Secondary mutations? Kendra wasn't sure how she felt about it.  it had taken her a long time to come to terms with her mutation. To suddenly have a second one just forced on you.... She watched Allegra carefully. She could see the shame moving over her beautiful features. Kendra reached out a hand and placed it on her shoulder. The unseen hand gently squeezed to let her know that she was alright. Kendra knew what she felt. She used to feel that way about herself. She used to feel like a freak. A monster. She wasn't sure exactly when or why she stopped feeling that way. There was no single catalyst that changed her mind just a life time of adjustment.

Kendra wasn't sure what was going to happen here.  She didn't want to program anything dangerous though.  Nothing that could cause serious harm.  As far as Kendra understood it, the holograms in the danger room were very advanced.  A bullet fired from a hologram could cause you real pain.  The consequences for messing up here were high and she didn't want to put Allegra in any kind of danger.  She didn't have any mutation gifts that could help her out of situations.  It wasn't like the time she went through the danger room with grey and found that she could manipulate metal.  Grey had the ability to change the world around her in impactful ways.  Allegra just caused secondary mutations...  "They're not permanent are they? These secondary mutations?"  Kendra tried to keep the scared quality out of her shaky voice, but she failed miserably.

If there was one thing she knew, it was that being around other mutants helped her feel like less of a freak herself.  Allegra probably just needed time to realize that she wasn't alone.  Kendra was nervous about the idea of having a second mutation suddenly thrust upon her, but she was a little curious as well.  It was scary and exciting and confusing and weird.  "Stealth simulations."  Kendra called out.  The room seemed to change and react to her voice.  The walls turned a shade of dark green and images blurred across the walls.  The images slowed down and came to a stop in front of them with a few choices.  One showed a picture of a giant mansion at the heart of it was a precious jewel that had to be stolen for whatever reason to beat the simulation.  The jewel was locked away in a vault and there were armed guards all around.  The second simulation seemed to be mission impossible themed.  The image seemed to depict a floor covered in laser tripwires.  Like a museum who's security was activated at night.  If you trip the laser than the whole place locked down.  Less likely that they would be able to pull that off with the powers they had available but not impossible.  The third option just showed a guy with a bag on his head tied to a chair.  The there were guards standing in front of him in the image displayed on the wall.  The three images offered a snapshot of what the mission would be like.  Kendra turned to Allegra not sure which one to choose, but maybe Allegra would rather do.

"Well which' suits ya fancy? One of the two heist missions or the rescue mission?"  Kendra asked.  She looked at Allegra still wondering if she was going to put the whammy on her and give her a second power.  She wasn't sure she wanted that, but she also didn't want Allegra to feel like a freak.  Kendra smiled lightly and tried to look less scared than she secretly felt.  Allegra was a good person, she knew that.  She could tell that much just in the short time she had gotten to know her, didn't mean that getting a new power from Allegra wouldn't be scary as all hell.

Allegra sighed. Kendra’s hand on her shoulder felt comforting despite the fact Allegra couldn’t exactly see it. She was getting better with this mutant stuff after all.

“No, they’re not permanent,” Allegra said. “Derek’s back to his old self. And the guy that I turned into a volcano is back to normal. But the lava completely ruined his precious Mercedes.”

She started laughing uncontrollably. “Sorry,” she said. “It’s not funny. It was frightening when I saw him change but ….the look in his eyes.” She started laughing again. God, Kendra was going to think she was insane.

“We were on a date and he just pulled over and he got….” Allegra’s voice trailed off. “What I did to him was no worse than what he probably did to a lot of other girls. Maybe it even taught him a lesson. “

She turned in Kenra’s direction. “I wouldn’t do that kind of thing to anyone on purpose. I'm just warning you that my power is dangerous. But no one has gotten permanently injured. They've all gone right back to normal.”

“Whoa!” Allegra exclaimed as the walls changed color then went all IMAX on her. “This is what? Like a giant video game? Alice would totally love this place."

Allegra looked at her choices. Laser tripwires? Allegra was good at yoga and Twister but didn’t think she’d be flexible enough to maneuver through that. Her first impulse was to help the guy tied to the chair. Maybe he was handsome under that bag over his head and would be grateful to the gal that saved him. But there was no way she could take down those guards. And, let’s back up here. Was Allegra just admiring a hologram? Ewwww. Did people come down here to get off on holograms? That was a whole new level of creepy.

That left option one. A giant diamond. No brainer. Allegra liked diamonds. Again, more guards but they probably weren’t as mean as the ones holding the poor guy hostage.

“I guess I’ll go with the diamond heist,” Allegra announced as if she were a game show contestant. “So how exactly does this work?”

She told herself to relax. It was just holograms. Beams of light. She couldn’t get hurt in here could she?

Well, of course she could. Otherwise they’d call it the Pretty Ray of Light Room instead of the Danger Room. But Allegra wasn’t going to wimp out.

If she got seriously injured, at least she wouldn’t have to take that History test.

Hearing a little more about her powers was reassuring, sort of. Kendra smiled sheepishly, but it wasn't very convincing. Good thing she was invisible. Kendra stood in the massive empty room. Stealth was something she had been practicing. Step one in learning to be more stealthy was learning how to walk without falling on your face. That was something she was nervous about. That was not something she could promise.  If it had been her alone in the danger room she might have gone with the rescue mission, but it wasn't up to her. This was Allegra's first time in the danger room and she wanted her to choose. Kendra couldn't exactly say the danger room was fun. It was a simulation and a very real one at that. The last time she was in the danger room they were in a jungle simulation. They may just be holograms but she could feel the heat of the jungle. Sweat rolled down her head. She wasn't sure if it was in her mind or if Juliette simply turned up the heat on the thermostat before starting, but the danger room would feel very real. You could easily forget that you weren't really there.

“I guess I’ll go with the diamond heist,”

"Diamond heist it is!  They are'a gal's best friend ya know." Kendra said trying to lighten the mood.  These were preprogrammed simulations.  She didn't know all of the parameters that went with them.  The enemy AI was advanced.  She knew that much.  They were able to think and reason almost as well as real people.  It was enough to say at least that you were fighting against some dimwitted but dangerous people.  Kendra looked up at the wall at the picture of the diamond heist. "Diamond heist simulation, Difficulty Novice." As she spoke the words the room seemed to change.  The images on the wall were gone and the walls began to darken.  The curved ceiling seemed to fill with clouds and stars.  Off to the side was the moon and the curvature of the ceiling became undetectable.  It simply seemed as if the sky was above there heads.  Kendra looked down and realized that the cold metal floor beneath them looked like soft wet grass.  She bent down and ran her fingers over it.  It felt like grass.  She was always amazed by how real it felt in here.

They were standing across the street from a mansion.  A large rod iron gate with a eagle on top of it stood directly across from them.  There was a massive brick wall that outlined the entire property and Kendra saw security cameras posted every thirty feet.  Outside the gate men walked along the fence.  Some dressed as civilians, others dressed like street vendors who were less interested in selling wares and more interested in protecting diamonds. "Looks like we're here."  Kendra said.  She was still invisible.  She was a floating pair of boots and a hat.  Not exactly the stealthiest approach you could make.  In fact it was quiet attention grabbing.  From where they stood they were out of the security camera's range.  Kendra was going to make Allegra make the first move and she was going to follow her lead.  She wanted to see what the girl could do.

Allegra was ready for some random special effects. She wasn't ready for reality to twist and turn around her. The walls and the ceiling disappeared and there was suddenly a cool breeze brushing her hair. Allegra was standing outside.

"What?" she exclaimed. "Where did the door go?  Where did everything go? How are we going to get out of here?"

There had to be a way out. Right now Allegra was tasked with finding a way in. That looked pretty impossible too.

"You're the invisible one, not me," Allegra said. "There's no way I can just walk into that mansion." 

She stared at the mansion with all the cameras and just imagined all the security guarding it and the diamond. "I'm fresh out of ideas," she admitted. "Okay I never had any to begin with. I guess I should have watched more cheesy heist movies. Hold on! I just got an idea for a cheesy plan. Not a great plan, but an plan."

"Okay, so getting me in isn't all that important," she continued. "But you're the invisible one. If I can get them to let me in then you can just follow me since you're invisible. Then you sneak downstairs like Casper and nab the diamond while I try to keep everyone else occupied. Let's go to our van."

Allegra was still thinking out loud as she led Kendra down the street away from the mansion. "The Danger Room can create anything, right? So I'm thinking that if we're going to break into this place, we wouldn't just walk in. We'd have a plan and supplies."

This was just a theory but Allegra reasoned the Danger Room would provide. Despite the dumb blonde act she put on most of the time, Allegra could be clever when she wanted to.

Down the street was a nondescript black van. Allegra suddenly had a keychain in her hand. She pointed it at the van and the vehicle beeped in reply. Allegra went to the back and slid the van door open.

"Okay, hold on. I'm going to get changed," she said. She hopped inside. A few minutes later she emerged dressed in a short flowery lace up dress and holding a huge bouquet.

"This is embarrassing, I know," she said. "I told you my idea was cheesy. But it should hopefully get me though the gates and give you a chance to follow and sneak it. Now, tell me what you know about the person who lives in that mansion. Oh, and the diamond."

Allegra walked up to the gate's buzzer. She smiled trying to look as confident and sexy as possible.

"Flower-gram!" she said holding up the bouquet.

Allegra couldn't see it but Kendra was smiling ear to ear. Her plan was so delightfully cheesy that she just had to smile. She didn't laugh though. It wasn't a stupid idea, it was just straight out of a cartoon.  It was something she thought she would never say, but she found herself wanting to say 'it's just so crazy it might actually work.'' Kendra followed her as close as she dared. She was still a floating hat and a pair of walking boots without an owner. She waited until Allegra got inside with her flowers and got a good bit up the walk. She knew she hated it, but she simply teleported up behind her when she was a good ways in.

Keeping her voice low and hard to hear she spoke up, just barely above a whisper. "Well, I don't rightly know much more than you honey. I know we're after something sparkly that's about it. We're suppose to be learning to thank on the fly and adapt I'm guessing." Kendra kept mostly to the shadows. She didn't want to cause any alarms. She supposed in a pitch she could ditch the cap and boots and just run around barefoot with her invisible hair flowing like a wild fire. That could work. They made their way up the front steps. Kendra teleported just inside the front door and unlocked it from the inside. She opened the door and allowed Allegra passage.

Still, Allegra's mutation lingered on her mind. Was she going to use it? If so would she give her warning? Was it something she couldn't control like her own power? So many questions, but now wasn't the time. Unfortunately the diamond was only a simulation.  They wouldn't actually get to keep if if they managed to get it. Kendra looked around the large mansion. It was much bigger than the mansion they were actually in this is going to take awhile she thought. Kendra reached over and slipped her hand into Allegra's she wasn't rightly sure why she thought that was going to calm her nerves.  It didn't much.  If anyone got them caught it was going to be her. 

"So What's part two'oyour plan?  Or are we flyin by the seam of ya pants right now....Er...Ummm dress..."  Kendra asked.  She could see movement upstairs.  The guards seemed to be hovering more so around two areas.  One of them had to be where the diamond was.  There was a lot of guard activity upstairs and something seemed to be going on in the back of the mansion too. She saw several guards head that way in a little pack.  She was willing to put her money on upstairs though.  "Thank it might be somewhere up there... Looks like about 20 rooms though, don't rightly wanna go searching each one." Kendra said.  She noticed Allegra still had the flowers in her hand.  She reached over and plucked them out o her hand and stuck them in a trash can.  "Don't thank you'll be need'n em anymore." She said as her eyes darted around all the commotion. 

So Kendra didn’t know much either. No problem. Allegra had it covered.

“I’ll just check the information on my tablet which I’m sure to have realy before starting a heist like this,” Allegra said. It had worked before when the Danger Room provided them a van. Allegra turned her hand over expecting the tablet to magically appear. She would then be able to look up all the info they needed.

Except, there was nothing. There was obviously a limit to the Danger Room’s generosity. Had Allegra thought of this when they were in the van, she might have been able to learn more about their target. As it stood now, they were both going into this blind.

“Okay. Plan B. Learn on the fly and adapt,” Allegra repeated. She didn’t even have a Plan A. This mission looked to be over before it even began.

The door swung open letting Allegra into the mansion. She was now realizing that Kendra probably could have gotten her inside all along. Suddenly Allegra was jealous. Sure the bit about never really sleeping had its downsides but Allegra wished she could just teleport all over the place like that.

Allegra clutched Kendra’s invisible hand. It did make her feel safer. Not safe, but safer.

“Okay, I guess we need a plan, huh?” Allegra said. “Ok. Plan #1.” She held up a finger so she could count all the plans she was going to have. So far, there was just one.

“Plan 1 is that I continue with the cheesiness,” she said. “I pull the flowers out of the garbage and flirt with whoever owns this place and hope he or she gives me some information because that always works in the movies.”

“Plan 2 is you go searching 20 rooms while everyone is distracted because we could get lucky after just one or two rooms. Plus you can go wherever you want and you’re invisible and you can teleport.” Allegra was starting to think that Kendra could pull this off on her own and Allegra was just along for the ride.

“Plan 3,” she continued happy she was counting these plans on her fingers because she’d lose track otherwise. She was obviously winging it. “For this plan we check out what all those guards are rushing to check on. It looks like we’ve already got a distraction with whatever is going on. Maybe it’ll inspire us to come up with another plan where we can just fly by the seam of my dress or whatever it is you’re wearing right now.”

“Plan 4 is we create our own distraction,” she said. “I can use my power on one of the guards. There’s downsides though. First, they have to be a mutant for it to work and I’m not gonna know who’s a mutant or not until I try it. Also I might not be able to create a suitable distraction because my power’s pretty random. I turned one guy into a human volcano. That would be a good distraction. I turned Derek into a hot girl. Come to think of it, that might be a good distraction too. But I can’t guarantee what it’s gonna do.”

“Plan number….what number are we on? Oh five I think,” Allegra said. “I don’t have a Plan 5 unless you do.” She waited to see if Kendra thought any of these ideas were any good or if she had some of her own.

Or maybe they would just be out of luck. That would probably be Plan #6.

Kendra stood there listening to the girl rattle off plans like they were going out of style. She presented her with so many choices that for a moment Kendra thought her head was going to implode. She smiled though. She kept having to remind herself that people couldn't tell how she was feeling by her facial expressions. Invisibility was something you never seemed to quite get used to no matter how long you've had it. "Easy girl, don't blow a circuit." She said looking around. Kendra was used to more danger in the danger room. Though, she had to be honest; she wasn't entirely sure what the guards would do if they got caught.

"How bout we follow them see what all the fuss is bout?" Kendra said pointing to the guards hurrying down the corridor. She hadn't programed the simulation. It was possible this diamond was protected by an army of mutant guards. That would be something wouldn't it? Not just trying to deal with one power but several mutant powers all trying to take you out? That was enough to make your head spin in and of itself. Kendra moved quickly down the corridor. Allegra could follow her by the floating hat and boots. Though she decided to take the hat off and toss it onto a little table by the front door. Now she could only be seen by a pair off dirty scuffed boots that she wore on her feet. After all, if they got caught Kendra was invisible she could hide. Allegra would be the one with her neck in a noose standing on a stick of butter.

Kendra edged her way down the hall careful not to grab any unwanted attention. For the most part the guards seemed pretty distracted by whatever was going on. They weren't really paying attention to a pair of ghostly boots moving swiftly across the floor. "If we get into trouble, just flirt your way out.... You're real cute and these guys look pretty stupid... I'm sure you can manage." Kendra said in a low voice.

As they found their way into the next room Kendra was greeted with the site of what appeared to be papparazi at the back gate. She peered through the glass window that led to the backyard. Her body slightly visible in the glass reflection. Kendra looked past her reflection to see the owner of the mansion arriving home. It seems as though he thought slipping in the back way would be less conspicuous. Apparently this simulated mansion owner was famous and the guards were trying to ensure that he got in with as little hassle as possible. "Looks like there's our distraction. Let's search upstairs." What they didn't know was that this mansion didn't just house a rare diamond. It was also a stolen diamond and the person who stole it had just gotten home. He was dangerous mutant with the power to change your perception of reality.  He could change layouts of buildings with his mind. It was an illusion, but he had the power to created endless hallways and rooms that did not exist. He had the ability to bring the walls closer and closer together until you were thought you'd be crushed. He would laugh at your terror. He went by the name Mirage.  He had the power to change what was real.

Kendra didn't see anything particularly special about the man as he made his way to the house. He was a ordinary looking guy. Kind of handsome, but nothing worth screaming your head off about. With little more than a shrug she turned back to Allegra. "Ok so we should start heading upstairs. Bet that's where it is... And I know ain't the time to get all sentimental, but wanted to tell ya you're doing pretty good for your first time in the....." The lights went out. Kendra looked around them to see that the whole mansion was cast into darkness. When the lights came back on they were standing in a large empty room. Bright white walls all around them... There was no windows, no doors and no exits...."Uhh...Allegra? Did'chu give me some sorta power I wasn't aware of?"  Kendra asked confused.  Her voice sounded far off and distant as she marveled at the sudden change.

(Sorry it took me a few days ^.^)

How bout we follow them see what all the fuss is bout?"


“Let’s go,” Allegra said. She wondered what could be causing such a commotion. Was someone else trying to steal the diamond?

Allegra was glad that Kendra ditched the hat. A floating hat was even less inconspicuous than Allegra’s garish Flower-Gram dress. The hat was much more stylish, of course,  but floating hats by their very nature raised suspicions.  Whistling ‘These Boots Were Made For Walking’ under her breath, Allegra followed Kendra’s footwear.

“I don’t know if I can flirt my way out of anything,” Allegra whispered. “I’m not that pretty….” She stopped there. This was no time for modesty. She had to be fully focused on what was going on around her.

She expected danger but instead it was something straight out of TMZ. Paparazzi were everywhere. “Who’s that guy?” Allegra asked. She didn’t recognize him and he really didn’t have much of a presence. “Is he some tech geek?” she asked. For all she knew, this was the guy who invented Snapchat. She knew all the hot actors and singers but she was far less familiar with the nerd crowd.
 
Whoever he was, he was causing a lot of attention so Allegra let that be a distraction and followed Kendra upstairs. She hoped they could stumble on the diamond right away. Sure, that wouldn’t be much of a challenge but this simulation was just too real. Allegra felt like she could be arrested any second and this was certainly not the outfit she wanted to be wearing when they took her mug shot.

Then everything went completely dark. Had they been caught or was this another distraction? When the lights came on they were in an empty room. It was kind of like how he Danger Room appeared before the simulation appeared but brighter.

“That wasn’t me,” Allegra answered Kendra when she asked if she used her powers. “Did the program just shut down? There's no more holograms.“

Wait, if this was the Danger Room’s original setting, then they should be able to see the door. There was no door. They were trapped in a giant white room.

Allegra didn’t even consider that their ‘host’ had them trapped. She was still convinced this was a bug in the program. “What do we do when the program shuts down like this? Can we call for help?”