Thank you all for being patient. I'm sorry it took me so long to get the last chapter up. I was waiting for a friend to proof-read it … sorta … before I put it up. I should have some more chapters up really soon! Enjoy!

…

"Prophet!" A man's voice rang out in the abandoned building.

"I knew you would come back to see me. Just as I hoped you would." The Prophet stepped out of the shadows and Storm and Kurt stood beside the Professor.

"My dreams …" Prophet continued. "I've seen the place where those who have been kidnapped are placed. I don't know where it is, but I've seen it in my sleep. I also know a little bit about what those who have been kidnapped are doing there."

The four of them moved outside, hidden from the view of streets or windows, and sat in what warm sun there was left in the ever fading summer and inevitable fall. The Professor listened for a great while until Prophet agreed to return with them to the school and to continue to help them find this facility.

…

"So they're fighting?" Wolverine asked just after Prophet had finished explaining his dreams.

Prophet nodded. "It's a fight to the death. And people are placing bets. All who fight are mutants."

"What's keeping them from leaving, from using their powers against the kidnappers?" Scott asked.

"I don't know. None of that was revealed in my dreams."

"How do we know that you're dreams are portraying reality?"

"We don't." The Professor interrupted bluntly. "But it's the only lead we've got. We can't go wrong in pursing it."

"Is that where you think Nanny is?" Storm asked quietly.

"It's a very good possibility Storm. So far it's the only thing that makes sense."

…

"I grew up in small village just on the outskirts of a large city in Italy. …"

Nanny and several others in the facility realized that they could hear through the walls. So, to pass the time they told of their own stories- from how and when they discovered their powers to how they ended up here, if they could remember that much.

"Growing up, my mother used to tell of all of the wonderful stories with ivory women and how ivory skin was considered such a blessing and mark of superiority. They were wild, foolish tales of women with skin as white as flour and how wars were fought for their hands in marriage. Other tales were ancient tales of the Roman gods and maidens with pale skin who saved the life of a god or who set someone free, or who do this or who did that. They were mainly to cheer me up because I was made fun of for my unnaturally pale skin.

When I was eleven, there was a drought and my father lost the majority of his crops- the sole income of our family at the time. Soon after my cousin and uncle began to drop by every other weekend and my mother and I eventually learned that my father had joined the family mafia. Years ago, when my father was a teenager and was dating my mother, he had been in the family business with my uncle, but he gave it up when he got married. We the drought threatened to starve us, my father saw the mafia as the only means to survive. I discovered my power two years later when my uncle, cousin, and a boy they had taken in- also in the mafia- were visiting. The boy's name was Alberto- the most handsome boy I had ever met. He was pushing me down our old dirt road in our old, wooden wheel barrow when a rival mafia drove by, shooting at Alberto and I. I was shot twice in the chest and Alberto was shot in the shoulder. Papa and Uncle Tony came rushing outside when they heard the shots and they were able to hit the passenger, though we never knew whether he died or was simply injured. Alberto fell and let go of the wheel barrow at the crest of the hill. The wheel barrow tumbled down and ran into a stone wall that lined the road a few feet from where Alberto had fallen. The next thing that happened was the weirdest feeling I have ever experienced. When my family came to retrieve my body, they only found white, thick water, splashed on the wall and laying in a puddle next to the wall. There was no hair, no limbs, and very little traces of blood. But sitting in the white pool were two bullets. They took the bullets, and bewildered, simply laid a blanket over me. I later returned that night, shivering cold, feeling like I was made of jelly, and with a few scars and scabs, but I was in one piece. Realizing that I had the ability to become liquid and something in between, my uncle immediately recruited me into the family business. My job in the mafia wasn't a hit man- or should I say hit woman, but rather as a thief. I robbed beautiful museums and jewelry shops and so effortlessly that I left behind no clues for the police. My skin tone allowed me to imitate beautiful, intricate statues that clutter all of Italy- which in turn allowed me to hide for a while until I could escape. After my father was shot a year later, my mother decided it was time to move to America to live with a distant Aunt of ours. Oh boy, my mother was amazed to see how much my aunt had given up the Italian way; her children dressed like Americans and spoke perfect English. They had CDs and game boys and went to clubs and played school sports. And my aunt was appalled to find out that my father had been apart of the mafia and she was absolutely horrified to find out that I had been involved as well. My aunt always encouraged me to get involved in clubs and events at school- she was worried that I'd turn out to be a "bad seed"- that the mafia would continue to have a immortalizing impact on me. But it didn't matter. I had little friends to hang out with or to join clubs with and my skin repelled just about everyone. So, when I was 18 I moved to New York. I worked for a while in an Italian restaurant. The manager was impressed that I could actually speak Italian, that I new real Italian recipes, and he was impressed with all of my "ivory" tales from my childhood. But everyone else was jealous that I got all of the attention and large tips and treated me like crap. I used to talk to the customers that I waited on in Italian and tell them that I was reading them the menu, which always impressed and delighted them. However, I never actually read the menu in Italian; I was really cursing at them. I have always been bitter and I despised the American attitude and awe that the customers presented me with. One night I made the mistake of cursing someone out in Italian that knew Italian and I was fired. Since I was out of a job as it was, I went home to visit my mom and brother. It turns out that my mom was dying due to heart problems and my brother had become involved in a gang. I only stayed a short while. And while I was there, I decided I would moved to New York City where I eventually got a job as a secretary for this incredibly bitchy designer. Since we are both so much a like, we rapidly became friends and she slowly taught me all about her job. When she opened a store in the city, she asked me to be the manager. Because I've always been good at stealing, it was even easier to steal from the store. She never seemed to notice or care. Then a week or so ago, when I was closing up the shop, someone came from behind. I was able to slip through their hands and bound around the corner, but I only ran right into the barrel of a gun. Normally I would just melt, the bullet would fall out, and I would reform myself- no big deal- or so I thought. I tried to melt and found that I couldn't."

"So these devices do turn off our powers?"

"That's one way of putting it."

"Do you know who you fight next Amorpha?"

"Not yet."

…

"I've found the facility. Going off of Prophet's last dream, I was able to figure out that tapes of the fights were being sold on the internet. I searched until I found this site. Then with that I was able to trace it to the location, the facility- which is the same image in Prophet's dream."

"So is this their web site?"

"Yes."

"Look, here's a list of all of the competitors."

"Do you see Nanny's name?"

"No. None of the names fit her, in any way. Hmmm."

"Then we'll have to read the descriptions of their powers to find her."

"'Amorpha – able to become a liquid, though stand and fight. She's very agile and sly.'"

"Scroll down a little."

"'Dazzler - possesses the ability to convert sound into light. Her powers encompass the entire spectrum of light and range of sound.

Forge … Gambit … Husk … Longshot …'"

They searched for a while before they began only reading the names that seemed interesting or that could even possibly be Nanny.

"Wait, wait. Scroll back up. Let's see who that is."

"'Magenta- possesses the ability to move metal, levitate, mold metal, aim metal, and manipulate magnetic fields.'" Written in small letters was a side note: "'Named for the color of her eyes when she uses her power.' Bingo!"

"Good eye Jean."

"Has Nanny- Magenta, fought yet?"

"Yes, twice."

They went silent. If she fought twice, that meant she won at least once- also meaning she killed at least one other person.

…

"Any word on the next fight?" Nanny asked a few hours later, setting down her bowl of mush- mush that didn't resemble anything you could buy out of a store.

"Ya," Amorpha said sounding confident "looks like it's us darling."

Nanny took a deep breath. She didn't want to kill anyone- it went against everything in her nature, but she also didn't want to die. And now she was going to be fighting someone that for a time being had been her friend, or so she thought.

"Look doll- it's a fight to the death which means that one of us is going to die- and I assure that it's not going to be me."

Nanny was taken back by this and sat on her bench, stunned. As she tried to figure out what to say in reply, or whether or not to reply at all, two guards swung her door open and she was whisked out of the room.

…

"Is she scheduled to fight again?"

"Yes. The next fight is between Amorpha and Nanny, ah Magenta. It starts now!"

A black screen flashed onto their computer and unfamiliar voice announced the next fight.

"Ladies and gentlemen, for your viewing and profiting pleasures, I give you Magenta and Amorpha. Both ladies have fought twice and won twice. Please place your bets now …"

The lights rose and a steel cage was revealed. Amorpha and Nanny stood at opposite sides, outside the steel cage. The guards unlocked their hand cuffs, shoved them in, and the buzzer sounded. What was seen next was an immediate rage in both of their eyes, absolutely uncontrollable and unnatural.

"Professor?"

"I believe the devices have three purposes: to keep each mutant from being found, to keep their powers 'turned off' when they want, and inflict rage when their powers are 'turned on'."

The first move was Amorpha's. She ran at Nanny forming her hands into razor blades. Nanny jumped up and out of the way, clinging to the ceiling of the steel cage. In the flash of an eye, a metal creaking sound was heard and from what seemed to be out of no where, a metal pole- one that had been apart of the cage, went soaring at- through Amorpha. Amorpha melted to the floor coughing and gasping. She pulled herself together and sent herself whirling in a hurricane at Nanny in the form of small, sharp, points- almost like lethal crystals. Nanny darted out of the way as much as she could, but it wasn't enough. One pierced her arm, one scrapped against her left cheek, and one stabbed her left thigh. While waving the metal pole at Amorpha, Nanny was pulling apart several metal items within the facility- wall panels, doors, fencing. She was creating a box directly behind Amorpha while distracting her with the pole and other sharp metal objects. When she was ready and had the best chance, Nanny shoved Amorpha into the box from behind. She then shot the metal box into the air and straight at one of the cameras on the ceiling above.

The X-Men jumped when the box seemed to fly their way and the footage was cut off. A stand-by, fuzzy screen appeared and continued until someone switched the footage over to a different camera.

Amorpha had splattered against the wall, and slid down it, reforming once she reached the floor. She rushed towards Nanny sending more shards at her. Nanny wasn't able to react fast enough and doubled over after one of the shards caught her in the stomach. While kneeling on the floor, wincing from the pain and trying to regain her breath, she began pulling the metal plating off the walls to form a shield. She then immediately began forming daggers behind the protection of her shield. Nanny sent the dangers soaring at Amorpha, pummeling her over and over and over again until she melted onto the floor into a pool of swirled white and blood.

Their devices were turned off and Nanny fell to the floor wincing, holding her head. The lights went off again and the announcer came back on.

"Magenta is the winner! Those who betted on Magenta will receive their winnings. Those betted in the favor of Amorpha will be credited with the amount they wagered towards the fight to be used in the next fight."

"I thought they were fights to the death?"

"Amorpha, in theory, cannot die. There are ways of killing her, such as concentrating too hard with Cerebro, but just like Wolverine, there are few things that could kill her. So, since Nanny obviously won the fight, they declared a draw of sorts."

"We've got to get her out of there before she faces a mutant who is really powerful."

"Oh Nanny could hold her own very well against the majority, I would assume. As you can see she nearly destroyed several parts of the facility- which is what you're going to get if you force her into a raged state. However, for the sake of all others and hers, we must get her out of there."

"Why …?" Rogue asked with a confused and hurt expression.

"It's a group of anti-mutant protestors who set this up as a sadistic form of pleasure and profit while they also are slowly getting ride of the mutants."