, he'll probably come looking for you. Mia basically told him he's an idiot for thinking she'd still leave an open tie to you so he could exploit a way to get to you. So it's not like he doesn't know he can't just show up."
"Yeah, but if Forge is right, or whatever, then Billy's spell is working. If he wanted me, and the blood magic worked, wouldn't I be unable to not like she did when she couldn't move?"
"We don't know that he was using blood magic to call you, just that he assumed Mia's alarm spell would bring you to him," Forge pointed out. "But I imagine he would have tried calling you himself after what Mia said. We just don't know for sure."
"I mean, from my experience? If Billy says something, it's law," Tommy said.
James smirked. "I won't ever tell him you said that."
"He knows what he did," Tommy shot back without missing a beat. His phone buzzed, and he glanced down to check it. "Mia says she's teleporting fine now. Doesn't feel any different." He glanced up at James. "And she seemed surprised she couldn't teleport. Maybe even when it works, you don't feel the blood magic; you just … do whatever it is."
"Then … I"m glad we've got the trackers in place," James said. "I'm going to stay close to a few people … and I'll give everyone some beacons or something … that way if I'm out of touch with all of them, it'll auto notify where the hell I am. That's the best I can come up with. Outside of periodic, automatic updates on location."
"And once we know where you are, I can just come get you," Tommy offered. "Turns out all this time hanging out with Mia and I'm faster than a 'port."
"Not surprised," James said with a smirk.
"So I could get you out of a jam," Tommy said. "And we can wreck his day while we're at it."
"Okay, but I don't want to rely on just you," James said. "If you pissed him off that bad, he'll want to be a pain in your ass, too."
"I piss everyone off every other Tuesday; I'm fine."
"Yeah, but I don't want him forcing you to do anything, either," James said. "And I don't want you getting hurt if there's any way at all to avoid it." He held his breath for a moment. "So … if he tries to force you to do something outside of a blood magic whatever … do what you have to."
Tommy gave him a half-grimaced smile. "Hey, the one thing I actually listened to when Grandfather gave his speeches was the part where, you know, you do what's gotta be done or the bad guys win. That part's not wrong, you know?"
"No, it's not - and chances are good if he's pushing for anything to do with me, I'll survive it, so don't worry about it." James took a moment to text Mia to ask a few questions …. Just if she felt any different when she couldn't teleport, or if it was totally a mysterious situation … which was when a familiar voice echoed over his shoulder when Kurt popped in from the other side to check in.
"You can simply leave her wondering," Kurt said. "If Billy's spell didn't work and my father wanted you there, you would have felt a pull that would have been incredibly difficult to ignore. Do you feel that way at all?"
James watched those around him as he considered it, then barely shook his head 'no'.
Kurt grinned broadly, and was near laughing with a fierce "Wunderbar. That will give us something to work with." He let his voice drop low as if someone could over hear them. "Don't let that become widely known. If my father learns as much from another's mind, that could become a problem for our friends."
I did feel a little different, but I was freaked out at the time, you know? Mia replied after a moment.
Yeah, I think when you were going through that I was having a panic attack, so … all systems go? James looked up at Tommy. "Think you can get Cap to come play for a few? I have a question for him that needs to be in person."
"I'm going to go kidnap Captain America," Tommy announced - and rushed off.
"That's what I heard," James agreed with a laugh before he sent a text to his dad to get a few more people there, too.
Less than a minute later, a fully in-uniform Steve was deposited in front of James, looking confused and still holding part of an LMD that he'd obviously just finished fighting when Tommy picked him up.
"Tommy, you're amazing," James laughed. "Thank you."
"And for my next trick, I'll eat everything in sight," Tommy teased, zipping away and coming back with a few bags of food. "Don't mind me. I'm just the kidnapper. He's the mastermind," he told Steve, pointing toward James.
"I'm sure," Steve said dryly.
"Why don't you go share with Mia?" James suggested as he went to Forge.
"Good call," Tommy said and disappeared again.
Forge shook his head at that. "You know, I'm almost willing to look past the part where they're back to old habits that worry me about speed and protection and not thinking ahead."
"They're not yet," James said, giving him a serious look.
"Good."
"So… do I need to give another member of my team a talk about responsibility or…?" Steve looked between them.
"Just wait for Dad, please," James said. "I don't want to repeat myself if I can help it - and this way, if anyone has questions, we can just get it over with. He won't be long."
Sure enough, about a minute later, Tommy was back - with Scott. "Hi, apparently I'm a taxi. I'll be right back," Tommy said, giving James a salute before he took off again.
James and Forge leaned against a stretcher while Forge shook his head and worked on a little last minute programming. Eventually, Tommy brought in Annie (and Chance), Craig, and Alex.
"We're done, right?" Tommy asked.
"Yes, thank you, Tommy," James said. "I appreciate it."
"This is what happens when the one who just snaps his fingers goes on vacation," Tommy grumbled good-naturedly.
"Hey, I could have waited for them to walk here," James said.
"Sorry, that's my fault. I had run back home," Annie explained. "Leslie Ann needed to talk to someone who isn't her parents. You know how it is."
"No," James deadpanned as Hank chuckled and headed out with Tyler - already aware that they needed to keep the circle small as possible for this part. "What's that like?"
Forge elbowed him as he got to his feet. "We have some concerns about Azazel and James," he said. "And after a full two minutes of thinking it over, you are the ones James picked out for his backup on this."
"It's nothing anyone would be in any danger over," James said, holding up one hand as he met his father's gaze. "And don't take it the wrong way, but you were the ones I figured Azazel would be least likely to try and use."
"Novel," Scott said dryly.
James sighed before he went on. "Forge and I made a few trackers and Hank put them in place today. All I need now are a few solid people to hold the transponders for me."
"If he's out of contact with all of you, we'll get a steady beacon showing us where in the world he is," Forge said. "And in the meantime, you are the five he assumed would spend the most time with him."
"To be fair, I figured there would be others I'd be spending a lot of time with, but there's a set distance - and I don't think all of you will be out of that set distance for the foreseeable future." He looked toward Forge. "Others on my list are ones I think need to get out of this dimension at the first real check in with Wanda."
"I agree with that part," Forge said.
"Then you can be the one to put a bag over Tony's head," James said.
"Oh, but it's so much fun to set Tommy on people," Forge said, grinning wider still.
"I will pay you real money to set Tommy on Tony," Steve said, starting to laugh now that he wasn't confused.
James raised an eyebrow and sent a text to Tommy with the ask being sure to specify 'when he had time' and not immediately.
Can I be funny about this and how long do I have to prepare the ambush?
Please and thank you, James texted back. I just need him at the next check in with your mom.
Got it. I'm already conspiring with Mia.
"The Richards family is already in a different dimension," James said. "And after going over my lists, Forge and Tony are the only others that I know of that could work those plans out right now without help. So they gotta get out of here. I want to keep Azazel's options low."
"That makes sense," Annie said, readjusting her hold on Chance when the little guy started to wiggle. "And of course we'll keep an eye out for you."
"You don't even have to do anything," James said as he brought her one of the little devices. "Just keep it on you. That's all you have to do. And if you don't want to, I'll pick out someone else."
"Oh, give it here. Of course I'll be there for you," Annie said. "You're family."
Scott took the next one, and James simply held his hand out for Craig, Alex, and Steve.
"You know this gives me a genuinely official reason to bug you to come to my office more, right?" Craig teased.
"You'll have to find me first," James deadpanned.
"Thought the whole point was to be close," Craig shot back.
"Close enough," James said. "But I will … attempt to cooperate a little bit."
"Progress. I'll take it," Craig laughed.
"Don't expect much," Forge said. "He's getting a shorter temper and is becoming more grouchy generally speaking."
"Heavy metal poisoning does that," James said with a wave, entirely trying to blow by it.
Steve looked like he suddenly understood a lot and Scott laughed. "Yeah, me too," he said half under his breath to Steve, who chuckled almost self-consciously.
"So, that's it? Just stick close to you?" Alex asked.
"Within a radius," James said again. "You don't need to babysit me. If I'm on Genosha, then I'm close enough to everyone holding one there. That should give you an idea of how close you need to be. But, if you're here, and everyone is in Westchester or the city or … wherever and I'm like …"
"In the caribbean," Kurt offered.
"... in the caribbean," James finished just so he had a complete sounding thought. "You'll be notified of where I am."
"Okay, that makes sense," Annie said, nodding. "So we don't need to set up shifts or anything; I can still meet up with Ororo for our spar?"
"Please don't," James said. "No shifts."
"Perfect."
"You should come sit in on that one, though," Scott said with a smirk to James. "She's getting good and she said yesterday she'd love to get some tips from you."
"You know, Dad, I'm pretty sure you could just get some meds if you don't want to pawn me off on your new wife."
"God, James, try to help someone join the team," Scott said, over the sound of Alex laughing.
"I already offered to help when she's ready - her timeline, not yours pushy."
"Please," Annie said brightly. "I don't know if I'm ready yet, but Ororo broke her wrist yesterday during a fight with some anti-mutant rioters. She's been teaching me anyway, but I'd love to give her a break."
"Say the word," James said. "I have plenty of time to work on my papers, and I'm not really pushing for that right now … open schedule for the time being."
"Great." Annie beamed at him and kissed his cheek - and, of course, as soon as they were close, that was when Chance spit up. "Oh." She turned bright red and immediately started trying to clean James up.
"Wasn't you," James laughed. "And I've got some blood on me anyhow. Relax a little, please."
"Here, I got 'im," Alex said, scooping up his nephew, who immediately got squirmy. "Hey, hey, you gotta let your mom and your brother get clean, you little dork."
James yanked off his shirt and grabbed a scrub shirt nearby. "Done." He took a step closer and offered Chance his hands so he could pick him up - which was what the little guy was looking for anyhow.
"Nuh-uh," Alex said, holding Chance higher and tickling him. "I never get to hold him. My brother's a baby hog!"
"He also looks like a younger father next to you," James said simply to get a rise out of Alex.
"Hurtful," Alex said as Chance giggled and squirmed through being tickled. "Your kid's mean, Scott."
"I taught my kids to tell the truth; I don't know what the problem is," Scott shot back without missing a beat.
"He thinks he should be treated like a prince all the time," James said to Craig as he shifted to lean on the wall next to him. "Golden boy. Like the yellow hides the grays."
"He thinks it does," Craig said, smirking.
"He needs his eyes checked, then," James said, which had Scott laughing anyhow.
"They're ganging up on me, Chance," Alex told the little guy, who had hold of Alex's shirt by then and was trying to eat one of the buttons.
"Just wait. Yours are teenagers now, aren't they? Suzy's thirteen next week?" Scott said, looking like the very prospect of watching his brother deal with teenagers was hilarious.
"Oh, hey, that reminds me," Alex said. "They both want to go to Westchester for school in the fall. Before I forget, wanted to let you know. Suzy bent every last fork in the kitchen this morning on accident, so we've got one of each powerset."
"Guess it's time I leave Genosha, then," James said.
"Actually, probably not a bad call," Alex agreed, laughing. "Lorna says she was a terror when she first got her powers. I don't believe her, but that's what she says."
"Alright, well … I guess it's time to load up and head home," James said, looking toward Forge. "Unless you had more for them?"
"No, I'm good to head back. Jet's ready to roll." Forge dropped a hand on James's shoulder and jostled him as a means to direct him toward the jet. "Come on, you can help me prep for take off while everyone who wasn't rushed here gets themselves together."
