Vengeance Part 2 – Reconciliation and Rebirth

Lightnin lay on her bed, the bright sun shining through her window, staring at the ceiling, or at least she appeared to be staring at the ceiling.  But through Lightnin’s eyes, she could not see the ceiling, she could not see anything, her mind was drowned with sorrow and longing for the love of her life to walk through the door.  Lightnin’s thoughts were interrupted;
“Katina? How are you?” Telek asked, immediately realising she shouldn’t have asked such a question, considering the situation.
“How am I? Let me see, the only person I truly loved was killed yesterday by a selfish, evil…” Katina paused, deciding there was no point wasting her breath, “I’m sorry, but if you don’t mind…”
“I understand, let me know if you do want to talk,” Telek paused waiting for an answer, but Lightnin turned the opposite way, Telek left the room.

Telek returned to the Professor’s study, in the room were the Professor, Futura and Blade.
“Give her time, in time she will overcome the grief,” the Professor replied as he saw Telek’s facial expression, “Although we too are grieving, Katina will need us more than ever now.”
“I understand.” Telek then got onto a matter which had unsettled her, “When Athena and I went to help Axle, there was something, well – odd, about Athena.”
“What do you mean?” The Professor asked.
“Well, the way Metalium spoke to her, something he said,” she tried to remember the exact words she had heard Metalium use, “Well, he kind of welcomed her back and said something about her returning.”
“I am unsure, you and I know Metalium, he tries to catch us off guard.” The Professor replied.
“I’m not so sure,” Telek quietly replied.
“Can’t you just read her mind,” Blade replied.”
“I would never read anybody’s minds to gain knowledge of their secrets,” The Professor firmly told Blade, “Now let us close the subject and continue with our plans for the next government meeting.”

Athena sat in the lounge, thinking back about what Axle would be doing right now, probably sat drawing silly cartoons. Athena quickly got up, as she heard a sound, an incoming call, she walked into the communications room, she accepted the message; her heart suddenly began to beat faster as she saw Metalium’s face on the monitor.

“Hello Athena, just the mutant I wanted, I have a proposition for you.”
“No, whatever it is I will have no part in it, I do not help creeps like you.”
“Now now, you haven’t heard what it is yet,” Metalium replied, in a patronising tone.
“Well go ahead and tell me, but I will not help you.”
“Not even if I told you your good friend Axle was still alive?” Metalium pointed in the direction of Axle imprisoned in some sort of metal cell.
“What? But, I saw his body, he wasn’t moving.”
“That was not him, you fool, you seem to forget Morpheus,” Metalium smiled.
“I will free him, in return for you,” Metalium smiled, “You know where to find us.” The call then ended.  Athena instantly decided to do as he requested, she hated seeing Lightnin the way she was, besides, she was pretty sure Metalium would keep her alive.  Once again, Athena let her longing for peace make her decision for her, the decision not to tell the Professor where she was going, she did not want anybody to get hurt.  Without telling her friends where she was going, she made way to the Eagle - her plane.

Phaser ran into the Professor’s study;
“Professor – It’s Katina, she’s gone.” The Professor, Blade and Futura immediately looked towards Phaser; she placed a piece of paper on the Professors desk.
“What does it say?” Blade asked – before the Professor had chance to read the note.  After a brief silence the Professor looked at the group;
“She’s gone,” the Professor grimly announced, “She has left the team.”
“But – why?” Futura asked, prompting the Professor to read part of the letter;
“I no longer have a place here, I cannot fight the losing battle – I have lost enough, it is time for me to move on and have a normal life.”
“It appears the loss of Axle has hurt her in more ways than we had expected,” the Professor told the group, as he folded the letter and stared at his desk

Lightnin walked up a series of concrete steps, the air was cold and the building smelt damp, she finally reached the last step, on the top floor.  She unlocked the old graffitied door, the door that lead to her new live – a grubby apartment located in the darkest and scariest part of the city.  Lightnin looked around the room, the room was furnished with a bed, wardrobe, a chair and small desk, the floorboards were covered in dirt, she walked into the room, dropping her bag on the bed.
“It’s hardly the Ritz,” she commented to herself.  She then walked into the bathroom; this room was furnished with a bath, toilet, a very old looking mirror and a small sink;
“Great – welcome to your new life Katina,” she muttered as she walked back into the main room and lay on the bed, shivering.  Lightnin was tempted to control the weather and make the temperature a lot higher, but her new life – the ‘normal’ human life would not involve manipulating the weather.

Metalium and Max stood near the edge of the cliff, located on his private island, the sand blew gently in the wind, the pair stood, staring over the cliff.
“Sir, may I ask a question?” Max asked Metalium.
“Correct me if I am wrong but I do believe you just asked a question,” Metalium joked, obviously excited by his plans, “Go ahead.”
“Why are you letting Axle go?”
“Because I want Athena, she is more useful.”
“But – I thought we were going to kill Axle, kill the lot of them.”
“I have changed my plans; I have better things to do than kill pathetic do-gooder-mutants.  It is the humans I want, I want them to understand that we mutants are just as important – more important, than they are.  I want Edward Davids and his followers to watch – unable to do anything about my power – watch as I rule this planet.  You see – I intend to ‘share’ her healing power with myself, I will be indestructible,” Metalium smiled.
“I understand, but if you will not kill Axle, I will.”
“Silence – you will do nothing of the sort, if you dare go near him – I will destroy you with my bare hands, now leave – I have matters to tend to.”  Max walked back into the fortress, Metalium watched in the distance as the Eagle flew towards the island, preparing to land, “Finally, she has returned,” Metalium smiled.

Blade, Guardian and Futura were sat in the lounge, the atmosphere was not a good one, as the group were all sat in silence;
“Why are we just sat here?” Blade suddenly broke the silence, “That’s it; I am going to find Katina.”  Blade stood up, he was about to walk out of the room when Guardian grabbed his arm;
“Wait, I will go look for her, the last thing we need is you walking the streets with such a temper,” Guardian smiled; “Besides, I have a better view,” he referred to his wings.
“Okay fairy, but you had better find her,” Blade sat back down.
“I will return as soon as I have found Katina,” Guardian made his way outside.

Lightnin walked into the bathroom, or the ‘cupboard’ as she had named it, due to its size.  As she looked in the mirror, brushing her hair, she heard a noise; somebody was knocking on the apartment door.  Lightnin began to walk towards the door, before she had chance to open the door, it flew open, and two muscular men entered the room.  Lightnin stepped back a little;
“Who are you?” she asked.
“I thought you said nobody was in here?” the tall man asked the other. 
“Well, there wasn’t when I checked,” the shorter man replied.
“What do you want?” Lightnin asked.
“Well, we were just looking for a place to stay tonight, but now, I’m sure you have some valuable things in that bag of yours,” the taller man replied, pointing to Lightnin’s bag.  Both Lightnin and the man ran towards the bag, she was pushed and held against the wall by the other man.  Lightnin had promised herself she would not use her powers, but this was an emergency;
“If I was you, I would let go of me,” Lightnin warned the intruder.
“Ha, what makes you think I would be scared of you lady?” he laughed.  All of a sudden, the sky lit up and part of the ceiling caved in, the sky lit up again and the man was hit by lightning, he fell to the ground.  The taller man looked at Lightnin, noticing her arms were raised, bolts of Lightning touching her hands.  He immediately helped his partner up;
“She’s one of those mutants, come on, let’s get out of here.” The pair of them quickly escaped from the apartment, Lightnin lowered her arms and the Lightnin stopped.

“Over here!” Metalium shouted over to Athena as she stepped out of the plane.  Athena slowly walked towards Metalium, with a feeling of shame inside herself.
“I shall get straight to the point – what do you want me to do?” Athena immediately asked.
“Like I said – Axle will be free to go – in return for you,” Metalium smiled.
“What do you want from me?” Athena angrily asked.”
“Your ignorance is disgusting,” Metalium was no longer smiling, “You forget, it was me who brought you up – me who taught you everything you know – you always lived up to your name.”
“Everything I used to know – I have changed, I am no longer what you made me – I no longer help create suffering.”
“Which is why I intend to get my daughter back – MY ATHENA?”
“I am not your daughter anymore – I have no father!” Athena shouted, Surprisingly Metalium showed obvious hurt from Athena’s last remark.
“We shall see about that, now come, into the fortress,” Metalium smiled, “In exchange for my daughter, Axle shall go free.”  As much as Athena did not want to surrender herself for Metalium, she believed there was no other way; she had already surrendered herself by coming alone.  Metalium lead Athena into his office, Athena remembered the room; this is where she helped her father plan his attacks, attacks on innocent people. 
“I have missed you so much Athena, no matter what you think, no matter how many people I have hurt, not a day has gone by where I haven’t wished for your return.” Athena knew he was been genuine, but she also knew he would expect her to help him in some way.
“I will not help you, no matter what I was in the past, I want peace – I will not be the monster you want me to be.” Athena replied, “Ever since the day I met Professor David’s I have not used my unwanted power.”
“Ahh, your unwanted power – the power of mind control,” Metalium smiled, “As you wish – if you do not wish to help me, I shall have to force you.”  Before Athena had chance to react, she was grabbed from behind, she felt something metal being attached to her neck. 
“What – what have you done?” Athena cried.
“Just putting you to sleep, my child, for now,” Metalium smiled as Athena went to sleep, “Get her into the chamber.”  Max held onto Athena and teleported into the underground chamber.

Lightnin picked up her packed bag, maybe this wasn’t her place either, maybe she would just have to settle for the streets – the tunnels and doorways she grew up in, before meeting Professor Davids.  As she made her way down the many flights of stairs, Lightnin began to think back on how meeting the Professor had changed her life, finally been with real friends – friends like her, “mutants,” she muttered.  If it wasn’t for meeting the Professor she would not have learnt to train her powers, learnt how to use her powers for the good of mankind, nor would she have met ... “Axle.”  A lone tear began to roll down her face, prompting her to stop thinking of what had been and think of the future.  Lightnin stepped outside; she stopped looking at the floor and looked forward, to see a large group of people standing in the road, looking right at her.
“That’s the mutant!” a man called, she recognised him, one of the thugs who broke into her apartment.
“Please, just leave me alone,” Lightnin called back.
“Get her!” a female voice shouted, the crowd began coming towards her.  Lightnin didn’t have any choice; she summoned a strong gust of wind, preventing the crowd from getting any closer.  I’m starting to wish my friends were here, she though, but she refused to contact them, she had to do this by herself.  Just as she began to call upon an extreme snow storm, she felt something hit the back of her head.  As she lay on the ground slipping into unconsciousness, she tried to contact the Professor but it was too late … her mind shut down.
A large man, stood, towering her body, holding a piece of wood in the air, “I got the Vermin!” he shouted to the crowd.  The attention was soon brought away from the wooden plank wielding fiend; the crowd looked up above to see some sort of flying person, like an angel.  Before the crowd could react, the angel began firing rocks at them, which upon striking the ground, created small explosions, the crowd immediately dispersed, escaping in all directions.  The only member of the crowd remaining was the large man, still holding the piece of wood.  The Guardian flew down, face to face with the man.  Angel didn’t need to open his mouth, the man dropped the piece of wood and stood back, pleading, “Please, let me go, I didn’t do anything.” Guardian did not react; the man used this as his opportunity to follow the crowd, to run away.
“Oh Katina, what have they done,” The Guardian quietly spoke, as he knelt down, stroking her face, the thing all Guardian’s team loved about him, including Blade, was that he was the most caring, thoughtful and empathic mutant they had ever met.  Unfortunately for Guardian, this meant his feelings tended to get the better of him sometimes, he couldn’t bear to see her like this, she looked ill and been struck at the back of the head did not make her look any better.  He immediately shook off these emotions he would have to save them for later, he had to get her back immediately, so Athena could help, or at least he thought she could…

Athena woke up, she sat up on the bed which she had been sleeping on, she was in her bedroom, she had not been here for years, she grew up sleeping in this room.
“Athena, you are awake,” Metalium smiled.
“Father?  I cannot remember going to sleep,” Athena replied, for some reason she remembered leaving the mansion to meet up with Metalium, but after that it was all a blur.
“You came back to me, you said you were very tired, tired of Professor Davids and his group, so I let you rest here,” Metalium smiled.  Athena couldn’t remember this, but she shrugged it off, her father would not lie to her.  “Now Athena, come, it is time to say goodbye to Axle, to tell him you are not longer with them, that you have returned to where you belong.”
“Yes father, where is he?” Athena asked.
“Follow me,” Metalium replied, Athena stood up and followed her father down the corridor.
Guardian carried Lightnin into her room and gently lay her down on the bed.  The Professor entered the room;
“What happened?” he asked.
“She got into a spot of trouble, with a crowd of humans, thankfully I arrived in time – I hope,” Guardian replied, “Where is Athena, Lightnin may need help recovering.”
“I am unsure Joseph, she is nowhere to be found and I cannot contact her,” the Professor sadly replied.
“What? I will not leave Katina’s side until she awakens, I owe it to Axle,” Guardian knelt on the floor, beside Katina’s bed, the Professor quietly left the room.

Axle sat in the corner of his metal cell, hungry and tired; all he could think about was his friends and his lover, wondering if he would ever see them again.  He heard footsteps, he stood up and walked to the front of his cell, there he saw one of his friends, “Athena, let us go Metalium!” he shouted.
“You have it all wrong Axle, Athena chose to come here, she is with me now,” Metalium replied.
“What? Athena, are you Ok?” Axle refused to believe Metalium.
“Yes, I am alright, it is time for you to go, back to your friends,” Athena told Axle.
“What? You’re my friend too,” Axle was confused, why would Athena join Metalium.
“No I am not, I have left the Professor’s group, I cannot work for you any longer, I have returned to my father” Athena snapped, she unlocked the cell door, to let Axle out, “Now go, before I have to destroy you!” Metalium stood silently, proud of himself - for the way things where turning out.
“Your father? If he is forcing you to say these things, please, tell me, I will help you.”
“No, if he was controlling me I would not be doing this,” Athena lifted some sort of a gun, pointing it at Axle, “Now GO! Take the Eagle with you” Axle decided it was no use, until he returned to the mansion and had the metal collar removed from his neck, his powers were useless.

Katina opened her eyes, she felt her forehead been stroked, stood at the side of her bed was an handsome figure;

“Joseph?” she quietly asked.
“You’re awake – Thank god,” Guardian smiled, he suddenly felt a great sense of relief, “I must go tell the others.”
“No, I am not staying, I cannot stay, without Axle, this is too hard for me, been constantly reminded of him and his bravery, which eventually lead to his death,” Lightnin whispered.
“But – we canno…” Guardian began.
“Please, I have made my decision,” Lightnin touched his cheek, “Thank you – for everything.”
“Hey, what’s going on here then?” a familiar voice joked.
“Axle?” Lightnin and Guardian said together, Lightnin immediately sat up, ignoring her headache. 
“But – I thought you were …” Lightnin began.
“Dead? No, never trust Metalium,” Axle replied, as he wrapped his arms around her, Guardian used this as his cue to leave the room. 
“You wouldn’t believe how glad I am to see you,” Lightnin whispered into Axle’s ear.

A little while later, Axle and Lightnin joined the Professor, Futura, Guardian and Blade.
“Axle, Katina, we have something to tell you,” the Professor began, “I am glad we have got both of you back – but we have lost another member, Athena has disappeared, we cannot get in contact with her.”
“She is with Metalium,” Axle replied, “Her father.”  The entire group looked surprised, all except the Professor, “Did you know already Professor?”
“Yes, I am sorry for not telling any of you, but it was Athena’s wishes,” the Professor lowered his head as if in shame, “she has a bad – a dangerous past with her father.”
“What? Athena? She doesn’t know danger!” Blade replied.
“She did before she joined our group, her father used his daughter’s intelligence to help create small wars, if he has her back, it could only mean one thing – a new war”

To Be Continued.

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