Dangerous Illusions

-X-

   Egypt. Present Day

   It was the middle of the day in Cairo and the shopkeeper was just locking up for his lunch break. Every day at noon he locked the jewelry shop and walked down the street to eat his lunch at a nearby deli.  He would be back in fifteen minutes, and he walked outside to post the notice that said so, propping the door open for a few seconds.  He didn’t detect the hint of a breeze that brushed past him from the busy street outside.

   Once she was certain that the shopkeeper had gone, the mutant who called herself Mirage began methodically working her way through the store, removing the most valuable pieces of jewelry from their display cases and tucking them into her jacket. Every so often she glanced toward the windows at the front of the shop, checking to make sure that no passerby noticed the jewelry that was moving from the display cases, hovering in the air for a few seconds, and then disappearing from sight. She had almost completed her sweep of the store when there was a loud noise from the back room.

   Mirage froze in place. Had the shopkeeper suspected something and returned through the back way to check on his business?  She glanced around herself anxiously, but there was nowhere for her to go. The doors were locked from the outside and wired into an alarm system. She retreated toward the front of the store, her back pressed against the glass as she waited. Then two men entered the room.  The first was a tall redhead carrying a long staff, and looking a little bored. The second was an older man whose white-grey hair was covered by an odd-looking helmet, leaving only his face visible. He walked toward the center of the room, a cape billowing behind him, while his companion remained at the door they had just entered through, guarding it. Then the older man paused to look down at one of the display cases that Mirage had nearly emptied, and she knew she was busted.

   “Impressive,” he said under his breath.  Then he let his gaze search the room curiously. “My name is Magneto,” he addressed the thin air. “My companion is Gambit,” he glanced toward the tall redheaded man, who gave a slight nod. “And we are mutants, like yourself.”

   He waited a moment longer, apparently expecting her to respond.  Mirage barely suppressed a grim smile.  She had no intention of giving herself away.  As long as they couldn’t see her, she still had the upper hand.

   “I know who you are, and I know what you can do. And I happen to think that your unique talents can be used for something a little more meaningful than thievery.”

   Magneto extended one hand, and the pieces of jewelry she was carrying in her pockets, along with her belt buckle and anything else metal that she had on her, suddenly began to move toward Magneto’s outstretched hand. Instinctively, Mirage slipped out of the heavy jacket, which was beginning to pull her across the room with it, and it flew into Magneto’s hand.  The moment he touched the material it became visible.

   “Interesting,” he murmured, studying the material intently.  When he looked up again the air was wavering slightly, just as it might out in the desert heat.  And then the figure of an attractive young woman appeared.

   She was in her early twenties, with short-cropped dirty blond hair which laid over her forehead and stuck out in disobedient tufts around her ears and neck. She was dressed in a dark green, form-fitting tank top and pants of the same color. Her grey eyes flickered, unafraid, over Magneto as she walked toward him and removed the black, floor length jacket from his grip in one smooth motion.  With equal grace and no wasted motion, she slid the jacket back on over her muscular upper body and stood watching Magneto as intently as he was watching her.

   She was intrigued by the man and by his proposal, but she didn’t trust him.  “I don’t take kindly to being used,” she answered.  Her soft voice carried hints of a Russian accent, though it had been lessened by years spent in the middle east.  “Or to anyone who wishes to use me,” she concluded, a dangerous edge creeping into her voice.

   Magneto inclined his head to her in concession.  “Understandably so, however we can remain here discussing it, or we can vacate the premises before the shopkeeper realizes that you’ve relieved him of a great deal of his stock.”

   Mirage’s head jerked back toward the door just as she heard the sound of keys meeting the lock.  Magneto gave a flick of his fingers and the shopkeeper suddenly lost possession of his keys, having to retrieve them from the busy sidewalk behind him.

   “What will it be?” Magneto asked.

   Mirage said nothing, only began walking toward the doorway Gambit guarded. She paused when she reached the door, unamused when Gambit refused to clear the way.  He waited to let her through until Magneto had gone before her. Then he gave what she had to admit was a rather disarming smile as he stood aside and whispered, “After you, chere.”

-x-

   X Mansion – Upstate New York

   In Professor Xavier’s office, within his school for gifted youngsters, the X-Men were gathered and waiting to learn why Professor X had called them here. Wolverine was pacing impatiently.  Bobby had taken a seat by the door, anxiously awaiting Rogue’s arrival.  Nightcrawler sat beside the professor’s desk, his gaze occasionally shifting between Professor Xavier and Scott Summers. Scott continued to stare out the window overlooking the grounds, paying little attention to the gathering behind him.

   Wolverine pulled up his pacing and Bobby jumped up from his seat when the door opened and Rogue and Storm walked through.  Rogue smiled eagerly at Bobby as Storm walked past them, and Bobby greeted her with a quick hug, staying careful not to touch her exposed skin.

   Storm’s gaze rested briefly on Scott as she greeted the Professor and crossed the room to take a seat by his desk.  Under other circumstances Storm would have been happy to take the lead role for the X-Men. She was a strong mutant, tough and cool-headed, and she was a natural leader.  But, as Cyclops, Scott Summers had been the leader of the X-Men since the group had come into existence, and Storm had difficulty imagining any circumstance that would take him out of that role. However, none of them could deny that since Jean Gray’s death a month ago, Scott hadn’t been himself. He had become withdrawn and easily distracted. Having him in charge now, in his present state, would put him and the group in danger.  Professor X had realized that and asked Storm to take his place, hopefully only temporarily. And Scott hadn’t resisted the change; in Storm’s mind, that only confirmed how far Scott had slipped off his game.

   “What did you find?” Professor X asked.

   “We were too late this time, Professor,” Storm admitted regretfully. “Magneto beat us there.”

   Professor Xavier lowered his head, nodding in acceptance.  He knew they had done their best, but Magneto’s aggressive collection of mutants over the past month was worrying him more by the day....  In the wake of the Alkali Lake disaster, many mutants had been ousted from their previous anonymity, and Magneto was taking advantage of that misfortune to recruit mutants to his side.

   Xavier had managed to keep his kids safe, for now, convincing the public that Stryker had been a zealot who had acted against Xavier’s school without provocation.  The school had retained its credibility for the most part, and its ranks had also benefitted from the recent unrest between humans and mutants.  Every day it seemed more mutants showed up on their doorstep, hoping that the news reports were false and that this place really was a safe haven for people like them.  Xavier took them all in, kids and adults alike.  But it seemed that for every mutant he took in, Magneto recruited two... and Xavier knew that Magneto wasn’t taking in mutants out of the kindness of his heart. Magneto had a plan.

   His brow furrowed in thought.  Xavier had tried to thwart his old friend’s plans whenever possible, but when he had seen this particular mutant with Cerebro, he had known that her role in future events would be pivotal.  There was a mystery and a purpose surrounding her life force that Xavier couldn’t explain.

   “That’s all right, Storm.  I’m sure another opportunity will present itself.”

   “If Magneto doesn’t wipe us all out first,” Wolverine growled.

   “Logan’s got a point,” Rogue offered cautiously. “With the number of mutants he’s got now....” she trailed off uncertainly, not wanting to finish the unpleasant thought.

   “Make no mistake about it,” Xavier declared, “Magneto is building an army, and we all know that the war has already begun.  But Magneto won’t be coming after us. He will strike at humanity, and he will convince his followers that they should help him in that attack.” 

   Wolverine rolled his eyes. “And now you’re gonna say that it’s up to us to stop him.”

   “Yes,” Professor X answered without hesitation, “We are the only ones who can stop Magneto, and we must stop him.”

-x-

   Upstate New York (not very far away)

   “Honey, I’m home,” Magneto called loudly as he walked inside.  Gambit and Mirage followed, and Mirage found herself standing outside what looked like the mess hall of an old army base.  “Well, I know it’s not much to look at, but it is home,” Magneto explained when Mirage continued to gawk at her surroundings.

   “How many mutants do you have living here?” she asked in a stunned voice.

   “More every day, chere,” Gambit answered her question as he walked away. “More every day.”

   Before she could ask further, a blue-skinned female mutant appeared, drawing herself close enough to Magneto to drape her shapely body across his shoulder and arm.

   “And how are the kids?” he asked her playfully.

   “Just fine, dear,” she answered with a smile, playing along. “I see you’ve brought home another.”

   “Yes,” he answered.  “This is Mirage.  Mirage, meet Mystique.”

   “Charmed,” Mystique murmured, removing her arms from about Magneto’s shoulder. “I’ll just set another place at the table.” She grinned at Magneto once more, and with that she sauntered away.

   Mirage followed her toward the other end of the room, the noise level steadily increasing as she neared the mess hall’s entrance. The room was filled with more mutants than she could count, of every age and description. The sight sent a shiver down her spine.

   “Welcome to the Brotherhood,” Magneto cooed in her ear.

   Mirage walked into the mess hall, wondering exactly what she had gotten herself into.  She didn’t notice that Magneto had remained outside, waiting as another mutant approached him.

   The man was about Magneto’s age, but he looked far older.  He walked with a hunch that nearly bent him double, and his face was almost hidden by scraggly grey hair.  The two men talked for some time, occasionally motioning toward the place where Mirage sat eating her diner alone.  And when their conversation was done, Mind Bender had assured Magneto that his newest find would be a great asset to the Brotherhood.

-x-

   X Mansion

   “Mr. Summers.  Mr. Summers!”

   Scott finally registered the voice that was calling him and turned to find one of his students chasing him down the hall.

   “Mr. Summers,” the boy paused for a few moments to catch his breath, “here’s the homework I owe you.”

   “Thanks, Tom. I’ll have a look at it tomorrow,” Scott answered, tucking the paper into his leather jacket and continuing on his way.

   “Scott!”

   He threw open the door to the garage, picking up his pace as another voice called for his attention. “I don’t have time now, Storm,” he called over his shoulder.

   Storm slammed the door behind her, causing Scott to look up briefly before he straddled his motorcycle and turned the key in the ignition.

   “Scott, I need to talk to you,” Storm yelled over the noise of the motorcycle’s engine, closing the distance between them quickly. “You can’t keep going on like this.”

   “I can, and I will, and when I want your opinion on how I’m doing I’ll let you know,” Scott yelled back. Then he cranked on the gas and spun the bike across the floor, just barely making it under the garage door as it lifted out of his path.

   Storm suppressed a curse and buried her forehead against her hand as she listened to the sound of Scott’s motorcycle streaking off into the distance. Scott was her friend; Jean had been her best friend in the world. She hated seeing him like this, and she hated that Scott remained determined to shut out anyone who tried to help him.

   “Don’t worry about Cyclops.  He just needs to blow off some steam.”

   Storm turned to find Logan standing behind her in the doorway. “This is more than some steam, Logan. He’s not himself; he doesn’t care about anything that he should care about, and he’s been behaving recklessly ever since–” She trailed off, and both of them looked down at the floor.

   Storm pressed her hand to her forehead again, trying to block out the tears. “Dammit, Logan, I’m afraid for him.  If he keeps on like this... I’m afraid he’s going to get himself killed.” Her voice lowered. “And I feel responsible.”

   Logan entered the room and came to a halt at Storm’s side. “Cyclops’s thick head is not your fault.”

   Storm ignored his logical argument.  “He’s lost without Jean.  And now that the professor has put me in charge of the team, there’s no place for him here.”

   “Once Cyclops gets his head back together, he’ll come back to the team.  Until then we’ve just got to – give him some space.”

   “It’s not just about the team,” Storm admitted softly. “Jean was my best friend, and I feel like that makes Scott my responsibility now.  If anything happened to him, Jean would never forgive me, and I couldn’t live with myself.”

   “Believe it or not,” Logan growled, slipping a heavy arm around her shoulders as Storm wiped away tears, “I know what you mean.”  His other hand dug into the pocket of his black leather jacket.  “That’s why good ‘ol Cyclops won’t be getting very far.”

   Storm looked up to see what on earth he was talking about, and Logan gave her a sly grin as he pulled a slightly used and very mangled motorcycle part from his pocket.

-x-

   Scott cursed bitterly as he located the problem that had stalled out his bike about a half hour out from the mansion.  “Logan did this.  I’ll skin him with his own claws.”  He threw the bike into neutral and began pushing it back toward home.

   “I don’t know what you ever saw in that guy, Jean!” Scott gritted against the weight of the bike as he got it moving. He wondered for the millionth time if talking to a dead person wasn’t a sure sign of insanity, but aside from feeling the wind whip across his body as the road rushed by faster and faster under the wheels of his bike, talking to Jean was the only thing that kept the pain at bay. For a precious little while he could manage to forget how empty his life felt without her.

   Scott gave the bike another shove and continued his thoughts on Wolverine. “He is the most arrogant, selfish, uncouth, unruly little man....  Did I say obnoxious?  He’s obnoxious, and pushy, and he doesn’t know when to stay the hell out of other people’s business.” Scott pulled up, panting. He had no idea how much time had passed since he had left the mansion, but his muscles were aching and it had gotten dark.  He pulled the bike off the side of the road and settled into a clearing to get a little sleep, but sleep wouldn’t come.

   He lay there feeling his muscles ache, listening to the sounds of the forest, and remembering. He remembered a night, years ago, when he and Jean had slept out under the stars. It was the first night they had ever spent together.  He had to laugh now, looking back.  They had still been teenagers, but they had thought that they were so grown up.  Scott had found a spot out in the forest a safe distance away from the mansion, nestled beside the banks of a gorgeous lake. They had swum in the lake and cooked their dinner over a campfire, and when it was time for bed they had climbed into a sleeping bag to snuggle close together... and before the night was over they had made love for the first time.

   Scott tilted his head back against the dew-wet grass and sighed. There were so many things he wished he could have to do over. He knew that Jean had loved him, but no matter how hard he had tried he had never been able to make her feel completely safe. He had always thought that time would change that.  Lord knows he had come to her with enough wounds of his own, and most of them had healed under the combination of time and love.  Now he wished more than anything that he had married Jean Gray.  He had thought up a million different ways of proposing to her over the years... maybe if she had known that he was going to love her for the rest of her life, without condition... maybe then she wouldn’t have refused to let him help her at Alkali Lake.  Maybe she would have understood that he would rather have died by her side than live for a single day without her.

-x-

   It was barely light the next morning when Scott rolled his bike up the drive and into the garage at the mansion.

   “What’s-a-matter, sport?”

   Scott leaned his weight across the seat of the bike for a moment, allowing a smile to cross his face as he considered just how easily he could take Logan out... just a twist of his head and a burst of energy from his visor, and Logan would be a mile away scraping off the road rash.

   “You run out of gas?” Logan asked with a raise of his eyebrow.

   Scott straightened, and before he really knew what he was doing he had planted his right fist into the side of Logan’s face. 

   Logan responded with a howl of rage and, instinctively, he brought his claws to bare with a familiar snit sound.  “Hey, I was just trying to help you, goldenboy. But if you want a fight, I can do that too,” his voice deepened over the challenge.

   Wolverine had barely gotten his challenge out before Cyclops dove at his waist, driving him down hard to the ground. Despite the surprise of Cyclops’ attack and the sudden jolt to the back of his head, Wolverine was thinking clearly enough to retract the deadly blades that extended from each of his hands at the knuckles. Cyclops hadn’t gone for his visor yet, and even though he had gotten in a cheap shot, Wolverine didn’t want to hurt the kid – at least not badly.

   They spent the next several minutes exchanging blows and wrestling for position like a couple of school kids locked in a playground fistfight.  Then a popping sound filled the air and the space between the two men was filled by a fuzzy blue elf.

   “Nightcrawler – get off,” Logan yelled, trying to see past the blue fur and disengage himself from four limbs and a tail.

   “Yeah, Crawler – get off,” Scott seconded, “while I can still breathe.”  Nightcrawler’s back was pressing Scott to the ground and steadily driving the air out of his lungs as the fuzzy, blue-skinned mutant continued to struggle with Wolverine. Then the weight of the two men was released from Scott’s chest as a new voice filled the air.

   “I’m called ‘Beast.’ Nice to make your acquaintances, I’m sure.”

   A huge blue mutant wearing large glasses was now holding Wolverine up off the floor with one hand, and with Nightcrawler still clinging to Wolverine’s front side.”

   “Thanks, Beast.” Nightcrawler disappeared from sight with a pop and reappeared a few inches away in a crouching position, his tail quickly flicking from side to side as he looked between Scott and Logan. “This isn’t what I had in mind when I volunteered to give you that tour, Hank.”

   Logan shook one arm, pulling himself away from Beast’s hold and dropping down to the floor.  He straightened his jacket collar and worked at the muscles in his jaw where Cyclops had connected with a hard left.  He hated to admit it, but the kid packed a wallop of a punch.

   “Yeah?” Scott breathed as he got to his feet.  “Well, why don’t the two of you finish your little tour and let Logan and I continue our talk.”

   Logan was a little stunned by the intensity in Scott’s voice, but his wide stance and clinched fists left no mystery about his intentions.  Logan couldn’t help the slow smile that crawled across his face.  He had never been one to turn down a good fight.  But before Scott could engage Logan again Nightcrawler had stepped between the two men.  This time he caught a hold of Scott by both arms, and before Scott had a chance to free himself both of them disappeared from sight.

   The garage was filled with uncomfortable silence for a few moments before Beast cleared his throat.

   “Since Nightcrawler is otherwise engaged, perhaps you would be so kind as to finish my tour?”

   Logan rolled his eyes as he turned toward the entrance to the mansion. How had he gone from fighting to playing tour guide?  “Come on,” he grunted.  “I’ll take you back to the professor.”

-x-

   Nightcrawler teleported himself and Scott out onto the grounds, and he was met by a very nasty expression from Scott Summers as Nightcrawler released his hold on him.

   “What did you go and do that for?  I wasn’t done with him yet. I can handle myself enough to settle a few things with Wolverine, you know?”

   “Listen to yourself, Scott,” Nightcrawler said softly. “Logan is not your enemy.  We’re all on the same side, and we all care about you, even Logan.”

   “Yeah, right,” Scott scoffed as he turned away.  Nightcrawler’s words had just reminded him that the pain was still there. Jean was still gone. And he still didn’t know how he was going to make it through another day. For a while there, he had been able to forget, concentrating on his anger with Wolverine.  But he knew that Nightcrawler was right.  Fighting wouldn’t solve this, and anger wouldn’t hide it.

   “I am praying for you, my friend,” Nightcrawler said very softly, reaching a hand to rest on Scott’s shoulder.  “I know that you are hurting, but God will not abandon you in your hour of need.”

   Scott lowered his head.  “I don’t mean to insult your faith, Nightcrawler, but if there is a God, I’m afraid He abandoned me a long time ago.”

   Nightcrawler released a deep sigh and watched Scott Summers walk away from him.  “God is love,” he whispered, “and He never abandons any of us. I will pray that you may learn that for yourself, my friend.”

-x-

   New York City

   Mirage took a deep, calming breath and tried to relax her nerves.  Bigger venue, same challenge, she coached herself determinedly. Everything about New York City was bigger and busier than anything she had ever seen before, but at the end of the day this was just another job.  Mystique had gotten her in by posing as the owner-operator of the store, and Gambit had disabled the alarm system by slipping one of his charged playing cards into the security system’s control panel. Now it was up to her and Mystique to clean the place out as quickly as possible and without drawing undue attention.

   “Mon ami, I think we got visitors,” Gambit warned from his watch position near the door.

   “Police?” Mirage questioned the tall Cajun.

   “No, chere.  X-Men.”

   “X-Men?”

   Mystique quickly turned on her headset.  “Magneto, we’ve got company.”

   “Not to worry. Carry on with the plan,” Magneto’s voice replied in her ear.

   “Come on,” Mystique ordered. “Gambit, grab those bags.  You,” she pointed in Mirage’s general direction, “earn your keep and finish cleaning out those cases.”

   Mirage did as she was told because she didn’t see where she had much choice in the matter. “You want to tell me what exactly is an X-Man?”

   “Mutants, trying to play superhero and protect the humans. Come on! Let’s go!”

   Mirage finished the last case and rushed for the door. “You didn’t tell me we’d be up against other mutants,” she hissed at Mystique, stripping out of her jacket and folding it across her arm. She was liking this less by the minute.

   “Just stick close to Gambit and me, and you’ve got nothing to worry about.”

   Mirage gritted her teeth.  She felt like telling Mystique that she was perfectly capable of taking care of herself, but Mirage knew that she was at a certain disadvantage; engaging in physical combat would prevent her from using her talent, which was the only reason she was here as far as Mystique and Magneto were concerned.

   She followed Mystique and Gambit out into the street, where the city’s activity had seemingly come to a halt.  Five mutants dressed in black stood around a man in a wheelchair, who was having a strangely calm and even friendly conversation with Magneto.

   “Isn’t robbery a little beneath you, Eric?”

   “A man has to provide for his family, Charles. Certainly you wouldn’t deny me that.”

   “We both know that this Brotherhood of yours isn’t about family; it’s about building an army to use against humanity.  You’re about to take a step from which we cannot return, Eric.  I beg you to reconsider.”

   Magneto smiled.  “If we have finally reached the point of no return, then I welcome it.  I’ve been telling you for years, Charles, that the war was coming. And now it is long, long overdue.”

   Magneto picked up one of the cars that had been abandoned in the street and sent it flying toward the group of X-Men, as they called themselves.  But one of the black-clad figures extended his hands and stopped the vehicle’s forward motion with what looked like a stream of ice. By then the others were all in motion, rushing toward Magneto as he proceeded to block their way with every bit of metal that he could send toward them.  Meanwhile the sky had suddenly clouded over and a strong wind began to push Magneto’s wall of debris out of the way.

   “Come on, girl!” Mystique hissed, noticing that the door to the jewelry store still stood open.

   Mirage forced her feet into motion, but she only managed a couple of steps forward before a popping noise broke the air and two more black-clad figures stood blocking their escape.

   “Hello, Mystique,” one of the two greeted Mystique with a throaty growl, followed by razor sharp claws that were extended from each hand. As he attacked Mystique, Gambit moved to engage the second mutant, but the blue creature easily flipped and twisted away from the crafty Cajan’s attack.  Then just when Gambit appeared to be taking the advantage and was ready to strike a finishing blow, that popping sound filled the air again.  Gambit’s charged playing cards cut through the space where the blue mutant had stood a second earlier and embedded themselves into a parked car.

   “Fire in da hole, chere,” Gambit yelled, throwing himself back toward the front of the store.

   Gambit threw himself directly toward the place where Mirage had been standing until just a moment ago, but when the blue mutant had rematerialized behind her Mirage had quickly ducked out of his path. Gambit’s well-timed lunge missed its mark, and that was the last thing Mirage remembered before Gambit’s playing cards ignited the car’s fuel tank and a fiery explosion threw her backward through the store window.

-x-

   “Petite! Petite?!” Gambit yelled, searching the debris. The girl had been in his care and Gambit had no intention of leaving without her. He saw Nightcrawler lying in the shop among the debris and carefully turned the mutant over onto his back; after assuring himself that his injuries were not life threatening, Gambit continued calling for Mirage.

   “Nightcrawler?”

   Gambit turned on his heel. The other X-Men were coming for their friend.  Gambit made one last sweep of the area, looking for any sign that another person had been thrown back here, but he could see no sign of her.  All he had found was her coat lying outside.

   With a heavy heart, Gambit returned to meet up with Magneto and Mystique.

-x-

   “Nightcrawler?”

   Nightcrawler cringed and began to shake the cobwebs from his head as he sat up.

   “I’m here,” he called, and quickly heard the sounds of people scrambling through the debris to reach him. He rolled over onto his stomach and his hand brushed something unusually soft instead of the glass-strewn floor. He blinked in disbelief. The empty space on the floor that he had just been staring at was now filled by the unconscious body of a young girl.

   “And you’re not alone,” Wolverine noted as he looked into the face of the girl Nightcrawler had now pulled into his arms.

   “She’s alive, but her pulse is weak. We should get her back to the professor.”

-x-

   Gambit hung his head as he handed the black coat to Mystique.  “Fraid this was all I could find of the petit chere,” he said softly.

   “Not to worry. She served her purpose,” Mystique concluded, pulling a diamond neckless from one of the coat’s pockets. “This haul was all we really needed her for.”

   Gambit felt his anger flair at his colleague’s callousness.  And in the next heartbeat he shook his head warily, as if trying to rid himself of the emotion. Mystique was right.  They were insuring the survival of the Brotherhood. That mission was more important than any of them, and if he had fallen they would have left him behind without a second thought....  He had never minded that before.

   “That’s not entirely true, Mystique,” Magneto corrected her softly.  “And you needn’t worry yourself over her loss, Gambit.  Charles has found her, just as I knew he would.”

-x-

   X Mansion – Medical Wing

   Mirage lifted her head and blinked her eyes. She was in a hospital. It smelled like a hospital and sounded like a hospital, but it didn’t look like any hospital that she had ever seen.

   “Professor, I believe our patient is waking.”

   Mirage focused her attention on the figure that moved toward her.

   “Hello, Miranda.”

   A wave of panic swept through her. This was the man she had seen confronting Magneto; the X-Men had taken her captive.

   “How do you know who I am?” she questioned, trying to sit up.

   “Please, don’t try to move yet.”

   Under the circumstances, moving was the last thing on her mind.  She was staring up at a hulking, blue-skinned mutant whose very large hands had just assumed a firm but gentle grasp around her biceps.

   “Beast has been taking care of you for the past several days,” the bald man in the wheelchair explained conversationally.

   “Beast.” The name was more than appropriate to describe his physical appearance, but the huge mutant was also nicely dressed under a white, floor-length lab coat, and surprisingly soft spoken.  He gave a slight bow in response, and released her.

   Miranda’s brow furrowed. “You’re a doctor, then?”

   “I have some knowledge,” he confessed, shyly avoiding her question.

   “Beast is very knowledgeable, in many areas. He has agreed to help us here since we recently lost our own doctor.”

   Mirage flinched. That simple admission was a sore subject for the man.... “You haven’t answered my question,” she pressed him again.

   “Nor have I introduced myself. I am Professor Xavier, and you are in my school for gifted students – for mutants.  And I know a great deal about you.  Your given name is Mira Karabanov, and you were born in Moscow twenty-three years ago.  When you settled in Cairo, you were called Miranda Knight, and you’ve been responsible for at least two dozen unsolved jewel thefts over the past four years.”

   “Twenty-six, to be exact.”

   Xavier only gave a small nod, ignoring her brazenness. “My people have been trying to find you, but Magneto was able to find you first.”

   “What do you want with me?” she asked next.

   “I want the same thing you want. To use your abilities for good, to make a difference.”

   Miranda shook her head, and she immediately wished that she hadn’t when the motion made her feel slightly dizzy. She ignored the dizziness, and his strangely intuitive statement, for the time being. “But your people were fighting the Brotherhood!  You would side with the humans against other mutants?” she asked incredulously.

   Xavier lowered his head regretfully. “I wish that we didn’t have to take sides. But Magneto’s way is misguided, at best. Mutants will never gain their freedom by fighting humanity, only if we work together–”

   “I have a hard time working together with people who want me dead,” Mirage stated without apology. “At least Magneto understands that.”

   Professor X glanced to Beast, who only shrugged his shoulders. Neither of them could deny the logic in her argument.

   “But Eric fails to give humanity credit for its advances.  I believe that they are worth saving.”

   “I only hope that they will show you the same consideration,” Miranda decided under her breath.  She thought she heard Beast give a snicker at her words before she relaxed against her pillow and fell back asleep.

-x-

   Hardly a day went by over the next week that Professor X didn’t come to the medical wing to see her. Miranda had grown accustomed to his visits, even enjoying them.  She liked a good, clean argument, and Xavier’s outlandishly optimistic view of reality begged to be shot down.

   “It’s good to see you up and about,” he greeted her.

   She shot him a funny look. “Strange comment, coming from a man in a wheelchair,” she noted. Miranda had also begun trying to crack that calm shell of his, thus far without success.

   “Perhaps.  Would you like to go for a roll with me?”

   She waved a hand in front of her.  “Wheel away.”

   The professor showed her around the school and the grounds, talking to her the whole time about how his students were able to find acceptance here and learn the kind of self-discipline that would allow them to use their talents wisely, and they would also acquire the knowledge and skills that would allow them to succeed in the outside world.

   Miranda felt as though she had slipped into an alternate universe. She didn’t know how Xavier could calmly speak about teaching students to find their place in the world when the world as they knew it was on the brink of collapse.  But there was something about this place....  Miranda had come to a stop as Xavier rolled through the wide hall of the school’s stables. She breathed in deep the scent of horses and hay as she walked over to a stall which housed a beautiful Arabian mare.  The animal nickered at her in welcome, and without thinking, Miranda spoke softly to it in Arabic.  This place was filled with hope.  And hope was something that Miranda hadn’t felt in a very long time.

   “Remind you of home?” Xavier asked softly.

   Miranda was startled by his voice, and she scolded herself for having forgotten he was there.

   “Perhaps,” she whispered, her voice thick with Russian accent over the single word.  She had grown up in Russia; then it had been late in the days of the Soviet Union. Miranda had inherited her mother’s love of horses, and one of her happiest memories from childhood was hiding in the stables, waiting for her mother to return from her morning ride.

   Her mother had been a middle-easterner, and her father a spy for the Soviet government.  They had led a charmed existence due to her father’s standing in the regime – until the Soviet government had collapsed and her father’s cover had been blown, forcing him to take his family and flee for their lives.  But Miranda could hardly blame the people of her homeland for her misfortune.  Even as a child she had seen the suffering of the working men and women.  Communism had failed them. Their leaders had failed them. The people in charge stayed warm and well-fed while those dependent upon them froze and starved.

   She had only been eight years old when her parents had fled. After her father’s identity had been revealed, the highly-placed officials whom he had once served decided that he knew too much.  They had been hoping to find sanctuary among her mother’s people, but had only made it as far as Egypt before the government assassins caught up with them. Miranda’s discovery of her talent had saved her from her parent’s fate. The goons couldn’t shoot what they couldn’t see....  She had spent the next ten years in an orphanage in Cairo. And whatever faith she had once had in humanity was fast in leaving her. If it wasn’t a corrupt government pulling citizens from their beds in the night, then it was religious zealots who were blowing themselves up in the streets in order to murder others in the name of their God.

   Miranda’s gaze moved away from the horse that had begun playfully nibbling at her fingers, hoping for a treat, and she sighed heavily.  Animals were simple, beautifully so.  Once they trusted you, they trusted you completely.  No hidden agenda, no ulterior motives.  People were much more complex, and horribly unpredictable.

   Unconsciously, Miranda had begun watching the young man down the hall from them. He was in the garage area, his attention completely absorbed by the motorcycle that he was working on.  When he straightened and reached for a tool out of a nearby toolbox she noticed the unusual headpiece he wore. It looked like a wrap around visor.

   The professor followed her line of sight curiously.  “Scott was the first student I took in,” he explained easily, motioning toward the young man who had already gone back to his work on the bike.  “He also grew up in an orphanage, following his accident and his parents’ death,” Xavier finished softly.

   Miranda could tell by his voice that Xavier had a strong emotional attachment to this former student, perhaps because he was the first child that Xavier’s school had taken in... perhaps it was more than that reason alone.

   “What’s wrong with him?” Miranda asked softly.

   Scott’s gift,” he corrected gently, “is the ability to emit powerful optic blasts. Unfortunately the accident he was in as a child caused injury to the part of his brain that would have allowed him control over the beams.  Now he has to wear special ruby quartz glasses, or his visor, constantly. Otherwise he would do serious harm to anyone or anything that he looked at.”

   Miranda nodded at the information she had been given, but Xavier hadn’t answered her question.  “That’s not what I meant,” she explained softly, her gaze never leaving the young man.

     Now it was the professor’s turn to look puzzled.  “He recently lost someone.  Someone he loved,” Xavier whispered.

   Miranda saw the shadow that crossed his face when she looked back to Xavier. She had seen that look shortly after she had awoken a week ago. “Someone you all loved,” she surmised. “The doctor, Jean Gray.”

   “Yes,” Xavier answered her, again looking puzzled. He was quite certain he hadn’t offered Jean’s name, and he doubted that anyone else here had either.  “Miranda, what made you ask me about Scott?”

   She shrugged.  Miranda was unsure of how to answer that question, but she was completely sure of the answer; the truth was right there, plain as day, in front of her.  “He loved her from the moment he saw her... and without her he feels lost, and alone in the world.  It’s written all over him.”

   “No, that’s just it – it’s not so obvious. Scott’s emotions have been very guarded; even I’ve had a hard time getting a read on him, since Jean.”  The professor refocused his attention.  “Miranda, do you have any idea why Magneto wanted you?”

   She shrugged again, evasively.  “Aside from the jewelry heist, no, and he didn’t really need me for that,” she cautiously put the nagging thought into words.  “Mystique and Gambit could easily have pulled that off without me.”

   “Do you remember anything else?  Anything at all, even a dream?”

   Miranda’s brow furrowed. “That’s curious. Now that you mention it, I have been dreaming about a mutant that I saw at the Brotherhood.  I never even spoke to him, but he keeps appearing in my dreams, along with Magneto.”

   “Miranda, this is very important,” Xavier said, drawing his chair closer to her. “I need to see those dreams.  Would you consider letting me search your memories?”

   Magneto’s voice from the dream rang through her mind.  Chop off the head of the serpent, and the body will slowly die... but the head is well-protected.  The heart, however, is vulnerable... and that is where we must strike.... She had no idea what it meant, but the sound of Magneto’s voice in the dream was chilling.  Miranda lowered her head and nodded to the professor. She had come this far... perhaps it was time to take a leap of faith.

-x-

   The stone floor was cold against Scott’s bare feet as he walked through the lower levels of the Mansion toward the garage. He hadn’t taken the time to bother with shoes or socks; dressed only in the t-shirt and pants that he had been sleeping in a few moments ago, Scott had bolted out of bed after he woke up in a cold sweat.  That nightmare of Alkali Lake had woken him again... staring out the cockpit of the X jet, watching helplessly as the dam began to give and the wall of water behind it rushed in on Jean....  There was nothing he could do to stop it.

   Scott came to a sudden halt and suppressed yet another curse aimed at Logan. Scott had just remembered that he still hadn’t been able to get his bike running right after the damage Logan had done, and Scott hadn’t come down here in the middle of the night to play mechanic; he wanted an escape.  Standing in the wide hall between the barn stalls, watching the moonlight on the stone floors, he heard a noise.  Scott’s hand moved to the side of his visor as his eyes tracked the sound.

   He hadn’t been here a month and a half ago when Stryker’s men had stormed the Mansion and taken several of the kids prisoner, but those thoughts were foremost in his mind as he tried to identify the source of the noise he had just heard.

   “You miss her very much.”

   The statement was quiet and straight to the point, and it didn’t expect a response from Scott. He was surprised for several reasons, but Scott’s hand remained at the ready near his visor. Old instincts died hard, and he had no reason to trust this person.

   “You were here earlier today, with the professor.”

   The woman didn’t deny or confirm his recognition; she only continued speaking very softly. Scott could hardly make out her voice, and he had yet to locate her.

   “Are you a telepath?” he asked next, trying to clear his mind in case the answer was yes, but he was more than a little irked by the fact that she was ignoring him.

   Miranda sighed, and the horse that she had been sharing a stall with lowered her head to give Miranda a nudge, impatiently asking for her attention. Miranda smiled in spite of herself and began scratching the animal’s head behind the ears.  At least one of them had gotten what she wanted.

   Scott saw a slight ripple break the air, and then the woman he remembered from earlier was standing in plain sight where there had only been thin air a moment ago. She smiled at the horse standing in front of her.  “And I thought we were friends,” she murmured at it under her breath, but that didn’t keep her from patting the animal affectionately before she turned to face Scott.

   “The professor seems to think that too,” she admitted, unconvinced. 

   Scott lowered his hand from his visor as she slowly exited the stall and walked toward him.  “And your other gift?” he asked.

   “The ability to disappear from sight at will.” As she spoke the air shimmered, and the young woman disappeared from his sight again.

   “Handy,” Scott murmured.

   “Sometimes,” she agreed cautiously.  “My name is Miranda.  I go by Mirage.”

   “Scott Summers,” Scott introduced himself. “Also known as Cyclops.”

   “Because of your eyes.”

   Scott gave a cautious nod, and extended a hand for her to shake. It was unnerving not knowing where she was in the room.

   Her hand found his a moment later, and he saw a bit of discomfort cross her face as she came back into view.  Scott quickly put two and two together.

   “You didn’t mean to do it that time.”

   She shook her head.  She hadn’t been thinking when she had reached for his hand, or she never would have done it.  “It is only an illusion, and when someone touches me....”

   “You’re exposed.”

   She nodded.  She hadn’t intended to give away her vulnerability, and she quickly sought a recovery of the playing field. “If it’s escape you crave, there’s nothing more liberating than racing a fast horse against the wind.”

   For not being a telepath, she certainly knew what he was feeling.... “And I suppose it requires far more skill than riding a bike,” Scott guessed at what she was going to say next. Jean had often made the same argument; she had been an avid rider, and she had enjoyed teasing him about his attachment to his bike.  She knew how much effort Scott put into making sure it ran perfectly....  Jean had always planned to teach him horseback riding, but there had never been time.  “I never learned,” he finished softly.

   “I’m truly sorry,” Miranda answered. His brokenness radiated through her, and she couldn’t deny what the professor had told her earlier today in his office.  For whatever the reason, she had connected to Scott Summers.  She could feel his emotions very clearly; she couldn’t hear any of his thoughts, but the professor assured her that those abilities would only grow stronger with time. What Magneto might have wanted to use her for, however, was still a mystery.

-x-

   The following day a heated discussion was underway in Professor Xavier’s office.

   “We should at least tell Scott,” Storm protested.  “This concerns him.”

   The professor shook his head.  “No.  I don’t think there’s any truth to it.  I would know if it were true,” he concluded more softly.

   “Then what is Magneto after?” Wolverine questioned.

   Xavier sighed, troubled. “I don’t know. And that’s what worries me.”

   “Then we should check it out,” Bobby stated.

   Rogue nodded.  “I agree.”

   Wolverine scanned the room, silently taking a head count.  They were all in but one. “Crawler?” he asked.

   “I will stay here,” Nightcrawler answered.

   “Not a bad idea, elf,” Wolverine concluded, remembering what had happened the last time when all of them had been away.

   “Good,” Professor X finished the discussion. “We’ll leave immediately.”

-x-

   Brotherhood Headquarters

   “How is your project coming, Mind Bender?” Magneto asked, standing in the doorway of Mind Bender’s lab.

   “Very well.  Reflections are quite clear through the looking glass, and no one has become suspicious; even Xavier remains in the dark.

   “Perfect,” Magneto concluded.  “I trust that you will be ready to move soon. If this wild goose chase doesn’t pan out, I want to proceed quickly with the original plan.”

   “And if it does pan out?”

   “Regardless, it’s a good idea to have Summers out of the way,” Magneto decided.

-x-

   X Mansion

   Nightcrawler slowly walked the school grounds, keeping a watchful eye out for any unusual activity.  Once he had assured himself that one area was secure, he would move on to the next. The popping noise never registered in his own ears, nor had he ever seen the blue haze that filled the air for a split second when he teleported. There was just a slight odor of ozone and, instantaneously, he jumped from the place he was at to the place he wanted to be.  Only right now, he was sure that this was not where he wanted to be. The location was correct, but he had not planned on the horse that was barreling toward him at a hard gallop.

   The animal pulled up hard, rearing onto its hind legs to avoid hitting him.  With another pop, Nightcrawler had teleported out of its way.  Then, with a third pop, he caught Miranda out of the air before she could hit the ground.

   “What do you think you’re doing!?” she accused indignantly as she pushed herself out of his grip.

   “No need to thank me,” he mumbled as he returned her to the ground.

   Miranda quickly turned her attention to the horse. “Don’t worry.  Thanking you is the last thing on my mind!” She silently checked the mare over, assuring herself that the near-altercation hadn’t caused any obvious injury. “Do you always appear out of nowhere like that; it’s a wonder you haven’t gotten yourself killed.”

   Nightcrawler pulled himself up to his full height. “The grounds here are usually safe for walking.  Perhaps you should restrict your riding to the areas that are designated for it.”

   Miranda flushed. He had her on that one... maybe she did owe him an apology, or at least a thank you. “The students are all under curfew, and I thought the rest of you had gone; I saw the jet leave.”  She gathered up the horse’s reins and began walking back toward the mansion along with Nightcrawler .

   “So, why didn’t you go with the other X-Men?” Miranda finally asked when he didn’t say anything else.

   “I thought that someone should remain behind, just in case.”

   “In case of what?”

   “The unexpected,” he answered.

   “Scott is here,” she offered, looking for a reaction.

   The elf-like mutant sighed.  “He shouldn’t be.”

   Miranda didn’t know how to take that, so she waited for Nightcrawler to continue.

   “Cyclops is a born leader, and the heart of the team.  It’s not right for the X-Men to be tracking the Brotherhood without him... while Scott Summers is all but lost in his own grief.” 

   A cold feeling that Miranda couldn’t explain came over her listening to Nightcrawler’s careful words. Why had she connected so strongly with Summers?  They shared the same painful and lonely past, but it felt like something beyond that alone. And she didn’t like the pain than swam across her emotions when she looked at him; she wished there was a way to help him out of his self-imposed and self-destructive exile.

   Nightcrawler looked back to her, reigning in his thoughts. “But God never gives us more than He knows we can handle.  He alone has walked with Scott through the hard times, has replaced his pain with new family and shown him a purpose for his life and his talents. I don’t believe that Cyclops will allow this dark place that he is in now to deprive him of those things.” 

   The way he talked reminded Miranda of the kindly nuns who had taken care of her at the orphanage. Faith never gave a one of them a full belly or a safe place to sleep at night; they sacrificed everything they had to care for the children entrusted to them....  She had admired that and been grateful for it, but she had never shared or understood their faith – the same as Nightcrawler’s – trust in a benevolent God, and everything for a reason. Naive at best, stupid at worst... like Professor X’s trust in the good of humanity. To Miranda’s way of thinking, it was yourself against world.  Believing in anything else would only get you a nasty death.

   “Then you think all of this goes according to some holy game plan?” she questioned him.

   “Not a game, but a holy design, yes. Nothing happens by chance. Our lives and our hearts are far too complex for that.”

-x-

   Brotherhood Headquarters

   Mind Bender activated the video feed on his computer screen and awaited Magneto’s instructions.  The haggard sight of the man who greeted him was unexpected.

   “Proceed as planned, Mind Bender.  Move tonight. Do with him what you will, just make sure you can keep Summers out of the picture, indefinitely.”

   “Then you were successful,” Mind Bender noted softly.

   Magneto smiled a tired smile and glanced toward the passenger who lay beside him, Mystique monitoring the individual’s vital signs. “Very,” Magneto breathed darkly. “This discovery changes everything.”

-x-

   X Mansion

   Scott was about to hit the lights and turn in for the night when he heard a noise in the hall outside. He opened his door to investigate, and saw nothing.  “Miranda?” he asked, wondering if his ears had been correct where his eyes might still deceive him. 

   No answer. Then a heavy object came down on the back of his head, and Scott fell unconscious.

-x-

   Nightcrawler’s room was only a few doors down from Scott’s, and he also heard the noises.  But when he opened his door to investigate he saw the limp body of Scott Summers being carried away over Mirage’s shoulder. Nightcrawler knew that if he startled the woman, the pair of them could disappear. So he followed her down into the lower levels, through the garage and out onto the grounds where several delivery vans stood idle.  Mirage slid Scott’s body into the back of one of them and climbed into the driver’s seat.

   Nightcrawler quickly teleported into the back beside Scott.  He had just enough time to assure himself that Scott was alive and in good condition before the van lurched into motion and began leaving the X Mansion behind.

-x-

   Meanwhile, the X Jet was settling over the grounds, Storm bringing the powerful plane in for landing, assisted by the professor.  It was a somber homecoming for all aboard.  They had fought hard against the Brotherhood and had nothing to show for it but a collection of injuries for Beast to treat. Bobby was in the back of the jet nursing his own dislocated shoulder as he applied ice to a nasty bump on the head that Rogue had sustained. Storm was covered in head to toe cuts and scrapes, and even the professor was drained and weary. Only Logan was in good shape, minus the bad attitude.  Wolverine didn’t like being on the losing side of any battle, and it didn’t help that they didn’t yet know what they had lost.

   “Could it have been another mutant that they were after?”

   “When we get back to the mansion I can try to track it with Cerebro, but from what I felt – its mind was like nothing I’ve ever come into contact with, human or mutant.” 

   Logan and Storm exchanged worried looks with one another before a bit of motion caught Logan’s attention.

   “What is that?”

   “Storm, bring the jet around, but slowly,” Xavier instructed, closing his eyes and concentrating.

   Nightcrawler.  What’s happening?

   Professor! I don’t know.  Mirage has tried to kidnap Cyclops. I followed them, but–

   “Nightcrawler and Cyclops are in there.  Mirage has taken them captive,” Xavier explained.

   “Quick, before they can clear the gate, get me over them,” Logan instructed Storm.

   “We’ll have to move quickly,” the professor warned.  “If she suspects something she can use her ability to make all of them invisible, van included.”

   Logan ignored Bobby and Rogue’s questioning stares as Storm opened the hatch, and he positioned himself to jump.  The van would have to slow when it came to the gate.  Logan readied himself for a hard impact and leapt toward the top of the van, just as it disappeared from sight.

-x-

   Panic coursed through him for a moment before Logan recovered his wits, remembering that his target still existed.  He just couldn’t see it.  But the ground continued to rush up at him for a split second longer than it should have. Logan twisted his body in midair and plunged forward with his claws, finding the back of the van.  He held on through the impact that told him they had just busted through the gate of the X Mansion, and he saw the X-Jet clear the trees above them, letting Mirage think that she had lost them. They were on their own now.

   “If you’d like to come in, you should try knocking.”

   Logan had never been so grateful to see the fuzzy blue elf as he was when the van’s back door swung open from the inside and Nightcrawler’s arm became visible over Logan’s.

   There was a pop and that weird smell, and then they were both inside the van.

   “Funny,” Logan answered. “He all right?”

   Nightcrawler nodded. It was hard to get used to the inside of the van being invisible, but Scott was resting comfortably on the floor of the van as the road rushed by underneath them. “He’s all right. Mirage just knocked him out.” 

   Nightcrawler crouched down calmly, ready to wait out the rest of the ride, but Logan made a beeline for the front of the van.  Only Nightcrawler’s quick reflexes prevented Wolverine from breaking into the cab.

   “We’ve come this far,” Nightcrawler hissed.  Why don’t we see where we’re being taken.”

   With a growl, Logan acquiesced.  His claws retracted, and they settled in to wait.

-x-

   Brotherhood Headquarters

   Miranda blinked her eyes a couple of times before the fuzzy room slowly came into focus.

   “I wouldn’t advise any sudden moves. As long as your friend is in his present state, I can do irreparable harm to his mind, if I choose.”

   There was a familiar growl, and the sound of deadly claws being sheathed.

   Her head was pounding as Miranda tried to make sense out of what was happening, and when she tried to move, her legs gave way and she fell to the floor. 

   Nightcrawler caught her. “Miranda,” he breathed, “are you all right?”

   “Depends,” she gritted through clinched teeth. “What happened and where am I?”

   “You’re in Mind Bender’s lair,” Logan answered.  “He’s been using you as a spy for Magneto.  That’s all we know,” he added, unhappy about that.

   The voices that swam in Miranda’s mind told her more. Cyclops is a born leader, and the heart of the team... The heart, however, is vulnerable... and that is where we must strike...

   “It’s Scott that Magneto wants,” she whispered.  If Magneto could strike him down, he would expose the team’s frailties; he would expose the professor’s weakness. Scott Summers was more than heart of team.  His leadership was the glue that held X-men together.

   “What have you done to him?!” Wolverine growled. Instinct died hard, and a familiar snit brought his claws back to bare.  It was an unmistakable threat, in spite of Mind Bender’s earlier warning.

   “I call it, Alcoholica.  In this state he knows no inhibitions, no doubts or fears, no pain. The only trade off is that I control the reality he sees within this fantasy world, but not to worry. With the loss of his inhibitions I can see into his deepest desires, and I will give him everything he’s ever wanted, make him all he wishes he could be but knows that he never will be.  He will never have to know that the illusion isn’t real, and even if he did only a fool would choose to return to his life – to a mutant’s reality of isolation, rejection, and pain – after tasting the fulfillment of the deepest longings of his soul.

-x-

   This is what it must feel like.  Some part of Scott’s mind registered the change in his consciousness; strangely enough, he recognized it without the shock or guilt that should have come with breaking from one of his life’s guiding principles. This is inebriation.  All his worries and fears, all his troubles and challenges felt so far away – he couldn’t remember them if he tried, and he had no desire to try. He felt so free and at ease, like the world was at his feet and awaiting his command.

   Scott had always tried to give the appearance of having it all together, but this... this must be what it feels like when it’s for real.  For the first time in his life he truly believed that everything was going to work for him. It wasn’t hope or optimism that made him think so. The world itself had become warmer, gentler, more welcoming.  He was surrounded by light and love, and everything around him was alive and beautiful. Nightcrawler’s description of heaven and the love of God suddenly flittered through his head as Scott looked around himself in awe. 

   “If heaven is anything like this, I could learn to believe,” he decided, speaking under his breath; he was almost afraid that any sound or motion might break the spell around him.

-x-

   “Only God in heaven can fulfill a man’s soul,” Nightcrawler hissed, after crossing himself at the sacrilege of Mind Bender’s proclamation.

   “If anyone’s proud and stubborn enough to leave heaven behind for cold, hard reality, it’s Cyclops,” Wolverine growled, the remark both cutting and encouraging.

   “I don’t agree with the reasoning, but Wolverine is correct. Another man might be content to live out your fantasy, Mind Bender, but not Cyclops. He will fight you. No matter what pleasant falsehood you throw at him, he will fight for the return of his life, and his God-given free will.”

-x-

   Scott Summers had never actually been drunk. As a kid there was never the opportunity; as a teen there had been too much at risk for him to lose his head. No matter how much he may have longed for an escape from the harsh reality of his own life, he had needed all of his wits and control just to stay alive.  Scott Summers wasn’t the type of man to give up control of his life – not then, not now – and certainly not to a bottle. No longer just a matter of survival, it had become a point of pride.  He refused to cover up his insecurities or medicate his emotions with alcohol.  The world may not like it, but they would have to deal with Scott Summers, as he was and stone cold sober. No room for compromise.

   “You face reality head on.”  That’s what he told the kids at the school. “No matter how ugly or painful it may be, your life, your reality, is one of the only possessions you will ever truly own.  Until you face reality and learn to live as who you are, you’ll never know what you’re capable of, and you’ll never find peace....”

   That was reality.  Meanwhile, somewhere in Scott Summer’s head....

   The spell withstood as a figure walked out of the misty fog that shone against his surroundings. He could recognize where he was now. He stood in the garden at the mansion on a fine summer afternoon. The mist betrayed that a summer thunderstorm had just passed.  The sun was warm on his face and the breeze cool against his skin. Everything seemed to slow as he watched the figure who was walking toward him become more familiar with each passing second.  With her every footstep the mist cleared, and likewise memories came rushing back, good and bad... but the bad ones held no pain, only mystery.

   “Jean? You’re alive,” he whispered, first hesitant to touch her, then holding her tightly to him. “What’s going on here? I saw you die. I – I was in agony,” he gritted out the words, a whisper. And he felt the breath go out of her soft form as her arms tightened against his shoulders.

   “Scott.  I’m sorry,” her breath cooed at his ear, as did her voice in his mind, the combination sending a sweet shiver pulsing down his spine. “That must have been so awful – but it’s not true. I’m here.  I’m here with you now.”

   He pulled back to look at her, drinking in the sight of her.

   “You see?” she breathed, taking his hands as if to prove to him that she was real. Then a funny look crossed her face, as if she had just seen him, or maybe just noticed something strange about him. “Scott–” Her smile widened as it always did when she was going to tease him about something. “You don’t need these anymore,” she breathed, taking off his glasses.

   “Jean– ” The unexpected motion had caught Scott off guard; still trying to figure out what she had meant, he barely had enough time to slam his eyes closed before she pulled the glasses away from his face. Then he felt the touch of her lips against his eyelids.

   He ducked his head away from her as quickly as he could, careful to keep his eyes closed tight as possible. What was she thinking?! If one of his eyelids opened just a fraction of an inch....

   “It’s all right,” she breathed, lifting his chin, tracing her fingers against his face.

   His hands caught hers. “Wait. Jean.  Just tell me, what are you talking about?” 

   “You can open your eyes, Scott.  We did it, the professor and I.”  She paused. “You don’t remember at all, do you?”

   He shook his head, unable to find words to express his confusion.

   “It was a gamble, but you wanted to take it, and we – I – was certain, Scott.  After I saw your last brain scan I knew that the injuries were repairable.”

   “No,” Scott argued.  “The damage done in the crash was inoperable.”

   “As a child, even as a teen, yes.  But not now.  So much has changed in medicine, Scott. When our initial tests came back positive, you said that even if there was a small chance that you could regain normal vision and control the optic bursts you wanted to take it.”

   “And it worked?” he questioned, almost afraid to ask.

   “We’ve been very careful up til now, checking and double-checking ourselves to made sure it’s safe for you.  But the latest scan shows that the regeneration is complete.  Scott, we succeeded!”

   “Why don’t I remember any of this, Jean?” he asked, ignoring her jubilation for the moment. 

   “The recovery was difficult, and some memory loss was expected going in. We’ve had to medicate you pretty strongly for the headaches, but even those are fading now. You haven’t needed the glasses for some time,” she prompted, her hope and expectation undeniable.  “Trust me, Scott. Open your eyes.”

   She had asked this of him once before. He did trust her.  He opened his eyes... and nothing happened.  There were no optic beams, no destruction, nothing even unusual... except that his world had filled with the vibrant shades of a million colors in place of red alone.  And there was his beloved Jean, smiling at him.  Beautiful.

-x-

   He could have stared at her forever, and she seemed in no hurry to look away from his face.  But there were so many questions, so much he didn’t remember since this operation, and he was still the same Scott Summers – Cyclops – which meant business first. What else had he missed?

   “Where is the professor?” 

   She smiled again, with a look that said you don’t remember, and an expression which showed that she was eager to tell him.

   “Remember what?” he asked reflexively.

   “The professor was contacted by the government just before you underwent the procedure, and he went to Alaska. He didn’t want you to know about the trip before he left.  It was driving you crazy, in fact, but he contacted us just in time.  He wanted you to know before you went under: it was true, Scott. The message the professor received was from your parents, and he went to Alaska to meet them.”

   “My parents?”

   “They, and your brother, Alex, are alive – hidden in Alaska because of a government secret relocation, but alive – and they found you, finally. They never stopped looking for you, Scott,” Jean breathed. “It was just hard for them to find you, here,” she trailed off, and he understood immediately. The professor deliberately kept the identities of his students as shrouded as possible, as a precaution. So many of them came from rough backgrounds and had secrets that could be used against them. Scott was no exception to either circumstance, and the professor had protected him from the very beginning.

   “But the professor,” Jean was saying excitedly, “he wouldn’t risk your being hurt if it was false. He loves you so much, Scott.” 

   His head was starting to spin. This was all so incredible.

   “You didn’t realize?” Jean breathed, recognizing Scott’s cautious surprise.  “He always has.” 

   “I guess I knew. He just never showed it,” Scott realized softly.

   Jean smiled and pulled close to him, wrapping her arms around his waist. “At least you know I love you.”

   Scott smiled in return.  “I never doubted that.  Your love is everything to me, Jean.”

   “C’mon,” she breathed. “Now that you’re feeling up to it, we can leave.”

   “Where?” he asked, stunned by the sudden suggestion.

   “Alaska,” she answered, surprised that he would have to ask.

   “Wait, Jean,” he pulled her back, gently taking hold of her hand.  “If I’m going to take you to meet my family, then I want it to be as my wife – if you’ll do me that honor,” he amended with a shy smile, remembering to make a request out of the proposal. 

   He couldn’t quite place the hint of a smile that crossed her face in that instant, and the hammering of his own heart betrayed the fact that he couldn’t imagine living without her for another day. “Say you’ll marry me, Jean,” he breathed excitedly.

   She answered by slipping her arms around his neck. “Yes, Scott. I’ll be your wife,” she breathed through a beautiful smile, and he kissed her lips.  Then Jean hugged him close, her head against his shoulder.  “You’ve always been the only one for me, since the moment I first saw you, Scott Summers,” she whispered.

   He could feel her tears of joy against his shoulder, and he held her closer. “And you for me. I love you, Jean.  We’ll never be apart again,” Scott whispered in her ear.

-x-

   Alaska.  It was perfect. Jean, and the professor, and his family... all of them sitting around a roaring fire while the endless snows fell outside. He never wanted to leave this place. The professor seemed to sense his emotions.

   Scott.  Scott felt the familiar voice in his mind, and he followed Professor X out of the room so that they could talk alone.

   “You and Jean should stay here.”

   “Stay? But, professor, what about the X-Men?  Who will lead them? You need me.”

   Xavier only sighed behind a contented smile. “I have needed you, Scott, for a very long time, and you have always been there.  But the X-Men will be all right, and so will the school, and so will I. 

   “I taught you to take responsibility for us all, and you never once let me down, Scott.  Now it’s time for me to repay you.”

   Scott shook his head.  “You’ve already given me everything.”

   “Now I give you your freedom.  I release you.  I want you to be happy, Scott.  My son. The son I never had, but the one I always wanted.  Be happy, Scott.”

   Scott was crying as he embraced his mentor.  This is all I ever wanted, the thought replayed over and over again in his head. For you–

   To be proud of you, the professor breathed, reading his mind.  “I am proud of you, Scott.  How could you not know?  I do love you, my dear son.”

   And the fire’s crackle filed the room with warmth as the snow fell harder outside. Everything was beautiful. For Scott Summers, everything was perfect.

-x-

   A short distance away Magneto had just arrived, bringing his secret weapon back to the Brotherhood. “Stay here,” he commanded Mystique.  “We must get Mind Bender to work his magic before she can awaken – before Charles can figure out what we’re up to,” Magneto growled. “And, you, watch the door,” Magneto ordered Gambit, who was looking far too uncomfortable for Magneto’s taste. But the Cajun nodded and did as he was told.

   “Eric–” Mystique called, her voice panicked. “You’d better come look at this.”

   Magneto turned and quickly rejoined Mystique around the exam table where she had begun hooking up medical equipment to monitor their new find.

   “Interesting,” he murmured.  “Not only has Jean Gray managed to survive certain death, but her brain activity is off the charts, and growing stronger....”

   “She’s waking.”

   They had expected her to wake soon, but not this soon. They needed Mind Bender to insure that her still-evolving and steadily increasing powers could be controlled, and that Xavier would not be able to find his pupil.

   “You need not worry about Xavier, or the X-Men.” A strong and cold voice reverberated through the room just as Jean Gray’s vivid green eyes opened.  “They cannot track me.  And you need not worry about Jean Gray either... worry about me.”  She sat up, causing Mystique to move forward in alarm. 

   Jean Gray’s hand rose as she turned to face Mystique.  “You cannot subdue me, mutant.” Then Mystique was sent flying across the room where she crashed into a wall with tremendous force.  Jean turned next to Magneto. “And you cannot control me.”

   Magneto’s brow furrowed as he studied her. “You aren’t Jean Gray. Who are you?”

   “I am Phoenix.”

-x-

   He wished that he could stay... but a firm and insistent voice in Scott Summer’s head was calling him back.  He knew that voice. He had been trying to ignore it for too long.  The voice belonged to Cyclops, the leader of the X-Men. And this place... it was perfect, but it wasn’t real.  He couldn’t stay. Scott Summers had work to do, and he had a life to live, apart from this empty fantasy.

   He concentrated hard on that truth as he struggled to focus his mind.  Everything had gone dark, and then red again.  The moment in limbo held the familiar feel of his waking from the dreams he used to have for the first few weeks after her death... when reality was just far enough away to allow hope.  He was afraid of what he would find when reality came into focus, but he still hoped that somehow it would end differently this time.... 

   “Jean?” he breathed.

   “Be his strength and his comfort, Lord Jesus,” Nightcrawler whispered in prayer.

   There was a long, painful moment of silence in which all of them understood the sacrifice that Scott had made to return to them, to this reality. All any of them could do was hope and pray, knowing that this blow might very well break him, heart and soul.

   “No, Scott.” Miranda had dropped down to Scott’s side and was gently holding his face in her hands, trying to steady him as he came out of Mind Bender’s illusion.  “It’s Miranda,” she breathed gently.

   All the strength went out of his body as something inside him broke, and for the first time since the day Jean had died Scott wept.  He broke down into tears and Miranda protectively tucked his head against her shoulder, trying at least to spare his pride from the heavy blow of grief.  But he didn’t care. Scott’s last reserve had been tapped, and something in him had shattered tonight as his heart had broken for a second time – this time by his own choice....

-x-

   “Impossible!” Mind Bender hissed as he watched Scott Summers emerge from unconsciousness. But before he could interfere with Scott’s attempts to break free, he had to fend off Wolverine.

   Wolverine made a rush at Mind Bender, but not before he had managed to slip through the door.  Wolverine howled in frustration and immediately gave chase. Nightcrawler hesitated, glancing back toward Scott and Miranda, not knowing where he was most needed.

   “What happened?” Scott questioned, gently but firmly extracting himself from Miranda’s hold, sitting up.

   Miranda lowered her head, ashamed of the role that she had unknowingly played in all of this.

   “Mind Bender took you captive,” Nightcrawler answered. “He was trying to hold you hostage in an illusion he had created, but you broke free from him.”

   “Then none of it was real,” Scott whispered, shaking his head as if to clear it.

   Nightcrawler glanced toward the door Wolverine had just gone through, and Scott quickly picked up on his conflict.

   “Go after him,” Scott insisted.  Nightcrawler hesitated, watching as Scott tried to get to his feet. He swayed dangerously on unsteady legs, and Miranda quickly ducked down to take his arm over her shoulder, helping to support him.

   “Are you sure?” Nightcrawler asked.

   “Go!”  His command left no room for argument, and Nightcrawler allowed himself a tight smile before he vanished into a puff of blue mist. Cyclops was back.

-x-

   Wolverine chased Mind Bender through the underground halls of the Brotherhood’s base, steadily gaining on his prey until Mind Bender slipped into another room.  When Wolverine tried to follow he found himself face to face with Gambit.

   “Out of the way, Cajun,” Wolverine yelled, his claws extending.

   “Now you know I cant do that, Wolverine,” Gambit assured him with a smile, absently turning his staff in front of him. Soon the weapon was moving so quickly that it was hardly visible.  “If you wanna get past, you’re gonna have to move Gambit.”

   “Whatever you say, bub,” Wolverine smiled in return.

   They had hardly engaged one another before a popping sound filled the air, and Nightcrawler had adhered himself to Gambit’s back, fully expecting to be beaten off.

   “What the?!” Gambit stammered.

   “Going my way?”  Then there was another pop, and they disappeared.

   “Thanks,” Wolverine murmured, cautiously moving forward through the door Mind Bender had entered a few moments ago. Inside stood Mind Bender, Magneto, a stunned looking Mystique, and one more person.

   Logan shook his head.  “Not possible.” This had to be one of Mind Bender’s illusions... but she looked so real.

   “Jean?” he whispered.

-x-

   “Scott–” Miranda didn’t get a chance to say what she had wanted to say, to apologize. The air was broken by a familiar pop.  Miranda was about to give Nigthcrawler a well-deserved piece of her mind when she and Scott each realized that Nightcrawler wasn’t alone.

   The hand that wasn’t draped over Miranda’s shoulder for balance went for Scott’s visor, keeping Nightcrawler covered as Gambit pushed himself free and took a quick inventory of his surroundings.  But his stunned gaze came to a rest over Scott.

   “Summers... I thought you were–”

   Gambit didn’t make it any further before Cyclops had lunged at him.  A hand tightened around Gambit’s throat as he was forced against the wall by Cyclops’ body weight.

   “You thought I was what? What did Mind Bender plan to do to me?”

   “Magneto – just,” Gambit couldn’t breathe. “Want to keep you – out of the – way.” He was starting to black out. His eyes flashed over Miranda’s, not registering Cyclops’ next question.

   “Let him go,” Miranda yelled, grabbing hold of Cyclops’ arm. “Scott, he wasn’t a part of this.  He didn’t know!”

   Scott was breathing almost as hard as Gambit when Scott released his hold. Gambit slid down the wall until he caught his hands on his knees, bending over double and taking deep breaths of air into his lungs.

   “Thanks, petite.”

   “Don’t thank her yet,” Cyclops warned.  “I’m still waiting for an explanation.”

   “When Magneto found Gambit... Gambit was tired a runnin. Tired a watchin everything he touch go up in smoke.  So I join the Brotherhood.  I protect Magneto; I do Magneto’s dirty work.” Gambit shook his head heavily. “But dis Mind Bender... he make Gambit skin crawl. I wan nothin to do with this mind control business.

   “And now theys–” Gambit stopped abruptly, realizing that he had said too much. Now he couldn’t walk away.

   “What are they doing now?” Nightcrawler asked as Gambit straightened.

   The Cajun looked between the two X-Men uncertainly.  “Some things a body just cant explain.  Best if you see for yourself.”

-x-

   With another pop the three of them and Nightcrawler were teleported back to the place where Nightcrawler had left Wolverine. This time it was Nightcrawler who swayed unsteadily, momentarily drained by the effort of bringing so many people with him.

   “You all right, frere?”Gambit asked, holding his shoulder until the blue mutant nodded and then followed Scott and Miranda into the room ahead of them.  The sight that met their eyes was more shocking than even Gambit had expected.

   Scott’s legs pumped forward, his body running on pure adrenaline.  All he had registered was that Magneto, Mystique, and Mind Bender were watching while another mutant held Wolverine telekineticly in place, about fifteen feet off the floor.  Scott was taking aim on the mutant, and then all the breath suddenly flowed out of him. He felt dizzy.

   “This can’t be,” Nightcrawler hissed at his ear, and the possibility that this was more of Mind Bender’s handiwork quickly evaporated.

   “But it is,” Scott breathed. It was real.

   “What’s going on?” Miranda asked, confused.

   It was Gambit who answered her.  “Magneto found the body and brought it back here for Mind Bender to, reprogram, I guess. It was like she was in a coma.”

   Miranda was still mostly lost until she heard the sound of Scott’s voice.

   “Jean.”

   He immediately moved into action with a volley of optic blasts.  Wolverine’s predicament forgotten, Scott was acting quickly to pin down Magneto and Mystique, to rescue Jean.

   “Cyclops,” Wolverine yelled at the top of his lungs. “Lookout!  She’s not Jean!”

   Scott had already made it to her side by then, and when she turned on him he didn’t register anything except that he was staring into the face of the woman he loved.

   “Jean–” he whispered, smiling. “Let’s get out of here,” he urged.

   She shook her head at him, and the voice that answered was not that of Jean Gray.

   “I’m not going anywhere. Magneto and I have come to an understanding.”  She turned to Magneto, who was just regaining his footing in the wake of Cyclops’ offensive. “How did you put it?”

   Magneto smiled a smile of pure satisfaction. “Help me to achieve a world safe for mutantkind, and you will be given the kingdom of humanity, for them to worship you as the goddess you are.”

   “Yes, your idea does intrigue me.”

   “Jean – snap out of this!  Whatever Mind Bender has done to you, it can be undone! You just have to remember who you are, Jean.”

   “You are the one called Cyclops. Jean Gray has many memories of you.”

   There was a chilling emptiness in those beautiful eyes, the way they looked at him almost curiously... as if he was a fascinating little insect. Scott understood now what Logan had meant; this went far beyond Mind Bender and his tricks. “What have you done with Jean?” Scott whispered.

   “I have risen her from the ashes of human mortality, and taken her form as my own. Jean Gray is no more.  I am Phoenix.”

   Scott stumbled backward, shaking his head. “No,” he whispered in denial.

   He didn’t notice the look that passed between Nightcrawler and Miranda.

   “Do it,” Miranda whispered, nodding to Gambit. Gambit brought one end of his staff down across the back of Scott’s head and scooped the unconscious form across his shoulder before Scott’s body could hit the floor.  At the same moment a series of pops filled the air as Nightcrawler retrieved Wolverine and returned to their side. Then, with one more well-timed pop, they all disappeared. 

-x-

   Gambit and Mirage rejoined Nightcrawler and Wolverine outside of the Brotherhood’s base. Miranda quickly opened the back door of the van that they had come here in and Gambit lowered Scott in.  His head hit the metal floor with a thud that made Miranda wince.

   “Careful!  He’s already going to have a heck of a headache tomorrow.”

   “Pardon, chere,” Gambit apologized as he climbed in the back.  “It was an accident,” he assured her as Miranda climbed in behind him, and again that smile melted her.

   “I’d hate to have to explain this to him in the morning,” Logan interjected as he climbed in on the passenger side.

   “Let’s just worry about getting back to the mansion and explaining it to the professor,” Nightcrawler quipped, starting the van.

   “Right,” Logan mumbled.

-x-

   Suburbs of Washington DC.  6 Months Later

   Scott Summers sat on the edge of a bed in a seedy motel room just outside of DC. His stomach gave an unpleasant lurch as he leaned forward and turned off the television set. The substance of Magneto’s address had been entirely predictable, but that didn’t make the reality of it any easier to swallow.

   We’ve run out of time. We must act now, before Eric can gather any more power. Professor Xavier’s voice rang in Scott’s mind, familiar, but also worn.  The nightmare of the past six months had been exhausting for them all. Magneto and Phoenix had followed through on their pact, and Phoenix’s powers had allowed Magneto to all but conquer humanity.  Anyone who had opposed her, be it human, mutant, or army, had all been defeated.  Finally, entire governments had begun to topple, simply seeking to avoid bringing more senseless carnage down on their citizens.

   Washington had fallen just a day ago, and judging from today’s address, Magneto had no intention of stopping there. He would not rest until the entire world was “safe for mutants,” as he put it.  Everyone knew that what he was talking about was world domination.

   Thus far the X-Men had been as powerless as anyone else to stop it.  The X Mansion had been one of the first places to fall under Magneto’s offensive. Phoenix’s onslaught had made Stryker’s commandos look like child’s play.  The school’s children had been scattered to dozens of safe houses, and even the active X-Men had spilt up for safety. Scott had taken Nightcrawler, Mirage, and Colossus for his team. Storm had Bobby, Rogue, and Beast. Professor X had Wolverine, Gambit, Kitty Pride, and Jubilee.  Each of them had launched offenses against Magneto and Phoenix, and they had tried to protect innocent lives against Magneto’s attacks, but with little success. Phoenix was simply overpowering.

   All of us are in position around the capitol, Storm responded to Professor X’s call. We can move together, as early as tomorrow.

   Scott? Professor X prompted him, and Scott knew that the professor could feel his conflict.  My team is in, Scott confirmed. We’ll do what we need to, Scott promised, and he meant it. They all knew that this was the last chance they would get.  Either Magneto and Phoenix would be defeated, or they would triumph.

   Scott felt the professor’s presence slip from his mind, and Scott stood and began rummaging through the carry all bag which contained all of his worldly possessions.  He pulled out his X-Men uniform and a picture of Jean. He looked at the picture for a long time, trying to reconcile himself to the professor’s point of view.  Phoenix had to be destroyed, and there was nothing left of Jean Gray but an empty shell.... 

   Restlessly, Scott stood and began stripping out of his street clothes so that he could pull on the uniform. He wasn’t ready to believe that, not without trying one last time to reach Jean.

-x-

   “Scott, wait.” It was Miranda.  “What are you doing?” she asked.

   Scott stood in the open doorway, briefly tempted to tease her that he couldn’t take another night of her and Colossus’ Russian conversation, but he didn’t feel like joking and she knew that this was serious.

   “I’m going after Phoenix.”

   Her lips pursed for a second as she restrained herself from trying to talk him out of it.  “Then I’m coming with you,” she decided.

   He shook his head. “Miranda.  I don’t want you involved in this.”

   “I already am involved.  Magneto was using me from the moment he found me, and it could have cost you your life.”

   “I’ve told you before,” Scott whispered, “that wasn’t your fault.  I don’t blame you for any of it.”

   “I blame myself,” she whispered, “and as long as Magneto lives, I live knowing that my mind is not fully my own.  He and Mind Bender could use me again, against any of you.”

   Scott shook his head.  “All the more reason for you to stay here.  The professor and the others can look out for you.” He didn’t fully comprehend how condescending that sounded until her eyes flashed at him, insulted.  “I didn’t mean it like that,” he backed away from the words.

   Miranda nodded, dropping her head. She knew he hadn’t.  The Cyclops, the Scott Summers, she had gotten to know over the past six months was strong and brave to the point of being hard and cold, almost unfeeling, but she knew that there was more to him than that. She had seen the hurt in him too. Loneliness, uncertainty, and vulnerability.  And over the past six months the two of them had become close friends.

   Miranda understood that his sense of pride and his responsibility to the X-Men was the only thing that had held him together in the face of everything he was trying to deal with. But this wasn’t about the X-Men, or the team, or his responsibility. This was about his heart.  Scott couldn’t live with himself if he didn’t do everything in his power to try to get back the woman he loved.  He was willing to die for that.

   “Take me with you,” Miranda asked softly.  “I can help you – I know I can – and if there’s any way to reach Jean... we’ll find it.”

-x-

   Thanks to Mirage’s powers, they were easily able to breech the perimeter and get into to the White House, where Magneto had taken up residency. They waited til dawn to make their move. Then Mirage walked into the oval office, pushing Scott ahead of her.

   “I like to be on the winning side, so I’ve brought you a peace offering.”

   “Really?” Magneto asked, unconvinced.  “I’d like a second opinion.”

   Phoenix stepped out of the shadows.  “They mean to deceive you.  He still seeks Jean Gray.”

   Miranda cleared her mind.  Professor – now! she thought as hard as she could.

   A second later Phoenix attacked. Miranda was thrown across the room and she went through a bulletproof window before Phoenix telekinetically brought her back inside. Then the real agony began when Phoenix brutally attacked her mind.

-x-

   Storm rose into the air and stretched her arms wide. She called to the winds and lightening, bringing dozens of bolts down to the ground, scattering the Brotherhood as the assembled X-Men launched their attack.

   Quicksilver raced around her lightening strikes like they were a joke to him.  The Scarlet Witch rolled her eyes. “Quit playing around,” she hissed at him, and unleashed a wave of power toward Storm, toppling the mutant from the sky. Avalanche then raised his hands, shaking the ground, covering the fallen Storm in heavy debris. “One down,” the Scarlet Witch noted with satisfaction.

-x-

   Colossus reached under the debris and pulled upward, freeing Storm with one powerful stroke. Her eyes flashed over his face, frightened.  “That was too close,” she whispered as she got to her feet, her strength and nerve quickly returning after her brief entrapment.

   An explosion rocked the still shaky ground, followed by a fireball rising into the sky.  “Looks like Ice and Rogue have their hands full with Pyro,” Colossus noted.

   “Maybe I should pay them a visit,” Storm smiled, rising into the air again.  Even as she did, the heavy clouds that had poured lightening a moment ago now began to release waves of drenching rain over the fire.

-x-

   A short distance away Shadowcat was playing a game of cat and mouse with Blob, trying to bring him out into the open enough for Jubilee to blast him. But when Jubilee finally did get a clear shot at him the big man simply laughed, and in a couple of lumbering steps he had grabbed her by both wrists. Shadowcat tried to interfere, grabbing onto his arm, but the massive Blob ignored her too.

   “Maybe you should pick on someone closer to your own size, comrade,” Colossus advised as he lifted Blob off of his feet and hoisted him over Colossus’ head.  Colossus made sure both girls were clear before giving Blob a toss in the general direction of the Washington Monument.

   “Are you two all right?” he asked.

   Some very un-X-Man-like giggling assured the young Russian that neither girl had been damaged.

   “Thanks, Colossus,” they each breathed.  Their smiles made him grateful that in his mechanical form he was unable to blush.

-x-

   Avalanche had joined Pyro’s fight against Iceman and Rogue, using his powers to quake the ground, bringing all sorts of gas and power lines into play for Pyro, and Pyro looked to be having the time of his life.  He was currently having a ruptured natural gas line take the form of a fiery lion’s head which struck at Iceman and Rogue whenever they tried to leave the safety of the reinforced barrier Iceman had created to shield them from Pyro’s attacks.

   “Now what?” Rogue asked. “We’re trapped.” And she was worried. She knew that it was taking a lot of effort from Iceman just to keep their shielding strong enough to withstand Pyro’s onslaught.

   “We’re gonna have to stay put until we get reinforcements,” he admitted.

   Just then the raindrops started, slowly at first, then a deluge.

   “Storm,” Rogue breathed.

-x-

   Meanwhile, Wolverine broke away from the professor and Beast.  He smelled something.

   “What are you on about, Wolverine? Gambit don’t see a thing,” Gambit noted, looking around them.

   “Neither do I. But I smell a rat....” Wolverine sniffed the air again. “And a toad.”

   He had hardly spoken before an ashen tongue grabbed hold of Gambit’s staff.  “I always wanted one of these,” Toad smiled, giving the weapon a twist through the air with more talent than the little green mutant should have possessed for martial arts.  “Thanks, Cajun.”

   “I don’t think so,” Gambit corrected, walking toward Toad with a serious, steady gate. “You handle a man’s weapon like that, you might as well be touching his woman – and Gambit don’t like to share.”

-x-

   Wolverine didn’t let his attention follow Gambit and Toad. He sniffed the air again, and waited.  A second later a huge fur-covered form dropped down from a nearby tree.

   “Looking for me?” Sabertooth growled.

   Wolverine grinned from ear to ear. “Last time I saw you, you were splashing through New York Harbor like a drowning rat.”

   Sabertooth growled.  “I’ve been waiting a long time to get my hands on you again.”

   “Right here, bub.”

   Sabertooth launched himself at Wolverine, and Wolverine met his attack eagerly, sinking his claws into Sabertooth. Sabertooth quickly pulled Wolverine’s claws away and twisted one arm behind Wolverine’s back as he began to beat his enemy into a nearby tree.

-x-

   A playing card cut into the ground in front of Toad, and before he could move out of the way of the imminent explosion two more had cut him off from each side.

   “Dis your last chance. Gambit only ax nice once,” Gambit almost cooed, bargaining with his prey like the master gambler and thief that he was.  And with the sound of his voice, an almost hypnotic glaze came over Toad’s eyes.  “That’s what I thought,” Gambit said with a wink as he reclaimed his staff. “Game. You fold.”

   But before he turned away Gambit pulled another charged card from his pocket.  “Here, my little green friend. Something to remember Gambit by.”  He slipped the card into Toad’s hand. “Don’t wan you to say Gambit went an left you empty handed,” Gambit grinned, walking away with an even stride, ignoring the explosion that ensued behind him.  “Easy come, easy go....

   “What’s dis?”  Gambit had been about to track down Wolverine when he saw a familiar figure making its way across the White House grounds toward the main building.  Gambit quickly gave chase, but he wasn’t the only one who had noticed Mystique making her way back to Magneto....

-x-

   “Magneto,” Mystique yelled as she climbed in through the shattered window. “It’s getting ugly out there.”

   “Not so ugly as it’s gonna get here,”

   Mystique spun around to face Gambit. “For you, traitor,” she spat.

   Gambit narrowly blocked the foot that came flying toward his face, bringing his staff to intercept Mystique blow for blow.  She forced him back, and they fought their way outside through the grounds. The two of them were well-matched, and the crafty Cajun knew far too much about the shape-shifting mutant to take her lightly.

-x-

   Phoenix was unaffected by the turmoil surrounding her. She continued her vicious and methodical attack on Mirage’s mind, and for a long moment Scott was torn.... Magneto could see Cyclops’ indecision, but he wasn’t taking any chances.

   Metal debris and bits of furniture sprang from every direction, trying to injure or capture Scott Summers. Scott fired on the pieces, knocking each one away from him before any of them could connect, or come close enough to trap him... but with each passing moment it was getting harder to concentrate on his own defense.  Cyclops was becoming more and more aware of the agony that Phoenix was inflicting on Mirage.

-x-

   Then Nightcrawler teleported into the room with a pop, causing Magneto to momentarily forget Scott Summers. He wheeled to face Nightcrawler, ready to defend himself, but Nightcrawler had no intention of fighting.  He took hold of Magneto and quickly teleported again, leaving Magneto standing stunned in the oval office without the protection of his helmet.

   Professor, Nightcrawler called, sending Professor X a mental image of Magneto.

   Without his helmet, Magneto’s mind was vulnerable. He turned and lunged for Nightcrawler, who was standing just outside, but the blue mutant had already teleported away from his grasp.

-x-

   It only took Cyclops a second to decide. He fired on Phoenix, once, twice, three times, until he had forced her to cease her attack on Mirage.

   Miranda fell to the floor and clawed her way toward Scott, trying desperately to make her wounded mind work. Phoenix had attacked her for a reason, and Miranda had to think about why. She had to do what Phoenix had tried to insure she wouldn’t be able to do.

   Finding the words was difficult, she tried reaching for his mind as Phoenix began to engage Cyclops. He was trying to keep himself alive long enough to plead for Jean’s life.  Jean. Miranda cleared the pain and turmoil from her mind and whispered to him mentally, Scott. She’s there, Scott.

   Scott froze as her meaning sunk in, and Phoenix reacted violently, trying to thwart his coming attack.  But Scott had already acted on the mental image Mirage had shown him. He began to fire on Phoenix with his optic blasts over and over until Phoenix collapsed. 

   But he hesitated when he saw her fall.

   “You’ve got to keep going, Scott,” Miranda encouraged him. “You’ve almost reached her.”

   “I can’t,” he shook his head.  “I’m afraid if I hit her with more energy, I’ll kill Jean.”

   “You won’t.  Trust me.”

   Scott fought for his composure and trusted Miranda’s words as he continued to fire on the down and seemingly helpless form of Jean Gray. Then suddenly there was a blinding flash as the entity known as Phoenix was expelled from its host’s body.

   Professor, help me, Mirage called, opening her mind to his power.  Together, they drove the entity away from Jean’s body, keeping it trapped in the air, preventing it from escaping or from entering another host. It could not survive without the protection of a host body, and it slowly disintegrated in the air, forever destroyed.

-x-

   “Gambit?” Nightcrawler shook Gambit’s shoulder carefully.

   Gambit found himself face down on the grass, trying to remember where he was.  He groaned and pushed himself up to his knees. 

   “You all right?”

   “Gambit ain’t been hit that hard in a long time.”  He looked around himself. “Mystique?”

   “She had a little help the Scarlet Witch.”

   “They get away?”

   “And Magneto,” Nightcrawler admitted.  Then he smiled. “But without this,” he added, holding up Magneto’s helmet.

   “Then Professor X–”

   “He knows where Magneto is, where he’s going; they won’t get far.”

-x-

   Wolverine stalked toward Gambit and Nightcrawler.  “What happened?” he asked, stretching his neck to each side until it popped loudly.  “Everybody split, and just when I was starting to beat the fleas off that overgrown– ”

   “We won, Wolverine,” Storm interrupted him, smiling. She was flanked by Iceman, Rogue, Colossus, Jubilee, and Shadowcat.  Wolverine was relieved to see that the younger members of the team had come out unscathed, but he clearly didn’t think that the fight should have been over.

   “They scattered after Magneto lost this,” Nightcrawler explained.  “And after Scott and Miranda defeated Phoenix.”

   “Miranda?” Gambit got to his feet, and Wolverine had to catch him when he stumbled forward.

   “Easy there, Cajun.  This is no time to be thinking about the ladies.  You’re bleeding like a stuck pig.”  Logan touched his fingers to the back of Gambit’s head for emphasis.  They were covered in blood when he showed them to Gambit again.

   “Gambit okay.  A little blood never make no difference,” he protested, but he did feel wobbly.

   Gambit sat back down and Nightcrawler remained with him as the others went to regroup with the professor.

   “Crawler, you saw her didn’t you?  She all right?”

   Gambit didn’t like the hesitation in Nightcrawler’s voice. “Phoenix still had a hold of her the last time I saw her, but Cyclops was with her.  I’m sure...” he trailed off, not wanting to promise something that wasn’t in his power to give.

   “I hope she all right,” Gambit whispered.

   “Let us pray on that,” Nightcrawler agreed.

-x-

   Good job, Mirage.

   Miranda was exhausted.

   I’ll tell Gambit you’re safe, the professor assured her. He’s been worried sick since he heard that you and Scott went missing.

   Miranda found it hard to suppress a smile as she imagined the Cajun worried sick over anything, and especially over her. Then she heard a very quiet noise. Across the room Scott was holding on to the barely live form of Jean Gray.

   “Scott?”

   “It’s me, Jean.”

   “What happened?”

   “Doesn’t matter now,” he choked. “You’re alive – I’m never letting you go.”

   Miranda felt a rush of emotion come over her, and she realized that the professor was still in contact with her mind, watching Jean’s rebirth.

   Magneto! Miranda remembered suddenly. He had escaped.

   Yes, he’s still alive, and he’ll try again, but without Phoenix to help him.

   And if you choose, the professor added more quietly, I can teach you to use your own powers.  He felt her confusion.  No.  The stronger powers, the powers in your mind.  Once you master your own mind, no one will overpower your free will again.  Assuming of course that you’re willing to stay on at the school, help us rebuild, maybe teach our kids.

   Yes, she whispered, feeling a little teary at the thought of belonging somewhere, like a real home. I’d like that.

   Good.  Now just stay put.  Beast is on his way to have a look at you.

   Miranda tried to nod, but she lost consciousness halfway through the motion.

-x-

   X Mansion

   “How’s she doing?”

   “Com se, com sa,” the Cajun answered, the warm sound of his worried voice slowly pulling Miranda awake. “She need a bit more rest to get her back to full strength.”

   Miranda’s eyes flickered open. “It’s not polite to talk about a girl while she’s sleeping,” she chided him.

   “Sorry, petit,” Gambit murmured, smiling as he bent down to take her hand. He had hardly been away from her side since they had left Washington.

   Scott shifted his weight and cleared his throat. “Gambit, do you think I could have a moment alone with Miranda?”

   Gambit clearly didn’t like the idea of that, but he couldn’t think of any logical reason against it. After all, Cyclops had saved her life. Gambit figured he did owe Summers something... so he conceded.  “Gambit’ll just be outside for a minute, chere.”

   Miranda smiled, finding it hard to bring her mind back to Scott.

   “The professor tells me you’re going to stay for a while,” he prompted.

   She nodded.  Miranda still didn’t know how this place had become a home and these people her family, but they had – and she didn’t want to give that up.  Especially a certain tall Cajun who for some reason seemed to be as crazy about her as she was about him.  Plus, after witnessing the miracle that had brought Scott and Jean back together... she was thinking that she might talk to Nightcrawler a little about that whole “everything for a reason” theory of his....

   “How are you?” she asked Scott, already knowing the answer to that question.

   “Never better,” he was quick to assure her.  “I’ve got the love of my life back. Nightcrawler says I’m born again, and maybe I am. The whole world feels alive and new.”

   She smiled, happy for him, but a little puzzled. She didn’t know why he had needed to speak to her privately for any of this. “Wonderful, Scott,” she grinned, “but what does that have to do with me?”

   He flushed.  “I came to ask you a question.  You see, Jean has agreed to marry me,” he smiled at her, finding his happiness over that fact hard to contain.  “And I know that this is going to sound a little weird, but I want to ask you to be the best man at our wedding.”

   She raised her eyebrows at him, a million cutting remarks racing through her mind.

   “Just hear me out,” Scott insisted.  “You’ve been a good friend. There’s no one else I feel comfortable asking... and if it weren’t for you, Jean and I might never have gotten this chance.”

   Miranda smiled and nodded to him.  “For you, anything. I’ll even be the best man at your wedding.”  She grinned at him. “I only have one question. If I’m best man, who’s matron of honor, Logan?”

   Scott threw back his head and grinned from ear to ear at that idea.  “Only if I get to tell him!”

-XX-