Astrid Bloom's eyes snapped open, and her world colored before her spotter vision.
Like a well-oiled machine, her mind turned over, and her smile stretched across her face.
'The premonition was right.' she concluded Internally.
Her extremities responded to her perfectly, too perfectly; the super-soldier serum had washed away nearly a decade of atrophy.
She stood excitedly, the loose gown draped over her body for modesty flopped against the floor. She stepped toward the visible bathroom but halted and reached her hand out toward what she needed; her mind was more potent now than before, and the mirror ripped from its fixture and floated toward her.
She laughed aloud as she admired her physique in the mirror, six-pack, well proportioned, and she cupped her new bust and snickered.
'Way more than a handful. Oh, Cole, I ought to thank you for this.' She let the mirror drop to the ground, shattering into thousands of pieces.
"Oops," she snickered, staring at her many reflections in the tiny shards.
The transformation had succeeded, and her mind was clear, fluid, sharp, and powerful; she smiled, enjoying the whites of her teeth that smiled back at her.
'Oh, what have you been up to, benefactor of mine.'
Her mind unveiled itself, and she spread her consciousness across the floor, no, medical wing; oops, a doctor had fainted from her prying. Her power had undoubtedly grown; she placed a hand on her temple, and sometimes, physical gestures helped her to be sure of her psychic energies.
She found a stubborn man in the suite near hers; if not for his loud shout of exclamation at his doctor dropping, she would have missed him.
'Who are you? And why are you resistant?'Astrid asked after snaking her way through the artificial blocks in his mind.
Astrid Bloom had one belief: "soulless meat puppets" who existed solely for the amusement of those capable of controlling them.
"Who are you? And get out of my mind, mutant." Hammerhead roared and lashed out, and the walls shook, but nothing broke, showcasing the extraordinary structure of a system building.
Astrid scoffed and departed. She will deal with him later. She enjoyed bigots the most, circumventing their minds and making them enjoy what they hated the most.
'Interesting.' she thought before her door was forcefully opened, and the teenager that had saved her walked in, arrogantly gestured at her, and turned around.
She withdrew her mental energies and focused on the teen. Her heart clenched, and she swore she saw words flash before her eyes.
He never intended to be the stereotypical leader, even if he was uniquely suited for the role.
Cole had knowledge, not all the knowledge, but enough to make anyone else shake in their boots and be afraid of the dark; that was the weight he carried; his burden was growing daily, and with every instance a new development occurred, he became restless.
Mutant-Growth-Hormone was a nasty drug that would take the streets by storm, its price relatively cheap and its benefits bountiful.
The sudden relationship notification that popped into his vision like he had caught a virus made him stiffen.
His heads up display soon consumed his vision as the alarming relationship transition proceeded with a sophisticated attack on his company and holdings.
He looked at Reese, suspecting she did something, but she didn't look concerned about the apparent attacks against them.
A hardlight keyboard formed before him as he walked around nervously, his hands acting on prepared protocols.
Were we safe? Probably, but I would rather overestimate SHIELD and what looks like HYDRA operatives piggybacking off of SHIELD attacks to get into my systems.
Angelica 'Angel' Jones: Shit! We're getting bombarded. Who did you pissed off?
Jeremy York: It's a sophisticated attack. Even the Department of Justice is engaging our firewalls. Is the Redoubt secured?
Angelica 'Angel' Jones: I think someone or drones were above ground. SHIELD?
Jeremy York: Or HYDRA. Get some Boas above you. Be careful. Don't worry about equipment if any breach occurs, and get out.
A new screen opened, and he counted three nondescript black cars outside the Iceberg Lounge. He rolled his eyes. Seriously, in that neighborhood's black sedan-tinted windows weren't bright.
He appraised the men of the current situation at the club to be on alert.
ATC Operative 1785: We are getting comm chatter from SHIELD. They are asking us for credentials to operate a private military organization.
I stopped and glared at Reese. She beamed and turned my computer around to show me what she was doing.
Jenifer Watters: All ATC personnel. The documents have been sent. Please don't fire on them. Unfortunately, those are the good guys—the Howling Commandos.
Scorch: They are asking to speak to our commander. You're up, Bullseye.
Jeremy York: Bullseye retreat; do not engage the commandos; they're more of a problem than X-men.
Bullseye: I got it. If they fire, you owe me: $ 100, 000.
I closed the communication channel, not wanting to deal with the others, wondering why he could demand more from me.
Poindexter's acquisition was luck, but his abilities were extraordinary before and even more significant now.
Long story short, he was worth the headache.
"Thanks, Reese."
She nodded, the vent popped off, and three replicators crawled in.
He sighed.
The angry messages he had received about the random autonomous spider replicator in the labs would be a headache.
As expected, replicators ate technology, and Reese unleashed her spawn upon us all.
"Reese, please, don't break anything down that is in use," I said, speaking as if she were a child. I guess she was developmentally, but not regarding the apocalyptic destruction of the human race.
'Thank you system.' I internally sent to the ever-present but seldom-to-speak entity that ran my biggest secret.
"Yes, father." She replied that the replicator had been plugged into the computer, and she stood, preventing herself from breaking away.
"I'm headed to the server rooms."
"Sir, we have a potential issue," Alfred said over the comms.
I observed the updates and answered him.
"Which one," I said exasperatedly. I thought I would have a break here, and now I have HYDRA and SHIELD focusing on three of my personas.
The most alarming was Nick Fury's suspicion of Jeremy York.
Alfred had brought him up to speed. Astrid had awakened and had caused a major commotion. He wasn't surprised; he was just disappointed he hadn't thought ahead.
"Carlos Lobos has been spotted by one of the Boa drones. I'm tracking him back where he and his sister are held up."
He smiled.
Some good news at last. It's time for me to mask up and take the fight back to The Hand.
"Keep following the known mobsters; with Hammerhead's presumed death, I'm hoping Tombstone slips up."
"Sir. Also, hacking attempts are slacking; this is common with most hackers, and the period after that will be the hardest. There are high chances of physical action by the divisions trying to crack our firewalls."
"Protect what's ours; if they don't have warrants or probable cause, I don't care who comes knocking. Treat them as a combatant.
Also, alert the personnel; I know it will be quite the undertaking, but activate the Replica forces, place a boa on critical members, and get them in some form of Kevlar; most of the board should have access to a tuxedo; if not, see about that too."
"Your funds have grown significantly, sir, and with the boa drones being manufactured here, the scope of our deployment has expanded." replied his trusted artificial intelligence.
I stepped into the medical wing, tapping the security on the shoulders; they lowered their weapons but glared at the nude mutant, standing unbothered, unaware of what she had done and where she had done it.
I motioned for the girl to follow.
"Clothes?"
I felt the telltale sign of another mind, but it was faint and rebuffed by my mental wall and by the Amulet of Anubis's passive protection.
I turned back to her, my steel gray orbs bored into her, the tinniest pinprick of red ominously pulsating.
The system warned me of a breach, and it all suddenly made sense how the contracts work.
Astrid met my gaze, her eyes lowered to the amulet that stayed with me, like the glasses I could wield invisibly, but I liked the strange object to be on display.
"Astrid," I said measuredly, "you're not to attempt to invade anyone's mind under my banner. Do you understand?"
The power unfurled from me, invading the medical wing. Lights flickered, and dread and fear radiated from the witnesses.
She stumbled backward and nodded amicably. "I'm aware of your past as you're unfortunately aware of some of mine; that doesn't excuse the commotion you caused here; you harmed one of mine, so be thankful that she is resilient or-."
Twin red hot lasers emerged from my eyes and flashed past her ear, searing it and causing her to cry out in pain, the wall behind her deformed and melted under the heat.
'Fuck!' I shouted in my mind, then winced at the fact she probably picked that up. I shouldn't have used that ability if I had hit her with it….
She glared at me, her eyes squinting, but smartly didn't retaliate.
"You forget you came to me, piggybacking off of Xavier's attack seeking help; I have restored your mind and body; don't for once think those games you played with Emma will work here. Now, come!"
"Like this," she said incredulously, still holding her ear, which I noted was already healing.
I appeared before her in a burst of speed that shocked her. I reached out and grabbed her wrist. She resisted for a moment before her arm went slack.
"Thank you. Is that what you want to hear?"
"You're getting there. For now, that's good."
I summoned clothes for her, shocking her further; the weight of who I was and what her premonition told her settled upon her shoulders.
Hammerhead had come from the adjacent room, his substantial hulking form towering over those in attendance.
Astrids display had caused silent grumbles and hate-filled eyes to stare at her.
I sighed.
'Good luck getting the medical staff to fix you up, idiot. Astrid was more in line with Magneto than Xavier; she was an extremist who believed those with her abilities had the right to Invade minds.'
"I'm sorry that this happened," I gestured to the woman over my shoulder, "Her actions are ultimately my poor judgment. I can't take back what occurred, but I can reassure you it won't occur again by one of us."
Hammerhead pushed his way through and extended his hand toward me; I accepted it, thankful he wasn't an idiot.
"Joseph Lorenzini, code name Hammerhead, thank you for returning my memories and fixing my body," he tapped his still oddly squared head.
Genuinely surprised, I smiled. I queried the system and nodded; he had signed up.
"Hammerhead, the pleasure mines; I'm quite busy at the moment, but why don't we meet to discuss your presence with ATC?"
He shook his head. "Nah, I want out, got a job for me? I'm getting cabin fever here."
Upfront personality. I liked it. I nodded as if in thought but already made up my mind.
"Lobos Gang has been spotted. Did you want a shot at them?" The bruiser's smile stretched across his oddly shaped face menacingly.
"I'm your man. Where is the gear around here? Got a light machine gun? I got a soft spot for Tommy guns, but that was an issue with the old me."
"Follow me."
The attacks hadn't slacked, and his constant relationship notifications annoyed him, so he pushed the notifications to the back of his mind.
Astrid stared at the back of his head, her smile slowly stretching across her face. Her hand balled in anticipation, and she sedately followed the two men.
His mind is unlike any I have ever seen, his latent psychic abilities are frightening, and what are those items she wears: Her eyes locking on the rings on her right hand and the combination of a ring and watch? On his left.
She cleared her throat, drawing two sets of eyes on her, one set hostile, his mind filled with violence.
"Am I to believe you want me along as well?"
Cole's pace hadn't stopped as he maneuvered them through the medical wing.
"After your display, I'm afraid if I leave you on your own, you will find out there are far worse things than being trapped in your body, especially here."
She bristled but swallowed her retort, recalling the strange manifestation that flashed before her.
'It's his power, some form of contract; he's dangerous,' she thought, her eyes needled into his head, murderous intent hidden behind a demure smile.
Surprisingly, he waved his hand, and her anger fled her; she came to a stumbling halt as they continued.
'Tread carefully,' he said into her mind, and she all but stopped, and everything she had conspired fled her mind.
'Oh Emma, I got something to surprise you with.'
"If that's the case," she said, hiding the fear that waffled from her out of her prem and propped English accent, "I would like to be geared as well, those contacts you all wear, vision enhancement and synchronization with a system of sorts, heads-up-display, and hardlight technology? That's rich."
Cole chuckled as he pressed the button to the elevator.
"This is what it's like to deal with telepathy?" he said, exasperated at the prospect of keeping secrets from her. If she could passively read surface thoughts, and around here, where secrets abound, he would have to wrap her up in a deeper contract.
'Is that even possible?' "You tell me, you're a latent, I suspect Xavier had brought it out of you with his assault on your person."
They entered the elevator, the three quiet. Hammerhead regarded Astrid like a farmer regarded a snake, but he hadn't said a peep, and both could feel his wish to attack.
Both had been upgraded of sorts. Astrid had been injected with the centipede serum, and Hammerhead had one similar to Steve Roger's; the man's strength had nearly doubled by the director's estimates, Astrid was a question mark, and Cole knew little about her, but what he read in the comics, she was a telepath similar to Emma but with a more of extremist view like Magneto.
"To answer your question, yes, you will be given the basic equipment as all field operatives."
"Basic," she snorted. He cut his eyes at her; anything else would require further commitments."
"To further wrap me up in this power of yours," she teased, edging close to him. Please, anything you want, I will give it."
Cole eyed her, his power slowly peeling from his skin, Astrid eyes widening. He assumed she could sense it, but what does that mean for him or the nature of his power? He had no idea.
He looked at the brute that had his arms folded, his suit bulging at the seams.
"I'm on board. But I'm not willing to do what she's insinuating."
Cole barked in laughter, waived his hand, and summoned some potent toys for his new people.