X-MEN ETERNITY

X-Force #5: "Someone to Watch Over Me"
Rated PG-13 for violence and language

by R. John Burke

X-Men Eternity Message Board: http://solofan.proboards76.com/index.cgi

DISCLAIMER: The X-Men are a copyright of Marvel Comics. I don't own them, but this is only non-profit fan fiction. No money is involved and no infringement is intended.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: X-Men Eternity started (in Uncanny #1: The Shattering) with the events at the end of "House of M" and went in a different direction. The team is spread through time and space. "X-Force: Eternity" is a sister series following the adventures of a splinter group of X-Men who are trapped in the past during an alternate World War II.

BACKSTORY NOTE: Although "Astonishing X-Men" is only canon for our purposes through issue #12, last before the House of M, I'm assuming Piotr and Kitty's relationship proceeded in a manner similar to "Astonishing" 13-14 during the first weeks of their stay in the past.

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Piotr Rasputin was going to be dead in 45 seconds.

Vilnius, Lithuania
Late Spring 1942
Alternate Reality #758

Elisabeth Braddock, called Psylocke, studied the banks of equipment left behind by the Nazi proprietors of this secret facility. It would be years before anyone in her timeline would develop technology like this, but Baron Zemo was brilliant... and with a certain shadow pushing him in the right directions, providing the clues he needed, he'd just about pulled off a miracle.

The shadow called itself Slayer-- Betsy knew that from her brief link with its mind (* last issue)-- and the equipment had been carefully crafted to store and direct the power they'd stolen from Magneto. She also knew its purpose was to facilitate the creation of further devices, the stealing of more power, which got funneled into Slayer, making it stronger and bringing it closer to its-- nebulous-- goal.

The Slayer was a being largely comprised of psionic energy, which manifested as shadow. Betsy knew that, too-- and she knew she had her own telepathic power back, thanks to an encounter with one of the Stepford Cuckoos, who'd given her a "gift." (* also last issue.)

Piotr would be dead in 30 seconds. Betsy cursed to herself. Could she use the machine? Her only clue as to how came from that mental connection-- and what if Slayer had deceived her somehow? Purposely fed her misinformation that would help it drain her, as well as her friends?

Betsy decided she'd have to chance it. She'd been through too much alongside Piotr Rasputin, valued his friendship too much, to let it end like this.

She needed Logan's help. Even with the machine to aid her, she needed a specific power to store and redirect. A healing power. But her friend and team leader still crouched on the floor, beside the body of Piotr's would-be assassin and beloved, Kitty Pryde, whom the Slayer had possessed and forced to do the deed. (* you really do need to read the last issue.) Logan had distracted Kitty long enough for Betsy to stop her-- but he seemed disconsolate over his failure to stop Kitty himself. The Slayer had offered him no option but to kill her, and for once, Logan's famed ruthlessness had abandoned him. (* Seriously. Read it.)

Piotr would be dead in another 15 seconds. Betsy didn't have time to be polite. She pressed a button, fell on the floor beside Logan, grabbed him by that ridiculous mop of so-called "hair," and kissed him hard. She imagined any kind of touch would have worked, but after all, the kiss always worked for Rogue-- and that was basically who Betsy was emulating here, using Zemo's equipment to turn herself into a mini-Rogue for the moment.

Logan wasn't too astonished to respond. He rather appeared to like it. More importantly, Betsy felt the power draining from him into her, and from her into the machine. A wave of dizziness assailed her, but she fought it off.

Piotr would be dead in five seconds. She released Logan, ran back to the machine, and triggered another button. Light poured out of it, into Piotr's body, filling him with a warm glow. His face, still and ashen, did not even twitch.

"It can't be too late," Betsy breathed. "Come on, Piotr. I've seen her mind. She needs you, now more than ever. You can't leave her again. Come on, heal..."

Logan stirred. "Betts..."

"HEAL!"

Piotr groaned softly. His head lolled from side to side. Suddenly he gasped and his head snapped up.

"What happened?" he murmured. "I was... I felt myself die..."

Betsy collapsed. She couldn't even look at him.

"You really gotta quit the death thing, Petey," Logan muttered. "Real bad habit."

Piotr nodded dizzily, then passed out again. Beside him, Kitty twitched, but she seemed to be out for a while. So there was only Betsy and Logan, trapped in a fortified installation and surrounded by hostile super-soldiers. They'd faced longer odds.

Of course, at the moment neither of them was even on their feet. Logan crawled over beside her and leaned against the machine.

"You stole my power," he said.

"Yes."

"You kissed me, too."

"Yes."

Logan arched an eyebrow. "Was it good for you?"

"I've had better," she said.

"Liar. Will I get my healing factor back?"

"Magneto's started to recover, from what I saw. You may heal more slowly for a time, but... I'd say eventually." She frowned at him. "Piotr's alive. Are you complaining?"

"Not a damn bit," he said, and squeezed her hand. They stayed like that for a long time.

****

Essex, England

She wore a sleeveless evening gown, light blue to show off her blue eyes. Her hair was blonde-- actually her wig was blonde, because Alison Blaire didn't really think the denizens of the 1940's would have been as enamored of her recent pink dye job as she was. So she was stuck with a wig until that grew out.

She might as well not have worried: Once she started singing, she could have been wearing sackcloth and a lampshade and nobody would have noticed. It was a low, slow, romantic song-- a popular hit here and now, but a real oldie to Alison. They didn't seem to mind. Every guy in the room thought she was singing only to him.

Alison used her light powers as Dazzler sparingly, just a little, to lift the atmosphere of general gloom outside. She was performing near the hospital annex in Brentwood, Essex, where a number of patients from the Royal London Hospital-- including T.J. Wagner, the young mutant called Nocturne, had been relocated. The venue was especially small by her standards, the song not exactly her style. For once, Alison didn't care.

A little distance away, two men sat at a table, sipping from mugs. One was blond and handsome to match Alison herself, while the other wore a trenchcoat with the collar pulled way up and a wide-brimmed hat to hide his features. They both applauded heartily when Alison was done with her number. In that, they were far from alone.

"She's very good," said the blond man, known only as Longshot.

Kurt Wagner, called Nightcrawler, clinked his glass to Longshot's and drank deep. "You'd know, mein freund."

Longshot shook his head. "I'm sorry, I don't know her."

"You did once."

"That's what people keep telling me." He shook his head. "I'd like to know her, though. She seems nice, and she's very pretty."

"Careful," Kurt said. "You might hurt her badly."

"I would never want to hurt someone like that," said Longshot, wide-eyed.

"Well, that's the thing about such perpetual innocence as yours. It lacks responsibility."

Before Longshot could object, Alison appeared at the table, still fielding applause from her loyal public. Alison Blaire never met a spotlight she didn't like.

"Hey, guys," she said. "What'd you think?"

"It was great!" said Longshot.

"My dear, you put Dinah Shore to the shame."

Alison laughed, although she liked that. "Well, it's not really my gig, you know? But these people deserve *something* to keep their spirits up, with what they're facing-- speaking of which, Fearless Leader, since we don't seem to have a job lined up with Talbot right now, when do we go back on Skull patrol?"

Kurt frowned. Before leaving London to form the unit they called X-Force, their team had made regular rounds at night, to combat Germany's super-powered blitz. (* see Issue #1) With Logan, Piotr, and Betsy leading the way, such had been almost unfair to the Nazis. Now...

"We should contact Captain Britain," Kurt said, thinking of the suave English hero they'd encountered a few nights in London (*also #1). "If we're to rejoin the fray, we could use a heavy hitter."

"Great. Tell you what-- why don't I handle that? I know you like to keep an eye on TJ. I'll ring you from London when it's set."

Kurt's unorthodox coloring hid the blush. It was one thing to think of TJ, the daughter of his alternate self, as almost a daughter of his own. It was another when his own team started pandering to him because of it. Perhaps he *had* been overprotective. He drained his drink and stood.

"She is well looked-after. I'm sure I can..."

"No, really, it's cool." Alison rose in a hurry and grinned to Longshot. "Wanna come with?"

"Sure!"

Kurt sighed; so Alison's sudden helpfulness masked an ulterior motive-- alone time with Longshot, whom apparently she hadn't quite gotten out of her system. He wasn't sure he liked that. He was sure it wasn't his business.

"Careful," he said again-- he wasn't sure which of them he was addressing. Both, perhaps, but they were already heading toward the door.

Kurt watched them go, slapped down some coins to pay for the drinks, and sighed. "When did I become a den mother...?"

A hand appeared on top of his. A pert waitress had appeared at the table to accept the coins. "Keep those, hun. On th' house, for such an 'andsome gent."

"Dan..." Kurt caught himself. Even a sprinkling of German spoken among strangers might not be healthy here. "Er, thank you, Miss. To what do I owe the...?"

"Cordiality, you might say. My shift's about to end; care t'show a lady a good time?"

Kurt said nothing, just tipped back his hat and allowed her to see the yellow eyes and blue complexion.

"Oh, yeh, I knew yer was one a' them when yer walked in the door. All the papers are talkin'

about you super-soldiers. I think th' fur's right adorable."

She snuggled up a little closer. Kurt laughed. "Ah, if this were only a few years past..."

"You ain't so old, m'dear."

Kurt tipped his cap and quoted: "It's not the years, sweetheart, it's the mileage. Good evening..."

****

Talia Josephine Wagner was just about to go stir crazy. She'd been stuck in one of the huts in the hospital annex for the better part of the week, healing from a gunshot wound. On the one hand, at least she had it all to herself (on the theory that, understanding barmaids or none, most residents of London would be mildly spooked by the presence of a blue fuzzy elf in the next bed). On the other hand, that just meant she had nobody to talk to when she didn't have a visitor-- and when she *did* have a visitor, it was usually either her father's slightly disapproving concern or her present guest, a young woman named Celeste Cuckoo, whose presence was disconcerting for all kinds of reasons beyond just her glowing eyes.

"Cap's team still here?" she asked, as Celeste entered the hut.

The girl nodded. "They've hit a snag. They're afraid of what'll happen if he regains his full powers, so the Americans and Bristish are arguing over what to do with him-- to cage him or just, well... you know."

TJ frowned. "What's his crime?"

"Uh... 'being really scary,' I think."

"Doesn't seem fair." She folded her arms. "All he's done in *this* world is fight their enemies for them."

Celeste shrugged. "That won't last."

"You sound very sure of that."

"There's one thing we've learned in five Universes," Celeste said, speaking of her sisters in the Five-in-One, "it *never* pays to expect the best."

"Heh. Fair enough."

Celeste held up a newspaper from under her arm. "Look what I brought! Do you want to start with the funnies or the... hold on."

She turned to the door a half-second before TJ heard the heavy footstep outside. When a man, tall and silver-haired, stepped in, she was already channeling the Five-in-One's power into a burst of telekinesis-- a new skill for them-- that sent every loose object in the room straight at the newcomer.

He held up his hands. The metal, at least, stopped cold. The rest pummeled him, but he moved forward anyway.

"That's very rude, my dear, as I tried to explain to Jean Grey a hundred times-- no, don't get up."

"Magneto!" TJ hissed, wincing as she tried to climb out of bed. "How did you--"

The Master of Magnetism chuckled. "The Allies have nothing like the technology required to hold me. Even in my weakened state, I still can manage to procure a set of metal keys."

"Can you manage to fight off a hex bolt or three?" TJ lifted her hands. "'Cause I will completely blast you into..."

Magneto made a conciliatory gesture, hands held high. "I am not here to fight you, Miss Wagner. We should have a talk."

"About what? Family reunion?" TJ glared at the man who, in another reality, was her own grandfather. "Your cruelty in your own Universe drove my mom insane! I don't have anything to say to you."

"Then perhaps I will talk and you will listen." Magneto arched an eyebrow. "You know they're planning to kill me."

"You think?" TJ didn't lower her hands. "I can't do anything about that."

"I'm not asking you to, Miss Wagner. I am asking you to drop your guard and allow me five minutes of your time. You and I need to discuss the future."

TJ scoffed. But his eyes bored into hers, and for a wonder, they seemed sincere. She lowered her hands. "Celeste, watch the door."

The girl seemed willing, but she stopped in front of Magneto first, those eyes glowing bright.

"The only reason I haven't melted your brain is that we might need you later."

"As charming a sentiment as I have encountered, I assure you. Now, if you will excuse us..."

Celeste left the room. Magneto sat down beside the bed. The family reunion commenced.

****

"Piotr's still hurt, but I think he's stable," Betsy said, breathing a sigh of relief. "Now, to get him out of here. That will be difficult. It won't take Zemo long to realize his tame shadow's run out on him. We'll have to steal a vehicle of some... Logan?"

"Yeah." Logan sat between Piotr and Kitty, legs folded, fists tightly clenched, growling softly. "Your call, Betts."

"What do you mean, 'my' call? Logan, this is your team!"

"What's left of it." He kept flexing his hands like his claws wanted to come out. Betsy had nearly forgotten how to reach out with her restored telepathy-- but when she did, she was astonished how close his inner beast was to the surface. He'd been getting angrier and angrier all the time she'd been at work.

"Logan, you need to calm down. I can't have you going berserker on me."

"Why not? It's what I'm best at. I can kill anything, can't I?"

Betsy sighed. She reached out again-- no Nazis approaching yet. They had a moment. She approached her teammate.

"Are you ashamed?"

"This ain't me, Betsy," he said. "Look at what we've done with me in charge-- Kurt an' Pete an' TJ gutted, Kitty half-dead, takin' orders from that flamin' Yankee spook..."

"No one else could have done better," she said deliberately. "It's war."

"Yeah, it's war. In war, when you're facin' the enemy, you pull th' trigger. I couldn't. This whole team's gonna die 'cause I didn't have the guts to stop him. We might not get another chance."

Betsy knelt beside him. "Is that what this is about? Logan, Kitty is alive because you would rather risk everything than betray the bond you share. Because your love for her would not allow you to kill while there was still a chance to save her. That's something to be proud of."

She tried to touch him, but he shook her off. "Don't know why I ever joined this outfit. Gettin' soft an' weak."

"Are you, now? Well, I have a cure for that..."

She leaned in, very close. Logan must have thought she was going to kiss him again. She belted him instead. Before he could do anything but look astonished, she stood and delivered a roundhouse kick to his jaw.

"Betsy, what th' hell...?"

"What's the matter, Logan? Don't you like it rough? On your feet, you coward!"

She came at him again. Logan dodged, caught her leg, and flipped her to the ground. He snarled and popped his claws, coming to ready stance. She rose, circled him, manifesting her katana.

"Quit on me, will you? I don't think so. You'll be sorry if you do."

She slashed with the katana. Logan barely avoided it-- if she was giving a performance, it was a convincing one. He rushed her, knocking her sword arm aside with a heavy elbow. She countered with a blast of teke, and he slid across the room.

Betsy laughed. "Is that all you've got, old man? Maybe we *are* better off without you."

"I'm warnin' you, Betsy..."

"Talk is cheap. Show me."

Logan *roared*. In three seconds, he was across the room, battering her guard aside, ignoring her telekinetic blows. He ducked under her kick, swept her feet out from under her, and fell on her with his claws- they stopped a quarter-inch from her throat and held there. The two of them pressed close together, flushed and disheveled, staring each other down. Betsy cocked an eyebrow.

"Why didn't you kill me?"

"Because I'm not an animal," he said, and dropped the claws.

"That's right, you're not." Betsy's eyes glittered; she could feel his warm breath on her cheek. "I'll tell you something else: You helped to save her. I felt it, when I fought the shadow. (*last issue) Kitty was in despair after what she did to Piotr. She didn't want to fight it anymore. It was only when she realized that you wouldn't give up on her that she remembered herself.

"You always wondered if you could control the Wolverine. Today, you did. And one more thing..."

"What?" he growled into her ear.

"You can get off me now. You thought processes are highly... original... but I'd rather not be this close to them."

"You didn't seem to mind when you were kissin' me." Logan grinned. "Always had a thing for telepaths..."

"As though there's an X-woman you've never had a thing for."

"Don't knock it 'till you try it, babe."

She smirked. "Don't flirt with me, Logan. I just tried to kill you."

"Yeah. You know what I like."

Betsy started to laugh. He rolled away from her and laughed, too. They were still laughing when the soldiers appeared in the doorway. An officer snapped something in German, and they raised their weapons. The two X-Men shared a look.

"Read my mind *now*, darlin'."

"Too easy," Betsy said, and they attacked.

****

It was a beautiful evening for a stroll. The streets of London were crowded, people trying to get their work done before dark, people trying to repair the damage. All so much wasted effort, unless the flow of Skulls was somehow stopped. The damn things might not have matched up with an X-Man in a fight, but they were remarkably effective arsonists and vandals.

On some level, it didn't matter. People had pride; people didn't want to give in. Alison respected that.

So did Longshot. As they walked, he watched them with a kind of sad curiosity. "Why do people do this, Alison? Why do they hurt each other?"

She laughed. "That, I guess, is the big question. If you ever come up with the answer, you'll get a nice, shiny prize from some people at the Nobel Foundation."

"I like prizes," said Longshot, and he was quiet.

Alison touched his arm, resisting the urge to turn it into something more, a hug, a kiss, a...

*Over,* she reminded herself. *Ancient history.*

"I don't think I could get used to it," he went on. "The fighting."

"You're kidding, right? Longshot, you're a resistance leader in your home dimension!"

"I am?" He blinked. "Everybody knows more about me than I do..."

"S'okay," Ali said, and dropped her hand. "Nobody expects you to know. You're... unique."

"Do you think I'll like him?" he asked. "This Longshot you all know. When I find him again, will I like him?"

"I always did." Alison looked away, down the next street, where...

She said a very unladylike word. Longshot frowned at her in some confusion, until he saw it, and heard it too: Planes approaching in the distance. The dark shapes of Skulls fluttering to Earth. Buildings beginning to burn.

"They're early tonight," Alison said.

"What do we do?" Longshot asked.

"Well... we're superheroes, aren't we?"

"I thought you said I was a..."

"Let's just get 'em."

"Okay."

They hit the field of battle running. The Skulls were in the process of burning down a whole row of aging flats, to the tune of screaming and shouting. Alison took a quick head-count: One, two, three, four, five...

"Oh boy," she said. "We may have bitten off a little more than we can..."

Longshot was already moving. A man with luck powers didn't really *have* to worry about the odds. He turned a cartwheel, evading the sword swipe of the nearest Skull, and landed two boots solidly in the shock trooper's face. Another flew in after him, but Longshot dodged at the last instant and it crashed into a building...

"Mummy!" cried a voice two stories up. A little girl's head had appeared at one window, surrounded by billowing smoke. She was terrified, wailing her eyes out. Alison ran toward her...

A Skull got in her path, sword brandished. She snapped off a dazzle-blast, to stun him, but he stepped right through it and just missed cutting her in half with a sword swipe. Alison zapped it out of his hand...

He caught her throat with his other hand and threw her against the wall. He advanced on her...

She held out her hands. "You don't wanna make me do this, buddy."

"Dazzler, ja?" he said.

"That's right. Want an autograph? I'm really good with autographs..."

The Skull tapped the eyes of his mask, where some sort of visor had fallen into place. "We know your work, fraulein. We are prepared for you."

"Mummy, help!" the girl overhead cried. Alison took a deep breath as the Skull stepped forward. No time, no options. He reached for her...

ZRRAAACK! Alison switched to a concentrated laser blast and knocked the enemy soldier halfway across the street. That was his body. His Skull mask landed all the way across.

"Might want to prep some more," Alison told him. "Nice shades, though."

She turned toward the building, broke down the door with another burst, and ran headlong into it...

She hit the ground ahead of another swipe. It nicked her side anyway. Alison yelped, tried to charge up for another blast, but she'd left herself a little low on power and had only a split-second. She didn't know if she could...

BLAM! The attacking Skull hit the ground in front of her. Alison started breathing again; she expected to see one of Longshot's throwing knives buried in its body. Instead there was a bullet hole, right through the unprotected part of the throat, a hell of a shot for anybody.

Alison looked up. A man in uniform, tall and dark but not exactly handsome, stood a little distance away with a pistol clutched in his hands.

"You okay, ma'am?"

Alison frowned at the accent. "You're American."

"I think that's still legal in this part of Europe." He frowned at her as another couple of Skulls approached. "You'd better get to safety."

"That's my line, pal. Seriously, this is my job. I mean, I *hate* my job, but..." The girl overhead screamed again, jarring Alison's one-track mind back onto the right rail. "I gotta get that."

"Go on! I'll hold them off!"

Alison looked at him doubtfully. If regular small-arms fire would normally put down Skulls, she suspected the Crown wouldn't have created a Captain Britain. On the other hand, given a choice between protecting an armed soldier and a frightened kid... Alison ran.

She found the girl on the third floor of the building, trapped in a disintegrating flat. Alison's powers weren't a lot of good against fire, but she remembered a bunch of old safety videos, stayed low, wrapped a damp cloth over her nose and mouth, and made it to the window in time to knock the girl away from a falling piece of ceiling. The child wailed even louder; Ali absorbed the sound, just in case.

She grabbed the girl in both arms. "C'mon, princess. Time to go..."

Before she could take a step, though, she heard another scream outside: The American soldier who'd rescued her, falling under sword swipes from a pair of Skulls. Longshot got there a moment later, kicking away one shock trooper and nailing the other with a throwing knife. His luck held against the enemy... but for once, it failed the man he'd meant to protect. Alison boggled, thinking how that guy had just saved her life...

Something *crashed* nearby. Alison hugged the girl tight and ran. She made it all the way to the base of the stairs with the girl crying all the way, but before stepping outside, she put down the child. She'd seen a flicker of movement...

Alison lit up the room, exposing the Skull lying in wait for her. Even with the mask, he looked surprised... until she blasted him right through the wall.

As she led the child out into the open, Alison reflected that, that time, she'd probably had options *besides* unloading five minutes worth of stored-up shrieking into the guy's face. She also reflected that, this time, she didn't care.

****

Logan shattered one submachine gun with a swipe of his claws, then turned on the other. It put some lead in him before he skewered its wielder, and that's when he *knew* his healing factor wasn't right. The wounds started to close... at about half-speed, slowly and painfully. Logan ignored them, all the same.

Another soldier, near the door, was squawking for reinforcements. Logan put a claw in his throat, looked around... and realized that was it. Between them, he and Betsy had made quick work of the knot of soldiers Zemo had held in reserve. Overconfident. Knowing the Red Skull's tolerance for being made to look stupid, Logan suspected somebody's head was going to roll. Couldn't happen to a nicer guy.

Betsy was breathing hard, a little bit tired, but she'd never admit it. She looked up at Logan with a gleam in her eyes. Real pretty eyes.

"I think I got seven," she said, "and you got five."

"I'm *still* leadin' overall." He grinned. "Can you get Pete?"

Betsy nodded, surrounding the big man with a telekinetic field. "We'd better not have to fight our way out, though. That might be taxing even *my* skills to the limit."

"Never, darlin'." Logan scooped up Kitty as carefully as he could and looked both ways out the door. "Suggest we find ourselves a boat. City's built around the Neris River, got a pretty good current to it. We get in there, we'll be home free."

They headed back to the stairs, and the jarring switch-- from immaculate lab to despised ghetto-- made Betsy stop short.

"They're killing people here, Logan. We ought to dismantle this place."

"We got our hands full. Even you an' me can't take down the Third Reich in a day."

"Is that a challenge?" asked Betsy, and she managed a smile.

Logan took the lead; between his enhanced senses and Betsy's telepathy, getting outside wasn't hard. Getting out of the ghetto was trickier, but a few minutes-- and a bit of creative claw-work-- later, he was laying Kitty Pryde into a borrowed boat on the banks of the river.

She stirred. Her eyes fluttered open. "Logan... I killed him, Logan..."

"He's fine, pun'kin. Rest."

She didn't seem to be listening. "I loved him, and I reached out and... with my bare hands, and I... you can't imagine..."

Logan looked down at his claws. "Yeah. I can."

"You should have let me die."

He leaned over her and kissed her forehead. "Forget it, girl. You an' me been through too much together."

"I know. But you should have."

Logan started to reply. He felt Betsy's hand on his shoulder and closed his mouth. He didn't know what to say, anyway.

"Rest," he told her again, and that would have to cover it.

****

TJ Wagner stared up at the man she'd seen so many times, in so many different realities, and wondered what the hell he could possibly have to say to her. At first, he didn't seem to know either.

"I am leaving," he told her. "If they try to stop me, they'll regret it. I have far too much work to do in this time."

She arched an eyebrow. "Gonna build your little mutant paradise on the ashes of *another* intolerant and oppressive regime?"

"Can you think of a more fitting turnabout?" Magneto almost smiled. "I have come, my dear, to offer you a place in that new world."

"Me?"

He nodded. "I know the X-Men will not accept. They have never seen what needs to be done. But you..."

"Sorry. I left my 'Hi, my name's TJ and I'm Evil!' nametag in another dimension."

A pause. Magneto was trying very hard not to let his stubborn streak get in his way. It wasn't really working out.

"If you have been to other dimensions, then answer this: Is Xavier's dream ever achieved?"

TJ shook her head. "Not entirely. Not really."

"Then you must see that--"

"There's always the *next* dimension, isn't there?"

That threw him for a loop. He hesitated, began again, "You have your father's sense of humor, my dear... and his blind idealism. But you are also trapped in a world even more primitive than the one you left. You will never be more than a freak here... unless you join me."

TJ leaned back and studied him, yellow eyes glittering in the dark. "I am *always* more than a freak. I am Talia Josephine Wagner, and I'm an X-Man and an Exile and my band's the best in six dimensions. I don't need you and your promises to feel like I'm worth something. Is this how you got Mom to join you?"

Magneto winced. "I... regret what happened to your mother, TJ. I'd hoped for a second chance with you."

"You'd have to change first... and that's the sad thing. You could change so easily. I've seen dimensions where you're a great man. Where you put aside this two-bit villain act and realized you couldn't just keep slapping people around until you got your way. Where you were a man I'd be proud to call my grandfather. Here? You're just a joke-- an old joke. And I'm not laughing."

For a moment, his expression changed, and TJ saw the side of Magneto that made nations tremble. He clamped down on it with an effort, rose, and nodded to her.

"I had to ask, my dear. I wish you luck in this course, though I believe it to be futile."

He took a step. TJ cleared her throat.

"Actually, there's one more thing."

"What's that?"

Slowly, shakily, TJ rose from the bed. "I told you I was an X-Man. We went to a lot of trouble to catch you. So if you're leaving... I'm gonna have to stop you."

Magneto laughed. "Don't be absurd, child."

TJ stepped around him, put herself between him and the door, and tried to ignore the burning all across her torso.

"Sorry," she said. "This is why you should never do business with family..."

****

Magneto stared at the girl in front of him, admiring her courage. He was-- absurdly-- almost proud to see his spirit carried on, even in such misguided form. He wondered how he could put her out of the way without crushing that spirit too badly...

-- Erik Lehnsherr.--

Magneto stopped short. That voice. The shadow...? Hadn't he left that monstrosity behind?

--Hardly. There is part of me in your mind now, as there is in all those I touch. And now it is time for that part to take control.--

Mentally, Magneto almost laughed. *No one controls me.*

He felt the rippling laughter in turn. --Not even yourself. Nevertheless, I require your abilities. I need the girl.--

Magneto shook his head. In the outside world, TJ no doubt considered him insane. Perhaps he was. *I will not help you get her.*

--You have no choice,-- said the Slayer, and it entered his mind.

Magneto struggled with it, in his head. His every thought seemed to be turning against him. He felt his hands move, against his will...

*No,* he thought. *NO! I WILL NOT BE MADE A PUPPET! I AM STRONG! I...*

--Strength is irrelevant,-- said the shadow in his brain. --It is the degree of your hatred that opens you to me. Your hatred consumed you long ago. The harder you fight, the more you are mine.--

"No!" said Magneto, aloud. "You will not take me!"

--I didn't have to. You gave yourself to me.--

The shadow laid bare the corners of his mind, poking and prodding. Quite abruptly, Magneto smiled.

****

In the physical world, Talia Josephine Wagner took a step back. From the look in her opponent's eye, she had a sneaking suspicion she'd just seen the last of Grandpa Magnus. The relevant question became: What was here in his place?

Magneto held out his hands to her. "Now, girl, let's have no trouble from you..."

He gestured, and TJ's metal bedframe wrapped itself into a pretzel and snaked around her. She kicked and struggled, but there was nothing she could do. It crossed her mind to be astonished-- she'd thought Magneto was supposed to be weak...

He smiled. "Ah, but now I have reunited all of Erik Lehnsherr's talents in this body. I'm afraid he's quite capable of killing you all. Part of him would like to. I have only to unleash him, and..."

The door slammed open. Magneto turned in surprise: A teenage girl stood at the door, eyes glowing, hands on her hips.

"Well," she said. "You have come far."

TJ shouted: "Celeste, run! Get away from him!"

"Oh, don't bother trying to protect her, dear. The girl knows precisely what she is, and what she can do. She fancies, thanks to Xavier's tricks, that she also knows me. But she is wrong."

"We'll see about that," said Celeste, and she held forth her hand.

A burst of light struck Magneto, and he staggered-- but only for a moment. Shadow extended from his own hands, swallowing the light. They struggled together. Beads of sweat ran down Celeste's face. To TJ, she appeared to be losing.

"You can't have them," Celeste said. "We won't let you."

Magneto-- or whatever it was in his body-- laughed. "Yes, I know. The awesome power of the Five-in-One. I *tremble*, dear."

"You *should*," said Celeste, digging in. "You have no idea what we can do."

"Perhaps-- if I were facing the Five-in-One. But only *four* now oppose me."

Celeste blinked. Her strength wavered. The shadows pressed forward, annihilating the light. The glow left her eyes, and TJ saw that she was nearly crying:

"Esme... what have you done?"

Magneto gestured, and the shadows consumed her. Celeste screamed, was thrown against the wall. TJ couldn't even move to help.

The shadows returned to Magneto. He paused, for a moment, and sighed as though refreshed by a cool breeze. Then he turned on TJ.

"Now then. It's time to go."

TJ's eyes widened as he advanced on her, the shadows reaching out...

"Guten abend, mein herr."

"Dad!" TJ cried, seeing the flicker of yellow eyes in the shadows. "Dad, no, get back! He just..."

BAMF! Nightcrawler appeared between the creature that was Magneto and his daughter. He grinned, a brilliant display of white teeth against indigo fur.

"I do not think it befits a supervillain to waste himself on children and badly wounded young women. Perhaps you should pick on someone your own size."

****

Logan's team called a halt once they made it out of the city, to regroup and allow rest for their wounded. Toward that end, Piotr Rasputin lay as comfortably as possible on a bed consisting of two blankets beside a crackling fire. His fingers were steepled in front of his eyes, and he stared at the fire through the space between them, as though focusing on it just right would cause the flame to reveal some previously hidden secret.

He heard a sound behind him, a small cough, and half-turned. "Oh... Katya. Hello."

Kitty Pryde hesitated on the edge of the nearby woods. Looking at him now-- still bruised and battered in his human form, although healing, she couldn't think of what she had been planning to say to him. Piotr gestured to the ground beside him, inviting her to sit. She paced instead.

"I just... I wanted to check on you, Piotr. And to say I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry..."

"Katya," he said, "there is no need to apologize. You were not yourself."

"Yes, but... actually, no." Kitty took a few steps forward, knelt in front of him, and took his hand. "That's what I had to tell you, Piotr. That's what I had to be sure you knew before you decide if you still-- still love me."

He smiled, but his eyes were concerned. "How could you think I would stop...?"

"It was me, Piotr. I mean, the shadow was in control... but all its ideas came from me."

Her lover frowned. "I do not..."

Kitty studied the ground, the cold dirt she could feel through her uniform. She couldn't even look at him. "I... It wasn't like I was entirely brainwashed. It was like... he took everything that was me, and just pulled out all the stops. I knew what I was doing. I knew it was wrong. I just... couldn't care."

Piotr frowned. "I do not see the difference."

"I guess the difference is... he couldn't make me do anything... that a tiny part of me didn't want to do. He doesn't make up darkness, Pete. He just uses ours. He used mine to hurt you."

She felt Piotr's touch, his hand on her shoulder. The warmth of his skin felt nice. She just wanted to dive into his arms, but...

"Why would you want to hurt me?" he asked.

"I-- I wouldn't. Subconsciously, maybe..." Kitty took a deep, shuddering breath. "For dying on me. That hurt so much-- I didn't even realize how much, 'till now. And... for little things, dumb things, like Zsaji or..."

Piotr blinked. "That was years ago!"

"We never forget, Piotr. Not deep down. Some tiny part of us holds onto it *all*... every slight, every little grudge. Every broken heart. Everyone hurts each other, especially when we love each other. And he gave me a chance... to strike out at everyone who ever made me angry. Including you. I remember very clearly, what we-- what I thought, when I reached into you. I thought, 'Maybe this time he'll stay dead, and he won't come back to hurt me anymore.' Oh, God, Piotr, I am so sorry for that thought. I tried to stop it. I tried to say no, to warn you, but I couldn't... I would never mean that, never, but..."

Piotr's hand moved to her chin. He tilted it up to look at him. He was so gorgeous...

"If you couldn't say no," Piotr said, "then it wasn't you, and it wasn't your fault, and I see no need to speak of it again."

"I wish it felt that easy."

"It can be." He reached out to her, drawing her into a hug. Kitty hesitated... then she melted into his arms, felt him breathing, put her hands on his chest, and craned her neck to kiss him...

Piotr let her go. He was staring at her hands... placed, by coincidence, almost exactly in the same spots they'd been when she'd gutted him. He looked at Kitty again, swallowed hard.

"Katya..."

"It's okay, Pete. I understand."

She did, all too well, after what she'd been through: He didn't want to hold a grudge. He wanted to forget the whole thing, like he said. Just like she had never wanted to turn on him. But wanting and doing are two different things, and he couldn't help that little jolt of fear-- of distrust-- when she touched him.

Kitty pulled away from him, stood, and ran back into the trees. He whispered her name just before she vanished. It might have been an invitation to stay. Then again, it might not have been.

****

The shadow in Magneto's body began to laugh. "You're an utter fool, Nightcrawler. You couldn't stand against Magneto alone... much less his power reinforced by mine."

Kurt shrugged. "You will forgive me if I do not accept your word for that?"

"I'd be disappointed if you did. But you'll die... and then *she'll* die."

"Says you, mein herr. I happen to be the foremost damsel-rescuer in the history of Der Jahrmarkt."

"Dad, he's not kidding," TJ said. "I saw what he did to them... he's way out of your league."

"And yours, as well." Kurt reached out and took her hand. BAMF! He teleported TJ out of her bonds, reappearing beside the door. "Go on. Hurry."

"Dad, I..."

He drew her into a tight hug. "I love you, Talia Josephine. Now... run!"

"Please..."

"RUN! Tell the others!"

BAMF and Kurt reappeared on Magneto's shoulders; he began to 'port him repeatedly. Squaring her shoulders deliberately, TJ turned and raced out the door.

Magneto grabbed Kurt by the collar and hurled him against the wall. He shredded the bedframe with a thought and sent every jagged piece hurting toward the X-Man. BAMF-- Kurt 'ported again just as they hit home, reappearing behind Magneto to land a solid kick in the small of his back. He fell on him with blow after blow, 'porting away before the other could grab him, reappearing in shadow...

But the shadows were no longer his sanctuary. They coalesced around him, becoming a web to hold him fast. Magneto picked himself off the ground, chuckling.

"An amusing effort, Nightcrawler. You will make a worthy addition."

"Addition... to...?"

"I said before you'd be the first." He frowned. "You presented a problem for me. You don't hate very easily... surprising, considering all you have to hate about these humans."

Kurt tried another grin. "Life is short. Why waste time on hate?"

Magneto advanced. "I *can* take the girl, if I have to. I require access to the dimension which you teleport through. She can touch it, as well... it is the source of her hex bolts. I will use one of you. Which will it be?"

"You're going to a lot of trouble, mein herr. I wonder if you are so strong as you would like us to believe."

The shadow shrugged. "Can you take the chance?"

"I will not help you. I will never willingly help you."

It smiled. "I imagine she'd say the same. Make your choice, Nightcrawler. Will you give yourself to me... or shall I claim your daughter?"

Kurt Wagner looked into the thing's eyes and knew that it was not a bluff. He sighed and bowed his head. "Our Father, which art in Heaven, hallowed be Thy name..."

"Your prayers can't help you. Nothing can save you now. I'm almost finished..."

The shadows around Kurt forced their way into his mind and consumed him. He struggled momentarily... and then smiled.

Beside him, Magneto collapsed. The thing that was now Nightcrawler idly kicked at him.

"Foolish old man," he said. "Raw power is *nothing*. It's all in how you use it... and this body... oh, this body I can use so creatively. I think I know where to start."

With a final glance at the bodies of Magneto and Celeste, Nightcrawler smiled and then:

BAMF!

****

Just after nightfall, Betsy Braddock was trying to perfect her restored telepathy by practicing on a squirrel (the only clear mental image she'd been able to pick up was "Yum! Acorns!" but she didn't know if that was her fault or the squirrel's) when Kitty Pryde approached, silhouetted in firelight.

"Hullo, kitten," she murmured. "How is he?"

"Piotr? He's... he's healing." Kitty sat down, Indian-style, across from Betsy and propped up her chin in her hands. "I don't know. He flinches."

"What?"

"When I touch him. He... he's... I was making him uncomfortable. So here I am."

The girl had tears in her eyes. Betsy tried a reassuring smile. "He's been through a lot. It will pass."

"Yeah. It just hurts, y'know, because all I want to do is go back there and hold him and promise him I'll make it better, and I know that's what he wants, too, but... it's weird now." Kitty sighed. "It really hurts."

Betsy didn't look at her. "That's life, dear. You mean so much to each other, I'm certain he only needs time."

"I hope you're right."

"Trust me. I'm an expert on relationships that don't work, and yours *does*. I envy you."

"I know."

Betsy arched an eyebrow, an unspoken question. Kitty looked away, blushing.

"Sorry. Our minds kinda merged for a second there, during the fight. I saw a lot of... your life was passing before your eyes. For example, did Warren really used to...?"

"Oh, yes."

"Wow. Good for him." The younger woman started a smile, but it didn't stay long. "We've been hanging onto each other tight here. Look at Kurt and TJ, they're like real family now. I guess it's the whole us-against-the-timeline thing. Well, you've been dead, you know what I mean."

"Not really."

"About seizing the moment," Kitty said. "Otherwise you wait like *years* for a guy to notice you, and then *more* years for him to get over his little alien healer tart and family issues an'.. an' death an' stuff, and finally-- FINALLY things are going well, and you finally even, you know, you start to get serious and then you... your worst nightmare happens, and he's sitting there looking all betrayed and you could just phase right into the..."

She cleared her throat. "Sorry. I have demon-possession issues. I did have a point, also. I think."

Betsy looked across the fire, a little wearily. "You're not exactly subtle, kitten. It wasn't only Warren you saw."

"Nope."

"Idle thoughts." Betsy waved them away. "Nothing more."

"Maybe. But anything could happen, at any time. So if there's anything you wanted to do... um, I didn't mean do, I meant... handle... I, um..."

Betsy put the girl out of her misery. "Yes, dear, I know. There isn't the slightest chance it would work."

"Frankly, you prefer 'em that way. Um... Doug Ramsey?"

All the color drained from Betsy's face. She glared. "No one *ever* hears about that."

"Not from me." Kitty climbed to her feet and smiled, a little shakily. "Thanks for the save, Betsy. And the advice. I'll try to believe it."

"Thank *you*, kitten."

A few minutes later, Betsy stood and started walking, without being really sure of where she was going. She wasn't surprised when she found herself near the campfire where the guys were sleeping, but she was a little surprised to find herself nervous. Psylocke just didn't *get* nervous, especially about... well, after all, it was perfectly ridiculous, wasn't it? A bit of boredom in a backwater reality, a passing connection in the heat of battle, and she was acting like a...

She saw a sleeping form in front of her. Betsy grinned. On the other hand, a man who could match her record at the fine art of disemboweling villains wasn't easy to find.

"Logan?" she whispered. "Are you awake? I was wondering about today, if you felt any sort of a... well, a spark, perhaps. Oh, why am I talking? We're neither of us great ones for talk. I should just... Logan?"

She touched his shoulder. It was nearly cold. She rolled him over.

"Oh, no..."

END

In Issue #6: I'll Be Seeing You
See the other Eternity series-- Uncanny X-Men, New X-Men, X-Force, & X-Factor, online now!
Next Up: X-Force #5: "Rogue Mission"