Chapter 12:
Alighting from her vehicle late the next night, Sienna closed the door quietly and looked around at the unknown forest terrain. Looking through the brush, she saw the faint glow of a campfire and sighed. Then, she snuck through the bushes to get closer for security's sake. Stopping behind a tree, she peeked out and saw the X-Men and two Brotherhood members circled around a fire near the Blackbird. She couldn't hear what they were saying so she got closer but brushed against a fern too loudly and Logan's ears perked up quickly. Swivelling around, he unleashed his claws and pointed them in her direction.
"Show yourself," he snarled in a low voice and Sienna held up her hands carefully before stepping out into the light. Looking from one to another, she relaxed as Logan's claws popped back into his knuckles and Jean sighed in relief. Hugging her, the redhead stroked a lock away and smiled at the girl as Storm followed up with a hug as well. Eying the crowd, Sienna's gaze darted from one to another and then the green orbs settled on the blue-skinned male mutant. Raising an eyebrow delicately, she looked at him with interest as her gaze sparkled cheekily.
Squirming, the blue-skinned mutant spoke in heavily accented English. "Good evening, what is your name?"
Sienna lowered the eyebrow and smiled widely at the mutant before speaking. "I am Sienna. Who are you?"
Smiling widely now, the mutant twitched his forked tail quickly. "I am Kurt Wagner but in the Munich Circus, they called me the Incredible Nightcrawler." Then Kurt frowned and looked at Sienna quizzically. "Are you not going to scream about my form, my lack of human attributes, Fraulein Sienna? I am not the most usual person you would see..."
She smiled mysteriously and shook her head. "Nein, Herr Wagner. You do not scare me or make me uncomfortable, I have met much worse monsters who were human. You have nothing to fear from me, Kurt."
Then out of the corner of her eye, Sienna saw the others and turned away. Examining their stunned looks, she smiled and gave them all a quizzical look as she raised her eyebrows at them. "And what are you all staring at me for? It's as if you'd seen a ghost or were fast becoming one. What is with you all?"
Jean finally got her mouth working but began to stutter in shock, Magneto and Mystique had remained strangely still during this time. "You... you spoke to us. You haven't said a word since we rescued you..."
Sienna only laughed softly. "I just felt this was the time to start talking, that's all. Stryker has gone to Alkali Lake and I suspect that will be where we can find the Professor and the others. They are being held against their will by the substance I secret at time. He has taken the liquid from my brother who has one of the powers I possess."
Logan only snarled. "Where'd you get this information, 'Enna?"
Sienna froze and spoke softly. "From Stryker's main computer at Weapon X. Stryker took me from the Mansion when he attacked and tried to subdue me again. I used my gift and made him faint unconscious. Then, I hacked into his mainframe and got the information before completely destroying the system."
"Stryker..." growled Logan in disgust as he sniffed the air. Jean put a hand on his arm to steady him and Mystique glanced quickly at Magneto. Sienna then turned to the others and gave them a glare. "And what are the infamous Magneto and Mystique doing with my friends? Why are you here?"
Magneto smiled at the girl in a fatherly way. "Why, my dear, I am simply here to rescue an old friend. Don't you trust me?"
Sienna's eyes glittered in challenge. "In one word, no..."
"Pity..." Magneto replied as he studied her very carefully. His eyes began to roman her body in a way she didn't trust one little bit. Magneto and Mystique, both wanted terrorists and pains to boot. Glancing at his friend, the master of Magnetism turned away and began to fiddle with his helmet. Looking down, Sienna groaned as she viewed her ripped and blood-covered clothes. Walking into the Blackbird, she changed quickly and gave Pyro a fierce glare when he peeked in and saw her in her bra. Fifteen minutes later, she sauntered out and sat on the steps in her fresh clothes. A black singlet top covered her upper half and she had placed body armour underneath the top to cover her torso. Tight, form fitting trousers hugged her thighs and her favourite pair of weathered black boots completed the ensemble.
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Reaching out with her mind, Sienna tried to find Xavier but instead encountered a wall of mental static and fuzziness. Trying to breach it, she met with fierce resistance and was pushed away as she gave a snort of disgust. Looking up, she saw Jean enter Logan's tent and frowned as she saw what looked like Jean dozing by the fire. "Blasted Mystique..." she muttered under her breath and swore faintly. Then, she got up and went to where Nightcrawler was. He had been hanging by his tail off a branch and was perched on the branch itself.
Stopping near his motionless body, Sienna perched carefully on the tree near him and spoke quietly in German."Do you ever get lonely, Kurt? "
Kurt nodded slowly and uncurled his tail. "Ja, I do get lonely sometimes but I have God to look after me. He keeps me alive, keeps me sane and centred only on his will. It fills my life with peace but yes, sometimes I feel very lonely in America."
Sienna smiled slightly and winked at Kurt, who blushed. "What is your mutation, Kurt? What is your power?"
Kurt laughed and only held up a finger. Then, he disappeared in thin air and a smell of rotten eggs washed over her. Wrinkling her nose in distaste, Sienna stared at where Kurt had been and then smiled as he reappeared seconds later. Bowing, he smiled through pointed fangs. At a failure to speak it in German, he spoke in English instead. "Basically, I can teleport and reappear seconds later in a different place. I used it in the circus and nobody minded at all, it was part of my act and nobody minded my skin. To them, I was a man in a suit..."
Sienna clapped happily as he teleported again and reappeared at her side and then eased himself back onto the original branch. But when Kurt asked her to explain her gift to him, she frowned. Closing her eyes, she reached out a hand and touched his skin quickly. Then, she began to expand the darkness that always bubbled in her body as a catalyst for her power. That darkness was what she drew on to manipulate at times. Reaching out with the small area, she began to expand a tendril while keeping the others in control. Then, she moved the tendril slowly into his unguarded mind and probed slightly to let him know she was there. Drawing on a memory, she began to weave the idea into an illusion and expanded it until Kurt was standing in what he thought was his caravan back in Germany. As he let out a cry of astonishment, Sienna drew back and it vanished. Exiting his mind, she stared at him as he blinked and explained it to him.
"Kurt, my friend, my power is that I can manipulate minds. Read them, change them, probe them and even put in thoughts or memories. I can also create illusions, which are nearly flawless. What you saw, it was an illusion and nothing else. It was not real, but you thought it was, which is a part of what my illusions do. Please try to understand, I d onto like to use my power on others, but sometimes I must. That is what I do, just like when you teleport. "
Then, she hung her head. Kurt picked up on that posture and raised the chin with a finger. "Listen, liebchen, there is nothing wrong. You just gave me a shock, that's all. Vhat you do is gutt but you must be careful, ya?"
Sienna nodded and smiled at him before giving him a hug. Leaning back, she snuggled up to him and closed her eyes until Kurt fell asleep. Then, she opened her eyes slowly and watched the sky shimmer slightly. Whispering, she fingered his prayer beads and then laid her head back as she began to sing a sweet lullaby that echoed through the camp and washed over each individual as they slept on...
