Mama’s Search

          After Mama Williams got Lasso to rest for a little while under the shade of a tree she looked around, doing a head count. "1...2...3....4...5...." She mumbled then she stopped. "Five?- that's not right..." she looked around and noticed 2 people were missing. She went over to Jet and tapped him. "Hey." She looked down at him. He was sitting against a tree. "Yes ma'am?" He responded and she took one more cautious look around. "Where's your brother?" She asked and Jet shrugged. "I don't know, he just kinda wanders off. He never tells me where he goes he just comes back later" he told her nonchalantly and she sighed. "We're missing X too..." she mumbled while walking away. "Where would they be..." she looked around then looked at the pool of now drying blood and went to it. "If Cypher is missing..." she saw a trail of dried blood droplets on the forest floor. "Hey nick! I'm gonna go take a look at something, your in charge til I get back" she told one of the men and he nodded. "Yes ma'am!" He answered and watched her run off.

She followed the trail of drying blood for a long time before she heard a twig snap behind her and she froze. "Hello there missy." A deep man's voice greeted her and she quickly turned. She's never seen this guy before so she kept a close watch on him. "Need something?" She asked and he nodded and grinned. "Your weapons, food, canteen" he listed. Mama Williams had no intention of giving him anything other then a broken bone if he came close to her. "No I think I'm ok" she began walking backwards but she bumped into someone. There was another man. "Well looks like your goin for a trip missy" the man chuckled and went to grab her but was greeted with an elbow to the stomach and a kick to the knee which brought him down.

She took off running in another direction and the first man ran after her. Mama simply sighed and picked up a rock while running and turned and chucked it. She watched him collapse as the rock hit him right between the eyes. She slowed to a jog and started following the trail again.

Gerald was forced to let X and Ret inside. X lingered by the door but Ret quickly went to Edna who was holding sleeping Cypher. "You know this girl?" Edna asked and Gerald scoffed. "Who doesn't, that girl's a menace." Edna glared at him and he quickly went quiet again. "Yeah I do, been stuck with her for 19 years" he chuckled awkwardly. "What happened to her? Why was she so hurt and where were you?" Edna asked and Ret sighed. "Our home got ambushed, me and my brother were trying to run with her but we got separated in the chaos of it and she must've gotten shot." He explained. He held his arms out a little to Edna. "Can I have her please?.." he asked and Edna nodded and gently moved Cypher to Ret.

The movement had woken Cypher up and she groaned in pain. "I'm sorry.." Ret mumbled and held her. The moment she heard his voice her eyes opened but her vision was blurred. "Jet?.." she mumbled and Ret chuckled. "Wrong twin." He corrected and Cypher smiled faintly. "Hi Ret..." she giggled softly and leaned her head back against his arm. "Twin?" Edna asked and Ret looked at her. "I have a twin brother" he shrugged and Edna nodded. "How do you feel?.." Ret asked and Cypher closed her eyes again. "Like dying..." she answered and Ret frowned a little. "Not the answer I expected I will say-" he shrugged a little and Cypher sighed. "I think I ran into that cowboy....I can't remember his name..." she mumbled.

"Yeah your dad fought him today apparently" Ret told her and Cypher opened her eyes again. "What?..." she looked at him and he nodded. "yeah apparently your dad wanted to just kill you off right there.." he gently stroked her hair. "But Lasso chose violence instead but nearly got strangled for it." He explained and Cypher looked confused. "I don't remember that..." she mumbled and Edna piped up. "Well when I found you you were already unconscious so you didn't see much of anything." Edna shrugged. "I wanna go home...." Cypher mumbled and Ret sighed. "Our home is gone..your dad's "final defense" destroyed it." He sighed and gently hugged her.

Cypher fell asleep cradled in Ret's arms and Edna looked at X-men. "I'm guessing your Jet?" She asked but X shook his head. "Name's X" was all he said and she nodded. "We're gonna have to go soon.." Ret mumbled and Edna quickly turned to look at him. "Oh no she's staying. She is in no condition to travel or anything. Look at her, weak, exhausted, in pain. There's no way she can go out there." Edna protested and Ret frowned. "We can't stay here for long- I have to get back to my brother" he told her but Edna stood up slowly. "We'll leave her here. I don't want her wounds getting infected." She snapped at him. He was surprised. When it came to Cypher most people had Gerald's reaction. Calling her a menace and all that but not this woman. She wasn't giving up.

Cypher's breathing was still a little shallow which worried Edna a little bit but there was nothing she could do about it. She got up and went to another room and cut up a banana. "Maybe that girl should eat a little bit" Edna didn't want to argue at the moment so she chose to keep herself busy with something else. After she cut up a banana she took a canteen and went outside through a back door and to a stream with crystal clear water and filled it up. Edna was determined to nurse Cypher back to help. She didn't care if her husband liked it her not. She went back inside and grabbed then small plate with banana and went back to Cypher.

"Can you sit her up?" Edna asked and Ret gently sat Cypher up. The old woman slowly sat in front of them. She put the plate and canteen down then gently stroked Cypher's cheek. "Hey you have to wake up.." she coaxed and Cypher slowly opened her eyes. "Hungry?" She gently asked but at first Cypher shook her head slowly. "Well your going to have to eat so can we try? A few pieces of banana? Does that sound good?" She convinced her. Cypher sighed and just nodded a little and with the help of Ret she sat up a little more. Edna helped Cypher eat a few small pieces before Cypher said that she couldn't eat any more. Edna the helped Cypher drink a few sips of water. "Ok..you can go back to sleep.." Edna coaxed and Cypher did just that.

How what felt like forever of following the trail Mama Williams finally got to the wood cabin. Through the window she could see X. That's the only one she could recognize. She couldn't even see Ret because he was sitting on the floor but she could also see an old man with a rifle. She looked around at the heads on stakes and noted that this is probably a loner's territory. But how did X get inside without being killed? Why was he in there? She didn't know but she slowly crept to the cabin.