Love & Duty
Chapter One
The scene was nauseating. The team looked at people, mutants just about the same age as them surviving in the winter with nothing but scrap securing their modesty. It shocked and saddened the teachers that things could get so bad and so messy but they understood that through their struggle to become accepted by the world people would be hurt and mutants would be used for mean that did not help the rest of the world. Watching them struggle with their injuries was hard to watch but that was all they could do as the three teens huddled together in a group trying to keep the heat between them. Just one female and two males. The female looked like she was trying hard to stay awake, shivering, lips turning blue from the burning rain that chilled her body to the core. Her body was barely covered allowing her legs to shown and her top hung of her shoulder showing the team all the scars she received during her capture.
Logan watched impressed at the survival training knowing that someone had taught them how to survive in the wilderness. Various plants and berries were scattered around them some could be used as herbs and others as food and they knew what they were doing and what they were for. The two males carefully attended to her unaware of the eyes that watched them and saw how they treated her wounds as best as they could and tried to cater to the pain that she felt as they tried to tend to her. The look on of her face showed so much concentration and trust that everyone watched in awe as she bit her lips trying to muffle her screams a thick mixture was place unto her wounds. The tears came but they continued. She new that they were helping her so she made no move to stop them but nodded with determination as they silently as her permission to place more unto her. Ororo watched transfixed her mind going back to her childhood. She knew what kind of mixture that was. A group of herbs used by herbalists to sooth injuries and sped the healing of wounds whilst at the same time killing any germs that may have entered the body. The technique was only known to her people so how did these children know the techniques and how did they know how to use them with such precision.
The group tensed as the girl who was being treated looked straight in their direction watched transfixed as her eyes narrowed and turned cat-like. Her pupils dilated and irises turn to slits. She continued to stare in their direction and everyone watched with shock as both men turned in their direction with dead eyes promising more pain then they themselves endured. Logan took a step forward announcing the teams' location. There was no point of hiding now the longer the hid the more cautious they would become. They were trained well and were already weakened. The kid did look older than nineteen and the girl looked even younger then the boys who inched forward protectively.
The first person to make a move to attack was the man whose eyes bled red; his stance was rigid with anger as he approached the group struggling to remain upright but determination was etched across his face as he hid the girl from their view. Scott was the first to step forward his hand to his visor ready to attack if need be when Rogue rushed forward annoyed by the arrogance Scott portrayed and stood directly in front of the brown skinned statue starring defiantly and continued to move aware of her team mate apprehension but she couldn't care they were in pain and it angered her that Scott's first instinct would be to fight instead of offer help. It was like he spoke but with his eyes. He was worried the girls safety and when she looked closer she saw the matching tattoos they both had one on his left shoulder of cat eyes with the name 'Naomi' whilst hers were flames with the name 'Timothy'. She stepped closer knowing he saw that she put the pieces together and watched as he calmed and nodded before turning his back and limping back to his other half. The other male watched with caution but kept his eyes on the three adult especially Logan who was more of a threat than the Professor. The two older X-Men looked over the teen's broad frame nothing but hard raw muscle that Colossus could not compare to but he wasn't as broad as Colossus.
His body was scarred with different types of scars and bruising forming different shapes about his body. One could tell that most were recent and some were old and the ones that were recent seemed to hideous to look at. He held a couple of tattoos across his body such as a Japanese symbol on the back of right shoulder and then he had a cross on his left shoulder. On his arms he held a few tattoo's making a well designed and complicated pattern on his arm and then on his neck was a small inscription that said 'never surrender, die trying to succeed in what you believe in or give them hell, letting your rage and courage guide your heart but wisdom guard your mind and soul' .
The boys seemed to be at least seventeen or eighteen and bared a similar resemblance to the other excepted he looked at them with weary dark brown eyes and was a little tenser as if ready for a battle. The only clothing he had on his body was a large pair of boxers that clung to his body like a second skin and left nothing to imagination and if the situation wasn't so frightening he would have pairs of female eyes watching his every move. His brown eyes watched them without emotion except suspicion. The other male was in worse condition or so it seemed. His arm was heavily bandaged and so were his ribs. He was a shade lighter the other male and had a few less scars and tattoo's but one scar stood out and it reached from his left peck all the way to the bottom of his abdominals. His eyes were slightly closed but he still continued on the unconscious girl.
The two X men looked at them with worry and surprise at their stances. Their bodies seemed automatically trained to battle and both their eyes looked hard. Suddenly they both jerked out of their stance when the girl began to mumble and groan incoherent words and out of nowhere her body sprang out of it resting place and into a near by tree. Both jumped up slightly startled by her action but you could see relief plastered on their faces as they saw that she was okay. She sat there clinging to the tree forgetting her body's indecencies and breathed hard and fast containing her adrenaline. Even with her pain and fatigue she was still amazingly fast and you could see her eyes were calculating and fearful at the same time
She was a mixed raced girl with hazel green eyes and was wearing almost nothing. The clothing she wore was a black vest that clung to her body and small boxers. She shivered against the tree with scraps and bruises decorating her body. Her eyes stayed on the elder x men as they carefully neared the trio and as soon as they took another step her eyes slightly flashed and her eyes turned into a cat-like gleam and a predatory look took over her fear filled features. Logan who sensed danger immediately made his claws spring fourth but it caused more chaos than good as both men took it as a threat and quickly took nearing the tree ready to defend the girl and take both of them down. Both the men stood their stance fighting the pain that ignited throughout their body and Xavier looked at them astonished that they could still stand and held out a hand of peace
"We mean no harm we just wanted to help. I found that your mutant signatures were virtually almost non existent and we came here to help not for a fight!" The whole area elapsed in silence and watched as Rogue and the girl seemed to look at each other both forming some sort of bond. Rouge nodded and the girl sighed and said tired; her voice almost non existence like her life force and she bite out carefully
"What are your names?" Xavier could understand her weariness and wheeled closer to the girl aware he was being watched by the man with the large scar across his chest
"My name is Professor Xavier!" Everyone watched with shock as they all visibly relaxed and the girls hold against the tree turned lax and said whilst her eyes lost their predatory look
"I am Panther, he is Inferno and he is Rampage; it took you long enough too find us!" Xavier noticed that she hadn't said their real names and realised they were still wary of them but watched transfixed as the larger teen called Rampage faced away from the group and looked towards the ocean and said coldly his fist clenching
"Run now!" Inferno was about to disagree but they all saw the cold fury that came across his eyes. Inferno looked at his cousin with slight fear then looked at Xavier and said hurriedly
"Let's get to that jet quickly!" Wolverine was about to reply when a strong telepathic force hit them unexpectedly and flung them into the awaiting jet and locked it shut and threw it into the air causing everyone in the plane to gasp in shock and surprise. Xavier watched in horror as the boy was suddenly surrounded by five armed men and prepared to fight them by himself. He looked at his two friends who watched with fear and anger. Everyone watched from the distance as he fought and fought one by one each man went down but he took a few hits and went down a couple of times but he always got up no matter the injuries and fought harder than before.
Xavier watched in shock as he flew into the air and shouted
"Move the fucking thing now!" Something in them compelled them to follow the order without argument and they watched as the last two men took off into the air with him still punching and trying to restrain him.
He swore loudly as a loud shot was heard through the clouds then he staggered from the air but flew again holding his arm and flew straight for the jet and quickly entered it forcing the door open with his telekinesis and shouted at Inferno
"Do it!" Inferno quickly stood in front of the door using his body as a shield to protect the bleeding Rampage as his hands began to heat up and fire ignited earning a few gasps from the X men and watched in shock as he spread his hands forward and directed it at them men who looked more than shocked and retreated quickly.
Xavier quickly closed the hatch and watched as the man lay on the floor with Scott hovering over him trying to tend to the wounds but the man angrily pushed him away making Cyclops land roughly into Night crawler.
The girl called Panther rushed to his side as did Inferno and inspected his wound with worry
"You need treatment Rampage. You're too injured to survive like this!" Rampage tensed for a while before he said painfully
"I know. I want a proper doctor not a fucking boy who is my age and doesn't know shit about what he is doing!"
Cyclops was about to retaliate but Storm and Beast quickly beat him to it and tentatively knelled beside the boy. Storm gently inspected the wound trying hard not to injure him and said soothingly
"You need a sedative!" He tense quickly and shook his head adamantly and said cruelly
"Just get it out; I don't care how!" She shook her head refusing to do such a task.
Ororo knew the boy was right. Warriors back home refused sedatives as well it made them weak and unable to act coherently. She could see the pain he was in and said moving forward and pressing down on his wound
"It will hurt!" He nodded and watched as she automatically pulled a small dagger from her hair making it fall around her shoulders making her look more angelic that possible. Everyone student gasped in shock as she swiftly pushed the dagger into the wound trying to ignore that hiss he made and inspected for the bullet lodged in his shoulder. She looked at him with confirmation and said her eyes glowing white
"Brace yourself!" Before anyone could protest lightning shot from her hand straight into the wound, everyone gasped in shock as he his body shot up and screamed in pain and the bullet went straight through him making his eyes roll to the back of his head and watched as he collapsed, unconscious. Both his friend starred in shock and Panther began rocking and said
"He is still alive right!" Beast quickly nodded and got to work whilst the rest of the teenage mutants watched in silence.
...
They had healed nicely. It was a month now and they were about to leave the infirmary. Malachi was up for most of the night like a guard whilst he made sure the other two were well rested. An aura of sadness filled their presence and everyone wondered what they were actually like when they were not overly guarded and suspicious of anyone who crossed their paths.
Logan watched the boy calmly wondering what was eating him up inside but settled for a simple question
"What's your name?" He watched the man with wariness but answered feeling a little exhausted but he knew this man was familiar somehow
"Malachi" Logan nodded slightly surprised that the man was not being difficult about being questioned
"How old are you?" The man looked at him with annoyance and said looking at the apples placed besides him
"Nineteen!" Logan watched as the Malachi's eyes passed over his two friends and then said evenly
"That is Naomi and Timothy. Timothy is eighteen and so is Naomi!"
Logan shrugged but watched as the man picked two apples and weighted them experimentally and threw them both not bothering to use his powers and smirked as they landed directly on the sleeping pair's forehead with exact precision. Both jumped out of their beds like they were prepared to fight; bodies loose but their postures were tight. Laughter echoed the room but Malachi was far from happy; he was relieved and they all knew why. At least they were still on guard. The couple glared darkly and said looking at Logan with recognition gradually relaxing beside each other. Malachi grinned a little and said looking at Logan with a small smile
"We will stay for a while if you will have us but we need to find some people and keep in touch with the rest of our members until we are properly set up" Logan looked at him eyebrows raised asking his question silently and watched as Naomi said with a dangerous smirk knowing there was more to them than anyone knew
"We're called the Crimson Daggers!"
...