Disclaimer: Aki and EmeraldDragon own none of the traditional X-Men characters, their timelines, universes, or other affiliated property. We do however, own any OCs.

Note: Aimi Yoshida is based off of the X-Men video game: X-Men: Destiny, and is not own by either Aki or EmeraldDragon. However, Aimi Yoshida has been modified slightly to have some OC characteristics.

Thanks for visiting, enjoy, and please R&R!

Chapter 1 written by, EmeraldDragon

Something wasn't right. Granted, nothing had really been 'right' since the beginning of the war, but when I say 'something wasn't right'; I mean there was something off. There was something that didn't belong in my personal little piece of hell. I tilted my head, listening for any strange sounds on the wind. I heard nothing: that bothered me. The shadows grew restless as I crept silently along the dark side of a crumbling wall. They sensed prey nearby, something for me to sharpen my teeth on. It had been a while since anybody, human or otherwise, had dared trespass in my territory. Philadelphia, or what was left of it, was my city. Mine.

I pulled myself up onto a ledge with a growl, repeating the action until I was crouched on the roof of the building. I searched the ground directly below and saw nothing but the bits and debris that the old world had left behind. War can do terrible things to civilization; it throws its flames everywhere, with no remorse for whom or what it burns. I had grown into a woman in that hopeless pit; I had become a survivor. I had been given no choice. It was sink or swim, kill or be killed. I had wanted to live, so I left with those who shared my ideals. The war had divided us into many little factions. Those who were strong lived and those who were weak…well, you get the point.

Part of me wanted to let the fiend out and soar above the ground where I could better see what was coming. Of course, that would also make me far easier to see. So, I canned that idea and moved along the rooftops, going where my instincts led me. I finally made it to the remains of the liberty building, making sure to keep to the shadows as I scaled down the sides. My quarry was somewhere nearby, I was sure of it. I shifted my weight slightly and peered over the edge, my sharp eyesight piercing through the darkness. Six shapes moved down the dark street, creeping through like they were trying to avoid detection; like they were trying to avoid me. They knew where they were, then, and who they were messing with. Or, perhaps, they were just being cautious. Either way, they would regret stepping foot in my city. I couldn't take them all myself, of course.

"Find the others," I whispered to the shadows whirling around me. "Tell them we have company and I need them."

The shades left soundlessly, fanning out in order to find my comrades, those with whom I shared the territory. My little faction consists of four mutants: Remy LeBeau, Kurt Wagner, Raven Darkholme and me, Aimi Yoshida; Gambit, Nightcrawler, Mystique and Shadow, as we are known out in the community. I had left the X Men with Gambit and Nightcrawler after the beginning of the war. It was safer to split up, we had said, but I hadn't seen the rest of the X Men since. I'll admit that I missed a few of them. Not all of them, mind you, but a few of them: Archangel and Wolverine, specifically. I had been close with them, but they wouldn't leave and I wouldn't stay. Gambit offered to take me with him when he left and I had agreed. He had apparently convinced Nightcrawler, as well. I had been twenty at the time, and afraid, but I had done what was needed to survive. The three of us acquired Philadelphia, where Mystique had wandered in and joined our little family not long after. We defended each other and our territory, and so far had been successful at staying alive.

Now these people had shown up and I didn't intend to give up any ground. If they had come looking for a fight, they would get one. If they were just passing through, then I'd make sure they did exactly that. Such a large group of mutants or humans could be followed and I couldn't risk bringing more war to my city. Knowing that help was coming, I called upon the shadows and allowed them to swallow me, vanishing from sight. They transported me to a shaded corner farther up the strange group's path, where I observed them from the safety of the darkness. As they got closer I began to recognize them.

The group was led by Emma Frost, a mutant and a woman that I despise. She was still dressing like a stripper, I noticed immediately. My mood only worsened from there, as she was followed by Scott Summers, also known as Cyclops. Yet another person I'm not entirely fond of; the man can't take a joke for his life and thinks far too highly of himself for my liking. Dick head. They were followed by Iceman, Colossus, Storm, and another woman I didn't recognize. I wasn't entirely surprised by the group; they always had been entirely too loyal for their own good. I didn't have anything against them, though. They followed their hearts and I could respect that. I just couldn't respect the two who led them.

The sound of wings made me look up and I immediately shrank back further into the shadows as I saw Archangel soar overhead. Damn, so he was still with them. That was going to make sneaking up on them much harder. My biggest concern, though, was the only person who I didn't see with them. Wolverine, was he still among them? Just because I couldn't see him didn't mean he wasn't there. A Wolverine you can't see is far more dangerous than any other mutant that you can see.

"The ol' group, hm?"

I nearly jumped at Gambit's Louisiana drawl coming suddenly from behind me. I glanced back, clearly seeing his red eyes in the darkness. Of course he was the first to show; he always was. Keeping an eye on me seemed to be his favorite past-time, besides poker. I wasn't going to complain though; the man had always had my back, even when we were still with the X Men. He always seemed to be there to help when I needed it most. I felt a bit more relaxed now that he'd shown up, in spite of myself.

"Yeah, looks like it. You see the others on your way here?"

"No, but we wouldn't be good at our jobs if we could be seen now would we, chère?"

"No," I said with a soft laugh. "I suppose not. You think they're here looking for trouble? Or are they just moving on through?"

"Hard to say," he answered calmly, leaning forward to get a better look at the group approaching slowly. "Could be they're looking to bring the old gang back together. Or maybe they don't even know we're here."

"Emma's with them. They know," I said flatly, before looking back at him. I let the shadows fill my mind, hoping it would keep the telepath out of my thoughts. "I'm going in. Can I depend on you and the others to pull me out of things go south?"

"Of course, ma chérie. As always."

I gave him a small smile before allowing the shadows to take me again. 'Ma chérie'. He always says the nicest things, but it could be hard to tell whether he meant it, often times. Gambit's not an easy man to read; he's got an amazing poker face. I reappeared behind the encroaching group, rising out of the ground as if coming up from the depths of hell.

"It's been a while, Cyclops," I said coolly, causing the lot of them to swing around to look at me. I kept my calm, determined not to be intimidated by my former team mates, and crossed my arms loosely across my chest. "Too long for you to come looking for us now just because you can, I assume."

"We've just come looking for a safe place to stay, Aimi," Emma said calmly, putting her hands up as she tried to be as non-threatening as possible. I just narrowed my eyes, not trusting a word out of the crystal whore's mouth.

"It's Shadow to you, Emma. We don't generally let people wander in here; no matter who they are. A group of your size can easily be tracked and I don't want any trouble in my city."

"We're not being tracked," the girl I didn't recognize said, coming to stand at Cyclops's side. "And we're not here to cause trouble. We've been traveling for a long time and we're hungry and tired. Please."

I looked her over slowly, vaguely aware of the popping sound somewhere overhead that signaled Nightcrawler's arrival. Good, more back-up. I shifted my stance to a more defensive position as I watched the new girl. She was Australian, judging by her accent, and was more than likely some kind of mutant. She had icy blue eyes and jet black hair, but she was rather small in stature. Not overly intimidating, but, then again I'm not incredibly intimidating either at first glance. I didn't know who she was but, yet, something about her was familiar. I couldn't put my finger on it, but I had other problems than figuring her out.

"Who is 'we'?" Cyclops asked bluntly. He was no more a fan of me than I was of him. It was good to know that the feeling was still mutual. At least he wasn't trying to play nice, like Emma.

"Why don't you make a move and find out, Summers?"

"Come on, kiddo," came a rough, but friendly voice from my left. Cursing myself for not paying closer attention to my surroundings, I glanced over to see Wolverine leaned against the damaged brick wall of a building. "What's a favor between friends, huh?"

Curse the fates; I could feel myself clamming up like a nervous school girl. It had been five years since I had even seen the man, but still my muscles refused to respond and my words didn't want to come out. Damn it all.

"Friends don't leave friends hangin', Logan," I heard Gambit say somewhere to my right. I felt his presence as he stepped up behind me and placed his hand on my shoulder. "Isn't that right, Shadow?"

I nodded slowly, watching the anger flash across Wolverine's face as he caught the true meaning behind Gambit's words. Bless that Cajun; I'd have to remember to thank Remy for pulling me out of that one. It wouldn't have done well to make myself look like a complete fool.

"You're still hanging around with the thief, Aimi?" Wolverine asked coldly, not bothering to hide his anger. I could feel my anger rising, too, as my wish to defend Gambit overcame my nervous paralysis.

"Why not? He's always here when I need him. Might as well repay the favor," I growled, but seeing Logan had taken the fight out of me. I just felt tired and sad and wanted to get this showdown over with. With a sigh, I glanced up at Gambit. "You think we can handle a few hangers-on Remy? Just until they're fit to fly?"

"Why not?" He said with a shrug. "The odds are stacked against us as it is. Let's up the ante, just for kicks. We could use a change of pace."

"Alright," I said with resignation. I had a feeling I was going to regret letting Wolverine talk me into letting them stay, even if he had only asked nicely. I looked up, finding the looming figures of Mystique and Nightcrawler looking down at us from a rooftop. "Help me out here, Nightcrawler. We're going to have a few guests."

Tell us what you think, but please be kind! Constructive criticism is always welcome, slander however, is not.