Author's note: Hey all, I just wanted to upload this before the 29th since it's going to be my birthday then. I'm turning twenty!
Previously on…
The Astonishing X-Men are a team of mutants, led by CYCLOPS and EMMA FROST, who fight to protect a world that has long feared and hated them. Their recent rise in popularity though, thanks in part to their recent ream-ups with the celebrity/superhero team Fantastic Four, as well as the trendy new lease on what people call "Mutant Culture", have made their lives all the more bearable. The resurrection of their long dead teammate COLOSSUS, has also improved their morale.
On the morning of September eleven, the world was horrified to witness the fall of the Two Towers, the result of two passenger airplanes getting commandeered directly into them. The death toll was flew past the thousands. After recognizing that it was an act of terrorism, the American Government and her close allies, have decided to wage a war on Terror. This was four years ago. The War on Terror still rages on.
When an American brigade find themselves under heavy attack from Iraqi guerilla, one of them, CHRISTIAN LEWIS, suddenly begins to feel the thoughts and emotions of every one surrounding him. Unable to take the enormous strain, he sees a glimpse of four women covered in blood red burqas, right before uncontrollably releasing a psychic shockwave that kills everyone in a four hundred mile radius. A group of women in red burqas, identifying themselves as the RING OF FATIMA, have taken responsibility for the tragedy. And they promise not to stop until everyone else perishes as well.
When the CIA contacts the X-Men to investigate, they are first weary of having to participate in such a sensitive issue. But after a night of arguing with the team, and perhaps something deeper, Emma Frost and SCOTT SUMMERS soon accepted the offer, recognizing their duties to homo superior as more important than their personal dislike of war. With the aid of LILAH MORGAN, they manage to reach Iraq without difficulty, and are soon sent to Karbala where the psychic shockwave originated. It didn't take long for Emma to realize that Christian Lewis was already dead. Soon after, the Ring of Fatima attack the X-Men. The battle leaves half the members of the Ring dead, and the X-Men severely injured. During the battle, HENRY MCCOY, known as THE BEAST, managed to learn something from one of the women. The identity of their employers, which Emma Frost cryptically identified as "us"…
Chapter 8: "Double-Cross"
The sun was still high that cold afternoon, defiantly piercing the endless march of clouds with bright rays of light. It was almost as if a spotlight fell on the Xavier Institute, painting everything like a golden sepia. To be so close to such freedom as the sky held must have been something to be envious of. "If only I could fly..." Mark thought, as he shifted his gaze from the heavens above, to the cacophonous screeching of the men and women just outside the institute's gates. Angry faces each and everyone, all of them blaming the residents of the institute for whatever new complaint they could come up with. They didn't care that some of the people they were so intent on getting rid of haven't even gotten past puberty.
"Hey, Mark!" came a strong, if somewhat annoying voice, which snapped the young mutant out of his trance. Julian Keller ran past a few of the other students, who like Mark, stood motionless watching the hungry horde on the other side of the institute's enormous gates.
"Julian." Mark greeted, extending his fist as a sign of respect. Julian did the same. Like Mark, Julian stood out as one of the students who were easy on the eyes. He had short, black hair and a devilish grin that seemed to almost always hold a secret. But not that day.
"What the hell is wrong now?" Julian asked, placing his arms over his waist, as he stared at the mob chanting for them to leave.
"Apparently, they don't like mutants." Mark sarcastically replied, while Julian then leaned on Mark's shoulder with his elbow.
"Dude, you should just go all Soultaker on these dumbasses." Julian commented with a malicious grin. Unlike a lot of the other students, Julian, by the codename of Hellion, wasn't shy about using his telekinetic gifts. And it was his intention that every other student be the same.
"Man, these guys aren't even worth getting their souls sucked out." Mark retorted, trying to sound cool, when in all reality he was as afraid of using his powers as he was of losing somebody else he loved. Two scenarios which seemed to always be connected.
"Huh. Maybe I can use my powerful brain to force them to whack each other with those signs…"
"That would be…comical. Inappropriate, but comical."
"…There's a lot of them." Julian then noted, feeling the weight of the situation through the sheer number of protesters outside. "If they storm in here, it's not going to be easy…"
"This has got to be the worst time for every X-Team, and squad advisor, to be out on duty."
"Yeah. And I'm still wondering how Logan gets to be in each X-Team, and be a member of the Avengers, all at the same time."
"…let's just pray that these guys aren't dumb enough to try and invade a school full of hormonal teenagers with superpowers." Mark coolly stated.
"What are they complaining about now, anyway?" Julian then asked, before noticing a pretty, teenage girl in the crowd, who was clearly only there because she was brought along by her father. He gave her a quick smile, from which she immediately blushed and shied away from. Three seconds later and she looked back, just in time for a wink from the young Hellion, prompting her to giggle to herself.
"Remember that…uh, broadcast? About those chicks in burqas who said they were mutants and wanted to kill everyone? I think that's what this is about." Mark replied.
"God, now that's just stupid." Julian muttered, back to seriousness. "I swear man, one day they're going start complaining about having nothing to complain about."
"Some people just…they see you, you're a mutant, and then all of a sudden, you're every mutant, you know? And now, thanks to those psycho chicks in TV, we aren't just big bad mutants, we're also big bad terrorist mutants. Christ this is frustrating." Elaborated Mark, who didn't notice Beckah standing a few feet away, listening in. It was enough to drive a stake through her heart, seeing as she was guilty of the exact same thing with Sooraya, just one day ago.
"These idiots just don't get it." Mark then commented. "What happened in Iraq wasn't our fault."
Karbala, Iraq/ 16:20
"This is all our fault." Emma muttered, as she led the X-Men down the weaving paths of the empty city. All of them were battered and bruised, one of them more so mentally than anything else. But like all good heroes, they soldiered on. They knew that there was a time to rest. And that there was a time to tackle the problem at hand.
"Us? They work for us? What the hell do you mean?" Kitty asked, as she did for the last five minutes since the woman made of diamond cryptically revealed who it was the now beaten Ring of Fatima served.
"Us. They're working for the United States of America. I'm still trying to put it all together, Katherine." Emma responded, still wet from being trapped inside Sultana's stomach for the better part of an hour.
"But you're sure? You're sure of this?" Scott inquired, walking a little behind Emma since he busied himself helping Hank remain on his feet. His love for the woman may at times cloud his better judgment, but he still knew when something was worthy of being doubted.
"I'm sure that Henry is sure, Scott." Emma immediately answered. "I scraped all of this from his mind after all." She then reminded. "And I'm certain that he would jump at the chance to elucidate further, had it not been for the creature that practically feasted on his colon."
"Internal…injuries…makes hard…to talk…" Henry added.
"My healing factor's faster than yours." Logan teased, adding a little levity to the situation.
"Besides, when that horrid woman tried to make my mind explode, it managed to temporarily increase my telepathy to some rather unnerving levels. And what Henry here managed to learn from Mariella ended up reminding me of one of the things I saw in my, dare I say, cosmic imaginings. The real people behind the strings."
Military Installation/16:24
"It doesn't matter." Agent Nolan declared scratched his brow in a fit of tedium. He and his partner followed the General Major down a long catwalk, one that overlooked the production facility at the very bottom. "Even though I believed the fight would actually last longer, the girls have brought us enough time. Everything will be ready by tonight. The plan will go on." He further commented, as he peered down onto dozens of empty canisters, each one big enough to hold a grown human being. They were all lined in rows, a field of empty glass cylinders that stretched across the entire facility.
"…Your faith in this project is very, very inspiring, agent." General Major Messer remarked. "I hope it's enough to protect you from the Wolverine if they find out what we're responsible for."
"We're more than equipped to handle some X-Men." Agent Cooper chided confidently.
"Good. Then I'm leaving them to you." Messer retorted. "Because I, for one, do not need a group of angry, super-powered mutants banging down my door, especially since two of them are practically immortal!"
"You shouldn't worry so much, sir. We've handled meta-humans before. These mutants will be just the same." Nolan reassured, as they began to make their way to the lift at the very end.
"Have either of you heard from Graham?" Messer then asked.
"Last we heard, she just finished having a conversation with the co-director of S.H.I.E.L.D." Cooper answered. "And she notified us that the troops will be in place by sundown."
"That's good news, agent. That's very good news." The General Major then said, as they all boarded the lift. But before any of them could press the button to descend, one of the large windows on the opposite end of the facility suddenly shatters, as the figure of a winged woman dove right through.
"Mariella…" Nolan muttered, as he watched the weakened woman lose control of her flight, and fall down to the ground floor.
"Deal with her." Messer instructed, as he hastily pushed the lift's button.
The wounded Mariella crashed on a line of empty canisters, nearly severing her already loose wing from the point of impact, before rolling down to the floor like a broken rag doll. Her jaw was back to its normal shape, no longer the reptilian appendage that it was in her encounter earlier on. "…my…sisters…" she deliriously uttered, as she tried desperately to crawl to safety. There were still a few employees in the area, everyone content at simply staring at the severely injured woman in silence. The whole area was covered by red lights, with large machinery and hydraulics scattered around that looked ready to devour anyone foolish enough to draw near. It was completely different from the barren facility that was shown the X-Men just hours before.
"Help…me…" Mariella pleaded in a hoarse voice, only to be cut off by her own blood, which she started violently coughing out. Her guttural pains were so loud that it didn't even make her notice the loud footsteps of leather against metal, which slowly came her way.
"…Mariella." Nolan greeted, as he knelt beside her crippled form. "And here I thought that the gifts we gave you would have been enough to hold the X-Men at bay. I mean, it was the only thing you and your sisters were born to do…and still, you all failed utterly."
"No…they…not…fair…"
"Yeah, yeah, whatever." Without warning, Nolan grabbed Mariella's neck, and effortlessly lifted her into the air. "All you're good at is reminding me how much of a better model I am than you are." And just like that, he twisted his grip, resulting in a loud crack and a lifeless body. The spectators then resumed their duties, as if nothing had happened.
"This is what we get for rushing things…" Cooper commented while leaning on one of the empty canisters.
"Doesn't matter. As long as Lilah gets the job done, we- -"
A loud explosion prevents him from finishing his statement, one which caused an entire section of the wall in front of him to be reduced into rubble. Bright sunlight from the outside poured inside, cutting a swath through the dark red lights of the installation. The time for subtleties was over. Nolan and Cooper stood side by side, while the rest of the facility's employees, fearlessly, or rather, emotionlessly, drew closer to the wreckage. All of them had green eyes.
"What did you do?" came a loud, booming voice from beyond the unsettled dust. Cyclops stood atop the smoking concrete that he had just torn apart, while the X-Men stood courageously at both sides. "Answer me, what did you do?"
"X-Men." Nolan calmly acknowledged. "If you could, remain calm…"
"Wrong answer." Scott hastily replied, firing a quick burst of optic fire that slammed against the agent's chest, sending him flying back. "Next!"
"We did what we had to, Mr. Summers." Cooper then said, wincing at the sound of his partner landing at the other end of the room.
"You sent us here…you planned everything." Emma sternly accused, as she entered the facility, with the rest of the team following suit. "When Christian Lewis died, and took the entire city with him, you made it look like he lost control over his telepathic powers. You made it look like something we X-Men should look into. Because you knew that it would never cross our minds…that it was in fact you who engineered Lewis' mind exploding in the first place."
"…" More men began to approach.
"You wanted us here for a reason. And you knew. You knew that a mutant emergency here in Iraq would be the only way to lure us into this 'War on Terror'. You knew that personal feelings aside, we X-Men had a job that needed doing. So we agree that you fly us here. And what happens next? We get ambushed. In the exact coordinates where you sent us to investigate."
"…" From out of the X-Men's view, Nolan has already pulled himself up.
"The truth is, Scott and I half-expected this. That it was some sort of trap. But he reassured me that the United States Government wouldn't be so… evil…as to harm their own, just to prompt a reaction that they wanted. But that really isn't the case, is it? Remember Cuba? 1898? A country that performed each and every sodding reform you demanded her to do. And what happens when they have nothing else to give you, save the country herself? You invade. By blowing up your own battleship, Maine, and blaming it on them. By labeling them as terrorists. Fast forward a couple more years…and we have 9/11. Exactly the same. Only this time, it was the Middle-East you needed conquering. Really…I should have never given any of you the benefit of the doubt. You're all so very sick."
"…" Cooper takes a step back.
"So, do be honest. You've succeeded in getting us here. And you've very near succeeded in getting us killed. Now with all of that out of the way, I think it only proper that you to explain why you want us dead…before I sic Logan on you."
"...Well…yes, I'm sorry but…that's classified."
All of a sudden, the sound of metal twisting screeched from behind the agent. Then a loud grunt. "…Move!" Scott yelled, as they found a large piece of broken machinery flung their way. With a loud thud it landed, not only forcing the X-Men to scatter, but practically sealing off the entrance that they made as well. Scott, Logan and Emma all dove to their right, while the other three, the ones in worse shape, took to their left. The employees then made a mad rush at the X-Men, some of them in lab coats, the others in construction gear, each one nary an expression on their cold faces. Two of them, one scientist and one engineer, immediately grabbed Logan on both arms, preventing him from lashing out.
"Hey!" Scott shouted, as he fired a short burst at the engineer that was at Logan's left. It gave the feral mutant enough room to crack his free fist across the scientist's jaw. Logan expected the old man to keel right over, but only got a fist across his own cheek in return. More men came, closing in on the X-Men like zombies on steroids. The White Queen immediately attempted to subdue them using her telepathy, only to retreat in shock soon after. "They don't have any brainwaves!" she exclaimed, before transforming herself into organic diamond in order to better handle things.
"They're strong!" Logan yelled, as he struggled to shake off what looked like a janitor who had his hands wrapped around his neck.
"Then we hit them hard, Logan!" Scott shot back, firing a wide-arc optic blast that tore down three of his assailants who charged up front.
"Not everyone relies on looking at something to kill it dear…" muttered Emma, who was having difficulty taking care of the five men who ganged up on her.
At the same time, one the other side, Kitty managed to roll onto all fours, only to look up and find Cooper standing over her. "Hey, babe." He greeted, as he took out a small, silver device which looked like a remote control. "…!" Kitty instinctively lunged at the immediate threat, only to feel an invisible force rattle her entire body. She didn't know that the remote in the agent's hands was a small weapon, one which could channel an invisible shockwave by merging and channeling collected frequencies. It would have hit her even if she was intangible. All the while Henry, who was still in no condition to fight, was- also busy defending himself against a group of assailing men. It prevented him from giving their youngest member a helping hand.
"Katya!" Peter yelled, as he watched the concussive force send the young woman crashing into a wall. He succeeded in getting Cooper's attention instead. Aiming the device like he would a gun, he quickly turned to the Russian, who too made an attempt to tackle the agent to the ground. The Colossus wasn't fast enough. Cooper quickly fired his weapon at Colossus, point blank, only to succeed in causing the Russian to stagger a few steps back.
"Not good…" the agent muttered to himself, as Peter glared at him through angry steel eyes.
"I don't know, Cooper." interrupted a male voice. Peter turned just in time to see Nolan, now for the first time without a pair of sunglasses, stand behind him. The agent then grabbed the Russian's arm, and with one hand, threw him across the facility, right through a metal beam that held a platform. With the support destroyed, an entire segment of the catwalk then crash on top of the already weakened Russian mutant, putting him out, at least temporarily, of the battle. "…everything seems perfectly fine to me."
"…I just noticed." Henry then muttered as he pushed himself up against the cracked wall to support his own weight. "…your eyes."
"Lovely shade of green, isn't it, doctor?" Nolan remarked. "All of us here have green eyes. Apparently, our maker fancied them very well. Hell, don't tell me you never wondered why I always wore sunglasses?"
"Except me of course. Well, there was Mike, the chopper guy, but he's out right now…went ahead and flew to the White House with the General Major. Apparently, he has a very gripping story about how the X-Men went to Karbala and completely destroyed US military property." Cooper interjected, aiming his weapon at Henry. "So yeah, that leaves me."
"Good to know." Henry responded, as he suddenly kicked a block of broken-off concrete by his feet at the direction of Cooper. It hit its mark. The concrete piece shattered against the human agent's chest with a loud, sickening crack. Cooper immediately fell back with a painful grunt, at least for the time being, putting him out of the battle. "Hey!" Nolan shouted, as he watched his teammate resign to unconsciousness. "That wasn't very- -"
"Shut up." Henry chided, right before tackling the agent at full strength. Nolan grunted in pain as the force of the Beast's tackle forced him backwards, so much so that he needed to stomp both his feet into the ground to act as brakes. It worked. But before the agent could launch a reprisal, Henry immediately leapt, and flipped overhead. While in midair, he grabbed Nolan's head with both hands from behind, and pulled the agent down hard as he landed. The resultant crack of skull against metal was sickening. Back at the other end, the senior half of the X-Men still struggled with the enemy fodder.
"What the hell happened here?" Scott yelled, firing three quick rounds that took down a group of men who attempted to flank him.
"This is very distressing!" shouted Emma as she slammed her knee onto a worker's groin. Genetically enhanced or not, it certainly did its job. But no matter how many they downed, a couple more seemed to run right at them, moving the fight right to the middle of the facility.
"They're getting up as fast as we take them down!" their leader declared, while firing a narrow beam that slammed across four men who charged at him in a row.
"Then we take them down permanently!" cried Logan, unsheathing his claws and plunging them right into the first man that he saw next. He was Iraqi. "Huh?" a steady stream of blood, mixed with green and orange, began to streak down the Canadian's hands. Just like the liquid that still clung onto the empty canisters. The man was still standing. "Shi- -" Logan gritted his teeth as he watched the man begin to pull Logan's claws out of his stomach. "Never…die…" the man then uttered with a wide, bloody grin, enough to send chills down the battle-hardened mutant's adamantium spine. "Focus!" he quickly ordered himself, as he pulled out his claws from the man's system, forcing the enemy off balance. Then without hesitation, he swiped his claws across the man's neck, instantly severing the head right off the shoulders.
"Emma!" he then called, swiping at another man who came his way. "No brainwaves means dead, right?"
"More or less. Though in our case, I feel terribly inclined to the latter..." Emma calmly responded, knowing that her diamond form was impenetrable against her enemies' fists and axes.
"Ever wondered why we couldn't find any dead bodies in Karbala?" Logan then asked, only now noticing the mixture of races that came against them. It didn't take long for the White Queen to follow in Logan's acute observation. There were no more bodies in Karbala, where thousands of men and women died. Not even any mention of where the bodies had gone.
"Oh my God…they're the victims…" uttered the diamond woman, realizing that they weren't fighting soldiers under the agents' employ. "Wait! We're fighting barely a hundred men! If these really are the reanimated bodies of everyone who died…where's the rest?" The sudden blurred motion of someone rocketing past her, crashing into the canisters to her right, instantly brought her back to the current situation. "Henry!" she called, recognizing the bloodied mutant who was now mangled in steel.
"Miss Frost. You look stunning." Nolan greeted, most of his clothes now shredded, while a large claw mark was streaked across his cheek.
"Agent Nolan. You look like horse droppings." Responded Emma in kind, before slamming her elbow on an enemy who tried to sneak up on her from behind. The agent saw this as the perfect opportunity to strike, and made a quick dash towards the diamond woman. He must have forgotten that the X-Men, even with all their changes and line-up, remained a team. A powerful optic blast suddenly came and hit him from the left, sending him careening right into the very chunk of machinery that he threw at the X-Men in the first place. Nolan quickly got up, only to receive another optic blast that sent him right back down. And then another one, just for some good measure.
"Why did you bring us here, Nolan?" shouted the mutant leader, who now stood in the bloodied Agent's way. His hand was kept on his visor, ready for any sudden moves that his adversary would make. "What do you want from us?"
"…you? You superhero types always think that everything's about you, don't you?" Nolan cryptically countered, gripping at his bleeding sides.
"What do you- -"
"Haven't you figured it out yet? We don't want anything from you genetic freaks! We never did! What we want is that shiny, little toy in that mansion of yours…"
"…Oh no…" Scott swallowed the lump in his throat as the realization of their true intention hit him like a wrecking ball. "You drew us out…"
"No one to protect the school now, eh Mr. Summers?"
Cerebra/16:46
"No can do. The entire installation is thought-proofed." Celeste remarked. To say that the Three-in-One has been spending a ridiculous amount of time in Cerebra was quite the understatement. Only the most highly talented telepaths learn how to wield Cerebra, and when they do, a session of more than a few hours is enough to leave them mentally, and physically exhausted. To be blunter, the three girls, in working the machine non-stop, should have already died from brain hemorrhage. But the sisters weren't even breaking a sweat.
"Why didn't we see this before?" Mindee asked, shaking her head, as she attempted to bypass the building's shields by looking into the future instead.
"Perhaps if you let me, I could find them for you…"whispered a woman's voice. A voice that only Mindee could hear.
"Get out of my head…" Mindee telepathically responded, taking a step back from her sisters so that they wouldn't notice here distracted state.
"No can do. You made a promise to me in your dreams…"
"Well, I take it back!"
"But you already said yes to me before. And you will ask for my help soon. And when you do…"
"Mindee!" Celeste called once again, snapping her back to reality.
"What?" Mindee then asked, as if nothing had happened.
"Stay focused. We don't need your mind wandering off…"
"Both of you, quiet!" Phoebe then scolded. "…what's the status on the transport?"
"Prodigy and Aero are already halfway across the ocean, I'm showing them the coordinates." noted Celeste. "They'll be there in an hour, give or take."
"Oh…wait…" interrupted Phoebe. "Mindee, you ought to check out your boyfriend's room…"
"What is…oh my- -"
Male Dormitories/16:47
Mark let out a sigh of relief as he got too his dormitory room door. He could still feel his shoulders ache after the one and a half-hour game, and the thought of his bed welcoming him to slumber land seemed much more attractive then spending the evening drinking apple cider at the game room with the rest of the team. He took a quick glance at the book in his hand, 'The Screwtape Letters' by C.S. Lewis. He has heard good things about it, but being forced to read it for finals was quite distressing. But before his mind could wander to the many hours he'll need to finish it, a familiar, telepathic voice managed to snap him back to reality. "Mark, hurry!"
"…!"It was Mindee's voice. And it wasn't a usual occasion for it to be filled with urgency. The young man quickly grabbed the doorknob and tried turning it open. "It's locked!" he shouted, catching the attention of two students who were loitering in the corridor. "I don't have my key!"
"Then break it down!" Mindee shouted, prompting Mark to do as she says. He took a quick step back, then rammed his already sore shoulder on the wooden door. It didn't break.
"Hey man…" interrupted one of the students. "You don't have to do that, Justin McKenzie can pick locks with his tongue, he's over at- -"
"No time!" Mark yelled, as he charged one more time, finally forcing the door open with a loud crack. By then, half of the students on the floor were already out of their rooms, curious as to what had the young man all riled up. From their doorways, they managed to catch a glimpse of horrified shock on Mark's face, which easily compelled them to take a look at what he saw.
"Oh, sweet Jesus." Mark slowly uttered, as he found his roommate's body hanging down a noose that was tied to the ceiling fan. "Chris!" he yelled, running up to the lifeless body and grabbing it by the feet. "Fuck! Help! Somebody help!" he further shouted, as he pushed the body up so that the tension around its neck could lessen.
"Tommy!" one of the students outside called, while two others rushed in and helped Mark push the body up. "Tommy we need that heat vision, now!"
"Get Kelly! He's got this magic sword- -"
"The rope's too tight!" shouted a student who was trying to untie the noose.
"Kelly! Kelly! You've got to cut this guy down!"
"Tommy! Rope! Heat vision! Now!"
"Come on, come on, come on, why'd you do this you stupid piece of shit?" yelled Mark, right before a small burst of fire severed the rope that connected the body hung on. "Careful!" a student shouted over Mark's shoulder, as he began to lay Chris down on the bed. He wasn't breathing.
"What do we do now?" one of the students asked.
"Oxygen, he needs oxygen!" suggested someone by the doorway. "Where's Josh?"
"Just give the idiot CPR!"
Women's Dormitories/16:49
"Sooraya?" greeted Beckah, right as the Afghani woman opened her dormitory room door. Behind Sooraya, Beckah could hear the ruckus of someone shuffling through a closet.
"Who's out there?" asked Sooraya's roommate, still rummaging something out of view.
"…Beckah." Sooraya greeted back, she herself unsure of how to talk to somebody who had recently tried to kill her. "…Is there something you need?" she asked, going for the much safer route.
"Uh yeah, I mean, no…" stammered the young woman, unable to maintain eye contact with Sooraya. "I mean…uh…about, the time when…"
"…Beckah. It's fine." Sooraya immediately assured, placing her hand on the nervous student's shoulder in an attempt to comfort her. "You lost control. Who doesn't?"
"But it isn't fine! It was so, so dumb of me! I mean, you had to like, go through slavery and stuff back in your homeland, and when you get here, stupid kids like me still end up giving you a hard time and…!"
"Wait- -" the Afghani suddenly murmured, her eyes trailing to something behind.
"No, please, listen, I mean, I- -" continued the panicking girl, talking faster than coherence would allow.
"Beckah, for a moment- -" Sooraya politely interrupted once again, clearly distracted with something.
"I'll make it up to you, I promise! I- -" Beckah continued prattling on, clearly oblivious of what the Afghani was saying.
"Beckah, quiet!" the Afghani finally snapped, finally hushing the young woman in front of her.
"…" Beckah licked her dry lips, her mind racing at the thoughts of her possibly saying something wrong.
"Don't you hear that?" Sooraya asked after a moment's silence.
"What do you…?"
"There's something…"
"Everyone, outside! Look outside!" one of the students shrilly screamed from inside her room. Sooraya turned back, and hastily ran up to the windows that had a clear view of the front lawn. Beckah went in after her. Both of them could hear the hurried footsteps of other students in different rooms and floors doing the same.
Outside/16:50
There was a flash of lightning. A bolt of thunder. And a sight to behold. Beyond the metal gates were parked more than a dozen transport trucks and jeeps, each one packed to the brim with American infantry. They all held assault rifles at the ready, almost like machines that simply waited for the right time to strike. Their faces were cold, lifeless, with black and green paint smeared across. Even from the distance where the students stood, they could still see the horrific glow of their bright, yellow eyes. It was as if demons had come out of the dark woods surrounding the institute. A soft drizzle then fell from the empty, night sky, as if a prelude of the horrors to come. At the very middle of it all stood a woman in a gray business suit. Lilah Graham. Her eyes crystal blue seemed to sparkle in anticipation at the conquest before her. While behind, as always, stood Simon. Her chauffeur. Though it was clear that at that moment, no limousine was anywhere to be found. He was the one who handed her a red megaphone.
"Residents of the Xavier Institute!" Lilah then called out, with the lightning overhead seemingly dancing at the sound of her cold voice. "There is nothing to fear." She immediately reassured, even though everything around her suggested otherwise. "None of us will harm you. That is of course…only… if you cooperate. We're here to change the world. To make it a better place. And all we ask for you…is to do your part. I am giving you all thirty minutes to assemble yourselves on the front lawn of the institute…so we could properly ensure your safety. We only want one thing, children. For the world to finally be at peace. No more idiotic arms races, no more cataclysmic escalation… no more wars. As of this night, humanity will no longer need to suffer the stupidity of those who claim to know what is best for their countries. World Peace. Literally. Our gift to you, and to the children you'll bear. And for that to happen…we need Cerebra. If any of you get in the way…then believe me, we will burn your home to the ground…and all of you along with it."
Chapter 8, End
Next Chapter – Where the children make a decision, the X-Men are held up, and the metaphor of this entire tale will go full swing.
Author's note: Whee! Okay, I hope you liked that one, the next chapter is the penultimate installment of my story. We're finally reaching endgame! Comments? Suggestions? VIOLENT reactions? Send them my way! Chow.