Evolution: Through the Looking Glass
Chapter 6: The Human Factor part 1
Thanks to everyone who reviewed all and any of my stories. Just another reminder, this story has relations to Evolution: Father of Mine, but you can probably read any of the three as stand alone fic; however, you'll pick up on a lot more if you read them all. As always, I only write to entertain so if my stuff is not entertaining just tell me, and I'll run crying to my mommy. (Not really (;P) but seriously, tell me if it's not working.)
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In a dark room stood a dark man in front of a bleak computer screen. He was a hulking man that looked as if he had been training for years in weight lifting. He stood roughly six feet and three or four inches. He had pale white skin, with what looked like a black leather jacket hanging off of his shoulders. The most awe inspiring thing about this man was the eerie yet ghostly ruby eyes that shone with a light that communicated a sinister life behind them. Next to him stood a shorter woman that had pale icy blue hair and a very sour look on her face. She was a small and curvaceous girl with a skin color that resembled the very earth itself.
They stood quietly and starred at the monitor, the girl looking more and more annoyed with each passing minute. Finally her temper reached the boiling point. "Why, do we have to wait like this?" she snapped.
"I told you Cerberus, the time has not yet come." the man responded with quiet sternness.
"If you ask me..." she began.
"I didn't. Now go back to your post!" He ordered in a gentlemen's voice. She turned around and began to walk away, but before she disappeared she noticed a file on her master's computer that had a list of people on it. She noticed the name Bolivar Trask listed under the Sentinel project and made a mental note of the information before disappearing into the darkness. The dark man smiled to himself as the crimson diamond shape on his forehead glistened in the darkness and continued on as if he had not noticed her actions.
Elsewhere, Logan paced the wall the halls of the Xavier Institute wondering how he was going to break the news about Brian to Rogue. He had been avoiding the question for the better part of three weeks and Brian seemed to be a normal teenager. However, with the recent information that they had received about Brian Logan knew that he had to tell her. As he began to walk toward Rogue's room from the kitchen, where he had previously been taking his aggression out on a defenseless apple, he began to think about what Hank had found out about the nano-machines. It seemed that they're only purpose was to adapt Brian to any and every situation and damage that he encountered. He also learned that humans are humans because their X-gene just didn't have any information written into it. Logan continued to ponder such things until he got close enough to the room Rogue shared with Kitty, and began hearing strange noises. As he got closer, he distinguished them as more grunt and moans than noises. He began his ascension of the stairs and his mutant hearing kicked in. The noises were coming from Rogue's room. "Harder!!" Logan heard Rogue's labored voice. "Faster!!!" She cried again.
At this point Logan began to run, shameful thoughts of what he was going to do to the kid if he caught them in a compromising position. "Y...You're really good at this!" Was that Kitty's voice? He hastened his pace and easily found himself at the door in question. "Just relax," Logan heard Brian's voice "I can't get in deep if you don't relax; Kitty that means you too." Logan had heard enough by this time, popped his claws and proceeded to slice the door off it's hinges. What he found when he did both shocked and disgusted him. Rogue and Kitty sat on the inner edges of their respective beds with only their shoes and socks off while Brian sat on the floor massaging their bare feet. "Um... Hi Logan." Rogue stated in stunned shock.
"Is there something wrong?" wondered Brian innocently.
Logan audibly growled as stomped over to Brian and pulled him off the ground; mumbling something about girls and boys not allowed to be the same room unsupervised. Brian was all but thrown out into the hall while both girls protested violently at the loss of a good masseur. Brian smiled as he was being dragged out and yelled the same time that he and Rogue had been going out every weekend since they had been together. Tonight, was different though, Rogue had plans; plans that neither Logan nor Professor X would approve. Rogue smiled as she pictured Professor Xavier ordering Logan to castrate Brian and Logan happily jumping in to follow orders. "We'll just have to make sure they don't find out." she giggled to herself. Still she was slightly nervous about the games she had planed, despite the fact that everyone saw her as a pent up sex kitten. She pushed those thoughts to the back of her head, and focused on get prepared for the date.
In another part of the world, events of a more ominous nature where taking place at the Shield secret penitentiary; where a giant, gapping hole in the galvanized titanium wall betrayed the carnage inside. Prisoners were yelling for freedom as a young woman walked calmly through the rubble. She was wearing tight, white leather second skin pants with a white "wife beater" tank top and an icy blue jacket that matched her hair perfectly and icy blue snowboard style boots. She walked toward a certain cell as she ignored the other inmates. "Bolivar Trask?" she wondered aloud to the target of her search.
"Who wants to know?" He replied shakily
"I have an offer that is going fast."
"What?"
"I want you to re-start the Sentinel project..."
"What's in it for me?"
"You're freedom and a factory with unlimited resources.
"And just what do you get out of it?"
"I want a certain mutant dead…"
Back at the mansion, Rogue had been so excited about her date and the games she had planned; that she ended getting ready hours earlier than what was necessary. So to kill time she and Kitty went to the danger room and made a holographic Wolverine to beat up for taking their masseur from them. As they proceeded to beat the poor computer program to a pulp they began to talk. "Do you mind if I steal Brian, away?" Wondered Kitty sarcastically.
"Oh no! ah'm not share'n"
"Please, just for, like a weekend or something?" Kitty teased as she phased a dust bomb that Rogue playfully tossed in her direction. Suddenly the danger shut down to complete darkness. After a few minutes of wondering, Logan appeared in the control room and smiled. The girls gulped as the machines whirled and hummed behind them. They looked at each other as if they were a pair of deer caught in the head lights of a Mack truck "Defcon 3." they muttered as they began to dance between laser blasts. Hours later Logan finally let up on the tired girls, beaming with satisfaction. By this time, Rogue realized that she had better get ready for her date. Brian had planned to take her on a walk through Madison Square gardens after a dinner at an uptown restaurant and end it all with a movie of her choice. This was where her plans came into play; she was going to insist on renting a DVD and going back to his place. She giggled nervously as she managed to find the tight Capri jeans that she Kitty had let her barrow and wondered how someone his age could live by himself on a meager inheritance left to him by his parents. She pulled out a blue color block cardigan that Kitty helped her pick out and buttoned it to where Kitty told her would be best, but just seemed to show off too much cleavage so she buttoned it one higher. Suddenly the bell rang and Rogue rushed to the door and met Brian and noticed the Porsche Boxster in the Drive way.
"Is that yours?" Rogue gasped
"Nah, Professor X tried to get me to take the limo, but I wouldn't so he made me the Boxster. I don't' have the money for that kind of thing!! Shall we?" He stated as he playfully linked arms with Rogue.
They spent dinner at a high profile French restaurant that was complete with a small orchestra playing in the background. Somehow they had managed to snag a table near the window that overlooked Bayville's River. After they finished and were waiting for the valet; Rogue leaned in and whispered into Brian's ear "I would have been happy with McDonald's" she laughed quietly.
"We did that last time; Let me pamper you for once." He replied as they got into the Porsche drove toward Madison Square Garden. Minutes later they arrived at their destination and spent an hour at dusk enjoying each others company until they sat down on a bench. Brian noticed an ice cream truck across the grassy knoll and told Rogue to wait while went to get some.
For several minutes, Rogue sat alone until an old man that was clothed in a very well tailored suit with a polished wooden cane sat next to her. "Hello," said the man.
"Hi." Replied Rogue uncomfortably
"Aren't you one of those mutants, from the suburbs?" inquired the elderly man with a smile. "What was you're gift, child?"
Rogue loosened up "It's more of a curse really." She retorted sadly, however, the man seemed disturbed by that remark. He grabbed her shoulders and looked at her deeply
"Child you can never look at yourself that way. Rogue, you're power is not a curse but the power over life and death itself." He paused and released her as she looked down a pondered his words. "Life and death, Rogue, Remember that!"
She continued to look down at the ground pondering the man's words, until she realized that he had called her by her name. She looked up sharply attempting to question the man, but he was nowhere in sight. Rogue looked at the puddle next to the bench and a small vibration. Soon she began to hear screams in the distance as the sound of clanging metal rung through the night. Brian ran back to check if Rogue was alright. Then a giant metal helmet appeared from the dark shadows cast by the buildings. "A Sentinel!" stated Rogue quietly.
"There's more!" Brian pointed as four more Sentinels came out from the darkness and surrounded the couple as Brian shouted at the bystanders to run and tried to get Rogue to do the same, however she wouldn't budge. The Sentinels searched the two teenagers and their eye's converged on Rogue.
"Target confirmed." They screeched of in complete unison "Commencing termination." With their arms forming beam cannons they began firing, knocking the couple in separate directions.
Recovering from the Blast Rogue looked at Brian and yelled "Run! They're after me!!!!"
"No!! I won't leave you!!!"
"PIG HEADED BASTARD; WOULD YOU GO!!!!" She cursed at him as he started to run towards her. The Sentinels saw this and created a ring of plasma flames that kept him from getting any closer to his target. Then they turned their attention back to their original target. Who was doing her best to control the powers she stole from Magneto and destroy them. Just as she managed to rip the legs off of the first one they shot a string of mini-missiles her direction. She managed to dodge this easy because of her increased agility. While still in mind air she was swatted down leaved a small crack in concrete. She coughed blood as she raised herself to all fours. She tried to mount a defense but was paralyzed by the same green sludge that captured her in the first meeting with monsters.
Brian watched helplessly from the sidelines, trying to think of something any thing that he could do. He saw the same beam cannons from earlier, shape from their hands. Whatever he was going to do he had to do it quick. Only one plan came to mind and he asked himself the question that motivated him into action.
Catch me as I fall say you're here and it's all over now
Speaking to the atmosphere no one's here and I fall into myself
This truth drives me into madness
I know I can stop the pain if I will it all away
"Would you die for her?" He pondered. Suddenly everything became clear; he knew what he had to do. He backed up and jumped through the flames, burning his body and clothes beyond recognition. The Sentinels fired and just before the blast connected, Brian jumped in between the blast and Rogue effectively taking the full force of the energy.
Don't turn away don't give in to the pain
Don't try to hide though they're screaming your name don't close your eyes
God knows what lies behind them don't turn out the light
Never sleep never die
"BRIAN!!!!" Rogue screamed as felt Juggernaught's power coarse threw her and broke from her bonds. Suddenly a series of red energy blasts roared violently through the air knocking all of the Sentinels back, seemingly dazed.
"X-men put them down!!!!" yelled Cyclops as he and the others quickly picked up the fight.
I'm frightened by what I see but somehow i know
That there's much more to come immobilized by my fear
And soon to be blinded by tears
I can stop the pain if I will it all away
Rogue rushed to Brian's side as he lay dieing on the ground. His skin was charred in places and he had already lost large amounts of blood. She looked into his eyes as she could tell that they were going to glaze over any minute. "Brian," she began to sob "You damn idiot. I didn't want you hurt."
"Me. neither." he said simply as he looked into Rogue's dark eyes.
"Don't leave me alone." She sniffed
"Look at them Rogue, you've never been alone." Coughed Brian as he pointed at the X-men who where systematically ending the over grown tin cans.
"But I can't live without you." She broke down and started crying.
Don't turn away don't give in to the pain
Don't try to hide though they're screaming your name
Don't close your eyes God knows what lies behind them
Don't turn out the light never sleep never die
"Yes… you ca…" with that his eyes rolled back into his head. Rogue pulled his limp body close to and began to bawl. Suddenly she felt something change inside of her. All of the emotions, all of the feelings disappeared into one single solitary phrase. "Life and Death". Without thinking, she pulled off her elbow length gloves, shirt, and Jeans while laying Brian on the ground. She positioned herself above him.
Fallen angels at my feet whispered voices at my ear
Death before my eyes lying next to me i fear
She beckons me shall i give in upon my end shall i begin
Forsaking all I've fallen for i rise to meet the end
I can stop the pain if I will it all away… if I will it all away!!
"No I can't" she whispered as she pressed every ounce of her weight on top of him and pressed her lips to his. Suddenly the space around her began to fluctuate and snap while a bright light began to shine from their bodies. Meanwhile, the last Sentinel dropped to the ground as Kitty phased through its chest. The X-men turned to see Rogue and the Brian's body floating in the air amidst and bright light. Brian's charred flesh was rebuilding itself and his wounds where healing. The light dissipated and the two dropped to the ground gently.
"You think it's over!?! It's not, mutants!!!" a voice came that sounded as if it was aided by a speaker. A larger blacker Sentinel stepped out from the darkness. Rogue paid no attention to the new addition to the scene, and was now standing over Brian's perfectly healed body.
"Get up." She said "GET UP!!" she yelled as Brian's eyes opened and rose to his feet as if aided by the very wind.
To be continued
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End chapter 6:
Hey guys In case you didn't notice I paid a little homage to two of my favorite authors in there. Dark Jaded Rose and BaneofJean, that means you guys. Let me know what you think.