X-Men Sagas: Psylocke

Welcome to the X-Men, Psylocke...Part 2 of 2

Storm, Havok, Wolverine, and Betsy (although the ever-formal Ororo Munroe, known to most as Storm, would insist on calling her Elizabeth) touched down in the X-Jet. Hypersonic speeds made it so that they had arrived before Juggernaut could destroy or steal anything. Hearing a familiar hiss, he turned with a crooked grin to see faces just as familiar, save for one purple-haired lass he couldn't recognise. Elizabeth felt a small earthquake with each movement he made. Gulping, she hoped the Juggernaut was slightly less impenetrable as his namesake.

"So, you X-Clowns want another round with the Juggernaut! I was going to just rob the bank, but taking you guys on will be even more fun!" Juggernaut confidently pounded his fists together. Taking it as a sign of battle, Wolverine unsheathed his claws with a metallic snikt, Storm levitated just above the ground, and rings of plasma energy circled around Havok's hands. Elizabeth didn't have a fighting pose. She knew her own thoughts better than most, along with the thoughts of those in close proximity, and she knew that she was no seasoned battler like these X-Men were. Yet, in the face of adversity, she had to believe she was. For there was no other alternative. Police cars, some flipped over, others torn in half, were everywhere. They must have tried to take him on, Elizabeth figured.

Storm flew towards him, her flight aided by currents in the air courtesy of her mutant power. She struck Juggernaut with a potent lightning bolt. Juggernaut struck back faster, swatting both mutant and her power away as if the mistress of the elements was nothing more than a housefly. Next to take on the Juggernaut was Wolverine, whose adamantium claws could cut through virtually anything. Wolverine was the best there is at what he did. It was not enough; for all his trying, his claws did not leave so much as a mark on Juggernaut's seemingly impenetrable flesh and he too was dismissed, picked up by the neck of his costume and thrown on top of Storm. At full power, Havok's plasma blasts were enough to send even the Hulk himself flying. Juggernaut strode forwards, feeling nothing more than a warm tingle on his stomach, and threw Havok down, causing cracks to form on a once pristine pavement. It seemed that for every effort the X-Men made, the Juggernaut countered it with unimaginable strength.

Destruction was all around Elizabeth. Three of the strongest people she'd ever seen had been reduced to laying on the ground. If she could not think of some way to do the impossible then they would all be doomed. But what could be done? Pressed behind a wall out of the Juggernaut's line of sight, Betsy began to form a strategy. Whilst manoeuvring around his punches she noticed two latches keeping his helmet on. Her attempts to penetrate his mind were to no avail, which meant either his mind had an extraordinary mental fortitude, or that his helmet resisted psychic assaults. If I can just get that helmet off his head, then maybe, just maybe, we can make it out of this alive. The beginnings of a hopeful smile formed. Elizabeth Braddock had no time to waste; hastily, she formed a psychic network with the fallen warriors, projecting her words into their heads in a soothing yet authoritative voice. She had never considered herself to be much of a leader, but she'd not let unfamiliarity with the position get in the way of survival.

"X-Men! This is Elizabeth Braddock, do you hear me?"
"Yeah, we hear ya, Bets." Elizabeth could almost feel how much Havok's head was pounding from his groaning tone.
"I...have a plan for how we can take down the Juggernaut. For now, at least."
"Alright. This better be good, rookie." The unmistakable disapproval of Wolverine.
"We are all on board," Storm assured. "What is this plan of yours?"

Elizabeth explained each X-Man's role in her plan, going along even quicker as she knew it would not be long before the Juggernaut decided to take care of her friends, once and for all.
The X-Men slowly rose to their feet. It was not easy, with recent, searing pain throughout their bodies, but the students of Professor Charles Xavier faced adversity every day of their lives. They would not go down so easy. There all four of them stood, faces hardened with determination from battles such as this. Logan was inwardly impressed by how quickly Betsy had asserted herself.

"So, you X-Clowns wanna go for round 2? Fine by me!" Elizabeth continued to stare him down despite his unflattering description of her comrades. She no longer needed to convince herself she wasn't scared. Fear was not the enemy. Fear was what drove her to craft a plan that could not fail. To the Juggernaut it seemed as if a through walloping had not taught the X-Men anything. However, as he effortlessly took the brunt of another of Havok's plasma blasts, he did not notice Storm flying with purpose and using nimble fingers to undo one latch. All too late, he batted her away, only for Wolverine, his shorter stature lending itself well to agility, to hop onto his shoulder and undo another.

"Now, Havok!"

At Elizabeth's booming request (after the fact she'd find herself impressed with how loud she could be) Havok amplified his plasma blast, able to level cities on the worst of days, to its maximum potential, and knocked the Juggernaut's helmet clean off, leaving the villain's jaw wide open. A momentary stun was all she needed. Elizabeth probed deep into the mind of the man whose true name she had uncovered as Cain Marko. Sweat formed on her temples and she grimaced. She probed deeper, deeper than either of them would like, before the Juggernaut fell.

The Juggernaut had fallen. And so had Elizabeth, the strain from using her abilities with such intensity taking its toll on not just her mind but the rest of her body. She blacked out for a second. Had a certain weather witch not woken her with a firm shaking, she would have slept for much longer.
"Elizabeth. Elizabeth, wake up. The battle is over."
"W-wha?" She sat up and saw for herself. Laid out on the ground was Cain. Had a throbbing headache not kept her from doing so she would have jumped up and hugged her fellow comrades after a job most splendidly done. In time they would become more than her comrades. They would become her friends. She watched out of the corner of her eye as the so-called unstoppable Juggernaut was taken into custody. She couldn't help but smile.

"Gotta admit, Bets," Wolverine confessed in a tone slightly less gruff than usual, "When I first saw you, I underestimated you. Didn't seem like the type to be useful in a real battle. But when push came to shove, when we were all beaten down, you pulled through. You ask me, you've proven yourself well enough to be an X-Man. If that's what you want, of course." 
"It very much is what Psylocke wants, my friend." Betsy couldn't possibly have a more beaming smile, proud that she'd thought up her superhero alias on the fly. "Unless of course, there are any objections." "Wolverine speaks for all of us. Welcome to the team!" Even if Psylocke could barely stand, Storm pulled her and Havok into a cuddle of camaraderie, Wolverine preferring to watch from a distance.

Elizabeth Braddock was an X-Man now. For better, or for worse.

NEXT: Psylocke's transformation into the villainous Lady Mandarin!