The Cale Storyline Redux Story 1 Chap 10

Attention: Generation X and their villains, as well as any other mutant mentioned in this story, is property of Marvel Comics. The character Richard Cale is named after family relations. Any other reference to anything copyrighted is a chance happening.

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Changes Redux

Chapter 10: Enter Emplate (Audio)(Original)

Penance looked around the Biosphere, and she knew something was drastically wrong. She felt an aura of menace in the air, so she moved with caution. She moved with stealth and grace, until she heard a twig snap behind her. She quickly spun around, and saw the one that was His sister collapse to the ground. As the girl fell, Penance saw there was no life in her eyes. Then she saw behind the fallen girl, and was shocked. All the rest was there, and they were dying. There was nothing she could do for them, and then she noticed one person was missing from the group, and she felt a bit of hope. Richard, the new student, was not there. She started to look, but a weak voice caught her attention. It was a voice she recognized.

She turned her attention to the fallen again, and went over to the voice. While the form was bloody, the bright yellow raincoat worn by the girl she viewed as a sister was noticeable. She mad her way over to Jubilation, and saw the last spark of life in her eyes. Penance wished she could touch her friend, but she couldn't relax her power enough. Things were just too tense right now. She could, however, hear the last word her friend said, and it chilled her to the bone. "Emplate."

She bolted from the side of her dead friend, and knew she had to find Richard. If He got of a hold of Richard, it would be the end of the young man she was falling for. Hopefully, she could find Richard, and then they could escape. They would run, and be able to stay one step ahead of the monster. It would be the only way to survive. Of course, she had to keep an eye out for the monster as well, and to do so, she watched every shadow. She was moving so fast that she hadn't even seen Richard until she ran into him. The two almost collapsed, but she could see Richard was hurt, and caught him.

Before she could even ask, Richard spoke, but each word was difficult for him to say. “Emplate captured all of us. I had someone else’s ability. He killed them, Everett first. Don’t know how, but he made Monet feel every blow. Managed to escape, but was alone.” She realized what Richard was saying. He would have latched onto ‘His’ power.

She took Richard into her arms, amazed that she could hold him carefully, but she figured he had latched onto her powers. That would mean safety for him. “I’ll stay with you, Richard. That way, He can’t latch onto your powers. I’ll even make sure he can’t hurt you again.” It was the very words she’d hope to hear from him. Hopefully, she get to hear them soon.

She had tears in her eyes at that point, so she only felt Richard put his hands on her arms. “I’ll never lose you again, Yvette.” In that second, everything went cold, as if something was wrong. Then she felt the pain in her arms, and when she looked at Richard, he had transformed into Emplate.

She gasped in horror, and tried to scream in defiance. The monster had gotten Richard. Worse yet, as she struggled in his grip, she had a chance to look into Emplate’s eyes, and saw Richard’s soul trying to break free. As she felt life draining from her, she wished it wasn’t real. She wanted this to be a lie. She closed her eyes, expecting not to open them.

Then she did open them, and Penance saw she was in the Biosphere, alone. The whole scene she had just witnessed had been a bad dream. What was now around her was the warmth of the morning sun entering the Biosphere. She got up off the ground, and left the Biosphere. Even though the sun was already up, she had to find Richard. She had to be certain the nightmare she had just had was just that, and seeing Richard would prove that. She then made her way to the only person she felt would know where the new boy was, Mr. Cassidy.

Emplate watched the grounds of the school, trying to spy the new mutant. This was easy for him to do since one of his powers was to stay out of synch with reality. The only danger to him right now was being so far out of synch with it to be pulled back to the Beyond. When in the Beyond, the dead tortured him. He was always feeling the pull of the beyond, especially when his energy reserves were low. That happened with increasing regularity since Penance, as they called her, had been taken from him. That added to his determination to get the girl back, as well as claim the other mutants at the school.

He also had a score to settle with Jubilation Lee. The young Asian girl, who he had only deemed an annoyance the last time he crossed paths with Generation X, had successfully tricked him, goading him in to feeding on her powers when he was angry. The resulting explosion had resulted in the tables being turned on him. This time, he would not make the same mistake. He even started to think about enthralling her, making her one like him.

He was brought out of those thoughts when a sound got his attention. He turned in the direction of the sound, and saw Penance. She was bounding away from the Biosphere, and towards one of the main buildings. As he watched her, he saw something in her aura. He saw concern, but for what he could not determine. Ever since she had broken free of his influence, his powers seemed to work less and less on her. For all he could tell, she sensed his presence, which might be the case.

Things were quiet for a few more moments, and then he heard people. It was two people, and they were jogging. One of them had even started talking, and the accent was enough for him to identify her. Paige Guthrie, who had the mutant power to rip off her skin, and reveal a new form underneath. She was obviously ahead of someone else jogging, and to his surprise, he saw the young man he had seen at the airport, keeping a safe distance from her. As she neared Emplate, he heard her say, "Come on, Richard. You can move faster than that."

He looked straight at the young man, and again, he saw no aura, yet this young man had to be a mutant. Was there something about the man’s mutant powers that he could hide it when it wasn’t active, and what activated it? As he wondered about the power, the young man, who didn’t look winded at the moment, responded to Paige’s taunt. “I’m moving as fast as I can, Paige. Just remember what my power is.”

At this point, Paige was running past his hiding spot. “Ah know, Ah know. You can still move a bit faster than that. Just imagine Emplate is behind you.” That last statement struck a nerve, since it seemed to hint that the mutant had detected him before. A small part of him even wanted to jump out at that moment, and attack then, but then the element of surprise would be lost.

At that moment, the young man started to pass him, and he saw the answer. The aura around the man appeared. He now saw a name, Richard Cale, as well as a power, and he did a double take. The man appeared to have a power similar to his. It didn’t make sense, until as the man passed him, he heard the answer to the question. “That’s not even funny. That was scary when I looked at my hand, and…” The word trialed off as Emplate saw Richard looking at his hand. He noticed the fear appear in the aura, and then saw the young man bolt past him, That quick, the aura disappeared, and then briefly appeared around the young man as he passed Paige.

Emplate now had his answer, especially as Paige picked up her pace, trying to keep up with the fleeing mutant. This mutant, Richard Cale, had the power to take on the powers of another mutant, and maybe more than that. It was also so sensitive that it could pick up on him when he was out of synch with reality. This opened a whole new set of possibilities, and he then understood the concern he sensed from Penance earlier.

When he rejoined his minions, he held up his hand, and none of them moved. He looked over all of them, and let them know the plan. “We will be attacking soon. They will be aware that we are here, so we will have to move swiftly. D, make sure the gear is ready. I will not be chancing a repeat of last time.” Before they moved, he said, “Be aware that the new mutant I went to catch before is indeed here. I want no harm to come to him. I have a better use for him now, than that of a meal.” He saw them all nod, and then prepare for the attack. With luck, Generation X will be caught sufficiently off guard.

Sean Cassidy entered the kitchen to an almost typical sight. Most of the students were there, eating their preferred breakfasts. The only ones not present were Monet, Jubilation, Paige, Richard, and as usual, Penance. The only odd thing he could see that was out of place was Emma, standing at the window, with a concerned look on her face. Sean walked over to her, and quietly asked, "Something wrong?"

He noticed that she turned to face him, but kept her voice low. "Something's not right, Sean. Something is out there that shouldn't be, but I can't put my finger on it. I just hope it has nothing to do with the dream Richard had." Sean nodded, remembering what they had learned about the lad. Richard seemed to have a precognitive ability in his dreams, and the fear was it was only bad things.

He was about to try to assure her that things would be alright, when Jonothan's psionic voice echoed through all their minds. "Well, there is something you don't see every day in here." Sean already knew that Jonothan was not referring to himself, but the mutant usually attended as a sign of unity with the others. He did see what Jonothan was referring to. Penance had come to the kitchen, something the girl rarely did.

Sean smiled at the girl, and figured she was here for an apple. He turned to fetch one, but froze when a new voice hit his ears. It said only two words, but the sound of it, while it was quiet, caused a silence to fall over the room. While the voice had been quiet, there was an almost musical quality to the voice, and it was obviously a girl's voice. He turned to face the only person it could have come from, since everyone had the look of open-mouthed surprise on their faces, and Penance repeated her words. "Where's Rich?" The words were accompanied by a worried look on the mutant girl's face.

The silence that had descended on them because of that moment was finally broken by Angelo. "I don't believe it. Penance finally spoke. I think her skin even looks softer." Sean took a second glance at the girl, and noticed that her face looked smoother, and even her claws had shortened. Even the girl's red hair was starting to lay against her.

Sean decided it was best to honestly answer the first audible words anyone ever heard Penance speak, or at least words they all heard. He calmly said, in hopes that it would keep Penance from tensing up, "I haven't seen him yet, Pen...." He paused for a moment. Would it relax the girl more to hear her real name? He decided and continued. "Yvette, but he may be on his way here." Again, there were sounds of surprise. He hadn't told everyone about that yet, but the effect it had on the girl made her seem to relax more.

He turned to the door to leave the room, and was glad he hadn't when the subject of Yvette's question can racing in. In the brief moment, he saw a look of fear on the young man's face, and then Richard collided with Penance. In that moment, both of them had tensed up, and he couldn't tell if either had been cut during the collision. What he could see was that both had literally curled up into a corner, and it raised every warning flag in his mind.

The feeling of dread increased when Paige reached the door, out of breath. Sean saw that Paige noticed the state of Richard and Penance. She then looked at him, and as somewhat of an explanation, said, "All of a sudden, he took off like ah bat out of hell, saying 'You had to say that.' I could barely keep up with him."

Sean turned to the two, and he had a feeling that he knew what was wrong. Even Yvette had tensed up a bit more. What he needed was to confirm it was either some sort of panic attack, or that they really had a problem. He also noticed that the two had locked eyes, which made Sean realize that both had to be communicating with one another through the psychic mind link that Richard somehow stumbled upon. Worse come to worse, Sean would have to ask Emma for help.

He stopped thinking about that idea when he saw Yvette relax a bit then. Her eyes had locked on something, and he turned to follow her gaze. Two figures had entered; Jubilee and Monet. He had a feeling he knew which one Yvette had focused on when Jubilee spoke, and the girl seemed to relax more. “Hey Penny. Strange seeing you in here.”

Just that statement, Sean saw, allowed the girl to relax enough to speak. Again, the room went silent out of shock that their silent member now had a voice. “Hello ‘sister’.”

Those two words, Sean realized, said tons. It said that Jubilation had some how became a sister figure to Yvette. It also said that she was the closest person the girl felt comfortable talking to. It also caused Monet St. Croix to stop dead in her tracks as she responded to the situation. “Mon dieu. Penance spoke.”

Before anyone else could say anything, Sean walked over to the shocked girl, and said, "Jubilee, I need ye to find out what has them spooked. Yur appearance caused Penny to relax, so I feel you are the only one who can do it." He then looked at Jubilee and softly said, "Might be best if ye call her Penny, but her name is actually Yvette."

He watched as Jubilee absently nodded, and then walked over to the red headed mutant who finally started to speak to everyone. He was not surprised when Jubilee took on a calm voice, a voice that didn't say the girl was the youngest member of the group, but that she felt as a leader and protector. "Penny, or would you prefer Yvette from me?" When the redhead shook her head, Jubilee continued. "Ok, Penny from me then. What's wrong? You know you're safe here with us. What's the problem?"

For a moment, Sean saw Yvette speaking to Jubilee, and it had to be so softly that the girl had to lean in to hear it. When Yvette had finished speaking, the redheaded girl tensed up again, and Jubilee stood up very slowly. Now, one of the most energetic members of Generation X was tensed up. What ever it was, it was bad. Also, with the way the girl was walking over to Monet, he had a feeling he knew what the cause was now. It was only confirmed when Jubilee placed a hand on Monet's shoulder and said, "Looks like you are about to have another family reunion."

Sean took charge of the situation right away, barking out orders for the students. "Alright, we have a serious situation here. Emplate is on the campus, and we need to make sure the blighter doesn't remain. Monet, I want ye to get Penance, Richard, and the wee lads to the Biosphere. They should all be safest there. Once they are safe, join in the hunt. The rest of us, we need to search the campus, and force Emplate off it." He saw everyone nodding in agreement, and then looked over at Richard and Yvette. He was certain Yvette would be able to fight off Emplate now, but Richard was in no shape to do so. Besides, with the relationship forming between the two, a battle could undo any progress that had started with the girl communicating with others. The safest thing to do was to get them to safety, and get Emplate off the grounds.

Richard looked around as Sean gave orders to everyone. Deep down, he was scared, and he was not ready to be thrust into this situation. He felt a hand slip into his, and looked in to the face of Yvette as she said, “I think it will be alright. They know about the attack, and they will be able to defeat Him.”

He looked into her eyes, and he could see she believed that to be the truth. He just wished he shared that same conviction. “I hope you are right. I don’t mean to doubt you, but my lucks been going good for a while now. A nice new school. A special girl in my life.” He noticed that she got a bit more red in the face at that one. “I just know that after a while, my luck goes sour. I can’t help but think now’s the time.”

He watched as she thought about it for a moment, and the held him. “I’m scared.” He nodded in understanding, and held her, hoping the action could calm them both down at the moment.

Soon, Monet had walked over to where they were huddled up, and he noticed that she also had Franklin, Artie, and Leech with her. “Richard, Penance, I’m going to take you to the Biosphere. It should be the safest place for you to hide in. He nodded in understanding, and noticed that Yvette was doing so as well.

As they all headed over there, Richard kept to Yvette’s side. It wasn’t hard, but as they moved, he asked an important question. “Yvette, is Monet always this nice to you?”

They were nearing the Biosphere when she responded to the question. “In all honesty, I don’t see her that much. Because of my fear of Him, I actually avoided her as much as I could.” He waited for a moment, figuring there was more to it, and then she softly said in the mental link they were sharing, “Last time he attacked, a part of me was still controlled by Him, and that part wanted to kill her. I had finally broken free of his control at that time.”

As they entered the Biosphere, a feeling of dread and panic started to come over him. He looked over at Yvette, and somehow, she had the same feeling. He looked around, and in the mental link, said "I hope Emplate's not in here. I'm actually praying that he isn't."

In response, he saw her nod. "So am I, Rich. So am I. I think Monet and the others are hoping so too. At least there are tons of hiding places here." Those words made him feel a little better, but the feeling of dread was still there. At least he had Yvette's power, which meant the monster couldn't force their ability on him.

As they made their way through the Biosphere, Richard saw Monet point to an almost invisible structure in the distance. While she was pointing, she had turned her head to face them all, and was handing a device to the young ones. "Franklin, take this communicator. I'm going to get you all to the tree house. Once that is done, I'll make sure Emplate can't get in. If he does get in, I want you to contact us with that." Once that was done, she turned to face forward, and Richard felt the fear from Yvette before his own fear went into effect.

The figure that materialized in front of them was hideous, wearing some sort of metallic paraphernalia, and a gas mask of some sorts. What skin could be seen was dark in color, and looked scarred. The most frightening thing yet was that with ease, the figure uppercutted Monet, sending the stunned girl to the ground, unconscious. Right away, he knew the thing to be Emplate.

The man turned to face them, and in a raspy, echoing voice, said, "Hello Penance, and I believe Mr. Cale. I've been wanting to meet you for a while." He saw Emplate extend a hand, and Richard saw the mouth on the palm of the hand. This was the one that had seen him at the airport, the bane of Yvette's existence. When he stepped towards them, Richard let his instincts take over.

For the briefest second, Richard looked at the younger kids, and made a brief gesture with his head. They quickly understood, and ran off in the direction of the tree house as he and Yvette bolted from Emplate. As the two of them ran, he hoped the three youngsters would remain safe. No doubt, if Emplate was pursuing him and Yvette, the three would get to safety.

During that run, he dared a glance back. A moment of panic hit him when he realized that Emplate was still following them, but seemed to be keeping a distance from them. Their foe was purposefully keeping back, as if they were heading to someplace the fiend wanted them to go. "Yvette, I think he's up to something. He's staying back, like he's in no hurry to catch us."

For a moment, he saw Yvette glance back, and then she looked at him, and he saw panic in her eyes. "He has one of the others with him. It could be the wrapped one, who could teleport, or the purple one, who can turn into a mist."

Both of those sounded bad, but they didn't make sense. While he had no idea who all the others were, something told him it wasn't either of those. He looked at Yvette and asked the one question he didn't think he wanted an answer to. "If he didn't bring either of those two, then who would he brought?"

She was about to answer him when a loud booming voice said, "Guten Taug." He looked straight ahead, and was amazed by the size of the brute emerging in front of them. Yvette didn't have to tell him about any others that were brought along. This was enough to tell him that the muscle bound brute ahead of them was a mutant. Also, with the way the man was raising his arm, they would both be knocked out. There was only thing he could safely do.

He jumped in between Yvette and the big, German man. He felt the clothesline maneuver hit him, and it forced all the wind out of him. He even felt sore from the collision. In that moment, as darkness consumed him, he felt his body hit something else. He hoped his action would allow Yvette a chance to escape. It was the last thought he thought when the darkness finally overtook him.