Title: The Gathering Night
Author: May
Chang
Genre: slash, action, AU(fantasy)
Pairings: Havok x Polaris,
Wolverine x Mystique, Rogue + Cyclops, Quicksilver + Storm, Northstar + Iceman, past
Gambit x Storm
Spoilers: None
Disclaimer: "X-Men" is the
property of Marvel.
Author's Note: This chapter isn't about Remy and the others. This
chapter does have Scott and the others, as well as a guest appearance
of Chamber and his team. Yes, that's right, Chamber. :)
Chapter Nine
Know thy strength and thine enemies' strength for then thou mayst know thine next move.
- Ancient Battle Text
-
-
"I see." Magnus looked up at the ceiling, a frown on his face as he thought about the news they had received. "I'm surprised that the Dark Riders have decided to move now." He was sitting in one of the plush seats in the library with Xavier and Emma on the couch. Scott, Logan and Raven were standing before them, the first with a worried look on his face. Xavier's study was currently in the process of being repaired, and most of the students were in class.
"Converging in Trakia is a strange thing," Scott said. "Should we move to intercept them or wait, sir?"
"I say we hit 'em now," Logan growled. "One less problem to take care of."
"You'll certainly be able to survive a fight with them," Emma mused to herself, "but I don't think Raven would like being left out of it."
"Damn right I wouldn't," Raven muttered crossly. Logan just snorted in response while Magnus crossed his arms, running the information through his head. He knew that while the Dark Riders owed their allegiance to the Dark God, it didn't prevent them from slaughtering anyone who chose to get in their way. Magnus had hoped that they could be swayed into the coming battle against the Phoenix Force, but the information they had received told him otherwise. There might even be a chance that the Dark Riders will work with the Phoenix Force.
"We have to stop them," Xavier said quietly. Magnus looked up at Xavier in surprise, absently noting Emma's own surprised look. Xavier looked around the room at the others from his seat. "There is a chance that the Dark Riders will side with the Phoenix Force, but I am more concerned with the idea that the Dark Riders pits sorcerers against sorcerers."
"Survival of the fittest," Magnus said darkly. "The strong will rule over the weak, the sorcerers over the humans."
"The Gray Lord mantra," Emma said. "I'm not surprised they took that mantra and paired it in their worship of death."
Neither am I, Magnus thought with a mental grimace. Xavier gave him a sympathetic look, sensing his discomfort before he looked back at the others.
"Scott, I want you and Rogue to take a team to Trakia," Xavier said. "Do not engage them directly though. Hold back until you know what their powers are before you go in." "Yes, sir," Scott said, bowing his head slightly before he left.
"So you finally decided to get your hands dirty, eh, Charles?" Emma asked lightly, leaning back to look at Xavier with a raised eyebrow. Xavier just sighed in reply, a frown on his face.
"While I do not condone violence, I will use it against people who choose to use their strength against the weak," Xavier said softly.
"What he means is Chuck ain't no pushover," Logan said in amusement. Magnus chuckled at that while Xavier gave Logan a rueful look.
"Hmph," Emma replied with a sniff, leaning back at the seat. "What about O'Leons? Raven has mentioned that some of the Phoenix Forces are there."
"Me an' Raven can go there an' put a stop to them," Logan said.
"What about this Dark Guild?" Xavier asked. "They may not like us coming into their territory to fight the Phoenix Force."
"They'll have to deal," Emma said bluntly. "Besides, I just want to know why they're in O'Leons to begin with."
"We'll find out," Raven replied.
"Be careful," Xavier said as Logan and Raven turned to leave. Logan just grunted in response while Raven nodded to him. He then looked at Emma.
"What will your Hellions be doing, Emma?" he asked curiously.
"Watching over the school," Emma said easily. "Someone has to do it now that you're actually sending your students out to fight." Magnus chuckled again as Xavier raised an eyebrow at Emma.
Scott found Rogue and Kurt in the courtyard playing netball with Paige and Jay. Slowing his steps, he waited for them to finish their game. Paige tossed the ball to Jay who faced off against Kurt and then he was behind Kurt. Kurt spun around in surprise as Jay passed the ball back to Paige who had gotten by Rogue and she dropped it into the net.
"Gray Lord's honor, how did you do that?" Kurt asked in awe.
"Well, the wings kind of helped," Jay said with a grin.
"Nice shot, Paige," Scott called out. Paige saluted to Scott with a grin as he walked towards Rogue. Rogue was panting, a smile on her lips. "Rogue, we need to talk."
"Now?" she asked in surprise.
"Yes," Scott replied then looked over at Kurt. "This also concern you too Kurt. Please meet at the briefing room in half a glass." Kurt nodded while Paige and Jay exchanged looks before they followed the blue sorcerer back inside. Rogue turned to look after them before she turned back to face Scott, tilting her head slightly.
"We're going to Trakia," Scott said.
"What?" she asked in surprised. "What for?"
"There are Dark Riders there. The professor wants us to put a stop to them," Scott explained, "but I have a funny feeling that there may be more to them in Trakia than what we know so far." Rogue faced him fully, a serious look on her face.
"You think they're meetin' someone?" she asked, crossing her arms.
"Don't know, but I wouldn't discount it," Scott said. He looked down, a hand rubbing his chin while the other propped on his hip. "The professor voiced the idea that they may be meeting some of the Phoenix Forces there."
"Damn, that ain' good," Rogue said. "So the professor wants us tah charge right in?"
"No, we'll find out what they're doing and then we'll charge right in," Scott said dryly. "I kind of like us to be able to leave Trakia breathing."
"Right." Rogue turned back to the institute. Scott followed after her. "What's the plan?"
"Remy took Monet who would have been useful in this mission," Scott said with a frown, "but I think that most of us should be able to make up for it by asking around the local for any word on them. Piotr and Kurt will stay behind since their acting skills leaves much to be desired." Rogue laughed softly at that and Scott felt his heart skip a beat at it.
"That's a nice way of saying they suck at lying," Rogue said with a smile.
"Once we get the information," Scott continued, fighting down a blush, "then we'll go charging in."
"Straight-forward enough," Rogue said. She stopped and turned to look at Scott. "You think we're ready fer this sorta thing? We may've trained wit' Logan and Momma a lot but we're still pretty green. Why ain' Emma sendin' her kids out? They've more field trainin' than us."
"You give yourself such little credit," a voice called out. Rogue and Scott both turned to see Emma walk towards them, an amused look on her face. "If memory serves me correctly, weren't you the one who led Kurt and an injured Piotr in rescuing Kitty?"
"That ain' nothin' compared tah Lorna an' Alex takin' out that crazy cult," Rogue responded with a shake of her head.
"I hate to disagree with you Rogue, but the rescue mission makes Lorna and Alex's mission pale in comparison," Scott said. Rogue sniffed in response while Emma just looked even more amused. Scott looked at Emma, wondering what she was so amused about.
/ That's a secret, fearless leader. /
"Trust our brave leader here," Emma said aloud, looking at Scott, "and trust yourself. It's the only thing you can rely on in a fight." With that she turned and walked away, leaving the two alone in the hall again. Scott looked at Rogue who had crossed her arms and had an unsure expression on her face.
"Don't worry, Rogue," Scott said. "You'll be fine."
"Ah wasn' worried 'bout that," Rogue said, "but... thanks all the same, Scott." She turned and walked away, leaving Scott standing in the hall, feeling warm and confused.
--------------------
Scott gave the room a quick scan, deeming that everybody had arrived. Moving to the head of the table, he gave a nod to Rogue in greeting before he looked over at the others. Kurt was sitting next to Rogue while Hank sat at the other end of the table. Kitty sat across from the second-in-command and Piotr sat next to her. Scott noticed the Asyian man's hand twitch slightly as though he wanted to take Kitty's hand and he mentally smiled.
"Alright, folks," Scott began, "the professor has a mission for us in Trakia. We're going to be engaging against Dark Riders."
"Dark Riders?" Kitty asked, sounding startled. "As in the blood-thirsty, Dark God worshippers?"
"Unfortunately yes," Scott said. "Concerns has been raised that the Dark Riders might be doing something there, a possibility being that they're meeting Phoenix Forces." He heard Kurt swear under his breath and saw Piotr and Kitty exchange a worried look.
"We'll be doing recon first," Scott continued. "Piotr, Kurt, I'd like you two to explore the city while the rest of us are out. I want to get the layout of the city before we go into battle with the Dark Riders. Kitty, Rogue, Hank, I want you three to look for anyone that looks out of place. I'll be asking around for Dark Riders and Phoenix Force information."
"You're drawing their attention on just yourself?" Kurt asked, lifting an eyebrow.
"Not really," Scott replied. "Six complete strangers has just come to the city and one of them is asking for trouble. All eyes are going to be looking at us, particularly me. If anything, I'm hoping to provoke them to chasing us and not go to a meeting." Rogue snorted at the response while Kitty and Hank looked amused.
"Are we goin' tah be capturin' 'em or not?" Rogue asked.
"We're just going to repel them away from Trakia," Scott replied. "I'd rather not take prisoners and killing isn't our way." Everyone nodded in response.
"We're going to be heading out tomorrow bright and early, people, so get everything that you need to do done and get some sleep. Meet me at the hanger at seven." Everyone nodded once again and stood up, filing out of the room. Rogue stayed behind and looked at Scott curiously.
"Yah takin' the Blackbird?" she asked.
"Yes," Scott replied, a smile breaking out on his face. "Erik and I were making some improvements to it and I want to test it out for this mission." Rogue rolled her eyes and turned to leave. Scott barely heard her mutter something under her breath, but it sounded oddly fond to him.
He wondered what it was about.
Trakia was everything Remy had said it would be: hot, dusty and hot. For a brief moment, Scott wondered how Remy was doing before he focused back to the task at hand. Kurt and Piotr were getting the layout of the city while Hank, Kitty and Rogue were looking around for anyone suspicious. Scott had the daunting task of asking around for information on the Dark Riders.
The Blackbird had performed beautifully at flying them from Wehles to Trakia. Erik had done a brilliant job in creating this, a jet as he called it. Scott was sure that the elder man had to be one of the Gray Lord's higher priests or even an engineer; they were, after all, known for their metal-work and advancements in technology.
Asking around the city for Dark Riders was proving difficult though and by the late afternoon, Scott was feeling frustrated and paranoid. The frustration was for obvious reason, but the paranoia was for a different reason.
He was being watched.
Who knew that asking around for information would have eyes on you in seconds? Scott thought as he made his way through the marketplace. I can't even tell if it's hostile or just curiosity. Turning down into an alleyway, Scott could feel the hairs on the back of his neck prickling and he shivered slightly at the feeling.
Well, now I know they're hostile. He walked further down the alley until he knew he was far away from the marketplace before he stopped.
"Who are you?" Scott called out, turning to look. He froze at the sight of three strange-looking beings before him, almost staggering towards him. From the torso down, the beings were thin, their pelvis jutting out almost painfully. Their arms were just as thin, hanging all the way down to the ground and ending not with hands but with wicked-looking blades. Broad shoulders and chest, and a helmet that covered both the head and the neck made up the rest of the creature.
"Whoa," Scott whispered and was in a defensive stance in a second. The three creatures continued towards him, slouching forward and using their arms to aid them in walking towards him.
No, it's not for support, Scott thought, it's their battle stance! Shit! He instantly put a hand up to his visor and fired at one the beings. The shot hit the creature head-on and it was sent onto its back, not moving from where it laid. The other two were instantly moving, jumping onto the walls and moving fast towards Scott. Scott turned his head and fired again at another, missing by a mere few inches. He backed up quickly, turning his head to fire at the other, also missing that one.
"Dark God take them!" he hissed as he fired twice more at the beings, missing them before he turned and ran. He could hear the clatter coming from the creatures as they followed him and, raising his hand to his visor, Scott came to a sudden stop, turned and fired. The blast caught one of the creatures off-guard and sent it flying back, landing with a sick crunch onto the ground. Scott turned to face the other creature and realized to his horror that it was gone.
Where--?
"Duck!" a voice shouted and Scott ducked, watching as a blade swish over his head. He turned to his right, slamming his right elbow out into the creature. It staggered back, just far enough to let Scott get on his feet again. He raised his hand to his visor when a shower of sparks suddenly appeared. "Eat fireworks, ugly!" Lights temporarily blinded Scott and as he blinked his eyes to see again, the creature was down on the ground and an Aysian girl was standing next to it, rubbing a finger under her nose with a smug expression as she looked down at it.
"You ain't so tough, Dark Rider," she said, sticking her tongue out at it. She then turned to look at Scott. "C'mon, more of 'em are probably comin' right now." Glancing back, Scott turned and followed her quickly down alleys until he wasn't even sure he could get back to the inn without any trouble. Finally she stopped, glancing around before she looked at Scott.
"You're new around here, huh?" the Aysian girl asked, sitting down on the ground next to Scott and crossing her legs. She narrowed her eyes as she looked at what he assumed was his visor. "Weird shades. Pretty cool though. So what are you skulking around for?" Scott couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at that.
"None of you business?" he replied. The Aysian just grinned in response.
"Can't do that," she replied. "You're about to walk into a battlefield and we'd like to keep innocent humans and sorcerers out of the way, although those Dark Riders didn't seem all too thrill about you."
"A battlefield?"
"You know, the forces of good doing battle against the darkness, good versus evil, that sort of stuff," she said airily. "We're the good guys, by the way."
"Are you now?" Scott murmured.
"Now, now, Jubes," a voice interrupted. "Can't tell 'im everythin' 'bout us." Two figures appeared, one with gray skin and black hair while the other was dressed in black from the nose down. The one with gray skin grinned at Scott in greetings.
"So, who are you? And what are you doin' here in Trakia?"
"Another group of good guys," he replied. 'Jubes' laughed at that and Scott gave her a lopsided grin. "As to why we're here, I don't know if I can trust you."
"We're waitin' fer the Harbingers," the other one spoke. Scott blinked at his voice, wondering why it sounded like it was in his head. His companions both looked at him before they nodded.
"Harbingers? Who are they?" Scott asked, frowning.
"How about we do introductions first and then talk business?" the Asyian suggested. She stood up and stretched before she faced Scott again. "I'm Jubilee, gray-skin there is Skin and this fellow here is Chamber."
Chamber? Scott blinked at the man. Is he the one Remy met?
"Y'know Gambit, huh?" Chamber said, tilting his head and startling Scott. "Still alive an' kickin' too, I see."
"You're a mind-reader," Scott said flatly.
"Have ter be one," Chamber said. "I'm lackin' th' ability t' speak." He pulled the cloth away from his mouth and Scott was surprised to see fire floating up from there.
"So what are you doing here?" Skin asked as Chamber replaced the mask. Scott turned to look at him and sighed.
"Dark Riders," he replied. "We got information that they'll be meeting here for some reason. I have a bad feeling about said meeting so I want to find out what's going on."
"Meeting, huh?" Jubilee said with a frown. She looked up at Chamber and Skin. "There's definitely a Harbinger coming."
"Who d'you think they're goin' tah meet?" Chamber asked before Scott could ask what a Harbinger was.
"Phoenix Forces," he replied. Chamber, Skin and Jubilee exchanged looks before Chamber nodded slowly. "Makes sense," he said. "Can't have that, now can we?" He crossed his arms, looking at the sky with a thoughtful expression before he looked at Scott.
"There's an abandoned warehouse at the east edge of the city," Chamber said. "From what information I could get out, there's goin' t' be a meetin' there in two nights, most likely Dark Riders an' a Harbinger."
"What's a Harbinger?" Scott asked. Chamber shrugged in response.
"Bringer of bad news," he replied.
"In this case," Jubilee added, "the bringer of death."
"We don' know how many there are," Chamber said, "but from some of the rumors they're powerful enough to take down a city. Usually when Dark Riders are around, there's at least one Harbinger there t' keep 'em under control."
The idea of an uber-powerful sorcerer with crazy-looking creatures didn't really appeal to Scott. He frowned to himself, crossing his arms as he looked at the ground and thought quickly about the situation. The Dark Riders were fast, but Hank and Kurt should be able to keep up with them. If the Phoenix Forces were indeed there - and Scott was positive about that - Rogue and Piotr should be able to fend them off. The Harbinger was the wild card in this case and Scott wasn't sure if he would be able to take him on, even with Kitty's help.
"We'll deal with the Harbinger," Chamber said, interrupting Scott's thoughts. Scott looked up, frown still on his face. "We've got issure with 'em."
"A vendetta of sorts?" Scotts asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Somethin' like that," Chamber said with a shrug. "Inn's down that way. See you later." He abruptly turned and left, Skin and Jubilee quietly following after him until they disappeared from sight. Scott turned after a moment and started down the street where Chamber had gestured towards.
--------------------
"There's a warehouse out there all right," Kurt said with a nod. "Piotr and I noticed it when we were exploring." Scott nodded in response as he leaned back against his chair.
"What's the terrain look like?" he asked. Kurt straightened as he looked up at the ceiling, a frown on his face.
"Rocky," he answered.
"There was a lot of junk out there as well," Piotr said. "The place looks rather run-down, after all."
"Hm." Scott thought for a bit then nodded to himself. He leaned forward in his chair and glanced around the common room. "Where are the others?"
"They'll be here soon," Kurt said.
"Okay." Scott put an elbow onto the table, leaning his head against a hand as he thought about what he was going to say. He already knew that if Chamber and the others would be handling the Harbinger, it would give him more people to fight against the Dark Riders and the Phoenix forces. The thing was the Phoenix forces might be led by a sorcerer and, like the Harbinger, would be a wildcard in his plans.
"They're here," Piotr said, interrupting Scott's thoughts. Scott looked up to see Hank, Kitty and Rogue enter the room, making a beeline towards them the moment they spotted him.
"How'd it go?" Rogue asked as she and the others sat down. Scott raised his other hand to rub the side of his nose.
"Dark Riders are definitely here," he said quietly. "I got in a fight with three of them." The others all stiffened. Rogue's eyes narrowed at him while Kitty nervously glanced around the common room.
"What do you think of them?" Hank asked.
"Interesting," Scott said. "They're fast, so I want you, Kurt and Kitty to take them on. You have to watch out for their arms though. They're about the same length as their height and they have blades at the ends, not hands."
"Demons?" Kurt hissed.
"I doubt it," Scott said, "but just the same, watch yourselves. The good thing is once you hit them hard, they stay down."
"Oh thank the Goddess," Kitty murmured.
"Rogue, Piotr and I will be handling the Phoenix forces," Scott continued. "The meeting is going to be in two nights and... And we'll be having back-up."
"Back-up?" Rogue asked. "Who's back-up?"
"Chamber."
"...wait, Chamber?" Kitty said. "Isn't he the one in Remy's story?"
"Yes," Scott said with a nod. "Apparently he and some others have a problem with the Dark Riders. From what I can understand, Dark Riders always have a controller with them, someone known as a Harbinger. Chamber and his people will be taking on the Harbinger, which leaves one more thing."
"Who's leading the Phoenix forces," Rogue answered.
"Exactly," Scott said with a nod.
"Ah'll take 'im," Rogue said. Scott gave her a startled look, taking in her determined expression. He couldn't help but frown at her and Rogue leaned back in her chair, crossing her arms as she looked back at Scott. "Ah should be able tah knock 'im out for a while wit' mah powers."
"Are you sure you want to do that?" Kurt asked, sounding worried. "I don't want you to start going nuts on us from their memories or their powers..."
"Don't worry about me," Rogue said, looking over at Kurt. "Ah can take 'em out an' hopefully use that power to take out others."
"Fine," Scott said with a tone of finality. "Piotr and I will distract the Phoenix forces while Rogue goes for their leader. I want you all to keep your guard up and don't go around the city alone. I don't want you to get into a fight with the Dark Riders alone."
"But you--," Kitty started. Scott held up a hand to stop her.
"I got lucky," Scott said. "A sorcerer came in just in time to help me. You'll probably meet her when we go the warehouse." Kitty nodded in response and Scott looked around the table.
"Get some rest for now, people," he said softly, "and watch your back."
The next day went by fairly quickly as did the night and then it was the day of the meeting. Scott couldn't help but worry about the whole situation, from whether or not Chamber and his people could be trusted to take on the Harbinger to if his people were ready to take on the enemies to how safe Rogue would be after she knocked out the sorcerer for the Phoenix forces.
That last one made Scott's chest tighten and he couldn't figure out why.
By nightfall, the X-Men were by the abandoned warehouse, waiting for Chamber and his people to come and watching over the warehouse. They didn't have to wait long when Chamber, Skin and Jubilee, followed by a young woman with pink skin and long claw-like nails appeared.
"You came," Scott said in greeting.
"You din' think I would?" Chamber replied, raising an eyebrow.
"Couldn't be sure." Scott looked back out at the warehouse. "We've sighted some Dark Riders there, but nobody else so far."
"Night's still young," Chamber said. "Don' you worry your head off 'bout the Dark Riders, we'll take care of 'em." Rogue turned her head to look at them, an eyebrow raised in response.
"There's only four o' yah," she said. "How d'you plan on beatin' them all up?"
"We got our ways," Skin replied in Chamber's stead. "Like the boss said, don't you be worryin'."
"Our guests of honor have arrived," Hank called out quietly. They all turned to look, seeing soldiers of the Phoenix Queen entering the warehouse. Half of them stayed outside and the other half followed a blonde woman inside.
"That's our sorcerer, Ah bet," Rogue said. "Yes," Scott said with a nod.
"There ain't that much soldiers out there," Skin noted. "Should be pretty easy to take out."
"We'll handle it," Scott said, looking over to Skin, "so long as you'll handle those Dark Riders." Skin just grinned in response and looked over at Chamber. Chamber nodded and walked off, followed by the others. Scott turned to look at his team.
"Colossus, Beast, you're with me," Scott commanded, using their codenames. Both Piotr and Hank stiffened slightly at his tone. "We'll take care of the guards outside. Rogue, you'll take Nightcrawler and Shadowcat with you inside the warehouse and deal with the others. We'll join you as soon as we can."
"Got it," Rogue replied. Kurt and Kitty began to move off, Rogue about to follow when Scott caught her arm. She turned back to look at him curiously.
"Watch yourself and don't get hurt that much," Scott said softly, feeling a bit awkward telling that to Rogue. Rogue stared at him, eyes wide before it softened.
"Watch your back," she said with a soft smile and Scott watched her, Kurt and Kitty make their way into the darkness. He had a funny feeling in his chest and he wondered briefly what it was before he turned to Piotr and Hank. Leading them towards their position, Scott mentally prayed to the Storm Goddess to watch over them.
--------------------
The meeting was rudely interrupted by an explosion, followed by lots of fireworks. Both the Harbinger and the Phoenix sorceress were surprised by the attack, and watched as Chamber and Skin appear in the doorway. Kitty went through the walls while Kurt teleported in with Rogue.
"Kill them!" the sorceress screamed and the soldiers attacked. The Dark Riders also attacked and was met with another explosion caused by Chamber. Rogue got her first good look at the man and gaped at the sight of fire coming from his chest before switching her sight onto the blonde sorceress. The sorceress took flight out of the warehouse and Rogue swore in response.
"We got this," Kurt said. "Go!" Glancing at Kurt and Kitty, Rogue gave them a nod and ran out the door. The blond sorceress had picked up a boulder and threw it at Piotr who was in the middle of beating off some Dark Riders and many Phoenix soldiers. Red fire blew away the boulder and Rogue turned to see Scott turn, punching a soldier and firing his red fire at another. The blonde sorceress looked angrily at Scott and Rogue suddenly felt cold, realizing that the woman had set her sight on Scott. She looked around and saw a way up onto the roof of the warehouse and steeling herself, Rogue quickly climbed up onto the roof, just as the blonde dived towards Scott.
"Ah don' think so!" Rogue shouted and, wrenching the gloves off of her hands, she jumped onto the blonde woman's back, one arm slipping around her neck tightly as the other hand clapped onto the back of the blonde's neck. The woman screamed, trying vainly to pull Rogue off of her but Rogue managed to stay on.
"What are you--! Get off! Get off, you bitch!" the blonde screamed, but Rogue held on tightly, gritting her teeth as she felt her powers working, sucking away the memories and powers of the woman.
"I won't let you hurt Cyke!" Rogue hissed into her ears. "I won't let you!" It felt like forever to Rogue, holding onto the blonde woman until the sorceress fell to the ground hard, weakly trying to get Rogue to let go before she stopped moving. Rogue let go of the woman, sitting back and breathing hard. She could barely register the battle raging around her, staring at the unconscious woman on the ground. Absently she reached a foot out and nudged the blonde's hand, seeing it limply do nothing.
Gotta help Scott, Rogue thought dazedly. Gotta get rid of those Phoenix bastards. She got up just as a soldier appeared before her, a sword raised. Rogue punched without thinking and watched in horror as he went flying through the air, plowing into other soldier before slamming into a tree with a sickening thud. He didn't move as he slid down to the ground, a trail of blood staining wall.
Strong...! Ah forgot, she's got super strength! Rogue thought with a grimace as she quickly picked up her gloves and slipped them back on. And flight... Rogue took off into the air as though it was natural and dived towards a group of Phoenix soldiers who were fighting against Hank and Piotr. Slamming half of the soldiers away, she was back up in the air, feeling satisfied as she watched Hank, Piotr and Scott easily dispatch the rest.
"Retreat!" a soldier bellowed. "Lady Marvel has fallen! Retreat!" Rogue watched as the soldiers began to run, the one who had called for the retreat picking up the fallen sorceress and running away. She slowly flew down, cautiously landing onto the ground and looked for the others. Scott, Hank and Piotr all looked out of breath and, glancing back at the warehouse, Kitty and Kurt looked tired and uninjured. The Dark Riders, she noted, were nowhere to be found.
"Rogue? Are you okay?" Scott asked, his voice worried as he hurried up to her.
"So far," she replied cautiously. She turned to look over at Kurt and Kitty. "How did everything go in the warehouse?"
"Skin, Jubilee and Penance took out most of the Dark Riders," Kitty reported. "I think Chamber went head to head with the Harbinger. The Dark Riders also left before the soldiers for some reason, so we beat up most of those who were left." Scott nodded in response before he glanced back.
"Looks like Chamber and his people are gone," Scott noted. "Didn't even get a chance to thank them."
"I have a feeling we'll see them again," Kurt said. Rogue nodded as well.
"Let's get outta here," she said. "We need ta' get back t' the Speaker--" She went silent then, a hand immediately going to her mouth as her eyes widened in horror. A voice was whispering in her head, saying she had to go see the Speaker, to report the events that happened. What shook Rogue though was the fact that the voice sounded more solid than any of the other voices, overpowering Logan's gruff voice, Bobby's laughter, Scott's warm voice.
Oh, goddess...
All the others looked at her, worry immediately on their faces.
"Rogue...?" Scott asked.
"We need t' leave as soon as possible," Rogue whispered. "Ah think something's wrong an' the Professor is the only one who can fix it." Scott gave a nod and gestured to the others who all began to move off. Scott then looked back at her and, handing over her gloves which she gratefully slipped back on, took her hand and began to walk away.
"Don't worry, Rogue," he said. "You're going to be alright."
Ah hope so, she thought. Ah hope so.
Half an hour before the retreat...
"What do you think you're doing, Master Starsmore?!" the one known as Famine demanded. "They are our enemies!"
"Tell Apocalypse he needs tah rethink the enemies part!" Chamber retorted. "I won't side with people who kill everyone in sight!" He let out a blast at the man who was able to evade it at the last second. Famine floated in the air, fire surrounding him as he glared at Chamber. Chamber gestured towards the warehouse.
"This isn't our fight," Chamber said. "To bring them into the war--!"
"Would give us more power!" Famine retorted.
"No! It would give them more power!" Chamber shot back. "With every humans and sorcerers that fall under them, more of our foe will rise! Has Apocalypse not thought of that?" Famine was quiet and Chamber continued.
"They have no place in the war. Return to Apocalypse and tell him that." Famine was still quiet but he lifted a hand. The Dark Riders suddenly appeared and Famine began to fly away, the creatures following after him.
"Such action will displease our Lord," Famine called out.
"To protect ourselves from the rule of the night," Chamber replied, "I would do so again, even if it displeases him." He watched as they disappeared before he looked down at the ground.
"How goes the battle?" he asked. He could hear footsteps approaching him, feel Skin's presence by his side.
"Those X-Men," Skin said, scratching his head, "they're not too shabby for a bunch of people living in a high house. They should be done finishing those Phoenix goons up in a bit." Chamber nodded as he quietly pulled his mask up, covering up the fire before he turned to look at Skin.
"The others?"
"Are ready to get going," Skin replied. He sighed, glancing back at the warehouse. "You sure y'don't want their help in the war?"
"I'm sure," Chamber said after a moment. "They live in the daylight and the closest ones to us has only hid in the shadows. The night would eat them all alive."
"Hmph," Skin sniffed. Jubilee and Penance finally appeared, the former with a grin on her face and panting while the latter just looked curiously at them. "Let's go, kids. It's back to hunting for us."
-
-
There is a war, one which is waged in the darkness. Mortals and sorcerers alike do not know of it, but I do. I've fought them, the demons of the night who prey on the living for blood and I have met their lord and master on the field of battle. We must be vigilant or the undead will rule the living.
- Apocalypse, Leader of the Dark Riders, Master of the Harbingers
