Prologue - Scattered
I looked out at the street below. Over a week and we had found nothing.
Nothing!
I calmed myself. Unreasoning anger was Sabertooth's forte, and not what we needed right now. I looked out at the people I had left.
Of us Acolytes were all that was left was Colossus and myself but we were missing Pyro, Sabertooth and our leader, Magneto. The two of Mystique's 'Brotherhood' who were here were Avalanche and Quicksilver, and the fact that Pietro was the boss's son made him almost one us anyways. The kid had a way about him.
Avalanche was a loose cannon who wouldn't take kindly to orders. Never had, if what Quicksilver said was true. Quicksilver himself was solid, if unpredictable. Colossus was the one who worried me though. He wasn't with us willingly. Magneto had some kind of hold over him, and Magneto didn't share that kind of thing. The only thing I had to know though was if he was still with us.
"Piotr."
He looked at me cautiously.
"Yes?"
"I don't know what Magneto did to get you to join us, but I need to know if you're sill with us."
"Yes."
The lack of hesitation in the answer was a little startling.
"Why?"
"It has to do with the… nature of the agreement between Magneto and myself. That is all you need to know."
I nodded.
Something happens to Magneto, something bad happens for him I'd imagine…
Good enough.
We were in the Acolyte base deep within New York City. We were well stocked for a while, but we needed Magneto. Things would get very dangerous very fast without him.
I sighed.
What the hell did those bastards want?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"That's an excellent question Mr. Summers. What do we want, indeed…"
The short man with the arms calling himself 'Dr. Octopus' was extremely intelligent.
"The truth is Mr. Summers, that I want very little with you. However, a man with a very large bank account does. From what I understand, the delay now is in preparing adequate facilities to house you and your companions for the short run."
He shrugged. Gloating was one of his soft spots it seemed.
"The short run?"
He smiled, and gestured to the professor, Magneto and Sabertooth were.
"Yes. It seems you all, especially them, are to be executed. So after a short stay in our care, you will be transferred to another facility where you and your other… friends… here will be executed live to the world."
I arched an eyebrow.
"Isn't babysitting a little beneath you guys?"
He smiled and laughed.
"You will not dissuade us, Mr. Summers. While I admit it is beneath us, we can put up with it for a million dollars a day. Each."
A million… who's got that kind of cash?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I couldn't sleep.
Not that that was unusual. I hadn't been able to sleep for a week now. Not since then. I was awake until I passed out from exhaustion.
I looked over at Kitty, who was passed out on the bed, tears staining the pillow. She'd suffered more than the rest of us. I liked Peter - we all had - but she had liked Peter. That's a big difference.
Scott…
Scott was alive, I knew it. I could feel it in my heart. We could all hold hope that the others were alive, but Peter…
Peter was dead, crushed or caught in an explosion, we didn't know. I wasn't sure we wanted to know.
It's kind of funny, but it's only now that he's gone and I've taken his place can I fully understand what Scott dealt with on a day-to-day basis.
No wonder he was always so irritable.
Having to make snap decisions that could mean the life or death of everyone around you wasn't something easy. Sure, I was used to it to a lesser degree, to protect others at the cost of my own life, but to actually order others into what could be their deaths?
My mind shudders away from the possibilities.
I sigh as I look out the window. This single shabby hotel room was all we were able to afford. We've got a few cots set up so we have a place for all of us to sleep.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
After Peter left to go protect Kitty and the professor, the tide of battle had changed. Storm couldn't hold Electro back any longer and fell, unconscious. Electro left and then returned, a strange device in his hands. When he activated it, a pinkish light shot across the battlefield, and suddenly my powers wouldn't work. Bobby couldn't ice up, and Scott couldn't blast anything. None of us could do anything.
The laughter came from all around us, each of them unhindered. Suddenly Scott was up and running at them, Wolverine right next to him.
"GO! RUN!"
And we had. I'm not sure why. Scott's voice of command more than anything else, maybe. Only Rogue, Evan and I had made it. The Six beat the others down effortlessly. Kitty came up with the professor then, and they took him from her. Kitty only barely managed to escape when Mysterio exited and the building blew up.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Evan was up too. He just got so depressed. He was trying to watch TV softly, since he couldn't sleep. Rogue had passed out a while ago.
I shook the memory off and looked down at the cot. I lay down and started to concentrate on sleeping.
It was a long time in coming, but the last thing I heard before sleeping was on the late-night news.
[And, in other news, after months with no sightings whatsoever, it appears that Spider-Man is back in New York City, eager to show off his new costume…]
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I was on the Empire State Building, perched on my favorite gargoyle, Bruce.
It's kind of funny. It almost feels… good… to be out here.
Being back on home turf was exhilarating, but frustrating. I had stopped so many robberies, muggings, and gang fights in the last three days that I had barely had time to question anyone.
And those I had knew nothing.
I had grinned and waved at the astonished looks from other roof-top heroes who knew my identity, and therefore why I had dropped off the face of the map (a few even knew where I had been through the wonder of e-mail), without even bothering to say 'hi'. I had questioned old subordinates, checked old hideouts, and squeezed every informant and rat I could find and still came out with nothing viable on the Sinister Six.
Nada.
Zip, zero, zilch.
Bupkiss.
My Spider-Sense picked up something. Another robbery most likely.
Not my week.
I patted Bruce on the head, and swung out into the night.
I looked out at the street below. Over a week and we had found nothing.
Nothing!
I calmed myself. Unreasoning anger was Sabertooth's forte, and not what we needed right now. I looked out at the people I had left.
Of us Acolytes were all that was left was Colossus and myself but we were missing Pyro, Sabertooth and our leader, Magneto. The two of Mystique's 'Brotherhood' who were here were Avalanche and Quicksilver, and the fact that Pietro was the boss's son made him almost one us anyways. The kid had a way about him.
Avalanche was a loose cannon who wouldn't take kindly to orders. Never had, if what Quicksilver said was true. Quicksilver himself was solid, if unpredictable. Colossus was the one who worried me though. He wasn't with us willingly. Magneto had some kind of hold over him, and Magneto didn't share that kind of thing. The only thing I had to know though was if he was still with us.
"Piotr."
He looked at me cautiously.
"Yes?"
"I don't know what Magneto did to get you to join us, but I need to know if you're sill with us."
"Yes."
The lack of hesitation in the answer was a little startling.
"Why?"
"It has to do with the… nature of the agreement between Magneto and myself. That is all you need to know."
I nodded.
Something happens to Magneto, something bad happens for him I'd imagine…
Good enough.
We were in the Acolyte base deep within New York City. We were well stocked for a while, but we needed Magneto. Things would get very dangerous very fast without him.
I sighed.
What the hell did those bastards want?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"That's an excellent question Mr. Summers. What do we want, indeed…"
The short man with the arms calling himself 'Dr. Octopus' was extremely intelligent.
"The truth is Mr. Summers, that I want very little with you. However, a man with a very large bank account does. From what I understand, the delay now is in preparing adequate facilities to house you and your companions for the short run."
He shrugged. Gloating was one of his soft spots it seemed.
"The short run?"
He smiled, and gestured to the professor, Magneto and Sabertooth were.
"Yes. It seems you all, especially them, are to be executed. So after a short stay in our care, you will be transferred to another facility where you and your other… friends… here will be executed live to the world."
I arched an eyebrow.
"Isn't babysitting a little beneath you guys?"
He smiled and laughed.
"You will not dissuade us, Mr. Summers. While I admit it is beneath us, we can put up with it for a million dollars a day. Each."
A million… who's got that kind of cash?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I couldn't sleep.
Not that that was unusual. I hadn't been able to sleep for a week now. Not since then. I was awake until I passed out from exhaustion.
I looked over at Kitty, who was passed out on the bed, tears staining the pillow. She'd suffered more than the rest of us. I liked Peter - we all had - but she had liked Peter. That's a big difference.
Scott…
Scott was alive, I knew it. I could feel it in my heart. We could all hold hope that the others were alive, but Peter…
Peter was dead, crushed or caught in an explosion, we didn't know. I wasn't sure we wanted to know.
It's kind of funny, but it's only now that he's gone and I've taken his place can I fully understand what Scott dealt with on a day-to-day basis.
No wonder he was always so irritable.
Having to make snap decisions that could mean the life or death of everyone around you wasn't something easy. Sure, I was used to it to a lesser degree, to protect others at the cost of my own life, but to actually order others into what could be their deaths?
My mind shudders away from the possibilities.
I sigh as I look out the window. This single shabby hotel room was all we were able to afford. We've got a few cots set up so we have a place for all of us to sleep.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
After Peter left to go protect Kitty and the professor, the tide of battle had changed. Storm couldn't hold Electro back any longer and fell, unconscious. Electro left and then returned, a strange device in his hands. When he activated it, a pinkish light shot across the battlefield, and suddenly my powers wouldn't work. Bobby couldn't ice up, and Scott couldn't blast anything. None of us could do anything.
The laughter came from all around us, each of them unhindered. Suddenly Scott was up and running at them, Wolverine right next to him.
"GO! RUN!"
And we had. I'm not sure why. Scott's voice of command more than anything else, maybe. Only Rogue, Evan and I had made it. The Six beat the others down effortlessly. Kitty came up with the professor then, and they took him from her. Kitty only barely managed to escape when Mysterio exited and the building blew up.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Evan was up too. He just got so depressed. He was trying to watch TV softly, since he couldn't sleep. Rogue had passed out a while ago.
I shook the memory off and looked down at the cot. I lay down and started to concentrate on sleeping.
It was a long time in coming, but the last thing I heard before sleeping was on the late-night news.
[And, in other news, after months with no sightings whatsoever, it appears that Spider-Man is back in New York City, eager to show off his new costume…]
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I was on the Empire State Building, perched on my favorite gargoyle, Bruce.
It's kind of funny. It almost feels… good… to be out here.
Being back on home turf was exhilarating, but frustrating. I had stopped so many robberies, muggings, and gang fights in the last three days that I had barely had time to question anyone.
And those I had knew nothing.
I had grinned and waved at the astonished looks from other roof-top heroes who knew my identity, and therefore why I had dropped off the face of the map (a few even knew where I had been through the wonder of e-mail), without even bothering to say 'hi'. I had questioned old subordinates, checked old hideouts, and squeezed every informant and rat I could find and still came out with nothing viable on the Sinister Six.
Nada.
Zip, zero, zilch.
Bupkiss.
My Spider-Sense picked up something. Another robbery most likely.
Not my week.
I patted Bruce on the head, and swung out into the night.