Bubbles. So many bubbles. Drifting through the air. The construction site was full of workers, and each and every one of them did not know how to react. The foreman scratched his cheek. He adjusted his hard hat, which had shifted a little as he had stared up. The men had ceased all activity. No hammering, drilling, no cement pouring, none of whatever else they did on-site. An electrician swore. How could one little lizard mutant cause so much trouble? With bubbles.

It was not that he was actively causing harm to anyone in particular. Sure, a bubble that formed around an object would make it float within the bubble. A lot of wrenches got carried off. Drills too, hammers, even whole tool boxes, if the bubble was big enough. But no person was actively being hurt. Just inconvenienced. Which cost them time. And time is money, friend. They called the X-men.

Cold Steel got the blip on his communicator, probably around the same time as Shin did. The person relating the call back to active team members had determined them to be nearest, according to GPS. The site was on —address—, some several blocks away from them. It was run by Grunnings and Drillsley, Construction. Mr. Vernon was not pleased. He told Cold Steel that very detail, at great length, repeatedly, when he arrived. He gave Sam the drill.

Four-foot tall red dragon lizard-looking mutant was blowing bubbles and causing trouble on-site. Causing tools and things to bobble all over the place. It was a real

b u b b l e b o t h e r.

He harrumphed and wiggled his moustache in frustration.

“Could you do something about it?” He asked.

”You serious?” Sam sighed loudly when he got there. Bubbles. Everywhere. This wasn’t the call he was expecting. Usually when he got a call there was less... a bubble floated by with a half eaten sandwich in it as someone chased it. Whimsical was the word he’d use to describe it. In fact this would have been a great job for the Trainees.

There were none around though so Sam sighed. Maybe he’d have one or two follow him around when he went out on patrol? No, not all of them could move as fast as he could in the air and the ones that could, he’d doubt he’d have the patience to play babysitter.

Might as well make this quick. ”I get it.” Sam said finally wanting the man to shut up about deadlines and how behind they already were. The man complaining about headaches and unions was starting to become the thing he was complaining about. ”Mischief isn’t normally something we deal with but... I get it.” Sam said as he sidestepped a bubble inches from his face. No telling what they did when they popped but Sam had a feeling he was going to figure it out.

”Have everyone take a lunch. I’ll handle this.” he said as he started to walk over towards the mutant. ”Any reason you are making bubbles here?” Sam asked trying to understand the situation a bit more.

Oh boy. Oh boy, oh boy oh boy, what terrible timing.

Kealey would kill him: absolutely murderize him. No remains. Incinerated. Flash nuke. But not even an outline. Nothing left.

A call, now? While he was out and about with—

Doing errands with—

Ho boy.

The mode of transportation he prepared, he had spent a great deal of time on, before this event, of course. Preparing. Little had he known how relevant it would be. He strapped everyone in, once he had summoned it, he had made sure it had seatbelts. Then, Shin had landed neatly, a bit of a walking distance away from the site. He could walk. But he had to prepare.

He prepared carefully, strapping on the vest, making sure every belt was neatly attached, every support, supporting. He focused entirely on the safety of it, spent a good few minutes just being certain. He even figured out, and created a little safety helmet for everyone, out of shards. This was a construction site. He had to focus on safety.

Safety is important!!!

Sam had arrived first. Shin had figured that would have happened. He had spent all that time, preparing yeah. Sam was already speaking with a little red guy.

Shin approached cautiously. He stopped several feet away, as red guy turned to Sam.

“I’m mad!” The little red guy shouted. “They fired my brother, and I am mad!”

”Hey Sam,” Shin called out, from a distance.

He was wearing a front-facing baby chest carrier, and there was a baby in it. A very young baby, barely a few months. Both Shin and the child were wearing yellow shard safety helmets and safety glasses.

Safety is important. He saw both Sam and the kobold mutant were not wearing safety gear.

”Put on safety gear, guys. And then let’s talk this out peacefully.” Shin said. He couldn’t believe Sam. No safety gear, on a construction site?! OSHA would eat the supervisor for lunch. The X-men were a liability.

The little guy hopped up and down, mad. “No safety gear?! Yeah! Who told you why my brother Kyle got fired!!! They need to pay!!” And then he tried to bubble Cold Steel.

Oh. Oops?

>>> “They fired my brother, and I am mad!”

Sam sighed heavily. It sounded like a kid but with mutants and the red skin he couldn’t be too sure. Looked like less action and more talking. It wasn’t always a bad thing. It could have been said that others on the team thought Sam could use some work on his diplomacy. Something the icemancer had little patience for now. Between mystics and everything else going on in his life he was short on it.

>>>”Hey Sam,”

Sam waved a hand to Shin, a voice he recognized instantly. The bulge on his chest was new though. The body heat was off and it caused him to look at the shardmancer as he approached. Kealey had the baby!!!! Ever since his mind control years ago the icemancer melted when he saw the little kids. He was a father, well not really. Those kids were an illusion but the feelings were still there. Sam at one point was a father. The best job he never actually had.

His expression went from irritated to ‘awwwwwww’ then to irritated again. Sam got distracted and sidestepped a bubble. ”She had the baby!?!?” Sam asked looking back to bubble boy. ”Give me a second. We can talk in a second. Keep doing... whatever you are doing.”

”When?” Sam asked Shin. ”How’s Kealey?” he asked as a follow up, then added. ”Wait does she know your in the field with them?” Sam pointed as a bubble flew between them. ”She’s gonna kill you... shes gonna kill me?” he asked wondering if he was now an accomplice.

“Hey!” the kobold yelled as Sam turned back to see a bubble engulfing his finger. The icemancer got distracted once again and turned to see his finger get pulled towards the bubble as it was expanding trying to engulf the childless X-man.

”Sorry! Not ignoring you. But... baby!” ice erupted from his fingertip that was engulfed causing the inside of the bubble to fill with ice and snow causing it to get bigger in the process. ”Not what I was hoping would happen...” the bubble engulfed his forearm as Sam kept trying to walk backwards faster than the growing bubble.

Had Sam not been told? Weird.

Shin told him “no,” she had not had the baby. Because he was messing with him. Clearly, this was someone else’s small child. Shouldn’t have even taken it anywhere near this place. But he’d been overconfident.

He shook his head, when Sam asked if Kealey knew he had brought the child HERE. Kill him. Absolutely murder.

Regret.

Annoyance.

Kill Sam? As an accomplice. Shin said ‘yeah.’ Gestured with one finger, neck slicing motion towards Sam. Mess with him.

The man seemed to melt around any babies. Shin knew this. He needed to invest in a sitter.

The little guy tried to get their attention. They tried to engulf Sam. Shin sighed.

No one had put on safety gear, as requested.

Sam filled the bubble with ice. Added weight would probably prevent it from carrying him off. But it seemed that had not been his goal.

Shin took several steps back, then raised his voice. Not shouted, raised. Baby.

”I don’t know if you’ve noticed, Sir. I have a small child. Please stop fighting my friend. We can move away from the site and talk. This all seems pretty ridiculous right now.”

kobold was all like “damn,” as the wind left his sails and he relaxed a little. He wanted the site owners to pay, not a small blameless baby who never did anything bad in his life. Though that someone would use a child as a bargaining chip was kind of shady. But—

“Let’s go out into the parking lot. There’s a nice set of benches by the sidewalk where my brother always takes— took- his lunch.”

He started walking. The bubble was still on Sam, he had sort of forgotten. If the man told him, he would dismiss it, but— eh.

Shin moved to follow.