Spoilers: This story is au, so I am going to say none.
Warnings: The usual. There is mild language, violence, and adult themes. It is teen to be on the safe side.
Couples: It is a very heavy Jott story. There is also mention of Rogue/Bobby and Logan/Ororo. It talks about past relationships such as Scott/Emma and Jean/Logan.
Disclaimer: I do not own anything. If I did Scott and Jean would still be together, and Emma would have never existed.
Author's Note: This was an idea I came up with after reading a summary of the Apocalypse arc. Some elements have stayed the same, but many have changed so that is why this story is classified as an AU one. This story was originally going to be the ending of one that I abandoned, but I decided to rewrite it as a stand-alone and put it up here. Due to the fact that the story is already finished reviewers cannot have any input into the plot, however I would love to hear what you think of it so far. Constructive criticism is welcomed; I can't get any better unless you tell me what I am doing wrong. Enjoy!
Background: The X-men have been trying to locate and destroy Apocalypse for the better part of a year now, without much success. During this same time Jean cheated on her longtime boyfriend Scott with Logan. After Scott found out he cheated on Jean with Emma in order seek revenge. Scott and Jean soon broke up. Scott had a relationship with Emma and Jean had one with Logan. However, things get very complicated when a man comes back from the future claiming to be Scott and Jean's son. This causes Scott and Jean to break up with their respective partners and get back together. Soon after the X-men are tipped off to Apocalypse's location, which is where our story begins.
Chapter 1
"Let go of my son," Scott Summers told Apocalypse as they both stood in the battlefield with carnage and destruction all around them.
"Dad, don't!" Cable shouted, his psychic trance starting to break.
Apocalypse chuckled. "Now you tell me why I would do that."
Scott spoke his expression unchanging, "because you can have me instead."
Cable turned, now fully lucid. "No, Dad!" Scott didn't move. "You can't!"
"Deal," Apocalypse told him. His voice still contained a hint of its previous humor.
"No take me!" Cable shouted back at him. "Take me!" He pleaded.
"Nate, go!" Scott shouted as he started to feel himself grow weaker.
"No!" Cable tried to block Apocalypse from getting any closer to his father, but he just tossed him out of the way. "Take me instead," he whispered defeated.
Scott could feel the life being drained out of him as Apocalypse drew closer. He swayed slightly, but quickly corrected himself. "Nate, get out of here now. That was an order! Leave now!" Scott looked at him. Every cell in Scott's body that wasn't fighting Apocalypse was willing him to leave before Apocalypse changed his mind. Scott could handle letting himself being taken over, however, he could not watch it happen to his son.
Cable left realizing that he could do nothing more, and returned back to the X-men's base camp.
As soon as Cable was out of view, Scott swayed one last time and finally collapsed. He curled up on the ground clutching his hands to his forehead. It felt as if his brain was in fire inside his skull, and it would break through at any moment.
"Lovely feeling, isn't it, having your body taken over?" Apocalypse mused. Scott glared at him though his pain.
Cable walked a little over a mile back to the rest of the troops. Logan was the first to attack him for information, "Cable, we're trying to clear out, did you see anything over to the east?" Logan questioned.
Cable, still in a haze, answered, "I saw a few strays on my way back, but I spent most of my time to the south." His answer was mechanical as his eyes failed to meet Wolverine's.
"Rogue, you and Bobby go check out the East. The radio transmitters aren't working well out here. Tell the others you see to pull it back."
Logan turned back to Cable. His head still faced down. Something wasn't right. "What aren't you telling me?" Logan questioned. Cable was silent. "More people could die if you don't tell me what's going on this instant."
"Apocalypse was about a mile to the south west 20 minutes ago," Cable told them, his eyes still glued to the ground.
"Why didn't you stay over there?" Wolverine question.
"Cyclops told me to leave," he said simply.
"And you listened to him?" Logan questioned. Cable nodded. "You idiot! Take Jean, go back over there, and drag his sorry butt back here. I'd rather have him kicking and screaming over here than doing God knows what with Apocalypse."
"No," Cable told him.
"What did you just say?" Logan questioned as he turned back back towards Cable.
"I said no," Cable answered him again, this time with more confidence.
"I heard you the first time. Do you have a death wish, or is there some other reason why you refuse to follow my orders?" Logan asked him.
"Scott, gave himself to Apocalypse for me. The least I can do is try to stay alive," Cable told Logan.
"What do you mean 'Scott gave himself to Apocalypse?'" Logan asked.
"I was fighting Apocalypse when he started to take me over. He needed a new host body and he knew it. Before our psychic link was complete Dad interrupted us. He told Apocalypse to take over him instead of me," Cable explained.
Logan sighed. At that moment Jean finally noticed that Cable was back to the base. "Scott went out looking for you, did he find you?" she asked.
Cable looked over to Logan. He started to walk away, "I ain't telling her. That's your job."
Jean looked from Logan to Cable. "Tell me what?" she asked. Cable sighed, and looked at her pleadingly. "If you don't tell me then I'm just going to assume the worst," she told him.
"Mom, it is the worst," he told her.
Jean stumbled back, slightly in shock. "He's dead?" she asked slightly dumbfounded. "He's not dead. He can't be dead."
"He's not dead," Cable told her. She breathed a sigh of relief. "But he might as well be."
"What do you mean?"
Cable sighed. He really didn't want to have to tell her what happened. This was his punishment for not stopping his father. He had to relive it over and over again. "Dad did find me. I was trying to fight off Apocalypse, but he had started to form a mind link with me. I'm fine now," Cable answered before she could ask if he was all right. "but Dad told Apocalypse to take him instead of me. Apocalypse listened."
"Did he succeed? Did Apocalypse take over Scott?" Jean asked him.
"I don't know, I didn't stay long enough to find out."
"So you just ran?!" Jean questioned him. "You didn't try to help the man who just saved your life?"
"He told me to leave, so I did. I listened to my orders," he told her.
"You should have stayed, and helped him. It might not have worked, you know. Psychic links don't always work. And if his old host was weak enough that he needed a new one we could have beaten him. We could have stopped Apocalypse. I'm going to go find Scott," she told Cable as she started to walk in the opposite direction.
"No you're not," said Logan as he placed his body directly in front of hers.
"Yes, Logan, I am," she informed him as she maneuvered past him.
"Jean, Scott's gone," Logan told her.
"There's a chance he's all right."
"Oh, all right, there's a chance he's not already dead," Logan acknowledged. Jean's composure was starting to fail. "If he's not, chances are Apocalypse has already taken him over. What are you going to do then?" Jean was silent. "Hmmm? What are you going to do then Jean?"
"I don't know," she told him truthfully.
"Exactly, and…" Logan's voice trailed off when he realized that Jean was no longer paying attention to him. "What are you looking at?" he asked her.
"There's something moving over there," Jean said. The figure grew closer and Jean was able to recognize it as Scott. She ran past Logan to him, completely disregarding Logan's protests.
When she reached him she stopped and looked at him for a moment. He was the same Scott that she knew. He didn't look any different. He didn't seem any different. He looked like the same exact man she has known for the past two decades. "You look fine. Cable said you were….but that doesn't matter now because you look fine," she said smiling.
"I'm not fine, Jean," Scott told her as he toppled over. Jean caught him. However, he then proceeded to pick himself up, and bush the dirt off his uniform.
Scott chuckled slightly, and pushed her aside. "I always get a kick out of this part. A real winner you got in here Jean. He's a real fighter," he mocked.
Jean mouthed the word "Apocalypse" as the man formerly known as Scott walked towards the base camp. Before he could get more than a couple hundred feet he swayed and clutched his forehead in pain.
"Get out!" he screamed.
Others rushed to him, some trying to help Scott and others trying to aprehend Apocalypse. Jean just watched as he life fell apart before her eyes.
Thanks for reading. Please review! Hopefully the next chapter will be up by next week.