"Uh... Cerebro?" Jubilee called out through the darkness of the Danger Room, hoping that the computer was online, but there was no answer. Power was down and the back up generators hadn't kicked in, and with Wolverine's voice echoing around the room moments before everything went dark, they knew that the Shadow King had taken the fight to the X-Men.

They were clearly trapped and it was pitch black in the room, so much so they couldn't see a thing in front of them

"Okay," Magma's voice echoed through the room. "Who just touched my ass?" Jubilee could just picture her scanning the darkness waiting for someone to answer, but nobody would and she could also imagine who it was. So could Monet and she giggled, her powers allowing her to know exactly who it was.

Jared Corbo may not have been in the best of shape, but the nanites in his body were healing him and he had been unable to resist the temptation, knowing where Allison had been just when the lights had gone out. She had been close enough to him, but not too far away and he had seized the moment. Then he gave a cough and slowly began to slink far away from Magma, the darkness making expert cover.

It was a light relief because they knew that if the original X-Men were caught unawares then it was certain that the Shadow X-Men would soon enter the room and that would be it for them. Maybe even just one or two of them. Shadowcat would be able to phase Wolverine in to the Danger Room and he could slaughter several of them before they'd had a chance to react, and Kitty Pryde would be able to get through Jared's forcefield without a problem, just leaving Monet, and no doubt she'd be taken down by X-Man... Jubilee shook her head, thinking like this was doing no good.

"We need some light in here," she said and she fired off one of her fireworks and the explosion created light, which was amplified by the diamond form of Emma Frost.

"Jeez!" Radius said as he clutched at his chest after the paff had made him and everyone else in the room jump. "You could have warned us."

"There's no fun in that," Jubilee said as she let off another one when the light started to fade again, this time being a little more creative and as the firework strands trailed they exploded as well making more light. "I can make light in here, but it's about it."

"We could break out," Magma said, "and give the X-Men a hand?"

"And get ourselves killed in the process?" Emma said, shaking her head in disbelief at the child's idea. "Did you learn nothing from what we just went through? We're safer in here."

"Yes, but we need to do something," Jubilee said. "And you're not exactly fabled for sitting back when, or is that when it suits you?"

"Oh please," said Emma. "I've been doing this a lot longer than you and I know when to act, and when not to act."

"Really?" Jubilee said, anger rising in her tone. "Tell that to Paige… no wait, you can't, she's dead."

"And you think I don't know that?" said Emma, her voice going low as darkness descended. "Paige died at my hand, yes it was an accident, but it was a life I took. I've killed before, I've taken over people, commanded them to kill themselves. You can't judge me, because I judge myself every time I wake up, but I also know this - I'd do it all over again in exactly the same way. I won't surrender myself to the weakness that I did when the Hellions died, and you may hate me, but how you feel is of no importance to me. There's work to do, and if you get in my way, I'll kill you as well."

"This is a good conversation," said Jared, but nobody was listening.

"God knows what Cyclops is thinking having you around," Jubilee said, letting the words get to her. "A cold blooded bitch like you. At least Sabretooth was honest about who he was, but you hide under a facade of refinement. You never changed, you just used Xavier to get yourself a new team of Hellions, but we were always Xavier's students - never yours."

"And look what it got him," Emma said. "Xavier's dead, his rotting corpse lies outside because he was as afraid as all the humans out there of what he could do, what he was. A telepath assassinated? How many students has he lost because his way was supposedly the better one? How many have thrown their lives away needlessly because of his dream? Fitzroy killed my Hellions, because Pierce brought Sentinels in to the Hellfire Club, Xavier's people died because Charles was either never around or too complacent in his training!"

"At least when he died there were people to mourn him," Jubilee hissed. "Nobody will mourn you. Emma Frost, died alone and unloved."

"We're all alone and unloved," said Emma. "Get used to it, but you've said you're going to kill me, so I won't be alone, will I?"

"You're not alone now, either," she said feeling the anger reach boiling point and she could feel the power building inside her, but Jubilee looked across the room and in the haze she could see a figure. Stick, shaking his head and his presence reminded her that was not the path she was on, not what she should be doing and she powered down. "But one day…" She released an explosion and created some more light. "You'll pay for what you've done."

She sat down in the corner of the room and considered how it had changed and how everything had gone so wrong. Paige was dead, Wolverine had gone to the dark side and she was trapped in a room with a woman she needed to kill, but knew she could not, and a tear trickled down her cheek. Life wasn't supposed to be this way. The room was in silence; nobody knowing what to say after that and Jubilee liked the silence.

~It will get better~ Monet's voice said inside her head. ~Gateway knew how strong you were. He doesn't choose people lightly~

Jubilee looked up and in the gloom she could see M staring at her. Gateway had brought Penance to Xavier's as well. What was his secret? What did he want with them all, and was she as strong as he believed her to be?

Toad wandered the streets, of the town he had come across. It seemed deserted, as if nobody had lived here in years and he knew he wouldn't get his answers here. He had kept on going, following the lake until he had found a river, and now he followed it upstream, wondering where it would take him and he needed to find answers to who he was, what he had become and who he had been.

He opened the doors of a derelict building and looked inside. It had been someone's home, but he could see that the things in here were old. Decades old. Something had happened here, something that had caused everyone in the town to leave and they had left behind so much. There was a photograph on a cabinet, layered in dust and he brushed his hand over the glass of the frame, clearing it so he could see properly.

She was a beautiful blonde woman and something in his confused mind considered it. It wasn't her but he remembered a blonde woman who had been kind to him long ago.

"Her name was Emma," he said to himself. "How do I remember that and nothing else?" He shook his head as he explored the house and he came across a locked door. He tipped his head to one side for a moment and then he jumped up and kicked the door, using his powerful legs to push it open and the old timbers gave way under the pressure. Inside were canned foods and he smiled. His hunger would be sated and then he would consider the name Emma and who she might possibly be.

He would find the answers that were so far denied him.

"Have they forgotten us?" said Magma, the impatience in her voice echoed in the minds of the X-Men. Monet ignored her as she tired to rewire the danger room systems, trying desperately to get the main power back on line so they could get out of there, but so far she was out of luck.

"Maybe they're dead," said Jared and she head Magma snort in derision at Radius' unhelpful comments.

"Yeah because that's a likely outcome," said Emma. "The original X-Men versus the Shadow X-Men? They're not exactly team players."

"We didn't do too well against them earlier," said M, turning to look at the others. "It was... annoying."

"Well the Danger Room is offline," said Jared. "I'm through waiting."

"Ditto," said Jubilee, speaking for the first time since the row. "Whatever's going on out there, we're better taking it to them than sitting around waiting. We're going to need a new door..." She fired her explosives and this time detonated them within the structure of the danger room door and they were free.

"You think that's coming out of your allowance?" asked Jared, but the truth was that they probably wouldn't notice something else damaged. The mansion had suffered thanks to the battle and as the X-Men cautiously looked around they found themselves outside, where Jessica Drew was helping Shadowcat bring in Peter Wisdom and they assumed a defensive posture, but Shadowcat raised her hands.

"It's over," she said, almost pleading. "Jubilee, help us get Pete in the medbay. I want to check him out."

"Monet?" said Emma and M gave them a quick scan with her telepathy.

"They're who they are again," she confirmed.

"Help them then," Emma sighed and the X-men ran over to give the restored heroes a hand.

"How's Wolvie?" Jubilee asked and she could see Shadowcat was struggling herself, and she knew the team had been beaten.

"He's back to being himself," she said. "The poison's gone, and I'm guessing he's gone after the Shadow King one last time." Her breathing was laboured and Jubilee looked at her.

"You okay?" she said but Kate waved her away, not needing her help.

"Just a pain in my chest," she said as they made it in to the medical wing of the mansion and they laid Pete down on the bed. Jared waited outside as the girls went to work.

He looked at the ruined mansion and wondered what had happened in this place, how fierce the battle had been and what had happened to the others. The original X-Men were nowhere to be found and he wandered the corridors, looking for a sign, anything and he had not gotten far when he heard Jubilee cry out and for a moment he thought that it was a trick and he hurried back to see Magma and Emma coming out of the room.

"What happened?" he asked.

"Monet was summoned," said Magma, "and FX tagged along for the ride."

"And you're not in there because?"

"Wisdom came round," Emma said. "Miss Pryde wanted the room."

"Is it safe to do that?" Jared asked.

"About as safe as being in a darkened room with you," Magma said, coldly and Jared gave a lopsided grin and shrugged.

"Oh you two give it a rest," said Emma. "Our first priority is getting the power back online. That happens and then Cerebro is restored and we can make an effort on repairing this place and finding out what's going on in the world."

The two of them nodded and then the X-Men went to work.

"Where are they, lousy, no good…" Cerebro said as the power came back on and he was aware once more.

"Here and there," said Emma. "We have partial power, the mansion is in a state and we need your help to tell us what's going on."

"I take it the homeside won then? Good. You can't beat the originals, that's what I say. That's why cover versions have no style…"

"I can always cut the power again," Emma said, impatiently. "What Logan and his friends did was easily fixable, but we have no defences of any kind, so whatever you can do - do it."

"Okay then," said Cerebro. "I'll be in the War Room. If you need me." Emma sighed and went to see what the others were doing. Three people to fix a mansion. Where was Cyclops? How could he have been so thoughtless in just leaving them in the Danger Room, but then she stopped in her tracks and smiled. Maybe that was just what she needed and she headed for the study. It was time to get rid of the bargaining chip Mr Summers held over her head and then she would resolve the situation she found herself in.

She entered the study and looked around. Cyclops was not the most imaginative of men and it wouldn't be hard for her to figure out just what he had done with it. Her eyes went to the pictures on the desk - his wife, his son, his brother. That's where they would be, she thought and she took the backs of the pictures. The discs weren't there.

"Well played," she said. "Perhaps you have become better at this." She sat down in the chair and looked around. They had to be in here somewhere. She'd searched everywhere else, but this was the only place that was off limits. With the defences down, she could come in here and Cyclops would never know. There was so much he currently didn't know and perhaps he would find out that it was she who had erased the message from Jean regarding Rachel, but she doubted it. Her main problem now would be that if Cyclops and Phoenix had reunited, then it would be more difficult to keep her thoughts to herself. Which meant she needed to get out of here and she knew where would go.

If the rumours were true then the Hellfire Club's Inner Circle were made up of a bunch of pretenders and they could do with shaking up by a charter member. The White Queen had not officially had her membership revoked and perhaps she should take it up again, but first she needed to be free and she would find the discs and ensure the data files were hers and she would make sure that nobody would use them against her again. Then she would deal with Sean Cassidy and the Byron Agency. Nobody treated Emma Frost the way they had and got away with it.

All she needed were the files…

"Okay," Katherine Pryde said as she finished working on the systems so she could access the Shadow King's teleportation network. There was enough back online to do what she had wanted but she had needed Cerebro to co-ordinate things. "Cerebro..."

"Okay," the computer replied. "You know after we kick the Shadow Krud's ass, we're keeping this tech? Why should the X-Men be the only team without a teleporter?"

"Who cares?" said Pete Wisdom. "Open the damned portal."

"Ho-kay," Cerebro said. "Accessing... now!" A small portal opened, but it was big enough for them to go through one at a time. "Hurry," Cerebro said. "It's unstable at best." They quickly went through the portal and Cerebro shook his head. Wisdom may have been wearing the uniform but he was not exactly a typical candidate for Xavier's. "I'm so glad he's not on the X-Men," he said and went back to work before he realised there was something wrong and he replayed the scenes with the two of them.

He'd detected another bio-signature in the room, a third human with an active x-gene, but there were only two people there. There was only one possible explanation - Katherine Pryde was pregnant.

TO BE CONTINUED IN X-FORCE LEGENDS!