Revolution

Revolution 14

Revolution

Chapter 14: Cold Partition

The weather was relatively calm when the X-Jet landed in Alaska. Even so, the cold was very clearly perceptible, but Kitty, Kurt, Rogue and Remy didn't mind. In fact, they were grateful, for after days of being scorched, they finally got the chance to cool off. The coats that they packed were hard to look at before, but the layers of thick fabric were a necessity now. After the group landed, they went straight to business. There was no time to take in the sights of snow covered mountains and infinite white from the perspective of a tourist, but they would see plenty of that in their hike. The X-Jet was left behind, hidden away so as to not make their arrival so clearly known.

The walk felt endless and pretty soon the group started getting fed up with the cold, even though ironically, the vast snowy plains looked like heaven to them not too long ago. At least Kurt's fur was a good aspect for him then. Logan suddenly halted and ordered, "quiet," in a low commanding tone. The soft chatter that was going on with the group immediately ceased as the squad leader sniffed the air. Having picked up a trail, Wolverine made his way forward part a pile of snow and sniffed the ground. Finally, he started to dig through the snow until he found a metal hatch hidden under it.

"Looks like the lead was true after all," Logan muttered, still unsure. Before they left, Xavier had warned them that the clue arrived via an anonymous message that he was unable to trace. "Be ready for this to be a trap," Wolverine reminded with a voice full of seriousness. The scents in the air didn't match any that he could think of. This didn't smell like the work of Magneto or Mystique. Carefully and quietly, Wolverine opened the hatch and took in the scents inside before starting down, signaling for the others to follow.

The group made their way underground with only a small light that illuminated the area immediately in front of them. They didn't want to use a light that was too bright so as to not attract attention in case someone saw it from afar in one of the many forks that the metal tunnel possessed. They weren't worried about getting lost though, as Logan's keen sense of smell could easily trace the path back and if they were in a particular hurry, Nightcrawler could teleport them to the surface.

The metal tunnel became more rustic with pieces of flooring, walls and ceiling missing, replaced by patches of ice. The metal continued becoming less until the group reached a chamber that was mostly made of ice. It was a spacious place, most likely situated under a mountain judging by the tall ceiling. Metal beams went along its walls and ceiling like a cage to prevent a cave in. The strange part was that there seemed to be no one there. However, appearances could be deceiving and the quietude didn't mean that the place was deserted.

Logan raised his hand in alert, then signaled for the group to take cover behind a pile of crates. There were many wooden crates of unknown contents in the chamber. With a deep quiet breath, Logan could perceive the scent of metal, but no traces of Magneto's scent, so he wouldn't jump to any conclusions.

Footsteps were finally heard as a group of five men entered the chamber from an adjacent snowy tunnel. The X-Men didn't recognize any of them as they quietly observed from their hiding place. The unknown men approached a tall device in the center of the chamber that was covered by a white cloth. The cloth was removed to reveal the unmistakable shape of a missile.

The weapon was rather large and an open panel on its side revealed complex writing in its interior. It looked like the missile was yet unfinished and Logan wasn't going to let them finish it. "Let's go," he alerted his companions, then leapt out of hiding with his claws out.

The rest of the X-Men followed Wolverine's lead. Gambit tried to throw a card at one the men, but his energy wouldn't flow into it. Confused and caught of guard, he couldn't warn Rogue on time.