Venom Chapter 2, a x-men: the movie fanfic

Chapter Two

Over the following weeks the Brotherhood continued their unpredictable raids, no one ever knew when or where they would strike next. Sometimes there were days of quiet where Scott and the others could concentrate on teaching the students how to deal with their new found abilities as well as everyday education, and then there would be a flurry of random attacks ranging from the petty to the dangerous. When those times occurred all the X-Men could do was drop what they were doing and rush into action.

"Where the hell is Logan?" Scott asked, as he zipped up his black uniform.

"According to the Professor he's not on the grounds." Jean tied back her hair and began pulling on her gloves.

"Typical, he's never around when you need him."

"I'm sure he has a good reason." Storm said. "Besides," she grinned at Scott. "I thought you preferred not having him around."

Scott smiled back. "I also prefer if it's him dealing with Sabretooth and not either of you two."

"Here's hoping that particular mutant isn't around this time." Jean said.

"Agreed." Storm added.

"We can't wait any longer for him. Storm prep the jet, please."

"On it." The Kenyan left the room.

Scott looked over at Jean. The redhead looked worried; in fact she had been like that all day. "Jean?" he asked.

Jean shrugged. "I don't know, Scott, I have this bad feeling. I can't explain it."

"What did the Professor say?"

"I haven't talked to him about it."

"Jean," Scott walked over and hugged his fiancée. "I know things have been a little different after what happened at the Statue of Liberty. You're powers are just growing you need to give yourself some time to adjust."

Jean sighed, "I know." She began to feel the slight vibrations of the jet through the floor as it started up.

"Let's go," Scott said. "Maybe if I'm really unlucky Logan might have decided to make an appearance by the time we get back."

The classroom was quiet, the silence only occasionally broken by a muted cough or the turning of paper. The old grandfather clock whiled away the minutes towards lunch as the small group of students laboured through calculus.

Rogue sighed and wiped away a bead of sweat that ran down her cheek. Summer had well and truly arrived in full force. She didn't like having to wear so much clothing but it was the only thing standing between her powers and some clumsy student's extensive stay in the infirmary. Not to mention having yet another personality taking up residence in her head.

A tugging on her sleeve made Rogue turn towards her friend, Kitty. The young mutant winked at Rogue as she mouthed the word 'boring'. Stifling a giggle Rogue looked towards the front of the classroom at their teacher, Miss Newton.

Normally Jessi Newton was a tyrant when it came to good behaviour in her classes but today she seemed distracted. She sat there staring off into the distance tapping a postcard on the desk. Kitty and Rogue weren't the only ones to notice that Newton wasn't herself and some of the students had taken the opportunity to pass notes and play a few games with their powers.

Suddenly there was a rumbling sound from deep underground that shook the books on their desks.

"Oh, not again!" Bobby grumbled.

"Wha? What was that?" a new student to the mansion asked nervously.

"Never you mind what that is, Simon." Miss Newton snapped at her student. "Just get on with your work."

"Chill, man," Bobby said confidently. "It's just the X-Men out to kick some ass!"

"Huh?"

A large black shape seemed to appear from the vicinity of the basketball court and shoot up into the air.

"Holy shit!" Simon said. "Is that what I think that was?"

By now all the students were up from their desks and crowding around the windows.

Various versions of "I wonder where they're going now?" and "What's happening, do you know?" were bandied about the room.

"Sit down! Sit down!" Miss Newton ordered, trying to restore calm.

"It's not fair!" Kitty muttered. "With the X-Men gone everyone else will be out of class."

"Yeah," another student said. "No teachers, no class!"

"Professor Xavier's class will still be running." Rogue said.

"Great," Simon said. "I have that after lunch."

The class went back to their desks grumbling at the unfairness of it all. Already they could hear other students enjoying the freedom of an extended lunch break.

"Stupid calculus," Kitty said. "It's too good a day to be stuck inside."

"Kitty is right."

Everyone looked up to stare at Miss Newton. No one could quite believe it was her who had spoken those words. She tapped the edge of the postcard on her desk, forcefully, as if making a decision. "It's a beautiful day, why spend it inside? Class is dismissed! Go have some fun."

Nobody dared move was this some sort of test, would the first kid to get up and try to leave get reamed out?

"Didn't you hear me?" Miss Newton barked, "I said go have some fun!"

"Well, if you say so." Bobby collected up his books. "Come on, before she changes her mind."

As if his movements had broken the suspense the entire class poured out of the room and into the sunshine outside.

Jessi Newton looked down at the postcard she had received just that morning. It showed a montage of scenes from Las Vegas. On the back in neat handwriting were the words: 'Having the time of our lives. Strongly suggest you finish your new assignment and join us for some fun. Regards, M&M.'

Logan blew a long stream of smoke into the already smoky air and swallowed down the last of his beer. Pushing the glass across the dirty table he sat back and closed his eyes.

The waitress wandered over and picked up the glass. "You want another?" she asked.

Logan grunted his agreement and opened one eye to watch the woman walking away.

The waitress summed up the feel of the bar Logan was sitting in; over forty, covered in tattoos and sporting a 'don't fuck with me' attitude. In others words used, abused and wanting to be left the hell alone. Much liked Logan felt right now.

He had faced a few questioning glares the first few times he had walked in the door but it was amazing how breaking a pool cue over someone's head could earn you some peace and quiet. Which is exactly why Logan chose this place. It certainly wasn't for the ambience. The booze was cheap, the décor consisted of late-70s filth, the food was atrocious and the clientele was mostly bikers and recently released parolees.

Not the kind of place that you'd expect to find any of those damn kids in, or Scott for that matter. Which, again, suited the Canadian perfectly. Logan was by nature a loner and his need to get away from the one big happy mutant family that was Charles Xavier's mansion was overwhelming sometimes.

Not that it was all bad. There was Jean, of course, and to lesser degree young Rogue. Who had somehow uncovered paternal qualities in Logan that, to his best knowledge, he had never experienced before.

But he couldn't stand the constant noise, the damned rules and, most of all, Cyclop's smug 'holier than thou' attitude. The only reason he was the leader of Chuck's super secret band of mutant heroes was because there was no one else stupid enough to take the job. Especially Logan, who much preferred solo missions to the group-hug therapy that the X-Men seemed to embrace.

So every now and then Logan disappeared for a few days. Just took off without so much as a 'well, if you won't be needing me I hear a beer calling my name . . .'

Xavier knew where he was during these times. After all it was kind of hard to keep a secret from the most powerful telepath on the planet. Logan even suspected that the bald man understood and sometimes wanted to join in on playing hookey from life and all its problems. Besides if he was ever really needed Xavier could easily find him.

So Logan spent his days picking fights and chasing cheap women that wouldn't mind if he called them by someone else's name and spending his nights trying to keep one step ahead of his souped up metabolism with large portions of the alcoholic poison of his choice. Speaking of which . . .

A shot glass of whiskey appeared on the table in front of him quickly followed by a large jug of beer.

"You are paying tonight, right?" the waitress, Beryl, said.

"Keep ya wig on, woman," Logan growled. "You'll get your money."

"Before or after you hit the floor?"

Ever since it became known that Logan had a large capacity for drink there had been an unofficial pool as to the exact time he would finally pass out.

"What's the current total?"

"Hitting close to six hundred dollars and free beer for two nights."

"What did you put down?" Logan wasn't really interested but he sometimes felt an urge to pass the time between drinks with small talk.

"I bet thirty bucks you'd crack around midnight next Thursday."

"Tell you what," Logan said. "If I'm here I'll take a dive. You can keep the money I'll take the free booze."

Beryl grinned revealing a mouthful of bad dentistry. "It's a date, luv. Just make it look good."

"Yeah, yeah it'll be an Oscar winning performance." Logan murmured to her departing back. Picking up the shot glass Logan threw his head back and swallowed the whiskey in one large throat burning gulp before pouring himself a glass of beer.

He was halfway through drinking that when all the bottles behind the bar started to rattle and a faint rumbling passed overhead.

"Goddamn military," one of the patrons leaning heavily against the bar said. "Don't they have better things to do than go running about in the middle of the day?"

"Ain't no military base around here, Joe," Beryl said. "That's just some rich tourists on their way to Florida or something."

But Logan knew the bar wasn't on any commercial flight path and Joe had been half right. That must have been the X-Jet. Which meant that one of Magneto's goons was causing havoc again. Sighing he lit up another cigar and drank his beer. A part of him wished he were up there even if it did involve flying, while another part was just glad to be alone. And a small thought, that seemed to have the teasing cadence of Rogue's voice, wondered if Xavier would call him back and demand he baby-sit for a while until the real grownups came home.

Silence reigned for a few minutes then there was a wild cackle from across the room as the first strains of Achy Breaky Heart echoed throughout the bar.

"Shit! When did he creep in?" Logan wondered aloud.

The he in question was 'Billy'. No one really knew who the man was as he kept to himself and any attempt to make conversation was met with wild mutterings and screaming obscenities. All anyone knew was he spent what little money he had on beer and the old jukebox in the corner. Which wouldn't be that bad, except the old drunk only ever played the one song.

"Dat boy puts his pants on one leg atta time. I heard him say that once, ya hear?" Billy cackled. "I knows him, I knows Billy Ray. Duh-du-da-da, duh-du-de-da-de-da. Sing it, boy, sing it."

"Shut up you old bastard." Someone yelled from the bar. "Or I'll break more than your heart!"

Logan quickly drank down two glasses of beer before dropping his cigar stub in the remaining dregs. Standing up he pulled his wallet out of a back pocket and slowly walked towards Beryl. He knew that the second he was clear of the table old Billy would be over there guzzling down the last of the jug of beer. Old wino didn't even care about the cigar floating in it; he'd probably try and eat that too.

"Poor old fart." Beryl said, showing that even the hardest of bitches have a soft spot for something. "You going already?"

Logan raised an eyebrow and cocked his head to one side as Billy shouted: "Yessir, puts his legs on one pant atta time!"

"Can't stand that fuckin' song," he muttered. Besides if he was right and that had been the jet going overhead Chuck just might want him to head on back to keep an eye on things. Jessi Newton might still be around but Logan trusted her about as much as Scooter trusted him with a naked Jeannie. "Whadda I owe ya?"

"With or without tips?" Beryl said.

Logan snorted. "What do you think?"

Smiling knowingly Beryl wrote up a few numbers on her order pad. "Let's calls it fifty six bucks even."

Growling at the amount Logan handed over the amount. "Woman you better not try and rip me off."

"Honey, the only thing I want to rip off you are your clothes." Beryl pulled ten dollars from the amount and tucked them down her ample cleavage. "What shithead don't know won't hurt him." She said, referring to the absent manager.

"Consider that your tip then."

Beryl smiled. "I'll give it back if you go fishing for it."

"Maybe next time."

"Don't forget our date." Beryl shouted after him as he walked out the door.

Charles Xavier sat in his office listening to the happy shrieks and shouts coming through his window from the grounds outside. It seemed that the students had started up an impromptu basketball game. Smiling he manoeuvred his wheelchair around his desk. He'd give them a little bit longer before calling them inside. The children knew that whenever the X-Men were off on a mission that they were to assemble in one of the larger dining areas and work quietly on their homework but it didn't stop some of them from trying to escape even that duty.

Closing his eyes Xavier let his senses roam outwards checking that everything was as it should be. He didn't anticipate any problems for his team as it looked like another one of Eric's senseless raids that only served as a distraction and not much else. Charles just wished he knew what his old friend was really up to. Roaming further afield he sensed the mental image of Logan on his way back after a few days of freedom. Drawing his mind back he made a quick inspection over the mansion, all the students were accounted for and Miss Newton was – Charles eye's snapped open. Something was wrong!

'Logan get back to the mansion as fast as you can!'

"Shit!" Logan nearly ran himself off the road at the unexpected call rang through his brain. "Give a man some warning will ya!"

'Now Logan, something isn't right.'

"Yeah, yeah." But that didn't stop Logan from pressing down on the accelerator as he sped along the wooded road.

Jessi Newton stood outside Xavier's office trying to summon up the courage needed for what she was about to do. Wiping sweaty palms on her long pleated skirt she pasted a bright smile on her face and knocked.

"Come in, Jessi."

"Ah, Professor Xavier," Jessi poked her head around the door and saw the man seated behind his large desk. "I was wondering if I could have a word about some of the students."

Charles motioned Jessi inside. "Of course, but that's not what you're really here for."

Jessi giggled nervously. "Can't hide anything from you, now can I?"

"It can be done, but not easily."

She walked in and stood before the desk. "I'm a little worried about Marie –"

Charles held up one hand, his gaze seeming to pass right through her. "What do you really want?"

"Are you reading my mind?!" Jessi felt a jolt of alarm. What if he found out? What if she couldn't finish her mission? He had ruined her life, all their lives with his philosophy that 'honesty is the only way to gain the humans' trust'. Never mind that trust is a trait sorely lacking in most people when confronted by the unknown.

Charles leant forwards in his chair. "Who are you really?" It went against his nature to invade another like this but sometimes it was the only way. He needed to know more about this woman that he had let into his school, into his children's lives. If he was wrong he could apologise later; Charles Xavier pushed a little deeper.

"It's just a little thing, Merrill." A woman was saying. "So she's missing a fingernail."

"Makes her look wrong, woman. No child of mine's not going to look right."

"Mama, why's you doing that?"

A woman looking older than her years bent over a six-year-old girl. She pressed a fake acrylic nail over the little girl's right index finger. "It's so you'll look like everyone else. People can be cruel to children who are different."

"Like Lily Sue cause she can't talk right?"

"Just like that." the woman took out a pair of nail scissors and trimmed the nail down so it matched the rest. "Now don't let it fall off or there'll be hell to pay from your father."

Same girl a few years older crying over a limp bundle of fur. "I didn't mean it mama, I swear!"

The woman walked over and picked the bundle up revealing a dead kitten. "What did you do?"

"Nothin'! I was sitting here patting Socks and he just bit me so I squeezed him a little to make him stop. Why did he die?"

The woman looked from the kitten to her child. She notices the nail on the girl's right index finger has snapped off and a small bead of milky red substance glistening on the tip. Turning the kitten over she finds the tip of the fake nail imbedded in the side.

"Your father was right, Jessica," she murmured. "You really are a spawn of the devil."

Merrill Burgess turns off the television set with a grunt of disgust. "Goddamn mutants. Government should round them up and burn 'em all!"

"Yessir," Peter Newton slung an arm over Jessica's shoulder as he nodded at his father-in-law. "I totally agree, and you know whose fault this all is? Atheists!"

"Atheists?" Merrill tossed a can of beer at Peter. "How's that?"

"God created man in His image, right?" Peter waited for Merrill's nod. "But these days nobody believes in God no more. Atheists don't have time for him. That made God mad so He decided to show them gay lovin' lefties His wrath."

"By making mutants?" Merrill snorted his disgust. "Them things ain't God's folk!"

"Nossir they ain't, but God didn't make 'em in His image. He made 'em in the devil spawn's own to show the world what will happen if we turn from Him. That's why we should burn atheists and them mutants. I mean," Peter shrugged, "it's not like they're really human. Ways I see it they're all going to hell anyway along with their atheist sympathisers."

"Mama, I'm pregnant!"

"Lord, Jess, are you sure?"

"I took the test twice, mama." Jessica looked deep into her mother's eyes. "I thought you'd be happy."

"You have no right breeding with your blood, girl, no right!"

"But Peter wants kids."

"Not if he knew what you were."

Jessica paled. "You won't tell him will you?"

"By rights I should. Your man has strong beliefs and don't hold with laying down with no spawn of the devil."

Tears sprung to Jessica's eyes. "Then maybe you should have thought of that before we got married."

"I'd hoped you might've grown out of it."

"What makes you think I haven't?"

Jessica's mother pointed at the young woman's finger. "That tells me so. It still oozes, don't it?"

Sobbing Jess nodded. "Maybe it will take after him and not me?"

"I pray to the good Lord Jesus that is so."

Pain, so much pain.

"Bitch. You mutant bitch! Did you think I wouldn't find out?!"

Jessica tries to speak around a mouthful of blood.

"I bet the baby ain't even mine! Everyone knows humans can't mate with mutants. You've been lying with the devil, whore." Peter punches his wife in the stomach. "You're nothing but a two-bit mutie whore. You killed my dog and then you planned on killing me. Your kind won't be happy till we're all dead!"

Jess curled up into a ball trying to avoid the blows.

"I'll kill that demon inside of you if it's the last thing I do!"

"How does it feel?"

Jessica turns to look at the blue mutant behind her. "Feel?"

Mystique moves up to stand at her side looking down at the floor. "To have your revenge."

Jessica looks down at the contorted dead features of her ex-husband, his new human wife and their two young children. She smiles, but she feels no humour. "It feels good, it feels great." Jessica kicked Peter in the side of the head. "I just wished it had lasted longer."

"Time to go." The voice is older, male now.

Jessica turns to see Mystique has transformed herself into a smartly dressed bald man. "Is that him?"

Mystique nodded. "Go to New York, find the school and wait there. When the time is right . . . kill him!"

Charles Xavier's head snapped back as the memory faded away. Only seconds had passed since he delved into Jessi's mind. "Jessica," he began to say.

"NO!" Jessi's clenched her hands to the sides of her head. "Jessica's dead! She died in a pool of blood with her unborn child."

"I'm sorry for what happened to you." Charles tried to soothe the woman before him.

"Sorry? Sorry! It's all your fault, it's always been your fault." Jessi clambered awkwardly onto the desk. "But I'll kill the demon inside of you if it's the last thing I do!"

Logan burst into Xavier's office to see the professor wrestling with a deranged woman who was sitting in his lap. In any other circumstances Logan would have paused to appreciate the insanity of the moment but there was something about the way she was screaming 'Kill you! I will kill you!' that changed his mind. Logan was certain this wasn't the first person to try and kill the professor but she was surely the craziest.

Rushing towards the wheelchair Logan grabbed her by the shoulders, throwing her to the floor. The woman landed awkwardly cracking her head on the corner leg of the desk.

Assuming she was knocked out Logan turned back to Charles. "Are you all right?"

Charles nodded, trying to catch his breath.

"What the hell happened?" Logan asked.

Tugging at the lines of his suit in an attempt to restore a sense of calm and propriety Charles spoke. "Magneto sent Jessica Newton to this school to kill me."

"That was Jessi?" Logan looked down at the woman on the floor.

"Logan, normally I wouldn't presume," Charles Xavier looked down and indicated his legs, which had been twisted about in the struggle. "But would you mind helping me?"

"Yeah, sure," Logan knelt down and took a hold of Charles' left leg. "I can't believe that was –"

"Logan look out!"

Xavier's words were drowned out by Jessi's wild scream.

The sensation of the razor sharp blades slicing through Logan's knuckles was swiftly overpowered by a red-hot pain that seemed to originate in his right arm. It was almost like someone had injected lava directly into his bloodstream. The pain spread up and down his arm before travelling across his chest and down his left side. As Logan slumped to the floor he could almost hear a faint crackling sound over the screaming. His nose detected the first hints of snow before blackness overtook him.