Rogue saw the mansion in the distance, but didn't try and fly any faster. She was fighting the urge to go and pack her suitcase. The only thing keeping her here at the moment was the thought that Logan would eventually come back.

Her face reddened. Was she as pathetic as Sabretooth said she was? She knew that her crush was evident to everyone, even Logan, but she always thought that he knew her feelings went deeper than that. She cared about him as a friend, too. She knew that he loved Jean and she loved Bobby.

Was he laughing at her behind her back?

That thought almost crushed her, but she steeled her nerves and shrugged it off. She'd started this journey alone and if she had to end it alone, well…it wasn't the end of the world. That's why she had named herself Rogue.

The jet was landing in the basketball court/hangar and she grimaced. She didn't want to see anyone from that group tonight. She flew to the kitchen entrance and landed more gracefully than she had in a long time. While she was out she'd been practicing her flight skills and it had paid off.

She opened the door to the kitchen and crept in. Thankfully, it was empty. She went to the fridge and pulled out a soda and popped the top open. Being out in the open air for so long gave her time to think. She was feeling stifled here. Maybe it was time for her to take a break. She didn't belong with these people.

She finished her soda and then walked out of the kitchen, still deep in thought. She wasn't expecting the foyer to be filled with concerned faces that all snapped to look at her as soon as she entered.

"Rogue!"

"Thank God you're okay."

"Where the hell were you?" That was from Cyclops. He looked her up and down. "And why are you dressed like that?"

She glared at him and started walking toward the stairs. "For your information, a lot of girls wear tank tops and shorts to bed."

"A lot of girls can't kill someone just by touching them, Rogue."

She stopped up short, not believing he'd just said that to her. Then she turned around and saw Sabretooth and scowled. A dirty, beat-up looking girl was hiding behind him. Rogue gave them a weird look before turning back to Scott.

"It's was what I was wearing under my uniform earlier. I took it off and went flying. I just got back." She tried to keep walking, but he stopped her again.

"You just took off without telling anyone? We get back from a mission where we got our asses handed to us only to find that you've been missing for hours. Where'd you go?"

Bobby or John told, she thought angrily. "I went flying." He looked at her dirty feet. "And I was walking in the woods. It was nice," she said, turning around again. "Leave it to you to ruin it," she muttered.

"Rogue, you can't just take off without telling anyone. We're responsible for your safety. You have to—"

She threw up her hands in frustration and turned to walk back down the stairs. She ignored Sabretooth's blatant staring at her legs and glared at Scott.

"Okay, this is what I'm talking about. I wasn't going to bring this up right now, but since you're all fired up…" She took a deep breath. "I need to get out of here."

Storm and Jean started forward, Rogue kept talking. "It's nothing against anyone, I just need to breathe for a second. I don't belong here. I'm made to be alone. The rules— this life—" she looked away for a moment and then back down at them, "I don't belong here."

"Rogue, you do belong," Jean said softly. "You're one of us."

She shook her head bitterly. "I'm not, but even if I was, that wouldn't change anything. I have to go. At least for a few weeks."

"Is this about what happened earlier?" Scott asked abruptly. " 'Cause if it is, I told you. It was for your own good."

Storm stepped forward and smiled at her. "Rogue, I know you're lonely, but Logan is coming back soon. Probably next week, okay?"

She sighed in exasperation. "Listen, I'm not leaving 'cause I miss Logan. I'm leaving 'cause I'm jealous of Logan. He gets to go wherever he wants. He's free, unlike me." They were making her feel really guilty. "It's not like I won't come back."

Cyclops clenched his jaw and didn't say anything. Then he turned around and walked away.

She was frustrated. "I don't know why he's so mad. I said I'd come back and finish school. I just need to be alone for a little while." Before she could start crying, she turned and ran up the stairs.

Storm and Jean looked at each other and sighed. "Well, I guess this is why she and Logan get along so well."

Sabretooth barely heard them. His eyes were still following Rogue up the stairs until she disappeared, and then he kept staring at the empty space she had just vacated. Did it matter if she left? Would Logan go after her? Was she ruining his plans?

He had to think. He looked down at the girl that was like his shadow and smirked. She had not liked Rogue at all. He could smell her anger and jealousy. Maybe this little arrangement could work for his benefit.

XXXXXXXXXX

Rogue had spent hours crying in her room. She hated Scott. And she was pretty sure that he didn't like her either. So she packed up her army green duffel bag and snuck out that night. The Professor had tried to stop her but she ignored the voice in her head and left.

Now she sat on a bench in a deserted park, wondering what she was going to do next. Even though she had deathly poisonous skin and the ability to manipulate air molecules, she was still afraid. She had grown accustomed to living with the X-Men and having Logan to protect her. It was strange being alone again.

But it was also somewhat nice. The quiet. No rules. Freedom. She had needed this.

A bunch of rough-looking boys walked down the sidewalk and passed in front of her. She tensed but all they did was look her over and keep walking. Then it was quiet again. She looked around and debated getting a hotel room or sleeping in the bushes. She only had a little under a hundred dollars and had the feeling she would need it for food.

Bushes it was, Rogue sighed, and got up. The good thing about a duffel bag was that it could double as a pillow. There were some rather large bushes farther into the park, away from the sidewalk and she walked over, hoping to find them empty of any users. They were. She threw her bag down and looked around. The last thing she needed was a cop walking by and arresting her for loitering.

She knelt down beside the duffel and worked at shoving it farther in. The hood of her cloak fell off and just then she heard a rustling noise. She looked up, heart suddenly pounding. Parks were dangerous at night.

Then a stray cat jumped down from a tree and ran off. She expelled a breath and went back to work on her bag. She had it just where she wanted it, when she sensed someone behind her. She turned around and saw a figure dressed head to toe in black military garb, holding a very big gun, but before she could scream, he raised the gun and fired a shot right into her chest. She looked down stunned and saw a tranquilizer dart sticking out. She looked up and everything went blurry.

"Shit," she muttered, right before everything went black.

XXXXX

She woke up to bright light shining in her eyes. Blurry white figures leaned over her and spoke, but she couldn't understand them. Her body wouldn't move. And then everything went black again.

The next time she woke up, she could see clearly. She was alone in a sterile-looking metallic room on a hospital bed. She was hooked up to all sorts of equipment and she looked down to see her arms and legs encased in metal, holding her in place. Panic bubbled up in her and she looked frantically around, jerking her arms to try and free herself, but to no avail.

Suddenly, a speaker crackled on in the room and a man's voice spoke.

"There is no escape, Marie. You'll only hurt yourself if you try."

She looked over to where the voice was coming from and swallowed. "Where am I? What do you want?"

It clicked on again. "I only want to help you. You are very special, Marie. You have a very special mutation."

She grew angry. "The name's Rogue, Asshole, and I don't need your help."

"How many innocent people have you hurt in the past year? How many will you hurt? You need to be controlled, Marie, for your own good and the good of everyone around you."

She opened her mouth to retort, but just then the doors opened and a man with a team of doctors walked through. He was old, like sixty at least, she noted. He had glasses, a weathered face and wore a military uniform. Her eyes went to his rank and she noted that he was a colonel. Benefits of having Logan in your head.

He smiled kindly at her, but it never reached his eyes. "You have so much potential, Marie. The possibilities are endless." He looked her over thoughtfully. "I wonder how many mutations you can absorb before they rip you apart. Can you use the mutations long term?"

She was getting scared. "I...I...the effects only last for a little while, depending on how long I touch the person."

He opened a file and showed her a picture. She looked up at him.

"Airborne?"

He smiled humorlessly. "Is that what he called himself? Well, his real name is—was—William Hardy. I picked him up trying to cheat his way through the X-Games. I helped him the same way I'm going to help you."

She was horrified. "You—you sent him after me, didn't you? That's what he was doing in the woods that night. Looking for me."

He smiled and nodded. "Yes, though he was under orders not to touch you. He never was very good at following orders though, I'm afraid." He nodded to a doctor who walked over and began unlocking her metal restraints.

Not just metal—adamantium, Logan growled, and she jumped.

How can I hear you? she wondered. The Professor blocked you all out.

It was something those assholes did to you. It freed us.

She felt guilty. I didn't want him to get rid of you, Logan, but I was going crazy from the others. I'm sorry.

Don't be, he said simply. It was for your protection. This guy's bad news, Rogue. Whatever he's told you, he definitely doesn't want to help you.

She shivered. What does he want?

This time Sabretooth spoke up, tauntingly. To use and control you.

Great. She looked down and realized that she was free now and hurriedly scrambled off the bed, backing away from them against the wall. "Let me go or I'll kill you all."

To their credit, some of them did look afraid. But not the colonel. He simply smiled his infuriating smile. "We can do this the hard way or the easy way, Marie."

Her panic made her angry and she spat at him. He didn't react, simply waved his hand and three fully clothed and masked soldiers walked quickly over to her and shoved her body over the hospital bed. Everything was going crazy in her head as they pushed her face into the mattress.

"She's ready Colonel Stryker," one of them said.

Stryker walked over holding a syringe filled with yellow fluid and slowly bent down, brushing her hair away from her neck. He put a double dose of the contents of the syringe at the base of it, over the beginning of her spinal cord. She cried out in pain and tried to struggle, until finally everything inside her relaxed. They slowly released her and backed away warily.

She stood up calmly, completely under Stryker's control now, and looked at them. Stryker smiled and stepped forward, walking around her closely. Rogue stood stiffly and waited. This was her purpose now. She felt it. Stryker.

"Marie, we're going to do a little experiment." He leaned down so that their heads were together and pointed at a soldier standing across the room. "You see that man, right there?"

"Yes."

"He is going to shoot you with that gun he's holding. I want you to see if you can stop the bullet."

The soldier looked a bit disconcerted, but kept silent.

"How?" Rogue asked, staring at the gun.

"Magneto's mutation is inside you," he answered, "and I bet if you try really hard you can channel that power and use it to save yourself. If you can't…" he paused, "then I'm afraid you're of no use to me."

He walked over to the soldier and tapped his shoulder. "Don't shoot to kill. Yet."

The soldier nodded and stepped forward. He tried to imagine that the girl was an enemy soldier and aimed his rifle for her right shoulder. She simply stared at him blankly and he pulled the trigger.

She yelled and dropped to the floor. Though the pain had been dulled, it still hurt like hell. Stryker sighed. If she wanted to live, she'd better cooperate.

Rogue slowly stood up, anger blazing in her eyes. The pain flicked a switch in her brain and icy cold rage was the only thing she felt now. She had a single-minded purpose and it was to kill the soldier that harmed her. Her anger coursed through her body and though she was wounded she still managed to sprint toward him, lifting herself in the air and kicking him hard across the face. He went down, sprawling about five feet away.

She walked toward him and lifted him in the air. She slammed him into the wall face first over and over until his blood dripped down it. His face was unrecognizable after she was done. Another soldier stepped forward and quickly aimed another bullet for her ribs. It ripped through her and she seethed in agony, jerking her head over to look at the culprit.

She didn't immediately move, but instead raised a hand and gathered as many air molecules in one place as she could then blasted him back into a table with surgical instruments piled on top of it. Her vision was blurring from blood loss even though her rage kept her upright.

"All you have to do is call on Wolverine's healing factor and heal yourself," Stryker said. The guard stood and pulled a scalpel out of his side. He scowled at her and raised it high over his head. The he let it fly at her, embedding itself in her stomach.

She grunted at the shock of it and doubled over. Blood dripped onto the floor and she fell to her knees. Her hearing was fading fast and now all she could hear was the blood pounding in her brain and her diminishing heartbeat. She pulled the scalpel out and it clamored onto the floor.

Everything was slowly receding, but in those moments she managed to hear Logan's voice distantly calling to her. Sabretooth was howling, angry at being trapped in her head and about to die.

She kept her eyes trained on the ceiling and heard footsteps approaching her. Stryker's face filled her vision and he looked disgusted and disappointed. He said something and then walked away.

She knew she was dying, but she couldn't move. All she could do was let herself. Logan was fighting in her head to get to her and she tried to focus on him. He was the only one she'd be sorry to leave. Damn Stryker. He had done something to her before and it was wearing off now from the loss of blood.

Rogue, you're not gonna die. I won't let you, Logan snarled. Creed, we're the only chance she's got. You wanna die or you wanna live?

Like this pathetic existence is living, Sabretooth snarled sullenly.

But whatever they did, she felt it. It felt like something in brain snapped and it hurt—a lot. This was it. She thought she finally dead at first. Her pain was going away and her vision was clearing. Finally, she thought, looking around.

But—wait. She was still in the same room. A guard was standing over aiming a gun at her head. He was going to kill her. But he didn't notice that all her wounds were healed as if they had never been. She could feel everything better now. Hear better, see better, smell better.

She remembered this feeling. Right after she had absorbed Logan. But it was stronger now. She was stronger. She was alive.

She smiled and looked the soldier in the eye. He was confused and stepped back. "What the hell?"

His fear of her gave her more satisfaction that anything ever had her entire life. She was still smiling as she lifted herself, still prone, into the air and then daintily onto her feet. It was wonderful. Her body felt powerful, like nothing could ever destroy it.

The soldier hastily pointed the gun at her and put it on burst. He fired six rounds into her body and paled when all the bullets were pushed out and the holes closed up. Something whispered to her in her mind and she felt a new power coursing through her. She raised her hand and focused on the rifle…the metallic rifle.

Magneto's power flowed through her and she quickly jerked it out of his hands. It crashed against the wall and fell, broken, onto the floor. Her triumph and victory gave way to feral rage and she flew at him, plunging her hand into his chest with superhuman strength. He spluttered and choked on his own blood as she ripped out his still beating heart and pushed him down. He fell with a thud and she carelessly tossed his heart onto his dead body.

Then Rogue raised her eyes to the door that she knew Stryker was behind. She would raise this entire complex to get to him, and she would enjoy doing it. She moved the doors off their hinges and walked through a barrage of bullets.

They were painful, but she ignored them as her body healed itself and launched into the middle of the formation. Her rage was spilling over like the blood of her victims. How dare they kidnap her and then treat her as if she was nothing but dirt? Pathetic humans. So they didn't like mutants, did they? Wanted to exploit them and kill them all?

It was like that old saying; don't wound what you can't kill.

But, she reasoned as she slowed down, if she killed them all, then who would be alive to be terrified of her? Of mutants? If she let some live, it would serve her purpose better. They few who weren't dead, lay bleeding on the floor, staring up at her as if she were a monster.

She bent down and looked one man right in the eye. "Next time you wanna play, pick someone who can't suck the life out of you with her bare hands." His eyes widened as her bare hand came dangerously close to his face. Then she smiled and pulled it back. "Just kidding."

She stood up and looked at him contemptuously. "You're afraid of mutants, but it's your fault we attack you at all. Don't get me wrong. I enjoyed ripping you all apart. I just thought you should know that all this death is your fault."

Then she lifted a hand and pulled another heavy steel door off its hinges and walked down the corridor after Stryker. Suddenly, from out of an empty tunnel to the side of the corridor, stepped Sabretooth, smiling maliciously at her. They stared at each other in silence for a few seconds before he broke it.

"I came to rescue you, but I see your doing fine on your own." He sniffed the air and started walking closer. "Something's different about you. Stryker do it?"

She looked coldly at him. "He unlocked my true power. I'm going to find him and thank him for it. Get out of my way."

He bared his teeth and stretched out his claws, sensing she was looking for a fight. "How are you going to make me?"

He was too large in the enclosed space for her to lift easily and she couldn't touch him unless she was afraid. She snorted. She would never be afraid again. She saw a piece of metal sticking out of the wall and ripped it off with a wave of her hand, sending it through his chest. He looked angry and surprised as he jerked it out of his body and tossed it away.

"How the hell did you do that?" he yelled, stomping toward her. She smirked and used all her power to increase the density of the air around him. He growled and felt like he was wading through syrup. Or glue. It was hard to breathe.

Suddenly he was blown back about ten feet and landed hard on the floor. She walked up to him and looked down. "I know who Stryker is. He's older now and I didn't recognize him at first. Don't you want him to pay for his crimes? For what he did to Logan? Help me and I won't hurt you anymore."

He considered her words. Did he want Stryker dead? He did break all of his promises to him. He never gave him the adamantium skeleton he had wanted and had only used him to rape and pillage. Well, actually, that had been the fun part, he smirked inwardly. But, he really hated Stryker and his brother was a damn amnesiac because of him.

But this girl had no idea who she was messing with. She wouldn't hurt him anymore? Who the hell did she think she was? He raised a clawed hand and sprang up, plunging it into her shoulder. She cried out and grabbed his arm trying to get his claws out of her. He grinned cruelly and walked her against the wall. The scent of blood was going to his head.

She knew that she would heal if she could only get his nails out. He twisted her other arm behind her and lifted her up, using his thigh to support her. Sweat was prickling her forehead as the pain came in waves. She thought she felt one of his claws scrape her shoulder blade and she gritted her teeth to stay conscious.

Then he jerked her forward a bit and kissed her. Some of the pain died away with the shock of it as she wondered what the hell he was doing. She struggled to get him away from her, but even with heightened senses and strength, he was the stronger one just by sheer body mass alone. Her struggling only excited him more and he gripped her tighter, slamming her harder against the wall.

She felt his tongue in her mouth and unwillingly stilled. He was rough and painful, but she felt her body responding. She liked it. Jerking her arm out of his grasp (only because he let her), she ran her hand up his arm and pressed his head closer to her. Need overtook reason. She'd never really kissed anyone before…at least not without almost killing them.

The hand that had been restraining her before, now gripped her waist painfully and he pressed his thigh closer between her legs. She moaned and deepened her kiss. It was as if every primal instinct inside her had awakened and was struggling to get out.

She broke off the kiss only for a second to tear his black shirt open. Then he was in her mouth again and her hands were running up and down his chest, raking it with her nails. He sucked in a breath against her mouth and lifted her higher against the wall. He jerked his claws out of her shoulder to wind them throughout her hair tightly, and slowly she felt the slicing pain fade away. His erection throbbed painfully against her inner thigh so that every movement either of them made drove their desire to further heights.

I have to get to Stryker, she thought dumbly, feeling his lips and tongue on her neck. She was vaguely aware of a hand on her bare thigh, driving her hospital gown up around her waist. Her eyes opened. She had to get to Stryker. He must be killed before he could do anymore damage—and for the way he'd treated her.

She concentrated on her power and when she was sure she could make a clean escape she lifted herself quickly out of his reach. As she bolted away, he howled in rage and need and she only felt a little guilty. She had more important things to do than that.

But God it was hard. She was still throbbing with pure and simple lust and it almost made her turn around and go back. Only, Sabretooth was far behind her and Stryker was nearby. She could smell him.

Sure enough, sitting at computer attempting to lock down the facility, was her target. He looked up and smiled, darting glances every now and then at the screen. Just seeing him was enough to drive away everything else beside anger.

"Ah, Marie, so glad you could join us." He stepped down from the computer and walked closer, though he still kept himself just out of her reach. "I take it you're grateful for all the help I've given you. After all, without me, you'd have never realized your true potential."

"You tried to have me killed. I almost died," she seethed, growing angrier by the minute.

He held up his hands and looked at her. "I'm sorry about that, Marie. I truly am. I was angry because I thought I had made a mistake about you, but I hadn't. You are very special. I can give you everything you want. A place to belong, where you're treated fairly. Where people fear you for the right reasons, not the wrong ones."

It was tempting. She had to admit he was damn good at that. She stared at him and thought about her life at the mansion, where kids her own age kept their distance and she couldn't even kiss her boyfriend.

He saw that he had gained a foothold with her and relaxed a fraction. "We've made remarkable advancements in mutant research over the last sixty years. Don't you want to be able to find someone special to share your life with? To be able to be close to him?"

Bobby, she thought distantly. If Stryker could help her with her primary mutation, then she could finally be with Bobby in every sense of the word.

"Well, there's always me," came an angry, sarcastic, voice from behind her.

She turned and saw Sabretooth standing in the room as calm as he'd ever been. But then she saw his eyes and shivered in spite of herself. He smiled at her.

"Don't worry. We're going to get very close later," he promised angrily, "Just as soon as I take care of some unfinished business." He looked at Stryker and bared his teeth in anticipation.

Stryker smiled weakly and tried to talk his way out of danger. "You're too late, Victor. Marie has decided to join me. She'll finally belong somewhere. You only bring suffering wherever you go."

Sabretooth laughed. "When has that ever bothered you before?"

He tried a different tactic. "Marie, if I die, your hope and dreams of living a normal life with people who want you die with me."

"Listen, asshole, she's already got people who want her." Then a familiar snikt sound.

That voice. It couldn't be. She swung around incredulously and her stomach flipped. Logan stood there flanked by Cyclops, Storm and Jean.

"How did you find me?" Rogue asked, walking toward them. Her chest felt tight. The soldiers in the room had all their guns pointed at the X-Men. And secretly, a few at her, too.

Logan spoke first. "I was close by and the Professor contacted me, said you were in trouble. I'm not gone a month and you're already getting kidnapped again."

He cracked a slight smile to show that he wasn't really mad at her and she smiled back. "Sorry."

Storm leveled her gaze at Victor, but spoke to Rogue. "We followed you but by the time we got there you'd already been taken. Creed took off on his own and we followed him, figuring he was up to no good."

Sabretooth growled and sauntered forward, locking eyes with Logan the whole time. "Now that's not very fair is it? I'm the one that saved that damn telepath. She'd be dead probably if I hadn't been there."

"Why the hell is this guy here? Didn't I kill him?" Logan stared at the other man hard and recognized the scents he was giving off. He was looking to finish what they had started on Liberty Island. Well, he was more than happy to oblige.

Sabretooth chuckled. "Like you could ever kill me."

Logan smiled and popped his claws. "Well, I can have a good time trying, right?"

Sabretooth raised his hands, claws fully extended, and gave him a 'come and get me' gesture. Logan rushed forward and their battle began. Stryker tried to slip away undetected, but Rogue saw him. Suddenly, her anger took over again and she saw red. He yelled for the soldiers to start killing everyone, but she raised her hand and took all of their guns away from them.

"Rogue!" someone yelled in surprise.

But, Rogue was flying to Stryker. She caught him and punched him in the face. He fell to the floor and looked up at her, hands lifted in surrender. "Please, Marie, I was only trying to help you. Don't you want to come with me?"

"You said I needed to be controlled—well, so do you." She smiled and used Magneto's power to raise a gun that had fallen next to him. She aimed it at his forehead and watched as he realized he was going to die.

Jean ran up and telekinetically waved the gun to the opposite side of the room. "Rogue, what are you doing? You can't kill him."

Nothing was going to stand in her way. She gathered a cloud of air and blew Jean back, not caring if she was hurt or not. Then she turned her attention back to Stryker.

"I know everything you've done. You are going to pay for all the people you've murdered. For everything you did to me and Victor."

Huh?

She shook her head. It was starting to pound. Stryker took advantage of it and kicked her legs out from underneath her. She fell hard, but managed to grab him as he went to step over her. He punched her in the face but it did no good. She healed immediately.

But, it did make her mad. She stood up, taking him with her and slammed him down on a computer. She raised her hand, ready to punch a hole through his chest, when a jet of red light hit it. Pain emanated off her and she looked over in fury to see Cyclops facing her.

Suddenly, she was more pissed off at him than she was Stryker. All of her previous pent up anger from the mansion was now magnified fifty times. The second she looked away, Stryker rolled over and grabbed another syringe filled with the yellow fluid.

She cried out in pain and clutched the back of her neck, stumbling away from him. Her senses began to dull and her heart rate slowed down. Stryker smiled triumphantly beside her and placed a hand on her shoulder. Logan and Sabretooth saw what was going on and slowed their fighting. The soldiers in the room were all dead or unconscious.

"Now, Marie, be a good girl and kill them all for me, will you? When you're done meet me at the helicopter outside." He patted her cheek patronizingly and dashed away. Logan started to go after him, but Rogue lifted a hand and melted the metal door behind her. Then she did the same thing for the other two exits as well.

"Rogue, what are you doing?" Jean asked nervously, looking around her and realizing there was no escape.

Rogue gave her a blank look. "Killing you."

She lifted every loose thing in the room and poised them between her and the X-Men. Jean sucked in a breath and closed her eyes. Then she opened them and looked at Scott.

"Stryker's done something to her. He's controlling her."

"Well, how do we undo it?" Storm asked nervously, looking around them at a hundred deadly weapons all waiting to plunge themselves into their bodies.

Jean shook her head, still looking around for an escape. "We can't. It has to wear off."

Logan narrowed his eyes at Rogue and silently contemplated what to do next. Sabretooth eyed her warily, though he too was tense and ready to leap out of the way when she unloaded on them. Jean kept her eyes closed and worked on holding everything back but it was hard. Rogue had her own personal back up squad inside her head.

"Don't worry," Logan said, "if we have to hurt her she can take my healing factor. Just try and knock her out. Storm, you and One-Eye might wanna get down for this."

"Logan, you might think you're in charge, but you're not. So shut up," Scott snapped, keeping his hand at the ready on his visor.

Logan smirked. Scooter always got tense when he was around. He quit smiling when Rogue raised her arms higher, getting ready to unleash hell upon them.

"I can't hold her for much longer," Jean cried, "Logan, do it!"

He only hesitated for a second before sprinting forward faster than Rogue could react and shoving his adamantium claws through her chest. She choked and only about half of her ammunition shot forward. The rest fell, clattering to the floor.

Logan heard Storm cry out but couldn't turn around. He took his claws out of Rogue's shoulder and got ready to grab her bare hand but she suddenly stood back up, breathing heavy in anger. He stared incredulously at her shoulder that was now healing up.

"What the hell?" He sniffed the air and clenched his jaw. Her scent was different. It was like something he'd only smelled in jam-packed rooms before.

"Uh, guys? A little help here would be nice," he called over his shoulder, not taking his eyes off her. "Jean, mess with her mind or something. She can regenerate now."

Rogue smiled angrily. "Yes, I can. Thanks to you and Victor."

She smiled over at Sabretooth coyly and Logan didn't like that one bit. "What the hell are you talking about? I didn't touch you."

She raised a hand and tapped her index finger against her temple, still smiling. "Everyone's cooperating very nicely now."

He trued to open his mouth to speak, but found he couldn't move. Rogue sneered at him and raised her hand, causing his body to stiffen and slowly float into the air. "I could do whatever I wanted to you right now. I could rip all the limbs off your body. When are you going to learn, Wolverine, to not rush into things before you have all the information?" She looked up at the ceiling. "I bet Charles didn't tell you that the base was underground, did he? All of you are just wind up toys that he has on a shelf, taking you out when he needs you, putting you back when he doesn't." She shook her head in disgust and threw him across the room.

"Rogue, don't do this," Cyclops asked, casting a sidelong glance at Storm who was unconscious on the floor. A piece of debris was sticking out of her side and Jean was frantically trying to get it out without causing more damage. "This is my fault. I'm sorry. I should never have come down on you so hard—made you feel unwanted. I just wanted to keep you safe with everything you've been through."

She rubbed her head. It was starting to throb. She felt like every blood vessel in her brain was pulsing. It started to diminish and she looked up at Scott angrily. "I don't want your apologies. I just want—" she hesitated, looking down and frowning slightly. What did she want? Her anger was abating.

Logan had stood up minutes earlier. "Rogue, what do you want?"

"I don't know." She felt so disoriented, like her entire mood had suddenly shifted. Whispers were crawling around in her head and she felt her body trying to reject them. It was like fingers sliding over her brain.

Look at you, came a familiar, taunting voice inside her head. You're really racking up the body count now, aren't you?

She closed her eyes and pressed a fist against her head. Cyclops slowly moved closer to her, ignoring Jean's warning to be careful. Logan rounded up the other side and he glared at Creed.

"Just keep staying put, Bub. I'll deal with you in a minute."

It was a warning that Sabretooth was more than happy to obey. He hadn't bothered to fight once he'd figured out that Rogue's anger was mostly directed at whoever was directly in front of her. He had no desire to help the X-Men live anymore. He bared his teeth in a smile. Logan was back.

Got a taste for blood and you just couldn't help yourself, Airborne taunted. God, you're like a rabid dog. Pathetic.

"Shut up," she said, gritting her teeth and rubbing her head. Her headache was worse. It was escalating into pain she'd never felt before. She was vaguely aware that the others were closing in on her. "Don't kill me," she whispered feebly, hoping they heard her. She couldn't tell the voices inside her head from the ones outside.

I've been suppressed for awhile now. All the macho men running around your head kinda put me out of commission. But thankfully those jerk-offs decided to come to your rescue and put themselves out of business for awhile.

His voice wouldn't stop. The pain in her head was like liquid fire and she swore she would've sold her soul to make it go away.

I was glad they did though. Torturing you is the only pleasure I have left.

Tears were rolling down her face and she was on the floor clutching her head. Cyclops and Logan could see that she was no longer a threat, but dressed in a hospital gown, there was too much skin exposed.

"We have to get her to the Professor, Logan. She could have a brain aneurism or stroke."

"I know," he snapped, looking back at Jean trying to Storm alive. He started to tell her to switch with him, but she looked up at Victor urgently.

"I know that you can touch her, Victor. The professor told me."

He shrugged and stepped off the wall. "So?"

He pleaded with him, trying desperately to reach some sort of humanity inside him. It didn't work. He shook his head. "Don't try that shit with me 'cause I don't give a crap. However, Rogue and I have some unfinished business." He grinned maliciously. "And I always like to finish what I start."

It was true. He had an obsessive tenacity that, had it been directed at something other than murder and mayhem, would have been admirable.

Logan watched him tensely as he walked over to Rogue and stooped down. Something about him was tugging at his mind but it wouldn't stay put long enough for him to figure out what it was. Sabretooth picked her up bridal style and then slung her over his shoulder.

"Let's go."

Logan made sure to keep him in his line of sight the entire time, even as he picked up Storm and they all ran as fast as they could outside to the Blackbird. Stryker's helicopter was gone.

Sabretooth laid Rogue down on the jet floor and took a seat, curling his lip at his brother as he checked on her. "Don't bother. She's out cold."

"Unless you want six metal knives shoved through your brain I suggest you shut the hell up," Logan growled, also taking a seat. "Does anyone wanna tell me what the hell's been going on since I left?"

"People who pop in and out of other people's lives don't get to know things, Logan," Scott said calmly with a hint of smart-ass, staring straight ahead.

Logan clenched his jaw and looked at him menacingly. "You got something to say, Pipsqueak?"

Jean held up a hand. "Do this some other time when I'm not trying to fly a jet with dying people inside. Now!" she snapped when they appeared not to hear to her. "What's happened here tonight is no one's fault but Stryker's. Just shut up until we get home," she told them, a sheen of sweat covering her brow. Her best friend and her pupil were in jeopardy and she was scared shitless.

The men glared at each other but sat in silence as the jet came to life and rose in the air.