It's All Relative
Chapter One
Two weeks later
"Logan?"
"Leave me alone."
Jean Grey stood in the doorway, watching her close friend with sad eyes. It had been almost three weeks since the attack on Professor Charles Xavier by Henry Peter Gyrich, a man obsessed with ridding the world of what was coming to be known as the 'Mutant Menace', and a little more than two weeks since the Shi'ar Empress Lilandra took him to receive advanced medical care on her alien home world. Jean wouldn't have doubted if Logan had not slept more than an hour at a time since the first event. She certainly hadn't.
They stood on one of the lower levels of the Xavier Institute for Gifted Youngsters. It was a place that, as of late, had housed mixed emotions by many frustrated souls, and the main one being a question of what to do next.
Logan waited impatiently for Jean to leave so the Danger Room's program would start up again.
"Logan," Jean tried again, "please talk to me."
"Don't feel much like talkin'," he stiffly shook his head. Fighting the Danger Room's holograms is better therapy than talkin'll ever be, he thought, knowing Jean would be listening. I tried talkin' to the Professor; look where that got me. He's gone, and I'm alone. Nobody here can help me with that.
Jean bit her lower lip as Logan's thoughts echoed in her mind. Of all the other X-Men, she was most worried about him. Xavier's teachings and understanding had calmed his tortured soul. Would he be able to keep himself under control without the Professor's help? She wasn't sure if she understood what he felt, but she knew he had to sort some things out by himself.
"If you change your mind," she replied quietly. "I'm always here for you." Then she turned and left, the door closing behind her.
"I know, Jeanny," Logan mumbled as the holograms re-appeared. "I know."
"Where's Wolverine?" Scott Summers, known better as Cyclops, demanded as Jean walked into the War Room. As the leader of the X-Men, Cyclops had taken up Xavier's mantle of teacher and mentor in an attempt to keep some semblance of control over the pending emotional chaos. Predictably, it had not worked as well as hoped.
"He's in the Danger Room," she replied.
"Well, get him up here. We still have our duties whether he likes it or not. Mutant riots have gone up ten percent, even without Magneto leading them."
"Scott, I don't think he's ready-"
"Jean, I don't want to hear it," Cyclops said slowly, the stressful anger evident in his voice. "He's still an X-Man and as long as I'm in charge, he'll act like it! I'm not having him go AWOL on us just because he can't handle the current situation!"
"Take it easy, mon ami," Remy LeBeau, or Gambit, tried to calm him down while exchanging a worried look across the table with the enigmatic Southern Belle known only as Rogue. "Wolverine will come aroun' if you jus' give him da time."
"We don't have time to waste, Gambit," Cyclops snapped. "Magneto wasn't the only mutant megalomaniac likely to begin a revolution. We've got to act before the mutant race calls for another leader."
"They're afraid, Scott," Jean said. "Most believe that if humanity can target someone like the Professor, the most normal-looking a mutant can be, then there is no hope for those whose mutations have manifested a more physical presence."
"Of course they're afraid," Cyclops replied. "That's why I am trying to maintain some sense of order here!"
"Well, y'all ain't bein' very leader-like about it, the way Ah see it," Rogue interjected.
"Rogue-"
"Ah don' need ta take this," she shook her head, standing up. "Call me if y'all stop actin' like some spoiled l'il brat!" She stormed out of the room with Gambit close behind.
Jubilee watched them go, squirming in her seat as she suddenly felt very awkward. Her first instinct was to go with them, but she didn't want Cyclops to go ballistic on her as well.
"Oh dear," Hank McCoy, or Beast, rubbed his blue, furry chin thoughtfully. "Perhaps if would be best to issue a brief recess in this meeting until emotions are slightly more controlled?"
"We don't have much choice when two teammates decide that they can leave whenever they feel like it and three don't think it important enough to attend a meeting, do we?" Cyclops threw up his hands in frustration and stormed out of the room. Jean watched him go with a frown on her face. Though she disagreed with his view of the situation, her love for her husband was as strong as ever and her first instinct was to follow him.
The door opened again as Storm and Morph entered the room, looks of bewilderment on their faces.
"I was beginning to think we missed the meeting," Morph chuckled. "There seems to be a steady stream of X-Men from this room."
"It appeared that Cyclops was especially upset," Storm nodded. "What was the matter?"
"The same thing that's the matter with everyone else around here!" Jubilee crossed her arms. "The world is going crazy and there's nothing we can do about it! Well this mall babe knows where she belongs when things go berserk. Maybe the arcade's got a new game since yesterday." She stood up and left the room as well.
"I would attempt to comfort her," Beast said. "But one of her beloved electronic games is more likely to have a higher success rate. I believe it is in young Jubilation's best interest to get some fresh air to vent her frustrations."
"If only it were so easy for Logan," Jean shook her head. "He would not let me talk to him. I'm worried that he may be considering leaving."
"I'll talk to him, Jeanny," Morph assured her.
"Thank you, Morph," she smiled. "In the meantime, I'd better check on Scott. Hopefully I'll be able to calm him down."
Cyclops slammed the door to his quarters behind him and walked to the window. The sun was setting on the horizon, casting streaks of crimson and lavender across the darkening sky. Far below, he could see Rogue and Gambit walking down the mansion's driveway with Jubilee running to catch up with them.
"I'm losing them, Professor," he directed his words to the sky. "I'm not the leader that I thought I could be. I don't know how to keep things under control." He paused for a moment to collect his thoughts. "How are we supposed to continue what you trained us to do, to work together, if we can't even all be in the same room together?"
He waited, as if he expected an answer. When none came, he folded his arms on the windowsill and lay his head down on top.
So many thoughts swirled inside Cyclops's head; so many things that he was having a hard time working out. Everything had seemed to be going so well, and then one unexpected attack by one son-of-a-bitch human rights activist and the Professor had lain so close to death.
To make matters worse, he and the other X-Men had stood helpless at his bedside, watching him slip away. And the only one who had been able to come to Xavier's aid and help him contact Lilandra had been Magneto, a mutant who considered their race of Homo sapiens superior to be destined to inherit, if not seize the world from baseline humans. He was perhaps their greatest enemy, but also a man who considered Xavier to be his only equal and even an estranged friend.
This was probably the worst pain for Cyclops over everything else. It should have been he who was to help the Professor.
"You were like a father to me," he said, his stomach tightening. "And I couldn't do anything..." His voice trailed off as his throat tightened.
"Scott?" Jean's voice reached him from the doorway. He didn't move. "Scott, please don't beat yourself up over this. It is not your fault. The others-"
"Are under my command and I am supposed to be able to keep things under control," he cut her off. "You heard Rogue. How can I be a leader if I can't act like one?"
"You were put in this position very suddenly," Jean tried to reason with him. "While you've always been our leader, you've always had the Professor to count on for guidance. Nobody expects you to be able to run everything smoothly right now."
"What do I do then?"
Jean moved closer to him and comfortingly laid her hand on his back. "Give it time. Give everyone time to come to terms with the situation. They'll come back when they're ready."
Cyclops sighed, realizing that she was right. He couldn't force opinions on them. They had to choose to remain on the team. He turned around and held her close. She was his strength; his voice of reason. "I just wish I could know if he's proud of me."
"Of course he is."
"Gambit! Rogue! Wait up!"
The two mutants turned to see Jubilee running to catch up with them. "What is it, petite?" Gambit asked.
"I didn't wanna stay there any longer than I had to," the young girl explained.
"Well, i's all right if you come wit us, n'est-ce pas, chère?" Gambit directed his question to Rogue, who was not paying attention to either of them. "You okay, chère?"
"Wha?--Ah dunno, Remy," Rogue shook her head. She folded her arms and stared, trance-like, up at the sky. "Ah feel somethin' Ah haven't felt in a long time...Ah need ta be alone for a while." Rogue flew off toward the city without another word.
"Where's she going?" Jubilee wrinkled her nose.
"She'll be okay, petite," Gambit assured her, though he was slightly worried. "So how 'bout Gambit take you ta see a movie, non?"
"Sounds great."
It was nearing the midnight hour when anybody walking on the harbour and listening carefully would have heard a swear word hissed into the darkness. If that had been the case, then the young guard who was the culprit would have been severely reprimanded for arousing suspicion upon his team's hidden base. Luckily for him, the surrounding area was deserted, and the concealed headquarters of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants remained undiscovered.
In what had once been a cargo storage for ships on the harbour, now abandoned due to partial flooding, John Allerdyce, the young mutant known as Pyro for his ability to manipulate fire, had awakened with a start, and had kicked the hard rock wall in the process. He had failed in suppressing the urge to swear at it and now hoped that nobody else within the base had heard and guessed that he'd fallen asleep on guard duty.
"Stupid bloody graveyard shift," the thin, blond man muttered to himself in a thick Australian accent. Normally he was not abject to the midnight watch when he was in the company of a certain female. She, however, was away on a mission of her own, and he was left in a foul mood. He leaned back against the wall and shut his eyes.
They snapped back open again immediately, and Pyro listened intently, waiting for the sound to come again. It did, and it was a rustling near the concealed entrance to the base. He furrowed his eyebrows. It didn't sound as though someone was just stumbling along the shore while going for a walk. No, it sounded more like someone was methodically picking their way through the brush as if they knew where the entrance was hidden. That could only mean one thing.
"They're back," Pyro grinned to himself, and stood up as a shadow spilled through the doorway. "Welcome back, my love," he greeted.
"That had better not have been meant for me," Sabretooth snarled as he squeezed through the small entranceway.
"I bloody well hope not either, mate," Pyro tried to sound as reassuring as he could. "You're not my type."
Sabretooth narrowed his eyes angrily and Pyro stood up as straight and tall as he could, standing his ground. It was a clear challenge of dominance, and one that had been issued many times between the two men.
"Calm the testosterone down, please," the voice was a welcome one to Pyro, and he sighed in relief as the slender figure entered the cave.
"It was meant for her, mate," Pyro smirked, knowing that Sabretooth wouldn't touch him with Nadia in the room. "Now, bugger off."
The big mutant snarled one last time in the smaller one's direction and stomped off deeper into the cave. Pyro watched him go, and then walked over to the girl.
"Nadia, my love, you're a sight for sore eyes," he said, tightly embracing her.
"My little firefly missed me?" she asked playfully. Their lips met in a passionate kiss. "The weather in Russia was very cold," Nadia's green eyes conveyed the undertone.
"Then allow me to turn up the heat," Pyro grinned and kissed her again.
"Are you two finished with your sodding, God-awful puns, or should I come back later?"
They turned to see a short, spiky-haired green-skinned mutant watching them with a smirk on his face.
"Good to see you too, Toad," Nadia smiled warmly. "Come to welcome me back home?"
"That, and ask which one of you pissed off Sabretooth," Mortimer Toynbee, or Toad, grinned. "Seein' the beaten look on that big bastard's face absolutely made my day."
"Joint effort, mate," Pyro nodded understandingly.
"My compliments."
"And mine to you on your scrambling device," Nadia said. "It worked perfectly, as did your hacking of the security cameras." Todd nodded knowingly. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to give my status report," Nadia announced, and kissed Pyro once more before pulling away and disappearing down the corridor.
Both men watched her go, and Toad turned to Pyro. "Lucky bastard," he grinned.
The blue-skinned mutant metamorph known as Mystique watched as Nadia Molotova confidently entered her quarters, the room where she called all of her meetings. Sabretooth was already there, still sporting a sour scowl. As Nadia moved next to Sabretooth, she saluted her leader with a wink. Mystique rolled her pure white eyes. It annoyed her that Nadia refused to take life as seriously as she did herself. Having personally trained Nadia in combat and espionage, Mystique had hoped that she would be as cold and calculating as her mentor. While the girl was certainly ruthless, she allowed herself a childish tendency toward mischief shared by her peers that Mystique was sure would prove to be a liability.
"At ease," she frowned and Nadia dropped the salute.
"Mission accomplished," Nadia relayed contently. "The Russian missile base and weapons facility has been secured."
"And all personnel are absent and unaccounted for," Sabretooth was the only one who smiled at his own morbid sense of humour; Nadia simply snorted at the lame attempt.
"Excellent," Mystique clapped her hands together. "Everything is going according to plan."
A look passed between the two females that Sabretooth did not catch. And as Mystique dismissed him, Nadia remained behind.
"No more than five minutes after your return and already Sabretooth is furious," Mystique began. "Who was it this time?" Nadia's attempt to conceal her smile betrayed her silence. "Pyro. Why am I not surprised? He and Toad cause more trouble than anyone I've ever worked with...and I don't suppose you tried to stop him?" Mystique added as an afterthought.
"Perhaps it is Sabretooth that is the problem, Mystique," Nadia chose to play defiant. "It is no secret as to why the father of your second-born is on this team."
"Sabretooth is a valuable asset to our cause," Mystique let the comment slide. "He is agile-"
"So is Toad."
"He has military training-"
"As do you and I."
"He is very powerful-"
"We have Blob for that area."
Mystique frowned, trying to find another point to bring up. "He shares a past with Wolverine that gives us an advantage over the X-Men."
"Yes, because it is hard to cause the Wolverine to lose self control?"
Mystique sighed deeply and slid her hand through her dark red hair. This was an old argument that rarely ended favouring Sabretooth. "The point is, now that Magneto has vanished and abandoned his role in leading a mutant uprising, we are mutantkind's last hope. We must defend our weaker brothers and sisters, and, well, we need all the help we can get."
Nadia's eyes mirrored her triumph, and she allowed a half-smile to cross her face. "That was all you had to say, you know."
"Thank you, Nadia," the shapeshifter replied, relieved that the overall feeling was mutual. "We will never be one big, happy family, but we can at least accept each other's presence."
"You can count on me, Mystique," the Russian girl added. "I'll keep the boys under control. And in return, I expect to be able to do some field work. This city is going to know that Velocity is back, and those mutant-hating scum are going to pay for what they pulled."
Mystique nodded understandingly. The girl's hatred for humankind ran deep, and that was why she was chosen as the Brotherhood's second-in-command. "I think we can come to some kind of an arrangement."
Gambit and Jubilee silently crept into the mansion, returning from the movie theatre. It was after one in the morning, and if Cyclops had been that irritable before, they weren't overly anxious to run into him now.
Luckily, it was the vastly more understanding Storm whom they ran into instead.
"Did you two have an enjoyable evening?" she asked.
"Played some vids and caught a double feature," Jubilee grinned. "Loads of fun, but I think I'm ready for some shut-eye," the young girl yawned, stretching her arms over her head. "Catch you guys later, and thanks again, Gambit!" Storm and Gambit wished her goodnight as she walked down the hall.
"Has Rogue return'd yet?" Gambit asked Storm.
"I am afraid not, my friend," she replied, motioning for him to walk with her as they spoke. "As you know, Gambit, these are hard times."
"Gambit knows dis, chère. Gambit has seen many hard times before."
"Not only for us, but for the world," Storm shook her head. "Truly, Magneto may not have been the only one attempting to arrange an uprising."
"Dere be many players out dere. You t'ink dat more of our ol' friends gonna try somet'in'?"
"The more I think upon it the more I believe it to be certain," Storm nodded. "The attack on Professor Xavier by Henry Gyrich affected mutants all over the world. No matter what their beliefs on mutant-human relations, they are all in fear of their safety."
"Den we must stop dem, non? We be da good guys."
"It is not that simple. Those involved in the uprising believe themselves to be freedom fighters for mutant rights. They do not believe that they are doing anything wrong. And Beast is also worried that the Friends of Humanity may have played a role in the Professor's attack as well."
"Dis is much more complicated den Gambit would have liked, chère."
Jean Grey sat deep in concentration, psionically connected with Cerebro through the helmet she wore. She knew that she should sleep; that she should save her strength. There was something troubling her, however. It was something that she and Cerebro had found for only a split second nearly two weeks ago. Several distractions had occurred and she hadn't been able to re-locate the mutant source. The others had dismissed it as just another riot, but Jean had felt a presence that led her to believe it was something more.
Now, with Scott asleep and everyone else off on their own, Jean stretched every inch of her powerful mind to once again locate the source of mutant energy that was the cause of her worry. She scanned the part of northern Russia, where the signal had originated.
"There is no mutant activity in the specified vicinity," Cerebro informed her in the Professor's voice.
An idea entered Jean's mind and she changed her strategy. "Cerebro, enhance PSI-scan," she ordered. "Activate Sentinel technology. Find any trace of past mutant activity and cross-reference with mutant files. I want to identify the source immediately."
Jean and Cerebro worked as one, and a moment later she had the answer.
"Mutant DNA isolated," Cerebro voiced the results. "There were two mutant entities in the specified location during that time period."
"Analyze."
Cerebro took a moment to scan the mutant files for a match. Two holographic projections appeared before Jean, portraying two destructive mutants and their statistics.
"DNA match," Cerebro confirmed. "One: Graydon Creed Sr. Mutant Name: Sabretooth. Two: Nadia Molotova. Mutant Name: Velocity."
A dark feeling came over Jean and her stomach tightened. She removed the helmet as Cerebro went on to describe the mutants' past crimes, and turned in the swivel chair to find Morph standing in the doorway, a worried expression on his face.
"So, what's going on, Jeanny?" he asked her.
"This is the location of an old Russian missile base," Jean explained. "Two weeks ago, when I picked up the mutant signal, it was full of people. Now, enhanced satellite scans tell me that it is deserted, but there have been no reports of any accidents that would cause them to abandon it."
"So what do Sabretooth and Velocity have to do with it?"
"Morph, I think they killed them all."
Henry Gyrich payed the driver without a word, stole a suspicious glace at the man from behind his tinted sunglasses, and then stepped out of the taxi. He walked slowly to the entrance of the building while muttering to himself about the probability of the driver being another filthy, disgusting mutant. Gyrich had been released on bail after three weeks in prison due to the belief that Charles Xavier had been fine after the attack. In reality, Morph had been playing the Professor's role, but that was knowledge Gyrich was not privileged to have and would have paid to get.
Gyrich rang the buzzer, and the surveillance camera above the door focused on him. "Password?"
"Mankind sent me," Gyrich replied without hesitation.
The door clicked open and Gyrich walked inside and down the long, dark hallway to the double doors at the end. He pushed them open, and a spotlight shone on him as a hush ran through the room.
"Welcome back, Mr. Gyrich," one of the voices at the front of the room greeted him.
"It's good to be back," he smirked, walking confidently to the front. The Head Council, five blue-hooded men, sat at the stand. An enormous banner hung on the wall behind them adorned with the familiar, three-lettered insignia: F. O. H.
"You have done well and pleased the council in exposing the mutant Charles Xavier to the public."
"Yes, unfortunately the device was destroyed," Gyrich shook his head.
"Will you be able to construct more?"
"It will take some time," Gyrich nodded. "But with the proper funding I'm sure that I could manage it."
"Excellent."
Two men wearing hats and dark coats emerged from the alley across the street. The first was a well-built younger man with dark, cautious, brooding eyes. The second was a taller man with a build resembling a semi truck. They had been following Gyrich since he had left his court hearing.
"Are we following him inside, Avalanche?" the bigger one asked the smaller one.
"Not a chance, Blob," Avalanche shook his head. "Mystique told us to find out where the Friends of Humanity's new headquarters was located, not to barge right into mutant-hater central. This ain't no suicide mission. And if it was, you wouldn't find me on it."
Lance Alvers and Fred Dukes, longtime members of Mystique's Brotherhood, and better known to the X-Men and the police records as Avalanche and the Blob, respectively, waiting a moment to see if anyone else would arrive at or emerge from the building. Avalanche clenched his teeth at the thought of the men inside, and as he did the smallest wave of seismic energy rippled through the concrete, though it was an insignificant display compared to the true strength of the power we wielded.
"Right, so what do we do then?" Blob inquired, never the sharpest knife in the drawer.
Avalanche pulled his hat lower over his face. "We go home and report it."
Rogue sat on the roof of a building, staring up at the stars. She felt closer to Xavier up here, and something told her that she would need his strength to get through the next few days. Something was troubling her about Cyclops' suggestion that another mutant would take Magneto's discarded mantle of leader in the uprising, and she hoped to God that her suspicions were wrong.
The building shook ever so slightly, but it was enough to bring Rogue out of her thoughts. The tremors came closer and the building shook harder.
"What in the world-" Rogue scrunched up her nose. She peered over the side of the building and saw two darkly-clothed men exit an alley. One of them, the enormous one, was causing the tremors.
"Avalanche and Blob? What in Tarnation are they doin' out here?" She watched them for a moment as they hurried down the street. A thought occurred to her: if Blob and Avalanche were around, then so was Pyro, and probably Mystique. And that meant that her suspicions were correct after all.
Rogue waited until the two mutants were a bit further away, and then flew after them.
Graydon Creed Jr. sat, huddled, in the corner of the dark, damp room that served as his makeshift cell. Water droplets fell from the collected moisture on the walls and ceiling soaked into his stringy brown hair.
The silence was literally deafening for Creed, as there were no other sounds to drown out the accusing voices in his head.
You brought the stain of Sabretooth into our lives!
"No!" Creed shook his head violently. "I-I didn't! I'm not like him!"
Well, well, he heard Sabretooth's voice. If it ain't my son, the famous slayer of mutants.
"Shut up!" Creed screamed. "You are not my father! I'm not like you! I'm not a mutant!"
The corruption of your blood does not end with Sabretooth, he heard the Head Council again. Your family tree bears much poisonous fruit.
"No-"
I bore two children, he heard Mystique's voice.
You are my brother? asked Nightcrawler.
Ah dunno what you're playin' at, mama, Rogue's voice resonated in his head.
Nice move, sis, came his own voice, directed at Rogue.
She's Nightcrawler's mama! Rogue spoke again. And Creed's mama too!
Come to papa, taunted Sabretooth.
"Get away from me! Get out of my head! Leave me alone!" Creed's screams turned to sobs, and he huddled tighter into the corner.
Velocity, Pyro and Toad were gathered again in the front room, awaiting their dismissal to return to their homes. A unanimous grin spread across their faces as they listened to Creed's screams. Bringing him here after the Friends of Humanity had dumped him as punishment for failure in Sabretooth's lap was the only good idea for which they ever credited the big mutant. Torturing prisoners was so much fun on those slow, boring nights.
"Well, my love," Pyro grinned at Velocity. "You've got the inside scoop on Mystique's plans. What's the next move?"
"We've got to wait until Avalanche and Blob return," she replied. "They're on an espionage assignment to locate where the Friends of Humanity have been hiding."
"Try under the nearest rock," Toad scoffed.
Rogue watched from high above as Avalanche and Blob waded through the murky waters along the harbour's shore. She arched her eyebrow in confusion; it looked as though they were searching for something. But what the heck can they be looking for out here? she thought.
She slowly flew as close as she dared to get a better look. Blob wasn't the brightest person she'd ever met, but Avalanche knew better than to do anything before checking to see if he'd been followed.
As predicted, Avalanche turned to look over his shoulder, scanning everything that he could see - including the sky. Rogue tried her best to stay out of the moonlight, and watched intently as he motioned to Blob. The enormous mutant moved a pile of brush and entered the previously hidden base.
"Freddie!" Pyro greeted the Blob as he entered the room. "How are ya?"
"Walking through the muck really sucks," Blob griped. "When are we taking control of the city so I can get through a day without getting my socks wet?" He stomped off.
"I'm fine, thanks for asking!" Pyro called sarcastically after him and Toad snickered.
Avalanche then entered, and bore troubled expression on his face. Velocity noticed it first.
"Lance?" she raised an eyebrow. "What is it?"
He turned to her and shrugged. "I'm not sure. I think somebody followed us here, but I couldn't see anyone."
Toad's eyes narrowed. "I bet Xavier's tracking us with his mind powers," he waggled his fingers around his head for emphasis.
"You saw him on TV, Morty," Pyro shook his head. "My guess is Xavier's more worried about keeping the currently revolting mutants in check."
"Jean Grey, then."
"It wasn't like I was being watched like that," Avalanche shook his head. "More like somebody hiding in the darkness. I swear I saw a shadow a couple of times."
"All right," Velocity stood up. "Toad, take the emergency route and swim out to the weeds. Pyro, watch the main entrance. I'll scan the perimetre."
"I'd better report to Mystique," Avalanche realized. "I know Blob won't remember to do it." Toad and Pyro left, and he stopped Velocity before she could do the same. "When did you get back, Nadia?"
"About two hours ago."
"And you didn't see anything?" She shook her head. "Damn it. That means we were followed from the city. I wonder how much they saw."
"If they're stupid enough to have stuck around, they won't be around long enough to tell anyone their findings," Velocity assured him, and sped away.
Rogue crept along the harbour shore, hoping Avalanche wouldn't decide to take a second look around. She inched her way toward the entrance, hoping to get an idea of what was going on.
"Rogue? Where are you?"
The sound of Morph's voice startled her, and she hoped she wasn't heard as she tapped her communicator.
"Keep it down, Morph, y'all are gonna get me caught," she whispered as loud as she dared.
"Sorry," his voice was quieter. "Where are you?"
"Ah followed Avalanche and Blob to the harbour," she told him, inching closer again. "They've got a hidden base here."
"Avalanche and Blob are around?" Morph sounded grim. "Oh man, Jean, this is worse than you thought."
"What do ya mean, kid? Jean, you there? What's goin' on?"
"Rogue," it was Jean, "I think you'd better come back here and take a look at this. If I'm right, you're in way over your head right now."
The Mississippi-born mutant noticed a dark shape swimming fluently in the murky water toward a weeded area. Her attention was then diverted to a sharp noise originating at the base entrance, as if a small rock had been kicked into the brush...someone was approaching.
"Yah," she breathed into her comm. "Ah think Ah've overstayed ma welcome."
She quickly retreated, keeping in the shadows and hopefully out of anyone's view, and flew into the air once she felt she was at a safe distance. She frowned to herself as the odd feeling in her stomach returned.
"I didn't see anything," Toad climbed out of the water, shaking the wetness from his green hair. "How about you, Aussie?"
"Not a bloody thing, mate," Pyro shook his head. "But something had to be there to get Avalanche so spooked."
"Well, it isn't there now."
Pyro looked around, eyebrow raised. "Where's Nadia?"
Nadia stood on top of the hill that raised off the harbour shore, staring inquisitively into the night sky. She had seen something on her perimetre run (which had lasted about six seconds). It had only been a glimpse, but it made her slightly nervous. She hadn't liked the idea of a spy in the first place, but she was now extra edgy.
The figure had been easy for her to recognize; a shadow from her past complete with skunk-streaked hair. The appearance had just put a whole new twist on her current mission. The upcoming task would not be easy.
"What if whatever it was out there caught Nadia, and-"
"Toad, think about what you're saying," Pyro cut him off. "Nobody catches my Nadia." As he finished his sentence, Velocity walked through the cave door. "There, what'd I tell ya, mate?"
"What happened out there, Nadia?" Toad raised an eyebrow. "You should have gotten back before us."
"Somebody was here," she replied, becoming angry. "And I know who."
"Who?" Pyro and Toad asked in unison, but Velocity was already headed toward Mystique's office.
"Mystique!" Velocity snarled as she entered the room. The sudden burst startled Avalanche, who had been leaning backwards in his chair, and he lost his balance.
"What the-?" he managed to say before he and his chair crashed into the floor.
Mystique turned curious eyes on the girl, and then turned to the man sprawled on the floor. "Lance," she began.
"Yeah, yeah, I can see myself out," he muttered, pushing himself to his feet. "I get it."
As he left, Mystique motioned for Velocity to approach. "What on earth is the matter?" she asked.
"Rogue was here," Velocity hissed, teeth clenched in fury.
Mystique's eyes went wide, and she quickly turned away. "I was going to tell you-"
"Tell me what? You were just going to call me in one day and say, 'Hey, remember all those years ago when I told you that your sister was dead? Well, I lied.' Is that it? How many more lies have you fed me, mother?"
"You don't understand-"
"I return from a top secret mission, only to hear that the one I was closest to in the only real family I have ever known was driven insane after Ms. Marvel's psyche literally destroyed her, and she had committed suicide. You're right; I don't understand how you could have thought I wouldn't find out the truth! Is that why you had me on all those espionage missions after that? So I wouldn't be around to find her still alive? Where has she been?"
"She joined the X-Men."
"And you didn't want me in the public eye where we might meet up."
"I had to protect you," Mystique's voice was barely audible.
"From what?" Velocity was outraged, her voice raising an octave. "From finding out that she actually had a mind of her own?"
When Mystique did not reply, Velocity turned and stormed to the door.
"Nadia-"
"Save it, Mystique. I don't need any more of your protection from the outside world."
As she walked out the door, Mystique sank down into her chair, allowing the threatening pool of tears to spill down her blue cheeks.
Rogue walked through the hallways of the Xavier Institute, heading toward the War Room. The doors slid open, revealing the grim faces of Jean, Morph, Gambit, Storm, and Wolverine.
"Y'all look like the family dog jus' died," Rogue commented upon entry. "What's goin' on?"
"Have a look," Jean replied, typing something on the panel in the centre of the room. The holograms of Sabretooth and Velocity that Cerebro had generated from the mutant files appeared on the circular tabletop.
Rogue stared in disbelief. "Ah-Ah don't get it," she shook her head. "Y'all didn't call me back jus' ta take a gander at these two noodleheads, did ya?"
"Wouldn't be my first pick for a good time," Wolverine commented, scraping his adamantium claws against each other.
"I'm afraid not, Rogue," Jean replied, ignoring Wolverine's comment, though Gambit and Morph stifled a snicker. "I believe that Sabretooth and Velocity are responsible for an incident which occurred two weeks ago in Russia; one that left no human survivors."
"But that can't be right!" Rogue protested. "Nadia's dead!"
"It's true that she's been gone for many years, Rogue," Storm raised an eyebrow. "But we have never found any reason, beyond what you claim Mystique to have told you upon your departure from the Brotherhood, to believe that she had, well-"
"Met her maker?" Morph finishing for her.
"No, y'all don' understand," Rogue backed up a step. "Ah know she's dead. Ah..." she trailed off, staring sadly at the hologram. "Mama wouldn't have lied. An'…she would have contacted me," she whispered.
"What you mean, chère?" Gambit asked, concerned for her.
"Nadia would have contacted me," she frowned, then hurried from the room.
"She get outta here wit a purpose," Gambit was still looking at the door. "Gambit tink she gonna go find her mère, an' den get da truth."
"Uh, then maybe someone should follow her? Mystique's never around without the Brotherhood close by."
"Gambit is way ahead of you, mon ami," the Cajun was already headed out the door.
"I can't believe that she told you she was dead," Pyro shook his head. "Mystique told us not to mention Rogue after you got back, but I thought...well, I dunno what I thought."
"That we were to forget about her, I guess," Toad added.
"She said you'd all taken it hard," Velocity frowned.
"Dirty trick," Toad shook his head.
"Aye, come 'ere, Nadia," Pyro pulled her into his arms and squeezed. "It was a long time ago."
"It doesn't make it okay."
"Yeah, but what can you do? It's not as if you can knock on the front door of the Xavier Institute and catch up on old times, is it?"
Velocity was quiet for a moment, and then pulled away, looking Pyro in the eyes. "Well, why not?"
"Why not, what?"
"Why couldn't I go and talk to her?"
"Er, hang on a minute, love, we're talking about the X-Men here."
"They aren't going to just sodding welcome you in with open arms," Toad sounded upset. "You're a bloody terrorist! You're their enemy!"
"Well it's not as if I'm arming nukes or blowing up buildings!"
"Not yet!" they replied together.
"They don't know that and I don't care," she shook her head. "I've got to talk to her."
Before Pyro or Toad could protest any further, Nadia was gone.
The day that she had discovered that Nightcrawler and Graydon Creed were her step-brothers, Rogue could remember Mystique curiously omitting Nadia as she listed her children. This wouldn't have been so odd had Rogue known that she was alive; Mystique would just have been protecting her. The situation, however, had been quite different. Rogue had thought Velocity to be dead, so she had wondered why Mystique had kept quiet on the subject. She had brushed it off as grief, or a repressed memory, but now...
"Ah can't believe she lied," Rogue mumbled to herself, as she flew full speed back to the water's edge.
As she hovered in the air above the harbour, Rogue silently watched a familiar figure burst from the base entrance and, in a streak of colour and flying dust, speed across the land toward the city.
"Maybe I'd better go after her," Pyro said aloud, and walked toward the exit. He stumbled backward upon reaching the opening, clutching his nose, hot blood spilling down into his mouth and all over his chin.
"Bloody hell!" Toad exclaimed. "What happened?"
"She broke my goddamn nose!" Pyro shrieked.
"Who?"
"Rogue!"
As he said her name, Rogue walked inside, punching her fist into her open palm. "That's right, an' maybe y'all want one too, frog-boy?"
"I'm leaning towards no, but thanks anyways," Toad backed off.
"Bitch," Pyro spat through the blood in his mouth.
"Watch it, Aussie, or Ah'll add a black eye to your list of facial improvements."
"What the hell do you want?" Toad demanded.
"What makes y'all think that Ah ain't here jus' ta knock ya 'round for awhile, ta get ma kicks?"
"Hark, do I hear the old Rogue in that threat?" Toad returned, realizing in full that he was risking getting his ass kicked.
"Besides, you would've done it already if you didn't want anything," Pyro growled.
"Y'all better not give me a reason ta change ma mind, then," she winked at them, angering Pyro further. "Ah wanna talk ta Mystique."
"Don't know what you're talkin' about," Pyro snapped.
"Well, let's see if'n Ah can't help ya remember." She grabbed and lifted Pyro by the throat and slammed him against the wall. Pyro glanced helplessly at Toad after realizing that he did not have his flame thrower with him.
"I'm warning you, Rogue," Toad clenched his teeth, "let him go, now."
"Or you'll do what, half-pint? Beat me up?" she replied mockingly.
Toad scowled, bent his powerful legs, and leapt onto the wall above them. "I said, let him go," he repeated angrily, and shot out his long, green tongue, wrapping it around Rogue's wrist in an attempt to loosen her grip on his teammate. Instead, she wrapped her fingers around his tongue, yanked the small mutant right off the wall, and pinned him up beside Pyro.
"Now, whaddaya say, boys?" Rogue smirked. "Y'all startin' ta remember where Mystique's holdin' up?"
"I'm right here," the voice came from behind her. "Let them go, Rogue."
She complied, and they slid to the ground, coughing and sputtering. Rogue turned burning eyes on Mystique.
"Ah've got a bone ta pick with you, mama," she informed her.
"I'm sure you do," the metamorph scowled. "And I can't say that I wasn't expecting you. I know why you're here, Rogue, but however important it is to you, I doubt that your sister will think it was worth breaking her boyfriend's nose over."
Rogue's anger with Mystique vanished for a moment, as she quickly cast an astonished look at Pyro, who was still sitting on the floor wiping blood from his face. She turned back to Mystique with a raised eyebrow, and received a nod in response to her silent question.
"Ew," was all she could say, and Pyro growled at her under his breath.
"Do you want to come to my office?" Mystique asked.
"Nah, y'all can tell me in front o' these two jokers, can't ya?" Rogue folded her arms, waiting to hear the truth.
"Gambit, I've got a read on her position," Jean's voice said over his comm. "She's straight ahead; can you see anything unusual?"
"What exac'ly is Gambit lookin' for?" he asked.
"Rogue said they had a hidden base in the harbour," Morph's voice told him. "Does that help?"
Gambit's red eyes twinkled as they fell on the disheveled brush revealing a partially hidden entrance. "Merci, mon chère," he grinned.
"Excuse me?" Morph sounded startled.
"Sorry, mon ami. Not you. Rogue leave a trail for Gambit to follow."
"Good work, Cajun," Wolverine's voice said. "You almost make me proud. Now don't screw anything up."
"Piece o' cake," Gambit replied, and headed to the base.
"I didn't know what to do!" Mystique shouted. "You were ready to leave, and I thought that by telling you that Nadia had died on a solo mission, you'd feel bad enough to stay!"
"Y'all jus' made it easier ta leave!" Rogue retorted. "Ah had no reason left ta hang around!"
"Oh, so we weren't good enough for you?" Pyro grumbled.
"Y'all never cared 'bout me," she shook her head.
"Can't argue with that," he sneered.
"Why you-"
"Rogue! Pyro! That's enough!" Mystique ordered.
"Fine, whatever," Pyro shook his head. "While you two have your bloody heart-to-heart, I'm going for a walk."
"Ditto," Toad nodded, getting up to follow.
Griping all the way, Pyro stomped toward the cave opening, only to once again be knocked backwards, hands clasped over his nose.
"Shit! What the hell is this?!" he howled, along with a few other words from the more colourful side of the English language.
"Ah hope y'all don' kiss ma sister with that mouth, Sugah," Rogue tried not to laugh as Gambit entered the cave. "Nice timin', Remy."
"What the hell is he doin' 'ere?" Toad eyed Gambit warily as he ensured that he was out of striking distance. "Next thing we know, Cyclops is gonna barge in and blow this place sky high."
"Don' need Cyclops ta blow dis place," Gambit grinned, pulling three playing cards from his sleeve. Toad held his breath as they began to glow in Gambit's hand.
"Save somethin' for later, Sugah," Rogue winked at him, and then turned back to Mystique. "Ah'm warnin' ya now, mama. We're watchin' y'all now, an' if'n ya try anythin' funny, we'll take y'all down so hard ya won't know what hit ya."
Mystique narrowed her eyes but did not reply, and watched Rogue leave with Gambit. When they were gone, Sabretooth emerged from the shadows behind her.
"What do you think?" she asked him.
"I think I'd like to get my claws on them instead of hiding like some chickenshit."
"They had no need to know that you're with us," she replied.
"Wait a bloody minute, mate, you were there the whole damn time?" Pyro was seething. "Why the hell didn't you lend a bloody hand?"
"I was enjoying the show too much to stop it," Sabretooth grinned evilly at Pyro.
"Why you big, ugly motherfucking-"
"Pyro!" Mystique interrupted the upcoming fight. "You and Toad are dismissed. Go home and clean yourself up. I don't need this right now."
Pyro took a deep breath and started toward the exit.
"Sure you wanna try the front door again, Aussie?" Sabretooth mocked and followed behind him. "Don't wanna tempt fate-" He put both clawed hands on the smaller mutant's back and pushed him forcefully toward the opening.
That was all that he could take, and Pyro lost control of his temper. He turned and lunged at the big man and drove a clenched fist into his jaw, catching him off-guard. He got a few more punches away before Sabretooth grabbed him around the throat and threw him across the room.
"Enough!" Mystique held up her hands, preventing a furious Sabretooth from following up and pummeling Pyro into a pile of goo with teeth. "Does anyone know where Velocity is?"
Toad helped Pyro to his feet and shook his head, not wanting to get one of his closest friends into trouble. Sabretooth, however, did not give a damn.
"She ran off to visit her long-lost sister," he smirked. "Too bad she jumped the gun by about five seconds. I would have paid to see her reaction when this pipsqueak got his face rearranged."
"You son of a bitch!" Pyro exploded again, but Toad held him back from rushing Sabretooth.
Mystique clenched her teeth, trying to control her anger fueled by Velocity's rash decision and Sabretooth's incessant baiting of Pyro. "Listen, all of you!" she shouted, receiving everyone's attention. "I want these issues you have with each other settled very soon, but as for now, Sabretooth, I want you to find Velocity. Do everything you can to keep her from contacting Rogue. As for you two, I'll send for you when I've settled on a new COA."
"Let's go, Pyro," Toad said, casting a dark look at both Sabretooth and Mystique.
Pyro did not respond, but allowed Toad to lead him to the exit and locked eyes with Sabretooth as they passed him. Pyro's jaw quivered with his intense anger. When they were outside and they could no longer see each other, he let out the breath he'd been holding, and began to feel the multiple points of pain throughout his body.