The X-Men Factor


Two days later, early afternoon inside the Main Conference Room, on-board Alpha Base…

After Dr. Strange had ousted Reaper's entity from Peter's mind, he continued to magically trek through his mind for any remnants of Reaper's dangerous influence over him. He avoided delving too deep into Peter's subconscious, in worry that triggering a memory or an experience might Reaper in attempting to re-control his mind from wherever he lurked.

Two days later, Dr. Strange hypothesized that the only way for Reaper to have easily begun influencing Peter was for him to have been near Peter long enough to create a "mental connection" and planting his entity inside, slowly feeding off of Peter's emotions, growing over a prolonged period of time, and eventually making room for Reaper to easily take over.

Knowing all of this, the Sorcerer Supreme brought his findings to the others, explaining all of this to them in the Main Conference Room, where Nick Fury, Agent Coulson, Director Hill, and Tony Stark sat.

Stark had just recently arrived to help with R.O.G.U.E.'s progress now that the Avengers were being targeted as aiding the faction.

"…I eventually figured that Reaper's influence over young Mr. Parker must've fed off of his insecurities and his worries over his lost team. I tried to see if maybe something from his past had anything to do with it, but his recent memories surrounding his old team seemed to trigger the strong hold of influence." Dr. Strange calmly explained to them all.

"It sounds like Parker's been through the wringer these past few years, then." Tony remarked. "Has he been working by himself? Or have any of you made any contact with him?"

"Being the fact the Director and I are both fugitives, we couldn't possibly have made an attempt to interact with Peter. Sitwell's kept him in his crosshairs for years now." Coulson quickly explained. "If we had made any communication with him, it would've jeopardized him."

"That's no excuse. We should've sent somebody to at least talk to Parker, keep his head cleared." Fury sternly stated, taking a sip of the coffee he had in front of him. "Who had the easiest access to talk to him?"

Stark glanced over to Strange, scowling at him. This prompted the magician to take a deep sigh.

"I suppose I'm the most at fault here. I've watched over his progress as Midtown High's principal but… I kept my distance, worrying that if I involved Peter with our operations with R.O.G.U.E., that it would place him in greater danger."

"I'm pretty sure 'taking care of Parker' was part of the job description I gave you when you were given the job." Tony aggressively pointed out.

"How was I supposed to know that he was being mentally targeted by the Reaper, Stark?"

"You've got your magic, don't you?!"

"That's not how my powers work!" Dr. Strange defended himself.

"Enough!" Fury broke up the argument, slamming his fist on the table. "Let's stop placing blame on each other!"

"Hey, don't look at me. Your Houdini over there started it." Stark riposted.

Dr. Strange returned a disapproving expression.

"Has Parker been discharged by our medical staff?" Hill curiously asked.

"Not yet. He's still resting in his room in the medical platform." Dr. Strange politely answered. "I can go retrieve him, if you all would like to speak to him."

"No. Not yet, anyway." Fury told him. "I'll speak to him after this."

"That's a good idea." Coulson concurred. "If anyone can reinforce Peter's confidence, it's you, sir."

Fury agreed. After all, he was the one responsible for getting the team together in the first place all those years ago. He, above anyone else, had a level of strong influence over Peter and the way he carried himself as a teenage superhero. Fury hoped that it still remained true.

"Now, for the next matter at hand…" Hill opened up a manila folder she had in front of her and began looking through the paperwork. "…The X-Men."

"You sure they'll still be any good after all the restrictions S.H.I.E.L.D.'s placed on them?" Stark skeptically questioned.

"Charles Xavier is still a powerful ally to have. The X-Men want humans and mutants to live together in harmony. R.O.G.U.E. wouldn't be fighting if we didn't want the same." Coulson respectfully answered. "We naturally need them as our ally."

"Just how strict is S.H.I.E.L.D.'s control over their academy right now?" Dr. Strange inquired.

"Bad. They're using the Manhattan Incident and what happened on Island M as justification to ensure that their activities are tightly monitored. Messages going in and out are reviewed by the supervising agent."

"Have we been able to speak to them at all?" Fury curiously asked, reviewing the paperwork Hill had.

"Beast, Hank McCoy, has been serving as Xavier's liaison to the government. He's been petitioning to have the government order S.H.I.E.L.D. to loosen their control, but they're not budging." Hill answered the question.

"I'm telling you, they can't parlay with the politics behind S.H.I.E.L.D. Sitwell's got more bureaucrats in his pockets than I have suits." Stark shook his head in disapproval. "I'd write them off as a lost cause until we get S.H.I.E.L.D. out of their hair."

"Well… someone has been talking to them." Coulson quickly intervened, causing the others to stare right at him. "Phantom's been in communications with Wolverine. I don't know by what means they're communicating, but it's been working so far these past few years. It's how we know of how bad their situation is at the present time."

"Okay, even if we have some way to talk to them, they can't do anything without the agents finding out." Stark pressed on the skepticism that the X-Men might help.

"Hmm… What if we… helped them out?" Coulson vaguely asked the group.

"What do you mean?" Hill wondered.

"What if we… helped them escape?"

"That could work!" Stark loudly agreed.

"That wouldn't help our cause out any by breaking them out." Fury quickly corrected him. "It'd show that we've no respect for their policies. Until they're actually torturing those mutants, there's nothing we can do… yet."

"Do you think we should send a message to them via Specter Haven, then? Ask them if they need our help?" Hill inquired.

"I'm not the Director anymore, Hill, you are. That's your call."

"Sir…" Hill stammered.

She'd been Director of R.O.G.U.E. for two years now, she had more than an idea of how to make decisions now. But, after having Fury return to them for so long, she had begun to direct more questions to him, referring to his wisdom and experience. Hill did her best not to revert back to her days as one of Fury's special agents, answering only to him. She had sacrificed so much now to do that.

…and Fury refused to allow her to give up her authority for him.

"Look." Fury stopped her short. "I say we bring this up at the peace talks. We can directly address their treatment of mutants there, shed some more light on the subject."

"That won't solve a thing." Stark interrupted. "S.H.I.E.L.D. is good at manipulating the public. They won't care about the mutants."

"It's all we can do for now." Fury's tone calmed down, taking a look at his watch. "We'll continue this later. I'm going to see Parker now."

"Don't let us keep you." Stark sneered.

Fury stood up and excused himself from the table. He marched out of the Main Conference Room and out into the Plexiglas-walled corridors of the Alpha Base. The others watched him walk away, right before the door to the room slid shut.

"I see he's still wearing that ridiculous black coat." Stark murmured, rolling his eyes.

"It's good that you brought Parker here, Strange." Director Hill assured the Sorcerer Supreme. "Web-head's been on Fury's mind ever since he got back."

"I only regret that the rest of Spider-Man's team isn't here." Dr. Strange sighed. "…especially Miss Ayala."

"I almost forgot that those two were dating." She smirked, remembering how Peter and Ava were so infatuated by each other.

Stark stood up to stretch his legs and stared out into the underwater ecosystem. He honestly liked it. The view of the underwater ecosystem gave the dull and gray environment inside the base some form of vibrant life. He'd go so far as to say he was impressed by how far R.O.G.U.E.'s evolved, even without the base, but he'd never admit it to Hill or Fury.

"Have we any progress with the rest of the Avengers, Director Hill?" Dr. Strange suddenly inquired.

This caught Stark's attention.

Hill glanced over to Stark then back to Strange.

"We have. Black Panther's personally visiting us here within the next few days once they have a secure transport fly them out here. Falcon, Vision, Cap, and Bucky will be with him. Romanoff's made contact with Clint, it looks like he's agreed to come as well. And hopefully, we'll be seeing Scott Lang here with us soon."

"He'll be here." Stark sternly assured her, ignoring the fact that he'll be meeting Captain America and the others who fought against him during their little civil war that happened within the recent year.

"I trust that both you and Cap will put your differences aside for this?" Hill asked with a firm tone.

"Yeah." Stark answered, turning his back on them to look outside once again. "I just hope he can too."

After a short walk through the busy metallic corridors, Fury finally reached the medical wing. There, he was escorted by one of the medical nurses to Parker's room. He stopped before entering, watching the young man through the glass window that looked into the room.

Peter was sitting up, wearing a white medical patient suit with R.O.G.U.E.'s symbol patched on the right arm. He was chowing down on the sandwich and chips lunch that the doctors had given him. The web-slinger didn't bother to look at the window, seeming to be too busy eating to care. Fury clasped his hands behind his back, examining Peter for a moment.

He didn't take the moment to take a good look at him the first time he had seen him when Dr. Strange arrived to Alpha Base. His attention was focused on making sure Peter was being cared for, making sure that his mind wasn't turned to mush by the Reaper.

Now that he had time, he realized just how much Parker had grown. The scruff around his face indicated that he was badly in need of a good shave. He had bags under his eyes, which showed that he was losing sleep, and he had been losing sleep for quite a while now. After a few moments of watching him, Fury decided to finally step in.

Peter glanced over, his eyes quickly widening in shock. Fury couldn't help but to faintly smile.

"You know, a young man who likes to web-swing from building to building once told me that I had a knack of 'bringing bad news to people around me'." Fury calmly greeted him, gesturing the quotations.

"N-Nick!?" Pete shot out of his bed and ran over to hug Fury. "Nick, is it… is it really you?! We all thought you were dead all these years! I didn't think I'd ever see you again!"

It took Fury by surprise initially, but he quickly had to remember that it had been more than two years since they last spoke. Their last meeting resulted in Fury being arrested and carried off to the Triskelion to await trial. However, even to Fury, it all seemed like he had just seen the web-slinger recovering from that fight with Phantom back on the original Manhattan helicarrier.

"It's great to see you again too, kid." Fury returned the hug, feeling something fatherly-like, as though he was hugging his long lost son.

He quickly shook off the feeling.

Fury then took a seat on the nearby metallic chair that stood perpendicular to the medical bed. Peter couldn't shake the look of astonishment from seeing his old mentor again.

"You need some shaving cream and a razor these days, web-head." Fury sternly joked.

"Heh, yeah, I guess I do." Pete sat down on the side of his bed, scratching the small hairs on his jaw-line. "Jesus, Nick, it's been... so long."

"I know, kid, I know. It seems like yesterday that we were trying to figure out how we could bring the fight Phantom, Taskmaster, and Deadpool… and now…"

"…Phantom's on our side." Peter finished the sentence for him, faintly grinning. "The irony."

Fury let out a small chuckle. "Actually, I was going to say that we've got more enemies now, but you're right. Ol' Cruz finally put all that behind him."

"Have you seen him yet?"

Fury nodded. "He's the one who saved me from S.H.I.E.L.D. in Afghanistan. Well, him and Specter Haven."

"Afghanistan?! Whoa…" Peter sounded amazed. "So you met Wolfe, Fox, and Firewalker?"

"I did." Fury nodded. "They're an interesting bunch. I'm glad Phantom's got himself some friends."

Peter faintly smiled and nodded at this, solemnly remembering about his own friends. Sam, Luke, Danny, and Ava. Fury quickly picked up on this, reading the expression that Peter gave off after Fury had mentioned it.

"We'll get them back, Parker. You have my word. Sitwell's not going to get away with breaking up my best team."

"You think they're still alive...?" Peter's voice sounded somewhat hopeful.

"All four of them are more than capable enough, web-head. Don't doubt them."

"I just… miss them a lot, you know?"

"I know. But, you and I both know that they wouldn't want you to beat yourself up over it. Not Cage, not Alexander, not Rand… and especially, not Ayala. She would've called you soft for even doing that."

"Yeah, well, you didn't know her like I did. She was a real softie too."

"To a degree, you all were." Fury grinned at the corner of his mouth. "I remember Stark used to refer to you all as the 'Junior Varsity Avengers'."

"Heh, we may as well have tried to pretend we were. Luke and Danny once came up with this bright idea to title us 'Heroes for Hire'. Sam quickly shot it down, kept saying that we needed to get paid first. Ava thought it was downright dumb and that it made us sound like a much of anti-heroes." Peter reminisced, faintly smiling.

Fury leaned forward in his seat, clasping his hands together.

"Don't give up on them, web-head. They never gave up on you when you led them."

Fury turned to the doctor's table that ran parallel to the glass window, a backpack lying on top of it. Peter's belongings were inside, along with his modified Spider-Man suit. He gently reached into it and grabbed the mask. Fury examined the mask with its new modifications and held it up for Peter to see.

"I couldn't be more proud to know that no matter what had happened… you didn't give up being Spider-Man these past years."

"It's… it's all I had, Nick." Peter shrugged.

"It's who you are, Parker." Fury returned the mask to the backpack. "With S.H.I.E.L.D. trying to shut us down and this Reaper waiting to come after us at the horizon, I want Spider-Man on our side... What do you say, kid?"

"You want me to help R.O.G.U.E.? That'd mean I'd be a fugitive!"

"Would you rather fight with Sitwell's S.H.I.E.L.D., then?"

"Well… no, but." Peter hesitated. "What about my friends, Harry and MJ, Nick? Aunt May…?"

"S.H.I.E.L.D. won't touch Harry, he's too powerful. His relationship with Ms. Watson keeps her safe. Don't worry about Aunt May, we've got that covered."

"How?!"

Fury chuckled. "I believe Coulson has a larger reason to want to protect her than you."

"Eww…." Peter shook his head.

"Tell me about it."

"Well… I guess I've got no other choice, then, huh?"

"If it makes you feel any better, the Avengers are about to be branded fugitives too, possibly terrorists." Fury tried to make some light of the situation.

"Well… I guess so then." Peter reserved a little bit of reluctance towards it.

"That's the spirit, kid." Fury cheerily stated, crossing his arms. "So, you're going to tell me your version of what happened after I got sent away or what?"

Peter raised an eyebrow. "…Only if you tell me where the hell you've been in the past two years."

Fury chuckled. "My life as a prisoner for S.H.I.E.L.D.? Sure, why not?"

The two of them conversed for hours after that, Peter recounting the Manhattan Incident and how he, Phantom, the team, and the Avengers went after Taskmaster and Deadpool, telling him about how he almost died had it not been for Phantom saving him.

He also told him about the search for the mutates of Specter Haven and how he, Ava, and Phantom traveled to the Yukon, Los Angeles, and Chicago to find the members of the specter team. He also mentioned what happened at Island M and how some of Les Echets, Magneto's failed mutate experiments, helped in the fight against Magneto.

Fury listened attentively, asking questions here and there about the present event.

Afterwards, Fury talked about how Deadpool had literally massacred his way into breaking Fury out of the Triskelion and how he had been in Deadpool's hideout for months, describing the strange machines that the Merc with a Mouth had been building for Taskmaster.

He went into detail about how S.H.I.E.L.D. broke into the hideout and captured Fury. Since then, he had been transferred from S.H.I.E.L.D. base after S.H.I.E.L.D. base, being interrogated, tortured, beaten, and mentally and physically drained for information.

Peter was shocked to hear all of that, but not surprised by how well Fury was doing after all of that. He figured that Fury's resolve only hardened that much stronger after going through an ordeal that would've broken a weaker man. It only went to show just how determined Fury was to make things right, no matter what.

All in all, it was great to have Nick Fury back again.


That mid-afternoon at the Xavier Institute for Higher Learning, in Xavier's office…

Sounds of birds chirping were heard in the ambience, drawing farther away from the academy's grounds. A tall fence outlined the property, humming with its powered electrical component that would kill upon touching the metal. S.H.I.E.L.D. built it shortly after claiming responsibility for the school and all the mutants in it, Professor Charles Xavier included. It was just one of the many changes the discriminating agency had instilled upon the X-Men.

When S.H.I.E.L.D. first arrived on the scene two years prior, they weren't that strict or oppressive…yet. Students were finding ways to outsmart the agents and trick them using their powers. X-Men like Wolverine and Cyclops encouraged it, so that S.H.I.E.L.D. understood that they were the intruders in their home.

However, as time went on, the agents became smarter. S.H.I.E.L.D. outfitted themselves with gear that would protect their minds and their bodies from any sort of manipulation or influence from the mutants. Decreeing a special clause to "discipline" mutants, the agents started to then use physical force to punish mutants who got out of line. The X-Men protested this, but S.H.I.E.L.D. left Xavier with little to no power over the regulation of the institute.

Inside the regal halls of the academy, it seemed like any other normal school. Students roamed the hallways, chattering and laughing amongst themselves. Teenage love bloomed beneath the notorious set of stairs that led to the left-wing of the school, groups studied outside on the grass lawn, and school sports were still holding practices after school.

The catch? There was always someone watching. Armored S.H.I.E.L.D. agents marched through the hallways, patrolling the grounds with their shock batons, one of them always carrying a specialized rifle, rumored to target only mutant DNA. Although never seen in action, the mutant students feared upsetting the agents because of this.

On this day, in-particular, a S.H.I.E.L.D. convoy of three armored trucks and a black Cadillac Escalade drove up past the guarded gates to the grounds and pulled up on the front doorstep.

An armored agent stepped out from the Escalade and opened the right back-passenger door, allowing for Hank McCoy, the blue-skinned and blue-furred Beast to step out wearing his clean black suit with a white dress shirt underneath, his velvet blue tie in a full Windsor.

"Thank you, sir." Beast nodded in the direction of the agent.

A detail of agents were there waiting for Beast's arrival. They escorted him through the hallways, pushing past students so that they could arrive at Professor Xavier's office. One of the agents opened up the wooden, brass-knobbed door to allow Beast inside.

The mutant walked in to see the world-renowned mutant, Professor Charles Xavier, sitting at his maghogany desk. The aged bald-headed mutant glanced over to his door and back to the computer screen at his desk, typing away at something that seemed most important to him.

The office was well-decorated with awards and memorabilia from Xavier's adventures through the years. Hank remembered some of them vividly, having lived the experience alongside Charles. Although, he disagreed with the fact Xavier still kept a high opinion of Magneto.

"Charles." Hank calmly greeted him.

"Good to see you, Hank!" Xavier modestly returned the greeting, looking over at the agents. "Thank you, gentlemen, could you please leave us for a few moments?"

The armored agent at the door nodded, closing the door behind him.

Xavier finished up whatever he was doing on the computer and turned to face Beast, gesturing for him to take a seat on one of the leather seats in front of the desk.

"How did your trip go, Hank? I trust we've made some progress?"

Beast sighed, prompting himself to take off his eyeglasses. "They refused to listen to me, Charles. None of the points I brought up justified removing S.H.I.E.L.D. authority over the school."

"Oh, no…" Xavier's voice grew grave, the fear evident.

"Director Sitwell's continuing to push the ideal that the X-Men supported Magneto's Brotherhood. They're not too fond of the fact you still hold Eric in such high regard, even after what he's done."

"Hank, he was under the influence of the Reaper! He wasn't conscious of his actions!"

Beast seemed unconvinced. "Well, that's not how they look at it."

"This is outrageous!" Xavier pulled the control to his wheelchair to move away from his desk. "I… I don't understand it, Hank. What have we done wrong?"

"That… isn't everything, Charles." Hank warned. "Within the next few days, Congress is voting on a bill that will require every mutant in the country to be registered, their powers included. There's even been talk about including a mandatory tracking chip clause, where S.H.I.E.L.D. will have the authority to track mutants at all times."

"W-What?! That… that isn't legal! We're American citizens!"

"Their argument was that we're not humans, and thus there is a level of distrust, given the same three events that they've been using against us for years now." Hank calmly explained.

Xavier covered his face with his hands, feeling as though he had been swept away by a strong gust of defeat from his adversaries. He was tired of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s control over the school. He wanted his students to freely practice their powers, learning how to control them on their own through proper instruction. S.H.I.E.L.D.'s presence here prevented that with all their rules and policies.

Beast stood up from his chair and walked over to Xavier, placing his large furry blue hand on his old friend's shoulder. "I'm sorry, Xavier. I wish there was more I could've said or do. But, the congressmen have barred me from visiting them anymore. We've lost our influence in the capital."

Xavier deeply sighed, placing his hands down. Beast began to pace around his office, beginning to draw up solutions to their situation and what they could do.

"Perhaps we can reach out to a newspaper, a news media outlet that may be sympathetic to mutants, perhaps? There's plenty of mutant sympathizers world-wide..."

As Beast trailed on talking, Xavier looked up to the wall perpendicular to his desk, where he had framed his most valued accolades and pictured memories. He saw pictures of Eric and him during their years as the first generation of X-Men over forty years ago. It all seemed like a dream now.

"…we need to concentrate on the welfare of the students first, Charles. Maybe if we find another way to…"

Xavier began to think, using the strong mental abilities he had been born with to deviate a solution to their problem. His eyes grazed the pictures of his dead longtime rival, Eric Lensherr, Magneto, one of the most powerful mutants Xavier had ever come across. His death at the betrayal of the Reaper broke Xavier's resolve in his fight for the rights of mutants.

Although he never always agreed with Eric, he couldn't help but realize that Magneto's predictions that were once thought to be prophecies of madness were coming true… humanity was now actively targeting mutants. With the possibility of mutant registration, it wouldn't be long now until their worst fears were realized, and humanity would wage a full-scale hunt… or war… on mutants.

"…perhaps these pro-mutant human protestors would provide some assistance? We could send a petition…" Hank continued rambling on.

The professor balled his fist, in a manner that befit his old rival's behavior. For a moment, he lost himself in silent and calm anger against humanity, but… he quickly remembered why he and Magneto were different. No matter the cost, Xavier knew that the end goal should and always be harmony between mutants and humans.

He dug deeper into his subconscious, trying to figure out a solution. S.H.I.E.L.D. deemed Cerebro far too dangerous for Xavier to use, limiting his powers, but it didn't diminish what he already had. The true enemy here was Reaper, the one responsible for Magneto's death, the one responsible for these chain of events that have placed mutant-kind in a difficult position.

Reaper was the enemy. And if the X-Men could help take him down and bring him to justice, then maybe they still had a chance to prove to the world that mutants can be trusted.

But, first things first, he needed to look after his students first. Once they were safe, then the X-Men could do what they needed to get done.

"…but, I'd have to see if I can convince Jean Grey to help me organize a peaceful protest." Beast finished, finally stopping in his tracks and looking at the blank expression on Xavier's face.

"Charles? Did you listen to any of that?"

Xavier calmly nodded. "I did, Hank. But…"

The professor glanced over to the hidden camera that was engraved into a bust of Aristotle that stood in the corner of his office. He knew months ago that S.H.I.E.L.D. had it installed to listen in on their conversations. Luckily, he had Cyclops disable the sound feature on the camera and nothing ever came about it.

"...Perhaps we can explore other solutions?"

Beast instantly looked confused.

"I've just stated what options we have, Charles. There isn't a lot of room for us to exercise diplomacy here!"

"Then perhaps we should exercise something more… impractical." Xavier pulled the control stick on his wheelchair and moved to face the window behind his desk that overlooked the courtyard.

"What do you mean?" Hank joined next to him.

"These students are in danger. I can't confirm it but these S.H.I.E.L.D. agents aren't here for our safety, that much has been blatantly clear for years now, but I suspect that their primary target are our students. Whatever they plan to do with them, I won't allow it to happen."

"We've discussed this, I know this." Hank sounded a little irritated. "Charles, just get to the point. You know I've never liked it when you talked in circles like this."

"We need to get these students out of here, Hank. The academy isn't safe anymore… nowhere in the United States is safe right now. They need to be escorted to someplace safe, away from S.H.I.E.L.D.'s jurisdiction."

Hank sighed.

"S.H.I.E.L.D. is a global agency, Charles. They're everywhere. Even known mutant havens like Brazil aren't safe from their control."

Just then, Xavier witnessed a rare sight, a bald eagle glide across the courtyard. It seemed to have spotted a prey within the forest nearby, circling around and taking a closer look. Suddenly, a brown hawk shot out of the tree-line, snatching up the small prey before the eagle could strike.

"R.O.G.U.E." Xavier concluded.

"The fugitive faction?" Hank shook his head. "I'm not sure, Charles…"

Xavier ignored his comment.

"Logan's been secretly speaking with the Phantom, yes?" Xavier curiously inquired.

Hank sighed. "Yes. He's also been speaking with Gambit. Well, Rogue's been speaking with him, anyway, through whatever means Logan's been using to talk to them."

"What? I thought Gambit was arrested by S.H.I.E.L.D. several months ago?"

"You know how slippery of a character Gambit can be." Hank shrugged. "He's been on the run for a while now, never in the same place for too long.

"Perhaps we can reach out to him? See if he could provide some assistance to his brethren here?"

Hank stepped back to the front of the desk, crossing his arms in thought.

"Maybe. But, what exactly are you trying to do, Charles?"

"We'll talk about it all in time, Hank. For now, see if Logan can't get us in touch with Specter Haven. Please."

"I hope you know what you're doing." Hank stated with discourage in his tone, turning to walk out of the professor's office.

"Me too, old friend."

Xavier continued to look out the window, watching the teams of agents patrol the school grounds, threateningly asking students for their IDs and where their designated location was supposed to be. He frowned at this. This wasn't the academy he fought so hard and tirelessly for decades to create. S.H.I.E.L.D.'s tainted its legacy. And now, he wanted nothing more than to put a stop to their reign of terror, even if it meant risking the X-Men against Reaper.


Later that evening, within the dining hall of Xavier's Institute…

The students all happily crowded into the large and regally built dining hall within the Institute, where rows and rows of polished wooden tables were set. The ceiling rose up by three-stories high, with large glass windows that allowed light to shine inside. Beautiful electric chandeliers hung from the ceiling and on the walls were framed pictures of previous X-Men from years past like Alex Summers "Havok", Armando Muñoz "Darwin", Sean Cassidy "Banshee", and a recent addition of Magneto himself. It's why the students have dubbed the hall the "Hall of Heroes".

As the sunset began dimming above the horizon, the only light that still illuminated the halls were the chandeliers.

The students lined up along the far right wall as they approached the food stations where some of the X-Men helped serve the students along with human chefs. S.H.I.E.L.D. agents stood nearby, watching the students as they picked up their trays and walked over to their tables.

Some of them began to toy around, subtly using their powers to creep up to their friends in line or using their fire-based powers to burn the food as a prank off of a nearby student's. The agents quickly assessed them but nothing serious came of it, as there have been worse situations.

After the students received their food, the X-Men staff walked up to grab theirs. A special table was assigned to them where the professors could sit and speak with each other after a long day of teaching.

Jean Grey, Scott Summers, and Ororo Munroe all sat next to each other at the far end of the long table.

"Wow, the meal looks pretty good today!" Scott happily stated, fixing the placement of his red sunglasses on his face.

"It could always be better. I heard that Professor Xavier was trying to get more experienced people to man the cooking staff." Ororo commented, taking a bite out of the decently seasoned grilled steak.

"With all the restrictions on the school, I don't see how that's going to be possible." Jean Grey skeptically debated.

Scott shrugged, biting into his food. "We had a pretty good staff of cooks before S.H.I.E.L.D. showed up. For all we know, they could be feeding us poison!"

"Keep your voice down, Scott!" Jean Grey quietly warned him. "You don't want them to hear, do you?!"

"I've said worse things about them to their faces." He riposted.

"Poison is a little paranoid of you, Scott." Ororo took notice. "I don't see them gaining anything by killing us all with that."

"True." Scott agreed. "At least I'm not as paranoid as Logan these days."

He glanced over at where Logan usually sits at, noticing that the chair's empty.

"Speaking of which… where is he?"

Jean Grey shrugged. "Maybe he decided to turn-in for the night."

"No… He's usually here."

Scott began looking around the dining room to see if maybe the Wolverine had sat somewhere else or if he was at the food station grabbing the last shreds of food. But, he was nowhere to be seen.

"You know, now that you mention it, I don't think I've seen him at all today." Ororo pointed out. "I usually run into him during the lunch break but I didn't see him today."

"Very. What is he up to?" Scott wondered.

Suddenly, the grand wooden doors into the hall burst open, and a shadowy figure stalked inside. His entrance shot the room silent, prompting the agents to withdraw their shock batons and look at who had entered.

The person wore worn dark-blue jeans that were fairly sagged all the way down to the black boots, faded at the toe enough to see that they were steel-toe. He had a dark-grey hoodie underneath a black-leather jacket. After entering, he quickly removed the hood over his head revealing to be Logan… and he looked pissed off.

The long black-haired and black bearded Wolverine ignored the agents who looked about ready to pounce on him and began marching over to the food station, with all the eyes of the dining hall fixed on him.

"What the hell?" Jean Grey murmured under her breath.

The rather obese light-skinned human cook that stood at the food station looked mortified to see Wolverine approach him. Logan stopped, with only the food trays to separate them.

"Food." Logan's voice was stern, direct.

The brown-haired cook looked at Logan, then at the agents, then back again.

"Are you deaf?!" Logan shouted. "Food! Now!"

"Control yourself, Wolverine!" A male armored S.H.I.E.L.D. agent approached him, gripping Logan's shoulder. "You're here past serving hours. You missed your chance to be fed."

Scott stood up from the table, along with Jean Grey and Ororo, starting to walk over to diffuse the situation. But, two agents quickly stepped in to keep them from interfering.

"Get back to your table, professors!" The female armored agent of the two sternly directed them.

Reluctantly, they obeyed, knowing that the agents were well within their right to discipline them. They didn't want to have to create a larger mess than what Wolverine was already accomplishing.

Logan ignored the agent, threateningly staring down the human cook in front of him, balling his fist. The agents saw this and called up the only two agents with specialized rifles within the hall. They held their rifles at the ready carry position at Wolverine.

"Leave the chef alone or we'll be bringing you to the supervisor paralyzed, Wolverine. Go to your table and take a seat." The agent continued to press him on, obviously angering the mutant even further.

"I won't repeat myself again, mutant."

Logan clenched his teeth, trying hard to calm himself. He turned around to face the rest of the spectating hall and the crowd of agents that had surrounded him with their shock batons.

"Since when did we have a curfew on dinnertime, huh?!" Wolverine shouted out to the hall, looking at both the students and the agents.

"Who gave you pieces of shit the right to order us around?!" He directed to the agents.

The two agents with rifles aimed down at Wolverine.

"Final warning before we put you down to the ground, Wolverine! Stand down!"

Logan finally looked over at the agent. "You first."

Within seconds, Wolverine's sharp claws extended out from the gaps between his knuckles, dropping his weight downwards as he dodged the laser-like shots from the specialized rifles. He pounced upon the authoritative agent and sank his claws deep into his chest, slashing them sideways as it shredded through the armor, splattering blood in all directions of the agents.

"Fire! Put him to the ground!" One of the two riflemen agents ordered, continuing to shoot at him.

But, Wolverine was too fast, he deflected the laser shots by lifting up the dead agent's chest-armor and jumping after them, claws spread open and violently beheading them on the spot.

"Holy shit, now he's done it!" Scott loudly stated. "Jean, Ororo, the rest of you, let's get these students out of here before they're pulled into the mix! Someone get Professor Xavier down here!"

The other X-Men obeyed, helping the terrified students of all ages get past the ensuing fight and into the hallways, where more agents were beginning to rush towards the hall to stop the mad Wolverine.

As the two riflemen agents toppled dead to the ground, others tried to rush in to bash Wolverine's skull in with their shock batons, but they had little to no effect on the raging mutant. He quickly slashed and stabbed through the few agents who attacked him, but the others cornered him again, leaving him without room to escape.

"Logan! You must stop this, friend!" The tall and muscular metallic-skinned Colossus tried to calm Wolverine down from behind the crowd of agents trying to rush in.

Wolverine ignored him, angrily growling at the agents who kept their distance with their batons at the ready. He crept up closer to them with his claws spread wide open, his grey hooded painted with blood.

"Where are the rest of those agents with rifles!?" One of them asked the group.

"They'll be here soon! Then we can put this dog down!"

"Please, Logan. This violence will not solve anything!" Colossus kept trying to advise him with his thick Russian accent.

"I'm done playing guinea pigs for these bastards!" Logan shouted out, glancing at the empty area of the hall past the surrounding crowd of agents.

He then looked at Colossus. "You tell Professor Xavier, I'll stay in touch!"

"What do you mean?"

Wolverine didn't answer, he then sprinted towards the agents, stabbing and slashing, most of them falling dead into their own pools of blood. He ran past them, not towards the door, but towards the large window panels on the walls. As he passed the door, a group of riflemen agents aimed their sights down on the Wolverine, unleashing a volley of laser blasts at the mutant.

Wolverine jumped up to one of the tables and used it as a platform to jump up and through the window panel, shattering it to pieces as he got to the other side, narrowly dodging the laser-fire.

"Quick! Let's get agents on the other side! Stop him before he escapes the compound!"

"He won't be able to get very far, sir! Not even his claws can slice through that reinforced electrical fence, too high for him to jump through!"

The agents routed through the hallways, shouting at the X-Men who attempted to help to not interfere. As they reached outside into the dim-lit grounds of the academy, they spotted Wolverine running out into a dark open field.

They rushed after him, the riflemen shooting off their laser rifles at Logan. But, the mutant was too quick and agile, dodging each shot as the agents advanced themselves on him. But, they knew that he was running out of field, and soon he'd run straight into the tall electrical fence.

"Let's corner him, men!"

"Show no mercy!"

Wolverine stopped at the electrical fence, looking up to see just how tall it was, at least two stories high. He could hear the agents begin to circle him, leaving him without any choice…

"Grrraaaagghhh!"

Logan violently ripped through the metal, sending a deadly surge of electricity to pulsate through his body, internally and externally frying him. The agents caught up to him, watching in horror to what was occurring before their eyes. Some of them sadistically grinned.

But then, the impossible occurred.

Wolverine wasn't dying from it. He kept pressing on, even if in pain, ripping through the metal, finally to the point he had shredded a hole into the fence. All this while being electrocuted.

"Well?! What are you all waiting for!? Stop him!"

They opened fire with their specialized laser rifles. But, it didn't seem to affect Wolverine whatsoever. He regained his strength and sprinted off into the forests behind the fence. At that moment in time, the alarm at the academy finally went off.

The agents pursued after the Wolverine into the forest, unsure of where he may had disappeared to. S.H.I.E.L.D. quickly dispatched back-up from their nearby regional helicarrier. The evening turned dark into night over the academy, as the most dangerous mutant alive, the subject of the infamous Weapon X project, has broken free from S.H.I.E.L.D.'s control.


The next morning, driving down the busy traffic-filled streets of Washington D.C….

Finally having fixed his damaged Pontiac GTO, Lucas drives down through Georgetown, inching closer to the heart of the metropolitan city, with Jessica at his passenger seat searching through some of their files their next client's sent to them on her laptop. She chewed gum at the same time, popping it out every few minutes as her eyes skimmed the files.

Stuck at another intersection, Lucas glanced over at the monitor display to read along with her. A young woman from out near Fairfax Village in D.C. had contacted them about her missing husband.

The middle-aged man of Italian-descent had been missing for weeks, citing that he had done dealings with the mob before and that there could be a connection. The wife didn't trust the police to find a known felon, and so trusted their two-partner team at Alias. Jessica, of course, charged extra for their standard searching fee.

"Find anything we could follow-up on?" Lucas curiously asked, pressing his foot against the pedal as the light turned green.

Jessica let out a brief sigh. "No. This guy was dirtier than a public toilet. He's been arrested for drug trafficking, smuggling, and illegal weapons possessions. But, he was never more than an associate for the Italian mafia."

Lucas raised a brow.

"He's probably 'sleeping with the fishes'." Jessica continued. "…But, we might as well get paid for it."

He chuckled. "That's all you care about? You used to like doing these investigations because you were helping people."

"Whoa, whoa, calm yourself, big guy!" She stopped him. "How drunk was I to have said that?"

He shook his head, smiling. "Anything else?"

She kept reading, mumbling the words to herself.

"Hmm… this is weird."

"What?"

"Well, before he disappeared, the wife says that he kept coming home all paranoid, thinking that he was being followed or something." Jessica briefly explained.

"Probably cops or his mobster buddies." Lucas suggested.

"She said he claimed some 'white guy' wearing a black leather coat was following him around, watching his every move."

"See? Probably the Italians, then."

Jessica read something that surprised her enough to raise both her brows. "…with a white skull on his shirt?"

Lucas glanced over at her, returning his attention to the road. He knew what she talked about. They had reviewed a case from Maryland several months ago where a child predator travelling from New York was gruesomely killed by some unknown assailant wearing a black leather coat and white skull on his chest. The reports described someone heavily resembling Frank Castle, the lone gunman who warred against several crime families in New York.

"So what, you think the Punisher's in town?" He skeptically asked her.

"Pfft, he's just some made-up shit, Lucas." Jessica scoffed. "The real Frank Castle was killed in prison back in New York. This other guy's probably just a wannabe. Besides, maybe the guy was just acting crazy."

"They say he was killed. I never really saw a body in those news reports, did you? I'm pretty sure it was a cover-up."

"Oh, shut up." Jessica shook her head sassily. "Why the hell would Frank Castle be after small-time chicken shits like this guy?!"

"I don't know. You tell me, Jessica."

"Okay, whatever." Jessica closed up her laptop. "Let's just get to the lady's house, ask her what else she know, and then follow-up on these leads."

Lucas nodded, smiling. He liked teasing her about these investigations. Although, he did admit to himself, the presence of a Punisher-like character did somewhat worry him. However, until they found out more, he didn't let it bother him.

He tuned on the radio to 97.1 Wash FM.

"…following up on some breaking news from upstate New York, S.H.I.E.L.D.'s issued out an arrest warrant for one Logan Howlett, one of the staff that operates out of the Xavier Institute for Higher Learning. A state-wide man-hunt is being conducted by S.H.I.E.L.D. and local residents are advised to stay indoors, as this man is considered armed and very dangerous."

"Ha! Figures that the Wolverine broke out of that place first!" Jessica sarcastically laughed, popping out another bubble with her gum.

"Looks like you and your old team aren't the only ones being hunted by S.H.I.E.L.D. anymore, Lucas!"


Author's Note

First things first, I'm so terribly sorry about both my absence and the follow-on that I had thought to abandon both the community and the trilogy. I was… regrettably going through a lot in my personal life, and writing the story was placing a huge burden on my shoulders. However, as I was going through this time, I was also reminded of why I shouldn't just up and abandon this trilogy. I know that's a lame excuse to give and you all aren't here for excuses, but I care about the readers, truly I do!

Big thanks to The Story's Shadow and Man285, who both helped me realize that I shouldn't just give up. Admittedly, I was being childish with the whole ordeal. And for that, I apologize immensely to those who are following the story! :(

However, I published out another chapter! The story continues! :D In this one, I wanted to emphasize the steps R.O.G.U.E. was taking to assess their growing number of resources, to include the Avengers and what they'll do with the X-Men. Of course, I wanted to show the reunion between Fury and Peter! I wrote the scene as best I could, I'd like to hear what you all think of it! :)

The primary focus was the update on what the X-Men are up to and the Wolverine's escape from the institute. His escape's leading up to the role that the X-Men will have alongside Spidey and Phantom! :D I was going to originally include Gambit in the chapter, but a mention of him will do for now!

Also, on my page, I've put up the entire chapter planning process for the rest of Vanquished Revenants. I encourage you all to go check it out to see how many chapters are left and to get at least a title hint as to what I have planned for the rest of the story! Of course, I'm still open to suggestions, so please let me know what you all think! :D I know, it's a lot of chapters left but… Rome wasn't built in a day!

I've a few special shout-outs today… Partners by lost-in-elysium was a really great short-story! A different take on the Ava/Peter stories, but great nonetheless! Also, I'd like to re-emphasize Animal Instincts: Infected Humanity by the one and only OfficialUSMWriter. If you haven't already checked out her work, give it a click!

Thank you all for the continued support and your continued patience! I promise it won't go unnoticed! :) Unfortunately, I still have to attend that business trip in two weeks' time. I will return mid-October with a few more chapters, but then I'll have to attend another trip that'll take me from 15 November – 15 December… then off to Rome for my honeymoon!

As always, feedback is appreciated!

Stay tuned for Specter Haven


Guest Reader Responses

I'll be leaving responses for guest reviewers from here on. Reviewers with FF accounts will receive a personal PM from me to thank them! :D

Nightwing 1 (Guest): There you are! I was wondering where you had gone, my friend! It's a bit unfortunate that… when you reviewed chapter six, I went through that troubling phase of not writing for a while! The answer's no, I'm not quitting anytime soon! Not while this story's unfinished! The pairing conflict in the show didn't really bother me! I've stopped watching after Season 2, so it didn't affect me! :D

Well, every writer has their reasons for leaving, my friend. I, for one, aren't leaving for something like that. Thanks for the review! :D

No one (Guest): So sorry it took so long! :( I hope you enjoy this updated chapter, my friend! Wait no longer!

ArtemisBAMF1218 (Guest): Terribly sorry about the wait, my friend. I seem like a broken record now apologizing, but here's the updated chapter! :) I hope you're still following this, at the least! :D

Thank you so much for your kind review! I'm doing my best to ensure the polished finish for this last part of the trilogy, making sure that both the events of The Phantom and Specter Haven don't conflict. It's tedious, having to keep on referencing both stories to make sure I'm on the right track!

You have your own story, you say? Well, let's hear it! If you ever get an account, please, I'd love to hear what you've got to the table… and if it's your own story, I would say that you could try and write it out yourself! Give credit to you, yourself alone! :)

Aha! Now those two songs will have to go into my compiled list of music! Thank you so much for your references! They'll definitely help in writing Tiger's sections! :D You have a very eclectic taste in music! I love it!

Thank you again! Having Specter Haven at the centerpiece alongside Spidey and his team is definitely the crowning achievement in this entire trilogy!

I'm including more and more of Marvel's ensemble of characters. Now, along with Dr. Strange added into the mix, we can expect seeing Wolverine, Rogue... maybe Gambit? :O It'll be exciting to see!

As far as Jessica/Luke goes, they're still technically "friends", nothing more just yet. Flirtatious? Yes! But Selena was a part of his past he hasn't really told Jess yet! I hope this chapter revealed a little more of how they conduct business as the Alias investigators!

I live on one of the Ryukyu Islands. :) But, I've frequented mainland plenty of times!

Thank you for your overall review of the chapter! :D A couple things though, Hulk isn't dead! :D Remember, Natasha said that they couldn't retrieve a body from the plane wreckage! The man survived the attack! But, I agree with what you said about Natasha/Clint being a great couple, even if it isn't romantic!

Aha, you were on the money with Daredevil and Black Cat! The other one is Punisher, as referenced in this chapter! :) What do you think of the characters that are being introduced, even if mentioned, so far? What did you think of the reunion between Fury and Peter? And how the conditions are at the Xavier Institute?

Thanks again, my friend! :D I really appreciate it!