A/N: This chapter will contain some very gruesome details. If you can't handle, skip this chapter and move to the next (whenever that is posted). Strictly over 17 for this chapter.

Mistress and Slave

Rogue stared loathingly at the control consol above her.

"I said, finish it!" Lilly screamed.

She contemplated the action, looking down at her beaten foe, her co-conspirator, her saviour, her hell.

She couldn't kill the young boy, whom they had referred to as Mutant 143, but whom she had named Casey. He had been born into Lilly's world of torment and pain, a low level empath. But through it all he'd kept something vital, compassion.

Casey had been such a balm to her soul in this hell of hers. He'd been the one to dress her back from the whippings, resulting from the numerous occasions she'd defied Lilly. He'd been the one whom they'd actually allowed to be in her cell for more than a few minutes. He'd brought her meals. He'd been there; a ready shoulder to cry on after an execution. Even more he'd been there after the absorptions. Those were the worst. The new personality always struggled to live on through her body. There was always a fight for dominance in her body. But she'd learned, after the first few times when a strong personality pushed her away into the darkness of her own mind. Her mind was a scary place. She didn't want to spend too much time dwelling on it.

She looked down at him.

'Why? Why, did you try to stand up to her, Casey, when you knew that you couldn't win?'

But she knew. He did it for her. He'd told her of what was planned, and knew how much she hated the experiments on her skin.

She'd joked about it, telling him that that had become her norm. But he'd warned her of the fact that it would be worse than anything she'd ever experienced.

And it was true.

They'd literally started to cut the flesh off her back, with no anaesthesia and no pain killers. Her body processed them too quickly anyway, and Lilly wanted her to feel the bite of each cut. The doctors who worked with her were just as heartless. To them she was just another lab rat for them to experiment on.

She'd tried. She honestly had. But by the tenth cut she'd started screaming; and once she started she couldn't seem to stop.

Her screams must have driven him over the edge. He'd barged into the lab brandishing a scalpel, demanding that Lilly release her.

She'd laughed, until he'd actually cut her.

Then the anger had been released, and there was no stopping it. She'd taken him down in seconds.

Then came the whipping; sixty lashes.

Rogue had cried out at that.

Casey's frail frame couldn't take sixty lashes. She'd begged for her to take the whipping instead.

Lilly had agreed, but she should have known that Lilly never did anything because it was asked of her.

After the sixty lashes, when she had been delirious with pain, Lilly then declared what his new punishment would be.

A fight to the death; between him and Rogue.

That brought her to her present position.

She stared at him, and she knew, though she might not be able to save him, she couldn't execute him either. He'd been too good a friend for her to repay him in such.

So looking up at the consol, she lifted her head and straightened her shoulders.

"No! I'm not going to kill him. He's my friend!" she shouted defiantly.

"Rogue, do what I tell you or there is going to be a large recompense," she warned silkly.

Shaking her head in defiance, she once again stated, "No! I won't do it."

"Then so be it!"

She was a bundle of nerves, knowing the twisted and manipulative mind that was Lilly.

Stooping beside Casey, she took his hand in hers gently.

His blue eyes fluttered open, filled with pain.

Her throat constricted and she swallowed painfully.

"I'm sorry, my friend. I couldn't save you," she whispered.

"It is I who... should... be saying... sorry," he whispered back.

"You know she won't let this pass. But I couldn't kill you. You mean too much to me."

"You should have... Marie. She will only make... things worst for you."

"I can handle her," Rogue replied.

"Oh, you can handle me!" Lilly said above her.

Rogue looked up in shock. She hadn't even heard her approach.

And Lilly gave her no time react as she buried the dagger in Casey's chest to the hilt, held by both hands.

She watched in utter horror as his life's blood poured out of his chest. He gasped, and though rationally she knew that he was going to be dead soon, she tried to scoop the blood and pour it back into him.

"No… Rog.. ue. I'm ready to … go now. Love… you… Rog – " and then he was gone.

Rogue watched as his body became limp beneath her, and the ever present rage bubbled to the surface, full force, hot and red.

She snarled and then charged Lilly.

The whipping didn't matter, the numerous cuts and bruises disappeared from her mind. The only thing was the rage and the desire to kill and maim.

Lilly though had been ready for her. She dropped the dagger and claws popped out from beneath her nail beds. They resembled the claws of Sabertooth, short but sharp.

Rogue registered the move but didn't allow it to stop her. She ploughed into Lilly slamming them both roughly against the wall of the simulation room. The metal reverberated with the force of the move. Lilly stabbed her claws into Rogue's back, ripping flesh as she was thrown back.

Rogue screamed but then pushed the pain away, jumping back to avoid another swipe even as brought her feet up to deliver a smashing roundhouse kick. Lilly's head snapped with the force and her nose began to bleed, the cartilage damaged. Rogue plunged in to finish the job, snapping her open palm into Lilly's face, smashing the cartilage completely even as she dropped and swept the bitch's legs from beneath her.

Lilly fell hard; her head smashing into the titanium floor with a solid thud, cracking open her skull. But she didn't stay down for long. She flipped up with the grace and agility of the feline feral that she was.

"I must say that you've gotten exceptionally good. It seems that my training has been working."

"Up yours, Lilly – "

She watched in morbid fascination as the wounds on Lilly's face began to heal rapidly. The bones in her nose cracked as it repaired the damage that Rogue had worked so hard to inflict.

And with a sinking heart that she would never be able to win. She didn't have her powers, and had already endured much before this fight.

"Kid, you may not have the powers but you've got knowledge. And knowledge is power. There are over a hundred of us up here and most of us have had experience either in the military or at least street fights. It's a way of life for most mutants. Use the knowledge, darling, and you can beat this bitch," her inner Wolverine growled.

"That can be a little bit dangerous. If I release the personalities in my head I may not be able to put them back in their boxes. I'm not sure that I'm strong enough for another fight."

"True, but every single personality in here has a vendetta against this bitch and each of us wants to take a piece of her. So use it. Better to be alive and fighting than to be dead. Because if you don't show her that you are able to fight back, you are as good as dead, and probably the rest of the world with you."

Rogue contemplated the advice for precious few seconds, and realized that it was her only shot. She had to do it.

She skimmed through the knowledge that she had of each mutant in her mind, picking the ones that would have had extensive military training or lots of years on the street. Then she released them from their cages and just let the knowledge flow. It was amazing the amount of knowledge that came with that one move. With all the knowledge that was accumulated it totalled into at least a thousand years of experience.

"Relax, Darling and just let it flow. It will come to you; exactly what you need to do."

And so she did.

It was amazing. Lilly attacked with a speed that she hadn't expected, claws extended, fangs bared. The full frontal attack would have scared her, but she heeded the advice.

It was as if she were outside her body, looking on at the fight. She saw herself smoothly counter the move by side stepping Lilly sticking her foot forward and using the woman's own momentum against her, holding her arm and snapping it back. Lilly's own weight worked against her as her body fell and Rogue held firmly to the arm.

A satisfying crack could be heard and the arm broke, and adding insult to injury she kicked the said arm hearing the bone shatter.

Lilly roared, but took hold of Rogue's leg with the other hand and tugged her down.

She lost her footing, but used the momentum to snap her feet into Lilly's face, once again smashing the woman's nose.

Lilly held onto her ankle, biting viciously into the flesh, all the way to the bone. Simultaneously her claws dug into her flesh and similarly penetrated to the bone.

Rogue screamed and snapped her other leg into the woman's face over and over and over again, until she released her death hold on her ankle.

Pulling herself away from her opponent, she dragged herself to the wall placing her back against the titanium wall. Panting, forcing herself to regroup she watched as Lilly did the same. But whereas her wounds continued to bleed profusely, Lilly's were already healing at a rapid pace. She saw Lilly's arm straighten and then eventually heal completely, and wanted to scream in complete frustration.

"Calm your emotions. You're pouring too much adrenaline into your system and you're already bleeding too much as it is. She's made a serious wound there. It's going to affect your footing, so be careful." Wolverine warned.

They both circled each other, looking for the opening that could mean the defeat of the other. Rogue's eyes fell to the fallen dagger, and knew it to be her best shot at actually doing some serious damage, enough to bring her down or at least knocking her unconscious. She'd learned from Wolverine's memories that it was the best way to disable a feral. With their healing factor they were almost impossible to kill. The best way was to actually slow them down, which would give you time to escape. Since she didn't have an escape route; she couldn't escape at all, she needed to inflict as much serious damage as she could, more than the healing factor could handle at a given time.

Feeling her strength waning form the steady flow of blood dripping form her back, Rogue decided that she needed to act now or never.

Circling closer to the dagger, she was successful in grabbing it before Lilly could realize her intent.

Snarling, her face bloody, the woman said, "It's not going to help you know. It's just prolonging the inevitable. You will bow to me; you will become my slave, whether you want too or not."

With a loud war cry she charged. She was able to cut the bitch straight across the face. Without giving her chance to recover, she swept her legs out from beneath her. Lilly held firmly to Rogue's waist, bringing her down with her. Both women crumbled hard.

They rolled, each fighting for dominance. Through it all Rogue held onto her dagger. Lilly grabbed her wrist as they rolled. They came up against the wall, Rogue on top. Rogue wasted no time in using her advantage; she slammed her fist repeatedly into the woman's face, connecting on several occasions with her teeth. She was sure that she felt some give.

Bucking, Lilly was able to dislodge her. Rogue charged again, catching her off guard. They slammed into the wall. Her fist connected heavily with Lilly's midsection. She felt the ribs give beneath the onslaught. Bringing up the dagger she plunged it into the belly of the woman, and then twisted it.

Her scream was like music to her ears. The blood of her enemy, pouring out, coating her hands felt like a blessing. Rogue felt like laughing to the heavens at the primordial satisfaction she felt.

Lilly joined her fists together, and slammed them down onto Rogue's spine, forcing the younger woman to her knees. Bringing up her knee, she smashed it into Rogue's face.

She screamed and fell back, trying to find a good defensive position.

"The best defence, is a good offence, kid," Wolverine offered.

Using the last of her remaining strength, she charged again.

But Lilly was ready for her this time. Using Rogue's own momentum against her, she grabbed hold of the woman's hair and used it to bodily slam her into the wall.

Rogue felt her spine snap, and knew it to be the end.

Lilly pulled the dagger from her stomach, the wound already starting to heal.

Without mercy, Lilly followed, brutally kicking her body as if it were a punching bag. She felt ribs break, and she was positive that one punctured her lung. She felt Lilly deliver a brutal kick to her trachea, and spasm as she sought to pull in sufficient air.

She was far gone to the pain, but when Lilly started to pull hunks of flesh from her torn back, she was brought back from the edge of unconsciousness.

She was snarling, in full feral rage as she attacked, again and again and again.

By the time she calmed enough to actually speak, Rogue was more of a bloody mess than a human being. There was barely anything left. There were hunks of flesh lying all about her and her spine could be seen plainly at her back, as Lilly had ripped all the flesh off of it.

"You think to DEFY ME!! I am your MISTRESS, and YOU are my SLAVE. MINE to do whatever I wish! Do you get that?"

But Rogue still rebelled. She would not submit!

"Then so be it. Bring her in."

Lying, bleeding on the floor, she watched as they brought in a young mutant. The girl could not have been more than ten years old.

"This is Sara. She's only eight years, but apparently her mutation developed early so she was on her way to me a little sooner than some of my other subjects," Lilly said cheerfully.

Rogue knew that voice, and though she was thoroughly immersed in pain so great that she actually wished to die, her stomach clenched in fear, and bile rose in response.

"I warned you that others would pay for your mistakes. So today, Sara shall pay for yours."

And in a blink of an eye, she plunged her feral hand into the chest cavity of the child and pulled out her still beating heart.

Rogue looked in horror as the action was registered by the child, as she looked in terror at the organ. There was comprehension, and then denial, as the child collapsed, dead.

Rogue's eyes opened wide in absolute horror and terror.

Lilly bent before her, in the direct line of her sight and presented the organ to her.

"This is your gift for your defiance. Do you submit now?" she asked quite calmly. "Or we can bring in others. And I can gift you with an organ for each of them. Now Rogue let me have your answer."

There was no movement for a full minute.

And then, drawing on the last reserves that she had, Rogue nodded.

Lilly smiled in pleasure. Getting up she spoke to the waiting Doctors and Lab assistants.

"Clean this mess up. And I want her ready and functioning to 100 in forty eight hours. She's going on an assignment."

"Doctor, do you think it wise?" a dark haired assistant asked. "Considering what just happened?"

Lilly turned back to look at Rogue badly beaten form and smiled when she noticed the tears streaming unchecked down the girl's cheek. Even more, was the utter hopelessness and terror in the girl's eyes.

"Oh, I don't think that we are going to have any problems at all."

If she had turned back, just for a second, she would have seen the fire burning in Rogue's eyes. A fire that signified that Lilly's end would not be a pretty one, and the one she believed she'd trampled would be the one to destroy her.

"Welcome home, Professor," Jubilee said, tearfully, as she embraced the man that had helped her so much in her times of need.

But as she touched him, she was forced to her knees by such a powerful, unearthly, terrifying, death-dealing psychic scream, all she could do was hold her head and scream.

She never noticed that the Professor, and any other students bearing even the slightest measure of telepathic or empathic powers doing the same.

Thousands of miles away, in her company's boardroom, surrounded by the members of her board, Emma Frost held her head and screamed in pure agony.

All over the planet, any mutant with the slightest measure of telepathy or emapathy, no matter the distance, was driven to their knees by the absolute agony that emanated from one entity. They could neither pinpoint nor ignore it. It demanded notice.

In her room at the Mansion, Logan lay curled in a foetal position, blood instead of sweat poured from his body, his body wracked with agony.

"My… Love…" he whispered. And then he passed out, along with thousands worldwide.

A/N: So what do you think of this chapter; was it was worth the wait? What could I have done better? Suggestions, pretty please. I know that it was really graphic, and to those who can't really stomach such things, I'm truly sorry, but as my beta always say "When the Muses say 'write' we must write" That's just how the chapter flowed from me. I did try to tone it down a little, but at 3 am, I just go with the flow.

So reviews, reviews.

Love to all my faithful reviewers, PyroWhore, TaraFish, saz89, shelaweena, dulcesweet, emma134, Trickstersthiefgirl, Mnesomne's Tears, xXxoddballxXx, lildevil0644, irisheyesrsmiling, irisheyesrsmiling, Die Schurkin, GrantingTroyTurner, Dita, Fallen-fairy-wings, noro and AnimeGoddessAthea thanks so much. I love ya.