Date: Fri, 13 Mar 2009 18:53:45 +1030
From: Ben Harvey <scifi_fanboy@hotmail.com>
Subject: X-Force Chapter 8

Disclaimer:

All of the standard disclaimers apply. The X-men are the property of
Marvel, and I take no credit for the creation of their characters, only my
own. This is a fanfiction, therefore anything discontinuous to the normal
X-men universe, including sexuality of the characters, is the product of my
imagination. Any similarities to real people or events is completely
coincidental.

This story contains male/male sex and romance. If you find either theme
offensive, what are you doing reading nifty stories? And if you are
underage or this story is illegal where you are reading, please leave. But
if you chose to ignore this warning, it's your own fault!

As I've said before, if you'd like to be notified when new chapters are
released, just drop me an email.

Now I'd like to make a personal shout out to Jim Anderson, without whose
help this chapter would be riddled with all sorts of grammatical
errors. Here's to you.

Here it is peoples!

*****

Chapter 8 - Downfall

`Remmy?' John half whispered as he took an involuntary step forwards.

There was doubt in his mind that the figure before him was Remiel but more
terrifying and magnificent than his gentle Remmy had ever
been. Morningstar's body was the apex of physical perfection; slab-like
pecs, bulging biceps and a rigid eight pack, all boldly evident by his lack
of a shirt. The only things covering the upper half of his body were the
bold tribal tattoos that adorned his pecs and biceps. His face was
identical to the old Remiel's except for the cruel expression it now wore,
an expression that the old Remiel would never have worn.

Sweeping his long red-brown hair out of his eyes with one hand, Morningstar
gazed warily at the X-men.

`I am Remiel,' he declared. `But I am Seraph no longer'.

`What do you mean?' John asked, making to step closer before Jean stepped
in front of him.

`John, don't,' she told him. `He may look like Remmy, but he's not, at
least not the way we remember him'.

Morningstar smiled. `That's right, Jean Grey. You, at least,
understand. Now,' Morningstar's eyes levelled his fearsome gaze at Scott,
`understand this. You have attack my brothers, without provocation,
grievously wounding our leader in the process. While you may have had noble
intentions in doing so, I cannot allow such a challenge to go
unanswered'. With a thought, Morningstar ignited a psychic sword of blazing
black fire in the palm of his hand. `You will surrender, now'.

`No. We won't,' Scott declared boldly, stepping ahead of the others to face
Morningstar directly. `We came here to rescue our friend and comrade,
Remiel St.Cloud, also known as Seraph, from the Brotherhood. Now, whether
you remember it or not, you are that friend and comrade and you are coming
home with us, even if we have to take you by force'.

Morningstar's smile widened. `You haven't the faintest idea of who you're
dealing with, little man,' he mocked, causing Scott's lip to twitch up into
a silent snarl. `You're not taking me anywhere, but...,' Morningstar cocked
his head playfully, `you are so very welcome to try'.

`Fine,' Scott said succinctly, as he activated his visor.

The scarlet concentration of solar energy crossed the distance between
Scott and Morningstar in a heartbeat, where it splashed harmlessly against
an shimmering black disc that materialised in front of Morningstar a
fraction of a second before the beam reached him. Scott continued to loose
his mutant power against the shield in an attempt to breach the barrier,
increasing the power output of his visor every few seconds. Magnitude
2. Magnitude 5. Magnitude 8. The beam became so intense that the other
X-men had to shield their own eyes from the brightness of the beam, which
lost its scarlet colouring in favour of a dazzling white. Finally maxing
out at Magnitude 10, Scott fell to his knees, cutting off the beam as he
did. Morningstar, whose shield evaporated along with Scott's beam, was left
wearing an expression of absolute boredom.

`Is that really the best you can manage, Cyclops?' Morningstar asked
pointedly. `I'll never understand why Xavier put such a weakling like you
in charge. Seraph had a similar thought, you know. He couldn't understand
Xavier's choice of appointing you the leader of the X-men. I mean, just
look at you. You can barely stand after that little display. And your power
isn't even that versatile. But Seraph just went along with Xavier's
decision like the weakling he was'.

`Seraph was no weakling!' Jean shouted, stepping around the exhausted Scott
to shield him from Morningstar's gaze. `He was one of the most powerful
people I've ever met!'

`Oh, I'm not referring to his mutation, if I was I'd be calling myself a
weakling as well. No, I meant that he was one of the most weak willed
individuals around. I mean, honestly, how else can you describe someone
with all this power who lacked the will to use it. Someone who let others
walk all over him his whole life, even though he had more than enough
strength to stop them,' Morningstar argued.

`There's a lot more to strength than raw power. Seraph understood that,
which is just one of the things that made him strong,' Ororo snapped at the
winged mutant.

`Really?' Morningstar asked. With two powerful beats of his ebony wings,
Morningstar propelled himself upwards, `Then show me. Show me this amazing
strength that I apparently lack'.

`Get ready, everyone,' Ororo shouted as she took to the air. `I'll force
him to the ground, the rest of you need to keep him there!'

Bobby and Amara were the first to react to Ororo's words, darting past Jean
and Scott, transforming as they went. Amara's exotic Mediterranean skin
instantly dried and took on the texture of lava, cracking all along its
surface to reveal streams of molten flame beneath her flesh. Her long
golden hair burst into flames and yet remained unharmed by the dancing
fire. As Bobby's core body temperature dropped, white vapour began forming
around him where it began sticking to his body. Everywhere the icy mist
touched, Bobby's skin took on the colour and texture of ice until his
entire body had become one arctic blue sculpture running down the steps.

Roused by the elementals' quick response, Peter, Kurt and Logan dashed
forward to join the fray.

`John,' Jean turned to face the pyrokinetic.

`I'm sorry, Jean,' he said. `He may not act like him, but that's Remmy. I
can't fight him. Not like this'.

Jean's eyes swelled with sympathy. `I understand. Nori?'

Noriko moved to stand next to John in the blink of an eye. `Yes, Jean?'

`Stay with, John. If this Morningstar tries anything, do whatever you can
to make sure John doesn't have to fight'.

Noriko nodded solemnly, `Of course'.

<Betsy, Danielle, Xian, it's up to us to try to hit him
telepathically. Remember what Bailey said. He may have a near infinite
amount of energy, but it's still limited by his skill. If we can break his
concentration, even if it's just for a little while, it might buy the
others the time they need to put him down>

Betsy, Danielle and Xian all nodded at her silent commands before all four
psychics joined hands and closed their eyes.

*****

Raze fell to his knee, his face and bare chest bloody from a dozen
gashes. One cut above his right eye bled profusely, clouding his
vision. The knees of his jeans were shredded open and the burnt tatters of
his leather jacket hung limply from his shoulders, barely containing the
strength to hold themselves in place.

Bailey stood a few feet away, his own garments nearly as destroyed. With a
quick flick of his gaze, the blond mutant surveyed what was left of the
surroundings. All of the buildings had long since been obliterated, leaving
nothing but a few burnt remains behind. The earth had been melted and set
dozens of times, resulting in a warped battle field, full of planes set at
impossible angles and craters with cupped edges half eroded away. Stray
burst of radiation prevented anyone from approaching from the outside,
giving the two time-travellers the privacy they needed for the final
moments of their battle.

`So it's done then,' Raze wheezed.

Bailey breathed shallowly, `Looks like'.

`So end it'.

Bailey opened his right hand letting the diffusive radiation build in his
palm with an azure glow. Arcs of the obliterating energy jumped between his
fingers with an electrical crackle.

`You always knew it would come to this?' Bailey asked as he opened his left
hand, letting the charge jump from palm to palm, increase the flow of
lethal power.

Raze sighed, and closed his eyes. `There was never any other outcome. This
was always our destiny, little brother, it was always going to end one of
two ways. I was either going to die by your hand, or you were going to die
by mine'.

`No. I don't mean what they had planned for us when we were born. I mean
this. Now. You always knew I'd be the one to take your life'.

`After what I did to you and yours, how else could it possibly end?'

`Is there anything you want to say before I end this?' Bailey asked as a
continuous arc of deadly energy linked the palms of his hands.

`I'm sorry'.

The words struck like physical blows, causing the arc held between Bailey's
hands to destabilise for a moment, sending out sparks that left deep gouges
in the earth surrounding the standing mutant.

`What?'

`Back home, where we came from, I could never say it. The man I was wasn't
capable of saying it. But now, after feeling a part of what I took from
you...I'm sorry. You were always the best of us, and I was always jealous
of that, but that's still no excuse for what I did, for what I became. I
know you can never forgive me, but I'm sorry, little brother'.

A tornado of conflicting emotions hurtled inside of Bailey; Blind anger,
sorrow, despair, rage, love. The arc of diffusive energy lost cohesion and
began pouring torrents of destructive energy around Bailey, destroying what
little remained of his surrounds. With a deafening roar, Bailey unleashed
the fatal blow.

*****

As soon as they linked hands Jean, Betsy, Danielle and Xian felt the world
fall away, leaving them all standing in a black void.

<Okay girls> Jean reached out to them. <We need to break through his mental
defences as quickly as possible so he doesn't have the chance to build up
any resistance>

<A coordinated assault?> Betsy's voice cut in. <But where do we strike?>

<His nervous system?> Xian suggested. <If we freeze his body, he won't be
able to fight>

<True> Betsy said. <But by the time we break through to that level, he'll
know what we're up to>

<So where?> Danielle's mental voice reflected her unease.

<When he first spoke to us, he said that he was Seraph no longer, as though
Seraph was a completely different entity entirely> Jean said.

<So?> Xian questioned.

<So where did this Morningstar come from?> Jean continued. <From the way he
spoke, it's as though Morningstar has always existed, but was locked away,
suppressed...>

Betsy was the first to catch on <You think that Morningstar is the
equivalent of Seraph's mental shadow>

<Yes> Jean agreed. <The sum total of everything Seraph refused to let
himself feel, coalesced into a cogent personality by Seraph's own
telepathic nature and brought to the surface by Mindpyre>

<Which means...> Danielle started before Xian cut in.

<The real Seraph is in there somewhere, just suppressed like the
Morningstar personality. All we have to do is stage a telepathic jailbreak>

<Exactly> Betsy stated.

<But how do we find him?> Danielle asked.

<The Professor!> Jean said excitedly. <When I went over the Cerebro data
from before the Professor's accident I found a mental pattern that matched
the Seraph. The Professor must have stumbled upon the suppressed Seraph
personality, which is why Morningstar lashed out at him so hard>

<And since any psychic using Cerebro leaves a mental trail behind...> Betsy
stated.

<We just need to pick up the Professor's trail on the astral plane and
follow it along to the suppressed personality> Danielle concluded.

<Damn, we're good> Xian cheered.

*****

Raze opened his eyes slowly, looking to Bailey, who had slumped to his
knees, the sound of his hoarse breathing carrying across the distance
between them. Bailey's head hung forward, causing his sweat-sodden hair to
fall forward, concealing his face.

Turning his head to the side, Raze observed the destruction the blow had
wrought on the environment around him. The strike had landed not two feet
from the fallen mutant, obliterating everything within a narrow cone that
extended out from the point of impact. Molecular diffusion left little
behind, so it was through the lack of debris that Raze guessed the order of
power Bailey's blow contained. There was nothing. The cone was an empty
void, filled with nothing but air and the faint scent of ozone.

Turning back to his brother, as single word upon his lips.

`Why?'

Bailey sobbed. `I tried, but I can't. Every day, I kept telling myself that
when I found you, I'd do it. I'd kill you. But I can't. Even after
everything you've done, and how much I know you deserve it, I can't take
your life'.

`Come on, Bailey,' Raze said. `You've taken lives before. It's what we were
made to do, and like you said, I deserve it'.

`But you're my brother. I don't care what they made us for, or what they
had planned. That doesn't matter. I'm a real person, with a real soul and I
won't have my brothers death on my conscience'. Bailey climbed to his feet,
wiping tears away with the back of his hand.

`If you don't end it, Bailey, I won't stop. I'll keep helping the
Brotherhood. The war is coming Bailey, and I wont stop until I know that
we're the ones who're going to win it'.

`And I'll be there, big brother,' Bailey said, his jaw setting firmly, `to
stop you'.

Bailey's mutation barely had time to register the new arrival before a
silver streak shot past him and Raze vanished in a plume of dust and
dirt. He shook his head as he watched the silver streak disappeared into
the night. With a sigh, he turned away from the site of his brother's
defeat and began jogging back towards the hospital, reaching out with his
mutation as he did.

*****

Ororo soared through the air, carefully analysing Morningstar's
movements. Their winged aggressor looked so like their gentle Remiel that
for the first few minutes of the skirmish, she had hesitated in unleashing
the full force of her mutant power. It took a brutal demonstration of
Morningstar's ruthlessness, as he plucked Logan from the ground
telekinetically and broke every bone in the mutant's body, to remind her
that it was not Remiel they were fighting. Morningstar had simply let
Logan's limp body drop to the ground, causing Ororo to shudder as his body
slapped the ground with a wet thud. Now unable to fight until he had
finished regenerating, Logan had been effectively neutralised for the
duration of the conflict - a tactic that the ordinarily defence-orientated
Seraph would never resort to.

After carefully studying the way that Morningstar evaded Bobby's onslaught
of frigid bolts and Amara's constant assault of billowing flames by
carefully deflecting their attacks back at one another, cancelling each
other out, Ororo was able to ascertain the pattern behind Morningstar's
movements - every one of his evasions and manoeuvres was designed to either
place his enemies in the direct line of fire from each other, or else to
force them to abort their attacks for fear of harming their allies. It was
an ingenious tactic in Ororo's opinion, but it did have one fatal
flaw. Morningstar could only keep it up as long as none of the X-men were
able to attack from a single front, which he achieved through rapid
airborne movement. Ororo smiled to herself. That was something she could
take away from him.

Calling out to the elements with her mutant power, she summoned the mighty
forces of the zephyr, willing the air to bend away from Morningstar's ebony
wings and disrupting the mutant's flight path. With a shout, Morningstar
dropped several feet to the ground before catching himself
telekinetically. Taking advantage of the winged mutant's sudden
distraction, Bobby immediately sent a stream of frigid energy swirling
through the air at him.

Realising the danger he was in, Morningstar encased himself in a sphere of
telekinetic energy that simmered darkly. The swirling cold impacted the ice
with the force of an avalanche, solidifying the exterior of the shield in
solid ice.

Amara, having observed Bobby's attack as it collided with the black
shimmering sphere that surrounded their opponent, spilling around the
protective barrier like water around a stone and encasing it in a shell of
ice, rallied her own powers. Pillars of stone erupted from the soil,
criss-crossing one another until they formed a perfect cage of earth around
the icy prison.

Ororo breathed a sigh of relief as she glided to the ground in front of the
newly formed structure.

`Is it over?' Peter asked as they rest of her team-mates made their way
over to stand beside her.

`I think so,' she said. `All we have to do it wait until he runs out of air
and falls unconscious, then Kurt can teleport him out'.

Seeing that the others had the situation managed, Ororo made her way over
to Logan's limp form. His entire body looked like a sack full of gelatin
with his muscles flowing around shattered fragments of bone. It appeared
that his adamantium skeleton was the only thing keeping him in a vaguely
humanoid shape. As she watched, his face began to reshape around the
metallic skull, immediately taking on the expression of immense pain. Still
unable to speak, Logan looked up at her pleadingly.

`Don't worry,' Ororo said to him, barely able to look at his mangled
form. `I'll get Jean. She can put you under while your body heals'. She
turned away from her team-mate and was about to head back towards the main
building when she saw Morningstar's psychic blade erupt from the side of
the prison. The blazing blade swept around the external perimeter of the
mutant confinement before the entire thing exploded in a shower of rock and
ice.

Ororo watched as Bobby and Amara, who were closest to the cage, were thrown
brutally to the ground by the force of the detonation. Peter, still in his
metal form, was staggered by the blast but otherwise remained
standing. Kurt too, had been fortunate, having been shielded from the
explosion by Peter's bulk. Ororo was about to call out to them but was
forced to gasp instead as some unseen force seized Peter and swung him
through the air like a rag doll, right into a very surprised Kurt. Even
across the distance between them, Ororo still heard the snapping and
tearing of bones and cartilage. Turning her sight on the source of the
blast, saw Morningstar strut out of the cloud of debris, aflame with a
black psychic aura.

Peter slowly began to rise, cradling the broken Kurt in his muscular arms.

`You will pay for this!' the angry Russian swore, before descending into a
stream of fluent Russian insults.

`I really don't think so,' Morningstar said calmly. `I warned you all! I
gave you the chance to surrender! But you all chose to fight instead. Well
I'm done. I held back because you all meant something to me once, but no
more. This time you will be shown no mercy!'

With a flick of his wrist, the flaming sword that he held in his hand
lengthened and flexed before splitting into five long thick flails that
streamed from the hilt like molten whips of psychic energy.

Ororo launched herself in the air, summoning a dozen lightning bolts as she
did. The violent arcs shot down at her target, striking against the black
discs he summoned to protect him with resounding booms. Driven by righteous
fury, she honed in on him, attempting to pummel him with frigid gusts as
she did. Her attacks could have been gentle summer breezes for all the
impact they had on the winged mutant. With another flick of his wrist,
Morningstar sent all five flails writhing through the air towards her. As
fast as the lightning she had attempted to assault him with, the flaming
coils connected with her, wrapping around her arms and legs like they each
had a mind of their own. Upon contact, she realised that these psychic
whips were not simply telepathic in nature, like Betsy's psychic blades,
but physical, made manifest by Morningstar's telekinetic abilities. As
Morningstar drew her towards him with the whip, the psychic nature of the
bonds began making its presence known. It started as a simple burning
sensation where the bonds were making contact with her skin, but it quickly
spread, gaining in intensity as it did until it felt as though her entire
body was aflame. Screaming out in pain, Ororo attempted to free herself
from the fiery touch of Morningstar's weapon, vainly struggling against
their abominable strength. Just as she thought all hope was lost, the
mental flames scorching her flesh disappeared and she felt the bond
vanish. Looking down on Morningstar, she saw that the psychic weapon had
evaporated. Morningstar was on his knees, hands pressed firmly against his
temples, screaming in a savage voice;

`GET THE FUCK OUT OF MY HEAD!'.

*****

They all stood silently at the border of Remiel's consciousness, staring
into the tangled astral representation of the troubled psychic's
mind. Gnarled trees, devoid of any living foliage, reached out towards them
menacingly.

`Um,' Xian shifted anxiously. `I thought this Remiel guy was, like, really
awesome and sweet. How come his mind is so, well, unfriendly looking'.

`Remiel is a very kind and gentle soul,' Jean said. `In the time I've known
him, I've only ever seen him use his powers to help others. Even before he
joined the X-men, he nearly died protecting his surrogate family from
people who wanted to hurt them. This isn't a reflection of Remiel's
mind. This is Morningstar's mind. This is a reflection of everything that
Remiel wouldn't let himself feel'.

`Come on,' Betsy said, as she started towards the trees. `We don't have
time for useless reminiscing. We don't know how long the other's will be
able to hold out against him'.

Stepping into the shadow of the trees, Betsy immediately caught sight of
the Professor's trail. A small notch was carved into the tree and a few
feet ahead, another was scratched into the bark of another. As quickly and
as quietly as she could, she led the other's into the woods.

As they trekked through the darkness, Xian, the youngest of the present
psychics, began mentally questioning Jean about the astral plane. Jean
explained as best she could. The astral plane was a purely mental plane of
existence that linked every sentient being to what she called a collective
conscience. The plane itself consisted of metaphoric representations of
each individual mind connected to it, as well as the expanse of formless
mental energy that existed between them. When Xian questioned her about the
appearance of the Professor's trail, Jean's response was simple. Even
though the Professor didn't use the astral plane to connect to Remiel's
mind, their conscious desire created a reflection of it on the plane. They
thought, therefore it was. And since everything on the Astral plane was
metaphoric, the signature took the form of something that fit into the
environment the plane had created to represent Remiel's mind.

`Huh,' Xian said. `It all sounds too complex for me'.

`Don't worry if it's confusing,' Jean assured her. `Astral theory is
something that's better experienced than explained. You'll get the hang of
it eventually'.

`I think we're here,' Betsy said, as they stepped through a gap in the
trees.

They were all standing at the mouth of a small valley, at the centre of
which stood a small stone structure. In the air above the structure hung
thousands of small glass tiles. Suspended on invisible strings, the tiles
reminded the women of coloured birds floating on the wind. A faint breeze
moved them ever so slightly, creating a symphony of chimes that rang out
across the gnarled forest, bathing the four companions in breathtaking
music. Almost as soon as the music began, it stopped, shattering the daze
that had overtaken the young women.

`That must be where the Seraph personality is being held,' Jean said,
gesturing to the stone structure.

`What was that?' Xian asked, holding onto Danielle for support as she shook
off the overpowering sensations the chimes had caused.

`They're memories,' Danielle said. `And I'm guessing by the power they
have, they're Seraph's happiest'.

`Then why would they be out here?' Xian pressed, finally able to stand on
her own.

`They're probably out here so that Seraph can't use them,' Betsy
explained. `If Seraph's been cut off from his happiest memories, then his
telepathic power is severely diminished. Think of how much a telepath
relies on his happiest memories to help fight telepathic assault. Without
them, all he'll have is his worst memories, which only serve to make him
weaker'.

`Then in that case,' Jean said. `You should all go along without me. I'll
stay and collect as many of these memories as I can, then follow. Who knows
how valuable them might be if we can get them to Seraph'.

Betsy and Danielle looked at each other, then nodded.

`Xian, you stay with Jean and help carry as many memories as you can. Betsy
and I will go and try to free Seraph'.

Xian nodded.

Both Betsy and Danielle ran as quickly as they could towards the stone
structure. As they drew nearer, they realised what it was. An old medieval
bunker. Roughly square in shape, the bunker was built from large round
stones, cemented in place. Dark green moss grew out from between the stones
and a number of them had wide cracks marring their dull surfaces. A large
wooden door barred entrance to the interior of the structure, but upon
seeing it's rotted beams, Betsy simply shattered it with a savage kick.

Stepping through the entrance, both Betsy and Danielle gasped at what they
found. The interior appeared to be comprised of dozens of environments, all
shredded and randomly restitched together. A roaring fire blazed in several
segments of the environment, though miraculously not spreading to the
environs that surrounded them. At the centre of the room, stood a massive
edifice that brought tears to Betsy's eyes. The colossal wrought iron cage
was a masterpiece of sadism. Each of the bars were wrapped tightly in
barbed wire that glowed a malicious orange against the cold black
metal. Both women recognised Seraph, held aloft, unconscious within the
prison, forced spread-eagle by chains that were bolted to the floor and
ceiling of the cage. More red hot barbed wire was wrapped around his wrists
and ankles where the chains were manacled to his body. Hundreds of long
metal skewers were protruding from his muscles, blood dripping off of them
in large bulbous drops. Yet more blood trickled from claw-like marks across
the young man's chest and back, running down his naked limbs.

`Oh, my god!' Danielle half whispered to herself. `Quickly, help me'.

Both women ran to the cage, drawing as close as they could before the
intense heat prevented them from approaching any further. Quickly
evaluating their situation, Betsy pointed to the chains holding Seraph in
place.

`We have to get the chains off of him. If we can get them off, he'll be
able to help us himself'.

`Okay,' Danielle nodded.

Both women focused and psychic armour began materialising around their
bodies, encasing them in heat-proof protection. Cautiously, they both drew
nearer to the cage. Arriving first, Betsy reached through the bars and
wrapped her hands around the chain holding Seraph's right arm. Visualising
the chain breaking, she pulled as hard as she could. The chain resisted,
fighting her psychic assault relentlessly until, with a feral squeal, it
broke away from the main cage and fell to the floor. Her breaths now coming
in short laboured bursts, Betsy reached for the chain binding Seraph's
right foot. She was just about to pull on the next chain when the squeal of
twisted metal pulled her attention to Danielle, who had broken the bond on
Seraph's left arm. Now free to follow gravity, Seraph fell to the floor
where he sluggishly began to stir. Looking up at the women, vague hope
flickered in the nearly empty pools of his soft brown eyes.

`Betsy?'

Reaching through the bars and stroking Seraph's abused cheek, Betsy nodded.

`It's okay, Remmy, we're going to get you out of here'.

With another huge grunt of effort, Danielle ripped the chain binding
Seraph's left foot.

`But we need you to help us'.

Seraph nodded slowly, tears welling in his eyes.

`I'm so sorry...I didn't mean to hurt anyone but he was just too strong'.

`It's okay, Remmy,' Danielle told him as she began unravelling the barbed
wire still coiled around his arms. `We understand. Ahh!' Danielle cursed
and pulled her hands back through the bars. The gauntlet that had been
protecting her arms and hands from the intense heat of the bars had begun
melting long the forearm. With a great deal of mental focus, she willed the
melting to stop, and repaired as much of the damage as she could, but even
after she was finished, the damage could still be seen.

`Take a break,' Betsy told her. `Save your strength for getting the bars
apart, I'll do what I can about the last of the wire and chains'.

`Okay,' Danielle said, backing away from the cage.

Slowly, conserving as much strength as she could, Betsy pulled apart the
chain still binding Seraph's right leg. With the last bond severed from the
primary psychic prison, the chains and wire still biting into Seraph's skin
dissipated into nothingness. Reaching out to his arms, Betsy began
withdrawing the long metallic skewers buried in his flesh. Seraph's face
grimaced in pain as she slowly slid them from his muscles.

`It's okay, Remmy,' Danielle spoke to him through the bars as Betsy
continued her work. `Just a little while longer and we'll have you out of
there'.

A few minutes passed by before footsteps could be heard. Danielle turned in
time to see both Jean and Xian burst through the door. Almost a hundred
glass tiles danced in the air surrounding Jean, held aloft by the astral
reflection of her telekinetic powers. Xian however, was forced to carry her
share in a large rucksack she must have mentally manifested.

`Remmy,' Jean gasped, almost losing her hold over the tiles surrounding
her.

`Jean,' Seraph breathed hoarsely, his eyes quickly filling with tears. `You
came'.

Stepping as close to the bars as she could without burning, Jean leaned
down and smiled.

`Of course, I came. We don't leave our people behind. Ever'.

`Okay,' Betsy said. `That's the last of them'. She stood up carefully,
casting the last metal skewer aside where it rapidly dissolved into
nothingness. `Danielle and I won't be able to help much with the bars,
which means it's up to you two. We'll do what we can, but...'

`We understand,' Jean nodded, setting aside the glass tiles.

Xian quickly followed her example, lowering her rucksack to the ground. A
number of tiles clinked together, creating a faint chime that reverberated
through the air for a few moments, rousing a sense of hope in the gathered
companions.

`How do we do this?' Xian asked.

`Just follow my lead'.

Focusing her mental strength, Jean summoned the mental armour that had
served her so many times before. Moulded to her very flesh, the armour bore
a red lustre that refracted the light in a shower of scarlet lights. The
gauntlets bent and fleshed with her naturally as she stretched her
arms. Satisfied with her protection, she watched as Xian mimicked her.

The armour Xian summoned underscored her inexperience. It was unwieldy with
oversized dull metal plates bound together with thick leather straps. Her
gloves resembled giant metal oven mitts.

`Hmm, we're going to have to work on that, sometime,' Jean muttered to
herself as she took her place at the cage. Wrapping her hands around two
bars adjacent one another, she nodded to Xian to do the same.

`On the count of three, we're both going to pull out and away from Remmy,
got it?' Jean said.

`Ah huh,' Xian nodded.

`Remember, visualisation is just as important as actualisation here,
understood'. Seeing Xian nod, Jean began counting. `One...Two...Three!'

Both women heaved with all of their strength, pouring their will into the
motion of their bodies. For a few moments, nothing seemed to happen until,
finally, the bars began to move. Ever so slowly, the burning metal gave way
to their combined pull, bending away from their captive. The bars shrieked
in protest as they were warped. After a few minutes, they had almost moved
the bars enough for Remmy to make it through, but before he could prepare
himself, the entire structure began to tremble.

Xian staggered as the tremor grew in intensity. Even Jean was knocked away
from the bars by the force of the shaking. Again the tremor intensified
until the entire structure threatened to collapse. With a horrifying crack
and the sound of tearing fabric, the structure began to splinter and fall
apart in a rain of stones and fragmented memories.

Always the first to act defensively of others, Jean summoned a screen of
shimmering blue energy that wrapped around all four companions and the cage
that held their friend. Debris impacted the screen, forcing it smaller and
smaller under the repeated strikes until almost the entire ceiling had
collapsed upon them. With one final exertion of will, Jean expanded the
shield, blowing the debris in a number of directions.

The tremor, however, had only intensified. Massive crags had appeared in
the ground and gouts of magma and flame began gushing to the surface. A
terrible howl carried across the air, drowning out the sound of the
rumbling earth.

Xian and Danielle fell to their knees under the howl`s assault, clutching
at their ears. Jean and Betsy were both clutching at their ears, but had
remained standing, their eyes fixed on the shadow growing in the air high
above them.

The shadow grew darker, drawing the other shadows in the valley towards it
until it coalesced into a massive pillar of darkness. The vicious howl
finally diminished into a voice as the darkness spread apart into two ebony
wings.

`GET THE FUCK OUT OF MY HEAD!'

*****

Ororo, released from the hold of Morningstar's psychic weapon, wasted no
time in willing herself away from the slumped mutant. Skimming across the
grass on unseen air currents, she wheeled around, coming to a stop beside
Bobby, who had begun to stir.

`Bobby!?' Ororo breathed hoarsely, the continuous use of her mutant powers
consuming what remained of her stamina. The icy mutant barely managed to
grunt as he heaved his battered body from the ground. `The psychics are
doing something. Morningstar is distracted, but I don't know how long it
will last. Do you have enough energy left to fight'?

Finally managing to climb to his feet, Bobby nodded, grimacing as he held
his limp left arm with his left.

`I'm not good for much, but I'll do what I can'.

Nodding in response, Ororo spread her arms, rising into the air as she did.

`Oh, Benevolent Mother, I have such need of your benevolence now,' she
prayed to herself in a voice barely above a whisper that was drowned out by
the howling wind. `Please, lend me the strength I need to deliver my family
from harm'.

Closing her eyes, Ororo reached deep within herself, seeking out the last
vestiges of strength she had remaining and pooling it in the reservoirs of
her mind. With a tribal battle cry, she opened her eyes and swooped down at
Morningstar like a predatory bird. Ball lightning lanced from her
outstretched palms with a crackling tone, bathing her in a luminescent
glow. Closing in on her adversary, she let loose the last remains of her
power, completely depleting what energy she had previously shanghaied from
the deepest recesses of her body in a titanic bolt of electrical energy.

The bolt zigzagged through the air towards its target, leaving a blinding
white trail behind it before it slammed mercilessly into one of
Morningstar's shimmering discs of telekinetic energy. But unlike his other
telekinetic shields, Morningstar's hastily constructed disc shattered like
a ceramic plate struck with a sledge hammer. The broken fragments
evaporated in wisps of dark smoke, leaving the still stunned mutant to
accept the full force of Bobby's frigid ice blast. Bypassing Morningstar's
defences, the icy blue lance of sub-zero energy sent the winged mutant
careering off of his feet and sliding across the blackened lawn.

Drained even of the energy required to remain aloft, Ororo dropped to the
ground with a heavy thud, just in time to witness an enraged Peter deliver
a brutal kick to Morningstar's ribs. With a series of deep wet coughs,
Morningstar began to rise. Peter was about to plant his foot against
Morningstar's ribs a second time when vicelike tentacles of telekinetic
energy lashed out from the barely perceptible aura of black flames that
surrounded the downed mutant.

`I will not be beaten this way. Not like this. And not by you'.

Ororo barely stifled a cry when the psychic tentacles flexed and whipped
Peter through the air, sending him sailing into a barely standing
Bobby. With scarcely the strength to remain standing, Bobby was thrown from
his feet under the impact and ground against the earth by Peter's bulk,
even though the steel skinned mutant had managed to shift from metal to
flesh in time to prevent the surely fatal blow his mutation was sure to
have caused. Having reverted to his flesh and blood incarnation, Peter too
had been rendered unconscious by the impact.

Which left no one standing with the power to stop Morningstar.

*****

Noriko watched with bated breath, as Morningstar cast Peter into the
fragile form of Bobby, rendering them both unconscious, leaving no one to
stand against the seemingly unconquerable mutant. A series of gasps pulled
her attention away from the winged mutant towards the circle of
psychics. Strain was evident on all of their faces, Jean's most of all. As
she watched, Xian whimpered and fell to her knees while somehow still
managing to grasp tightly at Betsy and Danielle's hands.

`Damn it!' She swore, electricity crackling from her eyes and
fingertips. `John, we need to do something'.

John stood beside her, looking out at Morningstar, both awed and
terrified. His entire body shook slightly, and tears leaked from the
corners of his eyes as his lips quivered.

`I can't,' he said.

`John,' Noriko said, gripping his shoulders fiercely and forcing him to
look her in the eyes. `That isn't Remiel! Do you think the real Remmy would
ever hurt Ororo or Scott, or even Bobby for that matter?' Still shaking in
her arms, John slowly shook his head. `That's right. And if we ever want
the real Remmy to come back to us, we need to distract this guy so the
girls can break through and stop him'.

John looked over her shoulder and observed Morningstar advance hap
hazardously towards the almost exhausted Ororo as she feebly attempted to
withdraw.

`Okay'.

`Good,' Noriko said, giving him a hard shove in the chest. `Now man the
fuck up and let's go put our foot to this guys arse'.

Turning away from John, Noriko tapped into the wellspring of energy that
lived just beneath her skin. She felt her muscles jump as though shocked
and the whole world seemed to slow down. Logically, she knew that world
hadn't actually slowed down, it just looked like that from her perspective
as her body accelerated. Everything shifted into sharper focus and she
pushed off from the ground, letting a mixture of gravity, inertia and sheer
strength guide her. The air clung to her as she ran towards Morningstar,
grasping at her body and slowing her movements ever so slightly. When she
had first explained running at super speed to John and Josh, she had
described it like running against a strong headwind; although it doesn't
stop you from moving forward, it just really makes you work for
it. Crossing the distance between the front of the hospital and Morningstar
in barely a second, she brought her left arm up and clipped her metal
gauntlet against his left shoulder. She felt the transfer of kinetic energy
from her gauntlet and knew that even though the blow had no perceptible
effect, it would hurt like hell when Morningstar's mind processed the
impact. Gracefully turning in a wide arc, she began another run at him,
this time from behind his right shoulder. As before, she raised her left
arm, but instead of aiming for his shoulder, she planted it against the
bend in his right leg. Turning once again in a graceful arc so as not to
lose any momentum, she proceeded in delivering a concise series of blows
that spiralled up and around Morningstar's body in a cyclonic pattern. By
the time she had finished, Morningstar had already been lifted up off of
the ground and had begun twisting in the air towards his left. Satisfied
with her assault, Noriko skidded to a halt beside a still struggling Ororo,
who gasped at her sudden appearance. Turning to watch the fruits of her
efforts, Noriko was pleased to see the delayed kinetic energy of her blows
lift and spin Morningstar. Thrown into the air like a rag doll and spun as
though caught in a windless hurricane, the winged mutant was brought
crashing to the ground in a violent heap. Noriko smiled to herself and said
a silent thank you to Jean for her excellent physics lectures.

Sweeping her arms around Ororo's shoulders, Noriko accelerated to super
speed, carrying the barely conscious mutant over to Logan's almost healed
form before the weather witch had time to process the sudden movement.

`Nori?' Ororo gasped, pushing her prone form up from the ground. `What...?'

`Don't worry, Storm,' Noriko told her as she dropped into a combat stance,
preparing to rush at Morningstar's prone form. `We've got this guy'.

`Kick his arse,' Logan managed to growl out, his vocal chords having
mended.

Noriko nodded, then dashed towards Morningstar, hyper accelerating as she
did. She was about two feet away when she struck an invisible barrier that
angled around the prone mutant. Glancing off of the unseen wall, she was
sent crashing to the ground and dragged across the dirt by the force of her
own momentum. Finally skidding to a rest almost twenty yards away, Noriko
pushed herself upright, shaking her head as she did. Stars danced in her
field of vision, obscuring the better part of her sight. She closed her
eyes again and waited for the stars to disappear before reopening them.

Morningstar was still slumped on his knees, supporting the weight of his
wings with his arms. One of the ebony appendages was crooked, with long
feathers sticking out at odd angles. The air around him shimmered slightly,
and she realised what it was she had run into; a thin layer of telekinetic
energy. Unlike a regular telekinetic shield, this thin fabric of energy
would not stop any sustained attack directed against it, but running at her
high velocity, the energy had reacted to her in the same way the surface
tension of water held her weight at super speed. Which meant Morningstar
had realised who it was that attacked him.

As though in answer to her thoughts, Morningstar turned to face her, eyes
aflame with the black psychic fire so unique to him. Noriko quickly climbed
clumsily to her feet, her balance still distorted by the sudden
deceleration. Not wanting to risk another super speed collision, she raised
her arms and spread her fingers wide. The same electrical tingle she always
felt when accessing her electrical powers passed through her forearms where
her gauntlets touched her skin. Arcing between her outstretched fingers,
the electricity crackled hungrily, as though somehow understanding the
reason for its summons. The voltage increased, causing the normally bright
blue electricity to become almost white, but she held onto the charge,
letting the power slowly grow. It wasn't until a burning sensation covered
her skin and the sparks began dancing chaotically up and down her arms that
she unleashed her concentrated attack. With the sound of a bullwhip, the
electrical bolt shot away from her metal encased arms towards Morningstar,
who wore an expression of violent outrage. The blow slammed into the
shimmering curtain, ripping through it as though it hadn't existed at
all. The electrical arcs caressed Morningstar's body, drawing pain filled
howls into the night.

His entire body seizing under the touch of her assault, Morningstar raised
his hand and pointed it accusingly at Noriko.

Tendrils of telekinetic force coiled around her throat and squeezed,
cutting off her oxygen supply. Gasping, she relinquished her assault,
vainly redirecting efforts in an attempt to pry away the invisible grip
Morningstar had established. Slowly, the edges of her vision began to
darken, until finally, she faded into the black. The last thing she saw
before falling unconscious was a bright flash of gold and orange.

*****

`Quickly, Jean, Xian,' Betsy called as she pooled what little psychic
energy she had left into a razor sharp katana that pulsed with violet
energy. `Release Remiel. Danielle and I will hold him off.' Rushing through
the rapidly dissipating shield, Betsy launched herself up and over the
debris left in the aftermath of the quake. Danielle followed close behind,
her armour melting away to be replaced by fearsome war paint and a
magnificent war bow manifesting in her hands. Jean nodded, watching
Danielle nock and loose a series of arrows in rapid succession.

Refocusing her efforts on the bars, Jean heaved with all of her mental
strength, managing to shift them another few inches. Xian attempted to
follow the older psychic's example, but despite her best efforts, failed to
move the bars to which she was clinging.

`I'm sorry, Jean,' she pled. `I'm running on empty'.

`It's okay, Xian,' Jean assured her. `I'll deal with the bars. Start
feeding those memories through to Seraph'.

Xian nodded before rushing to her rucksack that, miraculously, survived the
collapse of the building. Reaching inside, she pulled out a number of tiles
and carried them back to the cage. Reaching through the bars, she held one
of the tiles out to Seraph, who was still slumped on the floor of his
prison.

`Take my hand,' she said. Seraph reached out for her, laying his hands upon
the tile contained within her outstretched hand. As soon as his hand made
contact with the tile, it dissolved into a faint ethereal light that flowed
across his palms to the burns around his wrists. Like a soothing balm, the
glow smothered the melted flesh, growing brighter for a fraction of a
second before fading away. Xian realised almost immediately that the burns,
which had been an angry maroon colour had faded out to a lighter shade of
scarlet. With all the haste she could manage, Xian fed the tiles through
the bars to Seraph's eager reach, where they all dissolved into the same
healing glow. By the time she had exhausted her own supply of tiles, almost
all of the burns and puncture wounds on the left side of Seraph's body had
been mended.

Meanwhile, Jean had been unable to shift the bars any further, her own
mental energy exhausted from the numerous conflicts of the last few
hours. Abandoning the prison, she turned to watch the engagement between
Betsy, Danielle and Morningstar.

Numerous arrows protruded from the ebony wings that had since failed to
hold Morningstar aloft, forcing him to fight on the ground a few yards away
from the collapsed stone edifice. Betsy's katana flashed with violet energy
as it clashed against her adversary's flamed wreathed blade. Closer now
than she had been in the physical world, Jean recognised the blade that
whipped from side to side, powered by the psychically infused muscles of
Morningstar's bulging arms. It was a replica of the Highland Flamberge that
the Professor had displayed on a shelf in his office. A long wide blade
with an equally long hilt and guards, it quickly proved to be no match for
Betsy's incredible skill with the Japanese blade as she rapidly locked his
blade with her own, opening his defences long enough for Danielle to let
loose another arrow. With a wet thunk, the arrow bit deeply into
Morningstar's thigh, eliciting a roar of pain. His wings whipped outwards,
one of which caught Betsy off-guard, sending her crashing into the ground
several feet away. Black flames erupted from the tattoos on his flesh,
obscuring him in a pillar of dark fire. The flames parted and rushed out
along his wings, eating away at the arrows buried amongst their feathers,
leaving the ebony appendages in pristine condition.

Morningstar whipped his blade around, letting it spin wildly in the air
towards Danielle, who had to throw herself aside to avoid the lethal
projectile. Taking full advantage of his adversaries' distraction, he
launched himself towards the cage with two powerful beats of his wings.

Jean barely had time to shout out a warning before Morningstar swept her up
in his arms and carried her up into the air. With his powerful arms wrapped
tightly around her chest, Morningstar began crushing the air out of her
lungs. It was then that she realised that Morningstar was different. On the
physical plane, his upper body had been completely naked, but on the Astral
plane a thick metal collar wrapped tightly around his neck, pulsing every
so slightly with scarlet energy.

`Mindpyre,' she swore, as she pulled her head back and then whipped it
forward, slamming her forehead into the bridge of his nose. The sound of
splintering bone and cartilage was joined by a roar of pain and Jean
quickly found herself reclaimed by whatever passed for gravity on the
Astral plane. She fell rapidly to the ground but, with the laws of physics
holding only the sway she allowed them, the impact with the earth did
little to damage her.

Xian turned to her and was about to say something when a black beam cut
through the air and slammed into her, ripping an agonised scream from her
lips before sending her toppling sideways into the dirt.

`You'll pay for that, you bitch!' Morningstar roared as he descended,
swooping down on her like a hawk after a mouse, summoning a new blade of
fire as he did. Jean brought her hands up in a futile attempt to shield
herself, hoping against hope that the remnants of her psychic armour would
protect her from the blow that was sure to follow. Opening her eyes, Jean
watched as arcs of electrical energy surged from nowhere, enveloping
Morningstar in a cloak of crackling white light. The agonising display of
power forced him to pull back from his intended strike, leaving him to
float in the air for a few moments before the application of some unseen
action released him from the electricity's grasp.

`Thank you, girls,' Jean said, realising that her reprieve had to have been
bought with a great deal of power from either Ororo or Noriko. `Betsy!
Danielle!' she cried out to both women who had managed to climb to their
feet. `The collar around his neck! It looks like something Mindpyre put in
place! If we can get it off of him, maybe we can weaken his hold on the
real Remmy'. Both Betsy and Danielle nodded to Jean to show that they
understood. Realising the time for defence had long since past, Jean let
her red lustre armour fade away, redistributing its collective
energies. Reaching out with the last vestiges of will she possessed, she
took hold of all of the remaining memory tiles, pulling them through the
air towards her. Like a flock of multicoloured birds, they twisted around
her and, at her slightest gesture, slipped through the opening she and Xian
had expended so much to widen. The tiles collided with Seraph's weary form,
bathing him in a blinding radiance that obscured all sight.

`No!' Morningstar roared, sweeping forward like a wraith on the winds. With
a sweep of his mighty blade, he forced Jean to leap back away from the
cage, loosing her control of the few remaining tiles as she did.

Jean fell to the ground with a resounding thud, kicking up red dirt as she
did. Dragging herself behind the cover of a large chunk of fallen stone,
she tried to summon even an iota of power. But nothing happened. Her
reservoirs of energy were empty. Three wet thunks drew her attention back
to Morningstar, who had again been rendered flightless by Danielle's well
placed fire. His attention drawn away from Jean and the cage, Morningstar
barely had time enough to the block the flurry of blade strokes Betsy
delivered, her deadly katana hissing like a cobra as it swept through the
air.

Behind Morningstar, Jean say Xian begin to stir, having finally recovered
from Morningstar's attack. Shaking her head slightly, the weakened telepath
looked up at the battle being waged before her. Her eyes flashed with a
mixture of anger and determination. Before Jean could cry out, Xian climbed
to her feet and leapt onto Morningstar's back, wrapping her legs around his
waist and her hands around his eyes and mouth.

Betsy, making full use of the opportunity Xian's attack afforded her, swung
her katana with deadly efficiency. The clink squeal of metal striking metal
rang out of the Astral battlefield as her psychically infused weapon ripped
through the metal collar hugging Morningstar's throat. Red flame erupted
along the metal band, reducing it to slag that dissolved into a scarlet
mist.

Xian was thrown from Morningstar's body as his muscles began to convulse
uncontrollably, dropping him to his knees. Retching and gagging as though
he was being chocked, tears flowed down his face. With one last spasmodic
retch, a plume of scarlet smoke burst from his mouth, and proceeded to burn
and smoulder into nothing.

`What the hell...,'Betsy started to say, before Morningstar launched
himself forward, catching her around the midriff with his shoulder,
carrying them both to the ground.

Even winded, Betsy brought her razor edged katana up and around, aiming her
blow at the top of Morningstar's neck, but before the cold metal could make
contact with the winged mutant's pliable flesh, his hand caught hold of her
wrist and pinned it to her side. Straddling her waist and pinning her
remaining arm, Morningstar leaned forward to leer at her.

`Hello, Betsy,' he whispered to her as he leaned closer, their faces now
only inches apart. `I bet you're a screamer'. Twisting her arm sideways and
wrenching it out of its socket, Morningstar laughed at her agonised
cry. `Oh, I love it when they scream. Thanks, by the way'. He slowly began
forcing her arm back into its socket, eliciting another scream. `Without
Mindpyre's little trinket keeping me in line, I can finally start to enjoy
myself. Want me to tell you the really reason why pure, innocent little
Seraph tries not to hurt anyone?' Morningstar laughed again. `It's because,
deep down, he enjoys listening to people scream, seeing their faces all
screwed up in pain. But see, I don't feel bad about feeling good. So scream
for me, Betsy'. Twisting her arm out of its socket a second time,
Morningstar laughed in tandem with her screams.

`Let her go, you sadistic son of a bitch!' Danielle roared, leaping onto
his back, pinning his black wings to his sides with her thighs. Reaching
down, she slung her war bow around his neck and pulled back, using the
leverage to lift his upper body away from Betsy, who struggled to drag
herself away. Finally managing to extricate herself from his bulk, Betsy
locked her fury filled eyes on Morningstar.

`It's your turn to scream you bastard'. With all of her strength, Betsy
slammed her foot into Morningstar's groin, causing him to let loose a
ragged cry. Letting her bow dissipate back into her psychic reserves,
Danielle allowed Morningstar to slump forward.

Enraged by their attack on him, Morningstar raised his fist and slammed it
into the ground, causing vast seismic ripples to expand from his position
toppling both Betsy and Danielle.

`I'm going to make you all beg for death,' Morningstar roared as he heaved
himself to his feet. Pointing a finger accusingly at Betsy he said with his
voice little more than a menacing growl, `Starting with you'.

*****

Tears streamed down John's cheeks as he sent the flames trapped within the
confines of his will surging towards Morningstar, who rapidly deployed a
curtain of shimmering energy to protect himself. The torrent of flames
splashed harmlessly against the shield like water against a tarp. The blow,
though ineffective, was enough to break Morningstar's hold over the barely
breathing Noriko, who abruptly fell to the ground. Sparing only a thought
for his friend, John hurled himself into the attack, mentally chanting
Noriko's words to himself; This is not Remmy.

Immediately recalling the useless flames with a thought, he rapidly moulded
them into a sphere of superheated plasma the size of a beach ball and
hurled it with all of his strength at the monster who had stolen his
lover's body.

Reacting almost on instinct, Morningstar slapped his palms together,
producing a shockwave that was equal parts sonic boom and telekinetic
push. The rippling wave collided with the sphere mere feet from where he
was standing, detonating in a massive explosion of reds, yellows and
oranges. The force of the explosion rocked the ground and threw Morningstar
backwards, slamming him into the ground. Chunks of soil and turf were
thrown into the air by the force of his impact, and the sounds of breaking
bone and cartilage rang out.

John, staggered but still standing after the explosion, wasted no time in
drawing together the flaming remnants of the explosion, pulling the flames
towards him on invisible strings of power and will. Spiralling through the
air in a kaleidoscope of molten reds and oranges, the flames pooled between
his outstretched hands before surging forward in a colossal stream of
liquid heat. The jet traversed the distance between them quickly,
blackening what little grass remained through sheer proximity. John shut
his eyes, tracking the movement with his thoughts, unwilling to watch the
final outcome. Ten meters. Eight. John's thoughts flickered back to the
first time they had kissed, huddled together on Remmy's bed. Those soft
lips. That faint flavour that was undeniably Remmy. Seven. Six. The smooth
skin. The hard muscle that became soft and pliable in his
hands. Five. Four. A sudden surge of emotions nearly knocked him off
balance, forcing his eyes open, bombarding him almost faster than he could
process
them. Fear. Remorse. Sadness. Grief. Loneliness. Desire. Lust. Love. Emotions
that were so completely alien and yet so completely familiar. And then it
hit him. These weren't his emotions. They were Remmy's. The real Remmy's.

The torrent of fire evaporated into the air, leaving only a molten glow
behind as the air cooled. John sprinted across the scorched earth towards
Remiel, not bothering to register the faint flicker of movement he caught
in his peripheral vision. Remiel was lying on his side, his right wing bent
at an odd angle. His breathing was shallow and a faint scarlet glow
emanated from his eyes.

`My god,' John breathed, sliding to his knees like a baseball player
sliding into home. `Remmy. Remmy, you're back'. John wrapped his arms
around Remiel's shoulders and drew the half-conscious mutant to a kneeling
position.

`John?' Remiel's voice was husky. `Oh, God. John, I'm so sorry'.

`It's okay, Baby. You're back now'. John's voice cracked under the weight
of his emotions and he pulled Remiel's mouth against his in a hard
kiss. The kiss was hard and forceful, full of hunger and yearning that
melted John's bones, reducing the pillars of his will to gravel, and
threatening to pull him under a riptide of raw lust. But something plucked
at the last chords of John's control and better judgment, something that
would not be denied. The lips pressed against his mouth were not soft. The
flavour that was undeniably Remmy was gone.

Remiel felt John's body stiffen and smiled. Pulling their lips apart, he
locked eyes with John and a wicked gleam flashed in the dark pools that had
once held such kindness and mercy.

`Oh, well,' Morningstar smirked. `I guess it was fun while it lasted'.

A blast of telekinetic energy sent John hurtling through the air before he
crashed violently into the ground, where a fiery pain shot up his right
arm, dragging a haggard scream from his lungs. The sound of Morningstar's
laughter rang out, almost but not quite drowned out by the sound of John's
heartbeat as it pounded painfully in his ears. John looked up in time to
see Morningstar drag himself to his feet. The devious mutant began a slow
steady walk towards John, dragging his mangled black wing behind him in the
dirt.

`I'm sorry, Johnny boy. I really am,' Morningstar said calmly. `But I can't
have you ruining my plans. Not when I'm so close'.

`What?' John gasped, trying to drag himself away from the advancing
Morningstar, but only managing to pull on his broken arm. `What plans?'

`I'm going to make a better world. Don't you see? When all the humans have
been put in their place, we can be together. And not just the way it was
with Seraph, having to hide who and what we are from the world. When I'm
done, we'll finally be able to walk the earth like gods, the way it was
meant to be'.

John looked up at Morningstar, revulsion showing in his eyes. `Get away
from me. You're not my Remmy. I don't want anything to do with your perfect
world. I just want my Remmy back'.

Morningstar's brow creased. `You can't mean that. Johnny, I love you. And
you love me'. Morningstar's voice rose in fever and pitch. `YOU SAID YOU
LOVED ME!'

`NO!' John shouted back. `I love Remmy and I would gladly die for him, but
you're not Remmy! You're just some twisted thing!'

`You'll die for Seraph?' Morningstar raged. `Will you? Fine!' A blazing
sword ignited in his hand and he raised it high above his head. `Fine! If
you won't love me then you don't get to love anyone!'

The blazing sword arced down, cutting through the air with a whistle. John
looked up and said one last prayer...and had it answered.

An azure flash blinded him and over the sound of his own heart beat John
heard a bestial roar followed by Bailey's voice. `I may not wish to kill
you, Remiel, but I think you'll be surprised at just how many ways I can
kick your arse. Now back away'.

*****

Jean dived to her right, narrowly avoiding the black beam that engulfed the
space where she had just stood. The psychic landscape convulsed violently
under the beam's touch, twisting and distorting into a horrific
bastardization of its original form. Not bothering to waste time with idle
observation of the destruction, Jean proceeded to clamber back to her
feet. An agonising scream rang out and Jean turned to face its
source. Morningstar was holding Xian off of the ground by her throat, his
foot placed in the centre of Danielle's back, pinning her to the
ground. Betsy, barely conscious a few feet away, moaned, clutching her
dislocated shoulder. With malicious laughter, Morningstar delivered a
series of brutal punches to Xian's midsection, eliciting another agonising
scream that he promptly cut off with a squeeze to her throat.

`Xian!' Jean cried out, sprinting towards her fallen comrades. `You let her
go, you son of a bitch! You let her go!' Jean launched herself at
Morningstar in an attempt at a football tackle, but only managed to shift
his attention away from Xian, who he threw aside like so much trash.

Grabbing her by the hair, Morningstar pulled Jean's head up, forcing her to
lock eyes with him.

`Jeanie, Jeanie, Jeanie. Haven't you gotten it yet? You can't beat me!'

Morningstar brought his knee up in a violent jerk that collided with Jean's
ribs, forcing the air from her lungs with a shout and a whimper. With the
same malicious laughter as before, he continued to knee her in the ribs,
laughing even harder at the sound of her whimpering.

She was about to lose consciousness when she felt Morningstar's body
stiffen and recoil as though struck. Toppling to the ground, Jean drew a
haggard breath, looking up as she did. Morningstar had stumbled back,
releasing Danielle as he did. A sudden gush of air blew past the four
fallen psychics and slammed into Morningstar, lifting him off of the ground
and dumping him a few feet away. Azure sparks flared to life in the air
surrounding them, dancing around aimlessly for a few seconds before darting
off towards the cage still imprisoning Seraph. Like the flames of cutting
torches, the azure sparks ate away the bars, slicing through the hard metal
with bright flashes of light. After only a few seconds, they had devoured
an entire section of the cage, forming an opening large enough for Seraph
to climb through.

Seraph, finally freed of the psychic prison, stepped through the opening
and onto the field. As soon as his bare foot touched the barren red dirt,
grass burst through the top layer of soil. Like a wave of green, plants
exploded out from the ground in an ever growing circle, growing rapidly to
full size in moments, blanketing the small valley in shades of emerald,
jade and a host of other colours.

Jean, despite the throbbing pain in her arms, legs and chest, staggered to
her feet, gaping in awe at the changes wrought by Seraph's freedom.

`Remmy?'

Seraph turned to look at her. `You need to get out of here while you still
can,' he said calmly. Raising his hand, palm up, he summoned four radiant
orbs of glowing white light. `It's not much, but it should help get you all
escape'. With the flick of a finger, he sent all four orbs shooting through
the air towards each of the exhausted psychics.

As the glowing orb meant for her touched her skin, Jean felt of surge of
power wash over her, invigorating her tired muscles and easing the pain in
her chest. A feeling of warmth and love flowed through her body, leaving
her light-headed for a moment before she felt a faint trickle of psychic
energy flow from her depleted reservoir. She swayed on her feet, dizzy from
the influx of energy.

Steadying her with a hand, Seraph pointed towards the far end of the
valley, opposite the path they had taken to arrive. `You need to take that
path to get out. You'll find the Professor on your way'.

`The Professor...' Jean began but Seraph cut her off.

`There's no time to explain. Just go'.

Jean nodded before reaching down to help Danielle, who had just begun to
stir at the touch of one of Seraph's glowing orbs. Pulling the woman to her
feet, Jean pointed up the valley.

`Take Xian, I'll get Betsy'.

Sweeping forwards, Jean wrapped her arms around Betsy, who had managed to
sit up on her own, still clutching her shoulder. With a heave, she pulled
them both upright, just in time to hear a momentous roar and see a
recovered Morningstar charge Seraph, who let loose a war cry of his own.

`Come on,' Jean said, guiding both of them away from the struggling titans
who were rapidly exchanging blows of blinding white light and inky
darkness.

`But Remmy,' Betsy tried to argue before Jean cut her off.

`I think he can handle himself,' her words were punctuated by the very
ground shaking, `...just fine'.

*****

Bailey watched, eyes ablaze with a cobalt glow, as Morningstar staggered
under the torrent of telekinetic blows he rained down upon him, forcing the
winged mutant to his knees. Cocking his head to the side, he sent a blast
of energy hurtling forward, ripping up the topsoil and throwing Morningstar
ten feet through the air. Stepping around John, who looked equal parts
shocked and relieved, Bailey put himself between the former lovers.

Morningstar rose, spreading his left wing wide while pathetically flailing
his right. He made a move as if to attack, but Bailey interceded, hurtling
the telepathic spike across the distance between them at the speed of
thought. The blow struck true, sending Morningstar reeling, clutching at
his temples and roaring like a wounded animal. Even from across the
battlefield, Bailey could feel the corrosive powers of his spike
unravelling the defences and barriers placed in Remiel's mind.

Remiel began flailing around wildly, beating both wings, unconcerned by the
twisted form of his broken appendage.

`What did you do to him?' he heard John ask behind him.

He smiled to himself. `I just evened up the playing field'.

Gathering as much cohesive telepathic energy together as he could, Bailey
shaped another psychic spike and cast it across the field. As before, the
spike struck with perfect accuracy, knocking Remiel off of his feet where
he remained perfectly still.

`Get everyone together. I'll go and help Jean out,' he told John as he
strode past him towards the ring of psychics, all of whom had been forced
to their knees under the strain of their efforts. Placing his hand on
Jean's shoulder, Bailey closed his eyes and let his borrowed power flow out
through the sensation of his skin against hers and into the link the
psychics had forged to one another.

The world fell away, replaced by a black void that slowly grew lighter,
like the opening sequence of a black and white movie. Finally, out of the
black, features began to emerge. First trees became visible, vague shapes
twisting out to one another, then leaves, as they trees came into further
focus. Finally, Bailey found himself standing in a vast forest of gnarled
trees that clawed at one another angrily.

`Hello!?' he called out, looking around for any sign of the women who had
ventured into the strange world in search of Seraph.

`Hello!?' came the reply. `Is someone there?' Suddenly, from behind him,
Jean, Betsy, Xian and Danielle burst through the trees. `Bailey!?' Jean
gasped in surprise.

They looked beaten and broken, Bailey thought to himself, eyeing the
various cuts and scratches that adorned their bodies.

`I take it you found Seraph,' he commented neutrally.

`Yes,' Jean said. `We were getting beaten badly but something happened to
the cage and now Remmy is fighting Morningstar. Before he started fighting,
Remmy said that the Professor is along this path, so we're trying to find
him'.

`As for the mental barrier, you can thank me later,' Bailey said, earning
looks ranging from thanks to indignation. `Come on. Once we find the
Professor, he and I can head back and put everything straight'.

Stepping forward, he effortlessly lifted Xian from her feet and cradled her
in his arms. Not bothering to wait for their comments, he reached out with
his borrowed senses and located the powerful psychic presence at the edge
of his perceptions. With nary a word, he rushed of into the strange world
that was Remiel's Astral Mind, weaving through the trees easily. He felt
Xian snuggle against his chest, which was mostly bare from the battle with
Raze.

`Don't get any ideas,' he said to her playfully as they approached the
Professor's location. `I don't really swing that way'.

Xian harrumphed loudly into his pecs. `That is just so not fair!'

A smooth chuckle burst from Bailey's lips. `Don't worry, Xian. The right
one's out there. Trust me, I'm kind of an expert on the future'.

Their group moved quickly, dodging between the grotesque scenery until they
finally reached their destination. Bailey paused just outside the high wall
of twisted trees where he lowered Xian to her feet. Just past the barrier
of contorted foliage the Professor's metal presence blazed like a fire in
the night. But it was not the only presence Bailey could feel. Jean, Betsy
and Danielle made to move past him, but Bailey caught Jean's arms.

`Wait,' he whispered forcefully. `Listen carefully'.

Taking careful heed of his advice, the four women stood still and forced
their breathing to quieten. Betsy, her senses sharper than the others', was
the first to hear the threat Bailey had sensed. A series of barely audible
clicks and scratches.

`It sounds like...,' Danielle began before Xian cut in.

`...beetles'.

`Not beetles,' Bailey corrected. `Definitely not beetles'.

`It doesn't matter what they are'. Jean pulled herself free from Bailey's
grip. `We have to go in there regardless. Come on'.

The women nodded to each other, sharing some private understanding Bailey
was not privy to. They all turned towards the barrier and materialised
their armour. Bailey quickly assessed his options. Jean, encased in
lustrous red armour that seemed to wrap around her almost like a second
skin, was the most versatile of all of the fighters, which meant he didn't
need to keep too close an eye on her. Betsy, whose armour was a blend of
black ninja garb and violet samurai plate armour, was easily their best
close combat fighter. His only concern for her was that she not be
overwhelmed by whatever force they were facing. Danielle, wrapped in strips
of brightly polished tooled leather and carrying her formidable war bow,
was a competent long range fighter, making her only vulnerability being
drawn into close combat. Bailey decided almost immediately that Xian, whose
armour was markedly simplistic in design and function, had to be his
priority. With a small exertion of will, his own armour materialised in
place. Highly polished ring mail wrapped around his torso and waist where
it was held firmly in place by a chain belt. Form fitting pauldrons etched
with images of angels covered his shoulders where they fed into similarly
etched rerebraces and coulters. Compound gauntlets ending in razor sharp
claws served as both armour and weapons for him, as did the bladed greaves
that adorned his shins.

The women were the first to move, darting through the breaches between the
trees forming the barrier. Bailey quickly followed, quickly taking in the
scene on the other side of the wall as he emerged. They had all come out
into a small glade that was carpeted by gossamer white threads. The
interior sides of the trees were likewise coated, long silvery threads
stretching out from one to the next. At the centre of the glade stood an
imposing outcropping of black stone that resembled a clawed hand with five
grotesque fingers. Inside the stone hand's grasp, Bailey could make out a
vaguely human shape, wrapped tightly in the gossamer fibres. The clicking
and scratching, which had abruptly stopped upon their arrival, began again,
only this time the volume was far more intense. Bailey let his eyes follow
the sound to its source...and then he gasped. Misshapen arachnid forms the
size of housecats stared out at him from a massive silken orb, suspended
high in the trees.

`Oh, shit,' Bailey said loudly. `Why did it have to be spiders? I hate
spiders!'

As if they had understood his sudden outburst the arachnoids surged out of
the orb through dozens of apertures. In the light, their true aspects
became apparent. Eight long spindly legs hoisted a black body and a bloated
thorax decorated with black and red patterns across the surface of the
orb. Shining black eyes swivelled backwards and forwards, gleaming
maliciously at the small band that had violated their lair. Thick strands
of white silk spewed from the tips of their barbed thoraxes, allowing the
hideous creatures to descend to the floor of the glade.

Closing his eyes and throwing his emulated senses across the glade, Bailey
sought out the Professor's location. What he found startled him. He opened
his eyes and quickly locked his gaze on the white cocoon held captive in
the stone hand's grasp.

`Girls!' he shouted out to them as they began manifesting their chosen
weapons. `The Professor is trapped in the silk cocoon on top of the
outcropping. If I can get to it, I can break him free'.

`Then what are you waiting for?!' Jean shouted as she dashed towards the
approaching arachnoids, flaming rapier held firmly in her armoured hand.

`Xian, stay away from the spiders!' Betsy shouted as she too, headed to
face the swarm. `Cover Danielle as best you can, but do not engage unless
you have to!'

Bailey dashed after them, his heavy footfalls pulling loose thread up from
the ground. He heard a violent screech and barely managed to turn in time
to see one of the large spiders launch itself at him from the branch of a
nearby tree. At the speed of thought, Bailey gathered psychic energy along
the edges of his clawed gauntlets and swiped at the spider. The black
monstrosity let out another shriek as his claws, pulsing with a faint blue
light, tore and burnt through its exoskeleton, leaving smoking gouges in
its hide. Adding his own strength to the creature's flight, Bailey pivoted
and sent the grievously wounded spider hurtling into another of its brood,
buying Betsy the time to slash at them both with her lightning fast
katana. Without pausing to see the resolution of Betsy's actions, Bailey
resumed his mad dash to the stone outcropping. Two more arachnoids tried to
stop his progress, but were mercilessly cut down by a hail of arrows from
Danielle's bow. When he did finally manage to reach the clawed hand, he
buried his own claws into the cold stone and began to ascend the twisted
edifice. Arrows whistled past as he climbed, each followed by the sound of
a dull thud, and he silently thanked Danielle for her accuracy. With one
last heave, he pulled himself onto the stony hand's craggy palm.

The Professor's cocoon looked unnaturally still amidst chaos unfolding
around it, almost like a mummy in its coffin. Shaking the dark thought from
his mind, Bailey crawled forward, placing himself at the head of the
silk-wrapped psychic. Another spider peeked its head above the edge of the
outcropping, only to meet the razor sharp blade running the length of
Bailey's grieve. Gathering as much energy as he could and focusing it along
the razor claw of his index finger, he ran the bladed finger along the side
of the mummy's head and neck. With a grunt of effort, he ripped the silk
covering the Professor's face. Quickly checking the psychic's pulse, Bailey
proceeded to rip the silk cocoon to shreds with his claws until all that
remained were a few loose strands that clung to the Professor's ruined
suit.

`Professor?' Bailey asked, shaking the unconscious man's body. To his
relief, the Professor's eyes fluttered in response.

`Bailey?'

`That's right, Professor,' Bailey said, helping the old man sit up.

`Where am I?' Xavier brushed the last few strands of silk from his suit,
which rippled in response to his will and was promptly replaced by a
beautifully crafted suit of silver armour that resembled Jean's own.

`We're in Remiel's mind on the Astral Plane, and, if you wouldn't mind
terribly, I could use your help in setting things right'.

`Of course,' Xavier nodded.

At that moment, a spider larger than any of the others launched itself over
the edge of the outcropping and landed with a screech before them. Bailey
immediate swiped at the creature, severing two legs, but was quickly
battered aside by the creatures lunge at the Professor. Xavier, not to be
defeated by some lowly psychic predator, conjured a fireball of psychic
flame that surged from his fingertips and engulfed the creature in a pillar
of flame. The spider shrieked loudly and fell backwards off of the stone
claw's palm, where the psychic fire spread from its corpse, consuming the
fine silk of the glade and bathing all the remaining spiders in gnawing
flame. Bailey watched as the psychic manifestation devoured the creatures
in a cacophony shrieks and screeches, leaving only the four psychics still
left in combat unharmed.

All four women looked up and it was evident to Bailey through the look in
their eyes that they were equally awed and relieved by the Professor's
appearance. Xavier touched him on the shoulder and nodded.

`Thank you for freeing me'.

Bailey nodded in turn. `You're welcome'.

Together they descended the stone edifice where they were met with an
outpouring of emotion. At first, Bailey was surprised to be included in the
series of thanks that the women offered, especial the hug that Jean gave
him, but that surprise quickly gave way to a warm sense of satisfaction.

`Very well,' Xavier silenced them all. `While I am pleased to have been
released from captivity, and I can understand your relief at my return,
Bailey and I must go and set everything to order. I want you four to return
to the physical plane and prepare for our immediate departure. Bailey and I
will handle the rest from here'.

Jean nodded. `Be careful'.

Bailey couldn't help but smile. `Come on now, Jean. After everything you've
seen me do, do you really believe he's in any danger?'

Jean frowned at him. `Just because you're powerful, Bailey, doesn't mean
you should be reckless. Morningstar isn't someone to take lightly. I don't
want either of you to get hurt'.

Her words silenced him. There was no disputing her words. She genuinely
cared whether he got hurt or not. Bailey nodded solemnly. Nobody had cared
about him that way since...since Cooper.

With a few brief goodbyes and good lucks, Xavier and Bailey headed back
into the woods.

*****

John heaved an unconscious Amara into his arms. His muscles burnt under the
strain of lifting even her slender body. Carrying her as quickly as he
could, John made his way to front of the abandoned hospital that had
contained the Brotherhood stronghold. After Bailey's transition to the
psychic plane had left John to his own devices, he had debated the wisdom
of assembling the remaining X-men so close to the facility, but before he
had managed to consider another option all of the unconscious Brotherhood
agents, Magneto included, had vanished in a flare of volcanic orange
light. Concluding that they had all been remotely teleported away by
another Brotherhood agent, John had decided that his best option was to
gather the unconscious X-men as close as possible to the ring of psychics.

Bobby, who had sustained a rather serious blow to the head, was still lying
on the ground beside Ororo, who was slumped against a recovered
Logan. Peter had managed to regain consciousness after a few strong shakes
from John, and now stood, keeping a careful eye on the unmoving form of
Remiel. Noriko also stood watch or, more accurately, sat watching from her
position beside Kurt's broken form. The blue mutant was still breathing,
but from what John could see, several of his bones had been broken and it
was doubtful he would regain consciousness anytime soon. Scott, who had
been forced unconscious by exhaustion, had managed to recover enough to
move around somewhat but not enough to really help in any way that
mattered.

John deposited Amara beside Bobby before making his way over to Remiel's
body. When they had moved his lover's body to the ring of psychics, John
had made sure to fold the large ebony wings carefully so as not to damage
them or further injure his right wing, which was still mangled horribly.

`Any change?' he asked as he sat down beside Remiel and interlocked their
fingers. Remiel's angelic face looked pained, his expression taut and
haunted.

`None,' Peter spat. `Watch yourself, Comrade. This one could still be
dangerous'.

`Like hell!' John snapped instantly, causing Noriko to jolt and Scott's
head to whip around. `This is something that those brotherhood dogs did to
him. Remmy is not dangerous, he's one of the best people you'll ever meet
so don't you dare try to tell me he's dangerous, not after everything
you've done of your own free will!'

Peter staggered back as if he had been physically hit, and Noriko hissed at
John.

`John! You take that back right now! We all have things in our past we'd
all like to forget, you just as much as the rest of us. Peter just meant
that you should be careful until we know for sure that it's Remmy and not
Morningstar! So you take that back right now!'

John glared at the ground, forcing his breathing to slow down. Careful to
control his voice, he looked Peter in the eye.

`I'm sorry, Peter. You didn't deserve that'.

Peter sighed and then nodded. `I understand. I should have thought about
what I was saying. My apologies`.

John looked back at Remiel's face.

`Come on, Baby. Come back to me'.

*****

`It's done,' Blink said, her voice devoid of her normal enthusiasm since
Sabretooth's death. `Mystique wants to know how long it will be before you
arrive'.

Quicksilver shifted uneasily in the phone booth and looked out at the motel
across the road.

`A few days at most,' he answered.

`I can teleport you straight to base,' Blink pressed. `You don't need to
come on foot'.

Quicksilver's thoughts flashed back to Raze who was lying unconscious
across one of the motel's beds, the weight of his own exhaustion paralysing
him. The thought of how easy a target his lover would be to their political
enemies within the Brotherhood compelled the lie from Quicksilver's lips.

`No. It's not safe for you to try. Their time traveller was following us,
and there's no telling if he can copy your ability if you try to teleport
us away. If he can, he might be able to follow us through the portal. It's
a risk we can't take at the moment'.

Blink went silent for a moment, discussing what he had said with someone he
assumed. After a few seconds she returned.

`Okay. Mystique agrees that we can't take the risk of you being followed by
the time traveller, but we can't risk you leading him here either. Mystique
says that you should proceed to our old west coast facility in
Riverton. One of our operatives will meet you there and you'll be brought
here by other means'.

`Understood'.

Quicksilver hung up the phone and headed back across the street. The motel
was every inch cheap and nasty, from to the cracked and faded paint to the
flickering neon light that broadcast the name `SleepEzy' in volcanic red.

Fishing the keys out of the pocket of his stolen jacket, Quicksilver open
the door to room 12 and headed in, flicking on the light as he did. Raze
was still unconscious beneath the sheets of the double bed. With a sigh, he
discarded his clothes on the pile of ruined and tattered garments he had
removed from Raze earlier, Quicksilver slipped between the sheets and
wrapped his arms around Raze's broad chest, nuzzling into the firm muscles.

*****

Bailey and Xavier emerged from the trees ringing the valley where the
battle between Seraph and Morningstar raged on. Halting at the edge of the
valley, Bailey crouched down to watch the two superpowered beings clash in
a fierce display of psychic combat.

Seraph and Morningstar hung in the air on strings of psychic force,
circling each other briefly before surging at one another where their
psychic blades clashed in a flash of blinding light that drove them both
back again. Both had materialised armour; Seraph's a cloak of shining white
chain mail that fanned out around him as though weightless; Morningstar's a
black lorica segmentata and gauntlets. In his hand, Seraph held a
magnificent yataghan that was aflame with white fire while Morningstar had
maintained his flamberge, like wide wreathed in flame. For a second time
the pair circled one another and lashed out, their blades clashing with the
sound of lightning that rang out over the small valley.

`We have to move quickly,' Xavier said, materialising a silver rapier. `If
we can take Morningstar by surprise, we can force him to the ground and
trap him like he did Seraph'.

Xavier made to move forward, but Bailey caught him around the bicep with a
clawed hand.

`No,' he said definitively. `If we only trap him, there's no way to be
certain he won't break free again. We can't risk it. Trust me'.

`What do you mean?'

Bailey pulled Xavier down into a crouch beside him as he explained, `The
Morningstar personality appeared in my timeline too, albeit under different
circumstances. You did eventually manage to defeat and trap him and you
were able to keep him under control for almost five years but what you
didn't understand then, Professor, was that as your restored Seraph grew in
strength, so did Morningstar and he eventually managed to break free. And
when you cage a force of nature, you can count on one thing; when it gets
out it not in a good mood. You cannot risk setting an angry Morningstar,
especially one with full control of his abilities, loose on this world'.

`Then what do you suggest?' Xavier demanded. `What other choice do we have?
They're opposite sides of the same coin. We cannot destroy Morningstar
without destroying Seraph'.

`So we destroy both,' Bailey said grimly. `We reduce them both to their
constituent elements and allow them to reintegrate into a new
personality. A personality that will be equal parts Seraph and
Morningstar'.

Xavier's face twisted in confusion, `You cannot truly be considering that
option. If we do that, we'll effectively be killing them both'.

`No, we won't,' Bailey argued. `Everything that makes Seraph and
Morningstar what they are will survive, they'll simply be balanced aspects
of a new personality. Just imagine for a moment, a personality with
Morningstar's passion and Seraph's love. Morningstar's cunning and Seraph's
wisdom'.

Xavier sighed, trying to find fault with Bailey's argument. `What about
Seraph's relationship with John, and his friends? We cannot make a decision
for Seraph that will affect others'.

`And how do you think Seraph will feel, knowing that at any moment
Morningstar might break free and kill everyone he loves? How do you think
that will affect John and Remiel's relationship?'

Xavier gritted his teeth. `Fine.'

Bailey nodded and explained his plan. `I need you to distract them long
enough for me to break up their personalities. Just get their attention
away from each other for a few seconds. That's all I need'.

Xavier nodded without saying anything and headed off towards the
combatants, leaving Bailey alone on the valley's edge. Bailey huffed. He
knew exactly why the Professor wanted to trap the Morningstar personality
instead of reforging Remiel's twin personalities. He wanted Seraph in
control because he knew he could control Seraph. He didn't want to risk the
new personality leaving the sphere of his influence, which he knew was a
distinct possibility given Morningstar's own opinions. He didn't want to
risk losing such a powerful asset.

Pushing the aggravating thought from his mind, Bailey focused on what had
to be done. He had won the argument, and there was time enough later to get
angry at Xavier. Letting his breathing slow down, he reached out with the
ability Remiel had not yet even discovered; the ability to siphon energy
directly from the astral plane. In response to his call, the plane's
inherent energy flowed through the air and into his outstretched hands,
coalescing in his palms before being absorbed into his body. In his minds
eye he saw the weapon he wanted; a naginata. The staff weapon materialised
in his hand and he tested its weight experimentally in his grip. The staff
section of the weapon was smooth and perfectly balanced, despite the
elegant silver dragon that wound around the last six inches of wood, firmly
grasping the curved blade affixed to the end. The blade itself resembled a
wakazashi with a series of simples etched into the steel. Satisfied with
the weapon, Bailey crouched down and prepared for the moment he needed.

*****

Xavier cursed inwardly as he made ready to attack. He loathed having to do
this, not just because of the danger it posed his student, but because of
the risk that the new personality would leave the X-men, robbing the cause
of Mutant Human cooperation. Of course, Xavier himself would feel robbed of
a powerful ally, but it was the cause that would suffer the most. The cause
to which he had devoted almost his entire adult life.

With one final groan, Xavier resolved to do what had to be done. After all,
this was the best course of action and, while he may be loathe to admit it,
it was the only way to be sure of Remiel's continuing health.

Looking up, Xavier watched the titanic pair clash again, their swords
clanging like before. With a sigh, he gathered the bulk of his psychic
energy and began shaping it, infusing it with his will. He needed a
distraction that was sure to draw their attention, a distraction insured
against failure, and he had just the thing. Dividing up the energy, Xavier
sent a third of it streaming into the muscles of his legs, preparing the
psychic manifestation of his body. Once that was done, he pushed a third of
the energy to each palm, letting the crackle with the power. Finally
prepared, Xavier cast one last thought to the good that Seraph could do,
were he in sole control of his powers and body. Then, with a grunt, Xavier
leapt. His jump carried him straight up, between Seraph and Morningstar as
they lunged at one another. Both superpowered mutants looked up in surprise
as he zipped between them, drawing their gaze up and away from each
other. Without their attention focused on the trajectory of their flights,
both Seraph and Morningstar collided in midair amidst a cacophony of shouts
and curses. Ignoring their words, Xavier unleashed the pooled energy in his
hands, letting the power stream from his fingertips in the form of blinding
white lightning that struck both mutants beneath him. The arcs of power
surged along their armour, encapsulating them in a cocoon of white
electricity too bright to look at. Their cries of pain and indignation
sounded through the air.

Xavier let the power diminish, causing the bright flash to fade into
nothing and watched as both Seraph and Morningstar began to fall downward,
momentarily stupefied by his attack. A mighty roar caused Xavier's head to
whip to the side and his mouth fell slack at the sight before him. Bailey,
carrying a naginata ablaze with azure energy, shot through the air like a
bullet towards the falling mutants.

*****

Bailey had watched Xavier's strike and acted immediately. Drawing his
borrowed telekinetic potential to the surface, he shot himself through the
air towards the falling forms of Seraph and Morningstar, naginata held
firmly in his grasp. As he sped through the air, he sent all of the
collected energy he had gathered streaming down the length of the weapon,
infused with a single undeniable edict. Unmake.

The distance vanished in the space of a few heartbeats, and Bailey saw the
Professor's upward momentum finally lose its battle with whatever passed
for gravity in the astral plane. Pushing the thought aside, he readied the
weapon. When the distance had all but disappeared, and had he wished,
Bailey could have reached out and touched either one of the falling
mutants, he swung the bladed staff. The blazing metal passed through their
bodies like scythe through wheat. The cobalt flames of the weapon leapt
from the cold steel and surged up their bodies, engulfing them both in a
spiralling pillar of flame. Letting his gathered momentum carry him past
the pair, Bailey willed his movements slower and twisted in midair so he
could observe the results of his actions.

The flames lapped greedily at their flesh, drawing cries of pain and
surprise from their lips. Their armour and weapons were the first things to
be consumed by the fire, leaving both mutants naked as the slag peeled away
from them. The flames then spiralled around them, forming a sphere of
cobalt energy that ebbed and flowed with an organic force. Their cries
could still be heard from within the sphere and a pulsing white light
flickered through the flaming barrier. After a few moments the cries fell
away and became silent, and the sphere began to shrink. Agonisingly slowly,
the sphere drew in on itself until, when had shrunk to be only a meter in
diameter, the flames died away. What was left behind was another sphere of
pulsing white light.

Squinting at the newly created sphere, Bailey could make out the vague
shape of a humanoid shadow huddled in a fetal position. Letting out a
strained breath, he allowed himself to descend to the ground beside the
Professor, who had reached the ground sometime before. As they watched the
environment around them began to blur and fade in places; entire swaths of
forest replace with expanses of white mist. The sphere above them pulsed a
few more times, each time growing dimmer.

`It's time we got out of here,' Bailey said calmly to the Professor, all
thoughts about the older man's ulterior motives forgotten for the
moment. `Remiel's Astral Mind is collapsing in on itself without a dominant
personality to sustain it and we'd better not be here when it finishes'.

`Agreed,' the Professor nodded, before turning to Bailey. `The way you did
this. It seems as though you've done it before. What kind of future do you
come from where things like this become routine?'

`Routine?' Bailey's eyebrow quirked. `This is far from routine although I
have to say, it's not uncommon. Trust me. You don't want to see the future
I come from'.

`Hmm,' Xavier mumbled, his astral body shimmered out of existence as the
older psychic left the Astral Plane.

Bailey turned back to the pulsing sphere. `No bad dreams'.

*****

Magneto glared at the ceiling of his quarters as the Brotherhood medic
tended his wounds. His lips curled up in a snarled as the agent's powers
began knitting the bones of his shoulder back together. Mystique stood in
the corner, golden eyes gleaming in the shadows cast by the solitary lamp
Magneto had allowed himself.

`How is young Sub-Zero?' Magneto asked, hissing slightly as the medic
completed her work.

`He's recovering,' came Mystique's simple reply, her voice resounding as
though an entire group of people had spoken. `Forge had already constructed
him a mechanical arm, and he'll be ready to fight in a few days'.

`Good,' Magneto said. `I'm sure he'll want to settle the score with Mr
Allerdyce promptly'.

`I believe so'.

`Your belief is not required,' Magneto said neutrally. `No defeat comes
without a thirst for vengeance. I'm sure that, given the opportunity,
Sub-Zero will be more than willing to kill Pyro at the drop of a hat. And
that's exactly what we need'.

`So you mean to strike back?'

`Not immediately. Let the hatred fester. Let this defeat fuel the fires for
a greater victory later. After all, they will have their hands full
restoring Remiel St.Cloud to his former glory. That buys us the time to
plan for our next move'.

`Perhaps it is time for us to make our move against the US Military,'
Mystique suggested. `Crippling the war machine will make us the sole power
in the United States'.

`Mystique, my dear,' Magneto said sweetly. `You really need to start
thinking bigger'.


To Be Continued...

*****

Mwah ha ha ha! Another cliff-hanger! (Okay, yes, I know that was insanely
immature of me, but I just couldn't help it.)

I hope you all enjoyed the latest chapter. I received a lot of feedback,
and I hope you'll all be happy to know that I'll be slowing the pace down a
little and taking a closer look at all of the major characters. But don't
worry, there's still going to be lots of action (both on the streets and
between the sheets).

Like I've always said feedback is the lifeblood of all writers, so please,
drop me an email and tell me what you think. You can reach me at:
scifi_fanboy@hotmail.com

Please put the word X-Force in the subject line so I know that your email
isn't just junk.