(Four)

An hour or so after his warm and lovely lunch was over, Asher fidgeted in the Professor's meeting room, not sure what to expect. He had been called here for some sort of discussion and didn't like the way the others here were so nervous. It was a large group of unfamiliar people, but of course he hadn't been here all that long.

Three days had passed since his arrival and it had been a bumpy entry. First he had settled in at Kimble's apartment, the quarters strange and awkward with his unnatural body. He had to be careful everywhere he went, making sure he didn't knock any of Kimble's little glass sculptures down with his tail or his legs. He had only just been directed to the showers in the gym when he and Aiden had heard the Complex alarms go off. That was three days ago.

Jael's attack on the Kremlin had been taken very seriously by everyone here and the Complex had been in a flurry of activity ever since. There had been weddings and meetings, classes and stocks of supplies coming in from trucks and the Lucky Dragon as the Complex prepared itself for anything. The halls were abuzz with a lot of questions. If Jael was supposedly coming here, why then did he attack the Russians? Was he there or here or both? People had been milling about, talk was everywhere.

Asher had cringed.

Always there was the talk of war and fighting. Training sessions were being performed around the clock and everywhere he went he saw uniforms and even a few weapons carried by Logan's men. It chilled him to the bone, the thought of a real confrontation. Now, he was himself being involved in a meeting, in a discussion about the mysterious half Dognan terrorist.

Asher's eyes were down, but he heard the Professor speak, his words cordial and pleasant. "Welcome Asher, to our Complex. It is a pleasure having you here. As our esteemed guest, I was wondering if you might tell us anything you know about Jael. Any information you have would be of some help."

Asher nodded, grateful for the warm greeting. He had anticipated that he would be called upon for answers and had been surprised only by the time he had been given to settle in first. They obviously wanted him to feel comfortable here and accepted. Gambit was here alongside him as some friendly support and the centaur felt at ease. He answered, "Trishnar had intelligence on Jael, wuz always tellin' me some of his secrets. I'll tells ya what he passed on ta me. It ain't much, but you kin haves it.

" 'Bout forty some odd years ago Jael was born a half breed bastard child of Predor, Trishnar's brother. Predor had a thing for his pilots and eventually one of them got pregnant. It was a common thing, usin' pilots like that, but at the same time, it wuz a mark of disgrace ta haves the offspring of them unions around.

"Tryin' to maintain face, Predor sent the pregnant pilot to the pens, sumpthin' he had done many times before when such things might happen. Now keeps in mind that Jael was actually the name of Jael's mother, he tooks her name later but I'll gits ta that in a minute. The Clan wuz always fishin' fer pilots so when they seen her there, they tooks her in.

"Not long after she was taken in, Jael gave birth to a tiny premature half breed son and she named him Katero. By now the Clan had a bunch of yer alphas so Katero wuzn't the first freak there by far, but it wuz obvious he wuz part Dognan sos the others treated him like shit fer it. Jael loved her boy and did her best ta keeps him safe and showed him how best ta survives. Katero didn't haves nobody else and he loved her like nuthin' else. They had a real close bond and ta shows it, he had her 'J' mark burned on his arm instead of his own 'K'.

"Katero mighta started out small, but he wuz real strong in spirit and soon enough got about the business of provin' himself. He made himself strong in body as well, practicin' hard ta makes himself good with the sword and the bow. He worked real hard at it, more than the other kids his age and his efforts paid off. He also had some telekinetic power that he gots from his mom, but mostly if he had any kinda mutation, it wuz his ability ta charms people by his good nature and wins them over to his cause. He rose in the ranks and wuz soon commandin' squads of his own.

"Katero liked that, the power of runnin' squads, and he had his eye on the bigger prize. He wanted ta be First General of the Clan someday. Problem wuz he wuzn't the only one who wanted that seat. There wuz yer Valentin as well."

Logan nodded, remembering Valentin all too well. Though he had only briefly met Jael, Valentin he had spent far more time with than he had wanted to. This was back on Cerise when Wolverine, Beast and Remy had been kidnapped by Dognan slavers and stranded there. They had been dumped in the pens and rescued by the Clan, just as the pilot Jael had been. Valentin had won his prize and was First General when he and the X-men had crossed paths. Valentin was also Fallen's cruel husband at the time and it hadn't been pretty. Valentin had been good at his job, however, and was a powerful warrior. With the help of the three X-men, Valentin had helped to overthrow Dognan control in the area where the Clan had lived. In return, the three X-men had been returned home, flying there on the Lucky Dragon. On the way, Fallen had taken control from Valentin and the First General had been stranded here in a strange reversal of roles. Through fate, Jael had himself the last laugh, his virus had killed off Valentin here on Earth. Logan hadn't wept at the loss. Valentin had been arrogant, harsh and cruel.

Asher was continuing with his story, telling nothing about Valentin that Logan hadn't already seen for himself. "Katero wanted ta be First General, but Valentin wuz real strong. Valentin used alla his power an' influence ta brings Katero down. What ended up in Valentin's favor wuz that Katero wuz a half breed. Nobody liked them Dognan guys, not one bit. When it come down to a choice between the two, Valentin won out.

"Enraged that he wuz passed over by the Clan, Katero tooks all the alphas who were his friends and left. Folks thought he mighta gone back to the Dognan and sought out his dad, lookin' for an inheritance, but that wuzn't true. Them alphas what were Katero's friends all come from here, right? Sos they told him stories about this world and it wuz soundin' real good, you know? I means, back with the Clan he mighta been First general, but here, heck, he could be King. Keepin' that in mind, Katero come here, jumpin' with his mother and a coupla other pilots he had."

Again Logan nodded to himself. Yeah, Jael had pilots all right. One of them was currently living in this Xavier Complex. That would be fireman Bob Kenna's pilot, Meer. Meer was a playful curious creature, a pilot not as well made as Fallen was. She was more like a dog that could garble some words than a human. Meer had escaped from Jael once and led the X-men back to his lair, the closest they had ever come to catching the terrorist. Now Meer remained with them, safe and sound.

"Katero managed ta jumps here all right, but it burned out his mother. Jael died not long after they arrived and then he tooks her name ta honor her. Since then he set up shop here and he's been plannin' on takin' over ever since I guess. Thing is, Trishnar had jurisdiction over this world. It might not seems like it ta you, but he wuz always keepin' tabs on Jael, doin' his best ta makes sure he didn't ever git so powerful ta actually takes over."

"Right. Like Trishnar really did that outta the goodness of his heart," Logan challenged. "He didn't want any kind of threat against his throne."

Remy cringed inwardly. Of all the X-men, he was the only one to have met Trishnar and he couldn't help but be impressed by the guy. Yeah, he was a Dognan King and silent ruler of here, but Trishnar had never blatantly interfered in any of the human doings here. Logan was distorting the truth.

"M' Master done a great many things you don't knows about," Asher countered, only the briefest flickers of annoyance rising in his shine. He was doing his best to maintain a neutral tone of voice even in defense of his former Master. "He done his share as best he could. It just wuzn't enough. When Jael finally come fer him, Trishnar didn't knows just how powerful Jael really wuz. Jael gots some Shalayesk armor from Sheba and it wuz enough ta makes him stronger. That and he wuz cheatin'. The Game wuz always suppozta be a one on one thing, but he come with an army. He burned out M' Master's palace with his alphas and tooks Babette's Angel. He killed David right there. Right in front of m' Master and tooks his energy. Jael wuz too strong an' Trishnar wuzn't near ready for it."

Remy closed his eyes, swallowing the lump in his throat. Now it was possible that Asher and Aiden had collaborated to match their stories of this tragic event, but somehow, on a Kundatesh level, Gambit knew Asher was speaking the truth. Remy could think of no more horrible thing, to witness the death of a child. Trishnar must have been racked with guilt over having not taken Aiden's warning seriously.

Asher glanced at the thief, sensing his grief. "Yeah, that's right. The Dreamer warned Trishnar all right, but Trishnar wuz tryin' ta keeps his promise ta us Siskans. That the Game would never touch us. See, he got inta the Game cuz he loved us Siskans, not cause he wanted ta win. He didn't ever actively try ta find any of us, it's just that when he found us, he tooks us in, vowin' ta keeps us safe. Too bad, it wuz a bigger job than he could handle. Trishnar wasn't ever no fighter, he was a peacemaker. He didn't stand a chance against a man on fire ta takes over a world.

"Aiden wuz lucky ta gits out when he did. At the same time, Trishnar sent word I wuz ta be hidden and then brought here when it got a little quiet. I at least gots ta see m' Master buried. It was telecast ta me from away, but I gots ta sees him buried on Solestra where he wuz born. Trishnar wuz a good Master, the best I ever had."

"I'm sure this has been very hard for you," the Professor said respectfully.

"Yeah, that's all fine and well, but none of this helps us with our problem now," Wolverine grumbled, crossing his arms. While he had some sympathy for Asher, he was sick to death of the Game. It came out in his attitude, he was almost rude as he went on to say, "We have to prepare to fight this bastard here. You got anything that can actually help us do that or not?"

"You cain't fights him," Asher asserted with authority, shaking his head.

"Why not? You think he's that strong?" Logan challenged a little too smugly. He hadn't liked Asher's tone.

The Siskan looked at him and then at the Professor, looking at them both like the reason should be obvious to them all. "Why would ya fights? The Lord commands us ta peaceful resistance. Ta fights Jael risks yer souls."

The silence that crashed down in the room was deafening. Everyone had frozen, eyes wide, in stunned wonder at his words. Asher glanced around him, perplexed, as he was suddenly bombarded with vibrations. There were the inevitable inaudible messages, sent to his way too receptive mind and hurting him on levels these poor folks could never understand.

/ Is this guy for real? he was receiving in a mixed up tumble, coming from so many different sources, / He can't possibly believe that. No one is that naive. That poor innocent./

/ Why does a Siskan believe in God? Everyone knows God isn't real. This is about our lives, of course we have to fight. /

/ This is some kind of joke, right? I didn't just hear that?

/ Somebody get this loser out of here. /

/ Don't tell me we're actually going to listen to this guy?

/ Where did Remy find this freak?

Asher looked around him, trying not to wince in the uncomfortable silence. They were trying to respect him, these alphas, so they held their tongues, but they thought he was nuts. Well, most of them anyway. There were a few who believed in God as he did, but they didn't share in his pacifistic view, not enough to come to his defense. They simply felt guilty for not speaking out. They felt sorry for him.

Asher felt his temper rise. He had always tried to maintain an even keel, but this was more than his inner strength could bear. He had been suffering for the past days now, knowing these people were planning a war that would only jeopardize their futures in the afterlife. He had to speak out, he had to save them from themselves before it was too late. "You'd risk losin' yer souls by murderin' and killin' just ta save yer lives in the here and now? This cain't be the way. Jesus says that evil kin be overcome if ya prays hard enough, if it's God's will that it be done."

Remy couldn't help but cringe at that, this time enough that Asher couldn't possibly miss it. Remy was thinking that Asher was in peril, speaking with all of the zeal and vigor of a bright new convert who has no sense of reality. Asher sensed it of course, Gambit's silent judgement and concern. All it did was inflame him further and he said a little more forcefully, "Don't y'all gits it? Yer fleshly lives are only temporary! What will y'all do then when yer all dead and denied access to Heaven on account of the killin' an' fightin'? God created all of us and alla thems, too. You don't haves the right ta destroy what the Maker made and it's the Devil what's makin' ya think ya do. You cain't gits yer souls back from the Devil once ya sold thems fer greed of this Earthly life!"

Well, that was more than Wolverine could stand. He was instantly furious and shouting, done with this nonsense. So many times he had heard similar words coming out of the mouths of fanatics at times of crisis. What a useless crock of shit. It hadn't helped then and it wasn't going to help them now, only make things worse by confusing the issues. He would put a stop to this bullshit if no one else was. "You can take yer religious crap and get outta here, buddy. Right now. What we need is something constructive to fight Jael. None of yer stupid little prayers are gonna do that. The only one that's gonna get us outta this mess is us."

Asher stood bravely, looking for the right words to say. "You don't really means that. God watches over us in all things, we just don't ever sees the whole plan from down here, is all. God loves us and He loves ya too, James. You don't means what yer sayin'. He loves us, but we gots ta obey His will. We cain't fights, not with yer weapons and killin'. It ain't right."

Logan flushed at Asher's words, fisting his hands. He wasn't listening and wasn't going to. The fact that Asher, the presumptuous little shit that he was, had dared to use his given name without permission, only aggravated this even more. He wasn't even sure how Asher even knew that name but didn't care. Wolverine took another step, invading Asher's personal space and snarled, "I don't wanna to hear any of your fucked up, pathetic religious bullshit! Where was yer lovin', all compassionate God when Jael killed all those people back in New York!"

Asher looked back at him with the saddest of smiles. He had seen deeply into the shine of this one and discovered plenty. Confident in his own enhanced perceptions, Asher believed he had seen the root cause of Logan's anger and countered with a question of his own. His voice was gentle, almost parental as he asked, "Don'cha really means, 'Where wuz my God when you wuz bein' kidnapped an' crammed all full of metal?' " Asher shook his head. "Didn't it ever occurs ta ya even once that maybe you wuz meant ta be like this? That ya now better serves yer brothers and sisters as ya are? Look at ya, yer a big strong man now. A protector of yer people. You done more good fer folks after yer changin' than ya ever done before it happened. Did ya ever thinks ya mighta confused a test from God as bein' a punishment fer sumpthin' you ain't never did?"

Poor Asher. He did not understand the audible gasp of horror that came in unison from the crowd nor comprehend the warning in the ashen faces of the folks around him. He did not know the man before him as well as the others here, he might have grasped the idea that Logan had suffered deeply, but he would never know the battle the man had had to make to retain and preserve what little of his humanity had remained afterwards. To suggest that Logan's terrible changing was something that should have happened or that it was part of some grand plan that should be accepted without question was a line no one had ever dared to cross - until now.

It wasn't until Asher saw the flush of Logan's face and the hulk of the man fly towards him that he considered the possibility that maybe he might have crossed a line somewhere he shouldn't have. Wolverine's great rage had been far larger than Asher's empathic scan had suggested and now it was coming for him, a sign that Asher had overstepped his bounds. Jean and Max were instantly there, using their telekinetic power to hold back the brute strength of their comrade as he went ballistic.

"Who the fuck do ya think ya are!" Wolverine howled, spit flying from his mouth. He couldn't believe what this Siskan twerp had dared to utter, this child who thought he knew everything at a glace. Truth or not, this was an outrage he wasn't going to stand for. His claws had popped automatically on both hands, triggered by his intense rage. He struggled against those who held him, but he was stuck fast. "You think you can waltz in here like some goddamned Jesus wannabe and tell us how we've gotten it all wrong and then tell us all what to do! Like yer so fuckin' perfect and smarter than all of us! Fuck you! You take your stupid fuckin' Bible and yer stupid fuckin' Jesus and shove 'em both up yer stupid fuckin' ass! You hear me! You ever come around me, preachin' yer pacifistic 'turn the other cheek', 'God loves us all' bullshit, I'll kill you in so many fuckin' ways ya can't even count! You hear me? You stay the fuck away from me! Get the fuck out!"

Asher retreated instantly, rearing back to find a safe distance, struck silent by Logan's violent outburst. It was clear to all that Asher was both horrified and repelled by the blasphemy hurled at him. That look of pure shock on his face told Remy everything - Asher had lived a sheltered life, especially with Trishnar who owned him at the time he had discovered his faith. Never had Asher been confronted by anyone who did not believe as he did. Bad enough that this was the first time, but of all people to have screaming at him, Wolverine was the worst possible choice. True to form, Wolverine's verbal assault had been shocking and hurtful, made all the more painful as it was conveyed by the vibrations of hate and disgust coming from the feral man in front of him. Logan's death threats were legitimate and sincere and Asher had no reason to doubt them, six shiny claws had seen to that.

For the first time, Remy saw Asher's mental shields break. The Siskan crumpled under the unexpected verbal attack and his shine clouded a muddy black and brown as he was overcome with anger, wounded pride, and terror. There was a moment where he let slip a vibration of silent condemnation, / It's folks like you what cause these wars, Asher was thinking. / You ain't nuthin' but the purest evil there is with yer hatin' and killin' an' lack of fergiveness. One man's rage leads to another's and another's 'till it just don't ever ends. Yer emotion's gonna be the death of us all. I'm right, I knows it, and that makes me better 'n you, and I ain't even real in the flesh. So many things a man like you could never unnerstand. A man like you wouldn't even bothers ta try. /

The thought was there, swirling through the colors of Asher's shine and then he squelched it, buried it under a strange kind of guilt Remy immediately recognized. The Siskan had passed judgement, breaking a Commandment with such thoughts and was horrified by it. This one was ruled by a tight self control of his emotions and while it was bad enough that Logan had charged him so viciously, he had also caused Asher's own control to slip, a double insult.

It was more than Asher could bear. He whimpered loudly as he burst into angry tears and then fled, the others in the room parting for him quickly. Asher was in a panic, nearly breaking the door in his haste to get his large, awkward body out of the room as quickly as possible.

Remy made to follow, but paused in front of his teammate. Logan had calmed once he had put that Siskan pansy in his place and he now regarded Remy with a smug smile of satisfaction. Gambit just shook his head and said softly, "I'll say a prayer for you, mon ami," and slipped out.

Logan growled at that, but couldn't hide a momentary questioning look. Of all the things he had expected Remy to say, that wasn't even close. While Remy had never denied his Catholic upbringing, he was normally quiet about his religious preferences, until now.

Wolverine turned back to the crowd, they were all looking at the floor or at each other in mortified embarrassment, and none would dare meet his eyes. None, except the Professor.

"Well that was outrageously cruel, even for you," Charles said, never one to hold back. "I don't expect you to believe as Asher does, Logan. But I do expect you to show some respect."

"And where was his respect fer me?" Logan tossed back, his shoulders tight with defensive anger and his hands fisting.

"I believe Asher's words, however misguided, were an attempt to rationalize what happened to you and offer you compassion and understanding. If Kurt, your dear and most Catholic friend, were to say the same thing, would you have reacted so harshly?"

"Kurt knows better," Wolverine replied, moving towards the door.

"And since Asher does not, you attack him? I have always preached tolerance here, Logan, you know that. Tolerance for everyone regardless of appearance, gender, and religion. I sincerely hope that when you walk out of here and cool off, you'll consider apologizing to our new friend. He offered you compassion, I suggest you do the same for him."

Logan was still for a moment, glaring at his mentor, then shifted his eyes down and left, slamming the door behind him.