The Evolution Project Chapter 22: Drastic Measures Part 3, a x-men fanfic

MarvelMaster616 –

It was important for me to capture that moment between Scott, Jean, Rogue, and Warren in the most tasteful way that I could, and I am glad that I achieved that. And of course, Cassandra and Essex wouldn't mind in the least. If anything, they got off on seeing their four "children" doing such passionate acts. This is the chapter where the battle ensues. Hopefully, it satisfies you!

Chapter 22: Drastic Measures Part 3

Krakoa

Jean Grey's voice echoed through the minds of the X-men, Magneto, and the Maximoff siblings. She stood there, laughing coldly as Rogue, Archangel, and Cyclops walked closer to her side.

"It all starts here," said Jean, still smiling darkly. "You all will witness En Sabah Nur's plans as we govern the world."

Through a wave of pain, Alex Summers kept his eyes trained on his younger brother. Seeing Scott standing there so coldly was like a punch to the gut.

"No!" Alex grunted, trying to rise up to his feet. "No, you won't do this!"

Jean and Scott laughed together darkly, grasping hands with one another. Scott walked over slowly as Apocalypse came from the abys. His towering form seemed to grow taller as he kept his eyes plastered on Charles Xavier.

"You four have done well," Apocalypse said to his horsemen. "Now that we have our guests here, we will spread our message to the world. Everyone will know who will govern the world, and lead everyone to freedom."

Jean nodded, her eyes flashing orange as she kept her eyes on Charles'. Telekinetically, she lifted him, forcefully making him walk towards her.

"CHARLES!" shouted Alex, struggling to rise to his feet. But he was knocked off his knees by Jean's telekinetic thrust.

"You won't be going anywhere," Jean said coldly. "You will sit back, and watch as we spread our message to the world."

"H – How?" Charles asked.

"First of all, Charles," whispered Apocalypse, telekinetically pulling the portable Cerebro helmet off Charles' head. "You do not need a machine. You have got me, and Ms. Grey here. You will tell the world the truth."

Erik was boiling with rage as he watched Apocalypse and Jean keep Charles in a tight vice. Scott and Warren stepped around with Rogue, all wearing cold smiles as they acted as guards around Apocalypse. As Erik looked at Scott, he glared angrily at the seventeen-year-old boy.

'I don't give a damn what Alexander insisted upon,' thought Erik. 'My child is in danger. We are at war with these individuals. I won't just sit back, and allow this to go further!'

Alex watched from the corner of his eye as Magneto attempted lifting pieces of metal up from the ground. Of course, they knew that the Earth was made of metallic material. As Alex watched, he noticed how Erik was staring Scott down.

"Erik, don't!" snapped Alex.

"Alexander, they're going to . . ." Erik began to say.

"I DON'T CARE!" shouted Alex. "TOUCH MY BROTHER; YOU'RE FUCKING DEAD!" He glared at Erik angrily, clenching his hands into fists.

"I don't have a brother," said Scott. "My brother is dead. And Mr. Lehnsherr, you can try all you might. But you won't last long. You'd be wise not to try and fight me."

Erik glowered at Scott loathingly. "Alexander, he's not capable of being reasoned to. You might believe he's the same as you remember, but I know better!"

"I can get through to him!" shouted Alex.

"Alex, now's time to think realistically!" yelled Logan. "Mind control or not, this is what he's doing! He will kill you first chance he gets!"

"Logan . . ." Alex started to say, but then, they all felt their mouths being clamped shut telekinetically.

'Shut up,' commanded Jean, her eyes glowing brightly.

Alex attempted at moving his jaw, but it was clamped so tightly shut that he couldn't speak. He could only groan as he watched Jean and Apocalypse use Charles. Watching the occurrence unfold before his eyes, Alex felt his eyes fill up with tears. For the past few years, Charles had become the father to him that he'd lost. Now, watching Charles being controlled, it made Alex feel a little more useless, especially as Scott walked closer towards him. Alex tried to speak to Scott, silently with his eyes. But seeing Scott so callously reacting towards it hurt even worse.

'Come on, Scott . . . you've – you've got to stop this,' thought Alex as he watched Apocalypse and Jean go into Charles' mind so their message could be amplified.

"You will repeat after us, Charles," Apocalypse whispered. "Attention, all inhabitants of the Earth."

"Attention, all inhabitants of the Earth," Charles whispered shakily, closing his eyes.

"I have returned."

"You all have lost your way, but I am here to guide you to freedom."

"You do not have the power to govern the world."

"Only I have the power to govern the world."

Listening to Apocalypse's speech, everyone felt shivers running down their spines. However, they couldn't say anything at all due to Jean's telekinetic grasp on their jaws like a vice. Alex grunted. None of them could move an inch due to Jean and Apocalypse keeping them where they knelt. As Alex kept his gaze trained on Scott's face, he felt a rush of determination go through him. But he also knew that Magneto was having thoughts of his own.

Though none of them could move. All they could do was sit there and listen.

"Now, I want the homo superior to know," Apocalypse continued to say.

"Now, I want the homo superior to know," Charles repeated.

"If you wish to follow us, Krakoa will be yours," Apocalypse whispered.

"If you wish to follow us, Krakoa will be yours," whispered Charles.

"But, to the homo sapiens . . . I want you to know this. Those with the greatest power, this Earth will be theirs."

"But to the homo sapiens . . . I want you to know this. Those with the greatest power . . . protect those without," Charles said strongly. "That's my message to the world."

Apocalypse and Jean just stared at Xavier in contempt. Jean's eyes remained cold as they glowed intensely with pure fire.

"Wrong choice of words," Jean growled. Turning around to face Cassandra and Essex, she said, "What do you want us to do next?"

"Come forward, our children," said Essex.

Scott, Jean, Warren, and Rogue turned to face their "parents," walking closer.

"Here's your next assignment," Essex said. "You will pay a visit to Senator Edward Kelly. He's announced that he's running for president. Let him know that he won't govern the United States, because he desires to put us in cages. Let him know that his ways are unacceptable."

'Oh, shit,' thought Alex, breathing heavily. 'This can't go further.'

As Alex watched the Four Horsemen nodding, he saw from the corner of his eye as Wanda tapped into her powers. Her hands were glowing crimson as her eyes glowed fiercely. Alex knew what she was thinking. Wanda was getting more and more pissed as she watched everything transpire before her eyes. It was all too much. Her sister was in the clutches of these monsters, and she would do whatever she deemed necessary to get Lorna back.

As Alex continued trying to formulate a plan in his mind, Wanda's fists glowed even brighter as a burst of red energy went past her fingertips. It pulsed loudly from her as her eyes continued to glow scarlet. It was enough to knock Cassandra, Essex, Scott, Jean, Rogue, Warren, and Apocalypse off their feet as the ground shook under their feet. It bought them enough time to rise from the ground.

"Thanks, Wanda," said Alex, panting. He set his eyes on Scott, who was rising to his feet slowly. Xavier slowly crawled over to the Cerebro helmet. At this point, Alex knew they were depending on Xavier finding a way to break through to Scott, Jean, Warren, and Rogue. Although Magneto, Wanda, and Pietro thought that the Four Horsemen couldn't be saved, Alex chose to think otherwise.

"Alex, what do you want us to do?" asked Bobby as he watched Warren take off into the air.

"Whatever it takes," said Alex sternly.

"What if they try killing us?" asked Peter.

Alex swallowed. He knew there was a chance that Jean, Scott, Warren, and Rogue would use excessive force, since they were underneath someone else's control. But as Alex looked at Scott, he couldn't help but feel an urgency to try and save his brother. However, he had no time to contemplate that possibility as Rogue charged at him full-force. Instantly, he hit her with a blast of energy from his hands, sending her flying backwards.

"Peter, just remember that this isn't really them," said Alex. "They wouldn't do this if it weren't for Cassandra and Apocalypse mind-fucking them."

Peter nodded as Storm went into the air to face off against Archangel. Before Alex could do much else, he felt Scott grabbing him from behind in a chokehold.

"Give up," growled Scott.

"No!" gasped Alex, managing to get out of Scott's chokehold and elbowing him in the gut, before tackling him down.

"There's no stopping it!" Scott said angrily. "You will pay witness to what we will do for the world. We're doing all mutants a favor."

"No, you're not!" yelled Alex, punching Scott across the face. "Your mind is being fucked with! You've got to stop!" Before he could aim another punch, he was grabbed in a telekinetic grasp as Jean Grey came into view.

"Don't touch him!" she snarled. "You want him? You go through me!"

Jean knelt by Scott's side, pulling him to his feet. "Are you alright, lover?"

"I am," Scott said, aiming a blast of energy at Alex and pushing him backwards. Alex felt his back slam into the ground as he gasped painfully.

"Scott, stop it already! I'm your Goddamn brother!" shouted Alex.

"I don't have a brother! MY BROTHER IS DEAD!" shouted Scott. However, as Alex looked into his brother's eyes, he saw a look of pain and surprisingly enough, sadness, flash across his features. But as quickly as the sadness and hurt came to Scott's eyes, it went away. Clearly, Cassandra was manipulating Scott's pain and turning it into anger.

"No, Scott. I'm here; it's me, Alex," said Alex. "Listen to me, Scott. Cassandra and Essex do not care about you. They are just using you."

"At least they treat me better than how my parents did!" snarled Jean, her eyes glowing more intensely. "My parents hated me! They killed my sister! At least Father and Mother gave us a real home, when the rest of the world abandoned us!"

"Quit it, Jean!" Alex said. "Wake up, already! Come into the light!"

"NO!" Jean shouted, her fists having flames form around them as she pushed Alex back with her telekinesis. "You don't understand. We wouldn't expect you to. But the homo sapiens will just let you down. You cannot live amongst them in peace! If you believe that, then you are a special kind of idiot!"

Alex rose to his feet once more, stubbornly as he tried to talk down Scott. However, before he could begin trying to reason with his brother again, he saw pieces of metal flying towards Scott and Jean. But Jean made the metal shards disintegrate before her very eyes. Alex turned to face Magneto angrily, glowering at him.

"DAMMIT MAGNETO!" shouted Alex. "I TOLD YOU TO LET ME HANDLE MY BROTHER!"

"You're not succeeding with that," said Magneto. "Face it, Alexander: he's too far gone. He cannot be saved. That means, he must be dealt with."

"Not like this," said Alex. "There's still hope, Erik. Think about Lorna. Think about what she would want. She wouldn't want you doing this. This was the very reason why she ran away from you. It's because you were becoming a monster. She was ashamed of you."

Erik glared at Alex coldly as Scott fired a blast of energy towards them. Alex closed his eyes as he dodged Scott's attack.

"Alexander," Erik said coldly. "We always want to believe that those we care about are something that they are not. When we realize they cannot be saved, it's often too late. It's time you realize you need to make a choice here."

Alex panted as he said, "Erik, don't. Please, don't say that."

"It's reality, Alexander. Quit it with the idealism, and grasp that your brother cannot be freed. It's apparent which side he's on. He chose his side."

"Unknowingly," Alex insisted.

"Stop making excuses for him!" shouted Erik.

"Quit with the psychobabble!" shouted Scott, breaking up Erik and Alex's argument. "What makes you think I should believe a word of what you are saying?"

"Because Apocalypse, Essex, and Cassandra are using you guys. They're corrupting you to think how they want. You are just pawns to them. They don't love you. As soon as they're done, they'll just abandon you once you no longer serve a purpose to them. You know the truth, Scott," Alex said breathlessly.

"We know the truth," said Jean. "Apocalypse, Mother, and Father all showed us how powerful it can be! Why don't we show you further?"

"Say what you will, Jean. I know about what happened with your parents. But that doesn't mean you have to hate the whole world for what your parents did to your sister," said Alex. "And Scott, I know you feel the world let you down. But I won't let you down again. I am not leaving you behind!"

"Why should I believe you?" Scott asked, his voice becoming slightly calmer. Alex could see once more a look of hurt flashing in Scott's eyes, as though he were getting through to him.

"Because you know I would tell you the truth," said Alex. "I'm your brother; your family. I love you."

The words "I love you" seemed to cause Scott to begin losing his composure slightly. The hurt was becoming more apparent in his eyes as he looked at Alex longer.

Why did he feel this way? Was this really the truth? Scott felt the confusion rushing through him, and as he looked at Jean, he could tell that she was looking just as confused as he was feeling.

'No . . . No, it's not possible. My brother's dead. That's what the doctors told me. Father and Mother told me that . . .' thought Scott. But the words "I love you" echoed in Scott's ear. Those were words he never once heard Essex or Cassandra tell him. In all the years he'd been in their care, he never once heard them say "I love you."

"Scott, look at me," Alex said. "I'm telling you the truth! I am not going to abandon you, ever!"

"Shut . . . shut up!" shouted Scott, closing his eyes angrily as tears began filling them to the brim.

"Stop it!" shouted Jean, her eyes looking as though they were filling up with tears as well. Like Scott, she was surprised to hear those words, "I love you." Somehow, deep down, Scott and Jean knew the truth regarding Cassandra and Essex. Alex was getting through to them both.

"Did Essex and Cassandra ever tell you that they love you?" asked Alex.

"Stop!" shouted Scott, tears flowing down his face.

"What parent does that?" asked Alex. "What family member doesn't say that they love you? Tell me, do they really give a shit about you?"

"SHUT UP!" screamed Jean, a sob escaping past her lips.

"You know the truth. They aren't your family. They may have taken you in, but they couldn't give a damn about you at the end of the day. They only care about their mission," said Alex.

'You know that's not true,' Cassandra told Scott and Jean telepathically. 'My children, you two are doing more for the world than my pathetic cousin ever managed to. You are making Father and I proud. We are your family. We are giving you the life that you deserve.'

'Why am I so confused?' thought Jean, staring up towards the sky. Her eyes filled with more tears as Logan engaged in a fight with Rogue miles away, with Peter's help. Ororo was fighting Warren, who was trying to hit her with shards of metal from his wings. But the longer Logan and Ororo fought with Warren and Rogue, the more drained the two mutants seemed to become.

"C'mon, Skunkhead," Logan snarled, wrestling Rogue to the ground. "They're fucking using you and controlling you! They couldn't give two shits about you!"

"Ah don't believe you!" shouted Rogue, punching Logan in the gut as she prepared to drain him of his energy. "Mah dad used meh as his fucking whore! Mother and Father were the first ones to take care of meh when mah father saw meh as nothing more than a playthang!"

"They see you the same way, kid," Logan snapped. "They may not be raping you like yer dad did, but they're manipulating you to think how they do!"

"They did more for meh than anyone has ever tried to!" shouted Rogue. "Now, Ah can revel in my powers, and not be ashamed or be forced to live among the weak!"

"They're both full of bullshit!" shouted Logan, getting Rogue into a chokehold as Storm passed through the skies, chasing Archangel.

"Listen to me, Warren!" yelled Storm, the wind whipping around her face. "I know about what your father did to you! I also know he tried making a cure! But this isn't the way to handle things!"

"Shut up!" shouted Warren. "Why do you care? I don't know you!"

"I don't know you, either. But I do know that you are hurting, and that Cassandra and Essex are taking advantage of the pain that you feel so they can make you think like they do. I know that you want to avenge those who hurt you. But you are choosing the wrong side to be on!" Ororo shouted.

"How do you know it's the wrong side?" asked Warren. "Give me one good reason why I should trust you!"

Ororo swallowed. Warren had a point. He didn't have a reason to trust any of them. For years, Cassandra and Essex had earned Warren's trust and love. If only Ororo could get him to see that once his "mission" for Cassandra and Essex was over, they were going to toss him out.

"I know you do not trust me," Ororo said. "But, you have to know the truth, Warren. Cassandra and Essex do not care about what happens to you. Tell me this: what parents send their children out to do something so destructive? What parents manipulate their children this way, by controlling their minds? What they've done to you, and Jean, and Scott, and Rogue, that's not parental love! They're going to drag you down, and they are going to toss you aside once they achieve what they want!"

"SHUT UP!" shouted Warren angrily, tossing more metal wing fragments at her.

"Since you won't listen to reason, Warren . . . I'm sorry. Just know I take no pleasure in doing this," Orro said regretfully. She raised her arms above her head, and she darkened the clouds around them. The clouds rumbled loudly as rain began to fall, thunder booming in the atmosphere as lightning crackled. The lightning came down, and it hit Warren square in the chest, sending him crashing down to the ground. Ororo landed, her blue eyes staying bright white.

"I know you don't believe me now, Warren. But the reason why we are here is for you," said Ororo strongly. "We do not want to see the four of you get hurt by those whom you've grown to trust all these years."

Warren groaned as he tried rising to his feet, but Ororo just made the winds around her stronger as she kept him where he was. She nodded for Colossus to come forth and restrain Warren. Peter went into his metal form and kept Warren pinned down to the ground.

"I'm sorry," said Ororo. "I'm sorry for all that's ever happened to you. I wish that I can change it, and that things were different. But we aren't letting the four of you destroy the world."

Warren glared at Ororo in anger as Logan kept fighting Rogue. Unbeknownst to them all, Xavier was close to reaching for the Cerebro helmet. Xavier grabbed it and placed it on his head. As he entered the minds of Rogue, Jean, Warren, and Scott, he could see all the painful memories that the four had.

He could see Scott in an orphanage, isolated and being treated terribly. He saw images of Jean being abused by her alcoholic parents. He could see Rogue suffering through countless rapes at the hands of her father. He also saw Warren running away from home and self-harming, when Cassandra arrived to recruit him to her and Essex's cause.

The professor closed his eyes. He felt every ounce of pain that the four young mutants felt. It was unimaginable. But he could also see why these four mutants chose to remain loyal to Cassandra and Essex. Cassandra and Essex have given their four "children" no reason to doubt them. Why wouldn't Warren, Scott, Jean, and Rogue have unbreakable trust in them?

But the professor also knew that once he cleared their minds of Apocalypse and Cassandra's mind control, that it was just going to break their hearts into pieces. He knew that the four of them were going to be in a world of hurt . . . far more hurt than they'd probably ever experienced. After years of gaining trust in Cassandra and Essex, they were going to have that trust crushed for them.

'They're never going to forgive Cassandra and Essex for what they'd done,' thought Charles. 'But they must know the truth. I cannot live with myself if I allow them to continue being blinded by false truths.'

Charles fully entered the minds of Scott, Jean, Warren, and Rogue. Upon breaking through the first set of barriers, he heard their loud, anguished cries.

Scott felt a searing pain in his head as he fell down to his knees, Jean falling beside him. They both let out loud cries of anguish and pain as they clutched their heads very tightly, shaking their heads. They saw images playing before their eyes. Scott could see images of himself in the X-Mansion, kidnapping Rahne. He saw Alex standing before him, looking shocked and upset. He could hear Alex's words echoing in his ears.

"Scottie, it's me! It's Alex, your brother."

Those words drowned out any other sound in his ears as he continued to yell in anguish. He shook his head.

'No . . . No . . . No this can't be true!' thought Scott. 'Mother and Father aren't lying to me! They can't be . . . why . . . why would they . . .?'

There was so much confusion going through the minds of Warren, Jean, Rogue, and Scott. For Warren, he saw what he'd done to his father. His eyes flooded with tears as he remembered all he'd done. He couldn't believe it. But as the memories came back at him all at once, it affirmed to him how real it all was.

"No . . . No!" gasped Rogue from where she was knelt on the ground, with Logan and Bobby hovering over her.

Scott was the first one to come back to reality. As he looked at Alex, his eyes filled up with hot tears. But he felt a stabbing feeling in his chest as he looked at Essex and Cassandra, who stood there in surprise.

No longer did Essex and Cassandra have control over their "children." Losing control over them was one of those things that they never accounted for. But as they looked in the eyes of Scott, Jean, Warren, and Rogue, they saw nothing but anger and pain staring back at them.

"Why?" Scott asked tearfully, walking past his older brother. "Why did you . . .?"

"We were just . . ." Cassandra started to say, her skin growing white.

"No," Scott choked out. "You – You told me that my brother was dead, and you used me for my – my powers!"

"You – You made me hurt my father," Warren whispered.

Jean and Rogue were both starting to cry even harder. "Why did you lie?" Jean asked.

"How could you do that do us?" Rogue asked, her voice trembling.

Cassandra and Essex didn't seem to know what to say. They'd lost all control over their "children." Now that their children have regained their memories, there was no possible way they'd continue serving Apocalypse. Apocalypse seemed to know this, too, because as he looked upon who used to be his "horsemen," he shook his head.

"Useless," he said coldly. Turning Essex and Cassandra, he said, "You said that you had utter control over the four of them. You said that they would remain loyal."

"This is what happens when you control someone's mind without their consent," said Alex. "Don't act surprised! You took all four of them, you suppressed their memories, and you pushed out all that pain and anger they all felt! Where did you think it was going to go?"

Scott's face went from sadness to pure rage as he glowered at Essex. "What else have you lied to us about?" he asked angrily.

Essex looked at Scott with a bitter smile on his face. "I surmise it's too late to hide much from you. So, I guess I'll say it, Scott. I killed your parents."

"WHAT?" shouted Scott and Alex at the same time, in a mixture of grief and anger.

"I selected you first, Scott, because I knew you were the one with the most potential," Essex said softly. "I knew that you would be the most dependable one of them all. And I am glad that I'd been proven correct. You truly have heart, Scott. And ironically, over these years, Cassandra and I haven't accounted for the bond that we would form with the four of you whilst we worked with you. Now, we know, Scott, how your parents must've felt, when they looked at you in pride . . . with love."

"No . . . No don't you ever say that to him!" yelled Jean, her eyes filling with more tears as they spilled over onto her cheeks.

"You're so full of shit!" spat Alex.

"Say what you will, Alexander. But while you were believing in idealism, I was raising your brother to see the truth. Only the strong can survive," Cassandra said. "Good luck surviving in this world. You won't last long."

"We'll see about that," Warren whispered strongly, glaring at them.

Rogue narrowed her eyes as she felt her rage course through her. Scott tapped into his powers as he glowered at Apocalypse in pure contempt. However, before he could fire an optic blast beam, Apocalypse put a telekinetic shield around his body to block Scott's powers. Apocalypse held his hand out, and instantly, all the X-men, as well as Scott, Jean, Rogue, and Warren all felt as though the ground were sinking beneath their feet. It felt like quicksand as they sunk in even deeper.

"There's no stopping evolution," Apocalypse whispered. "I will make the world evolve, with or without you. Ms. Dane, Mr. McCoy, and Ms. Sinclair are realizing that now as they undergo their own cosmetic changes."

"FUCK!" shouted Logan.

"LET LORNA GO RIGHT NOW!" yelled Alex angrily. "LET HER GO! SHE'S GOT NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS!"

"Silence!" said Apocalypse. "Evolution is coming, everyone. Let's see if you survive long enough to see it."

"What do you mea –?" Kitty was cut off by choking noises as Apocalypse began telekinetically making her suffocate.

"The longer you resist, the worse it will get," Apocalypse whispered.

"Fine then!" cried Bobby. "We won't resist! Just stop!"

Kitty let out loud choking noises as she began to feel air being let back into her. However, upon Kitty being released, it seemed to make Jean want to fight back harder. Her eyes were glowing even brighter as she let out a loud yell.

"ARRRRRGH!" she shouted, managing to break free by making the ground surrounding her disintegrate. She made her way back up to her feet as her body surrounded with bright, orange flames. As she walked closer to Apocalypse, the flames warped around her even more as she went deeply into his mind. With that, she went fully into her powers as she let out another loud scream. Fire formed fully around her in the shape of bird wings as she began fighting Apocalypse mentally.

"NOOOOOO!" Apocalypse shouted. His skin started to peel back as it revealed sandy, old bones and rotting flesh. As Jean tore him apart piece by piece, the flames around her grew stronger as the others rose to their feet. Scott tapped into his optic blast and he fired it at Sinister, hitting him square in the chest. However, as this happened, the most astonishing thing happened.

The minute his optic blast hit Sinister's body, a silvery fluid flowed out. Based on the looks of it, the others could only assume that it was blood.

"Holy shit," whispered Rogue.

"You now see why . . . I selected you, Scott," Sinister whispered with a bitter smile. "You see . . . the Summers family. You're special . . . your powers are . . . more sophisticated than most. I've found . . . they're the only ones that can do this."

"That's why you've lied to me all this time," whispered Scott angrily, stalking forward. "You wanted me under control, because you knew I could do this."

As he said that, he fired another optic blast at Sinister's body, continuing to fire as he noticed Sinister's body beginning to break apart.

"NOOOOO!" screamed Cassandra. "My love . . . no . . . no don't do this!"

"Too late," Scott spat, continuing to hit Sinister with more of his optic blast beam until his body was broken into hundreds of pieces on the ground. Turning to Cassandra, he nodded for Rogue to step forward.

"Rogue, do your thing," he said, feeling his head aching. The adrenaline rush he'd felt during the whole ordeal was beginning to drain from his body, especially as Jean finished Apocalypse off completely.

Rogue nodded, running in and grabbing at Cassandra's face, clawing at her eyes as she began to absorb Cassandra's life force. She continued to hold on, even as Cassandra choked for air.

"R – Rogue!" Cassandra gasped.

Rogue ignored Cassandra, gasping as she continued absorbing her energy. It didn't take long for Cassandra's body to fall to the ground, lifeless. Rogue could feel her nose bleeding as she stumbled down to her knees, gasping. Logan knelt next to her, looking at her worriedly.

"We – We've gotta find Lorna, Hank, and Rahne," said Alex.

"I – I think I know where they are," said Jean, leading everyone towards the main lab on the island. As they followed her, Alex could feel his heart beating hard in his chest. All that transpired was almost unbelievable, but as he looked at Scott, he knew that this really happened. However, as he looked closer at Scott, Alex could see that Scott was growing significantly paler, and he was swaying on his feet. Clearly, all that happened was a shock for him, as well as the others.

Upon their arrival to the lab, Jean telekinetically released the pods and forced them open. As soon as Alex saw Lorna, he raced towards her, along with Erik, Wanda, and Pietro.

He saw that she changed significantly. Her hair was now florescent green. She was moaning painfully as Alex pulled her out of the pod, cradling her gently in his arms.

"L – Lorna?" he whispered, brushing back some of her wet hair.

"Hnnnnn . . . Alex," moaned Lorna as Logan and Bobby rushed to help Hank and Rahne out of their pods. Hank was now covered in blue fur, and he had an ape-like appearance and claws. Rahne was covered in reddish-colored fur, and her eyes were yellow. She had a full-set of wolf-like claws, and a tail to match. But what was more startling was her face, which looked half-wolf-half-human.

"Oh, God, Lorna," whispered Wanda, shaking her head in shock. However, Alex was distracted from Lorna when he saw Scott, Jean, Rogue, and Warren all looking as though they were about to be sick.

Their bodies were swaying backward and forward as their skin grew so pale, it appeared almost translucent. Scott looked almost nauseated, and his face had a slight green tint to it. Alex carefully placed Lorna into Pietro's arms as he walked over towards his brother, who didn't look so good at all. He took notice to Jean and Rogue fainting on the ground as Warren sank to a sitting position in the grass.

"Scott," whispered Alex.

"I . . . I don't feel so . . . so good," Scott whispered, his voice sounding almost slurred as his knees grew weak underneath him. The next thing he became aware of was his world going black as he felt Alex catching him against his chest. He heard Alex saying, "Scott," before he fell into pure unconsciousness.