A NEW BEGINNING - CHAPTER 36: "White-Hot Anger"
CHAPTER 36 - “White-Hot Anger”
Several miles away the other teenage mutants were still discussing the events at the oasis. With little else to do, they had offered to help Jean organize their meager medical provisions. Jean had left the medical tent to join one of the endless war-council meetings - none of which the young X-Men were invited to attend - leaving Kitty, Piotr, Rogue, and Bobby alone with rolls of bandages and a few other random medical supplies.
“It’s just too bad we had to leave those pools,” Kitty sighed, re-rolling a bandage. “Fiona had such a great idea! Why did Metalhead have to come along and mess it all up?”
“Yeah, well, Pyro took off too,” Bobby harrumphed. “And he was sort of crucial to the whole thing.” He leaned over the half dozen bottles of anti-inflammatories and pain-killers. They were too few to bother with alphabetizing.
“Has anyone seen John recently?” Rogue asked, stacking similarly-sized band-aids together.
The others shrugged; none of them had seen him since he had disappeared into the woods.
“He probably rejoined his Brotherhood comrades,” Piotr offered kindly.
At just that moment they heard cries of “Fire, fire!” coming from outside the tent.
With meaningful glances at one another, Kitty, Bobby, and Rogue dashed out of the med tent.
“What is it, Katya?” Piotr asked, joining them a moment later.
“Fiona!” Kitty panicked. “Where is she?!?!” A quick glance at her boyfriend made Kitty realize that he hadn’t yet put the pieces together.
“Pyro is a fire mutant, Piotr. With a really nasty temper. And…” she wasn’t sure how to put this without betraying either Pyro or Fiona.
“And he’s been hanging around Fiona a lot,” Bobby finished coldly.
They could see a huge cloud of smoke in the distance. Mutants were running all over the camp, most trying to put as much distance as possible between themselves and what appeared to be an out-of-control forest fire. The four teens defied the crowd and, feeling a bit like salmon swimming upstream, began making their way towards the smoke plume.
“There’s Dr. McCoy!” Rogue called to Kitty, pointing towards the blue diplomat.
“Hank!” Kitty called, immediately frustrated that he didn’t hear her. Without a word, Piotr picked her up, assumed his metallic form, and moved swiftly towards the blue mutant. The crowds parted before the metal giant, and he reached Hank quickly.
“I don’t know where Fiona is!” Kitty burst out frantically as soon as Hank was within earshot.
Hank looked worried.
“Kitty. Piotr.” He nodded to both of them, and to Bobby and Rogue, who were following in the wake created by the steel Colossus. “I was afraid you would say that. After our run I returned to camp, leaving her in the company of...” his anxious glance towards the fire told them everything they needed to know.
Jean and Storm strode towards the small group of apprehensive X-Men.
“Fiona?” Jean asked grimly. Seeing their worried nods, she continued.
“I can’t sense her, and that’s not good. She could be out of my range…” the psychic looked doubtful at this, “…or she could be unable to respond. If it’s the latter, she needs help.”
“What about John?” Kitty asked. “Pyro, I mean.”
Jean shook her head.
“All I’m getting from him is white-hot anger.” This wasn’t entirely true. She had also sensed an unusual combination: blasts of fear blended with his concern for…someone else. But with the rage so thoroughly overwhelming every other thought the fire mutant seemed to have, and since she wasn’t sure what the undercurrent thoughts meant, Jean kept that information to herself. Kitty was worried enough, after all.
Storm swiftly assumed command for the nascent rescue mission.
“Iceman, have you recovered from the tranquilizer?” Concern for one of her students made the weather witch much terser than usual. At his nod, she issued the order.
“Then you’re with me. It’s time to put out some fires.”
Want to see what led up to this point in the story?!?! The last chapter is here, and ALL prior chapters can be found here. Let me know what you think!
Several miles away the other teenage mutants were still discussing the events at the oasis. With little else to do, they had offered to help Jean organize their meager medical provisions. Jean had left the medical tent to join one of the endless war-council meetings - none of which the young X-Men were invited to attend - leaving Kitty, Piotr, Rogue, and Bobby alone with rolls of bandages and a few other random medical supplies.
“It’s just too bad we had to leave those pools,” Kitty sighed, re-rolling a bandage. “Fiona had such a great idea! Why did Metalhead have to come along and mess it all up?”
“Yeah, well, Pyro took off too,” Bobby harrumphed. “And he was sort of crucial to the whole thing.” He leaned over the half dozen bottles of anti-inflammatories and pain-killers. They were too few to bother with alphabetizing.
“Has anyone seen John recently?” Rogue asked, stacking similarly-sized band-aids together.
The others shrugged; none of them had seen him since he had disappeared into the woods.
“He probably rejoined his Brotherhood comrades,” Piotr offered kindly.
At just that moment they heard cries of “Fire, fire!” coming from outside the tent.
With meaningful glances at one another, Kitty, Bobby, and Rogue dashed out of the med tent.
“What is it, Katya?” Piotr asked, joining them a moment later.
“Fiona!” Kitty panicked. “Where is she?!?!” A quick glance at her boyfriend made Kitty realize that he hadn’t yet put the pieces together.
“Pyro is a fire mutant, Piotr. With a really nasty temper. And…” she wasn’t sure how to put this without betraying either Pyro or Fiona.
“And he’s been hanging around Fiona a lot,” Bobby finished coldly.
They could see a huge cloud of smoke in the distance. Mutants were running all over the camp, most trying to put as much distance as possible between themselves and what appeared to be an out-of-control forest fire. The four teens defied the crowd and, feeling a bit like salmon swimming upstream, began making their way towards the smoke plume.
“There’s Dr. McCoy!” Rogue called to Kitty, pointing towards the blue diplomat.
“Hank!” Kitty called, immediately frustrated that he didn’t hear her. Without a word, Piotr picked her up, assumed his metallic form, and moved swiftly towards the blue mutant. The crowds parted before the metal giant, and he reached Hank quickly.
“I don’t know where Fiona is!” Kitty burst out frantically as soon as Hank was within earshot.
Hank looked worried.
“Kitty. Piotr.” He nodded to both of them, and to Bobby and Rogue, who were following in the wake created by the steel Colossus. “I was afraid you would say that. After our run I returned to camp, leaving her in the company of...” his anxious glance towards the fire told them everything they needed to know.
Jean and Storm strode towards the small group of apprehensive X-Men.
“Fiona?” Jean asked grimly. Seeing their worried nods, she continued.
“I can’t sense her, and that’s not good. She could be out of my range…” the psychic looked doubtful at this, “…or she could be unable to respond. If it’s the latter, she needs help.”
“What about John?” Kitty asked. “Pyro, I mean.”
Jean shook her head.
“All I’m getting from him is white-hot anger.” This wasn’t entirely true. She had also sensed an unusual combination: blasts of fear blended with his concern for…someone else. But with the rage so thoroughly overwhelming every other thought the fire mutant seemed to have, and since she wasn’t sure what the undercurrent thoughts meant, Jean kept that information to herself. Kitty was worried enough, after all.
Storm swiftly assumed command for the nascent rescue mission.
“Iceman, have you recovered from the tranquilizer?” Concern for one of her students made the weather witch much terser than usual. At his nod, she issued the order.
“Then you’re with me. It’s time to put out some fires.”
Want to see what led up to this point in the story?!?! The last chapter is here, and ALL prior chapters can be found here. Let me know what you think!