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Jean Grey glanced at the hangar behind her that had become their impromptu home. Hank worked each day to make it more and more like home, using Shi’Ar tech salvaged from the mansion and Greymalkin Industries, but he didn’t need to. They were together, especially now that they’d found Logan and Ororo’s team. That meant they were home.
No one was watching. She suspected everyone was asleep. Her telekinetic powers flared, manifesting in a halo of pink fire, and her feet lifted from the ground. Within moments, she was airborne.
She lifted herself high above Hangar X, high above Alaska, and took in the view as she stopped just at the point that she could see the curvature of the Earth. It was here she smiled, took in a deep breath and thought back to the first time she cheated death.
Marvel Forever Presents
The Extraordinary X-Men
“Dreams of A White Hot Room”
By Tony Thornley
Scott stood and watched as Jean disappeared into the distance. He had the same pang of guilt that had filled his gut years before. The first time, he and Maddie had drifted apart, and Jean’s return had cemented that. This time, Emma had vanished. He still ached for her, still missed her presence at his side, but it was a wound that soon healed and faded. The pain was still there, but it hurt less each day.
“She’s really something, isn’t she Slim?” the voice said behind him.
“Logan,” he sighed. “I’m glad to see you.”
“Don’t,” Wolverine growled, joining him. “I understand you an’ I fixed most of our shit in recent days.” He sipped the beer he held in his hand, winced. Too bitter for his liking. “You forget that I don’t remember most of that though.”
“No, we didn’t fix anything really,” he said. “Mostly, we just agreed that we had common goals and decided to put the shit aside until we could talk.”
“Sounds like us,” Logan grunted. It turned into a chuckle, and Scott echoed the sound.
They stood in silence, watching Jean until she was a pink star in a sea of them. “What’s it been like having her back?”
“It hurts,” he said. “We drifted apart in those last days just like I did with Maddie. I hurt her. She was angry with me. Doesn’t mean we don’t still love each other, but given the time… we need to figure out if there’s even an us any more.”
“There will always be an ‘us’ between the two o’ you,” Logan said, patting Scott’s shoulder. “What you need to figure out is what it means.”
The two stood there, watching the sky until Logan burped.
“Sorry, had to break the silence somehow.”
Scott scoffed. “It’s good to have you back Logan.”
“You too Slim,” he said. He stepped back and took another swig of beer. “Now how about we put this insomnia to good use and you fill me in on where we’re at.”
=X=
It took her a few moments to tune out everything before she was completely alone with her thoughts.
There was a massive thunderstorm off the Atlantic seaboard that was endangering a few early morning fishing vessels. Thor was already there, using her unique bond with Mjolnir to calm the winds and the waves before Captain Marvel scooped up the boats.
A cargo ship between Brazil and Nigeria was filled with AIM troopers and dangerous scientific equipment. King T’Challa and Steve Rogers were aboard, both in more “black ops” style garb, rather than their costumed identities. They had already seized control of the vessel. It would take AIM some time before they’d discover the ship was lost to them..
And so it was over and over until she turned her thoughts away. Yet, there was still one group of heroes she couldn’t find- Havok’s X-Men, who vanished somewhere in the Amazon. She prayed her comrades were safe.
Now, all to herself, she opened her eyes and looked to the stars.
Once she had flown among them. Or at least the being that had been a part of her for most of her life had. She had been in a cocoon at the bottom of the ocean, but there was still a connection, a sense of memory.
She smiled at the remembered sensation- flying unhindered and exhilarated. It wasn’t the power that thrilled her. It was the freedom.
The shared memories of the Phoenix Force- some from the time it was impersonating her, others from the times they reunited- weren’t pleasant, but the freedom, that she would never forget.
But then she had returned- out of the cocoon, out of the bay, and with her friends again. It had been such whiplash though. She’d lost so much time, and swung from near death, to near oblivion, to X-Factor.
If it hadn’t been for Scott, Hank and Bobby, she wouldn’t have made it through. Warren though… to see him go through so much pain so much trauma, and be unable to help like she wanted. She had to face her own trauma, and at the same time, she was the team’s rock. None of them fully understood it, but they empathized, and they loved her. In the same breath, they relied on her, and expected her to be everything for them. It was so hard, but she wouldn’t have changed a moment of it.
Without them though, she wouldn’t have evolved into the person, the hero, that she was. Without X-Factor, she couldn’t have helped lead the X-Men through the Legacy Virus crisis, raised Nathan, or battled all the different threats that she’d faced head on. She wouldn’t have been able to deal with Scott’s death, or later the battle with Apocalypse for his life. She wouldn’t have been able to face her own death.
She took in a deep breath. Death had been another sort of freedom. The moment it had ended, she found herself everywhere and nowhere. Others who had held the Phoenix Force called it the White Hot Room.
She was at peace and something tore her out of it. Something drew her away.
When she awoke, she thought it was the Phoenix Force again.
She thought it had needed her again. And then she noticed it.
There in her palm, a blue gem glowed.
The Mind Gem.
One part of her longed for the peace and tranquility of the White Hot Room again.
But the rest of her loved the freedom.
That scared her though. What brought her back and why?
And were there others?
=X=
She landed, her bare toes instantly chilled by the cement. She hadn’t noticed her shoes slip off in her flight, but she would look for them in the morning. She took a deep breath, and smiled. The fire that had surrounded her dimmed and went out, as she walked back into the Hangar.
She felt two minds still awake inside. She smiled as she recognized them. They didn’t hear her as she walked through the corridors of the small facility. She paused as she reached the war room and watched Scott and Logan, deep in conversation.
The two were like brothers, though they’d never admit it. She smirked. Maybe someday.
“Boys,” she whispered. Both of them jumped slightly and turned to her. “Time for bed. We can talk shop in the morning.”
“Fair enough,” Logan said. He stood, patted Scott’s shoulder. He walked out of the room, lingering for a second at Jean’s side. She reached down, gave his hand a single squeeze, and nodded. He grinned and walked away.
Scott stood and walked to her. Their rapport wasn’t as strong as it once was, but it was still there. She felt the anxiety, the school boy nerves, radiating off him. He drew close, but kept his hands behind his back.
“Jean, can we…?”
She leaned forward, gave him a brief kiss on the lips and drew away.
“Not tonight,” she said. “But soon. We both need our rest.”
Scott’s face twisted in a half grin, and he nodded.
“I look forward to it.”
She nodded, turned and started to walk to her room. “Me too Slim.”