Notes: The characters from “Forever Knight” belong to Sony Tri-Star. The characters from “Xena Warrior Princess” belong to StudiosUSA and Renaissance Studios. The characters from “Smallville” belong to DC Comics and Tribune. Spider-Man, Doctor Strange, Darkstar and Ursa Major belong to Marvel. The characters from “Mutant X” belong to Marvel and Tribune. The characters from “Dark Angel” belong to Tribune. The characters from the “Mummy Returns” belong to Universal. All other characters and scenarios are fictitious and belong to me. Please send any questions or comments to dante0220@yahoo.com.

Prologue

[Amazon Village, c. 87 AD]

Gabrielle, Bard-Queen of the Amazons, writes…

In the days since David’s reappearance, things have returned to normal. The students, however, would prompt some action of their own with the Community. And Jasmine needs to think on matters…. All of these things will motivate the balance again.


[Tucson, March 2007]

Lana Lang-Kent writes….

Dear Diary,

We’re all grateful that the Professor’s all right. I have to say that since confronting Alti again, I feel more secure about myself and what I can do. Of course, Clark isn’t surprised but then, he always does bring out the best in me. Our classmates are very supportive too. But can we all be too supportive? And what’s going on with Jasmine? One has to wonder….



Chapter 1 [New York—takes place about the same point as the end of “Starting Over”]

Mary Jane stared out the window of the second story guest room. Given the grey clouds outside and the bleak feeling inside, she couldn’t shake the sadness she felt. I still can’t believe that Professor Dubois is dead. She thought back to Peter’s retelling of the others’ story. He took on that big creep for us.

“Mary Jane, dear?” a familiar voice asked, rapping on the door.

She smiled. “Come in, Mrs. Parker.”

May Parker entered the room and frowned, sensing the younger woman’s discomfort. She and Peter are so sad. I wish they wouldn’t go to school so far away. “It’ll be all right. You’ll see.”

“You really think so?” MJ asked hopefully.

May nodded. “From what Peter tells me, you all have some great friends down there. You’ll get through the situation.” At that moment, she heard the door slam shut downstairs. “Land sakes! I told that boy not to slam the door.”

A minute later, Peter hustled into the room. Before his aunt could say anything, he put his hands up. “I know. Sorry, Aunt May, I won’t do it again.”

“I give up,” she conceded, giving her nephew a smile. “What is it, Peter?”

“MJ and I have to go somewhere so can you keep dinner warm?” he requested.

“Where, Peter?” his girlfriend wondered. Now what? Seeing him eye his aunt and giving her a cautious look, she realized his meaning. This is a Spider-Man thing. I wonder how many other girls have a super hero for a boyfriend? “Sure. Whatever.”

“All right. Do you mind getting some milk while you’re out?” Aunt May requested.

As she put her coat on, MJ replied, “Sure. Come on, Peter.”

“See you later, Aunt May,” he concluded warmly, kissing the elderly woman on the cheek. Then he and MJ disappeared down the stairs and out the door.

Those kids need to slow down one of these days. I wish Peter wouldn’t act so oddly. With that, she meandered toward the stairs, heading for that meatloaf waiting in the kitchen.

*****

Meantime, the two teenagers stopped in a nearby alley to prepare for the next stage of their trip.

MJ kept a wary eye out. “It’s clear, Tiger.”

“Thanks,” he expressed, stripping off his street clothes to reveal the costume underneath. Within a minute, he had checked his web shooters in addition to pulling on his gloves and mask. “All set.”

“What is this about, can I ask?” she wondered, pulling on a ski mask to conceal her features.

“You might say that a friend has some information on Professor Dubois,” he told her.

“Have they found him? Why wouldn’t Lana have called me?” she asked.

He shook his head. “It wasn’t from her or Clark. Actually, it’s from a local source.” He fired a web line at the next building. “Ready?”

She nodded as she felt his arm around her waist. Hanging on around his neck, she asked, “Local source?”

He replied, “Yeah. Trust me; you have to meet him to believe it.” With that, he pulled them both into the air and began the series of parabolic swings, stretching the length of Manhattan.

She looked down at the cars far below. In the past month, she had wondered how he did this without hurting himself. “Where is this source?”

“Greenwich Village,” he answered. “Hang on!” Leaning into the next swing, he banked them into a hard left between two skyscrapers and over a pair of five story buildings.

“Who’s there?” she inquired.

“A doctor,” he replied cryptically, as they entered Greenwich Village proper. Swinging past NYU, they alighted on a building overlooking Houston Street.

She looked at him curiously. “A doctor?” Looking at the street in front of her, she saw an empty lot. “Where is he?”

“Watch,” he advised, taking her hand.

As he did, the air shimmered over the lot and from nowhere; an ornate three story house appeared with a particularly interesting window in its roof. “Next stop.” He cradled her in his arms and scaled the building’s face to get to the street.

“That was incredible!” she gasped. “You really know this guy?”

“Yeah, we go way back,” he admitted. “Come on; he’s waiting.”

“How do you know?” she asked.

Because I asked you both to come, Mary Jane Watson.

She looked around the street but only saw the two of them. “Uh, Spidey, what’s going on?”

“You just heard a strange voice in your head, right?” he asked. Seeing her nod, he continued, “That was the Doc. It’s okay.”

She shrugged but still felt apprehensive. You have some weird friends, Peter. Then again, so do we both. Following him across the street and up the sidewalk, she felt a slight shock as if the air was charged. As they got up to the door, she saw it open.

From it, a bald Oriental man stepped forth in a green robe and looked over the two visitors. “Greetings, Spider-Man, this is your friend?”

“Hey, Wong, is the lord of the manor in?” the web spinner deadpanned.

The porter shook his head at the irreverent hero, knowing that he meant no disrespect for the sorcerer inside. “The master is in. In fact, he awaits you both. Miss Watson, it is good to meet you. I’m Wong, Doctor Strange’s manservant.” He bowed slightly to her. “Follow me.” He led them inside. “You can remove your mask, Miss Watson. You’re quite safe from prying eyes here.”

Seeing Spidey nod in agreement, she pulled off the disguise. “So where is this master?”

“Follow me,” Wong reiterated, leading them up the stairs and toward a large double set of doors. Opening them, he ushered them inside.

She surveyed their surroundings in astonishment. Shelves of books lined the walls. Several candles flickered around the area. In its center, a large lid resembling one that hotels used for room service sat on a mahogany table. “Wow.”

“I told you,” Spidey agreed. In front of them, they saw a man clad in a blue sitting on the floor in a lotus position. He was slight of build with a dark mustache and hair. White streaked his temples. He wore a royal blue leggings and a matching top with an intricate design on its front. A golden sash cinched this garment around his waist. On his shoulders, he wore a red cape that was secured at his neck by a yellow amulet. “That’s Doc Strange.”

“I see. And you know this guy?” she queried, feeling her nerves surging within herself.

“He does indeed,” Dr. Strange noted, opening his eyes and giving them a brief smile. “Welcome to my home, Miss Watson. Spider-Man, thank you for coming.”

“Always a pleasure, Doc. What’s shaking?” Spidey wondered.

The mystic stood up and stared at them through his piercing dark eyes. “You lost a friend, didn’t you?”

“Our professor. You know him?” she asked.

“I know of him,” their host replied, surveying the shelf until he came across a particular book. “Ah yes, here it is. He’s cursed, you know.”

“Cursed?” she asked. Giving her boyfriend a glance, she asked, “Did you know?”

“About his inner boogey man? Yeah, we met when the Overmind attacked Smallville,” Spidey admitted. “You met him too actually. The Prof was in that mode after the attack.”

“Indeed,” Dr. Strange agreed. “I have watched David Dubois for many years. Many others would have fallen to his curse but he remains strong. The area he grew up in was infested with dark sorcery until recently. And he will need your help and that of your classmates to keep progressing.”

“Will need?” the Web-Spinner asked. “But, Doc, he’s dead!”

“No, Spider-Man, he survived his encounter with the force that threatened you all. Better yet, he has returned to this realm,” the Mage explained, walking over to the table and gazing upon the cover.

The covering floated off of the table, revealing a glass orb. As Dr. Strange waved his hand over it, the orb began to glow, revealing the events in the alternate Smallville. “Behold the witch and the demon.”

“Wait a minute!” she exclaimed, watching the events. “Those are Martin and Kyla! They’re different too?”

“You have a lot of special classmates, MJ,” Spidey pointed out.

“Indeed. I am impressed with all of you. However, Spider-Man, I must ask something of you. You must be vigilant.”

“Vigilant of what?” As he asked this, he felt the tell tale tingling in his head. Crap. From the feeling I’m getting with my Spider Sense, this could be huge.

“Soon, your classmate, Jasmine, will face a great danger. You and your friends will need to be there with her,” Dr. Strange revealed.

“Jasmine? She’s such a nice person. Who would want to harm her?” MJ asked incredulously.

“Who or what indeed?” Dr. Strange asked. “No, from the desert a threat shall rise. I shall be watching and so will your professor. I will say that even amongst you all, the Princess Jasmine has a unique charge. I cannot say what it is but she is a unique individual. If things get out of hand, I’ll be watching. Now come, Wong has tea prepared and it is a cold day outside.”

“That sounds good,” she agreed, adjusting to their host ever so slightly. Maybe we can all help each other. Then I can get some answers.




Chapter 2 [El Gato Negro—That night]

Eckhart sat in the corner, working on his laptop and drinking from a goblet of blood wine. It was a good night for him. The Overmind had disposed of Dubois and had disappeared in the bargain. No mess to clean up. Without him, the brats will be easy pickings for me and the remaining Enforcers.

At that moment, the screen flicked off.

“What?” he asked.

“What are you looking at, Eckhart?” Lex asked, descending down the stairs followed by Chloe, Michelle Bigellow and Sarah.

“None of your business, Mr. Luthor. Are you trying to be more like your father? Trust me. You have a long way to go before you reach that point,” the former administrator taunted confidently.

By now, the other vampires in the club turned their attention to the bald billionaire and his companions.

Lex smirked. “Oh, trust me, Eckhart, I learned my lessons well.”

“What were you working on, Mr. Eckhart?” Michelle inquired although she already knew.

“Miss Bigellow, this doesn’t concern you either,” Eckhart retorted.

“And I suppose that big ugly creep that attacked us earlier wasn’t with you?” Chloe supposed.

“No.”

Lex snorted. “Yeah right.”

At that moment, Janette came over and asked, “What is this about?”

“We’re just asking him a couple of questions about a friend of his,” the reporter replied, eyeing the fledgling Enforcer carefully.

“Your dreams say you were involved,” Sarah accused.

At that moment, Eckhart tried to get up but found something pinning him to the chair. As he looked down, he saw a python coiled there.

“In a hurry, Eckhart?” Lex wondered coldly. “I thought your kind had all of the time in the world.”

“Stop this,” Janette ordered.

“We need answers,” Lex countered, glaring at her. “Your friend here arranged for an attack on us.”

With those words, the other vampires stood. While they had no love for Eckhart, they wouldn’t allow outsiders to attack their own kind.

“What’s going on?” Nick asked, rushing into the club.

Janette shook her head. “It seems your young friends need a refresher on procedure.”

Michelle snickered wickedly. “I’m just using our friend’s procedure perfectly. I’m going by the GSA book, isn’t that right, Mr. Eckhart? Interrogation section, page 35.”

Eckhart cringed, knowing as well as she did what that practice was. “They’ll kill you if you hurt me.”

“I want this stopped now,” the Elder ordered, glaring at the group. “The GSA’s tactics don’t apply here and Professor Dubois wouldn’t want you using them. Let me deal with Eckhart. Did you find anything?”

While he didn’t like Nick’s rationale, Lex knew they weren’t going to win this round. “We traced some calls and emails to him.”

“The emails are still in his cache,” Michelle reported.

“Not to mention that his thoughts betray him,” Sarah added.

The archaeologist turned the computer on and started typing.

“What are you doing?” Eckhart snapped indignantly. “You’re not listening to those mortal freaks, are you?”

“Shut up, Eckhart,” Nick instructed. Looking at the cache, he soon discovered the emails in question. “I’ll need to have the calls traced. Schanke can do that.”

“I resent that!”

“I wouldn’t say anymore,” Janette added, looking at the incriminating messages. “You have endangered the Community again, Eckhart.”

“We should let the mortals have him!” one vampire yelled.

“Pipe down!” a female vampire retorted across the room. “He’s ours. We’ll deal with him.”

“I agree with you, Lucinda,” Nick concurred before looking at the fledgling severely. “Based on this evidence, I’m banishing you, Eckhart.”

“WHAT?”

“You’re to leave the city tonight. Be grateful I don’t have you staked given our past history,” Nick continued. “And then, there’s the matter of my friend. Your accomplice forced Dave to sacrifice himself. For those things, you’re gone!”

Janette grabbed the fledgling from behind. “Come on.”

As he was shoved toward the stairs, Eckhart bellowed, “You haven’t heard the last of me!”

“So much for that pest,” the lady of the night concluded after the exile left. “Nicolas, there is still the matter of their entrance.”

“Yes well, that’s true. Lex, you should know better, as should the rest of you,” Nick told the group.

“But what about the Professor? What were you doing for him?” Chloe shot back.

Nick bit back his initial response, counting to ten before answering, “You should have come to me and let me deal with this within the Community, all right?”

The mutant students nodded.

“Okay. At least nothing happened. Still, in the future, work with me, all right? I’ll make sure that things are done right,” Nick continued.

Lex shrugged as he, his wife and their friends left the area.

After they had gone, everything returned to a semblance of normalcy. While everyone remained on edge, they tried to carry on.

Nick shook his head. What a delicate balance this is. I hope that I did the right thing by sending Eckhart away rather than staking him outright.

Chapter 3 [Present Day]
(Note: Dave met Ardeth Bey in “Dancing Before the Music Starts”)

Dave sat in his office, reading through papers and preparing a lesson plan. In the three days since his return, people had mobbed his office to welcome him back. I guess they don’t see a Lazarus type that often. He thought about his situation. Between the Empress’ appearance at Hall’s End and his reawakening in the AU-Smallville, he couldn’t remember anything. I was lucky from what the others tell me.

At that moment, there was a knock at the door. “Yes?”

“Professor? It’s Jasmine. May I come in?” Jasmine asked.

“Sure. What’s on your mind?” he asked.

The Princess entered the room and shut the door behind her. “Several things actually, Sir. First, I’m glad you are well.” She trembled a bit.

He stared at her, feeling her fear. “What’s wrong?”

She looked up at him. “In my family, they tell stories of a man with a dark jinn inside of him. Great-Grandfather spoke of how he helped to defeat the Creature and a powerful witch. That was you, I trust?”

Dave nodded, recalling the near-disaster in the Egyptian desert. “The witch was Alti and I believe that you are speaking of me. Your jinn is the Child.”

“It is true. How do you live with it, Professor?”

He sighed. “It’s not easy, Jasmine, but we’ve learned to co-exist.”

“Ya’re right on that,” the Child agreed, appearing in front of them in his spirit form.

She drew her scimitar and watched it warily.

“Put it ‘way, Darlin’. Ah ain’t gonna hurt ya’ll,” the Dark One advised.

“You’re sure?” she asked.

“Why do ya think Ah went up ‘gainst Big Ugly? Nothin’s gonna hurt ya,” the Child reiterated.

She hesitated for a minute while deciding what to do next. Finally, she put the weapon away. “Very well. My great-grandfather, Ardeth Bey, trusted you and I will too.”

“Ah liked ‘im. Yeah, that boy could fight,” the Child assessed.

“You can say that again,” Dave concurred. Then he noticed a mark on her wrist. “Jasmine, that’s the first time you haven’t worn your bracelet. The tattoo is something else.”

“That was careless of me,” she admonished herself, shoving the hand under her robe.

“Your great-grandfather had one like it and so does your father,” the medievalist noted.

“She’s Magie too?” the Child wondered.

“How?” she asked confused by this conversation.

“Ardeth fought with us and trusted us with his secret. You are the descendant of fearsome warriors, Jasmine. That mark means you are a Magi. Just like my wife,” Dave stated.

“Of course! She’s the last descendant of Rick O’ Connell! That is why she shares the warrior spirit with Xena,” she realized.

After looking around to make sure nobody heard her, he revealed, “Indeed. And I am descended from Lorenzo Alvaro, the young archaeologist on that dig. Your secret’s safe, Jasmine.”

“Thank you, Professor. Speaking of my mission-- that is the second reason I came to see you. I must return home for a short time. Apparently, my father has constructed a special crypt for the Creature and we must move it there. I do not wish to endanger you or the other students,” she explained.

“You want some help?” he offered, pouring out two cups of coffee and handing her one.

“Thank you but regretfully, I must decline for now. This is a Magi matter. I would appreciate it though if Xena and Gabrielle would accompany me there. It would only take three days to do it,” she requested, accepting the coffee and drinking it down.

He frowned, feeling a bit stung but understanding her logic. “You’ll need to ask them but I don’t see a problem. If they agree, can we do it on a weekend? That way, they won’t be missed here if you get my drift.”

She concurred, “I do indeed. Once I ask them, I’ll call Papa and make arrangements.”

“And don’t forget, Jasmine, if something goes wrong, your classmates and I will back you and your comrades with no questions asked,” he told her firmly.

“Thank you, Professor. I appreciate the offer and I know the other Magi will as well. Hopefully, this transfer will go smoothly and the Creature will be in his new prison without incident,” she expressed. “If you will excuse me, I need to talk with Papa. Good night.” She bowed to him before departing the room.

The Child surmised, “Ah think this here’s trouble.”

“Uh huh. Well, even if she’s resistant to it, Xena and Gabrielle will call on us if needed. I think we can trust them on that front,” Dave concurred.

The Child shrugged and vanished into thin air.

Another day, another crisis. Here I thought we were past this stuff. He put his books away and headed for the door, looking for a quick trip home. Not in this lifetime, I guess….


Chapter 4 [The Talon—next day]

Lana locked the doors with relief. While she enjoyed seeing her friends and neighbors and seeing the profits come flowing in, she did enjoy a minute of peace too. Besides with a test coming up the following week at the university, she, Miri and Clark needed to study too. I know a lot of college students work but I’d like to see them manage a place, train their powers and maintain a relationship too.

“Hey, Boss, another great day,” Miri reported, looking at the register tape. She counted out $200.00 in various denominations and placed it in the cash drawer before locking it in the register for the night. The rest of the money she eyed, scanning through the rest of the bills and change. Then she placed it in an envelope, sealed it and handed it to Lana. “With the earlier drops, we’re five dollars over.”

“It’s better to be over than under, I guess,” the owner remarked, slipping her coat on and opening the safe in back of the register. “Let’s get to the bank and then over to Mom and Dad’s. Jasmine will be waiting for us.”

“I wonder what this secret mission of hers is. Uncle Dave wouldn’t even talk about it,” Miri replied.

Likely it’s something serious. “I’m still going to try and talk her into letting us go with her. After your uncle’s close call, I really don’t want to let her go off on her own. There’s something funny about this one.”

Miri looked at her strangely. “Like what?”

“Sarah and I have both felt strange vibes coming from her home region. Something darker than the Professor is waiting there for her. I’m glad though that she asked Xena and Gabrielle to go with her,” Lana explained. “Still, it doesn’t feel right.”

“Well, let’s go,” Miri urged, shutting off the lights.


****

[Kent Farm]

Martha set a fine ham dinner on the table along with scalloped potatoes and corn. She fretted about all of the little details. “I hope this is okay.”

“Knowing the kids, it’ll be fine,” Jonathan assured her.

“Absolutely. Your cooking is always great, Mrs. Kent,” Chloe added, tossing a salad on the countertop.

“Thanks, Chloe. That is nice of you to say,” the farm wife accepted while slipping on a pair of oven mitts. Opening the oven door, she took out an apple pie and set it on the cooling rack. “That salad looks good too.”

“It’s just a simple mix of things,” the reporter noted while putting it on the table.

“There’s nothing wrong with simple, Chloe,” Lex assured her while walking into the house with a bottle of wine and a jug of apple cider. “That’s what makes this town what it is.”

“Amen to that, Lex,” the farmer agreed. “Thanks for bringing that over.”

“My pleasure, Mr. Kent,” the billionaire concurred. “Always nice to have something festive with your friends.”

Martha gave her husband a knowing look. It hadn’t been that long ago that the two men weren’t on the same page. It’s great to see them getting along. Then she heard another knock at the door and saw Jasmine, Sarah, Sasha and Byron waiting there. “Come in, Kids!”

“Thanks, Mrs. Kent,” Sasha accepted, leading the others inside. “That does smell good.”

“At the muse’s delight, the heart takes flight,” the poet quipped.

“Sometimes, Byron, you’re too much,” Jasmine giggled. “Still, don’t change. All right?”

“I won’t—as long as I have good friends,” he concurred. “Speaking of which, where’s Clark?”

“He’s out in the back, finishing the chores and talking with Melissa. They should be in soon,” Jonathan remarked. “Now let’s get everything settled and we can call for them.”


******

[An hour later]

The group savored the wonderful meal and conversation before retiring to the living room for dessert and Talon coffee. Still, a somberness hung in the air.

Jasmine sighed, “I guess you all aren’t going to say it but you’re concerned about me.”

“Darn right we are,” Chloe retorted.

“We want to help,” Lana added.

“Besides, who’s going to mess with us?” Clark chimed in.

“We’d stay out of the Magis’ way,” Miri promised.

The Princess smiled at her friends’ desire to help. “I appreciate that, everyone. However, this is an operation for my order. My father’s directive makes it so. Fortunately, Xena has ties to our order so she and Gabrielle will assist us.”

“And what ties are those?” Jonathan wondered.

Jasmine thought about what to say for a minute. I don’t want to reveal Dr. Dubois’ stance within our order. Just keep it to Xena. “She assisted us against the Romans many centuries ago. Papa would only allow her there. Rest assured, my friends, if something goes wrong, I will not hesitate to call for help.”

“And we’ll be there,” Clark assured her, speaking of the entire group.

“Absolutely,” Sarah concurred.

“Just try and keep us away,” Sasha added. “Especially after the trust you’ve given me this year, it’s the least I can do.”

“It wasn’t anything you didn’t earn, Sasha,” Jasmine replied. “You’ve been a good friend to all of us. Just keep Mika company, all right? Even though, it’ll only be for a weekend, I’ll miss her and all of you.” She rose from her chair. “Lex, we need to get going.”

“Yeah. The flight’s at midnight. Dave and Angie will be waiting for us in Metro so we need to get going,” the billionaire concurred.

“Be back tomorrow, everyone,” Chloe added, following her husband to the car.

“I will miss you all,” Jasmine concluded, giving them a hug apiece. “Be back soon.” With that, she left the house and walked toward the car.

When the limo’s lights had vanished in the distance, Martha wondered, “What’s so serious?”

“Family business, Mom,” Clark remarked, hugging his wife’s shoulders.

Lana took a deep breath and wished her friend luck on this mission. I just hope it’s not too serious whatever it is.



Chapter 5 [Metropolis Airport]

[A/N: The Hulk and Ghost Rider belong to Marvel and aren’t mine.]

At 11:00 PM, the rear terminal lay quiet. Most of the passenger traffic had already departed for the evening. Only a lone security guard and a few cameras kept watch over the facility.

At this point, ten men and five women of various nationalities congregated by Gate 37. They were bundled in red robes with scarves concealing their faces. Each had a bulky gym bag with them.

The leader, an African-American female, looked around. While she knew the security would be fairly lax, she didn't want to push their luck. Hearing her cell phone beep, she answered, "Yes?"

"The delegation is in position," a gruff male voice announced.

"Excellent," she replied. "Out." Turning to the others, she told them, "Let's move."


*****

[Adjacent terminal]

Meantime, Peter and MJ got off of the evening flight from New York. After their visit to Greenwich Village, the couple decided to return early to the desert in case their friends needed a spider-enhanced assist. Even better though, Lex had volunteered to put them up at his condo so that they wouldn't have to take the whole trip in one night.

"This is awfully nice of Lex to do this. Chloe says that he doesn't mind but this is great," she complimented.

He nodded, looking around the area. For some reason, his spider sense tingled away to beat the band. Where's the fire? Something's got to be close.

"What's wrong, Tiger?" she asked, knowing that his cautious glance usually meant trouble.

"Let's keep our eyes open," he told her while leading them toward the passage between terminals.

****

[Terminal A, Gate 40]

Angie stared out the window toward the moonlit Metropolis skyline. As with Peter, her instincts were telling her that this wouldn't be a normal trip. But knowing us, when is it?

[At that moment, Xena soothed, "It'll be all right, Angela. Whatever's going on, we'll deal with it."]

["Do you know anything of these Magi? We only saw Ardeth that time," the oncologist pointed out.]

["Trust me; the order is very impressive. And if this 'Creature' is the same one that Ardeth referred to before, I don't blame the Sultan for having David stay behind," the warrior noted.]

["Personally, I'd rather have him as backup," Angie argued, folding her arms.]

["Let's hope everything goes smoothly," Xena expressed.] She did recall the evil presence at Hamunaptra and it wasn't from Alti either. The last thing we need is for the Child to tangle with a demon of some sort. ["I'll let you go for now."]

Angie took a deep breath and continued her vigil. I don't care what Xena says. I wish Dave were coming with us.

"What's wrong?" Francesca inquired.

"Nothing I guess," Angie fibbed.

"You're too serious for it to be 'nothing', Angie. Come on, what is it?" the literature scholar wondered.

“Sorry. I just have a bad feeling about this trip. You know that Ardeth Bey was part of a bigger order. They were guarding something. Momma once mentioned that my great-grandparents stumbled onto something very bad,” Angie pointed out.

“You mean like the mummies that Xena and Gabrielle ran into? I can see that. You wish that Dave were going with us, don’t you?” Francesca inquired, knowing her companion’s thoughts.

The doctor nodded. “The Child can hold his own against whatever’s out there. If the witch didn’t stop him then nothing will.” She looked to see her husband walking toward them. “Dave, what’s up?”

“I was going to ask you the same question,” he replied, rubbing her arm. “I don’t have to tell you to be careful out there.”

She raised her eyebrow at him. “I am a big girl, Chief.”

“Yeah I know. Just the same, you watch your back, Princess.” Turning to his cousin, he added, “And you do the same.”

“Si. We will,” Francesca promised. “If we need help, we’ll send word.”

He smirked. “Trust me; it won’t take long for the cavalry to arrive either.” He embraced her. “Just watch yourself.”

“Right,” she agreed, returning it.

“And the Magi will watch them both, Professor,” Jasmine vowed, walking over to their side. “That I can promise you.”

“I appreciate that, Jasmine. Remember what we said earlier,” he reminded her.

“I remember. I will not hesitate to call on you if needed,” she agreed.

“Very good,” he replied. Then he looked around curiously, feeling something wrong. “I think we’re about to be tested. Angie, you and Francesca do what you do.”

Francesca saw the group milling by the door and concurred, “Angie, ladies’ room now.”

“I thought that we wouldn’t get these guys until we got off the plane,” Angie groused. “Hey, Sweetums, can you entertain the guests for a minute?”

Opening a portal, he reached in and produced his bow and quiver of arrows. “Oh you know me. I’m just a barrel of laughs.”

The Princess drew her scimitar. “And so am I.”

“Jasmine, get back!” he ordered.

“I stay and fight,” she retorted. Facing the approaching party, she challenged, “Identify yourselves!”

“That is not your concern. You will come with us now!” the group’s leader demanded while raising her hand.

In response, his comrades pointed machine guns at them.

“You will come with us alive or dead, Princess,” the leader continued.

“Stick it,” Dave retorted, aiming his bow and firing at the fire alarm.

As the shaft broke the glass covering, an alarm sounded through the area and the airport as a whole.

“Curses! Kill him!” the leader demanded.

The followers fired their weapons in unison.

However, the bullets bounced off the air in front of Dave and Jasmine.

The medievalist smirked. “You aren’t the only ones with surprises.”

****


Meantime, Peter and MJ reached the end of the moving walkway and stood right outside of Jasmine’s terminal. As they did, they heard the alarms wailing.

“Peter, what is it?” she asked.

His spider sense screamed at him, bellowing something about the next terminal. “Trouble in the next terminal! MJ, get back to Security and tell them something’s up.”

“That’s where Jasmine is! Is she going to be okay?” she wondered fearfully.

“Leave that to me,” he promised. “Go on!”

“Please be careful, Tiger,” she requested before turning and sprinting back in the other direction.

He took a deep breath and headed for the nearest men’s room. There he ran into a stall and changed into his costume.

“Life is never dull around the Professor,” Spidey mused, heading back out the door and into the deserted area. Scaling the wall, he made his way along its facing and slipped into the next terminal. As he did so, his spider sense alerted him to something else. Danger ahead but someone else is here. Looking down, he saw Xena and Gabrielle crouched, waiting for an opportunity to enter the fray.

As if she had a warning sense of her own, Xena spun, drawing her sword and glaring at the ceiling. “I thought so but wasn’t sure.”

Gabrielle stared at the costumed man hanging from the ceiling. “Spider-Man?”

“Yeah,” the Warrior Princess agreed. “You gonna stick there all day or you wanna help us?”

“Is this a private party or can anyone join in?” he countered.

The two Amazons looked skeptically at him.

“Yeah. I thought that was the case,” he concurred. “You got a plan?”

Xena shrugged. “We hit them hard and fast. You can come in high. We go in low. David can take care of himself.”

He nodded. “Give the signal and we can party.”

Smart ass. For a second, Xena thought of Autolycus, the King of Thieves. Both are driven by something under the wise cracks. I hope he handles himself as well as Autolycus did. She shook her head and tapped her companion on the arm. Getting a nod from Gabrielle, she looked at the Wall Crawler again.

“I’m on it,” he agreed, rushing along the ceiling tiles toward the fight.

She quirked her eyebrow at him. At least he knows how to play his part. With that, she flung her chakram into the area in front of them before leading the Bard in that direction.


****

Meantime, Jasmine gaped in wonder. “Professor? How did the bullets not reach us?”

“Force field,” he told her, pointing at the air in front of them.

At that moment, a familiar ricochet echoed throughout the chamber.

“That sound—what is it?” Jasmine asked.

“The cavalry,” the Professor replied.

The chakram swiftly flew into the room, slicing through the gun barrels like a hot knife through butter before scooting off again.

“What?” the leader wondered.

“Welcoming committee,” Dave supposed. “Jasmine, ice the carpet!”

The Princess followed his meaning, flashing a wicked grin. “Ah. I see.” Touching the floor, she concentrated and sent vibrations through the material.

The carpet began to change. The cloth turned to ice, drastically dropping the temperature in the room.

“What is this?” the leader bellowed.

Seeing Spidey advancing toward them, he continued, “An exercise in teamwork.” To the Wall-Crawler, he said, “Seal it.”

Spidey nodded, creating a giant web net from wall to wall.

“Time to clean up the mess,” Dave presumed, firing a massive pulse.

As the blast hit the terrorists, they flew backwards—right into the webbing.

“Adam would be proud,” Xena supposed, walking toward the tangled attackers and her allies. Looking up at the ceiling, she complimented, “Nice.”

“Thanks,” Spidey accepted while alighting on the ground. “What do we do with them?”

“They will be prosecuted,” Jasmine insisted, “as enemies to America and Jalatvastan.” Looking the leader in the eye, she probed, “What is your mission?”

“Go to Hell, Witch!” the struggling woman spat. “We’ll tell you nothing.”

Xena and Dave looked at each other before she stated in her iciest voice, “Oh you’ll tell us what we want to know. Trust me.”

“Even with your nerve grip, we won’t talk. We’ll die first!” one of the other terrorists countered.

The medievalist chuckled, allowing his personalities to flip flop and setting the Child loose.

From where he was standing, Spidey gulped and felt a blast from his spider sense. He’s done it again.

“Professor?” Jasmine asked.

“Nah. Guess ‘gain,” the Dark One rasped.

The Princess backed away a few steps. “The Jinn!”

“Ah ain’t that bad,” he hissed. “Now hush up. Ah got me some fun.” He glared at the bound terrorists. “Xena asked ya’ll somethin’. Tell ‘er.”

The leader shuddered momentarily. From the group’s historical records not to mention those of the Magi, the Child’s dark mania was well documented. “You might as well kill us, Freak!”

Xena winced. “Now that was stupid.”

“Ah hate bein’ called that,” the Child growled, allowing his open eye to glow blood red at them. “Now look. We were havin’ so much fun. Then ya’ll start crappin’ in mah pond, hurtin’ mah friends an’ gittin’ me ticked. An’ ya say that. Now Ah’m pissed!”

“You can’t kill so the records say,” the leader presumed.

“Oh Ah can if Ah wanna,” the Child snickered. “But Ah can do much worse.” Grabbing one of the followers by the throat with one hand and letting the other glow with dark energy, the Dark One threatened, “If ya’ll don’t start singin’, Ah’ll ask ‘im.”

“Mehmet, don’t say anything!”

The Child shrugged and sent a burst of dark fire through the cloaked man in front of him. “Talk!”

Mehmet screamed, feeling his psyche scorched and his brain drowning in a sea of pain.

“The boy screams real nice,” the Child sniggered. “Sing, Boy!”

As he spasmed, Mehmet’s sleeve bunched up at his left shoulder, revealing his arm and a certain tattoo on the arm.

“Look!” Jasmine declared, rushing over to the captive.

“Wha?” the Child inquired.

“The mark on his arm! You’re trying to revive the Creature, aren’t you?” she insisted.

“I won’t…say,” Mehmet gasped.

“Creature?” Spider-Man asked, wondering what was going on.

“He’s referring to the High Priest Imhotep,” Gabrielle noted, recalling what Ardeth Bey had called their adversary.

“Yeah, that scum,” Xena hissed.

“Our master will kill you all!” the leader insisted.

The Child glared at the insolent woman. “Yeah. Bring ‘im on. Ah’m waitin’.” At that moment, he sensed others approaching. “The cops. Hey, take Big Bro’s stuff, will ya?”

“Late as usual,” Xena supposed. “We’d best get going. Yeah I’ll take ‘em.” She grabbed the bow and quiver before telling the others, “Spider-Man, Gabrielle, let’s go.”

“Thank you all,” Jasmine expressed.

“Not a problem,” Spidey called over his shoulder. As he scampered away, he thought to himself. Man, how do they deal with the Child? He’s like the Hulk and Ghost Rider wrapped up in one. Yeesh. Now I know why Doc Strange said what he did. Web Head, you and MJ are in for an interesting college experience all right.



Chapter 6 [An hour later]

Minutes after the trio’s departure, the Metropolis PD stormed the scene, hauling the terrorists away and questioning Dave, Jasmine, Angie and Francesca about the events that happened. Fortunately, the Child had allowed him to take charge of the situation. Finally, the police departed, allowing the Tucson contingent to wait for the plane to be prepared.

“Everyone all right?” Peter asked, hustling onto the scene.

“Oh! You’re okay!” MJ realized, hugging him tightly.

“You know me. I just stayed in the right place at the right time,” he quipped.

“We’re fine, Peter. Thanks for asking,” Angie assured him.

“A few goons more or less,” Dave supposed, hugging his cousin and wife with each arm. “Jasmine did us proud too.”

“As did you and the Child,” Jasmine replied. “Still, he can be a bit extreme.”

“He is when you and your classmates are in trouble,” Francesca pointed out.

Dave looked out the window at the moon reclining within its cloudy cover. For some reason, he felt that this attack was only the first salvo. Something else is going to happen. He sighed.

“What is it?” his wife asked.

“I wish I were going with you,” he declared with concern. He gazed into her eyes. “We are a team, you know.”

“Sometimes we need to do things alone. You did that in the Dark Lands. I have to do the same this time,” she reminded him. Still her eyes held a sad note. I know what he’s feeling. I have that nagging feeling that something’s waiting for us in the desert. “But you’ll be ready in case we need backup?”

“You know I will,” he promised, holding her close. “Meantime, I’ll head to London. Alex is going to need help.”

“You do that,” she concurred, remembering that the chest holding Imhotep’s remains remained at the British Museum. “I hope Nick will go with you.”

“Alyce will take his classes while we’re gone,” he guessed.

“Take care of yourself,” she told him.

At that moment, the flight was announced.

“Be safe,” he requested.

“Uh huh,” she agreed, sealing his mouth with hers in a long kiss. Then she backed away and looked at him while entering the jet way. “See you soon.”

He nodded as the group disappeared from sight.

Minutes later, the plane taxied down the runway, built up speed and soared toward the east.

The medievalist forced his nerves down. She can do this. Xena and Gabrielle in addition to the Magi are nothing to sneeze at.

[“An’ Ah can be there damn quick,” the Child added.]

[“I know,” Dave agreed. “I know you don’t like sap but I’m worried.”]

[“Yeah, yeah. Ya’ll got somethin’ this time. Them boys ain’t gonna quit,” the Dark One retorted. “’Mon, less go an’ talk w’ Lexie an’ Chloe.”]

“Right,” he said. Turning to Peter and MJ, he added, “Lex is waiting for us. Come on.”

“Everything’s going to be all right, Professor,” MJ told him.

“I know,” Dave declared, albeit less than honestly. “Come on.”

With that, the trio left the terminal, heading for their friends’ condo.



Chapter 7

[Jalatvastan—Outskirts of capital city]

While the capital breathed a sigh of relief at their princess’ escape from the terrorists, a building on the outskirts of town buzzed with activity. In its cellar, a large cadre of red cloaked figures stood in a circle awaiting their leader.

Right at the stroke of five, a large well-built African male strode into the room. Underneath his red robes, his muscles rippled with anger. Rohandon Niglawa hated failure. Phase 1 of the plan stank of it.

“What happened?” he spat to his followers.

“We had them cornered but the Princess was well protected,” one of the followers noted.

Just like Lock-Nah, I failed to account for everything. Thinking of his grandfather, the leader grimaced. “And the plane?”

“The plane took off at midnight local time,” the follower noted.

Niglawa nodded. There may still be a chance. “Fortunately, I have acquired assistance.”

From the door, several dark robed ninjas entered the room.

After them, Conchita Guisanto walked in calmly, regarding the entire situation. “Greetings, Rohandon.”

“Conchita,” the African replied. “You heard?”

“Si. Perhaps we can help each other against our mutual nuisances,” she offered. “That is—if you’re still interested.”

“Yes,” he agreed, shaking her hand. “Together then!”

“Wait for the party to arrive here. The Black Hand will go to London and retrieve the chest of which we spoke last night. I hope your master will remember our favor to his cause,” she instructed.

Niglawa nodded again. “He will. I promise.”

She surveyed the room once again, taking in the red clad warriors. “You must be strong! Our triumph is nearly at hand!” With that, she led her followers from the room.

And so it begins. Niglawa grinned, knowing the mayhem about to be unleashed.


*****


[Luthor Condo—Metropolis]

Chloe eyed her professor and classmates curiously as they related the story to her.  “You’re saying then that Jasmine’s mission is related to this Imhotep guy?”

“Exactly,” Dave replied, pacing the length of the sitting room. “Oh this really stinks.”

Lex quirked a brow at his longtime friend. “Define ‘this’, Dave.”

“Try resurrecting a 10,000 year old high priest,” the medievalist explained.

“And you’ve met this guy?” MJ inquired.

“No. But he’s quite the boy according to Dr. O’ Connell,” Dave explained. “Dark magic and arrogance rolled into one.”

Sounds like that monster of yours on a bad day. Peter shook off the thought. While he was still spooked out by the Child’s display in the terminal, he knew that the Dark One would protect them all. “And those guys that attacked you? They’re his followers?”

“Right. He’s dead and still has a private cult following,” Dave noted, feeling that he could trust Peter with the information for some reason.

“So we’ve faced the witch. How bad can this be?” Chloe wondered.

The billionaire shook his head at her. “When he starts fretting like this, something’s really wrong.” Walking over to his friend’s side, he assured the other man. “We’ll be ready, Dave.”

“We’d better be. Look, I need you to keep an eye on Peter and Mary Jane for tonight. I need to talk with Nick and Adam about things,” Dave retorted.

“They’ll be fine,” Lex agreed. “Do what you have to. We’ll be ready. Do you want me to call Smallville?”

“Not yet. I can get Clark and Lana if we need them,” Dave disagreed.

At that moment, the phone rang.

“Luthor residence,” Chloe answered. “Yes, he’s here.” Looking to Dave, she continued, “Professor, it’s Dr. Miles.”

“Speak of the archaeologist,” Dave replied, picking up the phone. “Hey, Nick.”

“Dave, I just heard what happened. Steve, Garth and April are here too. Who were those terrorists?” the Elder asked.

“The sons of Imhotep. They’re back,” Dave sighed.

Standing in the Loft, Nick looked at the three agents and Alyce who in turn watched him. Terrific. More trouble from that region…. As he mused about the situation, his mind flashed back…..


*****

[Cairo, Egypt—1942]

The moon shone over the Egyptian desert on a late April night. Throughout the city, the news of the German activities throughout the region had caused a great deal of unrest. Many fled the region, taking their possessions with them.

In the midst of this turmoil, Nick walked down the street, noting the reactions of those around him. They should stay. Since the Nazis are already here, little will change. He frowned, recalling the invading army of St. Louis from seven hundred years before. The Mamluks defeated the Crusaders handily and the Nazis will fall too. He took a deep breath, bringing his mind back to the present. The professors are waiting for me at the museum.

As he approached the Museum of Antiquities, he saw an Arab man clad in dark robes and brandishing a sword standing by the door. Interesting choice of clothes.

The Arab observed him and asked, “Professor Nicholas O’ Connor?”

“That’s right,” Nick replied. “And you are?”

“My name is Ardeth Bey. You look just like your picture. Come. They are waiting for you,” Ardeth explained, leading him inside and down a series of hallways. After traversing a simulated burial chamber, they walked through a wide doorway.

Just as they entered, a well-built American dressed in a white shirt, beige pants and packing a gun belt stepped in front of them. “Is this the guy?”

“Yes,” the Bedouin replied.

Nick smiled and extended his hand. “Nicholas O’ Connor, Archaeology Professor, University of Chicago. And you are?”

“Rick O’ Connell,” Rick retorted, shaking the other’s hand firmly. “Evy, he’s here.”

At the table, a quartet looked up from their work. One was a blonde haired woman dressed in suede, wearing a broad brimmed hat and smoking a cigarette. The other two women were dark haired and wearing brown blouses and pants. With them, a slender man with dark black hair and curious eyes did a double take.

“Nicholas?” he asked.

Nick studied the man for a minute, trying to remember where he had seen him before. “That’s right.” Then it hit him. “Lorenzo Alvaro?”

“That’s right. It’s him, everyone, I’ll vouch for him!” Lorenzo exclaimed.

“Great,” Blondie snarled, taking another puff of her cigarette.

Beside her, the taller of the two dark haired women fussed with her glasses and chided, “Janice! Now that’s not nice!”

Janice rolled her eyes at her partner’s admonition. “Yeah, yeah.” Approaching Nick, she continued, “Dr. Janice Covington. Sorry about what I said.”

“You’re at Rutgers now, right?” Nick asked.

“Yeah. Now I know you too. Didn’t we meet at a conference last year? You were the boy with the allergy to sunlight,” Janice recalled. “Whatever. I figure that you can run our night portion of the dig.”

“That’s fine with me,” Nick concurred.

“Well, I’d like to get to know you better, Dr. O’ Connor,” the shorter dark haired woman declared firmly. “I’m grateful that you saved Lorenzo’s life and I’ve read your work. Evelyn O’ Connell, the guest curator of this museum.”

“Guest curator?” Nick asked.

Evy frowned, as they shook hands. “The last curator died a month ago from tuberculosis. I’m filling in until they can get someone. Oh and this is Dr. Melinda Pappas.”

Melinda shook his hand daintily. “Hi. I was at the conference with you and Janice. Nice paper by the way.”

“You’re a linguist at Princeton. I read your work on the Macedonian dialects in the Xena Scrolls. Very well done,” Nick complimented.

Melinda shrugged and looked at Janice. “It was a team effort between both of us.”

“Hey, we split the work. We split the billing,” Janice assured her friend.

“So what is this project?” Nick inquired.

Evy replied, “It’s a dig in the Valley of Kings. While Lorenzo was exploring the catacombs, he made a discovery.”

“Nick, we found it! The High Priest Ihotep’s tomb! Think of what this could mean for our understanding of the period!” Lorenzo exclaimed.

Why do I have a bad feeling about this? As with his new collaborators knowing about him, the vampire also knew about Evelyn’s career too. In several circumstances, she had been right in the middle of several accidents.

Across the room, Rick shook his head too. Evy’s going to do it again.

“When do we leave?” Nick inquired.

“Actually, we’re ready right now,” Evy stated. “If that’s all right with you.”

The former Crusader nodded. “Sounds good to me.”

*****


[Modern Day]

“Nick? Nick!” Dave called into the phone.

At that moment, the Elder snapped back to the present. “Sorry, Dave, my mind wandered for a minute. What’s the next move?”

“That depends. We need to get Steve and Garth on board,” the medievalist stated.

“They’re here with April. I’ve arranged for the university to send me over there as their official representative to this ceremony. Jasmine’s father and I go way back. Steve, Garth and April are coming as my bodyguards.”

“You need bodyguards?” Dave teased even as he admired Nick’s ability to work through difficult situations. “All right. I’m going to get a hold of Adam. Can you all fly to London?”

“Alex’s place?” Nick guessed.

“Yeah,” Dave concurred. “I’ll be in touch.” With that, he hung up.

As the archaeologist hung up, Alyce asked, “You’re going, aren’t you?”

“I have to, Alyce. You can handle my classes while I’m gone. Janette’s running the Community,” Nick replied.

“What’s our next move?” Steve inquired.

“Dave’s getting in touch with Adam. I suppose we’ll be flying to London with Mutant X,” Nick explained.

“London?” April queried, looking slightly confused. “I thought we were heading to Jalatvastan.”

“We will be,” Garth assured her. “Sometimes, we need to make a stop on the way and this is one of those times.”

“Trust us, April, it happens all the time,” Steve assured her.

She looked at Alyce and then her partners. If they say so. Garth, you’d best be right about this.



Chapter 8 [New Sanctuary]

Emma walked down the stairs from the dojo. During the past few hours, she had felt activity from the Child. It seemed maniacal. What was he doing?

“Hey,” Max greeted.

“Hi, Max,” the psionic replied, toweling herself off and sitting on the stairs. “What’s up?”

“I think that’s my question. You need to chill out,” the transgenic noted.

“I wish I could. Dave’s really on edge tonight for some reason,” Emma reported. “And the Child’s really active. I can feel him close by.”

What else is new? Max shrugged, not wanting to pursue that notion too far. “What is it tonight?”

“Incident at Metropolis Airport,” Adam declared through their comlinks. “Come into the living area.”

They walked into the room to find their teammates waiting for them. In addition, the Child’s image floated there.

Max’s eyes went wide.

“’Lax. Ah ain’t gonna hurt ya’ll,” the Dark One promised. “Big Bro needs help.”

“What’s up now?” Shalimar asked.

“Red robe boys messed w’ us but we whupped ‘em good. They’re gonna mess with Ja…smine in sand place,” the Child added.

“Sand place?” Brennan wondered.

“He’s referring to the desert,” Laynia noted. “Jalatvastan, I trust?”

“Her Daddy’s place. Anyhow, Big Bro was wonderin’ if ya’ll could pick up Nickie-Boy an’ the others an’ git to London,” the Child requested.

Adam nodded and brought up the video footage of the fight in the airport. “They’re part of a bigger cult stretching back thousands of years. I’m sure they’re waiting in Jalatvastan for Jasmine, Angie and Francesca.”

“That’s a world war waiting to happen, Adam. We need to stop it,” Emma insisted.

“And stop it, we shall,” Mikhail declared.

The team leader agreed, “Absolutely.” Turning back to the Child, he directed, “Can you let Dave know that we’ll meet you all at Alex O’ Connell’s house?”

“Yeah. Ah’ll do that. Hey, thanks,” the Child accepted before disappearing into thin air.

“Man, that’s freaky,” Shalimar observed.

“This time, it’s a benefit to us all,” Adam declared. “Come on; let’s get to the Helix. We don’t have any time to lose.”

With that, they followed him toward the hangar and the conflict in the Middle East.



Conclusion

[Greenwich Village]

Doctor Strange sat in his sanctum, observing the events unfolding through the orb. “The forces of evil spread across the Earth, trying to split their forces. How will they react?”

Wong placed his tea beside him on the small table. “Please, Master, you should eat something.”

“Perhaps later, Wong. Thank you though. This is too critical a time to take a break for such things. I hope that Spider-Man heeds my warning,” the sorcerer replied earnestly.

“Will you get involved?” the manservant asked.

“Only as a last measure. This is a fight for Spider-Man and his allies to win. I trust that the Child will be able to control himself,” the master stated while reaching for the brown covered tome on the table. Opening it, he skimmed the curse’s details as well as the Witch’s history once again. “He’s faced much worse, Wong. Still, this threat is a potent one.”

Wong did a slight bow and left the room.

Doctor Strange placed himself in a trance, trying to determine which way the outcome would fall. And so he would stay for quite a while.

*****

[Tucson—Roof of Nick’s Loft]

April looked up at the night sky wondering what was going on. She saw Steve, Garth and Nick talking in the corner while they waited. I thought we were leaving. Why are we up here? “When’s our ride supposed to get here?”

Steve looked at his watch and replied, “Any minute now.”

Garth crossed the roof to where she stood. In the months since her arrival, they had drifted closer to each other. “It’s all right.”

“I’m sure. Agent Ferrell seems to trust these guys and so do you. I guess I should as well,” she supposed.

“You should. They’ve been a big help to the Bureau and us,” he informed her.

She sighed and hugged him. “Okay. I’ll trust them.”

“Thanks, April,” Garth expressed, returning the embrace.

At that moment, she heard jet engines above them but saw nothing in the darkness. “What?” As the Double Helix decloaked and landed beside them, she gaped. “Where did they come from?”

“That’s the invisibility cloak. Come on,” Garth advised, leading her toward the jet.

She nodded as they entered it.

“Garth, Steve, Nick and Agent Sommers, welcome aboard. Strap yourselves in,” Adam advised.

As soon as they had done so, Brennan hit two other buttons and pulled back on a stick shift, sending the Helix soaring to the east. Another button press made the craft invisible again.

“Has Dave said anymore to you?” Steve asked.

“Not a word,” the geneticist replied. “Emma’s been keeping tabs on his feelings though.”

“He’s been fluctuating all night,” the psionic stated.

“Yeah well, we better hope he can get a grip when the crap hits,” Max groused.

“Don’t worry; he will,” Garth assured them all. “We’ve seen enough action so that we know how to react when the time comes.”

Nick concurred, “He’s also dealing with Angie and Francesca being there too, Garth.”

The others silently acknowledged his point, keeping to themselves as they headed over the US and further east.

There would be time enough to deliberate later….


THE END (for now)

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