[Author's Note: X-men Characters in this Chapter: Nightcrawler (Kurt), Storm (Ororo), Professor X (Charles), Rogue (Marie), and of course my characters Panther (Emery) and the Shadow (Marcus)]

Emery was obliterated. There was simply no other word to describe the utter exhaustion and the pulsing pain protruding from every nerve point in her pathetic physical body. Marcus was right. She had no physical means to fight if it came down to that. She'd spent all of her time trying to control her mentality that she hadn't even considered what would happen if she lost the ability to use it. Hell, she hadn't even considered it possible for her to lose it.

He'd instructed her for hours. How to stand. Where to hit. How to hit. Not to leave herself open. That last one was the worst. Every time she left herself open, he would land a roundhouse or a backhand to that spot. He gave her no opportunity for error, and her errors cost her. He'd let her take a bath afterwards, and by time she'd finished scrubbing off the sweat he had food cooked and set out on the table. It was fish.

Where was he getting all of this food? Was there a store nearby? Or did he just stockpile? Either way, she was thankful for this small blessing.

"There's four different kinds of tea on the counter. The water in the teapot is already hot, so help yourself. You're just going to feel worse tomorrow, but we have to work through your body's resistance to motion."

Emery made herself mint tea. She didn't understand why, but for some reason, she was comfortable around Marcus. Okay, so maybe comfortable wasn't the right word, but she knew he wasn't going to kill her, and he treated her decently. If you didn't count the collar, which was probably for his own protection, and him forcing her to fight, nor the kidnapping her.

"So, if I agree to continue training until you think I am capable of fighting, will you tell me your story?"

Marcus looked up from his plate.

"I don't have a story."

"Sure you do," Emery said taking a seat across from him. "Everyone does."

"You mean talk about my life, and why it's so fucked up? No thanks. I'm good keeping it to myself."

"Let's start with your age. How old are you?"

"It doesn't matter."

"Look, you've already pried into my brain. You apparently have gathered every little piece of me that you wanted to know about. The least you can do is answer some of my questions."

"You're not ready for some of the answers to the questions you want to ask."

"You're playing Yoda again."

"Would you rather I lie to you?"

"Who says you haven't lied to me right from the start?"

"Now who's playing Yoda."

Emery glared at him.

"Don't you understand? I'm the bad guy."

"Well you're a sucky bad guy then."

Marcus scoffed and returned to eating his food. Emery let it slide and focused on her own plate.

A few minutes later Marcus spoke up.

"I'm twenty-four, but I was an essence for fifty years in that other realm. You brought me back from there when you tore yourself away from there and back to this realm."

"Why did you hurt the x-men?"

"They were in my way."

"Will you hurt me if I get in your way?"

"Yes."

Emery sat there thinking.

"What is it that you're trying to do?" she asked suddenly.

"Why do you want to know that badly? I'm training you aren't I?"

"Because it's important. And why are you training me?"

"Someone has to benefit from all the knowledge I've obtained."

"In your twenty-four years?"

"In my seventy-four years."

"But you were an essence."

"Essences are just as capable of doing abnormal things as human mutants are."

"So why me?"

"I told you; you're just like me."

"There has to be something ve can do to find her," Kurt complained. "Sitting around vatching the monitor and vaiting for her to use her powers is just..."

"Kurt," Rogue chastisted.

"I know, but..."

"Why don't ya go downstairs and help Ororo prepare?"

"The Professor isn't letting me go on this mission."

"That doesn't mean you can't make yourself useful. Especially if you're so restless."

"Fine, fine."

There wasn't much for Kurt to do, but Ororo recognized his restlessness and set him to menial tasks to occupy his time. She and the Professor would be going to see the physisist that created the dispelling bands to talk to him. Their goal was to find out everything he knew about them and about Marcus Preed.

When the two of them arrived at the laboratory across town, the physisit was thrilled to let them in. He'd heard about Professor Xavior's more productive scientific works and was pleased to make his aquaintance. He assumed Ororo was his wife. Neither one of them told him any differently. They knew they were treading on shaky ground.

"What can you tell us about these mutant dispelling bands?" the Professor asked after formalities were over.

"My greatest invention. It will allow mutants who do wrong to be incorperated into the justice system without the prison guards fearing for their lives."

"You think all mutants will end up in prison?"

"They'll use their powers to do something against the law at some point. If they want to be treated equally so badly then they should be on equal footng with us."

"An understandable point of view," Ororo commented.

"So how do they work?"

"The bands send out elecrical pulses that short circuit only the mutant genes within a mutant. The genes that are human remain unaffected. Took me twenty years to isolate that frequency."

"It is a remarkable feat," the Professor commented.

"Why thank you. Am I to assume you are here to purchase one?"

"Yes actually. If you wouldn't mind, I would like to buy quite a few. How many do you have ready right now?"

"Spectacular! I have ten made up. I just finished the last one this morning."

"We'll take them all."

Kurt found A.J. in her bedroom.

"Hey."

"Hey."

"I'm sorry."

"I know; you're worried. And I know you want to believe Emery is being held against her will, but what if she's not? You have to look at every possibility so the truth doesn't surprise you."

"That was pretty deep for you," Kurt teased.

"You know I'm right."

"Oh, one more thing before we go," the Professor said, turning back around from his path to the door. "Do you know anyone by the name of Marcus Preed?"

The physicist nodded. "I know the bastard."

"What can you tell me about him?"

"He's the mutant that got my daughter killed, fifty years ago. He's why I started my research in the first place."

"Do you know what happened to him?"

"I heard they couldn't kill him, so they banished his essence to another realm far far away, heard that his body was frozen too."

"It was. Where was his home when he was alive?"

"He lived over a town or two. Small area. Cabin-like houses. Off the beaten road. Pine Drive I believe the name of the street was."

"Thank you."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"Oh, just digging up records. Have a good day!" Ororo called as the two of them left the labortory.

[Author's Note: Can you guess which X-men was the one that Marcus lost and is seeking revenge for? (And as far as I know, this has nothing to do with the actual Marvel storylines. So don't look there, because I doubt you'll find the answer, the character, but not the answer).]