Butterfly Effect; Part One

[x-psylocke.livejournal.com]

Time is of the essence, as Maddie and Remy take the long drive into New York. All the while, not sure what they'll find.



"I remember telling you not to smoke in the car."

"And Remy remembers telling you t' fuck off."

"Asshole."

"Harpy."

Silence descended on the car again, broken only by the impatient drumming of Madelyn's nails on the dashboard. She was exhausted, she was stressed, and she was going to throttle the Cajun as soon as she could without causing a multiple-car pile-up. "If this is a wild-goose chase..." she muttered, mostly to herself. Haroun was in the middle of the drug treatment, she didn't have time for this.

"Dat's right. Because Remy normally pulls you out for wild goose chases." Remy gritted his teeth and swerved away another car. He was well over the speed limit, and was looking to sideslip the normal speedtrap before the exit. For all he knew, Betsy was dead already. "Don't touch de radio."

Madelyn's hand paused in mid-motion, and then she reached forward and snapped the radio on. Boy band music filled the car and she made a face and hurriedly switched it off. "Scott must have used this car last," she said, before glancing over at Remy. "Was there anything else this guy told you? Besides that Betsy was sick and needed to get taken back to the school asap? Since it would help to know what I'm walking into here."

"He told me dat she was at de Hellfire Club. How much else do you really need to know?" The stress was starting to get to him. Since Jake's bombshell about Peru, Remy had gone back to twenty-two hour days, trying desperately to stem the loss of resources and combat Wisdom's network. Now with Betsy down and Jake's loyalty in serious question, it was back to just him on watch.

"Given we've spent two weeks fighting a contagious death spore, whether or not whatever Betsy has is communicable might be a start." Madelyn knew Remy probably didn't have anything more than he'd already told her, but she was tired and worried and he was an easy target. "Do you know if we're going to have any problems getting to her? Given it's a Hellfire-related venue?"

"If there is, you stay in de car while Remy kills every one. Sound fair?" Remy snapped back. Why couldn't one of the less... bitchy doctors have been available? He'd even considered asking Amanda for a second before his brain kicked back in.

"Tell me you're joking." Madelyn's icy tone indicated she was undecided herself about that. She shifted, and cracked the window enough to let some fresh air in regardless of the fact the air-con was blasting instead, giving Remy's cigarette another pointed look. The smoke was going to make her hair reek. "I wonder who invoked the disaster gods this time..." she murmured, mostly to herself as she ran through possible diagnoses - Betsy had been in Peru not that long ago, maybe it was malaria or some other blood-borne disease?

"Wisdom." Remy said tightly. "Dis was Wisdom again." Remy took the exit a little too fast, and Madelyn found herself pressed up against the door as he whipped the car into the city. Remy didn't have a specific plan yet, assuming that there might be opposition waiting for him. His comment about her staying in the car was real. Madelyn was not a combatant on his level, and bringing her in before he'd cleared things could get her killed.

"Are you sure?"

"No one else makes any sense."

Madelyn knew better than to remark on his driving. And besides, if Betsy was in need of medical attention, better the extra speed. Any way, Remy would be explaining the tickets to Scott, not her. Gripping the handle on the door and bracing her other hand against the dash, she replied: "Before what happened to Nathan I would have said you were being paranoid. Now? I think you might have a point." She shook her head. "This is so fucked up."

"Dat's wonderful. It come as a big comfort to Remy dat now you believe me. Glad all it took was a friend in de medlab and de possibility of a corpse waiting for us to do dat." Remy handbraked a turn into an alley and gunned the vehicle. "Now if you don't mind shutting de hell up so I can concentrate getting to de hotel, Remy buy you a cookie."

His accent was getting thicker with his anger, and the angry retort was very much out of character for him. Nasty, smirking, sarcastic and even caustic was normal, but just lashing out was not something that he did very often, and it didn't go unnoticed.

Madelyn raised an eyebrow, but held her tongue. Sometimes discretion really was a good idea.

The tires squealed as Remy slid to a stop outside of the hotel, one tire up on the sidewalk. He was out of the car and vaulting the hood before Madelyn even had her seatbelt off, and she found herself scrambling to keep up as Remy dashed through the hallway.

"Braddock. What room?" He demanded of the clerk at the desk, who regarded him with distaste.

"I'm sorry sir. Do you have a reason to be contacting Ms. Braddock?" The Larchmont was expensive, and the guests paid well to have their privacy protected. "Otherwise, I'm afraid you'll have to leave. We don't need any of your problems here." Given Remy's somewhat scruffy appearance, the clerk won't be surprised if he was just some fan, or was, a journalist.

"Problems? Actually, homme," Remy's hand shot forward and grabbed the man by the back of the head. He slammed him forehead first into the desk and held him there, leaning down to whisper in his ear. "Remy's problem is a low frustration tolerance and a propensity towards violence. 'specially when people dick me around."

Madelyn finally caught up, and rolled her eyes. "LeBeau..."

"Badge!" Remy snapped, and with a long suffering look, Madelyn fished hers out and put it on the desk, where the clerk could swival one eye to see it. "Now, we all happy 'cause you going to help de FBI wit' dere case, and you going to be happy 'cause you get to keep both eyes. Room?"

"721." The man said, muffled. "Go right up, sir."

"Merci." Remy released his hold and walked to the elevators. Madelyn picked up her badge and gave the man an embarassed look. "He's, uh, had a lot of coffee today. Sorry about all this."

The clerk simply nodded dumbly as they both disappeared into the elevator.

***

The door to 721 creaked open. Remy stood back, in case someone was waiting. A quick look confirmed it was clear, and he went in. Betsy was lying beside the bed, her head propped against the sideboard and the phone on the floor beside her. She was still wearing her dress from the party, as if she'd simply collapsed in the middle of the phone call. Madelyn pushed past him to get to her, and he contented himself with searching the hotel. There was nothing in there to offer any indications of what might have happened.

"How is she?"

"She's alive; breathing normally. Her pupils are heavily dilated, so I'm guessing she's been drugged with something." Madelyn said, checking over the prone form. "No signs of violence on her, or needle marks. I'll have to get her back to the mansion to fully check her out."

"No signs of violence?"

"No." Madelyn shook her head. "LeBeau, I know that you want to blame Wisdom, but why would he go after Betsy?"

"Because she's one of de people dat is almost as good as him." Remy said. "And she's a telepath on top of things. Unless dere was another player at dat party, who else would have? Shaw and Selene play dis game by de rules, and de rules mean dat an old family like de Braddocks don't get dealt wit' by drugs and sneak attacks. Wisdom, on de other hand, has no rules at all. Take Betsy out, compromise Gavin, and suddenly we back down to just Remy in de intel, which means dere's no hope of countering him."

Madelyn couldn't find fault in what Remy was saying, and she knew that Betsy and Wisdom had been close, which could have given him the opprotunity. But it felt like Remy's own fear of Wisdom had turned him into a bogeyman for him, responsible for every setback they faced. She sighed and turned back to Betsy.

"Let's just get her home."



*****

Betsy finds herself at the school, confused. She also finds her brother there. It's definitely not a coma.



The room was filled with an ethereal light. Her right hand went to her eyes, squinting against the brigtness. "Hello?" She could still make out the grand foyer, and the staircase, ascending to both wings of the Xaviers.

At the base of the stairs sat a man. Moving towards him, she still couldn't make out his face, but the closer she came to him, the slow spinning feeling of anxiousness abated. She recognized the man sitting before her now, a warm smile on his face.

"Hello, sissy." Brian sat with his arms braced against his knees, looking up at his younger sister expectantly. In his hands, he held a small telescope, binded together with treated leather and two magnifying lenses. She knew it the moment she saw it. A cherished item from her father's study.

"What is going on here?" Betsy asked, lowering her hand from her eyes.

"What do you think?"

Annoyed, Betsy crossed her arms. "If I knew I wouldn't have asked you."

Brian merely shrugged. "It's your coma."

"Am not in a coma," she said irritably.

"How can you be so sure?"

After a moment, she sighed. "I'm not." It was then the light started to pulse. Three short bursts before slowing down, then starting up again. Betsy looked up and all around. "What's happening?"

Brian looked up as well, a smile forming on his face. "Change."

The room grew brighter. Betsy looked down at her brother, his expression content, just as the light enveloped them and they were gone.




*****

Unconscious and dragged into the mindscape of one very sick telepath. Remy and Maddie are stuck in a psychic loop.



There was a flash and their ears were greeted with a stifled scream.

The source of that noise lay on the bed only a few feet away from them. A young girl sat up, breathing heavily. Startled awake by a nightmare that lingered and failed to fade into the place where dastardly dreams often go.

She kept the duvet close to her as her eyes searched out the darkness, blue eyes reflecting a deep-seeded fear. An unspoken fear. Her voice cracked against the void. "Mum? Dad?"

The room rippled like rocks skipping on water.

A muffle cry followed, as she reacted to something unseen. Both hands went to her head, slamming down on her ears, but the room remained silent. Moments later, the young girl screamed, pulling at her hair before her senses overloaded and she fell back.

***

"What the hell was that?"

"Mindscape, Remy think." LeBeau chewed on a fingernail as he considered the scene. It was a fine house, early English manor style that denoted both taste and money. It didn't take a giant leap of logic to assume this was the house Braddock grew up in.

"That doesn't make any sense." Madelyn shook her head. They knew the potential powers of the various telepaths, but inside the mansion itself? The Professor was too good, too powerful to allow these things to happen by accident. Unless he too had been caught. "How?"

"I don't know. Betts isn't de most powerful telepath here."

***

The source of that noise lay on the bed only a few feet away from them. A young girl sat up, breathing heavily. Startled awake by a nightmare that lingered and failed to fade into the place where dastardly dreams often go.

She kept the duvet close to her as her eyes searched out the darkness, blue eyes reflecting a deep-seeded fear. An unspoken fear. Her voice cracked against the void. "Mum? Dad?"

The room rippled like rocks skipping on water.

A muffle cry followed, as she reacted to something unseen. Both hands went to her head, slamming down on her ears, but the room remained silent. Moments later, the young girl screamed louder this time, pulling at her hair before her senses overloaded and she fell back.

***

"I think I'm going to puke."

"Go ahead. It's astral puke." Remy tried to touch the child Betsy on the shoulder, but his hand went right through. So much for interacting with the environment. "Something in all dis reeks."

"No kidding. I've read her files. Betsy isn't this powerful, especially not if the Professor or Jean is around to temper it." Madelyn caught the flicker fraying of the room, like a tiny ripple in a piece of film. "And something isn't right about this memory."

"I bet it's implanted."

"How do you know for sure?"

"I don't, but Remy got some experience wit' dem. Dis feels like something missing."

***

The source of that noise lay on the bed only a few feet away from them. A young girl sat up, breathing heavily. Startled awake by a nightmare that lingered and failed to fade into the place where dastardly dreams often go.

She kept the duvet close to her as her eyes searched out the darkness, blue eyes reflecting a deep-seeded fear. An unspoken fear. Her voice cracked against the void. "Mum? Dad?"

The room rippled like rocks skipping on water.

A muffle cry followed, as she reacted to something unseen. Both hands went to her head, slamming down on her ears, but the room remained silent. Moments later, the young girl screamed, pulling at her hair before her senses overloaded and she fell back.

*****

"If I remember Emma's class accurately, if this is a loop, we're stuck her until Betsy can slip the track or someone else pulls us out." Madelyn found herself chewing a thumbnail absently, like LeBeau, and with a scowl stuffed her hand in her pocket.

"'less you know a way to interact, oui." Remy watched the child. "Think dat dis must have been when she first manifested. Look at de way her eyes bulge at de noise."

"They think something like a third of all mental psionic manifestations leads to catatona and mental damage from the sudden overload." Madelyn shook her head. "Poor kid."

"In one case, it make all of you hair fall out." Remy said absently, looking at the edges of the scene. "Oui, dis is implanted." He pointed to were the edge of the carpet changed colour like a razor slash for a fragment. "If dat's de case, Betts will get through it."

"I wish I had your confidence."

"You haven't worked wit' her for de last six months. Dat femme is de type to go to her grave wit' her teeth in you throat. Dis isn't going to beat her."



*****