Title: Chances
Chapter 13
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: Don't own, don't sue
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After Logan had left the meeting room, Xavier and the X-men discussed their course of action in taking the mutated senators back. They all avoided mentioning Rogue or Logan. Every now and then Jubilee and Storm would get a tear in their eye and look away. They were all thinking about Rogue and what had just taken place. They all agreed with the professor, that time was of the essence in finding Magneto's ultimate plan. They just wished that they had more time to look for Rogue. What they dearly wished for was a lead as to where she might be. If she was still alive.
Long after the meeting ended and everyone was in bed Jean Grey found herself in the middle of a dream. A dream that was too real by half. She had been walking in the forest at night, the moon bright enough to light her path. She saw in the distance what looked to be a ring of candles with someone sitting in the middle. An unearthly cry of anguish filled the silent night. Suddenly a man grabbed her and flung her off the path onto the ground. She gazed up and saw that he was a tall Native American. He was tall and had jet black hair that was braided to his waist. Around his waist he had small pouches hanging off his jeans. The strangest part was his eyes. They glowed. The strange orbs were silver with blue pupils. As she looked at him, he opened his mouth to speak.
"That is not for you to see. You are not to go further." His voice was soft, but his tone brooked no argument. Jean opened her mouth, but the man shook his head and put a finger on her lips. He gave her his hand to help her up. She looked suspiciously at it before grasping it. As she stood another cry rent the air. She looked over towards the candlelight. She glimpsed something purple in the candlelight. The man grasped her chin and forced her to look over at him.
"You were summoned to this dream for a reason. That," he gestured toward the lights, "is not the reason."
"Then what…" He cut her off.
"You are missing a comrade, correct?" She shook her head affirming it. "She is not where you think she is. The one you seek is in a place that is not a place. Much like this one. If you wish to find her, you will listen carefully."
Jean's eyes widened slightly. "She's alive? Is she well? Where are they holding her?" Jean looked at him suspiciously after there was no reply. "How do you know where she is?"
He looked at her solemnly. His silver/blue eyes filled with pain, remorse and…sympathy? "I was one of the mutants they used through Rogue. I got away. She was not so lucky. When they used my power to distribute into a senators mind, I sent a dream to her, to see what they had done her. They are doing terrible things to her and she will not be able to hold out much longer. The only thing keeping her alive is one thing. The one thing she keeps crying out for is a wolverine. The wolverine is blocked to me in her dreams for some reason. I do not know who or what it is, but it's her only lifeline to this world now."
Jean smiled slightly at him. Logan. "I know who she 's calling for. But where are they keeping her? And what do you mean that she is in a place that's not a place?"
"She is being kept in a dream, so to speak. Another powerful mutant has taken his place in the Brotherhood. He has the power to create other dimensions." He looked at her grimly. "They are sending Rogue to the Void. At least that's what they call it. The void is almost like a holding cell. He can make the Void as unpleasant as he wants. He cannot create worlds; he does not have the power of God. But he can create something like a black hole. The hole itself is here. But it has no weight, has no actual matter. You can't see it, unless you have the power. You cannot feel it. It could be right near where we are standing and you wouldn't have any idea. Even if Rogue was screaming in the Void, and it was right next to you, you would never hear her. It has no concept of sound, time, light, gravity or any other normal human senses. That is the most basic void. He can elaborate on any of it. Almost like my power with dreams. I can create dreams and make a person have them. I can manipulate dreams and nightmares."
"Where is this Void? How can we find it?" Jean asked quietly.
"I will meet you three days hence at midnight, in this same spot in reality."
"How will I know where this is? I've never been here before."
"You will know. You will feel a pull towards this place, drawing you near. If you choose not to come, you will never see your friend again. Dead or alive." As he said those last words, that eerie cry sounded again. This time Jean held his eyes with hers, refusing to look towards the sound. He smiled slightly and nodded. He turned to leave when she stopped him.
"What is your name? And why do you want to help us?" As he turned slowly to her he pointed to her left. She turned to see what he was pointing at, and saw an Indian tribe on their reservation having a ceremonial dance. Dancers whirled around the center fire to the beat of the drums. Ornate masks had been used to cover the dancers faces. Everyone not involved in the actual ceremony were gathered around the dancers. Most sitting on the ground or logs that circled around the fire. She was no longer in the forest but at the reservation. To her right, he was now standing next to her. As the festivities were going on, three men were standing to the side. One she recognized as being the tribal leader. The face of the man standing next to the leader was set in stone. Implacable and extremely angry. As she looked at him she realized it was her mysterious companion. She turned her head and looked at him, he motioned for her to be silent and pointed back towards the men. The third man had his back to her, so she couldn't see his face. He had short grey hair, and was of medium height. The chief was shaking his fists in the air and his face was red. Whatever the grey haired man was telling him, he did not like at all.
As the voices traveled, she found she couldn't understand what was being said. It was in the tongue of the native people. But watching was enough. The chief turned towards the angry version of her escort and shook his fist at him. He was yelling and shaking his head in anger. At this point the celebration had stopped and everyone was watching the three. When at last the chieftain was finished, he gazed up at the clear night sky and closed his eyes. As if he were in conference with the stars. When he looked back at her escort, he crossed his arms over his chest. Her escort looked steadily at him and let his arms fall to his sides. He let his head fall forward, almost in acceptance. Even from this distance she could see the bright shine of a single tear falling down his cheek. The chief reached his hand out and yanked a necklace off of his neck. She looked over at her companion and saw that he was now wearing the same necklace. It was a dream catcher. She looked into the mysterious silver eyes, now suspiciously shiny, and saw an endless pain there.
"He took away my right as shaman; as dreamer of the tribe. I was forever an outcast after that." His voice was even quieter then it had been.
"Who was he?" She asked softly.
"My father." He looked away from her then.
She gazed at the scene still unfolding in front of her. The chief had turned his back on him. When she looked towards the rest of the people, they had all done the same. His head was still hung low. The third man said something else to the chief then turned on his heel. It seemed as if he turned in slow motion, when she caught sight of his face, she let out a small gasp. Magneto.
From out of nowhere, Sabretooth and Mystique appeared. They grabbed hold of him, and started pulling him away. As they pulled him, he struggled and yelled. Though she couldn't understand the words, she understood what he was doing. He was pleading with them. With his family and friends to understand, to accept, to forgive. No one budged. The scene faded from sight then, and they were back in the forest. As she looked at him, she asked no questions. Understanding the pain that he had gone through, needed no more reminding.
"I wear the necklace only in dreams now. I am still shaman, I am still dreamer. Just not of their tribe, or another. He took that away from me. Magneto." Jean only nodded in understanding.
"If you have need of me before those three days are over, before you fall asleep think of me and wear this." He held out a ring, made entirely out of silver. Only the silver kept changing colors. From silver to blue and back again.
"How will I be able to bring this back with me?"
He smiled, "Just put it on, and it will follow where you go." He turned to leave when she called out, "Well what is your name? And how do I get home?"
"Dreamseeker. And just close your eyes and think of home. Goodbye my friend." Then he disappeared into the night. Jean put the ring on and closed her eyes. As she was slipping into unconsciousness she heard that cry again. Almost like a wounded animal…she thought…a wolverine. Then darkness overcame her.
* * *
She woke up suddenly. Scott was still sleeping. She sat up and looked at her ring finger on her right hand. The ring was there. Only it wasn't changing colors anymore. It was just a plain silver band. Jean thought of what Rogue was going through and knew what she had to do. "Scott wake up… we have work to do."
A/N: See…not the end of the story! Please review and hope you enjoyed!