1 Kuragari
Psylocke couldn't believe that Storm would leave her behind like she did. Betsy thought she was plenty capable of joining the team on their mission to Sri Lanka. She hated the fact that she couldn't and she blamed Ororo for being too overprotective. How the hell was they suppose to find Destiny's books if every time someone gets a little shell-shocked she loses her mind and goes berserk? Storm didn't even take the time out to think that maybe the convulsions Betsy was having was a natural manifestation of her Crimson Dawn power. Of course the all mighty Queen Storm probably never took the time out to think about that. She of all people should know that not everything is what it seems.
Storm leaving Psylocke behind was just one of the many doubts she was having in her leader. First off she couldn't understand why didn't Storm have more experienced and stable X-Men on this team. It's like she was just picking up scraps that fell off of the table. Rogue was probably one of the most out of control and unstable mutants on the whole damn planet. She already couldn't control her original powers and now she has to worry about every previous she absorbed too. Then there's Neal. While she cares for the man she can't help but think this mission would be finished a lot quicker if he was still at the Mansion and the same went for Bishop, but not for the same reasons. Bishop was the epitome of a soldier without a mission. Ever since he stopped his future from occurring he has been desperately been trying to find something to fill the void of his life.
Dear Psylocke aren't you being a little harsh considering that you can barely control your Crimson Dawn powers?
"Who the hell was that?" Psylocke yelled trying to put on a front of anger when she was really experiencing fear.
I'm sure you remember me now. Come on think reeeaaalll hard!!
"I'm not a child to be toyed with! Show yourself!"
"Very well Psylocke, but don't be too surprised," Kuragari said coming out of the shadows.
"YOU!! I never thought I would have to see your ugly mug again."
"Ouch! You really know how to dish them don't you? I've always wondered though if you can take them."
"What's that suppose to mean?"
"You like ripping into people and exploiting their weaknesses. It's what you do because you are a snobby bitch, plain and simple. I think for a change though someone should rip into you!"
"ARRGGHHH!!!" Psylocke screamed as Kuragari pierced her mind with his superior telepathy.
2 FLASH!
It was Betsy's first year at modeling school and she had made a lot of friends. One girl she liked in particular was Melanie, her roommate. They had grown real close in the past few weeks they had been together and they found they shared many of the same interests. Lately though Melanie seemed to be pushing away her friends and she stayed home a lot. She barely went shopping anymore and it was one of her favorite pastimes.
It had been dreary day and Betsy had been with a boyfriend pretty much the whole day. She came home eventually though because she found out that the only thing the boy wanted from her was her body. Of course Betsy was never that type of girl and she really wanted to beat the crap out of the boy, but she held herself back. She eventually got back to her room though she was soaking wet.
"Melanie let me in! My bloody boyfriend left me out in the rain!" Psylocke yelled banging hard on the door. She kept knocking and after five minutes later Betsy was starting to get worried. So she stepped back and kicked down the door. When she got in she found the lifeless body of Melanie holding a gun in her hand.
"Melanie? Oh my god! Melanie please don't die on me! Somebody help!!" Betsy wailed out in agony as she held the body of her friend. This was one of the first experiences Betsy has had with death and it definitely wasn't the last.
3 FLASH!
It had been a few weeks after the High Evolutionary's plan to take away mutant's powers had failed and Warren had decided to take Betsy up to one of his cabins in Colorado.
"You know things have been hectic as of late," Warren sighed looking up at the sky.
"Maybe so, but I think we should be back with the team."
"I've never known you to want to head back to the 'team' so fast," Warren laughed.
"So what are you saying? Do you think I don't care about the X-Men?" Psylocke asked angrily.
"No Betts I never meant that you are taking it the wrong way. I only meant that I've always known you to be someone who would go skiing over a Danger Room session any day of the week unlike." Warren paused with thoughts of one of his best friends passing his mind.
"I know Scott's death is still fresh in your mind. He meant a lot to us, but I think more so to you because you practically grew up with the kid. I'm sorry to have been so cutthroat with you it's just that I'm starting to feel as if I'm not fulfilling my role in the X-Men to the fullest. To be honest I'm not even very sure what my role is. I mean it's seems every other member of the X-Men including you fits into a piece of the puzzle that is the dream perfectly, but me it's like I came from an entirely different puzzle and I'm trying my best to squeeze in."
"Trust me I know what you are going through. You can only imagine how strange I how felt being a part of the X-Men after Apocalypse tainted me the first time,"
"The good within you overcame that though and you found your niche in the X-men again. Me I'm just.I'm just not sure," Psylocke said searching for the right words to say.
"I've never seen you have this much self-pity before Betts. What's wrong?" Warren asked concerned.
"I'm not expressing self-pity! I am only speaking the truth and it's about time I stop trying to lie to myself."
"No! Let me tell you the truth. The truth is that I love you. Always have, always will," Archangel said as he moved in and kissed Psylocke gently on her lips.
4 The Present
"You know I think you might have actually saved that Melanie girl had you not been wrapped up in your own little personal life," Kuragari smirked.
"Shut up!! Don't you think I realize that? I live with that in my mind everyday knowing that I could have saved a life," Psylocke said trying to hold back tears.
"Well, don't you think Rogue lives everyday with the fact that her powers are out of control? Don't you think Storm was only looking out for you as any friend would? Oh I forgot you never did that for Melanie did you? Maybe that's why you don't make friends easy. Is it because you couldn't stand the fact of someone caring for you like you should have cared for Melanie?" Kuragari said each and every one of his words piercing Psylocke's soul like a dagger.
"YOU.ARE.NOT.WELCOME. HERE!" Psylocke yelled in a rage that had rarely been seen in her before. She leaped into the air her whole body covered with psionic energy and she launched her body straight down at Kuragari. In effect she had become a giant psychic knife. Kuragari laughed at this displayed as he pulled out his sword. He directed it at Psylocke and before she even reached him she had been blasted away by a powerful mind bolt that had been projected by his sword. The bolt didn't even seem to faze Psylocke because she was in a blinding rage. She ran low almost towards the ground at Kuragari and when she was about twelve feet away from him she did a ground flip and made Kuragari fall face first on the cold steel floor. Kuragari got up surprised at how Psylocke had improved. It was a sight to see especially since Kuragari saw her as not able or willing to evolve in her fighting ability.
"You know when I sent the Twisted Sisters after you I thought they would surely kill you."
"What are you talking about the Sisters were after Warren?"
"So you thought, but they were truly after you. Of course if Warren was killed along the way I wouldn't have minded," Kuragari smiled. Psylocke clenched her teeth in disgust and she created psychic ninja stars that she flung at Kuragari. He dodged every one of them.
"You should know that my agility is far greater than that of a human. Of course you have forgotten much during the past few months haven't you Psylocke?"
Psylocke refused to listen to anything Kuragari had to say. He was good at playing mind games and in some cases he reveled in it. Of course his greatest power was revolved around memories. He read someone's memories with or without consent and he could take things or people out of those memories and make them real. Of course they were mindless drones that served Kuragari without question.
"I grow tired of this battle Psylocke so I'll end it quickly. I really wouldn't want to bruise that pretty face," Kuragari laughed. Psylocke was getting tired of hearing that laugh. It was as if Kuragari knew he had an advantage over her and it drove Betsy mad. Before Psylocke could try and predict Kuragari's next move six Sabertooths appeared out of thin air. She kicked the one directly in front of her, but he disappeared. She then tried to use her telepathy to feel out which one was the real one, but she couldn't do it. Before she could plan her next move all five remaining Sabertooths pounced on her.
"Hmm so where are those lovely diaries at?" Kuragari said ripping into the mind of Psylocke to find their location. He directed one of the slashing Sabertooths off of Psylocke and commanded him to find the diaries. Then with the wave of his hand the four Sabertooths that were trampling Psylocke disappeared.
Psylocke was a bloody mess. She had slashes and cuts all over her body. Kuragari enjoyed looking at the blood. It made him lust for Psylocke even more than he already did. As he was staring at the unconscious and bleeding body of his foe, Sabertooth came with the five Books of Truth in hand.
"Good now let's leave this place. It's beginning to bore me."
5 Sri Lanka
Two huge dragons dominated the skies of Sri Lanka. Around them was a storm spurting out ruby colored lightning. The threat was an ominous one and the X-Men stared at it in awe all except for Bishop who never was one to be stunned.
"Does anyone know what these dragons are capable of?" Bishop asked pulling out a couple of guns from holsters on his thighs.
"Not a clue, but they are making the air smell most repugnant," Beast said holding his nose.
"We don't have time for complaints. We need a way to take down these dragons and fast," Bishop said charging up himself by absorbing the heat from the hot jungle environment.
"I don't have a full blown strategy, but I do have something up my sleeve that may turn this battle in our favor. Recently I've been using my "evolution" powers to bring out previously absorbed powers within Rogue. My limit is three powers so far and then I'm extremely exhausted," Tessa informed while she wiped the sweat off of her forehead.
"Why weren't we told of these evolution-based powers back at the Mansion?" Bishop inquired.
"Back at the mansion my powers weren't as developed as they are. To be honest I don't think I have to explain myself to you and besides we need to get those dragons out of the sky."
"Agreed Tessa, but don't think you've gotten off of the hook."
"Get a grip everyone! Here's how we are going to handle this situation. Tessa bring out three powers within Rogue. Bishop you better give Beast both of your guns because I'm going to use my winds to carry you into the storm. I sense an unnatural energy in it and I think you can absorb it and redirect back at the dragons. Beast prepare to fire the guns at Bishop just in case he can't absorb the storm's energy. Rogue hit the dragons with everything you got. I'll provide you guys some climatic support. Now let's get moving!" Storm commanded.
All the while a man cloaked in black was watching the X-Men diligently planning out their strategy against their antagonist. The X- Man, Storm, bedazzled him. She commanded a presence that he had never seen in all his days though his days hadn't been very long. Of course time meant nothing to the man known as Vargas.
Rogue flew straight into one of the dragon's side causing it considerable damage since she had the combined strength of Ms. Marvel, Thor, Loki and Colossus flowing through her. The dragon let out a massive yell that seemed almost morose. Meanwhile Bishop was quickly absorbing the energy from the storm the two dragons had created. The more he absorbed the smaller the dragons seem to get. He felt as if he was beginning to overload so he unleashed all the energy he had absorbed onto one of the dragons. It let out a yell and fell into its brother. The two dragons began to blend and meld together as if they were returning to their world. Just as Bishop was about to take in more energy and finish off the dragons massive thunderbolts began to fall from the sky and made quick work of the dragons.
Bishop had other things to worry about besides for the dragons. Like who was going to give him a lift to the ground. He had used up most of his energy on the dragons so he wasn't going to be able to slow his descent. Just then Bishop realized that he wasn't falling anymore. He could fly and he didn't know how. He was shell-shocked to say the least, but he took advantage of the gift and flew to the ground. When he landed Tessa gave him a weak smile.
"So I guess you had something to do with that," Bishop remarked not at all happy he owed something to this woman. An enemy of the X-Man, Tessa was. Despite what people told him about her being a spy he just couldn't accept it. If she was so dang good how come she didn't help Phoenix and prevent the death of 6 billion lies? If she was so damn grand how come she didn't at least try and help the X-Men on the numerous occasions they fought the Hellfire Club? He couldn't wait for the day when Sebastian Shaw got a hold of that bitch.
"Yeah I had something to do with it. Every mutant has their powers because deep down in their subconscious it's what they wanted. I can use my powers to bring out "secondary mutations" that come out of need and not want. Of course the mutations are temporary. I haven't yet perfected them being permanent."
"You got the job done so don't worry too much about whether it's permanent or not," Bishop said looking up at the grotesque form of the two dragons merged and burnt together. They were slowly disappearing though back into the Crimson Dawn dimension from which they came.
Psylocke couldn't believe that Storm would leave her behind like she did. Betsy thought she was plenty capable of joining the team on their mission to Sri Lanka. She hated the fact that she couldn't and she blamed Ororo for being too overprotective. How the hell was they suppose to find Destiny's books if every time someone gets a little shell-shocked she loses her mind and goes berserk? Storm didn't even take the time out to think that maybe the convulsions Betsy was having was a natural manifestation of her Crimson Dawn power. Of course the all mighty Queen Storm probably never took the time out to think about that. She of all people should know that not everything is what it seems.
Storm leaving Psylocke behind was just one of the many doubts she was having in her leader. First off she couldn't understand why didn't Storm have more experienced and stable X-Men on this team. It's like she was just picking up scraps that fell off of the table. Rogue was probably one of the most out of control and unstable mutants on the whole damn planet. She already couldn't control her original powers and now she has to worry about every previous she absorbed too. Then there's Neal. While she cares for the man she can't help but think this mission would be finished a lot quicker if he was still at the Mansion and the same went for Bishop, but not for the same reasons. Bishop was the epitome of a soldier without a mission. Ever since he stopped his future from occurring he has been desperately been trying to find something to fill the void of his life.
Dear Psylocke aren't you being a little harsh considering that you can barely control your Crimson Dawn powers?
"Who the hell was that?" Psylocke yelled trying to put on a front of anger when she was really experiencing fear.
I'm sure you remember me now. Come on think reeeaaalll hard!!
"I'm not a child to be toyed with! Show yourself!"
"Very well Psylocke, but don't be too surprised," Kuragari said coming out of the shadows.
"YOU!! I never thought I would have to see your ugly mug again."
"Ouch! You really know how to dish them don't you? I've always wondered though if you can take them."
"What's that suppose to mean?"
"You like ripping into people and exploiting their weaknesses. It's what you do because you are a snobby bitch, plain and simple. I think for a change though someone should rip into you!"
"ARRGGHHH!!!" Psylocke screamed as Kuragari pierced her mind with his superior telepathy.
2 FLASH!
It was Betsy's first year at modeling school and she had made a lot of friends. One girl she liked in particular was Melanie, her roommate. They had grown real close in the past few weeks they had been together and they found they shared many of the same interests. Lately though Melanie seemed to be pushing away her friends and she stayed home a lot. She barely went shopping anymore and it was one of her favorite pastimes.
It had been dreary day and Betsy had been with a boyfriend pretty much the whole day. She came home eventually though because she found out that the only thing the boy wanted from her was her body. Of course Betsy was never that type of girl and she really wanted to beat the crap out of the boy, but she held herself back. She eventually got back to her room though she was soaking wet.
"Melanie let me in! My bloody boyfriend left me out in the rain!" Psylocke yelled banging hard on the door. She kept knocking and after five minutes later Betsy was starting to get worried. So she stepped back and kicked down the door. When she got in she found the lifeless body of Melanie holding a gun in her hand.
"Melanie? Oh my god! Melanie please don't die on me! Somebody help!!" Betsy wailed out in agony as she held the body of her friend. This was one of the first experiences Betsy has had with death and it definitely wasn't the last.
3 FLASH!
It had been a few weeks after the High Evolutionary's plan to take away mutant's powers had failed and Warren had decided to take Betsy up to one of his cabins in Colorado.
"You know things have been hectic as of late," Warren sighed looking up at the sky.
"Maybe so, but I think we should be back with the team."
"I've never known you to want to head back to the 'team' so fast," Warren laughed.
"So what are you saying? Do you think I don't care about the X-Men?" Psylocke asked angrily.
"No Betts I never meant that you are taking it the wrong way. I only meant that I've always known you to be someone who would go skiing over a Danger Room session any day of the week unlike." Warren paused with thoughts of one of his best friends passing his mind.
"I know Scott's death is still fresh in your mind. He meant a lot to us, but I think more so to you because you practically grew up with the kid. I'm sorry to have been so cutthroat with you it's just that I'm starting to feel as if I'm not fulfilling my role in the X-Men to the fullest. To be honest I'm not even very sure what my role is. I mean it's seems every other member of the X-Men including you fits into a piece of the puzzle that is the dream perfectly, but me it's like I came from an entirely different puzzle and I'm trying my best to squeeze in."
"Trust me I know what you are going through. You can only imagine how strange I how felt being a part of the X-Men after Apocalypse tainted me the first time,"
"The good within you overcame that though and you found your niche in the X-men again. Me I'm just.I'm just not sure," Psylocke said searching for the right words to say.
"I've never seen you have this much self-pity before Betts. What's wrong?" Warren asked concerned.
"I'm not expressing self-pity! I am only speaking the truth and it's about time I stop trying to lie to myself."
"No! Let me tell you the truth. The truth is that I love you. Always have, always will," Archangel said as he moved in and kissed Psylocke gently on her lips.
4 The Present
"You know I think you might have actually saved that Melanie girl had you not been wrapped up in your own little personal life," Kuragari smirked.
"Shut up!! Don't you think I realize that? I live with that in my mind everyday knowing that I could have saved a life," Psylocke said trying to hold back tears.
"Well, don't you think Rogue lives everyday with the fact that her powers are out of control? Don't you think Storm was only looking out for you as any friend would? Oh I forgot you never did that for Melanie did you? Maybe that's why you don't make friends easy. Is it because you couldn't stand the fact of someone caring for you like you should have cared for Melanie?" Kuragari said each and every one of his words piercing Psylocke's soul like a dagger.
"YOU.ARE.NOT.WELCOME. HERE!" Psylocke yelled in a rage that had rarely been seen in her before. She leaped into the air her whole body covered with psionic energy and she launched her body straight down at Kuragari. In effect she had become a giant psychic knife. Kuragari laughed at this displayed as he pulled out his sword. He directed it at Psylocke and before she even reached him she had been blasted away by a powerful mind bolt that had been projected by his sword. The bolt didn't even seem to faze Psylocke because she was in a blinding rage. She ran low almost towards the ground at Kuragari and when she was about twelve feet away from him she did a ground flip and made Kuragari fall face first on the cold steel floor. Kuragari got up surprised at how Psylocke had improved. It was a sight to see especially since Kuragari saw her as not able or willing to evolve in her fighting ability.
"You know when I sent the Twisted Sisters after you I thought they would surely kill you."
"What are you talking about the Sisters were after Warren?"
"So you thought, but they were truly after you. Of course if Warren was killed along the way I wouldn't have minded," Kuragari smiled. Psylocke clenched her teeth in disgust and she created psychic ninja stars that she flung at Kuragari. He dodged every one of them.
"You should know that my agility is far greater than that of a human. Of course you have forgotten much during the past few months haven't you Psylocke?"
Psylocke refused to listen to anything Kuragari had to say. He was good at playing mind games and in some cases he reveled in it. Of course his greatest power was revolved around memories. He read someone's memories with or without consent and he could take things or people out of those memories and make them real. Of course they were mindless drones that served Kuragari without question.
"I grow tired of this battle Psylocke so I'll end it quickly. I really wouldn't want to bruise that pretty face," Kuragari laughed. Psylocke was getting tired of hearing that laugh. It was as if Kuragari knew he had an advantage over her and it drove Betsy mad. Before Psylocke could try and predict Kuragari's next move six Sabertooths appeared out of thin air. She kicked the one directly in front of her, but he disappeared. She then tried to use her telepathy to feel out which one was the real one, but she couldn't do it. Before she could plan her next move all five remaining Sabertooths pounced on her.
"Hmm so where are those lovely diaries at?" Kuragari said ripping into the mind of Psylocke to find their location. He directed one of the slashing Sabertooths off of Psylocke and commanded him to find the diaries. Then with the wave of his hand the four Sabertooths that were trampling Psylocke disappeared.
Psylocke was a bloody mess. She had slashes and cuts all over her body. Kuragari enjoyed looking at the blood. It made him lust for Psylocke even more than he already did. As he was staring at the unconscious and bleeding body of his foe, Sabertooth came with the five Books of Truth in hand.
"Good now let's leave this place. It's beginning to bore me."
5 Sri Lanka
Two huge dragons dominated the skies of Sri Lanka. Around them was a storm spurting out ruby colored lightning. The threat was an ominous one and the X-Men stared at it in awe all except for Bishop who never was one to be stunned.
"Does anyone know what these dragons are capable of?" Bishop asked pulling out a couple of guns from holsters on his thighs.
"Not a clue, but they are making the air smell most repugnant," Beast said holding his nose.
"We don't have time for complaints. We need a way to take down these dragons and fast," Bishop said charging up himself by absorbing the heat from the hot jungle environment.
"I don't have a full blown strategy, but I do have something up my sleeve that may turn this battle in our favor. Recently I've been using my "evolution" powers to bring out previously absorbed powers within Rogue. My limit is three powers so far and then I'm extremely exhausted," Tessa informed while she wiped the sweat off of her forehead.
"Why weren't we told of these evolution-based powers back at the Mansion?" Bishop inquired.
"Back at the mansion my powers weren't as developed as they are. To be honest I don't think I have to explain myself to you and besides we need to get those dragons out of the sky."
"Agreed Tessa, but don't think you've gotten off of the hook."
"Get a grip everyone! Here's how we are going to handle this situation. Tessa bring out three powers within Rogue. Bishop you better give Beast both of your guns because I'm going to use my winds to carry you into the storm. I sense an unnatural energy in it and I think you can absorb it and redirect back at the dragons. Beast prepare to fire the guns at Bishop just in case he can't absorb the storm's energy. Rogue hit the dragons with everything you got. I'll provide you guys some climatic support. Now let's get moving!" Storm commanded.
All the while a man cloaked in black was watching the X-Men diligently planning out their strategy against their antagonist. The X- Man, Storm, bedazzled him. She commanded a presence that he had never seen in all his days though his days hadn't been very long. Of course time meant nothing to the man known as Vargas.
Rogue flew straight into one of the dragon's side causing it considerable damage since she had the combined strength of Ms. Marvel, Thor, Loki and Colossus flowing through her. The dragon let out a massive yell that seemed almost morose. Meanwhile Bishop was quickly absorbing the energy from the storm the two dragons had created. The more he absorbed the smaller the dragons seem to get. He felt as if he was beginning to overload so he unleashed all the energy he had absorbed onto one of the dragons. It let out a yell and fell into its brother. The two dragons began to blend and meld together as if they were returning to their world. Just as Bishop was about to take in more energy and finish off the dragons massive thunderbolts began to fall from the sky and made quick work of the dragons.
Bishop had other things to worry about besides for the dragons. Like who was going to give him a lift to the ground. He had used up most of his energy on the dragons so he wasn't going to be able to slow his descent. Just then Bishop realized that he wasn't falling anymore. He could fly and he didn't know how. He was shell-shocked to say the least, but he took advantage of the gift and flew to the ground. When he landed Tessa gave him a weak smile.
"So I guess you had something to do with that," Bishop remarked not at all happy he owed something to this woman. An enemy of the X-Man, Tessa was. Despite what people told him about her being a spy he just couldn't accept it. If she was so dang good how come she didn't help Phoenix and prevent the death of 6 billion lies? If she was so damn grand how come she didn't at least try and help the X-Men on the numerous occasions they fought the Hellfire Club? He couldn't wait for the day when Sebastian Shaw got a hold of that bitch.
"Yeah I had something to do with it. Every mutant has their powers because deep down in their subconscious it's what they wanted. I can use my powers to bring out "secondary mutations" that come out of need and not want. Of course the mutations are temporary. I haven't yet perfected them being permanent."
"You got the job done so don't worry too much about whether it's permanent or not," Bishop said looking up at the grotesque form of the two dragons merged and burnt together. They were slowly disappearing though back into the Crimson Dawn dimension from which they came.
