Disclaimer: I don't own the X-Men. Ilehana Xavier belongs to Corrinth. All
other characters belong to me.
A/N: Thank you to all my reviewers out there; you really are all stars.
Scene 13
"I don't understand."
"Sian has the virus, Alex." Scott counselled his brother. "The same one that's killed two of the President's daughter's friends in Hawaii, the same one she passed on to Colossus..."
"Am I gonna die too?" Sian asked, glancing from Scott to Hank McCoy, desperate to know.
"No, Sian." Hank consoled her. "The virus has had no effect on you whatsoever. It only affects mutants."
"The question is," Xavier asked slowly. "Is it a chance occurrence, or is there some darker motive at work here?"
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Well, at least she hadn't lost her touch. In and out of the building and its computer systems inside an hour. Not as fast as she used to be, but Blaze could live with that. She tucked the Aston Martin back in the garage, blocking in Cyclops' car without even noticing it. Now to get the data and the encryption files to Studd. Course, if she was playing this properly, she should sent the data and point out she'd never agreed to send the encryption key, making Studd pay her for them. But today she just couldn't be bothered.
Back in the lower levels, she booted up a couple of PCs, took her time making sure her emails couldn't be traced. Blaze wouldn't have relied on the X-Men's technology, but it was so good she couldn't pass up the security it offered her. One computer she set splitting up, attaching and emailing the database automatically, whilst she used another to prepare the encryption files. She was so caught up in what she was doing; she didn't know she wasn't alone until a strong hand rested on her shoulder.
"Oh, its you." She frowned at Gambit, pushing the wheelie chair away from him to the first computer, leaving the second one working.
"You bin breakin' in places without me?" He asked, instantly recognising what Blaze was up to. "Why?"
"You'd only slow me down, Rem, and you know it." Blaze teased, deliberately not answering his question or meeting his eyes.
"What's goin' on Blaze?" He demanded, getting in her way again as she scooted back to where she'd started. He grabbed the arms of the chair, stopping her dead and making her look at him. "You gonna tell me? Or you not trust me no more?"
"Don't be..." Blaze began defensively, before sighing and standing up, Remy's hands taking the top of her arms protectively. "Of course I trust you." She started again, "I always have. But nothing was certain until today, I didn't want to worry you if I was just being paranoid."
"You worry me permanently, Petite." He replied; taking her left hand and turning it palm upwards to trace the cuts there. Blaze bit her lip as she watched his hand on hers; she'd hurt him again. Even if she hadn't wanted to, now she had to tell him everything.
"Lance phoned me from South Africa whilst you were on your mission with Ilehana. Mercury has been released, and he thought I should know, just in case. So, just in case, I got in touch with Studd and had him keep tabs on Lance. I didn't really think anything would happen, but it did. I got the call today that Lance is dead..."
"Dead?" Remy repeated, frowning, looking right into Blaze's soul with those eyes... "Eloise got to him? Why?"
"I don't know, I don't know how her mind works. But Studd thinks that Mercury tortured Lance before she killed him, and Lance knew where we were. She's on her way, Remy. All this," She waved her hand at the computers, "Is just me paying my debts to Studd for at least giving me some warning."
"I'se take it he didn't just want cash?" Blaze smiled at that, Gambit knew these people as well as she did. Not better, as he often thought he did, but as equally as well. "Why..." Gambit started, letting Blaze go at last to one of the computers, settling to talk to her back. "Why you doin' this by yourself? You t'ink it coverin' up those scars, you sortin' all this? You t'ink it ain't gonna knock you back again? You t'ink..."
"No, Rem, as a rule I don't think." Blaze half-snapped. "Why don't you trust me for once, I know what I'm doing and I know I can handle this. I'm not hiding behind you..."
"No, then I be some use to you, Chere. You jus' pushin' me away... Again..."
"That's not true! I just told you everything didn't I?" Blaze spun back round to face him, eyes flashing angry. "What the hell do you want from me? I'm not good enough when I'm a broken wreck who can't face her own bedroom, and I'm even worse when I start doing things for myself again!"
Gambit stormed out at that, wishing there was a door in the lower levels that he could slam in frustration. Call him juvenile, but this wasn't an argument he was going to let slide. He hoped the Professor was holdin' up okay, this sure was turnin' out to be one heck of a day.
Not five minutes later, Blaze was shutting down the computers, debt paid, when she realised exactly what Remy had gone and done. Why did he have to be so irritating? Didn't he know that today really wasn't the day for this! Xavier had enough to worry about without refereeing one of their arguments, let alone dealing with the whole vengeful Mercury thing!
#Blaze; come to my office right away. #
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Jubilee sat tearless and cold by Colossus' bedside, hating that his body might lie alone even for a little while. The rest of the mansion whirled on around her, all the inhabitants busy running around like headless chickens. Had no one told them Colossus had stopped breathing? Had no one told them he'd died? How could they be so cold, so callous? Was this virus threat any more terrifying than her friend already having died?
"I..." A small, shy voice made Jubilee look up and around. The bed holding Colossus was screened off in a corner of the bright infirmary, Jubilee's mourning protected from the bustling industry of Ilehana's microbiology lab. She could almost have been alone with the empty shell that had been brave Peter, up until Sian arrived, escorted by Havoc and Iceman. "I just wanted to say... To say how sorry I am..."
"Bitch." Jubilee swore, putting herself protectively between Colossus' body and the other girl. Her voice was cold and hard, Jubilee's hands tingling with her mutant power. "You killed him."
"I didn't know, I didn't mean to, I..." Sian spoke quickly; tears falling haphazardly form her long eyelashes.
"Its okay, Sian, Jubilee doesn't mean it..." Bobby interjected.
"Don't I?" Jubilee turned on her friends aggressively. "Don't any of you get it? Peter's dead! And he wouldn't be if she hadn't kissed him, or if I..."
"Jubes?" Havoc started forwards as Jubilee began to cry too, but she held up her hands, threatening her power.
"If I hadn't made him come out with us, he didn't want to go, I made him... And now he's dead and it's my fault! It's all my fault!" Jubilee stumbled, hands flying to her face, as Bobby and Alex caught her.
"Its time to leave him, Jubilee." Bobby counselled. "He's gone, come on, its time to go..." Jubilee nodded, and allowed herself to be lead from the infirmary. Sian reached over and took the blanket that covered Colossus up to his chest, shook out the folds, and covered his face. She was struck by how at ease he looked, in death so beautifully calm.
"Rest in peace, Peter..."
A/N: Thank you to all my reviewers out there; you really are all stars.
Scene 13
"I don't understand."
"Sian has the virus, Alex." Scott counselled his brother. "The same one that's killed two of the President's daughter's friends in Hawaii, the same one she passed on to Colossus..."
"Am I gonna die too?" Sian asked, glancing from Scott to Hank McCoy, desperate to know.
"No, Sian." Hank consoled her. "The virus has had no effect on you whatsoever. It only affects mutants."
"The question is," Xavier asked slowly. "Is it a chance occurrence, or is there some darker motive at work here?"
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Well, at least she hadn't lost her touch. In and out of the building and its computer systems inside an hour. Not as fast as she used to be, but Blaze could live with that. She tucked the Aston Martin back in the garage, blocking in Cyclops' car without even noticing it. Now to get the data and the encryption files to Studd. Course, if she was playing this properly, she should sent the data and point out she'd never agreed to send the encryption key, making Studd pay her for them. But today she just couldn't be bothered.
Back in the lower levels, she booted up a couple of PCs, took her time making sure her emails couldn't be traced. Blaze wouldn't have relied on the X-Men's technology, but it was so good she couldn't pass up the security it offered her. One computer she set splitting up, attaching and emailing the database automatically, whilst she used another to prepare the encryption files. She was so caught up in what she was doing; she didn't know she wasn't alone until a strong hand rested on her shoulder.
"Oh, its you." She frowned at Gambit, pushing the wheelie chair away from him to the first computer, leaving the second one working.
"You bin breakin' in places without me?" He asked, instantly recognising what Blaze was up to. "Why?"
"You'd only slow me down, Rem, and you know it." Blaze teased, deliberately not answering his question or meeting his eyes.
"What's goin' on Blaze?" He demanded, getting in her way again as she scooted back to where she'd started. He grabbed the arms of the chair, stopping her dead and making her look at him. "You gonna tell me? Or you not trust me no more?"
"Don't be..." Blaze began defensively, before sighing and standing up, Remy's hands taking the top of her arms protectively. "Of course I trust you." She started again, "I always have. But nothing was certain until today, I didn't want to worry you if I was just being paranoid."
"You worry me permanently, Petite." He replied; taking her left hand and turning it palm upwards to trace the cuts there. Blaze bit her lip as she watched his hand on hers; she'd hurt him again. Even if she hadn't wanted to, now she had to tell him everything.
"Lance phoned me from South Africa whilst you were on your mission with Ilehana. Mercury has been released, and he thought I should know, just in case. So, just in case, I got in touch with Studd and had him keep tabs on Lance. I didn't really think anything would happen, but it did. I got the call today that Lance is dead..."
"Dead?" Remy repeated, frowning, looking right into Blaze's soul with those eyes... "Eloise got to him? Why?"
"I don't know, I don't know how her mind works. But Studd thinks that Mercury tortured Lance before she killed him, and Lance knew where we were. She's on her way, Remy. All this," She waved her hand at the computers, "Is just me paying my debts to Studd for at least giving me some warning."
"I'se take it he didn't just want cash?" Blaze smiled at that, Gambit knew these people as well as she did. Not better, as he often thought he did, but as equally as well. "Why..." Gambit started, letting Blaze go at last to one of the computers, settling to talk to her back. "Why you doin' this by yourself? You t'ink it coverin' up those scars, you sortin' all this? You t'ink it ain't gonna knock you back again? You t'ink..."
"No, Rem, as a rule I don't think." Blaze half-snapped. "Why don't you trust me for once, I know what I'm doing and I know I can handle this. I'm not hiding behind you..."
"No, then I be some use to you, Chere. You jus' pushin' me away... Again..."
"That's not true! I just told you everything didn't I?" Blaze spun back round to face him, eyes flashing angry. "What the hell do you want from me? I'm not good enough when I'm a broken wreck who can't face her own bedroom, and I'm even worse when I start doing things for myself again!"
Gambit stormed out at that, wishing there was a door in the lower levels that he could slam in frustration. Call him juvenile, but this wasn't an argument he was going to let slide. He hoped the Professor was holdin' up okay, this sure was turnin' out to be one heck of a day.
Not five minutes later, Blaze was shutting down the computers, debt paid, when she realised exactly what Remy had gone and done. Why did he have to be so irritating? Didn't he know that today really wasn't the day for this! Xavier had enough to worry about without refereeing one of their arguments, let alone dealing with the whole vengeful Mercury thing!
#Blaze; come to my office right away. #
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Jubilee sat tearless and cold by Colossus' bedside, hating that his body might lie alone even for a little while. The rest of the mansion whirled on around her, all the inhabitants busy running around like headless chickens. Had no one told them Colossus had stopped breathing? Had no one told them he'd died? How could they be so cold, so callous? Was this virus threat any more terrifying than her friend already having died?
"I..." A small, shy voice made Jubilee look up and around. The bed holding Colossus was screened off in a corner of the bright infirmary, Jubilee's mourning protected from the bustling industry of Ilehana's microbiology lab. She could almost have been alone with the empty shell that had been brave Peter, up until Sian arrived, escorted by Havoc and Iceman. "I just wanted to say... To say how sorry I am..."
"Bitch." Jubilee swore, putting herself protectively between Colossus' body and the other girl. Her voice was cold and hard, Jubilee's hands tingling with her mutant power. "You killed him."
"I didn't know, I didn't mean to, I..." Sian spoke quickly; tears falling haphazardly form her long eyelashes.
"Its okay, Sian, Jubilee doesn't mean it..." Bobby interjected.
"Don't I?" Jubilee turned on her friends aggressively. "Don't any of you get it? Peter's dead! And he wouldn't be if she hadn't kissed him, or if I..."
"Jubes?" Havoc started forwards as Jubilee began to cry too, but she held up her hands, threatening her power.
"If I hadn't made him come out with us, he didn't want to go, I made him... And now he's dead and it's my fault! It's all my fault!" Jubilee stumbled, hands flying to her face, as Bobby and Alex caught her.
"Its time to leave him, Jubilee." Bobby counselled. "He's gone, come on, its time to go..." Jubilee nodded, and allowed herself to be lead from the infirmary. Sian reached over and took the blanket that covered Colossus up to his chest, shook out the folds, and covered his face. She was struck by how at ease he looked, in death so beautifully calm.
"Rest in peace, Peter..."