The distinct whine of the engines of the Blackbird had Scott glancing upwards before he dropped the armful of wood he’d been carrying. Sprinting through the brush he hit the clearing where Logan and Tank were discussing the rather important placement of their food cache.
“Trouble,” Scott panted and pointed at the horizon. “I can hear the Blackbird.”
“What are they doing here?” Tank grumbled.
Scott glanced at him, “Could be any number of things. I know what they aren’t doing and that’s being smart. You’d think getting their ass kicked in their own home would knock a few brain-cells loose.”
Logan glanced at him then at Tank, “Tank get the kids to safety. Alert the girls, tell them they’re our last line of defense. The X-Men get past us; they have to protect the kids.”
With a nod Tank whirled and raced off with remarkable speed despite his huge bulk.
“What about me?” Scott asked, trying to catch his breath.
“I’m not so sure about you just yet,” Logan growled. “Somehow I think they came for you, and if they did I’m not gonna let ‘em take you. I’ll kill you myself before I let ‘em.”
“Take the collar off,” Scott snapped pointing at the metal around his neck, “Let me fight.”
“Why? Is Kitty that great a piece that you’re willing to alienate your wife, your friends?”
Moving to stand toe to toe with Logan Scott glared at him, “I do not give a damn about the X-Men. I live with the knowledge of what my wife’s petty jealousy did to three innocent kids. Do you really think..”
“They have a syndrome for siding with your captors you know?” Logan groused.
Scott shook his head, “I know. I asked Tank all about it. The only flaw in that plan is I sympathized with them long before Kitty took me prisoner. Can’t blame my actions on Stockholm Syndrome if I was on your side before I became a POW.”
Shaking his head at Scott’s impeccable logic Logan let the claws ooze out through his skin, “Then get ready to kick some ass.”
“The collar,” Scott reminded.
Sticking the key into the lock, Logan offered Scott a unique looking piece that reminded him of Jubilee’s eye-piece, “It’s an optic controller. Jubilee wears one because she’s blind, you can wear it to help you control your power.”
“Thanks,” Scott took them gratefully, sliding them into place as the collar fell away. A moment later he felt the familiar burn of his power tearing at his skull.
Turning to face the oncoming threat, he watched as Iceman, Piotr, and Beast slipped through the trees. “Oh shit, why those three.”
“They ain’t alone,” Wolverine’s low growl did little to ease Scott’s mind. “Storm’s with ‘em.”
“I’ll take the furball,” Tank grinned slightly. “Have fun with the others.”
“The girls and kids safe?”
“Yeah,” Tank nodded quickly, “Girls ain’t happy, but they’ll stay put for a while.”
Nodding Wolverine moved into a familiar crouch, his body tensing, his muscles bunching as he prepared for battle. Growling low in his throat he eyed the pair and focused on Piotr. The metal encased kid was more like to provide a challenge than the ice-cream maker.
“We came to get our own back,” Hank stated calmly eying the way the trio faced them, their bodies tensed for battle. “We don’t want trouble.”
“But you got it,” Tank drawled moving to flank the furry mutant.
“We don’t need to fight about it. Just let Scott go and we can all go home.”
“Don’t see no chain around his neck,” Wolverine snarled furiously.
“Scott, move slowly, come this way.”
Scott shook his head, “You think they’re gonna just let me walk away? Hank you’re supposed to be a genius.”
“Scott now isn’t…”
“It’s a perfect time,” Scott snarled, wishing Logan had told him how to operate the stupid eyewear he had on. “I’m not moving.”
“Don’t become the enemy,” Iceman warned. “Its not a healthy profession.”
With a shake of his head Tank glanced at Logan who nodded slightly, the movement barely perceptible to anyone who wasn’t watching for it. Moving rapidly, he broadsided the blue furball and sent him rolling a good ten feet, “Oops. Hey Doc you better learn how to stand up!” he chortled before ducking away, “Just cause I’m big don’t mean I’m not agile.”
With a furious snarl of his own Beast jumped at the brick-wall that had attacked him only to find himself flying through the air. Grunting as he landed hard, he was up and whirling to face his advesary even as he saw Colossus and Wolverine going at it.
“For the love of Science, we’re not the enemy,” he groaned even as he felt a solid weight descend on him.
“Yeah you are,” the low snarl in his ear had him baring his teeth and rolling, hoping to catch his attacker off guard.
“So you’re switching side huh?” Iceman taunted Cyclops. “It worth it to you? You like knowing you’re helping the very same people that hurt Jean that hurt the Professor?”
“Considering they got hurt first I think I can live with it,” Scott snarled ducking a punch easily.
“Really? Cause from where I’m standing you’re not better than they are. Just used up discarded pieces of filth the army should have killed. Do you get to pick which one you get to fuck?”
BLcoking a punch easily, Cyclops kicked him in the solarplexes and watched him stumble back. “Did you have fun fucking Jean?”
“She needed someone. Especially when she thought you were dead.”
“And you were overjoyed to do it weren’t you?” Scott grabbed him in a choke hold he’d seen Kitty use more than once in training. Tightening it he chuckled, “You go back and tell ‘em that Cyclops doesn’t play games. You come back, I’ll fry your ass.”
“You have no power anymore, they took it away.”
With a snarl of fury Cyclops shoved him aside and blinked his eyes a moment later the thin red line of power from the optic pieces burnt a narrow trench up to Bobby’s prone body.
“Seems to me I’ve still got it,” stalking across the ground he hefted the younger man by the collar and held him steady. “You go back and you tell Charles that he needs to really focus on what Rogue gave him. You tell him to relieve the horror, and the degradation that they suffered and then…then you can come back and call them trash! Next time I won’t just break a couple of bones, next time I’m gonna rip your heart out through your chest.”
Coughing Iceman shook his head, “You can’t win. You aren’t prepared to go against us.”
Whipping him around, Scott held him steady with an arm around his throat, “You take a look, a real good look. Tell me what you see? Hmm I’ll tell you what I see. I see Beast fighting harder than he’s ever fought before, I see Colossus almost out of the game, and I see you as a weak, little man who has no idea what he’s talking about.”
“Hey Cyclops don’t kill the little prick,” Wolverine snarled moving toward him. “I’d like a word.”
Shoving him aside he nodded, “Feel free. I’m done talking.”
“So Icicle, you thought you could come challenge us huh? Thought we’d give him back? No, not gonna happen. You tell Charles if he wants an all out war…he better recruit some real fighter’s because Frankenstein doesn’t play games. She just kills her enemies.”
Iceman nodded and stumbled toward Colossus was busy picking himself up off the ground. A moment later they were limping toward Beast just as the sky darkened and Storm made an appearance.
“As usual, she’s late,” Wolverine growled. “Take your friends home. Next time you won’t be so lucky!”
Collecting the guys Storm sent them toward the jet, her eyes white, her body bristling. “You think we’re gonna back off?”
“I think you’re stupid,” Cyclops snarled and turned to walk away.
“Don’t get on the wrong side of us Storm,” Wolverine growled. “Don’t write ‘em off because you’ll deal with me and you can’t win. You might take me out but then you’d really have a problem because then you’d have to deal with my girls.”
Staring at him for a moment Storm felt a chill go through her, “This isn’t over by a long shot Logan.”
“It was over the minute the army slapped ‘em behind those bars and you sat on your asses and did nothing!”
Breathing hard Logan watched the weather witch disappear back the way she’d come. A few minutes later the jet was taking off and heading south again.
“This is a long way from finished,” Tank drawled wiping at a cut on his face that was healing slowly.
“Finished? It’ll never be finished as long as they don’t understand,” Logan replied and glanced at him. “Good thing we heal, the girls would have fits if they sat the way you’re cut to pieces.”
“They will anyway,” Tank slapped him on the shoulder and headed for where he’d left the girls and the kids.
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