The entire time Nora had been trying to explain herself, she had felt it happening.
Her brother was gone, miles away from the campsite before she had even gotten past the blue gargoyle. Luke had been strong, but the brawl had lasted only a few short moments, ultimately ending in his detainment and capture.
Though guilt at her own escape had gripped her, Nora hadn't lashed out because she had lost all hope. There was much hope to be had; somehow her brother had survived. For some reason, they wanted him alive. While the thought did bring her an odd sense of comfort, something else had happened to cause her to move into her frenzy.
Ever since she could remember, Nora had possessed a distinct awareness of Lucas, as if a small part of her mind was saved just for him – to know where he was at all times. After the battle, after he had forced her to escape, that connection had been severed. Through some series of events, Lucas had vanished from her mind, like a ship off of radar.
His aggressors had taken something from him, something awful, and for the first time in her life, Nora felt a true and righteous hate brew within her toward those responsible.
Unfortunately, it was the X-Men and not Lucas' kidnappers who felt the full brunt of her immediate fury.
Cursing, she kicked and thrashed with all her might, causing her brown hair to fall chaotically about her face. "Get off me," she growled, just like she knew her twin brother would have. "I'm warning you. You won't like what happens if you don't."
Behind her, Logan gave an audible grunt as he held his arms firmly around her upper body, demonstrating only a portion of his endurance. "Just relax, kid," he told her as she struggled futilely against him. "Nobody here wants to hurt you."
The man with strange red sunglasses stood before her and spoke in the same tone the woman with the white hair had moments before. "We only want to talk to you," he assured her. "We just want to know what happened."
Emerging from the X-Jet, Storm joined them along with Nightcrawler who gingerly nursed the side of his face with his hand. "We tried asking her, but she was too upset to speak clearly," she explained to Cyclops.
Nora panted in her exertion, beginning to realize that there was no physical way for her to break free from the man holding her. "Come on," she begged in a whimper as her fists hit uselessly into Logan's sides. "C'mon, just let me go…"
Not a man known for his enduring patience, Wolverine rolled his eyes. "You gotta calm down first, kid. You do that, and we'll talk."
Hearing the same order once more, Nora felt her anger come rushing back and all aspects of her tolerance disappear. "I am not. Going. To Calm. Down!" she suddenly exploded. Gathering what last remnants of her strength remained, she held her hands apart from each other and ignited a blinding blue spark of energy between them.
His eyes going wide, Logan gave a short "whoa" and predictably withdrew his arms.
Breaking out of his grasp, Nora loomed her arms outward, displaying her power as vehemently as possible. Her small stunt caused all of them to back away from her, and not knowing how long she could keep the light in her hands burning, she used the leverage for all it was worth.
"Don't get near me!" she shouted in a voice made hoarse by exhaustion. "Don't get near me. I'll use it! I swear!"
A sudden understanding coursed through Cyclops as he watched the power swell between the teenager's hands. She was a mutant. Of course… He let out a deep sigh, wishing they could have recognized it sooner.
She stood before them, her hands trembling fearfully as they held the electric energy between them. "Just stay back…" she pleaded.
"Nora?" Cyclops ventured, remembering the name from the newscast.
It had its desired effect. Hearing her name, Nora froze in her position, shocked to attention.
He took a step forward ever so cautiously, putting up both his hands to show that he still meant her no harm. "We heard on the news about the attack on your house," he calmly told her. "And that you and your brother were missing."
At the mention of Lucas, her ferocity visibly lessened. It was for his sake that she allowed Cyclops to continue.
"We heard that there were mutants involved. We came to find you because we thought you might be in danger." When she didn't shirk from her position, he continued, "We're mutants, too, Nora. We just want to help you. You and your brother."
Nora bit her lip. "But I can't find him," she told Cyclops in a quivering voice. "They took Luke. I don't know where he is."
Lucas Blaize. For a moment, guilt overtook him. He'd already been taken. They'd been too late.
But he still had Nora. He took a deep breath, striving to reach her. "We don't know who took your brother," he admitted to her. "But if you give us a chance, I promise you we will do everything in our power to help bring him back."
At the very idea of recovering her lost brother, Nora's hands broke apart from each other, causing the blue light to slowly dissipate into the air.
"We'll do everything we can," he said. "But it's you who has to give us that chance."
Tears welling up in her eyes, her face scrunched in anguish as she found herself unable to hold back any longer. "I just don't want to fight anymore," she got out between her tears.
"It's okay," Scott said. "It's okay. You don't have to."
As he moved towards her, she felt her legs buckle underneath of her, and she dropped downward onto her knees as sobs wracked her frail form. "I just want him back…"
Gazing down upon her sympathetically, Scott gently went down on one knee and held his hand against her back to support her.
Watching the scene unfold, Nightcrawler let his body relax and released a shuddering sigh of relief. He too would have moved to comfort the girl, if the abrupt sound of static over an intercom had not caught his attention. Looking to Storm, the two padded back inside the jet were a scanner blinked, alerting them to police activity in the area.
There was a predictable clicking noise, and an officer started speaking. "Adam 14, we have a reported disturbance at Carmel's Pond, campsite A-31, over." Nightcrawler felt his stomach tighten as another officer reassured them that he was only a few miles away and would report back after he inspected the area.
Walking up behind them, Wolverine caught the end of the call. "We better not wait around." He looked down outside to where his motorcycle stood thankfully untouched at the scene of the accident. "I'll take the bike and meet you back at the mansion."
"Get the license plates and registration," Storm told him. "We do not need them running a trace on the Porsche."
Smirking, Logan pulled a cigar out of his jacket, figuring he'd earn it. "Anything else while I'm at it?"
Checking to make sure their situation was under control, Storm looked around Logan to see Scott, who was speaking to the girl in soft tones and slowly leading her toward the ramp.
"Just work quickly." She shared a glance with Wolverine, and he nodded in understanding. The last thing they needed was another brush with the law.
Once Logan had left and Scott and Nora were safely on board, she motioned for Nightcrawler to close the ramp and strode up to Cyclops, who was helping the girl into one of the seats on the plane.
"The authorities have been alerted," she told him. "We should leave before we are discovered."
Nodding, Cyclops kept his eyes upon the girl, who stared forward with a disturbing blank expression. His brow furrowing, he put an awkward hand on her shoulder and motioned for Kurt to stay beside her as he took the navigator's seat beside Storm.
Once at the controls, he looked down into the streets and couldn't help but give a sigh as he watched Wolverine use his claws to rip the license plates from his contorted and still smoking Porsche.
Forcing himself to look away from the wreckage, he caught a glimpse of Nora out of the corner of his eye. Her cheeks still moist with tears, she brought her knees up to her stomach and turned to sadly stare out of the window.
Though she had been through a great deal, Scott knew the important thing was that she was still alive. She was safe, her reminded himself. That was what mattered. Smiling ever so slightly at the thought, he gave a final glance to his car and refused to look back.
Considering what might have been lost, he deemed the Porsche Carrera Turbo a sacrifice he was willing to make.
