As the Misfits and X-Men prepared to take on Cobra in their den, they ran into a slight problem.

"I'm coming too." Amira insisted.

"No, you're not." Althea argued. "You're way too close to this to act rationally and—truce or not, friend of Lina or no—you're still a Hellion."

"That's right." Amira challenged. "I am a Hellion and so is Vlad. He's not going to trust you without me there to speak up for you maniacs."

"Once Celandine deprograms him his memories of me will come back." Althea stated. "He's known me longer than you anyway." Amira glowered at her.

"Althea," Lina said softly. "I think you're hitting a raw nerve." Althea turned from Lina to Amira and thought for a moment.

"You're afraid." Althea stated. "You're afraid that if you don't go and Vlad gets his memories straightened out, that he'll choose his childhood friend over you." Amira flinched and looked down. Althea felt an instinctive twitch of empathy. After all, hadn't she been…upset, when she had learned of Todd's old crushes on Wanda and Rogue?

"Look Amira," Althea said sympathetically. "Vladimir…Vlady…is an old friend. Practically my brother when I was a kind and maybe once when I was barely out of diapers I may have had a crush on him. But that's it. I don't pretend to know much about you or who Vlad is now, but even if he still considers me a friend, that doesn't erase what you two have…whatever that is."

Amira faced Althea and looked at her expression. Seemingly satisfied, Amira nodded. "Good, glad that's settled." Althea said. "Now, would you care to come along as we pull your beau's backside from the fire?"

Amira grinned. "It'd be a pleasure."

0000000000

A portal opened up in Cobra's Terror Dome. "I hate this place." Phelan said as he and the other Omega Hellions stepped out.

"Wonder what the head snake wanted that was so important as to drag us out here." Semira wondered. Further guesses were cut off as Zartan and the Dreadnoks appeared.

"Friends! Welcome, welcome!" He plastered a big, fakey smile on his face. "We never got the chance to repay you for your efforts with us at Dakota City."

"Is that right." Vladimir said neutrally.

"Cobra Commander asked us to escort you to his study." Zanya spoke up. "If you'll follow us…"

"I'd just as soon find my own way." Vladimir said. "No hard feelings."

"No hard feelings." Zanya agreed smoothly as she pulled out a gun. "The bounty on you is good enough. The chance to knock you brats of your perch is the real prize!"

"This is for making us look like idiots!" Zaranna hissed as she and the rest of the Dreadnoks pointed their weapons at them.

"You didn't need our help!" Phelan shot back.

"And to think, I was wondering who to shoot first." Zanya mused as she pointed her weapon at Phelan and fired. Phelan managed to duck.

"Hellions attack!" Vlad ordered.

"Get them!" Zartan shouted as he shot at the Hellions.

"Let's get out of he—hrrrn!" Semira moaned as one shot struck her in the shoulder. Vlad whipped around at the sound but saw that she had only be tranquilized. He felt a momentary feeling of relief that he saw that Semira was alive followed immediately by an icy feeling of dread as he realized that they wanted them alive only because they had something planned for them later. Whatever it was, Vlad didn't want to be around for later.

"Take them down, now!" He ordered. The Hellions tried fighting back, but they had been caught off guard and what's worse, the Dreadnoks had specialized weaponry to counter their powers.

Takashi had been hit by an electric dart that took him down fast; metal conducts electricity after all. Rodriguez was sprayed with water and shorted him out. Jacques tried throwing up a telekinetic barrier but the Dreadnoks had an answer for that too. Zandar fired a special bullet from his gun, a bullet that moved in a spiral trajectory that punched through his barrier and struck him in the arm. Jacques lost his concentration and was hit by a tranquilizer dart.

Phelan cloned himself until he outnumbered the Dreadnoks by two to one all by himself. "Phelan, get the others out of here!" Vladimir ordered as he launched several red blasts of energy at the mercenaries.

"I don't think so." Zartan said as he took aim and fired. His aim struck true and Phelan—one of them—toppled over dead with a gunshot wound in the center of his forehead. It was an ugly, gory sight. The ground grew slick with blood and ichor.

It took all of Vladimir's will power not to throw up. He didn't know if the dead Phelan was an original or just a clone, but it didn't really matter.

Phelan gasped in pain, as if he himself had been shot and fell to his knees, cradling his face. His clones collapsed to the ground. Zanya sneered.

"Pyschic backlash. Ain't it a bitch?"

"You're one to talk." Vladimir said coldly. His team, his friends had all been taken down before his own eyes back a pack of mercenaries who claimed to be allies…Vlad saw red…and it wasn't merely a metaphor.

"Dreadnoks," Vlad said coldly, his eyes blazing red. "Die!"