Promises of Vengeance

Stryker sat in his cell, meditating and praying in order to control the rage inside him.

But the rage he felt had nothing to do with his current predicament.

Anne was his own fault. If he had been more vigilant she never would have betrayed him. She never would have had the chance too. At least he corrected that mistake and if spending time in jail was the price he had to pay so be it.

But that wasn't what angered him. If anything he found himself gaining even more converts in prison. And he was treated surprisingly well. No, he considered his incarceration merely another road God had set him on.

What angered him was that he had failed in his mission.

Worse, he seemingly revealed even more of those mutants. Possibly creating even more of them. No, he could not have possibly created those abominations. The evil was already inside of them, he merely revealed the evil within.

No, he had failed. Despite how well he had planned and how careful he had been, he failed. But it was not of his own design. A pack of children and a bizarre abomination of a man had brought him down.

More specifically, one child made a fool of him. A mere girl had managed to evade his most elite trackers and thwart his plans. Then she had the gall to chastise him in front of the world. And of course the world believed her, for she used her demonic charms to fool them.

It would take years if need be but one day he would be released and he would be more powerful than ever. Then he'd finish what he started, beginning with one mutant.

"Vengeance shall be mine Miss Pryde…" Stryker said softly. "Vengeance shall be mine…"

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Gone, everything was gone.

Her husband, her son, her home and status were all destroyed in one day.

All because of Moira MacTaggert.

Her and that damned son of hers.

Abominations all of them. That's what mutants were. She knew they were dangerous but she had no idea how dangerous. Until now.

Amelia MacTaggert stood at the graves of her husband and son and placed roses on them. "I promise boys," She whispered. "Until the day I die I will do everything I can to avenge your deaths."

She shed a tear then left. She was done weeping now. She had cried enough. She would only cry again when she had completed her task.

She didn't know where she was going, but she knew what she had to do.

To stop those mutants once and for all.

And anyone who helped them.

"You'll pay for this Moira, you bitch," Amelia hissed. "You and all your little mutant friends if it's the last thing I ever do."

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Seventeen-year-old James Proudstar closed his eyes as the wind whipped through his hair. This was the way most people dreamed of flying.

He of course didn't have to dream it.

He skimmed over the Arizona desert at incredible speeds. Only a few months ago he had discovered that he was a mutant just like his brother. He had the same strength, speed, endurance and toughnessJohn had. But the flying was something completely unexpected.

James made a wry grin at the memory of him pretending to be Superman when he was younger and John playing along. Then he remembered what happened when his brother actually tried to be a hero.

It cost him his life.

He decided to visit his brother's grave. He refused to let those treacherous X-Men attend the ceremony, especially after he learned that one of them was his killer. He had done it himself, given him a full Apache warrior service.

His brother would have been proud.

He flew down and saw a tall blonde woman in white place flowers on John's grave. He flew down wondering if this was another X-Man he needed to contend with. "What are you doing?"

"Placing flowers. I thought roses would be a nice touch. James Proudstar I presume?" Emma Frost walked up to him.

"Yeah, that's me. Who are you?" James glared at Emma.

"My name is Emma Frost, headmistress of the Massachusetts Academy," She introduced herself. "I'm sorry for your loss. Your brother was a brave warrior. He deserved a better fate."

"Yeah well that don't change anything," James grunted. "He's still dead."

"You and your brother are…were a lot alike," Emma said. "You're both mutants."

"So what about that?" James snapped.

"So am I," Frost changed her skin to it's diamond form. "I'm also a telepath. If it makes you feel any better, I've lost a sister recently as well. She was very depressed."

"So why are you here?" James asked. "Is this some kind of recruitment thing?"

"Very astute of you," Emma said. "Let me cut to the chase then. How would you like revenge on Charles Xavier and the X-Men?"

"You mean the chumps who got my brother killed?" James looked at her. "I'm listening."

"And I'm offering you not only a chance for payback, but power," Emma put her hand on his shoulder. "And a lifestyle beyond your wildest dreams."

"Sure wouldn't take much for me to leave this dustbowl that's for sure," James grunted. "But that's the same offer Xavier made to my brother."

"Of course I can understand that you wouldn't want to repeat that mistake," Emma said. "But do you have a better plan to avenge John's death?"

"You have a point," James sighed. "Okay Ms. Frost I might as well give it a shot."

"You won't regret this my young Warpath," Emma grinned.

"Warpath?" James looked at her. "Yeah that does suit me. I like it. I like it a lot. Cause once I let loose on the X-Men, there's nothing that's going to stop me!"