Chapter 23
The x-jet is nearing the caves. Clark's foot is tapping the floor impatiently...and a little nervously. Truth be told whenever he loses his powers he turns out not to be the most useful person in the world. Ironic isn't it. For years all he wanted to be was normal and when he is he's terrible at it.
The main thing cutting the tension have been Domino's and Peter's jokes which Clark swears got more numerous the closer they got to Smallville. Cracking jokes seems to be, in particular, Peter's method of dealing with nerves Clark thinks. For Domino...it's harder to tell. For all her joky opinions on subjects she is good at hiding her real feelings. Of course Peter has reason to be nervous since he is going to be the distraction.
Logan lands the jet and cuts the engines, thanking God they're here, because if he has to listen to one more of the Webhead's jokes Logan would gut the kid. Genuinely he means that.
The X-Men along with Spider-Man disembark from the jet with only the Professor staying behind. The rough terrain made using his wheelchair difficult. Besides there was no reason for him to be there when, if there is anything he can do, he can do it from the jet. Also someone had to remain behind to watch over Rogue.
As the group near the entrance to the caves the sounds of a battle can be heard from within.
"They're here," Clark assumes that it is Isobel and Madeleine and Isobel probably isn't happy at being betrayed.
Logan sniffs the air. "Space boy's right," he can confirm from the scents he is detecting.
"We all know what we have to do," Cyclops said. They had discussed it on the flight here. "Just remember this is a confined space so be careful and choose your actions carefully," he cautions.
Everyone nods, the tension palpable, as they enter the caves.
Isobel and Madeleine circle around the central pedestal trading spells and counter spells in a dazzling display of colour, light and energy. It it wasn't the fact they were trying to kill each other the display would be considered beautiful in its way. Deep deadly purple flashes. Bright chaotic swirls of scarlet red.
Madeleine deflects a spell bolt into the wall with a satisfied grin. She tries a blue/black hex bolt at Isobel who blocks it only for the barrier she raises to shatter thanks to the chaotic nature of the power. Madeleine found it curious how Wanda's mutant power and her witch power were different colours as if they were two separate entities inside a single body. When this is over she will spend much time investigating further the exact nature of the power this body possesses. "You're losing Isobel," she says as she can see the sweat visibly building up on the dark haired girl's skin.
Isobel glares at Madeleine, determined to show Madeleine how wrong she is. "Your foolish arrogance shall be your undoing," she declares of Madeleine.
Madeleine scoffs and retaliates with, "And whose arrogance got us burned alive Isobel?"
"Oh get over it already!" Isobel says, using a phrase from Lana's memories, completely exasperated at hearing that complaint over and over.
"Like you have gotten over your mother?"
That does it. The anger and rage just swell up inside Isobel who, to put it mildly, had issues with her mother. Isobel rises off the ground, using her magic to levitate herself.
Madeleine does the same as the trade off of spells back and forth resumes. They spiral around and towards each other, the radiant energy around them building in intensity, until their outstretched hands are inches apart high above the centre pedestal.
Madeleine smirks. "You lose," she says.
Isobel, sweat peppering her brow, frowns. "Never!"
"Your mistake is that you're far too reliant on that book and now you're too far away from it," Madeleine delights in telling Isobel.
Isobel's face pales as she realises that Madeleine is correct. Her book is back down on the ground having been knocked away during the fight.
The scarlet red energy grows around Madeleine mixed in with splashes of blue and black. Fire, ice, wind, dirt...elemental forces seems to erupt around her freezing, burning, stinging Isobel. Then, with a cry of centuries of repressed anger, an overwhelming surge of energy slams into Isobel who screams out in pain and flies into the cave wall before she plummets to the hard ground.
Madeleine gracefully descends, her face in rapture, at the power she feels...the power she has unleashed from within. She looks down at the pitiful figure of Isobel without any pity at all. Isobel whose clothes are now burned and tattered. Whose face is frozen, burned and cut. Doesn't look much like a great and powerful witch now. "The stone is mine!" Madeleine proclaims.
Isobel looks up with hateful eyes. Her left hand stretches toward her book while she makes a twirling motion with her right hand and the dust at Madeleine's feet whips up suddenly and blinds her.
Isobel concentrates in this moment and her book slides across the ground to her. The instant surge of energy has her to her feet. Her book glows with purple energy, showing visibly what can't normally been seen about the magic that it holds. Isobel throws the book like a frisbee and it smashes into Madeleine's midsection and Isobel can hear a rib crack from the impact. The book propels Madeleine into the wall hard and with any luck Isobel can imagine gleefully that is a few more bones cracked.
The book twirls around the space before smashing Madeleine in the face once...twice...thrice...a fourth time for good measure. Madeleine collapses to the ground as Isobel's book returns to her. "Should have destroyed my book first and gloated second," Isobel says, with a painful cough, highlighting Madeleine's error. She then limps toward the pedestal. Her hand reaches for the stone...
"Stop!"
Isobel looks up as the X-Men arrive at the entrance to this opening. She smirks. "Too late!"
Isobel grabs the stone which starts to glow brightly. It burns...and Isobel screams in agony as she feels as if her spirit is trying to be forcibly ripped out of this body. She drops the stone which bounces off the floor once before flying up and away and into the outstretched hand of Clark Kent.
The stone glows as it did for her only this time there is a glowing golden energy that emerges from it and fills Clark's body. The small, partially healed cuts he received for their earlier battle in Bayville heal instantly and his eyes flash red.
"Your powers are restored. How?" Isobel asks, unable to understand why the stone healed Clark and hurt her.
"I'm...not from around here," Clark chooses his reply to be.
"I took your powers once. I can do it again," Isobel says with utmost confidence despite how she looks at the moment.
"Not while we're here lady," Logan promises her.
"It's over," Cyclops declares.
"It's not over mutant!" Isobel retorts. She then turns to her traitorous sister who is just getting back to her feet, holding her side. "Madeleine I propose a truce until we deal with these fools."
Madeleine glares at Isobel...but can see her point. "We shall settle this later," she says.
"Of that you can be assured," Isobel promises with her own hateful glare.
"Whoa. I smell a fight. Did you two break up? Always makes me cry to see a couple part ways." That little piece comes courtesy of Spider-Man, including a few exaggerated, upset sounding, 'sniff sniff' noises thrown in for good measure. He had managed to sneak around by sticking to the roof of the cave and gotten in behind the two witches.
Isobel and Madeleine share a look and decide what they shall do. Madeleine unleashes what is more like a Hex wave than a Hex bolt at the X-Men while Isobel tries to hit Spider-Man with a spell bolt...only it misses as his spider-sense allows him to dodge it.
The Hex wave not only sends all the X-Men spiralling back to land painfully on the ground, it makes the whole cave system shudder and cracks appear in the stonework.
"Zhat can't be good," Kurt mumbles as he spots one of the cracks.
Clark groans in pain...again but at least he managed to hang onto the stone. "I'm starting to really hate magic," he complains.
"Welcome to my world kid," Logan dead-pans as he stands up and pops a few bones back into place. He holds his hand out and helps Clark up.
Clark stuffs the stone in his pocket for safe keeping.
Madeleine strides out into the large space, her face full of dark fury as the X-Men get to their feet. "You all shall pay for interfering!" she vows, then for one moment her gaze stops on Clark. How is he here? Her spell must not have worked as she intended. She'll figure it out later once she has killed these irritating mutants and Clark is back in her possession.
"Unlikely!" Spyke retorts as he generates his spikes over his body.
"You're outnumbered sister," Dom points out as she brings her pistols to bear.
Madeleine chortles. "Oh how pathetic. You have so much to learn," she insults them before waving her hand and a strangle violet mist emanates from it, thicker than the thickest fog, filling the cave and making it impossible for the X-Men to see anything more than a foot in front of them. Even Clark's restored vision can't penetrate it.
The X-Men stumble around in the pea soup thick mist, bumping into the cave wall and tripping over the uneven floor.
A blue/black hex bolt flashes in the gloom and a yelp from Kitty can be heard.
Spyke cautiously steps through the mist as another hex bolt just misses his head. He can hear Kurt's cries of pain at that one. He readies his spikes. "Come on. Where are ya?" he mumbles to himself.
A shadow in the mist. Spyke fires off his spikes and there is a yelp of pain...only it doesn't sound like a female voice. The shadow looms into view to reveal it is Wolverine, peppered with spikes, his face not one of great happiness. "Porcupine," he growls, the anger in his voice quite audible, as he yanks out a bony spike.
Spyke gulps. "Sorry."
"Make sure you know who you're firing at," Logan tells him off as he continues to pull spikes out. " Next time it may not be someone who can heal."
Guilt suddenly flashes up within Evan. Logan is right. He could have just killed someone. That was a bad mistake...but his nerves are getting to him. It gets worse when another hex bolt flashes through the mist and there is another yelp of pain. "She's taking us out one by one isn't she?"
"Yep," Logan says, through gritted teeth as he pulls out the last spike.
"Can you smell her?"
"Nope. This soup is messing up my senses. This is why I hate magic."
Logan is struck by fiery bolts from behind which scorch his uniform and severely burn him. He topples down to the ground as a result.
Evan bends down and sees that Logan's injuries aren't healing as fast as they should.
"This is another reason why I hate magic," Logan groans, through the excruciating pain. Magic is one of the few thing capable of affecting his healing factor...probably one of the few things capable of killing him.
There is a creepy laughter that fills the cave. Spyke jumps to his feet, on edge, his eyes trying to peer through the mist. He is struck by a strange white energy bolt and he finds himself frozen to the spot, literally, in a block of ice. Out of the mist comes Wanda...Madeleine who looks at the two with amusement. "Soon there will be no-one left," she says, in a creepy low tone she says to the completely frozen Spyke regardless of the fact he probably can't hear anything.
"Don't count on it sister!"
Madeleine glances out of the corner of her eye at Domino who has her weapons pointed at Madeleine's head at near point blank range. "Of course. The woman who is lucky...except when it comes to love. Oh dear. You really liked him before his untimely demise didn't you?"
Even on Domino's bluish-white skin she can be seen to visibly pale. "What?"
Madeleine's lips curl up into a knowing smile. "You'd be amazed what magic allows you to perceive Neena. How do you live with it? Knowing you are to blame for his death?"
Domino's hands shake.
Madeleine smiles only twists into a cruel delight at what she is saying and the effect she is having on Domino. It gives her the momentary advantage she needs. "Ignire!" she chants and Domino's guns catch fire and melt. She is forced to drop them. A lighting-like spell bolt slams into her chest and she crashes to the ground. Luckily her uniform is designed to absorb energy meaning the blow, while hurting a lot, isn't fatal. A fact reinforced as she groans loudly on the floor of the cave, her uniform scorched as is the skin underneath.
Elsewhere in the mist Clark bumps into Storm. "You as tired of this as I am?" he asks her.
Storm nods. "On 3," she commands. She counts. "1...2..."
Clark inhales deeply while Storm summons up her powers.
"3!"
Clark unleashes his superbreath while Storm unleashes a powerful wind and together they blow the thick mist away revealing a few unconscious X-Men and a very surprised looking Madeleine. Before she can react a crimson red beam, courtesy of Cyclops, slams into her sending her flying.
Clark takes the opportunity to melt Spyke free who falls to the ground, his teeth chattering and his body shivering with cold.
Before Madeleine slams into the wall she slows herself enough to simply push herself off and levitate back above them. "You will pay for that!" she hisses. She unleashes a series of fire-bolts at all of them. Jean raises a TK shield around herself and Scott.
Clark unleashes his ice-breath and manages to freeze the fiery balls before they get near him and Storm as they peter out of existence.
Madeleine releases a harpy-like shriek. "Insolent farmboy! I offered you greatness and a chance to reflect!"
"I offered you a chance to do what was right!" Clark retorts.
Madeleine summons up the energy around her, swirling scarlet red energy between her hands. Frigid icy spell bolts, identical to what hit Spyke, come flying at them. Scott shoots them down with his optic blasts while Clark does the same with his heat vision. As the shards fall to the ground they coat everything in ice, including those still standing, freeing their feet solid.
"Ok. Now I'm definitely tried of this," Clark grumbles. Clark slaps his hands together and creates a sonic wave from them aimed at Madeleine whose eyes widen but she can't react before the wave strikes her sending her into the wall...hard.
Clark's eyes widen as he watches what is Wanda's head crack off the wall. He zips forward, easily breaking free of the ice and catches her as she falls. "Dammit," he curses himself as he sees the deep gash on her head. "I'm sorry Wanda," he apologises. "I didn't mean..."
Clark mentally curses himself a few more times. This is why he can't afford to lose his temper because he does foolish sloppy things like this. He places Wanda gently on the ground. A flash of purple and a cry of pain catches his attention. Peter.
Isobel has, perhaps, never been more irate in her life. Seriously this costumed fool never shut up and no matter how hard she tries to hit him it is like he senses it coming as he bounces around the small chamber.
"So let me get this straight. You cheat death by possessing your own descendant and the first thing you do is buy the most hideous dress imaginable? I mean seriously lady would it kill you to add a little colour. I mean look at me. I don't like to boast but I am one of the most stylish superheroes in all of Queens. I'm the only superhero in all of Queens but that's beside the point," Spider-Man rambles on.
"Annoying insect!" Isobel shrieks as another of her attacks miss.
"Look 'Bel...can I call you 'Bel? I could call you Iso I suppose but I think that's some trademarked internet term...you know I'm not really good at that kind of thing. Anyway Bel, I'm an arachnid not an insect. If you want to insult me at least do it right," he says as he dodges another spell bolt and then lowers himself upside down right in her face. "You know you're kind of cute for a deranged 17th century spirit who can't tell the difference between an insect and an arachnid?"
Isobel tries so hard not to lose it completely. If he can sense her attacks then...maybe she need to try a different approach. The same tactic as she used to defeat Madeleine. She tosses her book at a right angle away and it spins round the room to behind Spider-Man.
Like before he seems to know when it comes and swings out of the way onto the wall. Perfect!
Isobel chants, "Manus surgere et tenere!"
Hands rise and hold.
Stone hands rise out of the cave wall and grab hold of Spider-Man and pin him to it. Hands strong enough he can't break free. Isobel strides over to him and strikes him with her hand across his face. "Where's your smart remarks now?" she asks him mockingly before striking him again. "What was that?" she asks as she hits him again. "I didn't hear you!" she mocks as she hits him again. Her hands takes on purple glow and she slams her palm into his chest causing immense pain.
Spider-Man cries out.
At hearing that Clark zips forward to help, only to impact on some kind of energy shield. He bounces backwards, painfully so.
"Whoops," Isobel mocks with a sadistic smirk at seeing what happened to Clark. "Want to save your friend farmboy?" she asks. "You know what I want."
Clark pulls the stone from his pocket.
Isobel smiles. "That's right. His life for the stone," she makes the offer.
"Don't!" Spider-Man shouts. "Don't give her it!"
"Silence!" Isobel commands...and casts a spell so in fact for once Peter can't speak.
Clark looks down at it. Isobel has him over a barrel...or does she. An idea forms in his head. "I need a minute to think," he asks.
"1 minute farmboy," Isobel agrees.
Clark turns round and unleashes a wide-range low-intensity blast of his heat vision, de-icing everything and everyone. He walks over and the X-Men who are still standing and him converse in low voices about how to react.
"You're not thinking of giving it to her are you?" Jean asks Clark.
"No. Just let her think I am so she lowers that field. Scott can you free Spider-Man from here?"
Scott glances at the shot. Luckily Spider-Man was in a good spot for a clear shot. "I think so." He looks at Clark. "What do you have in mind?"
"Well I need Peter's help. Jean can you telepathically talk to him or is Isobel blocking like before?"
Jean closes her eyes and reaches out to Spider-Man's mind. "I can sense him. Her powers seem to be weakening."
"She does look tried," Storm assesses Isobel's condition as the reason she is unable to block Jean as before. Not to mention she also looks quite beat up.
"What's the plan?" Jean asks.
"It's Peter's web-shooting arm we need free so he can web her book and pull it into the air. Once it is, then all Scott and I have to do it get a shot off and destroy it. Jean you tell Peter what we're planning so he knows what to do when the time comes."
Jean nods and closes her eyes. "Peter," she telepathically reaches out to him.
"Jean. That you?" comes Peter's confused sounding reply.
"Yes."
"You're in my head?" he asks incredulously.
"No. I'm only speaking to you telepathically."
"Ok...but you know still creepy," he complains.
Jean mentally rolls her eyes. "Look," she says in an annoyed fashion. "We have a plan. This is what we need you to do." Jean then relays the plan. She opens her eyes.
"Well?" Scott asks.
"He understands...although do you know he talks more in his head than he does through his mouth?" Jean says in total disbelief at the unending chatter she picked up on inside Peter's head.
"Time's up!" Isobel shouts at them.
They all look at her.
"What's the verdict?" Isobel asks.
"We agree," Clark tells her. "You get the stone. We all walk away yes?"
Isobel smiles. "Of course."
Clark takes a step forward.
"Ut uh!" Isobel stops him. "Not you!" she decrees. "I know how fast you move. That close I couldn't react in time."
"You don't trust me?" Clark asks her.
"Should I?"
"I never lie. You get the stone. We all walk out of here. You have my word."
"No," Isobel says simply. She points at Cyclops. "Visor-boy. He gives me the stone. His power requires him to use that visor and his hands at all times will be where I can see him...and oh whatever happened to me before...whatever ward protects the stone you will remove it first Clark. Since you can handle it fine you must know what it is."
Except Clark doesn't know what happened there. What he can do is make it safe for Scott to handle. That knowledge Jor-El gave him during his 3 moth imprisonment. He brings the stone up to eye-level and narrows his eyes slightly. "Done," he says although he can't be certain what happened before to Isobel won't happen again but he doesn't need to let her know that.
"That simple?" Isobel questions sceptically.
"It's a mental link. I simply tell it to turn itself off," Clark tells a half-truth because there is a sort of mental link. That's why the stone came to his hand because he willed it to.
Isobel has little choice but to believe that. "If you're lying your friend will die," she promises in relation to Spider-Man.
Clark hands the stone over to Scott who takes it with no ill effect.
"Proof enough?" Scott asks as he holds the stone in the palm of his hand for her to see.
Isobel nods. "Walk over to me...slowly!" she orders. "And Clark and the rest of you out of sight please. Don't think I don't know what you are capable of."
"That wasn't the agreement!" Jean protests.
"I'm changing it and you'll agree like good little heroes or the bug gets squished!"
Having no choice they back up out of sight while Scott walks very slowly towards Isobel to give them a little time to think.
"Anyone got any ideas?" Clark asks.
"No," Jean says. "I..."
"Jean?" Storm queries at the way Jean stopped there.
"Domino. She's awake...just. She overheard us. She wants to help."
"Her pistols were destroyed," Clark had noticed.
"She has another hidden on her," Jean relays what Domino is telling her.
"Where?" Clark asks because he hadn't seen it and Dom's costume is skin tight.
"Uh...best you don't know," Jean gives the answer, while making a small face at where Domino is telling her the gun is hidden. Jean didn't know that was physically possible.
Storm rolls her eyes and looks skyward. She and Dom really need to have a talk about this love of guns the monochrome coloured mutant has. However from Dom's position on the floor of the cave Storm would say she does have a shot and if she has a shot Domino can hit anything.
"Still leaves us short of how to destroy the book. I doubt Domino's weapon has the power to damage such a powerful mystical object," Storm judges.
"My claws can do it," Logan says as he staggers into view from the shadows of the cave. When he had the time to vanish into them in the first place no-one is quite sure. Slow it may be but he has healed sufficiently to help.
"How?" Clark asks.
Logan grins a little. "Ever heard of the fastball special kid?"
Clark looks at him with a confused expression that says no.
Scott reaches the energy field and hears Jean in his head say they have a new plan and to proceed to let Isobel think she is getting the stone. He holds it up for her to see clearly. "Just as we agreed," he says to her.
Isobel has to restrain herself from just grabbing it too rashly. She must remain in control. She lowers her field...
Domino shoots up to a sitting position, gun in hand and unleashes a barrage of shots shattering the stone hands holding Spider-Man. He shoots off a webline and yanks Isobel's book from her hand into the air.
Back at the far end of the cave Logan is curled up into a ball sitting on Clark's right hand, being held at shoulder height as his left hand holds Logan steady. "Just to be clear we don't talk about this ever again right?" he asks at the position of his hand as it sits under Logan's bottom is just embarrassing frankly.
"Rule number one of the fastball special; we don't talk about the fastball special. Now let her rip kid!" Logan orders.
Clark throws Logan with his unnatural accuracy like a pitcher throws a fastball. Logan soars through the air and pops his claws. The book is at the perfect height as he slashes it into pieces.
"No!" Isobel screams as a bright flash of light erupts from where the book is that encompasses everyone in the cave.
In the x-jet the Professor has been waiting nervously for news. His telepathy has trouble penetrating the cave he has found so essentially he has been stuck here hoping and waiting.
"P-Professor?"
Charles turns his head to find Rogue looking rather puzzled at her surroundings. "Rogue?"
"What is...what tha hell am ah wearing?" she suddenly demands to know as she spots the dress she is in.
"Rogue?" Charles asks again.
Rogue looks at him. "Professor. What are we doing in tha x-jet?" she asks quite lost at how she is here.
The mental impression Charles is now sensing does seem to be the Goth girl's again and somehow her mind is back to its normal state. No loose personalities running around. All back in order...or as ordered as Rogue's mind ever gets. It's very odd. "What's the last thing you remember?" the Professor asks her.
Rogue tries to recall her last memory before waking up here. "Uh...tha party. It had been going for an hour...ah think."
That's the last thing anyone remembers. It is almost as if her mind has been reset to that moment. "Rogue I don't know how to tell you this but it's mid Sunday afternoon," the Professor tries to gently break it to her.
"What! How in tha...aw Gawd. Someone's got it in for us again don't they," she comes to figure out as she raises a hand to her temple.
"In a way. It's a long story," Charles tells her.
"They always are," Rogue says with her usual sarcastic flare followed by a sad sigh at how messed up her life is.
Charles has to concede that Rogue is correct. They're always long stories.
Back in the caves there are many painful groans as people start to come round. Clark jerks up to a sitting position and looks around and spots Isobel knocked out on the floor. First priority has to be to restrain her.
He zips over and slowly rolls her off her side onto her back. Her eyes flutter open and look at him with deep confusion inside them as she tries to work out who she is looking at. It's the eyes that settle it for her. "Clark?" she queries softly.
Clark looks closely. The gaze in her eyes is more familiar to him. "Lana? Is that you?"
"I...what? Yes it's me. What is going in? Where are we?" Lana asks the most obvious questions since the last thing she remembers is being in Paris.
Hope rises up in Clark that, finally, he has caught a break and that destroying the book has seemed to get rid of Isobel as well. Clark helps Lana to her feet. "Easy," he says with concern. "I'll explain...everything," he says because what choice does he have to explain the missing time period to her. Not to mention she called him Clark while he is wearing his costume. Whatever Madeleine did obviously skipped over Lana.
Lana looks at Clark with complete shock. He genuinely means that when he says he'll tell her everything. She never thought she would hear those words pass through his lips.
"Clark!"
Clark's head snaps round and his whole face lights up at seeing who has entered the cave. "Rogue!" he shouts back with overwhelming happiness at seeing her.
"It's always the Goth isn't it farmboy."
Clark's head snaps back to Lana whose eyes are glowing with purple energy through her irises.
"Surprise!" she says before she slams a purple spell bolt into his chest sending him flying across the cave where he smashes into the wall, cratering it with his body. He lets out a painful cry before hitting the floor.
"Clark!" Rogue calls out again, only this time in worry for him.
Isobel tries to focus. Her hold on this vessel has become tenuous at best and the strain of remaining in control is clear on her face. She looks around and spots the stone still in Cyclops' hand as he lies on the floor nearby. She rushes toward it. Just as she reaches down it is stuck with a webline that yanks it away.
"Interception!" Spider-Man cheers his success.
Isobel lets out a cry of frustration. "I shall peel the flesh from your bones bug!"
"Heard that one before," Spider-Man counters dryly. "You know you shouldn't steal other people's lines. That's my job...and at least I turn them into jokes."
Isobel makes one step toward him when a crimson red beam hits her in the back and she falls to the ground. Isobel pushes herself up to find various X-Men back to their feet and closing in on her.
"It's over Isobel," Cyclops states clearly...and hopes this time she really sees that it is over and surrenders peacefully.
"This is anything but over!" she spits out as she backs up into the corner. "You all shall pay for this!" she promises. She then starts chanting under her breath.
It is a chant Clark recognises from before. "Stop her!" he shouts as he gets to his feet and zips at her. He makes a grab for her only to grab nothing but a purple mist as Isobel teleports herself away. That was the chant he recognised. A teleportation spell.
"We shall meet again another day!" Isobel's ghostly voice echoes her final promise as she makes her retreat, knowing she couldn't continue this fight in her current condition.
"God damn it!" Clark yells in frustration as he slams his fist into the cave wall, cracking it, making the entire place shake.
A feeling of failure washes over Clark at the fact they have just lost Lana.
A hand touches his shoulder. "Whoa. Easy big guy," the voice tries calm him down. "It'll be alright."
Clark smiles a little at the attempt to cheer him up and turns his head to see Spider-Man. "Thanks...but no. It won't be alright."
"Yeah," Spider-Man says kind of sheepishly as he rubs his head in the same manner. "I know," he says sincerely. It is just the thing to say that it will be alright.
"Where did she go?" Jean asks.
Clark closes his eyes and takes a minute to compose himself. "Nowhere within range of my senses so I don't know," he says, a little tetchy sounding and annoyed at himself.
"Clark?"
Rogue. Clark's whole posture softens and the tension leaves his body as he zips over to her, puts his arms around her and spins her round, her feet off the ground as he holds her close. His lips are then on hers is a long passionate kiss as he reaffirms to himself that she's here.
Rogue isn't caught up at all on what is going on but when the Professor told her where they were and that he was having trouble reaching the others telepathically she moved, as fast as one can in high-heeled boots, into the caves and right now Clark is seemingly kissing her like a man who needs to do so like he needs to breathe and frankly Rogue isn't complaining. She can sense he needs this.
There is some loud coughing that finally gets the two to break apart, both a little breathless but smiling and exchanging tiny kisses.
"Ya know I really don't need to see that," Logan complains.
"Aw Logan. Feeling all protective are we," Jean teases.
Logan snorts. "Keep dreamin Red."
"Why would he feel the need to be protective?" Spider-Man asks in relation to Wolverine.
Rogue sighs. "Because, unfortunately, he's mah fathah," she admits, although not sounding all that happy about it.
Silence for a long time until Peter says, "I did not see that coming."
"Yeah, well, ah don't lahke ta advertise it," Rogue says with a smirk just to annoy Logan.
"I can see why," Peter replies which gets him a growl and a scowl from the feral mutant.
Logan then walks over to where Storm is examining Wanda. "How's Hex girl doing?" he asks.
"I think she might have a concussion," Storm worries.
Clark hears that and steps over to her. "I can fix that," he says and since he is responsible for Wanda's injury in the first place it is the least he can do.
Storm and Logan look at him with the same puzzled expression. Clark holds his hand out and the stone, that is in Peter's hand, flies over to him. He bends down, holds the stone above Wanda and closes his eyes as he concentrates. The stone glows and a golden light emerges from it onto the deep gash on Wanda's head.
The gash begins to close until there is nothing but smooth skin. Through the stone Clark can sense an injury to her rib and other bruises and he allows the stone to do its work on those injuries as well.
Clark takes a moment to rest. "There. She'll be fine now," he announces.
"What did you just do?" Storm asks him.
"That which burns away the dead and allows life anew to start over," Clark quotes the cryptic clue that had been linked to this stone. "Or that which sweeps away injury and regenerates life."
"The stone has the power to heal," Storm understands. "Remarkable," she says in a hushed whisper.
"That's how ya got your powers back," Logan figures out. "It healed you."
"It did...although I don't know precisely how it works and I wouldn't think of using it often. This is extremely dangerous in the wrong hands and can do just the opposite and kill if you don't know what you're doing," Clark cautions. He knows what he is doing because the basic knowledge on how to handle the stones is in his head after Jor-El had brainwashed him into hunting for them but as he said the exact science behind how it works he doesn't know. "I'll heal the others," he says and one by one uses the stone to help those Madeleine managed to hurt.
Clark finds, mostly, the others aren't too badly hurt. Spyke was just cold. Only Domino was more seriously hurt as he fixes her up.
Domino had been musing on what Madeleine said. She can't for the life of her think how Madeleine knew that bit of her past. She never talks about it ever. She tries not to even think about it too much because it hurts. She looks down at her chest as the golden light spreads out and she can feel the pain recede away to nothing. "Thanks," she says appreciatively as Clark finishes healing her. "I would hate to have my best assets ruined," she quips and laughs as Clark blushes beetroot red as what she is meaning.
Clark helps Domino to her feet.
"Handy toy," she remarks pointing at the stone.
"Not a toy," he contradicts that sounding serious, "and it's going away somewhere safe...as soon as I think of a place for it."
"What do you like mean by that?" Kitty asks, having overheard Clark's words. Being struck by a Hex bolt had knocked her out but she was, otherwise, unharmed.
"I mean Kitty that it can't stay here. Isobel knows of this place now so until we find her it has to be hidden somewhere else. It can't go back to the mansion either because we all know Fury is keeping an eye on us. Therefore I need to find somewhere else for it."
Rogue is still a...lot lost but she does have a question. "Is this place shielded?"
Everyone looks at her.
"Tha Professor is having a hard tahme sensing anything in here. That's why he sent meh," she explains.
Clark nods. "It is shielded to hide the technology. I guess a side-effect might be to block telepathic waves."
"Technology?" Scott queries.
"In the walls. The entire cave is essentially a single Kryptonian structure made to resemble native rock. It's so no-one thinks of it as anything but natural," he explains one of the many things he learned during the 3 months Jor-El held him imprisoned in these caves.
"It's not?" Evan questions as he taps on a wall. Looks and feels like rock to him.
"Nope. Completely fake. Built by my people. It's like a...an outpost. Disguised so no-one notices it. As I said my people have visited earth a lot."
Wanda starts to stir and her eyes open. "How are you feeling?" Kurt asks her as he was checking up on her out of worry for her. Like Clark he had tried to reach out to her to make her feel part of the group.
"Lousy," Wanda complains as her hand goes to her head. Not from any physical injury but from being possessed and imprisoned inside her own head.
"What do you remember?" Storm asks her.
Wanda's face screws up in thought. It's mostly still there with a few gaps. "That I was possessed by a 17th century slut...and if anyone of you makes one comment about what I am wearing prepare to die!" she warns them, knowing what kind of comments they would make.
"But it's a good look for you Vanda," Kurt teases.
Wanda glares at him and he just grins back. She rolls her eyes at him. Kurt's just lucky she thinks of him as one of her best friends.
"17th century what?" Rogue asks Clark.
Clark looks at her. "You don't remember?" he queries, puzzled.
"Just tha start of tha party."
"Oh boy," Clark mumbles, as he rubs his face. Where does he begin?
Author's Note: I have plans for Isobel so I decided they would not capture her here. Thanks to everyone who wrote reviews. Next up; With the destruction of her book Isobel's spells begin to unravel as the X-Men begin to deal with the fallout.