Gary Seven spent the rest of the night trying to find more information about Lewis Anderson. It was now obvious that he was involved in a race riot that fourteen blacks had died in, but was he actually involved in any of the killings? That was still unknown. Now he had two options. He could either present his evidence to Anderson himself, and hope that he would resign, or go to the Prime Minister, Simon Harkes, and hope that he would force Anderson to resign.
Professor Xavier moved through the corridors of his Muir Island mansion until he came to the infirmary. He released the computer lock, and the door opened. He was amazed at what he found inside. Watt was still lying on the bed, and he was still in a weakened state, but it was who was standing over Watt that surprised Xavier, it was Magus. Magus had his hand placed on Watt’s head.
“You’re the last person I expected to find here.” said Xavier.
Magus motioned for Xavier to stay silent. After a few seconds Magus removed his hand from Watt’s head. Xavier moved towards him.
“I found no way to help him with his pain.” said Xavier. “All I could tell was that he was going through some sort of physical change.”
“He would not have been able to go through this change without your help, Charles.” said Magus. “He is still very weak, but he will return to full strength in a few days.”
“What exactly is the change he is going through?”
“He is developing powerful abilities. His strength and speed are increasing rapidly. He is becoming intangible, almost totally invulnerable. And, my first estimate as to his aging process was slightly off. Instead of aging one year every fifty, I estimate it to be one year every thousand!”
Simon Harkes was on the campaign trail. His campaign bus pulled into it’s next stop at a local television station in the north of England. He was due to take part in a local debate programme. A few minutes after arriving and greeting the various heads at the station he was taken into one of the dressing rooms. His press secretary left him alone in the room when he received a telephone call. As Harkes was reading the speech he was due to give at a dinner later that evening he heard a sound behind him. At first he paid no heed to it, and continued to read his speech, but then he heard the sound again. He turned around to see a man standing behind him. The man was Gary Seven.
“Who are you?” asked Harkes. “How did you get in here?”
“My name is unimportant.” said Seven. “The information I have for you is, however, very important, and it could have an outcome on this election.”
Seven held up a file.
“In this folder is some interesting information regarding the leader of Anglo-Force, Chameleon. All I way say is that if he remains as leader he could become a liability for your government, should you be re-elected.”
Seven handed the folder to Harkes.
“You still haven’t told me who you are.” said Harkes.1
“Let’s just say that I’m a concerned citizen.”
Seven then made his exit through a back entrance.
Watt was just about to come round. At first he could hardly see, because everything was still a daze. Then, slowly, his eyesight returned. He was surprised at the first face he saw. It was a smile he could recognise anywhere, the smile of the woman he loved, Katrina Velichev.
“What are you doing here?” he whispered. “I thought you were in Russia, awaiting trial.”
“My case was thrown out, due to lack of evidence.”
Watt looked around, and then saw the bulge under Katrina’s dress.
“Looks like the prison food in Russia is better than in this country!” Watt smiled.
“It is not food, it is…your son!”
Watt’s expression changed to one of amazement. A broad smile then appeared on his face. He reached out and touched Katrina’s stomach. Watt then noticed a familiar figure standing in the corner, the figure of one Dr. Magus. Magus walked over to him.
“Be still, James. Your body has undergone a drastic change, and you are still very weak. You must rest, because when you regain your strength we have much ground to cover.”
A week passed. Simon Harkes studied very carefully the information given to him by Gary Seven. He put his top men on the job to see if it was true. The news got back to Harkes that it was. Harkes then had several meetings with his top advisors, discussing what they should do. Then, the worst possible thing happened. Somehow the story of Chameleon’s past leaked to the press, and they had a field day. Many candidates, including some in Harkes’ party, spoke out against Chameleon and called for his immediate resignation. Reporters gathered outside the grounds of the Anglo-Force mansion. This was a bigger story than the Red Sun affair. The main question was how could a possible racist get to be leader of Britain’s foremost crime fighting force, and how come the information was not known until now? Perhaps they should pointed their fingers to a planet many thousands of light years away.
The revelations were clearly damaging to the government, but they were especially helpful to Simon Kennedy in his attempt to become an M.P. for London South-West. In that area the impossible seemed to be happening. Kennedy was actually overtaking Sir Angus Campbell-Bannerman in popularity. He was now three percentage points ahead of the Home Secretary.
Another week passed, but still there was no word from the Anglo-Force mansion, and, as predicted, this was hurting the government’s chances of re-election. They had dropped five percentage points, giving the opposition a four point lead. Then, after a further two days, a written statement was given to the awaiting media by the Anglo-Force solicitor, Arthur Pendragon. It was a long drawn out statement, but basically it said one thing, Lewis Anderson, the Chameleon, had resigned as leader. It seems that the last two remaining members, Star Man and White Knight, had put a lot of pressure on him. But did the resignation come too late for the government? The election was now just over a week away. A damage limitation exercise was put in place. The opposition was playing heavily on this. A day after the resignation it was announced that the file on the race riots was being re-opened by the Department of Public Prosecutions. It was first thought that Arthur Pendragon would be placed in charge of this inquiry, but he declined the offer, citing a conflict of interests.
Gary Seven walked around his office, gathering up his equipment and preparing to leave for his home. He walked over to his computer and began to erase his files. Then, as he went to leave the room, he noticed someone standing at the window. It was Magus. Magus then walked through the window.
“May I speak with you?” Magus asked.
“I am preparing to leave.” said Seven. “I have a long journey ahead of me.”
“I know. But I would like to thank you for all you have done. You have secured the future of Anglo-Force, for possibly many years. They were in great danger of self-destructing under Chameleon’s command.”
“These events could have been avoided if you hadn’t disappeared. In a way you are responsible for my returning to Earth.”
“Are you saying that I should have stayed here? It was clear that I was not wanted.”
“I’m not so sure. Many people had placed their faith in you. Many of them would have died for you. If not for you none of this would have happened. Sure, the Black Squadron would have attacked the Anglo-Force mansion, and Woodwose would still have been attacked by that alien device, but those events would have been less severe had you stuck around. An I don’t think I need to remind you that James Watt nearly died while you were away. Charles Xavier is a capable man, but he is nothing compared to one of the Istari.
“There are many people who depend on you. One with a power like yours can’t just run away when someone loses faith in him. They have to re-affirm that faith. Now, if you don’t mind, I have a train to catch.”
Seven walked over to his transporter. Magus placed a hand on Seven’s shoulder.
“You are probably right, Mr. Seven. I was wrong to disappear, but now I’m back, and I intend to do anything I can to keep Anglo-Force together. And we could certainly use someone with your unique abilities.”
Seven turned round to faced Magus.
“Are you trying to recruit me, Doctor?”
Election day had arrived. The turnout was one of the highest in democratic history. Both main parties were confident of victory, with Simon Harkes and Neil Smith predicting victory for themselves. It was a long and drawn out wait for those involved. Needless to say many fingernails were trimmed on this evening. Many marginal seats that were held by the government were won by the opposition. Then the result came in from London South-West. What many thought would be impossible happened. Simon Kennedy, a wheelchair-bound retired super-hero, had beaten the seemingly unbeatable Sir Angus Campbell-Bannerman, but only by a majority of thirty-seven votes. Naturally Mr, Kennedy was very happy, and he had indeed made history, becoming the first wheelchair-bound member of parliament. Then, almost twenty-four hours after the polls had first opened, and late because of several recounts from around the country, the result was in. The government had lost. The opposition had won with a majority of twenty-three seats. It seemed that the Chameleon incident had indeed been damaging to the government. It probably cost them victory. Neil Smith was asked by the King to form a government. The question was, however, would there be a place for a rookie M.P. with some leadership experience
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