Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

John was pissed, that much was obvious. Well, maybe ‘pissed’ was the wrong word, terrified and angry seemed much more fitting. He’d been sat in front of the same computer screen for the best part of four hours now, watching police scanners as well as the clandestine chat servers of the Mutant Underground. Well, what else could he do? His wife was missing. She’d been heading to get some mutants safe, but they’d all been grabbed, John had tracked them as best as he could, but the trail went cold, there was still no sign of her. The table began to creak as his grip tightened, he could track anything, but he couldn’t find Reece.

So yeah, being pissed at Sentinel Services was a lot easier than being scared. For all John knew, Clarice was dead.

“Don’ think that.” Muttered a voice from behind him, he shot round, having not heard Taylor, his best friend – his baby sister, come into the room.

“Don’t think what, Empty?” John knew it was never going to work, but the last thing he needed was a lecture from Taylor right now.

Rolling her dark red eyes, Taylor moved to his side, “y’know, there are times when being stuck in your head is really gross,” she smiled slightly when John gave a stiff chuckle, “other times it’s really helpful.” John scoffed before turning back to the computer screen, “besides, I’ve known you longer than almost anyone else, definitely longer than anyone here. I know when you’re scared.”

No matter how much he wanted to deny it, John knew Taylor would never buy it, he’d spent too many years letting her see his fears. “What if we can’t get her back?”

“We won’t,” John glared at Taylor, immediately ready for a fight as Taylor held her hands up, “she’ll find her way to us, we’ll just be picking her up for the final trek.” Taylor wrapped an arm around John’s shoulders as he sat back in the chair, “look, Love’s strong, ok? She’s a survivor, she managed to survive while you were all away when the Purefires and the Brotherhood were after her, she’s survived being captured by Orchis, she managed to survive after countless pregnancy complications, she’s survived being caught, what? Six times before. She’ll get through this, John, she’ll find her way home.”

John wasn’t so sure. Clarice always did have a way of getting back to them and surviving against the odds, but this was different. This wasn’t just she was trying to stay two steps ahead of the Brotherhood, Orchis, or any other of their countless enemies, she had been taken by Sentinel Services! It wasn’t so simple!

The floorboards creaked as a small figure stumbled from hiding behind the doorframe. John and Taylor shared an affectionate and exasperated glance before calling for three young girls, Evie and Rose Proudstar and Imogen Nobel all poked their heads guiltily into the office.

“Are you eavesdropping?” Taylor asked.

The three girls slowly nodded, eyes wide, and faces guilty, “sorry, Mommy.” Imogen mumbled, scuffing her shoe along the floor as she spoke.

“Have you found Momma?” Evie asked, vibrant green eyes alight with hope.

John let out a breath, “not yet, we’ll find her though,” he assured his older daughter.

“When?” Rose signed, glancing between her father, aunt, and twin.

“Soon,” Taylor signed back before brushing the tears away from little Rose’s eyes.

Lifting both twins onto his lap, John returned his focus to the screens in front of him while trying to comfort the girls, holding them close.

Imogen scuffed the toe of her sneaker over the floor, “Mommy? She’ll be ok, yeah?”

Taylor knelt down and pulled Imogen close, her heart clenching at the fear on her daughter’s face, “course she will, Auntie Clare’s tough.” She tickled Imogen until she was a mess of giggles, and her two friends were smiling slightly.

 John and Taylor remained silent for several minutes as they held their kids, neither wanting to disrupt the other, but neither wanting to be on their own. Their minds humming in sync to the constant white noise of the other’s thoughts that they’d grown to find comfort in.

A few more minutes passed before the office door was thrown open, “you guys are gonna wanna see this!” Marcos shouted before running back towards the tech room. Taylor and John shared a glance before letting the three girls go and heading to follow Marcos.

Once in the tech room, they saw the police surveillance tracking an escapee from a relocation facility. “Oh my god!” Taylor muttered, something between a smile and a look of horror on her face.

“Clarice!” Relief and fear fueled John’s voice in equal parts.

Taylor shot John a look, “told you she’d only need us for the last bit.”

They caught a glimpse of where the police were tailing Clarice, but the trio were already heading out of the room, Lorna catching up with them as they headed for the cars.

*****

The rain hammered down around the quartet as the car ground to a halt, John practically leapt out of the driver’s seat before the car had fully stopped, instantly tracking to try and find Clarice’s trail. Taylor stepped up next to him, her eyes scanning the surroundings as she flexed her powers, trying to locate anyone living.

Marcos held Lorna to his side, the rain making both of them shiver. Neither John or Taylor seemed to notice the cold, though that didn’t surprise Marcos and Lorna in the slightest, the Marine and ex-experiment were good at hiding things, especially when a member of their family was in danger.

Taylor’s eyes searched the alleyway while Marcos’ attention headed to some debris in the street, “got something!” He called, making a light glow above the remains of a police light. John and Taylor ran over to it before Marcos and Lorna could move.

John lifted one of the lights, feeling the familiar remnants of Clarice’s powers on them. Before John could focus, Taylor slapped his shoulder, her mind pressing into his as she motioned to a warehouse, “she’s inside,” John muttered as he headed for the door.

Edging towards the building, Taylor kept glancing around for any passing noise, for anything out of place. John, on the other hand, wasn’t as subtle. He threw caution to the wind and kicked in the door.

Taylor could only roll her eyes, “and they say he’s the subtle one,” she muttered to Lorna only for John to glare at her. She gave him a small smirk, she knew that, in most situations, that John was the reasonable one out of the pair of them, but this was Clarice in danger…

“Clarice?!” John called.

Despite herself, Taylor let out an exasperated sigh, “yeah, because that helps us remain hidden,” she hissed at him.

“C’mon Python, it’s fine,” John shot back.

Taylor rolled her eyes but let it go for a moment; she motioned for Lorna and Marcos to head for the back rooms while she and John searched the main warehouse.

*****

Marcos and Lorna made their way into the back, ducking into the shadows wherever possible until they saw the person they were looking for. “You’d think, given everything, you’d be easier for John to track,” Lorna joked.

Clarice spun around to face them, armed with a stapler before her mind caught up with her body, “you morons! I could’ve hurt you!”

“Yeah, attack the one who controls metal,” Lorna summoned the stapler over to her, “with a metal stapler. How’ve you made it this far without noticing the key flaw in that plan?”

“I wasn’t saying it was a good plan,” Clarice looked over their shoulders into the rest of the darkened warehouse, “you alone?”

“Yeah, John and Taylor didn’t think they’d be needed or wanted out here,” Marcos commented dryly, rolling his eyes only to duck to avoid being hit by a flying mug, “that’s just rude,” he pouted as Clarice and Lorna grinned.

The sound of police cars approaching echoed through the warehouse, closely followed by the flashing light.

“Guys! Trouble!” John shouted as he and Taylor ran into the back room. John froze when his eyes landed on Clarice. Within a second, Clarice was in his arms as he held her as tightly as he could without hurting her, “we need to go.”

The group headed back into the main warehouse as they heard car doors open and close. “Kill the lights,” Taylor whispered, Lorna obliged while the others flipped tables and hid behind them or ducked behind walls.

Weapons fire forced them to duck, Lorna began reaching for the metal of the bullets, guns, and cars, Taylor kept flexing her powers, inflicting short bursts of pain to any police officer who tried to approach the building.

“Get ready!” Marcos yelled to the two women as John ushered Clarice out the back door, guarding her from any stray bullets. Taylor and Lorna hid their eyes as a blinding light filled the room, giving the pair their much-needed escape route.

“Marcos, you next!” Taylor called, clenching a fist to the sound of the police officers crying out in pain as she ran out the door beside Lorna.

Running out of the warehouse, John gripped Clarice’s hand as he led her down the alley towards the car, not once letting it slip. As they reached the car, John dared a glance back, nodding when he saw Taylor and Lorna were a few steps away with Marcos just a bit behind them. In what seemed like a split second, Marcos fell to the ground, a bullet catching his arm.

Taylor turned, running for Marcos while Lorna began attacking the police officers. “Lorna, c’mon! We’ve gotta move!” Taylor yelled as Marcos began fighting against her. “Some help,” she gritted to John through her mind. In an instant, John grabbed Marcos and began hauling him towards the car.

Police officers poured out of the warehouse before Taylor could move to assist Lorna, one tasered her, forcing her to the ground, and cuffing her hands before she could do anything. Flexing her hands, Taylor began focusing her powers as Lorna was hauled to her feet, she couldn’t help but tense as Lorna shook her head, nodding towards the car when John had thrown Marcos onto the back seat. That was all Taylor needed. She darted over to the car, climbing into the back as John sped off before the police could grab them all.

Taylor kept her focus over her shoulder, watching the police haul Lorna away until they were out of sight.

“Turn around!” Marcos yelled, “John, go back!”

“She told us to leave, Marcos,” Taylor growled, the pressure in her mind eased as John relaxed from the confirmation.

Chapter Text

Life had always been an illusion of normal for the Strucker family, especially in recent years. At least, Andy liked to pretend that it was an illusion, he supposed it made life more interesting. He glanced around the empty hall as he sat on the floor outside the Guidance Councilor’s office, his sketchbook on his lap as he drew, attempting to ignore the rest of the world – or at least the rest of the school.

*****

Inside the office, Caitlin and Reed Strucker were meeting with the councilor, “I understand you have some concerns about your son, Andy?” The man asked, reading from a piece of paper on his desk.

Reed nodded, “yes, we believe he’s being bullied.”

The teacher looked taken aback, his face stiffening from the accusation, “Belleview High has a zero-tolerance policy towards bully.”

“That’s why we came,” Caitlin explained, her eyes darting between her husband and the school counselor.

“Uh, Andy and I have always been very close, but lately he… he just stopped talking to me.” Reed explained.

“It’s affecting his grades,” Caitlin put in, “he… he’s not sleeping. He’s not eating as much. It’s affecting him a lot.”

The councilor nodded, “in situations like this, we like to use the ‘C.A.R.E.’ system: Communicate, Adjust, Reconcile, and Empathize. First, we take the kids, and we put them together to talk.”

“These boys are— are tormenting our son,” Caitlin exclaimed, the idea of a ‘C.A.R.E.’ irritating her, her son needed support, not more time with the boys bullying him!

“I understand that this is upsetting—”

“Stop right there,” Reed said, using his ‘prosecutor voice’, the counselor froze, “let me be clear, Andy needs help, and if he doesn’t get it, I will sue this school into oblivion.”

“Mr. Strucker, we have procedures, I can’t just—”

“The get someone who can,” no one moved, “now.”

“Ok. I’ll… I’ll be right back.” And with that, the man left the room.

As the door closed, Caitlin let out a breath, “wow, scary.” She joked.

Reed gave a slight laugh, “was that too much? I felt like the glaring was a little over the top.”

Caitlin shook her head with a smile, “no, that was the perfect amount of glaring.”

Before he could respond, Reed’s phone buzzed with a text, “urgh, I’ve gotta go to Garland. Plea conference with a suspect, they need me ASAP. Will you tell the kids I’m really sorry? I’ll be back in a few days.”

Caitlin nodded as she kissed Reed, “the kids understand, you’re keeping us safe.” Caitlin sighed once Reed left the room. A few days. She couldn’t stop herself from thinking that he’d worked it somehow so that he wouldn’t be home on the anniversary of them losing their eldest daughter… he never was.

*****

As evening fell, Lauren and Andy arrived home, both disappearing up to their rooms without really saying anything to each other. Ditching her school bag, Lauren immediately set up her tablet and called her boyfriend.

Holding up two outfits, Lauren couldn’t keep her exasperation off her face, “you really have no preference? They’re two completely different outfits!”

“You look good in both,” Jack commented, a grin on his face.

Lauren rolled her eyes, “not helpful, Jack. Pick an outfit.”

“I dunno… the blue one, do the blue on, that one looks nice.” He offered with a shrug, “also, uh, you want me to pick you up, because it’s no problem?”

Lauren scoffed, her hand grasping her locket gently as she heard the front door close. “No, but I’ll push for an 11:30 curfew. I’ll see you tonight.” She smiled as she ended the call, setting out the outfit for later before making a start on her homework.

Letting out a sigh, Lauren glared at her homework assignment: an essay on the history of the X-Gene and how legal perceptions have changed within society. For as long as she could remember, Lauren had wanted to be a mutant rights advocate within the government. Sure, she had personal reasons for it, but it didn’t change the ways that the world treated mutants like scum. She couldn’t start with changing the world, but she would make a start with changing her country. Lauren loved her dad, she truly did, but they had been on opposing sides since Lauren was five years old.

Her eyes darted to the picture tacked to her mirror. A child and a teenager, one was her, the other was her older sister… a visible mutant. Her hand gripped her locket again as she threw down her pen, the essay could wait until next week. She wasn’t going to try and write it today or tomorrow – today, the anniversary of the last time she spoke to her sister, tomorrow the anniversary of her parents abandoning Mackenzie.

Trying to clear her mind, Lauren shuffled her playlist and began packing away the other outfits she’d been showing Jack. After a minute, she double checked to make sure Andy wasn’t in the hallway and closed her door. She began letting her own mutant powers flow around her, pressing the air together before pulling the ‘shields’ apart. A smile brushed over her lips as her powers flowed, she couldn’t understand how anyone would want to hide their powers, especially not if hiding them made everyone feel the way it made her feel: like her insides were itchy, desperate to break apart.

“Lauren! Andy! Come downstairs! Dinner!” Her mom shouted.

Lauren snapped her hands down, hiding her powers once again as she let out a sigh.

*****

The three sat in silence for a few minutes before Caitlin turned to Lauren, “so, Lauren, how was choir?”

Lauren hummed slightly, pushing her food around her plate, “good. We're practicing for the spring concert.”

“Are you still going to the dance tonight? Want me to show you some of my moves?”

“No, thank you,” Lauren scoffed with half a smile on her face.

Caitlin laughed for a moment before turning to Andy, “how about you? How was your day?”

“Uh, bad.” Caitlin looked to him, waiting to hear that his bullies had gotten worse, “I mean, you were there.”

Caitlin let out a laugh as her shoulders dropped, “I meant your classes. Anything interesting?”

“We had a debate in social studies about the law they want to make to test people with the X-gene and, like, monitor them. I don't know. Anyway, this one kid was, like, freaking out. I guess his cousin's a Mutie or something.”

Lauren scoffed, glaring at her brother, “Seriously? ‘Mutie’, Andy? Racist much?” All she could think of was the last moment she’d seen her sister, dragged into the back of a windowless van that drove off and never came back, neither did Mackenzie. Her fingers touched at the locket she’d always worn, a picture of her and her older sister kept safe inside it, a pair of butterflies engraved on the top.

“What? Person of genetic difference.” Andy said sarcastically through a mouthful of food.

“You are such an ass! What about Mackenzie? Is she just a ‘Mutie’ to you too?!” Lauren snapped causing Andy and Caitlin to freeze, everyone knew that Mackenzie was the one part of the Strucker family that wasn’t mentioned.

“Really, Lauren? Mackenzie’s dead. If she’s not dead, then she abandoned us.” Andy snapped back.

“She was taken, Andy! There’s a difference!” Lauren had never been able to believe that her sister abandoned her. Mackie had been her best friend, she was always there for Lauren… until their parents sent her away.

“Enough.” Caitlin yelled, silencing the two teenagers, “okay, please. You're fighting about social studies class now. Can we not have a normal conversation?” Neither of the two kids spoke, “guess not.” Caitlin muttered, returning to her dinner.

*****

Lauren made her way out of the house, heading towards the car, she heard her mom’s shout of her 11:30 curfew. Lauren rolled her eyes as she started the car.

“Yo.” The voice beside her startled her.

“Andy!? What are you doing here?”

“I snuck out.” Andy said with a shrug. “I thought I'd go with you.”

“Didn't you tell Mom you were going to bed?”

“Yeah, that's why they call it sneaking. Haven’t you ever done this?” Andy commented with a roll of his eyes. “Can we go?”

“You can't!” Lauren argued. “What if she finds out?”

“If I get caught, I'll tell her I was going down to Ian's. You won't get in trouble. When was the last time I got to go out on a weekend? It's like I'm a one-one of those baby cows they keep in the crates.” Andy complained.

“Veal?” Lauren offered.

Andy nodded. “Yeah. I'm being raised like a veal.”

“You really want to go to a dance? After everything that's been going on at school?” Lauren couldn’t help worrying about her little brother.

“You mean my fan club? Yeah, whatever. I'm used to them.” He tried to reassure her.

Lauren groaned, giving up on the argument, “buckle up.” She stated as she started the car.

*****

The school hall had been decorated for the dance, Andy looked all around while Lauren was searching for her boyfriend.

“Oh, my God.” Andy muttered as Lauren’s boyfriend came over.

“Lauren!” Jack called, grabbing the attention of both siblings.

“Hi.” Lauren muttered as she went over to her boyfriend, sharing a kiss.

“Okay, that's enough. Leave room for Jesus.” Andy commented as he pushed the pair apart.

Jack wrapped an arm around Lauren’s waist before looking Andy up and down, “hey, dude. You, uh - Going to the dance.”

“Yeah, that's me. I'm a dance guy now.” Andy commented, he sounded uncomfortable.

“Okay. Well, have fun.”

“Yeah, you, too.” Andy turned, wandering over to the bleachers, “don't get pregnant!” He yelled back as he saw Lauren and her boyfriend kissing again.

“Are you sure you can't stay out a little later?” Jack asked her after a few minutes, a daring grin on his face.

Lauren shook her head, “you know my mom. It's not gonna happen.”

“Just ask.” He pushed.

Rolling her eyes a little, Lauren couldn’t help but feel a tinge of jealousy at the fact that Jack never had to worry about a curfew or anything similar. “I have Andy with me. I can't stay out later.” Lauren argued just in time for the gym to start shaking, it seemed to be creaking and bending.

Within a few moments, the gym began to collapse, Lauren ran to find Andy, using her powers to block any falling rubble. Finding Andy, Lauren quickly pulled him from the building, dragging him to the car and racing towards their home.

*****

Nearly 12 hours passed before anyone came towards Lorna who was being held in a clearly temporary cell, her powers were uninhibited, and the cuffs were plastic zip ties.
The man approached the cell, "Ms. Dane. My name is Reed Strucker."

Lorna narrowed her eyes at the man, he was the man who had caused Taylor years of locking herself away from anyone, Lorna didn’t try to mask the hatred on her face. This man was the bastard that had destroyed Taylor, even if Taylor refused to mention any of it.

"This is my associate, Carla Jackson—"

Lorna had enough of playing calm, "I'd offer you a seat, but..." she motioned around the empty cell which held nothing but her inside.

"You're accused of the attempted murder of two police officers. That plus the enhanced sentencing due to the use of your mutant abilities—"

Reed was interrupted by Lorna who rolled her eyes, "equals I'm screwed! Yeah. I got that part." Lorna's eyes turned cold as she glared at the man, hating every bone within his body, "look all I know is that I was walkin' home when these cops shot at me." Lorna lied with a shrug of her shoulders.

Reed approached the door to the cell, "Come on, Ms. Dane. You and I both know that you and your associates in the Mutant Underground have aided and abetted dozens, if not hundreds, of fugitives."

Lorna couldn't help but smirk as her friend’s father entered her cell despite the warning of his associate. “Got any names for those supposed associates?” She asked, not dropping her smirk, desperate to see how much the bastard knew.

“I know that you are one of the five that the Underground calls the ‘Core Five’. The others being John Proudstar AKA Thunderbird, Clarice Proudstar AKA Blink, Marcos Diaz AKA Eclipse, and Taylor Nobel AKA Python.”

Lorna raised an eyebrow as the man said the name of his daughter so nonchalantly, “maybe I am, maybe I’m not.”

"Believe it or not, I'm trying to help you. These are serious charges, attempted murder—”

Lorna twisted her had slightly, the man cried out slightly in pain as Lorna messed with the only metal she could reach. "Those screws in your knee? An old sports injury? If I wanted to, I could pull out those screws and show you some attempted murder. If I wanted those cops dead, they'd be dead." Lorna dropped her hand, a weird satisfaction filling her at the look of fearful relief on Reed’s face.

Reed lifted a piece of paper from his file, "there's a factor that you may not be aware of." Lorna's eyes widened as she looked at the piece of paper, Reed didn’t stop speaking, "I'm gonna ask the court to assign you a lawyer, okay? You've got a big decision to make, Ms. Dane." Reed stepped back from Lorna, backing away from the seething woman, he left the room with her screaming causing the lights and a mirror to shatter, "Just think it over." Reed said before leaving the room followed by his associate.

*****

By the time Taylor, John, Clarice, and Marcos returned to the HQ, they had anger rippling through them. It had taken them the best part of 14 hours to get home thanks to police following them. Eventually, they’d been able to shake them, but it had still taken much longer than anyone would’ve liked.

As they got inside, John took Marcos towards the medical room where he bandaged up his arm.

Clarice rolled her eyes as Sage called her over, sure, it was protocol, but it was irritating. Sage seemed to notice Clarice’s hesitation and shook her head before starting with the questions, “where’d they take you?”

“All over. Three different facilities. Several interrogation rooms…”

Sage’s eyes widened at the potential security risk, “did they get any info?”

Clarice rolled her eyes, “yeah, I told them everything about everyone here. I’m surprised they’re not here already. Of course, they got nothing. I’m no amateur.”

Sage smirked, “just asking the questions. I think you’re the one that wrote them.” Clarice just shrugged, a grin spreading across her lips as she headed to find her daughters.

It only took Clarice a moment before the twins found her, the pair of them screaming for her and launching themselves into her arms. Clarice dropped to her knee and pulled them close, hugging them tightly to her as she tried to fight back her tears, burying the fear that she’d never hold them again.

Chapter Text

Over in one of the side offices, Taylor let out a breath as she listened to the police scanners and the wires for any news on where they’d taken Lorna. She didn’t get much done in the way of planning a rescue before she was ambushed by a neon bundle of energy.

“Mommy!” Taylor scooped Imogen into her arms, holding her on her hip, “where’d you go? You was gone all day!” Imogen exclaimed with exasperation, leaning her head back with dramatics.

“Ah, well, we had to go an’ rescue Auntie Clare from the police,” Taylor said, “and we had to make sure the police didn’t follow us back here,” she said, kissing Imogen’s temple before placing the girl back on her feet, smiling as she ran off to join Rosie, Zingo trotting happily after the pair.

*****

“Hold still,” John said as he none-too-gently patched Marcos’ arm, “I’m almost done.”

“I’m fine John, we need to be going after Lorna,” Marcos commented, pointedly ignoring the scorched edges of his jacket as he hopped off the table, “we need to get a team together—”

“And do what? Get one of us killed?” John shot back, “Marcos, we barely got away from a dozen cops, now you wanna take on a hundred?”

Marcos scoffed, “you realize how much of a hypocrite you are, right? How many times did you and Taylor disappear in the dead of night to try and find Clarice? Hell, you two pissed off to Europe without a word for months last year, almost dying, and you want to lecture me about trying to save the mother of my kid?!”

John let out a breath, “yeah, Tay and I were risking us. No one else,” John knew that it was a lie as much as Marcos did, “we can’t take that risk right now.”

“Then when?” Marcos’ eyes narrowed when John sighed, “the X-Men? The Brotherhood? We don’t even know if they exist anymore. We are alone. And we’re being picked off one by one.”

“Look around!” John snapped, ignoring the comment about the X-Men and Brotherhood, Marcos didn’t need to know that the HQ had been founded to try and get certain people off the Brotherhood’s radar… and get government attention to force others to back off. “We’d be risking all these people, everything we built. Everything Lorna built.”

“Guys,” Sage called, coming into the room hesitantly, “we’ve got a situation.”

*****

Watching Imogen go, Taylor turned her attention back to the computer, reading through the latest information their spy inside Sentinel Services had provided them with. There was a new facility opening soon, one made to break mutants apart.

“Mighty!” Came a shout from John, startling Taylor slightly.

Turning away from the maps and screens in front of her, Taylor raised an eyebrow as John motioned her over, an unsettling worry in his eyes as he, Clarice, and Marcos headed towards the tech room. Closing the notebook, Taylor followed her family.

Taylor’s eyes darted over to Clarice, “we’re gonna need to chat later, Love.”

Clarice let out a heavy breath, “I know, both of you are gonna want to,” she whispered back, her eyes fixed on John. She smiled when he nodded, letting Clarice know that he’d heard her.

As the group headed into the tech room, their attention turned to the TV playing the news. “Yes, and as we have reported, breaking news on the mutant attack at Belleview High. We believe two young mutants to be responsible for the destruction. We've also heard that Federal authorities will be getting involved." The news rattled on about the attack as the group stopped inside the tech room.

Taylor’s eyes went dark as she heard the report, “what was the school?” She asked, her demeanor growing cold as her voice began to sound like hundreds of insects skittering across too-dry ground. The familiar and yet unfamiliar sound made John and Clarice tense. The Cobra echoed in those words. A creation from the darkest depths of Hell.

“Belleview High,” Marcos told her, oblivious to its importance.

Finally, Taylor turned around with wide eyes, a storm of emotions surging through her mind and her eyes, “no. No, it can’t be. No!” A frenzied mixture of worry and anger threatened to overwhelm Taylor as she stared at the screen and then back to her chosen siblings, “that’s my old school. Lauren should be attending there now, that’s where she’ll have gone.”

John came over to her, taking both of her hands in one of his while his other hand settled on her shoulder, “are you sure? I mean… your memories are complicated, and you’re assuming that they still live where they did 12 years ago.”

Taylor vehemently shook her head, “I know it, John. I know it… it’s where I went. It’s where I was when I lashed out.”

John winced at Taylor’s words before trying to settle her, “just because it was her school, doesn’t mean it was her.”

“Don’t give me that, John!” Taylor shot back, “you and I both know that there’s a higher chance of her being a mutant because I was born one.”

After a moment, John pulled Taylor into his arms, hugging her close as her knees buckled at the thought of her little sister being in danger. He knew how much she still loved her, even after all these years, after all the torture and pain, Taylor never stopped adoring the 5-year-old she’d been forced to leave behind when she was taken.

“Do we help her?” Marcos asked, still trying to wrap his mind around what could’ve happened as a result of an untrained Taylor lashing out with her powers because of her anger.

“No,” Taylor said, urging her voice not to shake, “we help her if she contacts us. I’m not making her live in fear if she doesn’t have to… No ghosts.”

“No heroes,” John finished, Marcos and Clarice both nodded, echoing their mantra as they left the room.

No ghosts, no heroes. No dying today, save the ones you can, but make sure you save yourself. A statement that saw them through their darkest fights, keeping them alive far longer than any of them would have survived alone.

Taylor and John hung back slightly, heading for the roof rather than heading for dinner. It was up here, in these moments, that the pair would ask the question that they avoided when they had company.

“You don’t think… you don’t think your parents will do to her what they did to you, do you?” John felt Taylor shrug as he pulled her into a hug.

“I dunno. I mean, they handed me over to those… monsters… without a second glance. But that was 12 years ago, I was barely 15. Maybe they’ve changed, maybe they’ll only kick her out.”

Pausing for a moment, John let out a breath, stepping away from Taylor slightly, “we could… we could go by your house… pick her up if she is in danger.”

Taylor laughed slightly, “I would love to, but I don’t know the address.”

“I do.”

Taylor froze, her eyes darting over to John, “how?”

“Broke into the Old Man’s office not long after you’d disappeared, found your file, stole the address, headed to your house. That’s where…”

“Where they told you I was dead.” She whispered, nodding when John raised an eyebrow, “you’re not as good at hiding things from me as you think.”

Taking a moment to consider everything, John shook his head, looking out towards the tree line, “I wasn’t trying to hide it… just waiting for you to bring it all up.”

“Any excuse,” Taylor joked before turning serious again, “I wanna help my sister if it is her that caught up in all of this stuff, but I don’t want my parents anywhere near it.” Taylor forced a smile onto her face, “go back to your wife, Proudstar. I’m sure she’s missin’ ya.”

*****

John made his way to his room, his mind spinning as he thought back to countless memories of Taylor. Letting out a heavy breath, he tried to push those thoughts away to focus on the main issue for the night, he needed to talk to Reese about everything that she had experienced while she was gone.

“Ok, hit me, what’s question one?” Clarice asked as soon as John entered the room.

Unable to stop the smile crossing his face, John pulled Clarice into his arms, “question one is: are you ok? Did they hurt you?”

Clarice chuckled, relaxing into the embrace, “I am now. Missed you and the girls… the others too.” Her voice was quiet, barely more than a breath as her arms tightened around John.

The pair stayed there for a moment, just absorbed in the comfort of each other. Eventually, they pulled apart, John’s eyes searched Clarice’s face for a moment, “question two is simple, who interrogated you?”

Clarice sighed, sitting down on the bed, “technically, that’s question three. First week, it was Sentinel Services. They handed me between different teams and different levels. Second week, I had a couple of International Mutant Control Force people who wanted a go at trying to find you and Empty, they got nowhere. Last couple days, they threatened me with Orchis and A.I.M., but in the end, I got away before coming face-to-face with any undesirables.”

John nodded, sitting next to her, “did they learn anything we didn’t want them to?”

“No, they got nothing. I think it was pissing them off, to be honest.”

“Good.” John muttered, kissing Clarice’s hair, his eyes closing at the familiarity of her being back at his side.

“Now, question for you,” Clarice asked, her arms wrapping around John’s neck as she moved to straddle him, “the group I got out, did they get safe?”

“All of ‘em have new identities and are out safe.” John whispered, pressing his lips against her neck and shifting until she was lying under him, their hands exploring each other’s bodies before succumbing to their desperation.

*****

Andy sat on the counter sobbing as Lauren and Caitlin watched him, Caitlin had been asking him so many questions about what had happened, relentless as she spoke. Lauren wasn’t entirely sure her mom was listening for Andy’s answers or if she was speaking through her panic.

Andy choked on another sob, “it started happening. I couldn't stop it. I was just so angry.”

Caitlin let out a breath, “oh, Andy, I... I mean, I… I can't believe you di... you didn't feel anything? I just can't believe there wasn't any warning.”

Lauren couldn’t help but roll her eyes, “Mom, accept it... Andy is a mutant. That's how mutant abilities first appear... it's moments of stress or danger. Dad talks about this all the time.”

“Lauren, I... we-we all know about your father's work.” Caitlin sighed, “I-I just don't... see how that suddenly makes you an expert.”

“Mom, I know because...” Lauren’s voice fell silent for a moment before she spoke again, “how do you think we got out of that gym?”

Caitlin glanced between her two children for a moment, “what are you saying?”

Lauren’s hand gripped her locket, “I got us out.” Lauren whispered, tears in her eyes as she looked at her mother. Her hands shaking as she remembered the last time she’d ever seen her sister, watching her be shipped off.

“You, too?”

Lauren smiled brokenly, “remember when we were coming back from that concert at church? And the truck almost hit us?” Caitlin remembered it all too well. Lauren saw the memories flash in her mother’s eyes before she continued speaking, “for weeks, you were saying it was a miracle we didn't die. Mom... it wasn't a miracle.”

Caitlin’s eyes widened, “that was three years ago. Honey, why... why didn't you tell me?”

At Caitlin’s words, Lauren could do nothing but scoff, “don't you think I tried?”

Caitlin shook her head, “you can always talk to me. Always. Your… your dad, too. Whatever your issues.”

“Are you serious?” Lauren laughed, “Dad puts people like us in jail! I watched you and Dad send Mackie away for being like us!”

“No, no, no, he prosecutes criminals. He, he... he's not against... mutants. It's, it's just the ones who hurt people.”

Andy looked over to his mom and sister, “You mean the ones like me. The ones like Mackenzie. Are you gonna send me away, too?”

At that moment, the doorbell rang and was quickly followed by a heavy knocking.
Caitlin glanced between Andy and Lauren as she dried her tears, “I'll get it. Just stay here.” She watched Lauren pull Andy to her side before heading to the door.

Opening the door, Caitlin froze at the sight of several men wearing jackets bearing the symbol for Sentinel Services.

“Good evening.” The man at the front began, “Mrs. Strucker, right? I'm Jace Turner. I'm with the Sentinel Services. We're a government agency. We deal with genetically related—”

“I'm familiar with it.” Caitlin interrupted, her mind flooding with memories of FBI agents and Sentinel Service officers knocking on her door exactly 12 years ago.

“I'm here about Andrew and Lauren. You're aware that there was a... bit of an incident at the school this evening?”

Caitlin nodded, “Yeah. I… I heard.”

Agent Turner smiled politely to her, “I need you to go get 'em for me.”

Panic flooded Caitlin’s gut, “they're not going anywhere. They need an attorney. My— my husband is a prosecutor.”

“We're aware of that. Actually, under the amended Patriot Act, we have to secure the safety of the community first.”

Caitlin glanced between the group of agents as she tried to comprehend what they were saying, “what does that mean?”

“It means they're coming with us.” The agent behind Turner stated.

Turner held up a hand to silence the man. “Just... for now.” He assured Caitlin.

Caitlin shook her head, anger burning inside her, “these are my children. You— you can't just cart them off.”

“Listen, Mrs. Strucker,” Turner began again, “alright, I'm a father myself. Okay? I know how difficult this must be for you. But you have to understand, this is partially for their protection.”

Caitlin openly laughed at that, “for their protection? I’ve seen what that protection looks like.”

“Okay, let's not make this harder than it has to be. Please step aside.”

“No, this is my home!” Caitlin began fighting to get the door shut, but eventually, the agents managed to push her to the ground and get the door open.

Andy and Lauren watched their mom fall with horror, a fresh anger and fear raged behind Andy’s eyes, “Get away from my mom!” The house began to shake.

Agent Turner glanced around hesitantly, “Okay, Andrew, Lauren, listen to me. You need to calm down. You're gonna have to come with us. All right? We just have a few questions.”

“Get out of our house now!” The shaking grew more violent, only stopping when Lauren threw a shield between her family and the agents.

The family of three ran into the garage and into the car. The agents opened fire as Caitlin threw the car into reverse.

“Andy, what you did before... do it!” Lauren yelled over to her brother.

Andy tried to call on his powers, but it felt as though they were just beyond his reach, “I can't! It's not working!”

Lauren threw a shield into the back window, stopping the bullets. It was enough for Caitlin to be able to speed away from the house.

Chapter Text

Reed’s mind had been fuzzy ever since the consult with Lorna Dane, his thoughts stuck on the look on her face after he’d said that he knew that she was one of the Underground’s Core Five, the expression on her face when he’d listed the other four. It wasn’t the face of someone who knew they were caught, there was a smugness, and an unmatched hatred directed at him. He shook his head, trying to clear his mind as his phone rang. He’d barely answered when Caitlin began speaking a mile a minute.

“Caitlin, Caitlin, slow down. If there was a mutant attack at the school, why were there people at the house?” Reed asked.

“You don't understand. I— I don't even know where to begin. There's… there's so much.”

Reed shook his head, “just tell me, are the kids safe?”

“Yeah. I mean... for now, but...”

“And— and the mutants?” Reed asked, “the ones that attacked them, did they—”

Caitlin cut him off, “they weren't attacked by mutants, Reed. That's what I'm trying to say. Andy and Lauren... are... mutants.”

Reed’s mind span as memories of his blue-haired daughter came crashing back to him. “Oh, my God.” He muttered to himself as he thought about everything that he’d put Mackenzie through, he’d be damned if he’d let Andy and Lauren go through that too.

Collecting his thoughts, Reed began formulating a plan, “uh, Caitlin, Caitlin, uh... tell me where you are.”

*****

The Strucker family found each other on the outskirts of Atlanta as they headed into a small diner. Caitlin, Andy, and Lauren had been sat there for about 30 minutes by the time Reed finally arrived, the family tensing every time the door opened, or a car drove past. Caitlin hadn’t let go of Andy’s hand until Reed arrived.

“The important thing is everyone's alright.” Reed stated, taking in his children’s terrified expressions, “Andy, was anyone actually hurt?”

“I don't know. Okay? I… I don't remember it.” Andy muttered tearfully, “it was just... it was all confusing.”

“So, to be clear,” Reed continued after a breath, “you didn't touch them before they touched—”

Lauren rolled her eyes, “yes, Dad, they came after him.”

“And after they came at you—”

Caitlin scoffed as she looked at her husband, “this isn't a deposition, Reed.”

Reed glanced around the faces at the table, the fear evident in all of them, “I am trying to understand the situation. Legally, if they—”

“I don't think it matters.” Caitlin interrupted, “the man from Sentinel Services—”

“Wait, Sentinel Services?” Reed’s eyebrows furrowed, “you mean the police?”

“No. Sentinel Services.” Caitlin stated, “they were just gonna take Lauren and Andy. You can't talk to Cal? He's the D.A. He could—”

“This is way beyond Cal's jurisdiction.” Reed muttered as his own panic grew, “Sentinel Services is a federal agency. The only reason you got away is they didn't have enough time to put a full team together.”

Glancing around, Reed let out a breath, “We, uh... We have to go. Now.”

Caitlin scrubbed a hand over her face, wiping away her tears, “um... Okay, we… we could call Jenny.”

Reed shook his head, “I am not talking about staying at your sister's condo in Phoenix for a few days. I mean, we have to go somewhere where the mutant laws are looser. Like... Mexico or...”

“Mexico?!” Caitlin exclaimed quietly, “Everything we own is at the house.”

Reed met her eyes, imploring for her to understand him, “the last time Sentinel Services got involved with one of my cases, the suspect disappeared. I am not gonna let that happen to us. I'm gonna figure something out, I promise. There is nothing more important to me than my family.” Reed pulled Lauren into his arms while Andy hugged Caitlin.

*****

It took the family nearly an hour to find a motel that was far enough out of the way that they could stop and breathe, Reed headed to find some information that could help them, leaving Caitlin and the kids at the motel.

Lauren led Andy onto the upper walkway, letting him breathe for a few minutes without their mom watching them like a hawk.

Lauren let out a breath, “I know this, like, sucks, but honestly, it's a relief to finally be able to talk to Mom and Dad about it.”

Andy laughed humorlessly, “guess all it took was me ruining our lives.”

“Andy. It wasn't your fault.” Lauren told him, not willing to let his guilt consume him.

Andy shook his head, “if it wasn't for me, we wouldn't even be here… I mean, I nearly got us killed, and then last night with the car, I could have actually helped, and I, I couldn't even do anything.”

Lauren let out a sigh as she looked over to him, “it gets better. At first, it's like... it's like a sneeze... something that just happens. You have to work at it.”

Andy looked over to Lauren before reaching into his hoodie pocket, “I should probably give you this back…” He held out the picture that used to be pinned to Lauren’s mirror.

“Where’d… you miss her too?” Lauren’s eyes were focused on the frozen 15-year-old with a 5-year-old on her shoulders, long blue hair fastened in a braid as she called for something just out of shot. Her 2-year-old brother who’d come crawling to her too slowly to be in the picture.

“She learned how to deal with all this stuff, didn’t she?” Andy muttered. Lauren remembered Mackenzie better than he did.

“She could take away pain. Could cause it too, but she always said that it took more effort. She… she always told stories that being a mutant was like being a butterfly.” Lauren smiled at Andy’s confusion, “she used to say that mutants started their lives as one thing before transforming into another. She would say that both parts of you were beautiful and perfect because they were… you. I dunno, it was a children’s story.”

Andy sniffed slightly, “what was she like?”

“She was my best friend. Always said that you shouldn’t be ashamed of who you are, that you’ll grow into who you’re meant to be, in time. She was a great storyteller… could make anything into some fantasy story.” Lauren laughed to herself, “she had these friends, outside of anyone from school or anything, and she’d tell me all about them by making them sound like characters with magic fighting dragons and monsters.”

“I… I wish I knew her,” Andy confessed after a moment, “is she why you’ve spent years study mutant rights law?”

“I wanted to change the world. To make sure no other kids faced what Mackie did.”

The two siblings smiled in silence for a moment before Andy turned back to his sister, “what does it feel like when you...?” He mimed Lauren making a shield.

“You know when you put your hand out of the window of a moving car? You can feel the air and, like... guide it?” Andy nodded, “I can... push the air together. With water, too, other stuff... it's just... harder.” She looked over to Andy, “what about you?”

“I don't know. I… I was looking at those guys, and I just... wanted to push everything away, you know?”

“Well, I'd say you did a pretty good job of that. A-plus.” The pair laughed briefly.

“First A-plus I've ever gotten.”

Lauren glanced over to him, “hey. Who taught you how to swim?”

“You.”

“I can teach you this.”

*****

The following afternoon, Marcos stood in the vault, attempting to find a way to break Lorna out of prison.

Clarice sauntered into the room and collapsed onto the couch with Zingo at her heels. The dog hadn’t left her side since Clarice had returned. Zingo might’ve been everyone’s dog, but she had a clear preference in Clarice. “So, how’ve things been without me for the past two weeks?” She asked.

Marcos knew that she was trying to occupy his mind with something other than the fact that Lorna was missing. “Well, your kids didn’t want to leave John’s side, too worried about losing both of you. Taylor lost control multiple times a day – nothing too bad, only little shocks, but her control’s slipping at the minute, even John’s beginning to feel it, he’s starting to be… affected, their link’s hurting him now more than ever. The dissociation’s getting worse too, she’s struggling to keep grips on what’s real.”

Clarice winced, deciding that she’d need to talk with John, make sure that he was ok. She sent a look to Marcos, “well it is 12 years since her parents shipped her to that place. She’s reliving all of that, she’s blaming herself for what happened at the Citadel, she’s regretting everything she did. Plus, with her sister thrown into the mix now, she’s gonna be hurting more than you’ve ever seen her.” Clarice pointed out. Marcos nodded briefly, a tight expression crossing his face – he’d completely forgotten about what time of year it was.

Marcos knew Clarice was right though, he and Lorna knew a lot less of what Taylor had been through compared to John and Clarice. “Any idea what to expect?”

Clarice let out a breath, “expect to hurt more. She’s gonna rely on us lot more, we’ll need to be ready for her to regress.” Marcos nodded tightly, trying not to think about what could be coming. He and Lorna hadn’t known the group until about three and a half years ago, they didn’t know what Taylor was like when John and Gus first found her. He just knew that this were about to get a whole lot more complicated.

The conversation didn’t get to grow much further as a mass of deep blues and greens ran into the room and threw herself over the couch, landing on the concrete floor with a thud before muttering something incoherent, Clarice chuckled at the girl she saw as her niece. The adults were always careful about what they said about Taylor’s condition in the presence of children, it was at Taylor’s request that they did this – they didn’t want the kids scared about what Taylor had been through. They didn’t want them scared of Taylor’s powers.

"Aurora?" Marcos asked without looking over, causing the girl to peer over the couch to him showing as little of herself as possible, Marcos turned to face her with a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah..." she drew out, looking directly at Marcos then to the doorway and then back at Marcos again.

"What are you doing?" He asked, feeling like he should be slightly concerned.

"Hidin'!" Aurora exclaimed.

Marcos nodded sarcastically and another chuckle to escape Clarice, she’d missed this. "Yeah, I can see that. I meant, why?"

The four-year-old rolled her eyes in a way that Marcos knew would've made Lorna proud. "Cos Evie gotta come find us so we have to hide." Aurora exaggerated with a sigh, Marcos shook his head as his daughter slowly disappeared behind the couch, the two adults shared a look, both smiling at the girl.

"Why did I even ask?" Marcos muttered just as a bundle of neon named Imogen bounded into the room, took one look at Marcos and Clarice, rolled her eyes with a huff and left just as fast as she had entered.

The two adults chatted about hopefully harmless topics for a couple of minutes, avoiding the subjects of Taylor or Lorna due to Aurora hiding. They didn’t get to talk for long before Clarice saw a girl with brown hair with subtle streaks of purple come to the doorway. Clarice smiled at the sight of her eldest daughter stood in the doorway; the girl folded her arms over her chest covering the dinosaur tee she was wearing and looked Marcos and Clarice up and down before entering the room.

Evie’s electric, jade green eyes scanned the area before she held her left hand out and flicked her wrist, using her telekinesis to lift the couch like it was a sheet of paper, Clarice moved from the couch to stand beside Marcos, Zingo remaining at her heels, Aurora clung on as long as she could.

 Evie began shaking the couch, making her friend fall. "Got you!" Evie yelled triumphantly.

Aroura stood and dusted off her jeans with a pout, her eyes darting from her friend to the couch hovering above her head to her father. "Yeah, but you cheated! Tell her, Daddy!"

Marcos shook his head with a fond smile, "She used what she could."

Evie giggled at her uncle and ran over to hug her mom while Aurora stuck her tongue out at her dad before the two took hands and ran off, a faint green glow following them. The two adults just laughed at the pair when Marcos’ phone rang.

Chapter Text

Clarice sat fussing Zingo as Marcos left the room to answer the phone. "Hello," Marcos said calmly, leaning against the doorframe, watching the four kids play nearby.

"Is this Marcos Diaz?" The voice on the end of the line asked.

"Uh-huh. Who's this? How'd you get this number?" Marcos asked.

"My name is Reed Strucker," Marcos looked over to where Taylor was stood with her back to him, watching the children while chatting with Sage. His blood ran cold as he spoke to the man who’d caused his surrogate sister so much suffering in her life. "My family needs help getting across the border. You and the people you work with, you do that right?" Strucker asked.

Marcos didn't take his eyes from Taylor but answered the man, "maybe." Marcos muttered, struggling to keep his voice calm. He really didn’t want to be the one to break it to Taylor that her birth family had called asking for help. He knew that he and Taylor were still a confusing relationship; siblings in every sense, including the way they fought.

"Did you hear about the mutant incident? At the high school? Those were my children."

Marcos took his eyes from Taylor, closing them for a moment. Taylor’s words running through his mind – don’t help them unless they ask. They were asking him. "I'm sorry I can't—" before Marcos could finish.

 Strucker interrupted him, "I was a prosecutor for the city. I was responsible for building a case against you and your associates for the districts attorney's office."

Marcos rolled his eyes; this man really wasn't giving him a reason to help him out.
"And you're calling me for help? Why should I lift a finger for you?" Marcos hissed.

"Because I can help you. Your, uh, your associate, Lorna Dane, goes by Polaris?"

Marcos froze, his eyes narrowing. "What do you know about Lorna?" He asked with urgency.

"You want to help her, you can talk to me. You know about her medical condition?" The man said calmly.

"What are you talking about? What medical condition?" Marcos asked, panic evident in his voice. Marcos couldn’t help but cringe at the sound of panic, he didn’t want to give anything to this bastard.

"You gonna help my family?" The man asked.

Son of a bitch, Marcos tried to clear his mind, "what are you talking about?" He hissed again.

"I want a meeting!" The man on the other side snapped.

"Yes. Fine. I'll meet you, just tell me!" Marcos' voice was low but was venomous.

"She's pregnant." The man stated simply.

In a daze, Marcos gave him the location of Fade's bar, knowing that it would be the best place to meet if the man were to bring cops.

*****

Clarice found John sat in the tech room, a concerned smile falling onto her lips when she noticed he still seemed half asleep. He was doing far too much, not to mention that he was woken up every time Taylor had a nightmare, it was affecting him… even if he was pretending it wasn’t. She let her hands fall onto his shoulders once she was close enough, startling him slightly. Worry fluttered through Clarice at the fact that John hadn’t noticed her. He was always focused on his surroundings – his powers didn’t exactly have an off switch – it was what left him drained at the end of the day, his senses were left depleted, and he was left with a migraine and exhaustion.

“Hey,” she whispered as she rubbed his shoulders, feeling some of the tension disappear as she did so.

“Hey,” he mumbled back, his hand settling on top of one of hers.

“So, Marcos was telling me all about how you’re feeling the effects of Taylor’s powers.” Clarice chuckled slightly as John face took on the same guilty look that both the twins had whenever they were caught doing something they shouldn’t. “That’s never happened before, what’s going on? Why didn’t you tell me last night?” Her voice stayed soft, there was no accusation, just concern.

John stood up, taking Clarice’s hands in an attempt to reassure her, “it’s nothing too bad, Love. I can handle it.”

Clarice raised an eyebrow at him. Her doubt was obvious. “Yeah, and the psychic link hurting you? Beacon, it’s never done that before.”

John pulled Clarice closer, hoping to comfort her, “we’ll figure it out. All of us. I reckon it’s got something to do with the anniversary.” He said softly.

“Which one?” Clarice asked grimly.

“Her being sent to the Citadel. Her losing control. Me and Gus finding her. Gus’ death. Losing her baby. All of them happened around this time of year – hell, her folks shipped her to the Citadel 12 years ago yesterday – and she’s blaming herself for everything that went wrong. That much, it gets to me. And you were missing so that just added more stress and worry for both of us…”

Clarice kissed him gently, she knew how much her best friend blamed herself for what had happened in the past, she knew how much of her fear John took onto himself, but that didn’t make anything any easier. Clarice promised to try and talk to Taylor before letting John get back to what he’d been doing. It was a Saturday, so he was usually doing supply count and supply route planning because it was one of those jobs that the others hated to do, it always ended up as another job for John to sort.

*****

Marcos watched every person coming in and out of the bar, side-glancing Fade on occasion, but trying to keep a low profile. After what felt like too long, a man who was obviously Reed Strucker came into the bar. Marcos made his hand glow for barely a second, but it was enough for Reed to head over to him.

“Marcos Diaz?”

“Sit.” Marcos looked the man up and down, “Just so we get this out of the way, if this is a setup, and cops are gonna be coming through that door...” he trailed off, but Reed got the message.

“It's not a setup. I'm alone. No one's coming.”

“Good.” Marcos took a swig of beer as Fade brought one over for Reed, “Cause things in here get real hot, real fast.” Reed watched Fade’s hand disappear and reappear.

Marcos waited a moment for Fade to leave the pair before turning a sharp glare to Reed, “tell me about Lorna.”

“She's in a detainment center.”

“What detainment center?”

“Until my fam—”

Marcos grabbed Reed’s wrist and began heating it, “what detainment center? Where?”

“The main detention facility in Garland.” Reed yanked his wrist away from Marcos.

Taking a breath, Marcos shifted in his seat before speaking again, “and the baby?”

“All I know is that she's pregnant.”

“Is it okay? Is it healthy? Please. It's my kid.”

“All I saw was the medical exam they gave her when they brought her in. Those are all the questions I'm answering for now. Any other information is yours, but only if my family is safe.”

“Y’know, you’ve got a lot of nerve. Considering everything you’ve done.” Marcos spat.

Reed sighed, “I know I’ve prosecuted Mutants—”

“I’m not talking about your job. I’m talking about 12 years ago.”

A grim satisfaction fell over Marcos as he watched Reed’s face fall. “That was a long time ago.”

Raising an eyebrow, Marcos took another swig of his drink before shaking his head once, “not for everyone.” That conversation was over. Marcos wasn’t going to let his irritation and anger stop him from getting Lorna back, “bring everyone to this location tonight.”

The abrupt change of topic seemed to throw Reed for a moment before he recovered himself, “how much is this gonna cost?”

“I don't want your money. The deal is this: your family goes tonight. You? You stay behind with me until I get Lorna back.” He paused for a moment, “after that, Taylor decides your fate.” He left without giving Reed a chance to answer.

*****

Clarice found Taylor down in the supply room, sorting the dwindling pile of supplies the HQ had. She kept a fond smile on her face as she watched Taylor count the same pile multiple times and still not register the number. “63.”

Taylor shot around to face Clarice, “how long have you been stood there, Love?!”

Clarice bit down a laugh at Taylor’s expression, “long enough to hear you count to 63 four times. Rough day?”

“Rough life.” Taylor sighed as she dropped onto the chair in the corner of the room.

Clarice nodded sadly, “yeah, Marcos said that you’ve been dissociating more, said that both you and John are feeling the strain in your minds.”

Taylor let out a breath and looked down at her hands, “everything’s a little… topsy-turvy. I can’t think straight, everything is hurting more…”

“We’ll figure it out.” Clarice assured her, “but, until then, we’ll help you through all of it. Starting with whatever the fuck organizing system you’ve got goin’ on.”

Taylor raised an eyebrow, “it’s organized alphabetically by size.”

“Empty, all due respect, what the fuck does that mean?!”

*****

After helping Taylor do stock count and making sure the girls had had dinner, Clarice began looking around for Marcos, she caught John’s eyes as she did so, confusion settling onto his expression. She made her way over to her husband, but her eyes were still searching for Marcos. “Marcos got a call about an hour ago and now I can’t find him. Dunno who called or where he went. John I’m worried. Marcos is reckless when Lorna’s in trouble.” Taylor had joined the pair by the time that Clarice finished talking. John stood up, taking Clarice’s hand.

Taylor hung back slightly, messing with the cuff of her hoodie as she looked towards John and Clarice. “I’m gonna stay and keep an eye on the girls.” Taylor stated as John and Clarice moved to the door, they froze, turning to look at the woman. Taylor kept her eyes trained the floor as Clarice took her friend’s hand. “You’re needing people in full control of the powers for this. That’s… that ain’t me. I’m just gonna be a liability out there. I could injure you guys, accidentally kill Marcos, slaughter an entire building. I ain’t goin’ with you... Besides, someone needs to keep an eye on the girls.”

John looked at her, his eyes filling with determination, “go word’s Rochambeau. If you hear ‘Jenga’, means we need savin’.”

“Gotcha. Ok. Rochambeau.”

Clarice just laughed at the pair before she and John their way out of the building to find Marcos. They knew she was right about what she’d said but it still hurt that they couldn’t protect her, she was family to them, and they couldn’t save her.

*****

Taylor reached the door to the girls’ room, she threw it open, her face scrunching in confusion at the sight of four beds floating and the bean bags lifted into the air, it took her a few moments to realize that the floor was hot as well.

"The floor is lava, Mommy!" Imogen yelled to her mother.

"Yeah, I noticed." She commented before smirking and hopping onto one of the beanbags, Taylor quickly made sure Rose was facing her before she spoke and signed.

"C'mon bedtime. Evie, drop the beds. Aurora, cool the floors." The four girls groaned in chorus which made Taylor chuckle, she could feel the heat in the room lessen as Aurora stopped using her powers to heat the floor. Taylor rolled her eyes fondly at the looks on the girls’ faces. "Pajamas at least."

The girls all looked at Taylor with suspicion. They knew things were bad when they were allowed to stay up later. "Where's Momma and Daddy?" Evie asked as she dropped the beds and beanbags to the floor, causing the five of them to fall with them. The girls all flopped down onto the beds while Taylor leaned against one of the walls.

"They've just had to go out to get Rory's dad out of trouble… again," this caused all the girls to laugh. Taylor relaxed slightly, mentally patting herself on the back for distracting the four girls quickly. "Right! Pajamas and then you can play for 5 more minutes. No more!" All the girls cheered and raced to get their pajamas on so they could keep playing.

The girls all grabbed their pajamas as quick as they could, Evie had dinosaurs, Rose had Disney, Aurora had stars, and Imogen had ice creams with faces. All the girls grabbed their stuffed toys, Imogen's was a rhino, Rose's was a penguin, Aurora's was a frog, and Evie's was, of course, a dinosaur. No one really understood where Evie’s obsession with dinosaurs came from, but it always made people smile.

Chapter Text

Marcos couldn’t stop fidgeting, his eyes darting at every breeze for any sign of a threat. Part of him, and not a small part, still thought that this was a set-up. After nearly an hour, a car approached from the darkness, “right on time…” he muttered as he checked his watch, flashing a light from his hand to signal them over.

Watching silently as the four people stepped out of the car, Marcos knew in an instant that they were Taylor’s biological family. The woman and the teenaged girl, they both looked like her, at least, they looked like a human version of Taylor… a healthy version, another part of his mind supplied. The girl, Lauren, had the same look of unshakable determination in her eyes as she stepped closer to her brother that Taylor got whenever someone threatened her family.

He watched as Reed Strucker glanced between his wife and children, squeezing his daughter’s hand. “This everyone?” Marcos asked, his eyes still scanning over the three new faces.

Reed gave a stiff nod, “yeah, we’re all here.”

“I want to know what happens now.” His wife, Taylor’s mom, demanded, her eyes determined as she grabbed at Marcos’ wrist.

Marcos didn’t look over, “we get everyone supplies. Food, water, blankets, then we head down to the border.”

Reed raised an eyebrow, “And you can drive us across?”

Marcos could only scoff in response, “Policía America's all over the roads. You might as well go straight to jail. Now come on.”

The mother’s eyes snapped over to Marcos as he turned away from them, “We're not going anywhere until I know what's happening to my family.”

Marcos struggled to bite down a comment about Taylor but couldn’t stop the scoff that escaped him. “Look, we know people down there with... skills. They track for mutants, but we still got tricks they don't know. Mostly, we get people under the wall. Sometimes over, sometimes even through.”

“And then, after that?” The mother asked again, her voice becoming more desperate and concerned. Marcos couldn’t remember Taylor ever saying her mother’s name before, she didn’t talk about any of her biological family other than Lauren and even that was rare.

Pausing, Marcos glanced over his shoulder at the woman, “we get you new names, new IDs. There are churches, families that can help you—” Marcos fell silent.

The sound of a rumbling getting closer grabbed Marcos’ attention away from the family and towards the road. An uncomfortable panic began to settle in Marcos’ gut as he began to realize what was happening.

“What? What is it?” Reed asked, ignorant of the danger surrounding them.

“Does anyone know you're here?” Marcos demanded quietly, his eyes narrowing as his voice remained low. It took everything within Marcos not to panic and run.

Reed shook his head, his expression still blank and oblivious, “no, we didn't say anything.”

“Did you tell someone you were coming? Use a computer? The phone that you called me on?” Marcos needed answers, needed to know how much danger he was in. All he could think of was the promise that the group always made each other no ghosts, no heroes. So much for that right now. His eyes darted around the darkened roadways while occasionally glancing at the family in front of him, he tried to figure out who to prioritize out of this group. Sure, Reed said that he knew something about Lorna, but Taylor would kill Marcos herself if he caused something to happen to her little sister. There was no part of Marcos that wanted to learn what horror Taylor could inflict upon a person who gave her reason to cause them harm.

Reed seemed oblivious to Marcos’ mental planning, “when I called you, I used a new SIM card. There's no way...” Cars surrounded them, all with sirens blaring.

“Looks like they found a way.” Marcos glanced around as his anger seethed, his mind flooding with panic for Aurora, safe at the HQ and unaware that she’d likely lose her dad tonight while she still comprehended losing her mother.

The cars came to a stop in front and behind them, agents and police officers pouring out to block the exits. “This is the Sentinel Services.” A voice sounded over the police speaker, “Get on the ground. Put your hands on your heads. If you try to flee or resist, we will use deadly force.” Marcos ignored the voice and continued looking for an escape route as the family began to panic.

“Dad, what do we do?” The daughter asked desperately. Taylor’s sister. Lauren… her panic evident in her voice.

“There's nothing we can do.” Marcos told her, the bluntness always helped Taylor, but only seemed to panic her family. Marcos nodded his head briefly as he took note of where the similarities with Taylor ended.

“There must be something...” Reed began, trying to think of something, “We can talk to them.” He suggested.

“Talk?” Marcos laughed, “Yeah, no, we're way past that. You have no idea what they have in that car.”

Reed ignored Marcos and took a step forward, “I want to speak to an attorney!” He yelled in the direction of the lead car.

“That is a bad idea.” Marcos muttered, he’d been in the trenches a long time, they were far beyond the realm of lawyers now.

Reed wasn’t deterred. “We will only negotiate if one is provided!”

“There will be no negotiation. Get your asses on the ground now!” The voice over the police speaker sounded again.

“We are Americans. We have rights!” Reed snapped.

“You can discuss that with a judge, Mr. Strucker. Right now, you need to think about what's best for your family.”

The sound of something crashing against a door to the side grabbed everyone’s attention just in time for it to fly open. Marcos let out a breath when he saw Clarice and John on the other side.

“Come on!” John yelled.

Marcos began pushing the Struckers towards the door before racing after them, “took you long enough.” He shot over to his friends.

“Be thankful we came at all.” Clarice snapped.

“Where’s Taylor?!” Marcos called over to John, his eyes scanning for any sign of the woman who usually provided the get-away cover for the group.

“Watching your kid.” John shot back as he ran down the hallway. The group ran down the open space, none of them hesitating until John froze, his senses alight as he heard something, “They're coming!” He yelled with an urgency and panic that seemed so foreign in his voice, “That way! Go! To the hallway!”

An electronic chittering echoed down the halls as the group ran, only pausing long enough to help Andy up when he tripped. Sentinel robots appeared behind them, one of them grabbing John’s leg. Marcos instantly set about torching the robot as Clarice led the rest of the group down one of the corridors. After a moment, the robot dropped from John’s leg and he took off running again, leaving Marcos to watch as the robot adapted to his powers.

Hallway after hallway, the group ran for what felt like hours until the stumbled into a dead end, the robots close on their heels.  John began trying to punch through the wall only to freeze, “they’re on the other side.” He muttered, glancing between the group. After a moment’s contemplation, John turned to Clarice, “Reece, you got to get us out of here.” He implored.

Terror flashed across Clarice’s face, “What do you mean?”

“You need to portal us out. Jenga.”

Clarice could only shake her head, “I can’t, you know I can’t. It’s too far and I can’t see where I’m going.”

“You can. I know it, Love.” John whispered as he took her hand. The pair stayed silent for a moment, only moving when Lauren shouted that the robots were breaking through her shields.

Clarice sucked in a breath and began feeling for the portal at her fingertips. “I can't do it.” She yelled over the noise.

“Yes, you can!” John argued, certainty flooding his voice as Clarice searched his face, “you can do this.”

With a nod, Clarice tried again, a portal struggling to expand between her fingers. “Go! Hurry!” Clarice yelled as John jumped through the portal.

“Come on! It's safe!” He shouted from the other side.

Marcos began pushing the family through, but the boy froze, turning his attention, and powers, to the Sentinel robots as Marcos launched himself through the portal.

It took the boy nearly ten seconds to destroy the robots.

As soon as the robots were nothing more than dust, Reed began pushing his son towards the portal. Both of them almost made it through when Reed was hit by some kind of bullet.

“I can't hold it!” Clarice yelled, her powers spluttering until she finally collapsed, and the portal snapped shut.

*****

 Taylor struggled to keep her expression light as she made her way back into the room exactly five minutes later. She could feel John’s hesitation, and the last thing she needed was Evie picking up on it.

With a smile plastered on her face, Taylor quickly settled the girls into their own beds before grabbing a book from the bookshelf. She’d barely settled herself on a beanbag before the sound of commotion downstairs flooded the room.

Taylor looked at the girl's scared faces, her eyes meeting Evie’s as her hands clasped her ears as the noise became too much for the girl who’d inherited enhanced hearing from her dad. Rose had her own hands clamped over her sister’s ears; she knew how much sounds could affect Evie.

Taylor ran her fingers through Evie’s hair, trying to settle the girl and alleviate some of her fear. "Stay here. I'll be back. If I'm not, someone else will come and check on you." The girls nodded but huddled closer together. They each clutched a soft toy while they sat in pure silence.

After almost five minutes, the girls all decided that they wanted to see what was going on, they headed out of the door and saw Clarice lying unconscious on the bench and Taylor was yelling at a woman and two teenagers.

Chapter Text

Leaving the door slightly ajar, Taylor left the girls in their room with a final reassuring smile before heading over to the railing only to freeze at the sight that met her: Clarice was down, barely conscious in Marcos’ arms; John was next to them, trying to talk a woman and two teens down from arguing with him. Pain filled her stomach as she looked at the people that she had hoped she’d, for the most part, never see again.

Taylor glanced at the two teenagers, trying to ignore their yelling as she took in their appearances, the girl seemed so similar to the child she’d left behind. Vivid memories of her baby sister filled her mind, a girl that used to always want a piggyback ride from her older sister, a girl who’d rather have her big sister take away her pain than let her mom even look at an injury… a little girl to whom Taylor had given a locket with a picture of the pair of them inside, and a promise that she’d never be alone.

She didn’t recognize the boy… her mind gave her no memories of him.

Heading down the stairs, Taylor held up her right hand and clenched a loose fist, the yelling turned to screams as pain filled every cell in the Struckers’ bodies. “Take a breath,” she told John through their psychic link, brushing her mind against the edge of his as he turned around to face her. She smirked slightly when John rolled his eyes, nodding back at him when he took a deep breath.

Taylor’s powers flowed like molten lava through her bloodstream, the ability to induce pain becoming intoxicating to her as she let her eyes narrow on the three people in front of her.

“Your turn, Empty,” John’s voice echoed in her mind, Taylor took a deep breath, slowly releasing it as she dropped her fist, letting the pain fade from her family as she did.

“Hi Mom!” She exclaimed icily, her eyes dead and no expression on her pale, gaunt face.

It seemed so bizarre to John to hear Taylor use that word for her mother, she only ever used the woman’s name, even years ago when she used to talk about Caitlin.

“I see it’s only me you abandon,” Taylor commented nonchalantly, trying to pretend that she wasn’t hurting. She tried to push the feeling down, to focus on anything else. Her eyes darted to the girl, her sister, little Lauren… not so little anymore. The hurt turned to anger as she remembered the way Reed and Caitlin abandoned her while choosing to run with their younger children.

It was clear that Taylor’s words hit Caitlin Strucker like a bullet. She stumbled backwards as if she’d been hit while she looked at Taylor with wide eyes, gasping for air as the pain receded, “we thought you were dead.”

Taylor glared at the woman, a sneer on her lips, “is that the lie you tell your children? I know it’s the one you told my friends. Did it help you sleep at night? You were the reason I begged for death. You’re the reason I experienced Hell.” She snapped before heading over to Clarice.

“Hurts… I’ve never gone that far…” Clarice croaked, reaching for Taylor’s hand.

Taylor gave her hand a squeeze, trying to do anything to draw away some of Clarice’s pain. “I… I can’t…” Taylor whispered, glancing over to John who nodded in understanding.

Clarice tightened her grip on Taylor’s hand, “just… stay…”

“I’m right here, Love.” Taylor whispered.

John turned his attention away from his sister and wife in order to focus on the Strucker family and deal with their questions. As the questions continued to fly at John, he felt them pounding on his mind, this was the last thing he wanted to be doing, and the noise from rescuing the Struckers left him with a growing migraine that had him longing for some quiet. He wanted to be helping Clarice, not dealing with a woman he’d spent nearly two decades hating.

"You have to explain this. What just happened? Where are we?!" Caitlin snapped. John really didn’t want to speak to the woman who’d hurt his baby sister. His mind filled with the memories of the state Taylor had been in when he’d found her seven years ago.

Taylor glanced over, having sensed John’s hesitation. "This is our headquarters." Taylor said, moving back over to stand beside John while Marcos kept Clarice tight against his chest, trying to calm her.

"We have to go back, please!" Strucker snapped again, her anger only causing Taylor’s to increase.

John and Marcos shared a look, both could feel the dull pain that told them that an episode was coming on. "Just hang on." John responded, he needed to calm Taylor before another issue arose. They really didn’t want to have Taylor breaking now when there were strangers this close to her, the Struckers would be at more risk than most if Taylor was to break.

Caitlin didn’t notice Taylor’s behavior changing, all she cared about was getting her husband back. Her voice filled with anger and fear when she noticed that the group weren’t focusing on her husband, "hang on! Hang on?! My husband is in that building. We can't just leave him!"

Andy glanced between the unfamiliar faces, “we have to go back for him. He got shot. We have to go back now!"

John looked directly at him, "even if we could go back, it is a very bad idea. I know you wanna help you dad, but it’s suicide. It won't help him if we all die! Right now, we gotta take care of Clarice. We gotta calm down Taylor."

The blue-haired woman wasn’t listening as John grabbed her hand, he drew in her attention as the yelling stopped for a merciful moment. John was acutely aware of the Struckers watching their interaction as he pressed his other hand against Taylor’s cheek, but he couldn’t bring himself to care at that moment, he just needed to settle Taylor. Forcing her mind to link to his, hearing nothing but his voice, Taylor shook as John pulled her closer to him, making sure that he was her only focus.

“I don’t want this.” Came Taylor’s broken whisper, quiet enough that only John could hear it. Her eyes were distant and cloudy, John knew he still had a chance to draw Taylor back before she completely broke down.

“I know, but I’ve got you, you’re safe.” He let his mind press against hers, gently drawing her towards him, away from memories of torture. “I’ve got you.” He whispered, rubbing his thumb over the back of her knuckles.

The screams in Taylor’s mind swarmed her as she tried to focus on John’s voice, searching the sea of faces in her mind, it only took her a moment to find him.

“I’ve got you, Empty.” He held his hand out to her. The moment she touched it, her mind snapped back, her hazy eyes finding John standing in front of her, her mother behind him. “I’ve got you.” She nodded before turning to Clarice.

Marcos lifted Clarice, hauling her carefully to her feet, slowly walking her towards the small medical area. The Struckers returned to yelling questions and demanding answers, all the while, no one was really paying attention to them anymore.

“It hurts,” Clarice mumbled, the weakness in her voice grabbing John’s attention. Clarice stumbled from where Marcos was holding her up, falling sideways, causing panic to flare between the trio helping her.

John caught Clarice before she could hit the floor, pulling her firmly into his arms, holding her gently and securely against him. “Love, c’mon, keep your eyes open for me, Reese. I’ve got you.” John spoke, barely loud enough for anyone to hear.

"You've got to wake her up. Hey! Can you wake her up, please?" Andy asked leaning over Marcos' shoulder. Taylor waved her hand causing pain to fill Andy once more. Caitlin and Lauren both moved to try and protect Andy from Taylor’s wrath.

Andy cried out in pain just as Marcos let out a frustrated yell, "Kid!" Silence reigned over the room. The silence made Taylor release her grip, letting the pain dissipate from Andy.

Marcos let out a breath and looked over to Andy, "look, your dad was gonna help me get my girlfriend out of jail. I want him here just as much as you do, but we cannot do this right now. Alright?" Andy finally nodded.

“He was what?” Taylor’s quiet voice caught everyone’s attention. Her anger turning to hurt and then vulnerability as she processed Marcos’ words. Taylor stepped back, her breath caught in her throat as her eyes darted from John, to Clarice, to the Struckers, and then back to Marcos, betrayal and fear shining across her face. He’d gone behind her back, spoken to her father, helped her mother. After everything Taylor had told him. After trusting him with her past…

Closing his eyes for a moment, Marcos turned to Taylor, his unofficial little sister, with guilt in his heart when he saw the betrayal in her eyes. He knew what Taylor had told him about her past, about the things she’d suffered thanks to her parents, but he was desperate to save Lorna. “He has connections who could’ve helped get Lorna free,” he tried to explain, moving to hold Taylor’s arm – something they all did to ground each other, to remind them that they were all together. Taylor yanked her arm away, moving out of Marcos’ reach, moving to stand slightly behind John. In that moment, all Marcos could see was the girl who wanted to be protected by her big brother. All he saw was the child who’d been hurt by the strangers that Marcos had chosen above her.

Chapter Text

Sentinel Services Agent Jace Turner glanced around the mass of agents and police officers gathered in front of him as he tried to contain his irritation at the mutants who had stolen the Strucker family out from underneath him… most of it, anyway.

He turned his attention to the agents, deciding that his irritation could wait, “alright, everybody, listen up. In addition to the Struckers, we’re also seeking three – possibly four – mutant suspects. Two high priority males: John Proudstar, aka Thunderbird, and Marcos Diaz, aka Eclipse, and one high priority female: Clarice Proudstar, aka Blink. All are to be considered extremely dangerous, volatile, and unpredictable. We know that these suspects are high ranking members in the national grid helping mutant fugitives escape. We also know that where they go, Taylor Nobel, aka the Cobra or the Python, is never far behind. It’s our job to put a stop to them.” He took a breath, he had been hunting this group since 7/15, he wasn’t about to let them slip away now, not this time. “So, we’re gonna search every square inch of this area, all of it. Behind doors, walls, underwater. Just because something doesn’t seem possible doesn’t mean it didn’t happen. You know what you’re up against, go do it.”

As the agents and police began their search, Turner moved his attention to Reed Strucker, motionless and strapped to a stretcher. “Mr. Strucker, I’m Agent Turner with the Sentinel Services.”

The man looked over to him, the drugs still addling his system, “I can't feel my arms or my legs.”

Turner nodded condescendingly, “yeah, you were hit with an immobilization round. Life's gonna suck for the next few hours. So, rest up, cause when that round wears off, you and I are gonna have a little chat about your family.”

*****

The yelling had caused the four girls to leave their room and cautiously head for the main room, towards the adults, each heading for their own parent. Taylor lifted Imogen into her arms while keeping an eye on Rose and Evie, the young chaos manipulator curled into her mother’s hold, but didn’t stop watching Clarice, she’d been an aunt to Imogen since she was born. Taylor traced her fingers up and down her daughter’s back, knowing Imogen’s fears could grow like her own – a tidal wave without limit, forcing her powers to react.

Evie slowly made her way towards when Clarice was lying on the bench, her eyes wide and her lip trembling, “Momma?”

John’s attention snapped to Evie completely, “she’s gonna be fine, Trouble.” He pulled her close, trying to push down his own worries in order to keep her calm while still focusing on Clarice.

Holding out his other hand, John barely had to wait before Rose ran to his side, huddling close. “What’s happening?” She whimpered.

“Momma’s sick, but we’re gonna take care of her,” John signed back, drawing both girls into his arms as he stepped away from Clarice, holding them close.

John knelt down once he was a few steps away from the group, holding both of the twins close as they kept their eyes fixed on their mother’s barely conscious form, “she’ll be ok.” He told them gently, “I need you both to stay with Gen and Rory, I need to go and talk with Uncle Marcos, Aunt Tay, and Sonia.” The two girls nodded, but they both hesitated to let go of him.

*****

Taylor, Marcos, and John headed upstairs to where Sonia was waiting for them. They left the four girls down where they could see them, but they wouldn’t overhear what their parents were talking about. Even Evie knew how to avoid listening to their conversation.

As soon as the trio came to a stop next to Sonia, she immediately started talking about the risks of the newcomers being in the HQ.

“I know, Sonia, but Clarice is in bad shape, we’ve gotta do something.” John muttered.

“I've been trying to reach a doctor in Gainesville. I can't get anybody at this hour.” Sonia told him.

“Just keep trying.” Taylor ordered, more sharply than she’d intended. She didn’t pay attention to Sonia’s flinch, Sonia knew that the other woman’s anger was misplaced, but it was still something that was uncomfortable to be receiving.

“And we need to try to find a place for the family.” John added, trying to stop both women from attacking each other, worried more for the damage Taylor could inflict.

“This family?” Sonia began with a cold chuckle, “who are these people? You almost got killed, Johnny. We didn't discuss this.” Taylor flexed her fingers at Sonia’s words.

John rolled his eyes. “No, we didn't.” John turned his attention to Marcos, “it's about time we talked about this freelance job of yours. You just run off and pull this without telling anyone?” he snapped.

“You went behind my back. You helped them?!” Taylor almost shouted, not out of anger but more out of hurt. She’d always expected Marcos to be on her side.

“Taylor, you said that we help them if they asked. They asked. And we help mutants in danger, John. Those kids are mutants, and you sure as hell saw the danger.”

The pair rolled their eyes at Marcos. Taylor fixed a glare on the man, steeling at his use of her words.

“Come on, don't give me that. This was about Lorna.” John tried to calm the pair on either side of him, focusing more on Taylor than Marcos.

“So, what if it was? We can't just leave her out there.” Marcos snapped.

“You don't think I want her back, too? We're not gonna help her by destroying the whole organization.”

“And don’t you dare use my words. I said that we were to help those kids. Not those who would willingly lock up a mutant.” Taylor growled. Her eyes darkening as she spoke.

Taylor calmed slightly when her eyes focused on Lauren running towards them. “Guys. You gotta come. Something's wrong.” The trio ran down the stairs towards Clarice.

*****

Back downstairs, Caitlin looked frantically at the three friends, “she’s going into respiratory distress and her temperature’s spiking… I’m a nurse.” She stated.

Taylor rolled her eyes, her anger still coursing through her from both the confrontation with her biological family and then with Marcos. “She did one jump over miles of unfamiliar terrain. Damn right she’s drained of energy!” She snapped.

“Tay,” John warned, a hand resting on the top of each of the twins’ heads.

Taylor ignored him for a moment, “do you expect that we haven’t considered that? She’s our friend, we know the limits of her powers! We know what she can and can’t do! If your family had managed to speed it up, she’d be awake now. I heard her shout that she couldn’t hold it, yet you lot still took your fine sweet time. You could cost Clarice her life!” Waves of energy rippled through Taylor’s hands as she stepped closer to Caitlin, rage burning in her eyes.

“Mighty! Enough!” John’s yell was loud. Too loud. He hadn’t meant to scare Taylor, or the girls, but now wasn’t the time for this argument, “we can argue this later. Right now, a nurse is saying we need to help Love.” John kept his voice soft as her placed a gentle hand on Taylor’s forearm. He never yelled at Taylor. Ever. He instantly regretted doing so, but he’d needed to stop Taylor before she attacked… before the Cobra decided to make an appearance.

Taylor’s eyes were wide with fear, “You’re the one person who’d never raised their voice near me, John.” Taylor whispered. She knew that her rant to Caitlin was her emotions getting out of control, but now, they were spiraling the other way. Her mind clouded as she became surrounded by white walls and doctors laughing at her.

Instantly, John began trying to calm Taylor through their minds, apologizing over and over as he tried to guide her away from the bleach white cells and indescribable pain that had been inflicted on her for five years. After several moments, she finally met his eyes and nodded, her mind was back with her. The pair immediately turned their thoughts to Clarice.

Marcos continued arguing with Caitlin, giving John and Taylor a moment to figure everything out between them. He shot a look over to the pair as they stepped back up beside him, both next to Clarice.

Caitlin shook her head, “her heartrate’s elevated massively, she may be in shock. Every system’s crashing.”

“What does she need?” John asked desperately, losing the fight with his fear, his eyes darting between the twins and Clarice.

“Hydrocortisone-D to stabilize her powers. Sodium polystyrene sulfonate for potassium. Something to restore her blood calcium. She needs a hospital.”

John, Taylor, and Marcos shared a look, a silent conversation passing between the three of them as they ran through options. The girls watched on with increasing fear in their eyes, even they knew that none of them could go to a hospital.

“A hospital?!” Marcos demanded, “she’s wanted. She’ll go right back to jail!”

“I don’t think you understand me. She could die here.” Caitlin tried to argue.

“No, I don’t think you understand us. Any of us so much as look at a hospital and we’ll be inside a cell in seconds. Except for me. They’ll stick me back in a cage.” Taylor growled. John gripped Taylor’s arm comfortingly, not letting go until she’d settled her temper. Taylor glanced over to the four girls who were just stood watching anxiously as the adults argued, she’d noticed with a smile that Evie was signing everything that was being said, letting her sister remain clear on what was going on.

“Mom, mutants don’t exactly go to doctors and stuff if they’re known to be mutants. Before the Mutant Control Act passed, sure. But these days…”

John, Marcos, and Taylor shared an impressed look as Lauren spoke.

“Lauren, I think I know what I’m talking about.” Caitlin shot back.

Lauren scoffed, “no, you don’t. You don’t know the fear that makes you hide, or the panic that the doctor might learn you’re a mutant. I’ve lived with this for years.”

“So have we. If Clarice goes into a hospital, she doesn’t leave.” Marcos said bluntly.

John and Taylor turned to each other, “what if there’s another way?” Taylor said, “what if I head in, grab what we need, leave. Won’t be the first time.”

“No,” John said, “I need you here.”

Chapter Text

All too quickly, a portal appeared in the center of the HQ, a truck driving straight towards it. The four girls ran towards the stairs, Shatter grabbing them up onto the first landing. The others ducked out of the way just as the rear of the pickup was cut from the front when the portal slammed shut. Sparks filled the HQ as the trailer crashed into the banisters of the staircase, a pillar near where Caitin and Marcos had ducked, the cage where Taylor had taken cover, and lastly hitting John who’d pushed the two Strucker teens in front of him. The trailer came to a stop, but it was several seconds later before anyone moved.

“Is anyone hurt?!” John yelled as he stood up, quickly scanning the HQ for anyone seriously hurt, before turning and helping the teens up and around the trailer.

Marcos ran over to the girls, letting out a breath of relief when he saw none of them were hurt, just badly shaken up. Aurora reached up to him and Marcos was all too happy to have the familiar weight of his daughter in his arms.

“I want Mommy.” Aurora whimpered, burying her face into Marcos’ shoulder.

Marcos pressed a kiss to her hair, “I know, me too, we’ll get her home soon.” He assured her, hoping it was the truth.

"We gotta move her!" John yelled, carefully lifting Clarice off the bench.

Marcos shifted Aurora onto his hip and ran over to a table calling to Shatter, "clear the table. Now!"

Everyone was fond of Clarice, she gave everyone a chance, but she looked out for the people she trusted, she was the one that kept John and Taylor from going off the rails. Suddenly the tables had flipped and the people she trusted were having to look after her. Taylor grabbed the girls out of the way as John passed through, laying Clarice gently onto the metal table.

"Look!" Andy said, pointing into a hallway, "it's happening again."

"That's the same road…" Lauren muttered after seeing the broken truck.

"This ain’t good." Taylor stated as she let go of the girls, moving them behind her in order to protect them better. "They can see us," she added as Marcos, John and herself approached the portal. Marcos made his palms glow and began raising one as he settled Aurora behind him.

He’d barely moved before John caught his wrist, "we are not getting into a pitched battle with innocent bystanders," John hissed at Marcos.

"Yeah? What about him?" Marcos questioned, nodding his head towards a man cocking a shotgun.

At that moment, Lauren jogged around the three and began using her powers to force the portal closed. Andy looked at his sister wide-eyed and slack-jawed while Taylor couldn't help but smirk even as she felt her own powers drawn towards Lauren; a feeling reminiscent of how her soul used to pull towards Gus when he would use his powers. Her friends knew she adored her little sister, it was her parents that had given her up. Her siblings had just been kids when she was taken. Taylor had always told them about Lauren, her little sister who she loved. She’d always told them how Imogen reminded her of her sister.

Silence reigned over the HQ as Lauren stepped back. Taylor tried to keep her expression blank as she watched her sister, but she couldn’t hide her pride entirely.

"Dude! What'd you just do!?" Andy exclaimed.

Lauren shook her head, clutching her pendant as she steadied her mind, "I dunno, I used shields to close it, I didn't think it'd work…" Her voice was quiet and faded off slightly as she looked towards where John, Taylor, and Marcos were all stood. Lauren felt herself smile at the proud expression Taylor wore, she couldn’t help but feel that it was an achievement.

John gave a tight nod, letting out a breath, "yeah, it worked. For now. Clarice is in bad shape that could happen again."

"Again?” Taylor raised an eyebrow, “look, if humans come through Love’s portals, they’ll either get cut in half… or we all get butchered.” The other two nodded grimly, the risks were growing with every portal that opened. “Personally, I prefer the former.” She added as she lifted Imogen into her arms, as if she were saying the words to the little girl who just giggled as Taylor tickled her.

Marcos and John just rolled their eyes at Taylor’s last comment. Caitlin, Andy, and Lauren looked horrified, the kids’ expressions changed quickly when they realized she wasn’t being too serious, but Caitlin’s steeled.

“You think this is a joke?” Caitlin demanded. John and Marcos shared a look, knowing what Taylor’s comment would be.

“No more than you shipping your daughter off to a facility that tortures mutants. Don’t try to act all high and mighty, it doesn’t suit you.” Caitlin flinched at the accusation, her eyes darting between the others when no one said anything.

"Hey." Marcos called, grabbing Caitlin's attention before she could respond, "if we get you that medicine can you help her from here?"

Caitlin laughed slightly causing Taylor to flex her free hand, by this point it was a reflex, keeping her daughter on her hip using her other hand to support the girl. Taylor was ready to step in to protect her chosen family if they needed it. Placing Imogen back on her feet, Taylor moved into the defensive beside Marcos. Both of them seemed to have stepped in front of John and Clarice, as if protecting them from having to get involved.

"You can't just buy hydrocortisone-D at Walgreens. You have to get to the hospital, get in the Pyxis machine." Caitlin exclaimed.

John ran a hand over his face before glancing at the twins who were stood with their friends all looking at Clarice, pale with worry.

"Then we'll take you." Marcos said looking at Caitlin before turning to Lauren, "now, if that happens again, can you do… whatever it is you just did?"

Lauren nodded, her eyes wide but determined, "yeah, I think so."

"Good." He turned back to Caitlin.

Scoffing and shaking her head, Caitlin snapped, "no! No, I'm not leaving my daughter here to… to close space holes!"

Taylor couldn't help rolling her eyes, ignoring the looks John and Marcos shot her. Only they would’ve been able to notice the briefest glimpse of hurt that passed through those daunting, red eyes, before they returned to their usual steely cold that only went away when she was with just her new family.

Lauren stepped forward, "Mom. It's ok. I can do this." Eventually Caitlin nodded.

Marcos looked between John and Taylor, “no ghosts.”

“No heroes.” John and Taylor finished with a nod.

“Code word’s Jenga. If you hear it, come save our asses.”

“Rochambeau means everything’s going good.” Taylor added with a smile.

“Rochambeau,” Marcos muttered before leading Caitlin from the building.

Aurora seemed to want to go after her dad but was lifted into Taylor's arms before she could follow. A frown folded across Aurora’s lips as she looked at her aunt. “It’s alright Sweetheart, he'll be back soon, yeah?” Taylor began assuring her, “he just needs to go an’ get some stuff for Clare." The little girl nodded at her aunt before she was placed back on the ground.

Lauren and Andy watched the interaction with distant eyes, Taylor had been like that with them before she left. Andy didn't really remember his older sister, but he did remember her smile and the way that she could always make him laugh. He remembered the way her voice was always soft, gentle, kind.

Lauren on the other hand, remembered her vividly, the way she would always tell her weird stories and was always smiling, the way that she always had a camera with her. Lauren also remembered the day that those men had showed up at the house wearing suits and the way Taylor screamed for their parents who stood and did nothing as the eldest Strucker child was dragged kicking and screaming into the back of a black van.

As Marcos and Caitlin Strucker left the HQ, John turned his eyes to Taylor, “you good?” He asked, letting his voice echo through her mind.

Taylor’s eyes darted over to John, “peachy, I just… I’ll explain it later. Once I’ve figured it out.” She assured him, smirking when he nodded despite the concern that was still pushing at the edges of the mental link. “Shouldn’t I be asking you that, though?”

John shook his head slightly, rolling his eyes, “I’ll be fine once Reece is good. I just… I need her to be ok.” His eyes darted to the twins, “for them.”

“Then let’s make it soon. I’m not time-sharing panic attacks any longer than I have to.” Taylor smirked when John chuckled slightly, “see, we need Clare back so that we can sit and be dramatic on the roof while she tells us we’re being morons.”

“I didn’t mean to shout, Empty.”

Taylor nodded, a small smile on her face, “I know, but… I think you’re allowed to be a little on edge right now.”

“On that front, Empty… I need you to time-share panic attacks with me.”

Taylor chuckled slightly, nodding, “I’ll try to stop picking fights with everyone… can’t guarantee how well I’ll do.”

“That’s good enough for me. I can’t keep you grounded when I’m on the edge of a fucking panic attack.”

“I’ll try. And don’t panic. Love’s gonna be fine. She’s stubborn.” Taylor looked around slightly, sending John a look when she saw the confusion on Lauren and Andy’s faces, “what’d you reckon they think’s happening right now?”

“That we’ve lost it.”

Taylor turned to Lauren, “how come you know mutant law? You been researching since you learned you had powers?”

Lauren rubbed her hand over her arm, embarrassed as she refused to meet Taylor’s eye, “I’ve, uh, kinda been wanting to go into mutant rights advocacy since I was a kid. Seems strange now.”

“No, it doesn’t,” John said, “you two are similar.”

Taylor hummed, “I used to do the same. Would spend hours every day studying mutant law to try and find ways that it violated human rights… then they passed the UN Declaration that said mutants were not human, so human rights no longer extended to us. Started a whole ‘nother round of fighting.”

“I remember you getting invested in law books and so much paperwork that I thought you were gonna drown in it.” Lauren joked, “I… took possession of all of it when I was a kid, refused to let Mom or Dad get rid of any of it. Began fanatically studying it as soon as I was old enough to understand what you were talking about in your notes and essays. Added to them, changed them to suite current laws… I didn’t have anywhere to submit them. Or anyone to read them.”

Taylor smiled in awe, “you started fighting because of me?”

“I wanted to see a new nation built. Wanted to see people able to live without fear. Didn’t do anything though, did I?”

“Lauren, you’re 17, you’re not meant to be a politician yet.” John said with a smile.

*****

Reed Strucker sat handcuffed in an interrogation room in the Sentinel Services building, he’d been sat there for at least an hour without anyone coming in. He jumped as the door clicked open and Agent Turner stepped into the room and sat down opposite him.

After several minutes, Agent Turner spoke, “look, I know you're still recovering from your arrest. I just want to make sure you understand your rights.”

Reed scoffed, “I've been a prosecutor for 25 years, I know my rights. And my children's rights. It's not illegal to be a mutant.”

Turner nodded, eyes fixed on Reed, “I never said it was. I'm just focused on crimes committed by them. You know, you've put your family in a pretty bad situation. Now, I would argue that the decisions you make today are the most important of your life. If you cooperate—”

“Cooperate?” Reed spat, “with you? You sent sentinels after my children.”

Turner shook his head, watching Reed closely, “I seem to remember giving you the opportunity to surrender peacefully.”

Reed scoffed, shaking his head before fixing a steely glare on Turner, “this would be the time that you get me my lawyer.”

“Yeah. No, yeah, we can do that.” Turner stated, “you ask for a lawyer, we're obligated to provide one for you. Now, as you know, once that happens, the charges against—”

Reed cut him off, “what do you think you have on me? Obstruction of justice? Accessory after the fact?”

Turner couldn’t stop himself from letting out an exasperated laugh, “Mr. Strucker, come on, man. I think you know we're willing to push it a lot further than that. There's not gonna be any deals made here today. I'm doing you a favor even discussing this—”

Reed shook his head, “No, what you are doing is denying my rights by holding me without counsel. Unless you want your case thrown out before it even reaches a courtroom, you may want to fix that.”

“You know, technically, you're only being detained at the moment, you haven't been charged yet.” Turner pointed out, “so, yeah, let's get you some charges. Then we can talk about lawyers.” And with that, Turner left the room, leaving Reed to stew.

Chapter Text

Marcos and Caitlin headed out in one of the cars, heading for the nearest mutant friendly hospital. Caitlin was restless in her seat as they drove away from the HQ, repeatedly glancing at her watch as they continued further and further away from her children. “How long is this drive gonna take? My children are back there alone.”

Marcos glanced over to her briefly, “they’re not alone. John’s a tracker, but he’s also damn-near bulletproof. Strong as a… I don’t know… he’s very strong. And Taylor… she’s very protective of any mutant at the HQ. She’s a fighter, almost as strong as John, but with even less survival instinct… they’re safe with her.”

Caitlin raised an eyebrow at Marcos, “you and my husband had a deal to help my family,” she began, her voice wavering slightly, “I expect you to honor that deal, we need to get Reed back, and we need to get out of the country.”

“You do know your husband was trying to send my girlfriend to jail?” Marcos commented back. He didn’t trust the woman next to him.

“He was following the law!” Caitlin exclaimed, “has he prosecuted mutants? Yes. But…”

Marcos rolled his eyes, “but… some of his best friends are mutants?” He commented, raising an eyebrow.

“Try his children.” Caitlin sneered.

Marcos just nodded back; Caitlin wasn’t understanding him. “Exactly my point.” He said, “tell me, if it weren’t your kids in that gym, would you be defending them? Would your husband?” Caitlin turned back to the road.

Focusing on the road ahead, Marcos tried to work out how to word the question he was desperate to ask, “why’d you give up Taylor?” He asked, hesitating for a brief second.

Glancing over to Caitlin, Marcos noticed that she stared down at her lap, as if trying to figure out where to begin. “Well, firstly, she wasn’t always called Taylor. She was born when I was barely eighteen, still in college, we called her Mackenzie. She was all blue hair and bright red eyes. She was so small in my arms…” A smile brushed Caitlin’s lips, fading after a moment.

Marcos raised an eyebrow at Caitlin’s comment, he’d never realized just how young Taylor’s parents were when she was born. “Wait,” he muttered, “Mackenzie? Was… was Taylor her middle name?”

Caitlin shook her head, “Mackenzie Tegan.”

A small laugh left Marcos before he could stop it. “M.T.” Taylor’s nickname that grew into ‘Mighty’.

Confusion rippled across Caitlin’s features before she continued talking, “she was a great kid when we lived in New York, she had friends, went to a school that focused on mutant kids, she was focused, caring, happy, had a wicked sense of humor, and she was so kind, so genuine. Things changed when she reached about seven or eight, her school had put her in touch with some external tutors… she was out every Saturday, she stopped talking to me and Reed… she changed.”

“She went to Xavier’s?” Marcos asked, shocked at the idea of Caitlin and Reed letting her attend the school. He’d only heard bits and pieces about them, but any parent who’d send their kid to the Citadel… they normally weren’t prepared to try and accommodate a mutant.

“No, there was one near where we lived in Brooklyn, we decided that it’d be safer for her… and others. But she was never home, would always disappear at weekends, by the time she turned ten, she wasn’t home from Friday night until Sunday evening, after dinner. I think she used to see them; she would call them her old friends. Her best friend was there too, I never got to meet them, and Mack— Taylor wouldn’t tell us about them. She once went to stay with them in Arizona over New Year’s… she was 12. Andy was a baby; she accused us of forgetting about her. Maybe we were.” Caitlin paused, “that was the last time she called me ‘Mom’, just before she went to Arizona… anyway, when Lauren was born looking… normal,” she hesitated on the word for a moment, “Mack— Taylor began pulling away from us. Sure, she was dangerously overprotective of her sister. But she began to withdraw from us. It only got worse after Andy was born. She began advocating for mutant rights. Every day, she spent hours reading law, writing papers, finding faults in international law. She had a friend, I think it was her mentor, who had connections to the senate. She was dangerously smart, she searched the law for any way that it violated human rights. She was in Arizona when it was announced that mutants were no longer considered humans.”

Caitlin paused for a long moment, looking out the window to collect her thoughts, “just after Andy was born, we moved to Atlanta, Taylor began to get bitter, she was angry with us for making her move, for making her leave all of her friends. Her school attendance dropped; she skipped Mondays and Fridays to fly back to New York to continue training at weekends… when Lauren started school, Taylor saw her getting bullied, so she threatened the kid, who told his older brother, the older brother then beat Lauren up. Taylor ended up attacking the older boy, she sent him to the hospital. He was left with permanent physical and mental injuries.”

Marcos couldn’t stop the grim smile that formed as he thought about that version of Taylor, he could picture her easily. The idea of Taylor protecting her family through whatever means necessary was a familiar one; she would happily kill if it meant protecting her chosen family.

“Reed and I didn’t know what to do, we’d only moved back to Atlanta three years earlier. We were contacted by Sentinel Services and the FBI, they told us that they’d heard about the incident, that they wanted to help her, to teach her how to control her powers.” Marcos shuddered, he knew what happened next, though he only knew it very vaguely, Taylor didn’t really like talking about it. She hated those memories.

“That Saturday, Taylor actually came home, the first time she was home on a Saturday in nearly ten years. She came home so excited about something… I never found out what she had wanted to tell us.” Caitlin messed with her hands, not too sure what to say next, “the doctors and agents took her, forced her into the back of a van while she screamed for help. Lauren had seen… she’d always ask, ‘when’s Mack coming home?’ ‘Will I have to go away, too?’ I just remember feeling numb for months. I don’t think I ever really forgave myself for it. I know Reed didn’t.”

Marcos scoffed at Caitlin’s final comments, “just know, I doubt Taylor’s ever going to forgive you, from what I know, she’s never been too great at that whole ‘forgive and forget’ thing. She prefers a more… aggressive approach to things. I’ll be honest, John’s never going to forgive you, he’s been by Taylor’s side longer than anyone, he’s in her head, he knows what she went thought… and he can hold a grudge. I doubt Clarice or Lorna will ever trust you guys either.”

“Why do you?” Caitlin asked, looking over to Marcos, but she wasn’t shocked when she didn’t get an answer.

***** 

Lauren watched John and Taylor silently talk to each other, both stood at Clarice’s side, Taylor took John’s hand, reassuring him silently.

“So, who is she?” Andy asked not so delicately, earning him a light slap to the shoulder from Lauren as John and Taylor both turned their attention to the siblings.

“Second in Command.” Taylor stated simply, tension still lasting in her shoulders.

John shook his head lightly, “she’s a leader here, the twins’ mom, she’s… she’s family.”

A tugging at John’s hand grabbed his attention as Rose stared up at him, “Daddy, what’s wrong wi’ Momma?”

John knelt in front of her, brushing a strand of pinkish-purple hair out of her eyes only to have another piece fall in its place. Rose’s eyes focused on John’s hands as he answered her, “she’s not well, but we’re helping her,” he turned to look at the rest of the girls, “why don’t you guys go upstairs, try and get settled in bed, ok?” He pulled Rose close for a moment, reassuring her silently, before letting her go back to her friends, leading Imogen upstairs.

Aurora and Evie hung back slightly, John placed a hand on the back of Evie’s head, a move he regularly did to comfort his older daughter, “she’ll be alright, Trouble.” It was with that comment that caused the eldest two girls to run off upstairs.

Just as the girls disappeared, another portal opened. "Hey! It's happening!" Taylor yelled to Sonia, "get everyone out o’ here!" Sonia began yelling for everyone to clear the area as the sound of police sirens flooded the HQ.

"Lauren? You got this?" John asked Lauren at the same time. Lauren walked to the portal and began closing it while John focused his hearing onto what the police were saying. Taylor watched her older brother closely while she flexed her hand ready to take over if Lauren couldn't close the portal.

Eventually, the portal snapped shut causing Lauren to stumble back slightly. John and Taylor both stepped forward to catch her, stopping her from falling.

"That was way too close." Andy muttered, his eyes darting around the group, relaxing microscopically when he realized that they all seemed to agree with him.

“You good?” Taylor asked, letting out a breath when Lauren nodded, “hey, Shatter, can you grab me a can of soda?” She turned back to Lauren as Shatter left, “you need to keep your energy up, you don’t wanna hurt yourself.”

"I'll be back in a minute. If that happens again, you yell." John said before grabbing Taylor's hand before jogging off up the stairs to where Sonia was stood.

The two groups knew they were on a clock, the three family members desperate to save Clarice. John’s worst fear was on the brink of coming true; he could lose Clarice, and there was nothing he could do to protect her. Taylor watched him, she knew that he was on the verge of breaking. They just had to wait for Marcos to return.

Chapter Text

Marcos and Caitlin pulled up in the parking lot of the hospital, he couldn’t help but smirk at Caitlin’s shock when she saw the overcrowded hospital waiting room. “It’s not much like the hospitals you’re used to, is it.” Marcos observed, glancing through the window to the patients being treated for minor injuries in the waiting room, “they’re talking about closing this place down. Turns out our best superpower is bankrupting hospitals. We’re born with the ultimate pre-existing condition.” Marcos commented.

“I guess so,” Caitlin muttered, “this is gonna be tough. The E.R.'s secured, and the drugs are inside. We're not getting into the treatment area without an emergency, not for hours.” An idea hit her as she turned to him, “you said a cop shot you. Where?”

Marcos shot to look at Caitlin, “wait, what?”

“Look, Clarice is dying.” Caitlin told him urgently, “show me your wound.”

“Alright. Just watch out for the blood.” Marcos warned her.

“I've seen blood.” Caitlin shot back.

Marcos chuckled humorlessly, “Not mine.” Caitlin raised an eyebrow before peeling back the bandage, her eyes widening at the sight of the glowing blood. “Yeah. That's cool, right?”

*****

Caitlin led Marcos into the hospital, “my boyfriend's hurt!” she yelled, leading Marcos to the sign in desk.

“You need to sign these.” The nurse told them without looking up. Marcos glanced over to Caitlin for a moment before taking his hand away from the bullet wound. The light and heat from the blood began melting the plastic screen separating the nurses from the patients. The nurse’s eyes widened at the sight as Marcos covered his wound again.

“He needs a doctor now!” Caitlin yelled. The nurse leapt into action to call for a doctor.

A doctor led Marcos and Caitlin into a triage, telling Marcos to sit on one of the beds before he began stapling the wound closed. “Alright, one more, we're all done. Okay.” The doctor placed the stapler back down on the tray, before turning back to the pair, “so, uh, how exactly did this happen?”

“Uh, it was an accident.” Caitlin stepped in quickly, not giving the doctor any time to consider what could have caused the injury.

“I was, uh, fixing stuff on the roof, and you know the little sticker on the ladder that says, "don't step above this step"? I stepped above the step.” Marcos explained, the lie flowing easily off his tongue.

“Well, I guess we learned a lesson today.” The doctor began, smiling condescendingly at Marcos. “The nurse will give you some instructions on wound care.”

“Thanks, Doc.”

“Ma'am, can I talk to you a moment?” The doctor asked Caitlin, leaving Marcos with the nurse.

“Of course.” Caitlin headed out of the room with the doctor. Her fear bubbled in her gut as she headed away from the person that she was beginning to trust.

*****

Reaching Sonia at the top of the stairs, Taylor and John came to a stop either side of her, leaning over the railings so that they could still see Clarice.

“What’s happening, Johnny? Why’s she opening the portals?” Sonia asked, completely blanking Taylor for a moment.

John shook his head, “I don’t know, they just keep opening. I mean, Lauren’s able to close ‘em for now, but…” his voice faded as he looked between Sonia and Taylor, “look, the cops are gearing up, I heard ‘em call in the SWAT team.”

Taylor’s head shot up, her attention fully on John, “so, next time a portal opens, we’ve got some serious problems headin’ for us.” Taylor’s eyes locked with John’s as the pair began to formulate a plan silently.

Sonia looked back and forth between John and Taylor as they fell silent, their expressions changing every few seconds, Sonia silently groaned when she realized they were using their mental link. "Mind filling me in?" Sonia quipped causing the pair to jerk up in surprise. Sonia rolled her eyes as they were brought back to the fact that they weren’t alone and not everyone shared a psychic link with them.

"We need to be ready to evacuate if necessary." John explained.

Sonia shook her head, "no! We need to get her away from here!" Sonia had never really liked Clarice, less so when she found out that she was married to John, the man who she had been trying to get with since she arrived.

"Moving her is too dangerous, things got worse when we tried that idea out." Taylor pointed out.

"So, what are we gonna do?" Sonia asked looking to John for an answer, blanking Taylor entirely.

"We’re gonna hope that Marcos gets back here with the medicine in time." He said before heading back downstairs with Taylor.

*****

Caitlin managed to make her way to the medicine storage, thankfully, she was able to get the nurse in the room to leave. Catching the cupboard before it could fully close, Caitlin began grabbing the medicine they would need, grabbing a couple of extras in case of any side effects. It only took her a few moments to gather the medication into one of the sealable bags.

Heading back towards triage, Caitlin’s eyes landed on the doctor who’d treated Marcos talking to the police. Caitlin didn’t stay to hear if they were talking about her and Marcos, deciding to find Marcos so that they could get out as soon as possible. Arriving back in triage, Caitlin stuffed the medicine into the bag they’d brought with them.

“You get everything you need?” Marcos asked her.

“I think so.”

“You think? We cannot do this twice.” He exclaimed.

“Listen to me, the doctor's talking to the police right now.” Caitlin snapped, pushing the bag into Marcos’ arms.

“Come on.” Marcos began leading Caitlin down the back corridors, “you sure he was talking to the cops about us?”

“I don't know. I didn't think we should take any chances.” Caitlin defended as they rounded a corner.

“Stop! Police!” Came a shout in front of them.

“Run!” Marcos ordered, pushing Caitlin towards one of the corridors. The pair ran towards the exit, Marcos toppled a container of washing and water before running after Caitlin towards the door. The pair made it outside, turning around, Marcos directed his powers to the door, melting it locked.

*****

Reed read over the piece of paper in front of him, his mind spinning as he read the charges, “terrorism? Is this a joke?”

Turner shook his head, “oh, it's anything but.” He pulled up a picture on the TV screen, “this mutant here, Lorna Dane, aka Polaris... From what we've been able to put together, you used her police file to contact the Mutant Underground.”

“That's ridiculous.” Reed scoffed.

Turner didn’t look the slightest bit convinced, “is it? Because we... we talked to the coworker that gave you the file, she was... very helpful.” Turner paused for a moment, letting Reed realize that it was his own friend who’d given him up. “Now, you should know,” he continued, “that there's been talk for quite some time about classifying this organization as a mutant terrorist group, like the Brotherhood or the Mutant Liberation Front. Our lawyers want to make you and Miss Dane our test cases.”

Reed’s eyes snapped up to look at Turner, “this is insane. Those groups are nothing like the Mutant Underground.”

Turner looked at Reed with clear exasperation, “Mr. Strucker, you were prosecuting this woman three days ago. Now, what, she's a brave freedom fighter?” Letting out a breath, Turner tried to calm his mind, “I lost my daughter in the July 15th incident.” He admitted, watching the man’s expression closely, “she was seven years old. Her name was Grace.” Turner shook his head as Reed watched him silently, “people talk about the X-Men, they talk about the Brotherhood. Here's the thing: I'm never gonna know if the blast of energy that killed my kid came from a good mutant or a bad mutant. And guess what. I don't care.”

Pulling up another picture on the screen, Turner watched as Reed’s expression flooded with different emotions, “so, you recognize her. Taylor Nobel, code name: Python, birth name: Mackenzie Tegan Strucker. Rarely seen in public without her head and face covered, kept her hidden from us for nearly five years. If her story’s correct, you gave up your daughter, long before 7/15.” He seethed at the thought of someone giving up their child. He settled when his mind cleared, and he remembered who he was talking about. “And now, she’s one of the most powerful Mutants around. Also, one of the deadliest. She’s considered an international threat, many governments, not just ours, want her dead. Those people that helped your family, each of them has a link to her.”

Three wanted posters appeared on the screen before Turner highlighted each one in turn, “John Proudstar, aka Thunderbird, the man who helped her escape the Citadel, was with her in Europe when they became international terrorists. Clarice Proudstar, aka Blink, the woman who has always been the escape route for the other two. Marcos Diaz, Eclipse, the one who provides her cover whenever they attack on US soil. The four of them, with Lorna Dane are the Core Five of the Mutant Underground,” Turner turned back to Reed, “all of them linked to her, and they were all there to rescue your family, her family. We will take them down.”

Reed was silent for a moment after Turner finished speaking, “these charges will never stick.” He stated after a moment.

Turner clicked his tongue, “oh, I disagree. But I guess that's what trials are for, right?” He stood up, leaving the four pictures on the screen as Reed stared at the one of his daughter.

*****

With careful fingers, John pressed a gentle hand against Clarice’s arm, a lump forming in his throat, “she’s burning up,” his voice was quiet, and Taylor could see the fear hidden in his eyes, something she’d only seen a handful of times before. “This is getting worse,” his voice was slightly louder now, but he fell silent when he heard Clarice mumbling.

"Hurts… it hurts…" John gripped her hand in his as Sonia approached, John gently brushed some hair from Clarice's face, refusing to let go of her hand unless absolutely necessary. Clarice gasped again, "Have to get away…" Her voice was almost fragile.

"We need to start getting everybody out," John looked at Sonia as he spoke.

"We are not gonna abandon this place!" Sonia yelled in a whisper.

"We’re running a bit low on choices here, Sonia. Clarice is opening portals every few minutes now and Lauren can't keep this up." Taylor shot back, her hand resting on Lauren’s shoulder.

"I can keep trying." Lauren said through her exhaustion.

"Mom has to be back soon, right?" Andy asked trying not to sound as scared as he was.

"Maybe. We need to consider the possibility—" Taylor never got to finish as another portal ripped open.

"This might be it! We might have to evacuate! Clarice!" John yelled as Lauren tried to close the portal.

"I can't hold it!" She yelled, falling backwards. Taylor felt her powers surging through her as she watched Lauren fall, her anger searing in her veins as the Cobra stirred in her mind.

John moved into a defensive position as he saw an armed officer come through. Taylor was closer to the unfortunate officer than John was. Her hands wrapped around the man’s neck causing the unlucky man to collapse in pain before he had a chance to shoot. John ran over, grabbing the man, Taylor let the man fall from her hold but didn't stop causing pain until John had thrown him against the ceiling and back out of the portal. Still, the portal didn't close. Andy ran over, using his power to force the men away but also causing the table holding Clarice to flip over.

The portal snapped shut but Clarice was creating more and more now. "What do we do?" Lauren asked, terror in her voice as she gripped her necklace, she was looking directly at Taylor, wanting her older sister to protect her.

"Get out. Get everyone out!" John yelled to the small group. His eyes darted to Taylor, “Jenga.”

Sonia set to work on getting most people out while Taylor took Lauren's hand, "I need you to help me." Lauren nodded, following her sister upstairs.

They headed straight to the girls’ room. Taylor sighed when she saw the four little girls cuddled up against the far wall, still in their pajamas and clutching their stuffed animals. Imogen held her arms out to her mother as the two ran in.

"Grab the twins!" Taylor called to her sister while she scooped Imogen into her arms and gripped Aurora’s hand, leading them outside. Lauren was only a step behind her, Rose and Evie holding tightly to Lauren’s hands.

Chapter Text

Turner led Reed down the seemingly endless corridors of the Sentinel Services building, Reed couldn’t keep from rolling his eyes, “you finally taking me to see my lawyer?”

Turner glanced over to Reed before pushing open the door to an observation room, “Now, I really need you to... understand the stakes. I think you're making the mistake of believing that you and your wife and your kids are the only ones in jeopardy here.”

“What's that supposed to mean?” Reed asked as Turner motioned him into the observation room.

Reed couldn’t hide his shock or anger as he saw his mother sat opposite an agent in an interrogation room.

*****

“We're interviewing everyone who's involved—”

Ellen scoffed, “You think this was intentional?”

*****

Turning to Agent Turner, Reed didn’t bother to hide the anger in his eyes, “you brought in my mother?”

“Oh, we're bringing in every potential co-conspirator.”

*****

In the interrogation room, Ellen continued trying to defend her grandchildren, “my family would never attack anyone.”

The agent raised an eyebrow, “you really expect me to believe you had no involvement? We have phone records.”

Ellen scoffed, “he is my son! I saw the news; I tried to call him.”

“What about your husband?” Agent Weeks asked.

Ellen lent back in her chair, “I have no idea. He lives alone in Chattanooga.”

“And your eldest granddaughter? Taylor… you knew her as Mackenzie.”

Ellen’s face changed, her anger boiled over, “you keep her name out of your mouth. My Mack died, twelve years ago! She was a child!”

Weeks shook his head, “I can assure you, she is very much alive.” He showed her security camera footage where Taylor could be seen pinning an agent to the wall as a woman opened some kind of portal behind her. He pulled up another clip of Taylor, her face hidden under a mask and hood, and a man, covered in a similar way, running out of a building seconds before it erupted in flames. “She’s a terrorist, an international terrorist. Eighteen months ago, she and her ally committed international terrorism when they blew up a hotel. You expect me to believe that your younger grandchildren have no connection to her.”

Ellen was frozen as she stared at the footage, “they told us she died in hospital…”

Weeks waited a moment for the woman to recover herself, “are you a political person, Ms. Strucker? Do you consider yourself an activist?”

*****

In the observation room, Reed shook his head, “This is harassment, she had nothing to do with any of this.”

Turner rolled his eyes, “just tell me who's involved, man, she goes home.”

*****

Weeks continued to talk to Ellen, “You've supported the mutant rights movement. You protested the South African government.”

Ellen scoffed, “I marched against apartheid in 1984. They were oppressing all kinds of people. Not just the mutants.”

“So, you admit you're involved.” Weeks stated.

*****

Turner watched Reed carefully, “you can stop this at any time, Mr. Strucker. Tell me how to find your family.”

*****

“Are my family okay?” Ellen asked after a moment.

“That may be up to you, ma'am.” Weeks told her simply.

*****

Since the incident at the hospital, Caitlin had been mostly silent, trying to figure out what had happened. Eventually, she couldn’t take it anymore, “what happened at the hospital… is it always that bad for mutants?”

Marcos couldn’t help scoffing, “you thought that was bad? That doc actually stitched me up before calling the cops. That’s topflight mutant healthcare right there.”

He shot back.

“I mean, there are protections, though the Civil Rights Act.” Caitlin tried to offer; she was desperate to understand what had happened.

“Yeah, yeah, mutant rights. Oh, they're a nice idea. But there's always an exception for public safety. All they have to do is call you dangerous, and you know what happens to those so-called rights?” Marcos snapped his fingers, “poof, they're gone. Lauren explained it to you at the HQ, the Mutant Control Act surpasses the Civil Rights Act.” He explained. “Hell, you’ve seen it. You think Taylor had her rights in the Citadel?”

“How did your family deal with it?” Caitlin asked, ignoring the comment about Taylor.

“They didn't. When I first lit up, I was 13. They kicked me out the same day. Uh, to survive, I had to do a lot of things that I'm not proud of, but it was Lorna who saved me from all that. She is my family. My parents not so much.” Marcos explained, his couldn’t stop the dark look that crossed his face, “no one got it worse than…” His voice faded as he remembered who was sat next to him.

“You can say it. No one got it worse than Taylor. I know that what I did, what Reed and I did was something – something,” Caitlin began panicking, “something's wrong.”

“It's okay.” Marcos tried to settle her.

“Turn around. Turn around!” Caitlin ordered him.

“It's a security measure.” He explained to her.

“It's what? How?”

“Look, one of our mutants can project fear. It keeps people away from the HQ. It's not usually this strong. Something's wrong.” Marcos pulled the car to a stop next to one of the people who acted as security at the HQ. The pair exchanged a few comments in Spanish before the car continued towards the HQ.

“What's happening?” Caitlin asked.

“It's not good.”

“What did he say?” She demanded.

“They're evacuating.” Marcos explained, desperate to find Aurora, he wanted to make sure that she was ok. He couldn’t lose her, she was supposed to be safe at the HQ, it was why he’d agreed to come here, his baby was supposed to be safe.

“What? Where are my kids?” Marcos didn’t respond.

*****

Running outside Lauren and Taylor put the kids down just in time for Marcos and Caitlin to come around the corner, Aurora ran straight into her father's arms while Marcos checked her for any obvious injuries, relief washed over him when he saw that she wasn’t injured. Marcos looked at the other three kids, making sure they were uninjured too.

Caitlin hugged Andy and Lauren and then, surprising everyone, she hugged Taylor. Taylor visibly tensed, her eyes darting to Marcos in fear. There were very few people who Taylor let touch her: after years of being tortured, she’d become cautious of people’s touches. Marcos knew that most people didn’t hug Taylor unless she’d initiated it, the only ones who did so were John, Clarice, and the kids. No one else, not even him and Lorna. Marcos cleared his throat causing Caitlin to jump away from Taylor in surprise, Taylor to send a thankful look to Marcos.

Taylor pulled Imogen back into her arms, Lauren took Evie and Rose’s hands while Marcos took Aurora. The trio led the four kids to a safe distance away from the building, holding them close as they waited for Caitlin to administer the treatment to Clarice. Andy followed the group towards the tree line, not sure what else he should do.

Caitlin ran inside with the medication and after a few minutes the portals stopped, people began slowly making their way back inside to see John lifting Clarice onto a bed as Caitlin attached her to an IV drip.

*****

John saw his friends and the girls enter the building. Marcos and Taylor looked at him expectantly, John just nodded at them, letting them know that Clarice was going to make a full recovery. Marcos ushered the four girls into their room where he settled them down for bed, despite the sun coming up, while Taylor came over to her older brother. "Y'know. It's weird."

John turned his head slightly as Taylor dropped an arm around his shoulders, "what is, Empty?" He watched her face carefully.

"Well, I thought that the last time I would ever be on the same side as my family was when I was 15. I mean, after I’d hurt that kid, I knew they wanted rid of me, they cherished the idea of having a child who was different to begin with. Then they sent me away with those… monsters. And now here they are. Well, most of them. And they want to help us. That's something I thought I would die before I saw."

John hugged Taylor to his side, the two had a friendship going back long before joining the network. John had sensed her inside The Citadel, he’d rescued her with the help of Gus and helped her regain control of her powers, John knew how much Taylor hated talking about family and yet they were with them now.

“You’ve been my brother for seven years. You helped me change my last name from Strucker. I remember my little sister. I don’t really remember my little brother… What’s with the grin?” She asked, narrowing her eyes playfully.

“I’ve never heard you say quite so much aloud.” He said with a grin, earning him a punch to the shoulder.

“Well, let’s just say I had a lot to say today.” He hugged her closer to his side, reassuring her softly that he was on her side.

A glance over to Taylor told John that there was something still weighing on her mind, “what’s up?” He asked in her mind, hoping that it’d get her to tell him easier.

Taylor sighed, “every time Lauren used her powers, I could feel mine reaching to protect her. It was instinctive, almost like, if I didn’t help and she got hurt, it would’ve been on me.”

“You could feel her powers?”

“I can’t explain it other than it felt like it used to when my powers would reach for Gus. That my powers were a part of their powers. With you, my mind’s linked. With Gus, we always said that the two of us shared a heart. Maybe it’s something like that with Lauren.”

John shook his head, “but why now? Last time your powers linked to someone, it was because you were in extreme distress. Why link to Lauren now?”

Taylor shrugged, letting out a breath as she looked at Clarice, “maybe it’s just that the Citadel’s experiments made it… they said that one of the experiments was to open my X-gene for adaptation. Whatever that means…”

John let out a sigh, “I’m sorry… about earlier. I didn’t mean to yell.”

Taylor nodded softly, “I know. I could feel your regret. There’s been a lot of heavy emotions today.”

Laughing slightly, John turned his eyes back to Clarice, “hopefully, it’ll only get better.”

“Hey.” A voice croaked from the bed, John and Taylor both sighed in relief as Clarice opened her eyes, “all this damage… was it me?” She asked as she looked around, “is everyone ok?”

“You were a little hard on the trees and the furniture,” John commented with a laugh, “but people survived.”

“It was about time we redecorated anyway.” Clarice smiled as she moved to try and sit up, her eyes focused on Taylor, “how’re you doing, Mighty?”

“I’ll get there, Love, let’s focus on you for now, though, yeah?” Taylor stated with a nod, and she would, she had to, for her real family.

Marcos headed over to the group, a smile on his face when he saw Clarice awake, “y’know, when shit goes to shit, you’re meant to say Jenga. Not let me arrive on the doorstep to everything fucked up.”

The other three laughed for a moment, “well… Jenga. Or is it Rochambeau now? I mean, everything’s good.” Taylor joked.

“Well, almost everything,” John muttered, “we’re still missin’ one.”

That thought hung over all of them for a long time. They were still missing one.

Chapter Text

Turner headed back into the interrogation room that held Reed Strucker, “are we ready to talk?” Silence, “you just gonna sit there? Mr. Strucker, you are in a world of hurt.”

Reed smirked at those words, “Y-You know... I've been thinking about it, and I'm not sure that I am the one who's in a world of hurt.” Turner raised an eyebrow, but Reed wasn’t deterred, “I've sat on that side of the table. And, you see, the thing is... I think if you really were gonna throw me in the hole, you would have done that by now. You're coming in here with all these charges. You’re bringing up my eldest daughter. You're... dragging my
mother in for questioning. I think you've overplayed your hand.”

Turner eyed Reed carefully, “I don't know what you think you know here...”

“You had a bad day.” Reed continued as if Turner hadn’t spoken, “You lost millions of dollars of equipment. You let six fugitives slip through your fingers. I've been in your shoes enough to know you're desperate.” Reed let out a breath and lent forward, “so, here's what's gonna happen. We are gonna make a deal today, but we are gonna do it on my terms. I will cooperate with you, but I go down for this alone. My mother goes home, along with anyone else that you may be thinking of dragging in here. But most importantly, my wife and children stay out of prison.”

Turner scoffed, “your wife assaulted a Sentinel Services team. Your kids are wanted on several accounts. And there is no chance in hell that Taylor Nobel’s name is ever being cleared.”

“If you want me, they go free. Period. And all of this is gonna be worked out by the lawyer that you bring here right now.”

“Fine.” Turner snapped, but he wasn’t willing to give up yet, “you get your deal. You get your lawyer. One condition.” Reed watched him, “I get the Mutant Underground. Including Taylor Nobel.” Reed stilled; he knew Turner wasn’t about to let his target go. After a long moment, he nodded.

*****

Despite the silence of the HQ that fell most nights, Taylor couldn’t bring herself to sleep. Perhaps it was the silence itself that stopped her. The deafening emptiness that saw her waking up barely a minute after falling asleep as another nightmare, another memory, surged through her mind.

Making her way to the kitchen, Taylor started making some coffee, her head falling into her hands as she waited, the tears falling unchecked as silent sobs coursed through her. Everything had gotten too much. Seeing her mother, her sister, her brother that she didn’t remember, and then learning that Marcos had been the one to make a deal with her father.

“I’m sorry,” a voice whispered, startling Taylor.

She snapped around, raising her hands, preparing to use her powers, her eyes narrowing when she saw Caitlin. “What do you want?” She growled, not lowering her hands.

Caitlin shook her head, “no… nothing… a drink. I didn’t think anyone else would be awake… are you ok?”

Taylor glared, breathing heavily through her nose as more tears welled in her eyes, she dropped her hands, “how dare you? How dare you stand there and ask me that? You. The person who killed me.”

“I—”

“I screamed for you.” Her voice broke, cracking as her tears began to fall, “begged for your help. You stood there and did nothing. You let them take me. You killed me. And then you show up here, with your precious children. The normal ones, the ones you abandoned me to love. Karma has a way of kicking you.”

Caitin shook her head, “I’m… I’m sorry, Mack—”

“That is not my name,” Taylor snapped, her voice raising above a whisper for the first time since Caitlin entered the kitchen, slamming her mug down on the counter. “That girl died years ago. I chose my name. My friends chose my name. The family that loved me, they gave me that name. I am nothing of yours.”

Sighing, Caitlin let her shoulders fall, “I know you’re angry, I know you don’t like me. I don’t blame you. When you left— when you were taken, Lauren kept asking when you’d be home, we had no answer. She kept asking if we’d get bored of her… if we’d send her away. I took us too long to realize what happened. I just remember feeling so lost.”

“You felt lost?!” Taylor breathed through her tears, “you?! I lived it! I spent months trying to find a way to leave. I tried so hard to push down my powers, to hide that part of me. My childhood was spent pretending I wasn’t who I am, trying to fit into your perfect family picture, and I couldn’t!” Squeezing her eyes shut, Taylor shook her head, “I loved Lauren, my baby sister, but it wasn’t enough. Not for you to keep me. Because you didn’t want me, did you?”

Caitlin couldn’t speak for a moment, so she stayed silent, hoping Taylor would keep talking. After several long moments of silence, Caitlin realized that Taylor wasn’t going to fill this silence, “we loved you.”

Taylor shook her head, “not enough. That was the problem, wasn’t it? You loved me, but at the end of the day, it was never gonna be enough. From the moment you had a baby that wasn’t a freak,” Taylor wiped her eyes roughly as Caitlin recoiled, Taylor had overheard her using that word more than once, “you were done with me. I was an inconvenience, something that was in the way of your perfect family picture.”

Caitlin wiped her own tears now, “for years, we did love you, we loved you for being different. We lived for those rare weekends where we would go somewhere, and you could feel everything. Then when Reed joined the mutant task force, things slipped, and we treated you like one of the mutants he was prosecuting and by the time we realized it was too late.”

“You didn’t realize!? You shipped me away to hell!” Taylor cried, her voice no louder than a whisper, “you sent me to the place that prides itself on how it tortures Mutts. You broke me.”

“We didn’t mean for it to happen,” Caitlin defended, “we got that phone call from your school telling us that you’d caused a kid to collapse in agony. The FBI and Sentinel Services both contacted us with an offer of rehabilitation where they would help you, we jumped at the chance. We wanted you to be okay.”

A different emotion filled Taylor’s eyes, one born of vengeance, “they kept injecting me with different serums and chemicals. Enhancing my powers, making it so everything hurt, that even the smallest thing was overwhelming. I could feel any physical emotion: pain, fear, heat, sensation… I could manipulate them all. What they did, it made me into a monster,” Taylor shook her head, “I fought to keep my sanity, my mind… but even I couldn’t do that, not while trying to survive the Devil. My abilities now don’t even require me to touch someone, that just intensifies it. They didn’t just enhance my powers – the pain manipulation, my body’s strength – they merged more to my DNA coding. They wanted me to be a weapon, and weapons don’t starve, or get sick, or need water. They gave me complete immunity. They took away my ability to die.”

Caitlin’s eyes widened, “you… you can’t die?”

“Not from starvation, thirst, exhaustion, illness, pain… bullets and knives have a hard time puncturing my skin…” Taylor stopped for a moment, looking up as she blinked back tears, “they made me into the perfect machine.”

“But you got away,” Caitlin whispered.

“And you think that makes everything better? I got out, so I must be fine, right? I survived, but I was not spared.” Taylor scoffed, “I have lost everything. My husband, my son, my history, my childhood, everything. I lost my siblings because I don’t remember them. I lost my name because the Citadel stole it. I lost my husband because he wanted revenge… All I have is my daughter, and I can assure you that I will protect her from you.” Taylor’s glare hardened, “I found a new family, I built it from the dirt you left me in. I built a life. I gained a pair of brothers, a sister, a husband, two nieces, a daughter… I built a family from the people that saved me. John, James, Clare, Gus… they were everything. I had my daughter, but I buried my boy.” Taylor looked at her hands, she wanted nothing more than to punch a wall or to scream. Instead, she sat there, silently looking at her hands.

Caitlin watched her with wide, teary eyes, “I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t act like you care,” Taylor whispered, the anger gone from her voice, “I had to be the adult when I was a child, I was forced to carry your burdens and shame, I had to break over and over just to make you comfortable, I took the blame for everything you put in front of me, I took the verbal beatings, I held that shame that you gave me. Hell, I disappeared every weekend so that you didn’t have to be embarrassed, you taught me that I needed to be invisible. So, do me a favor, don’t act like you care now. Because if you had ever cared about me, you would never have done any of it.” She looked up to see Caitlin crying, “I don’t want you here. I don’t want to help your husband. I don’t want anything to do with you. I will do everything to get you and your husband as far away from my family as possible. You don’t belong here, and you never will. You’ll never have my forgiveness.”

Caitlin watched, frozen to the spot as Taylor disappeared from the kitchen.

*****

Morning arose, and with it, the HQ sprung into life. Like a well-oiled machine, the leaders of the HQ set to work, each of them keeping half an eye on the four girls who’d managed to coerce Lauren into joining their game. Imogen clung to her hand, talking animatedly as she led Lauren towards the small area of the HQ that was filled with toys and games.

Taylor sat with Sage, running through their supplies, making a list of what they needed, though Sage was also keeping her eye on the police scanners for any word of Lorna or other mutants in danger. Marcos was still trying to think of a way to break Lorna out of prison, claiming the vaults to try and make a plan. Clarice and John sat sorting out some information for a newer station that was still starting up and needing assistance, Clarice still recovering from the ordeal of yesterday.

Caitlin slowly made her way to the room John and Clarice had claimed at the back of the HQ, further away from the noise of the main building. “Hey, uh, can I have a word?”

John and Clarice shared a glance before he looked over to Caitlin and gave a slight nod, wanting to make her feel welcome, but neither of them could hide their hatred. Caitlin grasped quickly that she’d stepped into a place where everyone was loyal to Taylor, even subconsciously, and that she was hated for causing Taylor harm, even the ones who didn’t know that she and Reed had sent her to the Citadel seemed to despise her. She figured out that John and Clarice had unwavering devotion to Taylor.

“Well, it’s about Macken— Taylor…” She noticed the pair tense at the subject and John’s eyes became sharp. “We were talking last night; she told me that she was experimented on—”

“She was,” Clarice muttered, her own glare settling on Caitlin.

“Sentinel Services handed her over to the most notorious mutant research lab in the country. They pumped her full of experimental drugs, trying to engineer her into a weapon that would help them eliminate the ‘mutant threat’. They injected her with dangerous, untested serums, just to see what would happen.” John stopped, letting out a breath, and shaking his head.

Placing a hand on John’s arm, Clarice took over, “her powers spread out of her body, and she became the focal point for the Weapon. The Cobra. They took her mind, her name, everything. She lost control, eventually, it was…” she couldn’t bring herself to finish.

“When I found her, she was a scared shell whose mind needed something to latch onto in order to ground itself,” John seethed, “so now I share a psychic link with her, I feel the pain she felt. I know how scared she was. I feel her fear every time she looks at you. I have never felt her as scared as she was yesterday!” He snapped, his voice not growing in volume; he already had a headache from the noise of the HQ and didn’t really want it to grow.

“What they were doing was legal!” Caitlin fired back.

“Just because it’s legal doesn’t make it right!” John growled, “you cannot escape your mind. They turned her own mind against her, engineered it to work for them, not her, left her locked in the dark while they built a monster to take her place. Five years locked in the dark is a long time. Sealed in a pure white room where the only company was doctors who torture you takes a detrimental toll on a person. Taylor’s not in danger, she is the danger. She’s my baby sister, and I will treat her as such.”

Caitlin took a breath, not too sure if she had any right to ask her next question, “John. Um, did… did Taylor really lose a baby?” Caitlin didn’t need a verbal answer, the way John tensed told her all she needed to know.

“It killed her when I told her that I couldn’t hear the baby’s heartbeat. She blamed herself; Gus had been killed two months earlier and Taylor had slipped back into her old state. She stopped eating, that’s what she reckons took her baby’s life.”

John hissed as an unnatural scream ripped through the HQ, digging deep into his mind, forcing itself louder and louder until it was almost unbearable, the sound of a thousand voices demanding to be heard. John caught Marcos’ eye as he left the office, the pair flew down the stairs over to where Taylor was collapsed. Marcos slid across the floor and pulled Taylor into his arms as John grabbed Taylor’s hands, directing all the pain that she was projecting into himself, silencing her psychic scream, drawing the noise into his own mind. Marcos pressed her head against his chest with one arm and locked the other around her neck making her focus on her breathing.

“It’s alright Tay! Mighty! Focus on my voice, nothing else.” John’s voice began to soften as the pain inside him dulled. “That’s it, breathe in and out, focus on that, nothing else, just the breathing, in and out. Forget the pain, I know it’s hard, you are not a monster. Not a machine. You’re a human being. A mother. A sister. A friend. In and out. That’s it. It’s not your fault. You couldn’t have stopped what happened.” Eventually the pain had subsided entirely, John collected a sobbing Taylor into his arms continuing to whisper words of comfort while glaring daggers at Caitlin. He wanted the woman to know that everyone at the HQ would stand by Taylor through everything.

Chapter Text

Lorna hugged her knees to her chest as she closed her eyes, her mind filling with memories of Marcos and Aurora, remembering them from the days before the Underground. She tried not to think about idea that she might never see her baby girl again, or that Marcos might never meet the baby. Swallowing down her grief and fear, she tried to keep from shaking.

In an instant, she straightened at the sound of the door of the solitary confinement cell unlocking.

The door opened, and a man stepped in, “Ms. Dane. How are you doing? I'm Jace Turner. Sentinel Services.”

Lorna shot him a smile, “listen, I'd love to chat, but I'm sort of busy here.”

Turner looked around the barren cell, “yeah. Yeah, I can see that. I think you're gonna want to make time for this, though. I'm about to take down all your friends in the Mutant Underground.”

Lorna scoffed, she’d heard that threat before, “good luck with that.” She remembered Sage once stating that the Underground would be able to survive so long as three of the Core Five were there to protect it, that, if it came to the worst case, the Underground could survive with just John and Taylor if it needed to.

Turner smirked at Lorna, “yeah, I don't think I'm gonna need luck. I'm gonna start with Marcos Diaz. Street name Eclipse? Does that ring a bell? Course it does, that's... that's your baby daddy, right?” Lorna glared at the man, but he wasn’t deterred, “so, here's what I'm thinking: I want to give you one more chance to cooperate with us. If you do, when the little one's born, I'll arrange visitations for you and Diaz. And for your daughter as well, Aurora. You guys can still have some sort of family.”

Lorna scoffed, “In prison.”

“No, I was thinking the Bahamas.” Turner commented sarcastically, “yeah, in prison. Ms. Dane... prison's where you want to end up right now. If you don't cooperate, you're going someplace much worse. So, you can give me what I want here, or you will give me what I want there, because, believe me, everybody gives me what I want there.” Turner stood up with a smirk, “Anyway. Think about it. And think really hard, okay? Because if we do this bust without you, you got no cards left.” And with that, Lorna found herself once again alone in her cell.

*****

It was early Saturday evening and Taylor watched the four girls who were sat at a table nearby, they wanted to try and listen but had lost the focus by concentrating more on what they were coloring in. Her eyes were distant as she watched them, her mind trapped elsewhere as she struggled to keep her focus on everything happening around her.

Taylor glanced over to Marcos and John as the pair continued to argue over what to do over Lorna. Subconsciously, Taylor ran her fingers over the brand on her left forearm, just above her wrist – a barcode that had been tattooed there when she was taken to the Citadel. Even the light touches made her wince, the brand had been on her wrist for 12 years, but it still hurt to touch. The scars beneath and covering it didn’t help the pain either. Taylor smiled reassuringly to John when he glanced over to her, feeling her pain, the simple smile told him that she was ok.

"So what? We just forget about Lorna because she's behind bars?!" Marcos snapped at John; his sharp words pulled Taylor back to reality.

"You know that's not what I'm saying!" John was doing his best to avoid raising his voice, both were trying to avoid raising their voices for the kids’ sakes, but also for Taylor. She needed things to be calm or she could have another crash like a few days earlier. Her mind was getting good at playing tricks on her with her biological family at the HQ. It was getting to the stage that the only way John could pull her back from the edge was through their mental link. It was leaving them both exhausted every time, their minds drained and both suffering from the pain she was forcing out.

"Well, God knows what she's going through in there!" Marcos exclaimed, trying not to raise his voice too much.

John rolled his eyes, feeling like he'd had this conversation with Marcos 20 times in the last day. It was exhausting just how often they were having the exact same argument. "You're talking about breaking into a jail. With guards. With guns!" Marcos nodded as John snapped his response. John felt like he was trying to convince the twins that hanging off the underside of the stairs was a bad idea – a conversation he’d had more than once.

Marcos scoffed, "yeah. We have a way passed all of it. Clarice!" John tensed slightly, only visibly to Marcos and Taylor who’d perked up at the mention of her best friend’s name. "You know what she can do, John. Better than any of us. And we all saw what she did the other day."

John nodded, "yeah, I saw her tearing through the fabric of space, she almost destroyed the whole building. She almost died!" He snapped; he wouldn’t let Marcos’ goal to get Lorna back cost Clarice her life.

"She’s fine now." Marcos argued, glancing around for support… and to avoid John and Taylor’s glares.

Caitlin couldn’t help but scoff and, for the first time since the woman had arrived, Taylor found herself in a stubborn agreement. "In your expert medical opinion."

Marcos shrugged slightly, "well, she's better than she was."

"Even if she is, she’s not ready for this. It’ll take time." Taylor defended; Clarice was her best friend. Seeing her hurt, it always made her angry and more likely to lose control of her powers.

"Then train her.” Marcos demanded, “you both train her just like you trained most of the people in this room."

"Johnny, Clarice has helped on loads of missions before.” Sonia said. Taylor, who had moved to stand behind Marcos, shared a look with John, both of them knew that Sonia was hoping to remove Clarice from the picture.

"So, you're on his side?" John questioned, shooting a look over to Taylor, unreadable to everyone in the room.

Sonia glanced uncertainly between the two friends, "I'm on Lorna's side! She's my friend." John rolled his eyes.

“Couldn’t you help, Mommy?” Came Imogen’s voice, the adults all looked over to the girl, “Daddy said that you used to be in a place like that.”

John and Taylor’s eyes met for a moment, a look of equal parts pain and surprise filling their expressions, “you remember your dad?” John asked softly, turning his attention to his niece, the girl nodded in response.

Taylor moved towards her daughter, kneeling slightly in front of Imogen, taking the girl’s hand in her own before explaining. “Honey, when I was in a place like that, Daddy and Uncle John came to rescue me, I didn’t get out on my own.” Imogen nodded, hugging her mom briefly before she turned back to her friends. Taylor glanced over to John, moving to stand beside him. John squeezed her forearm slightly, something they did to reassure each other.

The girls all shared a look before turning back to the adults, a helpful look on their faces that left their parents sharing an uneasy glance. Aurora was the brave soul who offered their idea. "We could destroy the prison to—"

Marcos laughed while John and Taylor raised their eyebrows, trying to keep from smirking. "Yeah, that's not happening, Rory. I get that you guys wanna help, but this is dangerous." The girls nodded and turned back to their coloring.

Caitlin scoffed after a moment, "we still live in a country of laws. Have we tried calling a lawyer?!" She was beginning to get desperate. Taylor rolled her eyes as the older woman continued, "some members of congress are sympathetic towards mutants…"

John shook his head, "you're really overestimating—"

Caitlin interrupted him, "why not try? We can attack a building, but we can't talk to a person?" The woman’s voice was filled with desperation.

Taylor sat back down on the couch, rubbing her forehead, she could already feel a migraine coming on – she just wasn’t sure if it belonged to her or John. "I thought you wanted a fight." She muttered, resting her chin on her hands with her elbows on her knees.

A dark look flashed through Caitlin’s eyes as she shot a look over to Taylor, "I do but there are ways to fight that don't involve battles."

Taylor couldn't help but chuckle, "not in my experience." She mumbled, but Caitlin didn't take note. Shatter placed a hand on Taylor’s shoulder, he was a dear friend to Taylor who was often there to comfort her when she needed it. John shot a thankful look to Shatter when he noticed him calming Taylor as best as he could.

"I have contacts, I can reach out." Caitlin continued, imploring the others to agree.

John shook his head slightly, "you can't have contact with the outside world while you're staying here. Sentinel Services will be looking for you. We can't risk the exposure."

Caitlin scoffed exasperatedly, "even if it could help?!"

"Much better chances they turn on us." Taylor pointed out, her eyes darting between her friends and her mother.

"Sorry Caitlin, it's too dangerous." Marcos added as a finality.

“Besides,” Taylor began, “there are people here that we have to protect, I won’t allow you to put them all in danger for your own benefit. I won’t ask these people – many of whom have spent years being hunted – to put aside their fears to fill your demands.”

Caitlin spluttered for a moment, following the line of Taylor’s eyes to where the four girls were sat coloring, “I’m not saying—”

“Yeah, you are,” Taylor snapped, tired of Caitlin’s demands, “you’re asking us to endanger everyone here just to get back a guy that’s spent the last 20 years trying to put all of them in prison. I won’t allow it.” An air of discomfort fell over the group as people tried to figure out which side to stand on. None of them wanted to call up lawyers, but most of them wanted to do anything possible to get Lorna back.

John looked around at the uneasy expressions on everyone’s faces, “we’ll get Lorna back, but we’re not going to bring everyone down to do it. We’ll get her back without sacrificing all of us.”

Chapter Text

Everyone headed out in different ways, the four girls staying coloring while Taylor went to let off steam somewhere, John went to find Clarice and Marcos went back to trying to find a way to spring Lorna from jail. Taylor attacked the punching bag with all her pent-up anger, Marcos was beginning to piss her off with the way he seemed to be becoming loyal to Caitlin. Taylor knew that they’d only been friends for a couple of years, but she’d always assumed it had been a strong friendship. Now, she couldn’t help doubting that.

After nearly an hour of taking her frustrations out on the punching bag, Taylor made her way towards the stairs, her eyes landing on Lauren and Andy huddled at a table in the corner of the HQ, a fond smile on her face as she saw them get out the awful monopoly board they had.

Andy pulled a face as he looked over the board, “this is the jankiest board ever. I'm pretty sure that money has mold on it.”

Lauren scoffed, “okay, that's not...” She picked up the pile only to drop it immediately, “it's mold.”

“It's mold.” Andy laughed, “so, uh, I guess since the tens are all stuck together, I figure we use the ones as tens and then the little paper nubs will be the ones.” He suggested.

“Doesn't matter to me.” Lauren muttered with a grin, “I'm gonna win it all anyway.”

“Sure. Remember last time?” Andy scoffed.

“Oh, when I let you win? It's not your birthday anymore.”

“Just pick your piece.” Andy shot back.

Lauren considered the pieces, “I'll be... nickel.”

“I think I'm gonna be the shoe.” Andy muttered.

Lauren froze, “No. You can't be the shoe. Be the bottle cap.”

Andy raised an eyebrow, “what do you mean? I just called the shoe.”

“I don't care. Put it back.”

“What's your problem, psycho?”

“Dad's always the shoe.” Andy froze at Lauren’s words.

Taylor hesitated for a moment before heading towards the pair, “I used to be the shoe.” She commented nonchalantly, smiling when both teenagers jumped, “I see you’ve found the shit monopoly board. Want the good one?”

“There’s a good one?” Andy asked incredulously, clearly not buying it.

Taylor smirked, motioning for the two teenagers to follow her down to the kitchen, a place the Underground Leaders were infamous for hiding things they didn’t want anyone else having. Read, the decent board games.

Taking a moment, Taylor looked over to the two kids, “I know you probably think we’re not doing anything to get your dad back, but I assure you, we’re doing everything we can. He was arrested just after one of our key players, we want Lorna home as much as you guys want your dad home.”

“Do you promise you’ll get him here?” Andy asked.

Taylor reached for his hand, “I will do everything I can to get him here.”

Lauren and Andy didn’t look so sure, “he sent you away, now you want to help him?” Lauren asked.

“It’s not about him. It’s about helping you two. I know what you’re going through. The fear, the pain, the guilt,” she looked at Andy with that comment, “I know that’s unimaginable, that guilt. I’ve felt it, the times where it seems easier to sink than continue to tread water. If you need to breathe, to hear the birds, to be surrounded by silence, go to the tree line outside, it’s a good place to work through those impossible feelings. While you do, be assured that I will do everything I can to get your dad back so that you don’t have to keep feeling that pain or guilt or fear.”

…

Heading upstairs, it didn't take long for John to find Clarice, she was sat with her favorite book and curled up in one of the chairs, Zingo lying by her feet.

John smiled as he walked over, he gently placed his hand on her shoulder making her jump. "Ok, so Marcos wants you to make a portal into a jail to rescue Lorna."

Clarice gave John a skeptical look, "yeah, that's not gonna happen, Babe. I know that he want's Lorna out of jail, I do too but it won't work. I can't do anything, see," as to prove her point she tried to open a portal, but it just flickered for a few moments between her hands before it fizzled out, "you'd be better off with a couple glow sticks and a hacksaw." John couldn't help but smile, "since I woke up, my powers, I dunno, they're broken." She shook her head as she spoke.

John placed a hand on her knee, "powers don't break, when you were unconscious you were overextending them, you've probably just exhausted them." Clarice nodded slightly, placing her hand on top of John's as he met her eyes, "tomorrow, why don't we… try and get them up and runnin' again?"

Clarice smiled softly, "yeah. What have I got to lose?"

John smiled just as a flash of neon ran passed quickly followed by a flash of black and blue, both Clarice and John couldn't help but laugh as they watched Imogen turn to face Evie causing the younger girl to fall over a couch she was running towards and Evie lift it just in time to pass under, Imogen responded clapping, making the floor ripple slightly and knocking over Evie, causing her to drop the floating coach as Aurora and Rose stumbled, appearing at the top of the stairs as Rose teleported them to the landing. It was a few seconds before all the girls were up and running again.

John saw a look cross Clarice’s features, one he’d seen hundreds of times on her face. Something was bothering her, but she didn’t know how to deal with it. “You need to talk to Mighty. Something’s up with her and she’s not talking to me. She talks to you. She needs you… go talk to her, Beacon, please.” John smiled reassuringly to Clarice before standing and letting his hand slip from hers to go and find his adopted sister.

…

Heading for Taylor, John couldn’t help but smile when he saw her losing in monopoly to Andy and Lauren, “I give it ten more minutes before you flip the board, call them both cheaters, and storm off, Mighty.”

While Andy and Lauren jumped, Taylor flipped John the middle finger, her focus still on the game, “it’s not my fault that you and Lorna always fucking cheat at this game.”

“I just like to make sure you guys are paying attention to what properties you guys own.”

“Yeah, by stealing them.” Taylor shot back with a glare, “what’s up?”

“Need a word… when you’ve got a sec,” John tipped his head, motioning for Taylor to meet him on the roof, “no rush. It’s not an emergency or anything.”

“How long have we been playing?” Taylor asked, glancing back to the game.

John shrugged, “well, the meeting finished three hours ago, so…”

Taylor’s eyes widened, she turned to Lauren and Andy, “I’ve gotta go, I’ve got some shit to sort out before the end of the day.” She frowned slightly at the disappointed looks on her siblings faces, “we’ll play another game or something soon. I promise.”

*****

Leaving Andy and Lauren with the good monopoly board, John and Taylor headed for the roof, away from any potentially listening ears.

“So, what’s kickin’ off?” Taylor asked, perching on the railings.

John let out a long breath, “kinda what I wanted to ask you. What’s going on, Tay? Love’s worried about you, I’m worried about you… what’s going on in your head that you’re not letting me see?”

Taylor looked away, focusing her attention on the tree line, “it’s nothing—”

“Liar,” John muttered, rolling his eyes when Taylor glared at him, “what was it that you said to me? Sometimes being stuck in your head is really gross, other times it’s really helpful? This is one of the helpful times. Talk to me, Taylor.”

“It’s… it’s complicated. Having my mother here… it’s like I’m back to being 15 years old, back to constantly letting my parents down, making them think that I enjoyed causing harm. Seeing my mother here is like someone stabbing me over and over again. Worse than that, I’ve seen my biological siblings be scared by me.” Taylor paused, shaking her head as John wrapped an arm around her, “when I was a kid, all I ever wanted to do was keep my little sister safe, to make sure that she didn’t experience the hate and fear that I faced… I can’t help but think that I just keep failing them.”

 “Failing who? Lauren and Andy?”

“Them, my parents, your mom, Gus, Imogen, everyone in the Underground, our old friends, you, Love… the list’s fucking endless.” She sniffed back her tears, “I’ve only ever done harm with my powers, John, I’ve never done good with them. Having my mom here, it just brings all that back to my mind. I’ve only ever hurt people with them. That boy at school. Those doctors. The other mutants. Everyone here. All I do is hurt people. Why do you all let me stay here?” A choked sob escaped her lips as she finished talking.

Carefully, John turned to face her, not letting Taylor slip from his side as he let his eyes meet hers. “You’ve never had anything to use your powers in a positive way. Everyone sees you, but they’re asking for Python or Cobra, they’re not seeing beyond your powers. You’re more than them, and Tay, you might not realize it, but you do good, every single day, you’re doing good. You’re fighting so that kids with powers like yours don’t have to grow up the way that you did. From where I’m standing, that a hell of a good thing. You just need to find your ’good fight’ for your powers before they can start being used for good.” The pair fell into a comfortable silence sat against the wall of the HQ for the next couple of hours until the sun had set.

The pair sat staring at the stars as Clarice joined them, sitting beside John, Marcos joined them all a few minutes later.

The quartet sat in companionable silence for a few minutes before Taylor spoke up, startling Marcos and Clarice, “did you guys know that Imogen remembers Gus?” Clarice turned to Taylor in surprise at the younger woman’s words. They all shook their heads.

“God, it’d be so easy to break Lorna out if we had him…” John muttered, standing up and leaning against the railing, looking over the forest.

“He could take out their defenses, we could have him perched up with a rifle, waiting to snipe anyone on our tail, get Lorna out in seconds, no casualties on our side.” Clarice added, her head leaning back to rest on the wall.

Marcos shook his head, watching the three reminisce on their lost friend, “you three always liked the aid of a sniper on the roof.”

“Course we did,” Taylor smiled, “that sniper on the roof meant we would live.”

*****

Darkness filled the HQ by 7pm, Marcos was sat with Aurora on his bed as he attempted to braid the girl’s hair, it reached just below her shoulders so Marcos had the stupid idea that it would be easy, he'd seen John braid Evie's hair many times and Rose's, but less so for Rose, she hated having her hair up. He even remembered seeing Gus pull Imogen’s hair into braids multiple times. Marcos had seen John do braids and they seemed so simple, but they weren't!

A knock on the door made Marcos close his eyes to avoid swearing, "yep!" He called through gritted teeth.

Taylor was struggling to stifle a laugh as she stepped into the room, "want a hand? John's upstairs laughing his ass off." Marcos rolled his eyes, "Rory. Turns out your dad can't braid hair," the little girl started to laugh at this as Taylor brushed and braided the girl’s hair in mere moments before she lifted the girl to see Marcos looking at the pair. Aurora reached over to her dad who took her up to bed.

*****

Caitlin glanced between the two sleeping forms of her children, a sadness swelling inside her at the thought of leaving them, “Andy. Kids, wake up.”

Andy looked over to his mom with bleary eyes, “Mom? What's going on?”

“What's wrong?” Lauren asked at the same moment.

“Nothing's wrong.” She assured them, “I have to go somewhere. I'll be back tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow? We're not supposed to leave.” Lauren exclaimed quietly.

“Where are you going?” Andy asked after a beat.

“To your Uncle Danny's house. I'm hoping he can help with your dad.”

Lauren raised an eyebrow, “Uncle Danny? Mom, we haven't seen him since Grandma's funeral.”

Andy shook his head, “No, screw that... if you're going, I'm going with you.”

“No. No way.” Caitlin argued, “It could be dangerous out there.”

“Mom, remember when those government guys attacked us?” Andy pointed out, “If that happens again, we can protect you.”

“Mom. We already lost Dad. We can't lose you, too.” Lauren added.

Andy shook his head, “not taking no for an answer.”

Caitlin watched both of her children with exasperation, “Let's go.” She stated after a moment.

Chapter Text

Reed watched with a tight expression as Turner continued to build a file on the plan to take down the Mutant Underground. “Alright, so you met Diaz at the bar,” Turner began, turning to address Reed, “to broker a deal to move your family to Mexico. Tell me about the bar. Who was there? Who did he speak to?”

Reed hesitated for a moment, considering everyone who’d been in the bar, “he seemed to know the bartender.”

Turner nodded before turning to another agent, “okay. Bartender's the target to make contact with the Underground. Get a recon team out there, find anything out about him.” The agent nodded and left the room.

After a moment, Reed let out a breath, “so what, you just want me to walk in and say that I escaped from Sentinel Services?”

“No. We're gonna put out an APB saying that you managed to evade capture.” Turner explained, “if the bar is connected to the Underground, then they'll hear about it.”

“What if I can make contact?” Reed asked.

“Then you get them to take you to your family, and we get Diaz and roll up their whole operation.”

Reed raised an eyebrow, “what happens after? To all of them?”

“What do you mean?” Turner asked in confusion, “they're a terrorist organization. They'll be dealt with accordingly.” A sense of dread flooded Reed’s gut at the thought of the daughter he abandoned being caught in the middle of all of this.

*****

As morning arose, John and Clarice headed outside to try and train Clarice's power, "you thought about what I said?" John asked.

"Yeah, but my power? I literally have the ability to bail out of bad situations and get people to safety, being afraid is just a big part of it."

John nodded, "yeah, but it's not all of it. In the Marines, when you want to give up, they train you to focus on something you care about, to hold on to it like your life depends on it because one day it will."

Clarice looked at her husband, curiosity written across her face, "what did you care about back then?"

He met her eyes, "back then, I still had a lot to prove, about being Apache, a mutant. That changed over the years, I gained you, the girls, a family. I wanted to protect the things and people I care about. You, the twins, Imogen, Taylor."

Clarice smiled and hugged John to her side, she had known that things had often been hard for him, but she was determined to make things easier.

"Just focus on what you care about now." John said placing his hand on Clarice's back.

"My warm jelly doughnuts." She muttered, glancing at John with a smirk. She didn't know quite why she referred to her family as her warm jelly doughnuts but had done so for years and she still did.

"Ok, maybe put the coffee down," Clarice took another swig before coughing.

John couldn’t help but laugh, "did you honestly let Mighty make you coffee, again?"

Clarice nodded, "I swear she's trying to poison us she's just not very good at it yet," she said with a smile.

"Anyway… look that way and picture that thing you love and go to it." John didn't remove his hand from her back, letting her lean against his presence for reassurance if she needed it. "Look at that," he dropped his hand from her back and the portal collapsed.

Clarice sighed, irritation filling her, "see, last time I did this I nearly destroyed the whole—"

John shook his head, "no, don't do that. Don't focus on the fear. Focus on—" His voice stopped as he tensed slightly, focusing his senses.

"Yo, what's up?” Clarice called as John walked towards a broken twig, still green on the inside.  “Hey!” She called again when he didn’t answer.

"We have a problem." He stated turning back to Clarice.

"No, I think you mean you have a problem. I have an idiot who keeps getting into problems." John shot a playful glare at her, and he went inside trying to find Marcos.

*****

The pair headed into the room the Struckers were using, John glanced over to Marcos, “they left last night and didn't take much with them.”

Marcos let out a sigh, “Why the hell would Caitlin do this?”

John shrugged back, “She believes she can help. That whatever connections she has can make a difference. She spent her whole life believing in the system.”

“How could she be so naïve?” Marcos argued, “no, I talked to her about this, I thought she understood.”

“Some people have to learn the hard way. We need to go after them.”

“Urgh, John, we don't have time for this. Lorna could disappear into a federal hellhole any day now.”

John shook his head, “if they get arrested before they come back here, they know where this place is. They get caught, we get caught, and we don't get Lorna back.”

“Yeah.” Marcos frowned before glancing over to John, “you wanna be the one to tell Taylor?”

John winced at the thought, “wanna bet that we could get away with not telling her?”

“You got a death wish now?” Marcos commented, only half joking, “we’ll tell her as we leave?”

“Or… hear me out, Shatter could do it? She’s less likely to hit him.” John pointed out.

*****

After 15 minutes, John found Clarice, "I'm heading out with Marcos, the Struckers took off last night so we're gonna go get them before they get themselves killed or arrested."

Clarice nodded, wrapping her arms around John's waist, "see, you call it a problem, I call it a solution.” She said with a grin before turning serious, “be careful," she whispered as he kissed her gently. He nodded in response. “Have you told Empty?” Clarice asked.

“No, but Shatter agreed to.”

“The brave and mighty Thunderbird, who avoids telling his sister about her family disappearing.”

John just laughed as Marcos headed over to them. “I mean, you could always tell her if you want.”

“Hey, he initially wanted to see if we could get out without even telling her,” Marcos commented, grinning when John shot him a betrayed look.

Clarice shook her head in exasperation, “y’know, considering you’ve got a telepathic link with her, I don’t think that’d be a smart move. The rest of us can escape her anger, you’ve got no chance.”

*****

Further inside, Taylor was downstairs in the training room, more like their gym. It was packed with everything they could possibly need for exercise.

Shatter came down the stairs and had to duck as a punch back flew towards him and became impaled against the wall. Taylor was pissed, that much was clear. "You alright?" He asked, he wasn’t too sure if it was a good question or not, it was difficult to tell with Taylor.

"My mother is determined to bargain for Lorna's release, her two younger children are actin' like they can't survive without their dad and Caitlin is treatin’ me like an animal so… I'd say I'm normal."

Shatter couldn't help but chuckle, "well, your boys wanted me to tell you they've gone to chase down your runaway family."

Taylor threw her head back and let out an irritated sigh, "seriously?! I have been more stressed this week than in the past 7 years. What does that tell ya, Shatter?"

He chuckled again, "that you've got a bad mix for a family."

She couldn't help but laugh, "I knew there's a reason you were my friend."

Shatter smiled and turned to leave, "your boys'll be pissed if they see that." He motioned to the punching bag sticking precariously out of the wall, she couldn't help but wince slightly.

“Hey, question!” Taylor called, smirking when Shatter froze, “how come you’re telling me and not Dickhead One or Two?”

“Because they’ve already left…”

“Those little bastards.” Taylor muttered, “since when do you dip without telling me? Asshole.” She rolled her eyes as she felt John’s amusement in her mind. “Do me a favor, get my sister home safe. Andy as well. I… I promised them that I’d do everything I could to get their dad here safely.”

“You promised that? You surprise me.”

“It’s not forgiveness or anything, but I know what that emptiness feels like. You told me Andy was the one to break the robots, he was the one that delayed long enough for their dad to get shot. I know what that guilt can do to a person. I don’t want that kid feeling what either of us have felt.”

*****

The three Struckers ducked into an alleyway as a police car drove passed, “Alright. It's clear. Come on.” Caitlin muttered, leading them back onto the street.

“We can't just hike the whole way. Uncle Danny lives, like, all the way across town.” Andy complained.

“Mom, we're gonna get noticed on the street.” Lauren pointed out, “we have to get a cab.”

“To Buckhead?” Caitlin scoffed, “I... I have about enough cash to get us to that tree over there. And with our bank accounts frozen...”

Andy eyed up the bank on the street corner, “well, why don't I just unfreeze them?”

“Wait. Are you seriously suggesting we rob a bank?” Caitlin asked, hoping she’d misunderstood.

“Yeah.” Andy shrugged.

Caitlin let out a disbelieving laugh, “I... I'm not hearing this.”

Andy scoffed, rolling his eyes, “Mom, why should we have to hold back when nobody else does?”

“Because people could get hurt, and because we don't rob banks.” Caitlin exclaimed.

Lauren looked at her brother, “Andy, if we're ever gonna have a chance at a normal life again—”

“Normal? Lauren, you’ve gotta be kidding me.” Andy exclaimed, “Normal is gone! Normal doesn't exist anymore. Okay?” Parking meters began shaking along the road before shattering open, “There, cab fare. The bank is safe. Happy?” Caitlin scoffed before grabbing as many coins as she could.

Chapter Text

It didn’t take them long to reach Danny’s house after getting a cab, Lauren glanced up at the house, “I forgot how big this place is.”

“What if they're not home?” Andy asked, suddenly worried.

“There's only one way to find out.” Caitlin led the pair up towards the door.

Lauren glanced over her shoulder at the cab, “I think he's still counting coins.”

Andy grinned, “Yeah, he was not happy about the coins.”

Caitlin smiled before letting out a breath and knocking on the door, a few tense moments passed before it opened. Danny looked at the three people in his doorway in surprise, “Caitlin. Kids.”

“Danny.”

“Thank God you're okay.” Danny muttered.

“I'm sorry we didn't call. Can we come in?”

“The police were here. Do you have any idea how much trouble you're in?”

“Yes, I do. Please, Danny.” After a moment, Danny let out a breath and stepped aside, letting the three enter.

To say that it was an awkward meeting was an understatement, everyone was unnaturally tense, Danny passed a beer to Caitlin, “Here you go.”

“Thanks.” Caitlin took a swig, “Where's Mary?” She asked, trying to make conversation.

“Uh, she's, uh, out of town. Sales conference. I'm sorry we don't have more pizza. We weren't expecting company.”

“No, it's… it's fine. Thank you.”

Andy, Lauren, and their cousin, Scott, all sat at the table, slowly picking at the pizza in front of them. Scott glanced between his cousins, “I don't know if this is inappropriate or whatever… but did you guys have to fight off the cops?”

Danny scoffed, “Yeah, that's real inappropriate, son.”

“It wasn't like that. We just ran.” Lauren explained.

Andy grinned over to his cousin, “tore up some robots, though.”

“Dope.” Scott grinned, “so have you guys been, like, hiding out on the streets, or...?”

“No.” Lauren stated, her hand going to her locket, “there's this group... They help mutants in trouble.”

“Cool. Like the Underground Railroad.” Scott said.

“Scott.” Danny warned, “Please? You know what? Why don't you guys go play some video games? Okay? Go on.” The three kids headed upstairs.

*****

Once they were alone, Danny turned to Caitlin, “It's good to see you, Cait. But you shouldn't have come.”

Caitlin let out a breath, “where else could I go? Jenny's in Arizona. Mom's gone. I need to find Reed. Danny, you know people at the firm. Judges, the-the mayor... members of Congress. You spent half of Mom's last Christmas telling us how they all go to your golf club.”

Danny scoffed, “Yeah, I was at the club the other day, and people wouldn't even look at me. Because of all this.”

“But you worked on Senator Montez's campaign.” Caitlin exclaimed, blinking back her tears.

“Yeah, and he ran the campaign on a "security first" platform. I can't just call him up and ask him to pull some strings for some... outlaws.”

“I don't even know if Reed's alive.”

“I could go to jail. For even letting you through the door.”

Caitlin shook her head, “when Mom was sick, I left you alone. I-I... I knew you didn't like seeing her like that, and... I never asked for help. But now I am asking.”

“Caitie... I have got to consider my family.”

“My children... my husband, they are your family, too!” She exclaimed desperately.

“You can stay the night. Okay? I've got cash in the safe, you can have it. You can have all of it, okay? But in the morning, you got to go.” Danny told her with unwavering certainty.

*****

Turner set up the wanted pictures for Reed, “Hey, look who's famous.” He stated, “Headquarters just sent out the notice. As of an hour ago, you're the subject of a multi-agency manhunt.”

“I'm flattered.” Reed deadpanned.

“With any luck, our target will have heard all about it by now. You just need to convince them to take you to the Mutant Underground. We're gonna track you...” Turner held up a thin device, “with this. Put your left leg out, please.” He locked the tracker around Reed’s ankle, “it's thin enough that it won't register if they pat you down. There we go.” He switched it on, “it also doesn't come off unless I unlock it. So... Unless you're planning on losing a foot. I always say that 'cause there was a guy...”

“Got some activity here.” Another agent called over, “Out back.”

“That the bartender?” Turner asked.

“Yeah.”

“Alrighty, kids, it's game time. Go get 'em, tiger. Mr. Strucker? Try to remember that your family's depending on you?”

*****

Reed headed around to the back of the bar, he’d barely rounded the corner when the bartender looked at him with suspicious eyes, “what are you doing here?”

“I was here a few days ago.” Reed stated, “I met up with Marcos Diaz to talk about moving my family.”

The man scoffed, “I remember who you are.”

“We ran into Sentinel Services. We got separated. I just want to talk to Marcos.”

The man disappeared, turning invisible only to reappear with a gun aimed at Reed, “Do you got any idea how much heat you got on you? Cops are looking for you everywhere.”

“Easy. I just want to find my family.”

“Get out of here.”

“Why do you think Marcos was talking to me? I have information. I was a prosecutor.” Reed stated, “I know about the investigation into your network, I know the police, I know the federal agencies. I can help you. I just want to find my family first.”

“Hey, man, I don't make the goddamn rules, man.”

“I have nowhere else to go, all right?” Reed exclaimed, “I have nowhere else to go. If you're not gonna help me, then you may as well just pull the trigger.” The gun clicked as the safety was flicked off, “you'd be doing me a favor.”

“Alright.” The man stated, “Come on.”

*****

Leading Reed into the pub, the man, Fade, looked over to him with a raised eyebrow, “so, how the hell did you get away from Sentinel Services?”

“We were in an old warehouse, and... I found a crawlspace and hid in there until they gave up the search.”

“Gave up? They don't give up easy.” Fade muttered.

“No. My kids are the ones with the abilities.” Reed commented, “I guess they were less concerned with me.”

“Lucky you.” Fade deadpanned as he led Reed into the back room, “That's Sheila. Little one's Dominique. This is Reed. He'll be going out with us tonight.”

Reed looked over the woman and child before turning back to Fade, “We'll meet my family then?”

“Don't work like that. I take you to the drop point. Someone from HQ picks you up, drives you the rest of the way.” He threw a bag of chips at Reed, “Have some supper. I'll be back after last call. Get some shut eye.”

Reed sat down beside Sheila and Dominique, holding out the bag of chips, as if trying to break the ice, “you hungry?”

“No thank you.” Sheila sighed, “I couldn't keep anything down. Too nervous.”

“You two alone?”

“Yeah. They took my husband.”

“Daddy's different, too.” Dominique muttered from where she was cuddled against her mother, eyeing Reed cautiously.

Reed felt his heart clench at the young girl’s words, “where'd they take him?”

“Sentinel Services detention center.” Sheila told him, “They tried to take us.”

“What, both of you?”

“To them, she's just a future threat who carries the X-Gene. Some world, huh?”

All the air seemed to leave Reed’s lungs at the woman’s words, his mind spinning as he thought about his own family, and the countless families he’d played a part in tearing apart. He shifted his weight, groaning slightly as his muscles protested.

“Are you okay?” Sheila asked.

“Yeah. Sentinel Services shot me with an immobilization round. It's been a few days, but it hurts, you know?” Sheila smiled softly and placed a hand on Reed’s arm. Reed let out a gasp as all the pain disappeared from his body. “What did you just do?”

“Took away your pain. I can't heal, but that I can do.”

“My oldest daughter could do something similar… manipulate pain.” Reed smiled sadly.

“We have to stick together, right?” Sheila stated as she smiled at Reed’s words.

“Right.”

*****

Scott and Andy were busy playing Medal of Honor while Lauren had claimed Scott’s tablet. “Always knew you were a beast at Medal of Honor, but now you're, like, the beast of real life, too.” Scott laughed, “you know what I'm gonna call you now? De-Struckto. Get it? It's like Strucker...”

“Yeah, I get it. Please don't.” Andy chuckled back.

“Could you, like, destroy a skyscraper?”

“Uh, I don't know. Probably not. Here, cover my flank. I'm going in.”

“I got you, De-Struckto.”

“Dude, really?” Andy sighed.

“What about, like, a jumbo jet?”

“Man, I'm trying to play.” Andy commented, “Why would I even want to destroy a plane?”

“I don't know. Like, if it was attacking you or something.”

“Attacking me with what? Luggage? Jumbo jets don't have guns.” Andy stated just as they lost the game, “great. First game in weeks, and it's a total slaughter. This is gonna kill our ranking.”

“Dude, who cares?!” Scott exclaimed, “I need to see what you can do.” He placed a trophy down on the table, “come on, just do something to this. Please?”

“No. I don't... I can't just do it out of nowhere.”

Lauren glanced up at the pair, “Andy. You can't do it at all. Don't encourage him.”

Andy rolled his eyes, “Go back to Insta-stalking Jack.”

Lauren rolled her eyes before turning back to the tablet, scrolling through Instagram, checking the profiles of her friends, the people she was supposed to be graduating with in a few months. She checked on Jack, saw a picture of him kissing a girl from English class, Hannah, she was a track runner and hockey player. Lauren scoffed before continuing her scrolling. Her blood ran cold when her eyes landed on a photo. “Oh, my God.” She muttered after several moments.

“What? What's wrong?” Andy asked, the game forgotten to look at his sister.

“It's nothing, okay?” Lauren stated, flipping the tablet.

“Hey, what is it?!” Lauren let out a breath and turned the tablet for Andy to see, “it's our house.” He murmured as he saw the picture, one that showed their house that had been vandalized, “That's Lucas. We've been going to school with him since second grade.”

“Hey, Andy, they're just stupid kids.” Lauren said, trying to settle him, “It doesn't matter.” A metallic rattling filled the room before the trophy bent in half.

“No way.” Scott muttered.

Seconds later, the door opened, Caitlin looked between the three teenagers, “Guys? Is everybody okay?”

“Yeah. These dorks are just going all WWE on each other.” Lauren lied easily, “It's nothing.”

Caitlin nodded, “You guys should try to get some sleep, all right?”

“Mom? Is Uncle Danny gonna help?”

“We're working on it.” She assured the kids.

*****

As night fell, Lauren kept her attention on the tablet, she’d stopped checking social media hours ago, her attention had turned to searching the news and the official government website, searching for any upcoming legal changes as well as searching for any information on her family that were mentioned on the news.

Her attention shifted slightly, focusing instead on something more… historical. She searched up her new friends, searching each of their names. She read about John and Taylor committing acts of terrorism together, about Clarice ‘attacking’ prisons and causing ‘mass prison breaks’, she read about Marcos breaking into Sentinel Services and making off with nearly a dozen classified drives.

In her time doing civics, political studies, sociology, and mutant studies, Lauren had heard all about the group known as the Core Five, she remembered when she started learning, there was the Core Six, but one of theirs had died. Sentinel Services heralded it to be the start of a new era, a beginning of the fall of the Mutant Underground. That was two years ago.

Reading as many articles and research papers as she could before she fell asleep, Lauren saw the group regularly referred to as revolutionaries rather than terrorists. Mutants all across the States listened when they spoke. She would listen, too. She would join their revolution.

Chapter Text

John tracked the Struckers movements through the city, letting Marcos drive so that he could put all his concentration into tracking the Struckers.

After several long hours, Marcos decided that he needed to discuss something with John. It had been on his mind for more than a week now, but the time had always been wrong. “When Clarice got sick and I went to the hospital with Caitlin, she told me that Taylor went to some Mutant school, apparently not Xavier’s.” John glanced over to his friend, “you knew.” Marcos muttered, figuring out John’s expression.

John turned away, his attention on the road, “Taylor’s mind was a mess when we found her, she couldn’t organize her thoughts, there was only the school that was a constant. Several people who’d been crucial in her life. And Caitlin’s either lying or ignorant; Taylor used to spend her weekends with Xavier’s lot, though. I don’t even know if she remembers it or if she ever told her parents about them.” John and Marcos both smirked at the idea of Taylor being at Xavier’s school. “She remembers bits and pieces, I dunno how much, I don’t push her on it.” John muttered before turning back to tracking.

It took Marcos a moment to realize what John wasn’t saying. “You two knew each other way back?”

John just let out a laugh before nodding, “neither of us went to the school, we just went at the weekends to train our powers. Charles used to bring us both up to Westchester to train, said he didn’t want to see either of us ‘waste our potential.’ He found out about the pair of us through… weird reasons. He knew my dad, so I got in that way. Tay gained someone else’s attention, Charles’ on-again-off-again enemy took an interest, went to her school, met with her, offered to teach her how to be proud of who she is.”

Marcos shook his head, struggling to think of what else to do. He couldn’t say that he was surprised that John and Taylor had known each other before. “How old were you?”

“I was 14, she was 9. She was so different…”

“Did you have a mind link back then?”

John could only laugh, “God, no. I think we’d’ve made Charles and Logan retire if we’d had that then.” His smile faded, “that formed when we rescued her from the Citadel, it was… overwhelming to say the least. Hell, Charles couldn’t track our minds at all. He couldn’t detect either of us, even as my dad brought me to the school or Erik played chess with Taylor, Charles couldn’t detect either of us.”

“Hold on,” Marcos muttered, “Caitlin said that Taylor went to Arizona for New Year’s when she was 12. She went to stay with you, didn’t she?”

John shook his head, “Caitlin said it was New Year’s? She stayed from early December until late February, only went back for Lauren. I think my mom was ready to adopt her by the end of it. Tay and James were terrifying together.”

“James?” Marcos asked, trying to place the name.

“My brother. He’s a couple years younger than Tay.”

Watching John for a moment, Marcos considered something, “that’s why you can’t forgive Caitlin. You remember Taylor before the Citadel.”

John sighed, “I knew her better than anyone else did. I knew how much she struggled at home. She hated herself for being a mutant sometimes, as a kid, she just wanted to be normal… She was my baby sister long before the Underground. I remember her being 10 and her sister being born, she brought a picture of her that weekend. Tay hadn’t ever been that excited to show off something from home, but she was showing anyone who’d stand still long enough for her to shove that photo in front of their eyes.”

“What was she like? Back then?” Despite everything Caitlin had said, Marcos couldn’t imagine Taylor as a kid.

John laughed, “she was a little shit. Causing trouble as easy as breathin’. Problem was, she knew she would get away with it. It’s difficult to tell off the Professor’s protégé, even more difficult to tell off Erik’s favorite. She used to play chess with Erik every Saturday evening, she was bad at it…” The pair shared a smile at that. “She would spend Fridays studying with Charles, she wanted to change the world, wanted to make it so all kids were allowed to grow up safe. By the time she was 15, she was terrifying when she set her mind to something, she knew the right words and had the facts to back her up, she could tell you every Mutant Rights bill that ever existed, had written essays and legal comments that ended up published, she was a revolutionary long before the Underground… it all fell away though. She was happy when we were at Xavier’s, didn’t have to worry about expectations and pretending to fit in. She was so determined, she’s always been unstoppable when she sets her mind to something… difference was, it was directed without her pain.”

“I can’t picture her as anything other than who she is now.”

A look crossed John’s face, one Marcos couldn’t quite figure out, “Yeah, well, that kid died a long time ago. Too many people gave up on her. Turned their backs or thought the worst.”

“Including you?” Marcos asked carefully, holding his breath as John remained silent. “Wait, you and Clare met when you were like, 18 right?” John nodded, “did Tay know Clare then?”

“No. Tay was supposed to meet Clare a few weeks after she was sent to the Citadel. I was 20. I didn’t know that she’d been sent there, I thought she’d just up and left, that things had gotten complicated at home or something. I remember sneaking into Charles’ office one weekend to find her address, headed to Atlanta, knocked on the front door, got told by Tay’s grandma that she’d died.”

Marcos froze at John’s final statement, “when did you learn…”

“I found out that they’d sent her to the Citadel when we rescued her. Spent five years grieving her… I remember telling the others, the X-Men, that she was dead. None of them said otherwise – even Charles thought she was, he’d never been able to read her mind. We had a fucking memorial for her at the school… My brother took it the worst, thought he should’ve been able to tell that she was sick or something, then he found out she’d been in the Citadel… he was ready to fight the world.”

“Was… was your dad one of the X-Men?” Marcos asked, not sure what answer he was expecting.

“Nah, Dad was good at getting information to the right people to keep them safe. He had a family, he used to say there was ‘too much on the line’. Didn’t mean much when he died… six weeks after I met Taylor.” John shook his head, looking away from Marcos for a long moment.

“Something else… Caitlin called Taylor ‘Mackenzie’.” Marcos said, watching for any changes in John’s expression.

John didn’t look over, “I called her Mack, others called her Mackie, she hated all of them. Taylor was a joke name for her. Came from ‘tailored training,’ my training, tailored to suit both of us. So, she became the tailor, or just Taylor.”

Letting out a breath, Marcos shook his head, clarity reaching a thousand memories of John and Taylor, “all this time… you look after her because you knew Mackenzie.”

“Most people didn’t. They didn’t care enough to pay attention to the kid screaming to be heard for anything other than her powers. Nine years old, she hated them. She didn’t when we were training.”

“Does… does she remember Mackenzie?”

“Doubt it. She remembers so little from the past.”

“Her nickname, M.T., where did that come from. Her initials?”

John shook his head, “Empty. Only thing she would say once we’d saved her. ‘Empty’, over and over. It was Clare that said she was loved; it’s why Clare became ‘Love’. Empty became M.T. became My Tee became Mighty. Neither of them ever lost those names. They’re comforting… for all of us, I think.”

“You didn’t get a nickname?” Marcos joked.

For a moment, John wanted to respond with no, but eventually, “Beacon. Tay and Reese use it occasionally, normally when no one else is around to hear it. It’s not used as often as theirs.”

Marcos shot him a look, “why Beacon?”

John shrugged, “it’s dumb, Tay and I once got far too drunk at my house, we were talking about Clare and Gus, started saying sappy shit, next morning, Mighty kept callin’ me Clare’s Beacon. The pair of them still use it when life starts getting too heavy.”

Marcos raised an eyebrow, “beacon? Like a light?”

“Yeah,” John muttered as though it was obvious, “we’ve always been each other’s lights when everything gets too much. I was just the asshole that drank too much and said it out loud.”

“Did… did Gus have a nickname?” Marcos asked, he knew he was stepping into dangerous territory with the question. He couldn’t help but push the questions, realizing now just how little he knew about his friends.

John shot him a look, “Matchstick. Love and Mighty used to joke that Gus was the one that lit the spark that got the rest of us into trouble. So, Matchstick became his nickname.”

Marcos smiled slightly at the notion, “Empty, Love, Beacon, and Matchstick?”

John hummed, “and I think if anyone other than the four of us use them, we’ll deny those nicknames exist.”

The underlying message was clear to Marcos. While he and Lorna called Taylor ‘Mighty’ on occasion, they didn’t call her ‘Empty’, and they didn’t call Clarice ‘Love’. He hadn’t even known about John or Gus’ nicknames. Marcos knew that those nicknames weren’t ones for outsiders to use. He knew that, at least in some ways, he and Lorna would always be outsiders when it came to the four.

*****

The pair spent most of the day and night trying to follow the trail, but thanks to the amount of people and activity that happened in the city, John had needed to take a break several times to avoid sensory overload.

By dawn the following morning, John and Marcos had a clear trail, leading them to a house in a suburb. “They’re inside.” John muttered as Marcos pulled the car over to the curb.

*****

Fade led the three out to a van, helping them into the back. Reed looked around with a tense face as they headed down the back roads.

“It's okay.” Little Dominique said, “Mommy said we're going to the safe place. We don't have to be scared anymore.”

Sheila nodded to her daughter, “That's right, honey. Worst part is over. We're with friends now.”

“Stop the van.” Reed stated.

“What?” Fade called from the driver’s seat.

“I said stop the van. I have to get out! There's a vehicle behind us.”

“Calm down. I can hide the van.” Fade assured him, it clearly wasn’t his first time hearing that.

“You don't get it. They're following us.”

Fade glanced over his shoulder to Reed, “Wait. What?”

“Sentinel Services put a tracker on me.” Reed confessed.

“You son of a bitch!” Fade yelled.

“Oh, my God. What did you do?” Sheila asked as she pulled Dominique closer to her.

“I was just trying to protect my family. Wanted to see them. I didn't... I would never... Just stop the van, and I'll get out.”

“We stop, and we're dead! You set us up!”

Reed yanked the side door of the van open, “I'm sorry.” He muttered before jumping out onto the grass verge.

Turner watched Reed jump from the van and the van vanish from view, “What? No. Damn it!” The tires squealed as the Sentinel Services van pulled off the road. Turner stormed over to Reed, “Was I unclear? Your job was to stay in the van.”

“You were clear enough.” Reed growled.

“You just made the biggest mistake of your life.”

“No. But I got pretty damn close.”

“We had a deal, Mr. Strucker.”

“And you can shove that deal up your ass.” Reed glared before Turner dragged him to the van.

*****

Heading silently into the large suburban house, John and Marcos quickly found Caitlin lying asleep on the couch. John carefully reached over, shaking her shoulder slightly to wake her up. Caitlin pulled a knife out from under the pillow before realizing it was John and Marcos.

“Caitlin, listen to me. You’re in danger here, where are Andy and Lauren?” John asked quietly.

Caitlin glared at the pair in front of her, “what are you doing here?!” She whispered demandingly, “you can’t just break in!”

“You don’t understand,” Marcos began, only to be interrupted.

“Yes. I understand that I’m trying to help my husband.” Caitlin growled,

“What? With favors and phone calls?” Marcos asked, “we discussed this.”

“No, I distinctly remember that there was, in fact, no discussion!” She snapped.

“Guys, we need to go,” John stepped in, putting an end to the current debate, “if we can find you, others can too.”

At that moment, Caitlin’s brother Danny made his way down the stairs, calling his sister’s name. Danny froze when he saw Marcos and John.

“Relax,” John told him, raising his hands slightly as Danny picked up the knife Caitlin had previously held.

“Danny, please, everything’s ok.” Caitlin tried to reassure him.

“No, it doesn’t look ok to me.” He muttered, pointing the knife at John and Marcos.

“These are the people trying to help us.” Caitlin explained, hoping to calm her brother down.

The sound of tires squealing in the driveway caused the four to freeze, Danny glared harshly at his sister. “What the hell? Caitlin, what? You bring mutants into my home?!” Danny snapped. the sound of chatter outside grabbed John’s attention, they were about to have much bigger issues.

“Mutants? Seriously, Danny?” Caitlin began, “the only mutants I brought into your home are your niece and nephew.” She snarled.

Marcos glanced over to John from where he stood near a window, a nod confirming that the men outside were armed. “Save your family spat for later. Right now, we got bigger problems.” Marcos told them, stepping away from the window.

“Get the kids.” John instructed Caitlin. His mind went back to Taylor making him promise to bring those kids home safe.

The sound of chatter faded to one voice demanding that they went outside. John and Marcos shared a glance as Caitlin arrived with the kids, Andy and Lauren both looked confused, the third kid looked terrified. 

“God. Who did you tell that you were coming?” Danny demanded, glaring at Caitlin.

“No one.” She snapped back.

“Well, obviously one of your friends here did, 'cause—” John couldn’t help rolling his eyes, this guy was really clutching at straws.

Danny was cut off when his son interrupted. “Dad, I think—”

“Scottie, not now. Please.”

“I texted a pic of a trophy Andy tore apart to one friend.” The boy confessed.

Instantly, Andy and Lauren were defensive, both feeling betrayed by their cousin. “What?” Andy muttered. John and Marcos left the family to their little argument while they checked how many they were dealing with.

“Oh, Scott.”

“He swore he wouldn't show anyone. He swore.”

John and Marcos joined the family in the living room again after several minutes, the pair sharing a look, trying to come up with a plan. “They're seven deep out front.” Marcos explained, “Anything around back?” He asked, hoping for good news.

“Yeah, there's four of 'em, and then more outside the kitchen door. We're surrounded.” John told them, his eyes scanning the group as he listened for anyone else pulling up to the house. “Look, I can get us through a wall, but if they start shooting while we run, there's gonna be a fight.” He said with a shrug, he would be able to shield one or two of them, he knew Marcos could protect himself, but Danny and Scott would be unprotected.

“Run?” Came Andy’s voice, “why should we have to run?”

“Didn't you hear them?” Lauren asked her brother, rolling her eyes, “there's an army out there.”

“Yeah, so what? We can take those guys.” Andy fired back, shrugging his shoulders.

“Yeah, of course we can take them. But we do that, people are gonna die.” John explained.

“Well, maybe it's time these people learned.” Andy muttered.

Caitlin’s eyes widened at Andy’s words, “Andy, you don't mean that.” Her voice stayed low, trying to sound certain.

“Yes, I do.” Andy snapped back, “listen to them, Mom. They hate us.” Another call for Danny to send them out echoed through the house.

“I'll go.” Danny told them.

All attention turned to Danny as everyone processed his words, “it's Chuck Sanders.” He reasoned.

“Chuck?” Caitlin asked in shock, “I was on swim team with him. We went to church.” She whispered.

“I know, I know. I don't think you're quite understanding how people how they feel about all this.” Danny told her before turning to the rest of them. “You guys should move.”

Once Danny was outside, John turned to Andy, “look, Kid, people don’t change their minds through violence. We’ve been fighting this war a lot longer than you. I get you’re angry, trust me, I get it. But killing these people only helps those who say all mutants are dangerous and ‘the only safe mutant’s a dead one’. Don’t give them more to feed into that bullshit.”

*****

Outside, Danny realized just how many people had turned up to try at grab Caitlin and her kids. “Morning, Dan.” Came the familiar voice of his neighbor.

“Chuck.” Danny tipped his head before looking around, “the hell you doing? Who are all these people?”

“Just a few concerned folks from the community.” Chuck replied nonchalantly.

“What do you want?” Danny asked, playing dumb.

“Come on. You know why we're here. Caitlin and her kids, they inside?”

“I don't know what you're talking about.” Danny replied.

“Cut the crap, Dan. Rick saw a photo on his son's phone when they got up for swim practice.” Chuck began.

“Oh, for God's sake, Chuck, come on.” Danny commented exasperatedly.

“Your son sent it!” Chuck exclaimed, “now, we know they're inside, so just send 'em out so we don't have to search the house.” Chuck said condescendingly.

“Dan, I know they're family, but these kids destroyed half a school.” Came the voice of another neighbor.

“We're just trying to keep everyone safe.” A third voice said, Danny couldn’t help scoffing.

“Yeah, and the $300,000 bounty has got nothing to do with it, right, Chuck?” Danny asked in the same condescending manner Chuck had used earlier. “Come on, the only person in that house is my son, Scott. Who plays Minecraft with your son, Jacob, who's lived down the street from you since he was six years old!” Danny exclaimed, he took a moment to get his temper in check, “Chuck, come on, please just go.”

“He's lying, man. Just go in.” Came another voice, “we didn't come here for nothing.” Danny and Chuck continued to argue for several moments before Chuck hit him over the head with his gun, knocking Danny to the ground.

The group began to approach the house, yelling for them to open the door. At that moment, the door exploded into splinters, leaving Andy stood in the doorway. “Leave us alone!” He yelled with conviction, “leave us alone.” His voice became little more than a whisper as a rifle was cocked.

John pulled Andy out of the way before the boy could get hurt. Marcos shot lasers at the rifle, heating it until the man was forced to drop it. “Leave it!” Marcos yelled as he herded the Struckers out of the house, leading them to the car with John guarding the family.

“Stay behind me. Get into the car.” John ordered, not letting his eyes fall from them until the family of three were all seated in the car. “Come on!” John yelled over to Marcos. Marcos ran towards the car, climbing into the passenger seat, leaving John to drive.

Chapter Text

The people from the house were following them, shooting at them as they raced down the road, John kept glancing in the rear-view mirror as he tried to shake them.

“What’re we gonna do? We can’t go back to the HQ with them on our tail.” Marcos hissed, trying to keep the two teenagers from hearing them. He knew the route they were taking was in the direction of the HQ, but not directly.

“Taylor!” John growled; Marcos knew instantly that John wasn’t speaking to him.

*****

Taylor stood in the tech room at the HQ, leaning against the desk while Sage sat at one of the computers, updating Taylor on everything they knew about the prison Lorna was currently in.

“Taylor!” The voice rippled through her mind, causing her to stand up straight. Sage glanced over to her friend, waiting to hear what was happening.

Taylor’s eyes clouded as she focused on John’s panic, “what’s wrong? What’s happened?”

“We found the Struckers, but things went south. We got the local Mutant Welcoming Committee.” John explained.

“How many are on you?”

“Eight, maybe ten. Either way we can’t afford a fight, we need a way out of this that doesn’t leave any corpses.”

“Give me a minute, I’ll figure something out!” Taylor headed to find Clarice, a plan already forming in her mind.

Taylor found Clarice sat with the girls and Zingo, the girls were all talking and playing as Taylor approached, “Love, we got a problem.” Taylor muttered, placing her hand on Imogen’s head.

“Girls, stay here.” Clarice told the kids as she led Taylor out of ear shot of Evie. “What’s going on?”

“Everything’s gone sideways in the rescue, they got hicks on their tail. Can you portal their truck back here?”

Clarice’s eyes went wide. “A truck? Empty, I can’t even make a stable portal for a potted plant! Now you want me to portal a truck?!” She exclaimed.

Taylor’s eyes fixed onto Clarice, she was practically bouncing as she looked at Clarice.  “Maybe I can help.” She stated hopefully. Clarice looked at her, creasing her eyebrows as she tried to figure out what her best friend meant. “Look, maybe I can direct my powers into destroying the barriers blocking your powers in your mind. I was thinking yesterday, maybe I can open the pathway to your abilities by forcing mine towards it.”

Clarice hesitated, clearly skeptical about the idea, but quickly nodded, she wanted John safe.

“This may hurt.” Taylor whispered to Clarice as she placed her fingers on the sides of Clarice’s head.

“Hit me.” Came Clarice’s response only moments before she let out a silent scream as white-hot pain seared through her mind, all her psychic wards were forced down as the pain took over all areas of her mind.

Seconds later, Taylor took her fingers away and Clarice became responsive, stumbling slightly as she clutched her temple. She attempted a portal, and it opened in seconds, larger and stronger than ever before. Clarice smiled widely at Taylor whose entire face was alight. She’d found a way to use her powers for good. The two women took off in a run towards the road.

*****

Outside, Clarice made a portal just as the SUV came into sight, just think of them, of John playing with the twins, of the nights alone or the night being attacked by two lively girls just think of them, she kept telling herself over and over as the SUV disappeared through the portal followed by Taylor and Clarice who jumped through, sealing the portal behind her.

Clarice ran towards where the SUV had stopped and John was getting out, she ran straight into his arms as the SUV continued to drive towards the main building. "Hey. Are you alright?" Clarice called as she ran straight into John's waiting arms.

He lifted her slightly and span, "I told ya, you could do it. And yeah, we're all alright." He placed Clarice carefully on her feet, wrapping an arm around her waist.

"I can't believe it worked, I mean… a freaking SUV!" John smiled at Clarice’s proud excitement, placing a kiss to Clarice's temple.

Clarice glanced at John, “it was Empty.” He looked at her in confusion. “She used her powers to get rid of the barriers blocking my powers. She found a way to use her powers for good.”

John turned to see Taylor walking down the path, her eyes on the ground. He whispered a thank you to her through the psychic link. A small smile graced her lips, she still didn’t look up. John turned back to Clarice just as the two approached the door where they were ambushed by Rose and Evie, Aurora was in Marcos's arms while Imogen was holding hands with Andy and Lauren, John lifted Evie into his arms while Clarice lifted Rose. When Taylor finally reached them, the ‘family’ headed into the bank, Taylor taking Imogen into her arms, she still hadn’t spoken since using her powers on Clarice.

The group headed towards the mess where dinner was being prepared, Caitlin came over while everyone was eating and the girls were just chattering away, "my brother called, he had information about where they are moving Lorna and Reed. He wants to meet me tomorrow."

John nodded and Marcos told her that the two of them would go with her. Caitlin left the table leaving the 'family' to their meal as they sat laughing at what the girls were saying. The girls soon fell tired and were lifted by their parents into their room, they were already in their pajamas, so they didn't need to be woken up to be changed, they were just placed on their beds.

*****

Later that night, Lauren came into one of the common area's and saw Taylor stood by the window. "What are you looking at?" Lauren's voice was quiet as she watched Taylor.

"Nothing.” Taylor whispered before turning to Lauren, “just thinking.”

“Can I ask what?”

“Memories. Times gone by.” Taylor muttered, Lauren raised an eyebrow, not entirely convinced. “Ok, New York.”

Lauren laughed slightly as Taylor grinned, “your old friends?”

“Yeah. There are days where I still want to know what they thought happened to me. I’d been with them that day. I was meant to tell Mom and Dad that they’d offered me a place to train my powers, full time and free of charge.” Taylor’s smile faded, “I never did get to tell them.” Lauren glanced over to Taylor. She could tell her sister was far away in her mind. Taylor glanced at her hands, “still, if it hadn’t happened the way it did. I may have disappeared too. If things didn’t happen the way they did, everything might be different.”

Lauren settled a look on Taylor, trying to figure the woman out. "Do you ever sleep? I mean since I've been here, I've never seen you actually stop to rest."

Taylor smiled slightly, "I don’t like feeling trapped. Being stuck in one room for too long, I feel like I’m back at the Citadel, trapped in a cell with… I feel lost sometimes, stuck inside.” She took a breath, glancing over to Lauren, “I know we say that you aren’t meant to go outside, but sometimes… sometimes I just need to escape and see the sky. I often disappear out there at night. It lets me remember. Remember those people in the Citadel; remember you and Andy as the children I swore to protect; remember my friends from years ago; remember Gus, the man who’d saved my heart and loved me despite everything; remember the baby that I lost. I have nightmares, about everything that went wrong and cost me so much."

Lauren looked at Taylor who had silent tears spilling down her cheeks, Lauren pulled her older sister into her arms clinging to her so tightly. For the first time in a long time, Taylor didn’t tense up, in fact, she returned the hug.

A smile brushed against Taylor’s lips as she picked up Lauren’s locket and opened it. Her smile grew when she saw that it was the same picture as twelve years ago, “You kept it?”

Lauren blushed, “it felt wrong to change it… never wanted to, either. I know that I have no idea what you've gone through in the past 12 years but talking helps, even if it's the barest minimum, it can help." Lauren’s words made Taylor smile softly.

Taylor’s smile faded, a wave of guilt washing it away, "every day I feel guilty. Mom and Dad gave me to those people, they said it was to help me, but I know it was because they wanted the X-gene taken from me. I didn’t just lose my trust in our parents, I felt a hatred towards you and Andy as well, and that wasn’t fair. Every day for five years, I blamed you guys. In my mind, Mom and Dad loved you two so didn’t want the family disappointment around anymore. I hated you and that just wasn’t fair. You were just kids."

Lauren gripped her sister tighter in her arms. "That doesn't matter now."

“Did you really plan to make a change on a legal front?”

Lauren nodded, “yeah, but we’re outnumbered a hundred to one in favor of those who want mutants extinct.”

“Tell me, your research, what does it refer to me as?”

“Depends on whose opinion you’re looking at. Some call you a terrorist, others call you an extremist. Then there are those that call you a freedom fighter, a revolutionary, a voice for the future.”

“And what do you think fits?”

Lauren studied her sister’s face for a long moment, “I like the concept of a revolutionary or a rebel, I suppose they fit… to some level.”

Taylor smiled, “revolutionaries die and become martyrs. My aim is to live to see this through. What about you?”

“Outgunned, outnumbered, outmaneuvered, outmatched.” Lauren muttered, “sounds like the position of every revolution in history.”

“You’re the researcher, you reckon we can win?”

“Not if you keep treating this like a normal revolution. I’ve seen the reports and the legal comments on you lot. You fight like you’re at war. I mean, given most of your backgrounds, it makes sense. But people already think mutants are violent and dangerous, if you go into this with the attitude that you’re fighting a revolution or war like those we’ve seen in history, you will lose, you will solidify people’s views, and they’ll want you dead. If you fight through more… covert means: use the internet, share information, publish proof that they’re breaking the law, violating the Geneva Convention, and show all the atrocities they’ve done to mutants, you’ll force people to look and see that mutants are people, that they should be recognized as humans, that we deserve to be protected by the Declaration of Human Rights.”

Taylor listened, scrubbing her hand over her face, “we’ve tried that, people don’t listen.”

“Yeah, they will. Be relentless, be impossible to ignore. Outrun, outlast. We will win when we stop fighting them on a field where they have us outmanned and outgunned a hundred to one.”

Taylor tilted her head to the side, “pick and choose our battles, flood social media with all the information we’ve stolen so far. It’s pointless keeping it here. Publish it, force people to look.”

“Exactly. We’ll call it Operation Rochambeau,” Lauren joked.

“Operation Go.” Taylor added with a laugh, “you’re figuring our codes out quickly, Little Bird.”

“You lot aren’t as subtle as you think.”

*****

Morning arose and everyone at the HQ was up and active. Everyone except Taylor and Lauren. John had realized that Taylor was missing early on, but he also knew that she wasn’t in danger. Caitlin was searching the HQ for something when John saw her, “what’s up?”

“Where’s Lauren?” Caitlin asked, sounding almost accusing.

“She’ll be fine.” John reassured her as he headed towards Taylor’s room. He focused his hearing, hearing two heartbeats.

Opening the door slightly, John smirked when he saw the sisters cuddled against each other. Lauren’s head was buried in the crook of Taylor’s neck while Taylor’s arms held her sister secure against her. John closed the door silently, sending a nod to Marcos and Clarice to tell them that Taylor was fine, he headed to find Caitlin to tell her that Lauren was fine too before he and Marcos headed out with the woman to meet with Danny.

*****

The trio met Danny on an empty road not too far from the city, Caitlin smiled as she headed over to her brother, “Thanks for meeting me. Especially after yesterday.”

“Any time you call, I'll be there.” Danny said as he glanced over Caitlin’s shoulder, “but I thought you'd come alone.”

Caitlin rolled her eyes, “It's okay. The mutants can't bite you from here.” Danny didn’t look too certain, Caitlin lightly touched at the wound on Danny’s forehead, “How's your head?”

“It's fine. A few stitches. I'll be all right.”

“Danny, I'm so sorry.”

“No, no, no. I'm the one who's sorry. Look, I was wrong. Okay? And I... I want to help. Mary and I bought a cabin up in the Smokies. We never use it. Just go.”

“And leave my husband?!” Caitlin wouldn’t leave Reed, not now nor ever.

“No. I made some calls.” Danny confessed, “Reed's alive. Sentinel Services are taking him to a facility, along with some woman from the Underground.”

“What kind of facility?”

“No one'll say. Some top-secret mutant detention center...”

“But Reed's not a mutant. Why would-why would they be taking him there?”

“I don't-I don't know. I don't know, and the truth is, we probably never will. You have to face the fact that you're not gonna see him again.”

Caitlin pulled Danny into a hug, “I love you, Danny. But you're wrong.” With those words, she headed back over to Marcos and John.

*****

Arriving back at the HQ, John and Marcos sat down with Clarice and the girls and began playing with them, he noticed Lauren was stood with her brother, both embracing their mother.

Lauren headed over to the group quickly, “Taylor’s still asleep, she’s ok though. Thought I should tell you. You looked worried.” The last comment seemed to be directed at John rather than the others. Just as quickly as she’d arrived, Lauren headed back over to her mother and brother.

John heard Taylor's door open and could see her from where he was sat, she was still wearing her bed clothes, one of Gus' tees and a pair of joggers. She didn't come over and join them instantly, instead she found Lauren and wrapped her arms around her sister and then her brother, she didn’t touch Caitlin and Marcos saw the hurt on the woman’s face, but he also saw that Lauren was smiling at her sister, she had her sister back.

Taylor headed over to the group where she sat next to Marcos and John as the girls rolled the ball around. Taylor was at peace after nearly two years. A peace that hadn't been possible from the nightmares and the pain, but it was clearing slowly, that much was clear as she sat playing with her new family, her old one just in sight. She finally felt safe. At peace. At home.

Chapter Text

Despite her fears telling her not to leave the safety of her bed, Lauren found herself wandering through the darkened halls of the abandoned bank, wandering aimlessly as she tried to shake the nightmare from her mind. Eventually, she found herself heading towards the illuminated kitchen. She almost turned around and left when she realized that it was John stood in there.

“Bad dream or too much noise?” His quiet voice caused Lauren to freeze, he slid a mug across the counter without turning to face her, “it’s hot chocolate,” his voice was still quiet as he grabbed another mug from the cupboard, making a drink for himself.

Lauren slowly walked into the room, “bad dream.” She hesitated for a moment, “what about you? Or are you normally awake at…” she checked the clock, “3am?”

“Too loud.” He stated as he turned to face her and lent against the counter, Lauren’s eyebrows scrunched as she looked at him. John couldn’t help but smile at her expression, so reminiscent of Taylor. “It’s too loud when you can hear everything happening in here as well as what’s happening outside.”

“Is that your power? Super hearing?” Lauren grinned.

John chuckled with a shake of his head, “you are too much like Mighty,” he commented fondly, “it’s a part of my powers. I can track. See what’s been, where people have stepped. I also have heightened senses… which is really entertaining when you mix that with Taylor.”

Lauren’s grin turned to confusion, “what’s up with Taylor?”

John hummed as he took a drink, “nothing, she just has some senses which are… below human. Her sense of taste, for example, is worse than the average human, it’s why she makes coffee so strong, she says that I make colored water when I make coffee, we all say she’s trying to poison us, she’s just not good at it.” John’s eyes turned more concerned as he watched Lauren, “wanna tell me about the nightmare?”

Rubbing her hand over her arm, Lauren looked at the ground, not wanting John to see her embarrassment, “it’s stupid… I keep dreaming that I’m trapped in a building. That I’m in a hallway and everyone I know is locked in cells being experimented on or tortured because of me. It’s like I’ve been there before. The endless cells, the cuffs on my wrists, something branded on my wrist, everyone being referred to by numbers.”

“That’s not stupid,” John told her bluntly, trying to keep fear and surprise off of his face, “we’ve all got that fear. The fear that our decisions are gonna cost our friends, our families, their lives.”

“Even you?” She asked, only half joking.

Letting out a breath, John nodded, “probably more than most people… I’m running the Underground with Taylor, not just the HQ, our decisions could cost everyone involved their lives or their freedom if we make the wrong choice. That’s a lot to weigh on you when you’ve got two young kids.” He took a breath, “Taylor told me about your idea of Operation Rochambeau. We’ve discussed it. Sage’ll be flooding social media with it in the morning. The internet will be swamped with evidence of Sentinel Services’ crimes. We’re gonna release the information we have on the government the day after. Make sure no one can look away.”

“You wanna put it in Leyman’s terms, if people can’t understand it, they won’t care. Release any CCTV and surveillance footage you have as well, images are more impactful than words.”

“Agreed, we’ll sort it so that it alternates. Not just block files followed by block footage.”

“What if they try and take it down?”

John chuckled, “they can’t act quicker than Sage, they’re gonna be going up against a supercomputer. Sage beats them on a technological side.”

Lauren grinned, “outmaneuver, outgun.”

“Now we just need more manpower and better plans.”

“We get the manpower by springing people from prison. Until then, we move smart, move in the darkness, scatter people where we can, fight on any front that presents itself.”

“We? You planning to join the revolution?”

Lauren paused, she hadn’t thought of that, “yeah. I’ll join. I’ll fight beside you guys.”

“Good. Welcome to the dawn of a new world.”

As the morning drew on, Lauren headed for Taylor’s room while John headed back to his. Once she was in her sister’s room, Lauren felt her fears fade as Taylor lifted the blanket and hugged Lauren to her.

*****

As morning arose, Clarice, John, Taylor, and Lauren were stood in the tech room, watching as Sage put Operation Rochambeau into action (as they released the data, Sage released it under the code of Rochambeau). The group watched as the outrage started slowly, building quickly.

Within two hours, over 100 gigabytes of data incriminating Sentinel Services had been released.

“And so, the Rochambeau experiment begins,” Lauren muttered, “first step done.”

Taylor chuckled, a proud smile on her face, “next step, we need to up our numbers. We need Lorna back, we need anyone we can get. Scatter our spies in the wind, spread them across, get them sending any and all information to us. Can you keep an eye on the info our allies send?”

Sage nodded, “I’ll keep checking on it, but this’ll take my focus for a while.”

John nodded, “I want it to be all anyone is seeing for at least 72 hours.”

“It’ll be difficult, but I can do it. Don’t expect me to be involved in anything else.”

*****

Lorna couldn’t stop her irritation as she was dragged out of the prison and back into the Sentinel Services holding facility, in the past few weeks she had been moved more times than she cared to think about. “Nice digs you got here.” She commented as they led her through a series of locked doors, “homey.”

Agent Turner rolled his eyes, “yeah, don't get too comfy. You're only gonna enjoy our hospitality for a couple days.”

“Then what?” Lorna shot back, “oh, let me guess. Another transfer. Maybe one of your secret prisons?”

“You know, you had your chance to cooperate, Ms. Dane.” Turner pointed out simply, not even looking over to the woman.

“Little favor? Call me Polaris.” Lorna snapped, “You're sending me to Hell, I think it's the least you can do.” Turner glanced at Lorna before leading her through another door to the holding cells. Lorna raised an eyebrow when she saw Reed Strucker sat in a cell, “that's interesting. You want to tell me what my prosecutor's doing in a cell?”

Turner looked over to the man, “Mr. Strucker's got legal problems of his own. He's heading to the same place you are.”

Lorna couldn’t stop the grin on her face, “the same son of a bitch who tried to use my unborn child to get me to turn against my friends is going to prison with me? What is it, my birthday?”

Rolling his eyes, Turner pushed Lorna into the empty cell next to Reed, “I'm glad you're enjoying yourself, Ms. Dane.”

“It's Polaris.” Lorna shouted over as Turner locked the cell and headed over to the guard.

Turner didn’t listen to Lorna, focusing instead on the agent next to him, Lorna had to strain her ears to listen, “any success in bypassing whatever it is they’re doing to the system?”

“No sir,” the agent muttered, “they’ve stopped flooding the system with it, but it’s being searched millions of times an hour. Whatever the mutants were trying to do with Rochambeau, they’ve got support from the public.”

Letting out a breath, Turner didn’t respond, instead, he stormed out of the room.

After a moment of silence, Reed decided to try his luck as he turned to Lorna, “listen to me. A whole lot of things have happened that you don't know about. We need to stick together.”

Lorna raised an eyebrow at him in contempt, wishing she could be anywhere other than in the cell next to this bastard, “are you asking me for help? You do remember our last meeting, right?”

“I know Marcos.” Reed stated, “I was working with him. That's why I'm here.”

Lorna’s eyes widened, “okay, then tell me about that.”

“He was helping my family.” Reed began, “We got caught by Sentinel Services—”

“Oh, so, not only did you try to put me in prison forever, but you also almost got Marcos killed?”

“If we're gonna have a chance at getting out of here, we...” Lorna shook her head and turned away from Reed, “please, Ms. Dane. Polaris.”

“Guard, this man is bothering me.” Lorna called over, hoping to shut Reed up.

“Shut up! Both of you!”

*****

Taylor let her head fall back against her pillow as she heard the birds tweeting outside the window, she let her fingers run gently through Lauren’s hair as the teenager cuddled against her as she slept.

It had become a common thing at the HQ in the two weeks since Lauren had spoken with John in the kitchen at 3am; Lauren would start her night in her own bed, by midnight, she would have had a nightmare and made her way to Taylor’s room, though she’d often see John in the kitchen beforehand, she’d spend the rest of the night cuddled against her sister.

In those early morning moments, Taylor felt her powers shifting inside of her, calling out to protect Lauren. Taylor was beginning to trust that feeling, that constant companion in her heart that told her whether Lauren was safe, whether she needed her older sister. A smile brushed over Taylor’s lips as she watched Lauren, it was a comforting feeling to have Lauren back beside her, reminiscent of childhood memories that had been snatched away by the Citadel. 

Taylor had spent several long minutes contemplating whether there was really a need for her to be getting up at all. It wasn’t exactly like she was needed today; Marcos could watch Imogen as well as Aroura, John and Clarice were busy with the twins, she just wanted to avoid her brother and mother, besides, it was not like she had any reason to—

A banging at her door pulled a groan from her exhausted body, Lauren’s eyes shot awake at the sudden noise, clutching closer to her sister as she snapped awake.

“Empty? Wren? C'mon!" John. Of course, he would wake them up.

Taylor launched one of her pillows towards the door and heard him laugh, she shot a playful glare at Lauren who was chucking beside her. “Dunno what you’re laughing at.” Taylor commented, hitting Lauren in the face with the other pillow, pushing her back down onto the bed.

The pair began fighting until John finally opened the door, sending the pair of them an exasperated look, despite the clear amusement in his eyes as he threw Taylor’s pillow back at them, “you ready, or should I come back in a few years when you’re adults?” Two pillows immediately hit him while the two sisters sat laughing.

Taylor pulled herself from the bed and left the room with Lauren following her, Taylor didn’t even bother to dress so was just in her joggers and a USMC top that’d had belonged to Gus, John passed her a jacket as the trio walked through the HQ. He noticed her comfort level increase as she slipped on the jacket, hiding her brand and scars, letting her feel safer in her home. Lauren headed towards her mother and brother, leaving just John and Taylor.

Glancing over to his baby sister, John couldn’t help but frown, “when was the last time you got any decent amount of sleep?”

Taylor glanced over to John, trying to decide just how far he’d let her lie. Figuring it was better to just tell the truth, Taylor shrugged, “I dunno, I guess before the Struckers showed up… a week or so before then… possibly.”

John glanced over to her, exasperation evident across his features. “You don’t remember the last time you slept a full night?”

The pair stopped, no one else was nearby, so it seemed like a good place to talk. “What’s going on in your head that you won’t let me see, Empty?”

Taylor shrugged her shoulders, glancing around until John gripped her arm, drawing her focus back to him, “every time I look at my mother, I can’t help but feel like I’m back there. I can’t help but feel abandoned at the idea that she ran away with Andy and Lauren but shipped me off to be a lab rat.”

John pulled Taylor tightly into his arms, holding her against him for a few minutes as she figured out her emotions. “You still need to sleep, Mighty. Exhaustion may not kill you, but it will affect you, if we’re gonna rescue Lorna, we’ll need you at full power. Oh, also, I spoke to Lauren about what she wants to do, she wants to join the fight. After Rochambeau, I’m inclined to let her join. That was her plan, it worked a treat. Sentinel Services are under investigation.” Taylor smirked at the thought. “Something else,” John muttered, “You’re right, you’re connected to Lauren.”

Taylor froze, “you sure?”

“If it was just once, I’d call it a coincidence, but she’s having the same dream every night. She’s dreaming about the Citadel. If it was just friends and family locked in cells, I wouldn’t think it, but in her nightmares, there’s a brand on her wrist, everyone’s referred to by numbers… Empty, it’s too similar to not be.”

Chapter Text

People were starting to wake up and gather round as John and Taylor approached the large common area. Clarice moved to sit on the empty chair next to John who was stood next to Taylor while Taylor stood next to Marcos.

Everyone gathered in a near silence as they waited to hear what the Underground leaders had to say, John spoke once everyone was settled, "we know that Lorna is being held at the Sentinel Services Regional Headquarters. We believe that Reed Strucker is being held there as well." Taylor watched with a cold glare as Caitlin grabbed Andy and Lauren's shoulders while John carried on speaking. Imogen came over to Taylor from where the girls had been sat on the floor in front of Clarice and Marcos. Taylor lifted Imogen into her arms gently, keeping the girl close.

Marcos subconsciously moved to lift Aurora onto his lap, the little girl didn't complain as the mention of her mother caused her to worry. "They are being moved to an ultra-secure facility." Marcos said, his hand running through Aurora's hair as Clarice moved the twins to either side of her.

John watched the kids for a moment before turning back to the group, "and we don't know much about it except people who go there disappear."

"That's why we gotta act now." Marcos stated sharply.

John shook his head slightly, "I'm not going to sugar coat this, we're talking about attacking Sentinel Services."

There was chatter among everyone before Sage spoke up. "We lost six people when we went up against them last time!" John nodded but he wasn't given a chance to speak.

"I know that better than anyone.” Taylor's voice was rough, she refused to drop her eyes from Sage. She had no right to remind them of what they had lost last time. They'd lost friends, but Taylor lost her husband, Imogen had lost her father. Her arms tightened around Imogen at the thought of Gus.

“And besides, this time it will be different." John told them, trying to settle Taylor. He knew the pain she’d felt, he’d felt it himself through their link. He’d lost his brother when Taylor lost her husband.

Sage nodded from her spot, "you're right, last time we just hit a relocation center with a fence and a couple of guard towers. This time it's a prison. Their systems have improved. Extrapolating from other attacks, we've got an 86.5% chance of failure."

John looked over to Taylor who seemed impossibly tense, like she was ready to rip Sage's throat out with her bare hands. He wouldn’t put it passed her doing just that. “Take a breath, Empty, in-fighting doesn’t help us now.”

Marcos glared at Sage, "and if we do nothing, there is a 100% chance we never see them again." Sage lent back against her chair. Her eyes dropping to the little girl cuddled against Marcos, Aurora's eyes brimmed with tears threatening to spill as she listened to the facts Sage stated.

“You’ve got to take into consideration,” Lauren said, moving to stand between Taylor and John, “Sentinel Services are under formal investigation and public scrutiny, they’re vulnerable. We can get in, get our people, get out. Outmaneuver, outgun them, they won’t know what’s hit them until we’re long gone.” Lauren looked over to Sage, “you can flood their system with whatever we want, right?”

“I can try.”

“Then you can loop their security cameras, we can get in undetected, Clarice can portal us out.” Lauren explained.

While everyone else hesitated, Caitlin took the opportunity to speak, "I know we're new here but please."

Marcos glanced over to Caitlin, shaking his head, "Lorna's risked her life for everyone in this room. Harry, your parents would be dead without her. Sage, she pulled you out of a gutter, and she got you clean. I mean, she's… She needs us." Marcos looked around the guilty expressions filling the room.

Sage lent forward, "doesn't change the math."

Marcos shook his head, "I don't care about math, I care about Lorna. Who's with me?" Only very few hands went up, Taylor watched with a fury building in her gut as she raised a pale hand to join the five raised. Lauren glanced between her mom and sister before raising her hand.

*****

The crowd dispersed and those that had volunteered to help headed into the tech room, "six people? Unbelievable."

John rolled his eyes, "give 'em a break. Many of 'em lost friends last time." He pointed out to Marcos, trying to get him to settle a bit.

"Yeah, so did I. I'm still gonna fight."

John looked over to his best friend, "you're different. You see a fight on this scale as just a little issue. You've never seen a bad issue for as long as I've known you. Mighty, you'd fight even if it was just you." John smirked over to Taylor, watching as she contemplated his words before shrugging her shoulders. John knew the length Taylor would go to if she believed in the cause. He’d been her best friend for 7 years, her big brother for so much longer, all those years together as children still gave him a foundation of knowing how Taylor worked. With their link, they knew practically everything about each other, but there were still things they hid, like Taylor’s time at the Citadel.

Clarice came into the room, moving over to John and placing a hand on his back, "so how are we gonna do this? If there's a window, then I can portal us in but there are gonna guards and cameras..."

Taylor began muttering under her breath, speaking up, she turned to Harry as a plan began to formulate in her mind, "Harry can you...?"

The man smirked at Taylor, "I can make the guards see this—" he made his hand invisible, "but not the cameras." He dropped his hand and Taylor let out a disgruntled sigh.

"If we go in like that then we ain't comin' back out." John, Clarice, Marcos, and Taylor shared a look, their eyes talking while silence filled the room.

"What if we don't go in?" Caitlin said causing the rest of the room to look at her. Taylor side glanced John as his eyes filled with confusion, Taylor couldn’t help but feel satisfied at the fact that she wasn’t the only one confused. She was used to being the only one not understanding people, particularly Sage.

Caitlin rolled her eyes when she saw everyone’s confused expressions, "look I know I can't shoot lasers from my hands, but I do have an idea. Daniel said the place they're taking them is far away. To put them on a plane, they'd have to move them. Let's get them while they're moving." Her voice was filled with joy at her idea.

"That's not a bad idea." Marcos commented.

Taylor struggled to resist the urge to roll her eyes, she turned away and Clarice couldn't help chuckling at her best friend. They all knew that she was facing an internal conflict due to it being a good idea, but the idea came from a woman she hated.

"It might work. But we don't know the route." John pointed out, "without that—"

"I think I might know how to get it." Marcos spoke with certainty.

"How? We don't have anyone with that sort of intel."

Marcos looked at him, "The network doesn't but maybe I might."

After a moment, realization hit John, "The cartel?!”

“They have people everywhere man." John shook his head, glancing over to Clarice, sharing a look with her for a moment.

Taylor moved over to Marcos, her hand on his shoulder, her anger against him briefly replaced with concern. "The last time you asked the cartel for a favor, you barely got out, you don’t know what they’re gonna ask in return. Marcos you sure you want to go back to that?"

Marcos finally met her eye, "no… but I'm out of better ideas. So, unless you guys are willing to tell the rest of us whatever it is that you know outside the Underground…"

John let out a breath while Clarice shook her head, “not an option,” John muttered. An uneasy tension filled the room at the reminder that most of them knew very little about what was going on in the Underground.

Taylor dropped her hand before finally answering him, "fine. Do you what you need to." Everyone left the room and Marcos headed to sort out ready to go.

*****

As Marcos prepared to leave the HQ, Taylor ran over to him, her eyes full of worry,
"Marcos?!" He stopped but didn't look over, Taylor mentally kicked him for it as she reached him, "are you sure about this? I mean the cartel. Is there really nothing else?"

He let out a humorless chuckle, "not unless your old friends in the FBI can help us."

Taylor's eyes went cold in a way that Marcos had never seen them go, usually the red eyes were full of emotion, now they were blank with no love or care in them. Instantly, Marcos knew he’d picked the wrong thing to say. The Cobra was rising in Taylor’s mind. "Say that again and I will make sure that the cartel is the least of your worries. You’re already pushing your luck recently; do you want to secure your fate?" Her voice sounded like a snake as she hissed out the words. John and Clarice made their way over to the pair and noticed the frost in Taylor's voice.

"Sorry…” He straightened after a moment, “but if it was Gus in prison," he looked over to Clarice and John, "or each other, would you be doing any different?" The trio looked at each other but they couldn't disagree, they all knew that they would do anything to save the person that they love. They’d seen John work non-stop to find Clarice, they’d seen Taylor lose herself in the past to rescue Gus, none of them could disagree.

Taking a breath, Marcos hesitated, “what is it that you lot know that you hide from me and Lorna?”

Taylor shook her head, “it’s not important.”

“It is if it could help Lorna!” Marcos exclaimed, searching for anything other than turning to the cartel. “Please, I just need her back.”

“Marcos, you aren’t willing to pay the price they’ll demand.” Clarice stated, holding up a hand as Marcos went to protest, “you wanna use them? Should I tell them to pick up Aurora before or after we get Lorna back?”

Marcos froze, “what?”

“The cost. If you want them to buy someone’s freedom, they demand a loved one. If you have a kid, they demand the kid.” Taylor muttered.

“Who the fuck do you lot know outside of here?” Marcos asked, an edge of fear in his voice.

“Like Taylor said, it’s not important.” John told him, his eyes fixed on Taylor.

With a sigh, Taylor looked away from John, “look, if you use what we know, you’re not gonna get Lorna back without countless casualties. On both sides.”

Marcos watched his three friends for a moment. “Y’know, one day your secrets are gonna kill you. And us.” He told them before stalking away.

Watching Marcos leave, the trio refused to look at each other, none of them wanting to admit that Marcos was right. They’d spent years working on the principle of ‘the fewer people that know, the safer we are’, but they all knew that they’d only be able to keep it up for so long before their carefully crafted web of secrets began to unravel, leaving the whole Underground vulnerable.

Chapter Text

After Marcos left, the trio were sat around a desk with Sonia, Caitlin, Lauren, and Harry trying to work out a plan. Taylor moved over to the window and all talking stopped, John watched her, but he knew better than to go over to her now, Caitlin didn't.

Caitlin slowly went over to Taylor; it was potentially her worst mistake since she arrived. "Is everything alright?"

Taylor scoffed, the noise caused both John and Clarice to tense up and everyone else to hold their breath, it was uncommon for Taylor to knowingly hurt someone in the HQ these days, but it wasn't unheard of. In fact, it used to be a weekly occurrence, but if her mother got too close… John and Clarice dreaded to think what could happen.

"Who the fuck do you think you are?!" She snapped, everyone nearby froze. Taylor never swore to people except her dearest friends and usually they were messing around.

"I… um, I—"

Taylor curled he hands into fists, she hated her mother and always would, she had no right to act all loving and caring to her now! "You hate mutants! If you ever think of betraying us – you or your husband – I will be brutal. I could destroy you with a single flick of my wrist. You hurt us, you hurt my daughter or my nieces, you hurt my brothers or sisters, and I will force you to watch as I make your world burn." John looked to Clarice who'd slowly been making her way over, she brought Caitlin back to the table before Taylor could do anything. They watched as Taylor gracefully moved outside, they knew she wanted to hurt something, and God have mercy on anything that got in her way.

*****

Once she was outside, Taylor's eyes fell onto a rabbit hopping across the field, she clenched her hand, focusing all her anger onto the fist and reveled in the power as the rabbit writhed in agony on the ground. It eventually stilled as death took it over. What Taylor didn't know was that John and Clarice had been watching her from the window. They continued to watch as she collapsed down to the floor crying as her mind finally registered what she had done.

Clarice opened a portal, her and John passed through before sitting beside Taylor, neither touched her, they could feel the pain rolling off her, they just sat beside her in silence. They knew how to deal with episodes like this, they were easy but at the same time difficult, John felt useless as he sat beside his closest friend, unable to do anything to stop her self-destruction, though he couldn’t help but feel thankful that she’d improved from cutting at her brand. John shuddered at the memory of walking into her room to find her passed out with blood covering her arm; she’d been in hospital for days afterwards. That was the first time she’d ever gouged out her brand, the sight had made Gus yell for him and Clarice, he’d had no idea what to do.

John hated to admit it, but sometimes he preferred Taylor’s regression episodes where she thought that she was still being experimented on – those were easier, they could help her through those. But episodes like this…

“Leave me be…” Taylor whispered, her eyes distant. John and Clarice knew that she wasn’t talking to them. “Get out… get away. I don’t want you!” Her ragged whispering continued, pleading with the voices in her head, begging to get away from the monster created by the Citadel. In her pleading, her powers began expanding away from her. John and Clarice braced for the worst only to share a look when any pain they were feeling, any aches, headaches, any discomfort, vanished. The pair watched Taylor twitch as she continued her quiet pleading until she tensed, absorbing the pain of everyone within the HQ, before finally passing out.

Lifting Taylor into his arms, John glanced over to Clarice who was already creating a portal. The pair stepped through silently and John placed Taylor on her bed.

“It’s been years since she’s done than…” Clarice muttered.

John let out a breath, “hasn’t absorbed pain since before Gus died.”

Giving a gentle nod, Clarice looked over to John, “I didn’t think she still could.”

Shaking his head, John couldn’t help but think back to what Marcos had said, “one day, all of this is gonna kill someone.” He muttered, “the Cobra, the Survivors, the people we knew… one day someone’ll die for our secrets.”

Clarice wanted to disagree, wanted to argue that he was wrong, but she couldn’t, “hopefully it’ll be someone who knew what they were getting into, not some innocent bystander.” A look passed through John’s eyes, one that Clarice knew, “if you say something about ghosts and heroes, I’ll hide all the candy and tell the girls that you forgot to buy any.”

John chuckled tightly, “there’s… there’s something else, too. I’ve been meaning to tell you, just didn’t know how… Marcos knows about Tay and I knowing the X-Men.”

Letting out a sigh, Clarice looked between John and Taylor’s unconscious form, “is that really so terrible?”

“On its own? No. But if he continues digging, if he – or anyone else – finds out that we were there when they… we don’t… the last thing we need is people finding out about our history. Not just mine and Tay’s,” John paused for a moment as Clarice held her breath, “I don’t wanna see anyone put the pieces together and use the girls to get revenge. We said it when they were born, we gave our enemies the greatest piece of leverage that there is. We have a weakness.”

“And we’ll die to keep them safe,” Clarice muttered, her hand pressing against John’s chest, “Marcos can say that our secrets will kill us all he wants, but until he knows them… All anyone needs to know is that the X-Men are gone. Nothing else about them matters. Nothing about anything before the Underground matters.”

“Speaking of… I got in touch with our guy inside Sentinel Services, but he’s not got eyes on Lorna, he knows about as much as we do, but he’s…”

“He’s not as useful as we’d hoped?”

John sighed, “are we terrible people?”

“Probably. But, being terrible keeps our girls safe.”

*****

John’s phone rang as he left Taylor’s room, leaving Clarice sat with Taylor for another minute. Relief washed over him as Marcos’ name flashed across the screen. The pair were talking for several minutes before Clarice approached John. “I don't like it, brother.” She heard John mutter, “whatever you think this is gonna cost, it's gonna be more.” John put the phone on speaker once Clarice was close enough.

“Yeah, I'll deal with that later. Listen, they made some calls to some contacts they have in Sentinel Services. They're moving Lorna and Reed by truck. It's a convoy. I'll send you the route.” Marcos told them.

“When are they moving ‘em?” Clarice asked.

“I don't know the time frame yet. I'm working on that. She's playing with me.” John and Clarice shared a worried look.

“She? Carmen? Marcos, you're dealing with Carmen?” John hissed.

“Are you insane?” Clarice exclaimed tactlessly.

“This is Lorna's only chance. I can handle it. I just have to—” The call abruptly cut off. John sent a look to Clarice.

“This isn’t going to end well, is it?” Clarice muttered, John wrapped an arm around her waist, leading her towards the tech room where the rest of the attack team were gathering.

*****

John loaded a satellite image onto the screen, letting them all see the route Sentinel Services were planning to use, “Eclipse found out that a convoy of military vehicles is taking Lorna and Reed to a military airport. Now, based on the route, the best place to hit it is gonna be an old warehouse district off Peachtree.” John turned to Clarice, “can you open a portal, get us inside the transport bus?”

Clarice nodded, “well, if the driver can see out, then I can see in, but if the bus is moving, then it can get messy real fast.”

John pulled a face, “stop the bus… not gonna be easy.” He muttered, trying to think up something else.

“Maybe Marcos can, like, melt the tires.” Clarice offered.

“Or Taylor can make the driver have a heart attack.” Harry commented.

“No. No, we need to keep Taylor as worst-case scenario.” John told them. He wouldn’t risk Taylor with this, not with her powers playing up.

Sonia couldn’t help but roll her eyes, “when is Marcos getting us the time frame for the convoy? He's been gone a while, Johnny.”

“And he will be back. He's working on it now.” He told them.

“Okay, regardless, melting their tires with lasers is hardly subtle.” Caitlin commented, “what do you think happens after that? A pitched battle. People die. Our goal isn't just to get Reed and Lorna. It's to get them alive.”

“She's right.” John stated through gritted teeth, Clarice couldn’t completely hide her smirk. “Our job is to get in and out without dropping bodies. We need another way to stop that bus.” John told them, letting the group go in order to let them try and come up with a plan.

Without speaking, Lauren snuck from the room, a plan already forming in her mind, but she couldn’t bring herself to speak until she had confirmed that her plan would work.

Chapter Text

After countless hours of silence, Reed turned his attention back to Lorna, he needed her to be on his side if either of them wanted a chance to get out of this, “I know I'm probably not someone you want to talk to.” He stated.

Lorna couldn’t help but scoff, “You're right about that.”

Reed wasn’t deterred, “I always told myself that anyone that was facing me in my courtroom was guilty. Told myself that I was the prosecutor, and that the laws were clear, and if you broke 'em, it was on you. Told myself that I was doing my job.” He paused and took a breath, “Then I found out that... my kids are mutants. They didn't mean to hurt anyone. They didn't mean to do anything. They were just defending themselves. But they broke the law. And with mandatory minimums they'll get at least ten years. Maybe more. And a few days ago, I would have been the one making that argument. Before all of this, I didn't understand. But I do now. And I'm sorry.”

Lorna turned to the man, a new anger in her eyes, “congratulations... on figuring out you're one of the bad guys.” Reed had the decency to look ashamed as Lorna continued to speak, “but so… what? If you would have thought about it a little longer, you wouldn't have destroyed so many lives? Huh? Do you want forgiveness?” Reed watched her, watched the deadly fire in her eyes, “Ask the little boy who I strapped into a bus while he screamed, begging to join his mommy in prison, where you sent her. You know what? Ask the hundreds of families whose lives you and your friends ruined.” Lorna let out a breath, “ask the fifteen-year-old girl that you shipped off to Hell, leaving her to be tortured for five years. Ask the woman who still has nightmares of that place because of the family that gave her away. Don't ask me.”

Reed watched Lorna silently, he knew that there was nothing he could say to defend himself… his mind span as he considered everything he’d learnt about his oldest daughter in the last week. Sure, he had seen the grainy pictures of the Python taken from security cameras, but in almost all of them, her face was covered, her hair hidden, only her blood-red eyes on show. Sentinel Services recognized her as the Python, Reed hadn’t recognized her. He spent years believing she died from an infection about a year into her time in the Citadel. He spent years mourning his daughter who had always scared him. Her mind, her ability to argue, her powers… she had scared him since she was a child. He spent years afraid of her, then years angry at her, then years grieving her. He knew nothing could put right what he’d done.

*****

Hours passed, and evening fell before Taylor left her room, she looked ill, her pale skin seemed paler than ever, her eyes were surrounded by dark purple circles, her cheeks hollow, her hair hung limp on her head, she looked frail. Lauren looked over to her sister and felt like she had been punched in the gut. She remembered Taylor vividly, so seeing her sister like this was a wakeup call as to what the elder of the two had been put through in the past 12 years.

Heading over to John and Clarice, Taylor stopped off where Lauren was sat. Lauren pulled her sister into a tight hug, reassuring her that everything was ok. Taylor felt like she couldn’t breathe, her eyes settling on her mother and Andy while she did everything she could to focus solely on Lauren, letting the teenager ground her mind for several minutes. Eventually, the pair broke apart, allowing Taylor to head over to John and Clarice.

Taylor shot an incredulous look to John and Clarice, raising an eyebrow as they finished explaining the plan. "A simple plan? You guys think that having 30 minutes to set up a plan thought out in one day is a simple one? You want us to be ready to fight, on the ground, with no weapons, no knowledge of how many escorts there'll be, no back up plan, no chance of getting word to Lorna and Reed on the plan, no chance to mess up even an inch, no idea what kind of weapons they'll have at disposal, and no idea if Reed is on their side. Yeah, sounds simple." John and Clarice shared a look as Taylor glared exasperatedly at them.

John was the first of the pair to laugh but Clarice was quick to join. Harry and Sonia looked at each other, not sure whether to join in or just stay silent. They eventually decided on the latter.

"When you put it like that it doesn't sound quite so fool proof..." John muttered causing Taylor to chuckle before darting her eyes over the blueprints.

With a shake of her head, Taylor began working to improve the plan, "You've got no way of stopping the bus?" The four shook their heads.

"Yes! Taylor! Andy and I have a way to stop the bus!" Came the call of Lauren, Taylor muttered something incoherent before following her sister outside, John and Clarice followed them.

*****

Taylor folded her arms over her chest as she watched her brother and sister show them what they had done. The pair were able to knock the wheel off one of the cars around the HQ.

John and Clarice shared an impressed look while Taylor looked on with scrutiny, "and you think you can do that? On a moving bus? At a distance?" The two siblings nodded, Taylor's face broke into a smirk, wrapping Lauren in a brief side-hug. "Ok. I'll add you in."

A resounding 'no' was shouted by Caitlin, the answer caused Taylor to laugh. It was a cold laugh that left John and Clarice stood ready to protect Lauren and Andy. "So, you can ship your daughter off to a research facility that tortures mutants? You can treat all mutants like dirt? You can act as if you've never done wrong? But we get one chance to save your husband and you block us at every turn?"

John and Clarice stood beside the teenagers as Taylor growled at Caitlin, John moved to subtly put himself between a pissed off Taylor and the two teenagers.

"What is your vendetta against what we are doing?" Her voice was low and cool, there was no way to disagree with it though.

"You're on about using child soldiers!" Caitlin snapped in response making John and Clarice roll their eyes. Taylor couldn’t help but laugh at the idea, her mother had caused hell for her and yet here she was trying to stop children having to fight in a world that she’d help build. Taylor turned away with a shake of her head, she could hear Lauren attempting to calm her mother down, but she wasn’t interested.

*****

The following morning had several members of the Head Quarters awake and ready for a battle. Taylor and John sat going over their areas of the plan one last time while Clarice checked on the girls for the eighth time that minute it seemed like. The four parents were all worried. If the plan didn’t go right today, it could leave four young girls as orphans in a world which would hate them for their powers. They were all terrified for their kids but today, they needed to be stronger. They needed to get Lorna back.

Lauren had found the group of four at about 8:00, scanning over the map with them with a grim look.

“What’re we naming this operation, Wren?” John asked.

Lauren considered it for a minute, “Operation Manpower.”

“Fitting, not as… flowery as Rochambeau.” Clarice muttered, barely looking up from the map.

“Ok, Operation Open Invitation. I mean, we’re after getting people to join us…”

“I like it.” Marcos said, “Operation Open Invitation.”

*****

By 9:35, the group arrived at their points of attack, all preparing for their own jobs. Marcos was with Harry and Sonia hidden in an alleyway. Caitlin, Andy, and Lauren were on a rooftop where they would get a clear shot at the bus. John and Clarice in an abandoned warehouse where they could easily portal into the bus. Taylor was in an alleyway just after the warehouse where the front of the convoy would be so she could take them all down if she needed to. Their final preparations were made as the transport approached.

John and Clarice stood in one of the warehouses, both eyeing up the road outside the window, “you should be able to see into the bus from here.” John told her, helping Clarice up to see out the window. Watching the road, Clarice couldn’t help but sigh.

“You good?” John didn’t even attempt to mask his concern.

Clarice gave a shrug, “trying not to think about the fact that if this goes wrong then not only will the Mutant Underground lose its two main leaders and most likely fold… but four little girls will be orphans.”

John turned back to the window, knowing that Clarice wouldn’t like what he had to say, “which is why, if things go south, I want you to portal out of here. Get Sonia and Harry and get home. Then grab the twins and Gen, and disappear, follow the escape plan we built.”

Clarice began protesting, “what about you? And Taylor?” She demanded, her eyes hard, but the fear was clear.

John shook his head, he knew Clarice wouldn’t like his answer. “Mighty’s hidden. She also won’t leave here without everyone. I… I can’t let her fight this alone.”

Clarice let out a nervous laugh, “I fucking hate you two sometimes, you know that?”

“Me too.” John confessed, “but, like you said, if things go sideways, four kids lose their parents. If even one of us can get home, the rest of us will be ok. If the rest of us die, you get home, forget the Underground, grab the four girls and head to the safehouse.”

“You want me to ditch?”

John hesitated, “no, but if Empty and I fall, our enemies will smell the blood in the water, they won’t hesitate to come after you. Or the kids. So yeah, fuck the Underground, fuck all of it, get you and the girls safe.”

Letting out a long breath, Clarice searched John face for any doubt, but his eyes had steeled, “fine. If you and Tay die, I’ll grab the twins and Gen and go. If you two, Marcos, and Lorna are all dead? I’ll get the girls to your old friends… then I’m coming back for blood.”

John wanted to argue, but he knew there would be no deterring Clarice from that. “No ghosts, no heroes… until you, me, or Empty get a taste for revenge.”

“Then it’s ‘many ghosts, definitely no heroes’.”

*****

On the roof, the three Struckers were waiting for the bus, Lauren couldn’t stop herself from glancing down to the street, trying to catch a glimpse of Taylor. Her sister was down there… somewhere… and Lauren wouldn’t be able to help from above.

“As soon as the bus is stopped,” Caitlin began, pulling Lauren from her thoughts, “I want you two to get out of here, get back to the HQ. Your father and I will meet you there.”

Lauren shook her head, “we’re not leaving you.”

“Yeah! You won’t be able to defend yourself.”

Caitlin glared at the pair, “this isn’t a debate.”

*****

Down a side-alley, Marcos glanced between Sonia and Harry, trying to figure out his words, “before this goes down, if things go wrong—”

Harry interrupted, “We got it. We take off, regroup at the rendezvous—"

Marcos shook his head, “no. Listen, if things go wrong, I'm not leaving.”

“Wait, what?!” Sonia exclaimed, “we discussed this!”

“I know what we discussed,” Marcos argued, “but Sage was right. I have no right dragging you into a suicide mission. If things go sideways, you guys go.”

“What about you?” Sonia demanded, not liking Marcos’ plan at all.

He let out a sigh, “I'm not leaving here without Lorna.” But he also wouldn’t let anyone die for his plan.

Chapter Text

After a moment, Andy saw the bus coming down the road. He jumped up and began focusing his powers, attempting to break the axel.

“Andy, go!” Lauren yelled, eyes darting between the bus and her brother.

Andy was taking too long. Eventually, he dropped his hands, “Okay, I can't do it.”

“What do you mean, you can't do it?” Lauren demanded, “You have to.” Their dad was depending on him doing this, their sister was on the ground waiting for them to do this.

Andy was shaking at the anger in Lauren’s voice. “I-It's... I don't know. It's moving. It's just different.”

*****

Down on the street and in the warehouse, three groups were getting more and more concerned when the bus failed to stop.

*****

Caitlin let out a breath, looking over to Andy, “You can do this. We believe in you.”

“It's not what we practiced.” Andy implored.

Caitlin placed a hand on his shoulder, “okay, just— just calm down.”

“I'm trying.”

Lauren let out a sigh and rolled her eyes, “Mom, stop babying him.” Caitlin tried to argue as Lauren pushed herself in front of Andy, “hey, you're the reason we're in this mess, and now you can't even help us get out!”

“What are you doing?!” Caitlin snapped as Andy pushed her.

“Maybe those bullies were right!” Lauren snapped, “maybe you are nothing. If they're wrong, then prove it.”

Pushing Lauren out of the way, Andy threw up his hands, focusing his powers.

Lauren grinned as she threw up shields to direct Andy, the axel broke. “Sorry. You're better when you're angry.” She said with a shrug.

Caitlin sighed and shook her head, “Look, we can argue later. We need to move.”

*****

In the warehouse, John and Clarice jumped down from the scaffolding. “Why didn’t the bus stop in the right place?!” Clarice called.

“Don’t know! Doesn’t matter, we just need to find it!” John called over as he ran through a wall.

Clarice grinned as she watched, “a brick wall… a John door, if you will.” John shot her a look as he climbed up to one of the windows, the bus directly below it. He scanned the area and realized something with horror.

*****

“Taylor, you’re exposed!” Came John’s panicked yell echoing through Taylor’s mind. Taylor moved quickly, hoping that she hadn’t been spotted as she ducked behind some wooden crates. She felt John relax slightly but she could only assume that she was safe, not check. Voices all around her made Taylor’s fear bubble. Closing her eyes, Taylor did everything she could to keep her powers in check as Clarice opened a portal to the bus.

*****

“Can you portal us in?” John asked, Clarice gave a nod and began reaching for her powers. The sparks rippled between her fingers before cutting out. Her mind spinning as her powers were snatched away from her.

John placed a hand on her back, steadying her, “are you ok?”

“Yeah,” Clarice closed her eyes for a moment, taking a second to ground herself, “just felt something weird there.”

John nodded, his eyes scanning the Sentinel Services agents on the street, “yeah, I felt it too.”

Clarice tried the portal again, but nothing happened, “I can’t portal.”

John nodded and tried to hear what was happening, he shook his head and let out a breath, “I can’t track… can’t hear Tay either.”

“What’s happening?” Clarice muttered.

Shaking his head, John silently ran through countless theories about what was happening before reaching a singular conclusion, “no… that’s impossible…”

Clarice’s eyebrows furrowed, “what is?”

“C’mon!” John took off in a run.

Clarice followed John as he headed through the warehouse, trying to find his way to the front of the convoy. Clarice was trying to figure out whatever it was that John was thinking of, but her panic was addling her mind too much.

John came to a stop in front of another window, his hands shaking and his eyes wide as he looked out the window to the group of agents at the front of the convoy. “The only thing I’ve ever known that can disrupt mutant powers like that is…”

Realization hit Clarice like a freight train, “Fuck!” She followed John’s line of sight and saw a man who was supposed to be dead.

*****

Taylor stayed ducked behind the crates as she felt her powers growing stronger, their energy engulfing her mind and setting her blood on fire. The sound of gunshots forced Taylor from her hiding spot in time to see Harry fall. Within moments, Taylor stopped holding back, letting her powers take out all the Sentinel Services agents who were attacking Marcos and Sonia.

“Get him outta here!” She yelled, motioning to Harry. Once Sonia was with Harry, Taylor took off, focusing on the pull of her powers, drawing her further down the convoy.

Taylor’s mind raced, she forced the connection with John open, “Beacon… my powers… they’re too strong!”

“I think I can explain that. Get to the front of the convoy, we’ll meet you there.” Taylor didn’t hesitate, instead, she took off in a dead sprint, hoping that her mind was on the right page.

On her way to the front of the convoy, Taylor’s eyes strayed towards one of the two armored trucks. She knew prisoner information was carried in one of them. It took her seconds to rip open the trunk of the car and open the box inside. Inside were nearly two dozen paper folders containing information. Slinging the backpack off, Taylor stuffed the folders in. Working quickly before taking off in a sprint to meet up with John.

Taylor froze when her eyes landed on the group at the front of the convoy, more importantly, she focused on Gus. He looked ill. Like he’d been starved. She didn’t have much time to take in his appearance as Sentinel Service agents began to attack her. She tore them down in seconds. John joined her, taking out the last one that Taylor hadn’t noticed was raising a gun on her.

Now only Gus was left. He didn’t seem to recognize them. Taylor felt tears prick her eyes as she looked at the man who was her husband. She watched John knock him out. His hand came onto her shoulder. “Do what you did to Clarice. Break the walls and find the man who loved you. Pull him to the front, lock the chemically engineered Gus away. You can get rid of his pain, too, you did it yesterday at the HQ.”

Taylor pressed her fingers to Gus’ temple, she let her powers guide her, forcing their way through all of the barriers as they drew her towards the powers of the man they seemed to remember as her anchor. She didn’t stop when they found him. She guided her powers to force up wall across the parts of his mind that wanted to hurt her or their family. She guided the real Augustus Nobel to the surface, drawing away any pain he was feeling, any injuries and suffering.

When her fingers slipped off of Gus, a purple portal snapped open behind them, Clarice called for the pair to bring the unconscious Gus through to her. Once they had, John slipped away to find Marcos. The portal closed behind him.

Taylor didn’t take her eyes off of Gus as Clarice sat beside her. “We can’t move him ‘til he’s conscious, this might not have worked and if we take him back to the HQ…” Her voice faded as she looked at the man she’d loved for years.

Clarice pulled Taylor into her arms, a reassuring smile on her lips, “he’ll be okay. He knows what’s good for him.” Taylor gave a laugh through her tears. She was finally looking at the one man who meant the world to her, who meant everything to her. She didn’t know what she’d do if this hadn’t worked, she couldn’t watch him die again.

*****

As soon as the portal had closed behind him, John took off down the street, searching for Marcos. It only took him a minute to find the man ducked behind a car. Marcos’ eyes darted over to John, “you okay?”

John nodded distractedly, “yeah. Better now.”

“You're bleeding?” Marcos asked, more out of surprise than true concern.

“I'll explain later. Look, we got to get out of here.”

“No, no, I'm not leaving.” Marcos stated, he wasn’t giving up now, not when they were so close.

“Sentinel Services is gonna have reinforcements coming in.” John argued futilely.

“John, I'm not leaving without Lorna.”

The pair watched as several agents ran down the street and the bus began creaking. Moments later the doors flew from their hinges and Lorna hopped down from the bus, her powers swarming around her hands as she took control of the bullets and fired them back on the agents. Behind her, Reed Strucker jumped down, blood soaking his knee as he limped towards them.

“Looks like she's doing just fine without you.” John smirked as the handful of remaining agents fell back further down the street.

Lorna and Reed ran towards the pair, Lorna instantly running into Marcos’ arms, “how did you find us?”

“It really doesn't matter now.” Marcos muttered against her hair as a car pulled up beside them.

“Come on, get in!” Caitlin yelled from the driver’s seat. The group all clambered in before speeding away.

John let his mind turn to Taylor, letting himself focus on her voice and senses as he tried to see if she and Clarice were in any danger.

“Where’re Clare and Mighty?” Lorna asked after a moment, “and what the fuck injured you enough to make you bleed?”

“I’ll explain in a few.” John stated as his mind settled when he took note that the pair were fine for now, hidden away in a warehouse far away from where Sentinel Services would immediately search.

*****

Jace Turner watched with burning rage as the car with the mutants in sped down the road, “damn it! Go after 'em.” He yelled, refusing to let them all get away.

“They're out in the open now.” Weeks assured him, “We'll get 'em.”

“I don't just want them!” Turner snapped, “Shut down every safe house, every sympathizer, anyone who's ever helped 'em. I want them all.”

*****

Nearly an hour passed, and Clarice and Taylor hadn’t moved, they still had their eyes fixed on Gus, they’d called John to tell him that they were safe. To stop him worrying. The pair hadn’t spoken, hadn’t checked the files Taylor had stolen, they just waited. Taylor felt the warmth flutter in her chest, a warmth she’d missed. It was something she couldn’t explain, but something she felt when both her and Gus were linked. Like her psychic link with John, she had a different sort of link with Gus. It was like a rope from her heart to his. Her mind had connected to John’s when she needed mental strength in her darkest hour, her heart connected with Gus when she needed unwavering love.

Slowly, very slowly, a pair of deep amber eyes opened, squinting in the light of the room.
“Hey Darlin’.” Whispered a voice that Taylor thought she’d never hear again. Taylor pulled Gus towards her, their lips crashing into each other in a desperate kiss filled with every ounce of emotion from the last two years.

Chapter Text

Taylor and Gus could've stayed in each other's arms forever if they had the chance.

They held onto each other tightly as Clarice moved to the window, "hey, I hate to break you up, but Sentinel Services are coming this way. We need to get out of here."

As the pair stood up, Gus stumbled slightly making Taylor hold his arm around her shoulder. "Can you get us back to the HQ?" Taylor asked.

Clarice nodded, "sort of, it'll take a couple of jumps though."

"Well, it's better than stayin’ ‘ere." Gus replied as the door was forced open, the resounding crash making Clarice open a portal.

The trio leapt through, landing in a clearing surrounded by woods. They looked around, all trying to figure out where they were. It was several moments before they decided that they were in the woods about three miles south of the warehouse they'd been in moments ago.

"How're you feeling Clare?" Taylor muttered as Gus wrapped his arm around her shoulders to keep himself upright.

"Um, I'll be able to do three or four more jumps. But we're gonna have to walk a bit too." The pair nodded before Clarice moved to lead them through the woods.

Gus' arm remained over Taylor's shoulders as his strength came back, relying on his wife to keep him upright. Clarice watched as the pair moved in sync, instinct took over as they moved to help each other, stepping to protect and defend the person they loved.

*****

John, Marcos, Lorna, and the Strucker parents quickly climbed out of the Sentinel Services car once they had reached a stash of cars. The three mutants began moving to prep the cars.

"We gotta talk." John called to the pair, "when we were out there, when we lost our powers—"

"What did they have?" Marcos asked, his voice filled with both curiosity and fear.

John glanced between the pair, deciding that it was better to just be blunt, his friends deserved the truth. "Gus. He was there with Sentinel Services."

“What?” Lorna asked, her voice little more than a whisper.

"That's impossible, he died."

"He's with Taylor and Clarice. I've just heard from Tay that he's awake and remembers them."

Marcos and Lorna both had their mouths slightly agape at the news. "So, Gus is coming home?" Lorna asked with hope.

"Yeah." John said, not quite believing it himself yet.

“Better question,” Marcos said, “how the hell did they get Pulse working on their side? I mean, if they can turn him—” Marcos’ voice cut off as John held up a hand.

Barely listening to Marcos, John’s attention focused on the low hum of a drone. "Sentinel Services drone coming in, we gotta move. Now."

“It’ll see us soon,” Marcos muttered, heading for one of the cars, “I’ll draw it off, try and take it down… at least give you some time to get gone.”

“Kay, I’m coming,” Lorna said, jogging over to the passenger door.

Marcos scoffed, “you just got out of prison, Lorna.”

Lorna flicked her hand, opening the passenger door with her powers, “you go, I go.”

A grin spread across Marcos’ face, “we'll meet you at headquarters. Go.”

*****

Marcos and Lorna headed off in one car to draw the drone off while John and the Struckers headed back to the HQ.  “Do you see it?” Marcos called over to Lorna as he checked the mirrors for any sign of the drone, “It's behind us.” He muttered.

“Looks like we got a new friend.” Lorna said with a roll of her eyes.

“We're gonna have a lot more friends if we don't take it down soon.”

Lorna tried to reach for the drone with her powers, but nothing happened, “It's out of range. I can't reach.”

“Where is it? I don't, I don't see it.” Marcos asked as it disappeared from view, “Uh… it's above us.”

Lorna grabbed Marcos’ arm briefly before grabbing the rear-view mirror and levitating it out the window, “Care to do the honors?” Marcos grinned before aiming a beam of light into the mirror, holding it steady until the drone exploded and crashed behind them.

Laughter filled the car as they saw the drone hit the ground, Marcos glanced over to Lorna for a moment before pulling her close to kiss her.

“Let’s go home.” Lorna whispered.

*****

John made it back with the Struckers, looking around, he couldn't find Marcos and Lorna anywhere. He hoped they'd be ok but knew there was also the chance that they would be captured by Sentinel Services. It wasn’t that John was resigned to the pair being captured, but he knew the chances, he’d been playing this game of cat and mouse for years, he placed their chances of getting back unchecked at about 40%.

Tensely leading Caitlin and Reed inside, John froze at the sight of refugees filling the common area. "Shatter!" John called as the man walked by, "what're all these people doing here? What's going on?" He asked urgently.

Shatter gave a grim chuckle, shaking his head at John, "more like what isn't going on. You need to talk to Sage." He stated with a nod.

Behind John, Caitlin gasped, “Reed.”

“Andy! Lauren!” Reed ran towards the pair as the two kids began running towards their dad.

John smiled as the two kids reunited with their dad before he began heading down the steps only to stop again.

Silence fell over the HQ when a portal opened in the middle of the common area. Many of the new refugees tried to move as far away from the portal as they could, all reliving the moments when Sentinel Services had forced them to run.

"Go! Get through!" They heard the yelling and weapons fire from the other side. John ran towards the familiar open portal, stopping when Taylor, Clarice, and Gus came tumbling through.

"You hurt?" Taylor asked, both Clarice and Gus shook their heads as they got back to their feet, Gus held his hand out to Taylor, helping her up.

"Are you?" Gus asked, his hand against her cheek.

Taylor just laughed, "when's a bullet ever slowed me down?" She grinned as Gus pulled her close, resting his forehead against hers for a moment. An old, familiar motion for the pair.

Many long-term residents of the HQ look on with wide eyes and open mouths as they saw Gus. Sage was the first to move, running towards him and hugging him before slapping him.

"What was that for?!" Gus asked with feigned shock.

"For letting Taylor and your daughter think you were dead. And for making me, John, and Marcos think we'd seen you die." She said before moving away and letting Shatter hug Gus, the pair had been good friends years ago.

Shatter moved away to stand with Sage after a moment, letting John and Gus share a look,
"I'm sorry." John murmured, voice small, his eyes struggling to meet Gus’.

Gus rolled his eyes, "you ain't gonna go all hard ass on me now are ya, Beacon?" He commented with a smirk before pulling John into a tight hug. They had been brothers to each other for more than 15 years. “You ain’t responsible for leavin’ me, Kid.” Gus whispered against John’s ear, quiet enough that only John could hear it. Gus smiled as John’s arms tightened around him.

Taylor smiled as her brother and husband hugged, she dropped the backpack onto the couch as she watched them. “Sage,” she whispered, “there’s documents in there that might be useful for the next step of Operation Rochambeau.”

Sage nodded, “I’ll get on it.” She took the backpack.

Taylor’s eyes fell on a group of girls stood watching. “Matchstick.” She whispered. The two brothers moved apart, allowing Gus to look at what Taylor was. Gus’ breath caught in his throat as his eyes fell onto the girls that he was certain he'd recognize anywhere.

He wasn't the only who recognized who he was looking at. Imogen began running towards him in a sprint, "Daddy!" She yelled as Gus caught her, pulling her tight against his chest, Imogen wrapped her arms securely around Gus’s neck, burying her face into his shoulder. Taylor ran her hand over her daughter's back as Gus wrapped an arm around his wife, holding her close.

No one moved for several minutes, everyone watched in silence as Gus just held his wife and daughter close.

"Why're you cryin' Mommy?" Imogen asked, panic ebbing into her voice.

"Because I'm happy, Baby." Taylor reassured her daughter. Gus wrapped his arm tighter around Taylor in order to reassure her. Taylor glanced over to John, smiling a thank you for him telling her how to help Gus. Her eyes landed on Lauren; the teen was stood watching her sister.

Gus turned his eyes to Lauren, raising an eyebrow to his wife, silently asking who she was focused on.

"Gus, meet my little sister. Lauren, meet my husband." Gus placed Imogen gently on the ground just in time for Lauren to pull him into a hug. Confusion etched its way onto Gus' features; of all the people he had expected to be hugged by, Taylor's sister wasn't high on the list.

"Thank you." Lauren began, "for being there for my sister." Gus smiled and returned the hug tentatively, not too sure how far Lauren was comfortable with. Gus noticed Taylor's smile, he couldn't help relaxing at the sight. Lauren had been growing close to her sister for a while, she spent most of her nights learning about the things Taylor had experienced in the Citadel and in the early years of the Mutant Underground.

Lauren turned away from Gus, letting him return to reuniting with his daughter. Lauren glanced between John and Clarice; her lips parted as if she wanted to speak.

"What's up?" Clarice asked, startling the teenager.

Lauren's cheeks flushed slightly before speaking, "um, I was wanting to learn how to fight. Like hand-to-hand combat." She stated simply, John, Clarice, Taylor, and Gus all shared a look, gathering around Lauren.

"What makes you want that?" Taylor asked softly, shifting to stand closer to Gus, her hand rubbing Imogen's back as she listened to her sister.

"When we were out there, when we lost our powers… a Sentinel Service agent was right in front of us, and I couldn't do anything. I felt helpless… I don't wanna feel that again." Lauren whispered, messing with her sleeve.

"Yeah, sorry about that." Gus muttered.

"Weren’t your fault." Taylor stated with certainty before turning back to Lauren, "Lauren, if you wanna learn how to fight, we'll teach you. But it won't be a quick solution, it'll take time, and you won't be good instantly, if you wanna learn how to fight, then we'll help you." Lauren smiled, thanking her sister in a way that made Taylor roll her eyes before she pulled Lauren to her side and hugging her close.

The group all shared a look as the door opened, Lorna and Marcos made their way into the HQ. Their eyes searching for one person. As soon as Lora's eyes landed on Gus, she ran towards him, John had just enough time to take Imogen into his arms before Lorna had launched herself to Gus. Gus laughed as he wrapped his arms around Lorna, stumbling backwards slightly from Lorna's speed. Marcos reached the group with a smile, joining the hug for a moment.

After a moment, Taylor sensed someone behind her. Glancing over her shoulder, she smiled at the sight of Andy.

As soon as he realized Taylor had noticed him, Andy wrapped Taylor in a hug. “Thank you,” he whispered, “for keeping your promise.”

Taylor kissed his temple as she hugged him back, “I told you, I know the guilt of getting someone taken. I didn’t want you to feel that.”

The group all felt like a weight had gone, one of their shadows had been lifted with the return of their family members. They'd gained one more than they were expecting, and it had made their family complete. With Gus back, they all hoped that a smile would return to Taylor's face, that laughter would be able to be heard around the HQ, that some of the fear would leave them all.

Marcos and Lorna backed into the circle, John placed Imogen on the floor, letting the girl run back towards her friends. Lorna’s eyes darted to the four girls and relief flooded her as she saw Aurora, dropping to her knees, Lorna opened her arms, and Aurora immediately ran to her mother.

Chapter Text

After several minutes of families reuniting, the adults moved into one of the empty offices, Sage, Shatter, Lauren, and Sonia followed. Gathering around the desk in the office, the group began bombarding Gus with questions.

Clarice noticed John wincing as the noise increased in the room. “Shut up!” She yelled, silencing the group, “quiet talk please.”

Gus collapsed into one of the chairs, letting out a breath before beginning on his story. “When we were attacking that relocation center and I got shot, they took me to some facility where they fixed my injury and then chemically altered my mind until I couldn't refuse to follow their commands. I don't really remember anything about it, just that there were about fifty mutants all held in the program.” Gus' voice faded off as his fingers ran over his wrist, his sleeve hiding something.

Taylor knitted her eyebrows together as she watched him, the movements were reminiscent of her own when she was messing with her barcode. “What else?”

“They branded each of us,” he lifted his sleeve just enough to show the symbol, “it's the HOUND project logo. It's what they called the program I was in. For something like Task Industries. I dunno…”

The group all shared a look, doing their best to figure out what Gus had been through.

“You guys have so many people trading information, intel, and secrets,” Marcos muttered, “you’ve never heard of Task Industries?”

“I’ve heard of something similar, Trask Industries—” John began.

“That’s it!” Gus exclaimed, clicking his fingers at the confirmation.

“Yeah, it would be. They own 60% of the government funded rehabilitation centers.” John said, shaking his head.

“They’re researchers,” Taylor explained, “they want to find a way to block the X-gene… at least, that’s what our spies have told us.”

Sonia raised her hand slightly, “I could search through your memories, see everything they did.” She offered; Gus nodded quickly. Sonia read Gus' mind with unnerving ease, checking his memories for everything he knew about what had actually happened to him. “Yeah, so, it’s called Trask Industries. That's actually all you know.”

Gus deflated as Sonia backed away, “how is that all I know!?” Gus yelled, slamming his fist against the table before storming from the room.

Taylor followed Gus from the room, leaving the rest of the group to question Sage about the uptake in refugees at the HQ.

“As soon as you hit that convoy, Sentinel Services hit back. Hitting any place there were even suspected mutant sympathizers. With no warrants. They were out for blood.”

John, Clarice, Marcos, and Lorna shared a look before John voiced their thoughts, “we've got our hands full. And we can't move anyone, not with this kind of heat.”

“Plus, if Taylor begins to regress, more people than ever before are in danger, and with her dad here… it's a very real possibility.” Clarice added, finally taking the time to consider what Caitlin and Reed being at the HQ would mean for her best friend.

Lauren's eyes widened for a moment at the thought, she hadn't considered how her dad being with them would affect her sister, “what could happen with Taylor?” She asked, glancing between Clarice, John, Lorna, and Marcos.

Clarice let out a long breath, “you remember the day after you'd arrived? That, but about 20 times worse. They drain John as well as Tay. They're bad… Worst part is, half the time, we don’t know she’s slipping until the pain causes you to pass out.” She explained, John pinched the bridge of his nose at the thought.

The group turned back to Sage, letting her explain what was going on. “I've been manning the police scanners, trying to keep our people off the grid.” Sage offered, easing some of their worries.

“Good. We need to keep listening. If anything comes up on the scanners, we need to know about it.” Marcos stated before the sound of yelling reached the room.

*****

The group all headed into the corridor to find Fade attack Reed Strucker, John watched as Fade turned invisible, letting him land a few more punches on Reed than he normally would, before grabbing Fade’s fist, “that's enough!” Fade became visible again and John dropped his fist, “what are you doing?”

“How about protecting us?” Fade spat, a burning hatred in his eyes as he glared at Reed.

The four leaders looked at him in confusion, “wanna enlighten us?” Clarice demanded.

Fade scoffed, glancing between the four before turning to the rest of the refugees, “just so y'all know, last time I saw this son of a bitch, he was working for Sentinel Services.”

“Of course he was…” Marcos sighed, trying to avoid looking at Clarice and John, both of whom were glaring at him. He’d been the one to agree to help the family.

Murmuring and protesting filled the HQ, Clarice glanced over to the door, silently glad that Gus and Taylor were still outside.

John let out a breath, “everyone, just calm down.” A sense of disgust washed over him at the thought of defending Reed.

“Calm down?!” Fade exclaimed indignantly, “this dude's job was locking up people like us.”

“Just listen,” Lauren stepped in, “my dad prosecuted mutants, okay? He did. When he found out about us, he stood up to Sentinel Services.”

“Yeah. By wearing a tracker into my bar.” Fade growled causing Clarice to step in front of Lauren, a warning look made Fade back up a step.

“Hey, back off my dad.” Andy snapped.

Reed glanced between his children and the members of the Underground before stepping forward, motioning for Andy to step back, “I was doing what I had to do to get back to my family. I realized I was wrong...”

““And I'm sorry.” That… that's it, right?” Fade said condescendingly.

“Alright. Just hear him out!” John snapped.

The sound of Harry crying out in pain filled the HQ. “Okay, stop. There are injured people here.” Caitlin snapped as she stepped between the group, “why are we attacking each other?”

“You go. You help them.” Reed said quietly, “take Andy and Lauren with you. I... I'll work this out.”

“But he's saying that...”

“What he's saying is true.” The leaders of the HQ heard Reed’s words and couldn’t stop their building hatred as they watched Reed and Fade.

“So, nothing’s changed.” Marcos muttered, the group all looked over to him, “guess I owe Taylor.”

“Ya think?” John shot back, doing his best to keep the anger out of his voice, he turned back to Fade, “trust me, I want this bastard gone infinitely more than you do, but we don’t get to decide what happens to him,” Fade raised an eyebrow, “his life belongs to Taylor. Only she gets to decide what happens to him. She made a promise to bring him here, she decides what happens to him.”

A long moment passed before Fade nodded, clearly unhappy, but willing to let Taylor have her revenge. Fade, like most people in the HQ had a soft spot for Taylor. Like most people in the HQ, Fade had heard Taylor’s story about surviving the Citadel and immediately gained respect and sympathy for her.

*****

Useless. That was the only word Gus could use to describe how he felt. He felt as though he was letting his friends, his family, down. He was the only one who knew anything about the mutants turn on each other, and he knew nothing. Punching the wall, Gus let out a yell only to turn and see Taylor.

“I'm glad it's not just me who finds that satisfying.” Taylor said with a smile, brushing her thumb over his bloodied knuckles.

Gus stepped closer to Taylor, his hand cupping her cheek. Taylor licked her lips as Gus moved closer to her, she could practically feel his heartbeat as she moved to keep her back against the wall, her hands on his hips. Gus' lips collided with Taylor's, the kiss was intense, filled with desire and lust. They were desperate, running out of air but neither wanted to break the kiss. Taylor's hands gripped Gus' hips with practically bruising force, her control slipping for the briefest moment. They didn't want to let the other go. Eventually, the need for air became too much, the pair broke apart, Gus kept his forehead resting against Taylor's as they caught their breath.

After several minutes, the pair finally moved, Gus pulled Taylor to his side before he spoke, “so, your sister's here.” He stated, it was fair to say that he was shocked. Gus knew what had happened to Taylor better than anyone else, better than John and Clarice. At least, he used to.

“Not just her.” Taylor muttered as they entered the building. Gus glanced at her, raising an eyebrow. Taylor nodded her head towards where Lauren was stood with her brother and parents.

“Your folks are here?” Gus growled. Taylor nodded; Gus felt her fear spiking as she finally looked at her father. Her heart pounding as her eyes fixed on him.

Taylor’s eyes hazed as she watched the man hug her sister and Andy, as she watched him smile. The white began to close in around her, the cuffs of her jacket began feeling more like manacles while the neck of her t-shirt felt more like a collar. “Don’t… let me go… I wanna go home!” A child’s scream, a teenager’s plea. Gasping for breath, Taylor felt the tears on her cheeks, but nothing could tear her away from the screaming in her mind, the injections forcing her powers open and taking her senses from her.

Chapter Text

Gus froze when Taylor stumbled and dropped to her knees, a scream ripping from her mind, reaching everyone at the HQ, her eyes wild with panic as the pain grew stronger. He gripped Taylor close to him, pulling her onto his lap. A nod towards John let his best friend know he'd got this under control.

Gus pressed his lips to Taylor’s temple, right next to her ear, “Mighty, you're safe Darlin’, I've got you. I promise, I won't let them hurt you again. I've got you now, and I'm not gonna leave you. I’m never leaving you again.” He kept reassuring her until her powers receded, the pain disappearing from around him. Taylor's arms locked around Gus, holding him close as if she were afraid that he would disappear.

The feeling of pain reached the Strucker family as Taylor fell, the sensation becoming annoyingly familiar to Andy and Caitlin. Lauren didn't experience it as much as they did, almost as though her sister was subconsciously protecting like she did as a teenager. Reed, on the other hand, was left gasping in pain, a look of familiarity flashed across his face as the pain disappeared just as quickly as it had developed.

Reed moved to approach the woman on the floor, his mouth agape when he saw her. He'd recognize her anywhere; the blue hair and red eyes making her stand out. Against his better judgement, Reed descended the stairs towards the pair on the floor. “Mackenzie?” He whispered as he approached, everyone had told him that she was alive, that his life belonged to her, but he hadn’t truly believed she was still alive until now.

Clarice noticed Reed approaching her friends, she grabbed Taylor away from Gus just as Reed reached them. John turned to watch whatever was about to happen, knowing that there was no point in trying to stop this. When Fade had attacked Reed only moments ago, he'd been able to intervene, but now… there was no chance.

Gus let his hand fall from Taylor's back as his eyes darkened, everyone gathered around as Gus clenched his hands into fists. John moved to keep Lauren and Andy away from their father and Gus, knowing that this was likely going to be bad. Gus was the only one without super-strength who ever stood a chance at facing him in hand-to-hand combat.

With a honed precision, Gus moved easily, his fist colliding with Reed's stomach, forcing the man to the ground. Gus pulled Reed to his feet, holding him as his fist connected with his stomach several more times, leaving Reed winded and gasping for breath. "Listen to me carefully, I will only say this once." Gus' voice was barely louder than a hiss, but in the silence of the HQ, he was heard perfectly. "You stay away from Taylor. You stay away from Clarice and Lorna. You don't go near them or their children. If you so much as approach Imogen, Evie, Rose, or Aurora, I will amplify the pain you are feeling right now until you can no longer remember your own name. I will make what Taylor went through seem like heaven in comparison. If you endanger anyone in this building, if you attempt to sell us out, or hurt us, or betray us, I will kill you. Is that clear? If you endanger Lauren or Andrew, I will destroy you. If you hurt my wife, I will reciprocate the action." Gus dropped Reed to the floor, letting his nose connect with the concrete, breaking as it hit the floor. "The same rules apply to your wife." Gus spat as he walked away.

*****

Taking a breath, John followed Gus out onto the roof, he tried to contain his anger, but it wasn't easy. He'd hoped that Gus would still be alive, but it was a dream, he'd seen Taylor break so much in the past two years. And now, Gus was back to his old… protective ways.
“What in the Hell was that?!” John snapped once the door was closed.

He could practically hear Gus rolling his eyes. “It was me, making sure that the cop knew where we stand.”

John growled at Gus' words, “don't give me that crap. You may be able to fool most of them with it, but I know you. There's more going on. And don’t even try to say it’s just your mind settling. I know you, I know how protective you get of Empty, what happened?”

Gus snapped to face John, “what? You gonna be Gunny Sergent Proudstar again? Order me to tell you all this shit? In case you forgot, I outrank you, Kid. I saw that hell.” John's eyes widened at the last statement Gus made, he did his best to ignore the others. “They showed us footage of the Citadel, I hid it from Sonia, but Taylor knows. Hell, she always knows. They used it as training footage, showing us ‘what the enemy do’, they showed us the moment Taylor lost control. Even with their drugged control, I've never felt an anger so strong. Not even when we saw that school get bombed in Afghan.” John tensed at the memory, they'd been rescuing kids, they managed to save about half when a bomb went off inside the school, it killed two of their squad and all the kids and teachers still inside.

John sat down on one of the benches, he knew Gus had a temper that could rival Lorna's, he was always one that you did not want as an enemy.

“He sent her there. He put her in that place and left her to rot. When I saw him, everything I'd done my best to get away from came back, that desperation to kill him to protect her…” Gus's voice broke up as he spoke, his anger melting, leaving only hurt, “Why'd you leave me there, Beacon? Why didn't you come back?”

John looked down to his feet, “I wanted to, Marcos and Sage dragged me away. I couldn't… I couldn't get back, I wanted to. You're my brother.” Gus' response caught in his throat; he didn't know what to say. He and John had grown up together, Gus was a year older than John, but they'd been best friends since John was 18 and they'd both joined the Marines.

John stood up from the bench, moving to stand beside Gus as Gus found the words he wanted to say. "All I've wanted to do for the last seven years is protect Taylor, and then four years ago it grew into protecting Imogen as well. And now he's here, and he poses a greater risk to them than anything else." Gus commented, turning away from John to look over the railings to the woods.

"I felt it when we brought Caitlin and those kids here for the first time. It was like everything I've helped my baby sister recover from has been pointless." John muttered as he looked over the woods, avoiding looking at Gus. He’d hated it, since that first moment when he and Clarice went to rescue Marcos, John hadn’t been able to stop feeling his own hatred building. “What’s worse… we’ve got Marcos deciding that he should bring up what Love, Mighty, and I know outside of the Underground.”

“Meaning some… old friends?” Gus knew all about John’s history with the X-Men, Clarice’s history with the Brotherhood, and all four of their histories with Orchis. He shook his head at the thought that, if some of the Underground knew what their beloved leaders had done to survive, they would all be hunted down by their own.

“Not just them,” John didn’t look over, he didn’t need to, “eighteen months ago, Empty and I disappeared for about six months. We didn’t tell the others where we’d gone. The only one that knew anything was Reese… James had gotten himself on Sentinel Service’s radar, Tay and I sprang him, took down a complex in the process. About a month after we thought you died, we learned about shit going down in Europe, some old friends called in some backup. We dealt with the issue, but we got on international radar in a bad way.”

Raising an eyebrow, Gus shook his head, huffing out a laugh, “you two were considered Targets One and Two by the HOUND program… do the others still think that you guys get that without being involved with the darkest shit?”

“Apparently,” John muttered, smiling slightly, “even Marcos and Lorna seem to think that the worst we’ve ever done has all been justified violence. Pisses me off at times, they’re too busy trying to justify the shit that they know about what we got up to in the past, they don’t bother to realize that we’d do it all again with very little prompting. Don’t know if you’ve noticed, but me and Mighty are fucking good at pissing off governments. I mean, Taylor’s still trying to tear down all the research centers, she’s taken down three since you… died.”

Gus turned to look at John, fear ebbing its way into his mind. "How bad is Taylor gonna get? We don't even know what her triggers are."

"Crowds, small spaces." Came Clarice's voice.

"Large spaces, white rooms, loud noises, silence." Taylor stated as she joined them.

"Her family, old buildings, chains, feeling powerless." Marcos added from behind Taylor.

"Yeah, I think it's clear that anything could trigger me if it's a bad day. I've been able to cope with my siblings and Caitlin being here. It's just… seeing him… I don't know, everything was just…"

"Wrong." Lauren stated, finishing her sister's words. Lauren had followed the group of friends to the roof after seeing what Gus did to her dad, she wasn’t sure why, she had no intention of arguing with Gus after what he’d done. She hadn’t really meant to eavesdrop their conversation, much less join it, so when the group all stared at her for a moment, she couldn’t help but mess with her locket as she tried to find the words to explain. “It's the same thing I felt when Dad told a father and daughter to leave a bowling alley when the girl had accidentally used her powers. I hadn't long manifested mine, so I felt like everything was just wrong.” Lauren explained, her eyes scanning the group.

Taylor gave a nod to Lauren before adding her own words to the story. "They treasured the fact that I was different for so long, they only stopped when it was no longer simple. They sent me away and I never even got to say goodbye." Tears slipped down Taylor's cheeks as she finished, the events of the past few weeks catching up with her, taking all of her energy with it, “Caitlin tried to stop them for a few minutes… but she let me go. She’d gone back inside before they’d even shut the van,” she whispered through her tears, “I just kept begging Reed to help me, to forgive me. He just stood there, watching.” Gus pulled her into his arms, holding her tight against him.

"How's Harry?" John asked, quickly changing the topic before Taylor had her second breakdown in less than an hour.

"Mom says he'll make a full recovery, it's likely to take a while, but what'd you expect. I mean, he got shot." Lauren told them all as they sat on the benches, the group all let out a breath at the news.

"You still wanna train?" Taylor asked, Lauren nodded fervently.

John and Taylor shared a glance, their eyes and expressions shifting as they silently spoke to each other.

Gus let out an exasperated sigh as he rolled his eyes. "So, while the Tweedles are chatting without us," everyone laughed at the comment while John and Taylor just glared at Gus. He used to be the only one who got away with calling John and Taylor the Tweedles, Clarice was quick to join in, and by the time they'd started the HQ. It was their nickname whenever they were talking mentally while stood with others.

"We were discussing training Lauren, actually, deciding who'd be better to teach her." Taylor stated.

"We decided that we'd instruct considering… y'know, we'd potentially kill her." John added, Lauren tensed at the comment, not doubting for a moment that John was serious.

"So, we're left with you four. And Clare and Lorna haven't had much in the way of hand-to-hand experience, so that—" Taylor continued.

"Leaves Marcos and Gus to train them—"

"But Gus has had military tactic training—"

“And whatever they gave him in Trask, so he'd—"

"Be the better choice to conduct the training while Marcos partners with one of you guys." the others rolled their eyes at how easily the pair were able to flow. There weren't breaks as they spoke each other's words, letting the sentences flow between them.

Clarice grinned when she saw Lauren’s exasperation and confusion, "oh, don't worry, they've been doing it for seven years, you get used to it."

"That's my worry." Lauren responded, everyone laughed for a moment, “look, Mom and Dad are gonna try and put their foot down, they won’t want me involved in all that you do. I wanna be involved. Writing essays and researching law is one thing, seeing that change happen, being involved in starting mutant rights protests, it… it matters. I wanna be involved in that.”

“It’s not just some glorious fight, Wren,” John said.

“Oh, I know. You guys are all wanted for terrorism or extremism… I know if I get involved as deeply as you guys are, I’ll end up shot, or arrested, or dead. I’m willing to risk it if it means kids like us can grow up without the fear that we all did.” She looked around the group, “I want to be a part of what fans the spark into a flame. I mean, we’re already on our knees, a boot against our throats, the government holding a gun to our heads. The only thing we can do is rise up.”

“You wanna help people stand up.” Taylor smirked.

Lauren nodded, “this isn’t a moment, it’s a movement towards a future. I get it, you guys have been fighting this longer than I have, but I’m tired of standing here waiting for change to happen without us being active participants in that change. We need to start thinking past tomorrow if we’re gonna see a better future.”

“Toast to freedom, Kid.” Gus muttered.

Taylor watched Lauren with a proud smile, “y’know, we might not live to see any of it.”

“But we might.” Lauren said, “sure, we’re still outmanned and outgunned, but they’re scared. We saw that today, they’re terrified of what we can do. So let’s keep moving while they’re afraid.”

Clarice draped her arm over Lauren's shoulder as she took John's hand, keeping their newest friend close as they entered the HQ and headed to the mess for some lunch.

Chapter Text

As the group headed inside, John let his head fall forward when he glanced around the corner, “for fuck’s sake.” He muttered, drawing everyone’s attention to where Fade was still arguing with Reed.

“Do I wanna know?” Taylor asked.

“No!” The rest of the group, bar Gus, said in sync.

“Gus, Tay, Wren, why don’t you guys head to the mess? I’ll catch up.” John grumbled.

Taylor laughed, “I’m not missing this.” She and John headed over to the pair, leaving the others stood in the hallway watching.

“I get your dessert if Taylor punches anyone.” Clarice muttered to Gus.

“I get yours if John does.” The pair shook hands over Lauren who just stood watching, not sure what to do.

“Fade, what’re we doing?” Taylor asked, tired exasperation in her voice. She took a moment to take in the butterfly bandages across Reed’s nose.

Fade scoffed, “you’re happy with this?!” He motioned to Reed, “how can we even think about trusting him after everything he did?!”

Taylor glanced over to John, “what’s he on about?”

John sighed, “Reed wore a tracker into the bar, from what Fade’s shouted.”

“My own children are mutants. Do you really think I'd betray the one place that's protecting them?” Reed snapped.

“Poor argument,” Taylor muttered to John, both of them crossing their arms as they watched the pair arguing.

“You tell me. You already tried once.” Fade sneered.

Taylor made a noise, “twice… technically.”

Reed glanced from Taylor, to John, to Lauren, to Fade, and back again, “I am simply asking you to—”

No! You can't ask me a damn thing!” Fade snapped again, standing firm.

John rolled his eyes, sighing heavily, “let him talk. Fuck’s sake, we're never gonna get anywhere if you don't—” John’s voice trailed off at the sight of Sage coming around the corner.

“John, Taylor, I need you to come with me now.”

Taylor raised an eyebrow, “I’ll bite, what is it?”

“Infinitely more interesting than this,” John muttered, glaring at the Reed and Fade.

Sage rolled her eyes, all too used to the two Underground leaders, “you said to come find you if anything's up on the police scanners, and something weird is going on.”

*****

With plans for a group lunch successfully derailed, the group, including Lauren, followed Sage towards the tech room, leaving Reed and Fade glowering at each other in the hallway.

Shaking her head, Sage motioned to the computers, “until a few minutes ago, the radios were going wild with activity. Manhunts, the works. And then the chatter just stopped.”

John’s eyes narrowed as the police radio sounded again, “what is that a traffic stop they're calling in?”

Sage hummed, “yeah, and a minute ago, it was a drunk and disorderly over by the freeway.”

“And there's nothing on the manhunt?” Marcos asked, “did they get bored of us that quick?”

Shrugging, Sage looked across the group, “there's a possibility they've abandoned the search, but historically—”

“They didn't abandon anything.” Reed Strucker’s voice caused most of the room to roll their eyes in a mix of frustration or irritation.

“Yeah. We're handling this, alright?” John grumbled, not looking over.

“Let me help you.” Reed implored, “I used to work these kinds of manhunts, I know the protocols. You want to protect this place, I could be good for that.” The radio sounded again, “488 is petty theft.” Reed explained.

“Gee, who could’ve guessed that? Does he think we don’t know the codes? We’ve been playing this game for years,” John complained to Taylor, “is my opinion of him… clouded?”

Taylor smirked over to John, “Possibly, but it’s not undeserved.”

“Sending all units for a petty theft? No way. You have a map?”

Clarice motioned over to the table, “knock yourself out.”

Reed grabbed a marker and began plotting on the map, the group gathered around and watching, “the last three calls to come in before this one was a burglary in Stratford, lewd conduct at a bar in Hapeville, and a 586 in Glen Haven. They sent multiple units to all of these places. Which means that they know we're listening.”

“So now they're speaking in code?” Lauren asked, glancing around the group.

Taylor raised an eyebrow, “haven’t we heard this before?”

“We have,” Sage muttered, “unfortunately, our code braker was dead until about two hours ago.”

Gus put his hand up, “holla.” He muttered, not turning away from the computer screen.

Ignoring the group, Reed didn’t look away from the map, “Sentinel Services is searching here for Eclipse and Polaris. They don’t know you’ve made it back safe.”

“Go us.” Lorna deadpanned.

“And they've got Atlanta PD here.” Reed circled an area on the map, “they're tightening a
net, working a grid. Looking for us.”

A moment of tense silence passed between the group as Taylor and John stepped back from the table, “if the cops really are coming here, we could try and leave, but…” John motioned over to Sage.

“Uh, based on average police response times, any identifiable mutants leaving here will be apprehended before we're out of city limits.”

“Fantastic,” Clarice muttered, “so we’re stuck.”

“They're looking for fugitives. The only thing that's gonna stop them is if they find one.”

“Dad, what are you saying?” Lauren asked, her eyes darting across everyone.

Reed sighed, “I have to go out there. Get seen. Steer 'em away from this place. Make it look like we went in another direction.”

“Even if they see you, it doesn't mean they'll stop searching.” Gus pointed out.

“I know how these things work.” Reed said with an almost smug certainty.

Clarice nodded, “unfortunately, so do we. This isn’t our first rodeo, haven’t played it in a while, but it’s not our first go.”

“They made an educated guess about the direction we went.” Reed said, unperturbed. “If they were to see me anywhere here, they would assume I was going to 85 South, toward Alabama, and they would redirect the search that way.”

“And if you get caught, they'll question you.” Marcos said.

“And you know our location.” Lorna added.

A look passed between John and Taylor, “maybe we can avoid that.” John voiced for both of them before the pair headed out of the room.

“Twenty bucks says they’ve got something planned that’s mainly for their amusement.” Gus muttered, leading the group to follow after the pair.

John and Taylor kept walking until they found Fade sulking on one of the couches, “Fade!” Taylor called.

“Oh no,” Clarice muttered, but her grin gave her away.

“Got a job for you.” John said, “means I'm asking you to help save the whole station. You’ve met our new resident bastard.” He motioned over to Reed, “he's going to lure the cops, point 'em in the wrong direction.”

“You just get him back here safely.” Taylor said, a sickly-sweet smile on her face.

Reed tentatively stepped forward, the whiplash of treatment was beginning to get to him, “I know you're not happy with me, but I've taken full responsibility for what I did.”

Fade glanced between Taylor and John, “is this a joke? Is this you two bored and want something to laugh at? You want me to go out there and save this guy's ass?”

John’s face lost all amusement, becoming cold, “one of our people just took a bullet in the gut saving this man. We need his help. You're gonna do this.”

“Whatever you say, boss.”

John turned to Reed, “you talk to your family if you need to. You're leaving in five.”

*****

Reed found Caitlin easily, she was still treating Harry’s injuries. Carefully, he explained the situation to her but wasn’t surprised when she began to protest.

“No. Reed, you— you can't do this. We just got you back.”

Reed sighed slightly, “the police are coming. We can't evacuate, and even if we did, there is nowhere to go.”

“It has to be you?” Caitlin asked softly, “I mean, we're in a building filled with people with powers—”

“They didn't just escape from jail. They're looking for me.” Glancing around, Reed tried not to focus on any of the people watching him suspiciously, “these people... they need to know which side I'm on. And if this is my chance to make things right, I have to take it.”

“What will I tell the kids?”

“Lauren was in the meeting, she knows the plan. Tell Andy that I'll be back by dinner.”

*****

“What if we can exploit the search?” John said, flicking through one of the files Taylor had stolen. It listed yet another mutant detainment camp.

“How?” Marcos sighed, raising an eyebrow.

“By breaking into Sentinel Services and getting our hands on their internal server.” John muttered as though it was obvious.

The room all turned to him in silence. All looking at him in varying degrees of confusion and exasperation.

“That could work.” Lauren said after a long moment of silence.

“No,” Marcos exclaimed, “no, I’m not dealing with three idiots.”

“Ok, but hear us out.” Lauren said, holding up her hands, “if Clarice can portal me and John onto the roof, I can get John inside… depending on how good you are at falling without getting hurt.”

“Pretty good. If we know how far I’m gonna drop…”

Clarice rolled her eyes, “Sentinel Services HQ is a ten-story building, from what we know, their computer center is kept on the fourth floor.”

“What if I create a shield at the fourth-floor window, you create a portal, we go in that way?”

“Can you break the window without anyone noticing?” Taylor asked.

Lauren nodded, “I think so, I mean, it’ll involve encasing the window in a shield and then crushing it without dropping any glass.”

“Your shields absorb noise?” Gus asked.

Again, Lauren nodded, “I’ve learned to make them, yeah.”

“Ok, if we’re gonna do this, we need to head in, the three of us. No one else, we get in, get the drive, get out.”

“What if I can do you one better?” Sage said, “what if I give you something to embed in their mainframe that’ll give me access to their systems? Even if they remove it, I’ll have access to their servers, they won’t be able to block me once I’ve got an internal understanding of their frequencies.”

“Let’s do it.” John said.

All eyes turned to Lauren, “what are we calling it, Little Bird?” Taylor asked.

Lauren considered it for a long moment, “Operation Quagmire.”

*****

John, Lauren, and Clarice left minutes after Reed and Fade headed out. The trio promised to keep Taylor informed about what they were doing, but they wouldn’t tell anyone else.

The trio arrived at the Sentinel Services headquarters, tension flooding them, fear matching it.

“Remember: outmaneuver, outlast. Hit quick, leave quicker.” John muttered as the trio settled in an abandoned alleyway.

Carefully, Lauren summoned a shield as a platform for Clarice to make a portal.

Once the portal was ready, Clarice summoned another one now that she could see into the building, “it’s still easier to be able to see,” she muttered.

“Go time.” John whispered.

“Rochambeau,” Lauren added.

The trio snuck into the building, they knew it was two doors down to get to the central mainframe. John toyed with the USB stick for a moment before leading Lauren and Clarice down the hall. There were no agents… yet. John focused his senses, letting out a breath when he didn’t hear any.

The door to the mainframe was locked. John let out a harsh breath before Lauren tapped his arm.

“Mind out,” she signed before summoning a single shield fragment within the lock, forcing it open.

As soon as the door opened, alarms began blaring.

“Be ready to get us out!” John called over to Clarice before he ran into the room. It took him 20 seconds to search the room for where Sage had told them to put the USB stick.

Once the USB was placed, John focused on his link with Taylor, “tell Sage to set up what she needs quickly, we’ve got about 15 seconds.”

Maybe ten seconds passed before Taylor’s voice rippled into John’s mind, “she’s got it, get the drive, get out. Leave no trace.”

Grabbing the USB drive, John headed back over to Clarice and Lauren before leading them down the hall, away from the mainframe.

“Why don’t we just leave?!” Lauren asked.

“We’re a distraction now, outmaneuver, remember?” Clarice shot back, pushing Lauren in front of her to follow John towards one of the main office rooms.

“Ready?” John said, glancing at Clarice who began summoning a portal just as John threw open the door, “hey! Chucklefucks! You lookin’ for something?!”

Bullets began flying as John grabbed Lauren, hiding her with his body before pushing her through the portal, he and Clarice were moments behind her. The portal snapping shut instantly.

*****

Back at the HQ, the group were watching the police scanners as Reed and Fade did their part.

“It's working. They're redirecting their search south. We're in the clear.” Sage breathed, relief flooding her.

Taylor hummed, “but he's not. Text his burner. Tell him to get out of there.”

Now, the waiting game began, waiting for Fade and Reed to make it back unnoticed.

“The police are getting closer.” Sage said, listening to the police radio.

“It should be okay.” Clarice muttered, “Fade's supposed to pick him up at the next intersection.”

“I mean, that’s basing everything on the fact that two people haven’t given Fade permission to… test Reed’s allegiances.” Gus said, watching Taylor as she refused to look at anyone in the room.

“I might’ve told Fade he could have some revenge so long as Reed gets back here in one piece,” Taylor muttered, “think John just said he had to be alive.”

Out of nowhere, the police radios began talking non-stop about an attack on Sentinel Services. Sage turned back to the computers, immediately setting to work on getting into Sentinel Services’ mainframe.

“Thunderbird, Blink, and an unidentified female attacked. We don’t know how they got in.” The radio echoed.

“You sent Lauren on a suicide mission?!” Caitlin Strucker growled from the doorway.

*****

Eventually Fade and an uninjured, seething Reed made it back to the HQ, both splitting away from each other as soon as possible.

Only moments behind them were a much happier trio, grinning as John dropped the USB off with Sage.

The grins faded when the trio noticed Caitlin waiting for them, arms crossed, glare on her face, “I don’t remember giving you permission to turn my daughter into a terrorist!”

John let out a breath, “you didn’t. She did. She wanted to help, and she did. We got a lot of intel because of her.”

Clarice held up a hand before Caitlin could speak, “we kept her safe, there was a hell of a plan in place to get her out if anything began to look like it was going wrong.”

“That’s not the point!” Caitlin yelled, “she is a kid! Not a soldier!”

“It is the point, Mom. I am going to fight for my right to live. You can’t stop me,” Lauren snapped, storming off in the direction of Taylor and the others.

*****

As the tension left and the trio began recounting their story to the rest of the group, the makeshift family gathered the four girls before heading to the mess to grab some dinner.

Lorna turned to Lauren, "so, you're Taylor's little sister?" She asked with a smile, hugging Aurora tightly before starting on her food.

"Yeah." Taylor smirked at Lauren's quiet response.

Gus watched them all longingly, he was home, and yet he felt so far away. It was weird, as if he was sat on the outside, looking in, but there was a bubble around him, stopping him from actually being present with his friends and family.

"Daddy?" Imogen's voice grabbed Gus' attention. It grabbed everyone's attention. "Can you read us a story tonight?"

"Of course I can, Chaos." He couldn't help the relieved smile that fell onto his face at her request.

The meal continued and Gus couldn't help but notice that Taylor was just pushing her food around her plate, His hand fell onto hers, stilling it. Everyone watched with silent anticipation; no one ever distracted Taylor when she was like this. Not even John. "Just eat one bit for me?" Gus asked softly, his thumb rubbing the back of her hand as she took a bite of the food in front of her.

Imogen moved quickly, gabbing a sheet of stickers, and sticking a gold star on her mom's jacket. No one could resist the urge to laugh at Taylor's offended expression. "Cos' Mommy finally ate something." Imogen stated proudly before returning to her own meal.

*****

That night, Taylor lay in bed cuddled against Gus, his hand holding hers loosely as he slept. It only took two hours before Taylor was creeping from her room. She wandered the empty corridors silently, doing her best to avoid waking all of the sleeping refugees.

"Can't sleep?" John's voice echoed in Taylor's mind, the woman rolled her eyes as she sat against a wall.

"How'd you know?" She could hear John laughing in her mind, this was a regular conversation for them; both of them up later than they really should be, but neither expecting sleep.

"I know you. What's up?"

Letting out a breath, Taylor decided to try and explain. "Nothing. Felt trapped. Not by Gus, just in one room for too long."

"I get it. You hate it. You always have done. It's not your fault, Empty, it's just the way it is."

"How'd you figure that one?"

"You were tortured, abandoned, and spent a year chained to a bed. That kinda told me."

Taylor couldn't help rolling her eyes as she listened to the voice that was an all too familiar part of her mind. "Get some sleep, Beacon."

"Night, Empty."

Heading back to her room, Taylor saw Gus awake, fear filling his eyes. She pulled him into his arms, letting him draw any form of comfort from her, his heart pounding as he figured out where he was. The nightmare finally loosing it's hold and allowing Gus to regain a grip on reality. "You're safe, Matchstick, we both are."

Relaxing just enough, Gus scanned the room slightly, his eyes falling on, what was once, his bedside table. With a curious smirk, he opened the drawer, his old tin box still inside. Lifting the box onto his lap, Gus couldn't help but notice Taylor averting her face, inside was a variety of things including two items that were beyond important to him. The first was his dog tags from his time in the marines, he had taken them off on that day when they'd struck the relocation center. Slipping on his dog tags, he took the second item between his fingers – his wedding ring. Taylor took it from his hands, sliding it into its place on Gus' ring finger. Taylor pulled him towards her by his tags, kissing him deeply as his fingers threaded through her hair and his other hand fell onto her lower back.

He pulled away as he peeled her tank top from her, Taylor ran her hands over Gus’ chest, feeling every imperfection and scar on her husband’s skin. Gus pulled Taylor onto his lap, sliding her shorts down as he did so before pushing her back down onto the bed and taking off his own pants. He was back on top of her in a second, deepening the kiss as he pushed into her. Taylor let out a moan against his lips as he began to move inside of her, desperate but slow. Neither lasted long.

Laying her head on his chest, the familiar rhythm of Gus' heartbeat seemed to soothe Taylor's soul, her fingers running over Gus’ bare chest as his hand gripped her naked hip. Taylor closed her eyes, feeling at peace for the first time in so long, letting her fall into a peaceful sleep. The pair fell asleep in each other's arms, content with their lives for the first time in two years. They were home, and together, and they had their daughter. Everything would work out because their family was whole. They had their siblings, their nieces, their daughter, and each other. Nothing else mattered in that moment.

*****

At 5am, Lauren snapped awake, her mind racing from her latest nightmare. Climbing out of bed, she tiptoed passed her family and took the now-familiar path to the kitchen. As she got close, she heard the sound of quiet chatting and laughter. She also heard the sound of a mug being placed on the counter.

“Hot chocolate in here for you.” Came John’s voice as she rounded the corner. The room fell silent.

Lauren gave a shy smile as she stepped into the kitchen, “I didn’t want to interrupt…”

“Ah, don’t worry about that!” Lorna smiled as she took a bottle of cheap bourbon from John and handed it to Clarice.

“You’re on the Christmas card now!” Marcos added once he’d taken the bottle from Clarice and took a swig himself.

“So, you hadn’t given up drinking bourbon in exchange for hot chocolate?” Taylor laughed as she watched Lauren pick up the mug.  

The room laughed quietly as Gus looked over to his wife, “you’re in his head… constantly, you didn’t realize it wasn’t for him?” Taylor gave a shrug as Lauren glanced around the group, watching with a raised eyebrow as Marcos passed the bottle to Gus who handed it to Taylor without drinking.

The teen shot a glance to John, “I take it our quiet has gone?” She asked as she sipped her hot chocolate.

“Just a bit.” He commented back as he was handed the bottle, swigging it before handing it back to Lorna who handed it off to Clarice without a drink.

“All I was saying,” Lorna began, picking back up the earlier conversation, “milk is a gravy.”

“It’s a sauce!” Clarice argued, taking the bottle from Lorna.

Lorna scoffed, “How can it be a sauce, sauces have some semblance of consistency!”

“Yeah,” Marcos cut in, “but isn’t gravy meant to be meat juices?”

Taylor grinned, “what is milk if not the juice of a nipple… usually a cow’s?” The room groaned and fell into laughter, “also, you can get vegetarian and vegan gravy, those don’t contain meat juices,” she pointed out.

Lauren looked between them all, a grin on her face wider than any she’d been able to muster since joining the underground. “Ok, but cereal… a soup, stew, or broth?” She grinned into her hot chocolate as the room fell silent as the supposed ‘adults’ began considering before falling into the debate.

“It’s a soup.” John began.

Gus shook his head, “surely it’s got to depend on the size of the pieces.” The room grinned as the conversation continued until the rest of the HQ had begun to wake up, the bottle of bourbon was finished, and the glass melted down and disposed of.

The group began heading about the HQ, starting their day and begin planning next steps in sorting out the growing number of refugees. Throughout the day, Lauren kept seeing her new friends, all of them working in a chaotic harmony that left her baffled, but weirdly comforted. A strange sort of normal.

Chapter Text

After the infiltration of Sentinel Services, Sage had been quick to delete all CCTV footage of their people attacking the building. By the end of the first day, there was no evidence of their people ever being in the building. A few days later, there was a report published stating that Sentinel Services was attempting to wrongly incriminate mutants with no evidence to back up their claims. For the next few days, Sage copied as much information as she could from the Sentinel Services mainframe.

A tentative calm settled across Atlanta for the next few weeks, it seemed, with Sentinel Services unable to get a lead on tracking down any of the major bases of the Underground. Surveillance on Sentinel Services had gone through the roof in that time with concerns over their legality being brought into question. As such, they’d been forced to back down their manhunts.

All in all, it left the Atlanta HQ with little to do beside preparing for everything to go to shit. There were a few smaller stations attacked, but the refugees were quickly picked up by the HQ or other local stations. Overall, though, the immediate aftermath of the springing Lorna and Reed, and rescuing Gus, seemed to have died down.

Lauren’s first day of hand-to-hand combat training was, in one word, intense. It was fair to say that the session after the first hour was by far the easiest with John and Gus guiding her through basic fighting strategy.

For the first three days of her hand-to-hand training, Gus and John focused on training Lauren without using powers. There were times that Gus used his powers to block Lauren’s access to hers, forcing her to rely on her own strength and ability.

On the fourth day, Taylor joined the trio on the field behind the HQ. She took responsibility for teaching Lauren to fight while utilizing her powers to her advantage.

“Ok, your powers put you in a position where you can be a brick wall,” Taylor said, smirking at Lauren’s confusion, “your powers make a shield, if you grow that, you can become unmovable. Surround yourself with your shields, make yourself immovable. It also gives you the ability to bolster your punches to make your hits… hit harder?”

The trio in front of Taylor chuckled as she stumbled over the last few words, “you were doing well, Empty… fell away there. ‘Can make your hits hit harder,’ nice advice,” John joked.

“The point remains!” Taylor yelled, waving her hands, “if you can use your powers to make yourself impossible to hit and damn hard to dodge, then you can be formidable on the field.”

After that, the trio began teaching Lauren to strengthen her shields, helping her fight using the shields, but focusing on her fighting without her powers.

Gus began teaching her boxing, teaching her how to land a punch and how to make it strong. “Don’t let your elbow drop,” Gus commented.

“And let the force come from your entire arm, not just your fist.” John added.

“Don’t tuck in your thumb.” The instructions continued as Lauren through punch after punch at the pads John holding.

*****

At the end of the first week, John and Taylor watched Sentinel Services launch an attack on another station.

“We’ll go pick up survivors.” John muttered, “let’s take Wren, show her what we get up to when we’re not breaking into Sentinel Services.”

Taylor sighed, “we give her a choice. And you’re sittin’ in the back.”

“We’ll take two cars, asshole.”

The pair headed for where Lauren was sat with her family, chatting and joking.

Lauren’s expression shifted as she saw the pair, a grin spreading on her face, “you joining us?” She joked.

“Nope, but you’re joining us,” Taylor said, “c’mon. You can drive, right?”

“Uh, yeah… where are we going?”

“On a trip,” John motioned Lauren over, “c’mon.”

“Hold on,” Reed said, “you want to take Lauren on some mission?! I’m sorry, but no.”

Taylor rolled her eyes, “Wren, wanna help us save lives?”

“Yes.” Lauren’s attitude shifted at Reed’s comment, “let’s go. I’m driving.”

“I’m navigating.”

“I’m dead,” John muttered, following the sisters. He shot a look to Gus who was heading down to the firing range in the carved-out basement of the HQ, both shared an exasperated look as the sisters headed outside.

*****

Lauren and Taylor headed for one car while John took the other.

“You two know where you’re going?” John asked as he got into the car.

“We’ll meet you there.” Taylor muttered.

The two cars headed down the roads, Taylor directing Lauren in the direction of the fallen station. While they were driving, Taylor grabbed out a burner phone and began making calls.

After about an hour of Taylor making phone calls, she eventually put the phone away.

Lauren raised an eyebrow, “didn’t think you’d have that many people to call, gonna be honest.”

“We’ve got a lot of friends that we want to stay safe.” Taylor muttered, “Sentinel Services aren’t gonna stay quiet for long, we want our contacts to stay away from any danger. The sooner they can disappear, the safer we are.”

“John said that you two are running the entire network. Is that who you were calling?”

Taylor nodded, “couple of them, others are just good friends or people that prove useful.” Taylor paused for a moment, “y’know, if you don’t distance yourself from us soon, you’ll find it difficult to leave.”

“How so?”

“You’ll know too much, you’ll also end up too invested in what we’re doing – go left here.” She motioned to the junction, “it’s why Marcos and Lorna ended up part of the group: they were meant to be with us temporarily but ended up staying because they believed in what we were fighting for. I mean, you’ve already broken into Sentinel Services headquarters and gotten away undetected.”

“Yeah, why didn’t we use that method before? To break Dad and Lorna out?”

Taylor laughed, “we didn’t know where they were being held, or how well guarded they were. It was too dangerous.”

Lauren hummed, falling silent for a moment. “You and John have been fighting this fight for years, haven’t you?”

“Yep. Committed crime, broken many laws, are wanted criminals on an international scale. We’re not getting out anytime soon.” Taylor stopped, letting the conversation fall away as she watched Lauren, “how far do you wanna go with this?”

“With what?”

“With being an outlaw. You wanna be a refugee? We’ll get you a new identity, move you across a border, let you start a new life elsewhere. Or… do you wanna be involved in the revolution of Mutantkind? Do you wanna help us build a better world?”

Lauren stayed silent for a long moment. There was an easy answer, then there was an honest answer, and it took Lauren a moment to decide which answer to go for, “I want to build a world where kids are safe to live in peace, and live free.”

*****

Arriving at a warehouse a few miles from the fallen station, John and Taylor led Lauren into the building, keeping her between them as John tracked the location of the remaining mutants.

“Hey,” he said as they found the group of scared refugees, “we’re friends, you’re safe now.”

Taylor gave a smile, “c’mon, let’s get somewhere safe. We’ve got a base where you’ll be safe.”

*****

Clarice and Lorna joined the quartet for training in the second week, learning defensive strategy rather than offensive. Switching so that John and Gus were instructing all three to fight without their powers as they fought each other. By the end of the tenth day of training, John, Gus, and Taylor continued instructing the rest of their family. Marcos, Lorna, Clarice, and Lauren were left exhausted at the end of every day for two weeks. Every day ended the same: Lorna and Marcos sparring, Clarice and Lauren sparring, Gus, Taylor, and John instructing them.

Others began gathering outside, watching as their leaders, Lauren, and Gus paired up to begin fighting, Gus was staying out in order to offer advice and guidance as someone needed it. Over the weeks, other refugees began to join with the training, many of them wanting to learn to protect themselves in case Sentinel Services attacked again.

“Keep an eye on your footwork.” Taylor muttered to Lauren. Lorna and Marcos were sparring and laughing as they did so. The group training was already dripping sweat as Taylor, John and Gus continued to instruct them.

John turned to Taylor as the pair separated themselves from the others, a grin on his features. “Ready?” For five weeks, the pair had avoided sparring or joining the fights, but their patience was wearing thin.

Gus stopped the pair before they could begin, “what y’all playin’ for? Blood, break, or free down?”

“Not free down!” John stated before Taylor could comment, not wanting to chance getting knocked out in a training fight today.

“First break.” Taylor stated simply, now it was her turn to a grin as John groaned in response, knowing it was going to be a long fight. Clarice, Marcos, Lorna, and Gus just laughed at John’s reaction. Lauren glanced at the pair with confusion. Noticing her sister’s expression, Taylor explained, “John don’t like goin’ til first break because it means that we’ll be going at each other for a while and beatin’ each other until one of us successfully breaks a significant bone in the other that repairs itself quickly. A bone that doesn’t heal quick results in disqualification.” Lauren just seemed even more confused than before.

Two of the three pairs set off in fights: Clarice against Lauren, and Lorna against Marcos. Their duals were full on, but they were just trying to get the other in a hold that they’d be able to knock someone out with. Their fights lasted several minutes.

John and Taylor were each watching a fight while Gus gave overall advice, “Lauren, watch your feet, try to keep bouncy rather than plantin’ yourself.” Taylor told her, mimicking bouncing on her feet.

*****

Once the two pairs were done with their first fight, John and Taylor headed back over to the area they’d claimed for their fight.

Everyone became too intrigued by Taylor and John’s match to carry on with their own. The pair moved quickly, ducking from the other’s blows before they could land a successful hit. Taylor was more agile, darting this way and that. John had faster reactions, moving out of the line of fire just in time to dodge. The pair were mocking each other, doing their best to distract the other without crossing any lines. John and Taylor didn’t acknowledge their growing audience, nothing else seemed to be important despite winning the match. They were holding back, but only just; Taylor wasn’t using her powers, John wasn’t using his full strength. They both wanted to win, but neither wanted to do any major damage.

Lauren’s focus was undivided as she watched the fight in front of her, she couldn’t help her fascination at how easily the pair moved and dodged each other.

Gus noticed her intrigue easily, “they know each other so well, they’re literally inside the other’s mind, they know what strikes the other is going to attempt and when. It’s why going to first break takes so long. We don’t mean first broken finger, we mean a serious break, something that they won’t heal from in half a minute but won’t stay broke for a day. That’s the main problem and the reason Clarice and I are usually the refs; we’re the ones that know which bones count.” Lauren’s eyes were wide when Gus finished, but she still didn’t once turn away from the fight.

Despite having the faster reactions, John was the first one to hit the floor; Taylor had managed to grab him and force him down, breaking his left wrist as she did so, but that didn’t count. John retaliated quickly, his foot landing squarely on Taylor’s stomach winding her and forcing her to her knees. Grabbing her arm and pulling it behind her back, John levelled the playing field as he dislocated her shoulder and broke her humerus. A hiss was the only response Taylor gave.

“Calm down, Python.” John laughed, a glare from Taylor not even slowing him down.

“You wish, Thunderbird.”

The pair seemed to be locked in a dance, neither having the upper hand for very long, both spewing fire in their words as they did everything that they could to work the other to breaking point and gain the upper hand,

“You abandoned your best friend to be tortured.” Taylor spat as she kicked the side of John’s knees, forcing him to meet the floor once again, an elbow between his shoulder blades left him momentarily dazed.

“Your parents didn’t even love you enough to keep you.” John shot back, getting back to his feet, blood and sweat staining his shirt as he struck out at Taylor. Though John’s words only seemed to give Taylor strength, giving her an upper hand as she pinned John face down to the ground, her hands locking around his throat and her knee digging deep into his back. Her other foot stomped down onto John’s femur, breaking it in several places.

Rolling off John, Taylor checked to make sure he was ok before moving to address the crowd that had gathered, “if any of you want to train in hand-to-hand combat, or in using your powers for the offensive, then meet us out here tomorrow, 10am, don’t be late.” Turning back to John, Taylor offered him her good hand, he took it easily, pulling himself up before using Taylor as a sort of crutch until they got inside.

*****

Back inside, Caitlin had been desperately trying to ignore that Lauren was outside, training. Again. Lauren was ignoring her more every day, at least, that’s what Caitlin thought. She knew Reed wasn’t happy with the group’s little stunt of taking Lauren with them to break into Sentinel Services, but the group were already acting as though it didn’t happen. There was no record of it happening, no evidence left behind.

That should’ve made Caitlin happy, but if anything, it just made her angrier. They were taking her daughter into potentially deadly situations only to pretend they didn’t. She was seething.

*****

By nightfall, both John and Taylor were healed. Fair to say that both were grouchy thanks to the pain the healing caused.

Heading towards their family, Lauren turned to her sister and friend, “are you gonna fight with me like that?” She asked, her voice trembling.

“No. God no. There’s a reason that we only ever train combat with each other, we can inflict serious damage and be sure it’ll heal. We know which bones heal faster and which’ll stay broken for longer. Taylor fights dirty, she knows what things she can say that’ll distract me just enough that she can win, and I like to think that I know the same about her. But sometimes we can misjudge.” John explained as he sat down, lifting Rose onto his lap.

“Like today?” Lorna commented with a grin.

“Like today,” Taylor agreed, her hand falling onto Gus’ shoulder as she hugged to him, ruffling Imogen’s hair where the girl sat on her dad’s lap. Taylor smirked as she looked over to John, “John was in the perfect position to win, he should have won, but he got cocky. He tried to distract me with the wrong words, words that used to work.”

John rolled his eyes, “don’t remind me.” He groaned, “by the way, it may heal quickly, but breaking my leg still hurts.”

The group all laughed as John complained to Taylor. Rose hugged against her dad with a grin on her face; when the HQ was quiet, Rose was able to hear what her family were saying better, though it did take a lot of focus. The kids had all learned that John and Taylor could fight each other because they knew each other.

“We fight based on strength and power levels. Gus’ll happily combat with either me or John, but he’s a lot more… breakable than we are. So, we have to be more careful. We go against each other so we can train further. Clarice, Lorna, and Marcos are closer to each other in hand to hand, but Marcos and Gus will quite happily pair up. When we’re doing powers, Marcos is with either Lorna, Clarice, or Gus; Gus is with either Marcos, John, or me; Lorna is with either Marcos, Clare, or Gus; Clarice is against Marcos, Gus, or Lorna; John and I are only ever against each other or Gus. It can get too dangerous for us to be against anyone else.” Taylor stated as she settled against Gus.

“But you don’t have super strength, right?” Lauren asked Gus.

Gus shook his head, “nope, but I taught this pair a lot of their tactics. I was in the corps, know combat, know how to fight dirty, and know how to win. Also, my powers allow me to block theirs, so, if necessary, I can level the playing field.”

Clarice parted her lips, desperately trying to find the words she wanted to say but not figuring out how to say them. Her eyes glanced around the group as they continued speaking, Clarice just watched rather than giving her own input.

It only took a few moments for Gus to notice his friend sat silently, “Love? What’s up?”

The entire group turned to Clarice, waiting for the woman to respond. “Do you guys remember when I lost control of my powers?”

“Yeah.” Responded most of the group, except Gus and Lorna, the group quickly filled them in on the rundown as to what happened on that day.

“Well, I kept opening a portal to the same road. I wanna find it and find out why.” Clarice stated.

The rest of the group shared a look at the idea, “Love… Sentinel Services are cracking down, are you sure that it’s a good idea to go now?” Taylor’s worried voice spoke what they were all thinking.

“I know, it’s a risk, but I have to find out what that road means. It’s… I dunno… it’s important to me for some reason.”

Chapter Text

Sage ran towards the family, panic flooding through her from what she’d heard over the scanners, everything bad was happening. “Guys! You need to come and see this.” She called, out of breath as she reached them. The group all shared a look before following Sage, the girls had stayed back with Lauren; they knew that the thing Sage told their parents were for grown-ups only.

In the tech room, Sage began talking statistics and numbers, leaving the others baffled and clueless as to what she was talking about.

Taylor glanced between the confused faces of the group before rolling her eyes, “ok, Sage, I was taken out of school at 15 and was tortured, I don’t know numbers, dumb it down for me. Tell me the risks and threats without the statistics, please.”

Sage froze, apologizing silently. “I heard about an attack Sentinel Services are planning, they’re planning on raiding the South Atlanta station. If they hit them, we lose half our key communications. We’ll be exposed, they’ll know everything about Louisiana, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North and South Carolina.”

“So, it’ll be bad.” Lorna commented. The others were too frozen to respond.

“So, contact them.” Lauren stated from the doorway, everyone turned to face her, “tell them they’re gonna be attacked and to send all their info here and then destroy it. Tell them to scatter to other stations. Let stragglers know we’ll come and get them.”

Taylor nodded her agreement with her younger sister. “We’ve prepared for this, we knew the reprieve wouldn’t last. We planned, every station knows what to do. Outmaneuver, outplan, remember.”

The group all began calling multiple contacts at the South Atlanta station, it was about two hours from them and was more for intel rather than refugees. As such, there were only roughly 20 people at the station, according to Sage, their chances of getting out were at 97.4%.

“I think we need to send some people to Baton Rouge. According to Reed Strucker, there’s a courthouse that processed several of his cases, they’re bound to have more information on the HOUND project.” Sage stated, the idea made the group tense, while they couldn’t deny the fact that they’d been considering it, the idea of following something suggested by Reed was sickening to all of them. “We’ve got a backdoor into Sentinel Services, but they’re careful. They’ll have the case information on a different server. I haven’t been able to find anything on prisoners or transfers.”

“I’ll go with him. I can burn the stuff we don’t take.” Marcos stated simply, trying to diffuse the tension that was beginning to make the room suffocating. His comment only seemed to make the tension grow as Taylor kept her back to him but shook her head in exasperation.

“We’ll start planning once this has been dealt with. One problem at a time.” Gus commented as he ended one call.

“C’mon, since when has ‘one problem at a time’ been the memo?” Clarice said.

Lauren scoffed, “yeah, I’ve been here, what? Two months? And you guys always jump when multiple plans are happening in tandem.”

John and Taylor had settled themselves at one of the computers, logging into the clandestine server used by the Underground known the Network, sending an immediate alert to the stations at risk. John also pinned a notice for any information that any station had on the HOUND project, letting the rest of the Underground know what was happening. Almost instantly, people began replying. Telling stories of mutants hunting other mutants for Sentinel Services.

“We are barely staying ahead of humans. If they turn us against each other, we're done.” John whispered mentally.

Taylor nodded, “it’s too familiar, reminds me of what they were planning with the Cobra. A weapon that’ll hunt mutts from within.”

Lauren glanced over to the computer screen, “what’s that?” Her voice startling everyone in the room.

“It’s a sort of Discord server if you like.” Sage began.

“Every station has someone that can access it,” John stated distractedly, “it lets us give fast alerts to everyone if a station is attacked or lost. It also lets us ask for supplies, places to send people, that sort of stuff. Here, there’s me and Tay who can access it, since we’re the leaders of the Underground, we are the only ones with complete access. If we were to be killed or captured, Lorna, Marcos, and Clarice all have emergency access codes, Gus used to but his was deactivated when he was supposedly killed.” He finished, his eyes not leaving the screen as he and Taylor read through the information people had on the HOUND project.

“Read that.” Taylor muttered, talking only to John but not looking over to him, pointing at one piece of information. John’s expression remained blank, but his hand squeezed Taylor’s slightly, reassuring her.

Closing out of the server, John turned to Taylor, “you still got your contacts?”

She nodded, “you know I’ve gotta go alone.”

“Yep, but I don’t have to like it. You’ll let me know if anything goes wrong.”

Their conversation had made everyone else in the room stop, all of them looking over to John and Taylor, waiting for an explanation. “Clarice, you wanna find that road?”

Clarice nodded, raising an eyebrow at John’s question.

“Pack a bag, we both leave this afternoon.” Taylor’s words left everyone with more questions than answers, but Taylor just walked out of the room.

“Marcos, if you want to get into the federal building, you need a way to get through a solid concrete wall quickly.” John leant against the table as he tried to consider possibilities.

“Andy could do it.” Lauren stated, pulling John’s attention back.

John nodded, “ok. Fine. Lorna, train the people here to use their powers for combat. Gus, do the same, but hand-to-hand.”

Everyone nodded and left the room, planning, packing, or preparing. Everyone except John, Gus, and Lauren. The trio all shared a look. “What about you, Proudstar?” Gus asked.

“I’m gonna be doing what’s necessary to get fugitives to safety. I’ll also be keeping an eye on the server, Taylor, and Clarice. Keep them off the grid. I will tell you if Taylor needs help.”

“Help with what? What’d you two see that freaked you out so much?” Gus stepped closer. He wasn’t asking, but rather demanding, his voice a low growl.

“Trust me?” John’s voice lost some of its certainty.

Gus let out an exasperated breath, “I do trust you. I trust Tay too. I’d just be more comfortable if I knew where she was going.” Gus muttered.

“I know, Matchstick, but she’ll be relatively safe.”

Gus scoffed slightly, not so much at John, but of the thought of Taylor in danger. After a long moment glaring at John, Gus left the room, deciding it was better to help Taylor pack and then plan training rather than argue with John.

Lauren glanced to John, “what’d you want me to do?”

“Convince your parents to let your brother help. Then help with the refugees.”

Lauren’s eyebrows creased, “are you alright?” She asked, John just muttered that he was fine. “Then what caused you and my sister to stop and decide that everything needed to happen ASAP?”

John let out a breath, turning back to Lauren, “let’s just say that Taylor’s past is coming back to bite us in the ass. She told you about our contacts, that we’ve got people we know all over the place that we don’t tell people here about?”

Lauren nodded, “she hinted at it, wasn’t quite so… blunt.”

“Yeah, well, those contacts are the people she uses when we need to act outside of a moral compass that keeps everyone here happy.”

“What happened?!” Lauren asked, eyes wide.

“The reprieve ended,” John stated before heading to leave the room, he paused in the doorway, “we’ve got a dozen cops to get away from about 50 refugees, wanna help me give them cover?”

A grin spread across Lauren’s face, “you mean: ‘do you wanna use your powers and training to confuse cops and save lives?’ My answer is yes.”

John chuckled, “go tell your folks, we’ll head out with Empty and Love, I need to check in on everything first.”

“Gotcha.”

*****

Taylor’s bag took minutes to pack, leaving her pacing the bedroom. Gus quirked an eyebrow as he saw her, “oh, I know what that means.” His voice startled Taylor, grabbing her attention fully. “Pacing means someone’s said something that’s risking us. The small bag means a couple days away. And you and Beacon hiding things means it’s to do with either the Citadel or what’s happened while I’ve been away.”

“I’m sorry. But you have to be kept in the dark. It’s just… I dunno.” Taylor collapsed onto the bed, her head in her hands.

Gus watched her for a moment, his frustration melting away, “you don’t have to explain yourself Taylor, just promise me you’ll be ok.”

“I will always find my way home. Just like you.” She smiled, kissing him tenderly before grabbing her bag. “Oh, I also want you training with the guns again, make sure you’re still the best sniper we know.”

“You met any others?” Gus asked with a smirk, leading Taylor out of the room.

“Would saying ‘yes’ make you train?”

*****

Meeting Clarice in the hallway, the two women headed outside, John and Gus following them. A car had been pulled around front for Taylor while Clarice was going to be using her portals. 

“Be careful, let me know if you get into any danger.” Gus whispered, kissing Taylor one last time before she got into the car. Moments later, she was driving away.

John kept going over everything they knew about the road that Clarice had tried to portal to, Clarice crashed her lips against John’s, silencing him. As the kiss broke, Clarice smirked, “don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine.”

John smiled at Clarice’s words, “I’ll always worry about you. And with Taylor going away too…”

“Wife and baby sister go away at the same time on equally dangerous missions.” Clarice smiled, “Taylor will be fine, she’s smart. Besides, it’s not like she’s not gone alone before.” John nodded before kissing Clarice again, letting her portal away.

Once he was stood alone, John shook his head, “not alone like this…” he muttered into the emptiness. Sure, Taylor was competent and always got results when she was working alone, but she’d never needed to head alone in a situation that targeted her past.

*****

“How’d your folks take it?” John asked as he and Lauren left the HQ.

Lauren shrugged, braiding her hair quickly over one shoulder, “not great, reckon you’ve got an argument coming at you when we get back. I mean, they’re still pissed off from last time.”

John scoffed, “well, if we’re being entirely honest, I could not give a flying fuck what your folks have to say to me. I’ve got a lot of opinions on them, too.”

“Oh, I know.” Lauren smirked at John’s face, “y’know, I was only five, but I remember you showing up at my front door not long after Tay… died. I also remember her telling me countless stories of you and the X-Men. And I had a picture of Taylor that had some older kid in it, didn’t know who he was until a couple months ago when we met.”

John was silent for a moment before laughing, “you and Empty are gonna be terrifying together, aren’t you?”

“That’s the plan.” She laughed. “Speaking of plans, what are we doing?”

“It’s easy… and not so easy. We’re not picking up refugees, we’re taking the heat off them. We’re gonna be a redirection and distraction. You’re probably going to injure someone, your goal is to not get shot.”

Lauren let out a long breath, “so, Tay training me to use my shields to make me unstoppable, that’s no accident, is it?”

“We’ve been outmanned and outgunned for years. We could do with a third person that can’t be stopped by bullets. If we both survive this, I’ll teach you how to use those shields until it’s innate. Until nothing can hit you because your shields are quicker.”

Lauren nodded, “why act now? Why not use Clarice and Taylor, then they head off later?”

“Every now and then, a situation arises where we can scatter the Six to the winds, spread our knowledge, learn more, accomplish more, build a better footing, and scare the shit out of Sentinel Services when they spot each of us in different states. They’re left scrambling, we’re left on top for a moment. We don’t waste those shots.”

“Makes sense.” She muttered.

John glanced over to her, “name it. What’s the mission?”

Lauren met his eye, “Operation Scatter.”

John laughed for a moment, “not your best, I like it.”

*****

The drive took about an hour before John pulled the car over, his eyes scanning the streets for any sign of police or Sentinel Services, focusing his senses until he heard them. “They’re the other side of this block. We’ll walk. Be ready for anything.”

Lauren nodded, her eyes widening when John pulled a gun out of the glovebox, tucking it in his jeans as he led Lauren away from the car. “How long do we stay out here?”

“Long enough to cause a distraction and they know it’s us, quick enough that they can’t chase us. We won’t get away as clean as we did with Love, this’ll likely be messy, disable as many of their vehicles as you can.”

They rounded the block and John gripped Lauren’s hand when she froze at the sight of the Sentinel Services convoy, recognizing the man at the front of it as agent Turner, the same guy who’d attacked her at her home.

“Let’s do this.” Lauren whispered, waiting until John nodded before she threw a shield, condensing it to make it into a spinning disc, throwing it at the lead car before following John into the nearest alleyway.

The pair moved quickly: Lauren using her shields to make a staircase to get them on the roof, John shooting at the agents. They took down a couple as the refugees scattered. John moved away from Lauren after a minute, heading to get attention focused on him.

Lauren watched John head down to the street, she continued to use her shields, pressing them against the axels of the police and Sentinel Services cars, making them undrivable. Lauren watched Turner shoot at John, but it was pointless, John’s skin was damn-near bulletproof, and Lauren’s shields did the rest to make sure the bullets did nothing.

After maybe three minutes, the pair took off in different directions, heading back to the car, confident that the Sentinel Service vehicles were disabled.

*****

Jace watched the pair dart across the rooftops, Proudstar shooting at them while Strucker used her discs to attack them. He shot at the girl, hoping to disable her. He knew he hit her, he watched her stumble from the bullet. She was back up in a second, the bullet having done nothing against her.

As the pair disappeared from view, Jace glanced around the agents, “go after them! Use whatever we have, get them!”

“Sir, they’ve disabled the vehicles. The girl took out all the axels as well as cut the engines, she’s disabled our tech. We can’t track ‘em.”

Jace was getting pissed off with this. This was now the fifth or sixth time that the Mutant Underground had made his people look like untrained mall cops. Those bastards had an untrained teenager performing better than many of his agents.

*****

“That was fun,” John deadpanned as Lauren got in the driver's seat, speeding out of the layby to begin heading back to the HQ. “Did you get hit?”

Once she was confident that they weren’t being tailed, Lauren glanced over to John, “there was one bullet, it bounced right off me. Uh, not that I’m regretting it, but why leave any alive?”

John sighed, “it’s how we work, we don’t kill any of ‘em if we can help it, we just disable them. Get them pissed off at us, distracted from everyone else. Keeps us on our toes, also keeps our spies safe in their ranks.”

“You’ve got spies in Sentinel Services?!” Lauren asked, shocked but not overly surprised.

John shrugged, “we’ve put our guys anywhere they might be mildly useful.”

Wincing, Lauren saw the bullet holes that littered John’s shirt and jacket, “god, my parents are gonna be pissed.”

“Probably. But hey, this is why Empty doublechecked that you wanted to be a rebel, not a refugee.”

“So, Empty and Love? Did you give them their nicknames?”

John chuckled, “would you believe me if I told you that the only person that I’ve given a nickname to is myself?”

Lauren laughed loudly, “seriously?!”

“Yup. Got drunk with your sister, called myself Clarice’s beacon, they’ve been calling me that ever since.”

Lauren couldn’t stop laughing, “so, Beacon, Empty, and Love?”

“Yeah, and they’ve stuck for some unknown reason.” John turned serious after a moment, “do me a favor, don’t stop reading the legislation. Read every treaty, every declaration, anything, everything. Read it, pick it apart, learn them like the back of your hand. We need that legal knowledge if we’re gonna rewrite the world.”

*****

Arriving back at the HQ, Lauren winced at the sight of her parents’ faces, they looked furious.

“Good luck, send ‘em to me if they wanna yell at someone.” John muttered, patting Lauren’s shoulder as he headed deeper into the HQ, leaving Lauren to deal with her parents.

Lauren let out a long breath as her parents came over to her.

“Did you think we wouldn’t realize what you were doing?! It’s all over the police radios. They’re looking for you, Lauren!” Reed snapped.

Lauren shrugged slightly, “that was kinda the point. Get the attention on us so that others got away.”

“You aren’t a soldier, Lauren,” Caitlin implored, “this isn’t your fight! You told us you were going to get supplies!”

“I’m a mutant, Mom. Ten years ago, you would’ve shipped me off to be tortured with Taylor. Today, I’m gonna fight for my friends and family. I’m gonna build a new world where kids are shipped off to be tortured because of their blood.”

Caitlin scoffed, “Lauren, you’re a highschooler, not a soldier in a glorious revolution. I can’t watch you fight and die.”

“Then don’t look.” Lauren shot back before she could stop herself.

“That’s enough, Lauren!” Reed snapped.

Lauren huffed, “look, John said to go talk to him if you’ve got a problem.” She walked away, not once looking back at her parents.

Chapter Text

After the argument with her parents, Lauren headed to help with the refugees, grabbing a box of ration packs to begin handing out. She heard the sound of her parents shouting coming from the back office.

Rolling her eyes, she tried not to shrink for a moment until she heard John respond. “You treat her like a kid, she’ll be dead in a week. You recognize that she and her sister are two sides of a coin, you stand half a chance of keeping one of your daughters at the end of this.”

Trying not to grin as she walked away from the office, Lauren shot a look over to where Andy was carrying another crate of water bottles, it took her only a moment to catch up to him, a box of food rations in her hands. 

“Man, all these refugees…” Andy muttered, “glad we beat the rush. I mean at least we got, like, actual beds.”

Lauren couldn’t stop herself rolling her eyes at her brother’s ignorance, “you do realize that we’re the reason there is a rush? Sentinel Services have been freaking out over us. We got a couple weeks of calm while they planned their attacks, but Taylor says the next few months will be relentless bombardment from them.” 

“You wanna give up your bed?” Andy shot back, rolling his eyes when Lauren glared at him, “I know; shut up and get more water.” He muttered before wandering back to the storeroom.

One of the refugees had been watching Lauren for several minutes, his eyes tracing her every movement as she handed out more food rations. “Hey. Have you got any other flavors? Besides Salisbury steak?” The refugee asked.

Lauren shook her head, “they’re all the same.” She tried to move past him.

He blocked her path, “you take care of refugees? What’s your name?”

“My name is ‘I have work to do’.” She stated, trying to push passed him again.

“What if you were already done?” The boy waved his hand, and Lauren saw all the refugees settled, touching the mirage, it faded away to reveal the real people behind it. “I’m Wes.”

“Nice to meet you, Wes.” Lauren commented as she stepped around him. She didn’t notice Gus and John watching the interaction with displeasure.

*****

John and Gus shared a glance as they watched Lauren sidestep the teenaged refugee, deciding that they’d talk to Lauren about it. Heading towards the tech room, the pair sent one final look to Lauren before turning their attention to monitoring the scanners. John kept his attention half focused on the server to keep track of whatever anyone knew about what was going on.

After about 15 minutes, John and Gus were joined by Sage, Sonia, Shatter, Reed, Caitlin, Marcos, Lorna, and Lauren. A look of confusion fell on Reed and Caitlin’s faces as Lauren took a seat next to John by the computers as John stood up. A different look passed across some of the others at the fact that Taylor and Clarice were nowhere to be seen.

“Everyone needs to understand something, this isn’t just about hiding mutants anymore. We’re taking the fight to the enemy. It’s a matter of survival.” John pointed to the photo on the desk, “Reed, what can you tell us about this building.”

Reed glowered at John for a long moment before looking at the photos on the table, “I wish I knew more. Some of my cases were transferred to Baton Rouge, there’s a judge there, James Kriege, he dealt with most of my cases.”

“And how many folks that you prosecuted disappeared through this place?” Shatter growled. 

Reed shook his head, avoiding eye contact with anyone around the desk, “it was rare. All they told me was that some of my cases were being prosecuted under a special federal program.”

“And you never asked for more information? Why?” Gus sneered, placing his fists on the desk, glaring at Reed.

“Is that really important now?” Lauren commented.

“We're not debating this.” John stated at the same time.

The room all glanced between the pair before Lorna rolled her eyes, “thought that it was just Taylor that he was in sync with…” Lauren and John both glared at her while most of the room laughed tensely, Caitlin and Reed staying silent.

Once the group had settled back into the matter at hand, John spoke again, “look, what matters now is getting those files. We need a way in, but we can’t use Clarice, she’s on her own job at the minute. And we can’t have cover from Tay, she’s gone to sort something out.” Half the group looked at John with confusion, it wasn’t like Clarice to ditch in the middle of something this dangerous. It was even rarer for Taylor to ditch when things got hard.

“Where is Taylor?” Sonia asked, raising an eyebrow, “and Clarice?”

John glanced over to her, “she’s meeting with some contacts about the HOUND program, she thinks that she’ll be able to find more information than we can normally get. Clarice is dealing with a personal matter. Now, can we get back on topic?”

“What contacts?” Shatter asked, the idea of outside contact always left the HQ uneasy. Especially with how secret John and Taylor kept their contacts.

“A group with no connection to us. We want it to stay that way.” John commented.

Marcos raised an eyebrow, “just one group with no connection?” He mumbled, but everyone heard him perfectly.

Silence reigned over the room for a moment as John kept his attention on Marcos, “do you really wanna pick that fight, Marcos? We aren’t the only ones with outside contacts.” The warning was clear to everyone, the underlying threat that John would tell Lorna about who exactly gave Marcos the information to get Lorna out of prison, was only noticed by Marcos. The tension in the room began to build. Some of the group waiting for an explanation for Clarice and Taylor’s absences, the others trying to come up with a new plan.

“We could use Andy to get in.” Lauren suggested, trying to diffuse the uncomfortable air that filled the room.

Reed and Caitlin scoffed at the idea, not even wanting to consider it. “Lauren, we don’t want you involved, let alone your 15-year-old brother,” Reed snapped.

“It’s a wall, it’s easy for me.” Came Andy’s voice from the doorway, “it’s a matter of survival so surely if I can help, I should be helping.”

“Works for me.” Gus stated, not relaxing from his place glaring at Reed and Marcos.

“Oh, another thing, keep an eye on the scanners, I wanna know what Sentinel Services are saying about mine and Wren’s fieldtrip.”

Lauren laughed at that, “are we checking if they’re searching for us, or just to see how much we pissed them off?”

John grinned over to her, “can’t it be both?”

“You two are incorrigible. Thought it was only with Taylor you were like this, Kid.” Gus said, turning from John to look at Lauren as well, “the three of ya together are gonna be a problem.”

“Kid, you need to get a pseudonym.” Marcos said, “we need something to call you other than your name.”

“Does Little Bird not work?” Lauren asked.

“It can if you want it to.” John said, “especially if you’re gonna be an information gatherer. Our little bird that keeps us in the know.”

*****

The group split up as soon as the plan was settled: Reed, Andy, and Marcos would be taking a truck to Baton Rouge, Andy would break the wall, Reed and Marcos would steal the hard drives with the case files, Marcos would cover their tracks. As the group left John and Gus alone in the tech room, both settled by different computers. Gus’ phone rang after 20 minutes of silence, startling both the friends. “Hello?”

“Hi Honey.” Came Taylor’s voice, the tone making Gus chuckle.

“How’s it going?”

“Well, I’m just arriving at my destination, wanted to let you know before I go radio silent.”

“You safe though?”

“As safe as I can be. Kiss Gen for me. I love you.”

“I love you too, and of course I will.” The call ended. Gus glanced over to John who wasn’t even attempting to hide his smirk, “shut up.” He muttered, causing John to burst out laughing. 

“I’m sorry, I’m just remembering your line to me from an hour before we rescued Taylor. I remember being on the phone to Clarice, coming back over to you guys and you saying that she –”

“Had you whipped.” They were both laughing now, “I’m sorry, you reinforced that later when you said… what was it? ‘I can be her beacon’?” Gus said in a singsong voice before ducking as John threw a pen at him.

“Y’know Marcos tried to get me to explain the whole ‘Beacon’ nickname… didn’t feel like telling him that sentence.”

“Aw, but Clare loved hearing that the following morning!” The pair just stayed laughing for a few minutes, the weight of the day lifting from them slightly, “yeah well, we did sign up to this.” Gus muttered as their laughter died down. 

John shook his head for a moment, “it’s difficult to imagine what life could’ve been… I mean if we hadn’t found Empty.”

“She’d be our enemy, I bet. And one hell of a weapon.” Gus murmured, neither of them really wanted to consider that possibility.

“Either that, or she’d be out there completely alone, working without backup to tear down the government.” John offered, not sure which was worse.

“Your fieldtrip with Lauren, she likely to end up caught up in threat levels like you and Empty?”

Shaking his head, John glanced over, “doubt it, she’s gotten involved in some stuff, but nothing extreme.”

“Nothing extreme? You broke into Sentinel Services’ headquarters with her.” Gus pointed out, “you took a risk, taking her with you today. You should’ve taken me.”

“There were multiple reasons to take her, Matchstick.” John muttered, “I wanted to know how far she’s willing to go. I wanted to know if she would break under pressure, when there’re bullets flying. I wanted her to see what we were fighting against. I wanted her to get to be in the fight without her mom giving her safety wheels. I wanted to build trust with her.”

Gus looked over, “it is not your choice to make.”

“No, it’s Lauren’s. She’s nearly eighteen. You and I were in the military at her age. I’d watched people die and fought alongside the X-Men by her age. Taylor was being tortured. Clarice was rescuing mutants from prison and Purefires. Marcos was fighting for his life. Lorna was trapped in a mental institute.”

“Exactly my point! Lauren isn’t like the rest of us.” Gus pointed out.

“No, she’s better. She’s a legacy that we’re gonna nurture and protect. She’s someone who can offer us an unjaded view on how we save people. She’s an unclouded perspective of revolution. Sinner or saint, we’re all gonna die, she deserves a fighting chance to live.”

Gus watched John for a moment, “she is not Taylor.”

“No,” John shook his head, “she’s the one who’ll be left when this is over. She’s the one who’ll tell our stories. She’ll write the laws that make our kids able to live in this world.” He let out a breath, “there’s something going on. You can’t tell anyone else about it.” John took in Gus’ confused expressions, “it’s about that post we saw, probably why I got Lauren involved in all of this… there’s things going on. In Columbus. There’re talks about the Citadel opening up to patients again. I’ve read some article online, looks like it’s opening from the first of next month.”

“In two weeks?!” Gus growled, “in two weeks the place that tortured Taylor until she was a shell, is opening up again?!”

John nodded tensely and let out a breath, “there’s something else…”

“What?! What could possibly be worse and make you not want to say it?!”

“It’s going to have the same guy in command.” John stated, “Doctor Benedict Lawrence.”

Gus growled low in his throat, “that’s why you’re going so hard at Marcos about bringing up old contacts?”

John shrugged, “Taylor doesn’t want them involved, she also doesn’t want her parents anywhere near this shit. I want them out of here as soon as it’s cool enough, but Taylor gets to decide if that extends to Andy and Wren.”

All laugher was gone, in its place was a heavy unease. After a few minutes, Sage made her way into the tech room, pausing briefly when she saw the pair. There was clearly part of her that wanted to turn tail and leave the room. Instead, she stayed put, stopping the pair from discussing anything further.

*****

Marcos made his way into the tech room over an hour later, passing Sage as she left. He couldn’t keep from rolling his eyes at the sight of the pair that seemed as though they’d hardly moved since the group had left. “We’re about to head out.” He stated, his voice startling Gus, John had already heard his approach. Marcos paused for a moment as the group began to head outside, “Taylor’s contact… that’s the big secret you guys have, isn’t it?”

John shrugged, “if I say yes will it make you feel better?”

Biting down a comment, Marcos shook his head, “I thought we all knew each other’s contacts.” He muttered.

“You’ll know these ones if you need to. Right now, you don’t. Drop it.” John told him bluntly, a look in his eyes that dared Marcos to comment.

“Did we do something?” Marcos asked, “me and Lorna, you guys have kept us at arm’s length since day one. Hell, you seem closer with Lauren, and you met her five minutes ago. Did we do something to make you not trust us?”

John stopped, turning to face Marcos, “we trust you to take our kids and run if anything happens to us. You think we’d give those kids to anyone we didn’t trust?”

The pair followed Marcos towards the van, listening as he ran over the plan one more time. John let out a breath, “be careful out there. Wish we could be with ya.”

“I’ll miss you guys too.” Marcos said with a smirk before turning serious, “we’ve got this, and you guys are needed here. Don’t panic.”

“Alright, can the chatter.” Gus muttered, rolling his eyes. Marcos jumped into the back of the truck just before the driver closed the doors.

Watching the truck pull away, John shot a glance over to Gus, “does it worry you at all that they’re out there and we got no way of knowing anythin’ until they call us?” He asked.

Gus just nodded slightly. He couldn’t ignore the disturbing fear that had settled in the pit of his stomach. “Marcos was right, though. Why aren’t we telling him and Lorna everything?”

John shook his head, “Taylor keeps them away from the Citadel. Marcos doesn’t even believe half the shit Tay says she went through in there, even though no one would make up that stuff.” He sighed, “she wants to keep him and Lorna safe from that crap.”

“And that includes keeping them away from the Survivors.” Gus muttered, filling in the blanks.

John nodded, “they barely trust Taylor, if she starts introducing them to people with no connection to the Citadel, we get a whole other problem. Do you wanna deal with the shit those guys can throw at us?”

Gus scoffed, “not in this lifetime.”

“Throw in Orchis and things just get difficult.” John muttered, barely wanting to consider what could be at risk if Orchis were to catch up to them.

Gus paused for a moment, his expression darkening, “you and Love have been dodging those fuckers for what now? A decade? Longer?”

“Give or take,” John admitted.

“Do they know about the twins yet?”

John shrugged, “no idea. My guess is that they don’t. If they did, Killian wouldn’t relent. He’d find us.”

“What about the Legion? They still… allies? Enemies? What are they these days?”

“Wouldn’t call them an enemy,” John muttered, “but I sure as fuck wouldn’t call them an ally. I mean, their methods are too far, even by our standards.”

“They’re the only bastards that use kids as the price for saving people.”

John chuckled darkly, “Orchis, the Legion, the Brotherhood, the Nightwatch, the Hells… so many others… we’ve got more enemies than anyone here can ever know about.”

Gus smirked, “if they knew about half of it, they’d turn you and Empty into Sentinel Services themselves.”

“Don’t need to remind me, Matchstick.”

Heading inside, the two friends were cornered by Lorna, she’d been training some of the kids and hadn’t been able to get away in time to see Marcos off.  “Was he ok? When he left, was Marcos ok?”

“Yeah. Why wouldn’t he be?” Gus asked.

“Am I not allowed to worry?” She shot back.

“And then there were four.” Came Lauren’s voice as she joined them.

Her comment drew chuckles from the other three. “Let’s hope not.” Lorna muttered, wrapping an arm around Lauren as she led the teenager away. They were all quickly building a tight friendship with Lauren, she’d become a part of their group, their circle.

Chapter Text

The truck had been on the road for about two hours before anyone really spoke, Andy had settled at one end of the trailer, leaving Marcos and Reed at the other. “How long have you known Mackenzie… Taylor?” Reed asked, hoping to relieve some of the tension and get answers to some of his questions. He was still struggling to use Mackenzie’s new name, not the one he’d given her.

Marcos tensed at the question, “I’ve known her, John, Gus, Clarice, and the three kids for just over three years. Rory and Evie have been best friends since the day they met. Lorna was already working with John and Taylor in running the HQ, us three got pulled in later. Why?”

“You don’t know happened to her then?”

“Only what she chooses to tell me, and that’s not a lot really, but you can’t expect her to really want to.” Marcos’ eyes landed on Andy who’d tuned his attention to what Marcos was saying. 

“So, what? She just doesn’t tell anyone anything and expects to be told everything?” Andy sneered.

“No… she tells John, Gus, and Clarice most things. John is literally in her head so they’ve got very few secrets because they literally can’t keep them.” Marcos chuckled at the idea. He’d always found their mental link entertaining. He and Lorna both found it amusing the way they would glare at each other over thoughts the other one had had. 

“Were they ever…” Reed’s voice faded as Marcos turned to him.

“John and Clarice were engaged when Gus and John rescued Taylor, her and John have been like brother and sister ever since. If Taylor’s scared, she’ll go to John. They were never a couple though if that’s what you’re asking.” Marcos couldn’t help his smirk as Reed tensed when he mentioned John and Taylor being siblings.

Pausing for a moment, Marcos quietly chuckled to himself, remembering what John had said the other week about how he’d known Taylor before the Citadel. It made it even more difficult to imagine the pair ever dating when they’d known each other since childhood, even if he didn’t know if Taylor remembered John from back them. Marcos took a breath, “Caitlin mentioned that Taylor used to go to a Mutant Specialist school.”

Reed nodded, “yeah, when we lived in New York. She’d be out from seven in the morning until at least eight or nine at night most days, going from her school to extra tutoring set up by her principal.”

Andy’s eyes widened, “wait, Taylor went to a Mutant school?”

“She ended up in the local school when we moved to Atlanta… she hated it. She’d head out every weekend, meeting up with some of her old friends or something.”

Marcos laughed slightly, “yeah, John mentioned that they used to know Professor…” His voice faded off when he noticed Reed’s expression.

Reed couldn’t hide his confusion, “what’re you saying? John knew Mackenzie?”

Marcos glanced between Reed and Andy, “they used to know each other as kids.” Marcos muttered, silently kicking himself for slipping up, “he doesn’t know if Taylor remembers, so he doesn’t mention it.”

“Something else, John involving Lauren in this without talking to Caitlin and me is wrong. He has no right to involve her in this.”

Marcos let out a breath, “you can say that until you’re blue in the face, but you need to know, Taylor and John don’t force people to do anything. They tell you the pros and cons, let you make your own choice, then they mop up the mess. Lauren went with John, eyes wide open, fully aware of what she was getting into.” Marcos hoped.

The sounds of sirens caught the trio’s attention, a voice yelling for the truck to pull over forced Marcos into action. The group listened as the driver tried to divert the police officer from opening the back of the truck, “I’m really running late to Denver.” 

“Your name came up on a list from Sentinel Services, now open the back.” The officer ordered.

Inside the truck, Marcos ignored the other two arguing as he came up with a plan, “you two turn off the lights, I might be able to hide us.”

Reed looked at him exasperatedly, “there’s nowhere to go.”

“I absorb light before I emit it, if I can absorb enough… stay quiet.” Marcos began absorbing the light as he heard the officer and driver talking at the back of the truck. The door opened and Marcos did his best to keep silent as the officer used a flashlight to see into the truck. After what felt like hours to Marcos, but in reality, was less than a minute, the officer was called away to an incident. As soon as the door closed, Marcos let up, dropping back as his body protested the amount of light he’d absorbed.

*****

Despite her hesitation, Caitlin slowly made her way to the tech room, pushing down any doubt she had as she approached John and Gus, “hey, I was wondering, are there any schoolbooks or anything here?”

John and Gus both turned to face Caitlin, “probably, why?” John asked, crossing his arms.

Caitlin shrugged, “it’s just… I’ve noticed that there’re quite a few kids here and I was thinking about maybe setting up some kind of school, something to give them some normality despite, well, everything going on.”

“If there are any, they’ll be down in storage,” Gus muttered, looking over to John for confirmation that that hadn’t changed in the last two years. 

Caitlin paused before leaving the room, “is there normally a system or something for teaching the kids?”

John and Gus shared a brief look, “they’re barely four.” John muttered, getting slightly defensive, “we’ve taught them reading, writing, and math up to where they should be.”

“I, uh, I didn’t mean anything by it… I just...”

Gus sighed, “we know. But it’s our kids that are the only ones permanently here, so…”

*****

Forty miles south of the HQ, Taylor held her hands up in surrender as she stood at a gateway, guns aimed at her as she waited for her main contact. 

“Lower your weapons!” Came a yell as a dark-skinned woman approached Taylor, “well, well, I didn’t expect to see you here so soon.”

“Yeah, well, I need information, and you need keeping in the loop. Can we go inside?” The woman motioned for Taylor to follow her. Taylor couldn’t ignore the eyes following her every move as she headed into the house behind the woman.

The house was sparse, but tastefully decorated as Taylor scanned her surroundings, doing her best to keep calm despite feeling trapped. The woman stopped in the living room, closing the door behind Taylor. “What are you doing here, Taylor?”

“Look, Luka, I know you don’t trust me—” Luka scoffed, “I know that you’d like me to stay away, but I learnt something today that you need to know, and I need to know if you’ve got any intel.”

“Go for it.”

“What do you know about the HOUND program?”

Luka raised an eyebrow, not out of ignorance, but out of curiosity, “why d’ya wanna know?” 

“Because someone I care about was a part of it. I need all the information you know on the HOUND program. Plus, someone said they’ve got technology from the Citadel, I need to know what before my people take them down.”

Luka rolled her eyes, her lack of trust clear, but also an old camaraderie was clear behind her eyes. “I’ll see what my people know. Take this,” Luka handed her a phone, “I’ll call you with any info, you can call me if you ever need me.” Now it was Taylor’s turn to look confused. “You saved all our lives. The least I could do in return is help you when you ask after you’ve been gone for seven years.” Taylor hugged Luka.

Luka let out a breath before glancing almost guiltily at Taylor, “I will say this: we knew that Augustus Nobel was a part of it.”

Taylor froze, her heart sinking, “you knew that my husband, the father of my child, was being experimented on, in ways reminiscent as to how we were, ways developed from our torture, and you did nothing?!”

Luka shrugged, “there was nothing we could do.”

“You could’ve told me.”

“I will also tell you that we think that there is a spy in your Underground, I tell the truth when I say I don’t know who.” Taylor gave a nod, her blank face giving nothing away.

***** 

Caitlin rummaged through the seemingly endless piles of boxes and shelves as she searched the storage room for any appropriate books.

“Something you’re looking for?”

Caitlin whirled around as she startled, letting out a breath when she noticed it was Shatter, “oh, John and Gus said I might find some schoolbooks in here, but I’m not sure how it’s organized…”

Shatter let out a breath as he eyed the shelves suspiciously, “apparently, it is organized… by Taylor, so no one else understands whatever damned system she uses. She says it’s alphabetical by size. They’re probably kept on one of the lower shelves.”

“Is Taylor in charge of the supplies?” Caitlin asked, curious about her daughter’s place within the Underground.

“Uh, you could say that,” Shatter mused, “here,” he held out a small pile of books, “I think this is what you’re looking for. What are you gonna do with them?”

“I wanted to get a school started for Lauren and Andy… for all the kids here. Is there normally something in place?”

Shatter shook his head, “there aren’t normally kids here.” He shrugged slightly at Caitlin’s expression, “Imogen, Evie, Rose, and Aurora are exceptions. They get taught by most of the permanent residents here.”

Nodding, Caitlin’s eyes darted down to the books, “how’d you even get these?”

“Sentinel Services like to grab whole families when they’re picking the kids up from school. Pick them all up at once.” He shook his head, “good luck,” he nodded, heading from the room.

*****

Arriving at Baton Rouge, Marcos, Andy, and Reed hesitated as they approached the heavily guarded federal building. Keeping a short distance away, Marcos dialed Lorna, asking for another way in. It took the trio several minutes to find the parking lot Lorna directed them to, it took them even longer to find the wall that was shared with the federal building. Within seconds, Andy had ripped a hole in the wall and was sent back to the truck as Marcos and Reed headed into the building.

The building was like a maze, but it didn’t take the pair too long to find the room they were after. Reed was quick to find the files they were after, but it took Marcos several minutes in order to remove the hard drives.

Heading out of the room, Marcos let his had light up, ready to burn the room when Reed snatched his wrist, “what are you doing?!” Reed hissed,

“Covering our tracks.” Marcos stated, rolling his eyes as he pulled his hand from Reed.

“What so you’re just gonna burn the building?”

“You wanna leave them a thank you note?!” Marcos exclaimed sarcastically before setting the room on fire and leading Reed back to the truck.

Tension between Reed and Marcos was high when they arrived back at the truck, Marcos’ anger building as Reed continued to argue with him about what they’d done.

“Look man, they’re trying to kill us. You wanna leave ‘em a trail to our front door?” Marcos snapped as he sat on one of the benches. The driver closed the door, but Marcos didn’t even acknowledge him as the truck began to move.

*****

Back at HQ, Lorna was training some of the teenage refugees including Lauren, throwing saw blades and the likes at them so that they could use their powers to deflect them. Wes stepped up, waving his hand to make the toolbox appear as a vase of flowers.

“You think this is a joke?” Lorna growled at Wes.

“Whatever.” He muttered, dropping the mirage, and stepping back into line.

Lorna shook her head, frustration burning in her eyes, “you guys don't understand. You're going to need to depend on each other just to survive. You wanna make it out there? You gotta work hard in here.” Lorna took a breath before turning to her new friend. “Lauren, you're up next.”

Lauren smirked as she stepped forward, she knew Lorna wouldn’t let the saw blade touch her. Lorna prepped to throw the saw towards Lauren.

“What the hell are you doing?” Caitlin asked as she saw what was happening in the back room.

“Training. You might wanna move.” Lorna stated simply.

“I don’t remember giving you permission to hurl saw blades at my kid.” Caitlin snapped,

“But you can give my older sister over, no questions asked?” Lauren muttered under her breath, but it was loud enough for both Caitlin and Lorna to hear.

“What was that?” Caitlin demanded.

“You gave Tay up when she couldn’t even defend herself. She’s the one who said I should train, so I can protect myself when the time comes, because it will. I’m going to train in order to honor her, honor the fact that she never got the chance!” Lauren snapped, stepping in front of her mother, and preparing to create a shield.

Lorna threw the saw blade, watching closely as Lauren created a shield, but the shield wasn’t like her normal ones, it was disc like and spinning towards the saw blade. The second the saw came in contact with the disc-like shield, it disintegrated, turning to dust. The group all stood wide-eyed as Lauren dropped her hand.

“What the…”

Lorna smirked at the teenager, “you can weaponize your shields or use them for defense. We’ll talk to Tay about it when she gets back.” Lauren grinned at the thought, glancing over to her mom, doing her best not to let herself seem smug.

*****

John jogged over to the tech room, finding Sage and Shatter inside, “hey, just got word from the HQ in Alpharetta.”

“What happened? They get hit?” Shatter asked.

“Yeah, they managed to get about half their people out. They’re on their way here.”

Sage’s eyes widened, “here? We’re already over capacity by at least 78%!” She exclaimed.

“Guys, I’m sorry. We don’t have a choice here. We need to do something; we need to find space for them.” Sage and Shatter murmured their agreement, both heading off to try and find a way to fit another 30 refugees into the old bank.

Stumbling, John squeezed his eyes shut as he heard Taylor’s voice echo in his mind, “John, please…”

“Taylor? What’s up?” The rising hurt coming from Taylor set John on edge.

“John, they know. They know about HOUND program; they knew about it, about Gus, and they didn’t tell me.”

“Where are you? I’m on my way.” John grabbed an overnight bag, packing only the essentials before he headed to find Lorna or Gus to ask them to keep an eye on the twins until he or Clarice got back. He also asked them to toss Taylor and Gus’ room, find and remove any sharp objects.

Chapter Text

Lorna and Gus shared a look as John left the HQ, leaving them beyond confused as to where he was going. Gus’ mind filled with questions as he remembered the conversation about the Citadel. He knew as well as John did that not every patient died in the tragedy, a good number made it out, he just didn’t know where. The fact that Taylor had left so suddenly after reading something on the Network – as well as everything John had said – Gus couldn’t stop from thinking that all of this, all the fear and sudden moves, wasn’t limited to the fear of the Citadel reopening. He couldn’t help but worry about what his wife, brother, and best friend had gotten caught up in during the two years he was gone.

The pair didn’t have long to consider it when Gus’ phone rang, “Marcos? How’d it go in Baton Rouge?”

“Good, we got what we needed, we’re almost back.”

“Good.”

“Yeah, I’m not so sure.” At that comment, Gus put the phone on speaker as he led Lorna towards the tech room, “we’ve had a cop trailing us for a couple miles, no sirens but something doesn’t feel right.” 

“Check the traffic agency public notices to see if there's any directives to avoid Buford Highway. Is there anything?” Came Reed’s voice.

“Uh, yeah. Yeah, there is.” Gus told them, an urgency filling his voice as he looked at the map.

“They know we're coming.” Marcos muttered. Lorna couldn’t hide her growing panic as Gus squeezed her shoulder.

*****

The pair set about gathering the remaining main group, including Lauren and Caitlin.
Sonia glanced around the group as they gathered around the table, “where’s Johnny?” She asked.

“Got called away.” Gus snapped, “now focus on this.” Gus needed to clear his and Taylor’s room, if tonight was going to be a bad night, he’d need it to be sorted by the time John returns. He also knew that this was probably the only chance he would have to prove to most of the people at the HQ that he was on their side, that he was back, that he was not working for Sentinel Services.

The group all looked at him and Lorna, silently waiting to be filled in, “Marcos called us. A cop’s been trailing them and there’s a police roadblock in place. They’re heading straight into an ambush.” Lorna explained.

“I don’t understand, I thought they got away.” Caitlin muttered, desperation filling her.

“A cop stopped them on the way up there. They didn't find anything, but the driver said he was going to Denver, so when the toll way cameras in Baton Rouge spotted them—” 

“So, what do we do?” Sonia asked, interrupting Gus.

“Wes could help.” Lauren stated with certainty.

“That boy who was flirting with you?” Gus asked.

Lauren chose to ignore the comment, choosing instead to try and convince the group that he could help them. “You saw him in training. He can make illusions, mirages, if they need to get away from the police.”

“That could work.” Lorna muttered, nodding at the teenager’s idea.

“I'll go get him.” Lauren turned to leave before hesitating and turning back to Gus, Lorna, and her mom, “I want to go, too. If it doesn't work out, you'll need me.”

Gus and Lorna glanced over to Caitlin, “go. Go, before I change my mind.” She exclaimed. That was all it took for Lauren to run off to find Wes.

*****

In less than ten minutes, Lorna, Wes, and Lauren were at the crossroads that the traffic agency was saying to avoid, “ok, we’re almost here, we should have eyes on it any moment.” Lorna said into the phone.

“I don’t want you guys getting caught.” Marcos told her over the line.

“Don’t worry, we’ll stay out of sight. And by the way, it’s not nothing. Roadblock and tire spikes. Dozens of cops.”

“Why don’t they just turn around?” Lauren asked.

“There’s nowhere to go.” Lorna turned her attention back to the call as she saw the truck come into sight. “Marcos, tell the driver to keep going, no matter what. Do not stop. Ok.” The call ended. Lorna turned to Lauren, “your shields, they strong enough for a truck to drive over?”

Lauren just shrugged, “I dunno, I’ve never tried.” Lauren was worried, her dad, brother, and friend were relying on her.

“You just need to focus. You don't think about anything. Forget about everything but the target.

“I'll tell you when.” Lorna reassured her, once Lauren had nodded, she turned to Wes, “after that, it's all you.”

“I've never done anything that big.” Wes muttered with the same doubt Lauren had had moments ago.

“Then dig deeper.” The trio turned their attention back to the truck that was approaching the roadblock, Lorna kept muttering for Lauren to wait until she finally instructed her to create the shield.

The truck drove over the shield, not losing speed as all wheels left the ground and the truck was airborne. For several moments, the truck soared through the air as Lorna blocked the bullets. Once it had hit the ground, Lorna told Wes to create the mirage, the teenager made it look as though the truck went down both side streets. 

“What if they followed the right truck?” Lauren asked once all the cars had followed either of the two ‘trucks.’

“What truck?” Wes grinned, letting them see the real truck that had continued straight but had been hidden by a mirage that showed the empty street.

*****

*Discussion of self-harm*

Back at the HQ, Gus grabbed the tin box from on top of the cupboard in the back office before heading to his and Taylor’s room, nodding to Lorna and Lauren as they made it back. Letting out a breath, he pushed open the door and immediately headed to all the old spots where sharp objects would be hidden. A knife in a drawer, a razor in a shoebox, scissors in a coat pocket, another knife under the mattress… countless items dotted around the room, all in places that Taylor knew.

It took 20 minutes for the room to look like a bomb had gone off. The closet had been emptied, the mattress flipped, boxes pulled out from under the bed and tossed. The tin box overflowed with items ranging from knives to razors to sharp pieces of glass… all of them posing a risk if Taylor was having a danger night.

Heading out of the room, Gus headed to find Sage.

“What’s with the box?” Lauren asked with curiosity filling her.

“What’s with your new friend?” Gus shot back, raising an eyebrow as Lauren blushed. Gus’ smirk faded as he found Sage, “any chance you can keep ahold of these?” He handed her the box.

Sage raised the lid and let out a sigh, “danger night?”

“John thinks so.”

At that moment, Lorna joined the group, another tin box in hand, “Sage, any chance…” Sage took the box without question.

“What’s a danger night?” Lauren asked, glancing between them all.

Gus let out a breath, “it’s a night where Taylor’s mind is more… clouded… usually she dissociates more, or she ends up hurting herself to try and clear her mind about what’s real. She can… it can be bad.”

*End of discussion of self-harm*

“I’ll go back to it, Wren,” Gus said, slinging an arm over Lauren’s shoulders, “what’s with your new friend?”

“He’s a friend, what about it?”

Gus gave her a look, “I’ve known you, what? Nearly two months? Maybe?” He smiled as Lauren scoffed, “I am, however, your brother-in-law. I don’t like that term, I’ll stick with brother unless that makes you uncomfortable,” he paused for a moment, giving Lauren time to protest. When Lauren said nothing, Gus continued, “as your newly acquired big brother, it is my duty – when your sister is indisposed – to tell you when I think someone is… not the best, and it is your duty to inevitably ignore every word I’m about to say.”

“Glad to see we’re on the same page, good sir.” Lauren stated with a nod and a faux posh voice.

“Quite right,” Gus said, matching Lauren’s faux accent, “well, I have observed your new gentleman friend, and it is my deduction that he has less than gentlemanly intentions.”

“Quite likely,” Lauren said, grinning as she linked her arm with Gus, “however, have you considered, perchance, that I am not interested in his less-than-gentlemanly intentions.”

“Ah, good lady, I had. However, I understand the desire to woo.”

“To what?”

“To woo.” Somehow, through all of it, the pair kept straight faces as Gus led Lauren in circles around the main room of the HQ, “now, it is my deduction that you are… curious about your new gentleman friend.”

“I may be, good sir.”

“And if that’s the case,” Gus stopped, dropping the voice, and turning to Lauren with a more serious expression, “you come to any of us if he tries anything. If it’s reciprocal, that’s one thing, but don’t ever feel pressured. You’ve had a lot go on in the past, what, two and a half, three months? Don’t let anyone push you to be uncomfortable.”

“Gus, I know.” Lauren said, smiling at his concern, “thanks for clarifying, though. It means a lot, really.” Lauren watched him for a long moment, “on the topic of wooing…”

“If you’re about to ask me about mine and your sister’s love life—”

“I was just curious how long you were gentlemanly!”

“Well, we sprung her from a torture house seven years ago and we have a four-year-old kid. You do the math and tell me what you figure out.” Gus watched Lauren’s expression begin to shift, “there was always a lot of discussion before anything—”

“Don’t need to know!” Lauren exclaimed, her hand covering Gus’ mouth, “I do not need to know the details of you and my sister and the night my niece came to exist!”

*****

John found Taylor hidden in the woods not far from her contacts’ compound, his shoulders dropped when he saw her curled up leaning against a tree. “Taylor?” He whispered, crouching beside her.

“Beacon?”

“Hey.” He pulled her into his arms, holding her securely against his chest as she let her tears fall. Taylor didn’t even speak as John tried to calm her down, but he knew it was better to just hold her when her emotions got too overwhelming for her. After several minutes, Taylor had calmed down enough to let go of John slightly.

“Let’s go home.” He muttered, lifting her into his arms like he’d done hundreds of times before.

*****

Once back at the HQ, John’s phone buzzed as a text came through, he smiled when he saw who it was from,
‘Heya, I’m safe.
Kiss my little ladies for me and I will see you soon
XX Clare.’

John headed to the room the four girls shared to make sure the twins were ok. He wasn’t shocked to see Gus, Taylor, Marcos, and Lorna all already sat in the room telling the girls all about the past few days. John added his input every now and then. The group were laughing as the girls tried to stay awake to hear more stories.

As the adults left the room, Marcos’ phone rang, “hello.” 

“It’s me. Catch you at a bad time.” The others all watched Marcos curiously.

“Carmen?! What do you want?” Lorna’s eyes widened at the name, Marcos glanced over to her, his eyes telling her he’d explain in a minute.

“I’m collecting on our deal, remember, I call, and you come. If you refuse, my next call is to Sentinel Services.” And with that, Carmen hung up.

Marcos watched Lorna carefully for a moment, “what the hell does Carmen want?” She snapped.

“Lorna, she was the only person any of us could think of that would be able to find out the time and route for the prison convoy so we could get you out. Everything has been so mad since that I hadn’t even thought about her calling to pick up her end. My help with… something.”

Lorna stepped back slightly before straightening up, “so, what do we do?”

“What she says. She’ll call Sentinel Services if I don’t.” The group all shared a look. None of them liked the idea, but they liked the idea of Sentinel Services finding them even less.

“Ok.” Lorna whispered.

Chapter Text

Despite the sense of impending danger hovering over the heads of the make-shift family, the night after that phone call had passed peacefully. Like normal, Taylor had spent most of the night awake, her hand tracing circles on Gus’ chest with her head on his shoulder, his arm wrapped around her loosely. Her mind raced as she recalled everything Luka had told her, she’d known about the HOUND program, about Doctor Lawrence who was apparently back in command of Hell, about Trask Industries who ran the HOUND program. Luka knew about it all, and she hadn’t thought of telling Taylor. The hurt Taylor had felt last night had been replaced with dull acceptance. She had no right to expect them to trust her out there, she’d endangered their lives once too often.

A banging on the door made Gus bolt to sitting up, knocking Taylor from his side as he reached for the knife he normally kept under his pillow, grunting when he remembered that it wasn’t there.

“Marcos! I said wake them gently!” The pair heard Lorna yell, scolding her boyfriend. Despite being pissed at being woken so abruptly, Gus couldn’t help grinning.

“Get dressed, John’s called a meeting.” Marcos told them from the other side of the door.

Gus shot a glance over to Taylor as he got up and began dressing. His eyes questioning Taylor without him having to say a word.

“Look, John is able to keep some stuff from me, either that or it’s just not that important so I forgot it.” Gus just chuckled, knowing which of the two options was more likely with Taylor.

*****

After a few minutes, the pair were heading to the tech room where the others were gathering. After a moment, John joined them, “alright, listen up. Taylor and I have been talking with the other stations. Sentinel Services is ramping up surveillance across the board.”

Taylor shrugged as Gus raised an eyebrow to her, “ok, I knew why he was calling the meeting.” Everyone else shared a look while John rolled his eyes at his two closest friends. Turning to address the whole room, “it looks like things are gonna get worse before they get better. We knew things were going to come crashing down when they gave us a five-week reprieve.” Taylor said, finishing John’s thought for him, the others couldn’t help rolling their eyes, Caitlin and Reed just glanced between the pair.

“Well, how much worse?” Lorna asked after a moment, “with all these new refugees coming in, we're running out of food, blankets, everything.”

“I’ve been thinking about that, I called Sophie this morning, she told me that the Warehouse is restoked, Gus and I can leave within the hour.” Taylor stated, sitting on the table at the side of the room.

“I’m down for that.” Gus added after a moment, John nodded.

Taylor turned her attention to Sage, shifting the topic away from their dwindling supplies, “how's it coming with the hard drives from Baton Rouge?”

“We're working on cracking them.” Sage assured her, though there was doubt in her voice.

“Well, the bad news is they're encrypted.” Reed began, “but the good news is it probably means that there's something worth hiding.”

“Okay, if we don't figure out how they're turning mutants against us, none of this is gonna matter.” John glanced around the group, Taylor mentally slapped him, telling him to spit it out. Sending a quick glare to Taylor, John spoke, “and one more thing. I'm gonna go and help Clarice, she should’ve been back by now so I’m gonna go give her a hand.”

“Alright, good luck. We have got a lot of work to do. Let's get to it.” Taylor ordered.

The group leapt into action. John headed to get a bag packed for a couple of days, Sonia headed to make a list of supplies that they’d need, Marcos went to prep for his meet up with Carmen, Lorna followed him, Gus and Taylor moved to see Imogen before they left.

Lauren watched Taylor and Gus, building up the courage to ask them something, “Taylor!” She called.

Taylor turned to Lauren, “what’s up?”

“Can I go with you? I mean, I wanna help, but I wanna do more than hand out blankets.” Lauren told her, mumbling the last part.

“You’ve got a taste of what we do and can’t settle?”

Lauren shrugged guiltily, “if it means anything, I do feel bad about being bored with it.”

“That’s fair,” Taylor led Lauren away from where Gus was sat with Imogen and the other girls, “Wren, you can’t come this time. I’m not being harsh, it’s just, I haven’t gotten to spend any time with Gus since we found him really. I just… Sophie asked if it was gonna be me and John, but I knew John was going to Clare and I’d already decided that Gus and I were going… Next time?”

“I’ll hold you to that.” Lauren said with a smile, hugging Taylor, “and I can understand you wanting time with Gus.” She whispered.

“Question, you and John have both started calling me ‘Wren’, is that my nickname now?”

Taylor laughed, “it’s that or ‘little shit’, which do you prefer Little Bird?”

“Wren it is.”

*****

Marcos, Lorna, Taylor, Gus, John, and Lauren all headed outside, Lorna was still telling Marcos to be careful and not to let his guard down around Carmen, the others couldn’t help their amusement as Lorna acted protective.

Taylor turned to John, “Let me know when you find Love.”

“Course I will.” He muttered, pulling Taylor into a hug, “you tell me when you get to the supply den.”

“You bet.” Taylor nodded as John let her go, hugging Gus briefly before Gus and Taylor moved to get into the van.

Lauren headed over to the trio, giving them the list Sonia had prepared for them.

“Don’t forget coffee!” Lorna shouted over.

“You’re not allowed coffee. You’re pregnant!” The others, including Lauren, seemed to all yell back in sync.

“Yeah, but Clarice isn’t, and she’ll want some coffee when she gets back.” They all laughed at that, they’d been out of coffee for a couple of days now and Clarice had complained about it at least twice a day before she went on the road.

Five minutes later, Lorna and Lauren were left stood in the doorway as they watched their family heading out of the driveway.

Lorna led Lauren back into the HQ, smirking as Wes hovered nearby, “I think someone wants your company.” Lorna motioned to the teenager and Lauren couldn’t help fidgeting as Lorna pointed Wes out, “go on. But I expect you both at training later.” Lauren moved towards Wes at that. The pair disappeared somewhere else within the HQ while Lorna headed off to see the girls.

*****

John was barely an hour from the HQ when his phone rang. Tensing, expecting the worst, John answered.

“You crazy bastard.”

“Good to hear your voice, Malachi,” John chuckled, “why am I crazy this time?”

“Well, you and your crew have Sentinel Services worried about three groups. They’re calling you the Central Four, the Core Six, or the Silver Seven. I’ll give you a guess on who’s included in each.”

“Silver Seven? That’s a shit name.” John muttered.

“Entirely beside the point.” The voice on the other end of the phone grumbled, “you and your Second are heading for death. If you keep going down this path, you won’t see your beloved revolution rise, let alone end. Sentinel Services know you’re picking your generals and soldiers. I will admit, I didn’t expect you to recruit a teenager into your war council, but it doesn’t shock me.”

“You don’t win a war by doing what they expect.” John said, “we’re trying to build a world that every child can grow up in.”

“Wise up, boy. You’re on a lonely path, you think it’s the path to freedom, but you’re locked in your own mind. Freedom, ruination, doesn’t really matter when even you can’t tell the two apart when you’re walking that road alone. You’re building a legacy, the crucial bit of that is that you’ll never see it. That’s the notion of legacy. It’s the world we hand our children.”

“And I intend to hand my children a world much better than the one I grew up in.” John shot back.

“History will either see you and the snake as heroes or villains. Someone needs to be around to tell the truth of your twos story.” Malachi had always been a voice of logic for John, they had known each other for years, it was questionable about whether they were friends, but they were certainly allies.

John let out a breath, “and will that be you, Malachi?”

“You’re not terrorists, I know that much. You’re not some unhinged mass murderers or psychos that only do harm. You don’t control who lives or dies, no matter how much you want the government to believe you do. You need to be careful, kid, they’re gonna be cracking down on you.”

“Why now?”

“Because regular people are beginning to see the treatment of your lot as wrong. You’ve got a lot of support on the side, it seems releasing all that information helped you. There’s a spark of revolution, the flame’s been lit, don’t let it go out. Think about who’ll live, those that’ll die, and who’ll be left to tell the stories of what you bastards did to change the world.”

The call clicked off, leaving John listening to the dead line. Those words echoed so often in his mind these days, ‘who will be left to tell your story?’ he didn’t know the answer anymore. If Malachi was right, there was a chance that things could change, that they could change soon. But John was still left asking that same question: who would be left, when the smoke cleared and the dust settled, to tell their story? Would history remember them as heroes or villains?

*****

Wes led Lauren towards the roof, promising to show her something amazing, Lauren wasn’t convinced, “we’re not supposed to be up here. We’ll get told off.” Lauren muttered, it hadn’t taken her long to realize that the roof was the place that Taylor, Gus, John, Clarice, Marcos, and Lorna would go to hide out from the rest of the HQ and deal with more sensitive matters and family matters.

“We're practically touching the building.” Wes said as he jumped a couple of times and caused the scaffolding to groan.

Lauren eyed it cautiously, not trusting how stable the scaffolding really was. “Stop.” She muttered from where she sat in the windowsill.

“Come on!” Wes exclaimed exasperatedly, “can’t you just bend the rules this once?” He whined childishly causing Lauren to roll her eyes. “Do you want to miss out on everything?” Wes asked, trying again, “besides, if we’re not supposed to be out here, why are there chairs and glasses?”

“You are like a textbook bad influence.” Lauren sighed, “you know that, right?”

Lauren’s eyes darted to the collection of barely stable chairs and empty glasses at the side of the scaffolding, trying to hide her smile at the fact that she’d been up here last night with her sister and new friends, laughing and messing with each other.

“Okay. Yeah, it's no big deal.” Wes muttered, stepping away from the railings and heading towards the empty window.

“Fine. Okay, I'll check it out. But it better be cool.” Lauren relented, climbing out of the window gap. Lauren glanced back over to the window in order to make sure that no one had seen them before heading over to Wes who was grinning widely,

“It will be.” He assured her as he led her over to the edge. Lauren froze as the scaffolding creaked; Wes was quick to reassure her that everything was fine before leading her over to the very edge of the scaffolding.

“Great. It's the ground.” She muttered condescendingly.

“Just hang on a sec.” Wes told her indignantly, “close your eyes.” Lauren glanced over before doing as Wes asked.

She felt him lift her arms above her head causing her to scoff, “what are…”

He took her hand and lent her forward as he stood next to her, Lauren heard the sound of wind passing her. “Now open them.”

As soon as she did, Lauren saw them gliding over a lake in the mountains, a gasp escaped her lips at the sight, “it's gorgeous.” She breathed as she took in the sights around her.

She didn’t notice the Wes watching her. “Better than being stuck indoors, right?” Wes whispered back, causing Lauren to laugh softly.

Watching the scenery around her, Lauren raised her eyebrow, “have you ever been to the mountains?”

Wes looked sheepishly over to her, “close enough. The Nature Channel.” The illusion faded, leaving the pair stood on the scaffolding.

“This is amazing.” Lauren muttered over to him.

“I'm glad you like it. Do you want to go back inside?” Wes asked after a moment.

“In a second.” The pair began leaning in.

They almost kissed when they heard a voice in the doorway. “Hey. You guys get checked for herpes, right?” Lauren glared over to her brother, “I hear it's super contagious.” Andy continued with a grin and Lauren and Wes moved apart.

“Way to be a stalker, Andy.” Lauren complained, glaring at him.

“Mom told me to come get you. It's lunch.” Andy laughed before heading back inside with Lauren trailing behind him.

Chapter Text

As soon as she was inside, Lauren’s eyes landed on Lorna, “I’ll be over in a minute.” Lauren said before running over to Lorna, she didn’t wait to hear Andy’s response, she also didn’t notice him watching her curiously as she reached Lorna. Lorna hugged Lauren to her side briefly before deciding that the girl was after something.

“What’s wrong with Tay? I mean, she said that she wanted to go with only Gus so that they could catch up, but she sounded like she was hiding something.” Lauren asked softly.

Lorna just smiled over to her young friend, “Lauren, you’ve got to know… Taylor loves you, she really does, but she doesn’t know you. Give her time, she’s already begun to open up to you, but she… isn’t very good at the whole talking about her feelings in an… in a way that helps. She’ll talk about things she’s been through, but she’ll be detached, almost as if she’s reciting a shopping list rather than explaining her past. It… it’s a lot to grasp.”

Lauren nodded sadly; she had noticed that about her older sister.

“Something else,” Lorna said, “take some time to be with your family. Don’t immediately blank them just because you wanna fight and they don’t want you to. Clarice and John were both singing your praises for how well you worked under pressure, but your parents are still seeing their little girl get caught up in a war.”

“I’m not a little kid anymore.”

“No, you’re not, but you are to them. You’re their daughter that they’ve always been terrified will end up like Taylor, and now they’re watching as you follow her into the fire.” Lorna sighed as she glanced over to where Andy was stood watching them, “see, they’re worried about what you’ll become if you carry on down the path of siding with Taylor and John. Gonna be honest, it worries some of us, too.”

“Why?” Lauren asked, her eyebrows furrowing in confusion.

Lorna just scoffed, “really? You’ve seen their self-preservation tactics. They’re non-existent. They’re treating you as though you’re a trained fighter, you’re not. We’re worried that they’re gonna forget who you are and it’ll end up with you dead.”

After a moment, Lauren headed over to Andy, stewing over Lorna’s words as she grabbed lunch with her family.

*****

The radio had been the only noise in the van for all of ten minutes before Taylor glanced over to Gus.

“What’s up?” He asked, his voice startling Taylor, she curled up tighter on her seat, drawing her knees up to her chest before glancing over to Gus.

Taylor let out a breath before muttering, “what part?”

“I heard you tell a Little Bird that you wanted to spend time with me, I assumed you meant more than a nice silence the whole way down.”

Taylor gave a tight smile as she searched Gus’ face, he was looking healthier every day that the conditioning was gone from his mind, and he was able to look after himself properly. “Seeing you here… it’s like a dream I’d given up on. Seeing you with Imogen, I can’t believe that you’re holding her, reading her stories. I can’t believe that you’re finally home.” Gus took Taylor’s hand, running his thumb over her knuckles as she continued to speak, “but I can’t help but feel sad every time I see you with her… When you went on that mission, I’d just found out that I was pregnant. John had heard the heartbeat.” Gus smiled at the thought, he remembered the excitement and fear they’d felt when Taylor was pregnant with Imogen.

Taylor felt her heart break a little bit more at the sight of his smile, “He told me the day before you were to go on that mission.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Gus whispered, trying to ignore the mixture of emotions filling him. He knew Taylor had her secrets, she’d always had them, but she’d never kept anything hidden about their family.

“You were going on that mission, I didn’t want you distracted. I begged John not to tell you until you were both home safe.”

Gus shook his head, “I would’ve stayed home.”

“I know, but I couldn’t risk it. We were expecting the plan to go a lot better than it did. If it had gone right, then there would’ve been more casualties if you weren’t there.”

Gus could see the tears forming in Taylor’s eyes, “what happened to it?”

“He was stillborn. When John told me that he couldn’t hear the heartbeat… It’s all my fault.” Taylor was crying now.

“No, it’s not.”

Taylor let out a wet laugh, “How’d you figure that?”

“When you were pregnant with Imogen, when we visited the doctor, she told us that the chances of you having a successful pregnancy were less than 3% and would get lower if you had a successful pregnancy due to scar tissue. Taylor, losing our son wasn’t your fault.” Gus pulled Taylor to his side as best he could while driving. He knew Taylor would blame herself even if he told her not to, “hey, the Citadel injected you with those chemicals,” he reminded her softly, “they are the ones who damaged your internal organs. Nothing that happened was, nor will it ever be, your fault.” Gus was determined to show Taylor that no matter what, he didn’t blame her for anything that had gone wrong.

*****

Reed and Sage were both focused entirely on the computer screens, searching through the files to determine what Sentinel Services was doing, “looks like the first drive is all police files on mutants.” Reed said as he looked over all the files briefly.

“The encryption is deeper on this one.” Sage muttered, her eyes moving unnaturally fast as she scanned over the files, “it's much deeper. I think they’ve been upping their encryption since we broke into the headquarters.”

“It reads like a shopping list,” Reed noted, “whatever program the Sentinel Services is working with, they seem to be cherry-picking mutants based on the powers they want. They're not even pretending this is legal.” He glanced through a couple more files until one caught his interest, “that’s… that’s Mackenzie,” he whispered causing Sage to look over.

“That doesn’t surprise me, I mean, Taylor’s one of their most wanted. Taylor and John. They’re international terrorists according to multiple governments.” Sage explained nonchalantly, she didn’t feel like explaining Taylor’s past to Reed right now. That was up to Taylor. “For future reference, her name is Taylor. It’d do you well to use that name.”

Reed quickly realized that he wouldn’t get any more information from Sage so turned back to the files; it showed a penciled drawing of someone who looked a lot like Wes with very similar powers.

Sage watched as Reed left the office, waiting until he was out of sight before calling John.
“Something happened?”

Sage rolled her eyes at John’s immediate response. “Possibly. The files from Baton Rouge, one of them was Taylor’s. Reed saw it and began asking questions, wanted to give you guys a heads up but didn’t feel like being the one to interrupt her and Gus. I threw him a bone, saying you and Taylor are international terrorists, but that’ll only keep him down for so long.”

John laughed for a moment before turning serious, “keep an eye on him, and the files. Let me know if anything develops.” The call clicked off as John hung up.

“You’re welcome,” Sage muttered into the dead line.

*****

Marcos pulled the car to a stop outside the mansion that Carmen lived in, he couldn’t stop the niggling doubt growing in his chest, but he knew that Carmen would call Sentinel Services if he didn’t show up.

Heading inside, he tensed when his eyes landed on Carmen, “I was beginning to think you weren't going to come.” She commented condescendingly.

“I almost didn't... I got out of this for a reason.” Marcos muttered back, glancing around the mansion, and taking in his surroundings.

“I remember. ‘To fight for your fellow mutants’. Nothing to do with the girl with the green hair.”

Marcos’ glare tightened on Carmen at her comment, “can we leave her out of this?”

“Of course. I'd like nothing better. Marcos, the truth is our little reunion could be a good thing for everyone, your mutant brothers and sisters included.”

Marcos resisted the urge to roll his eyes at Carmen’s statement, “yeah? How's that?”

“Your people, my people, they have a lot in common... The hiding, the fighting, the Feds. I mean, how is it so different?”

“Maybe because we don't sell drugs for a living?” Marcos shot back bluntly.

Carmen rolled her eyes, a fond smile on her lips, “my point is we can help each other. You have power, I have money. And together? Think of the possibilities.”

“I think there's a good possibility we all end up dead or in prison.” Marcos muttered, clearly not convinced.

“So stubborn. I've missed you. Just hear me out.” Carmen said with a grin.

*****

Reed began searching for Lauren, but he couldn’t find her anywhere. Eventually, he found Caitlin teaching some of the younger kids. She made her way over to Reed while the children (including the four girls) looked at some pea plants. “What’s the matter?”

Reed let out a breath, “we have a situation. You know the boy that Lauren has been spending time with? Wes?”

Caitlin pulled a face but nodded, “yeah. I'm familiar. I'm not a fan, but Lauren seems to like him. And I’ve decided to start picking my battles with her. At least she’s not running off to attack police this time.”

“I've been going through the mutant criminal files,” Reed explained, “and I think he's in them. Sounds like he's been conning people, robbing stores in Cartersville.”

“Okay, that... doesn't sound good, but we can't overreact.” Caitlin reasoned, “Lauren's been through a lot lately. We… we just need to take this slow.”

“We're not talking about parking tickets. I need to talk to him.” Reed growled. He couldn’t deny the fact that he was still trying to figure out the information from Taylor’s file.

“You need to talk to her. She's not gonna be happy about this. The worst thing you could do would be to go on the attack.” Caitlin countered, trying to get her husband to see sense.

“You're right.” He said with a sigh, “I’ll talk to her.”

Knowing that Lauren was meant to be training, Reed decided that that was the best place to begin his search for her. He heard Lorna shouting commands and advice to the teenagers she was training. “Here to train?” She asked as she aimed a slate at him.

“No, no, no. No. Uh, I need to talk to Andy.” Andy pulled off his blindfold and headed over to his dad. “Hey. How's it going?”

Andy shrugged, “good. You know, at least if we get attacked by some tiles, I'll be ready. What's up?”

“Where's your sister? I thought she was supposed to be here.”

Andy just scoffed and shrugged, “yeah. Me, too. I don't know. Not sure.”

“Well, I need to talk to her. Is she with Wes?”

Andy stammered over his words as he tried to lie, “I-I don't know. She just said they were going out and that she'd kill me if I said anything, okay?”

“Believe me, Andy, you are the least of her worries right now.” Reed muttered before leaving the makeshift training room in order to go and continue his search for Lauren.

Chapter Text

It took John nearly two hours to find Clarice, she was taking shelter in a school gym when he found her. Clarice must’ve heard him approaching because John could hear the electric sound of her portal opening. “Wait! Reece, it’s me!” John called as he rounded the corner.

“Beacon,” Clarice smiled, relief washing over her features, “you shouldn’t sneak up on a person like that.” She placed a hand on his chest as his hands settled on her hips. They only stayed like that for the slightest moment before John pulled Clarice into a tight hug, muttering softly against her hair. “You worried about me?” Clarice asked with a knowing smirk.

“Always.” John murmured, “you’re not safe out here, Sentinel Services has ramped up surveillance across the board. I can’t lose you again.” He muttered before glancing at the pile of files that Clarice had managed to gather.

The pair sat down against the stack of mats; Clarice explained everything she’d found about the road that she’d been trying to portal to. Fair to say, there wasn’t a lot of information, but Sentinel Services were good at keeping incidents out of the media. They spent several hours trying to determine their next steps before finally moving out.

*****

Taylor and Gus stopped the van inside the warehouse that was used as one of the supply bases for the Mutant Underground. The pair were met by Sophie charging at Gus and crashing into his arms.

“Hey Taser,” Gus laughed as he hugged the electrokinetic woman tightly, Taylor grinned as Sophie let go of Gus and punched him several times, “what’s down with everyone wantin’ to punch me these days?”

“Oh, maybe the fact that everyone thought you were dead for two years?” Sophie offered, leading the pair into the warehouse so that they could gather the supplies they needed. The pair took in the shelves, they were emptier than usual, but that was to be expected. “We’re limiting to two boxes of food, one box of cleaning gear, four crates of water for a base your size. Everything else is under the rule of ‘if it’s there, you can have it’.” She told them before leaving the pair to gather the supplies that they wanted.

Forty blankets and pillows, one crate of kitchen utensils (including eight gas cookers), some heaters, some camp beds, and the allotted amount of everything else found themselves in the back of the van that the pair had driven over in. Sophie watched them curiously as they worked, she watched as they rarely left each other’s line of sight.

By the time that they were ready to go, Sophie made her way over to them, “don’t hesitate to call me, I’ll always pick up.” She said, kissing their cheeks before they climbed back into the van to head back to the HQ.

*****

Marcos watched Carmen tensely as she made her way over to him, “tell me about this job.”

“They've been having trouble with the Russians moving into the area. We want to send a message.” Carmen told him vaguely.

“What kind of message?” Marcos asked, knowing better than to think that it would be that simple.

“They have a shipment going up north tomorrow. We know where they load their trucks. We go there, you deal with the shipment, and we're done. Simple.” She explained.

Marcos shook his head, fixing a glare on her, “I'm not killing anyone.” He growled.

“Who said anything about killing? It's a shipment of drugs. You shine a little bit of light, boom-boom, nobody gets hurt.” She told him before smiling condescendingly, “I'll even pay you. You can use the money to buy something nice for your mutant friends. I hear it's pretty tight over there. So, this job today, do I get the magic hands?”

Marcos glared at her for a moment, “fine. For today.” He agreed, knowing that there was no way that he was going to get out of this.

*****

Lauren made her way into the room that she and her family had been given, a smile on her face as she saw her parents sat down at the table, “hey. Sorry I'm late. I was just—”

“I've been looking all over for you.” Reed snapped perhaps a little too harshly.

Lauren’s eyes widened briefly, “I was in the basement. Some refugees needed more towels.” She told him simply.

“Uh, yeah. Lauren, we need to talk to you. It's about Wes.”

Lauren rolled her eyes, clearly not thinking the same thing that Reed was, “you don't want me dating a mutant. I get it, okay? I...”

“No. No, you don't. Look at this.” He passed her the file, “I've been going over the criminal files, the ones we got from Baton Rouge. This is Wes's file.”

“No, this isn't.” Lauren insisted, not wanting to believe it, “this picture could be anyone. This is all the way up in Cartersville.”

“Lauren, you have to admit there's quite a resemblance. You see what it lists as his ability.”

“Yeah. Image manipulation. That's not proof.” She stated, anger bubbling just beneath the surface, it was the same as the anger that had caused her shields to become spinning discs.

Reed didn’t seem to notice his daughter’s rising anger, “how many other criminal mutants do you think have that ability?”

“Even if it is him, we've all broken the law. I mean, we've all...”

“Running from Sentinel Services is one thing, but Wes conned the owner of a jewelry store for his own profit.”

Lauren just scoffed, “you haven't changed. You ask all these questions to prove you're right, and you're just assuming he's guilty!” She yelled, trying to stop the tears pooling in her eyes.

“I have some experience in this area, Lauren, and I know what I'm talking about. You have to look at this with clear eyes!”

“Just stop! Okay? Just shut up!” Lauren ran from the room, not listening to her dad shouting after her.

*****

Lauren made her way onto the roof, not expecting to see Lorna there. Lorna raised an eyebrow at the sight of her friend crying, “what?” She asked softly as Lauren latched onto her.

“Dad… he thinks Wes…” Lauren didn’t finish before sobs took over her body. Lorna just held Lauren tighter, doing her best to focus on the teenager in front of her and try to distract herself from the fact that Marcos might be in danger.

“Your sister’ll be back soon.” Lorna stated, not sure if it would reassure the girl or not. Lauren nodded against Lorna’s shoulder, trying to steady her sobs.

“Dad’s acting like Wes doing criminal things is worse than us doing it… I just… I don’t know what to think.” Lauren muttered.

Letting out a breath, Lorna kept an arm around Lauren, leading her down to one of the three storage rooms, this one was tiny, unused by most of the residents of the HQ. “I take it, by now, you’ve heard us lot complain about the number of secrets that Taylor and John, in particular, have?” Lauren nodded as Lorna grabbed a small notebook, “well, on the big, long list of things that the rest of the HQ don’t need to know, is a list of all of the time that us six have been arrested, detained, interrogated, and escaped. It also has the reasons we’ve all been arrested. Very few of them are related to the Underground. The worst one was about a year and a half ago, John and Taylor disappeared for a while, they came back with gunshot wounds, broken bones, a bag of stolen goods, a European manhunt underway for them, clothes that weren’t theirs, and the phrase ‘don’t worry about it’. We’ve all done sketchy things to get here, it’s just a game of learning to draw a line on what you can tolerate versus what you can’t.”

*****

John and Clarice stood on a road in the middle of the woods, trying to find anything that linked it to Clarice’s memories.

“Do you remember anything about this road that we’re looking for?” John asked as he tried tracking, Clarice shook her head from where she was leaning against the side of the pick-up truck.

“You were the one who saw it, I was unconscious.” Clarice pointed out, “this is useless.” She muttered, kicking the tire of the truck in frustration as John came over to her.

“Hey, we’re not giving up.” John told her, certainty filling his voice.

“Well what else is there to try?!” Clarice exclaimed.

“You might have a trail inside you,” Clarice just raised an eyebrow, “look, when an animal is hurt, it goes back to a place it feels safe. We do too. The twins come to us if they have nightmares, Taylor goes to the roof…”

“I don’t do that, though.” Clarice muttered, “I go to you or Tay.”

“But you used to have a place. Before me and the girls, before we all met. You used to have a place where you felt loved and safe.”

“The farm…” Clarice muttered, running back around the truck, and getting in before John had even managed to move. He just smiled before climbing back into the driver’s seat.

Chapter Text

Sitting at the desk in the tech room, Reed couldn’t stop thinking back to his argument with Lauren, “I think I've gotten everything there is to get out of these files. How's the second drive coming?” He asked, attempting to distract himself.

“I'm calculating relationships of asymmetrical algorithmic keys… I'm getting there.” Sage simplified when she noticed Reed’s blank expression. She tried to keep her expression neutral as she saw Taylor in that look.

After several moments, Reed spoke up again, “you're in charge of evaluating people when they come in, right?”

“Yeah.”

“How do you choose who to let in? I mean, there's so many mutants here who are running from the law.”

Sage looked over, directing her attention to Reed rather than the files, “there are things we don't forgive... murder, rape, victimizing other mutants. Other than that, we just ask people to tell the truth.”

“What if they don't?”

“Then they have to leave. This place is built on trust.”

Reed hesitated for a moment, “what about in cases like Macken— Taylor?”

Sage scrutinized him for a moment before deciding to speak, “she’s an exception. So are a few others, but that’s rare and only happens with people that we already know. John, Gus, and Clarice already knew Taylor, and she’s pretty much one of the leaders of the whole Underground. Why?”

“Just curious.” Reed stated before turning back to the computer. Reed silently loaded back up Taylor’s file from Baton Rouge, reading through it silently,
‘MOST WANTED by Sentinel Services, International Mutant Control Force
Taylor Nobel
AKA: Cobra/Python
Known Mutation: Pain and Physical Sensory manipulation
Suspected Mutation: Abnormal senses, Immunity, Inhuman Strength
Status: MOST WANTED. Any sightings of this mutant are viewed with highest priority. Public are urged to remain away from the mutant and inform local authorities of any sightings.’

Reed let out a breath as he read the wanted poster before diving into the classified information stating everything about Taylor that Sentinel Services knew. One piece that grabbed his attention was the pages of the Citadel. Swallowing the lump in his throat, Reed skipped past them, but his eyes landed on the last few sentences,
‘Only known patient to survive the so-called Citadel Tragedy. Rescued by John Proudstar and Augustus Nobel. Location currently unknown.’

With wide eyes, Reed read the sentences over and over again, trying to make sense of it all before he turned to Sage, “What was the Citadel Tragedy?”

Sage froze, her hands stilling over the keyboard as her breath lodged in her throat and her mind went blank. She turned to look at Reed, “why’re you asking?”

“I… I read some of the information on Mack— Taylor. It said she’s the only survivor.”

“I’m not the person who should tell you about that.” Sage stated, refusing to tell the little she knew. It would be Taylor’s decision to tell her parents.

As Reed left the tech room, Sage reached for the phone, John needed to know about Reed’s investigating.

“New developments?” He asked as soon as he’d picked up.

Sage chuckled when she heard Clarice scoff. Letting out a breath, she spoke, “it’s Reed, he’s read some of Taylor’s file. Asked me what the Citadel Tragedy was.”

John let out a breath, “what’d you tell him?”

“Nothing. Not my place.”

“I wanna keep it that way. Taylor gets to decide what they know. No one else.”

The call ended and Sage sighed, she knew that the group would all protect each other, all of them would want to keep questions away from their family for as long as they could.

*****

Lauren headed into the small library in the HQ, her eyes landing on Wes playing with a video game, “hey,” she said as she approached, “have a sec?” She asked softly.

“Yeah. Found this behind the books. Saved me from actually reading one. What's wrong?”

Lauren hesitated for a moment, “I have to ask you something. It's probably nothing, but my dad showed me a police file. There's someone in it who's wanted for some crimes. He thinks it might be you.”

Wes let out a nervous laugh, “Seriously?”

“The police description says something about... image manipulation.” Lauren studied Wes’ expression as it changed.

“It did? How… how's that?”

“Wes, if it is you, I need to know.” Wes didn’t answer, but his lack of response told Lauren everything she needed to know: “It's true.” She stated.

“Lauren, uh...”

“No.”

“Please, just... let me explain. After my parents kicked me out, I was a mess. I was living in shelters, eating out of dumpsters, and... and this, this group of guys found me, and they let me join their crew. I was just their front man, covering things up, tricking people. I didn't...”

Lauren scoffed, shaking her head, “you were telling me not to hide, making it seem like you used your powers all the time because you were proud of who you were. This is what you meant?” Hurt filled Lauren’s voice as she tried her best not to let it crack as she spoke.

“No, no, no. I… I was desperate back then.”

“You should have told me.”

“You’ve got to trust me.”

“Trust you?” She scoffed, “Wes, how can I believe anything that you say? You're just like one of your stupid mirages.” She muttered before storming out of the room.

“Lauren!” Wes called after her, but he decided better than to follow her.

*****

Marcos took the bulletproof vest into his hands, trying his best to block the wave of memories that flooded his mind as he looked it over.

“Remind you of the good old days?” Carmen asked as she noticed Marcos’ expression.

“Reminds me of the old days. I don't know how good they were.”

“This stuff used to give you a rush. You'd come home and keep me up all night.”

Marcos glared at her again, “I was just excited to have a roof over my head.”

“You can tell yourself that if you want, but I know the truth. I remember when you were just Marcos who loved to burn things.”

“People evolve, Carmen.” Marcos countered, “they find something to believe in.”

“Spare me the noble speech. All you ever believed in was magnet girl.”

Deciding to change the topic, Marcos turned his focus to the job that they were about to complete. “Where are we going, exactly?”

“The Russian lab is in Forest Hills. We'll go there, we deal with the guards, and you do your thing.”

“’Deal with the guards? I said no killing.” Marcos growled.

“Calmate, Marcos.” Carmen said with a smile, “Lodo will handle the guards.”

“You deal with the cargo and stay out of my way.” The man, Lodo, said. Marcos barely contained his anger at the man’s attitude.

“Come on, be friendly. He’s one of you.” Carmen laughed before ordering them all to leave for the mission.

*****

Clarice and John walked slowly down another country lane, it seemed that they had walked down all the country roads possible. Clarice glanced over to John, “what’s the deal with Reed asking questions? And what did Sage do to warrant the ‘no small talk’ phone calls?”

“Sage didn’t do anything, we’ve just got too much goin’ on, I’d rather avoid people listening and getting information from us,” John sighed at Clarice’s cocked eyebrow, “I just really hate small talk on the phone,” Clarice laughed for a moment as John shook his head.

“Given how much you and Empty thrive of gossip—”

John shot her an offended look, “information, not gossip.”

“Gossip. You’d think that you two would love getting people to chat aimlessly on the phone.”

“Oh, it’s great,” John said, “so long as I’m just eavesdropping, not supposed to be an active participant in phone call small talk crap.” He smiled for a moment before remembering the reason Sage had phoned, “Reed’s been helping Sage with the files we stole from Baton Rouge, seems like Taylor was on the list. He’s been trying to dig up information on her.”

“So, on one side we’ve got Marcos wanting to know our secrets, on the other we’ve got Reed digging into things he doesn’t need to know about,” Clarice shook her head, “is anyone digging into anything that I should know about? Anything on that drive about either of us?”

“Not yet,” John muttered, “but I doubt it’ll be long before someone starts looking.”

Clarice sucked in a breath before glancing around, “this kind of looks familiar, but all these roads look the same.” She muttered, glancing at the trees that all looked the same to her.

“What did the house look like where you grew up?”

“I don't know. One story. Not too big. It was a home for mutant foster kids. The ones who couldn't pass as human. I was only there for a couple years, back when I was supposed to be in high school.”

John smiled at the idea before glancing over to his wife, “why'd you leave? You don’t talk about the past much.”

“The couple who ran it, you know, they took good care of us, but their idea of keeping us safe was to hide us away forever. Which really sucks when you're 15.” The pair shared a brief laugh as they reached a gate, “wait. That looks familiar. I remember this gate.”

John froze as Clarice opened the gate, his mind showing him Sentinel Services agents opening the gate and heading through, all heavily armed.

“That's the farmhouse.” Clarice exclaimed, not noticing that John was several steps back.

John hesitated, pressing a hand to Clarice’s arm, “Reese? Maybe you should wait here.”

“What? Why?” Panic ebbed into Clarice’s voice.

John gently squeezed her hand, “please, Clare, I think something bad happened.”

Clarice took off in a sprint towards the farmhouse only to see the door taped shut. “Oh, God. Oh, no. Get us in now.”

John punched the door open, the pair made their way in quickly, checking each room for anyone left.

“Carl? Denise?” Clarice called out, only to run into the kitchen and see bloodstains on the walls, she froze, a sob stuck in her throat.

“Sentinel Services probably searched all the houses in the area.” John whispered.

“Maybe they got away. Right?”

“Reese, I'm sorry.” The sobs ripped from Clarice’s throat as she latched onto John, clinging to him tightly while he wrapped her securely in his arms.

“John, what’s going on?” Taylor’s voice asked softly.

“They killed Clare’s foster family.”

“We’ll make ‘em pay.” Taylor stated with a certainty that John didn’t doubt.

Chapter Text

Reed found Caitlin in their small room, hurt was clear on his features, but he didn’t have the energy to mask it anymore. “Hey.”

“Hey.”

“I was looking for Lauren, but I think she's avoiding me.”

Caitlin scoffed slightly, “very perceptive, Counselor.” She shot back sarcastically.

Reed let out a sigh, “I always knew we were gonna be arguing over curfews, or trying to keep the wrong guys away, but... this? I didn't see this coming.”

“Mm. It feels like with all that's happened, everything should just... stop, but our kids keep growing up.”

“And having Mackenzie here?” Reed let out a weak laugh, “It’s like a miracle, our little girl here, grown up with her own family… she’s so close and yet doesn’t want anything to do with us. She’s got a new name, new family, new life, there’s no room for us in that life.”

“Do you blame her?” Caitlin muttered as she turned to him.

He shook his head, “No, I guess not. But it doesn’t make it any easier.” Reed fell silent, if anything, it makes it worse. He thought but didn’t voice it.

Caitlin took his hand, “it won’t. We can’t be parents to her, but that doesn’t mean that we can’t help her.”

“I just want to protect her. Both of our girls.”

“I know.” Caitlin let out a breath, “we were blind to so much about the world, about... our family. Twice. That's why Lauren hid herself from us. It’s why she’s become so close to Taylor.”

“I can't change the past.”

“I know. But right now, she doesn't need a prosecutor. She needs a dad.” Caitlin watched Reed leave the room, trying to figure out how she felt about Taylor and Lauren being so close.

*****

Reed headed outside, trying to find Wes, “hey.” Reed said as he found the teenager sat on the steps.

“Oh, sorry. I… I know we're supposed to be inside.”

Reed shrugged moving over to Wes, “It's nice out here.”

“I know you probably hate me.”

“I don't hate you. And what I think doesn't matter as much as what Lauren thinks, anyway. You mind if I sit?” Wes nodded causing Reed to sit down next to him. “All my life, I've been enforcing laws. The way I saw it, society only worked if there were consequences for breaking the rules. Lately, my feelings about society have changed a bit, but... it's something I still believe in. Maybe in a new way, but I do believe it. It's about trust. What you did was wrong, Wes. You know that, right?”

Wes nodded silently as Reed lectured him, “what'd they say when you told them?” The teenager asked cautiously, not too sure if he wanted to know the answer,

“I haven't told them.” Reed stated, Wes shot to face Reed, surprise written clearly on his features, “you have a choice to make, Wes. You can hope they don't find out. Or you can tell them and take your chances. But I'm gonna leave it in your hands.” Reed said as he stood and left the teenager to contemplate his options.

*****

Back at the farmhouse, Clarice stood outside as John tried to track any survivors and find out what had happened to everyone inside. She couldn’t stop blaming herself as John came back into sight, “I found whatever traces I could. Looks like they died defending some of the foster kids that were living there.” He told her gently.

“My portals brought everyone here.” Clarice stated weakly, “this is all my fault.”

“No, it's not your fault. Sentinel Services pulled the trigger. You cared about them. I'm sorry.” Clarice started crying as John pulled her tightly into his arms again.

“Let’s go home.” She said between sobs.

John led Clarice back to the car, keeping her securely held to his side as they walked down the road. “We’ll make them pay for this. They killed kids for no reason.” Clarice growled.

“We will. Taylor’s already planning… there’s more going on too. The Citadel…” Clarice flinched at the words but looked up to John in horror, “we’ve found that it’s reopening to patients in just over a week.” He stated.

*****

Marcos lent against the car as they waited for the drugs to be loaded, “how much longer?”

“We wait until all the drugs come out. Then we go in. You always used to get like this, remember? Then you'd go in and do the job, and we couldn't stop you until everything was burning.” Marcos didn’t bother to glare at her, watching as the Russians finished packing the drugs. Lodo headed forward causing the guards to freeze and let Marcos start setting the containers ablaze. It only took minutes to have everything burning. As he walked back over to Carmen, she pressed a kiss to his cheek causing him to flinch back to reality.

*****

Taylor and Gus arrived back at HQ, opening the van and summoning Sonia, Lorna, and Harry to come and help unload the van.

“I’ll help.” Lauren stated, grabbing a box, and not waiting for any protests.

Taylor and Gus shared a glance as Imogen came running over, “Mommy look!” She held a drawing up to Taylor, “it’s a snake!” She exclaimed proudly as Taylor scooped the girl up into her arms, a pain flared in her chest at the movement.

“It’s fantastic, munchkin.” Taylor said as she headed inside with Imogen, she decided that she needed to talk with Lauren before the pain in her chest got too bad. “What’s that with it?” She pointed to another burst of color on the page.

“Mommy! It’s a butterfly!”

Taylor laughed slightly, nuzzling her nose against Imogen’s hair, “of course it is, baby.”

*****

After Imogen had run off to join the other three, Taylor made her way over to Lauren. “Hey, care to talk?” She asked, Lauren tried to blank her sister, but that rarely worked on Taylor. Taylor let out a breath and pressed a hand to her chest, trying to alleviate the pain. “C’mon, tell your big sister what’s happened.”

Lauren raised an eyebrow at Taylor’s childish tone only to smile when she saw Taylor’s face. “Wes. He’s a criminal.”

“So are you.” Taylor said bluntly.

Lauren froze at the words. “This was different, he chose to do that. I didn’t.”

“So does that make Wes like me?” Lauren furrowed her brows at her sister’s words, “well, I chose to hurt that kid at school. I made decisions in The Citadel that left people dead. I’ve made decisions since that have broken the law. Hey, I didn’t become most wanted by accident.”

“But Wes used his powers to steal jewelry and things for his own gain!” Lauren exclaimed.

Taylor just pulled Lauren into a hug, trying to settle the girl’s mixed emotions. She held onto her little sister, letting the girl break the hug rather than the other way around, letting Lauren draw as much comfort as she could from her sister. Letting out a grunt, Taylor stepped away from Lauren and sat down, rubbing a hand over her chest.

Lauren raised an eyebrow, “everything good?”

“I’m fine,” Taylor drew in and released a deep breath, wincing at the pain blossoming through her lungs. “One of the experiments conducted on me in the Citadel. They wanted to see just how strong my resistance was. Left me with permanent damage to a lot of my organs. Most days, I’m fine, others… not so much. Here, let me show you something.”

Taylor led Lauren to her room, pulling a tin box from under the bed and showing Lauren what was inside. There were several things in the box, but the one Taylor handed Lauren was a news article calling for the arrests of Taylor and John.

“International Police?” Lauren asked, reading the article.

Taylor hummed, “we got a call from a couple of friends, they needed some help, so we took the heat off of them. We were nearly caught several times… it was a fun week for us, we got to play with our powers in a way we normally don’t. We enjoyed using our powers to cause a disturbance, to… commit crime. Sure, we didn’t place the explosives, we didn’t know the building would be destroyed, but we lured eight people into that building knowing they wouldn’t be leaving again. Wes stole jewelry, John and I got people killed. Does that make us terrible people?”

Lauren paused, there was an answer that immediately sprang to her mind, but it felt wrong, “I don’t know…” she admitted after a long moment.

“So why does enjoying using his powers automatically make Wes a terrible person?”

*****

Marcos arrived back nearly an hour after supplies had been handed out with reserves being put away.

“They’ve got limits on how much each station can have at a time. We got all that Taser would let us have.” Gus told Marcos as Lorna hugged him.

Lorna’s worry didn’t settle, “how was Carmen?”

“Fine. I’m done with them now.” Lorna just tightened her hug.

“Anyone heard from Clare or John?” Marcos asked as Lauren and Taylor joined them. Most of the group responded with a no, Taylor remained silent.

The group all looked over to her expectantly, “John told me that they found what Clare was looking for… it was bad…” She fell silent as she looked down at her hands, her mind wandering to the families of the people who died at the Citadel.

“We’ll help her through it.” Marcos assured them.

John and Clarice didn’t arrive back until after dark, Clarice’s eyes were still swollen from crying, John held her tightly against his side, protecting her from anything. The pair headed for the girls’ room, Clarice needed to see that they were ok, she couldn’t stop herself from thinking that they’d been hurt. The sight of Zingo lying at the foot of Rosie’s bed made Clarice settle slightly, the dog was always protective of the four girls.

“Hi Momma,” Evie muttered sleepily as her parents came into the room.

“Hey pretty girl,” Clarice whispered back.

“What’re you doing up, little miss?” John asked quietly, Clarice barely heard the words as she brushed her fingers through Rose’s hair. John pressed a kiss to Evie’s forehead before the parents left the twins to sleep.

*****

Entering the main kitchen, John and Clarice were met with all their friends. Clarice was instantly engulfed in a hug from Gus. Taylor and John were silently having a conversation, John filling her in on Reed asking questions about the Citadel.

“Tell me we’re going to fight?” Clarice asked harshly, her tone caused Lauren to flinch.

Taylor nodded, “they’ve made it personal. We don’t turn and run anymore. If we encounter Sentinel Services, we turn and fight. We’ll do it for those who can’t fight for themselves.” Taylor looked around the group with a tense expression, she had their undivided attention as Sage, Shatter, Reed, Sonia, and Fade joined them.

“We’re gonna tear down the HOUND program. Take down Trask Industries and anyone associated. We’ll stop them. We’re going on the offensive.” The group all looked in agreement.

Reed froze for a moment, “did you say Trask Industries?” They all looked at him expectantly, “my father worked there for 35 years.” He confessed causing several protests around the room.

“You said that Grandpa disappeared years ago.” Lauren commented, turning to look at her dad.

“They’ve never met Opa?” Taylor asked, her friends looked at her with wide eyes – she had very few memories of her life before the Citadel, even less of her family.

The conversation continued for several minutes before Sage, Shatter, and Fade left the room, leaving the leaders, Lauren, and Reed stood in the kitchen. “What’d you remember about your grandfather?” Reed asked Taylor, the others looking curious.

“He would call me his Cyani. Taught me that I wasn’t a freak.” Taylor muttered, once again looking down at her hands.

“His research on mutants meant that he had a better understanding of what we could expect when raising Taylor.” Reed explained.

“Yet you still gave her up.” Gus sneered.

The room fell silent as Taylor let out a breath, “if Opa knows anything about this, I wanna know what.” Taylor’s eyes turned to Reed, “what’s this I hear about you asking about the Citadel Tragedy?”

All eyes locked onto Reed while Lauren focused on her sister, “what’s the Citadel Tragedy?” She asked, but no one answered.

Reed glanced around the room, “it was referenced in one of the files we got from Baton Rouge…”

“Whose file?” Marcos asked, this was the first he’d heard about any of this.

“I’ll give you one guess, Marcos.” Taylor commented back, her eyes not leaving Reed, “I’m right, aren’t I? It was my file that you were reading to learn about the Citadel.”

Reed nodded guiltily, “I didn’t read a lot of it… I couldn’t. But I read that you were the only survivor.”

“Known survivor.” Taylor corrected, “we don’t speak about the Tragedy.” Her expression was empty as she glared at Reed for a moment.

“I know Trask Industries.” John muttered in Taylor’s mind.

Taylor raised an eyebrow at him, “care to elaborate?”

John shook his head, “gimme a day, I need to check it with some contacts. I think… I think Orchis has some connections.”

The pair paused when they noticed everyone looking at them, “you still pissed at us for getting Wren involved in all this?”

Reed’s eyes hardened, “she’s a kid, not a soldier. She turns eighteen soon, but until then, you need to talk to me or Caitlin before you involve her in things.”

Taylor pinched the bridge of her nose, raising an eyebrow at John, “are you sure we can’t bring back the old ways of settling disputes. It worked.”

“It worked when there weren’t over 150 refugees here.” Lorna pointed out, “however, it was fun.”

John scrubbed a hand over his face, looking over to Lauren, “the old way we settled disputes was essentially a duel, the winner got what they wanted, the loser dropped the matter entirely. No holds barred, you use whatever means you can to win.”

“That’s barbaric,” Reed muttered.

“That’s diplomacy.” Marcos, Gus, and Clarice said in sync.

Taylor shrugged, “it worked when there were ten of us here, we’d settle arguments and disagreements with a one-on-one stand off contest, winner got what they wanted. When this place began to be a shelter as well as the central point of the Underground, we… kinda shelved the idea, left it alone. These days, we let people sort disputes however they want.”

“Are there any other rules?” Lauren asked, her eyes glinting with intrigue.

“We don’t do it anymore,” Gus said, an edge of a warning in his voice.

“You pick a second, they negotiate on your behalf, if they come to a deal, that’s the settlement. Most duels ended at that.” Taylor explained.

“If they can’t find a compromise, then they arrange the terms of the spar. More often than not, it would be pinning your opponent down for five seconds. Others went for the idea of keeping a hold of a baton or something for ten seconds. Works better than pistols.” John added.

Gus sighed, shaking his head, “when I’m the voice of reason, you two are going too far. We don’t do duels anymore. They’re dumb, immature, and reckless.”

“But they solved problems like this one.” Taylor muttered.

“That’s stupid,” Reed exclaimed, “I’m not going to fight anyone. Lauren is not a soldier, she’s not a strategist or some military general. She’s not cannon fodder for you lot to throw at Sentinel Services. She is not doing it!”

“I want to fight, Dad.” Lauren shot back.

The others in the room shared a look, “this is why I miss the duels.” Taylor grumbled.

“Then let’s have one. If I win, I can join in with as much as you guys want me to help with. If Dad wins, I drop the topic.”

“We don’t do it anymore!” Clarice exclaimed, “what part of that isn’t clicking for anyone in this room? We have bigger things to worry about than infighting. Reed, Lauren is crucial in this now, whether you like it or not. She is eighteen soon, if you let her fight with us, you keep her as a daughter. If you don’t, she’ll join us next month, after she’s eighteen, and you’ll have nothing to do with her. The choice is yours.”

“This is ridiculous, you’re not taking my daughter away from me!”

“We don’t want to, but you’re doing a good enough job of it.”

“Reed, why don’t you head out, go join Caitlin, take a breath, have a think about what you want for your relationship with Lauren, because I can promise you, that girl is involved in the fight, whether you like it or not.” John said bluntly. Reed hesitated for a moment before sighing and heading out of the room.

*****

Once the six and Lauren – the recently dubbed Silver Seven – were left alone, Taylor let out a breath, “there’s something else. Something Luka mentioned.”

“Who’s Luka?” Marcos asked, his confusion mimicked by Lauren and Lorna.

“What’d she say?” Clarice asked while John remained silent. He and Gus knew the name all too well.

Taylor glanced between the two groups, “Luka’s an old acquaintance. She told me that she thinks we’ve got a spy in the Underground. I’m inclined to agree with her.” The room turned cold at Taylor’s words.

John stood straight from where he’d been leaning on the counter, his eyes darkening, “any ideas who?”

Taylor shook her head, “no, but to be useful, they’d have to be here, must be someone we trust. We need to keep our eyes open, now more than ever.” The group all silently agreed.

Before the group could split, John shifted, tensing as he heard something, “we’ve got company.”

Wes awkwardly found himself stood in the doorway of the kitchen, staring at the Core Six and the girl he had a crush on, “uh, hi… I was hoping I could… talk to you guys…”

“We know, a little bird told us to expect a meeting.” Taylor said, hopping down from the counter, “wanna explain why?”

“Uh… I’ve lied?”

“Are you asking or telling?” John said, folding his arms. Clarice, Gus, Lorna, and Marcos all leant against the counters, watching the pair.

Wes swallowed heavily, “uh, telling. I’ve lied. I came here under false pretenses, I told you I hadn’t done anything except what I needed to survive. I, uh, lied. I spent more than a year conning people for money, I enjoyed doing it. I… I understand if I have to leave.”

John and Taylor shared a look, “it’s a bit hypocritical for us to judge.” Taylor muttered.

“True, but it won’t be the first time.” John said, “however, the rules are clear, there’s no place for mistrust here.”

“Valid point,” Taylor nodded, the pair knew what decision they would make, but they couldn’t deny that they enjoyed making Wes tremble, “however, he knows the location of the HQ. I don’t like letting that information walk away these days.”

“Fair, we have ways to keep that information from getting out.” John pointed out.

“I won’t tell anyone where the HQ is,” Wes said quickly, “I promise!”

Taylor clicked her tongue, “your promise means nothing when you’re stood in front of me confessing to deceiving my people to get a way in here. How can we be certain you’re telling the truth?”

It was like watching a cat toy with a mouse, “we have ways to stop people from talking if they leave.” John said.

“I promise, I... I mean it, I swear, Sir. I won’t tell anyone about this place.”

Taylor raised her eyebrow, “I mean, how can we be certain that you’re not some spy sent by Sentinel Services to bring us down?!”

Wes was paper white by this point, paling more with every question John and Taylor targeting him with, “I swear, Ma’am, I won’t tell anyone… I’m just after a second chance. I promise, I don’t mean any harm, I just wanted to start over.”

Taylor and John stayed silent for well over a minute, staring down the boy in front of them. Eventually, Taylor shook her head, “like we said, we’d be hypocrites to make this choice. So, Kestral, you’ve got to have an opinion, I know we do. What do you want to happen to him?”

Lauren looked at Gus, “he had less than gentlemanly intentions… just not the way we thought.” She smiled as Gus squeezed her shoulder before she turned back to Taylor and John, “like you said, this place is built on trust, if you lie to us from the beginning, we can never trust anything you say, there’ll always be a question on whether your word can be trusted.” She paused, taking a shuddering breath, “I, uh, I vote you leave. Start anew elsewhere.”

Taylor nodded, turning to Wes, noting the tears in the boy’s eyes, “there’s a group heading out at dawn for a different station, you’ll be going with them. I suggest you commit yourself to a new start.”

*****

Taylor didn’t sleep. Her mind was spinning too much for that, she couldn’t comprehend all that had happened in the space of 24 hours. Lauren learnt that the boy she loved was a criminal and would be leaving in the morning. Clarice’s foster family had been killed. Her Opa was the key to finding out what had happened to Gus. She and John had agreed to practically declare war on Sentinel Services. Her father was digging into the worst parts of her life with no empathy. Throwing her head back against the pillow, Taylor knew that she’d have another sleepless night.

She barely lasted an hour before heading back to the kitchen and deciding to spend the night getting as much information from the Network about Trask or any happenings throughout the Underground.

By dawn, Taylor felt as though she was no further than she was before, but she decided to leave all of her work to go and stay with Lauren as she said goodbye to Wes. She watched from the steps as Lauren ran over and hugged the boy. She smirked as he glanced in her direction, slightly afraid before returning the hug.

As the group got in the van, Lauren headed to join Taylor on the steps. Wrapping an arm around her sister, Lauren looked over, “tell me that you meant that last night?”

“Every word.”

Lauren just nodded as they watched the van pull away before heading back inside to prepare for their next steps. Their next moves against Sentinel Services and bringing down the HOUND program and bringing justice to the mutants who had been destroyed by the torture of the multiple companies involved in the ‘research of mutants’.

“Let’s bring them down.” Lauren muttered as she joined her new family in the tech room where her dad was.

Chapter Text

All over the HQ, people could tell that a tension had fallen, that things had shifted, and that people’s guards were up. Worst of all were the two at the top. Taylor and John hadn’t stopped since they’d learned about the spy in their midst, in their home. The place where their children were supposed to be safe.

“So, we know it’s someone we trust, right?” John muttered into Taylor’s mind at around two in the morning.

“And we know that it must be someone we wouldn’t suspect. Question is… who can we rule out?”

“Meet me on the roof.” John muttered, pulling away from Taylor’s mind.

*****

“So, what’re we thinking?” Taylor murmured mentally as she made it to the roof, “who’re we ruling out first.” Speaking mentally guaranteed that no one could overhear them.

John scoffed, “I know it’s not Reese.” He hated that they’d been reduced to this, reduced to suspecting their family of being spies, “what about Matchstick?”

Taylor shrugged, “from what I can tell, he hates them as much as we do. Besides he’s been doing too much standing beside us to be dirty.”

“Lorna?”

“She was arrested, but she’s pregnant, means that she’d be shit because she’ll always prioritize the baby, besides, you know how she is with humans…”

John shook his head, “yeah, won’t trust ‘em as far as she can throw ‘em.”

“What about Marcos?”

“If it’s gonna risk Lorna or his kids, he won’t do it. He’s reckless, not an idiot.”

Taylor chuckled, looking out over the trees, “so, we’ve ruled out us lot,” she said aloud, “who else?”

John cringed as he let out a sigh, “oh, only about 100 people.”

“What do you know about Trask, what’s it got to do with Orchis?”

John shook his head, “remember when we were kids, there were a couple of other kids that disappeared from Xavier’s?”

Taylor nodded, “vaguely. Don’t ask me their names.”

“Well, a few years after you were taken, after I’d met Gus, I began doing some… illegal research, found out about an internment camp where mutant kids are taken, tortured, exploited, and killed. It’s been shut down, but it was owned and run by Trask Industries. I can’t help but think that Trask Industries has a connection to the Citadel.”

*****

As morning broke, the two leaders of the Underground made their way into the back office, “we check the phones, see who’s making any calls. It’s gotta be someone with a phone, we know who those are.” Taylor muttered.

John froze as he opened the office door, “what about Lauren?” His words caused Taylor to falter, John shook his head, “she was very quick to jump headfirst into this shit. She’s been close with all of us, we wouldn’t suspect her.”

“Yeah, but she hasn’t had the opportunity,” Taylor pointed out, she knew that they needed to rule everyone out, but it didn’t make this any better, “besides, she’s either with one of us, Gus, Clare, or Lorna. There’s no chance.”

“Glad we’re clear on that,” John muttered, “Reed? He’s been asking questions.”

“About the Citadel and me—”

“And the workings of the HQ, add in the fact that he was a prosecutor, he was one of them.”

*****

Deeper in the HQ, Clarice kept scanning the faces of the HQ, looking for John or Taylor, but frankly, she wasn’t surprised that she couldn’t find either of them. There was a threat of a spy, she knew better than anyone what that meant for John and Taylor.

“Hey,” Gus muttered as he found Clarice chatting with Sage and Harry, “needed to ask you something… alone.” Guiding Clarice outside, Gus hesitated before finally turning to her, “I need to know… can they still block each other’s memories?”

Clarice froze, she hadn’t even considered the possibility of that, “I mean, I guess so. They haven’t needed to do that for years.”

“I know,” Gus told her quickly, “just… last time Tay blocked John’s access to some memories of James… if she could do it then, when they were both hurt and angry, when emotions were frayed…”

“Could they do it now.” Clarice finished. The thought of the Underground needing John and Taylor to risk damaging themselves like that was almost unthinkable. “There’s only one way to find out…” She muttered with a wince.

It didn’t take Clarice and Gus to find John and Taylor once they’d put their minds to it. They were where they always went when things looked bad. The pair shared a look as the almost silent conversation inside the office died as they approached.

Clarice rolled her eyes as she pushed the door open, shaking her head as John and Taylor watched her and Gus, “so this is where you two disappeared to.”

“Yeah,” John smiled, squeezing Clarice’s hand, “we need to figure this spy crap out, and soon.”

“Glad to see you’ve ruled us off the list,” Gus muttered, kissing Taylor’s hair.

Taylor let out a breath, “you didn’t come in here just to say that. What’s up?”

Gus and Clarice shared a look, “we wanted to ask…” Gus began, “worst case scenario, can you two block each other’s memories?”

Taylor and John froze, neither of them sure of the answer, “we, uh, we haven’t tried.” John muttered.

“Not in three years.” Taylor added, barely loud enough for Clarice and Gus to hear.

Gus looked between the pair, “but if it came down to it—”

“You know what you’re asking, right?” John snapped, glaring at Gus.

“You’re asking us to dig into each other’s minds, to erase part of who we are. It’s a part we never get back, no matter how much is restored.” Taylor growled, getting to her feet.

After a moment of watching the others, Clarice rolled her eyes, “we’re not asking you to do it. What we’re saying is… look, everyone says that the Underground needs three of us to survive, what they don’t say is how much the Underground needs one of you two.”

John sighed, “we don’t know if we can erase memories, but last time one of us did that…”

“It took years for trust to rebuild.” Taylor mumbled, guilt flooding her voice.

“So,” Gus muttered deciding to change the subject, “where are we at?”

Taylor shrugged, “we’re needing to collect phones and cross-check car milage, make sure that everything lines up as it should.”

“I’ve got the phones,” Clarice stated, grabbing a tin from the cupboard, and leaving the room before anyone could argue.

“Gus and I have got the cars, Tay, keep comparing what we know, see where you get.”

*****

Taylor sat alone in the office, her eyes darting between the lists in front of her. Three lists. Those with phones, those who can use the cars, those who are close enough to the top to be effective spies. It didn’t make sense, why would someone betray them? They were all dealing with this together.

“Hey, wanted to let you know, another station’s been hit.” Sage exclaimed as she opened the door.

Taylor didn’t look over, “which one?”

“Lawrenceville.”

Jotting down the name on a fourth list, Taylor looked over, “something else?”

“Yeah, what’s going on with you lot today?” Sage asked, instantly regretting it, “I… I mean, you guys are acting like we’re under attack.”

Taylor raised an eyebrow, “aren’t we?”

Waiting for a few moments after Sage left the room, Taylor eventually turned her attention back to the lists. Her eyes scanned the list of stations that had fallen in the last few months, mentally making note of who the people who knew the locations of all of them. Sonia, Sage, Shatter, Fade, and the Six. Not a very promising list, but it had narrowed things down, even if Taylor hated the way it looked.

*****

“Tay’s cut the list,” John muttered over to Gus as they compared the milage count of the first car against the estimates Sage made.

Gus let out a long breath, “I’m assuming I won’t like it.”

“Us six, Sonia, Sage, Shatter, and Fade. Pick your favorite.” John muttered as Gus winced.

“What about Struckers?” Gus asked, not wanting to believe that the people who had been with the Underground the longest would betray them all.

John shrugged, “Lauren’s clear, Andy lacks reason to do it, Caitlin wants to protect the two kids she’s got left… Reed… he’s a potential in my eyes, but Tay says he’s not got enough knowledge of locations.”

Gus paused for a moment as he read off the estimated milage, “what if it is me?” John’s eyes snapped to Gus, “what if they put a tracker or something under my skin? What if there was something we couldn’t detect?”

John shook her head, “no, we considered that before, Sage reckons that your powers would make any tracker useless the second it was implanted.”

A chuckle escaped Gus, “Love owes me a drink,” Gus couldn’t help but laugh as John raised an eyebrow, “told her that you and Empty would’ve been running down the list, ruling everyone either a threat or clean.”

John nodded hesitantly, “with this shit, we need to be sure.”

Gus raised an eyebrow at John’s hesitation, “hey, I’m not holding anything against you, God knows what you two are having to deal with. I’d be more concerned if you weren’t running that list.” Gus paused for a few seconds, “I hope you’ve cleared the kids quickly.” He couldn’t help but mentally pat himself on the back when John laughed.

*****

Clarice slowly made her way back to the office, silently counting the number of phones in the box. “Think I got them all.” She muttered, handing the box over to Taylor just as the door opened.

Lauren hesitantly looked around the room as she made her way inside, “hey, is… is there anything I can do to help?”

Taylor raised an eyebrow, “why?”

Flinching, Lauren glanced over to Clarice who could only roll her eyes before nodding for Lauren to speak, “well, you said that there’s a spy, said that there’s a threat against us. Well, I live here, my family’s here, that includes you guys, so I wanna help make sure that everyone’s safe.”

Taylor leant back on her chair, scrutinizing Lauren for a moment, before smiling, “you could give me a hand cross-referencing names and lists.”

Pulling up a chair, Lauren took over the lists while Taylor took the box of phones from Clarice. “Ok, first up, Fade,” Taylor opened it, scanning the call list “nothing questionable, wiped it a few days ago.”

Lauren paused, “isn’t that questionable?”

“Nope, he’s meant to, he’s the one at most risk of being caught. He tossed his old phone a week ago, so this call log should be wiped by the end of the week.” Lauren nodded as she wrote ‘clear’ down next to Fade’s name.

Taylor waited for a moment before checking the next few phones, John’s, Gus’, Clarice’s, Marcos’, and Lorna’s, “surprisingly,” Taylor began, sarcasm lacing her voice, “all of these are clear.”

“What completely?” Lauren asked incredulously.

Clarice nodded, “our phones are completely wiped every day. Makes sure that everything we know is more hidden. The amount we’ve got going on, the number of people we’re communicating with every day, it helps keep everyone a little bit safer.”

Taylor let out a breath, “next up, Reed.” It took Taylor several moments to check over Reed’s phone, “no outgoing or incoming. At all…” She scrutinized the phone, “he’s not called anyone apparently.”

Lauren hesitated, “what do I put?”

“A question mark. He’s someone we’ll need to keep an eye on.” Taylor muttered, her eyes still scanning over the phone before dropping it down on the table. She checked the rest, scrutinizing each one carefully, sighing in exasperation when none of the others seemed suspicious.

As Taylor handed the last phone back to Clarice, John and Gus made it back to the office. “So,” Gus began, “everything tracks for most of ‘em, we’re 40 miles out in our estimates at most… on all except one, that one’s nearly 150 miles out.”

Taylor, Clarice, and Lauren shared a look, “who had access to that car?” Taylor asked, not sure she wanted the answer.

“Sonia, you, Shatter, Harry, me, Matchstick, Love, and Struckers.” John muttered, “doesn’t really cut our list down.”

Clarice let out a breath, “maybe what we found will… Of all the phones, Reed’s has got no incoming or outcoming history. The others, Harry’s and Sonia’s are almost too clean, but not in a way that’s worrying us yet.”

“So, we’ve narrowed down our list, but we don’t like our options.” Taylor muttered.

John shook his head, “simple terms, unless we absolutely have to, we tell no one anything. The only people we trust with the full details are in this room.”

The group nodded, but Lauren wasn’t certain, “what about Lorna and Marcos?”

Taylor shook her head, “as harsh as it sounds… they’re not as informed about the rest of the Underground as us four. We try to keep it so as few people as possible know the full workings… I mean, you’ve heard Marcos talk about how we keep secrets from him, there’s a reason for it: we need there to be people that are clean if something happens to us four.”

Realization hit Lauren, “you’re prepared for you guys to die, you want to know that there’ll be someone to look after your kids.”

“Which leads us back to what Gus and Reese suggested earlier, Tay.” John muttered.

Taylor shot to face him, “you’re seriously considering that as a possibility?”

John sighed, “it’s a way to guarantee the safety of everyone else. If we know that we can block those memories… if one of us gets captured, we can keep everyone in the Underground safe.”

Taylor glared at him, “remember last time. I took your memories of when James was attacked by the Purefires, I took your memories of you killing that group. Remember what happened when you got them back?”

“That was different, that time I hadn’t agreed to it… Empty, you’re not hesitant because of me. You’re hesitating because of the Citadel.”

Their eyes met briefly, “I can never get those memories back, there are parts of my life that I’m never going to remember.”

“This isn’t going to be like that. No one will ever hurt you like that again; I won’t let them. But this… this is for our families. this is for our kids. If we can protect them, even if it’s through this, we have to try.”

As John and Taylor silently discussed the issue, Gus, Lauren, and Clarice kept glancing between each other, trying to gauge if the others were equally concerned. After a moment, Taylor finally nodded, “so, how the hell do we try this?”

“You head to the roof, I’ll head to the kitchen, once there, try to block my memories of today… we’ll see what happens.” John stated as though it was simple.

Gus didn’t seem too convinced, “uh, can I request you both do this in rooms where you’re sat down. Last time you decided to experiment with the mind link, you ended up unconscious for two days.” He pointed out.

“In our defense, we were trying to see if we could access each other’s senses, we discovered that we could, but you’ve gotta do it gently, otherwise it’s overwhelming.” Taylor argued.

Lauren rolled her eyes, “glad to know that you’re still as much of a disaster as you always were.”

*****

Ignoring the questioning looks from the rest of the HQ, John and Clarice headed for their room while Taylor and Gus headed for theirs.

Lauren stuck with her sister, but her hesitation was obvious. “This is dumb.”

“Yep.” Taylor agreed.

“It’s a bit more than dumb,” John added before turning to Taylor, “remember, wait until we’re both set up, then try it.”

Once set up in their rooms, Taylor and John both reached for each other’s minds, Taylor leading herself through John’s memories, locking onto all of the ones about today, focusing her attention on blocking John from reaching them, trying to let her presence in his mind silence the memories. After several long minutes, the haziness in her own mind began to clear as she locked away John’s memories, trying her hardest to prevent herself from focusing on the last time she tried this.

“This is taking too long,” Gus muttered after nearly an hour, “go see if John’s ok,” he instructed Lauren, “don’t tell anyone what’s going on, though, ok?”

“Got it.” She muttered, leaving the room.

“Lauren!” Caitlin called as soon as she saw her daughter leave Taylor’s room, “what’s going on? What’re you doing?”

Lauren sent Caitlin a confused look, “I’m helping out, why?”

“You missed school, I was getting worried.”

Shrugging, Lauren went to walk away, “yeah, well, John, Tay, Clare, and Gus asked for my help with something, so…”

At that moment Clarice came jogging over, “oh thank god, Lauren, grab the med kit, meet me back in my room.” She was gone before either Caitlin or Lauren could react.

“I’ve gotta go.” Lauren muttered, heading for the first aid kit. Caitlin began to protest, but Lauren didn’t respond, she didn’t even acknowledge her mother.

*****

Making it into John and Clarice’s room, Lauren froze when she saw John bleeding. “What happened?!” She exclaimed.

“John and Empty happened,” Clarice muttered through gritted teeth as she cleaned up some of the blood, “like we said, their experiments don’t often work.”

At that moment, John’s eyes opened, “what happened?” He asked, squeezing his eyes shut again against the small trails of blood.

“What’d you remember?” Clarice asked softly, brushing her fingers through his hair.

“Taylor tellin’ us about the spy. What’re we doing with it?”

Clarice and Lauren shared a look, “you don’t remember running names all morning?”

John looked between the two of them in confusion as Gus and Taylor ran through the door, “what’s happened?” John asked, his eyes darting between his friends.

“Ok, can you restore them?” Clarice asked, not moving from John’s side.

Taylor smiled, nodding, “I think so, it’ll be easier.” She muttered, closing her eyes. After several moments, Taylor opened her eyes again.

“So, it worked,” John muttered, shaking his head, trying to clear his mind, “that’s… a possibility.”

“One we don’t wanna use.” Taylor grumbled, her eyes fixed on the blood by John eyes and nose, “if it takes an hour each time, we need it as an absolute last.”

“But, reassuringly, we can restore them easily.” John commented, getting to his feet.

“Sage said there’s been another attack?” Taylor nodded, “what’re we doing to help?”

John shot over, leading the group out towards the tech room, grabbing a clean cloth as he went and wiping the blood from his face. There was work to do, even if they hadn’t found the spy yet. There was still time.

Chapter Text

Taylor sat at the computer, a look of horror on her face as she read over the posts on the Network about the station in Perry being attacked.

“How many dead?” John asked as he made his way into the tech room, wiping the last of the blood from his eyes.

“At least 40. Sounds like the rest scattered but a handful made it safe.”

John tensed at the thought, “we’ll go to collect the survivors once the others are up and dressed.”

Taylor nodded, “the numbers… we only need me, you, Marcos, Clare. Anymore and we won’t space for all the refugees.”

John nodded silently, working on figuring out where they would house all the new incomers. The pair silently decided that their lives were about to become a lot more difficult.

*****

Around 20 minutes later, the group were ready head out. “We need to talk to the folks in Gainesville, make sure they’re ready for more refugees.” John told Gus.

“What’d you take me for? I did that ten minutes ago.” Gus commented with a laugh before turning somber again, “do me a favor, keep an eye on Empty. She’s been thinking about the Citadel a lot recently… she’s got me worried, especially with everything else.”

John just nodded, “you’ve got it. You know that I would anyway.”

Gus hummed, “also… you two keep your eyes up, ok? If the bug thinks they’re trapped, you and Tay will be primary targets. The Underground won’t last you two falling. Don’t let anyone catch you with your pants down.”

Shaking his head, John rolled his eyes, “what’d you take me for?” He joked, “we’ll keep a check on each other.”

“I mean it, Gunny, keep your eyes up. You are the easier target – not that either of you are easy targets, trust me, we tried to get either of you – you two are running out of time, they’re tracking you down and want you and Taylor dead. Sentinel Services want the pair of you caught or dead, they’re backed by international law, countless governments, and far too many global organizations for you two to be as cocky as you are. We’ve made them nervous in the last few months, we’ve got them edge. But a wounded animal is dangerous, they’ll do whatever they need to, to survive.”

John nodded, “problem is, we know every law, every loophole, hell we wrote most of those loopholes. We’ve been fighting this for a long time, Gus.”

“And the pair of you fight like it’s going out of style. Every day, the pair of you are fighting as though you’re never gonna see the sun.”

“We won’t. We all know that, Serg, that’s always been the plan. We work like we’re running out of time, you and Clare get to live lives outside of this shit.”

Gus ran a hand over his face, “the pair of you are meant to change the world. I don’t think this is what Charles and Erik had in mind. You need to make it through, so you can remake the world into something we can all live in.”

“What do you suggest?”

“Start living like tomorrow will arrive, stop acting like you’re gonna die at the end of every day.”

John watched Gus for a moment, “eyes open, fully focused. For a future we’re all gonna see.”

Gus just nodded before heading back to the tech room to keep his eye out for any other changes.

Grabbing his pack, John headed down the stairs and began making his way towards the door, “Rosie!” He called when he saw his daughter tensing, scrunching up her face as she tried to teleport.

The girl instantly stopped, her face morphing into a grin when she saw her dad, giggling as he scooped her into his arms. “You go?” She asked, signing her full question ‘are you going away?’

“Yeah. Me, Mommy, Aunt Tay, and Uncle Marcos are going away for a couple of hours. Aunt Lorna and Uncle Gus will be here still.” John told her verbally and signed, smiling as she pouted.

“And Auntie Wren?”

John gave her a smile, “she’ll be here too.” Rose nodded before running off to join her sister and friends.

John didn’t get much further before Reed had made his way over to him, “can I have a word?” John nodded, “we need to go and see my father in Chattanooga. I know it’s a risk, but he’s our only connection to Trask.”

Tensing, John tried to keep his own concerns about Trask off his face. “You think he might know something?”

“Maybe, maybe not. We don’t have a lot of choice considering Gus…” Reed’s voice faded as John fixed a glare at him.

John settled his annoyance slightly, “a station just fell, we’re going to pick up survivors. Prep a car, we’ll leave as soon as Tay and I get back. Let Gus know, he’ll probably join us.” Reed nodded as John walked away.

Taylor, Marcos, and Clarice were waiting for John at the cars. Taylor moved to the car that Marcos was driving, leaving John and Clarice in the other. It meant that the two cars would have communications without the need to have phones.

*****

“Your dad thinks we need to go up to Chattanooga. Told him that you and Matchstick would join us.” Taylor tried not to scoff aloud at John’s comment.

Marcos glanced over to Taylor as they pulled out of the HQ, “you doing ok?”

Taylor shook her head, “everyone asking about the Citadel… it’s not doing any good for my mind.”

“Struggling to keep locked on what’s real?”

Taylor turned to him in confusion before her expression softened slightly, “Lorna… I forget that she spent time in her own Hell.”

Marcos gave a shrug before squeezing Taylor’s hand, “you’re allowed to struggle, y’know?”

“Yeah, because I can totally take 20 minutes to figure out my mind and allow it to keep track of what’s real and what’s an implanted memory that was designed to make me into a better weapon. You’re shit at this whole comfort thing.”

“No, I’m not half bad, you’re fucking crap at it.” Marcos laughed as Taylor gasped dramatically.

“I have never been so insulted—”

“You don’t listen much then, do you?” He joked only to be answered by a slap to his arm.

Letting out a breath, Taylor shook her head, “I’m also worried about this shit with the spy.”

“You and John narrow down the list at all?” Marcos asked.

Taylor hummed, “don’t like the names left on that list.”

“Who?”

“Sage, Shatter, Fade, Sonia, and Reed are primary.”

Marcos jolted in surprise, swerving the car slightly, “you serious?!”

Taylor rolled her eyes, “no, we thought it was funny,” she deadpanned, “yeah, we’re serious. And if it’s any of them, Sentinel Services could be tracking us right now as we head for more survivors.” She shot back. “We’re alone, and it’s only gonna get worse.”

After a few moments of comfortable silence, Marcos turned to Taylor, “look, I know I’ve still got to make up for helping them behind your back… but I wanted you to know, you mean more to me than they do. You’re my sister, no matter who your parents are.”

Taylor smiled silently for a moment, “that was almost sweet. Did it hurt to say?” She joked.

“I hate you.”

“Why? I’m a delight,” Taylor grinned back only for Marcos to start laughing again. Taylor let out a chuckle as she watched him, “on another note, that’s all you’re gonna know about the spy until we find out who it is. The second we know, so will you and Lorna, but…”

“But if things get dangerous, you’re sending us two off with all four kids,” Marcos muttered, that had been the plan for years: Taylor and John would stay at the HQ and fight until they were dead (being captured was not an option), Clarice and Gus would head to different stations and reinforce a new foundation, Lorna and Marcos would protect the four girls until further notice. He didn’t like it, but, at the minute, he would work with it.

“What’s eating you, Marcos?” Taylor asked after a long moment, “something’s been off with you since Baton Rouge.”

Marcos swallowed heavily, “I was talking with Reed, he was asking about you. Nothing nefarious, just standard ‘how long have I known you?’ ‘Do you ever talk about your childhood?’ all that shit… but I mentioned something… about you and John.”

“I’m gonna need more.” Taylor’s mind switched into overdrive as she began trying to piece together everything Marcos was saying, thinking about how it could relate to a spy.

“I mentioned about how long you guys have known each other.”

Taylor’s eyes narrowed as she looked daringly at Marcos, “and how long is that?”

Marcos refused to look over, “I told him that you two knew each other before… Taylor I didn’t mean to, he asked if you two ever dated and it just slipped out.”

Closing her eyes, Taylor shook her head, “and you wonder why we don’t tell you all of our secrets.”

*****

John shook his head as Taylor’s voice cleared from his mind, “Marcos told Reed that Tay and I go way back.”

“So, more people know.” Clarice muttered, “more people that know a timeline, and have the information to put the pieces together.”

“No. No, absolutely not.” John stated, “we won’t let the timeline make sense to him. He doesn’t need to know when Tay was rescued, doesn’t need to know the timeline of anything. As far as he knows, the X-Men, Empty, and I have no links. We can keep it that way… but Marcos knows nothing.” He thought back to Gus’ words, the pair of you fight like it’s going out of style. Maybe he was right – he often was – John had never taken a moment to imagine that he or Taylor could see life outside of the fight.

Clarice let out a heavy breath, “what if it isn’t Lorna and Marcos who take the girls if something happens to us four?” John glanced over, raising an eyebrow, “I love them, they’re my family… but they’re becoming a risk. If something happens to us, if our enemies find a foothold, I don’t want to be doubting that the girls’ will be safe.”

“So, who takes them instead?”

“Lauren. She takes them to the old safehouse. We know it’s untouched, we know no one knows where it is. She can take them there, we disappear. Marcos and Lorna get Rory to safety, Lauren takes off with our three. It wouldn’t take much to forge her a German passport.”

For a moment, John tensed, “if we do this, no one other than us can know about it. Us four and Lauren. Even the girls cannot know about this.”

Clarice reached for his hand, “it’s a risk. I know that. But with the spy, and now Marcos getting loose lipped, it the best option we’ve got.”

“It also burns a bridge. There’s no going back if we plan this. If they find out, Marcos and Lorna won’t trust us.”

Clarice nodded, “maybe not, but I don’t like the girls being in danger. We’ve got enough enemies hunting those kids.”

John scrubbed a hand over his face, “maybe it’s time to turn this fight into a rebellion. A fight for rights is only worth fighting if we stand for something and fight for it. We can’t stay on the defensive, we’ve got to fight if we want to see our girls have a place in this world.”

“Then we start with Trask, tear it down. We move onto the Citadel, blast the media with what they did within those walls. We take down Sentinel Services, show the war crimes they’ve committed. We fight for mutant rights, we’ll get them. You and Taylor then stand at the front of the rebellion, fighting like tomorrow will arrive, because it will. We’ll make sure of it.”

John watched her for a moment, “you’ve been speaking with Gus.”

“It’s good to have him back. There are only two people in this world that can get you and Empty to slow down and think. The rebellion needs leaders, and you and Taylor were chosen for a reason. Don’t throw it away.”

*****

The journey to Perry was thankfully uneventful, once they arrived, the padre led them round the church to a small building with a container in front of it.

“We’re grateful that you came so fast. Sentinel Services are even coming after us now. So much for sanctuary…” The padre muttered as they came to a stop.

“How many refugees are there?” Taylor asked, lowering her hood once they were out of sight.

“A dozen fled here when the station in Perry got hit. Plus a few strays.”

“Let's load them up. Get ‘em safe and sorted,” Clarice muttered.

The padre moved towards a container that was positioned in front of a shed, blocking the door, “I just have to hide them in here during services.” He said, struggling to move the container.

“I got you, Padre.” John said as he walked over and effortlessly moved the container.

The sight of the refugees was one that Taylor never got used to. The fear on their faces at the idea that they’d been found… She did her best not to shudder as the padre reassured the refugees that they were going to be ok.

“These are friends. They'll get you to safety.” The mutants began making their way over to the cars.

“Toss your stuff in the back, grab a seat, quick as you can.” Marcos told them.

“We'll brief you on everything once we get where we're going.” John said while Taylor watched Marcos give a teddy to a young boy.

Clarice looked into the shed, her eyes landing on a small girl who was trying to hide, “hey. You okay?” She asked softly before holding her hand out to the girl, “it's all right. Come on. I got you.” The girl took Clarice’s hand and allowed the woman to take her over to the cars.

John watched his wife with a smile, not really focusing on the other refugees as a woman came over to him, “hey. I need to talk to you.”

“What is it?” Taylor made her way over to John and the blonde woman.

“I'm a telepath. I can sense thoughts, if I'm close enough, and I've been getting some very weird thoughts from one of the others.”

“The big guy there?” Taylor asked, glancing cautiously over to the man who could only be described as giant.

“Not him.” The woman told them wearily, “her.” She motioned to a small woman who’d previously been hidden in front of the large man.

John headed over to the small woman, hoping to talk to her and understand the situation. “Excuse me. Ma'am? What's your name?” The woman didn’t even look over, “Hey.” John gently grabbed her wrist only to see the same tattoo that was on Gus’ wrist. The woman instantly began attacking. Taylor took a step back, not wanting to use her powers unless she had to.

“Everybody, get down!” Marcos ordered as the woman threw John against the container leaving a large dent.

At that moment, Taylor decided to intervene. She ducked behind a car for a moment, mentally telling John to back away. Taylor moved quickly, focusing her powers to cause enough pain to make the woman stop her attack. As soon as the woman stopped, John grabbed her, and Taylor dropped her powers.

*****

Arriving back at the HQ, Taylor and John moved the woman to the cage that had been set up to hold the woman. The group watched her run against the bars and practically hiss at them; Taylor was almost growling animalistically in response.

“So, she was sent here as a spy?” Sonia asked, watching the woman with curiosity,

“Something between a spy and a suicide bomber. She had a beacon in her backpack that she could’ve activated when we brought her in.” Marcos commented to the group, “would’ve brought Sentinel Services straight to our door.”

Taylor growled, red eyes fixed on the woman, it was fair to say that they were all intimidated by blue-haired woman.

“Sounds like the Perry station was hit with another HOUND.” Gus stated, not taking his eyes of the woman.

Sonia glanced around, “well, if Sentinel Services are planting these HOUNDs out there, we may have to stop taking in refugees.”

“You don’t turn your back on desperate people just because one of them might be dangerous.” John commented.

“Besides,” Lauren added, “if you turned away everyone potentially dangerous, this place would be empty.” They couldn’t help but agree with Lauren’s comment.

“It’s also useful, if we can figure out what she knows, it might give us a weakness to tear down Trask or Sentinel Services, either one will do.” John muttered.

“You talking about a war, John?” Lauren asked, half-joking.

“Welcome to the revolution, Kestrel.” John and Taylor muttered in sync.

“Reed,” John called over, “we better get on the road. Try and figure out what we can from your dad before it’s too late.” Reed nodded, heading to say goodbye to Andy and Caitlin, hugging Lauren before he headed off.

*****

A smile spread across John’s lips when he saw Evie, but it quickly turned to concern when he saw the fear clouding her eyes. Without a word, he gathered her into his arms, carrying her to the roof. “Hey Bug, can you tell me what’s wrong?”

Evie gripped his shirt, refusing to let her dad go as tears welled in her eyes, “I saw something happen. Something bad.”

“With the woman downstairs?” John asked gently, he’d learnt not to doubt Evie’s premonitions. His face tightened when she shook her head.

“With Auntie Tay.” Evie whispered.

John tensed, “did you see what bad thing’s going to happen?” He kept his voice soft.

“I saw blood. And you and Mama were crying. And Uncle Gus was crying. Auntie Tay was cold…”

John hugged Evie tightly to his chest, “I’ll keep her safe, Bug. I promise.”

*****

Taylor and Gus headed to their room to grab a bag. Taylor tried to shake off her fears of seeing her Opa again after so many years.

“You ready for this?” Gus asked softly.

“He probably doesn’t even know I’m alive.” Taylor muttered as they left the room, her voice breaking slightly.

Gus made his way over to Clarice, asking her to watch Imogen until they got back. He tried to keep his mind clear, but he knew that Clarice could see his apprehension.

“Keep an eye on her.” Clarice said.

“Always.” Gus nodded, glancing over to his wife. Taking a breath, he looked over to Clarice, “John told us about the change in escape plans… keep it quiet but start working on her way out.” His eyes darted over to Lauren as he spoke. “He also told me about your conversation in the car.”

“Well, the X-Men chose those two, they’re the revolutionaries. They’ve been fighting for people since they were kids, we’re not gonna let them throw themselves away.”

Chapter Text

Taylor sat at the computer, a look of horror on her face as she read over the posts on the Network about the station in Perry being attacked.

“How many dead?” John asked as he made his way into the tech room, wiping the last of the blood from his eyes.

“At least 40. Sounds like the rest scattered but a handful made it safe.”

John tensed at the thought, “we’ll go to collect the survivors once the others are up and dressed.”

Taylor nodded, “the numbers… we only need me, you, Marcos, Clare. Anymore and we won’t space for all the refugees.”

John nodded silently, working on figuring out where they would house all the new incomers. The pair silently decided that their lives were about to become a lot more difficult.

*****

Around 20 minutes later, the group were ready head out. “We need to talk to the folks in Gainesville, make sure they’re ready for more refugees.” John told Gus.

“What’d you take me for? I did that ten minutes ago.” Gus commented with a laugh before turning somber again, “do me a favor, keep an eye on Empty. She’s been thinking about the Citadel a lot recently… she’s got me worried, especially with everything else.”

John just nodded, “you’ve got it. You know that I would anyway.”

Gus hummed, “also… you two keep your eyes up, ok? If the bug thinks they’re trapped, you and Tay will be primary targets. The Underground won’t last you two falling. Don’t let anyone catch you with your pants down.”

Shaking his head, John rolled his eyes, “what’d you take me for?” He joked, “we’ll keep a check on each other.”

“I mean it, Gunny, keep your eyes up. You are the easier target – not that either of you are easy targets, trust me, we tried to get either of you – you two are running out of time, they’re tracking you down and want you and Taylor dead. Sentinel Services want the pair of you caught or dead, they’re backed by international law, countless governments, and far too many global organizations for you two to be as cocky as you are. We’ve made them nervous in the last few months, we’ve got them edge. But a wounded animal is dangerous, they’ll do whatever they need to, to survive.”

John nodded, “problem is, we know every law, every loophole, hell we wrote most of those loopholes. We’ve been fighting this for a long time, Gus.”

“And the pair of you fight like it’s going out of style. Every day, the pair of you are fighting as though you’re never gonna see the sun.”

“We won’t. We all know that, Serg, that’s always been the plan. We work like we’re running out of time, you and Clare get to live lives outside of this shit.”

Gus ran a hand over his face, “the pair of you are meant to change the world. I don’t think this is what Charles and Erik had in mind. You need to make it through, so you can remake the world into something we can all live in.”

“What do you suggest?”

“Start living like tomorrow will arrive, stop acting like you’re gonna die at the end of every day.”

John watched Gus for a moment, “eyes open, fully focused. For a future we’re all gonna see.”

Gus just nodded before heading back to the tech room to keep his eye out for any other changes.

Grabbing his pack, John headed down the stairs and began making his way towards the door, “Rosie!” He called when he saw his daughter tensing, scrunching up her face as she tried to teleport.

The girl instantly stopped, her face morphing into a grin when she saw her dad, giggling as he scooped her into his arms. “You go?” She asked, signing her full question ‘are you going away?’

“Yeah. Me, Mommy, Aunt Tay, and Uncle Marcos are going away for a couple of hours. Aunt Lorna and Uncle Gus will be here still.” John told her verbally and signed, smiling as she pouted.

“And Auntie Wren?”

John gave her a smile, “she’ll be here too.” Rose nodded before running off to join her sister and friends.

John didn’t get much further before Reed had made his way over to him, “can I have a word?” John nodded, “we need to go and see my father in Chattanooga. I know it’s a risk, but he’s our only connection to Trask.”

Tensing, John tried to keep his own concerns about Trask off his face. “You think he might know something?”

“Maybe, maybe not. We don’t have a lot of choice considering Gus…” Reed’s voice faded as John fixed a glare at him.

John settled his annoyance slightly, “a station just fell, we’re going to pick up survivors. Prep a car, we’ll leave as soon as Tay and I get back. Let Gus know, he’ll probably join us.” Reed nodded as John walked away.

Taylor, Marcos, and Clarice were waiting for John at the cars. Taylor moved to the car that Marcos was driving, leaving John and Clarice in the other. It meant that the two cars would have communications without the need to have phones.

*****

“Your dad thinks we need to go up to Chattanooga. Told him that you and Matchstick would join us.” Taylor tried not to scoff aloud at John’s comment.

Marcos glanced over to Taylor as they pulled out of the HQ, “you doing ok?”

Taylor shook her head, “everyone asking about the Citadel… it’s not doing any good for my mind.”

“Struggling to keep locked on what’s real?”

Taylor turned to him in confusion before her expression softened slightly, “Lorna… I forget that she spent time in her own Hell.”

Marcos gave a shrug before squeezing Taylor’s hand, “you’re allowed to struggle, y’know?”

“Yeah, because I can totally take 20 minutes to figure out my mind and allow it to keep track of what’s real and what’s an implanted memory that was designed to make me into a better weapon. You’re shit at this whole comfort thing.”

“No, I’m not half bad, you’re fucking crap at it.” Marcos laughed as Taylor gasped dramatically.

“I have never been so insulted—”

“You don’t listen much then, do you?” He joked only to be answered by a slap to his arm.

Letting out a breath, Taylor shook her head, “I’m also worried about this shit with the spy.”

“You and John narrow down the list at all?” Marcos asked.

Taylor hummed, “don’t like the names left on that list.”

“Who?”

“Sage, Shatter, Fade, Sonia, and Reed are primary.”

Marcos jolted in surprise, swerving the car slightly, “you serious?!”

Taylor rolled her eyes, “no, we thought it was funny,” she deadpanned, “yeah, we’re serious. And if it’s any of them, Sentinel Services could be tracking us right now as we head for more survivors.” She shot back. “We’re alone, and it’s only gonna get worse.”

After a few moments of comfortable silence, Marcos turned to Taylor, “look, I know I’ve still got to make up for helping them behind your back… but I wanted you to know, you mean more to me than they do. You’re my sister, no matter who your parents are.”

Taylor smiled silently for a moment, “that was almost sweet. Did it hurt to say?” She joked.

“I hate you.”

“Why? I’m a delight,” Taylor grinned back only for Marcos to start laughing again. Taylor let out a chuckle as she watched him, “on another note, that’s all you’re gonna know about the spy until we find out who it is. The second we know, so will you and Lorna, but…”

“But if things get dangerous, you’re sending us two off with all four kids,” Marcos muttered, that had been the plan for years: Taylor and John would stay at the HQ and fight until they were dead (being captured was not an option), Clarice and Gus would head to different stations and reinforce a new foundation, Lorna and Marcos would protect the four girls until further notice. He didn’t like it, but, at the minute, he would work with it.

“What’s eating you, Marcos?” Taylor asked after a long moment, “something’s been off with you since Baton Rouge.”

Marcos swallowed heavily, “I was talking with Reed, he was asking about you. Nothing nefarious, just standard ‘how long have I known you?’ ‘Do you ever talk about your childhood?’ all that shit… but I mentioned something… about you and John.”

“I’m gonna need more.” Taylor’s mind switched into overdrive as she began trying to piece together everything Marcos was saying, thinking about how it could relate to a spy.

“I mentioned about how long you guys have known each other.”

Taylor’s eyes narrowed as she looked daringly at Marcos, “and how long is that?”

Marcos refused to look over, “I told him that you two knew each other before… Taylor I didn’t mean to, he asked if you two ever dated and it just slipped out.”

Closing her eyes, Taylor shook her head, “and you wonder why we don’t tell you all of our secrets.”

*****

John shook his head as Taylor’s voice cleared from his mind, “Marcos told Reed that Tay and I go way back.”

“So, more people know.” Clarice muttered, “more people that know a timeline, and have the information to put the pieces together.”

“No. No, absolutely not.” John stated, “we won’t let the timeline make sense to him. He doesn’t need to know when Tay was rescued, doesn’t need to know the timeline of anything. As far as he knows, the X-Men, Empty, and I have no links. We can keep it that way… but Marcos knows nothing.” He thought back to Gus’ words, the pair of you fight like it’s going out of style. Maybe he was right – he often was – John had never taken a moment to imagine that he or Taylor could see life outside of the fight.

Clarice let out a heavy breath, “what if it isn’t Lorna and Marcos who take the girls if something happens to us four?” John glanced over, raising an eyebrow, “I love them, they’re my family… but they’re becoming a risk. If something happens to us, if our enemies find a foothold, I don’t want to be doubting that the girls’ will be safe.”

“So, who takes them instead?”

“Lauren. She takes them to the old safehouse. We know it’s untouched, we know no one knows where it is. She can take them there, we disappear. Marcos and Lorna get Rory to safety, Lauren takes off with our three. It wouldn’t take much to forge her a German passport.”

For a moment, John tensed, “if we do this, no one other than us can know about it. Us four and Lauren. Even the girls cannot know about this.”

Clarice reached for his hand, “it’s a risk. I know that. But with the spy, and now Marcos getting loose lipped, it the best option we’ve got.”

“It also burns a bridge. There’s no going back if we plan this. If they find out, Marcos and Lorna won’t trust us.”

Clarice nodded, “maybe not, but I don’t like the girls being in danger. We’ve got enough enemies hunting those kids.”

John scrubbed a hand over his face, “maybe it’s time to turn this fight into a rebellion. A fight for rights is only worth fighting if we stand for something and fight for it. We can’t stay on the defensive, we’ve got to fight if we want to see our girls have a place in this world.”

“Then we start with Trask, tear it down. We move onto the Citadel, blast the media with what they did within those walls. We take down Sentinel Services, show the war crimes they’ve committed. We fight for mutant rights, we’ll get them. You and Taylor then stand at the front of the rebellion, fighting like tomorrow will arrive, because it will. We’ll make sure of it.”

John watched her for a moment, “you’ve been speaking with Gus.”

“It’s good to have him back. There are only two people in this world that can get you and Empty to slow down and think. The rebellion needs leaders, and you and Taylor were chosen for a reason. Don’t throw it away.”

*****

The journey to Perry was thankfully uneventful, once they arrived, the padre led them round the church to a small building with a container in front of it.

“We’re grateful that you came so fast. Sentinel Services are even coming after us now. So much for sanctuary…” The padre muttered as they came to a stop.

“How many refugees are there?” Taylor asked, lowering her hood once they were out of sight.

“A dozen fled here when the station in Perry got hit. Plus a few strays.”

“Let's load them up. Get ‘em safe and sorted,” Clarice muttered.

The padre moved towards a container that was positioned in front of a shed, blocking the door, “I just have to hide them in here during services.” He said, struggling to move the container.

“I got you, Padre.” John said as he walked over and effortlessly moved the container.

The sight of the refugees was one that Taylor never got used to. The fear on their faces at the idea that they’d been found… She did her best not to shudder as the padre reassured the refugees that they were going to be ok.

“These are friends. They'll get you to safety.” The mutants began making their way over to the cars.

“Toss your stuff in the back, grab a seat, quick as you can.” Marcos told them.

“We'll brief you on everything once we get where we're going.” John said while Taylor watched Marcos give a teddy to a young boy.

Clarice looked into the shed, her eyes landing on a small girl who was trying to hide, “hey. You okay?” She asked softly before holding her hand out to the girl, “it's all right. Come on. I got you.” The girl took Clarice’s hand and allowed the woman to take her over to the cars.

John watched his wife with a smile, not really focusing on the other refugees as a woman came over to him, “hey. I need to talk to you.”

“What is it?” Taylor made her way over to John and the blonde woman.

“I'm a telepath. I can sense thoughts, if I'm close enough, and I've been getting some very weird thoughts from one of the others.”

“The big guy there?” Taylor asked, glancing cautiously over to the man who could only be described as giant.

“Not him.” The woman told them wearily, “her.” She motioned to a small woman who’d previously been hidden in front of the large man.

John headed over to the small woman, hoping to talk to her and understand the situation. “Excuse me. Ma'am? What's your name?” The woman didn’t even look over, “Hey.” John gently grabbed her wrist only to see the same tattoo that was on Gus’ wrist. The woman instantly began attacking. Taylor took a step back, not wanting to use her powers unless she had to.

“Everybody, get down!” Marcos ordered as the woman threw John against the container leaving a large dent.

At that moment, Taylor decided to intervene. She ducked behind a car for a moment, mentally telling John to back away. Taylor moved quickly, focusing her powers to cause enough pain to make the woman stop her attack. As soon as the woman stopped, John grabbed her, and Taylor dropped her powers.

*****

Arriving back at the HQ, Taylor and John moved the woman to the cage that had been set up to hold the woman. The group watched her run against the bars and practically hiss at them; Taylor was almost growling animalistically in response.

“So, she was sent here as a spy?” Sonia asked, watching the woman with curiosity,

“Something between a spy and a suicide bomber. She had a beacon in her backpack that she could’ve activated when we brought her in.” Marcos commented to the group, “would’ve brought Sentinel Services straight to our door.”

Taylor growled, red eyes fixed on the woman, it was fair to say that they were all intimidated by blue-haired woman.

“Sounds like the Perry station was hit with another HOUND.” Gus stated, not taking his eyes of the woman.

Sonia glanced around, “well, if Sentinel Services are planting these HOUNDs out there, we may have to stop taking in refugees.”

“You don’t turn your back on desperate people just because one of them might be dangerous.” John commented.

“Besides,” Lauren added, “if you turned away everyone potentially dangerous, this place would be empty.” They couldn’t help but agree with Lauren’s comment.

“It’s also useful, if we can figure out what she knows, it might give us a weakness to tear down Trask or Sentinel Services, either one will do.” John muttered.

“You talking about a war, John?” Lauren asked, half-joking.

“Welcome to the revolution, Kestrel.” John and Taylor muttered in sync.

“Reed,” John called over, “we better get on the road. Try and figure out what we can from your dad before it’s too late.” Reed nodded, heading to say goodbye to Andy and Caitlin, hugging Lauren before he headed off.

*****

A smile spread across John’s lips when he saw Evie, but it quickly turned to concern when he saw the fear clouding her eyes. Without a word, he gathered her into his arms, carrying her to the roof. “Hey Bug, can you tell me what’s wrong?”

Evie gripped his shirt, refusing to let her dad go as tears welled in her eyes, “I saw something happen. Something bad.”

“With the woman downstairs?” John asked gently, he’d learnt not to doubt Evie’s premonitions. His face tightened when she shook her head.

“With Auntie Tay.” Evie whispered.

John tensed, “did you see what bad thing’s going to happen?” He kept his voice soft.

“I saw blood. Auntie Tay was lying in it. And you and Mama were crying. And Uncle Gus was crying. Auntie Tay was cold…”

John hugged Evie tightly to his chest, “I’ll keep her safe, Bug. I promise.”

*****

Taylor and Gus headed to their room to grab a bag. Taylor tried to shake off her fears of seeing her Opa again after so many years.

“You ready for this?” Gus asked softly.

“He probably doesn’t even know I’m alive.” Taylor muttered as they left the room, her voice breaking slightly.

Gus made his way over to Clarice, asking her to watch Imogen until they got back. He tried to keep his mind clear, but he knew that Clarice could see his apprehension.

“Keep an eye on her.” Clarice said.

“Always.” Gus nodded, glancing over to his wife. Taking a breath, he looked over to Clarice, “John told us about the change in escape plans… keep it quiet but start working on her way out.” His eyes darted over to Lauren as he spoke. “He also told me about your conversation in the car.”

“Well, the X-Men chose those two, they’re the revolutionaries. They’ve been fighting for people since they were kids, we’re not gonna let them throw themselves away.”

Chapter Text

Upstairs, Clarice found little Nora still sat on the bench, she had barely moved from when Clarice had seen her nearly two hours ago. The only change was that Nora was now half-heartedly fussing Zingo, her fingers tangled in the fur.

“She likes you.” Clarice said as she sat down next to Nora, keeping Zingo between them, “y’know Zingo… she’s very particular about the people she likes.” Clarice stated matter-of-factly as she began fussing the dog. “She likes me too.” Clarice had gotten good at one-sided conversations since meeting Taylor. She’d gotten even better at reassuring people that their differences didn’t make them freaks since having the twins. “Y’know why? It’s because we’re special.” Nora looked over at her with a disbelieving look in her eyes. “We are.” Clarice assured her with certainty. “There’s a lot of folks in here that just walk around, you can't even tell they're mutants. But not us. I got my eyes, my ears, you have your skin, and Zingo here is covered in fur. You're covered all in hair, aren't you, Zingo?” Nora laughed quietly as Clarice talked to the old dog.

Clarice turned her attention back to the child, “how'd you end up here?” Clarice faltered, “I mean, at the church.”

“Mama D and I were making dinner...”

Clarice’s mouth opened slightly in horrified realization, “Mama D? Norah, were you at the foster home on Burnhill Road?”

Nora nodded, “Yes. The men with the guns... they came. I wanted to help. Every time... I go to bed, I see them.”

Clarice pulled Nora to her side, hugging her comfortingly as she apologized over and over again.

*****

Otto Strucker turned to look at Reed once he’d closed the shop up, he kept glancing over to Taylor and the two men at her side, but he didn’t say anything to her. “You should have called. I would have told you not to waste your time.” Otto turned to look at the two men, “who are these?” He demanded; Taylor flinched at the power in his voice.

“Sergeant Major Augustus Nobel, sir. Your granddaughter’s husband and the father of your great-granddaughter.” Otto was taken aback by the force of Gus’ voice, the young man stepped defensively behind Taylor, letting Otto know that Taylor wasn’t on her own.

“John Proudstar, Thunderbird.” Taylor was beyond tense as the pair spoke.

“Ah, Thunderbird. Very heroic.” Otto sneered causing Taylor to gain back her confidence and move as if to step up to defend John and Gus if she needed to.

Reed glanced between them before speaking to his father. “He’s with the Mutant Underground. They all are. They've been helping my family.”

Otto didn’t look convinced, “Is that so? The men from Sentinel Services came by. They seemed to think they were a terrorist organization.”

“We aren’t the terrorists, Opa. We protect mutants, protect them from the torture that Sentinel Services is more than happy to inflict upon our kind.” Taylor growled. Otto stopped when he realized that his once loving granddaughter had become a fierce warrior and protector in the Mutant Underground.

“We're not terrorists, sir.” John stated, getting between Taylor and Otto.

“No, no. Of course not. Freedom fighters, I'm sure.”

“Would you prefer for mutants to submit to the torture and torment legally inflicted upon us by the government that’s meant to protect us? History is written on a backdrop of countless revolutions and rebellions that define the modern life we know, history will know of us, too. We are the next revolution to define history.” Gus said with an unwavering certainty, raising an eyebrow as he stepped beside Taylor.

Taylor did her best to keep her grin off her face at Gus’ comment, “fucking love it when he goes philosophical activist.”

John laughed in Taylor’s mind. “I think it’s hilarious.”

“We're not here to have a political debate.” Reed snapped, taking a breath, he took a moment before continuing, “did you hear what happened?”

“At the school? Yes. They told me about it when they interrogated me.”

Taylor narrowed her eyes at the man, if he had given them any information… “What'd you tell them?”

“That I never met my two youngest grandchildren and haven't spoken to my son in years. I told them that my oldest granddaughter died from meningitis when she was 15, or at least that was what my son told me.” Taylor stumbled backwards at Otto’s words.

John hissed as Taylor’s emotions spiked. Gus gripped her into his arms before a dissociative panic attack could take place.

“In other words, the truth.” Otto continued, unaware of Taylor’s pain. Reed was watching his daughter cautiously, not sure what was going to happen next as she stepped away from Gus and John.

“We need to talk to you about your work at Trask.” Reed told his father.

“My work at Trask was classified.” Otto told him bluntly, shrugging off the question.

“I'm your son.” Reed tried again, his annoyance growing at the fact that they weren’t getting anywhere.

“Son or not, it's a crime to reveal classified intelligence. It's also a crime to harbor a fugitive. I assume they covered this in law school.” Otto told him condescendingly,

“My kids are being hunted by Sentinel Services.”

“This has nothing to do with me!” Otto exclaimed as Taylor scoffed.

“What about my daughter?” The room froze as Taylor spoke, “she’s four years old and has never had a life outside of being hunted. Most kids are taking their first day at school photos at that age, my kid has a Wanted poster. You may not give a damn about your family, but I sure as hell do.” Taylor snapped, her voice remaining steady even as her anger rose.

“You said for years that Trask was just a defense contractor.” Reed yelled, taking over from Taylor as they both began trying to throw Otto off of his game.

“Trask no longer exists. I don't have any...”

“It opened up again!” Taylor yelled louder than she was usually comfortable with.

“And they are doing anti-mutant research.” Reed added, “now, you worked there for 30 years. And it just turns out that your grandchildren happen to be mutants. One of them is one of the most powerful mutants alive. Do you expect me to believe that that's a coincidence?”

John and Gus decided to step in at the same moment, attempting to diffuse the room before things went too far south. “They're experimenting on mutants.” John explained calmly.

“Sir, I was taken by Sentinel Services. Experimented on by Trask and have almost no recollection of what they did to me thanks to Taylor… Mackenzie...” Gus told Otto, his voice soft, he looked over to John and Taylor with confusion, nodding when Taylor shrugged at the use of her old name.

“Dad... I need you.” Reed told him softly.

Otto glanced between the four people, “come. Upstairs. Both of you.”

Taylor glanced back at John and Gus, “it’s alright. I’ll be in your head the whole time.” John assured her, giving her hand a squeeze.

*****

Taylor followed Reed and Otto up to the living space upstairs, she didn’t even attempt to hide the tension filling her.

“Your mother, Ellen, is she...?” Otto asked, clearly trying to settle some of the uncertainty in the room.

“She's fine. She's still in Atlanta. We see her, um... well, we used to see her every couple of weeks.” Reed told him, Taylor stood at the side of the room, feeling out of place.

“I miss her, you know. Does she know about all this?” Otto asked, Taylor raised an eyebrow at the questions of her grandmother.

Reed shrugged slightly, awkwardly clasping his hands in front of himself, “some, yeah. They questioned her.”

Otto led the pair to a couch. The trio sat down somewhat awkwardly; they hadn’t been together in one room since Taylor was nine years old. “The children, how old are they?”

“Andy's 15 and Lauren just turned 17.” Reed told his father, Reed stumbled slightly before continuing with a glance to his oldest child, “Mack— Taylor’s 27.” He muttered, barely audible.

“May I... may I see them? You have a... a photograph of something?”

“I do, actually.”

“This was taken last summer.” Otto smiled at the picture before turning to Taylor.

Taylor wrung her hands together under her grandfather’s gaze, Otto couldn’t help the pang of guilt that he felt when he saw how uncomfortable she was, “You said you have a daughter?”

Taylor nodded, digging her hand into her pocket, “Yeah. Imogen, my bundle of chaos.” Taylor smiled as she found the picture that she’d brought with her: a polaroid of the four girls. “That’s Imogen.” She pointed to the neon-haired little girl, “she’s amazing. Wicked smart, great sense of humor, she’s confident, happy, makes life so much more bearable. Everything I’m doing, any talks of revolution or rebellion, it’s to give her a life. Like Gus said, history is decorated and defined by revolutions that forced society to change and grow into something better. This is the latest, the next step, the building of a future where children like me don’t have to live in fear or shame of who they are.”

 “Look, we don't have much time. Anything that you could tell me about Trask?” Reed interrupted the pair, causing Taylor to shrink back slightly, remembering the reason that she’d originally been so uncomfortable.

“There's nothing to tell. My research was peaceful.” Otto told them truthfully, “this project, whatever it is, isn't my fault.”

Reed sighed and shook his head, “this isn't about blame. My family are fighting for their lives.”

“I told you, I don't know.”

“I know I didn't mean much to you, but the kids mean everything to me...”

“Don't you dare say that!” He snapped at Reed, “everything I did in my life was for you. Everything.”

Reed froze at Otto’s words, “What?” Otto didn’t respond.

Quickly, Otto changed the topic from his research. Glancing between his son and granddaughter. “The children... their powers. What can they do? What’re your daughter’s abilities?”

“Lauren makes shields.”

“Shields? What do you mean "shields"?” Otto’s curiosity caused Taylor to watch him closely. There was more going on than he wanted to admit.

Reed let out a breath, “she says it's like pushing the air together.”

“And the other one? The boy, Andy?”

“He kind of tears things apart.”

“Oh, God. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.” Taylor’s eyebrows furrowed in newfound confusion, she glanced over to Reed only to see him wearing a similar expression.

“Dad? What is it?”

“I failed. It came back.” Taylor decided to remain silent, not wanting to draw her grandfather’s attention.

Chapter Text

Lauren and Andy moved towards the cell, watching the woman carefully and trying to plan the best way to hold her still. The woman moved close to the cell wall and Lauren instantly created a shield and began pushing her back against the bars, “I got her!” Lauren exclaimed, ordering Caitlin to inject the sedative. As soon as the woman began to fall, Lorna and Marcos gently pulled Lauren away from the bars, subtly protecting their new friend.

The group quickly moved the woman from the cell and onto a table where Marcos welded some bars over her before Lorna tightened them in order to pin the woman in place.

“She looks so small…” Lauren looked at the woman with swelling pity, she couldn’t bring herself to look away.

“She hasn’t got a Taylor to break their control.” Lorna muttered, watching the woman in case she was to wake up.

“Is she gonna be ok?” Andy asked, motioning to the drug in his mom’s hand.

Caitlin nodded slightly, “she’s used to massive doses of this drug that they’re giving her. This’ll help, but I don’t know for how long. I think she’s dying.” Marcos and Lorna shared a look at Caitlin’s words.

Lauren finally tore her gaze away as she tried to comprehend what was happening to some mutants. Her eyes landed on a small girl that she was growing close to, “Rosie?” She called, grabbing the girl’s attention, and causing the others in the room to look over.

“Ro? What’re you doing down here kiddo?” Marcos signed, heading over to the child.

“Want see.” She stated simply, nodding over to the woman on the table.

“Not this time, Ro, she might be dangerous, and your mom scares me so we can’t have you getting hurt.” Marcos said and signed causing Rose to grin before nodding and ducking out of the room.

The group turned their attention back to the woman on the table. “If she is dying,” Lorna began, “she’s got no reason to help us.”

“You’d be surprised,” Caitlin muttered, looking between Marcos and Lorna, “I once treated a gang member with a fatal gunshot wound. as he was dying, he told the cops everything he'd done, just to get it off his chest.”

Marcos turned to Lorna, a grim expression covering his face, “We have to hope she's in there, somewhere.” Lorna didn’t react, keeping her expression blank as she tried not to think of the fact that it could’ve been Gus.

*****

Arguably, there were fewer places that John and Gus were more out of place than in an antiques shop, the pair stood awkwardly in the shop waiting for Reed and Taylor to come downstairs.

“What’s eating you, Beacon?” Gus asked, not looking over as he looked inside some antique vase.

John sighed, “Evie had a vision.”

“Tell me something new.” Gus muttered, not harshly, but he, like the rest of the group, were very used to Evie’s premonitions.

“She saw Taylor, cold, lying in a pool of blood. She saw us crying… she was scared.” John sighed, shaking his head, “she’s never had a clairvoyant dream that’s not come true to some degree.”

Gus’ eyes darkened, “you think Taylor’s in danger?”

“I don’t know.”     

*****

Otto placed a wooden box on the table in front of the couch before he sat down between his son and granddaughter. “There is something you need to see.” He stated, “it’s better that you know everything.” Otto lifted an old picture from the box, holding it out for Taylor and Reed to see, “this is my father: Andreas von Strucker.” Taylor tensed, recognizing the name but not knowing why, “my father and his sister, Andrea, did unspeakable things.”

“Andreas and Andrea?” Taylor muttered exasperatedly. Otto didn’t comment, but Reed sent her a warning glare.

“They were terrorists.” Otto told Reed before turning to Taylor, “they were also mutants.” He pulled several newspaper clippings from the box, handing them to Reed and Taylor.

“This was all them?” Reed asked.

Taylor, on the other hand, became absorbed in looking over the attack, “I can do this.” She whispered, barely audibly, it wasn’t heard by either man. Taylor let her eyes scan over each article, reading the death counts, the number of injured, the amount of property damage… she couldn’t comprehend anyone willingly causing that amount of devastation. Her mind swam with memories of her and John hiding out in Europe for weeks after the explosion, both consumed with guilt for the innocent deaths. The eight targets were planned, neither of them felt remorse for those deaths, but the 27 others…

“What could they do?” Taylor asked, not looking up from the articles.

“Apart, they had the same powers as your brother and sister. Together, though…” Otto’s voice faded off, “they were known as the Fenris – the Wolf. They were more powerful than you can imagine.”

“I seriously doubt that.” Taylor muttered, Otto looked at her in concern; he didn’t know what his older granddaughter’s powers were, nor the devastation she had caused.

Reed ignored the interaction between Otto and Taylor, trying instead to understand what Otto was telling him. “Wait, if they were mutants...” Reed couldn’t bring himself to finish his question.

“Yes, Reed. Your children's mutations were inherited.” Taylor raised an eyebrow but didn’t speak as Otto continued, “I am a mutant.”

“Wha...? It's not possible.”

“Please, just let me finish. They tried to raise me to be like them, but I ran away.” Otto lifted another picture; this one was of a young ball holding a ball of energy.

“That’s similar to Imogen’s!” Taylor exclaimed, Otto looked at her for further explanation, “when she first showed her powers, she was two. It was just a ball of different colored energy held slightly above her hands. She was so proud. I was so proud.” Otto reached to take Taylor’s hand only for her to violently flinch away before he could touch her.

Otto watched Taylor’s actions for a moment but eventually lowered his hand back to his lap. “I hid my powers from everyone,” Otto explained, turning to Reed, “even your mother. You have to understand, our family's abilities set us apart, even from other mutants. It was too much. I had to stop it.”

Taylor’s eyes widened, “there’s nothing in our powers to be ashamed of.” She’d spent too long being ashamed of what she could do. For years, her shame had consumed her, she could list on one hand the number of people who had taught her to be proud of who she was. At the top of that list was Erik.

“We are wrong, Mackenzie! Even on terms of other mutants!”

Taylor shook her head, but Reed didn’t seem deterred, “How could you possibly stop it?”

“That was what brought me to Trask... A research project to eliminate the X-Gene. I never found what they wanted... A serum that worked on all mutants... But I made a version that worked on one mutant and gave it to you.”

Taylor jumped up from the couch, not able to take anymore. Her mind raced as she tried to keep her emotions and mind in check.

“Tay? Talk to me.”

Taylor focused on John’s voice, the familiar calmness drawing her mind close, “he hates our kind. Believes that the X-Gene is a flaw. That we are wrong.” She felt John’s own anger begin to rise slightly. For some reason, John’s anger helped Taylor to settle. Taylor returned her attention to Otto and Reed as soon as she was calm enough. She didn’t hear most of the conversation, but she began to focus back in.

“You were in such pain. I hated myself. I could never look you in the eye after that. And all of it... for nothing.”

Taylor couldn’t stop herself scoffing, “’For nothing’? You think we’re wrong?! It’s the ones like you that are wrong, the ones that try to ignore the fact that this is going to happen. Mutants are evolving and nothing you can do will stop it. We are the future.” Otto and Reed both looked at Taylor in shock as she moved towards the window, trying to settle her rising anger, trying to silence the call of her powers.

*****

Several members of the Underground had noticed the group holding the woman on the table, many of them were more than a little unsettled by the fact that the woman who’d been intending to expose them wasn’t contained.

“Hey!” Yelled the large mutant from the Perry station, “are you people crazy?!” Lauren headed over to face the growing group, “Taking her out of the cage?” The man snapped again.

Lauren held her hands up non-threateningly, “I get it, you're upset. But just stay back, okay?” She said, trying to get the group to settle.

The man wasn’t deterred, “I don't understand why that thing is even here. She gets loose, she can kill everyone.”

“They need to figure out who she is and where she came from.” Lauren explained, “we need to keep everyone safe.”

“We'll be safe when she's back in a cage where she belongs.”

Lauren’s eyes began to darken at the man’s words, her mind focusing on her spinning shields. She knew that with John and Taylor gone, people were less likely to listen to her, but that didn’t mean she’d let these people walk all over her.

“Hey. Back off.” Andy snapped.

Objects began to shake while Lauren calmed down, “it's okay, Andy.”

“No, this guy has something to say, he'll say it to me. Right?” Lauren resisted the urge to roll her eyes, the objects began to shake more violently as Andy stood defensively in front of Lauren.

“Okay, cool off.” The large man said, backing off slightly, “just... tell them to be careful down there.”

“We will.”

“All right, let's cool it, man.”

Lauren and Andy watched the group disperse, staying silent for a few more minutes. Lauren eventually turned to Andy, “Thanks.”

“No problem. You're my sister. Nobody talks to you like that but me.” Lauren just smiled before heading back into the room with the others.

Chapter Text

With the tension of the confrontation still lingering in the air, Lauren couldn’t help her relief when Sage returned to the room, a file in her hand as she came to a stop at the foot of the table, completely oblivious to the tension that had been bubbling among the refugees just moments ago. “I found something on the hard drives we got in Baton Rouge.” She handed the folder over to Lorna, “I might know who she is... or was.”

Lorna raised an eyebrow as she read through the folder, “okay, so Miss Vicious is named Chloe?”

“Well, anything of use?” Marcos asked Sage, hoping for more than just a name.

“Maybe. She used to live in trailer park outside of Jasper. Her kid got sick, and the pediatrician wouldn't treat mutants.” Marcos and Lorna shared a look, they knew that feeling all too well from before joining the Underground when Aurora was almost 18 months old. “She destroyed the doctor's office, got busted by Sentinel Services.” Sage continued.

No one got to say anything else thanks to the woman waking up, gasping. Everyone moved quickly; Lorna, Marcos, and Lauren getting ready to attack, if necessary, Andy backed away with Sage.

Caitlin moved to try and comfort the panicking woman, “Chloe? Chloe, can you hear me?” The woman didn’t respond, she just continued wildly gasping as if she couldn’t breathe.

“Chloe, I-I need you to listen to me.” She turned away from Chloe, motioning to the bars, “we-we need to...”

“It's not safe.” Marcos argued.

“We're not gonna get through to her if we treat her like an animal.”

Marcos shook his head, they needed to protect everyone else. “It’s not happening.” He implored, there was only so far that he was willing to let Caitlin’s savior complex take them.

Caitlin rolled her eyes, “Chloe, we know you were arrested by the Sentinel Services. What did they do to you?” Chloe didn’t speak, but she did look over to Caitlin. “Look, hey, it's okay. Please. Talk to us, we want to help.” Caitlin tried again, “okay. Try to relax, just... Just tell us what you can.” Still nothing. Caitlin turned to Marcos and Lorna, an idea coming to mind, “I think she wants to communicate, but I don't, I don't think she can talk.”

“What do you mean ‘she can't talk’?” Marcos asked, his patience running out.

“I don't know. It could be physical. It could be some sort of mental block.”

“What the hell do we do?” Lorna asked, rolling her eyes. They were back to square one.

“The telepath!” Caitlin exclaimed after a moment. “Esme, she read her mind before. Maybe— maybe she could do it again.” Marcos nodded, heading to find the blonde telepath.

*****

In the back office, Clarice had set to work silently. This wasn’t the first passport she’d forged, she doubted it would be her last. It didn’t take her long to get the basics in place. With most of it done, she headed to find Lauren.

It didn’t take her long to find Lauren helping with the HOUND, “need you for five minutes.” Without another word or even a glance over to Lorna and Marcos, she led Lauren back to the office, ignoring all the questions that the rest of the group were throwing at her.

“What’s going on?” Lauren asked as she shut the door.

Clarice grabbed a camera, “we’re having issues with this whole spy thing. We want to make sure that if the worst happens, the ones we care most about are able to get away.”

“You want me to take the girls and run?” Lauren asked after a moment of realization.

“Bingo.” Clarice muttered absently before positioning Lauren and taking a picture. “When the time comes, Evie will give you a backpack. Inside is all the information you need for how to get to a safe house. There’s also money for plane tickets, you’ll follow the instructions, allies will be waiting for you.”

“Where?”

“You don’t need to know yet. It’s in the bag.” She motioned for Lauren to leave the room, giving her shoulder a reassuring squeeze before she did so.

It took about half an hour for Clarice to complete the passport, she spent a few moments contemplating the name, but eventually, a German passport for Lina Maximoff was ready.

Letting out a breath, Clarice headed to the girls’ room, double checking to make sure the kids were playing in the main lounge of the HQ before she grabbed the backpack from under Evie’s bed. She quickly pulled out the small pouch that contained the three passports for the girls, glaring at them as if they were the enemy. Clarice hated the thought that one day she would have to send her girls away, potentially to never see them again.

Placing the passport for Lauren in the pouch, Clarice did a quick check of the other three, making sure they were in date and that the photos and names still worked.

Louisa Ferguson for Evie. Rayna Ferguson for Rose. Minna Maximoff for Imogen. God how the four parents hated those names, but they had a use, they had a purpose, their purpose was to keep three precious girls safe. And now there was Lina Maximoff, the protector of the three girls whose parents would go to any length to see them safe.

*****

Reed was staring at his hands, trying to comprehend everything Taylor was at the far end of the room, her mind spinning as she tried to understand why her Opa would think that people like them were mistakes.

“All that time, all those years. How could you not tell me?” Reed whispered, betrayal and abandonment flooding his voice.

“I was trying to give you a normal life.”

“You had no right to keep it...” Anger, hurt, and betrayal flashed through Reed’s eyes.

“To protect you? You're my son, I had no choice.”

“And what about my children? I could’ve protected them if I had known.” Reed snapped, “I could’ve…” He couldn’t finish his statement, but the way he looked at Taylor filled in the blanks.

“These people are family. They were monsters, Reed.” Otto tried to defend.

Reed scoffed, “but, just because we shared the same genes doesn't mean we were gonna...”

“I couldn't take that chance. I couldn't.”

Taylor shook her head, “How can you try and justify it?” She whispered, pain lacing her voice as she tried not to doubt herself.

“How much did my mother know?” Reed asked at the same time.

“All she really knew was that I had secrets.” Taylor tensed as she considered the number of secrets that she kept from her friends and family, not wanting to consider that she could simply be repeating Otto’s history, “that was what destroyed what I had with her.”

“And with me.” Reed stated coldly, feeling numb to his father.

“Yes.”

Otto sat back down on the couch, his focus solely on Reed, “We need to talk about the children.”

“What about them?”

“Have they used their abilities together?” Urgency filled his voice, an edge of desperation reaching it as Taylor looked over, an eyebrow raised questioningly.

“A little.”

“Since they found their powers... have they held hands?” Taylor’s eyebrows furrowed; she couldn’t understand why that was so important.

“I...”

Reed didn’t get any further thanks to John and Gus running into the room. “Tay! Strucker!” Gus yelled.

“There're cars outside. I think it's Sentinel Services.” John told them, mostly focusing on Taylor as the pair made their way over to the windows, both glancing through the blinds.

“I got seven surrounding.” Taylor told John.

“I’ve found another five prepping to enter. Including one mutant.”

“How many?” Gus asked as the pair stepped away from the windows.

“We got 12. One of our kind.”

“We’ve gotten out of worse.” Gus grinned causing John and Taylor to roll their eyes as he reached for the gun tucked under his jacket. Gus’ grin faded when John stumbled, pressing his palm against the side of his head.

“John?” Taylor questioned, gripping his arm.

“There’s someone with Gus’ powers.” He told them through gritted teeth.

Taylor nodded tensely, “I can feel it.” She opened her hand, letting the energy that was usually invisible to anyone except her become visible to everyone for a moment.

Gus and John shared a glance as Taylor dropped her hand, “I’ll stay back for a moment.” She reassured them.

Glancing around the room, Gus tried to spot any escape route. “Is there any other way out?” He asked Otto.

Otto shook his head, “only the stairs.” Gus looked between his wife and best friend, both shook their heads.

John spoke for the pair of them, confirming Gus’ thoughts. “Right now, Tay’s powers are too volatile. With someone using your powers, they can cut me down just like them.” Gus growled, tension building in his chest.

“I'll go down.” Otto told them after a moment.

Reed’s eyes widened, “You can't.”

“I have to.” Otto stated.

“Maybe I can do something.” Taylor offered, not sure what she could do considering how strong her powers were.

“I told you, our family is different. You know that difference, don’t you, Python?” Otto cupped Taylor’s cheek for a moment, “I'm sorry, Reed. For everything. Tell your mother, will you? Take care of Lauren and Andy. Protect them, son. Protect the world from them. And Cyani? I never stopped loving my brilliant rebel of a granddaughter.” Taylor nodded silently, not speaking as she watched Otto head down the stairs.

Otto headed into the shop just as the agents entered, he eyed them all curiously, “Can I help you?” He asked as if he were talking to a customer.

“I certainly hope so.” The dark-haired man with a beard said with a sneering smile, “Otto Strucker, yes?”

“And you are?”

“It is an honor, sir. Dr. Roderick Campbell. I'm a big admirer of your work.” The doctor stated.

Otto raised an eyebrow at the comment, “My work? I'm an antiques dealer.”

“Before this, of course. I'm a fellow Trask man.” Otto nodded dumbly, “I dug up your old research when the company was reestablished. Your work on suppressing the X-Gene was quite brilliant. It led directly to mine...” A mutant turned around; his hands surrounded in gold energy. “Enhancing and combining it.” Campbell stated. Otto watched the mutant tensely, trying to figure out what Campbell was planning. “As much as I would love to talk shop, however, I'm here on a different matter. I'm looking for your son and granddaughter.”

“My son? We haven't spoken to each other for years. And my granddaughter? Mackenzie died of meningitis 12 and a half years ago. I have never met the younger girl.” The last statement was the truth.

“Is that so?” Campbell sneered to Otto.

The group of four watched the interaction tensely, John and Taylor sharing a glance at Otto’s comment about her. Taylor relaxed back slightly when she felt Gus’ hand grip her hip gently to try and soothe her. She would hold it together, for her friends’ sakes, she would make sure that they all got out of here, no matter what cost anyone else needed to pay.

“No ghosts,” John’s voice whispered in her mind, as if speaking any louder would alert everyone to their conversation.

“No heroes.”

“We have to go down there.” Reed whispered, drawing Taylor and John’s attention back to him.

The other three vehemently shook their heads. “We can't. It's suicide.” John told him almost silently, “Reed, we have people depending on us. The station. Your kids. We’ve all got our own kids and families to protect.” Reed turned away from them, his eyes focusing on the back and forth between Otto and Campbell.

Chapter Text

The antiques shop filled with unease and determination, Otto glanced between the agents and the mutant, “I think you and your friend should leave.” He stated after a moment, trying to get them away from the people hiding upstairs.

“Oh, I'm afraid I can't do that.” Campbell told him with a sarcastic smile, “I know you told the investigators who came before that you were out of touch with your family. As a man of science, I'm sure you'll understand my need for verification.” Otto watched him cautiously but didn’t speak. “We're gonna search the place. Send a team upstairs.”

“No, you won't.” Energy began to wrap around Otto’s hands, growing quickly, several agents began to panic.

“Shut him down! Shoot him!” Campbell yelled. The agents opened fire only for Otto’s powers to explode out of him.

It took the four a few moments to recover, John couldn’t hear anything except the ringing in his ears while Gus’ eyes were glazed over for a moment before Taylor pulled him back. Taylor led the group down the stairs, each taking in the destruction as they reached the shop. Several agents were lying dead on the ground, as was Otto Strucker. The three friends took in the scene while Reed gripped his father’s corpse.

“We’ve gotta go.” Taylor muttered, her heart pounding in her chest as she tried to block out the pain all around her, the agents that were still alive and badly wounded… all their pain… Taylor could feel it all and her mind refused to ignore it.

*****

Caitlin led Esme into the cell she’d been explaining the situation to the young woman, but Esme didn’t really comprehend it until she saw Chole held under the bars. “I’m sorry to spring this on you. I… I don't know what else to do. I don't think she has long.”

Esme nodded with a kind smile, “It's okay. I just hope I can help.”

Lorna raised an eyebrow, watching Esme as she approached Chloe, “So, you think you can do this?”

“Maybe.”

“You understand what we're fighting for, right?” Lorna questioned, not too sure about the blonde woman in front of her.

“Sentinel Services have my family.” Esme stated, her eyes narrowing slightly, “I'm here to fight.”

“Don't worry. She's gonna help you.” Caitlin told Chloe, trying to settle the panicked woman.

“What are you getting?” Lorna asked Esme.

“Need. And pain. Oh, God, it's... awful.” Esme choked out while Caitlin reassured Chloe.

Marcos glanced between the women, confusion spreading through him, “okay, what's happening?”

“Are you getting something?” Lorna asked.

Esme nodded at the questions, “She wants you to know they killed her husband and took her daughter.” Lorna and Marcos shared a look.

Caitlin focused on Chloe. “Who… who did this to you? Where are they?”

“She gave me a vision of it. I can see it.” Esme assured them, “it's a building. Some kind of lab. North of here.”

“Well, can you find it?” Lorna asked, they were closer to finding the mutants who’d been turned against them than ever.

“I… I think so.”

“Listen to me, Chloe.” Caitlin began, “we will find the people who did this to you and make sure it never...” Caitlin never finished. Chole took her dying breath as Caitlin tried to reassure her. Marcos wrapped Lorna in his arms, kissing the top of her head while squeezing Lauren’s hand; he’d decided that he’d play the protective sibling to the teenager while Gus, John, and Taylor were away.

*****

Clarice hadn’t been able to get Nora’s words out of her head all day, she couldn’t stop herself from thinking that she was the reason for the girl’s suffering. Every time she saw one of her girls, she thought back to Nora’s words and what she must have gone through.

Heading outside, it didn’t take Clarice long to find Sonia, “those don't look so good.” Clarice motioned to the dead flowers that Sonia was unpotting, Sonia didn’t look impressed at Clarice’s comment. “Look…” Clarice started, trying a different approach, “I need a favor. You're the only one that can help.”

“What is it?” Sonia asked, her curiosity spiking.

“There's a new kid that came in. A refugee. She had the same foster parents as me. When I got sick and my portals went crazy, I kept trying to portal back there, and... that's how they found them. She watched them die, and now she can't stop dreaming about it.” Clarice took a breath, looking at Sonia to try to find understanding in the redhead’s eyes. “It's all my fault. I can't take those memories away from her. But you can.” Sonia nodded after a moment, agreeing to help the girl.

*****

Out in the middle of nowhere, John and Reed had just finished burying Otto. Taylor and Gus were sat in the back of the truck, silently relying on each other.

After several minutes, Taylor spoke up, “They told everyone that I was dead… they made sure no one would look for me.” Gus pulled Taylor close. “Opa called us wrong… said we were freaks… my family are killers. So am I.”

Gus didn’t speak for a moment, he knew he couldn’t argue with Taylor’s words, “there’s nothing wrong with any of us.” He assured her after a moment, pressing a kiss to her temple as John and Reed made their way over.

Once John and Reed were with them, Gus gave John a look, “gimme a minute?” John nodded, but Gus barely saw it as he headed over to the tree line, ducking away from the view of Taylor or John.

Gus let his mind fall empty, refusing to focus on anything as he tried to push that hazy desperation away from his mind. Since being rescued by Taylor and John, he’d done his best not to think about the things Trask had done to him. The endless cycle of drugs and confinement that left him desperate for the next fix. He hadn’t felt any of it since Taylor had set up the blocks in his mind, but he’d felt them all slip in those few moments after Otto’s powers had exploded. That need, that hunger for the next fix had returned in full force, he could still feel the remnants of it in his mind. He could feel his hands shaking with withdrawal, even as the blocks in his mind rebuilt themselves. The fear that he was losing himself flooded Gus’ mind.

Pulling the gun out of his belt, Gus began pulling it apart with shaking hands before reassembling it. An old habit and nervous tick from years in the marines that hadn’t ever left him. When he’d been promoted to Sergeant Major, Gus had ten years of experience in the marines, he had served a combined six years overseas. He’d seen violence, death, and suffering… had inflicted it too. This was different, the unease and uncertainty that had followed him since Trask was unshakable.

Systematically disassembling and reassembling his gun, Gus pushed his mind to think of times before Trask. Of his father, a man he’d admired and loved so dearly, even more so after his mother and sister died in a car crash, leaving the two of them with no one but each other. Of his mother, who taught him love, and that death is indiscriminate, that the only place everyone is equal is in death. Of his sister who had been so full of life only to die at six-years-old. Of his squad and the people that he’d served with, a group haphazardly put together purely because they were all mutants, he thought of the gravestones that commemorated each of them.

Pressing his back against a tree, Gus watched a bird fly across the sky, he imagined for a moment what freedom could look like. He thought of a life for Imogen outside the trenches, of a life for Taylor where she didn’t have to be a soldier. He thought of Taylor, a woman built to be a leader, not a soldier. He would be her soldier while she stood as the commander. She would be the leader of the revolution, but Gus needed to think of a life beyond the revolution, it was the only thing that pushed the craving for Kick down.

*****

Back at the HQ, Marcos and Lorna were holding Aurora in their arms, hugging their daughter as though it could be the last time.

Sonia and Clarice were explaining Sonia’s powers to Nora before the girl gave her permission for her memories of that night to be taken away. Lauren was hiding out in the basement, trying to figure out what the Sentinel Services was doing with mutants.

The group of four eventually reached the HQ, all of them immediately heading separate ways in order to try and block what happened from their minds. Taylor watched the other three go before heading up to the roof.

***GRAPHIC SELF HARM, SKIP REST OF CHAPTER IF THIS TRIGGERS***

Sitting slightly away from where her family would usually hide out when things got too much, Taylor pulled a switchblade knife from her boot. Tears stung her eyes as she pressed the blade against her barcode, words echoing through her mind.

We are wrong, Mackenzie. Otto’s words from just hours ago. Blood began to bead as Taylor dug the knife further under the barcode.

You told me she died of meningitis. Reed’s lie. A story he’d told to the extended family to explain the absence of a teenager. The first lump of her barcode fell away.

We thought you were dead. Caitlin’s words from months ago. The first cold truth. They didn’t care. They’d wanted her to be dead. It eased their guilt. It was a harsher cut this time. Deeper, mangled with blood.

It’s not a person. It’s a creature. Vermin. The Citadel. Their words still ever present in her mind.

Don’t let it get to you. It’s a weapon. Like a gun. Just cut it. The Citadel. Ricocheting like bullets in her mind.

You don’t deserve a name. 587. 587. 587. Her number. Her identity reduced to a number. She didn’t matter. Another lump fell away from her arm, blood pooling with skin.

We’ll need you at full power. The words spoken in the Underground so often. Every time they needed something doing that no one else could stomach. Even John had called for it at times. It let her dig another gouge out. She was still just a weapon.

Taylor’s arm was bleeding profusely, her mind already slipping away as she watched the blood pool on the ground with chunks of her forearm and that barcode. A sad smile fell onto her lips, she knew John would feel her fading soon. She just hoped he wouldn’t find her.

Chapter Text

John stumbled as his subconscious fought for him to notice Taylor’s mind crying out, a desperate, weak cry echoing in the recesses of his mind, demanding his attention. A glance around the room told him that his baby sister was missing, his memory supplied that he hadn’t seen her since they’d returned from burying Otto. “Gus?!” He called over, fear bubbling through him as the door in his mind began to close, shutting him away from Taylor, “where’s Empty?”

Gus looked around, his eyes landing on Imogen playing with Zingo, “thought she was with Gen.” Panic ebbed its way into Gus’ voice. As soon as the words left Gus’ mouth, John took off in a sprint towards the stairs, trying to focus his senses to find Taylor.

Gus was a second behind John, heading towards his and Taylor’s room, hoping to find his wife before it was too late.

The group all shared a look, none of them hesitating as they leapt into action, “I’ve got the kids,” Lorna called before moving to usher the four girls into their room while the others began looking for Taylor. Clarice and Marcos all bolted in separate ways to John, searching the HQ for their friend, hoping that it wasn’t too late.

Lauren watched in confusion as the group disappeared. Sage couldn’t stop the grim smile that crossed her face. “It’s a danger night. One where Taylor’s more likely to… regress. They don’t leave her alone and they don’t let the kids see.” Lauren nodded silently before following her friends to help find her sister.

*Continuation of self-harm scene*

John made his way onto the roof, it’d always been his and Taylor’s safe space, the place they went when the needed to breathe. The second his eyes landed on the motionless body, his breath left him. In less than a heartbeat, he dropped to the ground at her side, checking for her pulse against her neck, “Empty? C’mon, talk to me, open your eyes.” He could hear her heartbeat, but that was no comfort. It was too slow, the smell of blood rife in the air as he gripped her hand, blood covered his hand instantly and his eyes turned to the gouge on her wrist. He gagged as he saw the lumps of flesh that used to be her barcode.

Running back to the roof door, John bellowed for the others, not caring that the volume left his ears ringing for a moment. He ran back to Taylor’s side, cradling her wrist in his hand, elevating it to try and ease the blood flow. “C’mon, hear me. Hear me.” Desperation ebbed into his voice as he wrapped his hand around her wrist, squeezing to apply pressure and lessen the flow of blood. Tears stung John’s eyes as the presence in his mind continued to slowly fade out of his reach, slipping away from him. “Stay with me, Empty!” He begged into the silence of his mind. “Don’t make me say goodbye again. I can’t bury you again, Tiny. I can’t do it.”

A portal ripped open at the edge of the roof, the group stepping through, only to freeze in horror at the sight in front of them, Lauren and Marcos had never seen Taylor like this. For Gus and Clarice, it had once been a common sight. Gus ran over to his wife, pressing his fingers carefully against her neck to feel for a pulse as he knelt in the growing pool of blood.

“We’ve gotta get her inside,” John choked out, carefully lifting Taylor, her left side pressed against his chest as he took her weak, injured hand protectively in his.

A look passed between John and Gus, “the dreams always come true.” Gus whispered as Clarice ripped open a portal to the medical area.

John carried Taylor over to the makeshift medical area while Clarice ran to grab a first aid kit. Several residents of the HQ, including Reed and Caitlin, moved towards the medical area where Gus and John set about cleaning and dressing Taylor’s wound. Little else could be done to help the healing process, they could only clean and wrap it.

Lauren felt the bile rise in her throat as she saw the wound on her sister’s arm, she’d never seen Taylor look so small… so vulnerable. She felt a hand squeeze hers as she began to feel dizzy, Lorna gripped Lauren’s hand tightly as soon as she’d reached her newest friend. The teen’s fear was almost palpable as Lorna headed over to the group after settling the four girls in their room.

“What the fuck lead to this?!” Marcos asked, disrupting the unsettling silence that had befallen the HQ.

“Ask him.” Gus spat, gesturing to Reed, venom dripping from his voice.

*End of self-harm scene*

Reed was practically dragged from the room and into the tech room where Marcos, Lorna, Clarice, Lauren, Sage, Sonia, and Shatter all gathered. The group watched for any slip up, waiting for any explanation.

“I… I don’t know what—” Reed couldn’t find the words, his fight dissipating under the glared of the gathering of friends.

“Gus wouldn’t just accuse you!” Lauren snapped, “Dad, you’ve gotta know something!”

“Otto… my father… he told her that our family are wrong…” Reed told them, clutching at straws.

None of them, except for Clarice, noticed as John stalked into the room, his face void of all emotion, “or maybe it was the fact that her father told everyone that she’d died when she was fifteen. Was that easier to say than admit you’d shipped her off to be tortured?” He growled, his eyes ablaze with a murderous anger that made most of the room shuffle back slightly.

Reed stuttered for a moment, trying to find the words to explain what he’d done 12 years ago. “The Citadel was a program to help her control her powers. She sent a boy to the hospital for being rude to Lauren! It wasn’t the first time she’d hurt someone. We couldn’t deal with it anymore! All the weekends she was away had done nothing. She was out of control! She needed to be taught control!”

Lorna scoffed, tensing in her own memories, “yeah, control… they definitely controlled her.”

“Lorna.” John dared, his voice dangerously low.

Lorna looked over to John, she’d never seen him look so prepared to attack, leant against the doorframe with a murderous expression and his eyes fixed on her for scarcely a moment more before they turned back to Reed. Taking a step back, Lorna let out a breath and fell silent, it wasn’t her place to play advocate for Taylor, she didn’t need to piss off her friends right now.

Reed looked blankly between the friends, trying to gauge what to say. Sage watched the man struggle for a moment, “you really have no idea, do you?” She asked, grabbing everyone’s attention, “it’s why you were so interested in her file. Why you’ve been asking questions about her file and her time in the Citadel. You told me you’d stopped looking into it.”

“You’re only just mentioning this now?” Clarice asked. Sage might’ve told them when Reed began poking around Taylor’s past, but she hadn’t mentioned anything about him continuing to dig.

“I just wanted to know my daughter…” Reed whispered, the argument sounding hollow.

John scoffed, shaking his head as he clenched his fist, trying to keep his anger in check. He felt his sister’s dried blood cracking across his skin as his fist tightened, her blood still drenched his clothes and coated his arms. “You haven’t been that girl’s family since she was nine years old. You killed your daughter when she was 15.”

“What file?” Lauren asked as the anger in the room continued to boil, “you all keep mentioning it, but none of you are saying anything! What’s happening to my sister?!”

“Taylor’s file from Baton Rouge,” Reed began hesitantly, his eyes darting between the faces in the room, “it listed her as one of Sentinel Services’ most wanted.”

Marcos and Lorna both scoffed as though it were obvious. “Of course she is,” Marcos commented, his own anger clear in his eyes and entirely directed at Reed, “she went through Hell and lived, they want her dead before she can tell people what really happened!” Marcos snapped, seeing Taylor so hurt was something he’d never gotten used to, she was always strong, always saying she was fine with a smile on her face while she fell apart. He’d never seen her fall apart so visibly.

“After everything she’s done, she should easily be the top of the list.” Sonia muttered, earning a warning glare from Clarice.

“Tread lightly,” John warned, making his thoughts perfectly clear. No one got away with bad mouthing his baby sister when she could do nothing to defend herself. John turned to Lauren, “your parents sent Taylor away to be tortured. She was the victim of horrific experimentation. Mutants aren’t granted the same rights as people, if the courts grant permission, we have less protections than lab rats. For four years, Taylor was starved, beaten, injected with untested chemicals, bound and tortured, experimented on, pushed beyond known limits for the sake of research. The Citadel isn’t a prison or asylum, it’s a research center, it specialized in mutant research development. Taylor was their prime subject.”

Lauren’s eyes widened, “does she… does she remember it?”

For a moment, no one spoke. “Every minute of it.” Clarice eventually said, “the Citadel stole her childhood, but it guaranteed she remembered the nightmare she lived through.”

John looked around the room, “she’ll live. She’ll heal and pretend nothing’s wrong. She’ll go through the motions of pretending everything’s ok. She’ll wake up and, when she does, I want you gone.” His eyes were fixed on Reed, “Gus warned you the day you arrived, I thought you understood that we don’t want you here. When Taylor wakes up, you’ll be here long enough for her to decide if she wants her siblings to remain here.”

A deafening silence hung in the room as Reed opened and closed his mouth, trying to find the words to argue, but coming up empty.

“I want to stay with Tay.” Lauren said almost guiltily. “I want to fight, be a part of the revolution.”

Clarice nodded, “then you’ll stay. Empty wants you here.”

Leaning back against the table, John tried to figure out everything that had led Taylor so far down the rabbit hole. He also tried to figure out when he’d become so distracted as to not notice her slipping away. She’d seemed so with it when they were driving home, her mind had been focused, she hadn’t seemed like she was regressing to this. John didn’t notice as the others left the room, barely registering Clarice speaking to him, nor himself nodding in response. He didn’t notice until it was just him and Lauren left.

“How’d I miss it?” He whispered, barely audible, but in the silence of the room, Lauren heard it well enough.

She carefully placed her hand over his, but he still jumped having barely registered that she hadn’t left with the others, “because Taylor protects the people she loves. She always does.”

“Yeah, but she usually slips up when things are getting this far.” He muttered, shaking his head.

Chapter Text

It only took John another moment to decide something – he would tell Lauren what was really going on. Leading Lauren over to one of the computers, John stayed silent as he entered his access code for the Network. “We’ll set you up with a code soon.” He muttered, too quiet for Lauren to hear.

Letting out a breath, John turned to the 17-year-old, “there’s more going on than most of them know about. More plans in the works than we’ve told them.” He motioned out the door, Lauren raised a curious eyebrow, “Taylor’s got contacts, outside of her. They keep her filled in about a lot of stuff that we don’t really hear about. They also confirm things we do hear about.”

He pointed to a pinned message on the Network: “Alabama – Main: Heard word from contacts in Columbus (AL). Reports of activity at Citadel Mutant Rehab and Research. Keep eyes open. Targeting High Priorities and Most Wanted.” Lauren’s eyes widened.

John watched silently as Lauren read the message, “That was a month and a half ago. Right now, a grand total of six people here know about this. You, me, Tay, Gus, Reese. The others are being kept away from the Citadel. They always are.” Lauren just nodded, not entirely sure how to respond.

Staying silent for a few moments, Lauren tried to gather her thoughts as she read and reread the message over and over again, trying to comprehend it, “aren’t… didn’t people want it demolished? I remember the protests when I was a kid.”

John gave a hollow laugh as he pulled up a news report from Columbus, dated six months earlier:
“The Mutant Rehabilitation and Research Center of Columbus, commonly known as the Citadel, has accepted its first patients in eight years. The center has been closed for eight years following what is publicly known as ‘the Citadel Tragedy’ that took the lives of 2,642 patients and staff as well as the 6,497 residents in the village nearby. After much deliberation, officials decided that the effectiveness of the Citadel has warranted its reopening under the watchful eye of Doctor Benedict Lawrence, the director and chief researcher before the Tragedy struck. These first patients will begin their treatment in the coming months.”

Lauren’s mouth hung open in shock, “that’s what happened while Taylor was there?” John just nodded. Scrolling down, John revealed the images attached to the article. Lauren’s breath caught in her throat as she finally saw the Citadel. It looked like an early sanatorium or a workhouse. A massive building of brick with three towers, one at each edge, and one in the center.

“Where was she held?” Lauren asked weakly, not even sure if she wanted to know.

John sighed, “Ward Ten.” He pointed to a part of the central tower, there were no windows, no signs that anything had been living behind those walls. “Apparently she was only ever in there or the labs.” He pointed to the three floors below. “Floors 1-5 were in the main bulk of the building, they housed Wards One through Seven. Ward Eight was the North Tower, Ward Nine in the South. Ward Ten was at the top of the Central Tower. Extra secure, built to withstand even the most destructive of powers… but not Taylor.”

Lauren felt sick. Seeing the pictures of the building that tortured her sister made it seem so much more real. Knowing the floor and the structure of the center let Lauren imagine her sister there without too much trouble, letting her see that terrified 15-year-old who just wanted to go home.

John watched Lauren’s reaction before speaking again, “they kept them all locked in cells, 600 staff between 2000 patients, they were easier to control in cells, bound to their beds. When we rescued her… there were people… bodies fastened to the walls of their cells, blood dried on the walls where they’d tried to get out… I’ll never forget it.”

“Why are people letting this happen?!” Lauren asked, trying to stop the tears.

John squeezed her hand, “we’ll bring it down. For Tay. For all of them that made it out, and for those who didn’t.”

“This is why you guys are preparing for me to take your kids and run, isn’t it?”

“I won’t let them go through what Taylor did. And I’m sure as hell not letting the people hunting me and Reese catch up with our girls.”

“Who’s hunting you?” Lauren asked quietly.

“A whole lot of people…” John muttered, focusing his senses for a moment to make sure no one was listening. “Before I tell you, I’m going teach you something.” He motioned for her to follow him outside. As he passed the kitchen, John grabbed a cloth to try and wipe some of the blood from his hands and arms.

Once they were a short distance away from the HQ, John turned to Lauren, “you ever tried to block a telepath?”

“Never met one until the other day.”

“Liar. Sonia’s a kind of telepath, just more noticeable in her method.” John shook his head with a smile at Lauren, “I’m going to teach you to shield your mind.”

The two spent hours training, not stopping even as the rain started pouring. Not even as Lauren began to tire.

Eventually, John was satisfied that she would be able to hide information. “You ever hear of A.I.M.?” Lauren shook her head, “Advanced Idea Mechanics. On the surface, they’re no different from any other think tank. Same as Trask or any of the others. Underneath, they’re tied to the black market, trading mutants for research.”

“Trading?”

John hummed, “if you’re a mutant who’s become a ‘problem’ for the government, they turn a blind eye when A.I.M. picks them up off the street. It’s been going unchecked for years. The government is just happy that it keeps A.I.M. off their back. These days, it’s run by a man better known as the White King. Clarice and I… we managed to get on his radar in a way no one wants. He saw Clare’s powers, had access to my military records, it piqued his interest. Clare took it as a challenge for a while, springing kids and people who couldn’t look after themselves from right under his nose. Pissed him off. He started digging into us, it’s why we started the Underground, the White King was getting too close to finding out about others.”

“Some old friends?” Lauren offered.

A smile fixed on John’s face when he realized who she meant, “that’s who we’re sending you to if shit goes south. Two people that acted as parents to your sister when she was at her lowest.”

“Which two? I met a couple of them growing up, I just… wanna know if I know ‘em.”

John sighed, “two that started as friends, became enemies, and are on the same side again now. One who was always the face, and one who ended up being right… they helped us get this started, wanted it to be a visible problem for the government. Government attention makes the White King back off, but he’s gonna be getting bored. The spy’s got us on edge.”

Lauren shot a look a John, “you think he was right in the end?”

“We’ve said it from the start, one’s an optimist, one’s a realist.” John shook his head “It becomes clearer with shit like the Citadel reopening. Shit never fucking changes. Someone always has a boot against their throat, and someone’s always wearing the boot.”

Lauren chuckled nervously at the notion before another question sprung in her mind, "I wanted to ask, why do you call Taylor 'Empty'?"

“She told you where the name ‘Taylor’ came from, right?”

Lauren nodded, “tailored training. I called her it a couple of times as a kid.”

“Well, Empty has a similar origin.” John sighed, "as a kid, she didn't like using the name her parents gave her, Peter started calling her M.T., Logan called her Taylor. I just called her Jackass." Lauren laughed at that, John smiled for a moment before his expression darkened, "when we rescued her from the Citadel, she would repeat two things: the number they called her and empty. I don't know if it was 'empty' or 'M.T.', but Empty... it stuck again, became her nickname, for a while, calling her that seemed to bring her back to her mind. Now it's just habit. There aren’t many people her call her Empty, I don’t think many people would get away with it… it’s mostly me, Gus, and Reese."

Lauren laughed for a moment before her expression softened, “John… do the twins know about the White King?”

John scoffed, “not a chance. We think he knows about them, though, we just hope we’re wrong.”

“This is why you’re all talking about revolution, isn’t it?”

Shrugging, John looked away from Lauren for a moment before meeting her eyes, “we can’t keep going like this, you’ve been here a couple of months and you’ve seen so much shit. We need a revolution… we need to give our kids lives, we need to have a life outside of this shit. We need a revolution, rebellion, whatever, to let the sun rise on a new world.”

“Time for a revolution to see everyone treated as people.”

*****

Gus hadn’t moved for hours, instead, he simply sat, his eyes locked on Taylor lying limp on the bed, her uninjured hand grasped in his while the other rested on a cushion. The silence was almost suffocating.

Eventually, the door creaked open to reveal John and Lauren, quickly followed by Clarice.

John brushed his fingers through Taylor’s hair before stepping back from the bed, “we got any idea what led to this?” He asked weakly, his eyes not leaving Taylor’s unmoving form. Gus just shook his head, there’d been no warning this time.

“It’s more than just Reed and Otto, though,” Clarice muttered, “if it was just them, she’d be angry and breaking things and pissing us off, not lying nearly dead after… that.”

“The Citadel?” Lauren offered, with all the new information she’d received, she couldn’t ignore what her sister had been through.

The trio shared a look at Lauren’s suggestion, they couldn’t deny the possibility, no matter how much they wanted to.

Wrapping an arm around John, Clarice tried her best to keep her emotions in check as she tried to stop John from doubting himself, “this isn’t your fault,” she whispered, knowing he’d hear it fine.

“We’re stopping the HOUND Program. We’re doing it now.” John growled. The others couldn’t bring themselves to argue.

“For Taylor.” Clarice muttered, her eyes focusing on the woman on the bed, not letting go of John.

“For those we couldn’t save.” Lauren added, a determination she hadn’t felt before filling her entirely.

“For those we did.” Gus wouldn’t let his wife’s suffering be in vain, he saved her with a promise to stop anyone from ever suffering the ways that she had.

“We start tomorrow.” John stated, “get some rest.” The trio left the room, leaving Gus at Taylor’s bedside.

*****

Lauren headed into the room she and her family were sharing, her mind spinning as she looked at her parents.

“Hey,” Caitlin murmured when she saw Lauren. Lauren didn’t respond as she settled on her bed, doing her best to ignore her anger as she thought more and more about what Taylor had been through.

“Lauren?” Caitlin tried again.

Lauren looked over to her mother, tears stinging her eyes, “don’t you ever stop and think that maybe you are one of the bad guys?” Lauren asked wearily, she didn’t know what to think anymore. “John told Dad that you guys are gonna leave when Tay wakes up. I’m gonna stay. I want to stay.”

Caitlin sat up, shaking her head, “Lauren, I’m not gonna let—”

“I’m not asking. I turn 18 in a month, you don’t get to make decisions for me anymore. I’m staying with my sister. I’m gonna fight for a better world than the one we live in.”

Caitlin flinched at Lauren’s words before urging the girl to sleep. Lauren scoffed and hesitated for barely a moment before turning her back to her mother.

*****

Clarice couldn’t sleep, she found herself watching John, trying to read his features as he feigned sleeping. “Beacon? Talk to me,” she whispered after a moment. John opened his eyes and looked over to Clarice, but he couldn’t find the words to speak. “Talk to me.” Clarice implored, searching his face for a moment.

John shook his head. “I can’t hear her.” His voice sounded empty in a way Clarice had never heard before, “for seven years, no matter what, I’ve always been able to lean on her voice when everything gets too loud. Had that white noise in the back of my mind. I’ve known that she’s safe because I can hear her… now, she’s gone. She’s just gone. I can’t bury her a second time. It’s… it feels like it did when they told me she was dead.” Pain flooded every word as he spoke.

“She’ll find her way back. She always does.” Clarice whispered, they both could only hope. She pressed a kiss against his cheek before resting her head on his shoulder, her arm wrapping around him, both of them falling back into their thoughts.

The sound of the door creaking open grabbed John’s attention, he moved silently, Clarice shifting off of his shoulder to let him more defensively.

“Daddy?” Came a little voice from the doorway.

John relaxed and dropped his head back against the pillow, “what’s wrong, Bug?” He asked quietly as Evie made her way into her parents’ room. John lifted her onto the bed as soon as she was close enough, settling her between him and Clarice.

“Auntie Tay’s hurt,” She whimpered around the leg of Bruno the Dinosaur in her mouth.

“I know, she’ll be ok, though.” Evie nodded as she cuddled against her father. Clarice hugged closer to her daughter as John draped an arm over the pair of them, letting them feel safe for one more night before they enacted the plan of declaring war on the government in the morning.

Several minutes passed when John felt something familiar seeking comfort in a distant part of his mind. Taylor reaching for him across impossible distances.

*****

Lauren tossed and turned for several hours before getting up and tiptoeing towards Gus and Taylor’s room, her mind not settling at the thought of her sister still being unconscious, her hand gripping her locket as she tried to remember the happy teenager in the woman who carried the weight of the world on her shoulders. Standing outside the door, Lauren prepared to knock when she heard the sound of sniffling, glancing around, her eyes eventually landed on a sight that made her heart break.

Imogen stood in the dark hallway, golden eyes locked on the door that would lead her to her parents, but her feet refused to go any closer.

“Immy?” The little girl looked up with tear filled eyes to her Aunt Lauren, she instantly raised her arms, wanting a cuddle. Lauren scooped the child up with no complaints, “couldn’t sleep?”

Imogen shook her head tiredly against Lauren’s shoulder, “monsters under my bed. Mommy can’t keep them ‘way tonight.” She sniffled, “Mommy’s really hurt, isn’t she?”

Hugging the girl tighter, Lauren kissed her hair, “she’s gonna be ok, your Mommy’s a fighter.”

Taking Imogen back to her room, Lauren wasn’t surprised to see Rose and Aurora both sat awake on Rose’s bed, both girls watching the door, waiting for either Evie or Imogen to return. Lauren let out a sigh as she settled Imogen on her bed, “can I keep the monsters away tonight?” She asked softly.

Almost immediately, Aurora and Rose ran over to Imogen’s bed and cuddled against Lauren, all three of the girls clinging to her as they began to fall asleep.

Imogen glanced up to Lauren with tired eyes, “keep Mommy safe too?”

Lauren nodded, “we’re all gonna keep your Mommy safe. And I’ll keep you guys safe too.” She whispered, silently swearing that she’d do everything that she could to protect them.

Chapter Text

Morning destroyed any sense of safety that had developed overnight. Caitlin searched the HQ, trying to find Lauren, wanting to clear the air with her youngest daughter after what Lauren had said during the night.

Instead of finding Lauren, Caitlin found John, “hey, have you seen Lauren?” She asked him, not really sure if she was expecting him to know.

John shrugged, “she was asleep in the girls’ room earlier, woke up when Reese took Evie in. She should be out soon.” Caitlin sighed, shaking her head, causing John to raise an eyebrow, “you good there?”

“I’m fine.” Caitlin stated, rolling her eyes when John raised an eyebrow, “you all treat Lauren like she’s an adult, or a soldier. She’s already convinced she’ll stay here when the rest of us leave. I don’t want to see my daughter get caught up in some war she has no place in. She’s not some revolutionist, and this isn’t some glorious rebellion building some new world order or whatever you’ve got her believing.”

John let out a breath, watching the woman as Marcos, Lorna, and Clarice made their way over to the pair. John glanced towards the room where Lauren was currently playing with the four girls, “she isn’t a soldier, we know that.” He began, “but you’re gonna have to realize, sooner or later, that Lauren isn’t the same kid that arrived here three months ago.”

Caitlin scoffed, “what? So, you all think that that means she can be another pawn in a fight against the government?”

“A government that is actively hunting her?” Lorna shot back, raising an eyebrow.

Marcos watched Caitlin’s expression shift between several shades of irritation, he let out a breath and tried a different approach, “we aren’t trying to make her a soldier, but she’s gonna be fighting, either with us or on her own. And this absolutely is a revolution, if we stop fighting, we’re hunted to extinction, we fight for our right to live, to build a new world, so yeah, it is a revolution.”

“All we’re doing is making sure that she isn’t being reckless. You guys need to stop treating her like she’s ten, otherwise you’re going to wake up one day and you won’t recognize her.” Clarice finished as Lauren came out of the girls’ room with Imogen on her back and the other three running off ahead.

Lauren glanced over to the group before heading towards Gus and Taylor’s room. She knocked on the door, not moving as Gus called for her to come in, eventually, the man came and opened the door, the irritation on his face melting away to sympathy as soon as he saw Imogen on Lauren’s back.

“She wanted to see Mommy.” Lauren stated, Gus held his arms out to Imogen who simply reached for him. Lauren hugged Gus briefly and he pressed a kiss into her hair as Imogen settled on his hip.

“Thanks…” Gus muttered, “for what you did last night.” Once Imogen was settled with Gus, Lauren headed to find her parents and Andy.

*****

Most of the HQ leaders stood with Esme and several others as they tried to formulate a plan for attacking Trask that didn’t wind up with them all dead. John, Clarice, Lorna, and Marcos couldn’t help but miss Lauren and Gus in that moment, the pair had a knack for crazy ideas that worked, but Gus was with Taylor and Lauren was with her parents and brother.

“We need to go after the Trask lab now! We have to rescue those people!” Esme exclaimed, drawing John back to the present.

Lorna scoffed, “‘have to’? You’re pretty new here to be telling people what they ‘have’ to do.” She commented.

“You don’t get it!” Esme yelled out, “My family is in there. They’re running out of time! You lot talk of revolution, but you’re just sitting here! We need to move. Now!”

“Slow down a minute,” Marcos commented, trying to ease the rising tempers.

“You got all that from the woman they sent after us?” John asked skeptically.

Esme glanced over to him, frowning at the exasperation clear on his features, “yes! I mean, her mind was hard to read… confused. But I got enough. The mutants in that lab… they were desperate. I… I could hear their screams. I could see the bodies. I could feel the agony when they turned that woman into that thing. And it’s all happening in that building!” She implored, trying to get them to understand.

John took a breath as he tried to clear his mind, as he tried to block the images his mind created of Reese, or their babies being tortured and turned into HOUNDs. He needed to be a leader right now, not a husband and father. He needed a clear head. “We know where this place is?” He asked, looking over to Sage.

“I’m assembling a site map now.”

“So why are we standing here?!” Esme demanded.

“Did you get anything on their security? On their number of guards and shift rotations? Anything like that?” John asked Esme, raising an eyebrow as he waited for her answer.

Esme deflated slightly, “no… her mind was too cloudy. But what does it matter?” She gained some confidence back, “we are the last hope those prisoners have! You saw what they did to Gus. If we sit on our hands, that’s going to happen to more people!”

The room tensed at the mention of what had happened to Gus. “No one is sitting on their hands,” John stated before glancing around the room, “after what happened to Taylor, we’re already planning an attack. We need to stop this.” Most of the room looked at John with wide eyes. Rather than addressing his friends, John turned to Esme, “I’ve done this sort of thing before. If we go in blind… we all die. Trust me, I’ve seen what those places are like, I want those prisoners out just as much as you do, if not more. But we cannot rush in. We do that, we die, we don’t get anyone safe.” Esme searched John’s face for a moment before nodding, apparently deciding she could trust him.

*****

The group dispersed and John headed into one of the more secluded areas of the HQ, trying to find a moment of peace before everything went to hell.

“Where’s your mind?” Clarice asked as she closed the door behind her, leaving the pair shut in one of the few empty rooms at the HQ.

“How can we do this? Maybe Esme has a point?”

Clarice watched John for a moment, “about Gus? Or about leaving people behind?” John flinching answered Clarice’s question, “who?”

“Take your pick. Jenkins and Scott in Afghan, Taylor when we were kids, Gus when he was shot, James… more than once.”

Clarice placed a hand on John’s cheek, “they were not your fault. If you’d have stayed with Jenkins and Scott, three of your squad would’ve died, not two. You were already in the corps when Taylor was taken. Gus chose to go back, and he eventually came home. And James… well, James is a little shit so deserves it on occasion, but he’s still your brother, you still talk to him all the time.” The pair let out brief laughs at that.

John finally met Clarice’s eyes, “it’s not just that… I keep… I keep thinking that you or the girls are at Trask, that you’re trapped there, and I can’t save you. I can’t get you home.”

“We’re safe, we’re here. Your daughters are probably wreaking havoc with Imogen and Aurora right about now.”

“My daughters?”

“If they’re causing trouble. My babies are angels.” Clarice laughed, relieved when John smiled as well. “We’re all fine, and Taylor will be too.”

John hesitated for a moment, “there’s something else, too. While we were with the others, I could feel Esme trying to reach into my mind.”

Tension filled Clarice in an instant, “she get anything?”

“No,” John stated simply, “the barriers held… but you and Gus don’t have those barriers, you only have the shields you’ve learnt, same with Lauren… Esme’s new here, I don’t want her finding out about certain past events.”

“So, we tread lightly, keep our guards up and minds loud. Drown her in the noise.”

*****

Deeper in the HQ, Lauren had hidden herself away with a tablet that Sage had given her and a notebook where she could note little pieces of information down. She was doing everything she could to prevent her parents from finding out about the research, trying to hide the fact that she was researching everything that she could find out about the Citadel.

Andy watched Lauren in confusion for a moment as she jotted something down in a notepad, “hey, what’s all that?” He called over after a moment, grabbing Lauren’s attention as he sat down beside her only for her to switch off the tablet and hide the notebook. Andy raised an eyebrow before speaking, “I can’t stop thinking about what Dad said.” He confessed.

“About Grandpa Otto being like us? Or the part where he said we were wrong?” Lauren scoffed, her eyes darting in the direction of Taylor’s room.

“It’s not just him, though,” Andy explained, holding a book out to Lauren, “here, check this out. I found it in the library.”

Lauren looked over to him in mocking disbelief, “you know where the library is here? Who are you and what have you done with Andy?”

“Ha, ha.” Andy deadpanned, “look, this section’s on the 1950s. Andea and Andreas von Strucker.”

“They called themselves "Fenris"?” Lauren asked as she read the first paragraph.

“Yeah, I think it means "wolf" in some language.”

“Oh, my God. They did that?” Lauren asked as she saw a picture of a completely collapsed building. She couldn’t help but think of the newspaper article that Taylor had once shown her about her and John being involved in a terrorist attack in Europe.

“Yeah. They combined powers by holding hands. They wiped out an entire building full of people in seconds.” Andy told her.

Lauren’s eyes stayed focused on the picture, “This is crazy. This is our family history.”

“Look, it says here they're ‘rumored to be part of a shadowy international organization called the Hellfire Club.’” Andy explained, reading more of the page.

“Does it say what happened to them?”

“I think they disappeared fleeing from the X-Men. They were some of the most powerful mutants ever. They all had code names, too, like chess pieces.”

“Yeah. It also says they were monsters.” Lauren pointed out, closing the book. She couldn’t help but think of the name John had told her, the White King… a chess piece.

“Well, I'm just saying...”

“I don't care.” Lauren cut off, leaving the room, taking her notebook and tablet with her.

Making her way to Taylor and Gus’ room, Lauren tried to wrap her head around everything she was finding out, both the Citadel and her family. Gus looked over to her as she pushed the door open, she gave him a small smile before looking at Taylor. “How is she?”

Gus let out a sigh, “she’s cold… she lost a lot of blood and we’re doing what we can, but…” Lauren’s eyes widened, “we’ve given her some blood. Clare gave her some about an hour ago, but her temp hasn’t recovered yet.”

“Is… is she usually this bad?” Lauren whispered, dreading the answer.

Gus gave a small laugh, “first time she did it, we all freaked out. Mama P… John’s mom, she got the four of us to clear our heads and get her to the clinic.”

“The four of you?”

“Yeah. Me, Clare, John, and James. He’s John’s little brother.” Lauren smiled and nodded; she hadn’t known that John had siblings. Gus smirked at her expression, “he and Tay used to cause no end of trouble together. Apparently, they were worse as kids.”

Lauren let out a breath before deciding to speak, “I’ve been researching the Citadel.” Gus’ eyes widened at her confession, “I saw some of the experiments… read the reports… how can anyone be ok with this?!”

Gus took her hand, giving it a light squeeze to try and settle her, “you wanna join the fight?”

Lauren nodded tightly, “I will if you will.” She stated, looking Gus straight in the eyes, letting him know that she was deadly serious. Gus nodded, leading Lauren out of the room, they needed to fight. For Taylor.

Chapter Text

John stood looking over Sage’s shoulder at the information she’d managed to dig up.  “I’ve been looking into the Trask lab,” she started, “This place is out in the middle of nowhere. There’s no information on it. But there is this.”

She pulled up some information only for John to look at her incredulously, “a bar?” He asked, “what good does that do us?”

Sage rolled her eyes, “I cross-referenced credit card activity with places near the lab, this place is popular with Trask employees.” She stated, smirking as the rest of the room seemed to catch on.

“I could go in,” Sonia offered, “pull information out of a guard or operations person.” John nodded tensely.

“I’ll go with you, for protection.” Marcos offered.

Lorna scoffed, “No. I will.” She stated bluntly, rolling her eyes.

Marcos raised an eyebrow and took her hand, “are you sure? You haven’t really been sleeping well.” He commented gently.

“I’m fine.” Lorna stated, but Marcos didn’t look convinced, “Marcos, if you wanna get information from a guy in a bar, you don’t send a girl and another guy. We’ll be fine.” She told him with a smile.

John watched the interaction with a smirk only to wince and have his knees give out. He stumbled to grab a hold of the table in order to stay upright. The group all gathered around him in concern, John tried to shrug it off, but he knew it was pointless.

“Taylor?” Clarice asked knowingly.

John gave a tight nod, “she’s coming back to herself,” he said through gritted teeth as he tried to adjust to the throbbing pain in his mind. Clarice grabbed over a chair for him until he managed to regain his mind, waiting for a moment as Taylor’s presence dulled.

Clarice turned away from John, looking over the group, “look, this isn’t a war we’re gonna win with standard warfare and fights. We need to get into the Trask offices, steal as much information as we can, learn everything they’ve done that violates international law.”

“Stir it up enough that no one can ignore what we’re up to.” Lorna added.

“That’s easier said than done, Love. If we attack Trask, and right now, that’s a hell of an if, we need to get Gus or Sage into their systems, Gus can get their papers, Sage can get anything kept on servers.” John said, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“So, we need to steal information from a guard, break into Trask headquarters, steal information on all their illegal activity, and then… what?” Marcos asked.

“Flood the world with it.” John stated as though it was obvious, “share it on every platform. Take a leaf out of the books of those who came before. We’ll show their dirty laundry on social media, the internet, hijack networks to flood platforms with whatever we find. Make it so the government has no choice but to force Trask’s closure.”

*****

Reed headed over to Caitlin, watching her silently as she cooked while his mind stayed focused on what his father had done,

“Hey,” Caitlin murmured as she noticed him, “hope you’re hungry, I have a non-dairy cheese and chive omelet with your name on it.” She grinned as Reed chuckled.

“How’re you handling all of this?” Reed asked her softly as he reached her.

“I know it’s not fair…” She began hesitantly, “but I… I keep thinking about how different everything would have been. I… if Lauren had told us she was a mutant.”

“Come on, we can’t go down that road.” Reed stated, trying to shake Caitlin away from where her thoughts were taking her.

“Or if your father would have just told everyone the truth. Our whole lives would be different. Your job. H-how we raised our kids. I mean, maybe we never would have sent Mackenzie…”

“We did the best we could.” Reed assured her, cutting off her rambling, “What about you? If… if you knew then what you know now… would you have done anything different? With us?” Reed asked uncertainly, he couldn’t ignore the question ricocheting in his mind.

“No.” Putting the omelet on a plate, Caitlin turned to Reed, “how’re you handling all of this stuff? And all the stuff with… Taylor?”

Reed shook his head, “I’d be lying if I said I didn’t feel guilty. I can’t help her, can’t even be there with her… they won’t want me there.”

Caitlin sighed, “I spoke with them all this morning… about everything with Lauren. They said we need to watch out before we don’t recognize her. I think they’re right. She’s becoming more a part of their little group every day. She told me that she wants to stay with Mackenzie… Taylor rather than leave with us when we go.” Caitlin refused to lose a second daughter due to a mutation.

“We won’t let her go. She’s still a kid.”

“Only for another month,” Caitlin said bitterly, “she reminded me of that the other night. She’s eighteen in a month, we won’t have any say after that.”

Reed stayed silent for a moment, trying to determine how to approach everything else he wanted to say, “Cait… there’s one more thing I haven’t told you.”

Caitlin looked over to him as Reed took a breath, “What else could there be?”

“My dad told me that his father and aunt… were terrorists.”

“What?!” Caitlin exclaimed, uncertainty filling her.

“They had the same powers as Lauren and Andy. And that when they combined them, they were massively destructive.”

“I… and you… you think Andy and Lauren can do the same thing?” She asked, completely lost.

“I don’t know.” Reed confessed.

“Well, we have to tell them.”

“Do we?” Reed argued, “isn’t that like handing them a loaded gun?” He wanted to protect his kids.

“Your father… he didn’t tell you he was a mutant, you think he did the right thing?” Reed let out a sigh as Caitlin watched him, “no more secrets, Reed.” Caitlin stated.

*****

John settled on the chair at Taylor’s bedside, pressing the back of his hand to her clammy forehead, frowning at her temperature. He gripped her left hand protectively after a moment, watching her as she lay unmoving.

“You doing ok?” Gus asked as he looked over from Taylor’s other side, Imogen asleep in his arms.

John nodded slightly, “how can we win?” He asked, letting every mask fall. He didn’t have to be fearless with Gus. Didn’t have to pretend that he had all the answers.

Gus moved over to John’s side and placed a hand on his shoulder, giving it a light squeeze, “we probably can’t. But we have to try. Us two probably more than the others.” Gus stated, “we’ve been fighting for so long… we can’t give up now.”

John just nodded, not entirely sure of what else to do as he squeezed Taylor’s hand, “we’ll fight this battle. We might win the war.” He muttered after a moment.

“Besides, I don’t know about you, but I still feel like I’ve gotta earn my forgiveness.” Gus muttered, “I mean, if half the people here knew who we ran with for a few years…”

“They’d hand us over to Sentinel Services themselves? Yeah, already thought of that one.”

Gus looked at John with determination settling in his eyes, “so we fight, fight to prove that we’re better than those bastards. Better than who we had to be in the past.”

“On that point, Reese says fill your mind with noise. We’ve got a telepath here, don’t know her loyalties yet, I don’t want anyone having blackmail material on any of us.”

“We know anything about this family of hers that’s in Trask?”

John shook his head, “no idea…”

“But you know something?”

John tensed slightly, his eyes darting to the door for a moment as he listened for any eavesdroppers. “You heard of Emma Frost?”

“Do I live under a rock? Of course, I know who Emma fucking Frost was. Why?”

“A little digging… an old friend told me once about how Emma’s cells were harvested, they wanted to make clones of her – a powerful telepath cloned to make a group that could hunt down mutants… sound familiar?”

Gus froze, his hold tightening on Imogen, “shit.”

“You remember her affiliations?” John muttered.

“Yeah, the chess board. You think Esme’s tied to your old adversaries?”

John shrugged, “don’t know. If she is, we’re fucked, in more ways than one. If she is, Lauren’s taking our three and vanishing, she knows what’s at stake. She knows the risks, she’s willing to take them.”

“You told her who it is?”

“Partially. Didn’t give her everything, just the White King. He’s low on the pecking order.”

“Yeah,” Gus muttered, brushing his fingers through Imogen’s hair, “my worry is everyone else. The King’s a coward, won’t touch you while the government wants you… the others?”

“I know.” John muttered. He knew just how many people were hunting him, knew the reason behind every single one. He scrubbed a hand over his face, “do you seriously believe we can remake the world?”

Gus smirked, “history’s been paying attention to you since you were a kid, Kid, it’s not looking away now. Don’t throw away your shot at changing the world. You and Taylor were built to lead us into a new dawn. I know a lot of people who’d follow you two into the mouth of hell and further if it meant seeing the world made anew in a way that saw everyone recognized as people. So, yeah, I seriously believe that you two can remake the room… if you stop believing you’ll fail.”

“It’s easy to say.”

“No, it’s not. I’ve been on the other side, Kid. Those bastards are terrified of the power you two hold. If you two speak, mutants all over the country listen and dance to your song. I don’t think your old friends had any intention of you or Taylor becoming as important as you have. You two hold the power of the future in your hands, but that doesn’t make it easy. It puts the weight of the future, of freedom, on your shoulders. The revolution will happen because you two are stood side-by-side. You two are the pair that will guarantee the future. You’ve got skin in the game, and you two know how to change the rules to make sure you win. You just need to remember that you’ve got that knowledge and power.”

*****

Lorna and Sonia had settled in the bar, talking to a security guard from the Trask facility. “So, you’re really in charge?” Lorna asked, “of the entire security system?”

The guard shrugged, “I mean, not like the boss boss, but of my shift? Yeah. Basically, I… I run it.”

“Hmm, wow, that sounds intense.” Sonia muttered, putting on a sultry voice that made Lorna want to roll her eyes.

“You don’t know the half of it,” the guard laughed, “The place is like a fortress. You know, automated guns, detectors…” He took a swig of his drink, “I shouldn’t be telling you any of this.”

“Must be so scary, working with mutants.” Sonia muttered, trying to keep him talking about Trask, “do you ever worry they’ll attack you?” She asked, moving closer to the man.

The man scoffed, “oh, they have a whole program in place to make them behave.” He assured her, “remember when they were calling themselves ‘homo-superior’? Well, they’re not so superior…” he paused to drink, “when you crack ‘em in the head with the nightstick. I mean, one good shot to the temple…” he didn’t notice the spoon molding around Lorna’s hand like knuckle dusters, “they drop.”

Lorna punched him, easily knocking the man out, “a little like that?”

“Lorna?! What the hell?!” Sonia exclaimed, glancing around to see if anyone had seen,”

“What?!” Lorna argued, “I was just teaching him to respect the genetically different.” She defended childishly. “Quit crying, nobody saw. Just do your thing.”

Sonia let her powers loose on the man, getting as much information as she could before nodding to Lorna. Lorna smirked, “give us anything to remember us by?” She asked.

“Mm, just a lonely night… till he cracked his head on a urinal.” Sonia snarked as the pair slipped out of the booth.

“Best girls’ night ever!” Lorna muttered as they left the bar, keeping to the shadows.

*****

At dawn, Caitlin and Reed headed down to the vaults, Andy and Lauren trailing behind them. The parents quickly informed the two teens about the von Struckers’ power.

“So, you guys are for real right now? Like seriously serious?” Andy exclaimed, not too sure what to feel about what he was hearing, especially after everything he’d read the other day.

“Yes,” Caitlin began, “that… that’s why we thought we should… deal with this as a family. I think we learned the hard way that discovering mutant powers by accident isn’t ideal.” Andy and Lauren shared a glance at their mother’s words.

“Look, it might be nothing,” Reed commented, trying to reassure them, “my dad could possibly be wrong. Just because the von Stucker twins could do it, doesn’t necessarily mean—”

“What if he’s right?” Andy interrupted, looking between his parents, “you want us to destroy something?”

Both Caitlin and Reed shook their heads, “that’s why we wanted to test it in the vault… just to…” Caitlin’s voice trailed off.

“To see if there’s anything there.” Reed finished.

The two teens held hands, neither looking overly impressed by the fact that they were having to hold hands. “So…” Andy began, “this is weird,” he muttered.

“But is… is there… anything?” Reed asked.

Lauren rolled her eyes, “yeah, Andy’s hand’s sweaty.” She complained, wiping her hand on her jeans.

“Okay. Well then, maybe there’s… there’s nothing to worry about. Maybe it’s nothing.” Caitlin commented, relief flooding her.

Andy glanced between his parents and sister, determined not to let this opportunity slip away. He needed to know, “no, wait. Just give it a chance, okay? Maybe we gotta, like, squeeze harder or something, actually want something to happen. Come on. Please? We got to try.” Lauren groaned but took Andy’s hand, nonetheless. A power began to flow through them, filling them, merging their minds.

“Hey. Hey!” Reed ripped their hands apart as the vault began to shake and separate.

“What happened?”

“I don't know. It was like... I could feel...”

“Everything around me.”

“All we had to do is push.”

“I-I don't understand. Did you use the power?” Reed asked.

“Dad... if we tried...”

“Did you feel that?” Lauren asked Andy,

“Everything coming apart?”

“Kids, what happened?” Caitlin asked.

“We were about to bring down the entire building. We would have killed everyone here.” Lauren whispered, looking at her hands.

*****

Lauren couldn’t breathe. That was what it felt like, at least, as she left the vaults. She needed to find John… or Clarice… or Gus. She needed them, they’d know how to deal with all of… this. Her mind moved on autopilot as she headed for Gus and Taylor’s room.

“Hey Kid.” Gus smiled as Lauren entered the room, “you’ll be pleased to hear that her fever’s broken.”

Lauren smiled briefly before remembering why she’d come looking for her friend, “I’ve got the Fenris power.” She whispered weakly.

Gus raised an eyebrow at her, “gonna need to clear something up for me, what’s a Fenris power?”

Lauren sighed as she collapsed onto the edge of the bed, “it’s what my grandpa’s dad and sister could do. They were terrorists, part of something called the Hellfire Club, used it to kill thousands. Felt like I could destroy everything with it. Andy has it too and we combine powers to summon it.”

“Your powers don’t make you who you are.” Gus assured her, moving from Taylor’s side to pull Lauren into his arms.

Lauren nodded against him, but she wasn’t convinced. “There’s something else too. It didn’t feel complete. The Fenris were two, right?”

Gus nodded in understanding, “you’re thinking that you guys need a third part. A third sibling.”

Lauren hesitated before nodding, “but I can’t imagine that Tay would want to use a power that allows her to destroy everything, to kill everyone.” The pair didn’t get to talk much more thanks to John coming into the room, summoning them to decide for attacking Trask.

Chapter Text

The group gathered in the tech room, Lorna and Sonia were speaking about everything they’d found out, but Lauren struggled to keep her focus. Her mind too caught up on Fenris and the Citadel and Taylor… everything was flooding her mind.

“Sonia and I have been going through the memories from the guard,” Lorna stated, dragging Lauren back to reality, “it doesn’t look good.”

John closed his eyes for a moment, “what’re we up against?”

“Well, the lab is hardened against mutant attack,” Sage explained, loading up a map of the facility, “they have motion and infrared sensors connected to heavy-caliber guns that are mounted all over the building.”

“Oh c’mon!” Gus exclaimed from where he was leaning on the table, “that’s child’s play!”

“And guns? I can handle guns,” Lorna commented with a nod, “let Gus focus on everything else.” The pair had always worked flawlessly on disabling guns and systems when working together.

Marcos, on the other hand, didn’t seem too convinced. He glanced over to the site map, contemplating the sheer number of guns on the facility. “We know you guys can do it, but it’s way too dangerous when there are this many, at this range.” Gus paused at his words, trying to think up another plan.

Lauren rolled her eyes, looking around, “Clare, could you get us past their defenses?” She asked, not waiting for the others to come up with an alternative.

Clarice shook her head, “no. It’s too far. I don’t know the first thing about the inside of that place. I could blink us into the middle of a concrete wall.”

“Okay… we won’t try that then…” Lauren muttered, Clarice and Lorna shared a smirk at their young friend’s comment. “We need to save the people inside, but it’s all pointless if we can’t get the information they’ve got hidden away.”

“There has to be something. A… blip a security, a gap the fence, there’s gotta be something, there’s always a way in.” John remarked, not willing to let this chance slip away.

Sage looked around the group, hesitating for a moment, “I did find one vulnerability.” She loaded up another site map, “there’s a power substation a few miles away. If we took it out, we could go into the lab before their systems came back online.”

“So, what are we waiting for?!” Esme exclaimed.

John shook his head, “with Taylor down, we don’t have enough heavy hitters to hit both places at once. We’re checking with other stations now.”

“Well, how long is that going to take? Because my family—”

“Listen, I understand… believe me.” John interrupted, cutting Esme off before she could truly start her rant, his eyes tracking every movement she made, watching for any slip up. He could feel her trying to push into his mind, but he wasn’t going to give her the satisfaction of letting her know. “This means as much to me as it does to you, but we are gonna get one shot at this. We can’t miss.” He told her with unwavering certainty. They wouldn’t miss. Not this time.

“So, to be clear: we’re breaking into a power station, so that we can break into Trask, so that we can steal information, so that we can plaster that info all over the internet, so the government has no choice but to shut down Trask, and the UN and NATO pretend they’re pro-mutant and turn attention to the US, so that we can take the first step in a revolution we’ve been planning for four years?” Marcos asked.

Gus nodded slowly, his face contemplative, “yeah, sounds about right.”

“We need a way into that power station,” John muttered, “one that doesn’t use me or Gus. If it uses you,” he looked over to Clarice, “would you be prepared to portal to Trask, help us get away with the information we need?”

Clarice nodded as Esme scoffed, “you’re prioritizing information?”

Clarice shrugged, “saving people is what we’ve spent the last eight years doing. It’s time to redefine what we do, it’s time we made a visible difference. That happens with incriminating information being flooded over the web.”

*****

Reed and Caitlin watched their kids, trying to gauge their reactions since Lauren returned from the group planning. Neither parent wanted to voice their concerns about Lauren getting in too deep with running the Underground. “So, what happened in the vault?” Reed asked them softly.

“What did you feel, exactly?” Caitlin pressed.

“Everything around us kind of... just disappeared.” Andy told them, glancing over to Lauren for confirmation, “and it's like, there wasn't two of us anymore. There was just one.”

Lauren nodded, “It's like... we were seeing out of the same eyes.”

“You said you could have destroyed a building.” Reed stated causing the pair to nod, “how did you know that?”

“I could feel it.” Andy stated.

Lauren rolled her eyes, taking over from Andy to explain it all, “Andy pushes things apart, right? I do the opposite; I can pull them together. Combined, it was like, we could do whatever we wanted. I mean, we were looking at the wall in front of us, and-and we could have just... vaporized it.” She told them, looking down at her lap.

Andy didn’t look as afraid as Lauren did, if anything, he looked intrigued to develop his new gift. “Maybe if we practice, we—”

“Practice?” Lauren exclaimed. She didn’t want to be the Fenris.

“What? We can do it; we might as well get better at it.” Andy defended, not ready to let this power go.

“You've been given a gift, and a power like that could hurt people, you can't just go around using it...” Reed argued, trying to get through to Andy.

Andy scoffed, glaring between his sister and his parents, “so we should just stuff it down and bury it, like your dad did? How’d that work out?”

“That’s way out of bounds, Andy.” Caitlin snapped, sending her son a warning glare.

“Mom, it’s who we are, ok!? It’s who I am!” Andy argued, trying to get the others to agree with him.

Reed let out a breath, “Andy, sometimes you can’t control your own powers.”

Andy froze, looking over to his father, betrayal and anger written all over his face, “I see, I’m just some kind of monster.”

“That’s not what he meant.” Caitlin stated, resigning herself to the brewing argument.

“At least you guys have one kid you can actually trust.” Andy snapped before storming out of the room.

*****

John silently made his way into Taylor and Gus’ room, watching Taylor’s motionless body as her voice repeated one phrase over and over in his mind, “I’m sorry.” John gripped her hand, whispering reassurances to her, both out loud and in his mind, trying to draw her back to reality, draw her away from the memories.

“Any luck?” Gus asked as he came back into the room from checking on Imogen.

John just shook his head, “it’s like… she’s right there, just below the surface, but I can’t get her to hear me.”

Gus took Taylor’s other hand in his, brushing her hair from her forehead, “I keep trying to think that she’s just sleeping… but then I’ll see her wrist and I remember.”

John looked down at the bandages, “we all thought she was getting better… She would let memories slip in her mind, let me see them when she was getting close to this… we were able to talk her away from the edge.”

“She protects the people she loves.”

John laughed slightly, “Lauren said the same thing.”

“Kid’s bright. Too bright.” Gus muttered, “you told her about the Citadel?”

“She has a right to know.” John defended.

Gus shot John a look, raising an eyebrow, “but Lorna and Marcos don’t? They’ve been playing this game a lot longer than Lauren. What’d you think Taylor’s gonna say when she finds out you told?”

“She has a right to know,” John repeated, “Lauren wants to be there for Tay, Empty wants Lauren there. We’ve got the information that stops Lorna and Marcos digging too far, we don’t have that for Lauren, there’s nothing we can use to stop Lauren turning. If we don’t give Lauren something, she’ll go digging into more unsavory territory. What’d you think happens when Lauren finds out we ran with the Brotherhood and the Liberation Front? Giving her the White King brought us some time, but it’s not a lot. Sooner or later, she’ll be pushing again.”

Gus let out a long breath, “and when she inevitably finds out what you and Tay have done since then? Word it how you want, you’re not interested in getting blackmail material on Lauren, you look at her the way you look at Tay or James. Whether you like it or not, Kid, she’s bonded with ya. You gained another little sister.”

“I know,” John muttered quickly, “know what’s worse? There have been times in the last two years when we’ve done things that…”

“That put you at the top of Most Wanted lists?”

“If we see any law change in our favor in our lifetimes, you and Reese could be cleared of all crimes. Same can’t be said for me and Tay. I’d burn the world if it meant you two, Lauren, and the kids could live normal lives. I’d cross every line we’ve drawn. I’d break the world to make it better for them. The worst part is that it doesn’t scare me.”

*****

Lauren followed after Andy, deciding that she needed to be the one to talk him down from his anger, “Andy… Andy!”

The boy eventually stopped, snapping around to face Lauren, “what?” He demanded, thunder in his eyes.

“You know Mom and Dad are just trying to protect us, right?”

“Yeah, yeah, I totally get it. I'm a freak because I don't hate my powers.” Andy offered condescendingly.

“Andy, it’s not… I don’t hate it, but that power… it could tear everything down in seconds… but it’s like there’s a piece missing.” Andy looked at her, confusion on his face, Lauren rolled her eyes before continuing, “look, the von Struckers were twins, right. Two siblings. We’re three. No matter how much you try and pretend that Taylor isn’t your sister.”

Andy flinched at the accusation but couldn’t deny it. “So what? She’s the third piece?”

“I don’t know.” Lauren whispered, “if she is, we could do anything…” And that thought terrified her to no end. “And… just so you know, I think you’re about the only kid Mom and Dad are proud of right now. I think they either hate me or hate what I’m doing, either way, I’ve got no interest in changing my mind.”

“About what?” Andy asked cautiously.

Lauren drew in a breath, “about the side I’m on in this war.”

*****

The group gathered in Taylor and Gus’ room. All settling around Taylor in a small circle. “Are you sure we can’t take the substation?” Lorna asked for the tenth time that minute. Gus smiled at her persistence; the pair were more than willing to try taking out the security at the Trask facility.

“There won’t be time for us to knock out their systems and get back before their back-up comes online.” John pointed out for the third time.

“I can knock out all their systems.” Gus offered with a borderline manic grin.

John shot a glare to his best friend, “yeah, and with Tay like this, you’re gonna be distracted, which’ll get you killed. How many lives have you got left?” Gus opened his mouth to protest, “Don’t try to deny it!” John commented before Gus could speak, “means your powers won’t be as stable. We’ll need you on your A-game.” Gus just rolled his eyes.

Gus went to refute, but stopped dead when the door flew open, “I don’t like it!” Lauren exclaimed as she collapsed on the chair next to John. The rest of the family looked at her in confusion, waiting for her to continue. Lauren rolled her eyes, “when Andy and I hold hands, we’ve got this… ability to destroy everything. Andy wants to practice with it…”

“But you don’t.” Marcos finished, “y’know, no one can make you do it.”

“But Andy—”

“No, screw that.” Clarice interrupted, “if you both have this power, you either both want to practice it, or you don’t do it. Even he can’t force you.”

Lauren nodded, then hesitated, “but what if it could help get everyone out of Trask?”

John gave her hand a squeeze, “we’ll figure it out.” He assured her as Gus gave a nod, “we’ll rescue everyone, but we don’t sacrifice ourselves in the process. No ghosts, no heroes, remember?”

“Besides, you’re part of this group now. Saw it on a Sentinel Services report, they’ve ditched the idea of the ‘Core Six’, they prefer ‘the Silver Seven’ now.” Gus said, the group laughed slightly at that, almost lightening with amusement before they remember where they are, “feels fitting. In a way.”

John smirked, “heard from Malachi, apparently Sentinel Services thinks it’s a fitting name.”

“I don’t like it,” Clarice muttered, “sounds shit. Like we’re trying to be something we’re not.”

“That’s exactly why they’ve given it to us.”

Lauren’s eyes darted over to Taylor, watching her silently for a moment, “how long is she…” She couldn’t bring herself to finish the question.

“How long is she usually out for?” John finished for her. Lauren, Marcos, and Lorna all nodded.

“It depends…” Clarice muttered.

Gus gave a shrug, “her fever’s broken, so she should come round soon.”

A brief comfort washed over the room, a sense of certainty despite everything that could collapse in the next few days.

Chapter Text

An almost eerie silence washed over the group of friends sat around Taylor’s bed. It was odd, in a way, for all of them to be silent like this. It boarded on overbearing. They weren’t silent because hearing was too much for John, it wasn’t thanks to a child being cuddled up asleep on a parent’s chest… it was a silence born of fear, something so unfamiliar for them all. An edge of it was filled with tension, a tension born from knowing how much the others didn’t know, whether it be about spies or secrets. There was too much unknown between all of them for the tension to be able to drop.

A knock at the door broke the suffocating silence lingering in the room, making the group share a look as the door opened slightly, revealing Esme, “hey, I hope I’m not interrupting…” Gus shook his head, motioning for her to come in, “I was thinking, maybe there’s a way for us to knock out the power station,” she offered, focusing her attention on Lauren.

“Me and Andy,” Lauren muttered, trying to settle her apprehension for the power she and her brother shared. Esme nodded while the rest of the group turned their attention to Lauren.

“You sure?” John asked, his stomach tying in knots at the thought of putting Lauren in unnecessary danger. It tied tighter when he realized no one had informed Esme of the power.

“Can you think of a better plan?” Lauren shot back, “you showed me the Citadel and everything they did. Trask can’t be much better if they’re willing to do all this. I want to fight. For all the older sisters that get shipped off to Hell. I wanna fight for people like us.”

Gus and John shared a look, a look filled with pride and apprehension. John went to speak but was cut off when a pressure entered his mind.

“No, no… you can’t have her! Leave her alone! I’m sorry. Hurt me, not her!”

The unbridled panic that radiated through his mind made John freeze, silently, he reached for Taylor’s hand, “No one’s hurting Lauren. She’s safe. I’ll make sure it stays that way. On my life, Taylor, I’ll keep her safe.”

“No! They’re coming! They’re coming for her! They won’t stop!”

The room watched John closely, none of them speaking as they waited for him to fill them in. “I think she can hear us,” he told them after a moment, “I think she could hear something about Lauren being in danger… it’s freaking her out.”

Clarice let out a shaky breath, “guess the fever’s not entirely gone, then,” she kept her eyes fixed on her best friend, resting the back of her hand on Taylor’s forehead briefly.

Gus shook his head before noticing the confusion on some of the others’ faces, “sometimes, when she’s been in a fever state and hasn’t fully recovered, she can register some of what’s happening around her but not everything, so her mind fills in the blank, making terrifying hallucinations.” Letting the room settle for a moment, Gus turned his attention back to Lauren, “you think that you can convince your folks to let you and Andy take out the substation?”

Lauren nodded slowly, “I’ll give it a go.”

“Clare and Sonia will be with you at the station, for protection,” John stated, not wanting to take any chances. “When it’s done over there, Clare will get you guys out, then she’ll join us. We’ll get the mutants, get the information we need, then get the fuck out of there.”

*****

The room cleared as they headed to find Sonia and the Struckers, all of them hesitant to leave Taylor alone, but all of them comforted by the fact that John would know if she needed anyone.

It didn’t take them long to find the three Struckers or Sonia, gathering them in the tech room to go over the plan. “We need you to do the same thing to the substation transformers that you did to the prison convoy bus,” Marcos told Andy and the Strucker parents, Lauren was already fully onboard with the plan, working with Clarice to figure out a way through the substation.

“We know it’s asking a lot, but we just don’t see another way,” John told them softly, both to try and convince the Struckers and lessen his growing migraine, Taylor was still rambling incoherently in his mind.

Reed sighed slightly, not fond of this plan, “look, we want to help, but why does it need to be Andy and Lauren?”

“Well, because we need everyone else with combat powers to attack the lab,” Lorna commented from where she was sat on the table semi-helping Clarice and Lauren.

“We think that we can take down the power station without putting them at any risk,” John offered, attempting to reassure the parents.

Caitlin and Reed were looking less and less convinced of the plan with every passing word, “so, exploding high-voltage transformers is the safe job?” Caitlin asked condescendingly.

John couldn’t help but roll his eyes, “in this case, yes,” he muttered, trying to focus on Taylor’s voice in his mind, trying to settle her to alleviate the pressure.

Noticing John slipping slightly, Marcos took over explaining everything to Reed and Caitlin, “Sage hacked the security station, we know the station has only got a handful of guards. Clarice will get everyone inside, Sonia will guide them,” he told them gently, they really didn’t have another option if the Struckers refused.

“We’ve been through every option, this is the only one that works,” John told them, drawing back from trying to settle Taylor.

“I’m down,” Andy said with a nod, not giving his parents a chance to argue.

“Let’s do it.” Lauren grinned as she joined the group, standing between John and Gus.

Reed looked between his two kids, tensing at the sheer determination in their expressions, “okay,” he relented, “but Caitlin and I need to be the ones monitoring the security.” He kept his focus on Gus and John, making sure that they knew how serious he was.

“If our kids are there, we are, too.” Caitlin added, stepping up beside her husband.

Gus nodded once, “Sage’ll set you up, show you what you need to do.”

As Sage moved to explain the system to Caitlin and Reed, John looked around the group, “alright, everyone get ready, we head out in one hour. Scatter in the wind, let’s make ‘em nervous.” He watched silently as the group dispersed.

*****

Lauren waited until she and John were the only ones left in the room, shifting side to side on her feet as she waited, not overly sure how to work her questions, “those people… at the Citadel… that was her, wasn’t it?”

John let out a breath, he wanted to say that the question had caught him off guard, but he’d been expecting it since he told Lauren about the Citadel. Without speaking, he motioned for Lauren to follow him, leading her up to the roof.

Once they were settled, and John was certain that no one was eavesdropping, he turned back to Lauren, “look, ask whatever questions you want to about the Citadel, I’ll answer them as best as I can, but know that I might not be able to answer all of them.”

“She killed all those people, didn’t she?”

“She didn’t mean to. And not all of them are dead,” John assured her, trying to get the frown off of Lauren’s face, “but it’s why she blames herself. She does everything she can to try and protect the people here because she knows the cost of failing. She doesn’t think that she can ever make amends for what happened with the Survivors, but she tries.”

Lauren tilted her head slightly, “what did happen?”

“Don’t know,” John felt awful at how easily lies rolled off his tongue these days, “it’s not her favorite topic, but I know bits and pieces. She was chained to a bed in a cell for a full year after the Tragedy, the corpses of the doctors were still in the cell with her.” John paused when he saw the tears in Lauren’s eyes, “it’s not something she likes to talk about all that much, but if you ask her, she’ll tell you some of it.”

Lauren nodded, her mind spinning, “how’d you find her?”

John froze, his mind flooding with memories he tried desperately to forget, memories of bodies, the smell of rot, the sight of a girl he recognized… “Gus and our squad… we were home on leave, at a bar not too far away. I heard Tay whispering in my mind, begging for help. The pain… the pressure of her agony, it nearly knocked me out. Gus and I were the only ones who could get through the wall of pain she was creating. We found her in her cell…” John’s voice trailed off, not too sure if he wanted Lauren to know the rest of it. The condition they’d found Taylor in… there were some memories that he would never forget. “Go get ready to head out” he told her, pulling her into a hug for a moment before leading her off the roof.

*****

Once back inside, John sighed when he noticed Marcos heading towards him, “what’s up?” He asked, hoping to sound nonchalant.

Marcos looked John over for a moment, “Lauren mentioned you telling her about the Citadel. Is… what’s happened?”

John let out a breath, “after Taylor… hurt herself, Lauren wanted to know what her sister had been through. I told her about the Citadel, told her what I know, what is officially known, and things to help her understand what happened to Taylor.”

“You didn’t tell me or Lorna anything.”

John raised an eyebrow, “you’ve spent two years thinking that Taylor’s been lying about what she went through. Lauren is Taylor’s sister, she’s also been Taylor’s grounding rock for the last three months, she’s listened to Taylor about the Citadel, never called her a liar for any of it. Marcos, Taylor keeps you two away from the Citadel because of what she experienced. Lauren is told about it for the same reason.”

Marcos laughed emptily, “I remember when we first met, you guys talked about how you were the only ones left to tell the stories of the ‘ones who fell’. It’s that thing with you four… well, five… isn’t it? We don’t control who live, who dies, or who’s left to make sure the world doesn’t forget your story.”

“You and Lorna have each other, have Rory and a baby on the way. There’s shit we’ve got in our pasts that we cannot bring you two into.” John said with as much sincerity that he could muster, “I can’t throw our shit at you and Lorna, you’ve got your own enemies, your own ties to darker or twisted groups, you don’t need our ones adding onto it.”

*****

Clarice and John both made sure that they had everything prepared to head out before they went and found the twins.

“Promise you’ll be careful, really promise,” Evie begged with teary eyes.

John pulled Evie into his arms, holding her gently as Clarice hugged Rose, “we’ll be back before you know it, Trouble,” he assured her, rubbing her back as she latched her arms around his neck and buried her head in his shoulder. Clarice hugged Rose just as tight, keeping her against her chest as she signed against the little girl’s back, reassuring her that they’d stay safe.

*****

After several minutes with the twins, John headed for Gus and Taylor’s room, he needed to see her once more. He smiled slightly as Gus headed out of the room to find Imogen, leaving John alone with Taylor. John couldn’t help but chuckle to himself at how quick Imogen had managed to have Gus wrapped around her little finger again.

His train of thought stopped abruptly when he felt a twitch against his hand, “Taylor?” He whispered, reaching for her mind as he squeezed her hand.

Taylor’s eyes briefly scrunched shut before cracking open slightly, “I’m sorry,” she croaked after a moment, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” she kept repeating the same words over and over.

John brushed Taylor’s hair from her face, making her look at him, “don’t. Don’t ever apologize for struggling. You’re ok, you’re gonna be ok, that’s what matters. It’s gonna be ok.”

“I should’ve said…” Taylor’s voice trailed off to a sob.

“No, no… you’re alive, that’s what’s important. We’ll help you through this.” John squeezed her hand, “I’ve got you, and I’m not going anywhere, not now, not ever.” He pressed a kiss to her forehead as she gripped his wrist.

Gus made his way back into the room, freezing in the doorway when he saw Taylor awake, his heart warming as she reached for him, her heart reaching for his while her mind reached for John’s. Gus was at her side in an instant, “hey Darlin’… how’re you feeling?”

Taylor began apologizing all over again as Gus ran his fingers through her hair.

*****

It took John and Gus several minutes to settle Taylor and fill her in on the plan. “I should be out there with you!” She argued immediately, “I can get the info to incriminate these bastards much better than you can!”

John scoffed, rolling his eyes, “you’ve just regained consciousness,” he pointed out.

Taylor deflated slightly as the door opened to reveal Clarice, “come to say a final farewell?” Taylor croaked, struggling slightly to sit up.

“Hopefully not,” Clarice grinned, launching herself at her best friend, breathing a sigh of relief at the sight of Taylor awake and already bickering with Gus and John.

Hugging Clarice for another moment, Taylor nodded to John and Gus, “I’ll keep the girls safe,” she assured them, silently assuring her boys that she’d stay at the HQ.

“And I’ll keep our newest sister safe,” Clarice told Taylor with as much conviction as she could muster, remembering what John had said earlier about Taylor panicking.

Taylor smiled gratefully before scoffing, “what’s the point of being the face of a revolution if you’re not on the front lines?”

“Easy, you’re one of the Silver Seven, there are six others to be on the front lines instead.” Clarice joked.

Taylor pulled a face, “that’s what they’re calling us now? The Silver Seven?”

“Yeah, apparently us picking up strays with Wren helping us… and doing some petty crimes with her involved… has given Sentinel Services the impression that she’s one of our crew.” John muttered.

Taylor rolled her eyes, “well, maybe she is. Keep her safe.”

A few minutes later, the door cautiously opened again, and Lauren entered the room. As soon as Lauren saw her sister awake, she was at Taylor’s side. John and Clarice gave silent smiles as they followed Gus out of the room, leaving the two sisters alone.

Pressing a kiss into Lauren’s hair, Taylor began instructing Lauren, “be careful out there. Stay focused. If things feel like they’re going too well, they’re about to go wrong. If things go south, get out. If you can’t get out, never let them know that you’re scared. Trust your instincts, they’re your best friend,” Lauren nodded, fear filling her face, she knew Taylor saw it, “look, I know you’ve been researching the Citadel… Lauren, everything that happened—”

“Wasn’t your fault,” Lauren stated, leaving no room for argument.

“Yes, it was. I killed them.”

“No, they tortured you and made you into a weapon that didn’t have a choice.” Lauren’s eyes darted down to Taylor’s bandaged forearm.

Taylor followed her sister’s gaze and rolled her eyes, “it’ll be all healed by the end of the week. The fucking barcode grows back with it.” Lauren nodded just as Gus came into the room, telling them it was time to go.

The group, the family, all gathered around Taylor’s bed one last time, all of them silently waiting to see who would move first. Eventually, Gus slipped off his wedding ring and dog tags, dropping them into the tin box on Taylor’s lap. John was quick to follow, taking off his wedding ring, dog tags, and pendant, and placing them all in the box. Clarice’s wedding and engagement rings followed right after.

“Lose the locket, Little Bird,” Taylor ordered Lauren, Lauren shook her head, “if you get captured, they’ll take it from you, and you’ll never see it again. It’s also a clear giveaway to them for your weak points.” After a moment, Lauren dropped her pendant into the box and Taylor closed the lid, the click loud in the silence of the room.

“We’ve got two teams, Tay. Name ‘em.” John muttered, watching Gus mess with his rifle.

Taylor considered for a moment, “Team Firestorm, Team Flyby. Firestorm’s hitting the power station, Flyby’s getting the information we need from Trask.”

“No ghosts.”

“No heroes.”

Chapter Text

Gus, John, Esme, Lorna, and Marcos arrived at the Trask facility only to be instantly flooded with a growing sense of trepidation. Gus and John headed for the fence, checking to see if they could get an idea of the danger they’d be facing. Gus checked his gun and ammo several times as he tried to settle his nerves.

John watched on with a raised eyebrow as Gus clenched a fist to stop his hand shaking, “care to share?”

“Not really.” Gus glanced over, knowing John wasn’t going to drop it, “being back here,” he sighed, “it’s just tough, ok? I’ll be fine.”

“This is gonna be tough without Taylor.” Marcos muttered as he joined the pair.

“Yeah,” Gus scoffed, “she’d take out the guards and I’d be able to deal with all of their systems. You guys would be in and out without us needing to touch the power station.”

Marcos settled in the hedgerow with John and Gus, his eyes fixed on the space between the fence and the facility, “That’s a long stroll from the fence to the building.” He muttered.

“Well, we knew it wouldn't be easy.” John told him, not taking his eyes of the building, watching the patterns of movements that the guards made.

Marcos raised an exasperated eyebrow, “yeah. Says the bulletproof guy.”

Gus just let out a laugh, “I’ll take out every gun as soon as we move. You guys keep me alive; I’ll get you inside.” Gus muttered, his attention returning to attempting to sense the automated guns arming the building.

“Got it, Pulse.” Marcos shot back, his eyes fixed on the building.

“And now we wait.” John stated, keeping his fingertips on the ground, and focusing on hearing the guards. Gus quickly alerted the others that they were in place.

*****

Back at the car, Esme and Lorna were grabbing everything they would need. Esme dropped one of the boxes only for it to be caught by Lorna’s powers, “that’s a detonator.” Lorna commented, “drop it too fast and this ends quickly.” Esme tensed, terror clear on her features. “You seem a bit jumpy. Have you ever done anything like this before?” Lorna asked gently, they needed Esme to be in control of her emotions right now.

“Not exactly.” Esme confessed.

“Okay, before we go in there, you got to understand something. When the shooting starts, everything changes. If you're not ready, then I—”

“I... I am ready.” Esme interrupted, “I just, I slipped. Okay?”

“Look, if you're here because you think this is gonna be some adventure, you're making a mistake.” Lorna told her before turning away.

Esme’s eyes glowed blue as she read Lorna’s mind, seeing the night that Lorna had been arrested, and Marcos had been shot. “Hey. Have you ever been so angry about someone you love getting hurt that you would do anything to stop the pain?” Lorna nodded tensely, “that's why I'm here. For the people I love in that building. I can't leave them. They're a part of me.” Lorna studied Esme for a moment before returning to prepping the supplies.

*****

The group heading to the power station were still a few miles out when Gus radioed, Reed glanced over to his two younger children, both looked determined and focused. “What we're doing here, it's a parent's worst nightmare.” Caitlin told them, grabbing her kids’ attention.

“We can handle—” Andy began, only to be cut off by Reed.

“Andy, we know. We know you can. We're doing this because we trust you.”

“Hey, Struckers, heads up. We're here.” Clarice called from the front of the van.

Reed quickly dialed Sage, “We're ready.”

“She’s bypassing the firewall.” Came Taylor’s voice.

“You should have picture in three, two, one.” Sage finished just as the security feed loaded on the screen in front of Reed and Caitlin. “I looped the camera feeds so security can't see our team. But they'll notice eventually, so be quick.” Sage explained to them.

“Comms in, guys. I wanna be able to talk to you all.” Came Taylor’s voice again.

Reed ended the call as the groups all put in their comms.

“Got ya Python.” John’s voice echoed through the comms.

“Loud and Clear, Thunderbird.”

“I’m online.”

“With ya, Blink.”

“Ahoy morons!”

“Hi Polaris.”

“I feel like I need to be sensible. And Python, you’re supposed to be resting.”

“Online Pulse. And I’m sat down. I said I was staying back, not sitting with my thumb up my ass while you lot are out there dying.”

“Great, everyone’s here, and we’re not gonna die.”

“All good Eclipse.”

“Right here, Python.” Reed said, wincing at the use of his eldest child’s alias.

“Got you, Marionette.” Reed and Caitlin shared a look at the name Taylor gave them.

“We’re here too.” Lauren stated, glancing around as her parents tensed.

“Happy days, Little Bird,” Lauren smiled at the old nickname Taylor used for her, “remember what I told you. Stay alive, stay smart.”

“Good to go on this end. I’ll keep them safe.” Sonia stated as she fixed her comm.

“Ok Dreamer. Everyone’s connected, ready to go.”

“No ghosts,” They heard John say.

“No heroes.” Clarice finished, eyeing up everyone else in the van.

“Don’t try to be. Stay alive, stay smart. I want all of y’all back here later, telling me heroic tales of saving people.” Taylor reminded them stubbornly.

“What’s the code word?” Marcos asked.

“Rochambeau means go.” Clarice said, a slight smirk on her lips.

“Jenga means everything’s gone tit’s up and we need to run.” Gus added.

“Separating to two links.” Taylor said, laughing for a moment. “Ok, Firestorm? Rochambeau.”

The group attacking the substation stopped being able to hear the group at the facility once Taylor had finished speaking, Clarice and Sonia shared a look at the unnerving silence that filled the comms. With everyone connected by comms, Caitlin and Reed hugged both their kids while Clarice held open a portal, Sonia instantly leapt through while Reed and Caitlin said goodbye to their kids.

“Um, guys?” Clarice called over, grabbing their attention, “it's a little trickier than holding an elevator. Can we hurry this up please?” The two siblings leapt through, and the portal snapped shut as Clarice followed them.

The group stood in an empty corridor, none of them too sure of which way to go. “Hey. Can you hear me okay? We made it inside.” Sonia asked over the comms.

“We can hear you just fine.” Reed said.

“Got ya, Dreamer.” Taylor echoed a moment later.

“Alright, we're going in.”

“Hold on. There are some workers in the hallway in front of you.” Reed told them, the group all froze, waiting for the all-clear, “okay, you're clear.” The group continued down the hallway.

Clarice shot a glance over to Sonia, “sure you know where you're going?” She asked quietly, not too sure how far away the workers were.

“Um, pretty sure. The guard I borrowed the memory from had only been here a few times, so it's a little hazy.” Sonia muttered.

“The transformer we need to take out is in the middle of the building.” Clarice told them, glancing around to make sure that there was no one behind them.

“So, why didn't you just portal us there?” Andy asked as though it was obvious, Clarice didn’t bother to hide her eyeroll.

“Hold up, there's a conference room on your right.” Caitlin’s voice echoed over the comms.

“Can you make a portal through a hundred walls into a room you've never seen before and land safely next to a high-voltage transformer?” Clarice asked indignantly, stopping at the back of the group as Caitlin gave the all-clear.

“No.” Andy stated bluntly.

“Yeah. Neither can I.”

“Incoming, door to your left.” Reed’s warning was too late.

As soon as Reed finished speaking, a security guard came around the corner, “what are you doing here?” He asked, his hand going for his gun.

“Oh, did they not call? From the front desk?” Sonia asked innocently.

“No, I didn't get a call. Hang on just a sec.”

“Come on. You remember me.” Sonia let her powers work on the man, “or maybe you don't remember.” She whispered as the pink mist dissipated.

The man pulled out his gun, fear and confusion in his eyes as he ditched them in the bin before practically running from the corridor.

“Nice job Dreamer.” Taylor complemented as the group continued to move through the winding corridors.

*****

At the Trask facility, John turned to the group, the plan set in his mind, nobody looked overly confident about what they were about to do. “Alright, remember, once the Struckers take down the transformer at the power station, we only have three minutes to get the charges up by the automated guns and get inside Trask.”

“I’ll be able to hold most of the systems offline, you guys need to deal with the guns further away.” Gus told them.

Marcos scoffed, “Don't forget about the part where if we're off by a few seconds, we all get slaughtered.” Gus rolled his eyes and shared a smirk with John.

“Marcos, not helpful.” Lorna scolded, motioning to Esme who looked terrified.

“I'm sorry, it's just, look, once we get in there, we don't know what we're doing or where we're going.”

“Well, that's why she's here.” John said, motioning to Esme.

“First, we free the prisoners.” Esme stated, looking directly at the building, “then we destroy the mainframes and the research.”

“Yeah, right. So, these prisoners... how do you know they're gonna help us?” Lorna asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Believe me, they'll help.” Esme stated ominously. John glanced back to Gus as Taylor’s worry continued to grow in his mind.

*****

Reed and Caitlin watched the group move through the empty corridors, muting their comms for a moment, “they’ll be ok.” Reed attempted to assure his wife.

“Yeah. When you used to go on busts, how'd... how did you deal with it... the nerves?”

“The first few times, I... I threw up.” Reed confessed, looking slightly embarrassed.

“Really? You never told me that.” Caitlin exclaimed.

“Well, we were still dating. I was trying to impress you. Granted, we already had Taylor, but… I found that if I focused just on my plan, it got better. Now, our plan is to watch over the kids. To keep them safe. We'll get through this.” Caitlin nodded but didn’t seem overly convinced as she unmuted the comms and returned her attention to watching the kids.

Caitlin watched the computer screen for a few minutes until she saw something dart around the edge of one of the cameras, “oh my god.” She muttered as she filtered through the rest of the cameras to try and find what she’d seen. Reed turned to her while Taylor shouted for a report over the comms, knowing that just the two in the van would hear her.  “Reed! Look.” Caitlin exclaimed when she found the Sentinel robot scurrying through the building.
“Sonia! Get out of there! Now!” Caitlin yelled.

*****

Sonia winced at the urgency of Caitlin’s voice, turning to look in every direction at Caitlin’s warning, “I don’t understand, what’s going on?”

“There are Sentinel robots and armed teams in the building!” Reed yelled over the comms.

The group set off in a dead sprint, Sonia at the front and Clarice at the back. Clarice was trying to open a portal, but she couldn’t find the way out.

“Blink! Focus!” Taylor yelled in Clarice’s ear. This had happened before. The day she lost Gus.

Andy kept shouting that they had to get the transformer, but Clarice was adamant that there wasn’t time.

“There are too many hallways, I don’t know…”

“Blink, they’re in the next corridor!” Taylor yelled.

“Run! Just run!” Clarice demanded of the other three, they took off sprinting again. Clarice didn’t move fast enough. One of the robots pushed her to the ground and pinned her down. Clarice closed her eyes, “Jenga.”

*****

Taylor watched in horror as her best friend was pinned by the robot, “Clare!” She yelled, her breathing labored as she tried to calm herself.

“Taylor? What’s happening” John’s panicked voice flooded her mind and ear.

“Jenga! They’ve got them. You guys get out. Now!” Taylor watched as Sonia trapped herself, letting the kids run through the basement parking lot and hopefully escape, “Sonia!” Taylor yelled. She watched as Clarice was cuffed and agents advanced on Sonia. “Little Bird, get out of there!”

Moments passed before Lauren and Andy were gripping each other’s hands and gold light surrounded them. Andy yanked his hand free from Lauren’s only for agents to surround the kids and force them to their knees, locking collars around their necks. Taylor screamed for her sister as she watched the comm get yanked from Lauren’s ear.

*****

Over at the Trask facility, John’s blood ran cold, “we’ve gotta go, they know we’re here.” He told them, “They’ve got Reese, Wren, Andy, and Sonia.”

Gus grabbed Esme while John made sure that Lorna and Marcos got away. “Operation’s blown, you’ll die.” Gus told Esme as he grabbed her in a fireman’s hold and carried her away, running for the cars.

“Let’s move.” John called, climbing into the driver’s seat, and speeding for the HQ.

*****

Taylor watched in horror as her little sister and best friend were loaded into the transport with Andy and Sonia.

“Tay, talk to me. Get me home.” John’s voice was filled with unbearable panic.

“She’s alive, they’re ok, they’re not hurt. We’ll get them home. Get back here John!” Taylor’s mind ran away with her as she ran outside, screaming as her powers spun around her, the intensity was beyond foreign, but the tendrils of agonizing energy were a familiar comfort. The rain lashed against her as she fell to her knees.

She’d lost them again. They’d failed. They had one shot, and they missed. Drastically.

Chapter Text

John pulled the car up to the front of the HQ, he needed to see his girls. He ran into the HQ, not stopping to check on anyone else as he pulled the twins into his arms, his breathing steadying slightly as he held his daughters.

“Where’s Mommy?” Rose asked, glancing around.

“We’ll bring her home, Rosie.” John assured her, “I need to go talk to Auntie Tay.” The girls nodded but didn’t look too happy to let go of their father.

It took John several minutes to find Taylor on her knees in the rain. His anger echoed in the thunder rumbling above them as it bubbled over inside him, “hey. What the fuck happened?!”

“I don’t… I can’t… John…” John heard Taylor’s ragged breathing and pulled her against him as he fell to the ground next to her, both sobbing for a few minutes until they let their emotions fade away and turned to stone.

“We’ll place scouts at Sentinel Services and Trask. Get a couple at the Citadel too.” Taylor stated as the pair headed inside, both drenched from the rain.

The crashing thunder and flashing lightning accompanied the pair as they headed into the HQ, refugees moved quickly out of their way. Their friends stayed out of sight. The thunder and lightning seemed to punctuate every step, every breath from the pair as they stalked towards the tech room.

John breathed heavily as he tried to calm his mind, “we’ll get inside their systems, we need eyes everywhere.”

“We also need to alert the Network. Clare’s near the top remember.”

“Let’s get to work.”

*****

Lauren’s eyes darted around the near-empty room once the agents had left her cuffed to an interrogation table. She hadn’t cried, she couldn’t. Don’t let them see your weakness. Taylor’s words echoed in her mind. The only solace she had was that there was no sign of the other team, Team Flyby, that she’d noticed as she’d been marched through Sentinel Services.

The door opening startled Lauren from her thoughts. She couldn’t help but tense at the sight of Agent Turner stood in front of her.

Turner didn’t speak until he was sat at the table opposite Lauren. “Miss Strucker. Gotta say, nice to finally catch up with you.”

“Can’t say the same back…” Lauren mumbled.

Turner laughed hollowly, “I can imagine. You’ve made… quite a name for yourself in the last few months. Attacking Sentinel Services multiple times, consorting with known terrorists, assaulting countless Sentinel Services agents with the help of John Proudstar. Overall, you could say you’ve had a very productive few months.”

Lauren rolled her eyes, feigning confidence, “what are you talking about. Me and my friends were just looking for a bathroom. We were on a hike, Andy needed to stop.”

Turner scoffed, “is that so? Well, CCTV footage has show you, your sister, and your friends stealing, killing, and attacking in order to… what? Follow some delusion that says you’re protecting mutants?”

“You don’t care about me, Agent Turner. You only care about the fact that I made you look like an idiot how many times? Twice? Three times now?”

“I am here to offer you a deal, Miss Strucker. If you cooperate, you can be facing a reduced sentence. If you don’t cooperate, we’ll be taking down the rest of the Silver Seven, and you’ll be joining them in their new home.”

“Oh,” Lauren’s curiosity rose at that, she couldn’t help but think back to how much Taylor and John relied on the gathering of intel. “And where would that new home be?”

“Oh, I believe you’re familiar.” He grabbed his folder before leaving the room, leaving Lauren in silence.

*****

Getting dragged into yet another interrogation room at Sentinel Services, Clarice couldn’t help but roll her eyes. “Really, what more do you think I know?” She snapped, she didn’t get a response as the door closed, leaving her alone in the room. By this point, Clarice was certain that they had to know that they would get no information from her.

After what felt like an eternity, the door opened, but Clarice didn’t get a chance to run before an imposing figure loomed in the doorway. “Well, well, isn’t this a wonderful surprise, my dear.” The voice made Clarice go cold. Her heart pounding in her chest as she came face to face with the man she’d been running from for the last decade. “Why don’t we take a seat.”

As her panic settled, Clarice carefully headed over to the chair, “Killian, good to see you’re doing well.” She noted his prosthetic hand – a result of one of her portals cutting off his real one.

He sneered at her, “it seems that we’ve finally caught up with you. I must admit, you are a slippery little thing, aren’t you?” He looked her over with his cybernetic eyes, watching for any twitch Clarice made.

“How’s Orchis? Still government sanctioned fuckups?” Clarice grinned as Killian slapped her across the face.

“You know, I would tread lightly if I were in your position. After all, you’re the one collared. You’re the one who’s daughters will be experiencing the art of vivisection – for the betterment of understanding you abominations.”

Clarice’s face stoned at the confirmation that Orchis knew about the twins, “and yet, you’re sat in here with me. You can’t find them, can you? If you had been able to find John or Taylor, you would’ve hunted them for sport. You had Pulse here for two years and couldn’t find us.” She couldn’t help but laugh, “you think my darling husband didn’t teach me to better shield my mind in those two years.”

A growl rippled through Killian’s throat, “you think you’re being clever?”

“Oh, I don’t need to be clever to be better than you.” A pulse surged through the collar, but Clarice didn’t react, she hadn’t spent years learning to not react to Taylor’s powers only to flinch now. “You really are desperate, aren’t you?”

Killian lent back in his chair, “my dear, you haven’t seen desperation yet, but you will become familiar companions in the next few weeks. Of that, I have no doubt.” He turned his attention to the guard in the room, “mutants often require less nutrition than natural people. Feed her once, thirty days from now, basic porridge. A drink every fourth day. Nothing more. Set her collar to shock her every three hours, keep her from sleeping. Keep her cell cold. Keep the lights on at all times.” He turned back to Clarice, “let’s see if you learn desperation when no one hears your cries for six weeks.”

*****

The cell was cold, dark, and lonely. Clarice hadn’t seen Sonia or the Struckers since they’d been captured. That was three days ago. Three days with no food. No water. So little sleep. God she was tired. Her eyes ached from the lights, her wrists ached from the cuffs still fastened around them, her body ached from hunger and thirst. She’d been starved before, this wasn’t anywhere near her first time with food being withheld, but she never got used to it.

The shivering had started earlier that day… it was difficult to tell time in the cell. She wasn’t sure if it was from hunger, thirst, exhaustion, or just the cold. It was so fucking cold.

*****

As the fourth day arrived, Clarice let out a breath at the thought of being given a drink. She would savour it. Make it last her until the next one. She could do it. She could—

When the door opened, she saw Killian, he motioned to two others who grabbed her by the shoulders and threw her down on the bed, pinning her in place with a strap across her chest. A hook fastened her collar to the slab, forcing her head still.

“Good to see you still so lively,” Killian laughed as Clarice tried to fight against the binds.

“Fuck you!” She spat as he came closer.

A dark chuckle filled the room as Killian set up a camera. “Just a warning for your husband. I know he’ll have your people checking all frequencies, so let’s give them a show, shall we?”

He pulled out a bag of tools as the two officers left the room. His eyes darted to the camera for a moment, “John Proudstar, Taylor Nobel. Welcome to today’s show.”

*****

The five remaining leaders of the HQ were gathered in the back office, watching the screen in silence. They’d kicked everyone else out of the room when Killian had appeared.

“Welcome to today’s show.” He said before stepping out of the way, letting them see Clarice, strapped to a concrete bed.

“Fuck you! You bastard!” She yelled, spitting on Killian before he backhanded her across the face, splitting her lip. She already had a black eye and a bruise blossoming across her cheek.

Killian glanced back at the camera, “I hope you both know that you can put an end to your dear Love’s suffering if you just come and say hello.”

“You two stay fucking put. Don’t you dare!” Clarice growled at the camera, at John and Taylor.

Killian reached for something outside the view of the camera, bringing a tube of sorts up from the table, “dear Clarice, you should’ve never shown your face. You were promised a drink, and you will learn that I am a man of my word.”

Panic overcame Clarice’s movements as she began thrashing on the table, trying to get away from Killian, but she was tied down, weak from hunger and thirst. Killian simply waited for a moment before catching her jaw with his prosthetic hand, his metal thumb latching behind her teeth. Holding her in place, he began pushing the tube down her throat.

John reached for Taylor’s hand as he watched, unable to move, think, or breathe as he watched Clarice’s eyes roll back and she gagged as Killian poured a bottle of brandy down the tube, force feeding her the alcohol.

“Message received, you two?” Killian asked before cutting the stream.

As the screen went dark, Gus looked over to the pair, “what do we do?” Neither of them moved, both breathing heavily with their eyes full of murder. Gus shook his head, “don’t even think about it.” That got their attention, “you charge in now, you’re playing right into his hand.”

John glared at Gus, “you just watched the same footage as me, right? You just saw that bastard torture my wife? And you’re telling me to do nothing?!”

“I also heard her telling you two to stay here, to not charge in. Don’t play Killian’s game.”

Taylor let out a low breath, “she’s alive. Means Killian doesn’t have complete authority. There’s still a chance. If this was all him, he would gut her and make sure we saw the footage. They don’t know where we are, they’ve got Clare and they’re hoping it’ll flush us out.”

Needing to direct his anger, John grabbed the screen and threw it at the wall, “go fuck yourselves. Lorna, Marcos, get out.” The pair went to protest, but the glares from the other three silenced them.

“Gus, you too.” Taylor murmured. Not looking at him as he headed for the door. She kept her attention on John, “now that they’re placated for now… we both saw that. He has power over Clare, not the others. Means someone else is calling the shots. Also means that, if we storm Orchis’ base, we’ll be killed in minutes, and Love won’t even be there.”

“You don’t know that!” John snapped, “I’m not gonna sit around and wait for another fucking video of him torturing her before we act.”

Taylor thought about it for a moment, “he’s hurting her, but he’s not doing anything permanent. Force feeding her alcohol? Hell, that’s an old trick! How many times have we been on the receiving end of that? John, he’s not allowed to hurt her. He’s playing someone else’s game. We know those cells, she’s still at Sentinel Services. We know they’ll be moving all four of them to Trask at some point. We just have to wait.”

“For how long, Taylor? You tellin’ me that he can’t hurt her falls kinda flat when he showed his hand.”

“John, that’s not his hand. That’s revenge. He’s getting his revenge for what Clare did five years ago. That’s all he’s allowed. We’ll get her.”

“Oh, I’m coming for her. I’m gonna bleed ‘em all if it means getting to her quicker. You saw her, Tay. Beaten, starved… I don’t wanna imagine what else. I’m getting her out of there. Now.”

“Soon. We charge in now, we die. That’s what Killian wants us to do. Even Clare was warning us against that.”

John glared at Taylor with hatred and anger in his eyes, “fuck you. Fuck you for being able to do this,” the tears started, “I can’t lose her. I can’t do that. I’m not…”

Taylor pulled him into her arms, “we’re gonna bring our girl home. And we’ll kill Killian if we get the chance.”

John’s eyes didn’t soften, but his glare wasn’t directed at Taylor, “why the fuck did we get rid of duels?”

“We could go outside, have a punch-up. If you win, we rush in. If I win, we listen to Love and wait.”

For a moment, John considered it, “we listen to Reese.”

*****

Two weeks. Two long, agonizing weeks had passed since four members of the HQ had been captured. Ten days since the leaders of the HQ watched Clarice be tortured. In those weeks, lines had been drawn in the sand.

It was fair to say that the HQ had become tense, no one was too sure of what to do. Taylor, John, and Gus were telling people the bare minimum, all three firmly believing that the spy in the Underground had given Sentinel Services the information on the strike.

“Come to the roof,” John’s voice pleaded in Taylor’s mind.

Without even hesitating, Taylor made her way up to the scaffolding, checking over her shoulder to make sure that no one was following her. Stepping outside, her heart broke, John was on the floor against the wall, his knees pulled to his chest with his arms resting on top of them, his head propped on his arms as he stared unseeing over the forest. “Hey.” She murmured as she sat beside him.

“I can’t do this.” He confessed, his voice wavering.

Taylor crouched in front of him, her hands gripping his elbows, “yes you can.” John shook his head, “you can because I’m here to help you. We’re gonna bring Clare home, but in the meantime, I’ll help you through this.”

“In what condition? What’s he doin’ to her, Tay? God, how’d you keep going? How’d you do it when we thought Gus was dead? It’s been two fucking weeks and I…”

Taylor lent closer to him, “I think you’re forgetting the months where I ate nothing, where I barely moved, barely slept… it cost me a baby and would’ve cost me Imogen if it weren’t for you and Clare until I pulled myself together.” She let out a breath and looked over to him, “I’m not letting that be you.” She stated, pulling him into her arms. Taylor’s heart broke a little more when she felt him start crying.

John let out a shuddering breath after several minutes, “I need you to help me… help me with the girls… with everything…”

“I’m not going anywhere. You’ve got me.”

John tightened his arms around Taylor, “don’t let me give up.”

“Never.” Taylor said with certainty, “we’ll get Clare back, we’ll make Killian pay. We’ll get Lauren back too. And Andy and Sonia. We’ll bring them all home.”

“Malachi told me that people out there are supporting us. If that’s true, why is no one angry?”

“They are, but they’re powerless to change anything. We’re not gonna be satisfied until we’re taking our kids to school and no one’s throwing bricks at them for being mutts.”

“After this… a revolution feels impossible.”

“It’s not,” Taylor said, determination settling in, “we’re close, we’ll get what we need, we’ll get our people back, tear down Trask, break apart Sentinel Services, the Citadel… it’ll all fall, we’ll build the world anew from the rubble.”

*****

Taylor hadn’t slept in a week, she’d spent too long watching everything, keeping her eyes on everything, and listening to every rumour. Sage and Shatter were at Trask, and one of their contacts inside Sentinel Services was keeping them updated.

“Guys!” Taylor yelled, bringing everyone over, “we’ve got our fight.” She growled motioning to the transport arriving at Trask and their people being dragged into the facility. Her eyes were fixed on Clarice, she didn’t need heightened vision to see that her features were gaunt, she’d lost a lot of weight, and she had a black eye and busted lip.

“You wanna start a war?!” Reed yelled, realizing what Taylor was saying.

“I’m saying that we launch an attack. We’re already at war.” Lorna corrected.

“You wanna launch an attack? On the heels of what happened? Are you crazy?!” Taylor practically growled at Reed’s comment.

“Don’t call me crazy.” Lorna seethed.

Marcos stepped up beside Lorna, “Everyone settle down.”

“They want to launch an attack after what we just went through. What part of that doesn’t sound crazy?” Caitlin yelled, bordering hysterical.

“Need I remind you that they have your kids. Not just our people, or are you giving up on them too?” Taylor growled animalistically.

“Python!” John snapped. Taylor straightened up from the crouch she’d lowered into.

“We watched men with guns cart away our children while they screamed for our help! So, no. You sure as hell don’t. And don’t you dare tell me that I gave up on my children!” Caitlin yelled.

“Enough!” John bellowed, punching the table, and snapping the corner off. The room fell silent. All eyes turned to John as the twins hid behind their father, they knew their mother was missing and seemed determined not to let their father out of their sight. “There is no more yours or ours, there are no more contacts, there is no more watching and infiltrating. No more spies, or blackmail, or lies, or hiding under the radar. No more talking about, this is the revolution, this is the rise of the future. There is this. We are getting them out. We take down Trask, then Sentinel Services.” John turned his attention to Taylor, “I know you swore that you’d never do something like this, but how long would it take you to take out that facility?” Caitlin and Reed both looked horrified at the implications.

Taylor sighed, closing her eyes for a moment before answering, “you’re looking at around two minutes, but I need to be close if I’m gonna do it without hurting our people but stoppin’ those who’re gonna fight against us. And I need time to build up to it, John, you know it don’t come from nothin’. It’ll take less time if Gus gives me power.” She stated with a shrug.

Gus crossed his arms, “I can knock out weapons and security. Lorna, you and Sage can sort the collars, right?” Lorna nodded, “John, you can stop anyone who gets too… aggressive.” John nodded as Gus stepped back into his role as strategist, “Tay, you get the Trask agents and HOUNDs down, do what you have to.” Taylor flexed her fingers at the thought. “In and out before they’ve had a chance to react. Get all those who haven’t been turned out of there, get the others out if possible.” Gus summarized as he leant against the railing.

“Just like old times,” Taylor whispered, glancing between Gus and John. It was an old plan, one the three of them has mastered over many years of running together. It rarely failed them.

Reed and Caitlin shared a look as Gus finished speaking, “You want her kill everyone in that building?” Reed demanded.

“No. We don’t want to, those people have lives, families, dreams. But I will if I have to, for my family. It’s what they made. I will use it against them.” Taylor hissed, every part the python she was named.

“We’ll keep it as last resort, Empty, but be prepared.” Taylor gave a jolty nod as she leant against the wall, watching as Reed continued to stare at her in horror.

“Are you really that willing to kill someone to save someone else?”

“Yes.” Marcos, Lorna, Gus, John, and Taylor all said in perfect sync.

The room looked at them in stunned silence, John glanced at every face, the people being protected didn’t realize the extremes that their leaders would go to, to protect their people.

“Are you willing to stand by and let them torture your kids?” Taylor offered, turning back to the computers. “We go tonight. We’ll find a way to get them out.” She stated before leaving the room.

*****

John gathered the twins up, taking them into one of the empty rooms at the further end of the building. Evie was getting overwhelmed with the near constant tension around the HQ, Rose didn’t like seeing her sister so distraught.

“Hey, we’ll get Mom home. I promise.” John whispered and signed before holding his daughters’ hands as they stayed close to him.

“Get you both home?” Rose asked softly, sniffling through her tears.

“Yeah, both of us.” John assured her. He’d make damn sure that he fulfilled that promise.

*****

Taylor paced in hers and Gus’ bedroom, anger seeping through every move as Gus watched from the doorway. “What’s up?”

“What? You mean besides Sentinel Services handing my best friend and little sister over to Trask? Or is it my parents having that godforsaken holier than thou attitude despite everything?  Or Orchis having their hands on Clare? Or the people here not realizing what us lot are willing to do? Or is it the fact that, since regaining consciousness, I’m feeling everyone’s pain and senses so much more?”

Taylor didn’t finish her rant before Gus had her wrapped in his arms, pressing a kiss to the side of her head as she finally cried, something she rarely did. “It’s not your fault.” Gus assured her, “no one is blaming you.”

“I am. I’ve never been a good sister, or friend, but I will not let my little sister suffer because of me.” Gus nodded to Taylor, letting her know that he would stand beside her. “Lorna shouldn’t be going.” Taylor stated after a moment, Gus raised an eyebrow.

“I’m five months pregnant. I’m not going.” Came Lorna’s voice, “I was just coming to tell you.” Taylor smiled at Lorna’s words, glad that her friend wouldn’t be in unnecessary danger. She wouldn’t risk any more of her family, she had to keep them safe.

Chapter Text

It was fair to say that Caitlin and Reed were against the plan that involved breaking into Trask in order to free the mutants. There might be two people who were bulletproof on the team, but the rest of them weren’t.

They sat in their room attempting to find anyone who could possibly get their kids out of Trask. “We could try your friend from law school, the… the judge.” Caitlin offered; they were running out of people that they could turn to.

“He's a federal appeals court judge in New England. Even if we got him on our side, he has no jurisdiction over anything.” Reed pointed out as Caitlin deflated.

“What about the people who worked at the Trask facility? You said you knew them. Maybe there's someone there we could talk to.”

“I checked. I know a few of them, but they're not gonna be able to get Andy and Lauren out of a classified government program.” Caitlin collapsed onto the bed, her list of potential helpers was running dry. A knocking at the door quickly made the pair collect all the paperwork they’d gathered, hiding it before inviting whoever was at the door in.

“I’m sorry to interrupt. Can I...?” Esme asked, Reed and Caitlin invited the young woman in, closing the door behind her, “I was thinking... About what you said at the meeting earlier. I think you're right. Another attack is just gonna get people killed. We both have family in there, and we cannot have that happen. This is a human problem. It needs a human solution. And you two are really the only ones here who understand that world.”

Caitlin sent a look over to Reed before speaking, “We're not having much luck finding anyone who can help.” She said, motioning to the poorly hidden stack of paper.

“Well, I was actually thinking... What about Agent Turner?” Caitlin let out a breath while Reed’s eyes widened at the suggestion.

“Agent Turner?” Reed asked in disbelief.

“Yeah. You've talked to him before, right?”

Reed just scoffed, “when he interrogated me.”

“Okay, look, I'm... I'm not saying it's gonna be easy, but he may be the only one who can actually do something.” Esme implored, glancing between the worried parents, “If you could just convince him to take the mutants out of the lab, to do the right thing...”

“So that they can sit in prison?” Caitlin exclaimed.

“It's better than being injected with drugs and turning into one of Campbell's pets.” Esme pointed out, “if there is even a chance... Just think about it. Your kids, what they can do... In the wrong hands, that much power could change everything.” Esme commented before leaving the room, letting the parents think it over.

*****

The four members of the Underground were dragged into the Trask compound, none of them going peacefully as they were each dragged into separate rooms. Clarice rolled her eyes as she was strapped to what looked like a dentist’s chair, “another interrogation?!” She spat, falling silent as a man in a lab coat came in. After the meeting with Killian two weeks ago, after the waterboarding, she’d been pretty much left alone. He’d been true to his word, she hadn’t been given any food yet, her lips were cracked because her mouth was so dry, her throat still aching from being force fed alcohol every fourth day. Her body ached with exhaustion, unable to sleep for more than three hours at a stretch. There wasn’t a part of her that wasn’t drained.

“This is no interrogation, Mrs. Proudstar.” He set a tray down on the table beside her and lifted the sleeve of her right arm, “this is you, joining the HOUND program.”

Clarice began fighting as soon as the doctor began preparing the tattoo gun, but it was useless, the straps over her forearms meant she barely shifted as she fought to get away. The doctor seemed unfazed as he sterilized the area and set the stencil. Clarice held her breath as the man switched on the tattoo gun and began setting the mark on her wrist.

In the rooms next to Clarice, the other three were receiving the same treatment. All of them fought against the doctors tattooing them, all of them resisting as much as they could. But none of it mattered, in the end, all four of them were dragged out of the rooms with their right wrists now bearing the sign of the HOUND program.

*****

Clarice was pacing her cell, the collar an annoying weight around her neck, the tattoo an itching discomfort. She kept glancing over to Sonia, not too sure what to say, they hadn’t seen each other at all in the two weeks before arriving at Trask. She tried not to glare when Sonia was given a tray of food, a small bottle of water on the side. She had tried not to be angry earlier, when Sonia had been able to sleep undisturbed for five hours.

“What do you think they did to Lauren and Andy?” Sonia asked after several hours of silence and Clarice pacing.

“I don't know, I just... I just hope they're okay.” Clarice croaked as she stopped next to the bars separating her and Sonia. It hurt to speak, she hadn’t done so in ten days, she hadn’t dared since that fucking tube had been forced down her throat.

“A long time ago, before anyone knew I was a mutant, I used to volunteer at this place, a shelter for battered women. They'd been through such terrible things. Sometimes I'd secretly use my powers on them. Pull their worst memories from their minds. I wish I could make all of us forget this.”

Clarice shook her head at Sonia’s words, crouching down next to the other woman, “you can't think like that.” She implored, Sonia just looked over doubtfully, “do you know how scared I was when I was in the mutant detention center? I was shaking so hard that when I had a chance to escape, I almost portaled myself into the middle of a ten-lane freeway. But I got out.”

Sonia’s doubt was still clear on her face as she rested her chin on her knees. “But this feels impossible.”

“It's not. It's not impossible. It's only impossible if you give up.” Clarice assured her, “John… he and Taylor don’t give up, trust me, I know. They’ll find us. We just have to wait it out.” As soon as she’d finished speaking, Clarice returned to pacing her cell. Her mind swimming as she thought about the danger John and Taylor would be in if they tried to get her out. With Orchis waiting for them, they would be damn near running a suicide mission. Then again, she mused, the pair seemed to like their suicide missions.

*****

Caitlin and Reed were almost ready to sneak out to talk with Agent Turner, there were just the final pieces of the plan to put in place before they could leave.

“This is a risk. And even if we succeed, they're gonna be in jail.” Reed pointed out, not too sure if going ahead with the plan was a good idea.

“Reed, in jail, they have a chance. I-In that lab...” Caitlin’s voice trailed off.

“I know. I know.”

“If we're gonna do this, we need to do it now. Leave without telling anybody.”

“Are you sure? I mean, sneaking away...”

“They don't want us talking to anyone, much less a Sentinel Service agent. How do we even do that without getting arrested or worse?” Caitlin asked, they hadn’t really thought it through.

“We could try approaching him at home. The files we got from the courthouse had the addresses of all the agents working on the program.” Reed told her quietly.

“Alright. Get the address. I'll get some supplies and keys to one of the cars. Is there anything else we need?”

“Yeah. A damn good argument.” Reed muttered as he left the room.

*****

Lauren sat in her new cell at Trask, her thumb brushing over the tattoo on her right wrist, it’d been two weeks since they were captured by Sentinel Services. In those weeks they had been interrogated, isolated, ignored, and finally transferred to Trask where they’d all been branded. Her mind was still stuck in the interrogation room, staring down Agent Turner as he reminded her of the attack she and John had pulled on Sentinel Services months ago.

It took Lauren several minutes to settle once she saw the guard roughly shove Andy into the cell with her, “hey, you hurt?” Andy just shook his head, too terrified to speak. The guards returned only a moment later and dragged the siblings from the cell.

The pair were led down seemingly endless corridors until they reached an office,
“Lauren and Andrew, welcome.”

“Doctor Campbell.” Lauren stated coolly, she wouldn’t let this man get the better of her.

“I have been looking forward to this meeting.” Lauren tilted her head, raising an eyebrow as she crossed her arms, “now, Miss Strucker, I can see Python in you. Or is it more of Cobra?” Lauren smirked at the mention of her sister, feigning confidence as best as she could.

“What did you do with our friends?” Andy asked, breaking the power-play between Lauren and Campbell.

“They’re fine. My concern is the two of you. I am… very excited to get to know the two of you.” Campbell said, his eyes fixed on Lauren as the rebellion stayed ablaze in her eyes.

“Is that why you gave us a cute new look?” Lauren asked, motioning to the suits that she and Andy were wearing.

“They’re to measure your biometrics. It’ll help us get an accurate reading of the true extent of your powers. You're the great-grandchildren of Andreas Von Strucker. He and his sister Andrea shared trait that I believe the two of you have inherited... The ability to combine your powers.”

Lauren raised a defiant eyebrow while Andy looked desperately over to his sister, “what makes you think we have, why not our lovely Python?”

“Yes, the symbol of aggression, revenge, and enmity. She’s destructive on her own. No, I believe that you two are the ones that inherited your ancestor’s special gift.” Campbell turned to the guards, “take them to testing.” The pair were dragged from the room, but it took several moments before Lauren broke eye contact with Campbell.

Chapter Text

The Strucker siblings were forced into a room, neither overly sure about what was going to happen, “welcome to testing.” An image of Campbell appeared on a screen on the wall. Andy ignored the man as he patted his hand against a wall with what looked like rubber spikes attached. “Are you curious about the walls? They’re lined with Adamantium, an extremely rare metallic alloy. Took a while to acquire. We had found some in a defunct military installation in British Columbia. It's indestructible, so it's perfect for... exploring powers.”

“What do you want from us?” Lauren asked, her voice calm despite her fear. Taylor’s words echoed in her mind, don’t let them see your fear. Stay alive, stay smart.

“You'll face those sensors, there.” He pointed to the rubber spikes, “join hands to combine abilities, and demonstrate. The collars are now... off.” Lauren and Andy both rolled their necks, “whenever you're ready, children.”

Lauren smirked, stepping towards the screen, a daring look on her face, “forget it. We're not doing anything for you.” She dropped to the ground, choking as electricity surged from the collar.

Gripping at the collar, Lauren struggled to get a full breath into her lungs as the electricity subsided.

“I will leave her alone as soon as you do as you're told.” Andy ignored Campbell’s words as he crouched next to Lauren.

“Hey. We can't give him what he wants.” Lauren told him between gasps.

Andy nodded, a surge of determination flooding him, “you can drop me, too. Go ahead. We still won't do it.”

“I was hoping we could do this the easy way. Ah, well.” The video cut off as Campbell sighed, leaving the siblings confused.

*****

Caitlin watched the houses of the suburb pass as they drove towards Turner’s house, “reminds you of our old neighborhood, doesn't it? Lawns, the flags...”

“I wonder how patriotic they'd feel if they knew their fellow Americans were being used as science experiments 15 miles away.” Reed spat. Glaring at the houses as if they would spontaneously combust under his glare.

“Honestly, I... I think a lot of them would be fine with it. You think people couldn't water the lawn or put up holiday decorations knowing that people were suffering, but... I did. I did and it was our little girl suffering.”

“We all did.” Reed added, Caitlin didn’t deserve the blame of what happened to Taylor. They hadn’t known what she would go through.

“Is this crazy? I mean, you think you could do this?” Caitlin asked after a beat of silence.

“I'm gonna try. I mean, Turner, on some level, I think, is a good man. He's just angry. I think it's just up here.” Reed responded, both tensing as they got closer to the house.

Reaching into the glovebox, Caitlin pulled out a small gun, she checked the ammo as Reed glanced over, “Cait, are you sure?”

“My dad put a gun in my hand when I was four years old. It's just like riding a bike, right?” She commented, not sure if she was reassuring Reed or herself.

*****

Marcos and Lorna were sat looking at the layout of the Trask facility, going over it repeatedly, “just go over the layout again.” Lorna asked.

Marcos lightly rolled his eyes, “I've been over it 100 times.”

“Well, make it 101, for me.” She grinned as Marcos folded.

“Okay, fine. The security was tight before; It's gonna be worse now.”

“There has to be something, something we missed...”

“Yeah, it's locked down.” Marcos muttered, glancing over the map, “Shatter's out there scouting, but I don't think it's looking good.”

The pair faded off as Esme approached them, “hey. Can I talk to you guys?”

“What is it?” Marcos asked.

“The Struckers. I, um... Okay, well, you know how before, they were talking about wanting to talk to someone, like a judge or a lawyer?”

“And I made it clear that was a bad idea.” Lorna pointed out. It was something that she and the Struckers had been arguing over for the past week.

“Well, I don't think they were convinced.” Esme stated bluntly, “I try not to read people's minds without their permission. I know people get nervous around telepaths, but sometimes when people's feelings are so strong...”

“Did you feel something from them?” Lorna asked, cutting off Esme’s rant.

“Okay, I... I think they may have gone to talk to Agent Turner.”

“What?!” Lorna exclaimed as she stood up,

“They went to a Sentinel Services officer?” Marcos hissed.

“I know. I-I mean, I wasn't sure, but then I saw that they were gone, and I thought I should tell someone.” Marcos and Lorna headed off, heading to find their friends, their plan had just gone to hell.

*****

Taylor and John sat on the roof, trying to calm themselves and prepare for the attack on Trask, neither of them was particularly looking forward to it, but a grim determination had settled over them. They silently watched the clouds move across the sky as they thought about everything that they were going to have to do, Taylor closed her eyes, letting her mind try to come to terms with the harsh reality of the call that she might have to make that night. John reached over and gripped Taylor’s hand, grounding himself in the familiar feel. Neither spoke as their minds brushed against each other, settling stray emotions.

After several hours, John glanced over to Taylor, “Are you sure you can do it? Can you kill anyone you need to?”

Taylor nodded, “I won’t let Wren and Love go through what I did. I won’t let them suffer Hell. So long as there is life in my body, I’ll fight for all of you, regardless of the cost.”

“Regardless of the cost.” John echoed. The sentiment weighed heavy in his heart, his mind filled with Clarice, filled with thoughts consumed by her and the twins. He needed her back, needed to be able to hold her at night, to roll his eyes at her stupid jokes. He needed her.

“Besides,” Taylor muttered grimly, “it’s no different to the Purefires we hunted.”

“Sure, it is. We could hide that; people here didn’t have to know about it… there’s no hiding this time. No keeping it a secret. Like I said, no hiding under the radar this time. We’re exposed. Like a live wire. This… there’s no coming back from this.”

“Throw in Orchis and the White King…”

“Orchis has me more worried than that prick,” John muttered, “fuck it. We’re never freedom anyway. Let’s kill the bastard so the others can.”

*****

Caitlin and Reed arrived at Turner’s house, hesitating for the briefest moment before they headed for the front door. A young woman greeted them as the door opened, “Mrs. Turner?”

“Yes?”

“We need to talk to your husband.”

The woman turned slightly, “Jace, Baby,” She called. Caitlin and Reed both tensed as they saw Agent Turner come into view from further in the house. Turner watched them in shock, not sure how they’d managed to find his house.

“Agent Turner. We need to talk.”

*****

Marcos and Lorna eventually found Gus, John, and Taylor, dragging the trio into the main office that they used, Esme was waiting for them. Taylor was about three seconds away from banging her head against the wall while Gus and John looked about ready to snap from their rising anger.

“The Struckers didn't say anything? They just left?” John asked, glancing over to Taylor in the back corner of the room.

“Yeah, we checked the whole building.” Marcos told them.

“They took one of the cars. They're gone.” Lorna added as she sat down.

“They had some idea about convincing Agent Turner to get everyone out of the lab, as if a lifetime spent behind bars is somehow better.” Esme explained, “they just don't get it. They're humans.” She added after a moment, “even if they succeed, and he moves them to a mutant detention center tonight, they're gone.”

John glanced around the room, his eyes landing on Taylor, “wait. If we really think that there's a chance, even a small one, that Agent Turner will move the prisoners tonight...” John began.

Taylor moved over to him, a plan clearly forming in their minds, “we might be able to rescue them. We won’t need to completely infiltrate.” Taylor muttered as she reached John.

Gus moved to his other side. “We can get them out without bloodshed.” He added hopefully.

Marcos and Lorna rolled their eyes, “that's still a big risk. I mean, the last time we hit them, they came back at us hard.” Marcos pointed out, grabbing the attention of the three friends’ attention.

“All the more reason to hit back.” Lorna shot back with a grin.

“Do you really think the Struckers can pull this off?” John asked, turning to Esme.

“It's possible.” Esme began.

“They’re good at whining to get what they want.” Taylor commented earning several half-hearted glares from around the room.

“Reed was a lawyer.” Esme continued, ignoring Taylor’s comment, “I mean, he was one of them.”

“We need a plan, though.” Taylor pointed out.

“Shatter's still scouting at Trask. He needs to know what might be coming.” John muttered, turning to Gus.

Gus just rolled his eyes as he headed out the room, “Fine, I’ll send him a message, you two come up with some half-assed, winging-it, disaster plan that I’ll undoubtably have to come along and fix and save the fucking day. Again.” The pair just grinned as Gus left the room.

“We’ll get them back.” Taylor assured John, gripping his wrist.

He gripped hers in return, “whatever it takes.”

“No matter the cost.” The pair began formulating a plan, neither speaking aloud but rather through their minds as they made notes and checked all the sources they could find.

Chapter Text

Caitlin and Reed sat on the couch opposite Turner and his wife, all of them were beyond tense, “you think kidnapping us is gonna help your cause?” Turner spat as his fury rippled to the surface, “Sentinel Services does not negotiate with terrorists.”

“This is not a kidnapping, and we are not terrorists.” Reed argued, “at the end of this, we're gonna walk away. What happens after is up to you.”

“We are here to talk about our children,” Caitlin said, looking at Turner’s wife, “our children and the other mutants, the other people who are being tortured.”

“Every single mutant in that facil—”

“Why don't we just... hear them out?” Mrs. Turner said, cutting off her husband.

Reed took a breath before he began addressing the pair in front of him. “We are here because I've seen your record, Agent Turner. And I believe that you're a good man. But I'm also here 'cause you're a father and you have dealt with the pain of seeing your child get caught up in a war she did not start, a war that began before she was even born.” Reed stated, trying to gain the Turners’ sympathy.

“What is it that you want from us?” Paula demanded, glancing at the gun in Caitlin’s hand.

“The program that Dr. Campbell is running, it is not right.” Reed stated, his argument sounded childish, even to his ears.

“You people are out of your minds. You think I'm gonna let an entire facility full of prisoners, full of criminals, go free because what? 'Cause you bust in my house, point a gun at me and my wife, and ask politely?” Turner spat, glaring daggers at Reed.

“No. All I ask is that you do what you swore you were gonna do when you put the badge on. Uphold the Constitution.” Reed stated, imploring Turner to understand what he was saying.

“Everything going on in that lab has been authorized by Congress. If you have a problem with that, there's a thing in this country called a ballot box.” Turner commented, settling back on the couch slightly.

*****

Marcos watched Lorna pace back and forth in their room, “Marcos, I'm just saying, if we get the chance, we have to take it.”

Marcos did his best to hide his eyeroll, “I want them out, too, but we're gonna be dealing with a group of armed Sentinel Service agents on high alert, along with Trask security. It could be a bloodbath, Lorna.” He tried to point out.

Lorna stopped pacing, “What do you suggest, huh? We beg for mercy like the Struckers? Bank on human decency?”

“They're trying to save the people they love.” Marcos shot back, “I know how that feels.”

“No. No, you came to get me...” Lorna rested a hand on the small bump forming at her abdomen, “us... to freedom. Reed and Caitlin are trying to get their kids out of some lab, so what? So that they can sit in prison for the rest of their lives? Marcos, would you be able to accept that?” Lorna asked, searching Marcos’ face.

“No, I would not. But I have seen a lot of killing. I know where this goes.”

“That was the cartel, Marcos. This is so different.” Lorna exclaimed exasperatedly,

“Is it? Is it, Lorna? I have lost more friends to stupid wars of vengeance than I can count. I don't want that for us.”

“So what? We just accept living in fear? Marcos... I will never accept that. Not for me, not for you, and definitely not for our kids. Not for Aurora or our baby.” Lorna’s voice was barely more than a whisper as Marcos pulled her close.

*****

Lauren sat against the wall in the testing room, watching Andy push against the door for what seemed like the thousandth time.

“How long are they gonna keep us in here?” Andy asked as he finally came to sit next to Lauren.

“I don’t know.”

“Why’d you try to argue with him?”

“Taylor. She said that if you let them have the upper ground, they’ll destroy you. Doesn’t matter. They can’t make us do anything.” Lauren muttered, glaring at the TV screen.

“No, but they can still shock the hell out of us.” Andy pointed out.

“Yeah. I know it hurts, but we can’t give him what he wants, whatever it is, it isn’t good. If we hold out long enough, someone will come for us.” Lauren assured her brother just as the screen crackled into life.

***** 12 YEARS EARLIER *****

Caitlin was settled on the couch, a book in her hands when the doorbell rang. Her heart tightened in her chest, her ears ringing, but she didn’t hesitate as she went to open the door.

“Mrs. Strucker?” One of the men asked, “I’m a representative of the Citadel, we spoke on the phone, regarding your daughter, Mackenzie.”

Caitlin nodded, her mouth bone dry, “Reed, we have visitors,” she called into the house, motioning for the three men to come inside.

The living room was tense as the three men began explaining what Caitin and Reed could expect to happen. “Mackenzie will be removed from your care this afternoon when she returns home. From here she will be taken directly to the Citadel to receive treatment and care. She will learn to control her powers, and she will be given therapy in order to stabilize her.”

“How long will she be there?” Caitlin asked cautiously.

One of the men looked over to her, “as long as is deemed necessary. The courts may also decide to place her on a permanent hold.”

At that moment, the front door opened, and Mackenzie came in. Caitlin noticed that she was smiling – it was the first time Caitlin had seen that smile in over three years. “Mom, Dad, you’re never gonna—” Mackenzie stopped speaking when she saw the three men, “didn’t realize you had company,” she muttered, that smile vanishing, “I’ll just…”

“Actually, Mackie,” Reed began, “these men are here to see you.”

“Mackenzie, we are representatives of the Citadel, do you know what that is?”

Mackenzie began stumbling backwards shaking her head, “no… no, please. Mom, I’m sorry, I’ll be better. Please, don’t send me there.” She began begging over and over, but Caitlin couldn’t bring herself to move, not even as two of the men grabbed Mackenzie and fastened cuffs to her wrists to suppress her powers. “Mom, please! I’m sorry!”

Caitlin’s vision blurred as tears pooled in her eyes, but she still couldn’t move, not even as Mackenzie was dragged from the house, her backpack still on her back, and forced into a van. Caitlin couldn’t breathe as she watched Lauren run out of the house and begin chasing the van as it drove away, running after it as fast as her little legs could carry her, screaming for her big sister.

***** PRESENT *****

Reed glared at Turner, his anger reaching a new peak, “they are in there now. Please, you know this is wrong.” Reed implored, the conversation was going round and round in circles.

“No, I know this is legal. I know this is authorized...”

“Just because it's legal, it makes it right?” Caitlin said, echoing the words that John had said to her months ago.

“I'm not gonna debate this with you!” Turner yelled before taking a calming breath, “I don't know what you two expected to come out of this. I'm not in the habit of helping people who threaten my family.”

“I'm trying to save my children.” Reed sneered, his words caused Turner to scoff.

“Yeah, your children, who were apprehended attacking a key infrastructure facility. Which makes them terrorists. And do we really need to approach the topic of Taylor Nobel, AKA Python?”

“Terrorists? They are high school students.”

Caitlin steeled at the mention of Taylor, “Taylor was a victim, tortured until she had no control, no say over what happened to her.”

“You want to talk about how bad off your kids are? Our child is gone!” Turner yelled, pain filling his voice, “whatever their circumstances, your kids are alive.”

“But for how long? That's your justification for experimenting on them. Torturing them? A 15-year-old and a 17-year-old...”

“Reed, please.” Caitlin whispered before turning to Turner. “I know how upsetting this must be. When you came into my house with a gun, I was terrified. Believe me, this is the last place I want to be right now. So, I'm gonna say this, and then we're gonna go.” Caitlin turned her attention to Paula, hoping to get through to the other woman, “the program our children are in, I've seen what it does, firsthand. My son-in-law, the father of my granddaughter was tortured in that program. They pump the mutants full of drugs until they are hopelessly addicted. They're given mental conditioning, so they have to do what they're told, and... and then, they are sent to kill everyone they love. I saw my daughter find her husband again and have to use her powers of pain on his mind in order to reverse what had been done to him. My children may be alive, but that... that's worse than death.” As soon as Caitlin finished speaking, she stood up and led Reed from the house, neither turning back as they drove away.

*****

Turner waited until the door had closed before he moved, instantly heading for a desk near the door, pulling his cellphone from the drawer, “we're gonna be okay, baby. Don't worry. I'll have a team on them in less than five minutes.”

“Wait, wait.” Paula begged.

“Babe.” Jace began, only for Paula to cut him off.

“Is it true, what she said?” Tears filled her eyes.

“Paula, we're talking about criminals here.”

“They're teenagers.”

“No, no. This is way more complicated than...”

“Jace.” Tears spilt down Paula’s cheeks, “Baby, what are you doing in our little girl's name?” Jace froze as he listened to Paula’s words.

Chapter Text

At Trask, Lauren and Andy stayed beside each other at the back of the testing room, neither of them wanting to consider what could happen next. Campbell’s face appeared on the screen after a moment, “Hello? Let’s try this again, shall we?”

“Why don’t you just give up, huh?” Lauren demanded as she stood up, “we’ll never give you what you want.”

“I think you will,” Campbell rebutted, “you just require additional motivation.” At that moment, several guards brought Clarice and Sonia into view, both being held securely by two security guards.

“What’re you doing? They’re not part of this!” Lauren exclaimed. Taylor’s words faded from her mind as she saw the fear in Clarice’s exhausted eyes. Lauren decided in that moment that she would do anything to protect her family.

“You made them part of this.”

“Leave them alone!” Andy demanded, moving to stand beside his sister.

“Whatever happens to them is entirely up to you. It is in your power to make me stop.” Campbell looked to someone off the screen, “can I have your sidearm, please.” Lauren’s eyes widened as Campbell held the gun up to Sonia. “This doesn’t have to be difficult, just show me what you can do.”

“Don’t do anything for him.” Sonia told them forcefully, her voice commanding.

“Children, hold hands.” Campbell ordered.

“Don’t do—” A shot rang out, hitting Sonia in the center of her chest. Sonia fell to the ground dead.

Clarice screamed out Sonia’s name as her knees went weak, she would’ve fallen if it hadn’t been for the guards holding her firmly upright.

“Is there need for any more bloodshed?!” Campbell demanded as he cocked the gun again.

“Lauren, listen, no one can force you. You control it.” Clarice said, ignoring the gun aimed at her, she couldn’t help but hear Killian’s words about desperation as she spoke. Her mind wandered to her daughters, her babies. She barely registered Lauren nodding as she took a step away from Andy.

“I’m losing patience!” Campbell yelled, Lauren didn’t move, she didn’t let her eyes fall from Campbell.

Clarice closed her eyes as she saw Lauren stand her ground. She’d keep her littlest sister safe, but she’d never see her babies again. Her mind drifted as she closed out the sound of Campbell’s voice. She let her mind wander to her family, her baby girls, her jelly donuts waiting for her at home, both waiting to show her how much stronger their powers were. She dared to think of John, the person who’d stolen her heart when she ran into him while running away from Purefires, she’d crashed on his couch and never left. She thought of the phone call that would bring Taylor into her life, when John had told her to come pick them up to take them to the hospital… she’d never see any of them again, but Lauren would be safe.

“Sir,” a guard called, “Sentinel Services are here.” Clarice almost fell over when Campbell lowered the gun, the only thing holding her upright were the guards holding her arms.

“Take them all back to their cells, we’ll try again later. Clean up this mess.” He motioned to Sonia’s body as Clarice was led out of the room.

*****

The three mutants had barely been removed from the lab when Turner was brought in with several other agents.

“Agent Turner, this is a surprise.” Campbell exclaimed as he saw the man, “what can I do for you?”

“I’ve been reviewing the status of the detainees here and I’m not convinced that any of this is legal.”

Campbell raised an eyebrow at Turner’s words, “uh, we had a deal, I believe.”

“Yeah, we did. I'm revisiting that deal, and I'm taking the mutants.” Turner looked at the screen showing the cells, “Where's the redhead? Sonia Simonson?” Turner asked when he realized that she was missing.

“There was an incident during one of our experiments, and she didn't make it, I'm afraid.” Campbell stated nonchalantly.

Turner looked over, concerned at Campbell’s disregard of the death. “An ‘incident’? We're gonna talk about that incident, right after I take all the detainees back to Sentinel Services.” Turner turned to the other agents, “let's go.” They headed for the cell block, leaving Campbell stood stunned in the lab.

*****

John raced down the stairs, hopping over the last few once he saw Marcos and Lorna. Gus and Taylor made their way to the rest of the group, curiosity on their features. “I just got word from Shatter!” John called over as they gathered around. Esme joined them a moment later, listening as John continued to speak, “Sentinel Services is at Trask now with a large transport vehicle.”

“Well, fuck me.” Gus muttered, “they did it.”

John motioned to the map of the facility, “we aren’t gonna have a lot of time. When they move, we’ll be ready here.” He pointed to a spot on the map.

“Yeah, we surround them on the road, free the prisoners, and hightail it south to the interstate.” Gus stated, focusing on the map, planning out a strategy.

“And we're gonna have one or two minutes, tops. The guards coming from that lab are gonna be coming at us fast. They might have HOUNDS.” Taylor added, glancing between John and Gus.

“Send me in.” Esme offered, “if someone can get me close enough, I can scout security, read one of the guards. See what I can find out.” The group shared a glance before nodding.

“Okay. Let's do it.” John said, leading them to the cars. He glanced over to Taylor, nudging into her mind, “Checked with our contacts, Turner sent Orchis away, too. We’ve got a breather.”

*****

The group arrived at Trask, all tense as they waited for Shatter. After several minutes, Shatter ducked out of the tree line. “Hey, what’s out there?” Taylor asked as Shatter came to a stop in front of her.

“Two Sentinel Services SUVs, two sedans, one transport vehicle. They all rolled in pretty hot.”

John knelt down pressing his hand to the ground and focusing his powers. He couldn’t separate the people, but he knew that Clarice was amongst them. “They’ve just left the building.” He told them.

“Then let’s move.” Taylor muttered, her powers rippling in her fingertips as she began to get more and more antsy. Marcos led Esme into the woods, heading for the security gate so that Esme could get any form of reading from the guards.

*****

Caitlin and Reed arrived back at the HQ to many hateful glares, Harry saw them and couldn’t stop himself from scoffing. “You got a lot of nerve coming back here after what you did.”

“Wait, what? Esme told you what we were doing?” Caitlin asked confused.

“Not just me. She told everyone here what you two were up to.”

“What? This doesn't make any sense.” Reed muttered, sharing a glance with Caitlin.

“Maybe she didn't think it was right, you making a deal to let all those folks go to jail.”

“But it was her idea!” Caitlin exclaimed.

“What?” Harry muttered, now it was his turn to be confused.

“She came to us. She was the one who suggested we go to Agent Turner.”

“That isn't what she said.”

“She lied to us.” Caitlin muttered.

“Where are the others?” Reed asked urgently, looking around for any of the HQ leaders.

“Trask.”

“What? But we said we wouldn't attack.”

“We can't just leave our people there. Esme said she had a plan.” A new sort of fear and tension filled the HQ thanks to the radio silence of the group attacking Trask.

*****

Marcos and Esme stood at the fence, watching the convoy approach the gate. Marcos let out a breath when they saw just how many agents were there, “this is gonna be tough. They brought more agents than I thought.”

“Oh, I think it’ll be alright.” Esme said confidently.

“’Alright’? Look, the plan is—”

Esme tased Marcos before he could finish, letting him and the taser fall to the group, “I’ve got my own plan.” She muttered as she stepped over him and headed for the fence. Esme focused her attention onto one of the agents, her powers seeping into him, “it’s time to turn off the collars.” The words echoed in the agent’s mind. It took a moment for the agent to be compelled. Esme listened with a satisfied smile as gunshots rang out on the prison transport. Esme took her time, compelling more of the agents to kill themselves and release the prisoners.

After several minutes, the prisoners all stepped off the bus. Clarice kept Lauren and Andy behind her as the two women identical to Esme took up place beside Esme.

“Time to go boys and girls, the fun’s just starting.” They said in sync as several explosions set off behind them. The prisoners took off in a run, Clarice telling them that there were people waiting to help them.

*****

Lauren didn’t know how it happened, but she glanced back for one moment and had lost sight of everyone. She didn’t stop. She kept running.

“Lauren!” Came John’s voice in the woods. Lauren let out a breath and ran in his direction. John caught the 17-year-old in his arms, hugging her tightly.

“John! I… I thought you’d all leave me.”

John chuckled as he let her go. “Nah, never. Who else’ll have hot chocolate with me at 5am?” John assured her, taking her hand, and leading her towards the cars. Lauren grinned as she followed John, “c’mon, Tay’s waiting for us.” He told her as they headed through the trees.

The sound of twigs snapping caused John to hesitate. “Freeze!” Came a yell in the woods.

John stopped, moving Lauren behind him as at least two dozen agents came out of the trees. Lauren moved closer to John, hiding behind him as they were surrounded. John tapped Lauren’s wrist twice and the pair dropped into a practiced fight, moving side by side to take down as many of the agents as they could.

“Duck!” John dropped to his knee just in time for a spinning disc to fly over his head and slice one of the agents in half.

“Neat trick.” He commented as he threw one against a tree.

Another wave of agents swarmed from the trees, doing their best to stop the pair. John shot a grin over to Lauren as the teen continued to fight better than ever, the months of training paying off.

In scarcely a moment, the tables flipped. One of the agents got the upper hand on Lauren, managing to pin her to the ground with a gun pressed against her neck. “Get on your knees.” He yelled.

John watched them aim their guns on Lauren. John tensed, dropping to his knees, and holding his hands up in surrender. He didn’t dare speak. A collar was snapped shut around Lauren’s neck. As soon as they were close enough to John, he began fighting them again, he took out five more before a cattle prod was rammed against his back, forcing him to the ground, “go! Get out of here! They got us, go! GO!” He barely managed to send the yell to Taylor before the collar was forced around his neck and he was knocked unconscious.

Chapter Text

The world seemed to come crashing down around the family as they moved towards the cars. Abandoning John and Lauren. His voice was still ringing through Taylor’s mind; “Go! Get out of here! They got us, go! GO!” The yell had been repeated until Taylor felt his pain as he got shocked. Her eyes scanned the group, tensing when she didn’t see her little sister with them, her breath was gone from her lungs when she realized that Lauren had been with John. Taylor didn’t register Gus grabbing her arm, she didn’t notice Marcos pulling Clarice towards the cars either.

The HQ was solemn when the makeshift family returned. News had reached them of Lauren and John’s capture, though no one quite knew how to react. In fact, no one seemed to be able to function when the family entered.

The twins ran over to the mother, Clarice hugged them tightly to her chest, still refusing to cry – she’d seen Sonia shot, the Frost sisters kill a dozen security personnel, and now John was captured.

Evie cried into her mother’s shoulder as she tightened her arms around Clarice, “he promised! Daddy promised you’d both come home.” Clarice felt her fight leave her, her tears slipped down her cheeks as she silently promised that she’d bring her husband home and let him keep his promise to their babies. Her hunger, dehydration, and exhaustion seemed to both disappear and catch up to her all at once as dizziness swept over her, but her determination settled.

“Gus,” she croaked, “Gus I need water, and food… please.”

Gus finally stopped for the first time since the prison break, his eyes finally taking in Clarice, “fucking shit, Clare, go. I’ve got the twins. Eat, drink, sleep. I’ve got these two.”

Andy ran towards his parents, he was the reason Sonia was killed, he’d seen people killed as the Frost’s helped them escape. And now, his sister was captured, she’d been taken as they made their escape. Tears spilt down his cheeks as he clung to his parents, desperate to feel safe after everything he’d been through.

Taylor moved towards Sage, the woman was sat by the computers, trying to find any signs of John and Lauren.

As Taylor approached, Sage turned to her friend, “There’s nothing on them yet, and I checked into what you asked. By all reports, they’ve reopened. The information from the Trask database suggests that their methods are harsher than before.” As Sage finished, Taylor muttered something incoherent under her breath before turning away from Sage.

Taylor punched the metal door, hard, letting her anger out – she wouldn’t let herself break now. The sight of her bloodied knuckles allowed Taylor to calm down the slightest bit as Gus made his way into the room after settling the twins and Imogen into bed.

“Tay, talk to me.” The woman just shook her head before walking out of the room.

Following his wife, Gus saw her grab a phone from a box he’d never seen opened before. Taylor quickly dialed the only number on the phone, her fingers shaking slightly as she pressed call.

It only rang twice before a woman answered, “Taylor.” Taylor would have normally smiled at the voice, but today she just remained emotionless.

“Luka. It’s open.” The sound of glass breaking echoed over the line as Taylor turned to address Gus, “gather the others.” He nodded and left the room, leaving Taylor to whoever was on the phone. “They’ve got John. Dunno if they’ve taken him there, but I’d say it’ll be a good bet. They’ve got my little sister too, she’s been pissing them off, so I’d say it’s a safe bet that they’ll both be there.”

“Can you come meet us?”

“Can I bring friends?”

“So long as they don’t mind risking injury.” Taylor laughed tensely before hanging up.

*****

Gus led Clarice, Marcos, Lorna, Caitlin, Reed, and Andy into the back office where Taylor was. They all shared a glance as they saw the blue-haired woman looking over a map, a map with an area marked that they’d never seen before.

“Good, you’re all here. Now, what I’m about to tell you is not to be shared outside of this room.” The group all nodded silently, “I don’t wanna say anything that may not be true, but I know people who might know how to find John and Lauren. It’s a risk, the chances are quite high – they’ve got contacts everywhere. They may know more than us. We’ve been invited to meet with them.”

Gus and Clarice shared a look before Gus decided to voice what they were all thinking, “and just who are these people, Taylor?” He asked gently.

“They’re the people that managed to escape the Citadel last time. Most of ‘em have low offensive powers, or they were kids at the time. I don’t want the kids to come along, there is a chance that my contacts won’t be in full control in the presence of strangers asking questions, but we’d better move out if we wanna get there today.” Taylor turned her eyes to Caitlin and Reed, “it might not be a good idea for you two to come either. These guys aren’t exactly what you’d call… human friendly.”

Clarice was just praying that she wasn’t showing her fear as deeply as she was feeling it. Without saying a word, Taylor grabbed Clarice’s hand, squeezing it reassuringly. Clarice knew what Taylor was trying to say; he’ll be ok, just you wait.

“It’s alright, don’t give up, we’ll bring them home.” Taylor told her softly.

The group followed Taylor to the car, only stopping to ask Sage and Shatter to keep an eye on the kids for the night, they both happily agreed. Caitlin had tried to stop Andy, but it had been a pointless attempt, Andy was furious at his parents, he’d seen the easiest part of what Taylor had suffered for five long years. And now his other sister could be going through that very same Hell on Earth.

*****

John awoke groggily in the back of a windowless van, his arms pulled taut away and slightly behind him, holding him in a painful cross, the dull throb in his back reminding him of what had happened. He turned his head as best as he could with the thick collar around his neck, letting his eyes find his friend huddled as far into the corner as she could get, a chain connecting her collar to the corner of the van, “Lauren?” He croaked hoarsely, his throat rough as he spoke, the angle of his head aching.

Lauren scrambled to her knees, “John? You’re awake!”

Grunting, John did his best not to scoff at the comment, pain still searing across his back from where they’d shocked him with the cattle prod. “Dunno, this kinda seems like a nightmare.”

Lauren laughed humorlessly at that, she pulled slightly on the collar around her neck, wanting nothing more than to create a shield to protect her and John from whoever it was that had them. She wanted to tear the cuffs from John’s wrists so he could keep them safe. “Any idea where they’re taking us?” Lauren whimpered, her fear rising.

John turned to face away from Lauren, straightening for a moment to attempt to relieve the tension in his shoulders from the way they’re being pulled. “One, I just hope I’m wrong. How long have we been in here?” John’s throat ached with every word he spoke, residual pain from being shocked repeatedly before they’d knocked him out.

“Dunno. Think about 2 hours.”

John let out a shaky breath but didn’t speak. He tensed, pulling on the chains sharply, trying to break them, they didn’t even shift.

“I tried to get them off earlier, they didn’t move at all. My powers couldn’t break ‘em. They’re sharp too.” Lauren held her hands up, showing her cut palms, sliced from the chains. He didn’t need Lauren to tell him that the cuffs were sharp, he could already feel the dried blood on his wrists where they were cutting.

John closed his eyes, catching his breath before turning back to Lauren, “We’ll get out of here. They’ll find us.” Lauren nodded, though she didn’t really trust those words, John didn’t either. “Hey. Taylor and Clarice won’t rest until they find us. Don’t doubt that.” Lauren believed that bit, she just worried about the state they’d be in when their family did arrive.

Lauren glanced back down at her hands, “I killed that guy.”

Glancing over his shoulder as best he could, John tried to meet her eyes, “you did what you had to do to survive. That’s what we’ve got to do now.” Lauren looked over in confusion, “it’s where our mantra comes from. No ghosts – you can’t save anyone if you’re dead. No heroes – don’t sacrifice yourself, save as many as you can, but save yourself too.”

“So, forget morals and things and do what it takes to survive?” Lauren surmised grimly.

“Essentially. We protect each other, keep each other alive. That’s all we can allow ourselves to focus on with all of this.” Lauren nodded firmly.

Only moments passed before the van came to a stop, the unexpected breaking caused John to slip, grunting when pain shot through his shoulders as his wrists remained in place while he fell forward. The pain told him that at least one shoulder had been dislocated, limiting how well he’d be able to fight anyone. It also let him know that the collar was suppressing his body’s density and allowing him to sustain injury. His wrists felt like they were on fire from the pain of being sliced open and gouged into by the cuffs.

Chapter Text

The back doors of the van opened, Lauren was dragged out by her hair, the collar from Trask was replaced with one that was at least twice the weight. Her hands were cuffed behind her back as she was forced to her knees, a short chain connecting the handcuffs to the collar. The collar already aching on her neck and shoulders, a yelp of pain escaped her lips as her knees were scuffed against the gravel.

John did his best to turn to see, but he couldn’t turn his head far enough, “Lauren!” He yelled, hoping she’d be able to respond, a fist collided with John’s stomach, forcing all the air from his lungs, John fell forward again, the pull on his dislocated shoulder forcing him to bite his tongue to keep from shouting out. While gasping for breath, John felt a collar snap shut around his neck, pinching a little as it did so. His hands were unchained and were cuffed painfully behind his back before he had a chance to fall, his shoulders protested the sudden movement; they hadn’t recovered from being pulled at only a minute ago. Just like with Lauren, a chain was clipped between the handcuffs and his collar to further limit mobility. The abrupt pain pulled a grunt from him before they led him out of the truck, not caring when he tripped down the steps.

The pair looked up at the large, daunting building, John glanced to Lauren, hoping to reassure her as best he could. John couldn’t completely hide his fear as he recognized the building from 7 years ago. Guards dragged them towards the door, not caring if their prisoners stumbled or fell.

“Where are we?” Lauren whispered low enough so only John would hear her, he nodded towards a symbol on the door. Lauren’s eyes widened, recognizing the symbol from the one she’d seen repeatedly in her research two weeks ago. “The Citadel?” She asked, her fear skyrocketing as John nodded.

John knew that if they were heard talking, they would likely get beaten, and he would do everything he could to protect Lauren. He’d seen the experiment facilities when he and Gus had found Taylor over seven years ago. He knew what Taylor had been through. He felt her pain and terrorized thoughts every time someone mentioned the Citadel when she was near. He’d experienced her nightmares; it was one of the many negatives of their mental link. John had always hoped that no one else would have to experience what Taylor went through, and now he and his youngest sister would be walking into the gates of Hell together.

Lauren knew the stories of the Citadel, she’d heard enough of them from Taylor, Gus, John, Clarice, and from her own research. She knew that they all called it Hell on Earth. Taylor had always said that she’d do whatever she could to protect Lauren from it. Even when Lauren was a kid, Taylor would tell her scary stories about the place where they sent the naughtiest mutants. Until she found out where Taylor had been sent, Lauren had just assumed that the Citadel was a story Taylor had made up as a ghost story. Now, she was being dragged into the same nightmare that her sister had spent five agonizing years.

As John and Lauren were shoved through the doors of the Citadel, the guards led them into a room with what looked like a chair from a dentist with straps over the arms and legs. They began forcing Lauren towards the chair, Lauren was doing everything she could to escape the hold of the guards, but they were overpowering her easily.

John began fighting the guards as they strapped Lauren down, he knew that she wouldn’t be able to fight them off, but he would be able to… if he could just get free. The guards attached John’s collar and cuffs to rings in the wall before removing the chain connecting the two items, effectively stopping him from being able to fight as they attached his ankles to cuffs on the floor. One guard pressed against John’s dislocated shoulder, eliciting a yell of pain from him, the fresh burst of pain forced him to still as bile rose in his throat.

With them both subdued, the guards were replaced with doctors. The doctors moved quickly as they set up, though they stopped once everything was prepared until a guard returned with a small electronic chip. John renewed his fight when he realized what it was, ignoring the pain in his shoulder.

The doctors ignored John’s fight. Lauren let her eyes fill with fear as she looked at John, his fighting forcing her panic to the surface. Lauren froze when the doctors cut a small slit on her left wrist where they inserted the chip, they didn’t use any anesthetic – it interfered with the chip activating. Within seconds, a barcode formed itself on Lauren’s left wrist, all the while she was screaming, an agonizing pain spread through her arm.

Without giving her a chance to prepare, a hose doused her arm with ice cold air, powerfully firing it against her new brand. A scream was ripped from Lauren as the burning quickly became something else. Something beyond agony.

The doctors switched off the hose and left the room, leaving the pair alone.

“Wren?” John whispered, doing his best to keep quite while wanting to do nothing more than hug his little sister and get her home.

“John. I-I’m ok.” John tensed, trying to break the chains. His little sister shouldn’t have been reassuring him! Like before, the chains didn’t shift. John let out a yell, fueled by a mixture of frustration, fear, and pain. “Is the collar interfering with your powers?” Lauren asked through her sobs, trying to take her mind off of the pain in her arms.

“Tracking, yes. Senses and strength, no. They’re internal, they’re not like your shields, my tracking, Taylor’s pain. They’re more like Taylor’s immunity, her friend Luka’s charm. It’s not influenced by the collars.” He muttered, gaining strength back in his voice as he spoke, no longer in pain with every word. At the sound of the door handle moving, the pair fell silent. The doctors returned a moment later with a tray full of chemicals, placing it on a table.

As soon as Lauren had stopped sobbing, only crying softly as the pain dimmed the slightest amount, the guards returned to take Lauren away and attach John to the table. John yelled at them to leave her alone, but his shouts fell on deaf ears as they dragged the teenager away from him. John’s yells didn’t stop once the doors closed, desperate to get to Lauren and help her, but it was no use. He moved as much as the chains allowed only to have the collar strapped to the chair, stilling most of his movement.

Once John had fallen silent, the doctors grabbed the tray filled with different serums. John eyed them cautiously, he knew what Taylor had been through in the Citadel; the psychological torture aided by the use of chemicals that caused psychedelic trips. The first thing they did was barcode him, though the pain of that was quickly forgotten when they injected the first serum into his arm; his sight faded until he could see nothing. He tried to yell out, but he couldn’t make a sound, the doctors’ voices faded into nothingness, he was left with only his thoughts.

John’s panic spiked like never before as his senses were taken away, he couldn’t even feel the pain in his shoulder and wrists. He knew that he was on the brink of hyperventilating as he did everything that he could to even feel the smallest thing, but he couldn’t even register the rise and fall of his chest with every short breath. Terrified, John tried to latch onto anything he could find, searching through his mind as he was left in the silence of his own thoughts when even they began to jumble and cloud. He tried to lock onto Taylor’s voice, but it was like he was running towards her, but she was running away just as fast.

*****

Guards dragged John from the room, taking him up to the tenth floor, they passed Lauren in the hallway, “John!” She called, she repeated it several times, but he didn’t even flinch to say that he’d heard her.

“He won’t hear you, little fox.” One of the guards laughed, Lauren glanced to him and then back to John.

“What have you done to him?” She asked desperately, the guard backhanded her across the face, silencing her but not allowing her to fall.

“SDC is an interesting thing on a Mutt like that.” The other guard stated as they reached Lauren’s cell. They threw her in without answering any more of her questions.

Tears continued to slide down her cheeks as Lauren processed the guard’s words, not bothering to get up from where she’d landed on the floor. Her mind reeled, “Mutt?” She whispered as she ran her thumb over the barcode now permanently branded on her wrist, doing her best to ignore the pain that spread through her wrist at each touch, her eyes darting to her right wrist where the HOUND logo stared back at her.

She’d been saved by John so many times, all of them had been. He’d rescued Taylor all those years ago; he’d saved her when he didn’t even know who she was; he’d risked everything to save Gus, and Lorna, and Marcos; he would do anything to keep Clarice safe; he protected Evie and Rose with his life; he protected Aurora and Imogen just as dearly; he learnt sign language just to make things a little easier for Rose; he’d been a second father to Imogen after Gus had been ‘killed’; he’d sat with her so many times late at night when she’d woken up scared when she’d first arrived at the HQ. He was so much more than human, he was so much better than good, he was not a mutt. To call him a good man would be an outrageous understatement. He wasn’t just a good man - he was a brilliant one.

Lauren curled tightly in on herself, hugging as far away from the door as she could. The pain in her arm was constant and demanded her attention, it was a pain that she’d never experienced before. Glancing around the cell, Lauren’s eyes focused on a spot on the wall; scratch marks were clawed deep into the bricks that had been poorly hidden with paint, the only remains of someone who’d desperately tried to escape their cell eight years ago when Taylor had been inside, when she’d lost control.

Chapter Text

***** 18 years earlier *****

“Logan, I’ve got another one for you,” Charles called over as he led young Mackenzie to the far end of the field. Mackenzie rolled her eyes but didn’t comment as she traipsed behind him, her hands stuffed in her pockets.

Raising an eyebrow, Logan, and the teenager he was training, looked over at the blue haired girl, “if she can keep up, she’ll be fine.”

“Course I can keep up!” Mackenzie snapped, glaring at the man.

“Sounds like a challenge,” the teenager shot back, glancing over to Logan for approval.

With a nod, Logan kept his eyes focused on Charles, “two laps of the perimeter, both of you. And Mack, keep pace with John.” As the pair began running, Logan shook his head, “why have I got her?”

Charles sighed, he couldn’t help it, “her power is to inflict pain, but she’s also strong… and angry at the world. I’m wondering whether they will be able to calm each other’s anger. Besides, she listens to you. She doesn’t do that for many people. I want to see what she can do when she isn’t holding herself back.”

Logan rolled his eyes loudly, “don’t blame me if I’m sending either of them back to you in a wooden box.”

*****

In the years to come, Charles would say that moving Taylor to train with John under Logan’s supervision was one of the best decisions he ever made – or one of the worst. He watched their training like a hawk, saw them balancing each other out, calming each other down, they clicked in a way that he couldn’t explain.

“Watching your protégé again? Someone will begin to think you’re obsessed,” Erik muttered as he came over to the window.

Charles hummed, “not obsessed,” he corrected, sipping his tea, “merely intrigued.” He watched as John held up the boxing pads, guiding Taylor’s punches, messing with her as much as he was training her. “I would still like to know why I can’t reach either of their minds.”

“A mystery for the ages,” Erik joked, “you never know, maybe if you went out and worked with them, rather than simply observing, you’ll find your answers.”

Charles shook his head, “when I’m there, Taylor gets quiet, or John gets tense – oh, she insists on Taylor these days,” Erik couldn’t help but chuckle, “it doesn’t have the same anger attached to it that Mackenzie has. When Logan is with them, they both try to be the perfect students. When it’s the other X-Men, they’re both angry and ready for a fight. When it’s just the two of them with occasional guidance, they make progress.”

“With their physical skills, certainly, but not with their mental capabilities. Their powers aren’t solely the ability to land a punch.”

Charles gave Erik a smile that left him tense, “I’m glad you agree. I want you to help them. I have a feeling that they’ll listen to you.” Charles would cherish the look on Erik’s face for years to come.

*****

Under Erik’s supervision, Taylor and John were able to grow into their powers, no longer pushing them down or shying away from what they could do. Taylor learnt how to draw away pain without hurting herself, John began focusing his senses much further than previously.

When it wasn’t Erik mentoring them on their powers, Logan was there to guide the pair through their physical training, never letting them get away with slacking off or messing around.

“Feel like I’m gonna pass out,” Taylor grumbled as John gave her a piggyback, “does Logan ever stop?”

“I don’t think so,” John commented, “and I think he wants us to regret being born.” John couldn’t help but smile as Taylor dropped her head forward onto his shoulder as they headed up to the school for dinner, “oh, forgot to tell you, my folks have invited you to our place for December… if you wanna come visit.”

“Definitely,” Taylor said before John had even finished speaking.

Laughing slightly, John rolled his eyes, “maybe ask your parents first, Tiny.”

“They don’t care about their freak kid anymore, John, I told you. Since Wren, and now the pregnancy, Mom and Dad couldn’t give a rat’s ass about me. It’s worse now, the pregnancy’s complicated… means they’ll forget Lauren, too, soon enough.”

Putting Taylor on the ground, John draped an arm over her shoulders, “well, I’ve got the plane ticket for you in my bag, you can fly back with me on Monday if you want.”

For the first time in years, Taylor seemed to shrink, “what if they don’t like me?”

“They’ll love you. They already do.”

***** Present Day *****

The compound where the Citadel survivors lived was beyond isolated. Taylor drove them off road for almost 16 miles before they reached some woods. They must have walked another four miles before they reached the barbed wire fence. Scouting around the edge, it took them several minutes to find the gate.

Clarice glanced around, seeing as much as she could through the gate, the compound seemed to be a derelict military base that had been taken over by a group of mutants. Her mind was running a mile a minute as she tried to figure out everything that was happening. All she wanted was to hug her babies, hug John, she just wanted everything back to normal. She just wanted to sleep.

Taylor rattled the gate, and multiple guns were aimed at the group immediately, “they’re consistent,” Taylor muttered stiffly.

A voice sounded from the other side of the gate, “Don’t any of you recognize the woman that got us free?”

Taylor rolled her eyes as all guns lowered and the gates were opened. “I wish this was a social call, Luka.” Taylor told the dark-skinned woman as she kissed her cheeks.

“I gathered from your phone call that it was not going to be a cheerful meet.” Luka led them into the compound, taking them towards the main building. With every step, more and more people were looking at the group.

Taylor stopped when they reached the makeshift living room, Luka turned to her old friend, glancing around the group she’d brought with her, “So, what can I do for you today?”

Taylor let out a breath, “John and my sister have been taken.”

“John… he’s the one who rescued you. Correct?” Taylor nodded silently, “How can I help them? I can’t strike on Sentinel Services!”

“No, but you’re the only people who know the way to the Citadel. I was taken there in a blacked-out truck, I was taken away unconscious. Gus has no access to his memory of the Citadel due to his experience in the HOUND program. You’re our only chance.”

Luka let out a breath, “I can’t.”

“You owe me this, Luka, if nothing else. You knew for two years that my husband was being tortured, and you did nothing. You know that there’s a spy in the Underground and you only bothered to tell me a few months ago. I have lost too much to lose them too, and you owe me something. I’m collecting on your debt. I need to know where the Citadel is.” Taylor knew she was asking a lot, knew that she was striking a low blow, but she needed this, she wasn’t losing her family.

Taylor watched Luka’s expression filter through a dozen emotions. They’d all sworn that they’d never return to the place that fueled their nightmares. She also knew that most of them had scars under their barcodes from where they’d tried to cut them out of their skin only for it to grow back with the scarred flesh. She had the scar too.

“I’ll see what I can do.” Luka left the group alone.

Gus turned to Taylor, his mind spinning from what he’d heard, “so, that’s what you think is going on.”

Clarice dropped onto one of the couches to stop herself from falling, “You think they’ve taken them to the Citadel?”

Taylor moved to take Clarice’s hand, “I’m sorry, Clare. They will more than likely have taken John there, they would’ve deemed him too volatile to be a HOUND, and Lauren will be used for research, she’s my sister.” Taylor gasped only seconds after she finished speaking, collapsing to her knees as she gripped the sides of her head. The group were around her in a moment, Gus’s hands taking hers, trying to calm her down. Though it didn’t take them long to realize that this wasn’t a breakdown.

“What? What’s going on?” Andy asked as his fear grew, he didn’t really know Taylor like Lauren did, he hadn’t taken the time to get to know her.

“It’s John, he’s scared.” Taylor’s voice faded, “he’s more scared than I’ve ever felt him. He’s hyperventilating, something’s beyond wrong.” Snapping to her feet, Taylor began pacing as Luka came back into the room. “Luke, I need Domino in here now.” Luka raised her eyebrow but sent for Domino none-the-less.

As the man arrived, he sent a smile to Taylor, “What can I do ya for?”

“SDCs? What’re the chances they’re running that program still?”

Domino scoffed, “I’d say about 90% chance.”

“The chances they’d give it to a HS?”

“100%. If they’ve got a high-level HS, they’ll want to test different strengths. If they’re engineering something to replace Cobra, they’ll want to expand the range as well as establish that they’re the ones in control.”

Andy glanced around the group, glad that they seemed just as confused as he was.

“Hey, what’s SDC?” Clarice asked, her eyes brimming with tears.

Taylor let out a shaky breath, “Sensory Deprivation Chemicals. The Citadel was good at making chemicals to test different areas: mutation enhancement, memory modification, mental stimulation, DNA merging, gene splicing to merge powers. But one of their more proficient was SDC, it’s horrific. Some of the results were catastrophic to the victims, beneficial to the scientists. It resulted in hundreds of deaths while I was inside. They were still perfecting it and they hadn’t considered the effects it would have on someone’s breathing, their internal organ function, or their powers.”

Clarice bit back a sob at that, “would I be correct to assume that ‘HS’ is heightened senses?”

Taylor nodded, “I’m sorry, Love, I’m so sorry. The Citadel’s cruel at best, their goal is to break inmates down to basic instincts and drive them into being weapons. John’s senses are already stronger than any other patient they’ve had, to my knowledge… they won’t let this opportunity go to waste.”

“You reckon that’s what they’re doing to John?” Marcos asked with wide eyes. He hated to admit it, but he’d often thought that Taylor’s time in the Citadel was exaggerated slightly. Now, he realized that she’d been telling the truth.

Taylor sighed, “they like to experiment… if they get a mutant with heightened senses, especially at the range John’s are, they like to see how they’ll adapt when their senses are removed.”

“How is that legal?!” Andy exclaimed.

The Survivors in the room all scoffed, Taylor looked over to her little brother, “Mutant Rights aren’t exactly the most protected thing. All they need is for an authority to deem a Mutant as a hazard to themselves or others, or mentally unfit to exist within human society, and then you have less rights than a rat in a research facility.”

Luka handed Taylor a map with the Citadel marked on it, her hands shook as she handed it over. “Taylor, it’s a fortress, and they will have improved security, you won’t get in there without me.” The woman stated.

“And I’m the one who knows the SDCs through and through.” Domino added.

“There’re plenty of people here willing to put their fears behind them to save innocent people, not just your friends. We will help as long as the aim is to rescue everyone, not just your friend and sister.” Taylor nodded, her own mind slowing down as she allowed herself to gain comfort in the idea that they would have help in their mission. The group decided to remain the night considering that it was already late out.

As the group split, most of them following Luka to bedrooms, Taylor stayed back with Clarice. “What’d he do to you, Love? After that video, what’d he do?”

Clarice wrung her hands for a moment, “it was Killian… he wanted me desperate. He’s been researching the limits of mutant biology… he ordered them to feed me once, thirty days after his first meeting with me. A drink every four days… I… Mighty, I can’t go through that again. Something’s got Killian worried, it’s the only reason he’ll be breathing down our necks now.”

Taylor sighed, taking Clarice’s hand, “one problem at a time, Love. We’ll worry about Killian once we’ve got Feather back.”

“Who else saw?” Clarice asked after a moment, “you, Beacon, Matchstick, and who else?”

“Lorna, Marcos. No one else saw, no one’s been told about it.” Taylor assured her, “even Marcos kept quiet about this. Think he was scared of facing John’s anger.” Taylor let out a breath when the barest hint of a smile crossed Clarice’s lips, “it’ll take time, Love, before you’re eating properly again. Take it slow.”

Clarice nodded, “I fucking hate this. I’m cold all the time, I feel like a strong breeze’ll put me on my ass, I’m scared that any time I’ve got food in front of me that someone’ll take it… and none of that’s even touching my list of fears right now.” She took a breath, wiping the tears from her eyes, as Taylor pulled her into her arms, “Mighty, I need you. I need you to help me. With the girls, with all of this. Don’t let me fall.”

Taylor squeezed her hand, remembering John’s similar words from just the other day, “you’ve got me. Until the world ends and even after. You’ve got me. I’m not goin’ anywhere.”

Chapter Text

Lauren awoke on that first day, her arm felt like it was on fire, every twitch of her fingers caused a new wave of pain to flood her brand. Fresh tears spilt from her eyes, the pain and fear all building with every shuddering breath. Lauren didn’t dwell on that for too long though, getting up, Lauren searched the room for anything she could use, but the room was empty except for the concrete bed and the toilet and sink.

Checking each item in the pure white room, Lauren let out a frustrated growl when she found that everything was secure. Moving to the wall at the head of the bed, Lauren carefully maneuvered the cuff on her wrist to mark a single line in the brick.

Collapsing onto the bed, Lauren curled up, hugging her legs tightly to her chest as her mind seemed to battle with the idea that she’d never leave this building again. Another fear was the idea that John was already dead; the way they’d dragged him away from her last night… she didn’t even want to consider the possibility.

*****

John’s eyes flicked open, his sight still in a haze from whatever they’d injected him with the day before. Almost immediately, John’s foggy senses were overcome by the pain in his left shoulder and wrist, the brand agonizing, and his shoulder spasming causing the pain to grow, his heightened senses were a weakness right now. Gasping at the pain in his shoulder, John’s knees gave out, the pain almost unfamiliar, or at least a distant memory. His shoulder was already a deep purple bruise and was badly swollen, he couldn’t stop his worry for Lauren building with every moment he sat in his cell.

His mind span as he tried to think of a plan, there was no chance of him getting out alone, and that was without saving Lauren. John froze as the thought crossed his mind, there was no way in Hell that he was leaving her to these people.

The movement of the door grabbed John’s attention as he stood up, regretting it instantly as black spots clouded his vision, several guards and doctors entered the room. John recognized a couple of the doctors from the day before, instantly, he moved to fight, grimacing when his left arm didn’t cooperate.

“There’s no need for that. We just need to check you over and see how you’re recovering from the medication.” The doctor sneered, another approached John holding a needle. John’s reactions were still clouded from the drugs and fight still limited from his dislocated shoulder, so it didn’t take long for the doctors to subdue John and sedate him.

*****

When the guards came for Lauren, she was sat staring at the wall silently, her mind so far away that she didn’t even register them entering her cell. When they dragged her from the room, Lauren began fighting them, that fight didn’t stop until they brought her into one of the labs. A blindfold was fastened over her eyes before she was guided to a chair and forced to sit, cuffs held her in place. Small sticky pads were placed on her temples and the backs of her hands, it only took Lauren a moment to realize they were wires.

Nearly an hour passed before the blindfold was removed, as soon as it was, Lauren clamped her eyes shut in the blinding light.

“Open your eyes, little fox.” Came the same slimy voice of the guard who’d taken her to her cell yesterday.

Slowly, Lauren let her eyes open, she regretted it instantly as a gasp fell from her lips. In front of her, fastened to a cross in what could only be described as an agonizing position, was John, he was still unconscious, but he was beginning to wake. Wire pads were stuck to his temples and hands too, Lauren didn’t need to be told what they were for – they were going to be tested.

A few more minutes passed before John was fully awake, as soon as he was, he began trying to break free of the chains but, either due to the angle he was held at, the lack of anything to brace against, his shoulder being badly bruised and dislocated, or the chains themselves, they only moved the smallest amount. John tried to tense his arms to keep his weight spread, there was nothing supporting his feet and he couldn’t grab the chains at his wrists. He’d figured that when he didn’t brace his arms, the collar cut off most of his airways. It took him only a moment longer to realize that the cuffs had sharp edges that was cutting into him at jagged angles, not letting his body adapt.

John froze when Lauren screamed, the guards around the room laughed and jeered at the pair.

The head scientist approached them, “as I assume you just discovered, there are pressure pads on the chains and metal work around you. If one of you moves too much, the other gets shocked. Now, there are calls to hand you,” he looked at John, “over to any number of organizations to face justice, however, there has also been the almost unanimous decision that you can once again serve your country. So Orchis, Sentinel Service, the United States Government, and the United Nations, to name a few, have all agreed that you will be most useful here. It will also protect the highest number of civilians. However, it has also been decided by the aforementioned organizations that one of you will tell us everything about the Mutant Underground. If you refuse… well, let’s just say the consequences would not be worth it. We will leave you to discuss.” When the scientist finished, the room emptied, leaving just Lauren and John.

Remaining silent for several minutes, Lauren finally found the bravery to speak, her eyes darting to the door before she began, “what did they do to you yesterday, John?” She whimpered, her eyes scanning over John, taking note of the fact that his weight was held solely on the four jagged cuffs and his collar. There was no other support.

“Hey, hey, Wren, look at me,” Lauren looked into his eyes with fear and desperation, “don’t worry about that, I’m fine. Are you ok?” John’s voice was soft as he attempted to calm Lauren.

“As good as I can be.” She stated weakly, by the look on John’s face, he wasn’t convinced. Changing the topic, Lauren spoke again, “we can’t tell them anything.” She whispered.

“No,” John cringed in thought, “but I don’t even want to consider what they’ll do if we don’t.”

Lauren sobbed at the thought, “but if we tell them anything, everyone will either be sent here or turned into a HOUND. There’s no good way out of this, is there?” She muttered.

John let out a breath before strengthening his resolve, “Lauren, on my life, I will try and make them punish me rather than you. But I don’t know how successful that’ll be, so no matter what, we can’t tell them anything. I know it’s hard, but we’ve gotta stay strong, we’ve gotta keep going until the others figure out what to do. Whatever you do, don’t scream, don’t shout, don’t use your name or any name, don’t let them get the upper hand.” Lauren nodded, shifting the slightest amount in her seat.

Wincing as John tensed, Lauren remembered what the scientist had said about the pressure plates. Tears spilled from Lauren’s eyes as she watched John, his eyes squeezed shut as he tried to block out the pain in his shoulder and the pressure on his airways, how could they stay strong when everything they did hurt them? “What if they never come for us?” Lauren whispered, her voice breaking at the thought.

“They will. They’ll find a way.” John didn’t know whether he was trying to reassure Lauren or himself at this point. John knew that people didn’t escape the Citadel without outside help, he also knew exactly what it had taken for Taylor to lose control. One dose too high, one serum injected too soon, her memories too messed up, her mind too far away… he wouldn’t let that happen to Lauren.

“Those organizations they listed, they’re the ones hunting you?”

John nodded, “it’s not a complete list, but it’s a few of the big names. Tay and I, we’ve made a name for ourselves. We keep attention on us so Clare and Gus can do what they need to.”

“Efficient.” Lauren muttered sarcastically.

“Not really. We’ve each been tortured more than we care to remember… looks like you’ll get a page in the notebook now.”

Lauren laughed slightly at that, “so, what do we do?”

“Follow my lead.”

The sound of the door opening caused them both to tense, their eyes meeting with certainty that, no matter what the consequences, they would not say anything on the Mutant Underground.

The head scientist approached with a tray of chemicals in his hand. “So, now that you’ve had ten minutes to decide, which one of you will tell us the location of the mutant underground?” The pair remained silent, not breaking eye contact with each other. The scientist sighed; he pressed a switch on the wall that sent electricity coursing through Lauren’s chair. Lauren screamed as the waves of electricity filled her, John clenched his jaw, he couldn’t tell them anything. He wouldn’t.

Lauren struggled to nod to John, letting him know that she didn’t want him to speak. John kept his eyes fixed on her, knowing that closing them would be a mistake.

“There doesn’t have to be any more pain, all it takes is one of you to speak.” The scientist switched off the electricity before returning to the pair. The scientist sighed as he took in the look of pure determination filling their eyes, however he couldn’t deny the intrigue that fueled his mind. Mutts never stayed loyal in the Citadel, but this pair… this pair were so much more than the other mutts he’d worked on.

Chapter Text

Deciding to put a temporary end to the defiance he intended to redirect, the scientist called for one of the doctors. A timid looking man approached them, his eyes darting between the two inmates chained up as he handed a serum to the scientist.

The scientist approached John slowly, attaching the serum to a needle. “From what we’ve been able to find out, you’re the one who freed Patient 587.” John tensed at the mention of Taylor, it only took Lauren a second to realize that the scientist was talking about her sister.
“Now, what I have in my hand is a concentrated vial of serum coded to have the same effect as her powers. From all records, this would be useless on you.”

The man didn’t need to finish for John to realize what he’d meant. “Leave her alone!” He growled as the man stepped to approach Lauren.

“It’s within your power to make me stop.” The man sneered, pressing the needle against Lauren’s arm. Lauren couldn’t help the gasp as the scientist said the same line that Campbell used.

“There’s a station in North Carolina where the East is run from!” John shouted, pushing as much fear into his voice as he could feign. He knew some of it was real.

The scientist stopped, a sadistic smile on his face. “That wasn’t so hard now, was it? You two really are just fascinating.” John let out a breath as the scientist stepped away from Lauren. Realization and relief hit Lauren as she remembered that the North Carolina station had fallen a few days before she was taken by Trask, all data transferred to Atlanta.

John barely had any time to think before the scientist returned to him. His sadistic smile returned, “I hope you didn’t think you’d be let off that easy. Shouting? Well, that’s just not acceptable. It’s something we do have to punish, your little friend’s screaming too. However, since you gave us the information, we’ll give you the choice, and we will oblige, this time. So, are you going to take her punishment, or will she be taking yours?”

“Me. Punish me! I’ll take her punishment.” John said over and over until the doctor nodded.

“Like I said… truly fascinating.” John let out a breath only to freeze as a needle sunk into his arm, injecting him with something.

“That is a slow acting SDC. Do you know what that is?”

“Sense’ry dep’vation chem.” John’s voice was already slurred as the chemical began to affect his senses.

“Very good, Sensory Deprivation Chemical. Developed and mastered in this very facility.” By the time the doctor had finished speaking, John was slumped in his binds, the barbed wire cutting deep into his wrists and ankles, he seemed dead. “Do you know what that means, 9383?”

Lauren shook her head, too afraid to speak. Her eyes brimming with tears when she was called by a number rather than a name.

“It means it can’t hear, see, smell, taste, or even feel anything.” As if to prove a point, one of the guards used the butt of his gun to hit John’s forehead, gouging at the skin and leaving blood trickling down his forehead. John’s head lolled to the side, but other than that, there was no reaction. “It’s interesting… with a mutt like this, taking away the senses allows us a brilliant research opportunity. For example, it becomes easier to injure, and it doesn’t heal as fast.”

Lauren’s eyes brimmed with tears, “Leave my brother alone!” She snapped, renewed fury powering her words. John was defenseless, he was relying on her even if he hadn’t said so. A fresh wave of defiance settled across Lauren’s features. John willingly took that serum in order to prevent her from having to be in pain, now she would protect him.

The scientist turned to one of the guards, “bring patient 8147 to the lab.” He turned back to Lauren but didn’t explain anything. The scientist didn’t give Lauren much time to consider his words as another mutant was brought into the lab. “Now, 8147 is able to project your worst fear and turn it into physical pain. Depending on your level of fear depends on the pain it inflicts.” Lauren began fighting the chains, knowing that John couldn’t feel the electricity.

The mutant turned away from Lauren, preparing to attack John, “Wait!” Lauren cried, “please, don’t hurt him! Please! Leave him alone!” Tears streamed down Lauren’s cheeks, she didn’t stop fighting the cuffs as the scientist turned to her.

“Fascinating…” He muttered, summoning one of the doctors. In moments, Lauren had been injected with something. It felt like every nerve in her body was on fire, but she couldn’t move. Lauren’s mind raced as the mutant’s eyes turned black, amplifying Lauren’s fears, and forcing pain into her.

Lauren did her best not to scream, remembering John’s words, remembering that John had been punished thanks to her screaming. The thought made Lauren choke on a sob, she was the reason John was suffering, she’d hurt him. It was her fault! Taylor, Clarice, and Gus would hate her, they’d leave her in the Citadel, if they ever found them.

After another few moments, the scientist reactivated the mutant’s collar, shocking him and forcing him to stop using his powers. Guards took him back to his cell while Lauren sat gasping.

“Take 9383 back to her cell. Leave 9384 here.”

Lauren was weak, but she still realized what he was say. “No… please… don’t take me away from him… let me help him…” The guards just ignored Lauren as they dragged her from the room.

The doctor watched John’s motionless form for several moments before starting his work. Connecting several tubes to John’s arms, he began injecting various chemicals into John’s bloodstream before attaching wires to John’s temples. Nodding to one of the scientists, the doctor took a step back as the scientist began on the mental alteration process.

*****

The cell that Lauren was put in was different to the one they’d taken her from an hour ago. This one had bleach white walls, bedding, sink, toilet, there wasn’t a window, just a single white light on the ceiling. Once the door had closed, Lauren noticed the food hatch at the floor, it only took her a moment to realize that she likely wouldn’t see another person for a while.

Lauren sat crying for what could’ve been hours, she didn’t know for certain how long. There was nothing to help her, no window, no clock, no noise. Nothing. The first noise she’d heard besides her own sobs was the sound of food being slid under the door. It was only then that Lauren realized how truly hungry she was, she hadn’t eaten since before she’d been rescued from Trask and brought to the Citadel.

As soon as she was finished eating, the light in Lauren’s cell went out, leaving her in a darkness that was a stark contrast from the white the room had been only moments earlier. That darkness barely registered for Lauren, her mind slipping away thanks to whatever drugs were in her food.

Her mind span as she tried to grasp reality, but it was slipping further and further from her clutches.

“Help me! Please! I don’t wanna go!” Her parents didn’t move, they did nothing as Taylor was dragged away and closed into the back of a van. Lauren ran after the van until it was out of sight.

“Help! Please! Stop them!” She screamed for her parents help, but they didn’t move as someone - Taylor? – was dragged into the back of a van and taken away.

“I don’t wanna go! Mom! Dad! Save me!” Her parents did nothing, staying in the doorway as she was dragged away, as the doctors locked her in the back of the van where John was already chained, where Taylor was huddled in the corner.

“Save me!” She begged as they did nothing, Lauren begged for their help as she was dragged away, her parents did nothing.

Her parents did nothing. Her parents didn’t save her! Her mind turned to her friends, her family at the HQ. the countless nights debating pointless crap in the kitchen with a bottle of crap alcohol. The hours hugged to Taylor, hugged to John. Her protectors, her sister, her brother. They would save her. They would protect her!

Chapter Text

In the main office, Doctor Benedict Lawrence watched over the footage recorded from the lab with patients 9383 and 9384. He’d never seen a pair show a protective attitude quite as strong, nor so defiant. “It’s interesting… the way they were both stepping in to protect each other, we’ve never seen something like that.” Lawrence glanced to the woman stood next to him, “When people arrive here, they’re usually looking out for themselves. Even siblings don’t show each other that much loyalty. The way 9383 was begging to be left with 9384… you were right, they are the perfect subjects.”

The woman smiled, “They both protect each other for Taylor’s sake, at least to begin with, though it grew to this. John protects Lauren just as much as he protects Taylor, possibly more so because he knows how strong Taylor can be on her own.”

“Yes, well, we’ve already began the process of enhancing that loyalty. Soon they will be the strongest weapons within the Citadel’s forces. Even the Cobra will seem weak in comparison. Orchis and Trask are both providing their own research to aid with the progress.”

Doctor Lawrence flicked the camera to show 9383’s cell, watching the girl as she saw her memories altered, “That’s the other thing. We can’t touch her memories of the HQ if we want to build her alongside 9384, the memories of him and the memories of the group there are too intrinsically linked to separate them.” The woman glanced over to Doctor Lawrence as he paused for a moment before turning to her. “I want you to see what you can find out about Mackenzie Strucker. 9383 must have memories of her older sister. 587’s mind’s ability was always so strong, its why powers bonded to her so easily; her mind wasn’t whole. From what you told us, trying to gain access into 9384’s mind would be just as futile as 587. If that is the case, then 9383 is our only source of information. See what you can find from her, Miss Simonson, before the memories are sealed away and her mind wiped.”

“Of course.” Sonia turned on her heels, heading towards the cell Lauren was being held in.

*****

Lauren was still asleep as Sonia entered the cell, doing her best not to wake Lauren up. The redhead didn’t even hesitate as she approached Lauren, she hadn’t really known the teenager who’d arrived at the HQ in a flurry of panic all those months ago. She’d never really wanted to get to know the girl, despite her orders from Benedict. He’d ordered Sonia to gain intel on the Cobra in whatever ways possible. Sonia began searching through Lauren’s memories for Taylor, for anything that would help them figure out why Taylor’s mind had been so open.

***** 15 Years Earlier *****

Taylor carefully opened the door, a man following behind her. The 12-year-old glanced around the house, listening in the silence for any member of her family to be home. “It’s only my little sister, Mom knew I was almost home,” Taylor picked up a note that had been left on the kitchen counter, “she’s just left with Andy. Won’t be back for a couple hours.”

Lauren came hurtling down the stairs at her sister’s voice. “Tay-Tay!”

Taylor caught the toddler, “Hey Butterfly, this is my friend, Logan.”

“You look like the man on the TV.” Lauren said bluntly, Logan smirked at Taylor, silently telling her that he could see that bluntness ran in the Strucker family.

Grabbing a can of soda from the fridge, Taylor turned to Logan, “So Charles wanted you to talk to me about something?” Taylor asked as she settled Lauren on the counter in the kitchen,

“Yeah, apparently he can’t gain access to your mind.”

“Why the Hell not? I am just that wrong?”

“Tay said a bad word.” Lauren muttered from where she was sat on the counter. Taylor placed a dollar next to the girl but didn’t look away from Logan.

“No!” Logan exclaimed much faster than he’d later admit, “no. He thinks it’s because your mind is reaching for someone else’s. Problem is, he can’t tell who. He’s put protections in place around your mind so only you and the person your mind connects with can access it.”

Lauren watched Taylor roll her eyes, “Mommy said you shouldn’t do that!”

“Yeah, well, Mom also says I shouldn’t use my powers.” Taylor shot back before turning back to Logan, “He say anything else?”

“Only that your boy’s got similar sort of thing with his mind. It’s why he wanted you two to learn beside each other. Give you someone to lean on.”

Taylor nodded, “Mama P said something similar when I was in Arizona… couple weeks ago. Told us to look out for each other.”

“I’d reckon you’ll need to.”

***** Present *****

Sonia stepped away from Lauren, careful not to wake Lauren up as she stumbled away. Her eyes wide as she considered what she’d seen. Taylor had known the X-Men, Lauren had met them. She’d been on a first name basis with at least some of them. Sonia hesitated for a moment as she considered some of the words, ‘Mama P’… the term Taylor, Clarice, and Gus all used for John’s mom. Shaking her head, Sonia refused to believe that John had known the X-Men… but it would explain his absolute refusal to accept that they were gone.

Exiting the cell, Sonia headed back to the office, looking for Doctor Lawrence.

“What did you find?”

“Both sisters knew the X-Men. From what I can tell, Taylor was a personal friend of at least Wolverine and Professor X, she was on a first name-basis with them both.”

The doctor turned to Sonia, stunned at that. “Is the Professor the cause of her mind’s ability?”

“No. He just blocked access. From what Lauren heard, the ability had always been there. The Professor just put shields in place. It’s why I’ve never been able to access her mind.”

“Fascinating…”

Sonia raised an eyebrow but didn’t question the doctor. “There’s a possibility that John knew them too, that they knew each other from before the Underground.”

Doctor Lawrence looked over to her, “are we certain?”

“No,” Sonia admitted, “but Lauren remembers Taylor referring to someone as Mama P who lived in Arizona. That’s the name she uses for John’s mom, it’s also where he was from. It all lines up.”

“Interesting…” Doctor Lawrence muttered, watching the screen showing 9384, “did they share the mental link as children? 587 and 9384? How long have their minds been linked?”

“I don’t know… I don’t think they did. Wolverine said that Professor X thought both of their minds were reaching for someone else… suggests that they weren’t linked.” Sonia glanced over to Doctor Lawrence after a moment, “I can’t go back to the HQ, by now news will have spread to all stations that I’ve been ‘killed’, and that Lauren and John have been captured.”

The doctor nodded, though he hadn’t really been listening. “We will do some more tests with 9383, test her and push her to find out as much as we can about the X-Men and her sister. Every test will be done in close proximity to 9384, see if that loosens her tongue at all. We will begin the wiping process in 28 days.”

Sonia nodded at the idea; the wiping process would take at least one month once they began. Taking a moment to consider what Doctor Lawrence said, Sonia glanced over to him in concern. “How much can Lauren know? Taylor was brought here when Lauren was 5. It might just be worth starting the wipe now.”

“Didn’t you say that 587 turns her own experiences and knowledge into stories for her daughter? Perhaps she did the same for her sister. 9383 may know more than either of us expect. Besides, we want to stretch 9383’s powers before we wipe her mind.” The doctor reassured her, watching the cameras in Lauren’s cell.

*****

Doctor Lawrence headed towards the cell containing 9384, pausing in the doorway to study the unmoving mutt fastened to the cross. Stepping into the lab, Doctor Lawrence moved over a serum, a simple chemical designed to build a Mutt’s power. It only took him a second to hook it up, but he could almost instantly tell that the serum was taking effect. With any luck, the SDC would clear in a few days and the binding process could continue.

He watched the Mutt in front of him for several moments, “how does the link work?” He muttered to himself more than anyone else. If he could figure it out, he could build an unstoppable weapon. One that no Mutt could stop.

Chapter Text

Taylor sat behind the couch, attempting to reach John’s mind, but it was like there was a glass wall between them; she was so close but couldn’t hear him. All night, Taylor had been sat trying to reach John, Clarice had spent the entire night at her best friend’s side, hoping that they’d be able to reach John at some point.

Gus and Marcos were the first awake, both deciding to take advantage of the decent showers at the Survivors’ Compound, they’d spent most of the night awake, worrying about their family. Marcos made it down to the living room first, but Gus wasn’t far behind, both stopping in the doorway when they saw Taylor and Clarice sat on the floor behind the couch. He smiled when he saw Clarice asleep, her head resting against Taylor’s shoulder as Taylor kept an arm securely wrapped around Clarice.

“I’m gonna call Sage, check on the kids,” Marcos muttered, “you wanna check on those two?”

Gus headed towards the two women, hoping for good news but knowing he wasn’t likely to get any. His hand gently fell onto Taylor’s shoulder, frustration was written clearly on her features. “Any luck?” He whispered, conscious to not wake Clarice, he could guess Taylor’s answer by her expression.

“It’s like he’s there, but he’s not there, I can feel his mind… shifting… as though it’s rewiring itself to do… something. It’s like I’m being taunted.” Taylor told him, frustration ebbing into her voice.

“It’s not your fault, Tay,” Clarice mumbled with tiredness and certainty, despite the edge of exhaustion lingering in her voice as she woke up. She would not let her friend blame herself for this.

“I should have been with him!” Taylor snapped back.

Gus and Clarice shared a glance, knowing that Taylor would blame herself until John and Lauren were home safely, they would all blame themselves. “Yeah, and then we’d have no leads, no contacts, and no idea what to do. Taylor you should be here. You’re the one we need to help us find them.” Gus assured her, the words did next to nothing to settle Taylor’s mind in the deafening silence of her own thoughts.

Taylor’s eyes flicked over to the pair, “tell that to James when he calls in six months because John’s not called.” The bitterness in her voice caused the others to sigh as they saw the hate Taylor held for herself in her eyes. Taylor barely registered them as she tried to comprehend her own thoughts, it was unfamiliar to be so empty in her mind.

Luka and Domino returned to the cabin that the family were in, a group of mutants following them, all willing to help rescue those locked in the Citadel.

“We’ll work from the HQ, that way no one who doesn’t want to be involved will be dragged in.” Taylor stated as she stood on shaky legs.

*****

Eight days later, the group were still no closer to any idea as to how to save their people when Shatter came running into the building, “Everybody! We’ve got incoming!”

Taylor’s eye darkened as she ordered people back, leaving just the HQ leaders stood ready to greet whoever was going to enter the room.

Esme Frost and her sisters walked into the HQ in perfect sync. Marcos and Lorna shared a disconcerted look while Gus and Clarice stood unmoving at Taylor’s sides, waiting for the Underground Leader to make her move.

“What the hell do you want?” Marcos sneered.

“Calm down.” One of the triplets said sweetly.

“There’s no need to get excited.”

“We just want to talk.”

Taylor let out a laugh, a cold and empty sound, one that echoed the sound of a rattlesnake, the triplets all looked at her as she took a step forward, her fingers flexing.

“Now, now, Taylor, there’s really no need to let the Python out.” The middle sister said. At that moment, the other two dropped to their knees, screaming.

“Go ahead. Piss me off right now. I could kill you without even losing myself, Python’s asleep, the Cobra’s out to play.” Cobra’s eyes were dark and her voice the sound of a thousand scorpions skittering across too-dry ground as she let the monster created in the Citadel free, releasing the Citadel’s Cobra while Python stayed buried in her mind. The rest of the family took up their places at the Cobra’s sides, setting the leading ranks of the Mutant Underground out clearly for the sisters to see who was in charge.

The sister still standing glanced between the pair on their knees, terror in her eyes as she tried to avoid looking at the Cobra.

“I don’t give a damn what you have to say. I have bigger things to deal with that you’re Hellfire Club pricks that you play little bitch so well for.”

The sister looked taken aback at Cobra’s sharp words. “Obviously we won’t get anywhere with you. Where’s the boy who plays your conscience? Where’s Proudstar? The White King sends his regards.”

Cobra’s eyes hardened as her fist tightened, “I don’t know why you’re here, and frankly, I don’t care, but I’ll tell you this… you come near anyone in this building, any member of the Mutant Underground, and not even Taylor’s… morals will be able to save you.” The entire building was silent as the Cobra spoke, most of them had never even heard of the engineered weapon that existed within Taylor, “You leave here now, or you and your sisters die.” Cobra’s mind hardened at the look of defiance in the sister’s eyes.

Esme glared at Cobra, “or… maybe we’ll be the ones on top. Children’s minds are easier to reach.”

The two sisters on the ground began coughing up blood, “any of you do anything to Taylor’s daughter or John’s twins… or their niece… and I will destroy you in more ways than you can imagine. You will learn every… unique talent that I have at my disposal.” The three sisters were all bleeding from their eyes, noses, ears, and mouths before Cobra dropped their hand and let the three sisters scurry away.

As soon as they were out of the building, Taylor collapsed against the wall, her head resting on her knees as she tried to clear her mind of the Cobra’s presence.

“What the hell was that?!” Marcos asked, stunned.

Luka stepped forward, her hands shaking, “Cobra...”

Taylor shook her head. “Just me.” She croaked; red eyes still hazy as she sealed away that part of her mind.

“What happened?” Lorna asked, glancing between everyone.

“Cobra’s cared for John in her own… psychopathic way. Since he rescued us, she believes that we owe our freedom to him. We do. She’ll protect him and the four girls as long as she can… I couldn’t stop her waking then. Then she threatened the kids… Cobra will become everything we both fear if those girls are threatened… I’m shocked she let them go.”

Taylor let out a long breath and let her eyes close for a moment, opening them again when she felt a small hand on hers, “Mommy?” Imogen asked.

“Yeah, little terror?” Taylor pulled the girl to her side.

“Cobra gon’ keep us safe?”

Taylor nodded, “I think she just might.”

Andy glanced between everyone, not too sure what was going to happen, but he wanted his voice heard for once. “Maybe we should hear them out…” He said uncertainly as he shuffled towards the leaders,

“After everything they did?” Taylor scoffed, exasperation clear on her face as she shakily stood up, holding Imogen’s hand gently, not trusting herself to be able to stay stood up if she lifted the girl.

“They got us out of Trask.” Andy pointed out; his words caused the Citadel Survivors group to share a look.

“That would’ve been like us helping Taylor within weeks of getting free. It didn’t happen. She had to earn our trust back. Those sisters don’t get a free pass.” Luka spat as the group moved to continue planning their attack.

*****

The group began trying to formulate something that resembled a plan, but it was slow going. “I’ve looked into everything we know about the Citadel, but I can’t access any of their security, internal systems, protocols.” Sage motioned to the screens, “I can’t get us in.”

Luka sighed, “like we said, the perfect fortress. It’s always been that, though, only reason we got out was thanks to Taylor losing control.”

The Citadel survivors shuddered at the memory. “Most of us didn’t make it out.” Domino muttered back.

Taylor scoffed, “we’re saving them before someone loses control. We’re not risking anymore deaths at that hell.”

*****

Clarice stared over to the empty space beside her as she settled into bed. It seemed to become emptier with every passing day. She barely moved as the door opened.

“Momma?” Whispered Evie, Clarice didn’t speak, she just lifted the banket enough for the two girls to crawl under and cling to her. She hugged them back just as tightly.

“Miss Daddy.” Rose murmured sleepily.

Clarice blinked back her tears as she pressed a kiss to the young girl’s head, “I do too. But we’ll bring him home.” The nod told her that Rose had heard.

Clarice lay awake as the two girls fell asleep, after a few hours, she reached over to her bedside table, lifting the tin box onto her lap and pulling out John’s dog tags, wedding ring, and pendant, holding all three tightly in her hand. He only ever took them off on risky missions… Tears stung her eyes as she brought them up to her lips, choking down a sob as she tried not to think about everything the man she loved was going through.

“Momma? Don’t cry…” Evie whimpered, the sound of Clarice’s quiet sobs waking her up.

Clarice pulled Evie onto her lap, “I’ll be ok, angel, once Daddy’s home.”

Chapter Text

Lauren awoke in a bleach white cell for what she thought was the eighth day running, though she had no real way of knowing. She hadn’t seen another person since they’d closed the door after dragging her away from John, she was becoming desperate to protect him at any cost. The sound of movement at the door grabbed Lauren’s attention.

“Come now, 9383. We have tests to run.” Lauren shrunk into the corner of the room, but the guards just grabbed her arms and hauled her to her feet, forcing her from the room.

Entering the lab, Lauren saw John still slumped in his chains on the cross, his head wound had now clotted and the blood that coated the side of his face was cracking. His shoulder looked worse than it had when she last saw him. She didn’t fight as the doctors fastened her to the chair, she didn’t move as they left the room.

Lauren didn’t know how long she spent in the lab staring at John before he twitched. Her eyes widened in an instant, focusing entirely on watching for any other movements. After a few minutes, his eyes flicked open only for him to immediately squeeze them shut again.

“John?” Lauren asked weakly.

John grunted in response, “you hurt?” He croaked, wincing at the volume of his voice.

Lauren shook her head, “they’ve left me alone since taking me away from you.” She kept her voice quiet, even she couldn’t hear what she said, but John heard her perfectly, “what’d they do to you?”

John finally managed to open his eyes, squinting in the light, “I dunno… but I think one of these is something to affect my powers.”

Lauren took note of the wires and tubes connected to John, each one injecting a different chemical into his body.

The pair fell silent as the door opened, revealing the doctor who’d been overseeing their treatment.

“Well, I’m glad to see that you’re both awake, before we start, though, we just need to do some work on 9383.” He summoned a team of doctors into the room, all of which began swarming Lauren. They worked silently and quickly, attaching four tubes to her and pumping chemicals into her bloodstream.

Lauren gasped as she felt her powers push against her, as her mind began shouting. The head doctor stepped between the two mutants and waited for Lauren to settle before he nodded for the doctors to start the next part of the process.

One team of doctors stepped over to Lauren while another team headed over to John, a machine was set up between the pair as the doctors connected the wires and tubes to their two patients. No one hesitated as they switched on the machine, all of them watching silently as the pair tensed, the chemicals immediately taking effect.

*****

Doctor Lawrence watched the two test subjects in front of him, a sick smirk on his lips as he upped the dosage of both the enhancer serum and the combination serum. The two subjects were both breathing heavily, both trying to overcome the fact that their powers were expanding.

9384 was the more interesting of the pair to watch, Doctor Lawrence guessed that his senses must already be around 50% stronger than what they’d been when he first entered the lab. The immunity serums would also be helping with that… recoding just how resistant 9384 was, already improving physical immunity, body density, and internal strength while also improving immunity to disease, starvation, thirst, and exhaustion.

9383 was also fascinating to watch in that regard. The girl had come in with only the power to make shields and discs. Soon, her powers would be so much greater. The Fox would be the weapon of the Citadel, able to tear apart or fuse the atomic bonds of anything… she just needed strength, and 9384 had a surplus of that.

While the combination serum wouldn’t give the subjects access to the other’s mutation, it would open the X-gene to allow the next step of the process to begin. The process of combining powers onto their X-genes, both should be honored that they get to make use of 587’s experience in this way. They would be stronger because of her testing.

***** 12 Years Ago *****

After being stood up last weekend, John wasn’t too sure that heading to Taylor’s house was the smartest move. Hell, she’d always told him that her parents didn’t allow her to bring her friends over, especially not mutants. With a sigh, John shook his head and double checked the address he’d… acquired… from Charles’ office. Convinced that he was in the right place, he headed up the drive, knocking on the door, pushing down the doubt gnawing at him.

The front door opened to reveal an older woman with puffy eyes, “can I help you?”

“Sorry to come unannounced, Ma’am, I’m looking for Taylor, uh Mackenzie, I’m a friend of hers, we were meant to meet the other day…”

Tears pooled in the woman’s eyes, “she… my Mackie died. Last week… my precious girl…”

The world seemed to stop, everything falling away as John heard those words. They couldn’t be real, she had to be lying, “how… she was fine, last I saw her. I saw her last weekend!”

“She fell ill, I’m so sorry.” The woman headed back into the house before John could even react.

Without thinking of where he was going, John began running, wanting nothing more than to disappear. Memories of Taylor flooded his mind as he ran long into the night, he couldn’t bring himself to care for the cold or the rain.

*****

Making it back to his crappy apartment, John had barely closed the door before letting himself fall to the floor, his head in his hands as he cried.

“What happened?” Clarice asked, sitting on the floor next to him.

John shook his head, “uh, Tay… Taylor, my friend, the one I wanted you to meet… went by her place. She’s gone.”

Clarice let out a breath, “any chance we can find where she went?”

“She’s dead. She’s gone. Promised her that I’d always be there for her… she fell sick and died alone. I didn’t know.”

*****

It took John weeks to find the strength to head back to Westchester. He wasn’t entirely sure that he’d stopped crying at all in that week. He took Clarice with him as he headed towards the school, holding her hand like a lifeline as he led her inside, not stopping for anyone as he made his way towards Charles’ office.

John didn’t stop to knock on the door, nor did he stop to hear who was inside. Instead, he just pushed open the door, “did you know?” He asked Charles, not even looking over to Erik.

Charles looked at him with confusion, “it’s not often that I have to ask people for clarification on what they mean, but John, your mind has always eluded me—”

“Shut up,” John muttered tiredly, “did you she was sick?”

Erik stood, “know who was sick, John?”

“Taylor, dammit!” He snapped, slamming the door with enough force to make Erik, Charles, and Clarice jump, he only felt bad about Clare, “did you know she was fucking sick?!”

Erik reached out to John, “sit, what’s happened?”

John crumpled into the chair, sitting across from Charles, anger and pain burned in equal measure in his eyes, “I went to her house… after she didn’t show last week… her grandma said she died. Did you know she was sick? Had she said anything?” An edge of desperation filled his voice as shock fell across Charles and Erik.

“I had no idea, my boy. I swear. If I had known…” John didn’t need to be a telepath to know that Charles was telling the truth.

“I promised her I’d get her out of that house… promised her she’d be ok.” John whispered.

“As did we,” Erik muttered, “gave her a slip for her parents. Stated that the school would take responsibility for her, free of charge. She would have had a home…”

***** Present *****

Everything was too bright… too loud… too much. John could barely think beyond the sound of chemicals moving through tubes, of his blood in his ears, of Lauren whimpering… Lauren… his mind sharpened as his eyes focused on his little sister’s sister? On his sister… yeah, that sounded better. He tried to steady his mind, to focus on the sound of Lauren’s heart, but he couldn’t focus! There was too much… too bright… too loud.

His mind focused on the memory of when Evie’s powers first formed, no, don’t think of her here, John scolded himself. His mind didn’t listen, he remembered Evie curling into his arms when the noise and lights were too much, the way she’d curl up under a blanket to drown out the sounds and lights, but the blanket was too itchy, too may fibers. John’s breathing steadied slightly.

His thoughts turned to Rose, his precious Rosie, they’d all learnt sign language to help her, but some days her sight was too hazy to see the proper signs. It was always too dull, too distant for Rose, a world of grays and whites and blacks and nothing else. His heartrate slowed; his mind steadying as he focused on his babies.

Clarity hit its peak in his mind when his thoughts turned to Clarice. His heart. She had crashed on his couch after her car had been set on fire. They’d been 18 and they’d never looked back. She moved in 6 weeks later. Moved with him when he’d joined the Marines. She was his rock as much as he was hers. His Clare, full of wild energy and vibrant colors, a world of sporadic landings and spur-of-the-moment plans. His Reece, full of heart and compassion and goodness. She’d kept them all sane; she’d saved them all. She’d find him this time too.

*****

Lauren’s mind span, her focus tightening on the feeling of the serums flooding her. A clarity in her mind, a precision, that she’d never felt before. Her heartrate sped up, her thoughts jagged as she tried to focus.

Focus on her parents… no, they’d sent her away… did they? She wasn’t sure anymore. They’d sent someone away. She thought it was Taylor, but Taylor wasn’t in Hell with her, she was with John.

Focus on her brother… her brother who definitely had a name… 9384… no, that was what the Citadel called him. He was 9384, she was 9383… Taylor was 587. They had Taylor too. She was here somewhere, she had to be!

Her brother had a name. Andy? John? She knew that one of them belonged to her brother. Andy who was angry and scared and… and something else… John who was good and protective and caring and… he was the one to save her. There was a power that she had with… with someone… Taylor? Possibly, but that didn’t feel certain. John? No, it wasn’t with him… was it? Andy? That sounded right… but it felt wrong.

9383… Lauren, her mind tried to focus, tried to clear the words in her head, tried to place names and faces, but 587 – Taylor! Taylor had always said that names were hard to remember. She was right, of course, Lauren… 9383… she remembered their faces. Four children. One a bundle of neon, one full of pinks and greens, her twin(?) full of blues and jade, and another one… one full of stars. Imogen, her niece… Rosie and Eve? John’s children… her nieces. And Rory… Aura? It didn’t sound complete… Aurora… Evie’s best friend! Evie and Rose. Evie, Rose, and Imogen. Her nieces.

*****

John’s mind couldn’t focus, the sounds around him grew louder, his senses enhancing further as the tubes stayed injected into his body. His mind headed for his sister. His sisters. Lauren and Taylor. Not blood, but everything but. He’d saved one from this place. He’d save the other. His Taylor, his Python, his mind… or at least part of it… his best friend and partner in crime, the one he grew up with. His Lauren, hot chocolates while they watched the sunrise, stupid debates, and pointless conversations. His Taylor – the noon-day sun. His Lauren – the first break of light. His Clarice – the midnight full moon. He was theirs. Theirs and his daughters and he would protect them all.

*****

Doctor Lawrence looked over the readings as they continued to monitor the brain activity of the pair in the lab. He shook his head with a gleam in his eyes, “have you seen these readings?” He turned to Sonia, “their minds are so… alive. So strong. We’ve given them the strongest dosage, they’re the first pair to both survive it.”

Sonia let out a breathy laugh, “what happens next?”

“Next?” Lawrence turned back to the screens, “next, we seal 9384 away, let the mental alteration take affect without external stimuli. As for 9383, we’ll keep her in the room with him for the next few days, let her mind figure out that she needs him, then take her away.”

An easy plan. Something cruel and effective. Sonia watched from the sidelines as one of the doctors injected John with an SDC that, theoretically, should last until the mind-wipe stage began.

Lauren immediately began fighting to get to John, trying to get him safe, away from the doctors as he slumped back in the chains, his collar cutting off most of his air supply. A simple injection into 9383’s arm stopped the fight as her mind was overcome with an onslaught of memories altering themselves in her unseeing eyes.

Chapter Text

The days had passed and Lauren… 9383 hadn’t been removed from the lab, her eyes fixed on 9384, still chained to the cross, still not moving.

Doctor Lawrence approached the teenager, “Now, 9383, what do you know about the X-Men?” He asked bluntly.

9383 looked between 9384’s body and the doctor, “They disappeared like four years ago.” She whispered hoarsely. The doctor rolled his eyes, clearly disappointed in the Fox’s answer, he picked up a serum and walked over to 9384.

“Please! No! Leave him alone!” 9383 began fighting the chains before freezing, remembering the stories Taylor would tell her, the man she met. “My sister knew them!”

The doctor stopped, turning back to the teenager, and placing the needle back on the tray, “And?”

“I-I met Logan once. I never met the others. I don’t know what you want!” She was crying now, terrified of the man in front of her.

The doctor picked up the needle again, injecting inmate 9384 with its contents before turning back to 9383 with a dark expression. “Oh, but I think you do.” The doctor commented, leaving the room as someone moved in the shadows behind 9383.

*****

His mind wouldn’t cooperate. It was like the thoughts were just at the edge of his grasp only to be pulled away. His senses were gone. The only noise reaching him were his thoughts. He knew… he knew that there was someone to protect… Wren… these bastards had given her a number… given him a number. 9383. That was her, wasn’t it? He was the next one, 9384. The pair of them. Together… or something… he wasn’t entirely sure.

He wanted to shake his head, clear his mind, but there was nothing he could do. He could feel nothing, not even his breathing. He could hear nothing, not even his heart. His sight, his touch, his smell, all of his senses were gone. His thoughts drifted to someone else… his noon-day sun. Blue hair and red eyes, the name on the tip of his tongue. Someone else, too… his heart, his love, his… his… purple hair and jade eyes and a temper that could destroy any argument… her name? What was her name?!

Reese. That was her name, Reese. She’d helped him through… everything… maybe? Or maybe she didn’t. but it definitely felt right to say that she did… or rather, think that she did. His noon-day sun had a name too, Python. That was her… no… Tay… that was her name. Tay, his sister. Tay and Reese, his sister and wife, his mind and heart. His… his…

His daughters. Yes, plural, there were two of them. They were… they were tiny… delicate… he’d been scared to hold them in the beginning… maybe? Or had it been more recent? He worried that he’d hurt them… especially the little flower. Rose? That was his little baby’s name, his precious Rose. His gentle flower, so delicate, so small. Always at her sister’s side… her sister… his daughter… Reese’s daughter… Evie… they were his family. He needed to remember them.

Reese. Evie. Rose. Tay… Tay… 587. Reese. Evie. Rose. 587. Wren… 9383. A mantra, names he wouldn’t let himself forget. Names that meant the world. That made his word… his wife… his daughters… his sisters… Reese. Evie. Rose. 587. 9383.

No! They couldn’t have those names. Reese. Evie. Rose. Taylor! Lauren! Reese. Evie. Rose. Taylor. Lauren. Reese, short for Clarice. Means ‘bright’. She’d punched him when he pointed that out in relation to her… portals? Yes, her portal. She’d punched him and bruised her own hand. Evie and Rose because they’d liked those names. Simple, gentle… his babies. Two troublemakers. Taylor. His sister. He’d saved her from Hell… no, he’d saved her from the Citadel. He was there now. With Wren… Wren his littlest sister, Taylor would always be his baby sister. Wren, so kind, so… so… so much better.

He had to protect them all…

*****

9383 froze as she watched the familiar woman step forward, Sonia’s smile was cold and calculating as she looked at 9383. She nodded for the doctors to hook 9383 up to the fluid bag filled with the chemical that would begin the enhancement of her powers. 9383 didn’t even flinch as they injected the needle into her forearm.

“Sonia? Ho- Wha…” Sonia brushed a strand of hair away from 9383’s face.

“Oh Sweetie, don’t panic.” She whispered before using her powers on the teenager, forcing the girl’s mind open as the serum began wreaking havoc in 9383’s mind.

***** 14 Years Earlier *****

Taylor was sat on the corner of Lauren’s bed, the barely three-year-old had been freaked out by her parents shouting at Taylor… again.

“Tay? Why do they shout at you?” Taylor brushed her fingers over Lauren’s cheek, half-lying down as she comforted her sister.

“Because,” she hesitated, “I’m different. And I don’t want to move.” Taylor stated simply, Lauren knew that in just over a month, the family would be leaving their New York home for Atlanta thanks to their dad’s new job.

Lauren cuddled closer to Taylor, she hated seeing her sister and parents argue, she hated the way her parents would talk about her sister but there was no way of stopping them. Lauren rested her head against Taylor’s shoulder. “Tell me about them.” The girl said, propping her chin up on Taylor’s shoulder so she could see her sister’s face.

“My friends?” The little girl nodded eagerly; she loved hearing about the people her sister trained with every Saturday.

“Well, my good friend Charles said that if I go to his school then I wouldn’t have to move. But that means leaving you and Andy.” Lauren pouted dramatically at the idea; Taylor just smiled at the four-year-old. “So, Charles told me that we wouldn’t be able to meet every Saturday, but we’d have to meet every other Saturday so they can get to us all the way in Atlanta. And I’ll get to see them more in the summer. Plus, if you ever show powers, they’ll be able to help you.”

“Can I meet them?” Lauren asked with a yawn,

“You’ve already met them. Remember the man from the TV?”

Lauren nodded sleepily, “What about your other friend? The one you stayed with last Christmas?”

“John? He’s like my big brother…”

***** Present *****

“What was that?” 9383 asked weakly.

“When did you meet the X-Men, 9383?” Sonia asked her, she knew Benedict would be listening to the conversation.

“I, uh, I met Logan once, when I was two. I never saw them again.” 9383 cried brokenly, tears sliding down her cheeks.

Sonia connected another cable to the needle in 9383’s arm, this one would make her mind more subjective to modification. “What about Taylor?”

“Taylor knew them, they were her friends.”

Sonia stood straight, anger rippling off of her. “And you expect me to believe that she never told her little sister about her friends?”

“She didn’t! She was taken away when I was 5! I never knew them!” 9383 screamed. She just wanted Sonia to leave her alone.

Sonia sent a nod to one of the guards, the guard stepped forward and proceeded to hit John in the stomach with his gun. John didn’t move, but it was clear that he’d been winded.

9383 picked up her fight again, doing everything she could think of to try and break free from the chains. If John’s breathing didn’t change to accommodate for the air leaving his lungs, he could suffocate. “Sonia, stop!”

“Tell me what you know!”

“I don’t know anything,” 9383 was sobbing now, they were hurting John and there was nothing she could do to stop them.

“Why is her mind so adaptable? Why were powers able to be connected with her?”

“Please, I don’t know. Just stop hurting John.”

Sonia left the room, leaving 9383 sobbing, chained in her chair. A smirk etched itself onto Sonia’s lips, she couldn’t help but be thrilled to see the conditioning that was taking place – it was the first time that she was being present for the entire process.

Heading into the office, Sonia looked at Doctor Lawrence, the doctor smirked at the annoyed scowl Sonia wore, they’d had 9384 and 9383 in the Citadel for nearly two weeks and hadn’t gotten very much other than a realization that Lauren would go to any lengths to protect John now that he was defenseless, it meant that the conditioning was sticking easier, but that wasn’t saying much.

“She’s useless. Maybe we should’ve used John’s mind.” Sonia muttered.

“No, with him we face the same issue as we experienced with 587; his mind has shields in place. We’re upping his dosage to one every 48 hours; it’s already showing that the alterations are holding steady within his DNA.”

Sonia let out a sigh, they wanted to know how Taylor’s mind worked, but they had no idea how to get the information. “You recruited me to help track down the remaining X-Men. We’re no closer to that than the day we started. We knew Taylor had connections to them, we know John was a student of theirs, that’s it. We’ve got nothing.”

“Tread lightly, Miss Simonson, as you have said, you’ve not proven yourself useful. The only thing keeping you on this side of the equation is your potential use in tracking down and eliminating the X-Men. If that use runs out, you’ll be in one of these cells.”

Sonia looked away from Doctor Lawrence, she knew her usefulness was what kept her safe: the ability to read the thoughts of inmates, the potential to use those memories to track down their targets. If that use ran out, she would be worse than dead, and there would be no one coming to rescue her. For the last three years, Sonia had been doing her best to prolong her survival, she had no intention of letting that slip now.

Chapter Text

By the third week into their time in the Citadel, 9383 couldn’t bring herself to speak anymore, it only resulted in pain. She was quickly learning how to resist and block Sonia from seeing certain memories, but she was becoming exhausted with the constant pain. She didn’t move when the doctors entered her cell, her cage. She’d stopped fighting the day they locked her in a strait jacket in the second week at some point, they only let her out for an hour a day. In those hours, she was injected with different chemicals and serums, she had no idea what they were doing, but it was becoming so much harder to remember what her life before the Citadel had been.

Doctors motioned for 9383 to lie on the bed which she did without resistance, they’d told her that if she complied, they would treat John’s injuries. Three serums were easily injected into 9383’s neck before she passed out thanks to the drugs.

*****

Sonia headed into the cell where John was chained, her eyes scanning over him as she took in his injuries. She pressed her forefinger to his shoulder, feeling the usually dense skin move beneath the light touch. He had been moved, no longer was he bound to the cross, but instead, he was chained on his knees, his arms pulled taut behind him while iron bands welded to the floor were fastened in six places down his calves.

“Will it kill him? These injections, you know the consequences.” She asked the doctor.

“With his existing mutation, he will recover and thrive with these. His DNA is similar in its formation to 587, the X-Gene in him is open, able to adapt and fluctuate. It’s what let us manipulate 587’s powers, allow us to create the Weapon.” Sonia nodded, watching as the doctor injected two different serums into John’s arms before leaving the room.

Guards moved over to where Sonia was stood watching John, her focus solely on his minute movements, the rise and fall of his chest.

“It isn’t in control. Doctor Lawrence has ordered it to be muzzled.” Sonia nodded, stepping back to watch as the solid muzzle was locked around John’s face, locking to the collar, a mouthpiece filling his mouth. Sonia stood in silence for a few more moments before she followed the guards from the room.

*****

It took the group several more weeks since the Frost sisters had arrived to come up with a plan while also having people keep an eye out on what the Frosts might be working on. They all saw the girls sat expectantly with Sage and Shatter.

“Sage! Harry!” Taylor bellowed, startling everyone in the building, “with me.” Sage and Harry shared a glance before they followed Taylor and the others towards the back office, Reed and Caitlin joined them.

Once everyone was inside, Gus closed the door so no one could listen in. “No one outside this room hears what’s about to be said.” He told them before turning to Taylor.

“Ok, so we all know what happens next. If we raid now, we all die, so do Lauren and John.” Taylor began.

“If they’re still alive. C’mon, you said it’s been four weeks, you know what’s likely happened.” Luka muttered.

“Luke, I know that you have your doubts. They are alive. I can still feel John in my mind.”
Taylor turned from her friend to Sage, asking the woman to explain what she’d found out.

“From what I can tell, the layout of the Citadel is the same as it was when you were all there. However, they’ve got impenetrable firewalls, I can’t get through them.”

The group shared a glance, Taylor let out a breath, “in other words, you can’t get access to their CCTV?” Sage shook her head.

“So, we’re going in blind?” Caitlin asked, her voice filling with despair.

“Not quite. Taylor, can you take down the guards?” Gus asked her.

“I’ll have to build up to it, I can’t do it from nothing.” Taylor explained, “besides, we’ll need to be close so I can reach them and not kill the inmates.”

Lorna glanced over to Marcos before they turned back to Taylor, “could Cobra do it faster?” Marcos asked causing everyone to tense.

“Possibly.” Taylor admitted, placing a fist on the table in an attempt to steady her shaking hand, “I don’t wanna go down that path, though. The Cobra was engineered as a weapon for the Citadel, I don’t know what would happen if I asked her to fight against it while inside.”

“I can take down the automated guns and exterior cameras,” Gus stated.

“I can stop the bullets.” Lorna added, “Clarice, don’t portal us in, save your energy to get us out.” Clarice nodded, she knew it was going to be draining, but she needed to get John home. They needed him and Lauren back.

“Lorna, you aren’t going.”

“Tay—”

“You aren’t going! That’s final.” Taylor snapped, her voice unwavering and leaving no chance for a debate. She wasn’t talking to her friend now, she was leading her people, she wouldn’t risk the baby.

The group separated in order to try to form a somewhat decent plan, they knew that they would get everyone free of the Citadel, but beyond that, there was no plan.

*****

Taylor stood with Sage as they saw Campbell put a gun in his mouth and pull the trigger, apparently the man had admitted to the inhumane treatment of mutants and put a gun in his mouth on live television. With Campbell dead, the HOUND program was shut down within hours, Trask closed not much later.

It also saw the reopening of several Mutant Rehabilitation Centers and Research Facilities like the Citadel. “I don’t care about Campbell, show me the Citadel.”

“There’s nothing new, Taylor. We’re running into dead end after dead end, even I can’t breach their systems too much. All we know is that the town is still unoccupied.”

Taylor furrowed her eyebrows in confusion at that, “Why’s it still empty?”

“People believe it’s haunted.” Sage said with a shrug.

Taylor glanced over, a plotting smile on her lips. She didn’t tell Sage any of her plan for the moment, deciding that she’d need to work out the kinks before she shared it with anyone.

“They’re calling you the Citadel Ghost.” Taylor watched Sage for a moment as the woman loaded up the tag on social media; people were all calling the creator of the Citadel Tragedy ‘the Citadel Ghost’, Taylor couldn’t deny how fitting she found it.

*****

Leaving Sage in the tech room, Taylor gathered the attack group together, she looked around the group, watching them settle before she spoke. “If we try to attack right now, they’ll decimate us. We won’t even reach the main building.”

Clarice looked at Taylor, desperation in her eyes at the blue-hair woman’s words. “There’s gotta be something.”

Taylor nodded to Clarice, sorrow on her face, “Campbell’s dead. The Frosts killed him. On live TV. People are watching everything that’s ever been linked to Trask.”

“So, what do we do, Empty?” Clarice asked, leaning against the table. She was mostly recovered from her weeks at Trask, but there was still a jitteriness to her, her energy was still low.

Taylor shook her head, “I don’t know.” She whispered, glancing between each expectant face as she spoke. Taylor didn’t want to tell them that if they acted now, they would risk all of them being captured.

*****

Taylor set up her usual desk, filling it with files and maps as she tried to figure out the team’s next move. Three days later and she was barely closer to a formulated plan, they had no idea about so many aspects.

“No guard numbers. No shift times. No patient numbers. No idea of patient conditions.”

“Oh, you’ve seen worse odds.” Came Luka’s voice.

Taylor glanced over to her friend, she didn’t know how to take Luka at the moment, “Why are you still helping?”

“They matter to you. You matter to me.” Luka’s eyes were filled with a sincerity that was so unfamiliar to Taylor. “I’m gonna help you. I’m staying until this is done, or you tell me to go.” Luka assured her, gripping Taylor’s hand while Taylor searched her face for any sign of lies. “I know I should’ve told you about your husband and Trask—”

Taylor scoffed, “ya think?”

“So,” Luka continued undeterred, “if I can help save your brother and sister… I figured it’d begin to make up for it.” She paused for a moment, “Taylor, it’s been a month… you know what’ll be happening soon.”

Taylor shook her head, “we have two days. Two days left before the 28 are up. Give me those two days, Luka, then we can have this conversation.”

Luka nodded, “but when we have it, Clarice and your parents need to be involved.”

The pair set about planning together, the others joining them as the days went on, it was quick to see the plan forming as Sage slowly dug more information and the old Citadel residents planned how to get the patients safe.

*****

The plan was coming together quickly once one of Taylor’s contacts along with associates on the Network got in touch with more information about the workings of the Citadel and Fade and Harry returned with information of shift changes of the Citadel.

“We’ll head there in two days. I want everyone to train up and get everything in order. If this goes well, those people are safe. If we’re off by even a second, we’re all dead. There’re no do-overs.” The group all nodded before heading their separate ways.

Marcos headed up to Lorna and Aurora, hugging them both tightly as he reached them.
“I should be out there with you.”

“You’re pregnant Lorna, you can’t. And I’m not arguing with Taylor right now.”

“Coward.” Lorna muttered, pressing a kiss against Marcos’ lips as he lifted Aurora into his arms.

*****

Taylor had spent a week debating what to do, eventually she’d made up her mind and headed to find Caitlin and Reed. Finding the pair sat with Andy, she quietly asked Andy for a moment and waited until the boy had left before cautiously sitting on Lauren’s bed.

“I, um, I just wanted to talk before… well, before we go.” Caitlin and Reed shared a glance as Taylor wringed her hands together.

“Ever since you guys arrived, there’s been chaos, no time to stop and breathe. I know there isn’t really any now, but we, no I, need to say this. You guys aren’t the bad guys. Not by a long stretch. I can’t forgive you or trust you, but I can put all that aside to work with you and rescue my sister. I can do everything to get you guys away from the fight. Andy and Lauren have given so much more than we ever asked…”

“Taylor… thank you, for everything.” Reed whispered, knowing that it was the closest to an olive branch that Taylor could ever offer them.

“There’s something else, too. But we need Clare for that chat.”

*****

It didn’t take the trio long to find Clarice, Taylor had been silently hoping that it would take longer, give her time to figure out everything that she needed to say. “There’s no easy way to say this,” Taylor muttered as she led the others to the roof, “the Citadel works on a 28-day cycle. We’ve passed that. The first 28 days that a person is inside, they begin what’s called the wiping process. It essentially puts the foundations in place to erase a person’s identity. Muddling their memories… taking away everything that makes a person who they are.”

“What does that mean for Lauren and John?” Clarice asked, “don’t beat around the bush, give it to me blunt.”

“I don’t know. It could mean any number of things,” Taylor said, “a lot of inmates die in those initial 28 days. I know John is alive, I can feel his mind. I am assuming that Lauren is also alive, because John hasn’t given any inclination that she isn’t.”

“But you don’t know for sure?” Caitlin clarified.

“I need you to realize that I know absolutely nothing about this. I was a prisoner, a victim of the Citadel. I can tell you what John and Lauren might be going through, I cannot tell you how to help them recover. Clare, you saw me when I was first rescued, you saw that I was a shell. Lauren and John won’t be that bad, they’ve not been inside long enough, but they will be hurt, they will be struggling, and they will not be the people they were before. Those people are dead and gone.”

*****

Two long days filled with training and hesitant farewells, filled with a group of four parents hugging four young girls and praying that they would be home to hug their children again. Two long, slow days passed before the group were headed to the Citadel town, heading to determine their fates.

Chapter Text

The seven cars pulled to a stop in the small town half a mile from the Citadel Mutant Rehabilitation and Research Facility, the group all entered one of the houses at the far end of town, ready to go over the plan one last time in the two hours they had before the shift change was complete and the guards from the first shift had left.

Taylor spread several maps across the table, each one was a different floor to the Citadel, “Sage, I want you, Andy, and Band to head to the control room. From there, Andy you’ll be able to destroy any info that they’ve got on any of us once Sage has downloaded it for our database, Band will be able to tell each of us where guards are.” The trio nodded, huddling together to make sure they didn’t get separated.

Taylor turned her attention to the next pair, “Fade, Ayeni, I want you two on the first and second floors; it’s kids and non-harmful powers, they’ll need protecting to get to Clarice. She’ll be on the seventh floor, in the mess, that way Nikita, Louis, Luka, and Domino will be able to protect her better if any guards get in and we’ll be able to get to her easier.” The group all nodded so far.

Turning her attention to the rest of the group, Taylor began to speak again, “Chetan, Harry, Will, I want you guys on floors three and four, they’ll be slightly more dangerous than the second floor and slightly older than first. You’ll get them up to Clare. Marcos, Scott, Mark, floors five through seven. Gus, Irina, Mackle, and Buck, you guys will be with me on floors eight through ten. Irina, Mackle and Buck, you’ll take the South Tower before heading to Tenth, Gus and I’ll take North Tower and meet you in Ten. Everyone we find will be taken directly to the Citadel Survivors Den, Luka and Domino are waiting. Clarice says she can get you there in one jump, but Clare, only open the portals once they’re close.”

Everyone nodded, but Taylor noticed the apprehension on Clarice’s face, there was more to be said, more of a plan that the family wouldn’t like. “We get Lauren and John once we’ve got everyone else, we’ll take them home directly. You guys from the den can go back there once we’ve got everyone out,” Clarice let out a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding, nodding thankfully to Taylor.

“Hopefully, I can disable the guards before we enter, making things a little easier on us. No ghosts.”

“No heroes.” Clarice and Gus finished in sync.

Everyone set about doing their own final prep before the attack, Taylor glanced around the room, watching the people she’d fought with and fought for a thousand times over. Today wasn’t just another battle though, today it was something completely different, but so familiar. She would go to hell for her family. Taylor’s eyes landed on Gus checking over his knives and guns, Marcos and Clarice were watching them silently, both resting to make sure that they were as strong as possible for their battle. Marcos had barely finished a call with Lorna, checking up on her and the four girls, making sure that the girls would be away from the portal when they brought John and Lauren home.

Taylor let out a breath as she felt for the guards and let her mind brush against the door locked shut that kept her from John. Focusing on the map, Taylor let her mind become the Python as she checked over the plan for the thousandth time before checking her watch. Ten minutes.

Gus glanced up from his weapons, looking over to where Andy was stood with terror written all over his face. “Take it that this is your first suicide mission?” He asked as he made his way over to the teenager, slotting his last knife into place as he reached the boy.

Andy just nodded, wringing his hands together as he looked over to Taylor… Python who stood looking over the map and files.

“Well get ready fast. That’s the thing about a suicide mission—”

“You only get one shot.” Ayeni finished as she reached the pair. Gus’ phone buzzed as a text came through, Luka telling them that they were set up, he glanced at the time displayed in the corner. Five minutes.

Clarice took steadying breaths as she let herself become absorbed in the plan, she couldn’t think of it as the love of her life in danger, but rather as another person who needed her help. She quietly drummed her fingers on the table as Sage set up the computers. The external cameras loaded up only to show the day shift beginning to move. One minute.

Taylor headed over to the group, gathering them close as her watch beeped. It was time.

*****

The screaming and muttering didn’t leave 9383, her mind warping as she was forced to relive her worst memories, watching as her mind was torn apart and rewritten while she could do nothing but cry out. The straitjacket was a distant part of her now, it contained the fox that the Citadel created, contained the beginnings of the Weapon that was going to replace the Cobra. 9383 squeezed her eyes shut as she remembered the worst moments of her life, watching the memories merge with the best and leave a twisted, cannibalized memory in its place.

*****

Doctor Lawrence watched as the chemicals began to work on 9383’s mind, allowing the wiping process to enter the second stage. Already, 9383 was further into the process than any previous subjects; her mind adapting to accommodate the serum that would turn her into the perfect weapon with no chance of misfire, especially once she was partnered with 9384.

*****

The group moved in sync, all collecting their weapons as Taylor and her group headed for the door, the others knew that they had another thirty seconds before they would move. Taylor silently led the group into the woods while her powers gathered, strengthening until Gus nodded, they were close enough for him to reach the cameras and guns. As soon as Gus took down the cameras and guns, everyone took off towards the Citadel, they would win. They had to.

As soon as she was close enough, Taylor unleashed her deadly powers, taking down all the guards outside the building and those on the first three floors. They were in.

“Go!” Taylor ordered as she led her team towards the staircase.

*****

Doctor Lawrence watched the attackers on the cameras and gave a stiff smile. “Inject 9384 with the long-lasting. Let’s make it tough for them.” He muttered, one of the doctors nodded and ran from the room. As soon as the room was empty, Doctor Lawrence headed for the hidden emergency staircase that led down to the streets.

*****

Sage, Band, and Andy were quick to work, taking the files and all the CCTV footage that the Citadel had ever collected. From there, Band and Andy headed down to storage to see if there was any information to destroy. The pair then filled one of the vans with as many of the boxes as they could, Band kept bending space to create more room until all of the boxes of personal items were in the back. Band took off back to the HQ, leaving Andy and Sage to help the others.

It didn’t take long for Fade and Ayeni to clear out the first two floors of all inmates, most of them were low level or children, meaning that the doors weren’t as secure. They were quick to move them up to the seventh-floor canteen where Clarice was waiting for them.

Yanking open a portal, Clarice let out a breath, “I’ll send you guys to the Compound with them.” Fade and Ayeni both nodded as they ushered the inmates through the portal.

“Get our guys home.” Fade ordered, not moving until Clarice had nodded.

“See you in a few days.” The portal snapped shut once Fade had gone through.

Chetan, Harry, and Will arrived in the canteen after nearly twenty minutes of being in the Citadel. Harry sent a nod to Clarice as she opened to portal, all of the rescue team offering words of reassurance to the people they were rescuing.

“You sure you’re ok to stay here?”

“You know it.” Harry assured her, Clarice closed the portal once Chetan and Will had gone through, a bead of sweat appearing on her forehead. She was already feeling the strain.

It took a lot longer for Marcos’ group to arrive, Band arriving at the same time as them. Clarice was beginning to get antsy when she saw the group approaching. Letting out a breath, Clarice opened another portal, letting Scott and Mark take their newest refugees through to the Compound while Marcos stayed back, waiting next to Harry just as Andy and Sage arrived in the room. Only one more group to come down.

It took a long time for the last group to reach the seventh floor, all of the inmates seemed to be flocking to Taylor like she was their hero, and she was, even if she wouldn’t see it.

“You’ll be safe there. The people are others who survived this place.” She assured them as she nodded for Clarice to open the portal. This group were a lot more cautious about stepping through the portal, stepping into their new lives.

Chapter Text

As soon as the portal snapped shut, Taylor glanced around at those few who remained, her friends. “Let’s go get our family.” She muttered as she led them from the room, ignoring the guards that lay unconscious on the floor as she led them to the staircase.

Gus glanced over to Clarice, “wait here, give us two minutes, then you come up.” Clarice nodded, deciding that she really wasn’t ready to fight with her mind being a mess.

Running up the stairs to the tenth floor, Gus, Marcos, Harry, Sage, Andy, and Taylor were all filled with a growing sense of dread and anticipation as to what they’d find once they found their friends.

The central tower, and the tenth ward, was more than a little daunting to Taylor; it was where she’d been kept. Her eyes fell on a single door as they reached the tenth floor, her mind spinning as her friends raced to reach the doors that had yet been opened.

One of the doors flew open as they headed passed it, a doctor running out only to be grabbed and thrown to the ground by Taylor. “What are you doing?” She hissed, noticing the needle in his hand.

“I-I… I was just following orders.” He whimpered.

Taylor scoffed, “you be sure to tell them that… at the gates of Hell.” She flooded the man with pain, not moving until he’d stopped twitching.

Gus knocked out the power to each door individually as the group reached them. Most of the rooms were empty, their prisoners having already been rescued. Running to the fourth door, Gus turned to see where Taylor had gotten to, faltering when he saw her hanging back, her attention on the door that the doctor had come out of.

“Taylor!” He yelled, but the woman didn’t seem to notice, deciding it was best to let Taylor do whatever it was she was doing; Gus returned his attention to finding John and Lauren.

Taylor let her own barcode hover under the scanning light of the door marked ‘DO NOT ENTER’, opening the door, her heart immediately dropped. In the middle of the room, fastened to the ground on his knees, was John, his arms pulled up behind him. “Guys!” She screamed, desperation flooding her voice as her hand covered her mouth.

Marcos was the first into the room, Gus and Harry weren’t far behind. Gus yelled for Sage and Andy to keep searching for Lauren, his eyes not once leaving the motionless figure of John. None of them knew what to do when they saw his blood-soaked face, it was made worse when Taylor pointed to where John’s left shoulder was held in an unnatural position.

“It’s dislocated… might be broken.” She told them.

Taylor set to work breaking the cuffs from John’s wrists, ignoring how the barbs cut at her fingertips. As they broke, John fell lifelessly, the only things breaking his fall were Gus, Harry, and Marcos who caught him before he could hit the ground.

“Is he alive?” Marcos asked, dread filling his voice at the thought of how Taylor may answer.

“I can still feel him, so I’m gonna say yes.” She stated weakly, reassuring them the slightest amount as she set to work breaking the bands across his legs. The muzzle and collar were still sealed around John’s face and neck, neither had enough space for Taylor to get her fingers underneath to break them.

“Lorna can do it when we get him home.” Gus assured his wife as she stared at the offending items.

Further across the hall, Sage and Andy continued their hunt for Lauren. Opening the last door, Andy ran to the frightened figure in the corner of the room. Andy’s action was quickly halted when a shield forced him away. “Taylor!” He yelled.

The woman ran down the corridor towards her little brother. Andy motioned to Lauren, huddled and whimpering, Taylor pushed passed Andy and Sage, heading carefully for her little sister. She could hear Lauren muttering a number under her breath 9-3-8-3. Taylor squeezed her eyes shut when she realized that it was her sister’s number. She struggled to swallow the lump in her throat as Lauren recited the number over and over. Reduced to nothing but a number… the signature trick of the Citadel.

Taylor let out a shaky breath as she slowly approached her baby sister. “Lauren? Can you hear me? It’s Taylor.” Taylor’s voice was soft, reassuring, it was similar in tone to the one John had used on her when he’d rescued her from this very same place.

“Taylor?” Lauren asked brokenly, her arms latched around Taylor’s neck as soon as the straitjacket was torn from her, clinging tightly to her sister like she was a lifeline. Taylor lifted Lauren into her arms, holding her carefully as she left the room, her eyes landed on Gus and Marcos carrying John between them.

At the sight of John’s motionless body, Sage and Andy both gasped, they’d only ever seen John as the strong leader of the Mutant Underground HQ, seeing him like this was definitely a shock to the system. They didn’t get much time to contemplate or comprehend their feelings when the sound of footsteps flooded the silent hallway. Harry, Sage, and Andy took center point, ready to protect their family if necessary.

The person who greeted them at the stairwell was the person they least expected to see. “You weren’t going to leave me here all alone, were you?” Sonia’s voice filled the silent corridor, the occupants too shocked to speak.

Andy was the first to recover, “you were shot…” He muttered.

Sonia laughed for a moment, the sound caused Taylor to tense, her arms tightening around her sister. “Yes well, a bulletproof vest and blanks stop a bullet from doing any damage.” Sonia looked at their confused expressions, laughing for a moment. “I was hired by Trask nearly four years ago, hired to help them take down the Mutant Underground. Though, of course, why would I give up the information that kept me safe, and it has been so much fun to watch you all run helplessly.” Her cruel laugh drowned out the sound of footsteps, “Though I have to say, seeing 9383 and 9384 here, the tests we’ve done… the results are phenomenal. Their behavior and reactions when they saw the other be put in danger was something we hadn’t seen before. The wiping process was progressing so much better than we could ever have predicted.” Taylor’s eyes settled on Clarice, the purple haired woman’s face was blank, hiding all emotion and feeling behind a well-constructed mask. “Seeing how easily they could suppress 9384’s powers, tracking how his mind reacted was intriguing.”

“Clarice no!” Taylor’s yell silenced Sonia. Everyone froze at Taylor’s yell, “If you go down this path, you never get yourself back.”

Clarice’s eyes were fixed on John, Taylor’s words didn’t matter right now. Looking away from her husband, Clarice focused on Sonia, “you hurt my family, endangered my children, and tortured my husband, you’re not leaving here.” With fingers that had finally stopped shaking, Clarice made a portal appear next to her, a second one appeared at the middle of Sonia’s back. In one swift motion, Clarice reached into the portal next to her, reaching inside Sonia, and doing enough to leave Sonia crumpling to the floor. After a moment, Clarice looked over to Gus and Taylor, nodding for them to finish the job. And they did, Gus drew the others’ powers into Taylor for scarcely a moment, but it was enough for her to leave Sonia writhing in agony, dying in unbearable pain.

The rest of the group watched in horror as Sonia dropped down dead, it was the first time any of them had ever seen Taylor kill with such passion; her powers meant that death could be almost instantaneous, but this… this was personal. It was a message from Clarice, Taylor, and Gus to anyone that found Sonia, a message that said don’t touch the people that they love, that there was a reason they were feared.

Clarice opened a portal with shaky fingers, a portal to take them home.

Chapter Text

The portal opened in the center of the HQ everyone was watching with anticipation, they knew that the strike was taking place, they also knew that they may lose all their leaders in one moment. Sage and Shatter stood ready with a group of medics they’d called in for help. Caitlin and Reed stood to the side waiting for their three children to return, wondering just how many would consider themselves a Strucker once this was done.

Taylor was the first through the portal, cradling Lauren in her arms as she made her way towards the makeshift medical area. Marcos and Gus were through next, pulling John between them, the sensory deprivation drugs still working in full force as they followed the path Taylor had taken, doctors began trying to take John from them, taking him to his and Clarice’s room rather than the medical room. Harry, Sage, and Andy jumped through once the doctors and John were clear, Clarice followed swiftly.

As soon as the portal had slammed shut, Andy and Clarice took off towards their loved ones, Clarice wanting nothing more than to help John. Andy was desperate to help Lauren.

Lorna stopped to make sure the four girls were ok. Her hands shaking as she approached them, the baby kicking almost like it could feel its mother’s fear.

“Mommy? Is Uncle John and Auntie Lauren ok?” Came Aurora’s voice from where the four girls were clutching onto each other. Lorna looked around the four girls, Evie and Rose weren’t even trying to hide their tears as they shook with fear, they’d seen their dad literally dragged into the HQ supported by Marcos and Gus.

“They’re gonna be fine, Baby, they just need a little time.” Knowing that the girls were ok, Lorna headed to join the rest of her family.

*****

Caitlin instantly tried to take Lauren from Taylor’s arms; the teenager was immediately fighting against her mother, clutching tighter to Taylor. Taylor moved to sit down, letting Lauren cling to her tighter, she knew that it was one of the only ways that Lauren would find comfort for a while.

“Hey, hey, it’s ok, we’re gonna help.” Taylor’s voice was soft, soothing Lauren’s cries to soft whimpers. “I need you to lie here so we can see any injuries.”

Lauren complied with Taylor’s request as Lorna came in, her eyes darted to the door hopefully, filling with worry when she saw Lorna. “Where’s my brother?” She asked hoarsely, repeating the question as panic built in her voice, “Where is he? Where’ve you taken him? Where’s my brother?” Lorna and Taylor shared a glance, knowing exactly who she was looking for. Taylor didn’t miss how Caitlin tensed when Lauren asked for her brother.

“I’m right here.” Andy whispered, taking a step closer only to be stopped by Lorna as Taylor approached her sister.

Taylor brushed her fingers through Lauren’s hair, “he’s safe, he’s home, no one can hurt him anymore. Clarice is with him, but we need to take care of you.”

Lauren nodded, settling down in order to let her mother treat her.

As soon as Caitlin came into view with a needle, Lauren was off the table, she curled up in the corner of the room, as far from Caitlin as she could get, a shield around her, stronger than ever.

Gus held up his hand, signaling to the others to stay still as he approached Lauren,
“Lauren? 9383? Lauren, hey, it’s ok. Can I check you over, no needles?” His voice was gentle, practiced, and even. His eyes darted to Taylor as she remembered him talking to her the same way.

Lauren’s whimpering silenced, the shield lessened, allowing Lauren to look at Gus. “No needles.” She whispered firmly, Gus held out his hands to her, letting her see that they were empty. Lauren dropped the shield, scurrying towards Gus as she did so, he wrapped his arms around the teenager while whispering reassurances to her.

*****

Leaving Gus and Lorna treating Lauren with a couple of other doctors, Taylor and Caitlin headed towards John and Clarice’s bedroom to check on John.

Clarice was sat on the bed, running her fingers through John’s hair, doing everything she could to keep from crying as she did so, his hair was matted with blood and kept tangling in Clarice’s fingers. Taylor watched for a few minutes, deciding that they’d need to clean him up to prevent him getting sick. Her eyes fell to the muzzle and collar abandoned on the floor, the sight of the mouthpiece and the cuts around John’s mouth caused anger to bubble anew in Taylor’s chest, burning fury in her eyes.

Taylor came over to her best friend, hugging her to her side while Caitlin moved to check John for any external injuries. Her eyes widened at the sight of John’s shoulder, the angry bruise and swelling told her it had been left untreated since John was taken. Gently, Caitlin pressed against it, attempting to feel if it was dislocated or broken.

“How bad is it?” Clarice asked, not sure if she wanted to hear the answer.

“Just a bad dislocation. Once it’s set, he’ll be ok.” Caitlin opened the first aid kit, pulling out a cloth to clean up the wound on his head first, she didn’t want to guess at the damage it had done, nor the amount of blood lost.

“He can survive losing more blood than the average person. It’s something like 60 or 70% before he’s in real danger.” Taylor stated, doing her best to hide the panic in her voice.

“It’s going to need stitches… I don’t have any painkiller though…”

“He can’t feel anything.” Taylor muttered darkly.

Caitlin began to prepare a needle and thread while Taylor finished cleaning John’s wound. Caitlin had to attempt the stitches several times before the needle would go through John’s skin, it was already gaining back density.

Taylor and Clarice shared a look, both knowing what the other was thinking, “we need to set his shoulder now otherwise we won’t be able to.” Taylor told Caitlin before leaving the room to get Marcos, she knew Lorna and Gus were with Lauren.

“Marcos, we need you.” Marcos jogged after Taylor as she walked back to John and Clarice’s room.

Seeing the state of John’s shoulder, Marcos instantly turned to Taylor, “you pushing or holding?”

“I’ll push, his body density’s fluctuating, you probably won’t be able to keep it placed.” Taylor and Marcos took up their positions, both doing their best not to block Clarice from seeing what they were doing.

Caitlin watched in stunned silence as Marcos braced against John, holding his left side still.

“On three.” Taylor muttered before counting down. It took a few minutes before John’s shoulder set itself with the pair holding it in place.

“John’s body doesn’t heal like you expect. Dislocations aren’t too bad so long as he catches them fast.” Marcos began, “if it’s left for this long, we have to sort of help it along. We hold it in place until his body sets it. It won’t really begin to heal properly until he’s responsive.” Caitlin nodded but still wasn’t entirely sure she understood.

Marcos left the room just as quickly as he’d arrived, leaving Taylor, Clarice, and Caitlin alone with John.

“Can you hear him?” Clarice asked Taylor weakly, her voice failing her as she tried not to cry.

A simple nod was Clarice’s answer, “It’s hazy though, not crisp like it normally is. It’s like I’m hearing him through water.”

“Can he hear you?” She asked again, Taylor’s eyebrows scrunched up and Clarice couldn’t help smiling, “you hadn’t even thought of that?” Taylor shook her head guiltily, but Clarice’s hug soon told her that it was ok.

Taylor began whispering as she attempted to let John hear her, opening their link, Taylor tried to feed her voice through into his mind. “John, John, can you hear me?” She paused, waiting for a response.

“9384… 9384…”

“No. John Proudstar.”

“9384… nine, three, eight, four.”

“John Proudstar. Beacon. Husband to Clarice. Father to Evie and Rose.”

“Taylor?” A single word filled her entire mind, drowning out anything else, leaving only one thought; hers was the only voice he could hear, the word wasn’t clear, but it was there and that was all that mattered. He’d spent a month in silence, but she was determined that he wouldn’t have silence anymore.

“I’m right here, Clarice is here too. She’s holding your hand.” Taylor felt a spike in the panic and fear that had become a constant over the past month.

Clarice let out a breath when she heard Taylor respond to something – John’s voice. Her shoulders finally dropped as some of her fears lifted, at least John wouldn’t be locked entirely in his own mind.

“I can’t… feel… anything.” Taylor’s heart broke as the words filtered into her mind, Clarice and Caitlin were both looking at her to explain.

“Well, she’ll keep holding your hand and I have no doubt that Lauren will be in later when Gus has checked her over. She’s home too.” Taylor felt the relief wash over John at the idea of Lauren being safe.

“Lauren… 9383… Wren. Wren… Wren… Wren with no last name… Lauren your sister and you have no last name.”

“I have a last name!” She laughed in her mind, “It was Strucker. Then it was Proudstar. Then it was Nobel.”

“Nobel. Gus Nobel… Augustus Nobel… my brother… no. James is my brother… Gus is too…”

“Yeah. Lauren, you, me, Gus, Clare, and James. All of us a family.”

“Family… home… Empty. Wren. Love. Pulse. James.” The names began being repeated in Taylor’s mind as John tried to keep the names safe.

Chapter Text

Pulling out of John’s mind, Taylor turned to the pair, her own eyes showing their fear, Caitlin let her eyes dart between John and the two women, “why do this? Of all things…”

Taylor scoffed slightly; how could Caitlin still be so oblivious? “He’s got heightened senses, best way to punish him; take ‘em away.” She stated, brushing her fingers over John’s arm as she settled at his side.

Clarice never let her eyes drop from watching the rise and fall of John’s chest as she began to speak. “He’s spent his whole life feeling all the bumps on flat surfaces, hearing the blood moving through a person’s body and people talking half a mile away, smelling the apples of the trees a mile from our old home, tasting the chemicals in fast food, seeing everything in such heightened detail. Since he was eight, he’s had heightened senses. There’s a fine point in his senses, particularly touch, where it switches from hyper-sensitive to limited sensation. Sometimes even all the commotion here can give him sensory overload. Migraines are pretty much a constant.” Clarice’s voice faded for a moment before continuing. A shuddering breath escaping her lips as she began, “if he’d pissed them off at the Citadel, by fighting, or arguing, or not complying, or just hindering them, they’d have punished him. He would’ve done everything he could’ve to protect Lauren, despite the risk to himself, they would’ve done this in response.” Caitlin tensed as she listened to Clarice.

Taylor let out a sigh, “they used to do it to us for the simplest of things. Didn’t matter, SDCs were used as a regular punishment. To us, they became some sort of sadistic comfort. To someone like John, it’s a terrifying thing, locked inside your own mind when that’s usually the quietest part of your life. He’s not just scared; he’s terrified on a level I’ve never felt him be.” Taylor’s voice was quiet, it was a part of her past that she rarely spoke of. While some of her friends had been driven insane by being locked inside their mind, she found a comfort, a solace in the safety that she couldn’t feel any pain.

Clarice couldn’t help feeling a sick satisfaction as she saw Caitlin crying when Taylor spoke. She turned back to her husband, letting her fingers keep brushing through his blood-caked hair while she held his hand firmly.

Taylor glanced over to Clarice, deciding that Lauren needed her big sister more than Clarice needed her best friend, “shout if you need me, Love.” Taylor told her before leaving the room.

*****

Taylor had a mental list of things she needed to do, right at the top of that list was talk to Sage. Heading into the tech room, Taylor was greeted by both Sage and Shatter, the pair watched their friend cautiously as she approached them, their minds spinning with questions. “What do we know?”

Sage pursed her lips. “People are already calling it a haunting or a supernatural omen. Saying that it’s God’s will after what happened eight years ago. There are groups saying that… saying it’s the Ghost getting revenge and protecting those who were being hurt.”

Taylor scoffed as Sage glared at the words, if only they knew the truth… “What about Sentinel Services and Trask? What’re they saying?”

Shatter and Sage shared a look, “Taylor, they’re saying something about a mutant asset who was killed due to her insides being torn apart. They’re saying it’s Sonia.” Shatter’s voice was trembling and quiet, silently begging for Taylor and Sage to tell him that the report was wrong.

“She deserved worse.” Taylor spat; her remorse gone for the woman who had been betraying them for so long.

“Sage, we need to get breathing equipment. John’s not gonna be able to regulate his breathing too well on his own. Can you cut power to a nearby clinic or something so Gus and I can go and get one?”

“I can try.” Taylor nodded, leaving the plan with Sage.

“What have we put on the Network?” Taylor asked them, mostly looking at Sage.

“Nothing yet, we need your access codes.” Taylor quickly logged in, setting a pinned note that said that John, Lauren, and the other inmates had been saved.

“Keep an eye on it. Any news, I wanna know. I want you to slowly release all the CCTV and data we found from the Citadel. Careful, though, do it so it has the most impact.” Taylor muttered, leaving them signed into the Network and Sage formulating how to release the data.

*****

Taylor made her way to the medical room where Gus was still checking over Lauren, he was in the process of bandaging her wrist, covering her brand. He was speaking to her softly, explaining everything he was doing while Lauren watched his actions carefully, trying not to wince every time pressure was applied to an injury.

Lorna was stood in the corner of the room, her hand resting on her swollen abdomen, but Marcos was nowhere to be seen.

“Where’s Marcos? Thought he’d be here.” Taylor asked.

“Keeping an eye on the girls.” Lorna responded, not looking over.

Gus glanced over his shoulder as his wife walked into the room and closed the door. “How’re you doing, Empty?” He asked as he turned back to bandaging Lauren’s arm. Gus knew Taylor was more than likely going to lie to him, but he could deal with that later.

“I’m ok.” Taylor focused on Lauren, the girl looked less frightened now, but she was still looking wildly around the room.

As Lauren’s eyes landed on Taylor, she reached a hand out to her. Taylor was more than happy to take it, “I’m right here, Butterfly.”

“587. Taylor… 587.”

“Just Taylor. Like how you’re Lauren, they just call you 9383.”

Lauren nodded, “Taylor, Lauren, John. 587, 9383, 9384. Taylor, Lauren, John.” She then motioned to the HOUND symbol on Gus’ wrist followed by her own.

“Clare and Andy have these too.” Gus commented as he turned his wrist over, shifting his sleeve so that Lauren could see the tattoo.

“Gus, Clare, Lauren, Andy. HOUNDs. Taylor, Lauren, John. Weapons.”

Gus looked over to Taylor before focusing back on Lauren. “Gus. Pulse. Weapon. Free.”

Taylor took the hint. “Taylor. 587. Cobra. Python. Weapon of Mass Destruction. Free.”

Lorna stepped forward. “Lorna. Inmate. Polaris. Prisoner. Weapon. Free.”

Lauren glanced between them with teary eyes. “Lauren… 5393… their Fox… weapon…” She looked at them all hopefully, “Free?” Three nods followed.

*****

Lorna gripped Taylor’s arm slightly, silently pulling her from the room. In the tech room, Lorna stopped in front of Taylor. Marcos, Andy, Sage, Shatter, and Reed gathered around the pair, “talk.” Lorna ordered simply.

Taylor’s whole body was unbelievably tense, her hands clenched in fists at her sides, her head barely turning as she looked between the group. She was living her worst nightmare. “About what? The climate?” Her voice was even despite the fear building in her chest.

“The Citadel.” Reed snapped; Lorna settled a glare on Reed; no one got to talk to her baby sister like that other than her. And Gus, John, Clarice, Lauren, and Marcos.

“Not my place.” Taylor shot back nonchalantly as Gus joined them.

“How is it not your place? You’ve been running full speed ahead since they were taken like you’re the only one that could save them!” Andy exclaimed.

Gus shot the boy a cold look as he came to a stop beside Taylor. Placing his hand on Taylor’s back, Gus answered the question they were silently asking. “She’s asleep, she’ll probably be awake within the hour.” He stated. It seemed to have been a unanimous decision that Gus and Clarice were their immediate points-of-call in reference to the recovery of the pair. The group all let out a breath they seemed to have been holding since John and Lauren had been taken.

They didn’t speak for a moment as Caitlin joined them. She looked like she was ready to drop, exhaustion prominent on her features. The six friends all looked to her expectantly, wanting every detail on John’s condition. Reed and Andy continued to keep their glares fixed on Taylor. “Clarice is keeping an eye on him; I think he’s asleep but I’m not sure.” Taylor nodded to the group, letting them know that John was asleep, though, like Lauren, it probably wouldn’t be for long.

“Ok, we need info on the Citadel. Info that, I’m guessing, only you two know.” Reed stated, crossing his arms as he looked between Taylor and Gus.

Gus scoffed, “you are the last person allowed to demand information.”

“My daughter was just tortured, how dare—”

Caitlin cut Reed off, “I know you hate us, I understand that. But please understand that we want to help our daughter. We can’t fix what we did, but we can try to help Lauren.”

Taylor let out a breath, “fine, ask your questions. But know that some of them may not be answered.”

“What’re the brands that they have? Each of the prisoners that we found had one.” Andy asked, Taylor tensed, it was always a sore spot for her. Taylor’s new family all shared a look, knowing that Taylor was already on the verge of a breakdown.

“It’s a barcode. The Citadel used them for inmates of Ward Seven and above to scan and identify each inmate at every door, it’s also the reason that I could get us into some of those places. Like the room they were holding John in… that was the main lab, I spent about half of my time there.” Taylor rolled her sleeve up, allowing Andy and their parents to see her own barcode for the first time.

Andy brushed his fingers against the scarred skin of Taylor’s forearm before snapping his fingers away embarrassed.

“It’s alright, it doesn’t hurt like it used to.” Taylor’s soft voice terrified her family, the Struckers didn’t seem to notice it in the same way.

“How long did it hurt for?” Andy asked.

Taylor shrugged her shoulders, pulling her sleeve down, doing her best to hide her fear as she glanced to Gus. “About 5 years there was noticeable pain, for about 5 years after that it was a constant dull throb, it’s still sore if you press on it. I think that has more to do with me repeatedly cutting it off, though, these days.” Taylor stated, her own panic building as the group continued to circle her.

Chapter Text

Gus was the first to notice Taylor’s fear, he’d gripped her into his arms, holding her head against his shoulder, letting her find comfort in the familiarity of the hold. “Hey, you’re ok, you’re safe, you’re home, you’re free.” He kept reassuring her until she’d regained control.

Her breathing evened out, allowing her to carry on speaking, “Lauren’s probably been injected with God knows what, she’s gonna need people there for her when she asks for them, but she’s gonna need the right people.” Caitlin and Reed both noticed that it was a dig at them, they’d been trying to ignore the fact that Lauren might be more like her sister than they cared to admit, now more than ever before.

Andy looked between the group, trying to decide how to word his next question before deciding just to be blunt, “What did she mean ‘wiping process’?”

The group all turned to Taylor, “remember when I told you that the Citadel were pretty good at chemicals?” They all nodded, “well one of those was one that would, over time, manipulate the mind and allow a person to become a weapon. It’s what created Cobra. For me, the Cobra is a separate entity in a part of my mind that I keep sealed away.” She let out a steadying breath. “Sounds like they were trying to create a new weapon, but they didn’t get a chance to complete the process. Chances are that Lauren’s memory’s been messed with, don’t know about John’s but, from what I’ve heard already, I’d say it’s a possibility.”

The group all tried to mask their horrified expressions, but no one did it very well, “what do we do?” Caitlin asked.

“Nothing.” Gus stated bluntly, “there’s nothin’ you can do. It’s like what happened wi’ Tay when we’d rescued her. You can’t just get rid of what the chemicals have done. You just help the person through it. They’re suffering, they’re scared, and they’re confused. You can’t reverse that, and no amount of begging or pleading or yelling can fix it. It’s hard, hell, it’s damn near impossible to accept, but you can’t love someone back to health. You can’t just fix them… mainly because the things you want to fix are gone. There’s no going back to who they were.”

Taylor surveyed the faces in the room as she considered her words. She knew where their worries lay, but that didn’t make any of it easier to say. “John, he could be out for days, or he could be out for months. When I was inside… I heard that people had been affected by an SDC for up to eight months. We’re gonna need to be ready to help him. He’s likely to be withdrawn and scared, not to mention overwhelmed, when this wears off.”

Gus let out a breath, “So, if his body can’t really respond to anything, he’s gonna be susceptible to practically any disease or infection, we need to keep him clean but keep checking for illness. Also, I think there might be some lung damage, we’ll need to keep an eye on that, make sure it doesn’t develop into anything worse.”

Sage took up the speaking, “If it only begins to fade after a couple of months, we’re going to need to find a way to get sustenance into him.”

Gus turned to Taylor, “What’d they give you on the inside?”

Taylor shrugged, “I’m guessing IVs, but I don’t know for certain. I’m sorry.”

Marcos smiled to her, letting his little sister know that none of this was her fault.

“We don’t have enough IV bags to last a week with John’s metabolism.” Lorna began.

“Five days and nine hours if his metabolism hasn’t been affected by the drugs.” Came Sage’s voice.

“So, we need to get some more.” Gus stated with a smirk.

The group all looked at him with exasperation clear on their features. “How do you reckon we do that? Steal them?!” Reed snapped.

“For once, I have to agree with Reed.” Came Shatter’s voice.

“We don’t have the means or ability to get them.” Sage stated simply. The Struckers all deflated slightly.

“And Taylor’s people have the ability, not the means.” Gus added.

“I can’t ask any favors from the cartel.” Marcos muttered. Lorna visibly released a breath at Marcos’ statement. Marcos gave her hand a soft, reassuring squeeze.

“No. But we know someone who has the means, ability, and cause.” Taylor stated with a grim smile.

Gus sucked in a breath when he realized who Taylor was talking about, “you reckon John will want to get him involved?”

Taylor shrugged at her husband’s question, ignoring the confused faces of the others, “we won’t know until we ask. Clarice first.”

Taylor and Gus left the rest of the group in the tech room, all exchanging confused glances while the pair retreated towards Clarice and John’s room. Taylor and Gus hadn’t really informed them of their plan besides the fact that they knew someone who might be able to help them out.

*****

Heading into John and Clarice’s room, Taylor smiled as she saw the breathing equipment already set up and a pipe was going into his mouth and helping him breathe. Taylor sat down on the bed next to her best friends.

Gus stayed stood not too far away as he spoke, “Clare, if the drugs haven’t faded from his system by tomorrow, we’re gonna need a way to get nutrients into him. We thought about IV bags, but, according to Sage, we don’t have enough to last him six days.” Clarice let her tears begin to fall as she listened to Gus.

“So, what do we do?” She asked weakly.

“Well, we all know someone who’d easily steal them.”

Realization hit Clarice like a truck. “James? John’s never gonna want him involved.”

Taylor stood up, pacing the room slightly before turning to Clarice, “It’s either James, or John dies. We don’t have anyone else.”

Clarice looked between the pair, “And what about John’s choice? He chose to keep his brother out of this.”

“And yet he still calls him once every two weeks. Clare, it’s his only chance, we need those IVs. And we can’t afford to run out in case Lauren needs some too. Besides, James’ll already be worrying considering he hasn’t heard from John in what? Five weeks.”

Clarice let out a breath, her demeanor shifting as she began to relent, “Fine, but you ask John before you make that call.” Taylor smiled, nodding before leaving the room. She wouldn’t wake John, they had enough equipment to wait until he woke up on his own.

*****

One of the doctors from the Tennessee station ran over to Taylor as soon as he saw her.  “Taylor!” Taylor stopped, turning to Doctor Barton, “I was hoping… well I was wanting, well needing, to ask… I needed to—”

“The point!” Taylor snapped.

“You’re the only one who knows first-hand what they’ve been through, I was hoping that you would be our consultant on their conditions.”

“Meaning?”

“That you monitor their conditions, keeping track of their progress and if they actually do progress, especially in John’s case. Also, since you’re the only one who can communicate with him…”

“I’ve already been explaining everything to him as we go, Doctor, don’t panic. Now excuse me.”

*****

Taylor headed down into the basement, her anger getting the better of her as she pummeled the punching bag. She wasn’t exactly sure where her anger was directed; whether it was at the Citadel for torturing her brother and sister; or at the doctors for doubting whether she would help John; or at the Citadel staff for using SDCs; or at her parents for wanting to help her friends but they hadn’t been there for her. She just knew that she was angry. No, she was furious.

The scream ripping through her mind caused Taylor to stumble, gripping the sides of her head before running to John and Clarice’s room. Her voice attempting the breach the barrier that separated their minds, “John! C’mon listen to me! Hear my voice. Follow it. Find me, you’re safe, you’re home, I’ve got you. Clarice is here. We’re helping you, but you gotta calm down. Follow my voice, listen to me, follow me.” It took nearly ten minutes to draw John from the nightmare. By the time that Taylor had succeeded, she was on the verge of collapse from the noise echoing in her mind.

Sitting on the bed, Taylor took Clarice’s hand before letting her voice flow into John’s mind, “John, I know you won’t like this, but in order to keep you alive, we’re going to need more IV bags in order to get nutrients into you. We don’t have the resources or ability to get some more, but we’ve found out someone who does.” Taylor stopped for a moment allowing John to process the information. She knew that he’d willingly give up his life rather than involve James unless it was absolutely necessary. “Lightning, I want you to think about something, I want you to think about Evie and Rose. Two girls who are desperate for their Daddy to be ok. I want you to remember them when you tell me yes or no as to whether I’m making this call.” Taylor squeezed Clarice’s hand as she stopped for a moment, “John, the only person with the ability, means, and cause to steal enough IV bags for you is James.”

Instantly, John tried to refuse getting his little brother involved, but the thought of abandoning his girls was crippling. Two words were all that echoed louder than the jumbled thoughts through Taylor’s mind; do it. They were two words she didn’t expect to hear.

Squeezing Clarice’s hand, Taylor offered her best friend a reassuring smile, “He’s gonna be fine.” She stated.

Clarice’s mouth dropped open, “He agreed?”

“Those two girls and you are the most important things in the world to him. He doesn’t want to abandon them.” Clarice let out a breath, a smile crossing her face for the first time since John was captured.

*****

Leaving the room, Taylor pulled a burner phone from a box in the office the family used when they needed to discuss things privately. Marcos, Lorna, and Gus followed Taylor into the office, all remaining silent as she dialed the only number saved on the phone.

It took only moments for the person to answer, Taylor quickly put the phone on speaker and placed it on the desk. “James. It’s Taylor.”

“What did she do this time?” Came the snarky voice of James Proudstar, Gus smiled at the words.

“No, I’m Taylor, you dick.” She stated with a roll of her eyes.

Without missing a beat, James responded with his usual smartass comments, “What’d you do this time?”

Taylor tightened her lips, trying to decide how to tell the 24-year-old what had happened. “How would you feel about stealing as many IV bags as you possibly can while getting to us in under five days?”

“What in the hell’s happened?” He asked, exasperation and intrigue filling his voice.

Taylor hesitated for a moment, trying to decide on the best way to tell James. Deciding to be blunt, Taylor just said all that was needed to get James to help them. “It’s John.”

“I’ll do it.”

Taylor smiled, the rest of her family letting out a breath at the thought that James was ready to help. “I’ll see you in a couple of days.” James hung up the phone, leaving Taylor formulating plan after plan to keep James off any police scanners.

*****

After several minutes, Taylor headed back to Clarice and John. There was so much that needed doing, but her mind was a mess that figuring out what needed to happen next was almost impossible. “Hey Love.” Clarice didn’t speak, but she did look over, “We need to get him cleaned up, otherwise infections and whatever could set in.”

Clarice nodded but both women had no idea how to move John somewhere they could easily wash him. “I could open a portal to move him.”

“No, too risky. It could pull his shoulder out of socket again, plus with the breathing tube...” Clarice closed her eyes, “Buckets and sponges on the floor?” Taylor offered, the pair would usually scoff at the idea, but right now, it was their most logical choice.

Once they’d cleaned John, Taylor called upon Marcos to make sure John’s hair was dry. The group all gathered in the small room once Marcos was finished. Clarice had taken back her place sat on the bed next to John, holding his good hand and running the fingers of her free hand through his hair. The group all stood in silence for several minutes, no-one wanting to speak for fear of everyone crumbling.

“What do we do now?” Lorna asked, her eyes not leaving John’s motionless form. Taylor glanced over from where she was stood, held in Gus’ arms.

“We wait. We might need to steal a heart rate monitor, but I don’t know yet. So, we wait. And we hope that James gets here in time, and we hope John doesn’t die between now and James’ arrival.”

Those were words that none of them wanted to consider, none of them even wanted to contemplate the idea that if James was even an hour too late, John would die. They had to hope the damage to his lungs wasn’t too severe. They had to hope he pulled through.

Chapter Text

After three days of tension and rising fear, James Proudstar and his girlfriend, Alison Blaire, arrived at the HQ in a truck full of the medical equipment they’d been able to gather. A couple of residents began unloading the truck while James headed into the building to find Clarice, Taylor, or Gus.

The first person that James recognized was Taylor, her blue hair shining like a beacon once he’d spotted it, “Taylor!” He called, the woman in question shot around to face James, exhaustion written clear on her features. James was quickly engulfed in a hug from his friend, his arms wrapped around her tightly as he did his best not to let his fears show.

Taylor kept James securely in her arms as she let him gather his emotions. He hadn’t seen John in a couple of years, but they called each other every other week just to make sure everything was fine, hearing that something was wrong with John had let James work himself sick with worry. Taylor kept her arms around James as he took several deep breaths, Taylor was like the older sister that James had never had, they’d been pranksters together for a while.

Several minutes passed before the two broke apart, James kept Taylor’s hands in his as Gus, Marcos, Lorna, and Andy approached them. Taylor and Gus were the only ones in the group who had met James before; John liked to keep him as far away from the Mutant Underground as possible, he was always trying to protect his little brother.

“How is he?” James asked simply, dreading the answer.

“It’ll be easier to show you and then explain.” Gus told him gently as he pulled James into a hug; he’d known James for over a decade now. “Good to see you, Kid, hoped it’d be under better circumstances.”

“Is Clarice with him?” A nod was the only response James got to the question.

Taylor led James and Gus towards John’s room. Alison was with Sage and Caitlin, sorting the medical equipment. Taylor watched James tense as they reached the door, hesitation filling him, he couldn’t deny the fear bubbling in his chest at what awaited him on the other side of the door. Reaching out, James opened the door before entering the room.

The sound of movement grabbed Clarice’s attention, turning from John to the door, a sorrowful smile fell onto Clarice’s features as her eyes met James’. James’ mouth fell open as he saw his older brother lying completely motionless on the bed, a pipe down his throat and a machine beeping continuously as the only indication that John was still alive.

“What’s happened to him? Tell me.” He growled, looking more to Taylor and Gus rather than Clarice.

“He was taken to the Citadel. They had him and my sister. They tortured them.” Taylor told him softly.

James shook his head, “what’s happened to him, Taylor?”

Taylor took a breath, trying to get her emotions under control before answering, “They injected with him with SDCs. Sensory Deprivation Chemicals. They take away a person’s senses. They also don’t have a definitive lasting time. Hence the need for more IV bags.”

James moved to sit beside John, taking his hand. “Can he feel this?” James asked, more questioning Clarice than Taylor,

“No. But he knows we’re here.” Clarice told him, placing a hand on James’ shoulder.

The mood in the room darkened in seconds as James turned a glare to Taylor, “And where were you? Where were you when he got captured? What happened to you always having his back?!” Gus moved to stand between Taylor and James, sending a warning for James to watch his tone.

“We got separated when we rescued those people from Trask. James, I had to be dragged away. I wanted to go after him, but I couldn’t.”

At the sight of the tear slide down Taylor’s cheek, James instantly felt guilty, “Taylor… it’s not your fault, I shouldn’t be blaming you. I’m sorry.” He muttered, his eyes narrowing as Taylor smirked.

“Is that remorse? From James Proudstar? Did you apologize?”

“I wish I could take it back…” James muttered.

“Nope! You said it! No take-backs!” Taylor exclaimed as she moved around the bed to stand beside James, wrapping an arm over his shoulders comfortingly. Taylor straightened up suddenly, her hand snapping out to grip John’s arms, “yeah, I’m here.” She whispered, James sent a look to Clarice, with one nod, Clarice confirmed that Taylor was talking to John. “He’s here too. He just got here; he’s holding your hand. Clarice’s still here too. She’s got your other hand.” Her voice faded for a few seconds.

*****

Taylor let her attention fall fully on the voice inside her head, “can’t… feel…” John’s voice was fragmented in her mind, she was doing her best to hear everything.

“I know, I know, but it’ll be fine. You can’t rush your recovery, it’ll take time.” She watched as Gus squeezed Clarice’s shoulder as they listened to the half of the conversation that they could hear.

“Don’t go... Can’t... Not alone. Don’t leave.”

Taylor tried to blink away the tears that were threatening to spill.  “I’m not leaving. I’m not ever leavin’ ya. I’ll be right here with you.” She cleared her throat as her voice cracked. “I might leave the room to check on Lauren, or to make sure the HQ hasn’t burnt down with Marcos and Lorna in charge, but I’ll be inside your head constantly, all the time.” Taylor let go of John’s arm, moving to check on his shoulder’s recovery.

The angry bruise that engulfed John shoulder caused them all to wince. They’d been hoping it would have died down a bit more by now, but it was still badly swollen and bruised. “What happened?” James asked them softly.

“In the van, he was chained, he fell, and his shoulder dislocated.” Came a new voice in the doorway.

“Lauren?” Gus’ voice was soft as he made his way over to the teenager.

James’ eyes widened as he remembered the name of Taylor’s biological sister. He couldn’t help but see every similarity between the girl who must’ve been around 17 or 18 and Taylor. He recognized the fear in her eyes more than at physical feature. The girl skirted the edge of the room as she moved to the corner.

“I wanted to see him… I haven’t seen him since they took me away from the lab.” Lauren whispered, her eyes not leaving John’s motionless form. It was the first time she’d made it to the room, she’d spent the last couple of days on bedrest so hadn’t been allowed to see John.
“He was injected with that because I screamed.” Lauren’s voice was angry and filled with guilt as tears fell down her cheeks. Her fingers began scratching at her bandaged barcode viciously.

“Lauren, this is not your fault. They would’ve done this to him no matter what. He has heightened senses, it’s rare they find someone with them as heightened as John’s. They weren’t about to let him go untested.” Gus told her, taking her hand in his, stopping her scratching.

Lauren’s eyes focused on John, “8394. 8393. 587.” She repeated the numbers over and over.

James glanced between the group, glad to see that Marcos was as confused as he was.  Taylor noticed the look between the pair, “in the Citadel, you don’t have a name. You don’t have an identity. You are a barcode. A number. Nothing more. You belong to them in every sense. Your body, your mind, your fucking thoughts belong to them. It’s the easiest way to break you. If you have no identity, you have no history. If you have no history, you have nothing to latch onto to bring you home.”

“8393” Lauren whispered.

Taylor closed her eyes, “587.”

“Asset 93.” Gus muttered. He’d avoided thinking of that since he was rescued.

“Cell 11.” Lorna whispered, remembering her time in the psych hospital. James, Marcos, and Clarice glanced between their friends, none of them speaking. None of them could think of anything to say in response.

“It also makes it easier for them to experiment on you.” Taylor continued, “if you have a name, you’re a person. If you’re a number, you’re just another rat in a cage.”

Gus sat Lauren down on one of the empty chairs that had been brought into the room. Grabbing a first aid kit that Caitlin had brought in the other day, Gus carefully removed the dressing on Lauren’s brand, applying a soothing salve before redressing the injury, securing it in place quickly.

Taylor made her way over to Lauren, letting her sister hug her close. Kneeling down, Taylor met Lauren’s eyes, they were still red and puffy from crying, they also had deep purple bags under them thanks to lack of sleep.

“Taylor?” Lauren’s voice was barely a whisper, Taylor hummed acknowledgement, “I don’t wanna see Mom and Dad.” Tears slipped down Lauren’s cheeks; she didn’t see Caitlin stood in the doorway.

Gus sat in front of Lauren, “Why not, Kiddo?”

“I keep seeing them sendin’ me like they sent Tay.” Lauren confessed.

Taylor’s hold on her sister tightened the smallest amount, “Wren, listen to me, I will do everything in my power to protect you. We all will. You have me, and Gus, Marcos, Lorna, Clarice, and Sage. We’re all ready to step in and protect you. And, once he’s recovered, John will be more than ready to protect you.” Lauren nodded as she buried her head in the crook of Taylor’s neck.

“You also have James and Alison.” Gus muttered, rubbing his hand over the teenager’s back. None of them would let Lauren face this alone, all of them had had to recover from their own visit to Hell, whether that was the Citadel, a psych hospital, Trask, the Purefires, or the cartel. They weren’t about to let Lauren face this without help.

Chapter Text

James’ eyes snapped up at the sound of tiny footfalls getting closer to the door, “Clare, word of warning, kids are inbound.”

Clarice was out of the room faster than she could think, catching Rose and Evie in her arms before they could catch a glimpse of their dad.

“Mommy? Where’s Daddy?” They hadn’t been allowed to see John yet, Clarice wanted there to be more certainty in his recovery before that. She pulled the twins over to the bench and sat down between them, hugging them to her sides.

Letting out a sight, Clarice began speaking and signing, “I want you both to understand something. Daddy’s home, but you can’t see him yet. Him and Auntie Lauren were hurt real bad,” both girls whimpered, “they’re gonna get better, but we just need to give them time, especially Daddy. Ok? You can see him soon.” Both girls nodded but were hesitant to leave, eventually they were taken away by Alison who had taken it upon herself to keep the four kids occupied.

Clarice watched them leave before making her way back to John’s bedside, the tears in her eyes dangerously close to falling. She needed him to be ok, she needed him back in her arms and hugging their daughters. She couldn’t lose him.

*****

Caitlin stepped away from the room, her eyes brimming with tears, her little girl didn’t want to be near her anymore. Caitlin found Reed mere moments before she broke down, sobbing against her husband.

“Hey, what’s happened?” Reed asked her softly.

“She doesn’t want us. She doesn’t trust us anymore.” Caitlin cried; Reed closed his eyes when he realized what Caitlin meant.

Heading towards John and Clarice’s room, Reed was looking for Lauren and was hoping to find her with her new friends. The sound of hushed voices rippled into the corridor from the open door of the bedroom. Reed made his way towards the room, letting out a breath when he saw Lauren sat with Taylor, Gus, Clarice, and a man he assumed was James.

Knocking on the door, Reed flinched as they all turned in sync to look at him, all of them waiting expectantly for him to speak. “I just wanted to find Lauren, I think Caitlin’s being affected by all this and is starting to think that Lauren hates her.” He said, frowning when James scoffed slightly, his eyes not leaving his brother.

Taylor ran her fingers through Lauren’s hair, soothing the girl cuddled to her side.
Gus glanced to the teen, “What’d you say, Kid, wanna go comfort your mom?” Gus asked her from where he was sat at her other side. Lauren shook her head guiltily, shrinking into Taylor’s arms. Gus gave her hand a squeeze before standing up and leading Reed away from the room.

Gus led Reed back over to Caitlin, deciding that they needed to know what was likely going on in Lauren’s head. Gus sat on one of the chairs next to the couch as Reed sat next to his wife, “Listen, roughly 12 and a half years ago, Lauren saw her sister get dragged from her home screaming for help while her parents stood and watched. That memory is at the front of her mind and that’s all she can see. That idea that her parents gave her over.” Caitlin sobbed at the idea, she felt like she couldn’t breathe. “Taylor might recommend you guys moving to a different station if Lauren gets too bad. For the sake of your daughter, I would recommend that you guys take the move.”

Caitlin and Reed both looked like they were ready to argue, but Gus held up his hands, “If you want to do what is best by your kid, you might have to temporarily be apart from her, just to let her recover. Lauren might not need it, but at the same time, she might. The Citadel messes with your mind, take Taylor, she’s got no recollection of her birthday, until he arrived, she didn’t remember that she had a little brother, not really. Lauren’s been through some of what Taylor experienced, she might recover, but there are somethings that she may never get back. She’ll never be an innocent little kid again.” Gus left the pair to consider his words while he headed back to John and Clarice’s room.

*****

Andy’s anger grew when he heard Gus’ words, his sister was giving up on their family! He couldn’t stop his powers building as he stormed outside. Lauren had always told him that family was important, but now they didn’t matter to her. It didn’t make sense!

“You seem stressed.” One of the Frost sisters said as she made her way over to Andy.

“What do you care?” Andy snapped.

“You are the only one around here that seems to care about fighting for mutants.” The sister said.

“And who am I talking to?”

“Esme.” The blonde said as she stepped closer to Andy, “those supposedly in charge of the Mutant Underground aren’t willing to do what needs to be done. But you are.”

Andy just scoffed, “Yeah, and being willing to fight got us captured.”

“You know that the humans are going to come after us. Now more than ever. You know that. They don’t… just think it over.” Esme said before walking away. The idea was planted in Andy’s mind, she knew that it just needed time to grow.

***** 

Lauren had settled onto the chair next to John’s bed, her eyes fixed on him, her fingers running faintly over the bandages on his wrists.

“Lauren, what happened?” Lorna asked softly.

Lauren didn’t look up, “They made me see things… part of me knew that they were fake… but…”

“But the rest of your mind overwhelmed that voice? Convinced you it was real?”

Lauren nodded at Taylor’s words, laying her head on her sister’s shoulder. “They kept calling me their little fox. Made it my name.”

Taylor kissed Lauren’s head; she knew the nicknames that the Citadel gave. “I was their Cobra. Took Python instead.”

“I didn’t wanna be Fenris. Made me a fox instead.” Lauren was crying as James, Lorna, and Marcos shared a look. They didn’t really know much about how the Citadel worked, but they knew it messed with a person’s sense of self.

Gus knelt down beside Lauren, his hand over hers and John’s letting the teenager ground herself in reality, “What are you, Kiddo?”

“Their fox.”

“No. You’re our sister, our friend. You’re not theirs. I promise you that.”

Lauren looked over, not entirely convinced. “And what about him? What happens to John?”

This time they all looked to Taylor, but even she didn’t know. “He’ll… he’ll recover. I know he will.”

Lauren let out a breath, “they made me forget things too… made my mind all muddled until I couldn’t even think straight. Couldn’t remember names.”

Clarice looked over to Taylor, “You always say that. ‘Faces are easier than names’.”

Taylor shook her head, “It’s easier for them to wipe a name from your mind than a face.”

Lauren nodded, “I couldn’t remember my family’s names. Couldn’t remember your names, but I couldn’t forget your faces.”

Taylor looked out of the window, her mind slipping briefly before she pulled it back, “there are names I don’t remember, things I’ll never get back… other things I’ll never forget.”

“Like what caused the Tragedy?” Lauren whispered.

Taylor nodded, “they gave me injections that seem to be the same as what they’ve given John. Something that expands your powers followed by an SDC… with John, that’s not so bad, with me… I couldn’t control it as my powers spread.”

*****

Sage had started to slowly trickle the information on the Citadel onto the internet without much reaction, deciding that it wasn’t enough, after four days, she hacked her way into global broadcasting satellites, taking them over.

 *****

Maria Proudstar watched her TV screen in abject horror as she watched a blue-haired teenager dragged, fighting, into a lab and strapped into a chair while she continued to yell at the guards. Maria watched as bright red eyes, so full of fear, stared pleadingly at the camera as she screamed. The video clips continued, showing Taylor suffering and pleading, begging to be let free, sobbing to go home. She’d seen that girl a thousand times before, she’d seen her scared, hurting, anxious… thousands of emotions, but never a fear on that level.

Horror only continued to grow in Maria’s chest as the clips changed, changing to show other children who didn’t get out, children whose lives were ruined by the Citadel. The clips were only seconds long, but they were enough, Maria knew that it would be enough to get people pointing fingers.

 *****

Ellen Strucker bit down on her clenched fists as tears slipped down her cheeks as she watched her granddaughter be tortured. Her mind spinning, flooding with memories of the happy child who’d never willingly hurt someone, of a child who was too sarcastic for her own good but so full of kindness. her mind span as the clips continued and showed her thousands of others suffering the same as Taylor did.

 *****

The TV was playing quietly as he sat with his focus solely on the screen. His girl, his girl, crying out for rescue and he’d been too blind to hear her. He watched as she became a shell, as she was pliantly led from her cell, her cage, to a lab and back again only to be cuffed to a bed, her hands wrapped in solid metal gloves that blocked her powers.

*****

A child was led into the weapon’s cage, his hands shaking as he held the bowl of food. Taking cautious steps forward, he reached the terrifying weapon’s side,
“You’ve been ordered to eat.” Her eyes were still glazed, her mind tucked away behind impenetrable shields.
“I’m Callum, what’s your name?”
“587. I have no name. I have a designation. I am a weapon. 187.” She refused to eat.

He watched as those clips continued:
“I’m Callum. What’s your name?”
“587” She didn’t eat.

“Please, tell me your name.”
“587”

*****

A group were watching the TV, watching their kid become a number. One of them looked at his own wrist where a number was tattooed, a number that they’d tried to make his identity. He knew what it was like to become nothing but a number. The metal around him gave way as his anger turned into his powers.

******

“You’ve got to have a name, a name your parents gave you.”
“I am 587. I do not exist outside.”

Hundreds of times clips of similar natures followed those, each one the same, until the last one.
“I don’t want to hurt you.” He said as he pressed the end of the feeding tube into her nose,
“Tell me your name…”
“Taylor.” Guards stormed in, one instantly shooting the boy while another dragged Taylor from the room and into the lab, letting the doctors inject her with god-knows-what until she fell unconscious, screaming the whole time.

*****

Logan watched the screen in silent horror as he watched Taylor be tortured. A sense of duty fell over him and he was out of his apartment before he could really think his actions through.

 *****

Erik and Charles watched the TV with an unbridled rage. An unimaginable guilt, “I thought she died…” Charles whispered.

Erik took his hand, “We’ll make them pay.” Those words died immediately when the screen started playing footage of a man and girl fighting for each other as they were dragged into the Citadel.

“He’s still protecting her.” Scott commented as he saw John, “can’t protect Taylor, so he’s protecting the sister instead.”

*****

Maria tried to calm herself, but her fear and pain only grew ten-fold when she watched her son and a teenage girl be marched into the Citadel, she noticed the pair communicating in a way that John and James would – one talking almost silently while the other made minute gestures. Both John and the girl were fighting to protect each other, neither giving up even when they were in pain.

Her hands fumbled for the burner cell that she kept hidden in the house. She shakily pressed dial on the only number on the phone.

“Hey Mama P, take it you saw them?”

“Taylor… tell me he’s ok.”

“He will be. They all will be.” Maria wished she could ask for more, but she knew Taylor, she knew what to expect.