Author's note: Holy crap, another update. :-) Again, to all reviewers, thanks for the love! :-) You keep me motivated (or is it instigated?) to keep up the pace.
Chapter Eighteen:
It was nightfall by the time the X-Jet flew almost noiselessly over the Westchester County line. The Professor had wanted their entrance to be as inconspicuous as possible, so Storm engaged the jet's silent landing thrusters. The children would be mostly asleep now, and he did not want to stir them, so that their new guest was not bombarded with too many curious stares. Mary had nodded off in the chair behind Storm, and Xavier touched her arm gently to wake her.
Mary opened her eyes slowly, glancing over at Xavier's smiling face.
"We're here..." he said, with a quiet pride. Mary looked to the left out her window, seeing nothing but the trees and the darkness. The jet made a small dive forward and Mary gripped the armrests of her seat. She silently wished she had slept through this part of the flight too.
With a few quick, learned maneuvers, Cyclops and Storm lowered the jet towards the ground. To Mary's surprise, she noticed they were very close to the doors of a large mansion, and then dropped lower, past ground level, into the landing bay. She clenched her fists again as the jet touched down, and then exhaled with relief. She reminded herself to get the directions to the train station from Storm...
They exited the jet and headed out of the landing bay down a long, silver hall. It was dimly lit, but brightened as their movements were picked up by the sensors. They past several closed silver doors until they reached the elevator.
After they entered, Scott put down one of Mary's suitcases (which he insisted on helping her with), and pushed the button for the ground floor. Mary jumped a little as the door closed quickly and the lift whirred to life.
Once inside the mansion itself, Scott and Storm headed upstairs with Mary's belongings, but Xavier held the girl back a moment before she followed them.
"I hope the ride was not too uncomfortable for you," he said kindly. Mary, still glancing around the dark hallway, shook her head.
"No, it was ok," she said softly. She was feeling a little overwhelmed by their quick entrance and walk through the strange underground passage. She wondered what kind of school would need those kinds of facilities.
"I'll give you a proper tour and introductions tomorrow," Xavier said, "For now, I think we could all use a bit of rest."
"Yeah, sure..." she said, still sounding distant.
Xavier watched her curiously. She was frowning slightly, her demeanor almost rigid, and was examining everything she could see intensely.
Mary then sharpened her gaze on Xavier, "Professor...what exactly is this place?"
Xavier smiled knowingly. That was not an uncommon question for new arrivals.
"We are a school for gifted youngsters," he replied, "That is what really matters. Everything else...well, that's to help the one's we can't bring here."
Mary stared at the man a moment and then nodded. Fair enough for now, she would have to wait for tomorrow to learn more about the 'everything else' the Professor talked about.
A sound from behind them caused Xavier to turn around curiously. From around one corner, Logan appeared, holding a cigar in one hand. It was unlit now, extinguished as Logan heard the X-jet approaching.
Mary stared at the man with surprise. He was not much taller than her, but was probably three times as broad. That, along with his strangely windswept hair, made him look very fearsome in the shadows, though the expression on his face as he drew closer was not hostile.
"Logan," Xavier greeted him, "Welcome back..."
"Professor," he said in a gruff, but friendly voice. He gave Mary only a passing glance, figuring she was one of the 'new faces' Bobby warned him about.
"When did you arrive?" Xavier asked.
"About an hour ago," Logan replied.
"Did you…find what you were looking for?"
Logan shrugged, "Yes and no...always the same answer. But I do have some things I want to talk to you about. Papers I found..."
He paused, and looked over at Mary as if he had noticed her for the first time. Mary shifted uncomfortably as a strange suspicion fell over his face, and he nodded in her direction.
"She new?" he asked the Professor, who smiled apologetically at them both.
"Yes," he replied, "Logan, meet Mary Sloane. She'll be joining us here for some time."
Logan, seemingly satisfied by the Professor's brief introduction, nodded again. He glanced past Mary's shoulder to the staircase as Storm and Scott reached the bottom steps. Storm smiled and greeted him, but Scott's face remained cool and neutral.
"...I also found a video tape," Logan continued after the two other X-Men joined them, "Haven't been able to watch it though. It was pretty chewed up..."
"We can run it through the computer," Storm offered, "See if it can salvage any of the footage..."
"And we'll have Bobby or Rogue scan the documents for examination," the Professor added thoughtfully.
"Are they all from Colorado?" Scott asked, speaking for the first time.
Logan glanced at him quickly, "Yeah, place looked like it'd been empty for years..."
Mary was glancing between the others, uncertain of what to do as they talked. It seemed like some of that 'everything else' the Professor had talked about. She thought maybe she should excuse herself and head to bed, but she had no idea where that would be.
Xavier sensed the girl's hesitation and smiled apologetically.
"Why don't we continue this in the morning," Xavier said to the others, "We've all had a rather long day...Storm, could you show our new guest to her room…"
Storm nodded and gestured for Mary to follow her.
"Professor," Logan began, "I was really hoping to go over this right now…"
"In the morning," Xavier said politely but sternly, "Get some rest. You have had a long journey as well…"
Logan ground his teeth, looking dissatisfied by the discussion's sudden end, but nodded grudgingly. Mary and Storm reached the landing at the top of the stairs and Mary looked back down towards the others again.
She frowned, looking between the Professor and Scott, and then Scott and Logan. There was something there, something existing, almost hovering within their conversation. Unspoken, a memory, a connection…what was it?
As she stared at the three men, time for her stopped. Mary stared down at them, and in the center of their loose circle, something flickered. Like a spark, a flame...growing in their midst. None of them see it, even as the flame grows brighter, stronger, they do not even realize it is there.
From what seemed like a great distance, Mary felt someone touch her arm. Her eyes moved right, her vision slow and swimming. She could see Storm's concerned face, asking her if she was alright. The words were too faint to hear, and Mary felt herself swoon. Her whole body trembled as the vision took hold…
With effort, she turned her head back towards the bottom of the staircase. The flame had grown, gone beyond the others, alighting the carpet, the walls, the curtains…
Everything was burning as the fire grew, the front room of the mansion alive with flame, consuming everything it touched…
Mary stumbled, and vaguely felt the strong arms that kept her from falling…
***
…The fire grew…but no one saw it until it was too late…
She was standing in a forest, the X-Jet behind her…
She heard the water before anyone else…
She was lifting the jet, it was so light…
The damn broke, a tidal wave spilling from the freed lake…
Water was roaring towards her, she held up her other hand…
The water was heavier, much harder to hold back…
She felt her power surge, her body burning with it…
Her friends are safe, she let the water take her…
…There were flames in her eyes…the water cannot touch her…
…Much has changed, she had changed, where is she…
…Oh, God, it's on fire!...The children!...Get them out!...
A flame rises into the sky, it hovers, it swoops, it's diving down…
Mary is standing on the road, but she can still see the flames. The mansion, the school, it's on fire… It's burning, falling down…
…Mary…
…who is this?…
…Mary…
…what do want with me! why are you showing me this…
…this is what will be…
…how? when? who died in that flood?...
…this is what will happen…
…what will happen?...
…if you fail…
…I don't understand! Fail what?...
…my Child, they'll need your help…
Mary screamed. Her mind was filled with thousands of images, of what was, of what will be...of right now. The bombardment tore through her, and she saw everything, she saw everyone, all in one moment…and then it was gone.
All that was left was one fading voice before she blacked out.
… you have a world of work ahead of you…
***
Scott ran up the stairs, reaching the landing just as Mary collapsed to the floor. Storm cradled the girl's head, keeping it from being slammed into the floor as waves of violent tremors began to tear through Mary's body.
"Professor!" Storm shouted, but Xavier's eyes were already closed.
Henry…he called to the doctor in his mind, We need you…
Logan crouched next to Storm and helped them brace Mary's thrashing limbs.
"What the hell is happening to her?" he asked, and Storm shook her head.
"I don't know," she replied.
"Looks like she's having a seizure," Scott said quickly.
From below, Xavier tried to focus his mind on the girl, and frowned in frustration. He could not reach her, it was as if she was not even there.
Suddenly, Mary's eyes opened wide and a scream exploded from her throat. Then, the tremors stopped and her body went limb.
The three X-Men were breathing heavily from the effort to hold the girl still, and pounding footsteps rattled through the hall as Henry appeared on the landing. He knelt and did a quick examination.
"Help me bring her downstairs," he said, taking Mary's head and upper arms from Storm, and with Scott and Logan, took her quickly to the medical bay.
Storm walked back down the staircase and stood next to the Professor, her own hands shaking slightly in fright.
"My God, Charles," she said softly as the elevator door's hissed shut, "Was that one of her precognitions?"
"I don't know," Xavier replied honestly, concern darkly clouding his face, "I couldn't reach her. Couldn't touch her mind at all. Her grandmother warned us that she was prone to such attacks, but…I've never seen such a seizure come on so quickly. I'm afraid only Mary will be able to tell us what just happened."
Storm nodded and let out a shaky sigh. She hoped Dr. McCoy would be able to help the girl recover from such a violent attack on the body.
Xavier tilted his head, listening, and glanced up towards the second floor. He could sense some of the children stirring anxiously. Mary's scream must have woken them, and he called out a calming message, reassuring them that all was safe. Most of the students had been here when the mansion had been invaded by Stryker's men, and Xavier made sure to reach each mind to prevent a panic. He called out again, specifically to Bobby and Rogue, to make sure everyone who had been wakened found their way back to bed.
As Xavier and Storm made their way silently down to the lower levels, the Professor pondered on their new guest with perplexed concern. Why had he not been able to sense her while she was in that state? He had reached people in much deeper levels of mental impairment before, so what was different about this child?
He sighed with frustration. He could not think on his own concerns now. Instead, he would work with his team to somehow find a way to prevent Mary from suffering such violent, unexpected attacks.