Title: Forgiveness
Author: Jenny11
Disclaimer: Characters and some lines are property of Marvel. Not me.
Archive Rights: I'm flattered, just ask.
Feedback: I'll love you forever. Could also mean advance snippets between long updates.
Rating: R
Notes: Alternate Universe. Elements of comics, cartoon, and movies.
"The drama! The romance! WAAAHHH!! The excitement!" Mojo shrieked again, spinning around on his spider-like mechanical legs. The fat yellow blob of a mutant grinned like the madman he was as he surveyed the hundreds of television screens surrounding him. Each one depicted one of his numerous mutant prisoners in all sorts of reality-based, live action, and involuntary productions. One screen in particular held Mojo's attention. It depicted a typical talk show setup, with cameramen and technicians all scurrying around in preparation for going on the air. Mojo squealed with glee.
"Almost ready, Roguey Roo!" he screeched happily into an intercom. "Get ready for today's performance!"
He scuttled over to another wall and stared. A small security camera on this wall provided a window into a small room. Inside, a woman in a black bodysuit was curled up in a corner, her white streaked brown hair falling over her arm and almost brushing the floor. At the sound of Mojo's screeching voice, she raised her head. Turning her eyes to the far side of her little room, she spotted a group of three mutants. They were huddled together, each one trying to stay as far away from her as they could. Almost mechanically, the woman stood up and moved towards the other mutants. There was a small struggle as they tried to fight her, but they were no match for the woman's quick reflexes and powerful punches. A few moments later, the mutant with the white streak in her hair bent down and brushed her hand against the faces of the mutants she had subdued.
"Five years and counting!" Mojo shouted exuberantly. "Stick with me, babe, we are going places!" He turned back to his intercom. "Guards! Get Rogue to the set! We go on in five!"
Suddenly, the picture on several televisions went fuzzy, static buzzing loudly as the connection was lost. Mojo's eyes, held open by wires that stretched his eyelids away from his eyeballs, bulged even more as they rolled in their sockets.
"What's this?" he asked in disbelief. Scuttling over to the defective monitors, he experimentally tapped one of the screens. The picture winked out altogether. Mojo's jaw fell open, comically.
"My picture!" he screeched, clenching his hands together. "My ratings! My POWER! AAARRRGGGHHHH!" Mojo began spinning around the room, his metal scorpion-like tail firing energy blasts into the damaged screens.
Out of the blue, a ruby red beam of energy fired over Mojo's shoulder, hitting one of the working monitors, which exploded in a rain of glass and metal. Mojo froze.
"Wwwhhhaaaaatttt?" he asked slowly, a dangerously hysterical note drawing out the word as he turned to face the intruder.
A tall man with brown hair stood in the doorway. His body was tensed in preparation for a fight, one hand held up to the side of the ruby red visor that covered his eyes. A woman stood by his side, her fiery red hair tumbling freely down her back. Her eyes never left Mojo as she waited for his next move.
"It's over, Mojo," Cyclops said grimly. "Turn off the broadcast."
Mojo put a hand to his chest in mock indignation, his long yellow fingers curving to show off his claws.
"Are you talking to . . . me?" he asked comically. His open eyes bored into Cyclops, seeming to see right through the visor.
Jean watched Mojo's intense gaze and reached out to put a hand on Cyclops' shoulder.
"Your mind control won't help you now, Mojo," she said evenly. "My shields are more than a match for you any day."
Mojo's mouth twitched in repressed fury. Then all at once he let out a bloodcurdling scream and began to fire on Cyclops and Jean. His wild blasts missed them repeatedly as Jean and Cyclops just stood there, their calm demeanor spurring Mojo into increased levels of fury. Screaming hysterically, he used his immense strength to begin pulling televisions out of the wall and throwing them at the offending X-Men. The sudden loss of the power outlets disrupted the buildings power grid, the lights flickering as the building's power shut down. Cyclops smiled into the dark. Behind him, two figures entered under the cover of darkness.
"My televisions! My ratings! What will my audience do now?!" Mojo gasped. "They might start to READ! I'll lose my audience to a bunch of DEAD TREES!!" he sobbed.
"Maybe you'll have better luck in another dimension," a deep female voice suggested.
"Spiral!" Mojo squeaked. "What are you doing? This isn't in your script!"
"There's been a rewrite," spoke up another voice. This one was male and Mojo froze as a familiar yellow flash gave away the man's identity.
"Longshot!" he growled. Suddenly, Mojo plastered on a huge fake smile, the darkness hiding his sharp teeth. "Longshot! Babe! Let's talk. Picture this: Your own show! New costume, new co-stars, same pay, or course . . ."
Longshot shook his head as Spiral's eyes began to glow. Slowly, she began to dance around the room, her six arms weaving intricate patterns in the air. A portal opened up behind Mojo, sucking the bulbous mutant through, screaming all the way.
As the last of Mojo's screams died away, Longshot turned to the X-Men. Finding a match in his pocket he lit a candle.
"Where did you find a candle?" Cyclops asked in amusement.
Longshot grinned. "Just happened to find it lying around. Lucky, huh?"
Jean smiled, nodding. "Thanks for being around, Longshot. I'm just glad one of your mutant abilities is dumb luck. It kept Mojo from hitting us with anything he threw and it was nice not to have to hold up a force field."
"Thank you for helping me free my people," Longshot returned graciously. Nodding to the X-Men in farewell, he offered his arm to Spiral.
"Ready to face the masses?"
* * *
Colossus hit the door to the last of the chambers hard, bursting into the room. Immediately taking on a battle stance, he prepared himself for the rush of mutants he'd met in every room before this. To his surprise, this room only held one mutant. Well, in a manner of speaking.
Colossus stared in amazement as the woman in the middle of the room argued animatedly – with herself. Her skin seemed to shift into a layer of green scales, then again to a smooth blue shade. Colossus' mouth fell open as he watched the mutant fire sparks out of her hands, and a few seconds later rise off the ground in flight. It was like watching a circus of various mutants taking place in one body. After a few moments of staring, Colossus took a cautious step forward, trying not to startle her. The woman shook her head, continuing to mumble. Her body trembled and suddenly Colossus was looking at a beautiful woman, with long wavy brown hair, streaked with white. Her body was covered in a plain black lycra suit that stretched from her neck to her ankles. Black boots completed the outfit, leaving only her hands and face bare. Suddenly, the lights flickered and went out. In the dim light coming from the moonlight shining through the windows, Colossus saw the woman drop out of the air and collapse into a heap on the floor.
It was like someone had flipped a switch and simply turned her off. Hearing an explosion in the background, Colossus realized that there was no time to ponder the situation any more. Running over to the fallen mutant, he scooped her up in his arms and ran out of the room with her, towards the waiting Blackbird.
* * *
The evening was quiet and peaceful. A gentle breeze rustled the leaves on the trees around the X-Mansion. After the heat of battle, the silence was most welcome.
Wolverine rolled his neck slowly, the satisfying pops that resulted making him sigh. Leaning back on the porch swing, he raised his beer to his lips, letting the amber fluid flood his mouth. His cigar smoldered softly in the ashtray beside him, the noxious fumes rising up into the atmosphere. None of the other X-Men tolerated his smoking inside the mansion, but that suited Wolverine just fine. He'd always been more of an outdoors man anyway. For a moment, he reflected that it was too bad Longshot hadn't had time to return to the X-Mansion. The renegade mutant was always good for a night of boozing it up, his mutant luck allowing him to avoid hangovers just as Wolverine's healing ability kept him from getting them. Still, Wolverine knew Longshot had a lot of work ahead of him. Freeing his world from Mojo's reign would not be so easy. The X-Men had been more than willing to help destroy Mojo's base, but the Canadian mutant knew that one battle didn't win a war.
Wolverine paused for a moment, letting his supersensitive hearing listen for any sounds of movement. He knew Jean was still down in the med lab with the woman they'd rescued from Mojo. Apparently, the X-Men had been just in time to stop her show from airing. Mojo had been about to put her on the air when they'd destroyed his complex. All the other prisoners were able to escape with Spiral and Longshot, with only the mutant with the white streak in her hair being too weak to leave. Wolverine took another drag off his cigar as he pondered the description Colossus had given them of what he'd seen when he found her. He had to admit, even he was curious as to what the woman's powers were.
Suddenly, his ears picked up the sound of footsteps. Looking through the sliding glass door into the kitchen, Wolverine watched as Jean entered the room. He stubbed out his cigar as he watched her take a glass from the cupboard and pour herself some water. Moving silently, he slid the door open and crept into the room.
"Hello, Wolverine," Jean said tiredly, not bothering to turn around.
Wolverine straightened up. He always forgot how pointless it was to sneak up on a telepath.
"Hey, Jeannie," he said casually. He took a seat at the counter and motioned for her to join him. Wolverine was just about to make one of his usual flirtatious comments when he saw the expression on Jean's face. His mouth clamped shut as he waited for her to sit down. A few minutes went by in silence. Wolverine could see that Jean was exhausted, so he waited patiently for her to speak.
"It never gets easier," Jean said finally, rubbing her fingers over the space between her eyes. "I keep hoping . . ." her voice choked a little.
"Take your time," Wolverine said quietly.
Jean nodded and took a deep breath. After a moment, she continued.
"Scott and I overheard Mojo talking about her when we came in. He called her "Rogue," the same name Colossus saw on the door of the room he found her in. Mojo held her prisoner for five years. Five. Years. The entire time she was there, he kept her collared like a dog." She looked at Wolverine. "Wolverine, he kept her powers on."
Wolverine frowned. "What do you mean he kept them 'on'? Why would anyone want their prisoner to have constant access to her powers?"
Jean shook her head. "I don't know, Wolverine. I don't even know what her powers are." She closed her eyes and sighed. "I've been running tests on her ever since we got back and I'm no closer now than I was three hours ago. I don't want to run any truly invasive tests on her just yet. She's been through so much, I don't have the heart."
"Can't you scan her mind?" Wolverine asked grudgingly. He was not a big fan of telepaths rummaging around in other people's head, but in this case he figured it might be necessary.
"I can't. Her mind is practically impervious to psychic probes. Maybe the Professor could do it, with Cerebro's help, but for now, Rogue's mind is too complicated for me to get a read on her."
"Complicated?" Wolverine asked suspiciously.
Jean nodded. "Her head has so many thoughts and memories fighting for a place, I can't tell which ones are real, which ones are fake, or even which ones are hers."
"Could she be a telepath? Maybe all those extra voices and shit are just thoughts she's pickin' up from other people," Wolverine suggested.
"Or she could be schizophrenic," Jean countered. "We won't know until she wakes up."
She stood up, stretching her tired muscles. "I'm going to bed, Wolverine. I'm sure Cyclops will want the whole team updated tomorrow."
Wolverine nodded, lost in thought. "Night, Jeannie."
* * *
Deep in the basement of the X-Mansion, all was silent. The only sounds were the beeping of the computerized monitors attached to a young mutant in the med lab. A dim light remained lit inside the room, a precaution meant to keep a patient from panicking should they wake up at some point during the night. As the soft glow cast shadows over the sleeping mutant, the machines beside her began to beep loudly. Wild readings began to spew from the computer monitoring her brain waves. As if in a dream, the mutant sat up. Her eyes opened slowly and she shook her head, as if to shake of the remnants of sleep. Groggily, the mutant swung her legs over the side of the bed, detaching the numerous wires that connected her to the machine. Almost mechanically, she moved forward towards the door, fumbling around with the various buttons until she found the one that would open the exit. As the door swished open, the mutant Mojo had referred to as "Rogue" stumbled out into the hallway. A deep sense of lethargy slowed her movements, making her progress sluggish. It seemed to take her forever to reach the elevator. As she leaned against the side, Rogue clumsily swiped at one of the buttons, finally managing to close the door and hit the button for the second floor.
Green eyes watched in a daze as the numbers progressed. It seemed to take forever as the elevator inched up past the underground levels. By the time the doors opened on the second floor, the mutant was starting to feel what little energy she had draining away. Straining to keep going, she looked out of the elevator at a long hallway lined with doors. Taking a deep breath, Rogue threw her weight into her stride and walked up to the closest door. Opening it as quietly as she could manage, her sensitive eyesight fell on a sleeping figure in a bed ten feet away. Hope blossomed in her mind as she forced herself to walk quietly towards the bed. Reaching out her bare hand, she laid it on the face of the young woman sleeping in the bed. When nothing happened at first, Rogue frowned. Closing her eyes, she concentrated as hard as she could. Finally, she felt a connection open and the other mutant's energy began trickle into her.
Suddenly, the girl shot bolt upright in bed. When her eyes landed on Rogue she screamed, her body phasing through the bed to the floor below. A few feet away her roommate woke up. Before Rogue could react, the other girl raised her hands and multicolored sparks exploded in front of her eyes. Still to weak to put up a fight, Rogue collapsed on the floor, unconscious.
Jubilee watched her fall. Keeping her hands up in preparation to fire another round of fireworks if necessary, she moved of her bed and walked around to where Rogue was lying. She could hear movement downstairs and she knew Kitty had gone for help.
Sure enough, a few minutes later, Cyclops and Jean rushed into the room, both of them dressed in their pajamas. Cyclops was bare chested, with only his boxers on, while Jean wore a deep green nightgown. Cyclops took one look at Jubilee in her skimpy bed clothes and promptly turned bright red. Trying to cover his embarrassment, Cyclops kept his eyes on Rogue.
"What happened, Jubilee?" he asked sharply.
Jubilee smirked at his discomfort and deliberately crossed her arms in front of her chest, pushing her breasts up and out.
"This chica, here, attacked Kitty," she replied. "I woke up when Kitty screamed just in time to see Kitty phase through the bed and the floor. Then that woman looked at me and I blasted her."
Kitty crept into the room behind Jean. "It's true, Mr. Summers. I woke up and that lady was touching my face." She shivered. "It felt really weird. Like she was trying to pull me into her."
Jean turned and put an arm around Kitty. "You're all right now, Kit. How do you feel?"
"Just a little dizzy," Kitty admitted. She pulled away from Jean. "What now?"
"Now, you two go back to sleep. Jean and I will move Rogue back into the med lab. And this time," he added, "we'll make sure she stays there."
"Rogue, huh?" Jubilee repeated, thoughtfully.
Cyclops ignored her and moved to pick up the unconscious mutant.
"Scott, wait," Jean stopped him. Cyclops looked at her questioningly.
"If she wakes up, she may try the same thing on you," Jean explained.
"How do you propose we get her down to the med lab?" Scott asked.
In response, Jean used her telekinesis to lift Rogue's body from the floor. Walking with her TK bubble in front of her, she headed down to the med lab, her husband following close behind her.
As they closed the door behind them, Kitty turned to look at Jubilee.
"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" she asked.
Jubilee smirked. "Shame the man's married?"
Kitty rolled her eyes.
"No, oh Hormonal One." She looked at their closed door. "I'm thinking things are going to get pretty interesting around here."
Jubilee shrugged and got back into bed.
"Yeah. A school full of mutant children learning to control their powers can get pretty old, I guess," she said sarcastically. "Thank goodness things are going to get interesting."
* * *
The next morning, a group of concerned X-Men were summoned to Xavier's office to confront a bleary-eyed Jean and a very tense Cyclops. Taking their seats, the X-Men didn't have long to wait before Xavier began to speak.
"First off, I would like to address the commotion you all heard last night." He took a deep breath. "Our guest, the mutant Mojo called "Rogue," left the med lab and entered one of the rooms in the girls' dormitory wing." He held up a hand to stop the expected questions. "No one was seriously hurt. Apparently, Rogue attempted to use her power on Kitty. Luckily, Kitty and Jubilee woke up. Kitty was able to get out and get Jean and Scott while Jubilee subdued Rogue. Rogue is now restrained back in the med bay."
"Is Kitty hurt?" Colossus asked, concerned for the young mutant whom he'd come to consider a little sister.
Xavier shook his head. "Kitty is fine, Piotr."
"What exactly did Rogue do to her?" Wolverine asked, frowning.
"We're not positive, Wolverine, but it seems as though Rogue's ability is to absorb the energy from others," Jean answered. "Last night she must have regained consciousness and gone looking for someone to drain energy from. Luckily, in her weakened state, she was unable to fully use her powers. Kitty felt a little dizzy but otherwise she was perfectly fine."
She was quiet for a moment, letting the X-Men digest the information they'd been given. Just as she'd expected, Cyclops was the first to speak.
"I don't like it. Rogue is obviously dangerous, and we have a school full of children to consider," he insisted.
"Scott, I am loathe to turn away a mutant so obviously in need of help," Xavier chastised him gently. "We must consider the possibility that Rogue did not mean any harm. How are we to know what would happen to her if she did not take the energy of another? Perhaps that collar Mojo put on her to keep her powers on has made her dependent on the energy of others for her very survival."
"So what do you propose we do, Professor?" Scott asked, finally.
"I am going to go down and see what else I can learn about our new guest. Until further notice, I want all of you to keep the students out of the lower levels. For their sake, as well as Rogue's, we need to find out as much as we can about her powers."
"How are you gonna get any information from her?" Wolverine spoke up. "Jeannie said she couldn't get a read on the kid's mind, and you said yourself that she might be too weak to talk without someone else's energy," he pointed out.
Xavier smiled. "Actually, Wolverine, I'm very glad you asked."
* * *
Wolverine shifted uncomfortably as he stood looking down at the woman lying on the hospital bed. He hated the med bay. It was too much like a lab. Too much like his nightmares. He glanced around at the medical supplies that lay a few feet away. He hated needles.
Xavier watched Wolverine nervously taking in his surroundings. He was proud of the Canadian for facing his fears to help a fellow mutant.
"Are you ready, Logan?" Professor Xavier asked, gently.
"Let's get this over with," Wolverine grunted.
Xavier smiled. "Very well. Kitty said Rogue laid her bare hand against her face. I believe the transfer occurs with skin to skin contact. What I need you to do is place your bare hand against her face and relax."
Wolverine rolled his eyes. Yeah, he thought sarcastically. Just put your hand on this human vacuum cleaner, Wolverine, and try to relax. Some days he hated his healing factor. It seemed to make him the ideal guinea pig for too many weird situations.
Steeling himself, Wolverine reached out his hand towards Rogue's face. Her skin was soft and smooth under his fingers and Wolverine found himself enjoying the touch. Shaking the thought off, he closed his eyes and tried to will himself to relax. Suddenly, he felt a pull. His mind felt like it was caught in a whirlwind as he felt everything inside him start to flow into the woman lying on the table. Fighting his reaction to pull away, Wolverine tried to hold on. Just when he was sure he was going to collapse, Rogue moved under his touch. Suddenly, Wolverine found himself looking down into a pair of the greenest eyes he'd ever seen. Before he could react, Rogue's eyes widened and she screamed.
Bolting up out of the bed, Rogue grabbed her head with both hands as Wolverine's life force flowed through her. Memories attacked her and Rogue struggled to keep them from overwhelming her senses.
Professor Xavier held up a calming hand. "Rogue, it's okay. You are among friends."
Rogue didn't seem to hear him. Her eyes were riveted on Wolverine, fear and panic rolling off of her in waves. Xavier put a hand to his head to ward off the flow of mental anguish that radiated out of her.
Wolverine fought down the dizziness rising inside him. Raising his eyes to Rogue he took a step forward.
"Hey, kid, just calm down."
Rogue froze for a split second. Suddenly, she spun around to face Xavier. Before Xavier could react, she dove towards him, bare hand outstretched . . .