As he was running, Charles mentally yelled for Hank.
"Charles, what is it?" Hank's voice responded immediately.
"Oh, God, Hank, they've taken Zara. Erik's taken Zara." Charles reached the car and yanked on the door twice, cursed, unlocked the door violently and flung himself inside.
"What? Erik? Charles, are you sure?"
"Of course I'm sure, Hank! It was Azazel. He teleported her out in less than a second. She's gone; I can't feel her mind at all, Hank. Christ—"
"Okay, okay. Where are you?"
"I'm driving back to the school now; I'll be there in a few minutes."
"All right, come to the lab; we'll figure out what to do."
"Hank. Why—?" His thoughts trailed off.
Coldness and anger seeped into Charles' mind through Hank's. "Charles, we don't know Erik anymore."
Magneto stared at Emma, who kept looking back at him, icy and nonplussed. "Is there anything else?" he asked dryly.
"Don't you want to see the little schoolteacher?" Emma purred.
"No, I do not. There's no need for me to see her. Find out what we need to know, and come tell me."
"Easy enough. Any other instructions?"
Magneto paused and then his gaze hardened. "Make sure it doesn't hurt Charles."
"Oh, honey, now you're squeamish? You should realize what you're asking isn't simple."
"I mean it, Emma. If you can't accomplish what I want without hurting him, then you can take your chances selling your wares..." —he looked impassively at her perfect cleavage—"...elsewhere. You're no use to me if you won't follow my instructions. Are we clear?"
Emma rolled her eyes in acquiescence. "Fine," she sighed, turning on her heel and swaying towards the door.
With a screech of tires, Charles threw the car into park and leapt out, barely managing to yank the keys out of the ignition before slamming the door on his own hand. He went at a dead run. His back was burning painfully around the site of his bullet wound and subsequent surgery. Charles ripped open the door to the lab, and Hank was right there, grabbing him by the upper arms and forcing him into a chair.
"Charles, catch your breath. I have Cerebro powered up, but you can't go in there until you're calm."
"Hank, Goddamn it—"
"So be calm."
Zara had never felt so small and humiliated in her life.
One second, she had been happily reading the prologue to one of her new books, and then a hand clamped around her arm and she was suddenly...here, on her hands and knees, dizzy and dry heaving from the smell of sulfur and the shock of whatever had happened.
The door clicked, and the most beautiful woman in the world stepped through. She was tall, slender as a willow, blonde, and wearing pearly white leather cut to fit like a glove. If she was a willow, then Zara was a holly bush. A short holly bush.
"Well, sugar," the woman said with a smirk, "I'm glad to see you're handling this so well."
Zara coughed, then dragged the back of her hand across her mouth. "What's...going on?"
"Right now, you're sitting in this room like a good girl. Later on...well, we'll see, won't we?" She sat gracefully on the one chair in the room. "I can tell you honestly that we're not very interested in you. You're not that special, honey. But your friend Charles...now, he is something."
"You know Charles?" Zara asked, her voice shaky.
"Oh my, yes. You don't even want to know what he was thinking the first time he saw me in my lingerie. Strong hands, for a man his size. He left bruises." She smiled, as beautiful as an angel. "Have you ever had him inside your head? Of course you have. Was it as good for you as it was for me?" She laughed, the sound like tiny bells jingling on silk ribbons.
"Who are you?" Zara asked, with all the dignity she could muster.
"Emma Frost," the beautiful woman said. "And I'm pleased to make your acquaintance. Moira, is it? No, silly me. Moira was the human redhead. He's got a thing for redheads, I see."
Zara tried, unsuccessfully, to stop her voice from wavering. "What exactly does that mean?"
"It doesn't mean anything yet, sugar. Right now, we're just waiting. You might as well get comfy." Emma crossed her elegant legs and sat back in the chair, leaving Zara to push herself up against the wall.
What on earth should she do? Leap to her feet and threaten to perform a Shakespearean soliloquy? Good Lord, she was useless. She had literally no—
Wait...
She flicked her eyes quickly at Emma, but the woman was studying her nails. Zara closed her eyes...
She waited. Maybe she could feel something, one tiny thing that would tell her something. Something...
Pain exploded in her head. Zara's eyes shot open and she saw Emma, still relaxed in her chair but now with her icy blue eyes fixed on Zara. Emma's eyes narrowed slightly, and the pain escalated until she was horizontal, wailing and begging Emma to please stop, make it stop, please...
Opening his mind through Cerebro was a shock and a joy every single time. Nothing could compare to feeling his own limits dissolve and seeing the lights of all those minds appear around him. Today, they reminded him of nothing so much as Zara's stars. He plunged into the universe of Cerebro, searching for the individual light that was Zara, that would connect him to her no matter where she was. Lights whirled and sailed past, and then he felt relief wash over him. She was there, and he was getting closer to her now. Charles reached out—
Zara gasped, feeling the pain retreat slightly as the warmth of Charles' mind began to call to her—
Oh, Charles, please, she's hurting me—
Emma smiled sharply, a gleam in her eye—
Charles fought to keep down the panic that was trying to build in him. He kept reaching for Zara, trying to wrap his light around hers, but now she was...insubstantial.
Zara, it's all right, I'm going to find you—
Hank paced around the perimeter of Cerebro, anxiously switching his gaze from Charles' face to the monitors tracking his progress. Think. Why would Erik do this? What could he hope to gain?
Erik had Emma.
Now, Erik had Zara.
Charles and Zara were connected.
Zara never had any kind of shields that could withstand Emma.
Charles' shields and the distance protected him from Emma. But, if Emma connected with Zara...
...while Charles was in Cerebro, his mind extended so much farther...
Oh, God.
Hank's eyes widened. "Charles! Get out of there, now! Get out of Cerebro! CHARLES!"