Disclaimer: I do not own the X-Men, or any of its original characters. Nor do I have any type of claim to those characters. However, the characters of my creation belong to me, and cannot be used without my permission.
Enter: Magneto
(Part III of Un-Xpected Guests)
By
Moonchampion
The passengers of the plane were crowding at the windows to marvel at the sight outside of the plane. Thousands of feet in the air, miles above the ground, a man levitated outside of the plane. The man wore a red outfit, trimmed in purple. He was also wrapped in a purple cape. The flight attendants tried to calm the passengers and have them sit in their seats, but the passengers were too captivated by the marvel.
The metal of the plane began to shriek again, and the man outside began to move closer to the plane. As the shrieking of the metal grew louder, screams began to erupt from the passengers. The attendants tried to calm the passengers as they rushed to their seats. Some placed their heads in their laps, while others appeared to be praying.
Professor Xavier reached for his temple and winced in pain. Ororo placed her hand on his shoulder. "So many voices," whispered the Professor. The panic of the passengers in such close proximity was overwhelming to the Professor.
"Charles, who is this man?" asked Ororo.
Suddenly, the ceiling of the plane started to rip open and peel away. The air in the cabin began to rush out. Items from all over the plane began to scatter into the air. Many people buried their heads in their laps or covered their faces. Eventually, the debris stopped flying about the cabin and floated to the ground.
"It looks like we're about to find out," replied Logan.
The cabin began to glow with a light blue hue. The hole in the ceiling was the source of the light. Slowly the man, who had been outside the plane, descended into the cabin. His body was surrounded with crackles of blue energy. As his feet touched the floor, it seemed like everyone's heart had stopped.
The passengers of the plane looked at the man in awe. The blue energy surrounding him slowly disappeared. The man started to walk down the aisle towards Professor Xavier. Logan leapt out of his seat and ran towards the mysterious man. Logan leaped into the air to tackle the man, but found himself unable to move in mid-air. The passengers of the plane gasped in awe, as Logan remained suspended in the air unable to move.
"What the…?" began Logan.
"You will release my colleague!" proclaimed Ororo. She was now standing in the aisle. "I do not know who you are, but I will not allow to harm my friend, or anyone else on this plane. Now, release him!" Ororo stood defiantly waiting for the man to make his decision.
"I'm sorry, Miss Munroe, but I believe I would rather have Mr. Logan stick around," he replied. With only the motion of his hand, Logan's body began to fly backwards towards Ororo. Ororo quickly moved out of the path, as Logan's body flew passed her and pasted itself to the wall. Logan grunted, appearing to try and free himself. However, as before he was unable to move.
"I will not allow this to continue any long—," began Ororo. She allowed her left hand to grab her temple, as she winced in pain. "I won't allow you to…." Ororo howled in pain and fell to her knees.
"What are you doing to her?" cried Logan as he flexed his muscles again to free himself. However, he was still unsuccessful.
Ororo's cries of pain disappeared as her head fell to the floor of the plane. Logan looked at her limp body, and allowed his eyes to fall upon her attacker. "Don't worry, Mr. Logan. I assure you that your colleague is still alive. I simply caused her to pass out by slowing iron in her blood headed to her brain," said the man underneath the red helmet trimmed in purple. He continued his walk up the aisle and stepped over Ororo's body. He then gazed at Logan, still trapped against the wall, before turning to his right where he found Charles Xavier sitting in his seat staring at him.
"Good afternoon, Charles," said the man.
"Hello, Erik," responded Charles. "I see that your have gained better control of your powers over the years. However, I must admit that I am disappointed that your PR skills haven't improved as well." The professor sighed, and asked, "What do you want, Magneto?"
"What I want is simply for you to die, Charles," stated Magneto. Professor Xavier's eyes widened as he heard Magneto's wish. "Your hopeless quest to unite mutant and mankind has been nothing more than an annoyance… until now. Your dream, which is beginning to take shape, is interfering with my own plans. Hence, I have decided to eliminate the obstruction by eliminating the source."
"Magneto, wait!" exclaimed Charles. "You can't do this! What about the innocent people on the plane?"
"Don't you understand, Charles?" asked Magneto. "The destruction of this plane will only help prove my point: That Homo-sapiens superior should reign supreme." Magneto sighed as he stared into the eyes of Professor Xavier. "Charles, I once believed as you do. However, history has shown me repeatedly, that given the chance mankind will try to destroy what is different. Look at the Jews, slavery…."
"All of those transgressions were corrected, Erik," protested Xavier. "Mankind has accepted the punishment for those wrongs, and are attempting to atone for those transgressions."
"And yet they always seem to commit such acts everyday. They don't value their own lives, Charles! What makes you think they will care about ours? About yours?" said Magneto. "I'm afraid it's over, Charles. Farewell, my friend."
Magneto stretched his arms wide and began to glow with blue energy. The metal began to shriek once again and screams erupted from the passengers. Professor Xavier clutched his head. The fear of the passengers was overwhelming to him. However, everything would be silent in a few minutes.
Everyone could feel the plane tilt downwards. Directly over the Rocky Mountains, the plane was about to soar into a mountainside. The controls were not responding to the pilot's attempts. Magneto had complete control of plane. In a few minutes it would all be over.
"Come on, Schnell man! Schnell!" exclaimed Nightcrawler from the co-pilot's seat.
Scott Summers piloted the Blackbird at speeds exceeding sound, attempting to reach the plane his teachers were on before it was too late. The Blackbird soared through the clouds, pushing them aside. "We're not going to make it like this," said Cyclops.
"We can't just give up," said Kitty. "Isn't there anything we can do?"
The cabin of the Blackbird fell silent. The teens looked at each other to find hope in no one's eyes. Tears began to form in Kitty's eyes as she realized that no one could think of a plan.
"Oh, great!" exclaimed Evan. "It looks like we've got company."
The other X-Men glanced out the window to find another jet approaching quickly from behind. "That's Principal Darkholme's jet," said Jean.
"We don't have time to deal with them," stated Evan. "We've got to reach that plane before it's too late."
"I've got an idea," said Scott. "Everyone make sure you strap in real tight… and pray." Scott allowed his hands to dance over the controls. He glanced over at Kurt, who stared at him with his mouth wide open.
"Are you crazy?!" exclaimed Kurt. "You're going to get us killed!"
"We don't have a choice. If we don't go for it, then the Professor and the others are as good as dead," explained Cyclops.
"Whoa," said Evan. "Why did you say he's crazy?"
"He's going to take us outside the atmosphere, and drop back down," explained Kurt. "It vill give us the velocity ve need, but ve may break up on re-entry."
"Listen, we need to make a decision now," said Scott. "Trying to meet up with the plane following the normal flight path will take hours. This sub-orbital arc will only take a couple of minutes."
"Assuming ve don't turn into pancakes on the vay down," said Kurt.
"If we break up during re-entry, we'll be dust, Elf. Not pancakes," said Scott. "It's time to put it to a vote, guys. We only do this, if we're all in. So, if anyone's against it, tell me now. Cause if it doesn't work, I doubt you'll get to say 'I told you so.'"
"Oh, now you vant to get a sense of humor," said Kurt.
"I'm in," said Jean. Jean smiled faintly as her eyes met Scott's.
"So am I," said Kitty. "After all, what do we have to lose?"
"Everything," said Evan. "That's why I'm in. Whattaya say, 'Crawler?"
Kurt looked at his friends and sighed. Then, a smile formed on his face. "You guys didn't really think I vould back out did you. After all, 'Trouble' is my middle name."
"You got that right," snapped Kitty.
"All right, here we go," said Scott. He pulled back on the lever and the Blackbird began to climb. The plane started to shake gently, and grew more violent as they ascended. "Jean, do you think you can use your telekinesis to help hold the plane together?"
"I'll try," said Jean. She closed her eyes, and moments later the plane stopped shuddering so violent. Beads of sweat began to poor from Jean's forehead. "How… much… longer?"
"Just a few more seconds," replied Scott. After the seconds past, the Blackbird stopped shuddering completely. "You can stop for now, Jean. I think we're going to need you on re-entry. Are you sure you can handle it?"
Jean nodded and started to relax, now that the pressure was off. Re-entry was going to be a lot more difficult than that. She would need all of her strength to help hold the Blackbird together, and even then there were no guarantees.
Mystique piloted her jet directly on the trail of the X-Men's Blackbird. Her team of young mutants had been outsmarted and outwitted by Xavier's students. Mystique was furious. What could have possibly gone wrong? She glanced to her right to find Quicksilver still pulling duct tape off his suit and out of his hair. Avalanche and the Toad were exhausted, and the Blob was covered in black engine exhaust. The Rogue stared out of the window, obviously disturbed about something.
"Rogue, where were you? You were needed for back-up," said Mystique.
"I—uh, I…," began Rogue.
"Look!" exclaimed Quicksilver.
Everyone aboard turned their attention to what Quicksilver had been pointing at. The Blackbird had begun to ascend higher into the air. "What are they doing?" asked Avalanche.
"They're attempting to travel via a sub-orbital arc," explained Mystique. "Quite ingenious, but very risky."
"Well, what are we going to do, now?" asked the Toad. "We'll never catch up now."
"Wrong. We're going to follow them," said Mystique.
"Are you nuts?!" erupted the Blob.
Mystique turned to face the large teen. Her icy glance made the entire cabin go silent and sent chills down their spines. "Don't ever question me again, Mr. Dukes. Do I make myself clear?"
"Ye—yes ma'am," replied the Blob.
Quicksilver and Mystique pulled back on the levers and followed the climb of the Blackbird. As they rose, the plane began to shudder. As they ascended into space, the jet began to shudder more and more violently. The Rogue held on to her seat tightly, as her eyes fell on the Blackbird in front of them.
"Pull down now!" commanded Mystique. Quicksilver did as he was told, and the plane accelerated to speeds beyond belief. The Blackbird disappeared from view within an instant. The jet continued to shudder, and seemed to be on the brink of ripping itself apart. "Avalanche?"
Avalanche struggled to stand on his feet and placed his hands on the ceiling of the jet. As he released geometric pulse throughout the plane, the shuddering subsided. After a few minutes the velocity of the jet began to slow. The view revealed a range of mountains was below.
"Ah, the Rocky Mountains," said Mystique. "Xavier's pupils are already too late. Look." Everyone looked out the windshield to see a 747 plane headed directly towards a mountainside.
"How did we get here so fast?" asked the Toad.
"Do not concern yourself with how, boy," responded Mystique. "Simply enjoy the fact that you're here to witness the dawn of your ascension. When you will no longer bear the label of 'outcast,' and obtain a title of dominance."
"Uh—right. Of course," said the Toad with confusion.
"You idiot!" erupted Quicksilver. "She's saying that people… humans will have to respect you because you're a mutant! You will have power and control over them!"
"Oh," said the Toad. "I knew that."
"It all begins here," continued Mystique. "Once the plane crashes into the mountain, Xavier's dream of a peaceful co-existence will shatter into pieces along with him."
"What about the other people on the plane?" asked the Rogue, seemingly with stress in her voice.
"It's a small price to pay for that which we so richly deserve," said Mystique. Mystique returned her attention to the plane headed for the mountain. An evil smile began to spread across her face. The war was over, and Charles Xavier and his X-Men had lost.
"Is everyone ready?" asked Scott. He looked at the faces of his friends. In a few moments they would attempt to re-enter the Earth's atmosphere. Chances are that they wouldn't survive. If they did manage to survive, there were still no guarantees that they would be able to save the Professor and the others.
"Are we ready?" said Kurt. "Ve are the X-Men, man! Ve're ready for anything!" The others nodded in agreement. A smile started to spread across their faces. Scott turned his attention back towards the windshield. His hands danced across the controls, then the plane steadily started to shift downwards.
The Blackbird's descent began to accelerate quickly. The jet again began to shudder. Jean started to extend another telekinetic field to hold the plane together. "Ahhh!" cried Jean in pain. The friction was much stronger than before. Still Jean knew she couldn't release the field. If she did, the Blackbird would shatter to pieces.
"I see the plane!" exclaimed Evan. The others (except Jean) gazed out the window. Miles below they saw the plane headed for a mountain side. "Look who else is here!" Evan pointed to the opposite side of the windshield. It was Darkholme's jet.
"How did they get here so fast?" cried Kitty.
"I don't know," said Scott. "Anyway, it's time to slow our descent. Kurt, pull back on the co-pilot controls. With this much speed, it's going to take us both." Both of the teens began to pull, but the Blackbird began to spiral as it continued its descent and continued to accelerate.
"What's going on?" cried Kitty. "Why aren't you guy's pulling up?"
"Ve're trying!" exclaimed Kurt. "The controls aren't responding!"
"The wind resistance is too strong," said Scott. "The flap on the right wing won't budge. We're stuck in a tale spin."
"I can't… hold… it much… longer," Jean stressed.
"I've got an idea," said Evan. He motioned for Kitty to follow him. The two teens stumbled towards the back of the Blackbird. The spiraling and shuddering of the Blackbird was so violent it was hard for them to stand. Finally, Evan motioned for Kitty to stop. "Can you phase me halfway through the wall?"
"Why?" asked Kitty.
"One of my spikes may be able to prop the flap up, so that Scott and Kurt can pull us out," he explained.
"It's too dangerous. If I lose my grip you'll fall," she said.
"It's our only chance, Kitty," responded Evan.
Kitty grabbed Evan's waist tightly. "Go for it!" she exclaimed.
The two X-Men walked towards the wall of the plane. Evan positioned his hand in front of himself. He watched as it passed through the bulkhead of the jet. Then his head followed. After a few seconds, Evan found half of his body outside the Blackbird. The sight of the sky spiraling in circles brought a sense of nausea to his stomach. Evan closed his eyes, and didn't re-open them until they were staring at the wing of the Blackbird. A large spike began to push through Evan's hand. Once he was satisfied with the length, he took the spike into his other hand.
Evan lined up the spike with the wing flap. He began to beat on the flap, but it still wouldn't budge. Then, he got an idea. Evan began to move back into the plane. Once he was entirely inside, he pointed at the floor. Kitty understood, and Evan began to phase through the floor, with only their legs remaining inside the Blackbird. Once he was halfway outside again, Evan refocused on his target. Now, he was focusing on the bottom of the plane. Evan tapped at the flap, but it still wouldn't budge.
Evan sighed in defeat. Then, his gaze wondered towards the mountains below, which were fast approaching. Evan refocused his attention on the flap. With one final attempt, Evan threw the spike at the flap. The spike collided with the flap, which instantly flew upwards. Then, Evan felt himself get pulled back into the jet.
"Yes!" exclaimed Evan. "Two points!"
The Blackbird began to pull out of its spiraling dive. The shuddering of the jet lessened, and Jean fainted as she released her telekinetic field surrounding the Blackbird. Kurt began to pilot the Blackbird back toward the 747 as Scott left his seat to check on Jean. He gently brushed her soaked red hair from her forehead as she awoke.
"Nice going, Jean," whispered Scott. Jean smiled as he helped her back into her seat.
"What do we do now?" asked Kitty, as she took her seat next to Jean. "How do we stop that plane from crashing into that mountain."
Scott stared out the windshield as he took his seat in the pilot's chair. Scott took control of the Blackbird once again and began to approach the 747 from behind. He maneuvered the Blackbird so that it was under the belly of the jumbo jet. "Hang on, guys. Here's where the ride gets bumpy," said Scott.
Both planes were less than a mile away from crashing into the mountainside. Scott lifted the nose of the Blackbird so that it pushed against the belly of the plane. The 747 briefly lifted, but began to push back down. Scott tried again, but the plane continued to push against the Blackbird.
"Kurt. Jean," called Scott. "I want you two to continue to push against the plane. Evan and Kitty, you're with me. We're going aboard the plane to see what's wrong." The three teens moved towards the rear of the Blackbird. Scott tapped a panel that opened a circular exit on the roof of the Blackbird. "Kitty, do you think you can phase all three of us through the floor of the plane?"
"I hope so," she responded. "Hold on tight." The guys wrapped their arms around Kitty. "Guys, I would like to be able to breathe you know." Scott and Evan loosened their grips slightly. All three of them began to work their way through the opening and through the floor of the plane.
As they phased through the floor, the passengers began to point in their direction completely awestruck. Once they had fully materialized they looked towards the front of the plane where they saw Ororo unconscious on the floor, Logan stuck to the wall of the plane, and a new player in the game.
"Who are you?" said Evan.
"Charles, I must admit I am impressed by your students' abilities. I expected Mystique and her students would have been more efficient in dealing with them. Apparently they made a mistake in underestimating them," said Magneto.
"Yeah, well it looks like you made the same mistake, mister," said Scott. As he prepared to fire an optic blast at Magneto, he felt something wrap around his neck and squeeze. Cyclops looked up to find that the Toad hanging threw the opening in the roof of the plane. The Toad's tongue was wrapped tightly around Scott's throat.
"Eew! Gross!" exclaimed Kitty.
"Hang on Scott," said Evan. Evan started to reach for the Toad, but fell back to the floor of the plane in a blur. A series of fists were hitting his face at unimaginable speeds. Quicksilver began to pummel away at Evan as fast as he could. Evan was hardly able to block the punches coming at him.
Kitty began to back away from the scene of action. Then, she felt herself bump into someone. She turned around to find the Rogue there. Rogue started to reach for her face, with her hand ungloved. Kitty phased and Rogue's hand passed right through her. Kitty, still phased, ran right through Rogue. After becoming solid again, Kitty extended her foot and landed a kick into the lower portion of Rogue's back. Rogue stumbled forward and bumped into Quicksilver.
Evan took advantage of the open shot and landed a heavy blow into Quicksilver's head, using a bone spike he created. Then, seeing that Rogue was about to regain her balance, Evan extended a spike that landed in Rogue's stomach. Rogue stumbled backwards, with the air knocked out of her. Evan managed to get to his feet. He turned his attention back to the Toad. Using the same bone spike he used on Rogue, Evan threw the spike in the Toad's direction forcing him to lose his balance. The Toad came crashing down right on top of Quicksilver. Both of the boys were now officially out.
The Toad's grip around Scott's neck was released. Scott fell to his knees clutching his neck for air. When he looked up, he saw Magneto standing directly in front of him. Cyclops was frozen, and had no idea what to do next.
"Hey you!" cried Kitty to Magneto. "Chill out!" Kitty threw a coke can directly at Magneto. Magneto simply raised his hand, and brought the soaring can to a complete halt just in front of his face. Magneto shook his head disapprovingly. Then, he glared at Kitty to find that she had a smile on her face. "Now, Cyclops!"
Magneto looked down to find Cyclops' visor beginning to glow red. An optic blast erupted from the visor and collided with the coke can. The beverage exploded in every direction. Some of the brown liquid flew into the eyes of Magneto. He stumbled back and brought his hands to cover his eyes.
With Magneto distracted, his concentration was broken. Logan's body fell to the ground, and the passengers aboard the plane could feel the plane begin to elevate. Cyclops fired a second blast into the abdomen of Magneto. Magneto stumbled back even further, right into the arms of Logan.
Logan wrapped his arms around the neck of Magneto, attempting to restrain him. Evan and Scott quickly ran forward to help Logan restrain the Master of Magnetism. The group continued to scuffle with each other, completely forgetting the mountain they were fast approaching.
"I have an idea!" cried Kurt.
"Of course, we can use the lift engines to reinforce the elevation of the plane. Good thinking, Kurt," said Jean enthusiastically.
"I really vish you vouldn't do that," said Kurt. "It's kind of creepy."
"Sorry," said Jean.
Jean's hands danced across the control panel to engage the lift engines underneath the Blackbird. Kurt started to pull the nose of the Blackbird up once again so that they could lift the nose of the plane over the mountains. The Blackbird continued to push against the huge plane above. Finally, the plane above began to follow suit. It's nose began to rise, and so did the rest of the plane.
"Uh-oh," said Kurt.
Jean looked out the windshield. They were going to be cutting it very close. The plane appeared to be out of danger, but the Blackbird seemed as if it was still going to hit the tip of the mountain.
"Hang on, Jean," said Kurt. Kurt raised the entire Blackbird level with the Belly of the plane as close as he possibly could. As they approached the mountain it seemed that they would be out of danger.
"Wait a go, Kurt!" said Jean. "You did…"
Jean was interrupted by the loud screech of metal grinding rock. The belly of the Blackbird had scraped the tip of the mountain. Jean's eyes widened as she looked at Kurt, who could only shrug apologetically.
"Oh vell, it could have been worse, right?"
The three X-Men continued to wrestle with Magneto, until he widened the magnetic field around his body to push them away. Cyclops and Spike fell in front of Magneto, while Wolverine was pushed back up against the wall. Wolverine stood to his feet and let out a low growl .
"I have grown tired of this little war game, Xavier," said Magneto. "The next time we meet, I will show neither you or your X-Men any mercy. Now, stand aside."
"You don't really think we're just going to let you walk outta here do ya?" said Wolverine.
"As a matter of fact, I do," said Magneto.
He raised his hand and the door of the plane opened. The pressure in the cabin began to destabilize and the passengers began to panic. Everyone began to buckle their seatbelts, and the X-Men grabbed on to whatever they could. In all the chaos, Quicksilver and the Toad had managed to escape through the roof and back to Darkholme's jet. Logan unleashed his claws and grabbed hold of Ororo, whom was still unconscious. None of the passengers noticed his claws because they were all covering their heads from flying debris.
"Until next time, Charles," said Magneto. Then, he rose elevated himself through the opening in the roof of the plane.
Rogue, who had been left by her teammates was holding on to a seat. Her grip began to slip. As she screamed, Cyclops turned to see her body being sucked out of the door.
"Rogue!" cried Cyclops. Cyclops released his grip and followed Rogue out the door of the airplane.
"Cyclops! What are you doing?" called Evan. It was too late, Cyclops was gone. "Logan! You've got to wake up Auntie 'O! Cyclops just got sucked out of the plane."
Logan began to shake Ororo awake. Her eyes fluttered open, and she shook her head as if trying to shake off a sense of dizziness. "Storm, Cyclops is outside of the plane. You're they only one who can save him. You up for it?" Ororo nodded at Logan. He then released his grip and Ororo disappeared out the door as well.
Cyclops continued to dive downwards into Rogue's direction. She continued to fall to the ground waving her arms helplessly. Cyclops extended his hand in her direction. "Grab it!" he called to her. Seeing no other option, Rogue took his hand.
"Ah thought you couldn't fly!" shouted Rogue.
"I can't!" he responded.
"What?!"
Suddenly, the two teens felt their descent began to slow. They looked up to see that Storm had created a pocket of wind to catch them and carry them back towards her. Rogue held on tightly to Scott. The group continued to ascend until they reached the Blackbird. The doorway opened, and Storm used her wind pocket to deposit Rogue and Cyclops aboard the Blackbird.
"Thanks, Storm," said Cyclops.
Storm continued her ascent, where she used a gust of wind to shut the door of the plane. A few moments later, Shadowcat and Spyke reappeared through the opening in the ceiling of the Blackbird. Storm entered through the same door that Cyclops and Rogue had. The door shut behind her.
"The plane is going to land in Denver, and transfer the passengers to another connecting flight," reported Jean.
"Excellent," said Storm. "We'll collect Logan and the Professor once they land. As for you…."
Rogue began to cower into a corner of the Blackbird. The eyes of the other X-Men were upon her. She was scared, she'd been captured by the enemy and deserted by her friends. "We will be willing to take you back to Bayville if you like," offered Storm. Rogue remained silent until the Blackbird landed.
The Professor and Logan strolled through the airport searching for Storm and the others. Eventually, they found them standing together in front of the airport restaurant in their civilian clothes. All the students were present and accounted for. Kurt was sporting his image inducer, and the Rogue was present also. However, she seemed uncomfortable.
"So Professor, how do you think we faired against our first major villain?" asked Scott.
"The team did quite well. You on the other hand took a risk that could have cost you your life. Perhaps I should re-evaluate my decision on leaving you in charge," stated the Professor.
"Come on, Professor. Rogue was in trouble. Her own crew abandoned her," replied Scott.
"That doesn't change the fact that you endangered your life, and the life of your friends as well. I'm afraid I will have to punish you for your conduct, Scott," said the Professor.
"Vell, you'll have to punish us all, Professor," said Kurt.
"Yeah!" agreed Kitty.
"If Scott should be punished, then we all should," said Jean.
"That's right," added Evan. "Everything we did, we did as a team."
Logan sighed, "I told ya to save the teamwork unit for the last semester."
"Yeah, if you're going to punish Scott for jumping out a plane, you should punish us for trashing the Danger Room, and taking the Blackbird into spa—," began Kurt. However, Kitty and Evan clapped her hands over his mouth.
"Well, it sounds like you all had quite an adventure," said Ororo.
"It was worth it," said Jean. "We saved you guys and, now the Rogue…."
"Is gone!" finished Logan. Everyone turned to find that she had disappeared.
"Well, Summers," began Evan, "looks like you went skydiving for nothing."
"What do we do now?" sighed Scott.
"We won't give up on the Rogue, Scott. I believe the events of today will lead her in the right direction. As for your punishment…," started the Professor. "You will all be responsible for cleaning up the mansion and repairing the Blackbird." Sighs and groans of disapproval began to erupt from the teens. "After you get back from LA"
Their faces began to glow as they all cheered. "Looks like they've got you wrapped around their pinkies, Chuck," stated Logan.
"Perhaps, but they deserve a break after what they've been through," replied the Professor. "After all, they are only children."