「 The Professor & I 」VOLUME II

(330) Assholes

Lynn's POV

"To your positions, now!" I shouted into the comms device.

Nodding firmly, the X-Men swiftly dispersed. Hurling Raven over his shoulders once more, Kurt expertly scaled up the sides of the architecture, climbing into the building through its ghastly tear—a simple feat with the aid of his prehensile hands, feet, and tail.

Peter bolted off and, in a flash, was but another minuscule figure atop that dreadful platform overlooking this hideous war.

"You men, cover the doors!" Logan ordered, fervently gesturing his claws, as the squad of uniformed men hurriedly scrambled into formation.

"Everybody get together! And hold this line!" Logan zealously bellowed and as the rest of the team promptly aligned themselves into a neat rank guarding the human troops, I faced towards Kitty whose cheeks were flushed pink with the cold.

"Kitty, you'll need to run ahead of me," I composedly instructed and she nodded eagerly.

"And I'll need you to hold my hand at all times, because I can't hold yours, alright?" I requested, surely bearing an unwittingly aching expression that instantly aroused a tinge of pity in her eyes, as I peered down at my braced wrist nestled in the cradle of my other arm.

"Don't worry. I've got you, Lynn," Kitty generously reassured as she securely grasped my palm in hers.

"Ready?" Kitty posed keenly and I smiled, nodding kindly.

Without hesitation, Kitty charged towards the architecture. As promised, she gripped my hand tightly, and we successfully dashed through the barrier of solid concrete. Completely unscathed, we arrived in the highly compartmentalized room on the first level which unraveled in accordance to my initial predictions as the main manufacturing plant.

Each partitioned area was designated to a single stage in the assembly process, ranging from basic bottling to the final imprint of the company's logo. Gigantic instruments of automation, connected by an array of conveyor belts slithering through small windows in the dividers, packed the complicated cluster but with Kitty's favourable phasing abilities, our course was straightforward—literally.

Rushing directly for the southeast corner nearby, we merely encountered more machines and an entire warehouse crammed with cartons apparently filled with the, allegedly, miracle potion. The sight was undeniably appalling but while Kitty was severely alarmed, my heart was just numb.

With desolation, that was.

Rapidly, we darted up the stairs but the inevitable toll of gravity was equally quick to materialise. Every step was a terrible burden, ruthlessly taxing my thigh until its dull sores gradually evolved into searing sensations. Nevertheless, I gritted my teeth, enduring to the top of the flight, when I vaguely heard something amiss and instinctively latched onto Kitty's arm, effectively halting her tracks.

"Lynn, are you-" Kitty exclaimed as she stared at me with an anxious face, totally unaware of the faint shadows approaching around the bend.

"Shush. Someone's coming," I alerted in a hushed tone and nimbly pinned our backs to the wall.

As I vigilantly watched the rectangular porthole cut into the adjacent door, I briefly glimpsed the CEO being fearfully escorted away but unfortunately, of his two chaperones, only one could be observed from my angle.

Obviously hooked onto the punk bandwagon, the peculiar female decked in typical dark leather clothing styled her hair in the famous devilock fashion. Together with a coat of deep violet lipstick and her menacing neck tattoo, her exquisite taste absolutely emphasised her sinister look. Hanging on her face was almost a replica of Erik's rage, one thoroughly devoid of mercy and undoubtedly filled with hate.