The writer: I love to tell stories.
The goal: A test bed for character(s) development
Disclaimer: I do not own X-men Evolution
"The greatest mistake, is to anticipate the outcome of nature."
Bruce Lee
Chapter 2: California Dreaming
Staring at herself in the mirror, Rogue smirks and rolls her eyes sarcastically away from her reflection. She glances around the locker room as though looking for something, then lets out a soft sigh, and stares back at her reflection. Rogue tries not to look too amused at her appearance, if not embarrassed. A form fitted dark blue uniform with a somewhat low cut top showing a bit of cleavage ornate with a flat yellow colored utility belt with a "X" emblem off centered on her right hip. The color is quite a contrast against her soft pale skin, which bids her to worry seeing the outfit leaves her bare skin just above her chest, to her shoulders and arms down to her hands. She turns her back towards the long vertical mirror to look at the even lower cut feature revealing her exposed slender back. Rogue chuckles, "Ok, sure, sexy."
Just then, Kitty walks in wearing her sleek stylized uniform from earlier. Her eyes widen with excitement as she cheers out, "Awesome! You look terrific, Rogue!"
Gesturing in a frustrating manner to her slightly showing cleavage, then to the rest of the body Rogue remarks, "Right, Kitty. You know Ah can't go out in public like this."
"What," Kitty replies, "you look totally hot."
Rogue remains silent from Kitty's reply and just gesture to her uniform sarcastically. Kitty then adds, "Oh, you mean the bare shoulders and arms. Well, you know, out with the old in with the new." as she giggles slightly.
Dropping the bare arms down while staring at her reflection, Rogue slightly grins and asks calmly, "And where're my gloves?"
Kitty stares back at Rogue with playful yet innocent grin, "Um, well, they really didn't match your new outfit. So I think I tossed them."
Rogue replies with a sigh, "So, ya sacrificed safety for sex appeal. Typical."
Shrugging her shoulders, Kitty returns the comment with a friendly grin as she watches Rogue sighs with frustration and struts over to another open locker. Quickly reaching into the locker with ease, Rogue lightly bits her lower lip while grinning remarking, "Great, it's still here."
Kitty's eye widen in silence as she watches Rogue spin slightly and quickly slips into a dark brown trench coat. The garment reaches down to her dual strapped reinforced boots and completely covers her hands. Rogue contently folds the sleeves back just above her hands, then stares back at Kitty with a friendly yet sarcastic grin, "This is more for your safety than mine. Thought you'd grow out of that superficial phase by now?"
Rolling her eyes at Rogue's comment, Kitty replies with a cute tone, "Afraid not, Rogue. I guess I haven't quite tasted all the spices of life like you have, huh?"
'That's not funny, Kitty." Rogue adds with a smirk.
Kitty giggles and replies, "Whatever. So, who's coat is that?"
A bit reluctant to respond at first, Rogue looks the other way and says, "It's one of Remy's. He loaned to me a while back when I had a… um… a uniform malfunction. He said I looked cute in it. I dunno…"
"Well he was right," Kitty adds, "if you'd rather look cute than hot, up to you."
Rogue chuckles, "Gimme break, Kitty."
Kitty stretches her back while making adjustments to her unique outfit and inquires, "Oh by the way, where is Remy anyway? You never finished telling me."
Once again, showing another reluctance to respond, Rogue replies while staring down, "That's a bit complicated. Ya know, the kind of 'you lied to me assassination attempt car exploding' complicated stuff. I don't want to bore ya with my problems…" as she grins with a somewhat embarrassed expression.
Rogue's comment catches Kitty off guard, who suddenly stares back with a shocked expression. "Well, let's get goin'. The rest of the team is waitin", Rogue quickly adds as she shuffles out the locker room doorway.
Kitty is left silently stunned at first, then quickly shakes her head and darts out, "Complicated?! Whoa, hang on, now you got to tell me more, Rogue. Hey wait up!" as she hustles to follow her friend.
A brisk stride through the familiar corridors in the underground command center of the institute, it was as though Rogue had never left. The feeling of anticipation and the nervousness of the next mission, a sensation she had not forgotten. She grins slightly with confidence as her mind drifts off. Memories of a time more innocent yet just as dangerous. The familiar sounds of bustling in the halls, alarms sounding out, and the banter of friends. Then one voice whispers out to her, 'Hey, you still with me?'
A warm comforting voice, one she would stop to listen to even in the middle of all the chaos around her. Rogue casually turns to respond to the voice, "Where else would I be, tough guy?"
She stares up to a taller male figure who comes clear in her eyes. Spinning and somewhat juggling his shiny red seamless helmet with a confident smile of his own, the man replies, "Well, I won't deny this ego booster, but you're glowing."
Playfully rolling her eyes with a chuckle, Rogue returns, "Should be obvious, especially when two people can't keep their hands off each other. We gotta work on our timin', Allan."
"Didn't hear you complain." Allan giggles back, "In fact, you didn't say much at all, accept for 'Oh right ther…'"
"OK OK!" Rogue interjects quickly and embarrassingly, "You're such a perv sometimes."
Brandishing a playful smirk while carefully spinning his helmet on his figure, the young man replies, "Sometimes?"
The two share coy grins and giggle as they continue down the corridor towards he command room. Rogue takes a deep breath as she always had done in the past in anticipation of a mission. But just before entering the room to join the other X-men, Allan places his right hand on her left shoulder to gently stop her for moment. Rogue looks back at him quietly as he says, "Listen, this being we're about to face tonight, he's a recluse named Nung. Just follow my lead on this and…"
Rogue removes the glove from her right hand and gently shushes Allan with her finger over his lips and quickly adds, "Relax babe, this isn't my first rodeo. I can handle myself."
Taking her bare hand, then lovingly kissing her soft knuckles, Allan gently replies, "I know, one of the many things I love about you."
As she smiles back at him, Allan's words seem to distantly echo away. The sensation of being stationary sets in as Rogue's perception returns to her present situation. Mumbling voices turn into stern gruff statements as she watches Logan point to a map schematic. She finds herself seated in one of the many chairs uniformly placed in the command room facing computer screens and monitors. Rogue takes slight glances around and sees others seated around her. To her right, Bobby typically spacing out. To her left, Kurt trying grasp on to anything in Logan's briefing. Seated in front of her a few chairs up, Piotr sits quietly, apparently the only one actually paying attention to the briefing details. Rubbing her face to gain her bearings, Rogue adjusts her composure to hide her confusion. Just then, Kitty whispers to her from behind, "Isn't he cute?"
Rogue clears her throat then whispers back, "Who?'
Kitty smiles and gestures with a nod toward Piotr. Rogue chuckles and rolls her eyes sarcastically and whispers to her, "Really, you and him."
"May be," Kitty playfully whispers, "why not?"
But just as Rogue chuckles at Kitty's remark, Logan speaks out, "Why not what, Kitty?"
Quickly sitting up straight, Kitty responds, "Oh, uh… why not… browse… local news for oddities? Like strange thefts or weird sightings. Maybe even… possibly track odd deliveries to secluded locations? Just a thought."
Logan pauses for a moment with his typical stern demeanor, then adds, "Alright, sounds good. If the Marauders are back in town, they'll need a safe house with supplies. Use that internet thing, Kitty, see what you can dig up. Piotr, go with her and help her out, two heads are better than one, and gets the job done twice as fast. I'll notify SHIELD and catch them up. The Marauders are terrorists after all."
With that said, Logan wraps up his briefing as the team each stand up and disburse. Kitty watches as Piotr stands and turns to face her with a content smile. Both Rogue and Kitty smile back at the large dark haired Russian. Rogue turns to Kitty as she starts to leave and whispers, "Why not, huh. Have fun." leaving Kitty and Piotr awkwardly alone behind her.
Rogue does her best to not have a good laugh at the situation she just left her friend in as she starts down the corridor. She almost feels like a high school student again dealing with petty issues while trying to save the world. A nostalgic sensation that both feel comforting and sad at the same time. Thoughts of such naïve innocence catches her off guard as her mind drifts once more. This time she is stopped in her tracks midway into the corridor. An eerie silence surrounds her but strangely guides her gaze toward the end of the hall. In the darkness she makes out the shape of a man quickly turning the corner off to the left. Rogue is compelled to follow. Her emotions swirl with a mix of vulnerability, confusion, sadness and anger as she darts down the hall in a brisk stride. Approaching the corner of the hall, a level fear begins to sink in, Rogue grits her teeth trying to push determination over her fear. But as she turns the corner into the darkness, she is halted by the sight of two red glowing eyes. She is almost without a breath staring at the apparition before her. A mixture of fear and a glimmer of hope overwhelm her heart as the apparition speaks to her in a gentle echoing voice, "You have to take all of me."
Rogue's heart beats fast, her breathing gets heavy and short. Sadness strikes her fast as she speaks out, "Allan… no… I can't."
She begins to stumble back in the dark corridor as the apparitions continues, "You have to take all of me."
"Stop it, please, not again!" Rogue begs stumbling away then falling back onto the floor.
The apparition darts out from the darkness towards her prone position. The red glowing eyes suddenly change to a ghostly yellow as it speaks out with a hideous laugh, "Me as well."
Rogue's sadness quickly turns to a dangerous level of fear mixed with anger as she grips her fists and yells out in defense, "NO! YOU BASTARD! DAMN YOU!"
She swings her fists at the apparition, seemingly striking what she believes is the face of the yellow glowing eyes. The strike hits solid forcing the figure back into the darkness. Rogue continues her assault, screaming with all the anger in her heart. But just she is about to charge into the darkness after the apparition, a calming female voice calls out to her, "Rogue! Stay your hand!"
Standing firm, Rogue takes a deep breath and ceases her assault. The voice speaks to her once more, "Now, calm your mind. Feel the ground beneath your feet."
The sensation of stability and being stationary sets in as Rogue's bearings return. She notices the dark corridor lighting back up to normal, but also empty before her. The female voice speaks to her again, "Look at me, please."
Rogue slowly turns to see Emma elegantly standing a few feet behind her. With cold yet calming stare, the blonde woman gently states, "I think it is time you told me about these dreams of yours."
Remaining silent and confused, Rogue nods in acknowledgement. At that moment, Logan comes running down the hall, "Hey, what's goin' on?!" he asks out.
Emma approaches with her hands gesturing him to stand down and remarks, "Nothing, Logan. Everything is fine, everything is under control."
Almost frustrated, Logan looks back at Rogue who just stares at the floor almost blankly and adds, "Everything's good, Logan. I'll talk to ya later."
Almost feeling pushed aside, Logan just watches as the two silent women walk to the main elevator. He lets out a sigh of frustration and glances about the corridor trying to understand what just happened. With his hands on his waist, he shakes his head almost giving up, but then notices something strange on the corridor wall. Logan steps closer to investigate and realizes a splitting crack forming from the center where an obvious fist mark was made. His frustration turns to concern.
The walk through the upper main level of the institute is a silent trek. Rogue calmly follows Emma through the halls with sporadic traffic of young mutant students, each caught up in their unique lives. Elegantly opening the polished oak door to her office, Emma quietly gestures Rogue in. The hustle and bustle of the youthful energy silences as the door gently closes behind them two women. "Now," Emma begins to state. "The full details, if you will."
Rogue at first is reluctant to answer, feeling embarrassment and frustration sink in. Taking in a light breath and letting it out, Rogue finally replies, "I don't feel comfortable talking about this with you, Emma. No offense, but this is more… personal, private… intimate."
Not affected by Rogue's comment, Emma maintains her beautifully cold demeanor and returns, "I beg your pardon, Rogue. But when your personal, private and intimate problems begin to damage school property, I must insist."
With that said, Emma once again gently gestures Rogue to one of three plush office chairs facing the ornate polished antique desk. Rogue seemingly swallows her pride as she takes a seat while watching Emma taking her seat on the other side of the desk. "Ordinarily," Emma continues, "I would simply extract the information from your mind painlessly, and save me a lot of trouble. But the nature of your mutant gift makes you nearly a library of minds you have absorbed in the past. Your power has made those memories yours, thus making it very difficult to ascertain what is you and what is not. And rather than sift through that mess, I would rather you share that information vocally and save me one large headache."
With a slight grin, Rogues replies, "Well, since you put it that way… I guess. Just… how about you tell me what you know already, then I'll fill in the gaps."
"Very well," Emma adds. "This began nearly four years ago, maybe a month after the 'Phoenix Incident', as it is named in the files. You began having nightmares, of which Henry started to recommend a light sedative so you could sleep peacefully. Professor Xavier also began counseling you to help you cope with your loses. According to the files, your therapy consisted of a mixture of emotional and telepathic means. Details of which that are not in the file I am afraid."
Rogue nods in acknowledgement, "And that's what they were at first, just nightmares. Then they got worse, I was afraid to sleep. That… stupid scenario kept playing over and over in my head every night. I had Allan's power, Emma. I was the Vanguard at that moment. I could've stopped Jean, maybe changed the outcome of things, maybe even save him? I dunno, there was so much goin' on."
Emma sits back and upright into her tall leather office chair and adds, "That would be guilt, or regret. Not to sound insensitive, but very typical in any traumatic situation. But of course, that moment was very unique. However, that does not explain your recent outburst."
Nodding again, Rogue continues, "Two years ago, the nightmares stopped. It seemed like everything was ok. I was moving on with my life. Then the images started to turn up. Places I've never been to, people I've never met, strange smells and sights that all feel familiar, but not real. The Professor theorized it was residual memories I may have absorbed from Allan when we were connected. He never really proved it was that, but he did help me create mental blocks to keep the images from flooding my mind. It did help for a while, until a few months ago. I tried dealing with it myself, doin' the mental exercises the Professor taught me. That's part of the reason why I came back."
Taking a slight breath while lightly tapping her lips with her right finger, Emma goes into a quick deep thought before speaking, "I find this interesting, Rogue. You know, Jean also had issues dealing with that day. I recall Henry referring to her problem as a somewhat cosmic withdrawal syndrome. According to the Professor's files, Jean had mentioned how things seem so small after her cosmic rebirth. She dealt with nightmares also, but not nearly as dramatic as yours."
Rogue's mood shifts to a more lighter and curious tone as she asks, "So how is Jean? She left a little after I did, and we kind of lost touch."
"She is doing well," Emma answers, "as well as a former higher being can be these days I assume. Last I heard, Jean abandoned her pursuit in genetic studies for more petty endeavors in the fashion industry."
With a content smile, Rogue adds, "That's good, I guess. Looks like she's moved on too."
Shrugging her bare shoulders, Emma responds coldy, "I suppose abruptly moving out, isolating yourself from those closest to you in an effort to pursue a superficial ideal to mask your true anguish, then yes you could say she has moved on."
Her eyes widening slightly, Rogue decides to remain silent to Emma's comment allowing her to continue. "Now, about these dreams of yours."
Rogue casually raises her left hand as to halt the blonde woman's inquiries and speaks out, "Emma, I appreciate ya tryin' to help and all, but all I need are one of those neat mental blocks like the Professor did for me, and I can get through my day."
"I'm afraid it's not that simple, Rogue," Emma quickly replies, "as skilled as a telepath as I am, I am no where near the level as our good Professor. Least of all to attempt the mental surgery he so skillfully performed. I can, however, make psychological assessments and cast my professional advisement."
Returning a sarcastic like stare, Rogue adds, "And what does your professional assessment tell you?"
Answering with a cold like stare, Emma responds, "You are a liability, Rogue. I believe your dreams are affecting in ways neither one us can understand, and they are now manifesting when you are awake. I felt your anger, fear and sadness today. I had to force myself not enter your mind too deeply and speak to you out loud to calm your mind. I am sorry, Rogue, but I am forced to ground you from any out going mission until this is addressed properly."
"What?!" Rogue darts out, "We're about to recon Forge's family house and scout for the Marauders. You can't ground me now!"
Remaining calm, Emma comments, "I'm afraid I can, and I have. I just telepathically communicated this to Logan and he agrees. I am limiting you to level 2 parameters until further notice."
Rogue's shoulders and jaw drop out of complete shock, "Ya kiddin' me?! Level 2?! That barely gives me communication access! By campus terms that makes me an assistant instructor! I haven't been that since high school, Emma! No way!"
"This is not up for debate." Emma returns intensely, "Things have changed quite a bit in your absence. As you already know, the Professor is out of town dealing with some personal issues, and has left Eric in charge of the school for the time being. This however is about to change as well. Eric is now leaving to join Charles on his personal endeavor, details of which that have yet to be revealed to us. This leaves the institute in the hands of Logan, Ororo, Henry, and myself."
"Ok, why you?" Rogue quickly and sarcastically questions.
Emma's cold stare turns calm as she replies with taking a breath, "For one thing, I hold several degrees in psychology, highly trained psychiatrist, and a certified educator. Also, I have a financially invested bond to this establishment. I intend on keeping the good name of this institute intact. That may not make me an X-man, but it does allow me to ground one if I deem it necessary."
Frustrated and wanting to speak up, Rogue finds herself without a quick come back. Emma's words may stab at her like a cold blade, but ring true. Prior to her long absence, Rogue does recall Emma having partial autonomy when it came to the student's psychological health. With that in mind, her decision doesn't come easy but it does make sense, she remains silent while sitting and nodding to acknowledge Emma's authority. Sitting back to return Rogue's silent acknowledgement, Emma calmly continues, "Now that we have settled that, we may move forward. Logan's recon mission will require close monitoring, of which he had just suggested you partake. Seeing that this is a happy medium, I have agreed. You wish to participate on this mission, you will do so via drone controlled from the situation room below. Are we agreed?"
Once again, Rogue nods in silence. In return, Emma grins coldly with satisfaction as she gestures Rogue to stand adding, "I will be closely monitoring you of course."
Approaching the office door, Rogue looks back with a baffled expression, "Monitoring? But I thought you said you didn't want to enter my mind." she returns.
Emma answers with a slight smirk, "I said closely, Rogue. Not deeply."
With that said, Rogue turns and exits Emma's office muttering under her breath, "Right."
-
Despite it's peaceful appearance, the suburban back drop that is Forge's family home is now a taped off police crime scene. Yellow ribbon like tape cordons off the immediate area with the words 'caution' in repetitive bold print to warn off any curious onlookers or looters. The late hour darkens the neighborhood street with only a single street lamp offering any lite comfort. It is a strategic comfort for Logan and Hank as they casually cross the street from where they parked the armored X-van. Both dressed in their combat attire, ready once more for possible combat, they make thier way to the front yard of Forge's family home. Following them like a scurrying humming bird, a small toy like prop drone quietly zips close keeping pace. The two burly men easily traverse the labyrinth of police tape without making a sound and proceed toward the backyard area. Both spotting damage to the house from their last encounter. Cracked windows, smashes brick and smoldered burn holes on the lawn are all that is left of the brief battle. Rogue's voice electronically speaks from the drone, "All things considerin', I was expectin' more of a battlefield from what you told me."
Logan glances back at the drone with a smirk, "Collateral damage come with bein' a mutant, Rogue. But I like to think we learned from our mistakes."
"Not to mention," Hank adds, "Emma is also trying to get us insured."
Back in the Xavier mansion sub-level command room, Rogue sits comfortably leaning forward against the main console, glancing up at the fifty inch monitor showing both Logan and Hank as they converse. With her right hand, she casually guided the drone with a single finger on the stick control. Her left hand thumbs the pitch and throttle carefully. Not a very exciting contribution to team efforts that she is use to, but it is the compromise she had to accept. Swallowing her pride with that thought on her mind, Rogue continues, "What does that mean, insured?"
Staring back at the drone camera with a furry yet friendly disposition, Hank explains, "Emma has been busy trying to legitimize our actions legally. Seeing that we, on very very few occasions have helped authorities with mutant related issues."
"Not gonna happen," Logan interrupts, "Folks may not see the X-Men as bad guys, but they sure don't see us as good guys neither. Now cut the chatter, we're headin' to the basement."
Predatorial instincts and skill guide the men through backyard without making a single sound. They approach a horizontal two door access to the basement. Logan grips his right fist and slowly extends one his sharp adamantium claws though his knuckle. A quick sharp sting, a grit of his teeth, and a quick swing at the door cuts the steel padlock like warm butter. Hank follows up like clockwork reaching down and pulling the doors open fast. Logan drops back in a defensive posture glaring into the now open passageway. A few seconds pass as he assures, "Clear."
Rogue guides the tiny drone taking the forward point position as they enter the basement. Once again, the signs of battle are evident with blast marks on the walls, burned and smashed old furniture littering their path. Pushing the drone a bit further, Rogue starts to see scattered remains of papers and mangled technology. It forms a somewhat trail though what appeared to be a former family entertaining room, now turned hightech laboratory. A mixture of old retro tech screens and panels adorn the far wall along with more modern flat screen monitors and keyboards of late. Newer mix of late model tablets and tools lay scattered over randomly placed tables and nearby counters. Hank quickly locates the power switch bringing the room to life. Screens and monitors flicker on, cpu's hum and begin the boot up process as the room lights up. Logan orders, "Stay alert, have a look around."
Shuffling from screen to screen, Hank begins searching computer files diligently. Logan sifts through the remains of the scattered battle damage, sniffing like a hunting dog with intense determination. Rogue carefully maneuvers the drone over some of the many paper schematics littering the table tops nearby. She watches on the monitor back in the command room, slowly pushing the drone over blueprints of past projects, some familiar, many beyond her comprehension. Breaking their silence, Logan speaks out, "No real sign of struggle here. Besides our little tussle with the Marauders, nothing else happened here."
He steps over to a single spot and points to the floor. "This is where Scott was hit. We came in to search for Forge, X-23 all of a sudden gets a whiff of somethin' that sets her off. Scott darts after to give her cover, then Harpoon ambushes us. Scott gets skewered in the leg while trying to fire back. We trade hits, then Vertigo covers their escape messin' up our equilibriums."
Communicating through the drone, Rogue inquires, "But Logan, you said no sign of real struggle. What'd you mean by that?"
Straightening his posture, Logan glances around and answers, "I mean, no struggle, nothing was goin' on before we got here. Forge wasn't even home, not one scent of him being recently here. And if he was, he sure as hell wasn't kidnapped."
Just as Logan finishes his statement, he quickly turns his attention to Hank, who seems very engrossed in his own investigation. Standing up from a crouched position, Logan clears his throat and calls out, "Hey Hank, what'cha got over there?"
"Interesting," Hank returns while not taking his eyes away from the wide computer screen, "Forge must have been absolutely entranced in his latest work to not encrypt or password protect his files. There are files and logs for every day the last two years. Majority of which speak of ley lines, alternate power sources, and his old transporting device."
Logan and Rogue's drone join Hank by the main computer screen as he continues, "According to his notes here, he was on the verge of some major breakthrough."
Sitting as comfortably as she can in the command center, Rogue does her best to keep her attention to Hank's continuing statements. But just as it was in her earlier years, she lets her mind drift allowing the drone's cameras to veer away. Gazing at the monitor in a near daydreaming stare, Rogue casually guides the drone almost playful like with her right finger. Hank's voice is a near mumble to her. She then halts the drone and begins to focus on the lightly tattered map of the United States hanging near monitor Hank is sitting in front of. Colorful and detailed, the map shows relief representations of every state's terrain. Rogue's drifting attention is suddenly caught by the several lines drawn across the map. Each line crisscrossing at what seems like random points on the map. She lightly tilts her head following the lines state to state until she reaches the west coast section. Hank's voice fades away and her perception is drawn toward the California coastline. Rogue's full attention feels attached to the map as though fixed by an invisible, yet benevolent force she cannot resist. Her senses are overwhelmed, smelling ocean winds, feeling welcoming sunlight, hearing friendly voices. All of which that strangely seem familiar to her.
An almost comforting familiarity as the voices become clearer. Rogue's perception is slowly filled with the sights and sounds of a high school hallway. She finds herself wandering the halls with fellow students whom she had never met, yet she seems to know at the same time. Some she feels an attachment to, as though she had grown up with them. One in particular, a teenage boy, young around 17 or 18. Rogue feels she knows him, or she think she does. He is a good guy, very much a gentleman for his age. She feels a certain pride being this boy's friend, almost the same kind of pride she has for her own friends. But, this boy is her friend, or is he? Mixed emotions followed by a sense of confusion strike Rogue's mind as she tries to process what she is seeing. Before she can ask any questions, the familiar and lively scene is suddenly overwhelmed by the sounds of what she believes to be thunder. The ground shakes violently, crumbling the walls of the colorful school hallway. Friendly smiles and jovial banters turns to looks of utter fear and screams of terror. Rogue finds herself running for her life as the world around her falls apart. The school hallway ceiling cracks wide open above her revealing a darkening sky. Plumes of smoke and ash obscure what was once a prestine beautiful sunny clue sky. It is as though the end of days has finally come. Just then, she feels an urging tap on her shoulder, the teenage boy gains her attention, "We have to help them!" he states to her.
They both dive out of the growing rubble around them, grabbing begging hands and lifting injured bodies in haste. Fellow students and friends alike call out for help, and the two answer heroically without a word. Rogue feels determined to save as many as she can, just as her young friend does. They feel invulnerable to the dangers around them, the same way they felt when they were younger playing games on the school playground. Every life saved was a victory, even if it was only a small handful. Despite all the chaos around them, her friend manages to crack one of his sarcastic jokes, "I guess they're letting us out early today, huh?"
It lightens the mood enough for them to share a laugh just before another thunderous quake shakes the crumbling school once more. The ground cracks and opens up beneath them. Rogue reacts as fast as she can realizing her friend is falling into a splitting cavity, her hand just inches away from grabbing his. There is no sound except for the chaotic noise of crumbling earth as she watches her friend fall to his death. At first she feels numbness out of disbelief. Then the feeling helplessness, hopelessness, and failure wash over her mind. 'What just happened, why is this happening, why couldn't I save them', echo through her mind. A sudden emotional wave
of guilt washes over her heart. A guilt that becomes even heavier when she comes face to face with a peaceful memorial where the school once stood, now a large slab of polished marble stone with the names of students and faculty who had perished. The stone reaches for the sky, overlooking the large cliff where the west coast continent split from the main land and dropped under the Pacific ocean. Rogue falls to her knees and weeps into her hands. "I... I could've saved them. I could've saved them all..." she mutters to herself.
Her sadness and guilt feel justified, yet she is also filled with confusion. But as Rogue tries to reconcile her emotions, and familiar voice speaks to her, "Yes, you could have saved them."
She quickly looks up to see who is speaking to her, only to see the peaceful drop off of the new coastline. Rogue slowly gets to her feet as the man's voice speaks again, "But you didn't."
She turns around realizing the voice is behind her, but is too late as she is suddenly and violently shoved off the cliff. Rogue manages to glimpse at her attacker and sees the face of someone she hadn't longed for in years. A young clean cut dark hair man, dressed in only jeans and a t-shirt watches her flail off the cliff. His eyes filled with hate as they glow an eerie bright yellow. His voice echoes all around her, "YOU FAILED EVERYONE!"
Rogue falls for what seems like an eternity. The mans angered echoing voice turns into the voices and cries of suffering victims that seem to envelope her. She shuts her eyes tightly surrendering to her falling fate, only open her eyes to the sight of Emma looking directly at her.
Rogue's perception slowly focuses on the blonde woman before her. Emma's voice calls out to her softly, "Look at me, Rogue. Just relax, and breathe."
Taking a breath, Rogue realizes she is still in the command center, almost lounging back in the chair. She looks around the room with her eyes and sees Kitty staring with a concerned expression. "Did... did I doze off, or something?" Rogue innocently asks them.
"Um," Kitty begins to answer nervously, "not really, Rogue. You were like, spazing out."
Even more confused, Rogue asks, "What do you mean, spazing out?"
"In a manner of speaking," Emma adds, "you started to day dream out of bordem it seems. Then something else happened."
Rogue stays quiet as she listens further to Emma, "I couldn't be sure until I got closer, but you were no longer dreaming, Rogue. You were reliving a memory."
