Brennan Mulwray had to smile as he watched Shalimar buzz past their picnic spot on the shore of the small, private lake.  The beautiful feral was clearly in her element on the Jet Ski; her shining blonde mane of hair flowing behind her, a smile of sheer joy illuminating her face. 

"I have a feeling she won't be coming back until she runs out of gas," Emma observed from beneath the wide brimmed sunhat she wore.

"Heh, I wouldn't count on her quitting even then," Jesse Kilmartin countered with a snort that was completely belied by a fond grin.  "You guys see now why I suggested she not be given the first turn?"

"Well, she has had a hard time of it recently," Brennan noted, his expression darkening as he remembered all that Gabriel Ashlocke had put her through.

"That she has," Jesse agreed, his own boyish face creased in a frown.  "It's good to see her happy."

Emma smiled at the guys' observations, not bothering to note that both of them had been nearly killed recently; Brennan by electrocution, Jess by nerve gas that had rendered his power to phase nearly fatal.  Romance had been no better; Brennan had fallen for a young woman trapped in a bubble universe, Jesse's girlfriend was killed, and Emma herself had nearly fallen for an extraterrestrial mutant.  They were all in dire need of rest and relaxation, and she planned to see they got what they needed.

"I imagine we can lure her back to shore with the lunch we packed," she suggested, indicating a large - and presumably well-stocked - picnic hamper sitting in the shade of a nearby tree.

Before either young man could respond, their attention was attracted by the sputtering sound of the engine approaching.  Shalimar Fox was carefully bringing the Jet Ski to shore, the grin still radiant in her sun-and-wind reddened face.

"Told you she'd come in when she ran it dry," Emma smirked, even as Jesses waded out to lend his petite teammate a hand.  The two fair-haired new mutants quickly secured the Jet Ski, then rejoined their teammates on the blanket.

"That was fantastic!" Shalimar exclaimed, shaking out her damp hair and ignoring the guys' protest as they were splattered with the cool moisture.  "I could have stayed out there all day."

"Gee, I hadn't noticed you seemed to enjoy yourself," Brennan countered dryly, standing to retrieve the basket of food.  "Any longer and you would have gone hungry."

"Never happen," the feral insisted, grinning at Emma conspiratorially.  "I have friends in high places."

"Oh?  And what do you mean by that?" Jesse wondered.

"I mean, if you'd tried to touch the food before I got back ashore, Emma would have zapped you good.  Us girls look out for each other," she grinned, matching the telempath's smirk.

"Oh, now I'm scared," Kilmartin laughed, shaking his head in disbelief. 

"You better be, Mister," Ms. deLauro insisted with a mischievous look.  "Or you'll spend the night imagining there are spiders crawling in your bed."

Jesse's expression was suddenly uncertain, he had no doubt Emma could indeed plant such an idea in his mind, and spiders were one of his many fears.  "Uh, you wouldn't really do that, would you?" he asked a bit uncertainly.

"Not unless you deserved it," Emma purred suggestively.  Then her grin broke through and the young man understood he was being teased...again. 

"Yeah, right," he smiled back good-naturedly, taking a big bite of the roast beef sandwich Shalimar had handed him.  "And just wait until the next time one of you needs to pass through a solid wall..."

"Hey, I still owe you for the last time you got me stuck!" Emma complained, glaring at her teammate.

"Come on, Emma, that was an honest mistake," he defended himself, looking abashed.  "I didn't mean to hurt you."

"Be that as it may, I still think it's worth at least one spider.  Maybe two," she replied seriously, before bursting into laughter at his woebegone expression.  Shalimar and Brennan, who'd been fighting to not snicker at their younger friends' exchange, joined in the merriment.  After a moment's pout Jesse gave in to the humor of the situation as well, his laughter mingling with that of the other three as they settled down to enjoy their repast.

After their hunger had been sated they decided on a leisurely stroll through the nearby wilderness before engaging in any more water sports.  They followed a well-worn trail that appeared to be frequented by local equestrians, nimbly avoiding the occasional 'organic debris' along the way. Their path took them along the base of a steep rock cliff, which immediately captured Shalimar's attention.

"How long do you think it would take to climb to the top of that?" she asked Brennan, her eyes alight with a feral delight.

"Me?  Oh, I don't know, a half hour or so.  You?  Probably five minutes," he laughed.  "Unless you don't use your feral abilities."

"Oh, I don't need my mutant abilities for this.  Come on, let's give it a shot!" she offered, already leading the others to the sheer face, giving a little hop of excitement as she contemplated the climb. 

"I always heard that swimming a half hour after eating is dangerous...just how safe is free climbing a cliff?" Jesse pondered as they followed Shalimar's lead.

"Well, it's pretty certain you won't drown, at least," Brennan pointed out, starting on his way upward.

"Oh, gosh...I feel so much better," the younger man mock-grumbled, starting up last. 

They were all soon absorbed in the intricacies of the climb, conversation waning as they concentrated on finding stable foot- and handholds.  When they could, they used different routes, though at one particularly tough area they had simply followed Shalimar's capable lead.   During one rest stop Brennan had pointed out a man standing near a dark van, apparently watching them climb.  Grinning, in high spirits and generally happy with the world at the moment, Shalimar waved at their observer, getting a strangely shy responding wave.

The top was nearly at hand when disaster struck without warning.

Emma had run into trouble, and Shalimar had backtracked to assist her, while the two men looked on.  Seeing that Shal had her female teammate once again moving upward, Brennan and Jesse resumed their climb.  As Jess stretched to reach a handhold, the seemingly secure protrusion he'd had his foot on gave way, sending the young molecular plunging to an almost certain death.

"Jesse!!!" Shalimar's anguished cry followed her falling friend, and the upset feral was hard pressed not to begin a leaping descent of her own.

Just before the falling body hit the ground so far below it suddenly began to glow an eerie red color, the sign that the molecular had massed himself.  With matching sighs of relief the remaining three members of Mutant X watched as Jesse hit the rocky ground below, much like a meteor might hit. 

Immediately the red glow faded and the stunned young man staggered to his feet, nearly stumbling over the lip of the small crater he'd created. 

"Oh, man, that is not something I want to do again," he grumbled to himself even as he turned his attention upward toward his teammates.  Raising a hand to signal he was uninjured, Jesse was startled by the sound of someone rapidly approaching through the nearby underbrush.

"Are you okay?" the stocky dark-skinned man asked breathlessly as he rushed up to Jesse's side.  Wide brown eyes roved over Kilmartin's frame, showing frank amazement at seeing the young man alive and apparently unharmed.

"Uh...yeah.  I must've hit a...soft spot," Jesse stammered, not quite up to any sort of sophisticated obfuscation so shortly after a fall like that.

"Thank God for miracles," the man agreed readily enough, laying a steadying hand on Jesse's shoulder. 

"Yeah."  Looking up again at his teammates, who were starting the climb down, the molecular tried to think of a polite way to tell the man to bug off.  He knew the others were reluctant to use their mutant abilities in the presence of the stranger, and Jesse worried that their upset at his close call could result in another accident, and the use of their special abilities to prevent serious injury.  If that happened it would be best if there were no witnesses; once could be a 'miracle', twice would be suspicious.

Hoping the man would take the hint if Jesse ignored him, the youngest member of the team kept his attention on the others; grateful to see they were concentrating fully on the descent.  So intent on his friends' activities, he didn't notice the stranger pulling a syringe from his pocket until he felt the sting of the injection.

He lost consciousness before he could even consider any sort of defensive maneuver.

~*~

"When we get down there I'm going to kick Jesse's butt," Shalimar declared, moving with concentrated grace down the sheer face of the cliff.  She had conveniently forgotten whose idea it was to make the treacherous climb in the first place, and neither of her companions was willing to risk her wrath by reminding her.  Pausing, the blonde feral glanced down to check on the object of her ire just in time to see the obviously unconscious young man be flung roughly into the back of the dark van.  The stocky figure of the stranger leapt in after the young mutant, pulling the side door closed behind him.

"Hey!  Hey, he's got Jess!" Shal cried out, beginning a swift descent using her mutant abilities.   "Bren, zap the van!"  She ordered as the vehicle roared off, heedless of the rough terrain.

Off balance and unprepared, Brennan still gave it his best shot, but was unable to hit the rapidly moving target.  Similarly, Emma had no chance to send out a telepathic assault before the van was well out of range.

"Dammit!" Shalimar growled from the base of the cliff, running over to where the van had been parked.  Shining in the hard-packed dirt was Jesse's com link, along with his computer watch.  "Adam, can you read me?  Adam?" she tried to contact the sanctuary while she watched Brennan and Emma finish their descent, chafing at the unavoidable delay.

"Adam?  Damn, what is this?" she frowned down at her com link, unable to believe their mentor wasn't responding.  Picking up a twig, she used the small probe to depress a recessed button on the ring, activating the emergency alert system at the sanctuary.  That way if Adam was just temporarily away from a com system outlet he would be alerted that his team was trying to reach him.

Moments later she was rewarded with the harried - but very welcome - sound of Adam Kane's voice over her the communications system.

"I'm here.  What's the situation."

"Adam, thank God.  Jesse's been kidnapped, you need to scan the immediate area for the van he was taken in," Shalimar advised him.

"Looking now," Adam didn't waste time with unnecessary questions, keying in the command and parameters for a search.    It wasn't until the computer indicated it was actively working did the Mutant X leader ask for additional details.

"What happened, Shalimar?  Are the others alright?"

Pacing in attempt to curb her anxiety, Shalimar gave Adam the rundown as to what had just transpired, all the while chafing as she monitored Emma and Brennan's slow but steady climb down.  She was almost finished when she heard him curse softly amidst an assortment of electronic beeps and pings.

"What's wrong, Adam?"

"It's gone.  The highway is too close, and too busy.  You and the others see if you can find any clues to the kidnapper's identity there, in the meantime I'll see what I can do about setting up a more specific search.  Don't worry, Shal.  We'll get him back.  We have to."

"Damn right we have to," the feral agreed, her brown eyes glowing yellow as her mutant powers surged with her emotions.

~*~

Wanting and needing are not the same things as doing, as the Mutant X team soon learned.  All efforts to trace Jesse's abductor failed, and two full days passed without a single clue as to the whereabouts of the young molecular.  The remaining team members were growing steadily more anxious about their friend's fate, especially Shalimar who'd always been protective of the younger mutant.

On the third morning after the kidnapping, as Adam attempted still more modification on the search, Emma checked the Sanctuary's email.  Amongst the usual updates from dozens of new mutants scattered through the globe was one that triggered a couple of security flags because of being sent from an unknown source and having a large attached file.

Not wanting to bother their mentor unnecessarily, Emma checked the firewalls were in place in the system, and then opened the message.  A picture filled the screen, bring a horrified gasp from the psionic as she recognized just what it was a picture of.

"Oh, my God!  Adam!"

Her call brought not only Adam, but Shalimar and Brennan as well, all of them crowding around the back of Emma's seat, their attention riveted on the image filling the computer screen.

"Jesse."  Shalimar's voice was shocked, and somehow broken sounding, as she identified the subject of the image that held them all spellbound.

The blond new mutant was in a cage, which looked to be at most six feet square and was situated in the middle of an empty expanse of floor.  The bars were padded, the outer layer comprised of a fine metal mesh, and they could see a thick coil of cables running from a far corner.  But what held their attention was the huddled figure in the far corner; nude and sporting an assortment of bruises, abrasions and what appeared to be burns.  The lighting was severe, as if numerous spotlights were focused on the young man, whose eyes were tightly closed in a face pinched into a pained grimace. 

Emma scrolled down, coming across two more pictures, taken from different angles, showing even more damage had been inflicted on the young molecular.  Adam's hand shook slightly as he pointed out something in the third photo.

"They've used a sub-dermal governor."

"So, this is...what?...an offshoot of the GSA?  This isn't their usual style," Brennan commented, shaking his head in the negative as he considered the situation.

"Yeah.  It's not like they don't do torture, but they're usually a little more...subtle," Emma added.

"And what's with all the padding?  They afraid he'll hurt himself before they can?  Can we trace this email?  Come on Adam, we have to find some way to get him out of there!" Shalimar was growing more agitated as she looked at the photos of her oldest friend.  The feral in her was horrified at the sight of anything...anyone...being caged unjustly, and her naturally strong protective instincts were going into overdrive.

Brennan put a calming arm around the blonde woman's shoulders, as Emma scrolled slowly past the third picture to the message printed at the bottom.

"Adam.

I trust I have your attention now?  That's always been a problem with you.  So focused on what YOU want, you don't notice anyone else.  It's a shame this young fellow has to be the one to pay this time, but that's something else that doesn't change.  Others suffer for your single-minded pursuit of what YOU think is the right thing. 

Let me explain to you how this is going to work.  I will send you an email every day or two.  They may, or may not, contain pictures.  They will contain information as to what I am doing to young Mr. Kilmartin, and from that you will have to surmise who I am.  Once you know who I am, you should be easily enough able to find my website.  On the website is a file with directions to Mr. Kilmartin's location.  At that time you can collect him...or whatever is left of him.  Depends entirely on how long it takes. 

So, on that note, let the games begin!

So far our young friend hasn't been hurt too badly.  A few bruises, a couple of burns.  Nothing too horrific, yet.  Mostly he's not been able to sleep; bright lights, sudden sounds, jolts of electricity.  Keeps him off balance, he can't seem to relax enough to sleep more than a few minutes. Already his grip on rationality is starting to slip a little.  I'm a little disappointed, I can't help but think Fox or Mulwray would have made more durable subjects, but one cannot be that particular under these circumstances.

But enough for this time.  You go start your research, see if you can figure out who I am, and imagine all the things I can do to your young friend in the meantime.  I'll be in touch...

A Friend"

"Oh, my God.  What kind of person would do this?" Emma wondered softly, her gaze returning of their own volition to the pictures of their missing teammate.

"Someone with one hell of a grudge," Shalimar answered angrily, fixing Adam with an uncompromising glare.  "Any idea who this guy could be?"

"I wish I knew.  Obviously he's someone who has a grudge against me, but it's from my days with Genomex or from a more recent situation, I do not know.  We need to concentrate first on what we do know.  Namely, one, he - or she - has knowledge of and access to technology pertaining to new mutants.  Two, they're intelligent and devious; according to this report, this email is untraceable.  Three, they apparently have no qualms about using an innocent bystander as a pawn to exact their revenge - it's very clear that they don't have any issues with Jess personally."  Adam paced restlessly, the fingers of his right hand pinching the area between his eyes as he continued to ponder the situation.

"Emma, assemble a database of all former associates and employees of Genomex and GSA, cross reference it to any reported instances of...kidnapping, torture, incarceration.  I'm getting a distinct feeling of 'an eye for an eye' attitude from this guy.  Brennan, you and Shalimar hit the streets; see what our contacts may have heard.  Be discreet, we don't want to scare this person into running and taking Jesse with them.  I'm going to get in touch with a couple of MY sources with this new information, see if anything has been heard.  Keep in touch, and report any findings - no matter how trivial sounding - immediately."

Each member of Mutant X immediately set about their assigned tasks, determination plain in their confident manner and steady eyes.  But five hours later, sitting around a Tai dinner they simply picked at, that determination had withered to anguished despair as no leads could be found.  Sleep came slowly that night, and what little rest any of them got was spoiled by visions of their good-natured friend's suffering at the hands of someone who didn't even know him.

The next day they all haunted the room that contained the main computer station, until Emma quietly announced that the expected email had arrived.  Much as Adam would have preferred not letting his charges read the message, there was no way to avoid it. 

"Adam,

So, nothing yet?  Have you tried looking past the obvious?  Thinking your way around the corners of logic, prodding in the dark recesses of possibility?  Were your dreams haunted by the ghostly echoes of a young man's cries of pain?  I hope you got some rest; your young friend didn't.  Sadly, he's not coping real well.

I thought it would comfort him to know why he was going through this torment, I told him how it was all your fault.  How if he wasn't a freak, he'd not have this happening to him.  You know....he doesn't like being called a freak, it seems.  Gets him pretty riled up.  Which is probably a good thing, seeing as how the anger makes the pain easier to deal with.  Or so the psychologists say.  Can't really ask him, he's not quite as coherent as he used to be.

Ah, but more news later...I know how busy you are.

A Friend."

"I can't believe this bastard!" Brennan grumbled angrily, small bolts of electricity leaping between his fingers as his emotions raged.  "Like it's some kind of joke to him.  A game."

"I'd like to play a game with him," Shalimar growled, her eyes a feral yellow. 

"We don't have time for this," Adam reminded them even as his fingers flew over the keyboard.  "I'm attempting to trace this email to its source.  It might give us a clue to his identity.  In the meantime, I need you guys to check the recent news on Proxy Blue for anything that might even remotely relate to Jesse's abduction. Emma, are you finished with that database cross-referencing?  No?  Then why don't you give her a hand, Shal, while Brennan checks the news.  We can't give up, we WON'T give up."  Adam glanced up at his young team, his brown eyes grave.

With varying degrees of protest they dispersed to their assignments, leaving their mentor to continue backtracking the email message.  Not for the first time he mentally cursed the fact the kidnapper had grabbed the most technologically gifted of his group. 

He really could have used Jesse's assistance.

~*~

Seven days passed.  Seven days that brought five more emails; three with additional pictures.  The only thing worse than reading the recap of Jesse's torment, or seeing the physical effects, was having no message at all.  Those two days were particularly hard for the remaining members of Mutant X, each of them haunted by the thought that there was no message because there was no Jesse.  The arrival of the next email was nearly a cause for celebration under the circumstances, regardless of how much worse their friend appeared to be. 

The seventh day's missive contained more images of their missing comrade's ordeal, pictures the others could barely stand to look at.  Jesse was obviously not being fed, but that only highlighted the other problems, providing a canvas upon which depictions of pain could be drawn.  There were open sores in various stages of either healing or infection covering all areas of the young molecular's body, with the exception of his face.  That alone remained unmarked, save the deep shadows surrounding the blue eyes that were tightly pinched shut.  Those dark smudges were too symmetrically shaped to be bruises, too evenly colored; it was plain they were a side effect of exhaustion and illness.  The rest of his visage was unnaturally pale - further sign of his general unhealthiness - and the obvious lines of tension showed he was awake and in pain. 

Below the pictures was a message from Jesse's abductor.

"Adam, Adam, Adam....

I really thought you could do better than this.  How much do you think this boy can withstand?  I'm doing the best I can by him; keep him clean (I use a nice high-pressure hose so I'm sure it gets all the muck off), feed him (even if he rarely even tries to eat it), water him.  He's not allowed outside where someone might hurt him, I keep him safe.  I don't do experiments on him.  I tell him that's it not his fault, it's all an unfortunate accident of nature.  

It doesn't help.  Never did, you know.

You'd best try to hurry it up, this boy is running out of time.

A Friend"

Shalimar reached an unsteady hand toward the picture still visible above the short message, one gentle finger ghosting over the miserable figure huddled in a corner of the cage.  Tears shone in her dark brown eyes, temporarily dousing the flames of anger that usually glowed there when dealing with a new email.

"We've got to find him, Adam.  Why can't we find him?"  For the moment her voice was young and uncertain, reminding Adam of the youngster she'd been when he first met her.

Adam absently comforted the blonde feral, his mind obviously elsewhere.  Shalimar, well versed in analyzing Adam Kane's behavior, noticed that immediately and turned anxious eyes to the man who had helped her find a path in life.

"What is it Adam?  What are you thinking?"

"Emma, please bring the message portion of his emails up together, in the order they were received," he requested, his entire demeanor reflecting his intent focus on whatever idea had hit him.

"Assembling them now.  What are we looking for?" the psionic asked as the messages appeared on the main computer screen.

"A pattern.  There's something about what he's doing to Jesse, the ways he's tormenting him.  Look.  Here."  He pointed to a phrase on the first message. 

"...he's not been able to sleep; bright lights, sudden sounds, jolts of electricity"

Then on to the second message.

"...how if he wasn't a freak, he'd not have this happening to him"

He moved on through the messages in order, pointing out pertinent phrases.

"...nervous and restless, a lot of discomfort.."

"He can't escape the torment, it follows him no matter what he tries..."

"...getting progressively more withdrawn, depressed..."

"...over the edge, nearly catatonic..."

"...requiring I take care of his every physical need..."

Ending with a bit of that day's message.

"...not allowed outside where someone might hurt him, I keep him safe."

"I'm not seeing what you mean," Brennan confessed, a puzzled frown wrinkling his brow.  "Obviously, Jesse is getting worse, but...that's also obviously what this psycho planned all along.  What are you seeing there?"

"Remember when you first became aware of your powers?  When you were still learning how to control them?"  Adam paused to glance at each of his three younger companions.  "I think Shalimar may be getting the idea.  I know from her expression Emma is.  Before you learned control, your powers were...inconvenient.  Right?  And each time they increase, you have to strengthen that control, right?"  Nods all around at that observation.

"Okay.  Now, what makes you three - and Jesse - so powerful is not necessarily your powers, but your CONTROL of your powers.  Don't get me wrong; you powers are strong.  Very strong.  But it's your control that gives you the edge.  So...what if you didn't have that control?  What would happen then?"  Adam paused, letting the idea sink in, letting their quick minds start down the path he was exploring.

"Our powers would drive us insane," Shalimar said quietly, but with dawning comprehension.  "Wait a minute...what he's describing in the early emails...bright lights, loud sounds...sudden pains...that what it's like when my powers go haywire.  I got sick a couple of years ago, and EVERYTHING was...whacko.  Everything was too loud, too bright, too hot, too cold...just too much.  Are you saying you think he's trying to simulate what a feral experiences if their control is gone?"

"I think so.  And then in the more recent ones, his focus is on how he's taking care of Jesse, providing for his needs.  As if he had been...institutionalized..." Kane's voice trailed off as he paced quickly, almost as if he were trying to run the solution down.  "We went about the searches wrong.  We need to go back to the databases, but this time look for new mutants who have been institutionalized or have committed suicide.  No...spread the search out further.  The facility might not have known about new mutants.  Look for patients with sensory input issues.  That's at least a good place to start."  He stopped and faced his team.  "Let's get working on it, Jesse's time is running out."

~*~

Emma stood up wearily, stretching her arms over her head and slowly twisting her body to the right, moaning softly as cramped muscles protested the movement.  Her auburn hair swung as she rolled her head, shrugging her shoulders to further loosen them.  A soft chuckle caught her attention, and she turned to find Adam studying her with a half smile.

"Been sitting too long, huh?" he queried gently as he reached out to massage her still tense shoulders.

"Yeah.  I don't know how Jesse can sit and work on the computers for hours on end.  I get too stiff if I don't move around often."

"I suspect it's from years of practice," he replied with a fond chuckle.  "Have you found anything at all?" 

"Nothing very promising, I'm afraid.  I got the joy of looking for reports of suicides, with unique circumstances.  Got a few that might have potential, but can't link them to Genomex at all.  We've expanded the search since the Genomex and GSA databases didn't provide any clues," Emma reported, regretfully stepping away from the soothing massage.  "We should check with Shalimar and Brennan, maybe they had some luck."

"I think we all need a break, in any case.  I'm thinking it might be a good thing for all of us to get out for a little while; maybe go into town for dinner.  It's not going to help Jess any if we all collapse from stress, now will it?" he asked, cutting off the protest he saw her gathering to launch.  All of them had been putting in long hours trying to find their missing friend; exhaustion was showing in dull eyes and fraying tempers.

"You're right, you're right, I know you're right.  But somehow it just doesn't seem fair for us to go out and have a good time while Jesse is going through...that.  I wish I could get a reading...anything...off him."  Emma had tried repeatedly to use her mutant powers to locate her friend, with absolutely no success.

"We just have to keep trying, not give up.  And that includes making sure we keep ourselves healthy enough to continue the search.  Now come on, let's collect the others and take a break."  Adam ushered Emma toward the lab, where Shalimar and Brennan were still working on their searches.

"Adam!  Emma!  I think we have something!"  Shalimar's shout spurred the two into a jog, bringing them to the lab in a matter of seconds, where they found the other two excitedly comparing information.

"We might have it," Brennan confirmed, answering the question he plainly saw in Adam and Emma's eyes. 

"What have you got?" their mentor asked briskly, maintaining a firm hold on his emotions.

"Does the name 'Dwayne Thorton' ring any bells?"

"Dwayne Thorton?"  Kane's expression grew distant at the mention of the name; puzzled and somewhat wary.

"Yeah.  From what we've traced back on him, he worked at Genomex very early on, a lower echelon researcher.  He was married, and -if we are reading this right - their son may have ended up being a new mutant.  Thorton left Genomex abruptly, pretty much disappearing from sight for several years.  Next we find trace of him, his boy - Daniel - was attending a special school near San Francisco," Brennan reported.

"What kind of special school?" Emma asked.

"For the emotionally disturbed.  High-risk kids; drug users, suicide attempts, self-mutilation, bi-polar, schizophrenic...you name it, they've got it.  Seems young Daniel was 'delusional' and suicidal.  Claimed he could hear and see better than average, was prone to fits of hyper-activity.  Aggressive behavior.  They drugged him to the gills and 'educated' him," Shalimar continued, contempt plain her in voice.

"He was a feral with no control."  It was a statement, not a question, from Adam.

"Sure sounds like it.  But if that's the case...his dad worked for Genomex, he certainly should have understood his condition; that it didn't call for drugs and institutionalization.  You can't learn to control your powers if you're zoned out on Thorazine," Brennan commented with some heat.

"You didn't answer the question, Adam.  Do you recognize the name?" Emma prompted their mentor, her feelings about the Thorton's method of dealing with Daniel's powers mixed.  She had lived in denial of her own mutant abilities for most of her life; that gave her a far different perspective than either Shalimar or Brennan, both of whom reveled in their powers.

The sigh Adam released was so deep it seemed to originate in his toes.  "We went to college together.  I was already working for Genomex, taking some extra classes to improve my chances of advancement.  I met Dwayne in Advanced Zoology, we were lab partners.  He was bright, funny, ambitious...and incredibly tenacious.  I don't know how to explain it; we just became friends. Which was rare for me; I didn't make friends easily," he chuckled a little at some memory.  "You met me in that era, you know what I mean.  He called me 'Super Nerd', claimed he was fulfilling his sacred duty to Truth, Justice, and the American Way by being my faithful sidekick, 'Geek Guy'.  You know, I even served as an usher at his wedding."

"What happened?"

"I honestly have never been sure.  He and Nancy got married right after he graduated and was promoted to a research position.  Then Danny was born, and suddenly every time I saw Dwayne he picked an argument with me.  He never mentioned anything wrong or unusual about his boy - never mentioned him at all, actually.  Then, without notice, Dwayne was gone.  I tried to contact him, but never had any luck.  If you want to know the absolute truth, I figured Genomex had fired him, perhaps threatened him.  It wouldn't have been that unusual.  So after a time I gave up, and quite frankly forgot all about him in the chaos of the next few years."

"Well, now it looks like he's back," Shalimar pointed out with barely contained anger.  "You have any idea how to find this website he talked about?"

"In those days he had a real interest in American Pit Bulls, was very involved in a group that was dedicated to saving the dogs.  He used to run a site called 'It's the Pits', as I recall.  Bring up a search engine and see if you can find a website called that."  He'd not even finished speaking when Brennan typed in the request.  Seconds later a list of sites appeared on his monitor.

"Lots of hits, but we may have gotten lucky, this site is actually named 'It's the Pits'."  Mulwray clicked on the link as the others grouped behind his seat. 

"It looks like the right site," Adam reported, as a large picture of a pit bulldog filled the screen.  "Scroll down, he probably has a link to a special page with the information on Jesse.  There!  Click on that."  He pointed to a small, untitled icon that looked like the cartoon character Atom Ant.

Brennan did as requested without comment, and a log in screen popped up requesting a user name and password.  "Now what?" the elemental asked testily.

"Put in 'super nerd' for the user, and 'geek guy' for the password," Adam suggested.

"We're in!"

The picture on the screen now was an aerial view of a city, with a bright red 'X' marked in the middle.  Below were written directions to a city several hundred miles away, and to an abandoned warehouse within that city.  No further information was provided, nor was it needed; Adam was certain the data provided was accurate and true.

"The Dwayne Thorton I knew was a young man of honor," he noted.

"Oh?  And it's a sign of honor when the man kidnaps an innocent victim and tortures him for over a week in order to seek revenge on someone else?" Shalimar asked contemptuously.  "Not exactly a textbook definition of honor."

Adam declined to respond to the blatant hostility in the blonde feral's comments, preferring to concentrate on that which could be constructive.  "We need to get together some medical supplies; Emma you're in charge of that.  Brennan, get the Helix ready to go.  Shalimar, go into Jesse's quarters and gather up some clothing for him, maybe a familiar blanket or other item that might be of comfort to him.  We'll be leaving in ten minutes."

The young mutants put their anger aside and quickly dispersed to do Adam's bidding, recognizing that now was not the time for a lengthy argument.  Every minute that Jesse spent in that hell was another minute too many. 

Within an hour the members of Mutant X arrived on the roof of the designated warehouse, the Helix in stealth mode to prevent detection.  Entering the large building via the roof access door, they let Shalimar take the lead; depending on her feral senses to quickly locate their missing friend.

Moving with feline grace, the young woman led them down to the floor level without incident.  From there she stealthily traversed two large rooms before stopping motionless in a doorway leading to a well-lit area.

"Jesse," she whispered as the other three stood behind her, temporarily paralyzed by their shock.

The cage that had been evident in all the photos sent to them was situated in the middle of the concrete floor.  Nine harsh spotlights focused on the small enclosure, and a steady stream of hissing 'white noise' interspersed with sudden loud noises and scathing litanies of abuse emerged from four speakers.  Jesse Kilmartin was huddled in one corner, his nude body curled into a fetal position, and even from a distance away they could see the tremors racking him and his lips moving in a soundless dialog.

"Come on, let's get him out of there," Brennan declared, ready to rush forward.

"No, wait!" Emma placed a restraining hand on her teammate's muscular arm, her tone of voice enough to halt the elemental's progress. 

"What?" he asked testily.

"We can't just go rushing in there."  Emma flinched a little under the intense gazes suddenly fixed on her, but she wouldn't back down.  "He's terrified, even now while he's alone.  If we go rushing in there he'll panic.  I...I can't feel a sense of...it's like he doesn't even know who he is anymore.  I don't think he'll recognize us.  Even if he does, we still need to go easy on him.  Okay?"

"I bet he'll recognize me," Shalimar claimed, turning a worried expression toward the unaware prisoner.

"Emma's right, we have to take this slow.  And, Shal, I agree that you should be the one to try to approach him.  Until we get a good idea of what his mental condition is we need to be very cautious," Adam counseled them, herding them quietly ahead of him to a grouping of machines situated near the cage.

"Go ahead and see if he'll let you near, and we'll see what all this is for, and shut off that recording."

"Thank God.  That is getting on my nerves," Brennan muttered, scanning over the various pieces of equipment.  Finding what he wanted he twisted a dial, cutting off the offensive noise in mid invective.  In the sudden silence they turned to watch Shalimar approaching Jesse, hoping their worry about his mental status was unwarranted.

When the recording was cut off Jesse immediately stiffened, a low whimpering sound coming as he tried to hunch even closer into his corner.  Shalimar's soothing litany stumbled a bit at his reaction and she shot a questioning look at her teammates.

"Turn it back on, Brennan!" Emma hissed at him, her gaze locked on the tormented young man in the enclosure. 

"What?  Why??"

"I think when Dwayne would come in and hurt him, he turned off the recording.  If that's the case, then he associates the lack of that sound as the predecessor to physical pain.  The images I'm getting from him are so strong, so...awful.  Just...just turn it back on, please," the redheaded psionic pleaded, suddenly pale.

"Do it Brennan," Adam added, noting that Jesse calmed almost immediately and the silent chanting had resumed.  He also had noticed that even when Jesse was agitated he still didn't open his eyes or look around.  Something else to worry about.  "And see if you can kill some of those spotlights, would you?"

"Sure."

"I've got an idea," Emma blurted suddenly, turning and hurrying out the way they'd come.  Adam and Brennan glanced at each other with simultaneous shrugs before returning to their objectives, while Shalimar continued to reassure Jesse as she crept closer to the injured young man's side.

Shal was almost within reach of Jesse when Emma arrived back, a number of CD cases in her hands.  The psionic gestured for Brennan to join her at one of the consoles, and a few moments later the unpleasant white noise and abusive words were replaced with the soothing sounds of nature interspersed with melodious woodwinds.  Shalimar recognized a recording they often used in meditation exercises and shot a grateful look at her female teammate.  They'd made the change almost seamlessly, and Jesse showed none of the fear he'd displayed when the background noise had been turned off.

Turning her attention back to the blond molecular, Shalimar gradually moved a little closer to her teammate, keeping up a soothing litany of reassurance all the while.  It took nearly twenty minutes to work her way close enough to lay one warm hand on Jesse's icy shoulder, garnering a shudder of fear from the young man.  Keeping her touch gentle and calming, the young woman displayed admirable patience as she slowly - nearly imperceptivity - moved closer and closer, until finally she was sitting at his side, with her hand rubbing comforting circles on Kilmartin's shoulders.

Keeping Shalimar between himself and Jesse, Adam quietly passed a first aid kit through to the young woman, who opened it one handed and extracted some pre-moistened pads.  She realized Jess needed far more than just surface wounds cleaned, but it would take time to gain his confidence enough to allow for the more serious injuries to be treated.  Her intention was to get him accustomed to her touching him, maybe get him to understand she was helping him, then try to figure out how to get him the hell out of the cage and back to the Sanctuary.

Adam added a hand-held scanner to the first aid kit, along with a bottle of water, then backed away, giving them the illusion of privacy while remaining close enough to help if needed.  Brennan had turned off all but two of the six spotlights, so at least the area was not so glaringly bright anymore. With nothing left they could do except wait, Emma strode quietly out of the immediate area, her right hand unconsciously rubbing her forehead.  After a moment's contemplation, Brennan followed, leaving Adam to watch the pair in the cage.

~*~

"Hey, you okay?" the dark haired elemental asked, standing behind Emma's spot near a ground level access door.

"I just needed to get some distance between myself and Jesse.  His feelings are so...strong.  So immediate.  Pain.  Fear.  Confusion.  Despair.  All right there, on the surface.  I tried to read him, and I couldn't even get past those emotions.  It's like that's all that's left of Jess.  No humor, no intelligence, no wonder at the world.  Jesse's normally such a bright mind, full of quick intellect and good-natured wit.  Shiny, and somehow untarnished, even with what he's been through in his life.  He's got the most incredible optimism, and this strong sense of duty and a protective streak you'd never believe.  You think Shalimar's protective of him?  Trust me, Brennan, it's reciprocated in spades.  But, that's all gone now,  and I pray that it's simply buried, and not totally destroyed.  Because, if it has been destroyed, then we won't be able to get Jesse back."  Emma reached up and rubbed the tears from her face, sniffling a little before turning to face her teammate again.

"We just got to believe he's still in there, Emma.  You know, I always kind of thought of Jesse as a boy scout.  I don't mean that in a mean way...well, at least not any more," he chuckled a little ruefully as he pulled the psionic into a comforting hug.  "And like a good boy scout, he's gone and taken cover until rescue comes.  I just know it.  And you got to know it, too.  Okay?"

"I hope you're right, Brennan," she mumbled into his shoulder, gratefully taking the comfort offered.  "It's a good theory, actually."

"Hey, you aren't the only one who understands how minds work, you know?"  A slightly watery sounding giggle met that declaration, bringing a smile to Mulwray's face.  "Though I'm better at other things, like maybe making sure our perimeter is secure.  Feel up to exploring the rest of this place, making sure we don't have any uninvited guests?  We can start by securing this door here."

Grateful to have something to keep their minds occupied, and keep them out of the main room where Jesse was, the two New Mutants set about their task, both having found a small measure of comfort from each other.

~*~

tbc