Rebekah

Rule 1 of fighting supervillains. Try to avoid it at all costs.

Rule 2. If, despite all due caution, you fail to succeed in Rule 1, don't panic.

Rule 3. Take a deep breath. Clear your mind. This makes step four easier.

Rule 4. Panic. Really, completely panic. And then, let go.

It happens slowly at first. I don't notice it until my mind is already mostly gone. But I was scared and afraid and that let the beast out. A cornered cat is incredibly dangerous. It lashes out rather than runs.

The Beast snarls in anger and leaps. Paws like clubs -capable of taking the head off a young gazelle- pound the body of the person nearest me. Panthera leo leo. The Barbary Lioness. Second largest feline after the tiger. The only solitary lion species. Extinct in the wild. Teeth dig into flesh. Blood trickles down jaws. Tastes good. Enclose mouth round throat. Death by cerebral ischemia or asphyxia brought about by suffocation. Claws digging into fat and muscle that does not seem to want to give. The big bear prey tips backwards and I leap off lightly. Not dead yet. Wait. Eat. Noise. Threat.
Swing round, roar at little stinky being who bounces away. Runs. Prey. Chase. Kill. Leap, run. Tired. Not made for stamina. Prey escapes. Good. Smells bad. Poison. Return to first prey. Trying to escape. Leap again, cuts gone. Bad prey. Hits out, hurts leg. Prey not worth it. Prey bites back. Slip away when small-hairy-dog-man attacks big-not-prey-man. See more prey. Male-odd-smell-lies. Leaning over something. Crouch low. Creep. Dig claws rhythmically into ground. Soon into flesh. Blood on muzzle. Feed. Creep. Low. Tense. Pounce. Too early. Turns and runs. Prepare to chase then realise prey lying defenseless on ground. Female. Weak. Smells good.

Lean down. Nudge gently. Doesn't move. Next to dead. No chase. No fight left. Tilt head to one side. Something warns no. But tired. Hungry. Cold. Food. Warm. Smells good. Touch again. No movement. Food.

Teeth dig into Jean Grey's arm.

Isaac

I was fighting for my life. I swung this way and that, dodging shards of metal and traps that appeared out of thin air. I was in Mastermind's world of illusions and I wasn't getting out. If it wasn't for my speed and my ability to detect where they were I'd be dead already. Adrenaline had numbed the pain slightly but not enough. My head felt like it was going to split in two.

Damn you healing factor. Where were you when I needed you? It doesn't matter. Life and death just didn't seem all that important to me anymore. All I had to do was draw Magneto and Mastermind's attention to me long enough to allow Spiderman and Logan to finish their duels. Surviving was the only hard part. A spike erupted from the ground and almost speared me. I teleported away just in time.

If I was caught by one of those spikes I was as good as dead. Mastermind could make me feel pain and if my brain believed I had taken a fatal attack I would die. I teleported behind Mastermind and threw a punch at his head. The illusion split and vanished. I swore as the real Mastermind appeared behind me and kicked me in the back. I fell to the floor. He was invisible. He must be using the illusions as bait.

I flipped up onto my feet, narrowly dodging Magneto. He was floating salvaged scaffolding poles into the air and using them as long range weaponry like a freaky Dr Octopus. My one advantage was the lack of metal for him to use. If he had a bigger supply the circumstances might not have been so good.

Maybe Spider-Man would be the better option for fighting Magneto. He was more used to fighting tentacled monsters than I was. I could see him. He seemed to be tied up a bit at the moment. Literally, he was wrapped up in Toad's tongue. Spider-Man squirmed as Toads natural tongue acids started to burn him. Ignoring Magneto and Mastermind for a few hazardous seconds, I built up as much energy in my eyes as I could and let it out. Toad's tongue was completely severed. Two screams mingled together. Mine and Toads. My head felt like it was going to explode. I collapsed on the floor.

I managed to open my eyes enough to see a sword appear over my head. As it was about to stab me in the head I felt a cord hit me in the back and drag me out of the way. I saw Spider-Man's masked face float into view.

"Thanks for the assist. Take some rest and I'll deal with Magneto."

"Be careful of Mastermind. He's tricky," I replied.

"Spider sense remember? I'll be fine," and with that he leapt away.

I dragged myself to my feet and crawl over to Jean. Her skin was pale and she was hardly breathing. If I got out of this alive, Cyclops was going to kill me.

I don't know what made me look up but it's a good thing I did. A huge lioness sailed towards me. I barely had time to think. Everything slowed down as I entered slow time. With all my strength I threw myself to the side. I landed heavily, rolled and managed to get back on my feet in less than a second.

I turned around to see Bekah taking a bite out of Jeans arm.

"Bekah, no!" I yelled loudly. Bekah paused only for a second to look at me, then realizing I wasn't an immediate threat continued to feed on Jean's arm. I froze in horror. Blood dripped from her muzzle and formed a pool around her front paws. I had seen her eyes. Dark, like a bottomless pit. Bekah wasn't there, there was only a lion. She had no soul.

If she wasn't Bekah then I couldn't regret doing what had to be done. I sped towards her and slammed into the side of the lion. It was like hitting a solid wall but thanks to my increased strength it had the desired effect.

I knocked Bekah back six or seven feet. Guilt rocked through me. I thought I was done with fighting Bekah. The lion roared with rage and rushed towards me. The guilt disappeared very quickly. I noticed a wound on Bekah's front leg but it was already healing. She would soon be back at full strength.

I did a rapid check of my abilities. Laser vision was out of the question thanks to my head wound and teleporting was becoming increasingly difficult. My speed and strength were in check and I could still phase if necessary. My healing factors were going to come in handy as well.

The lion pounced and I phased. The lioness passed through me. I had a distinct advantage. Bekah wasn't thinking, She was acting on anger and instinct. I had to stop thinking of her as Bekah. Thinking of her as a person would make me freeze at the wrong moment and probably cost me my life. This wasn't Bekah. She had allowed the beast had taken over her and it was controlling her. But I had to try something. I couldn't just let her slip away. If I did she might never come back.

"Bekah, snap out of it. I don't want to hurt you."

The lion growled furiously and swiped a hefty paw at me. It passed through me. I said Bekah's name again. For a micro second I could have sworn I saw recognition in the lion's eyes.

"Bekah, if you're there, you have to fight this. This isn't you. You're a pacifist. You have a family at home. You have friends. You're a human. You have to beat this."

Unwittingly I had knelt down and was looking into Bekah's eyes. I could almost see her humanity in the eyes of the beast, trying to break free.

Without warning, Sabretooth roared as Wolverine drove his claws through his heart.

Instantaneously, the lion's instincts were awakened once again and Bekah's paw swung at me. I had let down my guard and I wasn't phased. The heavy paw connected with the side of my head.

Fireworks exploded. I felt like I'd been hit by Mike Tyson. Bekah was on me in seconds trying to rip my throat out. I raised my forearm to her furry throat to stop her. I put as much strength as I could but my strength was fading. I just wanted to rest. Bekah's fangs hung inches from my face while her claws tore at my stomach. A mixture of exhaustion and adrenaline was stopping me feeling the pain but I could feel the lethal claws ripping through my flesh like butter.

This situation reminded me of something but I was having trouble concentrating. An image entered my mind of two feral mutants me and Bekah had fought before. I remembered how I had beaten my adversary.

I had used the power I had stolen from a pickpocket in the city to kill my opponent. The man had the power to enhance or destroy mutant powers. But I couldn't use that on Bekah. She was my friend. I didn't know how to use the power properly. I might even enhance her power. Or I could go too far and kill her. But my strength was failing me and the lion's jaws were edging ever closer. She was a feral mutant. As long as I restrained slightly her powers would probably return in time. With deep regret I reached down and prepared to destroy her mutation. I sent a silent prayer to God as I held back the powerful lioness. There was no more time for hesitation. I could feel energy well up inside of me. It felt evil and disgusting. Rebekah's teeth were millimeters away from my face.

Suddenly, the lion flopped onto me, completely limp. I was so surprised, and the lion's head was so heavy, I let go and Rebekah's lion's head fell onto my nose, breaking it. I howled in pain and tried to shift the lioness off me but I was too weak. Rebekah's inanimate form was magically lifted into the air. It was then moved to the right and dropped onto the ground. I dragged myself to my feet and quickly checked on Bekah. Her body was already reverting back to it's furry humanoid form.

I looked behind me to see Jean's outstretched arm. She was still lying in the dirt with her bloodied face facing in my direction. Her torn arm lay uselessly beside her. She smiled and mouthed, 'You're welcome.'

She had sent Bekah to sleep, forced her to change back, and had lifted the lioness off me, saving my life and probably saving Bekah's life as well. I had not needed to use my power after all.