Back to Bayville – Part IX
"Ya really think Ah'm goin' to be able to open that door?" Rogue looked at the door in question. It was quite large and appeared very heavy. Two glowing orbs, which she assumed to be the door handles, crackled with live energy.
"My dear, I don't think, I know." Mesmero told her with a chilling smile. "You see, those glowing spheres are organic in nature and are filled with pent up energy just waiting to be released. Anyone who tries to touch it simply dies from the inability to absorb the energy they emit. Do you understand what this means?"
Rogue couldn't help but glare at him before looking back to the door. "Damn powers. Always thought they were a curse," she muttered.
"On the contrary. Master Apocalypse would view them as a great blessing. Mr. Worthington, please use our key to unlock the door."
Rogue struggled against Angel's grip to no avail. With her hands and feet still bound it made it difficult to fight back. On top of that, he was covered from head to toe. He simply dragged her up to the door and, overpowering her strength with his own, forced her bare hands onto each globe. Instantly, the power surged through her. Warren was not fast enough in letting go and Rogue inadvertently acted as a conduit between him and the door. The great rush of energy shocked him and threw him back, unconscious. Rogue found her hands seemingly glued to the handles and grunted in pain and the raw energy continued to feed into her. She tried desperately to ignore the pain but the transfer was increasing in speed and quantity. When she could not take it anymore she dropped to her knees, screaming in agony, as her powers continued to absorb.
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Remy staggered to his knees as a strange sensation overtook his body. He and the others were sprinting down the corridor, trying to reach the room that held the third door. When Rogue's scream echoed throughout the tunnel as well as his head, they knew they were close. He bent over, placing his palms on the ground for support. It was then he noticed that his body was covered in white fire. Everyone else had stopped and watched Remy as he struggled with the pain of the surging energy coursing through him.
"Vhat's going on?" Kurt asked, alarmed.
"It's . . . Rogue. She's openin' de door . . . absorbin' de energy . . ."
Xavier was stunned at the spectacle before him. Whatever Rogue was absorbing, Remy also received the transfer. The link enabled them to share everything, thoughts, feelings, emotions, physical injuries, and now, absorbed powers. He could now see why Remy was the Guardian and Rogue was the Host. Rogue could absorb any power she wanted which is then passed on to Remy. They were the perfect balance to each other.
Soon the screaming stopped and a soft rumbling reverberated through the cave. Remy staying hunched over, trying to harness the new powers infused into him. It was amazing. He felt as if he could do anything with his powers. A stray pebble caught his eye and tried to will it to charge. To his amazement, it began to glow. After a few seconds it detonated with a small pop, diverting everyone's attention away from him.
"That's new," Hank said as he stared at the small burn mark.
A still glowing Remy got to his feet. "We gotta hurry. De t'ird door is open."
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Rogue sat on the ground as a bright azure light poured out of the door. She noticed that she herself was also aglow, encased in a strange white fire. New power raged through her body but she still felt extremely weak from the energy transfer. She looked up to see Jean still floating in the middle of the room, her telekinesis encasing Scott in a psychic bubble. The others were all knocked unconscious. *So much for the rescue team.*
"He's coming. I can feel it." Mesmero's voice floated over to her and she halfheartedly turned her head to look at him. He stood at the door, arms wide in welcoming. "Ms. Braddock, please finish your job."
Before Rogue even had time to think about what that meant, Psylocke towered over her. A large kitana shined in her hands. Shit, guess Ah'm not the host. In the blink of an eye, the long blade found itself embedded in Rogue's abdomen and the southern belle fell back onto the floor.
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They had just reached the opening when Remy again collapsed to his knees, clutching at his stomach. He pulled his hand away to see it covered in blood. Gasping for air, he rolled onto his back, exposing his wound for everyone to see.
"Christ!" Logan rushed over to him and pressed on the gash, trying to stop the blood from gushing out. To his horror, the blood began to pool underneath his back. "He's cut straight through!"
Xavier was trying to take in the scene before him. Jean floated in the air, a look of grim determination on her face as her hair swirled wildly about. Cyclops was trying in vain to get her to release him. The rest of the team was out of commission. Mesmero stood at the now open door. Near his feet he could see the gleaming sword that protruded out of Rogue's prone body.
"Chuck! What in flamin' hell are ya waitin' for?! We gotta do somethin'!"
"We cannot! They agreed to the plan and we have to stick to it!"
"I didn't agree to the plan so I ain't stickin' to it! Elf! 'Port me to Rogue! I can save her!"
Kurt grabbed Wolverine and they disappeared in a puff of smoke, only to reappear in the same place. Kurt looked at the professor. "He vhon't let me go!"
"Damn it Charles!" Logan yelled, enraged.
"This is the only way!"
Remy tried to explain otherwise. "No . . . Rogue . . . not . . . de host . . ."
"THE TIME HAS COME." A deep, booming voice echoed throughout the cavern. Through the doors, a bright red beam shot out, lancing into Jean's back and bathing her in crimson light. She screamed and immediately released Scott. Seeing that Charles was distracted Kurt quickly teleported Logan and Remy to Rogue's side. Pure rage filled Kurt as he saw his sister lying on the ground with a sword impaled into her stomach. Looking around he spotted Rogue attacker slowing advancing on them. Leaping forward, Kurt teleported, ready to take down the purple-haired telepath.
Charles continued to stare at Jean. Her screams soon turned into cackling laughter. "You are a fool, Charles! You have just done me a favor and killed the insolent Guardian for me!"
"But what about Rogue? I thought she was your host!"
"Rogue?! She could barely handle all of the powers she absorbed! How could she handle a power as great as mine?!" With a telekinetic push, Xavier's chair was knocked over, spilling him onto the ground.
As soon as they appeared, Logan had wasted no time in putting his hands on Rogue's face. To his dismay, nothing was happening. "No, no, NO!!" he yelled. Keeping one hand on her face, he pulled the sword out of her and shredded her shirt and his. Gathering her into his arms, he tried to make it so as much of her skin touched his as possible. As he held her in a hug, his hand came upon the wound in her back, coating it with fresh blood. "Come on, kid! Don't die on me!" He held on tighter as her bright glow began to fade. "Damn it! Come on!"
Remy could hear the fear in Logan's voice and opened his eyes to see what was going on. A shirtless Logan sat holding onto Rogue for dear life, trying to press as much of himself as possible to her bra and pants clad body. Reaching up, he tenderly grasped on her dangling hands. They felt so cold. Don' die on me, girl. His mental voice was firm. Not when I jus' found out y' love me, too. Not when I jus' found out we can touch. He fought the fatigue threatening to claim him. I need y'. Ain' much of a world to save if y' ain' in it.
Ah . . . Ah'm . . . so . . . tired . . .
Come on, chére, stay wit' me.
. . . Love . . . ya . . . always . . .
Non! Don' say dat! I won' let y' die!
Concentrating hard, Remy tried to send some of his dwindling energy to Rogue, anything to keep her hanging on.
It worked.
Logan felt the tug of her powers and sighed in relief. The drain was slow but it was working. He could feel the gash tediously knitting itself together at his fingers. As her strength grew, so did the pull of her power. Before he blacked out he saw Rogue's eyes flutter open. "'Bout friggin' time," he mumbled as he sank down.
Feeling fully healed, Remy pulled Rogue off of Logan so she wouldn't draw off any more of him and cradled her in his arms. Both glowed bright and her heavy lidded eyes sparkled with green fire.
Ah feel so weak, she told him.
It's okay, jus' let Logan's powers do dere job.
She tried to smile at him but then noticed a dark red spot on his jacket. "Are ya hurt?!" she rasped out.
Remy felt for the wound that mirrored Rogue's and was relieved to find it healed as well. "Not anymore." He saw her confusion and tried to quickly explain. "Somet'in happened wit' de link so now whatever happens to y' happens to me and vice versa. I guess when y' absorb powers I get dem, too. Dat's how I'm healed."
She nodded in understanding. "Ya said . . . we could touch . . ."
"Oui, mon amour," he whispered, brushing his fingers down her cheek.
"Gambit! We could use your help!" Beast's voice called out, breaking up the moment.
Once more aware of where he was, Remy looked around and assessed their situation. Kurt was trying hard to disable the Asian telepath and Hank was moving to help him out. Emma, no longer preoccupied with controlling Jean, looked to be in a mental battle, with the professor no doubt. Mesmero was trying to dodge the beams being shot by a very angry Cyclops. Logan was still out from the absorption but the three of them looked relatively ignored. Deciding it was time to tip the scales, Remy released the recovering Rogue and sent off barrage of cards, effectively distracting both Mesmero and Emma. The sheer force of the explosions knocked them off their feet. Focusing on Elisabeth, he reached out with a mere thought and the sash tied around her waist began to glow faintly. Kurt noticed this and quickly backed off. The small explosion went off as she was in mid-air, poised to send a flying kick at Kurt. Instead she was flung backward into the wall, striking her head with enough force to render her out cold.
With two quick mental blasts Xavier disabled both Mesmero and Emma, ensuring that they would no longer be a threat for the time being. Looking towards his fallen team, he called out to all of them with his mind, rousing them out of their telepathic slumber.
Leaving Rogue in Kurt and Hank's care, Remy stood and focused on a writhing Jean. *So she's de host. How am I gonna take her down?* He looked around. "Scott! Can you knock her down?" He saw Scott nod and, without hesitation, open fire. His beams struck Jean but did nothing to bring her down. The red laser from the door was holding her tightly in place.
"Rogue! Wait!"
Remy turned at Hank's cry and saw Rogue standing shakily to her feet. "Ah can do it!"
He ran over to her trying to steady her stance. "Do what?"
She looked at him and her expression softened. "Ah can bring her down."
"How?" He had a pretty good idea of what she was going to say.
"Just like last time she spazed out of control. Ah'm gonna absorb her."
"No."
"What do ya mean 'no'?"
He leveled his gaze at her. "We don' know what will happen if you do dat. Apocalypse can only have one host. It could kill y'!"
"That was a sacrifice we were willing to make before! A sacrifice Ah was willing to make to prevent him from takin' over! What's the difference now?"
His voice rose. "I'm not willin' to make dat sacrifice anymore! Hell, I wasn' really willin' to make it before!" He cupped her face with one hand, trying to calm his anger at their situation. "Y' mean too much to me!"
"Um, guys? I don't think we have to worry about bringing her down." They followed Kurt's gaze to Jean. She was now on the ground, her eyes glowing red. Blazing orange fire surrounded her and her costume had changed from its standard black and green to a shiny black armor. She stood with her arms raised, as if posed to strike, and then collapsed onto her knees.
"Someone . . . help me!" she cried out. The pain on her face was evident as she rebelled against the unknown entity trying to take over her body. Her eyes changed from green to red as each fought for control.
Scott approached cautiously, watching as his girlfriend doubled over in agony. "Come on Jean! Fight it! I know you can do it! You're stronger than him!"
As he approached, the sudden change in eye color went unnoticed behind his ruby shades and he found himself being flung backwards. "No one is stronger than me!" she bellowed.
Everyone! Try and distract her as I attempt to purge Apocalypse from her! the professor shouted into their minds.
Heeding the command, Magneto promptly fastened Jean to her place on the ground so she could no longer go airborne, a task made quite simple with her change to a metal armor. Storm reinforced his efforts by encasing her feet in blocks of ice. A pack of flaming wolves formed a circle around Jean, far enough away to keep the ice from melting, but close enough to strike. Hank, Kurt, Piotr and Kitty all began to slowly advance as they watched her struggle to get free from Magneto's binding powers. Scott watched from where he was thrown, eyes trained on her form and hand placed on his visor. Remy stood with a restraining arm on Rogue, taking note of all of the stray debris near Jean's feet.
Frustration fueled the anger growing in Apocalypse and he used that to awaken Jean's fiery temper. Her features contorting into a evil grin, she pushed everyone away from her and pinned them all to different walls of the cave. Using the mental strength of Apocalypse as a booster, she focused a powerful psychic blast at Magneto as was very satisfied to see him hunch over, unconscious. Dropping the offending man, she focused her thoughts on Storm. The others watched as Storm promptly went ghostly white. Genuine fear etched itself on her face as she thrashed about. Within seconds Storm was out like a light. Thinking she was distracted, Xavier tried to attack her mind. Unbeknownst to him, Apocalypse's mind was impenetrable. The psychic feedback was so intense that Xavier's mind was momentarily paralyzed and he, too, slumped over. She easily plucked the visor off of Scott's eyes, leaving him blind and unable to attack.
Oh my God.
What? Remy asked. He could feel Rogue's worry.
As best she could, she looked at him. She's preyin' on all of our weaknesses. She attacked Magneto at his weak point: his mind. Storm's was her claustrophobia. With the prof out, if we don't stop her, we're done.
Rogue felt herself being pulled away from the wall. Before she could protest, she was flung straight at Hank. Both lacked the protection of a shirt and Rogue steeled herself against the onslaught of a new psyche. After a few seconds Rogue was pulled away and floated over to Kitty where she felt her bare shoulder come into contact with the younger girl's face. One by one, the remaining team members were knocked out by Rogue's lethal touch and Rogue could do nothing against the puppet-like control.
Remy! Ya gotta do somethin'! She's tryin' to overload my mind!
As distraught as he was at seeing Rogue being tossed around, a plan began to formulate in his mind. With Rogue's every touch, he could feel the new powers coursing through him as well. The only one's left were him and Kurt.
Try to focus, chére. I'm gettin' all de powers, too. She don' realize dat she's chargin' us bot' up. Stay strong. I got a plan. Through their link, he sought out her own psyche and focused on it, hoping that by doing so she wouldn't get lost in all of the new minds she was absorbing. He could feel the new thoughts threatening to drown both of them, but he wouldn't let it. His heart went out to her as she fought to maintain control. Never in a million years would he have guessed that this is what her powers felt like. When Kurt's powers flooded through her, he felt like a tidal wave was trying to crush him. He could feel the thoughts of the furry mutant and received the knowledge of how his powers worked. As the absorbed the new knowledge, he could feel Rogue's determination to stay in control deteriorating so he tried his best to ignore the overwhelming sensation and concentrated on keeping Rogue anchored. Chére, y' still wit' me?
Yeah. Just . . . need a sec to collect myself. Her voice sounded strained but she was hell bent on staying conscious.
Good. Now listen up, dis is goin' to go quick. As best he could he relayed his plan to Rogue. He didn't have much time because Jean was already positioning Rogue to strike him down. He was the last one left. Trying to tune out Jean's maniacal laugh, he watch as Rogue slowly floated over to him. He could see the apprehension in her eyes and tried to soothe her with his thoughts.
Jean watched in sadistic glee as she forced Rogue to kiss her Cajun boyfriend. It was the perfect way to break her. Her amusement soon turned to confusion, though, as she watched Rogue wrap her arms around Gambit's neck. She continued to watch in utter shock, failing to notice her armor begin to glow faintly until it was too late. The explosion knocked her clear off her feet. The charge wasn't enough to kill but enough to burn. The unexpected blast broke Jean's concentration, releasing all those in her telekinetic hold. Rogue and Remy quickly transitioned to battle mode. Drawing on Kurt's borrowed powers, Rogue teleported both of them closer to Jean's body, which lay unmoving on the ground. The armor had been completely destroyed, leaving the telepath clad in tattered remains of cloth. Angry red burns marred her light skin. Rogue stepped towards her, checking for any signs of life while Remy stood cautiously behind her, ready to strike if necessary. As Rogue leaned over Jean, she was startled back when the prone figure suddenly opened her bright red eyes. The Kitty inside Rogue phased instinctively when Jean lunged at her, allowing Jean to plow right into an unsuspecting Gambit's legs. He fell on his back and used the momentum to kick Jean off. Seemingly unfazed, Jean rolled to her feet and used her powers to slam Remy into a nearby wall. The attack slightly winded Remy but greatly affected Rogue as she hunched over, feeling the air knocked out of her. He felt her pain and flashed a concerned look in her direction. The distraction proved costly as he soon felt a hot pain lance through his side. The energy beam had cut through his battle gear and grazed his skin. *Well dis is new. I guess Apocalypse be givin' Jean new powers, too.* Gripping his injury, he rolled to the side, avoiding the next attack. Focusing on their special link, he plucked the information on Colossus' powers from Rogue and immediately felt the cool armor encase him. *Dis should buy 'er some time to recover.* He had felt Rogue's mental cry at the second attack. The healing factor she absorbed was beginning to tax with the multiple injuries so he had to try and keep from getting hurt while she recovered.
Irritated at her current condition, Rogue was trying hard to ignore the pain but she could feel the blood trickle down her side. The wound wasn't deep but it was long and it stung with the pain of a paper cut. Rising weakly to her feet she looked over to where the fight was. Remy had armored up and was relying on Hank's strength and Kurt's agility to help him move the extra weight he was now carrying out of harm's way. Following Remy's lead, she, too, adopted the metal form, teleported right in front Jean's body and punched her. Jean fell under the sheer strength of the hit but managed to sweep Rogue's legs out from under her. The southern beauty fell with a resounding 'clang' and reverted back to normal. Wasting no time, Jean lifted her off the ground and threw her into a still armored Remy.
Scott gritted his teeth in frustration. He could hear the battle going on around him, but without his visor he could do nothing to contribute. It was too dangerous to risk taking a peak and everyone kept moving around too much for him to pinpoint their location through sound. A strangled cry from Rogue immediately grabbed his attention, followed by the sound of someone hitting a metal wall. "Rogue! Y'r gonna pay for dat!" he heard Remy cry out. Multiple explosions accompanied his threat, as well as Jean's familiar scream. His helplessness was beginning to drive him nuts. He knew that Jean, or at least Jean's body, had already been injured in the large explosion he had heard earlier and hearing her pain filled howl nearly brought him to his knees. He knew Jean was in there somewhere and as the fight wore on he found it harder and harder to keep emotionally detached, especially since Remy was letting his feelings for Rogue clearly influence his actions.
Remy was growing increasingly angry at the Jean/Apocalypse amalgamation. *I'm the damn guardian and I got no idea how to end dis wit'out killin' Jean.* Just knowing how much this fight was affecting Rogue was enough to make him see red. He was beginning to not care that Jean was still fighting for control. If Rogue sustained any more damage to her not fully recovered body he feared that they both might not make it out alive. He could already feel how weak she was and was struggling to keep the shared effects from hindering him. The stab wound they had healed earlier was starting to open up once again and his back was starting to throb. When he saw Rogue about to smash into him he tried to revert back to normal but failed to do so in time. The pain in his side was persistent on bothering him but he tried to block it all out, his attention divided between Jean and Rogue.
Rogue was trying very hard to remain conscious. Her back ached from her crash into Remy and she could feel her stab wound tearing back open and the blood trickling down her abdomen. Logan's healing factor was fading fast so they had to end this fight quick. She blinked away the dancing spots in her eyes and heard Remy's discouraged thoughts. Looking over at Jean, she could see her body beginning to stir. *Ah'm tired of this. Ah'm endin' this now.* She quickly teleported over to Jean and placed her bare hands on the girl's face, focusing on the foreign entity that was trying to take up permanent residence.
"Rogue, no!" but his cry came too late. Remy watched as Rogue's flesh came into contact with Jean's pale skin. He ran over to them and pulled at Rogue, trying to break the contact.
Logan's vision swam into focus as he regained consciousness. He looked around and saw most of everyone knocked out. When his vision settled on Rogue, Gambit and Jean, he couldn't help but stare at what he saw. Remy was now glowing brighter than ever, a dazzling, blinding white. Rogue's color had changed to a fire engine red and was growing in intensity. Jean's glow was diminishing with every passing second. Looking harder he noticed that Rogue was touching Jean's face and Remy was trying to pull Rogue away. Their gashes had reopened and were spilling blood. His eyes widened in horror and he quickly ran over to the trio and attempted to yank Jean away from the dangerous contact, only to find himself thrown backwards. The glow was acting as a sort of energy field.
Rogue could feel Apocalypse flowing into her and was beginning to worry. His presence was consuming her and she feared she wouldn't be able to contain it all, especially after having already absorbed her teammates. All of a sudden, the transfer simply stopped and her head began to pulsate with extreme pain. Her entire body felt full to the max and she felt the intense need to release the pent of energy. She wrested her hands away from Remy and turned towards the door. As soon as it appeared in her field of vision, the pain began to multiply and her hands started to burn. No longer able to take the pain she screamed and a big red beam shot out of her hands and back into the door. When she was finally spent, her red glow was gone and she collapsed to the ground. Remy moved to her side.
The door . . .
His mind became alert at her mental voice. What about it?
Close it . . . seal it shut . . . Her hands were burned and they were both bleeding freely.
How, chére?
'Member . . . how . . . opened it . . .
He thought back to how she had opened the door and her meaning clicked in his head. Getting up he hurried as best he could to the doors and tried to close them. Logan caught on to what he was doing and ran over to help. After much effort, both doors were shut and the sound rattled through the cavern. Remy eyed the two door handles and grabbed them without hesitation. Activating his mutant powers he channeled his energy to the orbs, charging them. He continued to pour on the energy and Logan noticed his glow start to die out as well. When his energy was exhausted he released the once more glowing spheres and stumbled to his knees. As he tried to collect himself he felt a whisper in his mind.
Don't . . . think . . . Ah'm gonna make it . . .
He whipped his head around and looked at Rogue lying prone on the ground. He tried to move to her but soon found himself sprawled on the floor. "Rogue!"
Logan caught on to what was happening and rushed over to her, intent on saving her for the second time that day. He cradled her in his arms and murmured an uncharacteristic prayer when he felt no tug.
Remy battled the darkness threatening to take him. Stay wit' me.
Can't . . . promise . .
Please, chére . . .
We'll find each other again . . . maybe . . .
God, no . . .
Ah'll find you . . . Ah . . . love . . . you . . .
And in that moment the darkness won.
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Thanks for the reviews! They were great. I'm going to save all my comments for the last chapter. Hope you enjoyed this one!