"What do you mean kind of track him Forge? Either we can or we can't. Which is it?"
Rogue asked as she stared across the conference table at the newest member of the New Mutants. Rogue, Professor Xavier, Nick Fury, Dr. MacTaggart, and Forge were gathered around the conference room discussing none other than Mad Doctor himself.
Forge clicked more buttons on the screen as equations of DNA sequences popped up on the screen.
"Technically we can track his clones." Forge said. "You see, the clones were built using bio-fluid as we all know, but what we didn't know, until a few minutes ago is that Mr. Essex creates his own bio-fluid. Chemically enhanced in every way. Fortunately for us two key components of said bio-fluid is Uranium and Radium. Sound familiar?"
Rogue closed her eyes and rubbed her temples. Memories flashed before her. Magneto's early days, after his wife abandoned him, but before he became passionate about protecting mutant-kind. Back when he was on the brink of becoming an expert in almost every field available in the 60's. Study of Chemical Warfare was one of those fields.
"I know their both on my element chart at school. I also know that when highly concentrated amounts are mixed it's rather unstable and dangerous."
Forge nodded. And pulled up both chemicals on the big screen.
"Exactly right Rogue, but Mr. Essex seems to have found a way to increase the stability without loosing any of the danger in the chemicals themselves." Professor Xavier gestured to the screen.
Rogue stared for a while, wishing she had paid more attention in AP-Biology. "When you sit in a tank full of bio-fluid for months with wires going into your body your bound to get some of that in your bloodstream." Rogue mentioned.
"Exactly." Forge pointed out.
"But even when mixed both are untraceable right?" Rogue asked.
Forge nodded. "Yeah normally they would be, but Director Fury just acquired a new piece of sweet alien tech, which I tweaked."
With a proud smile on his face Forge displayed a small disk sized sphere with purple markings all over it. Rogue looked skeptic at the tiny thing, it reminded her of a child's toy. Forge must have seen the look on her face.
"Hey don't let appearances fool you, this baby is the answer to our problem. You see I modified it to give out a sensitized pulse that will react to a concentrated amount of Uranium and Radium. The reaction will bounce so hard off of the mixture and send a vibration back to us."
"We can get a location on the clones." Rogue realized. "And with the clones comes the sick and crazy doctor."
"Precisely." Xavier agreed.
"Well than what are waiting on?" Rogue asked.
Xavier smiled. "The results, Rogue we sent out the pulse nearly twenty minutes ago, we should be getting a vibration soon."
BEEP!
The sphere in Forges hand started glowing, beeping, and vibrating.
"Our pulse found something!" Forge yelled as he enlarged the picture.
"Amazing we got a much better vibration picture than I'd hoped." Doctor MacTaggart commented as she leaned over Forge's shoulder. "It's moving at incredible speed, that has to be eight-hundred miles an hour."
"Put it up on the big screen." Rogue ordered.
Her eyes narrowed. "That is a very precise and definite path their headed on." She commented. "A little too precise. Forge enlarge to show the area around the vibration wave."
Forge did as she ordered and expanded the frame. "Director Fury correct me if I'm wrong, but it seems to be on a collision course with the red dot."
Fury's eyes widened. That gave Rogue her answer. "Fury, is that red dot on the screen the Nest, the ship we happen to be on?"
That was when the chaos ensured.
Fury was barking orders into his microphone. All crewmen were to report to stations and red alert was activated. Dr. MacTaggart ran back to the labs where she would undoubtedly be need very soon. Fury and Professor X reported to the bridge.
Rogue's team of X-Men where to report to the conference room. Which they did, rather quickly.
"Listen carefully team!" Rogue hollered.
"Essex is on his way and he is bringing his creations, I'm sure you all know what that means. Get ready for a fight. Kitty I need you down in the launch bay, we aren't at a safe latitude to open the docking bay door, and we don't have enough time to get to a safe latitude. The fasted way to get fighter jets into the air is to phase them out, understand?"
Kitty nodded and phased though the floor.
"Nightcrawler and Cannonball report to the med lab, they'll give you suits to withstand the air pressure. I want the two of you on the roof of the airship, wait their for further instructions."
"Affirmative." Kurt said as he bamffed away with Cannonball.
"Berzerker the energy in the defense shield is going to be running at max, go down to engineering ans see if you can give it more juice. The rest of you are going to be stationed throughout the ship ready for the attack."
Several of the New Mutants stared uncertainly. Rogue noticed this with anger. "Come on guys your always saying how you want to prove yourselves now's your chance. Seize the moment and act."
Magma looked terrified as she clung to Roberto, Boom Boom looked hesitant(which was a first), and even Jubilee was lacking confidence.
"Oh, for the love of god, your X-Men, pull it together! We've saved the world, this Essex clown is nothing compared to Apocalypse!"
That seemed to make sense to the students. "Rogue's right!" Bobby shouted. "We're X-Men, lets beat the crap out of Essex and his clones!"
Bobby's short speech seemed to inspire courage amongst his teammates. The New Mutants nodded to one another and left to spread out to their assigned positions.
"I only hoe their ready for this." Rogue said to herself as she watched them take-off.
"They are." Erik assured her.
Rogue nearly jumped back out of surprise as she turned to the doorway.
Relief flooded through her system upon seeing him. Rogue ex-haled a sigh she hadn't been aware she was holding. "Our students are prepared, we have trained them well and despite their arrogance they are talented." Magneto crossed over to her and cupped her cheek firmly while the other hand slid down to her waist to pull her closer.
"It's not them I'm concerned about." Magneto gently rubbed his thumb across her cheek.
"Your right." Rogue admitted. "We have trained them well."
Magneto tilted her head up to stare into his eyes. "That's not what I meant, Anna." Magneto pulled her up and against him and kissed her.
Warmth of using her mutation pulsed through her. It was warm and fuzzy, his power made the entire airship sing. Then his thoughts came.
"Essex is here for you."
Rogue broke the kiss prematurely. "We don't know that." Rogue stated. Magneto's eyes lowered. "Pretending naivety does not suit you Anna. S.H.E.I.L.D. is no threat, he cannot abduct Charles or myself, and I seriously doubt Essex would want any of the New Mutants. He is here for you."
Rogue sighed. "Look Erik, we're about to go into a battle, I don't want to fight."
But Erik seemed unwilling to let this go. "I know you are not that blind Anna. Surely you find my argument valid. It is most definitely a possibility. You have to see that."
"I don't have to see anything. Your not a telepath, you don't know what he's planning." Rogue argued.
Magneto's eyes narrowed angrily.
"You are correct in one statement dear, I am not a telepath. Though I am a mutant with genius level intellect that can make an intelligent and reasonable deduction!"
Rogue, forgetting that she was trying to end the argument joined in. "A deduction being a guess!" Rogue shouted.
"Yes. No. did you not hear me woman? An intelligent and reasonable deduction that is gathered from studying the facts!"
"Alright fine. An intelligent and reasonable guess!" Rogue wasn't completely sure, but she might have hissed the last word.
Magneto's jaw was clenched. Rogue's known him long enough to know he probably wouldn't admit to her being right. 'Damn stubborn man.' Although that thought was probably a bit hypocritical, as her stubbornness proved to match his.
"You infuriate me." Magneto spoke slowly, every word was dripping with irritant.
Before Rogue had time to think of a response the entire ship slammed forward as though someone had put the brakes on at the last minute. The quick motion caused Rogue to fall backward. Thankfully Magneto caught her and yanked her against him using one arm while the opposite arm extended, his hand sparked blue. Magneto was attempting to stabilize the ship.
"We can finish the argument later." Rogue said as she braced herself against him. "We don't have much of a choice." Magneto replied as he finished straightening the ship out.
Rogue used her hand to pull his face towards her. "I know your kind of pissed off at me right now, but would you mind lending me some power?"
Magneto seemed more than willing to oblige despite the fact that he was angry. He crashed his mouth down on hers and held on tightly.
His memories seemed to come more quickly this time. The ship jolting was an explosion, coming from the eastern side of the airship. Magneto planned on taking the high ground and going outside. He would be protected by a magnetic shield surrounding himself, the altitude wouldn't be a threat to him. Though he knew Rogue was well trained, he was still concerned for her safety.
"Have a protective magnetic shield around you at all times, and please try to avoid fighting in open airspace." He had this horrible scenario going through his head that she's loose his powers and fall to her death.
He broke the connection several seconds later. Magneto took deep breaths as he tried to recover.
"That's very sweet of you, to be so worried." Rogue said as she used his powers to lift herself off the ground. Rogue turned to leave, knowing the powers would fade soon enough. "Try to be careful Erik, I would hate to have to replace my favorite arrogant bastard."
Magneto turned up to glare at her. "The same to you Anna, god only knows where I would find another irritating, wicked, and beautifully dangerous girl."
To Mr. Sinister's credit the creatures were formidable fighters.
Most of them took the shape of animals, like the one that had broken Bobby's leg. They looked like a mix of dog, with cat's claws and fangs, with the speed of a jaguar. Deadly little things that had most of the S.H.E.I.L.D agents pinned down. Rogue was proud to see her students where still in the fight. There must have been at least 30 of the creatures.
Several of them where iced, a couple of them fried, and one of them bloody.
Rogue send several metal pipes out of the ground to impale some of them while she sent the rest floating in the air. Rogue concentrated hard as he hand took the shape of a claw and glowed purple. She tried hard to grasp onto the iron flowing through the creatures. A few seconds later Rogue gave a pull that sent red vapor out of the animals. They weren't struggling anymore.
Magma stood amazed. "How did you...?"
Rogue turned to Magma with her eyes glowing blue now. "Blood contains a bit of iron, not difficult to rip out once you find."
Magma nodded as though she understood. The area was now cleared of creatures. Rogue floated down to the agents.
"Do you know if there are any others on board?" She asked.
The young agent shook his head. Rogue scanned the hanger. "Something's not right." She said. Why on earth would he send creatures that weren't a match to this location? There was nothing here. The east side was where the security team slept as well as studied and monitored the earth, but no equipment was damaged.
Rogue turned towards one of the live ones that had been impaled, likely to die any minute. She lifted the pipe out of it without trouble. The creature stood up and advanced toward the closest agent.
"Why would you do that?" One of them yelled.
Rogue squinted as she observed the animal. It seemed ready to attack until it stopped, perked-up it's ears, standing silent for a moment before taking off out of the hanger.
"Why did it do that?" One of the agents asked.
"Because it's scared!" Magma yelled. "Yeah you better run!" She called after it.
Rogue's eyes shot up in realization and anger. "Good God I am an idiot!" She hollered. As she turned and ran out of the hanger after the wounded creature. "Their leaving because they finished their job!"
"Which was?" Magma asked asked followed after Rogue.
"Distracting us!"
A damn good think Rogue had wounded the creature all she had to do was follow the blood trail which was headed in the direction of the bridge. That was where the Fury and Xavier where. Maybe Essex wasn't after her after all. Rogue sent a silent that you up that Erik's power hadn't faded yet.
Just outside of he bridge doors, where the animal had stopped and crouched down next to a woman. She was covered in a green outfit with while swirls, as well as green hair. she definitely didn't look like a S.H.E.I.L.D agent. Upon seeing Rogue, the women expression changed as she shot out green beams of energy out of her hand. An enemy, definitely not S.H.E.I.L.D.
'Why does she look so familiar?' Rogue thought to herself as she reenforced her magnetic shield.
She was familiar from Magneto's memories a mutant he and Charles once tried to recruit.
"Vertigo." Magneto's psych informed her. "The woman's name is Vertigo, she has the mutant ability to cause dizziness until you pass out."
'Thank you.' Rogue thought as she slipped her glove off and ran toward Vertigo, who was now shooting more beams at her. Thankfully, like cyclops's red energy beams they bounced off her shield.
Vertigo looked shocked when her power had no effect and even more shocked when she made skin contact with Rogue and past out.
Rogue continued into the main bridge tearing the metal doors apart as she went. She turned to see Professor Xavier, Moira, Sinister, Fury and an alien humanoid sitting around the main conference table. 'Shi-ar.' Rogue realized. 'The alien is a member of the Shi-ar, the race Erik told me about.'
Several more mutant that looked exactly identical surrounded them. Rogue pointed Vertigo's beams at them as hard as she could. They all passed out immediately.
The authority figures at the table looked shocked to see Rogue.
Essex was the first to recover. "Oh, Rogue so good of you to join us. We were just talking about you."
Rogue ignored him and turned to Xavier. "Professor, are you alright?"
Xavier nodded. "Yes, Rogue. How are the students?"
"Holding up against Sinister's beasties."
Professor Xavier turned angrily toward Essex. "You said you would call them off if we sat down and talked."
Essex sighed irritated as though he were being scolded by a teacher. "I will, after we are finished discussing the problem at hand." Essex was clearly unwilling to take orders from Xavier.
"Do sit down Rogue I want your opinion on these negotiations." Essex said as he gestured to a seat next to Xavier.
Rogue growled. "We don't negotiate with scum Essex. What in the hell are you doing here?" Rogue brought up several pieces of metal, formed them into spikes, then pointed them at Sinister.
"Rogue, please put the shards down, Mr. Sinister is here for a valid reason and it was never his intention to hurt anyone." Moira MacTaggart said with a sigh.
Rogue dropped the shards. "He only attacked to get out attention." She realized.
"You catch on quick, girl, now have a seat." The alien said.
Rogue's eyes stopped glowing blue and threatening, but she kept a good grip on her shield. She also put one up around Mr. MacTaggart, who unlike everyone else at the table didn't have skill or gift to defend themselves. She sat down next to the Professor.
"Okay, I'm sitting, now would someone mind explaining to me what in the hell that son of a bitch wants?" Rogue said as she pointed to Essex.
Professor Xavier looked astonished. "Rogue language please. Mr. Sinister is here for a valid reason, so for right now we need to put our differences aside."
Rogue resisted the urge to roll her eyes. It was one curse word, big deal.
"Mr. Sinister and out alien friend are here because we face a new threat." Dr. MacTaggart said as she pulled up a boy on the big screen.
"Him?" Rogue asked.
"Yes. You see his origin and future actions is what we're most concerned about. He's a mutant, his name is Genesis."
Rogue studied the boy carefully. He looked to be maybe 10 or 11, had tan skin with brown eyes. Dark hair. He also bore familiar markings on his lips that traveled up to his ears and across his major joints. Bark blue markings.
"Well he looks oddly familiar." Rogue commented.
"He should." Essex stated. "His counterpart tried to make human kind extinct."
Rogue's anger emerged. "Apocalypse." She growled. "A counterpart? You mean to say he's a clone?"
"Yes."
"You cloned Apocalypse?" Rogue shouted.
"That is a ridiculous and untrue accusation!" Essex replied. "I did nothing of the sort."
Rogue did roll her eyes this time. "Riiiight. Because cloning is totally not what you spend the majority of your time doing." She said sarcastically.
"Well she has a point there." Fury said. "Cloning is your thing." Fury turned to Rogue. "But he didn't clone the boy, Rogue."
That was surprising. "Wait back up, cloning is a relatively new technique, not just anyone can successfully do it, if Essex didn't then who..?" That was when realization kicked in. "You." She turned to the Shi'ar.
The alien sighed. "Yes, madam. The great Shi'ar empire cloned this boy before loosing track of him when his powers manifested. We didn't have time to take control of his mind."
"Unbelievable, what gives you fools the right to come to our planet and go around cloning genocidal mutants? Tell me you idiots didn't give him Apocalypse's memories."
"Rogue!" The Professor chastised.
"You know your thinking it to Professor. It was a stupid move."
Fury then decided to put his two sense in. "The kid's right. You had no right to come to this planet, let alone clone the mutant that nearly took over the planet."
"What in the hell was going through your big heads?" Rogue asked.
The alien became angry. "You have no right to speak to a counsel-men of the great Shi'ar empire that way. It is an honor to even speak directly to me."
Rogue rolled her eyes again. "Yes, I'm sure. Just because you your advanced aliens that strut around like your gods gives you no right to trespass or clone people from our planet. Thanks to your idiotic move our planet could be in danger again."
"Normally I don't tend to agree with god-ling brats that spoil my plans, but the girl has a point. If you wanted to perform this cloning you should have done it on your own planet." Essex said.
Rogue turned to him. "Don't agree with me Sinister, it's very creepy."
The alien sighed. "No we did not give him Apocalypse's memories."
"Well thank god for that." Kitty said as she phased through the floor with most of the New Mutants.
Kitty turned to Rogue. "Ship is secure Rogue, what now?"
Rogue still angry from the revaluation of the Shi'ar, snapped at Kitty. "Sit down, behave, don't say anything."
Dr. MacTaggart seemed to be the voice of reason. "Alright well we can't afford to point fingers now. The important thing is we find this boy and-"
"And kill him." The alien finished. "The empire shall correct his mistake and dispose of the boy."
Rogue was astonished. "Wait a minute! You just said he didn't have the memories of his counterpart."
The alien turned arrogantly. "And?"
"And?" Rogue growled. "The second you brought that child to life you made him a person, and a mutant at that."
"I'm not seeing the point here, he is a clone." The alien stated.
Rogue clenched her teeth. "He may be a clone, but he is a child and a living person. You can't just kill him, especially when he doesn't have the memories."
"He's a threat." The alien pointed out.
"And your not?" Rogue said. "As a matter of fact we're all threats."
"He could destroy my empire!"
"Maybe you should have thought about that before you created him." Rogue argued.
"I have direct orders from the Empress to end his life." The alien stressed.
"I don't care. Let me make this perfectly clear. He is a mutant and he is under my protection."
The alien looked pretty pissed off. "Just because you are the most powerful and dangerous mutant-"
"Gives me the right to protect my people." Rogue finished.
"You right, I am dangerous and powerful. I've used the combined abilities of other mutants without touching them before, my power is unmatched. It made me invincible. However I have made a decision to protect my people with it."
The alien looked even angrier. "You have chosen to be a pacifist like Xavier." He accused.
"NO!" Rogue shouted. "That's the difference between him and me. I will use my gift to kill if it means protecting my people!"
"Like Magneto." The alien stated.
That pissed Rogue off. "No. I haven't gone that far. I won't use my power to take over those weaker to me, even if they hate me. I rest comfortably between Xavier's philosophy and Magneto's extreme measures."
"There is no middle ground." The alien argued.
"Your wrong." Rogue told him. "There is and I've chosen it!"
Before the alien could think of something else to argue Essex's communication device went off. He listened to it for a moment.
"Damned!" Essex yelled. He turned to Rogue. "That lover of your has taken out my last winged-raptor."
At that moment Vertigo regained consciousness and went to Sinister's side. "Already? Magneto must be in a tempter." She turned to Rogue."You and your boyfriend have a fight or something?"
Rogue was frozen. Silence echoed through the room as their words sunk in. "Y-You know?" Rogue asked.
"Well yeah, we came across an interesting photo while hacking into S.H.E.I.L.D database." Vertigo said.
"Whoa. Whoa!" Bobby shouted. "She's not saying...
"Rogue and Mags?" Magma asked.
Rogue turned to see Professor Xavier, for the first time in a while truly shocked.
"I KNEW IT!" Jubilee shouted.
"Shut up!" Rogue yelled in the direction of the New Mutants. She turned back to the Professor.
"Look Prof. I know this must be a shock, but please don't perceive it the wrong way."
Moira looked equally shocked. "My, god Rogue. So when you admitted to me that you were sexually active..." Her voice trailed off in realization.
"Dammit Doctor not now." Rogue said as she looked at Xavier. "You. You." Xavier was honestly shocked, and very rarely was a telepath surprised.
"How?" He demanded.
Rogue took the defensive. "That's none of your business!"
"I beg to differ Rogue. You are a minor under my care. I am your guardian. I have to press for answers. You do realize this is illegal?"
"I'm eighteen!"
That's when Vertigo butted in. "Yeah, for barley two weeks girl. That picture we found of you two all cozy was taken four weeks ago."
Professor Xavier expression changed from shocked to angry.
"If what she says is true Rogue than it was illegal and there was a crime committed."
Rogue shook her head. "No please Professor listen to me-"
"No Rogue, listen to me. Not only is it illegal, it is obscene. There is a 56 year age difference. You are a child he took advantage of."
"SHUT UP!" Rogue screamed. "It's not obscene and he didn't take advantage of me! Never has he pushed me or manipulated me!"
"Rogue you yourself once admitted he was skilled at manipulation. Does it make sense to you that you may not be able to see the manipulation behind your relationship?"
"Dammit it wasn't like that!"
"I'm not certain of that." Professor Xavier sighed angrily.
"How long has this been going on?"
Rogue was enraged by now. "That is also none of your business."
"How long?" The Professor asked firmly.
Rogue sighed. "After the Apocalypse incident, while we were all recovering in the Canadian Resort."
The Professor was still amazed. "That was nearly seven months ago Rogue. You were a child when this began!"
"Not mentally!" Rogue yelled. "You yourself should know that, you've been in my mind."
Professor Xavier shook his head stubbornly. "That is beside the point Rogue."
Rogue was about to spit out another argument when she realized something else. "Wait a minute, what picture does S.H.E.I.L.D have?" Rogue asked Fury.
"That is classified." Fury said in an attempt to cover his ass.
"You knew?" Xavier asked Fury. "Why didn't you inform me?"
"We didn't know Rogue's age at the time." Fury said.
"Wait a minute." Kitty said. "Seven months ago. Rogue you lied to me when I asked you about you and him!" Kitty stood up and stopped over to Rogue.
'Oh, just fucking wonderful.' Rogue thought. 'Another person I have to fight off.'
"I didn't lie Kitty, I just didn't tell you everything."
"You could have told me you were screwing a supervillan!" Kitty glared at her. "I thought you were my best friend. You know it all makes sense now. Seven months ago is when you stopped hanging out with me and Kurt. I can't believe this Rogue. I thought best friends shared secrets with each other."
"Kitty I get that your hurt. And I wanted to tell you I really did but-
"But you knew it was wrong and you were afraid of me finding out." Professor Xavier interrupted.
"Also not true. Erik and I couldn't care less if you know, and he certainly doesn't care about your opinion of our relationship, oldest friend or not."
Rogue turned back to Kitty. "Look Kit-Kat. I didn't know how to tell you without you flipping out."
Kitty turned away angrily and phased out of the room.
'Wonderful.' Rogue thought sarcastically.
Review Please! That was part one of people finding out, there is still Jean, Cyclops, Storm, and Kurt etc.
VERY IMPORTANT! I just posted this new "Rogneto" story called "Chronicles". Please check it out!
It's sort of a Rogneto story, with a twist, or two, okay more like three.
It's set in the comic-verse. Starring the Clone of Magneto Joseph(who existed in the 90's for those of you that read comics) and my own character, a child clone of Rogue created by Joseph's villainous Brotherhood to kick the Avenger's asses! Though created for that purpose alone the girl will prove herself to be an essential factor in history and Joseph's life. (Best part: You get to see Rogue as a bad ass villain again!) Please note: warned me it may take a few hours to upload.