CHAPTER SEVEN : IN WHICH IT'S TOO LATE

It felt as if they were fighting a onesided battle.

It was in the back of their minds, as they traveled, quietly, quickly, fluidly. They had surprised the few guards they had encountered, and the battle that had started on the other side, in a much open area, had distracted the others.

But it was still too easy.

The shooting slid within ten feet of the house. At first, Logan had thought it was aimed at them, and both he and Remy, in a burst of chivarly, had pounced on Ororo, covering her body from the shots.

The shots had veered off to the side however, and when it was clear it wasn't meant for them, Logan had finally looked down at the body they had practically smothered.  Ororo glared at them, muttered something about Neanderathals and pushed them off.

She was on her feet in an instant, and Remy quickly withdrew a flaming card from his pocket, and the three advanced again.

It was only another minute before suddenly they were facing a wall of the mansion, and yet again the thought flashed into Logan's brain.

It was too easy.

"What de hell?" Remy whispered, hands about Ororo's wait, face intense as he was lost in thought. "It worked?"

"Looks like it," Logan answered, his eyes hooded.

And finally, one of them voiced it.

"This is too easy," Storm said, pushing away slightly, crouching up to look at the house that loomed before them. "There should be more than this. Why isn't there a.... tornado or a storm or something to keep us occupied like the last time?"

And then the world reeled.

The winds nearly knocked Logan to the ground, and it pushed Storm into Gambit, the sound furiously pounding into their ears as the wind whipped around their faces.

It was as if they were suddenly in the middle of a tornado.

"Spoke too soon," Remy said, then the three ducked as the wind blew at a furious pace above them.

It immobilized them, and the winds were so furious it was almost painful. Logan's eyes squinted as the sleet began to form around them, walling them in. It was trapping them quickly in.

Remy shot Storm a look, in his eyes was a pleading desperation.

"Storm..."

She swallowed, helpess as her own winds seemed to turn on her. Her eyes locked with Remy's, and she felt her throat go dry as she shouted above the chaos, "Remy... I ... they're NOT MINE."

The helplessness in her voice made him freeze, and obvlious to their exchange, she saw out of the corner of her eye Logan growl. A cry of rage and anger slid from his throat and in an astonishing feat of strength she saw him launch himself off of his hindlegs, claws extended, diving towards the wooden wall.

Remy's head whipped around and Ororo felt her mind at a blank as Logan impaled himself on it, the claws digging into the wood the only thing that was keeping him from being carried away in the winds.

He was flopping helplessly, almost like a fish in dry land, and it was clear the claws would not hold him forever.

It was a losing battle, and they all knew it.

Remy cursed and he turned, grabbing her by the shoulders, and shaking her.

"STOP it, Storm!"

"I can't, Remy!" she screamed back, ears over her head as the winds continued to pick up.

"YOU CAN! I've seen you on this trip! You can do the impossible. Don't let the fear take you. You can control them. They're still YOURS."

Her eyes bore into his, her heart pounding as Remy continued stare intently at her.

Her chest was heaving, and her eyes watered as a hand gently smoothed across his face, a tender caress that seemed so out of place in the midst of the complete chaos surrounding it.

The words escaped her lips before she even realized they had.

"I love you."

His eyes widened, but she paid no attention to it, merely jerked her blazing eyes at the torrent that filled the air around them, and called back over her shoulder. "Blast a hole in that wall when I give you the signal."

And then she gave him no other glance, her body was shaking with emotion, and she felt herself cry out to her winds, the enchanted storm that had been taken from her.

Trembling with anger, she felt nothing else as she stood, arms stretched out, calling out with everything in her mind, in her heart, in her soul.

She would not panic now, she would not be paralyzed with fear. She was too damn mad.

"You're MY WINDS," she screamed into the torrent. "I AM your Master."  Hands stretched out, and she floated up, and suddenly the winds hit her full force, surrounding her, beating at her. They gushed around her, and she merely grit her teeth as her eyes glazed over, her strength sapped from her at an alarming pace as the winds became conflicted, chaotic as if choosing who to follow.

The white of her orbs continued calling to them, commanding them. Her voice had a hypnotic change, and it was clear she had entered a trance of complete concentration. There was no fear, simply anger and annoyance at their change of pace, and when the lightening came she caught it, searing through her, and her head jerked, and suddenly the white bolt was directed to the wall.

It was the sign, and Remy, who until then had stood, the winds suddenly no longer affecting him, understood. Shaking himself to get out of the daze of watching the Goddess, his hands suddenly slid into his pockets, and he began to run, crashing through the snow with an angered yell.

"Logan, MOVE!" he growled, and with a cry he slid forward, throwing three flaming cards at the same time.

Logan jumped away just in time as the cards and another bolt of lighting hit the wall at the same time, resulting in a huge explosion, so bright they both had to cover their faces.

Remy's trench was thrown aside seconds later, and suddenly in his blazing eyes was the pure resolve, as the cards were thrown again.

Storm paid the eruptions no mind; her body instead was hit again and again by the lightning bolts that had never hurt her before,and were now sliding through her, making her face wince, and her teeth grit in pain.

But she never moved. Her body stayed suspended in the air, and she fought for the one thing she had always wanted and for some reason had always eluded her. Control. Her control was her winds, and she would be damned if she lost that.

The winds swirled, and the lightning and the sleet that surounded her, hit at her battered body almost hid her from Remy and Logan's sight, as the two watched in utter helplessness.

Remy's heart was pounding, and he found himself froze, as the clap of thunder was so loud it pounded into his ear drums.

It was the climatic battle cry, and it was followed by a roar from Ororo, as the lightning came agan and again.

And as quickly as it had begun, it was over. Storm body suddenly went limp in the air, and she crumpled to the ground, and when Logan turned, in the stillness that followed, he could see a gaping hole in front of him, leading into the house.

"STORM!" Remy yelled, scrambling over the fallen, watery snow to slide to her side. He kneeled in front of her, hands reaching out to her to pull her to him.

"Don't touch me yet," she breathed raggedly, and he swallowed, pausing as she looked up, the white eyes clattering with energy. The air around her staticy, stinging. "I... electrocute... Go. Find Rogue. I'll catch my breath and catch up."

"I'm not-"

"I'll be FINE. GO!"

Logan only hesitated a minute, until a scream could be heard from the house.

He growled and ran inside. Remy felt his heart pounding as he looked back into the darkness of the mansion, and then back to the woman kneeling before him.

"Listen Goddess-"

"You get your ass in that house, Remy." Her hands suddenly pushed at his chest and he felt a jolt go threw him, one that cleanly knocked him off his feet and unto his ass, landing just inside the hole.

He took a breath, and then stumbled back, eyes fiery red, sparkling with emotion as he looked at the Goddess who knelt breathless in the bank of melting snow, the crackling of electical current still all around her.

His heart wrenched, and then he finally took a breath and turned running back into the house.

She closed her eyes, trying desperately to catch her breath from the fight with her winds. She had won. She was tired. She was weakened and in pain, but she had won. She still had her control. Her mind throbbed, and her gloved hands slid through her hair, and the crackling continued, as she steeled herself, drawing in a shaky breath and tried to stand. She managed a few steps, until the pain racked through her, and her knees buckled under her, and she found her face in the snow again, the coldness seeping through her.

"DAMMIT," she growled, her palms flat on the ground as she took another deep breath, trying to will her strength to return. "Just a few more minutes," she whispered, looking at the open doorway, and then to the chaos that was being caused by her fellow teammates.

"Just a few minutes. I'll be fine."

She didn't HAVE a few more minutes.

She tried again, managed another step, and then the world tipped sideways and she was back on the ground, her face hitting a stone, making her bleed.

"DAMMIT."

She rolled onto her back, looking up at the clear sky, and then inside to the chaos of the house.

Her breath came in deep rasps, and all she could do was lie there.

Just a few more minutes. Then she'd help them find Rogue. Just a few more minutes.

She would be fine.

She had to be.

~*~

They hadn't been ready for a fight, and Scott could only wonder why, as the X-men continued their assault, coming forward just long enough to be driven behind.

The X-men had their instructions, and they were following them. Give them hell, just enough so that they could cause damage and no one would get hurt.

And their ground team froze, and fired and sparked and stopped, and they advanced, and the commotion as the men came at them was not nearly as chaotic as before.

And so he had barely enough time to think as the winds came, got knocked off his feet.

He had felt relief when they had suddenly stopped for no reason.

And he had barely time to think when he continued the attack against the mutants who were protecting their Lord at all costs.

But he did feel it, he did hear it, and he knew it rang through the others too, when they heard the scream that was so loud it slid through their bodies, into their minds. The familiarity of the scream had set panic into their hearts.

And they all fought harder, tried desperately to get through, because they had begun to sense the losing battle, and all orders to stay behind were thrown to the wind the second they heard the scream.

Because the scream belonged to Rogue, and in their hearts, they knew what that meant.

It was already too late.

~*~

His head was swimming, his body aching, and it was taking every sense, every grasp of energy for him to try to hold together, as she slid into his veins, her body against his, her mind molding inside of him.

His destiny was so very close, and he knew, he knew he was within seconds.

But the chaos outside invaded his mind, and he knew it was tainted her, tainting him. She had recognized it, and she had begun to struggle, a feeble attempt that did not stop what had started, but it had changed things.

It wasn't supposed to be this way. It was supposed to be one sided.

But he still felt the drain, felt her fighting with him, fighting inside of him and inside of her, and he held tighter, his mind slipping, his teeth gritting.

And Rogue opened her eyes at the pain, and she continued to fight him, and he never noticed the fear in the orbs, or the strength she had in resisting him, but he heard the scream.

Everyone heard the scream.

~*~

"MARIE!!!!!!!"

Logan's heart was pounding, his veins rushing with blood as he slid through doorways, the maze of the house making finding his way impossible.

The bars that came down in the hallway had trapped Remy, had almost trapped him. Logan didn't hesitate as he slid the claws back, tearing the bars into pieces, leaving Remy to work himself out of the rest, crying for him to catch up.

He couldn't afford to wait now. His mind was almost fearl, animal, and he felt possessed.

Because he heard the screaming.

It had slid through his mind, and it was her screaming that guided him, as his nostrils flared and he tracked her, moving, claws flying at the people that came to him, throwing them to the side.

Nothing could stop him, and it was her scream that called to him. The fear, the anger, the pure love that filtered into his mind at the idea of his mate in pain, in actual pain to make her scream like that.

He was going to kill the bastard. He was going to kill the bastard and he was going to make sure it was a vicious, cruel death.

That was almost too good for that son of a bitch.

And he was so close, he could feel it inside of him, his little Marie calling to him, and suddenly the screaming stopped, and all that was in the house was silence.

For some reason, that frightened him more than anything.

And he took a deep breath in, closing his eyes, chest heaving, and when his eyes opened they focused on a darkened doorway.

And he howled, and with a roar of pain he burst forward, crashing into it.

It gave way like paper, and he burst into a darkened room with candles, and a sense of evil so tangible he could feel it penetrating through him.

The men in the robes came at him, and with nothing more than a swipe of the claws he ran through them, until they were all lying on the ground, groaning, bloody or motionless.

His eyes darted to the center of the room, the words Marie breaking from his lips until he froze.

The man was holding her to him, clutching her like there was no tomorrow, and from where he stood it was hard to tell where one stood and the other began.

"MARIE!" he cried, and then he ran forward, kicking a leg out, landing it on the man's jaw, watched as there was a crack and Augustus reeled.

Both members of the pair groaned when Logan seperated them, and Logan didn't even think as he jumped on top of the man, claws up, coming down.

"NO!" His eyes widened as Augustus' orbs were on him, weakened, but still quite clear. A smile formed on the man's face, and he merely groaned, whispering hoarsely, "Marie's over here, Logan. She's in trouble."

And Logan's head jerked back, and it was all Augustus needed. With a chant Logan was thrown off, landing on his back, the breath knocked out of him.

He scrambled up, but the room was devoid of Augustus. The bastard had disapeared.

Logan's heart was in his throat as he turned to the crumpled form on the ground.

"Marie," he whispered, crawling toward her. Oh, God. Oh, God. Her body was sprawled, her eyes closed, and her face was pale, so very pale.

He gently gathered her to him, standing, cradling her against him.

Oh, God, Oh, God. Oh, Marie.

"Marie," he pleaded again, looking for any sign that the young woman, that his mate, would open her eyes, answer him, recognize him.

But she was silent, her breathing so light, but even. She was completely out.

He had to get her out of here. He had to find a way to get her out of here.

And he whined, a whine of anger and fear, as he pulled her closer, against his tremoring heart, and walked as fast as he could out of the room.

~*~

She stumbled through the hallways, the darkness making her eyes squint as she searched the corridors for any sign of her friends.

They were empty, and nothing, beyond the distant cries of the chaos that now surrounded the house, could be heard.

She was still weak, and Storm had to reach out to steady herself every so often in order to keep up her harried pace.

Her mind was barely on her exhaustion, instead her mind lay clearly on the only things that seemed to matter at all in the world: Logan, Remy and Rogue.

Her throat was clogged as she continued her journey, and in the back of her mind came the idea that even if they were in trouble and she found them, what on earth could she do to help?

But she still continued onward, and turning the corner, she found a sight that made her heart leap.

"Remy!"

The Cajun theif froze, turning away from the metallic bars he was almost free of, and when he saw her, suddenly cried out,  pressing his body against them as she came forward, pulling with him.

"Oh, God, what happened?" she asked, hands covering his as she looked up at him.

"De damn place is booby trapped," he explained, reaching through the bars to cup her face gently. "You okay, Goddess?"

"I'll live," she tossed at him. "Did you break these bars?"

"Logan did. Then had to run off when he heard Rogue screamin'." His eyes clouded for a second, looking over his shoulder. "I don't know what happened, Goddess. One second I was runnin' after him and de next-"

"Remy." She silenced him quickly with a palm on his lips, and slowly shook her head. "We'll find them. But first we have to get you out of here."

"Right. I almost got it... just... stand back-"

His hands fumbled into his pockets, and she jumped back as the corridor seemed to explode.

~*~

His head was bleeding, and his mind was whirling with the voices that had invaded his head.

Augustus heaved, sliding into the wall, trying to brace himself, breathing quickly.

Good God. Why hadn't the girl gone insane before this.

He took a deep breath inward, swallowing, his eyes opening.

Shit. Rogue. Rogue was still in him, battling, and that meant...

He shook at his head, hands reaching for his face, his mind searching for anything to stop the assualt.

It wasn't over yet. It had just begun.

It was already too late for them.

It was already too late for her.

His very world seemed to teeter, and he shut his eyes, sinking down, gritting his teeth, trying to keep his mind clear, vying for dominance amongst the powers that seeped through him.

This was his destiny. It was irrevocable.

But they still had Rogue.

He swallowed down his anger, breathing in, and breathing out.

There were two inside his out.

And neither of them were his Rogue.

Rogue had gotten out.

He had lost Rogue.

DAMMIIT!

WIth a growl, Augustus tore himsel from the wall, running as fast as he could down the corridor.

It was time to stop playing games. He needed Rogue back. He was through humoring those little X-men mutants simply because they were mutant.

No matter that they were brothers.

No one would keep him from his destiny.

~*~

The bars had a small opening, and Remy slipped through, running to Storm, pulling her up.

"Let's find Logan and find Rogue and get de hell outta here," he whispered.

"Logan's already left." The British voice bit into the stillness, and Ororo froze, turning her head back to the corridor behind them.

Clayton Augustus stared at them, behind him five mutants. No one looked very happy.

"Didn't anyone tell you it's damn rude to come to a house uninvited, sir?" he asked, quirking his eyebrow.

Remy's eyes narrowed, and he came forward, hands in his pocket. "Stay behind me, Ororo."

"Remy-" she began, and was suddenly cut off when the voilet eyes slid to hers.

"I remember you," Augustus pronounced, a smile that didn't quite meet his flashing eyes coming onto his face. "You were the poor dear that was shot up on my roof, weren't you? Now who did that? Oh yes... that was you, wasn't it?"

A man who looked like a serpant slithered up to Augustus' side, and Remy felt his stomach suddenly turn.

"You're helpin him?"

"They're merely aware of the future. Of destiny. YOU my dear man, are in the way of that."

And there was a flash, and suddenly Remy felt a searing bolt hit his chest, pushing him back. He heard Ororo's cry.

His fiery eyes closed for a millisecond, but it was one millisecond too many. When they shot open, his heart stopped, and his legs were frozen.

Ororo, weakened from her struggle with her own winds, was suddenly in Augustus' grasp, battling against it.

"STORM!" The serpent was upon him, wrapping his arms around Remy and like a python, squeezing, tighter and tighter until all Remy could do was struggle for breath, his head suddenly light, his eyes beseeching, wild with terror as Storm's gaze caught his own.

It was Rogue's strength he carried, and Remy wasn't sure how he knew that, but Storm was unable to break free, and the last thing Remy heard before the darkness claimed him were the words, "You have mine, I'm taking yours."

~*~

They knew it was over when the wall of sleet that Bobby had tried to melt back grew to over twenty feet long.

It was an astonishing sight, one that Scott and Jean could only watch with eyes wide with shock, as the snow became ice, and the sleet turned into walls, moving up, forming four huge walls, and then... a roof.

They were completely closed off from the house, and it had been turned into a giant igloo.

The silence that reigned was baffling at first. Scott and Jean could do no more than look at each other, eyes searching the walls of snow before them with hearts tremoring, searching for any sign of what might have gone on, any clue.

A body that seemed fall out of the sky was their only clue, as Jubilee cried, "REMY!", and sure enough the Cajun, it seemed barely breathing, was literally thrown at their feet.

And that was when the rumbling started.

It took Kittys' cry of avalanche to launch them into action, Scott throwing Remy over his shoulder, Bobby creating an ice sled, as they slid to the jet, strapping in and rising above just as the snow slid over the drifts where they had been fighting before.

In the air, Jean had knelt over Gambit, as he coughed and sputtered, wheezing in breath.

"Storm... Storm..."

"REMY." Jean grabbed his shoulders, shaking him slightly, trying to make him focus. "What happened?"

"Logan... disapeared.... Rogue...taken..." His eyes were imploring, and his voice seemed to cracked when he whispered. "He's got Storm."

~*~

He had been a good mile from the house, climbing into the mountains when he saw the jet lift into the air, hovering as the avalanche almost took it.

Logan swallowed, clutching Rogue tightly to him as he watched the scene.

It had been impossible to go back the way he came. Too many mutants, too many guards, too much chaos.

He had barely slipped out as it was, with the strong body in his arms, and he had only been able to hope that Remy and Storm had made it out before the ice had enclosed it.

They had to have made it out. He didn't find Rogue just to lose them.

"Rogue," he whispered breathless, hands covering her face as he teeth chattered, looking at the cut alongside her face.

The young mutant was still, her body slung over his legs, her breath light, erratic. Logan swallowed, grabbing her up, pulling her closer to him as he ran further towards the densest area.

He needed to find a place to keep her safe, revive her while he tried to find help...tried to get Jean's mind thing happening. He had lost the connection and he still wasn't sure how.

But they were looking for Rogue, and he had no idea how to get them and keep Rogue safe. Not when that bastard was still alive. Not when he wasn't even sure what he had done to her.

He continued to run,  for God knew how long, and when it seemed he couldn't run anymore, Logan dropped to his knees, his eyes wide, and his teeth chattering as he looked down at his lover, her pale face cold, so very cold.

"Rogue," he whispered, his eyes moistened, his voice gruff with fear, hands patting at her face.

He waited a minute, and then suddenly his heart leapt as she sucked in her breath, coughing, sputtering.

"ROGUE!"

She moaned, moving, and her breath came in huge gasps, as if trying to find her bearings.

And her eyes opened.

Logan was frozen, trapped by the intensity of those eyes, his heart hammering, and his relief suddenly interwoven with fear.

Rogue had violet eyes.

They bore into him, and then Rogue spoke, whispered in an achingly familiar voice, "Lo--... Logan?"

Her fingers were bare, and Logan didn't even seem to notice until they were pressed against his face.

And then it hit him.

Her fingers were touching his face, her splintering touch was on his face, massaging weakly at his cheeks, and...

Nothing was happening.

"Marie," he whispered, his voice cracking.

And there was a faint smile on her face, a smile of rememberance, until her eyes closed and her hand fell, and Rogue, exhausted from whatever the hell she had gone through, passed out again.

Logan was absolutely still, the howling wind his only companion as he kneeled deep in the snow, clutching Marie to him.

The droplets that slid from his face were very real and very cold, and they spilled over her chest as he buried his face into her neck, his shoulders wracking with sobs of anger, of pain, of the guilt and horror of not knowing. Of the wonder of feeling her touch, and the astonishment of seeing her eyes.

Oh, God.

Please let it not be too late.

It couldn't be too late.

And he felt utterly helpless as he held her to him, his mind whirling, unable to do anything but hold his lover to him, and howl into the wind.

Because there was nothing more he could do.

FIN

COMING SOON:
Slippery When Wet-
While an isolated Logan tries to bring back an enchanted Rogue, Augustus has taken another. While the X-men scramble to find a way to defeat the wizard, Rogue is faced with the death of her friend, and forced to choose between her destiny, and her love.