August 19, 1992

Sharon saw Archangel approaching before she saw the soldiers. She wasn't sure that she could think of him as Warren. Not when he'd killed Angel, when his eyes were so void of the ease and charm that he'd always exuded.

He took to the air immediately. Sharon had expected him to do something, and she had the feeling that was why David wanted someone in a plane. None of them could fly now that Terry had lost her voice. She had to trust that Terry and Deadpool could take care of the soldiers on the ground. They couldn't take care of Archangel though. Not without her help.

She pushed the accelerator and the Blackbird lurched abruptly forwards. Sharon breathed in as she kept her course. Amanda had her eyes wide open, even though she was gripping her seat's armrests.

For a moment she saw Archangel look in her direction, momentarily puzzled. Perhaps he'd forgotten about the plane, or the engines had been running at an uncommonly quiet level. That moment was all she needed.

The Blackbird rammed into Archangel, sending him sprawling through the air.

"What did you just do?" Amanda yelled.

"I got his attention," Sharon said.

Archangel straightened and stared at her through the glass.

"Wanna play?" she asked.

Archangel charged the plane and Sharon accelerated past him. She did a barrel roll and dived low to the ground. She could hear Amanda muttering something in German. The flames leapt up and she turned up the engines. With any luck she'd create a kind of vacuum. She managed to hit a few of the soldiers and narrowly avoid the flames before taking to the sky again.

She looked down at the radars. Archangel was coming close. She swore to herself, trying to think about the ship's capabilities. Cloaking wasn't going to work in this situation. Not for long, and not when the whole purpose was to get noticed and draw fire.

Sharon looked back down on the radar. Archangel was closing in behind her.

"Amanda, I need you to unbuckle," Sharon said.

"What?" Amanda said.

"I need you to unbuckle and move all the extra cargo to the hatch doors," Sharon said, "Then I need you to come right back up here and buckle up. Okay?"

Amanda gave her an exasperated look before unbuckling. She went to the back and Sharon heard the sounds of crates and boxes being moved. Feeling hurried, she looked at the radars. Archangel was still closing in.

"Amanda!" she yelled.

Amanda ran back to the front of the plane and buckled in. Satisfied, Sharon hit the emergency door release. Air and wind rushed in, tugging on her and trying to pull her out. The buckles held firm.

All of the boxes and crates flew out though. She glanced back and saw Archangel zero in on her before one of the metal crates hit him. He began to fall, but Sharon knew that wasn't going to hold him for long. She'd heard he healed now.

Sharon hit the button that closed the doors. The suction stopped and she breathed in. Although she felt like she'd run a mile, Sharon knew that she didn't have time to rest.

"That was crazy," Amanda said.

"You're going to have to learn to deal with crazy now," Sharon said, "I could tell you some stories-"

A screeching noise interrupted her. The Blackbird jostled forwards and Sharon almost hit her head on the console.

"Verdammit," Amanda muttered.

Sharon looked up. Archangel was in front of the plane, and his eyes were honed in on her.

"Shit," she said.


Max followed David as they ran along the converted walls of the hanger. It was scary. Max hadn't grown up in the Institute, but he had vague memories playing in the hanger as a child. There was one time, after a mission, that his father had met him there and lifted him onto his shoulders.

Rahne stopped and sniffed the air. She had begun morphing, and her skin was covered with thick brown fur. Most of her features were still human though, and her eyes kept sweeping the area. She was still nervous, but something had happened to her since they had gone in. It was like her survival instincts were kicking in.

"A scent that's like yours is that way," Rahne said to David, pointing down a hallway, "I don't know if it's your parents or your brother."

"They're all good," David said, "And the rest?"

"That way," Rahne said, pointing down the other corridor, "It smells like a lot of people. A lot."

"Right," David said.

He glanced at Rogue.

"Right now you're going into this with nothing," he said.

He took off his uniform's glove and held out his hand.

"Ah...ah shouldn't," Rogue said.

"Just brush my hand," David said, "It might be useful, and it'll help us keep in contact."

"Yah've been usin a lot o energy-" Rogue began.

"I feel fine," David said.

She gave him a doubtful look. Max cleared his throat. He hated what he was about to say, but it needed to be said.

"Do you want to help Remy or not?" he asked.

Rogue's eyes steeled. She brushed David's hand. He stumbled, but managed to stay upright.

"Good," David said, "Contact me telepathically if anything goes wrong. I'll tell you when I find my family, and we'll rendezvous."

He began running down the opposite hallway, Rahne next to him.

"Best of luck!" he said.

Max nodded and began running down his own hallway. It seemed long, but there wasn't anyone there. He didn't like that there weren't a lot of people there: it made him feel edgy. He knew that, in all likelihood, they had gone to respond to what was happening out front.

David had said that his mother was still in there though. She was still under Apocalypse's spell, and he didn't know how to free her. They would have to figure it out, and he knew they would. If all went well then they would have Jean, the Professor, and David working to give his mother her mind back. Emma Frost might even pitch in. They would save her.

"Rahne couldn't be a little more specific?" he said.

"She's under a lotta stress," Rogue said.

"Aren't we all," Piotr said.

Rogue rubbed her temples.

"Max, it's really noisy in David's head," she said.

"Like Piotr said, we're stressed," Max said.

"This was different," Rogue said, "Like lots o people were talkin or somethin."

Max fidgeted. He'd heard that something had happened to David when he was younger, although he didn't know the specifics. He'd been hardly more than a baby when it had happened. Max had thought it best that he didn't pry.

He still felt that way.

"Whatever it was, I'm sure he's got it under control," Max said.

"Why do you say that?" Piotr said.

"Because we can't afford him to not have it under control," Max said.

He turned another corner.

"Not with everything that's happening," he said.

Footsteps made him stop. The three of them ducked into a side hall. Sinister stormed past, dragging Luna. Max moved forward, but the two of them disappeared into a room. He went for the door, but Rogue grabbed his arm.

"What?" Max hissed, "That was Luna!"

"Ah know," Rogue said, "We should listen first though, figure out if somethin's goin on, if there's gonna be an opportunity."

"She's right," Piotr said, "We don't know how many people are in room. We should try to get idea first."

Max ran a hand through his hair and reluctantly nodded. They couldn't waste their chance. They didn't have any chances to waste.


Erik saw the door open at the far end of the hall. Sinister walked in, dragging Luna behind him. There was a bruise forming on her cheek and she looked scared, but otherwise unharmed. Alex sat up straighter and pressed himself against the glass. Luna looked at him immediately.

"Dad!" she called.

"The grown-ups are talking," Sinister snapped.

He picked her up and held her, her feet dangling in the air. One of his hands was over her mouth as he focused his gaze on Alex. Alex pounded on the glass. Erik kept himself still, his own rage simmering beneath his skin.

"Drop her!" Alex demanded.

"You're really not in any position to make any demands," Sinister said, "Besides, I'm not here to talk to you. I just wanted to shut this thing up. She talks more than you and your brother combined, and you two were chatty."

He looked at Erik.

"Now then," Sinister said, "I come to give you an offer that will not be repeated."

Erik got to his feet.

"You can't say anything that will interest me," he said.

"I disagree, but you haven't heard me first," Sinister said.

"What, wanna get him so you can dissect him at your leisure later?" Logan snarled.

Sinister made a face. He leaned back on a table and pressed a button.

"Now, I've just cut off the comms to the other cells," Sinister said, "We may have to deal with the occasional interruption from your son-in-law, but we'll just have to ignore that."

Luna squirmed and Sinister tightened his grip on her mouth.

"Release her, and we'll discuss this," Erik said.

"You do care," Sinister said, "I thought as much."

He dropped Luna to the ground. She hit the floor hard.

"Luna!" Alex said.

She pushed herself into a kneeling position, her lip cut. Luan tried to scramble away, but Sinister grabbed her arm and jerked her to her feet.

"I can't have her getting away though," Sinister said, "The Summers family can be slippery."

He looked at Erik.

"Now, Apocalypse actually admires the...intelligence, for lack of a better word, that the Brotherhood has portrayed over the years," Sinister said.

"I'm flattered," Erik said, his voice dry.

"You should be," Sinister said, "Because this is an opportunity to join him."

Erik narrowed his eyes.

"You can't be serious," he said.

"But I am," Sinister said, "The X-men have too many morals, and they're blind to what the world really needs to protect mutants. You though, you and the Brotherhood understand. In fact, my master is doing something rather similar to what you wanted to do only a few months ago: make the world into mutants. Sure, most humans will die, and most mutants who come across it, but it's just your method on a larger scale. So my master wants to extend an invitation to join his cause."

Erik could see Emma leaning forward in interest. No doubt Apocalypse was her idea of a strong leader.

"I'm not interested," Erik said.

"You didn't let me finish," Sinister said, "He's willing to offer an incentive."

He jerked Luna's arm, causing her to stumble.

"I'm not going back on what I did to your daughter. It took too long," he said, "But, seeing how I have the Summers brothers now, and since my master commands it, I am inclined to spare your grandchildren."

Erik stared at him. Sinister put a hand underneath Luna's chin and jerked it up.

"She's ten years old," Sinister said, "Too young for a mutation to have manifested, if she has one. I think ten was the age of her mother when you found out she existed, wasn't it?"

He didn't answer. He could see the way that Luna was looking at him, her eyes frightened. At the same time, she was trying to keep that fear in. Her eyes were the same green of her mother and grandmother.

"Your grandson shares a lot of features with you," Sinister said, "Think about it for a moment. You've never cared for your son-in-law or his brother. It's them or your grandchildren and, let's be frank, they won't have a place in Apocalypse's age without some sort of protection. Your grandson wanders free, but for how long?"

Sinister pulled Lorna in front of him.

"I haven't run the tests that I want to on her yet," Sinister said, "She might last a month, maybe two if I'm careful. Do you really want that?"

Erik breathed in. He let his eyes hover over to Alex, whose gaze was fixed on Luna, who was looking back at him. His fists were clenched and Erik could feel the same feelings bubbling up inside of him. Apocalypse was going too far. Even Erik recognized this. Anyone who would knowingly ally themselves with Sinister was going too far.

However, Lorna's children needed to be protected. He couldn't abandon Luna and Max to Sinister. Even if his forces lent aid to Apocalypse, the man who had enslaved his only child, how could he put his grandchildren in danger?

He looked down at Lorna and saw, to his surprise, that Luna was looking at him now.

"Don't," she said, "Please...don't-"

Sinister hauled her off her feet and clapped his hand over her mouth. Luna twisted, and it was evident that his grip was hurting her.

"That's enough out of you," Sinister said.

Alex pounded at the glass again, but this time he wasn't alone. Erik was with him now, and Sinister sighed.

"You're actually going to listen to her, aren't you?" he asked.

Erik snarled, cursing the collar for cutting off his powers. At any other time he would've been able to find a way to shatter the glass with ease.

"Disappointing, but not unexpected," Sinister said, "Now, as to what to do with the little pest here-"

He didn't get to finish his sentence. The door flung open and a figure barreled into Sinister, knocking him to the ground.


A/N:Turns out I get Wi-Fi here after all :)