Days of Future and Past<BR>
by Zaxxon<BR><BR></CENTER>
Part 8

[=== From Part 7 ===]

     ## So, Bobby freezes the ice cream solid, ## Jean told Nathan 
telepathically. 
     ## And then.... ## Nathan asked back with a mental smile.

[=== End of Part 7 ===]

     The Xavier Mansion, located five kilometers from Salem Center, 
New York, was quiet. Jean expertly piloted the Blackbird into it's 
underground hangar and directed the group to the near by elevator. 
Ivanova was impressed by the advanced technology that the underground 
hangar and elevator showed. Both Garibaldi and Bester had identical 
awed faces.
     Once the eleveator door opened, Cable took the lead much to the
White Queen's surprise. Emma noticed Jean's shrug and her willingness 
to follow him. Emma also noticed that Cable paused slightly as they 
passed the protrait of Nathan Summers, who died at the age of two 
years during one of Apocalypse's 'survival test.' Although severely 
injuried, Apocalypse's wounds were not fatal. Emma filed the fact that 
Cable rubbed his left arm absent-mindedly away.
     Nathan ushered the group into the study so he, himself, was the
last in. Nathan was startled at sight of Charles Xavier and Erik 
"Magneto" Magnus together, sitting and talking like old friends. 
Nathan knew that the media-proclaimed 'Master of Magnetism' of this 
Universe was unlike his own but to actually see it....
     Charles noted the people as they enter the room. He had placed
his rook in the desired spot. He was surprised to see the four
strangers. Although the one called 'Cable' was not a stranger but more
of a mysterious ally.
     "What have we here?" Erik asked innocently.
     Jean simply said, "Cable and his friends need to talk to Charles,
so ..."
     "And your business, young man, is?" Charles asked.
     Cable smiled and said, "Young? Me? I haven't been 'young' in a
long while. As to business, we're here to warn you."
     "Warning me?" Charles asked innocently.
     Erik quickly put in, "We don't take kindly to threats..."
     "No threat, Sir," Garibaldi quickly put in. "There are people
after you, and several others, Sir."
     "And you are?" Erik asked softly.
     "Field Commander Michael Garibaldi, Sir, of the Fifty-Eighth
Squadron of the X.S.E., Sir," Garibaldi answered proudly. Both Ivanova
and Bester were looking at Garibaldi with their eyes wide open in
shock. Ivanova saw that her expression matched Bester's and quickly
took a neutral look.
     "'X.S.E.'? Like Bishop?" Charles asked curiously.
     "Yes, Sir," Garibaldi answered. "Captain Bishop is the role-model
we all try to emulate, Sir."
     "Who are the 'others' you mentioned," Charles began.
     "Scott Summers, Forge, and Jonathan Sinclair, Professor Xavier,"
Bester said in a bit of awe in his voice.
     "Scott and Forge are known to me," Charles said, "but Mister
Sinclair is not."
     "Sinclair... Sinclair... Sounds familiar to me," Erik said. "I
believe Bishop mentioned him once."
     "You know, now that you mention it I, too, remeber him saying
something about him," Charles replied to Erik.
     "If everything was going the way it should, Bishop, in this time
frame, would be the only one to hear about him," Cable said. "Jonathan
Sinclair is currently just a six-year old boy but when he grows up,
he'll be a major factor in the mutant/human relationship."
     "Oh," Charles raised an eyebrow. "I take it your from the future
like Bishop was?"
     "Yes," Bester, Ivanova, and Garibaldi said simultaneously.
Garibaldi added, "Only a few hundred years more."
     Both Charles and Erik noted that Cable didn't answer.
     "Can you prove it?" Erik asked.
     "Yes," Cable said.
     "How?" Charles wondered.
     "Simple, have Doctor McCoy, do a gentic scan on Bester and the 
Emma Frost," Cable replied.
     "Me?" Emma Frost, the White Queen asked. Bester was bewildered.
     "And what would he find?" Charles asked.
     "The proof that we're from the future," Cable said. "Since Bester
is the White Queen's eleventh-time removed grandson."
     Now Garibaldi was looking at Bester with widen-eyes. His face had
the look of a person was just had a revelation.
     "Since genetics don't lie. That would be concerte proof that
you're telling us the truth," Charles began.
     "But the Beast and Blue Team are out on a mission and won't be
back for a couple of days," Erik finished.
     "But that's too long," Ivanova said.
     Both Charles and Erik raised their eyebrows at that. Charles then
said, "There is another who could preform the test..."
     Cable was confused ans asked, "Who?"
     "One of our 'second string' X-Men, as she likes to call them,
Doctor Natalie Lambert," Charles answered.

     The name 'Natalie Lambert' was not familiar to Nathan but then, he
had come across other difference between his native Timeline and
others. Nathan knew that each Timeline differs from the others still
Nathan did not like surprises. Another example of difference between
the two timelines was that in his native Timeline, Magneto was the X-Men's 
greatest enemy. Magneto believed that mutants could only survive human
bigoty by ruling over the non-mutants, the flatscans.
     Where Professor Xavier and his X-Men sought a peaceful coexistance 
between Humans and Mutants, Magneto and his followers sought to conquer 
and rule over the Humans. But here, in this Timeline, Charles and Erik 
remained friends where in Cable's Timeline Magneto's anger drove them 
apart long before the X-Men were formed. In this Timeline, Charles helped 
Erik overcome his anger thus preventing Magneto into become the very thing
his anger was directed at. Erik helped Charles build a better tomorrow 
by forming the X-Men. A group of mutants who fought for mutant and human 
rights despite being in a world that feared them.
     After making a call, Charles asked, "Who's after us?"
     "They are called the Shadows," Ivanova began.
     "A very old race of aliens," Garibaldi added. "So old, they
considered, if not the first race to exist in the Galaxy, then they're 
very close to it."
     "The Shi'ar call them the Qza," Cable put in.
     "The Qza are a myth," Charles said automatically. "A part of the 
Shi'ar's creation myth."
     "They're real, Professor Xavier," Ivonova said.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

     Westmore Research Institute, located outside of Toronto, Canada,
was considered one of the leading scientific institute in the fields
of genetics, medicine, and physics. Only the Xavier Institute and Muir
Island Research Center could match it in the field of genetic
research and only Reed Richards, Mister Fantastic of the Fantastic
Four, and Stark Enterprises could match it in the field of theorical
and applicational physics.
     At the moment though there was one person who would trade all the
fame and forture of the Institute for an answer. That person was
Doctor Natalie Lambert, Inferno, formerly of the X-Men and currently of
Code Alpha, the Canada-based SHIELD paranormal response team that
replaced 'Alpha Flight.' 
     Originally, the Canadian Govornment formed 'Alpha Flight' to deal
with the extra-ordinary events that happen in Canada that normal
police efforts could not deal with. Unfortunately, due to budget cuts, 
restrictive regulations, and an internal betrayal, Alpha Flight was
no longer able to fulfill its charter. After five years of failing
to replace Alpha Flight, the Canadian Govornment appealed to the
United Nations. The United Nations had SHIELD (Strategic Hazard
Intervention Espionage Logistics Directorate [of the United Nation
Security Force]) create a team based in Canada to replace Alpha 
Flight. Of the original Alpha Flight only Vindicator and Guardian
survived and are apart of Code Alpha.
     In addition to Vindicator and Guardian, Code Alpha consisted of 
the mercenary known as Deadpool, who's sentenced to do 'community 
work' for the Canadian Govornment, the mysterious Crusader, who some 
think is a SHIELD agent, and Inferno, formerly of the X-Men.

     Doctor Lambert was busy studing the 'Legacy' virus when the 
phone rang. Like most people, she answered the phone with "Hello?"
     "Hello, Natalie," the voice on the other side said. It took
Natalie a moment to figure out who the voice could belonged to. The 
extra time was required because the owner of the voice was placed on
the 'couldn't be' list but it was, in fact, the voice of Professor
Charles Xavier. His voice brought back all the memories of being an
X-Men. // Once an X-Men, always an X-Men, // Natalie thought.
     "What can I do for you, Professor?" Natalie asked. // Yes,
Professor X is so important to me that I'd put just about anything on
hold to help him, // came the thought.
     "I need you to come to the Mansion to help with a test that needs
to be done," Xavier's voice said.
     "Okay..." Natalie answered. "Where's Hank?"
     "Henry's away at the moment and won't be back in time," Xavier
said.
     // Translation: Blue Team is on a long distance mission, //
Natalie thought, out loud she said, "I'll be there as soon as
possible."
     "Good," Xavier replied.
     "You'll be where?" a voice behind her asked.
     Natalie turned quickly, easily moving into a ready stance she 
learned while being with the X-Men, and had her hands already ablazed,
ready to throw a fireball at a moments notice. It was Natalie's mutant 
ability to mentally manipulate fire to various effects. When she saw 
who the speaker was, she said, "One of these days, Nick, you're going 
to get singed."
     Nick, better known as Nicholas Knight or Crusader of Code Alpha, 
merely laughed and said, "It'll be worth it, besides I heal very fast."
     Natalie shook her head and said, "You and Wolverine."
     "I keep hearing about this 'Wolverine,' when am I going to get
more information on this /marvelous/ man of yours besides his codename?" 
Nick asked playfully. Nick knew that Natalie was tight lipped about her 
X-Men friends, especially about this mysterious 'Wolverine.' Still, he 
was curious so he asked again, "Going where?"
     Natalie sighed knowing that Nick wouldn't stop asking until she
gave him an answer, so she said, "I'm going to help Xavier with an
experiment..."
     "Fine," Nick said. "Let's go."
     "Huh?" Natalie asked.
     "You destroyed our second Quinjet last week and the Hudsons got
the other, so that leaves the new 'ShadowHawk,' which you haven't been 
checked out yet but I have. Since Salem Center, New York, is over
three hundred miles away, I doubt *you* could make it there under your
own power. So let's go...." Nick replied.
     "Right," Natalie said resigned.

     "See," Nick said with a smile as he gently set the ShadowHawk
into the underground hangar. "Nothing to it."
     Natalie thought, // Show off! //
     ## I heard that, ## Nick telepathic replied with a laugh.
     Natalie hoped that Wolverine was with the Beast and Blue Team
otherwise... Wolverine does *not* like vampires, not at all. Even
though Nick was a 'partially-cured' vampire, he was still a vampire. Of
course, how a vampire could be 'partially-cured' by Magic/Mysticism
was beyond her since she liked to believe in things things she could see
and touch, like aliens, the Shi'ar, living Islands and Planets,
and other things that she encountered as an X-Man. It took a moment
for her to realize that Nick did not know where to go. She smiled and
said, "This way."

[== End of Part 8 ===]