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Angel In The Attic	By : fusedtwilight Category: X-men Comics > AU - Alternate Universe Views: 5328 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own X-men, it is the property of marvel comics and in no way do i make a profit from this fic.

Chapter List
- 15
- 16
- 17
Angel in the Attic
Chapter 16

Fusedtwilight: Thanks to my beta lisa and thanks to everyone who reviwed.

It was on Sunday morning when the world changed.
Xavier was watching the news. He had gotten a call early in the morning to watch the television at nine.
Adonai was about to do a press conference. He hardly ever did press conferences, not having much love for reporters. It had been a few years since he did one and many were wondering what would cause him to do one now.
He was supposed to make a startling revelation.
Many of the reporters were making bets that he was about to come out of the closet. Others figured it had something to do with his company, maybe a merger?
The screen showed Adonai as he stood in front of the reporters in front of his building.
He smiled at the camera; his teeth were white and straight, giving the reporters and the cameras his best charm.
"Thank you all for coming. Our world is constantly changing. Governments come and go, old orders are replaced by new up-to-date ones and new species are being born and dying every day. My company has always prided itself in helping change take place. Helping to make new technologies that make our lives better, lending support to third world countries, we have long since deserved our name. Paradise. Because that is what we wish to achieve."
He began to take off his tie.
"Since I was a boy, I have had to work hard to earn the right to lead my family's company. It has not been easy and it takes up much of my time."
He took off his jacket.
"But I have always harbored what many would consider a dark secret; for a long time I have had to keep my true nature hidden from the world. But now I have decided it is time for the world to see me for what I really am, after all I have given is it so much to ask for something back?"
He began to unbutton his jacket.
"For a long time I have tried to remain hidden from the world, only coming out when absolutely necessary; so afraid my secret would be revealed. Now after hiding for so long I can finally spread my wings and fly."
He took off his shirt, showing off his perfectly muscled, bronze colored chest.
The reporters let out a collective gasp as a pair of golden colored wings expanded from behind his back; the camera had to pan out to show them once they were fully unfolded.
"Ladies and gentlemen, my name is Adonai Malakh. And I am a mutant."
The crowd of reporters broke out into a frenzy. Cameras flashed and they all shouted questions. He lowered his wings and the camera zoomed back onto him.
"Yes," he said pointing to a reporter.
"Adonai! How long have you been a mutant?" she asked.
"Since my teenage years. My family kept it a secret. Next question?" he asked pointing to another reporter.
"Adonai, has anyone else been aware of your status as a mutant?"
Adonai shook his head. "No, my parents knew but they died never once telling a soul."
Adonai pointed to another reporter. "Adonai, have you ever used your powers to unfairly get an edge over your competitors?"
"No, though I am sure that will not stop the wild accusations that I have," Adonai chuckled.
"Adonai, do you have any other powers?" another reporter asked without being pointed to.
"A few, but they are not noteworthy," Adonai responded.
"Adonai, is it true you donated a vast sum of money to the Xavier School for Gifted Mutants?"
Adonai nodded his head. "Yes I did. I felt the time has come for me to play a more active role in my fellow mutant's lives. I strongly believe Xavier and his X-Men are a force for good and will help bridge the gap between the two species."
"Adonai, how can you support a school that is also training children to be an army!" a reporter asked.
"The X-Men are not an army. They are a task force trained to defend humans from mutant threats and vice-versa."
"But they are not government sanctioned, don't you think they are a bad influence and send the wrong message about vigilantism?"
"What about the Avengers? The Fantastic Four? None of them were government sanctioned, yet they are some of the most beloved heroes in the world," Adonai argued.
"But the Avengers now operate under government jurisdiction and Reed Richard works for the government on several science projects."
"Then you should be aware that on many occasions the X-Men have worked with the government in both mutant and non-mutant crisis. In fact there was a government formed group of mutants called X-Factor some years back as you may all recall. Many of whom were X-Men. And there are rumblings of a new mutant task force being formed with members of the X-Men as members."
Xavier was shocked Adonai knew this. Val Cooper, the same woman who had formed X-Factor, had approached him with the idea of making a police force sanctioned by the government to help give the X-Men the authority to go places and do things they couldn't legally do before, as well as help improve their image.
But he only told a select few of his X-Men about this, it was a project still in the beginning stages. For Adonai to have access to such top secret information showed how well he must be connected.
"Adonai, you mentioned other abilities, please elaborate," one of the reporters asked.
"As I said they are not noteworthy. But I assure you they in no way can be used to harm other people," Adonai replied.
"Then if they are not dangerous why won't you talk about them?"
"Well, maybe I can give you a demonstration in private later," he said giving the female reporter who asked the question a wink.
The reporter blushed and many of the others laughed. Xavier had to hand it to Adonai, he was really good at this. He had lots of charm and charisma and skillfully deflected the question.
"Adonai, not too long ago a mutant from the Xavier institute was filmed battling another mutant. Is there a connection between you and him?"
"Ah, the YouTube kid. Yes, I have seen the footage. I have not met him, but don't let the wings fool you. There is no connection between us other than the fact that we share similar mutations. There have been cases of several other mutants with what the media has dubbed as the angel mutation. Two of whom also live at the Xavier mansion," Adonai said.
"Adonai, the Vatican has taken what some would call an anti-mutant stance due to the scientific nature of mutants. There have even been times when certain religious leaders have called your people heretics or even demons and a mockery. Looking the way you do how does this make you feel?"
"Good question, as you all know I am of Jewish ancestry. Although I do admit I have not been as dedicated to my faith as I should. I am hoping this new start in my life will help me come to a greater understanding with my creator and why he made me the way he did. One of the reasons I was always so fearful of revealing my secret was because of how it conflicted with my religious beliefs. But I have come to believe that God made me the way he made us all; perfect and in his image."
"So you believe in God? Despite groups like the Purifiers?"
"The Purifiers are not representatives of Christianity or humanity. They are a dangerous group of fanatic madmen who would just as soon kill a human and say it was the will of God."
Adonai's face went from charming to stern, disciplined, but none the less striking. Like a general addressing his troops.
"We are in a time of great change. There are those, both human and mutant who would like to start a war, to foolishly make this a race war. But this is not a war, this is not about survival. This is merely a time when we must prove that no matter who and what we are, our humanity will always win out. Thank you all ladies and gentlemen for your time."
His guard handed him his clothes and he began to walk back into his building, putting his shirt and jacket back on.
Just then Xavier's door burst open. Scott, Warren, Jean, Emma, Hank, Logan and a few other X-Men ran in.
"Professor did you see?" Scott asked.
"He is a mutant!" Jean exclaimed.
"Yes, I saw," Xavier said.
"One of the most powerful and influential men in the whole world just came forward and announced he is a mutant. This is going to make some serious waves," Emma stated.
"Emma is right. Now that Adonai has come out, the mutant/human relations will be tested," Hank pointed out.
Just then the phone rang and Xavier answered it.
"Hello?"
"Hello Charles, did you enjoy the news?"
"Adonai?"
"Yes, sorry I didn't tell you sooner," he said.
"Are you sure this was a wise choice Adonai? This is sure to have repercussions for you," Xavier said.
"Yes, I am planning on making some serious changes in my life and this is just the first step," he proclaimed.
"That is a very interesting mutation you have Adonai. It seems like more of your type are appearing," Xavier said.
Adonai chuckled. "Yes, the boy from YouTube. Tell me, are you free any time this week? I would very much like to visit your school."
"I can arrange something, our doors are always open."
"Splendid, how about tomorrow?"
"So soon? Won't you have to do some damage control?"
"Please, if Stark can get away with the things he does I am sure this will blow right over."
"Very well, if you wish. What time can we expect you?"
"Five in the afternoon?"
"Sounds good, we look forward to seeing you Adonai," Xavier said.
"As do I Charles."
They hung up the phone and Xavier rested his chin in his hands.
"Well, it seems Adonai would like to pay us a visit tomorrow," Xavier said.
"Is it just me or does this guy seem to perfect?" Bobby asked.
"Which is why we should keep an eye on him; he is a mutant and he is one of the most powerful and influential men in the world," Scott reminded them.
"I agree. I have a feeling there is more to Adonai then meets the eye," Xavier intoned.

Victor sat in his room looking at his new arm.
He was happy it was much stronger than his other arm; it was capable of smashing through a brick wall like it was made out of graham crackers. But it was so much more scaly and bigger than his other arm.
Santo had suggested that he cut off the other arm to make a matching set. Victor just punched him right through a wall.
There was a knock on his door and he got up and opened it, to his surprise he found Rickard standing at his doorway.
"Oh, hey Rickard," Victor greeted him.
"How is your arm?" he asked.
"Oh, you know." Victor flexed his arm, enjoying the sight of all the muscles in it stretching.
Rickard walked over to him and sat next to him. "Can I feel it?"
"Sure," Victor nodded.
Lots of people had wanted to feel his new arm. Before his skin had been smooth and green, but now his whole right arm had a scaly caprice on it with three small, bony-like spikes protruding out along his shoulder.
Rickard gently put his right hand on Victor's arm. Because of the caprice Victor could barely feel it. Yet it still sent little jolts all over his body to have Rickard touching him.
Rickard marveled at the feel of the rough, scaly caprice.
"What was it like when it grew back?" Rickard asked.
"Well...it hurt at first, but then I got this odd feeling when it was a stump. Then the bone started to grow out, then the muscles soon after, quickly followed by the skin. It only took a few moments though."
Rickard took his hand off Victor's arm and Victor felt a small pang of disappointment.
"I am sorry about your arm," Rickard said.
"It's okay, I kind of like it. I have to be careful what I grip though," Victor said with a smile.
"No, it's not okay. We all got our asses handed to us, Victor. I should have been able to take down the Juggernaut myself with my power," Rickard lamented.
"Dude, it was the freaking Juggernaut. The only reason I knocked him out was because Michael was able to weaken him. He's fought some of the strongest heroes and come out on top. We were all damn lucky."
"We won't always be lucky though," Rickard muttered.
Victor frowned at the look on Rickard's face.
"Dude, why the pity party? We won, we kicked ass, sure we failed to get the box but at least we lived to fight another day," Victor shrugged.
Rickard smiled. "You're right Victor. I am feeling sorry for myself. I need to learn from my mistakes instead of dwelling on them," he said.
"That's the spirit," Victor grinned.
"It's just when you got hurt...I was so worried. I thought you might die from blood loss or-"
Rickard stopped when he noticed Victor was slowly disappearing as his power of camouflage started to kick in. When Rickard started talking about how worried he was about him Victor started to get nervous and flustered and his power started to kick in.
"Victor, are you okay?" Rickard asked.
Victor focused and he reappeared. "Yeah, sorry that happens sometimes."
"Don't be, we all lose control every once in a while," Rickard said.
Victor smiled. Wishing he could be brave and tell Rickard how he really felt.

The next day Adonai drove to the Xavier Institute.
He drove there in his Porsche 918 Spyder. He drove down the road, having been let in at the gate and pulled up to the front of the school.
Xavier was there to meet him along with Scott and Jean.
"Hello Adonai, welcome to the school," Xavier greeted him.
Adonai shook his hand and smiled. "Glad to be here. So, may I have the grand tour?" he asked.
"Of course, follow me," Xavier nodded.
The next hour was spent showing Adonai the school; the kitchen, the cafeteria, the gym, the greenhouse, the auditorium, the main hall, the computer room, the rec room and the dormitories.
Many students passed them; some even poked their heads out of their rooms to get a good look at Adonai. Everyone knew he was supposed to visit today and they were told to be on their best behavior. They had also seen the clip of him revealing his mutation.
"I must say Charles, this is all impressive. What you have built is truly amazing," Adonai remarked.
"Thank you. I did not do it alone; my X-Men helped me make my dream as did the others like you who helped us during financially difficult times," Xavier explained.
"Just doing my part."
"So, what has been the fallout of you coming out?" Xavier asked.
"Oh, the usual; rival companies accusing me of cheating by using my mutant powers, a drop in sales because some people don't want to buy products made by a mutant. People are trying to wiggle out of contracts to avoid being associated with someone like me. Nothing I won't survive, truth be told, if I had known some of my business partners would have cut all ties with me I would have done this sooner," Adonai laughed.
"Well, would you like to meet our special students?" Xavier asked.
"Show me everything you have to offer," Adonai said.
They walked into a large classroom. Emma was in there as usual dressed in white, her hair pulled back into a bun and looking both gorgeous and professional. Several students stood at attention. They were all dressed very smartly as well, having been informed of the visit they were being paid.
Among those present were the Stepford sisters, Julian, David, and Rickard.
"Charles, just in time, I was telling everyone to be on their best behavior," Emma said.
"Emma, so lovely to see you again," Adonai smiled.
He shook her hand. To everyone present it seemed to be the polite thing to do, but no one knew what he was really doing. Being a psychometric had its advantages.
Like at an information gathering; one touch was all he needed to learn what he needed about a person or thing.
Years ago he had met Emma when she was a member of the Hellfire Club. To the public the Hellfire Club was a group of wealthy and powerful individuals who were organized under their mutual similarities. Mainly being rich and influential.
But what people didn't know was that that was just the outer circle of the club. The inner circle had been much more devious. Instead of wanting to flaunt their power and wealth for fun like the outer circle, the inner circle desired to rule the world, using their combined resources to do this. They had clashed with the X-Men many times and Emma had once been a member until she realized just how truly evil and corrupt the club really was.
Adonai saw all of this when he shook her hand. But it had been a long time ago that he met her and now there was more to see. He saw how she formed her own group of mutant students called the Hellions. He saw how much she enjoyed teaching them, not just how to use their mutant powers but science, literature and math.
He saw her students die in a horrible attack by the Sentinels; he saw her pain and anguish over their loss, he saw how it changed her, made her want to be a better person. He saw her move to Genosha to teach, only to once again survive yet another Sentinel attack that killed millions.
But once again she survived thanks to her secondary mutation activating, turning her skin into organic diamond.
He also saw she was having a psychic affair with Scott Summers.
A beautiful redhead for a wife, and a gorgeous blonde as a mistress. Adonai had to give Scott credit, he had good taste.
"Adonai, it has been a long time," Emma said.
"Good to see you finally got away from Shaw. Though I doubt it was easy," Adonai noted.
"My only regret is that I ever associated myself with Shaw or the club. But that is behind me. I am in a better place now," she smiled.
"This is the special class. These are our brightest, most promising students who show the best potential out of all our students. They are taught much more advanced classes then the rest of the students," Xavier explained.
"This is Rickard, he is my assistant," Emma said introducing Rickard.
"Pleased to meet you, sir," Rickard said extending his hand.
Adonai took it and just like Emma he learned much about Rickard. His power, his history, the fact that he was the team leader of the Champions, and it was the latter fact that made him take an interest in Rickard more so then the other students.
Anyone who was close to Michael could prove to be useful.
Normally he wouldn't bother using this aspect of his power, he could just use his telepathy to learn what he wanted, but with Xavier and all the other telepaths in this building he couldn't risk someone sensing him poking around, so he just stuck with his psychometry.
"Are you an X-Man?" Adonai asked.
"No, but I am training to be one. I graduated from here a few years ago and came back from college to learn how to be a hero."
"You can't teach someone to be a real hero, son. That is knowledge that can only come within. Though it doesn't hurt to have wonderful examples," Adonai responded.
One by one he was introduced to all the other students. He shook hands and smiled, but as soon as he realized Michael was not here he didn't care about any of them.
They were not who he was here for. Even if they did have much potential and were the best the school had to offer they were of no use to him and thus worthless to him.
Julian was impressed by Adonai, which was not an easy thing to do. Julian was hardly ever impressed by anyone due to his own ego. But Adonai just demanded respect and attention.
Maybe it was his size; he was as tall as Peter. Or maybe it was the way he dressed; in a personally tailored suit that cost more than anything Julian had ever worn. But Adonai just had an aura about him, like a king. Like a lion; majestic to look at, but get too close or piss him off, then you would see the claws.
He noticed David had this strange look on his face.
"What's wrong with you?" he asked.
David, or Prodigy as he was known as, had an ability similar to Adonai's. He had a psychometric field around his body that allowed him to absorb the knowledge of those around him, but once they were far enough away, all the knowledge he got from them disappeared.
Unlike Adonai who could absorb knowledge and memories, David only got the knowledge of people, different languages, mathematics, engineering; everything that made a person smart would flow into him, and vanish once they were far enough away.
"It's...I am getting something...I don't really get it but I am getting dozens of different languages. Many of which I have never heard of. And there is other stuff. Words...phrases. Charfym, Empyreal Spirits. It's not making much sense."
Adonai heard their conversation and realized what was going on. He knew from reading the thoughts of the others what David was and knew he couldn't let David touch him. David's power was similar enough to his that if they touched there was a possibility David could read Adonai, and in response, the jigwould be up.
He quickly placed his hands in his pockets and smiled at everyone. "It's a pleasure to meet all of you. I am glad to see such promising young men and women being taught how to use their abilities to their fullest potential. When you all graduate and ever need a job, come speak with me. I am always on the search for new talent," Adonai praised.
Just then he sensed someone poking at his mind...no, not someone...someones. Had he not been experienced as he was with telepathy he might have mistaken them as a singular mind. But if he examined closely enough he spotted the differences in the signatures.
He looked to the Stepford triplets and realized it was them. They looked remarkably like younger versions of Emma. And they were all three exactly alike. That would explain why he had mistaken them as one being. They were a mental gestalt; their connection to each other was so powerful that to the untrained psychic eye they were a single entity.
He felt all three poking at his mental shields. Nosy little brats, they were skilled and with three minds working so efficiently as one they were tricky to keep out, being able to work much more quickly and efficiently then a normal psychic.
He just smiled at them and wagged his finger at them. "Now, now ladies. It's rude to read a person's mind without permission," he admonished.
"Mindee, Celeste, Phoebe, stop that at once!" Emma demanded, realizing he was right. "That is not acceptable behavior!"
"Sorry Miss Frost," they all said together.
"Apologize this instant," Emma said sternly.
They apologized and Adonai just chuckled. "It is fine, telepaths are very curious by nature. And being who I am I am quite sure the temptation to read my mind must be irresistible."
"Still no excuse, I expect better from my students," Emma frowned.
"Still using a firm hand Emma. Well, we won't keep you. Shall we explore the rest of the school?"
They left the room and the class resumed, though the Stepfords were now expected to each turn in a report on why it was wrong to invade another's mind.
David, who was sitting next to them, leaned over and asked, "Did you guys learn anything cool? Any dirty secrets?"
All three of them shook their heads. "No, he had impressive shielding. To have sensed us and protect his mind so well; he must be a powerful telepath," Celeste commented.
"It's weird; all that stuff I got earlier is gone now. I think I got it from that Adonai guy," David said.
"Is it just me, or does that guy kind of look like Bronson?" Julian asked.
"Michael?" David asked.
"Who else?" Julian nodded.
"Well, now that you mention it, there are some similarities," David agreed.
"The same lovely curly, black hair," Celeste started.
"The same handsome face," Phoebe continued.
"The same smoldering amber eyes," Mindee smiled.
"Yeah, all that," Julian said ignoring the dreamy looks on the girls faces.
"Yeah, there is a bit of a family resemblance," David admitted.
"A bit? If I didn't know better I would say they were father and son," Julian voiced.

Michael was on his way to the art room to get ready for class when he heard the sounds of someone talking.
He stopped at the door when he heard Peter and Kitty conversing.
"Peter, I am sure she is okay," Kitty said.
"But it has been days since she contacted anyone. Something must be wrong," Peter argued.
"I am sure Illyana is fine. Wouldn't be the first time she had an emergency in Limbo," Kitty noted.
Michael knocked on the door. He walked in and saw that Kitty was sitting on Peter's desk while she talked to Peter.
"Excuse me, is your sister okay?" Michael asked.
The last time he saw Illyana was when she had been fighting those gas demons while she told them how to beat the Juggernaut.
"We have not heard from her since she last went to Limbo," Peter said looking worried.
"And that's that horrible place where she teleported to, right?" Michael asked.
Whenever Illyana ever teleported she had to make a quick stop to a place known as Limbo. It was a hellish place that gave Dante the inspiration for his work on the Inferno. Michael had only been there once when Illyana had helped rescue him from Magneto.
Once was enough.
"Is there any way to contact her?" Michael asked.
"Sadly no, Limbo is literally another dimension a part from our world. My sister is the ruler of that place since she dethroned the former ruler, Belasco," Peter explained.
"She goes back there every once in a while to keep the demons there from getting out of hand," Kitty said.
"Last time I spoke with her she mentioned something about gas demons," Michael remembered.
A look of disgust crossed Kitty's face. "God I hate those things."
"The demons rebel every once in a while and she takes care of them. But she keeps in touch so I don't worry. Time in Limbo is...flexible. Minutes here can be years there. She should have returned home by now," Peter said, looking worried.
"Don't worry; I have seen your sister with her sword. If any demons give her trouble she'll just give them a little tap," Michael smiled.
"You mean she'll slice them into several pieces and mount their heads on her wall," Kitty laughed.
"That too," Michael grinned.
Unlike Peter who was a gentle giant, his sister had a mean streak.
Just then Devin appeared having run to find Michael. "Dude, you got to see what is happening on the front yard!"

A whole bunch of the students gathered around the front of the lawn.
An angry red glowing crack appeared in the air.
"What the hell is that?" Wayne asked.
"I don't know," Rickard frowned.
Wayne took a picture of it on his cell phone. "Weird, I can't even get a pic of it, there is nothing but static."
Michael appeared with Devin.
"What is that?" Michael asked.
"No one knows. It just suddenly appeared. An-"
Just then the crack began to glow brighter and brighter and brighter still.
"Guys maybe we should-"
Before Michael could finish the crack exploded with light, when it dissipated, those who were closest to the light were gone.
Jacob, who had been shielding his eyes from the blast of light looked around. Michael, Rickard, Devin and Wayne were gone
Xavier and a few other teachers arrived, having just heard about the strange crack in the air.
"What happened?" Xavier asked.
Adonai knew exactly what it was. He knew a dimensional rip when he saw one; the only question was where did it take those caught in the blast?

Michael felt someone shaking him.
"Michael! Wake up!"
He opened his eyes and saw Rickard standing over him, as was Victor.
"What happened?" He sat up and looked around. "Oh."
They were no longer at the school. It was nighttime and the land was rocky; he could see fire in the distance as if the earth was burning.
"Where are we?" Michael asked.
"We don't know. One minute we were looking at that glowing thing and now we are here," Victor said.
Michael looked around and saw it wasn't just them. There was Alani, Santo, Benjamin, Megan, and Nezhno as well.
"Is there anyone else?" he asked.
"I don't think. But there were plenty of other students close to that thing," Victor noted.
"Where are we?" Megan repeated Michael's question.
"I think...we're in Limbo," Michael said standing up.
"But how? Magik is the only one who can get here," Alani frowned.
"Not necessarily."
Everyone looked up and gasped. Standing on top of a boulder was Illyana, only instead of normal human legs she had a pair of goat-like legs. She had a tail similar to Nightcrawler'sthat moved from behind her; only instead of blue it was red, a pair of horns grew from her head and her eyes glowed an eerie yellowish orange color.
But she was not alone; next to her stood a creature that was over six-feet tall, its scales were a muddy green color with red eyes. It also had a long snout with razor-sharp teeth in its mouth. Three fingers plus an opposable thumb on each hand, a pair of bat-like wings that grew from its back completed the creature's look.
"Hello everyone, nice to see you," Illyana said with a sinister smile.
"Illyana what is going on?" Rickard asked.
"Isn't it obvious Rickard? We are all in hell now. Well, as close to hell as can be. This is Limbo," Illyana explained.
"But how did we get here?" Victor asked.
"I got you here. I was trying to summon some help to deal with Belasco, but he caught on to what I was trying to do and interfered with my spell. I was able to pull you lot in but Belasco got the rest I am afraid," she told them.
"Guys look!" Nicholas shouted, pointing off in the distance.
A large group of demons were heading their way. They were horrible to behold; some had scales, some had wings, some had claws and some had tentacles. But they all shared the same murderous look in their eyes (and some had more than two).
"Seems Belasco sent us a welcoming committee," Illyana noted.
"X-Men, take them down!" Rickard yelled.
The X-Men immediately went to war with the demons. Wolf Cub with his enhanced speed and reflexes, as well as his razor-sharp claws quickly tore through several demons.
Pixie flew above a group sprinkling them with her pixie dust,causing them to have severe hallucinations involving bubbles, glitter and teddy bears.
Match used his fire powers to burn many, reducing them to darkened flesh. Which was surprising as you would think demons were all fireproof.
Anole used his new arm to smash many demons, he could feel their bones break beneath his fist but he did not hesitate. Rockslide fought next to him, smashing demons left and right, he noticed a nasty looking one with a giant mouth like a crocodile's about to bite into Anole. He shot his fist at the demon, saving Anole who had not noticed it.
Rickard used his sound powers to tear the demons up; manipulating the frequencies to cause their innards to explode.
"Watch yourself Victor," Rickard said.
Anole smiled. "Thanks Rickard. Your really are a lifesaver."
"Anytime," he mumbled.
"Oh God, you two really need to get a room," Rockslide commented.
The two of them blushed and glared at him. "Shut up!" they both said.
Michael shot a ball of angel fire at one of the demons. To his surprise the second it hit the demon it exploded with light and turned the demon to dust. He had only meant to burn it, not kill it.
N'astirh the demon, growled and Illyana petted his muzzle. "Easy N'astirh."
"That boy, he reeks of white magic!" N'astirh hissed.
"Of course he does, he can control the empyreal fire," she said.
"Why, in the name of the darkest pits would you bring him here?!"
"Because, what better way to kill an evil sorcerer then to use someone who uses magic that destroys evil magic?" she asked.
"But you're just as vulnerable to his power as well. What if he doesn't want to help you?"
"He will; Michael is a good and caring person. He will be easy to manipulate," she smirked.
The X-Men cheered as the remaining demons fled. Illyana smiled and spoke to them.
"Well done, glad to see all that hard work at training you all is paying off."
"Illyana what is going on here? Your brother is worried sick about you," Rickard said.
"To answer your question Rickard, a few months ago Belasco returned. He secretly gathered followers and staged an uprising."
"But I saw you a few days ago, you helped me defeat Juggernaut," Michael was confused.
"A few days? That was months ago, though I blame the fact that this world and earth have conflicting times. When Belasco and I fought he overpowered me and stole my soul sword. Luckily N'astirh found me in the wastes and unlike S'ym, decided to continue following me."
"Why didn't you call for help sooner or teleport back to earth?" Victor asked.
"I tried, but Belasco cast a binding spell on me so I can't return to earth as long as he lives. And I was constantly on the run from him, if I tried to communicate with you it would have tipped him off to my location. But I soon realized if I was going to take him out I was going to need help, so N'astirh and I combined our power and tried to cast a spell to summon the X-Men to us. I was hoping for the more experienced members, but you will have to do."
"But what about the others?" Alani asked.
Illyana smiled. "I am sure they were getting the royal treatment."

Josh, Wayne, Devin, the Stepford's, Martha, Paras, Sooraya, Cessily, X-23, Blut and David were shackled in chains. Pheobe, Mindee and Celeste had these strange metal helmets on their heads as did Martha, though since Martha was just a brain in a glass shell she fit in her helmet perfectly.
They were surrounded by demons. They all knelt at the foot of a set of stairs. At the top was a man who sat on a throne; he wore a large fur coat that was the same color red as his skin. He had large pointed teeth, glowing red eyes, small goat-like horns, and pointed ears.
He had only one arm; his right which was holding a sword. A very familiar sword.
"Hey, isn't that Illyana's soul sword?" David asked.
"Looks like it," Cessily said.
Belasco smiled. "Ah, I see you recognize this wonderful thing."
He stood up and began to walk down the stairs, admiring the sword as he walked.
"Such a beautiful sword, though seeing how it was made from her soul it is no wonder. But such power it has; no spell nor curse can withstand its bite. Nor can any mystical entities. It is the ultimate weapon against magic."
He stopped in front of the group. He looked down and smiled at David who suddenly felt afraid. Belasco brought the sword up and then brought it down, right onto David's head.
"No!" Sooraya yelled.
David shook, waiting for the sword to split his head open. But nothing happened. Everyone stared in shock. The sword just passed right through his head, as if David was made of air.
"Sadly, it is useless against mundane beings. But that's okay, it's not like I need it for that," Belasco said.
"What do you want from us?" Cessily asked.
"I want you to tell me where that bitch is."
"What are you talking about you red skinned freak?" Wayne asked.
Something shot out from behind Belasco, striking Wayne in the face. It was a tail, similar to Nightcralwer's, but red instead of blue.
"Mind your tone boy. I am looking for Illyana. She has something of mine," Belasco scolded.
"And what is that?" David asked.

"What is that?" Michael asked, staring at something Illyana held up.
Everyone looked at the medallion Illyana held. It was round and there was a shape of a pentagram on it.
"This is the Beatrice medallion. Belasco was once a mortal sorcerer who practiced the dark arts. He came into contact with the Elder Gods. In return for immortality and great power he planned on using this to release them from their prison. Once this thing has five blood stones it will open a portal to the Elder Gods and allow them to walk the earth again. I snagged it from Belasco when he took my sword."
"So why don't you just destroy the damn thing?" Anole asked.
"Because we need this thing to stop him; if we destroy it he will kill the others out of vengeance."
"How do we use it? I don't think we want to summon any super demon gods," Rickard said.
"The only way we can kill him is with a soul sword and since he took mine we need to make another one," Illyana said.
"And how do we do that?"
Illyana smiled sinisterly. "By using one of your souls. Preferable hers."
She pointed at Megan who stared at her wide eyed. "Me?"
"Yes, you. With your soul I can make a new soul sword. That's how I made the first one. I can use the medallion to extract a part of your soul just as Belasco did to me all those years ago and with that portion-"
"Whoa hold the phone lady!" Victor shouted. "I know this story. But what you are forgetting to mention is that when he took a part of your soul that missing spot was filled with evil. That is why you look like this now; this is your Darkchyld form. It is when you are overcome with evil."
She shrugged. "True, but we don't have much choice. As we speak Belasco is interrogating your friends. I can almost hear the screams."

"Enough," Belasco ordered.
The demons who had been beating on Paras stopped. They backed away, revealing his bloody and beaten form.
"I will ask again, where is she?" Belasco asked.
"We told you, we don't know!" David yelled.
"I think they are telling the truth," S'ym, a seven-foot purple-skinned demon with a single horn on his forehead said.
"True. There is only so much one can see one's comrade be beaten before they just give in," Belasco smirked.
Just then a demon appeared, flying from overhead. He landed a few feet from Belasco, bowing his head. "My lord, we found the other mutants!"
"And?" Belascco asked.
"And they were with her, sir!
"And?"
"And...we tried to capture them."
"Tried?"
The demon looked rather nervous.
"Well, they proved to be rather...formidable an-"
Before he could finish Belasco raised his hand and a bolt of red energy shot out and struck the demon, turning him to dust.
"And you failed. Well, at least I know for sure the rest of you lot are with her. No doubt she is planning to use your friends. The spell I cast prevents her from entering this castle and she can't even use her stepping-discs to teleport here."
"Well, then you're in trouble buddy because our friends will come and save us!" Josh sneered.
Belasco smiled. "Let me tell you something boy, your friends would be safer with me then her."

"No, not only no, but hell no!" Victor shouted.
"You don't have a choice lizard boy. I need a soul sword to kill Belasco; as long as he is alive none of us can go back home," Illyana said.
"No, we must find another way!" Rickard grumbled.
"N'astirh, bring me the girl," Illyana ordered.
N'astirh spread his wings and flew toward Megan. The others instantly formed a circle around her. Ben tried to fry him but unlike the other demons, N'astirh was fireproof.
He grabbed Ben and when he did Ben's form changed. His fire became more intense and his ears became pointed as did his nails and canines
"Ben, are you-"
Before Alani could finish asking the question Ben shot an arc of fire at them. They all dodged, N'astirh grabbed Nicholas as he tried to avoid the fire and like Ben, Nick changed; his look became more lupine, his eyes turned yellow and like Ben, he turned on the others.
"What did you do to them?" Victor yelled.
"It's my power; I can bring out the darkness in all I touch," N'astirh gloated.
"Don't let him touch you!" Rickard shouted.
"Yeah, no shit!" Santo exclaimed.
He charged at N'astirh, but the demon formed a ball of dark energy and shot it at him. There was an explosion and tiny bits of rock fell everywhere.
"Santo!" Megan yelled.
Nicholas rushed at Alani but she did her best to avoid his attacks. She couldn't control her power to the point where she could phase through something without causing it to crumble and she didn't want to hurt him. Victor backed her up, his physiology and new arm helped give him an edge.
Michael took on Ben, being immune to his fire.
Rickard fought N'astirh because his sound manipulation power made it easy for him to fight the demon.
Rickard went to blast N'astirh with enough power to slice him to ribbons, but N'astirh used his power to cause the ground beneath his feet to grab a hold of Rikard's legs. Rikard looked down to see what happened and N'astirh used this to place his hand on Rikard's chest.
Rickard's hair turned pure white as did his eyes. His skin turned pale and dark lines appeared all over his body.
N'astirh then went flying at Megan who was being guarded by Nezhno. He went flying back, slamming into a stone pillar and falling to the ground.
Nezhno was now almost eight-feet tall, his entire body bulged with rock hard muscles and the tattoos on his body glowed with a white light.
"Stay away from her, demon!" he yelled.
"Nezhno, no!" Megan screamed.
Nezhno, whose codename was Gentle had the power of extreme strength. When in his super form, his strength went beyond one hundred tons. But this power came at a price. The only thing keeping all that power from turning on him and killing him was his tattoos which were actually vibranium used to keep his powers in check.
But there was no telling how long they would work for, so he only used his ability in the direst of circumstances, because he could never be sure which time he used his power would be the time it killed him.
Nezhno returned to his normal form and fell unconscious.
"Bring her to me," Illyana instructed Rickard.
Rickard began to advance on Megan.
Michael was fighting both Benjamin, and Nicholas. Alani and Victor stood next to Megan. Rickard continued to advance on Megan.
"Rickard, don't do this. Come on man, snap out of it!" Victor shouted.
Rickard just smiled. He held up his hand and a piercing sound surrounded the trio, causing them to fall to their knees.
"Rickard stop!" Michael yelled.
Nicholas slashed at Michael who instinctively raised his arm in defense. He cried out as Nick's razor-sharp claws cut into his skin, drawing blood.
Michael raised his uninjured hand and blasted him back.
He quickly looked at his arm to see how bad the damage was. As he inspected the damage, a soft light emanated from the ground. As soon as his blood touched the ground it glowed with a soft white light. Grass was slowly growing out of the earth; (could it still be called earth if they were in another dimension?)wherever his blood landed fresh grass began to grow, followed soon by flowers.
Roses grew; not just red ones but white ones and yellow ones and colors of all different mixes. The ground had been red before, his mother who loved to garden passed the knowledge onto her children that red earth signified being infertile; which was bad for growing anything.
But black meant fertile; good soil.
The fiery landscape alone told you this place was not a good place to grow so much as a weed. But now life was sprouting from the ground, a perfect beauty mark in an ugly world.
Illyana saw this and frowned. The empyreal fire was in his blood as well, it was purifying the land; cleaning it of evil. Limbo was a magical realm, much more so then Earth. Since Michael was a mutant who tapped into a mystical source it granted him a few other abilities he could not have on Earth.
Like being able to purify evil from the ground.
But if he could do that to the ground then what else could he heal?
Nicholas charged at Michael again but Michael blocked his attack and grit his teeth as his bad arm connected with Nick's. But then Nick howled and light shined on his arm.
Some of Michael's blood had smeared on the feral mutant's arm. The blood seemed to absorb into his skin; the glow traveled all over his body and he returned to his normal form.
"Michael?" he asked looking confused.
"My blood," Michael said realizing what happened.
Acting quick he rushed at Benjamin and Ben tried blasting him with his fire but it did not affect Michael. Michael grabbed Benjamin by the throat and wiped his blood on Benjamin's face. Just like with Nicholas the blood shined white and absorbed into Benjamin's body, cleaning it, returning him to his true form.
"Michael! Watch out!" Megan cried.
There was a sound like a moving train and a large portion of Michael's right wing was blown off. Blood splattered the ground, more grass and flowers sprung up where it hit.
Michael ignored the pain and spun around. Rickard smiled evilly at him, his hand raised.
"You know Michael I always wanted to find out which of us is stronger; me and my sound, or you and your angel fire." He frowned when he saw what Michael's blood was doing. "Since when can you do that?"
"About the same time I could do this!"
Michael rushed at Rickard and right when he was about to blast Michael, Michael channeled a blast of angel fire from his eyes. The sudden radiance blinded Rickard and while he was distracted Michael swung what was left of his wing at Rickard, causing blood to splatter on him.
Just like before the blood began to purify Rickard. He fell to his knees and Michael helped him up.
"Michael? Your wing? Oh God, you're not going to die, are you?"
Michael looked at his wing. "I think both my wings have to be removed for that to happen. I feel fine...well it hurts a lot but I can fix that." His wing glowed and it repaired itself. "There, all better."
"I am so sorry I attacked you. That thing he-"
Before he could finish there was a flash of green light. Everyone save for Megan was thrown back against the rock pillars. The rocks moved and covered them, keeping any of them from moving.
"Well, that happened," Illyana said.
She walked up to Megan, a wicked smile on her lips.
"Time for us to have a little chat. Girl to girl."
"Please don't hurt them," Megan pleaded.
"Why would I do that? I need them, but I need you more Megan. It takes a pure soul to make a soul sword. If any soul could be used Belasco would have used his own; but his is black as night and not right."
"Use my soul! Leave her alone!" Michael yelled.
"You would make a lovely soul sword, but it takes black magic to create one and with the white fire dwelling inside you the spell would not work. It has to be her."
"Will...will I be able to save my friends?" she asked.
"Megan, don't!" Victor yelled.
"Leave her alone!" Ben screamed.
"Of course, we'll make us a new soul sword, then I will teach you a spell that will take us to Belasco's palace and we will save the others there. What will it be Megan? Do you have what it takes to be a real hero? Or will you leave them all to die?"
Megan was never one for making hard decisions. She left that to the professionals. She was just a Welsh girl with a Tinker Bell complex who liked to collect My Little Pony dolls.
The hardest decision she has ever had to make was to leave her home and come to America to go to Xavier's.
But this would definitely top that.
"If it will help my friends, then yes. I will do it!" she cried, with tears running down her face.
Illyana smiled and raised the medallion. "Good girl."
A circle of light in the shape of a pentagram appeared on the ground with the pair of them in the center of it.
"Just to warn you, this might hurt."
Light short from the medallion and struck Megan. Everyone yelled, calling her name, but she couldn't hear them over the sound of her own screams.
Michael tried to summon his strength to free himself, but the rock did not budge.
"Michael! Hit me with your angel fire!" Victor yelled.
"But my hands are tied!" Michael yelled back.
"Shoot them out of your eyes!"
"Oh, yeah."
Michael focused on the edge of the rock holding Victor, not wanting to accidentally hit him. His angel fire shot out and hit the rocks holding Victor.
Megan fell to the ground as the illumination from the medallion pulled out a small glowing ball of light.
"Yes! Perfect!" Illyana exclaimed.
She went to grab the light, but Victor jumped down behind her. He rushed forward and brought back his fist and punched Magik in the back, sending her flying forward.
He ran forward and knelt down next to Megan. "Megan!" he cried, shaking her slightly.
Megan opened her eyes. "Victor?"
"It's okay Megan. I got you."
"I don't have horns like her do I?" she asked.
"No you look th-" It was then he realized she was different. Her hair which had been pink before now had black streaks in it.
Illyana stood up, brushing the dust off her body. She began to advance on the two, her eyes blazed with anger. "Enough of this! I am going to take her soul and if I have to go through you, then so be it!"
Just then there was a tremor. The ground exploded and a giant molten being jumped up from the ground.
"How dare you hurt my friends!"
"Santo!" Megan cried, recognizing his voice.
"I have had enough of this, be gone!" Illyana shot a bolt of magic at Santo, but it didn't even slow him down.
He smacked her back and she landed right next to N'astirh.
Her spell broke and one by one the others fell to the ground. They all rushed to Megan.
"Megan your hair," Nick started.
"Is that her soul?" Rickard asked looking at the floating orb of light.
"It's beautiful," Michael remarked.
"Santo, why are you made of lava? I thought that monster killed you," Victor said.
"It's odd, I felt like a ghost. I could see you guys but I could only float around and stuff. But then I wished I could help you all fight and I felt myself being pulled into the ground and then somehow I reformed," Santo explained.
"No wonder you were immune to my spell. You made a new body out of the materials of Limbo which gives you immunity to magic. If I had to guess I would say your true power isn't that you are a golem. Rather you are a psionic being capable of using the materials of the earth around you to form a body. This new form will come into use when we fight Belasco," Illyana said standing up.
"If you think we are going to work with you any more then you are crazy," Rickard said.
Illyana smiled and showed them the Beatrice Medallion. There was an extra ruby in it now.
"See that? I made an extra blood stone from a piece of her soul I took when I removed that portion. If you want it back you're going to cooperate with me."
She pointed to the floating orb.
"Megan, reach into the orb and remove the soul sword; the ultimate weapon against the mystic!"
Megan stood up and Victor helped her. "Might as well after all that," she agreed.
She reached into the orb and the light grew brighter. When she pulled her hand out the light vanished and in her hand she held a small dagger.
"The hell?" Megan wondered.
"A dagger?" Rickard asked.
"A dagger?" Victor repeated.
"It's so...small," Michael said.
"The ultimate weapon against magic?" Nezhno asked.
"That thing is going to kill an immortal sorcerer?" Nicholas asked.
They all turned to glare at Illyana.
"You put me through all that for a dagger, you stupid bitch!" Megan yelled.
Everyone looked at her shocked. She quickly clapped her hands to her mouth, just as surprised.
"Well...lizard boy there interrupted the ritual before it could be finished," Illyana defended herself.
"Can you cast another spell? Make it more...swordy?" Rickard asked.
"No, once the spell is cast a soul weapon will be trapped in whatever form it is manifested into. We're stuck with it. But don't let its small size fool you; a dagger can be just as deadly as any sword. Maybe even deadlier. Now let us begin to practice."
"Practice what?" Victor asked.
"The spell. I told Megan I would teach her a teleportation spell. Belasco hexed his palace so I can't teleport there. But if I teach Megan, then she can take us all there and we can surprise the bastard," she explained.
"You expect us to trust you?" Santo threw in.
"I don't think you have a choice. Belasco has your friends, I have Megan's bloodstone. You all have no way to get to Belasco without going through hordes of demons and his palace is a fortress. So...what will it be?"

Belasco sensed Magik using a spell then. Now that he was in charge of Limbo once more, his powers were enhanced so he could sense any magic being cast in the realm.
"What are you up to Illyana?" he muttered.
David leaned next to Wayne. "Can you cause a distraction?"
"I can use my voice. What's the plan?" Wayne asked.
"We need to free Martha and the Cuckoos."
"Why?"
"They must be a threat if they put those helmets on them. They can use their telepathy to attack the demons and we can all escape and find the others," David explained.
"We can help hold them off while you get them free," X-23 nodded.
"Sounds like fun to me," Blut said with a smile.
"Take them to the dungeons. If Illyana wants them she will have to fight for them," Belasco insisted.
The demons grabbed them all and began to move them away. David looked at Wayne and nodded. Wayne took a deep breath and began to scream. The demons all fell to their knees clutching their ears.
X-23 unleashed all her claws and freed herself. Several gashes appeared on Blut's body and scythe-like blades grew from the cuts.
They began to hack and slash random demons. Dust and Mercury shifted into their elemental forms and escaped their bonds. Dust tore the flesh from her demon captors and Mercury impaled several others.
David ran to the Cuckoos. He put his hand on their helmets, trying to figure out how to take them off.
"Excuse me."
David turned around and let out a yell as Belasco shoved his fist through his chest and ripped out his heart.
"I believe this belongs to you," Belasco taunted, smiling as he showed him his still beating heart.
"David!" Elixir yelled.
Dust and Mercury charged at him; Mercury slashed him across the chest and Dust stripped the flesh off the right side of his face.
Belasco just laughed and his injuries healed themselves.
"Fools, I am immortal! Let's see if you are!"
He raised his hand and shot a beam of red magic at Dust. She exploded in a shower of sand but reformed.
"Interesting, it seems your transitory forms have a resistance against magic," Belasco muttered. "But that won't protect you forever."
X-23 and Blut freed the others from their shackles. Elixir quickly healed Indra who immediately armored up and charged a group of attacking demons sending them flying.
Elixir went running to Prodigy; a small pool of blood formed beneath him from the hole where his heart used to be.
"Oh man, come on David, come on, don't do this to me man!"
He lifted him up and put his hands on his chest.
"Please, please God don't let this happen!"
He focused his power on Prodigy, put every bit of energy he had into him. He used every bit of knowledge he had on the human anatomy and much to his amazement and delight it began to work.
Within seconds a new heart grew where the old one used to beand the wound closed. Prodigy took a big gasp of air and his eyes shot open.
"What...what happened?" he panted.
"I saved...you." Elixir whispered. He wavered a little then fell over unconscious.
"Josh!" David yelled.
X-23 and Blut were working together to fight S'ym.
"This is so much fun X, don't you agree?" Blut asked happily.
"Being dragged into a hell dimension by an evil sorcerer is not what I count as fun Blut," she complained.
"Oh you're no fun X," Blut said with a pout.
He slid underneath S'ym, slashing his shins, S'ym fell to his knees and X-23 jumped on his back and began to hack at him.
He swung his body and threw her off.
Blut raised his hand and a cut appeared on his palm, blood spilled out and formed a thin smooth red disk. He threw it and it flew through the air, embedding itself in S'ym's shoulder.
He roared in pain and Blut smiled.
"I wonder how many pieces I can carve off before you stop moving."
He licked his lips and formed more discs.
Mercury and Dust continued to fight Belasco. They were doing a good job, but they were slowly beginning to tire, while Belasco remained strong.
"You think you can beat me? I am centuries old! I have studied dark magics you cannot begin to understand!"
He extended his arm and a large ax; as black as night appeared. It should have been impossible to lift with one hand but Belasco had no trouble at all.
He brought it back and slammed the flat end against Mercury with enough force to cause her to splatter. But she was able to reform.
"You all have no hope, today you will all die!"
"If we must die, then let our death be something Allah will be proud of!" Dust yelled.
"I am with you Dust!" Mercury yelled.
"Then you are foolish, allow me to show you exactly what you are dealing with."
He raised his hand and pointed it at X-23. "X look out!" Mercury shouted.
Before she could dodge away, Belasco hit her with a magical beam that turned the feral mutant into nothing but bones.
Everyone stopped and stared in horror.
"My power is beyond compare; I can take life and give it just as freely!"
He shot another beam at the pile of bones and X-23 was brought back to life, as if she had not just been vaporized.
"You see now? I can kill you and bring you back, just to kill you again! And there is not a damn thing any of you can do to stop me!"
A red spear impaled him in the chest. He looked to see who would dare to do such a thing a saw a smiling Blut. S'ym was behind him, or what was left of him.
"I do love a challenge."

Illyana and Megan floated in the air.
"Repeat after me: Sihal Novarum Chinoth," Illyana instructed.
"Sihal Novarum Chinoth," Megan echoed.
"Good. Now, when using any teleportation spell, it is important to know where you want to go, exactly where. Never attempt such a spell without knowing where you wish it to take you. You may inadvertently send yourself in front of a car, in a volcano or worse, inside another object."
"Like Mr. Wagner? He says if a teleporter isn't careful with their power they may inadvertently hurt themselves or get themselves killed."
"Exactly. Now, the next thing to do is-"
Illyana continued to tutor Megan under the watchful eye of the others.
"So Santo, what does it feel like?" Benjamin asked.
"It's weird. I don't feel like I am on fire but I can feel the heat inside me."
"You look like the love child of the Thing and the Human Torch," Victor laughed.
"Wonder if you can get your old body back?" Rickard piped in.
While the others talked, Michael was inspecting the flora that grew from his blood. He plucked a single red rose and breathed in its scent. Memories washed over him; his window in the attic which allowed him to look out at his mother's garden; the garden allowing its sweet perfume to fill the otherwise bleak room.
There were times when he was allowed outside and he would help his mother with her gardening or he would sit and draw pictures of the flowers.
Looking down at the garden he made, reminded him of those days and he smiled.
"You are tainting this world," a voice hissed.
He jumped, spun around and saw N'astirh standing behind him.
"What do you mean?" Michael asked.
N'astirh pointed a clawed finger at the flowers. "Your blood has tainted the ground and caused this abomination to happen. Look, it spreads even now."
Michael looked at the edge of where the grass grew. Now that the demon mentioned it, it did seem like this patch of flora was bigger then what he recalled. And when he looked he could see more grass and flowers growing, slowly spreading out.
"No offense, but this hellhole could use a little beauty," Michael retorted.
N'astirh snarled. "Your power feeds this growth. Just as it protects you from the corrupting affects of this world."
"What do you mean?" Michael asked.
"Limbo has a way of getting inside you; bringing out your inner darkness. But your power protects you from that."
"Don't say it like it is a bad thing," Michael said.
N'astirh suddenly grabbed his arm.
"Even I can't corrupt you like I did the others."
Michaels arm shined and N'astirh howled in pain and let go of his arm. Large angry welts grew on his hand and he angrily glared at Michael.
"Keep your hands off me," Michael hissed.
"N'astirh, stop bothering Michael. Last thing I need is for him turning you into a pile of ash," Illyana scolded.
N'astirh slinked away, throwing Michael dirty looks. Michael looked down at the small garden and wondered what would happen to it once he left Limbo. If his power fed it, would it die when he left? Seemed like such a shame.
"Alright everyone, let's go!" Illyana shouted.
Michael put the red rose back on the ground. To his surprise it grew back into the ground.
"Take a moment to prepare yourselves people, we move in five," Illyana instructed.
Megan walked up to the others, holding her soul dagger.
"Are you okay Megan?" Victor asked.
"Yeah, aside from the fact I had a portion of my soul ripped out and now have dark magic inside me. But hey, at least I got a nifty dagger out of it right?" Megan said sarcastically.
"Don't worry; after we save the others we will get your soul back. But first we have to do something about Illyana," Rickard said.
"We can use my blood," Michael volunteered.
"Would that work?" Nezhno asked.
"I think Illyana has been here for too long. That demon says this place brings out the worst in you. I think all this time without her soul sword left her vulnerable to the evil here. If I can douse her with some of my blood it will cleanse her of the evil like it did you guys."
"We'll do that after we take care of Belasco," Rickard said.
N'astirh spoke with Illyana. "They plan on betraying you mistress," he informed her.
"Of course they are. Once we kill Belasco they are sure to try and take the medallion to get her Megan back," Illyana agreed.
"With the winged one on their side they could ruin everything," N'astirh said.
"Don't worry, the second Belasco is dead I will kill them, then use the rest of Megan's soul to make more blood stones and summon the Elder Gods. Then after I reclaim Limbo I will conquer Earth," she boasted.
The group gathered and prepared themselves.
"Alright Megan, take us to the others. Imagine them, imagine where they are, imagine a vast fortress of pain and despair," Illyana told her.
Megan took a deep breath and said the magic words. "Sihal Novarum Chinoth!"
They were enveloped in a soft, pink glowing cloud and vanished.
A few seconds after they did the flowers and grass began to wither and die. Then they turned to dust, leaving no trace of the small beauty which had once existed.

Blut was on his knees gasping for breath.
"Wow, you really are a tough cookie," he panted.
"You're not too bad yourself. You fight without hesitation or mercy. I sense you are not like the others," Belasco praised.
Blut just smiled. "And miss all the exciting battles they go through? Every psycho on the planet guns for them. I can't miss an opportunity like this."
"I like your spirit, too bad I have to kill you."
He raised his hand and was about to strike him with a mystical blast but then there was a sudden eruption of pink smoke that filled the air.
When it cleared Belasco saw Illyana with more X-Men.
"Hello, old friend," she said with a smile.
"You!" he roared.
"That's right, I am back, and this time I brought help," she informed him.
"X-Men attack!" Rickard yelled.
They all scattered. Illyana went straight for Belasco.
Michael saw that David was with Josh who was unconscious. A group of demons were advancing on them. Michael shot a blast of angel fire at the group, vaporizing them.
He landed next to them. "Are you okay?" he asked.
"Yeah. Josh saved me and he healed me after Belasco...after he healed me he passed out. Can you heal him?"
Michael didn't like the haunted look in David's eyes. He wondered how bad Belasco hurt David to cause Josh to pass out. But he decided now was not the time to question him.
He put his hands on Josh and they glowed with a white light. When it died down Josh opened his eyes. "Are we safe yet?"
"Afraid not," Michael muttered.
"Shit," Josh said.
"Guys listen, some things have happened," Michael started. He told them everything; about Illyana's corruption; her taking a portion of Megan's soul, the making of the soul dagger and of Michael's ability to cleanse evil from a person.
"What are we going to do?" David asked, concerned.
"Step one, defeat Belasco. Step two, heal Illyana. Step three, get the hell out of here," Michael retorted.
And so the battle raged. While Illyana fought with Belasco the X-Men fought the demons. Megan put her new dagger to good use, and Josh healed everyone who was tired or injured, reinvigorating them.
Belasco and Illyana fought; Belasco using his ax and Illyana using a pair of daggers.
"You failed child, had you brought the X-Men you would have succeeded, but you brought nothing but amateurs at best," he sneered.
"Once again your hubris will be your downfall," Illyana argued.
The X-Men were doing well, but the demon army seemed endless; just when they brought down one demon, two more seemed to take their place.
Even with Josh healing them it was only a matter of time before the sheer number overwhelmed them.
But then David figured out how to get the helmets off the Cuckoos and Martha. Then dozens and dozens of demons fell down, clutching their heads in pain as the powerful telepaths used their powers to blast the demons' minds.
Belasco saw this, he was also aware of Megan and her soul dagger. "I am impressed, you made another...well. You made a soul blade," he praised.
"And I plan on using it to pierce that spot in your chest where your heart is supposed to be," Illyana growled.
He just smiled.
"Really?"
He kicked her in the stomach, sending her flying back into a wall.
He dropped his ax and pointed his hand at Megan. Black smoke-like energy with a red core formed in his hand. There was a horde of demons between them but he didn't care, it wasn't like demons came in short supply.
"MEGAN! WATCH OUT!" Illyana yelled.
The beam shot out, it was like a mini-volcano projected out of his hand, disintegrating anything and everything in its path.
Megan saw the beam but she couldn't move in time, even if she ran the beam was simply too wide for her to escape.
"Megan!" Michael yelled.
He flew down and grabbed her. He wrapped his wings around them both and the beam engulfed them.
"So much for you last hope," Belasco commented.
The black and red mist shot forth like some evil fog.If anything living got too close to it the fog would snare them and the person unfortunate enough to get this close would be dissolved.
"The black mist of Satannish. Dissolves anything it touches. Even bone. There won't be anything left of either of-"
The words died in his mouth as a bright white light shined from the fog. Soon it dissipated as if blown away by some cleansing wind.
Michael unwrapped his glowing wings from around himself and Megan.
"Are you okay?" he asked her.
"God you're so hot when you glow!" she exclaimed, cupping his butt.
He jumped in surprise and blushed a deep shade of red. "This black magic thing really brings out your bad side."
"Uh yeah...black magic," she said.
"How is this possible?!" Belasco asked.
"Isn't it obvious Belasco? The boy wields the empyreal flame," Illyana pointed out, standing up.
"How is that possible? Only a white mage of the highest order can control it and that boy has not had the years of training it takes to obtain such a power!"
"Silly devil, you should know a mutant can tap into powers that dwell in the realm of magic as well as science," Illyana said.
"Still, to prove immune to the mist and protect another, the amount of flame he wields must be immense," Belasco said.
"Oh, it is, believe me," Illyana smiled.
"Then you are a fool. You are brimming with evil and that boy controls the most sacred of fire. Do not think for a second that you can resist it," Belasco warned.
"Don't worry about me Belasco. Worry about yourself. Megan now!"
Illyana rushed at Belasco. She dropped to the ground and slid underneath him. She slammed her daggers into his feet, pinning him to the ground. She stood up and summoned a stepping disk. One showed up in front of him while another appeared next to Megan.
Acting quickly, she jumped through it, appearing through the other disk she raised her soul dagger high and plunged it into Belasco's chest.
"NOOOOOO!" he yelled
Red light shot from his mouth and eyes. When it died down he fell to the ground, dead.
The demons all stopped fighting, realizing their master was dead.
Megan stood over Belasco's body and her hands were shaking; she was in shock that she just took a life.
"Well done Megan, I knew you could do it," Illyana acknowledged.
Megan raised her dagger and pointed it at Illyana. "Give me my soul back!" she growled.
"Hold your horses there girl. First things first."
Illyana searched through Belasco's body. Finally she found her soul sword tucked away in his cloak.
"Hello sweetie, mommy missed you." She raised the sword over her head, a silver and ornate armor appeared over her body. It covered every inch of her body; even her tail and horns. The only part visible was her face.
"I am the rightful ruler of Limbo again! I wield the soul sword!"
All the demons began to bow their heads.
"Now then, time for phase two," Illyana announced. She turned to Megan, a smile on her face. "I am going to be taking the rest of your soul now darling!"
She began to raise the medallion, preparing to make the final blood stones and summon the Elder Gods. But before she could, something hit her hands, knocking the medallion into the air where Megan flew up and caught it in her hands.
Illyana turned and glared at Michael.
"You dare strike me!" she growled.
Michael stared her down. "This isn't you Illyana. You have become corrupted by this place. Now I am going to help you, just like I saved the others."
"Kill them all except for the girl!" Illyana yelled.
Once again the demons began to attack.
Michael raised his hand and shot a blast of angel fire at Illyana. She just brought up her hand and summoned a stepping disk that shot the blast right back at him. It hit him, reabsorbing into his skin, like a drop of water falling into a lake.
"You can't hope to defeat me Michael; I know how your powers work. Before you can even get close I can teleport to safety. Just let me have Megan and I will send you and the others back to the mansion safe and sound."
"No deal."
"Well then I gues-"
Just then something sparkly began to fall on her. She looked up and saw Megan, dropping pixie dust from her wings scattering it all over her.
"How do you like me now, bitch?!" she yelled.
The world changed for her then; instead of limbo she was back home in Russia on their family farm. She was a little girl again, watching as the men of the family worked out in the fields while her mother hung clothes to dry.
She laughed and began to dance, swinging her favorite doll through the air.
Back in reality Illyana danced, waving her sword around. Michael began to walk to her. Illyana looked at him and smiled.
"Peter!" she yelled happily.
"That's right Illyana, come to big brother. Let him give you a big hug," Michael said warmly.
Illyana ran to him, almost knocking the wind out of Michael because of the armor she wore. She wrapped her hands around him, and he did the same.
He put his hand on her shoulder where a spike grew out. He clenched his teeth as he dug his hand onto it, letting it pierce his hand. He felt the blood drip from his new wound.
"Let's go home now," Michael said.
He placed his hand on her face.
There was a flash of light and when it died down Illyana had been cleansed. Her tail and horns were gone, her legs were normal and her eyes were once more a lovely shade of blue. She still had on her armor though and when she opened her eyes she took a moment to grasp what just happened.
"Stop!" she yelled.
The demons stopped fighting.
"That is enough! You may not harm these people."
The X-men walked up to her, cautious at first, which was natural given what just happened.
"Illyana?" Rickard asked.
"Yes. It is alright, I am right again," she said.
Megan landed right next to her. "Good, then you can give me back my soul!"
Illyana looked at her sadly. "Megan, I am so sorry. But I can't undo what I did."
"So what? I am just supposed to walk around with a portion of my soul missing?" she screeched.
"But you hold a portion of your soul in your hand Megan. Simply return it to where it belongs," Illyana informed her.
Megan looked at the dagger. She held it close to her chest and closed her eyes. The dagger seemed to melt into her body.
Her hair did not return to normal but she took a deep breath. "That feels better," she said.
"You can summon it anytime you want. But be careful, when you use your soul dagger you open yourself up to the darkness used to make it and it could have a negative impact on you then," Illyana explained.
She raised her hand and summoned a new stepping disk. "Now, let us go home."

While in Limbo, many hours had passed since our heroes arrived in that hellish place. In our world it had only been little more than ten minutes.
The X-Men had gathered around where they had disappeared and Hank had some machines he was using to get a reading.
But then everyone reappeared and in an instant the X-Men were rushing forward to help the obviously war-torn teens.
"Snowflake!" Peter yelled running to his sister.
Illyana hugged her brother. "Oh Peter, I have done such terrible things."
"It's okay snowflake. You're safe, that is all that matters," Peter said soothingly.
Adonai stood next to Xavier. "Well Charles, it is never dull around here now is it?" he asked.
"I am sorry this ruined your tour," Xavier said.
"Oh, on the contrary. This has been most illuminating. But I should be going. I am sure you need to tend to your charges."
"Yes. Thank you again. I hope this won't deter you from future visits," Xavier said.
Adonai chuckled. "Charles, I live in a city that is attacked by aliens or robots or some other monstrosity every other week. It takes more than a little light show to scare me. Good day."
He headed for his car. But he made sure his path would take him past Michael. He placed his hand on Michael's shoulder. "Are you okay, son?" he asked.
He kept his hand on Michael. To many it would seem as a friendly gesture. But in truth he was scanning Michael. Learning what happened.
"Yes, I am fine. A bit tired but fine," he said.
"Good. I hope we can meet again. Very soon."
He let go of Michael's shoulder and went to his car. As he drove away from the school he smiled.
"So, you're beginning to realize the true nature of your power, kid. Keep up the good work; it will make it that much easier when I come for you."

Fusedtwilight: Next chapter Michael meets Anna's family...yeah, you know that won't go well. Please review.
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Angel In The Attic