Dark Angel
By Serena Kenobi
Author's note: I decided to finally update this story. LOVED all of your reviews. Super Tinfoil Man, don't worry. Although I will have Elena using Jean's powers, she will not be dying and coming back to life every five seconds. It does get old. Pippin, thanks for letting me use Darcy. He'll be coming up in just a few short chapters. Maybe even the next one. pooh pooh, your review made me laugh - mutant party indeed! Kinda like that. phantom-jedi1: I love FF and Silver Surfer - he's probably one of my top top favs. I ADORE the FF2 movie - you seen it? You could try the Marvel website - they have all the X-Men there. Annikin9012: Always welcome new readers! I'm glad that you like it so much! Thanks! To Angel Sanada, RavenRulzRF, MJLS, and WeJm 18: Thank you for reviewing! And don't worry - a duel between Elena and Kier will be coming up soon!!
Disclaimer: I own no one but my own characters.
Chapter Seventeen
Elena's eyes opened to slits, and she shut them again, wanting to block out the sunlight that was now streaming into her room.
"Elena… Elena, c'mon, sis, wake up!" Leia shook her sister, grinning.
Elena groaned and buried her head deeper into her pillow. "Go away," she grumbled.
Leia poked her side. "Don't be such a grouchy Gungan," she chastised her, "come on, it's time to get up. We have a lot to do today."
"Like what?"
Leia sighed. "Element wants to practice fighting with other mutants. We're going down to the private lake, but we have to go before the Terrible Trio finds me. Or my father pulls me away from you with some lame excuse."
Elena muttered something incoherent and simply pulled her covers up tighter.
Leia scowled at her sister. "I'll give you five minutes or I'll–"
Elena's body disappeared in a puff of blue smoke.
Leia sighed.
A second later, she bamphed back into the room, completely clothed and ready to go. "You were saying?" Elena said, grinning innocently.
Leia shook her head. "You're impossible, Elena," she grumbled, walking out of the room. "C'mon. Sylina's waiting for us."
The girls met Element outside on the palace grounds, and from there, they walked to the private lake where Sylina and Leia had been talking before.
"You're sure no one will see us?" Elena said, eyeing her surroundings doubtfully.
"Yes."
"Completely sure?"
"Yes."
"So sure that you'd stake your life on it?"
"Ye – no! What kind of a question is that, Elena Skywalker?" Leia demanded, putting her hands on her hips and glaring at her sister.
Sylina smiled, amused.
Elena shrugged. "How should I know?"
Two hours later and the sisters showed no signs of tiring. However, their companion was growing weary from all of their exercising and training.
"Do you two ever get tired?" Sylina asked, wiping a band of sweat that was glistening on her red forehead off.
Leia and Elena looked at each other.
"Uh, not really," Elena confessed, "it comes with being able to copy everybody else's powers. Take Quicksilver, for example. He never gets tired."
Sylina smiled faintly. "Sometimes I wish I were as powerful as you," she admitted, somewhat ashamed.
Leia frowned. "Don't be," she said, her tone somber, "All this power… it's extremely hard to control. Don't think that I don't think that you couldn't control it, but…" she trailed off. "There are a lot of times when I wish I didn't have all this responsibility thrust upon me."
" 'With great power comes great responsibility,'" Elena quoted, breaking into a grin.
Leia nodded, her mouth twitching upwards. "Yes, exactly."
"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Traashal hissed as he crouched as low as his hulking form would allow beside Korto.
The young man's steely grey eyes swept the area in front of him and rested on the three females standing around twenty or so yards away from his position.
The female Zabrak shot an irritated look to her human friend. "Korto Vos, you worry too much," she whispered harshly. "And don't forget, this was your idea."
"I know, I know! But look at them!" Korto nodded to the females. "They're… well, you see what they're doing!"
Traashal's yellow eyes rested upon one of the human females, who was at the moment spewing flame from her hand. In the next few seconds, her entire body turned into fire, and she rose from the ground, apparently unharmed.
"She's… flying!" Khandrr breathed, staring in shock at the inflamed girl.
All of a sudden, the flame disappeared as if snuffed out, but the girl stayed floating in the air, her blonde hair flying into her face as the only non-human female appeared to gather the wind itself around her and blast it at the girl.
"That's Elena Skywalker," Korto said quietly. "I've seen her on the HoloNet." His eyes flickered to the other two. "I don't know who the Twi'lek is, but I'm sure the other human is Princess Leia."
Hirsh'chall sniffed, his intimidating face bowing low to the ground. "It's too far for me to pick up a scent," he remarked. "I'll have to get closer."
Khandrr sighed impatiently. "This is pointless," she growled, "We should've stayed in the warehouse." She began to back away as if to leave, but Korto abruptly snatched her hand, his gaze fixed upon the females before him.
"Wait."
Khandrr knew him well enough to know when he was serious, and she obeyed, becoming still.
Traashall glanced at his friend. "What is it?"
Korto seemed to be concentrating hard. His face became drawn, and his eyebrows furrowed. His eyes slid shut, and then flew open as his face grew suddenly pale. "Uh-oh."
"This isn't a time for 'uh-ohs', Korto," Khandrr hissed.
Korto stared at the Princesses and Twi'lek. "They know. They know we're here."
Traashal's face expressed deep concern. "We have to get out of here before they contact the Royal Guard," he said, and began to creep away, Hirsh'chall and Khandrr following him. Korto looked at him, back to the Princesses, and began to turn away with his friends –
"Now why would we wanna contact them?" A distinct voice asked, coming from their right.
The group halted and turned to see a young woman with dark brown hair; two white streaks of it falling in front of her face, standing there, casually resting against a tree. "I mean," she continued, her voice heavily tinted with an unfamiliar accent, "that'd be just givin' us away, and we wouldn't wanna do that, now would we?"
Korto stood, eyeing the girl warily. He instantly noticed that her body was clothed from head to toe; even long black gloves covered her hands. "Who are you?" He questioned.
The girl smiled. "Ah'm Rogue. An' you look kinda familiar." She frowned thoughtfully. "You remind me of an old Jedi Master that survived the Purges."
Korto stiffened at the mention of his beloved father. "I'm Korto Vos, Jedi Knight," he said proudly.
The girl's eyes widened, and her gaze flickered to his lightsaber. "Ah knew that he survived," she whispered. "But Ah didn't know that he had a son."
Korto nodded, still wary of this slip of a girl. But who knew if she was a trained assassin?
Khandrr stepped forward, staring coldly at the girl. "What are you doing here?"
"What're you doin' here?" Rogue asked, her head cocking to one side as she grinned.
"I'm not answering to you," Khandrr hissed, "you might be a spy for the Empire."
The girl shook her head. "Nope, Ah'm not. Ah'm actually just like you."
Korto raised an eyebrow. "How so?"
"Ah take it y'all are mutants?"
Korto slowly nodded. "Yes. I suppose that means you are, too. Did you come looking for the Princess?"
Rogue smiled as if she held the greatest secret of all. "Somethin' along those lines, darlin'. But Ah'm really surprised that y'all are mutants. Ah thought that maybe we were the only ones."
"We?" Khandrr echoed. "What do you mean?"
Rogue shrugged. "Well, Ah thought that the Princess and myself were the only mutants, an' the Twi'lek. Ah didn't know there were so many others like us."
"You know the Princess?" Traashal asked, moving closer as he spoke for the first time.
Rogue's gaze showed interest as she noticed him and Hirsh'chall for the first time. "Yeah, Ah do. Matter of fact," she pushed herself away from the tree, "she's standin' right behind you."
Korto wheeled around to face Princess Leia and Elena Skywalker. He took a step backward, his lightsaber clenched firmly in his hand.
The Princess of Alderaan looked at him, her eyes revealing interest and slight suspicion. "What were you doing spying on us?" She demanded.
Khandrr came up next to Korto. "We were looking for you," she said, "but we're not Imps. Not like her," she said, her voice low as she glanced at Elena.
The Imperial Princess raised her eyebrows, but Korto noticed that her eyes were lit with a strange fire as her stormy blue eyes rested on him. "You're the son of famed Jedi Master Quinlan Vos," she said quietly. Reaching out a hand, she continued, "It's an honor to meet the son of such a great Jedi, and a fellow Jedi Knight. And now, it seems, a mutant as well."
Korto took the hand and grasped it firmly. "You mean you're a mutant?"
The girl nodded, grinning. "Yes. You've already seen some of my powers." Her eyes turned to Rogue. "Thanks for the help, Rogue," she nodded.
Rogue smiled knowingly; and to the shock of the rest of the group, besides Leia and the Twi'lek, she morphed into none other than Elena Skywalker. The next second, it seemed as if she were sucked right into the real Elena, who smiled.
Korto gaped. "H-how did you do that?"
"Rogue wasn't a real person," Princess Leia explained. "Well, not real in the sense of the word. She was a copy of Elena, who was using Multiple Man's power. But since all the copies of Elena, and myself, are copies, they can do what we can, and Elena's copy morphed into comic book heroine Rogue."
Traashal moved next to Khandrr. "You are the daughter of Lord Vader?" He asked formally.
Elena nodded. "However, I prefer to think of myself as the daughter of Anakin Skywalker."
Korto threw her a sharp glance. "He is not Anakin Skywalker anymore, Milady," he said.
Elena's eyes flashed angrily, and a bolt of lightning zapped down near them. "You don't know anything," she snapped. "There is good in him. I know it. He's coming back."
Korto studied her. "Well," he eventually said, breaking the uncomfortable silence, "if anyone would know, you would. I didn't mean to imply–"
"No," Elena sighed, "don't worry about it. I'm sorry, my temper gets the better of me sometimes."
Khandrr glared at her. "Result of using the dark side?" She asked dangerously.
Elena smiled wryly. "No, I picked it up from my dad."
"Why am I not surprised?" The Zabrak muttered.
Korto kept his gaze on Elena. "You're very young to be in such a dangerous position."
Elena shrugged. "You don't look much older than I am."
"How old are you, then?"
"Eighteen."
Korto reddened. "Oh. Same here."
Leia cleared her throat. "Look, I'd rather not stand here in the woods. May we go out onto the beach?"
The others agreed and walked onto the sand, slowly moving around the large lake.
"So," Leia continued, stopping and turning around to face the others. "I don't think we've all been introduced."
"Let's start with you, Leigh," Elena suggested.
Leia nodded. "Very well. I'm Princess Leia Sk- Organa of Alderaan, but you may call me Leia." She quickly covered her slipup and turned to Elena. "Elena?"
Elena grinned. "I'm Elena Skywalker, but none of that 'Milady' stuff. Just plain Elena will be fine." She winked at Korto, who smirked. Glancing at Sylina, who had been quiet this entire time, she said, "Who's next?"
Sylina took the hint and straightened. "I am Sylina Valcana, otherwise known as Element. An honor to meet you all."
Korto cleared his throat. "Uh, I guess I'll go next. I'm Korto Vos – otherwise known as Korto Vos," he grinned at Sylina. "I'm also a Jedi Knight, or in training to be one."
"Same here," the sisters echoed.
Traashal rose to his full height. "I am Traashal nai Queynan. Honored."
Khandrr looked hard at the sisters and nodded. "I am Khandrr Naaxeq, also in training to become a Jedi."
The Noghri was last. "I am Hirsh'chall Clan Baikh'vair." He bowed to Elena. "I am at your disposal, Lady Vader. Your father saved our people, to which we owe him and his kin a debt."
Elena looked at him sadly. "I regret to inform you that everything my father did, under the orders of the Emperor, were not what you think. It was all a trick to get your people to serve the Empire. I'm sorry. You don't serve me any more than I serve you." She bowed to him.
Hirsh'chall blinked. "Nonetheless, I feel obligated to serve any kin of Lord Vader. It is he we serve, not the Empire."
"But–"
The Noghri held up a hand. "I will not sway, Milady."
Elena scowled and folded her arms over her chest. "Elena."
"Lady Elena, then," Hirsh'chall agreed.
"Just Elena will be fine," Elena replied, exasperated. "We're all mutants, here, so we're all equals."
Traashal looked at her. "Just out of curiosity, what can you do?"
"We can copy other comic book mutant's powers," Elena said without thinking.
"We?" Korto said, confused.
Elena froze.
Leia stepped forward. "Yes, we. Elena and I share the same power."
Hirsh'chall sniffed the air, and suddenly, his eyes widened. "You!" He nearly gasped, "You and Lady – Elena – are of the same blood!"
The group was silent.
"Yes," Leia admitted. "But you cannot tell anyone else about this. Elena and I are twins."
"You don't look much alike," Korto remarked, staring hard at the sisters.
"I get our father's looks and temper," Elena said, "Leia gets our mother's looks and our father's temper. Nice combination."
"Indeed," Khandrr said grimly.
Elena shot her a glare and said, "You must have had a place to either hide or stay. Where have you been hiding out?"
Korto again hesitated telling her the truth – after all, he'd only just met the girl. But something, probably the Force, was telling him that she was most likely trustworthy. "In an abandoned warehouse, about ten miles from here," he confessed.
"Is it big?"
"Yes. Why?"
Elena shrugged. "No reason. I'm just wondering how many people it could fit."
"A lot, I imagine. Again, why?"
Elena glanced at her sister and grinned. "Cause I'm sensing a lot more mutants other than you."
"What, here?" Khandrr demanded.
"Yes, here."
"How do you know?" Traashal questioned.
Elena said, "I can sense other mutants and their powers. I know that you, Korto, can cause people to go blind, and you, Khandrr, can manipulate and create darkness or shadows. Interesting abilities," she commented.
"Thanks," Korto said. "How many mutants so far can you sense?"
Leia and her sister were silent for a moment. "I sense around twenty-five," the elder of the two said.
"Twenty-five?"
"Yes. And more may be on the way."
Elena frowned. "But I don't get it. Why would so many mutants be here? Including you?"
The group of mutants glanced at each other.
"You mean you don't know?" Khandrr said.
"No."
Korto said, "We all came here because a few weeks ago, we all felt a strong presence – obviously a mutant – on here. Since we were close, we felt it. But I also sensed one on Coruscant."
Elena paled and looked at Leia. "Uh-oh," she said faintly. "That's not good."
"It must've been when we were going through our regeneration mode," Leia conceded, "that's the only explanation. And when that happened, our bodies must've sent out some kind of signal, only available to other mutants, telling them of another mutant presence in the area."
"Leigh, this is a disaster!" Elena cried, grabbing her sister's arms. "Don't you get it? If there were other mutants near Coruscant, they would go to Coruscant to try and find the mutant! They could be in danger!"
Leia nodded grimly. "Yes… Force only knows what the Emperor would do to them."
"We can't let that happen," Sylina said firmly. "What must we do?"
Elena glanced at her. "We will do nothing. I will go back and try to find any stragglers that haven't sensed that I'm not there anymore. I only hope I'm not too late. In the meantime, Leia, I suggest we find a good hiding area where our presences will go unnoticed."
Leia nodded. "Agreed." She turned to the four newcomers. "How well hidden is this warehouse?"
"Well hidden," Korto assured. "I've scouted out the surrounding area – it's basically in the middle of nowhere."
"Good," Leia said. "I'll stay here and see if I can locate the mutants in particular – it shouldn't be too hard. You, including Element, should continue to stay in the warehouse – I'll provide you with everything you need to survive and more."
Korto smiled. "It's nice to know that we're not the only ones out here. I'm just glad that you and Elena didn't turn out like I'd thought you would."
"Indeed," Elena grinned. She shook hands with all the mutants. "I'd love to see the warehouse, but I've gotta go tell my father I'm coming home early. Leia, everyone, I'll see you later." She turned and jogged down the beach.
There was a momentary pause, then Leia said, "So, where's this warehouse?"
"I'm heading home early," Elena said via comm, "so expect me within the next few days."
Her father was silent for a moment. "Organa has not been treating you with the respect that he should," he finally concluded.
Elena sighed shortly. "No, no, it's not that… it's just… I need to get home. There are some things that I need to take care of."
"What things?"
"Well…" Elena floundered for a reason, "Jix. I need to talk to Jix."
"Jix is unavailable," Vader said, "I sent him on another assignment."
Elena scowled. "Oh. Great. When should he be back?"
"With Jix, it's hard to tell."
Elena rubbed her forehead. "I'm coming home anyways… and I think we need to talk."
Vader nodded. "Very well." With that, he blinked off.
Elena sat back on her bed, concerned. What if a mutant tried to storm the castle? What if the Emperor found out?
Finding herself suddenly exhausted, Elena passed out on her bed.
Yes, I know. No action. Sorry. Next chapter will, though! This is more of a filler.
MtFbwy,
-Serena Kenobi
