Kitty Pryde, Excalibur and the X-Men are trademarks of Marvel Comics. Alistair Lethbridge-Stuart belongs to the BBC. This story is an unauthorised work done purely for my personal enjoyment, and is not intended to infringe on any of their rights in or their profits from these characters. But this story is copyright to me.
Comments, especially (constructive) criticism, always welcomed. Please e-mail me at mshakespeare@callnetuk.com
Notes:
< > indicates thoughts
Mark Shakespeare presents :
Excalibur Redrawn - Part 20
Cold. That was the first thing that they felt, the first thing that they noticed - the intense, bone-chilling cold, seeping through even their insulated costumes. Cold that seemed to suck the warmth from their bodies as if it were a living thing, feeding on warmth.
Then there was the darkness, obscene, heavy, a cloud which pressed down upon their senses, drew the strength from their bodies and souls as they hung in nothingness.
Both the dark and the cold had the same source - that through which they now passed.
The Void.
Doctor Strange had cast the spell to bring them here, and his magic protected them to some degree, but even with his power upholding them, Kurt, Kitty, Betsy and Brian could feel the Void around them.
"What is this place? It feels really evil, y'know?" Kitty's voice was a whisper, as if something primeval within her knew that loud noise might wake something hideous from the darkness around them. Strange was too busy to answer her, and Betsy didn't know either. Brian had an inkling from his time on Otherworld, but it was Kurt, through his long association with both Amanda and her mother, Margali of the Winding Way, who answered her question.
"It is called the Void, Katzchen. It is similar in some ways to Limbo. It is what Amanda used to refer to as a meta-dimension - a dimension which encompasses many others, permeates their very existence, much as the dimension of Time permeates ours. However, from what I remember being told, the Void has some very special characteristics, the most pertinent of which is that it only embraces those dimensions which are ruled by the Elder Gods, those beings whom Belasco served, and whom presumably both N'astirh and, for the time being, Amanda both serve. Also, they referred to it almost as if it were a living entity in itself."
"You mean, this place is alive??" Brian, like the others, made sure that his voice didn't rise above a whisper.
"So they implied."
"Whether it is or not, this place is most certainly obscene!" Psylocke shook her head, as though to clear it of unpleasant images. She made a deliberate effort to strengthen her mental shields against the surrounding darkness.
Doctor Strange's voice changed, a note of triumph entering his spell-casting. The four members of Excalibur felt a change occur, as though they had changed direction, if there were such a thing as 'direction' in the Void.
**********************************************
She woke shivering. Her dreams had been filled with images of suffering, of people being maimed and killed - and she herself had been the one to do the deeds. She blinked, green-blue eyes failing to penetrate the gloom of her.... where was she? This was not her bed! "Kurt? Kurt, are you there?"
Silence met her inquiry. She could see and hear nothing. It was as if nothing existed outside of where she lay, on the hard, stone floor. <Well, if you can't see where you are, why not provide a little light?> She raised her hand, spoke a few words in Rom, and.... nothing. Her spell achieved nothing at all. Something in the darkness reached out and swallowed her magic as if it had never been.
She lay back on the floor, her strawberry-blonde hair cascading across the black stone. She tried to clear her head of the confusion which filled it. Her last memory was... was.... Brian and Meggan's wedding? How long ago had that been? Why did she think it had been a long time? Wait, other memories came to her now. A figure, tall, inhuman, with huge bat wings and a bestial face, red in colour. He spoke to her, bowing obsequiously, and.... and.... why couldn't she remember what had happened next? Wait, a name, a name.... N'astirh! That was the name of the... demon? yes, demon. She groaned. Trying to sort out her memories was making her head hurt. She slumped to the floor.
<Whatever's happened to me,> Amanda Sefton thought, <I get the feeling it hasn't been pleasant.>
**********************************************
The air was heavy with the unmistakable stench of evil, the ground blasted and withered and dead, what vegetation there might once have been now just a distant memory. For four of the five who now materialised there, this was a place they wished to be gone from as soon as possible. For Doctor Stephen Strange, however, it was merely a convenient place to rest and regain his strength. He slumped to the ground, his breath rasping in his throat. Kitty stepped over to him, her face showing her concern. "Doctor? Are you alright?"
"Just winded, Shadowcat. No more. I need a short rest before we proceed any further. Be on your guard here. Though worlds further into the Void might be more inhospitable than this one, there is danger even here. I understand that the N'Garai and the Ru'tai have taken to using this world to fight their battles, and who knows what else might be found in such a dismal place as this."
"Oh wonderful, Doctor, just wonderful!" Betsy's voice dripped sarcasm. "So, you choose a really safe place to take a break, and expect us to keep you safe and well, when our strength will be needed when we try to save that stupid blonde idiot sorceress! How nice to know - "
"Betsy?? What's got into you?! Amanda's a friend, one who needs our - "
"Oh shut up, Brian! You and your whining makes me sick! All of you, just leave me alone!" The purple-haired telepath stalked away, leaving her teammates staring at her back, openmouthed.
"What is the matter with her? I know that this mission is not easy, for any of us, but there was no reason for her to attack Amanda in that way!" Kurt's voice was filled with worry, tinged with anger. Before their encounter with Morgana and the Shadow King, he might have thought that her link to the Crimson Dawn had caused her to react in such a way to their surroundings, but, since the defeat of the two foes, she had lost the link. So what was her problem now?
"I know, Kurt. I'm worried about her, too. But this is no place for any of us to be alone. I'd better go after her." The huge blond man sprang into the air, and flew off in the direction that his sister had taken.
"Be careful, mein freund. Even without the Herr Doktor's words, I feel that we are not alone here - and that we are being watched!"
**********************************************
The image in the scrying mirror cleared, and the watcher could now make out the forms of his foes. They had split up, he noticed with an evil smile, and only two of the mutants were protecting Doctor Strange. Furthermore, they were two of the detested X-Men, two of those he hated more than any others. He waved a hand over the mirror as he sensed the approach of his servitor, and turned to face the demon. "N'astirh. And how is our 'guest'?"
"Sssleeping, Lord." The sibilant rasp of the demon lord's voice echoed throughout the chamber. "Sshe tried a sspell, earlier, but the magic of the wallss kept it from working." He bowed, flattering his master. The sorcerer was not taken in.
"Your flattery is useless against me, N'astirh, I know you too well. A pity for Miss Sefton that she didn't learn that lesson in time. Still, we have plenty of time to educate her properly. And now, are our defenses ready?"
"They are, Masster."
"Good. The members of Excalibur will be here soon. I hope to strike a blow against them before they can upset my plans or rescue Miss Sefton. Now, leave me." His clawed hand waved negligently at the crimson figure before him, and, bowing, the demon departed. The sorcerer turned his attention back to the mirror, seeing Kitty massaging Doctor Strange's shoulders. "Ah Kitty, I am so looking forward to seeing you again." And with that, Belasco put his head back and began to laugh, chillingly, evilly.
**********************************************
"Betsy?"
"I told you all to leave me alone, Brian! I meant it! Now go away!"
"No, I will not!" Brian's temper might not be as noticeable as that of Kitty or his sister, not since he'd mellowed following his learning to control his temper whilst simultaneously learning to control his alcoholism, but it was there nonetheless, and right now it was starting to rise to the surface. "Betsy, I don't know why you decided to strike out at Amanda like that, but - "
She spun on her heel and glared at her brother. "If it wasn't for that stupid little bimbo we wouldn't be here on a rescue mission! It should have been obvious, even to her, that listening to demons might not be a good idea! It should have been plain to the most rudimentary - "
"Shut up!"
"I beg your pardon?? Did you just tell - "
"Yes I did! And I bloody well meant it, too!" Brian was mad by now. He didn't understand why his twin was acting the way she was, but he wasn't prepared to allow her to attack a friend, a former teammate, the way she was doing. "Sis, I don't know what's got into you, but if you're going to continue acting like a spoilt brat, then I think we'd be better off if you didn't come with us! Doctor Strange should send you back, right now!"
He braced himself, awaiting his sister's well-known temper to unleash itself at him. But instead, she seemed to slump, her shoulders taking on a defeated set. "I'm sorry, Brian, it's just that, before we found out about Amanda, I .... I found something out, something that makes me wish I wasn't here." And, to the big man's astonishment, he saw tears appear in her eyes.
"Betsy?? What is it, what's wrong??"
"I.... I need to see Warren, when we get back." The tears trickled down her cheeks, and she raised an elegantly manicured hand to wipe them away.
Brian stepped close to her, and was astonished when she fell into his arms, sobbing. "Sis?? What is it?? Tell me, please!"
"I'm pregnant."
And his mouth fell open.
*********************************************
The secretary opened the door, and the thin Englishman stubbed out his cigarette before going into the office. Normally he would have kept smoking, just to annoy his host, but, given that he needed to ask for information, he decided to forgo his normal indulgence - just this once. Not to his surprise, the man behind the desk most pointedly did not get up to shake his hand, remaining seated instead. "Wisdom."
"Stuart. Nice office they've given yer."
Alistair didn't answer, instead waving at the seat in front of the desk. "So, what do you want, Wisdom? You wouldn't tell Sally, but now I think I'd like to know."
"I need access ter Excalibur, that's wot."
The other man raised an eyebrow in surprise. "And why ask me?"
"Cos me new bosses at MI5 said I should be all official, like. An' since yer old man put yer in charge o' UNIT's super'uman relations section, they want me ter go through you. Absolute bollocks, o' course, but then, the Intel community frequently ain't." He toyed with the idea of lighting up, but decided not to - at least, not until he had what he wanted....
Alistair leant back in his chair, a smile on his face. "How very interesting. And just what are 'your masters," he emphasised the word to irritate Wisdom "offering' in exchange?"
Pete scowled. He knew that Stuart didn't like him, because he'd been successful in attracting Kitty into a relationship when the older man had missed her charms. But Pete wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of rising to his baiting. <Not till later, anyway....>
**********************************************
"Feeling better, Doctor?"
"Thank you, yes." The tall man smiled up at her. "I must say, that trick of phasing your fingers into my muscles then partially solidifying them was a most effective means of massaging them. Have you ever thought of going into professional business as a masseuse?"
Kitty giggled. "No, though Pete used to urge me to broaden my horizons, I think that a masseuse might be a bit too broad-minded. I mean, I'm a one-man-at-a-time girl!" Her smile faded as she remembered Rigby Fallon. Why hadn't Pete believed her when she'd said that there was nothing between them? And why hadn't she gone after him when he'd left, made him stay and talk things out?
He laughed. "When I said masseuse, I meant an aboveboard one, not the sort one finds in 'massage parlours' of the seedy sort!" His laugh merged with hers as they pictured that image. Then Strange sprang to his feet, eyes widening. "I hope your skill with a blade was all that Kurt told me."
Kitty spun round, blade rising into guard position automatically. She barely had time to yell a warning to Kurt before the first wave of demons was upon them.