Rogue stumbled backwards, shocked, stunned, and utterly at a loss for words.
"No," she murmured. "Not him..."
"Rogue? Rogue you okay?" asked Marvel, steadying her. "Something coming back?"
"Ah, uh... no... no ah thought something was, but ah guess not," replied Rogue sullenly. Again, she wasn't able to comprehend what was going on, and fell back on her amnesia story. It would have to do for now. Until she learned more, or until she went... oh my god... what if I never get home, she thought?
Her vision clouded, but thankfully Rogue caught herself before she fainted again. She was no child, to wail against the unfair nature of life. She'd put up with plenty before, she could deal with this. She was tough.
Her hands still jittered, however.
"Well, that's that then," stated Mindbender, switching off the machine after saving the information and sliding out of the chair. The three exited Cerebro and back into the main hallway.
"Why'd you put Cybelle down on that list?" asked Rogue curiously. "She was still alive, isn't there a chance she could be rescued?" No reply. "Hello?" Strangely, neither Marvel nor Mindbender replied to that. In fact, they acted as if they hadn't even heard her. "What's wrong with you two?" she demanded in frustration.
"Rogue, shhh... don't cause trouble," replied Marvel, brushing back her blonde locks. "Listen I guess you forgot this too. We don't talk about the fallen soldiers, alright? Magneto says its bad for morale."
"You... ya'll don't talk about them?" asked Rogue, shocked. "Just put 'em in the computer and forget about them? Didja forget... forget about me?"
"Of course not," replied Marvel angrily. Mindbender excused himself as the two girls walked down another corridor. "We all remember, but nobody talks about it. Its not allowed. Once the war is over, Magneto promises to erect a memorial and honor everyone who has fallen to protect the mutant race."
"So this is a mutant war," murmured Rogue to herself. Her mind, always rather quick at abstract thought, had managed to put a few pieces together. Xavier, if she believed that readout on Cerebro, was dead. And Magneto was in charge of this army. In this world... had Xavier died, never been able to create the peace between mutants and humans in her world? Tenuous peace it was, yes, but this world looked like hell in comparison.
In this world, Magneto had been right, it seemed. Humans and mutants were at war. Rogue shivered again.
"Come on Rogue, we'll go see the commander, he'll help get you sorted out. He knew you better than anyone, after all," said Marvel with a smile.
"He did?" asked Rogue, lifting her head. "Who is he?"
"Well his mutant name is Cyclops. We don't use our human names much anymore."
"Cyclops? Well I guess that makes sense," replied Rogue, before she realized what she said.
"You remember him?" asked Marvel.
"Uhm... vaguely," stammered Rogue, struggling to cover herself. "Just a little really. Why? Were we friends?"
"Well you were his second in command... plus you two shared a room, so you must've been pretty close," remarked Marvel in an off-handed manner, barely noticing as Rogue froze in the hallway, stuttering.
"Are you serious?! Me and... Scott? Well... uhm..." she thought, and a blush crept up to her cheeks. She did have a crush on Scott in most of High school, after all. It seemed the old flame had not died, despite her efforts to push it down. She'd wanted to stay friends with Scott, after all. Even after Jean had officially moved in and claimed him as her own.
"Oh, so you do remember him," replied Marvel with a knowing smirk.
"A little," squeaked Rogue, still shocked. But she was also idly wondering, how? Had the Rogue of this world managed to learn how to control her powers enough to touch people? Or had the Scott and Rogue of this world had a strictly emotional relationship. This could complicate things.
As if they weren't complicated enough already.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The door to the commander's room was unmarked, but it was marked in different ways. The number of cables and pipes heading into it were almost twice as many as the others that'd been passed earlier. Except for Cerebro's, of course. That in and of itself bespoke of someone important inside. Cyclops.
Marvel was about to knock when Ray came running down the halls, calling her name.
"Ms. Marvel? Oh good found you... we need you down in storage! Colossus needs some help moving a generator, and you're the only one strong enough who's still around. Husk is still out on patrol."
"Alright I'm comin'," grumbled Marvel, lifting off her feet and floating down the hallway after Ray. Midway there she stopped, glancing back at Rogue. "Just knock and head on in, I'm sure he'll be delighted to see you."
"Uhm, sure... thanks," replied Rogue, reluctant to see Marvel go. The tall, statuesque blonde had been one of her closest friends in this world, and she'd been a rock for Rogue since coming to this strange dimension. She felt alone and afraid without her nearby. But, steeling herself, she knocked on the door firmly, determined not to be afraid.
"Enter," came Scott's voice from within.
Rogue pushed the door, open, stepping inside. The room was simple. Chair, desk, laptop, bed, and a drawer for clothes. Scott lay down on the bed, dressed in some strange black uniform. He'd obviously just been taking a nap. His face was the same as she remembered, young and handsome with short brown locks of hair. But added to this was a short, dark circle of facial hair around his mouth. A van dyke, if she identified it correctly. His hand stretched out as he grabbed his glasses, bringing them to his face as he sat partially up, peering to see who was there.
Upon seeing Rogue, however, he lay back, sighing in disgust.
"Not tonight Mystique, I'm not in the mood," he grumbled.
Rogue blinked, hesitantly stepping into the room. "Scott?"
He raised his head again, blinking his eyes behind his ruby quartz shades as he peered at her curiously.
"Look Mystique, its good, really, you've improved... but I am -not- in the mood. Go bother Pyro or Iceman. I'm sure they could use some of your entertainment."
"Scott... Scott it's me. It's not Mystique. It's really Rogue," she said.
"Mystique I said no!" he growled, getting to his feet angrily. He advance on her, his face twisted into a scowl. Then suddenly he stopped, eyeing her strangely.
"Wait a minute... what sort of uniform is that...?" he asked. "And... your eyes... Mystique? What're you doing?"
"Scott," she whispered softly. "It's me. It's Rogue. Can I come in...?"
And she saw both his eyebrows shoot up behind his ruby glasses as he realized she was telling the truth. "I... oh jeez... yes sure... come in," he said, beckoning her inside and closing the door behind them both. She just stood there, and he just looked at her.
"You're... you're still alive. Thank god," he murmured softly. "We thought we'd lost you in Northbrook Rogue... how on earth did you survive? Where've you been all these years?" he asked.
"Ah..." she started to reply, but something stopped her. She saw the look in his eyes. She couldn't lie to him. "Scott, ah have to be honest with you. Ah... ah'm not the Rogue you know."
"You're not?"
"The others think ah have amnesia," she added softly. "But... first of all Scott please believe me when ah say ah'm not crazy!"
Scott nodded dimly, grabbing the chair and sitting down on it backwards, resting his arms on the headrest and listening to Rogue quietly. "Go on," he said. "I'm listening."
"Listen... ah know this sounds weird but... ah'm not from here. Ah... ah think this is an alternate dimension. Do you know what I mean?"
"Vaguely," he replied, furrowing his brow. "You're saying... you're Rogue... but not the Rogue I knew?"
"Exactly," she replied. "Not the Rogue of this world. Ah'm from another world... a different world from this one. And... gawd you think ah'm crazy don't you?"
"Not yet," he replied. "I've seen stranger things."
"Ah think there was some sort of... accident. Ah was using Wanda's powers... and hers clashed with mine and Jean's and... something happened. I must've... must've been knocked into this world by accident," he whispered softly.
He didn't reply for a long moment, digesting the information Rogue had just given him. A thousand thoughts came to his mind. She was crazed, she was suffering from amnesia from the battle at Northbrook. It was Mystique playing some sort of game on him. Or worse, a brainwashed enemy shapeshifter trying to infiltrate their ranks. But he dismissed those theories. He'd seen some of his soldiers suffer from madness. Hell, Pyro was enjoying every goddamn minute of it, and Scott would've had him sent on a suicide mission if he wasn't such a valuable soldier. Rogue's eyes were clear, her voice shook but not overly. She was sincere. And Scott had noticed right away that her eyes were the same as he remembered. Mystique had, for all her trying, never been able to perfect that when she impersonated Rogue. So it was doubtful an enemy shapeshifter could do any better.
Which meant... wow.
"So how do you get home?" he asked softly, after a few long moments.
"Ah don't know," she replied, lowering her head and allowing her auburn bangs to hide her face. "Ah... ah just don't know."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Scott sighed, leaning back in his chair, shutting off his laptop. Rogue's soft snores filled the air nearby as she slept soundly. In his bed. Without him. Sighing, he glanced over at her again, reminding himself for what must've been the thousandth time she was not his Rogue. Not the woman he'd loved, whom he'd been all but engaged to. A stranger. Just someone the same familiar, lovely face that haunted his dreams.
He believed her story, of course. After she'd fallen asleep he'd discreetly signaled for Mindbender to join them, had him probe her mind. He didn't enjoy doing that, but he had to know. Her story checked out. And she was sane. Mindbender recognized it as well. Something -had- happened to her. Cyclops had specifically ordered Mindbender not to probe her memories further back than today. He didn't want to get answers about her world from him, but from her. When she was ready.
She'd been understandably exhausted from her long day. And it was late. Already the lights were dimming as the Fortress switched over to night mode. It helped considerably for the mutants if they had a semblance of day and night to work in. It gave them a sense of comfort, when some of them didn't say the sun for days at a time. And it saved on power. All the lights were fluorescent... except for those in the arboretum, of course. They needed artificial sunlight to keep the plants alive, as well as the gardens with their food.
But again his thoughts roamed back to Rogue. Now that she was here... what was he going to do? Things couldn't go back to the way they were, even if he wanted to. But... still... this was like a second chance. If she was stuck here... might he have a chance?
Damnit no, he grumbled, giving himself a mental smack in the side of the head. What're you thinking Summers? How could you even think of taking advantage of someone like that. Especially -her-. Even if it wasn't her.
God, if his head hurt this much trying to figure it out. He could only imagine how she felt about all of this.
Sighing, Cyclops returned his attention to more mundane matters, troop reports, enemy movements, supplies, etc. He needed to keep his mind preoccupied, and not focused on auburn locks and forest-green eyes. So it was that he focused his crimson gaze on the laptop once more and continued to work long into the night, ignoring the soft snoring of the woman using his bed.
"In the morning... something has to be done," he grumbled to himself.
Author's Notes:
And so we have more insight into the world of my alternate universe. Most notably of course Cyclops and his relationship with the AU's Rogue. The idea of forgetting fallen soldiers was inspired by the movie 'Wing Commander.' It did suck oh so greatly, but the idea seemed good. So that is how it is with the AU mutant soldiers. Husk is Cannonball's little sister Paige Guthrie. You'll see her later so I won't give details about her mutation. The mention of Scott with facial hair is of course an infamous Sci-fi in-joke. AU Mr. Spock had the same thing way back in the old 'Star Trek' series. It's become subject to countless spoofs and parodies, like South Park's "evil" Eric Cartman having one. As for why Cyclops thought Rogue was Mystique, more details on that later on, though I imagine the older members of my audience have already figured it out. The remark about finding Pyro or Iceman should've tipped you off.
Risty: It's not exactly just about Magneto's ego. But yes, it's just like the X's and Xavier. And sorry of the Rahne/Sam isn't your style, but Scribbler writes such wonderful stories about them. Besides, who do we ever really see her with? Those scenes from 'Retreat' could be just friends. Damnit all to hell, that was probably my biggest mistake putting down Mindbenders real name.
Sashi: He refers to himself in his mind by his real name, though I mistakenly put it down before. Everyone under Magneto's command refer to themselves primarily by their codenames or their 'mutant' names. Damnit all to hell, that was probably my biggest mistake giving away Mindbender's real name. And yes you're babbling a little but every so often something that makes sense comes through.
X00001: Plenty more to come, believe me. Including all your lovable Evo mutants as they've been set up in my alternate universe. Any particular requests on your part? Come now, must be something you want to see.
DoubleL27: Oh definently, our poor Rogue is lost, alone, and all her friends and family are either gone or terribly changed, as you've no doubt seen. But that -is- one of the reasons I chose Rogue. She's tough, she'll handle it. As for the violence factor, just wait until you see Husk. There is a reason she's never been introduced to either TAS or Evo, after all. Her powers aren't kid-friendly enough for cartoons.
UniversalAnimeGirl: Wow, that's a mouthful. Uhm, first of all thanks, glad you like my work, glad you appreciate how I've improved over time, etc. Yes most of this story is in the AU, I'll explain what happened back in the Regular Universe when its all over, believe me I know what I'm doing. As for Rogue and Carol, I've come up with several scenarios... believe me, what I have planned is ultimately best for Rogue and powers. As for how the world's changed, all will be answered soon enough. Next couple of chapters, promise. Hope you continue to enjoy the story.
Todd fan: You're evil, woman. But we hurt the ones we love the most, don't we? Muwahahaha. Don't you fret, you'll see who's dead and likely figure out who's alive after that. Probably even figure out what the heck happened to them, based on your own knowledge of the AoA.
Lyranfan: Some codenames have changed between Evo and my AU. Did not Meltdown give you that indication? And those are both nice guesses but you're forgetting two very important things. Rogue knows both Cody and Paul for one, and two: they're both humans. And yes but I'm not a prominent comic man. Never read anything but the Evo comics, myself.
Elrohirthewriter: Neither Destiny nor Bishop will show up. I've never cared much for any of the time-travelers of the X-Men comics. I hate Bishop and I hate Cable. They're always such... obsessed, pig-headed, hold-no-bars, get-out-of-my-way bastards. Besides, they won't be needed. Destiny will handle everything. Oh, she's not showing up, I said? How can that be, I wonder? Muwahahahahaha.
Nessie6: Ah, glad someone remembers about the M tattoos. Yes, it means mutant. Rogue and Carol I won't say one or the other just yet. You'll have to see. One of the Todd and Forge group is gone, one of the Maximoffs is also gone. Again, you'll soon see. And no, anyone on "the list" is either 'dead' or 'missing, presumed dead' or even 'captured, presumed dead.'
Sandoz: Damnit, I always give away too many frickin' hints. I really most stop doing that. Bad Rurouni Tyriel. Ah well, glad you like uber-angry AU Lance and the AU Ray, Carol, and yes, yes its him, you figured out Mindbender's identity. Answers to all your questions coming shortly. Random answer alert: No, never heard of either of them. Margaret Weis, Tracy Hickman and P.N. Elrod are the main authors whose works I read and have inspired me.
Comet-hime: For your eloquent request, and because of all your pretty piccies… yes, alright. AU Scaleface and Ray. As soon as I can find an appropriate place to work it in. Glad also you appreciated my sense of humor. I think I used a similar joke waaaayyy back in Nullification, but nobody got it. Tank girl, hmmm? Cuuuuute. Why don't you send me a piccie ahead of time, and maybe I can work something out appropriate.
Rogue14: That must've been my fault for giving it the R rating. Because of the way ff.net is set up now it's harder to find those unless you actually look for them. But glad you caught it and glad you're enjoying the read.
Dark_serpeant89: Well she isn't, anymore. With Evo off the air of both Kids WB and Cartoon Network, she exists only in our minds, our hearts, and in the wonderful world of fanfiction. Details coming. Details coming.