Closing his eyes, Lodestar focused as hard as he could. Searching for any kind of sensation that can link him to his body. His head is connected to his body through magnetic waves the body generates, but he senses those magnetic waves with his mind. Magnetic fields get weaker the further away they are from each other, but the stronger the field the bigger the range.
A body without a head, trying to survive, would definitely trigger a fight or flight response, meaning that magnetic field would be very large at this point. Suddenly, he felt it, a small pull like a fishing line in the water. Lodestar mentally grabbed onto that line and started reeling it in. He could feel some resistance, but he didn't let up as he pulled harder and harder. The more he did, the stronger he felt the force pulling back against him. Harder and harder he pulled, until suddenly Lodestar's head, popped right out from the windscreen of the car and landed snuggly between his shoulder blades, like a magnetic paddleball.
With his body now in one piece, Lodestar turned to the Van, which was upside down and on fire, due to the fuel line igniting and an unconscious Emma in the driver's seat.
Moving fast, Lodestar generated a magnetic field that ripped the car door off the van and undid her seatbelt, allowing the slender woman to fall safety into the Alien Teens arms as he carried her away from the burning vehicle just moments before it exploded.
Soon after, the Blonde Beauty coughed as she regained consciousness and Lodestar gently placed her on the ground.
"Dear me. What happened?" She asked, slightly dazed.
Lodestar lowered his head in shame. "I'm sorry, Angel took Jean and Scott."
Emma's eyes widened at the news, but noticed Lodestars claws shaking in rage.
"It's all my fault. I let him get the drop on me and I couldn't do anything. Now they're gone and you almost got blown up!" He angrily berated himself.
The Blonde Mutant raised an eyebrow at his statement and glanced back at what remains of the Van. True to his word, the vehicle looked as if it had just succumbed to a fiery end. Had she still been inside the van at the time, it's possible she may not have awoken before detonation and assumed her diamond form. This human, this man, saved her life through no alternative motivation other than he wanted to.
Her expression softened as she reached out and placed her hand on his shoulder, attracting his attention.
"Do not blame yourself. In hindsight there are many strategies we could have utilised. Dwelling on what we could have done, will help no one." She told him in a comforting tone. Lodestar didn't respond as he simply closed his eyes and seemed to be deep in thought.
Emma could sense the turmoil going through the Young Hero's mind. She could also tell there was something deeper stirring in his mind.
"And for what it's worth… Thank you. For saving my life." Emma said genuinely.
Lodestar raised his head and looked at her, surprise in his eyes. He did not expect that from the Ice Queen.
If he could move his mouth, he would've smiled at her. But, Emma could sense the elation in his mind as he nodded to her.
"You're welcome." He responded.
Emma smiled at him as they staired at each other for a moment. Then the Blonde Mutant dropped her gaze and cleared her throat awkwardly.
"Course, I would have been fine. My diamond form would have protected me." She stated in her usual cold tone, trying to save face.
The Alien Hero chuckled at her antics; seems she wasn't ready to completely open up to him yet. He then taped the dial on his chest and turned back to human.
"So, what's the plan now?" He asked. "I don't suppose you know where this Sinister guy is hiding?"
"I'm afraid not." Emma admitted, shaking her head. "But perhaps I could locate them, using Cerebro."
Ben nodded in understanding. He remembered the mutant tracking machine the X-Men used. It found Whirlwind the first time he saw it, no doubt it'll find Jean and Scott just as quickly.
"Ok then, let's get you to the mansion." Ben said as he activated the Ultimatrix and transformed into Fasttrack, shouting the aliens name as he did so.
He approached Emma Frost, who flinched a little and retreated from him. The Alien Teen mentally slapped himself as he realised his blunder. A woman like Emma, with the looks and figure of a supermodel and from the way she carries herself, likely ran in rich, upscale circles like Tony and Janet. She definitely would've had some bad experiences with some self-entitled men, who saw her only as a pretty face and a prize to be won or bought.
The kind of men that make Ben sick. Not only do they mistreat woman but tend to give the rest of his gender a bad reputation.
Upon realising his mistake, Fasttrack stepped back and raised his hands in a placating gesture.
"Sorry. But, may I?" He asked politely.
Emma looked the Alien Teen up and down. She didn't need telepathy to tell what most men were thinking around her. But with this Shapeshifter, while it was clear he found her attractive. His mind hasn't once delved into any lude or any kind of deviant fantasy. His mind was always focused on the mission or the wellbeing of others. Even now, he actually paused to consider her feelings rather than leap at the opportunity to place his hands on her body, as some men in his position would. It was quite refreshing in the Blonde Telepaths mind.
"Very well. But I will only allow this once and you had best watch those hands." Emma replied with a serious tone at the end.
"Will do. Just don't complain when your hair gets messed up. Not much I can do about that." Fasttrack stated snidely.
He gently scooped Emma into his arms, taking great care to not be forceful and also to not grab anywhere inappropriate. The softness of her skin and the fabric of her clothing certainly got the hairs on his fury body to shudder. Once she was settled, Fasttrack took off to the X-Mansion.
In under two minutes, the pair arrived outside the main entrance to the mansion. The Alien Teen placed the Blonde Telepath on the ground. To his amazement, she simply brushed her hand through her hair and the golden locks fell perfectly back into place. The Young Hero made a mental note to never introduce this woman to Carol, Jessica or any of the other women in his life, with the exception of those who live in this very mansion.
Turning back into Ben, he followed Emma inside where they found Nightcrawler, passed out on the steps, upside down. In similar manner to how Ben found Hawkeye earlier.
Ben watched as the Elegant Mutant walked over to him, crouched down and placed her hand on his forehead. A few beats passed and Nightcrawler groaned as he awoke from his slumber.
Neither Ben nor Emma wasted time catching the demonic looking mutant up with recent events. The moment he heard that they found Jean, the teleporter leapt into action, vanishing in a puff of smoak as he searched the mansion for any of the X-Men within the walls for Emma to awaken.
He soon teleported back, grabbed both by the wrist and teleported them into the Blackbirds hanger. The sudden rush made Ben feel a little woozy. Teleporters really do a number on him.
"Over there." He pointed ahead.
Looking where he gestured, Ben saw the unconscious bodies of Wolverine and Forge underneath the aircraft. Tools were scattered around the pair, indicating that they were performing some maintenance on the Jet before taking a psychic powernap.
Emma quickly awakened both of them, before having Nightcrawler teleport her to Cerebro. Leaving Ben to deal with catching the drowsy mutants up. He just hoped Wolverine was a morning person.
The clawed mutant groaned as he rubbed his head. Opening his eyes, he focused on Ben and raised an eyebrow as the Teen gave him a nervous wave.
"Ben? The heck are you doin here, kid?" Logan growled in his signature grizzled voice.
"Long story. I got good news, bad news and really bad news. In that order." Ben replied.
"I can't believe it. All this time, Jean was just a two-hour drive away." Forge exclaimed, flabbergasted as he, Logan and Ben entered Cerebro's chamber as Emma powered it up.
"World is a small place, dude." Ben stated as Logan walked up behind Emma.
"Frost, you think you can find her if she's not using her powers?" The Savage Mutant asked in a deadly serious tone.
Ben noticed the sudden change in his usual attitude the moment he told him that they found Jean. Somehow Logan's piercing gaze became even sharper as he practically ran to Cerebro. Clearly Jean meant a lot to him as well.
"It's Scott I'm looking for. I'll know him immediately." Emma stated as she put on the helmet in order to amplify her psychic powers with Cerebro.
From what Ben understood about Cerebro, it's easier to locate a mutant if they are using their powers. So, looking for Cyclops is actually a pretty smart move as unlike other mutants, his mutation can't be turned off and is going constantly.
"Come on, Scott. Where are you?" Emma said in a worried tone.
Ben tapped his arm as he waited. Figuring it might be a while before Emma locates the missing X-Men, Ben figured this would be a good time to get some questions answered.
"So, who is this Sinister guy anyway?" He asked.
Wolverine glanced back at the teen with an angry expression. Though Ben could tell the anger was not directed at him.
"Mr Sinister, is a mutant mad scientist. He kidnaps mutants and experiments on them, collecting mutants with particular powers and taking DNA samples. All to make some kind of perfect mutant or something like that." Logan explained.
"Cyclops said, that Angel guy we fought, with the metal wings. He's one of Sinisters experiments?" Ben asked.
Logan nodded. "His name was Warren. He used to be a friend. One of the first mutants Charles ever taught here and also part of the original X-Men team. Along with Jean, Scott, Hank and Bobby."
Ben was certainly taken aback by that revelation. This guy was an original X-Man, he was there from the start. When Cyclops said he was a friend, he didn't realise it was at that extent. From how Bobby talked about the early days of the X-Men, they were practically like a family.
The young Hero started to wonder how he would react if one of the Avengers ever turned evil? Would he be able to hold it together like Cyclops did today? It's a thought he hoped he would never have to deal with.
One thing was clear to him. This Sinister character was a monster, kidnapping and experimenting on people. In the name of what, Science? No person should ever be reduced to being a lab rat. Especially when it seems to further no other goals but his own. Taking someone like Angel and turning him into some mindless assassin, robbing him of his humanity and free will. It made his blood boil.
The sound of Nightcrawler poofing into the room, broke the Teen Hero out of his stupor as the demon-like mutant placed the unconscious Iceman and X-23.
Ben immediately rushed over to Laura's side. He didn't like seeing her in this state, even though he is aware that she's not in any danger. He couldn't help but feel protective as he knew she would feel the same about him.
"They are the only two I found in the mansion." Nightcrawler reported.
"What about Tildie and Petra?" Forge asked, referring to the two young mutants that are residing within the school.
Nightcrawler immediately adopted a guilty expression as the slapped his forehead "My apologies. I meant to say, they are the only two X-Men I could find within the mansion. The Mädchen are currently resting in their respective rooms. Safe, I assure you."
Logan nodded. "Nice work, Elf. Once Frost fines One Eye and Jean, she can wake em up. Well need all hands-on deck if we're gonna save them."
He then turned to Ben, who was still crouching beside Laura.
"Look, ET. I know this ain't your fight. But..."
"I'm in." Ben interrupted, answering the Mutants question without him even asking, without hesitation. "There's no way I'm gonna stand by while you go off to save the day. I'd be a pretty lousy hero if I did that." He finished with a smirk.
Logan smirked back at the Teen. On of the things he likes about the Alien Shapeshifter, was his determination and never-back-down attitude.
"I found him!" Emma suddenly spoke up, grabbing everyone's attention. Emma typed some keys on the control panel and the holographic imagery zoomed in on a map of the State, enhancing on an old observatory station.
"That's just outside of town." Forge commented.
"Let's not waste time. Frost, wake these two and get to the Jet. Take off in one minute!" Logan ordered as he started running out of the room.
"Um, but Logan. The pre-flight checklist will take at least…" Forge started to say, nervously.
"I said one minute!" Logan snapped back, causing the Mutant Mechanic to jump out of his skin as he swiftly dashed out the door.
"One minute to take-off. Roger!" He screamed, the sound of his metal foot, clanging down the hallway as he sprinted to the hanger, echoed down the hall.
Nightcrawler teleported out of the room, leaving Ben alone with Emma and the unconscious Bobby and Laura.
The Blonde Telepath knelt down and touched Iceman's forehead to wake him up. She then turned to Laura and her hand retracted slightly and a look of disgust appeared on her face as if the Mutant Clone was covered in mud or something. This earned a look of confusion from the Alien Avenger, as Emma briefly locked eyes with him. She then sighed and placed her hand on Laura's head.
A few seconds later and Laura's brow started to twitch. Emma stood up and walked away as Ben moved closer to her and leaned over. The Blonde Telepath paused at the door frame and looked back at the Teen, a cautious look on her face as if she was waiting to see what was about to happen.
The raven-haired mutants eyes snapped open and her hands twitched sharply, clenching into fists. She took a sharp inhale and her eyes locked onto Ben. Her body immediately relaxed and she sat up and wrapped Ben in a hug.
Ben chuckled and hugged her back. His eyes drifted up to Emma, still staring back at them from the doorway. A sigh escaped her lips as she turned her back to them and walked out of the room.
"Glad to see you too, Laura." Ben said, patting her on the back, causing her to release her grip.
A groan caught his attention as Bobby sat up, rubbing his head. The Cryo-Mutant glanced over to the Alien Teen and Mutant Clone as they finished their hug.
"Oh sure, you wake her up, you get a hug. I wake her up, almost get my eyes clawed out." Bobby said sarcastically.
Ben chuckled, while Laura remained stoic.
"Your voice sounded similar to Bens. I assumed that you were mocking him." Laura stated bluntly.
Ben and Bobby shared a look of confusion before turning their attention back to Laura.
"I sound nothing like him." Both Bobby and Ben stated, causing Laura to look between them, a single eyebrow raised.
"I am aware." She simply replied.
"Right… So, someone wanna tell me why I'm waking up in the middle of Cerebro?" Bobby asked, confused.
Laura looked to be, her face implying that she too wanted answers to her current situation.
Ben expression turned serious as he stood up, offered Laura his hand which she took, and he pulled her up.
"I'll explain on the way. Right now, we need to get to the X-Jet." Ben replied as he led to two X-Teens out of the room.
"I just can't believe it." Bobby said for the fourth time since Ben finished catching him up.
They were all sitting in the X-Jet as the engines roared to life as it prepared to take off. Most of the older members of the team were silent and tense, while the younger heroes talked in the back.
Ben could tell this news was hitting Iceman, hard. His relationship with Jean was similar to Bens own relationship with Janet. Only for Bobby, there is a much bigger history. Jean was like a big sister to him and helped him grow in many ways, accepting who he is as a mutant when his own family couldn't. Losing her was one of the hardest moments in his life, even though he tried so hard to hit it with his humour.
But not even the best stand-up comedians could cover up the emotions the young mutant was feeling. He was about to go and rescue his big sister from someone he considered a brother.
"I know man." Ben replied, doing his best to comfort him. "But we'll get her back. Cyclops too."
"But what about Warren?" Bobby asked.
Ben dropped his gaze as he contemplated how to respond. This Sinister guy, messed with Warren's head. Perhaps there could be a way to undo the mind control and free him?
"Do not make a promise you cannot keep, Ben." Laura's voice suddenly spoke up beside Ben.
The Young Hero looked at her, as she held her stoic expression. "You were going to promise to rescue Warren as well as the others. But that is too much for one mission. Also, you do not know how deep his conditioning is. You may not be able to break Mr Sinister's control." She stated bluntly.
"Hey he broke your mind control, right?" Bobby argued, with a hopeful tone.
"The situation was different. I was under the influence of a chemical agent designed specifically to affect me. I lose my mind and all sense of self, giving into my rage. Warren, is different. His cognitive function is still intact, but he is a slave to his master's will." Laura explained. "Had I undergone that same procedure. I doubt Ben would have been able to free me."
"But there could be a chance the real Warren is in there, right?" Ben asked.
"Possible." Laura replied, without hesitation. "However, depending on the method of control, it will take time to free him. Time we do not have as Mr Sinister could have a way of recapturing Jean and could even capture Ben."
"Woah what? Why me?" Ben asked, puzzled.
"Mr Sinister, experiments with DNA and genetics. Your Ultimatrix contains One Million, Nine Hundred and Ten alien species. I do believe, he would find such a device interesting." She simply stated.
Ben looked down at the device on his wrist. He let out a sigh in defeat. Laura was right, someone like Sinister would find the Ultimatrix interesting and would certainly try to capture him if the opportunity arose. Which might happen if Ben attempted to save the X-Man formally known as Angel, while in an unknown location fighting an unknown villain.
The mission should just be, getting Jean and Cyclops and getting out. He can work on saving the Winged Mutant another day.
The Jet rumbled as the hover systems where activated. Wolverine stood up and turned to the team.
"According to Frost, were right over them. You all know what's at stake here. But I don't want any wildcards here. We get in, get Jean and Scott and get out. Got it?" The gruff mutant barked at the team.
Everyone nodded as he pulled his cowl over his face and opened the ramp on the jet. Wind roared out as the X-Men and Ben looked down on the observatory below them. Ben notice that Forge had armed himself with some kind of cannon mounted on his left arm. Jean, really was something special if even the teams mechanic was willing to get out of the workshop for a rescue mission.
"Mind if I knock?" Ben asked to the team leader.
Wolverine nodded in approval as Ben smirked and jumped out of the aircraft, freefalling to the building as he activated his Ultimatrix, selected his alien and slammed the dial down.
"ARMODRILLO!" The alien cried out as he pumped his jackhammer arms to generate vibrations, giving his punch some extra kick to it as he smashed into the building, bursting through the roof like a living bomb.
Upon his first strike, Armodrillo felt the vibrations flow through every part of the structure. A little trick the Alien Hero started to pick up with this form after being inspired by some of Tony's science experiments and a TV show Carol turned him onto. Using the vibrations he generates, Armodrillo found he could sense where objects and people are like a 3D map. A type of seismic sense.
Though the Alien Shapeshifter still hasn't perfected the technique yet, so objects were a little fuzzy in his head. He found he could visualise the area in a clearer picture when it was darker. But, right now he could pick up a large number of humanoid shapes in the lower levels of the building.
So, without any hesitation, Armodrillo pounded the floor and tunnelled through the building until arriving at his target with a loud crash.
As the dust cleared, Armodrillo saw Archangel standing over the two operating tables, with Cyclops and Jean strapped to them. His metal wings raised as if preparing to behead them both. Jean was unconscious, while Cyclops struggled against his restraints.
"Hey, Bird Boy!" Armodrillo snarled at the Winged Mutant. "Back off, now!"
A sudden puff of smoke and Nightcrawler teleported in with the other X-Men. Wolverine and X-23 snarled as they unsheathed their claws and the other mutants got into a fighting stance.
"You heard the kid, Bub." Wolverine growled at him.
"Let's make this easy on everyone." Nightcrawler said in a warning tone.
"Because we are not leaving without them." Emma Frost added, threateningly.
The team barely took one step forward before they suddenly felt a wave of nausea wash over them. Their legs turned to jelly as they all dropped to their knees.
As the Alien Avenger fought against the throbbing pain in his head, he looked up to see a group of people move into view, between him and Archangel.
There were four in total. The first was a skinny woman with short lime green hair, with green eyes, wearing a shoulder less, skin-tight leotard with a ripple-like pattern on it with lighter and darker green. Armodrillo saw her holding up her right hand as it appeared the air became distorted around it as his dizziness increased. Her name was Vertigo.
Next to her stood a man of average build, with purple hair that grew down to his neck. He wore a black skin-tight suit, with silver armor that covered his chest and left arm, with only a gauntlet on his right. A brown leather puldron covered his right shoulder, with a sash running around the front of his chest with utility pockets lining it. His name was Arclight.
After him was a tall burly man, with a broad build. With several piercings in each ear, what appear to be two lines of horns running down his bald head. He wore a brown singlet that barely fit his body and a pair of jeans. He wore black, spikes cuffs on each arm along that matched his black belt. His name was Blockbuster.
The final man in this group, was average height and build, wearing a full body suit, green in colour, with dark brown on the gloves, belt and boots. The suit had an odd pattern with a large circle on his chest, that seemed to divide into several smaller circles below it. He was Multiple Man.
These new opponents were known as the Marauders, Mr Sinsters personal minions. They advanced on the team, while they were all immobilised by the sudden case of vertigo.
The X-Men and Avenger tried to fight against the affects, as Arclight crossed his arms and his right hand started glowing with purple energy. The villainous mutant then slammed his glowing fist into the ground, generating a powerful shockwave that blew the X-Men across the room. Armodrillo was unaffected by the sonic attack as his body is naturally resistant to vibrational attacks.
The other Mutants, weren't so lucky as flew across the room, their minds and body's now spinning from the combined attacks. Emma was unfortunate enough to be sent flying into Blockbusters huge frame. The impact was like hitting a brick wall, knocking the elegant woman out instantly.
Armodrillo was the first to stand up, the dizziness in his head subsiding as the shockwave managed to clear most of the fog in his mind. He glared at the villains and raised his fists to face them.
"So. Which one of you freaks is Mr Sinister?" The Teen Hero asked.
The group smirked and chuckled at his question.
"Mr Sinister has better things to do than deal with you." Arclight stated as his hand glowed with purple seismic energy.
But before he could strike the ground again, Armodrillo retracted his claws into his arm and rammed the appendage into the ground, generating a seismic wave at the Evil Mutants, knocking them off their feet, just as they did to the X-Men.
"Shame about that. Really wanted to introduce him to my fists. But I guess they'll just have to settle for you. Fair warning, they're not big of personal boundaries." The Alien Teen threatened with a smirk.
Blockbuster grunted as he got up. Then let out a loud bellow as he charged the Digging Alien. Armodrillo charged at him and they clashed, locking hands and used their impressive strength to try and out muscle each other.
Wolverine managed to regain his senses as he got to his feet. He saw Armodrillo grappling with Blockbuster with the other Marauders advancing on him. However, Archangel kept his attention on Cyclops and Jean, his metal wings preparing to slice the pair into ribbons, no doubt due to Sinister's commands.
Without a second thought, Wolverine unsheathed his claws and lunged at the winged assassin. The sound of metal clanging against metal rang out as Archangels wings struck against Wolverines claws as he prevented the Angel of Death from dropping the guillotine on his friends.
Wolverine snarled like an animal as he forced Archangel back. The Winged Mutant glared at the Savage Mutant as he swiftly charged him and swung his right wing at him. Wolverine blocked the strike and countered with a slash of his own claws. Archangel blocked with his left wing and the pair proceeded to engage each other in a duel of wings and claws, each combatant striking with impressive speed and skill as they fought.
As Wolverine kept Archangel's attention, Nightcrawler, Iceman Forge and X-23 got to their feet and saw the remaining Marauders advancing on Armodrillo. X-23 snarled at the sight of her friend being ganged up on and charged forth.
Arclight saw her advancing and charged his fist up for another attack. Only for Nightcrawler to appear in front of him in a puff of smoke and kick him in the face, catching him off guard and breaking his concentration.
This allowed X-23 to leap onto Blockbusters back and stab her claws into his shoulder blades. The muscle-bound mutant roared in pain as he released his grip on Armodrillo and started flailing wildly to try and get her off.
Leaving him open for Armodrillo to deliver a powerful punch to his face, knocking him back. The Alien Teen attempted to advance on his opponent only for Multiple Man to get in his way.
The Mutant Marauder punched his hand into his fist and the circle patterns on his suit glowed and he immediately divided into two identical copies of himself. The clones did the same manoeuvre several times before Armodrillo was looking at a squad of a dozen clones.
The small army all leapt at the large alien, piling on top of him and attempted to bring him to the ground. Course, the Aliens incredible strength, easily allowed him to throw them off, only for Multiple Man to create more clones that continued to gang up of the Alien Shapeshifter.
Help came for the Teen Hero, in the form of Iceman. Who blasted beams of ice from his hands, instantly freezing multiple clones at once, giving Armodrillo the opportunity to throw the others off him.
"Thanks for the save." Armodrillo said to the Ice Mutant.
"No prob. This guy really needs to chill out." Iceman quipped. Earning a laugh from the Yellow Alien. He really appreciated having someone else that shared his sense of humour.
Tapping the Ultimatrix dial, Armodrillo transformed into Spidermonkey, crying the aliens name out as he did so. Using the Arachnichimp's agility and strength, he swiftly punched his way through the Multiple Man clones, trying to find the original. Webbing several up to restrain them, while Iceman froze the rest.
Meanwhile X-23 continued to attack Blockbuster, who was thrashing around like an angry bull trying to shake her off. But her small fame and his large arms, made it impossible for him to reach her as she drove her claws into his back.
He then resorted to ramming his back into the walls to try and get her off, but her healing factor, combined with her incredibly high pain tolerance, rendered that strategy pointless.
Suddenly a wave of nausea washed over the Female Mutant as she glanced over to see Vertigo, using her powers to throw off her equilibrium. This overwhelming sensation caused X-23 to loosen her grip on Blockbuster, allowing him to finally grab her and wrench her from his back and slam her into a nearby table, breaking it in half, along with shattering several bones inside the teens body.
Hearing the cracking of bones caught Spidermonkey's attention and he turned to see Blockbuster, standing over X-23. Her leg bending at an unnatural angle and she was hardly moving.
Rage poured into the Alien Heroes veins like fire. While it may appear to some that Laura's protective behaviour towards Ben, bothered the Teen Hero. The truth is, he is just as protective of her as she is of him. Seeing her in this state, caused something inside the Alien Avenger to snap.
Reaching up one of his left arms, Spidermonkey tapes the Ultimatrix dial, causing four spikes to pop out of the sides.
"Ultimate Spidermonkey!" The evolved alien shouted.
Meanwhile, with X-23 down, Blockbuster turned his attention to Forge. The Mutant Techy raised his arm cannon as the hulking mutant advanced towards him. The cannon opened up to reveal a multi-barrel minigun type of weapon, which then proceeded to extend a central barrel along with a targeting sight.
"Come on, come on!" Forge urged his weapon to deploy faster. Due to his inexperience in the field, the Mutant Tech-head failed to take his weapons prep time into consideration when he designed it. Leaving him at the mercy of the Super Strong Marauder until his cannon finished deploying.
Just then a primal roar drew both X-Man and Marauders attention as Ultimate Spidermonkey charged at Blockbuster. The Strong Mutant braced himself for the impact. Ultimate Spidermonkey cocked his right fist and sent a powerful haymaker into Blockbusters crossed arms.
The force of the punch blew right past Blockbusters defence like it was nothing and sent the Muscle-bound Mutant flying off his feet, sending him screaming to the other side of the room, denting the wall from the force of Ultimate Spidermonkey's brute strength.
Ultimate Spidermonkey advanced on Blockbuster, not finished with him yet.
Vertigo looked to her teammate in shock, the overwhelming power of this being sent the Marauders muscle flying like it was nothing.
Blockbuster groggily got to his feet to see the angry Alien advancing towards him. He tried to attack with his own right hook, only for Ultimate Spidermonkey to catch the fist with his paw. The Alien Teen then punched the Muscle Mutant in the face, still holding onto his hand to keep him in place as he whaled on him.
Seeing her teammate in trouble. Vertigo used her powers to try and disorient the Alien Avenger. Her nausea inducing powers took their effect on the Evolved Alien, giving Blockbuster the chance to counterattack. Punching the Alien several times in the face, forcing him back.
Luckily, the Shapeshifter was saved thanks to a psychic blast from Emma Frost. The Blonde Psychic had regained consciousness and used her psychic abilities to attack Vertigo's mind, breaking her concentration and freeing Ultimate Spidermonkey, who had almost tripped over his own spider legs, he was so dizzy.
Vertigo turned to face the Telepath, but was quickly dispatched by another psychic blast. The attack felt like she was punched in the gut, knocking the wind out of her, causing her to pass out instantly.
The Colour drained from Blockbusters face as Ultimate Spidermonkey rose to his full height, towering over him and hammered his furry muscular arms down on him, knocking him into the ground and unconscious.
The Evolved Alien opened his lower jaw in half and proceeded to spit a large volume of webbing from the silk-glands in his mouth to tie Blockbuster up. Restraining him for the time being.
Ultimate Spidermonkey, let out a deep exhale as he calmed down and walked back to X-23.
Her healing factor had already taken care of the injuries Blockbuster inflicted upon her. Her bones snapped back into place and her cuts closed up without leaving any signs of scars.
She looked up to the Evolved Alien, her eyes filled with concern. "Are you, alright?" She asked him.
"I should be the one asking you." He responded.
"My healing factor took care of the injuries, Ben. You do not need to worry about me." Laura stated bluntly.
The Alien Teen smirked as he helped her too her feet. "You're my friend, Laura. I'll always worry about you." He replied, genuinely.
The Female clone gave him a small smile in response.
Their little moment was interrupted when more Multiple Man clones tried to jump them, only to receive a swift kick in the jaw from X-23. The Clawed Clone screamed a battle cry as she leapt back into the fray with Ultimate Spidermonkey right behind her, with his own monstrous roar
"Somebody cut me loose!" Cyclops called out as he struggled with his restraints.
"I got it!" Forge replied, aiming his cannon directly at him.
Panic set into the One-Eyed Mutant's face. Forge barely had any combat experience as is. Now he was about to try his hand at marksmanship?
"No, wait!" Cyclops screamed, but it was too late. Forges cannon fired a concentrated blue beam from its central barrel, striking the restraint on Cyclops's left arm perfectly and destroying it.
Breathing a sigh of relief that Forge didn't accidently blow his arm off. Cyclops raised his hand to his visor and targeted Archangel.
The Winged Mutant was locked in Mortal combat with Wolverine. Both having received cuts from each other, with Wolverines having already healed, save for the ones that still had Archangel's feather blades stuck in them.
With a well-placed spin-kick from Wolverine, finally separating them, Cyclops fired a crimson beam from his eyes, striking Archangel in the chest and sending him flying.
The One-Eyed Mutant then turned his attention to the other Marauders and quickly despatched Arclight, before turning his attention to Multiple Man. Iceman was having some serious trouble with the Multiplying Mutant as the clones spawned faster than the Young Mutant could freeze them.
He needed to find the original in order to disorient the others. Whether she read his mind or not, Emma placed her hand to her temples and used her telepathy on both Multiple Man and Cyclops.
(The one on the far right.) Emma's voice called out in his mind.
Immediately, Cyclops locked onto the original and blasted him with his optic beam. The clones quickly became disoriented allowing Iceman to freeze them with a wave of his hand.
With the last of the Marauders taken care of, Cyclops used his optic beams to cut his restraints and get off the table he was strapped to.
The others started to gather around him, when suddenly Archangel sprung to his feet and before anyone had a chance to react, fired a volley of feather blades directly at Cyclops. In a panic, Cyclops crossed his arms of his face in a frantic attempt to shield himself.
A moment passed before he realised that the blades should have struck him by now. Lowering his arms, he saw the blades were floating just inches from his face and body. Suspended in the air as if frozen.
A warm glow illuminated from behind the group as they turned to see Jean Grey, on fire. Yellow and red flames enveloped the red-haired telepath in a warm embrace. Yet she showed no discomfort as she sat up on her table, her restraints flying off her as if pulled by an invisible force. She then floated into the air and glared at Archangel.
The fiery aura that surrounded her, intensified as she raised her hand and aimed it at the Winged Assassin. Suddenly, Archangel flew off his feet, as if struck by an invisible Hulk and was send flying into a console behind him. Sparks of electricity danced over the Flying Mutants body, before exploding and knocking him to the ground.
Everyone turned to face Jean, who's flaming aura only seemed to glow brighter. They all looked in shock and awe, even Ultimate Spidermonkey felt the fur on his body stand on end in the presence of her power. It was unlike anything he'd ever felt before, it was both warm and comforting, while destructive and terrifying all at the same time.
X-23 instinctively stood in front of the Evolved Alien defensively, with her claws drawn. But even she was shaking from the power Jean was giving off.
"Jean! Jean!" Cyclops called out to her, grabbing her attention as she turned to him.
"Jean, it's OK. It's over." He said in a calming tone as he reached out and grabbed her hand in his. The fire appearing to not burn him as he did.
Jean closed her eyes and the fire dissipated as she dropped into Cyclops's arms bridal style.
Emma immediately rushed over to them and placed her hand to Jean's forehead.
"She's weak, but she's all right." She informed him and the group.
The entire group let out a collective sigh that apparently, they'd all been holding in. Ultimate Spidermonkey, turned back into Spidermonkey, then back into Ben as he glanced over to Iceman with a smirk.
"Boy Bobby. When you said, Jean was hot I didn't think you meant it literally." He Quipped.
"Yeah. That's a new one for me to, bro." The Ice Mutant admitted, still reeling from what he's seen.
Ben quickly looked to the other X-Men, who all had different levels of shock and confusion. It became clear to him that this was not a normal occurrence for the Red Head.
Before he could ponder any further. Archangel suddenly sprung to his feet again and leapt over Wolverine into the sky, flying through the hole that Armodrillo created, to the sky.
Forge quickly tried to use his cannon to stop him from escaping. Unfortunately, his weapons slow deployment time, meant the Winged Assassin would be kissing the stratosphere by the time he was ready to fire.
"Easy, Quick-draw." Wolverine snidely told the Mutant Techy. Placing a hand on his shoulder to pacify him.
"We got what we came for." He told him as he turned to look at Jean, who was unconscious in Cyclops's arms. "Let's get her home."
The others nodded. While most, including Ben, would've preferred to take down Sinister and his Marauders right now, for what he's done. Saving Jean was the main priority, they can deal with Sinister another day. It was time to go home.
Ben left the X-Men shortly after helping escort Jean and Cyclops back to the mansion. With her back home in a safe environment, the effects of her psychic attack on New York were finally wearing off and people were waking up all throughout the city.
So, Ben decided to head home and make sure the Avengers were ok. After being thanked by Logan and Scott for his help with Jean, the Young Hero set off for Avengers Mansion.
Along the way, the Young Heroes mind drifted as he reflected on today's events. The X-Men were dealing with so much, that he and the Avengers were unaware of. Mr Sinister and the Marauders were big eye openers for the Teen. Young Mutants being abducted off the streets and being experimented on by this mad man.
Yet, he'd not heard or seen anything like this being reported in the news or online. Was it really because the people being abducted were Mutants? Was that really all it took for certain people to just brush them aside like they didn't matter?
Mutant or not, they are still people. People that need help the same as anyone. He wished he could help them. The problem is, he didn't know how. He is an Avenger; he has responsibilities to catch the escaped villains of the Break Out.
Still, he could never turn his back on people in need. That's not his style. He will find a way to help the X-Men eventually. But for now, he can just support them from time to time.
He was glad that he could help Jean get home safe. That woman has been through a lot. Hopefully they can help her get her memories back. Ben would like to meet the Jean Grey that everyone adores. For everyone to instantly jump at the chance to rescue her, even someone with no combat experience like Forge, she must be really special to get that kind of response.
A few minutes later and Jetray touched down on the front lawn of Avengers Mansion. He hoped the others weren't freaking out after waking up in the medical bay. Boy, did he have a long story for them. Hopefully he'd have time before they came bursting through the elevator to find out what happened. Cause after today, he was beat.
The Teen had just entered the front door and turned back to human, when his Ultimatrix started beeping. Someone was trying to call him through his communicator. He activated the devise and answered.
"Hello?"
"Ben." Laura's voice spoke from the watch. "Jean has been abducted."
Ben's eyes widened as his jaw dropped open. So many questions rushed through his head, trying to sort out a plan for response.
However, his fatigued mind took control in his stupor as he let out a groan.
"Seriously?! I was gone for ten minutes!"
There you have it. Hope everyone enjoyed the Chapter. So if any of you are wondering yes, I am doing the final arc of Wolverine and the X-Men. A really great show and like Spectacular Spider Man and Avengers EMH before it, one of the best Marvel shows ever made and was unjustly canceled. It was also one of the best interpretations of the X-Men, certainly blows the current Comics out of the water. (Krakoa can suck it!)
For those that are wondering, yes I am gonna continue the story with the X Men the same way I'll be continuing Spider Mans from their respective shows. While adding my own little flare to them to keep the spirit of these shows alive. I will also add some elements from other media here and there to really make these characters the best they can be.
So yeah, Ben's in therapy. This is something I was building to for a while, many of you caught onto Ben's strange behaviour from the get go and now you've finally got a payoff to those issues. Thank you for putting up with my choices for that long and I hope you'll find the result's satisfying.
Until then, everyone please stay safe and pray that this will all blow over soon. Thank you all for supporting this story and I will continue to work as hard as I can to bring you the next chapter quickly.
If you have any questions, please PM me and Ill try to answer as best as I can.
Until next time, CaptainRex75 out!