psinex@yahoo.com Strange Attractors 16/20 by Phil Hartman DISCLAIMER: Everyone here is Marvel's, except for Deanna and Danny, who're mine. Please don't sue. -------------------------------------------------------- Mass. Acad.: Boys' Dorm: 11/15/2003: 09:00 hrs EST: -------------------------------------------------------- "You're back." Erik met Tom's gaze with a sorrowful expression and squeezed his grandson's shoulder as they sat on what had been Bill's bed. #So hard to think of him as my grandson,# the white-haired older boy mused. "I'm back," Tom smiled weakly. "And he's still gone." "We do miss him, y'scan," Erik said. "We don't think he was a -" "'Rik, please," Tom pleaded. "Let me ... I just don't wanna talk about it, right now, OK ? He's still gone, he's not comin' back, and -" "Lehnsherr. Out." Erik looked up, frowning, as Joe Bailey looked at them from the doorway. "C'mon, roomie, I gotta talk to Tom alone, OK ?" Joe asked. His red-rimmed eyes met Erik's, and the magnakinetic stood and nodded. "Be gentle ... ?" Erik asked softly. Joe nodded, and sat beside Tom. "You look like crap," Tom smirked. "Sorry ... it just sounded like the right thing to say." "That's us, a regular pair of cards," Joe chuckled. "Look ... Tom, whatever went down between Bill and I, I don't want us to go there. I ... Gail loved him. And I don't wanna remember Bill bad if Gail thought good of him." "Thanks," Tom nodded. "We are friends, Joe. We've been friends ever since the quarter started, and I don't wanna lose that." Joe clasped Tom's wrist and nodded, "We won't. You got my back, I got yours ?" "Got it," Tom nodded. He smirked again and added, "Bill'd freak if he saw this." "And Gail'd prob'ly smack him upside the head," Joe grinned. -------------------------------------------------------- "Nate ... you're making yourself sick," Frank called, watching his friend morph his TO-infection to flesh and back with considerable effort before the boys' dorm room mirror. "If I'd had better control - " Nate blurted. He was clad only in his boxers, and looked at the floor with tears rolling down his face. "But it wouldn't've made any diff'rence ... th' dumb ol' virus would've stopped me anyhow ..." Frank stood and put an arm around the younger boy, letting Nate sob softly for a moment on his shoulder. "It's OK ... let it out," Frank whispered, wiping at his own eyes. "You're a good guy, Frank Richards," Nate smiled weakly, pulling away gently from Frank. "I think I fin'lly figured out what Ray sees in you - besides that bulge in your speedo." "Perverted little twerp," Frank mock-growled, smacking Nate with a pillow. The boys laughed as Nate teked a pillow at his roommate, and the air filled with feathers. -------------------------------------------------------- #I didn't think Nate'd laugh again between the virus and Gail ... dying,# Ray thought as she looked out her dorm window at the boys' dorm. A furred hand touched her bare shoulder, making her turn with a tiny smile. "We're all thinking of her, and you," Alexa said with tears. "Thanks," Ray replied, hugging her roommate. They turned to see Deanna enter with snacks and a six-pack of pop. "I ... thought it might help," Dee said quietly. Ray hugged her and said, "You're helping just by being here ... thank you." "Hey, for one of my best girlfriends ? Anything," Deanna smiled, sitting with Ray and Alexa on Ray's bed. "I know what it's like to lose family, remember ... Aunt Illyana's -" She stifled a cry and let Alexa hold her. "I'm sorry," Deanna whispered. "It just hurts - she was sane one month, and then X-Force just ..." "Went collectively nuts and killed 10,000 Genoshans," Ray muttered. "There's something VERY weird about that, Dee. Think about it - would Sam Guthrie let that happen ? Dani Moonstar ? Rahne ? No ... I don't, can't believe that the real original New Mutants'd do that." "'Real' - oh crap, think about it ! There're clones and duplicants all the time - what if X-Force're FAKES !?" Alexa blurted. Deanna sat up with a hopeful smile and said, "But how'd we ... how'd we prove it ?" Ray turned to her with a small smile and said, "Get Nicky and the rest of the girls - and the boys." "We're going to Limbo." -------------------------------------------------------- Biosphere: 5 minutes later: -------------------------------------------------------- "This is nuts," Joe grunted as the kids gathered, clad in their training uniforms. "Remember what happened the last time we went out without the teachers ?" "Yeah," Erik muttered. "I nearly got my memory back and we blew up an asteroid. We've gotta have better luck ..." "I can but try, Gramps," Tom teased as Frank, Ray and Nicoletta finished analyzing Illyana's biosignature. "Guys - ?" "I think I can duplicate the curve," Nicole said. "But I'll have to 'interface' with Claudette's mind ... we might merge psyches like we have bodies." "Is it reversible ?" Leech asked, concerned. "I really don't know. Without another body for Claud to manifest into ..." Nicole shrugged. She blinked, and Claudette smiled, "But whatever it takes. And Leech ... if we do psychemerge ... ?" The kids hid smiles as Claudette kissed Leech and said, "We'll always have Snow Valley. Now stand back." She released the still-stunned Leech and walked away a few feet, concentrating. A stepping disc opened, and the Mutants fell through, holding onto each other with nervous looks. -------------------------------------------------------- #This,# Sam Guthrie thought bitterly, #sucks hog ass.# He hung from a wall of demonoplasm, chained by living tendrils, clad in black and yellow with quite curly blond hair and no greasepaint over his eyes, as his black-clad and greasepainted duplicate smiled evilly at a similarly-restrained Tabitha Smith. "Sweet sugah," the dark Sam taunted, looking around at the imprisoned X-Forcers. His X-Force - all clad in black, save the Darkchilde in her red-scale skin and horns - snickered from behind him. "Sweet deal, 'Yana, you turnin' bad an' makin' us lesser demons int' duplicates o y'r' ol' crew," Evil Sam grinned. "An' that mass'cre in Genosha ? 10,000 new souls f'r y'r army ..." "Remember, 'Guthrie', I'm no more the real Illyana than you are the true Cannonball," the Darkchilde sniffed. She turned, grinning, to see the real, still-blonde Illyana, clad in black and white, trying to break free of adamantine chains. "You poor, misguided fool," the Darkchilde grinned. "Trying to cleave free of me ..." She reached to caress Illyana's face, but cursed when the witchling bit at her. "Go screw yourself, witch," Illyana snarled. "I would've gotten free of you, if HE hadn't betrayed me ..." "Get used t'it," S'ym taunted. "After you did S'ym the favor of killing N'astirh back during the Inferno, S'ym felt obligated to help you escape your darkside. Of course, S'ym felt obligated to the darkside ..." "We'll KILL you, S'ym !" Roberto yelled. "As soon as we - " "No sun in Limbo, Bobby-boy, means no power for you," S'ym taunted. "And those shackles drain you others of - eh ?" "All we needed to hear, monster - NEW MUTANTS, TAKE 'EM !" X-Force gaped, then cheered, when the New Mutants appeared from a stepping disc and slammed into the demon X-Forcers. "Hang ON, Aunt 'Yana !" Deanna called, running for the real Illyana. "Frank - reality flux !" "On it," Frank nodded. His eyes glowed, and the Darkchilde screamed as the room rippled - - and the real X-Force were freed. "That - WHOULFF - took all I had ..." Frank grunted. Ray held him to her as the demon X-Force closed on them, but the Mutants grinned when the demon-Sam felt a finger tapping him on the shoulder. "Miss us ?" the real Sam grinned nastily. "Momma," the evil Sam gulped. "DIE YE HELLSPAWNS !!!" Rahne howled, turning to wolf-form and shredding her duplicant. The demon-Rahne screamed, turning to dust as "she" died. "Hoka-HEY !" Dani yelled, manifesting a spirit-spear and impaling her double. "Pridewalker, Siryn - double-team !" "With pleasure, Dani," Siryn grinned. Her scream shattered the fake Pridewalker, while James crushed the false Siryn into the fake Pridewalker's back. "BURN !" Rusty howled, frying his double. Skids deflected her double off the wall and into the path of Rictor's vibe-blast, while Warlock converted several more demons into techno-organic beings and drained them. [Self is getting indigestion,] Warlock told Cypher. "Just keep it up, bud," Doug grinned, pounding on his double. "And THIS is for translating that French so atrociously !" he told the demon, impaling it on a stalactite. "NOOOO ! This is MY reality - I set the rule - GYURRK -" the Darkchilde moaned as the Soulsword cleft her in two. "Loser tramp," Illyana hissed, horns sprouting from her brow. "I'm stuck with my darksoul - but NOT with S'ym !" She turned, easily turning aside S'ym's spells, and struck him in twain down the middle. "Goodbye, monster," Illyana sighed as the remaining demon X-Forcers vanished. "SAM !" Lew and Naomi cheered, hugging their older brother. "Thanks, y'all," Sam smiled as X-Force high-fived or hugged the New Mutants. "Now, 'Yana - them Genoshans still human ?" "Yes," Illyana pouted, ordering her cowed demons to free their prisoners. "I'll send them home, and we can - I HOPE - get a break for once. I mean really, would WE kill 10,000 Genoshans ?" Roberto looked at the floor and whistled until Amara smacked him upside the head. "OK, OK ! Droga, sweets, I was kidding ..." Sunspot muttered as Illyana teleported them away. -------------------------------------------------------- NEXT: Downward spirals, upward looks, and the revenge of the flying burrito (!?) -------------------------------------------------------- end _________________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com