Argh. I wish the bosses around here would kept their format scripts in order. Now the site's deleting my dividers.
Thanks for the reviews, guys. Let us see... time for a few responses!
crazyspaceystracey: Wanda's silver eyes are a latent mutation, basically just a visual sign that she's a little stronger than before (similar to Toad's altered appearance). Her eye color wasn't mentioned before, so just assume they were blue-gray in Legacy of Apocalypse. As for Skullface... hehehe, yeah, I'm guilty of the MIB ripoff... uh... homage.
pixie stix addict: I assure you that Cable will not appear in this. I don't mean that the way I said Mr. Sinister wouldn't appear in Legacy (since he appeared as Apocalypse's slave Dr. Essex, though with a different personality and motivations), I mean Cable will have absolutely no counterpart here- no Nathan Summers, no Askani, no Stryfe, no stupid robot arm... okay, there are robot arms, but they don't belong to Cable.
Beer'n'chips: Thanks, though I'm not sure how long I can hold off before I let Bastion loose. Things will get messy.
I'm trying to keep Bastion inhuman, which is why his speech is mechanical and why the narrative always refers to him as "it." If you're wondering why Lance and Kate weren't part of the army (though their old teammates Robert and Warren were) in the first chapter, you'll find out what happened to them in this one. Oh, and excuse the grammar.
Chapter Two - African Summer
"That stupid thing's probably long gone," Pyro said, peering out the window of the hotel room they were staying in. The place wasn't too clean, but they needed a place that maintained confidentiality, which the manager had agreed to. There were two beds and a ratty couch, so they took turns sleeping while two of them kept watch. Naturally, Wanda and Danielle had the beds and Scott took the couch. Pyro sat at a cheap table while Toad sat on the table itself. "No worries, right?"
"I dunno, I don't think we'll shake him that easily." Toad scratched his head. "He called Wanda, he's probably on the lookout."
"I'm not afraid of some bloody dinosaur. If he comes near us again, we'll have ourselves a little grill," Pyro said with a wide grin.
"Ugh, I ain't eating dino meat."
"C'mon, you eat flies!"
"I do not! How many times do I have to tell you my hands were tied and I was swatting that thing! Eating flies... what do you take me for, some degenerate clod? I got dignity, at least... did you hear that?" Toad hopped to the window, pushing up one of the blinds just enough to see outside.
"We don't all have your hearing either," Pyro said. "Honestly, Toad, stop acting like you're better than me."
"I ain't. Something's out there. Must be that thing we saw. I don't see anything..."
"What's going on?" Wanda asked, awake and sitting up in her bed. "Is someone here?"
"I don't know. I thought I heard something."
"We call that 'wind' where I'm from," Pyro remarked.
"Leave this city," the innkeeper, wearing a black hat and sunglasses said, standing against the wall said. Immediately, Pyro unleashed a full flame blast, but the man disappeared. He appeared next to the table, with Toad.
"What do you think you're doing sneaking up on us like that?!" Pyro yelled. "Almost gave me a bloody stroke..."
"Why are you warning us?" Wanda asked. "You said we could stay here."
"That was before. Sauron's men have been snooping around every inn and bar in the city. They'll be here soon and I'm not going to his dungeon for harboring fugitives. It's nothing against you, but these days I have to watch my own back." The innkeeper faded out and disappeared.
"We understand," Wanda said. "Scott, Danielle, wake up. We're moving on."
"Hrm?" Scott woke up, removing his visor and rubbing his eyes before putting it back on. "Where are we headed?"
"Out of this hotel." Further down the corridor, a lizard-faced mutant known as Lucid walked with two larger men, one carrying a wooden club and the other baring sharp fangs. He stopped by room 102 and stared at the door. Lucid had the ability to see through solid matter, which made their search quicker.
"The room's clean," Lucid said in a low rasp, "Move on to the next one." The thugs nodded and followed him to room 103. He stared at the door and grinned. "Heh heh hehe..."
"They in there?" The fanged thug asked.
"No, honeymoon. Move on to the next one." They approached the next room, 104. Lucid was about to look at the door, but the innkeeper stopped them. "We have work to do, old man. Out of the way."
"I know, I just came to tell you remind you not to be too loud."
"We're not exactly concerned for the well-being of your tenants."
"Fair enough, but you might alert them and scare the ones you're looking for. They might have already heard you, with the clattering of your friends' feet. Just be a little more careful."
"He's stalling," Lucid said. "Hold him." The thug with the club grabbed the innkeeper and held the club to his throat. The wood splintered and grew into sharp spikes that surrounded the innkeeper's neck. He stared into the door.
"The room is empty, by the way," the innkeeper said.
"I can see that. I'll need to get inside for a better look, they might be hiding under the furniture. Open the door, old man." The innkeeper was pushed forward with the spiked club still pressed against his neck. Carefully, he reached into his pocket and dug out his keys, rummaging through them.
"Let me see here... room 104... all these keys look the same to me... ah here it... no, no, wrong one... ah! No, 401. I-"
"Blast it, old man. Knock it down." As Lucid commanded, the fanged thug pushed down the door. Lucid walked in and looked around the room. He looked beneath the beds and behind the chairs. "It's clean. Move on to the next one."
"I told you the room was empty," the innkeeper insisted. The thug removed the spiked club and followed Lucid down the hall.
"That was close," Toad said from the alley across from the hotel. "Where to now, then?"
"I want to know what this Sauron business is," Danielle said. "Why does that birdlizard want us so badly?"
"Must be in league with Apocalypse," Scott replied. "So obviously, Sauron's the 'big boss' everyone's talking about and he's got orders from the top to find us."
"Is he protecting Gauntlet?" Pyro asked.
"He can't be, Gauntlet's not working for me. I don't think he knows we're after him, and if he does, he probably doesn't know why."
"That gives us an edge at least," Wanda said. "We'll have to lay low again and stay on the trail."
Apocalypse stood on the steps of a pyramid-like temple in the Kenyan savannah, only four miles from the glowing tower he had placed there, which stood nearly four times as tall as the temple, though it could not be seen clearly behind the blue light surrounding it and spiraling towards the atmosphere, giving the illusion of a much taller structure. As the blue light touched the sky, it became white and eventually a dark gray as it spread to the energy field surrounding the rest of the planet.
The temple was surrounded by small huts and populated by simple tribesmen. Like the people in Apocalypse's city, they were forced to live under a leader who refused to break tradition. Most modern technology was outlawed under the Hungan, except any technology that Apocalypse himself ordered him to use.
The Hungan stood with Apocalypse, a tall man, though dwarfed by his master, with deep black skin and wearing the trappings of a traditional Kenyan witch-doctor, including a gold collar and bracelets. He wore a regal-looking shawl around his body and carried a staff with a crystalline orb at the top. His was covered by a large white marking in the form of a skull and showed no immediate hints as to his true age, though the small amount of hair growing on his chin showed hints of gray. He bowed his head to Apocalypse, averting his yellow-tainted eyes.
"We are honored to have you here," the Hungan said. The Hungan's true name had been long forgotten, save by himself. Apocalypse, with his telepathic powers, knew everything about him, but saw no need to reveal it to anyone. There was only one thing that Apocalypse could not draw from his mind; he had no idea whether or not the Hungan was an actual mutant. He had survived the cleansing, but there was no proof that he was a mutant. Regardless of his race, Apocalypse understood that someone who survived the Eye of Ages was indeed powerful and worthy of serving him.
"Spare me, Hungan. What is so important?"
"Last night, I saw his face in the fire." The Hungan led Apocalypse to the innermost chamber of the temple, which was mostly bare, save for a few hieroglyphic markings and scant African ornaments. In the center was a bonfire tended to by four tribesmen. "He is coming here, he is headed north, towards Egypt. He will be here tonight."
"Who?"
"The Earth Mover." Apocalypse raised a skeptical eyebrow. "I have seen his heart. He is bitter. He has nothing to life for. He seeks to destroy you himself."
"Why is he coming here? Why not try to attack me in my stronghold? I wouldn't be here if you hadn't called me."
"I do not know." The Hungan sat down on a small fur rug next to the fire, keeping his staff upright. He took some powder from a pouch and tossed it into the fire. His eyes lit up. "The tower."
"He wants to destroy the tower. Perhaps this Earth Mover is more foolish than I thought."
"He is here."
"What kind of host are you, Hungan? Go out and meet him. Defend the tower." The Kenyan tribesmen ran out of their huts as the ground trembled. They looked towards the temple for a sign from their leader, but saw the entrance was empty. They talked among themselves, wondering where the Hungan was when they needed him.
"APOCALYPSE!" a voice yelled. The tribesmen prepared themselves for an intruder. "I KNOW YOU'RE HERE!"
"I see the Hungan," one of the tribesmen said to the others. "On the other side of the tower. If he did not take us with him, then he does not need us."
"Yes, come to me," the Hungan whispered, standing on the grass, facing away from the tower. In the distance, the Earth Mover approached, rock and soil erupting from the ground with his every step. Lance Alvers was his name, a well-built man with short, unkempt brown hair and a thick beard, dressed in black pants with thick boots and a ragged military jacket in a solid olive color with the sleeves rolled back. His jacket was unbuttoned, showing all the wide scar across his muscular chest and the silver pendant hanging from his neck. Lance had suffered much more than he deserved and was fueled by a thirst for revenge.
"YOU!" Lance yelled. "OUT OF MY WAY!"
"I know why you are here, Earth Mover. This tower will not fall as long as I guard it." The Hungan thrust his staff into the ground, making his point. "You will have to kill me if you want it." Without another word, Lance raised the ground beneath the Hungan, who disappeared. Lance was no fool. The Hungan appeared behind him, only to be toppled by a rock flying up from the ground. The Hungan jumped to his feet and pushed his staff, crystal first, onto the grass. A seismic wave ran across the plain, but a circle around the Hungan was unaffected, remaining fixed in place while the grass and earth around it lay in uneven piles.
"FUCK THIS!" Lance turned his attention towards the tower, placing his hands on the ground and focusing with all of his strength. A fissure appeared and spread towards the tower with great speed and ran into the tower, creating a small crack and disrupting the flow of energy from that side. The bottom half of that side was exposed, though the collective energy from the other sides, in a spiral, covered the top half well enough.
"No!" The Hungan pointed his staff at Lance and guided him into the sky like a snare. Lance aimed both hands downward and created a crater in the ground that was quickly spreading towards the Hungan, who released him and concentrated on protecting himself as he had before. Lance fell into the crater with a sharp crack and groaned, but still, his determination remained. Lying on his back, Lance looked up to the tower and put all of his strength into it. The crack at the base grew and spread until the entire side of the tower was exposed, and soon two other sides as well. With only one side powering the sky beam, it powered down and began to flicker weakly. The Hungan stood over Lance and firmly pushed the crystal end of his staff onto his broken chest. He began to chant softly as the staff glowed, but Lance paid no attention, focusing all of his strength on the tower.
The Hungan looked up in horror. The tower shattered at the base and near the top, stopping the energy flow and crumbling in various pieces. A cloud of dirt rose up around the broken tower as its shards hit the ground below with a powerful thud and the energy field above parted, hitting the site with bright sunlight that spread as the darkness receded.
"Kate..." Lance whispered. "Wait for me..."
The Hungan pulled his staff from the soulless body of Lance Alvers. His staff glowed with his energy, but it was difficult to see with the sunlight burning down on him. Not having seen the sun in years, the Hungan's eyes took several minutes to adjust. He saw the ruins of the tower he had been appointed to guard and sighed.
"I have failed you," the Hungan said as Apocalypse materialized near him in a black cloud. "Even as I attempted to draw it from his body, his soul was too strong for me."
"The tower is decimated. With this damage, it could take over a month to rebuild it. Comparatively, a month is nothing. You will still be punished for your failure, of course." Apocalypse took the Hungan's staff and looked at the glowing crystal, then at the body of Lance Alvers. He handed the staff back to its owner. "His body is broken. Return his spirit to him."
"But master..."
"Do as I command. I know why he holds such a grudge against me. He and another mutant girl had a daughter. A human daughter."
"That is not possible," the Hungan said. "Any human child would be stillborn."
"Precisely. His wife died giving birth to a dead child. In his place, I would react the same way."
"You are showing him mercy?"
"No. I admire his will and determination, but I don't regret what I did to anger him and I won't forgive him for standing against his ruler. Return his spirit." The Hungan reluctantly released the white soul, which slipped like fog through Lance's mouth. His eyes opened weakly.
"What... Apocalypse..." He was too weak to move, or even use his powers. Apocalypse raised him out of the crater. "Put me... down..."
"Death is no punishment for a man who lives expecting it." Engulfed by white light, Lance clenched his teeth in pain. The light closed around him and he vanished in a flash. Apocalypse lowered his hand and turned back to the Hungan. Apocalypse raised his and the Hungan was thrown into the crater, then harshly against its side.
"Master, what are you doing?"
"What does it look like I'm doing? I'm letting you live, but I'm going to beat you to within an inch of your life for your failure." Apocalypse carried the Hungan out of the crater and threw him back inside. "You know, this is actually relaxing."
"If we can just get over that mountain, we'll find Santa Inez," Wanda said to her team, all wearing their coats as they walked up a tree-covered mountain path. "That's where Gauntlet was last sighted, so it's our best chance." They traveled in relative darkness with only a faint light shining through the trees. Scott walked closely behind Wanda, but the other three trailed behind.
"It's almost morning, can't we take a break?" Danielle asked. "We've been hiking for four hours now."
"You can take a break when we get to town," Scott said. "If we stop now, we'll lose his trail and he'll get away. I'm not losing Gauntlet just so you can rest your damn feet."
"What a fucking grouch," Danielle said to Pyro. "Maybe he can save his sister without me."
"Yeah, Darkholme's been a tightass lately, but he doesn't mean it. Poor guy lost his family. At least Toad has his dad and sis, and we got each other, don't we?"
"I'm not in the mood, Johnny."
"If you're not in the mood to have a chat with your better half, fair enough, luv, send me a telegram when you are," Pyro said, slightly put off but remaining optimistic. Toad jumped to the next tree above them, looking around and waiting for Pyro and Danielle to pass him before jumping to the next and looking around. "Toad, while you're up there, find us some eggs, I'll make us breakfast!"
"While I'm up here, you want me to grab some oranges to squeeze and maybe nab me a flying pig for some bacon and ham?"
"Yeah, sounds great!"
"Heads up!" Toad yelled, jumped down from the tree. Wanda stopped and turned back to the group, but Scott kept pressing forward. "That Sauron thing's flying around out there."
"We'd better stop. Get back up there and keep watch, tell us when he's gone. Scott, you... Scott?" Wanda looked back to the trail and saw that Scott hadn't bothered to stop. Not wanting to risk being heard, she ran to him. "Scott, what are you doing?"
"The sun's almost up, Gauntlet's going to get away again."
"Scott, we need to stop for just a bit. Sauron's circling the area. If he spots us, he'll have us chained and shipped back to Apocalypse."
"Good, that's the next thing on my 'to do' list."
"Scott, be reasonable!"
"Fine, you want me to stop?! Okay! Finding Gauntlet wasn't my idea. Sorry for trying to get this crap over with as soon as possible and sorry for wanting to get on with what's REALLY important here!"
"He's gone!" Toad yelled at them. "Flew off."
"Great! Let's move on then." Scott continued and Wanda sighed in frustration as she and the others continued. After hiking for a few more minutes, they hit an opening in the vegetation, near the summit of the mountain. Toad hopped up there first, followed by Scott, Wanda, Pyro, and a reluctant Danielle. They looked beyond to see more forest, but further than that, they saw what was producing the light, a glowing tower in the distance, shooting a spiral of energy into the sky.
"I keep forgetting we can't see the sun," Danielle said.
"That's Sauron flying around it," Wanda said, noting a small figure circling the energy spiral. "I think it's safe to say he didn't know we were there. Well, we'd better move before he spots us."
"You know, this is real comedic, this setup," Pyro chuckled. "Caliban's running around here somewhere, Gauntlet's tracking him, we're tracking Gauntlet, Sauron'll be tracking us. Wouldn't it be great if Caliban were tracking Sauron?"
"Well, get a load of that," Beast said, wheeling his chair to the window of Avalon's control room. Magneto and Pietro looked out at the Earth, where a large chunk of the Eye's mutation field disappeared over most of Africa, exposing a large, circular area to sunlight. "One of the towers must have gone offline."
"Finally, some good news," Pietro muttered. "I think some of lower Egypt is exposed. Hank, how long do you figure it'll take them to get that thing running again?"
"I'm not sure," Beast replied. "If the tower is intact but disabled, it might only be offline a few hours. If it's been damaged or destroyed, my guess is anywhere from a week to a month."
"This doesn't give us any particular advantage just yet," Magneto said with disdain. "Pietro, prepare a team. You're going down to investigate the tower's condition and find out what caused it."
"The Hungan's guarding that tower," Beast reminded him. "If Apocalypse hasn't executed him for failure, he'll be a formidable opponent. I think Ororo might be interested in-"
"No," Magneto barked. "Storm would be a liability to the team with her unchecked emotions. She is needed here. You have one hour, Pietro."
"An hour? I'll do better than that." Pietro walked up to a console and flipped a yellow switch. "This is Quicksilver, preparing a landing to Africa. Angel, Callisto, Jubilee, Sunspot and Leech, report to the hangar." He turned off the switch and looked at Magneto with a self-satisfied smile.
"Leech has not completed his training," Magneto told him. "He may not be up to the task."
"All the kid needs is a little on-the-job training. It's not like he's a slacker like that stupid Madrox kid."
Apocalypse stood in one of the lower chambers of his palace, a dungeon of sorts where the only lit that shone was that produced by his aura. The room was small and plain, the only feature being chains on the wall, where a bruised and broken Lance hung. Apocalypse was joined by Rogue.
"Are you sure you want to do this, my lord?" Rogue asked. "You've had one set before and they proved unnecessary. Why do you need another? Each of your towers has its own guardian."
"Call it tradition, Marie. My enemies are getting stronger. I can't be everywhere at once. You've done a lot of damage, my young friend," he addressed Lance. "But did you think that alone and untrained, you could be any match for me?" Lance spit on Apocalypse with bloody saliva. "Eloquent response. You know what I want, don't you?"
"Kill me," Lance muttered weakly. "Finish me... let me join my family... let me join Kate..."
"Is that what he's bitter about?" Rogue asked. "Katherine Pryde died giving birth to a dead child and he blames you?"
"Eye of Ages... it's his fault."
"Sacrifices must be made in the name of progress," Rogue said coldly. "You were right, he's a strong one."
"That's why I chose him as one of the Twelve. Your power is already mine, boy. Now let me return the favor and give you some of mine." Apocalypse gripped Lance's head firmly and kept him in place despite his weak struggling. Apocalypse's aura dimmed and Lance produced one of his own as he screamed from the intensity of the power transfer. Apocalypse stopped and Lance's aura disappeared as he body went limp.
"What," Lance muttered, even weaker than before, "Did you do?"
"You need a few hours of rest," Apocalypse told him. He closed his fist and the chains shattered, dropping Lance to the floor. Lance looked up and his eyes became yellow, his pupils completely gone. "Who is your master?"
"You, great Apocalypse," Lance said in a tired voice.
"Good. Rest up, my horseman. I will put you to use soon enough." Apocalypse and Rogue left the room to find Forge and Bastion waiting. "Forge, you will go to Kenya to repair the tower."
"Yes, master," Forge said, bowing. "I will leave immediately." Forge left Apocalypse's presence, followed by Bastion. "Bastion, you stay here and finish programming the duplicates."
"Will do," it spoke. "Will duplicate memory into other bodies."
"I see the village, we're at Santa Inez," Toad called from the top of a tree. The small town seem sparely populated, but then, it was still morning and not everyone was up. Scott, Wanda, Pyro and Danielle climbed down the mountainside and approached.
"Bienvenidos a Santa Inez," a red-haired man in a poncho greeted them.
"No hablos esp-an-ol," Danielle told him.
"Are you looking for shelter? I'm with the Torre Azul hotel, we have plenty of rooms available as well was a restaurant. You're in time for breakfast, we have eggs, chorizo, fresh fruit bowls, fresh milk, coffee..."
"Sounds like a plan," Pyro grinned. "Aaahh... you go on ahead, I'll stop and have me a quick meal. Anyone care to join me?"
"Yeah, I'll go," Danielle said.
"We can't split up," Wanda said. "We'll all go. Unless Scott wants to press ahead, as usual."
"Are you going to start again? Fine, we'll take a break." The red-haired man led them into a small inn that seemed to be almost empty. There was a woman behind the counter at the desk, a young man tying his shoelaces towards the far wall, and a man wrapped in a heavy blanket sleeping on the floor, but nobody else.
"This is Torre Azul," the red-haired man said, holding the door open as they all shuffled in. "I hope our rooms will be comfortable enough for you. You will be staying here for a long time."
"Huh?" The red-haired man locked the door behind him and drew two guns from beneath his poncho. The woman behind the counter pulled a large rifle from beneath the desk and aimed it at the group. The small boy split into two separate boys, each of equal size and mass, and both held large knives. Wanda motioned for everyone to remain calm. "What is this? What do you want?"
"Information," the sleeping man said, rising to his feet. He tossed off the blanket to reveal himself. Green-skin and built like a workhorse, his yellowing teeth appeared in a menacing display. One of his eyes was covered by a red targeting scope, wrapped around his bald head like an eyepatch. He raised his right arm in a slow, clockwork fashion, making a loud whirling noise, revealing that beneath the sleeves and glove, it was a mechanical prosthetic.
"Gauntlet," Scott snarled.
"You've been tracking me for eight days now," Gauntlet said, shifting his gun to his left hand. His right arm slowly returned to a standard position at his side. "What do you kids want with me? You coming after the bounty on my head, or are you after something else?"
"We know you're after Caliban," Scott said.
"Scott, shhh, let me handle this," Wanda whispered. He sneered, but yielded.
"Caliban is mine, do you understand?"
"We don't want Caliban, we just want some information from him. And from you, we just want to know what Patronete wrote."
"So you know." Gauntlet lowered his weapon, but the rest of his team kept their aim up. "You're Magneto's girl, aren't you? Magneto would pay the weight of Avalon in gold to have you returned safely..."
"If you lay a single finger on her, I'll-"
"Settle down, loverboy. I'm not after gold. The boss around here has his eye out for you and he'd pay much more than Magneto would if I turned you in, but I won't." Gauntlet's red monocle's scope spun in place. "I've got other plans. I'll make a deal with you. I'll tell you what Dr. Patronete wrote before he croaked and you'll help draw out Caliban. We share the information he has, I get his head, you kids get to leave this town unharmed."
"I think that sounds reasonable," Pyro said to his friends.
"Well, it's your call, fearless leader," Scott grunted. "Are we gonna accept or not?"
Wanda looked at Gauntlet, knowing that the chance he would keep his end of the bargain was slim, but at the moment, she had little choice. They could try to fight their way out of the inn, but it was a great risk... but they had always taken risks. She made up her mind.
Wanda gulped, and told Gauntlet her decision.
It's a cliffhanger, my friends. More Bastions? Uh oh.
Just some background info: Gauntlet had his right arm cut off by a renegade Logan in LoA. Dr. Patronete scribbled something on his notebook before the legacy spores killed him. How Gauntlet came to get that information will be revealed soon enough. As for Sauron... keeping him away from the main action is a slight reference to Lord of the Rings (given that in the comics, Karl Lykos named himself after LOTR's Sauron), as Sauron never makes an appearance in the book, despite being the central villain, but is always watching. Don't worry, I'm not going to follow it that closely.