Back to Bayville – Part IV
At ten to four, Remy stood inside the Danger Room with Piotr, John and Logan. The other students had arrived home from school not too long ago and were changing into their battle gear. As he shuffled a deck of cards in his hands, he could feel the glare that Logan was pinning on him. He idly wondered if it was because he had caught him and Rogue sleeping in the Rec Room together this morning. Rogue. They had watched two more movies before his training session and had lunch in between. *She definitely makes a guy wanna work wit' de good guys.* There was no way he could deny it. She connected with him in a way no one ever had, not even Belle. They had talked a lot more today, learning more about each other, but never did once discuss the bond that existed between them. He had a feeling that she wasn't sitting well with it but he didn't want to pry. When he had left the infirmary, she looked pretty tired so he was hoping she would take a nap. That way she wouldn't think about it too much.
"Alright, let's get started." The sound of Logan's voice disturbed Remy's train of thought and he looked up to see that everyone else had already entered the room. "You all will be participating in a modified run of Capture the Flag. I'm dividing you into two teams: Blue and Gold. The objective is to steal the other team's flag and bring it back to your base. Since these run is a practice in teamwork here are the rules: Once the other team's flag has been captured each member of the team has to carry the flag for at least two minutes before bringin' it back to home base; after capture, Kitty and Kurt can't use their powers while they hold the flag, meanin' one of their teammates has to help them across; Kitty and Kurt also can't use their powers to help their teammates back to base if that teammate has the flag; Jean can't use her powers to track the other team and Chuck'll be upstairs monitorin' to make sure; the flag must be visible at all times so tie if around your wrist or somethin'; and in order for your team to win, all of your team members have to be in the base before you sound the alarm that tells us you have the flag back at your base. Any questions?" Everyone shook their heads. "Good. Here are the teams. Iceman, Jean, Nightcrawler and Gambit, Gold Team. Pyro, Shadowcat, Colossus, and Cyclops, Blue Team." The two teams formed on either side of Logan. He nodded up to the control booth and the room transformed into a sort of arena. The floor changed levels to provide obstacles and hiding blocks and two designated base area formed on opposite sides of the room. A flag hung at the top of each base, one gold and one blue, so each team knew where to go. "Sim starts when I give the word from the booth. Head to your bases." Logan exited the room and the lights dimmed significantly. A semi-thick mist filtered into the room, obscuring their vision even more. Each base lit up with the color of its team and the obstacles were outlined with rope lighting. Each team headed into their base to form some sort of a strategy before Logan gave the word to start. After about five minutes, Logan gave the signal to start. Loud club music pounded through the speakers, making it difficult for either team to hear their opponents coming.
"Where did you get the idea for this simulation?" the professor asked.
"Saw a commercial for the new laser tag arena they built in town," Logan replied, watching the room below. "Thought it could work."
Xavier nodded in agreement. "Very good."
Meanwhile, down in the Danger Room . . .
Bobby erected three thick walls of ice, each about six inches apart, to protect the Gold base. He had been elected to guard the flag and wanted to make sure his opponents had a hard breaking through the last wall since he wouldn't be able to hear them approach. Jean had created a telepathic link with her teammates so that they all would know what was going on with each other and communicate while separated. She and Kurt had taken point, looking out for the other team while making their way to the Blue base. They figured that he could teleport them in and she could provide the distraction while he grabbed the flag. She could shield the both of them while they made their way back to base. Gambit would be providing back up to Bobby, delaying those who attempted to get through his walls. On the other end, Kitty was standing and holding on to their flag, making it intangible. Anyone who tried to grab it wouldn't be able to. Scott stayed in the base with her to provide protection as well as an offensive weapon. Colossus and Pyro were in charge of capturing the Gold flag and were making their way through the arena.
Jean and Kurt were trying to move towards the Blue base as quickly as possible. They had seen both Piotr and John creeping towards their own base and knew that Remy and Bobby wouldn't be able to hold them for long.
Heads up guys, Piotr and John are heading your way, Jean sent out.
I read ya. T'anks for de warnin', Remy replied. He had scaled one of the taller columns in hopes of being able to see anyone who was trying to come their way. He had figured that no one would think to look up because it was hard to see through the haze and so much concentration had to be placed on looking forward. With the lights dimmed he hoped that he blended in the general darkness of the room, allowing him to get the jump on anyone who passed. His spacial awareness allowed him to track nearly everyone in the room and he was well aware that his fellow Acolytes were about thirty feet away. When they had passed his hiding spot he was about to make his move when Jean's voice rang through his head.
There's a problem. Kitty is holding their team flag, making it intangible. It looks like Scott is providing her protection. It's going to take us a while to figure out how to grab their flag.
Well, y' don' got a while, de ot'ers are already near our base. Figure sometin' out while I try and stop dese guys.
Yeah, I don't know how long my shields will keep them out, Bobby added.
John and Piotr slowly advanced on the Gold base when they were suddenly knocked off their feet by a several small explosions.
"Looks like our buddy Gambit decided to give us a warm welcome," John told Piotr. Several more explosions erupted around them, preventing them from getting back on their feet. The accompanying smoke made it near impossible to determine where Gambit was. Back at their base, Kitty and Scott could hear the fight faintly over the music.
"Sounds like Gambit is defending the base," Scott assessed. "Keep your eyes open. I bet the Gold team is close." As soon as the words were out of his mouth, Scott found himself grabbed from behind and teleported away from his base. *Kurt,* he thought. He tried to make a grab for the furry mutant but was not fast enough. Kurt had already teleported back to the Blue base to help Jean with Kitty. Scott started to head back to his base but then realized he was quite close to the Gold base. With his other two teammates distracting Gambit, he could go after the flag. He came upon the first layer of ice and began to blast his way through. When he got through to the second wall, Iceman finally realized someone was trying to get through.
Hey! Someone's breaking through the walls! They're at the second layer! Bobby hollered through the link.
Crap! I must've teleported Scott too close! Vhe have to hurry! Kurt moved behind Kitty while Jean mentally suggested for the girl to stop using her powers. It worked and Jean quickly grabbed the flag. Kurt latched onto Kitty and teleported her away.
"Blue Team flag captured," the computerized voice sent out.
"Someone! Scott's getting through my last wall! I can't regenerate fast enough to keep up!"
Don' worry. I be right – argh! A searing pain ripped through Gambit's mind and echoed through the link with his teammates. Iceman clutched his head, no longer able to defend Scott's attack. Jean and Kurt stumbled with pain, allowing a trailing Kitty to catch up and grab back her team's flag. Remy had been in the middle of trying to jump to the next column and was now hanging on to the edge. He tried to pull himself up when another wave of pain battered him, causing him to lose his grip. He fell to the floor, banging his shoulder on the ground. A new pain ripped through his arm and his shields momentarily slipped, alerting the professor of his peril. Ignoring his injured shoulder, he quickly got up and raced for the door. Along with the last wave he had felt a cry for help, a cry from Rogue. She was in trouble.
Gambit! What's wrong? the professor's voice rang clear in his mind.
Rogue, she in trouble. Callin' me. Gotta help 'er. Lemme out! he banged on the Danger Room doors.
I sense she is sleeping. I do not sense any danger.
Before he could answer, another flood of pain battered his mind and he could hear Rogue scream from the assault. Non! I can hear 'er! I can feel it! Lemme out or I'm blastin' de door!
"Logan, end the simulation and open the doors. Now!" Xavier ordred, already rolling out the exit. He did as he was told and aborted the program. The room cleared instantly and he watched Gambit shoot out the doors. He surveyed the rest of the room and saw all of the other members of the Gold team lying on the ground. Kurt and Bobby were out cold and Kitty was helping Jean up. Scott was looking over Bobby while John and Peter stood, confused.
"What in flamin' hell happened?!" Wolverine bellowed through the intercom.
"I don't know. When I blew through the last ice wall, Bobby was already unconscious," Scott replied, looking up at the control booth.
"Yeah, I saw Jean and Kurt stumble for, like, no reason," Kitty chimed in.
"No," Jean said, rubbing her temple. "It was Gambit. He was feeling a lot of pain in his mind and it bounced along the link I had established between the four of us. I threw up a shield to protect my mind but I didn't cut the link in time for the second wave."
"Was someone attacking Gambit?" Scott asked.
"No. From what I can gather, I think the pain was coming from Rogue."
**********
As soon as the doors had parted enough, Remy shot through them and raced to the elevator. He was a bit surprised to see Xavier already waiting inside and holding the door open but he was grateful. The ride down seem much too slow for his liking but it gave him time to switch his fingerless gloves for complete ones. When the elevator opened to the sub basement he sprinted to Rogue's room, leaving the professor behind. He ran through the door to see Rogue had fallen out of bed and was clutching her head tightly, sheets twisted around her legs.
"Rogue!" Remy dropped to his knees and clutched her shoulders, trying to get her attention. "Chére, what's wrong?! What can I do?!"
"Re-my . . . help . . .me . . .," Rogue managed to struggle out before she felt another blow to her mental shields.
This time, he was prepared for the excruciating sensation. In his mind he could see the link light up with fire. He fought through and traveled the link into Rogue's mind. He manifested in front of Rogue's shields and right away saw the cause for her pain. A figure dressed completely in black was trying to break through with a bright purple sword. Without hesitation he sprang into action, tackling the unknown assailant. Both of them rolled to a standing position and assessed one another.
"What're y' doin' here?" Remy demanded.
"My job!" a distinctly female voice retorted before lunging at Remy in attack.
Meanwhile, Xavier wheeled in the room to see Remy holding Rogue on the floor. Rogue's hands were now latched onto Remy's upper arms as he gripped her up by the shoulders. Their eyes were shut as if in deep concentration and beads of sweat rolled down Rogue's face. Remy's jaw was clenched tight and he would grunt every now and then, as if he was taking a hit. Xavier tried to enter Rogue's mind but was kept out by a foreign shield. Behind him, Logan barreled into the room, claws out and eyes ablaze.
"Is he hurting her?!" he asked as his gaze fell upon the two.
"No, someone is attacking her mind and it looks like Remy has been able to get in. From what I can discern he is fighting the intruder mentally but he will need help. Someone is keeping me from interfering. Kurt, I need you to teleport Jean down to Rogue's room, he mentally commanded. Kurt and Jean instantly appeared next to him.
"Mein Gott! Vhat is happening?" His sister was in obvious pain and Gambit didn't look much better.
"Gambit is trying to fight whatever force is attempting to invade Rogue's mind. Jean, I'm going to the astral plane to try and figure out who is keeping me out. As soon as you hear my signal, enter Rogue's mind and help Gambit. Logan, put the others on alert. With most of energies focused down here, I do not want to be left open for attack. Kurt, stay here and guard our bodies. Since all of us will be detached mentally, you must ensure that nothing happens to our physically forms." Logan left to warn the others and lock down the mansion while the other two could only watch as the professor went in search of his mental foe. Once on the astral plane, he could see who was trying to keep Rogue from receiving aid.
"Emma Frost."
Emma whirled around at the sound of her name. "Xavier!" Her eyes widened a bit in panic. "How did you figure out what was going on?! I made sure that the girl did not project her plight!" "The matter in which I have discovered your misdeeds is of no consequence. You should not have come here for I shall show you no mercy for harming one of my students. You do not belong here." Xavier advanced to attack but his adversary soon vanished into thin air.
"I have no quarrel with you, Xavier. But mark my words, the girl shall fulfill her calling and even you will not have the power to stop it," Emma's voice floated across the dreamscape.
"We shall see."
Xavier opened his eyes. "Jean, now!"
Jean quickly entered Rogue's mind to see both Gambit and an unknown figure fighting ruthlessly. The stranger was sheathed in blue body armor while Gambit's coat was in tatters and most of his uniform was slashed. The outsider managed to trip Remy up with a sweep of the leg and now stood over him. He was too fatigued to fight back.
"I was after the girl but you will do just fine." A fiery purple blade appeared on her hand and she poised to strike Gambit in the head.
"Not on my watch." Jean struck down the girl with a powerful psychic blast. The girl, shocked at being struck from behind, looked at Jean. Jean had geared up in her green psychic armor and now hovered above the girl, looking down menacingly. It was obvious to the girl that she had been abandoned by her partner so she, too, disappeared.
Jean floated down to Remy, who was slowly getting up. "We have to leave here. Our presence is putting stress on Rogue's mind. Can you get out okay?"
"Oui. T'anks for de assist. Don' tell Rogue I was gettin' my ass kicked," he winked at her before going back to his own body.
Jean simply shook her head as she did the same.
**********
Rogue opened her eyes and immediately knew something was wrong. She had woken up on lying on her left side so a bunch of bulky medical equipment should have been in her line of sight. Instead she saw an unmade bed separated from her own by a nightstand. The room was dark save for the glow from what she assumed was the TV since she could hear muted voices in the background. She turned over to see Remy, dressed in simple track pants, a wife beater, socks and gloves, dozing in a recliner that was placed close to her bed. He was seated next to the balcony doors so the moonlight streamed in and made his face glow. She lay for a minute, just watching him and memorizing the way he looked.
"Remy?" she finally croaked out.
At the sound of his name, Remy's eyes flew open and he jumped to the edge of her bed into a defensive stance, cards drawn and charged. His head turned back and forth, looking for an intruder.
"Hey, what's goin' on?" she asked, her voice gaining strength.
He turned around upon hearing her voice and realized it was she who had called out to him. "Chére.' He gave her what looked like a smile of relief and tossed the cards in the air, letting them sizzle to ash. "Y'r awake." He moved to sit down on the edge of the bed, next to her and reached out to tuck the hair that had fallen into her eyes behind her ear. "How y' feelin'?"
She reached up with her right hand and put the heel to her temple. "Besides the throbbin' in my head, I'm okay. Starvin' but okay."
He laughed at her comment. "Yeah, I figured dis wouldn' be enough," holding the IV that was stuck in her arm.
"Yeah, no kiddin'." She sat up and promptly removed the needle from her arm, seeing that a nice bruise was already forming there. "So, what happened? Why am Ah here?"
The smile left his face as he took on a more serious tone. "What do y' remember?"
She thought back to her latest memories. "Ah remember ya leavin' ta go ta trainin' and then Ah think Ah fell asleep. Ah think Ah woke up once 'cause my head hurt real bad but Ah was too tired to do anythin' about it so Ah went back to bed. Ah think Ah must've been dreamin' a lot 'cause a lot of images are flashin' through my head."
"What do y' see?"
She scrunched up her brow in concentration. "Ah remember a man with some glowin' thing on his chest. Blood on my dress. A night club. Wedding bells. A diamond ring. Gunshots." She looked at him. "My friends were there, wearin' weird clothes. You were there, a lot."
"Wow," he said, shaking his head.
"What?"
He focused his attention on her once again. "I saw everyt'in y' did. When y' were out, I guess y' mind was healin' or somet'in. We didn' really have dreams, just images. I don' know if dey were comin' from y' or me."
"What do ya mean healin'? How long have Ah been asleep?"
"Ten days."
"Ten days?!"
"Oui." He turned on the lamp on the nightstand behind the recliner and then turned off the TV. Turning back to her, he took one of her hands in his. "Dat day I went to trainin' someone attacked y'r mind, tryin' to get in. T'ankfully, y'r shields are real strong and dey couldn' get in. I felt y'r pain t'rough our link and came to help you out. X tried to get in and kick de person out but someone was preventin' him from getting' t'rough. I was able to get in an' try to fight de person off and Jean came and kicked dem out. De prof figured out who was blockin' and we been tryin' to figure out why de after y' ever since."
Rogue was rendered momentarily speechless. All she could do was stare as she processed the new information. "Are . . . are they just after me?" she asked after a while.
Remy looked down at their hands. "Non. Dey after me, too. A couple days after dey got to y' dey tried to get me, but dey messed up and gave away dere presence. T'ankfully dey hadn' tried attackin' my shields yet or y' wouldn' been in a lot more pain."
"What makes us so special?"
"X t'inks it has sometin' to do wit' de fact dat we're bonded an' de dreams we been havin'. We been broadcastin' I guess and X has seen some of what we seen. A lot of de images are repetitive. We been tryin' to figure out what dey mean."
"Oh." This was certainly getting a lot more complicated than she had hoped. "So why are we not in the Lab?"
"X amd Magneto built dis room to have psi shieldin' so dat nothin' gets in or out. Our minds are weakest when we sleep so we been sleepin' here."
She raised an eyebrow. "We've been sleepin' in the same room?"
"Yup."
"For how long?"
"'Bout five days now."
"And no one has killed ya yet?"
"Dey won' let 'em."
"Never stopped them from creatin' 'accidents'."
"Mebbe I got on dere good side by helpin' y' out. 'Sides, can' be takin' advantage of a lady who's unconscious. Against de gentleman in me." He flashed her a charming smile but she didn't take the bait.
"There's somethin' your not tellin' me. Ah know them pretty well and it takes a lot more than tryin' to protect me to get on their good side, especially since ya work for Mags."
"Jus' won' let me have my dignity, will ya?"
"Not when it can be avoided."
"Fine." He crossed his arms. "At about ten o'clock every night Logan'll post up outside de door. Every mornin' before school, Kurt teleports in here to make sure we in separate beds. 'Ro still brings all our meals up here, or at least mine for de past few days. McCoy's checkin' in on y' every t'ree hours. After school, Scott tries to give me de t'ird degree for an hour before he gives up and den Kurt tries to do de same. I spend an hour wit' de prof on analyzin' de dreams and he comes in sometime durin' de night to see what we're dreamin' 'bout. On top o' dat, Kitty phase her head in de room at de weirdest times. Y' know how disturbin' it is to see dat?"
"Do tell. See? That wasn't so hard." She looked at the clock sitting on the nightstand. 8:34PM. "Where's everyone now?"
"All de kids went out 'cept Jamie. Magneto and Xavier are somewhere round here doin' whatever it is dey do. Logan went out wit' 'Ro. Dey say it's a mission but I t'ink it's a date. No one gets dat excited 'bout missions. McCoy is down in de lab, catalogin' me, John and Piotr into de system."
Rogue's head snapped up. "Did he find out the results of our test?"
Remy knew better than to joke around with this answer. "Oui, found out dat day. Don' worry. We're not related. Far from it accordin' to de doctor."
She flopped back down onto the pillows. "Thank God. Ah don't know if Ah could've handled another long lost brother."
"I hear ya. I bet Kurt would've been t'rilled wit' dat news."
"Yeah, he'd probably be pissed at not bein' the oldest brother anymore." They shared a laugh, more out of relief than humor.
"Hey, how 'bout I go down and get y' somet'in to eat? I made Cajun Chicken wit' rice and corn on de cob. Y' can have dat if y' don' mind de spice."
"Ya made dinner?"
"'Cause I was hungry. M'sieu Bété may be a genius but he be lackin' in de culinary skills, as I discovered last week."
"No argument there. Sounds good."
"Bón." He got up and handed her the remote control. "Here, y' can watch while I'm gone. Dere's cable up here." As he was closing the door behind him, Rogue called out to him.
"Hey, Remy?"
He poked his head back through. "Yeah, chére?"
She gave him a small smile. "Thanks for comin' to my rescue. It really means a lot and Ah really appreciate it. It's not every day that someone gets their ass kicked for me." Her smiled then transformed into a smirk. "Especially by a girl."
All Remy could do was groan before shutting the door.
**********
As always, your reviews have been greatly appreciated. It's always nice to know that people are actually reading your work. :)
To everyone who told me to write more: Don't worry, there will be lots more chapters on the way. If time only worked with me and not against me we'd all be happy campers.
Panther Nesmith: Green, huh? Cool beans. You have to watch the Matrix before the sequel. It's a pretty good movie.
Vagabond: As you can see, they are not related. If I wrote that I would have to hurt myself. Just say no to incest.
Neurotic Temptress: As funny as it sounds, I think the whole motivation thing worked. All of sudden this story has taken over my brain and I'm writing out the chapters every chance I get. (I bet it's just going to come and bite me in the ass when finals come around though . . . )
Lulu: Magic 8 Ball, Magic 8 Ball, will anyone figure it out? Response - Better not tell you now. :)
Goldylokz: Ah, the make-up issue. Honestly, I just can't stand the purple. Reminds me too much of Belladonna (have you read the Rogue Limited Series?). If they would make it some other color I would be just fine. Of course, I could just do that, too . . .