ShadowSpider Evolution: Year 1 The Sinister Hydra

by ShadowSpider17

Peter and Kitty are finally together, they had their first date, now all they have to do is survive the rest of their crazy lives, but that could be hard with the likes of Magneto, Hydra, the rise of mutant hate groups, not to mention a villain working in the shadows. Will Peter and Kitty survive? Let's find out. Part 3 of my ShadowSpider Evolution series. Peter Parker/Kitty Pryde

5. The Vanishing Mutant Part 2

Disclaimer: I don't own Marvel or its characters, if I did then Peter Parker and Kitty Pryde would be together in every universe.

Part 2 of The Vanishing Mutant is up. I'm sorry I took me so long to post this, but better late than never. Be sure to leave a review to tell me what you all think.

I made an editation to this chapter, felt it would better set up for what is to come.

Chapter 5: The Vanishing Mutant Part 2

Tipton Hotel, Tuesday, October 26, 9:00 am

Scott, Kurt, and Kitty were at the laptop once again, reporting their findings to Professor Xavier, "After thoroughly investigating the bank, we deduced that this was indeed the work of a mutant," Scott said

"Only a mutant could get in that vault without being caught," Kitty said

"I see," Xavier said sighing, "This is disturbing."

"Zat's not all," Kurt said getting Xavier's attention, "Hammer Industries vas just robbed by zee same group who robbed zee bank last night," Kurt said

"One person was killed, shot in the head. The other took three shots in the back, he's in critical condition," Kitty said solemnly, while they were investigating the bank those robbers robbed Hammer Industries, killed one person, and put the other in critical condition.

"Vhy do you sink zey stole from Hammer Industries," Kurt asked

"Hm, there are a lot of reasons on why they could do that," Xavier said

"We'll look more into it professor," Scott said

"When you do, let me know," Xavier said

"Yes sir," Scott said, he then ended the call and sighed.

Kitty gave an exaggerated sigh, "I'm gonna go for a walk be back later," she said

"Be careful," Scott said

"Sure," Kitty said as she opened the door and exited the room.

With Telford

Telford was walking outside on the sidewalk trying his very best not to wince in pain at the bruises that his father had given him today. So far, he's succeeding, no one is suspicious, he's been hiding his injuries for two years he's gotten pretty good at it. The makeup on his face is coving his blackeye. Telford can't help but remember why he got these injuries. He got them because he was caught. He guesses he should count himself lucky after what happened to Kenny, Danny, and Andy. He winced, he can still hear those three gunshots, he can still see the bodies drop on the floor as if they weren't even alive 5 minutes ago. Telford will never forget what his father said to him after that.

Last night After the heist

After shooting down the three members Eddy looked at a frozen and terrified Telford, "Hey," Eddy said but wasn't given a response, still having a short fuse because of the screw up Eddy roughly grabbed Telford and turned him toward him, "Look at me when I talk to you," Eddy said angrily making Telford look at him. Eddy then points at the three bodies, "That's what happens when mistakes are made and you don't pull your own weight. Remember that," Eddy said looking Telford in the eyes. Telford looked at Eddy with wide eyes, he knows what he means by that.

"O-ok," Telford said

"Stop crying like a baby and wipe your tears, we're leaving," Eddy said as he walked away.

Present

Telford can't believe it he always knew that his father was a cruel man, but to kill your own son because of a mistake. He really misses when his mom was alive, he was happy then, his mother and father were divorced. He battered her and she gained courage and left him as well as get him arrested for theft and battery. He had gotten a few years in prison. He had come back a few years ago and discovered Telford's abilities, Eddy had tried to draft him into his crimes, but Nataly always stopped him. Eddy tried to get visitation rights and shared custody, but Nataly has won those cases when Eddy had discovered that Nataly was gonna move her and Telford away, he did the only thing he could and killed her. Telford doesn't know how but somehow, he made it look like an accident. Being his father Eddy was given immediate custody of Telford. After that Telford's life became a living hell. Telford sighed. His father is setting up an arms deal tonight and is planning on selling those weapons. He wanted Telford to come along injuries or no. Telford gave another sigh and continued walking.

With Kitty

Kitty was sitting on the bench near a restaurant, she had been walking for ten minutes till she decided to sit down. Kitty rested her head against the backrest and gave an exaggerated sigh. This isn't working, they don't know how the gang got the money in the vault, they don't know how the gang was able to get into Hammer Industries, how they were able to get to where the weapons were stored, how they were able to take out the guards in the security room, or how they were able to escape the building with no one seeing them when all of the paths leading to the exit was blocked. They also don't have a clue on why the group stole weapons in the first place. The only thing they do know is that they have a mutant with them, and they are responsible for this.

Kitty sighed, they have never done things like this before, the mutants they dealt with never robbed banks or anything like that. The closest thing they got to that was when Mesmero hypnotized her and some of the X-Men into stealing some artifacts to revive Apocalypse, and when they had to stop Magneto at that museum, though she and Kurt weren't there for that only Scott was. She has her Bayville Sirens experience but really, they only did that for a few weeks. It's not like they ever busted up any major crime, nothing like Peter and his team does. Suddenly Kitty got it, Peter, he's a street level hero, and he has more experience at this stuff than her.

Quickly getting out her phone Kitty dialed Peter's speed dial, it rung a few times until it was answered, "Hello," Peter said

"Hey Peter, got a sec," Kitty asked

Tricarrier

"Hey Kitty, sure I have some time. What's up," Spider-Man asked as he walked to his room that he was given when he joined. Once he was there, he took off his mask becoming Peter Parker.

Boston

"So, here's the thing," Kitty said, she then explained everything that has happened to Peter, who listened to it all. "So now these guys have a bunch of weapons on them, and we don't know what they are gonna do with them," Kitty said

"Well, when weapons are involved, there are really two things that the bad guys will do. That's either arm themselves, if they do that then it's possible that they are ready to do bigger and better things," Peter said

"Bigger and better thing," Kitty asked

"Yeah, like robbing places with tighter security, like government buildings, bigger banks, there are banks out there that have some serious security. They could use it for prison breaks, or even if they're feeling bold challenge superheroes. I've had a few people who've gotten their hands on some advanced tech who thought they could kill me. As we both can tell it didn't work," Peter said

The thought of guns and any other type of weapon being pointed at Peter made Kitty feel uncomfortable and anxious, so she decided to move on, "What about the second thing," she asked

"They sell them, they set up an arms deal and sell the weapons to the highest bidder and if they're devious and smart then they'll keep the good weapons for themselves," Peter said

"How would I find where an arms deal in being held," Kitty asked

"Well, that's easy, you go where the scum of the city likes to hang out. Bad guys seem to like to group together, it's like they're all attracted to each other. There are always rumors floating around in the underworld. Believe it or not but most are actually true. When I heard about Hammerhead, I honestly thought that his strength was exaggerated. Boy was I wrong. Follow the rumor mill," Peter said

"Ok, thanks Peter," Kitty said

"No problem, and Kitty," Peter said

"Yeah," Kitty asked

"Be careful. It may seem impossible because we have powers, but with the right influence, a regular person can be just as dangerous as any supervillain. You don't need superpowers to be dangerous, there are a lot of ways for a person to hurt us that aren't physical," Peter said

Kitty smiled softly, it always warms her heart when Peter worries about her, "Don't worry Peter, I'll be careful," she said

"Ok, I got to go. I'll talk to you later ok," Peter said

"Ok, love you," Kitty said

"Love you too, bye," Peter said

"Bye," Kitty said, with that they both hung up their phone. Kitty then got up from the bench and decided to head back to inform Scott and Kurt of her findings. As she walked a blue ball bounce past her and then a little girl ran past her bumping her, "Whoa," Kitty exclaimed, she looked to see the little girl in front of her. "Hey, you ok," Kitty asked the little girl in front of her, getting a nod in return.

"Amy, Amy get back here," a woman said from behind Kitty, the mutant girl turned to see the woman approach her. "I'm sorry for my daughter. Amy what do you say when you run into people?"

"Sorry lady," the little girl, Amy said

Kitty smiled at the girl, "It's ok, you just be careful next time. Ok," Kitty asked

Amy nodded, "Ok," she said

"Thank you," the mother said

"No problem, have a nice day," Kitty said

The mother smiled at Kitty, "Come on Amy, Mommy is in a hurry for her appointment," she said, with that the mother and daughter rushed on ahead.

As the woman and daughter were walking, they passed by Telford, "Excuse me," the woman said

"No problem," Telford said as he continued on his path.

The mother and daughter continued with their walk when the mother got a text, getting her attention. "Hang on Amy," the mother said as she stopped, stopping her daughter as well. The mother took out her phone and saw who texted her. she quickly sent a text back, and a second later she was texted back, rolling her eyes the mother looked at her daughter, "Stay here for a minute sweaty your father is feeling needy." The mother then went back to texting her husband. While she did that Amy kept on bouncing the ball, enjoying herself. Finally, after another bounce the ball bounced away and into the middle of the road. Amy, seeing the ball followed after it, her mother not even noticing.

With Kitty she was walking down the sidewalk when a car sped by her and she hears whistles from the occupants, she looked and sees a bunch of guys looking out the window at her. Kitty gave them a disgusted look, "Bunch of pigs, slow down or you'll hit someone," she said

As Telford walks the same car passes him, he heard the whistles and rolled his eyes, "Bunch of idiots," Telford said

With the little girl she is in the middle of the road and picked up her ball, she looked at it and smiled, what she didn't notice was the car coming her way.

Kitty who was looking ahead of her though saw the little girl in the road with the car heading straight for her, the driver not even paying attention to the road. Eyes widening in alarm and immediately stated running, "HEY, GET OUT OF THE ROAD, MOVE," Kitty yelled

Kitty's yell immediately got Telford and the mother's attention. The mother then noticed that her daughter wasn't with her and was in the road, "AMY," the mother said

That made Telford turn around and saw that the little girl was about to be hit by a car, as he looked Kitty bumped into him, he however didn't know it was her, 'She isn't gonna make it,' Telford thought as he saw Kitty run toward the girl. She wasn't gonna make it, and the girl was gonna die because of a bunch of dumb people. Knowing what he has to do Telford immediately teleports away and appears ahead on the sidewalk right where he can get to the girl. Neither Kitty nor the mother noticed, both focused on the little girl. Telford then ran out in the street headed to the girl. The girl finally took notice of the car and screamed in fear.

"NO," both Kitty and the mother yelled, just then to both of their surprise Telford jumps to the girl and grabs her, getting her out of the way. The car then continued driving. Seeing the car pass and the little girl is safe, both the mother and Kitty ran across the street to check on the girl.

"AMY," the mother said as she ran over to the girl and Telford who was comforting the girl. The mother approached Amy ran in the mother's arms who wrapped her own arms around her daughter, "Are you ok, oh my god, what were you thinking," the mother said

"It's ok ma'am," Telford said getting the mother's attention, "The worst she has are a few scrapes, nothing more."

"HEY," Kitty yelled running over to the three, "Is everyone ok," she asked as she approached the group.

"Yes, we're fine," the mother said, she then looked at Telford, "Thanks to you. Thank you if you didn't jump in, then I don't even want to think about it."

"Don't worry about it, really," Telford said

The woman smile, "If there is any way I can repay you," she said

"Don't worry about it, I'm just glad she's ok," Telford said getting a nod from the mother.

Amy then walked up to Telford and hugged him, "Thank you," she said making Telford smile and pat her head.

"Anytime," Telford said

"Alright, time to go Amy, we're going home," the mother said walking away from the two.

As they walked away Kitty spoke, "That was pretty impressive, and really brave," she said

"It was nothing," Telford said

"Yeah, well anyway," Kitty said as she turned to look only to recognize Telford who in turn recognized her.

"YOU," Kitty and Telford said

"It's you," Telford said

Seeing Telford Kitty's mood immediately dropped, great and she was excited too, "Yeah, it's me," she said

"What are you doing, following me," Telford demanded

"As if, I got better things to do than to follow you around. My hotel is nearby, I was just taking a walk," Kitty said

Telford scoffed, "Whatever," he said

"Yeah whatever," Kitty said, she then continued with her walk, well she would have if she wasn't stopped.

"Wait," Telford said making Kitty stop.

Kitty turns her head to look at Telford, "What," she asked

Good question. What? As in what was he doing? He's not supposed to be talking to them. His father said not to, they could ruin everything. But he can't help it, he's never met another mutant before. "Are you really a mutant," Telford asked

"Yeah, I am," Kitty simply said

"What, what can you do," Telford asked curiously.

"I can become intangible," Kitty answered

"And you came here, just to see me," Telford said

Kitty sighed, "Pretty much yeah, we discovered you two days ago and thought that maybe we could help you," she said

"How could you help me," Telford asked

Kitty paused she remembered how Telford saved that little girl and then what both Professor Xavier and Peter said to her. Xavier said that just because he has a bad attitude doesn't mean they should abandon him, he believed that there is good in him. Peter said that he deserves the right to make the decision on what he's gonna do with his life. Both said that Telford isn't Lance, but that's all she can see when she looks at him. Even now when he's curious about Xavier's.

Lance was curious too, when she and he dated he had asked some questions about the institute, questions that made her think that he just might have been thinking to give it another chance. It didn't matter because Lance never wound up coming back, even when it meant being with her. She loves Peter and doesn't care what Lance is doing but the memory still hurts her, she really thought that he cared about her.

Kitty looks at Telford again, he isn't Lance, and she came here to get him to join them. "How about you come with me, we can get something to eat, and I'll tell you how we can help you," Kitty said

"Get something to eat? Like a date," Telford asked

Kitty sighed, "I have a boyfriend," she clarified, "Now what do you say?"

"My father told me to stay away from you, but I suppose if we were to suddenly go to the same restaurant and we were forced to sit at the same table then there is nothing I could do about it," Telford said

Kitty rolled her eyes, "Nicely done justifying that. There's a restaurant nearby, come on," she said, she then turned around and headed to the restaurant that she was near, Telford following behind her.

Restaurant

Kitty and Telford were sitting at a table outside the restaurant, it was such a nice day, Kitty wanted to enjoy the sun. They both had food on the table, Kitty had a salad, while Telford had a ham sandwich. When they had got to the restaurant and shown to their table, they had spent the duration of the time in silence and focused on getting their food. Now though the food was out, and it was time to talk.

"I suppose that your father informed you on who my friends and I are and where we're from," Kitty said getting a nod from Telford.

"He said that you're all the X-Men," Telford said getting a nod from Kitty.

"That's true, my name is Katherine Pryde, people call me Kitty, but as an X-Man, I'm Shadowcat," Kitty said

"Shadowcat," Telford said, he then had a look of realization, "Now I remember, you're the girl who walks through walls."

Kitty sighed, "Damn Norah Winters," she muttered, it's because of her that Kitty got that dumb nickname. "Yes, that's me, and the guy who was with me, the one you called a loser. His name is Kurt Wagner, his X-Man codename is Nightcrawler, he can teleport."

That got Telford's attention, "Really? He can teleport," he asked

Kitty nodded, "Yep, he can poof from one location to the other, and the guy who spoke to your father, his name is Scott Summers, codename Cyclops, he's the leader of the X-men, and can shoot lasers from his eyes. We protect humanity from any mutant who wishes to cause harm. Our founder Charles Xavier believes that humans and mutants can co-exist with one another and live in peace. The X-Men, we promote that philosophy, and we believe in that dream as well, it's why we fight," she said

"Would I have to be an X-Man if I joined," Telford said getting a head shake from Kitty.

"That is a common misconception, everyone believes because of our ages and because we were the first students, that if someone joins the institute then that means that they will be forced to fight. They couldn't be more wrong. The Xavier institute was created to teach young mutants to use their powers so that they could go out in the world and live their lives without fear. We teach control, responsibility, and morality," Kitty said

"I do have control though; I know how to use my powers. Is that all you can offer," Telford asked

Kitty shook her head, "No, we also offer acceptance, and a sense of belonging," she said

"What do you mean by that," Telford asked

"Tell me, does it ever frustrate you that you can't use your powers as much as you want? You can't use it in your day-to-day life. Can't talk about it with people, the ups and downs because you're afraid how they will react to the powers or even you being a mutant," Kitty said, she could see the look of uncertainty on his face. "You do. At the Xavier Institute you don't have to worry about any of that, you can use your powers whenever you want. It's encouraged to use your powers, well as long you don't bully people with them. The Xavier Institute has a no bullying policy. Kids at the institute use their powers to pull pranks and have fun all the time. I'll admit to being a victim of a prank. I'll also admit to pulling some of my own." That got Telford to smile, "You can also make friends there, friends who understand you and the challenges that you go through. People who have gone through similar experiences as you, they can understand you. At Xavier's Institute we help and lean on each other. I'm one of the first students that the institute had. I was freaked out. Who wouldn't be freaked out by everything that has happened? Everything was so overwhelming at the time, but I got used to it and eventually the people who were strangers to me at first, they became my friends and later my family. I'd do anything for them. I'd die for them," Kitty said

"Wow, that sound unbelievable and maybe a little intense," Telford said

"Ok, maybe using the whole I'd die for them was a bit much. But it's true, they're family, they're my brothers and sisters. If you join the institute I guarantee, any kind of loneliness that you feel. You will never feel it again, because at the institute you will gain a family and family looks out for each other. Now don't think that it's gonna be some type of mutant paradise. The staff are tough, but they can be supportive, patient, well most of them are patient. They will lay down their lives to protect you. You would be expected to train when necessary. All students go through training, it's to help them defend themselves if threatened. The trainer, he's tough, incredibly so, possibly borderline psychotic, we've never had him tested. But despite that, all of the staff are good people, you would be in good hands," Kitty said

"What about the X-Men and that other mutant group," Telford asked

"Joining the X-Men and New Mutants is a choice, no one is expected to join if they don't want too. Every one of the X-Men and New Mutants were all asked whether or not they wanted to fight. We all just wound up saying yes. Truth be told since we started getting more students, we haven't asked anyone to join," Kitty said

"Really," Telford asked surprised

"Really, having untrained mutants going out and fighting is a very bad idea for many reasons. Maybe when the students start showing better control of their powers and do good in their training then we may ask, but right now, we are focusing on teaching them control and giving them a safe environment to be themselves. You don't have to join the X-Men if you don't want to Telford. No one can force you to do something that you don't want to do," Kitty said

Telford sighed, 'I'm not so sure about that,' he thought

The entire meal was spent with Kitty telling Telford everything that the institute could offer him and what kinds of activities they do. Telford honestly found it all interesting and couldn't help but keep asking questions. The more he found out about the institute the more he wanted to go there.

Kitty herself is starting to have a different way of thinking when it comes to Telford. He and Lance really are similar in a lot of ways, what she realized though is the difference between them is that Lance had the influence of Magneto and Mystique that furthered his distrust and hatred in humanity, while Telford doesn't seem to have that. Perhaps if she does reach out to him then she can save him, show him that better path that she tried to show Lance, and maybe Telford just might take it.

After the meal, which Telford paid for much to Kitty's surprise, she didn't expect that. It was time for the two to separate. "Well, thanks for paying for the food, and for hearing me out" Kitty said

"No problem, it was really interesting and informative," Telford said, he then deflated. "Truth be told I'm not sure I'll be able to go."

"Why's that," Kitty asked

"My father likes to keep me close," Telford said

"Oh, the overprotective type," Kitty stated, she's seen overprotective parents during the times she's tagged along in recruiting students.

"You could say that," Telford said with an undertone in his voice which Kitty caught.

Kitty frowned, "No one can make you do something that you don't want to do Telford. You're your own person, your decisions are yours to make not your father's. If you don't want to join then we won't force you, but if you do decide to join, we will welcome you. Again, it's your choice. Just make sure when you make it, it's for you and not your father. Anyway, I have to go, see you later" Kitty said, she then walked off headed back to the hotel.

Telford watched Kitty walk away with a sense of longing, he would love to go with her and join the institute. But his father would never let him. Would they let him if they found out what he's done? Would they welcome him or reject him? Telford sighed and headed home; he has to get ready for tonight.

Tipton Hotel

Scott and Kurt were in their hotel room doing their own activities, Scott was on his laptop doing some work for one of his classes, thank god for Tony Stark for making this possible. Since he quit making weapons, Tony Stark was really able to advance a lot of their day-to-day technology and made a lot of things possible, one of them online classes. Kurt was sitting on one of the chairs doing his homework. The others were given his and Kitty's homework for them to do. They scanned the papers, sent them through email, and he and Scott were able to print them out. Just then Kitty phases through the door getting the boys attention, "Hey Kitty," Kurt said

"How was your walk," Scott asked

"It was good," Kitty said as she sat on one of the beds, "I ran into Telford."

That got the two X-Men's attention, "Really? What happened," Scott asked

"He was rude at first, but he was curious about the institute. I invited him to lunch, and I was able to tell him about us and what we were all about," Kitty informed

"And he listened," Kurt asked surprised getting a nod from Kitty.

"Surprisingly yes, he listened to everything I said, and he asked me questions. He was genuinely curious," Kitty said, she still can't believe that.

"Do you think that he'll come with us," Scott asked

Kitty thought about it for a moment, remembering everything that she spoke to Telford about. "I'm not sure, Telford told me that his father likes to keep him close. I guess his father is the overprotective type," she said

'I'm not sure if it's overprotectiveness,' Scott thought, thinking about it more Mr. Porter's reaction seemed more possessive than protective. If it's possessiveness, then they are gonna have a much harder time convincing Telford to come with them. A possessive person is willing to do whatever they can to keep what's theirs and depending on mentality, morality, and attitude, that can be dangerous. "We should update the professor, good job Kitty." Scott has to say that he really is impressed, he honestly thought that if Kitty ever saw Telford again, she'd tell him to get lost. The fact that she was able to put her feelings aside and talk to him about the institute was impressive.

"Before we contact the professor, I think I know what we can do involving the weapons theft," Kitty said getting curious looks from the boys.

"Really," Kurt asked

"What is it," Scott asked

Kitty looked at the boys and smiled, "Ok listen up," she said

Hideout

Inside the hideout, which had 30 people in it doing different activities, inside an office Eddy was at a table surrounding him were five other individuals. "Alright, so the deal has been set up then," Eddy asked looking at one of the men.

"The deal is set, we meet them at 9:30 at the old factory," the man answered getting a nod from Eddy.

"Good, we make this deal then we're set," Eddy said, they were able to acquire a lot of weapons from their heist. They'll sell some of the weapons but keep the good ones for themselves, those will come in handy with his takeover.

"Especially considering who the deal is with," another man said

"We need to be ready, get everything set up and arm the men," Eddy said

"You think that he'll double-cross us," a man asked

"Don't know, but I am not gonna take any chances," Eddy said, just then Telford enters the office and walks up to his father and the group. "Well, it's about damn time, where the hell have you been," Eddy demanded

"I was out taking a walk then I got something to eat," Telford answered, leaving out the part where he talked to Kitty.

Eddy studied Telford for a moment trying to see if he was lying or not. After a moment Eddy decided to move on, "Ok, get to work, the deal has been set," he said

"Yes sir," Telford said, he then walked off to help prepare for the deal.

Somewhere in Boston, 9:00 pm

Sneaking across one of the many rooftops trying to blend in the shadows were Shadowcat, Cyclops, and Nightcrawler. Taking Peter's advice Kitty had gone to Scott and Kurt and told them what Peter had told her. After that the three updated the professor on what was going on, and after receiving a good job from Xavier the three ended communication and went to find the information that they needed. Thankfully all cities tend to be similar when it comes to where you find the scum of the city. One of the things she learned as a Bayville Siren is that bad guys have their own environment or habitat, you just have to know where that habitat is, and thankfully she knew how to identify their habitats. It took a while to find any kind of info that seemed even remotely reliable but after some time searching and asking around, they discovered that there was an arms deal taking place that night. Apparently, someone called the Big Guy was selling some weapons that he "liberated" from Hammer Industries. Now the Big Guy has set up some deal with a mob boss from out of the city and is hoping to cash in. After a bit more investigating, they were able to get the location of the deal.

The Big Guy. What kind of name is that? Sounds like a knock off from The Big Man who Peter has told her about some of his run ins with the mob boss, his first run in wasn't so good. Apparently, the Big Guy is the criminal in charge of the group who's been committing crimes. He appeared a couple of years ago and formed a gang called the Vanishers. From what she'd heard the Vanishers were pretty big and The Big Guy has started gaining a reputation for himself and his gang ever since. Every job they've been in has been a success. The Big Guy was able to climb the criminal ladder and became one of the most respected and feared criminals in the city, nothing is too underhanded for this guy. This guy, he's stolen, raped, murdered, and more, all to get to where he is today. It churns Shadowcat's stomach thinking of the guy, and to think that she is gonna see him in person.

She wonders what an arms deal looks like, she only knows what she's seen on TV and stories from Peter. He told her it really depends on how high-end the criminals are and whether or not they are selling to one person. Normally an arms deal is a meetup of two parties at a mutual location, there is the introduction, if the buyer is smart there will be a demonstration, there will then be the discussion on cost. Peter told her how surprised she would be just how business like this stuff can be. Some deals can go awry and one or both parties would double-cross the other. Their plan would be to kill the other party and keep the weapons and money for themselves. Those types of things only happen when it comes to the gang, situation, or reason. Normally criminals do stick to the deal and both parties leave with what they want, which honestly surprised Kitty. She always thought there would be more betrayal involved. She wonders what it will be like to break up an arms deal, this is the first major street crime that she will ever have busted, she must admit she is kind of excited.

The three walks to the edge of the roof and crouches down, "Ok, so if the intel is right then that is where the arms deal is gonna take place," Cyclops said gesturing toward an old Heinz ketchup factory. "We have thirty minutes till the deal starts."

"So, vee just vait zen," Nightcrawler asked

"Here's an idea. Why not just go inside now, and find some hiding places. We'll have the lay of the land, and we won't have to sneak past anyone," Shadowcat offered

"Good idea, let's go," Cyclops said, with that the three left the roof and headed to the factory. Once there they take some time to look around the factory, noting all possible exits, and hiding places for them. After twenty minutes of roaming, Cyclops decides that they should choose their hiding places, the deal would start in ten minutes. With that all three went to their respective places, Cyclops went to one of the top levels and kneeled down, Shadowcat phased herself in one of the rooms but kept watch from an open window, and Nightcrawler stayed ground level using the color of his fur to blend in the shadows.

Vanishers

Two vans and a truck were driving along the roads of Boston headed to the factory. In the lead van was Eddy with Telford sitting next to him, in front of them were six other guys. In the second van were more guys following the second van was a truck, and following from a distance are some more of his gang. They have to be prepared for a double cross; the guy they are dealing with didn't get to where he was for being nice.

"Ok, we'll be at the factory in five minutes, you all know what to do, spread out and keep an eye out for any cops or snoopers. Anyone witnesses what we are doing kill them, I don't care if it's man, woman, or child, no witnesses, got it," Eddy said

"Got it," everyone in the van except Telford said, he was just quiet.

"We have some more guys following us from the distance, they are prepared to move in if needed, Vanisher here," Eddy said motioning towards Telford, "Will be in charge of transporting them here." Eddy then turned to look at Telford, "You got that," he asked/ demanded

"Yes sir," Telford said

"Hey," Eddy said making Telford look at him only for him to see a warning glare, "Don't screw this up."

Telford sighed, "I won't," Telford said

Mob boss

On another side of the city there were some more vans plus a limo driving along the road their destination the same as the Vanishers. In the limo was the mob boss, sitting across from him is a smaller man with black hair, glasses, and a grey suit. "Sir if I may," the grey suited man asked pushing up his glasses.

"Yes Stanley," the mob boss said

"Why are we dealing with this man? What is the point of this? We are well equipped, and if we wanted any of Hammer's weapons, we could get it ourselves," Stanley said

The mob boss interlocked his fingers, "I'm curious about him, he has built up a reputation. He's becoming quite big around here, he's also become more and more ambitious with his crimes. I want to see how far he intends to reach," he said

"You think he will try to go to New York," Stanley said

"Perhaps, I already have two headaches to deal with. I don't need another nuisance," the mob boss replied.

"So, if he proves to be a problem," Stanley asked

"We take him out like everyone else," the mob bass answered

Factory

The Vanishers are the first to arrive at the factory, once they arrive, they all get out of the vehicles and Eddy wearing his mask becoming The Bug Guy orders some of his men to keep a look out for anyone who could ruin the deal. What he doesn't know is that hidden around the factory are three X-Men waiting.

Cyclops who is kneeling on the top level was observing everyone, his attention went to the guy giving orders. Tapping his earpiece Cyclops speaks, "Alright so it looks like the guy giving the orders is The Big Guy," he said

"Vich of zese guys do you sink is zee mutant," Nightcrawler asked from his hiding spot on the ground.

"Don't know, we'll have to keep visual, look out for anything that seems out of the ordinary," Cyclops said

Two minutes later, a limo with some trucks following it pulled up into the factory getting everyone's attention. The Big Guy steps up so he can go meet the person in the limo. The limo door opens, and everyone holds their breath to see the person reveal themselves. A white suited leg is shown stepping out of the limo.

"No way," Shadowcat said as she recognized the person who exits the limo. Who wouldn't recognize the man? The NYPD have been after him for years. Peter has been fighting him for three years.

"I can't believe it," Nightcrawler said

"This…is bad," Cyclops said

The X-Men look on in shock, because the person who exits the limo is a bald, blue eyed, 6 foot 7, big man wearing a white suit, this man is none other than Wilson Fisk, The Kingpin of Crime himself.

Fisk closes the door and looks around the factory as his own men file out to take perimeter. Not too bad of a place to do a deal, Fisk has to admit that the man knew what to do. Fisk then walks up to The Big Guy and stops in front of him.

"Mr. Fisk, first off allow me to welcome you to Boston," The Big Guy said as he offered his hand to Fisk who shakes it.

"Thank you, it has been a long time since I've set foot in Boston," Fisk said

As the two men were talking the three X-Men were having their own discussion.

"I can't believe it, zat's zeee Kingpin," Nightcrawler said as he looked at the man with wide eyes. And he thought that he looked big on TV, the guy is like some giant.

"Wilson Fisk," Shadowcat said

"The Kingpin of Crime, one of the biggest mob bosses in New York," Cyclops said

Shadowcat couldn't help but scoff at that, one of the biggest, Wilson Fisk is the biggest mob boss in New York. If the criminal underworld were a company Wilson Fisk would be the CEO of the whole enterprise. The man has no superpowers, but Peter considers him one of his most dangerous adversaries, suddenly Peter's warning rings in her ears "With the right influence, a regular person can be just as dangerous as any supervillain. You don't need superpowers to be dangerous." Fisk is definitely a good example of that warning. Peter has faced Fisk, foiled his plans, and has helped arrest him plenty of times. But after every arrest no convictions were ever made because, when they'd make it to trial, the charges would be dropped, witnesses either decided not to testify or wound-up dead. Everyone knows what Fisk does, there is no doubt in their minds that he is an evil man, and that he has committed many crimes, the trick is proving it in the courtroom, and so far no one has succeeded in that, if Peter knew that Kitty was in the same vicinity as Wilson Fisk, well she's quite sure he'd tell her to leave, forget about the mutant and leave. He is such an overprotective boyfriend. Too bad she can't leave; they need to stop this gang, find this mutant, and put a stop to them as well.

"So, shall we get this deal on with," The Big Guy asked

"Please proceed," Fisk said

The Big Guy turned toward his guys and orders them to get the weapons, the men open the truck and Vanisher rolls a crate to his father and Fisk.

"And who is this young lad," Fisk asked taking a look of the person rolling the crate, the mask covers his face, but he can easily tell the age of the person by their skin and physique, and from what Fisk sees he is nothing but a boy.

"This is Vanisher," The Big Guy said

"Vanisher? Tell me boy, how long have you been part of this gang," Fisk asked

"Vanisher was one of the first members," The Big Guy said not letting Vanisher talk.

"Is that true," Kingpin asked

"Yes, it's true, I was one of the first to join," Vanisher said

"Interesting," Fisk said

"Let's continue," The Big Guy said as he took out a crowbar and opened the crate. He then reaches in and takes out an assault rifle. "A Hammer 880 assault rifle, one pull of the trigger gives a five-round burst of armor piercing rounds. This is a weapon of destruction. No bullet proof vest can stand up to this. Certainly, don't have to worry about one shot not doing the trick," The Big Guy said as he showed off the gun to Fisk.

"My shots always do the trick," Fisk said as he looked at the weapon, he took the weapon himself to have a closer look, and to feel it. Once his observation was over, he handed the gun back, "Impressive."

"The pricing is $20,000 a rifle," Eddy said

"zat must be some rifle," Nightcrawler commented

"Now hang on Big Guy," Fisk said in a mocking tone which The Big Guy noticed but didn't say anything about. "How about a test to see if these actually work?"

"You don't trust me Mr. Fisk," The Big Guy asked

"I don't trust anyone, and I only do things in certainties. This gun is no certainty," Fisk said frustrating The Big Guy, he hates it when people question him.

"Fine," The Big Guy said as he took a gun, he's read up on these to know how it works, loading up the gun The Big Guy points it at the office that Shadowcat is hiding in which she notices.

"Uh oh," Shadowcat said, just then The Big Guy fires the gun all five bullets shoots through the wall straight at Shadowcat who phases right through them. Shadowcat looks behind her and sees the bullets dug deep in the wall, "Shit."

"Kitty, are you ok," Cyclops says through the com.

Shadowcat taps the com in her ear, "Yeah, I'm ok, I phased through the bullets, no harm done. Only thing that got hurt was the wall and window," Shadowcat said, she then went back to watching the meeting.

"So, what do you think," The Big Guy asked

"Impressive, what else do you have," Fisk asked

The Big Guy gestures for another crate and one of his guys rolls it to them. The Big Guy opens the crate and takes out what looked like a shield, "This baby can block all gun fire and protect you from small explosions such as grenades, and repulsor beams.

"Let's test that theory shall we," Fisk said as he called one of his men to step forward. "Are you ready Big Guy?"

"Excuse me," The Big Guy asked

"Well, if you are so confident in this shield then you have no problem being the test subject, correct," Fisk asked

The Big Guy gritted his teeth, he really did not want to get shot at, but he couldn't let Fisk think he's weak, "No problem at all," he said as he put up the shield in front of him. Fisk's guy pointed the pun at The Big Guy and waited for the order.

"Fire," Fisk said, the gunman then fires his weapon at the shield, and it stood strong. Finally, the gunman shoots his last bullet, they take a look and there's not even a scratch on it. Seeing that there is no more firing The Big Guy puts the shield down, he is actually kind of surprised, he didn't feel any of those bullets. "Very nice," Fisk comments.

"This meets your approval then," The Big Guy asked

"Of course," Fisk said

"Good, we can move on to the next one then," The Big Guy said as another crate was brought to them, and that's what happened through the entire deal, crates being brought, The Big Guy explaining what they can do, Fisk asking for demonstrations much to The Big Guy's annoyance. Questions were asked and answered.

As she watched the entire thing Shadowcat couldn't help but think that Peter was right, that these things really are like a business, if they weren't in an abandoned factory surrounded by a bunch of guys with guns and she didn't know that the two men were villains, she would have actually thought that this may be a legit business deal.

"We finally got our final weapon," The Big Guy said

"Oh," Fisk said

The Big Guy gestures toward his guys to bring the crates up, "I hear that you have been having a bug problem for the past couple of years," The Big Guy said

That got both Fisk and Shadowcat's attention, both knowing what The Big Guy means, and while Shadowcat tenses, Fisk can't help but grow annoyed. "Yes Spider-Man, he's been in my way for a long time. Just like any spider he is a true annoyance. Not to worry though, one day I will have his head mounted on my wall."

When Shadowcat heard that her head immediately pictured Peter's head hanging on a wall with Fisk staring at it smugly. It took nearly everything she had to keep herself from rushing that fatso and taking him down herself for making such remarks and threats against her Peter, her boyfriend, her baby. Logan has taught her a few things that she would be more than happy to use on Fisk.

"What if I could help you make that reality happen a lot quicker," The Big Guy said gaining Fisk's interest.

"What," Shadowcat whispered, there is no way this guy has something that could kill Peter. What could he have? Shadowcat's heart started to beat quickly, her palms are starting to feel sweaty, her mind is racing, and her body is ready to move.

Just then The Big Guy opens the crates and in them are robots, "Now what are these," Fisk asked curiously

"The next generation of modern warfare, in the future these will be what the military are going to send in on suicide missions, but for now how about we send them towards an arachnid nuisance for you," The Big Guy said making Fisk give an evil smile.

Seeing those robots Shadowcat immediately thought of them fighting and killing Peter, and immediately she went on alert, they had to destroy those robots, and beat the hell out of both Fisk and The Big Guy. "We have to move now," Shadowcat said through the commlink.

"No Kitty we can't," Cyclops said

"We have to," Shadowcat said with more force which both Cyclops and Nightcrawler noticed, they could hear the urgency in her voice, and there was. Those things are gonna be sent out to exterminate her boyfriend, the love of her life, her soulmate. She was not gonna let that happen, fuck the mutant, she has to save her boyfriend.

"Kitty, I know that you are a fan of Spider-Man, and you don't want anything to happen to him, but we have to stay put. We have to find out who this mutant is," Cyclops tried to reason with her. He can't physically stop her, she is literally on the other side of the factory, not that he could stop her anyways considering her intangibility.

"I'm sorry Scott but I'm not gonna let them do it. I won't let them kill him," Shadowcat said getting ready to move and take those bastards out, she just needs an opening.

With Fisk and The Big Guy, Fisk is looking at the robots, "What all can they do," Fisk asked

"Well, they are programmed with hand-to-hand combat training, their marksmanship is better than Hawkeye's," The Big Guy explained

"That's a bold statement," Fisk said

"They can run at 100 miles an hour, they can bend steel, they have heat, infrared, and ultraviolet sensors, so there is nowhere your target can hide. You can also program your target in them, and they will pursue no matter how long it takes them, they are relentless, and fearless," The Big Guy explained

"Very interesting," Fisk said as he looks at the robots, "Can we have a demonstration?"

When Shadowcat heard demonstration that's when she knew she had to move she had to short circuit those robots, "I'm going in," Shadowcat said

"KITTY NO," Cyclops said

Just as Shadowcat was about to move in, when suddenly.

"Actually, we can't demonstrate, the power source is so limited that it would be foolish to use it," The Big Guy said

"And just what is this power source," Fisk asked

"Ithium 12, apparently if you want them to be strong enough to face a superhero, you need a strong power source. Without it…," The Big Guy answered hesitantly

"They are just a bunch of toys that Spider-Man would take apart," Fisk said, he knows Spider-Man, has been fighting him for years, ordinary robots won't kill him. "Looks like you really have nothing of interest after all."

Shadowcat stopped when she heard that, a limited power source. Did she hear right? Fisk isn't interested in buying the robots.

The Big Guy was taken aback by that, "Mr. Fisk, wait, trust me when I say that just because we don't have a power source for them doesn't mean you can't get it," The Big Guy said

"How do I even know that these would work. For all I know you're just ripping me off," Kingpin said

"I would never do that," The Big Guy said seriously, he needs this deal, the Kingpin has a ton of money and resources if he makes this deal, he could use the money for his own gear, he could also use whatever resources that Fisk has for his plans. "You can trust me Mr. Fisk," The Big Guy said trying to convince Fisk to make the buy. He was really counting on these robots to sell.

"I don't trust people who wear masks. You want me to trust you, then take off the mask," Fisk said stepping closer to The Big Guy, Fisk's frame dwarfing his, but The Big Guy was able to stand strong and not show fear.

"I can't do that; our identities must be kept a secret. There are a lot of snoops who would rat me out for some kind of deal. I'd figure someone like you would understand that," The Big Guy shot back

"Oh, I understand perfectly, Eddy," Fisk said giving The Big Guy a superior smile.

Everyone in the factory froze when they heard the name. The Vanishers froze because they couldn't believe that their boss's identity was just revealed. How did that happen? He's always been the most cautious of them all, and always made a point to never take your mask off or say your name, anonymity was their greatest weapon, well that and his son.

Vanisher couldn't believe that Fisk knew his father's name, he was always so careful, always giving lectures, always calling him an idiot when he did things that could compromise their identity.

The Big Guy's blood ran cold when Fisk said his name. How did Fisk know his name? There is no way he could know, he had to be guessing. Looking at Fisk, he saw certainty in his eyes, no, he knew. Fisk was certain, he knew who The Big Guy was. But how? He was always so careful, always made sure he never repeated last times mistakes.

The X-Men were shocked for a different reason. Eddy, they knew that name, that was the name of Telford's father. But that can't be, he can't be a criminal. What father would become a criminal while he has a son? To Cyclops it seemed to make sense, Eddy's possessiveness of his son. Only a criminal could be that possessive, but if Eddy was that possessive over Telford. Eddy is a criminal, Telford is a mutant, the gang has a mutant helping them. Does that mean?

Shadowcat looked on, she came up with the same conclusion as Cyclops, but she won't believe it, there are a lot of Eddies out there, this guy could be another one, and Telford, he may be like Lance, but she'll admit that he is actually a decent guy, he just needs a little guidance. He's not a criminal, a delinquent maybe, but not a criminal. She won't believe it unless she sees it.

"What did you say," The Big Guy asked

"You heard Eddy," Kingpin said

"I don't know who you think I am but that is not my name," The Big Guy denied

"My, dear man, do you really think that I would go in this without any research? A good rule in business, know the person that you are doing business with, and I made sure to get to know you Eddy Porter," Kingpin said, he then looked at Vanisher who is next to The Big Guy, "And I'm guessing that is your son Telford."

The X-Men all tensed at that. So, it's true, the man behind the mask is Telford's father, Eddy Porter. But how? How did he get into this life, and why? But if that's Eddy then does that mean that Telford is with them? Kitty won't believe it; Telford's father may be a creep but that doesn't mean Telford is part of this.

"Come now Mr. Porter, what do you say you end this charade, take off your mask and we can do proper business," Fisk said

The Big Guy gritted his teeth in frustration and reluctantly signaled his gang to take off their masks. Once his gang's masks are gone showing their faces, the only ones wearing them were The Big Guy and Vanisher.

"Go on," Fisk urged, reluctantly The Big Guy takes off the mask confirming his identity to the X-Men. "The boy as well," Fisk said

Eddy looked at Vanisher, "Do it," he ordered, reluctantly Vanisher takes off his mask revealing his face to everyone in the factory.

Now that the X-Men sees his face was, there was no denying it, Telford was the criminal mutant that they were looking for. He was the one who helped with all those crimes. Shadowcat couldn't believe it, all this time it was Telford, she couldn't help but feel betrayed and feel like a fool. She thought that she could help Telford, thought she could guide him. She thought that it wasn't too late that she could save him from becoming like Lance. It turns out though that he couldn't be saved, he has been doing this since before they were in Boston. Telford can't be saved, and now the only thing that she can think of doing is taking him in and locking him away. She will not make the same mistake twice. Anger then fills Shadowcat, without thinking she stands up from her spot, "TELFORD," she said getting everyone's attention.

"Kitty," Telford said in surprise.

"HOW DARE YOU I CAN'T BELIEVE I ALMOST TRUSTED YOU, TO THINK I ACTUALLY THOUGHT THAT YOU WERE A GOOD PERSON. BUT YOU ARE NOTHING BUT A CRIMINAL," Shadowcat said

"What is she doing here, and what does she mean by that," Eddy demanded, making Telford hesitate which Eddy notices. The little bastard spoke to the girl, he disobeyed him and spoke to her, feeling anger course through him, Eddy turns to Shadowcat, "Kill her," he ordered

"NO," Telford said, just then everyone in the room shot their guns at Shadowcat, who immediately went intangible to keep from getting hurt.

"DAMMIT," Cyclops said, he then stood up and started shooting down gang members.

Seeing his men being blasted down by lasers Eddy turns to see Cyclops on the upper levels.

"Coming through," Nightcrawler said as he teleported in front of one of the Vanishers and kicked him to the ground, he then teleported again and punched another member twice in the face and then kicked him in the chest knocking him to the ground. One of Fisk's men then tries to shoot Nightcrawler, but he teleports away and appears in the air upside-down above the goon. Nightcrawler grabs the goon and just as he lands on the ground, he throws the goon. He then teleports away to move on to the next thugs.

Eddy couldn't believe this, his cover was blown, there was no going back to his house. Everything was going perfectly until the X-Men showed up, and now they know who his is. Dammit, what is he supposed to do now?

While all of this was going on Shadowcat was running toward where Eddy, Fisk, and Telford were. The goons try to shoot her down, but she phases through every bullet, not even slowing down. A goon tries to punch Shadowcat, but she dodges the punch and kicks the guy in the stomach and then punches him in the face. A crack is heard, and the goon is sent 8 feet. Shadowcat doesn't think much of it though because another goon tries to shoot at her, but the bullets go through Shadowcat, she charges and then jump kicks the man to the ground. In the corner of her eyes Shadowcat sees something coming towards her head, she activates her powers and the object which is a hand holding a gun goes right through her. Shadowcat grabs the arm and judo threw the goon to the ground.

"I think that it is time we leave," Fisk said as he turned around to leave.

"Wait," Eddy said trying to stop Fisk, but the Kingpin ignored him and opened his door, he then turned his head to look at Eddy.

"Good luck Mr. Porter, if you and your men survive this then you just may make it," Kingpin said, he then entered the limo and he and his gang left the factory.

"NO," Eddy said as he watched Fisk's gang leave in dismay. Eddy looked around and saw that the three X-Men were taking out his men easily, they stood no chance against them. He then got angry they ruined everything, he was about to make the biggest deal of his whole career and they ruined it, he turned his head and saw Shadowcat take down two of his men easily. He felt red hot rage at the girl, "YOU BITCH, I'LL FUCKING KILL YOU," he said, Eddy pointed his assault rifle at Shadowcat and started shooting at her. Shadowcat saw it though and immediately phased through the bullets she then continued her path toward Eddy's direction, "YOU WANT ME BITCH, COME AND GET ME." Eddy continued on firing at Shadowcat but none touched her much to his frustration, just as Shadowcat was in reaching distance Eddy got ready to fight her, he tried to bash her with the butt of his gun but it just went right through her. Shadowcat then ran right through Eddy much to his surprise and ran past Telford, she looked at him and meets his eyes. As he saw her eyes Telford knew that Shadowcat was angry. Shadowcat passed Telford and kept running toward her destination. Eddy turned following where Shadowcat was going, when he saw where he became frantic, "STOP HER."

It was too late though, because Shadowcat made it to her target which was the robots, she jumped up and phased right through the robots short circuiting them. Those nearby could hear the interior of the robots becoming fried. Eddy looks on in shock, he isn't sure what she did, but she wouldn't have done it for no reason. "In case you didn't know," Shadowcat said getting Eddy and Telford's attention. "My ability is intangibility; I can phase through virtually anything. This power has some cool features, one of them is that if I phase through technology, they short out to the point there is no fixing them, cool right," Shadowcat smirked after she got done explaining her powers.

Eddy was furious at that, "Why you," he then turned to his gang who were getting beat up. "EVERYONE RETREAT, WE'RE LEAVING NOW." With that order everyone went to the vehicles to try and escape.

"Not with those weapons," Cyclops said as he fired his optic blasts as the truck's tires making it undrivable.

"NO," Eddy said

"It's over Eddy, give up now," Cyclops said as he, Shadowcat, and Nightcrawler gathered together.

"You think you have me, just wait. You haven't seen everything yet," Eddy said, he then looked at Telford. "Vanisher, take them out," he ordered

"WHAT," the four mutants said

"Dad," Telford asked stunned

"You're tough enough to take them, take them out and meet us at the hideout," Eddy said, he then took off running.

"Oh no you don't," Nightcrawler said as he teleported in front of Eddy, "Hi zere."

"Hi yourself," a voice said from behind Nightcrawler, the X-Man looked to see who was behind him and was punched in the face hard. Nightcrawler was knocked to the ground away from Eddy, who gave the mutant a smug look and continued to the van.

Shadowcat and Cyclops looked on in shock as they saw Telford above Nightcrawler. One moment Telford was in front of them, the next he vanished and appeared behind Nightcrawler.

"He can teleport," Cyclops commented

"That's why they were able to get in all those places without breaking in," Shadowcat said

Nightcrawler got up from the ground wiping the blood off his lip, "Zat hurt," he said

Shadowcat and Cyclops ran up to Nightcrawler and helped him up, "You ok," Shadowcat asked

"I'm fine," Nightcrawler responded, the three X-Men then looked at Telford.

"It doesn't have to be this way Telford, give up. Please step aside and let us through," Cyclops said

"I can't do that," Telford responded

"Your father is a criminal Telford; he's hurt a lot of people. He needs to be taken in," Cyclops said

"I won't let you take him in. If I must I will take you three down," Telford said

"So that's just it, you're gonna take us down? All to protect a criminal. I guess it's not surprising, only criminals look out for each other," Shadowcat said receiving a hurt look from Telford.

"Kitty," Scott said but Shadowcat ignored him.

"You know I actually thought I was wrong about you Telford. I was actually starting to think that you were a good person under all of that attitude. I thought that perhaps I could save you, but now I see that it's too late, you are beyond saving. YOU'RE NOTHING BUT A HOOD! A SCUMMY MURDERING RAPING HOOD," Shadowcat said

Nightcrawler and Cyclops were surprised at Kitty's anger but could understand it. Telford was hurt by Kitty's words; he can see the anger in her and knows now that he will never be accepted at the institute. If that is the case, then he has no other choice, he will follow his father to the very end. Telford's eyes hardened, "So, I'm nothing but a hood, heh. I'm nothing but a criminal. Fine, I'll show you a hood, I'll show you a criminal," Telford said

"There is only one place your kind belongs, and that's locked away, behind bars. You, your father, and your gang are going down," Shadowcat said

"No, we're not," Telford said

Seeing no other way around this, Cyclops fired his optic blast at Telford, but just as it was gonna hit Telford teleported away. The three X-Men were immediately on guard, he could be anywhere. Just then Telford teleports behind Cyclops, interlocks his hands together and slams them on the back of his head making Cyclops yell in pain and kneels. Nightcrawler and Shadowcat see this and immediately Shadowcat charges and throws a punch, but Telford teleports away and then appears beside her, he kicks her, but Shadowcat was able to block, the force make the stumble though. Telford then teleports again and kicks Shadowcat in the back hard making her yell and fall to the floor. Cyclops, who was able to get up tries to blast at Telford again but Telford teleports away, and then appears in front of Cyclops. The teleporter throws a punch which Cyclops blocks, however the X-Men leader did not expect a knee to the stomach making him bend over in pain. Telford then uppercuts him hitting him in the nose, possibly breaking it.

Nightcrawler teleports behind Telford and kicks him in the back of the head, making him fall to the ground. Telford looks to see Nightcrawler standing there. "Payback for that punch," Nightcrawler said, Telford grits his teeth and teleports, "Oh no you don't," Nightcrawler then teleports too. The two teleport all around the building every time they appear they fight. Telford punches Nightcrawler in the face, Nightcrawler teleports and appears beside Telford trying to kick him but Telford teleports behind Nightcrawler and tries to punch his back, but Nightcrawler teleports and then appears beside Telford kicking his head making him stumble. Telford glares at Nightcrawler and then teleports, Nightcrawler doing the same. They appear on a conveyor belt, Telford punches Nightcrawler in the face, Nightcrawler retaliates with his own punch, Nightcrawler then goes for another only for Telford to move his head and punch Nightcrawler in the stomach making him bend over in pain. Telford then clasps his hands together and slams them on Nightcrawler's back making him drop to the ground, Telford then kicks Nightcrawler off the conveyor best. Making him drop to the ground grunting in pain. Suddenly Telford is punched in the face making him stumble. Once he got his bearings, he looked to see who punched him only to see Shadowcat glaring at him.

"Forget about me hood. I may look fragile, but I'm not. Let me show you," Shadowcat said as she roundhouse kicked Telford, but he blocked it and then teleported. Telford then teleported behind Shadowcat and tried to punch her, but she phased right through it. A red beam then comes from nowhere and hits Telford knocking him off the conveyor belt on onto the floor.

Telford moaned in pain, those eye beams hurt, and they're hot. He then gets up and looks to see Shadowcat looking down at him from the belt, and Cyclops ten feet from her kneeling on the ground. He can also see Nightcrawler starting to get up.

"Give up," Cyclops said

"Not a chance," Telford said, he then teleports next to Cyclops and throws a punch which Cyclops just dodges and throws his own punch which Telford dodges. He then teleports to Cyclops's other side and punches him, he teleports behind Cyclops and kicks his back. Shadowcat having enough of seeing this rushes Telford and kicks him only for him to teleport away. Telford then teleports behind Shadowcat and punches her in the back of her head, making her stumble. Telford tries for a kick but Shadowcat phases right through, she then turns around and tries for a punch only for Telford to teleport away.

This is how the fight went Telford appearing, attacking, then disappearing in an instant. It was frustrating for the three X-Men, when working together they were able to get some good hits in, but when he got them alone is when he had the advantage, his hit and run giving him the upper hand, even when Nightcrawler would teleport after him. Telford had excellent control of his powers and knew how to use it to his advantage; it also seems that he had learned how to fight. Adding all this together was one big frustration for the three X-Men.

Cyclops tries to blast Telford but the criminal teleports away dodging it. Telford appears behind Cyclops and throws a punch only for Nightcrawler to appear in front of him, catching his fist, "Not so fast," Nightcrawler said as he grabbed the fist and slammed Telford over his shoulder down on the ground making him grunt in pain.

Telford gets up and gets ready to throw a punch at Nightcrawler when he feels someone grab his feet. Looking down Telford sees Shadowcat and before he could do anything Shadowcat pulls Telford and phases him to the ground, from his lower arms down. Shadowcat then phases from the ground and she and her two teammates look at Telford struggling.

"It's over," Cyclops says to Telford, just then they hear tires screech, the three X-Men look to see the vans speeding away.

"NO," Nightcrawler exclaimed

Taking advantage of their distraction, Telford teleports out of the ground and in front of them, "It's never over," Telford said, he then looks at Shadowcat with solemn eyes and teleports out, leaving the X-Men alone with a bunch of unconscious men and a truck full of weapons.

"NO," Shadowcat said

"He's gone," Cyclops said

"Now vat," Nightcrawler said

"Call the cops, have them take in these goons and return the weapons," Cyclops said, he then got out his phone and called the police.

After waiting for twenty minutes, the police had finally arrived at the scene. The X-Men then talked to the police, handed over the men and the stolen weapons. They gave the police the necessary information like the identities of Eddy and Telford, as well as describing what they looked like. Cyclops then informed the police that there was a mutant in the group and that the X-Men would be on the case too. After some hesitation, the police accepted that it was for the best to have the X-Men's help. After that was done the three X-Men went back to the hotel.

Tipton Hotel

Scott and Kurt who were out of their uniforms and into their regular clothes were gathered in front of the laptop, on the laptop was Professor Xavier with Logan and Ororo. Scott and Kurt were telling the professor about what had happened. "Then everyone in the gang took off their masks, and we see Telford and his father," Scott said

"Zey vere part of zee gang zis whole time and Telford really vas zee mutant vee vere looking for. Kitty really called it," Kurt said

"Yeah, which brings us to what happened next," Scott said

"Which was," Xavier asked

"Kitty," Scott said as he sighed, "She was angry and let everyone in the factory know it. She screamed at Telford from her hiding spot blowing our cover."

"Hm, looks like I'm gonna have to talk to half-pint about controlling her anger," Logan commented

"Eferyone fired at her, but she phased so no harm done," Kurt said

"I then started to fire my optic blasts, and Kurt started to take down goons. Kitty took out some goons, but she mainly went after the robots," Scott said

"Robots," Ororo asked

Scott nodded, "Eddy was selling them to Fisk," Scott said

"What would a man like Wilson Fisk use robots for," Ororo said

"Apparently he was gonna use them to kill Spider-Man," Scott answered

When they heard that answer both Logan and Xavier gained looks of understanding. They knew why Kitty went after the robots.

"Anyway, Kitty did fry the robots, after that Eddy called for his men to retreat, we were gonna stop them, but Telford got in the way," Scott said

"He is a lot tougher zan he looks, and he already looked tough," Kurt said

"Telford has the power to teleport, it's why the gang was able to break in places and leave no evidence on how they did it," Scott informed

"A teleporter," Xavier repeated

"A good one to," Kurt said

"He had excellent control of his powers, and he knew how to fight. He was fast as well, he would be one place then in a blink of an eye he was somewhere else," Scott said

"He must have practiced his powers quite a lot in order to be that fast and in control," Xavier said

Scott nodded, "We put up a good fight and were even able to get some hits in. I guess you could say we did beat him. Kitty was able to restrain him by phasing him through the floor. But by that time the Vanishers were already in their vehicles and drove away," he said

"Telford zen teleported out from zee ground and escaped to," Kurt said

"After that we called the police, gave them the crooks and weapons. We also gave them descriptions of Telford and Eddy as well as their names. Once those descriptions hit the news there's no going home for them," Scott said

"Hm, sounds like you had a very eventful night," Xavier commented

"To eventful if you ask me," Scott said

"Yeah, Kitty vas not happy zat Telford got away," Kurt said

"Where is the half-pint," Logan asked

Scott and Kurt looked at each other, "Well like Kurt said, Kitty was not happy that Telford got away, so she's venting," Scott said

Xavier nodded and sighed, "It looks like that your recruitment mission has turned into stopping Telford and his father," he said

"I think we're gonna need some help with this professor," Scott said getting a nod from Xavier.

"I'll send the X-Men tomorrow," Xavier informed

"Thank you, professor," Scott said

"Of course, you three did well tonight, get some sleep, you earned it," Xavier said

"Yes sir," Scott and Kurt said,

Xavier smiled at them and then ended the call, after that they both went to do their own activities before turning in for the night.

Institute

After the call ended, Xavier closed his eyes and summoned the X-Men, "To me my X-Men," he said

Tipton Hotel, Kitty's Room

Kitty was in her room pacing back and forth, "I CAN'T BELIEVE IT, TO THINK THAT I WAS STARTING TO THINK THAT HE WAS A GOOD GUY. THAT I COULD SAVE HIM. WHAT AN IDIOT I AM FOR THINKING THAT," she vented to Peter who was on video chat, the phone sitting up against the wall, so he has a good view of his girlfriend's pacing. After they got back Kitty had gone straight to her room and phoned Peter, she needed someone to vent to and her boyfriend was the perfect person for that.

"You're not an idiot Kitty," Peter said

"YES, I AM! I SHOULD HAVE TRUSTED MY INSTINCTS; I KNEW HE WAS BAD NEWS RIGHT WHEN I SAW HIM SKIPPING CLASS. RIGHT WHEN WE FIRST SPOKE AND THEN MADE THAT PASS ON ME. I KNEW HE WAS BAD NEWS. HE WAS TOO MUCH LIKE LANCE. I SHOULD HAVE TRUSTED MY INSTINCTS. BUT I DIDN'T, INSTEAD, I LISTENED TO YOU AND THE PROFESSOR, AND DECIDED TO GIVE HIM A CHANCE. I LET MY GUARD DOWN, AND I PAID FOR IT. I NEVER SHOULD HAVE LISTENED TO YOU, HE CAN'T BE SAVED," Kitty said

"You don't know that. You still might be able to save him," Peter countered, he knows Kitty is angry but that's no reason to give up on the guy. There are a lot of reasons why he could be doing this, and Kitty isn't even trying to think of them. She is too blinded by her anger.

Kitty turned to Peter and glared at him, "I DON'T KNOW THAT. ARE YOU SERIOUS? HE DEFENDED THAT CRIMINAL, HE FOUGHT US, BEAT US, BEAT ME. MY GOD WHAT KIND OF BOYFRIEND ARE YOU. DON'T YOU CARE THAT HE BEAT ME UP," Kitty accused, deep down she knows that she is being unfair, but right now she is just so angry, she doesn't care.

"Of course I care Kitty, I don't like seeing or hearing how you got beat up. I love you," Peter said but was cut us.

"THEN FUCKING ACT LIKE IT. GET ANGRY, GET PISSED, TELL ME THAT YOU WANT TO BEAT THE SHIT OUT OF HIM FOR HARMING ME. FOR ONCE PETER WHY DON'T YOU STOP CARING ABOUT THE BAD GUYS AND START CARING ABOUT US," Kitty said, Peter was silent for a moment, his eyes then got hard and Kitty knew that she crossed a line. Immediately she was brought out of her anger, "Peter I…," but she was cut off.

"All I do think about is you guys, all I do is care about you guys. Care about you Kitty, you are all the reason why I do this, why I can get up and keep fighting. For years I have tried nothing but to protect you. I love you Kitty, I really do. I'm sorry that you're angry, I'm sorry that you feel betrayed. But don't be going blaming me for that. I don't like to see you beat up, that does make me angry. If I could, I would happily have switched places with you," Peter said, he then sighed, "Call me when you've calmed down, maybe we can actually talk about this then. Just remember this Kitty, in this life not everything is what it seems. Telford's reasons for doing this may be more different than you think. I got to go, I love you," Peter said, with that he hung up his phone, ending the call.

Kitty looked at the phone in sadness, she then walked over, picked it up, and tried calling, it didn't even ring, it went straight to voicemail which means that he turned off his phone. Putting her phone down Kitty went straight to her bed and plopped herself down on it. She then buried her face in the pillow and screamed, "AAAHHHHHHHHHHH."

Hideout

Telford is shown hitting the ground, he looks up to see his father looking down at him furious. Everyone in the hideout watched as their boss disciplined his son. Eddy picks up Telford and pulls him up by his shirt, "YOU IDIOT, I TOLD YOU NOT TO TALK TO THEM AND YOU DISOBEYED ME," Eddy said as he backhanded Telford sending him to the ground once again. "Look at this," Eddy said as he turned on the TV, to show the news channel showing sketches of both Telford and Eddy.

"The person on the left is Edward Porter leader of the Vanishers while the one on the right is his son Telford who is also a member. The Vanishers have been around committing crimes for over two years with the police not even close to knowing who their identities were. But thanks to some outside help the police were able to not only discover their identities but also capture some members of the Vanishers. Mr. Porter if you are listening to this broadcast, I suggest get your affairs in order. Your days are numbered," the news woman said

Eddy turned off the TV, "They know who we are, THEY KNOW OUR FACES, ALL BECAUSE YOU HAD A CRUSH," Eddy said as he threw the remote on the ground breaking it.

"I didn't say anything about the arms deal, I don't know how they knew where we were. We didn't talk about that, that was never even brought up," Telford defended

"Then what did you talk about," Eddy demanded

"She told me about the Xavier Institute, what they did there, what they were all about. She told me that I could make friends, friends who would understand me. She said that I wouldn't be alone anymore. It sounded nice, it made me," Telford said but stopped

"It made you want to go. What were you gonna do, just up and leave to go to a school of freaks, misfits, outcasts. NO," Eddy said as he grabbed Telford's hair and made him face him. "You think that I would let you go there, let them have you. You belong to me Telford, and only me. I own you and anyone who tries to take you away, well you remember what happened to your mother right," Eddy said making Telford close his eyes in pain as he thought of his dead mother. Seeing the anguish on his face Eddy smiles, releases Telford, and stands up, "It really doesn't matter anymore anyway, does it? Because the X-Men know that you've been helping me with these crimes for years. They'll never accept you, it's just you and me. I'm all you got."

Seeing that the boss is done talking one of the gang members spoke, "Sir, the X-Men know about us and about your son. They're gonna come after us, what are we gonna do," the man asked

"I will not hide from a bunch of brats. Mutants are nothing but tools for humans to use to our whim. Next time we run into them we're gonna show these X-Men just who the superior species really is," Eddy said, with that he walked away followed by his men, leaving Telford alone on the floor.

Wednesday, October 27, 12:30 pm

Kitty was at one of the restaurants nearby having some lunch, but she barely touched her food, her mind was too preoccupied with what happened last night. Taking Peter's advice, Kitty, Scott, and Kurt asked around the slums of Boston and they discovered two things, first was that there was an arms deal happening that night, the second was the name of the gang committing the crimes. They went to the arms deal and discovered that the buyer was none other than Wilson Fisk himself. After that they watched the introduction and demonstration of the weapons. Kitty learned what Peter meant by how surprised she would be with how business like the deals can be. It was the final weapon that got Kitty on edge, the thought of those robots being used on Peter terrified her. Thankfully The Big Guy only had a limited supply of the power source so they couldn't make the demonstration, and when Fisk found out that it ran off of lithium 12 then that was the deal breaker. Kitty isn't entirely sure what lithium 12 is, it must be a rare resource for Fisk to pass up those robots. Fisk later revealed that The Big Guy was Eddy Porter the father of Telford. After they took off the masks it was confirmed that Telford was part of it all. That's when she made the mistake of letting her emotions get the better of her and screamed at Telford. She got a call last night from Logan, scolding her for not controlling her anger more. Said that they will have a more in-depth conversation about it once she gets back to the institute. Yeah, that sounds like fun, sometimes Kitty wonders if asking Logan to be her mentor was a good idea. Ever since she convinced him, he has had her under a microscope, always watching her every move both in and outside of training, always correcting her and telling her what to do to improve. Normally Kitty is happy to get the help, part of her thought that Logan would be stubborn and not even try and teach her more than the normal. But he is taking the mentoring seriously, however despite how happy it makes her to see the effort, it does tend to get annoying at times, especially when she's not in the best mood.

Kitty sighed, last night she was not in the best mood, and all because of one person, Peter Parker, her boyfriend. Now she isn't blaming Peter, in fact she was scolding herself for everything and getting angry with herself right when Logan called. Kitty's not sure which word describes her right now, dumb, idiot, nimrod, bitch, all the above. Kitty gives another sigh, Peter was just trying to help, she knew that, but she was just so angry, and it sounded like he was choosing Telford over her. That's why she said to stop worrying about the bad guys and start worrying about them for once. The thing is Kitty knows that is all Peter worries about, every day, that is always in the recess of his mind. You'd figure that worry would lessen when everyone who mattered found out he was Spider-Man, but the truth is that only succeeded in increasing his worry. Yes, Kitty knows that Peter worries about them, perhaps a little too much. Peter…he was just trying to give Telford the benefit of the doubt, he was just being the Peter that she loved, and she snapped at him for in, she was cruel to him, and now he won't answer any of her calls. God, she feels terrible, if she could take it all back she'd do it in a second. But she can't, Peter, she's not sure if he's angry, hurt, or disappointed, and Kitty isn't sure which one would be worse that he's feeling now. Well, that's a lie, she knows that it would break her heart if she hurt him. When she gets back, she doesn't care if it reveals her relationship to the X-Men. She is going straight to Peter's house to apologize and hope that he'll forgive her.

Uhhh, this is all Telford's fault if he was actually a good guy and not part of his father's dumb gang then she never would have been so angry and hurt Peter the way she did. Next time she sees him she's phasing him through the ground and using him as a punching bag. As Kitty stabbed a piece of her salad with her fork and eating it, she doesn't notice someone approach her until they stop in front of her table. Kitty looks up and to her surprise she sees the girl who was hanging out with Telford. Kitty looked at her questioningly.

"Hello," Hilary greeted

"Hello, can I help you," Kitty said

"I need to talk to you. Can I sit down," Hilary asked

Kitty observed Hilary for a moment, wondering what this girl's angel was. Seeing no harm in the girl sitting down Kitty gestured toward the seat. Thanking her Hilary sat down across from Kitty.

"My name is Hilary," Hilary said

"Nice to meet you," Kitty said out of common courtesy, she really isn't in the mood to deal with anything, or anyone related to Telford.

"And you're Kitty Pryde," Hilary stated

Kitty nodded, "I am," she confirmed

Hilary hesitated for a moment which Kitty noticed, "You're also Shadowcat of the X-Men," Hilary said surprising Kitty.

"How do you know that," Kitty asked

"You looked familiar, so when I got home, I looked you up. Kitty Pryde, also known as Shadowcat of the X-Men, you come from the Xavier Institute, and you actively look for mutants to bring to your school to teach them about their powers. At first, I was wondering why you would come for Telford, then I saw the news earlier and found out why," Hilary said sighing, "You were the ones weren't you, the outside help that the police mentioned. You guys are the ones who found out the identity of the Vanishers and captured some of their members?"

"We were, we heard about the crimes being committed for the past couple of years and decided to look into it. We deduced that the only way anyone could pull off some of those crimes such as that bank robbery was if the gang had someone with powers. Once we deduced that we continued our investigation, found out about Hammer Industries being robbed. We later discovered that there was an arms deal taking place and went to it. That's when we discover the identities of the Vanisher gang. Eddy Porter leader of the gang and Telford his little minion." When Hilary opened her mouth Kitty expected her to get defensive of Telford but was surprised when Hilary spoke in a soft voice.

"He isn't a bad person," Hilary said

"Right," Kitty said raising an eyebrow, "Listen, I don't know if you know this, but the Vanishers did a lot more than steal, heck one of the security guards wound up killed in the Hammer Industries theft."

"That wasn't Telford, he'd never do that," Hilary defended

"And how do you know," Kitty asked

In response Hilary took out her wallet, took out a photo, and gave it to Kitty who took it, and looked at it. What she saw were two kids, smiling at the camera, they had to be about eight years old, they were sitting on a bench, both with an ice cream cone in their hand. "That is Telford and I, back when we were little kids," Hilary said, she then took another picture out and gave it to Kitty who looked. In this picture Telford and Hilary are teenagers, both are looking at the camera smiling. "We were fifteen in that picture."

Kitty gives the pictures back to Hilary, "He looks much happier," Kitty said

"He was, that was the last time that Telford ever gave a real smile," Hilary said

"Why," Kitty asked

"His mom died not to long later, after that his father moved into the house and became his guardian. That's also when all of these crimes started, and Telford's attitude changed," Hilary said

"Changed how," Kitty asked curious

"He became more distant, always looked like he had something on his mind. He later became sarcastic, short tempered, gave teachers attitude, started to skip classes, stole. I thought it was because of his mother's passing. But I don't think it was that I think it was his father. My parents never liked Telford's father, I didn't know why at first, he seemed like a good guy. I was wrong, one year after Telford's mother's death, I was walking over to visit. When I was walking down the yard, I saw something in the house that got me curious, so I looked through the window, and saw…," Hilary said

"Saw what," Kitty asked

"I saw Mr. Porter beating Telford to the ground. He was kicking him in the stomach calling him an idiot. I don't know what he did, but I know nothing deserves a kick to the stomach. I talked to Telford about it once, he made me promise to never tell anyone. I wish I never made that promise," Hilary said

Kitty was silent for a moment, Telford was a victim of abuse, his father just beat him up, Kitty has heard of parents disciplining their kids through spankings, but to kick your own child. That is not discipline, that is abuse, and that is despicable.

"I know for a fact that, the abuse has only continued, but Telford never said anything, he was too scared of his father, and the guy had a lot of people fooled by this loving and caring father façade. It didn't help with how Telford started acting over the years or who he started to hangout with," Hilary said

"You mean those two guys that were with you," Kitty asked getting a nod from Hilary.

"Telford started to hangout with them a year ago, they tried to pick on Telford. Telford didn't like that and showed it by punching Martin in the face. He then kicked Liam in the balls. They were impressed with his guts and started to hang out with him, only influencing him more. I only stayed, because no matter what Telford was my best friend, and to keep him from doing something really stupid," Hilary said

"Skipping class, and stealing money from a woman's purse isn't stupid," Kitty quipped getting a surprised look from Hilary, "We followed you guys for about two hours, wanted to make sure that Telford didn't abuse his powers. We're already struggling to get the world to accept mutants, didn't want Telford to ruin that."

"It could have been worse. Martin just wanted to go up and take the whole purse, I convinced Telford to just sneak it from her," Hilary explained, "I know it doesn't make it better, he still stole, but at least the woman didn't get hurt."

Kitty decided to get straight to the point, "Why are you telling me this," she asked

"Because if they capture Telford, they are gonna charge him with the same charges as his father, and he won't argue against it. He'll follow his father's lead, even when arrested. But Telford doesn't deserve that, everything he has done, he did because of his father. His father is the one who got him in the gang in the first place. Telford may have done a few petty crimes and gotten in trouble, but he would never rob a bank or steal weapons unless he was forced to, and I know of the crimes that the Vanishers did, I know they did more than steal. I know that they raped and murdered. I also know that Telford may have become a jerk, but he is no murderer or rapists. Deep down he is still the same, my childhood friend, my best friend," Hilary said

"Again why are you telling me this," Kitty asked

"Because you can help him, you can keep him from going to jail," Hilary explained

"So that's why you found me. That's why you told me this story, hoping that once I've heard it that I will help Telford," Kitty inquired

"Telford doesn't deserve jail. His father deserves jail. What Telford needs is help, and only you can help him. You're an X-Man, a hero, right? It's what you do," Hilary said

Kitty sighed, dammit. What is she supposed to do? She's still angry at Telford for being a part of this. But could it be true? Is the reason Telford even doing this because of his father? Is he being forced? He's eighteen years old, why doesn't he just fight back? Kitty knows that it's more complicated than that. Telford is too scared of his father to even think of fighting back. If that's the case, then Kitty knows that Telford is a victim, not a culprit, and he fits right under the conditions. They need to save Telford, not lock him away. Once again, Kitty sighs, "Dammit," she said, Kitty then looks at Hilary, "I'll talk to my team, and tell them what you told me."

"Thank you," Hilary said smiling

Kitty gets up and leaves money on the table, "No problem, it's like you said, we're heroes, he help people, it's what we do," Kitty said as she turned around to walk away.

"Wait," Hilary said stopping Kitty and making her turn her body to look at her.

Hilary cleared her throat, "What you said at school earlier, when Telford hit on you," Hilary said

"Yeah, what about it," Kitty asked

"You said that you could think of five people that you would rather be with than him. You even said that I was more up your speed. Did you mean it," Hilary asked

"Yeah, I did. I could definitely think of five other people who I would rather have been with than him. I tried the bad boy type before, big waste of time," Kitty said

"That's not what I meant," Hilary said, "Did you mean that I was more up your speed?"

"Oh," Kitty said, she then paused for a moment and eyed Hilary, Kitty then smirked, "If I had any interest in doing so, then I could see myself going after you."

Hilary smiled, "To bad you don't, because I'm single," she said

Kitty smiled, "Interesting," she said, Kitty then turned around and walked away, leaving Hilary at the restaurant.

Somewhere else in the city

Scott and Kurt were standing in front of the building that the X-Wing was perched on. They were waiting for their teammates to arrive, Kitty wasn't with them, she decided to skip out on waiting for them and decided to get something to eat, told them to call her when they got there. Scott and Kurt were about ready to protest, they thought that all three of them should be there to greet their team. But when they saw that Kitty was in a foul mood, they decided to just let her be.

Kurt sighed, "Ven vill, zey be here," Kurt asked Scott.

"Any minute Kurt, the X-Van is one of the fastest vehicles there is. They'll be here," Scott said

Twenty minutes later and finally a black van is shown driving down the road and stops in front of the two X-Men. The driver's side window is rolled down and Jean is seen at the driver's seat, "Hey handsome, know any good parking places," she said making the two smile.

"Just park in the alley, the X-Wing in on the rooftop," Scott said, Jean nodded and went to park the van in the alley next to the building. Scott and Kurt waited for a moment until walking out of the alley were the rest of the X-Men, Jean, Rogue, and Bobby. When they approached Jean walked up to Scott and kissed him on the lips, a gesture in which he returned.

"Are you ok," Jean asked after they broke apart.

"Just a few bruises," Scott said

"Where's Kitty," Bobby asked looking for his crush.

"She vent to get something to eat, told us to call her ven you came," Kurt said, he then got out his phone and dialed Kitty's number.

"She didn't think ta wait for us? How sweet," Rogue said sarcastically.

"She's really not in the best of moods right now, ever since she found out Telford was part of the Vanishers. We just decided to let her cool off," Scott said getting a nod from Jean.

"I heard that she was the one who was recruiting him," Jean said

"It's true, at first, she wanted nothing to do with him. Then she ran into him during a walk, he was curious about the institute, they had lunch and talked. I guess somewhere along the way her way of thinking changed," Scott explained

"But now that it is revealed he is part of the Vanishers. The ones who have been committing these crimes," Jean said

"She's pissed, Ahh would be too," Rogue said

"Ok, bye," Kurt said in the phone, he then ended the call, "Kitty just got done vith lunch, she on her vay and says zat zere is something zat she vants to talk to us about."

"What could that be," Bobby asked getting a shrugged from Kurt.

"Alright, let's head up to the X-Wing and wait for Kitty, then we'll talk about what to do," Scott said getting nods from his team.

10 minutes later in the X-Wing

The X-Men were all in the X-Wing waiting for Kitty to arrive, when finally, their teammate comes walking in with a pensive look on her face.

"Kitty," Bobby said being the first to notice, not that he was keeping watch on the door or anything, because that would be creepy.

"Hey Bobby," Kitty greeted, she then looked at the whole team, "Hey guys, sorry it took me so long."

"Don't worry about it. Now that you're here, we can talk about what to do," Scott said

"You said zat you vanted to talk to us about something right," Kurt asked

Kitty sighed, "Yeah I did, we can't lock up Telford," she said

"WHAT," the X-Men said in surprise

"What do ya mean we can't lock up Telford? Of course, we can, aftah all that he's done," Rogue said

"Last night you wanted nothing more than to put Telford behind bars. What changed," Scott asked

"Ok listen, so I was at the restaurant eating my salad when I was approached by one of Telford's friends, Hilary," Kitty said, she then went on to tell the X-Men everything that Hilary told her. About Telford's mother's death, him being taken in by his father, how at that time the crimes started, the abuse, everything. Finally, Kitty finished her explanation and looked at her team, Kurt and Bobby looked shocked, Jean looked concerned, Rogue was angry, and Scott looked serious.

"My God," Jean said

"What kind of father vould harm his own child," Kurt said

"A despicable one," Bobby said

"So, you see we can't lock him up. If what Hilary told me is true then Telford is a victim that needs saving," Kitty said

Scott was quiet for a while which Jean noticed, "Scott," Jean said wondering what is going on through her boyfriend's head right now.

"Then we'll save him. We'll take down Eddy and his Vanishers, and save Telford," Scott said

"Will he even listen ta us though; Ahh mean his fathah has been abusing him for years. There has ta be some serious fear of him. He's had powers for years and he has never ran away or fought back because his fathah made sure to etch fear in Telford. Telford isn't just gonna leave just because we say it's ok," Rogue said

"She right, reaching Telford will be difficult," Jean said

"We have to try," Kitty said getting everyone's attention on her, "It may be difficult, but we have to try. Listen the reason why I was so against Telford was because he reminded me of Lance," Kitty said getting understanding looks from her teammates. "There were too many similarities between them that I couldn't ignore. I tried to save Lance, I tried to show him a better way, I gave him a chance. Yet Lance blew it, he showed me just what kind of person that he really was that day."

"Kitty, what happened to Lance wasn't your fault," Jean said

"Lance made his own choices Kitty, he just made the wrong ones. You can't blame yourself for something that he chose," Rogue said

"Maybe, maybe it was too late for Lance. Maybe Telford is like Lance, but he isn't Lance, we can save Telford, all we have to do is try," Kitty said

"Then let's make a plan. Our first step is to find out where they are," Scott said

Hideout, 8:00 pm

In the hideout of the Vanishers all the members were arming themselves with their weapons. Eddy was walking around armed with an assault rifle watching as his gang was working, he really made something great these past few years. There is no way he is gonna let a bunch of freaks take away everything that he has worked for. Eddy taps the com in his ear, "Everyone gather up in my office in five minutes," Eddy said as he then headed to his office.

Porter Residence

Telford was lying in his bed, looking at a picture of him and his mom, Nataly Stevens. He knows that he isn't supposed to be here, but he just needed to get away from his father's gang. It was just a reminder that he had no future, it was a reminder that his life was the Vanishers and nothing more. He can't go to college, can't get a job, find a girl to marry and possibly have a family, he'll never be able to see his best friend again, he'll never be able to join the Xavier Institute. He'll never be able to do a lot of things and all because of his dad. "I wish you were here Mom; I miss you so much. I had a chance to make friends, to be with people who understood me, and yet because of Dad, those people want to put me behind bars now," Telford said, he remembered something his mother told him long ago.

"One or two true friends is enough to have in your life, but you should always be trying to make more friends, you can never have too many," Memory Nataly said

"What do you do when the people who you want to be friends with no longer want to be your friend," Telford asked, suddenly a beep comes from his ear, sighing he answers, "Yeah?"

"Vanisher, get over here we're gonna go over our what to do next," Eddy said

Telford sighed, "I'm on my way," he said, with that communication is cut off. Telford then gets out of his bed and places the picture back on the side table, "Later Mom, I love you."

"I love you to Telly," memory Nataly said

Telford sighs, he then gained a firm look and then teleported out of his room.

Xavier Institute, Cerebro

Professor Xavier was wearing Cerebro looking at the screen in front of him, suddenly the screen blinked and Telford's photo, name, parents, power level, and finally the most important thing, his location. Once he sees the location, Xavier pressed a button on the console, "Scott, I've found the location, they seem to be in an abandoned warehouse near to docs, I'm sending the coordinates," Xavier said

Boston, X-Wing

"Ok, Professor, I have it," Cyclops said in the commlink, once he ended communication, he looked at his team, "We got the location, everyone strap-in, we're heading out." Cyclops and Jean-X then headed to the cockpit while everyone else strapped in the back.

"Hey, wait, can I pilot," Shadowcat asked making everyone in the jet immediately imagine themselves dying a firey death.

"NO," the X-Men yelled, even Iceman.

"Maybe another time Kitty," Cyclops said as he sat in the captain's chair and started the jet.

Shadowcat sat down in her seat pouting. How is she gonna get any good if they won't let her fly?

Outside, the X-Wing takes off and heads to the location of the Vanishers hideout.

Hideout

Telford teleported in the hideout, he walked through until he headed to the meeting area where his father and his companions. As he walked up Eddy noticed him, "About time you got here. what took you so long," Eddy said

"I went to lie down," Telford answered

Eddy observed Telford for a moment, "You better have not done anything stupid again," Eddy said

"I didn't, I teleported over here, there is no way anyone could have followed me," Telford answered

"Alright then," Eddy said, he then turned back to the table. "Onto our next job."

"Next job," Telford asked

"Yes, next job. What did you think this meeting would be about," Eddy asked

"How about a plan of escape, figuring out how to leave Boston," Telford said

"Why would we leave Boston," Eddy asked

"Dad, the cops know who we are, everyone knows who we are. They'll be prepared for us," Telford said

"Everyone in New York knows what the Kingpin does and yet he has yet to be incarcerated. If the Kingpin can work the streets with the cops knowing and unable to do anything then why can't we," Eddy said

"We're not the Kingpin. The Kingpin is smart, cunning, devious, and ruthless…," Telford said but was then cut off when Eddy grabbed his shirt and got in his face.

"And you're saying I'm not? I will kill anybody who gets in my way. I've done it before, and I'll do it again. Or have you forgotten what happened to your mother," Eddy said making Telford grit his teeth, no he didn't forget. How could he? Seeing that Telford had nothing else to say Eddy continued speaking, "We're not leaving, we will stay, and we will make this city ours." Eddy then dropped Telford to the ground and turned back to his men, "Now, back to the job."

Outside, in the sky

The X-Wing arrives outside the hideout, "Here it is," Cyclops said

"A warehouse, that is total cliché," Shadowcat said

"Tell me about, I mean how about a little imagination," Iceman said

"Where else would they have a hideout," Rogue-X asked

"If it were me, and one was available I'd go for an abandon hospital," Shadowcat answered

"I'd choose a factory," Iceman said

"Factories are just as cliché as warehouses," Shadowcat quipped

"I'd go for one of zose parking buildings," Nightcrawler joined it.

"Heh, Ahh'd probably use a school to be honest," Rogue-X added in

"Guys focus," Jean-X said getting a telepathic thank you from Cyclops. 'Although an abandoned fire station would be a cool hideout,' Jean-X thought to Cyclops

Cyclops gave a quick smirk, 'If one were available, I'd choose an abandoned police station,' Cyclops thought back to Jean-X, he then got serious, "Once we land we move out," Cyclops said

"What exactly is the plan," Shadowcat asked

"First we have to make sure that they can't escape, so we have to take out their transportation," Cyclops said

"Ahh don't think it would mattah, they have a mutant that teleports," Rogue-X said

"But his teleporting has a limit, I don't sink zat he'll be able to teleport efery member at once," Nightcrawler said

"If things go south then Eddy will probably use Telford to escape and leave everyone else. We gotta make sure that doesn't happen," Jean-X said making Cyclops nod, he then lands the X-Wing on the roof a few blocks from the warehouse.

"Alright, let's move out," Cyclops said as he got out of his seat followed by his team. Together they exit the X-Wing and after Nightcrawler teleports them to the ground, they head to the warehouse. Once they got to the warehouse, the X-Men all stay at a distance as they see four guards walking around keeping watch. Cyclops looks at Shadowcat and Nightcrawler, "Nightcrawler, Shadowcat," Cyclops said indicating toward the guards.

"On it/Got it," Shadowcat and Nightcrawler said, with that Nightcrawler teleported them to the guards.

With the first guard, near the entrance, he was just walking back and forth keeping an eye out. As he was walking, he heard a noise behind him and the smell of brimstone, quickly turning around, he catches only a glimpse of blue till a fist punches him in the face knocking him out. "One down," Nightcrawler said, he then teleported away with the thug.

In another area, another guard holding his rifle was walking near some boxes filled with heavens knows what. Just as he was passing a crate, a hand phases through the crate, grabs the man's shirt and pulls the man's head, slamming it multiple times against the crate. After the eighth time, the man in knocked out, the hand then let's go and he drops with a thud. Shadowcat phases her top half out of the crate and smiles at her work, but then notices the assault rifle. Stepping out of the crate, Shadowcat picks up the rifle and looks it over. She then sees the Hammer Industries insignia. Shadowcat touches the commlink in her ear, "Heads up guys, it looks like the Vanishers decided to keep some of Hammer's weapons for themselves," she said

"We read you Kitty, it looks like we'll just have to be careful," Cyclops said

"Right," Shadowcat said, she then cuts off communication, turns around, and phases through the box.

In another area outside the hideout, the third guard was walking around the area keeping an eye out, just then Nightcrawler teleports in front of him, surprising the guard. "Hi, how are you," Nightcrawler asked, before the guard could do anything, Nightcrawler placed his hand on his shoulder and then teleports them 20 feet in the air, "Obviously not good." Nightcrawler then teleports away as the man drops down to the ground knocking him out.

In another section of the hideout, the fourth guard is walking, keeping watch of his surroundings, he never thought about looking through the crates. Shadowcat phases out of the crate behind the guard, "Hi there," she said making the guard turn toward her pointing his weapon, "That's some serious tech," Shadowcat said as she looks at the high-tech rifle. Just one of the many weapons that was stolen. Shadowcat quickly turned intangible and phased her hands through the weapon shorting it out, "Don't you just hate technology these days?" Shadowcat then kicks the man in the stomach making him bend over in pain, she then grabs the guard's shirt and pushes him to the crate phasing his top half and his upper arms inside, leaving his lower arms and legs outside, making him unable to pick up the walkie-talkie. Muffles are heard from the crate, indicating that the man is yelling. "Don't worry, we'll come back for you later," Shadowcat said, as she walked away, "I always wanted to do that." Shadowcat then taps her commlink, "All clear."

With the X-Men

Cyclops who received the all-clear from Shadowcat looked at his team, "Let's go," he said, with that the rest of the X-Men went to the hideout to meet up with their two teammates. Once they all met up the team snuck into the building. Once they were inside, they were able to grasp just how many members there were.

"That's a lot of guys," Iceman quipped

"We've faced worse," Rogue-X said

"So, do vee attack," Nightcrawler asked

"No. first I want to know where Eddy and Telford are, they're the main targets. Eddy is the boss, take him out and the gang crumbles, and Telford is a mutant and we did say that we'd save him," Cyclops said

In the meeting room

The group of men were all surrounding a table as Eddy explained what they were doing, "We're gonna hit big tonight, we're gonna show everyone that the Vanishers are not to be screwed with," Eddy said

"And how are we gonna do that," a man asked

"By going after one of the most influential men in the city," Eddy said as he laid out a picture. The picture showed a Caucasian man, in his late 30s, he has red hair, blue eyes, and a blue suit on.

"The mayor, you want to go after the mayor," one of the men asked

"I don't want to go after him, I want to kill him, and with our arsenal we can," Eddy said

"That's crazy, if you go after the mayor then the cops will come for us for sure," another man said

"Not with these weapons, we have military grade weapons designed by Hammer Industries. Everyone knows that egotistical Hammer always tried his best to outdo Stark. He would have made these weapons powerful, without a doubt. Not to mention we have Vanisher here," Eddy said placing his hand on Telford's shoulder, "With him, nothing will stop us."

"What if the X-Men come," the man asked

"Then we kill them, simple as that," Eddy said getting an incredulous look from the man.

"This is crazy, we can't do this! You think just because we have some powerful weapons and your son that we'll beat the X-Men. That we can pull off this job, it's ludicrous, crazy, idiotic, and so are you if…," the man said but was interrupted as he was shot in the head by Eddy.

"Anyone else have any objections," Eddy said getting a stunned silence, "Good, now listen up, I'm in charge, it's because of me that we are where we are. I make the decisions, I make the calls, and you all just do the fuck I say, anyone who doesn't," he then pulls the gun chamber back, "Clear," he gets nods in return, "Good, now get ready we leave soon." Everyone in the room then exited the office and into the main area of the hideout. "EVERYONE LISTEN UP, TONIGHT WE SHOW EVERYONE IN THIS CITY WHAT WE'RE MADE OF, AFTER TONIGHT, EVERYONE WILL FEAR US, THEY WILL KNOW THAT THEY ARE NOT SAFE. NOT AS LONG AS WE'RE AROUND, BECAUSE TONIGHT, WE KILL THE MAYOR. NOW EVERYONE GET READY, I WANT TO LEAVE IN TWENTY."

"Zey're gonna kill zee mayor," Nightcrawler repeated in shock.

"Is this guy really so arrogant," Rogue-X asked

"Maybe it's not just arrogance, maybe it's desperation. He is trying to send a message to everyone now that his identity is known. He wants the civilians scared of him, the police scared of him, the city government scared of him, he wants the entity of Boston scared of him. He wants to be in charge," Shadowcat said, she can remember some of the things that she has heard in New York at how crime bosses got to where they were. One of the ways people like Fisk got to where they were was by killing government officials, showing that no one is safe from them. Fisk had killed four officials and got away with it, it's one of the ways that got him to the top. Killing a government official is a sign of power, by showing that even government officials aren't safe it makes people scared. Now it seems like Eddy is going the same route.

"Scott," Jean-X said

"Move out, NOW," Cyclops said as he and the X-Men came out of hiding, Cyclops immediately blasted one of the trucks, destroying it.

"WHAT," Eddy said

"We're taking you down Eddy, you and your gang," Cyclops said

"HOW DID THEY FIND US," a gang member exclaimed

"That's our secret," Rogue-X sassed

"It's over, come quietly, there is no reason to drag this out," Cyclops said

"No reason, I think, there are plenty of reasons," Eddy said motioning toward his gang with their arsenal all pointed at the X-Men. "Still think that you can take me down?"

Shadowcat steps up, "We've come her for two reasons, the first is to take you down, and the second," Shadowcat said as she then looks at Telford, "Is to do our job and save Telford."

"Save me," Telford said getting a nod from Shadowcat, "I thought that I was a murdering raping hood," Telford sneered.

"I'm sorry I called you that, I was angry. But I've gained some new perspective. Please come with us Telford, we can help you," Shadowcat said sincerely making Telford less angry.

"No, they can't, they'll be too busy being killed by our gang," Eddy said

"We can help you Telford, if you let us," Jean-X said

"You're not gonna win this Eddy give up now," Cyclops said

"Never, once I kill the X-Men everyone will know to take us seriously. KILL THEM," Eddy said

"MOVE," Cyclops orders with that the X-Men moved just as they were being shot at.

Nightcrawler teleported to two guys and split kicked them in their faces knocking them out, he then turned his head to see three other guys blasting at him from on top of the crates. Nightcrawler teleports and then appears in front of the first guy who he punches in the face, the guy tries to bash his head with the butt of his rifle, but Nightcrawler dodges it, he then grabs the man's shirt and throws him off the crate. Nightcrawler then teleports again avoiding being shot by the other two. Nightcrawler teleports in the air in front of the thirst man and kicks him in the face knocking him to the ground. Nightcrawler then teleports again, the second man looks all around him, not sure where Nightcrawler will appear, just then Nightcrawler teleports behind the man and kicks him in the back of the head, knocking him out, seeing the men down Nightcrawler teleports away to the next fight.

Jean-X picks up two guys with her telekinesis and slams them together knocking them out, she then throws them in two different directions right into two other guys knocking them down. In the corner of her eye Jean-X sees guns being pointed at her and just as three guys fire at her Jean-X takes off in the air. She then disarms the guys of their weapons and pushes them against a crate slamming them against it. More blaster fire is then brought down on Jean-X but she dodges them all, she then picks up a crate and throws it at a group of men knocking them all down.

Cyclops is running dodging bullets, as he runs Cyclops blasts two goons, the X-Men leader then slides to a stop and blasts three more guys.

One of the thugs takes out what looked like a grenade and pushes a button, "TAKE THIS MUTIE," the thug said as he threw the grenade at Cyclops.

When the grenade landed near him, Cyclops recognized it as a sonic grenade. Reacting quickly Cyclops jumped away taking cover behind a crate. When he was behind the crate the grenade blew up sending out soundwaves that destroyed the crate that he was behind. Cyclops then stood up and blasted the thug who threw the grenade. Cyclops then notices some of the gang retreating to the vehicles. They'd rather flee then fight the X-Men. Cyclops then looks at Jean-X, "Jean take out the transportation," he said through the commlink.

"Right," Jean-X said as she aimed her attacks at the vehicles in the building.

Rogue-X punches a thug in the face, then sidekicks another thug in the nose breaking it and making him fall to the ground. Rogue-X hears a click and then sees one of the thugs point his rifle at her, just as the thug fires Rogue-X jumps over behind a crate. Five bullets ripped through the crate and flew just an inch over her head. 'Shit,' Rogue-X thought, the thug then keeps firing at the crate destroying it. After a couple more shots, Rogue-X hears nothing that's when she jumped over the crate and ran over the thug who was trying to reload. The thug saw her approach and tried to hurry but, in his rush, he was having trouble putting in a new magazine. Before he could get the magazine in Rogue-X is on him, he tries to bash her head with the butt of his rifle, but she dodges, then she punches the man in the face, the thug swings his fist but Rogue-X ducks, knees the man in the stomach making him bend down, she then uppercuts him.

Iceman was sliding on his ice slide dodging bullets, as he slid past five thugs, he blasted them all with ice freezing them from neck to toe. "Oh yeah take that," he said, suddenly a mini rocket comes from nowhere and destroys his ice slide knocking him to the ground. "Oww, what hit me," Iceman asked rubbing his head, he then sees two feet step in front of him making him look up to see a thug looking down on him grinning.

"Hammer Industries mini-rocket launder, gotta love em," the thug said, he then pointed his pistol at Iceman ready to kill him, "Now, time to die."

"Hold that pose," Iceman said as he grabbed the man's leg and immediately freezes it making the man scream in surprise. The man could do nothing as the ice covers him quickly until he is an ice statue. Iceman stands up and knocks on the ice, "Perfect, but sadly I don't think we'd be winning any contests. I wonder if Kitty would be impressed." Iceman looked around and saw Kitty nearby but fully paying attention to beating the thugs in front of her. "Man, even the thugs get more attention than me. What do I have to do to impress that woman?" A thug then charges Iceman, without looking the hero freezes him.

Shadowcat charged three thugs who try to shoot her down. Shadowcat, however, phases through the bullets, she then jumps up and kicks the first thug in the chin making him fall to the ground unconscious. The second thug runs up and swings their rifle at Shadowcat who phases through it. Shadowcat then smashes her palm in the side of the man's neck making him gasp and fall to his knees trying to gain air. Taking advantage of the man's position, Shadowcat roundhouse kicks the man's cheek knocking him out. The third thug shoots his rifle at Shadowcat and immediately five bullets are shot at her, Shadowcat however phased through the bullets and charges the thug. The man pulled the trigger five more times, each time the trigger is pulled five bullets are shot. That is twenty bullets coming Shadowcat's way but, she paid the bullets no mind as she phases through each wave. Just as the man was about to shoot for a sixth time, Shadowcat kicked the gun out of his hands and into the air. The man tries to throw a punch at Shadowcat's face, but she moves her head to dodge and jabs the man's stomach causing him to lose his breath and a sharp pain to run through him. Shadowcat then punches the man's face, she then catches the gun and swings in at the man's head knocking him out.

Eddy watches as the X-Men fight against his gang, and even after the arsenal that they have acquired his gang is losing. How are they losing?! They should be winning! They're just a bunch of kids!

Telford watches as the X-Men beat his father's gang, he thought that they were tough on the news, but to see them in action really is something. Not that he should be surprised after all Telford fought, Kurt, Kitty, and Scott, and that itself was tough, the only reason he was able to last so long was because of his constant teleporting, and even then, they still beat him.

"Dammit, get ready boy," Eddy said getting Telford's attention, "We may need an escape route."

Suddenly something lands near Shadowcat, looking to see a grenade, Shadowcat jumps away decreasing her density to make her jump faster and farther than normal. The grenade then exploded a blaze of fire, thankfully Shadowcat was out of its blast range. Shadowcat looks to see where the grenade came from only to see a man twenty feet away taking out another grenade, activates it, and throws it at her. Just as the grenade landed, Shadowcat phases herself through the floor disappearing just as the grenade went off. The man looked on shocked as he saw the young woman disappear through the floor, "You know," Shadowcat's voice came from below the man surprising him. The thug looks down to see Shadowcat, "It's very rude to throw things." Shadowcat then grabs the man's legs, "Time for a timeout," she then phases the man's lower body through the ground. Shadowcat then phases back to the top and looks at her handy work, "Now you stay right there and rethink your life choices," she quips, Shadowcat then takes a look around and sees the father and son standing fifteen feet away, "TELFORD," Shadowcat yelled getting the two's attention, she then began running to the men.

In response to this Eddy shoots at Shadowcat with his rifle, but none of the bullets make contact as she phases through everyone. Eddy growled as he saw this.

As she approached, Shadowcat kicked Eddy under the chin, taking him off his feet throwing him to the ground with a thud.

"DAD," Telford exclaimed

"Telford," Shadowcat said getting Telford's attention on her, "Please come with us, we can help you."

Telford gritted his teeth, "I thought I was just a hood," he said as he charged Shadowcat and threw a punch which Shadowcat dodged, she then grabbed his arm and judo threw him over her shoulder making him hit the ground.

"I said I was sorry; I was angry. At first, I thought that you were just some thug, but then after lunch I saw more of you than what you showed us at the school. I then realized despite your behavior issues that you may have actually been a decent guy. Then I saw you part of this gang, I was angry at the gang, your father, you, but mostly myself, because I had let myself think that I could save someone from a life like this. Only to discover the person who I was trying to help was already part of this world. And it sucked and made me angry that a supposedly fell for that again," Shadowcat said, Telford got up and teleported, Shadowcat was on guard looking around, suddenly Telford appeared behind her and tried to punch but Shadowcat ducks and tries to sweep Telford's feet, but he dodges it. Shadowcat then faces Telford, "I hated that I fell for the same trick that had been used on me for years, I was angry, I said terrible things in my anger. To you and to someone who I love, I said terrible things. But I gained a new perspective Telford, I'm not angry anymore, I don't hate you anymore."

"SHUT UP," Telford said as he teleported again, Shadowcat looked around but this time she couldn't block as she got a hard kick to her side courtesy of Telford.

Shadowcat got up from the ground, "I want to help you Telford, and if helping you means that I have to fight you then I will," she said, Shadowcat then charged Telford.

Twenty minutes pass by as the X-Men and Vanishers fight. During this time Eddy starts to regain consciousness, his eyes slowly blink three times as he groaned in pain. 'What hit me,' Eddy thought, he then remembered what happened as the image of Shadowcat kicking him square in the face appears in his head. Oh yeah, that mutant bitch kicked him in the face and knocked him out. He can't believe that actually happened, talk about embarrassing being knocked out by a petit girl like her. He'll never live that down if that gets out. As Eddy gets up, he takes a look around what is happening before his very eyes.

Cyclops blasts three thugs with his optic blasts knocking them down to the ground. One thug charges Cyclops and swings an electric baton at him, Cyclops however ducks under the baton and then he blasts the thug in the stomach sending him crashing into a crate. Cyclops then picks up the baton and swings it at the guy who was trying to sneak up on him, electrocuting him, dropping him to the ground spasming. Cyclops then throws the baton to a charging thug hitting him on the head, stunning him to a stop. Cyclops then takes the chance and blasts the thug in the chest sending him to the ground.

Nightcrawler is teleporting all over the warehouse taking out thugs, he punches one thug in the face, then kicks him in the stomach sending him to the ground. Another thug charges Nightcrawler and tries to hit him with a baton, Nightcrawler then teleported away dodging the swing, the hero then appears behind the thug and sweep-kicks him to the ground. One thug tries to shoot Nightcrawler, but he teleports to multiple places dodging the bullets and confusing the man. Finally, Nightcrawler appears behind the man and uses his tail to hit him in the side of the head knocking him to the ground. Nightcrawler then teleports away.

Rogue-X kicks a thug in the nose, she then punches another thug in the stomach making him bend over and then interlocks her hands and smashes on the back of his head, making the thug fall. A big thug then comes up to Rogue-X and looks down on her with a smug grin confident that his size will let him win. Too bad for him, he is wearing a short-sleeved shirt. "That's quite the biceps big guy, mind if I take a feel," Rogue-X said as she takes off her glove and grabs the man's arm making him scream in pain at being absorbed. After ten seconds the man falls to the ground unconscious.

Jean-X is in the air lifting up a van and throwing it into another van destroying them both. A grenade is then thrown at Jean-X, but she sees it, stops it, and then sends it back to the person who threw it. "Here I think this is your," she said, the grenade then exploded and the man along with some other thugs are thrown back by the force.

Iceman is sliding across the warehouse freezing thugs in place making them unable to move. After freezing three thugs to some crates, Iceman jumps off his ice slide and then aims his ice blast to the ground. The ground freezes quickly making the thugs around him slip and fall. When they are on the ground Iceman freezes them to the ground. "I always wondered if that would work. I wonder if Kitty saw," Iceman then looked in Shadowcat's direction only to see her fighting the teleporting mutant. He saw the mutant throw a punch Shadowcat's way only for her to phase through it and roundhouse-kick him in the face making him stumble. "That is so hot," Iceman said as he gawked at the hotness that is Kitty Pryde.

Telford punches Shadowcat in the face making her stumble a few steps, she then gains back her focus and tries to kick the mutant boy who teleports away. Shadowcat grunts in annoyance, now that she knows about his strategy Shadowcat is much more prepared for this fight and has been able to give Telford as many hits as he her. But still despite that, Telford's hit and run strategy is very annoying. Suddenly a foot comes from behind her and tries to kick the back of her head, but she is able to phase through it. Kitty then drops to the ground and sweeps Telford off his feet making him fall. Yeah, she came prepared with a strategy of her own, her powers may be some of the most passive, but if she wants then nobody can touch her and every five second she activates her powers for ten seconds straight, that's how she has been able to keep up. However, that is making her kind of tired due to her having to hold her breath so much.

Shadowcat looked down at Telford, "You don't have to do this Telford you have other choices," Shadowcat said

Telford gets up from the ground, "No I don't," Telford said as he charges Shadowcat and punches her, but she dodges and jabs him in the stomach making him bend over in pain.

"Yes, you do, you can come with us," Shadowcat said

"SHUT UP," Telford said as he tackled Shadowcat, but she saw that coming and phased through him, making Telford pass through her.

Shadowcat turned around just as Telford does and they faced each other. Telford then charges and throws a punch, but Shadowcat dodged and then kicked his cheek making Telford stumble. "I don't want to fight you Telford, all I want to do is help," she said, Telford tried to front kick Shadowcat, but she steps out of the way and back fists his nose making him hold hit in pain. Telford glared at Shadowcat and charged again trying to attack her, seeming to abandon his usual tactic. This was a bad idea, because even though Telford was a good fighter, even though it didn't look like it Shadowcat was the best fighter of the X-Men not to mention her becoming Logan's protégé, and in her time training under Logan Shadowcat had learned more than everyone thinks. And the skill gap showed, for every hit that Telford gave Shadowcat phased through and gave him three more. Telford tried for a punch, but Shadowcat dodged and punched Telford's nose making him yell in pain at his nose being injured further. "This is pointless Telford, please, just give up and come with me," Shadowcat implored

"Why should I? Why should I come with you? What is there for me with you," Telford said as he charged again and threw a punch which Shadowcat deflected much to his frustration. Telford tried swinging at her, but Shadowcat ducked and kicked him under his chin lifting him in the air and falling to the ground. Shadowcat walking up to Telford, unknown to her as he freezes thugs, Iceman is gawking at her.

Shadowcat walked up to Telford and crouched beside him, "What is there for you? How about friends, both new and old," Shadowcat said getting a questioning look from Telford, "Hilary came to me, and told me your story. She's the reason why I want to help you, you were abused Telford, your father gave you no choice in the matter of joining. You don't deserve jail Telford; you don't deserve this life. Is this really the life you want for yourself? Is this the life that your mother wanted?" Telford looked at Shadowcat in surprise that she knew about her mother. "Surprised? Yeah, Hilary told me, I'm sorry that you lost her. No child should ever lose a parent like that. If you won't leave for us, or even for you, then leave for your mom. No decent parent wants to see their child in a life of crime. Please Telford, come with me," Shadowcat then held out her hand. Before he could think of taking it though Shadowcat is hit on the side of her head with the butt of a gun throwing her to the ground five feel.

"I don't think so," Eddy said as he walked up to a disoriented Shadowcat, Eddy then pointed his gun at Shadowcat's head, "This is for ruining my deal you bitch." Eddy then goes to pull the trigger.

Iceman who had been gawking at Kitty saw this and immediately went on alert, "Don't even think about it," Iceman said as he shoots and ice blast at the gun freezing both the outside and inside making it inoperable.

"What," Eddy said as he saw this.

Iceman then blasts Eddy in the stomach throwing him off his feet and onto the ground. Iceman then rushes to Shadowcat's side, "Kitty are you ok," he asked helping her up, checking Shadowcat over for injuries.

"I'm fine," Shadowcat reassured, she then gave Iceman a smile, "Thanks Bobby, you saved my life."

"Hey don't mention it. Anytime you want to be a damsel, I'll more than be happy to be your knight," Iceman responded making Shadowcat chuckle at what she believes to be a joke and not a flirting attempt.

"I'll keep that in mind," Shadowcat said as she stood up.

"Careful, it looked like you took quite a hit," Iceman said as he helped her.

"I'm fine now," Shadowcat said stepping out of Iceman's grip, getting back to hero mode. Shadowcat watched as Telford helped his father up from the ground.

"Kitty," Rogue-X's voice said getting Shadowcat and Iceman's attention to see her running toward them. "Are ya ok," Rogue-X asked, she saw Shadowcat take the hit and ended her fight faster than usual so she could help.

"I'm fine really," Shadowcat said

"You're sure you are," Jean-X said as she landed next to Shadowcat and took a look, she could see a bump forming, "We'll be sure to have you checked out first chance we get." The four X-Men are then joined by Nightcrawler and Cyclops who finished their fights as well.

"Is everyone ok," Cyclops said

"We're fine really, no need to worry," Shadowcat said

"That's when I worry the most," Jean-X quipped

Shadowcat rolled her eyes, so Jean is a Pokémon fan, who would have guessed.

The X-Men then turned toward the last two members of the gang, Eddy, and Telford. Eddy's crew did put up a good fight, especially with those weapons that they had, but in the end the mutant heroes defeated the crew. "It's over Eddy, your crime spree is over," Cyclops said pointing at the boss of the crew.

"No," Eddy said gritting his teeth in frustration.

"Yes, you are gonna go away for a long time," Cyclops said

Shadowcat decided to step up next to Cyclops, "You don't have to go with him Telford," Shadowcat said getting the teleporter's attention. "You can come with us; we can give you a home."

Telford was hesitant, a home, he hadn't had one of those in a long time. Ever since his mom died. But…, "I did a lot of bad things, terrible things. Why would you still want me with you," Telford asked

Shadowcat gave the mutant a gentle smile, "Because despite your demeanor, you are a good person who wants to do the right thing. You're not the only one who did bad things with their powers," she said getting a curious look from the man. "I was fifteen when I discovered my powers, and I was totally freaked out. I had no idea what was happening to me, and instead of facing it, my dad decided to ignore it and pretend that it didn't exist. That didn't suit me, I wanted to know. Not knowing scared me, and it was because of that fear and uncertainty that left me vulnerable to another mutant. The bad boy of the school, Lance Alvers. He made me believe that he was my friend and convinced me to help him break in the principal's office. Only when we were there, and he was on the computer did I discover that he was using me for cheating. That was hard, it turned out that he wasn't my friend after all. I tried to get away from him, but he was too strong, when my parents and Jean here," Shadowcat said motioning toward Jean-X, "Came, Lance made a bookshelf fall on my father, and then proceeded to bring the school down with his powers, all the while forcing me to go with him. It was only thanks to Jean and my parents that I was able to gather the courage to leave Lance and go back to them…our reunion didn't go as expected…haha, but I was reunited with my parents, and I finally trusted Jean, and Professor Xavier. I realized that they did want to help me. I was nervous, even scared at first. Everything was so new, but as time went on, I saw the institute as my home, and the X-Men, my friends," Shadowcat motioned toward the X-Men, "They became my family. I know that they would lay down their lives for me in an instant, and I would do the same thing. Because that's what families do, we look out for each other, care for each other, and love each other," Shadowcat then offered her hand, "Come with us and I guarantee you that you can have this as well. Come with us Telford."

Telford looked at the X-Men, none of them looked angry or judgmental, Nightcrawler and Jean gave him smiles. Iceman smiled and gave a thumbs up, Rogue-X gave a smirk as well as Cyclops, and Shadowcat she still had that gentle smile on her face, imploring him to accept, and you know what he did. Telford did want to accept, he did want a family, maybe he can gain that with the X-Men. Telford started to slowly walk towards the X-Men much to his father's surprise and anger, "NO," Eddy said swinging his arm at Telford's face knocking him down to the floor.

"NO," the X-Men exclaimed

"YOU ARE MINE! YOU HEAR ME PUNK, YOU ARE MY KID, YOU ARE MY PROPERTY. I OWN YOU; I DID EVERYTHING I COULD TO OWN YOU, I EVEN KILLED THAT WHORE OF AN EX-WIFE JUST TO HAVE YOU. AFTER EVERYTHING THAT I'VE DONE TO GET YOU. DO YOU REALLY THINK THAT I WOULD LET YOU WALK AWAY AND WORK FOR SOMEONE ELSE. I'll kill you before that happens," Eddy said as he points his gun at a frightened Telford.

"KURT," Shadowcat said reaching her hand, Nightcrawler took in and they disappeared, they reappeared a moment later right before Eddy pulled the trigger. Right when the bullet left the barrel of the gun Shadowcat had touched Telford and activated her powers, just saving his life.

"What," Eddy exclaimed, that was all he was able to say, because Shadowcat quickly moved and gave the bastard a strong punch to the chest if one listened carefully you could hear ribs shatter, Shadowcat then stood up and round-house kicked Eddy hitting him in the jaw shattering it sending him 10 feet away, he then fell on the ground knocked out.

"Wow," Iceman said with a goofy smile on his face, that was so hot.

"Call the police, have them pick this guy up," Cyclops ordered

As Shadowcat was beside Telford, she noticed something in the corner of her eye, "Hey Bobby," Shadowcat said getting Iceman's attention, "That yours," she asked pointing to the man who Iceman froze earlier in the fight.

"Yeah," Iceman said

Shadowcat couldn't help but smile, "Nice, don't think that you're gonna win any competitions though," she said

Iceman smiled when he heard that, "I know right, that's what I said," he said, happy that Kitty noticed the statue.

"Impressive," Shadowcat said as she walked away, unknown to her Iceman watches on with a dopey look.

20 minutes later, outside the warehouse

The X-Men are outside the warehouse watching as police officers lead Eddy and his crew to the police cruisers. They watched as the officers opened the back doors and pushed Eddy and his crew in the cars down by their heads and closed the doors. Some of the officers then looked at the X-Men. The looks that they were receiving were mixed. Some looks were untrusting glares, others were looks of hesitation as if they don't know what to think, and finally the others were looks of thanks and respect. From the cruiser Eddy was giving the X-Men and Telford a death glare. The officers all enter their cruisers and then drove off.

"Well, that went well," Bobby said

"We beat the bad guys, saved a mutant from a life of crime and now we're bringing him to the institute," Nightcrawler said

"Sound like a successful mission if ya ask meh," Rogue-X said

Shadowcat then looked at Telford, "You are coming with us, right," she asked

Telford gave a smile, "Yeah, I am," Telford said

"Great, we'll head to the X-Wing then. Is there anything that you would like to bring," Cyclops said

"A picture of my mom. It's in my room," Telford said

"I'll go with you," Shadowcat offered getting a smile from Telford.

"Thanks," Telford said

"Alright, Kitty and Telford will go to his house to pack his things. When you're done, meet us at the X-Wing," Cyclops said

"Right," Shadowcat said, she then looked at Telford, "Let's go."

"Hold on tight," Telford said as he placed his hand on Shadowcat 's shoulder, the two then disappeared from their spot.

Telford Residence

Shadowcat and Telford appear in front of Telford's house, they walk up to the house and Telford opens the door, and they enter the house.

"You need any help packing," Shadowcat asked

Telford shook his head, "I'm alright, I'm only getting one thing, I should only be about a minute," he said

"Whatever you say," Shadowcat said

Telford then headed to the stairs and started to walk up them, but he then paused and looked at Shadowcat, "Kitty," Telford said getting Shadowcat's attention.

"Yeah," Shadowcat said

"Thanks. Thanks for believing in me, even when I didn't," Telford said

Shadowcat smiled, "Everyone deserves a chance Telford, and now you have yours," she said

Smiling, Telford walked up the stairs, leaving Shadowcat by herself.

Upstairs, Telford's room

Telford enters his room and starts to look for the picture of his mother, it didn't take long for him to find it. Once he picked it up, he took time to look at it, 'Well mom, you were right. There really was something better out there for me, and now I've found it. I've found friends, I've found a home. I miss you mom,' Telford thought as he looked at the picture. As Telford thought, he didn't notice that there was something in the room with him hidden in the shadows, watching him. It was only when the person hit something making a noise that got Telford's attention, "Hello, is someone there?" Telford looked around the room, and then he heard it, breathing, heavy breathing. "Whoever you are, I'll give you one warning, I'm not as helpless as I look, and I am not alone either. So come out NOW," Just as that was said the person sped to Telford at a fast speed to where it was only a blur and tackled Telford to the ground, it was only when Telford saw what was on top of him did he scream.

Downstairs

Kitty was sitting on the couch waiting for Telford to get done. Kitty then gets out her cellphone and makes a call, she has someone to apologize to.

After a couple of rings, the phone was answered, "Hello," Peter's voice said

Kitty takes a shaky breath to settle her nerves, "Hey Peter it's Kitty. Can I talk to you," she asks nervously and hopeful. The is a pause on the other side which makes Kitty nervous, much to her relief Peter answers.

"Sure, what's up," Peter said

"Look, I just wanted to apologize for when we last spoke, it wasn't right for me to yell at you like that. I was just so frustrated with the events that transpired and I took it out on you. That wasn't right, I'm sorry," Kitty apologized

There is another pause on the line until Peter speaks again, "It's ok Kitty," he said surprising her.

"You, you forgive me," Kitty asked

"Of course, I forgive you. Why wouldn't I," Peter said

"Maybe because I yelled at you, took my frustration out on you. Used you as a verbal punching bag," Kitty listed off.

"Kitty, I'll admit what you said hurt," Peter said making Kitty sad, she doesn't like or want to hurt Peter and the fact that she did makes her feel like the most awful person in the world. Like she doesn't deserve to be his girlfriend. What girlfriend says those things to their boyfriend? Kitty is broken from her self-loathing by Peter's voice, "But I know that you didn't mean them. I know that everything that you said you said out of frustration. I'd be a hypocrite if I was angry about that. Because I've done the same thing countless times."

Kitty's lip quivers, she really has such a great and understanding boyfriend, "I'm sorry, I really am," she said in a shaky voice.

"It's ok really, we're a couple Kitty fights are bound to happen between us for whatever reason. I guess we can mark this down as our first argument," Peter said

"I guess we can. Let's try not to have anymore, ok" Kitty said trying to wipe the tears that are forming her voice still shaky which Peter noticed.

"Ok and don't worry about it. What do you say that when you get back, we take a break from shopping and just go out, just the two of us, and I can show you it's ok," Peter said

"Ok, I look forward to it. Thank you, Peter," Kitty said

"No problem, Kitty," Peter said

"Just remember one thing Peter, no matter what terrible thing I say to you. I will always love you," Kitty said

Peter smiled, "I'll always love you too. Forever and always, anyway I have to go. I'll see you when you get back ok," he said

"Ok, I love you," Kitty said

"Love you too, bye," Peter said

"Bye," Kitty said, with that both Peter and Kitty hang up, ending the call. Kitty sighed, she's glad that Peter forgave her, but she still can't help but feel bad that she hurt him. She'll be sure to make it up to him when she gets back, maybe finish what was interrupted at his house. Sighing again, Kitty continues her wait for Telford. What is taking him so long? He sure is taking a while, must be reminiscing a bit, she understands that, when she left New York for Chicago she had stayed in her room for a while remembering everything that had happened in it. The good times and the bad times, it is hard letting things like that go. Kitty couldn't help but smile, they did it, they were able to recruit Telford, it was hard, really hard, the guy was quite the hard head, and reminded her too much of Lance. She actually believed that Telford didn't belong at Xavier's, she feels kind of bad about that now. Peter was right, she shouldn't let what happened to Lance affect her judgment. Everyone deserves a chance; you never know what will happen when you give it to them. Lance blew his chances, but just because Lance blew it, didn't mean that Telford didn't deserve one. She couldn't give up, she had to keep trying, and that's what she did, she kept reaching out to Telford, tried to show him that there were other choices, better choices. It took a while but eventually she was able to reach him. Kitty can't help but be proud, this feels like some kind of retribution for her. Where she failed with Lance, she succeeded with Telford. He's gonna make a good addition to the institute. Suddenly Kitty is jolted out of her thoughts by Telford's voice from upstairs, "NOW," Telford yelled. Kitty was surprised, what was that, then she heard Telford's scream.

Right when she heard the scream, Kitty immediately dash up the stairs, "Telford," she yelled

Upstairs

Shadowcat made it upstairs and ran to Telford's room, "Telford," Shadowcat said, she then entered the room, "Are you al…," Shadowcat stopped at what she saw in front of her, Telford laying on the ground unmoving, "No" she whispered, "NO." Shadowcat then ran to Telford and kneeled next to him, she could see his face, he eyes were open, looking straight ahead, she could see fear in them, "Telford, Telford, say something," she said but got nothing, "Come on speak say anything," but she still go nothing. Hesitantly Shadowcat reached and pressed her fingers to his neck. Nothing, no pulse, he was dead. "No, no, NO. How did this happen? How?" How did this happen? She was right downstairs, how could anyone kill someone so quickly, especially someone like Telford? How? HOW? Shadowcat suddenly heard a noise, and she immediately became on guard, whoever did this could still be in the room. She had to be ready, she was not about to let this bastard kill her. Quickly she activated her communicator, "This is Shadowcat, calling the X-Men, come to the Porter residence, now," she said

"Kitty, what's going on? Is everything ok," Cyclops asked

"No time, just get here," Shadowcat said, she then ended communication. Shadowcat then heard noise again, something was in here with her, her eyes hardened, "I don't know who you are, but I swear you will pay for this." She then got in a fighting stance. Suddenly something charges her at fast speeds, it was only because of her reflex that she was able to activate her powers and the person ran right through her. Shadowcat turns around to see who the murderer was, only to see a person in a robe get up. "Who are you," she demanded, the only thing that Shadowcat saw was glowing eyes and sharp fangs. The person charges again but Shadowcat moves left dodging the creature. The creature turns around and locks eyes with Shadowcat growling at her. "Alright freak, bring it," Shadowcat then charged and throws a punch which connects, the person stumbles a few steps. The person then tackles Shadowcat to the ground trying to pin her down, but Shadowcat is not someone who just lays down. As the creature tries to grab her neck Shadowcat blocks, she struggles to keep the hand from her neck, this person is incredibly strong. It's then she notices that the creature has claws. 'What,' she thought as she struggled.

As the creature tried to kill Shadowcat, it was able to get a look at her face. Once it saw her face the creatures eyes widened, "Katerina," the creature growled out.

"What," Shadowcat asked, using the pause to her advantage, Shadowcat brought a knee up to the person's groin making them stop temporarily due to the pain, Shadowcat then takes that moment to punch the person and phasing out of their grasp. As she got up so did the person. They both eyed each other waiting for the other to make a move. "Let's get one thing straight, to you I'm Shadowcat."

'Can't fight in this room, it's too small,' Shadowcat thought, just as the creature was about to attack her again, it stops for a moment and is silent. What it was doing Shadowcat had no idea, just then the creature growled again, then to her surprise the creature turned around and ran for the open window. "Oh no you don't," Shadowcat said as she ran after the creature to stop its escape, she however was too late. The creature got to the window and jumped out, turning into smoke, and then flew away. Shadowcat stopped at the window and watched as she saw that happen. "What the hell," she said as she watched the creature escape.

As she watched the creature fly away, Shadowcat then heard a noise, quickly turning around she saw her friends, "Kitty, are ya ok," Rogue-X said as she, Nightcrawler, and Jean-X came in. That's when they saw the body.

"Oh my god," Jean-X said in shock.

"What, what happened," Nightcrawler asked

"He was murdered," Shadowcat answered solemnly

"By who," Rogue-X asked

Shadowcat turned her head and looked out the window, in the direction the creature flew, "I don't know," she said

End Chapter

So what does everyone think for of my two part The Vanishing Mutant, it took me weeks to write this, so I hope that it was to everyone's satisfaction. Be sure to review and tell me what you think. Till next time That's All True Believers!