Disclaimer – again, the following plot belongs to me, but the characters and everything else belong to Marvel.

Chapter the Second

Unveiled

Ororo sighed as made her way down the grand staircase and headed in the direction of what had once been the study of Professor Charles Xavier. It was still a study by all means, but it now belonged to Ororo and was only used for informal meetings, like the one she had called for after the events of the trial. It had been late afternoon by the time the X-Men had returned to the mansion they called home, but it hadn't been the end of the chaos. Upon arriving at the mansion a colleague had called Ororo and Logan's attention to the television, though not in regards to Pyro's escape. It seemed the fire thrower's escape had only been one of many. In upstate New York at the federal prison a woman with hair as black as night, along with a tawny haired man that resembled a beast, had walked right in and broke Multiple Man loose from his cell. Four guards had been killed in the process; two more had been injured, though only one was in critical condition. As if that weren't bad enough, on the other side of the country in the state of California a blur had whizzed through the mutant holding center. Moments later the mutant known as the Juggernaut was busy bowling down security guards on his way out of the prison, making life for Ororo a tad more hectic than she had wanted. All day long her phone had been plagued with phone calls asking for the aide of the X-Men in retrieving these criminals once more.

"Whoa, Ms. Munroe, you're totally looking pale," commented Jubilee as Ororo finally entered the study. "Maybe you should lay off the stress meter, huh?"

"I wish I could," replied Ororo wearily. "Hank has called three times to see if there is anything he can do to be of service to us. The President calls every half hour for updates. I don't know what to tell anyone anymore. I don't know what to do or say about this mess. I had…I had thought that without Magneto the Brotherhood wouldn't be much of a threat anymore. It was wishful thinking."

Logan grimaced as Ororo paced the study. It made him nervous when people paced. Actually it was more of an itch that developed, making the man feel restless. He desperately wanted to be out doing something like sniffing down the brat who had thrown him through the wall and wreaked havoc at the courthouse while breaking loose the pyromaniac. "Why don't we start by answering the basics, 'Ro. Who the hell are these mutants and why does it seem like the Brotherhood's going to follow them without question?"

Bobby cleared his throat nervously. "Lorna…or Polaris, whatever you want to call her…she mentioned something about 'like father, like daughter'."

"Magneto?" questioned Marie. She frowned at the thought, shifting on the couch to move away from Remy who had plopped himself beside her once more. "I didn't think Magneto had any kids. I mean, wouldn't the Professor have mentioned it before now?"

"There were a lot of things the Professor didn't choose to reveal to us," said Ororo softly. "His past with Magneto was always something of a mystery even to Jean and Scott. Magneto himself is one of the largest enigmas out there. All any of us ever really knew about him was the fact that he had survived the Holocaust and had been a teacher here when I was younger. He left shortly after I arrived, so I'm the worst one to answer your question. If he had a family, or children of his own, I wouldn't know. It's possible though. Anything's possible at this point."

Warren frowned. "But she's so…young for lack of a better word. Magneto's not exactly young himself…you really think he has a daughter our age?"

"He's a guy," pointed out Kitty from her own seat in a straight-backed chair. "Just because he's mutant, or was mutant, doesn't make him exempt from human impulses. It's entirely possible he had some kind of relationship that resulted in a child. He had that icky link with Mystique, didn't he? Maybe Lorna's their child together or something?"

"Oh gross," muttered Theresa wrinkling her nose. "This is just bringing a crap-load of bad images to my mind. Can't we talk about something a little less…oh I don't know, gross?"

"Okay then, how about the fact that we now have three dangerous mutants on the loose again, along with two more killers on the loose, and a whole contingent of other mutants following these wannabe terrorists?" Logan offered up the words without bothering to soften them, making the teens standing in the room all cringe under his glare. He shook his head and moved away from the desk to calm himself. It wouldn't do to get everyone worked up over something they had no control of.

Piotr drummed his fingers along his knees, his forehead crinkled in a mass of wrinkles that indicated he was thinking. "It really doesn't matter if she's Magneto's daughter, Mystique's kid, or someone else's. What matters is the fact that the Brotherhood is regrouping. They've got a lot to be angry about. Half of those that lived after the fight on Alcatraz are human now. We should probably be concerned about them falling in with the new Brotherhood and stirring up more trouble."

"As humans?" Jubilee made a face. "Doesn't that defeat the whole purpose behind the Brotherhood?"

"It probably depends," said Marie thoughtfully. "If this is a new Brotherhood then it's going to be assumed there's new leadership, right? Magneto hasn't been seen or heard from since he vanished on Alcatraz Island. I can't see him running the Brotherhood again as a human, no matter how much he hated the humans, but that doesn't mean this new leadership won't use former mutants to press their point."

"Which is?" questioned Remy as he glanced over at the southern belle behind him.

"Not all mutants took the cure voluntarily. There are still a lot out there protesting its usage, even after Alcatraz Island. What happened on that island was bad no matter how you look at it, but it doesn't change the fact that the cure was made into a weapon that day. With Pyro out on Polaris' little bail scheme you can bet they're going to use that fact to get more members. It was bad thinking on our part that the Brotherhood was gone for good. Magneto only started the vision of the Brotherhood, just like the Professor started his vision of the X-Men. Isn't it fitting that just like we can go on without our visionary leader, the Brotherhood can go on as well?"

The room grew silent for a moment before Bobby spoke aloud the question on everyone's minds. "Then what happens now?"

--

"Not bad, Princess. I could have done better though."

Lorna ignored Pyro's words as she led him through the doors of the abandoned apartment building with the rest of her group behind her. They had hidden in the sewers after ridding themselves of the cops in front of the courthouse, and it hadn't been until after dusk that the group found the streets dark and clear enough to wander through on their way back to the temporary headquarters of the new Brotherhood.

Pyro frowned at the lack of words coming from the green haired teen. She had been overly snippy with him as they had sat around the sewers. Her sudden silence was unnerving to say the least, but then again, Pyro had never really known what to make of the girl in the time that he had come to know her. He had first met Lorna a month after joining the Brotherhood. She had appeared at camp one day with Mystique and Toad, the green mutant that had aided in Pyro's escape earlier in the day. The green hair had stood out in his mind, quickly followed by her looks. She reminded him of a sultry vixen with a hint of innocence still in her face, and Pyro had immediately found her attractive. Ten minutes later all that had changed when she proved to be nothing more than a spoiled brat used to getting her way, and currently cut off from her trust fund set up by her very rich adoptive parents. The pair hadn't hit it off very well, something that had possibly resulted from the pickup line Pyro had used on Lorna that resulted in her slapping him. Five minutes later Magneto was breaking up their very vocal argument to introduce his daughter to the pyromaniac.

Needless to say Pyro had tried to stay on Lorna's good side whenever Magneto was around, but that didn't make him like the teen any more than he had to. Yet today she had rescued him from a lifetime in prison…or worse, the death penalty. It had been expected though. Lorna was heir to the Brotherhood monarchy as the daughter of Magneto, though her capability at leading the group was rather questionable. She was young and inexperienced despite her dark ways. From what Pyro had gathered Lorna's falling out with her family had something to do with using her powers to harm someone at school, and the fact that the girl was a bit of a compulsive shoplifter.

"Hey," Pyro swallowed his pride and called after Lorna as she headed through a doorway. The rest of the mutants seemed to be dispersing on their own, possibly to try and drown out any vocal arguments Pyro and Lorna would have. "Lorna, stop."

With a sigh Lorna did stop, though she refused to turn around and face Pyro. Since getting him out of trouble he had only called into question her capacity to make any decisions whatsoever. It seemed no matter how hard she tried he, along with the rest of the Brotherhood for that matter, would never see her as anything more than a child. Magneto had thought the same thing, for instead of allowing her to participate on Alcatraz Island he had sent her to Canada to search for someone in particular for him; another mutant that would prove useful in the future. Well Lorna had found the mutant and brought her back to the Brotherhood, but whatever plans Magneto had for the newcomer had vanished along with him. Since then Lorna had been thrust into a new role, one she cherished, but also one no one seemed to think she could handle.

"What, Pyro? Are you going to tell me I should go upstairs and play with my dollies and you'll take over my stead? Because if you are, you can save it—that's all I've been hearing all week, alright? I'm not in the mood to fuck around anymore. We all know the Brotherhood will follow you to the ends of the earth. That's why Pietro and Wanda went ahead and named you their co-leader." The words flowed out of Lorna's mouth with venom behind them. She seemed quite upset over it all, making Pyro pause before saying anything.

"Actually, I was going to say thanks for breaking me out. You did alright you know. You proved you aren't a kid anymore." It wasn't exactly a pep talk, but Pyro knew from experience how Lorna was when she started crying. It took hours to get her to stop. She never understood that her childish nature and habits were the sole reasons behind the Brotherhood being reluctant in letting her run it, but that didn't make her any less of a darling to the male members hoping for an easy lay whenever she did grow up.

"Just leave me alone." Lorna gave Pyro a tired look before plopping down onto a pale sofa with stuffing coming out of its cushions. Glancing around the pyromaniac realized they were in an apartment. It didn't exactly look lived in so he assumed it was nothing more than a base of operations for the new leadership of the Brotherhood.

Choosing not to listen to her Pyro asked a question. "Where are Pietro and Wanda?"

"Wanda took Sabertooth with her to go and get Multiple out of jail…and Pietro was headed to California to get Juggernaut back. They want the old team back together before they get the new one put together."

"Makes sense to me."

"Only because you get along with them, Johnny. I don't, remember?"

"That's only because you whine too much. Stop acting like a baby and they might include you in their plans."

"Yes, because having your bastard sister helping out would make sense, right?" snapped Lorna irritably.

Pyro shrugged and didn't respond. The truth of the matter was Lorna wasn't Magneto's only child, and to top it off, she wasn't even his legitimate child. She was merely the result of a temporary fling with a random mutant Magneto had met upon starting up his Brotherhood of Mutants. The woman gave birth to a daughter but because Magneto wouldn't recognize the child as such Lorna was given up for adoption and her mother disappeared off the face of the planet. Pietro and Wanda on the other hand were the true children of Magneto. He had been married to their mother and very much in love when they had been born. Her death at the hands of humans had estranged father from children for many years until the twins sought him out with every intention of connecting with him. It seemed their own lives with a different family had not been one for the storybooks, for they too were of the mindset that humans were intolerable at best. A month after reuniting with their father the twins were doing recon work for him to recruit other members. It was Pietro and Wanda who had convinced mutants like Sabertooth and Toad to join up in the first place.

The Maximoff twins as they were generally regarded as would make fine leaders for the Brotherhood without a doubt. The pair was much like their father in being able to calculate plans with a cunning joie de vivre none had ever witnessed before. Their closeness with their father had almost been shattered however with the arrival of Lorna. Since her joining up with the Brotherhood the twins had done little to accept her as their sister, especially given the age difference between them. To the twins Lorna was still a child, and while Pyro wasn't much older than Lorna he was twice as capable of running the Brotherhood as she was, with a hint more maturity to top it off.

"If it makes you feel any better, I'll let you tag along on outings if you want," suggested Pyro after a few minutes passed by in silence.

Lorna rolled her eyes. "I'm a Lensherr, Pyro, not some random kid off the street. I have as much of a say in what happens with the Brotherhood as Pietro and Wanda or you do."

"Uh-huh, and what makes you think that?"

"I'm the one Caliban talks to. He doesn't talk to Pietro or Wanda."

Pyro grew quiet again, something he was finding to be altogether frequent with the green haired girl this evening. The truth was she had a point about Caliban; she was the only one the albino-like mutant would speak to, though his reasons were unknown. All Pyro did know about Caliban was that the mutant had lived in the sewers most of his life and had been particularly close to Callisto, Quill, Arclight, and Psylocke before joining up with the Brotherhood. Caliban hadn't actually done much participation; he had mainly stuck by Lorna's side like some sort of guide, and if he wasn't by her side he was glued to Callisto. Once upon a time Caliban had been something of a wise man, for it was him a lot of the mutants Callisto had led went to for minor troubles or advice.

"Just because he talks to you doesn't make you a leader, Princess," murmured Pyro with a softer edge to his voice.

"No," she agreed, "but with his help I could help lead the Brotherhood."

"Don't turn this into a battle for leadership. We're low enough in numbers as it is."

"You know I wouldn't do that. It'd be pointless to have two Brotherhood's running around anyway. But I can be of help. I'm not a child."

"Then don't act like one." Pyro grinned. It had seemed like the right time to put that jab in. He didn't mind being serious when it came time for battle, but the teen still had a mischievous streak in him that wasn't quite ready to go away.

"Don't tempt her." A female voice came from the doorway, causing both Pyro and Lorna to glance in its direction. A woman with black hair entered the room wearing red clothing that hugged her curves in all the right places. Pyro gave the woman an appreciative once over as she entered before noticing the man behind her.

"Hey, Jamie, how was prison?"

The man in question shrugged nonchalantly, a grin on his face. "Can't complain," he replied with a grin. "I made a few friends, freaked a few others out with my multiplying skills, and spit food at the guards. All in all I'd say it was twice as fun as high school, but I wouldn't go back."

"It was pure hell getting out of there though," snorted the dark haired woman. "I think five of them were killed on our way out—Sabertooth's off licking his wounds somewhere upstairs now. Damn brute wanted to kill everyone in the joint. I had to restrain him with my powers so we could escape before the army arrived."

"I told you it was too risky to bring him along, Wanda," murmured Lorna as her eyebrows knitted together. She stiffened under the cold look sent her way from the other woman.

"Yes, but without him I would've have been strained." Wanda's attention shifted to Pyro, surprise lighting up in her eyes. "I see you managed to get Pyro out. I'm sure having Avalanche, Toad, Blob, and Plague along helped."

Judging by the gritting of Lorna's jaw Pyro knew a battle of wills was in order. Rather than endure a match between the two mutants he quickly came to Lorna's defense. "Actually, she wasn't half bad, Wanda. It almost reminded me of Magneto today. Lorna took out five humans and the Wolverine. She's learning, you have to give her that."

Wanda was silent, her own jaw set firmly as she continued to lock eyes at the younger girl seated on the couch. "Maybe," she said grudgingly, her eyes moving back to Pyro. "At least you're back. Now we'll be able to get down to business again—once Pietro returns. I'm not sure if he'll be showing up with Juggernaut today or tomorrow. It's late as it is, so we won't be getting down to business until tomorrow anyway. Find yourself an empty apartment somewhere and make yourself at home. This is going to be our headquarters for a while." Without another word Wanda swept out of the room without another glance at the other three occupants.

Jamie let out a low whistle after the woman had gone. "Talk about the ice queen," he muttered. "She's one serious woman, isn't she?"

"She means business—not much for playing around."

"What do you think that means for the Brotherhood?"

"Absolutely nothing," replied Lorna ruefully. "Wanda's just like our father—she'll lead just like he did. You don't have to worry about anything out of the ordinary happening. Wanda and Pietro knew what father had planned for after Alcatraz. We've just hit a little bump in the road. Once our numbers have risen we'll be back in business."

"Huh, works for me." Jamie gave another grin before patting Pyro on the back and heading out of the room, whistling as he went.

Pyro watched him go before turning back to Lorna who was standing up from her spot on the couch. "No fight? You're not losing your touch, are you?"

"Screw you. It's the truth. Wanda and Pietro are going to keep things going for us. We both know it. Magneto kept them up to date with plans…he didn't bother telling me anything unless I was needed. That doesn't mean I don't think I'm not qualified to co-lead, I'm just tired of arguing my point. One day they'll see we aren't all that different. Until then I'll just co-lead with you."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, co-lead with me?" Pyro shook his head. "No way, Princess, you aren't exactly the easiest person to get along with."

"Oh please, you just don't like working with anyone."

"Uh-huh, and because Wanda and Pietro aren't going to go for it—you know they won't."

Lorna smirked, her legs bringing her to stand in front of the pyromaniac so she could pat his cheek condescendingly. "They'll reconsider if you tell them it would keep me from causing trouble in the ranks…and you could keep a better eye on me for them. Wanda doesn't trust me. That much is obvious; and Pietro ignores me like I don't even exist. All you have to do is convince them it would be in their best interests if you let me tag along with you like a partner of sorts."

Pyro gaped at the teen before pulling his wits about him. Obviously she had put a lot of thought into this, despite moping about ten minutes earlier. "Give me one good reason why I should."

"I'll give you two." Lorna leaned forward, brushing her lips against his ear to whisper in a low voice. Pyro's eyebrows shot upwards, his head nodding of its own accord. Satisfied that she had made her point Lorna pulled away from Pyro with a triumphant look on her face before saying, "And the second reason is because I came and rescued your sorry ass today."

"Fine, but if I agree to this, Princess, you can't pull any funny stuff on me," agreed Pyro with only a hint of a frown on his face. "I don't like people who don't play nice."

"Says the man who likes to play with fire."

"Cute, now why don't you show me my room, huh?"

--

Dr. Henry McCoy, or Hank as he preferred to be called, gave only the briefest of nods to a human woman seated behind a secretarial desk as he entered the small waiting room. She nodded back, giving the blue, furry mutant no reason to dilly dally. Instead he pushed open the door to the Oval Office, a grim expression on his face as he greeted the men already seated inside the room. This was hardly a pleasantry call on Hank's part. He had already discussed the events of the day with Ororo three times, each time offering her his assistance if need be, as well as scoured the news for all items related to the three breakouts that seemed to have happened one right after another, or at the same time according to some sources.

"Hank, I'm glad you could make it," murmured the aged voice of President David Cockrum. He extended a hand to Hank, which the mutant shook warmly. Since his appointment to the United Nations Hank and the President had become rather good friends, but both were of the same feeling that things would be different once more with current events.

"I came as soon as you called, Mr. President. Have you learned anything more about the breakouts?"

The voice that answered did not belong to the President, but to a dark skinned man with a sour look upon is face. Hank couldn't help but grimace further. Bolivar Trask was one of the least likeable men working in the White House. As the Secretary of Homeland Security the man had made it his lifelong mission to fight terrorism in all forms, though most currently he favored the form of mutants as terrorists.

Bolivar cleared his throat. "Her name is Lorna Dane. She's believed to be the illegitimate daughter of Magneto. We have agents learning more from her adoptive parents. They claim they haven't seen her for close to a year now due to a falling out and the girl running away. She was the one to break Allerdyce free at the courthouse today. She wasn't alone either. From what we can gather, and from the few mutants in our system, she was accompanied by Dominic Petros, Frederick Dukes, Mortimer Toynbee, and a woman by the name of Elaine Hennessy. The three males all have criminal records while the old woman has been rumored to be the cause behind ill agents trying to scare mutants out of hiding in the local sewer system."

"That's quite extensive knowledge of mutants I've only just heard about," murmured Hank coolly.

Bolivar simply shrugged. He didn't care much for Hank either, and not just because the man was a mutant. He was too much of a damn optimist. "It's my job to know." Both knew it was a lie. Bolivar Trask had once worked alongside William Stryker on a top secret project along with another colleague by the name of Nicholas Fury.

"Either way, Hank," stated David with a sigh, "it seems the Brotherhood is back in business again. We're working on discovering the identities of the other three mutants involved in the other two breakouts. All in all, we have a crisis on our hands."

"I know, Mr. President. I had hoped with the humanization of Magneto the Brotherhood would break apart…but it seems I was wrong in thinking that. They are much craftier than I had given them credit for. Though if you are right in saying this girl is the daughter of Magneto, then we have a very big problem on our hands. A legacy within the Brotherhood would be very dangerous."

"So are the mutants involved in the Brotherhood," pointed out Bolivar sagely. "They need to be taken out. Already we've got a body count of thirteen officers dead at the hands of mutants today. Humans don't like seeing images of dead bodies."

"Nor do mutants, Mr. Trask." Hank visibly bristled at the indication that mutants wouldn't be appalled at the events of the day as though they were incapable of feeling like humans felt.

"The point of the matter, Dr. McCoy, is that the members of the Brotherhood are a danger to society." A new voice entered the fray, causing Hank to study the unknown man with mild curiosity. The man had blonde hair slicked back atop his head, and beady brown eyes that made Hank distrust him almost instantly.

"And what would you propose we do?" questioned Hank cautiously.

"Round them up."

"Just like that? What you are suggesting, my good man, is something akin to segregation. The only way to round up a member of the Brotherhood would be to apprehend all mutants to drill them on their loyalties. Not all mutants side with the Brotherhood, but their views could easily be made to seem accepting of the beliefs of the Brotherhood."

"You are taking my words out of proportion. Allow me to amend my proposal. I am not suggesting round up mutants like cattle—I am merely saying that when the Brotherhood strikes, for we all know it is not a matter of it, but when they strike…I propose we unveil a project long kept on the back shelves of the Defense Department. When the Brotherhood makes their move we send in our secret weapons and round them up without any more senseless deaths of humans."

Hank felt his mouth fall open slightly as a thought occurred to him. Long ago, when he had just been starting out in politics, he had heard of a shelved project that Bolivar Trask had been the head of, along with the help of a man by the name of Randall Lightfoot. If it was the same project Hank was thinking of then it was one to be wary of. He had discussed the project with Professor Xavier a long time ago, but neither had thought the government would ever pass it through congress; but today thirteen men and women had died at the hands of mutants. It wasn't as great a catastrophe as Alcatraz Island, but it was still a harsh blow to a society that had barely been coming to terms with its mutant population.

"And this project?" asked David with avid interest.

The man who spoke this time was a man with copper colored skin and black hair. "We've come to call them Sentinels, Mr. President."

-End of Chapter Two-

a/n – cookies to Henry-Coreen-Lover125 and trekker4life for guessing correctly on several of the unnamed mutants in the last chapter. In case you didn't catch their names in this one, the answers were Avalanche, Blob, Toad, and Plague, and little Siryn with the X-Men.

New contest – popcorn to those who can tell me the identity of the man with blonde hair and beady eyes, as well as the identity of our Randall Lightfoot the man who unveiled the Sentinels. I'm afraid I made it too hard though, so sorry in advance…xD