Helena and Shalimar shared a small smile as they heard Carli. Shalimar centered her thoughts, making sure her reflexes were primed and ready for action. Shalimar relied on her body and pressed it to its limits. Her vision focused on Helena's eyes as they changed to a lighter blue, the pupils narrowing. Shalimar decided to give Helena a taste of her feral eye, they flashed a bright yellow. Shalimar pounced, literally, and jumped high and kicked Helena in the face before she landed. Helena, instead of falling on her back, used her momentum to back flip and kick Shalimar in the face, mimicking her sister's move. Shalimar was surprised by the move and she fell on her back before she flipped to her feet. Helena smiled admirably to catch Shalimar off-guard, she kicked low at Shalimar's feet. Effortlessly, the feline-feral New Mutant jumped high. Helena used this moment to whirl around and kick high at Shalimar's waist the blonde was still in the air. Shalimar was blown back, but she landed on her feet as always. She took a moment to refill her lungs after the air was knocked out of her. Helena was a true hunter because she used Shalimar's resting moment to try and hit Shalimar in the face, Shalimar anticipated this and moved inside of Helena's fist and grabbed it with her opposite arm and kicked Helena in the gut.

Helena doubled over then straightened her posture. "Quick move."

Shalimar took the compliment and smiled but knew better then to drop her guard, and Helena knew she didn't drop it because she didn't pounce. Instead, Shalimar made the first move against the brunette. She whirled around and tried to kick Helena again, this time she was ready, Helena jumped high and back flipped away from Shalimar's blow. The spectators were having way more fun watching the two fighting ferals-Mutant versus Metahuman. Brennan, in his own sick pleasure, was grinning madly while Jesse was trying to anticipate their moves. Dinah and Carli were watching their big sister in action, and Lexa was watching Brennan, disgusted. Shalimar was about to hit Helena in the face when Helena backed away. Shalimar was confused then she heard Barbara's voice. "Are you done working out your anger yet?" she had said.

Helena and Shalimar smiled at each other before Helena touched her pendant. "And then some," she answered. "Ready to give these four what they want?"

"Bring 'em back . . . in one piece, please," Barbara answered before the connection ended.

Helena turned off her comms by pressing her pendant again and looked to Shalimar. "You're good . . . come on, let's get you your information." Helena walked over, Carli threw her a towel before she walked into the elevator and disappeared behind the door.

Shalimar smiled to herself, Lexa's eyebrows furrowed. "What happened?"

Carli laughed. "I think Helena just found her match. And that, my friend, is acceptance. You're lucky, took me a week and I'm related to her."

Jesse saw Lexa who was still confused, Jesse touched her arm to get her attention. "It's a feral thing, protecting the territory, you know."

Lexa frowned. "Oh," she paused and then turned to Shalimar. "Damn, you ferals are confusing . . . all mammalians are."

---

Brennan, Shalimar, Jesse, and Lexa met Barbara and Helena at the computer platform while Dinah and Carli stayed behind. Barbara pivoted her wheelchair to face the four mutants while Helena sat on a clear space on the computer table. "Now, tell me. The Creator and Adam are with the Dominion?"

"Yes," Lexa answered.

"From what I've gathered, Adam was cloned to keep his science going . . . and if the Dominion has him, then he has succeeded. They need Adam's research to shape human evolution-"

"Yes, we know that," Shalimar interrupted.

Barbara widened her eyes, searching her memory for information to tell them. "If that is correct, then Adam was brought to the Dominion so he could take his host's-the Creator's-place."

"What?" Lexa asked incredulously. "Adam would never join the Dominion."

"You did," Helena snapped.

Jesse, Brennan, and Shalimar all avoided contact with Lexa. Lexa pointed a finger at Helena. "That was to save my brother and you know it."

Helena eyed Lexa's index finger, knowing perfectly well where Lexa's lasers protrude from. "If there's one thing I know about humans, it's that they are easily happy with continuing their obsessions," Helena paused and lifted an eyebrow. "Adam's still human."

Lexa realized that Helena was nervous about Lexa's anger and she dropped her finger and turned to Barbara. "Go on."

Barbara sighed. "If he is leading the Dominion now-he still wouldn't forget your protection, so I think it's safe to say that he is looking for you to make you join the Dominion either-Or, he is calling off their troops to stop looking for you. Either way, I think your lives are safe. Anyway, the actual council is still going to come out with a master plan that Adam had uncovered in his research. They don't have Mutant X to do their dirty work anymore. They'll have to do it themselves."

"Do what, exactly?" Lexa pressed.

"Come on!" Helena said. "Adam's research to prolong humans' life span? To successfully manipulate the genetic code without any consequences? Today's humans are going to die out as well as mutants and metas for the birth of these new and improved humans. Complete extinction of all races."

Barbara nodded. "They're not going to just sit there with this in their laps. No one will survive."

"Mutants are a biological time bomb as it is . . . only Jesse's life is prolonged only to the average human's life if everything goes OK," Shalimar argued. "We're going to die out anyway."

"Okay . . . so what's to lose? Your expiry dates are coming, why not go out with a bang?" Jesse inquired.

"The man has a point . . . plus, if you quit, the rest of us will die, what a shot to your conscious," Helena said. "This is your fight, Mutant X, we're just a detour to help you get things figured out."

"Do you have any idea where the Dominion would set up shop?" Brennan asked.

"No, I couldn't even anticipate their last headquarters. I'm sorry," Barbara apologized. "The Dominion has been a secret for the past one hundred-sixty years . . . even before that."

"That's why we came to you, Barbara, everything depends on us," Jesse said.

---

Helena led Mutant X to a large table in the center of No Man's Land, apparently depressed by the news that Barbara had given them, Helena thought it was a perfect time for free drinks from Gibson. Carli and Dinah joined their friends in opposite corners, Lexa observed that they didn't belong to the same circles. "This place is sort of the metahuman-underground, a "safe haven" for metas . . . and occasional mutants. That's why it's always busy."

"Can we use our powers?" Shalimar asked.

"As long as they don't cause mass destruction, I guess so, Carli does all the time," Helena said as she saw her sister zoom by in a blur.

Brennan smiled and shot a small Tesla coil at a blinking lightbulb, it surged with light. "It was bugging me."

Gibson came by with a tray full of glasses, he served them all and then exhaled. "So, Mutant X, how are you enjoying our city?"

"It's a whole lot better with such a beautiful hostess," Brennan said charmingly.

Gibson eyed him suspiciously, Helena's eyes flared metahuman feral blue at Brennan and Gibson relaxed. "You don't have to tell me. Oh-yes, Helena, your . . . sister . . . " he switched his choice of words as Helena turned her head toward him. "Will be performing soon . . . along with her friends."

"Ah, you finally folded on the live band thing," Helena teased.

"What? Your sister's music wouldn't be called ..." Helena blinked as Gibson trailed off, wondering what he was going to say, the man opened his mouth and closed it before he walked off.

Lexa laughed. "I love the control you've established over men, Helena," she said admirably.

"Oh, yeah," Helena said, lightly blushing. "Speaking of that . . . " Her hand whipped out toward Jason who was walking by, she wrapped her hand around his neck and pulled him to the table.

"Dammit," Jason swore under his breath.

"Jason . . . now, for you to avoid further embarrassment in front of our guests, I'd suggest that you shut up and listen," Helena began.

Jesse looked horrified at Lexa, imagining what Lexa could pick up from Helena and use against him while Shalimar was already learning.

"What is it, Helena?" Jason asked, raising his eyebrows. "Your jealousy of my ability to sing finally gets to you?"

Helena grinned. ''I heard you picked up my sister-my baby sister-on your motorcycle last night and took her some place . . . where?"

Lexa and Jesse looked at each other, remembering the events of the night before, both wondering if they had to bail the young boy out.

Jason smiled. "If Carli would ever call me in the middle of the night to take her somewhere . . . other then the Clock Tower," he hinted. "You'd hear about it . . . on the news."

Helena smiled, hearing what she wanted to, and let him go. Jason rubbed the back of his neck. "Not anymore, Jason, I mean it."

Jason nodded and walked off, clearly embarrassed. Brennan swallowed hard, imagining what she would do if he had done something wrong. "Damn, Helena, you are a feral."

Helena raised her eyebrows. "It is my gift, as well as my curse."