Logan dragged Rogue out to the hallway and leaned her against the wall. She moaned and he put a hand on her shoulder.
"Pipe down, kid. You'll be fine. I'm gonna go check on what set the alarm off." He glared at the megaphone style speakers from which the alarms had blared just moments earlier. "Probably just some stupid new recruits messing things up and trying to sneak outside," he muttered. His claws shot out. "At any rate, I don't think they'll do it again."
He ran off, quickly making good ground. He reached the front room and stopped, head tilted to the side. A strange smell permeated the room. He sniffed once or twice, then balled his hands into fists.
"Tolansky," he snarled. It didn't take an ability to smell the Toad.
Logan concentrated. Charles. The Brotherhood are here.
Hold them off. I must attend to Rogue.
With pleasure.
Todd Tolansky sat, crouched on the first landing on the stairway. He stared nervously at Logan with those wide, bug yellow eyes of his. The boy jumped up onto one of the tables and knocked over some large ceramic bust of some long dead, yet influential, mutant citizen.
"You think you can catch me, old guy?" he asked, nudging a vase with a sneaker clad foot.
Logan lifted his claws threateningly. "I think I can manage, bub!"
"Uh-oh," said Todd, hopping from his position on the table to the large chandelier.
The Wolverine ran up the stairs and poised himself on the railing. "Come down and fight like a man, Tolansky."
"No way. I'm cool where I am, just chilling out up here."
"That's good." Logan turned around and saw Bobby, poised with one hand outstretched. Logan smirked and stepped out of his way as a torrent of ice shot at the Toad.
Todd's face went pale and he took a giant leap to the floor below as the chandelier got iced. "You'll have to go faster than that to catch me, Ice Boy."
Bobby stared intensely at the chandelier, which now looked more like a glacier. "Wait for it..."
The chandelier shuddered, then crashed to the floor, pinning Todd between two large icicles as he squirmed beneath it. Bobby jumped up and punched the air.
"Alright!"
"Yeah, bub," said Logan, sheathing his claws. "Great job. Next time, try not to destroy the lighting fixtures."
That dampened Bobby a bit, and he sheepishly scratched his head. "Oh, right. Whoops."
Logan grunted. "Forget about it. Go get the others, we've still got a few more to go."
"Rogue, listen to me. Are you alright?" The Professor reached down from his wheelchair to gently shake her arm. "Rogue, wake up. Are you okay?"
The girl winced and lifted her head, giving a small nod. "I think I'm okay. Depends, does Logan have sessions tomorrow?" She gave a weak smile.
"Thank goodness. What did you see in her mind?"
Rogue rubbed her head. "I saw us. Our memories in her head. It sorta like what you said, but everything's kinda dark and scary, if you know what I mean. It's like walking in on a scary movie during the worst bit, then walking out before you can see if everything turns out okay. Did it work?"
"No, I'm afraid not."
She rose, staggering forward. "Then I have to try again."
He shook his head. "No, Rogue. I can't risk your safety any more than I can risk hers by sending you in there again. When you attempted to absorb her, her brain activity spikes. Even attempts at draining seem to fuel her even more at this point. Besides," he said, pressing his fingertips together, "I believe Logan requires your assistance. From what I have learned of the situation, it would appear that the Brotherhood has broken in."
"Huh?" She clenched her fists. "I can't believe those..."
"Are you sure that you are all right?"
"I'm fine enough to fight those losers."
The Professor nodded then closed his eyes for a moment. "Their current location is in the front hall," he frowned, "Where Bobby seems to have just destroyed the chandelier."
Rogue started down the hall, and he sensed her mind starting to clear from the attempted draining.
The Professor sighed as she turned a corner, out of sight, and he turned his wheel chair around to close the door to the isolation ward. Haddy stood there in an oversized white hospital gown that hung around her knees. Her eyes were squinted shut. He gave a start, surprised to see her, both out of her room and out of a coma.
"Hadrianne," he said slowly, "Please return to your bed. You must rest."
"No," she mumbled. "He's trying to destroy the computer. He's going to fry the system."
His eyebrows knit together. "I don't understand. Who are you talking about? Who's trying to destroy what computer?"
She stumbled past him, feeling along the walls like a blind man. She doubled over and clutched at her chest before rising up and continuing to walk down the hall, this time unaided by the guidance of the wall.
"Hadrianne, come back! It's not safe for you to be out there."
The girl took off, running effectively blind, though, somehow, he guessed that she knew exactly where she was going.
Logan. Logan, answer me, what is happening?
Logan looked at around at the state of the front room. There were several charred walls, the ice on the chandelier had begun to melt and soak the floor with water, there were masses of green-brown gunk in various places where the Toad had hit the wall while aiming for an X-Man. Todd Tolansky had escaped, if only temporarily, through the help of Tabitha, a former X-Man recruit Logan had helped train himself.
Well, we're gonna have one heck of a construction bill after this number. Let's just say, we had a bit of trouble.
And there is more heading your way, said Professor Xavier.
Don't be so cryptic, Charles. What's going on?
Hadrianne has escaped the infirmary. I don't know where she's headed, and I can't use my powers to try and locate her. Keep an eye out.
Will do.
The connection severed and Logan turned to the herd of young recruits facing him.
"Okay, we've got the Brotherhood in the house. Our objective is to get them out. Now, we have a new... unforeseen problem. Haddy's out, and she's fueled up. Clear out of her way. Don't approach her. She probably won't hurt you, but you could easily hurt her. Stay away from the girl, find the Brotherhood and get rid of them. You got it?"
The group straightened and gave salutes, all except Rogue who rolled her eyes at them. Logan smirked.
"Good. Now go. Rogue, you're with me."
Pietro tapped away on the keys to Cerebro's system. He hadn't seen many high tech computers, to note, but he had seen enough to know that Cerebro was top of its class. Still, everything had a tipping point, and there was only so much data that a system could be dumped with before it fried.
"Come on," he said. "Let's see what you're made of."
Light stretched down the walkway as a mechanical door slid up. Petro turned around, continuing to type rapidly on the keyboard. In the door frame stood a silhouetted figure in a shapeless hospital gown.
"Let me guess," he said, turning back to his work, "You're the fish. So, what's your power. Don't worry about embarrassing yourself, I already know it's nowhere near as cool as mine. I know from the hall that you can't stop me, and you know that too, so what are you doing here, twerp?"
"Get away from the computer," came the reply.
"Let me think about that... Er, no."
"Then I guess I'll have to make you."
Pietro spun around in his chair. "I'd like to see you try."