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#10
MAR 11 |
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“When the Pharaohs Rise…” Part One
An Hour after Nova’s Attack on the Mansion
Things were finally beginning to settle down in the Xavier Mansion as reports were coming in from the teams in Chicago and Snow Valley about the attacks they had suffered from Weapon X. Polaris had spoken briefly to the Professor about Genosha suffering an attack well, but she provided almost no details. It was a nightmare for Xavier and he was obviously depressed by the turn of events. That was why Domino had grabbed Wolverine and pulled him outside the Mansion for a little walk.
“I didn’t want to say this in front of Xavier; the guy had already had enough bad news,” Domino said as she walked with Logan through the Mansion’s lawn which was riddled with energy blasts and displaced soil from the earlier battle.
Logan kept his face expressionless. “Better go ahead and spill it.
“There was a fifth attack that no one knows about. And since you’re the person he’s probably closest to I figured you should be the one to know.”
“You’re being kind of vague here, Dom,” Logan said, but he already knew exactly what the former mercenary was getting at and it chilled him because he didn’t think Weapon X would have been able to reach out and touch them.
“Havok is leading some sort of black ops team. I’m pretty sure he’s doing this on his own but Nova lured his team into a trap.”
Logan scowled. “Is he–”
“Yea, he is, but the team was banged up pretty bad from Fatale’s report. They lost one and Marrow was kidnapped. The Dark Beast personally asked for her.
Logan gritted his teeth because he hated himself for what he was about to do. “Does Avalanche know about this?
Domino shook her head. “He wasn’t close enough to Nova. Only squad leaders got reports on all of the attacks.”
“Ok. We need to take this to Emma.”
“I’m not following, Logan. Why are we telling the Queen of Bimbo?” Domino asked. Everyone made mistakes but Emma was trying to retroactively sweep hers under the rug.
“Think about it, Dom. If Alex’s team ever went public all of Xavier’s progress would go kaput and the X-Men would have a lot of people to answer to. Of all the big wigs we got around here, only Emma is the one with the right frame of mind to handle this.”
Domino couldn’t’ argue with that logic. It had been Emma who suggested to Charles that she and Avalanche be sent undercover in the first place. The woman knew how to make the touch calls. “Ok, let’s go to her.”
Logan felt like dirt the entire way to Emma’s office. He knew this had to be done and he just didn’t want to do it, but he had pulled Havok and the others into this and he wasn’t about to leave them out to dry if he could help it. If the Weapon X attacks had showed anything, it was that a team like X-Force was more than needed…it was absolutely necessary. The line had to be held and, to put things in perspective, he had done far worse for the sake of preserving a mission.
When they got to Emma’s office Logan knocked and said, “Let me in, Em.”
A few moments later Emma pulled back the door and looked at her two visitors with calculating analysis. Emma may have been fighting for the X-Men, but she was just as cunning as she was in her Hellfire days. She took very little at face value and was always looking to have the one up in any conversation. “It’s good to see you back in one piece, Domino. I hope after all of this that you can provide us some decent intel on Weapon X.”
Domino’s mouth opened but Logan jumped in. “That’s why we’re here. She has information about Havok.”
At that moment, Domino’s body froze and she was as still as a sculpture. Wolverine closed the door Emma’s office and she said, “Make sure you lock it.”
“Already did,” Logan replied as he glanced at the stiffened Domino and pointed a thumb at her. “How long you gonna keep her like that?”
“As soon as I work out all the information about Havok and X-Force from her pretty little head; since I also have to unweave all the protections Charles and I placed in her psyche, it will take a few moments.” Emma tugged and pulled at the psychic guards like strings from a quilt. All it took was pulling the right strings to unravel the entire tapestry, and a less skilled telepath would have taken far longer to undo the work. “I know you don’t like this, Logan, but we don’t have a choice.”
“Don’t lecture me,” Wolverine said. “I’m sure Charles has told you enough about my past for you to know I get it.”
“Fair enough.”
Domino’s body returned to normal and she said, “I think Weapon X was planning a fifth attack on the Morlocks. Nova was trying to really put a sense of failure into us.”’
“We may need to send someone down there to check on them. Thank you for the information, Domino. Again, it’s good to see you return safely.”
“Just wish I could have done more,” Domino said a she walked out of the room with Wolverine behind her.
When they were gone, Emma breathed a sigh of relief. She didn’t know how long she was going to be able to keep X-Force a secret. But the question that really bothered her was just how far was she going to have to go to keep it a secret? The endeavor was worth it but everything carried a price tag. Would she be able to afford it?
A Day Later- Snow Valley
Storm bent down to water the tulip. It eased her mind in what were troubled times for the X-Men. She had not been there for the Weapon X attacks and wished she had been. Guilt panged in her heart because Rachel, Chamber and Pyslocke had come to rescue her when they could have been protecting the students. While Ororo was thankful for their assistance because bondage by Shadow King was not how she wanted to spend the rest of her days, but she felt guilt nonetheless. Protecting and nourishing the plants in her garden gave her some sense of pace.
Logan stood in the doorway of the greenhouse looking at Ororo with a smile on his face. He was about to light a cigar when Ororo, without even looking up, said, “If you plan on lighting that in here I’ll make it rain in your bed for a week.”
Laughing, Logan deposited the cigar and lighter back in his pockets. “Glad to see you’re back to your old self.”
Stopping the watering of the plants, Ororo stood up and briskly walked to Logan to give him a hug. “And I’m glad to see you’re in one piece.” Keeping her head on Logan’s shoulder, she said, “These attacks were so monstrous. It makes my mind drift to the Marauders.”
“Let’s just be glad we didn’t have as high a body count. Omega Sentinel and Psylocke have been sent on a recruiting mission to South America.”
Pulling away from Logan, Storm nodded somberly; bitter memories laid down that trial of thought. “Even one life lost is a tragedy. Poor Vance...”
“I won’t lie, he’s not gonna have it easy. I still think about Mariko, but we’re survivors Ororo. It’s what we do best.”
Storm had known Logan long enough to know when something else was on his mind. “Logan, your face has always hid little from me. What has brought you here to me today?”
“All of this action we’ve seen the past couple of days had made me think about something, ‘Ro. When Shadow King got to you again all I could think about was what would happen if I lost you. You’ve been here for me thorough just about everything and I’ve never been a terribly good friend in return.”
Storm smiled and grabbed both of Logan’s hands. “You have been the best of friends, Logan. More so than even the Professor, I have always known that you would have my back.”
“I want to have more than just your back, ‘Ro. I’ve spent years chasing after women who wanted nothing from me in return when I’ve had someone staring me in the face all this time.”
“Logan, I…
“Just say you’ll give it a try, ‘Ro. I know I’m a ball of confusing but for the first time in a long time I know exactly what I want.”
Storm felt like she was losing her breath. “I would be lying if I said I never felt something, but I had resigned myself to use being just friends.”
“Friend this,” Logan said as he reached up and locked lips with Ororo. She did not resist it.
As they kissed, Logan felt a vibration in his pocket as his cell phone stated to ring. He cursed his luck and popped open the device. “This better be good.”
“It’s Maverick, Logan. We need to talk.”
“How bad?”
“I’d say right up there with Magneto bad.”
Egypt/Sudan Border
Sekhmet looked up to the stars for the arrival of her soldiers. The Heirs were not yet prepared but she did not have time to wait for them to be fully assembled. When they were ready they would join her, but now she had to push forward with her plans. The world needed to be embroiled in the fires of war to see who was strong enough to survive it. It was a process that was too long overdue in stating. Her love, Apocalypse, had been far too gentle in pushing of events. She understood his motives, but time was of the essence. Earth was filled with the strong, burning over with the weak as well. A culling was necessary.
Standing behind her was Holocaust, the son of her lover. He had come from another dimension where Apocalypse had taken over a large part of the world and brought it under his rule. The presence of Holocaust bothered her because it seemed that she had played no part in this alternate dimension and Apocalypse had mated with another woman. Still, she could see that Holocaust was indeed one of the strong and she would be glad to have him by her side.
“What are we waiting for?” Holocaust said as he looked up into the night sky.
Sekhmet smiled as she saw two bright lights in the night sky growing brighter. The lights grew in intensity and were soon followed by a loud noise akin to a crashing plane. Holocaust watched the lights take the shape of white-hot pods that slammed into the dirt only a few hundred yards in front of them. The impact of the pods shot dirt and rock high into the air and sent a whoosh of air flying over the two of them.
“My servants. Just as the Pharaohs were servants of the gods, so shall my Pharaohs be servants of me,” Sekhmet said as she floated off the ground and flew to the impact zone of the pods.
The son of Apocalypse kept a good pace behind her as they approached the craters created by the spacecrafts. Sekhmet floated over them and said, “Rise my royals! Return to your Master for she has need of you!”
Holocaust watched as the pods split open with smoky hisses. They divided like flowers and out of them rose two men who carried an Egyptian look about them. One had long hair that went down to nearly his ankles while the other was completely bald with glowing black eyes. Sekhmet examined both of them for a moment. “Welcome to Earth, Pharaohs Khufu and Serapis. This is the son of my lover, Apocalypse.”
“Greetings, child of Apocalypse, “Khufu said as he walked out of his crater. His hair was pulled back into a ponytail and held in place by a golden eagle hair clip. On his forehead was a black tattoo of a pyramid and in his hand he carried a golden staff that ended with a miniature pyramid. He was garbed in a form fitting black bodysuit that had lines of gold running along the sides of his arms and legs.
“Master, we thought that you would never call for us,” Serapis said, ignoring Holocaust entirely. He was shirtless, rippling with muscles and had a tattoo of intertwined snakes on his chest. Axes were tattooed on the top of each of his hands and large black scimitar was tattooed on his back. Spikes jutted out at the knees of his black pants and his nails looked just as sharp.
“I have to evaluate that status of this planet,” Sekhmet said as he turned to Holocaust. “There are many strong here and I think we may be able to finish filling out the ranks of the Pharaohs.”
Holocaust nodded. “I believe I may have an idea for you in that department.”
The Xavier Institute (The Next Day)
Clarice sheepishly entered Professor Xavier’s office but was greeted by a friendly Charles. “Come in, Clarice. I promise not to bite.”
“I’m sorry, Professor, I’m just…”
“It’s ok to be nervous,” Charles said as Clarice took a seat in front of him. He could feel her apprehension about everything around her. She had been through so much ever since she had confronted Harvest a few years ago. He didn’t know where she went after that, but wherever it was it landed her in the clutches of Sebastian Shaw. Charles blamed himself for that ordeal; he shouldn’t have been so quick to assume that Blink was truly gone. If he hadn’t then maybe she could have been found in enough time and perhaps she’d still be the confident girl she had once been and not this frail young woman scared of everything around her.
“I’m sorry,” Blink said again as she looked down at her knees and refused to look Xavier in the face.
Charles knew that the confidence was there because it had surfaced when she fought against both Kaine and Omega Red, so he hoped that his plan to draw on that would prove fruitful. “There’s nothing to be sorry about. I have called you here because Emma was quite impressed with your performance against the two Weapon X agents you faced. She showed me what she saw and I am impressed as well.”
Clarice looked up and smiled. “Really?”
“Yes, that’s why I have called you here to meet with me today. I am forming a team that is going to be centered out of the Institute and I want you to be a part of it.”
“Do you really think I’m ready?”
Xavier nodded politely. “I would not be asking if I wasn’t, Clarice. You have inside you tremendous talents, I know it. You’ll be surrounded by some of my most experienced X-Men and you’ll be helping to tackle the problems that my other teams don’t have the resources to handle.”
“Who will I be with?”
“Wolverine, Storm, Archangel, Domino, Avalanche and the White Queen, and I’ll be on some missions as necessary. So what do you say? Or would you prefer a little more time to think about it?”
Clarice shook her head with more passion than he had seen from the girl in weeks. “No sir, not a chance I’m passing up this opportunity. I’m in!”
Charles leaned back in his chair and smiled. He hoped that this would be the first step in rehabilitating Blink because it was in combat that she seemed to illuminate the confident he wanted to translate into her everyday life. “Good, Clarice. Well then, let me be the first to officially welcome you to the X-Men.”
“So what do I do now?”
“Check in with Warren and we’ll see what we can do about getting a uniform to your liking. He should be in the west end foyer.”
“Ok,” Clarice said. She got up with so much excitement that she didn’t even notice that she wasn’t nervous anymore. It was something about the idea of being involved in the battle for human/mutant peace that felt right to her. When she fought against Kaine and Omega Red, it was like something had overcome her. Whatever it was she liked it and wanted to feel it again.
Blink practically ran out the door and Charles couldn’t help but to be pleased with himself. His students had always been his ultimate passion and seeing that he was helping one out of her shell gave him great pleasure. He just hated that he had to put her in harm’s way to do it, but it wasn’t his place to decide where his students were in their element. In that respect Clarice reminded him in some way of Storm, who had been awkward until given the opportunity to lead and then she shined like no other. He hoped for duplicate results with Clarice.
The Mansion Living Room
Wolverine sat down on one of the couches and passed a beer to for his former comrade-in-arms, Maverick. “So, you weren’t too chatty on the phone? Wanna start talking now?”
Maverick caught the beer, cracked it open and took a good swig of it. He was in normal civilian clothes for the first time in weeks. If he was honest with himself, the Xavier Institute was one of the few places he felt comfortable enough to walk around without a single gun on him, though he still had two holstered to his legs anyway. “You never know who’s listening, especially with the list of enemies the two of us have managed to rack up.”
“Can’t fault ya there, bub. You said Magneto bad...”
“I was in Egypt a few weeks back. Happened to run into Moon Knight and the two of us happened to run into a very ticked off woman. We threw everything we had at her and we didn’t even make a dent. We’re lucky to have escaped with our lives.”
“You get a name, bub?”
“She called herself Sekhmet. And she’s pregnant Logan, but yon’t believe who the daddy is. Think big, scary Egyptian.”
Logan snarled as he yanked his beer back from his lips. “Apocalypse.”
“Bingo, partner. Now is it starting to sink in?”
“And you waited to call this long because…”
“Because I have been running surveillance on the woman on my own since I got back on my feet, which I’m lucky to still have. She’s been moving back and forth across Africa so I really didn’t have time to stop for a friendly call. Wasn’t sure what she was doing, but I think she was just getting familiar with the lay of the land again.”
“What do you mean?” Logan asked as he was passed a stack of pictures by Maverick.
“Guess I left that detail out. She’s from space, Logan. If I had to guess she hasn’t been to Earth for a real long time. Check out the last of the pictures.”
Logan cycled through the photos until he saw pictures of Sekhmet, Holocaust and two other men he didn’t recognize. “So I guess she’s made some allies.”
“Took those two days ago, and those guys came from space too. Not sure how many people she’s intending to call down to her, but you guys might want to get on it before you have an army on your doorstep.”
Wolverine held up the pictures. “Mind if I keep these.”
“Be my guest.”
Sudan
Holocaust stepped one foot into the refugee camp and felt disgust as the poor, discarded people of war ran at the sight of him. These were the weak and he was here to cleanse them.
Wipe the Earth of this vermin.
Sekhmet’s words rang true in his head as he raised his arm up and fired off a bio-nuclear blast.
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To Be Continued...
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