Chapter 9: Return
Magneto flipped the lights on. Everyone else woke up instantly. They sat up and rubbed their eyes. I swung my legs over the edge of the couch, so I could face him. Logan and Rogue climbed off the top bunk. Jean came over to the couch.
"Are you ready to go back?" he asked. "I want you single file with Wolverine in the front. Then I'll take you to the door. Okay, let's go."
Logan moved toward the door. Rogue stayed directly behind him. The rest of us filed in behind them. I took the position in the back. Magneto led us toward the door through a long maze of hallways. Every once in a while, Alex would turn around and make sure I was still there. When we saw the door, we stopped as ordered. Alex moved toward me for protection.
"All right, I want Jean to carry Rogue piggyback style. Cyclops is going to carry Havoc in his arms," Magneto stated. He was trying to make sure that we couldn't escape once we were outside. Rogue climbed onto Jean's back. I sighed and carefully picked up my brother. He weighed more than I remembered. Magneto used his powers to lift Logan into the air, so he couldn't run. Then we were all led outside. A moving van was sitting outside. Mystique and the Brotherhood boys stood at the open door to the back of it. We were quickly herded in. Mystique followed us in, while Fred and Pietro watched the sliding door. Magneto went back inside the building.
"This won't hurt a bit," Mystique told us as she pulled out a bottle and a syringe. "You're first, Cyke."
"No," I stated. "I'm last."
She shrugged and moved on. One by one, she injected the other four captives with the sedatives. Then she gave me a look of pity and shook the empty bottle to show that she was out of the drug.
Realization hit me. She wanted me to volunteer to be last, so I'd stay awake. "Fuck you," I spat.
She smiled a sugary smile, "Tell me when and where." Mystique climbed out the back and locked the door. We were trapped in the back of the moving van. The engine started and we moved off toward the Institute.
The sedative started to take its toll on the others. In no time at all, the there all out cold. Right before Alex blacked out, he looked up at me.
"It's okay, Alex," I told him. "Just give in to it. I'll be right here when you wake up. I promise."
"Thanks, Scott," he whispered. He shut his eyes and fell into an induced sleep.
I glanced around the large van. Everyone was sound asleep, but me. It was a usual sight by now. I decided to lie down and to rest some. I knew I wouldn't get any sleep, but I could at least try to get my body ready for what was to come. I closed my eyes and just concentrated on relaxing every part of my body. Every time, I neared sleep, the van would hit a bump or tale a sharp turn to wake me back up. I couldn't tell whether they were watching me or it was just a coincidence.
After a while, I gave up. I climbed to my feet and carefully moved over to Jean. I sat down and put her beautiful head in my lap. Then I brushed her hair out of her face and stroked her forehead and hair. She was so beautiful and looked so peaceful. I sighed aloud and kissed her cheek.
Finally the van stopped. I tensed and moved toward the door. It opened just enough for a person to get through. Mystique stuck her head through and motioned for me to come over to her. I did so. She practically pulled me out of the back. Lance shut the door and Fred locked it. I looked around the area. We were parked close to the main gate of the Institute. I looked around for any sign of life. All I saw was Pietro turning off the security system. I sighed and Mystique pulled me to the gate.
"It's show time," she told me. Suddenly Mystique morphed into Alex. Pietro gave a signal and Fred opened the gate. Mystique pulled me into the yard and we ran toward the front door, without any interruptions.
"How do you plan on getting inside?" I asked.
"You'll see," she replied as we ran up to the door. Mystique literally threw me into the door. I fell to the ground in pain. She pounded on the door and called for help. Then she collapsed on top of me, covering my mouth with one hand.
"Alex," a voice came from inside.
"Scott," another one called. I heard the door open and saw Kurt, in his blue form, and Kitty.
I struggled to move. I had to tell them it was a trap. I moved the slightest bit, but Mystique had me firmly pinned to the ground. I struggled, but it was useless. Kurt and Kitty pulled us inside the Institute. Mystique kept my mouth covered until after she stood up and signaled the boys. She moved her hand away and as Pietro was running up, changed back into her true form. The two unsuspecting mutants gasped, while Mystique opened the door for her minions. Pietro came straight up to me and jerked me to my feet. He twisted my arms behind my back. I stayed quiet and Kurt and Kitty just stared at us.
Mystique smiled as Fred, Lance, and Todd came into the building. I jerked against Pietro's grip, but it didn't do any good. Mystique came up to me and slid her index finger down my right cheek. "You know, you are a very talented actor."
Anger welled up inside of me. I pulled roughly, but Pietro had my arms bent straight upward, so I all movement was murder on my shoulders. Mystique smirked and turned to the little ones. I looked at Kurt's blue form and wished I had some way of communicating with him.
"Round everyone up," Mystique ordered them. "Tell them to go to the auditorium."
Kurt grabbed Kitty's arm and teleported them both out of the entrance hall. Mystique turned toward the auditorium and we all went there. Pietro pushed me up on the stage. We stood near the back as Mystique took position behind the podium. Suddenly the door opened and the students slowly came in. They all noticed me and quickly took their seats. I sighed and looked at all of the innocent mutants in front of me. The first thing I noticed was that Ororo and the professor weren't there.
Pietro seemed to know what I was thinking. "Magneto and Sabretooth are waiting for them to arrive at the warehouse."
I felt my blood run cold. I glanced into the audience to try to get someone's attention. Everyone I looked at was watching Mystique. I watched her to see if she was going to address the crowd of confused and anxious mutants that stood before her.
"Good morning," she stated, "as you can probably tell, this building is now under new management. We have taken over and so I'll tell you now, this can be an easy job or people can get hurt. Either way you will all be under our control very soon."
A murmur shot through the crowd. I could feel the anger coming from me. I knew everyone else could see it, too. Mystique began to talk again:
"We're going to leave you alone for now. Don't even try to leave this room. We'll stop in soon to tell you to go to bed."
With that, she headed to the door. The three Brotherhood boys followed her. Pietro let go of me and ran out the door. I collapsed and the door locked. People began to talk. I struggled to climb to my feet. Kurt teleported to my side and helped me up. I nodded and walked up to the podium.
I waited for everyone to quiet down. Most of them did when they saw me. The others soon followed the others.
"Are we going to let them take us over?" I asked. "Not without a fight, am I right? Come on up here and we'll figure something out." I was improvising, but it would have to do. Everyone came up to the stage. I convinced them to put their anger aside and sit in a circle. I sat between Rahne and Ray. I looked around at the angry and concerned faces.
Finally I broke the silence, "Jean, Alex, Rogue, and Logan are in the back of a moving van parked out front." I was speaking directly to Kurt. "They are probably still out cold. I need you to get them to the infirmary."
Kurt nodded, "Sure." Then he was gone. I sighed.
I locked eyes with Amara. She was plainly angry. I signaled for her to calm down. She gave me a sheepish smile.
"What are we going to do?" Bobby asked.
"We're going to wait for Kurt to come back. Then we'll figure out how to overpower them."
Suddenly Kurt came back. The ever-present smell of sulfur hung in the air for a moment. Kurt landed in the middle of the circle. He spun around until he was facing me. I looked at him expectantly. He just nodded and took a seat.
"All right, now they have nothing to hold against us, so we can strike," I spoke. "Evan, I want you to watch the door." I saw his reluctance. "You're the only one that can stop Pietro if he comes in." He got up. I smiled to myself. I complimented him, so he did it. "Let Mystique in if we're still planning."
He nodded and took a seat by the door.
"Okay, here's what we're going to do. We'll sneak out in these three groups. Kurt, Rahne, and Amara. Kitty, Jamie, Roberto, and Ray. Evan, Jubilee, Sam, and Bobby. Then we'll-"
"What about you?" Roberto asked. "You can't go off on your own."
"Have any of you seen Mr. McCoy lately?"
"Ja," Kurt replied. "He's in the infirmary checking on the others. We purposefully left him there during the round-up."
I smiled, "I think I need to pay him a visit."
"Are you okay?" Rahne asked.
I nodded, but I was lying. My leg was killing me. I was utterly exhausted. My head was throbbing with pain.
"If you say so..." Roberto trailed off.
I looked at him and said, "I'm fine. Now we have three groups and five opponents. I'm hoping to lure Mystique away, so you guys can take the other four. It should be easy enough with our home field advantage."
"Incoming," Evan called as he positioned himself. He popped a spike halfway out of each arm.
The door opened and in walked Todd. Evan launched the two spikes and successfully pinned him to the wall. The shoulders of his shirt held him in place. Kurt smiled and teleported to his side. He then tied a piece of cloth over Todd's mouth.
"All right," I told the group, "Mystique will know something's up when Todd doesn't return. We have to act now. I'll lure Mystique away. Each group should take one enemy after that. Kurt, I need you to teleport your group out of here. Kitty, you'll have to take yours to the top of this room and go through the wall. Now, the third group, Evan, you'll have to use the door. Be careful, okay?"
Everyone nodded.
"Good," I replied. "Evan, you may need to add a few spikes to hold him in place." Evan shot off a few more spikes to completely pin Todd. He struggled, but was stuck to the wall.
"All right, team, let's do this."
I got up a bit wobbly. I went to the door and took a deep breath. Then I opened the door. I stuck my head out and called: "Mystique? Mystique!" I paused to see if she would actually come.
She came out of the side hallway. She didn't look the least bit happy to see me. I stepped out of the door and shut it behind me. She looked at me suspiciously and poised herself for an attack. I held up my hands in surrender.
"Please," I begged, "I don't want a fight. I just-" I stopped talking just long enough to cry out in pain and clutch at my injured leg. Mystique just looked at me with a bored interest.
I sighed silently. I looked like she didn't quite trust me. That meant I'd have to do something drastic. I let myself pitch forward. I collapsed on the floor. That got her attention! Drowsiness set in more than I'd expected and I almost blacked out. I fought it off as Mystique crouched next to me. She rolled me over to my back; I looked up at her. Pain started to consume my body until I couldn't control it. I let a moan escape my lips.
"Cyclops," she breathed. "Are you going to be okay?"
I was breathing heavily and shaking violently all over. I groaned and grabbed at the back of my head. Mystique glanced around quickly. She picked me up in her arms. That move surprised me, but I didn't resist. She carried me down one of the halls to an unused bedroom at the end. Mystique set me on the bare sheet.
"Calm down," Mystique said. "Just breathe."
I was still shaking a lot. My body was completely overloading. The pain was unbearable. I cried out in pure and bitter agony.
Mystique glanced around again before speaking, "I'll be right back."
"Mystique," I forced out between gritted teeth. "There aren't any painkillers in the infirmary. Try the basement."
She nodded, "Don't try anything while I'm gone."
I smiled and tried to stop shaking, "Even if I wanted to, I don't think I'm physically able to."
She smirked and left the room. I closed my eyes and moaned in pain. At least I'd sent Mystique to the basement. It'd buy us a little more time and it'd keep her out of the infirmary. I sighed and opened my eyes.
Suddenly Kitty's head poked through the wall, "Cyclops, are you okay?"
I looked up at her, "Yes, Shadowcat, I'm fine. Move your group out and try to take over. Mystique is in the basement, so try to stay clear of the path from here to there. I wouldn't have put you with Multiple if I didn't think you could handle him. It's all up to you guys now."
She nodded and left.
TBC