Subject: [OTL]: (alt. Pryde/Wisdom/Marvelverse) Recoil Chapter 9/12 (R) Date: Mon, 14 Jun 2004 23:09:44 -0700 (PDT) From: Phil Hartman will1@earthling.net Recoil Chapter 9 by Phil Hartman DISCLAIMER: Jake and Jesse Summers are mine. The rest are Marvel's. It's all fiction. No money is being made off of this. Etc. WARNING: See previous chapters. ------------------------------------------------------- 6/6/2004: X-Mansion Medlab Storage Area: 06:15 hrs EDT: ------------------------------------------------------- He shouldn't've come. But he felt as if he'd had to; Uncle Neal had been ... killed ... saving him. And Jesse wanted to say goodbye, but nobody seemed to want to let him. He'd gotten dressed - nobody could sleep, with all the sad things going on, and the Bad Person coming into the Summers' house - and walked up to the mansion with Uncle Warren. He'd been sad too, but he said that he'd felt worse for Aunt Betsy. #She and Uncle Neal were good friends,# the 4-year-old thought, opening the door to the cold room. Uncle Hank was keeping it cold so that Uncle Neal's body would be OK to be buried, Ray had said. Jesse shivered as he approached the slab where Neal Shaara's mortal remains lay. The boy's clothes were fine for the summer temperatures outside, but given the temperature necessary to preserve a corpse, Jesse's T-shirt and jeans were a little less than ideal. "U-Uncle Neal? I know you're gone ... Mom tol' me 'bout what happens when people die, how their soul goes away," Jesse began, chattering a little. The fluorescent lights illuminated the very faint red fuzz atop the boy's head, that had started to grow back after Sinister had shaved it for surgery the day before. Jesse blinked in the gloom, then walked a little closer to Neal's sheet-covered body. "I j-just wanted to say I'm sorry. You ... died ... helpin' me, an' ... I miss you," Jesse sniffed, wiping his eyes. Then he blinked, and saw something glimmer. "U-Uncle Neal ...?" Jesse asked, reaching out a hand. That was just before the fire alarm went off. ------------------------------------------------------- "DEAR GOD!" "Hank, what the hell happened!?" Jean - ignoring Hank's advice and her lingering headache - shouted as she flew telekinetically to the makeshift morgue door. Hank had grabbed a fire extinguisher, while Cecilia was checking the environmental controls. "Momentary plasma burst - that's VERY weird. I'm picking up two biosignatures in the - Madre de Dios ..." Cecilia breathed as she overrode the automatic fire system and ordered the door to open. Jean gave a small cry as Jesse stumbled out of the smoke-filled chamber, coughing, into her arms. "'M sorry, Mom. I j-just wanted t'sy goodbye to Uncle Neal," the boy cried. "Honey, you could've been hurt! What happened?!" Jean asked, before she sensed - - ~No -~ - and telekinetically pulled a blinking, naked figure out of the room. "Y'know, being stuck halfway between an organic and a plasma form really sucked," Neal Shaara said, blushing until Hank put a lab coat around him. "U-Uncle Neal?" Jesse gasped. Hank tried not to faint, while Betsy, Warren, Scott, Ororo, Xavier, Bishop and Sage raced into the lab. "Of course. In the assumption that a bullet to the forehead would, normally, be lethal, we forgot that Neal can transduce himself into living plasma. I assume, Jesse, you used your light power to try and see better?" Sage asked. "Uh-huh," Jesse said, gulping when Jean's grip on him tightened. She kissed his head, then picked him up and let Scott put an arm around her as Xavier offered Neal a hand. "Hmm. I hypothesize that the excess photonic energy from Jesse's glow somehow interfered with the bullet's interference in Neal's transduction process. In any case, I expect the bullet to either have been vaporized when Neal finished his transduction, or to be laying on the ruins of that slab," Sage concluded. "It's really you. Neal - welcome back," Xavier said, clapping Neal on the shoulders. "Thank you, sir. And thank you, Jesse. Without you, I might still be stuck on that slab," Neal said, grinning at the boy before Betsy hugged him. "You great thumping lunatic! I thought you were dead - thank God we were wrong. Pete and Kitty think they have an idea of whom the shooter is," Betsy said. "So who do we beat the hell out of?" Warren snarled. "They didn't say. Evidently, they're concerned about operational security. They'v even gone off of my network," Sage replied, raising an eyebrow. ------------------------------------------------------- Meanwhile ... ------------------------------------------------------- "I hate this, but unless we make sure that this coffin has a corpse, we can't be sure that any of the X-Men are actually who they say they are," Kitty said in a grim tone as she and Pete watched their "hired help" dig in the Xavier ancestral cemetery. "So y' called in ringers. Nice," Pete chuckled, lighting a cigarette and leaning against a tree. Kitty gave him a disgusted look, then nodded as Brian and Meggan Braddock finished digging up the coffin. "I hope this is worth it, Kitty. This is all rather ghoulish," Brian grumbled. "And how will you get it back in the hole? Brian and I are losing control of our powers quickly here in America," Meggan worried aloud. "Don't worry, Meg. This won't take long," Kitty said. She handed Lockheed to her teammate, then took a deep breath, turned on a flashlight and phased through the coffin's lid. "So she's worried that the X-Men may be compromised. Unglaublich. I hate sneaking around when my friends and family are in pain," Kurt Wagner said with a frown to his longtime girlfriend. "Better to stay undercover, love, than risk drawing out the shooter prematurely. Too many people've suffered - uh-oh," Amanda Sefton gulped as a stepping disc appeared nearby. "What the - EWWWWW! What're you guys doing up here!?" Illyana yelled, gagging. "Tell me this is part of the investigation," Rachel pleaded as she, Nate and Chuck Lehnsherr walked up with Illyana. "A'right, ya little prats, get back. I ain't in favor of this forensic stuff either, but -" Pete snapped. "SHIT!" Kitty phased back out of the coffin, scowling, then blushed as the teens and Nate looked expectantly at her. "Sorry you guys heard that ... Pete, he's not in there. And there was what looked like a tunnel dug from beneath the coffin to the fenceline - a very old one," Kitty said. "Bloody shite. The blighter's alive," Pete breathed. He glared at Illyana and the other kids, then glanced at Kitty. "They'll have to find out sooner or later. Guys ... we think the Changeling is alive, and that he shot Jesse and the others," Kitty said. Chuck flinched, Nate went pale, and Rachel gritted her teeth. "Of course. The dead man did it. Kit, you're smoking something, aren't you?" Illyana demanded. "Er, guys? The grave is a bit premature." Rachel shrieked, and the others gasped, as Neal - now wearing a standard X-Men uniform - flew up, beaming. "OK. I know we defy death regularly, but you're setting a new record, Neal," Chuck tried to joke. "No ... it's him! YOU'RE ALIVE!!" Rachel cheered, hugging Neal. He blushed, but smiled again as the others crowded around him. "Thanks, everyone. Jesse accidentally revived me - it's a long story. I'm assuming there's one for why you guys brought your Excalibur teammates over to dig up a coffin?" Neal asked. "Especially that one," Xavier said in a nauseated tone as he appeared from shadow with Betsy, Warren, Scott, Jean and Jesse. Brian and Betsy hugged as Xavier nodded towards Excalibur and locked eyes with Pete and Kitty. "Professor, we think the Changeling is the one who shot everyone. There's physical evidence to suggest that he awoke in the coffin, morphed into a liquid form, seeped out of the coffin and dug his way up to the surface," Kitty said. "An' I'm bettin' the metamorph dropped out o' Black Womb was Prime Suspect Number One," Pete added. "That would explain the almost-but-not-quite match to the Professor's psi-signature," Scott reflected. "Dead men getting up and attacking us after almost two decades? For Brian Xavier's diary?" Jean asked in a nervous tone. "Maybe he was hungry for brains," Jesse said, gulping. "Figuratively speaking, Jesse has a point. The Changeling very well could have been seeking information about his past, which my father's diary certainly holds," Xavier said with a sad smile. "Better than Mad Cow Risk Souffle," Chuck tried to joke. Nobody laughed. ------------------------------------------------------- INTERLUDE: ------------------------------------------------------- Kevin Belataine had had a quiet childhood, until his skin started to stretch. After a few experiments, he'd turned to petty crime, morphing into other gang members to shift the blame. Being a "changeling" stuck, after his foster mother had given him the nickname during one of his young teenage temper tantrums. Life on the street was pretty bearable. Then he'd met the Mutant Master, and become involved in the chaos that was Factor Three. THAT had been a disaster, bar none. Worse, the Changeling had learned that he would die. So, he decided to try and redeem himself by replacing Charles Xavier. The power of telepathy had been intoxicating, but the Changeling had resisted abusing it. Even during the fight with Grotesk, he'd played the noble hero. Then he'd been dead. But death and metamorphs only occasionally meet; something about being able to change one's shape gives one remarkable healing power. Kevin had awoken in his coffin, horrified, and metamorphed out. The digging out had been less than pleasant. Still, once he'd learned to avoid using his lingering psionic powers - not the easiest thing to do, even with their weakened state - he'd constructed a cover identity and started researching his past. What he uncovered from the Commission on Superhuman Affairs had been unsettling, at a bare minimum. But he needed confirmation, something from the first person to work with the alleged "sinister" influence in the black-ops genetic program of the early 20th century. The fact that Brian Xavier was the best source was just too much of an irony for the Changeling. After "acquiring" a teleport belt from HYDRA, and finding an old Factor Three base to operate out of, the Changeling was ready to seek revenge. The diary of Brian Xavier was what he needed, though; he wasn't going to carry out a revenge campaign without being thorough. He felt horrible about Jesse Summers and Jean - she'd been the one X-Man who had known about his identity, and she'd been helpful during his agonizing last weeks as "Xavier." The fact that her little boy had been injured when the Changeling had acquired the diary gnawed at the metamorph's conscience. But what the diary had confirmed had only hardened the Changeling's resolve. #I'm a lab rat. An experiment Sinister foisted off on a loving but confused set of parents. That monster created me, then turned me out because I wasn't strong enough,# the blue-and-purple-clad Changeling thought, scowling. He finished assembling a very specific weapon and teleported to New Hampshire. After nearly three decades, Kevin Belataine was going hunting again. ------------------------------------------------------- X-Mansion Medlab: 07:00 hrs EDT: ------------------------------------------------------- "GAMBIT A WHAT!?" "Remy, stop squirming. So you're a Summers. So what? You're still the coolest stepdad I've got," Chuck said as he watched his mother feed Gambit. "Charlie's right, Remy. At least ya know who your birth parents are," Marie said encouragingly, holding a forkfull of French toast to Remy's lips. He devoured the morsel, then sighed. "Oui. Scott, Jean, an' de Black Womb gave birth t'me. Like I ain't got 'nough problems as Unified Guild Master," Remy grumbled. "M' family tree's gon' be a nightmare." ------------------------------------------------------- Somewhere in New Hampshire: 07:05 hrs EDT: ------------------------------------------------------- ~Kevin.~ The Changeling - morphed into a hunter - whirled, stopping when he saw Xavier approach, unarmed, from the treeline surrounding the entrance to Sinister's last known base. "It's over, Kevin. This nightmare can end now. I understand what you were trying to warn me about all those years ago. Sinister is a monster, but you've got to work with us to stop him," Xavier asked. "You'd better be a psionic projection, Charles, or I'll test this power-disruption ray on you. I'm in no mood to be coddled. I'm truly sorry about all the agony I've caused, but I had to get that diary. Of course, it's too late now, isn't it? Jean and Scott will want me dead for hurting their little boy," the Changeling sobbed, shifting into his base form. "Jesse will recover in time. He's a resilient little boy. And the others are alive - even Neal Shaara. You're a victim too, Kevin. Please -" Xavier began. He stopped when a bolt from the ray struck the ground beside him. "Stay back! I warned you, Xavier, I won't be denied my revenge! Sinister created me, then he cast me aside! And when I came back to life, his damned Marauders hunted me! They didn't know who they were dealing with, but that's beside the point," the Changeling said in a weary voice. "How glad I am to know that I didn't underestimate you, Mr. Belataine." Xavier and the Changeling whirled, to see Sinister rise from the ground on some kind of hidden platform. He nodded to Xavier, then concentrated and made the Changeling scream. "Foolish. Resourceful but ultimately sloppy. It was your father's sentimentalism that kept me from destroying this cretin, Charles. You're better off without him," Sinister said as the Changeling dropped to his knees. "Release him, Sinister! He's mentally ill, not a threat!" Xavier demanded. "Ah. The same argument you used about Sabretooth, and he did less damage, didn't he?" Sinister asked. Xavier just blushed and looked away - - until he heard a loud CRACK - - and fell over, clutching his chest. "WHAT!?" Sinister roared. He teleported away, leaving the Changeling to look over at where blood was staining Xavier's jacket. A person in a trenchcoat and fedora loomed over Xavier and pulled Brian Xavier's diary from Xavier's jacket. Then the interloper pointed a gun at the Changeling - - and the last thing Kevin Belataine "heard" was: ~Why you?~ He realized, as he died, that Xavier had been asking the shooter that question. The new shooter. ------------------------------------------------------- tbc ... -------------------------------------------------------