DISCLAIMER: I do not own anyone except for Tori. I do not own the places either. I just own Tori.


Charles Xavier sat in his office and gazed out the large bay window on the wall behind his desk. Out on the lawn were several of his students all working together to help clean up the yard. Together they were busy planting new flowers, trees, and bushes. Some were even cleaning up the damage done by a fallen tree. Everything was coming together nicely, and an outsider would never have been able to even guess that just a few days ago the entire place was in shambles. Those few days ago plants and flowers had been trampled when the soldiers had stormed the place, and a tree or two had been knocked down by their helicopter. The damage was being cleaned up nicely though. In fact, the place may even be looking better.

Inside things were no different. Students and teachers alike were working together to clean up the damage. Broken glass was still being vacuumed and swept up; doors were being repaired along with some walls and a few sections of some of the floors and ceilings.

The professor smiled; he was happy to see how well his students got along and how they all cooperated to clean up the place. The thing that made the professor the happiest was that no one even asked the students to clean up. They all took on the responsibility themselves. It made him happy to see the students taking pride in the place they have come to call home.

As he gazed out the window he happened to sense something. Still gazing out the window, but no longer observing the students, he concentrated on it with his mind. It almost felt like what he had sensed when he was in the presence of Jason Stryker. Now the professor was curious. Could Jason still be alive or was it just some left over psionic residue? He had to find out.

A few moments later there was a knock on the door. He was already behind his desk and waiting.

"Come in Kurt." the professor stated calmly.

Kurt shyly opened the door, stepped in, and then closed the door behind him. He crossed the room and sat in one of the chairs across from Professor Charles Xavier.

"You need me for something?" Kurt asked in his thick German accent.

"Yes, Kurt, I have a personal favor to ask you; if you would agree to do it, of course." The professor smiled warmly as to put Kurt at ease. "I sense something over at Alkali Lake. I would greatly appreciate if you could go there and see if anyone has survived the destruction that was done."

"You mean Dr. Grey?" Kurt asked. He didn't get a chance to know her too well but he knew she was one extraordinary person. It was her and Ororo Munroe who had found him; it was them who had helped him and did not condemn him for his past actions. Jean Grey was indeed extraordinary; everyone had loved her it seemed. He understood how it felt to lose loved ones, and if going back to Alkali Lake meant possibly bringing someone who meant to much to his new friends back then he would go without question.

"Unfortunately, no. Jean is gone." the professor kept his composure despite the grief he had just experienced at the mention of Jean's name. "I'm not sure what's going on there, but someone is definitely there. You're the only one who is capable of getting into the dam. Many rooms are flooded and you'd be able to get to the ones that aren't."

Kurt Wagner understood what was being asked of him. He was being sent to Alkali Lake to look for any survivors, who might not even be on their side, because he was the only one who could teleport into a room, and then quickly teleport back out in case it was flooded. He just wasn't sure he was willing to do it. He felt he owed it to the X-Men and to Professor Xavier for not condemning him after what William Stryker made him do, though.

Kurt stayed quiet for a moment as he thought it over. Charles Xavier sat patiently and let him think. He was not going to force Kurt to do it if he didn't want to; figuring out if Jason Stryker was alive or not was not worth losing Kurt Wagner.

"I'll go, Professor." Kurt spoke after he thought it over.

"Are you sure?" Xavier asked.

"Ja." Kurt nodded.

"Thank you very much, Kurt." The professor smiled.

Professor Xavier told Kurt all the details required to carry out the mission. Kurt was to go alone, scope out the rooms he could remember seeing in his head, and bring anyone he found back to the school. If he found no one then he was to carry as many pieces of Cerebro back as he could. He was going to be getting there via jet (flown by one of the trained faculty members) and then picked back up in a few hours. He would have been assisted by Scott Summers, Logan or Ororo, but Scott was in no shape to return to Alkali Lake, and neither was Logan even though he wouldn't admit it. As for Ororo, well, the professor still needed some of his teachers.

Kurt headed back to the room he was staying in and began to get ready. He lay down on his bed and closed his eyes. In his head he pulled up all the images of the rooms he was in at the base from Alkali Lake and began to attempt to memorize all the details of the rooms. The room he remembered the most was the copy of Cerebro. Despite the fact that he could visualize it clearly he was going to leave it for last. The room still scared him for if his visualization was off he could end up missing the platform or getting stuck somewhere. Besides, he was supposed to bring back some of the paneling, might as well leave that for last.

He must have drifted off to sleep because one moment he was simply visualizing the rooms and the next he was actually in the rooms. They weren't flooded; however, they were just like he remembered. He was walking through them cautiously and searching for any signs of life. He walked out of one room and into a hall. There had to be 30 or more rooms around him. He began walking in and out of rooms, spending no more than 5 minutes on each.

He walked into a room filled with surgical instruments and shuddered. He remembered that room from before he was found by the X-Men. The memory came flooding back and had begun to replay itself around him. He saw military personal, scientists, and the devil himself; William Stryker, making their way toward him. It was if he had gone back in time and it was happening all over again; not in his head, but in reality. He panicked and teleported out of the room.

He ended up in the copy of Cerebro. Glad to be alone, and free of the horrifying scientists, he caught his breath.

"Have you come back to save me too?" A little girl's voice came from behind him.

Kurt wheeled around and stared at the little girl. She was small with shoulder length brown hair and was wearing a long white nightgown. Kurt stared at her for a moment in disbelief; his yellow eyes locking onto her mismatched eyes. One blue and one green; just like he remembered.

"Jason Stryker?" Kurt asked.

The little girl smiled.

Suddenly everything went black and the voice of the professor sounded through Kurt's head. "Kurt, it's time to leave."

Kurt's eyes opened and he found himself lying on his bed. There were no scientists, no military personal, and most importantly no William Stryker. Realizing he had simply been having a nightmare made him feel almost completely at ease. There was only one thing that bothered him; Jason Stryker.

'It wasn't real.' He thought. 'It was just a dream.'

He gathered his things and headed out to the jet.