When Heroes Fall
By Nadja Lee 23/03/01
Disclaimer: "X-men" and all the characters here belong to Marvel, 20 Century Fox and I intend no infringement, this is a piece of amateur fan fiction, and I make no money of it.
Only the original idea contained within this work is the property of the author. Please do not copy this story to any website or archive without permission of the author.
Timeline: Set in the AoA universe. Factor X, bits from "Astonishing X-men" and the 2 "Tales Of…." will be included here. All else will NOT.
Pairing: Scott/Betsy, Rogue/Magneto, Sabretooth/Blink, Logan/Jean, Scarlett/Alex
Summary: Scott rescues a young woman from the slave pens…. and her name is Betsy.
Archiving: Want, ASK, take, have.
Feedback: Yes, please. My e-mail address is nadjalee2000@hotmail.com
For AngelLove.
Dedicated to: Jemisard. Your words are as beautiful as your mind.
Rating: PG-13/R
Warning: Character death
Thanks to Christina for the Beta.
" Twenty years ago Charles Xavier died in the arms of his friend; Magneto.
A war between humans and mutants broke out. Humans lost. The age of
Apocalypse began. Darkness fell over the Earth as prejustice and war tore the
world in two.
The few and the brave tried to fight back for freedom and justice.
Fighting for a dream…. and dying."
- The Watcher
Part 1:
Scott Summers, Prelate Summers, walked with swift steps through the pens. He normally avoided the pens if he could. The stench of pain and fear was never pleasant and not something he sought. He had just delivered a prisoner and was on his way to debrief with Sinister, his leader and the closest he would ever come to a father.
" NO! Bloody Hell! You keep your filthy hands away from me, you hear?"
A woman's voice, clearly with a thick English accent reached Scott's ears. English? Since when did they hold prisoners from England? Curious Scott followed the sound. Five guards had a young Chinese looking woman backed up in a corner, one of the guards had pushed her to the floor but the fire in her eyes said that she wouldn't give up without a fight.
" WHAT is going on here?" Scott demanded to know and all the guards turned towards him.
" Prelate Summers!" They choired, fear in their voices as they saluted him.
" Thanks, I know my name. That wasn't what I asked you. What…. are…. you…doing?!" Scott repeated, barely concealed anger in his voice. It had only been one week since he had fought against the rebel called Weapon X and lost the use of an eye as he had robbed the man of a hand. That loss still burned in his mind and together with the thoughts and feelings the woman, Jean, had awoken in him it gave him a very short fuse.
" We…. we were just…ah…you know," one of the guards got out, fear clearly written on his face.
" No, I don't 'know' and I don't want to know," Scott said coldly and moved towards the woman. Unafraid she looked back at him and Scott felt a great admiration for the her right there.
" If they are your guards you should learn how to control them," she stated coldly but accepted Scott's hand as he helped her to her feet. Her body was bruised and bloody and what ever she had worn over it was nothing but a torn rag. Everyone could clearly see what had happened here and it made Scott burn with fury.
" YOU…" he turned towards the guards who backed away. " You disobeyed me. No prisoner was to be touched without permission. You know the penalty for disobedience."
" No!" one protested and Scott almost laughed at the man's weakness. He was to shot them all with his eye beam now only existing from one eye as he remembered the woman. He turned to her and took a knife from his belt. He handed it to her and she accepted it. In her eyes he saw that she considered what would happen should she stick it into his chest.
" They did you an injustice. You may kill them," Scott offered and the woman wasn't long in taking her chance. She quickly moved past Scott and enjoyed the look of horror on the guards' faces as she with a warrior's skill slit their throats. Having killed all the guards she turned back towards Scott, the blooded knife held towards his chest. Scott looked calmly at her.
" I will not send you back to the pens. I can use you. Swear allegiance to me and I'll give you a life no one else could ever offer you," Scott offered and the woman lowered the knife but still held it at ready.
" What would you have me do?" she asked and he found he liked the strength in her voice.
" Work for me. Be my bodyguard and helper."
" You saved my life. I owe you a debt of gratitude. But I will never work for Apocalypse. I don't believe in his teachings," the woman admitted boldly and Scott nodded. Before her capture she had probably been working for the Human High Council, which had its headcounters in England.
" I understand. You will not work for him but for me."
" Very well. I'll work for you and protect you. I owe you that much at least but that is all I'll do. Try and touch me and I swear I'll kill you," the woman agreed and her words were as sincere as they could be. She wasn't quite sure why Summers wanted her. She was after all a prisoner but he probably had his reasons and she was lucky to just see the sun rise over another day.
" Understandable. I'm Scott Summers, Prelate Summers. I lead Apocalypse's slave pens," Scott introduced himself and began walking towards his chambers and away from the pens. The woman followed him.
" I'm Betsy, called Psylocke."
TBC
