Date: Sun, 16 Nov 2008 16:01:46 +1030
From: Ben Harvey <scifi_fanboy@hotmail.com>
Subject: X-Force - Chapter Five - Celebrity

Disclaimer:

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

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

Hey people! I just wanted to apologise for taking so long with the newest
chapter. This last semester at university was a bitch, especially all of
the reading I had to do to keep all of my majors, so I haven't had a lot of
time to myself. Again, my apologies. At least now that I'm on break, I can
try to get more written.


Reckoning, Part 2


Josh sat in the infirmary, fighting against the wave of exhaustion that
threatened to overwhelm him. Six hours of patching up bullet wounds and
burns had pushed him to his limits, and it was only by the miracle of
coffee that he hadn't simple lied down and refused to move. Jean moved
between the many beds that had been set up in the medical facility, tending
to the less serious of injuries and changing bandages where needed.

The door hissed open and Josh's eyes fell on the Professor as he entered
the cramped room.

<How is everyone> the Professor asked telepathically, not wanting to awaken
any of the sleeping students.

<Not too bad> Josh replied by pushing his thoughts to the surface of his
mind so that the Professor could hear him. <All of the big injuries have
been dealt with. The rest are just cuts, scratches and a few broken bones>

<I'm sorry you had to deal with all of these injuries so shortly after
being attacked>

<It's alright, Professor. I didn't expect it to all sunshine and flowers
when I joined the X-Men. Have you heard back from the others, yet?>

<No, and I'm beginning to become concerned. I tried scanning for them with
Cerebro but I haven't been able to locate them. It's as if someone is
jamming my telepathy>

<But who could be powerful enough to block you?> Jean asked, joining in the
telepathic conversation.

<The only way I could think of for someone to block me would be if a number
of telepaths were working together or else a very powerful telepath using
some sort of psionic amplifier. What trouble me is that the only group with
access to either of those options is the Brotherhood, and I cannot believe
that today's attack just happened to coincide with the appearance of this
new mutant threat, which means that the Brotherhood is starting to use
humans to further their agenda>

<In all honesty, Professor, I'm less concerned about them using humans than
I am about the fact that, if you're right, the Brotherhood has a very
powerful new ally> Jean's thoughts whispered.

<I'm going to put in a call to Midwest Station> the Professor declared
<Maybe they will have better luck in locating the Blackbird's distress
beacon>.

*****

Amara, or Magma as she was known among other mutants, was a Mediterranean
beauty with skin the colour of Caribbean sand and hair like liquid gold
that spilled over her shoulders and cascaded like a waterfall down her
back. The simple summer dress she wore was pristine in its whiteness ,
hugging all of her perfect curves and her full but modest breasts. He
slender hands were clasped gently in front of her as she leant against the
meeting table, watching the screen intently. Colossus knew full well that
her intense beauty was matched only by the intensity of her dominion over
flame and earth.

Next to Amara, stood the young Vietnamese mutant who called herself
Karma. Next to Amara's beauty, Karma was a study of humility. Every feature
of her slender body was in perfect balance with the others, not standing
out on their own but together forming a portrait of a strong young
woman. Karma's intelligent brown eyes gazed out from behind an curtain of
raven-black hair that hung to just below her shoulders. Those brown eyes
concealed more than just an intelligent mind, Colossus reminded
himself. Karma could dominate a lesser mind with ease, bending anyone to
her will.

The last member of the team perched on the very edge of his chair, which
he'd turned to face the screen mounted on the wall. Whitney King, or Mystic
as he had come to call himself, was a mild-mannered and unassuming young
man, with short black hair and deep inquisitive eyes that seemed to
question everything around him. His mutant gift was rare, allowing him to
alter the very fabric of reality, shifting the laws of physics to suit his
needs. Despite his potential for greatness, Whitney still seemed genuinely
surprised when anyone praised his work, as though in his own mind he was
unworthy of praise, a trait that Colossus had sworn to himself he would see
change.

The screen flickered before emitting a high pitched beep akin to a sonar
ping and settling on an image of Professor Xavier sitting in his office,
drawing Colossus' attention away from the other mutants.

`Greetings, X-men,' the Professor said calmly.

`Professor,' Colossus greeted in a thick Russian accent.

`Two hours ago the Mansion was attacked by heavily armed assailants'

`What! How are you? Is Everyone alright?' Karma exclaimed.

`Though the initial attack caught us off guard, the remaining X-men, along
with the aid of a number of students, were able to drive the attackers
off,' the Professor carefully explained. `However, during the attack, our
communications equipment was damaged and we have since been unable to raise
the Blackbird. We are only able to reach you via the emergency bands. Six
X-men were aboard, including Mirage and Iceman. I've been attempting to
locate them telepathically but I'm being jammed. Recent reports indicate
that it's the Brotherhood telepath Mindpyre, which means that the team may
be in significant danger'.

`Mindpyre,' the young Vietnamese woman snarled. `I swore that the next time
we met there would be hell to pay'.

`Colossus, Karma, Magma, Mystic. Your orders are to locate the Blackbird
and render whatever assistance is needed. I'm sending you all of the
relevant data we have on their movements. Good luck'.  The screen flickered
and went black.

Colossus moved to face the other assembled mutants. `Magma, prepare the
Falcon for immediate take-off. Karma, assemble whatever rescue equipment
you feel we need. Mystic, get to med lab and prepare for multiple
injuries'.

Colossus strode confidently into the hangar fifteen minutes later, pulling
on the tight black gloves that completed his uniform. Karma was already
waiting next to the Falcon's ramp, dressed in her black bodysuit and combat
boots.

`Magma and Mystic are already inside,' she said as she carefully observed
her commanding officer in his X-Uniform. She could almost feel herself
being to drool over the slab-like pecs that were barely contained within
the black vest. His massive biceps were emphasised by the black leather
bands that adorned them and she swore that the pants he was wearing had to
be a sin somewhere. `You sure you're not interested in girls?' she smirked.

Colossus frowned at her, `Now is really not the time for such talk'.  `Well
a girl can dream,' she said, as she followed him up the ramp.

The interior of the Falcon was an exact duplicate of the Blackbird, as was
almost everything else about the craft. Colossus manoeuvred around Magma
and Mystic, both of whom had taken seats behind the pilot and co-pilot
chairs. Switching on all of the primary systems as he took the pilot's
seat, Colossus addressed the other members of his team.

`Prepare for take-off. We will head to the Blackbirds last known location,
then follow the course that they would have taken back to the Mansion. With
luck we will find them quickly'.

`And the gods help anyone who gets in our way,' Magma said coldly

*****

The Blackbird's engines thrummed to life, causing the entire craft to
vibrate slightly.

`We're ready for take-off,' Scott yelled back from the cockpit. `If you're
not sitting down, hold on to something'.

Remiel and Dani, who had finished securing Bailey onto one of the
Blackbirds medical bunks seconds before, gripped the sides of the bed
tightly. The Blackbird hummed as it defied gravity, rising off of the
ground before lurching forward as the engines screamed to life. Both Remiel
and Dani stumbled slightly but remained on their feet.

Turning away from Bailey, Remiel took in his surroundings. Through the
doorway that separated the medical unit from the main cabin he could see
both Noriko and John were resting on bunks situated opposite one
another. Scott had refused any medical attention despite what Remiel
suspected were a few broken ribs. Next to Scott, occupying the co-pilot's
chair, was Bobby. His uniform had been torn in a number of places and blood
seeped slowly out of a number of cuts and scratches but, like Scott, he too
had refused medical attention.

Remiel look across the prone form of Bailey at Dani. Unlike the others, she
hadn't had the opportunity to use her gifts in the conflict between Bailey
and Tyler, so instead she'd made every effort to help in the aftermath,
patching up both John and Noriko before helping Remiel strap down their
newest guest.

Looking down on the fallen mutant, Remiel realised just how young he really
looked. He couldn't be a day over nineteen. His blond hair, which Remiel
remembered from their first encounter to be feathery and light, hung
heavily in hap hazardous clumps slick with sweat and blood. A number of
scars adorned both of his arms and, if he was to explore, Remiel was sure
he would find others.

`Do you have any idea how long he's going to be out?' Remiel asked.

`There's no way to tell,' Dani answered. `None of this equipment can tell
me anything. It's like they're scanning thin air'.

`It must be a part of his mutation,' Remiel sighed. `When Jean, Betsy and I
tried to hit him with a psychic attack it was like he just wasn't
there. There was just this distinct absence of everything'.

`We'll just have to ask him when he wakes up'.

`Guys,' Bobby shouted from the cockpit. `I can't raise the Mansion on the
radio'.

`Is there a problem with the transceiver?' Scott asked as Remiel and Dani
joined them in the main cabin.

`No. There's nothing wrong on our end,' Bobby said. `That Tyler guy said he
arranged an attack on the Mansion. You don't think he was serious do you?'

`God only knows,' Scott snarled. `Let's get moving'.

*****

Tyler stood atop a small hill, watching as the Blackbird accelerated away
from its landing zone. His bare chest gleamed with sweat in the setting sun
and his face was flush from exertion. His muscles tensed slightly as his
senses alerted him to a shift in electromagnetic energy approach from
behind him.

`You really shouldn't sneak up on someone like me, Magneto,' he said as he
turned to face the aging mutant wrapped in a sphere of magnetism. `You
might find yourself in a few thousand pieces'.

Magneto lowered himself to the ground without a sound, a smirk showing
through the helmet he wore.

`You really should show more respect, Raze. After all, I believe you said
that you served me in the future'.

`No,' Tyler snarled, eyes gleaming with murderous intent. `I serve the
Brotherhood and all it stands for. I don't serve you, Magneto, I simply
allow you to work with me for the benefit of the Brotherhood. And speaking
of serving the Brotherhood, you had better get moving. I didn't risk a
confrontation with Bailey so you could waste the opportunity to kill him
while he's weakened'.

Magneto's eyes gleamed with repressed fury as he turned to face the mutants
that had gathered behind him, `Let us begin'.

*****

`How long will it take us to get to the Mansion?' Remiel asked as he retook
his seat.

Scott checked a consol before answering, `It should only take an hour or so
once we hit supersonic'.

`Good,' Remiel said, `because I've got a very bad feeling about all of
this'.

`Don't worry, Remmy,' Dani said from the seat next to him. `I'm sure
they're all...'

A massive boom followed by a vicious impact shook the Blackbird, throwing
Dani out of her seat and into the wall.

`Dani!' Remiel shouted as he reach out with his mind to grip her in fold of
telekinetic energy.

Another impact, this time from the other side of the Blackbird, sent the
aircraft into a violent spin.

`We're losing altitude!' Scott shouted.

`What the hell is happening!' Bobby shouted as he braced himself against
the inertia generated by their downward spin.

He hammered at some of the controls and the front window was overlayed with
an image of their wake as the Blackbird spun wildly in the air. As a flash
of the airspace behind them blurred past, Remiel registered three aircraft
that resembled F-18s. A lance of light shot out from beneath one of the
unidentified craft and slammed mercilessly into the Blackbird. The image
showed the debris of one of the Blackbird's reverse wings falling away from
the craft. The image of the overlay flickered and died as the Blackbird
lost power and the ground loomed up at them through the window.

`Oh, shit!' Bobby screamed.

The fear and panic roiled within the cabin, smothering Remiel. He felt
himself drowning in their emotions and their thoughts screamed out through
the air, unheard by normal ears. His hands cradled his head as he tried to
block out the cacophony of cries and wails. The inertia of their spin
compressed his stomach and he felt himself about to be sick. The image of
the ground rushing up to meet them flooded his mind's eyes, joined quickly
by visual representations of everyone's fears. Jean standing by a
gravestone. Blood and body matter splattered across miles of land. A
smoking crater littered with smouldering metal. David and Josh being left
alone. The Mansion in ashes. Robyn in a black dress, crying.

Remiel felt a sense of rage well up inside of him. Hatred at the people
doing this to them, at the people who were about to take their lives. His
hatred and rage coalesced into a shimmering sphere of scarlet energy that
morphed in his mind's eye, taking the form of some mighty jungle predator,
its mane ablaze with righteous indignation. Its smouldering eyes met his
and he felt its primal roar well up inside of him before escaping his own
lips in a beastly cry, `I WILL NOT LET THIS HAPPEN!' Something inside of
him snapped and the spillway to dams of power he didn't even know he had
opened, flooding him with psychic energy.

Scott looked over his shoulder and flinched at what he saw. Remiel sat
wreathed in shimmering blue fire so dark they almost obscured the bestial
expression that masked his normally compassionate features. He turned back
to look out the window as the ground rushed up to meet them. Seconds from
impact, just as Scott shut his eyes and began praying that their deaths
would be quick, the Blackbird decelerated to a complete stop. An
indescribable sensation passed through his entire body as the inertia of
that would have crushed his body into paste washed out of his physical form
and into the consol in front of him, compressing the two foot panel into
three inches of warped metal.

Silence reigned in the craft as Scott turned in his seat. Remiel sat
perfectly still, the blazing psychic fire that cloaked him slowly
dissipating. The young mutant was breathing heavily under the strain of his
powers and as Scott watched, Remiel finally succumbed to it. Gravity,
finally unfetter by the obstacles of mutation, pulled the Blackbird back to
the ground. The metal craft fell half a dozen meters to the ground with a
massive crash that jarred Scott out of his seat and spilling John and
Noriko onto the floor of the main cabin.

Scott immediately took charge of the situation. `Bobby, are you alright?'

`Ow,' the young mutant grumbled from the co-pilot's chair.

`I need you to get to the medical area and check on Bailey while I check on
everyone in here'.

`Okay, I can do that,' Bobby said, as he began sluggishly unbuckling
himself.

Scott pushed himself off of the floor and, clutching his injured ribs, made
his way to Remiel. The only thing preventing the young mutant from sliding
out of his seat was the cross-straps binding him in place. A small cut
across his left eyebrow leaked blood down the side of his face and a dark
bruise had begun to blossom on the side of his neck. Once Scott was
satisfied that Remiel was not in any immediate danger, he moved to check on
John and Noriko, who were both groaning as they hefted themselves off of
the floor.

`Are you guys okay?' Scott asked.

`I am going to have one hell of a headache in the morning,' John said
through a pained expression, `but I don't think anything's broken'.

`Same here,' Noriko said.

`Scott?' Dani asked as she too finally managed to rise to her feet. `What
the hell just happened? The last thing I remember was being thrown against
the wall'.

`We were attacked by someone. They sent us into a tailspin and we crashed,'
he answered quickly.

`Apart from being still unconscious, our guest is the picture of health,'
Bobby announced as he made his way back into the main cabin. `May I make a
crazy suggestion? How about we all get the hell out of here before whoever
shot us down comes looking to finish the job'.

`Remmy!' John shouted, laying eyes on his boyfriend still bound to the
flight seat. He rushed forward and wrapped his arms around Remiel's
unconscious form. `What happened to him!,' John demanded.

`He saved us is what happened,' Scott said, helping John unbuckle Remiel.

`What do you mean?' John asked, wrapping Remiel's arm over his shoulder
while supporting his lover's weight.

`He stopped the Blackbird from crashing and he did something to us that
stopped the inertia from killing us,' Scott explained. `But it doesn't
matter right know, all that matters is that we get out of here. We're in
danger as long as we stay here'.

The sound of warping metal filled the air as the Blackbird's armour plating
was peeled away like aluminium foil.

`You have no idea just how right you are, Cyclops,' Magneto's voice filled
the cabin as the Master of Magnetism hovered above them.

Warped fragments of hull plating flickered through the air and into the
cabin at incredible speed before wrapping themselves around the struggling
X-men, binding their arms in place. With a flick of his wrist, Magneto
willed the metal entrapments out of the fallen vessel, pulling their
captives with them.

The X-men landed on the ground with a number of dull thud. Only Remiel,
still unconscious from the crash, failed to cry out in protest. Scott
struggled to his knees, fighting against the metal restraints that held him
down. Bobby grunted and his body temperature began to drop, causing ice to
form across his metallic bonds. The frigid metal suddenly constricted,
squeezing the air out of Bobby's lungs and causing his power to falter.

`Now, now, we`ll have none of that,' Magneto sniped. `There's no point in
struggling, and even if you did escape, what then? You're completely
outmatched'.

As Magneto finished speaking, four figures materialise out of the dimming
twilight. The first was a bodacious blue-skinned woman wearing nothing but
the scales that adorned her arms, legs and chest. Mystique. Beside her
loomed Sabretooth, a massive bare-chested man with long talons extending
from his hands. On Mystiques other side strutted the mutant known as
Mindpyre. He was the same height and weight as Cyclops himself, with
platinum blond hair and luminous blue eyes gleaming with cruelty. The last
figure to materialise out of the twilight was Gateway, a tall black man
wearing a bored expression on his face.

`Now tell me, X-man. How did you manage to survive that little fall?'
Magneto asked as he descended to the ground ahead of the other four
Brotherhood members. `Was it that little time-traveller of yours, perhaps?'

Scott simply glared at the man looming over him.

`No,' Mindpyre announced slowly. `He's still unconscious in the jet. But I
can feel...No, it wasn't the time-traveller. It was that one,' he said,
pointing at Remiel's unconscious form. `He's radiating psychic
energy'. Mindpyre's eyes closed and he swooned slightly. `Oh, it's
absolutely intoxicating'. His eyes flickered open and a cruel smile
flickered across his face. `Can I keep him?'.

Magneto smiled as though he'd just won the lottery. `Only if you promise
not to break him'.

Mindpyre stepped towards Remiel but John immediately struggled to his feet
between the approaching mutant and his lover's prone form.

`You lay a hand on him and I swear to god I'll kill you'.

Mindpyre's eyes gleamed and his smile sharpened, `Oh, don't worry
lover-boy, you can come along too. God knows I could do a few things with
your body'.

`Now, now, Mindpyre,' Magneto crooned. `There are things that must be seen
to before you can play with your new toys. Mystique, Sabretooth, find the
time-traveller and kill him. Gateway, prepare a portal for us'.

Mystique and Sabretooth immediately leapt from where they were standing and
sailed effortlessly through the air before landing inside of the jet with
two quiet thuds. Gateway turned his back on the gathering and raised both
of his arms out in front of him. Between his outstretched palms a
shimmering disc of golden energy began to expand. Magneto meanwhile strode
past Scott, and with a flick of his wrist sent John skidding across the
dirt, giving him free access to the unconscious Remiel.

`Now I was told to kill all of you, but this one I think I'll keep. What do
you think, Mindpyre, can you bend this one to our cause?'

`I don't really know,' Mindpyre said, as he strutted over to where Bobby
was sitting. He squatted down in front of the icy mutant and fixed him with
a grin. `But I can tell you that I'll have a lot of fun trying. Isn't that
right, Bobby?' he asked as he ran a hand along the inside of Bobby's thigh,
causing Bobby to jerk away fiercely. `Come on, Bobby. Don't tell me you've
forgotten about all those hours we spent together before your friends came
and took you away from me? You were the most fun I've ever had working for
the Brotherhood'.

`Get your hands off of him!' Dani snarled. Her eyes grew dark as she
immersed herself in her powers but before she could unleash her psychic
assault, she felt a vicelike grip constrict her mind, forcing her to cry
out in pain.

Mindpyre smiled at her. `Please! I'm so far out of your league that if your
league were to explode, I wouldn't hear the sound for three days'. He
paused, `Actually. That's sounds like an interesting experiment'. His eyes
flashed and a petal of flame ignited above his now open palm. `What do you
say Dani? Do you want to see just how far out of your league you really
are?'

`You know,' John said, drawing Mindpyre's attention away from Dani. `For
someone who thinks he's so much better than everyone else, you're not too
bright'.

The flame above Mindpyre's hand suddenly whipped away from the mutant,
lengthening and coiling itself into a colossal serpent that towered above
the platinum haired psychic. The flaming snake lunged at Mindpyre, who only
just managed to dived out of the way in time. Magneto roared in anger,
sending shrapnel barbs hurtling through the air towards John but before the
deadly missiles could reach him, ground in front of him erupted upward,
forming a wall of dirt. The missiles impacted the soil with a series of
dull thumps.

`I think that it is time for you to leave now,' a thick Russian voice
sounded through the night air.

Magneto turned in time to see four new X-men emerge from the
shadows. `You!' Magneto cursed, sending another wave of missiles towards
the new arrivals. This time the air in front of Colossus solidified,
causing the shrapnel to freeze in mid-flight.

Colossus smiled slightly as his entire body underwent a metamorphosis,
converting from flesh to organic metal. The metal man lunged forward,
swiping his massive fist at Magneto who barely had time to levitate out of
reach.

Magma leapt forward, her entire body igniting in flame as she rushed
towards Mindpyre, Karma only a step behind.

`Hello there, Mindpyre!' Karma shouted as she advanced on the Brotherhood
member. `I told you that the next time we met, I'd make you pay for what
you did to my friends'.

`Spare me your whining, bitch,' Mindpyre sneered before sending a gout of
flame hurtling from his fingertips towards her.

`Look who's talking,' Magma snapped, stepping in front of the scorching
flames with no ill effects.

`Now let me show you how that's done, Pyrotic'. With a snap of her fingers,
Magma sent a tongue of fire that was both more powerful and more controlled
careering back at the psychic. Mindpyre raised his arms to shield his body
but Magneto, seeing his subordinate's distress, plucked him out of harms
way by the metal in his clothing.

A colossal boomed sounded in the air as an azure beam rent the remaining
hull plates from the Blackbird, throwing the limp and broken form of
Sabretooth clear of the wreckage. Mystique dived out of the ruined skeleton
of the fallen craft in time to avoid another beam that cut through the
remnants of the cockpit.

`We must leave, now!' Gateway shouted from in front of his portal, which
had expanded to the size of a doorway. `Quickly!'

Magneto roared in frustration before throwing Mindpyre through the portal
by the metal in his belt.

`Go!' he shouted to Mystique, who sidestepped Colossus as he aimed a
vicious punch at her skull. She quickly covered the distance between
herself and the portal, stepping into the shimmering light and vanishing
into thin air.

`Magneto!' Bailey roared as he emerged from the wreckage of the Blackbird.

`Damn it!' Magneto swore before swooping away from the approaching
mutants. He twisted in midair, allowing himself to coast towards the
portal. `I will not be cheated of everything won this day!'.

The metal bindings that held the unconscious form of Remiel writhed before
surging through the air towards Magneto. `Goodbye, X-men,' the master of
Magnetism shouted as he grabbed Remiel firmly around the neck before they
both disappeared through the portal, which immediately evaporated once
Gateway followed them through.

`God damn it! No!' John shouted into the night.


*****


Thanks for reading the latest chapter of X-Force. Feedback is the lifeblood
of all writers, so please, drop me an email and tell me what you think. You
can reach me at scifi_fanboy@hotmail.com but please put the word X-Force in
the subject line so I know that your email isn't just junk. Be brutal,
after all I can't make it better unless you tell me what's wrong with it :)