Disclaimer: I don't own The Gifted!

A/N: Welcome to a story that is full of angst and action and some fluff and time travel. It's basically Days of Future Past meets The Gifted via time travel again, except people actually physically time travel. This story is not connected to my Thunderblink Family AU, mainly because they're happy, or mostly happy, in that AU. In this one, the world got really dark really fast and there was a lot of death. I'm just borrowing the kids from the Thunderblink Family AU. Aurora Diaz is 17, JD Proudstar is 16, and Hope Proudstar is 11, soon to be 12.

Time Slip

Prologue

The Not-so-Distant Future

Another explosion shook the street, and one of the city's many rusting metal buildings crumbled in on itself, releasing clouds of dust as it fell. In a nearby alley, three young mutants crouched beneath a green energy shield, huddled against an abandoned brick apartment building.

"We have to get back out there," JD said, as dust roiled over his shield in waves. The glow of energy was the same color as the marks on his arms, light green, like celadon.

Next to him, electricity crackled through Aurora's bright blue hair and around her thin, long fingers, an indication that she was ready for the inevitable fight. On his other side, pressed against the wall of the building, JD's little sister nodded, though her brown eyes were scared.

Their group had been attacked by Sentinels as they made their way through the burned-out hull of what used to be Atlanta, on their way to meet up with the rest of their team. Back when the mutants were still fighting back against the Sentinels, the city had been one of the major war zones. Someone said that a group of pyrokinetic mutants had been behind the fires, but it was likely that Sentinel Services had burned it down themselves. There were six of them in their group, the three kids plus JD and Hope's mother and uncle and Logan. During the chaos of battle, with portals and lightning, teleportation and shields, the three of them had gotten separated from the adults.

A scorching band of orange appeared in the gloom fifteen feet in the air, and JD dissipated the barrier as a Sentinel stepped through the dust, its metal foot slamming down where the mutants had been a second ago.

Hope shimmered them into the street, teleporting them instantly in a glimmer of purple and blue lights. JD grabbed her hand and tugged her forward as Aurora took to the air, lightning wrapping around her. The kids took off, Hope and JD in bursts of teleportation while Aurora flew above them.

Aurora dove back toward the ground as Hope and JD popped onto a street corner, the Sentinel stalking after them. "They're two blocks over, to the right!"

Glass shattered, and a second Sentinel stepped straight through a building, sending thousands of massive shards raining down on them. Hope screamed and grabbed JD and Aurora, shimmering them away as glass burst against the ground. They tore down the street, Hope and JD running as Aurora soared next to them, trying to get away from the pair of Sentinels.

A portal popped into existence in front of them, and Clarice jumped through it, closely following by James. A new portal was already forming in her right hand. She flung it at the lead Sentinel, and it pitched into the portal and wound up landing on another building. A third portal appeared on the ground and the second Sentinel fell into it, falling into the portal behind Clarice and James. It closed on the massive robot, keeping it at bay for the moment.

"Are you okay?" she demanded, green eyes worried as she looked at JD and Aurora, her hands reaching for Hope. The eleven-year-old raced into her mother's arms as James grabbed JD by the shoulders, searching for injuries.

"We're okay, we're fine," JD said, putting his hands on James' arms, reassuring his uncle and mother. "Hope's got a cut on her cheek—"

"But it's not a big deal," she said as Clarice inspected the gash.

"How many of them are there?" Aurora asked as she landed between Clarice and James, electricity sparking in her blue eyes.

"They dropped at least fifteen," James growled, "Too many for us."

"We have to keep running," Clarice said, "Logan's been holding a few of them off so we could find you."

"I could short circuit a few of them," Aurora said, shaking her head, "I hate running."

"A few isn't fifteen," James snapped, his expression hard and unyielding. "We're leaving."

"Fine," Aurora scowled. Behind them, the Sentinel that had fallen into a building was getting to its feet, metal shrieking as it extricated itself from the skyscraper's rusted frame. More dust filled the air, and they shielded their faces against the mess.

For a moment, James paused, a faraway look in his eyes as he focused on something the others couldn't hear. "There's three helicopters incoming."

"Sentinel Services," Clarice said, "Come on." She tore open a portal and lead them through it, her hand tight around Hope's.

They raced through the city, evading the Sentinel robots and avoiding the area where the helicopters were landing. Sentinel Services meant Hounds, and that meant Combos and drones that were sometimes harder to evade than the huge Sentinels. The abandoned city was breaking around them as Sentinels burst the buildings, careless of damage in their relentless pursuit of the mutants. Clarice and Hope had to work together to keep everyone away from the falling debris, the glass and metal beams and old rotten office equipment.

They were almost out of the business district when a pair of mutants rounded a corner, followed by men in black military gear and a pair of dog-sized, multi-legged drones. Their wrists were bound together by an infusion cuff, the piece of seemingly impossible tech that allowed mutants to combine their powers. As they lifted their hands, the group ducked into the entrance to an office building. The wavering beam of energy that roared down the street they had just been on seemed to warp the air.

JD focused and created a wall between them and the Sentinels while Aurora infused the wall with electricity. Behind them, James broke down the door to the office building and started getting everyone inside. JD and Aurora were the last to move back, JD keeping up the wall until everyone was inside. Moving from the street to a building was dangerous, especially since the massive Sentinels didn't seem to care what they destroyed, but they didn't have a choice.

"Where are we going?" Hope asked, racing beside Clarice, her blue-purple braid bouncing against her back.

Clarice looked over at James, and JD knew by the way James shook his head that they were in trouble. They were in trouble, and Kitty wasn't here to reset their timeline. It was possible they might all die right here in this building in a ghost city.

"We're just trying to buy some time," James said, "It's okay, Hope."

They hurried through the office building, but JD could hear the drones scrambling after them, pinpoint legs finding purchase on the broken tile floor. His heart pounded in his ears, and fear for his family drove him to turn around, a concussive wave of energy shoving back a drone that had gotten too close. A hand latched onto his arm and pulled him forward, James' dark eyes laced with helpless anger.

"Come on, JD."

Tearing through the building, they reached a corner office, all windows. Clarice looked out to the street, her reflection like a phantom in the glass. "We can portal from here," she said, "Where's Logan?"

James looked away, closing his eyes. "A few blocks away, not far," he said, "He's got his hands full."

Clarice nodded and tossed a glowing spike at the window, opening a portal as another ripped into existence down the street. JD was about to go through when the door behind them disintegrated. The Combo stepped in, moving in unison, their brainwaves connected through the implants in their temples. JD grabbed Hope's arm as she extended her hand, shimmering the drone that crept in between them halfway through a wall. He pulled her back and James stepped in front of both of them, a knife in one hand.

"Get out of here," he said, not looking back at them. "Clarice!"

Clarice turned toward JD and shoved him toward the portal, insistent. "We'll be right behind you."

"Mom!" Hope shouted but JD grabbed her and pulled her to him, his energy construct armor stretching and wrapping around both of them and Aurora as he listened to his mom. He stepped into the portal, watching his mother turn around as the Hound Combo lifted its hands. As the portal began to close, it was as if the world slowed down. Energy warped through the air and struck the portal, turning it red and black instead of its normal purple.

As the black and red portal winked closed, they stepped through into the late morning light, which seemed brighter than before. The dust had cleared from the air…and it was louder.

A car that shouldn't have been there blared a horn at them, and on instinct Hope grabbed their hands and shimmered them away. People who hadn't been around when they entered the building stepped back as they reappeared on the sidewalk, dust-streaked and battle-worn in their body armor.

"Damn, freak show, calm down," a man said as Aurora glared at him, electricity surging around her.

"You can't do that here!" someone else yelled at them, "I'm calling the cops."

"JD?" Hope's voice trembled and she pressed against his side. Even Aurora looked uneasy, her expression tense and nervous.

The buildings were intact, tall and sturdy against the blue winter sky. There were dozens of people. The open sign on the restaurant across the street was on and there was a man eating a sandwich at a little metal table out front. JD tightened his grip on Hope's hand, disoriented and confused and suddenly terrified. Where were they? What was going on?

Was this an illusion?

Or was it real?