Kurt sighed in annoyance as he felt another tiny hit against his hand. The mutant he and Gambit had captured wasn't very pleased about being shrunk. Kurt tightened his grip, but was careful not to break any of the teeny-tiny bones. Magneto wanted a live mutant, after all. Why, though, was a question Kurt had no answer to.
But he was tired of trying to find answers, so when Magneto had given them their assignment, he had numbly followed the Cajun and did as he was told. He was tired. Tired of everything.
He followed the Cajun in the dark alley, cupping his hands over their prize. He was tired. Kurt yawned silently, wishing he could go to bed. It must have been around 1 in the morning. They had to get 'home' before anyone saw them. Idly, Kurt realized that if he were still with the X-Men, he wouldn't have to worry. He could just turn his inducer on and he'd be fine. His muscles tightened.
But he couldn't go back, could he? Scott had exiled him! Banished him! Condemned him! It was all Scott's fault!
But the anger that flared up died just as quickly. As much as he wanted to, Kurt knew he couldn't blame Scott. He had chosen to kill those jocks. He sighed deeply, knowing that the blame rested solely on him and him alone.
But still, if those stupid guys hadn't tried to hurt his friend, none of this would have happened. Stupid humans. Stupid, scared, weak, arrogant humans!
Kurt's tail began to swish strongly as his anger built up again, like a river against a dam. It was all the fault of the humans! If they hadn't been so cruel to mutants, none of this would have ever happened!
The little mutant in his hand started to squirm more violently, making noises like the squeaks of a mouse. He thought back to his earlier triumphs, and remembered in particular the night he had tasted blood for the first time. How delicious it had tasted, how yummy it had smelled! He could smell it now and he licked his lips, grinning...
"BLEU!"
Remy's sharp cry brought Kurt back to the present. He had stopped walking and was just standing there, grinning at his thoughts, eyes half-lidded. His grin faded when he saw the look of horror and anger on Gambit's face and, confused, asked, "Was? [What?]"
Remy's eyes were glowing like coals as he barked, "CON! Regardes qu'es-ce que tu as fais! [Idiot! Look what you've done!]"
Kurt didn't understand the Frenchman's words, but then realized that his fingers felt wet and the smell of blood tantalized his nostrils. He looked down and winced. He had transferred all his anger into his fist and bloody flesh dripped from his knuckles. The sight and smell of blood perked up some primal part of him, and he found himself wanted to snap the body up.
Kurt winced at these thoughts and bit his lip. He looked at the Cajun, stuttering out, "I'm sorry! I didn't mean it! I was thinking and it ran away with me! I'm sorry!"
Remy came forwards and grabbed Kurt's wrist, careful not to get blood on his hand and growled, "Look, Bleu. I know we haven't done a score together for a while now and that you don't get as much food as you're used to, but that doesn't mean you can help yourself at the first opportunity you get!"
"I wasn't going to eat him!" Kurt protested, coloring for reasons he didn't know. "I was just thinking and I got mad and I guess I squeezed."
Gambit stared at him for a long time, and then released him and walked back down the way they had come, saying, "Well, clean yourself up and let's go. We have to get another." Kurt obeyed, sucking the mutilated body into his mouth and then lapping the blood from his skin and fur.
This time, they found a young girl who fought Gambit with blades of purple energy. It being confirmed that she was a mutant, Gambit knocked her aside and then jumped out of the way and Kurt leapt, grabbing the girl around the waist and crashing her into a wall, which rendered her unconscious. Kurt then concentrated and Gambit watched in fascination as the body shrank. He had seen it happen many times before, but it still amazed him every time.
As Kurt picked up the now-tiny girl, Remy held out his hand, saying, "Not this time, bleu. I'm going to hold her."
Kurt frowned, but then his shoulders drooped as he obeyed, handing over his catch.
That night, Kurt was curled up in the rafters of Remy's room, dozing. The Cajun had told him to stay put and then had left. Kurt had been curious, of course, but had obeyed, purring softly as he slept.
Suddenly, through the base, everything shuddered lightly.
Kurt jerked awake, yawning. The reverberation came again and his curiosity peeked its head up. What on earth was that? Kurt 'ported down to the floor and opened the door, looking out. He saw no one in the hallway, and decided that one look couldn't hurt anything. He followed the noises and the scents of the other mutants and found himself at the door to a huge room.
Until a few weeks ago, they had used the football field-sized room for practice and training. Kurt had been in there a few times where he had worked on his fighting skills by grappling with the wiry Cajun. It had reminded him of the Danger Room, except there were no machinery extras. Just piles of metal and junk for when Magneto would test them. But then Magneto had closed it, saying that no one was allowed inside. Kurt wanted to ask why, but a sharp jab to the ribs from Remy's elbow had quickly shut him up. Now he had a good idea as to why the room had been closed.
Dominating a good half of the room was an enormous machine. The machine was centered around a large chamber, about 7 feet high and 5 feet wide. Connected to the chamber were multitudes of wires and cables, each connected to some kind of control panel. The panels were fused (magnetically, probably) on the concave side of a huge cup, which was suspended over the chamber like a weird hat. Sparks were flying everywhere and there was an unpleasant odor of electrified air and rubber. Surrounding all of this were more cables and wires, but it was obvious that these were simply meant to give power to the huge machine, judging by the cracks and sparks coming from where they connected to the machine and the walls. Nearby was a medical table, like the kind used for autopsies.
As Kurt watched, Remy came forwards, marching the mutant they had kidnapped. She was barely conscious, unable to use her power and seemed drunk, her feet and motions uncoordinated. Remy guided her to the chamber, and gently slipped off her bonds before pushing her inside. The door hissed as it slid shut, hiding her from sight. Nearby, the four Acolytes stood at attention, watching and not moving.
Magneto strode before them, saying sternly, "Watch and witness the dawn of mutant supremacy!"
Kurt was confused by the old mutant's words, but then there was another reverberation that instead of happening once, drew out and turned into a loud frequency humming noise. Kurt winced. It hurt his ears and he could feel it shaking inside his bones. He crouched down, his tail tucking between his legs as he covered his sensitive ears. Maybe this was why Remy had wanted him to stay in the room.
As he cowered, the humming grew louder and more high-pitched. The panels surrounding the machine began to glow and a few of them were emitting sparks. The chamber was starting to glow and the girl's silhouette was easily visible. She was leaning against a wall, but as the light got brighter and the humming got louder, she began to beat against the door and Kurt could hear that she was screaming in pain. It made his fur and skin crawl to hear such a shrill sound. As he watched, her motions grew weaker, the light surrounding her glowing so brightly that it grew difficult to see her.
Suddenly, there was a loud explosion and the light seemed to become a liquid as it streamed outwards and upwards. It hit the panels and was captured and absorbed, the panels now glowing a soft green color.
At a nod from Magneto, Remy went back to the chamber and pushed a button. The door slid open and the girl fell at his feet, barely breathing and not moving. Remy bent down and picking her up, brought her to the table, laying her flat. Magneto stood over the girl and gestured lightly. A syringe flew up of its own accord, the metal tip quivering as it floated over the girl's body. It stopped over her arm and with a sudden motion, buried two inches of cold metal into warm flesh. The girl gave a weak cry, but even before she was done, the metal withdrew, its contents emptied into the mutant. She began to struggle and Kurt realized that Magneto must have given her a chemical to counter the tranquilizer they had given her.
She leapt upright, balancing on the table in a fighting stance. Magneto tilted his head slightly and Sabertooth leapt, roaring. The girl extended an arm, but then leapt aside. Then instead of attacking, she stared at her arm. Obviously, she had tried to use her power, but found herself unable. "What happened to me?" she said quietly, rubbing the backs of her hands, where the purple blades had once emerged.
Magneto stood over her, stating coldly, "Your powers have been drained." He turned to Gambit, saying, "I want no evidence left behind."
Remy grinned evilly and took the girl by the arm, pulling her to her feet. She didn't resist, still stunned. The Cajun began to march her from the room, saying with a leer, "Bleu will be happy."
Kurt stared, stunned. Magneto's machine could take a mutant's power? Why?
As he watched, Pyro asked "So, boss, whatcha planning this time?"
Magneto went to the machine and pushed a couple buttons, adjusting and modifying as he answered over his shoulder, "It is time the X-Men realized who is the superior race. If they don't…" The machine gave a whine as the panels glowed a bright green, the contained energy straining to be free.
Kurt's eyes grew big. The older mutant was planning to drain the others of their powers!
He heard footsteps approaching and knew Remy was coming. He ran and then 'ported into his room, and quickly assumed his sleeping position, looking like he had never moved. Soon enough, Remy walked in. He tugged at Kurt's tail, which was hanging down from the rafters. Kurt played perfectly the part of a sleeper waking as he mumbled, "Gambit?" The Cajun thrust the girl into the room and she let out a yelp as she sprawled on the cold floor. Kurt looked down at her, then at Gambit, a mask of hopefulness firmly in place.
The Cajun grinned and backing out, said, "You know what to do." before shutting the door.
Kurt watched the girl for a while. He was hungry, but he was also curious. "Are you okay?" he asked quietly.
She spun around, trying to find out where his voice had come from, and finally looked up. She stiffened at the sight of him, a demon hidden in the shadows, his golden eyes glowing. She gulped hard and then asked shakily, "Where am I?"
Kurt winced. He couldn't answer this, and shook his head. She seemed to understand and sat down on the bed, holding herself. Kurt jumped down to her level, walking up to her on all fours. He stood and awkwardly held out a hand, saying, "I'm Nightcrawler."
She recoiled from his touch, screaming, "Don't touch me!"
He gave her a grin, saying, "Hey, I'm a mutant too. Relax."
"You're an assassin!" she spat.
"What?" "He told me that you're going to kill me!" she said, pointing out the door Remy had gone.
"Well…" Kurt hesitated. How could he tell her? Suddenly though, she doubled over and groaned, as if in pain. Kurt felt his natural care well up and sat next to her, one hand around her shoulders as he asked, "Hey… You okay?"
"It burns…" she gasped out, starting to shake violently.
"Burns?" Kurt repeated quietly, confused.
Suddenly she pushed him away from her and fell to the floor coughing. Blood came up, sluggish and a dark reddish-brown. A strong smell invaded the air and Kurt's sensitive nose felt overloaded. He winced openly, backing away from her, covering his face. She writhed on the floor, her screams growing louder. Kurt watched, horrified and scared. What on earth was happening?!
On her smooth skin, lesions like bloody lash marks were appearing. She scratched at them madly, blood flowing as she broke the fragile skin. The smell got worse. Kurt coughed and felt he would be sick. What was happening?! The girl moaned, her fingers smearing the brown colored blood over herself as she scratched, trying to tear the pain away from her. Kurt watched helplessly as she screamed shrilly. Suddenly though, she arched her back, a cry of pain ripping from her throat before she went limp and still.
The blue mutant was quiet for a long time before he ventured forwards, morbid curiosity prevailing over his disgust. Why did she suddenly look so fat? He went to Remy's side of the room and digging in a drawer, withdrew a knife. Kurt gulped hard, but went to the body and hesitantly poked an arm deep enough to draw blood. If she were still alive, she'd feel it and react. The only response he got was more brownish blood welling up from the cut and he winced from the odor. He then looked down at her body, which was swollen now. How had it grown so large so fast?
Suddenly, a split seemed to appear in the skin of her middle and the body split open, as if sliced with a knife, gore and brown blood splattering everywhere. Disgusted, Kurt found himself looking at the corpse. It was like a bomb had gone off inside of her. Everything was melted and oozing that thick brown blood. The basic structure of her insides was just gone. She had melted inside.
He recoiled, bolted to the trashcan and became sick.
Once he had control over his stomach, a good thirty minutes later, Kurt cleaned off the gore as best he could and ran from the room and tried to find Magneto. But he found the base empty and the lethal machine was gone.
Kurt 'ported into the kitchen, crying out, "Anyone?!" and found a note on the fridge from Remy: "Gone to work. Stay put." A part of Kurt grew angry at the brisk way Remy had addressed him, but another part panicked as he worked out Magneto's plan. He was planning on using the machine as an incentive to turn the X-Men to his side. Join, or be de-powered. He would probably use it on others as well, using it to turn thousands to his side. Once he did that, humanity and the mutants that opposed him wouldn't stand a chance.
Unfortunately, the Master of Magnetism didn't know that his machine killed. Kurt knew that he had to warn the others before Magneto got there.
As he 'ported, he prayed he wasn't already too late.
Scott grunted as he dodged a whirling blade ten feet in diameter. He hit the ground, rolled, got back up and blasted it. He heard a clanking behind him and sprang forwards, avoiding the swinging arm of the huge robot. He rolled to his back and using the floor as an impact absorber, opened his visor. He felt his body pressed backwards from the force he was expending, but the floor helped the beam become more powerful and the robot disintegrated in the high-energy beam.
"Simulation complete. Shutting down." a computer voice stated calmly as the Danger Room reset itself.
Scott stood up, refusing to acknowledge the burning pain in his legs, as he shouted to the command center, "No! Run it again!"
Jean's voice was soothing and gentle through the intercom as she stated, "Scott, you've done this six times now. You are taking a rest before you get hurt."
But Cyclops wouldn't take the hint and screamed angrily, "Dammit, Jean, run it again!" The next thing he knew, he was pinned to the floor, a heavy weight on his chest and arms and legs. He tossed his head as he tried to get loose, letting all his frustration and anger build up as he voiced a cry. The weight covering him wasn't tangible, but was something he couldn't touch, and therefore, couldn't remove. Frustrated and feeling that it wasn't fair, he fought, cursing loudly.
"I'm not letting go." Jean's voice sounded tensed and pitying and sad.
Scott glared up at her, and finally turned away from her eyes, muttering, "Fine. Five minutes. And set it up a level higher next time!"
As he rested, he fumed. Kurt had lied to them! Distantly, he thought about all the times the former X-Man had gone to the movies late at night, returning and denying dinner. Had he really had dinner in town, or had he become a nightly murderer?
He let his head come forwards to rest in his hands, feeling drained. The only time he had felt this bad was the time he and Alex had blasted Asteroid M into dust. As he had poured out his power, he had felt like Rogue was draining him, sucking his life out of him. As much as he hated to admit it, Scott couldn't yet handle letting go of large doses of his powers. A little blast here and there were fine, but a huge pour of energy? Too many and he was sure he'd go unconscious.
But he welcomed it. Unconsciousness would drive away thought. And he didn't want to think. He didn't want to think about how Kurt had, in cold blood, killed those young men. Just killed them without a second thought.
Scott shivered, remembering that evening. How casually the German had treated the whole thing, as if cannibalism wasn't a big deal. Now that he thought about it, Scott felt his blood grow cold.
Duncan.
Kurt had been the last one to see him. Had Kurt killed him too? Were the German's three-fingered hands covered in innocent blood? How much was the teleporter hiding from them?
His head swam and it ached, both from his draining training runs and from his thoughts. Jean's hesitant, "Scott? It's ready." was a welcome relief. It meant more training, more pain to drive away the pesky burden of thinking. Scott crouched and waited for the program to boot up, already running the combat though his mind. As he charged the robots, the problem of the blue mutant was shoved from his mind.
For the moment, anyway. He knew it would come back, but for now, as he cracked his fist against the metallic skull of a robot, sending it skittering across the scuffed floor, he let himself forget.
After ten more runs, Jean sighed as she watched Scott walk out of the room. He was limping slightly but he refused help, growling warningly at her not to touch him. She followed him to the bathroom nonetheless, checking to make sure he didn't fall and hurt himself.
Satisfied he was all right, she went down into the kitchen, boiling water for tea. There was a whoosh and Quicksilver appeared right across from her. He appeared tired and rightly so. He had yet to sleep a night through without waking up the rest of them with shrill cries from his nightmares. "Hi." he said bluntly.
"Hello." Jean replied wearily, her mind still focused on Scott.
"Whatcha drinking?" the speed demon inquired, toying with a loose thread in the tablecloth.
Jean got up and poured the hot water into the mug, then added the teabag, saying, "Tea. Want some?"
Pietro shook his head, saying, "Nope. Messes with me too much. Makes me slow." He glanced vaguely upwards, hearing water running in the shower, then asked Jean quietly, "How many times did he run that thing?"
The redhead took a long drink before answering, "Too many times. He's exhausted now."
"Why?" Pietro questioned.
"He realized we were right. About…" She grimaced, still slightly unwilling to put a face to the crime.
"Fuzzy?" Pietro asked.
Jean nodded, saying, "Exactly."
But Pietro sprang upright, saying, as he pointed out the window, "No! Fuzzy!"
Jean looked up at Pietro in confusion when a familiar blue presence entered her mind. She spun on the spot just as Kurt 'ported into the kitchen. His uniform was gone and in its place was a black T-shirt and shorts, allowing much of his blue skin to be revealed. It made sense, though, because even in the dimming light, Kurt was a little hard to see. Outside after dark, he'd be invisible if it weren't for his eyes, which glowed as he quickly scanned the room.
She and Pietro jerked as Kurt looked at them, but his gaze wasn't menacing. If anything, it was scared and worried. He then asked them, "Where's Cyclops?! I have to talk with him!"
Jean tried to read his mind and recoiled at images of blood and death. Had he killed yet another?! The psychic felt fear flowing from Pietro's mind, but it was quickly replaced by a burning anger, and she unintentionally picked it up and let it flow her as well, sparking her own anger. Angrily, she shouted, "Get out of our house, demon!"
Kurt saw her hair starting to puff up, as it always did when she was preparing for a serious battle, and he held up his hands, backing up as he pleaded, "Wait! I didn't come to fight!"
There was a white flash and Kurt was pinned to the wall by Pietro, who had one arm around the teleporter's neck, snarling in his ear, "Yeah, well guess what, furball, I wanna fight and this time, I have the upper hand and unlike you, I won't show mercy."
As he began to squeeze, Kurt 'ported out of his grasp, hugging the ceiling as he shouted, "Magneto's coming!"
Both teens paused, Jean asking, "What?"
Kurt quickly explained, "He's made a machine that drains powers, but it'll kill whoever it's used on!"
"Why would he use it if it kills?" Pietro questioned, cautious of getting too close.
The teleporter deemed it safe to come down and as he crawled down the wall like a lizard, he said, "He doesn't know it kills yet! I can't find him to tell him, so I came to warn you! Please listen!" As soon as his two odd feet were on the floor, Jean grabbed him with her powers. At the last second he tried to 'port, guessing her intent, but just as he slipped into wherever he went when he 'ported, Jean literally, just caught him by latching to his tail, the last part of him to disappear into intangible-ness.
Kurt gave a shrill cry of pain and reversed the 'port to reappear to them, upside-down and now unable to move, to 'port, to escape. He hung before the two mutant teens, stiff and his eyes wide.
"Jean. Put him down."
Both looked up as Scott entered the room, wearing his uniform. Jean did as told and Kurt flipped to land on his feet, he ran to Scott and started to say, "Scott, listen! Magne-"
But with a gurgle, stopped as he was grabbed around the throat and slammed into a wall.
He put his hands on Scott's which was snug around his neck, but didn't try to work it off or 'port. Scott leaned down close to him, and breathed, "Get out."
"Was?" the German asked, his native language breaking through.
Somehow, this simple slip into another language infuriated Scott and he squeezed slightly, saying in a tone Logan would be jealous of, "Get out and stay out, Kurt. You're not welcome here anymore."
He let go and backed away from Kurt, but the teleporter didn't obey and followed him for a few steps, saying, "Wait, you've GOT to listen to me! Please! I came to help you!"
Scott whirled around, barking, "Oh, like you helped me? By killing four people!?"
Kurt winced and said softly, "Please. Listen and let me help you."
"I'd rather die first." Scott stated bluntly, and distantly, Kurt saw the other two nodding.
He felt tears well up and he screamed, "That's exactly what will happen if Magneto catches you, Scott!"
Scott ignored him and walked out of the kitchen into the lobby, pointing to the front door, his command obvious.
The blue mutant refused and said while sobs threatened to choke him, "You're my best friend in the world! I wouldn't hurt you, and I don't want anything to happen to you! Ple-"
At a nod from Scott, Pietro had zipped forwards and clothes-lined the blue mutant, knocking him backward by ten feet. Kurt slammed against the front doors, groaning. He rubbed his head and looked up at the three mutants. Jean floated behind Scott while Pietro stood beside him, his usual smug grin in place. Cyclops glared down at his former teammate and friend, saying, "Get. Out." Each syllable was punctuated by a step forwards on the tall mutant's part, while Kurt just stood up slowly. Scott walked to be right in front of Kurt and the younger mutant titled his head back to maintain eye contact. The leader of the X-Men then growled, "Now."
"Scott… PLEASE!" the teleporter pleaded but then he felt Jean's invisible grasp again. He was held still as a white blur surrounded him; blows, kicks and punches landing everywhere. Kurt wanted to cry out, but couldn't. Just as this ended and Kurt was dropped gracelessly to the floor, he looked up to see something he'd never thought he'd see; Scott's eyes.
For a split second he saw the soft green irises before the blast caught him full on, blasting him backwards through the glass and over fifty feet out onto the lawn. He flew backwards, the energy coursing through him painfully before it stopped and he kept going before hitting a tree. He felt like his back would collapse from the impact, but then he fell forwards, tears flowing down his face from the pain. He looked up blearily at the mansion and saw the three teens glaring at him.
Kurt hung his head, accepting defeat and 'ported, the wind blowing his smoke away, erasing any evidence of his 'port.
Scott watched without any emotion as the blue traitor 'ported off the lawn. He turned around and went back inside. But as he turned from the door, Pietro yelped. Scott turned, expecting to find Kurt trying, yet again, to get them to believe one of his many lies, but instead froze at seeing Magneto standing there, his henchmen nearby.
"You!" Pietro shouted, running forwards.
Magneto looked at his son, saying coldly, "Pietro, leave. Now."
But the speed demon hesitated near his father, asking, "What are you doing?"
"Do not question me!" the man barked and with a sharp slap, sent Pietro sprawling. Pietro could have dodged the blow, but hadn't.
Scott took charge and came forwards, hand on his visor as he asked, "What are you doing here?"
"I come with an invitation." The metallic mutant said softly and from out of nowhere, two syringes flew at the two teens. Caught off guard, both got the needles' in their bodies and the sedatives worked fast. They collapsed.
Magneto them looked at his Acolytes, saying, "Take them all. Leave no one." They nodded and each grabbed a box of syringes and stalked into the mansion.
From the wall, Kurt watched; tears running down his furry face.