~~ Todd ~~
It was good to have Lance back, even if he was a tad bit... well...
"HOLY MOTHER OF CHRIST!! I KNEW YOU X-GEEKS KICKED ASS, BUT DAMN!"
"Oh boy." Todd muttered as Lance literally rolled on the floor laughing. The source of his mirth...
"VALZI-WHAT? ITS LIKE A GIANT DEMONIC POKEMON!"
"I hate it when he stays up for too long."
"He'll make a pretty decent distraction if you have a plan." Logan murmured to Todd. He didn't look phased at all by the uniform. Maybe the fellow Canadian had suspected all along.
"Of course I have a plan." Todd said more to himself than Logan. He didn't really, but figured that everyone already knew that.
"We need you. Now's not the time to go blank." Storm reminded him.
It wasn't like h didn't know. Of course he knew, but how long had it been since he had time to sleep? Or eat, or think? Well, no one had since this mess started, but really, strategizing was never his best point. And Todd thought... well, to be perfectly honest, slowly.
"Hey, Todd." He looked to his right and saw Pietro with a smug look on his face. "We can't let these X-Geeks show us up, can we?"
Why is it still X-Men versus Brotherhood? You'd think we'd get over it by now, Todd thought, but smiled back. "Well, there is one thing I can think of..."
"Let's hear it." Logan growled as Valzinameku stretched an arm towards Lance.
"You won't like it." Todd said as an earthquake sent the monster tumbling. He couldn't help but grin at Lance's catcalling to the demon. It really did look funny.
"You're the boss, remember..."
"Okay. You see that truck there, get in it."
"What?"
"Just do it, all of you. I need complete cooperation for this to work. Remy, Lucifer, Haiden- you stay here."
"What ab-"
"Go Pietro. I mean it."
"You're gon-"
"You trust me right? We aren't running away. Get in the truck."
The ground shook again. "Why?"
"Get Lance and go, all of you. Things will go downhill fast from here if you don't."
Pietro's shoulders sagged. "If you promise you'll come back, and that we aren't running away."
"You know I don't make promises, 'Tro. We're just gonna ambush him, I need you all in one place and mobile. You know, that kinda stuff. It hurt coming up with this plan, yo. Don't ruin it."
Pietro sighed, already sensing Todd's duplicity. Nevertheless, he gathered what remained of his energy and swept across the battleground to collect Lance.
Todd watched as the silver blur cut across the bloody and geographically devastated hill. Within a few seconds, the only people left were Remy, Lucifer, Haiden and himself. And Valzinameku.
"Remy. Get them outta here. Don't look back, don't take your foot off the gas unless it's to avoid hitting a little old lady, got that?"
"I thought-"
"Don't think. Don't. They'll haunt you 'til the end of your days if you do." Todd whispered, not seeing the challenge before them, but ghosts of days past.
The four stood in silence, as though to apologize to those who had lost their lives so far, to apologize for shaming their memory with such a cowardly end to the fight.
Without another word, Remy turned and ran to the covered truck. It glimmered silver for a second as Todd cast a simple spell that's purpose was not so much to keep enemies out as to keep the people within where they were.
"It'll dissolve later." Todd answered Haiden's unasked question.
"Last stand?"
"Yeah. I know a spell that'll drain all the magic from this spot to about 200 feet in all directions. It takes a while to set up, and I need someone to spot me in case my magic runs dry. Lucifer, you held your own against that thing before, think you can do it again?"
"Yes."
"Will this kill you?"
"No. I will probably loose my wings, but it is a small price to pay."
"Alright. Haiden, front and center."
Lucifer took off with a flurry of wings, changing into his rougher, more battle-ready form. Haiden knelt beside Todd and gathered all the magic he could to channel to Todd.
"Okay. Last ditch effort. Never had to use this before. Hope it works." Todd muttered, trying to calm himself down. In his mind, he saw a dam, a visual representation of a power that simply could not be seen. "There's not enough between the two of us." he said as he peered into the stagnant pool of water that barely filled the bottom half of the dam.
"This is all I have. I used most of it trying to keep us alive down there."
"Alright. There's another way." Todd slid his hand off Haiden's shoulder and took a few steps away from him. With a thought, Todd summoned a knife. "I really hate this part." he whimpered as he sliced the length of his arm from the crook of his elbow to his wrist on both arms. The air around him became so thick Haiden had to stumble away a few feet just to breathe. Todd didn't notice. He was waiting to reach his desperation limit- the limit that all Mages had as a backup in case they ran into a Mage more powerful than they. To break that limit required a blood sacrifice, usually one's own blood was needed. It gave the Mage a temporary boost of Magic. In it's simplest definition, for a Mage to break the desperation limit was like a human calling upon their last bit of adrenaline. The after effects were just as crippling.
Todd watched the dam fill. 'Sorry, 'Tro. I might not make it.' he forced the magic through his hands and concentrated it so thickly that waves formed around them like heat waves on a dark colored car. With a grimace that truly understated the difficulty of the spell, Todd forced all the magic into a doorway. The small silver ball hung in the air, no bigger than a ping pong ball, completely innocent looking.
Todd fell to his knees, all the light gone from his eyes and settled on his haunches.
Above him, the silver ball began to spin.
~~ Haiden ~~
There was an awful moment when he realized that he was completely helpless without his magic, but he pushed it aside and scurried to Todd's side. Before he got there, he heard a truly heartrending scream. Haiden turned around to see Lucifer dive bomb Valzinameku. Perhaps the creature had learned from all the previous times it had been attacked from above, or maybe in his exhaustion, Lucifer's aim was off. Either way, Haiden couldn't help crying out as Valzinameku stopped Lucifer cold by catching him 'round the waist as the Vulgate dropped from the sky. Even though his body went from several hundred miles an hour to dead zero, Lucifer's insides kept going. Just like a long water balloon thrown against a brick wall, the top of Lucifer's head burst and showered the ground beneath with a spray of gore.
Valzinameku dropped the carcass just as the little silver sphere began to spin.
Haiden watched as Lucifer's wings stretched and then were unceremoniously ripped from his corpse as the magic-draining spell began.
"T-Todd. We need to go now. Todd." Haiden gently shook Todd's shoulder and scrambled to catch him as the green-clad mutant keeled over, lifeless.
Haiden looked back at Valzinameku, who disregarded the sphere. It apparently had no effect on him at all.
"But that means..."
Haiden couldn't finish because all the air was knocked from his lungs and the world flew past in a flash of demented color.
Right before he passed out, Haiden felt something fall on his cheek. Water? Salt water?
It was good to have Lance back, even if he was a tad bit... well...
"HOLY MOTHER OF CHRIST!! I KNEW YOU X-GEEKS KICKED ASS, BUT DAMN!"
"Oh boy." Todd muttered as Lance literally rolled on the floor laughing. The source of his mirth...
"VALZI-WHAT? ITS LIKE A GIANT DEMONIC POKEMON!"
"I hate it when he stays up for too long."
"He'll make a pretty decent distraction if you have a plan." Logan murmured to Todd. He didn't look phased at all by the uniform. Maybe the fellow Canadian had suspected all along.
"Of course I have a plan." Todd said more to himself than Logan. He didn't really, but figured that everyone already knew that.
"We need you. Now's not the time to go blank." Storm reminded him.
It wasn't like h didn't know. Of course he knew, but how long had it been since he had time to sleep? Or eat, or think? Well, no one had since this mess started, but really, strategizing was never his best point. And Todd thought... well, to be perfectly honest, slowly.
"Hey, Todd." He looked to his right and saw Pietro with a smug look on his face. "We can't let these X-Geeks show us up, can we?"
Why is it still X-Men versus Brotherhood? You'd think we'd get over it by now, Todd thought, but smiled back. "Well, there is one thing I can think of..."
"Let's hear it." Logan growled as Valzinameku stretched an arm towards Lance.
"You won't like it." Todd said as an earthquake sent the monster tumbling. He couldn't help but grin at Lance's catcalling to the demon. It really did look funny.
"You're the boss, remember..."
"Okay. You see that truck there, get in it."
"What?"
"Just do it, all of you. I need complete cooperation for this to work. Remy, Lucifer, Haiden- you stay here."
"What ab-"
"Go Pietro. I mean it."
"You're gon-"
"You trust me right? We aren't running away. Get in the truck."
The ground shook again. "Why?"
"Get Lance and go, all of you. Things will go downhill fast from here if you don't."
Pietro's shoulders sagged. "If you promise you'll come back, and that we aren't running away."
"You know I don't make promises, 'Tro. We're just gonna ambush him, I need you all in one place and mobile. You know, that kinda stuff. It hurt coming up with this plan, yo. Don't ruin it."
Pietro sighed, already sensing Todd's duplicity. Nevertheless, he gathered what remained of his energy and swept across the battleground to collect Lance.
Todd watched as the silver blur cut across the bloody and geographically devastated hill. Within a few seconds, the only people left were Remy, Lucifer, Haiden and himself. And Valzinameku.
"Remy. Get them outta here. Don't look back, don't take your foot off the gas unless it's to avoid hitting a little old lady, got that?"
"I thought-"
"Don't think. Don't. They'll haunt you 'til the end of your days if you do." Todd whispered, not seeing the challenge before them, but ghosts of days past.
The four stood in silence, as though to apologize to those who had lost their lives so far, to apologize for shaming their memory with such a cowardly end to the fight.
Without another word, Remy turned and ran to the covered truck. It glimmered silver for a second as Todd cast a simple spell that's purpose was not so much to keep enemies out as to keep the people within where they were.
"It'll dissolve later." Todd answered Haiden's unasked question.
"Last stand?"
"Yeah. I know a spell that'll drain all the magic from this spot to about 200 feet in all directions. It takes a while to set up, and I need someone to spot me in case my magic runs dry. Lucifer, you held your own against that thing before, think you can do it again?"
"Yes."
"Will this kill you?"
"No. I will probably loose my wings, but it is a small price to pay."
"Alright. Haiden, front and center."
Lucifer took off with a flurry of wings, changing into his rougher, more battle-ready form. Haiden knelt beside Todd and gathered all the magic he could to channel to Todd.
"Okay. Last ditch effort. Never had to use this before. Hope it works." Todd muttered, trying to calm himself down. In his mind, he saw a dam, a visual representation of a power that simply could not be seen. "There's not enough between the two of us." he said as he peered into the stagnant pool of water that barely filled the bottom half of the dam.
"This is all I have. I used most of it trying to keep us alive down there."
"Alright. There's another way." Todd slid his hand off Haiden's shoulder and took a few steps away from him. With a thought, Todd summoned a knife. "I really hate this part." he whimpered as he sliced the length of his arm from the crook of his elbow to his wrist on both arms. The air around him became so thick Haiden had to stumble away a few feet just to breathe. Todd didn't notice. He was waiting to reach his desperation limit- the limit that all Mages had as a backup in case they ran into a Mage more powerful than they. To break that limit required a blood sacrifice, usually one's own blood was needed. It gave the Mage a temporary boost of Magic. In it's simplest definition, for a Mage to break the desperation limit was like a human calling upon their last bit of adrenaline. The after effects were just as crippling.
Todd watched the dam fill. 'Sorry, 'Tro. I might not make it.' he forced the magic through his hands and concentrated it so thickly that waves formed around them like heat waves on a dark colored car. With a grimace that truly understated the difficulty of the spell, Todd forced all the magic into a doorway. The small silver ball hung in the air, no bigger than a ping pong ball, completely innocent looking.
Todd fell to his knees, all the light gone from his eyes and settled on his haunches.
Above him, the silver ball began to spin.
~~ Haiden ~~
There was an awful moment when he realized that he was completely helpless without his magic, but he pushed it aside and scurried to Todd's side. Before he got there, he heard a truly heartrending scream. Haiden turned around to see Lucifer dive bomb Valzinameku. Perhaps the creature had learned from all the previous times it had been attacked from above, or maybe in his exhaustion, Lucifer's aim was off. Either way, Haiden couldn't help crying out as Valzinameku stopped Lucifer cold by catching him 'round the waist as the Vulgate dropped from the sky. Even though his body went from several hundred miles an hour to dead zero, Lucifer's insides kept going. Just like a long water balloon thrown against a brick wall, the top of Lucifer's head burst and showered the ground beneath with a spray of gore.
Valzinameku dropped the carcass just as the little silver sphere began to spin.
Haiden watched as Lucifer's wings stretched and then were unceremoniously ripped from his corpse as the magic-draining spell began.
"T-Todd. We need to go now. Todd." Haiden gently shook Todd's shoulder and scrambled to catch him as the green-clad mutant keeled over, lifeless.
Haiden looked back at Valzinameku, who disregarded the sphere. It apparently had no effect on him at all.
"But that means..."
Haiden couldn't finish because all the air was knocked from his lungs and the world flew past in a flash of demented color.
Right before he passed out, Haiden felt something fall on his cheek. Water? Salt water?