Pietro grimaced as Kurt tilted his head back, purring loudly. He shut his eyes and turned away, knowing that if he watched, he'd become sick. His thoughts flashed back to the day Kurt had some the same thing to him and he found himself thinking 'Was he purring that loudly for me?' and quickly covered his mouth, certain he'd be ill if he kept going on that line of thought.
There was a brief silence and then Pietro heard a thud. He turned around and saw Kurt lying on the floor, curled up tightly, eyes squeezed shut, fangs revealed as he panted in apparent ecstasy. His tail was wagging, the barb smacking the floor, the repetitive 'thud's echoing in the now silent room.
Pietro hear a sniff and looked at the bound X-Men. They looked thoroughly terrified and Kitty was crying, her face shoved into Bobby's chest as best she could despite their tied up positions. Suddenly all the X-Men yelped, jumping in place and Pietro saw that while they had been still, Magneto had given them another dose of power-inhibiting drugs. The speed demon glanced at the Brotherhood and the Acolytes, to see how they were taking it.
Lance and Freddy's faces were stunned, Pyro looked more than ready to puke, Colossus simply watched and Remy was leaning on the wall, cleaning his nails, grinning to himself. Magneto put the used syringes away and walked over to where Kurt lay, now still, rubbing himself and purring softly, like a cat. Kurt heard the footsteps and looked upwards with half-lidded eyes. He then slowly sat up, then stood, his right hand not moving from his stomach. He then looked from the silent Magneto to the remaining X-Men and smiled hopefully. Magneto raised an eyebrow and Kurt bent forwards, whispering, "They won't join you either. Please?"
Lance hadn't heard the exchange, but when he saw the way Kurt had looked at Kitty, his blood froze. He wanted to step forwards, but Gambit was suddenly next to him, shaking his head warningly. Lance got the warning; stay where you are and you'll live.
But he took one more look at the helpless phaser and he shoved Remy aside, shouting, "NO!"
Magneto spun to Lance, frowning, while Kurt just crouched down, purring. Lance gulped hard, seeing the danger in Magneto's cold eyes, but persisted, saying, "Look, draining their powers I get, but you can't go so far as murder!"
The metallic mutant walked towards him and Lance distantly noticed that the others were backing up a little. Lance tried to do so as well, but his feet were frozen. Magneto was calling on the metal in his uniform to keep him still. He came right in front of Lance, towering over him, asking very softly and very dangerously, "Are you disobeying me, Avalanche?"
Lance looked over at Kitty, who was staring at him in shock, and then turned back to the icy blue eyes and nodded, saying, "For her, yes."
"Fool." Magneto spat, and with an idle wave of his hand, sent Lance flying into one of the walls. He crumpled at the base; not dead, but unconscious. He then turned and looked at the remaining mutants, asking coldly, "Anyone else have a problem with my methods?"
The Acolytes knew this tone and all were careful not to even twitch. But Freddy, who had never been good at that sort of thing, started to say something, but it was cut off as a thick steel beam whacked him on top of the head, knocking him out. The metallic mutant gestured and bar floated silently to the floor. He then glared at his henchmen, but all were staring straight forwards, expressions carefully blank.
Satisfied, Magneto turned to Kurt, who was licking his fingers, "Nightcrawler, I want no evidence of any of these weaklings." Kurt nodded, smiling.
Kurt first went to his former teammates, grinning as they shied away from him, all pleading at the same time. Pietro felt his conscience poking him. He knew he should try to do something to stop him. But as he watched Kurt grab the now-tiny Bobby in his eager hand, he decided that it was better to be on the side with the greatest weapons, as unsettling as they may be.
In fact, he thought to himself, it was BEST to be on the winning side. Pietro was a born winner. He was the fastest, the smartest and the strongest. He turned around, watching as Kurt pounced on something small and struggling, finding he was able to watch now, though he felt sight twinges of sickness. After all, guns weren't pretty either, but those that had them won the fight. And the war. Kurt was kinda like a gun in that sense. Used properly, Pietro couldn't lose!
He began to smile, relishing the power he didn't have, lost in fanciful wanderings. Control the weapon, you control the world! His usual smug smile back in place, Pietro watched calmly as Kurt tipped his head back, gulping down whoever had been in his mouth. Pietro saw with surprise that the bonds were all vacant, but wasn't bothered. Not anymore. An effective weapon was one that left no mess.
Pietro let himself grin and walked forwards, putting his hand possessively on the blue shoulder, saying smoothly, "Enjoy yourself?"
The blue tail snapped up suddenly, wrapping firmly around Pietro's slim wrist. At the same time it pulled strongly, Kurt's leg spun out and Pietro found himself on his back, Kurt crouched on top of him. The teleporter was light, he realized in shock. Heavier than him, but still light for his age and height. The teleporter was glaring down at him, as if insulted he had been touched, and the golden eyes burned with both savage hunger-lust and disgust.
His warm breath floated onto Pietro's face and the speed demon felt his heart beat faster as memories floated up, threatening to drown him. His blue eyes grew wide as he realized in shock that the teleporter was planning to kill him as well, like the other weak mutants. Pietro would have felt insulted if not for the terror flooding his veins. He whimpered in shock as Kurt leaned further down, putting them nose-to-nose.
Pietro shut his eyes.
Then, surprising everyone, Kurt suddenly teleported, abandoning his helpless prey.
The soft 'bamf' echoed briefly in the room and the smoke of his departure drifting into nothingness before the true meaning of it sank it. Small metal objects all around the room began to quiver and rattle as Magneto's anger at being tricked and betrayed mounted. He floated into the air, and focused on the steel beam from before. As he focused on it so intently, the chemical bonds within the metal began to react and fragment and break and the once-solid beam melted before their eyes. Furious, Magneto commanded loudly, "FIND HIM!"
"And when we do?" Sabertooth growled.
Magneto, having spent some of his immediate anger, floated back to the floor and swept grandly back to the machine, saying coldly, "Those who disobey me have but one punishment: Death."
As the Acolytes ran out, Pietro finally sat up. He shivered as he put a hand to his forehead, feeling how cold the skin was, shiny with sweat. He then realized coldly what had happened.
The gun had tried to turn on its owner, on its master. But apparently, Kurt didn't have the guts to finish it, so he had run, like a worthless coward. Pietro bristled angrily. Kurt was nothing but a weapon for him and would obey him!
Pietro got up and ran out of the base, passing the Acolytes, running out into the frozen landscape. He'd teach the cruddy furball that NO ONE turns on Quicksilver.
Twenty miles away from the base, Kurt collapsed into the snow, panting. Teleporting, as a rule, was tough work, and doing nearly a dozen 'ports in a row had left him woozy and sick.
But Kurt knew he wasn't done. Yet as he felt the terrified squirms inside him, he couldn't resist rolling to his back and massaging his stomach, moaning in pleasure. Godd*mn, he felt like he would die! Having just one person inside him, moving around, made his senses reel. But having SEVEN?! The elf let out a deep-throated groan as he rolled to his side, trying not to pass out from exhaustion and exhilaration. He could feel them almost individually, trying to escape, bumping into each other, tickling him delightfully.
Kurt rolled to his back again, barely noticing how he was compressing the snow flat, purring satedly as his limbs twitched helplessly. He mumbled a string of slurred German to himself as his tail thrashed in the snow, his toes clenching and unclenching as he allowed himself to indulge in the wonderful, guilty, sinful sensation of having such complete power over others, dominating them in a fashion that couldn't possible be equaled. Kurt's eyes drifted shut as he rubbed firmly at himself, feeling more weak, pitiful struggles ensue. So weak, so fragile…
They fought like animals for their right to live, but Kurt grinned, holding it just out of their reach, taunting them with its closeness. After all, they were only a few inches from the outside world and life. They seemed to know this and fought desperately, though he knew they were just wasting their energy. He licked his lips, their mingled tastes filling his mouth and making him whimper in longing. Why had he gone so fast? He should have taken his time, studied their flavors, savored their futile struggles.
Nightcrawler lay content in the snow, purring loudly to himself as the motions decreased a little bit. He quickly gulped down another mouthful of air and squirmed as the sudden rush of 'fresh' air prompted more fruitless escape attempts. He reached down and lifted his black shirt, rubbing gently at the furry skin, lost deep in the sensations he was getting.
So this was power. Sheer, pure and unstoppable. His breathing grew slower as he lounged, a mighty predator after a successful hunt. And what better way to enjoy his wonderful meal than by drifting off to sleep? He snuggled into the snow, getting comfy as he gulped down another mouthful of air, grinning at the poor little struggles. He smiled widely as he rubbed his stomach, crooning softly to himself, "Wonderful…"
Suddenly Kurt's eyes snapped open.
WHAT THE HELL WAS HE DOING?!
He swiftly rolled over and before the Nightcrawler could tempt him again, 'ported, concentrating on only porting himself. He reappeared a few feet away, screaming in pain as he collapsed. His vision grew red and hazy, but he forced himself to get up and count the small bodies in the snow. Seven…
Kurt then quickly reached deep inside him and grasped at the power fleeing his grasp. But he caught it and a moment later found the seven tortured mutants normal-sized. They were moaning softly, but Kurt didn't notice. That last concentration seemed to drive a spike into his head and he arched his back over, screaming. He hoped that this pain would kill him soon because he just wanted it to stopstopSTOP!
He curled up in the snow, howling his pain to the blue sky before a sharp impact alongside his head snapped what little consciousness he had left and he plunged into blackness.
Scott stood shaking, pain throbbing in his left arm as he glared down at the now unconscious blue mutant. He felt rage riding up inside him, but instead of focusing on trying to exit through his eye sockets, this anger felt like it was trying to rip out of his skin, tearing him apart. He quivered, fists clenched. He barely noticed how his bare toes were aching from both the cold and the fact he had kicked Kurt in the head.
The tall, thin mutant was a mess. His shoes were gone, his clothes in tatters and his left hand was badly burned by hydrochloric acids. But he barely felt his discomfort, so overwhelming was his anger. He lifted a foot, planning on kicking again, but slipped and fell over backwards, landing on Bobby, who groaned in pain. Scott quickly got up, wincing openly.
"Scott! You're bleeding!"
Kitty's panicked statement made Scott look down at his right foot, which was burning so badly, and saw that the sole of his foot had been burned off, blood oozing out. He winced as he sat down, putting it into the air to slow the bleeding, answering with barely suppressed rage, "That tends to happen when your skin has been digested."
Kitty looked ready to throw up, but Jubilee beat her to it, turning away and soiling the snow. Slowly, one by one, they woke up, and except for Scott, were surprised to find themselves unharmed. Without prompting, everyone donated some of their clothes to Scott; some as bandages, others to help warm him. Jean tended to his bleeding foot when suddenly Scott asked, "Why did he do that? Try to kill us?"
"He wasn't going to kill you."
The smooth Cajun voice made them all snap upright, except for Scott who was stuck sitting, to see Gambit nearby, leaning on a tree. They stared and then Jubilee said shakily, "You're one of Magneto's men!"
Remy nodded, and then said quickly, "Oui, but don't get in a fuss. I won't rat on you. Lord knows you need some time to recover after such a journey." He smiled, as if finding what they had been through amusing. Seeing their expressions, he gestured to the unconscious elf, "Bleu had to do the same thing to me once, to keep us from freezing to death." He then repeated softly, "He wasn't going to kill you."
"Then explain THIS!" Scott barked, pointing to his bleeding foot, his burnt hand. "He was going to eat us alive! And he almost did!" He shivered in horror as the memories surged up despite his trying to suppress them.
It had been so hot and humid. He could barely breathe, and the stench of bile and gastric juices wasn't helping. Scott had struggled, clawing at the soft walls to try and hurt the traitor he had once called friend. But it had been like trying to scratch firm rubber. Nothing worked, but he had kept going, scared and terrified and wild with primal fear.
Suddenly, Scott felt something squashed against him and with a leap of his heart realized it was another person. "Who's that?" he asked.
"OHGODOHGOD!"
It was Bobby and Scott felt anger fill him, pushing away the fear.
How dare Kurt. How DARE he!? They were his friends, and yet, in cold blood, he was going to kill them, and to make it worse, was going to enjoy it!
Fury blinded the optical mutant as he began to struggle angrily, screaming curses, intending to go down fighting. Over a course of what felt like years, Scott counted that the other five had been forced to join him and Bobby. It was hot and tight and it was hard to move.
Suddenly, there was a long series of heart-jolting sensations that soon ended, only for a new torture to begin. It got warmer, and Scott, having been forced against one of the walls, began to scream as something began to nip at his shoulder, thick slime burning him.
He struggled to move, but he felt it on his shoes too and knew that they were going to die…
"Then how are you alive?"
Scott's daydream/nightmare was cut short at the Cajun's quiet question. Not really understanding it at first, he barked, "BEcau…se… Um…" His voice dwindled as he understood the question and realized that he had no answer.
"He let you out." Remy stated softly. He then came forwards, saying in a sincere tone, "Trust me, petit, if he had wanted to have some mutant tartare, he would have never left the base."
They all shuddered, and as one, looked at where Kurt lay, curled up in the snow.
Suddenly, Kurt groaned, mumbling softly, "Oh… My head…" He cradled his head, rubbing at the forming bruise on his cheek, as if wondering why it hurt there. But then he bolted upright and scanned around him. He caught sight of the others and began to smile, saying softly, "Thank God… It worked…" But then his expression tightened and he turned around and vomited a decent amount of blood, moaning quietly. He finally cleaned himself up and then looked up at them, saying, "Boy, am I happy to see you!" but then stared in confusion at the bony spike held in front of his face like a sword.
"Spill it." Evan commanded.
Kurt winced, but nodded. "Okay, okay. When I understood what the machine did, I knew that Magneto would use it on you guys no matter what. The only way I could get close to you guys would be if Magneto trusted me. So I broke into a convenience store and took all the antacids I could find. I had planned to 'eat' one of you guys, so that Magneto would lower his guard, then while Todd distracted them, would 'port the rest of you out two at a time. But then Todd got caught."
Here he paused and glared at Remy, who shrugged, saying, "I had to. I knew he was there with you, but if Magneto knew I knew, he'd have killed me."
Kurt then sighed in compliance, and continued, "Well, anyway, I had to improvise after that." He became silent and after a long pause, the teleporter looked sheepishly at Scott, saying softly, "I didn't mean to hurt you, Scott. I really didn't. I hurt you and I'll never forgive myself."
The other X-Men were silent for a long time before Jean murmured softly, "He's telling the truth." Evan grunted and withdrew the spike. Jubilee, Kitty and Rogue huddled together (careful not to touch Rogue's skin, of course), shivering in the cold and Remy came, gently wrapped his trench coat around the three of them. No one made a move to do anything, but glancing at Kurt, they saw his tail twitching.
Finally, he couldn't take it anymore and stood up, saying, "I'm going back. I have unfinished business to take care of."
Remy came over, and grabbed the furry blue tail, not letting go.
Kurt sighed, saying, "You don't have to." But the Cajun just squeezed the tail a little, his meaning plain. Kurt then turned to the others and said, "Stay here. Once they know I'm back at the base, they'll stop searching. Just stay until I come for you, okay?"
They said nothing, and Kurt's shoulders drooped. He then 'ported, taking Remy with him.