Brimstone continued to brood, spending much of his time on the roof of the hideout, much to Jason's chagrin as he feared the 'borg might once again fall and damage his prime real estate. Currently he was casually chucking stone after stone into the see, watching each piece sink quickly out of view. As he did so, a crow landed some distance away from him and cawed loudly. It walked in closer, cautiously, then cawed again. The metal man extended his hand, waiting to see if the bird would either peck or bite what was left of the flesh on his hand. It did neither. Instead it cawed again, then stepped away, then paused as if waiting for the cyborg to follow. BS sighed, then stood up, dusting himself off before picking up his duffle bag filled with supplies, then followed the bird as it flew from tree to tree, leading hm back into the city proper. Finally the reached a nice cottage, in which his hopes had risen slightly, only to see the bird hope into a nest and feed 4 ravenous babies. Cursing to himself, he sunk back into his broody mood and continued along the road. If he had taken to time to look again on the roof, he would have spotted Meli on the other side of the chimney, casually feeding the mother bird several long strips of wheat bread.

Randall had taken a break from his latest project and headed to the kitchen, surprised to see Megan aiding the refrigerator. she was once again borrowing pajamas, this one with a florescent yellow Care Bear gleaming out, though she certainly was far from gleaming herself. It was when she pulled the banana cream pie from is resting place that Jason walked in on the two of them, having taken a break from surveying the repairs being done to the dance floor. "Hey! That's for dessert!" he barked. "Put that back!"
           Nine already had buried two fingers knuckle deep into the meringue, but she paused and looked at Jason, somewhat daring him to do something about it. Randall knew that look all too well and tried to diffuse the situation. "Jason, just relax...."
           "Relax?! This bitch and her bottomless pit of a stomach is costing me and arm and a leg!"
           "Literally," Nine added, then coached another finger full of pie into her maw. She was not lying. His broken arm was still taped up against his side, while both of his feet were braced where Brimstone had stomped on them.
           Randall was between them, though Nine was more baiting than sparring for a fight. "Jason, you of all people should know that her mutated metabolism needs more fuel than most people."
           "Well maybe she should put that metabolism to some good use, like earning her keep!" He paused, even as she continued to feed upon the sugar loaded confection. "Or maybe she's just not up to the task."
           The scientist was already to the rescue of Nine's honor. "She held her own against those thugs the other day. I guarantee she would have run them off if I hadn't shown up. I probably saved those clods from a world of hurt."
           "Bull. She's a slacker. If she was anything worth keeping, she would have powered up by now. She's holding back. You can't tell me she can't do what she used to do. She's hiding it from you."
           "She's getting them back!" the doctor insisted.
           He may have stirred up Randall some, but Nine seemed content on just finishing the pie and depositing the pyrex plate in the sink before opening the fridge to see what else she could muster. Behind the four gallons of milk was yet another pie, this one chocolate mousse.
           The physician's dander, however, was up. "If you knew what was don to her, you would know it took almost all she had to survive the attack!"
           "Riiiight.... She was the one that had all the whammy sucked out of her... by a human. Makes her pretty useless, doesn't it? So why do you keep her around? Surely Not for the Sex."
           Nine answered that charge with a punch to the face. Jason had no other recourse than to brace himself for the impact as he was already so bandaged that there was no way to dodge it. Just as he went tumbling, Estor stepped in, having to sidestep the body, giving a knowing smirk even as Randall dragged the carcass aside. "Alright," the once god asked. "What did he do this time?"

Marek and Isilwen found Brimstone in a deep funk. The metal man was storming across the marketplace, uncaring as to who saw him or who made faces at him. Surely he was a sight as he still hadn't burned the now useless tattered rainslicker or the weather worn Stetson hat. He barely mustered a grunt as he stomped by the duo. "Alright, Rust Bucket," Marek smirked, "but you're going the wrong way."
The big man paused, then looked up at Marek from under the rotten brow. "I'm not up for having my chain yanked today," he warned.
           "Oh, I'm so scared," Marek replied with another smirk.
           "Whatever," BS grumped back, but he did correct is course. He suddenly stopped and wheeled about to glare at the blacksmith, even though the man had said nothing further. "You all are just getting a kick outta this, ain't ya? You don't realize just how dangerous this can all get, do you?"
           "I believe it is you that underestimates me."
           This just pushed Brimstone's buttons further and he began to gesture wildly about, sending most of the marketers scurrying in fear for their lives. "You don't get it! I'm trying to stop a war! A big one! It's not Youse guys I'm worried about. It's Mine!"
           Marek chuckled. "There's not going to be a war," he insisted.
"Of course not," Brimstone agreed emphatically, which confused the mariner a bit, until the metal man brought the point to light. "You don't think I know that you all could collectively clean our clocks? But even If they believed that, it wouldn't stop them from trying. They don't want to Win the war, they just need to be In one." He rolled his eyes in exasperation, turned about on his heel and continued to whirlwind down the street, now venting his frustration on the nearest garbage receptacle, sending the can hurling across the marketplace.
Isilwen sighed. "He might get more accomplished if he learned to control his temper."
"That's true. My aunt doesn't like that temper." Marek then held out his elbow. "Come, Isilwen. Let's go spread some joy?"
She nodded and they disappeared in a wink of an eye.

Meli continued to watch the cyborg from the safety from of the rooftops. She had left her reams of black cloth behind, opting for the freer movement that a pair of jeans and a plain brown t-shirt could offer. She watched as BS continued to vent, sending various boxes and receptacles flying. It was no wonder that the police showed up, shouting commands and warnings at the "monster" terrorizing the streets. Meli had never seen the big guy in action, and it was quite the treat. He didn't have to hurt a soul, even as he shot back at the law, it was only to shoot out supports on awnings, dropping the tarps over the pursuing constabulary, leaving a flooded trail of food and debris for the police to plow through, slowing their pursuit. He vaulted over fruit stands, slid under moving carriages, and twisted and turned until he was able to slip into one of the sewer access tunnels without being detected.

"The creep deserved it," Nine insisted, shaking out her hand. She probably broke a finger, but she knew she had broken his nose. A fair trade. "He said I was useless."
           "He was being an ass," Randall answered, likewise upset with Jason's manners, but his doctoring skills kicked in and he at least tried to set the broken nose, though Nine insisted that he should leave it to teach Jason a lesson.
           Now she turned to look Estor over. Having been married to the queen of bad glances, Estor just stood, letting her take him in. He could feel her mind churning and knew the questions were coming long before she spoke them. "What IS your deal anyhow? You're not like us, but you've got our vibe."
           "Yes," Randall chimed in. "What manner of beast Are you?"
           Indeed Estor was a strange thing to behold. He still had his elvin structures, silver eyes matched with silver hair and pointed ears, but that quickly gave was to a set of metal plated arms that bent with his movements with ease. The arms were accented with an identical set of wings, razor sharp and heavily plated. The bright red Bermuda shorts just added to the bizarre site. Even though he looked intimidating, it was him that kept his gaze averted from Nine's, being as non-threatening and submissive as possible. "Hrm... Me? I guess I'm pretty much a mutant at this point."
           Nine continued to press. "So is it true that you married that Aurora chick? The 'other' me?" She even did the air quotations for emphasis.
           "Yeeeeeeeesssss." Estor droned, keeping a wary eye on the girl. It was questions like this that started fights.
           The mutant girl's brow was furrowed in confused thought. "And what possessed you to marry her?"
           The smile was undeniable as if the question were too large to fully explain. "Love... and a great deal of adventure mixed with mutual difficulty, and after a long and painful courtship."
           Nine brow continued to furrow, since she still hadn't the experience of an in-depth love since she was still learning the fundamentals with Randall. "The sex alone wasn't good enough? Or was there a sizeable dowry involved?"
           Her erstwhile boyfriend blushed. "That was a bit blunt, Nine."
           Estor laughed out loud. "Well the sex is a lot of fun, you know. Still, it's been kinda interesting since she's gone through three or four bodies over the years." Somehow he couldn't take offense at anything Nine said.
           It was then that Brimstone entered the kitchen, having purposefully left a long trail of sewer slime on Jason's newly refurbished dance floor. He looked down at the unconscious owner. "Who got him this time?"
           "Nine decked him." Randall seemed proud of that point.
           The apple of Randall's eye scrunched up her nose at Brimstone. "You need a bath... and a new wardrobe."
           "I'm working on it," the metal man grumped back, then turned down the hall to hit the showers.
           Now it was Estor's turn to study Nine, especially since her attention was on the cyborg. When she turned around to stare back, he now asked his questions. "Why do you ask about me and Aurora?"
           Her gaze had shifted from suspicion to genuine intrigue. "Well for the most part, mutants don't marry. At least not from where I'm from, and not from where They're from," she nodded towards Brimstone's direction. "At least that's what they told me." She would have continued, but her stomach gurgled, and she had to answer its call. Again she was into the fridge and drew out the chocolate dessert. "You know, for a guy paranoid about pies he sure has a lot of them around."
           Estor mused over Nine's facts. "Its just seemed natural to marry her. Maybe you should ask her when she comes back. I think she's coming back."
           Nine now fished around in the draws looking for a spoon. "If she does I guess I'll have to move out. Save on the confusion."
           "You two don't look all that similar," the silver winged elf insisted. "Different, really. The way you move mostly gives you away."
           That made Nine snort, almost spraying the counter with chocolate nose mush. "You would be the first one to say it. They keep mistaking me for her.... and for Megan too."
           Brimstone returned to the kitchen, clad in an over sized beachtowel for modesty's sake. Not many had ever seen the metal man this bare, and if they have, could see just how miss matched he really was. Bare flesh seemed to be stitched directly into metal components. He still sported some of the Militant issued material, but what pieces had been damaged had been replaced with whatever he could find on the Rydin black market. To look at Brimstone was like looking at six different model kits put together as one with several chunks of flesh thrown in for good measure. Even some of the patches of skin didn't match.
           He now turned to the fridge himself, first fishing out a beer for Estor and Randall, then fetching two more for himself. He was much calmer now, the chase having chased the bad doldrums out of his mind. It seemed a combined effort on the mutant front to see if they could empty Jason's refrigerator in one day.
           But it was Estor that Nine continued to study. Finally she came to her conclusion. "Man, you are strange, even for a mutie," and she took her choco pie and headed out into the living room where she could indulge in piece. But it wasn't peaceful for long. A movement in the shadows caught her eye. At first the thought it was Timothy, but the body was too small and opaque. It was Meli, stalking Brimstone through the hideout. The psi hunter froze when she realized Nine had her pegged, but smiled very quietly when Nine looked from her to the kitchen door, then to the pie, then to the door, then back to Meli before shrugging her shoulders and going back to the task of feeding her face, figuring the whole thing was none of business.

"So what Are you doing here?" Brimstone finally asked Estor, once Nine had left the room. "I thought you and her were on vacation?"
           "Oh, things are alright. Vacation was just a bit long. That's why I've come home, to take a vacation from the vacation."
           "Yeah, I was thinking that Her High and Mightiness might be along that same frame of mind. A year long sabbatical is a bit of a stretch, even for her.." He paused, sensing something behind him, but when he turned, he missed Meli ducking back out of view. The 'borg shook his head to shake away the creepy feeling then crushed the now empty beer can and tossed it, only to open the second. "I do apologize for selling the homestead to Jason, but I was in a fix at the time. Still am, actually." He took a few swallows, eyeing the silver winged creature. "You know he does, technically, own the land, the bar, and the mountain." When he didn't get a reply, he took another swig of his drink then pulled the curtain back to look out and over Estor's art-de-deco. "How Did you manage that?"
           "Oh it's always been able to move. Didn'tcha know? Besides, we're all made of that Del Marian stuff. The way I see it, the strong rule and all that. If he complains I'll just bop him on the head until he stops complaining."
           The flippant tone wasn't lost on Brimstone. Estor was not a mutant by birth, but by a combined effort of tech and magic. Course starting off as a draconic god probably helped. Brimstone wasn't exactly sure what Estor's current status was, but he knew that the good natured fellow would Never be as wound up and frazzled as his mate, which is why the marriage probably worked. Still, the warnings had to be laid out. "You Do know that.. technically.. by owning all this stuff that Jason is now the head Del Marian leader, even though he's not a mutant, right? You keep doing that and you may put us at odds, unless You want to lead this hodge podge of insanity?"
           Estor snorted. "Do you really think that matters very much to me? I'm a good guy if you remember, and he is evil and slimy."
           "Jason? Evil? Hardly. He's just monetarily driven. Those multi-zillionaire types are. TIM is evil and slimy... well... mainly slimy.. sometimes evil.."
           "Oh I dunno. Tim is alright. He's mainly more annoyingly right than evil." The silver elf dropped his head a bit, as if trying to recall a conversation but couldn't quite get the picture in focus. He picked his head up again a few moments later. "He just likes people to think he's evil. It's his personal style."

             While the boys discussed heads of state, Meli had retreated some, finding herself staring at Nine as she slowly indulged in the chocolate confection. The mutant paused, returning the stare, though not nearly with the normal level of suspicion. In fact, Nine paused, then held out the pie plate towards the psi hunter, offering her what was left; four slices. She took two, nibbled on one as she tip toes back towards the kitchen.

Brimstone had heard the footsteps, but associated them with the wrong person. "Nine, go put that dish in the sink," he insisted as he turned around, only to find himself staring down at Meli, whom let the second slice fly full into his mechanical face before fleeing. The ‘borg just stood quietly a moment as pudding dripped off his face. slowly the body began to convulse as if he was crying, but once the last of the crust fell away could they see that he was indeed crying, but with laughter.

Nine watched the big man as he busted out laughing, then just shrugged her shoulder and went back to devouring her dessert.

Drac paced in his council room in front of his chosen consultants, clearly worried about the latest news. He first stopped in front of his healer mage, Serenity. “Can someone give me an explanation as to why that wound of Megan’s hasn’t healed yet? I know we lost quite a bit of our knowledge in the Great War, but surely we can cure a simple enchantment, can’t we?”
           Serenity took the brunt of Drac’s frustrations calmly. “My Lord, we are countering every new mutation of this infection as best we can. I and Lord Claw are searching through the ancient tomes to try to find a more permanent cure, but there is the question of Lady Megan’s ability to withstand our healing arts. Sir Randall has been able to help, but we have been forced to take longer breaks before confronting each new mutation.
           The Vashtalian king nodded, even as Randall entered the room, the scientist having sedated Megan once again to get her to rest. “There is one other piece of disturbing news,” Drac added. “It would seem that our old ‘friend’ Timothy is back in the game.”
           “Oh boy,” Randall groaned. “Nine is going to love that. I wonder what he has up his sleeve this time.”
           “Whatever it is, I’m sure it concerns Megan and the rest of that mutant clan; therefore I would like to issue orders concerning their livelihood. First off. Lady Serenity; you shall accompany Lord Claw to awaken all the border wards and upgrade their strength.”
           “But Lord Dracon! If we make them stronger that would render much of the holy division’s magic inoperable. We would risk blocking the very same divine power that we call upon for our more powerful spells.”
           “I’m well aware of that, Seren,” the Vashtalian lizard snarled, even while in his human form. “Set the barriers. This realm will be, in effect, under complete lockdown. Randall, you and I will try to convince the rest of the Del Marians to stay here in this realm. With Jason trying to sell off the old hideout, this would be the safest place for them to set up a new camp. And if we manage to convince Brimstone, he can held set up a detection grid in case Timothy reverts back on more mutant means of movement.”
           As Drac barked out his orders, and elvin looking creature snuck into the council chamber and took up a seat against the wall, listening in on the conversation a bit before commenting. “This Timothy sounds like big time bad news. Are all these precautions for just this one man?”
           “Two, Lord Arturus,” Drac corrected, “if you count whoever’s body he stole. He’s just a really big annoyance with just the potential to become extremely bad news.”
           “He’s a high level psi,” Randall added. “And a general pain in the ass.”
           “We also think he now has the ability to use magic unfettered.” Drac clearly seemed very concerned about this point, but tried to paint the problem in a dimmer light. “I can only assume it’s because of the new body. I think he’s still trying to get the hang of it and would more than likely fall back on his own powers if confronted.”
           “Wow,” Art gasped. “So is this person a major foe?”
           “Simply put, if he breaks in, then I expect to kill him. In fact I almost dare him to try anything.”
           The orders given, everyone moved to complete the assigned tasks. Randall took the moment to catch Drac by the elbow and lead him aside. “I take it you have a contingency plan if he requests to come and visit Meg?”
           Drac snorted at the absurdity. “There is no way he is getting near Megan.”
           “Well, I understand where you are coming from, but like it or not, he Is her father after all. I mean, if someone was keeping you from seeing any of your children, you would get upset, and Tim has been known to do rash things when he is upset.”
           The red dragon king had to ponder this a moment. “Very well. If he is to see her, he must be under very heavy guard, as will Megan. I will not; however, allow him to be close enough to touch her.”
Randall nodded. “That should work...” and he began to prepare for their trip back to Rydin.”
 

Brimstone seemed a bit more amiable since the "pie-ing". He didn't interfere so much with Jason's rules. In fact, he kept well out of Jason's way because it was becoming clear that the "captain" of the mutant clan was going down with the ship. He couldn't keep the fridge stocked to save his life. Nine seemed to make it a point to aggravate the man to tears by ruining anything the man had refurbished, from flooring to cabinets to staircases to electrical work. She just seemed to have it in for the man.
           Meli had taken a vantage point on the roof, hoping to catch a glimpse of Brimstone inside so she could keep tabs on him. She was in the middle of taking a bite from her sandwich when she caught a movement in the shadows on the other side of the glass roof. Timothy oozed from the darkness, keeping a respectable distance from the psi-hunter, using the brickwork of the chimney as a block. She didn't need to probe him to tell there had been changes. The body itself was not weak anymore. In fact it was more muscular and filled out. Several of the scars no longer matched what he had bourne before, so she could only guess that he had indeed acquired a new body. But the vibe was wrong. He was easily blocking her now, and she could feel the power behind that mind. His body echoed it, yet he seemed unsure. After a few minutes, she had to ask. "Yes, Slime?"
           "I heard the rust bucket proposed?"
           "Wouldn't know," she replied honestly. "If he did, that's nice." She shrugged then took a bite of the sandwich. If the telepath was playing nice, she would play along. Light banter was easier to deal with that attempting to wrest information from him in a power struggle.
           The information he did offer wasn't quite what she was looking for, but it did help. "I will give you two bits of advice, though I'm fairly sure you won't take heed. One: Don't give him an answer. Two: Don't let him get that ring on your finger, no matter what."
           "Why's that?"
           Tim nodded, seeing that she would at least listen. "He has made an interesting power play. If you either accept or reject him, that might shift the power in the wrong direction. Right now everything is actually stable."
           "And the ring?"
           He stood up and readjusted his hat, using a dark Stetson to hide the strawberry blond mop of hair he now sported. "It's cursed. Bewitched, I think." He gave a nod then stepped off the edge of the rooftop, disappearing into the darkness before he hit the beachfront below.
           At first she thought Tim was being evasive, jumping to avoid her, but when she heard the heavy footfalls coming up the staircase, she realized the person he was avoiding was Nine. The girl was covered in sweat, obviously having undergone an intense workout in the gym and had to come up for some fresh air. She had on a black muscle shirt which she almost filled out and a plain set of white shorts, both which were plastered to her skin and cooled her as she stepped into the sea breeze. The mouse brown hair was tied back with a rubber band... well most of it was. Several locks had broken free and were flying about her face.
           Meli just gave the girl a sidelong glance before stating, "It's a good night for hiding."
           Nine thought that a very strange line coming from Meli, but then again the black wrapped woman had been quite strange of late. "I guess..." she replied hesitantly.
           The psi-hunter finished her sandwich and dusted the crumbs from her lap. "This 'Timothy'.. is he a relation of yours?"
"           I.. I wouldn't say that exactly. He was mated to Aurora, that evil twin copy of me that everyone seems to adore and awed about. He's also Megan's dad."
           "Ah yes.. well Tim tells me things about Brimstone.. your uncle?"
           Nine wasn't sure where this conversation was going, but she didn't like it very much. Not that she held anything against Meli, in fact she kind of liked the girl, but anything involving Tim couldn't be good. She did have to squint in order to arrange her thoughts and how she believed the erstwhile clan associated. "The general impression I got was that Aurora, Tim, and Brimstone came from the same genetic melting pot, so I guess that the Tin Can would be, by extension.. my brother? Man, how creepy is that?"
           Before they could continue that convoluted thought further, a sound drew both girls' attention to the stairways as Drac lumbered his way up. the Vashtalian lizard had searched the complex below, looking for signs of life, but even the twin dragon "guard dogs" were suspiciously missing. Nine seemed quite pleased to see the dragon, even if he was ensconced in his human guise. "About time. How's Megan doing?"
           He leaned against one of the more sturdier supports. "I'm afraid Megan's about the same, a little better today, but still with that injury. Every time we nullify the enchantment, it comes back in a new form."
           “Damn. she's got no luck at all. Wish there was something I could do."
           "Randall has been helping to keep her vitals stable."
           The petite mutant gave a sly smile. "Nice to know he's okay too. You know I barely see him anymore. If I were the jealous type, I'd say he was getting keen on Megan."
           Drac had to chuckle. "Don't worry about that score." Then he turned to Meli. "How are you tonight, Meli?"
           Nine leaned in close to her distant reptilian cousin and murmured. "I think the girl's off her rocker. Watch yourself."
           Meli sighed. "My hearing is a lot better than you think, Nine." then she turned to Drac. "I don't know. I think BS sent the psion to attempt to force me into a decision."
           Nine whipped about. "Tim's Back!? Here?!"
           The psi-hunter nodded even as Drac added. "I've seen him myself. And I think he's learned how to do magic."
           "In fact he had just slithered up here a few minutes ago," Meli added.
           Any calm and collected behavior Nine had faded into absolute panic. "He can't do magic!" she insisted, knowing it to be a lie. "He's a mutant! Mutants can't control magic!" Drac tried to steady her nerves by resting a firm hand on her shoulder, but she was already running, ducking under the larger man's grasp. "He ain't getting me alive!" she howled as she ran down the stairs. Dac and Meli followed, stopping as Nine darted into the bathroom to retrieve Defender form the tub where she had left the weapon to soak. She wiped him down quickly with a bath-towel, then flipped him over her head and onto her back where he clapped on loudly as if locking into place. From there she darted across the hall and into her room, rummaging through her belongings. And she had to rummage as much of her gear was already littered about the floor, bed, and table tops, as if the place had already been ransacked. She grabbed a dirty green military issue duffel bag and began stuffing items inside. Crosses, guns, weapon belts, a metal flash of holy water, several handfuls of garlic and a cartridge of silver bullets.
           Drac just leaned against the doorway watching, knowing better than to try to stop her in this frenzy. "I don't think you're going to need all that," he insisted.
           She spun around on her heel, the weight of the pack almost pulling her off balance, many of the items cascading through a hole in the bottom of the duffel. "And how would you know?"
           Meli gestured at the pack. "You don't need all that to take on a vampire."
           "You're right! He's a psi! I need to block the brain waves." she turned the pack over, dumping out what was left inside before once again stuffing the interior, this time with balls of leftover aluminum foil from past TV dinner meals. then she swept her arm across one of the bureau's, dumping all the suspended crystal ornaments into the depths of the bag.
           Drac couldn't take it anymore and reached out, grabbing the girl by the shoulders. "What I'm suggesting you do is stay in Vashtalia. If Tim wants to try and get you or Megan, he'll have to go through me first!"
           She froze up a second, and Drac thought for sure she would explode into a frantic frenzy, but instead she took in a deep sigh before looking up into his face. "You think you can keep him out?"
           "If not, he will have millions of warriors and mages to contend with. Even if he is able to use magic, it can be countered. I have ordered teleport blocks and re-instated the best of border wards.
           She seemed to ponder this for a while, staring just past Drac at the wall as she mulled things over. Finally she spoke up, softly. "well... Randall Has been spending a lot of time over there.." and she upended the bag once again, depositing the aluminum and crystals on the floor before once again filling it; this time with more practical items: clothing, toothbrushes, her best armor and some of the smaller weapons. Stuff still tumbled out of the hole in the canvas bag until a large fluffy pink angora sweater plugged the gap. She turned to Meli. "You think Drac can keep him away from me?"
           The small woman nodded, not sure why Nine was asking her, but willing to give her approval. "It's a safer bet than here."
           "If not, my sword will feed on his soul," Drac vowed.
           Nine had to smile at the image that came up. "I can see that poor sword now. 'Ptooey! That tastes bad! Too much grease!'"
They all were chuckling as they headed out into the sewer access tunnel.

The gang, or what was left of it, gathered outside the bar. Brimstone and Jason stood side by side; the ‘borg leaning against a large plunger type detonator with a set of wires leading into one of the access tunnels. Zelgadis was there also, sleeping soundly on the sands of the beach, having been carried there by the mechanical man. Several bags and trunks were piled haphazardly behind them, the last minute necessities they thought they would need. Now they just stood and stared at the sloping mountain. “You Did get everything out, right?” Brimstone asked.
           “Yeah.” Jason clearly was not happy to be a part of this plan and was very sour. “Sold most of it off.. Just kept the essentials...” He now looked up at the metallic man with pleading eyes. “Do you Really have to do this?”
           All the ‘borg could do was frown. “We’ve been over this.. Besides, you insured the place, right?”
           “Double indemnity even. Wasn’t easy, not with the history on this place.”
           “Then we’ll just call this an Act of God,” and Brimstone depressed the t-handle. The ground shook violently, then the side of what was left of the mountain split and lava poured fourth, rolling down the beach and into the sea. Estor’s glistening castle which was still clinging to the side seemed to develop a life of its own and sought to preserve it. The building jumped.. Yes jumped, then winked into the unknown.

Meli had been looking down at the scene from the opposite cliff, wondering what in God’s name could they be possibly doing, then pondered; wondering if she really cared. Curiosity. Ignorance. Which would be her weapon? When the mountain split open, she looked up into the sky. Storm clouds billowed out from nowhere, filling the skies, then raining down sheets on the flowing lava, sending waves crashing back into the battered beachfront.

Jason winced under the pressure of the torrent and retreated, hiding under the heavy boxes, but Brimstone bore the brunt of the gale, making sure that his hand in this chaos did what it was supposed to do. Meli’s storm seemed to help scour out the lower levels, but it also began to pick up the bundled crates and bags and drag them out to sea. “What’s with this destructive phase?” she asked, suddenly by the big man’s side.
           He didn’t seem surprised at all by her sudden appearance. “You seen Timothy lately?” he replied in kind.
           “Haven’t been looking for him.”
           “Well I have, and frankly, I didn’t like what I felt. Something is seriously wrong with him.” Meli had thought the same thing with her brush with the psi, but apparently it was unsettling enough to Brimstone to up and move his whole clan. “Drac offered sanctuary to both Megan and Nine. I’m making sure they stay there until things shake out.” Brimstone had been shouting all this over the gale force winds, but the barrage of water suddenly stopped and the storm subsided quickly. He continued, nodding over at Zel as the golem continued to sleep soundly though damply. “He’s got something to do with all this too, so I’m taking him to Vashtalia. Besides, Megan’s more likely to stay put if she knows he’s safe.”
           “Tim is nothing but trouble,” Meli grunted.
           Now the metal man’s gaze turned to Meli. “You should probably go there too. I don’t think you’ll be safe either. Not now.”
           Jason stepped up from the beachhead, drenched, sand stuck to most of his exposed body. “What about me?” he wailed. “You can’t Leave me out here! I know too much.”
           BS snorted. “You can crawl under a rock and die for all I care.”
           Meli had drawn a small knife from her coat sleeve. “I’m always safe,” she insisted. “I can always kill you.”
           Brimstone almost smiled. He had hoped she would catch onto the connections forming between their two families, but she had missed the point. “Honey, you don’t get it. Tim doesn’t care. If he wants to do something, he’ll do it, even at the cost of his life, or his soul. The man has NO scruples. And it’s not just him as much as what may be following him, and he’s running scared. Something’s coming.”
           She frowned for a moment, the slowly withdrew the knife, hiding it back in the sleeve. “Don’t call me ‘honey’,” she grunted.
           “Fair enough but I’m begging you.. Stay away from him.” He stooped down, picking up the snoozing chimera and slinging the body over his right shoulder, then tried to pick up a waterlogged dufflebag without tipping his load. “Something is Way wrong with him. I can only fathom a guess, and I don’t like what I’m guessing at.”
           “I like guessing,” Meli smirked. “And I’m not scared of him. Or you.”
           “Famous last words, and I’ve heard them before...” he dropped the duffle then reached out, grabbing her arm. “C’mon.. We gotta beat feet before the cops show up.. Or worse.”
           “Leave me alone!”
           She tried to struggle against his grip, but it was like trying to evade a snake. He didn’t use so much strength as he did leverage, twisting his arm around at impossible angles to keep her from bruising herself against his metal hide, like guiding a small child throwing a temper tantrum. “Can’t. If something happened to you, I’d have to kill myself or something. Or take revenge, which would get me killed anyhow, so it’s a no win situation, no matter how I look at it.”
           “Don’t make me hurt you,” she warned.
           He answered by stopping short, stooping down, and shoveling her up on his other shoulder, using a fireman’s carry. Unhindered, he now was able to take longer strides, and found that even with this flailing woman, he was able to navigate the marketplace as they headed down to the wharf. The crowd gave way, staring after the sight of the metal man and the girl slung over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.
           “Okay! That Does It!” Meli wiggled around, trying to free up the knife, but her sleeves were pinned under her. She muttered an incantation and flicked her wrists. Her nails grew long and sharp, knifelike. These she placed against his neck. “Put me down,” she demanded.
           He never even broke his stride. She pulled her hand back as if to strike, but the suddenly disappeared from his shoulder with a loud POOF. That made him pull up, grumbling. “Damn Woman.”
           Another POOF and she was right in front of him. “I am not Damn!” she spat before turning and continuing down the track to the boatyard, the same track he had been taking all the while.
           BS rolled his good eye and followed, but he was going to give her a piece of his mind. “I swear. You don’t listen. You’re Just like them. If I didn’t know any better, I would swear you were Megan’s sister!”
           Now it was Meli’s turn to pull up and turn around, glaring at the mechanical man. “I’ve had enough of you! I’ve had it in my right mind to sever that melon of yours from that excuse of a neck!”
           Their little squabble continued to draw a crowd, one that was too close for the ‘borg’s nerves. He spun around and literally roared at the throng, his jaw unhinging for full volume effect. And it worked, seeing the gawkers scattering. Now he whipped back around to face the defiant woman. “You would be doing me a favor! Go ahead!” He even extended his neck some, exposing as much of the vulnerable area as he could.
           But she just snorted. “I wouldn’t dare give you such please.”
           “You think worrying if Tim is brain-sucking you dry is a Pleasure?” His voice cracked, that’s how incredulous he sounded. That seemed to be the straw as he readjusted Zelgadis on his shoulder and walked past her, but now without a warning. “Do what you will, then, but don’t come crying to me when he mind-rapes you like he did Megan...” He continued down the boardwalk, peeking down various alley and corridors. “Where the hell did Drac leave that portal?”
           Meli had drawn silent, but she grunted and pointed down an abandoned section of broken timber. “Over there,” she grumbled.
           “Thanks,” and Brimstone disappeared through the crevasse of magic with his rocky burden.

             Timothy had also been watching the squabble, following the duo, keeping to the rooftops as they made their way through the marketplace, then through the portal. “Damn,” he swore as he lowered the binoculars.
           “Great going, Ace!” the voice in his head spat. “You lost him!”
           “Oh no.. I know exactly where he went.”
           “Yeah, to that mega-ass’s Wonderful World O’ Reptiles. I’m Never getting out of this mess now! We lost our only means to get us apart.”
           Tim seemed relatively cool, despite the fact he seemed to be talking out loud to himself. “Nonsense. We just wait. Mutants can’t stand to be confined. They come out of there eventually.” He packed away the glasses then slide down a waterpipe to the street below.
           Apparently the other voice was just as suspicious as any normal mutant. “Waitaminute. You Planned this! You wanted him to go away, didn’t you?”
           Tim sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose, surprised to find an old break along the cartilage he didn’t remember. He rubbed the lump. “Look. If they are out of the way when trouble shows up, we don’t have to worry about them getting killed, therefore ruining our chance of fixing this mistake. Right now we are at our prime physically.”
           “Which does us no good when all your notes come in to be paid.”
           He sighed then slung his bag over his shoulder and head towards the nearest bar, determined to drink that voice under the table. “Which is why I came here. Here we have allies. Untrusting, wary allies, but better than what we had on Del Mar. Just be cool and things will fall into place. Trust me.” He then opened the tavern door and stepped inside.

The air shimmered over the desert west of Rydin proper. A low vibration filled the void, then a tear appeared in the empty space, about five feet over the hot sand. Five forms were spat out through the rift, then the rend snapped shut, leaving the goo-covered creatures to their fate.
           At first none of them moved, but slowly one man managed his feet to oversee the fallen. All wore green military garb well known on Del Mar, three with black trim like himself around the collars, two with brick red banding. He looked down at the second two, especially over the woman. She was lying on her back, eyes shut tight, her whole body taunt as if in great pain. “You okay?” He asked her.
           “Oh.. Just peachy.. Other than the fact that I need to throw up.”
           Cpt. Jonathan Pryce nodded. He was not a mutant like her, yet even he had felt the shift, the movement through time and space making him queasy, though not as intense as the one that had helped get them here. He removed his jacket and dropped it over her face. She chuckled at bit at his actions, even though she could no longer see him. “You should at least give me a proper burial. Say a few words perhaps?”
           “You wish,” he replied. “Just lay there until you get your strength back.”
           “Yes Sir!” and she sluggishly moved her right arm to salute him, even while her face was covered.
           Now Jonathan turned to his other charges. The other mutant, and EP-4 whom had taken up the call name Allen was already sitting up, shaking his head, trying to clear his mind. Not an easy task for the big burly man since he was a low grade psi. Until this past year, the man was fairly useless, unable to stem the tide of any emotion. Only under Aurora’s tutelage had Allen made any progress. Hopefully it would be enough for their current mission.
           John now turned to his other two men. Lieutenant Frank Wrothian was already standing, wiping off the coating of interdimentional goo, finding this process easier once her rubbed some sand into the jell. The other man was just an ensign, Nicolae Rooslan, whom had made mutant studies his passion. The kid was green, but full of potential, and currently full of mud as he likewise was trying to scrape off the mess.
           Pryce waited until his men were somewhat clear headed. It would be hours before Aurora could even sit up since she had bourne the brunt of the power surge that had transported them here, so they would have to set up camp. “Rooslan. Take Allen and do a perimeter search. Secure the area.”
           “Yes sir!”
           While the duo scurried off, Pryce returned to the team powerhouse. Aurora hadn’t moved. “You still alive?” he asked.
           “Is that supposed to be funny?” she replied from under the jacket.
           He knelt down feeling the ground next to where her hand rested. The sands should have been hot as they were already breaking out in a sweat, but the dirt was ice cold. “We better keep you covered,” he commented. “We don’t need you to recharge too quickly.”
           “Yeah, tell me about it. Gives me cramps.”
           They had camp set up by sundown. It was then that Aurora finally found the energy to sit up and take stock in their surroundings. “This don’t look like Rydin.”
           “No. I can only assume that the big city spread to the east of us is your Rydin.” Rooslan pointed to the horizon. “We also found something else you might need to see.” He lead the small team slowly towards his discovery. Whatever it had been, it must have been huge, as the debris field ran for nearly a mile. Much of the metal hull had been stripped down, but it still bore the general shape of a space ship. Closer inspection revealed something even more disturbing. “This is one of the new freighters,” Rooslan noted after going over the readings on his scanner. “Yet the metal’s aged, as if it had been in service for years.” As Aurora caressed the twisted metal, Rooslan added with some trepidation. “The remains also show that it had been involved with.. Psionic activity.”
           “I can see that,” Aurora answered. She had been following one of the knotted lines, seeing that the metal literally changed from a sturdy allow to almost a brittle crystalline substance. “I can also say that this is something that I would do.. except I didn’t do this.”
           They continued to go over the wreckage. By consensus, they believed that whatever had happened to the ship had made it crash on the planet. By the scanners, this indeed was a Militant cargo vehicle, but as to when or where it had come from, they could only guess.

Their next stop was Aurora’s stomping grounds. After a full day to recharge her batteries, she was anxious to get home. But when they finally started on the path towards the mountains, she seemed concerned. “I don’t get it. We should see the mountain range by now.” They were almost to the seashore when they came across what was left of Aurora’s domain. Lava bubbled up from the rockbed and slowly oozed into the sea, sending up a plume of steam that made things difficult to view, but it was very clear that the mountain was no more. Aurora’s jaw dropped in disbelief as she circled the area, looking for any evidence.
           Pryce and Rooslan took watch while Allen walked the beach with her. “Are you sure it was here?”
           Aurora was almost ready to give up when she spotted an odd shiny color halfway buried in the sands. She quickly dug away the damp earth to unearth an old neon sign: Brimstone’s Bar and Grill. She held up the broken board as evidence, then looked to the lava again. “This isn’t right. I mean we did have tunnels close to a vein. We were using it to heat the lower levels, but to have it rupture right there.” She again looked up and down the beach. “And there’s no hide nor hair. Have you been picking up anything?”
           Frankly the psi was having problems in general. It was as if he was picking up a station with static. A lot of static. The only mutant he could clearly ID was Aurora herself. For any others, including the target they were seeking, there was nothing hard; just impressions and echoes. “I’m not sure. I think I hear him, but it’s not firm at all.”
           Aurora grunted. “Yeah.. I’ve been a bit hazy myself. It’s gonna take some time to get all readjusted again.” She dropped the sign back to the ground, then climbed back up the rocky slope to rejoin the team.

             Aurora was heading back to the team, having secured more suitable clothing so that they would blend in better; when she came across a bar offering free beer. It was hot, so she figured she could slip inside and have a few to cool down before rejoining the group. Besides, maybe she would catch word of what happened at her happy home.
           What she found inside wasn’t very appealing. Three long rows of metal cages filled most of the room, the far end of the room extended to accomodate the large stage area, where a man stood, proudly displaying a feline looking man, held in place by a thick chain. “My dear people!” the barker announced. “I present to you a rare and exotic kind of slave! And anthro-bobcat! Just look at him! He’s muscular, in perfect health and in peak physcial condition! I’ll let him go for 50 gold pieces, and that’s cutting my own throat!”
           A slave pit. Aurora rolled her eyes, thinking about leaving now. She was not fond of the slave trade, but she really did want a drink, and they were free. She made her way through the throng, pulling back the hilt of her recently purchased shorter sword. She had just found herself some armor. Though red wasn’t her first choice, it was dragon leather, and it covered what it needed to. She would have to modify it some as it wasn’t quite built for someone as short as her, but it would do. She had made it a point Not to buy any of the others armor mainly because she didn’t need to competition. This was Her world.. Well maybe not her First one, but she had been here first and she still was a bit possesive of it. If it wasn’t the fact that He had managed to slip here...
           She sat down at the bar, grabbing herself a bottle as no one was tending the bar, then turned to watch the auction. There seemed to be a run on females as at least two of them still bore their regal clothing. One in particular had a burning hatred in her eyes as the guard continued to taunt and berate her. Aurora reached for her pouch. About a hundred gold left. Two, maybe three at the most. She stood up and headed towards the cage with a waif-like woman inside. Her gaze to the guard betrayed exactly how she felt about the whole thing, but it was either rescue a few or attempt to cut them all loose with her blade; and she felt that Pryce might frown if she brought attention to herself. She kept her voice civil enough. “Where did you find her?”
           The guard bowed in greeting. “Her father sent her to us.”
           “Nice family,” she grumbled back.
           The guard quirked a brow, unsure as to the lady’s mood. “Nice enough. It was that or loose all his belongings, M’lady. Gambling debt, I’m told.”
           “Real nice,” was all Aurora could muster, but she took all this information into consideration as she moved down the line, stopping next to one of the female elvin captives. Again the guard was hasseling the girl as she couldn’t fight back. Cuffs around her wrists and neck were already chafing the milky white skin. “Looks like she’s got some wear and tear,” she commented. This was not said as a prospective buyer as much as a very angry woman barely containing her rage.
           “She is in fine condition,” the guard insisted. “And her powers are in the buyer’s control. The cuffs hold them.” He laughed out loud, even as the elvin slave’s face reddened in rage.
           ‘Magic,” Aurora mused, but the goosebumps that ran down her arms gave away her nervousness. Magic and her were not on the best of terms, but the appalling conditions of these recently captured slaves called out to her. A nearby village must have been just raided. Elves by nature were not so easily caught off guard, or so she had been lead to believe.
           The elvin slave had seen her reaction to the magic equation and she pulled her hands together in prayer. The dark star on her brow lightened some. “Give me strength,” she muttered.
           Aurora had turned to move down the line, but something stopped her. She turned back even as the barker tried to egg a bid out of her. “Come now,” he crooned. “Look at what you could be purchasing. All I ask for is a bid.”
           The armored woman gave the elf another look see. “She’s useless like that. No spunk left. Ten gold.”
           “Useless? Miss, she is an elf. She has powers for you to use. Spunk? Who needs that?” He laughed, spit flying from his lip. “One hundred gold!”
           Now Aurora spat incredulously. “A hundred? She better not only have magic, but be able to cook and clean and run a friggin household for that!” The image this scene must have looked like would have been bogglings. Where would this warrior woman have a household? She certantly was some womanly matron of a castle. More likely she would be the one conquering the castle. Yet Aurora kept up the ruse. “Twenty,” she countered. “You would save that in feeding her alone.”
           “Clean my ass.” This was from the elvin woman.

The guard gave her a foul look, then changed his expression as he turned back to Aurora. “Fourty, Miss?”
           That was a substantial drop in price. “Thirty,” she replied, and that would be generous. I’ts gonna cost me an arm and a leg just to train her to scrub a pot.” Of course Aurora looked more like she would eat her food raw than cook it.
           The elvin woman continued to stare at the girl bidding on her. She was unsure. The armored woman’s demeanour was rough, but something seemed to spark inside her. Apparently the guard was beginning to realize that as well. “Thirty seven?”
           “Thirty five, and I keep the chains. Can’t have her sparking off any of that so called magic all around. It could get messy.”
           The guard shuffled his feet a bit, then tossed Aurora the keys. “Deal.”
           The elvin woman was shocked, even as the cage opened. The warrior woman had paid the guard his gold and just turned, not bothering to see if she would follow. Of course she did. There were still too many guards to make a scene, and this new “owner” still had the keys that held back her magic. The guard paused to laugh at the captive. “Well, Princess. Not so high and mighty now, are you..”
           Her eyes shot back daggers. “You will pay, fool,” she answered in a harsh whisper before scurrying after her new benefactor.
           There was no leering or suggestiveness in the armored girl’s eyes. In fact it seemed the new owner was more relived than anything. She again was looking the cages over, but the defiant woman from eariler must have been sold and all the others seemed to be in the final stages of purchasing. The only ohter possible purchase with the bobcat man still on the stage. She turned, seeing the rage still seething in the elvin woman. “Hey.. Just play things cool, alright?” Aurora’s voice dropped down in a harsh whisper. “I think I can get at least one more outta here. You see anyone?”
           She wasn’t sure what this petite warrior woman was up to, but it wasn’t the typical type of enslavement. “No,” she whipsered back.
           Aurora did try one more. The bobcat man still was up for sale. “He must shed something awful,” she called out as she stepped forward as a potential buyer. “Probably will piss all over my furniture too.”
           “He is totally housebroken,” the salesman replied, a bit irked that this buffed out chick was calling out faults in his sales item. “Besides, he’s a fighter.”
           “A fighter? THAT puny little guy?” The arthro was easily a foot taller than Aurora herself, but then it looked as Aurora could take him and serveral of his kin quite easily in a bar room brawl. “I’ll give you ten just to save you the hassle of having to neuter him.”
           “One hundred!” This came from the previous bidder whom Had wanted the bobcat man for his arena and didn’t want this upstart of a female taking his prize.
           Aurora just tossed up her hands, clearly outbidded. “Your loss,” she insisted, then turned, only nodding with her head for the elvin slave to follow her outside. Once clear of the tavern, both seemed to relax. The mutant wasted no time, stepping back a bit before tossing the silver keys to the distraut female. “Go home.”
           Caliste just stood, staring down at the key, then back up at her benefactor. “You are freeing me? I.. I am in your debt.”
“           Yeah yeah.. Just.. Go home.”
           The cuffs came off quickly as the black star on her brow finally burst forward with a bright silver light. “Thank you, kind miss. Here.. A token of my gratitude.” She fished out a small silver ring she had managed to hide from the guards and tossed it to Aurora, whom caught it, wincing as the magical metal touched her skin before she was able to slip it into the money pouch. Buoyed by freedom, Caliste turned and ran back into the forests and back to her people.
           Aurora grunted, then gathered up her belongings and continued down the street, heading back to their camp out in the desert, having done her good deed for the day.

            Aurora dragged herself up the street, having spent yet another day trying to look for her rouge mutant, and once again having found snot. In fact she hadn't found not one sign of any of her kind for a week now and it was really beginning to bug her. She had been broadcasting loud enough for Allen to complain, but save for an occasional echo, nothing. The marketplace was almost bare as the setting sun signaled the end of the day. Only a couple was left in the main courtyard, the male striking the truck of a very large apple tree to make several fruits tumble to the ground. He picked up several of the fruits and offered them to the lady, both partaking of the snack before heading into a quiet in.

            She was never one for passing up an opportunity. She scooped up the remaining fruits and hid them in the pockets of the skirt. Oh she still wore the reddish brown armor, but she had covered up the bare spots with a simple light tan shift. She kept one apple out and devoured it, seeds, core, and all, within seconds. She would have continued back to camp, but the smell of slow- roasted meat wafted over the courtyard, setting her to drool as she approached the inn and stepped inside.

            The duo had split up, the young woman heading upstairs to their room while the young man had taken a seat by the bar. Aurora hesitantly approached the front desk , knowing that she must have been a sight to see. Along with the stained armor, she had a pair of miss- matched swords across her back, along with the military green duffle bag slung over her shoulder. She was far from neat or tidy. In fact it looked like she had been digging trenches as she was covered in a fine mist of road dust. But she was hungry, so she tried her luck. "Can... can I get a table or a seat or something in the diner?"

            The tall thin sour looking server frowned at her, but the young man at the bar gestured towards her. "Come, Traveler. Join me."

            He didn't have to invite her twice. She squinted a bit, unsure of Who was calling, but it got her closer to food. "Excuse me, " she mumbled to the waiter before picking up her gear and quickly shuffling to the bar before the man could object. When she reached the table her benefactor was sitting at, she finally relaxed some. "Thanks!" she breathed as she took a seat opposite him.

            The young man smiled as he sipped his ice tea. "What can I order for you? This inn has wonderful food."

            "Teeth and Talons I hope so. Meat. Just recently dead meat. Cooked or not, I don't care. I just need a protein fix. I'm so tired of rations.. oh.. and I need a beer, at least one beer...." As she shuffled about to get comfortable, she reached under one of the flaps on the battered armor for a beaten leather pouch. "I've got plenty of money."

            Truth be told she didn't have That much money, but that didn't seem to cause any concern for her host. "You are my guest," he insisted, trying to wave her hand back as she tried to pull the pouch free from its bindings. Finally she pulled out a knife and cut the cords before dropping the whole shebang on the table, the action making him chuckle a bit before posing his question. "Tell me, who are you searching for?"

            Aurora nodded. At least this guy wasn't as dumb as a bucket. She leaned back in the chair a bit. "A guy.. a real wormy, very dangerous, blond haired, telekinetic freak. Seen any around?"

            That set her benefactor thinking, even as his lady rejoined him at the table, seemingly quite as friendly as her male counterpart. "No.. I don't think.. wait... did he have green eyes?"

            "'Fraid not. Ice blue." She sat up as dinner was served, warm but rare. "I'd be careful around him if you do spot him. He likes to poke around in your brain. You see him, you let me know and I'll poke one of these through him." She gestured to the weaponry strapped to her back before attacking the meal.

            Again the fellow frowned a bit. "My minds would consume his," he stated blandly.

            "I don't think so. He's a telepath. Military trained. He sort of went batty on us.. mind wiped a whole city.. a city..." She was still shocked by the scope of the damage and knew full well he would be damn near impossible to reign in.

            Her benefactor didn't seem so impressed. "I have done the like in my past, enslaving the mindless ones. Those were the days," he mused.

            Aurora finally lifted her face from the plate, her lower jaw covered in gravy, which she wiped with the linen napkin. "He didn't enslaved them. He killed them. Over 4,000 people, in seconds."

            Now it was the consort's turn to be shocked. "He.... he's..."

            "A monster," Aurora filled in. "Barbaric. Insane. Take your pick."

            The man turned to her. "Do you know this man, Kaiser?"

            'Yes, Ivan. He is called Tristan, right?" Aurora paused in mid-bit, nodding, more interested in the lead than the meal at that second. Kaiser continued. "I have heard rumors of his abilities. They say if he goes out of control there's no hope for getting near him."

            "I'd like to test my mettle with him," Ivan added "Whatever he is, he's still human, right?"

            "No, he isn't." Aurora settled back down to her meal, figuring this would be the last satisfying dinner she would have for a while. "I've gone nose to nose with him. Trust me, he'll rattle your teeth. It took a joint effort to ground him the last time I did this." She poked at a potato. "I had a reliable team last time. This one is too green all the way around. Frankly, I think we're all gonners." And with that enlightening thought, she picked up the beer. "Yep. He's no more human than I am."

            Now the young man looked her over. Granted she was on the small side, and bit thin, but she clearly looked human enough. "What are you?" he finally asked.

            "Mutant, plain and simple, though I guess I'm not that simple of late either.: She glanced at Ivan, expecting to get the typical round of stares, or worse. All he did was shrug his shoulders, clearly not fully understanding. She then shifted her eyes to the woman. "Where did you see Tristan last?"

            She seemed a bit nervous about the subject. "This Tristan, is he able to train dragons to be evil?"

            "Dragons? Oh yeah. He can get anyone to back his cause, not just reptiles. He get's That little spark from his father." She grumbled a bit and took another slug of the ale. "If he manages to get a foothold here, you can be he'll recruit every heavy hitter on the market."

            "Then... he is the one I am running from."

            Aurora paused, looking the girl over a bit more closely, then sniffed the air. "Well damn my eyes, you're a dragon!"

            She blushed a bit at the remark. "Half dragon, yes. He is looking for me. He wants to use my powers for evil."

            The mutant girl finished her bottle, then swung her arm up and over, sending the empty into the recycling bin across the room. "Whadaya know. I've got bait. Tell ya what, lemme get a hold of my guys. If we can set up some sort of trap and use you to lure him in, I can get him off everyone's back and we'll all be just happy as a clam."

            "I think I can handle this Tristan," Ivan boasted quietly.

            Kaiser was already backing up not wanting to be the bait. "I don't!"

            Aurora ignored the girl's panic attack, focusing on Ivan. "I thought I could handle him too at one time. Damn near died trying. No, this has to be a multi-leveled front." She frowned a bit. "You say you’re a psi? A mind manipulator?"

            "I am a mage," he answered proudly. "But psi abilities are not uncommon to my blood."

            "A mage. Well let me warn you now. Magic doesn't work right when one of my kind are about. Something about the planet we're from being a bit out of synch with everything else. You start slinging mana around Tristan and you could end up with half this city in a crater. I could, however, use a psi. I'm only kinetic, an energy manipulator, and I'm not subtle at that, but if we sure your girl here as bait, I can slug at him while you try to worm your way into his mind. Add my back up team pumping him full of trans and we'll have half a chance. You game?"

            "But I don't Want to be bait!" Kaiser whined loudly.

            Now she turned around to face the dragon half. "It'll be okay. Once he sees me, he'll be too busy pounding my face in the pavement to care about you."

            "Money?" Ivan asked quietly as he pondered this offer.

            She turned back around. "Thee IS a bounty on his head. Can't kill a city populus and get away with it. The money's just an incentive to catch him faster."

            Kaiser still didn't like her role in this set up. "If he gets his hands on me, he could threaten you with my powers..."

            Aurora rolled her eyes and whipped back around on the taller girl. "Honey, he's already a threat! If we don't use you, the next flamethrower he comes across may not suspect he's evil until its too late!" That seemed to give the dragon girl something to mull over while giving Aurora a chance to get another beer. She sat the glass back down on the counter. "I'm telling you both he's a sneaky bastard, and if what I suspect is true, he's got more than one mind stuffed inside that skull telling him what to do. That's not good if you're a psi and unbalanced to begin with."

             "I have two minds myself," Ivan muttered softly.

            "Then you understand the intricacies," the mutant pointed out. "Two powerful minds vying over one body. We're lucky he only killed four thousand."

            "Yes," Ivan agreed.

                         Brimstone had set up shop deep in the castle’s basement. He had dragged many chests and bags with him from the abandoned and now demolished hideout to their new location. Drac was kind enough to let the ‘borg set up house as he saw fit, and nobody ventured into the metal man’s domain unannounced. Brimstone, for one, wasn’t planning to go anywhere and ensconced himself in his work..

            Nine had taken a different tact, training with whomever she could coax into a spar. Most of Drac’s people were eager enough to oblige at first, but the girl played rough, and not just on their draconic hides. She always seemed to break something herself, and it was only her healing factor kicking into overdrive that had saved her a trip to the infirmary on more than one occasion. She also took turns keeping watch along the “watchtower’, standing quite still as if she could hear of feel something beyond the magically sealed borders. But of the past two days, nobody had seen Nine anywhere. Saarith had dispatched Draco and Aerich to hunt for her, but they had come up empty.

            The current entertainment at the castle was watching Dracon dueling Melissa in the courtyard. Due to his quickly instated status, he had never undergone the rigorous trials associated with becoming a Dragoon Knight. Melissa was making great pains to ensure that he was indeed suited for the job. They had been slinging spells and blows at each other for three days straight, Drac matching his sword against her halberd. Both combatants were weary, but showed no sign of giving up the battle. Brimstone stood under the atrium, using the building to shield many of the deflected spells that were accidentally sent his way. His eye caught movement on the other side of the courtyard. Meli had slipped in and was likewise watching the fight as she casually ate her breakfast, an apple. He looked away, grumping to himself, then turned and headed up the staircase to where Megan was kept.

            Kept was the key word. Drac had stationed guards outside her room, more to keep her inside than stopping anyone from encroaching from the outside. Apparently Jason hadn’t trusted the guards’ ability to keep the moody mutant contained and had likewise stationed himself just outside the door, and just out of her sight. Brimstone growled a bit at him, then walked around the other guard and entered Megan’s room.

            Megan had moved from the bed and was sitting in the sling back chair watching the contest below. She had the chair turned sideways so she could lean the left side of her ribs against its back for support. She clearly didn’t look happy. “They find her yet?”

            There was a puff of black and Meli stood right next to the ‘borg. “Find who?”

            Brimstone jumped, startled. Megan didn’t. “Nine’s slipped off the reservation.”

            “I thought this was a castle?” Meli replied, a bit perplexed.

            “She’s managed to somehow elude the guards and escape from here.” Brimstone further explained for the psi hunter. “She’s back in Rydin, we think.”

            Meli pouted, then turned on her heel and headed down the hall. “Thinking,” she grumbled out loud. “Always thinking.”

            Megan waited until the girl was out of sight before turning back to BS. “You do anything about her yet?”

            He sighed. “I’m still working on that. Girl’s stubborn.”

            “Aren’t we all?”

            “We’ll You’re supposed to be. I’m thinking that maybe you chicks are rubbing off on her.”

            They continued to watch the flight as both combatants had now taken to the air, buoyed by wings, as was Melissa’s case, and by spells as was Drac’s. A harsh physical attack on the girl’s behalf sent Drac crashing into the ground, the impact so hard that even Megan winced. “Ouch.. That hurt.”

            While they watched, Serenity slipped into Megan’s room, pausing only a moment to peek out the window before cautiously approaching the moody mutant. “How are you feeling today, Megan?” She had learned quickly that Megan didn’t like any titles associated with her position, and she didn’t need the mutant any more stressed than the current situation made her.

            It seemed that Megan’s sour mood was somewhat tempered today. “Better. It’s only oozing a little. I think that concoction BS made is slowing things down.” She leaned back in the chair and peeled back the bandaging. It looked all the world like gangrene, but there wasn’t as much puss and the greenish yellow coloring had indeed faded some. Yet it hadn’t healed.

            Serenity didn’t let the worry show. “That’s good. Eventually we’ll get you as good as new.”

            Megan looked up at the healer with a knowing eye. “You’ve been saying that for weeks, Sen.”

            “And I still hold firm to that.”

            The mutant held that gaze a few moments longer, something Serenity had learned was a challenge, so she didn’t break the eye contact. Megan faded first, shifting her gaze back to the battle outside. “You know, I can’t get a wink of sleep with them wailing on each other like that.”

            Serenity didn’t miss the concerned undertones Megan held for her benefactor. Again, this was not a point that she needed to bring up. “You know you Can more further into the castle.”

            Megan shook her head. “Nah.. Need to see the skyline. Gotta know for sure where the exits are, just in case you-know-who decides to show up.” She watched as Drac once again was slammed into the brickwork just underneath her window. None of the shrapnel flew through the windows though as her room had been surrounded with magical shields. In fact these shields kept all kinds of magic away from the mutants as well in an attempt to make them more comfortable in their new home. “And I thought our initiation rights were tough,” she mused as she watched the dragon mage peel himself from the castle wall. He’s got stamina, I’ll grant you that.”

            While the girl’s watched the battle from their higher vantage point, brimstone had made his way back down to the ground floor, only to find Meli sitting on one of the benches in an alcove. He sat down next to her even as she finished off her breakfast. She didn’t even look at him. “What do you want?”

            He couldn’t help himself. “To sing. To dance. Batman’s head on a lance.”

            “Who’s Batman?” she asked.

            Nothing like a patsy to ruin a good line. “He was some goody goody two shoe good doer. Constantly fights evil but never fully wins the battle.”

            “Like you?”

            He gave a sidelong glance at her, just catching her peeking up at him before looking away. “You know I’m not a good doer.”

            “That’s the biggest load of shit if I ever did hear one.”

            “Hey, you were the one that pointed it out to me ever so clearly, Dear.”

            “Don’t call me Dear.”

            BS sighed, then turned his gaze back to the battle just outside. His mind, however, was no where near the combat zone. The weight of things hung heavily on his soul, something that Meli didn’t even need a talent to pick up. “Why don’t you say what you are thinking?”

            “Very well. I know why Nine slipped away. She heard an echo. I heard it too.” He rolled his gaze back down to the petite girl. “Aurora’s back.” He then ran his eyes back to the fighting. “And if I know, Tim knows.”

            “What’s your point.”

            “I think Nine’s gone off to challenge Aurora, and Tim will do something stupid when she does.”

            Apparently Claw had overheard the conversation, because he likewise appeared in a burst of gold next to the dour psi hunter. “Do not fret. I have dispatched additional scouts to find and bring back Nine. We also need Aurora. I believe she will know a way to get young Megan back up to par.”

            “Why does any of this matter?” Meli asked.

            BS sighed again. “Because Aurora can wipe out the planet if properly pushed, and trust me, Tim can push those buttons.” He now stood up and brushed himself off. “Frankly, I like you guys too much to see that happen..”

            “This is not my planet,” Meli corrected. “Besides, if you want the serpent dead, you must chop its head off. Say the word and he shall be no more.”

            Brimstone must have pondered that possible tact and come up with an answer as he was already shaking his head no. “I don’t need you corrupted by that freak. There is something seriously wrong with Tim. I don’t need him ambushing you.”

            “Do you honestly believe he could corrupt me?”

            He almost grabbed her shoulders he was so frustrated with her. “Yes! Yes I do!”

            Now she stood up, filled with righteous indignation. “Then you’re even more of a fool than I had once believed,” and she stormed off, jumped through one of the lower windows, and vanished before she touched the ground on the other side.

            BS just shook his head then looked at Claw. “Is bullheadedness contagious?” When the sage mage shrugged his shoulder, BS spat on the ground. “I swear, there’s something in the water. All the women folk are becoming impossible to deal with.”

            Claw’s reply was just to slip away quietly.

            Megan continued to watch the battle as Serenity made her way to the door. The healer paused a moment. “You want anything to eat or drink, Megan.”

            “No,” the injured mutant replied, though she didn't seem to be quite as focused on the sparring below. Clearly her mind was chewing on recent events. She may have even heard the rumors that several mutants had appeared in Rydin and set the whole castle a buzzing with speculation.

            Still Serenity's primary directive was to get Megan up and running again. Most of the time this included sneaky tactics. "Well I am going to get me a drink. I'll be back."

            Jason waited for serenity to leave before slipping into Megan's room. "How'ya doin'?" he asked with all sincerity.

            That didn't stop Megan from shooting him a hateful glare. "It's not healing."

            "Geez! What a pessimist!"

            That just seemed to stoke the fires as she nearly started foaming at the mouth. "Whadda You care? You've been out to ruin us ever since you got here!"

            Jason stepped back as if struck. "Is That what you think? If I didn't care I wouldn't have bothered to buy the bar, or try to straighten out your finances. I care!"

            "You 'care' about your own hide and nothing more! You needed us for protection!"

            His jaw dropped before he sputtered back, "That was then! I can get along just fine without you all. I just choose not to...."

He stopped short as soon as Serenity stepped into the room. The healer just glided past him, setting a second cup of what looked to be herbal tea on the window sill. "I brought you something anyway, Megan." Then she turned to give Del Mar's only ruling non-mutant a strange look. "Please. continue your thought, Jason. Don't mind my presence." She smoothed out her robes of her position and took a seat opposite Megan so that she could watch the continuing battle below.

But Jason clearly didn't want Serenity to hear this particular conversation. "No. that's okay. She's being bull headed again anyhow. It's no use talking to her when she's in this mood." He turned and left in a huff, grumbling to himself; a grumbling that soon grew into loud complaintive curses by the time he reached the end of the hall.

Megan didn't even blink. She just stared blankly out the window.

The big guy had kept busy since moving into the castle's basement, more or less claiming a corner for all his techno-junk. In fact he seemed to have acquired quite a lot of junk and had it stashed in piles of bags, chests, and heavily armored safes. Lacking what he deemed "normal" furniture, he had erected the typical wooden plank and cinder block shelving, where he had his basics up and running; computers, electronic scanners, microscopes and the like. All of the power cords, however, rolled across the floor and into one large green duffle bag that seemed to glow and purr from time to time. He had an army cot laid out, but he used it more as a chair and table than someplace to sleep. In fact it looked like he hadn't slept at all since his arrival. Currently he was trying to browse through fistfuls of readouts and having a Dickens of a time trying to get anything meaningful from them.

"Whatcha doin'?" Meli asked as she strode into his domicile. Others had stayed away, giving the 'borg his privacy, but she felt no compulsion to do so.

And apparently he didn't mind the intrusion, though he didn't look up from his work. "I'm trying to pinpoint tim's whereabouts. With Nine roaming loose out there, I wanna find his hide before he finds hers."

Meli just stood there and held her hand under her chin in deep thought. "Hmmm."

BS paused, then turned and wagged a finger at her. "Don't even think it. You're not going out there. Drac'll have a hissy fit."

"Drac don't care about me. Besides, I've already been out there, several times."

The big man rolled his good eye, then sighed. "So, did you find him?"

She crossed her arms. "Who's to say that he didn't find me?"

Brimstone snorted. "Well, you're not foaming at the mouth. You Seem sane enough. And I'm still picking up the occasional ping so I'm guessing that you didn't vaporize him on the spot."

"And why would I vaporize him?"

Now BS furrowed his brow. "I thought you considered him pond scum?"

"You underestimate me."

"No, Sweetheart; I'm just merely confused by you."

Now it was her turn to snort. "If I were to Do anything, I would simply remove his soul."

"He has no soul."

"That's what you think, but his life force would be a nice prize."

Again his finger came up. "I know he has no soul. He's a cold- blooded killer."

"Even killers have souls," she replied with a sly smile, watching him becoming more frustrated with every passing minute.

His finger began to waver. "Meli, you stay away from him. Especially now. No telling what he would do to you."

"I think you're over-reacting."

"Meli! Did you See what he did to Megan? You hear how he handles himself. He can mindwipe you, without you knowing even!"

The psi hunter was beginning to think that the 'borg was not talking about the same person. From what she had heard, the transgression he was referring to was done years ago, and not by Timothy. "I would know," she insisted.

"Not if he's done what I think he's done. Now he'll be even more unstable and twice as lethal." Now he reached down and clamped his hands on her shoulders. “Mel, I’m begging you. Please. Stay away from that psycho. He’s too dangerous now. I won’t even go after him alone.”

“I am not scared of him.”

“It’s not a matter of being scared! It’s common sense! Leave him to Drac and his ilk. Hopefully the Rex’ll slip up and this whole business can be put aside. Until then, he’s poison.”

It wasn’t sinking in at all. He could tell already by the set of her jaw that she was going to go right out and square off against the most dangerous psi on the planet and there was little he could do. He had one last option. He leaned down quickly and kissed her full on the lips.

He knew the punch was coming, but he had hoped that the sudden connection would open her mind. He was an empath, and the ability to pour out his emotions into another was not far off his beaten track. He didn’t know how much she had absorbed when the roundhouse burrowed into his cheek, but she didn’t look any less resolute. He had lost this battle but shouted out his reproach, even as she faded away from view. “Fine! Get mind wiped. See if I care!” and he stormed off, wondering if Megan was in any better of a mood to deal with.

She found Timothy easily enough. He was pacing in an abandoned alleyway just off the wharf, suspiciously close to one of Drac’s portals. Yet it looked like he wasn’t trying to break into Vashtalia. In fact it seemed he was having enough problems, with himself. The argument was loud enough, but there was only the Rex, not another soul around. As she floated down to perch on one of the rooftops, he spotted her and gestured. She had heard that he had acquired kinetic abilities, but she hadn’t realized the extent of his powers. Clearly he has more control than the females of his kind as she felt suddenly ensnared in a field, like a hand gripping around her body tightly. She was lifted up then brought down into the alleyway in front of the blond bad guy. Suddenly the pressure released and Timothy staggered back two steps, then jerked forward again, slapping at his right arm as it rose up again. “Knock it off!”

Then he hissed back, at himself. “But she knows!”

“If you keep doing crap like that,” he replied to himself before yanking the raise hand back again then giving Meli a sheepish smile. “As you can see, Meli, dear, I’m having a bit of a problem.” His body then stiffened again. “Yeah! You stole my body and won’t get out!”

Well she didn’t need an anvil crashing on her head to tell her that there was more than one personality wrapped up in that leather clad frame. No wonder Brimstone couldn’t sense him. The rapid switching of dominate personalities must have drove his sensors nuts. Still she wouldn’t be tricked. “Okay, I’m only in the mood to deal with one of you.”

He shook himself violently, then released his hand. “Give us a moment, won’t you?” He spun about on his heel and started talking to himself in that strange Del Marian dialect. She now noticed that the language itself was a hodgepodge of other dialects. Latin seemed the base, with Sanskrit thrown in for good measure. Romance languages like Spanish were broken up with Guttural German words peppered with grunts, snarls and clicks; presumably from his full blooded reptilian kindred. Finally his body relaxed and Timothy turned around, all smiles and salesman charm. "See? We've come to our senses. Now, how's things over in Dragonland. Megan recuperating okay? Nine terrorizing the troops? Brimstone still being a brat?" He slowly stepped forward, his hand behind his back, just beaming

He sure knew what toes to step on. "Yes, he is a brat." She replied even as she took several steps away from him. "Stay away from me. I've already had one too many people in my personal space today."

The Rex paused in mid-step. "Very well, how about that gargoyle lookin' guy.. what was his name? Ah yes, Zelgadis. How's he coming along?"

"Who?" Meli asked.

"Megan's boyfriend and soon to be father of her baby. Bluish grey fellow? Sleeps a lot? Can't remember a blasted thing?" He seemed particularly irked by the last description, almost grunting it through clenched teeth. "I don't supposed you could find out how he doing, could you?"

She crossed her arms. "How could I profit?"

"Well, I could do something about brimstone; if he's bugging you all that much." She shook her head. He now turned around again, engaging in another lengthy conversation with himself, then turned back around, all smiles. "You said you had an affinity for souls. I can get you one. A nice chewy one, full of flavor." She busted out with a guffaw, but he didn't miss a beat. "I aim to please. What do You please?"

"What do I please? I have everything I could possibly want and more!"

She didn't know why but his grin broadened as if he had caught her in a lie, except she wasn't lying. She figured to brush him aside. "Listen, let's get down to business. I'm here because you are causing trouble."

He held up his hands in innocence. "I haven't hurt a living soul since my return. On my honor!"

"Well I know better. I also know you're trying to fiddle around in my mind. You May not like what I Let you find." She watched him, but he didn't act like he'd been caught. Frankly she wasn’t exactly sure If he was trying to read her mind, but she just wanted to warn him. "Listen," she continued. "You're in trouble....."

"Ah, Cherie', I'm always in trouble."

"Don't try talking sweet to me. Megan's laid up and they blame it on you."

He bounced right back as if expecting this accusation. "Megan's laid up because she let Dusk run a sword through her. They can't Possibly blame that on me. I've let bad things happen to my little girl, but that wasn't on My head."

Meli pouted. The lug sounded genuinely hurt. "They blame everything on you."

And again that smile. What did this guy know? "I'm the mutant scapegoat," he pointed out. "Of course they blame me, otherwise they would start blaming each other, and they can't have that."

"Really," she snorted back, even as the storm clouds began to gather above them. "Well, then. Have fun dying."

But Timothy seemed determined to extract some sort of promise from her. "Just remember my offer," he called out to her as she turned her back to walk away. "A soul in exchange for information on the chimera. That is all I ask. Heck, I'll sweeten the deal if you can bring him to me. Nobody'll miss him."

She did, purposely causing the lightning bolt to strike the spire of the building nearby, but instead of running, Timothy's left hand reached out to the current and pulled. Yes, he pulled at the lightning, trying to draw it closer. A greenish pulse of light emanated from his hand, but the electrical current was not strong enough, nor stable, and the psi was unable to tap into the strength of it. That did send chills down Meli's back. Clearly timothy had picked up a few more talents, and with his split personality showing, he most definitely was going to be more than a handful, should this "other" person emerge the dominant force. She retreated to the rooftops, pausing only a moment to watch him swear at himself in that other's voice. "You should have let me have her," this darker one insisted.

"And bring them ALL down on us?" Timothy barked back at himself. "I don't think so. The seed has been sewn. Let's see what grows."

The second bolt of lightning struck it's target. This should have knocked the mutant out, as Nobody could take that voltage and not be phased or at least stunned. The leather clad body was repelled into the brick wall, but the psi just shook his head and slowly stood up. The burn mark on his chest from the direct contact already healing with phenomenal speed. And he was smiling. She wasn't sure which one was in control when he spoke.

"She's got spunk," he leered.

            Drac had been out and about trying to find Nine, cursing himself with every step. It had been Brimstone that had mentioned to Drac during a lull between his administrative duties that she had, how did he put it? “Slipped off the reservation”? That worried him enough, until Brimstone added that there was a reason why the powerless girl had run away. There was a vibe, a very strong vibe, and the ‘borg suspected it was Aurora returned, and that Nine, in true Del Marian fashion, had gone off to battle the once ruling matriarch. Drac had heard enough of Aurora in passing to know this was not a good idea, but mutant females are not known for their logic.

            He had also hoped to run across Timothy while out and about. Of course he had known it would be a fool's errand, but it seemed the psi continually paced just beyond their reach. He had hoped that the Rex would consider him easy pickings separated from home and hearth and alone, but Drac already knew the psi wasn't That stupid.

It was while he was wandering the marketplace when he picked up the aura. It felt like Nine's echo, only amplified, and somewhat hazy, as if unstable. It was hard to explain the whole vibe thing to begin with, but he had noticed that the more he was exposed to these mutants, the more "things" he could feel. Anyone that had ever been around any of those mutants for a length of time could tell you they emitted some sort of wavelength, something akin to background chatter. Around creatures like Timothy or Brimstone, the chatter was clearer and the aura had a distinct sound. With Nine, that vibe had been muffled after Rooslan's attack, but it was still noticeable. From the person inside, the echo was felt, not heard; and it felt unbalanced, as if that underlying power surge would erupt is somebody sneezed too hard. So he held himself in check and followed the sensation into one of the smaller bars.

It wasn't hard to pick her out in the room. In fact, save for the kid tending the bar, she was the only one in the room. She had her back to the door, surprising for any mutant as he knew they were too paranoid to leave their backs open to attack. She looked just like Nine, perhaps a few years older and a little more worldly looking around the eyes. He walked slowly past her, heading up to the bar, curious as to what she was up to. She wasn't hiding much of anything about her. Somewhere along the line she had managed to get some ill-fitted dragon leather armor. To cover what the hide didn't, she had clamped the gear down over a plain tan shift. Two mismatch swords were strapped to her back in a makeshift brace of leather and wood, sure not comfortable, but practical enough. A heavy green canvas dufflebag sat on the floor next to her as she made a pretense of reading the menu.

The kid at the bar clearly didn't belong there either. He nervously cleaned one of the mug so well he was almost pulling up flakes of glass, but he tried to hold his own. Even though he wore a French styled shirt with a black vest and leggings, he didn’t look the part of a medieval merchant. In fact there was something familiar about this fellow, like he knew the guy, but was out of place in this picture. Perhaps he was some sort of scholar out of his element as his dark eyes seemed to hold more than an interest in Drac as a paying customer. “What ‘kin I do yer fer?” this young man asked in a very suspicious accent.

Well Drac would play along for now. “An ale would do nicely, if you have any in stock.”

“Of course!” The server dipped down behind the counter, then came up with a bottle of brew. “One cred.. I mean coin... I mean gold coin.”

Drac ignore the fau pax, fishing out two gold coins from a pouch at his waist, the tavern light reflecting dully off the realm insignia embroidered on the cape in various shades of gold thread. It was the only showing of his status that he allowed himself to wear when he was out and about. He stayed with the typical browns and blacks of normal peasant garb, preferring to stay out of the limelight.

Hard to do when he clearly was the subject of study. He had caught the woman rolling her eyes as the bartender misspoke his lines. She shifted her weight on the seat. By now he knew that she must have gotten his scent and figured out that he was not wholly a man. Megan had done the same thing, needing to catch his scent to figure out that he was reptilian.

The man behind the bar, however, was fascinated with the insignia on Drac’s tunic. “Are ye in da service, Sir?”

Drac shook his head even as he drank the brew. Apparently the young man hadn’t been immersed in the culture long enough to assimilate the language. “The service?” he mused. “After a fashion.”

“Ah. Mercenary then.” The bartender helped himself to a bottle then gave Drac a salute with the beer before drinking some if it himself, grimacing a bit. “Seen any action recently?”

The Vashtalian king mused a moment. “Against Veradia of late.”

Apparently this was the line of questioning the bartender wanted. “I’m askin’ cause there was this fellow a bit back.. A bad kind of fellow, talking up a storm about how bing and high and mighty and all he was. Then he sort of disappeared. I was wonderin’ iffen you maybe came across him? I’m kind of.. Looking.. To see where he got off to. Call it morbid curiosity.

Again the leather wearing woman had rolled her eyes disapprovingly even as Drac managed to contain a snort. Of course he knew who they were looking for. Weren’t they all? “Name?” he asked, just to see if the Rex was using an alias nowadays.

“Uhm.. What was it? Tristan, I think. Little blond fellow.”

Well Tim hadn’t strayed too far from the truth. Drac knew full well of Tristan, but also knew that Tim’s sort of alter-ego had been disposed of months ago. He didn’t know what the Rex was up to now, but there was no denying that they were hunting for the same person. No sense mulling over words now. “You mean Timothy,” he corrected.

“No... no. This would be his son.”

Drac felt this was a guarded reply, as if the answer was somehow shielded as if Drac had stepped on the truth somehow. Nine’s counterpart, however; had perked up when she heard Tim’s name in passing and slowly stood up, picking up the heavily loaded dufflebag and made her way to the bar. She was not being stealthy as much as cautious, as if expecting Drac to make some sort of move to attack or flee. Now she took over the questioning, even as she dropped the canvas bag on the counter and unzipped it, showing the plasma rifle inside. “So, you know the Rex. Seen Him anywhere?”

“Seen him?” he snorted “I’m currently hunting him.”

“Really.” Apparently that was the correct answer as she took out the rifle, checked the chamber, then replaced it in the back and zipped it shut. “What did he do to you?”

“He didn’t do anything to me exactly. He’s just been a major annoyance to my friends and allies.” As she nodded in agreement, Drac turned to the server. “Thank you for the ale again by the way, Mr. Nocturne.”

Of course that wasn’t his name, but he was trying to drum up information like she was. He had heard many things about Megan’s mom but had never met the woman in person. Other than the imposing feeling that something would go sour quickly, she didn’t seem to be the quick fire threat that everyone was treating her. In fact she didn’t seem anymore the threat than any of the other mutants. “That’s my second,” she confessed. “Rooslan’s one of the newer recruits on this project. At ease, soldier,” she commanded as she eased herself into one of the seats at the bar. Drac noted that where she chose to park her hide was strategic in nature as she was now between himself and Rooslan.

In fact Rooslan now held his attention. Clearly this was not the correct one he held a blood vendetta against. He was barely out of his teens and filled with wonder and amazement and bore no ill will of any sort, nor did he seem to know that his life could have been in danger is Drac wasn’t as understanding about how time seemed to bend around his adoptive mutant friends. “We are after one named Rooslan as well. Your first name would be Nicolae?”

This made the young man nervous now as he heard the half-accusing tone in the man’s voice. “....Might I ask why you are being so inquisitive?”

Drac sighed. “Some time ago a man named Nicolae Rooslan went against us. We are still trying to track him down. You appear to be a younger incarnation of this man, but I do not believe you are the one we seek. You need not worry.”

Nine’s twin stood up to defend her man. “Look, we haven’t been here but two weeks. This is Not your man. Now.. We are hunting a Tristan. If you have a Timothy, then I’m quite sure he’s got his hooks into this project somewhere along the line. We’ll have to take care of him to.” Her hand had reached back to the duffle bag and the pulse rifle inside. All this talk against her bartending subordinate had her ruffled a bit.

Drac decided to reveal what he knew, figuring this would go some distance to calm Aurora down. “I think introductions are in order. I am Dracon Draghkar, Dragon Knight, Fourth King of Vashtalia. I don’t believe I caught your name?”

Her hand didn’t move away from the gun, as if expecting the man to attack her. “Aurora De Artar... mutant ambassador.”

Confirmation. “Ah, so you Are the one I’ve heard so much about. I believe you have a daughter named Megan, correct?”

“Yes?” Now she had a suspicious lilt to her voice as she darted a glance back at Rooslan.

“Do not worry,” Drac crooned in his most assuring tone. “I mean no ill will. She is actually one of my friends. Her and her kind are now under my protection, though I’m afraid Megan is not doing well of late. She got into a fight and was stabbed with her own sword. It left an enchantment on her and we are not able to permanently heal the wound.”

Aurora visible shuddered. “Magic. Nasty stuff.” She turned back to Rooslan as he continued to feverishly clean the mug in hand. “Radio the head honcho. Tell him we’ve finally got a lead.”

While the ambassador and the knight talked, Rooslan moved back behind the bar, still playing the role of bartender. A young woman slipped into the room and took a seat at the other end of the bar, just close enough to eavesdrop. Rooslan moved over to her, more to see if she was meaning trouble or not. “I’ll take a drink,” she stated. “Give me the strongest brew you’ve got.”

The cadet had been around their newest acquisition long enough to know that the strongest was not necessarily the healthiest for normal folk, but the girl wrapped in black didn't seem normal. He did his best, dragging out what was considered Aurora's favorite; bleach and gasoline topped off with a jigger of kiwi juice. The black-swaddled woman shook her head. "Never mind. Lets keep this simple. How about just a shot of vodka?"

Nicolae frowned a bit, but slid the drink aside and started fresh, pouring out a simple shotglass of the Russian brew. The girl took the offering, sniffed it, then slammed it down in true mutant style. This one apparently had been hanging around some of Aurora’s kindred perhaps a bit too long.

Aurora was already pumping the Vashtalian king for information. "So, who did Megan piss off so badly that she got run through?"

"One of her kinsman. Dusk was her name." Aurora paled at the announcement, but Drac continued. "The sword you may not know. I think it's name was Destroyer."

Now the mutant gaped like a beached fish. "Destroyer?! Damn, I thought I got rid of those blades for good. I swear Ret's gonna Eat those things if they hurt Megan. Of all the dragons to pick on..." and she degraded into a colorful tirade of Del Marian curses. She finally emptied her spleen and slumped down in the chair, already worn out. "And by Dusk no less. That can't be right. I consigned her to hell myself."

Drac nodded, knowing that she would soon be swamped in information. "She was brought back apparently, and took possession of Timothy's new kid."

Yep. Aurora's hand reached for her brow. "I think I'm coming down with a migraine. I go away for a little while and everything goes to pot." She gave a sigh, then gestured for Rooslan to bring her the newly mixed potion he had to set aside. She sipped at the poisonous concoction, then glanced over at Drac. "Okay.. basic question. Where is the gang? I can't feel hide nor hair of them."

"They are all in Vashtalia, save Timothy of course."

She had to chew on that for a bit. He could almost feel her mind processing the information and weighing out her options. "Well I guess that limits Tristan's zombie population. He'll have slim pickins now. Look Drac, Sir, what ever your title is. You keep them there. Knock them out and freeze them if you have to, but keep them in there."

He quirked a brow, wondering why she was not fretting so much about Timothy as she was a bout this Tristan fellow. "As far as I know, Tristan has been killed."

"Are you talking about the Slimeball?" the black robed woman butted in.

"No Meli, we're talking about his son Tristan."

"Well who did you Think I was talking about?"

That made Drac a bit perplexed as well, since he thought Meli had harbored ill will only to the Rex. Aurora thought it best to clarify things. "Tim is just slime. Tristan is worse. Imagine Tim's psionic ability matched with a kinetic function that levels cities. Add to that a temper and an ego twice as bad as mine and you've got Tristan."

Drac had a bad feeling, a very bad feeling. “Timothy was in very bad shape until just recently. It appears he has acquired a new body. He also has now acquired a talent for magic too.”

He wasn’t sure if the woman could frown any further without her lips falling off. Clearly this news was quite distressing. “When I last left Tim, he had Tristan trapped up in his mind. This new Tristan has never been fettered.. And he’s managed to slip into this world. This is big bad news. Really bad. If he starts harvesting people here, with mana And energy weaponry...no.. no.. we really need to nail him fast.” She gestured to Rooslan again. This pow-wow was going to take all night to sort.