FicWad

No Rain
Chapter 6: Loss of Innocence

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"Get up!" yelled the commander as half the guns were now pointed at Scott and Jean while the other half were pointed at the children. "Make one wrong move and my men open fire on the kiddies!"

Not having a choice and not wanting to risk the lives of the children, Scott and Jean slowly rose to their feet with a stoic look on their face. They were vastly outnumbered and at the mercy of the Friends of Humanity. And the lives of many young mutant children now hung in the balance.

Four guards then seized Scott and Jean and bound their arms while they were forced to stand before the leader. They were still very weak from being knocked out and imprisoned, but given the situation...It was something that would have to be overcome.

"You freaks have jeopardized my whole operation now..." said the commander in a stern, angry tone as he stood before them.

"And what operation is that? To capture and kill innocent children just because of their genes?" said Scott with disgust when he heard this man describe his atrocities as a mere operation.

"SHUT UP!"

The two guards that were holding Scott back responded by beating him to the ground with the butt of their guns and the commander responded by kicking him in the stomach several times. Jean winced as she felt his pain, but could do nothing to filter it out.

"All you freaks are nothing more than a menace to the human race!" bellowed the leader as the guards forced Scott to stand again despite his pain, "You two should have cooperated...I know about your little expedition. My security system picked up the presence of your 'friends' only moments ago. And now...We'll have to jump start our final plans."

A sickening smile spread across the man's face as the guards forcibly moved Scott and Jean towards the doorway. However, the rest of the guards didn't move...And they were about to find out why.

"Kill them all..."

Shots rang out from automatic weapon fire as Scott and Jean were forced to watch these heartless soldiers kill every one of these innocent children...Including Adam Leech, the boy who had helped them stop Apocalypse. Blood flowed freely on the floor as dozens of little bodies fell as a result of wave after wave of bullets from the guards. By the time it had finally stopped...Every last child was dead.

"NO! YOU SON OF A BITCH!" yelled Scott, only to be beaten down by the guards.

Both of young mutants were unable to stand as they watched this horrid scene unfold before them. Their legs went weak as the sight of so many young children being slain in the face of such unimaginable hate destroyed whatever innocence had remained in the face of their tumultuous lives. Tears formed in their eyes as a sick, unnerving feeling now permeated in the pit of their stomachs as they looked in to the dead eyes of the mutant children that had been so heartlessly killed.

"Get up!" yelled the commander.

But Scott couldn't take it...He lashed out in an attempt to blow this heinous man away, but the guards that were holding him only beat him down to the ground once again...Hitting him and kicking him even after he had been subdued. Jean didn't have the strength to filter anything out anymore. Watching these guards kill with such heartlessness had destroyed whatever control she had over her emotions as the anguish of watching innocent children die hung over her and Scott like a shadow.

When the guards stopped beating Scott, the commander only walked over to him and gave him one last kick before turning his attention back to the guards.

"Take him to 'the room.'"

A slow, insidious grin appeared upon the guards' faces as they took Scott's nearly limp body and dragged him off.

"NO!" yelled Jean as she tried to escape, but was only held back.

"Don't worry...You'll join him soon enough," said the commander as he motioned for the rest of the soldiers to follow him.

Then, one of the guards hit Jean in the face with the butt of his gun, causing her to keel over in pain...But she was forcibly held up as they dragged her out of the prison cell with all the dead bodies and taken down a long, dimly lit hall.

Suddenly...She felt an intense pain surge through her mind as she was dragged towards the far end of the hall. She then heard screams...Screams of agony that were coming from Scott. Tears flowed down her eyes as she felt his pain through their mind link. They were beating him...Torturing him...And there was nothing she could do about it. Her mind was so weak...And the pain coming from Scott was so intense. She could only shudder at the thought of what they were doing to him that was making him scream in so much pain. She didn't want to feel it...But she couldn't block it out.

'No...Scott...' said Jean weakly despite the pounding feeling in her head.

'Jean...' but that's all that was heard before another round of horrid screams of pain erupted from the beating.

Soon, Jean found herself led in to the main control room for the Friends of Humanity headquarters. It was a lot bigger than any ordinary basement. It was more like a scene directly out of a military war room. There were numerous monitors and computer stations, but many of them were shut down now...Hinting that they had no intentions of staying here much longer.

Jean was thrown to ground in the center of the room as dozens of guards encircled her. She was unable to get up, for the pain she was feeling from Scott had all but hindered her. His screams echoed in her mind as the guards continued whatever heinous thing they were doing to the man she loved. And as she kept trying to block these horrible feelings from her mind...She felt kick against her already frail body from the commander.

"You know you and your boyfriend aren't leaving here alive...You're both freaks that threaten the human race and poison our gene pool."

The commander of the group was now hovering over her with about a half a dozen other men as he stared in to her eyes with a sinister hate that couldn't be described with words.

"Every last one of you freaks deserves to suffer for the havoc you inflict on this world...And you my pretty little bitch...Are no exception."

A new wave a panic overcame the young woman's mind as the commander proceeded to take out a medium-sized, switchblade pocket knife. Two of the nearby guards grabbed her to keep her from squirming as the commander started to run his knife down her body, cutting off her uniform piece by piece. Other guards followed his lead as they too took out knives and began to strip Jean bare as she stood at the mercy of these heinous people. Soon, her uniform was in pieces on the ground as she stood naked before these callous men. She shivered in a cold sweat as they projected thoughts about what they were going to do to her. Slowly, each man began to roughly fondle her body...Bringing back many horrible memories she had of the insane asylum where the orderlies there used her like this as well. Tears streamed down her face as she felt more intense pain coming from Scott. He was still screaming in her mind from agony as his torture continued. What they were doing to him, Jean could only shutter upon as the guards began fondle her with increasing harshness.

"Yeah...You're gonna pay mutie bitch...You're gonna wish you'd never been born," said one of the guards as he shoved his fingers in to her private areas.

Jean felt herself break down as shame overtook her and her tired mind. Scott's pain, the guards' thoughts, and the awful memories of rape that she struggled with to this day were all overwhelming her system as she struggled to find the strength to pull herself and Scott out of this. But all she felt was more pain...

'I...Love you...Jean,' she heard Scott say through her link as she felt his pain from their link.

'I love you too...' said Jean back through her tears.

She didn't want it to end like this...She didn't want her and Scott to die in such a horrid place. It was like a nightmare that neither of them could wake up from...A nightmare that was all too real.

Then suddenly...As all hope seemed lost...A powerful explosion rocked the ceiling of the room and an earth shattering shockwave echoed throughout the building. Soon, the roof overhead collapsed and the X-jet now hovered above them. Startled, the guards' attention was briefly drawn away from Jean...But that was more than enough time as an insidious anger within her began to grow.

With a massive telekinetic burst...The guards were flung around like dust in the wind. Some of them landed on their necks...Killing them instantly. And while this was going on...A sudden blast of ruby optic red light erupted from a room off to the side and the mutilated bodies of several guards were flung against the opposing wall. It was Scott...And like Jean, the brief moment of confusion allowed them to fight back with a great ferocity unlike anything they had ever felt before. Scott's body was covered in blood and most of his uniform had been torn off during his beatings. He had large, bloody gashes across his torso, there were burn marks on his back, and there was blood seeping out of his mouth...But none of this seemed to affect him as he used his visor on it's most lethal setting to kill off guard after guard...Including the one that had killed Adam Leech. Guards began to cower in fear as they frantically tried to shoot back...Only to have their bullets stopped in mid flight by Jean's powers.

Dozens of necks were telekinetically snapped and many bodies were blown apart cleanly by optic blasts. By the time all the guards were dead...The room was flowing in a river of blood. Through this...Logan and Ororo couldn't believe what they were seeing.

"Oh my goddess..." said Ororo with an immeasurable amount of horror in her voice.

Logan couldn't find the words to describe what he was seeing. It was all so wrong. Scott and Jean...Normally two, peace-loving kids...Had just killed an entire army of Friends of Humanity soldiers. The looks on their face were unrecognizable to everybody except Logan and Ororo...Who had helped raise them as if they were their own kids. Scott was covered in blood...Hinting at the horrible things that were done to him by the heartless guards. Jean was naked and drenched in a cold sweat...Which pretty much gave away what the guards had tried to do to her.

In the middle of the room, Scott had made his way back over to Jean only to collapse on to the ground in a bloody heap. Jean quickly knelt by him...Leaning on him for support as she struggled to process what had just happened. Tears were streaming down her face as she felt the intense pain Scott was in through their mind link. He was on the verge of fainting from blood loss...But he managed to fight it and stay awake. No words were said as they just stayed in the center of the room surrounded by all the dead bodies. They just leaned against each other for support...Trying to process the horror of what had just happened to them. They had been captured by the guards, they had been beaten like animals, they were forced to watch dozens of innocent children die right before their very eyes, Jean was nearly raped, and Scott had been brutally tortured. So much pain and so much horror now permeated through their minds in addition to their already tumultuous lives.

"Scott...Jeannie!" yelled Logan as he and Ororo quickly ran over to them as they collapsed against each other.

Upon reaching them, Ororo quickly wrapped Jean's shivering body in a blanket that she had fetched from the plane while Logan checked some of Scott's wounds.

"Holy shit..." said Logan as she saw all of Scott's wounds, unable to contemplate the kind of torture he endured from the cruel guards. "Quickly, let's get em out of here."

Scott was definitely too weak to walk...He could barely stay conscious. Logan was forced get him on the jet while Ororo guided the distraught Jean. Upon entering the X-jet, both Scott and Jean collapsed on to the seat and Scott let out a coughing fit as he spit up more blood...Hinting at internal bleeding. Jean leaned against him, mindful of the numerous wounds he had. Scott was about to pass out from the pain, but he wanted to stay awake for as long as possible with Jean.

Soon, the X-jet was on auto-pilot as they raced home to get Scott medical attention. But Logan and Ororo were still in a great deal of shock. Everything just seemed so wrong. Hoping to help, they tried to confront the deeply wounded young couple.

"What the hell happened back there?" said Logan, still somewhat dazed at the horror that he had seen.

"I think it's pretty obvious..." responded Jean callously as tears continued to flow down her face.

"Scott, Jean...Please talk to us. Are you okay?" asked Ororo as she approached them.

Scott just gave her a callous look that caused the weather goddess to stop. And it wasn't because it didn't look like the Scott she knew...It was because it DID look like the Scott she knew.

"What do you think..." said Scott in a cold, raspy voice as he started to feel fainter by the second.

"Jean..." she said turning towards the distraught redhead.

"Leave me alone...Just leave me the fuck alone!" she said as she cut her off.

The tone in her voice was dark and cold. It would have been unreal to anybody else hearing this from two supposedly 'perfect' young adults. Ororo wanted to go on...But Logan soon placed a hand on her shoulder and shook his head. He wanted her to stop...Knowing that talking to them about it like this would only make it worse. While at first the weather goddess hesitated...In the end she heeded Logan's advice and made her way back to the cockpit. He was about to follow...But before he left, he had one last thing to say.

"I'm sorry you two had to go through that...I should have been there. You both didn't deserve this...You of all people didn't deserve this. I should've been more careful...The Prof should've gotten more info before sending us off. I'm not gonna force you two to talk about it...But just know that I'm still here for the both of you."

After that, Logan made his way back in to the cockpit. And while he knew they probably wouldn't respond...He knew that they were silently thankful. As he and Ororo, kicked in the afterburner to get them back as soon as possible...Scott and Jean were left to digest the turmoil of this awful day. And through this, a great sense of worry now permeated their minds as to what was going to happen to them once they got back.

"It's all wrong, Scott...Everything is just so wrong," said Jean weakly as her tired mind started to get the best of her. "We killed those soldiers...We took their lives."

Scott knew he couldn't stay awake for much longer. His internal bleeding and profuse injuries were causing him undue pain. But he managed to get some words out knowing Jean needed him right there and now.

"We did...What we had to, Jean. I...I'm sorry it had to..." but then Scott was hit with another coughing fit. He was going to pass out...And soon. But he had to say one last thing to Jean. "It'll be okay Jean...It'll be okay."

Although there was so much uncertainty in his voice, hearing it had helped calm Jean down. But now he could no longer fight the pain of his injuries. Jean clung to him as he began to slip in to a world of unconsciousness. And as he fainted...Jean too felt a wave of drowsiness come over her. Her mind was so incredibly tired from using so much power and going through so much pain. Then, as she leaned against the unconscious Scott...She placed one last soft kiss on his cheek as she too slipped in to a sleepy darkness.

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The world around her was spinning...The memories of the doomed mission flashed incessantly before her eyes as Jean Grey felt as if every part of her body had a massive weight on it. Slowly, her eyes began to flutter as she took in her surroundings. Instinctively, she reached over to the other side of her bed, hoping to find Scott lying next to her...But he wasn't there. Forcing herself to awaken, Jean sat up as her vision began to adjust to the darkness. She was back in her room again. She was dressed in her usual sleeping clothes...Most likely thanks to Ororo. Everything seemed like such a blur. She didn't even know what day was. As her head stopped spinning, she glanced over at the clock to see it read 2:30 AM. But how had she gotten here?

She remembered the horror of the mission...The pain and death that plagued her mind even in her sleep. She also remembered passing out next to Scott on the plane...But that was it. Then, her eyes drifted down towards her arm and she noticed several strange marks. Jean quickly realized them to be needle holes...Probably from injections to help her sleep. Then, as the world around her became clearer...She remembered something.

"Scott..."

The fresh memory of his injuries and the pain that he had endured soon came over her as gently rubbed the temples of her head in an effort to stave off the pain she felt from recalling such a horrid thing. Using her powers, the young telepath frantically tried to locate Scott. He wasn't in his room, or even on the same floor for that matter. It wasn't long before she traced his presence to the medical bays of the lower floors. From what she could sense, he was alive, but unconscious. He had endured so much physical assault from the heinous guards that she felt she had to go to him...She wanted to be by his side.

Still feeling the effects of the drugs she had been given, Jean nearly lost her balance as she tried to stand up. Her head was still throbbing from the mental fatigue she had suffered when she used her powers and nearly blacked out as she took her first step. But she just waited for it to pass as she slowly made her way through the dark, quiet halls of the institute. She descended the stairs as quietly as she could so as not to wake any other nosey students. Jean knew all too well that they would want to talk to her about the mission or the rumors from earlier...And it was something she truly didn't want to discuss. Hell, she didn't even want to remember it...But that was all too impossible at this point.

Finally, she arrived in the florescent lighted corridors of the institute basement. At first, her eyes struggled to adjust to the light...But that didn't stop her as she continued to make her way towards the medical facilities. She still felt woozy from exhaustion, but she forced herself to press on as she finally arrived at the room where Scott was resting.

Upon seeing him...Jean froze briefly in the doorway to talk in the sight. His body was covered in bandages that were stained with blood. He had everything from gashes to burn marks on his body as the smell of his blood hung thick in the air. It gave Jean a sick feeling...Smelling the blood of the man she loved and seeing the scars of his suffering. But she didn't consider leaving even for a moment as she made her way over to his bedside. Slowly, and carefully as not to touch his exposed wounds, Jean slipped in to the bed next to him. He didn't have a lot of machines hooked up to him...But he did have a single IV going in to his arm, most likely administering a constant flow of pain killers. But that was only for physical pain...No drug could be given to him to help with the inevitable emotional pain that he would feel once he woke up. Jean knew this as she simply lay next to him, gently running her hand along the outline of his face. His breathing was ragged and his heartbeat was somewhat slower than usual as he lay in a deep state of unconsciousness. But his mind was still there...Jean could feel it. And as she started to give way to her own exhaustion once more, she sent him a brief message through their link...Knowing that somehow he would hear it.

'I'm so sorry you have to feel so much pain, Scott. You and I...We've felt enough pain in our lives. We've shared it...We've lived it. I wish I could do something...Anything to make this go away. But remember one thing Scott...You never have to feel your pain alone. I'll always be there for you...Because you have always been there for me. I'm here now Scott. And...I wish I could do more...I wish...'

But soon after that, Jean started to slip away in to a world of unconsciousness. She stayed close, knowing Scott would feel her warmth as she lay next to him. Their love was so complex...And deep. But the world around them was just so tumultuous and they were forced to endure so much. And the worst part of it was that in the end...They couldn't talk about it. Nobody understood...Not the Professor, not Ororo...Nobody. They only had each other to help them through this...But for now, that was enough.

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AN: Well, that's it. I know it was kind of disturbing and pretty graphic at some points, but then again, that's why this story has an R rating. If any of you all were disturbed or troubled by this...I am very sorry. But I did warn you all earlier of this so please don't hate me for it. This is a STORY! I'm not out to hurt or offend anyone and I'm really sorry if anybody feels troubled by this. I know Scott and Jean are a lot different in this story, but that's because I didn't want them to be like the one-dimensional characters portrayed in the Evo cartoon. Other than that, what did you think? Stay tuned because it's not over yet! See what happens in the aftermath of the mission and how Scott and Jean handle it! There's plenty of more Scott/Jean goodness left in this story, so I hope you all like it! And please don't forget to review! Send your feedback directly to me via email or post it on the fanfiction website. Thank you so much for reading and best wishes to you all!

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