A/N: That's was pretty quick. Right?


Mikey watched Raph walk away with a knot growing in the pit of his stomach. He turned to look at his oldest brother and Logan, who stood just behind him. "She wouldn't really do that, would she? Not after…Raph…"

Logan sighed. "He's right. She would, if she thought it would save everyone else."

"Then we had better hurry." Leo started for van, but Logan's voice stopped.

"We're comin' too."

Leo looked back at the group. "You should tend to your injured." He turned to leave again.

"How do you plan on finding Apocalypse?" Scott asked.

"I don't know, but we have to – for Raph." Leo let out a heavy breath. "We've never seen him so… Never mind. We will find him though."

"Actually, we don't have to find Apocalypse." Donnie pulled a device from his belt. "We just have to find Aella. I took the liberty of putting a turtle-tracker on her when we were still at the lair."

Leo's eyes grew wide. "Good thinking, Don!"

"Yeah!" Mikey pumped a fist in the air. "Let's go get her back for our bro!"

"Perhaps, you should take the Blackbird. It should prove useful." Hank suggested. "I will remain and care for Storm and Rogue."

"I'll stay too." Gambit looked down at Rogue. "To watch your back."

"That's not a bad idea." Scott wasn't certain that Apocalypse wouldn't send someone back to attack while the rest of them were gone. He turned back to Leo. "The Blackbird will get us there a lot faster."

"It's their jet, Leo." Don's eyes sparkled. "They have a jet!"

Leo nodded. "Alright." He glanced towards the van. "We'll meet you in your hangar."

"Donatello knows where it is. I showed him only a few hours ago." Hank stood, lifting Storm in his arms. Gambit stood behind him, Rogue cradled against his chest. She was still out cold.

Leo gave another nod and started for the van, his brothers at his heels. As they neared, Raph stuck his head out the driver's side window. "What're you guys doin'! We gotta go!"

"First off, you're in no condition to drive." Leo pointed out. "Second, we're not taking the van."

"What! How are we gonna follow that thing then!"

"We're taking their jet."

That made Raph pause. He blinked. "They got a jet?"

"Yeah, they do! A really really nice one too!" Don's eyes sparkled again. He was itching to get onboard and use some of the fancy tech he'd seen earlier.

Raph frowned. "Even if we got a jet, what good is it gonna do us? We have no idea where he took her."

"Donnie put a tracker on her." Leo watched a touch of anger pass through Raph's eyes and then turn to relief.

He climbed out of the van and frowned. "Well, let's go already!"


Aella shivered and cracked open her eyes to find the world flying by beneath her. She gasped and tried to move, only to find she was wrapped in large metal covered fingers. She immediately began to struggle. "No!"

Apocalypse lifted her so she could see his face. "Quiet little wretch. You will be my greatest creation, whether you desire it or not."

Aella scowled. "I would rather die, than be used by you to cause the death of billions!"

"You will soon desire to serve me." Apocalypse landed beside what at first appearance seemed to be some type of large airplane hangar.

Aella frowned at the small airstrip. "What are we doing here?"

"Here, my dear, is where you will become my ultimate weapon."

Beneath them the three Horsemen rolled out a tubular chamber. Famine opened a door on one side and Aella was roughly deposited into it. The door was slammed shut, sealing her away. She pounded at the door, but there was no way she was getting it open. She had no extra-ordinary strength and her mutant powers were of no use here.

Famine sneered at her through the tiny observation window. "Now you can't go running off again."

Plague snickered. "Yeah, you might as well make yourself comfortable. You won't be getting out."

Kieros approached the window so that he filled it's view completely. "You should feel honored that our master has chosen you to create his wondrous new world."

Aella slammed her fist into the tiny window, though it didn't even leave a mark. She couldn't hear what the three were saying. The chamber was soundproof apparently, which meant no matter how much she shouted no one would hear her. Still she couldn't stand Kieros' smug expression. One of her hands, slipped around behind her and gripped the handle of the dagger she'd hidden there earlier in the day. Apocalypse seemed to consider her very little of a threat as he hadn't bothered to search her.

Scanning the inside of the tube, she saw no seams of any kind. There was nothing she could slide the knife into to pry it open. Her grip tightened on the hilt. I will not allow my curse to be spread across the entire world.

Stay your hand, sister. Do you believe in yourself so little? Do you believe in him so little?

Aella froze. "Moie?"

There is still time. Give him that. And use it to grow stronger.

She closed her eyes, trying to see her brother as she had with Xavier. But her heart and mind were in too much turmoil. It seemed she still needed the professor's help. "How?" Her voice came out nearly inaudible, even though no one outside her prison could hear her.

I will help you.

Aella gasped as she felt the world around her swirl away and she found herself standing on the astral-plane once more. Moie held her pressed tightly to his bare chest. She looked up at him and couldn't help but smile. "This is why you wanted to stay with me."

He smiled as well. "Yes. I knew your fight was far from over. Let me help you, sister."

Aella frowned, averting her gaze. "I am scared."

He lifted her chin to look at him again. "I know. I will do my best to aid and protect you. I will not leave you, until our task is done."

She gave a small nod, tears trickled down her cheeks. "Thank you, brother."

The world around them blurred and swam forming once again into the village of their youth. "Then let us begin."

Outside the chamber, Apocalypse allowed his body to shrink into its smaller more compact size. "Prepare the chamber." He didn't bother to look inside the capsule. There was no point. His prize was his at last. First he would change her into the Horseman of Death, then she would willingly wipe the vermin from the Earth.

The hangar's roof opened and spherical object rose on another long tube. The sphere would draw Aella's power from her and amplify it so the world's population could feel her touch. He allowed the tiniest of smiles to form on his lips as he watched the tube that contained Aella being moved to where he had set up the equipment to transform her into his servant. "Soon, very soon, I will at last rid us of the insignificant humans."


Raph paced back and forth across the back of the Blackbird, making the rest of those onboard nervous. He growled. "Why aren't we there yet!"

"Shouting isn't going to make us get there any faster, Raph." Donatello didn't bother to look up from the screen with the little blue blip. No one else bothered to respond. Raph's outburst was at least the tenth.

Jubilee glanced over her shoulder at the large turtle still stomping back and forth across the rear of the plane. He reminded her of a caged lion and oddly of Wolverine when he was on a rampage. As it was Logan was barely sitting still himself. He was gripping the arms of his seat, a scowl in place. Jubilee frowned at both of them and turned back to Scott, who was piloting the craft. "So, what do we do when we get there? Even if we save Aella, Apocalypse will just come after her again."

"At least, we'll stop 'im for now." Wolverine half growled.

"Jubilee has a point, Logan. He'll keep coming for her, just like he did Warren." Cyclopes remembered how Warren had been changed into Archangel and named Apocalypse's Horseman of Death. He had been a crazed devotee of Apocalypse. And even after he'd broken free of his control, Warren had never been the same. He had become obsessed with Apocalypse's destruction. If Aella's mind was twisted like that, they could be in serious trouble.

"Then we need to get him out of the way – permanently." Leonardo frowned out the large view window from where he sat in the co-captain's chair. He didn't want to consider the only other option that came to mind.

Jubilee looked at him. "How do we do that? He's immortal."

Donnie rubbed his chin. That was a very good question. Beast had explained how they had dealt with Apocalypse previously. They had used his super advanced ship to imprison him. Which appeared to have only worked for so long. Besides, they no longer had a ship like that to help. He racked his brain to come up with a plausible solution. The blue blip on his screen was growing near now. "We're almost there."

"It's about time!" Raph groused stopping to inspect the screen over Don's shoulder.

"Hey, check it out! Is that a rocket!" Mikey leaned over the back of Leo's seat, peering through the large window.

Don looked down at the map again. "We are very close to a private air field. It's probably to launch a satellite of some type."

Raph twirled his sai. "Who cares! Land this bucket so I can take apart that creep!"

"Yeah, I'm itchin' for a piece of 'im myself!" Wolverine's metal claws slid from his hands. Scott shot Leo an exacerbated look, which the turtle return in kind.

"Whoa! What is that thing!" Jubilee stared at the strange apparatus sticking up out of an airplane hangar.

"Must be Apocalypse's weapon." Wolverine stood behind Leo's chair. "Better blow it up, Cyc."

Cyclopes' hand moved towards the weapons array, but Jean's voice stopped him. "No, wait! Aella is in that building."

"What!" Logan and Raphael said at once.

"She's inside." Jean touched her brow. "I can feel her. And…we need to hurry." She looked up at Raph and his heart raced. "You were right."

Raph felt like his heart was going to jump out of his chest. "We need to get down there now!"

The Blackbird was already descending. It was now mere yards above the ground. Wolverine marched towards the back and hit a button to open the bomb bay doors. "Come on, kid! Let's take a short cut!"

He leapt out the doors and Raph growled. "I told ya to stop callin' me kid!" And then he too was gone.

"Raph wait!" Leo called, coming to his feet. But his brother was already gone. He glared at Scott. "Wolverine is just encouraging him to be reckless."

"If you've got a problem, take it up with Wolverine. I can no more control him than you can your brother." Scott hit the control to lower the landing gear. Leo scowled, then turned to join his two other brothers waiting for him near the stairs that were already lowering.

Outside, Wolverine and Raphael landed gracefully several yards from the hangar, where they were immediately confronted by the three Horsemen. "We don't have time for this!" Raph growled as he slashed at Famine. "We need to get inside to Aella!" Hold on! I'm comin' for you, doll! Just give me a few more minutes!


Aella's heart pounded as Moie helped remove the doors that had locked away the villagers for so long. Slowly figure after figure emerged from the huts, until they were surrounded by nearly fifty. These people were as familiar as her own family, but they were not as forgiving. They began to shout and curse her.

"You killed us!"

"You locked us away!"

"Monster!"

"Demon!"

"We should lock you away!"

"You should feel our pain!"

Aella's mind became overwhelmed and she fell to her ethereal knees, clutching her ears. "Please! I am sorry! I did not mean to! I was a child! Please forgive me!" It felt like she was drowning in the anger and guilt that swirled around them.

Then Moie gripped her shoulder. "Stop this! She never meant any of us harm!"

An elderly man stepped forward. He had once been their chief. "You were the first she slew! Why do you defend her!"

"She is my sister and I know her better than anyone. You knew her too! Remember! She cared for all of you. Before that day, she had never done anything to harm anyone. You can no more blame her, than you can blame the rain for a flood. The rain cannot help being the rain. And she cannot help being what she is."

The crowd grew quiet. "She is a demon!" One of the women cried.

Aella slowly lowered her hands from her ears, feeling the pressure lift slightly. "I am no demon. I am Aella. You knew me in life. I treated your wounds, cared for your children, shared my food with you, helped build your huts. I am still that girl, even though I have lived dozens of lifetimes now. My heart still weeps with the life I stole from you. And as such, I give you mine." She bowed, her forehead touching the ghostly grass beneath her. "Take it, if you wish. I cannot say I do not deserve death. But I make one last request. Please, forgive me."

Moie stared down at his sister, bowed low to the crowd. His heart ached to protect her. He'd always been protective of Aella, even when they'd been young. Her spirit had been so kind and pure, that others took advantage of her. Her offering now proved that heart remained inside her. But was it enough to prove her sincerity to their fallen village?

He looked up to see one by one the villagers fade away into vaper. He felt relief wash over him. They were forgiving her and as they did, their souls found peace. When they were all gone, he knelt beside her. She had not moved, waiting bravely for her fate. "Aella, look." She lifted her head to see the souls of the villagers gone. Sitting back, she stared up at him. "They have found peace, thanks to you."

Aella shook her head sadly. "But Moie, there are still more. And they do not know you. They will not listen to your pleas."

Moie nodded. "I know. They are the evil ones. The ones that sought your death. You will have to be strong. I will not be able to aid you much, but I will give you my strength."

Aella stood. She felt different. The release of the captured souls seemed to be allowing her more control over her own mind. The number of souls remaining were far less, she had seen to that by her own solitude within the Amazonian forest. Taking a deep breath, she formed a hall before them with many locked doors.

"You can do this." Moie encouraged from beside her.

She smiled slightly, taking his hand. "We can do this."

The first door Aella and Moie came to contained a hunting party that had come across her while she was bathing. She had still been young at the time and the four men had tried to assault her. But they hadn't expected they'd die as soon as they touched her. She hadn't even put up a fight.

"We will have to be careful. We should release them one by one." Moie set his jaw, ready to take on the task ahead.

Beside him, Aella suddenly gasped. Electricity shot through her body, making it tingle from head to toe and throwing her mind clear of the astral-plane. Her eyes flew open and her body jerked. Her mouth opened in a silent scream. No! There's no more time! She pulled the dagger from its sheath and raised it above her chest. A tear trickled down her cheek. Raphael…I am sorry…


A/N: Yeah, I know another cliff-hanger. A couple quick things to let you know. I've made lots of great art for this fic on Deviantart. Also I'm running a contest there right now through June 12th. See my journal entry on there for details.

And one last thing... "Raph hurry!"