Battle of Cuba
The following morning, Erika and the others gathered outside Hank's office. Hank was gone, but there was a note taped to his door that read the following:
Guys, I've gone to the airbase
Please bring the crate marked "X."
—Hank.
Everything seemed fine on the outside. Inside, however, was a completely different story. The lab was complete and utterly destroyed.
"What the heck happened in here?" murmured Sean, looking aghast at the lab.
"Poetic justice, I'd assume," muttered Erika. Raven had told her of Hank's new serum that would give herself, Kurt and Hank a normal appearance, but would not affect their abilities. Kurt and Raven had had a change of heart regarding their differences and they'd decided not to accept it, but Hank clearly hadn't shared their feelings. And judging by the state of his lab, the serum hadn't worked the way he wanted it to.
Charles opened the crate marked as Hank instructed and found uniforms of Hank's design. They were yellow and black and marked with a small 'x.' Alex and Sean's uniforms were the only ones who stood out as they were modified for their powers.
After putting on their uniforms, they headed down to the airbase. The jet was prepared, but there was no sign of their favorite scientist.
Raven looked concerned. "Where's Hank?"
"I'm right here," said Hank. He stepped out of the shadows and everyone gazed at him. He was covered from head to toe in blue fur, his eyes were yellow, he had fangs and he looked more beast-like than ever before. In fact
"Herr McCoy, vhat in heaven's name happened to you?" asked Kurt. His tone was kind, but his yellow eyes were slightly wide with curiosity.
Hank sighed. "My serum didn't attack the cells as I'd hoped. It enhanced them," he said, sadly. "It didn't work."
"Yes, it did, Hank. Don't you see?" said Raven. She wasn't even hiding her true form anymore. "This is who you were meant to be. This is you." She placed her hand on his cheek. "You're beautiful. No more hiding."
"Plus, I hear that blue's very popular these days," joked Kurt, trying to lighten the mood.
Hank looked slightly cheered up as he chuckled.
"I think you've never looked better, Hank," said Erika, honestly. "Don't ever let anyone tell you otherwise."
Hank just nodded. "Thank you."
"Before we go, Charles and I have a few things to say," said Erika.
Charles stepped forward. "Everyone, you've all come a long way and worked hard for this moment. Now is when your training is to be put to the test. Where we're going, there are no second chances. We're fighting to stop Shaw, not just for ourselves, but for all mutants and humans alike, for the good of mankind."
"After today, mankind will know of us and from there on, lines will be drawn. We'll have to decide what our futures will be and where we'll stand. And no matter what happens, no matter what they say or do, we are our own people. No one can take that away from us," said Erika. "United we stand, divided we fall. What'll your choice be?"
Unianmously, they all shouted, "We're with you!" and then boarded the jet.
As they flew, Charles reached over and took Erika's hand. He held a finger to his temple and then Erika nodded, granting him permission into her mind.
Erika, whatever happens, no matter how bad things get, I love you. Remember that, said Charles.
I love you too, Charles, said Erika.
Whatever happened after today, one thing was for sure—nothing was ever going to be the same again.
XXX
They didn't arrive a moment too soon.
From what they could see from the jet's windows, there were over a dozen ships from different nations, all of them were armed and prepared to fire. One ship was crossing the line and it looked fairly grim out there.
Charles raised his fingers to his temple for a moment before looking concerned. "The crew of the Aral Sea's all dead. Azazel's on that ship on Shaw's orders."
"If Azazel's here, then so is Shaw," said Erika, insistently. She knew Shaw well. He wouldn't have been away from the action.
"Indeed. He's set the ship for the embargo line," said Charles.
"If that ship crosses the line, our ships are going to blow it up and then the war begins," said Moira, worried.
"Unless they're not our boys," said Erika, sharing a knowing glance with Charles.
Charles acted quickly. He made one of the Russian seamen fire a missile at the Aral Sea, forcing Azazel to teleport away and preventing the war for a brief moment. However, in order to avoid the missile, Hank had to do a series of terrifying turns that made everyone clutch each other's hands tightly, especially Raven and Kurt's.
"That was inspired, Charles," said Moira.
"But you could warn us next time, Professor," growled Hank.
"Thank you and my apologies," said Charles. He looked frustrated. "But I still can't locate Shaw or Wanda and Pietro."
"Their mind-control devices must be blocking you," said Erika. She let out a frustrated growl. "Shaw's down there! We need to find him and my children, now!"
"Herr McCoy, Fraulein McTaggart, is there anything unusual on the radar or scanners? Anything at all?" asked Kurt.
Moira shook her head. "No, there's nothing."
"Then he must be underwater," said Hank. "And obviously, we don't have sonar."
Sean's face lit up. "Yes, we do."
Quickly, Sean, Erika and Charles rose up out of their seats and walked over to the bomb bay doors as Hank opened them.
Charles placed his hand on Sean's throat. "Remember, this is a muscle! You control it!" he yelled, as the wind blew harshly around them. He placed a hand to his temple. "You'll be in here the entire time! Don't be scared!"
Sean nodded.
"Good luck, Banshee!" yelled Erika. "We'll see you soon! On my mark! Three…two…one!"
Sean leapt out of the plane and let out a supersonic scream, granting him brief flight before he dove into the water.
Moments later, Charles looked quite pleased. "Banshee's got a location on Shaw."
Erika felt relieved as she took her place at the bomb bay doors. Now it was her turn to play the game. Everything she'd been working for all came down to this moment.
Charles looked at Erika. "You ready for this?"
"Let's find out," said Erika. One way or another, this all ends today.
As Hank leveled the jet and made it hover, the bomb bay doors opened and Erika lowered herself down by clutching the jet's wheels. She then held out her hand and detected the metal of Shaw's submarine, before trying to raise it from the water. Soon, the strain began to tear at her, just as it had before and she started to fear, but then she heard Charles's voice in her mind.
Remember Erika, the point between rage and serenity. Focus on that.
Erika took a deep breath and focused just as Charles said. Within moments, she felt power flow through her, just as she had when she'd moved the satellite dish. She felt stronger than ever before as she caused the submarine to rise from the water. It felt easy, as though she was just moving a small coin or paperclip. As she made it fly, she felt herself releasing the metal she was clutching and floated in the air as though it were completely natural. She was now at the peak of her abilities. She was Magnetrix.
However, just as she was directing the submarine to dry land as the jet followed her; Riptide emerged from the submarine and sent out a powerful tornado.
"Erika, get over here and take my hand!" yelled Charles.
Erika barely had time to react before the tornado hit her and caused her to crash the submarine onto a beach. Fortunately for her, the wind directed her to the bomb bay doors where she latched onto Charles's hand and he pulled her into the jet, just as it crashed and she protectively covered him with her body. When the jet stilled, everyone slowly moved.
"Anyone who's not dead, say so now," said Raven.
Everyone quickly said they weren't dead. Aside from a few bumps, bruises and slight dizziness, they were all fine, thank heavens.
"Charles, you'd better have news for me," said Erika, as she helped unhook their teammates.
"It's not good news, I'm afraid. I read Azazel's mind. Shaw's drawing all the power out of his sub. He's turning himself into a nuclear bomb," said Charles.
"We've got to act now! The Geiger counter's going out of control!" said Moira.
"Then get on the radio and tell those seamen to get their ships out of here A.S.A.P.," ordered Erika. "I'm going in."
"Not alone, you're not," said Charles, sternly. "Beast, Havoc, Nightcrawler, give her some backup. Raven, if anything comes through that entrance, you'll stop it. Erika, I'll guide you through, but once you reach the void, the area where my telepathy can't reach, I can't help you further until you remove Shaw's block. Then we'd better pray it's not too late to stop him."
"Copy that," said Erika.
She and her teammates walked out onto the beach. Angel brought out wings. Kurt drew his swords from the pack on his back as Azazel held his own blades.
"En garde, mein vater," growled Kurt.
Riptide acted first, trying to create more powerful winds, but Alex quickly blasted him into the submarine, knocking him down. Angel took flight and then Azazel teleported behind them, trying to nail them with his blades, but in the ensuring fight, Kurt grabbed him and the two teleporters whisked away with Hank and Alex, leaving Erika alone.
Erika didn't hesitate, she just ran. Quickly, she yanked off part of the metal side of the submarine. It hit Janos and knocked him out, leaving the pathway clear for her.
Erika, make for the middle of the submarine. That's the place my mind can't penetrate. We have to assume that's where Shaw is, said Charles.
Understood, said Erika, as she made her way inside the submarine.
She soon found Wanda and Pietro guarding the nuclear reactor and looking ready for a fight.
"Wanda, Pietro, I don't want to fight you!" said Erika.
Despite her words, she was blasted off her feet by one of Wanda's hex-bolts.
Erika slowly rose up, clutched her aching ribcage as fresh anger, not directed at her children, flowed through her. "But I will if I must!"
She thrust out her hand and metal shot out from the wall. She managed to restrain Wanda before Pietro knocked her off her feet and undid Wanda's bonds. They then stood above her, prepared to strike and possibly end her.
"You were a fool, Mother, thinking you could take us on and stop Father's plans. You and Father trained us well," growled Pietro.
"Shame you chose to fight us. You would've played a great part in Father's glorious plans," said Wanda. She fired another hex bolt, but this time Erika was prepared. She managed to form a magnetic shield that blocked off Wanda's attack.
"If Shaw's so perfect, why does he have you acting as his guard dogs?" demanded Erika, as she faced them. She acted again and this time, she managed to shackle them to the wall and hold them tight so they'd have to listen to her. "Or has he brainwashed you to the point where you actually believe he cares about you?"
"How dare you?" yelled Wanda. "How dare you? Father does care about us, more than you ever did, Mother!"
"We were blinded weak fools once, but then he made us see the truth. He's made us stronger, something you could never do!" snarled Pietro.
"If he cares so much, then why was he absent for twelve years in your lives? For heaven's sake, think! He's using you. Why do you think he put those things on your heads? Whatever he's said, is a lie. He just wants to use you! I care about you. Was he there when you were born? Did he raise you like I did? I raised you for twelve years! I took care of you. I protected you as best I could. And I still love you because you're my children!"
Erika waved her hand and they were released.
"Hush now, my babies, sleep like you're rocked by the stream. Sleep and remember, my lullaby. And I'll be with you when you dream. I'll be with you when you dream…" Strange looks crossed her children's faces, but they didn't move. "Remember when I sang that to you? You'd crawl into bed my bed, saying, 'Mama, we're afraid.' Wanda, Pietro, I'm afraid. I'm afraid of losing you. But I believe that somewhere, somewhere deep down inside, you're in still in there somewhere. And even if I die now, I'll never stop fighting for you. I love you both so much. So go on. Prove me wrong. Destroy me. I won't stop you."
She stepped back and waited for the inevitable.
But as Wanda and Pietro prepared to strike, they suddenly froze in their tracks and then their mind-control devices sparked a little.
Suddenly, Kurt teleported in and grabbed them both before he teleported out just as quickly.
Charles, what's Kurt doing? demanded Erika. She hadn't been informed of this, and she was suddenly afraid again for Wanda and Pietro. Where's he taken them?
Calm down. He's going to help them, assured Charles. They're going to be fine, I promise you.
You had better be right about this, Charles, so help me! she swore.
But she didn't have time to dwell on that as after she'd disabled the nuclear reactor, the wall behind her opened up, revealing a hidden chamber. It was an eight-sided room with glowing blue light, the walls were completely covered in full-length mirrors, and vanishing into the floor was a nuclear power source. Right in the center of the room, wearing her stolen helmet, was a monster.
"Erika," said Shaw, smiling. "What a pleasant surprise. It's so good to see you again."
Shaw. After eighteen years, they were finally facing one another properly. No back-up, nothing standing in their way. It was just the two of them facing each other, mutant vs. mutant, just as it was always meant to be.
"I wish I could say the same," said Erika, coldly. She stepped into the secret room and the door closed behind her, cutting off Charles's telepathic connection to her. "But after almost twenty years, nothing's changed between us. I want you gone for good, you son of a—."
"Ah, ah, language," interrupted Shaw. "I had hoped we could talk to one another a bit more civilly at this point. Aren't you wondering how I knew where to get this helmet or where to find our children when I recruited them?"
Erika was silent. She had always wanted to know that information, but never bothered trying to find out.
Shaw, however, being the egotistical pig that he was, just couldn't resist ignoring her silence and explaining anyway. "It was simple enough, really. You see, back in the camps, I injected you with a little bug of my own creation. A nano device was in your system that let me know exactly where you were and what you were doing whenever I wanted to. It's gone now, of course. It self-destructed accidentally I took the children. But it provided me with the information I needed."
Fresh anger surged through Erika. "You spied on me?" she said, outraged. "I should end you where you stand."
"But you won't," said Shaw, smirking. "I know you won't. Because I knew all there is to know about you."
"You know nothing!" she yelled. "You never did and you never will."
Shaw paused for a moment and then shrugged. "Perhaps. After all, I don't know why you're acting on the humans' behalf. Why don't you tell me, Erika? Why're you on their side? Why're you fighting for a species that's doomed to extinction, who'll hunt us down simply because we're the better race?"
Erika just punched him in the face and glared at him. "I'd rather die free than live as slave under your rule," she snarled.
Shaw just shook his head. "Who's to say it'll be like that? What'll it take to get you to side with me? An apology, perhaps? Well, I can provide you with an honest one, Erika. I'm sorry for what happened in the camps. I'm sorry I had to take our children away from you. I truly am regretful about our past," said Shaw. He touched her forehead, and his touch sent her flying into one of the mirrors, breaking it and allowing Charles to speak to her.
Erika! Whatever you're doing, keep doing it, he said.
That's what I intend to do, said Erika, as she faced her tormentor. If she could break the mirrors, she could access the metal behind them and get the helmet off of Shaw's head, allowing Charles to mentally freeze him. She narrowed her eyes slightly as Shaw continued his pathetic speech.
"Erika, you must understand, everything I did, was for you and for our children, I promise you," said Shaw. "You couldn't see what I did, how much potential you all had. So, I did what was necessary. I did it to unlock your power as well as theirs. To make you all embrace it." He lifted her chin before he flung her into another mirror.
Ignoring the stabbing pains and protests of her aching body, Erika slowly rose up. "I'm not the same girl whose life you stole in the camps, Shaw," she said.
Shaw actually looked pleased as he nodded. "No, you're not," he agreed. "You're so much better. You've come a long way from bending gates and moving coins." He smirked. "Pity you couldn't have seen Pietro and Wanda's gifts when they were developing. Pietro could only run fifty miles or so at first and Wanda's hex bolts could barely smash a mirror. Now, Pietro can run death-defying speeds and Wanda can take down even someone like me. I'm so proud of you all."
Erika glared at him as she fumed. Proud? How dare he say that? "You've no right to be," she growled. And with that, she made several of the pipes from behind the mirrors emerge and hit Shaw, causing a barricade between her and her tormentor.
Shaw actually seemed pleased by what she was doing. "And to think, you're just starting to scratch the surface of your abilities," he said, as he pressed forward. He kept coming closer, despite Erika's efforts to keep him away. "Just imagine how much further we could go. How much more powerful our children could be. Together, the three of us could do extraordinary things." He then pinned her to wall with one of the pipes.
Erika struggled, but she couldn't break free. She tried to ignore the way her skin crawled when Shaw placed his hand on her cheek.
"I don't want to hurt you, Erika. I never did," he whispered into her ear. "I only wanted to help you and I still do. I love you."
Erika scoffed as she turned her gaze away from him. "You love me? You don't know the meaning of the word, Shaw." It was just another one of his filthy lies. If he loved her, he never would've done what he had, to her or her children. He knew nothing of love, only his sick and twisted fantasies and tyrannical ways.
"You're wrong," he insisted, as he cupped her face and forced her to look at him. "I do love you. More to the point, this is our time, our age. We are the future of the human race. Just think of it: you and me, being so much more than we already are. We're some of the most powerful mutants in the world, why shouldn't we take command? This world could be ours, and our children would inherit our legacy."
Erika swallowed painfully as she continued working and her voice wavered ever so slightly as she spoke, "Everything you did made me stronger. You made me into the weapon I am today and you're the reason Wanda and Pietro's powers have become what they are, it's true. The only reason I even had Wanda and Pietro was because of you. You're right. We are the future of the human race. I've always known that."
Shaw seemed quite pleased with Erika's response and started to release her, only to freeze when her expression became cold and hard.
"But you killed my mother, you robbed me of six years with my children and you stole my life from me. I'd rather die, than side with you," she growled.
I'm going to count to three, and then I'm going to move the coin. One…two…three! Erika glared as she made a thin piece of metal form into a chain, and the chain was pushed through the accursed coin from eighteen years ago before it was wrapped so tightly around Shaw's neck that it nearly choked him. "This started with you and it'll end with you."
There was still fear in Shaw's eyes, but it faded quickly as he smirked, evilly. "Oh, I don't think so," he said. "This has only—"
Suddenly, there was a streak of white that sent Shaw flying just before there was a red blast of energy that hit him square in face, knocking the helmet off his head and causing the metal pinning Erika to the wall, to fall. She fell to her knees and then, just as quickly, Shaw became frozen in place, thanks to Charles's telepathy.
Slightly baffled, Erika spun around to see her children. Shaw's mind-control devices were gone. Her heart leapt, but it sank just as quickly. Wanda and Pietro were finally free and by the looks of things, they were anything but happy. There were tears streaming down Wanda's cheeks and though Pietro didn't share in his sister's tears, there was an equal look of hatred, pain and anger in both their eyes that unsettled Erika greatly.
"Wanda, Pietro, how—?" she asked, but she was interrupted.
"Your words and the help of Azazel's son Kurt gave us our freedom," said Wanda, not taking her eyes off Shaw.
"Forgive us, Mother. We tried to fight him off when he took us, but we weren't strong enough. When we refused to cooperate with him, he forced his hand. He controlled our minds with those devices," said Pietro, looking truly remorseful. "We could see everything happening, but we couldn't stop ourselves from saying those things or doing what we did."
"It's all right," said Erika. She wasn't angry with them. How could she be? Nothing they'd done had been of their own volition and she loved them regardless. They were her children. She was just glad they were free.
"Now, this evil scoundrel will pay for what he's done with his life and will rot forever in the fiery pits of perdition," growled Pietro, looking furious. "Wanda, sister, do the honors. Rid the world of our so-called father forever."
"Gladly, brother," said Wanda. Red surges of power glowed in Wanda's hands as she prepared to deliver to Shaw the fatal blow, only to be stopped by the least-likely person.
"No!" cried Erika. She grabbed her daughter's wrist and came in between her children and Shaw. "Stop! Wanda, don't! Don't kill him!"
The twins stopped and looked at her incredulously.
"Mother, how can you, of all people, ask that of us?" demanded Pietro. "Have you gone insane? He doesn't deserve mercy. He deserves to be punished for what he's done!"
"Mama, think about what he did to you, to us! He stole your life from you, he stole us from you, and he—" Wanda was interrupted by Erika.
"I know what he did! I've never once forgotten," interrupted Erika. Her tone then softened. "But killing him won't bring any of us peace." Charles had told her this once before and though she had been unwilling to listen then, she knew now he was right. "Ask yourselves this: do you want to be like him or do you want to be better than him?"
As she waited for what felt like an eternity for their answers, she silently hoped that they would agree to the later. From the moment she'd first learned she was expecting, one of the things she'd wanted most for her children was for them to be nothing like Shaw. Finally, the answer came.
"We don't want to be anything like him," said Wanda, softly, as Pietro shook his hand.
"Then don't be," said Erika. She held up the device Charles had given her that would put Shaw in a state of animated suspension. "Let me put this on him and activate it. He'll never return to our lives again after this. We can be rid of him forever. Will you consent to this?"
Wanda and Pietro exchanged looks and then they nodded.
"Do it," said Wanda.
And with that, Erika strapped the device onto Shaw's wrist and it took effect immediately. He was suspended, forever frozen in time until the time when—if ever—he'd be released.
"Shall we go now, Mother?" asked Pietro.
"Soon. Wait for me in the other room. I want one moment alone with him." There were some things she needed to say.
Wanda and Pietro looked as if they were about to protest, but one stern look from their mother silenced them and sent them out of the room.
Erika approached Shaw. After eighteen years, the insane, dangerous man who'd haunted her dreams, stolen so much from her, was finally imprisoned and dealt with at last. He seemed so pitiful and small now. It made her wonder why she'd been so afraid of him when she was younger.
"I don't know for certain if you can hear me, Shaw, but I hope you can, because I never want you to forget what I have to say," said Erika. "You wanted to be a king that everyone would remember, but after today, you'll just be a part of history that'll be forgotten. But though I should despise you for what you've done, I don't feel those feelings any longer. You mean nothing to me and to my children, and I've only one thing left to say to you." She placed her hand on his face and whispered into his ear, "I forgive you."
And with those words, Erika felt as though a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. It was one she would never bear again. She would always have trust and anger issues, and there were some things that were never going to chance, but she was no longer the same angry woman that had been unable to forgive. The past was finally over and she could move forward with her life.
She twisted metal bonds around Shaw's body, allowing her to levitate him out of the room. She left, only to drop him when she found herself facing her children, who had fresh tears in their eyes.
"Mama," whispered Wanda. "Oh, Mama…"
"My babies," said Erika. "Come here."
Nothing more needed to be said as the three of them embrace and shared a joyful reunion. After six long and painful years, mother and children were back together again.
"Mother, forgive us," whispered Pietro. "Forgive us."
"There's nothing to forgive. It's going be all right, I promise." said Erika. She could not restrain her tears as she embraced them and silently thanked whoever was listening. She felt happy. She had her babies back. They were back! She was never going to let them go again, not ever.
At that point, her adrenaline wore off and Erika pulled away as she nearly collapsed from the amount of pain she felt from her injuries.
"Mother, you're hurt!" said Wanda, alarmed.
"It's nothing I won't recover from," said Erika, as she tried to breathe through the pain. "I'm fine."
But her children could plainly see she wasn't fine. Her ribs were either cracked or broken, her leg was screaming in protest when she tried to put weight on it and her head was pounding as though someone was taking a sledgehammer to it.
Pietro slung her arm over his shoulder and helped her walk while Wanda cleared a way out of the submarine for them by blasting away the rubble and broken machinery. Erika didn't even protest in the slightest. She was too glad to have her offspring back to care.
They didn't leave a moment too soon, for just as they emerged from the fallen submarine, missiles were headed straight for the beach. Missiles shot by the humans who were obviously panicking as a result of what had just occurred there.
Ignoring the pain and acting fast, Erika shakily stood on her own two legs before she thrust out her hands. She managed to stop the missiles just moments before they hit the beach and then she redirected them into the air before she harmlessly destroyed them.
"THAT IS ENOUGH!" she yelled, catching everyone's attention before leaning on Pietro again.
She lowered herself and her children down to the ground and murmured instructions to them. She levitated Shaw's form over to Beast, who picked him up. Pietro helped her to lean against Charles, who supported her and then Pietro placed a protective arm around his sister. They all stayed close to one another as Erika spoke.
"My brothers and sisters, we all came here today to decide our futures, but what kind of futures are we going to have, if this fighting continues? Look around you! Shaw promised you a world where mutants would be kings and queens of the world, but all he's done is bring about the potential for a war between humans and mutants that no one will win! Is that the kind of world that we want for our kind and our posterity? Mutants will be known to the world after today, and there will be those who don't like our kind, but the reverse is also true, and there will be just as many people who will accept us for who and what we are," said Erika. While she wouldn't fully trust humans or governments, she was past wanting war or revenge anymore. She'd changed.
"It's true," said Charles. "Most of those people out there, they don't want to harm us. We have it within us to be the better men. Let us prove it to those out there now." He paused for effect and then continued. "We're going to open a haven, a sanctuary of sorts for mutants—a place where they can live in peace amongst their fellow mutants without fear, where they can be taught how to control their gifts and become something greater than themselves."
"What you do after this moment, that's your choice," said Pietro. "No one will decide what path you take hereon. That's your decision."
"But know this, if we must make a stand against our true enemies, then we will, but only when the time comes, not before," said Wanda. "There's always a choice and we've made ours."
"We are who we choose to be and we choose where we stand," said Erika, as she took Charles's hand into hers. "I and those with me are mutant and proud. This is where we stand in the world, as brothers and sisters of mutantkind. This is our choice. What will yours be?"
Silence fell and it quickly became clear that their words had an effect on them all, because Azazel teleported away with Riptide while everyone else, including Angel, joined Erika and Charles's side. Sean, Alex, Raven, Hank and Moira all looked relieved and pleased; Pietro kept an arm around his sister and Wanda's hand was tightly intertwined with Kurt's. One didn't need Charles's telepathy to know that they all stood by Erika's statement. They were mutant and proud.
Erika looked up at Charles, who looked quite proud of her. "Charles, send the humans a message. Tell them what's just happened here, who we are, where we stand and what we believe, and then have Kurt take us home."
"Of course," said Charles.
He sent out a telepathic message to the humans on the warships, before they then all joined hands and Kurt teleported them away from the beach.