When Good Days Go Bad
A Month Later
Hope and Kai walked down the crowded street with smiles on their faces. They were glad to get away from the house, even for a short time. Their lives had been hectic and were pleased to find them finally getting back to normal. Well as normal as they can for being mutants and in a team who had lost a member and friend to death and had another go renegade.
�Maybe we should have brought the others.� Hope said with a growing smile. �I mean it�s not healthy for them to be cooped up everyday like they are.�
Kai shrugged. �The men have their own ways to relax. Do not worry about them. I am sure that right now, James and Jacob are sitting down to a restful afternoon.�
�What is going on?� James asked when he entered the den. Jacob was sitting on what was once a couch but now what looked like a bunch of cotton with his hands firmly clamped over his mouth.
�I ave da hig-hups.� Jacob said through his hands.
�What?�
Jacob rolled his eyes and lowed his hands. �I have the hiccups.� Just then he hiccupped and the lamp became a rock, causing the stand that it had set upon break in two. �See?�
James shook his head. �This is not good.�
Meanwhile a man, a mutant known to the Guardians as Sniper approached his new leader in the form of his brother who was 13 at the time of his death. Beside him was Isis, his fellow deflector from the Gorgons. They left the team because of Medusa, their leader and Isis�s mother. After their most recent defeat Medusa had gone into a depression and murderous rampage. With a careless move she was arrested and placed in a mutant prison camp. With her out of the way, Tsunami took control and made being a member of the team almost unbearable. Sniper and Isis were the first to leave; crash and Discord were next and their present destination is unknown. Only It and Armageddon remained with Tsunami. Why? It wasn�t really known.
Sniper�s leader is Rancor, a man who is both known and hated by the Guardians, for the soul reason of the supposed death of Ace, a former team member of both the Guardians and the Gorgons, under the code name of Wild Card. He turns around to look at his newest recruits. On the monitor behind him was a set of surveillance cameras. Each showed different angles of the surviving footage taken from his former compound, which was blown up by Renegade on a rescue mission. One showed that very mutant, Renegade, freeing Ace after punching out the doctor who tried to intervene.
�Yes?� His tone was harsh and bitter.
�We have located Kismet and Serenity. They�re in the town market square.� Sniper said with an elbow nudge to Isis, whose eyes were firmly fixed on the monitor that held a paused, close up picture of Renegade.
�Good, now confront them. Make it clear that you are working for me. Kill them.�
�You have to stop that,� Sniper told his comrade once they left their leader. �Renegade is our enemy, no matter what, he won�t be anything more. Since we faced him you�ve been hooked on his pretty face.�
She smiled. �I want him. And Sniper, I plan to get him,� her smile widened, �Then I plan to kill him.�
�Renegade!� A woman yelled as Zen opened a door.
He swallowed hard, a smile played at his lips. �Sorry Darlin�, I didn�t know you were in there.�
The door opened and she stalked out with a towel around her and her hair dripping. �Right. We�re in a motel, where the hell else would I be?�
His smile widened as he dodged the question. �You�re body�s healing nicely.�
She shot him a look, her newly teal eyes on fire. �Shut up!�
�Good to see your mental well being hasn�t been compromised.�
�I�m getting tired of you watching me like a hawk. I�m sick of being cooped up, I�m sick of the disgusting colors of this room, but I am, most of all, sick and tired of being human. I miss the power, the lack of control, hell I even miss the pain. Cuz, now all I am is alone.�
�I can�t do anything about your powers, I�m not sure if you�ll ever get them back. But, I�ll stop watching you so closely once I�m sure you won�t get yourself killed. And as for the room, we wait until we hear from Sampson, then we leave. Any sooner we could be risking your health.�
While they were speaking Ace had pulled on a t-shirt and a pair of jeans. �You can wait all you want,� she told him as she picked up her jacket, �But I�m leaving.�
He reached out and grabbed her arm, stopping her retreat. �What do you think you�re doing? You can�t leave dressed the way you are, you�re not invulnerable anymore! Ace stop fighting me, you won�t break free from my grip, not while you�re powerless. Listen, I know what you want and why you�re so pissy. And I understand. I was in a lab for years! Hell! My first memories are of a lab. I know you want revenge on Rancor, hoping that you can take from him, what he took from you. But you can�t! Ace, listen to me, you won�t be able to defeat him until you heal, not until you�re whole. Which, right now, you�re not.�
�Eureka!� Simon yelled as he exited the lab. He ran to the ladder, jabbering all the way. �I�ve done it! I have actually done it!� He made his way to the den quickly. �Cell! I�ve cracked Ace�s genetic code!� He stopped in his tracks at the den entrance. �What the��
All around things were different. Where the T.V. once set was now a mini brick wall, the chair was a pile of hair and the rug had been reduced to nothing more than a puddle of water.
�He has the hiccups.� James explained as he looked up from the annoyed Jacob. �His powers are out of control, and I�ve tried everything I can think of, short of knocking him unconscious, and nothing works.�
�You better bring him to the Chamber,� Simon said with a sigh, his previous excitement forgotten, �Before he turns the house to a pile of��
�Shit,� Hope mumbled as she looked through the crowd. It had began when a shriek was heard originating from somewhere within the crowd. It was followed soon after by people dashing left and right, all trying to get away from the pair in front of them. The sight that had frightened them so was that of Isis and Sniper, and while Sniper�s appearance alone was enough to scare them it didn�t help that Isis was powered up in sorts, mimicking Kismet�s powers as a sort of shield. Hope looked at Kai. �They�re back.�
Kai took a step forward and stared the pair down. The innocent bystanders had retreated to the sidelines a safe distance away to watch as the two pairs of mutants faced off against each other. She then looked at Hope, �Keep an eye out, where they are, the other Gorgons can�t be far behind.�
Sniper started to laugh. �That is where you are wrong Kismet! For you see Isis and I are no longer Gorgons. Medusa has failed us and so we have found another leader who is not weak. We have found Rancor. Do not worry, he shall be here soon; to take his revenge on you for destroying his compound.�
Kai�s eyes narrowed. �We did no such thing. We didn�t get close enough.�
�That is impossible!� Isis spat as she took a step forward, her light shield sparked in anger.
Sniper held his hand up, stopping her movement as he closed his eyes. When they opened he laughed. �She is dead!� Isis looked at him carefully, not understanding. Without a word he morphed into Ace, true to his power to take the form of dead people. �Your Ace is gone in your eyes.�
Kai�s jaw clenched, knowing that Sniper only wished for her to get riled. She looked over her shoulder. �Serenity, contact the team, tell them that we�ll need their assistance if Rancor indeed is to arrive. We�ll hold them off until they get here. Tell them that our old friends are here.� She then looked back to the pair in front of her as she allowed her mutant powers free from the hold that she had on them and smiled as they surrounded her, and protected her in the same split second.
More gasps came from the crowd, causing the gold shield around her to intensify in color, their spirits, strengthened by fear, fed her soul and in essence her powers as well.
James, Simon and Jacob had just reached the Chamber, after a near fall from the ladder when Jacob hiccupped, turning the metal to spaghetti, when James� watch intercom went off.
�Yeah?� He asked as Hope�s face took the place of the digital timepiece.
�We have a problem. Sniper and Isis are back. But get this, they aren�t Gorgons, they switched teams now they�re with Rancor. He�s supposed to be on the way. If he is then we�ll need assistance. And when you come, bring my sword will you?�
James nodded with a look to Simon. �Yeah, I will. James out.� As he let his wrist fall he sighed. �I�ll go. Simon I want you to do something about his hiccups. Do whatever necessary to save the house, kill him if need be.� With that being his final words he left the Chamber.
Jacob looked at Simon. �You�re not going to actually kill me are you?�
Simon smiled slightly. �Only if I run out of options.�
Ace had released herself from Renegade�s grasp and moved to the bed where she sat down, not knowing what else to do. Her fists, no longer filled with her mutant powers, clenched tightly, not wanting to hear what he was saying although knowing that his words were true.
�What do you expect me to do then?� She said with a glare in his direction.
He shrugged. �I don�t know Darlin�. I�m sure what you can do, except to live and get strong again.�
She laughed. �That�s easy for you to say. Whenever I close my eyes all I see is him, and every time I see him, my hatred for him grows.�
He sighed. �I can�t help that. But you can�t change the past, don�t dwell on it. If you do then you�ll never get your revenge. That is what you want isn�t it?�
She shook her head. �No; I want my life back. And to do that I have to break free of what he did to me, I have to beat him, to kill him.�
He shook his head as he knelt beside her, taking her hand in his. �Ace, things aren�t the same, you aren�t the same, you can�t look at the situation through the same eyes and expect your old methods of dealing with things to work.�
She sighed. �How can you even pretend to know about what I�m going through?�
�I can�t,� he admitted, �But I do understand more than you�ll ever know and I care about you and I don�t want to see you�� he broke off suddenly.
�See me what?�
�Kill yourself. Your soul, the passion that leaves the rest of us in awe and lose what little bit of humanity you have left. I won�t let you do it, I care too much to let you.� He saw the shock in her eyes, he had said more than he intended too and he then realized that it could have been interpreted in a way that he didn�t mean. He was about to clear the air when his intercom, as did hers, go off. They pushed the buttons at the same time to reveal Sampson�s face.
�Hello team. Ace you are looking well.�
She rolled her eyes, pushing aside the confusion she had felt a moment before. �Shut up Samp.�
�I�ve had to put up with that for two weeks now. What�s up?�
�I�ve intercepted a distress call of sorts from Hope to James. She and Kai are facing two former Gorgons as we speak. I�ve checked in on HQ, Simon and Jacob, having some problems of their own, has stayed behind. I want you two to go and keep an eye on Kai Hope and Cell.�
�Right. I�ll start packing.� Ace said as she shut her intercom off.
�Renegade,� Sampson added when Ace was out of earshot. �Rancor will be there. Make sure Ace doesn�t get herself killed.�
Kai and Hope took up positions, side by side to watch each other�s flanks when their attention was drawn off their foes and onto their leader whose dark shadow had fallen over them. Rancor, with raised hood and fingertips touching, sneering at the pair. �The time for retribution is here!� He yelled as his hood fell, revealing his burning red eyes. �You two shall be the first to die. Sniper, Isis� attack!�
Rancor vs. Ace Round Two � next time.