It had been ten minutes since Ben called the meeting, and Stacey and the other mutants had gone down to the armoury in the basement to get kitted out. As she entered the armoury, she made her way to her locker.
'Hey there, Green Girl, look what I've got.' Mist said, holding up two small handguns.
Stacey smiled at her as she made her way over.
'Where did you get those guns, Mist?'.
'What, these things?' She said as she spun them around before placing them back in their holsters at the side of her trousers, 'I've had these guns for ages but I've never used them before, love.' She said as she turned towards her locker.
Stacey imagined herself fighting a war, 'So, it looks as if you're going to be using those guns and we are going to do some fighting, doesn't it?' She said sadly.
'Stacey,' she said gently, 'We need to do this, otherwise, what's the point of living?'
Turning away from her, she carried on rummaging in her locker. Hearing a noise coming from the other end of the room, they swiftly made their way towards it. As they ran towards the back of the armoury, they spotted Greena.
'So, are you two ready?'
'Ready for what, Greena?' Stacey asked softly.
Greena came over to her and placed her hand on her shoulder. Stacey could feel that Greena's skin was smooth like hers. They looked at each other for the first time.
'Ready to win this fight, or have you forgotten what we are here for?'
Mist came forward and glared at her.
'Green Girl and I aren't the sort to forget anything, Greena.' She said as she raised her hand and pointed a finger at her.
Greena looked at her and smiled. 'Relax will you? I was only joking with your friend here.'
'Don't ever make jokes about war.' Shouted a male voice coming from behind Stacey and Mist.
Turning, they saw Ben coming towards them, wearing a long, black overcoat with a pair of green trousers and black fingerless gloves. With him were Frostbite, Flamethrower, and Violet. As he approached them, all three women stood to attention and saluted him, Ben stared at them.
'At ease, I don't want to make this like the army.' he said as he smiled at Stacey.
He made his way past her and walked towards Greena.
'Are you ready, Greena?' He asked firmly.
'Ready for what, babe?' Stacey asked curiously.
Ben turned to her, 'I've been thinking about things since Greena arrived. She has been telling me all about the base.'
Stacey looked quizzically at him, as did the rest of the mutants.
'What about it, Ben?' Mist asked impatiently.
'What our friend here has told me, Mist, is that the base is practically an impenetrable fortress and impossible to attack directly.'
'What are you planning, babe?' Stacey asked, worried.
'My plan is to have Greena capture me and bring me before Watts and Young.'
Stacey's face turned red with fury and she began to grind her teeth,
'Are you serious, Ben?' She snapped, 'It's too risky, you'll be killed.'
He turned to her and let out a deep breath.
'Isn't it better than risking everyone's lives by storming the base? Besides, once I'm inside, I will escape.'
Mist came up to him, 'And then what, Ben?' She demanded.
Ben looked her in the eye, 'I'll contact you once I've lowered the base's security systems. That will be our chance to attack.'
Looking around, he saw that everyone in the room was nodding in approval. All except Stacey who had her arms folded.
'Stacey.' He whispered as held her close, 'We have no hope of attacking the base directly, it's best if I go alone.' He gestured to Greena, 'Are you ready?'
The tall, green skinned woman made her way towards him, pulling a pair of handcuffs from her pocket and snapping them around his wrists. They headed to the far end of the basement towards an open door.
Before they left, Stacey came running up behind them, 'Ben, I'm frightened.' she said stroking his cheek.
'Don't be, everything will be fine.' He said sounding calm and relaxed.
'But what if you plan fails and you are killed?' She sobbed.
'Then you will be my successor of the Haven project. All of this will be yours.'
Before she could reply, he and Greena exited, leaving Stacey and the rest of the mutants to wait. Stacey didn't know if she would ever see him again but knew that he had complete faith in her.
It was early evening as the car went speeding down the highway, inside Ben sat in the passenger seat with Greena driving. Greena pulled the car to a sharp stop in a layby under a bridge, nearly sending Ben flying through the windscreen. Ben looked furious as he sat back in his seat.
'What's the matter, Ben?'
Ben didn't say anything as he unfastened his seatbelt and opened the car door. Before he could step out, he felt Greena's smooth, green hand touching him.
'Are you all right?'.
He looked at her and took a deep breath, 'I will be, Greena, I'm just a bit afraid.'
Greena looked at him with her dark green eyes. Ben tried to avoid her gaze as her resemblance to Stacey was playing havoc with his emotions.
'Afraid of what, honey?' She purred.
Ben looked at her and she could tell he was worried, 'I've had a vision that something terrible is about to happen, but I don't know where or when.'
Greena gave him a reassuring look. 'Ben, we're all afraid, but you're the one who is keeping us strong. You have offered us hope.'
'I suppose you're right Greena,' he said as he got out of the car and lit a cigar.
'You do realise that those things will kill you, don't you?' She said lightly.
Smiling, he ignored her warning.
'How far is the base?' He asked as he puffed on the cigar.
Greena gave him a surprised look, 'I'm warning you about your smoking habits and all you can do is to ask me about the base?'
'You worry too much, Greena.'
'Anyway, a mutant's DNA isn't like a human's.' He said as he sat sideways on the passenger seat blowing out a perfect smoke ring, 'We can take a lot more than the average human. For instance, we age much slower than they do.'
'So, Greena,' he said, throwing the cigar on the ground, 'How much farther to the base?'
'It's just past the town and towards the beach.'
Gently, he placed his hand on her cheek, and she closed her eyes as if in a dream.
'Greena, thank you for doing this for me and my family.'
Greena opened her eyes and looked at him, 'Thank you for giving me a chance, Ben.'
Without warning, she closed in for a kiss, but he backed away. Greena looked surprised, 'What's wrong, honey, don't you like me?'
'It's not that I don't like you, I really do. It's just that I love…'
'Green Girl!' Greena said sharply.
Ben nodded, 'Look, Greena I think it best for us to remain friends and concentrate on the mission, not on our feelings.'
Greena looked disappointed.
'What do you see in her anyway?'
'She and I go way back. I met her in England when I was twenty-one.'
'I heard that you and Stacey were part of the first wave of test subjects. Is that true?'
'Yes, it's true,'
'That's why you want to kill Dr Young, isn't it? Because she ruined you and Stacey's lives?'
Ben looked into her dark green eyes and could tell that she was playing with his feelings, 'I wouldn't have said that she ruined our lives but she changed them. However, she certainly lied to us.'
'You really do love Stacey, don't you.' She replied understandingly.
'Yes, I love her deeply and would do anything in my power to ensure her safety. I would do the same for any of the mutants under my protection.'
He stared deep into her eyes, as Greena started laughing, 'So, if I was a threat to Stacey and Haven, you would kill me ?'
Ben looked at her in surprise, 'Why should you be a threat?'
'I'm not,' she said calmly, 'You opened my mind when you told me that Dr Young had lied to me about there being a cure for the serum.' She started the car, 'However, I do have feelings for you and I am jealous of Stacey having you all to herself,'
Hearing this, Ben banged the car door, If you're jealous, Greena' I'll have to do something that I know I'm going to regret.'
'Like what, honey?' She asked, raising her eyebrow.
'This.' Ben said as he grabbed her and started kissing her fervently.
Greena closed her eyes and slid her hand down his trousers, as Ben caressed her large breasts. He knew this was probably the only thing that would keep her from hurting Stacey. Once they were finished, Greena turned towards him and smiled, running the tip of her tongue across her dark green lips. With a satisfied sigh, she pressed her foot on the accelerator and the car raced away towards the town and the base beyond.
It was getting dark as Dr Sarah Young sat at her desk in the lab. Having spent all day typing a report, she was about to shut her computer when the phone started ringing. Angry and tired, she reached over and picked it up.
'Hello, Young,' she said tersely.
'Hello, Doctor.'
'Greena?' Sarah answered, surprised to hear her voice, 'Is that you? Were you successful in completing your mission?'
'You'll be pleased to hear that I've captured Fox.'
Sarah sat back at her desk chewing her lip. For a moment, she said nothing as she held the phone away from her mouth.
'What?' she finally said in disbelief. 'Are you being serious, Agent Greena?'
'Of course, I am, Doctor.'
Sarah smiled, 'So, Ben's been captured at last. Listen to me very carefully, I want you to bring him to my lab immediately.'
'What about the rest of the mutants? Don't you want me to round them up as well?' She asked wickedly.
'No, not yet,' Sarah said sharply, 'Just drop Fox off at my lab and continue your hunt for the rest of them.'
'No problem, Doc, I'll have the rest of those freaks captured before the end of the day.'
'Just remember, Greena, I want them alive and in good condition.'
Hanging the phone up, she sat back in her chair.
Meanwhile, Greena, who had parked by the base, turned to Ben as he smiled at her, 'I must say, you put on a very good act there.'
'So, do you think she fell for it?' She asked as she placed the handcuffs around his wrists.
'I would say so, but we're going to have to be careful as she won't be fooled for long.'
Greena pushed back her long, red hair, 'Ben, once you get in the base, how long do we need before we contact the others?'
'Inside my coat pocket is my phone. It has Frostbite's number. Contact him and tell him to assemble the team.'
Nodding in response, she gave him a puzzled look, 'What about you, how long will you need?'
'Don't worry about me, I'll be fine,'
He looked over towards the base and then back at Greena. ' I'm ready when you are.' He said coolly.
Before she got out of the car, Greena leant over and gave him a quick peck on his cheek. Once they were outside, his vision started to blur before he fell to the ground.
Greena ran round the car to help him, 'Ben?' she asked as he picked himself up, 'Are you all right?'
From the look he gave her, she could tell he was worried.
'I had another vision,' he said, getting back to his feet.
'What happened? What did you see?'
He gave her a faint smile before falling again, this time unconscious.
It was daylight when Ben woke up after passing out. As he was coming to, he viewed his surroundings, finding himself strapped to a bed inside what could only be Dr Young's lab. Looking around, he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his right arm, as he turned to look at it, he gasped in horror. Sticking out of a vein in his arm was a large needle half-filled with blood. Ben also noticed that he was semi-naked and linked to a heart monitor. Trying to struggle, he found it useless as the straps held him firmly in place.
'Forget about escaping as you're strapped down tight.' A familiar female voice gloated.
Twisting his head in the direction it came from, 'Dr Young?' He said, feigning surprise.
Smirking, Dr Young stood and made her way over to Ben.
'Hello, Ben, did you miss me?' She mocked evilly.
Ben gritted his teeth, 'I've been waiting for this moment.' He said, starting to struggle.
'Why? So you can kill me for ruining your life?'
At first, Ben didn't reply but could feel his blood boiling.
'You didn't just ruin my life, but also the lives of the other test subjects' He spat.
Angered, Dr Young snapped back, 'I gave them a purpose, Ben, like I did you and that girl that you are with now.'
'Purpose?' Ben replied sharply, 'What purpose?'
Dr Young looked at him, gently patting his face, 'For the army, of course, my dear Ben.'
His face flushed with anger and rage, 'To be used as weapons of war. What you did was wrong, and you know it.'
Sarah fumed, slashing Ben's face, leaving a large open cut.
'How can it be wrong, Ben? It is designed to save lives in the field! Look at yourself, you have the ability to read minds, control people like puppets and the ability to look into the future.' She paused, seeing a trail of blood running down his face, 'You and the rest of your gang are nothing but selfish,' she said, towering over him, 'But it doesn't matter anymore.' Marching over to the main door, she left him with one last thought before she exited the lab, 'You are now a prisoner here, Ben, and what's even better, you are going to help my research into producing an even stronger soldier serum.'.
Ben lay on the bed full of hate and rage, trying to calm himself by closing his eyes and thinking of Stacey. His thoughts were interrupted by the lab door opening again, and he became aware of another person in the room. Opening his eyes, staring him right in his face was his old friend, Lt Watts. Watts looked at him and grinned.
'So, Fox, finally decided to join the party, huh?' He asked menacingly.
Ben scowled at him coldly, 'Say that to me when I'm out of this bed, Watts.'
'I wouldn't think like that just yet if I were you, freak!' He scoffed, 'Command has issued an order regarding your little club.' Watts continued as he made his way to the other side of the room away from the young man. 'We are going to take all your friends by force.' he said triumphantly.
Ben gave him another cold stare and this time he spoke, 'If you harm anyone in there Watts, I'll kill you.'
Watts came up to him and grabbed him by his neck, 'Is that a threat, worm?' He chided, tightening his grip.
'But aren't I more use to you and your girlfriend alive, Watts?'
Watts loosened his grip and looked at Ben, startled, instantly clutching his head and screaming. Ben began to read his mind, discovering that Watts was lying about the attack. But as he delved deeper, he found something even more interesting. Dr Young and the army were planning to capture the mutants, and using their genetic material planned to clone them. Having found out all he could from Watts, Ben released him, letting him collapse to the floor.
Furious, Watts roared, 'All right! That's it, you little bastard.' Running towards the bed with his fists raised, he yelled, 'Time for me to knock some sense into your thick skull.'
As he was about to strike, the lab door opened and in walked Greena, shocked by what she saw..
'Lieutenant, what are you doing to the prisoner?' She asked as she walked into the room.
Watts looked at her with a face of rage, 'I'm giving this no good son of a bitch a lesson in manners.'
As he was about to hit Ben, Greena caught his hand and gave him a hard look.
'Didn't Dr Young say no harm was to come to him while he's here?'
Watts grunted at her and pulled away, 'You were lucky,' He said turned to Ben before leaving the lab. 'When Sarah's finished with you, it'll be round two for us.'
He left allowing Greena to check on Ben.
'I'm sorry for allowing this to happen.' she said as she grabbed a pack of wipes from the desk.
'Don't be. Remember, I wanted to come here. Did you manage to get in touch with Frostbite?'
'I did, and he said that he was going to call a meeting with the others.'
Greena looked at him and lowered her voice, 'I've got to get you out of here, Ben. I feel terrible about what's happened.'
Ben took a deep breath, 'Please, listen. Can you get in touch with Frostbite again?'
Greena nodded at him, 'Yeah, sure I can, honey. Why?'
'I scanned Watts' mind and what I found surprised me.' He said worriedly.
'What did you find, honey?' Greena asked, sitting on the bedside, Ben let out another deep breath.
'They are planning to use our genetic material to create copies,'
'You mean like clones?' He nodded as she stood up. 'I'll contact Haven straight away, honey, you have my word on it.'
'Just don't let anyone know that you're working with us now, Greena.' He said as she ran out the door.
Laying his head down, he tried to get a bit of sleep as he knew that it wouldn't be too long before Frostbite, Stacey, and the rest of his mutants rescued him. This war would soon be over.