“He’s not dead,” said Emma.

“What?” asked Martinique.

“Cyclops is still alive,” said Emma. “I can still sense his thoughts.”

“But that’s not possible, I killed him on the Astral Plane,” said Martinique. “How could his mind survive?”

From his restraints, Cyclops groaned a little.

“You’ve failed, Martinique,” said Leland.

“No, I killed him!” said Martinique. “How can he still—”

“Her,” said Emma, shooting a glance at the Phoenix. “She must be keeping his mind alive.”

Shaw viciously grabbed Martinique by her hair and yanked her head towards him. “What sort of game are you playing here? You’ll jeopardize everything!”

“I’m not playing anything, Shaw!” said Martinique.

“Sebastian, take it easy,” said Warren.

“Jean Grey’s will must be stronger than we anticipated,” said Emma. “I can sense a conflict within her. She’s fighting the Phoenix with every fiber of her being, trying her hardest to maintain control.”

“Does she stand a chance, Emma?” asked Shaw.

Emma shook her head. “In the end, the Phoenix is more powerful. Grey may be able to put up a good effort, but she’ll never win.”

“You don’t know Jean,” said Beast.

“And you don’t understand the power of the Phoenix,” said Leland.

“Any idea how we can get out of this?” asked Thunderbird, his voice a whisper.

“None,” said Beast. “Logan’s our only hope.”

“Then you don’t have much of one,” said Leland. “The Wolverine is dead, X-Men. If the fall didn’t kill him, the guards we sent down certainly did. We received a report informing us that his body was found and they shot him several times just to be certain.”

“Logan?” asked Dazzler.

“I don’t believe it,” said Thunderbird. “No way would Logan go down that easily.”

“Believe it,” said Leland.

“How much longer before the Ascension?” asked Warren.

“Soon,” said Emma. Her gaze went to the old man, whose face was overcome with concentration. “He’s preparing himself for the transfer.”

PHOENIX RISING

Part V: Darkness

By Dino Pollard

Wolverine tossed the radio aside. He cringed and looked at his shoulder to see a bullet embedded there. With a single claw, he dug the bullet out and it hit the ground of the sewer.

His acute hearing picked up the sound of footsteps. Wolverine’s other claws extended and he climbed inside a tunnel, waiting for the proper moment to strike. He could hear them drawing close. As soon as they came within range, he sprung from the tunnel into the path of the two guards. One of them he punched, his claws going through the man’s head. The other was stabbed in the chest.

His healing factor was already dealing with the wounds he inflicted with the last batch of guards he encountered. It may have been a while since his last exploit with the X-Men, but the Wolverine had kept busy in that time. His skills were still as sharp as ever and it would take a lot more than falling through a mansion to keep him out of commission.

Right now, he had bought some time. When Leland called on the radio, Logan sent a message back saying Wolverine was neutralized. The Hellfire Club would be cocky now. They think they have the X-Men—and Jean, for that matter—within their grasp. And with their belief that Wolverine was dead, he could sneak in far easier.

He rounded the corner and continued down the tunnel. He stopped in his tracks and sniffed. Three different scents. Each of them laced with fear. His ears picked up the footsteps. He jammed one set of claws into the stone wall as leverage to pull himself up. He climbed onto the pipes above the ground, and waited.

“I don’t know why Shaw needed to send so many guys down here,” said one of the guards, named Macon. “It’s just one guy, after all.”

“One guy?” asked Cole, the second. “Have you heard anything about the Wolverine?”

“Like what?” asked the third, Reese.

“He’s like some sort of super assassin,” said Cole. “Been around for decades. He’s worked for different governments and I heard he was a hitman for the Yakuza at one point, too.”

“And how do you know all this?” asked Reese.

“I overheard Shaw and Leland talking about him once,” said Cole. “This Wolverine guy is insane. Way Shaw and Leland were talking, seems nothing can kill him.”

“Bullshit,” said Macon. He hefted his rifle. “There’s nothing that can’t be killed. Especially not some mutant freak.”

“Look, let’s just find the body and get outta here,” said Reese. “This place creeps me out.”

“Got some good news for ya, then,” said Wolverine. The three guards looked up to see him fall towards them. “You found a body!”

His claws instantly made short work of Macon’s rifle. Before Cole could fire off a shot, Wolverine sliced one of his arms off. Reese, on the other hand, was able to get several shots off, the bullets finding their mark in Wolverine’s body. Wolverine blocked out the pain. His adamantium skeleton protected his organs and his healing factor would halt the blood loss.

With his gun, Reese was the prime threat. Wolverine leapt towards Reese, who still fired. The bullets hit Macon instead. Reese stopped firing in shock and that was when he felt a finger tap on his shoulder. He turned around and Wolverine growled an instant before he made a swipe with his claws. Reese’s head fell down at the X-Man’s feet.

On the Astral Plane, Jean Grey fell to her knees. Before her hovered a statuesque woman with flowing hair composed completely of flames. She wore nothing, but her body bore no description. No fingernails, no nipples, no pupils, no sex organs—nothing but the flames of creation itself. The color was almost indescribable and the brightness was strong enough to blind Jean.

“Who are you?” asked Jean. “Where am I?”

“I am the flames of creation, Jean Grey. You know me as the Phoenix.”

“No, the Phoenix is just a name I chose for myself,” said Jean. “You’re not separate from me.”

“I am. You are simply the house where I live, Jean. An earthly host for my essence.”

“You’re trying to take over,” said Jean. “Trying to make me into something I’m not. For what? So you can join this Hellfire Club? So you can kill my friends?”

“There’s more to this than your mortal consciousness is capable of understanding. The Hellfire Club must be allowed to succeed and Sabah an-Nur must be allowed to take possession of this body.”

“What about me? What about the X-Men?”

“You will die.”

“The X-Men, too?” asked Jean. The Phoenix nodded. “But why?”

“Because it is the way of all things.”

“I won’t let you,” said Jean. She rose to her feet, standing up to the Phoenix. “I’ve already stopped Martinique from killing Scott. I’m keeping him alive. With Xavier’s blocks gone, I’m far more powerful than anyone realizes. I took down the Shadow King, I left Magneto in a coma, and I saved Peter’s life. All with my own power. I won’t go down without a fight.”

The corner of the Phoenix’s mouth rose slightly in a faint smile. “Jean, do you really believe you did all that on your own? It was my power which did all that. Without me, you are nothing.”

“Oh yeah?” asked Jean. Her eyes narrowed as pink energy began to surround her body, energy which surged forth and slammed against the Phoenix. “We’ll see about that!”

The Phoenix waved her hand and a wall of flames appeared between the two combatants. The flames not only blocked Jean’s attack, but reflected it back at her. Jean fell down once her own psychic energy struck her. The Phoenix hovered through the flames and looked down at Jean with those blank eyes. She extended her hand and a bird cage composed of flames surrounded the X-Man.

“Your time is done, Jean Grey.”

The old man’s body began to convulse. The members of the Hellfire Club’s Inner Circle backed away from him.

“It’s beginning…” said Shaw. “Soon, Sabah an-Nur will take possession of the Phoenix.”

The Phoenix walked up to the old man and placed her fingertips on his head. She closed her eyes and flames began to surround her body. The old man violently coughed over and over, without any respite, as if he were dying.

Cyclops groaned and slowly began to move his head.

“Scott!” said Dazzler.

“What’s happening?” asked Cyclops. He saw the Phoenix lift her head high and the flames encompassed the old man as well. “What’s Jean doing?”

“I have no idea, but I’m guessing it’s not good,” said Thunderbird.

The old man suddenly sprung up from his wheelchair, his body held in midair by the Phoenix’s telekinesis. His eyes rolled into the back of his head and the Phoenix extended her arms outward as the essence within him slowly flowed inside of her.

Inside the flaming cage, Jean watched as a new figure slowly appeared from the darkness of the mindscape. The Phoenix turned as this new figure came into view. He was extremely large, dressed in the regalia of an Egyptian pharoah. His skin, however, was gray and he had dark blue markings on his bald head. His lips were also blue, and the lines extended towards his ears. His eyes glowed brightly.

“At last…” he said. “After centuries of waiting, I have finally found you.”

The Phoenix embraced him wrapping her slender arms around his wide frame. He returned her embrace and pressed his lips to hers. The flaming woman seemed to vanish, fading inside the large man. Sabah an-Nur turned to look at Jean, his eyes now glowing with the flames of the Phoenix. He smiled at her.

The doors suddenly burst open and Wolverine ran in, his claws stained with blood, a burning rage present in his eyes.

“Miss me?” he asked.

The old man fell to the ground and the Phoenix turned her attention to Wolverine.

“Destroy him!” said Shaw.

Wolverine took a step forward, his claws held in a defensive stance. “Outta the way, Jeannie. I don’t wanna hurt you.”

He started to run towards her, but she unleashed the flames of the Phoenix from her hands and they engulfed Wolverine. He was thrown back against the wall, pinned there by her power. She slowly hovered towards him, her eyes burning bright.

“You think you can stand up to the force of the Phoenix, little man?”

“Never been accused of bein’ too smart…” said Wolverine.

“Your mind is my plaything. With but a thought, I can tear it to shreds. Render it useless. Reduce you to nothing more than a simple house pet.”

As the Phoenix entered Wolverine’s mind, a wave of memories flooded over her. She watched Jean’s time with Logan, and the connection her host body felt to her leader. The respect she held for him. The attraction she couldn’t quite explain. For a moment, Jean found the cage fading and she was able to reassert control.

“Logan!” she said. She ceased the attack and he fell to the ground. Jean instantly moved to his side.

“…hello t’ you too, Jeannie…” he muttered.

“I’m sorry,” she said. “I didn’t mean to—”

She threw her head back and cried out in pain. Emma Frost stood behind her, using her powers to slice into Jean’s mind.

“The Hellfire Club has worked too hard for too long to have it ruined by an uppity redhead from Long Island,” said Emma.

“Enough!”

The Phoenix recovered quickly and sent a psionic backlash at Emma Frost. She hovered towards the Hellfire Club’s Inner Circle, flames surrounding her body. Shaw looked up at the Phoenix and bent down before her on one knee, his head lowered. The rest of the Hellfire Club followed his head.

“My Lord… your faithful servants pledge their lives to you,” said Shaw. “The day of Sabah an-Nur is upon us.”

“Sebastian Shaw, you and your Hellfire Club have done well,” said Sabah an-Nur. “You have served your purpose. However, you are not fit to live in the new world order.”

“What…?” asked Shaw, looking up at his god in surprise. Before another word could be said, the Phoenix’s hand was raised and flames surrounded the Hellfire Club. They burned through the five mutants, reducing them to nothing more than ash and bone. With the Hellfire Club disposed of, Sabah an-Nur turned his attention to the X-Men. Flames began to surround the X-Men, but suddenly… they stopped.

“Jean…?” asked Nightcrawler.

“Jean Grey is dead. I am fire and life incarnate.”

“Jean… c’mon, snap out of it,” said Thunderbird.

“The Hellfire Club’s gone, you can drop the act,” said Beast.

“There is no act. The time has come to raze the globe in a purifying fire. And, as Shaw was correct to point out, the day of Sabah an-Nur is now upon us. A world where only the strong will survive.”

“So now you’re going to kill us?” asked Cyclops.

The Phoenix seemed to pause and considered the X-Man’s words. “…no. You X-Men have proven yourselves in the past. You will be allowed to survive. Only time will tell if you will prove strong enough to survive.”

The Phoenix rocketed from the room through the skylight above. The glass shattered and she was gone in a streak of flames.