Disclaimer: I do not own X-men or any related characters, this is a piece of amateur writing and I make no money from it
Feedback: any comments or suggestions about the story will be appreciated at the same address. I would be more than glad to listen to anyone's ideas. Thank you.
World: AU/Comic
Archiving: It would be an honor for me if anyone wanted to go through the trouble of actually taking this and posting it, so just give me a notice and it's yours ;)
Nadja can, of course, take it.
Summary: A dark future is brewing, will the X-Men be ready to face it?
Great thanks goes to Sorciere and Lauryn for betaing! You guys rock and I could not have done it without you!
/…/ is for spoken telepathically, or just the character's thoughts.
A Dark FutureThe conference room was packed before what was expected to be one of the most controversial debates of the century. Senator Kelly was about to propose the immediate passing of the Mutant Control Law he himself had gave birth to. With him were Peter Gyrech and Dr. Trask. The latter was a renowned scientist and a brilliant man, and he was one of the main supporters of Kelly.
Kelly was certain he would get the law to be adopted. The Senate was not weak, but it was easy to push around, if you had anything on them. And Kelly had made sure he had. A few months ago the law had seemed impossible to adopt. Although there were many people who supported the law, the masses, the majority had not yet had time to form an opinion about the mutant problem. Thus they did not react very well at the idea of military patrols around the clock, and giant, peacekeeping robots roaming the streets. The other reason for which the law had not yet been passed was that the Senate now had its share of young senators, each with his own new little revolutionary idea of peace among men, deluding themselves that they could make the world a better place. Then there were the older senators, who were also a problem. They were old and wise, and would not risk the outbreak and panic of the masses. If they would, they'd be forced by law to watch their children play in the sand box next to a soldier with a gun. And the old senators liked to keep things as they were, rejecting changes as much as possible. There was also a matter of legal motivation, which had lacked then, and was lacking now.
All those reasons had made the law inapproachable in the past. Kelly had worked hard and lost long nights, but the result pleased him. He had found out that corruption had made its way into the senate far deeper than some would suspect, and with the right bribes and, why not, threats he had been able to get the proof and information he needed to turn quite a few heads his way. It wasn't anything so great as to bring the Senate down, but it was enough for some people to lose their hard-earned positions.
With too few to oppose him, Kelly knew the law would be passed; its main objective being to immediately start the heavy series production of the Sentinel robots.
Outside the Senate Building the police had formed a line to keep the crowd away. Thousands of people had gathered, each eager to show their support, or protest towards Kelly's ideals. The police had put up small barriers and had their shields up and their hands were always close to their weapons. The crowd consisted of both protestors and supporters of the law which was about to be debated and voted. Fights had erupted throughout the crowds and the police had to use high-pressure water cannons to stop the conflicts.
Upfront, right next to the barriers, were the press members, each trying to get past the police or to get a good shot of all the political personalities making their way into the building. There was great noise and general chaos with such things as banners burning and small rocks and bottles thrown at the police. The conflict came dangerously close to becoming a general riot. One man even succeeded in jumping over one of the barriers and ran towards a limousine that was just parking. The man kicked furiously at its door and spat at the window while cursing the one inside. Immediately he was brought down, beaten, and then taken in by several policemen.
Unnoticed by anyone, nine figures made their way through the crowds, getting as close to the Senate Buildings as possible. They wore casual clothes, but their wares hid battle suits in which they'd remain when time called for it. Each of them went to different directions, sometimes joining the protestors, and sometimes vanishing among the crowds.
A tall, well built man slowly made his way right next to the barriers, in a frontal position to the Senate Building. He was hit in the chest by another's elbow, and then he felt someone trying to pull him back. He shook off the aggressors with ease, not even paying attention to them. The man just stared at the entrance of the building. A policeman got right in his face and started yelling at him to step back and get two feet between himself and the barrier. The tall man locked eyes with the policeman and said nothing, his expression cold. The policeman got nervous and clenched his jaw, then removed his nightstick in one swift move and slapped the man hard, right in the jaw, throwing his face to the side. Blood immediately began to flow from his broken lip, and the man backed up two feet, not waiting for a second blow. Then he touched his chest and said in a low, blunt voice:
" Colossus in position."
Cyclops heard through his ear-com Colossus's confirmation.
/Damn, that guy moves fast/ Cyclops thought as he was still fighting his way through the crowds to reach his destined position to the far right of the building. Just as he was dodging a stone thrown his way, three more X-Men had reached their observation posts.
"Storm, in position."
"Shadowcat, in position."
"Kurt Wag... uh..., I mean, Nightcrawler, in position."
/Well, that makes five of us/ he thought as he finally reached his destination and then gave confirmation also. Within the next five minutes all the X-Men were in place, observing the events taking place, all except Wolverine.
/Damn it, Logan. What are you doing/
A minute later Logan checked in:
"Yeah... I'm here..." Logan growled. "This guy fell on me, giving me an elbow in the nose and knocking my cigar from my hand. I don't care about d'nose, but ya just can't do that to a man's cigar," he said in obvious discontent.
Cyclops was amazed at how Wolverine always had to get into a fight even now when they were supposed to be practically unnoticed.
"Give us a break, Logan," he said "You mean to tell me you've beaten a guy up just because he made you drop your cigar?"
"Well... t'was a damn good cigar!" he could hear Logan growl through the com, but he paid no attention to it as his gaze started scouting the surroundings. He saw nothing out of order, well, except the angry mob all around him. He could see Jean to his far left and he knew Gambit was creeping somewhere to his far right. The young French man was nowhere in sight, a master when it came to hiding form view.
Cyclops's eyes narrowed as he silently did a quick revision of the other's positions. Colossus was positioned at the front, while he himself was to the right of the building, and Storm covered the left wing. Midway between him and Colossus was Jean, and halfway between Storm and Colossus, Kitty was positioned. Colossus wanted Kitty as close to him as possible so he could keep an eye on her. He couldn't blame him; he was doing the same about Jean. Kurt and Wolverine were guarding the back of the building. Gambit was silently waiting halfway between the mutant pair and Scott. Closing this circle was Rogue who stood by watchfully halfway between Logan and Storm. Hank had the task of getting the Blackbird set down somewhere out of sight, and then he was to join them. They had chosen to hide the jet behind a small forest next to the airport. The new cloaking shield that Hank had devised for the Blackbird hid the jet not only from any radar, but it also reflected any light with perfection, making the jet practically undetectable for human eyesight. It was a true marvel that came in very handy. The bad part was that Hank would need quite a bit of time to get back to them but it didn't matter very much as the X-Men had the entire perimeter secured.
Inside the Conference room Senator Kelly had already started the discussions. He had a confident air about him, and his charisma undoubtedly attracted even more of the senate's members to his side.
"And in my opinion, ladies and gentlemen, the Mutant Control Law would not only help us know every single mutant on the territory of the United States, but would also help us contain them and keep their evidence. This law is only here for the good and protection of us all. Think about it, ladies and gentlemen: normal humans are safer, the more dangerous of mutants are locked away and thus it gives the rest of them a chance of integrating into our community.
"Mr. Kelly," a young senator asked, "I read in your request that the main objective of this law is to be able to use those... ah.. yes... there it is... those 'Sentinel' robots again. Mr. Kelly, the Sentinels have been used before and have proved to be highly inefficient. Give us one good reason for which they would be efficient now, please."
Kelly was too experienced a politician to be taken aback by the youth's enthusiastic offensive maneuver.
/What strings did your daddy pull to get you in that chair at your age, son/ he thought bitterly.
A smile on Kelly's lips only served to confirm his confidence as he said, "the sentinels have been greatly improved by our Dr. Trask here. With a lot more funds allocated, and with a greater number of these loyal robots we would surely..."
The young senator proved to be unwilling to give in, interrupting Kelly again.
"Funds must go to the hungry and the sick. They are the ones in real need of funds, not your war machines."
Kelly, maintaining his confident smile, replied, "those 'war machines', as you call them, are there for the protection of the citizens in this nation, the citizens I swore to do my best to protect when I was elected. The funds used for the creation and maintenance of the Sentinel robots might feed the homeless of New York a year, two at the most, but who will keep our children safe then? Who will prevent mutants from attacking them at school or at home? Who will prevent one of them from burning down a mall or blowing up a school bus? The Sentinels are there to protect the citizens of this nation the best way that we possibly can and to keep the danger of criminal mutants out of our homes and schools and churches."
As Kelly finished his speech the young senator was left speechless and a round of applause rippled throughout the room.
Kelly smiled and thanked his audience, not giving his unworthy opponent a second look.
Cyclops continued to scout the surroundings, hoping things would not get any worse. He knew the X-Men were sent here by Xavier to protect the senators and the other officials. But it wasn't the angry crowds that the X-Men feared would be dangerous. It was Magneto and The Brotherhood. Xavier knew Magneto wouldn't let go of the chance of getting rid of so many important foes at the same time. They had expected an attack on the Senate Building from Magneto, and had prepared for it.
/What if we failed/ Scott thought. /What if Magneto did kill all those people, and the X-Men along with them? What then/
Scott shook his head pushing his dark thoughts away. /Well, in the fairy-tales good always wins.../
Right at that moment Wolverine addressed him through the com.
"There's somethin' wrong. I feel weird." Logan growled, "It's a magnetic field! Our friends decided to join the party!"
Cyclops ordered everyone to be ready.
"Don't reveal yourselves yet," Cyclops ordered before anyone could act. "Wait for my signal," he added after turning his gaze towards the crowds.
He started scouting around frantically for any signs of any member of The Brotherhood, but he could spot none. His hand then went to his glasses and he quickly exchanged them for his visor. He had kept the glasses in order to avoid suspicion, but there was no more need for them now.
/Damn it/ he thought bitterly. The suspense made his heart and thoughts race wildly.
Then he heard Jean echo in his head:
/Everyone, look up.../
Scott did as he heard and raised his gaze. Six figures flowed gently in the sky, heading down towards the roof of the Senate building. All except one stood on metal discs. The sunlight made the thin metal discs shine. It looked like angels floating on heavenly light were coming down from the heavens.
But Scott knew these angels all too well. They only brought death and destruction to anyone that dared to look upon them. They were no angels because angels do not kill as they did. They were evil, and fed on the fear and blood of normal men.
The people finally saw The Brotherhood and went silent for a moment. The light reflected from the metal discs prevented anyone from seeing that there were only men flying. A low murmur echoed among the stunned crowd, and some of the people even got to their knees and started babbling prayers.
"Storm, it's a bit bright, don't you think?" Scott called to the weather goddess.
The next moment the sky grew dark with clouds and the sun disappeared, revealing that the so-called angels were anything but that. The people now saw that there were only men flying. No, not men, mutants and that caused a chorus of shouts and cries to be yelled at the mutants above.
Right then Scott aimed at Magneto and fired his optic blasts at him. As always his shot was precise and the capped mutant fell towards the ground. With him fell all of the others, who were only floating courtesy of his powers.
"X-Men! Now!" Scott shouted. The X-men launched themselves towards The Brotherhood.
Magneto was already close to the roof of the building when he was hit. The fall he took was not that bad and his armored suit had absorbed most of the shock. Mystique, who had taken the form of an oversized eagle had now regained her human form and was already at Magneto's side helping him to his feet.
"Wanda!" Magneto growled. Then he turned to see what had happened to all the other mutants that were with him. Sabretooth had fallen on the roof and now he shook debris off himself from where he had made a small crater. As usual he was unhurt. Toad had used his tongue to hang of a nearby pole, and was now sticking to the side of the building crawling towards them. Pyro was on the roof too and Avalanche was lying unconscious on the ground. The police had already encircled him, and they had even started to quickly evacuate the senators. Wada was supposed to already be there with the Blob. She had taken their van with Blob riding in the back. While dramatically straightforward in his entrance, the leader of the Brotherhood kept the Blob as the ace in his sleeve. Wanda also had a special mission. She was to drive the Blob to the scene and use her powers to protect her father's descent towards the Senate Building. Due to her talent of shifting reality to its very core, thus altering probabilities, she should have made sure such things as bullets, lasers, or even Cyclops's famed optic beams would always miss their targets.
Magneto looked over the edge of the roof and clenched his jaw at the sight before him. The police were moving fast, and the X-Men even faster. Kelly was not to be lost! It became clear that the X-Men were heading towards the Conference Room.
After taking all the surroundings in, his sights set on a tall man who had turned to steel. With a mere wave of his hand he sent the mutant flying backwards, over the now scattering crowds and into a tree. Right then Wolverine, who had climbed the wall using his famed claws, appeared from behind and jumped Toad. Magneto used his power to raise him into the air and then threw him with ease in the same direction as Colossus.
"Sending metal warriors to fight the master of magnetism? Really, Charles, is that the best you can do?" Magneto would have smiled if the situation were not so pressing.
Cyclops teamed up with Jean and Kitty and phased through the walls into the Conference room while Nightcrawler teleported in at the same time with both Storm and Rogue by his side. Gambit, staying true to his style, got in through a window.
Inside, it was chaos as people tried to flee as fast as they could, while the police tried to make the evacuation more organized, but with little success as panic had taken over.
An experienced policeman shouted orders at his men, trying desperately to give things the slightest trace of efficiency. George Fyress was forty-two but felt as agile and strong as in his early thirties. Twenty long years on the force had gathered under his belt, and he had faced many dangerous situations. But nothing quite like this.
/Shit/ he thought /Twenty years on the streets and I've never been more afraid/ he thought as he swept sweat away from his forehead with his hand and yelled at a subordinate to pick up the pace. His voice was lost amongst the loud noise in the room. It was as though all the men in that room were suddenly reduced to animals, he realized. They were like cattle, following not the policemen's advice but only the crowds with an amazing herding instinct. And with horror he realized that his fellow policemen were not far behind themselves.
"Beat feet! Beat feet!" he yelled at the policemen bringing up the rear of the crowd. Chaotic as it was, the evacuation was well under way when the front doors of the room opened to reveal five young mutants scanning the room.
/Mutants! Shit! I wanna live to see old age! Shit! Shit! Shit/ he thought, as if his whole vocabulary was reduced to that one word.
"Find Kelly," Scott ordered,."He must not be harmed. Our main concern is to get him to safety."
As Magneto came down the stairway that led from the roof to the main hallway he contacted Wanda.
"Wanda! What happened? You were supposed to be here and protect me!"
Through the com came Wanda's distorted voice.
"Damn! The Blob and I are being followed by the X-men in the Blackbird. The van wasn't made for this kind of pursuit! I don't know how they spotted us, but I can't lose them! The van is just too slow and the jet seems too maneuverable. It's hovering above us."
Magneto turned his gaze towards Mystique.
"We're here to do a job. Kelly must die."
"But... Wanda..." Toad said confused.
"I said we are here to do a job. Wanda couldn't do hers. We shall do ours. Come!"
Magneto reached the hallway and charged towards the conference room. Every one of the senators got out of his way while the police foolishly tried to stop him.
As the rest of the Brotherhood took care of the policeman he and Mystique entered the room.
It was an immense room and there were still a lot of people inside, including the X-men.
"Kitty, Jean, find Kelly, quick," Scott ordered. "The rest of us, engage!"
And as the rest of the evil mutants burst through the doors, the X-Men and the Brotherhood clashed. As the fight raged on, all of the senators had made their way out. Kelly, Trask, Gyrech and another small group of people had made their way to a small hallway in the far back of the room. They now sped towards the exit.
Outside, Colossus and Wolverine were just coming around and slowly started making their way towards the Senate Building again. Right then they heard Beast call to them.
"Wolverine, Colossus, I have your positions. I am now in pursuit of Wanda and the Blob. Our lovely lady is driving a black van and is on a course set to pass directly by your current location. Unfortunately I was forced to take altitude and I fear I will lose them. I do believe they must be trying to reach the Senate Building. Will it be too much trouble if I asked you gentlemen to put an end to her mad race?"
"Gotcha' Hank. We'll slow'em down for you," Logan replied.
At the same moment he saw a black van speeding down the road towards them.
"Petey, let's show them our trick." Logan grinned.
Colossus merely nodded and turned to his metal form before he moved to the middle of the road. Logan jumped at Peter and the Russian mutant caught him in mid-air and hurled him like a human cannonball towards the speeding vehicle.
'Snikt' The metal claws popped out of the back of Wolverine's hands and as he landed on the hood of the van he used them to grip onto the van in a cat-like style.
Although startled by this daring act and display of agility and feral determination from Wolverine, Wanda knew her only chance was to keep speeding.
Wolverine then used his head to break the windshield of the car, and took hold of the driving wheel turning it so that the car tipped sideways and trailed off the road. He was thrown off and landed on the driveway hitting the ground hard, but he quickly got to his feet shaking his head.
Colossus walked calmly to the car and ripped the door off. Wanda was unconscious and had a bad cut on her forehead. Blob was in the back and was apparently unconscious also. He too had an immense cut on his head and blood was flowing from it. Colossus wrinkled his nose in disgust and looked at Wolverine who came next to him and saw the bloody mess.
"Well," Logan said, "I guess all that fat didn't do much to protect him here. Sharp edges cut through it like butter..."
Then the two X-Men looked up to see Hank hover over them. Through the Blackbird's windshield they saw him nod his thanks, and then he sped towards the Senate Building.
"The cops are coming," Logan said. "They'll take care of them, let's make tracks."
"But how do you..." Colossus wondered.
"Heightened hearing, remember?" he growled. "They're faint, but they're coming. Now let's move."
Inside the fight raged on, X-Men against Brotherhood, but things were not looking good for the valiant heroes. Magneto was just too powerful and the organization of his team was precise and devastatingly effective.
The most eloquent example was setting Toad upon Cyclops. The slimy mutant evaded every blast shot his way and there was nothing Cyclops could do. Every shot he aimed at the Toad was dodged with agility.
/Jean, have you found Kelly/ he thought towards his fiancée.
/Yes we did. Hank has just contacted us too. He is setting the Blackbird down in the back. Kitty's phasing with the senator towards him as we speak./
/And you/ he asked concerned.
/I.../
A sudden wave of pain and fear flowed through the link before it suddenly started fading away, then disappearing completely, leaving a baffled Scott behind to try and recollect his thoughts that were suddenly deprived by the warmth of Jean's presence.
/Jean/ he sent his thoughts to her, but she was nowhere within his reach. Even without the link she, as a telepath, should have been able to hear him. She had either blacked out or...
"Alright, X-Men, retreat!" he ordered solemnly.
All of his teammates regrouped behind him and waited for further orders.
"It looks t' Gambit as retreat be pretty hard, non?" the French mutant asked with sarcasm as the Brotherhood had them cornered.
Magneto stepped forth and addressed Scott.
"You do not understand. This needs to be done for the sake of all mutants. If you were to know all the facts, you would understand. Why do you always get in our way, even when we're doing the right thing, the only thing we can do for our race's survival?
Cyclops didn't bother to answer him and instead fired his beams with precision at the ground right in front of the Brotherhood in order to stop their advance. The mutants were quick to dodge what they thought would be a shot aimed at their heads rather than their feet. This was just what Scott had intended. The X-men now stood pressed against Kurt, and by the time the Brotherhood began to stalk towards them again the X-Men vanished in a cloud of smoke. ...
Jean had been locked in battle with Mystique, who had followed her and Kitty, and was now knocked to the ground. She felt a stinging pain in her head and only had time to try and send her thoughts to Scott, but all she could feel was pain and fear as she felt herself slip into unconsciousness.
"This was too easy Ms. Grey," Mystique said morphing into Jean's appearance. As she made her way to finish her foe, Hank appeared at her back and pounced on her with a growl.
"I am sorry I was this late. Ms. Wanda gave me quite the trouble," he apologized but just then realized Jean was unconscious. Searching for a pulse he was relieved to find it was strong and steady. He then easily picked up Jean, put her on his furry shoulder, and hurried towards the jet.
On the way out he met Cyclops, who had returned for Jean after Kitty had informed him that his fiancée had engaged Mystique.
"Jean is fine," Beast announced. "I checked on her myself. We need to make haste, friend. Is the jet prepared?"
"Yes..." Cyclops hesitated. "Are you sure she's okay?"
"I assure you she is in no real danger. She has been hit by a stun gun. Even without treatment she should be fine soon. We must rush, now! "
Scott nodded and took the lead, rushing to the jet.
The X-men reached the Blackbird and as they flew away they saw Magneto come out of the half- destroyed building and then flee himself. The police sirens could already be heard and the sound of the helicopters filled the air.
Three days afterwards the X-Men had already taken Kelly back home. He was in no more danger for now. The state would see to his well being now.
Charles Xavier was enjoying a thick novel when his office phone rang. He picked up the phone only to hear the voice of Magneto on the other end.
"Hello friend." Magneto's voice was strangely friendly.
"Erik, what happened? Why are you calling me?" Xavier asked concerned.
"I wish to show you something Charles. Meet me at the abandoned butchery just outside of town in one hour. Come alone."
"And who guarantees my safety?" Xavier asked.
"I do. I am not going to do anything but show you something, Charles. You have my word on that."
"Fine, I'll see you then," Xavier agreed, knowing that Magneto never broke his word to a friend.
An hour later Charles Xavier was standing just outside an abandoned butchery a few miles from town. The building was desolate looking. He doubted even rats lived in there.
He wheeled himself inside the former meat shop. He found Magneto sitting alone at a table in a room that must have once been the freezer. A heavy stench was hanging in the air and he noticed wide stains of long-dried blood on the walls and floor.
"Hello, Erik. What was so urgent that you needed to speak to me about? And why here?"
Magneto was standing in a chair next to the table, his expression was sour and his eyes seemed to stare into emptiness.
"Why, Charles?" he spat. "Why did you have to stop me? I could have brought us salvation," he said raising an accusing gaze at his long time friend. "Instead you choose to bring us certain doom."
"Killing is not the way to build a future, Erik. It never was, and it never will be. I try to bring people hope. Nothing more, and nothing less."
Magneto's expression betrayed anger but also regret at the lack of understanding from the other man.
"You say I kill. I only kill those for whom I can find no other way. Killing is always my last resort. I, as you, look to save lives but only when I can. Kelly's death... Kelly's death is needed in order for us to survive."
"You say you give people hope?"
He pushed a folder to Xavier.
"Go on, open it," he urged the wheelchair bound man.
Xavier did as he was told and from inside he took out some pictures. Xavier's expression turned to shock, then to horror when he saw what the pictures represented.
"Yes, Charles. You think you brought us hope by saving Kelly? Our beloved senator, as you see in the pictures my men have taken, has already started the heavy production of sentinels. You only have one factory in the pictures there, but who knows how many he has. You see, that's why he needed to die. I needed to cut evil from its roots." He gave an ironic smile. "But lucky for us you were there to save evil, old friend, and make sure it spreads its seeds further and further, until every mutant child on the face of this Earth has a registration number burned onto his arm, or the back of his head!" he finished almost yelling. Great pain was in his voice and the hate it was filled with made it tremble.
"Instead of hope you bring us slaughter, Charles." His voice was harsh and his eyes sparkled with fury and frustration. "I brought you here for a reason, so you could see what a slaughter house looks like, for in a few months it will be us who will be driven like cattle in rooms like this, and it will be our children's blood drying up on the walls and floors!"
Xavier's eyes were filling with tears as Magneto closed his speech.
"A dark future is coming for us, Charles, and I pray our children will have the strength to forgive our weakness."
And with that the master of magnetism left, leaving a pain filled Xavier behind; an Xavier with tears in his eyes and pain in his heart.
And in Xavier's head, Magneto's voice kept on saying//a dark future... a dark future.../
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Author's notes: It gets better stick with me here ;)
Updates will be slow due to painfully hectic RL.