"Ohmahgawd!" Rogue shouted as she backed away from her doppelganger. Then it struck her. "Mystique!"
Her twin laughed. "No, that's Mystique." And pointed to a shape shifting Mystique just as she transformed into a bird and flew away.
"Then who are you?"
"I, my darling, am you. See you soon." With a smile and a cocked eyebrow, Rogue flew into the sky and away. Rogue stood there in shock as… well, she flew away. Then Rogue remembered why she was there.
"Warren!" Rogue ran to where he was laying and called for the professor. Within seconds the entire team was there. Unfortunately they were all too late. Warren Worthington III was dead.
Back at the mansion, the team gathered in the study and watched the news. They all cried as Warren's picture flashed on the screen and the news anchor waxed poetic over the loss of a town hero. Scott reached over and shut off the TV before turning to the team.
"We lost a friend, and a hero. But this will not go unpunished. We will get who did this and we will stop them. Rogue, you were the first there. What did you see?"
Rogue looked up from where she sat curled up on the windowsill. "I can't explain what I saw."
The professor wheeled in and looked at her. "Try."
"Kurt ported us over there and then I sent him back to get the others. I was coming around a vent getting ready to absorb an attacker when I bumped into someone. Someone who happened to look just like me."
Logan walked in. "Mystique?"
"No, I saw her too though. IT WAS ME! I know it. I recognized her. Inside here." Rogue tapped her chest. "She said something about seeing me soon. What do you think that means?"
"It means, kid, that this isn't the last incident. It's just the first."
Deep in the time nexus, Holocaust was just about to step into the timeline when a large ripple slammed past. It was way larger than any of the last. Which meant that something big was happening. Turning he knew that this wouldn't be solved by just him. He would need help. He could see from the path he was taking that many of the floating eyes, (openings into the timeline) that things were changing, drastically. Apocalypse would not be happy.
After informing Apocalypse Holocaust set out to contrive a message. Whoever was interfering would be having some friends soon.
Future Rogue landed on the shores of England two hours after encountering her past self. She laughed again as she set John on his feet.
"What's so funny, sheila?"
"You should have seen the look on her…my face! Priceless, darling. Priceless."
"I didn't think it so funny. I thought it was stupid. This was supposed to remain a secret mission Marie! They know we're here now."
Rogue glared at him. "They know we're here but not what we're doing. And besides when the time comes. We're going to need them. Now, where's Betsy?"
John pointed to the mansion behind him. "She's probably crying her eyes out over her dead lover Worthington."
"I doubt it. They haven't even met yet. And now they never will. Mystique?"
"Yes, my daughter?" Mystique asked as she transformed from bird to person.
"I think we should go for subtlety right now. Maybe we should try someone she trusts?"
Mystique nodded and transformed into Betsy Braddock's twin, Brian. Rogue tapped into Mystique's powers and became Betsy's older brother, Jamie.
As they walked up to the huge house, Rogue thought about what she knew of Betsy. Codenamed Psylocke, she and her future husband Archangel would be tainted and overtaken by Apocalypse in six months. They alone would kill hundreds of people. Her gifts were psychic; she could use telepathy and had the ability to create "psychic knives" which had the power to kill people. She was also highly skilled in martial arts. Rogue smiled this would be fun.
Back at the mansion alarms, for the second time that night, began to go off. The professor reached out to cerebro and informed the team that another attack had happened.
Suddenly the prof grabbed his head. He held up his hand to hold off the team. "No! I'm fine. But don't bother getting ready to go. She's already dead." The prof seemed extremely agitated at that. "There is some kind of reason to their attacks. I can sense it. We must stop them. Scott ready the plane. We need to be ready to go at the drop of the hat. Everyone else. Warmup in the danger room. These are dangerous mutants. Take the new recruits in with you. We might need them."
As everyone filed out of the room, Ororo and Logan stayed. They both knew that the prof knew something he wasn't saying.
"Charlie?"
"You know I hate it when you call me that."
"Yeah, yeah."
"Professor, what is it?"
The prof turned to the beautiful African. "I can feel somethin happening with every death. On the astral plane something is growing. Or coming. Every time these people kill a tremor goes through me. I don't know what to do."
"Maybe I can help." A voice called out from across the room. The trio turned to see four figures step out of some kind of light portal. "You see that's my wife you're talking about." Sean Cassidy, codename: Banshee, stepped into the light and this timeline.
Oh! Rogue's man! Oh! They're murdering!
Next up: Sean tells the X-Men a story. Well, three to be exact. (IE Rogue, Kitty, and John)(Where is Kitty anyways?)