Sawyer was the first of her teammates to awake in the morning and she woke with a start. She was a light sleeper—the definition of "sleep with one eye open" and it took a moment for her to recover, using the back of her hand to wipe sweat from her forehead.

Worried that if she showered now, she would wake those in the rooms next to hers, she settled for brushing her teeth and combing her hair, pulling her mass of curls back into its ponytail.

She wrapped herself in a robe and bent down to remove her book from the chest. She decided that it would be a good idea to pad down to the lounge and cleanup the mess from their amazing party last night. She hoped for a repeat before they had to do whatever the CIA had planned for them.

There was a noticeable change in temperature as she entered the lounge, the window that Banshee had shattered having yet to be fixed.

She wasn't surprised to see that the sun had barely risen. She was an early riser and always got the privilege to see the sun rise while she enjoyed a cup of tea or some hot chocolate.

She started gathering the items that Alex and Sean had used to hit Darwin, putting them back where they belonged before she started picking up the soda-filled glasses and cans to bring to the minibar. She glanced at the fish tank, making a note to feed them when she finished rinsing out the glasses.

"Then why the hell are you here?"

"But you don't even know your powers. Seriously, why did they bring you here?"

She furiously scrubbed out one of the glasses, Alex's words weighing heavily in her brain. It made her face flush when she recalled them.

As much as she had been humiliated, she was able to admit that Alex was right and she couldn't be mad or upset at him for that. It was weird that she was here without knowing how to use her powers and it was weirder that someone her age wasn't even sure if her powers were what she thought they were. For all she knew, she only made bad things happen.

She took a deep breath to keep from panicking and shook out the Coke bottle she was rinsing out to help get the flat soda out. She was tempted to run and go back home, something she did when she panicked—she ran, but Charles had promised. He was going to teach her to use her powers—to hone her mutation and she didn't have to be afraid anymore.

"Unlikely," she snorted, shaking her head.

Even if she did runaway, she had no money. Which meant the only way she could leave was on the private plane on which she had traveled and if she were to leave, she wanted to do it secretly. Leaving on a private plane owned by the government, was not doing things secretly.

She passed a dripping hand over her hair, sighing. At least in Vegas, she wasn't as useless as she felt she was now. Sawyer liked to think that she was the best worker in the hotel. To most, it wasn't something to brag about, but she was very good at what she did.

"Miss Lakahani?"

The voice snapped her out of her thoughts and it took a moment, but she turned her head and saw a pudgy, stocky fellow with dark eyes hidden behind a pair of glasses. He was dressed in a sharp suit, his short dark hair parted evenly, and he had a smile on his face. He was one of the government agents.

"Yes?" she asked slowly, shutting off the water and drying her hands.

He smiled widely, easing Sawyer's fears and making her hide a smile behind her hand when he stepped clumsily through the ruined window, approaching her with a hand extended.

"I'm Agent Campbell," he said, flustered, "It's a pleasure to finally meet you."

Sawyer smiled, "Hi," she greeted, just as warmly, "Good morning."

"Good morning. I spotted you from my office. Are you all right?" he asked, glancing around the room, "You're up rather early."

"I'm an early riser," she told him, "And I'm not used to the time difference. Besides," she gestured, "I thought it'd be nice to cleanup after our party last night."

"I see," Agent Campbell said, "I suppose I'll leave you to it, then. Oh, and the window will be fixed by this afternoon. Just let me know if you have any problems or if you need anything."

"Will do, thanks," Sawyer waved as the man took his leave and she let the smile drop from her face.

After she finished cleaning up the room, she washed her sticky hands and went to flop down onto the couch. She covered her face with her hands that were pruned from the sink water.

"I hate my life," she murmured.

A second later, she shot up from her position, the blood rush making her dizzy. An idea struck her and she stood up to go and grab a glass from the cabinet.

Her hands were shaking as she filled it with water and when she was satisfied with the water level, she returned to the couch and took a seat, placing the glass in the middle of the table after she cleared it off.

She leaned forward, elbows on her knees as she stared intensely at the glass.

"Okay, Sawyer," she said to herself, "You can do this. Just do…something. Okay…" she clapped her hands together and took a deep breath, "Go."

Nothing happened.

The longer she stared at the glass, the more shame began to creep into her veins. She wasn't sure what she expected to happen when she had this idea. Maybe she really was insane or in a coma and this entire thing was only happening in her head. For so long she had known she was different, but maybe she wasn't. It was a possibility that she was the lolo.

"Oh my God, what am I doing?" she asked herself, covering her face with her hands.

Tears filled her eyes. Being here—the reason she had been tracked down was bringing up too many memories that she was now forced to think about. It was something she hadn't thought of in over a decade and it made her heart clench, pins and needles exploding all over her body.

"Okay," she wiped her tears and took a deep breath, "It's fine, you're fine. Suck it up."

Sniffling, she went to dump out the water and fixed herself a cup of green tea. It was the only box she could find in the lounge. She took her cup and settled back on the couch to read her genetics book. It was something she had purchased in a pawn shop and it looked complicated enough to where it was something she could do for awhile.

The door opened and she looked up curiously, surprised that someone else would be up this early.

It was Hank and his face soon mirrored hers, his mouth opening and closing wordlessly as he looked behind him, then back at Sawyer. He jabbed a thumb behind him.

"I-I can-

"You're fine, Hank," she smiled at him, then turned back to her book, "Good morning."

"G-good morning," he stuttered, eyes wide, "Wow, it's clean in here. Did you do this?" he came a little closer.

"Yes, I got up early," Sawyer replied. She closed her book and sat up to fully address him, "What are you doing up so early?"

Hank looked to the side, evidently distracted by something. There was a crease between his eyes and when he looked back at Sawyer, his face had smoothed out.

"I always wake up early," he said.

Sawyer blinked a couple times. That had been a lot of pondering, only to say five simple words.

"Oh," was all she said, "Me too."

Things became awkward after that, Sawyer staring at the cover of her book while Hank continued to stand there in his plaid pajamas, shifting his weight.

"I wanted to thank you again," she blurted, looking up at him, "For my codename," a smile quirked her lips, "It really cheered me up."

Hank's eyes lit up and then he rushed to occupy the seat next to Sawyer, ignoring the way she jumped.

"Oh, of course," he looked stunned and fascinated at the same time, "I wanted to ask: you really don't know how to use your mutation?"

She tapped her fingers on the cover of her book, "Really," she confirmed suspiciously.

When Hank suddenly produced a syringe, she let out a loud "whoa!" and leaped back, falling ungracefully over the arm of the couch with a noise that made Hank grimace.

She shot up like bread from a toaster, looking frazzled as she clutched her robe closed. She thrust a finger at him.

"What are you going to do with that!?" she demanded, scrambling backwards.

Hank frowned, his eyebrows drawing together in confusion, "I was going to take your blood."

He said this like it should have been obvious and Sawyer's eyes widened.

"I'm sorry," she shook her head, "Repeat please?"

"There could be something in your DNA blocking your extra gene," Hank suggested, holding up the syringe, "Or maybe the gene isn't developed all the way."

Her face relaxed back to its neutral expression and she lowered her arm, actually considering Hank's words. That thought had never once crossed her mind. She had spent the past day thinking she was some sort of defective mutant. It didn't occur to while premature birth had no affect on genes (at least, to her knowledge), that maybe it could affect an extra one growing.

Elated, she hurried over to Hank, almost crashing into him when she jumped onto the couch. She grabbed him by the shoulders.

"And if it is underdeveloped, you could fix it, couldn't you?" she asked. She shook him a bit when he didn't answer fast enough, "Couldn't you?"

Face red at the close proximity, Hank hurried to answer, "I mean, I could probably enhance it—jump start it's growth-

"And if you could enhance it, you could diminish it, couldn't you?" Sawyer was too excited to keep her voice at a normal, inside, level.

With clumsy hands, Hank pried Sawyer's death grip from his sleep shirt and lowered them into her lap. He gave them a few pats, then cleared his throat, going back to the matter at hand.

"I've been working on a serum to cure the physical appearance of my mutation, but it would leave all of my abilities intact," he told her.

Sawyer's face fell at hearing that and muttered, "So, you're not…?"

"Trying to cure mutation?" Hank finished with a pitied look. At Sawyer's nod, he sighed softly, "No," he frowned, "Is that what you want?"

This was getting too personal and Sawyer rolled up her sleeve, presenting her arm to Hank.

"Go ahead," she nodded at the exposed skin.

Nodding jerkily, Hank inserted the syringe into the vein of Sawyer's arm.

"Sorry," he whispered when she jerked, "Did I hurt you?"

"It's fine," she promised, swallowing thickly. She pinched her eyes shut, as she turned her head away.

"Done. Thank you," Hank said worriedly, withdrawing the needle, "Blood makes you squeamish?"

Sawyer shook her head and pressed down on the puncture wound with the heel of her hand.

"You're welcome," she replied shakily, wiping the spot of blood from her hands on her robe, "Let me know what you find out."

"Of course," Hank promised, pocketing the syringe. He stood up, "I'm going to go store it. Be back in a moment."

She nodded, avoiding Hank's gaze, only lifting her head when she heard the door shut behind him. She exhaled a small sigh and picked up her book, looking up when she heard the sound of crunching glass.

Agent Campbell greeted her with a sheepish grin, "Hello, again. Sorry to disturb you, but some of the agents will be bringing in breakfast for you all in a few minutes."

"Okay," she said, debating if she should wake the others, "Hey, Agent Campbell, is it all right if I use that phone over there?" she pointed behind her, "I need to call my job."

"Oh, I can take care of that," Agent Campbell said, "You don't need to worry about it."

She frowned, but nodded. She supposed it would look better if the CIA called, instead of her. Besides, she was probably already fired.

"And if you could ask for Iris…" she added, "I would really appreciate it."

"Will do, Miss Lakahani," Agent Campbell gave a small salute and disappeared back through the window.

She was a little irritated that she hadn't gotten much reading done. Evidently, it appeared that everyone in the CIA was supposed to wake up early.

Taking her book, Sawyer got up and left the room, going down the hallway to the girls' side of the bedrooms. With the guys, she would probably just pound on the door, unsure of the state they would be in and having no desire to see any of them in their birthday suits.

She knocked on Angel's door before she opened it and poked her head in. Angel lay atop her covers, sprawled out in nothing but a black tank top and a pair of lacy neon pink panties.

"Angel," Sawyer hissed loudly, "It's time to get up."

"Ugggghnugh."

Sawyer took that as an a-okay and walked past her room to Raven's. She tapped lightly on it with the back of her knuckle, pushing open the door.

"Raven, it's time to get-

She stopped, the rest of her sentence getting stuck in her throat. She pushed the door open a little more, stunned at what she saw.

It was Raven. At least, she was pretty sure it was.

What had once been a pretty blonde-haired and blue-eyed girl had been replaced by an equally beautiful girl with slicked back red hair and scaly blue skin that looked flawless and smooth even with it's appeared texture.

Sawyer stood there frozen, unsure of what to do. It wasn't her business, but why did Raven cover up what she really looked like? Did her blonde facade mean she didn't want to be seen in her natural form? Was her natural form being naked for her?

Either way, Sawyer felt like she was intruding and seeing something that she wasn't supposed to see.

As softly as she could she shut the door with a quiet click and hesitated, listening to see if she could hear any signs of waking up.

After a few minutes, she made a fist and knocked loudly on the door, putting her lips to the crack.

"Raven," she called, "It's time to get up."

She heard a loud yawn come from behind the door.

"Ugggggh…m'kay, Ess."

Ess? A nickname for her nickname. Sawyer kind of liked that.

A large smiled crawled across her face, "M'kay," she mumbled back, though she probably wasn't heard.

Waking up the boys, she was a little less gentle, pounding on their doors with a flat hand.

"Up!" she called through Alex's door, "Breakfast is being brought in."

The door beside Alex's opened and she saw a very sleepy Sean, dressed in his pajamas. His hair was in disarray and he rubbed at his eye, stretching his other arm over his head as he yawned widely.

"Good morning, sunshine!" Darwin greeted Sean with a wide grin, clearly a morning person.

"Morning, Darwin," Sawyer greeted shyly, "It looks like you slept well."

"Like a king!" Darwin declared, still grinning.

Almost everyone was out of their rooms and had said their morning greetings, but it was Raven, now in her blonde persona who inquired aloud about their missing teammate.

"Where's Hank?" she asked, looking around for him.

"Ah," Sawyer cleared his throat, "He took some of my blood earlier this morning and went to his lab to run some tests on it."

Sawyer had hoped that would reassure her new friend, but the frown on Raven's pretty face only deepened.

"Oh," she said, "Well, okay. You guys go ahead. I'm going to wait for him."

"You sure?" Angel asked, "You're going to stand here by yourself?"

"Yup!" Raven grinned and in a flourish of blue scales, she had transformed herself into one of the many agents that milled about.

"That's still freaky!" Sean hissed in Sawyer's ear.

"I think it's beautiful," Sawyer commented, remembering Raven's true form.

Raven's newly brown eyes beamed at the compliment.

"I'll be fine," she said in a deep voice, "Go ahead."

Sawyer was a little hesitant, but Angel's small hand grabbing her wrist was quick to change her mind. Together, the five headed into the break room where breakfast had indeed been set out.

There was a rack of toast, a couple boxes of cereal, some orange juice, milk, jelly and peanut butter and some cut fruit.

"No coffee?" Sean moaned, snatching up a piece of toast, "Or butter, ugh!"

"There's coffee right here," Angel skipped over and grabbed the pot, "And butter over there," she pointed, "Oh my God, learn to look for things!"

"Fifty bucks that they poisoned all of this," Alex said, right when Sawyer reached for the peanut butter jar.

She turned her head towards him, but didn't look from the jar, "Poison?" she inquired, "You think so?"

"They wouldn't do that," Darwin piped up, "They need us, remember? Kill us off and who knows what could happen."

'Comforting,' Sawyer thought, closing her hand around the peanut butter jar.

She spooned some into a bowl, cut up a red and green apple, then went to go sit down on the couch.

"That's all you're going to eat?" Angel exclaimed, who was eating a bowl of cereal with cut up banana, coffee, toast and fruit.

Sawyer looked down at her bowl, then back up at Angel, biting her lip.

"Um, yes?" she answered, "I thought it was enough…"

Angel opened her mouth to spout off another comment, but then the door opened, taking all their attention.

It was Hank and Raven, the latter skipping the food layout entirely to go sit by Sawyer on the couch.

Again, Sawyer was pleased and very hopeful. Raven had come to sit next to her! She had a friend.

Feeling giddy, she was going to greet Raven, but then she noticed the solemn expression on her face.

"Hey," she murmured, "What's the matter?"

Raven snapped her head up and in a loud, defeated exclamation, she announced, "Charles, Moira and Erik left for Russia!"

"They what!?" Alex demanded from his spot in a chair.

"Last night," Hank went to occupy Raven's other side, handing her a bowl of cereal he had poured.

"Right after breaking up the party," Raven smiled bitterly at Hank, "He didn't even tell me."

"What's in Russia?" Sawyer inquired.

Raven shrugged sullenly, "He still hates me."

"He doesn't," Sawyer soothed, though she knew nothing of their relationship, "Who knows? It could have been an emergency."

That offered little to no comfort and they all dropped the subject, going back to munching on their breakfast and sipping from drink glasses.

Sawyer kept her eyes solely on her bowl. The older mutants had gone all the way to Russia, leaving them stranded at the base with prejudice and racist CIA agents! What were they supposed to do with that!? And what was the point of being here, if only to sit around?

Her fingers twitched around the slice of red apple and she shifted uncomfortably where she sat. She had never sat for so long unless she was sleeping. If she were back home, she'd be scrubbing counters, folding towels or turning down beds and fluffing pillows.

"So," Alex spoke up, saying what they were all thinking, "We're just supposed to sit on our asses all day?"

"I could beat your butt at pinball?" Darwin suggested, slapping Alex's shoulder as he stood.

Alex glared at him, "You're on!"

"I'm going back to bed," Sean declared, dragging himself from his chair. Half of his breakfast remained untouched.

Sawyer watched him go, then turned back, glancing at Angel, then at Hank and Raven. She supposed it was just them. Alex and Darwin were already going at it on the pinball machine and it didn't look like they were going to stop anytime soon.

"I know!" Raven suggested, bouncy with her suggestion, "Why don't we get to know each other a little better?"

'Great…' Sawyer thought, licking some peanut butter from her apple.

Sean didn't make a reappearance until after dinner; by that time, the window he had shattered during last night's activities had been replaced.

He sat on the other couch, next to Hank, across from Sawyer and the girls, slouching as he snacked on a package of Oreos.

Darwin and Alex were back at the pinball machine.

"Jesus, man, you are killing me," Darwin groaned from beside the game, looking physically in pain at the rising numbers on the board.

Alex smirked from beside him, "Hey, don't beat yourself up, I've had a lot of spare time."

Sawyer had watched them for a little bit before turning her attention back to her book. She was feeling a little awkward and she could tell that both Raven and Angel were put off with her.

Raven's "let's get to know each other a little better" hadn't gone well for Sawyer. Those kind of activities never did. So she was a private person? Sue her!

By next week, they would probably all be back to their lives and jobs or solitary confinement. Realistically, they'd probably never see each other again. Sure, maybe they could come to Vegas and visit, but it's not like Sawyer had the time.

For someone who wanted friends so badly, you think she would make the time.

When the two pretty girls realized Sawyer had no intention to tell them anything about herself, they had moved on to gossip. They talked about Ingrid Bergman's affair and Elizabeth Taylor's many lovers.

So, she sat there awkwardly and read her book.

"Who cares about Elizabeth Taylor!?" Sean crowed, biting into a cookie.

"Everyone does!" Angel cried, "Unless," she looked at Sawyer, "You live under a rock."

"Come on, Es," Raven nudged her, "You never ever saw her!? I mean, it's Vegas!"

Her eyes were sparkling, making Sawyer smile and giggle at her. She had been a maid and was required to wear her uniform from the moment she stepped into the hotel until she got home. It was a requirement, so that maids could be easily spotted if they snuck into the casino.

But she wasn't going to tell Raven that. She had already felt like a fool for not knowing how to use her powers.

"I don't think I ever saw her," Sawyer answered, sipping at her coke, "Maybe she was in disguise-

Raven gasped loudly, grasping Sawyer's arm, "Like a blonde wig or something!" she grinned, touching her own hair, "Do you think so?"

Hank laughed at her, dipping his Oreo into a glass of milk.

"You know, Raven," Angel eyed her coyly, "Not everyone wants to be a blonde."

"Blonde's have more fun, so, mm," Raven stuck her tongue out.

Angel rolled her eyes playfully and Sawyer looked up, distracted by a loud top at the shiny new window.

Two men in suits had stopped walking to peer at them through the glass, the younger agent looking awkward and sheepish as his older colleague sneered at them.

"Whoa-ho!" he cried, "Look at that, I didn't know the circus was in town!"

"Come on, honey," he pointed at Angel, "Give us a little, uh…" he offensively mimicked Angel's wings, even adding his own sound affects. When Angel shook her head in disgust, his face twisted into a mask of concern.

"No?" he pouted. He nodded at Hank, "Okay, what about you?" he lifted his own foot, "Show us the foot. Where's the foot Big Foot? Aye, there he is!"

Hank had gotten up, delighting the agent, who continued to egg him on and tease him.

"What about that one?" he nudged his buddy, pointing at Sawyer, "What can you do, sexy? You speakie English?"

Sawyer's mouth fell open right when Hank waved at them and pulled the bright green drapes closed.

Raven had placed a comforting hand on her arm, but her gaze stayed longingly on the window, slowly shifting when Angel slammed her cup on the table.

"Angel," Raven sighed, "They're just guys being stupid."

Sawyer frowned. There was a huge difference between guys being stupid and guys being racist.

She opened her mouth to say so, but Angel spoke first.

"Guys being stupid, I can handle, okay?" she said briskly, "I've been handling that my whole life—in fact, it's my job and you know what? I'd rather have guys stare at me with my clothes off than the way these ones stare at me!"

Anxiety crawled into Sawyer's stomach and she felt as though she might throw up. She had never been ridiculed for her mutation. It was then that she realized why Raven hid her true form.

"At us," Raven corrected in a small whisper, lowering her head.

Angel looked away and shrugged carelessly.

It was awkwardly silent between the five and Sawyer focused on the sounds of the pinball machine, looking down at her lap.

Boom.

Sawyer lifted her head at the same time everyone else did, looking around the room.

Boom.

Boom.

"What is that?" Sawyer asked, startling when Raven gripped her wrist.

"Something doesn't feel right," Darwin moved away from the pinball machine and Alex followed.

Boom.

Boom.

Boom.

The noises continued and one of the hanging lights shook above them.

Sawyer rose when Raven, still holding onto her wrist, pulled her over to the covered window where the others were gathering.

"You think it's a storm?" Sean asked, watching Hank pull the curtains open.

Boom.

Boom.

"It's not raining," Angel muttered.

The noises were getting louder with each passing second. Sawyer had never heard such a sound. They didn't sound like gunshots or thunder.

But she couldn't see anything other than the darkened courtyard, illuminated by the lights.

"Look!" at Sawyer's sudden gasp and point, they all followed her finger, "At the moon."

The moon, that usually made her feel complete and at home, looked warped and distorted. There was an odd shadow in front of the full circle, hovering.

That's when the screaming started, from the shadow above. It cut off with a sickening thud, red splattering the window.

The shadow was Agent Campbell. Or…it had been.

Raven screamed and Sawyer cried out, covering her mouth with her hand as she backed away, feeling tears build up in her eyes.

"Get back!"

Sawyer barely heard Darwin's shout over the slam of the bodies hitting the pavement. It was as if Agent Campbell had acted as a trigger for the rest of them.

More lights flashed on and another scream was torn from Sawyer's throat as a body crashed through the windowed arch, it's arms and legs hanging limply.

Raven's hand crushed her wrist, but Sawyer didn't care. She was shaking so terribly, not to mention sobbing. She didn't understand how the boys managed to stay so calm.

"Oh my God, oh my God!" Angel cried.

Men dressed in suits, holding onto guns rushed into the courtyard. An older gentlemen, one with gray hair, knocked furiously on the window, waving a hand.

"Get back, get back!" he screamed at them, "Do not leave that room!"

There was a flash and in a puff of red and black smoke a…nightmare had appeared. That's the only way Sawyer could describe this figure.

"Behind you, behind you!" shouts and screams echoed in Sawyer's ears.

"Shoot, shoot!" the older gentlemen commanded, "Shoot now!"

Gunshots rang out and Sawyer screamed, diving behind the couch as Darwin did his best to shield them.

The window shattered, sending glass and bullets flying. Almost as soon as it had happened, it had stopped, their attention diverted to the similar glass window at the other side of the room.

Sawyer could feel her anxiety pooling in her lower abdomen, though her fear and adrenaline diluted it. She felt like she was going to throw up again or have a panic attack. Now was not the time.

A large cyclone had appeared, colliding with something that looked like a giant golf ball. She had no idea what it was, but spotted the look of devastation on Hank's face.

"What. The. Hell?" Alex breathed, his chest heaving, "What was-

A loud grunting sound cut Alex off and their heads whipped around to see the same red figure, plunging knives into the agents.

That's when Sawyer noticed its pointed red tail.

"Móguǐ," she sobbed in horror, unheard through Raven's screams.

Screams, gurgling, choking on blood, grunts and pleads for life was the soundtrack of this horror movie. Blood gushed out of wounds and life drained from eyes. It was horrible, but the young mutants couldn't do anything but watch.

None of the men had ever stood a chance.

"Stay here my ass!" Darwin boomed. He darted off, "Let's go!"

Now, Sawyer couldn't run for her life even if it depended on it and right now, it did. Her lungs were underdeveloped and she was grateful when Raven grabbed her again, making it easier to keep up as they ran out of the room and into the hallway only to be stopped by army men trying to push them back.

"Get back, get back!"

"No, we can help!" Darwin insisted.

A large explosion rocked the building, bright orange flashes illuminating the hallway and adding to the sound of sudden gunfire from the army men.

Sawyer screamed, scrambling to stay straight on her feet as she ran. The wave of heat that had emitted from the explosion, caused her to break out into a sweat.

The only way they could go was back into the break room they had tried to escape.

Outside the window that hadn't been shattered, the tornado was back, closer than ever. It shook the room, causing Hank to stumble and slide into the tables before he could right himself.

No one said anything, too stunned and horrified to speak. On the other side, the Móguǐ was slaughtering men left and right. They were surrounded, no where to go and no one to call.

Raven sobbed into Hank's shoulder and Sawyer placed a trembling hand on her shoulder.

"AHHH!"

Careening from the tornado, a body was slammed through the window, crashing into the fishtank.

They all shrieked, backing away as the body continued to roll towards them before stopping with his bloody head lolled towards the side, staring lifelessly at them.

"I-I think I'm gonna hurl," Sean choked out weakly and Sawyer silently agreed with him.

The last agent in the courtyard fell, a knife thrust through his chest and Sawyer sobbed into her hands, feeling someone pull her backwards to huddle against the wall.

She tried to take a deep breath and scrubbed away her tears, just in time to see a man sharply dressed in a gray suit with shoulder length black hair, step casually through the window.

On the other side, the Móguǐ, still wielding its knives, did the same.

Sawyer screamed at the same time Raven did, startled by her and the sudden sounds of gunshots.

"You want the mutants!?" a quivering voice shouted, "They're right through that door!" Sawyer felt betrayal run through her, "Just let us normal people go! We're no threa-

A low pop and a sickening splat sound, cut off the rest of the guard's plea.

Sawyer, shaking fiercely, closed her eyes. Was this it? Were they all going to die? The Móguǐ seemed bloodthirsty enough.

She muttered a prayer under her breath, praying to the dead so that their spirits would grow strong and find peace.

She jumped when the double doors slammed open, revealing a white man with a weird looking helmet over his head. He sauntered in as if what had just occurred was no big deal.

"Where's the telepath?" he asked the Móguǐ.

"Not here."

"Too bad," the man chuckled, "Well, at least I can take this silly thing off."

He removed the helmet, passing his hand through unruly brown hair.

He bounced where he stood, addressing them all, "Good evening!" he greeted them warmly, "My name is Sebastian Shaw," he began to walk forward, "And I am not here to hurt you."

"Freeze!" an agent shouted, pointing his gun.

Sebastian sighed at the interruption, "Azazel?"

Azazel. So, the Móguǐ had a name, did it? He?

Azazel vanished to slay the man. No one flinched or cried out and even Raven didn't whimper.

They were all huddled together as close as they could get, nowhere to run, nowhere to hide.

Sebastian continued to strut forward, passing his helmet to the man in the gray suit as if nothing had happened. He still had a happy smile plastered on his face.

"My friends," he breathed, "There is a revolution coming," he kept coming closer and they kept stepping back, "When mankind discovers who we are, what we can do, each of us will face a choice. Be enslaved," Sawyer glared when he glanced at Darwin, "Or rise up to rule."

"Choose freely," he cautioned them, "However, know that if you are not with us, then, by definition, you are against us."

In Sawyer's opinion, that didn't sound like much of a choice. So, either they joined him or he would kill them?

"So," Sebastian concluded, "You can stay and fight for the people who hate and fear you," he grinned, "Or you can join me and live like kings," he glanced at Hank who looked away, then at Angel, "And queens."

He held her gaze and Angel swallowed thickly, gaze dropping to the hand he had extended towards her.

"Angel!" Sawyer cried when she took his hand.

She watched in complete disbelief as Angel let Sebastian pull her away from them and to his side.

"Are you kidding me!?" Sean exclaimed from the back.

Angel, still holding Sebastian's hand, turned to them, her dark eyes filled with tears. She jerked her head.

"Come on," her voice shook, "We don't belong here…and that's nothing to be ashamed of."

Sawyer couldn't believe this, "Angel, h-he killed these men!" she reminded her, "All of them. They gave up their lives for us and you're just going to go with him? You can't!"

"If they had their choice, they would have destroyed us in a heartbeat," Angel spat back at her, "You think you belong here, Essie?" she narrowed her eyes, "Then you're pathetic."

Darwin shook his head slowly and held his own hand out, beckoning Angel to come back to them.

Only, Angel turned on her heel, walking off hand-in-had with Sebastian.

"We have to do something," Raven muttered.

Still in front of them all, Darwin wilted, shoulders hunched before he turned to Alex, grabbing the blonde's arm and whispering something that only he could hear.

Alex, however, shook his head and when Darwin shoved him, Alex shoved back, glaring at Darwin as he turned his back on them.

"Stop!" Darwin called to Sebastian and his two, now three minions, "Yo, wait up, I'm coming with you," he hopped out the broken window.

Both Angel and Sebastian smirked, the latter stepping forward, his face splitting into a grin, "Wonderful choice. So, tell me about your mutation."

"Well, I'm adapt to survive," Darwin shrugged, "So, I guess I'm comin' with you."

Sean nudged Sawyer gently and she followed behind the redhead, he and the others, slowly walking forward towards the door.

Sebastian chuckled, clapping Darwin on the back, "I like that."

Darwin nodded and went to stand beside Angel who smiled at him.

As soon as Darwin took Angel's hand, he shouted, "ALEX!"

"GET OUT!" Alex roared to Sawyer and the others.

Sawyer made a beeline for the door, unable to see fully what was happening. Still, the red beams that emitted from Alex's powers, illuminated everything.

When she was able to look up, she thought it was all over. No one could survive being hit head on by Alex's powers.

Apparently, Sebastian could.

He was still standing there. So was Azazel, the man in the suit, Angel and Darwin.

"Protecting your fellow mutants!" Sebastian called out, "That's a noble gesture," he nodded at Alex's shocked face, "Ahhh, feels good."

Suddenly, Darwin lunged at him, prepared to slug him in the face. Just as quickly, Sebastian reacted, blocking Darwin's hit and grabbing him fiercely by the chin.

Sebastian whispered something to Darwin that Sawyer couldn't hear and then, his hand glowed, a small glowing, red ball appearing in his fingers.

He forced the orb down Darwin's throat, patted his cheek, then disappeared with the others.

With Sebastian gone, Sawyer rushed forward to get to Darwin. He didn't look good.

She stopped when Alex held an arm out and she looked at Darwin, whose body was changing, desperately trying to adapt to what could not be expelled.

He was steel, then molten rock and he turned toward Sawyer and Alex, reaching a hand out. His eyes looked desperate as if he understood what was happening.

His body glowed with a bright energy that overtook his entire being and Sawyer fell to her knees just as the light disappeared and with it, Darwin.

He was dead. There was no point in sugarcoating it. The men in the facility were all dead. In fact, there was a dead body only feet away from her and the body that had crashed through the windowed pillar was still hanging. She was surrounded by them.

She had just been a witness to dozens of men being slaughtered and for what? So that this Sebastian Shaw could try and recruit them?

Horrified didn't cut it close to what she was feeling. She was shaking and she wanted to cry, but no more tears would come. Her throat hurt from screaming. All she could hear was the sound of Raven crying and Hank trying to soothe her.

They were dead. All dead. Darwin was dead and Angel had left them.

This is not what she had signed up for.

A/N: I'm baaaaack! I'm sorry for lacking in updates these past six months. I was feeling rather stuck, but now that I got the "movie scenes" out of the way, I can get things moving and I'm so excited to really dive into Sawyer's story. Thanks to my Beta Reader Sabrina06 for being so patient. Feel free to review!