Chapter Nine: Mindstorm's Revenge

On the flight home, and now resting in my room at the mansion, I'd had plenty of time to think over what had happened during the last few hours. The Professor was down in the infirmary; he and Cyclops were attending to Storm and Wolverine. A meeting was planned for when the two of them were recovered, and until then there was nothing for me to do. It was the middle of the night, and I'd gone to my room to try and catch some sleep, but I couldn't seem to drop off. Lying on my bed, staring up at the ceiling, I wondered if I would ever be able to forgive myself for what I had done.

The images were still horrifyingly fresh in my mind: Chloe writhing, screaming in agony as I used the device on her. What evil was this, that a man could be forced to inflict such pain on the one he loved most? Chloe and I hadn't spoken about it, and I knew she bore me no hate or malice for what I had done, but I was still struggling to cope with it. I knew the memories and the images would stay with me forever, haunting me every day. I knew that nothing I could do would ever blot them out. I knew that I would never forgive Van Gaarde. He was exactly like my father: completely obsessed by his research work, unable to see the pain and grief he was causing. I'd killed my father, and I knew, if I got the chance, I would kill Van Gaarde as well.

I sighed and closed my eyes. The images were still there, as if they were burned into my retina. Chloe…innocent, pure, and loving…and utterly undeserving of the anguish she had gone through. Why were the innocents always the first to suffer? Why were the defenceless always slain?

Because evil existed within all of us. That was another of the realisations I had had while I was locked deep in thought on our way home in the jet. Nobody was good. We were all potentially evil. It was just a question of how hard you tried to squash that potential. It would never fully go away. Life was a constant struggle between giving into temptation and doing evil, or resisting it and doing what you knew was right. The trouble was, the right thing was rarely what you wanted to do, and it was all too easy to give in.

I sensed somebody approaching, and opened my eyes to see Chloe standing over me. She sat down on the bed next to me, put her hand on my arm, and smiled, "Hi."

"Hey," I said, returning her smile. "Listen, I just want to say sorry for what happened back there. Please don't hate me for it."

"I don't. I know you were only doing what you had to do to keep me alive. I know you'd never willingly hurt me."

"I don't deserve you, Chloe. You're too good for me."

"Don't say that. You know we're both right for each other."

"You deserve somebody better than me. Somebody who'd never hurt you the way I did."

"You're wrong. No-one but you could have healed me of that poison," she reminded me, squeezing my hand. "When I thought I was going to die…all I could think about was that I would never see you again…"

"All I could think about was the life you were never going to have, and the future we would never be able to share."

"We've got it back now. Nobody can take it away from us. Our future is whatever we want to make it."

I smiled, "Let's never hurt each other again."

Chloe kissed me, wrapping her arms around my neck, sinking down on the bed by my side. I returned her kiss, putting my arm over her, pulling her close to me. All my sorrows, my worries and my grief, melted away into nothingness as we shared our love. Our bodies were pressed tightly together, and I could feel her heartbeat, matching time with my own, accelerating in tandem, as our passion and excitement grew. I formed a telepathic link between us, and pushed out to Chloe with my emotions. She gave a delighted gasp, "What was that?"

"You said I never shared my feelings," I smiled. "That was the only way I could think of doing it."

She kissed me again, the two of us wrapped in the warmth of our shared emotions, both of us feeling what the other could feel, and I felt Chloe's leg moving, over on top of mine. She twisted, shifted her weight, and suddenly she was on top of me, lifting my head slightly for another passionate kiss. I had never felt this excited before. My emotions were spiralling out of control, as were hers, and both of us could feel it. How far was she willing to go? Did she want to – could we be about to – ? Neither of us was wearing very much; Chloe only had her nightdress on, and I was wearing a T-shirt and shorts; nothing that couldn't easily be removed…

Suddenly all thoughts of sex went out of my mind. Like a dagger piercing the silent veil of the night, from elsewhere in the building came a telepathic scream, a desperate cry for help. I jerked upright, surprising Chloe, who felt how tense my body had become, and asked in a concerned voice, "Are you all right? Did I hurt you or something?"

"No. Something's wrong. Someone's in trouble."

"What? Who?"

"I don't know. Someone just called for help."

"I didn't hear anything."

"It was telepathic. I think I know who it was. Get dressed; we've got to get downstairs."

Jumping off the bed, I grabbed the clothes I'd left hanging over my chair, and hurriedly put them on. As I left the room, Chloe was running across the room to find something to wear.

"I'm going down to see what's going on," I said. "Get Chris and Felicity and anyone else you can find! Meet me at the elevator!"

Without waiting for an acknowledgement, I left the room and ran to the staircase, down to the ground floor. The elevator was along the corridor and around the corner…I went as fast as I could, and was just in time to see the elevator doors opening and a figure stumbling out into the passageway, holding his side.

"Wolverine!" I said. "Are you all right?"

He looked over at me, "Yeah, kid, I'll heal."

"What happened?"

He leaned against the wall, and I sensed his healing ability activating, "It was that girl – the one who used to be your friend."

"Psyche? What did she do?"

"I don't know. None of it makes any sense. She knocked out the Prof – I don't know how she did it – then Storm and Cyclops were trying to kill me. I only just got out of there alive."

"She must be controlling their minds," I said. "If the Professor got knocked out, there'd be nobody to stop her."

"Yeah, I guess that could be it," he agreed. "I'd only just woken up, so I wasn't really focusing on what was going on. My survival instinct took over and I managed to get out."

"How could she knock out the Professor? She's not as powerful as he is – not yet, anyway."

"I don't know. He was sort of leaning over to talk to her, then she grabbed hold of his hand, and – I dunno. He sort of yelled, then just collapsed."

"And then?" I said.

"She was asleep for a few moments, then she woke up. None of us knew what was going on, and Xavier had told us not to hurt her, so we didn't do anything. She started laughing, then she must have taken over their minds. I ran. Does that make any sense to you?"

"I'm not sure. I can guess what might have happened," I frowned. "When she grabbed hold of the Professor, she must have pulled him inside her mind."

"What?"

I continued, "Then there must have been a battle to take control of her mind, and Mindstorm must have won."

"Hey, slow down! Explain it to me in English!"

"All right," I said. "We told you how our friend Jacqueline managed to pull Mindstorm inside her head. She has this ability to contain multiple minds."

"With you so far."

"The thing is, when she does it, her own mind loses control of her body. When that happens, any one of the resident minds can take over. Mindstorm must have got there first, and she's now in control."

"She's the psychopathic one?"

"That's right. And now she's got Jacqueline's power at her disposal. What do you think we should do?"

Wolverine sighed, "I don't know. If you're right about this, then we can't kill her, because the Prof's mind is inside her. We can't kill Storm, and I guess we can't kill Cyclops either, but we have to stop all three of them."

"I asked Gaia to bring the rest down here," I said. "Even with all of us, I can't see how we're going to do it. There's only one way down there, and they'll be ready to kill us the moment we step out of the elevator."

"Yeah. It's bad."

I looked down at the floor, and forced my eyes to focus beyond it, trying to find out what was going on in the base below. It seemed unbelievable that this could have happened. We'd only just come back exhausted from one crisis, and another one had been thrust upon us right away. Psyche was dangerous – I had obviously underestimated just how dangerous – and now with Mindstorm controlling her body, she had to be stopped, this time once and for all. Mindstorm had to be removed from her head, and the Professor returned to his own body, then Jacqueline could be herself again. The scream I had heard…I knew now who it was: Jacqueline's child mind. It had been the seven year-old's last cry, a scream of terror and despair, seconds before her consciousness had been snuffed out by Mindstorm's power.

I could see them now, on the floor below. Cyclops was standing just outside the elevator, waiting to blast anyone who came down. Storm was a few feet behind him, ready to back him up if necessary. Psyche was around the corner and further along, at the door that led to Cerebro. She was pushing at the door, then running her hand along its surface, checking for weaknesses, looking for a way in. I wondered what her plan was, why she wanted to use the Professor's machine.

"She's trying to get into Cerebro," I said to Wolverine.

"She can't get in without the Prof's retinal scan. There's no other way to open it, right?"

"I've opened it before. But I've got powers she doesn't have. She can't get it open."

"Wait a minute. The Prof's down there. What if she drags him over and uses his retinal ID?"

I shook my head, "It wouldn't work. The Professor's told me about the machine, and the door mechanism is programmed not to respond if he's unconscious. It's one of the security measures he's put in."

"You said you could open it?"

"Yeah."

"In that case, maybe we can bargain with her. Tell her you'll open the door for her if we can get Storm and Cyclops back."

I looked at him suspiciously. His suggestion of making a bargain with Mindstorm reminded me that I'd done the exact same thing, while I had been under her control. I pushed out my senses towards Wolverine. Immediately I sensed Mindstorm's power at work in him. This bargain was obviously her idea. I didn't know what she wanted to use Cerebro for, but it had to be important if she was willing to release Cyclops and Storm from her power and return them to us. If it was that important to her, it was probably bad for the rest of us.

I began pushing at Mindstorm, trying to force her out of Wolverine's brain. It was working; she seemed surprisingly weak and sluggish. But then, she was trying to control three people's minds at once. It had to be taxing her power. I continued to press, forcing her out, then I sensed a burst of anger from the floor below, and she left Wolverine's mind. He shook his head and said, "Uh. What was I just saying?"

"You were being controlled by her," I said. "I – "

I was interrupted by the sound of footsteps hurrying down the corridor towards me. I turned to see Chloe, followed by Chris, Felicity, Marie and Bobby, as they arrived at my side.

"What's going on?" Chris demanded.

I told them. Chloe's eyes widened and she seemed upset at the death of the child mind. I was sad too, but I knew the child mind had not been enjoying a happy existence.

"I don't think Mindstorm has enough power left to take over anyone else's mind," I added. "But we still have to be careful. If anyone starts acting suspiciously, let me know."

Bobby grinned and pointed at Chris. I ignored him, then continued, "She's weakening, but she's still dangerous. Having the Professor's mind inside her is probably more than she bargained for. He'll be working against her, trying to get her to stop what she's doing, and that will make it easier for us."

"So what are we going to do?" said Chloe.

"I'm going to go down there," I said. "I'm going to face her. I've got an idea of how I might destroy Mindstorm, and let Jacqueline take her body back."

"What's your idea?"

"I can't tell you. Mindstorm might try to read your thoughts and find out. I can shield my own mind from her."

"What do you want us to do?" said Wolverine.

"Keep Storm and Cyclops off me. Don't kill them, don't knock them out, just keep them occupied. If Mindstorm has to keep manipulating them, it will weaken her further, and give me a better chance of beating her."

"If she kills you, what do we do?"

"Choose a new leader and make a new plan. I don't think she will. Even if my plan doesn't work, I think I'll still have more power left than she does."

"What does she want to use Cerebro for anyway?" asked Marie.

"I don't know. We have to get down there and stop her. It's possible she could find a way to open it. She's done it before, with my help."

"Now?" said Wolverine, indicating the elevator.

I nodded, "You go first. While you guys keep the two of them busy, I'll run past and find Psyche."

Nobody argued. As they entered the elevator, I stopped Chloe and said quietly, so no-one could overhear, "I don't really know how to say this, but – I don't want you to go down there."

"Why not?"

"I don't want you to get hurt. There aren't any animals down there, anyway."

"Hey, I'm not completely useless without them. Chris has been showing me some martial arts."

"I know, Chloe, but – I don't want you to get hurt!"

She shook her head, "You're being over-protective. I know you're still feeling guilty about yesterday, but don't try to make up for it by wrapping me in cotton wool now. Do you think I want to see you get hurt?"

"No."

"I'm not trying to stop you from going down, am I? Please, Neil, I know it's because you love me and you care about me, but I have to live my life. I'm an X-Man, same as you, and we're taking the same risks."

"All right. But promise me you'll be careful."

"I will. And you?"

"I will too."

She smiled and the two of us went into the elevator, the last to do so. Our group descended to the lower level in silence, until Wolverine said, "I'll run out and draw their fire. The rest of you help me keep them busy; Neil, you go and find Psyche and do whatever it is you're gonna do. Let us know if you need any help."

"Right."

"OK, get ready to duck," he said, as the elevator stopped at the underground floor. "Cyclops will probably fire a blast right at us the second the door opens."

The doors silently slid open, and as Wolverine had predicted, a ruby-red optic ray met us instantly. We managed to avoid being hit, and Wolverine sprinted out of the elevator to tackle Cyclops, diving at him and knocking him to the floor. Chris and Chloe ran to his side, and the rest of us hurried past.

Storm approached from around the corner, her eyes taking on the pale white glow that indicated she was about use her powers. A bolt of lightning burst forth from her fingertips, and Felicity pushed me aside to block it.

"It's all right!" she said. "I can't be hurt by lightning! Keep going!"

Marie must have absorbed Bobby's powers, as the two of them began firing ice blasts at Storm, keeping her off balance, preventing her from launching another attack. I glanced over my shoulder to see Cyclops being held down by Wolverine, his face turned towards the floor, where his optic blasts could do no harm. I knew they were buying me time. I ran past Storm and towards Cerebro, to face Psyche.

As I ran down the corridor, leaving the sounds of battle behind me, I could see her, still standing in front of the huge circular door, trying to find a way inside.

"Mindstorm!" I shouted.

She turned to face me, hatred etched into every cell of her features, "You!"

"It's over, Mindstorm. You can't win. You've met your match."

"What, you?" she spat. "Don't make me laugh!"

"No – Professor Xavier. I know you pulled him into your mind, thinking you could trap him. I know he's in there, working against you. You thought you were more powerful than he was. You were wrong."

"I wasn't wrong!" she screamed. "I am more powerful than he is! I am the most powerful telepath on the planet!"

"In that case, why don't you tell me why you're trying to use Cerebro?"

She retorted angrily, "Because I – because……I – I don't know."

"Because the Professor's making you do it," I told her. "He knows it will destroy you, destroy your consciousness completely, so Jacqueline can take back control of her body."

"No! You're lying! He can't! I'm too powerful!"

"No, you're not. In fact, I think the Professor let you drag him into your mind. It was a calculated risk, but he knew it was the only way to destroy you. He had to gamble that Cyclops and Storm wouldn't be able to kill us; he had to get you to take control of their minds so that it would weaken you."

"No!" she shrieked, but this time her voice had lost some of its conviction and its assuredness.

I looked through the door to Cerebro, found the mechanism that opened the door, and lifted a hand to activate it.

"In you go," I said.

Mindstorm gave a last painful cry, as she fought furiously against the Professor's power over her. She had no chance, and I watched as she turned and entered Cerebro. Walking to the device at the end of the platform, Mindstorm placed the helmet over her head. I knew its power was going to destroy her. I knew it was the Professor's doing. It was a daring and brilliant gamble, evidence that Xavier was both more powerful and more ingenious than either Mindstorm or myself. Just as she had earlier fooled me into thinking I was acting under my own volition, Xavier had fooled everybody into thinking Mindstorm was acting by herself.

I could sense it now, the power of the machine beginning to overwhelm her. Mindstorm was screaming, as it began to tear her consciousness apart. I knew the machine's power and how much it could hurt. I'd have felt sympathy for anybody in this situation – anybody but Mindstorm. Everything that she had done, all the times she had tried to hurt me and my friends, particularly Chloe, flashed before my eyes, as she screamed her last. Her body slumped against the machine, and I removed the helmet, placing it back on top of the terminal.

Mindstorm was gone, her last scream still echoing around the confines of the chamber. The sounds of fighting from outside the room had ceased. I put my hand on the side of Jacqueline's head, and I could sense her mind, returning to her body, being guided by the Professor. At last she could be at peace.

Lying on a bed in the infirmary, Jacqueline opened her eyes, looking up at us, and a smile slowly spread over her face. It was a smile of happiness, of contentment, of peace. The Professor had safely travelled back to his own body, and Jacqueline was finally alone in her own mind. I smiled back at her and squeezed her hand, "Welcome back."

Chloe was crying tears of happiness; Chris was kneeling beside the bed and holding Jacqueline's other hand; Felicity was looking on apprehensively, half-expecting Jacqueline to attack at any moment. Jacqueline looked at each of us in turn, her eyes lingering slightly on Chris, and said softly, "Is she really gone? Am I really alone in here?"

"Yes. Thanks to the Professor."

She sighed contentedly, "I never thought I could be this happy. I never thought I could feel this free. I'm myself again, I'm just – me. No other minds inside of me, eating away at my sanity, it's just me."

"That's the way we like you," Chris said awkwardly.

She looked over at him, and I sensed the emotions stirring in her heart. I knew Jacqueline had feelings for Chris. I knew it would upset her to learn that his feelings were for another. I was glad it wasn't my place to tell her. I was glad to have her back with us. At last things were starting to go right.

I knew it wasn't the end; I knew it wasn't the last fight we would have to face, or the last victory we would have to achieve. There were enemies still out there, determined to destroy us, but for the moment I allowed myself to forget about them, to ignore the threats they presented. For now I could relax and enjoy the fact that Jacqueline was once again our friend, that the missing piece of our lives had been replaced, that Mindstorm's reign of terror was finally over. The enemy in our midst was no more, and our friend had been returned to us, safe and sound. It was more than I'd dared hope for. Jacqueline once more had a life and a future to look forward to. Pushing my senses into her mind, I knew there were still scars on her psyche, terrible memories she was trying to suppress, fear and confusion over her mental stability, but those would heal. Without Mindstorm to torment her, and with of all of us to help her through this difficult time, I knew she'd fully regain her sanity; for the first time she'd be able to look forward to the future with hope.

The friend that was lost, had returned.

A/N: Don't worry; this isn't the end. In the next chapter you will finally discover what has happened to Nightcrawler. Please review!

A/N 2: I may have cheated a bit with Storm's power; I don't know if she can use it indoors.