TITLE: A Prelude to War
SERIES: The Mutant Wars 2
AUTHOR: Scorpio
FANDOM: X-Men
CHARACTERS: Ensemble cast: Charles Xavier, Cyclops, Phoenix, Beast, Iceman, Angel, Psylocke, Rogue, Gambit, Wolverine, Storm
DISCLAIMER: The X-Men belong to Stan Lee & Marvel Entertainment Group.
SUMMARY: Just before the battle against the X-Men.
A PRELUDE TO WAR
The Mutant Wars 2
Charles Xavier sat in his hoverchair deep inside the lowest levels of his mansion. He was inside the Cerebro Chamber with his telepathy enhancing helmet on.
He took a brief moment to mourn the death of his dream…his hope that humanity would learn to live in peace with mutantkind. He mourned the fact that his one-time friend Magneto had been correct; that humans would wage war against mutants.
He mourned the loss of peace.
He mourned the fact that he'd told the X-Men not to hold back, to kill if it meant their own survival. He mourned the loss of innocence within them and the loss of life that would soon follow.
Then he steeled his heart and turned his attention to where it must be. His mind swept the battlefield, looking for any advantage for his team…his children.
"Status report, Lieutenant."
The young officer didn't flinch at the sharply barked command. His eyes flicked up and then back to his monitoring device.
"Scans show ten…no wait, eleven mutant signatures on the property."
The Major smiled cruelly, but it didn't reach his ice cold eyes.
"Good. I want them all. Locked up in power suppressing restraints or dead, it doesn't matter. I just want them all…"
The Lieutenant nodded, even as he forwarded the information from the scans to the various units.
Cyclops finished his last check on the Blackbird and turned to leave the hanger. Everything was prepped and ready to go on a moments notice if things took a turn for the worst. All they needed to do was climb into the jet and leave.
For now, he was heading up through the mansion to his battle post.
It was…eerie. The place was empty of furniture, artwork, books, and all the touches that made it a home.
They had spent the past two weeks preparing for this. They had known it was coming. At first it was just paranoia and preparation. Then, X-Factor went off the grid.
Finally, they'd gotten word from Mystique of all people; the X-Men were the first targets the government planned to hit. They were too well known and it would make a huge impact on the mutant community. If the X-Men fell easily enough, then the rest of the community would crumble from broken morale.
Actually, they would have preferred Magneto, but they didn't know where to find him. He'd hidden his people too well. The X-Men, on the other hand, had always been easy to find since they never really hid.
Still, he was worried about X-Factor. About Havoc.
He wondered what really happened to his younger brother and his team.
Once a well known haven for mutantkind, the streets of Westchester were nearly deserted. The army was evacuating the townsfolk as fast as they could. No one was really arguing. They were eager to get out of what they knew would soon be a war zone.
They had also, secretly over the past week, sent all of their mutant friends and relatives away to safer places. Giving up their cars and their money to them so that they could flee to Canada.
A quiet rumble broke the nervous chaos of the evacuation and wary eyes watched as several army personnel carriers drove through town. Each truck carried soldiers with special weapons and special anti-mutant gear.
The townsfolk prayed for the safety of the heroes that they had harbored within their borders for decades. Many wondered if this fight might be the last, the one that destroyed them.
Phoenix stood at her lookout point on the western rooftop and scanned the area. The enemy wasn't here yet, but she could feel a psychic build up to the south that let her know the battle was coming.
Soon.
Too soon.
They weren't ready. Not for this. Not now…maybe not ever.
There were too many soldiers facing off against them with too many technological horrors in their arsenal. And there were too few X-Men. Eleven of them ranged against an army full of guns, scanners, stunners, sentinels, drugs, and madmen.
Where did it end? With their deaths? With their enslavement?
Cable was coming to their rescue and he was bringing X-Force with him.
He'd told her that over a telepathic communication last night when she had been using Cerebro. At the time she'd been grateful and nearly sobbed with relief.
Now…she didn't know what to think. Part of her prayed he'd stay away and keep his team safe. Part of her prayed he showed up and saved them all.
Mostly she just feared he'd arrive to find them all already dead.
The beefy Sergeant scowled as he watched the soldiers running back and forth with large heavy bags of sand. They were building foxholes and fortifications for the upcoming battle. He didn't think they'd be enough; not tall enough, not thick enough.
He'd seen the damage that some mutants were capable of and he had a feeling that some of his men weren't coming back from this one. These X-Men were dangerous and powerful.
He'd heard rumors that they were harboring that psycho Wolverine in there.
He watched another sandbag get added to the foxhole and his scowl deepened. Yeah…he was gonna loose a bunch of his men during this Charlie-Foxtrot.
Beast shifted slightly and tightened the leather bracers on his wrists in preparation for the fight he knew was coming.
He didn't actually like fighting. Not like this. Oh, he enjoyed a good spar and workout the same as the next X-Man…but he didn't like battles to the death.
It went against his code as a doctor and hurt him deep in his soul.
Still, even if he died in this battle, his work would live on. He'd made sure of that.
His lab was empty. For the past two weeks, he'd packed up every last bit of equipment and shipped it off to Alpha Flight up in Canada or to Excalibur on Muir Island. He absolutely refused to allow any of the Shi'ar tech to fall into the governments' hands. Not to mention his research.
He'd made copies of it all.
He'd sent copies to Excalibur, to Alpha Flight, to the Avengers. God help him, he'd even sent a copy to Sinister.
The scientist looked over the row of six sentinels. They were a new version. Not as tall as the originals, but they had better programming making them smarter.
This project was his baby. His life. His dream.
And now it was time for that dream to be realized.
He carefully began the task of uploading the most current intelligence on their target into the sentinels. As soon as that was done, he'd bring them all online and prepare them to take to the field of battle.
It would happen today.
Iceman normally just wore the specially made boots and shorts designed for him by Reed Richards for any missions. They were the most comfortable and it didn't matter once he shifted to ice form, because then no one could tell.
Today he wore his full uniform; shirt, pants, boots, belt and gloves.
He didn't say why, but it was because he feared getting captured. If that happened, he didn't want to be collared in nothing but a pair of shorts.
A strange worry, but one that kept him from thinking over his conversation with Johnny Storm two nights ago.
His long time friend had contacted them to tell them that Four Freedom Plaza had been inundated with mutants fleeing their homes and looking for refuge. The Fantastic Four had been giving them sanctuary and now were starting to ferry them out of the country. Oddly enough, they had been working alongside their most hated enemy, Dr. Doom, to help the refugees.
And that was great. Wonderful. The more people they could save the better.
That didn't stop him from feeling guilty for wanting to ask his friend to take time out of his busy schedule just to check in on his parents. It didn't stop him from feeling guilty for not actually asking.
Rows and rows of soldiers were making last minute checks of their equipment. They double checked their armor, their ammunition, their weapons and their various bits of equipment.
The Sergeants inspected the men while the Lieutenants and Captains received and confirmed their orders.
It wouldn't be long now.
Angel flexed his metallic wings and tilted his head from side to side. A soft sharp crack popped in his ears as he felt the tension in his neck ease slightly. He wondered idly how many people would end up with his flanchets piercing their flesh today.
He didn't like to kill…but he was good at it.
Angel of Death.
The Avenging Angel.
Ironic really, when he worked so hard to do good in the world. To protect. To create.
He'd already started the process of moving Worthington International out of the United States. He hoped that his staff was able to get everything and everyone out of the country before some government paper-pusher put two and two together and came up with 'mutant owned corporation'.
If that happened, the government would try to confiscate everything.
He flexed his wings again and felt the razor sharp flanchets quiver in their sheaths. Idly, he wondered if Worthington International would survive this even if he did not.
Sentinel Unit Alpha Prime Online…
Uploading new files…
Working…working…working…working…
Upload complete.
Sentinel Unit Alpha Prime – Status Ready…
Psylocke frowned as she looked out over the grounds of the mansion. It was deceptively peaceful in appearance. The idyllic setting didn't fool her, however, as she could feel the mounting tension and deadly determination pressing in around her.
Battle was coming. Death was coming.
This would change her…change them all. She knew that instinctively. She knew that and accepted it, but she didn't like it.
She had been born into this world as Betsy Braddock. A beautiful, if spoilt girl, who had the world at her fingertips and admirers in every corner.
Time and events had changed her; physically, mentally, and emotionally. Betsy Braddock had gone the way of the dodo and Psylocke was born in her place. The person she had become was a warrior, a ninja, a freedom fighter…an X-Man.
She couldn't help but wonder who and what she would be when this war was finally over.
If she survived to see it end, that was.
"Are they ready, Doctor?"
He looked up at the gray haired Colonel with the broad chest and dark eyes. The man was intimidating and cold. He swallowed hard and then looked back down at his computer monitor.
"Yes…yes, almost. I need just a few moments more and then the last sentinel will be ready for deployment. Everything is going according to schedule."
The Colonel smiled and nodded; a supremely pleased expression on his face.
"Excellent."
Rogue crossed her arms over her chest and worried her bottom lip with her teeth.
She needed to keep her head in the game today. She was one of the team's heavy hitters and she was gonna be taking the brunt of the attack in many ways. Not that her teammates weren't powerful or dangerous, it was just that she was invulnerable. She could absorb damage that the others couldn't.
Only Wolverine could soak up the abuse as well as she could.
Her team…her family, was depending on her.
That didn't stop her from wondering and worrying about Mystique. Her momma had somehow managed to contact them and warn them of the coming attack. She didn't say how she got the information exactly, although she has insinuated that someone had died in the process.
Rogue tried not to think about that part of it too much. She already new her momma was a dangerous woman.
No, what haunted her mind was the fact that afterwards, Mystique had disappeared.
She could only pray that she had gotten away and was somewhere safe and not strapped down to a table in some crazy government lab.
Machines underground rumbled into action, echoing loudly within the confines of the metal building as the ceiling rolled back to expose the sky above. As soon as it was fully open, the jet-boots on the legs of the sentinels roared to life with fire and smoke and heat.
One by one, the mutant hunting robots shot up into the air and turned towards Westchester New York and the X-Men.
Gambit extended his telescoping bo to full length and twisted it around his body in a series of movements that he'd been practicing for years. The kata was soothing mentally even as it loosened up his muscles and prepared him for the fight to come.
Even as he prepared his body and waited for war to arrive, his agile mind kept going over the options he faced and the decisions he'd made. He hoped that he choose wisely and hoped that he didn't mess up.
He'd called Belle down in New Orleans and made plans for the Guilds as soon as it became apparent which way things were going politically. The Guilds had already started moving all of the obvious mutants in the clans out of the United States. They were being relocated to Canada, France, Poland…anywhere there was a Guild chapter and mutants were welcome.
For those Guild members that were flatscans…or could pass as one, the Thieves and Assassins were already on the move. Targets were being assessed and blood would flow.
The Guilds would not take this lying down.
For now, he and his fellow X-Men were the distractions. The shiny penny to hold the attention of the army and the government while the women, children and innocents fled to safety.
He hoped it would be enough.
Long lines of soldiers scrambled into place and prepared to kill or to die. As soon as the sentinels arrived, the battle would be joined. The weapons and equipment were all in place. Tensions were mounting, faces grim with expectation and fear.
Mars would be well pleased at the bloodshed and destruction and Pluto fed a banquet of souls tonight.
Wolverine flexed his fists, his claws sliding out of their flesh sheaths with a soft snikt that was nearly hidden beneath the rumbling growl of anger in his chest.
Memories of his torture at the hands of Weapon X crowded his thoughts as he paced with impatience. If he closed his eyes, he relived the frustrating boredom of his cell, the painful terror of the experiments, the mind shattering agony of the adamantium being bonded to his bones.
With a snarl, he glared out at the night and the enemies he knew were hidden just out of sight.
He wouldn't go back. He refused.
Never again.
Never.
He wouldn't go back and he'd do anything to prevent it. So…that meant that people were gonna die tonight. Painfully.
And it wouldn't be him.
The sentinels flew into town, their jets loud in the air above. Their online computer systems made contact with the forces on the ground. Things were coordinated quickly. Locations decided upon and marked.
The orders were given.
Storm stood on the roof of the mansion and watched the sentinels move into position and tried not to shudder.
This wasn't how she had expected things to turn out. She'd honestly believed in the Professor's dream. No matter how bad things had gotten, she'd never lost hope.
Until now.
With a sigh, she called upon the wind to come to aid her and felt it swirl around her with a lover's caress. Briefly, she thought of Kitty Pryde, the talented sweet girl she'd helped raise to become a brave and beautiful young woman. She wondered if she'd survive to ever see her again.
Slowly, the wind picked her up and lifted her into the air, her hair and costume fluttering about her in the breeze. She extended one hand up towards the clouds and reached for the electric energy that she could feel brewing there. It grew stronger and more powerful with every moment. Soon, it would be a weapon only she could wield.
Closing her eyes briefly, she prayed to the Goddess to protect and defend her team…her family. Then, she opened her eyes and pulled down the lightening.