THIS IT, TRUE BELIEVERS!
Excelsior...
'nuff said... or something.
Make mine Marvel?
This, my friends, is the final chapter of The Legacy of Apocalypse. Though it has a similar title to Alternate Reality's final chapter ("The Egyptian Dawn"), I wouldn't say they're too similar... about as similar as the 11th chapter of LoA was to AR's 11th chapter (aka "everyone dies"), but the point here is to wrap things up. Thanks for sticking around to see the end of this one and for tolerating the weirdness and changes made to the Evolution universe. I know it turns some people off, but I'm glad there were people willing to continue reading regardless of how weird or poorly written this thing was. Oh, and excuse the grammar.
Chapter Twelve - The Egyptian Dusk
The roof of Hydra's London base began to crack as Apocalypse raised his hand upward. Shards of metal and scraps of concrete were ripped off, sent upwards into the sky. The walls of the central lab crumbled and fell and within the span of a minute, the base was leveled.
Magneto and his team were surrounded by the rubble of the base, and beyond that, faint city lights.
"Come with me," Apocalypse said, floating above Magneto. "We can be allies, Magneto." Magneto gave no reply; metal scraps from the rubble floated up and surrounded Apocalypse. "This is a mistake. If you won't join me, then at least stay out of my way." Apocalypse waved his hands and the metal was sent away to the sky. Apocalypse continued floating forward, but stopped. He looked behind him. "You."
"Me?" Rogue asked. Apocalypse now faced her. "What do you want with me?"
"You are strong... there is great potential. You will come with me."
"Like hell she will," Scott yelled. He stepped in front of her. Toad and Kurt stood at his sides. "You'll have to go through us first."
"If you insist." Scott released a power blast, but a burst of black energy from Apocalypse's hands absorbed it. Scott was thrown aside and Toad, caught in mid-leap by Apocalypse's telekinesis, was thrown with him. Kurt teleported onto Apocalypse's shoulders and grabbed his head, unsuccessfully trying to twist and break his neck.
"You leave her alone!" Kurt yelled. "If you lay a finger on her, I'll kill you, you monster!" Apocalypse pulled Kurt off with a single hand. He let him drop, but caught him with his mind, raising him off the ground, face to face with Apocalypse.
"Will you? And how do you plan to do that, Kurt Darkholme?"
"With our help," Wanda said behind him. "Scott, Pyro!" Scott hit Apocalypse's glowing back with an optic blast and Pyro sprayed his side with a full blast from his flamethrowers. Wanda raised her arms and created a blue aura around Apocalypse, clashing with his natural white aura.
"So be it." Kurt's head twisted sharply to the right and he fell on the ground with a sharp thud. Scott stopped firing to see his brother's lifeless body fall and without a second thought he ran to him.
"Scott, wait!" Wanda yelled. With Wanda distracted, Apocalypse's white energy won out over the blue hex field. Scott held up Kurt's limp head, gently stroking his cheek. Wanda rested a hand on his shoulder, not sure whether to let him spend a moment with his brother or to remind him that his killer was still behind them.
"AAH!" Pyro screamed as Apocalypse blasted him against an upturned steel beam. As Pyro stood back up, he heard a faint whistling sound behind him. He quickly took off his tank and hurled it at Apocalypse. It stopped inches from him and exploded, but the flames were contained within a small, invisible bubble. Apocalypse twittled his fingers and the tank collapsed into a compact sphere so dense that it lodged itself onto the floor when dropped.
"That's enough!" Storm yelled. Lightning hit the ground near Apocalypse and he turned back to her, raising an eyebrow. Without warning a second bolt struck him, thousands of bolts surged through his body, and he clenched his teeth to keep from crying out. Apocalypse's white aura disappeared and he drifted back to the ground on his knees, holding himself up with one arm. "I thought so, you're not so tough. Now, let's finish this."
"Stay back!" Apocalypse yelled. His other arm was raised and across the floor where the lab once stood, the unconscious, bleeding Mystique was raised. The wound on her chest was still dripping.
"No... you fucking bastard, you better not!" Scott yelled.
"Stay where you are, and she will live." Apocalypse's blue and yellow eyes stared right into Scott's red glasses and he jumped back for a moment, instantly seeing all the cruelty and seriousness in them. But how could he be sure that Apocalypse wouldn't kill her anyway? There was no way of knowing.
"Evan, now!" Storm yelled. Instantly, Evan launched a bone spike.
"GRRRAAAAAAARGH!" Apocalypse collapsed on the floor with a spike impaled on the back of his head, right where the neckline ended and the skull began, and as he attempted to stand back up, he closed his fist tightly and a spurt of blood exited Mystique's wound. She dropped and Scott, along with his remaining brother Toad, ran to her. As they did, Apocalypse forced the spike to eject and stood up weakly. Awed, the others froze.
Scott and Todd set their mother down gently on the floor. Apocalypse had forced several arteries to explode, leaving Mystique with heavy internal bleeding. Her yellow eyes opened slowly, looking up at her two sons and her only daughter, as Rogue joined them.
"Go," she said to them weakly. "It's over... go, and stay as far from him as you can."
"Mom..." Scott whispered.
"You've all made me so proud," she whispered back. "You've grown up. You're not kids anymore. You've shown you have what it takes to make it in this world... a mother couldn't ask for better children."
"We couldn't ask for a better mom," Rogue cried, choking, tears running down her face.
"Scott... Todd... Marie... I love you all..." Mystique looked up. Her eyes were fading. She looked at each of them, concerned, and finally asked, "...Where is Kurt?" Her head went limp, and she said nothing else. Scott looked behind him at Kurt.
"...He's with you, mom," he whispered. He looked at Rogue and Todd and put his arms around them, comforting his younger siblings. He would take care of them, now that their mother was gone.
"You... will... pay... dearly..." Apocalypse said between breaths. The bleeding had stopped. Once again, he began to glow a ghastly white and float several feet off the ground. With Mystique's death distracting the others, Apocalypse had regained enough energy and with the snap of his fingers, the ground beneath Evan rumbled and collapsed. Colossus rushed to grab him, but a rock pillar pushed up against him and knocked him several feet back.
"No you will not!" Storm yelled, summoning another bolt of lightning, but this time, Apocalypse was prepared. He raised his hand and absorbed the lighting bolt, electricity again flowing through his body, energizing him. The ground swallowed Evan and pressed against him. Only his hand emerged from the ground as the rock around him crushed him. "EVAN!"
"Have you learned your lesson yet?" Impatient, Apocalypse waved his hand and a telekinetic wave pushed the remaining mutants away. Only Freddy remained standing, but Apocalypse wasn't particularly concerned with him. Magneto stood back up and raised both hands, a look of sheer determination on his face. Apocalypse could feel a tingle around him and though his white aura remained, his blue markings faded briefly.
"I am not as weak as the others," Magneto said. "You will not win so easily."
"No," Apocalypse admitted. "This battle has already been decided. We will call it a draw." Raising his hand again, Rogue was pulled away from her brothers. Toad jumped up and grabbed her, but he couldn't pull her back down. He was pushed off by Apocalypse's whim and caught by his older brother. Rogue came to Apocalypse, and holding her arm, he raised his other hand and his aura grew stronger.
"SCOTT! TODD! HELP ME!"
"We're coming!" Scott yelled. He tore off his glasses and let his optic blast fly at full strength.
"Darkholme, turn it down," Pyro told him.
"Fuck off!"
"No, really mate, turn it down. It's over."
"IT'S NOT FUCKING OVER!"
"IT IS!" Scott closed his eyes and put his glasses back on. In his blind rage, he hadn't noticed that Apocalypse was gone. "He went poof right before you took your shades off... Darkholme, listen... about your family..."
"Save it, Pyro. I don't want sympathy. I want that bastard's head."
"He'll get what's coming to him," Wanda said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "But right now, we need to worry about everyone here."
"Right, right." Scott shook his head. "Toad... Todd, get Kurt. I'll take mom."
"Right, bro." Behind them, Storm looked down at her nephew's hand. Colossus had already begun to push his hands into the rock in an attempt to dig him out.
"Be careful!" Storm shouted at him.
"I am sorry, but it is hard to be careful with rock."
"Look, Piotr, I..." Storm looked down. Quickly, she regained her composure. "I want to make sure he's not further damaged. Just try to be more careful with him. He's my only nephew, after all."
"And only family?"
"Yes. He was all I had left." Freddy helped Jubilee to her feet. She was still dazed, though her hypnosis, as well as that of Kurt's, had worn off before Apocalypse had emerged. Danielle rubbed Pyro's head, and though it wasn't much, it was enough to get a smile out of him. Todd carried Kurt's body, standing with Scott, carrying Mystique. Magneto and Wanda observed the damage. Father Stryker, cowering in a corner, looked at Magneto, afraid that Apocalypse's teleportation had not spared him from a terrible fate. Dr. Essex, weak, but alive, walked to Magneto.
"I'm sorry, Magnus," Dr. Essex told him. His breathing was labored. "
"I would say that you have paid your debt," Magneto said, noting his weakness. "You will make up for this."
"How could I possibly began to undo everything I did for Apocalypse?"
"You helped him at every step of his scheme. You helped create Apocalypse's new body. Is there no way to destroy it?"
"I wanted to add a failsafe to his body," Dr. Essex admitted. "Weaken the production of an enzyme he would need to live, forcing him to take vitamins to survive. It would just be a matter of cutting off his supply... but he knew everything I knew. He wouldn't allow it. If there is some flaw in his structure, I couldn't be aware of it. He has the power of twelve mutants, with those abilities working together, he is unstoppable."
"He has been stopped before."
"Yes... the Eye of Ages was sealed on him... he plans to use it again, once Forge has built his relay towers for him. Cain bought us some time by destroying one of his pyramids. It will take roughly a year for Forge to build them. That should give you enough time to form some sort of counter-attack. The Eye of Ages is powered by the Sphinx, in Egypt. He will be weak once he powers it. That's your window, Magneto."
"Yes... we will have to mobilize against that Sphinx." The spheres landed roughly near the lab. "You will ride with me, Dr. Essex. You have much to tell me."
"I am not afraid of you," Father Stryker said, standing up. Magneto and Wanda both turned their heads, paying him no great regard, but looking at him nonetheless. "If I did not stop the growth of Lucifer's creatures, someone else will."
"Father Stryker, I would kill you myself," Magneto said, "But it would benefit someone if you remained alive. Take him with you, Wanda. We will drop him off in Ireland."
"You're letting him go?" Wanda asked incredulously.
"I am letting him find his fate," Magneto said coyly. "Or rather, I will let his fate find him. That's why we will leave him in a place where it will know to look."
"I understand," Wanda said with a slight smirk.
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The moment Magneto stepped out of his sphere at the Xavier Institute, Pietro ran to him, standing at attention. "Welcome back, Magneto."
"The mission was a failure, Pietro," Magneto said to him, helping Dr. Essex out of the pod.
"Regardless, we have a situation." Dr. Essex was given to Colossus to carry and Magneto followed Pietro into the hall, leading him to a special room where the legacy patients were placed. Amara, Jamie and two other children were awake and the physical effects of legacy were beginning to wear off. They were weak, but they would recover. Gambit and Tabby were only barely recognizable. Their skin was covered with metallic hives; the purple veins had not faded. Once Magneto had seen them, Pietro covered them with a sheet.
"They were the worst cases," Pietro said. "They were both legacy addicts for a while before this. The others coughed up this little metal spheres." Pietro held one up, no bigger than a quarter, shiny and blue and dotted with black circuit lines.
"The nanotechs, useless," Magneto said, holding up the sphere with his magnetic abilities. "They must have powered out. These two must have had millions of them in their system, more than their bodies could handle. But that was the price of their habit. Inform Ororo of their condition. I'll see to it they get a proper burial."
"Hank!" Freddy called, entering the infirmary. Beast was there, weak but stable, hooked up to a nearby machine, with Jean sitting next to him. "How is he?"
"He'll live, but he won't recover so easily. It'll take time. Logan hit a few arteries and some of his organs. How did everything go?"
"Not so well," Freddy said, sitting down on an empty bed. "You could say it was a downright failure. We lost Mystique and Kurt. This new mutant took Rogue with him. Evan isn't even identifiable anymore."
"Oh..." Jean said. "I'm glad at least you're safe."
"I'm glad I sent you away. I don't know if that mutant would have gone after you."
"I warned them," Storm said once Pietro had reported to her. She sat in the foyer with Colossus. "They should have stuck to selling the stuff and not becoming their own customers. They got what they deserved."
"Suit yourself," Pietro said, not willing to argue about morality. "I have other things to take care of." Pietro left the three of them alone. Storm sighed and slouched.
"Do you feel bad about this?" Colossus asked.
"I was used, so was every other underworld boss around the world. If I didn't supply it to them, someone else would have. We never needed them anyway. We were just going to take their place. Apocalypse did us all a favor."
"What of my family?" Colossus asked. "Are they safe?"
"My guess is that they went with all the other humans."
"And you do not care that my family may be dead?! I must see them. I am going back. There may still be time!"
"Fine, go. You're wasting your time." Colossus looked down at Storm with cold eyes. Colossus changed into his metal form and left the Institute.
"Does he think that matters?" Storm muttered to herself. His family was dead. Why should he bother checking their corpses? Storm realized that even she didn't think he was wrong to at least see them. She stepped outside the Institute. "Piotr, wait." Colossus stopped and looked back at her, the same coldness remaining in his eyes. "I'm going with you."
"I thought family was unimportant to you."
"When you have nothing left, that's when you realize you had anything... what I mean is... look, I'll go with you to check on your family. I'll make sure they get a proper sendoff."
"Thank you, Ms. Monroe. That is kind of you."
"Neither of us has anything left, Piotr. As they say, birds of a feather stick together." Colossus smiled at her. Storm briefly returned a smile, still not used to being openly emotional. "Come on, we've wasted enough time with Magneto."
"What about Caliban?" Warren asked. Magneto stood in the planning room with Mastermind, Warren, Callisto, Pietro, Wanda and Dr. Essex. Callisto showed equal concern over the whereabouts of Caliban.
"He must deal with his own problems," Magneto said. "I let him go."
"You did WHAT?!"
"He was being led, Callisto. He will have to confront his own father and determine what he must do with his life. There are more important things. Dr. Essex knows how we can defeat Apocalypse, but it will be some time before we can act. Dr. Essex is to remain in here."
"I can't, Magnus," Dr. Essex said. "I am safe from the legacy virus, but Apocalypse damaged me too deeply. I don't have very long to live. Give me some time to write down everything I know, you'll have a year to look over it. I won't last that long."
"I am aware of that, Dr. Essex. I won't say that your premature death isn't undeserved, but your help will be welcomed. Warren, Callisto, Jason, you are welcome to remain here."
"Thank you, but we'll be going to New York," Warren said.
"We're going to set up a shelter for mutants..." Callisto stopped for a moment. "Well, a shelter for whoever is left."
"If that is your wish. I assume the Darkholmes will stay here. I'm releasing Arkady back into your custody, Callisto. Be very careful."
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St. Laurence's Cathedral in Donegal, Ireland was empty that night, save for one man. Father Stryker sat at the altar, kneeling before the cross with his head hung low. The cathedral's candles were burning out, dimming the light around him.
"Where did I go wrong?" Stryker asked. "I did what I thought you wanted me to do, but I have failed you, Lord. Now they will inherit the Earth... and I am one of them. I do not deserve to kneel before you... forgive me, father, I cannot allow myself to remain here..."
"This is not the way," Caliban said from the entrance of the cathedral. "Father, don't you see? The world is ours now. This was how it would have been."
"How it would have been?!" Stryker screamed at him. "We are monsters! No, what am I saying? Essex lied to me. You are a monster, I am a man! Even if I am the last man on Earth, I will never allow you to take it! You will not corrupt this world, you will not!"
"Father, please... God does not hate us for what we are. We are his creations as well."
"YOU are not his creation! You are... you are... I don't know what you are," Stryker said fearfully. "You are my son, Caliban."
"And for better or worse, you are my father. This is a new world we will share, father. There is no such thing as mutants anymore. That was a name they used to separate normal humans from those born different. Now, all are born different. What are mutants then? They were only mutants compared to those born before them. Now we are all humans."
"Yes, I am still human, aren't I?" Stryker removed his glasses, allowing his son to see his face more clearly. "Could... could it be that this was what God intended?"
"What you did goes against his intentions, father," Caliban told him. "But we would have inherited the Earth one day, even if you and I were no longer alive to see that day. There is nothing left to fear, father." Caliban put his hand on his father's shoulder. "We will face this new world together."
"No, my son, we will not," Stryker said to him. "I have lived my entire life in fear. What I did to you as a child was out of fear. What I can never forgive myself for is your birth. I wasn't trying to dispose of you. I wanted to spare you the humiliation of being... a mutant."
"Father, you do not have to lie to me."
"No, Caliban, I-"
"Father, I know what you did. I forgive you."
"...You... what?"
"I forgive you for what you did. In your place, I might have done the same. For whatever reason, God chose to spare me. I thought that my purpose was to serve you, but perhaps I haven't found my true purpose yet."
"I brought you into a world you did not fit into," Stryker told his son, embracing him suddenly. "I helped make it more difficult for you, but... I have made things right now, my son."
"What do you mean?"
"We are humans now. You are not part of a world that looks down on you, my son. Now they can see you for your worth. I only wish that I had understood sooner what a son I had."
"You are not ashamed of me?"
"No, Caliban. I am proud of you, not for your actions, but for your thoughts. Despite all that I made you do, you are not an evil person. You will yet do good in this world." Stryker turned away from his son and looked at the cross. "This is my gift to you, son... at the cost of millions of lives. I leave this world to you, Caliban."
"I do not understand..." Caliban saw Stryker's hand reach into his pockets. "Father, what are you doing?"
"I must atone for my crimes. I want to see if the higher court will prove me right. I had saved this, in case of capture." Stryker took a small pill from his pocket, containing a white powder. "This world is my legacy to you, my dear son. Don't make the same mistakes I did. Goodbye, Caliban."
"Father, wait-" Before Caliban could stop him, Stryker took the pill and broke it in his mouth. He looked at his son one last time with a half-smile, the rest of his face showing the regret Stryker felt in his last moments. He fell to the floor of the cathedral with a loud, resonating thud. "...Father." Caliban cradle Stryker's body in his arms, observing the shadows cast on him by the dim candles of the cathedral.
"I will find my purpose father."
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"Are you sure about this?" Pietro asked his father. Magneto stood with Wanda and Pietro in a room they rarely entered; Magneto's office. It was a large, round dome, larger than most of the Institute's classrooms, with circular platform on one end of the room, accessible by a flight of metal steps, themselves operated solely my Magneto's power, and surrounding the lower level of the room, rows of books with near-microscopic metal pins attached to each page, allowing for easy access. The three stood on this platform itself, which allowed them to see out the large windows lining the sloping top of the dome. There was a chair next to a metal desk divided into two half; on one half was a computer and a specialized console that allowed full access to all of the Xavier Institute's files and systems; the other half was used as free space for Magneto to write, or to lay out blueprints if needed. A hologram projector sat on the far end, and at that moment, a very important item sat on the desk, one neither of Magneto's children had ever seen, but in another time, it was quite famous. Pietro and Wanda wore their standard uniforms, but Magneto wore a new outfit- much the same as the one he usually wore, only the armor he wore was not silver, but red.
"I am, Pietro," Magneto said, looking out the window at the sun setting over a lifeless Bayville. "We must be prepared for anything. I hope that we do not have to do this. We are no match for Apocalypse, and soon we may not be able to hide from him anywhere on this planet."
"He didn't seem too tough to me," Wanda said. "Ororo's lightning struck him down pretty easily, and in that time, if he hadn't taken Mystique hostage, we all could have defeated him. You almost had him for a moment."
"Apocalypse is not yet at full power, Wanda. The one we faced was formidable, but not invincible. Dr. Essex claims that Apocalypse is not yet used to his new abilities. In time, he will master his powers, perhaps even enhance them, and even I may not be any match for him."
"I understand, dad, but isn't this a little drastic?"
"It is drastic, because what we will have to resort to now will be drastic actions. We have roughly a year to prevent his global field from activating, and in that time, he will make sure that nobody stands in his way. He is no fool, he likely already knows that we will attack him when he activates that field. This is a backup, in the event that we fail. The entire world will be in his hands. We will need a place to retreat."
"Right..." Wanda sighed. "How are you going to pull this off?"
"It will not be easy." Magneto took the hologram projector from the table and showed them the schematics for the Xavier Institute. "Over the next few weeks, I will reinforce the Institute with new metal. Its size will have to increase nearly eleven-fold." The Institute schematics grew several times, appearing as a towering skyscraper. "Once that has been established, it will be remolded." The skyscraper became a large oval shape, though the schematics showed that most of the rooms were intact. "We will have to grow our own food inside. I will take it into orbit myself. I hope that I can count on both of you to maintain systems as we have here."
"I was hoping to take a more active role," Pietro admitted. "I could teach someone to run the systems like I did, and that'd free up time for me to train some more."
"That's showing initiative, Pietro. For the sake of secrecy as well as idealistic conflict, it will no longer be called the Xavier Institute. Charles's dream is dying with the human population. The codename 'Avalon' will do for now, and should we succeed in overthrowing Apocalypse and restoring the human race, then this will once again be the Xavier Institute. We can show no weakness, we can no longer afford it. We are no longer training mutants to use their powers for good, we are trying them to use their powers just to survive. Make no mistake, we face a full war ahead of us." Magneto called the second item on his desk to him. He guided it with both hands and slipped it onto his head; it was a helmet, red like the armor he wore, lined with the same violet he bore on his cape, an opening cut in Roman fashion, allowing his face to be seen. "The X-Men have retired. We are now a brotherhood of mutants, and our only goal, the only thing left for us on this miserable planet, is the defeat of Apocalypse."
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Scott sat on the roof of the Xavier Institute, joined by Todd, his youngest brother, after the sun had dipped under the horizon, leaving a faint red hue across the darkening sky. There was silence between the two. The last two days had been very hard for both of them.
"Heh, makes it hard, don't you think?"
"Makes what hard?" Scott asked.
"This Avalon thing Wanda told us about. It sounds like a good idea, but... I dunno, I wouldn't want to go up there without Marie."
"Which is why I'm not going."
"Just like that?"
"I'm not letting my sister get used by some fucking megalomaniac with an ego problem. Besides, we still owe him twice over."
"You got a point. Two brothers out to kick some ass. All hell can't stop us now."
"Hey, there you are," Pyro said, appearing behind them. "I've been looking all over for you."
"We've just been talking," Scott said. "I can't speak for Toad, but I'm not going up there."
"That makes two of us, then," Pyro said, sitting down next to them. "I'm bloody tired of watching after a bunch of kids all day. There's not gonna be much action up there, all the fun's going to be down here." Pyro began to play with his lighter out of habit. "Since you still want to get back at ol' grayface, Darkholme, I figure you might need a mate to watch your back."
"But then you'll need somebody to watch your back," Danielle said from the door. "And really, do you trust Scott to pay back a favor?"
"Hey, I'm not that big a jerk," Scott retorted. "Pyro is a handful. I guess it wouldn't hurt to have somebody else to toss him to whenever I'm tired of babysitting him."
"Sounds like you're all planning too far in advance," Wanda noted as she appeared on the roof. "Avalon won't go up for another three months, at the very least."
"Well I've already made up my mind," Scott told her, standing up and facing her. He seemed especially nervous when he told Wanda this. "I'm going to find my sister." Wanda looked back at him and noticed how tense he was. He was dead serious; he was going to stay on Earth and find Apocalypse and Rogue, whether Wanda liked it or not. Toad watched the two carefully.
"You can relax, Scott," Wanda said with a smile. "I'm not going up either."
"What?" Scott was surprised. "But... your dad and brother are going... why aren't you?"
"Officially, I'm staying here to keep a close eye on mutant activity," Wanda explained, putting her arms around his neck. "Unofficially... well, we'll just say I have my reasons." Any romance that might have occurred at that moment was destroyed by the hooting provided by Pyro and Toad. Danielle, of course, only rolled her eyes.
"Oh, shut up," Wanda said, half-giggling.
"So the five of us are staying down here and hunting Apocalypse," Toad said. "It's official, we're all crazy and we don't care."
"You can imagine my father wasn't too thrilled when I told him," Wanda explained, "But he respects my decision. I'll keep in touch with him, but... at some point, you gotta let go."
"We need a name," Pyro insisted. "Something cool, something tough... The Rippers."
"Lame," Danielle yelled.
"X-Factor! X-Force. X-Squad? X-Team! Excalibur?" Toad blew him a raspberry. "Oh! The Avengers! The Defenders? Mutant Squad! The New Mutants? The New Warriors?"
"I think," Wanda interrupted out of mercy, and noting her father's decision, "X-Men sounds just fine."
"The New X-Men! The Uncanny X-Men. X-Treme X-Men? X-Citing X-Men! X-Ceptional X-Men! Oh... X-Men UNLIMITED! X-Men United... uh... Ultimate X-Men!"
"JUST X-MEN!" Scott yelled. Magneto's X-Men were gone; now, Wanda's X-Men: Scott Darkholme, Todd Wyngarde, Johnny Allerdyce and Danielle Moonstar- would carry the torch into this new world.
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"Magnus, Mr. Wyngarde, hello," Dr. Essex said in the room he had been given. There was only a bed and a small desk, which he sat at, writing notes on paper with a black pen. He had been given new clothes, a simple white suit, but he was forced to wear a metal collar and bracelets. "I was just writing down what I knew... what's wrong?"
"This," Magneto said. Mastermind took a single photograph from his coat and handed it to him. "This was taken by the German government, or at least, what's left of them. According to reports from Warren's contacts, this is also happening in Brazil."
"No, this can't be happening," Dr. Essex whispered in fear. On the photograph was a massive silver tower with blue markings on a language unknown to either Magneto or Mastermind.
"It appears to be ready," Mastermind added and took a slip of paper from his coat. "According to the report, only two men were seen... a brown-skinned man whose arm became a metal device and a glowing white man who could fly. The report says that the glowing man built the tower out of spare metals he had brought with him, and as soon as it was complete, they disappeared."
"This is impossible, this wasn't supposed to happen!"
"QUIET!" Magneto yelled. Dr. Essex was pulled off the ground by the metal collar. "You know what to do."
"All too well," Mastermind replied. He reached up and pressed his hand firmly against Dr. Essex's face and closed his eyes. Moments later, he released him, as did Magneto. "He was a pawn, just like we were. Apocalypse lied through him, probably because he knew Dr. Essex would come to us afterwards. He didn't have any access to the pyramids and building the towers wasn't his concern; it was only the estimate given to the Weapon X man and Forge."
"This doesn't explain how Apocalypse could have built two towers so quickly."
"I assume he has direct mental influence over Forge," Mastermind mused, "If Forge is willingly aiding him, then of course, he could find ways to build them with minimal labor and delay."
"Then we can't waste time. I am doubling my efforts on Avalon. We will have to go up as soon as possible. Jason, have you made your decision yet?"
"I don't know, Erik... both of my children are staying here, but they're going separate ways. This is very hard for me. I know that Jean will be in good hands with Freddy, though she's strong enough on her own, and Todd will have friends to watch over him... but I can't help but feel that if I went with you, I would be abandoning them again."
"You will stay in contact with them, Jason, I can assure you that much. People of your intelligence are hard to come by. Avalon could use your help."
"Very well," Mastermind conceded. "I will go with you."
"Your presence will be much needed, Jason. Call Callisto, Warren and Ororo and give me their answers." Magneto left the room. Mastermind turned to Dr. Essex, who rubbed his head.
"My apologies, but we have to do what we have to do."
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The Sphinx in Egypt was lit only by the pale light that emanated from Apocalypse's body. He raised his hands and the Sphinx rose out of the ground on top of a colossal pyramid that had been buried in the sand. He levitated to the top, entering through the stone door of the Sphinx.
Inside, moving past hieroglyph-covered walls and stone guardians to a main chamber with a circular pattern on the floor and four pillars surrounding it. Floating inches above the circle printed on the floor was a diamond-shaped device with the same blue writing that appeared on the pyramid itself. Apocalypse raised his hands and the device opened, revealing a special base upon which was mounted a round black box. Panels at the top of the box opened, revealing a glowing green interior with an indentation roughly the size and shape of a human.
"At last," Apocalypse whispered to himself.
"So this is the fabled Eye of Ages," Forge asked, appearing next to it. He had been inside the pyramid, inspecting its designs. Forge had changed into a gray uniform that left only his head and left forearm exposed. His eyes were a dull yellow around his brown pupils, a sign of his corruption at the hands of Apocalypse. He no longer needed to be kept under hypnosis by Mesmero; they had left Mesmero in London to fend for himself. "Master, are you strong enough to power it?"
"I hope so," Apocalypse said. "This machine takes a tremendous amount of energy to power it. With my enhancements, it should be no problem. Nonetheless, be prepared. I may need your help."
"I will, master." Apocalypse climbed into the indentation and his white aura blended with the green light; soon, Apocalypse himself was covered with a green glow. Lights projected from the Eye of Ages onto a holographic image of the Earth hovering above them, reaching onto seven points across the Earth.
"And the evolution begins," Forge whispered.
The tower in the German mountains began to glow a bright blue and generated a spiral of energy that launched upwards; to any observer, it appeared that the tower itself was growing to enormous proportions. In the upper atmosphere, the energy collected into a great sphere, so bright that it lit the ground beneath it like a miniature sun.
Freddy Dukes and Jean Grey, sitting on the porch of a house in upstate New York once belonging to the Wyngarde family, looked up at the bright energy collecting above them. They held hands and watched helplessly.
Storm and Colossus, and a little blonde girl stood over four graves; Colossus's mother, father, and brother were buried next to Evan Daniels. Colossus's sister hugged his leg and he placed a hand on her shoulder. They noticed that the day was getting brighter. Storm looked up and saw blue energy creeping across the sky like glowing clouds.
Juggernaut set his helmet aside when he stopped by a river in South America to get some water, noticed that the reflection of the sky was brighter than it had been moments before. Looking up, realized that his actions in Mexico had been entirely in vain. Frustrated, he punched a tree and knocked it into the water.
Callisto stared at the window of Worthington Towers in horror. Warren, making a phone call, didn't seem to notice, until Berzerker, Scaleface, Torpid and Jubilee ran to the window with Callisto. Arkady, who had been dusting a counter, soon joined them. Realizing something was up, Warren went to the window and saw the glowing blue sky.
Only a few miles from Worthington Towers, in a small apartment, Lance, Kate and Robert also saw that the sky was changing. Frightened, Kate clung to Lance.
In the forests of Northern England, Logan tracked a wounded Sabretooth, following a trail of blood left in the snow. At last, he found his prey and extended both sets of claws, but he stopped when he noticed the sky changing.
Caliban stood over a waterfall, just a few miles outside of Donegal, carrying a small plastic container with the ashes of his father, having nothing else to put them in. He opened the lid and poured the ashes out over the waterfall. Once they had joined the water, he set the container down, and kneeling, made the sign of the cross. When he stood back up, he noticed the sky had turned bright. As he watched in confusion and awe, the sky darkened.
Sitting in the back yard of the Brotherhood of Bayville Boarding House, Toad and Danielle noticed the darkened sky. He called the others out, and moments later, Scott, Wanda and Pyro ran out to see. The black sky looked unnatural; there were no stars, and they sky itself was not a dark blue as the normal night sky, but a dull, dark grey, almost black color.
Avalon, as the floating base was called, continued its ascension above the Earth. Magneto and Pietro stood in the office, looking out the window. They saw the atmosphere covered in a blue field that soon became dark. Nothing below the dark sky could be seen; for all purposes, the Earth had become a massive black sphere. Magneto was elated that he had taken Avalon up in time; there was still hope for Xavier's dream.
In the hangar of Avalon, Mastermind and Beast, in a wheelchair and hooked to a machine attached to it, took count of a crowd of people, wrapped in blankets and carrying only small suitcases. There were roughly four hundred of them, as many humans not killed by the legacy spores as Magneto could find before Apocalypse's field was activated.
But still, the world belonged to Apocalypse. Magneto had every intention of waging war on him, even if he had to do so alone.
And Marie Darkholme, or Rogue as her old friends called her, sat on a golden chair in a white hall, adorned with red, blue and gold images on the wall. Marie wore an immaculate white gown, simple and practical for desert conditions, covering her but allowing room for her skin to breath, though a golden belt and collar stretched the front tightly enough that the proportions of her chest were no mystery to observers. She wore gold bracelets and anklets and her feet were bare, and on top of her head she wore a gold circlet with small golden rods hanging from all sides. Black makeup was streaked across her eyes, contrasting with her white skin, but her lips were marked with a dull red color. Despite all the changes to Rogue's appearance, the most obvious, to anyone who knew her, was the faint yellow in her eyes, but it only brought out the natural green, and strangely, they resembled her mother's eyes. Her eyes lit up when she saw someone at last enter the white hall.
Apocalypse was brought in, leaning against Forge, weak and no longer glowing.
"Welcome back, my lord," Rogue said, standing from her throne. "You are weak... are you alright?" she asked with genuine worry in her voice.
"I will be soon enough." Forge helped Apocalypse sit on his own golden throne, next to Rogue. She took a large feathered fan and created a gentle breeze for him. "Thank you... yes, I need rest, that is all."
"The Eye of Ages will be powered indefinitely now," Forge explained proudly. "My towers provide the mutation field with infinite power."
"They are still vulnerable," Apocalypse feared. "I will have to find a way to protect them. We have many enemies, and as my hand reaches across the globe, we will only gain more. Now, there are only three of us. In time, I will have an army at my disposal."
"They will be no match for Apocalypse," Rogue said proudly. She leaned towards Apocalypse, brushing his cheek with her exposed hand and gently kissing his tired lips. Somehow, Apocalypse was immune to Rogue's vampiric powers, but he was too tired to truly return the kiss. "You need rest, my lord."
"Yes. Today, I rest." Apocalypse's white aura was slowly returning to him. Respectfully, Forge took a step back and Rogue returned to her seat. The lines along Apocalypse's body began to glow again and his breathing was comfortable once more. "The day is mine. As long as I am in power the sun will not rise again."
And so, the story ends... not much of an ending, huh? Well, there's hope.
I'm considering writing a direct sequel to this one (unlike the way this story was an indirect sequel to the first), taking place a few years after this one. Scott, Wanda, Pyro, Toad and Danielle will play major roles. Magneto and Storm will be there, too. Caliban will return, Forge and Gauntlet will be given larger roles, and I promise there will be no shitty children of current pairings or any of that (it will not take place that far into the future). Let me know what you guys think; I'd like some input and/or suggestions before I begin.