The X-Men characters featured in this
story are property of Marvel Inc and used without permission.
No profit is made from these works.
AJ Rovner/Unicorn was created by Abby
Rovner and is used with permission.
Ziska Xavier is my own creation.
Mail comes
early to
Since so many people live at the mansion, which used to house a private school and now some sort of research facility, both business and personal mail comes directly to the location, making his load quite heavy. Mid September tends to be particularly bad. What he isn’t used to is seeing someone waiting for him. He thought Monday was a fluke. But she has been here every day waiting for the mail. Today is Saturday, and the young woman seems to be more than a little agitated.
“Must be something important you are looking for young lady.” He says with a smile as he steps out the car.
“You could say that.” The brunette replies and opens up a messenger bag. “Looks like you are fully loaded.”
He smiles again and nods to the bag. “At least you are prepared.”
She steps through the gate and he hands her a portion of the load. She thumbs through the letters, frowns and puts them into the bag. They repeat these steps until on the fourth batch. Her eyes light up as she hops around like a child at Christmas. “Yes!”
“Good news I trust?”
“The best!” She replies, and walks off.
“Wait, you forgot some!” The mailman calls and gives her several more papers.
“Oh, thank you!” She answers while cramming the letters into the bag and then runs up the driveway.
He doesn’t think she’ll be up waiting for him next week.
******************************************
The
driveway has a few curves in it, in part to further seclude the house from the
line of sight from the street. Since her
ankle still aches, Ziska starts to fly straight towards the house the moment
she is sure she is out of sight from the street. Today
is the day. She thinks with glee. I don’t
have to keep a distance around the others anymore. No one is going to get zapped anymore. It’s over.
She weaves so tightly around a tree that her speed makes the branches bend and leaves a caught up her trail. She tries to focus on the tight clearings, so she doesn’t have to listen to the people waking up around her.
At first,
she only heard thoughts as whispers, white noise which she could easily tune
out like she had in “
It doesn’t make sense. I still hear people I touched. Maybe it’s because of the memories that haven’t been unlocked yet? Ziska considers. She hopes it will stop with her birthday today. Hopefully she can enjoy the party her father is planning.
******************************************
By late morning the first guests start too arrive, in many cases to help set up the party. Hopefully, with Ziska’s memory altering power ending, she’ll act like a person.
Remy will finally be able to relax around her. He was the first person to admit he didn’t want to have the shared memories. Though she seemed to take his position in stride, she’s barely spoken to him in the six weeks she’s been around. Damn, don’ time fly. He tells himself. Hope she like spicy food. Before he puts anything on the meat, Remy checks if the items in the spice rack are still usably, and today, that answer is no. “Jean, gotta go shopping, be back soon.”
******************************************
William would much rather be getting ready for the party that’s brewing outside. For many of the extended X-Men family, this will be an introduction really. Hopefully the memory power is gone. For now, however, William is busy with something else.
God I hate this. He thinks. He spent the last two hours taking a practice exam in math. He is happy with the fact he came in an hour under the maximum allotted time. If he gets the right grade, it will even count as class credit. As in, credit for taking the class here. He isn’t sure how that came to be, but he won’t look a gift horse in the mouth. It’s a copy from last year’s Math I Regents Exam. If he can pass it now, he can focus on other classes for the moment and take the January exam. That would be great. Would be nice if Scott would change the expression on his face!
Scott feeds the multiple choice sheet into the machine to calculate William’s credit for that portion and then continues with the long answers. William hears the machine beeping; his score is ready. He watches as Scott glances at the machine, his expression still frozen. Does he realize William is still in the exam room?
When Scott finishes comparing notes to William’s paper, he scribbles something on the test and leans back in the chair. “You’ve earned seventy-three percent.”
William jumps up and pumps his hand in the air. “I knew it! I knew I passed it!”
“The State
of
William’s excitement fades. “What’s that supposed to mean? I thought passing was sixty-five percent.”
“Yes, for
the State of
“Of course I did! How else was I supposed to pick my classes?”
“Did you read the part about ‘Requirements for class promotion’?”
William thinks for a moment. He had gone over the details about the classes he would need to graduate. And what he couldn’t transfer from back home. But he doesn’t recall the promotion section. “…Apparently not as well as I should have.”
Scott chooses his words carefully. “I’m sorry William… there isn’t much else that can be done. You need to take the class.”
******************************************
“Looks like there wasn’t any mail today Professor.” Jean says as she returns from the front gate.
He chuckles. “Well, I’ll consider it a favor.” Charles is worried however. “Jean, please remind me again why we are planning this party for today, and not next weekend. There are too many acquaintances she hasn’t come into contact yet.”
“The invitations did have a warning in them.” Jean replies.
He cringes. “Whose idea was that?”
“Ziska’s actually. I guess you could also call it an invitation to the memories. Maybe she is lonely?”
Charles leans back in his chair and rests his head on his hand, index finger on his temple. “Do you know off hand who else Ziska has come into contact with?” Charles asks. “So far, I know of Logan, William, Scott, Nathan and you, myself of course… Jubilee, Bobby, then Hank… Kurt, Kitty and Piotr… Lilandra… Am I missing anyone?”
“Ororo also let her transfer memories. And she did bump into Tony Stark and Nick Fury at that fundraiser two weeks back. I can’t think of anyone else either. Wow.”
“You’re right; it is quite a number of people.” Charles responds.
“Actually, I’m more surprised how much self control that took. There are quite a few more people living in the mansion with whom she hasn’t come into contact with for six weeks; Rogue at least can put on long sleeves, but her powers work through clothes.”
“Don’t make excuses for her
Jean.” Charles grumbles.
“Well…” Jean begins. “Maybe today is a good day for second chances.” With a smile on her face, Jean leaves and closes the office door behind her.
He turns his attention to the computer when he sees an icon blinking; the instant messenger. He personally doesn’t care for it, but the students have embraced it, as for quick notes it is just as effective as e-mail. And even if they are on a Shi’ar powered network, there is no need for everyone to be on camera at all times. The note is from Scott. As the math teacher, Scott gave William an old Regents exam to see how he would do on the actual test. William has a passing grade from the state’s point of view, but not by institute standards, and just barely so. This will take some explaining. Charles tells himself.
Having a lot on his mind, he turns away from the computer and the papers on his desk. Has it really only been ten weeks since David died? It already seems like a lifetime ago. And has it really already been six weeks since Ziska turned their world upside down?
Does he really have a twenty-one-year-old child?
Charles remembers details clearly
now. Ziska’s first birthday was a low
key affair, a strawberry frosted cupcake she thought was more fun to play with
than to try and eat. Her fifth birthday
is the first time he couldn’t come to see her.
She wouldn’t speak to him the next time he called. She was in the states for her sweet sixteen and
thankfully
There was no eighteenth birthday.
******************************************
Rogue’s bedroom window looks down on the patio. Thanks to Ororo, the sky is clear with tempered heat and no humidity, though mid September can be that way anyway. Still, a few party tents are going up to cover the expected crowd.
Like Remy, and as it turns out many others, Rogue wasn’t interested in getting additional memories. She has enough strange thoughts running through her head. Still, Rogue thinks she might have a good idea what Ziska goes through. On a few occasions, someone else’s memory kicks in for her. Usually it is someone that person would have recognized. The person in the back of her head expects a different reaction. On a few occasions, she’s noticed Ziska starting to tell a story, only to stop a few words into it when she realizes that no one will have a clue what she’s talking about. Rogue used to do that a lot herself.
Unlike the others, Rogue takes Ziska’s birthday wish at face value. “Don’t get me anything.” Ziska had said. “I’m just glad to be alive… again.”
Rogue’s train of though is interrupted by a knock on her door, and before she can reply Remy pokes his head in. “Ain’tcha supposed to be decoratin’?”
“Haven’t decided yet.” Rogue shoots back. “Why?”
“Gotta get some supplies. Feel like comin’ along for a ride?”
******************************************
As old friends get reacquainted, Charles starts to clear his desk and tries to leave his office. But there is a quiet knock at the door and Charles straightens up. “Come in.”
Lilandra opens the door and quietly walks in, a massive shopping bag in her hand, and sits down in the chair facing Charles. “I think I finally found something.”
Charles eyes the bag. “I thought Ziska didn’t want anything for her birthday?”
Lilandra cocks her head at him. “This from the man who was going to buy her a… ‘Carvette’ was it?”
Charles can’t help but laugh. “A ‘Corvette’, until she said she didn’t want anything. And it seemed like a good idea at the time. She hates the cars in my collection, and I will not demand the others to let her drive their vehicles.”
“And I’m quiet sure a cruiser from the empire would be a bit too noticeable here.” Without further argument, Lilandra pulls several boxes from the bag. “She still likes dragons, and since she had to tear down most of her old posters, perhaps it’s time to upgrade to something more mature.”
Charles looks at the items. Three of them are framed fine art prints of dragons, while the fourth is a wall mirror decorated with a resin dragon and phoenix circling the glass. “They’re beautiful.” He replies, but then frowns.
Lilandra doesn’t need to read his mind. “You’re worried things won’t get better?”
“I am.” Charles answers. “We’ve barely spoken all week. I hoped that she’d understand why telepathic eavesdropping is not something I’ll tolerate. But I certainly didn’t expect her to explode like that.” Charles turns as there is another knock at the door. He glances at Lilandra, who in return nods. “Come in.”
William pokes his head in, but doesn’t enter as he realizes Lilandra is in the office with the Professor. “Is this a bad time?”
“Not at all.” Lilandra replies with a smile. “I need to wrap these anyway.”
William quickly glances at the items on the desk. “Nice picks.” He steps closer to the mirror. “Very nice. I’m sure Ziska will like them.”
Lilandra smiles again. “I hope so too.” Then she smiles at the Professor and walks out.
William slowly sits down in the other office chair, face to face with the headmaster. “Did Scott already forward my test results to you?”
“Yes, he has.” Professor Xavier replies as he pulls a folder from the lower file drawer. “Seventy-three is very admirable, considering you haven’t been in school for six years.”
After a few moments of silence, William speaks up. “But it isn’t passing.”
“I’m afraid it isn’t. I hope you understand why I can’t change the rules at will.”
“I do.” William sighs. “And I also understand this was a one shot deal… right?” He adds hopefully.
“I’m afraid so William. If we were to just keep giving you tests over and over, at some point you would just pass by luck. That would make your Course II work even more difficult. Besides, it took a great deal of convincing of the rest of the staff to do this trial in the first place.”
William sits up, surprised. “Who did the convincing?”
Professor Xavier barely manages a smile. “Ziska started pecking away at everyone the moment you joined the school.” For a moment, William thinks the Professor wants to say something, but changes his mind. “Have you seen her today?”
“No, I haven’t.” William replies. “I almost expect her to be outside directing where the tables and chairs go.” Oh I hope she won’t be that much of a prima donna. William thinks to himself. “Didn’t she at least show for breakfast?”
“She likes to eat alone, at least since her transfer powers became an issue.”
William knows they recently had a falling out, though the details are tightly under wraps. “Would you like me to check on her?”
For a split second, William is sure he has offended the Professor. But then, the headmaster’s face softens. “I would appreciate that.”
******************************************
There are only a handful of places that Ziska hides out in when she wants to be alone. She prefers to fly through windows to avoid the door sensors to go around the security system. When William checks her room, he finds her window wide open, leaving a lot of ground to cover. He checks the garage, but all cars are accounted for, so at least she is somewhere on the estate.
Great.
Juuuuuuust great. Need to put a
GPS collar on her or something.
******************************************
Rogue loves hanging onto the back of Remy’s Harley. She likes wrapping her arms around him, and knowing she doesn’t have to worry about everything. Normally, she starts to daydream a few minutes into the ride. Today though, seeing something in the forest gets her attention. “What is that?” She asks.
“What’s what?” Remy asks, having looked at the road.
“Pull over Remy!” Rogue shouts as she straightens up behind him.
Remy obliges, but before he even gets the engine off Rogue is off the bike and takes off. “Chere, wait up!” As he chases behind her, he sees something metallic in the trees. Worst case scenarios run through his mind. Someone or somethin’ gonna start trouble today of all days? Well, maybe that piss off mam’selle Xavier off enough to show what she really made of. As he approaches, the item keeps moving in the breeze. Can’t be metal then. He gets closer still only to realize exactly what he is looking at. A messenger bag Ziska bought herself just this week. He grumbles “Real cute that one.”
Rogue lands next to him. “This ain’t right. Look.”
As Rogue points east, he realizes a few branches are broken. “Look like she was flyin’ where she wasn’t supposedta be flyin’. Can we go now?”
“It gets worse.” Rogue says as she faces back west, towards the mansion. Twenty feet away there are signs or a crash landing. “She might be hurt.”
Remy grabs her wrist. “Careful, neither of us touch her yet. Won’t do her much good if we start to get a seizure.”
As the couple approaches the drag marks, they hear movement. Ziska crash landed into a bush.
Remy pulls out his cell phone to call the others for help, but instinct takes over for Rogue and she reaches for the bush. Fully aware that touching Ziska is unsafe, she bends down the branches and lets the girl tumble out of the bush. Now sprawled on the floor, Rogue realizes that Ziska doesn’t have any external injures. She looks up, but doesn’t see any indication that Ziska first crashed into the tree. Then Ziska starts to seizure. Rogue again acts on instinct, ignoring the risk to herself. She feels the electricity run through her as he memories come flooding out.
Already dialing home, Remy realizes too late what is happening, so he tries to pull Rogue away from Ziska, connecting to the memories as well.
******************************************
She heard the gunshots behind her and the bullets as they raced by her ear. She’s pressed into a corner, but does have a reasonable amount of cover. Normally, Rogue didn’t worry about these things. Normally, Rogue had invulnerability powers. Like her teammate usually had telekinesis to block bullets. “Stay with me ‘Bix.” She told the unconscious girl she was carrying. “Stay with me.” She wondered how far away help was. She wondered when the shooters would realize they were unarmed. She wondered how bad Ziska’s injury was. “Come on girl. Your birthday’s comin’ up. You gotta stick around.” She pushed Orbix against the wall to keep her out of harms way. She did the best she could wrapping her wound. But she can just barely feel her pulse, even on her neck.
“Stay with me kiddo. Stay with me.”
Gambit threw his cards at the wall when he heard gun shots from the other side. A few cards later the guns were useless, the shooters disabled, and the girls were able to escape. Rogue was exhausted, but Orbix had been shot through the shoulder. Her uniform was soaked.
She spent a week in a coma. Even though she had plenty of blood reserved on site, the blood loss was too much, and her condition became irreversible.
Rogue blamed herself. After all, the bullet that killed Ziska was meant for her. Remy did his best to comfort her, as well as Ziska’s grieving father.
They’ve seen stranger things. Miracles even. The Professor pulled out all the stops to save her, even contacting his former girlfriend Lilandra, hoping she could somehow help. It didn’t matter. Before the space ship got through the gate, she flat lined. As the rhythmic beep turned into a solid buzz for the four people in the room, the memory fades out.
******************************************
Still in his office, Charles happens to be the one who answers the phone. All he hears is Remy’s muffled voice. Then his mind floods with new memories. The events technically happened years ago, Charles Xavier is in shock all over again. William was also in the room, but before Rogue and Remy were zapped he was aware that Ziska died. But he just now remembers how. Even the people Ziska previously touched now remember the circumstances, even if they weren’t in the room at the last moment.
Still dazed, Charles’s astral form leaves his body and immediately finds the three in the forest. He doesn’t remember how anyone else found them, but all of them quickly arrive in the medical labs.
Though his two students quickly recover, Ziska remains in a coma. At first, Charles sits in the medical room while Henry goes to work. Moira decides she is going to help out medically. She intentionally touches Ziska so that in a few minutes she could assist Henry and Charles in her care.
******************************************
“Och, lass, are ye busy?” Moira called out.
“Coming Aunt Moira!” Franziska called back as she ran down the hall.
Moira supposed it was strange that people stay on good terms with their former loves, especially now that they both were parents. But the girl and her own son Kevin were so close in age it almost seemed natural, as if they really were close knit cousins. Since Charles’s girl had made her mind up for science, he naturally asked her if she could take Ziska on as an assistant for a while, since at thirteen she was too young to actually be hired elsewhere. The girl excelled at the work.
“What can I help with?” She asks.
“This daft machine done unplug itself again. If ye’d be so kind?”
Young and flexible, Ziska dove under the lab table and reconnected the wires. For a moment, they heard a buzz, and the machine has its final break down and starts to smoke. As the fire alarm blared off, Moira ran for the extinguisher.
******************************************
As Moira recovers, she quickly lends Hank a hand, but Charles had also pulls himself together as he takes some evacuated collection tubes from a drawer as well as a needle and the other supplies, prepping his daughter’s arm for the blood draw. The computer housed in the mansion is much more effective than the labs used by doctors around the globe. It takes a few seconds for the computer to analyze the samples including the various additives. The results are staggering. Ziska’s chemical systems are overloading. Charles’s first instinct is to counteract the imbalanced system, but where to start?
To his surprise, Hank comes up with the best solution. “Maybe this is supposed to happen. What if it’s all part of that... ‘Powers that be’ thing?”
“How?” Charles asks back.
“All things considered, a more obvious course of action for Ziska might have been that she goes around zapping everyone as quickly as possible to entwine herself into this reality. So, the few hours before her literal time of birth would be the last chance to do so.”
“Here at home she’d be surrounded by tha people she’d know, they would come ta her assistance, and much like Rogue and Remy did.”
Charles shakes his head in disbelief and rubs his eyes. “That’s very logical and sensible, in a perverse sort of way. So, what would you two suggest?”
“Monitor her condition for now.” Hank starts. “If there is no improvement, we can medicate her to bring the levels down.”
******************************************
Top side, the guests have been made aware of the circumstances and stick around if only for moral support. Remy and Rogue have recovered well enough. Though they don’t regret their initial decision to decline the memory transfer, they don’t mind so much after the fact. Especially since Ziska is now alive, if not quite well.
Some of the resident gather in the parlor room and chit chat with their friends and in some cases relatives. Since Alex hasn’t arrived yet, Scott and Jean relax while sharing an oversized chair.
William enters, and is obviously nervous. When he spots Scott and Jean, he asks to join them. “So, what could cause this?”
“It looks like a telepathic coma.” Jean replies. “Considering how much she uses her powers, I’m not entirely surprised it caught up to her.”
William swallows an imaginary lump. “She… she did this to herself?”
“A little self restraint goes a long way.” Scott adds. Maybe she’ll get the idea now. He thinks to himself.
William proceeds with extreme caution. “But… what if she didn’t have a choice in the matter?”
Jean feels Scott tense up next to her, but she is the first to speak. “What are you trying to say William?”
“Well… back on Chandilar I did ask Ziska about why she eavesdrops all the time. She said she couldn’t turn her powers off.”
Scott is on his feet in a heart beat. “That’s not the kind of information you keep to yourself William!” He scolds and makes for the elevator, Jean and William right at his heels.
******************************************
Lilandra joined Charles a while ago, and tries to reassure him. She doesn’t think he has the strength to loose another child, especially not for a second time. She holds his hand as he looks through the window. He didn’t trust himself to stay in the room if some monitor wasn’t to his liking. Sean slowly paces back and forth, having come downstairs with Moira.
Hank and Moira continue to closely monitor Ziska’s levels. If anything, they are slowly getting worse, and not better. But not knowing where the problem started, they reluctant to administer the wrong medication for just one symptom. They hear the door to the medical ward slide open and watch Scott, Jean and William marching towards them. Scott looks angry.
“Can’t this wait?” Charles asks without turning around.
“It might be important.” Scott shoots back, slightly out of breath.
Charles impatiently turns around, looking at the three. “What is it then?”
Scott looks at William. “You might as well say it yourself.”
William takes a breath to calm his nerves. “When we where on Chandilar, I asked Ziska why she always eavesdropped telepathically. She said he couldn’t turn her powers off anymore, from too much exposure from other telepaths back in the other… whatever she calls it now.”
That
explains her reaction last week.
Lilandra thinks to herself. She has no control over the matter.
Charles turns again and glides into the exam room. “Henry, Moira, how much of that did you hear?”
“Hear what of what?” Hank asks.
“Sorry about that Charles.” Sean steps in. “I turned the microphone off.”
Charles tries to compose himself. “Have you done a brainwave scan yet?”
“Not as of yet.” Moira replies. “Considerin’ tha other results, it dinae seem a likely cause.”
Hank starts the test. “Oh my stars and garters… have a look at this!” He quickly steps aside letting everyone see the screen. “She must be simultaneously in everyone’s mind at once.”
“How… how bad is that?” William asks.
“Very bad, considering how many people are here and their own powers… it’s like she’s being attacked, but forcing the attack on herself. Even if she survives, the strain could do permanent damage on her psyche.” Jean replies. “We have to stop her.”
Charles nods. “Henry, Moira, please help me get her to Cerebro. Jean, ask Nathan to help us out as a back up. In case I can’t do anything it will be up to you two.”
******************************************
What is that? Betsy thinks to herself as she rubs her temples and closes her eyes.
“You alright?”
“I just have a wicked
headache. Irritating really.”
“Think it might be Brat
Xavier?”
“It is her fault though that she sneers whenever someone tries to give her good advice, especially her own father. God, if I’d have done that…”
“We’ve heard it before
“And what gave you that idea?”
“I am my father’s only daughter. There was little I couldn’t get away with.”
“That was cute when she was
eleven.”
Something up ahead catches Betsy’s
eye. “Is that
“Looks more like Remy’s. What the hell is it doing here though?”
******************************************
Sean got used to the stench of burning plastic, especially when he worked down in the garage. Coming from Moira’s lab was altogether different. He nearly broke the access panel getting in, catching a collapsing Moira. He looked up and watched Charles’s daughter hold one hand over some contraption Moira insisted on keeping around even though newer and more efficient machinery was available. It was still melting, but the fire was out. With a flick of her wrist, the window pane shattered. She then slowly turned to Sean.
“Hold your breath.” She said her eyes aglow with the drain from her power.
He does as she asks and covers Moira’s face, not sure what was about to happen. He then felt himself be pushed aside, as the air rushed out through the broken window.
“You can breathe now.” She started. “The fumes are gone.”
******************************************
Jean and Nathan walk down the long hallway to Cerebro. At first, Nathan thought that needing three high level telepaths to help one was over zealous. Then Jean told him about how thin Ziska must be stretched at the moment. Charles is the one who’ll save his daughter. Nathan and Jean are there to protect the others if things don’t go well.
Outside of Cerebro, Lilandra paces nervously and Scott and William are propping up Sean, who is getting over being zapped when he inadvertently came in contact with Ziska. As much as they’d all like to talk about their new memories, it will have to wait.
Inside, Cerebro is unusually crowded. Hank and Moira are still tending to Ziska medically, while Charles is preparing the machine.
“If everyone is ready?” Charles asks as calmly as he can.
Jean and Nathan take their positions, while Hank and Moira try to not interfere. The situation made the two doctors more than a little nervous. Even if Charles is just over cautious, being in the middle of a four-way telepathic tug of war to someone who has an idea what that might mean is terrifying. Hank and Moira can’t help but look around them as the machinery keeping taps on Ziska keeps beating rhythmically. Charles, Jean and Nathan each have their own way. Jean seems to be the most relaxed as she telepathically feels out the situation. Nathan clenches his jaw, much like his father when he is under stress.
Normally, Charles seems as relaxed as Jean is now. Given the circumstances however, he cannot find that kind of peace.
******************************************
Charles is used to the fact that his astral projection can walk. And usually, Charles can shape the Astral Plane to his will. He has at times used his own office for comfort, or the old standby, floating asteroids in space. But this isn’t the Astral Plane. It’s his daughter’s head. He hears shouting, recognizing most of the voices.
Ziska’s mind has interpreted the voices as a wide river with raging white rapids, while Charles is stuck on a small wobbly rock. He sees boulders all around him, though none of them offering much foothold. He looks up river, seeing fragments of walls along the way. Ziska had tried to create new blocks, but the rushing water keeps sweeping away her work. Then he looks downriver, only to realize that about fifty steps from his position the water disappears into a waterfall.
As he is preoccupied a strong wind picks up, nearly blowing him off his small perch, he hears voices in the wind as well, though he doesn’t recognize them. He quickly realizes that he also can’t fly, leaving him with few options. With a waterfall so close, he doesn’t want to try and swim. Taking careful aim, he leaps for the nearest boulder and barely hangs on. His foot just touches the water, but the screaming thoughts get louder, and he can barely hold on.
******************************************
As Betsy and Warren enter the front
door, she becomes so dizzy
“You okay Kurt?” Bobby asks.
“Things… aren’t going so well downstairs.” Kurt replies holding his aching head.
“What’s going on?” Betsy demands as she comes into the sitting room.
“Ziska went into some kinda psi coma. Jean went down earlier they even dragged Nathan down to help. Too bad Emma isn’t here.” Kitty replies.
“Good for her anyway.”
Betsy ignores
Kurt steadies himself against a column. “Might be a good idea.”
******************************************
Within Cerebro, Jean and Nathan try to be pro active while the Professor is working on Ziska’s mind. One by one, they block Ziska from hearing the thoughts of those in the mansion. So far unfortunately, it seems Ziska takes tighter hold of those she can still hear, making their work much harder.
No one would put themselves through this voluntarily. Nathan mentions, knowing Jean can hear.
Are you trying to make me feel guilty? She asks.
Just saying.
Did something happen?
The Professor confronted her about
her eavesdropping last week. It didn’t
go over that well. They haven’t actually
spoken that much since.
I can’t imagine this helps. Nathan replies. I just hope Charles is alright in there.
******************************************
Charles finally hop scotched his way across the river, narrowly avoiding disaster a few times. He takes a breath as he aims for the bank, finally making it to dry land. He has become aware of what Jean and Nathan are trying to do outside, and also wonders why it isn’t helping.
The river makes a sharp turn ahead of him, leaving Charles to guess where the source may be. When he finally makes it to the bend, he is awed by the sight before him.
Surrounded by a canyon, the remnants of a massive dam loom before him, a deep V shaped area missing at the center. The lake behind it, the thoughts of others, pour out even faster through the restricted space, flying in a high arch it what would under other circumstances be a beautiful waterfall. Charles notices some boulders inside the crack, constricting the channel even more.
That’s why it isn’t working! Charles realizes. Whenever they block one area of release, it constricts the whole river! “Stop!”
******************************************
Two minutes after all the psis entered their various trances, Hank and Moira are still working, but can’t help being concerned about Charles. He seems to be under great strain, and beads of sweat have formed on his face. Moira checks his pulse several times, and his heart rate increases.
Charles finally speaks. “Stop.”
“Sorry Charles.” Moira says as she backs away. “I dinae mean ta startle ye.”
Charles, however, doesn’t hear Moira. “Jean… Nathan… Stop!”
This can’t be good. Hank tells himself and grabs Nathan by the wrist shaking him to snap him out of his trance. Following his lead, Moira does likewise to Jean.
Coming back to, Nathan groans for a moment then stares Hank down. “What?”
“The Professor just asked you to stop. I presume he does not do so lightly.”
Jean listens to Hank, but her head feels like it’s about to explode. She looks down at Ziska. “God… I wonder what’s going on in there.”
******************************************
Charles watches as four of the constricting boulders vanish, somewhat slowing down the force of the water. He is knocked over by the sudden increase in wind however, and hears garbled words he can’t make out. As he scrambles back to his feet, He catches sight of Ziska, clad in a long black silk dress, drenched in water. Like Charles at his own arrival, Ziska is standing on a small boulder in the middle of the river. Unlike him however, there are no other boulders to leap frog to.
“Ziska!” He shouts as he believes himself to be in earshot. But the roar is so loud she cannot hear him. “ZISKA!” Finally she turns to him, but doesn’t say anything. She looks exhausted and pale. Charles takes a step into the river, but even with just his foot he nearly looses his balance. As he looks down, he sees the broken pieces missing from the dam creating an obstruction, making the already fast water even worse. He looks up again and watches a wave sweep over Ziska’s perch, but she is unfazed by it.
“Dad?” Ziska’s voice echoes around him. “What are you doing here?”
“I’m trying to help you!” He shouts back.
She turns back to the waterfall. “Not sure what it is you can do about that.”
“What happened?!”
He watches her head tilt back as she laughs maniacally. “Two-hundred lost brothers and sisters, that’s the what.”
“But they aren’t here. You can rebuild the wall.” He then looks around. “Can you safely get off that rock?”
“Nope.” She replies and wavers on her perch as if she were drunk. “When the first guests started to arrive early this morning I literally passed out mid flight, and when the rest showed up, it really flooded the riverbed. My path was right over her.” She points to her left.
“If the others leave, will things get better?” He asks.
“Didn’t get better when Generation X went home. It only gets worse.”
Charles considers again. “Why all this? The canyon, the river, the dam…”
Ziska laughs again. “Oh, because it isn’t what you see in your head it’s wrong?”
“Not what I meant and you KNOW THAT!” He angrily shouts back.
To his surprise the wind picks up again and he hears voices clearly know, mostly single words. “Brat” comes out a lot, “spoiled” and a few other choice terms. Then, his own voice echoes through the area. “Don’t make excuses for her…”
He regrets having said that,
especially considering current circumstances.
Then it occurs to him. The wind must be Ziska’s memories of others’
thoughts. That and all these thoughts flowing through... the fact that she
isn’t completely lost in here is a miracle! That’s why blocking out minds
actually makes things worse!
“So, do you really want to know why
I messed up? Because I tried envisioning
the
******************************************
Betsy finally makes it to the Cerebro room, and her head starts spinning again. It won’t stop her though. “I’m sorry I’m late, is there any way I can help?”
“I’m sure there is Betsy.” Scott replies and starts to override the Cerebro room door. “Careful, it’s a bit crowded in there.”
As soon as the door fully opens, Betsy dashes inside.
******************************************
“How much control do you have over the landscape?” He calls back.
Ziska’s shoulders sag as she glares at him. “Just a BIT preoccupied not drowning here Pops.”
“Can you widen the riverbed?”
Without responding, Ziska spreads her arms. Charles immediately feels the ground under his feet crumble, making him run for safety. His guess is right however, and the river is subsiding. He now clearly sees Ziska’s pathway. But Ziska isn’t in sight. He hears something behind him, so Charles spins to look.
“I’m here.” Ziska says and looks at the wider river. “Now what?”
Charles tries to stay calm. “This isn’t something we can repair Ziska.”
She glares again. “No, really? I thought nothing couldn’t be fixed with duct tape.”
“Stop that Ziska! We cannot repair it. We have to start from scratch.”
Ziska shakes her head in shock and disbelief. “Are you suggesting I tear down the whole canyon and let the river flow? Who are you trying to get killed here?”
“I don’t see any alternatives.” Charles then places his hands on the sides of his daughter’s face. “I trust you. And I’m more than willing to help any way I can.”
Ziska takes her fathers hands into her own and closes her eyes. Charles follows her lead and does likewise. Around him the wind picks up again and he hears the river roar louder. He hears and feels the earthquake as the canyon crumbles, and people’s quietest thoughts amplified to what he imagines a bad rock concert sounds like. He feels the spray of the river starting to go through his shirt and the water drenches his feet.
And then…. It’s quiet again.
“Daddy?”
For a moment, he doesn’t recognize her almost child like voice, quiet and gentle. But when he opens his eyes, there she stands, exhausted but safe. He takes a look around. Behind him the riverbed is now dry, and the scattered boulders and debris is no where to be seen. He looks at the canyon. It’s taller now, with a wider mouth, but the dam would be respectable even compared to Hoover Dam.
******************************************
“Betsy, what are you doing here?” Jean asks confused.
“Every other able telepath is here, I thought I might help a bit.” She replies.
“The Professor told us to stop helping.” Nathan asks.
In the even tighter quarters, Hank tries to reach for a box hanging on the gurney, and mid stride bumps Betsy into Ziska. “Oh not again today!” He hisses to himself.
Betsy is shocked. “I’m… I’m alright?”
Without the others noticing that he is back, Professor Xavier looks at his watch just as the hand moves to four twenty-five. “It’s over.”
Startled, Hank and the others turn back to him. “What is?” Hank asks.
“Accounting for the time difference, Ziska was born at four twenty-two in the afternoon. She took her first breaths literally twenty-one years ago. Her memory transfer powers have been eliminated.” Releasing himself from Cerebro, Charles comes over to Ziska. Hank and Moira look over their readings, realizing that her system is quickly starting to stabilize. Ziska sighs and starts to smile.
“Are you alright?” Charles asks.
“Yeah.” Ziska replies. “I just can’t remember the last time I was alone in my head.”
******************************************
With the guest of honor back on her feet, they intend to enjoy Ororo’s handiwork, so the birthday party is moved down to the lake. Ziska and most of the others with her in Cerebro change clothes, but she might as well be walking on the clouds. She hasn’t felt this good in years. Today really is a new day. She tells herself.
Betsy
is first to get to the party. She
quietly tells
“Let’s wait and see if there will be a difference.” He replies.
“Stubborn.” Betsy chides.
“I
thought you liked that about me?”
Bobby had taken it upon himself to be Master of Ceremonies. A part of that is to make sure all the drinks are nice and cool, as well as to watch out for the guest of honor. He and Ziska were always close, and he is the first to not just hope but truly believe things will be different from this day forward. Sure enough, a few minutes after Betsy arrives, here comes a group of people, a tall brunette walking next to the Professor.
He waits until they are just a few steps away, and acts the part he decided to play by yanking the microphone from the karaoke stand and turning down the music. “Ladies and gentlemen, may I have your undivided attention PLEASE.” He calls and everyone turns to him. “It gives me great pleasure to introduce our guest of honor this evening, our former mascot, our favorite little sister, little miss pig tails, my partner in crime on many an April-Fools prank, twenty-one years old today, Franziska Xavier!”
Party On! Erm… The End, For Now.