"Oh my god…. Lance," breathed Kitty, not even realizing that with Rick's power working at full blast, he couldn't possibly hear her. Hell, she couldn't hear herself. Her mind was in chaos, and her body pinned under his weight. All she could think of was that Lance looked like he'd been in Hell, and that she saw no spark of recognition in his eyes. His face was sunken and his hair was down to his shoulders and looked like it hadn't been washed in a week. He had several weeks worth of facial hair, and he looked half starved even through the white hospital gown he had on. He wasn't moving; he was just lying on top of her, face blank. It was as if he had not a thought in his head. She didn't know what to do, how to help him. They were running very short on time. If they didn't get out of here soon, everyone in the place would know that their security had been breached.
Kitty did the first thing she thought of. She slapped him. Hard. Yet it had no effect. He just kept staring at her with those horrible blank eyes. She acted by instinct, phasing through him then grabbing his arm, dragging him to his feet. He didn't resist her, but made no move to help her either. She turned to Kurt to see who was left in the facility. Rick was still covering their sound, and Jewel was checking the area to see if any guards were approaching, but Kurt had managed to take all the others out. A movement from the young telepath caught her attention.
*Kitty, people are coming. Two…no, three. They're down the hall and they'll be here really soon,* signed Jewel frantically. She was worried, and Kitty couldn't blame her. Lance's dead weight was almost more than she could manage, and her response was short and to the point.
*Kurt, go.*
Thankfully, he'd followed her orders for long enough that he didn't argue with her. It would strain him beyond his abilities to take them all out at once, but he could manage himself and two passengers alright. He'd just have to come back for her. Kitty took a deep breath and dragged Lance's body through the wall of his cell just as the door opened, admitting two smartly dressed soldiers and another man, a man whose eyes frightened Kitty more than anything she'd seen in a long while.
As if he saw the man, Lance stirred in her arms just enough to tighten his hand into a fist and use his power to shake the men to their knees. But it seemed that even that use of power was too much for him, and he went slack in her arms. The men didn't stay down long. The two soldiers wasted no time in rushing toward her, and only her mutant ability saved her from a collision. Kurt, hurry up, she thought in desperation. She couldn't get the both of them out of here without Lance's cooperation, and it didn't look like she'd get it. Not in the condition he was in.
She was surrounded by the two men, and if she had the strength to carry Lance, they could have escaped the men easily. But she couldn't lift him, and wouldn't leave him to be recaptured. That left evasion, and waiting desperately for her fuzzy friend to get back.
"So," said the man, his eyes aglow with a wild light, "you must be Kitty Pryde." His voice was hard, and so cold it sent chills through her. It had the same effect on Lance, and she realized he wasn't unconscious after all, but he wasn't in a condition to be helpful either. "I must admit, I'm rather impressed with you. I'd thought my base well neigh impenetrable, but evidently not to a girl who can pass through walls. I see you've already taken the others," he said, motioning with his hand to the other cells. "But you can't have him." A slight motion of his hand was the only signal she got from the man before the soldier to his left fired his tranquilizer gun at her. Luckily, it was warning enough. Kitty phased out and the dart went right through her, imbedding itself in the floor.
The look passed over the man's face, a look that would give her nightmares for the next few nights, provided she survived this. She forced herself to look at the man, and remember him. He would be a dangerous enemy, and Kitty was sure that's what he would be. He wasn't tall, but somehow his manner gave him the appearance of extra inches. He was solidly built, and wore an expensive suit, unlike the two soldiers with him who were dressed in Army BDUs. His hair was sandy blonde going to grey at his temples, his face unlined…but his eyes. If ever eyes could embody the characteristics of ice, this man's did. They were pale, pale blue touched with grey, and they were alive with the harshness of the frozen Arctic. Kitty could live her whole life without seeing eyes like that again.
The man smiled then, as if aware that she was taking his measure, but his smile was as cold as his eyes. Kitty repressed a shiver. Plenty of time for fear once I'm out of here. Where the hell is Kurt?
She smelled it before she heard it, and sulfur had never smelled so good.
Kitty smiled at the man. "Goodbye, gentlemen," she said, as Kurt materialized behind her and teleported the three of them out of the compound. The look on the cold man's face was almost worth the terror he'd evoked in her. The next thing Kitty saw was the inside of the Blackbird and the worried faces of her team.
She turned to face her fuzzy friend. "Kurt, I'm not complaining, but what the hell took you so long?"
"I'm sorry, Kitty. Von of the childrens' powers acted up. It caused quite a mess," he explained, and motioned to her left. Sure enough, there was a pile of debris on the ground that had once been part of the plane's hull.
"How's the structural integrity?"
"Ze ship can fly, but I'd like to get back to ze hanger as soon as possible to fix it."
"Alright. I'm not up to flying. Can you take us home please?"
Kurt smiled warmly. "Of course," he responded, leaving her with the rest of the kids. They looked scared, but Kitty was in no mood to relieve them. She was tired and afraid herself, how could she reassure them? One of the rescued mutants broke the silence. She was a pretty girl for all that she looked no older than sixteen. "Thank you," she said simply, but it broke the ice. One by one the other rescued mutants added their voices.
"Where are we going, ma'am?" questioned a boy who looked very similar to the girl who had first spoken.
"Northbrook, Illinois. There is a place there where people like us are safe. It won't take long to get there, our jet is one of the fastest ever made." She remembered something, a memory from more than ten years ago of the day Lance had joined the X-Men. She choked down hysterical laugher as she looked at him. Lance hated flying, she thought. It always made him sick to his stomach.
"Is he gonna be okay?" asked one of them, an older boy almost her own age.
Kitty kept her eyes on Lance, who was truly unconscious now. "I hope so," she replied.