Chapter 14

3 Days Later

February 8th, 1999

The Mansion

"Scott… are you sure about this?" Peter asked his former leader with much trepidation in his voice.

"I'm done waiting around for the professor to come up with something. Jean's been missing four days now-"

"I know that… But taking matters into your own hands like this?"

Scott just gave his friend a sardonic look. The two of them were like a couple of prowlers inside Cerebro's chamber. It was the middle of the night and all the X-Men including Professor Xavier were asleep.

"I can sense Jean through our psychic rapport, but unfortunately, not much more than that. Whoever's holding her captive is messing with our link and I can't communicate with her. I don't even know what condition she's in… The only thing I know is that she's alive," Scott said.

"And how do you think using Cerebro will help?" Peter asked.

"I'm hoping it will magnify our psychic rapport and maybe it'll allow me to get through whatever is causing the interference to our link. I'm hoping it'll allow us to communicate," Scott answered.

"But Scott… Cerebro's designed to be used by telepaths only. This could seriously harm you," Peter said, nervousness radiating off him.

"That's why I brought you along. If something goes wrong, you can go for help," Scott said, nonchalantly.

"Gee thanks, man… Way to get me in trouble if this all goes to hell in a hand basket," Peter said, wryly.

"You're the only one I trusted not to stop me," Scott said.

"Seriously though, Scott… We should have Professor Xavier monitor you while you do this. I'm no telepath, I'd be of absolutely no help to you if your brain gets fried," Peter argued.

"I know the prof… He won't go along with it," Scott answered.

"But… but… Think about your kids! If something were to happen to you, they'll be left with no parents! Jean is missing, and you'll be… well, I don't know what you'll be if this doesn't work out!" Peter said, throwing his hands up in the air.

"I am thinking about my kids, Peter. I'm trying to bring their mother back to them is what I'm trying to do," Scott said.

"This is not the way to do it," Peter said, putting his hand on Scott's shoulder.

"What would you do if this were your wife, Peter? The woman you love… The mother of your children? Would you just sit back and wait for other people to find her?" Scott asked.

Peter sighed. "All I can say is… I'm glad I've never fallen in love. Just seeing the hell you're going through right now… I can't say it's worth it."

"She's worth everything to me," Scott said, simply.

"I know, Scott… I know…" Peter said, handing the Cerebro helmet to Scott. "God, I hope you know what you're doing."

"Me too," Scott mumbled.

Scott quickly put the helmet on and flicked the switch. Excruciating pain bombarded his mind. Scott fell to his knees clutching the helmet. The sensation was so overwhelming that Scott shut his eyes tight in an effort to ward off the pain. In his mind's eye he saw a cold, dark, damp cell. He could hear the scurrying of mice. There were no windows. Is that where Jean was? **Jean, can you hear me?**

**Scott? Is that you? How are you communicating with me?!** Jean telepathically answered.

**No time to explain. Where are you?** Scott said, fighting against the burning sensation in his mind. It felt like his brain was being put through fire.

**I don't know. I was unconscious when they brought me in. Are the children-**

"Ahhhhhh!" Scott screamed in agony. Smoke was coming out of his helmet. No! He lost contact with Jean too soon. Cerebro was rejecting him. Peter yanked the helmet off Scott, but by then the damage was done. Scott felt his body hit the cold metal floor. He couldn't move his limbs. Then he lost consciousness.

Meanwhile

**Scott?! Scott!** Jean screamed in her mind. Dear God, what happened to him? She felt his agonizing pain… Then nothing. It was almost exactly what she felt when Scott was in his motorcycle accident.

How in the world did Scott get through to her when she couldn't get through to him? Scott was no telepath. Was the professor aiding him? But then if he was, Jean would have felt him too. Then it struck Jean… Could Scott have used Cerebro to try to amplify their psychic link? Good God, he would.

Jean's blood ran cold. Her foolish husband! No, her desperate husband! Cerebro had the potential to scramble his brain. There was a reason that the professor only allowed Jean to use Cerebro besides himself. The machine was designed for telepaths and no others. Oh, please God, let him be alright! Jean prayed harder than she ever had in her life.

Eight Days Later

The mansion

"Professor, he's coming around!" a voice that sounded very much like Ororo's said. Scott slowly opened his eyes and recognized that he was in the med bay.

"Scott, do you know where you are?" the professor asked Scott, looking at him intently.

"Yeah…" Scott started. "I'm in the med bay."

"Do you have any idea how dangerous your stunt was?" the professor said angrily. The man was never one to beat around the bush.

Then everything came rushing back at Scott. "Jean! I spoke to her! I was able to get through… only for a couple of seconds, but I got through!"

"What did you find out?" Ororo asked.

"She was in a dark cell. Pure stone. No windows. It was cold and damp. It reminded me a lot of that dungeon we were imprisoned in when Freedom Force captured us," Scott answered.

"Was there-" Kurt started.

"Wait, how do you remember that, Scott?" Hank asked. "That mission against Freedom Force happened six years ago. Did Jean tell you about that?"

How did he remember that? "Umm… I don't know. Dear God, I do remember that," Scott said, astonished.

"Mein Gott! Perhaps what happened with Cerebro did something to jog your memory," Kurt said.

"Alright Scott… I got a test for you," Peter started. "Nine years ago, you and I both ended up bruised and battered the night before classes were set to start for the year… What were we fighting about? I know Jean couldn't have told you this because we promised to keep it a secret."

"We fought over the last bit of toothpaste in the washroom," Scott quickly answered, amazed he recalled it so easily.

"Oh my God, your memory is back!" Peter exclaimed.

"Really? Toothpaste?" Logan asked, wryly.

"We were drunk," Scott said, not bothering to look at Logan. "Guys… I think my memory is back. In fact, I'm sure of it. And any other time I'd be celebrating, but my wife is still missing. Finding her is my top priority. Where are my children? And how long have I been out?"

"Eight days, and Jubilee is watching them right now," Ororo answered.

"What?! Eight days?" Scott asked, incredulously.

"Cerebro put you in a coma, Scott! Do you realize now just how dangerous what you did was?" the professor said, angrily. "And I don't even know if you've suffered any permanent damages to your psyche."

"Desperate times, Professor…" Scott said. "And I feel fine. Have we made any progress in our search for Jean?"

"No… Although we did receive a package this morning addressed to you, Scott. It has instructions that it's to be opened by you and you alone. We don't know if it has anything to do with Jean," Raven said.

"Where's this package now?" Scott asked.

"In the professor's study," Raven answered.

"Then let's go," Scott said.

"Mein freund, are you sure you're well enough-" Kurt started.

"Let's go," Scott said, leaving no room for arguments.

10 minutes later

The professor's study

The package Scott opened contained a VHS with a label bearing numbers. He wasn't quite sure what the numbers meant. He quickly put the video in the VHS player and pressed the play icon. The first image that appeared on the video was Jean behind bars.

Scott staggered back at the gaunt form of his wife on the video. It had only been less than two weeks since she'd been taken but she'd already lost a significant amount of weight. There were dark circles under her eyes. But Scott did exhale a breath of relief that Jean seemed unharmed otherwise.

"By the goddess! It's Jean!" Ororo exclaimed. Before any of the other X-Men could say anything, a tall man with pure white skin and bright red eyes appeared on screen.

"Mr. Summers, let me introduce myself, I am Mr. Sinister, and yes, I'm the one who has caused you all this grief… I'll assume you recognize your wife?" The man taunted Scott from the video.

"The bastard… He's a dead man," Scott said under his breath.

"As I'm sure you and your X-Men have surmised, it was your daughter I was after and not your wife. That being said, I really have no use for Jean Grey other than as a bargaining chip. My conditions are simple, bring me Rachel Summers and in exchange, I will return your wife to you… alive. Perhaps it would put your fatherly sensibilities at ease if I told you that I mean your daughter no harm. I merely need her for… scientific purposes-"

"No, Scott! Don't do it! I'd rather die. Keep our daughter away from this monster!" Jean screamed from behind her cell bars.

"Tsk, tsk, hush now, Mrs. Summers. It's my turn to speak," Mr. Sinister said to Jean as if he were chastising a child.

"On the video you received, I've marked down the coordinates of our location. You have twenty-four hours from the stroke of midnight February 17th to meet my demands. If that deadline passes, I will still return your wife to you, albeit without a beating heart. And don't even think about mobilizing your X-Men. It's just to be you and your daughter. Do not attempt to outmaneuver me, I'm always a step ahead. Make your choice, Scott." And the video went black.

"My God! What are we gonna do?!" Peter asked.

"No way we can meet that psycho's demands. We can't put Rachel in that kinda danger!" Logan said.

"But you heard the man! He'll kill Jean if we don't!" Hank argued.

"He may kill Jean anyway," Kurt added.

"But he'll kill her for sure if we don't comply with his demands," Raven said.

"Stop it, everyone!" Scott yelled.

"I'm sorry, my friend… I don't know how you could possibly choose," Ororo said, putting her hand on Scott's shoulder.

"Perhaps… we should consider Jean's wishes? She made it very clear on the video what she wanted," Professor Xavier said, finally adding his two cents.

"Are you saying we just ignore that Mr. Sinister's demands and let Jean die?" Raven asked.

"I'm asking if we have the right to risk her daughter's life," Professor Xavier answered.

"My wife will always put Rachel and Nathan's life ahead of her own. It's not something she would even debate. But I get a say in this matter too," Scott started. "I could never choose between Jean and Rachel. I love them both. And so, I'm looking at this situation as logically as I can. Even if I were to abide by Jean's wishes and just let her die, that doesn't guarantee Rachel's safety. This Mr. Sinister will not stop until he gets his hands on my daughter. In fact, if he no longer has Jean to bargain with, he'll become even more desperate and who knows what he'll try the next time."

"What are you tryin' t' say, Cyke?" Logan asked.

"I'm not giving that man my daughter. But nor will I allow him to kill Jean. So, we're going to have to come up with a plan. We only have a few hours, people. Let's get to it!" Scott said.

February 17th, 1999

2am local time

Nain, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada

"You're sure this is it Ororo?" Scott asked his friend sitting in the pilot's seat in the blackbird.

"Yes, everything is underground. There's one main entrance at the back. It's hidden behind those stones, but still easy to find if you knew you were looking for a way in. I'm sure that's where Mr. Sinister will expect you to enter," Ororo answered.

Ororo, Kurt and Logan scouted the area ahead of the whole team. With Professor Xavier cloaking their minds from Mr. Sinister's telepathy, they were able to do some reconnaissance. While they hatched their plan, they all came to the conclusion that Mr. Sinister was the one protecting his henchmen from Professor Xavier's psychic probes when they attacked Scott and Jean at home. They also had to assume that he was the one preventing anyone from reaching Jean telepathically while she's held captive.

And although Mr. Sinister seemed to be a formidable telepath, the X-Men were confident that no one on earth was stronger than Professor Xavier. The instructions were for Scott and Rachel to go alone, but with the professor cloaking the whole team, Scott made sure they had reinforcements aplenty. If Mr. Sinister could cloak his henchmen's thoughts from the professor, they figured they could certainly return the favor.

"Daddy, are we gonna get mommy soon?" Rachel asked, tugging on Scott's hand.

Scott knelt down in front of his daughter. "Yes, sweetheart. Very soon. I need you to be brave for daddy so we can bring mommy home okay?"

Rachel nodded. "Ah can be brave, daddy!"

"That's my girl," Scott said, kissing his daughter on the forehead.

Raven put her hand on Scott's back and asked, "Are you sure you don't want me to morph into Rachel and you can take me with you instead?"

"I've considered it, Raven. But although the professor can mask your thoughts, Sinister would know it immediately. He'll be suspicious as to why he wouldn't be able to scan your mind. He'll know something's up. I can't risk it, but thank you," Scott said to his friend.

"God be with you and your family, mein freund," Kurt said, embracing his leader. "I'll be ready when the time comes."

Scott could only nod at his friend, grateful not just to Kurt but to each and every one of the X-Men currently on the jet with him. "Listen up, everyone!" Scott said, turning into Cyclops mode. "Rachel and I have to take it from here. This is as far as you can follow for now. Remember, you all go in assuming Jean will be of no help. I suspect she doesn't have access to her telekinesis. I've asked the professor to erase my mind of the plan we came up with in case Mr. Sinister probes my mind. He can't suspect anything otherwise Jean is dead. That means I won't even be expecting any help once my memories of the plan are wiped out. I trust you guys to guide me when the time comes."

"What about Rachel? What if Sinister probes her mind?" Logan asked.

"I haven't told her anything," Scott said. "I only said we're bringing Jean home and that I need her help. She doesn't have details."

"We won't let you down, Scotty. Let's just hope Jean doesn't kill you before we arrive," Hank said, only half jokingly. Scott could only grimace, knowing his wife would not be happy at all.

"Alright, Professor… I'm ready. Remove my memories," Scott said, kneeling in front of the professor's hover chair.

Thirty Minutes Later

Scott and Rachel had no problems getting into the underground facility. They were met at the entrance by the woman with the green hair. Much to Scott's surprise, she politely introduced herself as Vertigo. The damn bitch was the one who knocked him out when they abducted Jean. Scott wanted nothing more than to blast the woman to kingdom come… All in good time.

"Daddy, it's dark here," Rachel said, clutching her father's hand just a little tighter.

"It's okay, honey. I'm here, I won't let anything happen to you," Scott said. Scott felt something wasn't right. Was he really going to trade Rachel for Jean? No, he couldn't doubt himself now. He had to trust that being the master strategist that he was, that he had a plan… Now, why he couldn't think of anything at the moment was beyond him.

"This way," Vertigo said, leading them down a dark corridor. They turned a corner and were led into an enormous chamber. In front of Scott and Rachel was an enormous stone staircase and at the very top stood Mr. Sinister, a triumphant expression on his demonic face. Just behind him was Jean, who was chained to the wall.

"Mommy!" Rachel yelled. She started to run towards Jean, but Scott pulled her back.

"Ahhh, my prize has arrived. I knew you'd come, Scott. Come on up," Mr. Sinister said, gesturing towards the stairs.

"Scott! How could you?!" Jean cried in anguish, looking at Rachel. Scott wished so much that Jean could see his eyes. He wanted so badly for her to trust him… But it was so difficult to try and reassure her when he himself wasn't sure what the hell he was supposed to do. Thank God his memories had returned. He needed the confidence it brought him to walk up those stairs.

When Scott and Rachel made it to the top of the stairs, Rachel glared at Mr. Sinister and said, "Let my mommy go!"

"Such fire… You certainly don't disappoint Miss Summers," Sinister said, looking Rachel over from head to toes. It made Scott sick. It took all his will power not to blast the man in front of him. But something told him that would be a bad idea. Scott looked around and flanking Jean were the big bald guy and the bear looking one.

The man called Ruckus was standing by the entrance that Scott and Rachel walked through. The woman called Vertigo made her way to Sinister's side. At the foot of the stairs at the bottom stood the big purple creature that could contort his body at will, and a moment later, the man with the disfigured face who could control trees walked into the chamber.

Scott was outnumbered and outgunned. It was a terrible feeling. But he had to trust himself. He would die first before letting his family down. "I've followed your instructions to the letter, Mr. Sinister. How about holding up your end of the bargain?" Scott said.

"Indeed. I am a man of my word after all," Mr. Sinister said. He turned to the two mutants flanking Jean on each side. "Slab, Hairbag, release her." The two henchmen proceeded to remove Jean's chains from her wrist and ankles.

Mr. Sinister turned back to Scott. "Don't even attempt to try and get your daughter back. Your wife's been injected with a serum that prevents her from accessing her telekinesis, she'd be of no help to you," Mr. Sinister said as he lifted Rachel in his arms.

"No! Scott, I won't let you do this!" Jean screamed as she stumbled forward, now free from her chains.

"Too late, Mrs. Summers. I have what I want. Think of it this way, you're lucky I'm letting you and your husband live… A minor precaution in case I need you both in the future." Mr. Sinister turned to his henchmen. "Get them out of here."

"Mommy! Daddy!" Rachel screamed, reaching out for Jean as the two huge mutants dragged Scott and Jean out.

"No! Rachel!" Jean fought hard against the men dragging her and Scott out. Scott was about to activate his visor when Slab and Hairbag were thrown clear across the chamber by an invisible force. Scott looked back up at Rachel who was no longer in Mr. Sinister's clutches. He'd been thrown clear across the other side of the chamber. There was a pinkish aura around his daughter and her eyes were glowing. Dear God, did Rachel do that?!

Scott started running back up the stairs intent on grabbing his daughter when Kurt, out of nowhere, teleported in, embraced Rachel and disappeared with a banmf! From behind Scott, he saw the mutant with the disfigured face that could control trees shapeshift into Raven. It was her all along. In an instant, Kurt was back but this time he teleported Logan, Ororo and Hank with him.

Scott felt a strong gush of air whiz by him and in a split second he saw the woman named Vertigo knocked unconscious by something he couldn't see. A moment later, he realized it was Peter. His whole team was there! "Kurt! Get Jean outta here! She's too weak to fight!"

"On it, my friend!" Kurt said, as he teleported from one side of the chamber to where Jean was and then disappeared with her.

To Scott's right, he saw Logan fighting Hairbag. Hank was holding his own against the one called Slab. Ororo also had her hands full with Ruckus. Scott reached the top of the stairs and finally found what he was looking for. Mr. Sinister was picking himself up off the ground when Scott let out his most devastating blast against the weakened man.

Sinister staggered back, seemingly hurt, but not hurt enough. Scott let out all his fury on the man before him. Sinister was like nothing he'd ever seen before. How was he withstanding Scott's optic blast like that? He was hurt, sure… But anyone else would've been dead. Sinister telekinetically threw Scott back, but someone broke his fall. Scott turned around and realized it was Peter.

He turned his attention back on Sinister. Scott had no intention of letting the man get away. He'd pay for what he did. Scott ripped his visor off his face and with all the rage he had bottled up, let out the most powerful blast he ever had in his life. Even Scott was shocked with how he just let loose. His teammates, although already out of the line of fire, quickly ran further away, never having seen the full scope of Scott's optic blast before.

When Scott finally closed his eyes and put his visor back on, Sinister was badly hurt but still alive. His body looked like it was being eaten away by some sort of acid. Was that a reaction to Scott's optic blast? Scott was about to finish the job when a sonic wave sent Scott and the rest of the X-Men hurtling back. It was Ruckus, letting out his banshee-like scream at them.

"Everyone, retreat!" Sinister yelled, trying to stagger back on his feet. The purple creature picked him up and they all got out of there as the X-Men were busy recovering from Ruckus' attack.

"They're getting away!" Peter yelled. Scott started running after them when Beast and Logan pulled him back.

"Easy there, Cyke! They're too far ahead now. We won the day, that's all that matters," Logan said.

"He'll try to come after Rachel again, I've gotta stop him!" Scott said, trying to break free of Hank and Logan's death grip on him.

"My friend, they're too far ahead of us by now. None of us are hurt and Rachel and Jean are safe on the Blackbird with the professor. I could not have imagined a better outcome. Let's take what we have won," Ororo said, trying to reason with her leader.

Scott took a deep breath and realized that Storm was right. He gently shook himself free of Hank and Logan's grip, letting them know with his body language he had no intention of following Sinister anymore.

"This is a great victory for us, mein freund," Kurt said, putting his hand on Scott's shoulder.

Scott looked around at the men and women who were so near and dear to him. He could not find the words to express how grateful he was for what they did for him and his family that day. "Guys… I umm… I don't have the words to express my gratitude to all of you…"

"You needn't say anymore Scott. We know… And you'd have done the same for us. You and Jean. We're family, we protect our own, and we'll always have your back," Raven said.

"Here, here!" Logan added.

"Thanks… Now if you guys will only protect me from Jean…" Scott said, jokingly.

Peter casually walked up to Scott, put a friendly arm around him and said, "Dude… you're on your own!"

The X-Men never laughed harder.

The following day

The mansion's med bay

Scott gingerly got off the examining table in the med bay. "I've done a complete psychic probe of your mind, Scott. Your memories are all in tact, including the missing time I stole from you yesterday. More importantly, it looks like Cerebro didn't inflict any permanent damage to your psyche. I don't think you realize just how lucky you were," Professor Xavier said.

"Thanks, Professor," Scott said.

"And congratulations as well. Your amnesia is truly behind you. How do you feel?" the professor asked.

"Old again," Scott said, wryly, taking a seat next to his wife.

The professor chuckled at that, then turned to Jean. "As for you, Jean. You have a clean bill of health. Thankfully the serum that Mr. Sinister injected you with didn't have any lasting repercussions. You'll have full access to your telekinesis and your telepathy by tomorrow or the day after by the latest," the professor said to Jean.

"Thank you, Professor, but I'm more worried about Rachel," Jean said. Rachel was currently playing with her Aunt Ororo, something Scott and Jean knew she enjoyed. And they wanted Rachel to be carefree again. What happened with Mr. Sinister took an enormous part of her innocence away. It broke their hearts to think about it.

"I've ran several tests on Rachel. She couldn't replicate what she did to Sinister and his men yesterday. I watched the whole thing unfold through Raven's eyes. In Rachel's panic and distress, she was able to tap into her dormant telekinetic powers. And what an awesome sight it was," Professor Xavier said.

"Too awesome, Professor," Jean said with dismay. "She's too young to have such power."

"It's a rare situation for sure, but not entirely unique. It's usually puberty that triggers a mutant's mutation. However, I've known of one situation like this before," Professor Xavier said.

"What's that?" Scott asked.

"Erik… Magneto, I mean. I once tapped into his mind and saw how his powers first manifested. He was being dragged away from his mother in a Nazi concentration camp. I imagine that Rachel probably felt the same fear and panic as he did all those years ago, and that's what triggered her powers," the professor said.

Jean's heart sank. Her poor child. To experience something so traumatic. Jean tried her best not to be angry at her husband, but after hearing what the professor just told them…

"What do we do, Professor?" Scott asked.

"I know of a child psychologist, her name is Dr. Henderson. She was a friend of mine from my Oxford days. She's very well-respected by her peers. More importantly, she's an advocate for mutant rights and Rachel can be completely open with her," Professor Xavier answered.

"Do you think there'll be any lasting trauma?" Jean asked.

The professor gave Jean and Scott a fatherly smile. "Children are very resilient. The fact that both you and Scott came out of the whole ordeal safe will go a long way in helping her put the whole incident behind her. If you're asking for my professional opinion… I'd say she'll be fine."

"Thank you, Professor," Scott and Jean said together.

15 Minutes Later

Outside the mansion

Jean started making her way to her car. Before leaving to rescue her, Scott had left Nathan with her parents. They hadn't had time to pick him up yet. She wanted to bring her son back home, and if she were honest with herself, she wanted some time to sort out her thoughts.

She was walking briskly, so much so that Scott ended up trailing behind her. She was still angry at him. She felt awful for being angry, but she was angry. "Jean, wait!" Scott said from behind her.

Jean stopped abruptly and turned around. "What is it, Scott?"

"I know you're still angry with me… But can we please talk?" Scott asked, almost pleaded.

"Not right now, I need to pick up Nate," Jean said, opening her car door.

"Please, Jean… I can't stand this distance between us," Scott said.

"If you force me to talk now, I may say things that will hurt you, so just drop it, Scott," Jean said.

"I'd rather you say things to hurt me than not say anything at all!" Scott said.

"Fine! You deliberately went against my wishes! I know you saw me on that video Sinister sent. I told you, screamed at you, in fact, that I would rather die than for you to bring Rachel anywhere near that madman!" Jean yelled.

"I know! But-"

"You put my daughter's life in danger and now she could be traumatized for good!" Jean said.

"She's my daughter too! I took a calculated risk to save your life. What else could I have done?!" Scott said.

"You could have chosen her instead of me!" Jean said, anguish lacing each word.

"I could never choose her instead of you! And I could never choose you instead of her! I love you both! That's not what happened. I gave us our best chance is what I did," Scott argued.

"Don't you see? I didn't want you taking any chances!" Jean yelled.

Scott sighed and ran his hand through his hair. "Look Jean, I don't want you driving while you're upset, so you're right, we should probably talk about this later…"

"Fine," Jean said, about to shut the door, when Scott blocked her from doing so.

"I knew I risked your anger by doing what I did… You think that was easy for me? But I'd rather have your hate than your corpse," Scott said, closing the car door then walking away.

To be continued…