Sabretooth, Christian, Victory, Nathan, Lindsey & Magneto
Sabretooth tapped his fingers as he started to drive through Houston, overly large, curved nails ticktapping on the cracked surface of the steering wheel. Christina fought unconsciousness, head drifting lower and sagging against the restraints that kept her in her seat. Victory hummed and babbled in the back, mercifully covering the slow rasps as Christina dragged the sliver of metal over the rapidly fraying fibres that held her hands in place.
What exactly she would do once she got out of the car, she didn't know. But she was hoping that anyway it worked out, she'd be away for long enough to lose this f*cking baby. Scrape, scrape. Stop. Waaiiit. Scrape.
Sabretooth stopped at a red light, eyes looking to his left to see a tall thin man standing against a streetlight post. Nathan stared back, seeing the barely tamed beast in the man, held back not for long and not by choice. The poisoned innocence of the child in the back seat. The crushed strength of the woman in the front, and oh, the absolute darkness that curled inside her stomach, waiting to be born. And...there was Lindsey, crossing the street at the lights. RK sprang forward and Nathan swept along in his wake, foretelling sparking and sizzling behind his eyes.
Christina felt the rope part and give way. Lindsey made his way to the edge of the street. Sabretooth pressed down on the accelerator. Victory's eyes flashed upwards in shock as Christina turned, opened the door and rolled to the ground. Sabretooth growled as Lindsey reached down to help her up.
"God, help me, help me..."
"Hey, what's wrong?" Lindsey soothed, before Nathan grabbed Christina's other arm to help drag her along.
"We have to go, before the cat comes a-hunting his mouse."
Somehow struck by the urgency, Lindsey helped Christina and Nathan run, RK flowing in front of them as Nathan steered them the place in his visions. Handing a cup to Christina.
"Drink it. It will rid you of the child. Pansy and rue, steeped and boiled."
Gagging, Christina drank the bitter draught as the tires of Sabretooth's car squealed as he turned sharply into a parking space and the mutant leapt out, terrible rage on his face.
Run, RK ordered loudly and before they knew it almost, the three were fleeing.
Human, alien and mutant, cat skidding away in front of them as the mutant behind them roared with anger.
"Duck."
Nathan pullled the other two down into a crouch and then Sabretooth was knocked off his feet by a skater who'd jumped off a high ledge, skimming the other three but landing squarely on Sabretooth. By the time he got up, they were gone. Magneto walked out to him.
"Rather sloppy, Victor."
Sabretooth raised his lip, then stalked back to the car to get Victory and go with Magneto. Like he had been going to do.
Christina panted and wept as convulsions swept her stomach, knees apart as Nathan carefully crooned to her. Lindsey watched in sick fascination as the woman threw her head back, almost screaming with the pain but reduced to moaning like a sick animal. Soon enough, the cloth of her skirt was sodden with blood as the forced miscarriage continued.
Nathan looked up at Lindsey as Christina's face grew whiter.
"I need you to ring this number. Ask for Tanya, the Telepathic Temptress, and if they can't get her, Leroy Brown."
Lindsey got out his cell and dialled the number that was for the spacestation, routed through the Houston headquarters of the YIRAAS. Christina screamed, a dark ugly sound of pain and fear as she strained to expel the child from her womb.
"Oh god, it hurts..."
"Shhh now, Greenie. We'll get you some help soon."
Tanya
"That was a good workout today," Tanya was saying as her students departed the room. "Keep it up."
She heard a buzz and a voice came through the intercom.
"Tanya? Call for you," it said.
"Thanks," Tanya replied.
She walked over and picked up the phone.
"Hello? Tanya speaking."
Lindsey, Nathan & Christina
Lindsey raised an eyebrow at the sound of her voice.
"Hello, Tanya? You won't have heard of me, my name's Lindsey McDonald, but I am calling on behalf of someone else. Nathan, just what is your last name?"
"Harper. Give me that."
Nathan reached up and snatched the cell from Lindey's hands, blood streaked over them and the lawyer grimaced in distaste.
"Hello, Tanya. Long time no talk. Last time we met was...lessee...the bombs that were going to destroy everything. Greenie, you have to push now. Good girl."
Christina wailed, fingers scrabbling against the ground for something to hold onto and break in her agony.
"God oh god oh god oh god oh god..."
"You know Greenie, I think. Christinaaaa, bearer of nothingness, but not for much longer. Prophecy is *such* a bitch. RK, can you help her a little? Sorry, many things happening. Lots of blood. We need a healer. Can you send one? Otherwise most likely she's going to die. The cat doesn't sheathe his claws when he rapes and her soul is near dead inside her body. Plus miscarrying the monster babe the scientist planted in her stomach..."
Tanya
Tanya rubbed her forehead as she sat down at her computer.
"I'm sure I could get someone," she said. "Where are you?"
There was still that death warrant out on Christina... nothing Tanya could do about that, but healers were usually the last people inclined to kill anyone.
Nathan, Lindsey & Christina
Nathan snapped off the address in a quick clear voice, totally unlike his usual insane ramblings.
"Lindsey, you have to help her. Give her your hand."
Lindsey stepped forward and knelt next to Christina, giving her his hand. She latched onto it with bonecrushing force, another pained cry making its way past her lips as he winced.
"To fight on the side of right is hard, Tanya. To be darkness, tipped, fallen or chosen, then to come back is harder. Ever think how close a word Christina is to Christian? RK says hello."
Tanya
"I'll bear that in mind," Tanya replied softly. "Say hi to RK for me. I'll get that healer around to you now."
*Bree? Can you do me a favour?*
*Whoa! Tanya! I hate it when you do that!*
*Sorry. There's a birth going on downside and they're having problems. Can you get to the teleportation room? I'll ask whoever is on duty to send you to the address.*
*Umm, yeah, I can do that.*
*Good*
Tanya then spoke to the teleporter on duty, gave them the address and asked them to teleport Bree to it when she appeared.
"She's on her way. Should be there any minute now," Tanya said.
Nathan, Lindsey & Christina
"A true queen knows mercy," Nathan said softly.
"A happy future for your babe I see. But do try and keep him away from honey. Right. Ah, and what comes next? We run, I think would be the answer. Right after this lovely lady you're sending arrives."
Lindsey looked up.
"What about...that man? That was chasing us?"
"The cat'a'mountain man? No, he's long gone. With his evil little girl and the man who works with metal. Odd, how one can turn out so wrong when the rest of the litter was perfectly fine. Cats."
RK sneezed in disapproval.
"Sorry, RK, but she was a bit hasty in her choice of mates, your daughter."
Christina sobbed for breath.
Tanya
Tanya smiled.
"Thank you," she said.
Not long thereafter, Bree appeared in the room. She took a moment to take in her surroundings.
Nathan, Christina & Lindsey
Nathan nodded to the healer as she went to work. Soon enough, the baby was delivered, barely breathing. Lindsey took the boy from the healer and held him while she went to work to save the mother.
Nathan sighed.
"And here come's the nasty bit of the job. Snapping a baby's neck because it's a monster born and bred."
He dropped the phone and took the child from Lindsey, eyes sorrowful. Before Lindsey could say anything, the healer stop him, Nathan took the baby's fragile neck in one hand and crushed it. The child jerked and then was still.
"Oh my god, you killed the baby," Bree moaned.
"Good," Christina grunted, eyes opening for a moment.
"Oh god, Nate..." Lindsey said in shock.
Tanya
"Hello?" Tanya asked.
Then she heard someone say something about killing the baby. Sounded rather - oh wait, didn't Nathan say something about scientists putting it there? Tanya would have almost felt it would be harsh to say that it was better that way, if not for the fact she knew well what kind of creatures those people were capable of creating.
Nathan, Lindsey & Christina
Nathan picked up the cell again, dead child cradled in one arm.
"If Christian does call you sometime...you can tell him the child is dead. Funny, how neither dame nor sire nor indeed, the world wanted this one to be born."
Lindsey watched as the cuts and deep lines of rope abrasions around Christina's ankles and wrists slowly disappeared.
Tanya
"I will," Tanya replied. "Is Christina all right now?"
Now there's something she never thought she's hear herself say.
Nathan & Lindsey
"Physically, more or less, she's nearly better," Nathan reported.
"But what say thou to a shattered mind? You will have heard of Sabretooth, I trust? To such tender mercies was Christina and her monster child entrusted by the scientist."
"That's who that was?" Lindsey asked, startled.
"Oh. My. F*cking. God. And we're still alive?"
"Yes, yes we are. You can tell by the breathing. Next order of business. The warrant. The one who did commit the crimes is dead. Persecute the innocent, thou? A new name for a new beginning, I think, but the body is reused and the body has a death sentance pinned to it."
Tanya
"Disguise the body as best you can. Dye the hair, or whatever you feel is appropriate. New ID, so on, so forth. I shall tell the YIRAAS Christina is dead," Tanya said. "Actually, I shall tell them that Spook is dead. That will be sufficiant in convincing any empaths who may be around that I'm telling the truth, or I believe I am. At least then the heat will be off her."