“Under the Cloak of War” is episode fifteen of season two of Mutant X.
Jesse and Brennan are at a party; Brennan isn’t impressed as it’s just a bunch of rich people standing around congratulating themselves on how much better they are. Jesse comments on the chip on Brennan’s shoulder. Brennan says Jesse doesn’t like them any better than Brennan. No, Jesse doesn’t. But it’s where he came from. No-one likes these parties; the trick is to not let it show. Emma and Shalimar arrive then, all dressed up.
Adam is also there, talking to a group about regulating advanced genetic funding when a woman congratulates him on telling the truth. She’s Serena. Just Serena. She works at the gene sequence lab at Berkley. Adam comments that she doesn’t look like she does. She expected better from him. He apologises; maybe he can make it up to her by buying her a drink. The other four are watching, seemingly trying to decide if Adam is doing what it looks like he’s doing.
Adam heads upstairs with Serena. He asks her last name. She whispers it in his ear. Now he knows, she has to kill him. And her bracelet turns into a dagger and she attacks. Adam manages to find her off, revealing a tattoo, and Shalimar notices below. She heads upstairs and kicks Serena off the balcony. Quite a high balcony too.
The others ask Adam what happened. He wishes he knew. Someone seems to want him dead. Perhaps it’s the speech he’s going to give. Jesse suggests there are more than a few people who’d like payback against them.
At Sanctuary, Adam explains the tattoo he saw. A blue lightning bolt. He thought the existence of Blue Bolt was am myth, but it’s real. They are rumoured to be an elite assassination ring, supposed to have training and weaponry second to none. They can go after anyone, anytime, anywhere. He isn’t going to reconsider speaking, though. Jesse suggests infiltrating the group, but who to do it. If you run with the hunters, you need a predator. Shalimar.
Someone is currently speaking to a man (Sebastian Spence) by video. Serena was supposed to be the man’s best operative. She was; Adam must have had help. The employer wants Adam dead before the conference.
Brennan tries talking to Adam and Shalimar. He isn’t sure sending Shalimar in is the best idea. No offence. She takes offence. Adam says that they are both good, but Shalimar’s abilities make her a natural. Adam has found out how to contact Blue Bolt. At a bar. Brennan wants backup for Shalimar. Adam tells him they can’t risk too many unfamiliar faces. They will be in constant contact with Shalimar via the commlink. Brennan tries apologising to Shalimar but, overall, that could have gone better.
Armed with a fake rap sheet, Shalimar heads to the bar. Her commlink goes down and Jesse assumes they have anti-surveillance jamming. In the bar, the bartender doesn’t want to serve her mineral water with a twist. Then a guy hits on Shalimar, in a rather insulting way. She hits on him, and his friends. It doesn’t go well for them. She gets her drink.
The man who sent Serena was watching and comes over. He says Shalimar is good. She says she heard this is a place where someone like her can get a job. Doing what needs to be done for a lot of money. Noel says there might be an opening. Then drugs her.
Brennan is still worried about Shalimar, and speaks to Adam. Adam worries about all of them, but Brennan is being overprotective. Shalimar is powerful, smart and careful. She doesn’t need Brennan’s worry; she needs his support. A partner provides support and trusts what Shalimar can do.
Shalimar wakes up and the man who drugged her introduces himself as Noel. That drug would have kept anyone else out for six more hours. This is how the job starts. He’d like to know how Shalimar learned how to fight; he’s got her arrest records, but her skills show she has training. When Noel leaves, Shalimar tries using her commlink, but gets nothing.
Leaving the room, Shalimar overhears a conversation between Noel and another man. Their client, Benjamin McTeague, expects results. Noel is thinking of using Shalimar on the mission. Shalimar tries contacting Sanctuary again. Part of her call gets through, but she can’t hear any responses.
Adam recognises the name. McTeague used to be his best friend, but they had a falling out 20 years ago and he dropped out of sight. McTeague believed in unrestricted research. Emma says anything could be justified by that. Adam says it was. They agreed to disagree, and left it. Emma thinks there’s more. Adam asks if he forgot to mention the bit where he fell in love with McTeague’s wife, Lucy. Yes. Yes, he did.
Shalimar is going to get the job of assassinating Adam, but first she has to prove herself by killing someone randomly. In addition, Noel looks to be rather struck with her. The feeling might be mutual to a degree.