Rating: PG-13 for language and violence
Disclaimer: All Marvel characters belong to Marvel. All non-Marvel characters belong to the authors of this story. No money is being made off of this story.
Jubilee looked at the police woman and said, "Ok, I'm lost. Who are you?"
Tina looked at the girl. "I'm Tina MacQuire. And Everyone is under arrest."
"You already said that about fifty times." Logan said, sizing her up. He could take her if he had to, that he was sure of. What he wasn't sure of was whether he wanted to or not.
"Listen, I don't know who you people are, but the longer you stand here the more charges get added." Tina said, eyeing Logan. /He deserved more than that bite./ She thought.
Jubilee looked at the officer and asked, "Did you do that before?"
Tina looked at the girl, shocked. The way she talked and acted, she reminded her of Sammi. Tina remembered when she was in turtle form that this girl was very gentle as she held her. Tina couldn't help but like her.
"Yes. Can I ask you something?" Tina asked.
"Shoot." Jubilee said.
Ryan and Logan went and leaned against the bathroom door, which Maggie and Eric were pounding on.
"I heard you mention a girl named Sammi and her husband Jonas, and you said that she was your sister. Does she live about a block away from here?" Tina asked.
"Yep. She lives in a Warehouse that she owns. Why?" Jubilee asked, a little confused as to why this officer was asking about Sammi.
"I thought so." Tina said. She looked closer at Ryan and asked, "You were one of the bridesmaids, right?"
"Yeah, how did you know?" Ryan asked, this was getting weirder.
"I was at the wedding. I'm Tina. I grew up with Sammi when she was living at the mall, and we shared an apartment when we were old enough," Tina said.
"Geeze. Is there anyone Sammi doesn't know?" Jubilee said, but mostly to herself.
Tina heard her and laughed. "That's just Sammi. She makes friends with everyone. So, who are you?" Tina asked, looking at Logan.
Logan looked at her and said, "I'm Sammi's father."
Tina was surprised. She knew about Sammi's parents, so how could this guy be her father?
Jubilee_79
Warren and Cara flew for a long while, trying without success to find Sammi and Jonas. Cara, however, was able to pick up on Rogue's empathic signature, and they went in search of her.
CRASH!!! BOOM!!! CREEEEEEAAAAAKK!!!!! CRAAACKKKKSSSHHEHEEEE!!!!
A horrible, thunderous sound filled the air. Cara and Wings flew in the direction it was coming from. It led them to a deserted, condemned part of the city, where there were old buildings waiting to be demolished. And Rogue was standing in the midst of what used to be one of the buildings. She flew across the street to another building, and began pummeling it as well.
Cara and Wings touched down not far from her, and ran over to her.
"STOP! Rogue, what are you doing?" Cara exclaimed.
Rogue stopped trashing the building and looked at Cara with despair in her eyes.
"I failed him, Cara. I can't find either one of 'em." Rogue said, as tears began to form in her eyes.
Cara reached out with her empathic powers, searching as far and wide as she could. She could not find any trace of Sammi and Jonas. Just then...
~Cara, Rogue, and Warren, please report back to the loft. We all need to regroup and plan.~ the voice of the Professor entered their minds.
Rogue sighed, then flew into the air. Cara was just about to hitch a ride with Wings once again, when Rogue suddenly scooped her up and flew off with her.
"Come on, Wings, I'll race ya," was all Rogue said to the startled Warren.
Cara grinned. She knew what Rogue was feeling. She was Jealous!
/Rogue, I'm a happily married woman...there's nothing to be jealous about. Don't you know that Wings loves you? Well, you'll know it soon enough...don't want to spoil anything by telling you now./ Cara thought, as the three of them flew back to the loft.
Rainfall
Jamar listens to the mental chatter going on around him. His head aches from all the information.
/Come on J. you're spreading yourself too thin here. Pull yourself together. You'll do noone any good if you break down. I don't know how the Gamemaster does it. /
"What's wrong little Jedi, gettin' a headache?"
"What do you want witch? I don't appreciate you messing with my family."
/Come on J. she's not here; she's thought-casting and trying to distract you. Just lock your mind down. /
The taunting words of Anon dissipate and are replaced by a sound somewhere between a cackle and a roar. Three large beasts begin baring down on Jamar, intending to maul him. He rolls out of the way and brings his blades across the side of one of the creatures, felling it in one stroke.
"I've gotta get this done with before I become a shish kabob. There's a whole lot of hatred and pain in here, and it's coming from these beasts." The griffin-like beast charges again, catching Jamar's side... but not before he grabs the beast and barbecues it alive.
/One more./
A glimmer of light catches his eye as the third creature breaths fire at him. "That's not bad, but how about one from a pro?" Jamar says as he launches a Dragonball Z style fireball at the creature, torching it.
"CREED, COME OUT... I'M TIRED OF THE ENTERTAINMENT AND I DON'T HAVE TIME TO SPARE."
A battered and bruised Sabretooth falls out of the carcass of the third beast. It's charred remains falling from Creed in great hunks of ash and roasted meat.
"KID, WHAT THE HELL'S GOIN ON HERE, AND WHY THE HELL ARE YOU IN MY HEAD, AND WHO THE HELL RAN ME OVER…."
Jamar just laughed. /Same ole Creed. /
After listening to several more lines of cusswords in several different languages describing the situation, he stopped Creed. "We've gotta go Creed, something's up."
Sabretooth didn't argue. He opened his eyes just as Jamar returned to his own body. The manacles keeping him from moving flew off with a quick tk jerk.
[[Jamar!]] The sounds of Sammi and Cara calling his name began overlapping within his mind. /I'm on my way guys, and I'm bring reinforcements./
In a flash, Creed, Jedi, and any members of Vis-X and X-Men in the area teleported back to the Loft.
Chaos
When Jamar transported everyone to the loft, that also included Tina and Maggie.
Tina looked around. "What the hell? We're at Sammi's!"
"That's right, darlin'." Logan said as he looked at everyone in the living room. He didn't see Sammi or Jonas, so he asked,"Alright? Where's my kid?"
jubilee_79
"Uh...dad... you're not going to like the answer to that one." Jamar says.
"What do you mean, son?" Logan's eyes fill with pain and anger as he stares down Jamar, who can't help but flinch from the intensity of the gaze.
A voice fills the room, followed by the presence of Zeklos. "Mr. Logan, approximately an hour or so ago, Fire Fox and Dragon were captured by the enemy."
"She's okay, dad... but she ain't happy."
Rogue calms down just enough to ask, "How can you be sure?"
Jamar glances over at Cara and Amanda, and they nod at him.
"Because I am connected to every member of my family, and I hold a passive contact with the rest of the teams. And right now I'm getting quite the headache trying to shield myself from 'everyone's' thoughts."
Xavier sat watching the scene and Amanda as his mind began to mull over the way Jamar had said 'EVERYONE'S THOUGHTS'. /Could he be omnipathic?/ he wonders. One look into Amanda's eyes tells him all he needs to know.
Jamar staggers over to the couch and is joined by Cara, Ryan, and Creed. Ryan, who was keeping her distance from Creed, moves in closer to Jamar.
Sabretooth's eyes drifted over to Ryan. She was familiar. He knew her name. He knew she was important somehow. /What could it be?/ "Is there something wrong, frail?"
Ryan feels as though her heart is being squeezed as she remembers all of the times he's said that to her while holding her close. She begins to tremble as the words come out slowly.
"Uhh...V.victor, we need to talk." She stands up and leaves the room.
Jamar smiles weakly as he shields them from the others, and he passes out into blissful sleep.
Chaos
Maggie could feel the dull ache behind her eyes increase to a pound. She found herself surrounded by a bunch of hostile people, and all because she stuck her nose where it didn't belong. She had enough aggravations for the night. First she gets into a knockout, drag down fight with some over-muscled, homicidal nut bar. Then she is dragged into a catfight with some blonde bimbo, that was an even bigger nut-bar then her boyfriend was.
For the first time in her life, Maggie had been dragged into a hair-pulling contest. That ended with some cigar-smoking shrimp getting in her way. She gets her ass out of that just to find that these wakkos are planning to keep tall dark and gruesome in a hotel. She only wanted to make sure that the mad man wasn't going to hurt anyone else, and nearly got raped for her efforts. She had been knocked out, hog-tied, and locked in a hotel bathroom. She has had enough.
If she can just find her backpack and guitar case, she is outta there. She had $49.63 to her name, and that should be enough to get some food and her clothes washed. Now if she could just figure out why the hell she was in Frisco instead of up-state New York, she would be all right.
"Where do ya think yer going?" the shrimp barked at her.
She couldn't believe what she was hearing.
"I am getting as far away from the nutty bimbo and her lunatic boyfriend and friends as I can get," Maggie snarled.
"I have been accused of trying to screw him," she gestured towards Creed. "Dragged into the mud, knocked out, and hog-tied in a bathroom. My backpack with all my stuff in it is missing, and my guitar has grown legs and walked off. I was supposed to be headed for this fancy boarding school in up-state New York, and instead I ended up in Frisco. I am having a really, really, bad day. So unless you're planning to stop me, get the hell outta my way, shorty!"
Lady_Yann
"Mommy, you're home!" Kat said, running into the living room of the loft. "I was worried about you Mommy, you've been gone so long."
"I'm sorry, Scrappy girl, but Mommy had something she needed to do. You didn't get into too much trouble while I was gone, right?" Ryan said, hugging her daughter.
"Nope… Just ask Auntie Cara … I was a perfect little angel."
"Scrappy??" Victor asked questioningly and walked over to the little girl.
Ryan picked Kat up protectively; she didn't want Victor to hurt her.
"It's ok, Ryan. His memory isn't completely fixed, but it's back. In fact, little things are going to trigger his memories. A few weeks and he should be fine." Jamar said, smiling at Ryan. He wanted her to be happy again so bad. She was so sad without Victor, and now she had a chance at happiness again.
Victor looked at the little girl in the face. There is something so familiar about her, he thought.
"Hi Daddy, are you all better now?" Kat asked looking up to her father. Everyone stared in shock, because she had never been told about him before.
"Kat, how do you know he's your Daddy?" Ryan asked her daughter.
"Because he smells a little like me, Mommy…. Just like Auntie Sammi and Uncle Logan do and they are father and daughter." Kat said smiling at her Mom. Then she looked back to her Dad. "So are you ok now, Daddy?"
"I will be soon enough, pup."
"Good enough," Kat said, and then leapt from her mother's arms into her father's.
Victor was very stiff at first and didn't know what to do. Victors face held a look of sheer terror. He gradually relaxed into the hug and held his daughter tight.
Maggie rolled her eyes, "Great... I tried to kill some kid's dad!"
Maggie watched the scene unfold. No wonder Barbie was so rude to me. That guy not only doesn't remember her, but he is also the father of her baby, she thought. She began to think that perhaps those two really did deserve each other.
Le Fae
Ryan put Kat back to bed and walked up to the roof with Victor. She looked at him, standing as far away as possible. Ryan was still afraid to get close to him.
"I didn't know I was pregnant with Kat when I left. The last battle I mean. I didn't know I was pregnant with her then, or else I would have never gone." She said as her eyes welled up with tears. All she really wanted to do was run to him and kiss him, but she held back. He hurt her; unknowingly true, but he still hurt her.
Victor's mind flashed back. He remembered being in tunnels and seeing Ryan being pulled. The fear of someone hurting her came rushing back to him.
"I was frozen by that psycho chick, the one that nearly turned Cara to stone. She did the same thing to me. I woke up and didn't remember much…I remember hating you a lot." Victor said as he pieced together the last real memories he had of Ryan.
She felt like someone had ripped out her heart. Ryan wanted to run away and cry more then anything at that moment. Victor could smell her tears; he didn't want to make her cry. He walked over to her and pulled her closer to him.
"I don't anymore, frail. It was all fake, but this is real." He said and then lifted her chin and kissed her.
Ryan pulled back from the kiss. "I can't do this yet. Victor, I just caught you rolling around in bed with that woman in there." Ryan said pointing to the loft.
"So what? I was rolling around in beds with a lot of women when we were apart. I barely remember you, frail, and I certainly didn't remember you then. You can't hold that against me."
SMACK!! Ryan slapped Victor as hard as she could. "When you are ready to act like a human being with feelings instead of an animal again, come talk to me. Until then I don't want to see you." With that Ryan turned and went back inside.
"I love you Victor." Ryan said, beaming up at someone who she thought was the most wonderful man in the world.
"You're just saying that because you like the sex." Victor said smirking down to her. She is so beautiful and wonderful, he thought.
"That's only part of it. Promise me something."
"You could get me to promise you the world right now."
"Well I don't want the world.. I just want you. Promise me that when I leave, you won't believe them anymore."
"Believe who?"
"Everyone who says you're nothing but an animal. You're not… you're a human being with feelings…and one of the most caring people I have ever met."
"I love you frail…. I promise."
Victor shuddered at the memory. He wanted to hold onto that moment forever. The moment Ryan made him feel like a man and not an animal. She was the only one who ever saw him as something more, and now he was losing that. What am I gonna do, he thought.
Le Fae
Tina had gone home, changed and came back. She didn't know what was going on, but if Sammi was in trouble she wanted to help. Tina just didn't think the San Francisco Police department needed to be involved with the problem. She looked around the room and saw that girl Ryan walking towards her in near tears. When Ryan saw her, she wiped her eyes and smiled at Tina.
"Look, I'm sorry for turning you into a turtle."
"It's ok… just don't do it again. Besides, you seem to have some other things on your mind right now." Tina said to the girl.
"Just some family problems."
"Excuse me ladies." Hank interjected. "I was wondering if I could get a blood sample from our dear Officer MacQuire. It seems you have an uncanny mutant ability and we need to make sure you aren't a Summers."
"What the?" Tina asked as she eyed the blue furry mutant. She leaned over to Ryan and asked "Is it tame?"
"I assure you, my lady, that I am quite tame and mean you no harm."
"It's ok, Tina. Hank is a friend. He just wants to check your DNA." Ryan gave Tina a lopsided grin.
"Alright." Tina said, eyeing Hank.
Hank took the blood sample and went to run some tests. While he was doing that, Ryan and Tina began to talk. They talked about their childhood and their likes and dislikes. They found out they had a lot in common. It turns out that Tina was abandoned as a child, but she really didn't know why. That's how she met Sammi. The two had lived on the streets of San Fran together. Ryan herself was abandoned by her parents, but was sent to live with other relatives in LA.
"You know it's funny... we almost even look alike." Tina said. "Except that you have long hair and mine is shorter and more of a strawberry blonde."
"Interesting you should say that, Officer MacQuire" Beast said as he walked up to the girls. "I have found something unusual in your test results. It would seem you are not a Summers... thank your stars for that little blessing... but you are in fact Ryan's sister."
"What?" Both girls said at the same time.
"DNA does not lie. ladies. The genes are the same. You are twins, in fact; although you are not identical."
"Family resemblance is uncanny," Logan said as he walked up to the girls with a smirk on his face.
"Shove it, shorty," Tina said to Logan, "This is none of your business."
"When it involves people I'm close to, I make it my business." Logan really didn't believe it was any of his business either, but he wasn't going to let her off easy with a comment like that.
Le Fae
Amanda had quietly been listening to the conversation on the roof, and waited for Ryan to leave before she went up. She saw Victor staring out at the lights and could feel his heartache. This was worse than any soap opera on TV.
"She'll forgive you. You just need to give her time and space. Her mind knows it wasn't you, and so does her heart. It's everything else that is telling her otherwise." stated Amanda.
"You look like hell, frail." stated Victor.
"Well, I was manhandled by you, and attacked by a monster I created. I also have a psychopathic witch stealing my team members and making my life hell. Oh, did I add the fact that my boyfriend and Magneto are acting like preschoolers?"
"Sorry I asked...... I'm sorry about..."
"Don't. I know it wasn't you. That's what good about having dragons in your head; they help you keep your facts straight."
"You know Anon hates you. I could tell from the last time, and seein' ya now only confirms it. The witch wants blood." informed Victor, who was surprised to be forgiven so easily.
"I want some myself."
"What are you doin' outta bed anyway, frail. Ya should be restin'."
"I had to escape the soap opera of my life. I need to get away from all the noise. Don't worry, Charles will know I'm missing in a few seconds and come after me. He is awfully protective of me."
"I can relate."
"Well, if you don't mind, I'm going to see if I can locate Sammi and Jonas. Maybe I"ll get lucky and go one on one with that witch on the astral plane." Amanda stated as she sat down and focused her powers.
Victor was about to leave, but decided to stay. He needed to think, and Amanda needed protection. What she had said about Ryan made sense, and he thought about his reaction to the dream he had experienced. Sometimes your heart isn't the strongest voice you hear when reason wants you to believe something else. He needed to figure out what to do. He knew that protecting Amanda now would make up for his attack on her. He just wished that it would be that simple with Ryan.
A.C.
Once Hank leaves, Hope quietly makes her way to the roof where Amanda and Victor are. She didn't feel like being around Hank when she performed her magic.
/Hank is a good doctor, but he didn't have to get snappish with me. All I was trying to do is help./
Victor looks at her when she approaches, then he moves to her and softly asks so as to not disturb Amanda.
"Whatcha want, Frail? Can't you see this is a private conversation?"
Hope stiffens, hearing the tone in his voice, then she feels a surge of anger well up inside. She stamps it down, not wanting things to get ugly. Victor catches the change of her scent and her body language, and knows she is a little angry.
"I came here to heal Amanda completely; if you don't like it Mr. Creed, deal with it. All I want to do is help. If you want her to have a fighting chance against Anon, get out of my way." She answers quietly. Her eyes flash, and her face is flushed with agitation.
Victor thinks about toying with her, but decides not to.
"Then hurry up, frail; do your deed, then leave," he growls softly as he moves back to Amanda's side.
Hope moves up behind Amanda. Carefully, not wanting to disturb her, Hope puts a hand on Amanda's shoulder. She closes her eyes and focuses in her mind Amanda fully healed. Amanda feels a tingly sensation go throughout her body, it almost breaking her concentration in her search for Sammi and Jonas. The pain leaves as the wounds she has taken disappear. She can feel her mind become more clearer and sharper, no longer clouded with pain. She even feels a bit of calmness which gives her a brief respite from the storm within. Amanda then feels Hope leave.
Hope goes back downstairs, feeling a bit tired after all that she had done. She had been very busy helping others.
/I need to take a walk for some air to clear my head/ she thinks as she heads outside.
She runs into Hank as she goes out; he notices that she is a little pale and he realizes what she's been doing.
"Hope, you really need to quit trying to do everything on your own. One of these days you are going to suffer a burnout, then where will everyone be when that happens? There are other people who are quite capable of looking out after the sick and injured as well."
"Oh, so you don't like the fact that I can help people just a bit faster than you can? All I am trying to do is to help, is that a crime, Hank? I wasn't trying to take the spotlight from you. I'm sorry that I am making you feel useless. I wasn't trying to.. I thought you knew better."
Hope rubs her head, as she feels a very bad headache coming on. Hank sees her expression of pain and he moves towards her, concerned. Hope shoves him away.
"I don't need your help.. You don't want my help. Why don't you just go to Hades!!"
"My dear Lady, I am all ready there!!!!" he growls.
Hope, barely able to see through the white fire of her headache, looks in horror to see Hank's face distort in a fit of rage.
"Hank, NO!!!!!!" she screams as he approaches her, his hands reaching out to grab her, crush her in his arms.
Pain sears through her head so intensely, so agonizingly, she screams once more... then she slumps, a trickle of blood leaking from her nose.
Athena, hearing Hope's screams, rushes outside along with Bobby. Others follow. There they find Hank holding Hope in his arms, a small trickle of blood coming from her nose.
Leilee looks at the situation at hand.
"This doesn't look good." she says, summing up the situation in those four words.
Everyone looks at Beast, not knowing what to think. Tina moves over and looks the situation over.
"It looks like he's going to have to come with me downtown." She says, pulling out a pair of cuffs and moving over to Hank.
Bobby takes the limp form of Hope from him, and places her gently on the couch.
Hank looks bewildered at Hope, shaking his head. "But I didn't do anything to her." He says, allowing himself to be handcuffed.
Tina reads Hank his rights as he stands quietly.
"This is going to have to be sorted out downtown," Tina replies as she heads for the door.
As Amanda continues her search for Jonas and Sammi, she receives a message for her alone.
~Score!!!~ says a voice so hated and familiar.
"What are the charges?" Asks Teb, as she and Ange come to the door looking perplexed at what they were seeing.
Tina looks at them, then back at the others inside, "Either assault or murder, depending if she is alive."
Bobby puts his ear near Hope's mouth.
"She's still breathing, but I'm no doctor so I don't know what condition she is in," he replies.
Dreamweaver
"It doesn't matter yet. He's coming downtown with me." Tina replied as she dragged a bewildered Hank with her.
~That will be enough, madam. You have caused me enough trouble today.~ replied a strong, assertive voice.
"Who said that?" demanded Tina of the crowd around her, while everyone else looked at her if she were nuts.
~I'm speaking in your mind as many others here can do. I'm a mutant just like you and everyone else here. I was trying to find some missing friends, but your scene is preventing me from doing so.~
"But this...this... gentleman assaulted the lady." stated Tina, bewildered, while everyone else started to figure out what was going on.
~No, he did not. Now you have two choices. One, you take off the cuffs go inside and wait like a good little girl. The second is that I blow up your police car.~
"You wouldn't dare." Challenged Tina.
"Dare what?" whispered Magneto to Xavier.
Xavier, who had heard the conversation, sent out a telepathic command, ~Move away from the car.~ As everyone obeyed Xavier's command, Hank having to pull Tina, a psychic arrow sped passed them towards Tina's car. The car was engulfed in blue light for a second, and then exploded. Everyone stood in silence. Slowly Tina removed the cuffs.
~Now if you would all go inside for a second and behave, I might be able to find Sammi and Jonas.~ stated Amanda in a dangerously sweet voice.
Magneto turned towards Xavier with a questioning look. In a matter of seconds, everyone else was looking at him with the same look.
"I am surprised that I have to remind you of her temper. After what she has been through in the last few hours, I suggest we do what she asked." explained Xavier as he headed inside.
A.C.