Disclaimer: Xmen Evolution belongs to Warner/Marvel, and the Matrix series belongs to the Wachowski Brothers/ Warner Bros. They don't belong to me. Well, Eryn and Matt do, along with other minor OC's that occur.  I'm a review junkie, so replies are much appreciated.

AN:  This story is kind of an AU of…well, an AU.  Weird, huh?  Sorry that this one has taken so long – had a drought of inspiration for this one, then my copy of Order of the Phoenix came in, so I had to read it. ^.^  I also had a rather small bout of depression and such. Many apologies. I hope the fact that this chapter is a bit long compensates for the amount of time it took to post.

AN2 ( 8/21/03):  Yeah.  I reposted. I'm kinda a dork that way.  Much the same, except for thanks/acknowledgements at the end.   Stay tuned for Upload Three – s'were all the action is going to happen. ~.^

Key
*this* is emphasis
this is psychic convo
this is dreams/thoughts/journals/ship names

Now that that's all done, Onward! ^.^


The Matrix: Rebirth – Upload Two

Kitty looked around the small mess chamber aboard the Firebird, where they all sat, waiting for Mystique and Wolverine to return for the briefing.  Gambit, sitting between Lightwing and Colossus, grinned at her and sent a wink, receiving a glare from Avalanche.  Soulspark had his arm around the Empath, listening attentively to something Storm was saying.  Phoenix and Cyclops were both in the hold with Toad, Forge, Spyke, Pyro, and Jubilee, waiting for the Captains. Next to her, Rogue and Quicksilver were having a friendly argument with Scarlet over who knew what, both of the darker girls railing on the silver-haired speedster, who was wincing.

Closing her eyes, she let herself empty of all emotion except calmness and concentration, focusing on the core of herself that assessed everything analytically without judgment or comment, and drew on that strength.  She had a feeling she wasn't going to enjoy this mission in any shape or form. 

"You alrigh', petit?"

Opening her eyes, she spared a small smile for the Cajun, who had crossed to sit next to her.  "As much as I can be."

He nodded, accepting her answer, but his red-on-black eyes still held a spark of speculation.  "If you say so."

About to reply, she was interrupted when Wolverine and Mystique entered with the others.  Wolverine looked around gruffly, assessing everyone present.

"Awright, guys – this is pure recon.  No heroics, no stupid stunts.  Capiche?"

A rumble of agreements rose from the teams.  "Capiche, Logan…yeah…I understand…"

"Good."  He turned to Mystique.  "They're yours."

The azure-skinned woman smiled, showing her slightly pointed teeth in a mocking smile, her gold eyes holding the hint of scorn they always had for everyone.

"Now, we are going to Chicago, Illinois-"

Kitty's shoulders immediately tightened, and she saw Rogue, the Twins, and Avalanche do the same.

"To a business complex where they are rumored to hold mutants."

"For what?"  Jubilee asked, aghast.

Glaring in the oriental girls direction, Mystique sneered.  "What do you think?  The Agents don't quite understand how mutants can exist.  Now take that train of thought and think on your *own* girl!"

Gambit's eyes narrowed as Cyclops stiffened.  "They be experimentin' on mutants, den?  Like animals?"

A grim expression on her usually mild face, Storm sighed, blue eyes weary.  "Less than animals.  By their belief, we shouldn't even exist."

Taking a cleansing breath, Mystique exhaled abruptly before continuing.  "Now, like Wolverine has said, this is recon.  If we manage to free others, so be it, but that is *not* our objective today.  We need to get in, hack into their systems, find out *who* is in there and *what* the Agents are doing, as well as the locations of other possible mutant prisons."

"All while trying not to get killed," Phoenix added quietly from her seat. 

Pietro and Wanda both grinned.  "Easyaspie," the speedster commented.  "Inandout.  Noheroics, Igotit."

"*We* understand," Rogue added quietly.

"When we touch down, the teams are as follows –" Wolverine looked at them all squarely before continuing.  "Diversion Team:  myself, Cyke, Rogue, Storm, Colossus, Lightwing, and Avalanche.  The Infiltration Team:  Mystique, Shadowcat, Quicksilver, Scarlet, Gambit, Soulspark, and Phoenix."  He looked at them all once more.  "Let's keep this together – we may not have another shot if we screw this up."

As one they all stood.  "Mission commences at 0800.  Dismissed."

~*~

I can not believe this....Rogue groused mentally as she squeezed the trigger on her automatic, emptying the magazine into a guard before he had the chance to turn into an Agent. Here we are, back in Chicago, and doing *what*? We're going to get killed, I know it...

Next to her, Lightwing conjured a throwing star out of light, throwing it so it stuck in the wall at the end of the corridor. With a wicked grin, she snapped her fingers and it detonated, hindering the Agent that had been coming for them. Glancing at Rogue and Avalanche, her eyes still blazing silver, she grew somber. "Watch my back for a moment - I need to concentrate."

Closing her eyes, she reached out for Phoenix, brow furrowing as she concentrated. Rogue cleared another gun from the holster inside her duster, green eyes wary around her, moving to protect the Empath, as telepathy wasn't her strong suit. Avalanche's knuckles on his semi-automatic were white with tension.

I wonder how the other team is faring...Rogue wondered as she took aim at the Agent striding up the hallway.


~*~


{WHUMP}

"Hurry up, 'Cat," Quicksilver yelled from his vantage point between 'Spark and Gambit, where the three men held the door closed. "Wedon'thavemuchtime."

{WHUMP}

"Hold your horses," she snapped, typing as fast as she could. Dialing on her cellphone, she connected to Forge. "Okay Fixit, I'm in."

"I'm in," Mystique announced from her computer.

"Me as well," Scarlet nodded.

Phoenix, her hands at her temples with a look of utmost concentration, grimaced. "We need to hurry - Lightwing says that their group was forced to split. Agents are coming out everywhere."

"I'm downloading now," Forge said hurriedly to Shadowcat, voice bordering on panic. "Agents closing in at rapid pace."

"No shit."

"Alright...done! Get your asses out of there!"

"Will do." Kitty, snapped her cell phone closed and moved to exit the program when a name caught her eye in the file that was open.

Kurt Wagner.

Oh, shit... Feeling panic claw at the edge of her mind, she hurriedly moved to read what was there.

{WHUMP}

"Comeon'Cat - wehavetoGO!" the speedster yelled, before pulling her backwards.

"But-"

"But what, child?" Mystique asked, steel in her voice.

Kitty couldn't speak around the lump in her throat, so she simply pointed at the screen.

Glaring at her, the Captain turned to the screen and seeing what was there, she froze. Kitty saw that the Captain's face was uncharacteristically fearful and slightly panicked before it was schooled into it's normal emotionlessness. Grabbing the younger girl's arms in a vice-like grip, she shook her slightly.

"This is *not* what this mission is for, do you understand? We absolutely *cannot* stay here."

Despite her words, Kitty saw the battle in her eyes and recognized it, because it was the same in her own mind, even if she didn't understand the reason Mystique had to feel that way. 

Go, as ordered, or stay and find him.

Go or stay.

They *had* to go.

But she couldn't just *leave* him here! She can't *not* save him.

Go or stay.  Life or Death.

Mystique released her, eyes holding a spark of sadness. "We must go - this is a mission for another time, do you understand me? Not here, not now." The others were watching the tete-a-tete with interest, despite the noise, as the Agents and guards continued to bang at the door.

{WHUMP}

As Pietro and Matt forced the door open, weapons ready, Remy grabbed Kitty's arm.

"The Captain's right, petit - we cannot stay, or we will all die, and that will not help your friend."

The lump in her throat still painfully tight, she nodded, drawing her own gun.

"Let's get out of here," she finally said, defeat radiating from her every action.

I *will* come back, I swear on it.


~*~

"So."

Kurt glared coolly at Agent Matthews, but was unable to perform any rude hand gestures as his hands were tied behind his back rather effectively.

Even for him.

Verdammt.

"So."

Emitting a loud sigh that ended in a half-growl, the Teutonic gritted his teeth. "Are you going to ask a question or is that word the only one in your limited vocabulary?"

With a look that could have melted steel, the Agent backhanded him then jabbed him in the side with a taser. He didn't even have his shirt on to soften the blow. It wasn't his fault that Siryn had been tossed into their cell bleeding last night.

Kurt grimaced as he tasted blood, and just to irk the Agent in front of him, he looked him in the eye as he swallowed.

"Disgusting." Matthews spat, grabbing a handful of the other man's nearly waist-length hair.

"Ah! So you *do* know other words, Herr Matthews! You continue to dazzle me with your ultimate intellect!"

***


"You have *got* to learn how to keep your mouth shut," Tracy rasped from her corner, various bandages made of what used to be Kurt's t-shirt dotting her body. "If you don't, they'll just keep drugging you."

"At least I don't hurt right now," he quipped.

Isis poked the bruise on his cheekbone, her gold green almond shaped eyes amused. "*You* are a nineteen year old boy. You do not know the importance of when to say silent and when to push the advantage." She carefully braided his hair [1], aware of the goose egg on his scalp.

He winced a bit, curling into a ball on his side. "Lemme alone."

"What did they want?"

A moment of breathing and swallowing and he was ready to answer. "There was a break-in yesterday. Hackers. They apparently stole some files. Or copied them. Or something."

Tracy snorted in derision. "So what does that have to do with the price of peas in Peru?"[2]

Kurt shrugged. "They thought that maybe...possibly...I might have known them. Apparently my file was still on the screen when everything settled down."

Now it was Isis' turn to sneer derisively. "If those hackers were your friends and they knew you were here, wouldn't they have come after you?" Despite her harsh tone, her hands were gentle as they probed the skin around a vicious bruise on his back.

He shrugged again, and an air of sadness pervaded the cell. "I would *hope* so. Then again, I have had very little to hope for as of late."

"You've been here a while, haven't you?"

Kurt turned to look at Tracy, and she noticed his eyes glowed oddly in the dark. "Nearly three months. I have seen others come and go. Why they haven't killed me yet, I don't understand." He grinned crookedly with a mocking edge. "Perhaps I am to be a permanent resident."

Tracy and Isis had turned stark white, both of them agape.

"Was?"

"Um..." Isis' usual formal linguistics had vanished. "You're blue."

He snorted. "Way to go Isis. This place has finally driven you crazy." Lifting his hand to the light drifting in from the square in the door, he saw he was as pale as ever.

"No! I saw it too!" Tracy pointed a shaky finger at him. "You turned blue!"

Isis poked him. "You went soft around the edges too. Like a cat."

"Will you two *stop*? I am not blue!" He faced away from them, staring at his hands that had been forced tridactyl when he was young because of a genetic ligament defection.

I am *not* turning blue.



~~~~~~~~~~~~~

["Because I can't hold on when I'm stretched so thin
I make the right moves, but I'm lost within,
I put on my daily facade but then
I just end up getting hurt again." ]
- "By Myself," Linkin Park.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Kitty sighed sadly, phasing down to the level below her crewmate's section in Zion, down towards the very bowels of the city. Everyone she knew was currently at Temple - she could hear the drums even as far away as she had drifted, unwilling to face anyone that would ask questions she wasn't ready to answer. The Captains, Lock, and several Councilors also had missed Temple, still in discussion about the mission and it's repercussions. Gingerly sitting on the edge of the ledge, arms wrapped around the rail, feet dangling over and thumping the side in her battered leather boots, she stared into space at nothing in particular.

Kurt's file hadn't told them anything they hadn't already known - he was German born, a teleporter, O positive, accelerated metabolism, nineteen years old, five foot nine - they already knew most of that, as they were basic stats. Except for one.

Apparently he had an extremely advanced musculature and the agility to go along with it. Also, it appeared his hair color was not black or dark brown as she had originally thought, but a dark indigo.

Absently, her mind drifted to a shard of half-remembered dream, of the demon boy with blue fur.

No, it can't be...She rubbed her arms, as if she had gotten a sudden chill. But what if...No! It just can't be!

"You look awfully pensive."

She started at the familiar voice, then sighed, resigned. She should've known she wouldn't be the only one to avoid Temple. Resisting the urge to scowl, she looked up, squinting.

"Hey, Neo."

The human smirked slightly as he sat next to her, legs hanging off the ledge in a similar fashion. "Why aren't you at Temple?"

This time she *did* scowl. "Why aren't you?" she countered.

"Touché." He rolled his neck, a popping noise issuing from his joints. "I don't get that much alone time as of late."

She smiled slightly, then sobered. If anyone knew the answer to this question, certainly he would. "Neo, do you ever feel as if your life has just spun out of control, and things are moving too quickly for you to process any of it?"

He snorted in amusement, raising an eyebrow. "You're asking me?"

She colored. "Sorry. It sounded much better in my head."

He shrugged. "It's alright." A moment of silence, then he responded. "Sometimes, you just have to do what you have to do. Follow your instincts and go with your gut."

"Even if I'm ordered otherwise?"

He grinned. "That's not for me to decide. Just do what you know you have to do - what is right. Could you live with yourself otherwise?"

He had a point.

She moved to respond when pounding feet on the corridor interrupted her, and they turned to look.

Wolfsbane raced up the corridor, red hair flying about her face. Nodding out of respect to Neo, she turned to the other girl. "Lock has sent for you - his meeting with the Captains has ended."

Kitty started in surprise. "He sent for *me*? What for? I'm still a shipmate - I don't even have a rank!"

Wolfsbane shrugged, perplexed. "Councilor Xavier sent me to get you. He said to come immediately."

Neo nodded, standing, then lent a hand to help the phaser up. "You had better go - for Xavier to say that, it must be important, and not just Lock's anti-mutant shit."

She nodded. "Thanks."

He waved it off as he headed down the corridor. "No problem," he tossed over his shoulder, and then he was gone.



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


"Now you listen to me, Captain," Lock snarled at Mystique, "I don't care if she is meant to find some mutant that is *more* mutant than the rest. I know you and her like. I will not have all of you haring off after a hunch, therefore killing *more* of those who protect this city."

That was the opening statement as Kitty entered the room. Xavier gave her a reassuring nod, while Magneto looked on impassively.

Wolverine and Mystique, however, were livid.

"Don't you understand?" the metamorph snarled, eyes glowing in her anger. "This is more than just petty one-upmanship shit, Lock! This *is* life and death! If this was a place holding humans, you wouldn't think twice, but since it's holding mutants, you hesitate!"

Despite his anger, Wolverine grinned ferally. "And we wouldn't want Zion to find out you're refusin' to save people 'cause they're mutants, would we?"

Color suffused the Commander's face. "Is that a threat, Captain?"

Wolverine shook his head, air all innocence. "Nah. Just a suggestion."

Kitty spoke up, disbelief written on her face. "We're not going?"

Mystique snorted derisively. "Oh, no child. We *are*. That is the problem, apparently."

"I did not give you leave for this mission!" Lock yelled.

"No," Magneto said softly, steel in his voice that held an underlying threat. "The Council did. Shadowcat is meant to find one of the most valuable mutants to our cause." He nodded to her as he said so. "So, when she sees something that is deemed important enough to risk the lives of two ships, it must be..." he smirked at Lock, "...destiny."

"I see you've been talking to Morpheus," Lock all but growled.

"I think Morpheus has some valid points to make," Xavier intoned pacifyingly. "Besides, we need as many people - mutant or not - freed to help mankind. To use the words of our younger generation, we have nothing left to lose."

Lock glared at Kitty, as if he forgot that he had summoned her. "So you think these people would be an asset to our cause? Are they worth all of the danger your crew would undoubtedly be in if they went back to that place a second time?"

Kitty hesitated, thought of Kurt, her crewmates, and her friends, then straightened. "Yes."

Seeing the conviction on her face, he nodded sadly. "So be it. You all set out tomorrow morning."


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was rare that he got any sleep, these days. Even rarer when he dreamt. Usually he was so drugged that every sleep was dreamless and black as pitch - forgotten the moment he awoke, feeling as if he had not slept at all. Usually, he, Isis, and Tracy all leaned on each other in some way: it was warmer, it felt safer, and you got a pillow out of the bargain.

This time, he fell asleep with Isis' rumbling purr in his ear, and tumbled head first into dreams, hazy and indistinct, but after a sleep cycle or two they crystallized into something more coherent, something hypersensitive and somehow sharper than normal.

He was uncertain. Shocked. Scared. And running, always running. They come, and they kill, and they do not hesitate. There is no motive. There is no hate. No fear. No emotion.

It all passed through his mind quickly, leaving no impressions, only knowledge.

He looked around, and saw that the world was toxic.

"I don't understand," he said aloud. He looked around in disbelief at the scorched sky, feeling the cold wind raise gooseflesh on the skin that was bared to the elements, feeling the sharp, gritty, somehow *oily* rock that was below his feet. There was no sign of habitation, no life - the only reason he could possibly be breathing was the fact that he was dreaming.

"Scary, isn't it?"

Kurt gasped and whirled around, startled, although he shouldn't have been. She was often in his dreams - the ones he could remember anyway. He assumed she was dead, although no funeral had ever been held for her - it just seemed as if everyone had simply forgotten her.

"Katze?"

She appeared just as shaken as he. Narrowing his eyes, he looked at her askance, noting her appearance. She was thinner than he remembered - not bony, but more lithe. Her hair was also short, nearly chin-length, and slightly spiky. She was dressed simply, even if her clothes looked so old and grimy that they appeared grey. However, on her body were round metal circles that seemed installed into her very flesh, as if she was something that you would plug into a machine. But her eyes were still very very blue, and like they could before, they cut down to his very soul, as if she saw more than he knew about himself.

Her hand was shaking as she touched his face, over the bruise on his jaw from where Matthews had hit him just a few hours before - if I'm dreaming, why do I have it?! - and she pulled away as if burned when he winced, both visually and audibly. Her face filled with sympathy as she touched the dark circles underneath his eyes, the scar on his hairline, his split lip, and the dark bruise that nearly covered the entirety of his right ribcage, all with a featherlight pass of the pads of her fingertips.

Somehow, the dream felt too real, but Kurt was content to contemplate it at a later date.

Her eyes looked suspiciously overbright. "I'm sorry."

He tried to smile, even if it *did* hurt his jaw. "What for? You didn't do any of this."

She shrugged slightly, trying to smile back, and the action caused a tear to roll down her face. "For not saving you when I had the chance. For leaving you behind."

He wasn't completely sure what exactly she meant, but he knew from the bottom of his soul that his current situation was most definitely *not* her fault in any way shape or form, and he told her so. However how she knew about it was a totally different question.

"I have so much to tell you, and I don't know where to begin - we are running out of time." It was obvious that she felt coming wakefulness as much as he, and by the expression on her face, she had too much to say and not enough time to say it in. Grabbing his face gently, she made him look her in the eyes, as if to convey the importance of her coming statement by her gaze, and her face was set, as if she had decided something life altering.

"Whatever you know - whatever you believe, I want you to doubt it. All of it. Look around. Pay attention to inconsistencies. Things are not how we think they are - they are much *much* different." She stopped, then lunged forward and hugged him tight, burying her face in his chest.

He put her words away for later contemplation, feeling their importance and weight. Everything else melted away in a haze as he held her close.

"I missed you, Katzchen," he finally managed to say past all the emotions clogging his throat.

He felt her smile. "I missed you too." She took a step back to smile at him, but the expression faded abruptly as she went stark white, as if she had seen something she didn't believe.

"What is it?" He looked around, but there was nothing.

"You...you're..." she touched his face again, running it upwards and he winced as something *pulled*, as if...

As if someone was pulling his skin in the opposite direction.

A snatch of an hours old conversation reached him.

"You went soft around the edges, too. Like a cat."

He brought his hand up to touch his face, stopped, and stared.

Blue. Furry. Two fingers and a thumb. Something wrapped around his leg, and when he looked he saw something serpentine and blue, with a spaded head. As he gaped in shock and closed his eyes, the dream began to warp and fade.

 
~*~




Kitty's eyes snapped open and stared into Lightwing's concerned face, the older woman's hand on her shoulder. Jubilee and Rogue were also leaning over her, their expressions worried, both of them stark white.

"Kitty? Are you alright?"

Collecting her thoughts, the dream still fresh on her mind, she came up with only one response.

"Aw, Hell..."


~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kurt bolted awake, heart racing as if it was going to leap from his chest and he shot to his feet, ignoring Tracy's exclamation as her pillow disappeared from underneath her head. He looked at his hands.

They were still blue.

"Kurt, what..." Tracy saw him, and her eyes grew wide as saucers as Kurt slowly backed up against the wall, shaking his head. "Holy God..." Ignoring Isis, she shot to her feet as well, and reached out, touching his face, making him nearly flinch away from her. The short fur that now covered his entire body was soft like velvet, almost like a kitten, but much shorter, almost unnoticeable. The dark midnight color if it made him blend into the shadows in the cell, rendering him nearly invisible, and his eyes glowed in the dark like moons.

Isis, now up as well, stared at their friend, her eyes half shifted and glinting in the dark so she could see clearly. "What happened?" She touched Kurt's arm, but drew it back when she unexpectantly met fur.

Scrunching his eyes shut and covering his face with his hands, he concentrated. It's not real. I'm not blue. It is *not* real...

Tracy's jaw dropped when his form rippled like an illusion, and he was back to his original appearance, bruises and all. She felt her legs go numb and she slumped to the floor.

"We're all loopy as a crochet convention..."[3]


~~~~~~~~~~~~



Kitty ran pell-mell down the hall after phasing through several levels, Rogue at her heels, as she reached the section of Zion many of the Europeans stayed in and banged rapidly on a door.

"Kitty, what - "

Rogue drifted off as the door creaked open and a pair of brown eyes framed in dark blonde hair peeked out, before the door was opened wide.

Jimaine, one of the notorious and supernatural Twins, glared at the two mutants. "Gott, Kitty - it's the middle of the verdammt night! What is so important that it couldn't wait until morning?" The German girl yawned hugely behind a delicate hand, glowering at the other women, bedhead lessening her ferocious look.

"Jimi? Who is it?" Stefan came to the door with bedhead to rival his twin's . "Oh. It's you. What do you need?"

"I have a question for you two - you would know more about magic and souls and stuff than me, right?" Kitty looked slightly desperate and harried, as if she had seen something that had shook her down to her core.

Jimaine sighed, and waved them in. "Ja, I guess. What is your question?"

Kitty sat in one of the chairs in the small room, and Rogue took the other as the twins sat on one of the beds, looking at her and uncannily breathing and blinking in synchronization.

Creepy.

Kitty took a deep breath before she spoke. "I had an odd dream tonight, but it didn't really feel like a dream - it was almost like I was there, talking to him. I looked like I do now, when in dreams I usually look like I do before I was freed."

Stefan nodded. "Most do. This," he gestured at the room, meaning Zion and their situation in general, " is usually to fresh of a shock for most people to totally absorb in their subconscious." He shrugged slightly. "Workings of the mind is something Phoenix or Xavier would understand more than us."

Kitty nodded. "He - my friend - also looked different than how I remember. A bit taller - thinner, with long hair. He also had terrible bruises, and was paler than usual. Even he looked surprised to see me, and we spoke as if we had a real conversation." She blushed slightly. "When he hugged me, it *felt* real."

Jimaine and Stefan exchanged a glance. Jimaine suddenly nodded. "What did your surroundings look like?"

"Current Earth."

The sorceress' eyes widened. "Indeed. How did your dream feel?"

Kitty's brow furrowed. "How do you mean?"

Rogue and Stefan's eyes were bouncing back and forth like they were watching a tennis match.

"How did it feel? Hazy? Fuzzy? Clear? Disorienting?"

Kitty thought, eyes unfocused, before she spoke. "It was...super-sharp. Like an adrenaline high - it was like I was aware of everything, and felt more than I would have, or *should* have in a dream." She shrugged. "That is why I came to you."

About to speak, Jimaine was cut off by her brother. "What did you see that has you so badly shaken?" His eyes were uncannily sharp, as if she could not hide anything from him. "You asked about souls. What do you want to know?"

"You know who I'm meant to find, right? You have heard the prophecy?" At their nods, Kitty took a deep breath and continued. "The boy...man...*dammit*!" She swore in exasperation. "*Kurt*," she finally said, "is a friend I have been searching for. We recently found that he is being held at a mutant experimentation facility in Chicago, and we leave this morning to go free whatever mutants wherein that we can - the facility is an abomination and must be shut down."

"What she's trying to say," Rogue interrupted, green eyes sharp, "is that in her dream, Kurt *turned* into a demon - or at least his appearance did."

The twins nodded, motioning for them to continue.

Kitty hugged herself. "He looked scared and shocked - as if he didn't understand what was happening. That's when the dream ended."

They sat in silence for a moment, until Jimaine spoke. "You said that the dream was super-sharp in feeling, and that everything - even appearances of the people wherein - were *current*, if we can assume that if yours was, his was as well."

Kitty nodded.

"Did he say anything that you hadn't heard before - that didn't sound as if he had said it, had he been in a previous dream?" Jimaine's brown eyes showed that she was on a tangent, and was beginning to understand something they didn't.

"He said...he said that he missed me. Since my dreams are mostly made of memories, it was something he had never told me before. He looked sad, as if..."

Jimaine smiled slightly. "As if you had been dead, and suddenly you were there and he could say it."

Kitty nodded. "Yeah. How did..."

"Lucky guess." She stood and began to pace, muttering to herself in German. Stefan watched her with a half-grin tugging at his mouth.

"She gets like this when she's close to figuring things out." He looked at her askance. "How close were you and this Kurt fellow, if you don't mind me asking?"

Rogue snorted. "They were 'best friends'."

"Ah. Ja. Right. I got it."

Kitty glared at them both. "Just what is *that* supposed to mean?"

Both of them shrugged, non-committal expressions on their faces.

"Just that if we save Kurt, Avalanche may end up horribly disappointed," Rogue said with a smirk.

Kitty turned red. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Sure, sure."

"Ich habe es erhalten! [4] Kitty, how close were you and Kurt?"

Kitty groaned and Rogue rolled her eyes.

Stefan grinned. "From what I gather, they were best friends - pretty close I'd wager."

"Ah."

Kitty let loose a growl that would've made Wolverine proud. "What have you got?"

Jimaine shook her head, clearing mental cobwebs, expression alight and excited. "If you were that close, you could've formed a soul bond."

"Ah, ja!" Stefan said, face lighting up. "Brilliant! Makes perfect sense now!"

"A soul bond?" Kitty asked dubiously.

"Ja. Many close friends and family form them. Like when you get a feeling a friend is in trouble. Or when you get sad when they are sad. Very alike." Jimaine grinned. "Soul bonds are a bit stronger and more rare. I think tonight you have just had your first subconscious telepathic conversation."

Kitty thought part of her brain imploded hearing that. "*WHAT*?"  Ow.  My heart…Is my arm going numb??!!

"Ja," Stefan said, laughter coloring his words. "Sounds right. Congratulations."

"But...but..."

Rogue picked up where Kitty left off, the stuttering phaser falling silent in thought. "If they really talked, and Kurt turned into the man-as-demon, for lack of better phrase, than that means..."

Kitty seemed to have calmed down, and now looked incredibly sad. "Than that means we have no time to waste." She stood, grasped Jimaine's shoulder, then Stefan's fondly. "Thank You. I need to go speak to Wolverine and Mystique."

"Bitteshon," Stefan said, eyes twinkling with amusement. "Go save your 'best friend.'"

As Rogue and Jimaine snorted, Kitty glowered again. "Clappe," she said goodnaturedly, before stalking out into the corridor.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Logan growled rather impressively as the banging on his door boomed in his enhanced hearing, rousing him from his longest sleep session in a month. Ororo, in the other bed next to his, yawned and sat up with a groan.

Stalking over to the door he yanked it open, about to deliver a piece of his mind to the poor unsuspecting individual on the other side, when Lightwing and Jubilee threw up their arms as if to protect themselves.

"WAIT!"

Schooling his features into something *not* resembling anger - even if his eyes were still snapping - he tiredly ran a hand through his hair. "What is it now?"

The Empath gulped, still feeling her Captain's anger radiating off of him like a forcefield. "Shadowcat had a strange dream. Or precognition. Something. She went to talk to the Twins - she just came back and asked to see you and Mystique. ASAP."

Jubilee hugged herself. "She was pretty shaken up about whatever it was."

Hearing that, he calmed down as Storm grasped his arm. Despite his hard-assed attitude, he cared about his crew and he was responsible for them. Shadowcat was no exception. He nodded, grabbing his shirt and throwing it on. "Let's go."


~*~



"Areyouserious?"

Kitty pinched the bridge of her nose in exasperation. Despite her request that she meet with the Captains alone, Pietro, Wanda, and Rogue and refused to leave, citing the reason that they had known Kurt as well, and they should stay to hear what she had to say in it's unedited form - not the story the rest of the crews would undoubtedly be given.

"Yes, Pie-pie," Wanda said. Any more sarcasm, and there would've been a neon sign saying "Smart-Ass" over her head. "What, did she speak too slow for you?"

He glared at his sister. "No. It's just hard to believe, is all. I mean, you remember Kurt right? Mr. Rules-Are-Made-to-be-Broken as long as there's a prank involved?"

Wanda waved it off. "Yes - in fact, I knew him more than you did." Kitty raised an eyebrow and Wanda shrugged, enigmatic.

"So, my son is the demon-boy?" Mystique asked, an unreadable emotion in her eyes. The revelation that she was Kurt's mother had caused quite a stir, something that made Rogue and Kitty berate themselves for stupidity - because one, Rogue had met Raven when she left Kurt with Irene several years ago, and two, Kitty had seen her reaction to the file on their last mission, but ignored it for later contemplation. Now, she understood.

"It would seem so," Kitty answered, slight fear creeping into her voice. "I have a feeling the Agents know this - it's perhaps why they've kept him there so long."

"And they would've increased security, hopin' to prevent another break-in like last time," Wolverine rumbled, rubbing his chin in thought. "Were goin' to have to be careful and tote a whole hell of a lot of firepower."

Rogue looked at the Captains earnestly. "Is it possible to get another ship to come with us?"

Wolverine's sigh ended in a growl and Mystique didn't even try to hide her scorn. "Lock almost didn't let us go - he will not endanger another ship for this mission."

Wolverine nodded. "We'll just havta stay on our toes - we've done dangerous things like this before - we'll all come out of it if we keep our eyes open and work as a team."

"At least this mission has only one objective so we don't have to split into two different teams," Pietro mumbled.

Wanda leaned over. "Hate to break it to you, but as one team, we'll be too many - we'll end up splitting up anyway."

Pietro groaned.

Mystique and Wolverine stood, and the feral man grinned. "You all get some sleep - briefing is at 0600 on the Fraternity."

As they trickled out, Kitty curled up on her bunk in a ball, her mind working too fast for her to sleep, and as Jubliee and Rogue chatted as everyone drifted away, she just stared at the wall next to her bunk.

How did it come to this?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~



"Sunrise."

Isis' head snapped up as she looked at her friend. All of them had been silent for hours, pondering on whether the facility had finally driven all of them loony, then realizing that what they had seen *was* real, no matter how impossible it should have been.

For a moment, Kurt looked like a demon, spaded tail and all.

Grimacing as she looked up, Tracy squinted at him in exhaustion. "How can you tell?" She gestured at their cell, as it had no windows.

He shrugged. "Don't know - it's strange. I kind of see...lights in mein vision."

Isis grimaced. "Like auras?"

He shook his head. "Nein. Just...lights. The air feels different. Lighter."

Tracy shivered. Sometimes sunrise was when the Agents and Scientists came to collect mutants for 'testing'. She felt Kurt tense as the door creaked open.

Case in point.

Several Agents strode in, some carrying syringes of sedative, others carrying guns, tasers, or cattle prods.

Despite the gravity of the situation, Kurt smirked. "Glad to see that two teenagers and a woman frighten nearly ten grown men with weapons. We're shaking in our boots."

Agent Creed [5] smirked back at the German mutant. "If you aren't now, you will be soon." He motioned at the Agents and guards behind him. "Take them."

Seeing Isis tense out of the corner of his eye, Kurt grabbed her wrist and shook his head when she looked, and she nodded once.

Fighting is for another time - we need to be alert, not drugged.

The guards were glad when they didn't fight - many had gotten hurt before dealing with this particular group of mutants. Silently, they let themselves be led away, following Agent Matthews down to the lab section of the facility.

"Not so difficult as Kelly said," Creed said to a fellow Agent, voice arrogant.

The other Agent still kept his hand on his gun. Just in case.


~*~


Shadowcat gulped as she stared up at the skyscrapers around her, her duster fluttering in the rather brisk wind blowing down the street. Cars were roaring, the sun was shining, the grass was green, birds were chirping...

It was all fake.

Tugging her fingerless gloves into place, she felt one of her guns in the shoulder holster underneath her arm, and was slightly reassured by its presence, as well as that of the katana strapped to her back. Next to her, 'Spark grinned, a bag containing a bomb thrown over his shoulder, eyes unreadable underneath his shades. Looking around, she saw Phoenix's red hair tossing in the wind, as well as the auburn of Mystique's current human form. Lightwing was fingering the hilt of the sword strapped to her back, and Kitty could see the hilts of her sais peeking out of her boots. The others were similarly outfitted, all of them walking advertisements for the US Military, or at the very least, Weapons-R-Us.

"Are we ready?" Scarlet asked, tugging her own gloves into place.

Looking around at everyone's set expressions, Kitty looked at Rogue who grinned, despite the tension of the moment.

"Let's save his fuzzy blue hide."

Crossing his arms where he could feel the deck of cards in his pocket, Gambit grinned just as carelessly as Rogue had a moment before. "Time to declare war on Chicago."


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~



[1] a la Duo Maxwell. Only shorter. Sorry, I had to make a comment.  ^.^

[2] say that ten times fast!

[3] One comment from Jim Butcher's Harry Dresden Files - from "Summer Knight", actually. I love that series...


[4] I've got it!

[5] That would be Graydon, not Victor.

Annd now, Reviews!

Arwen Telyn : Ha.  "Whoa".  ::snicker:: I loved that skit…But seriously, seeing my running record, maybe I'll get another plot bunny when we all go to see Revolutions during the holidays.  And yes, Reeves and Jackman on the same screen would be a beautiful thing…

Snitter in Rivendell:  When Upload One was posted, you hadn't seen Reloaded yet?  Glad you decided to read "Rebirth" anyway ::feels special::  ^.^  But I'm glad you like Kitty as the main character – I like her too, as she's one of my favorites.  When I started Upload One, she just ended up the main character.  Hm.  Maybe I have a subliminal muse…

Nariko:  I am *so* SO sorry I almost made you die of boredom.  The slight block for this fic being what it was, if I could have cranked Upload Two out faster, I would have.   But yes, I am an Inuyasha fan, and I remember watching some of Cowboy Bebop, but I couldn't really get into it, and then recently my cousin told me the ending. Ach.  But I would have to say that Gundam Wing is probably my favorite.  {DEATHSCYTHE RULES!!} ::cough:: Ahem.  Pardon me.

Min-kat: You really like the way the scenes swap?  I always feel like it looks choppy, but you are your own worst critic I guess…Yay – another Kurrty fan!  I love Kurrty.   I think they're adorable together. So what if it's not totally cannon?  It's cute.

Aster Anucarr:  Woo…a long review.  Thanks!  Sorry I beat you to the punch with the crossover, but the plot bunny was gnawing me bloody.  But, we will see quite a bit of Rogue, if not because I see her as Kurt's sister and Kitty's best friend, but because I like her.  I'm from the South, what can I say?  Besides, Rogue kicks ass. *BUT* to answer your questions:  we probably won't see Agent Smith, although he will be mentioned and may make a cameo.  And as you can see, we already have gunfights ~.^  Sort of.  Jury's still out on what would happen should Rogue touch an Agent, because they're technically not people, if you don't count the fact that they…well… "possess" enslaved people. Hm.  Something to think about…

Empress of the Wing:  Danke for reviewing, very much – I love feedback.  ::sigh:: I'm such a junkie…

Much thanks to the Nutboard crew for their insight and help, including Beboots, Danfred, LeDiz, Nightelf, and Christa.  Mucho thanks!