Tin Soldiers
By Jeanne
"...And now you know everything that we know." Henry McCoy clicked the holographic projector off with a thick, blue-furred finger. He turned slowly to face the assembled young mutants. They shifted uncomfortably from foot to foot. They looked terrified. 'We have no choice,' he reflected. The presentation ended just in time. Anything else the teacher was going to say was drowned out in the roar of helicopter blades coming from the front lawn.
The mansion's wide doors swung open sharply, and a gray-haired man with a black eye patch strode in. He looked at the kids and scowled. "Is this it?" He glared at one of the girls. "You. Pryde. What about this Brotherhood you were going to get?"
Kitty quickly rubbed her eyes with the backs of her hands and straightened. "They...wouldn't come." She opened her mouth to say something else...to try to defend Lance for his decision. But the words wouldn't come. She let her hands drop to her sides.
Wanda folded her arms, looking dark. "I'm going. I will face my father."
Nick Fury looked doubtful, but turned to the blue-furred mutant called Nightcrawler. "What about the Morlocks? You were supposed to bring them."
Before Nightcrawler could speak, the fully-armored Spyke stepped forward and looked Fury dead in the eye. "It's not their fight. The human world never did anything for them. Why should they die for it?" A row of sharp points pushed their way through the skin behind his right wrist, ready to be launched. "I'm going. That's all that counts now."
Fury's eyes swept past the line of familiar members of the school, resting briefly on Havok, who raised his arms in a gesture of surrender. "Only for Scott, Man. I'm not cut out for this hero stuff."
Fury's gaze took in the stocky Russian, Colossus, but the mutant just looked at him with a face as impassive as the steel it normally hid behind. He said nothing.
He raised an eyebrow at the winged mutant, Angel, outfitted in red and black. "I'm not surprised to see you here. Heard about New York. Still..." He scowled. "Maybe I could requisition some more sentinels."
A familiar growl rumbled to Beast's right, followed by a 'slish' as Logan, the Wolverine, extended adamantium claws through his skin and faced the Shield commander down. "This may be it, but it'll be damn sight better than you've done so far, Fury. So back off."
Fury stepped back and folded his arms, willing to let Logan take charge, at least for the moment.
Hank covered his face with a big, blue hand so that the kids would not see the worry and grief in his eyes as Logan read out the assignments.
"All right. Here's the deal. You know what we're facing. We're splitting into four teams. Remember, we can try to break them out of whatever is holding them, but that can't be your priority. We need to get past them and try to stop those pyramids before Apocalypse sets off his device. You have to do that above anything else. If you have to take them down, you take them down. You know that is what the Professor...and Storm...would have wanted. Got it?"
There were a few nods, but mostly just the expression of frightened resolution. There was no going back now.
"Berserker, Iceman, Spyke. You're going to China to face Storm. Ray...you got to keep Storm focusing on you...only you can take those lightening bolts." He frowned. "Bobby, ice her up. If it's Storm in there, she won't take to being trapped too well. It's your only shot."
Bobby gave a nervous chuckle. His voice cracked, ruining the effect of his confident "No sweat. I've got it covered."
Hank straightened. "You do not have it covered. And that is why I'm going with you. To make sure you /get/ it covered."
Bobby backed down, settling on chewing his knuckle. The temperature around him dropped a few more degrees. Hank shivered.
Logan turned. "Wanda, Shadowcat, Sunspot, Havok, Angel. You're going to Mexico to face Magneto. He'll throw everything and the kitchen sink at you...don't get close, don't get trapped. Just keep at him from range and keep good cover."
Wanda glowered. "I know what to do."
Havok glanced nervously at Scott, but didn't see much in the way of comfort behind the ruby visor. But the blond relaxed when Scott gave a confident 'thumbs up', his hand close to his side where only his brother could see.
Kitty sighed. "I wish..." She shook her head. 'It doesn't matter anyhow. I guess he'll always be just a hood.' The thought was bitter.
Logan ignored the whisper and continued. "Nightcrawler, Scott, you men and I are going to the Sphinx. Mystique's there now, according to Cerebro, and probably Apocalypse too. " Wolverine didn't bother to give any tactical advice to his group. He knew he could count on them.
Scott's head nodded very slightly at Logan's phrase. Men. There was no doubt they were all soldiers here. But it was nice to hear a man he respected as much as Logan say it.
Logan went on. "Jean, you take Amara and Colossus with you to Egypt, with the second Cerebro unit. You'll be facing Xavier. Colossus, Amara, it's up to you to protect her until she gets her shot at Xavier. Protecting her is all that counts. Got it?"
"I will defend her," Colossus said simply, but his words carried the weight of a solemn oath.
A snap of gum cracked. "I'm going with Amara. Anyone tries to mess with her, and they're going to try a little bada-bing-bada-boom!" A glowing ball materialized in her hand, as if to make her point.
Amara and Boom-boom shared a meaningful look, and Logan sniffed. "Fine."
"Um, Sir...what about me?" A tall, lanky blond raised his hand. Sam Guthrie.
"Cannonball, I need you for a special mission with Rogue. No one moves faster than you, and we need that. I'll explain in a moment."
Sam nodded and settled back, folding his arms.
Hank murmured softly, so only Wolverine's sensitive ears could pick it up. "Is Rogue bringing her shadow?"
Logan's fingers twitched, threatening to pop out the claws again. "That's up to the Cajun. I doubt we'll know until she gets back. We'll see."
A quiet mumbling began from the students as they tried to figure out what was going to happen next. From behind the group, Hank could see a black-clad arm stretched up high, waving in the air. He nudged Logan and pointed.
Logan turned. "Jamie."
The arm dropped, and the twelve-year-old stepped forward with a questioning, nervous expression on his face. "What about..."
Logan shook his head, cutting the boy off. "You're not going. Your mission is to stay and watch over the mansion while we're gone."
A wave of hurt washed over Jamie's face, but it was swept away as quickly as it came. It was replaced with a steady resolution, tinged with anger.
"And if you don't come back, Mr. Logan, sir? Then what should I do?"
Wolverine and Beast were both taken aback by the maturity in the boy's voice. "Kid..."
Jamie took a deep break and continued. "If you don't make it back, and you all die, and I have to live here by myself, what should I do? Knowing that even just what little bit I could have done might have helped? Shall I organize the next raid to kill Apocalypse? Or just watch as lots of people die and Apocalypse and Zombie-Professor and Zombie-Magneto take over the world? I can keep the mansion safe, sure....but I'll be the only one living in it."
Hank's shoulders sagged. Jamie was right. He didn't have much of a future if they failed in their mission.
Logan bore down on the young mutant and stared him in the eye. Jamie looked up steadily and did not blink, hurt and fierce and determined.
"You think you can help, Mouse?"
Jamie fingered a slingshot in his left hand...his secret weapon. He did not flinch from the flint-like eyes of the Wolverine. "I know I can," he answered steadily.
Logan nodded once. "All right. You're on Jean's team." He raised his voice. "Head out. You know what to do. Good luck."
As he watched Jamie file off after Amara and Tabitha, Logan shook his head sadly. This was a war. He'd seen them before. And there is one truth about war.
In war, even children die.
By Jeanne
"...And now you know everything that we know." Henry McCoy clicked the holographic projector off with a thick, blue-furred finger. He turned slowly to face the assembled young mutants. They shifted uncomfortably from foot to foot. They looked terrified. 'We have no choice,' he reflected. The presentation ended just in time. Anything else the teacher was going to say was drowned out in the roar of helicopter blades coming from the front lawn.
The mansion's wide doors swung open sharply, and a gray-haired man with a black eye patch strode in. He looked at the kids and scowled. "Is this it?" He glared at one of the girls. "You. Pryde. What about this Brotherhood you were going to get?"
Kitty quickly rubbed her eyes with the backs of her hands and straightened. "They...wouldn't come." She opened her mouth to say something else...to try to defend Lance for his decision. But the words wouldn't come. She let her hands drop to her sides.
Wanda folded her arms, looking dark. "I'm going. I will face my father."
Nick Fury looked doubtful, but turned to the blue-furred mutant called Nightcrawler. "What about the Morlocks? You were supposed to bring them."
Before Nightcrawler could speak, the fully-armored Spyke stepped forward and looked Fury dead in the eye. "It's not their fight. The human world never did anything for them. Why should they die for it?" A row of sharp points pushed their way through the skin behind his right wrist, ready to be launched. "I'm going. That's all that counts now."
Fury's eyes swept past the line of familiar members of the school, resting briefly on Havok, who raised his arms in a gesture of surrender. "Only for Scott, Man. I'm not cut out for this hero stuff."
Fury's gaze took in the stocky Russian, Colossus, but the mutant just looked at him with a face as impassive as the steel it normally hid behind. He said nothing.
He raised an eyebrow at the winged mutant, Angel, outfitted in red and black. "I'm not surprised to see you here. Heard about New York. Still..." He scowled. "Maybe I could requisition some more sentinels."
A familiar growl rumbled to Beast's right, followed by a 'slish' as Logan, the Wolverine, extended adamantium claws through his skin and faced the Shield commander down. "This may be it, but it'll be damn sight better than you've done so far, Fury. So back off."
Fury stepped back and folded his arms, willing to let Logan take charge, at least for the moment.
Hank covered his face with a big, blue hand so that the kids would not see the worry and grief in his eyes as Logan read out the assignments.
"All right. Here's the deal. You know what we're facing. We're splitting into four teams. Remember, we can try to break them out of whatever is holding them, but that can't be your priority. We need to get past them and try to stop those pyramids before Apocalypse sets off his device. You have to do that above anything else. If you have to take them down, you take them down. You know that is what the Professor...and Storm...would have wanted. Got it?"
There were a few nods, but mostly just the expression of frightened resolution. There was no going back now.
"Berserker, Iceman, Spyke. You're going to China to face Storm. Ray...you got to keep Storm focusing on you...only you can take those lightening bolts." He frowned. "Bobby, ice her up. If it's Storm in there, she won't take to being trapped too well. It's your only shot."
Bobby gave a nervous chuckle. His voice cracked, ruining the effect of his confident "No sweat. I've got it covered."
Hank straightened. "You do not have it covered. And that is why I'm going with you. To make sure you /get/ it covered."
Bobby backed down, settling on chewing his knuckle. The temperature around him dropped a few more degrees. Hank shivered.
Logan turned. "Wanda, Shadowcat, Sunspot, Havok, Angel. You're going to Mexico to face Magneto. He'll throw everything and the kitchen sink at you...don't get close, don't get trapped. Just keep at him from range and keep good cover."
Wanda glowered. "I know what to do."
Havok glanced nervously at Scott, but didn't see much in the way of comfort behind the ruby visor. But the blond relaxed when Scott gave a confident 'thumbs up', his hand close to his side where only his brother could see.
Kitty sighed. "I wish..." She shook her head. 'It doesn't matter anyhow. I guess he'll always be just a hood.' The thought was bitter.
Logan ignored the whisper and continued. "Nightcrawler, Scott, you men and I are going to the Sphinx. Mystique's there now, according to Cerebro, and probably Apocalypse too. " Wolverine didn't bother to give any tactical advice to his group. He knew he could count on them.
Scott's head nodded very slightly at Logan's phrase. Men. There was no doubt they were all soldiers here. But it was nice to hear a man he respected as much as Logan say it.
Logan went on. "Jean, you take Amara and Colossus with you to Egypt, with the second Cerebro unit. You'll be facing Xavier. Colossus, Amara, it's up to you to protect her until she gets her shot at Xavier. Protecting her is all that counts. Got it?"
"I will defend her," Colossus said simply, but his words carried the weight of a solemn oath.
A snap of gum cracked. "I'm going with Amara. Anyone tries to mess with her, and they're going to try a little bada-bing-bada-boom!" A glowing ball materialized in her hand, as if to make her point.
Amara and Boom-boom shared a meaningful look, and Logan sniffed. "Fine."
"Um, Sir...what about me?" A tall, lanky blond raised his hand. Sam Guthrie.
"Cannonball, I need you for a special mission with Rogue. No one moves faster than you, and we need that. I'll explain in a moment."
Sam nodded and settled back, folding his arms.
Hank murmured softly, so only Wolverine's sensitive ears could pick it up. "Is Rogue bringing her shadow?"
Logan's fingers twitched, threatening to pop out the claws again. "That's up to the Cajun. I doubt we'll know until she gets back. We'll see."
A quiet mumbling began from the students as they tried to figure out what was going to happen next. From behind the group, Hank could see a black-clad arm stretched up high, waving in the air. He nudged Logan and pointed.
Logan turned. "Jamie."
The arm dropped, and the twelve-year-old stepped forward with a questioning, nervous expression on his face. "What about..."
Logan shook his head, cutting the boy off. "You're not going. Your mission is to stay and watch over the mansion while we're gone."
A wave of hurt washed over Jamie's face, but it was swept away as quickly as it came. It was replaced with a steady resolution, tinged with anger.
"And if you don't come back, Mr. Logan, sir? Then what should I do?"
Wolverine and Beast were both taken aback by the maturity in the boy's voice. "Kid..."
Jamie took a deep break and continued. "If you don't make it back, and you all die, and I have to live here by myself, what should I do? Knowing that even just what little bit I could have done might have helped? Shall I organize the next raid to kill Apocalypse? Or just watch as lots of people die and Apocalypse and Zombie-Professor and Zombie-Magneto take over the world? I can keep the mansion safe, sure....but I'll be the only one living in it."
Hank's shoulders sagged. Jamie was right. He didn't have much of a future if they failed in their mission.
Logan bore down on the young mutant and stared him in the eye. Jamie looked up steadily and did not blink, hurt and fierce and determined.
"You think you can help, Mouse?"
Jamie fingered a slingshot in his left hand...his secret weapon. He did not flinch from the flint-like eyes of the Wolverine. "I know I can," he answered steadily.
Logan nodded once. "All right. You're on Jean's team." He raised his voice. "Head out. You know what to do. Good luck."
As he watched Jamie file off after Amara and Tabitha, Logan shook his head sadly. This was a war. He'd seen them before. And there is one truth about war.
In war, even children die.