"Well, this can't be good," Leonardo gasps.

My throat has gone dry. Sinister doesn't even need to explain what happened. I know that Wolverine had taken a shine to Raph and the turtles during our last adventure. So if he was really worried about what was going on in the Halloween store and he knew that I couldn't go in there because of my spider-sense, it's only natural that he would scope it out. And since he didn't know that there were mutant-hunting demons involved, he couldn't prepare himself for what happened. My fault. All mine. Stupid guilt trips.

"I'm almost embarrassed," proclaims the demon speaking through Wolverine's mouth. "My brothers and I have lived for centuries, and they allowed themselves to be made fools of by nothing more than children." He looks to each of the groups of turtles and X-Men as he counts off their weaknesses. "He who would be War, allowing for his teenaged vessel's immature rage to drive him into his own beating. And the pathetic mess that resigned himself to Famine was scared away from his charge by a small girl. And Pestilence. Always strong and steadfast, but stupid enough to turn his back on an enemy. You each deserve your fate."

My eyes scan the screens. I can still see a little bit of Mike's former demon, but it looks like it's fading away. As for the others, they're gone. Don's was too weak to last for long without a body, and Raphael's was probably just as hurt by Colossus as Raphael himself was.

Still, things don't look good for our would-be heroes. Wolverine's a teammate. They can't bring themselves to hurt him, and they can't defend themselves right now. Shadowcat's got Donnie, Colossus is propping Raph up, and Rogue still looks like she's oblivious to the outside world while Mikey's blacked out at her feet.

"And now," Wolverine continues, looking straight at Shadowcat, "I will show you why I was destined to be Death, regardless of the form I take." In a flash, he's dashing for her. I don't know if his new Horseman position will enable him to actually touch her while she's using her powers, but it doesn't look like Shadowcat's sticking around to find out.

"Katya!" Colossus cries out as Shadowcat gasps and runs towards him. I see her go solid for a minute, reaching a hand out towards Colossus and telling him to grab her hand. Seeing Wolverine go for Rogue, though, Colossus has other ideas. He practically throws the trampled wreck that is Raphael into Shadowcat's arms. "Drag the little ones to safety. Rogue and the other turtle need me."

Shadowcat seems to stumble, but the camera angles are all a little dizzying right now. I can make out that she's phasing again, but to where is anyone's guess. Colossus is storming towards Wolverine, hoping to intercept him. Just before adamantium claws are about to go through Rogue's abdomen, Colossus grabs his possessed teammate by the arms and deftly tosses him back, towards Sinister.

"Spidey," I hear Shadowcat's voice say in my ear. "Spidey, do you read me, or is all my equipment still on the blitz?" I look towards her screen. It looks like there's something dark covering her camera, and I eventually make out that it's someone shell. I can't see anything else.

"Yeah, Kitty," I answer. "I've got you. Where are you and is everyone okay?"

"We're fine," she answers. "It looks like we're in some kind of major laboratory, a lot more advanced than the place we were just in. I see a holographic generator, which is where I'm guessing these shadow puppets of yours might have come from. And there are plenty of vials and stuff-"

"Destroy it," Leonardo commands into the microphone. "Destroy everything you see in that room. Set Donatello and Raphael down, and use your phasing powers to rip the guts out of every machine you can get yours hands on."

"You don't have to tell me twice," she replies. Her mic still on, we can hear her tell the turtles that she's going to put them down while she gets to work trashing the place. As the shell moves away from the camera, I can hear Raphael let out a small laugh.

"You kiddin'?" Raphael asks. "What makes ya think you get to have all the fun?" Though I can see his legs shaking as he steps away from Shadowcat's grasp, he grips the handle of both of his sai and withdraws them. "Soon's the room stops spinnin', I'm gonna have me some fun." Oh, it's nice to have Raphael back. Even if it'll be a while before he's able to beat things up like he used to.

As the three of them get to wrecking what I hope to be where Sinister's stashed the turtles' genetic samples, I look back to see how Colossus is doing. It's not looking too great. Colossus' strength lies in his… well… strength. And Wolverine's got plenty of that, too, but he's also got a good deal of speed. Not to mention some potentially catastrophic new powers. If Sinister has managed to give him the genetic Death modifications, then Colossus is better off being untouchable.

As soon as that thought is in my head, I go back to my headset. "Kitty, let Don and Raph do the wrecking. Your boyfriend needs you." Leonardo gives me something of an alarmed glance, and I cover the mic as I whisper, "What? Mutants need love too, don't they?"

"I know I do," Nightcrawler murmurs, his eyes glued to the screens.

Keeping a visual on Shadowcat, I see that she's torn off her headset and is giving it to Don. The sound gets scrambled as the open mic switches hands. From the looks of things, she's also giving him the surveillance camera that she had been wearing around her neck. Smart girl. "Uh," Donatello's voice says in my ear. "Hello?"

"Donnie!" Leonardo calls out. "Donnie, are you okay? My God, what… what's been done to you?" I can tell by the brief pause in his last question that Leo's repressing tears of relief. I put a hand on his shoulder as Donatello replies that he doesn't remember.

"The last I know," the distraught turtle says as he uses his staff to knock beakers and other apparatuses onto the floor, "I was sitting in Leatherhead's lab, talking about not wanting to be hypnotized. Flashes are coming back, little flashes, but… I really, really would rather not think about them right now."

"That's understandable," Leonardo tells him. "How's Raph holding up?" Donatello holds up the camera, picking up images of Raphael and saying he's the same as ever. Yeah, same except for the way his arms are wavering as he slashes with his sai. I notice the blood dripping from his mouth just as he loses his balance and goes down.

"Raph!" Don cries out. Leonardo looks like he's about to head for the door, but I pull him back, reminding him that we can't let him go anywhere so long as one of those demons is still loose. He does nothing but watch as Donatello makes his way towards Raphael, who seems to have fallen unconscious.

"Dear God," Nightcrawler's soft voice breathes out. A glance at him tells me that he's been keeping a watchful eye on the X-Men. "Dear Lord, no."

As far as I can tell, it looks like Wolverine's managed to swat Shadowcat away like nothing more than a mere annoyance, and she's dazed on the ground. Colossus is literally cornered, and Wolverine is snarling so close to him that I can see the spittle flying from his mouth. I can't see what Rogue's up to, but it looks like she's still stationary. "And now," Wolverine mutters, raising his claws, "for me to finally earn my rightful namesake."

Time seems to stop. Colossus won't move, and I'm guessing that this demon's using some kind of paralysis power on him. Rogue slowly starts to stir and Shadowcat rises to her feet. Neither of the girls are close enough to do anything about Wolverine. And as we all know, adamantium is the strongest metal in the world. It'll have no problem breaking through Colossus' defenses and, ultimately, his intestines.

I hear a disturbingly familiar sound as a dark-reddish cloud edges into my line of vision. Oh no, I think. He doesn't have time. Don't tell me that he… oh God. When the smell of sulfur touches my nostrils and I see that Leonardo and I are the only ones in the van, I know that he did. Looking back to the screen, I see Nightcrawler appear directly in front of Colossus…

… just as Wolverine's claws come crashing down.

Shadowcat gasps, and I can't do anything but feel a chilling numbness snake through my entire body. "No!" Leonardo screams. His mic had been on, and Donatello frantically asks him what's wrong. When Leo sees Wolverine pull his bloodied claws away as Nightcrawler falls to the floor, he tears his headset off and dashes out of the van. This time, I don't stop him.

"Nightcrawler's down," I tell Donatello as I follow after Leo. If I can't keep a visual on him, there's no way I'm going to lose auditory contact. "I can't tell how bad the injury is. Rogue, are you on? Can you hear me? I'm headed down there now; tell me what's happening."

I hear nothing for a moment as I chase Leonardo down into the sewers. Finally, as though she had been fumbling with her call button, Rogue comes on. "Oh God, Spidey." I get the urge to vomit once again when I hear her normally-confident voice broken in sobs. Complicated as his family tree is, Nightcrawler and Rogue are also foster siblings. She is not going to take this well if something permanent happens to him. "Oh God, oh…. Dammit, Logan! I'm gonna kill you!"

"Rogue, no!" I call into the mic. Leonardo picks up speed, being able to judge from my voice what was going on. "Rogue, stay the heck away from Wolverine! Protect Mikey! I repeat, protect Mikey!" Of course, when I try and sound like I know what I'm talking about, no one listens to me.

"Let Kitty do that," she yells. She lets out a groan, as though she had just thrown something heavy. "She couldn't protect her big beau, so let her look after somebody while I go 'n make sure that Kurt don't go dyin' on-" She cuts herself off with a loud scream.

"Rogue?" I call.

"Spidey, what was that?" Don asks. "What's going on over there?"

"I'll let you know as soon as I get there," I respond. Seeing Leonardo quickly fading away in the distance, I decide to websling the rest of the way to my destination. "Leo, wait up! Together we stand, attack as one… any of this ringing a bell?"

"Leo's going off on his own?" Donatello asks in a high pitched voice. "What the shell… Leo, stop! What are you doing?" I tell him that Leo's not on headset, and that Don would be better off watching after Raphael rather than worrying about us. "I can look after Raph, all right," he nearly whimpers. "But who the heck's going to look after me?"

"I'm sure that there's a Great Turtle Spirit that watches after all of the good little turtles," I tell him, slowly catching up to Leo as the sounds of battle from Rogue's headset get louder. "If you believe hard enough, you'll feel the warm presence of a-" My sense of humor threatens to permanently fly out the window when another scream from Rogue bursts into my ear. "Oh, for crying out loud! I didn't even get to the part about how he leaves green apple lollipops under the pillow!"

Leonardo crashes through the door that we had seen the X-Men trio enter, and I sling in right after him. Leo almost stumbles over Mike's unconscious body, and he quickly stoops down to check his vitals. It's all I can do to gape at the scene in front of me.

Colossus and Shadowcat are hunched over Nightcrawler's body, nervously trying to stop the bleeding. Rogue's using her reserve of super strength and is tearing apart the entire facility, actually crashing huge worktables onto Wolverine's head. "Get outta him!" Rogue's yelling. "Get the hell outta him and fight like a demon, you little weasel!" Shadowcat's screaming at her to stop, to remember that Wolverine's still in there somewhere.

Wolverine claws through the tables and lunges for Rogue, but she darts away. Apparently, she got enough of demon-possessed mutants when she sapped Mike's strength away; she wasn't willing to take a gamble with Death while she was still reeling from the effects of Pestilence. Still, that didn't do anything to cool off her fiery temper. "Logan, you were Death once before," she tells him sternly. "Now be a good pup and pull that stupid spirit outta ya so I can send it back to Kingdom come!"

"Impudent little fool," Wolverine hisses, finally grabbing hold of Rogue's arm and slamming her hard against the wall. Despite all of the powers she's absorbed over the years, even her natural hardiness isn't holding up to the beating her immune system's taken from Pestilence. Her skin's turned a pale yellow, and even from where I'm standing I can see that she's got a bad case of the sweats. "Do you honestly think that-"

"Leave her alone."

Wolverine glances up, apparently not having noticed any new arrivals. I'm ready to strike, but it's Leonardo's steady voice as he unsheathes his swords that grabs all of the attention in the room. "Shadowcat, Colossus," he says coolly. "Get Nightcrawler out of here. Spider-Man, guard Mikey and keep an eye on Sinister. Death, put Rogue down. I'm your target. If you still want me, I'm right here. Come get me."

Even though he only just met Leonardo, Colossus carefully picks Nightcrawler up and rises to his feet, as instructed. Shadowcat stands, looking at Leonardo uncertainly. "This wasn't part of the plan," she murmurs, almost confidentially.

"There are some things that you don't plan on," Leonardo says, never removing his gaze from Wolverine as he drops Rogue. "I didn't plan on letting any X-Men go to their deaths. But if that's happened, then I've got to do something about it."

"How brave," Wolverine remarks mockingly. "How noble." When Rogue jumps to her feet and tries to grab for him, he suddenly pivots. I let out a choked sound when his claws sink into her side. "How sickening," he finishes.

Instead of another scream, she makes a small mewl of pain as she falls back against the wall. I can't do anything but take a step back in horror as Leonardo cries out and charges at Wolverine. "Spidey, what is it?" Don asks, his panic mounting. "Spider-Man is she… are they… what's going on?"

"I'll explain later," I tell him. "Just keep working on that lab and take care of your brother." Shutting off my mic, I call out, "Colossus, Shadowcat: grab Rogue and get her out of the way! I'll help Leo with Wolverine." I wince as I hear Leo's swords parry against Wolverine's claws.

"You'll… do no such thing!" Leonardo grunts, punting Wolverine away. He spares me a quick glance. I realize now that his voice has taken on a harsh, guttural quality. He believes that Nightcrawler and Rogue are dead or dying… and he really does think that it's his fault. "I gave you an order! Watch my brother, and see to it that Sinister stays out of this!"

Shadowcat has stepped to the side and is now collecting Rogue, who's moaning in her pain. The blood. There's so much blood. How did something that started with me hearing about some old friends frequenting a Halloween shop end up with so much blood?

I jump when Wolverine goes for Leonardo again, forcing the turtle into a defensive retreat. "Your brothers have failed you," Wolverine breathes out as Shadowcat and Colossus speed towards me with the wounded. "Just as mine have. We are each the strongest of our kinds. It would seem only natural that you and I merge to become the ultimate Death."

"Sounds like a bad title for a wrestling match," Leonardo grumbles, his swords ready to defend himself against Wolverine. I can bet that they're not adamantium blades, so I'm just waiting for them to snap under the slightest pressure from Wolverine's claws. "If this is your way of trying to turn me over to the dark side, you're going to have to try a lot better than that."

Colossus stoops behind me, and I see that he's picking Mikey up over his shoulder. "We will take the fallen back to the van," he tells me. "We shall return." I nod at him as he and Kitty make off with the bleeding and unconscious.

I quickly return my attention to Leonardo and Wolverine. I can see Sinister out of the corner of my eye, actually sitting down on some of the wreckage that Rogue had caused as though he were watching an interesting television program. As much as I want to wipe that ghostly smile from his face, I know that I'm no match for him without some back-up. We need Wolverine. The strong, enraged, indestructible Wolverine.

The same Wolverine that's running towards the strong, enraged, and not-so-indestructible Leonardo.