Chapter Three: On the Run
The huge, menacing figure of Antaeus stepped ever closer, and my mind was still submerged in confusion and panic, no nearer to coming up with any kind of plan. Chloe and Chris had both recognised him by this point, and were similarly stunned. We were all still standing in shock as Ocelot approached, all of us except Felicity. She'd never met Antaeus before, and wasn't as bewildered as the rest of us. Now, with the feline mutant almost upon her, and no orders forthcoming from me, she used her initiative, raising one arm to send a fork of lightning towards Ocelot. With catlike reflexes and agility, he sprang from the ground, leaping over the electric bolt, landing easily on both feet. He pulled back one arm to slash at her with his claws.
At that moment I finally came to my senses, and took stock of what was happening. I lifted both hands, and used my telekinesis to fling Ocelot away from us. He twisted, tried to stay on his feet, but was unable to do so, and fell on his back, skidding away across the paving stones. I glanced over to see the seven foot tall colossus named Antaeus, or Impervious, whichever name he was using now, coming ever closer. Chris had run forward to deal with him, and I spun round to see what Constantine and the girl were doing.
Constantine was still standing with his arms folded, a confident smirk on his face, watching the proceedings with interest. The female mutant was gone…or was she? I could still sense her presence, but I couldn't see her anywhere. Was she lurking under cover somewhere? No, I could feel her getting closer…she was only a few yards away…but I couldn't see her!
"That girl can make herself invisible!" I yelled to the others. "She's the one who attacked me last night!"
"Where is she?" Chloe asked.
"She's coming towards me!" I said. "I'll draw her away from you! Make a run for it!"
"No! I'm staying with you!"
"Chloe, remember the baby! Get out of here! Get back to the house and call the Professor!"
Before she could respond, the girl assassin attacked. I was ready for her, and lifted my arm to throw her backwards. She gave a cry and I heard the thud as she landed on the ground. Cursing angrily, she got back to her feet. I risked a glance around to see what was happening. Chris was fighting Antaeus, dodging his gigantic hammer-like fists with ease, while his own attacks did little damage to the giant's immense form. Fliss was keeping Ocelot away from her with a steady barrage of lightning bolts; the cat-man was always fast and nimble enough to avoid being hit.
"Nightshade, finish him!" Constantine yelled.
The girl was running towards me once more, her anger and adrenaline driving her, and I braced myself to launch another telekinetic blast in her direction. I lifted my arm to meet her advance.
Something was wrong. I couldn't lift my arm. My entire body felt as if it weighed a ton or more, and lifting my arm was like trying to lift an elephant from the ground. What the hell was going on? The girl was on me now, her assassin's blade swooping down to enter my chest. Chloe threw herself at the girl, knocking her to the ground. In her surprise, the girl's invisibility was disengaged, and I could see the two of them grappling with each other on the floor. I still couldn't move a muscle, but I could sense power emanating from Constantine, restricting me. Was he telekinetic also? No…I knew what telekinetic power felt like, and this wasn't it. It was something else…
Chloe screamed as the assassin blade was thrust deep into her chest, and deadly poison began to spread throughout her body. Desperation and fury overtook me, and I entered my berserk state. My power increasing tenfold, I lifted both arms, targeting the girl and Constantine simultaneously. Unleashing my telekinesis, I felt two psychic blasts speed away from me like Exocet missiles. The first hit the female assassin, Nightshade, and flung her the length of the courtyard. The second hit Constantine, taking him by surprise and knocking him backwards.
I fell to my knees, putting my hands on Chloe. I knew I only had seconds to invoke my healing power before the poison killed her and our child. I created a telepathic link between us, then I stopped, my heart jumping in shock. Chloe was already being healed. The poison was being destroyed, cleansed from her system. But how? I hadn't used my healing, and she didn't possess the power herself. Only Wolverine and Antaeus had the same gift – it didn't make any sense…then it hit me. The baby inside her…my daughter…she had inherited my healing power and was instinctively using it to restore her mother. Chloe's eyes snapped open and she looked up at me, "I'm OK."
"Can you stand? We've got to get out of here."
She got to her feet, and I looked to see how our friends were faring. Chris was still battling with Antaeus, still avoiding the man mountain's blows, still causing no real damage himself on the counter attack. A stand-off. Fliss, on the other hand, was beginning to struggle. She couldn't keep firing lightning bolts forever, and her attacks were becoming slower and weaker. Ocelot was edging closer and closer, carefully watching and waiting for his opportunity.
"Chris! Felicity!" I yelled. "Head for the gates! We're getting out of here!"
It happened again. Everything suddenly felt a thousand times heavier, and I was unable to move towards the gates. What the hell was this? It was Constantine using his power again, but I couldn't figure out exactly what he was doing. I tried to lift my hands to attack him once more, but I hadn't the strength. They were far too heavy, as if a battleship was crushing each of them down. My adrenaline rush was gone and I couldn't enter my berserk state. Nightshade was on her feet and hurrying towards me.
Please, God, help us.
Whether through prayer, or through chance, I had a moment of luck. A stray lightning bolt from Felicity forked through the air towards Constantine. He was forced to leap aside to avoid it; his concentration was broken and I was free. Chloe was already running towards the gates, and I followed after her. Chris ducked under Antaeus' flailing fists, and fell into step beside me. I used my power to push Ocelot away from Fliss, and she joined our rush for escape.
The next problem was the huge iron gates that blocked the exit from the estate. I could easily have used my telekinesis to rip them from their holdings, but climbing over the ruined gates would have slowed us down. There had to be another way. Chris got to them first, changing to liquid to slip between the bars, then re-coalescing on the other side. I knew what I had to do. I grabbed Chloe's right hand and Felicity's left, and used my power to lift the three of us into the air, push us over the fence, and land safely on the other side, out of the estate.
"Come on, we can't stop now!" I cried. "Keep going!"
Chris grabbed the tiring Fliss by the arm, and pulled her along. Chloe grasped my hand and we ran after them. I hoped the gates would slow down our enemies, and I turned round to see how they were faring. Ocelot had taken a run-up and I watched open-mouthed as he sprang from those mutated heels, leaping clear over the fence, and landing with catlike grace on our side. Antaeus had taken the more direct route, taking hold of the iron bars with his hugely muscled arms, and ripping them free. Nightshade, invisible once more, was just behind him, and Constantine was slightly further back. We hadn't escaped yet. We had to keep going.
"Where are we going?" Fliss asked as we hurried away from the estate. "We can't outrun that guy Ocelot, you know!"
"We need to find somewhere to hide!" I said. "None of them is telepathic, so if we can lose them, we should be safe!"
I glanced back to check on our enemies. Ocelot was sprinting forward on his incredible feet, rapidly closing the gap between us. I raised my hand to fling him through the air away from me. Constantine extended one arm, using his own power – what was it, exactly? – to slow Ocelot's trajectory. The feline mutant landed beside him, and Constantine looked up, directly into my eyes. For a moment our gazes locked; his dark, brooding eyes radiating hatred and a determination to destroy me at all costs. I knew I had made an enemy for life. I knew that neither of us could be at rest while the other was alive. I knew we would have to fight, and one of us would have to die.
Then I turned back to face the way I was going, and the spell was broken. Chris was the fittest and fastest of us, and he was moving out in front, Felicity half-running, half being pulled in his wake. Chloe was the one I was worried about; her small, light body had never possessed great running speed or stamina, and already I sensed her beginning to weaken. I wasn't sure how much longer she could go on, but I certainly wasn't going to leave her behind. If necessary we would turn and fight once more. I looked ahead, using my long-range vision to see what lay ahead of us. We needed to find a busy street, where we could blend into the crowd and lose our foes.
The street ahead was largely empty. I pushed my vision through the buildings on the left, to get a look at the next street. It was slightly busier; a small crowd of people were milling around the shops. Not enough people for us to disappear among them, but hopefully it would lead to a bigger gathering.
"Turn left up here!" I called to Chris, and he nodded.
Ocelot was getting close again; I could sense him running up behind me once more, and I turned round to discourage him a second time. I used my telekinesis to push him away, but Constantine was already countering with his own power, and I couldn't move Ocelot an inch. He was getting closer now, and I prepared to do battle. Fliss turned to fire a lightning bolt at him, and he was taken by surprise, forced to leap aside, roll nimbly over and get back to his feet.
We took the side street on the left, and Ocelot stopped for a moment, presumably to allow Constantine and the others to catch up. It was Antaeus who was holding them up; his huge, heavily muscled body was an awesome thing to behold in a fight, but not very fast on his feet.
"Who is that guy?" Fliss cried. "That really big guy? You were all looking at him as if he was a ghost or something!"
"That's Antaeus."
"Who?"
"One of the four mutants who worked for my father," I explained quickly. "Before we met you, when he was trying to kill us."
"I thought you said they were all dead."
"They are. I killed Antaeus myself."
"So what's he doing here?" Fliss asked in confusion.
"I don't know. I really don't know," I sighed.
"Do you think Constantine can raise the dead?" Chris suggested. "Maybe that's one of his powers."
"I don't think that's the kind of thing you can mutate into…"
We were running up the centre of the shopping arcade, weaving hurriedly in and out of the small crowd of people. A few shoppers gave us strange looks as we passed, instinctively turning their heads to try and see what we were running from.
"Mutants!" one woman yelled.
She must have seen Ocelot – he was the only one with a visibly obvious mutation. Screams began to ring in the air, and the crowd panicked. I couldn't really blame them; the sight of seven foot tall Antaeus thundering down the road towards you was enough to frighten anyone.
Felicity slipped, and ploughed straight into a man unloading a crate from the back of a van. Chris braked to a halt, and hurried back to her. The man was yelling angrily at Fliss, as she struggled to get back to her feet. Ocelot was on them in an instant, shoving the man aside, slashing at Fliss with his claws. Chris tackled him to the ground, and tried to chop him in the neck. Ocelot was too strong; he kicked Chris solidly in the ribs, winding him. Fliss scrambled to safety, and aimed a lightning bolt at the feline, who rolled aside to avoid it.
Nightshade had caught up by this time, still invisible; I sensed her right index finger lengthening into her deadly assassin blade, and she stabbed towards the grounded Chris. I used my power to pull Chris away from her, and her blade stabbed harmlessly into the road. Ocelot snarled like an enraged tiger, and made for Fliss once more. I hurled him away from her, and yelled, "Come on! Run!"
Chris got to his feet, painfully holding his chest, "I'm not going anywhere. It feels like he's broken half my ribs."
"Get behind me!"
Constantine had joined the scene, and raised both arms, lifting the delivery van off the ground, and sending it towards us at high speed. I countered with my telekinesis, and managed to deflect it away. It hit a shop front nearby, shattering the window and collapsing the interior. The screams of the crowd grew in pitch and volume, and people began fleeing for their lives.
"Kill them!" Constantine yelled.
Nightshade was running towards me, but Ocelot pushed her aside in his haste to follow his master's bidding. I raised my hands before Constantine could, and flung both of them backwards, sending them as far as I could. Both of them landed on the ground just in front of Antaeus, who was still pounding slowly towards the battle. I turned to Chris, "I'll heal you as soon I can. In the meantime, find somewhere to hide. Look, there's a horse-box over there. Get behind that."
"Horse-box?" Chloe repeated, looking around.
For once Chris didn't argue or complain, painfully limping over to take refuge. Fliss ran to stand beside me, "What do I do?"
"Keep Constantine busy! I can handle the rest!"
A bolt of electricity lanced through the air from Fliss to Constantine, and he was forced to leap headlong to get out of its way. I used my power to pull the wrecked delivery van out of the destroyed shop front, and planted it squarely in front of the other three, blocking their progress along the narrow street. Ocelot jumped clean over it, and Antaeus appeared to be trying to manhandle it out of his way.
Then Chloe began screaming, "Help me! Help me!"
I spun round, ready to defend my future wife and daughter from whatever might threaten them. But Chloe wasn't talking to me. Instead she had gone over to the horse box which Chris was crouching behind, and was trying to free the two horses inside. The animals were stamping their feet on the floor of the vehicle, eager to run to her side. She unlatched the back door, and the two horses were released. Chloe pointed back down the street at our enemies, and the horses galloped forwards, heading straight for Constantine. He'd just picked himself up from the floor, when he saw the two animals attacking him. One of the horses reared up on its hind legs and tried to kick him with its forelegs. One of its hooves caught him a glancing blow, and Constantine fell, temporarily stunned. The second horse blocked the path of Ocelot, who was running towards us.
"Now's our chance! Let's go!" I yelled.
The three of us began running. Chris staggered out to meet us, and I put my hands on his shoulders, using my healing power to mend the damage to his rib-cage. Then the four of us were speeding away from the scene. Chloe had called the horses back, and told them to go wherever they liked. She hated to see animals in captivity. I looked back. Antaeus was kneeling clumsily beside his fallen leader, using his own healing power to restore Constantine. Ocelot was limping slightly; he must have twisted his ankle while avoiding the horse. I couldn't see Nightshade, but I sensed her beside Antaeus. They wouldn't be on the move for a good few moments, and that would give us ample time to disappear. Chloe knew this area well, having grown up here, and she was already directing us along the safest route back to my house. We had won this round against our enemies, but it wouldn't be the last.
When we got back to the house, it was Fliss who first raised the fear that was rising in my own mind.
"How do we know we're safe here?" she demanded. "What if Constantine knows where we're staying?"
"I don't see how he could," I said. "This house belonged to my mother's parents, so it will still be registered under their name: Vladenko."
"What if he's had us followed?"
"No. We've only been here a day, and I haven't sensed anybody following us when we've been outside. Apart from my attacker, of course, but she ran off before we got anywhere near the house."
"So we're safe?" Chloe said hopefully.
"I think so. For now, anyway."
"So what's our next move?" Chris asked impatiently.
"I would have thought that was obvious. We contact the Professor, tell him everything that's happened, and ask for his advice. Hopefully he'll send somebody to back us up."
"It would help if we could tell him exactly what Constantine's power is," he said thoughtfully.
"I was thinking the same. I've been trying to figure it out, and the only thing I can come up with is this: he can create gravity fields."
"Huh?" said Fliss.
"In the same way Magneto creates magnetic fields to control metal, I reckon Constantine can create gravity fields to control – well, anything. He uses them to move objects; that van for example. He was also doing something to me in the courtyard, stopping from me moving, making me feel about a hundred times as heavy as I really am. He must have been altering the gravity around me."
"And he was implanted with this power?" she asked. "The same way you were?"
"Yes."
"What about the others? Ocelot and Nightshade and Antaeus?"
"Antaeus was implanted with his mutations when he was a small child. It was a different treatment from the one Constantine and I received, and it had side effects, altering his personality and making him psychotic. As for Ocelot and the girl, I assume they were born mutants, and Constantine recruited them at some point. We know Nightshade has the ability to make herself invisible, and she seems to be able to change her index fingers into poison blades."
"The perfect assassin," said Chloe.
"Yes. And Ocelot seems to be one of those mutants who's taken on characteristics of another species, like Rat or Toad."
"Don't remind me about Rat," Fliss shivered.
Chris frowned, "It still doesn't explain one thing. How come Antaeus is alive? We killed him!"
I thought for a moment, then shrugged, "Did we? We never actually saw him die."
"We heard him hit the ground from the top of a seven storey building! That's pretty conclusive, I'd say!"
"Not necessarily. He can heal, remember. What if he was still alive – fatally wounded but alive – for a split second after hitting the ground? What if he used his healing power to restore himself?"
"Don't be stupid," Chris said. "If you hit the ground from that high up, you're dead."
"It's the only explanation," I countered. "He does have immense body strength and an immunity to pain, remember. Perhaps that's what kept him alive for long enough to use his healing power."
"I don't think that could have happened," said Chris.
"What does it matter how he did it?" Fliss interrupted. "What matters right now is that he's alive and is trying to kill us! What are we going to do about it?"
"I'll call the Professor," I said, getting up from my seat and heading up to my bedroom, where I had left the communicator.
It was a long range transmitter – it had to be, to reach from Edinburgh to New York – and was too large to carry around with us, hence the reason we had left it at home. Chloe had followed me upstairs, and she sank down on the bed beside me as I plugged in the communicator and entered the mansion's frequency. She rested her head gently on my shoulder, and put an arm around me. The baby's mind came questing out to mine again, instinctively trying to find out whose body was touching Chloe, and whether or not that person represented a threat. The little telepath calmed when she sensed it was her father. I responded to her, sending love and reassurance, thanking her for healing Chloe, though she probably wouldn't understand.
"Weird," I said, still holding the communicator. "Nobody's answering."
Chloe shrugged, "The Professor must be out of his office. Try his personal frequency."
I did, but again I got no response. The first seeds of panic were sown in my mind. Had something happened in the mansion?
"Still nothing," I said.
This time Chloe too seemed worried, "Do you think something's wrong?"
"I don't know. Maybe he's just busy. Perhaps they've got their own problems right now."
"Does that mean we're on our own?"
"I hope not. I'll try again later."
I forced myself to stop panicking, since the baby was sensing it and getting scared. We both reassured her – Chloe couldn't transmit telepathically, so the baby must have been reading her thoughts – and she was calmed once more.
"I wish this was over already," Chloe sighed. "I wish Constantine and Antaeus and the others would just go away and leave us alone. I don't want to fight anybody or kill anybody; I just want to live my life with you, get married and have our baby, without needing to worry about people trying to kill us. Why can't everybody just co-exist together? Why do some people have to bring suffering and misery into so many other people's lives?"
"Evil exists in everyone," I said. "It's just a question of whether or not you let it rule you."
"They're all evil," she said. "The four of them. We've got to stop them."
I nodded, "Constantine wants power, power over everyone and everything, and we can't let him have it."
"If we fail…" she hesitated. "Can anybody else stop him?"
"The Professor or Magneto could," I said. "They're both stronger than he is, but not for long. In a year, maybe two, Constantine and I will surpass them, if we're both still alive."
"It's like we're children playing an adults' game," Chloe said suddenly. "Think about it. You're Xavier and we're your X-Men. Constantine is Magneto and they're his Brotherhood. It's exactly the same."
"Except this is no game," I said grimly. "And one thing's different. The Professor and Magneto are friends, and they don't wish each other any harm. The same couldn't be said of Constantine and myself."
Chloe sighed unhappily and looked at the floor. Then she raised her head and said resolutely, "We have to fight them. I don't like to fight, but we have to. We have to make the world a better and safer place before we bring our daughter into it. We can't have a baby and constantly be on the run from our enemies. This has to end."
I nodded my agreement, and gently placed my hand on her abdomen, still awed and amazed by the thought of the baby – our baby – that was growing inside.
"I still can't believe we're having a baby," I said. "When are we going to tell Chris and Fliss?"
"Tell Chris and Fliss what?" came a voice from the doorway.
We both turned in surprise. I'd been so lost in my thoughts that I hadn't sensed their approach. Now the two of them stood outside the bedroom door, looking suspicious.
"What are you talking about?" said Fliss curiously.
"Uh…" I struggled. "We – we can't get through to the Professor."
Her eyes widened, "So what do we do?"
"I'm going to try again later. In the meantime we stay here and stay alert. If our enemies do manage to find us, we'll have to find somewhere else to run to."
"Why don't we just stand and fight them?" said Chris. "We can defeat them, if we can plan it carefully enough."
Yes. We could. But I didn't want to risk a fight unless it was absolutely necessary. The safety of Chloe and the baby was my number one priority, and I wouldn't risk them for anything. But I couldn't tell Chris that. I couldn't tell anybody else about the baby, not yet. When Chloe and I were ready, then we would tell them, but not right away.
"I want to talk to the Professor first and see what he suggests," I told him, which was true, but not the real reason.
He shrugged, "Fair enough. I could do with some lunch. Anybody else hungry?"
"Yeah, I could do with a bite," I said.
Chris looked at Felicity, "What can you cook?"
"Hey!" she retorted. "Just because I'm a girl doesn't mean I'm going to cook! You're so sexist, you know that?"
"No, I'm not. Women are just better cooks."
"We are not! You only think that because you're a chauvinist pig and you've always – "
I couldn't hear the rest as they moved off down the stairs towards the kitchen.
"Are you hungry?" I said to Chloe.
She smiled, "Pregnant women need plenty of food, you know. I'm starving."
I took her hand, and we walked downstairs together, content and happy in the love we shared. It was then that I realised Chloe would no longer be mine alone; from now on I would have to share her with the baby. A smile crossed my face as I realised I didn't mind a bit. I knew Chloe would be a wonderful mother, and I would try to be as good a father as I possibly could. I had devoted my life to opposing the destruction of life, and what better way to do so than to create a new life ourselves?
A/N: I have taken a slight creative liberty here. Neil's suggestion that the X-Men have "got their own problems right now" is intended to signify that this story takes place at the same time as events in X3 (whatever those might be), and hence the X-Men won't be playing a significant part in this story. Obviously I don't have a clue what is going to happen in X3, and I should probably point out now, for legal purposes, that I don't own X-Men the movie or any of its characters. I think I forgot to say that in the last story.
A/N 2: Once again, please review. It really does encourage me to keep going. Thanks to all those who have done so already, and I hope you continue to enjoy.
