---

 
Author's Note: Well here ends the first story. I'm typing away on the next one but with all the holiday stuff that's been going on the going is a little slow. I'll try and have it done as soon as I can but I won't rush out an inferior product. You guys deserve better than that. :D Thanks for reading and Happy New Year. ~Matt

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CHAPTER 17

---

When I awoke some time later I was strapped to a bed.   It looked like a hospital but it didn’t feel like one.   I tugged at the restraints and found that with effort I could move them but as soon as I relaxed they returned to their original position.   I examined them more closely and found that the restraints were fed through pulleys and connected to something I couldn’t see.   They had a block that prevented them from traveling past a point and I suspect it would have been pretty ugly if they had slipped.   As it was I was comfortable enough but I didn’t like being restrained.

I was forgetting something.   My head was fuzzy and it was hard to focus.   I stared at one of the lights for a while trying to figure out why I was there.

“Rainbow!” I shouted as things came rushing back to me.   I thrashed about trying to get loose but the harder I pulled the more resistance the restraints gave without ever providing any real leverage.

A distorted voice echoed through the room, “Please try and remain calm.   You’re safe here.”

“Where’s Rainbow?” I shouted.

The was a brief pause, “Is that the cute green haired girl you were attacking?”

“Fuck you!” I shrieked and started raging against the restraints again.   The voice tried to calm me down but I was done listening to it.

After a few minutes a girls voice, this one much less distorted, blared through the speakers, “She’s fine.   Aaron?   Please listen to me.   Rainbow is fine.   She’s back with her family and doesn’t have any memory of what happened.”

“I want to see her,” I said savagely.

I could hear the pain over the speakers, “I’m really sorry Aaron.   It’s just not possible at the moment.”

I looked around the room.   With the exception of a padded steel chair and a rack for some medical equipment there was nothing. “This isn’t a hospital, is it?” I asked quietly.

“No,” she replied.

I swallowed hard and wished I could properly wipe my tears, “I’m really sorry about what happened at the bonfire.   It wasn’t me!” I almost said a ghost did it but that kind of talk was not going to help me at the moment. “Is Darrel okay?” I was no longer sure if I was crying out of anger or grief.

“I don’t know Aaron, I’ll have someone check on him for you.   What is his last name?” she asked compassionately.

“Hanover comma Darrel,” I enunciated through my tears, “Rainbow is really ok?”

“You have my word.”

“and my family?”

She sounded very sad, “As well as can be expected, considering.   Would you be willing to answer a few questions Aaron?”

I rolled my eyes, “Only if you call me AJ.   My little sister is the only one that calls me Aaron.”

“I can do that AJ,” I could hear the smile on her face.   The sound was somewhat muffled but I heard another voice in the background and the girl that was talking to me say, “I’m getting to it!   Sheesh! Hey!”

A new voice, this one male, assaulted my ears, “Look man, cut the bull shit.   Who are you working for?”

“Who am I working for?”   my mind raced looking for meaning in his words, “What do you think I’m a spy or something?”

“It’s been too long since we brought you in for you to have just hit first emergence.   Therefore you have already transitioned.   What do you do?   TK and Mind Control?   How did you insert yourself into that town so completely?   What is your plan!   No!   Stop!   Give me...”

The nice girl came back on the mic, “Sorry about that.   Something about you has been keeping Johnny, “ I heard him yell ‘Don’t use my name!’ in the background but she continued without pause, “up at night and I’m afraid he isn’t quite himself at the moment.”

“So is this like good cop, crazy cop or something?”

She laughed again, “Yes.   I’m Danny Glover and he’s Mel Gibson,”   It seemed familiar but I honestly couldn’t place it.   When I didn’t respond she let it go, “Would you be willing to answer a few questions AJ?”

I sighed. “I guess, but if I don’t want to answer something we just move on.”

“Fair enough,”   there was a pause, “Sorry I have to get the questions out of my hair.”

“Okay...” I said in confusion.   Where the hell was I?   Wait.   “Where the hell am I?”

“...go or I’ll curl you within an inch of your life!   Don’t press that!” she blurted over the microphone. “Sorry AJ.   You’re pick up was a total mess and we aren’t completely up and running at the moment.   Sorry that you’re getting the bad end of the stick on this.”

“Uh huh,”

“Normally we try and do a soft approach once we’re sure...” there was a long pause, “Hold on a second AJ.   I don’t...” the microphone clicked off.

I sat in silence for a while as I waited for anything more.   After less time than it felt like I called out, “Hello? I kind of have to pee,”   Stupid beer!   There was no response and something about being unable to do anything about it made it that much worse.

After what felt like a long time I heard a buzz and a door slid open out of my field of vision.   “Sorry about that AJ,” in person I recognised her voice from somewhere other than the intercom, “we just got the com system installed and I hoped it would be cool but it wasn’t.   Hi!” she held out a hand, “my name is Lucinda Xaing but pretty much everyone calls me Luce,” I looked at her hand, looked at her rather stunningly cute face and then finally at the restraints that held my hands.   “Oh.   Duh,” she rolled her eyes and made half a gesture with her hand but checked it.   “If I let you out of those you won’t go crazy and try and kill me or something will you?”

I squirmed in place, “If you let me out of these and point me to a bathroom I’ll be you best friend forever!” I said through gritted teeth.

“Oh, shit!   Sorry about that!   Don’t freak out, okay?” she waved her hand and the restraints were just gone.

My jaw fell slack and I wet myself.   

I wanted to ask her how she had made the restraints disappear; to express my deep concern that I was having a psychotic episode; to apologize for losing control of my bladder in front of her.     I wanted to say all that and a hundred other things but instead my brain shut down unexpectedly and I just started to scream.

“AJ!,” Lucinda stomped her heel, “You aren’t insane!   This is happening!   I have too many things to do, to deal with you going all dissociative on me!   Focus!   Breathe,”   she demonstrated a breath and it seemed easy enough to give a try.   “I swear,” she held her hand with the first three fingers up, “I swear, I will explain what is going on.   I can’t tell you everything because I don’t know it all myself but I swear this will all make a crazy sort of sense.   Just try and calm down,” I had continued trying her ‘breathing’ and, after brief consideration, decided it was worth doing.   I nodded and she smiled. “Let’s get you cleaned up and then I’ll tell you what’s going on.”

---

~oOo~

---

I was standing naked in a locker room shower while being blasted in the face with hot water.   My brain had rebooted and was attempting to assimilate things that should have been impossible.   Maria, I ground my teeth in anger, had never felt quite real and that had made dealing with her existence a little easier.

What Lucinda had done to the restraints had felt totally real.   I knew it was happening and it was forcing my brain off the tracks.   Why exactly ghosts were reasonable but whatever it was that Luce could do wasn’t, I’m not sure.

“You about done in there?” a boys voice called into the shower, “You have to be getting all pruney.”

I checked my finger tips and sure enough they were wrinkled from all the moisture, “How long have I been in here?” I shouted back.

“Hey!   You can talk!   That’s a step up,” I could hear a smile.   “Maybe a half hour?   Little more or less.   You need any help?”

I wasn’t an invalid, “Just give me a minute and I’ll be out.”

“You sure?” he sounded sort of disappointed.

“Yeah.   I’m good,” I replied and cranked off the water. “Where are the... never mind, I got it.” I grabbed a towel and began drying myself off.

From behind me I heard, “I sure hope you’ve already transitioned, because if not, it is a fucking crime!”

“Excuse me?” I turned on my heel and wrapped the towel around my waist, “Little privacy?”

“I would think you would be used to sharing a shower,” he responded with what I could only describe as a leer.

“Sharing is fine.   Staring is not!”   I waved my hand to try and get his attention, “Dude! What the hell?”

“Sorry.   Sorry,” he said looking away reluctantly; even then I could feel him surreptitiously checking me out.

“Where the hell is Lucinda anyway?” she had at least kept the leers to a minimum.

“Sergeant Luce doesn’t usually handle orientation, we had new toys and she wanted to play,” he shrugged, “When it was clear you weren’t going to be with us for while she had to get back to her real job.”

Details from my conversion with Lucinda began filtering back.   She had been wearing a uniform with Sergeant's stripes.   I tried to remember what all the stuff meant but it escaped me.   “Is Lucinda way older than she looks or something? I guess she is Asian so that might do it,” I finished pulling on the pile of sweats that had been left next to the towels. “I’m decent.”

“Better than that,” he said under his breath.   I glared at him and took a step with intent.   He held up his hands in surrender, “Sorry.   Sorry.   Sometimes I have trouble controlling my mouth but I’ll be good,” his demeanor shifted slightly, “Sergeant Luce is our age, though it wouldn’t surprise me too much if she looked more or less the same in twenty years,” there was a slightly bitter edge to his words.

I relaxed a little, “Is this like some kind of messed up ROTC camp or something?”

He shook his head to the negative. “Most of us aren’t really military.   A few have gotten field commissions as a result of our special circumstances. Luce and a few others here have honest to god rank in the U.S. Army,” I started to object but he cut me off, “I know it can’t happen.   It did. A lot of ‘can’t happens’ happen here.   Lets move on shall we?”

“Where is here?” I probed.   Maybe I could escape and make my way back to my family.

“This is the ‘Beta Site’ for ‘the Center’ in ‘Colorado’. Sorry.   That last one didn’t need air quotes,” he grinned.   He reminded me a little of Willy.

Except way more gay.

“That’s great!” I smiled so broadly it hurt my face a little.   “Why am I here?”

“Whoa!” he took a small step back, “No need for that!   We’re just trying to help.”

“By kidnapping me?” This was going nowhere. “I want to see my family.”

“Not possible,” he said guardedly, “I know this can be kind of stressful but you just need to trust me when I say this is all necessary.   Unfortunate, but necessary.   So, please try and calm down.   You’re giving me a headache.”

I smiled again and I felt my eye twitch involuntarily, “I don’t know what you mean.   I’m perfectly calm,” my hands clenched and relaxed, the thought that I could probably knock this guy out and escape before anyone noticed ran around in my head like a rabid squirrel.

“It won’t work,” a girl with a light British accent called into the showers, “You could probably take him down, probably... he’s pretty tough for a squishy...” she considered,   “but you’d never get out and it would be a terrible way to start your first day here.”

“How the?” she had echoed my basic thoughts perfectly.

“I’m a telepath AJ,” she yelled, “Ryan there,” the boy waved and I realized I hadn’t ever gotten his name. “Is an empath.   You understand what all that means?”

“You people are nuts?” I responded logically. Under my breath I finished, “or I am.”

“Little bit,” she admitted “are you dressed?”

“Don’t you come in here Alyta!” Ryan warned strictly, “We’ve had enough of your shenanigans!”

“Then get your butts out here and stop hanging out in the bathroom like a of couple girls!” she said acerbically. “Wankers.”

Ryan gestured toward the door and I followed his direction.   Once in the hall I was met by a cute black girl about my height in her four inch heels.   She had dark eyes and white hair done up in a puffball. Her outfit made me wonder if it was Halloween or something.   When I quickly reviewed what Ryan was wearing I realized they sort of matched.

“Uniforms,” Alyta commented, “We’ll get you a couple once we know for sure what size you need,”   she looked me over and sighed quietly.

“Tell me about it!” Ryan laughed.

I stomped over to a bench near the entrance to the locker room and sat down.   “You guys have one minute to explain what’s going on or I’m going to flip out and start punching,” I reached for my phone to check the time but of course it wasn’t there. “Uh, do either of you have a watch?”

“A minute isn’t long enough,” Ryan said bluntly.

Alyta nodded, “He’s right.   Why don’t we...”

“49, 48, 47, 46” I counted off slowly.

“Fine.   I’ll give you the short version.”   she took a deep breath. “Animal activists break into a genetics lab, eventually resulting in children who develop super-powers,” she thought about it for a second.   “Yeah that pretty much sums it up.   What do you think Ry?”   He nodded his approval.

“You can’t seriously expect me to buy that.”

“Nothing to buy.   It just is what it is,” she said seriously.

I shook my head disbelievingly, “People don’t have super-powers.   That’s just not...”

“Pick a number,” Ryan said suddenly.

“27” I said quickly.   It was the number on my jersey.

He rolled his eyes, “Any number.   Big as you like and don’t say what it is.   Have you got one?” I nodded confirmation.

“Fourty-two thousand five hundred seventy-two,” Alyta rattled off immediately.

“How did you?” I gaped.

“Tel-e-path,” she said very slowly while pointing to her temple, “Sup-er-Pow-ers”

“Huh”, I grunted as it rattled around in my head for a second, “Yeah.   Okay.”

Ryan and Alyta looked at each other in surprise, “Really?   You’re fine with all this now?” Ryan asked.

I smiled and didn’t have to totally fake it, “‘Fine’ would be an overstatement.   I’m willing to listen.”

“You’re still thinking about trying to escape,” Alyta said with slight annoyance.

She was good.   I had to give her that.

“AJ, listen to me.   You know how people will say something like. ‘It would be easier to break into NORAD than this place’ as a hyperbole intended to express that a location is really secure?”

I hadn’t actually ever heard anyone say that before but I got the idea and nodded.

“Well with out any hyperbole needed.   It would be easier to break into NORAD than this place. Running isn’t an option.   You’re going to have to deal with this.”

“Fine,” I said reluctantly.

Ryan stepped up and took over, “Sixteen years ago, give or take, a radical animal rights group broke into a genetics lab to release the animals.   In the process they dumped a bunch of the stuff the company was working on down the drain and it contaminated the water supply used by a water bottling plant.   The ‘tainted water’,” he air quoted, “was shipped all over the country.   For the most part the stuff was harmless but if a woman drank it while pregnant it did something to her unborn child.   The kid was born intersexed but in a subtle way that prevented easy diagnosis and the mother died not long after she gave birth to them.   Eventually the kids that were changed by the water develop powers.”

“You’re actually serious,” I said quietly.   It was ridiculous but at the same time it was obvious he believed it.   When coupled with everything else I had seen I was having a hard time not believing him.   Things that hadn’t been making sense for a couple weeks began tumbling together.

“‘Fraid so AJ.” Alyta said, “That’s not the whole of it though.   First you develop powers.   We call that First Emergence.   Then, within twenty-four hours, Second Emergence, though most of us call it Transition, hits and the powers turn on completely and we... that is...   I hate doing this part,”   She said to Ryan.   “You do it!”

“I did it last time,” he responded,   “It’s your turn.”

She squared herself to him and started ticking off silently on her fingers.   After a moments calculations she said, “No you didn’t!   The last one we did was Rober... er... Chloe and I know I   told her.”

Ryan put his hands on his hips, “Chloe doesn’t count!   She was so happy she about it she’ll probably name her first child after you!”

“Reaction does not change the fact that I did the last one,” she argued hotly “by that logic you would have had to...”

“Would someone just tell me already!” I snapped.

Alyta stuck her tongue out at Ryan but got back to business, “When Transition hits we change.   A lot.   A big portion change what ethnicity they present as.   I, for instance, was about as WASPy as they come,” she took a deep breath, “and a boy.”

“No way,” I gaped, if it hadn’t been for Rainbow I would have probably been attracted to Alyta, “There is just no way.”

“‘Fraid so,” she smiled, “but it isn’t that bad once you get used to it.   Granted, I always wanted to be a girl but even so.”

“Oh my god,” I exclaimed, looking at Ryan in terror, “How often does that happen?” I swallowed hard, “Wait.   Are you guys implying this... that I’m like... I’m not.”

“Take a breath AJ,” Ryan said calmly. “We aren’t sure what’s going on with you.   The tests show that you are one of us.   You have all the vestigial girl organs just waiting to bloom but ... uh...   should we let someone else handle this part?   It seems kind of out of our depth.”

Alyta rolled her eyes, “We know you are past first emergence because you’ve been demonstrating telekinetic power like crazy...”

This was news to me, “What? When?”

“Well you almost tore a corpsman's arm off before they got you sedated and strapped into the restraints.   They had a terrible time drugging you because they couldn’t get through your skin and of course there was just the fact that you were able to move the restraints past their fix point at all.”

“I’m strong!”   I defended, “being able to drag a hundred pounds with one arm does not make me super.”

“Add a zero AJ!   At least!”

“Oh come on!” I blurted.

“Seriously!” she said.

“Seriously?” I questioned.

“Seriously,” she nodded.

“Seriously?!” I smiled.

“Oh, for fucks sakes, stop it!” Ryan yelled.

“Huh,”   I laughed to myself, “That’s actually kind of awesome,”   my stomach growled angrily. “Could I maybe get something to eat.   I feel like I’m starving to death.”

---

~oOo~

---

The last time I could remember being so hungry was the morning after the cramps.   After going back for seconds and then thirds I finally started to slow down.

”I freaking hate Kinetics,” Ryan mumbled.

“Why’s that?” I asked as I worked my way through a bowl of oatmeal.   It wasn’t as good as mom’s but realistically it was just oatmeal.   It’s pretty hard to mess up.

Alyta smiled evilly, “Because we can pretty much eat anything we want and our powers will burn the calories without issue.   Ryan has to actually watch what he eats if he wants to keep those tight, yummy abs of his.”

“Still not interested, Alyta,” Ryan said dismissively.

This was not a conversation I really wanted to be present for.   Change of subject time. “I thought you were a telepath?” I said as soon as my mouth cleared a bit.

“Well.   Yeah, sort of... I mean that’s the effect,” she hemmed.

“Alyta is a... God, what did they call it?” Ryan interrupted.

Alyta looked strangely embarrassed, “Micro-electrokinetic,”

Ryan shook his head, “No.   No.   I think they called it ‘Mini-E’,”

“They called it Micro-Electrokinesis!” she hissed and poked him with an audible static discharge.

“Ow!” he shook his hand, before nodding appreciatively, “Nice.   That was way bigger than before.   You really are getting stronger.”

She smiled, “Thank you!   I think I may be able to generate a weak stunning effect if I keep practicing.   Maybe even a full on taser kind of thing!”

“That would be so cool!” Ryan said bobbing his head excitedly.   “They might even put you on missions if you could do that!”

She shrugged, “Maybe.   Rather hard to compete as an EK when Kris is in play though.”

“Kris!” he waved his hand limply in a decidedly feminine manner, “She’s only good at the flashy stuff.   Can she use her power to read minds?   I don’t think so!”

Alyta quirked a smile, “True.   On the other hand being able to power all of Lond...”

I cleared my throat to interrupt. I had finished my meal and after waiting a while realized they had more or less forgotten I was there.

“Yes,   AJ?” Alyta asked immediately.

“Sorry.   I hate to be one of those people that is all about himself but can we get back to the part that has something to do with me?”

Alyta and Ryan both laughed and then Alyta touched my arm gently.   I could feel a strange crawling sensation; it was weird but kind of neat at the same time.   “Right you are AJ,” she smiled.   “We’re pretty sure you’re a telekinetic of some kind.   Our current guess is probably vanilla TK with a really short range but we can’t really be certain until after you Transition.”

“If he Transition’s,” Ryan interjected.

“More like if he hasn’t already Transitioned,” she argued and it was obvious they were heading into a new tangent.

“Hold on,” I said, waving my hands, “Let me see what I’ve gotten from all of this,” They both nodded and Ryan interwove his fingers to rest his chin upon them.   

Alyta slapped his hands apart, “Stop that!   Boys don’t do that,” she chastised.

He pouted but crossed his arms carelessly on the table and slouched into one palm, “Better?” he said with a roll of the eyes.

“Stop ironing your shirts and you would make a perfectly believable boy,” she grinned.

“Gee.     Thanks.   So would you!” he laughed and Alyta pushed him on the shoulder hard. I hadn’t really noticed before but she was a little lacking upstairs.

“Anyway!” I pushed onward, “What I’m getting from all of this is that there is a pretty strict time table that people like you guys...,”

“Like US guys,” Ryan said quickly.

I ignored him. “...follow when it comes to powers.   First they manifest...”

“Emerge,” said Alyta.

“...then, within twenty-four hours, they hit full on and you change sex in the process,” they both nodded again, “Only the problem is that I’ve been here for too long to be on the time table so either you guys were wrong and I’m not one of you...”

“Except you are because you have the girl parts like the rest of us did,” she pointed out.

“...or I’m different for some reason and am not going to change,”

“Or you already did change and there was something that went wrong which makes it look like you’re a boy who’s going to turn into a girl when in fact you’re a girl that turned into a boy already,” Ryan rattled off.

“That one doesn’t work at all,” I disagreed.   “I was, am and, with a little luck, always will be a boy.”

Alyta looked unsure, “Some of us go quite mad.   It’s possible that you Transitioned and honestly believe you’ve always been who you are but you weren’t and then you used mind control to make everyone around you believe that you were who you thought you were.”

I gawked at her for a moment, “But I don’t have mind control.”

Ryan looked confused as well, “Yeah, Alyta.   What the hell?”

She shrugged, “Ok so it doesn’t work here but couldn’t you TOTALLY see that happening?”

Ryan considered it for a moment and then laughed, “Yeah!   Yeah, I totally could. You should write a story where that happens.”

“Really?   Do you think anyone would want to read about something like that?”

God, it was like herding barn cats. “So since number three is out then that leaves us with something weird happening with me and you all being wrong.”

“Which we aren’t,” Ryan slid in before I could continue.

I dropped my head in defeat, “Why did you abandon me Lucinda!” I asked the table.

I felt someones hand, Alyta’s judging by the size, brush through my hair gently. It was a pleasantly familiar gesture and brought back thoughts of Rainbow and my family.   My stomach knotted up and I thought I was going to be sick. I tried not to cry but, as seemed to be the case of late, I wasn’t having much luck.   My muscles quaked and I started to feel hot and cold at the same time.   I heard Ryan and Alyta stand suddenly and moments later felt strong hands grip my shoulders.   When I looked up a pair of soldiers, my eyes were too bleary from the tears to make out any rank insignia, were standing behind me.

“Come with us, Mr. Cross,” was all they said.

Before I could even formulate an objection I was being frog marched through the halls.

I half expected them to tie a black bag over my head and water board me or something!

If I was as strong as Alyta seemed to think then these guys wouldn’t be able to restrain me if I didn’t want them too.   Of course I’d probably hurt them in the process and they hadn’t really done anything to me.   I was about to point out that I could walk quite well without help when my stomach lurched and I doubled up in pain.

The cramps were back.   They weren’t going at full strength yet but I could feel them getting worse by the second. “I think I need to see a doctor!” I said as sense memories of the last time this had happened started tripping.

They didn’t say a word.   They just scooped me up and made double time for where ever we were headed.   I really hoped it would be the infirmary.

Not long after that, but still long enough for me to begin to grasp the size of the complex, we entered a large room occupied by a mixture of military, civilian and medical looking types.   At the center of the mass was Lucinda arguing with a civilian and a scientist.

“I don’t care what your preliminary evaluations say! We aren’t doing that!” she barked with surprising confidence,   “If Johnny is right...”

The scientist interrupted, “Mr. Harris’s accuracy has been spotty at best and has grown increasingly so over the last few weeks.   He’s been obsessing over nothing!   You can’t expect us to throw away such a unique opportunity on the word of a burned out pre-cog!”

Lucinda was mad.   She was trying to remain calm but failing miserably. “He’s not an ‘opportunity’,” she growled, “His name is AJ.”

The civilian stepped in and as soon as he opened his mouth I knew that he wasn’t really a civilian at all.   He might as well have been wearing a sign that said ‘intelligence agent’. “Sergeant Xaing.   Please try and see this from our perspective.   The profile says that without a strong familial tie the subject is unlikely to be of use to us for a protracted length of time. Using the bonding effects of his transition will hopefully create a link that will make his assimilation into the organization faster and easier for everyone involved.   It really is for his own good.”

“Oh bullshit! You!,” she pointed at the scientist, “want to see what happens during the bond to a non-emergent and you,” she indicated the spook, “want to see if you can use the bond as a way to control us!   It’s. Not. Going. To. Happen,” Luce ejaculated and I have to admit I fell in love with her a little bit.   It wasn’t what like what I felt for Rainbow but it was there none the less.

“You don’t have any...” was all the spook managed to say before he just vanished.

The scientist stood slack jawed, “I... you... you can’t!”

She stepped up and looked him directly in the eye, “When he first got here, he told me that he ‘was never here’.   Well guess what.   He was right. Now you, Doctor Reinch, you are here but if you wish to remain here you will stop acting like a dick and start acting like a human being!”

Dr. Reinch alternated between flushing and blanching for a few seconds before stomping away, “I will not be bullied like this!” he screeched, “Science is the only hope you freaks have of ever having a normal life but you would throw it all...”   he vanished.

“What a dumbass,” I groaned.

“Oh crap!” Lucinda said and waved the soldiers to bring me to her.   “How are you doing AJ?”

I tried to say something flippant but the cramps ramped up again and I only managed a pained grunt.

“He’s burning up,” one of the soldiers that had been helping me offered.

Luce started to hold her hand to my forehead but pulled away before she even touched me, “Whoa.   You’ll be okay AJ.   Once you Transition, it’ll be better,”   She did a really good job at hiding the fact that she was scared for me but it was still pretty obvious.

Recognition finally hit me, “You were the one who had sex in the woods,” I laughed quietly.

Lucinda blushed crimson and held a finger to my lips, shushing me. “We can not talk about that later,” she smiled but her eyes were sad.

She didn’t think I was going to make it.

Awesome.

She directed the soldiers to help me into another room and walked with me as they did.   It was getting harder and harder to focus but I managed to make out most of what she had to say, “Johnny thinks your transition is going to be dangerous so we’re going to have to leave you in here alone so you don’t accidentally hurt anyone.   You hear me AJ?”

I nodded vacantly, the pain was so bad the world would just flash out for a moment and then come back.   They strapped me to a metal bed and I immediately snapped the restraints.

Luce put her hand on my forehead, “Try and focus AJ.   I don’t want to lose you to this.   Focus.   Did they tell you that you have to pick a new name?”   I grunted and tried to focus on her voice. It did help. “Have you picked one yet?”

“Don’t... want...” I spat through gritted teeth.

“Have you picked one?” she repeated.

I tried to tell her but couldn’t form words.

A doctor had been taking my vitals and was starting to get agitated, “It’s going to be very soon or not at all Sgt. Xaing.”

“Try to relax and let it happen.   It really isn’t so bad,” Luce assured me.

“We have to go Lucinda!” the doctor added with a hint of panic.

“Focus on something you care about AJ,” she added before allowing herself to be removed from the room.   The door was sealed and I was left all alone.

I stared into space as the pain moved past anything I could have even imagined.   I tried to scream but my jaw was locked shut.   Every muscle in my body felt like it was firing at once.   I tried to focus past it all and managed to summon the images of those that meant most to me.   Rainbow, Jojo, mom and dad were all with me.   The pain faded and I slipped into darkness...

---

EPILOGUE

---

Dr. Strange stood out side of Mr. Bottom’s office, waiting for permission to enter.   She found his games insufferable but there was little she could about them.

For now.

“Enter,” the deep baritone voice barked and she did as instructed after a bare moment to collect herself.   “Where the hell is SO302?” he asked before she could even speak.

“Special Operative 302 is still in Omaha, Mr. Bottom,” she had almost said ‘sir’ but in spite of the fact he had obviously spent considerable time in the military, Mr. Bottom did not react favorably to the honorific.

Mr. Bottom gazed at her for a time, letting her sweat, “Exactly what part of full withdrawal did you not understand Dr. Strange?   Her continued presence only serves to increase the chances of the bastard Harris tumbling to us.”

The doctor took a deep breath, “SO302 believes the boy will return and she can still salvage the mission.”

“Salvage the mission?” Mr. Bottom asked incredulously.   “There is no mission!   Project: Morpheus is a failure and we are not devoting any further resources in that direction!   It is your job to get that through her technicolored head!”

“Of course, Mr. Bottom,” she answered.

“I had hoped your experiments with the psychic bond might be a useful way to control these freaks,” he eyed her coldly, “but I am beginning to wonder exactly where the loyalty of your ‘family’ lies.”

Dr. Strange swallowed hard and began carefully visualizing the steps she would have to take when she drew the pistol secreted in the small of her back and shot him in the face.

No one was going to take her babies away from her!

Just before she went for her gun the door burst open and Dr. Charm scrambled into the room, “We did it!” he shouted, out of breath.

Both Dr. Strange and the normally unflappable Mr. Bottom, stared at him in shock.

“What in the hell do you think you are doing Doctor!” Mr. Bottom boomed.   

“We did it!” he repeated with a mad grin on his face.

“Did what?” Dr. Strange asked.

“We finally managed to get into the information stored in the Marigold’s black box,” he took a deep breath, “the project was a success.”

“The Transition Inhibitor was a failure Dr. Charm,” Mr. Bottom said coldly.

“Yes!” he laughed manically, “but what we’ve seen from the Marigold suggests we may have found the cure!”

“You can’t mean...” Dr. Strange said nervously.

“Yes!   The cure.   The cure!” he bubbled,   “We just need the boy!”

---

~oOo~

---

Seven months later...

Shae jerked the wheel of the heavy SUV hard, downshifting to slow just enough not to rear end the minivan ahead of them.   Automatic weapons fire traced across the back of the truck and only Sam’s constant attention kept the damaged back window from completely failing.   Shae tapped the breaks as she slid across three lanes of traffic and stomped the accelerator.

“How in the hell am I the only one that knows how to drive a stick?” Shae shouted as a Semi loomed before them and she swerved just before hitting it.   Shae had always been a very safe driver; the idea of caroming down a busy interstate at 120 miles an hour would never even have occurred to her before the Center pulled her out of Omaha.

She also never would have guessed how thrilling it would be!

“How’s Luce!” Shae shouted without taking her eyes from the road for even a second.

“Still out!” Laramie said stiffly.   “They got her from behind with some kind of dart!”

“You okay, Lara?” Shae asked as she wove through traffic erratically in an attempt to avoid gunfire.

“I’ll be fine in a few minutes,” Laramie lied, “healing this many gunshots is a little rough.   How about you Shae? Those burns looked bad.”

“Excepting the fact that my brain is spinning as fast as the engine I’m fi... shit!” the truck swerved to avoid a car merging carelessly into their lane.   “Jackass!” Shae shouted at the car and the brief distraction proved fortuitous. Without even time to think Shae swang cut across traffic and barely managed to make an off ramp onto an intersecting highway.   Slowing enough to not lose it on the curve Shae took the chance to check on their pursuers.

Sure enough the move had been unexpected enough that the bad guys had missed the exit but as she watched one of the cars deftly pulled a bootlegger reverse in the middle of traffic and barreled the wrong way down the corresponding on ramp!

If they hadn’t been trying to kill them it would have been seriously cool.

“Did you guys see that?” Sam shouted.

“I know!” Shae agreed, “Who are these guys?   CIA?   Syndicate?   I mean, what the hell?”

“Why don’t you get out and ask them?” Sam snarked as she focused on shoring up the rear of the vehicle once more.

The road ahead was only two lanes but it was clear as far as Shae could see.   An involuntary smile spread across her lips.   “Sam!   You’re a genius!   Take the wheel!”

“What?   I’m in the back seat I can’t...oh geeze!” heedless of Sam’s objections Shae set the cruise and released the wheel.   After a stomach shifting jerk Sam took control of the truck.   “Are you trying to get us killed!” Sam shouted, “I can’t drive and keep us from getting shot!”

“Don’t worry.   I got them,” Shae said lightly, “Make sure Luce is safe.   I’ll meet up with you if I can.”

“Meet up? Shae, what are you...” Laramie asked as Shae pushed open the door and climbed onto the roof of the truck as if they were standing still.

“What are you doing?” Sam shrieked, “Get back in here!”

Moments later a pink haired comet smashed into the windshield of the pursuing car causing it to swerve and roll.

“Holy shit!” Laramie said under her breath.   “She’s insane!   What do we do now?”

“Find a place to hide.   Wait for backup.   Wake Luce up.   Find Shae,” Sam recited. “and find someway for me to get in the drivers seat!”

---

~oOo~

---

Two hours later Luce sat hunched over a cup of coffee nursing a killer hang over.   Daniel walked over to her and sat down, “How you feeling?” he asked quietly.

“You saw our car?” Luce asked.

“Yeah,” Daniel said, “it was pretty chewed up.”

“My head feels just a little worse than the truck looks,” she groaned.   “Any word on Shae?”

“Not yet,” Daniel reported, “We found the wreckage but there was no sign of the Battle Axe.”

“I dare you to call her that to her face,” Luce chuckled even though it hurt to do so. “Captured?”

Daniel shook his head and tried not to think about the mess they had found inside the crashed vehicle, “No one in that car captured Shae and anyone else that might have been after you have vanished like we would expect.”

“Anything from her transponder?” Luce continued.

“Doesn’t seem to be working,” Dan chewed his thumb in a vestigially feminine manner, “I may be way off base here Luce but it occurs to me that Kansas City is about the closest we’ve let her get to Omaha since she started going on missions...” he shook his head, “but she’s probably just trying to find us,” he smiled but it was obvious he didn’t buy his own argument.   “I knew I should have grabbed a tracker.”

Luce was quiet for a few moments as she let the information percolate.   “Don’t sweat it Daniel, you couldn’t predict what a hump this would be.   Call in the search party and get things tied up here.   We need to get to Omaha.”