Ororo sighed and rolled over in the bed, away from the warmth of Logan's body beside her. He was asleep, and she wished for the millionth time in the past hour that she could go to sleep, too. Unfortunately, one must have a quiet mind to fall asleep, and right now hers was as restless as a marching band in full swing.
After Logan had found her in the library, he'd gently led her back to her room and spent the rest of the afternoon with her, teasing her back into a good mood with dirty jokes and an innuendo-laden game of poker. He'd even gone back downstairs and brought up some supper for her, understanding completely that she wasn't ready to face everyone yet. She smiled to herself, looking over at him now sleeping peacefully beside her. How could she have ever thought badly of this man? Logan was bad-tempered, yes...sometimes even ruthless, but beneath that hardened exterior was a gentle, honorable man.
A man she was madly in love with.
She sighed again and rubbed her eyes tiredly. Why did Forge have to come back now? For the first time in her life, she was really and truly happy, completely at peace with herself and who she was...and she had Logan's love as well. It wasn't fair...just for once, couldn't she be happy without a dark cloud of some kind to overshadow her happiness?
Everything would have been so much easier if Forge had simply ignored her, or at the most maintained a formal sort of cordiality. She could have accepted that...in fact, she would have welcomed it. But, no...he had to reappear, smiling at her as he greeted her with that patronizing expression on his face, as if she'd been waiting for him this entire time, hoping that he would return. He had the nerve to whisper in her ear, in gentle tones, how much he missed her. Ororo scowled angrily at the memory, sitting up in the bed and clasping her arms around her knees. Insufferable bastard...he had always been a little cocky, but this was really the icing on the cake.
She looked around the moonlit darkness of the room, listening to the soft rumble of Logan's breathing, and decided that she might as well get up if she wasn't going to sleep anytime soon. With gentle movements, trying not to awaken him, she pulled back the covers and slipped from the bed. Her clothes were still lying in a heap on the floor...their poker game after supper had rapidly dissolved into a game of a more personal nature, and Logan had taken very little care with her clothes after playfully wrestling her out of them. Not that she minded, of course...she grinned a little as she pulled on her jeans and blouse, remembering.
She thought a moment, then slipped into the soft loafers that were beside the closet door. A walk would be nice...maybe outside. The evening air would help clear her head, and maybe when she came back she'd be ready to sleep finally.
The lock made a faint sound as she turned it, and she glanced back at Logan to see if he heard. Logan stirred a little in his sleep, but then his breathing evened out again and Ororo was able to open the door all the way without awakening him. She crept out into the darkness of the hall, letting the door shut softly behind her, then she made her way to the landing and started down into the gloom. The mansion was quiet, everyone long since in bed, and she tried to maintain that quiet as she walked down the stairs, through the first floor hall and out the back door onto the lawn.
Goddess...it was a beautiful night. The sky was completely clear, filled with brilliant stars and the round silver disk of the full moon. The moonlight cast stark shadows across everything, turning the long, rolling lawn of the mansion complex into a bizarre, surrealistic landscape. Ororo breathed in deeply, filling her lungs with the cleansing smells of a summer night, then she started across the grass toward a small grove of pines on the northeastern corner of the property. There was a bike path there, and she could walk with some privacy, while still staying within the safety of the mansion's grounds.
An owl hooted softly from the trees, and Ororo hugged her arms around herself as she moved among the dark branches. A faint breeze was beginning to stir, damp and cool from the storm of the night before, and she shivered a little as she picked a way along the gravel path that glimmered before her feet in the moonlight. Except for the invisible owl that was keeping her company, the night was a castle of silence...
She tilted her head to the side, listening intently. It wasn't as silent as she thought, apparently, for she could detect the faint sound of a human voice somewhere close by, a male voice, its tone rising and falling in a soft modulation that sent a chill up her spine. Ororo recognized that voice, and the crooning sound of its song. It was a Native American melody, sung by Cheyenne warriors when they were preparing for battle.
Forge was singing it now.
She almost turned back to the house, but something made her pause on the path instead, caught up in the soft, wordless rise and fall of Forge's tenor somewhere within the trees. A battle song...curiosity finally overrode her own hesitation, and she continued following the path into the pines, seeking out the source of the heady music.
Her shoes crunched softly on the gravel, then she turned a slight curve in the path and came upon a clearing in the trees. The silver moonlight lit up the small space, falling on Forge as he knelt with his back to Ororo. He was bare to the waist, his long black hair loose and spread across his shoulders as he lifted a gourd rattle in his hands toward the night sky.
Praises...praises and prayers to the warrior goddess of the moon. Ororo watched his movements in respectful silence, her personal animosity subdued for the moment in recognition of their shared beliefs. She watched him shaking the rattle, the dried seeds inside it making a soft, brittle rhythm, then his voice drew off into a single, fading note as the war song came to an end.
Ororo prepared to back off quietly into the darkness, but before she could move more than a few steps Forge looked over his shoulder.
"Hello, Storm," he said softly.
"Forge." She nodded in reply, then looked around the clearing uncomfortably, shoving her hands into the pockets of her jeans. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to disturb you...I was just out for a walk."
"At night?" She could see the slight smile on his face as he turned and sat down on the grass, bringing his knees up under his chin.
"Yes, at night." Ororo looked around again. "Well, I'll be going back to the house now."
"Wait." Forge stood up suddenly, and she paused, watching the litheness of his moments with veiled eyes. He crossed the distance between them slowly, the arrogant sway of his walk exactly as she remembered, and she found herself growing angry again...angry that she was waiting when he asked her to.
"Goodnight, Forge," she said stiffly, moving to walk away again, but Forge reached out and caught her arm in a gentle grip.
"Wait a moment, please, Ororo?" he asked. She shook off his grip impatiently, but he kept his hand held out to her anyway. "Please...we need to talk."
"There's nothing for us to talk about, Forge," she retorted icily. "And I need to get to bed, before Logan misses me."
Forge winced a little at the mention of Logan's name, and Ororo found herself fighting a smile. "Ah, yes...Logan," he murmured. "Is he always so charming, or did I catch him on a bad day?"
She crossed her arms over her chest. "I have no idea what you're talking about."
"It's nothing, really...he just tried to break my neck over lunch." Forge laughed slightly at Ororo's look of surprise. "Apparently, your Logan doesn't like strange men trying to talk to you."
"Logan attacked you?" she asked.
He snorted. "Hardly. He just roughed me up a little, I guess."
Ororo nodded and looked away with mixed emotions...upset that Logan had lost his temper like that, but secretly pleased over his protectiveness. "He knew you upset me," she murmured softly. "Logan is like that...he reacts first, asks questions later."
"I upset you?" Forge asked, moving closer to her. "How? By telling you that I missed you?" He trailed a gentle finger over the back of her hand. "I did, you know...I missed you very much."
"You have no right to miss me, Forge!" she spat at him, jerking away from his touch. "You have no right to be anything where I am concerned!"
"Ororo..." Forge began, his hands reached toward her placatingly, but she backed away, shaking her head.
"Do you have any idea how much you hurt me?" she asked, her voice trembling with quiet anger. "Do you know what it was like, having to face Jean and Scott and the professor after you left? To tell them that you broke off our engagement?"
"It was a mistake..." Forge said.
"Oh yes, I remember...a BIG mistake, I think you called it." She waited now, glaring at him from the shadows. Fine. If he wanted to air this right now, she was more than happy to oblige.
Forge sighed and sat back down on the grass, his head bowed. "I never meant to hurt you, Ororo," he said softly.
"But you did."
A long silence passed between them. Ororo shivered a little in the night air, staring at the moon with her brow set in an angry line, while Forge picked aimlessly at the blades of grass beside his feet.
"Don't you want to know why I came back?" he asked finally.
"I already know why. Government business, like you told the professor at lunch," she replied.
He shook his head, seeking her eyes in the darkness. "No, it was more than that. I could have sent somebody else if it was just business."
"What then?"
Forge smiled, his teeth flashing white in the moonlight. "I wanted to see you."
He seemed to be fishing for a particular response from her, but she decided not to bite. "Well, you've seen me," she said instead. "I guess you can leave now."
That seemed to anger him. He stood up again quickly, bringing his dark face inches from hers. "Why are you making this so difficult?" he asked. "I'm trying to apologize to you, Ororo...in case you haven't noticed!"
"Then why don't you just do it, dammit?" she snapped back. "What's so hard about saying 'I'm sorry'?"
He recoiled a little. "What's happened to you?" he asked. "The Ororo I knew never talked like that."
"The Ororo you knew was a naive little girl," she retorted. "I've had a few lessons in speaking my mind since you left."
"I see," he muttered. "From Logan, I'm sure."
"Possibly."
He watched her for a moment, then walked away across the clearing, glancing at her over his shoulder.
"Just how serious is it?" he asked.
"What?"
"Your relationship with him." Forge paused and nodded toward her. "I didn't see a ring on your finger, so I suppose its safe to assume you're not married yet."
She flushed a little. "No, we're not married. Not that its any of your business."
He raised his hands in defeat. "I'm sorry I asked."
The silence grew between them once more as the night wind picked up. Both of them stood with their heads facing the breeze, unaware of how alike they looked as the wind blew their long hair behind them, white mingling with black against the summer night.
"I'm sorry, Ororo," Forge said softly, keeping his eyes on the distant stars. "I loved you very much, you know. I never meant to hurt you."
Ororo turned to look at him. His face was almost sad, and she felt her heart softening a little at the sight.
"Thank you."
He smiled a little, meeting her eyes. "I never told you how beautiful I thought you were." He reached out and gently touched her cheek. "You're even more beautiful now than you were then. I was always sorry I never told you."
She said nothing, but neither did she pull away, and Forge studied her face carefully for a reaction. "Does your Logan ever tell you that you're beautiful?" he asked.
"All the time," she replied softly.
"And does he mean it?" Forge pressed. "Or are they just empty words?"
Ororo pulled away, her eyes flickering with anger again, but before she could respond she felt a strange sensation in her head, one that made her blink and freeze her movements.
Forge noticed, an expression of concern on his face. "Ororo? Are you all right?"
It felt like someone tickling her brain...Ororo realized almost immediately that it was either the professor or Jean, trying to talk to her telepathically, and she shook her head at Forge and held up a hand for him to be silent.
<<Ororo?>> Jean spoke in her head.
<<I hear you Jean,>> she replied. <<What is it?>>
<<The professor wants us in the map room. It's an emergency.>> There was a pause, then she asked, <<Do you know where Forge is?>>
<<Right here. We were talking when you called.>>
There was another even longer pause. <<Okay,>> Jean said finally. <<I'll meet you downstairs.>>
<<Okay.>> Ororo blinked again, the uneasy tickle gone, then she looked up to find Forge staring at her. "Sorry," she said. "It was Jean...the professor says there's an emergency."
He nodded, acting totally calm and unsurprised. Her eyes widened as she remembered the battle song he had been singing when she found him.
"You knew, didn't you?" she asked. "You knew something was going to happen tonight."
He shrugged, grabbing his shirt from the ground beside him and pulling it over his head. "I had an idea, but nothing definite." He started toward the house, and Ororo followed, struggling to keep up with his long strides.
"How did you know?" she asked.
He didn't answer until they reached the house, where he opened the back door for her.
"Do you remember that government business I had to discuss with Xavier?"
"Yes." She entered the hall, now lit up softly by the Tiffany lamp on the sideboard.
"I think this has something to do with it." Forge closed the door behind them and followed her down the paneled hall to the foot of the stairs, both of them pausing as Jean appeared on the second floor landing.
"Hey," she called down softly. "Have you seen Logan?"
"He's in my room, Jean," Ororo replied, blushing a little at the look Forge gave her. "He's probably still asleep."
"Okay. I'll wake him. You two go ahead downstairs and we'll meet up with you. Scott's already there," Jean said. Ororo nodded, then walked the rest of the hallway to the elevator, trying not to look at Forge.
She pressed the button and waited. The elevator hummed briefly, then the door slid open with a faint ding and she got on, Forge close behind. The door waited a moment, then slid shut and began its smooth descent into the bowels of the mansion.
An uncomfortable silence reigned between them. Ororo could feel Forge's eyes on her.
"What?" she asked finally.
"Logan was in your room?"
She turned to face him, meeting his eyes steadily. "Yes. Why do you ask?"
"So you are intimate, then."
"That's none of your business, Forge," she said, looking away.
"I still care for you, Ororo," he said. "So, in a way, it is my business."
"I disagree."
He sighed, stepping back as the elevator came to a stop and opened silently. Ororo stepped into the corridor, her face hot from Forge's questions. A few more steps and she'd be safely in the map room...but Forge stopped her with a gentle hand on her arm.
"Ororo, wait."
She halted and turned to face him. "I don't want to talk about this, Forge."
"But you should." He held her arm gently but firmly. "When we were together, never once did I press my advantage with you. I never came to your room, even after we were engaged. Didn't you ever wonder why?"
She almost shook her head, but deep down she knew that was a lie. "I...I suppose I did, a little," she murmured. "Why didn't you come?"
"Because I had too much respect for you," he replied. "I wanted you to know that I loved you, and that I was offering you something more permanent than just a few nights in my bed."
A mental alarm went off, and she stiffened a little. "What are you suggesting, Forge?"
He released her arm and watched her with glittering eyes. "I'm not suggesting anything, Ororo. I'm only asking you to think." He folded his powerful arms over his chest. "I hope you'll forgive me for saying so, but Logan doesn't strike me as a man that makes commitments."
"Oh, and you are?" she asked sarcastically. "This coming from the man that said our engagement was a big mistake?"
"I never said wanting to marry you was a mistake," he snapped back. "ASKING you to marry me was the mistake. You were too young...and I..."
"Yes?"
"I wasn't ready to make that decision yet." His eyes softened a little, and he reached out and took her hand.
"What are you saying, Forge?" she asked.
"I came back because, now, I AM ready to make that decision," Forge said. "Could your Logan make you the same offer?"
Ororo stared at him, stunned. This was insane...
"Logan loves me..." she began, her voice faltering.
"But for how long?" Forge asked softly. "A month? A year? And then what? I know men like him, Ororo...men like Logan never stay in one place for long. Things like marriage, commitment...they don't understand those words."
"I never expected a proposal from him!" she replied angrily, Forge's words upsetting her more than she cared to admit. "There are stronger things than marriage that bind people together."
"Like love?" he asked dryly. "Love is a convenience for men like Logan."
"I hope you're not suggesting that Logan is using me," she replied coldly.
"I'm sure you've heard that quaint expression, 'why buy the cow when you can have the milk for free?'"
Ororo skin turned ashen. "You bastard," she whispered.
Without another word, she turned on her heel and walked away, leaving Forge to follow in silence.
* * * * *
The sound of the desk lamp being turned on woke Logan from his sleep, and he groaned and rolled over in the bed, burying his face in the pillow.
"'Ro, darlin', do you have to turn that on right now?" he muttered.
"It's Jean."
He looked up in surprise, finding the pretty redhead standing at the door, fully dressed. A glance at the clock told him it was after three in the morning. The bed beside him was empty.
"What gives?" he asked. "Where's Ororo?"
"Downstairs already," Jean replied. "The professor needs to see us."
"Well, shit." Logan sat up and scratched his chest absently. "Why didn't 'Ro wake me up before she left?"
"I...I don't know," Jean said, looking a little uncomfortable. "She...she was talking to Forge when I called her."
Logan froze, giving Jean a dark glare. "Forge?" he asked. "Why was she talking to him?"
"I don't know, Logan." Jean looked away from his face, glancing around the room nervously. "Um, anyway, I'll let you get dressed now. We'll be waiting for you in the map room."
He nodded slowly, and Jean left, closing the door behind her with some relief.
Oh Jean, she thought to herself. Why can't you keep your big mouth shut?
* * * * *
In the map room, Ororo and Forge were sitting on opposite sides of Scott, who was trying very hard to ignore the palpable tension between the two. When the door finally opened and Jean came in, followed by Xavier and Logan, Scott's sigh of relief was almost comical.
Ororo looked up at Logan, a soft smile touching her tense face. He looked a little tense himself, but he came and sat beside her, taking her hand in his as he did so.
"Good, we're all here," Xavier said.
"Is it what we expected, Professor?" Forge asked.
"Unfortunately, yes."
"What's going on?" Logan growled.
Xavier and Forge locked glances for a brief minute, then Forge nodded and the professor sighed.
"Magneto has escaped."
"What in the hell?" Logan sputtered. Jean and Ororo exchanged stunned looks, and Scott shook his head in disbelief.
"You're kidding, right?" Scott asked.
"I'm afraid not," Forge said.
"How do YOU know about this?" Logan asked him suspiciously.
"Forge works for a top secret branch of the Pentagon, one that specializes in, shall we say...mutant terrorists," Xavier explained. "His superiors know about Forge's contacts, namely us, and he was asked to come here and put me on alert after Magneto escaped."
"AFTER Magneto escaped?" Scott asked. "You mean this didn't just happen?"
"No," Forge replied. "Magneto escaped three days ago. The Pentagon was hoping to apprehend him quickly, before he had a chance to meet up with the remnants of his Brotherhood." He nodded toward Xavier. "I was sent to the professor as a contigency measure, in case our organization failed."
"So we could pick up the pieces, huh?" Logan asked sarcastically. "Gotta love that military efficiency."
"The military is not prepared at this time to deal with a bunch of renegade mutants," Forge said hotly.
Logan snorted. "Why am I not surprised?"
"All right, gentlemen...that's enough," Xavier said. "You haven't much time...I've been monitoring Magneto since Forge arrived, and he has unfortunately already made contact with Mystique. In less than an hour she will have reached him, undoubtedly with his protective helmet, and then I will no longer be able to track his movements."
"Then we have less than an hour to catch him," Scott said. "Where's Magneto now?"
"Here." Xavier manipulated the map table's controls, and a tall, factory-like building rose up from the surface. "It's an old ironworks facility, a few hundred miles from here due north. You'll have to be exceptionally careful, because a place like this will naturally be full of metal objects that he can use as a weapon."
"And he's still alone?" Ororo asked.
"Yes, for the moment." Xavier pressed a button, transferring the map files to the database of the Blackbird. "Forge will be accompanying you, Scott, as this situation is part of his official business."
"Yes, of course," Scott replied. "Glad to have you aboard again, Forge. We can use your help."
Logan scowled a little, and Ororo smiled when she caught sight of his expression. She squeezed his hand lightly.
"All right, then...let's go," Scott said decisively, and as a team they stood up and moved out.
* * * * *
Once again, the intrepid Blackbird screamed through the night, this time with Forge and Cyclops at the helm. Ororo and Jean were in the second row of seats, while Logan sat hunched behind them, angrily popping and sheathing his claws over and over. It hurt like hell, but he didn't care...it kept his mind off things.
Like that blasted Forge...and the way he kept looking at Ororo. Teammate or no, it took everything Logan had not to spit the arrogant bastard on the end of his claws...that thought brought a nasty grin to Logan's face, but he squashed the expression quickly before Ororo could look back and see it. Jealousy was one thing, but violence was something altogether different, and he had a hunch Ororo wouldn't approve.
"There's the factory," Forge said, startling Logan from his thoughts. "Is everyone ready?"
"As ready as we'll ever be," Jean replied with a smile. Forge nodded and began banking the jet, spiraling it down in smooth descent.
Snikt...shhp...snikt...shhp...Logan glared at the back of Forge's head, his claws sliding in and out reflexively, until Jean finally turned on him with a strained smile.
"Do you think you could cut that out, Logan?" she asked.
Logan met her eyes steadily. Snikt...shhp...snikt...shhp...
Jean sighed and looked at Ororo, who only smiled back and shrugged. Good girl, Logan thought. Ororo knew when to leave him alone.
Cyclops flipped the hover toggles, and the Blackbird's engines slowed to an angry whine. Forge gently lowered the jet's bulk to the overgrown parking lot of the factory, bending back the tall weeds that had grown through the slit surface of the pavement, and with a gentle bump brought the Blackbird to rest. It sighed, the engines humming louder for a brief second, then just as quickly shutting down into silence.
Forge switched the controls into dormant mode and began unbuckling his harness. "All right, Cyclops...your call."
Scott stood up and peered out at the dark silhouette of the building against the night sky. "Let's get closer first," he replied thoughtfully. "I think I see an entrance over there, to the left."
"Okay."
Ororo stood up and activated the hatchway hydraulics, and with a faint hiss the side portal opened to the cool night air. She made her way down quickly, followed by the others in close succession. A short distance from where they stood, the dim shadow of a side door could be seen, and Ororo pointed at it curiously.
"Is that the entrance you were talking about, Cyclops?" she whispered.
"Yeah, that's it." Cyclops moved past them, inspecting the worn metal door carefully, then he nodded at them. "We should be able to go in here. We'll split up and search once we're inside."
"Let me, Cyclops," Forge said. He pushed by, walking up to the door with something small and metallic in his palm. Forge pressed it quickly to the door...there was a faint hum and a series of clicking sounds, then the lock on the door snicked open quietly. He pushed the door open with a grin.
"After you," he said.
Cyclops grinned back. "Thanks, man...I forgot how good it is to have you along."
They walked single-file through the open doorway into the darkness beyond, Logan bringing up the rear. Cyclops stopped just inside, the others gathering around him with their footsteps ringing hollowly on the metal grating beneath their feet.
"Now what?" Logan growled.
"We split up," Cyclops replied. "We're down to thirty minutes...Mystique could be here soon. Logan, Forge...you two go that way." He pointed to the left, where a iron staircase could be seen that disappeared into the darkness below. "Storm, Jean, and I will walk the perimeter of this floor and meet you back here, then we'll all take the upper stories if necessary."
"And if we find Magneto?" Forge asked.
"Call for backup," Cyclops replied. "Jean will be monitoring."
"Right. Let's go, Logan." Forge nodded toward the stairs with his head, then started along the grating toward it. Logan looked after him for a moment as Jean and Cyclops began to move away...a gentle hand on his arm stayed him, and he looked down into Ororo's upturned face.
"Be careful, okay?" she whispered.
He looked down into her beautiful, dark eyes, wondering again what exactly she had been talking about with Forge while he slept alone...then he pushed his suspicions away and bent his head to hers, kissing her hard.
"I'll be careful," he whispered back. "You too, darlin'."
She smiled at him, then turned and disappeared into the darkness after Jean and Cyclops. Logan watched her go, then loped after Forge down the stairs, trying to resist the urge to knock the other man ass over teacups into the basement.
"Glad you could join me," Forge hissed.
Logan glared into the darkness. "Had some business to take care of first."
"So I noticed." There was no mistaking the quiet anger in Forge's voice.
"Jealous, Forge?" Logan asked.
They reached the bottom of the stairs, the scrape of dirty stone beneath their boots, and Forge turned suddenly to face Logan in the shadows.
"Jealous?" Forge repeated. "I think not. Angry, yes...and disgusted."
"Disgusted, huh?" Logan snorted. "Why? Because Ororo asked me to be careful and not you?"
"Let's not play games, Logan," Forge replied.
"Okay." Logan crossed his arms over his chest. "So the real issue here is Ororo choosing me over you."
"She didn't choose you OVER me," Forge said. "If I had been here before you started your...relationship, such as it is...there would have been no contest."
"No contest, huh?"
"No contest at all," Forge said evenly.
A long beat of silence passed between them. Logan's jaw clenched slightly, the only outward sign that he'd heard Forge, but he said nothing and instead fought to keep his hands from around Forge's throat. Forge faced him squarely, his eyes calm and without fear, then after a moment he nodded and moved off into the shadows to continue their search.
Logan split off and began prowling along the opposite side of the room, trying to keep his mind on the mission at hand. Let it go, he thought to himself...he sniffed the air, his eyes watering a little at the acrid stench of hot metal that still lingered here, one hand trailing along the brick wall as he peered into dark corners...but still Forge's words lingered in his mind.
What if he was right? What if Ororo has simply chosen him out of sheer loneliness? She'd loved Forge once, that much she had admitted to him...if the other man had been here, would there have been a snowball's chance in hell for Logan? And now that Forge was back...
The thought made Logan scowl, his heart twisting painfully in his chest. It didn't bear thinking about...not now, when there was a mission to do. He angrily shoved the thoughts away and continued searching...
There was a sudden loud clang of metal above their heads, and the groaning hum of a motor. Logan jumped back and flattened himself against the wall.
"Heads up, Forge!" he growled.
There was a scuffling sound on the other side of the black expanse between them, and Logan could only trust that Forge was out of the way. Something huge and stinking of oil was lowering itself down into the basement, something like a giant freight elevator. Logan hunkered down, watching its descent in absolute silence. It hummed for a moment longer, then banged dully against the floor and stopped.
Logan ears pricked. Voices...coming from inside the giant lift. Definitely a man, with a deep voice from the sound of things...and a woman? What in the hell...?
"I'm telling you, I SMELL him, Mystique," said the man, and the hair on Logan's neck raised up. Sabretooth! Not again!...what did it take for that asshole to stay dead??!
This had the potential to get out of hand real quick, and if Sabretooth and Mystique were here, that meant it was time for a new plan.
<<Jean!>> Logan shouted inside his head. <<I hope you can hear this, darlin', 'cause we're getting ready to be in some seriously deep shit!>>
Immediately Jean's voice echoed in his brain. <<What is it, Logan?>>
<<Sabretooth and Mystique, here in the basement!>>
There was a long silence from her end, then her voice came back, full of adrenaline. <<We're on our way!>>
<<No, wait!>> he shouted mentally, but Jean had already broken the connection. Great, that's all they needed...Cyclops coming down here like a cavalry charge. "Shit..." he muttered aloud.
"...and I'm telling you not to worry about it," Mystique's eerie voice was saying, but Sabretooth cut her off with a growl.
"Shh...did you hear that?"
"Hear what?" she snapped impatiently.
"Somebody's down here," Sabretooth began...then a sudden burst of blinding light flashed through the basement. Sabretooth roared, and in the split second of bright light Logan could see Forge on the other side of the room, a weapon of some kind in his hand. It spewed a fiery blast at Sabretooth, sending the mutant flying backwards into the wall beside Logan.
FWA-THUMP! Logan grinned evilly as Sabretooth shook his head from the impact, groggily trying to focus on Logan's face leaning over him. Snikt...claws extended, Logan raised his fists and winked.
"Hey, bub," he growled. "How's it goin'?"
With a snarl, he slammed his claws into Sabretooth's chest, the larger man howling in pain and anger. Logan twisted the claws out and raised his arms to strike again, but Sabretooth swept his arm up and over and backhanded Logan across the room. Logan grunted as he struck the far wall, collapsing in a heap on the floor.
"Ow..." he muttered.
"YOU again," Sabretooth growled. He stood up, weaving a little, and began stalking toward the smaller man. "Time to finish you once and for all."
"Not so fast, hairball," Forge said coolly from behind him, and another blast from his weapon sent Sabretooth flying.
Logan struggled to his feet...and his eyes widened as he saw a dark shape slipping up behind Forge.
"Forge! Look out!"
Too late...Mystique raised her clasped hands over Forge's back and brought them down hard on the base of his neck. There was a sickening thump, then Forge's eyes rolled up in his head and he sank to the floor, his gun skittering across the stone.
"Unnnnhh..." Forge moaned softly.
"Dammit to hell..." Logan unsheathed his claws and crouched low, watching Mystique's movements with wary eyes. She looked at Forge's crumpled form first, then slowly raised her head and grinned at Logan, her white teeth gleaming against the dark blue of her skin.
"Playtime, Wolverine," she said silkily.
Logan snarled and prepared to leap at her, but he never got the chance. There was a whistling sound behind him, like someone moving with incredible swiftness, then a large, heavy object slammed into the side of his head with a sickening crunch. Logan grunted once...
...then everything faded to black.
* * * * *
"Quick! Logan says that Sabretooth and Mystique are in the basement!" Jean cried.
"Let's go!" Cyclops said, and he turned and broke into a run back the way they came. Jean wasted no time following him, their boots ringing against the metal floor, and Ororo stumbled after them, her heart in her throat.
Sabretooth?! she thought. Oh Goddess...not again!
Cyclops darted quickly through the hanging chains they had passed on their way in, the motion of his passage sending them swinging in slow arcs that Jean and Ororo had to dodge. It was so dark...Cyclops' head turned back and forth, searching for the stairs into the lower levels.
"There it is!" he called, and the three of them scrambled down the steps as fast as possible. The steps seemed to go on forever...hurry, hurry...a stitch began to form in Ororo's side by the time they reached the bottom, then the darkness ahead of them was lit up brilliantly by a blinding flash of light.
"What was that?" Jean asked breathlessly.
"Forge's plasma gun," Cyclops panted. "They're in trouble!"
"More than you realize, my brothers," said a cool, cultured voice behind them. Before they could react, the doors on either end of the long hall swung shut with a hollow clang, leaving them trapped.
* * * * *
As always, Logan healed fast, except this time it wasn't fast enough. When he opened his eyes groggily, he found that he was in a small, square room, his arms locked tightly behind his back by metal cuffs around his wrists. The air stank of hot iron, thick and acrid, and he wrinkled his nose against it while trying to get his bearings.
There was a creaking sound and the shriek of rusted metal, then a small door beside him opened on wobbly hinges. It suddenly dawned on him where he was...he was in the large elevator that had brought Mystique and Sabretooth into the basement. He shook his head again, trying to clear it, as a tall shape ducked and came inside the lift with him.
"Magneto," Logan spat, glaring at the mutant leader with bleary eyes. "I should have known."
"Yes, you should have," Magneto replied conversationally. He smiled and laced his fingers in front of him, looking at Logan with an almost paternal expression.
"Where's Forge?"
"Outside this elevator, still resting peacefully." Magneto chuckled. "Although I'm sure he'll have a devil of a headache when he awakens."
"What are you going to do with us?" Logan growled.
"Don't you mean, 'what are you going to do with me?'" Magneto asked. "The answer is, nothing, as long as you behave. All I want is to get out of here," he continued, leaning close to Logan for emphasis. "And you will do just fine as a hostage to ensure my escape."
Logan bared his teeth and growled low in his chest, but Magneto only laughed softly and exited the elevator with a flourish.
* * * * *
Cyclops slammed his shoulder into the nearest door again, grunting in pain. The door still didn't give beneath his weight...Jean and Storm were searching to no avail for a latch or hinge or something on the other door that would permit some sort of egress, but so far there was nothing.
"Dammit!" he swore angrily. "How did we manage to get trapped like this?"
"It was Magneto," Jean replied wearily. She gave up and slid down the wall with a sigh. "I'd recognize that voice anywhere."
Cyclops pounded a useless fist against the metal. "I just can't believe he got the jump on us."
"I can believe it," Storm said quietly. She crossed the narrow hall to the opposite door and pressed her ear against it. "Can you hear anything?"
"No." Cyclops shook his head, his shoulders slumping in defeat. "I hope Logan and Forge are okay."
Ororo leaned her forehead against the cool metal and closed her eyes. I hope so, too, she thought silently.
* * * * *
A few long minutes passed, then Magneto reentered the elevator, closely followed by Mystique and Sabretooth. Mystique ignored him, but Sabretooth glared at him with barely disguised hatred as he nursed the wounds Logan had caused.
"I believe it is time to go," Magneto said, and with a grand gesture from him, the elevator groaned and began rising, slowly but surely out of the basement and into the the upper reaches of the factory. The abrupt movement rocked Logan back on his bound arms, and he winced a little at the pain that shot through his wrists.
There was a faint clanging sound outside the lift, and both Logan and Sabretooth lifted their heads at the sound, almost simultaneously.
"Did you hear that?" Sabretooth growled.
"Hear what?" Mystique asked.
"It doesn't matter," Magneto said, waving an imperious hand. "Toad is waiting...and I have delayed too long already. Concentrate on the task at hand."
Mystique and Sabretooth exchanged glances, but kept their silence as the elevator continued its ascent.
* * * * *
"So, now what?" Cyclops asked. "Any ideas?"
Ororo sighed and shoved against the door in futile frustration. "None."
WA-BAM!
A terrific crash rang through the little corridor, as if a gigantic hand had slammed into the door next to Ororo. She gave a tiny shriek and jumped away from the door, backing away to where Cyclops and Jean stood in amazement.
"What was that?" Jean asked shakily.
"I don't know..." Ororo began...WA-BAM!..."But there it goes again!"
The hollow crash boomed a third time, and now they could see the sides of the metal door beginning to buckle. "Stand back!" Cyclops commanded, and he touched a ready finger to the dial of his visor, waiting for whoever...or whatever...was coming through.
WA-BAM! WA-BAM!...with a screech, the metal finally gave way. Someone was standing on the other side, someone tall, with what looked like a gun of some sort in their left hand...
"Forge!" Cyclops yelled.
"Hello again," Forge said weakly. He staggered against the door frame, wiping sweat away from his forehead with the back of his hand. "Did I miss anything?"
"Where's Logan?" Ororo asked immediately. Without waiting for the others, she pushed past Forge and into the hall beyond, searching the darkness. Nothing...
Up ahead...a faint humming sound, followed by the noise of steel locking into place. Forge stepped past her and pointed up at the ceiling, through a square opening like an elevator shaft.
"Up there," he said. "Magneto has him."
"Magneto?!"
"Quick...we can't let Magneto escape!" Cyclops said. He ducked and ran under the shaft, peering up into its greasy gloom. "The car has stopped. Jean, can you get me up there?"
"What good would that do?" Jean asked. "There's no way out of the shaft from the underside of the car."
"Look, Cyclops," Forge said, pointing at the far wall of the double shaft. "I think that's a service ladder. We can get up that way."
Cyclops thought for a moment, then nodded. "Fine. Jean, you and Storm go back the way we came and come up through the main floor. Forge and I will take the ladder and try to cut them off."
Without another word, Jean and Ororo turned as a unit and ran back to the basement stairs. Back through the twisted remnants of the door...Forge must have broken it down with one of his weapons, Ororo thought...they raced through the hall and clattered back up the stairs as fast as they could. First floor...all was silent except for the sound of their boots ringing on the floor grating.
They came to a split in the catwalk. "Now what?" Ororo whispered, gasping for breath.
Jean's eyes became unfocused for a second as she mentally searched for Logan. One second, two seconds..."There!" she said finally. "Come on, this way!"
They took off down the right hand path, eyes straining through the darkness to see what was ahead. Jean had the advantage, being taller and in front...Ororo could see little but the grate she ran on and Jean's red ponytail bobbing before her.
Jean ducked to avoid a hanging pipe, then both of them rounded a sharp angle in the wall. "There it is!" Jean hissed, pointing into the dingy shadows ahead. "The elevator car!"
"Any sign of Logan?" Ororo whispered.
"No, but I..."
Suddenly, the faint security lights went out, plunging the factory into complete and total darkness. Ororo sucked in her breath, freezing in place as she strained her ears for the slightest sound.
"Ororo...?" Jean began, then a nasty, crawly voice spoke from the surrounding darkness.
"Hello, pretties."
Toad! Ororo thought with a shiver. There was only a moment to react...she heard Jean's hoarse whisper close by.
"Split up, 'Ro!" she whispered urgently.
Ororo ran. She had no idea where she was going, the steel railings along the catwalk the only thing keeping her from falling headlong into the nether bowels of the factory. She was bouncing off them like a pinball, and she suddenly realized the sound of her passage was deafening. Figuring she had put a reasonable distance between herself and Toad, she slowed to a standstill and stood in tense silence, fighting to control her ragged breathing as she listened hard for any sound of struggle or pursuit.
The lights came back on then, as startling as when they had abruptly gone out, and Ororo jumped backwards in surprise. She was standing directly before the door of the elevator, and almost immediately the door slid open with a dull clang, leaving Ororo staring at Mystique's evil grin.
"Bitch," Mystique hissed. Moving faster than Ororo could track, one blue-skinned leg shot out and swept Ororo's feet off the floor, slamming her down on the catwalk and knocking the wind out of her. Ororo gasped for air and struggled to get up, but Mystique quickly stepped forward and planted a naked foot on each of Ororo's arms, effectively pinning her down.
Hands on her hips, she leaned down and blew Ororo a kiss. "Almost too easy," she purred.
* * * * *
From where Logan was lying on the floor, he couldn't see Mystique's quick dispatch of Ororo. All he heard was a loud thud as something struck the catwalk outside the doors, and he could see the elegant line of Mystique's back as she stood before the doors, looking down at something resting before her.
"What do you want me to do with her?" Mystique asked. Logan's ears pricked...who was she talking about?
"Hold her until we're safely out of the elevator," Magneto replied. "She won't struggle long when she sees who is with us." With a simple gesture, Logan felt himself brought to his feet against his will, his muscles straining against Magento's power over his grafted skeleton.
Magneto managed to move him a foot or so, then he sighed and released Logan abruptly. Logan staggered a little at the unexpectedness of it and stumbled against the side of the elevator, straining against the wrist cuffs once more.
"Sabretooth," Magneto said. "I'm simply too exhausted from my escape...you'll need to escort Wolverine."
Sabretooth grinned, exposing yellow fangs. "No problem," he growled. With his massive claws, he grabbed Logan and yanked him back to his feet, twisting Logan's bound arms behind him as cruelly as possible. The pain was intense, propelling Logan forward, but he clamped his teeth tightly shut and refused to make a sound...there was no way in hell he was going to give this overgrown cat the pleasure.
Mystique leaned out of the way slightly, allowing Magneto to pass her, and Sabretooth pushed Logan out in front of him. Logan glanced down quickly to see who Mystique had pinned, his heart nearly stopping when he saw Ororo's frightened eyes staring back at him.
"Are you okay?" he hissed.
"Keep moving," Sabretooth growled, twisting Logan's arms again. Logan grunted in pain and stumbled forward...
Something moved over his head, away and to the left beyond the bulk of the elevator car.
"Aahhh!" Mystique screamed, her voice shaking with rage. Magneto and Sabretooth whirled around in time to see Mystique abruptly levitate off Storm. She floated in mid-air for a second, struggling against an unseen force, then just as suddenly she was flung across the room, slamming into the back of the elevator shaft with a crunch before tumbling into the darkness below.
What in the hell? Logan thought. He glanced around, his eyes falling on the pretty redhead crouching on top of the elevator car.
"There!" Magneto shouted, pointing straight at Jean. "Get her!"
Sabretooth shoved Logan away, making him fall to his knees with a wince. Ororo was struggling to her feet as Sabretooth started toward Jean, and Logan's eyes widened as Ororo's eyes clouded over, the dark chocolate of her irises silvering into a blinding white.
"You know," Ororo said, spreading her arms as a stiff wind began to blow through the factory. "I've had just about enough of you."
Sabretooth stopped, staring at Ororo uncertainly.
"Hold on to something, you fool!" Magneto shouted. The mutant leader dropped to his knees and wrapped his arms securely around the railing of the catwalk as the wind increased, directed almost precisely toward Sabretooth.
Sabretooth's eyes widened in panic. His feet were slipping...he snarled and clawed at the walls, trying to find purchase, but the wind increased in intensity. He slipped backwards again, his fingers curling around one of the guardrails as he howled his frustration, feet lifting off the floor and flying behind him like a hurricane flag.
Ororo closed her eyes slightly, thrilling at the power coursing through her, then with a sudden shove she used the wind to snap Sabretooth from his precarious hold. With a scream of frustration he crashed into the wall beyond, well off the safety of the catwalk, and fell into the basement shadows two floors below.
"That's enough!" Magneto shouted. With a gesture he opened the cuffs around Logan's wrists, but before Logan could react Magneto took control of his body once more. Logan's feet scraped helplessly as his body was slammed into Ororo's, knocking her off her feet and into a heap on the floor.
Logan's right arm was whipped out in front of him, a hiss of pain escaping his lips as his claws were unsheathed against his will. Ororo looked up, startled, gulping unsteadily as Magneto brought Logan's shining claws level with her eyes.
"Now...let's be reasonable," Magneto said.
Logan strained against Magneto's power, his claws shaking with the strain just inches from Ororo's face. "Let...me...go..." he ground out through gritted teeth. "I'm not...your fuckin'...puppet..."
"That's exactly what you ARE, my dear boy," Magneto replied. He smiled at Ororo almost warmly. "I would suggest that you remain exactly where you are, Storm, if you want to keep your attractive good looks."
"Not so fast, Magneto," said a smooth voice behind him.
Magneto whirled around, but not quickly enough. A blast of brilliant light lit up the room as a bolt of plasma struck him square in the chest.
"Unnnh..." The impact threw him against the railings, where he sagged limply to the floor.
Abruptly, the hold on Logan disappeared. He sheathed his claws, his shoulders sagging with relief as he reached out and pulled Ororo into his arms.
She hugged him tightly, looking over his shoulder at the approaching man with the plasma gun. "Forge!" she cried out, unaware of how Logan stiffened at the man's name. "I've never been so glad to see you!"
Forge gave her a tired smile and tipped an imaginary hat. "Glad to have been of service, ma'am," he drawled.
Cyclops appeared around the far side of the elevator. "Jean, are you okay?" he called up.
"I'm fine, Scott," Jean replied. She came into view, still perched on top of the lift car, and Cyclops lifted his hands and helped her down.
"Now what?" Logan growled, releasing Ororo from his arms.
"I'll take care of this. After all, it's my department," Forge replied. He removed a small portable communicator from his belt and depressed the button on the side, speaking into it with authority. "Agent 33699 reporting. Do you read?"
There was a hiss of static, then a man's voice answered. "We read you, 33699."
"Have completed Operation Metalhead," Forge continued, grinning a little at Logan's snort of amusement. "I repeat...Operation Metalhead has been successful."
"Copy that, 33699. We have a lock on your position."
"I'll be waiting." Forge nodded and turned off the communicator, returning it to his belt. "I guess you guys better get out of here, before the transport arrives. I don't think you want a bunch of questions."
"What about you?" Ororo asked. "We can't leave you here alone. Toad is still here somewhere, and Mystique and Sabretooth could come back any minute."
Cyclops shook his head. "I took care of Toad already. Surprised him...he's down in the basement with the others."
"And I went back and blasted the stairs after Cyclops knocked him over," Forge continued. "Magneto's friends are safely trapped below, at least until my backup arrives." He gestured toward the main door, hidden in the shadows. "They'll be here any minute. You should go."
"Will we see you again?" Jean asked.
"I'll meet you back at the mansion, once my business here is finished," Forge replied.
"Right, then. Come on, guys," Cyclops said. He slapped Forge's shoulder, then started for the main entrance, Jean hurrying to keep up. Logan followed more slowly, trying to appear unconcerned as Ororo stopped in front of Forge.
"You saved our lives, Forge," she said softly. "Thank you."
Logan paused then, watching with dark eyes as Forge's face softened into a smile.
"You're welcome, Ororo," Forge replied.
A long heartbeat of silence passed between them, then Ororo stood on her tiptoes and pressed a gentle kiss to Forge's cheek.
"I...I'm sorry," she whispered.
Logan didn't stay to watch any more. He stalked out the door behind Jean and Scott, his throat tight, Forge's words ringing in his head.
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