X-Book 4 -- Of Politics, Tacos and Other Things that Give You

Indegestion: Chapter Three - Meanwhile, on the Island...



By: Kath713/Leen713



Rating: PG-13 (violence, language)



Genre: Crossover (with anything I can squeeze in), SPOILERS FOR X2



Summary: See prologue to book 4



Disclaimer: I own nothing in regards to the Marvel characters or

any character from a previously published source portrayed in this

story.



Reviews: Any feedback would be great and is appreciated!



***



Chapter Three:



Beneath the metal walls of Magneto's island, Yuriko stood over her

unconscious patient silently as she put the last few stitches into

Rebecca's arm.



The room was circular, with the same stone and metal walls as the

rest of the fortress.  The lights, however, were brighter here than

in most areas and the tall reinforcement beams running from floor to

ceiling shone with a sharp, silver light.  Most surfaces in the room

were constructed of metal and each piece of medical equipment was

pristinely cared for.



Yuriko picked up a pair of gleaming surgical scissors from a tray to

her left, and delicately trimmed the excess `thread' from the last

stitch.  The wound had been clean, passing through Rebecca Malloy's

shoulder without striking any bones or main arteries.  The exit

wound on the young woman's back had been partially cauterized, and

Yuriko had examined it curiously before wrapping the wounds with

gauze and bandages.



From a few feet away, Sid Malloy was leaning against the medical bed

adjacent to his sister and watched Yuriko intently.  He was still

wearing his own bullet ridden shirt and suit jacket, and his

expression was a mixture of concern and mistrust.  Even though none

of the Brotherhood had made any threatening comments or actions

towards them, Sid still wanted to get out off this island as soon as

possible.  He knew Magneto was directly responsible for involving

his family in this situation.  Sid hoped Sebastian would be able to

arrange transportation to get them home soon.



As Sid watched Yuriko work, he did relax slightly.  Pyro's words on

the helicopter had been very true.  The Lady attended to the bullet

wound with a skill that would have made the most practiced surgeon

jealous.  Sid frowned as the Lady completed wrapping Rebecca's

wounds and walked across the room



"Well?" Sid said in an impatient tone, "Is she ok?"



Yuriko did not respond immediately, but spared the young man a

glance as she hung an IV bag over Rebecca's bed.



"The bullet did not do any serious damage," the Lady said in an even

tone, "And the blood loss was not as serious as I had first thought."



"Then what's with the drip?" Sid said, suspiciously.



Yuriko stared at him for a long moment.  Her eyes were hard, but

only because of his tone.  Sid shifted uncomfortably under the

weight of her gaze, and Yuriko looked down at Rebecca again.



"She's dehydrated," Yuriko explained without losing her cool

demeanor, "Her hands and her lips have several breaks in the skin.

I would assume this is due to the heat she created around her.  But,

also given the serious nature of her wound, it would be beneficial

to provide her body with essential fluids intravenously until she

regains consciousness."



Yuriko raised one eyebrow cynically, "As long as you approve, of

course…"



Sid nodded and folded his arms, looking embarrassed.  Yuriko's face

remained emotionless as she continued on with her work.  She

attached a long needle to the end of the IV tube, and she noticed

Sid shift uncomfortably again.  She glanced at him, but Sid was

staring at the long needle.  After a moment, he turned away and

walked toward the other side of the room.



Yuriko ignored his discomfort and shifted Rebecca's left arm away

from her body.  The young woman's palm was facing upward, and the

Lady carefully drew the long sleeve of Rebecca's shirt up past her

elbow.  Yuriko paused as she stared down at the exposed forearm.



Beginning at the inner bend of Rebecca's elbow and trailing down

towards her wrist were several entwining scars.  They were old,

fading at the ends closest to her hands, but Yuriko recognized what

the wounds had been.  She had many memories of devices used on

mutants in experiments, and knew that intravenous methods were not

gentle, especially if the subject had been of small build, or very

young.



Carefully, respectfully, Yuriko turned Rebecca's arm over, so her

palm was faced down.  She showed no outward reaction, and quickly

shook off an inner uneasiness at her discovery.  She decided it

would be wiser to find an appropriate vein to use that was not too

close to the tangle of scars.



As Yuriko prepared to put the IV in place, she heard Rebecca's

breathing change.  She was waking up.  Before the Lady could react,

Rebecca's eyes had opened and the first thing they locked on was the

shining needle near her hand.  With one swift motion, Rebecca lunged

away from the Lady and stumbled off the medical bed with a yelp of

surprise.



"No!" the young woman screamed and fell hard to the floor.

Rebecca's face was filled with terror as her first waking moments

were overwhelmed with the memories of past trauma.



Rebecca was holding her hands out in front of her protectively,

despite the sudden pain running down her right arm.  There was

nothing threatening in the motion, and Yuriko had not flinched as

the young woman had leapt away.



"Please…please, don't…" Rebecca said breathlessly.  The fright was

fading from her face as she realized she was in no immediate danger,

and her eyes looked weary and pained.  Yuriko gazed down at her

evenly, but inwardly was sympathetic.



Sid knelt down next to Rebecca and took her hands.  She sighed

audibly and held onto him with relief.  As she relaxed, the wound on

her shoulder flared painfully and she hissed as she drew her arm

close to her body.



"Hey…" she said, glancing between her brother and the Lady, "Where

are we?  What happened?"



Sid grinned, but did not reply immediately.  He was glad she was

awake, but was hesitant to immediately start giving her details of

what had happened to the base.



However, the Lady spoke first, and did not have the same

appreciation of Rebecca's temporary lapse in memory as Sid.



"You were injured," she said quickly, pacing around the bed, "And

you may have reopened the wound.  As I was explaining to your

brother, the bullet had not caused too much damage to your shoulder,

but your sudden movements may have added to the injury.  Are you

able to stand?"



Rebecca nodded and touched her hand to her shoulder in confusion.



"Yeah, I think so," she said and Sid helped her to her feet.  She

sat on the medical bed and Yuriko began to unwrap the bandages.



Rebecca frowned as she watched the Lady work.  The last moments she

remembered from the base had been just after she was shot.  She knew

her power had been rising up in reaction to the attack, but she did

not remember what had followed.  She glanced at Sid, who met her

gaze firmly, but she knew he would not tell her yet.  Something had

happened.  He knew…she could tell he knew, but she did not question

him for now.  She would know eventually, but she dreaded finding out

exactly what she had done.







When Yuriko was satisfied that the stitches were still in place, she

placed the bandages around Rebecca's shoulder again.



"It would be wise for you to stay here a rest for a while longer,"

the Lady said firmly, but not unkindly.



"Where is here?" Rebecca asked.



"An island not far from the mainland," Yuriko replied, and before

she could continue, Rebecca chuckled.



"Let me guess…" she said, "Secret, underground lair?"



Yuriko frowned curiously at the young woman's amusement, and Sid

laughed.



"Remember?" Sid asked, "Magneto?  Xavier?  Sebastian finding out

that a giant robot ate our house?"



Rebecca's eyes widened, "Oh, no…"



Sid waggled his cell phone in front of her eyes and Rebecca covered

her face with her hand.



"Oh, no…" she repeated and sighed.



Yuriko smirked, "I'll inform Magneto you are conscious.  He wishes

to speak with you both soon, but not until you are well enough to

leave the medical bay."



Sid looked at her angrily, "And just when will that be?"



Yuriko narrowed her eyes, "When I deem it is appropriate."



"Yeah, that's great," Sid shot back, "And please, let Magneto know,

we're leaving as soon as our transportation arrives, whether or not

you deem it's appropriate for us to go."



Yuriko raised one eyebrow, and spoke slowly, "Considering you have

accepted our help, I would hope you would not be opposed to

returning such a courtesy."



"Well, it certainly was a great courtesy for you to invade our

home," Sid replied, "We definitely appreciated that."



The Lady's typically unwavering expression changed slightly, and she

glared at him viciously.



Rebecca was sitting back on the medical bed, glancing uneasily

between her brother and the Lady.  The tension in the room was

weighing on her.



"Ouch…" she said with loud sarcasm, "My shoulder…"



Sid rolled his eyes and shot her an annoyed look.  The Lady regained

her composure and looked evenly at her patient.



"I'll check on you in an hour," Yuriko said, and then added, "If you

feel well enough to eat, I will make sure something is sent down."



Rebecca's face suddenly brightened at the prospect of food.



"That would be great, thanks," she replied quickly.



The Lady turned and headed out of the medical bay.  Sid glared at

her until she left the room and the door closed.  Rebecca was

looking at him with confusion and grinned.



"Well…" she began, "That sure helped a lot…"



"What?" Sid said angrily, "A mutant terrorist group tries to kidnap

you and I'm supposed to be nice to them?  Bull shit…"



Rebecca rubbed her shoulder with a sigh.



"Can you just not be a jackass while we're in their secret lair at

least?" she asked and Sid laughed.



"Why do we always end up at secret lairs?" he asked with a grin.



Rebecca shrugged comically and then winced and grabbed her shoulder

before replying.



"Just lucky, I guess."



***

Archived at www.fanfiction.net/~leen713

*work in progress*

X-Book 4 -- Of Politics, Tacos and Other Things that Give You

Indegestion



Chapter Four: Wondering and Waiting



By: Kath713/Leen713

Rating: PG-13 (violence, language)



Genre: Crossover (with anything I can squeeze in), SPOILERS FOR X2

Summary: See prologue to book 4



Disclaimer: I own nothing in regards to the Marvel characters or

any character from a previously published source portrayed in this

story.



Reviews: Any feedback would be great and is appreciated!



***



Chapter Four:



Erik Lensherr tapped his fingers rhythmically against the hard

surface of his desk as he watched the feed of a local news program

out of Chicago.  The screen displaying the broadcast was mounted in

between two metallic supports on one wall and the anchor's voice

echoed through the circular chamber.



"In local news," the neatly dressed man spoke from the

screen, "Federal teams continue to investigate a strange series of

events which took place the other day in a northern suburban section

of the city..."



To Erik's left, Mystique was seated in a metallic chair similar to

his own.  Her hands were folded delicately on the desk's surface and

she watched the news report with quiet unease.



"...According to federal investigators, the exact cause of the

disturbance has not yet been identified, however, many eye witnesses

have reported seeing a 'giant machine' of some kind impact one home

and may have caused damage to several neighboring properties.

Rumors have been spreading about who is responsible for these

bizarre events, though local authorities have denied the possible

link to recent rash of gang violence or of the involvement of

several mutant terrorist groups..."



Erik and Mystique exchanged significant glances on the last few

words.  Cover-ups were so interesting to watch develop from the

outside when one already knew the truth.



"...we will bring you more on this story as it develops..."



Hisst.



With a few taps on an embedded keypad, Erik shut off the feed, and

rubbed his chin thoughtfully.  Mystique tilted her head as she

looked at him.



"Strange, isn't it?" she asked and Erik glanced at her

curiously, "That they have been so quick to dismiss possible mutant

involvement.  I would have expected them to take the easy route and

blame mutants immediately."



"Yes," Erik said slowly, "I wonder...if certain organizations are

influencing certain high ranking governmental officials..."



A smug, knowing smile touched Mystique's face.  Suddenly, the sound

of steady footsteps echoed up the tunnel and they both turned to see

Yuriko enter the chamber.



Erik smiled, "Well...how are our guests fairing?"



Yuriko acknowledged each of them with a nod before speaking.



"The girl is conscious and stable," she reported, "The boy is

watching over her."



"And what of the mutant from the Lot project?" Erik asked.



"Luckily, his wound was not as serious," Yuriko replied, "After

treating him, I had Pyro take him to one of the unused living

quarters.  He indicated by his attitude and body language that he

wished to be alone."



Erik nodded, "Very well...give them all a short time to recover.  I

do, however, still wish to speak with them as soon as possible."



"Of course," Yuriko said, "I will check on all of them again

shortly.  I have asked Pyro and Toad to bring them all meals if they

would like."



"Excellent...such courtesies should be appreciated," Erik replied

and stood.



"Perhaps not by all our guests..." Yuriko said with annoyance, "The

boy is quite adamant about leaving..."



Erik smirked, "I'm sure he is.  But, I doubt his uncle will find our

sanctuary here as easily as he expects."



***



Sid pressed the send button on his cell phone over and over again.



"Damn it," he said and then sighed, "My phone is showing full

service but the call won't go through..."



Rebecca grinned and reclined back in the medical bed, "Fine by me.

I'm really not looking forward to having to convince Uncle S that I

wasn't responsible for the house."



"Come on, Bec," Sid said, shaking the cell phone with

annoyance, "Fires...explosions, sure...but he can't blame you for

tha..."



Sid stopped talking when he saw the cynical look on his sister's

face.



"...or...yeah, I guess he could." Sid finished with a grin.  He

snapped his phone closed and glanced at the med lab's main entrance.



"I'm gonna go try to call from outside," he said quickly, "Maybe

we're too far underground to send calls or something.  You think

you'd be okay for a few minutes while I find my way back to the

outer hanger?"



Rebecca frowned, "Sure.  Believe me, I'm not planning to go anywhere

for a while."



Sid nodded and headed out the door.  Rebecca watched him go

curiously.  He had never been one to go looking for the strange

situations that seemed to find them, but he was more on edge than

she had seen him for a long time.



After the door hissed shut, Rebecca shifted herself upright and

leaned back against the wall.  She closed her eyes and moved her

right shoulder as much as she could without having too much pain.

Once it healed, she would have two more scars to tell stories about,

though she doubted she would be so conscious about hiding them as

the scars on her arms.



She looked down at her left hand, where the Lady was planning to put

the IV.  Sid had moved the needles and other medical equipment away

from her bed without having to be asked.  Rebecca flexed her fingers

and wondered what had ever possessed her to agree to go to medical

school.



Rebecca's thoughts strayed again to the scars on her arms and she

pulled back one long sleeve carefully.  Memories of her childhood

came back easily, and she smiled as she thought of the long rows of

corn that had surrounded the small town where she had lived with her

grandparents for so long.  She remembered her friends sadly, those

lost and nostalgic days of her youth when nothing mattered but the

rain and the harvest.  On summer nights, the swaying fields would be

filled with fireflies, making the earth and the sky look almost

identical.



But, that was before.  Before the two long, black cars had passed

her on the road.  Before, the men in dark glasses grabbed her, and

everything went dark.  Before, the pain in her arms began...before,

their was reason for nightmares.before the fire raged around

her...before the screaming...before her mother's angry eyes focused

on those men, and their dark glasses began to melt...



Rebecca jumped and inhaled sharply as the medical bay door hissed

open again.  She blinked and looked around, wondering how much time

had passed.



From the other side of the room, the mutant she knew as Toad walked

toward her with a thin, covered tray.  He scowled at her as he

walked up beside her, seemingly annoyed with the chore he was given.



Rebecca gave him an appreciative smile and sat up slowly.



"Hi," she said.



Toad glanced at her quickly and placed the tray on a table nearby.



"The Lady asked me to bring you this," he said quickly and handed

her a large bottle of water, "And, this.  She said to tell you to

drink it slowly, but to finish it if you can.  Since, you know, you

lost a lot of blood and fluids and all."



"Okay, thanks."



Toad nodded and turned to head out of the room.



"Hey..." Rebecca called again, "Um...I just wanted to say...um...I

wanted to know if...anyone else was hurt when I...um..."



Toad glanced at her and shook his head, "No.  No one else got

killed.  We've got that Pusher with us who was shot, too, but the

Lady said he's doin' alright."



Rebecca sighed, and looked relieved.



"What about Remy and Xavier's people?" she asked.  Toad frowned and

glared at her.



"They left," he spat hatefully, "Before we did.  I suppose their all

safe and sound, considering they decided to just leave..."



"I'm glad they did," Rebecca said firmly, "I mean...you saw what

happened.  Right?  There was a fire, right?"



"Yeah," he replied, "I doubt anybody missed that..."



Rebecca ground her teeth nervously, "It...it was that bad, huh?"



Toad turned back toward her and frowned, "You don't remember?"



"No...not yet," she answered.  Her eyes looked distant then,

sorrowful, almost lost.  Toad shifted on his feet and took a few

steps back toward her.



"Well...I don't think anyone was hurt in it," he said carefully,

unsure of how to address her sudden somber attitude.  Rebecca

glanced up at him and smiled reassuringly.



"That's good to know," she said, "I...I'll remember it after a

while.  Not really looking forward to it, but dealing with that will

be easier than dealing with my uncle..."



Toad nodded, without understanding her amusement since he had yet to

meet the infamous Sebastian Malloy.



Rebecca took a short drink of her water and then regarded him for a

moment.



"You know," she said, "I never got your name when we were in the

base."



Toad frowned in confusion.  The first question she asked him was for

his name.



"It's Toad," he said, feeling as if he was stating the obvious.



Rebecca shook her head, "No, I don't mean your code name, or

whatever.  I mean your real name."



Toad glared at her indignantly, almost at if he were insulted, "Toad

is the name I've taken for myself."



Rebecca nodded and looked apologetic, "Fair enough.  I'm

just...Rebecca Malloy..."



Unexpectedly, she held out the hand of her uninjured arm properly.



"But, you knew that already." she said, grinning as she extended him

the gesture of professional courtesy.



Toad glanced between her and her hand with confusion.  No one every

really offered to come in close contact with him, and he immediately

took the gesture as mocking, misinterpreting her grin.



His discomfort was immediately obvious and Rebecca lowered her arm.



"It's okay," she said and looked down at her hands.



With a look of contempt, Toad began to head toward the door again.

Just as it hissed open, he heard her mumble to herself.



"I'd be afraid of me, too," Rebecca said quietly.  She hated her

power the most for this one reason.  It made people fear her.  She

hated that most people walked on eggshells around her, if they knew

of her gift, because they expected her to spontaneously combust or

something at any minute.



Suddenly, her heard Toad's pounding footsteps approach her again and

she blinked in surprise as she met his glaring eyes.  He held out

his hand toward her roughly and she took it.



"Mortimer Toynbee," he said, and then added bitterly, "And I'm not

afraid of you."



Rebecca grinned again, and shook his hand once.



"Rebecca Malloy," she repeated, and then looked at him

wearily, "Thanks."



Toad drew his hand away quickly, and nodded again before stalking

out of the room.



As he exited, Sid nearly ran him over as he sprinted into the

medical lab.



"Bec!" he called to her, "I got a clear signal in the landing bay,

but Bastian's damn phone died.  I'm gonna try again in a few

minutes.  I really have to get him another charger.  He leaves his

behind all the time."



Rebecca groaned, much less enthusiastic at the idea of speaking with

her uncle, and stood carefully.



"The Lady said I need to eat something first," she explained, and

then held up the large bottle of water, "And I have to drink all of

this before I can leave this room.  That might take hours so maybe

you can just talk to Uncle S again and give him my regards and..."



She stopped talking when Sid began to glare at her.



"Nice try," Sid said, and then lifted the cover off the tray of

food, "However, I happen to know that you have never eaten slowly in

your life."



Rebecca sighed and took a few bites before mumbling though her food.



"Damn."



***

Archived at www.fanfiction.net/~leen713

*work in progress*