"If you have tears, prepare to shed them now."
William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar
It's All Relative
Chapter Nine
The X-Men spent the next couple of days recuperating. The diagnosis on Cyclops was that the bullet had ruptured his quadriceps muscle. He would need surgery to repair the damage, followed by extensive rehab training to build it back up to strength.
Jean and Storm had sealed the crates of nuclear warheads inside the Shi'ar prison ship's containment cell, and then had taken the spacecraft to a pre-designated area where Lilandra had sent her soldiers to retrieve the vessel and its contents. When they returned home, Jean slept for twenty-seven hours straight.
Wolverine made good on his promise and took both Gambit and Morph out for a beer. He seemed to be more at peace with himself now that they'd heard from the Professor, and now that Morph was safe.
Gambit was quietly consumed in his thoughts. He still wondered whether there could have been an alternate resolution to what had happened, had he not missed his shot and hit the helicopter. Even with the assurances that everything had turned out alright, considering what could have happened, he still felt responsible for the unnecessary destruction.
Outwardly, Morph was his usual, good-natured self - especially with all the attention he was getting upon returning safe and sound - but inside he was troubled. He'd seen a new side to Velocity and Toad over the week he'd spent with them. He recognized that, even though they had a somewhat obscure view on how worldly issues should be dealt with, their bond of friendship and team loyalty was not unlike that of his team. Why did there have to be sides?
Beast was thrilled when the team brought back a fully functional prototype of Trask's device. Every moment not used on repairs to the Blackbird was spent analyzing every aspect of the mysterious gadget.
Jubilee had been commended by the others for her mature and rational handle of her emotions in a critical situation. If she hadn't warned Kelly, and therefore caused the roadblock, thousands of innocent people could have gotten hurt. Cyclops promised her more field time now that she'd proven her responsibility.
Psylocke had received a round of heartfelt thanks from all of them, and an open invitation to visit whenever she desired. Then she gratefully returned to Worthington Manor, where she and Warren made up for lost time together.
Several members of the Friends of Humanity, including Henry Gyrich, had been arrested, unfortunately not for their hate crimes against mutants. They were charged with such things as crossing the police line, willfully destroying public property, and misuse of a deadly weapon.
Grayden Creed Jr. was admitted into the psychiatric ward, where he would receive special care and treatments for his mental condition, which seemed to be beyond even professional help.
Rogue, meanwhile, was confused regarding what had happened when she'd made skin contact with Velocity. The effect of Gyrich's device had given her dizzy spells throughout the last two days, but she had strangely not received any of her sister's thoughts, feelings, or powers. Beast's hypothesis was that some aspect of the pulse wave emitted by the device had cancelled out Rogue's mutant power. What he couldn't explain, if this were the case, was why Velocity had lost consciousness.
"She's getting worse, Lance," Toad reported, dabbing a wet cloth on Velocity's forehead. She hadn't fully regained consciousness once in the past two days, and lay tossing and turning in a state of delirious confusion, unable to recognize any of them.
The five were back in Toad's apartment, adjusting to the cramped conditions. Velocity lay on the worn sofa, and Pyro, who was steadily getting weaker, occupied Toad's bed. The wounds on his stomach refused to heal; every cough, sneeze, or turn in his fevered sleep reopened them. Even breathing was painful.
Between Avalanche, Toad and Blob, the night was divided into times for one to stay up with Pyro and Velocity, while the other two crashed on the floor.
Avalanche was pacing around the room, trying to come up with some idea to save his friends. And, so far, he wasn't being extraordinarily enlightened. Pyro was in desperate need of medical attention, but he was afraid that if they took him to a hospital, they would find out who and what he was and refuse to help him. Velocity, meanwhile, was sick with something they'd never encountered before. She'd been fine before Rogue touched her, but something else - besides being drained - was causing her illness. They'd all been touched by Rogue back in the day, and this had never happened.
Avalanche looked up at the sound of coughing from the bedroom. Blob walked out, his eyes downcast, a bloody rag in his hand.
"How is he?" Avalanche asked.
"Not so great, Lance," Blob frowned, rinsing out the cloth. "He's bleedin' again."
Avalanche closed his eyes and stressfully ran his hand over his forehead and through his sweaty brown hair. He tried to sort his thoughts and think clearly, but this was just too much.
"Lance?"
He looked up at the sound of his name. Toad was holding down Velocity, whose convulsions had become more violent, and was staring up at him with questioning eyes. "Yeah, what?"
"What the hell are we gonna do?"
Jean walked through the hallways, feeling fully rested for the first time in almost a month. She paused at the doorway to the den, where Gambit, Rogue, Morph, and Jubilee were quietly watching TV. Things were slowly getting back to normal.
As she passed the War Room, she received a strange sensation, and doubled back to enter. A quick scan of the room revealed the reason for the feeling, and she stared at the security camera feedback in disbelief.
"Beast?" she spoke into the room's communications console, projecting her voice throughout the mansion. "Prep the Infirmary for at least two more patients."
Jean hurried back out of the room, headed for the main foyer. The four from the den joined her.
"What's goin' on, Sugah?" Rogue asked.
"You'll never believe this," Jean shook her head, pulled open the front door and ran down to the gate.
Avalanche and Toad stood outside, supporting Velocity between them, desperately trying to restrain her. The girl's teeth chattered and her eyes were wild, and Jean winced as she sensed the state of disarray her mind was in. Blob stood next to them, carefully cradling a ghostly white and blood-stained Pyro in his massive arms.
Avalanche's dark eyes were pleading as he looked directly into Jean's.
"We need your help."
Beast pulled some strings with his friend Alec at the hospital, and soon obtained the needed medical supplies, namely blood for Pyro. After properly sewing up the Aussie's stomach gashes, he tried to convince Avalanche to let him attend to him.
"I don't need no help," Avalanche snapped. "Johnny and Nadia are worse than me."
"I've done all that I can for Mr. Allerdyce," Beast replied, gesturing to where Pyro lay. He was hooked up to the heart monitor and the blood via IV. "I wish to be certain that your shoulder is not becoming infected."
"It's not," Avalanche jerked his injured shoulder away from Beast. "So why don't you just help Nadia?"
Beast sighed. "I am going to be perfectly honest with you, Mr. Alvers. I am unable to treat Miss Molotova because I have absolutely no idea what is wrong with her. I will continue to perform tests, but I can not promise that I will be able to help her."
Beast turned Trask's device over and over in his furry hands. Something about it held the missing piece to the puzzle of what was going on, and he knew that he had to figure out what it was. He decided to go back over what he already knew. When Gyrich had shot Professor Xavier, the beam had interfered with and scrambled his brain waves. It had closed down the Professor's otherwise open and outstretched mind, almost as if it had reversed his mutant power.
Beast sat back and chewed the end of a pencil. If the electrical signal had momentarily altered the state of the X-gene in Xavier, then it would have done the same to Rogue upon contact. And since Rogue had touched Velocity at that exact moment...
"Oh dear," Beast's eyes widened in realization, and he quickly called Jean down to the infirmary over the mansion intercom.
When Jean entered the room, however, she was not alone. Rogue and Morph were right behind her, followed by Avalanche, Toad and Blob. And the boys of the Brotherhood were not sporting friendly expressions.
"What is it, Hank?" Jean asked. "You sounded like it was urgent."
"It is, indeed," Beast bit his lower lip. "I believe I have found the cause of Miss Molotova's illness."
"Really?" the Brotherhood trio asked in unison.
"Yes," Beast nodded. "It is my careful presumption that the effect of Rogue's power in collaboration with the beam from Mr. Gyrich's device has affected Velocity's brain wave patterns."
"Ah don't understand," Rogue frowned.
"Let me explain," Beast said patiently. "Your powers operate in a rather introvert manor in order to withdraw the thoughts and feelings of those you make physical contact with, correct?" She nodded. "Well, just as the device caused a reversal of the Professor's power to shut down his mind, I believe that it was similarly caused a reversal of your powers. Instead of Velocity's thoughts entering your mind, your thoughts were projected into hers."
"An' that's why Ah never had any of her powers," Rogue got it. "But then, why's she off her rocker? Ah mean, Ah mebbe a li'l mixed up, but Ah ain't crazy. What's makin' her..." her jaw dropped. "No," she rushed to Velocity's side.
The girl was restrained to her bed since her fits had become increasingly more violent. Her breathing was irregular and her face glistened with a layer of sweat. She was mumbling something, and Rogue leaned closer to hear her.
"Get out of my head...please...just leave me alone..."
"Jean!" Rogue exclaimed. "Ah need your help. It's her. It's Ms. Marvel. She's in Nadia's head!"
"Ms. Marvel?" Avalanche repeated.
"Ah had her trapped in ma mind, but Ah guess she musta been transferred ta Nadia with ma thoughts by accident," she sadly replied.
"You mean on purpose."
She looked up at Avalanche, who was staring at her accusingly. "What?"
"Pretty convenient how this all played out, huh? You spontaneously decided that Nadia's in some serious need of a drain just as Gyrich blasts you. Then you don't get any freaky side effects, and you manage to dump off your deranged alter ego. Meanwhile, Nadia's dancing over the border of insanity, and you get to play the innocent victim. Pretty sweet deal, isn't it, Rogue?"
"If'n y'all got somethin' ta say ta me, Rock Tumbler, then mebbe y'all should jus' say it," Rogue got to her feet.
"I'm saying that what happened to her is your fault."
"Ma fault? Ah was jus' trying ta keep the body count to a minimum after she snapped! Y'all could at least blame Henry Gyrich, he's the one who zapped us, not me! Or better yet, Lance, mebbe y'all should blame yourself, 'cause mebbe Gyrich wouldn't have seen us if'n y'all hadn't knocked him over with a quake!"
"Shut up!" Avalanche exploded.
"Come ta think of it," she continued, seeing that she'd struck a nerve, "if'n y'all hadn't gotten caught in the first place, we might never have figured out how ta stop yah!"
"I said shut up!"
"Looks ta me like this is all your f-"
He swung his gloved fist and cut her off as it connected squarely with her cheekbone. She recoiled momentarily, mostly shocked that he'd actually done anything, and then set to go after him. Morph and Toad had other plans, however, and pushed themselves between the two, holding them apart.
Toad pushed Avalanche backward as hard as he could. "I know this is hard for you, but think, Lance!" he yelled as Avalanche hit the floor. "What is this going to accomplish? Did you put 'be stupid' first on your list of things to do today? Do you honestly want to get your ass pounded so me 'n Freddy have to drag your carcass home, too?" Avalanche shook his head. "Good, 'cause you wouldn't get it, anyway. I'd make you walk." He smiled and crouched, putting a hand on his friend's shoulder and lowering his voice. "Look, mate. These guys are probably Nadia's only hope, right? So why don't we give 'em a chance to help her out before we shake things up? It's only good strategy."
Avalanche smirked. He knew that he was just kidding about the last part, but it calmed him down anyway. Toad extended his hand and pulled Avalanche to his feet, and he and Rogue avoided each other's glance.
"Can you fix her?" Blob asked Jean.
"I don't know," Jean admitted. "When Rogue and I faced Ms. Marvel, we were able to contain her. But Velocity has been unconscious for the past two days, and her mind is unstable. In her weakened condition, I am not sure if she can fight her."
"But you're gonna try, right?" Toad was genuinely worried.
"Of course I will," Jean nodded, and turned to Rogue. "I have an idea. It may not work, but at least it's a shot. Be ready." Rogue nodded, and Jean put one hand on Velocity's forehead and the other on her own, and then closed her eyes.
Jean looked around in horror at what she beheld. The deepest recesses of Velocity's mind were in utter chaos. It certainly hadn't been like this when Jean had been here just before Morph was captured, searching for the girl's true motive for visiting the Institute.
Now, everything was broken. Fragments of the symbolic platforms, which had marked the path through Velocity's thoughts, feelings, and memories, floated aimlessly through empty space. Images of the other Brotherhood members adorned the faces of those shards of memory, still present but grossly distorted. Mystique's image was twisted almost beyond recognition, and Sabretooth's looked as though it had been mutilated.
Jean walked through the maze of consciousness, searching for the embodiments of both Ms. Marvel and Velocity's psyche. She sensed they were close by, but the terrain was badly warped; it was difficult to know where she was going.
Surrender! I cannot gain control of your body until you are destroyed!
Velocity looked up at Ms. Marvel from where she'd been knocked down, carefully hiding how much it hurt to do even that. She could not afford to reveal her weaknesses. Then what makes you think I will let you win? she sneered.
Because, you pathetic excuse for an opponent, you cannot regain control unless I have been subdued, Ms. Marvel retorted. And we both know that you could never defeat me.
Pride is among the seven deadly sins, you know, Velocity smirked, pushing herself to her feet.
You are the last person who should preach to me about sin, Molotova, the other narrowed her eyes. I may have been out of action for quite some time, but I have not forgotten you.
I'm flattered. Velocity ran at her intruder, but was not prepared for the counterattack. Ms. Marvel grew to triple her size, caught Velocity by the arm, lifted her over her head, and smashed her down through four platforms, leaving her lying on the fifth one down.
How is that possible? Velocity fought to get back to her feet.
The psychiatric netherworld has been my prison, and therefore my only plane of existence for years, Ms. Marvel returned to her normal height. I have learned its many tricks, and how to manipulate them at my will.
I won't...give...up.
Ms. Marvel openly smirked, knowing that her foe was weak. We'll just see about that, she replied, approaching her fallen form. She grabbed the speed demon's hair and jerked her head up, forcing her to look at the clips of memories that periodically flashed like electricity across the 'walls' of her mind. What do you have to live for, hmm? Your boyfriend? Pyro's image appeared, in Sabretooth's clutches. He could, or more probably will die. What about your dear sister? The picture changed to Rogue's as she called to her from the air in Times Square, just before she'd touched her. Is she not the very reason that I am here in the first place? What do you owe her?
Stop...
How about Mystique? She saw the smug look on the shapeshifter's face as she stood at Sabretooth's side. Your wonderful mother who deserted you and your friends when you were in trouble only to run off with Sabretooth.
Stop it.
You heard her, Carol. Stop it.
Ms. Marvel snapped her head around at the sound of the voice. Jean Grey stood on one of the twisted pathways, her hands on her hips. You
You're not the only one who knows how to manipulate reality in this place, Jean smugly replied, and telekinetically threw a barrage of debris at the woman as she charged. She rushed to Velocity's side. Nadia, I have a plan to get Ms. Marvel out of your head. She doesn't know that your body is inside the Institute, so we have that to our advantage. You have to lose this fight.
What? Velocity exclaimed. She'll control my body!
Just trust me!
Velocity didn't have time to respond before Ms. Marvel was upon them. She lifted Jean into the air and knocked her into one of the many memory clips. Jean screamed as the electric impulses wracked her body, then her form faded and disappeared.
Velocity's mouth twisted into an uncertain frown. Lose this fight, huh?
There was a crackling of electricity and Jean was thrown backward out of her chair and to the floor of the Institute.
"Jean!" Rogue, Beast and Morph exclaimed.
"Rogue, stay ready!" Jean ordered, getting to her feet. She quickly moved back over to Velocity and crossed her fingers. "Nadia, please listen to me."
Velocity threw her head back as far as the bed would allow and emitted an eerie howling shriek. Her body bent into the air, and her tightly restrained hands clenched. Her eyes opened and she broke the cuffs on her wrists and sat up.
"Ms. Marvel lives again!" she cried in a voice that was not her own, and then took in her surroundings. She regarded the shocked faces of the Brotherhood members, and then settled her gaze on an all too familiar face. "Rogue! No!"
"Now, Rogue!" Jean commanded.
"Sorry, Sugah," the Southern gal said and clasped her bare hands over the other girl's face. "It's how it's got ta be." Velocity's body shook as Ms. Marvel's voice screamed in defeat, and then dropped back onto the bed.
Jean and Rogue immediately went to work re-sealing Ms. Marvel inside Rogue's mind. Beast checked Velocity's pulse as Toad, Avalanche and Blob hovered next to the bed.
Pyro turned his head away from the scene. Nobody had noticed him watching from his nearby cot. He'd heard everything, including Beast's theory of what had happened and the ear-splitting results. And it wasn't the pain from his healing stomach wounds that was making him feel so sick.
Three more days passed and Velocity had yet to regain consciousness. Although her fits of convulsions had stopped, Jean knew that there was still something wrong with her.
"Can't you just, y'know, go in there and figure out what the problem is?" Toad asked.
"I've tried," Jean shrugged. "But her mind is scrambled and it's putting out some kind of interference. I can't get through."
"So there's nothin' you can do?" Blob's face fell.
"Not by myself, anyway," she shook her head. "But I know somebody who may be able to help."
Thus, Jean deliberated with Cyclops and finally managed to convince her crutch-ridden husband that Velocity desperately needed to be taken to Moira MacTaggart. He agreed, due mainly to the reasoning that the Brotherhood would be out of the mansion. Avalanche had become somewhat of a problem; he'd taken to starting random fights to vent his frustrations.
Beast and Forge had now completed enough repairs on the Blackbird for it to be operational. There were still many components that needed work, but they could wait. Cyclops insisted that he be part of the away team, and so he, Jean, Rogue and Morph arranged to transport Avalanche, Blob, Toad, Velocity and Pyro - who was also now on crutches and anxious to escape the Infirmary - to the Muir Island Research Centre.
"It is just as I feared, Jean," Moira shook her head sadly after hours of treatment on Velocity. "Her mind is so badly damaged that she cannoh regain consciousness. I donnoh know the extent of the harm, but I do know that for the brief moment when Ms. Marvel's psyche became dominant, Nadia's psyche reacted to the defeat by repressing itself."
"I didn't know any other way to get her out," Jean explained.
"I doubt that there was any other way," Moira replied. "And if Nadia had truly been defeated rather than surrendering, she may ne'er have been able to have enough strength to rebuild her mind. At least this way she has a chance." Jean nodded, feeling herself getting choked up. "I have managed to clear the psychic interference through the treatments," Moira continued. "If you wish to try and contact her, it is possible that her subconscious is still coherent. Now, if you'll excuse me, I am going to break the news to her friends."
"Thanks, Moira," Jean smiled, though it was filled with sorrow. "Thanks for everything." The Scottish woman nodded and left the room.
Jean entered the room where Velocity lay on the white hospital bed, deep in the sleep of oblivion. She looked so peaceful on the outside, while inside was in turmoil.
I know you're there.
I knew you would.
Velocity didn't respond, and Jean approached her. The Russian girl sat with her legs dangling over the sides of the fractured pathway, staring out at the bleak mess all around her. Jean sat down beside her.
You should have called before you came, Velocity joked. I would have had a chance to tidy up a little bit.
Jean smiled. Thank you for trusting me.
Did it work?
Yes, but not as well as I had hoped. Ms. Marvel is gone, in any case.
But I still lost, she nodded, obviously understanding the reason behind the vast destruction. At least it's quieter around here. Jean nodded. How long has it been?
Almost a week.
Time flies. Anything interesting happen?
Well, Pyro's recovering nicely. Hank did an amazing job on his stitches. Velocity's mouth curved upward into a contented smile. And I thought that maybe you would like to know about this: we've talked to President Kelly. Mystique and Sabretooth have disappeared, supposedly by taking one of the news helicopters from Times Square.
Figures.
Yeah, nobody would have noticed them escape with all the commotion.
Be careful, she'll be out for blood after her perfect plan was ruined. Speaking of which, I saw Cyke's leg. I guess that was my fault, wasn't it?
Oh, he'll live.
I'm sorry, anyway. It's funny in a way. If I had known I would be so sorry about the past month, I don't think that I would have done what I did. I had no idea there would be so much suffering as consequence to my actions.
That's comforting to hear from you.
Too little, too late, though, I'm sure. Jean shrugged at that. Jean, can you do me a favour? Can you tell the boys that I'm sorry? I think Morty and Fred will understand, but I'm worried about Lance. He always takes things so seriously and reacts so violently. And Johnny, my beloved Pyro, I am especially worried about him. I know him well, and he will be upset because he could not protect me. Please, tell him that it was not his fault, and tell them all how sorry I am.
Wouldn't it be more convincing coming from you?
Look at this place, Velocity waved her hand at the floating debris. What a mess. There is so much I have to fix and sort through. She leaned back on her elbows. I don't think I will be able to see them for a very long time. I've done a lot of very bad things, Jean. Maybe that is my punishment.
If you need any help-
Thank you, Jean, but this is something I must do on my own.
Moira's going to give you treatments of psychological therapy. It should make your job easier.
I appreciate that.
They sat in silence for a few moments, gazing at the random sparks of nerve impulses and flickers of memory images.
I should go, Jean stood up.
You will tell them, won't you?
Of course I will, Jean assured her. What about Rogue? Should I tell her anything?
Velocity smiled as the image of her Southern sister danced across her line of sight. She already knows.
Pyro sat on the edge of the grassy cliff of Muir Island, watching the ocean waves crash over the partly submerged rocks, soak the cliff-side with their foamy spray, and then settle back into the icy blue surf. Avalanche sat beside him, cracking his knuckles. Pyro was his best friend and he practically thought of him as a younger brother. Somebody - it didn't matter who - was going to pay for putting him through this. Whether it be Sabretooth, Rogue or Mystique, somebody was going to get rocked.
Jean exited the building and could tell by the feeling of the atmosphere outside that Moira had already told everyone. She watched as Toad and Blob silently walked to where Pyro and Avalanche were sitting, and then she went over to Cyclops.
"You okay?" he asked her.
"Nadia wanted me to tell them she was sorry," she replied. "But I really don't know how to say it. They must be hurting so badly."
"I'll tell them," Cyclops offered, and hobbled over to the four before Jean could stop him. "I have a message for you guys. Velocity wanted-"
"Sod off, Summers."
"Excuse me?" he looked at Toad in surprise. Nobody answered him, and he shrugged. "Look, I'm just trying to-"
"Your hearing going, Summers?" Avalanche snapped, jumping to his feet.
"No-"
"Then get lost. We don't need you over here acting all noble and better than us and pretending like nothing happened. We can see right through your phony sympathy act, so you can take all the bull you're spewing and shove it straight up your ass."
"What's your problem, Alvers? Why can't you just accept that I'm being nice, here?"
"'Cause you're full of it, and you know it. Now, are you gonna piss off, or do I have to make sure you leave us alone?"
Cyclops scowled and Avalanche clenched his teeth. They both assumed as threatening a stance as they could manage - one on crutches with a gimpy leg and the other with his arm in a sling.
"Uh, guys?" Morph intervened. "I don't think this was what they had in mind when they introduced the handicap match on pay-per-view."
Jean gently took Cyclops's arm and led him away from the confrontation. Avalanche stomped away to be by himself. Morph exchanged a nod with Jean, and went to sit by Toad.
"Hey," he greeted him.
"What do you want?"
"Just to spread the good word, man, that's all." They were quiet for a moment. "Jean talked to Nadia. She told me that she had a message for you guys."
"Oh yeah?"
"Yeah. She wanted you all to know that she was sorry, and that you would understand. And that Pyro shouldn't blame himself about what happened."
"You listening to this?" Toad elbowed Pyro lightly.
"I should have been able to protect her."
"She doesn't want you to think that way," Toad told him. "You're not gonna disrespect her wishes, are you?" Pyro didn't reply, and Toad turned to Morph. "Thanks, mate."
"Yeah, no problem."
Jean was relieved that the message had been delivered, and looked around for the teammate she'd just realized was missing. "Where's Rogue?"
"Dunno," Cyclops shrugged. "She took off after hearing the news from Moira. Turned her communicator off, too."
"I hope she's all right."
Rogue was deep in thought as she flew determinedly across the European terrain. She was experiencing the vivid memories she'd received from her sister. Though it had been three days since she'd touched her, these images were still so clear because they were her memories as well.
Six Years Ago
"Rogue?"
"Yah?"
"What's your real name?"
"It don't really matter - Ah hate it. Ma father named me, an' then he disowned me, so that name don't mean nothin' ta me no more."
"Fair enough."
Rogue and Velocity sat outside, lying under the huge tree in the backyard of their adopted mother's house, watching the changing colours of the sky as the sun set.
"I'm leaving tomorrow," Velocity sighed. "Mom's sending me on some mission. I would tell you where, but she's being all mysterious about it. She's not even giving me any information until tomorrow morning, just before I leave."
"Ah think she thinks she's a secret agent, or somthin'," Rogue mused, and Velocity snickered softly in agreement. "Ah'll miss ya."
Velocity rolled over and propped herself up on her elbows. "You will?"
"Well of course Ah will, ya half-wit! You're ma only sister, an' the only one who really understands me. Ah think it's gonna be real lonesome here without ya."
Velocity thought for a moment. "Take off your glove."
"What?"
"Just do it!"
"Okay," Rogue sounded uncertain, but did as she was told. Velocity shot her hand out and clasped her sister's before she could change her mind. Rogue's eyes widened as she felt the high-speed power coarse through her body, and she pulled away. "Holy smokes!"
"Some rush, huh?" Velocity grinned, now slightly weakened.
"It's the most amazin' thing Ah've ever felt!" Rogue cried gleefully, jumping to her feet and doing fifty laps around the tree.
"Okay, now listen for a second," Velocity reached out, grabbed Rogue's ankle, and tripped her. "This is important. Now, whenever you start to miss me, just remember that rush, because that is how I feel every minute of every day. So then you will know that I am working to finish my mission at that speed, and I'll be back before you know it."
Rogue beamed, and embraced her. "Thanks, Nadia!"
"We'll always be sisters. That will never change."
"Ah know," she sat back with a silly grin on her face. "Now, before Ah forget, we have ta discuss some of these disturbin' thoughts Ah jus' pulled outta that head o' yours. Y'all actually think Pyro's cute?"
Velocity broke into hysterical laughter. "What, you mean, you don't?" Rogue made a face. "Oh, he could light my fire any day." Rogue joined the laughter. "Say, Roguey, you have had his thoughts in your head. What does he think of me?"
"Oh no ya don't. Ah ain't gettin' involved in this," Rogue shook her head.
The memory faded to black, and a single salty tear rolled down Rogue's cheek. She'd flown for an entire day and night, the scene continually replaying in her head. She was headed to the one place where she could remember the world made some kind of sense - a place where she could think things over, and talk to somebody who understood about feeling alone. That place was a gothic monastery, which stood on the top of a mountain overlooking the small town of Neuherzl, Germany. There, she would find the mutant preacher known as Kurt Wagner - her brother Nightcrawler. He would listen to her confession of the guilt she felt for what had happened, and he would probably be interested to hear about another member of his estranged family.
She hoped to God that he could help ease her mind, because she simply did not know where else to turn. She loved her teammates, and knew that they would understand her hasty departure, but she felt that she needed to be with what little family she had left.
"Ah'll miss yah," she repeated the words she'd said so long ago, as the monastery appeared on the horizon. What else was there left to say?
THE END