Boy did I goof! Rahne is Scottish, not Irish! Sorry!

Thanks to Patti and Wendy for beta-reading. :)

Shedding Light on the Shadows chapter 8

“When do we get outta here?” Jonny shouted down the hall, leaning against the bars of his cell.

There was no answer.

The tow headed boy turned around, looking at February as she lay on her back, reading the messages left on the bottom of the top bunk.

“See anything interesting?” he asked boredly.

February twisted around and looked at him very solemnly. “For a good time you should call Francine.”

“Oh,” Jonny replied. “Okay.”

He sighed and flopped down onto the bed beside his cell mate, laying down next to her so he could also read the messages. “Hey look at that,” he said brightly. “Someone knew you.”

February turned around and read the message.

Febuaries a good time to be loose.

February snorted. “Someone who couldn’t spell.”

“Feb,” Jonny said calmly, “I never knew you were a good time and loose.”

February ribbed him.

“You kids ready to tell us where agents Dane, Sinclaire and Madrox are?” came a male voice from outside the cell.

“Sure!” Jonny chirped. “They said they were going to Wal-Mart. As long as you’re there, could you get me some candy? I could really use the sugar high right now.” Steps could be heard retreating down the hall. The two teens sat in silence for a while, looking up at the mostly obscene notes.

“I think,” February said at last, “that their plan is to break us with boredom.”

Jonny nodded emphatically.

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Consciousness came slowly, the headache much swifter. January groaned.

“You’ll be fine,” a familiar male voice said.

“Yeah?” January croaked, never opening her eyes. “You’re not the one with a headache the size of the Sahara!”

Benton Quest chuckled and rubbed her shoulder. “It’ll pass.”

January sighed and opened her eyes. She was sitting sideward in a car, stretched across Benton, Hadji and Jessie, who was sitting on Jamie Madrox’s lap. Kit and Colin sat crushed next to each other in the front, Rahne Sinclaire on their laps. Lorna Dane sat between them and Race, who was driving. January sniffed, then frowned. “Where’s Risk?”

“Down here.” January looked down and grinned at the sight of the tiny blond crunched on the floor of the car.

“Where we headed?” January asked, her headache already starting to dissipate.

“Into adventure and fun! A world where--” Colin clamped a hand over his brother’s mouth, and looked back at January.

“Some address we got from a funky clone-thing that looked just like Jamie. You know, one of the ones you left on the floor of the lighthouse.”

January nodded. “Do we trust it?”

“We assume it’s a trap, and maybe we won’t get killed,” Race said grimly from the driver’s seat.

“Ah. Sensible.”

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Dana lay quietly on the couch, listening to the sounds from the other room. It was comforting to know that someone else was in the house, in case that man came back for her. What had been his name? Jamie? She bit her lip, fidgeting silently. She’d been sure she’d seen Jessie and January at the party, but they hadn’t come to help her. She didn’t know why. She’d ended up turning to complete strangers for help.

Dana snuggled down farther in the blanket, not really needing the heat with her fur, but wanting the feeling of safety.

Surely something had happened, and they hadn’t been able to get to her, her mind rationalized. They wouldn’t just leave her with strangers, or let someone drive off with her.

Would they?

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It was a large, complex building with many doors and many windows, all black. The factory had been condemned years ago, and the only reason it hadn’t been knocked down was because it was out in the middle of nowhere.

“Why do villains always pick spots out in the middle of nowhere?” Kit asked from a tree, head cocked.

“It’s part of the villain’s manual,” Jamie said seriously.

“Really?”

“Yup. Just like the heroes can’t hurt anyone. It’s part of the heroes manual.”

There was silence, then “I want a heroes manual. I wanna be a hero.”

“I’ll put in a good word for you with the Big Guy,” Jamie answered, starting off with the others toward the building.

“Cool.”

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"Oh shit," someone said from off to the side. "I think I just tripped something."

"Nice, Risk," Race said sarcastically.

"It's not going into the building," Lorna said, her eyes closed. "The electrical impulse led out to a remote, and I lost it from there."

"So someone else is watching this place? Great. It could be a big party tonight," Race sighed.

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"January's awake," Feb said, smiling. "She says they just tripped some sort of wire. I'm supposed to holler if anything seems strange here."

"Does she know we're in jail?" Jonny said, laughing. February just grinned and they lay there a few minutes more, in silence.

"Hey, kids," a man called, walking up to the cell door. "We've got a lead on your parents. You want to ask them to come peacefully, so there'll be no bloodshed, or you want to sit here and do nothing?"

Jonny remained laying on his back, staring up at the ceiling. "Nah," he said after a while. "I'm too tired. What about you, Feb?"

"Maybe, if I'm lucky, they'll shoot January. That'll show her she shouldn't steal my combat boots," she answered.

The man made a disgusted noise and walked away.

"You talking--"

"To J, yeah. I'd say that was certifiably unusual."

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"Oh, joy," January sighed as they sat in front of a tall, electrical fence. "Looks like we're about to have the government breathing down our necks. Geez, you three, how many people have you pissed off?"

Lorna ignored her, searching the night skies for any sign of movement. Somewhere coming closer were five helicopters.

"We're going to have to work fast," Lorna said, frowning. "We need to get in there, get the agents out and blow up the technology. If we have time, we'll look for files on Dana."

"We go in fast and loud or slow and quiet?" Race asked, mouth compressed.

"Fast. Loud." Lorna stood up, raising her hands above her head. The entire fenceline vibrated, then started to spark and finally uprooted itself.

"Cool!" Kit cried, rolling under the fence and almost touching the wires. The rest of them waited until it was high enough to walk under, then did so.

"Over here!" Kit shouted, already having bulleted across the grass and made it to the building. Gunfire erupted and Lorna frowned, keeping the bullets at bay.

"I'm going to try and keep the 'copters from landing, and the bullets away," she said, concentrating. "You guys get the agents!"

"What agents are we looking for?" Race asked Rahne as they hurried to where Kit perched.

"Agents Dane an' Madrox--this dimension's version of Lorna an' Jamie. Ther' FBI agents that were trackin' the Jamie clones, an' got themselves caught."

Race climbed up to the window, then used the butt of his gun to shatter the glass. "Everyone in!" he called, and watched as first Kit and then Rahne jumped in.

"Someone's coming," the two animal people said in unison.

"Then we'll go another way." Race glanced around, then noticed the vent up above. "Here, Kit. Alee-oop!"

Kit stepped into the man's hands, then balanced as he shot upward. He placed one hand on the ceiling and with the other started using his claws to unscrew the vent. "Done!" he called, pulling himself into the passageway. Rahne gave Race a boost after that, then jumped in herself using her wolfen form.

Below them twelve Jamies--which were quickly multiplying--entered the room, toting guns. "Breach!" One of them shouted, seeing the vent laying on the floor. "We have a breach!"

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Hadji, Colin and Jessie stuck close to Jamie as he wound his way through the bushes around the building, finally coming to a back door. He grinned and knocked, then waited until he heard someone.

"Pizza delivery!" he called, waiting for the door to open before knocking the man standing there onto the floor. He bent swiftly, trench coat flowing around him, and cut off the blood circulation to the brain. Jamie counted so many seconds, then released the man. "Enough to knock him out, but not to seriously damage him," he explained as he held the door open for Colin, Hadji and Jessie.

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Risk walked right through the front door, Benton and January on her heels. "Down, Toto," she snapped at a man who neared her, then shot him.

"Jesus, Risk!" Benton said, his own love of human life squashed at such a display.

"He's not dead. Crippled, but that's what happens when you become a supervillain. Didn't you ever read comic books?"

"Yeah, well, personally? I hate comics. And Risk? If you get blood on my outfit I am going to have to hurt you badly," January said, wrinkling her nose.

"Sure, sure. Just lead us to the agents, sniffer-girl."

January glared at the tiny blond woman, then started tracking the two people they were looking for.

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Kit and Rahne got there first, and quickly dispatched five of the guards. Then Jamie showed up. And it wasn't a friendly Jamie.

"Multiple Man!" Rahne shouted amid many Jamies. "We need yuir help!"

That was when Jamie, Jessie, Hadji and Colin finally showed up, quickly followed by Benton, Risk and January.

"So we're all here, and Lorna is keeping the cops from coming," January said as they faced the many Jamies, who stood in a solid line across the room. "What now?"

"We fight?" Risk offered.

Race glared at her.

"Ther' are th' agents. An' th' computer. We need ta turn it off," Rahne said, licking her lips.

"'Turn it off'? What, there's a power button?" Risk asked sardonically.

"Nae, but we'll need ta destroy it somehow."

"Why aren't they attacking us?" January asked, watching the other Jamies.

"Because they know we're outnumbered. They know mine and Rahne's powers. And they know that if they don't have to fight they won't," Jamie answered.

"Okay. I'll get the agents, the rest of you . . . destroy that gorgeous computer," January sighed.

"I have explosives!" Risk said cheerfully.

"Why am I not surprised?" Race asked.

"All right, then. Cover Risk. Cover January."

"No need," January said, already disappearing into a shadow. "I'll 'port the agents out of here!"

"Everyone else leave," Risk said, licking her lips. "Jamie, you cover me!"

Jamie snapped his fingers and more duplicates appeared, surrounding Risk. The others ran out, Race hurrying them along. They were, of course, quickly followed by the Jamies, and Race turned and started shooting. "Keep running!" he shouted, shoving Kit forward.

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Lorna Dane fought with the helicopter above her as it tried valiantly to land. The metal parts in its frame would normally have made it no contest--Lorna would have won. But being on a world with a slightly different electro-magnetic pattern than her own, and trying to keep track of each individual bullet that was shot at her, and trying to keep the other helicopters in the air wasn't helping at all.

"Here are your agents," January said, appearing in the woman's shadow.

"What in the world is--" the female agent shouted, frantically removing her gag.

"The others are on their way," January continued, shouting over the other woman.

Just then everyone but Jamie and Risk came pouring out the door, followed by Jamies who were obviously out to kill.

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Risk slapped the clay-like explosive on the side of the computer, then started setting it up to blow. Next to her a Jamie fell, splashing blood across the panels as another took his place. The Real, Original Jamie stood by her back, frantically trying to keep all his dupes alive while replacing them and creating more as fast as the opposition could.

"You have a remote detonator?" Jamie shouted over the din.

"No!"

He stopped and turned to look at Risk, wide eyed. "WHAT?!?!?!"

"I'm going to try to un-synch us with time, and hopefully we won't explode!"

"You're crazy!" Jamie shouted, fighting off a Jamie who had broken through the ranks.

"I know!" Risk slapped on the last thing she needed, then grabbed Jamie's hand, grabbed her gun, and fired at the explosive.

For a moment there was nothing, then the world seemed to slow down. Jamie watched, stunned, as shrapnel and fire flew past him, incinerating the men around him and frying the walls. Brick blasted slowly outward as the power of the concussion blast reached it, and then the wall after that flew outward. He closed his eyes, reaching around with his other hand and gripping Risk's shoulder.

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From inside the building a rumble started, and before anyone could even react an explosion shook the ground beneath them. Lorna rocked back, loosing her concentration as the helicopters were carried away by the concussive force of the blast. It took only seconds for everything to settle, and when it did people were laying about amid rubble--though admittedly there was little that had flown this way--and there was no more building. The helicopters landed swiftly and medics jumped out, followed quickly by gunman after government gunman.

"You're all under arrest," one said, aiming straight for Lorna's head.

"Fine. I'll be under arrest in a minute," she groaned, stiffly sitting up and looking toward the rubble. Standing in the middle of it all were two figures, one tiny and blond, the other tall, skinny, wrapped in a trench coat.

"They're okay," Rahne breathed from a short way away.

"Thank God," Lorna said, then fell back into the rubble and grass and let herself be arrested.

From what seemed like miles away Risk and Jamie could be heard whooping.

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Kit and Colin had, thankfully, had enough sense to keep running as they'd made it out of the building, and they watched from the tree line as their family was loaded up and into the helicopters.

"What's Race saying, Kit?" Colin asked his brother, very much aware that Kit had the finer of the two ears.

"Go home. Don't worry." He turned and smiled. "Could I drive the car home?"

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