Disclaimer: We don’t own the X-Men. Or the Skrull. Or any of the characters. While money would be nice, we’re not getting any, nor do we expect any. A book contract from Marvel would be nice, however!

Deliverance, Chapter 2

by: Sue Penkivech, Melodyrider, and Oldprydefan

Chapter Two: Ship Stealing 101

The stepping disk descended from mid-air in a bright arc of eldritch flame, gradually revealing the seven rescuers as it traced its way to the ground. For most of them it was their first encounter with Illyana’s signature mode of transportation, but if the experience left any of them unnerved, the blonde sorceress couldn’t tell. Instead they calmly took in their surroundings, some with curiosity and others with an air of purpose.

She could hardly believe that barely half an hour ago she’d been prepared to pluck Emma Frost’s soul, such as it was, right out of the horrid woman. Instead, she was now actually going on a mission with her. Not that she was all that sure what to think of the others on the team, either. The last she’d seen of Bobby he was helping X-Factor make mutantkind feel even more like a hunted species, she didn’t know anything about the guy who looked like a dead Beatle, and she was still having trouble wrapping her mind around the idea that the foul, lanky Englishman who stunk of cigarettes was an ex-boyfriend of Kitty’s. If it weren’t for the fact that Kitty’s life was at stake she never would have considered working with this group. At least Ali was with them. It was nice to have at least one person she knew and still trusted.

Or two, if she counted Lockheed. At the moment the little, purple dragon was curled around her neck, nostrils flared as he scanned the area with his beady eyes. Kitty’s alien companion had stumbled across them in one of the halls just as they were getting ready. He always could sense when Kitty was in extreme danger, so it came as no surprise to Illyana that he’d found them, and as soon as she saw him she insisted on taking him along.

They hadn’t even stuck around long for Cyclops to get back from his meeting with the Mayor of San Francisco, and Piotr was off somewhere in Russia of all places, with Logan and Kurt. Just keeping up with everything that had changed over the years was a challenge, but they were short on time to start the mission, and she’d spent most of the prep time having the others to fill her in on what had happened to Kitty. She could hardly believe some of the things they told about that, but if anyone had the bull-headedness to pull off the impossible in order to save the world at the very last second, it was her roomie.

Illyana lifted a hand to her shoulder and idly scratched behind one of Lockheed’s tapered horns as she looked around. Flat countryside stood in sharp contrast to the crowded, hilly cityscape they’d been standing in only moments ago. To one side of them was a long, dusty runway which cut a straight path toward three large, nondescript buildings in the distance. On the other side was a row of hedges growing parallel to the runway and continuing on, vanishing in the distance in straight, rigid sentry. A cool breeze ruffled the trimmed landscape around them, bringing a slight shiver to Ali, who hugged herself and rubbed vigorously at her arms.

“Brrr. So much for soaking up that warm California sun,” she breathed.

Bobby, who didn’t look the least bit uncomfortable with the temperature, let out a soft chuckle. Smirking, he buffed his knuckles against his collar and said, “Is it cold? I hadn’t noticed,” which Ali very maturely responded to by sticking her tongue out at him.

“All right, keep it down, you lot,” Wisdom told them as he waved everyone toward the hedges. Illyana noticed Ali’s smile waver a bit as blue eyes flicked toward the guy and for a moment it almost seemed like she was about to toss off one of her signature quips, but instead she just fell silent, as if she wasn’t sure what to say. Something similar had happened back in San Francisco when Wisdom first saw the former pop star walk into the White Queen’s office, and they hadn’t really said much to each other since. Apparently those two had some kind of history, but whatever it was, Ali hadn’t said anything about it.

Illyana bit back the urge to ask. Now wasn’t the time or the place, and she’d have plenty of time to catch up later, on the ship.

The tranquil silence around them made every noise, every word spoken seem just a little louder than they actually were. Night had long since fallen in this part of the world, the darkness made deeper by heavy clouds and a soft drizzle that was more mist than rain.

Illyana glanced at Bobby and in an almost-whisper asked, “Who put him in charge, anyway?”

“Uh-uh,” Ali replied with a quick shake of her head and an amused roll of her eyes that cut off whatever quip Bobby had poised himself to reply with. “We are not having this conversation again. I saw enough of that with Excalibur to last me a lifetime.” Yeah, there was definitely some kind of history there, Illyana decided. She really did have a lot to catch up on, it seemed.

Emma was not to be outdone in the eyerolling department as she moved to follow Wisdom toward the hedges. “Oh, let the man have his command,” she chided. “I could use some entertainment before we get underway.”

“He’s not so bad once you get to know him,” John said mildly.

“No,” Ali replied with a quiet snort of amusement. Smiling wide, she added, “He’s much, much worse.”

Lockheed uncurled himself from around Illyana’s neck and launched into the air with a few quick beats of his batlike, leathery wings. “Feh,” he grunted, apparently expressing his own opinion of Wisdom before swooping off toward the buildings in the distance to explore.

“Gordon Bennett, did we have to bring the rat along?” Wisdom grumbled as he watched it flying away.

“Yes,” Illyana said, eyes narrowing dangerously as she regarded Wisdom. “We did.”

The surly Englishman raked his fingers through his mess of jet-black hair and shook his head in resignation. “Thing’s going to be nothing but trouble,” he predicted, but as far as Illyana was concerned, the words fell on deaf ears. If he had a problem with Kitty’s dragon, that was just too bad for him.

“So where are we, anyway?” Bobby asked, letting his volume drop to match the others.

“This here’s Upavon Airfield,” Wisdom explained, letting his gaze sweep over everyone’s faces. “England’s very own Area 51.”

Ali cocked a curious eyebrow and looked down the airstrip again. “Really? Doesn’t look like much.”

“That’s the whole idea. No sense encouraging a bunch o’ conspiracy theory crackpots like you Yanks have done. Those buildings over there are admin and HQ for the British Army. Most times the only things that actually fly around here are gliders. About ten meters below us, though, is a top secret facility that serves as MI-13’s central complex for all things Easy Tiger.”

“What the hell is ‘Easy Tiger’?” Illyana asked, scrunching up her face in confusion.

Emma gave both Illyana and Wisdom a disdainful look. “I suspect it’s code among the espionage community for aliens,” she said in a bored voice. “Tepid longhand for ‘E.T.’ if my guess is correct.” She watched as Wisdom arched an eyebrow at her and gave him an icy smile of superiority. “Intelligence is more than just an occupation, Agent Wisdom. It should hardly come as a surprise when some of us choose to use it,” the former White Queen told him in a way that made her sound entirely too pleased with herself. “Those of us who can, at least.”

Illyana’s lips curled into a snarl and her eyes began to glow bright red as she prepared to let the wicked cow know exactly what she thought of that remark. Before she could act on that thought, Ali quickly gave the demon sorceress’ shoulder a tiny pat and turned a wry grin toward her. Once she had her attention, Ali jerked her head slightly in Emma’s direction and rolled her eyes again. It wasn’t much, but it did help her tamp down the urge to lash out at Emma. Illyana was still scowling a bit, but her eyes returned to their normal shade.

Maybe she’d just keep her option open on Emma’s soul. It was obvious she wasn’t using it, anyway.

“So this is where you guys do alien autopsies and stuff?” Bobby asked curiously.

Wisdom’s expression darkened almost instantly. “Not bloody likely,” he said with a glower. “Kitty and I turned that place into a crater years ago, and the last thing I’m going to allow is another one to start up.” Mention of Kitty seemed to bring them back to the reason they were here, and everyone’s faces sobered a bit as they automatically shifted into a loose, impromptu huddle. Wisdom made eye contact with each of them in turn and said, “Now this is what you need to know about the place:

“Near as we can tell the ship we’re taking has a few modifications built in that protect it some from magic. The Skrulls here were attacking Avalon, so it seems they took a few precautions. That might help deal with whatever’s protecting that bullet or it might make things harder. There’s no real way of knowing until we get to it.”

The others nodded their understanding. Illyana’s lips thinned into a thoughtful frown at the information, but she remained silent.

“We can worry about that later if we have to,” Wisdom continued. “What we have to concern ourselves with now is the fact that the place is pretty much swarming with guards. Every one of them is highly trained, hand-picked by yours truly and set up with the best equipment money can buy.”

Oh, sure. Make it sound hard. Illyana’s face split into a quiet grin that was as much anticipation as amusement. She noticed the others were wearing similar smiles. Yeah, this wasn’t exactly going to be a challenge, but it might be fun at least. Looking back at Wisdom, she noticed he was watching all of them with a knowing expression. A moment later, he too grinned.

“So try not to embarrass them too much, yeah?”

* * * * * * *

Sneaking into the underground facility went much smoother than Bobby expected and he had to admit, to himself, at least, that Wisdom definitely knew his way around the place. They had already reached the main floor of the complex and not a single guard, lock or security device had so much as slowed them down yet. The youngest member of the original X-Men was starting to wonder if Pete had exaggerated his claims that the place was on high alert just to keep them all quiet. It seemed like the sort of thing the surly spy would do.

Not that he would have been all that noisy anyway. He’d snuck into enough government sites, alien outposts and villain’s lairs over the years to know the drill. Everyone else was proceeding with equal caution, moving through the eerily silent hall on soft feet or, in Illyana’s case, hooves. They’d hardly spoken a word between them since breaking in, not that they really could say anything with Ali absorbing all the sound they were producing.

Of course, with Emma linking them all telepathically, they didn’t really have to.

“We’re here.” Pete’s steps began to slow as they neared a set of large double doors made of reinforced steel. He stopped at the keypad next to the door and withdrew a long, slender plastic card that resembled stick of chewing gum with a black strip at one end. He carefully pressed it into an ordinary sized cardslot and pressed a quick sequence of numbers until the red light above the pad changed to a steady green. “Sorted,” his voice announced in everyone’s minds as the doors slid into the wall with barely a whisper of sound.

The air was different inside the large, underground hangar, a bit cooler and the slightest bit stale. Large ventilation shafts mounted at various points above their heads idled with a low drone as they awaited the next day’s shift of crew and scientists. The six rescuers filed through the doorway, taking slow steps into the dim light as they took in their surroundings. Crates, monitoring equipment and light machinery ringed them, but the Skrull ship dominating the center of the room easily drew everyone’s attention.

Mounted atop a low platform that was more like a stairstep, the brownish alien craft was roughly the size of a small whale, shaped almost like a butter dish with finlike plates lining each side. Aside from two massive jet vanes in the rear the ship was totally self enclosed, without so much as a single window even for the pilot to look through. The thick metal encasing it like an armadillo was scorched and dented all about, but the damage appeared mostly cosmetic. Repairs had long since dealt with anything that might have compromised the integrity of the ship.

Floor lights circling the platform cast a soft glow around the ship and was the only source of illumination in the otherwise darkened room. “This is what we’re rescuing Kitty in?” Bobby said out loud, voice low but his skepticism clear enough for the others to pick up.

“No, this is just the one-third scale model we show the tourists,” Pete answered in a snide whisper. “It may not look like much, but the Lamprey is our best shot of getting to her. More importantly, it’s the only way we stand a chance of getting through the Skrull blockade without getting shot at.”

Ali made a little face at the mention of the ship’s name. “’Lamprey?’ Ugh, can’t we call it something else?” she asked.

“Sure, whatever you like,” Pete said with a dismissive wave, expression once again growing serious and apparently not noticing the broad grin that blossomed across Ali’s face at his invitation. Bobby wondered if he had any the idea what kind of opening he’d just given the mutant disco diva. If so, he gave no sign as he led the others closer to the ship and added, “There’s an observation room behind that large window on the other side of the room. That’s where the controls are to open the hatch and raise the platform to the launch bay above.”

Bobby squinted as he peered around the ship to where Pete was indicating. Sure enough, there was the distinct reflection of glass, but he could barely see it, let alone whatever was inside. “Isn’t there a light switch around here we can flip?” he asked.

“The lights are motion sensitive,” Pete said, looking from the shaft above the ship to the ceiling around it. “They should have turned on by themselves as soon as we walked in.” The dark haired Englishman’s posture became tense as he turned a suspicious look toward the shadows.

“Good thing you brought me along, then,” Ali said with a smile as her whole body lit up and the hangar fell under the steady radiance she was emitting. And as a bonus, the sudden increase in visibility revealed that they weren’t alone.

“Hold it right there!” a commanding voice hollered, and everyone’s eyes narrowed tensely as they found themselves surrounded on all sides by nearly two dozen guards with guns trained on them. They were wearing uniforms of dark khaki reinforced with grey body armor and their weapons looked like a streamlined cross between a rifle and a bazooka. Firm helmets with protective goggles adorned their heads, with a small commlink device projecting from the side toward their mouths. They stood in a loose circle formation and looked like they were prepared to open fire at the slightest excuse.

“I knew this was going too easy,” Bobby sighed.

Pete raised placating hands in front of him and affected a crooked smile. “Easy, lads, no need to get excited, yeah?”

“I’m sorry, sir,” the commander said, approaching them cautiously. “I’m going to have to ask you to allow us to escort you to a detainment room for the attempted theft of Crown property.” He reached them and began to reach for Bobby’s arm. “Where you will be held until such time as-” The guard paused as his hand passed right through Bobby. “What in-?” reversing direction, his hand once again went through his arm as if it were no more solid than a cloud.

A volatile curse followed as realization dawned on the commander. “It’s a hologram!” he called out. “Spread out! They must be nearby!”

“Right above you, mate,” Pete said as another of Illyana’s stepping disks appeared over their heads and dropped his team into the midst of the surprised soldiers.

Bobby jumped right into action, crouching down as he generated a toboggan slide of bluish ice that sent him zipping around the hangar quicker than any of the guards could train their weapons on him. “Freeze!” one of them said as he approached a pair, both scrambling to raise their guns toward him.

“Guys, guys,” Bobby said with a shake of his head as a jet of freezing slush shot from his outstretched hand toward them. “Please consider who you’re talking to before you say things like that.” Before they could fire their rifles Bobby encased the weapons from barrel to trigger in blocks of solid ice that ensured they wouldn’t be used any time soon. The guards nearly dropped them under the added weight, and as Bobby streaked past them he decided to root their feet to the floor by wrapping their legs in twin pillars of ice, just for good measure.

“I mean, really. It’s embarrassing.”

* * * * * * *

Emma Frost landed on the ground in a manner befitting her middle name and in a blink chose her targets. She walked toward them with a polished air of bored superiority that would have made any Renaissance noble green with envy, looking down her nose at the guards with such disdain they may as well have been no more than gnats perched on her jewel-encrusted Philip Stein wristwatch.

The soldiers were to be commended for their professionalism and resolve. The former White Queen was generous enough to concede at least that much, but certainly not out loud. After dealing with the buffoons Shaw liked to hire and march around in body armor, she had learned to become discriminating in her opinion of hired enforces. Nonetheless, they hardly merited a challenge, and she didn’t even flinch as the soldiers shouted a single warning and then proceeded to open fire, bullets ricocheting harmlessly off of her diamond body while she approached.

They quickly switched to pulse bursts, which radiated from the lower barrel with an ominous hiss before they struck with the force of a brick wall. Wisdom hadn’t exaggerated when he said they were well equipped. The impact was enough to send her staggering a step or two back, but she recovered quickly and pushed through the barrage with nominal effort.

“Don’t bother attempting to use your telepathy,” one of the guards warned as she drew closer. “Our helmets shield us from anything you might try to do to our heads.”

A cold smile grew on her lips as she suddenly increased her speed and swung an arm out, catching the soldier next to him in the chest and sending him sailing into the far wall, striking it with a nasty sounding thump before he dropped back to the ground in a stunned heap. “A pity, then, that I have none while in my diamond form,” she remarked casually.

Whirling on another solder, she grabbed his rifle and snapped it like a twig between her hands before casting it aside and smacking him away with an idle backhand. He quickly joined the other soldier lying motionless on the ground. Emma turned back toward the guard who had spoken, driving both elbows into another who tried to rush her from behind, and before he could even gasp in surprise, lanced her hand out and seized him by the throat. “As for how well your helmet protects you from whatever I might do to your head,” she added, thumping him with her fist hard enough to leave a dent in his helmet. “Let’s test that, shall we?” The man’s eyes rolled back into his head as he sagged into her. “As I suspected,” she said, dropping him at her feet.

Taking the opportunity to glance about the room, Emma rolled her sparkling eyes and sighed at the antics going on about her. Robert was still riding his ice slide around the room as he played for fools any soldier who tried to stop him. His style had never been quite the same since he saw Disney’s Tarzan, and her efforts to point out how ridiculous he looked had done little to persuade him to abandon it. At the other side of the hangar Alison and Illyana were casually walking toward the observation room, protected by the former pop singer’s shield of solid light and chatting away like two girls at a slumber party. Any moment now Emma expected them to start doing each others’ hair.

At least Wisdom and John appeared to be taking things with the proper amount of seriousness. The idea that she might be the only one who wasn’t treating this battle like some delightful lark would have been too distasteful to bear otherwise. There was nothing to be done, she supposed, and permitting herself another roll of her eyes, Emma walked toward another cluster of guards to pummel them as she had the others.

It was a banal way to do battle, she supposed, but offered a small amount of satisfaction all the same.

* * * * * * *

All around the hangar, soldiers scrambled in what was quickly becoming an exercise in futility. Their ambush had completely fallen apart, and strength of numbers wasn’t helping them recover enough to pin the mutants down in the slightest. Every guard that wasn’t already out of the battle had their full attention on the five mutants. Save one. The lone guard had his weapon raised, but seemed to pay the battle itself no mind as he took slow, measured steps around the edge of the chamber.

John suppressed the urge to sigh in resignation as he gradually worked his way toward the Lamprey, trying his best to look perfectly natural in the process. Pete’s dramatic entrance had provided exactly the sort of distraction the Skrull needed to slip in through the door without anyone noticing. Now he just had to trust the guards wouldn’t pay any mind to one of their own wandering around during all the excitement. So far the plan was working out rather well, actually.

Still, it was a shame the way things always seemed to come down to violence, John mused. For once it would have been nice to resolve their differences with a few polite words over a nice cuppa. He supposed that option went away the moment it became obvious they’d have to use force to get the ship rather than a proper request. He couldn’t help wishing it could be different, though. Peace was more his style, even if he rarely got to put it into practice. That was why Pete was in charge and not him, though.

Noting with approval that Illyana and Ali had made it into the observation room, John kept up his cautious circuit toward the craft. His pace picked up a bit after he passed the forklift, encouraged by how close he’d already gotten. His teammates might have been having more fun with all this than he would have, but he couldn’t deny they were doing a great job keeping the heat off of him.

A few moments later he crossed the hangar floor and reached his goal. Reaching out, he traced the palm of his hand along the smooth metal surface; almost a caress but there was no affection at all in his touch. He’d meant what he said when he told Pete that it had been a while since he’d flown something like this, and a lot had changed in the fleet since then, but what he was looking for should still be somewhere…

A faint click, barely audible, and John smiled in quiet satisfaction as he felt the panel give a bit. Just as he’d thought. He pressed harder and a small wedge of the hull collapsed inward, revealing a touchpad of buttons along the inside edge. Glancing over the glowing blue symbols, John located the one he needed and tapped it once with his finger. Instantly a soft hiss answered him as the seal along the ramp gave and allowed it to unfold. A few seconds later the ship was ready to board.

He was just about to head up the ramp when he felt a rifle barrel press up against his head. That was all the incentive he needed, and he froze in place with nothing more than a sigh of resignation. “That’s far enough, John,” one of the guards said, nudging the rifle a little more.

“Easy, now,” John said, holding his pose and his form. “No need for that, mate. We’re both on the same side.”

“Shut it, you filthy Skrull. Let’s see those hands.”

John moved slowly, lifting his arms as if he were swimming through mud. “All, right, then. If it’s like that.” He didn’t flinch at the insult. He’d heard plenty worse at the start of the invasion, when the fanatics from his homeland decided he and the others were too much of a threat since they’d thrown in with the humans. Losing Paul, George and Ringo. That was what stung.

“Too bad you didn’t die with all the others. I knew you’d eventually betray us you green sack of-”

A heavy thump interrupted the rest of what he had to say, quickly followed by another, softer impact as the guard fell to the ground in a heap. John turned around to see Pete behind him, holding the butt end of another rifle at the ready. “Consider yourself sacked, toerag,” the dark-haired Brit growled at the unconscious soldier.

“Thanks, Pete,” John smiled, shifting back into his regular guise. “I owe you another one.”

Pete waved the comment away. “Just get her ready, yeah? We’ll need to hit the air as soon as this gets to ground level.”

“Done and done,” John said, leaving Pete behind as he climbed up the ramp and made for the cockpit. He might be out of practice, but the humans had an expression about riding a bike that he figured would serve just as well in this case. Eventually, he’d get it all figured out.

* * * * * * *

As soon as John was out of sight Pete folded his arms and leaned casually against the side of the alien spacecraft so he could enjoy the show more comfortably. No reason not to, since the others had things well in hand from what he could see. Drake and Frost were practically dancing on the heads of his men, which was part of the plan, of course, but they could have at least made it look like they putting some effort into it.

Instead he had Frost making no secret of just how tiresome she was finding the whole thing as she used her diamond form to beat on each guard who crossed her path, and Drake looking more like he was riding a wave in some surfing competition than fighting trained soldiers. If those two could afford to be that casual about the whole thing, it meant there were some serious gaps in his men’s training. He may have set them up for an ambush, but they still should have shown a better performance than this in the surly Brit’s opinion.

These days one had to be prepared for the occasional assault from costumed maniacs with superpowers, after all. Pete made a note to step up their readiness when he got back from this mission. Assuming he still had a job when he got back. He shrugged that concern aside, though. This wasn’t the first time he’d stolen or destroyed Crown property. Running off with a captured spacecraft was a new one for him, he’d admit, so there was still a chance they’d raise a fuss about it.

If he was feeling a bit disappointed in how the security staff was doing, however, the same could not be said of what he’d seen so far of his rescue team. For a group thrown together practically on impulse, they were working out rather nicely so far. Even his doubts about Drake were proving less of a concern as he took note of how easily he was dodging his guards while rendering their rifles useless. Pete still wasn’t sure what it was, exactly, that Frost had in mind by insisting that they bring him along, but it was fairly obvious she wasn’t just looking for someone to feel superior to.

Pete was shaken from his observations as one of the guards suddenly decided to take a shot at him. Crouching low, he brought up one arm and instantly a glowing disk of pure heat materialized in front of him, vaporizing the bullets on contact. “You damage this ship with that thing and I’ll have you strung up by your own guts!” Pete growled harshly at him. The reprimand seemed to take the guard by surprise, causing him to fumble with his rifle a moment as he tried to change the setting, but a moment later a multicolored laser blasted it completely out of his hand.

Sure enough, Ali was standing in the doorway to the observation room, a cheeky smile on her face as she glanced over at Pete. Reflex had him offering her a wry smirk in return even as an attack of nerves made his stomach tighten just a twinge. It had been that way since she decided she was coming along and he didn’t expect that to change any time soon. Out of all of them, she was the one he knew the best thanks to their time in Excalibur together.

That was part of the trouble, though, and he hoped he wasn’t making a mistake bringing her along. Not that he’d have been able to keep her out of this anyway, and he wasn’t exactly known for making the safe choice. They had a job to do, and as long as he kept his mind on that it’d be better for everyone.

A grinding sound from high overhead caught Pete’s attention, and he tilted his head back to peer up through the shaft cut through the earth above him. Sure enough, the hatch began to open, twin plates sliding apart like eyelids, little bits of dirt raining down as the gap spread. A moment later the platform jerked into motion and began a slow rise toward the runway above. Rasputin’s little sister hadn’t taken long to figure out the controls, it seemed.

Sure enough, a moment later she emerged from the doorway, announcing, “All done!” in a perky voice that seemed strangely out of place with her demonic visage.

“Nice work, kiddo,” Ali said, face brightening as she led the blonde girl toward the slowly rising ship. The sounds of battle in the hangar were becoming more sporadic, and Pete hadn’t heard a single round of gunfire since the hatch began to open. “Now we can get back to discussing your new costume.”

Illyana suddenly looked uncomfortable, but followed alongside Ali without missing a beat. “Look, not that I don’t appreciate the suggestions, but I’m not sure I’m ready to design a new suit quite yet.” Looking down toward her hooves, she added, “It’s kinda hard to make anything work with these legs, y’know?”

Ali waved the concern aside. “Pfft, just let me worry about that. We’ve gotta do something about this, though.” The former pop singer gestured toward what Illyana was wearing. “Seriously. You look like Xena: Warrior Princess.”

“Who?” Illyana asked quizzically.

“Wow, you really have been gone a while, haven’t you?”

Pete resisted the urge to slap his palm against his forehead and resolved to jump out an airlock if they went on like that the entire time they were out in space. “Are you going climb on board or-” Two guards who had been lying nearby dragged themselves back to their feet and rushed the women from behind. “Ali, behind you!” Pete yelled, readying a volley of hot knives.

Ali was already turning toward them, however, as was Illyana. “I see them, Pete,” Ali said, a staff of solid light appearing in her hands. “What, did you think I was just gonna let them sneak up on me?” She was wearing the same sort of crooked smile Pete knew meant trouble as she advanced on the unarmed soldiers.

“I’ll handle them,” Illyana said, springing ahead of Ali and practically hurling herself at the men. Pete saw her eyes blaze red as she spoke and he got ready to leap off the platform, because whatever she had in mind couldn’t be good. Sure enough, a second before contact she enveloped herself and the two guards in one of her stepping disks, only to emerge an instant later from another one.

Illyana looked rather proud of herself, standing tall and at ease, but the soldiers were falling over each other, casting wild eyes all about the room and nearly gibbering in fear. Their helmets were a mess of broken plates and there were deep claw marks all about their armor.

“Illyana!” Ali said as the soldiers scrambled to get away from the girl. “What did you do?”

“Nothing much,” she said with a negligent shrug. “Just let them spend ten minutes in Limbo.”

Pete ground his teeth together at the admission. “I told you to sodding take it easy on them, Rasputin! Not scar them for life!”

Illyana rolled her eyes, craning her neck to look at him directly as the platform continued to rise. “I did go easy on them,” she informed him in an exasperated voice. “I didn’t leave them there.”

The dark-haired spy could see she meant it, too, which didn’t make him any happier with what she’d done. Scowling with distaste, he filed that away as something to discuss with her later and called out to everyone, “All right you lot, enough playing around. It’s time to leave.” As if to punctuate his point the Skrull ship seemed to come to life, the engines building a sharp, steady hum behind him.

“Already on our way,” Drake said, letting his ice slide rise to the platform as it carried himself and Frost up. A moment later Ali and Illyana appeared next to him, courtesy of another stepping disk.

Ushering them toward the ramp, Pete said, “Well, go on, then. Find yourselves a seat and strap yourselves in. We’re taking off as soon as we’re topside.”

Frost and Drake were already climbing aboard the Lamprey when the platform suddenly jerked to a halt. “What the hell?” Pete said. They were less than three meters from the shaft cut into the ceiling.

“It wasn’t me,” Illyana disclaimed. “I did exactly what you said.”

“That’s quite far enough, Pete,” a voice called from below. Peering over the edge of the platform, Pete groaned in frustration as his eyes fell upon the calm form of Dr. Alistaire Stuart watching him from near the main doors. The man looked far too frail for someone his age, hair thin and flesh pulled slack against his bones. He’d never really been the same since Black Air made him a target, and he’d taken to wearing his authority like a protective cloak and his mistrust of MI-13 put him at odds with Pete more often than it didn’t.

Pete glowered at Alistaire and said, “This is a private cruise, Stuart. Invitation only and you’re not on the list.”

“You should have thought about that before you left that ‘anonymous’ tip about tonight. Did you honestly think we wouldn’t trace it back to you?”

Shrugging, Pete gave Illyana and Ali a slight, encouraging nod as they finished climbing up the ramp and then turned a steely gaze back to Alistaire. “If you knew I was involved than you know why I’m doing this,” he retorted in an even voice.

Alistaire sighed, but refused to budge. “This is a fool’s quest, Pete. Nobody’s sure if she’s even alive.”

“You can give up on her if you like,” Pete spat. “We’re going.” That was the one possibility he flatly refused to discuss. He’d already heard enough doubt on that score from the very people most active in trying to save her. As far as he was concerned, as long as the bullet was still phased, there was still hope.

“And let you hand that ship back to the Skrulls? You won’t even get past their blockade.”

Pete’s eyes flicked toward the observation room for just a moment, but long enough for Alistaire to catch.

“Don’t bother, Pete,” Alistaire warned. “This entire room is on remote override. The only direction that ship is going is-” Before he could finish the platform suddenly began to rise again. “What in-?”

As if in answer to his unfinished question, Lockheed soared into the room, a pair of torn cables clutched in his rear paws. The purple dragon swooped low, forcing Alistaire to duck to avoid him, and dropped his prize near the man’s feet before gliding up to the ship and vanishing through the entryway with a disgusted snort.

“What he said,” Pete told Alistaire, presenting him with a hand gesture that would have been a peace sign if he’d held it the other direction. Running up the ramp, had just enough time to see the once-boyish scientist shouting into his communicator before the platform rose past the ceiling and continued its journey up the shaft. Pete leapt into his seat next to John and said, “Seal it up.”

John gave Pete a smirk, eyes twinkling behind his round glasses as he said, “Bit of luck bringing the dragon along, innit?” A quick press of a button to his left and the ramp swung closed behind them.

“Don’t rub it in,” the dark-haired man grumbled. He looked back to the rear of the craft where the others were and called, “Everyone hang on to your seats.”

Bobby’s voice answered back. “How soon before this reaches the top?”

“We’re not waiting for that,” Pete said and then turned back to John as he reached for the straps connected to his chair. “Bring up an overhead display.”

The screen in front of them blinked to life and showed the sky above, as if looking up from the bottom of a well. A moment later the plates of the hatch began to slowly slide shut. “Just as I thought,” Pete said as he finished tightening his belt. “Can you make it?”

“Won’t know until I try,” John answered as he began moving his hands over the controls in an almost blur. The ship rattled a bit as it began to hover above the platform and then tilt forward. “Oops.” Moving his hands the other direction, the ship reversed, the nose angling toward the sky. “Still getting used to this one,” John chuckled apologetically.

“Just hurry,” Pete said, loosening his tie as he watched the gap continue to dwindle above them.

John tapped his fingers against the armrest, face calm and relaxed. “Can’t rush this, mate. These things are sensitive.”

“Are you a pilot or a bloody horse whisperer?” came Pete’s tense reply. “Go!”

“Gone,” John answered, and the abrupt rush of speed pressed Pete firmly into his seat as the ship vaulted toward the sky. “This is gonna be tight…”

A second later the slender craft shot through the opening, fins grazing the plates as they continued their inexorable progress toward each other. As soon as it was clear they were through Pete let out a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding. “Well, that’s sorted, then,” he said in a relieved voice. “Slow down a bit.”

“You sure?” John asked. “We’ll have the RAF coming for us next, you know.”

“Exactly,” Pete said, loosening his tie and reaching into his shirt pocket. He jerked his head forward slightly. “Those tossers up there need to see us getting chased,” he explained. “Otherwise…” he let one eyebrow climb toward his hairline and left the rest unspoken.

John gave him a nod of understanding. “Nobody but us Skrulls, off to rejoin the fleet,” he said. “One thing, though.”

“What’s that?” Pete asked as he leaned back in his seat.

Nudging his chin toward the pack of cigarettes Pete had just withdrawn, John said, “No smoking in space.”