“Well,” Rachel said at last. “It’s a beach.”
“No kidding,” Jo replied dryly.
“Where do you suppose the community is?” asked Carla.
“No idea. But the sooner we can find them the better. We need to warn them about the shipwreck.”
“I imagine they already know about it by now,” Jo commented. “Mutants seem to be long in the habit of hiding themselves away, but still managing excellent surveillance. Who knows, maybe they’re already aware we’ve landed.”
“A healthy assumption,” a female voice stated from the trees.
Then out on the beach stepped a woman, a man and a mutant who’s gender was impossible to determine due to his – or her – incredibly disfiguring lizard mutation.
“I wasn’t assuming. I was suggesting distinct possibilities,” Jo replied.
“Whatever,” the woman replied. “You mutants too?”
Before anyone could reply, there was a shriek of delight and a sudden (and out of tune) chorus of MMMBop. They all looked at each other.
“Insect people.”
The insect people appeared then and fly directly towards Isaac and Taylor. Isaac couldn’t help but smile, and made no attempt to try to understand their chatter. However, Taylor/Gordon snarled at the insect people that tried to greet him. They flew off, somewhat unnerved. Their finders regarded him curiously.
“He’s lost it,” Rachel explained. “Tay’s not really that rude. He’s banged his head or something and now keeps babbling and stuff, but we can’t find a scratch on him that would explain what’s caused it.”
“Hmm. Follow us please.”
The walk to the community was silent, except the happy chattering of the insect people, who probably didn’t understand the meaning of ‘quiet’.
Then they stepped through the last of the trees, and into the town. Yes, town. There was no other word for it. There was a clearing of sorts, but in the surrounding trees there were houses. In the clearing there were a few buildings built to blend into the area. And everywhere there were mutants. Some with the most hideous mutations they had ever seen, and others looked so human it was almost impossible to comprehend they were mutants. The buildings in the clearing seemed to occupy public facilities such as the market place, town hall, nursery, infirmary and part of the school (the rest of it was in the trees).
They later learned that there was no money in this place. Everyone did their part and took no more than their share. Indeed there was no other way for a community of this size and nature to operate.
“I thought we said no humans!” a voice yelled suddenly, breaking the busy noises of the town.
“Look!” yelled one of the insect people. “It’s Hanson! And Jo-Jo!”
Isaac and Jo exchanged a look. They couldn’t get away from their fame even here.
“I don’t care who they are,” and now their speaker came into view, a short man, scuttling on eight very spidery legs, “only what they are.”
“Indeed. Then we’re triggered,” Isaac told him.
“Triggered?” the man stared sneeringly. “And what’s that?”
“We’ve got the gene, but instead of it mutating, it got triggered.”
“So, you have powers?”
“Yes.”
“Then I fail to understand the distinction.”
Isaac sighed.
“It’s simple,” Jo cut in then. “You have limits and conditions upon your mutations, we don’t. At least, not the same kind… At any rate, we have our powers in ‘full’ while you have yours in part.”
More chatter. Then the spidery man started laughing.
“A fairy tale!”
The four looked at each other.
“I hate this,” Rachel admitted.
“Wanna put on a show?” Carla asked slyly.
“I hate showing off,” Isaac hesitated.
“Really? I for one, love it when I get an opportunity,” Jo put in. “My life would be so much more fun if I didn’t have to hide how invulnerable and intelligent I am.”
“How would you prove it to these guys anyway?”
“Do we have to? Can’t we just let them have their laugh and get on with it?” Rachel asked.
“Party pooper,” Jo accused, and started wandering off.
“Look, if you girls decide to go ahead with it, I’ll -” Isaac began.
“Hey Rach! Hit me!” Jo demanded.
Everyone looked at her.
“Well?”
“Jo…”
“What are ya? Chicken? C’mon. I’ve always wanted to be struck by lightning.”
Rachel looked hesitant, then she heard some mocking remarks and became determined. A small dark cloud appeared and started raining. She made it float over Jo’s head.
“This is so like the cartoons,” Jo grinned. “Strike me!”
Lightning struck. Jo’s hair didn’t even stick up on end. She started being silly and danced around.
“That doesn’t prove anything,” the man stated.
“Oh, you want proof? Tell me, since I’m obviously got invulnerability, and can stand lighting strikes, what wouldn’t you expect me to be invulnerable to?” Jo grinned at everyone challengingly. “I dare you all to try everything you’ve got on me. My skin has never been pierced. I’ve never been sick. Bring it on.”
“What other powers you got?” asked a voice from the crowd.
“Intelligence. And if there’s anything else, I don’t know what it is.”
“What about the rest of you?” the same voice asked.
“Rachel has Weather, Rubber and Telepathy. Carla has Shape Shifting, Telepathy and Atoms. Taylor has Deep Telepathy, Empathy and Attraction, but ahh, he’s been… he hasn’t been himself since the storm. Lost it,” Isaac said. “And I have Shape Shifting, Telepathy, Telekinesis, Force Fields and Semi-Immortality.”
There was silence.
“The Gift,” another voice murmured loud enough for them all to hear.
“Does the challenge stand for all of you?” the first voice asked.
They looked at each other.
“All but Taylor,” Isaac said finally. “Like I said, he’s a little gone in the head.”
“Enough! No more this talk of challenges,” the spider-legged man shouted. “I will not have -”
“Oh, do be quiet Bruce,” cut in the woman that had found them on the beach. “We could do with an end to this tension after the shipwreck. No thanks to certain mutants I could mention. The challenge will cease at dawn tomorrow, unless, of course, we have found your… weak spot by then.”
“So soon?” asked Jo.
“She’s a sucker for punishment, huh?” Carla whispered to Isaac.
Isaac smiled.