Memories

Tree of Sacrifice

Disclaimer: What do you think?

If you want to use Tora, or any of my other characters, PM me.

They hurried through the wood that had sprung up, seeing scattered bits of Nimrod everywhere.

"Look at this. Did Magneto and that girl kill them all?"

"I don't think so. One minute they were everywhere. The next—they just fell out of the sky and stopped moving."

"Over there! He's alive."

"Just about."

"Don't be—afraid children. The danger—has passed. Did I ever tell you—that your destiny—is to inherit the Earth? Where… where is the girl?"

They looked around and froze. Magneto pulled himself upright and walked towards Cia, taking in everything, the full-blown forest around her, her body pressed up to the tree, and a shard of shrapnel sticking through her stomach.

"Did… did… did I do…well?"

He stared at her in horror.

"I did this to you…"

She looked up, her green eyes clouded with pain.

"Did…did…we…win?"

"Yes."

"Good… I can…go then…"

"I'm sorry…"

He pulled the hair away from her eyes, looking into them.

"I…I…did…w-well…didn't…I, old…old man?"

"Yes. You did very well."

"She… she was right… I… I was…hiding…in myself… I…I am the trees…and flowers…and grass… Huh… have…gift… did…use…r-r-right?"

"Yes. You have used it better than I ever could."

And as he watched, she closed her eyes and let the tree grow around her, encasing her forever in its thick and ancient trunk.

"So is that why Tora insisted on keeping that old oak, even when the rest of the forest was destroyed."

"It was the Tree of Sacrifice. All dead X-Men had their names carved into the tree, in memory of the fallen in the Second Coming."

"Curt! How's it going kid?"

"It was way cool! Cypher-dude did this wicked boom-boom thing!"

"Get Cypher out."

"He's still breathing, but barely. We'd better get him out of here."

"Dom. Let me."

He carefully pulled out Cypher and carried him, feeling a bit guilty about the thought that asked if Ramsay would consider dieting. But that was pushed aside when he got outside.

"LAURA! What the Hell happened to X?"

"She's alive. She tried to step through the time-membrane. Intel was right. Nothing organic can go through."

"Had to—try. The membrane—is shrinking. When it closes—it's gone for good."

"Seriously, are we going to stand here and watch it blink out and strand us here forever? Because I don't think I could take that."

Curt reached out but Warren snatched his hand away.

"Laura heals! You won't! And we have to hide, because the Sentinels will be coming."

"Won't…"

They turned to look at Cypher.

"What?"

"She… back…control…Shadow…controls…them…"

They looked at one another.

"Well, that's one less problem to worry about. But we've lost our native. She's dead. We've lost our link home."

"Ah, my dears, if only it were that simple."

"Hope, thank god you're safe. Rogue, Dragon, we'll talk about this later. Right now the final priority is to do a final sweep and make sure-"

He stopped. You usually do that when the muzzle of a big gun is stuffed under your chin and when the sword that took down Sabretooth is also hovering somewhere around the stomach area, you don't talk.

"You use my name again—I'm going to part your hair with a big piece of your jawbone."

"Nathan did what had to be done. He saved us all. And he did it for you. I mourn him to."

"You mourn him?"

"I mourn them all. They were my friends."

"They were your cannon fodder! You sent them to do what you didn't have the guts to do yourself! You sent them to die and now you're gonna stand there and make speeches about them!"

Tora leant forward and spoke quietly, dangerously, her blood-splattered face without a tear on it, unlike Hope's, who was crying with anger and sorrow.

"You sent my children to their deaths. I will find a way of killing you slowly. I will make you feel all the pain I shall feel, every day, until I die."

"CYCLOPS! The—The membrane! Something is coming through the membrane!"

And as Cable's head appeared, both Tora and Hope allowed a small spark to light up in their chests.

Domino burst through, holding Laura, who instantly gained every speck of Tora's attention and gained a quick burst of the waters to heal the worst of her injuries. Then Poison, bulked up tremendously to help protect himself. He hurried to his mother's side, checking his 'sister's' pulse.

Warren burst through next and Tora automatically switched to him, placing a wave around him then ran to Logan as he burst through, holding the injured Cypher. And then she turned to Nathan, trying to hold out a hand.

"I can heal you Nathan. Just give me your hand."

And he shattered as Hope screamed his name. And Tora caught her as she collapsed then rocked her back and forth, muttering something in a language no one knew. Hope let Tora hold her close but when she sensed Scott she almost exploded.

"Hope…I…I'm sorry…I… You need to come-"

"If you put that hand on me, I swear to god you will lose it."

"Hope…"

"You did this. This is all your fault. I hate you. I hate-"

And the bridge shattered and Tora was thrown away from Hope, falling into the water. And Bastion flew down as Hope pulled herself. And then as they called for her to run, one person called for her to fight.

"HOPE! Here!"

The girl glanced round. Tora was standing in the shallows of the water, left hand close to her chest, right hand reaching towards her.

"TAKE IT!"

The left hand flew out as the right snapped in and a burst of water swirled towards Hope. The woman fell and slipped away into the deep water but Hope didn't notice because something like a silver candle was worming its way into her mind.

Little One.

What are you?

I am Knowledge.

And suddenly she knew. How to fight, how to survive, how to live and love and hate and burn with anger. She knew everything about Marie Howlett, called Tora Logan and Tigress and Dragon and Xii and… She was Tora. And Tora took control of her mutation, reaching out and grabbing powers.

Psionic Exo-Armour for defence. Optic blasts for long-range offence. Organic Steel Transformation for defence and short-range offence. You don't mind this do you? Keep talking, keep them thinking that Hope Summers is in control. Don't worry, you'll learn to control this. I'm just helping you here. You'll learn this in your own time. Thermokinesis for impeding his mobility. Electrokinesis for disrupting his circuits. Geokinesis for desperate attacks, always good to have something like that. And finally, just a little bit of me to give you the energy you need. You see the glowing in the distance. Steal some of the light.

Tentatively, Hope reached out, all the while allowing her anger to get the better of her. And then it was like she hadn't been fighting moments before because she was full of energy and for a second she thought she felt Nathan but that was just her imagination. And she let the rage and the power out and watched as Bastion faltered, snarled as she attacked him with instinct that even the thing curled in her mind couldn't give her, then the man in black and the woman in blue leapt together, two sets of claws slicing at him, both screaming words Hope couldn't hear but she ignored that. Because they didn't matter any longer, only one person mattered and he was dead.

"I'm ready now Nathan. I'm ready."

Ready? Really little girl?

The anger from that statement drove Hope over the edge and she burned them all away, shattered the red dome. Then turned to the woman in blue, Tora Logan and blinked. It wasn't much, just a way of understanding. Thank you. And she let the waves leave her, but there was something of herself in them, something that had been a part of her for so long she didn't even realise it was there. But Dragon didn't seem to notice, merely shuddered as the waves crowded around her mouth and nose trying to get back in.

And Tora closed her eyes as she heard her own voice cry out again.

"FOR KURT!"

"Well, I never knew how bad it was."

"It was bad Death. It was terrible."