Dazzler #7
"Danger Ahead"
by Pat Donovan

Rogue lowers with Gambit in arms, joining Dazzler, Caliban, Wisdom, and Sunfire. Dazzler is off in the distance, paused, and mute, as Caliban keeps a steady eye on her. Wisdom and Sunfire are separate, keeping talk about their governments.

"Sorry 'bout 'dat hurl of cards," smoothly smiles Gambit. "I'll explain once we're on our way outta dis place, non?"

Sunfire lifts up into the air, grabbing Wisdom with him as they head for the jet they arrived here on. Dazzler stands where she is, as Caliban moves closer towards her.

"Ali, Caliban, you guys ready? I'm looking to warm up some," shouts Rogue, who finds no response, then flying further towards them. "Ali, you all right?"

Dazzler is staring blankly into the beyond, Caliban aimlessly looking about her. Dazzler turns to Rogue, but there's something different in her eyes, in her gestures. "Fine, Rogue, but I'm going to visit a friend not too far from here. I won't need a ride in the jet, either. I'll consider it an exercise in getting some stamina back," plainly states Dazzler.

"Ali, are you sure? I mean ... we're in the middle of Siberia," Rogue responds. Dazzler looks into Rogue's eyes and light is transmitted in small amounts, as Rogue perceives things different then they are. A suggestion from a far-off source is planted for Rogue to let Dazzler do as she wishes. "I guess it's your call," shrugs Rogue. "Comeon, Cal, let's go."

"Caliban is going with Dazzler. Caliban likes Dazzler and wants to go with her," explains, Caliban, sitting beside Dazzler now.

"Ali?"

"I could use the company, Rogue, but the X-Men have things to do. Go. Caliban and I will take care of ourselves," urges Dazzler.

"Yuh-huh. I'll check back on you when we get back to the mansion, Ali." Rogue flies through the air, grabbing Gambit and flying for the jet. Something in her gut, makes her wary, but her mind tells her things are fine.

"Fool," mutters Dazzler, as a second later her eyes go blank and the body of the starlet goes limp.

"Dazzler, what is wrong with Dazzler?" shouts the bestial mutant, as he soon enough gets answers.

"She's been taken care of by a higher power," smirks a blue-suited man, detailed in red gloves and boots, a mask disguising his face, and a gun in hand.

From above three others drop to the ground from a small black hovercraft that appears from nowhere. Caliban roars and lashes out, clawing two with his talons as another begins to fire at him. Two darts land at the neck of Caliban, who growls in pain. Caliban backhands another of the men before falling to the ground. Two other men lower from a set of cable wires. Quickly, they tie up the mammoth-size mutant, while another grabs Dazzler.

"We've got them both, lordess, we'll back within the hour," speaks one of the men into a comm-unit. In seconds, they pack things up and are off. Their destination: England.

********

"Everybody MOVE!"

The hatch of the Blackbird goes ajar as Polaris immediately uses her magnetic abilities to lower all to the roof below. "People, be prepared for the worst," warns Havok, then blasting through the rooftop to create an entrance for the mutants gathered. Havok's plasma blast leaves a gaping hole in the roof which follows for three floors down.

"Polaris, Jubilee hit the top floor. Madrox and Colossus you'll hit the second. Psylocke, firstly psi-link us all, and join myself and Dazzler on the first. Betts, I want you to continue in trying to contact Ororo and Logan. I understand there's reasonable psi-interference still around after the Astral War. Just keep trying though. Now, let's move out!" orders Havok, giving orders with amazing ease.

"Can't say I'm not impressed. Kinda reminds of his brother Cyclops when in charge, not like when he tried to lead the Aussie X-Men."

Havok makes a long jump to the bottom, while Dazzler lowers herself and Psylocke carefully using her powers to create a cushion of light between them and the first floor. As they land, Dazzler almost cries out, but avoids getting caught up in it all. Nightcrawler lays before her, decapitated, as Harold Leland towers above his body.

"See what too much pressure on the neck can do, huh, sweetie?" smiles Leland, his hands begin to glow abit. "Maybe I should try that trick again with a twist!"

"OR NOT!" Psylocke unleashes the full fury of what is known as a psycho-blast, leaving Leland to his knees. "Comeon, Dazzler, we still have others to save."

**********

Mystique stands still, as Wild Child is atop Karma, his talons about to slice at the mutant telepath. "Right, Mysty?" smirks Kyle, his grin too hideous to enjoy.

Mystique hesitates still, her options confused, her thoughts racing. Raven looks to Karma quickly, with a stern face, her emotions remaining closed by her expressions, but not to Shan's powers.

Suddenly, there is no more movement from Wild Child, his body in a standstill, as then Karma begins to rise, removing the hands of her attacker from her neck. Shan's eyes are aglow with energy, obvious to Mystique that Karma had done something to Raven's teammate on another level. Shan moves silently, pushing Kyle's limp body from atop hers. Nonchalantly, Karma continues to walk towards Dr. Agee's machine.

"Destroy it, Mystique."

"What about your siblings?" plainly asks Mystique.

"Just destroy it."

Mystique's body changes, her hands and feet become hooves, her body leaning over, as soon enough she resembles a rhino. Raven, in rhino-form, breaths heavy once, then charges forth at the machine. The animal rips through the machine, going after it time after time, soon enough to the point of no return.

Mystique's body slowly reverts back to its normal blue-skinned form, and the two women meet eyes. Silence. After a brief moment, Karma breaks it.

"Toad has been incapacitated. Good luck on your journey, Mystique. I hope you've taken something from our encounter tonight."

Mystique simply stands there, as Karma then turns and leaves the facility. Mystique then looks about her, Wild Child and Dr. Agee both in a coma-state, and the laboratory in shambles, but most importantly the machine destroyed. Seems that Xi'an Coy Manh had this situation far more well-handled than Raven thought.

Raven is left with Karma's final words and much to think about. This was a last resort for Mystique after her run-in with Excalibur proved fruitless* [[*Excalibur 116-118 -Pat]], as she even contemplated for a short time using the machine on herself to eradicate the virus with her mutated DNA. From here, Raven can only wonder what is next....

*******

The trio of mutants race down a hallway for what seems like hours, Psylocke having sensed a large disturbance in the room ahead. Dazzler lets loose a photon blast to lay waste to the door. Havok lets loose a plasma blast intended for the large man before him, but which results in very little results.

"Silly, Summers. Learn from your brother to not dare refuel me," smirks Sebastian Shaw, who can absorb kinetic energy and channel it into brute strength. Within his grasp, Shaw holds the bruised, battered body of the Beast. With no effort, Shaw flings the Beast's body across the room and at the three X-Men.

Henry McCoy's limp body plows into Psylocke as both are now left slumped over against a wall. "Ali...," the un-furry Beast whispers, his head bleeding. "...save yourself."

The Beast's eyes roll back into his head as Henry McCoy dies. Dazzler is left to ponder something more. Whether this is another reality where in these people are real or whether this is some kind of psionically formed world that exists on another level or perhaps even something different. "It doesn't matter, either way, I need to fight my way out of it. Gotta use my senses. Gotta find the right things to do what and just fight hard!"

To the right of the room, Selene, sorceress supreme plays with those X-Men around, while Sebastian Shaw is occupied now by Havok. In front of her, within a wall, an X-Man is taunted, her eyes overwhelmed with tears of frustration of pure pain. "Come now, Shadowkitten, continue to phase through that wall," smirks Selene. Shadowcat had been phasing through a wall to come after the woman, until the process was halted by the mutant witch.

At Selene's feet lays Cyclops, who she knew as the team's leader, defeated and broken, caught within a spell of Selene's. Entangled in a wood contraption, she grabs about in all directions, screaming in agony by the workings of Selene on his mind.

Dazzler is stopped in her tracks, not able to come to the aid of any, as above a hole breaks from the ceiling above. Dazzler steps out of harm's way though both Sebastian Shaw and Cyclops are buried in the rubble. Havok leaps to Dazzler's feet, as they both look above to find a bird of fire burning with raw power, in its grasp a female identical to that of Jean Grey. Within the flames of telekinetic and psionc energy remains the actual Jean Grey, whom lands below with ease. {{SCOTT!! SCOTT!!}}

"Jean just buried her own husband...? God, and what about the others... Colossus and Madrox were on that floor. Had raged taken over Jean to the point of no control? This seems so real, yet so different. Too different to be the world I know, even if I have been on Mojoworld for so long. Gotta stay together. Things are conflicting. Maybe they are conflicting sides involved. Just gotta keep cool. Selene's the threat, right now."

From behind, a familiar roar fills the halls, as Dazzler turns around to find: "CALIBAN?!?"

Caliban charges forth for our songbird, his eyes dead, yet fixated on her. "Stop this, Caliban! Control yourself!"she exclaims, knowing this creature may very well be the only one from reality. "Pull yourself together!"

NEXT ISSUE: Is that really Cal? Who's behind this? What do they want? Why all this Hellfire Club stuff? Plus, some more on Karma!