A/N: Special thanks to everyone for reviewing the last chapter-
WingDing9- Love of Kiotr is something that we both have in common.
TheDreamerLady- Glad you liked it…
MoonlightPhoenix3- It's alright about the late review, I'm just glad you enjoyed those chapters. I plan on using Mr. Marko at some point down the road, I just haven't gotten the details together yet…
B- Thanks for the review, glad you liked the dramatic ending…
JosiahGirl- I'm glad you tuned and like what you see. I'll try my best not to disappoint…
Lucas'sgirl- Thanks for the review. Glad you loved the Kiotr action, it's a scene that I had been anticipating writing for a while now. Well, it looks like your wait is finally over…
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"That one is kinda cute." Theresa said, as she and Rahne stood together in the local shopping center located in Ullapool.
"Shhhh! What if they were t'hear ye?" Rahne said, as she shushed Theresa.
They were talking about a small group of teenage boys around the same age as Rahne and Theresa, who had gathered in an open area of the mall one floor below them.
"Then, maybe they'd make me a very lucky girl." Theresa joked, as she looked directly at Rahne. Normally, it was the kind of humor that she and Kitty loved to engage in, but Rahne's strict and religious upbringing had left her unprepared to hear that kind of talk.
"Such talk tis'nae proper, and is sinful. Ye shouldn't talk about the opposite sex in such a manner." Rahne whispered, as she looked down at the boys and started to blush a little.
"Oh, calm down will ye, I was only joking. It's not like I'm gonna go off and do something 'immoral' with one of them." Theresa responded, as she put her arm around her new friend who seemed to be honestly bothered by the subject matter of their conversation.
"Aye, I know. It's just that ye still shouldn't--" Rahne started, but stopped when her train of thought was interrupted…
"X-Men!"
"X-Men!"
"Come quickly! Muir Island is under attack! Someone has sent--"
The psychic shockwave quickly, and violently, passed through the minds of the two girls. While Theresa was used to Professor Xavier's mind calls, this one was strong enough to still send her reeling for a moment. But, Rahne had never had the experience of a telepath going into her mind. The sheer magnitude of this message instantly sent her to the ground, holding her head in agony.
"Theresa, what's going on?!" Rahne loudly cried out, as she lay on the ground with tears running down her face, "It feels like mah head is going t'explode."
The other shoppers in the mall looked on and wondered what was wrong with the two girls, since Theresa and Rahne were the only ones that received the Professor's message.
"It's the Professor, but he never calls us like that." Theresa said, as she regained her bearings. "Something really bad is happening."
Theresa helped Rahne to her feet, and then spoke again.
"Let's go find m'Dad and Ms. Munroe." Theresa told her, as the two started off out of the mall…
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Theresa, Rahne, Peter, and Kitty all hurriedly made their way to the ferry port, where Ororo and Sean had told them to meet when it was time to go back to Muir Island. Sean and Ororo were already there, looking out across the water on the cool and brisk night. They were discussing their next course of action, as they saw smoke rising over Muir Island in the distance.
"Who do ye think is behind this?" Sean asked Ororo as they watched, unable to do anything about it at this point.
"It could be any number of enemies that the X-Men have made over the years. What is certain, there was fear in the Professor's call of desperation. That is something I have rarely sensed from him." Ororo answered.
"Ye have a point. It did pack quite a wallop, and Charley isn't one to easily resort to dramatic displays like that." Sean observed.
Just then, Kitty and Peter ran up to them.
"What's going on, Ms. Munroe?" Kitty asked, as they all stood together.
"We have precious little to tell you at this point." Ororo replied to her.
As soon as Ororo said that, a sense of alarm came over the group as they saw and heard a second explosion across the channel on Muir Island.
"By the White Wolf!" Peter gasped, as he looked on.
"My thoughts exactly." Sean told him, "Ororo, no use in tryin' t'wait on the ferry, the two of us can make there a lot faster anyways."
"Agreed. As soon as Theresa and Rahne's safety is assured, we will make our way over there." Ororo told him.
"What about us?" Kitty asked her, wondering where she and Peter fit into the scheme of things.
"This will not be a Danger Room session. Do you two feel that are you are ready for an actual combat situation?" Ororo asked both Kitty and Peter.
"If the Professor is in danger, then Colossus is most definitely prepared." Peter stoically replied.
"Yeah, what the big guy said goes for me too." Kitty added with a smile.
"I don't think we really have the luxury of debating the issue at this point, Ororo. We're gonna need all the help we can muster." Sean concluded.
A few minutes later, Theresa and Rahne made it to the ferry port where the rest of the group had gathered.
"What's wrong with the Professor? He mind-blasted Rahne and me, and we're not even X-Men." Theresa asked, as she went and stood by her father.
"It was an act of desperation." Ororo answered, "He was reaching out to any familiar thought pattern in his request for help."
"Rahne, do ye know where Moira's estate at Kinross is?" Sean asked her.
"Yes, sir." Rahne replied, as she looked up at him.
"I want you and Theresa to go there, it's not too far from here." Sean ordered them, "Find the groundskeeper of the estate, tell him who you are and about what is happening on Muir Island. Willie will know how to get into contact with the X-Men back home."
Rahne immediately turned and did as Sean told her, but Theresa wasn't so quick to obey her father.
"But Da', I wanna go with you." Theresa protested, "Kitty and Peter are gettin' to go."
"This is not some sort of game, young lady!" Sean quickly replied to his daughter, "We don't know what kind of danger is waiting over there, and I don't intend to argue the issue any further. Now, you two get goin' t'Kinross, and be careful."
With that, Theresa turned and followed behind Rahne, stomping off in the direction where Moira's ancestral estate was located.
As the two girls departed, the remaining X-Men prepared to make their leave as well.
"Kitty, I can carry you over with me. Sean, I believe that you should be able to ferry Peter across to Muir Island, as long as he is not in his armored form." Ororo told them.
"Well, tonight ye get t'see if this old man still has some of his moves left." Sean smiled, as he then turned towards Peter, "Ye should probably cover yuir ears, me sonic scream that allows me t'fly can be ear-splittin'."
"I am not too concerned. We have managed to survive being around Siryn since her arrival at our school." Peter joked, as he tried to lighten the mood before they headed off to Muir Island.
Storm then took Shadowcat by her left hand, and mentally called up a gust of wind to carry the two of them upwards and towards Muir Island. Meanwhile, Banshee let out a sonic scream that created numerous sound vibrations around him, lifting him up into the air as well. He grabbed Colossus by both hands and picked him up to follow behind Storm and Shadowcat.
Then the quartet was off, to face an as yet, unidentified enemy…
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While the X-Men in Scotland were preparing themselves for the worst, the X-Men back home in Salem Center were going about their daily business, totally unaware of the danger that lied ahead for their teammates.
"How are Alex and Lorna doing?" Hank asked Scott, as the two of them had finally made it to the lab area, down in the lower levels of the mansion.
"They're doing good. Both of them should be finishing their doctorate's degrees in a few years. They're even talking about getting married, if you can believe that?" Scott replied, as he took a seat in the lab, "It seems like it was only yesterday that Lorna and my little brother were students here."
"Indeed. As the saying goes '…as does time slip through the hourglass of life'." Hank said, as he took a seat in front of a computer terminal in the lab.
"Hopefully, they'll at least get the happy ending that I wish Jean and I could have had." Scott confessed.
"You and I both are living examples that our expectations of life do not necessarily work out the way that we want them to, even under the best of circumstances." Hank told him.
"Speaking of lost loves, when was the last time that you spoke to…" Scott started to ask, but Hank interrupted.
"I haven't tried." Hank quickly replied, "Despite how much I may want to."
"I guess I shouldn't have brought that up, it must still be a pretty sore subject." Scott apologized.
"I didn't mean to snap at you, my bestest chum. But, I guess it does still hurt after all of these years." Hank continued, "I've only been able to come to grips with her wish that we distance ourselves from one another, by trying to find some good in our separation. I at least like to think that it gave me the opportunity to fully dedicate myself in my pursuits in the field of science."
"And now at running a school. Who would've thought that?" Scott smirked, "But, I guess the Professor and this school are lucky that you decided to take him up on his offer."
"To be honest, after spending some time with him, I think Logan could have done just as good of a job as me." Hank told him.
"Are you serious?" Scott asked surprisingly.
"You really don't like him, do you?" Hank inquired.
"It's not whether I like him personally or not, I just think he's too reckless." Scott explained, "It's fine for him to go off half-cocked, he has a healing factor that'll manage to scrape him back up. But, most of the kids here don't have that advantage."
"So, it's his methods that you don't agree with?" Hank queried.
"I accept that he's an important part of the team, it's just that I think he's a bad influence on the students." Scott told him.
"Because they like him more?" Hank continued.
"Which shouldn't be any surprise, he's their walking 'definition' of cool." Scott responded, "He doesn't take well to authority, he basically says and does whatever he wants, whenever he wants…"
"And with you being the main authority figure, save the Professor, he does all of the things that you cannot." Hank pointed out.
Scott realized that Hank was making a case for him being jealous of Logan, and Scott started to wonder if maybe that was the truth behind why he didn't like Logan?
"The Professor filled me in on what went on between you two, before he left for Siberia. Are you sure that this is not about Jean, and the feelings that the both of you had for her?" Hank asked him, point blank.
"I want to say no, but maybe it's possible." Scott truthfully answered, "Logan has a wildside, something which I definitely don't. Who could blame Jean for seeing that as an appealing alternative?"
"It's funny, I think Logan pretty much reciprocates the same feelings towards you." Hank told him.
"How do you know that?" Scott asked him.
"He told me so, more or less." Hank replied, "During one our few chats that we had before he left for the Far East, Logan intimated that he thought you were the lucky one. When your name came up, his response was, and I quote, 'Most of the time, 'One-eye' treats me like I'm some bum off the street, just because he's the perfect livin' example of Xavier's dream. Hell, Jeannie was thinkin' only about him in her last few moments in this world. It's no wonder the guy thinks he's better than the rest of us."
Scott heard what Hank said, and was shocked by that revelation.
"I…never told Logan anything like that." Scott said to Hank.
"Perhaps not verbally, but sometimes perception can become a man's own reality. Behind his rough exterior and 'I-don't-care' attitude, Logan is a man just like the rest of us. Being a leader is about more than just knowing every aspect of stratagem, or effectively giving out orders. It is also about maintaining a conducive relationship with everyone under your command." Hank responded.
After hearing that, Scott realized that despite his desire to be the ideal leader, he had dismally failed in the department that dealt with the human side of his fellow X-Men, Logan in particular. He knew that it was something that he would need to give more attention to in the future…
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While Scott pondered what Hank had revealed to him, a student upstairs in the school's computer lab was about to experience a very cruel twist of fate.
"Almost finished, Ah can't believe it. It took me most of tha day, but Ah'm almost finished!" Samuel Guthrie, also known as Cannonball, joyously exclaimed. He was about to complete an essay that was due tomorrow, which he had typed up on the computer in front of him.
"All Ah got left t'do is finish this sentence and hit save, and Ah-am-done." Sam said, as he was about to finish up his work.
But suddenly, the computer monitor in front of him went completely blank.
"No, wait a minute, wait a minute, this ain't happenin'!" Sam repeated, as he hurriedly hit the keys on the keyboard in front of him, in an attempt to retrieve his essay.
Thinking that his efforts were futile, Sam soon put his head down on the desk in front of him.
"Ah hate computers..." Sam muttered.
What Sam didn't realize was that his work hadn't been lost, thanks to the master back up file on the main server. What had happened was that the entire computer network throughout the mansion had been re-routed back to the master system, when it went into emergency fail-safe mode.
It was something that immediately caught the attention of Hank McCoy.
"This is most peculiar." Hank said as he looked at the monitor in front of him, which had unrestricted access into the main server.
"What is it?" Scott asked, as he sat in his chair close by.
"The mansion's computer network is receiving an extremely massive download from Muir Island, through the direct link that we have to their network." Hank informed him.
"How massive?" Scott asked.
"It appears that every single file that Dr. MacTaggert has, is being sent here." Hank revealed, as he tried to fathom a guess as to why this was happening...
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Storm, Colossus, Banshee, and Shadowcat had all landed on the shoreline of Muir Island a few minutes after leaving the ferry port at Ullapool. Now, it was time to find out what exactly caused the Professor to send out such a desperate cry for help, and then suddenly be silenced. As they slowly approached the research facility, the group was careful to avoid being detected until they could learn the identity of the island's assailant. Then they saw…Them.
"Storm, is that what I think it is?" Shadowcat gasped, as she saw something that was about one hundred yards from them.
"I am afraid so. There are Sentinels attacking this island." Storm confirmed.
What the X-Men saw looked like something from a science-fiction movie. In front of them stood a couple of large robots that looked humanoid in appearance. They were colored in shades of dark and light purple, were about twenty feet tall, and had eyes that glowed an eery red. The Sentinel's eyes appeared as though they could burn a hole straight through steel. In reality, thanks to the weapons that were installed into the constructs, they could very easily do just that.
"Storm I thought that you told us, during our class on the history of the X-Men, the man who built the Sentinels was dead." Colossus asked her.
"We thought he had perished during a battle between the X-Men and his Sentinels." Storm answered, now questioning that belief herself.
"At any rate, it looks like we're in for one hum-dinger of a brawl." Sean stated as he looked at Storm, who served as the X-Men's second-in-command behind Cyclops, "What's our plan of attack?"
"Shadowcat, enter the complex and see if you can locate the Professor and Dr. MacTaggert. Colossus, Banshee, and myself will attempt to draw the Sentinels away from the facility." Storm told them.
"Will do." Shadowcat replied, as she started towards the facility. But, she stopped when the most important voice in the world to her spoke.
"Katya, be careful." Colossus said to her, as he stood next to Banshee and Storm.
"Promise." Shadowcat said, as she nodded her head yes and then touched her lips with two of her fingers, blowing him a semi-kiss. Then, she continued over to the facility and phased through one of it's thick outer walls.
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While the small group of X-Men prepared themselves for the fight of their lives, Theresa and Rahne were stopped on an empty road, halfway between Moira's estate in Kinross and Ullapool.
"Why did we stop? Is there something wrong?" Rahne asked Theresa, as they stood next to the road.
"I think we should go to Muir Island with the others." Theresa told her.
"But your father told us not to, and I don't think we should go disobeyin' him." Rahne replied.
"Ye don't always have to be such a goody-two shoes." Theresa told her, "Besides, what if they're in trouble, and need our help?"
"Do you think Miss Moira might really be in danger?" Rahne asked her, with concern in her voice.
"There's only one way to find out." Theresa smiled.
"But how are we goin' t'get there?" Rahne further questioned.
"I can fly us there with my powers. It'll be the farthest I've gone, but I think I can do it." Theresa answered.
"Okay, if yuir sure." Rahne agreed hesitantly.
The girls then turned and started towards the channel of water that lay in between Muir Island and the Scottish mainland. They had no idea, however, that Muir Island was the least safe place a mutant could be at that moment.
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Shadowcat quickly made her way down a number of corridors and back rooms in the huge research compound, not exactly sure of where she was heading. Eventually, she found herself inside of what she assumed to be one of the auxiliary laboratories. She came to that conclusion by the fact that the lights were off in the room, and it didn't appear that it had been in use anytime recently.
She continued on through the moderate sized room until she got to the other side, where the entrance of the auxiliary lab was and prepared to phase through its door. On the other side of the door, Shadowcat recognized that she was now in the facility's computer hub.
And in less than a second, she also realized that she wasn't in there alone.
"Halt."
Upon hearing the monotone voice as it boomed, Shadowcat saw that a Sentinel robot was also occupying the room that she had just entered. She noticed that the Sentinel had blasted it's own entrance through the wall on the opposite side of the room. But, Shadowcat noticed something else as well. She saw that it was holding an unconscious person in it's grasp, and upon closer inspection, she realized that the person was none other than Dr. Moira MacTaggert herself!
"Dr. MacTaggert! Hey you, put her down." Shadowcat ordered the Sentinel, hoping that she might get lucky and it would do as she said.
But, she was going to have no such luck this night.
"Scanning target: target possesses mutagenic anamoly. Scanning database. Identification confirmed: target is Katherine Pryde, cross-referencing: target also identified as Shadowcat. Unit 0005: Initiating termination sequence, per Prime Directive: Three." The Sentinel said, as it raised it's other hand in the direction towards Shadowcat.
At that point, the Sentinel unleashed a powerful and bright energy blast from it's palm, obliterating everything in it's path. Shadowcat instinctively reacted, and blindly phased through the floor to avoid the blast.
Blindly phasing through objects held the same element of danger for Shadowcat, that blindly teleporting held for her teammate Nightcrawler. By not knowing where she was going, she had no idea where she was going to end up. Example in point, Shadowcat made it through the floor to the room below her. The room below was actually the storage basement of the research facility, and while Shadowcat had expected a small drop to the floor below, she hadn't anticipated a thirty-foot drop from the ceiling. Shadowcat instantly tried to regain her composure and phase herself once again, trying to slow down her descent as she rapidly fell.
But, the shock of the height that she was currently at had momentarily broken her concentration, and try as she might, Shadowcat continued falling downward.
She then hit some boxes and other objects in storage below, with a very loud thud…
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Outside of the compound, the other three outnumbered X-Men were busy, trying to handle all of the other Sentinels on the island.
"Banshee, take me up as high in the air as you can, and then drop me into these monsters." Colossus asked him.
"Do ye think ye can handle goin' into the whole lot of those mechanical menaces, me boyo?" Banshee questioned.
"Once I am in my armored form, they will regret making their trespass here." Colossus said, as Banshee grabbed his hands, and then used his sonic-scream to lift the both of them up into the air.
While Storm was using her elemental powers to electrocute two of the large robots, Banshee flew Colossus up skyward. Then, Banshee released Colossus, allowing him to free-fall back to the ground. Colossus instantly converted his entire body into organic-steel in mid-air. This caused the shirt and pants that he was wearing to stretch and rip around his arms and thighs, due to the increase in size and mass that accompanied his mutant conversion. His descent to the ground began to quickly accelerate, and it turned him into a sort of human wrecking ball aimed at the four Sentinels below.
Colossus hit with a thunderous reverberation, as he went straight through the chest of one of the Sentinels and put it down for good. Debris from the demolished Sentinel flew and hit two of the others, causing damage to those units, but leaving them still active.
"Unit 0003, 0004, 0008 and 0010 Damage Assessment: Unit 0004 status: Now offline. Unit 0003, 0008 and 0010 continuing assessment, Units suffering from decrease in external structural integrity. Analysis: Remaining Units still functional. Units detecting multiple mutagenic anomalies in immediate vicinity. Initiating termination sequence of targets: Peter Rasputin: cross-referenced as Colossus, Sean Cassidy: cross-referenced as Banshee. Re-engaging in termination sequence of target: Ororo Munroe: cross-referenced as Storm." The Sentinels said, as they began to fire at all three X-Men.
Colossus grabbed an arm belonging to the fallen Sentinel, and proceeded to use it as a club to strike out at one of it's comrades. While Colossus knocked the Sentinel down, another nearby unit that was still functioning instantly blasted Colossus with it's own energy beam.
Colossus was knocked off balance and sent to the ground hard. As the Sentinel continued blasting, Colossus found himself being pulverized and driven into the ground, as a large crater began to form around him. Colossus had long wondered what the limits of his invulnerability were, and he feared that he might soon find out. But to the rescue was Banshee, who flew up behind the Sentinel that was blasting Colossus to help his new teammate.
He tore the Sentinel to shreds with a piercing sonic-scream, one that was very tightly aimed at the unit. But by destroying that Sentinel, Banshee drew the attention of two more Sentinels that had just arrived there from another part of the facility. One of these units fired a gas grenade near Colossus and Banshee, and it immediately exploded upon impact.
While in his armored form Colossus, was un-phased by the gas. But, Banshee's powers did not give him that same advantage. Luckily, the gas installed in the Sentinels by their creators was of a non-lethal mixture. They had intentionally made it non-lethal, in case the Sentinels had to use it an area populated by non-mutants. The gas still served it's purpose though, as it knocked Banshee out cold. While the two Sentinels prepared to move in for the kill and finish Banshee off, Storm hit one of the robots with a lightning bolt that fried it's circuitry.
Just then, Unit 0005 blasted a hole through the roof of the research facility and took off into the air. The remaining Sentinel units immediately took notice of this.
"Unit 0005 has accomplished Prime Directive: One. Target: Moira MacTaggert is now secure. Units 0002, 0007, 0008 and 0011 disengaging in combat maneuvers. Units now providing additional security to Unit 0005, per Prime Directive: One."
After hearing the Sentinels, Colossus immediately understood what they meant.
"Storm, we must stop the one that is flying away. It has Dr. MacTaggert." Colossus told her.
Without a response, Storm instantly flew high up into the air to pursue Unit 0005. The Sentinel had placed Dr. Moira MacTaggert in a containment unit that was built into its upper torso. But, the other Sentinels recalled their programming that commanded them to ensure that Moira was taken back to their base. So, they fired numerous blasts at Storm, who was doing her best to dodge them and continue following the one that had Moira. But, one Sentinel did manage to land a grazing blow on Storm with its energy blast, and it sent her spiraling down into the murky night water around Muir Island. She hit the water not very far from the Muir Island coastline, and Colossus quickly dashed down there to get to Storm before she drowned. Meanwhile, the Sentinels were now able to make good on their escape.
Colossus had made a mental note as to the area where Storm had went into the water. When he got to the water's edge, he converted himself back to his human form so that he could swim more easily, and jumped in. After searching for a few minutes in the place where she had fallen in, he found her just in time. Peter was able to drag the both of them back to the shoreline, where he immediately collapsed and they both laid for a while.
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"Man, I feel like I just used one of those nine lives Jubilee is always saying that I have." Kitty said to herself, as she sat up on top of the boxes in the basement. She was thinking about all of the 'cat' references Jubilee had made to her because of her real name and also her codename.
As she sat there and regained her composure, Kitty felt water trickling down her forehead. As she put her hand up there, a dim light in the basement revealed that it was actually her own blood on her hand. She had hit the storage boxes fairly hard, and while they most likely kept her injuries from being a lot worse, the fall into them did create a noticeable gash above her face. Kitty decided to get up, and look for a way out of the basement. She wanted to go help Moira, and then find the Professor. Kitty made her way up the staircase in the basement and phased through the door, but she was extra cautious this time.
She looked around the corridor outside and didn't see anybody. Kitty started to walk down it and instantly recognized the part of the facility that she was in, it was the hallway that led to the main laboratory in the facility. She slowly made her way down to the main lab, keeping a constant lookout for any Sentinels that might still be lurking around in the compound.
Finally, she made it to the entrance of the lab and peeked in to see if anybody was in there. As she looked in, Kitty saw that the lab was a total wreck. She walked through the wreckage in the room, as equipment and parts of equipment were strewn about and rubble was everywhere from where the Sentinels had demolished most of the roof and part of the lab's walls. But, the next thing that she saw made her stomach leap up into her throat.
It was the Professor's wheelchair, lying under some rubble from the caved in roof. She didn't see him anywhere and she knew he wouldn't be able to go anywhere without his wheelchair. She wondered if the Sentinels had grabbed him too? As she scanned the area around the wheelchair for clues, Kitty found a very big one.
She saw a hand barely sticking out through a pile of fallen concrete, from where the roof had fallen down. Kitty recognized the brown glove on the hand as being the same one that the Professor wore. She took hold of the hand and phased the person out from under the rubble. Kitty's worse fear was realized, as she immediately identified the individual as being that kind, older man that brought her to his school when her ability to walk and fall through solid objects first emerged. The Professor looked like he had some very major injuries after being buried underneath the debris in the lab.
"Professor! Can you hear me?" Kitty called to him, as she cradled his head in her lap hoping for a response.
But, she didn't get one. A feeling of dread came over Kitty, as she had to do one of the hardest things in her life up to that point. She reached down, and checked the Professor's pulse just like she had been taught in her CPR training back at the school. She was relieved when she felt one, although it wasn't very strong. She then checked his breathing, and it sounded like he was breathing irregularly.
"Don't panic, just don't panic." Kitty thought to herself, as she tried to keep calm so that she could help the Professor.
She decided that the best thing she could do would be to go to the med-lab inside of the research facility. Kitty remembered that she and Theresa had passed it once, it was on the night when they had first arrived on Muir Island. She didn't want to leave Professor Xavier alone in his current condition, but she didn't think that she had much choice. She knew that the equipment in the med-lab would be necessary to stabilize him until they could get someone a little more experienced to look at him, somebody like Storm. So, off Kitty went out of the main lab…
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"Peter? Peter, can you hear me?" A voice said to him, as he lay near the water's edge on Muir Island.
"Da (Yes)." Peter replied, as he slowly picked himself up from the muddy ground.
He then felt someone reach around his massive upper body and try to help him up. As Peter's vision came back into focus, he realized that Ororo was the one talking to and helping him. Peter saw that Ororo's white hair was still wet. He realized that they were both soaked to the bone, and freezing from their deep-sea dive.
"You saved my life. Thank you." Ororo said, as the pair gingerly made their way back to the research compound. Peter could tell by how she was walking, that Ororo was in pretty bad shape.
"There is no need for thanks. It is what you have taught us to do, Ms. Munroe." Peter replied.
"After what we've been through tonight, just call me Ororo. You and Kitty have, at the very least, earned that." Ororo told him, as she held her side.
"Ororo," Peter said, even though it felt strange to be calling his teacher by her first name, "How badly are you injured?"
"It feels as though the worst of it is in my right leg and my side, where the Sentinel's blast partially hit me." Ororo replied, as she limped alongside Peter.
Peter saw that the red blouse that she was wearing was singed from the blast on her right side, leaving a very nasty burn on her skin. But despite the pain, Ororo continued on and didn't give him any visible sign that relayed the discomfort he knew that she must've been feeling.
Peter had always looked up to her as a perfect example of a beautiful and strong woman. But he realized now that she was one of the toughest people that he had ever met. As they took a few more steps, the pain from Ororo's leg injury finally became too much for her to bear, and she had to sit down for a moment. After resting for a couple of minutes, Ororo got up to continue their trek, but Peter stopped her.
"Peter, what are you doing?" Ororo asked, as Peter picked her up and cradled her in his arms.
"You are in no condition to walk with your leg in such a state." Peter told her, as he held her in his arms.
"Do you intend to carry me the entire way back?" Ororo smiled, thinking that Peter wasn't serious.
"Yes," Peter replied, "After what we have been through tonight, it is the very least that you deserve."
Peter proceeded to carry Ororo the entire distance from the shoreline to the research complex. When they neared one of the entrances, they both saw that the knock-out gas that had been released had worn off on Sean.
"Somethin' tells me I'm gonna have m'self one killer of a headache in the morning." Sean told them.
"I suppose that we should thank the goddess that we are still able to feel anything at this point." Ororo said, as Peter put her down and helped her over to a nearby rock to have a seat.
Just then, Kitty came outside to where the rest of the X-Men were.
"Geez, I thought I looked bad. You guys really got run through the wringer." Kitty said, as she looked at the state everyone was in.
"Do you think that you should be joking about something so serious, Katya?" Peter asked her.
"I can either joke about it or just burst into tears. I don't much feel like crying, and it wouldn't do the Professor any good." Kitty replied to her boyfriend.
"Is the Professor all right?" Ororo asked, as she continued to sit.
"He's unconscious. It looks he was buried under some rubble after one of the Sentinels started an impromptu remodeling job." Kitty replied, "I went and got some equipment to help stabilize his breathing and help monitor his vitals, but beyond that I'm pretty much out of my league."
"But he is going to be okay, isn't he?" Another unexpected voice said, as she startled the entire group.
"What in the name of all that's holy are you two doin' here?! I specifically told the both of ye t'get t'Moira's home!" Sean shouted, as Rahne and Theresa now stood in front of the research complex.
"We did'na mean t'disobey ye, Mr. Cassidy. We were just so concerned about ye all, and about Miss Moira." Rahne apologized.
"That may be. But had ye been here a few minutes earlier, those Sentinels would have blown the two of ye into the next century." Sean told her.
"Sentinels?" Rahne asked, not having the slightest idea what he was talking about.
"They're giant, mutant-hunting robots." Sean quickly responded, "But that's besides the point. What I want t'know is how did ye get here in the first place?"
"Theresa used her powers to fly us over here." Rahne answered.
Sean then looked angrily at his daughter.
"Is that true?" Sean asked her.
But the only response that Theresa gave was a simple nod yes.
"What's the matter young lady, cat got yuir tongue?" Sean asked, as he continued grilling her.
"She can't talk right now, sir. I think she hurt her voice flyin' us over here." Rahne told him.
"I would say it serves ye right, but we have enough injuries as it is, without adding to that list." Sean said, as Theresa just looked down at the ground.
"Speaking of injuries, we had better go see what the Professor's condition is." Storm said, as she willed herself to stand up.
"Where is Miss Moira? Shouldn't she be lookin' after the Professor?" Rahne asked.
"Yeah, where is the sole heir to Lord Kinross at anyways?" Sean asked, as he had been unconscious during the Sentinels' escape.
Ororo and Peter looked at Rahne, and then they looked at one another. They knew they had to tell Rahne the truth, but they were having trouble finding the words.
"Rahne, dear, something has happened. Moira isn't here right now, but we are going to find her very soon." Ororo started.
"Where is she? Please, ye have t'tell me what's happened?" Rahne begged them.
"During our fight with the Sentinels, one of them grabbed her. Storm tried to stop it, but there were just too many of them." Peter told her, and watched as the young girl's heart sank right before him, "But Ororo is correct, we will not rest until we have found Dr. MacTaggert."
"This is all mah fault!" Rahne shouted at them, as tears began to well up in her eyes upon hearing the news that the only person that genuinely seemed to care about her, was now gone.
"It's not your fault, it's the fault of whatever maniac built those things." Kitty said, trying to calm Rahne down.
"No, don't ye understand! Reverend Craig said I'm an evil creature, and now Miss Moira is bein' punished by the Almighty for takin' me in. She should've just left me to die, and then none of this would be happenin'!" Rahne said as she took off, running as fast as she could away from the facility.
"I will follow her." Peter said, as he started to go after Rahne. But, Ororo stopped him.
"Let her be alone for awhile." Ororo told him, "Take it from someone that lost both of her parents as a child. Moira is like a mother to that girl, and nothing that you can say right now is going to ease that pain. I will have a talk with her, after we take care of the Professor."
The entire group then turned to go into damaged research facility, both to check on Professor Xavier and to tend to their own various injuries. As they were going in, Kitty stopped Peter while the rest of the group walked ahead of them.
"Ororo? What's the deal with that?" Kitty asked, as she wondered why Peter was now on a first name basis with their instructor.
"It is a long story and I will fill you in later, Katya." Peter said, as he put his arm around Kitty and hugged her tightly, before they walked into the compound together…
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Next Chapter: Aftermath…