Eloi

Eloi Chapter Forty Six
Disclaimers Apply

A/N Goddess Foxfeather, Queen of Mad Plotbunnies, BUSIEST WOMAN ALIVE ™, Prophetic Muse, Hamster Witch and Uberbeta… *glomp* *with a/c* InterNutter, TC, Maxwell Pink, Dracena and Greywolf are loverly and wondermous for archiving/hosting. :) ProPhile: It’s in production now. Morgan: you alive? Readers/Reviewers: Thanks so much for reading and reviewing as you can!

“We have a problem.”
“I think that wins the No Shit, Sherlock award for the decade,” Scott muttered under his breath, ignoring Logan’s glare.
Mark shifted uncomfortably, his gaze never quite leaving Tabby. “This is insane. The lot of you need some sort of help, you know that?”
Professor Xavier spoke over the burgeoning dispute, his voice cutting and firm. “Emma and Sean are not going to leave Saint Dymphna’s. They’ve sent Sam our way, however, because he was, in Emma’s words, driving them crazy. Magneto has also requested our help in finding Mystique, Sabretooth and…Blob,” he said the teenager’s name with a hint of embarrassment. “We will divide into teams. Logan and I will choose them—not everyone can look for Paige.” He paused, one eyebrow creeping upwards in an expression daring someone to gainsay him. “I’m going to ask Sean to assist Mark and Logan in searching for Magneto’s associates, including Fred. Scott, find Kurt, Remy, Rahne, Amara and Lance and attend to finding Paige. Everyone else will be set to work in the morning, going over the grounds with a fine toothed comb.” He glanced sidelong at his desk and the open laptop there. “For now, I’m requesting that Todd and Jubilee search the basement levels with Kitty for any...problems.”
A stiff silence fell. Finally, Lance, who’s eyes were still heavy with sleep, yawned. “Todd’s not here. He an’ Rogue snuck out about two hours ago.” He scratched idly, yawning again. “Probably screwing down by the lake.”
Amara slapped his arm hard, not even looking sideways at him. Instead, she fixed her gaze on the Professor and Logan. “Rogue isn’t doing that,” she said primly. “Why do I have to go with them to find Paige?”
“Because I told you to,” Professor Xavier replied in a calm but edged tone. “Things are…moving rapidly now. We have several problems to deal with.”
“Like the Morlocks,” Jamie said quietly. All eyes turned towards him, sitting in the back of the room, the rustling of nightclothes and upholstery almost deafening in the otherwise silent room.
“Morlocks?” Mark asked gently, as if speaking to a particularly simple child. “As in H.G. Wells?”
“As in the news,” Jamie replied with a hint of petulance. He glanced at Rahne, sitting very still beside him as if she could not decide whether to back him up or pretend she did not know him. “The television in the Rec Room is on… there was some breaking news thing about people coming up out of the sewers all over New York City… one of them said they were Morlocks…” He looked down at his hands, fingers laced tightly together in his lap. “He looked like a mutant. He had gills, he had webbed hands…”
Rahne laid her hand on his knee in a friendly gesture, no hint of sexuality in her body language. “Professor Xavier, what’s happening?” Her eyes flickered first to Logan, then to Storm, standing like silent bookends on either side of the Professor. “We know some of the mutants in New York live below ground but… On the news,” she said, changing tacks, “it was like they were just…creeping everywhere. The guy from channel six said he saw ten of them coming out of a manhole near the Bronx, and some lady on CNN said these Morlock people were some sort of genetic experiment gone wrong, people who had plastic surgery or cloning or something.”
“They work fast,” Logan muttered, turning slightly so that his body blocked the students from seeing his whispered conversation with Storm, Mark and the Professor. “The Morlocks aren’t stupid but there’s no way they could’ve done this alone, this media blitz that seems to be going on. Who’s helping them?”
“Magneto’s been with us since after the dinner hour,” Mark said carefully, “but I don’t suppose that discounts him entirely.”
“Two of his number are still missing,” Storm pointed out. “They might just be doing their jobs.”
“The Friends of Humanity are having a field day,” Professor Xavier added, nodding subtly in the direction of his lap top, the screen flickering as new messages popped up. “I’m inundated with notes from parents, mutant rights subgroups, Friends of Humanity supporters…” He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Our position in the world has become very precarious. We are balanced on a precipice… we might not be able to remain secret much longer.” He turned his gaze to Mark and added, “The world is not aware of the sheer number of mutants in the midst of the general populace. If you wish to sever your ties with us and leave to live an apparently normal life, tonight is the time to do it. Before the news media comes knocking.”
Mark opened and closed his mouth as if abandoning whatever it was he had been about to say. After a brief hesitation, he sighed. “I think that would be a very foolish thing for me to do.”
Logan raised his brows and Storm’s lips quirked as if in understanding. “Fine,” Logan said gruffly, returning his attention to the small group of students before them. “Listen up. No one goes anywhere alone, got it? Storm will go with the search party looking for Paige. You do not leave her side, period. I don’t care how stupid you feel with a chaperone, you stick with her. Is that understood?”
“Yes, sir,” came the chorus of voices in automatic response.
“I’m gonna look for Rogue and Todd and Remy… when I get back, my group better be ready for recon, got it?”
“Yes sir,” Mark replied, then looked mildly abashed. “In the meantime, I’ll go roust Jubilee and Kurt. Kitty should be about somewhere as well.”
Professor Xavier motioned for Scott to come near as the others mobilized. “I’d like for you to go to the med lab and speak with Beast. There’s been some…problems.”
“What? What’s going on?” Scott’s voice was laden with panic and fear. “Is she okay?”
“It seems we have a doppelganger in our midst,” the older man murmured, his eyes flickering to Tabby, still hunched in the corner, seemingly asleep. “Go now, ask Beast what he needs. Move fast. Report back to me posthaste with any needs and then… just don’t leave anyone alone with Tabby.”