Intro.: Why is this called Halloween? Orriginally October 31st, my favorite day of the year, I wrote this story and uploaded a bit at a time. Harli generously wrote chapters 2,4, and 5 of this story... I'm gonna be outta town for 2 weeks or more so feedback is 'preciated but replys will be slow. =bum (Paige the Warrior Nun)

Halloween-Lisa "bum" McKee and Harliquin

Paige looks around. She figures she's completely alone so she talks to herself as she walks down the dark hallway, She'd never admit to being afraid, but the fact that she can't see an inch in front of her isn't helping matters. "Sure, Jubilee.. ah'll go up to the attic and see if ah can find something for ya to use for Halloween, ah mean after all ah'm not gonna be here and all, so might as well have fun without me. What WAS I thinking!!!" Paige searches the darkness with her hands outstretched making sure she doesn't walk face first into a wall. "Gee, go Paige. Next time maybe a flash light.." Paige pauses, suddenly realizing something. "How th' heck did ah ever get here in the first place?" Suddenly as if the realization it's self had caused a light bulb to appear a yellow almost fake light fills the room. She's walking on a stone floor with stone walls like that of a castle. "What th'.. a medieval attic?" her eyes sweep around. There's no doors, no place she could have entered and no place to exit. In the four corners of the room are gargoyles, the typical demons with tongues sticking between jagged teeth and claws fashioned into stone talons. "This is.. uh.. Jubilee? This is a... This ain't funny!"
A hand comes down on Paige's shoulder and the chill of it even goes thu the two shirts Paige is wearing. Paige tries to turn but for some reason she can't so she simply turns her head to look at her shoulder. All she can see is a hand with a lot of rings on them, nails painted black jabbing out of white flesh and sharpened to points. "Uh.. hello?" she says //don't care who this hand is attached to but it can't be alive.. bein' that cold. Nope. Ain't gonna think about it.\\
No response. Paige throws back her head and looks up. She's staring at the chin of a rather tall woman who looks down at her and smiles. The woman is pale, with long ebony hair. She takes her hand off of Paige's shoulder. //Like a vampire..\\ Paige unknowingly takes a few steps back as she turns and takes a better glimpse at the woman half expecting the woman to open her black lips to reveal fangs. The woman is clothed in black leather, not unlike her teacher Emma, but Emma wears white.. the white queen they call her.
"Well I am the black queen then." The woman says. Her voice is stern and definite.
"Okay." Paige simply says.
"Tell Emma that time is short. She will suffer for her treason."
"Okay." Paige finds herself saying. Then she shakes her head. "Ah.. ah mean.. no.. I mean.. Treason?"
"She will know. Tell her that this is but the first, I will eventually kill all of you until she meets my demands."
"Demands?"
"Don't bore me."
Paige starts to rub her shoulder, it's still feeling near frostbitten, "Ah'm afraid ma'am that you're going to have to explain this all. Ah'm assuming by bein' the black queen you are a member of the Hellfire club which is now defunct, and even tho you are "black" and she is "white" you were all friends?" //come on Guthrie, stall her.. someone's sure to show up.. get as much info as yah can.\\
"You bore me. Remember to give my message. For your awareness will remain intact."
"Awareness?" Paige asks and before she can ask more suddenly it feels as if someone is clawing at her insides with razorblades. Her eyes grow wide as she clutches at her stomach and lungs. Her eyes start to burn and her sight blurs. Paige falls to her knees and she can feel her mutant power kick in as her skin starts to split off, but she's not husking herself.. she's splitting out of herself. She gets one glimpse at the pool of black around her and realizes with a sickening feeling thu the pain that it's her blood. Paige tries to scream but her mouth is too full of warm blood, she starts to choke on it. Despite the pain she can't pass out. She can hear the woman coldly laugh. Paige holds her hand up in front of her face and squints at it thu stinging eyes, it looks like nothing more than ground meat, and jagged bits of bone sticking out.

"AH'LL KILL YOU!!!" Paige screams and sits up. She's clutching tightly at the sheets on her bed. She looks around, her oversized tee-shirt is stuck to her back with sweat.
The room is only partly dark. Paige looks over at her roommate who simply rolls over and mutters "jush, nightmare hayseed, g'back t' sleep."
Paige wipes off her forehead with a corner of a bedsheet. She climbs out of bed, and pushes open the door to the bathroom and closes the door behind her and turns on the light. She blinks against the light of the bathroom, then focus on her reflection in the mirror. Save for the fact that she looks like she recently got out of a pool and that her eyes are red, everything seems fine. Paige just sits staring at her reflection for a few minutes before filling a Dixie cup full of water and drinking it.
[Just a dream. Only kids gets scared of dreams. Should mention it to Mz. Frost... But if she's a telepath.. she should have been able to sense a dream THAT intense from her cabin even.. unless... she's behind it.. No.. but wouldn't she have been able to sense..] Paige thinks to herself
<<Gel. Yer okay?>> the highly accented English voice of Jonothon Starsmore, Paige's classmate enters her head.
"Well I dreamed I died. Just FINE." Paige mutters to herself knowing Jonothon can't hear her. He's a psi of one of the highest forms, being composed almost completely of psionic energy in itself, yet he's rather new at this whole telepathic concept and hasn't even perfected mind linking yet. Paige opens the door and notices the room is glowing like a fire was lit in the room. She looks at the closed door with a raised eyebrow. <<The window gel.>> Paige looks out the window and sees Jonothon perched on a branch.
"Oh.. uh.. I knew that." She whispers mostly to herself and goes to the source of the flickering fire like light. She opens the window and slowly pushed it up and pokes her head out and looks at Jonothon. "Jono.. don't take this the wrong way, but do you know you're perched on a branch out side my window, sitting there like Penance lookin' into my window, in the middle of the night?"
<<Yer point?>>
Paige pauses and looks closely at the swirling pattern of blue and white light coming from Jonothon's chest, After the way he brushed her off when she took him home for thanks giving, she's being trying to figure out what goes on in his head. It's not working very well. "You COULD have used a door." Paige mutters
<<Correct me if I'm wrong sunshine, but don't they lock the doors at night like any normal dorm?>>
"You climbed a tree tho??"
<<Yer woke up screaming, and it woke me up. Not easy being psionic in case you haven't noticed.>> Jono's tone is harsh.
"I wouldn't know. Point. Look, you wanna come in and talk. We should talk."

<<Actually I was wonderin' if yer wanted to come out and talk. And not wake up yer roommate.>>
Paige hooks a thumb at the still sleeping Jubilee. "She only wakes up if you shine a light in her face, or if it's somethin' she can yell at me for."
<<well?>> Jonothon holds out his hand.
"Well, I'm wearin' an tee-shirt, it's cold nuff to snow I'd reckon, and it's gotta be past midnight. Why not?" Paige reaches out and grabs Jonothon's hand and steps out the windowsill.
Paige gets ready to jump when suddenly instead of Jonothon on the tree branch it's the woman from her nightmare. Selene smiles and Paige turns on her heels to dive back into the window just a centimeter behind her. The window slams shut on her with unnatural speed. She turns trying to keep her balance on the ledge, It's not very easy. Her eyes go wide and she turns and tries to punch on the glass to wake up Jubilee. She's about to for the first time in her life scream for help. But before she can everything that was Paige Guthrie is no more.

Halloween- Chapter One.

Jonothon Starmore's eyes snap open. He must have fallen asleep on the couch after watching some cheesy monster movie. His head rakes with pain. For some reason he just KNOWS someone is in trouble. He can almost feel their pain. He struggles the keep the psioinic energy in check. He tightens the wraps around his chest. He starts to sit up when suddenly a wave of pain hits him. He falls off the couch and lands on the musty throw rug that covers the basement floor. He lifts his head and runs over and grabs his jacket. If someone anyone, especially one of his friends is in pain, he's going to find what's going on. Real or not. He has just slammed one fist thu a sleeve of the jacket when the intruder alarms on campus go off. It sounds like a fire alarm. Jonothon bolts up the stairs.

"What's up Cassidy?" Jubilee asks, now fully awake, her trademark yellow trench over her tee-shirt and boxers she wore to bed, "If this is just a fire drill or something, I'm gonna be like REALLY cranky in the morning."
"Nae Jubilee.. " He closes his eyes and Jubilee can only assume that he's telepathically talking to Emma Frost, the White Queen "Emma can't detect a intruder telepathically, but she says that.. well."
Monet looks at Jubilee. "Where's your roommate? Where is Angelo?"
"Uh.. bathroom?" Jubilee shrugs
"Sleeping?" Everett Thomas guesses. He starts to shiver, after this blast of cold air, there's no way he's going back to sleep.
"Jubilee, you, and Monet go'n examine the main entrance. Jonothon, Everett and I will be'n checking the other possible entrances, Emma will mind link us all."
"Sir?" Everett asks between shivers "Couldn't I just use my Aura to track and identify this mutant? If it's a mutant?"
"Not till be know what we're up against lad. Now Split up."
Monet looks at Jubilee, then with a sigh grabs Jubilee under the shoulders and takes flight. As the two fly off everyone on the ground can hear Jubilee arguing with Monet.

"Monet, how many times do I have to tell you like NEVER EVER grab me and take off with me before telling me?"
"Jubilee, this would honestly be the first." Jubilee glares as the two land. "When I was with the X-men it was never this cold, Storm at least made it warmer."
Monet just sighs, then flies a few feet off the ground and points "Over there.. look."
A woman is smoking a long cigarette and leaning against the entrance post. "I believe we've found the intruder." Monet whispers
"HEY! YOU!" Jubilee shouts and Monet simply groans,
"Jubilation, I may never have been 'hangin' with the X- men' as you so frequently remind us.. but shouldn't we have waited for Mr. Cassidy?"
Jubilee isn't paying attention, like normal she's tuned the often annoying Monet out an is staring at the spot where the woman was just a few seconds ago.. but she's gone.
"You two girls don't care much for each other? Do you?" a smooth female voice says behind them. Both girls turn. "Don't bother. None of you are an even worthy challenge and I didn't come her to get my shoes dirty either, only to make a pick up."
"Who are you? May I ask?" Monet says in her typical unthreatened way.
"Child, I am the last immortal on this planet. I am Selene. I became bored this evening and decided to-"
"Oh I get it. Like Prince, Elvis and Madonna, no whole name needed." Jubilee interrupts.
"It's very rude to interrupt me. People have died for lesser things." Selene's right eye seems to flash for a second.
"Yeah. Scared. So what's your thing?" Jubilee says. "Better be good cause it's so cold out here you've lost a lot of color.."
"I am a psionic vampire, have recently fed, I'm not in the mood for your banter."
"Like my brother." Monet says as her eyes narrow.
"Superior. Far from your brother. Ask any of my followers in Madrid."
"Great. She's a David Korresh Wannabe."
With that Selene's eyes flame red. "You are lucky I will not kill you for your ignorance, how dare you not know who I am.. I am the last immortal! The Black Queen of the Hellfire club, The architect of the Upstarts, the re-creator of the Hellfire club. You DARE? May you and your greatest annoyance be bonded as to be one!"
And with that the ground shakes slightly and Selene is gone.

"Emma says the girls have made contact. Everett.. Take Jonothon back to th' dorm." Banshee orders, his voice stern.
"But sir? Why?"
"Just follow me orders. Don't use your mutant ability to synch with me t' fly. It makes it harder for Emma to mask ye psionicly." Banshee says as her breaks into a run en-route to the gates.
Chapter 2
-----------------

"Angelo! Get DOWN!" He felt heavy, rough hands on his shoulders, pushing him down to the ground. "Madre de dios! Carlos!" He looked up, glancing about frantically for his friends.
God, how he hated L.A.
Carlos was down, his gun in his hands. Carlos was also screaming frantically in Spanish "Run, Angelo! Run! We have you covered!"
Angelo got to his feet, and sped off like a speed-freak. His lungs burned, his feet hurt, and he was so sick of shooting and hiding and running for his life that he wanted to run right out of L.A. til he hit the ocean and drowned.
But he wasn't going to do that. Not now. Not yet. Probably never.
Then, it happened. The headache hit and he hit the pavement.
He moaned softly, he couldn't do anything more as it happened... again. His skin rippled of it's own accord and seemed to slosh onto the pavement. He was loosing his natural tan and going a darker, or was it lighter? Then darker again...color that defied description. He tried to scream, but it couldn't make it past the now elongated lips.
He laid there for a moment, praying to God and Christ and the Mother Mary that no one would see him like this, that he would live through this... this whatever it was.
His survival instinct kicked in. His will bit him in the ass, telling him to get up and get moving. He had to survive. The skin obeyed the mental push he gave it, and he rose from the sidewalk.
He didn't remember where he was for a moment. Things were fuzzy.
Then he saw her.
Coldly beautiful, like some sort of Ice Princess, though dressed for more...hot blooded pursuits, she stood before him. "You controlled it. You weren't supposed to." She said coldly. "Be glad I have fed, miserable wretch."
"Who are you, chica?" He asked incredulously. He looked down at himself and memories came back. He was thirteen, living in L.A. with his Mother, and just developing his powers...Or was he? That hadn't happened till much later! What was wrong?
"I am Selene. The Black Queen. And I made it happen, little boy." She sneered. She looked at him. "I think survivor, that you run to much. Especially from your past. You should have to FIGHT for life." He felt a searing pain in his head, and he cried out, clutching his temples. She smiled cruelly. "See if you can survive the things your own minds throws at you. See if you can run from yourself." And she vanished.

Skin bolted upright in bed, body covered with a sheen of sweat. "Madre de dios!" He looked around his room, and then saw that everything was where he left it. He was in Massachusetts, he was sixteen, and he was still the mutant called Skin.
And so far, he had escaped his past.
He shut his eyes, remembering the Black Queens haunting words. What had that been about? What kind of dream WAS that...
"Quit whining, Angelo!" He looked up, and noticed that his room was not entirely the same. In the chair at his computer desk, sat an ebony version of himself.
"You know, your friend are in trouble. Better get downstairs and help them. Or are you gonna run...again?"
"Madre de dios!" Angelo made the sign of the cross, and stumbled back and out of the bed. "You-You-!"
"Can't you hear it? Paige...Jono...Ev...They're getting hurt. And it's cause you're not there. Better go help them. Or are you gonna run from this...Like you ran from home? Ran from Torres?"
He looked at his doppleganger, who laughed maniacally, and vanished, and then ran downstairs, hoping to find out what was wrong in time.
He couldn't run. Not this time.

Chapter 3
-------------
Everett and Chamber walk back to the dorm
<<any clue what the gov'ner was on about?>>
"Nope, just glad to be going back to the dorm. Out of the cold. Nobody ever said it was so cold up here."
<<It's not to cold.>>
"Says the guy with jeans and a jacket on." Everett chuckles.
<<Git down>> Jonothon pushes Everett down just in time for a rock about the size of a baseball to whiz past his head. <<What th' 'ell?>>
"Leech? Artie? Franklin?" Everett asks as he gets up on one knee.
<<Not quite.>> Jono says as her removes the wraps off his chest and the immediate area lights up in his psionic glow.
"Who?" Everett asks.
<<Get in Synch with th' person.>> Everett's Aura flashes out and suddenly he drops back down to the ground. "OW!! OW OW!!!" He screams. The skin on his hand splits open and blood and razor claws split out. "OW!! OWW!!!!" he exclaims as his other hand does the same Everett exhales as he turns off is aura. "Paige?" he looks up at Jonothon. His voice stabilizes "It's like I'm in synch with her.. but it's not workin' right. My outside skin isn't husking off, just what's under th' skin is changin. Paige can't do something like that can she? Turn off aspects of her power.. she wouldn't do that to herself would she? "
<<Yer tell me.>>
"Throwing rocks.. and THIS?" he raises his hands up and looks at them in the light of Jonothon's glow. His hands start slowly turning back to flesh tone as he does so, and he takes the small blades out of his hands with his teeth, wincing at the cuts that remain.
"It can't be Paige.. It hard for me to be in synch with her, and I don't know how she could be turning off select parts of her power without help _and_ well she would have to be hurting herself in order to have the same thing happen to me right?"
Suddenly Everett screams again as this time shards of metal jag out of his upper arms, and chest, soaking his now sliced shirt in thin lines of blood. His aura triggered again.
Jonothon looks down at this friend, not believing what he just saw. His eyes go red and he dashes into the area where the first thrown rock came from. Nothing. He looks around. All there is shadows playing off the rocks. <<Show yer bloody head, whoever yer are, or I'll track yer down and they'll be 'ell t'pay.>>
Suddenly the ground beneath Jonothon moves and Jonothon readies himself for a blast. Mondo takes full human form in front of him. "'Allo." He simply says.
<<Where were yer?? Take Everett to th' medlab. He's 'urt pretty bad.>>
Mondo looks confused. "I just got back on campus.. and you're all screaming and fighting and all. Why do I miss every thing?"
<<Mondo. NOW.>> Jonothon orders with a point of a finger. Mondo gives Jonothon a strange look then turns and walks the way Jonothon pointed.
A sound above Jonothon makes him look out and he sees two red eyes appear. Seconds later Paige jumps out of a tree and lands right in front of Chamber without so much as a wince at having jumped from what would have been a second story of a building.
<<What the 'ell is goin' on 'ere?!!>> Chamber exclaims at Paige.
Paige just smiles.
Jonothon looks down at Paige and notices with a sinking feeling that she has the exact same slashes and blood stains on her clothes that Everett received minutes ago. <<YER DID THIS TO EVERETT??>>
"Yeah." Paige says, still staring thu Jono, "Isn't it cool? I can do ANYTHING now. "
<<'OW TH' BLOODY 'ELL ARE YER DOIN' THIS?!>> Jonothon's psionically screams into Paige's head as he starts to shake her by the shoulders.
"I'm more than I was before-"
<<'E YER FRIEND!! WHY??>> Jonothon screams louder.
Paige doesn't even wince from the scream directly into her brain. "Ah reckon just felt like it. Now move ya butt cuz you KNOW you can't fry me with yer psionic fireworks, and I gotta take ya someplace."
<<Where?>>
Again her face goes from stern and angry to confused"Ah.. ah don't know. But Ya gotta come or else ya're gonna die."
Then Paige's voice drops to a near whisper, "That's not a threat. It's a promise. Dead or alive I don't give a care. But Mondo will stay trapped underground if you don't. If you doubt me call for him."
And with that a swirl of light and color appears behind Paige and she steps backwards into it as if she knew it was there. All while still glancing right into where Jonothon's heart should be.
Jonothon pause for a second, then sticks his hand into the portal. He hears a voice scream his name. He's about to remove his hand from the portal when he feels himself being pulled inward, before his eyesight fails him he sees a thin strand of gray wire shoot at him.



Jonothon wakes up but doesn't open his eyes. He's still wearing his leather jacket. Jonothon starts to stretch and then realizes he's not in his own bed. He sits up and swings his legs over the edge of the bed,
He looks back in the bed. Laying beside him sleeping like a baby is Paige <<Great.>> He deadpans to himself. The bed looks like it belongs in the gothic ages with huge the bed posts fashioned into gargoyles and demons carved into the wood. The sheets on the bed are black silk. Still Jonothon stands up and looks around the room. The room is in almost an entirely black and rock motif with no chairs, no mirrors and an oversized door that has an elaborate doorknob also carved into the shape of a gargoyle, the iron eyes even seem to follow Jono as he moves.<<This place belongs in a bloody B movie>> he grumbles to himself then gets over and looks out the window, There's a cliff only a few edges from the wall of the floor he's looking from. <<Great. And only 5 stories up. What kinda bloody castle is this built on the edge of a cliff>> He sighs and applies the spare leather wraps he keeps in one of his pockets of his jacket to wrap up his upper torso and chest. He then goes over to the bed <<Paige.. Wake up>> he says and taps her shoulder.
"Drop dead." Paige murmurs without so much as opening an eye.
Jonothon simply glares
<<Let's go.>> Jonothon simply says. His tone cold and and full of anger.
Paige still doesn't move. "Can't."
<<Why not.>>
"Starters. Angelo is nearby. We aren't going to get away, this is her private home that only she and her select servants know about, and second I want clothes, This ain't no little smut book. I am NOT running around without some decent clothes."
<<We are leaving. Now. Yer c'n get clothes on the way.>>
Still not moving or even turning to glimpse Jonothon's presence, "Go do something useful and take a shower or something. Try not to drown."
Jonothon growls to himself and stands up and starts to look at the room again.
Chapter 4
-----------------------

"Well WE did a wonderful job, didn't we?" Skin woke the sound of his own voice. "Que?"
"Get up, idiot." HE pushed himself up from the bed, and looked around. "Jono?"
He remembered seeing his companion at the portal...And what else was there? What couldn't he remember.
"You lousy sack of shit. Can't you do ANYTHING right? First you botch it with Dad, the Torres, then you can't even go back to L.A. and clear up the loose ends you left behind. Hell, you couldn't even talk to MOM. And NOW you think you're gonna save your friends? Don't make me laugh,chico."
Skin scowled, and got up from the bed. He's still in the tank top and boxers that he was in when he got out of bed.
"Wonderful. I get to save Jono in my night clothes."
"Why not. You're never prepared for anything else."
Skin frowns at his dark double. "Callate, man!"
"What? Can't take the truth, coward?"
Skin scowled at him again. "Go to hell."
"You first."
Skin whirls on his double, ready to snap, but found no one. He stopped "great. Now I'm really alone."

* * * * *

"What did she mean By...bonded to your annoyance?" Jubilee asked.
"I am unsure, but, as always, you mange to get us into trouble with your childish antics." Monet said, folding her arms and staring at the younger girl.
"Childish? This from the girl who owns a coloring book?"
Monet frowned, and then proceeded to stomp away.
At least, she TRIED to stomp away.
"AUGH!" Twin screams echoed out of Monet and Jubilee's throats, as Monet got more then a from steps from Jubilee. Monet staggered backward, hands to her temples.
"What the heck was THAT?" Jubilee exclaimed.
"I...I am unsure...I...Bonded to your worst annoyance?"
Jubilee looked at her for a moment as disgust crossed over Monet's features. "WHAT? WHAT?"
"It seems we are stuck with each other as company." Monet said simply, crossing her arms and glaring at Jubilee. "And it is all your fault!"
Chapter 5
--------------

Angelo padded around the room, digging about in the closets for any clue of where he might be. But nothing. NOT ONE THING could be found, except black leather accouterments that would have made Emma blush...He thought.
//But I'll have to remember where these are, incase I ever want to see Paige in any of it...\\ HE snickered at the though of Paige dressed as the White Queen, and gave it serious consideration for a moment. //Nah. Never happen.\\
"Mr. Espinosa, I presume?"
Angelo whirled around. He hadn't even heard footsteps. "Gah!"
He saw a man dressed as a butler, with slicked back blonde hair, icy blue eyes, and no trace of a smile. "You are Mr. Espinosa, am I correct?"
"Uh...Yeah." He looked about frantically.
"I mean you no harm." He held out the robe that Angelo hadn't noticed he was carrying. "Here. Please make yourself more presentable, if you are to wander about the Castle."
Snatched the robe, and looked at it carefully, and then shrugged, putting it on. "Okay, Senor Butler. Where is Jono and Paige?"
"Miss Guthrie and Mr. Starsmore are in the castle. I will take you to their room."
Angelo nodded. "You do that, Senor." And followed the butler out.
//I can't trust him. but what choice to I have? I mean, I don't know where I am, what's goin' on, or where Jono and Paige are. I'll have to play along.\\
<<You are not playing along, Mr. Espinosa. You're friends are fine.>>
Angelo jumped at the voice. "QUE? JONO?"
"No. That was me. You broadcast your emotions on a high level, most likely because your a mutant. As am I. Lady Selene prefers them in her service."
"You're a telepathic butler?"
"Among other things, yes. A special breed of telepath."
Angelo shook his head. Things were getting weirder and weirder. He just hoped that he found Paige and Jono and got out of here and soon as possible.
"Don't even bother, chico. You're doomed. You won't survive this time. You can't run and hide like you NORMALLY do..." He saw himself, his ebony self, out of the corner of his eye and turned, but then he was gone. He sighed. This was gonna be a loooong day.

Chapter 6
-------------------
"I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE! I DON'T CARE!" Jubilee's screams can be heard all the way in the boys dorm.
"I can't either!" Everett Thomas thinks to himself as he heads back up to this room. He stops off at Angelo's room and knocks on the door "Angie. You sure missed a lot, Jono's missing and Jubilee and M are bonded to each other, and Artie, Leech and Franklin have been havin' nightmares and all." No response.
"Angelo?" Everett slowly pushes the door open and peers his head inside. Suddenly an hand comes down on his shoulder and he gasps and turns around.
"Everett! Tell Monet to PLEASE SHUT UP!" Jubilee says as she starts to overact by banging her head onto Everett's shoulder.
"I said next to nothing, you on the other hand had the asininity to mention the fact that Pamela Anderson would survive a nuclear holocaust to Mondo.-"
"I WAS JUST TRYING TO GET MY MIND OFFA YOU!" Jubilee exclaims. Everett tries to quiet edge away from the argument.
"Silicon, Jubilee. Silicon CAN melt in the temperatures that a nuclear holocaust is bound to produce."
Everett turns and breaks into a run to his room and shuts and locks to door, he's not sure who to be sorry for. Jubilee, Monet or himself.



Chapter 7
------------

"There's no door." Paige deadpans as she as she enters the room and slams the door behind her. The butler replies with a cold glare and a note of a smirk as he goes to the door and leaves the room, shutting the door quietly behind him.
<<If yer would have stayed around yer would have been told that.>> Jonothon grumbles.
"Amiga.. have you been feeling.. strange lately?" Angelo asks as he moves away from Paige.
"Why?" Paige asks
"Senor butler, or Owen as he wants to be called, told us a few.. things."
Paige takes a step closer to Angelo. Angelo takes a step back. "What'd he tell you?"
<<Yer possessed.>>
Paige's eyes turn red. "No. I'm pissed. Difference. Look guys.. I feel like myself and everything.."
<<That's because when you get surprise or somethin' of the like Selene can't keep a grip on yer mind.>>
"RIGHT! Your listening to that guy over me? I swear to you! I'm fine! I really am."
Jonothon turns and takes Angelo by the shoulder and they turn away from Paige as if they were about to discuss something in private, Suddenly Jonothon turns and bioblasts thu the wraps around his body and straight into Paige, who doesn't even have a chance to scream. She slams into the wall, staying above the ground for a second before falling face forward to the ground still with a small amount of smoke raising from her back.
Angelo winces "That was.. a bit much." he races over and rolls Paige over and takes her pulse. "Damn Jonothon, did you actually have to blast her INTO the wall."
<<She's okay right?>>
"Bueno...do you hear someone screaming?"
<<She's not going to be very happy when she wakes up.>>
"Considering..." Angelo dusts some of the fragments of the wall off of his friend "Considerin' there's wall dust on her.. I wouldn't plan on her paying for your diner for the next few weeks. He's coming ya know."
Jonothon's eyes narrow as he gets into a fighting stance. <<I know.>>
As if in response the door suddenly gets kicked in and Owen runs in his hair is no longer in it's perfect part and his eyes are bloodshot. A small trickle of blood is running out of his nose. "WHAT DID YOU DO?!!" Both hands on his head as if his brain was running the risk of exploding.
Angelo as a matter of reflex takes Paige into his arms. "Es my estupido. You told me you were telepathic."
"That means nothing." Owen growls as he rubs his temples.
<<Selene's not telepathic. Or else I would've know she was on campus. Yer on the other hand when I first met yer I could tell yer and Paige seem ter be workin' on th' same wavelength.>>
"Which means nada to me senior butler, Not a telepath.. but you told me you were a telepath, I was having problems of my own. Jono told me about what he knew about senorita blackqueen and it all fits together. Only question is why?"
"Why I do what I do is of no concern to you. And your stunt makes no difference-"
"Then why are you so beat looking?"
<<Because he's a weak telepath. He can only get a link on a chap's mind when 'e's weak and has lowered mental defenses. But causing a shock to th' person 'e's mind linked with backlashes to 'im. No Psionic buffers.>>
"Yeah.. exactly what I would have said.." Angelo mutters sarcastically. He looks to Jono when Paige starts to move slowly in his arms.
<<Don't worry.. only if th' person's mentally broken down, not physically. Emma taught me all about these forms of psionics.>>
"Wonderful." Angelo again mutters.
"Be it is it is. Your assumptions of me are of no difference. If you wish to eat, come down to the kitchen. There still is no way out, and dispite the means I may have employed, it would be in both our interests if you complied." Owen says calmly as he then turns and leaves as if the converstion never happened.
"Splended." Angelo mutters.
Chapter 9
-------------
"OW! Hey! STOP!" Paige pushes Angelo away and grabs the damp washcloth from him. "Ah can do it myself."
"Okay... as long as your okay."
"Look I'm fine. Feel like my head is about to ooze out my ears, eyes and nose, but other than that.. great."
"Just don't doubt yourself okay... I mean I'm sure Jono wouldn't wanna have to blast you again."
"What?"
"Err... right you don't remember any o' this."
"Angelo.. I remember having this nightmare about some really evil looking lady making me glow for a second as she put a hand on my forehead and I remember falling to a ground and seein' someone walk up to me.. then I'm here..wearing all black."
"Humph.. well put it this way. We're in a building that apparently has no exits. Jono's checkin' into it now."
<<No exits. No door. 'Ow we got 'ere would be th' only way out.>> Jonothon says as he walks into the room.
Paige rubs her temples. "Okay there's a guy that apparently can take over peoples minds."
<<Only if that person is incapacitated.. 'e's just a really weak telepath. 'E c'n twist existing emotions around and such in a person.>>
"Soo what happens if we fall asleep?" Angelo asks not wanting to really know the answer.
<<Never got that far in class yet.. we didn't actually discuss this topic in depth.. they don't pose threats to higher level telepaths..>>
"Which yeah..* ALL* of us are." Angelo grumbles.
"So we just got to get out of here.. if he's weak then he probably doesn't range."
"Hola.. no doors."
Paige's eyes narrow and she rubs her temples again. "There's a tub, a shower and a toilet... right"
"Your not suggesting.."
"Sewer system."
"Ohhh No country mouse.. no way..."
......

"No. Now give it back." Jubilee grumbles as she tries and takes her CD back from Monet.
"Jubilation.. if we have to sleep in the same room you could at least play a different CD."
"Okay M.. Hey I got a question for you."
"And I no doubt can find the answer."
"Why can the government draft 18 year olds to kill in the name of the government in war, and yet you have to wait till ya 21 to drink?"
"Uh.. That's America."
"But why?"
With that Monet's eyes go white and Jubilee takes the CD out of Monet's hand.


Chapter 10
------------
"I can't believe I'm doing this."
<<It's this or I have ter blast both of yer in the morning to make sure one of yer isn't bein' mind controlled.>>
"says the man who doesn't HAVE to breath. Personally option Blast looks MUCH nicer." Angelo grumbles as Paige reaches up thu the hole newly blasted by Jonothon and attempts to pull Angelo down. "Sewer pipes.. ONLY you Paige would think of this.." Angelo grumbles as he looks at the floating sludge. "Oh look, it's last nights tuna casserole"

"Rassum Frassum.. She's no where near the CD player.. How am I 'spose to be able to put in the CD if I can't budge her or get near the CD player?" Jubilee grumbles and sits on the floor, waiting for Monet to snap out of her trance.
The door knocks, Jubilee is about to answer it but remembers the "boundaries" So she simply calls out for the person to enter.
Artie and Leech wander in. Leech looks at Jubilee "Leech want to know when Chamber and Angelo are coming home?" Artie projects the image of both boys just in case Jubilee forgot who they were
Jubilee shrugs. "Emma's trying to find them, and Paige. She's missing too."
"Do you think Mr. Gateway will help bring them back?"
Jubilee sighs as she looks to Monet and then back to Artie and Leech, "He's as talkive as Monet now. I don't think so."
"Leech and Artie are worried about them."
"Yeah Jubilee is too." Jubilee mutters as she starts making the attempt to snap Monet out of her trance. "But all of us have been in worse scrapes, they'll come back.. wherever they are."
Chapter 11
-------------
"No. I mean this isn't right." Paige whispers to herself as she looks up and down granite enclosure they are in.
"Of all people I think someone that lived on a FARM would know that there wouldn't be an intricate system of sewage disposal."
"But.. but .. nobody told me that this was the only building on this island."
Jonothon turns as if he can hear someone coming <<Quiet, both of yer.. we're bein' followed. Paige, turn into something that can blend to the granite.>>
"Done and understood" Paige whispers as she quietly rips away her skin to reveal a stone form, She grabs Angelo by and arm and swings him so she's standing in front of him.
"Que? What are ya doin? You can't expect you to camouflage me all the-" Angelo whispers. Paige answers his question by reaching down into the sludge and gathering two handfuls of thick black goo and splattering it on what was once a clean upper body of Angelo. "I hate you." He mutters.
"That's nice. Be quiet." Paige whispers as she does her best rock impression, letting Angelo hide behind her. Jonothon in turn dives into the sludge. Paige realizes with a sinking feeling as Owen walks into the dead end cavern with a flashlight that they are trapped. Owen stops at the edge, not willing to walk into the actual containment of sewage, and shines his flashlight around the cavern,. Paige presses as close as she can to the wall without smashing Angelo as the flashlight beam plays over her. With a grunt of indifference the flashlight shines elsewhere as Owen turns and leaves.
Paige exhales and takes a step forward.
<<PAIGE NO!!>> Jono telepathically screams into her head, it almost drowns out the sound of the gunshot in the cavern, and Angelo's scream.
"NO!" Paige screams and turns, and covers Angelo with her body hoping to take the rest of the gunshots. But no more gunshots come.
Owen's chuckle fills the cavern along with the echo of Paige's scream. "Do you really think I'm that weak a telepath that I couldn't at least sence Mr. Starsmore's presence."
Paige doesn't reply, she's hudled over Angelo trying to stop the blood from gushing out of his shoulderblade.
"Had..worse." He whispers.
"No. I'm afraid not." Owen's voice is now right next to Paige.
She turns around to see him waist deep in the sludge with a gun pointed at her head.
"If.. if you shoot that gun.. the spark will ignite the methane fume-"
Again Owen chuckle, "I already shot the gun once. And." With that he points the gun at Angelo and shoots him again this time right into the heart. "I shot again."
With that Jonothon Starsmore stands up out of the sludge, he's standing right behind Owen. Owen ducks just as Jonothon swings and shoots Jonothon in the left kneecap.
"Young Mr. Espinosa means nothing to Mistress Selene and neither does Mr. Starsmore. " With that Owen raises his gun to fire again.
Chapter 12
--------------
"Somebody make her move! I'm hungry and she hasn't moved in 2 hours this is the longest she's been like this!!" Jubilee exclaims as Everett hands her a thin mint cookie.
"Well on the brighter side.. Mz. Frost says that her and Dc McCoy have figured out that it's not a "curse" and that it's telepathic. But that "black queen" isn't telepathic, and it's some sort strong telepathic link with someone that's such a low scale telepath that Emma can't detect him."
Between mouthfuls of Girl Scout cookies Jubilee amends, "In the X-men Jean or the prof' would just crank up the Celerbro and pinpoint anyone-"
"IF it wasn't destroyed during that whole Onslaught or whatever that was deal."
"Yeah. We miss all the fun. The world almost gets destroyed and.. well like now I'm sitting here with the stare-o-gram queen.. eating girlscout cookies that Paige had left under her bed... hey get me some of the mountain dew wouldya?"
"Hey. Don't worry J. When Jean gets back from wherever she went she'll be able to find Jono and when we do that we'll find out who was helping Selene out and did.. this to you. It's only been almost 24 hours, these things take time."

..

<<Paige.. wake up.>>
"Please tell me ah'm dreaming Jono. Please tell me ah'ma gonna open my eyes and everything's gonna be okay.. ah fell 'sleep watchin some bad movie."
<<Fraid not gel.>> Jonothon responds his voice cold. Paige opens her eyes and looks around the room. Kneeling next to her is Jonothon, his knee is bandaged. Paige sits up and shivers to herself. She looks over at the bed as she rubs the kinks out of her neck. Laying in the bed is Angelo. Paige bites her lower lip, and slowly walks over to him. She turns and looks back at Jonothon who limps away to look out the window. <<I 'ad to carry both of yer back up.>>
"Why?" Paige asks trying not to let the fact she's crying show through the question.
<<If I didn't 'e would 'ave shot yer too.>> Jonothon sounds as if he's crying , but Paige can't see his face to tell, she doesn't really care. She strokes Angelo's hair out of his face. His access skin has melted away and he looks like a young boy hardly old enough to resemble the Angelo she knew and argued with constantly.
"He.. he.. why'd he have to die. I mean it's my fault. If I didn't move."
The door opens and in walks Owen. No trace of a smile on his face. "Do you honestly believe I did not know you were there. Come now. Dinner is served. I recommend both of you eat what I've prepared. You are no good to Mistress Selene in a emaciated state."
<<Go ter hell yer ruddy plonker. If I'm so special to yer, why'd yer shoot me in the leg and kill on of me best friends?>>
"You misunderstood me Mister Starsmore. You are an added bonus, the way to purchase my freedom from the Madame of the island before my actual time is through."
"Go to hell." Paige simply mutters as she takes Angelo's now cold hand in her own and squeezes it as if she's hoping to transfer some of her own life into him.
"Miss Guthrie. I would not recommend such bad mouthing. My plans can be alters ever so slightly and I'm sure I can get your brother to this island with or without you living."
Paige and Jonothon almost in unison ask the same question, "What?"
"As if you did not know. Your brother is somewhat of an immortal. Externals I believe they were called. Were being the main expression. All Externals save your host Selene were killed."
<<This is bloody insane.>> Jonothon grumbles as he limps to turn around.
"Your brother however, did not die. Selene has expressed an interest in ..why his demise did not occur, and if he is indeed immortal." Owen continues.
Paige drops Angelo's hand and runs a hand one last time over his now smooth face. "Mah best friend was murdered just so you could get mah brother down here to kill him. He didn't do anything to you. "
Paige then drags Angelo out from under the covers, wincing at how heavy he had strangely become, she rolls him under the bed as gently as she can.
"What.. What are you doing?" Owen asks, his eyes for a split second not looking iced blue.
"Ah'm protectin' him, from you touchin him.. ever again." Paige's eyes are no longer their normal sky blue but pure white with no pupils. "You can't read my mind when I'm this mad can you? No.. Your a weak telepath aren't you."
"I may not be a high end mutant like you may belive you are.. But.. I'm a lot wiser Miss Guthrie." Owen says and he pulls a gun out from between his vest and his jeans. He aims it at Jonothon. "Do you want to make it two friends dead."
<<Yer ruddy plonker, I c'n melt the bullet before it gets to me.>>
"But you'd also kill everyone in the room." Owen's straight line mouth works into the ever slightest smirk. He watches as Paige gets in between him and Jonothon and starts to walk backwards towards Jonothon.
<<Paige.. git out o' here.>>
Paige starts to breath heavy and glares at Owen "What time is it?"
"8pm why?"
Paige smirks. "Because." She turns and looks at Jonothon for a split second and then breaks eye contact and kicks him through the open window, "'cuz it's been two hours since I last did this.."
With that Paige rips off her hand to reveal a skeleton frame of a fist with blue energy consuming it. She looks at it in shock and screams.
"ARE YOU INSANE! Your power is controlled by your sub-" Owen never finishes the sentence before the energy surrounding what was once her skeleton tastes air and sets off a chain reaction blowing off the rest of her skin and through contacting more with air.
Jonothon hits the ground but the pain of him landing on a treebranch is nothing compared to the sound of cracking rock and various explosions. The window he was shoved out of is glowing blue, and as soon as it had started it's over. PAIGE> Jonothon screams as he tries to climb up the tree, but even if he were to climb to the highest point it would be still to far way to logically jump. But Jonothon tries anyway. He concentrates his hardest to sense any life signs but he can't., Smoke rises out of the window, the only human size window in the small tower. <<PAIGE! ANSWER ME!!>> Telepathically sends.
"My my. I leave and look what the place looks like when I get back." A woman's voice is heard. Jonothon looks over and floating next to him is a woman dressed in all black. <<Selene I presume.>> He says coldly.
"Yes. And you must be Jonothon Starsmore. Quite an interesting aura you have."
<<I'm in no mood t' talk to yer.. murderer.>>
"And I was going to let you into the tower again to confirm that your two friends had finished off that rather annoying butler of mine. To much of a sense of humor. But alas you didn't want to take me up on that offer. I guess you will never find out if Paige and Angelo are alive. Good day."
<<What? What are yer on about?>> Jonothon asks, but suddenly the world of Jonothon Starsmore goes white and when his vision returns he's laying in the school's biosphere with Penance slowly sticking a long red claw and gently picking at his jacket sleeve. <<No! I got ter get back! NO!!!>> Jono telepathically screams and Penance skitters away into the underbrush.
"I'M FREE!!!" is the return scream as the door to the grotto opens and Jubilee falls to her knees and screams once again, "I'M FREE!!!"