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Inside the Blackbird, en route to Newark...
Wolverine sat in the copilot seat, a scowl etched upon his face. Across from him, Nightcrawler piloted the jet. Throughout the short trip, Nightcrawler had been uncharacteristically silent, only speaking when necessary. "Ah, ve're almost there, Logan."
"Good," replied Wolverine in his usual gruff tone. He sniffed the air, audibly. "Any word from Chuck, 'Ro?"
"No," said Storm as she entered the cockpit area. "We have not heard one word from him since we left the mansion."
Wolverine growled. "I don't like this..."
"Nor I. Xavier said he'd contact us once we were airborne. This seems quite unlike him..."
"What've you told the kids?"
Storm sighed. "Nothing, yet. I've no solid information to give them, and the information we do have--"
"Would only scare them," finished Wolverine. "Still, we ought to tell them something before--"
"Not to interrupt," Nightcrawler timidly cut it, "but ve've reached ze coordinates. And I think I've spotted Rogue."
Wolverine looked out the windshield. On the ground below them, a dark figure stood next to familiar red convertible. "That's her all right..."
"I shall prepare the others." With that, Storm walked back to the main portion of the plane.
Concentrating on flying, Nightcrawler didn't notice her leave. "Vhere do you think I should park, Herr Logan?"
Wolverine took a long look around. "Circle round and land in that green strip in front of those trees." With a nod, Nightcrawler complied. "And do it gently," added Wolverine.
A moment later, a dull thud ran through the Blackbird. Slightly shaken, Wolverine got out of his seat. "Close enough. Now open the hatch and let's get out of here."
A moment later, Wolverine and Storm strode purposefully out of the Blackbird, followed closely by Nightcrawler, Shadowcat, Spyke, and Jean. Still not sure what was going on, the younger X-Men were full of apprehension. Rogue, now in full battle costume, struggled to stay calm as she watched them approach.
"Okay, Rogue," began Wolverine in his usual blunt fashion. "What's the story down here? Where's Cyke?"
Rogue looked nervously at the older X-Man. "Ya mean the Professah hasn't told ya?"
"I'm afraid not," answered Storm. "We haven't heard anything from Xavier since we left the mansion."
"Yeah," added Jean. "Last we heard, you and Scott were spending the night in Newark. We were expecting the two of you back tonight. What happened?"
"Ya haven't heard anything?" Rogue took a deep breath while she considered her words. And fought off another panic attack. When she spoke again, it was in a hushed tone. "Scott and Ah were sent to Newark to recruit Erin Valchek. She was supposed ta be some young kid who was just discovering her powers..."
Rogue took another moment to compose herself. "She wasn't. Erin knew about her powers. Her friends knew about her powers..." Rogue shook her head, a hint of desperation seeping into her voice. "And her friends have powers. This whole thing was a set up. They lured us here, then ambushed us. And they captured Scott..."
"Oh God..." A stunned gasp escaped Jean. The other students remained silent, their eyes wide in shock.
"How'd they get 'em? And how'd you get away?" Wolverine tried to keep his question from sounding accusatory, and wasn't entirely successful.
"Ah don't know," replied Rogue replied, shakily. "Ah got caught by surprise. One moment Scott was talking ta Alec, the next we were walkin' out the door, and then the mutants jumped us. The next time Ah saw Scott, he was surrounded..." Rogue's voice faltered. "He... He told me ta run. Ah did..."
Wolverine shook his head, slowly. "So Scotty decided to take the fall... Why does that not surprise me..."
"If he had not yet been captured when you left," Storm prompted, "then isn't it possible that he did, in fact, escape?"
Rogue shook her head dejectedly. "Ah don't think so. He looked hurt. And..." Rogue trailed off, unable to find the words.
A silence fell over the team.
"Okay," Wolverine's gruff voice broke the silence. "This just turned into a rescue mission. I'll take point, and try to track down Scott. Storm, you stay with the kids. Be prepared to--"
"Wolverine." Storm gave Logan the cut-off signal. "May I have a word with you?"
Wolverine snorted, catching her intention. "Alright." Wolverine and Storm walked a discrete distance away from the rest of the team, who looked on apprehensibly. "Okay, 'Ro," whispered Wolverine. "What is it?"
"You were planning on tracking Scott yourself, weren't you Logan? And using the rest of the team as back-up once you found him?"
"Yeah," responded Wolverine. "What of it? That's the best way to get Cyke back."
Storm gave Wolverine a harsh look. "No, it isn't Logan. Think for a second! This is not the time run off and do things solo. If they ambushed Scott they could very well ambush you. Even with your senses, you're still vulnerable, Wolverine."
"Well, what do want me to do? Stay with the kids?"
"Yes."
Wolverine exhaled loudly. "Look, Storm, you know what I'm like in fight. I'm not the kind of guy you want to be baby-sitting a bunch of rookies!"
Storm glared harshly at Wolverine. "Yes, Logan, they are rookies! They are in an unfamiliar situation and they are scared. The last thing they need is a baby-sitter. What they do need is someone to look up to. They need to see someone who knows how to handle the situation. Someone who's mere presence will reassure them. Someone like you..."
Wolverine scowled, understanding Storm's reasoning, but not liking it. "Okay, fine. So how do you want to go about finding Scott?"
"We will track him as a team. You will take point, and track him on the ground. Keep the other students close by you. I shall take to the air. From there I will search for Scott as well as keep an eye on the team."
"Won't that put you at risk of being ambushed?"
Storm smirked. "Have you ever tried to ambush someone who's flying?"
"Once or twice," replied Wolverine, nonchalantly. "So, is that it?"
"I believe that covers everything." With that, Storm activated her powers and took to the air.
Wolverine grunted and walked back to the rest team. "Okay, people, listen up. We've had a change of plans. Storm will be covering air reconnaissance. Rogue, you know what we're up against, so you're up with me. Elf, Pryde, Jean, you're behind us. Spyke, bring up the rear."
"Will do," Spyke replied with a slight salute.
"Good. Now lets move, people!" With that, Wolverine began walking away from the Blackbird.
"Ah, minor detail..." Wolverine turned back and glared at Kitty. "Wouldn't it be quicker to, like, take the car?" Kitty pointed to Scott's convertible with a questioning look on her face.
Wolverine shook his head. "Nope. Easiest way to hurt a lot of people at once is to get them when they're in their transport. It's a lot safer to go in on foot." Wolverine turned and continued walking. "Now hurry it up! We've got a teammate to find."
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Erin's house...
From the sky, Storm took a good look at the street below. The most prominent feature of the streetscape was a geyser coming out of what used to be a fire hydrant. Water from the hydrant covered the entire street. Dents and pock marks also covered the street as well as most of the nearby buildings. One building had taken particularly heavy damage, as its entire facade had been blown off. As the rest of the X-Men halted near the scene, Storm landed gracefully next to them. "I presume this is where the fight occurred..."
In spite the gravity of the situation, Spyke couldn't help but marvel at damage inflicted on the area. "Wow. Some fight... Scott certainly didn't go down easily..."
"Assuming he 'went down' at all," added Storm. With a tinge of hope in her voice, she turned to Wolverine. "Logan, search the area. See if you can locate either Scott, or his attackers."
"'Ro, I can tell ya right now that there's nobody here. There aren't any fresh scents in the air. Scott and company have been gone for a while..."
"Alright," said Storm, the hope fading as quickly as it had come. "Can you track where they went from here.
Wolverine exhaled loudly. "I can try. That's assuming they left on foot. And assuming this blasted water hasn't washed away every scent on the street..."
"Do it. We shall have to hope for the best." With a slight nod, Wolverine walked off. Turning to Rogue, Storm continued. "Rogue, do you know anything about these people that might help us determine where they went."
Rogue shook her head. "No. As Ah was tellin' Logan, I managed to grab some powers from one of the mutants during the fight, but all Ah grabbed were powers. No memories. And even the powers have pretty much faded..." Rogue trailed off, staring at the scenery with a worried look on her face.
"What I want to know," said Spyke, "is how all these mutants got missed by Cerebro."
Storm was saved having to answer that question when Kitty spoke up. "Dead spot, probably."
"What'da'ya mean 'dead spot,'" demanded Spyke.
"Exactly what is sounded like," retorted Shadowcat. "A dead spot. A place where Cerebro's sensors can't reach. Maybe some mountains, like, blocked its signals or something."
"Mountains? Between New York and New Jersey?"
"Well it doesn't have to be mountains it could be some type of localized EM interference..."
As the conversation degenerated into technobabble, Storm breathed a sigh of relief. Still, the question of how Xavier didn't notice the other mutants remained unanswered. And that worried Storm. However, she had little time to think about the matter before Wolverine walked back to the group.
"Good news and bad news," began Wolverine as all eyes turned to him. "Good news, I found the mutants' scents. They're headed north, on foot. Bad news, I couldn't find Scott's, with theirs, or separately. That means that his either his scent got completely washed away, or Scott's been airlifted out of here." Wolverine's eyes narrowed. "Either way, I'd say our best bet is to track the other mutants. Even if they don't have Scott, they've got some answering to do."
Storm nodded. "Agreed. Whenever you're ready, Logan."
Wolverine snorted. "Lets go, people..."
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Near the Hyde construction complex...
"Ya smell anything?" Asked Rogue, almost timidly.
Wolverine continued sniffing the air. "Yeah, I smell 'em. A bunch of 'em. And they're close." Almost dejectedly, he shook his head. "But still no sign of Scott."
"Logan, how close are they?" Asked Storm. In the dim light, Storm had decided that flying would be too risky. "Can you pinpoint their location?"
"I think so..." Wolverine sniffed the air a few more times. "This way..."
Cautiously, Wolverine began walking down the street, sniffing the whole way. The rest of the team followed, being equally cautious and silent. After a moment, the scent led Wolverine to a grass and dirt covered field.
Wolverine came to an abrupt stop. "Hold up people." His eyes narrowed as he scanned the scene in front of him. It was a construction site. To the front, and on both sides of him were piles of lumber, randomly placed columns, and half finished walls. And the scents he had been following were now all around him. "This place reeks of a set-up..."
A calm voice pierced the silence. "How right you are..." All eyes immediately went to Alec, who was perched nonchalantly on one of the half-built walls. He was dressed as he was before, but his threadbare trenchcoat had been replaced with a very decorative one with bright yellow trim. The coat, and Alec's entire demeanor, had an air of arrogance to it. "I guess there's a reason they call it an Institute for the Gifted." Alec chuckled mockingly.
Angrily, Rogue stepped forward. "Alec, ya've got five seconds ta tell us where Scott is!"
Wolverine glanced around anxiously. "Watch it, kid. He's not the only one around here..."
"Can the act, Rogue!" With a sneer on his face, Alec jumped down onto the ground. "The name is Ruckus! And I'm not playing games any more."
"Neithah are we," growled Rogue. "Now where's Scott?!"
Ruckus abruptly smirked. "What would you say if I told you I didn't know?"
"I'd say ya're a liar!"
Spyke, who seemed to be spoiling for a fight, stepped up beside Rogue. "Actually..." Several spikes grew out of his arm. "I'd say that you're about to feel some pain." More spikes and some armor plates sprouted. "Lots of it!"
Ruckus' face darkened. "Feel some pain? Maybe. But you, my friends, are going to feel..." As he said this, Ruckus' voice dropped an octave. "The..." His voice picked up an unnatural base. "NOOOOOOOIIIIIIISSSSSSSEEEEEEE!!!!!"
A shock wave ripped through the air, knocking the X-Men off their feet. Spyke was the first to get up. He glared evilly at Ruckus. "That's it, man! You're going down!" To emphasize his point, Spyke launched a fistful of projectile bones at Ruckus.
Expecting the move, Ruckus dove to the side and crouched down into a battle stance. "Bring it on..." Infuriated, Spyke charged.
Storm was just getting up as her nephew ran off. As she saw this, her eyes widened with concern. "Evan, wait! It could be a--"
"Trap?" Finished Ruckus, still unconcerned. "You bet it is!"
As Ruckus spoke, movement caught Spyke's eye. He was forced to stop short as two figures, a white anthromorph and a bestial looking black kid, leapt over the wall and landed next to Ruckus. As Spyke skidded to a stop, a column of goo shot over the wall. As the goo neared the ground, it condensed into the form of a purple kid wearing an oversized trenchcoat. The kid smirked at Spyke. "So, like the entrance?"
Nightcrawler, the last X-Man to get up, gaped at what he saw. "Va-- Who are they?"
Now safe from attack, Ruckus stood up straight. "X-Men, allow me to introduce you to my team. The Nasty Boyz!"
Jean felt her powers flare as she stared down the quartet. "You know, if we didn't outnumber you seven-to-four, that might actually scare me..."
"Newsflash, Redd..." Jean whirled around to face a new speaker standing to the side of the other kids. The speaker was female, and wearing a flashy green shirt and skirt. "There aren't just four of us."
Jean lowered herself into a battle stance. "Erin Valcheck, I assume?"
Erin grinned wickedly as she assumed a similar stance. "Vertigo. Try and remember it..."
Shadowcat nervously glanced back and forth between Vertigo and the other Boyz. "Okay, seven-on-five. We can handle that, right?"
Wolverine growled as he sniffed the air. "Seven-on-six..." On cue, a towering white kid in a brown vest stepped out of the shadows. Wolverine growled louder, and popped his claws. 'Lith grinned and cracked his knuckles in response.
Ruckus spoke up. "Okay X-Men, I'm only going to offer this once. If you don't want to do this fight, you don't have to. Just walk away now, and nobody will get hurt." Ruckus paused as he looked over his adversaries. "So what'll it be?"
Ruckus' gaze fell on Storm, who was in the middle of the X-Men, standing tall. As she stared back at Ruckus, all color faded from her eyes. "X-Men, attack!"
With a multitude of yells, the battle was joined...
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