Note: I do not own Marvel but I do Phaedra. As always, I take liberties throughout this story.
"She still has a pulse but she won't wake up. I think she might be in a coma. We should take her to a hospital. Maybe they can do something," I said to Magneto.
"Charles must have done something."
"There's something on the radar. I think you should see this," Remy said, rushing in.
Magneto left with Remy and I stayed with Phaedra. It's been nearly a week since she laid down for a nap and I've tried everything to wake her up but nothing has worked. Occasionally, items on my bedside table would levitate but not for long.
I heard yelling so I went out to check. Magneto was yelling at Professor Xavier, Jean, and Scott. It must have been them that were picked up on radar.
"Eric, she's my daughter. I would like to see her. We know what's wrong."
"What's wrong with her?" I asked, stepping forward.
"I'll explain but I want to see her first," the Professor said.
I led them down to our room and Professor Xavier walked up to the bed. She was so still and quiet. He patted her hand and turned to us.
"Let's go somewhere where we can talk," he said.
"I don't want to leave her alone."
"Mon ami, I'll watch after her. Go," Gambit offered.
With someone there with Phaedra, I followed Magneto and everyone else to the dining room. We all took chairs and waited for Professor Xavier to speak.
"Elizabeth has a condition that no one has seen before. In essence, it's cancer but it's her genes that are being attacked."
"That day on Alcatraz, for a moment, Phaedra allowed me to enter her mind telepathically. I don't know why me and not the Professor but it's because of everything inside her mind that made me pass out. She's constantly linked to everyone or everything around her. In a fraction of a second, her mind tells her what's going to happen if something changes. That's how she knows what's going to happen in the future. Elizabeth can't choose when she uses her abilities. They're always in the ON position," Jean said.
"What are you saying that's happening? Why hasn't she woken up?" I asked.
"I assume she rests after exerting her abilities."
"Yeah. So?"
"The cancer is connected to her mutation. The more she uses her abilities, the worse the cancer spreads. Because she can't turn them off, even if she doesn't use them, the cancer still spreads. She rests because the cancer is draining her energy."
"Pyro, she's waking up," Remy yelled.
I tore out of the dining room and into our bedroom. I sat beside her on the bed and brushed the hair from her face.
"Phaedra."
Her eyes fluttered before opening. She looked at me and then at everyone else. She smiled.
"Hi," she weakly said.
"You had me worried. It's been a week since you fell asleep."
"Sorry."
"Why didn't you tell me about the cancer?" I asked.
She sat up in bed, resting against the wall.
"I didn't want to alarm anyone. Besides, if I rest, I feel better. I used a lot of myself that night and in a way, I needed to restart my battery. I didn't know that I was going to sleep that long.
"Have you had any tests concerning the cancer recently? Has an oncologist offered any treatment?" Jean asked.
"No. It's no use. If I saw an oncologist, I'd be the first to have this cancer. They wouldn't know what to do with me. I'm sorry to say but there's nothing that can be done to stop it. It's just a matter of time."
"Don't say that. You're not going to die," I said.
"Yes, I am. The amount of cancer in my body is almost equal to the amount of healthy genes left. Even if I stop using my abilities, I estimate that I have a year left, at the most.
"Let's stop dwelling on this. How would everyone like some fresh cinnamon buns?"
"Phaedra, when did you find out about the cancer?" Professor Xavier asked.
"After I killed the Russian gangster. When I was in the hospital, the doctors were fascinated with me and my abilities. Sure, they had seen mutants before but no one quite like me. They performed various tests, procedures, anything to study my abilities. One day, I finally had enough of the poking and prodding so I left. After I took revenge on the man who killed my mother, I didn't feel right. I focused on myself and found the cancer. Once I found it, I just knew how it came to be and how it spread."
"The tests that the Russian doctors did."
"Yeah. I guess having daily MRIs, X-Rays, and injections of radioactive isotopes can reek havoc on a person's genes."
Phaedra didn't want to talk about it anymore. She offered again to cook for us and we agreed. I stayed by her in the kitchen to make sure she didn't use her abilities. The cinnamon buns weren't the same but I didn't want her to risk herself for us. I was going to do everything I could to save the woman I love.