"They're clear!" Clarice shouted, "Move in!"

Neena jumped forwards, her guns flashing.

"Zero!" she screamed.

He turned and looked at her just in time to dodge her first shot. And then, like so many battles Charles had been in, events were pushed forward by thier own momentum. Zero began returning fire, twisting out of the way of her bullets. The man with the swords began to head towards Logan, who was heading for Cain. Charles saw Clarice step in front of him, lengthening two of her crystals to block his swords.

Charles waited, on the edge of events, for the Janos to move in. The wind picked up and the man in the cowboy hat was lifted off his feet. Charles rushed into the clearing, moving quickly and avoiding the battles. Logan was already fighting Cain, fists and claws flying furiously. He'd managed to get one of the buckles on his helmet undone. Even if Charles didn't approve of the violence he routinely employed, Logan was impressive.

Charles put his fingers to his temples but he couldn't get inside. Frustrated he kept running. So it was the helmet after all. A pink crystal flew over his head, knocked out of Clarice's hands by katanas. She made another one and continued fighting, lightly stepping around the man's furious blows.

Charles wanted to help her, but they had gone over the plan before entering the clearing. Unless someone else looked as though they were about to die, he was to keep concentrated on Cain. Charles knew that the sheer amount of psychic energy it would take to bring him down would be enormous. He'd nearly fainted after he'd fought him in New York.

Without a doubt he was the greatest threat that day. Logan wasn't going to be able to bring him down by himself. If Janos or someone else was with him then they might have had a chance. As it was it was only Logan's prowess that was keeping the match going. The most he'd be able to do was slow him down.

He glanced over at Clarice again, just to make sure everything was alright. She seemed to be holding her own. Azazel had been her swords master, and he had given her much more advanced lessons than he'd given Raven. Charles had seen him with his swords. He'd rarely saw so many people rack up such a high body count without guns, not even Creed.

However, he trusted Azazel in a way that he had never trusted Creed, though their kills were the same number. Azazel was never passionate about his killing, and Charles was glad that he had transferred this to his apprentice. Clarice was fully grown after all, and she had battle experience. Like everyone else around him, she was an X-man. She would be fine.

His progress was slow. Neena and Zero's battle was taking up most of the clearing. They were firing so rapidly at each other, and reloading so quickly, that Charles had to sprint and duck in turns. Neena seemed to notice his inconvenience only marginally; she was wrapped up in her own chance for vengeance. She retargeted her shots and moved further down, allowing him to move faster.

The wind was picking up around him. Charles had no doubt of Janos' ability to bring the teleporter down. He knew that Janos' basic strategy usually consisted of leaving his targets far too confused to fight back when he dropped them to the ground. After that it was all about the knife that he kept in his boot.

Cain punched Logan into the ground by his leg, his bones crunching loudly and Logan snarling. Charles winced as Cain drew back, looking triumphant. He'd seen Logan go through many horrific injuries, but it was always a shock when he saw it happen. Somewhere in his brain he always registered that the human body couldn't take that much damage and live.

His stepbrother's brain had obviously registered that too. He had actually turned away from Logan. Some of the bravado was wiped off his face when Logan got back up and launched himself at Cain. It seems that he'd been ignorant of Logan's healing factor. Now he knew that merely crushing his leg wasn't going to stop him.

Charles had nearly reached Cain when he looked up. He saw recognition in his stepbrother's eyes and he let out a roar of anger. Not saying a word Charles grabbed Logan's shoulder, pushing himself up. He managed to undo another clasp on Cain's helmet before he was thrown to the ground by one of Cain's blows.

The air was knocked out of his lungs and he gasped. Next to him Logan's diaphragm was crushed, leaving him howling. His blood splattered over him, forcing him to blink and try to tell himself that it would be okay. It would heal, but he knew it would take much longer than his leg. The bone probably wasn't even finished mending on that. It meant he was on his own as Cain's cold eyes stared down at him.

"So good of you to finally arrive," he said.

He smirked and began charging to the other side of the clearing. For a moment Charles thought he was running away, which was a confusing action in and of itself for Cain. Then he realized that Moira and Raven were still on the other side.

Moira stumbled. Raven put out a hand to steady her, her yellow eyes concerned. She felt bad. Her arm was already wrapped around Raven's shoulder and the girl was leading them on. Raven was only fifteen, supporting the weight of a full grown woman. She couldn't walk on her own though and she could no longer feel her feet.

Behind them the sounds of the battle were growing intense. Her first instinct was to find some way to help, but she knew how useless she was under the circumstances. She would be useless in her condition even if they were fighting humans; mutant battles were a different question. It would be better for her to just get out of the way.

"He didn't hurt you, did he?" Raven asked.

She looked over at the young girl. There were no real words for the gut-wrenching fear she'd felt as they journeyed up into the mountains. Most of the pain had been the knowledge of her own helplessness, that after everything she could very well end up dying where her body probably wouldn't even be buried.

There was no need to explain that though, so she simply shook her head.

"A few bruises, nothing much," Moira said, "I'm mostly cold."

Raven nodded.

"Don't worry, they'll finish up with them soon," Raven said confidently, "And then we'll get you some place warm. Okay?"

She nodded and took a few more uncertain steps.

"You could tell I wasn't him," Raven said after a few seconds, "I'm impressed. I know the wrist grab would have cinched it, but you knew before that."

Moira smiled weakly.

"What gave it away?"

Moira opened her mouth to respond. Heavy footsteps cut her off. She looked behind her to see Cain charging at them. Shifting her weight she knocked herself and Raven out of the way, once more letting the snow wash over her. Moira's hair was soaked and she was beginning to lose all feeling; not just in her feet.

She turned over and saw Cain looming over them.

"Still a dumb shit little sister?" he crowed.

"You're not my brother," spat Raven.

He moved towards her but Moira pushed her out of the way again. She managed to roll for a few feet before she felt a large hand dig into her back. Cain yanked her into the hair, holding her by the front of her dress. She grimaced, both from the cold, her pain, and her proximity to Cain.

"You again," he said, seeming amused and pleased at once, "Well, between you and her I think you should go first."

Down below Raven dug herself out of the snow. Although she was on the ground she took in the situation. Her eyes livid she launched herself at Cain. She managed to get up to his shoulder. Moira saw her hands fumble on a lock of the helmet, unclasping it. There were three others besides the one Raven was struggling with. Two were unclasped but the third was still battened down. She wondered what the importance of it was.

With another blow he sent her to the ground. Raven struggled to get back up again, trying to get over her disorientation. Moira silently willed her to stay down. She was too young, too fragile. Her power wasn't conducive to fighting at an early age. However, she was Charles' sister and just as stubborn as him.

"Cain!"

Cain whipped around to see Charles running up. Blood stained his clothes, although it was plain that it wasn't his.

"Stop right there!" Cain ordered.

Charles did so, looking from Raven to Moira.

"Don't worry about Raven," laughed Cain, "Stupid girl still can't fight."

He grinned.

"Whatever else happens she lives today," said Cain, "For how long once she gets to the labs, well, that's another matter."

"And you?" asked Charles, his voice low, "You'll be on the dissection tables one of these days too Cain."

Cain shrugged.

"Perhaps," he said, "or maybe I'll die before that. Doesn't really matter I suppose. What does matter is seeing you in agony."

He pulled Moira closer. She struggled to concentrate. Cain wasn't strangling her, but it was difficult to breathe.

"She's pretty," Cain said, his voice mocking, "You should have kept a better eye on her."

Charles' blue eyes were cold, taking in her and Cain. She knew he was trying to come up with a plan of some kind. Moira wondered why he hadn't just invaded his mind. As Cain pulled her closer she pressed up against his helmet and armor. Immediately the clasps came to her mind and she tried to calm herself with the knowledge she'd just uncovered.

"Don't you dare," said Charles.

His voice was angry, much sharper and deeper than she'd ever heard. Cain began to laugh again and she saw her opportunity. Twisting herself slightly she reached for the last clasp. Her numbed fingers fumbled at it, bleeding under the pressure. She didn't feel any of it. She undid it and flipped the helmet off of him.

Cain howled and threw her to the ground. His reared back his fist and plunged at her. Moira watched it come in slow motion, her breathing labored. Then, suddenly, he stopped. Cain fell to his knees, clutching his head. Behind him Charles walked up. His eyes were burning and his fingers were pressed firmly to his temple.

He dived into Cain's mind. Over the years he had constantly lectured Emma about the appropriate method to go into a mind. Such things required gentle touches, just the merest brush. The way she barreled in caused unnecessary pain and left the possibility of rendering the subject comatose. Only in recent months had she shown willingness to listen to his techniques of gentle touches and smoothing over memories.

Charles abandoned all those techniques when he went into Cain's mind. He was worse than Emma then, using less gentility than he'd ever used in his adult life. He was angry, and that was the root cause of it. His power was used half-hazardly, ripping and tearing wherever he could. Cain was hard to bring down because he was a mutant with such a strong will. Subduing him was not easy, but Charles had the advantage of being furious.

Inside Cain's mind he saw everything. He saw him recruited by Stryker, the lives he had ruined. He even saw him pulling Moira from her hotel room. The images that followed, the threats, the pain that he had delighted in causing her, only inflamed his temper. Cain had wanted to hurt her because Charles had loved her, and had enjoyed every minute of it.

However, it was what he'd been planning to do that broke Charles' tentative restraint. Once he'd thrown her Cain had planned on crushing her diaphragm like he had Logan's. The only difference was that Moira wouldn't heal. She'd be left to die an agonizing death, her organs punctured and blood choking her. Cain had figured that even if he'd been taken out Charles would still have to watch that.

It gave him the energy to give the final push in his stepbrother's mind. Distantly he felt the ground thrum under his feet. He knew that Cain had collapsed. When he opened his eyes he felt drained, but he had won. In the distance he saw the teleporter dodge Janos and grab the man with the katanas. They disappeared, just as Neena shot Zero in the forehead.

Charles stumbled into the snow. Raven got up and helped him.

"I'm fine," she said, before he could ask, "She needs you."

He nodded and managed to move over to her. Moira was shivering in the snow. She was still alright, but very weak. They would have to make sure that she didn't get frostbite on the way back. Almost mechanically he took out his coat and put it over her. Footsteps were approaching; they would carry her. He was too weak.

"It's going to be alright," he said.

Moira smiled and nodded, her eyelids struggling to stay open. By the time Logan lifted her up into the air she had passed out. As it was Charles himself needed the help of Neena and Janos to get back to the car. Clarice was bleeding from a deep gash in her leg. Raven had to help her. The rest had assorted wounds, but no one was seriously injured.

He looked forward as they all hobbled towards the car. Logan was carrying Moira carefully, and he could see sodden strands of her auburn hair dangling down his arm. Moira was fine. Despite everything, she was going to live. Charles couldn't answer for what exactly would happen next, but she was alive.

That was more than enough for him.