psinex@yahoo.com Running with Devils 3/? by Phil Hartman DISCLAIMER: Everyone here is Marvel's, except for Steve, who's mine. Please don't sue. WARNING: VERY VERY VERY icky things ahead. Read at your own risk. -------------------------------------------------------- Edinburgh, Scotland: 8/30/2003: 23:28 hrs local: -------------------------------------------------------- Steve swallowed hard at the sight of Gambit's hateful stare, and ducked behind the hillock he and Sinister had been standing on. "Y'got a lotta nerve comin' after Rogue, Essex," Remy LeBeau frowned. "Dis time, y'ain't gon' win." "LeBeau, I've not only won, I've gone into extra innings," Sinister sneered. "I have a world to conquer. Go threaten a frog or something in your little swamp." Gambit arched an eyebrow and said, "Y'r not y'rself, Sinny. Where de rigamarole an' English stuffiness ?" "As long as I have Proteus I can be as out of character as I desire," Sinister grinned, looking down at the containment vessel which contained Kevin MacTaggart's life essence. He reached down - - but leapt back when a charged card shattered the vial. ~FREE ! NOW, TO -~ Sinister howled in fury as a metallic throwing spike pierced Proteus' form, shattering it. Essex looked at Remy with soul-burning hatred, and roared, "YOU ... ARE ... DEAD !" "Y'gotta catch me," Gambit grinned. Steve gaped as Remy leapt over Sinister's energy blasts, tossed Rogue over one shoulder, and ruffled the boy's hair. "Don' know if y'r wit' 'im by hook or crook, mon ami, but y'gotta choice - a pissy Sinny, 'r a winner," the Cajun offered. "I - I - " Steve stammered. Then a slayspear slammed into Remy's gut. ~NOOOOOOO !!!!~ Steve pscreamed, falling backwards in horror as the Cajun was incinerated from within. Sinister vaporized Harpoon with a dreadful curse, catching Rogue and turning on the Marauders with even more hate than he'd had for Remy. "YOU IDIOTS !" Sinister raged. "HE WAS MY GREATEST CREATION ! AND YOU KILLED HIM RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE BOY ! DO YOU KNOW WHAT SUCH A CLOSE DEATH WILL DO TO AN OMEGA-CLASS TELEPATH !?" The surviving Marauders looked at Steve with fear and a little concern, seeing the boy keel over vomiting and shaking. #H-he - oh GOD - I FELT HIM - Mommy - Daddy -# -------------------------------------------------------- When next Steve could think coherently, he found himself floating near-naked in a glass tube. A breath mask had been fitted over his mouth, and he wore some kind of metallic loincloth with a tube descending from it to the floor of the tank. ~H ... hello ... ?~ he sent, looking around fearfully. ~Mom ? Dad ? ... Master ... ?~ ~Steven ! Thank whatever powers there be that you're still sane !~ Sinister sent, approaching the tube. He depressed a series of controls on the outside of it and drained the fluid surrounding Steve, helping the boy free of the breath mask and loincloth. "I was concerned," Sinister said, helping Steve to the shower. The boy scrubbed and asked, "What happened ?" "You suffered an extremely close-range psionic deathshock," Sinister called over the sound of the water. He handed Steve a towel and let the boy dry off before offering him a black bikini brief to dress in. "Rest now," Sinister said, pointing to a cot near his desk. "You've been recuperating for a week. The damage was so severe, your mind had to repair itself - I could only try to help you reintegrate your mind. What do you remember ?" "I ... I'm Steve Summers, your Marauder slave," Steve whispered, laying on the cot and covering up with a light blanket. "I let you brainwash me so you wouldn't bug my family, and so I could learn to fight Apocalypse." "Very good," Sinister smiled. "Sleep now." He left, but Steve curled up into a small ball under the blanket, his mind racing. #I ... it was so awful,# he thought, remembering the unholy glow from Gambit's eyes as the Cajun had exploded from within, the stench of burning - - #NO ! I ... gotta forget,# Steve thought, crying silently. #Like ...# His eyes bulged, and he moaned, "I can't remember my family ... !" He scoured his memory, but nothing of his past before Sinister came up. #The master must've erased my memory,# the boy realized, wiping his tears. #But I ... I'm still nice ... .... right ?# -------------------------------------------------------- Next door, Sinister looked over the naked body of his other pet project. "You've never told me your real name," he whispered, brushing a strand of hair away from the woman's face. An inhibitor collar was at her throat, but Sinister had inactivated it. "Well ? You're ready," he said, glaring at the body. The woman's eyes opened, and Sinister slowly smiled. "Not a bad job," the woman nodded, donning an extremely skimpy G-string and black bra. "The hair's a nice touch. And these powers ... !" She levitated, doing a loop-de-loop, and landed with a small giggle. "I could get used to this ... residence," she told Sinister. "Do get used to it. The bonding process has rendered you incapable of finding another 'home' unless that body is vaporized," Sinister said. "And I do not intend to waste your potential in the field. My other ... acquisition will be a fine replacement for you." "Fine," the woman winked. "So what do I get to do ?" She grinned, donning knee boots, and asked, "Do I get to gangbang Summers !? PLEASE !? Those red glasses are SUCH a turnon ... !" "You have sick tastes," Sinister frowned. He smiled despite himself and said, "You WILL have a Summers to play with, but not Scott." He activated a viewcam and let the woman look in on Steve, who had fallen asleep. "You've really gone sick this time," she cackled. "I get to -" "He is NOT a toy for your pleasure," Sinister frowned. "I need you to teach him to master his telepathy and astral projection, and how to be evil." "His old life has all but been erased, but he is still relatively innocent - he is ... noble," Sinister continued. "That irks me. LeBeau's death, while extremely aggravating, had one useful side effect: it collapsed the boy's mind, leaving him open to mindwipe. But he still remembers his name and his sense of self. Should the X-Men rescue him before he can be fully converted ..." "... you're up shit creek," the woman nodded. "Don't worry. He just needs a new role model." -------------------------------------------------------- 09/6/2003: 08:00 hrs: Sinister's lab: -------------------------------------------------------- Steve yawned and rose, stepping to the shower and removing his brief to wash. #Wish I c'ld remember that dream,# he thought, blushing but smiling as he felt himself again. #Maybe it's OK to masturbate if I'm alone,# he thought, looking around. He went further than he'd dared before, shuddering with pleasure and letting the water soothe his afterechoes. #Kinda ... cool,# Steve thought, finishing his shower and drying quickly. ~You naughty, naughty boy,~ a female mindvoice taunted. Steve jumped, wrapping his towel around himself and blushing bright red until a lithe hand handed him a black G-string. "You're growing up - time for a little more mature garb for your downtime," the voice smiled aloud from within a cloud of steam. Steve hurriedly donned the G-string, and smiled faintly. #It does feel kinda nice,# he thought. He looked up and asked, "Thanks ... but who're you ?" He gasped when a red-haired woman with green eyes, clad in barely more than he, floated towards him and hugged him. "Hi, sweetie. I'm your mom," Jean Grey smiled ... -------------------------------------------------------- NEXT: Jean, mother of darkness ? Sinister, father of the year ? And what's with the saucy new Marauder in PRISM'S bed ? -------------------------------------------------------- end _________________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com