Here they stood. Four mutants gathered together in a small circle, surrounded by the dark forest that encompassed them. Scott, Kitty, Rogue, and Kurt were all there. Their clothes were ripped and their bodies ached. They didn't know where anyone else was. Well, that's not exactly true. They knew exactly where Evan was. In fact, it was all they could think about. It had been a long day, and though the day was finally over, the repercussions of it were still ahead and not one of them was sure how to handle it. After what seemed like hours of silence, Scott spoke up.
"I don't know what to say guys. You did a great job today. The professor would be proud."
"Does anyone, like, know where we are?" squeaked Kitty nervously. The others were glad to hear her say something. None of them had talked much that afternoon, but Kitty had been extra quiet ever since…
"No clue." said Kurt. "But I'm zure zomeone'll find uz soon."
"Fat chance!" snarled Rogue. "We're gonna be here awhile."
"Fighting isn't gonna do any good now. You guys get some sleep. I'll take the first watch," suggested Scott. No one objected.
Scott turned around to face the woods. He couldn't sleep if he wanted to, not without knowing where Jean was or if she was safe. Besides, he couldn't forget what he'd seen that afternoon. He would never forget that sight. It had been a long day and he prepared himself for a longer night.
*****
The alarm woke him up at 6:30 as it did every day. He sat up in bed without opening his eyes, then grabbed his glasses from the nightstand. Once they were on, he looked around. He yawned. "I've got to start setting that thing to go off a little later," he muttered to himself. Then he remembered why he set it so early today. Normally Scott stayed in the mansion during the day. Ever since he graduated from Bayville High he had been an instructor at the mansion. But today he was going to the school with all the others. One of his old teachers had asked him to come back and give a presentation to her classes and so Scott would be back in his alma mater for one day.
Morning in the mansion was hectic to say the least. Everyone ran back and forth, no one quite awake. Breakfast was normally a quick bowl of cereal before rushing out the door to get to school. Kurt, the only one of the mansion's inhabitants that was a morning person, was in the dining hall annoying everyone with his chipper personality.
Scott slid out the door quickly, not quite in the mood to see anyone. Jean was still missing. She and Storm had left 4 days earlier to recruit a new mutant that lived in Atlanta. They were supposed to be back 2 days ago. Cerebro couldn't find them and Scott was worried, though not willing to let everyone see it.
He smiled as he listened to his car start with a roar and then slip into a soothing purr. This is the only way to travel, he thought to himself.
He got to the school just in time and headed to his old classroom where Mrs. Williams was waiting on him. They greeted each other and Scott went to the front of the class to set up for his presentation. For some reason, he had an uneasy feeling about this. He was worried about the people who used to give him a hard time being in his class today. He didn't want to look stupid in front of people he used to go to school with. Jean was always popular. She wouldn't be worried about this… "Don't think about that right now," he muttered under his breath.
Lunch came at 11:30. The day was going well so far. No one had given him a hard time or anything. They had all just been glad to have an easy day in class for once. Scott went out to the courtyard and sat down next to Kurt at their old table and joined in the conversation about the big game in a couple days. He began to eat, but was stopped when he heard the Professor's voice in his mind. "Scott, you must get the others and come back to the mansion now. Don't waste time! Come as fast as you can!"
The Professor has never contacted me at school like this before. Something must be really wrong. Let's see then, where is everyone?
He looked around the table. Kurt, Evan, and Kitty were there. They all stood up having clearly received the same message. Where was Rogue? He scanned the courtyard. She's here somewhere. He felt a tap on his shoulder.
"Ah just got a wire from the professor ta find ya," said Rogue's voice from behind.
"Yeah, we gotta get to the mansion, now. C'mon!"
The five mutants took off toward the parking lot and Scott's car. They slipped past the lot attendant, jumped in the sleek convertible, and took off.
"Like, does anyone know what's, like, going on?" asked Kitty as Scott took corners a little too fast.
"Not a clue, but the Professor said to head for the mansion so that's what we're doing," replied Scott.
He turned into the drive up to the mansion and slammed on the brakes. There were two tanks blocking the drive and soldiers running everywhere.
"What's goin' on?" said Rogue.
"Beats me, but I think ve'd best move or else ve're gonna be in zerious trouble," said Kurt.
"Yeah, you're right," agreed Scott, shifting the car to reverse. He turned around to watch behind him as he hit the gas but slammed on the brakes again when an army jeep loaded with soldiers came around the bend and blocked his path.
The soldiers piled out of the jeep as the man in the passenger seat, clearly a superior, stood and shouted towards them. "Get out of the car now and put your hands on your head! You're under arrest by the United States government!"
Everyone did as they were told. "Get on the ground!" shouted the soldiers. Scott looked at the man in the jeep and shouted back.
"What's going on? We're citizens! We haven't done anything wrong!"
"Yer not citizens, yer mutants!" snarled the general. "And, as of eleven o' clock this morning, your kind have been outlawed by the United States Congress. Every mutant is to be rounded up and detained! If you resist, you will be killed! Now hit the dirt, mutant!"
The five teenagers exchanged quick looks, then moved as close together as possible. Kurt wrapped his arms around them and they all closed their eyes. When they opened them again, they were standing inside the mansion.
"What was that about?!" exclaimed Evan. "They can't do that!"
"They did," responded Scott. "And there's nothing we can do about it. Right now, we have to disappear. But first, Kurt, get me to my room. I need something."
The two boys vanished, then reappeared moments later with a radio and Scott's visor.
"All right, let's go."
They heard footsteps coming down the hallway. Scott stepped towards the rest of the group as Kurt once again wrapped his arms around them. The door behind them opened and they heard the startled voice of a soldier yelling orders at them. Then the soldier blurred from their view.
They looked around to find themselves in the woods around the mansion. "What now?" asked Kitty.
"Well, uh, let me think about that one," replied Scott clumsily. "The Professor is either captured or hiding, and since Logan was with him, I'd say hiding is the better guess. Mr. McCoy is on vacation in the northeast and shouldn't be back for a few weeks. Jean and Storm are still missing…"
Suddenly, Scott's heart sank. Jean! She's already missing and now the government is hunting us down! What if they… no, I have to concentrate on this right now. These guys are all looking to you, Scott. Time to step up and be a leader here. You can do this.
"Are you okay?" asked Rogue. "Ya turned all white. What's wrong?"
"Nothing," Scott assured here while shaking his head. "I'm fine. Now we have to get off the grounds of the mansion or we'll be caught in no time. Follow me!" Scott ran towards the perimeter of the grounds as everyone else followed him.
Where are you, Jean? Professor? I need someone. I don't know what to do or where to go and they're relying on me. How could this happen? The government is rounding up every mutant? This whole thing just doesn't make sense! What the…?!
Just as they all got through the gates of the grounds, the forest exploded to their left. Trees and dirt flew everywhere and smoke blurred their vision. Scott looked up to find a Sentinel hovering over them. The gigantic robot had fired a huge beam at them and missed by only a few yards.
"Run!" yelled Scot. They couldn't fight the thing here. Not now with soldiers everywhere, they'd be captured for sure!
The group took off into the woods. They sprinted through the trees, jumping rocks and fallen limbs and dodging attacks from the mutant-hunting monster behind them.
A sentinel?! The government must be serious about this anti-mutant thing if they're employing these types of insane methods. There's no way we can outrun that thing! I have to do something!
Scott made up his mind, whipped around, planted his feet, and sent an optic blast hurtling up towards the Sentinel. The blast connected perfectly, hitting the robot in its chest and temporarily knocking out its largest laser. Maybe that helped, he thought as he turned to run again.
Scott ran ahead to find that Kurt had stopped to wait on him.
"How far are ve from the mansion?" asked Kurt.
Scott thought for a moment. "Probably a mile and half. Far enough that there aren't any soldiers around anymore. I hate to say it, but we have to fight that thing!"
"Right!" said Kurt. "Zere's a clearing about anozer half mile ahead. It'd make a good place to vight."
"Then let's go there."
"I'll tell ze ozers."
Kurt vanished in a flash of smoke and Scott began running as hard as he could.
I don't know if we can beat that thing, but there's no other way!
Finally, Scott reached the clearing where Rogue, Kitty, Evan, and Kurt were waiting. He turned around and watched as the Sentinel emerged over the trees and landed in the clearing.
"Let's do this!" Scott yelled as he fired a beam, just missing the robot's shoulder.
Evan began firing spikes at the Sentinel while Kurt tried to keep its attention. He bamfed back and forth across the clearing attracting the Sentinel's fire. Scott spent most of his time blasting missiles out of the air. Rogue and Kitty stayed hidden in the brush realizing that there was little they could do for the time being.
An explosion and a cry of pain behind Scott told him that Kurt had finally been too slow in dodging the missiles. He looked back to check on him.
"Are you alright?!"
"Ugh. Jah, I'm fine! Don't vorry about me!"
Suddenly, the ground ripped open in front of Scott's feet and flames shot everywhere. He had turned around for three seconds and the Sentinel took advantage of it. He landed 10 feet away hurt, but okay.
Stupid, Scott. That was really stupid. No more mistakes.
He fired another blast at the Sentinel and went back to knocking out missiles.
Evan was still shooting spikes at the Sentinel and making some progress. He had managed to knock out most of the guns on its body and had apparently managed to rip into the outer skin on its left leg, causing a few sparks to fly from the damaged hull. It became obvious that the Sentinel was turning its attention to Evan. Scott tried to divert its attention back to him, but it was no use. Every missile fired, every beam discharged were all heading straight toward Evan. Scott was able to knock out all the missiles, but the lasers were a different story. Evan would just have to dodge those, which he was doing a good job of so far, even managing to shoot out a few spikes in the process.
Then a laser landed directly in front of Scott, knocking him off his feet in surprise. Scott jumped back up, but was too late. Explosion after explosion ripped through the clearing, flames engulfing the area Evan had been occupying.
Oh no! I've really done it this time. Please be okay, Evan.
Scott watched the smoke, blasting the Sentinel at the same time. The haze began to clear slowly, but there were no signs of movement. No spikes flying from the cloud.
This is bad. This is really bad. Its all your fault if something's happened, Scott.
The fog finally lifted and there it was. Something lay crumpled on the ground. Scott saw Kurt flash beside it, pick it up, and disappear again.
Kurt didn't hesitate. He just picked him up and got out of there. He must be okay or Kurt would've done something. That's it, Sentinel. No more playing around!
"Kurt! Kitty! C'mere!" Scott yelled while blasting the face on the Sentinel.
Scott turned to Kurt. "Get us on its shoulder!"
Kurt held his two friends close and then they felt the wind whip against them and heard the clanging metal beneath their feet.
"Thanks Kurt. Now see to Evan."
Scott grabbed Kitty's hand. "Lets drop in."
The two lowered slowly through the metal shoulder and landed on a platform 8 feet below that had been left by the builders of the killing machine.
"Alright, its time to show this thing what we can do," said Scott.
He began blasting in every direction, ripping the Sentinel apart from the inside. Kitty phased in and out of the machinery, always emerging from the metal hunks with some sort of gear or motor in her hands. Before long, they began to feel the vibration of the Sentinel falling apart.
"Let's go!" said Scott, grabbing Kitty's hand again.
"Like, definitely!" said Kitty as they leapt out of the machine.
Kurt saw his friends emerge from the Sentinel's shoulder and immediately teleported up to them, then brought them down to the edge of the forest where an exasperated Rogue was kneeling over Evan, who was lying face-up on the ground. They watched as the Sentinel convulsed and finally blew up, spraying the clearing with flames and hunks of metal.
"That was close," said Scott. He pointed to Evan. "How's he doing?"
Kurt and Rogue exchanged nervous looks.
"Uh, not vell," said Kurt. "He, uh, vell, I don't know how…" He trailed off as Scott looked down at Evan.
"No," uttered Scott. "No, this can't be happening."
Evan's body was badly burnt and it was clear that he'd been knocked around pretty hard by the explosions.
"He landed on a rock." Kurt explained. "It paralyzed him immediately. Ven I got him over here, he told me he couldn't move. He asked if it looked bad. I lied to him. Told him he'd be fine. He tried to lift hiz head to see for himself but he couldn't lift it enough to zee. He was in pain and begged uz to help him. It vas obvious zat he vouldn't make it in the long run, but ve zought he might barely hold on to life for a few days. Zey vouldn't have been good days zough. Zey vould have been painful and zlow. He begged us to take ze pain avay, so…"
"So ah held his hand til he slipped off." Rogue said somberly, finishing Kurt's sentence. "Then ah used those spikes o' his ta fight that dumb robot!" Rogue's eyes began to tear up. "Ya can't jus' kill someone and 'spect ta get away with it." Fury and grief filled Rogue's eyes as she spoke. Kurt cleared his throat as Kitty sobbed lightly on Scott's left.
Scott stared at the scene in disbelief. Evan was gone. An X-man was dead, killed in battle. He couldn't believe it. He made a silent vow. As long as he lived, this would never happen again.
They all stood in silence, staring at the body for only minutes, but it seemed like days.
Finally, Scott spoke up. "I hate to say it, but we better move. Soldiers will be getting here soon and we need to be long gone when that happens. As for Evan, I hate it but we can't bring him along. We'll have to leave the body here."
"What?!" exclaimed Rogue. "Ya can't be serious! We're jus' gonna leave his dead body layin' aroun' on the ground?!"
"Do you wanna carry it?" Scott asked. "I hate it too, but taking him with us will just slow us down and we can't afford that. I'm sorry."
After a short prayer from Kurt on Evan's behalf, the remaining X-men covered Evan's body so it wouldn't be found by the army, then left the blazing battlefield. Scott stopped and looked back at the broken body laying before him.
"We'll be back, Evan. I promise."
With that, they retreated into the woods.
*****
Scott toyed with the radio as everyone else fell asleep. Wherever the Professor and Logan were, they weren't answering him. Neither were Jean or Storm. Somehow, Jean's silence was more disturbing than the professor's. His only voice of reason had been missing for 4 days and he had no idea where she was. She had promised him that it'd only be a short trip.
He grew tired of dealing with the radio and threw it to the ground. The darkness grew tighter every second. He could hear the crickets chirping and he thought there might be an owl just to the west. Every sound closed in on him. Every sight pressed against him with claustrophobic intensity. He had never felt more alone. He looked back at the others. They had done great, but ironically, none of them had fought as well as Evan.
Evan. Why was he gone? Why couldn't it have been Scott who died today? Why was he still here and Evan dead?
"Apparently I still have work to do." Scott said to himself, unconvinced. "My work isn't over. His was. Besides, I wouldn't want to leave Jean behind."
Then he remembered. Jean. Where was she? Was she okay? Had she been captured?
All he could think about was Evan and Jean. He sat on the dark hillside, staring at the small fire they had built at dusk. He sat, and stared, and thought.
He jumped when Kurt tapped his shoulder.
"Hey Scott? You okay? You're kinda zoned out."
"Huh? Yeah, I'll be alright."
"Vhy don't you let me take over the vatch for a while? I can't sleep anyvay."
"Sure. Sounds fine Kurt."
Scott stood up and went towards where Kitty and Rogue were lying, both of them asleep, but neither peaceful. He laid down and slowly drifted off.
*****
He awoke without opening his eyes. Scott reached over to the nightstand to grab his glasses, but was surprised to find nothing but dirt and rocks. Then he remembered. He reached towards his waist where he had left his visor. Once it was on, he finally opened his eyes and looked around.
Everyone else was already awake. The fire had burned out. It was almost like they were on a normal camping trip.
Almost.
"You're up!" came Kurt's voice. "Ve zought ve'd let you sleep az long az you vanted."
"Thanks," Scott said. "So, what have you guys been doing all morning?"
"Not much," replied Kitty. "We, like, didn't really know what we should do, y'know?"
Yeah. I know the feeling.
"Well, I guess we should keep moving. We need to find a town and get some food and new clothes. You guys ready to go?"
"Yeah," said the other three in unison.
They all got up and began walking back into the woods, following Scott.
