Until the End: Dreams & visions of an undeniable future lead two women on the adventure of a lifetime. Together, they hope to somehow prevent the upcoming tragedy that could leave the entire world in disarray. OC Alert!

XoXoX

"You may have to fight a battle more than once to win it.."- Margaret Thatcher

Until the End

Chapter Twenty

-Robyn-

"Back-up's movin' in," Logan grunted in my ear as he positioned himself between the girls and the men that were clearly frozen in place. "How long can y' hold it, Rob?"

The question seemed to buzz around inside of my skull like an annoying bee as I concentrated. Sweat beaded my brow and my upper lip as I grunted, shaking my head quickly. "Dunno," I managed as I stared at him, lips quivering. "Not long. Get-" I sucked in a deep breath. "So overwhelmed," I admitted, feeling so utterly pitiful and useless.

"Robyn, my God." Madelyne and Hayley were on either side of me suddenly, their arms warm around my torso as they both hugged me tightly. "They have some machine," Madelyne confided as she backed away, positioning herself behind Logan again. The sound of shuffling feet greeted my ears, and some voice in the back of my mind reminded me that it was probably the other startled students moving into action. "I don't know what it is or where it came from, but it changed me. It changed all of us. He kept calling it a dampener and an inhibitor. Just-" I felt the warmth of her hand on my forearm as my hands continued to shake. "Be careful."

I managed to smile at them, though shakily, as the strain continued to gnaw at me. The pressure was building behind my eyes, causing my vision to blur slightly as I ground my teeth and fought to remain standing. There was simply no way in hell that I was going to let go, not when so much was at stake.

"Incoming," Logan announced suddenly, positioning himself so that he was standing in front of me and the girls. I lifted my gaze slowly, eyes watering, and found myself fighting the urge to grin like a lunatic when I spotted the cavalry. "Friendlies."

The stress that the effort was putting on my body proved to be too much when I suddenly collapsed on my knees, ignorant of the spot of blood that trickled from my left nostril. My eyes were focused on the forms of the man known as Remy LeBeau and the furry blue Beast of a man next to him.

"Robyn, are you quite alright?" The dark blue eyes of Hank McCoy stared down at me with worry as his firm hands slowly drew me upwards by my shoulders. His eyes seemed to search my face for a short moment before he pulled a dainty white handkerchief out of a pocket in his uniform and dabbed at my nose gently. "How much time do we have, pet?"

"None," Remy provided as the world around us exploded in a cacophony of sound.

A curse left my lips as howls of confusion and anger echoed in the room from the armed men. Students flocked toward us, Madelyne and Hayley doing their best to comfort them even as Logan shifted into the formidable beast of a man known by many as the Wolverine. Eyes filled with fear seemed to fill my vision for a short moment as everything suddenly went to hell.

"Turn it up!" an unfamiliar voice shouted as several armed men skidded to a halt in front of the large group of mutants and mutant supporters. "Now, goddammit! Now!"

Madelyne's gaze was on mine suddenly, her dark chocolate eyes gleaming with unshed tears. "The machine." She reached up blindly, her bloodstained hand clawing at her throat as she fought to explain what she was talking about. "That's what I was trying to warn you about, Robyn. They're going to-" but she was cut off by the sound of erupting gunfire.

I struggled forward, out of Beast's grasp, and lifted my hands into the air for one final hurrah. I knew in my mind that we needed more time, more time to get all of the students out of the school as quickly as possible. "I- I," I groaned as pain like I'd never before experienced seemed seeped into my body. The place inside of me that seemed to hold the very essence of my abilities, the warmth and comfort that was always there, but somehow still barely accessible was suddenly empty.

No, I found myself thinking as I stared at the palms of my hands in disbelief. Not now. Not like this.

"You fuckin' muties just don't give the fuck up, do ya?" a voice shouted as gunfire erupted.

My world seemed to spin the wrong way on its axis as I was thrown bodily to the floor by none other than the furry blue doctor that had sworn to abide the Hippocratic Oath so long ago. Breath rushed from my lungs and my chest began to burn almost instantly as I closed my eyes and prayed that no one would get hurt. My job, my chance to prove myself, it had been taken away.

I knew somewhere deep down that the only reason I had been sent inside of the school I knew so well was because of my unique abilities. They'd wanted me to make it easy for the rest of the team to move in instantly, to get out as many innocent children as possible. But, suddenly I was completely useless. The feeling that swelled in my chest made my eyes water, and I had to force myself to remain calm as the beast of a man atop me began to hiss in pain.

"Oh God, Hank!" I found myself whispering hoarsely, unable to breathe properly due to his weight. "Are you hit?" I managed.

Dizzily, I was pulled to my feet a mere moment after he'd launched himself upright, his sharpened claw-like hands biting into my skin. The peep-toe pumps that completed my outfit were nearly lost in the sudden uprise, almost sending me toppling forward even as he began to drag me away from the scene.

"Robyn!" I found myself looking over my shoulder, tendrils of hair blocking my vision slightly, at the crumpled form of Madelyne Michaels. She kneeled next to Hayley, her brown eyes somehow finding mine in all of the chaos. The world around her seemed to stand still for a split second, and I felt as though, somehow, I'd managed to make it all work. We were all going to be fine, we were safe. "Help me!"

I fought against Hank's hold instantly, ignorant of the bits of plaster that rained down atop our heads from shots gone wide or the fact that bullets rang in the air so close to us that they nearly made the skirt I wore whistle in admiration. No, I was too focused on getting to the girl, too focused on saving those that could not be saved.

Beast's strength was more of a match for me than I'd anticipated, and he easily bent me to his will. One moment, I was reaching out, willing myself to somehow connect with the girl that had once asked me for boyfriend advice, that had begged her sister and me to take her to get her bellybutton pierced; the same girl that was like my own flesh and blood.

"I'm not sure what in the bloody world is going on," the husky voice of the Beast met my ear as I was turned around and pressed between him and a large pillar. A closer investigation of the pillar revealed several alarming facts: it was missing several chunks and was barely wide enough to provide the two of us a decent amount of protection from the unknown. "There are several men, all toward the eastern exits, that appear to be wearing miniature machines that look suspiciously like boomboxes. I am going to go out on a limb," I looked up at him as he grimaced, pulling me closer to him as a bullet struck the pillar. "I am going to hypothesize that the sudden appearance of these men is the source behind your problems, dear heart."

I smiled halfheartedly and nodded my head once, body aching. "Maddy said something about machines, Hank. I think-" I closed my eyes and gathered my wits, attempting to block out the sounds of carnage and chaos that had enveloped us in its tight grasp. "I think that if we take these machines out, we're home free."

He cocked his head to the side slightly, like a dog analyzing its owner. After a short second, he nodded in agreement as he placed me between him and the pillar. "Gambit, come in."

My eyes widened in confusion until he pulled a small object out of his slightly pointed ear and motioned for me to lean in. The moment that I did, my heart sang in happiness at the realization that Remy's voice was normal, and still just as sexy.

"We have reason to believe that the men positioned at either exit, particular the eastern, are in possession of square-like objects that are electrical in nature. These objects appear to have an effect on many mutants, including Robyn." I let out a shriek as the pillar behind me took another hit, bits of the ceramic tile and plaster flying off and catching the tall beastly man in front of me in the shoulder.

"Robyn? Mon Dieu!" Remy's voice seemed to shout over the tiny earpiece, almost bringing a smile to my face. "Remy take care o' it, Hank. Don't worry."

The small earpiece was placed back into his ear as Hank turned on his heel and peered around the edge of the pillar slightly, jerking back immediately as more bits of the pillar were sacrificed in order to save us from being turned into Swiss cheese. His dark eye were narrowed into cat-like slits as he let them roam over my, presumably tattered, form. "Robyn, I want you to stay here."

Suddenly, an animalistic howl remarkably remniscient to that of a wolf echoed throughout the cavernous room, overpowering the deafening roar of the gunfire. My heart stilled as I whipped my head to the side, peering around the side of the pillar and searching the pandemonium for some sign, something, anything. My eyes came to a rest immediately on the haggard form of the man I knew as only Logan, the man that had clearly morphed into Wolverine.

The clothes he had worn into the school were hardly recognizable beneath the blood. Tatters and scraps of cloth appeared frayed and worn, and hung from his body in a most distracting manner. His face was a mask of anger and something so primal that it send a shudder of fear down my spine. Gleaming claws, nearly a foot in length, protruded from each of his hands, the Wolverine's trademark.

But, wait, I thought to myself, eyes narrowing in confusion. "It doesn't affect all of us?" I asked aloud, ignorant of the feel of the meaty paw of Beast on my shaking shoulder. "You, Wolverine..." I found myself smiling in spite of myself when the familiar figure known fondly as the Raging Cajun flipped into view for a split second. A silver staff, an adamantium bo staff, shone brightly under the flourescent lighting as he kicked off of the floor and swung the staff at a group of armed thugs. The staff seemed to glow with a unseen energy, turning a dull purple, and effectively sending the armed men backwards onto their behinds. "And Remy." I turned to Beast, wiping my face with the back of my hand when the drying blood on my face began to tickle. "It's not affecting you. Maybe the others are fine, too."

He seemed to consider the thought for a moment before his hackles rose. "Pet, you're absolutely right!" he nearly shouted as he gathered me close for a quick embrace. As he held me at arm's length, his eyes were narrowed in thought before he shook his head. "At first glance, I would have to hypothesize that perhaps these strange objects emit waves of some sort, as they seem to affect the mental thought process behind many mutations, such as your own."

An ear-shattering scream echoed in the room and I found myself grimacing, the very real truth that there was a possibility that we wouldn't make it through settling in me like a bad ulcer. I certainly didn't want to die. Especially not after all of the sudden realizations that crept over me at the mere thought of a premature death. "Hank, we don't have time for this," I managed, running a shaky hand through my disheveled hair. "Remy's heading toward the whatever machines. You back him up. Where's everyone else?" I found myself asking, suddenly realizing that I hadn't spotted Iron Man and his cronies, let alone the other X-Men, throughout the long minutes that had passed.

"There was an emergency in Haiti that required an immediate response. Cyclops provided transportation for the other Avengers and a number of X-Men. I'm afraid," he glanced around, fangs bared, "that this is everyone."

I nodded slowly, as though the absence of several helpful people wouldn't affect the outcome of the situation. But, deep down, I found myself wishing that we'd had the assistance of Iron Man, that we could have counted on him to take out the armed men so that I could gather Maddy and Hayley close just for a few minutes. Just a few. That's just too much to ask, I guess, I found myself thinking sadly, hands shaking at my sides.

"Gambit says he's moving in toward the men in question. Robyn, I'm going to need you to act as a distraction," he spoke slowly his voice barely audible over the noise. "It's quite dangerous, particularly in your chosen fashionable shoes. But, you can do it, pet. I know that you can. I need you to draw their attention." Leaning around the pillar, he motioned to a large cluster of men that were grouped around a large crowd of students. Despite the formidable distance, I could almost make out the terrified looks in the kids' faces. "Can you do that for me? Robyn? Can you do that for me?"

I licked my lips slowly, letting my blue eyes trail over the destroyed room quickly. Time seemed to stand still and I could almost see every particle of dust as it lifted into the air. I could almost see the beads of sweat that were flung from Wolverine's forehead as he craned his neck backwards and let out a howl before attacking an assailant, claws bared.

And I would have sworn that I saw Remy wink at me before disappearing behind a man that was struggling to reload his weapon.

"Go," I found myself whispering hoarsely, kneeling and blindly searching the ground for something, anything. My shaking hands wrapped around something slightly heavy, but thin. Surprise flitted across my features as I stood and choked my hands up on the object, wielding it like a baseball bat. "Rebar's good for more than holding a structure together," I commented wittily.

A flash of blue crossed my view and I realized with a faint smile that Hank had scrambled up the pillar and was making his way across the Cafeteria via the rafters. Inhaling deeply, I ground my teeth together and crouched slightly. I considered removing the fashionable peep-toe pumps, but quickly decided that running around barefoot was even less ideal than the heels themselves. Casting a prayer upward, I rounded the pillar and began the mad dash.

In high school, we had learned all about inertia and gravity. Mr. Chancy, my Science teacher, had done a dozen demonstrations to prove that once an object's in motion, it stays in motion until it's stopped by another force. Sometimes, gravity stopped the object. After all, hitting the ground would stop most people. But, at the time, I couldn't help but wonder if it was possible for someone to beat gravity, to beat any and all outside forces of nature and somehow just keep going.

A cry of outrage, so pure and so shrill that it hurt my own ears, left my painted lips as I ran toward a crowd of armed men with the piece of rebar in my hands. Wielding it like a baseball bat, I used the advantage of surprise and caught two men unaware, promptly blasting them in the chests and hips with the sturdy metal rod. My hair whipped about my face as I pivoted on my left foot, howling as I struck another masked man across the side of his face, well aware of the fact that the sound of crunching bones likely meant that he was seriously injured, if not worse.

Charles Xavier, known throughout the mutant world as an advocator for coexistence, would have been proud if he had been there, if he had been there to witness the horrible and yet magnificent struggle. As I turned on my heel, I narrowly escaped introducing the side of my beautiful face to the butt of a rifle. An exasperated groan exited my lips at the same time that a large and extremely scary looking bone spike imbedded itself into the chest of my attacker.

The students, the very same students that had sat idle for so long, had finally risen to attack their oppressors.

I found myself frozen in place for a split second, staring at the group of young men and women, children really, that worked together and used their abilities and their strengths. Some were obvious mutants, using brute strength, bone spikes, and even what appeared to be claws to take down their attackers. Part of me wondered if they had fought like that at the beginning, if they had banded together only to lose because of the blasted machines that had somehow taken away part of at least some of us.

"We need to get these kids out of here!"

Blindly, I stumbled backwards, swinging at the air in front of me blindly until the tiny form of Wasp, the Avenger that had first entered the premises, jolted me with some sort of shiny substance from her tiny hands. Offering her what I hoped to be an apologetic smile, I nodded my head. "Suggestions?"

"Best escape route would probably be via roof." It amazed me just how well I could hear her, before I realized that at some point she had placed a com device in my ear to aid me. A tendril of hope curled inside of me at the familiar sound of Remy's voice."Fury has ordered a helicopter, two, both flanked by snipers, to be ready for immediate extraction on the roof. If we can get these kids up there..."

I nodded grimly, turning on my heel and looking at the large group of students with a sigh. "Okay, guys, while they're-" I was cut off by the sound of cheering.

I pivoted on my heel again, rebar forgotten as it slipped from my grasp and clattered to the floor noisily. Black on red eyes seemed to somehow pierce mine despite the distance, narrowing the rest of my vision and blurring everything save for the face of the man that was moving toward me with such grace, such poise. A shit-eating grin curled the very same lips that I could almost feel moving hot across my skin, and I found myself returning it ten-fold.

And yet, at the very same time, something just as beautiful seemed to blossom inside of me. Where, moments ago, part of me had felt empty, like a beautiful dessert missing the most important ingredient- I suddenly felt so full and so alive. Energy seemed to ripple across my skin, a surge, an electric rush bringing every feeling, every minor cut and pain, to the surface. And yet, I relished in the pain. I relished in the realization that I'd somehow broken three nails, that there was clearly a number of abrasions that were trickling blood on the back of my calves. My left elbow felt tender, and I realized that I'd probably knocked it against the pillar that had provided me and the Beast protection.

But, most importantly, a feeling of euphoria seemed to wash over me with such reckless abandon, only partly caused by the sight of one Remy LeBeau. The machine, whatever it had been, was gone. I could feel it, I could feel the power of my mutation inside of me, waiting. My shaking hands were clenched at my sides as the only man I could see, that I suddenly realized I could ever see, was moving toward me with his trademark trench coat billowing out behind him.

His lips were moving, were forming a sentence that I knew deep down was something magnificent, something beautiful, when the gunfire around me broke through my senses. A shriek left my lips as I shoved into the group of students, clawing at the taller ones as I struggled to move them out of the line of fire. My heart thumping in my chest, I urged them out of the Cafeteria, struggling to run in the peep-toe pumps.

Something, maybe a sense of urgency, caused me to glance over my shoulder as we hurdled our way over a pile of unmoving assailants. My hair fell over my brow and into my eyes as I took in the sight of the wrecked Cafeteria.

Piles of bodies, mostly garbed in black, were spread across the room, occasionally peppered by a colorful shirt, a single tennis shoe, a sweatshirt slung forgotten over a toppled chair. The image seemed to burn itself into my retinas as I blinked, willing it away.

Unfamiliar hands clawed at my arms, pulling me forward and away from the carnage. And yet, with every ragged stride that I took away from the scene, I felt less disconnected. With every corner we passed, with every assailant knocked aside, I felt like something was missing.

It dawned on me as I shouldered my way onto the stairwell, heels clacking upon the floor. Horror froze me in place, sending me toppling forward as I tripped forward, clinging to the railing with sweaty hands.

Remy, I thought to myself, biting down on my bottom lip so hard that I could almost taste the coppery blood. My heart thudded wildly in my chest, echoing loudly in my ringing ears as I looked down the empty stairwell, suddenly fully aware that Hayley and Madelyne were most definitely not with me.

The sound of muffled gunfire forced me into action again, caused me to continue the ascent despite my fears, my fatigue. As I shoved open the exit for the roof access, I found myself wondering if saving at least a few hostages counted for a double.

Not a homerun, but I don't think I could settle for a single.

Mmm. Totally craving a frozen pizza. Well, a frozen pizza after it's been cooked. Mmmm. (: