The sun would set completely soon. The dusk light it cast over the island slowly receded to the horizon and gave ground to darkness. He ate coconut roasted over the campfire as he watched over her.
Lanying was still asleep, but that just means that the baby will be up all night and her sleep schedule is going to be messed up. Tyler requested a blanket for her to sleep under, pots of curry chicken and potatoes for her to eat when she wakes up, and tranquilizers to get her to sleep again if would not do so willingly. Chen already designed clothes for Lan to wear that will accommodate her fins and gills.
On the shore, pale runoff seeped onto the sand. It trailed up the beach where it condensed itself into one form: WhiteOut. She came upon the campsite where Lanying was sleeping and a hand gripped her throat from behind.
“Rude as ever,” said WhiteOut, “but predictable. Just as an older brother should be.”
“Why are you here?” said a deeply modulated voice. Her bones creaked to the breaking point but she still smiled.
“I was looking for cattle to graze thatch for me. Now all I need to do is domesticate it.”
“Why would I let you do that?”
“Because we want the same thing: a future for mutants,” she swung her head to snap her own neck. He let go of her and she fell into a puddle of slag then stood back up again, “I think coming to an understanding is beneficial for both of us. You see, a multipolar mutant world wouldn’t be good for anyone. Of course, my people would rather have sole control over the mutant population but they are worried about what China or Russia could be hiding up their sleeve.”
“Where do I fit into this?”
“I’m getting to that part, sheesh, have some patience. The world has gotten too complacent with the Pantheon; the danger is not at the forefront of the public’s mind but the crisis is just around the corner. The bureaucrats are cutting costs when the enemy is gnawing at the roots. We want you—I want you to be the villain for my heroes. You will get to claim the mutants that we can’t get to or control, starting with this one here. I will give you information on mutants in other countries so you can attack them. With the world spooked, they will hand over more mutants to my people. Along the way, we can pass our notes back and forth.
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“Why shouldn’t I just kill you?
“If you were going to do that, you would have already done it. You have your reasons, and I have mine. Eventually, we will conflict, but for now, we can keep this between us: fighting let mutants slip through the cracks; weakening each other would just widen the vacuum for other groups to rise. You don’t want that, do you?“
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Ever since he was a boy, Khalid had been asked to carry the weight of others—literally, as he was born the strongest of his brothers. At first, his family saw him as a blessing, and he was proud of his strength. But as soon as it was claimed that his strength was the work of a jinn, his family cursed his birth, and all he loved fell away. He denied it at first but was left with nothing all the same.
When the jinn did come to him, he had no reason not to accept. Khalid was given a new family: he was put in charge of an orphanage for mutant children that were exiled, abandoned, or rescued from worse. This rickety shack, patched up with sheets of metal, was a temporary home for them until Auntie Chen’s grand design could be built. The newest member of his family, Lanying, was the most unruly he had ever seen but his durability was why he was chosen. As soon as she was house-trained, Auntie Chen would adopt her.
“Are we sure this is a good idea?” asked Teumess.
“She’s docile as long as she has something to eat,” said Auntie Chen as she rubbed Lanying’s chewing cheeks. Wagyu steak was Lanying’s pacifier.
“I meant working with those creeps. The creeps we’re supposed to protect kids like her from.”
“You don’t trust our dear uncle’s judgment?”
“I do. That’s why I want to understand.”
“It is as she said. They will give us information on more mutants and they will gather up the rest for us. Once they have their prisoners all in one place, we’ll crack open Tartarus like a piñata.”
“You guys probably know better than me… but still…” Teumess sulked her head. Chen clasped her cheeks and raised her head back up.
“I know it hurts to watch those who take so much continue to take more. I assure you, he knows that pain better than anyone. But when he moves, he’ll always move forward. Once the movement begins, they won’t be able to take another inch. Understand?” Teumess nodded in Auntie’s grasp and was awarded a kiss on her forehead, “Good girl.”