------------------------------------------------------------- Most of the characters contained in this tale are copyright to Marvel Comics. X-Writers is an non-profit e-mail fan- fiction group so please don't sue us. It's not like we have any money anyway. ------------------------------------------------------------- X-Men #48 , It's always darkest before the Dawn (But it gets a lot lighter next issue) Writer: JAC Delaney Assistant Editor: Elizabeth Celeste Editor in Chief: Marysia Prologue "So it's confirmed," Nick Fury broadcast. "The Aerians have their main base at their old home of Aerie Shalan. The story Doom told us seems to check out..." Fury glanced at the impassive form of his old nemesis. "So we are going and we're going in full strength." "Your mistrust is foolhardy," the icy voice of Doom intoned. "I have no more wish than you to see Magneto conquer the planet." "Advisory noted," Fury snapped. Something about all this was bothering him. He had fought with Magneto in this very place against Zaladane. The man could have acted then. Why didn't he? In any case it was too late to stop. "First flight away," the technician reported. "What is the word on nuclear release?" "Negative. We'll try a more conventional..." Fury began. "FOOL!" Doom raged. "If we make one mistake he will destroy us all! I did not bring you all here in order to fall at the hands of Magneto solely due to your stupidity." "They are mostly civilians there," Fury responded. "You tin plated dictator, I have been ordered to work with you but I don't have to like it. We have the Avengers as back-up. What could possibly go wrong?" Main "My son," the dark figure intoned, "I could not bear to see you destroyed. They put their best against you and even crippled it took all they had to break you. You are greater than this. I have intervened to ensure that you will be strong again, that the masses of humanity shall not rise forth to suffocate the strong. Xavier faces his ultimate challenge, his greatest friend and his greatest foe together. But there are others coming, who would take this challenge from him. One of them is the daughter of a megalomaniac who might yet clear the scourge that consumes him. I cannot permit this. She is strong as yet but she will be tested further. Her friends might swing the balance. They will be tested against the greatest test of all, me. For three years I have been growing since the birth of my angel of death while inferior copies have lulled everyone into a false confidence. This will cost them greatly. And you, Holocaust, a feeble attempt at a son from a world which should never have been, you are a dim third child . Prepare yourself, for when I return you will be given the chance to prove yourself worthy of my blessing. Worthy to be counted among the strong. Good-bye son of my heart, ever you were my ideal, you rise against all the world sends against you and you overcome it. Sinister's Aryan ideal will stand no chance against you in your prime. It will be as it should be, as it should have been. And the so called Avengers will soon have fallen comrades to avenge." A soul hung in the balance between two warring psionic powers. The shadow king was vast and bloated, a great dragon blasting forth psionic fire across the astral plane. Against him stood three knights, three individuals in armour of light and glittering lances. They stood against the fire and gritted astral teeth in determination. The strongest of them was Charles Xavier. A telepath without peer, he stood his ground against the bloated darkness because of the soul in the middle and because the existence of the dragon was an affront to a dream he had sacrificed everything for. Beside him stood a man who had once wielded the life force of the very planet. Erik Magnus Lensherr stood his ground against the unrushing darkness through sheer will and power he shouldn't possess. But it had been like that lately, as his body had grown weaker, his powers had soared to untoward heights. He blamed his fall from heaven but it had begun much sooner than that. Poor Magneto, if only he had known Stryfe's legacy had three strains or had known more of Illyana Rasputin's plight. The third Knight was in situation she had never dreamed she would be in, fighting side by side with her greatest enemy - Charles Xavier! Marie was a follower of Magnus, she had always been a follower in one form or another. She had dreamed of strong men who would protect her against the evils of the world. But inevitably they betrayed her. Some, like Magnus himself had the will but the flesh was weak. Others, like Cortez or Summers, had proven to be turncoats of the worst kind. She was learning a lot about what it took to stand on one's own and find her own way. She was not as involved in the battle as the other two, she was using part of her power to shield her idol Rogue from the onslaught of Exodus. When Rogue fell Marie felt as if her soul was being torn from her. Trapped in the middle (the captive maiden if you will in this decidedly medieval representation of astral combat, inaccurate as it is the head-blind can only really understand psychic combat through the medium of analogy, it is like a blind person understanding colour) was Jean Grey-Summers. Captured by the Shadow King and infused with the darkness of his Shadow Queen (See UXM #273, AM) she had been co-opted by him. Now, however, she was trapped between the light and dark in her, for Xavier and the rest had reached her before the personality imposed on her by the Shadow King could solidify. She was jerked back and forth as she tried to sort out her allegiance. "Fools," the dark dragon shape of the Shadow King grumbled. "Can't you see that I have already won. It is the sundown of your dream Charles Xavier and the dawn of mine. Can't you feel the hatred, the pain that rocks this little island out of time? Revel in it. Luxuriate in it. I have fought for this so long and against all odds it is mine. It is too late to stop me now Xavier." "You are a perversion of everything I have ever fought for Farouk. You are far worse than any enemy I have had the displeasure of knowing, for you enjoy this sickness. This madness. Damn you Lord of Shadows, I will banish you there once and for all." "Come now Charles. I have waited a lifetime for vengeance, do you think I would be sloppy now? The last defeat you gave me almost finished me but it was your own weakness that enabled me to find a way back. It was your own arrogance of youth to kill my body and not finish off my mind that made me so powerful. Don't you see old man, I am your future, far more so than the son you neglected." "You KILLED my son you butcher. You infect everything with hatred and misery. NO MORE. THIS ENDS HERE!" "No Xavier," Magnus yelled. "He's baiting you. Don't break the psi-links..." But his warning came too late as Xavier transformed into an angel of light and vengeance and assaulted the psyche of the Shadow King. The King laughed as he struck at Xavier and giggled as the howls of agony resounded across the astral plane. "Anchor us Scanner," Magnus ordered. Seeing her look of hesitation he continued, "Do it girl before this madness spells our doom." Magneto, Lord of the Fatal Attraction, stood forth and reached into the heart of the Dragon. It howled a ghostly scream that caused the plane to shudder as Magnus drew his own captive self forth. Then he turned and drove a blade of psionic energy into Scanner severing all of their connections to the Astral plane. "Will you ever forgive me for leaving her to his mercies," Magneto whispered. "But there was no other way... Take solace dear friend in that I will suffer as she suffers..." POV: Black Widow It had been a long time since I had felt fear going into battle. It was even longer since I had felt any horror at the acts of war. A trained assassin and warrior I had long been accustomed to bloodshed. But this mission had me spooked. Magneto was one of the most powerful men on earth, with these new psionic powers heaven knew how hard he would be to beat. And Doom, ordering us about like lackeys just because his detection of the build-up here had warned us in time to intervene. Or the Aerians themselves, a peaceful race designing doomsday weapons to take on the planet. Something wasn't right. I looked around at my fellow Avengers, old comrades I had learned to trust. Quicksilver and Crystal were absent since their daughter was facing a flu of some kind. Besides, there were more than enough of us, right? I felt a mild surge of contempt for Wanda Maximoff. She was less than half my age and felt she knew everything there was to know about leading. Foolish girl, when would she ever learn that nothing was a sure thing. It was her own father we were after with orders to take down by any means necessary, she pretended to be unconcerned about it. She pretended a detached professionalism but her concern for her father came out in the odd word or phrase. And I could see it when I looked into her eyes I knew she hated what we were doing. Hell, I hated what we were doing! The old Stalwarts were all here. Hercules. Giant Man. Wasp. USAgent. Deathcry. Thor. The Vision. Iron Man. Hawk-eye. Captain America, he alone seemed to truly mirror my concern with the way in which events were progressing. I clench my teeth and wait for the results of the airstrike on the tactical monitor. Damn it, this divided command stuff was getting on my nerves. Doom wanted to play it hard and fast, Fury wanted to be cautious. The middle road we were walking on was a recipe for disaster. Suddenly the monitor is blaring red. The first contact between the airstrike and Aerie Shalan is being reported. Four hundred and fifty planes and they are being slaughtered. I told that bastard Doom that this wouldn't work. I patch in a comm-link to the Battle Carrier Freedom, "This is Widow, I want to speak with Fury NOW." I casually note the psionic disturbance we have been registering is gone now. Suddenly the board is alive with paranormal detections. Magneto is coming. The comm-link bleeps. "Fury" "Damn it all Nick, get my people out there. That's Magneto coming and we are going to have to try and stop him". I hear a cold and merciless voice reply. "Not yet. Not until they are committed." "Doom, people are dying out there." A useless plea to a man with pity, without remorse. Why did we let that snake aboard? Alarm klaxons signalled it was jump time. Lizard checked her weapon on last time and led her squad out. It was early but they had planned for this contingency. Just a little longer walk. "That's enough Doom," Fury scowled. "You were joint commander under my sufferance, you're gone. I should never have agreed to this in the first place you egomaniac. The officials at the UN were suspicious enough of you to give me a second set of orders to be opened if you tried anything funny. As of this moment you are relieved of all duties." "Don't be more of a fool than you have to be," Doom replied. "Those soldiers are but pawns, if we do not sacrifice them for greater gain the game is lost already." He raised his arm. Fury barely dodged the energy bolt. "If you are not with me then you are against me!" Before Fury could reply the bridge exploded. The most beautiful redhead Fury had ever seen (she looked like a bird of fire; passionate, beautiful and untouchable) killed him before he could continue his debate with Doom. His last thoughts were how he had failed everybody, been too conservative and worried too much about his men. And of how beautiful the woman was. General Thunderbolt Ross slammed down the comset. "The Freedom is under attack, and her bridge is out. With Doom and Fury out of the loop I am assuming command here. Flank Speed for Aerie Shalan. Let's see what that bastard says when his home base is under attack." The comm-link bleeped. "Ross, this is Widow, what are you doing?" "Giving this butcher a taste of his own medicine." "Wait..." she began before her set buzzed into static. "Cheap government contractors" Ross mumbled. POV: Black Widow He was among us before anyone knew he had come, his red eyes gleaming in the dim light of the hold. "This is a challenge for Xavier and his ilk, you will not intervene." Then he turned and looked at Wanda and suddenly she vanished in a flash of light. Disintegrated most likely. I never liked that cold-hearted bitch but that was a bad way to go, even for her (and not that I hadn't dreamed of this happening to her at times, mind you). "Restrain him" I ordered. It was the last in a string of mistakes (both mine and others) that began with agreeing to this mission in the first place. Still, if we only lost Wanda I wouldn't cry too much. As I watched his body morphed and wings sprang forth from his back. Suddenly the room was sprayed with razor sharp projectiles. I had a few near misses but they staggered me like I was punched in the gut. The very passage of these things caused pain and suffering, how much worse to be actually hit. I could hear the screams of my friends dying. The Vision was trying to use his phasing power to assault this stranger - causing the dark figure to reel with the force of the attack. But however he was doing it, the stranger seemed able to resist the attacks. His hands suddenly glowed with energy and I smelled frying circuits as the Vision literally exploded spraying red hot metal across the room. Thor struck him with his hammer. The blow rocked the stranger but he recovered with the speed of a adder, black armour forming where none had been before. Thor hit him again, he was buying time with his life but the stranger swung a mighty blow that caused him to fly free of the ship. I scanned the room. Deathcry, Wasp, Hawkeye and Giant man were screaming as the strange projectile jutted from them. They seemed to have grown old and feeble as if the life had been drawn out them. Iron Man was blasting away with repulsor beams that seemed to have little effect. The brave Captain made a running charge and tried to down the stranger with a blow from his shield while Hercules grabbed him from behind. I aimed a widow's sting at his damned eyes and blasted away. USAgent leapt with a flying kick. The stranger morphed and flowed, a new appendage causing Steve to be flung out the hole made by Thor in the side of the ship. He was a brave man but I could hear him scream as he was flung towards the hole. Only his incredible agility enabled him to prevent being flung to certain doom. He collapsed in heap, alive or dead I couldn't tell. Hercules was pinning him when those damned wings sprang up and severed both of his arms. The son of Zeus fell , he seemed to be trying in turn to use one missing hand to grasp the stump of his other arm. The strange malaise that had struck so many began to affect him and he began to scream. It was a bad way to go for a man who had so prided himself on his strength, weak, helpless and impotent. Iron Man and I kept up our blasts hoping for a weakness, any weakness. The stranger's arm shot out and surrounded USAgent. He began to squeeze. The sounds that came out were horrible and only added to the hideous background noise. I watched a witchfire glow of energy as Iron Man used some sort of backup weapon against the Stranger. He burned and scarred and screamed. I heard a voice that would haunt my nightmares, cold and unforgiving like gravel being crushed. "You have hurt me and few have done so, you are one of the strong Tony Stark and thus is my wrath upon you spared for this day you have passed the test set before you." I made a break for it, there was nothing else that could be done here. I wasn't fast enough. He grabbed me with his other arm and brought me to him. I waited for the last moment and fired, energy blasting through his armour. He held me too him, face impassive despite the agony he must be feeling. "Please," I asked. "Who are you and why did you do this?" I was surprised at the helplessness in my voice. "I am En Saba Nuhr," he replied, "and you have shown me that I am again what I once was. I am strong once more and the Avengers have been judged weak. If you are the best humans can offer against the coming storm then I have already won." His damned laughter rang in my ears accompanied by the screams of the dying. I heard shouts as marines stormed the hold followed by the awful sound of his wings firing once again. Repulsor blasts filled the room as Iron Man sought to rescue me, valiant man that he was. And I could have sworn I saw I a shield flying through the air. But then blackness took me and I was cut loose into the void. Killing Fury had been fun. He was an ally of the despised Charles Xavier and an enemy of her master. Jean laughed a cold, mocking laugh. It was a mistake that almost killed her. The attack on the bridge had killed the crew but one man had been encased in steel and force-shields and he responded with a fury born of an almost inhuman rage at being thwarted so. Her telekinetic shield barely held. She turned to face Victor von Doom. A voice in her head spoke, *Bring him to me. His genius will serve me well.* With a girlish laugh and a toss of her red hair Jean launched herself into the air. Behind her Doom raged. He would make an example of her, show the world the awful consequences of attacking Doom. He activated jet boosters in his armour and rose forth from the ship. Beneath him he could see Jump troopers securing LZ X-Ray (the back-up landing zone). The Battle Carrier Independence was burning and Liberty had broken away. That fool Ross. Phoenix would not be the only one he would make an example of today. For to dare to trifle with Doom was death itself. Exodus looked at the young woman being restrained by Barbarus. He smiled a sick and twisted smile. The Shadow King had twisted and tainted him and brought out all of the evil and cruelty that resided in his nature, he who had seen centuries pass had finally met an evil great enough for him. The mortal frame of Paris Bennett no longer resisted the darkness for which it was an unwilling vessel. "Hello Rogue," he said. "Tough break. Battle's over. You lost. I wonder what will happen when my master breaks you to his command." "Ah'll rip that grin off yer scuzy face first. Ah was a slave of his once, never again." Exodus suddenly lost interest in the surroundings as an astral communication touched him. "There is no time for pleasure. We are needed. Barbarus you are in command here. Bring the army back to Aerie Shalan". "An' Rogue?" "Make an example of her to all who would stand against the glory of Magneto. Crucify her." Exodus vanished in a flash of light. Rogue began to struggle against Barbarus but was too weak from injuries, poison and fatigue. Around her she could her the cheers and cries for blood, an unnatural level of hatred even for the swamp men. Something was deeply wrong. She focused herself, she had to bring all her resources to bear to escape this. Rough hands thrust her against a tree and Barbarus raised a hammer and a spike. "You know something, scuzball," Rogue said sweetly. "What?" mocked Barbarus "Exodus was the only one of you all able t' give me a decent fight. Ain't that a crying shame... for you!" The first kick took Barbarus off his feet as a mass brawl ensued. Doom saw the cloaked and helmeted form of Magneto in the distance. Phoenix was making straight for him. He braked his jets and recalibrated his blasters. Activating back-up point singularity power supplies he let loose a blast of raw energy. It was a distraction, at the same time he released a trio of plastic robots that blasted at Magneto. The Shadow King parried the energy blast easily. This was going to be easier than he thought, although the mental turbulence since his battle with Xavier was increasing rapidly. Then the plastic robots struck him. The blast would have killed him if he had not been wearing armour and if he couldn't heal himself using psionic energy. Even so it came close. His mind was fuzzy as memories of Eric Lensherr blazed in his skull, he was not long for this host. He reached for Doom with magnetic force but it melted away like water off a ducks back. Doom could see the eyes of Magneto already, they were filled with darkness and madness. He pressed the attack, Magneto had almost fallen. Blistering energy bolts were exchanged. How could he lose, he was Doom! The attack from Exodus was blocked by a net of spells he had woven earlier. He turned from his attack on Magneto and reached for the throat of Exodus. He was the power source he had been coveting, power that rightfully belonged to Doom. For a second he was balanced in a equilibrium of energy between Magneto and Exodus, blazing as bright as the sun. For some unknown reason his psionic dampers had kicked in at excessively high levels. Some fool would pay for failing to calibrate them properly. And then, like a bird of prey, Phoenix lunged, tearing at his already maxed out armour and stripping him of it. The Shadow King reached forth to Doom's mind gloating at the confusion he read in Doom's eyes. The poor fool still didn't understand what had happened to him. He reached in and encountered a will as indomitable as any he had ever encountered. It was impossible, Doom was only human. The Shadow King was flung out. Pain and effort marked Doom's scarred ruin of a face. "Try all you want to resist me little man but that is but a taste of what you will get time and time again until you are mine." "Never, I am Doom and I will triumph over all adversity". Jean giggled (and yet there was a distant echo in her soul telling her this was wrong). Exodus looked stern. Suddenly a shout rang out. "I say thee nay. Unhand him foul varlets," and Thor lunged into Magneto swinging his hammer. Unseen in the fury of the sudden attack Doom plunged the 20 odd feet into the soft forest floor. "That's it General," the tech responded. "The ship can't take anymore pounding. Half our systems are off-line and we are burning. Most of the crew is dead." "We should abandon ship but they are butchering any escape pods that make a break for it. We are finished General," the XO said his voice steady but grim. "We have lost contact with Freedom and something has destroyed Independence." "Not like this," Ross muttered, "Not like this. If we are all going to die let it mean something!" He jumped forward and pushed the helmsman aside. "I'm taking you with me! If I'm going to die I'm taking you with me." He engaged the emergency thrusters. The mighty ship sped towards the fortress of the Aerians. Energy blasts rocked the crippled hulk. One of them hit the bridge killing every- one on it instantly. Ross never got to find out that he did successfully ram and destroy his enemies greatest base. The antimatter powered engines went up in a blinding explosion that put most nuclear weapons to shame. The explosion exterminated a peaceful race that had been corrupted by the darkness of the Shadow King. The shock waves smashed through the Savage land, blackening the sky. And, as a few scattered survivors crawled forth, black rain began to fall. Epilogue The Shadow King raged. The mental effort to restrain Magneto had become incredible ever since the "ghost" had entered his body. The fight with Doom and Thor had nearly finished him. And now Doom was missing, although he wouldn't be for long. No-one could hide from him for long! As for Thor, somehow he had managed to hold them off despite the power and savagery with which Jean had attacked. He was gravely injured, probably mortally by her merciless pounding but he was still alive, curse him. Only his foolish code of honour that drove him to try and assist his fellow Avengers against whatever had attacked them had given the Shadow King the respite he needed. The damage had been considerable, that hammer didn't look like much but it sure packed a wallop! Two of the great warships had been destroyed, one by a force that the Shadow King neither knew nor trusted. But the third was intact and Exodus had finished the crew after disabling the psi-baffles. He would not be in this form long, already he could sense his next one being made ready. A position of power and influence awaited him, a chance to destroy Xavier's Dream and impose his own. The acolytes were a problem, his hold on them was too fragile, they might yet turn against him. He mentally contacted Exodus. *Take the Acolytes and the remaining warship. Devastate Great Britain... and pay special attention to Muir Island.* The reply was swift and immediate. *I will burn the Island to the bedrock.* That took care of that, the acolytes were disposed of and the place of his last defeat would soon be a distant memory. He fought off another wave of pain as the personality of Magnus tried, once again, to reassert itself. He turned to Jean. Was there something in her eyes, a second presence, no he would have sensed anything like that. "Come my Shadow Queen, there are enemies out there. Doom will be mine and I will humble Xavier, destroy him as he destroyed me. And the little telepath who dared help him will suffer as he does." There was little time left. Or perhaps, all the time in the world! ---------------------to be continued------------------------ See Wolverine #98 for the fate of Wolverine and the Scarlett Witch as well as more on En Saba Nuhr. Plus, just what did happen to Xavier and Scanner after the psi-battle. The conclusion of the Battle between the Avengers and Apocalypse as Rogue comes to the rescue. See next issue for "A Sword out of Legend" , the scene shifts to merry ol' England (or actually dreary Scotland but merry ol' England sounds better) for a duel between Excalibur and the Acolytes. Will Muir Island be destroyed? Will England be nuked? Will the editor kill me if I do either of these two things? Then see Wolverine #99 "Tidings of War" for the final alliance against the Shadow King and Wolverine seeks to break free of his captor to join in the struggle. What is going on between Doom and Wanda? And then be here for X-Men #50 'No Price too High" -- *Marysia* | The Original Holy | "Just love me, fear Keeper of the | Virgin of the | me, do as I say and I Labyrinth Flame | Church of Xbooks | will be your slave." ---------------------------------------------------------- Editor in Chief of x-writers at majordomo@minuteman com Back issues and info at http://minuteman.com/xwriters