Disclaimer: I don't own the X-Men! You all know what I own.
A.p.R. - Well, I'm back with a new chapter! WoOt! My holiday break starts tomorrow so I'm happy. Now for the business side: I am going to take a break to write a whole lot of chapters so I can not have to strain to update every week and still keep up my school work. So it wont be that long, don't worry, probably two weeks at best.
------------------------------------------------Happy Holidays Folks------------------------------------------------
"They say they're strong…"
"…and I say…let's dance." Legna grinned.
Snikt.
His head rolled off his shoulders, he turned to dust. As the cloud of ash hit the floor…
Logan smirked. "Can I cut in…?"
Marc's dislocated shoulder throbbed with a burning hot pain, the bones scraped against one another. Every movement, no matter how miniscule, caused him pain and forced his breathing to slow. He crawled to a knee, lifted his head up, his eyes widened. "Wolverine…?"
Logan held his claws in front of his face and blew the ash off them as if he were blowing the smoke for a recently fired gun. Legna's dust remained strewn in every direction as it mixed with the air.
Adelaide took a step slightly behind Marcia. "Who…who are you?"
"Name's Logan, Bub," he snarled, holding his claws by his side, "and you're on my bad side."
Benny stood his ground. Hey, you, Runt?" he said, Logan's attention turned to him. "You think you can just walk in here, decapitate our friend, and think you can just waltz off? Eh-eh! Ain't gonna happen."
"Too bad…and I was gonna let you LIVE!" Logan said and leapt at Benny, his claws aiming for his chest.
Rahne looked at Logan. "He's going at kill 'em…"
"He's gonna save us… " Tabby said.
Jubes looked at Logan in disbelief. "…then he's going to kill us…"
Roberto and Ray ran through the hole in the wall made earlier by 'the princess of blowing up things' a.k.a. Tabitha.
"What? Did you forget about us guys?" asked Ray, holding out his hands and giving Adelaide a big shock of electric energy. Adelaide crashed into Benny, knocking him out of Logan's way; he proceeded to hit a railing after deflecting off Benny.
Roberto dodged Marcia and quickly tied up Adelaide with a thick rope he found in the bag. Ray went to attack Marcia but was met with a kick to the groin, dropping him on the spot.
Logan looked at the two. "Ray…Roberto! What're you doing here?!"
"We were trying to find a place to buy a map - but we got lost…why do you think we're here?" Ray said.
Wolverine rolled his eyes and then lunged at Benny.
Benny was up and dealing with Wolverine now. He was going about this very carefully, not wanting to experience the same fate as Legna. Logan slashed at Benny's stomach and missed; Benny used this and punched him straight in the face, bloodying up his nose.
Marc's legs stood unsteadily underneath him, his abused body slumped to left as his left arm hung limp at his side. It became visible to anyone who looked that there was heat radiating from his body, creating short heat waves around him. His eyes became burning coals fixated on his cousin. "BENNY!"
On reflex, Benny turned around to see his beaten-up cousin stomping towards him. Logan slashed Benny across the back while he was turned away. Benny grunted in pain and turned around and glared at Logan.
Marc stormed at him but stopped, spotting a crowbar on a crate next to him. He reached for it, grasping its' cool metal exterior tightly in his right hand and continuing on his path. He stumbled a bit as he made a short charge, clocking him in the back of the neck with the weapon.
"Guh!" Benny wobbled a bit and turned around to face Marc who dropped the crowbar.
"This is for my shoulder!" Marc growled, punching him in the throat. "This is for my friends!" he added, angrily, punching him in the gut. "AND THIS, is for that time, when I was six, and you told me that an evil clown lived in my closet!" he said in a snarl, giving him a strong uppercut, sending him to the floor.
Marcia ran towards Adelaide. He was tied up to the railing. Amara jumped out in front, but Marcia pulled out her handgun, pointing it at her chest.
Marc turned around and saw this, unknowing to him, Benny was getting up and ready to attack. Wolverine tackled Benny down. Marc looked back and saw what would have happened. "Thanks." he said and ran over to Amara's aid.
Marc moved between Amara and the gun, cautiously. "Amara - go." he demanded, calmly and wary. Amara complied, moving from behind him and ran to the others. "Marcia…put it down." he said, holding his palm out to her, ready to send a blast of flames at her.
"No…Marc, you need to move. Now!" said Marcia, clicking the gun, placing both hands on it. Marc looked into her eyes. "Marc, don't make me do this. Please…move!"
Her finger gently pressed the trigger; becoming twitchy. She was ready to shoot him, she wanted to shoot him so why was it so hard to pull the trigger?
She hung her head and began lowering the gun. Suddenly, Adelaide broke free from the rope, pushing Marc into Marcia.
Bang.
Marc's body slumped to the floor writhing and kicking in pain. He was just nicked by the bullet, it hurt like hell. It grazed the open gash in his side.
Marcia looked at Adelaide in shock, dropping the gun. Adelaide grabbed her by the arm and pulled her with him. "Come on, Marcia!" he snapped.
Bobby saw Marc on the floor and noticed Marcia dropping the gun. He quickly froze the ground below them. Adelaide stumbled; Marcia fell and slid on the ice. Adelaide was about to help her to her feet but noticed Bobby coming for them.
He made a grimacing face. "Sorry, luv, gotta go." With that, he took off running out of the warehouse and was gone in seconds.
Tabby charged at Marcia and kicked her in the face, hard. "That's what you get."
Benny pushed Wolverine backwards. Logan ran away from Benny toward a beam, which he ran up, gaining momentum to use against his target. Then he turned his body and kicked Benny in the face. He landed on his feet in front of the large mutant.
Logan growled and leapt into the air to kick him again, but Benny grabbed his foot and proceeded to fling him back and forth against the ground.
Benny chuckled and let go of Wolverine's foot, grabbed him by the chest, and threw him into a wall.
"Is that all you've got?" Logan muttered, getting to his feet. "I'm still standing!" he growled, springing at him.
"Logan ain't gonna be able to keep this up for long." Sam said.
Roberto took a deep breath, feeling his bruised ribs. "Damn, does this guy have a weak spot?!"
It was then that Marc remembered the chink in Benny's armor, his Achilles' heel. Marc was eight at the time and he and Benny were walking home from the comic shop. It was summer in Arizona, they were both wearing sandals. From out of nowhere a dog attacked them. They ran but the dog bit into Ben's heel. He was in the hospital for a week, and it was the only time he had ever seen him injured.
Marc tried weakly to walk toward Bobby, leaning on Roberto for support. "Jubilee - stake."
"T-Bone or wooden?" she asked with a tired smile, tossing him the stake.
Marc caught it. "Bobby - give me an ice slide, please."
Bobby created a trail of thin ice on the ground towards Benny. Benny smashed Wolverine against the ground.
Marc took a deep breath and took a few steps back, then ran and slid on the icy ground, fast. He was coming up to Benny as he gripped the sharp-wooden object in his hands. Marc's eyes focused on his target and a second later he drove the stake downward into Benny's lower-calf.
Benny was trying to break Logan over his knee when he felt the rush of pain shooting up his leg. Marc closed his eyes and ripped out the stake. Benny laid out on the ground, holding the back of his bloody ankle as he rolled around in pain.
Marc looked down at Benny as he stood up; Marc wouldn't have let anyone else do that. He didn't want anyone else to have that blood on their hands. He stumbled back a bit, Logan caught him and sustained him until Marc got his balance back.
Bobby walked over, holding his side. "Looks like we took care of that." he said, looking at all the post-bedlam surrounding them.
Click.
They all turned around to see Marcia, her hair frizzed and her lip bloodied, holding the handgun, her aim set directly at Marc.
Legna held the frightened security guard out to his side. "Give it to him!"
The Gang stood in a small, darkish, hall. One fluorescent tube light offering its' off-white glow as the only means of illumination. Marc held the gun in his quivering hand. "This…I can't do this. Can't we knock him out."
"And see an unflattering police illustration of me on the six o'clock news? Hello!" Marcia mocked, walking over to him nibbling on his ear.
"Marcia-"
"C'mon baby, hurry up cuz when we get back," she said, seductively into his ear, "I might just give you a treat." she said, slowly and sexily, resting her fingertips at the buckle of his belt as she fiddled with it. The gun went off accidentally and the bullet hit the wall; Marc blushed.
"Sorry." Marc said, awkwardly.
The guard was just dead weight, pleading to each of the five. "Oh God, please! One of you just, please - I have a wife, a daughter! Please!"
"Will you stop saying that - you've told us already!" snapped Adelaide, arrogantly, feeling really tough right now.
"Marc," Benny looked at his watch, "get it done."
Marc closed his eyes regaining his composure. He considered himself a murderer. After what happened to his parents. What his aunt did to him. What did he have to lose?
He looked into the guard's eyes then they both closed them.
Bang.
The bullet hit the fluorescent tube light, shattering it in the now pitch black hallway.
Marc punched Legna and grabbed the guard then dragged him over to the window. He looked down. It was a good fifty foot drop, but saw a pile of old mattresses near a dumpster.
"Hold on," Marc instructed the guard who nodded. He took a step back and sprinted a whole six feet,then dove out the window with the guard.
The guard hit the mattresses.
Marc's aim was off. His head and body literally bounced off the dumpster with the glass raining on him as he slid off and fell to the ground.
"I am never doing that again." he said, getting to his feet as the guard helped him up.
The man shook Marc's hand. "Thank you so much."
Marc pattered him on the back. "Run." he replied, knowing they'd be after the both of them. The man nodded at Marc and ran off to his car. Marc looked up at the window and saw Marcia looking down at him from it.
Their eyes locked for what felt like hours, searching each others' souls. They were in love, but this was the end for them. They knew it.
Marc broke the eye-lock. He half-heartedly turned, limping away as she watched him with a tear in her eye.
Marc signaled for her to put the gun down by holding his hand out. "Marcia-"
"NO! No, how could you do this to us?!" she said, looking at the pile of dust that was Legna. "And Benny, he was your family." she added, looking at him writhing on the floor with the back of his right heel missing.
Bobby shook his head, leaning on Logan for support. "It's not like you guys gave him a choice."
"Shut up!" she snapped, looking at Bobby, the gun still pointed at Marc. Marcia glared at Marc. "We were like a family to you - we took you in."
"You tried to make me a murderer…" he said, still gasping from pain as he was halfway doubled over.
She grinded her teeth together. "You turned on us and you know it. You've always known it. That's why you ran. You came here to be sheltered and to be away from the harshness of life. You left us there to get locked in the slammer and you didn't mind that thought. I thought you were different…but now I see Benny is right. You forgot where you came from, you forgot-"
"No, I found my lost conscience. I came to this state, to this place, to find peace with myself-"
"Are you sure you weren't just running away from your problems?"
"I…"
"Save it."
"I'm not perfect, I know that much. I have faults. A lot of them. But I would never take a life like that - and to ask me to is messed up."
"Marc…!" she scowled, hating his vindication. She shook her head fiercely and stomped her foot. Somewhere inside she knew he was right.
While this was happening, Logan slowly crouched down and picked up a sledgehammer that was lying on the ground.
Marc saw this out of the corner of his eye and he knew Logan wasn't going for a non-lethal shot. That feral look in his eyes was unmistakable. "Logan, no!"
Logan hurled the sledgehammer at Marcia's head.
The following moments were in slow motion to everyone.
Marc glanced back at Logan and just as quickly looked back at the weapon spinning towards her. Marc jumped out, in front of it at the last second. The weapon smashed against the back of Marc's head; the impact made him collide with her.
Marc hit a the side of the mini-crane, his arm inadvertently pulling a lever. The lever caused the crane to swing its' load of crates.
Marcia held her head as she got up from the ground. She turned and screamed, seeing the lift's carrier heading for her. Everyone tried to get over there, but it was no use. They all shut their eyes and turned away. They all stood in silence; reluctantly turning back to the poor girl.
Marc's eyes opened, very hazily. He saw a blurred figure laid out on the floor. "Marcia?" he said, groggily, his vision becoming clearer now. He saw the carrier and the lever and put it together. It was his fault.
"Marcia?" he called, limping over to her as fast as he could with the gash in his right thigh. He knelt down next to her limp body and put two fingers to the side of her neck. No pulse. He scooped her up, as best he could, while staying on a knee. "Marcia…c'mon…c'mon, Marcia, come on." he urged her desperately to open her eyes; she did not. "No, no…just open your eyes…please." pleaded Marc, frantically.
The others looked on at the sight of their friend slowly breaking down, watching the torment in his heart coming through on his face. None of them knew exactly how he was feeling, they never knew about those twos' past together.
Marcia was Marc's first love. That fact could not be denied. No matter how much they've been through and all of this that had happened today, none of that could have changed. Though it may not have been as strong as love anymore, they still cared. They both had equal opportunities to take each other out but neither of them were able to do it.
His tears dropped onto her cheek, like rain, from his chin.
They all just stood there in a packed group and watched. Not knowing what to say - what to do - if they should do anything.
Marc held her close to his chest, and he sobbed.
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