A/N: Chapter three. We get to see what happened to the group that went
after the Hunters, as well as finding out just why Druid is so mysterious
about his past (and why he has no name). Oh, and I know my attempt and
writing Gambit's speech is rather poor. Do forgive me. Read on.
Disclaimer: I own none of the X-Men and I'm not making any money from this. Still.
"I still think I could have taken him," Archangel stubbornly insisted as they entered the X-Mansion. Shadow threw his hands up in surrender and stalked off through a wall.
"Does he ever use doors?" Psylocke asked Rebel.
"Nope." The Spanish beauty shook her head. "He's a bit off a show off, really."
"A bit?" Rebel chuckled.
"I mean, I have been doing this for a long time," Archangel was muttering to himself. "I can face Magneto, Apocalypse, and every other mutant alive, but one old man who we've never even heard of?"
"Warren," Psylocke said exasperatedly. "Stop whining."
"I am not whining!"
"Warren," Storm said calmly. "That man was a mutant whose power meant he could kill you with a single touch. And you haven't heard of him because he is from an alternate reality and he only just arrived. Shadow is the only one, in either our world or theirs, who is immune to this man's powers."
"Oh." Archangel thought about this. "Well if you had said that."
Rebel laughed uproariously as Psylocke merely wrapped an arm around the rich mutant and led him away. "Oh, dear," Rebel said after a while, whipping the tears of mirth from her face. "Is he always like that?"
"Not usually," Storm replied. "I think he is still upset about having to cut his vacation short."
"See, I told you so." Storm stared at her blankly. "People get nasty when their vacations are ruined." Storm chuckled as she and Rebel walked into the mansion.
They met Shadow in the hall, hood and cowl removed. He had a concerned expression on his face. "I'm worried about the others."
"Oh, they went after the other disturbance," Rebel said offhand. "I'm sure they're fine." Shadow gave he a look. "You can't kill everyone. You have to leave some for us." Shadow still seemed unimpressed. "OK, if they don't call back in two hours we'll check on them. Better?" Shadow still looked dubious, but nodded. He seemed to think of something. "Storm," he said. "Would you mind showing me the flyers?" "Certainly," the weather goddess responded, a bit surprised. "But why?" "Practicality. You never know when you may need an extra pilot." It seemed innocent enough, but both Rebel and Storm knew he had an ulterior motive. Still, there was no harm in just showing him. Storm smiled. "We shall take care of it soon." "The sooner the better. In fact, now would be just fine." Storm looked a bit dubious, but nodded. "And don't worry about the others," Rebel said to Shadow as she walked off. "They're just fine. Trust me."
"Ugh, my head." Ebony came to, and tried to rub her aching head with her hands. Her bonds creaked. Her eyes snapped instantly open and she came to full awareness. She stared at the room. It was a bright medic's room. She was lying on an examination table, her clothes removed. Some of the other tables were likewise occupied; she recognised the people laying on them. The X-Men Gambit, Bishop and Cyclops lay tethered to their tables. She summoned her armour. The bonds stretched just enough to allow her to, but didn't break, nor could she cut them with her blades. She sighed. These were the situations where she envied Shadow. "Ah, Chere, you are awake." She turned her head to see Gambit staring at her. She suddenly blushed, glad that she had summoned her armour. She had to find out what had happened to her clothes. "Where are we?" "Gambit does not know, Chere. But it looks bad, oui?" "Oui," Ebony said, sighing. "Don't worry, Chere. No prison can hold Gambit." "This one can," said a strange, coarse voice from the door. They turned to see a hunched, shuffling figure. His body was twisted in a parody of humanity. He was a hunched, albino figure, hairless, lacking even eyebrows. Scars and stitches covered him. One of his arms was twisted at an unusual angle and the other hung at his side. The looked like they were different lengths from each other. His eyes were pupil-less, but he seemed to have no problem seeing. He carried a tray of medical equipment and had a rather bored expression on his face. "No one has ever escaped from here. No one ever will." He walked over to Cyclops's recumbent form and began to examine his wounds. "Who are you?" Ebony demanded. "What are we doing here?" Gambit kept silent, squirming his bonds, trying to break free. "You are here because the Master captured you." Gambit had one arm free. A bright glow surrounded Cyclops's shoulder where Prime Suspect had severed the nerve. "Why?" Gambit had freed both his arms now, and was silently untying his legs. The wound on Cyclops's shoulder had closed, and the strange creature walked over to Bishop. "The Master shall explain all." Gambit was free now. He reached for a card in his jacket, but they had been taken away. He stalked up behind the hunchback who was injecting something into Bishop. "Who is the Master?" The creature swung round with unearthly agility, grabbed Gambit and slammed him against the nearby wall. His expression never changed. "The Master is the Master. And soon he shall be your master, just as he is mine." Gambit picked up something from a near by table and charged it. It glowed bright with energy as it flew in a perfect arc at the unconcerned hunchback. The hunchback grabbed Bishop's unconscious form and, as easily as one would lift a doll, he shoved the mutant in the way of the charged projectile. It exploded, pouring its energy into Bishop. Expertly, still appearing bored, the albino threw Bishop at Gambit, the two falling to the ground. He gave a shrill cry followed by noises no human could ever make; crackling, shrieking, clawing noises unlike any other noise. The answering call was a chittering sound, like a thousand teeth chattering against a golden bell. Into the room burst ten strange creatures. They looked like twisted monkeys, small and agitated, covered in coarse, dirty fur. At their elbows each of their arms branched out into three, and each hand had two thumbs. They carried a weapon in each hand, sometimes crude wooden clubs, sometime primitive axes, the heads made of flint, and sometimes spears, tipped with either flint or bone. Their long, whip-like tails, two each, were barbed. Their feet were more like hands, and their finger-like toes ended in sharp, cruel talons. They wore no clothes, but their fur was so thick that this didn't matter. Some were black with bright green eyes, others a dull maroon with red eyes like glowing embers, while some, their fur a brown-green colour, had eyes as black as ink, and those with blue eyes, burning like a bright flame, had fur the colour of bones left in the sun. The skin of their faces, hands, feet and the tips of their tails (the only places not covered in fur), was the same colour as their fur, but was shrived and wrinkled, like meat left out to rot. A putrid stench of blood and rotting flesh hung about them. The chitterd and chattered as they jumped about, surrounding Gambit and Bishop, who was now awake, Prime Suspect's poison purged from his veins, holding their weapons pointed at the fallen X-Men. Briefly they considered fighting, but they realised that they would only kill a few of the monkey- like creatures before they died. The held their hands up in surrender. Cyclops moaned and tried to turn, waking slowly. As he was about to open his eyes, he realised that his visor had been removed. He clamped his eyes shut. "What is going on?" He strained uselessly against the bonds that held him. "I would not open your eyes," a coarse voiced warned him. "The Master would not be pleased to replace the ceiling." "Who are you?" "A servant." "Where are the others?" "Gambit and I are here," Bishop said, answering his leader's question. "With the woman you brought with you." "Where is Jean?" "I don't know. I have not seen any of the others since the battle." "You shall be taken to them now," the albino told them, holding out their costumes. Cyclops and Ebony's bonds slid away. They stood and the four heroes dressed as more monkey-like creatures entering to room with drawn weapons. There was the sound of a metallic door sliding open.
"I do not understand why you wish to learn to fly these," Storm said, showing Shadow the controls. He had declined to use the simulator, saying he just wanted to know the controls. "I told you," he replied, studying them carefully. He hadn't told Storm, but he had carefully watched her pilot the craft. With what he had Storm tell him now, he knew he could fly the craft without too much difficulty. As soon as he got away from Storm, he would double back and fly to the Amazon. He knew his companions needed his help, and he didn't have enough time to argue with the others. "I don't believe that. You have some reason. I would guess that you wished to aid your friends, were it not for the fact that it would take much more than an hour to learn to fly." Shadow turned on the engine, opening the hanger door with the remote. "I'm a fast learner." A flutter of movement caught his attention and he gave a low growl.
"Scott!" Jean cried as they were led into the room where the others were held prisoner. "Jean!" He moved towards her voice, but the point of a spear made him stop. He was placed in chains and locked in. He felt a visor clamped around his face. "You may open your eyes now," the coarse voice told him. He did so, looking around the room in shock. His vision was tinted with the usually red of ruby quartz, the visor covering his face made of the material. Jean was chained to the wall opposite him, a metal device on her head obviously stopping her from using her powers. Beast, Bishop, Gambit and Druid were likewise chained up. Bobby was hooked into a strange metallic device. When he tried to activate his ice powers it glowed red hot, responding to the drop in temperature, and melted any ice before it could really form. Ebony was trapped in a cage of solid metal, only a small slit for air allowing her to see out. "Where is Rogue?" Gambit asked, as soon as he took in his surroundings. "We don't know, my friend," Beast said. "She was not here when we awoke." "Nor was Berzerker," Druid added, directing the comment at his leader. The creatures, as well as the albino, had left. "I managed to send the others the message." "Good," Ebony replied. "What message?" Cyclops asked, straining against his bonds. "Help."
"Black rose," Shadow yelled at Rebel as he appeared through the wall. His hood was up and his eyes were blazing red. "Black rose!" Rebel leapt up from the chair where she was having a conversation with Psylocke. "Lets go!" "What the hell does 'black rose' mean?" "When Druid is in trouble and can't get word to us," Rebel said, slipping her boots back on. "He sends a white dove with a black rose in its mouth." "You were right," Betsy said to Shadow, rising. "They are in trouble." But Shadow was already gone, through the wall back towards the hanger. The others weren't too far behind.
The metallic doors slid open once more. Four of the monkey-like creatures, one of each colour, entered. They were somewhat taller than the others and carried no weapons. Behind them walked the hunchback, with a strange figure. He (if it was a he) could best be described as androgynous. Long, white hair ran down his back. His skin was a pale white and his lips a dark red, like blood. He was thin, to the point of being skeletal. He wore rich gold metallic armour that was obviously fitted exactly to him. His eyes were pupil-less. Apart from the long, luscious strands of hair flowing from his skull, his body was devoid of hair. Not even eyebrows. Standing next to each other, it was clear to see the resemblance of the androgynous figure and the hunchback. They both had a certain 'made' quality, but while the hunchback looked as though he had been stitched together from other peoples' bodies, the androgynous man looked as though he had been carved from marble. "Who are you?" Cyclops demanded. "Why have you captured us? Where are the others?" The androgynous figure moved over to the leader of the X-Men. His feet didn't seem to touch the ground, and his legs never moved. He seemed to float rather than walk. "Full of questions," he said in a lyrical but strangely disquieting voice, much like a beautiful symphony with one instrument out of tune. "Be silent." The command had a power behind it, and Cyclops felt his tongue grow heavy and his jaw seize shut. He floated back to the monkey-like creatures. "You have served me well for many years," he said to them. "You have led your clans as I have commanded, never shirking from duty." He waved his hand at the X-Men and X- Knights. "These shall be your reward. Each of you shall be given the power of one of these mutants, of your choice." The monkey-like creatures chattered happily and grinned. The white one, however, looked concerned. "How we know which power they have?" he asked in halting English. "You won't." The monkeys frowned and began chittering angrily. There were some words of English that broke through. "Not good, not good," the black one cried over and over again, hopping on its knuckles. "How we know you not give us bad powers?" the green one cried. The red one shrieked its agreement. "There is no way," androgynous figure stated, his voice still unemotional and flat. "The transfer is permanent, and I shall not allow the mutants to use their powers. They may escape." He paused, glancing at where Bobby was trapped in his heat sensitive prison and Jean's psychic disabler. "They have tried that already. I do not know all their powers, either." "Actually, Master," the hunchback said, his voice equally dull. "There is a way. The experimental power-draining devices are still operational. There is one that will drain the powers from the mutants for a short amount of time. If they used those, they could test the powers of their chosen mutant, and if they did not like it, it would wear off after a short amount of time." "Very well. Show them how to work the machine and then get back to work on the permanent transfer device. I have things to do." With that he floated away. The monkeys chattered and gnashed their teeth together, hopping about the room, looking at all the captives. The green one picked Bobby almost immediately, and the red one selected Ebony, obviously assuming that their increased protection meant that they were more powerful. Likewise, the black one selected Jean. That left only the white one, who had taken time to study each one in turn. When he approached Druid, the X-Knight spoke to him. "Chose me," he said, his voice full of power and command. The X-Men looked at his like he was mad. Only Ebony trusted that he had a plan. "I control the powers of nature. With that power, you would be the most powerful creature in the rainforest." The white monkey glared at him suspiciously. After a moment, he nodded. More monkey guards arrived and led out the four mutants with the unarmed monkeys. Bobby and Ebony were still in their custom prisons, but they were wheeled along with the other two. The hunchback followed them, leaving the X-Men chained to the wall. "What do we do now, Cyclops?" Bishop asked, as Gambit struggled in his chains, trying to free himself. But the leader of the X-Men was still unable to speak, and could only shrug in defeat.
They landed by the Blackbird, but there was little sign of their friends. Wolverine followed their scent to the sight of the battle, where he was met with the scent of four people he'd never met before, their scent strong with metal, dozens of creatures who's kind he had never encountered before, and himself. He paused, snorting. He had defiantly been here, and not too long ago. "Well?" Warren asked impatiently. "There was a fight," he said after a moment. "I'm guessing it's the Hunters." "How do you know?" Rebel asked him. "I was here. I can smell it." "You were here?" Warren asked, not knowing about Wolverine's alternate self. "How?" "An alternate him," Rebel explained to Warren and Betsy as Wolverine continued to follow the scent of their friends. Shadow was standing impassively to the side. "From the same world as us. It's complicated. We'll explain latter." "Found 'em," Wolverine said. "Some weird creatures attacked 'em and dragged 'em away." "The Hunters?" Shadow asked. "Gone. Don't know how. Their tracks come in, but don't come out." "Forget them," Rebel said. "We need to help our the others." Wolverine nodded and walked off into the jungle, following the smell of the creatures. Soon they found themselves outside a castle of solid metal. "This is it," Wolverine said. "They're inside."
Druid was the first hooked to the machine. It looked like an electric chair gone wrong, with wires and cables streaming into it from large computers, cylinders filled with various coloured liquids and other devices that defied description. A number of mettle strips were placed on him, the wires on them leading to a similar chair where the white monkey-like creature was strapped in. The hunchback stood near a large switch. He was explaining to process to the monkeys. "Once you have calibrated the machine you simply activate it by flipping the switch. The transfer will be immediate, and should last for long enough time for you to test your new abilities. Afterwards, their abilities shall return." With that, the hunchback turned and left through another door. One of the monkey creatures walked over to the machine and began typing. After a moment he flicked the switch. There was a jolt of electricity, the whirr of machinery, and Druid shook violently as the power was stripped from him and given to the white-furred creature. The process only lasted a few moments, and the monkey creature and Druid were released. The monkey creature stood shakily and put two of its hands to its head. "What happen." he muttered. With a shriek he collapsed on the floor writhing in pain and agony. "My power," Druid said, as the other monkeys watched on, trying to puzzle out this sudden change. "You can now feel everything any living creature in the world can feel. Anytime anyone cuts themselves, anytime an animal is slaughtered, anytime a rose is picked, anytime a blade of grass is stepped on, you feel it." He strode forward, standing threateningly over the screaming figure. "Your mind can't handle it. None can. It's being wiped clean by the pain; every memory will be erased but the pain." Several weapons pointed threateningly at him, and he backed down. The monkeys were chattering amongst themselves angrily, wondering what to do. "That's why you never told us who you are," Ebony said from within her metallic cage. "Your don't remember." "What a horrible power," Jean said. "You feel all the pain in the world?" "I feel everything. Every drop of rain, every lover's caress," he shook his head. "But the pain is the strongest. I always assumed that my powers became active during puberty, like everyone else, but when I gained control over my powers, I looked as I do now." Jean widened her eyes at the middle- aged man. "Since then I have learned the advantages this facet of my powers gives." "That's what block me when I tried to read your mind," Jean realised. "Correct. I can also sink my mind into the feelings, protecting myself from outside stimuli." "Huh?" Bobby, quiet till now, was completely lost. "He can ignore anything," Ebony clarified. "Pain, pleasure; anything he feels is so much smaller than what the rest of the world feels, he can ignore it." Just at that moment, a blaring siren cut through the air. The monkeys chattered excitedly and several of them ran off. Druid grinned. "Our friends have arrived." Even as he said it, he felt his powers return. The monkey was lying unconscious on the floor, its fellows trying to raise it. Only a few guards stood watch over the mutants, and they were distracted by the alarm. Druid reached out and grabbed a spear from one of the monkey's hands. He kicked out at the same time, sending the monkey to the floor. With one swift motion he threw the spear at Bobby, the flint tip shattering the control panel on the front. He turned to face the monkeys. With the device broken, Iceman easily freed himself, freezing and shattering the metal bonds. With a wave of his hand he froze on of the walls of Ebony's cage. Now iced up, he launched a barrage of ice at the charging monkeys. A shatter of ice flew through the air as Ebony, fully armoured, burst through her cage. She lashed out with an arc of crystal shards, piercing the thin hides of the monkey-like creatures. She lashed out with a vicious kick that caught a leaping creature in the head, shattering its skull. Jean ripped the psychic inhibitor off her head, tossing it to the ground. Her powers freed, she used a telekinetic bolt to scatter several of the creatures near her. As soon as they hit the ground, Ebony was among them, the sharp blades on her arms slipping easily through their chests. Soon, it was over, and their guards were all dead.
Berzerker was chained to the wall. That, in itself, was not a problem; there was no chain he couldn't become strong enough to break. However, there was a spring-loaded steel spike pointed strait at his heart. He knew that no matter how quickly he moved, he wouldn't be able to dodge it, and, tough as he could be, he couldn't survive with six inches of steel through his heart. Any other part of his chest and he was fine. His heart, though, was rather important. He watched as the strange, androgynous figure enter again. "Who the hell are you?" Berzerker demanded. He quickened the production of his 'adrenaline,' just so he was ready for any eventuality. "I am the Master." These were the first words the figure had spoken to him. "The Master? What are you, some 60s comic book villain?" "I am a mutant, just like you." "You don't look like me." Berzerker had learned long ago that playing the idiot was the best way for him to go. He wasn't quite as stupid as everyone thought, and he was smart enough to keep it that way. "My appearance, and that of my brother, is one aspect of our mutant 'gifts.'" "And what are your other gifts?" "I can create objects of metal at will." He reached out a hand and a 3- dimensional polygon made of solid steel appeared in mid air. "And your brother?" Berzerker remembered the albino hunchback who seemed to work for the Master. They did have a certain resemblance. "He can manipulate this metal into anything he desires." "Sounds like he's the more powerful one. So why are you in charge and not him?" "I am smarter." The answer was simple, but it left a lot unsaid. Berzerker was about to ask another question when the alarm interrupted them.
The hunchback was in the lab, busily working when the alarm went off. He ignored it. He had work to do, and the guards would take care of the intruders. He looked at the large glass cylinder that dominated one of the walls of the room. It was filled with a strange blue translucent liquid gel. In it was suspended the mutant. Her brown hair (a single streak of white) billowed in the subtle currents of the gel. He naked form hung there, unmoving and unconscious, waiting for the procedure to be complete. The Master had discovered the mutant as soon as she had entered the jungle. He had shot down their plain to get them all within his grasp, using an energy gun they had created which shut down all electrical systems. The Master was always hungry for more mutant powers to study. The monkeys had watched the mutants carefully until their friends arrived. They had found out little about the stranger's mutant powers, but power fairly radiated from the beautiful woman. She had been the target. When she had been captured, the hunchback had tended to her as to the other injured mutants, but he had made the mistake of making skin-to-skin contact with her. Her power activated and drained his. The contact was very brief, and though she had woken up, she was swiftly subdued. So the Master had done a number of experiments, discovering the full nature of her powers, and had been overjoyed at the result. The Master was obsessed with creating a 'new race.' Both the brothers lacked any sort of reproductive capabilities, and his obsession with genetic engineering was a way to deal with that. The Master had always wanted a way to transfer his mind and mutant powers from one body into another, allowing him to finally experience the joy of emotion and feeling; his skin was as dead as his emotions, unfeeling and unresponsive. The hunchback preferred it that way, but his brother want to feel life. The mutant named Rogue offered the perfect opportunity. Using her powers as a conduit, the Master had designed a machine to transfer someone's mutant powers, mind or both from one body to another. Of course, the process would kill her, but then that was not different from any experiment the brothers had done before. Oh, her body and her powers would survive, but her mind would be destroyed almost instantly. Things had proven even better than the brothers could have hoped. The Master had found his new body in one of the woman's friends. The big, powerful mutant had his weaknesses, of course, but after a little genetic engineering he should be neigh on invincible. Still, there was much to do before everything was ready. Though the Master had designed the machine, as usual the building was up to the hunchback. Actually, he absently thought to himself as he used his powers to shape a piece of mettle into a long tube, it's better this way. The hunchback wasn't interested in things like world domination, new races or feeling. He was content simply to make things. He would let his brother have the mad schemes. Everything went dark suddenly. The hunchback looked around in surprise. The lights hadn't failed; even when every light in the fortress was off there was enough light for the hunchback to see at least the outline of his lab. But now he could see nothing. He shaped the tube he was holding into a working flashlight. Though his brother could only produce metal, he could turn it into anything he liked. He flicked the switch. Nothing happened. Curious. A pair of red dots blinked into existence right in front of him. The hunchback started back. If he concentrated, he thought he could make out the form of a person. He swung a vicious punch that would have punched through a sheet of solid steel, but he stumbled forward as his hand met no resistance. He shivered with a deep cold that went beyond physical. He saw the figure more clearly now. It held a blade poised to strike. For the first time in his life, the hunchback felt real emotion. He felt deep hear. He stumbled backwards, stammering. "No. no. noooo!" There was a crash as he tripped over something, knocking a tray of medical equipment to the floor. The blade struck fast, and it struck only once. It went strait through the hunchback's chest, digging into the mettle floor below. The hunchback died with a strangled gurgle.
The alarm made almost all the monkeys guarding them disappear out various doors. Only four stood guard now, one for each X-Man. They chattered nervously to each other in what the mutants were coming to recognise as an actual language, though one unlike any they had ever heard. "I think Druid's message reached its destination," Beast stated blandly. As if response one of the large mettle doors burst open in a cloud of billowing smoke. A pair of lithe figures danced through the smoke. Rebel had a golden disc between each of her fingers. She gracefully dodged the first attack levelled at her, ending up behind the charging monkey. She grabbed its chin in one hand, snapping it back and with one smooth motion slit its throat. She dropped its dead body and spun on her heals. She released the discs and they flew with unerring accuracy at two of the remaining monkeys. The agile monkeys tried to dodge, and one managed to avoid all the blows. One of them only managed to dodge two of the discs, the third striking it in the chest. A burst of electricity surrounded it and its twitching, smoking corpse fell to the floor. Psylocke was no less deadly. Her psi knife took care of the first monkey to attack her, and a simple roundhouse kick broke the neck of the monkey dodging Rebel's discs. Rebel released Cyclops from his chains. "Storm and Angle are attacking the main gate to provide a distraction," she said as she helped the leader of the X-Men down. Betsey freed Bishop and moved on to help Beast. "Shadow is around somewhere. Where are the others?" "Bobby, Jean, Ebony and Druid were taken out through that door," Cyclops said, pointing. "I don't know where Berzerker and Rogue are." "What about Gambit?" Psylocke asked. Scott looked around. "He was here," he said after a moment. "He must have slipped off in the confusion," Bishop said. "Indubitably, that does seem his style," Beast added. "I doubt he is in any real danger. We should concern ourselves with freeing the others." "Right. Psylocke, Bishiop and I will follow Jean and the others. Beast, you and Rebel try to find the others." "Or at least our weapons," Bishop added, referring to his missing arsenal. Cyclops nodded. "Lets go."
Shadow slid the blade out of the hunchback's dead body, the dagger eagerly lapping up the twisted mutant's blood. He dissolved the darkness, carefully studying the room. That was when he noticed the cylinder. "Damn," he swore. He picked up the tray that had fallen on the floor and with an easy cast sent it flying to the cylinder. Glass shattered and fell to the floor among a wave of the gel-like liquid. Rogue fell among it, landing right in Shadow's arms. He lowered her gently to the floor. He removed his black gloves to check her pulse. No pulse or breath. "Damn," he swore again. He pulled back his hood and cowl. Tenderly he parted her lips. He gently breathed air back into. "Live," he commanded, as though it would help. He pushed firmly on her chest. No change. He tried the process again. "Live!" Rogue coughed and sputtered as she fluttered back to consciousness. She rolled over as she tried to clear her lungs of the liquid gel, sobbing with pain. She shivered with the cold as her bare skin pressed against the mettle floor. Shadow removed his cloak and gently draped it over her. His bare hand brushed a tear from her face. "You're alright," he said softly to her. He held her shoulders, trying to comfort her. He was concentrating so hard on the woman that he didn't notice the attack until it was too late. The explosion hit him in the back and sent him flying across the room. He went strait through the floor, disappearing from sight. "Stay away from her, mon ami!" Gambit yelled as he charged into the room. He knelt by Rogue. "Don' worry, chere. Gambit here. He protect you." Gambit had arrived just in time to see Shadow holding the sobbing and choking Rogue, and had assumed that he was attacking her. He had been carrying a few lose pieces of medical equipment he had scooped up, and a quick charge had blown the 'attacker' away. Shadow appeared through the floor right behind Gambit. He grabbed the Cajun thief by the scruff of his neck and with one hand tossed him away. He didn't even bother to draw his dagger. He helped Rogue to her feet. She was clutching his cloak around her, trying for some modicum of decency, and was gasping for enough breath to speak. "I'll handle this," he said, obviously not realising that Gambit was a friend of Rogue's. The two faced off against each other. Gambit held a scalpel in one hand. Shadow grinned and drew his dagger forth. Gambit charged the scalpel and threw it. Shadow saw the glowing object and dodged out of the way. He rolled into a crouch as the scalpel exploded against the wall behind him, sending a fair amount of mettle flying. Gambit launched a kick at Shadow's head, but his foot passed harmlessly through. Shadow lashed out with his hand, catching Remy's other foot and pulling it out from under him. The Cajun thief fell to the floor but rolled away instantly. Both opponents jumped into a fighting crouch, Gambit with a small, charged, metal bar in his hand. "Stop!" Rogue yelled. "Stop right now." She stomped forward, Shadow's cloak still wrapped round her protectively. "Chere?" Gambit asked, still eyeing Shadow warily. "But he attacked you, no?" "He saved mah life, Remy," she told him. "And you," she turned on Shadow. "Don't you go attackin' mah friends." Shadow bowed mockingly. "Of course not." Still, he gave Gambit a glance that said clearly 'try it again, and you're dead.' Gambit returned the gaze levelly. "Now who are ya?" "I am Shadow." "Shadow? Ya'll one of Ebony's friends?" "Yes." He and Gambit still eyed each other warily. "I think we should find the others quickly." "Ah'm not goin' anywhere till Ah find some clothes," Rogue stated flatly. "Ah can't fight like this." "Well, chere." Gambit began. "Don't even think it, swamp rat," Rogue glared at him. "Allow me," Shadow said. He grabbed his cloak and in one swift motion pulled it away. Rogue yelped and tried to cover herself up. Rogue glared at Shadow, clutching her arms about herself protectively, but he merely smiled oddly as he slipped his cloak back on. She glanced down at herself. To her surprise, she wasn't naked, but fully dressed. She was wearing a beautiful black evening gown, with sparkling diamonds, a low neckline and a slit up one side showing off most of her thigh. "Mon Dieu!" Gambit breathed. Rogue goggled at the obviously expensive dress. "Ah can't fight in this!" she exclaimed. "It's not real," Shadow assured her. The others stared blankly at him. "Its an illusion. I made it from nearby shadows. See." He stepped forward and grabbed her waist. His hand passed through the black material and rested lightly against her skin. Rogue flinched away from his hand, but nothing happened. Shadow gave her an odd look. "Just don't go to far away from me or it will dissolve," he warned her. He slipped on his hood and cowl, walking through the wall. "Très belle, chere," Gambit said, walking up to her and wrapping an arm round her waist. His hand went strait through the dress and grazed her skin. "Remy, no!" She felt the usual jolt as she absorbed his mutant powers and his memories. He gave a cry of surprise and fell backwards. The touch hadn't been much, but it had been enough. Shadow reappeared as soon as Rogue cried out. "What happened?" he demanded. "He touched me," Rogue said. "And mah power.." she stared in horror at Gambits recumbent form. Shadow sighed in exasperation. "I won't ask. Come on, we've got to get him out of here." Shadow slung the Cajun over his shoulder easily. He slid open one of the mettle doors. "We'll come back for the others after we get him to safety." Rogue chased after Shadow as he disappeared down the corridor. Her mind was jumbled with the recent events. One thought keep coming back to her, though. "He touched me," she said to herself. "He touched me and mah power didn't hurt him."
"I am offering you a deal," the Master said to Berzerker, ignoring the blaring alarm. "You aren't in a position to deal," Berzerker said confidently. "That alarm is my friends, and they'll tear you limb from limb." "What I am offering you has nothing to do with your friends, or your freedom. I am offering you invincibility." "Huh?" "Your powers are great, but you have weaknesses. I can alter you to get rid of those weaknesses. Get rid of the blind rage that you enter into. Get rid of the drop in heart rate after you use your powers. Protect those parts of your body, like your heart, which are still vulnerable." "Why? How?"
"The how is simple. I am a geneticist. Anything is possible given time. The why? Well, you would agree to serve me, as my personal guard. Normally I would simply transfer your powers to one more willing to serve me, but your unique physiology would be difficult to duplicate." "So you think that just because you offer me invincibility.." "And power, and wealth, and women, and anything else you wish," the Master interrupted. "I'll abandon my friends, work for you, probably against them? Abandon all that is good and just and work for some mad scientist?" Berzerker was indignant. "Yes." "Can I have my own band?" The Master seemed a bit surprised at this request, but assented. "Very well, you can have your own band." "Cool. Deal."
Rebel and Beast avoided the guards as best they could. The needed to find their friends, not take on impossible odds. Rebel had her golden discs in her hands, once again one between each of her fingers, and Beast was hopping from floor to walls to ceiling. Just as she was rounding a corner, Rebel's precognition kicked in. Running to quickly to stop she broke into a roll, moving ahead and to the side. The startled monkeys gibbered in surprise and came to a halt. Six golden discs flew out, and six monkeys fell, some with large holes in their bodies, some electrocuted and some the centre of a fairly large explosion. Beast, who had been swinging up along the ceiling (this place was designed with monkeys in mind, after all), dropped in amongst the creatures. He landed on two of them, knocking their breath from them. He grabbed another two as he bounced away, slamming the two together and dropping to the floor as he hurled the two he had knocked down into a wall.
Rebel stood and dusted herself off as Beast landed by the last one. Beast grinned as he lifted the screaming monkey above his head and spun him around like pizza dough. As the monkey screeched and dropped its weapons as it was hurled into a wall.
"I'm impressed," Rebel admitted to the furry X-Man.
"As am I," Beast replied. He looked at the six she had fallen. "A bit bloodier than I prefer, but impressive none the less."
"In my world, if you don't play for keeps you don't play for long."
"Alas that it must oft be so."
"A philosophical discussion?" Berzerker grinned foolishly. "You surprise me, Reb."
"Kyle," she said, rushing forward. "Where have you been?" He grinned even wider and caught her a vicious backhand. She gasped in surprise, as she flew across the hall. She hit the ground hard.
"You gotta understand, Reb," Berzerker said, still grinning. "Its nothin' personal. I got a new friend, now." The androgynous figure floated around the corner, its expression still bored. "He's a geneticist. Calls himself the Master, if you can believe that."
"A geneticist," Beast mused. "Then I assume that you are responsible for the monstrosities that act as your servants." He gestured to the dead bodies littering the floor.
"Correct," the Master replied calmly. Neither he nor Berzerker made a move forward. They seemed to be waiting for Beast to make the first move.
"Why? Why commit such a heinous act? Surely you must realise that what you have done is wrong? To deliberately twist these poor creatures into these monstrous forms is abhorrent."
"All is accepted in the name of science."
"No!" Beast half barked, half growled the exclamation. "Science is no excuse for indecent morals. The study of science necessitates that one be more responsible, not less."
"Berzerker?" Rebel asked as she lifted herself from the floor. "Why?"
"He's offering me invincibility, Reb," Berzerker replied. He slung his arm over the Master's shoulders. "And a band! There's just one problem." A slight shift and he had the Master in a headlock; a sudden twist and its neck was broken. "He's an idiot."
Rebel stood up whipping the blood from her mouth. "You could have been a bit more gentle with me."
"I wanted to make it look real."
"I could have faked it well enough."
Beast coughed. "You mean to say that you were pretending to switch sides?" He turned to Rebel. "And you knew?"
"Of course I knew," she said. "You don't think I'd actually let him hit me? I mean, I do have precognition."
"How did you know?"
"He only ever calls me 'Reb' when he wants me to go along with something. I knew he had something up his sleeve." She glanced at Berzerker's bare chest. "Metaphorically speaking, of course."
There was a slight tremor and the building seemed to shake. "What's going on?" Berzerker asked.
A piece of metal fell from the ceiling and clanged loudly to the ground. "I would surmise," Beast stated, raising his voice over the growing tumult as metal groaned and shook. "That with the death of the Master, the tower shall shortly subside."
"Huh?"
"Lets get the hell out of here!" Rebel translated.
"Oh!" He paused. A large mettle beam hit him on the shoulder and bounced off. "Which way is out?"
"I don't know." They both looked at Beast, but he could only shrug.
"Right," Berzerker said, gritting his teeth. "One exit, coming up." With that he ploughed through the solid metal wall, splitting it like rice paper. Beast and Rebel followed close behind.
Rogue could hardly believe it. Shortly after the building had begun to collapse strange, monkey-like creatures had attacked them. Rogue had taken out the two that attacked her quickly, but Shadow had finished off the other ten in that short space of time.
It had been amazing. He even used Gambit's body as a weapon, swinging the Cajun's feet to 'kick' the attacking creatures. He had dodged and weaved through the mass of fur and weapons as though he were unencumbered. He didn't even bother to use his dagger. And when it was done, he simply continued to jog on as though nothing had happened.
Rogue couldn't help feeling a bit nervous around Shadow. He had dealt with his opponents with clinical professionalism. He seemed cold and distant, as though the world wasn't real to him. It wasn't that he seemed evil; it was just that Rogue got the feeling he would kill her if she proved inconvenient, and he would have a second thought about it.
The managed to escape from the building before it collapsed. They found the others outside, waiting for them. "What happened to Gambit?" Cyclops demanded. Wolverine helped Shadow lay Gambit gently on the ground.
"He touched me," Rogue said.
"What a time to be stealing a kiss," Wolverine snorted.
"It was an accident," she said fiercely. "He put his arms round my waist, and, well, it went through my clothes."
Cyclops looked puzzled, glancing at her clothing. For the first time he noticed the dress she was wearing. His eyes bulged out slightly. The other X-Men were all likewise staring at the beautiful dress. "Where did you get that?" Jean asked, a hint of jealousy in her voice.
"Shadow gave it to her," Ebony guessed. The X-Men looked from Rogue to Ebony, to Shadow and back to Rogue. They seemed even more puzzled.
"Something for emergencies?" Psylocke asked Shadow, raising her eyebrow quizzically.
"Its an illusion," Shadow explained shortly.
"And when Remy touched me, his hand went through it and." Rogue reiterated.
"Though I hasten to interrupt this fascinating conversation," Druid stated blandly. "You do realise that we are not all here?"
Shadow looked around. Rebel, Berzerker and Beast had not arrived yet. "I'll find them."
Ebony nodded, but before Shadow had gone five steps one of the walls burst outwards in a shower of mettle. When the dust cleared, they could see the three standing there.
"See?" Berzerker said. "I told you we'd get out. And you doubted me."
Rebel shook her head helplessly. She saw Shadow and she rushed over to him. "You OK?" Shadow nodded. He glanced at the equipment she was carrying. "Oh, we found these." She and Beast (who had helped her carry everything) handed Bishop his weapons and Cyclops his visor. She held a bunch of cards and a uniform. "So, who do these belong to?"
"The cards would be Gambits," Beast informed her. "Who, it appears, has taken the opportunity to be comatose." He glanced sidelong at Rogue. "Stealing a kiss again, was he?"
"It wasn't like that," Rogue demanded. She snatched the uniform from Rebel's hands. "Ah believe this is mine." She looked around, not making a move to put the uniform on.
"Well?" Berzerker asked. "Aren't you going to put it on?"
"Not with ya'll watchin' me," she replied indignantly.
"Oh please?" Bobby begged.
"Yeah, please?" Berzerker added.
She scowled at the two of them. Shadow stepped forward, glaring at them. He waved his hands and Rogue was encased in a globe of darkness. "Aw, you're no fun," Berzerker complained. Shadow didn't bother to reply, he just walked away.
The others were discussing what had happened, and making introductions. Soon Rogue emerged from the darkness in her uniform, joining the others in their discussions. Wolverine and Druid, who had a sense of smell almost as good as the X-Man's, went out to see if anyone had escaped, or if all the monkeys had died, before they leave.
Berzerker was staring appreciatively at Psylocke. Beast considered saying something, but the beautiful woman was ignoring the teen, tending to a wound Angle had acquired in the battle. Also, after the display with the Master, Beast was less worried about Berzerker being a danger to the group. Still, his presence was likely to cause some problems.
Storm walked over to Shadow, who was standing apart from the others, deep in thought. She stood there for a moment, studying his face, looking for his reaction to these events. He seemed to be ignoring her. "Shadow," she said. He turned to her. She looked at his burning red eyes. "Rogue told us that you saved her life."
Shadow shrugged. "So?"
"She told us how you saved her life." Shadow looked puzzled. "Rogue's power means that if anyone touches her she drains their memories, their mutant powers, and their life."
"Powerful," Shadow stated. "But I think I understand what you're saying. She can' t control it?"
"If anyone else had revived her, they would be lying beside Gambit."
"Ah. And the girl is starved of physical contact. How tragic. I still see no reason to mention this to me."
"Rogue has dreamed of being able to touch someone since she gained her mutant powers."
"And now she can touch me. Yes, yes, we all understand this." Shadow paused, and then scrutinised Storm. "Ah. You, as a concerned friend, want to see how I would react to her approaching me. Am I right?" Storm nodded. "Don't worry. Though Rogue is more than averagely attractive, I don't have time for that kind of thing." With that he turned away.
"One more thing, Shadow," Storm said. "When you created the illusion of the Rogue's clothing, why did you make it such a beautiful dress? Wouldn't something more practical have been just as appropriate?"
"A beautiful dress for a beautiful woman," Shadow replied absently, walking away.
"I told you he was a romantic," Rebel said smugly from behind Storm, where she had been listing in to the conversation. "Don't worry about anything. I'll make sure he behaves."
Meanwhile, the southern belle in question was staring at Shadow, a puzzled expression on her face. "Don't even think about it," someone said from behind her.
She turned to see Ebony, a serious expression on her face, standing behind her. "Ah don't know what you're talking about."
"They explained your 'situation' to me."
"So?"
"So you're obviously thinking about the possibilities in a relationship with Shadow. Don't"
"Ah take it he's already spoken for, sugar?"
Ebony laughed. "Not likely. Shadow isn't the kind of person to get tied down in romance and love." She turned serious again. "Let me give you a piece of advice. If you're just looking for a romp in the bed, then by all means approach him. I don't know weather or not he'll accept; I've never bothered trying to figure him out. But if you're looking for a relationship, you'd be better off sticking with the Cajun. Shadow doesn't love. Other women have tired, and, in the end, they've all left. Most have died." She shook her head at Rogue's shocked expression. "Shadow's not a bad guy, but he's no saint. He does what's necessary to get the job done. He's used women's feelings for him to get them to do things they would never otherwise do; things that cost them their lives but that help us catch the villain." She paused and looked strait at Rogue's eyes. "If it came down between one's life and his, Shadow would save anyone without a second's thought. But if it comes down to one's life or the villain escaping, well, I wouldn't be making any long-term plans." Ebony placed a hand on Rogues shoulder. "So take it from someone who's known him the longest. He can be your ally, your friend or even your lover, but he will never be your love." With that she walked off, joining the others.
Rogue puzzled over the woman's words. Obviously she assumed that just because Rogue had discovered she could touch Shadow, she would run into Shadow's arms begging him to love her. The thought had never crossed her mind. Well, maybe just a bit. All right, so she had very nearly done just that. But she had seen enough of Shadow to know that probably wasn't a good idea. His appearance, the appearance of the X-Knights in general, has changed things, though. And she couldn't guess how they would change.
Disclaimer: I own none of the X-Men and I'm not making any money from this. Still.
"I still think I could have taken him," Archangel stubbornly insisted as they entered the X-Mansion. Shadow threw his hands up in surrender and stalked off through a wall.
"Does he ever use doors?" Psylocke asked Rebel.
"Nope." The Spanish beauty shook her head. "He's a bit off a show off, really."
"A bit?" Rebel chuckled.
"I mean, I have been doing this for a long time," Archangel was muttering to himself. "I can face Magneto, Apocalypse, and every other mutant alive, but one old man who we've never even heard of?"
"Warren," Psylocke said exasperatedly. "Stop whining."
"I am not whining!"
"Warren," Storm said calmly. "That man was a mutant whose power meant he could kill you with a single touch. And you haven't heard of him because he is from an alternate reality and he only just arrived. Shadow is the only one, in either our world or theirs, who is immune to this man's powers."
"Oh." Archangel thought about this. "Well if you had said that."
Rebel laughed uproariously as Psylocke merely wrapped an arm around the rich mutant and led him away. "Oh, dear," Rebel said after a while, whipping the tears of mirth from her face. "Is he always like that?"
"Not usually," Storm replied. "I think he is still upset about having to cut his vacation short."
"See, I told you so." Storm stared at her blankly. "People get nasty when their vacations are ruined." Storm chuckled as she and Rebel walked into the mansion.
They met Shadow in the hall, hood and cowl removed. He had a concerned expression on his face. "I'm worried about the others."
"Oh, they went after the other disturbance," Rebel said offhand. "I'm sure they're fine." Shadow gave he a look. "You can't kill everyone. You have to leave some for us." Shadow still seemed unimpressed. "OK, if they don't call back in two hours we'll check on them. Better?" Shadow still looked dubious, but nodded. He seemed to think of something. "Storm," he said. "Would you mind showing me the flyers?" "Certainly," the weather goddess responded, a bit surprised. "But why?" "Practicality. You never know when you may need an extra pilot." It seemed innocent enough, but both Rebel and Storm knew he had an ulterior motive. Still, there was no harm in just showing him. Storm smiled. "We shall take care of it soon." "The sooner the better. In fact, now would be just fine." Storm looked a bit dubious, but nodded. "And don't worry about the others," Rebel said to Shadow as she walked off. "They're just fine. Trust me."
"Ugh, my head." Ebony came to, and tried to rub her aching head with her hands. Her bonds creaked. Her eyes snapped instantly open and she came to full awareness. She stared at the room. It was a bright medic's room. She was lying on an examination table, her clothes removed. Some of the other tables were likewise occupied; she recognised the people laying on them. The X-Men Gambit, Bishop and Cyclops lay tethered to their tables. She summoned her armour. The bonds stretched just enough to allow her to, but didn't break, nor could she cut them with her blades. She sighed. These were the situations where she envied Shadow. "Ah, Chere, you are awake." She turned her head to see Gambit staring at her. She suddenly blushed, glad that she had summoned her armour. She had to find out what had happened to her clothes. "Where are we?" "Gambit does not know, Chere. But it looks bad, oui?" "Oui," Ebony said, sighing. "Don't worry, Chere. No prison can hold Gambit." "This one can," said a strange, coarse voice from the door. They turned to see a hunched, shuffling figure. His body was twisted in a parody of humanity. He was a hunched, albino figure, hairless, lacking even eyebrows. Scars and stitches covered him. One of his arms was twisted at an unusual angle and the other hung at his side. The looked like they were different lengths from each other. His eyes were pupil-less, but he seemed to have no problem seeing. He carried a tray of medical equipment and had a rather bored expression on his face. "No one has ever escaped from here. No one ever will." He walked over to Cyclops's recumbent form and began to examine his wounds. "Who are you?" Ebony demanded. "What are we doing here?" Gambit kept silent, squirming his bonds, trying to break free. "You are here because the Master captured you." Gambit had one arm free. A bright glow surrounded Cyclops's shoulder where Prime Suspect had severed the nerve. "Why?" Gambit had freed both his arms now, and was silently untying his legs. The wound on Cyclops's shoulder had closed, and the strange creature walked over to Bishop. "The Master shall explain all." Gambit was free now. He reached for a card in his jacket, but they had been taken away. He stalked up behind the hunchback who was injecting something into Bishop. "Who is the Master?" The creature swung round with unearthly agility, grabbed Gambit and slammed him against the nearby wall. His expression never changed. "The Master is the Master. And soon he shall be your master, just as he is mine." Gambit picked up something from a near by table and charged it. It glowed bright with energy as it flew in a perfect arc at the unconcerned hunchback. The hunchback grabbed Bishop's unconscious form and, as easily as one would lift a doll, he shoved the mutant in the way of the charged projectile. It exploded, pouring its energy into Bishop. Expertly, still appearing bored, the albino threw Bishop at Gambit, the two falling to the ground. He gave a shrill cry followed by noises no human could ever make; crackling, shrieking, clawing noises unlike any other noise. The answering call was a chittering sound, like a thousand teeth chattering against a golden bell. Into the room burst ten strange creatures. They looked like twisted monkeys, small and agitated, covered in coarse, dirty fur. At their elbows each of their arms branched out into three, and each hand had two thumbs. They carried a weapon in each hand, sometimes crude wooden clubs, sometime primitive axes, the heads made of flint, and sometimes spears, tipped with either flint or bone. Their long, whip-like tails, two each, were barbed. Their feet were more like hands, and their finger-like toes ended in sharp, cruel talons. They wore no clothes, but their fur was so thick that this didn't matter. Some were black with bright green eyes, others a dull maroon with red eyes like glowing embers, while some, their fur a brown-green colour, had eyes as black as ink, and those with blue eyes, burning like a bright flame, had fur the colour of bones left in the sun. The skin of their faces, hands, feet and the tips of their tails (the only places not covered in fur), was the same colour as their fur, but was shrived and wrinkled, like meat left out to rot. A putrid stench of blood and rotting flesh hung about them. The chitterd and chattered as they jumped about, surrounding Gambit and Bishop, who was now awake, Prime Suspect's poison purged from his veins, holding their weapons pointed at the fallen X-Men. Briefly they considered fighting, but they realised that they would only kill a few of the monkey- like creatures before they died. The held their hands up in surrender. Cyclops moaned and tried to turn, waking slowly. As he was about to open his eyes, he realised that his visor had been removed. He clamped his eyes shut. "What is going on?" He strained uselessly against the bonds that held him. "I would not open your eyes," a coarse voiced warned him. "The Master would not be pleased to replace the ceiling." "Who are you?" "A servant." "Where are the others?" "Gambit and I are here," Bishop said, answering his leader's question. "With the woman you brought with you." "Where is Jean?" "I don't know. I have not seen any of the others since the battle." "You shall be taken to them now," the albino told them, holding out their costumes. Cyclops and Ebony's bonds slid away. They stood and the four heroes dressed as more monkey-like creatures entering to room with drawn weapons. There was the sound of a metallic door sliding open.
"I do not understand why you wish to learn to fly these," Storm said, showing Shadow the controls. He had declined to use the simulator, saying he just wanted to know the controls. "I told you," he replied, studying them carefully. He hadn't told Storm, but he had carefully watched her pilot the craft. With what he had Storm tell him now, he knew he could fly the craft without too much difficulty. As soon as he got away from Storm, he would double back and fly to the Amazon. He knew his companions needed his help, and he didn't have enough time to argue with the others. "I don't believe that. You have some reason. I would guess that you wished to aid your friends, were it not for the fact that it would take much more than an hour to learn to fly." Shadow turned on the engine, opening the hanger door with the remote. "I'm a fast learner." A flutter of movement caught his attention and he gave a low growl.
"Scott!" Jean cried as they were led into the room where the others were held prisoner. "Jean!" He moved towards her voice, but the point of a spear made him stop. He was placed in chains and locked in. He felt a visor clamped around his face. "You may open your eyes now," the coarse voice told him. He did so, looking around the room in shock. His vision was tinted with the usually red of ruby quartz, the visor covering his face made of the material. Jean was chained to the wall opposite him, a metal device on her head obviously stopping her from using her powers. Beast, Bishop, Gambit and Druid were likewise chained up. Bobby was hooked into a strange metallic device. When he tried to activate his ice powers it glowed red hot, responding to the drop in temperature, and melted any ice before it could really form. Ebony was trapped in a cage of solid metal, only a small slit for air allowing her to see out. "Where is Rogue?" Gambit asked, as soon as he took in his surroundings. "We don't know, my friend," Beast said. "She was not here when we awoke." "Nor was Berzerker," Druid added, directing the comment at his leader. The creatures, as well as the albino, had left. "I managed to send the others the message." "Good," Ebony replied. "What message?" Cyclops asked, straining against his bonds. "Help."
"Black rose," Shadow yelled at Rebel as he appeared through the wall. His hood was up and his eyes were blazing red. "Black rose!" Rebel leapt up from the chair where she was having a conversation with Psylocke. "Lets go!" "What the hell does 'black rose' mean?" "When Druid is in trouble and can't get word to us," Rebel said, slipping her boots back on. "He sends a white dove with a black rose in its mouth." "You were right," Betsy said to Shadow, rising. "They are in trouble." But Shadow was already gone, through the wall back towards the hanger. The others weren't too far behind.
The metallic doors slid open once more. Four of the monkey-like creatures, one of each colour, entered. They were somewhat taller than the others and carried no weapons. Behind them walked the hunchback, with a strange figure. He (if it was a he) could best be described as androgynous. Long, white hair ran down his back. His skin was a pale white and his lips a dark red, like blood. He was thin, to the point of being skeletal. He wore rich gold metallic armour that was obviously fitted exactly to him. His eyes were pupil-less. Apart from the long, luscious strands of hair flowing from his skull, his body was devoid of hair. Not even eyebrows. Standing next to each other, it was clear to see the resemblance of the androgynous figure and the hunchback. They both had a certain 'made' quality, but while the hunchback looked as though he had been stitched together from other peoples' bodies, the androgynous man looked as though he had been carved from marble. "Who are you?" Cyclops demanded. "Why have you captured us? Where are the others?" The androgynous figure moved over to the leader of the X-Men. His feet didn't seem to touch the ground, and his legs never moved. He seemed to float rather than walk. "Full of questions," he said in a lyrical but strangely disquieting voice, much like a beautiful symphony with one instrument out of tune. "Be silent." The command had a power behind it, and Cyclops felt his tongue grow heavy and his jaw seize shut. He floated back to the monkey-like creatures. "You have served me well for many years," he said to them. "You have led your clans as I have commanded, never shirking from duty." He waved his hand at the X-Men and X- Knights. "These shall be your reward. Each of you shall be given the power of one of these mutants, of your choice." The monkey-like creatures chattered happily and grinned. The white one, however, looked concerned. "How we know which power they have?" he asked in halting English. "You won't." The monkeys frowned and began chittering angrily. There were some words of English that broke through. "Not good, not good," the black one cried over and over again, hopping on its knuckles. "How we know you not give us bad powers?" the green one cried. The red one shrieked its agreement. "There is no way," androgynous figure stated, his voice still unemotional and flat. "The transfer is permanent, and I shall not allow the mutants to use their powers. They may escape." He paused, glancing at where Bobby was trapped in his heat sensitive prison and Jean's psychic disabler. "They have tried that already. I do not know all their powers, either." "Actually, Master," the hunchback said, his voice equally dull. "There is a way. The experimental power-draining devices are still operational. There is one that will drain the powers from the mutants for a short amount of time. If they used those, they could test the powers of their chosen mutant, and if they did not like it, it would wear off after a short amount of time." "Very well. Show them how to work the machine and then get back to work on the permanent transfer device. I have things to do." With that he floated away. The monkeys chattered and gnashed their teeth together, hopping about the room, looking at all the captives. The green one picked Bobby almost immediately, and the red one selected Ebony, obviously assuming that their increased protection meant that they were more powerful. Likewise, the black one selected Jean. That left only the white one, who had taken time to study each one in turn. When he approached Druid, the X-Knight spoke to him. "Chose me," he said, his voice full of power and command. The X-Men looked at his like he was mad. Only Ebony trusted that he had a plan. "I control the powers of nature. With that power, you would be the most powerful creature in the rainforest." The white monkey glared at him suspiciously. After a moment, he nodded. More monkey guards arrived and led out the four mutants with the unarmed monkeys. Bobby and Ebony were still in their custom prisons, but they were wheeled along with the other two. The hunchback followed them, leaving the X-Men chained to the wall. "What do we do now, Cyclops?" Bishop asked, as Gambit struggled in his chains, trying to free himself. But the leader of the X-Men was still unable to speak, and could only shrug in defeat.
They landed by the Blackbird, but there was little sign of their friends. Wolverine followed their scent to the sight of the battle, where he was met with the scent of four people he'd never met before, their scent strong with metal, dozens of creatures who's kind he had never encountered before, and himself. He paused, snorting. He had defiantly been here, and not too long ago. "Well?" Warren asked impatiently. "There was a fight," he said after a moment. "I'm guessing it's the Hunters." "How do you know?" Rebel asked him. "I was here. I can smell it." "You were here?" Warren asked, not knowing about Wolverine's alternate self. "How?" "An alternate him," Rebel explained to Warren and Betsy as Wolverine continued to follow the scent of their friends. Shadow was standing impassively to the side. "From the same world as us. It's complicated. We'll explain latter." "Found 'em," Wolverine said. "Some weird creatures attacked 'em and dragged 'em away." "The Hunters?" Shadow asked. "Gone. Don't know how. Their tracks come in, but don't come out." "Forget them," Rebel said. "We need to help our the others." Wolverine nodded and walked off into the jungle, following the smell of the creatures. Soon they found themselves outside a castle of solid metal. "This is it," Wolverine said. "They're inside."
Druid was the first hooked to the machine. It looked like an electric chair gone wrong, with wires and cables streaming into it from large computers, cylinders filled with various coloured liquids and other devices that defied description. A number of mettle strips were placed on him, the wires on them leading to a similar chair where the white monkey-like creature was strapped in. The hunchback stood near a large switch. He was explaining to process to the monkeys. "Once you have calibrated the machine you simply activate it by flipping the switch. The transfer will be immediate, and should last for long enough time for you to test your new abilities. Afterwards, their abilities shall return." With that, the hunchback turned and left through another door. One of the monkey creatures walked over to the machine and began typing. After a moment he flicked the switch. There was a jolt of electricity, the whirr of machinery, and Druid shook violently as the power was stripped from him and given to the white-furred creature. The process only lasted a few moments, and the monkey creature and Druid were released. The monkey creature stood shakily and put two of its hands to its head. "What happen." he muttered. With a shriek he collapsed on the floor writhing in pain and agony. "My power," Druid said, as the other monkeys watched on, trying to puzzle out this sudden change. "You can now feel everything any living creature in the world can feel. Anytime anyone cuts themselves, anytime an animal is slaughtered, anytime a rose is picked, anytime a blade of grass is stepped on, you feel it." He strode forward, standing threateningly over the screaming figure. "Your mind can't handle it. None can. It's being wiped clean by the pain; every memory will be erased but the pain." Several weapons pointed threateningly at him, and he backed down. The monkeys were chattering amongst themselves angrily, wondering what to do. "That's why you never told us who you are," Ebony said from within her metallic cage. "Your don't remember." "What a horrible power," Jean said. "You feel all the pain in the world?" "I feel everything. Every drop of rain, every lover's caress," he shook his head. "But the pain is the strongest. I always assumed that my powers became active during puberty, like everyone else, but when I gained control over my powers, I looked as I do now." Jean widened her eyes at the middle- aged man. "Since then I have learned the advantages this facet of my powers gives." "That's what block me when I tried to read your mind," Jean realised. "Correct. I can also sink my mind into the feelings, protecting myself from outside stimuli." "Huh?" Bobby, quiet till now, was completely lost. "He can ignore anything," Ebony clarified. "Pain, pleasure; anything he feels is so much smaller than what the rest of the world feels, he can ignore it." Just at that moment, a blaring siren cut through the air. The monkeys chattered excitedly and several of them ran off. Druid grinned. "Our friends have arrived." Even as he said it, he felt his powers return. The monkey was lying unconscious on the floor, its fellows trying to raise it. Only a few guards stood watch over the mutants, and they were distracted by the alarm. Druid reached out and grabbed a spear from one of the monkey's hands. He kicked out at the same time, sending the monkey to the floor. With one swift motion he threw the spear at Bobby, the flint tip shattering the control panel on the front. He turned to face the monkeys. With the device broken, Iceman easily freed himself, freezing and shattering the metal bonds. With a wave of his hand he froze on of the walls of Ebony's cage. Now iced up, he launched a barrage of ice at the charging monkeys. A shatter of ice flew through the air as Ebony, fully armoured, burst through her cage. She lashed out with an arc of crystal shards, piercing the thin hides of the monkey-like creatures. She lashed out with a vicious kick that caught a leaping creature in the head, shattering its skull. Jean ripped the psychic inhibitor off her head, tossing it to the ground. Her powers freed, she used a telekinetic bolt to scatter several of the creatures near her. As soon as they hit the ground, Ebony was among them, the sharp blades on her arms slipping easily through their chests. Soon, it was over, and their guards were all dead.
Berzerker was chained to the wall. That, in itself, was not a problem; there was no chain he couldn't become strong enough to break. However, there was a spring-loaded steel spike pointed strait at his heart. He knew that no matter how quickly he moved, he wouldn't be able to dodge it, and, tough as he could be, he couldn't survive with six inches of steel through his heart. Any other part of his chest and he was fine. His heart, though, was rather important. He watched as the strange, androgynous figure enter again. "Who the hell are you?" Berzerker demanded. He quickened the production of his 'adrenaline,' just so he was ready for any eventuality. "I am the Master." These were the first words the figure had spoken to him. "The Master? What are you, some 60s comic book villain?" "I am a mutant, just like you." "You don't look like me." Berzerker had learned long ago that playing the idiot was the best way for him to go. He wasn't quite as stupid as everyone thought, and he was smart enough to keep it that way. "My appearance, and that of my brother, is one aspect of our mutant 'gifts.'" "And what are your other gifts?" "I can create objects of metal at will." He reached out a hand and a 3- dimensional polygon made of solid steel appeared in mid air. "And your brother?" Berzerker remembered the albino hunchback who seemed to work for the Master. They did have a certain resemblance. "He can manipulate this metal into anything he desires." "Sounds like he's the more powerful one. So why are you in charge and not him?" "I am smarter." The answer was simple, but it left a lot unsaid. Berzerker was about to ask another question when the alarm interrupted them.
The hunchback was in the lab, busily working when the alarm went off. He ignored it. He had work to do, and the guards would take care of the intruders. He looked at the large glass cylinder that dominated one of the walls of the room. It was filled with a strange blue translucent liquid gel. In it was suspended the mutant. Her brown hair (a single streak of white) billowed in the subtle currents of the gel. He naked form hung there, unmoving and unconscious, waiting for the procedure to be complete. The Master had discovered the mutant as soon as she had entered the jungle. He had shot down their plain to get them all within his grasp, using an energy gun they had created which shut down all electrical systems. The Master was always hungry for more mutant powers to study. The monkeys had watched the mutants carefully until their friends arrived. They had found out little about the stranger's mutant powers, but power fairly radiated from the beautiful woman. She had been the target. When she had been captured, the hunchback had tended to her as to the other injured mutants, but he had made the mistake of making skin-to-skin contact with her. Her power activated and drained his. The contact was very brief, and though she had woken up, she was swiftly subdued. So the Master had done a number of experiments, discovering the full nature of her powers, and had been overjoyed at the result. The Master was obsessed with creating a 'new race.' Both the brothers lacked any sort of reproductive capabilities, and his obsession with genetic engineering was a way to deal with that. The Master had always wanted a way to transfer his mind and mutant powers from one body into another, allowing him to finally experience the joy of emotion and feeling; his skin was as dead as his emotions, unfeeling and unresponsive. The hunchback preferred it that way, but his brother want to feel life. The mutant named Rogue offered the perfect opportunity. Using her powers as a conduit, the Master had designed a machine to transfer someone's mutant powers, mind or both from one body to another. Of course, the process would kill her, but then that was not different from any experiment the brothers had done before. Oh, her body and her powers would survive, but her mind would be destroyed almost instantly. Things had proven even better than the brothers could have hoped. The Master had found his new body in one of the woman's friends. The big, powerful mutant had his weaknesses, of course, but after a little genetic engineering he should be neigh on invincible. Still, there was much to do before everything was ready. Though the Master had designed the machine, as usual the building was up to the hunchback. Actually, he absently thought to himself as he used his powers to shape a piece of mettle into a long tube, it's better this way. The hunchback wasn't interested in things like world domination, new races or feeling. He was content simply to make things. He would let his brother have the mad schemes. Everything went dark suddenly. The hunchback looked around in surprise. The lights hadn't failed; even when every light in the fortress was off there was enough light for the hunchback to see at least the outline of his lab. But now he could see nothing. He shaped the tube he was holding into a working flashlight. Though his brother could only produce metal, he could turn it into anything he liked. He flicked the switch. Nothing happened. Curious. A pair of red dots blinked into existence right in front of him. The hunchback started back. If he concentrated, he thought he could make out the form of a person. He swung a vicious punch that would have punched through a sheet of solid steel, but he stumbled forward as his hand met no resistance. He shivered with a deep cold that went beyond physical. He saw the figure more clearly now. It held a blade poised to strike. For the first time in his life, the hunchback felt real emotion. He felt deep hear. He stumbled backwards, stammering. "No. no. noooo!" There was a crash as he tripped over something, knocking a tray of medical equipment to the floor. The blade struck fast, and it struck only once. It went strait through the hunchback's chest, digging into the mettle floor below. The hunchback died with a strangled gurgle.
The alarm made almost all the monkeys guarding them disappear out various doors. Only four stood guard now, one for each X-Man. They chattered nervously to each other in what the mutants were coming to recognise as an actual language, though one unlike any they had ever heard. "I think Druid's message reached its destination," Beast stated blandly. As if response one of the large mettle doors burst open in a cloud of billowing smoke. A pair of lithe figures danced through the smoke. Rebel had a golden disc between each of her fingers. She gracefully dodged the first attack levelled at her, ending up behind the charging monkey. She grabbed its chin in one hand, snapping it back and with one smooth motion slit its throat. She dropped its dead body and spun on her heals. She released the discs and they flew with unerring accuracy at two of the remaining monkeys. The agile monkeys tried to dodge, and one managed to avoid all the blows. One of them only managed to dodge two of the discs, the third striking it in the chest. A burst of electricity surrounded it and its twitching, smoking corpse fell to the floor. Psylocke was no less deadly. Her psi knife took care of the first monkey to attack her, and a simple roundhouse kick broke the neck of the monkey dodging Rebel's discs. Rebel released Cyclops from his chains. "Storm and Angle are attacking the main gate to provide a distraction," she said as she helped the leader of the X-Men down. Betsey freed Bishop and moved on to help Beast. "Shadow is around somewhere. Where are the others?" "Bobby, Jean, Ebony and Druid were taken out through that door," Cyclops said, pointing. "I don't know where Berzerker and Rogue are." "What about Gambit?" Psylocke asked. Scott looked around. "He was here," he said after a moment. "He must have slipped off in the confusion," Bishop said. "Indubitably, that does seem his style," Beast added. "I doubt he is in any real danger. We should concern ourselves with freeing the others." "Right. Psylocke, Bishiop and I will follow Jean and the others. Beast, you and Rebel try to find the others." "Or at least our weapons," Bishop added, referring to his missing arsenal. Cyclops nodded. "Lets go."
Shadow slid the blade out of the hunchback's dead body, the dagger eagerly lapping up the twisted mutant's blood. He dissolved the darkness, carefully studying the room. That was when he noticed the cylinder. "Damn," he swore. He picked up the tray that had fallen on the floor and with an easy cast sent it flying to the cylinder. Glass shattered and fell to the floor among a wave of the gel-like liquid. Rogue fell among it, landing right in Shadow's arms. He lowered her gently to the floor. He removed his black gloves to check her pulse. No pulse or breath. "Damn," he swore again. He pulled back his hood and cowl. Tenderly he parted her lips. He gently breathed air back into. "Live," he commanded, as though it would help. He pushed firmly on her chest. No change. He tried the process again. "Live!" Rogue coughed and sputtered as she fluttered back to consciousness. She rolled over as she tried to clear her lungs of the liquid gel, sobbing with pain. She shivered with the cold as her bare skin pressed against the mettle floor. Shadow removed his cloak and gently draped it over her. His bare hand brushed a tear from her face. "You're alright," he said softly to her. He held her shoulders, trying to comfort her. He was concentrating so hard on the woman that he didn't notice the attack until it was too late. The explosion hit him in the back and sent him flying across the room. He went strait through the floor, disappearing from sight. "Stay away from her, mon ami!" Gambit yelled as he charged into the room. He knelt by Rogue. "Don' worry, chere. Gambit here. He protect you." Gambit had arrived just in time to see Shadow holding the sobbing and choking Rogue, and had assumed that he was attacking her. He had been carrying a few lose pieces of medical equipment he had scooped up, and a quick charge had blown the 'attacker' away. Shadow appeared through the floor right behind Gambit. He grabbed the Cajun thief by the scruff of his neck and with one hand tossed him away. He didn't even bother to draw his dagger. He helped Rogue to her feet. She was clutching his cloak around her, trying for some modicum of decency, and was gasping for enough breath to speak. "I'll handle this," he said, obviously not realising that Gambit was a friend of Rogue's. The two faced off against each other. Gambit held a scalpel in one hand. Shadow grinned and drew his dagger forth. Gambit charged the scalpel and threw it. Shadow saw the glowing object and dodged out of the way. He rolled into a crouch as the scalpel exploded against the wall behind him, sending a fair amount of mettle flying. Gambit launched a kick at Shadow's head, but his foot passed harmlessly through. Shadow lashed out with his hand, catching Remy's other foot and pulling it out from under him. The Cajun thief fell to the floor but rolled away instantly. Both opponents jumped into a fighting crouch, Gambit with a small, charged, metal bar in his hand. "Stop!" Rogue yelled. "Stop right now." She stomped forward, Shadow's cloak still wrapped round her protectively. "Chere?" Gambit asked, still eyeing Shadow warily. "But he attacked you, no?" "He saved mah life, Remy," she told him. "And you," she turned on Shadow. "Don't you go attackin' mah friends." Shadow bowed mockingly. "Of course not." Still, he gave Gambit a glance that said clearly 'try it again, and you're dead.' Gambit returned the gaze levelly. "Now who are ya?" "I am Shadow." "Shadow? Ya'll one of Ebony's friends?" "Yes." He and Gambit still eyed each other warily. "I think we should find the others quickly." "Ah'm not goin' anywhere till Ah find some clothes," Rogue stated flatly. "Ah can't fight like this." "Well, chere." Gambit began. "Don't even think it, swamp rat," Rogue glared at him. "Allow me," Shadow said. He grabbed his cloak and in one swift motion pulled it away. Rogue yelped and tried to cover herself up. Rogue glared at Shadow, clutching her arms about herself protectively, but he merely smiled oddly as he slipped his cloak back on. She glanced down at herself. To her surprise, she wasn't naked, but fully dressed. She was wearing a beautiful black evening gown, with sparkling diamonds, a low neckline and a slit up one side showing off most of her thigh. "Mon Dieu!" Gambit breathed. Rogue goggled at the obviously expensive dress. "Ah can't fight in this!" she exclaimed. "It's not real," Shadow assured her. The others stared blankly at him. "Its an illusion. I made it from nearby shadows. See." He stepped forward and grabbed her waist. His hand passed through the black material and rested lightly against her skin. Rogue flinched away from his hand, but nothing happened. Shadow gave her an odd look. "Just don't go to far away from me or it will dissolve," he warned her. He slipped on his hood and cowl, walking through the wall. "Très belle, chere," Gambit said, walking up to her and wrapping an arm round her waist. His hand went strait through the dress and grazed her skin. "Remy, no!" She felt the usual jolt as she absorbed his mutant powers and his memories. He gave a cry of surprise and fell backwards. The touch hadn't been much, but it had been enough. Shadow reappeared as soon as Rogue cried out. "What happened?" he demanded. "He touched me," Rogue said. "And mah power.." she stared in horror at Gambits recumbent form. Shadow sighed in exasperation. "I won't ask. Come on, we've got to get him out of here." Shadow slung the Cajun over his shoulder easily. He slid open one of the mettle doors. "We'll come back for the others after we get him to safety." Rogue chased after Shadow as he disappeared down the corridor. Her mind was jumbled with the recent events. One thought keep coming back to her, though. "He touched me," she said to herself. "He touched me and mah power didn't hurt him."
"I am offering you a deal," the Master said to Berzerker, ignoring the blaring alarm. "You aren't in a position to deal," Berzerker said confidently. "That alarm is my friends, and they'll tear you limb from limb." "What I am offering you has nothing to do with your friends, or your freedom. I am offering you invincibility." "Huh?" "Your powers are great, but you have weaknesses. I can alter you to get rid of those weaknesses. Get rid of the blind rage that you enter into. Get rid of the drop in heart rate after you use your powers. Protect those parts of your body, like your heart, which are still vulnerable." "Why? How?"
"The how is simple. I am a geneticist. Anything is possible given time. The why? Well, you would agree to serve me, as my personal guard. Normally I would simply transfer your powers to one more willing to serve me, but your unique physiology would be difficult to duplicate." "So you think that just because you offer me invincibility.." "And power, and wealth, and women, and anything else you wish," the Master interrupted. "I'll abandon my friends, work for you, probably against them? Abandon all that is good and just and work for some mad scientist?" Berzerker was indignant. "Yes." "Can I have my own band?" The Master seemed a bit surprised at this request, but assented. "Very well, you can have your own band." "Cool. Deal."
Rebel and Beast avoided the guards as best they could. The needed to find their friends, not take on impossible odds. Rebel had her golden discs in her hands, once again one between each of her fingers, and Beast was hopping from floor to walls to ceiling. Just as she was rounding a corner, Rebel's precognition kicked in. Running to quickly to stop she broke into a roll, moving ahead and to the side. The startled monkeys gibbered in surprise and came to a halt. Six golden discs flew out, and six monkeys fell, some with large holes in their bodies, some electrocuted and some the centre of a fairly large explosion. Beast, who had been swinging up along the ceiling (this place was designed with monkeys in mind, after all), dropped in amongst the creatures. He landed on two of them, knocking their breath from them. He grabbed another two as he bounced away, slamming the two together and dropping to the floor as he hurled the two he had knocked down into a wall.
Rebel stood and dusted herself off as Beast landed by the last one. Beast grinned as he lifted the screaming monkey above his head and spun him around like pizza dough. As the monkey screeched and dropped its weapons as it was hurled into a wall.
"I'm impressed," Rebel admitted to the furry X-Man.
"As am I," Beast replied. He looked at the six she had fallen. "A bit bloodier than I prefer, but impressive none the less."
"In my world, if you don't play for keeps you don't play for long."
"Alas that it must oft be so."
"A philosophical discussion?" Berzerker grinned foolishly. "You surprise me, Reb."
"Kyle," she said, rushing forward. "Where have you been?" He grinned even wider and caught her a vicious backhand. She gasped in surprise, as she flew across the hall. She hit the ground hard.
"You gotta understand, Reb," Berzerker said, still grinning. "Its nothin' personal. I got a new friend, now." The androgynous figure floated around the corner, its expression still bored. "He's a geneticist. Calls himself the Master, if you can believe that."
"A geneticist," Beast mused. "Then I assume that you are responsible for the monstrosities that act as your servants." He gestured to the dead bodies littering the floor.
"Correct," the Master replied calmly. Neither he nor Berzerker made a move forward. They seemed to be waiting for Beast to make the first move.
"Why? Why commit such a heinous act? Surely you must realise that what you have done is wrong? To deliberately twist these poor creatures into these monstrous forms is abhorrent."
"All is accepted in the name of science."
"No!" Beast half barked, half growled the exclamation. "Science is no excuse for indecent morals. The study of science necessitates that one be more responsible, not less."
"Berzerker?" Rebel asked as she lifted herself from the floor. "Why?"
"He's offering me invincibility, Reb," Berzerker replied. He slung his arm over the Master's shoulders. "And a band! There's just one problem." A slight shift and he had the Master in a headlock; a sudden twist and its neck was broken. "He's an idiot."
Rebel stood up whipping the blood from her mouth. "You could have been a bit more gentle with me."
"I wanted to make it look real."
"I could have faked it well enough."
Beast coughed. "You mean to say that you were pretending to switch sides?" He turned to Rebel. "And you knew?"
"Of course I knew," she said. "You don't think I'd actually let him hit me? I mean, I do have precognition."
"How did you know?"
"He only ever calls me 'Reb' when he wants me to go along with something. I knew he had something up his sleeve." She glanced at Berzerker's bare chest. "Metaphorically speaking, of course."
There was a slight tremor and the building seemed to shake. "What's going on?" Berzerker asked.
A piece of metal fell from the ceiling and clanged loudly to the ground. "I would surmise," Beast stated, raising his voice over the growing tumult as metal groaned and shook. "That with the death of the Master, the tower shall shortly subside."
"Huh?"
"Lets get the hell out of here!" Rebel translated.
"Oh!" He paused. A large mettle beam hit him on the shoulder and bounced off. "Which way is out?"
"I don't know." They both looked at Beast, but he could only shrug.
"Right," Berzerker said, gritting his teeth. "One exit, coming up." With that he ploughed through the solid metal wall, splitting it like rice paper. Beast and Rebel followed close behind.
Rogue could hardly believe it. Shortly after the building had begun to collapse strange, monkey-like creatures had attacked them. Rogue had taken out the two that attacked her quickly, but Shadow had finished off the other ten in that short space of time.
It had been amazing. He even used Gambit's body as a weapon, swinging the Cajun's feet to 'kick' the attacking creatures. He had dodged and weaved through the mass of fur and weapons as though he were unencumbered. He didn't even bother to use his dagger. And when it was done, he simply continued to jog on as though nothing had happened.
Rogue couldn't help feeling a bit nervous around Shadow. He had dealt with his opponents with clinical professionalism. He seemed cold and distant, as though the world wasn't real to him. It wasn't that he seemed evil; it was just that Rogue got the feeling he would kill her if she proved inconvenient, and he would have a second thought about it.
The managed to escape from the building before it collapsed. They found the others outside, waiting for them. "What happened to Gambit?" Cyclops demanded. Wolverine helped Shadow lay Gambit gently on the ground.
"He touched me," Rogue said.
"What a time to be stealing a kiss," Wolverine snorted.
"It was an accident," she said fiercely. "He put his arms round my waist, and, well, it went through my clothes."
Cyclops looked puzzled, glancing at her clothing. For the first time he noticed the dress she was wearing. His eyes bulged out slightly. The other X-Men were all likewise staring at the beautiful dress. "Where did you get that?" Jean asked, a hint of jealousy in her voice.
"Shadow gave it to her," Ebony guessed. The X-Men looked from Rogue to Ebony, to Shadow and back to Rogue. They seemed even more puzzled.
"Something for emergencies?" Psylocke asked Shadow, raising her eyebrow quizzically.
"Its an illusion," Shadow explained shortly.
"And when Remy touched me, his hand went through it and." Rogue reiterated.
"Though I hasten to interrupt this fascinating conversation," Druid stated blandly. "You do realise that we are not all here?"
Shadow looked around. Rebel, Berzerker and Beast had not arrived yet. "I'll find them."
Ebony nodded, but before Shadow had gone five steps one of the walls burst outwards in a shower of mettle. When the dust cleared, they could see the three standing there.
"See?" Berzerker said. "I told you we'd get out. And you doubted me."
Rebel shook her head helplessly. She saw Shadow and she rushed over to him. "You OK?" Shadow nodded. He glanced at the equipment she was carrying. "Oh, we found these." She and Beast (who had helped her carry everything) handed Bishop his weapons and Cyclops his visor. She held a bunch of cards and a uniform. "So, who do these belong to?"
"The cards would be Gambits," Beast informed her. "Who, it appears, has taken the opportunity to be comatose." He glanced sidelong at Rogue. "Stealing a kiss again, was he?"
"It wasn't like that," Rogue demanded. She snatched the uniform from Rebel's hands. "Ah believe this is mine." She looked around, not making a move to put the uniform on.
"Well?" Berzerker asked. "Aren't you going to put it on?"
"Not with ya'll watchin' me," she replied indignantly.
"Oh please?" Bobby begged.
"Yeah, please?" Berzerker added.
She scowled at the two of them. Shadow stepped forward, glaring at them. He waved his hands and Rogue was encased in a globe of darkness. "Aw, you're no fun," Berzerker complained. Shadow didn't bother to reply, he just walked away.
The others were discussing what had happened, and making introductions. Soon Rogue emerged from the darkness in her uniform, joining the others in their discussions. Wolverine and Druid, who had a sense of smell almost as good as the X-Man's, went out to see if anyone had escaped, or if all the monkeys had died, before they leave.
Berzerker was staring appreciatively at Psylocke. Beast considered saying something, but the beautiful woman was ignoring the teen, tending to a wound Angle had acquired in the battle. Also, after the display with the Master, Beast was less worried about Berzerker being a danger to the group. Still, his presence was likely to cause some problems.
Storm walked over to Shadow, who was standing apart from the others, deep in thought. She stood there for a moment, studying his face, looking for his reaction to these events. He seemed to be ignoring her. "Shadow," she said. He turned to her. She looked at his burning red eyes. "Rogue told us that you saved her life."
Shadow shrugged. "So?"
"She told us how you saved her life." Shadow looked puzzled. "Rogue's power means that if anyone touches her she drains their memories, their mutant powers, and their life."
"Powerful," Shadow stated. "But I think I understand what you're saying. She can' t control it?"
"If anyone else had revived her, they would be lying beside Gambit."
"Ah. And the girl is starved of physical contact. How tragic. I still see no reason to mention this to me."
"Rogue has dreamed of being able to touch someone since she gained her mutant powers."
"And now she can touch me. Yes, yes, we all understand this." Shadow paused, and then scrutinised Storm. "Ah. You, as a concerned friend, want to see how I would react to her approaching me. Am I right?" Storm nodded. "Don't worry. Though Rogue is more than averagely attractive, I don't have time for that kind of thing." With that he turned away.
"One more thing, Shadow," Storm said. "When you created the illusion of the Rogue's clothing, why did you make it such a beautiful dress? Wouldn't something more practical have been just as appropriate?"
"A beautiful dress for a beautiful woman," Shadow replied absently, walking away.
"I told you he was a romantic," Rebel said smugly from behind Storm, where she had been listing in to the conversation. "Don't worry about anything. I'll make sure he behaves."
Meanwhile, the southern belle in question was staring at Shadow, a puzzled expression on her face. "Don't even think about it," someone said from behind her.
She turned to see Ebony, a serious expression on her face, standing behind her. "Ah don't know what you're talking about."
"They explained your 'situation' to me."
"So?"
"So you're obviously thinking about the possibilities in a relationship with Shadow. Don't"
"Ah take it he's already spoken for, sugar?"
Ebony laughed. "Not likely. Shadow isn't the kind of person to get tied down in romance and love." She turned serious again. "Let me give you a piece of advice. If you're just looking for a romp in the bed, then by all means approach him. I don't know weather or not he'll accept; I've never bothered trying to figure him out. But if you're looking for a relationship, you'd be better off sticking with the Cajun. Shadow doesn't love. Other women have tired, and, in the end, they've all left. Most have died." She shook her head at Rogue's shocked expression. "Shadow's not a bad guy, but he's no saint. He does what's necessary to get the job done. He's used women's feelings for him to get them to do things they would never otherwise do; things that cost them their lives but that help us catch the villain." She paused and looked strait at Rogue's eyes. "If it came down between one's life and his, Shadow would save anyone without a second's thought. But if it comes down to one's life or the villain escaping, well, I wouldn't be making any long-term plans." Ebony placed a hand on Rogues shoulder. "So take it from someone who's known him the longest. He can be your ally, your friend or even your lover, but he will never be your love." With that she walked off, joining the others.
Rogue puzzled over the woman's words. Obviously she assumed that just because Rogue had discovered she could touch Shadow, she would run into Shadow's arms begging him to love her. The thought had never crossed her mind. Well, maybe just a bit. All right, so she had very nearly done just that. But she had seen enough of Shadow to know that probably wasn't a good idea. His appearance, the appearance of the X-Knights in general, has changed things, though. And she couldn't guess how they would change.