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Issue #16 |
"Total Eclipse" Part Three of Ten Written By Tom Moses |
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A man nearly as pale as the lab coat he wears stands as the only conscious person in the infirmary. He scours the charts again and again, completely overjoyed at the numbers his mind absorbs. As a man completely consumed by his research, Nathaniel Essex is once again proud of his work. In this case, he's proud of the unconscious woman lying near him.
The woman is only known by Kalia, her last name is a bit of information she keeps private and hopes one day that she'll forget. Cast aside by her family for not living up to their standards, she was found by Essex two years ago on the streets and living from hit to hit. Kalia was one of the first to undergo his latest treatments and to his continued surprise she is the only member of batch two to survive the process this long.
Essex cannot explain the odd feeling in his stomach. The longer he stays next to Kalia's bedside, the more uncomfortable he becomes. He has been displaced from his emotions for nearly a century now, and there is little hope that he'll ever define the worry he holds over the woman laying asleep in the infirmary.
The door barely makes a sound as it opens. A young man, no older than twenty-four helps himself to the permission to enter. Another one of Essex 's latest successes, this young man from batch seven has spent a great deal of time at Kalia's bedside over the past year. Though Essex is unsure if the two are lovers or not, he doesn't pry into the personal lives of his patients.
"The Iceman did this to her?" The young man allows his presence known with a question.
Essex knew the question was inevitable, and no doubt some fool hardy vengeance would ensue with his answer. "He did, yes." Essex 's answer is simple and to the point. He makes little attempt to care to the nature of his response while he continues to log the vital signs Kalia displays. "I never considered him this capable; although, there is no doubt that she will make a complete recovery."
"Kalia is a survivor." The young man directs a smile toward the bed ridden experimental, "and between she and I, the Iceman will surely pay."
The red hue of Essex 's eyes beam bright. "Do not discount any of the X-Men," the scientist scolds his young patient. The sharp change in Essex 's voice catches the young man off guard and he starts to back away until a wall prevents him from moving any further away. "These mutants are some of the best the world has to offer. Beyond all your abilities, Pulse, you lack their level of experience and will likely fall victim to their victory."
"But sir," he attempts to say, "they can't get away with.."
The young mutates words are cut away before a sentence could form from the disorganized sounds emitted by his throat. "You will handle the X-Men as you are instructed. These are not Magneto's hirelings. Xavier's troops are trained well, and they are not a force to be taken lightly."
"You can't be serious," Brave words come from the young man as he struggles to speak beyond the fear of his master. "Sir, the X-Men are no match for us. You've engineered us to be strong and yet you think so little of us?"
Nathaniel Essex calmly drops the clipboard in his left hand, without another thought he turns to face the young man, allowing him to finish speaking. His crimson eyes bearing down on him in disapproval. "You promised us the world would cower, told us we'd be more than our imaginations could handle. And yet we're doomed to live out your insecurities!"
A split second reaction, faster than an advanced human would know Essex 's hand encloses around the neck of his experiment. His ghastly white appendage squeezes, cutting off his blood flow. "Dex. Your mouth can continue or you may live to see another day." Essex can feel the young man's pulse pounding through his fingers. "You are getting desperate, building a charge while I squeeze the life from you. Do not forget who created you, and lest of all do not forget who can destroy you with nothing less than a thought."
A gasp breaks the air as Dex falls to the ground, "Your comments will kill you someday Dex, or Pulse, whatever idiotic name you have come up for yourself."
Sparks jump from Dex's eyes and he stares up to Essex . Still gasping for air and waiting for hi vision to return to him. "You will face the X-Men, but there are still many things to do." Essex says to the fallen man. He returns to the bed where Kalia sleeps, "Gather the others, I need you all to retrieve something for me."
An explosion rips the group apart, scattering the members in every direction. A large man, covered in a thick blue fur does not move as the other come back together and regroup into a defensive stance.
"Doctor Reyes, tend to Beast and keep him shielded," the lead man barks his orders and directs the others to prepare for the next attack. "Iceman, Sunfire, I need an offensive perimeter to the North and South."
The gigantic gymnasium is rendered quiet at the end of Havok's barking. The only sound for several moments is a soft implosion, signaling the movement of Nightcrawler. "There is no telling where she is going to strike at us Alex." His voice is quiet, "Ororo was adamant about this being a test of our team work while we're disadvantaged."
"I know Kurt." Alex is annoyed, "She's biding her time, trying to unnerve me and everybody else."
Without warning a focused blast of light impacts and singes the ground at Havok's feet. The mutants jump backward and the gymnasium sparks to life. Hydraulics echo across the high ceilings, panels open along every wall, each sound revealing a new obstacle.
"Okay boss, I'm beginning to think we're slightly out gunned." A typical comment everyone expected from Iceman, his New England accent cutting through the sound of movement all over the room.
"Gentlemen, and Cecilia, we have a room full of nastiness and a liability." Havok recounts while studying the room. "Nightcrawler, I need a sporadic patter to confuse the targeting cameras."
Tapping. An annoying nervous habit held by a man normally seen as incredibly patient. There is little that can take Charles Xavier by surprise, and there aren't many that can escape his communications network; however, it's apparent he's the last to know in what many in his circles have known for weeks already.
"And what did you think by waiting to tell me this?"
The green haired woman hesitates on the other end of the video phone. Her silence irritating, it only makes the pencil tap faster against the desk top. "You mean to inform me, Weeks after the fact!" The pencil's movement dies, "Magneto has wakened from his coma and you've waited how long to let me know of this!"
"Charles, please."
"No Lorna. You were placed in Genosha because I thought you could be trusted to give keep me informed of everything that occurs there." Xavier spits at the woman on the phone, "How long ago did this occur? And perhaps you can tell me the truth this time?"
Lorna Dane could've predicted this response without the aid of any telepathic ability. No mater the state of affairs each X-Team was involved, Xavier always felt the need to be in the center of it all. "Charles, there hasn't been any reported violence attributed to Magnus's reemergence and we're keeping a close eye on him."
"Who is we?"
How predictable Lorna cringed at Xavier's question, "'We' are none of your concern Charles." Lorna's defiance consumes her speech, "I intended to inform you as a professional courtesy Charles, now allow us."
"Professional courtesy?" Xavier's cuts the woman off, "I don't know what kind of operation you are running down there Lorna, but it seems you need to address your problem with communication, and worse, teamwork."
"So says the 'dreamer' who's team is locked in upstate New York and doesn't share a lick of information he comes across."
The pencil he holds snaps in two under the strain of Xavier's hands. "Lorna this team shares any and all relevant information, never for a second doubt that."
The Genoshan magistrate laughs nervously, "Then you wouldn't mind telling me of this situation with Mimic? Or perhaps what you found in Japan , and why Sunfire had to run away from his country?"
"Excuse me?"
Lorna exhales loudly, "Charles, Bobby and I have been speaking since Alex disappeared. I might not be romantically linked with either of him, but at least Bobby has the decency to call and check up on me once in a while." She informs the telepath, "Bobby contacted me when you wanted him to speak to Calvin, hoping that with my connections with Magneto's people that I could tell him something about Calvin that might help him figure out what was going on."
"Lorna I believe you are skirting the real issue here."
"No Charles," she interrupts, "You accuse me of hording information and hurting our 'common' goals, but you can't even seem to share what you know with your own team. If anyone of this association is hurting our ties, that'd be you Charles."
A rare sight by those who know Charles Xavier closely would testify that he is not one so make his anger known. "Lorna," he struggles to put a sentence together in order to interrupt the woman.
"No Charles, you listen. This conversation is over, and I will let you know if Havok's squad will be of any use to us."
The connection closes with Lorna's final words, and the video phone shatters against a wall not far from Xavier's desk. "Storm," his anger still fuming in his voice, "Finish Havok's exam immediately, I need the two of you in my study post haste."
Two more of his men have fallen casualty to the variety of weapons deployed against Havok. Doctor Reyes is near taxed in keeping the wounded crew members out of harms way, as her force field wanes against the barrage of firepower.
Iceman and Havok circle the danger room with a small and hopeful plan to keep the blasts away from Cecilia. "Got anymore theories Alex?" The man of ice yells with a quick slide across the room, overly optimistic that he will be able to fool the cameras targeting him.
Yellow rings of plasma energy pummel the ceiling as Havok tries his hand at staying a mobile target. "I've got a few, but I'm saving them for when we get into some trouble."
Blasters volley and the two X-Men left standing can hardly keep up. Pushed back to back the unlikely teammates can hardly keep up their diversions. The adrenaline still running through them, Alex pushes his teammate into an apposing front creating their own perimeter.
"Two things," Iceman begins, "First, the sarcasm thing is my gimmick."
"And the second?"
Iceman keeps his vision fixated on his half of the danger room, "Your plans suck."
"Alright smartass, on the count of three you're going to sprint to the far south wall, make sure you strike at everything you can. I'm going to get to the other end of the danger room and once I'm clear I want you to pummel everything in your sight."
Iceman scans the room, watching the weapon mounts follow every move of his head, "At least that's one of your better ideas," he remarks, "Of course we could stay right here and do the same thing."
The leader ignores the suggestion instead beginning his countdown. Just as the two mutants stand ready to enact their plan, the second number in Havok's count is only barely able to leave his mouth. Surprisingly the gym springs to life after a moment of quiet, the weapons in the walls and ceiling fade back inside their homes. The two men halt their plan and share a quiet glace at one another.
"Time's up." A female voice echoes across the nearly hollow metal room. "Alex, we are needed in Charles's study. Bobby help Doctor Reyes get the wounded to the infirmary."
Cracking is all about the air as the ice melts and falls from Bobby Drake's frame. He doesn't think to argue with Storm's announcement and heads to see if he could be of any use to Doctor Reyes, "You know that was kinda weird how everything just stopped."
His attempts go unnoticed while the doctor works to dress some minor wounds. "Drake, I know idle conversation is one of the few things you excel. But if you could make yourself halfway useful I'd appreciate it."
"You may all stop your babbling," Nathaniel Essex announces as he storms into the gathering of his troops. He stops at the head of a large wooden table and looks into the eyes of four individuals. "I am certain Dex has informed every one of you that I require your services."
As Essex speaks, the entire room is quiet; all four occupants listen intently as the century old scientist explains himself. The young woman, Kalia, takes painstaking measure to hide the injuries still healing swallows every word that escapes Essex 's mouth just as the others.
"There is a young woman who used to categorize my research that I have kept my eye on since she's left my service. The past two years have indeed been eventful for this young woman; however, it isn't Threnody I am particularly interested in." Essex pauses to take a seat at the table, "I need you to retrieve her child."
A snap gesture from Essex ensures Dex will keep his comments to himself. "This child, Jacob Grey, is the biological product of potentially the most powerful telepath I've ever gathered data on."
"Where's the brat?" A seemingly formless man takes center notice as his hollow voice brings him attention.
"I tire of these outbursts," the calm scientist warns, "Jaunt, you will find the child has been kidnapped by Mystique, though I have no idea as to why Raven would have a stake in this endeavor, this act has indeed forced my hand. You will take your fellow constructs and rendezvous with my Marauder Riptide in New York and bring the child here."
A monster of a man stands from his chair, "The child and the shape shifter will be in your custody by the close of the day."
Honestly annoyed by the grand display by Jaunt to his fellow members around the table. "Very good Jaunt."
<TBC>