Captivity Was Never An Option

[Magda Eisenhardt]

Magda watched as Erik lifted Charles out of the cell, and she tried to tell what was wrong with him. Had she been too late for him? Erik asked about his chair, and Magda tried to recall if she had. "I'll see if I can find it." Taking a few steps backwards, Magda turned and hurried from the room.

Down the hall was a broom closet, so she skipped it and went looking further down. It was there she found a storage room, filled with supplies, and bags of tagged things from their other victims. Toward the back was the chair, covered in plastic. Magda walked back toward it but before she could reach it, an arm came around her neck, dragging her backwards. Struggling she tired to free herself, but the guard who had grabbed her was too strong. Finally they got close enough to the wall for her to lift her legs and kick off it, sending them both tumbling backwards.

Rolling away from him, she crawled forward until she could reach a pack of needles from the shelf. He grabbed her feet and pulled her back toward him, but Magda turned and jabbed the needle into his neck, repeating until his hold eased, and slackened.

Pushing away, she ran to the chair, pulling the plastic away from it, and pushing it forward. It wasn't long before she was at the door of the cells again. "Here." She stood at the door, using her powers to make it of forward toward them. Turning she looked up and down the hall. "We need to hurry."

[Erik Lehnsherr]

Magda spoke of how she would go see if she could find the chair and he opened his mouth to speak, but she hurried off. Torn between staying with an unconscious Charles, or a potentially threatened Magda. He knew that right now, Charles was more vulnerable than her. For he was still sedated and still unconscious. She at least was alert and able to defend herself. He heard Charles make a sound and Erik stepped closer toward him. At least it was some indication of life, even though the breathing and his pulse confirmed that. Erik's eyes remained on him to see if he would awake, but he made no other sounds and did not move any more. He checked once again to make sure he was alive, placing two fingers on his neck to feel his pulse. Worried that Charles was slipping and he was not even aware of it.

Soon enough, Magda returned with the chair, seeing it move on its own, and not from Magneto's doing. It was from Magda's. Once it was near, her speaking words of urgency to leave, Erik reached over for Charles, lifted him and placed him in the wheel chair so that he was seated upright, in his usual position. Magneto then raised his hand to the metal stretcher he had created and morphed the material back to a metal sphere; a shape that he had also altered the bullets to. He then began to move Charles' wheel chair with his powers, while his hand was held up and the metal spheres floating in his palm. Once reaching Magda, he could hear footsteps fast approaching. He stood protectively in front of both Charles and Magda, seeing a group of armed men. Homo sapiens and their pitiful plastic guns.

"Freeze."  Pathetic. Utterly pathetic. Magneto wasted no time and pushed his hand forward, causing the spheres to go amok, racing in and out of each men's body, head's, anywhere that would cause an instantaneous death. With Charles unconscious, he could not stop him and hopefully not try to enter the minds of anyone around to feel the pain of death. It took only a few seconds to end the hoard of guards who were foolish enough to threaten them. But Magneto knew there would be more. And it was a waste of time. While he wanted to exact vengeance on all those here, he had to get both Charles and Magda out. He would take care of all those within this building once they were outside. "Where must we go?" He asked. On the roof where a helicopter may await, or through another exit.

[x]

He was being touched. Someone was taking his pulse, obviously wondering if he was still alive. Charles thoroughly appreciated the sentiment, of course, but it was hardly necessary. He was technically out of the danger zone at this point, and within a few minutes, he should be able to regain the use of his limbs. Well, his arms, at least. No chance of getting his legs back, not at this point.

There was movement, and Charles soon found himself seated in his chair. At least he wouldn’t fully wake up on a metal platter like some sort of trussed up turkey. Small favors, then. He became aware of more minds, hazy on his periphery, but far clearer than anything had been when he first regained consciousness.

There was shouting, and then all of the minds disappeared. He didn’t feel their deaths, thank god, but he keenly felt the loss. The sudden loss was enough of a shock to give his mind a bit of a well-needed jolt. Charles took as deep a breath as he could and pried open his eyes.

"Where must we go?" Erik’s voice, and since he wasn’t threatening whomever he was speaking to, it was very likely that they were in the midst of being rescued.

Charles caught flashes, images of a roof and a helicopter, among other things, and groaned as he shifted in his seat, clenching and unclenching his fingers in order to make sure he was back in control of as much of his person as possible.

“How far to the roof?”

[Magda Eisenhardt]

Magda heard the footsteps approaching, and then the men came into sight. She stepped toward the middle of the hall, knowing this was going to turn into a fight. Her powers was telling the electronics in the walls and lights above the men to fill with power. She would use the sparks and explosion to distract them--Erik stepped between her and them, using his powers to quickly end what might have been a fight. It was not but a second before the threat was removed.

There was an eerie almost morbid pleased feeling filling her at the sight of them dead. Stepping closer, she looked at them, thinking of the men from the camps when she was a child. Seeing the men who had taken her daughter. The humans who had taken her from her home, put her in a box labeled and ready for their science. The ones here, who took the men who were not at her back for testing. FOR TESTING! Not fear! Not to protect! They took them for testing and trials. To get inside their bodies and minds and wanted to see how they worked! Like they were nothing! Not even animal, nor human, just nothing!

"Where must we go?" Erik's voice brought her out of her thoughts, and she reviewed the plan in her mind. They needed to get to the roof, where the humans had a helicopter. They had to get to it quickly, before--“How far to the roof?” Looking back over her shoulder, Magda came face to face with an awake Charles for the first time since before she joined the Brotherhood. She had heard Erik speak of his friend, but she had never gone with him to meet Charles or even crossed paths. Apart of her had been avoiding that confrontation.

Turning her body to fully face both men, Magda gestured behind them. "The lifts are down that way. Roof is twelve floors above us." The back up plan was a car, but the helicopter would be quicker. "There is only one working lift right now." Because she had used the other to kill the men inside, "And a bit of a mess in the hall around it. You--" Erik "--might need to get him--" Charles "--over it." As the lift had caused a bit of ruble to fill the hall around it when it hit bottom. Floating Charles over it would help them not slow for everything he had to go around. Magda purposely did not speak to Charles directly. Answering his question but directed the reply to Erik. The last time she'd met him they had both been much younger, and had rose colored glasses on. Anti-violent, seeing the world with some measure of good. Now she saw the evil. Now she knew the truth. The humans had opened her eyes, and Erik had shown her how to handle the rage, and to fight back. Erik had shown her the way. "They don't have access to their serenity, or cameras. So they will not know where we are at without physically seeing us."

[Erik Lehnsherr]

Erik had not realized that Charles was awake, until he spoke, words that showed his slow regaining of his abilities. For he was able to use it enough to determine the answer to Erik's question. "Welcome back," he greeted him with an ever so slight smile before turning to Magda as she explained in more detail their course of action to escaping. "That will not be a problem," he assured them both at Magda's suggestion of needing to get Charles over whatever mess was in the halls -- as Magneto assumed it was bodies and destroyed materials within the building. "Let's go," he instructed, moving ahead in the direction that Magda spoke that the lifts were in. He used his powers to move Charles with them, and kept his focus on their surroundings. He was still not entirely sure which company it was that had taken them this time. But what he was going to be certain of was that this would be the last time he ever came here. And not because he planned to avoid capture by them.

He had a strong awareness that with Charles' rejoining of the conscious world, came his telepathic abilities. He always knew Charles would use them to stop him if he felt Erik was doing something by his definition wrong . . . i.e. killing humans. So while he tried to guard his thoughts, he knew that depending on Charles' state, it may be to no avail. He also did not fail to recognize that he had not done any sort of introduction between Charles and Magda. He was not even sure if he intended to. As they made their way into the halls, he lifted the wheelchair when necessary, hardly needing to focus too much attention on it as it was a very naturally and effortless action for Magneto to do. When they got to the elevators, he stood in front of them, looking to Magda. "After you," he offered as his lips curved into a bit of a smile. While he could use the metal within the elevators, he rather enjoyed watching her utilize her powers, never growing tired of the sight.

[[ I did some god modding. Feel free to demand that I edit! ]]

[x]

“Welcome back,” Erik said, and Charles offered him as much of a smile as he was able.

“The lifts are down that way,” a feminine voice said, and Charles turn to see a somewhat familiar woman. “There is only one working lift right now, and a bit of a mess in the hall around it. You might need to get him over to it.”

“That will not be a problem,” Erik assured. “Let’s go.”

In any other situation, Charles would have protested being dragged along by Erik’s abilities, but at the moment his head was killing him and he had yet to fully recover his strength. So he was perfectly willing to let this instance slide. As long as they were trying to work their way out of wherever they were, Charles and Erik were on the same side once more.

Charles tried to ignore the bodies that littered the floor. His head was still splitting, and all he could think about was how there was one less obstacle between them and freedom. He regretted the thought almost as quickly as it came.

Instead, Charles focused on the third member of their group. He knew her, he knew he knew her, why was he having such a difficult time recalling—oh. That was how he knew her; she was the fortune teller he had met years ago during downtime at a conference. What was her name?

“Magda,” he muttered, stealing a glance at her.

So, she was with Erik, now? Well, he couldn’t quite pass judgment on the issue. Charles wondered when precisely that had happened. Had she found him before his botched attempt to save President Kennedy, or had she found him after that debacle in D.C.?

[Magda Eisenhardt]

There was one thing Magda knew for sure, with so much assurance inside of of this fact that she not only depended on it, but thrived under the knowlage--If the humans ever took her, Erik would pull the building apart to get to her. He'd done it before. She'd wanted that power since Manticore. Wanted the power to be so strong and unstoppable. Yet she had known she would never have that level of amazing in her---and Erik had proven her wrong. They'd taken him, and while she could not pull the building part to get to him, she had taken it down from the inside out and removed everything threat she crossed paths with. For the first time in her life, she was not so afraid. Did now cower over every little thing. This was Erik's doing. He'd given her this strength, this courage--and everything she was now was from him.

When's she met Charles, she'd been too afraid to even admit she was a mutant, and while his kindness had given her comfort, it had not given her peace. She had been grateful for his hope and encouragement, but it had mattered little when Manticore took her from her home and turned her in to an experiment. Yet Erik had come for her, and she'd seen the truth.

"After you," Magda smiled slyly, "Such a gentleman." Waving her hand toward the doors she used her powers to open them, and entered first. Even turning off the elevator music, so the ride would not be more awkward. "Magda." The voice made her look at Charles, before quickly looking away. It took her a moment to look back at him, but then it was only for a moment, for she didn't want to think about that time in her life. "Charles." She told him, not meeting his eyes, while making the lift begin to take them up. In her mind she thought of the experiments that they would have done on him if she'd been late. "Glad to see they didn't cut you open yet."

Which they would have, and soon. Or taken the air from them and killed them, or any number of thin---Her thoughts were cut off then the power was taken from the lift, taking with her her control. It dropped down once, then twice before beginning to fall again.

[Erik Lehnsherr]

Once they were in the elevator, Erik did not fail to notice the detached boy part of some human in the building. It caused the smile to remain on his lips, knowing Magda had done this. He looked up ahead of him as the doors closed and she took control of the elevator. Silence did not remain however, for Charles spoke her name. Erik looked at him. Under different circumstances, he would have assumed Charles had searched in either Erik's mind or Magda's to determine her name, but there was something about the way he said it that suggested a familiarity. Then, Magda spoke Charles' name, the response causing him to turn and now look at Magda. She said it with an element of avoidance, not making eye contact, but seemingly to know who he was. Erik wanted to ask how they knew each other, suddenly curious as to how they had crossed paths. Was it relevant right now? It was his own burning curiosity that was convincing him that it needed to be known. But before he had the chance to ask it, he felt the elevator shift; slipping from her control. He broke his gaze from her and looked forward, raising out his hand to steady the elevator, causing it to abruptly stop before it went any lower as it had been falling fast.

So not only did Magda and Charles know each other, but whatever had happened, was enough to cause Magda to become distracted enough to lose control of her abilities. It made Erik want to know all the more Charles and her history. But they would have time for that. He began to move the elevator up, taking entire control of the situation as he let whatever thoughts distract Magda, continue to do so. Once they reached the suitable floor, he held the elevator in place, before using his other hand to wave the doors open, revealing the top floor. There were a few more stairs that would lead to the roof which they would have to climb. So while keeping the elevator set in place, he looked to Charles, continuing to use his powers to move the wheel chair out onto the floor. He then looked at Magda, an almost sternness on his face. A slight agitation for her losing her power, but knowing that the reason he felt this way, was because he did not know how her and Charles knew each other, and his annoyance was misplaced. He looked away from her, waiting for her to join Charles before Erik did the same thing and immediately began to go toward the stairs and without looking at either of them, had Charles follow along by moving the wheelchair as well.

[x]

“Charles,” Magda responded, her attention seemingly anywhere but on him. “Glad to see they didn’t cut you open yet.”

Charles had no time to retort before the elevator halted and began to fall. A spike of adrenaline rushed through him at the sudden drop. Thankfully, Erik managed to keep the elevator from continuing its descent. He got a hint of agitation from his old friend, a reaction to Magda’s distraction.

Patience, Erik, Charles projected without even really considering how Erik would react. Her loss of control was not entirely her fault.

The fog was lifting from his head, leaving the splitting headache in its wake and Charles was gradually finding himself in no mood for the multitude of emotions Erik and Magda were emitting. If he didn’t watch himself, he’d likely end up doing something he’d later regret. Though, Erik would likely be impressed or at the very least surprised.

When they’d reached what Erik deemed a suitable floor, Charles let Erik manipulate his chair without protest. Hank and Alex often expressed their concern over the amount of metal present in his wheelchair, Hank insisting on crafting a metal-free version and Charles turning him down time and time again. No matter what happened, Charles would always be willing to trust Erik with his life. One day, perhaps that trust would be misplaced, but so long as Charles had breath in his body, he was going to trust his one-time friend and the goodness he had felt deep within the other’s mind.

Besides, Charles needed to build his strength back up; there was no telling what they’d face between this point and safety.

[Magda Eisenhardt]

It hadn't been her fault! The humans! They'd cut the power and she'd had no time to adjust her control. Technology needed some power to work, and without it it was just bits of metal! Yet she said none of this, because Erik did not allow excuses. He wasn't the type of find them anything but weak; so she would never make them unless she had too. Instead she exited the lift ahead of Erik. Glancing at Charles, while trying to tell his opinion, Magda then turned to walk down the hall toward the steps, making sure to stay ahead of the men behind her.

She had managed a nearly perfect mission and the damn humans make her look like a untrained fool! Had she not been so close to getting out, she'd had gone back to return the favor. As she walked down the hall, Magda reached her arm out, letting her fingers graze the wall while she looked for something in it. Finding it, she used her powers to make the outlets begin requesting more and more power. By the time she'd made it a few more steps, the wall began smoking. A spark jumped out. She would not be made a fool of.

As she begin to pass by another hall, she glanced down it as her eyes picked up movement. There men were waiting! One of them stepped out, swinging the same batons that she'd used to kill earlier. Magda only had enough time to short out the electronic, while blocking her head before it hit. Kicking the man's knee to give her time to roll back out of the range of the hallway as the other men opened fire with their rubber bullets, Magda ended up on the other side of it from the men. Erik and Charles on the side with the fire now growing, and her on the side with the escape.

[Erik Lehnsherr]

Charles used his abilities to communicate a message of patience with Erik; words of not blaming her for what happened. But that was all they were, words. While there was some truth to what he was saying, the surprise of Charles and Magda having known each other was not far from his mind. And he did not bother in trying to hide it from Charles. It was slightly unsettling, unaware of exactly how much Charles knew of Magda and whether his knowledge was inclusive of his and her past. Erik remained silent, not speaking a word to either Magda nor Charles as he placed all focus on their escape. Her hand grazed along the wall, as he was aware of what she was doing. It seemed her concentration had returned to her. That was good. Though it seemed there would be yet another hindrance preventing them from escaping. For up ahead, there were a group of armed men. Magneto expressed no fear nor extreme concern. This was merely another obstacle that they could easily eliminate. One of the men swung at her, though she managed to defend herself though the action had caused their separation as the armed men created a barrier between them. If any of them were to step forward, they would be fired at. With rubber bullets of all things. While Magneto could not control the bullets, he still had his resources. The metal that Magda had given him would certainly come in handy now.

Erik pulled two of the bullets out of his collection and expanded them to create a large shield which he placed in front of Charles and the other in front of Magda. First and foremost, his objective was to protect them from harm. As it always would be. The movement however, had caused the armed men to fire more bullets, and Magneto expanded another bullet in the form of a large circle to serve as a shield. However, he did not keep this one still. He pulled bits from it, creating sharp shards of metal that he let loose among the men. The bits of metal moved rapidly throughout the group and with purpose as they pierced the men repeatedly, each one quickly falling to the ground before they had a chance to fire their weapons or pose a greater threat. Magneto also acted quickly so that Charles would not be able to stop him. He was not in the mood to find a peaceful exit right now. He wanted these humans to suffer for their actions. Magneto was not oblivious to the fire that was growing behind them, and knew they would need to get across to where Magda was so that the fire could burn the growing pile of corpses.

[x]

Charles hadn’t honestly expected Erik to take the concept that he and Magda had a prior encounter as poorly as he had; he’d expected that Erik would have given their escape the same single-minded focus with which he approached just about everything else. Well, let it never be said that Erik wasn’t capable of surprising him.

(Though, really, the cold shoulder? It wasn’t as though Charles was privy to any information beyond what he’d witnessed in Erik’s own mind all those years ago in Miami.)

Erik created shields out of the bullets Magda had given him (and it was always bullets with him, wasn’t it?) which of course set off a chain reaction. The armed men standing between them and freedom began firing—rubber bullets, they really were ready for Erik, weren’t they—and Erik responded in kind with sharp shards sheared from his shields. Erik was quick to react, leaving no opportunity for Charles to intervene. A fresh surge of agitation coursed through him as he felt more minds blink out on his periphery.

Erik, for God’s sake, that’s enough!

Charles was still a bit out of it from the sedative, but it was no longer hindering his powers. The only thing it was hindering anymore was his restraint, and so, with the last bit of that thought, he forced through far more power than he’d intended.

“I don’t care if you aren’t in the mood for peace,” Charles snapped, “but I am not in the mood to sit back and watch you slaughter everyone in our way.”

If he had to feel just one more mind blink out of existence, Charles would not hold himself responsible for his actions. Instinct told him to render everyone who would hinder their escape unconscious, but with the fires raging behind him and Erik, to do that would be to condemn dozens to death. So, instead, he reached out across the facility and impressed upon everyone in the facility who was still alive to leave.

[Magda Eisenhardt]

Magda leaned against the wall and watched Erik work. Silly humans, to think something so simple would really stop him. Erik was smarter then that. She was learning to be. Waiting there for them, Magda used her powers to make sure no one were coming--the cameras that watched the halls might help the humans feel safe but not from her. She made sure they had no footage of the escape and from the prison room.

She had not paid attention to what Charles said until she noticed that others were running away instead of too them. Nor was she a fool to why so many would decide to leave at once. The doors to the building where electronic, made to only open with key cards to make sure no one got in. Normally they'd open without hindrance from the inside. Magda used her powers to lock down all the doors.

No one could escape! If they escaped they'd hurt others! This was no better then the camps as a child! They were hurting mutants because they could! If they lived then they'd do it again! and Again. . . . no! Turning to stare at the wall, Magda used her powers to find the main generators and order the chips to over load themselves, thus causing an explosion, and more fire in the lower levels.

Turning to look at the men, Magda finally spoke, "They are trying to run away! If they escape then just becomes another trophy that got away! No lessons learned! . . . . You're not going to let that happen, Erik!" Erik wasn't one to take orders, but sometimes she just wanted them dead! They had to all die for their to be peace one day! No one could survive this! If even one man lived, then they'd take news of the break out to others. They'd be more ready next time. "You have to stop them Erik! You can't let them do this to someone else!"

[Erik Lehnsherr]

"Erik for God’s sake, that’s enough!" "You're not going to let that happen, Erik!" "I don’t care if you aren’t in the mood for peace." "You have to stop them Erik!" "But I am not in the mood to sit back and watch you slaughter everyone in our way." "You can't let them do this to someone else!" Erik had enough! The two of them giving him orders as if he was some sort of child. He did not take well to being ordered about. Especially not right now when the commands were conflicting. His irritation for Charles' words lay in the fact that the mutant was still forcing his own ideals of being the better man and letting people go who would clearly not do the same for them. His irritation for Magda's words lay in the fact that she was telling him to do something, as if she was not aware of what he would do. He was his own man. He made his own decisions. And he was completely unappreciative of two people he was close to, throwing out orders to him, acting as if they expected him to do what they told him to. It didn't help that he was already a bit agitated at their familiarity with each other.

"That's enough!" He said, this time his voice holding a strong authority to it. He had remained silent for some time, but refused to keep letting them throw out commands his way. He knew what he had to do, and his actions were not going to be swayed by the words of Magda or Charles. He altered the size of the metal to create a platform which he used to walk over the corpses, while moving Charles along with him until they were on the other side. The three of them were together once more. Both Magda and Charles had used their powers for very different purposes: Charles to spare them, Magda to destroy them. And Erik refused to be caught in the middle. So without a word, he walked ahead, needing to place some distance between him and the others. He waited until he was steps ahead before moving Charles behind him, expecting Magda to understand his need for space right now. It was not much longer until they were able to get out of the building, for they were not faced with more armed men. The facility would not stand too long for the fire was growing and there was chaos all over. As promised, there was a helicopter awaiting them on the roof, and Erik made his way toward it, getting inside and taking the seat of the pilot, waiting for the other two to join him.

[x]

“That’s enough,” Erik snapped, and Charles resisted the urge to roll his eyes.

Erik never had been any good at taking orders—he had the same propensity to take orders as a surly house cat. The only time Erik ever followed orders, as far as Charles was aware, was when those orders served his own interests.

Still, the slaughter had ceased, and that was enough for him. It had to be; he may have been back at full strength, but he was still seated in a primarily metal wheelchair and an irritated Erik tended to act without thinking. At least he saw fit to continue dragging Charles along—give credit where it was due and all that—even though he made a point of putting as much space between them as he dared.

A niggling bit of worry cut through his agitation. The Magda he remembered had been so very kind; she’d held his hand and offered him a comforting smile when their discussion had turned towards his family. He had hoped, after that encounter, that she’d contact him again—but she never had. What had happened to her to make her so willing to kill? He thought about simply going through her head to find out, but immediately rejected it; he wasn’t yet in the right state of mind to go rummaging about in the heads of people he cared about—the risk that he’d accidentally do some damage was too high.

When they reached the roof, Erik immediately got into the helicopter. Charles huffed and closed the distance himself, grabbing at whatever he could in order to lift himself into the helicopter. It was a bit more of a challenge than getting himself in and out of bed, but he managed, hefting himself up and into the copter before getting into one of the passenger seats. It would be Erik’s call if they left the chair or brought it with. At the moment, all Charles wanted was to go home, down a bottle of ibuprofen, and sleep for a week.

[Magda Eisenhardt]

"That's enough!" Magda jerked her head to look at him in surprise. She was used to him praising her for her efforts, not snapping at stalking away! When he gave her words of praise it was some of the only real times she got any insights to where she stood with him. His treatment of her thus far while here was leaving her feeling like a chided child. Magda was assuming it was his displeasure at being taken, rather then with her actions--though the last time she'd come to his aid he had been more willing to let them both delay in order to end the fight.

Now it seemed everything was over. Erik walked past her, and she did not look at him, nor at Charles when he moved past her as well. Instead she stood there, silently seething from his willingness to let the humans get away with this insult. She could also assume it was Charles. One she had first met and thought he would bring peace to everyone--but she'd learned there would be no peace. There was only hate. The human's hate for them. The human's fear of them! She would not resiliently kill so many this time.

Turning after they had left, she followed, giving herself a long moment to calm her anger. She couldn't turn off the fires she had set below, but she could let the human's out. But she wouldn't. Let him be trapped in here the way they were going to trap the mutants.

Once on the roof, she lifted her hand and twisted her fingers; as she did the helicopter's blades begin to turn. The dash lit up, and the gauges begin reading. As she got closer, Magda picked up the back of Charles' chair and lifted it to push it harshly in. Erik could have done it, but it felt good to make something bang around. Climbing in, she even sat down in it, not for once afraid that it would fall out. Not only did she control the balance of the helicopter--which she was driving from the back instead of the cockpit--but even if she began to fall, she knew Erik would not allow it.

With her powers she made it lift off, and begin flying higher and over the trees, and buildings. Magda however, spoke nor looked at either of them. She was too displeased with them both.

[Erik Lehnsherr]

"Erik did not find the silence or tension in the air the slightest bit unsettling. In fact, he was rather pleased that his two commanding words had merited such a reaction from both Charles and Magda. It allowed him to have some time to collect his thoughts and not be told conflicting messages from them both. He did not turn his head when Charles entered, and Magda who soon followed -- tossing in the wheelchair. Erik would not have to bring it along then, for he had no intention of leaving Charles without his mode of transportation. Especially since they would not be able to immediately return to his school, nor the Brotherhood headquarters. They would be endangering the safety of the other mutants if they immediately fled to what was supposed to be a secure and safe location. Erik had planned to lift them into the air, but Magda took control from her backseat position, moving the propellers and then lifting them into the air. Erik looked down as the building grew more and more at a distance. And he waited for the last possible second before he slightly jerked his hand, causing all the exits to jam and parts of the building to collapse in front of the doors. So that no one would escape.

It was not so much listening to Magda and defying Charles. It was about Magneto making a decision that stayed true to himself. That reflected his views and priorities. Retaliation. The humans had taken Charles and Erik and now they would pay the price. Besides, it was not as if they would have done the same. In fact, they had tried to gun them down when they realized that the 'prisoners' had escaped. With that final gesture, Magneto focused his attention on the coordinates and the view in front of him. He was braced, prepared to take control of the helicopter should Magda drift asleep or grow distracted. He did nothing to attempt to break the silence; he was still basking in it. He only hoped that Charles would not try to relay any messages in his mind. Although, there was indeed one thing he felt the need to say. Perhaps he would wait until they arrived at their destination. For it was regarding gratitude for Magda, from both himself and Charles. Magneto wanted to make it a point to acknowledge how they escaped. Once again, it wasn't about taking sides, it was about speaking fact. And the fact of the matter was that Magda had gotten them out when she did and that fact could not be disputed . . . even if Charles did not agree to how they dealt with humans.

[x]

As a child, Charles used to have a rather difficult time separating himself from those around him. Was he actually upset, or was he upset because someone around him was upset? Of course, he didn’t actually understand the conundrum until his telepathy fully manifested and he realized that his heightened sensitivity to others’ emotions was actually just a piece of his full power.

He’d gained control of it over the years, built up shields he’d made nearly impenetrable until Erik came into his life and cracked them. Charles had spent several years suppressing his abilities in an attempt to forget, but he’d long since given up on that and had regained his powers, going through the painstaking process of strengthening his shields.

But it seemed that his shields were still weak from whatever the hell he’d been drugged with—he hadn’t been so irritable since he’d been engaging in the sort of alcoholism that bore far too much resemblance in hindsight to the kind that killed his mother. (“Alcohol and grief,” they’d said. An all too deadly combination.)

And Erik, the damned bastard, was all but reveling in the silence. If Charles was a more vindictive person, he’d be doing everything in his power to thoroughly annoy Erik. Instead, he just focused on making sure the amount of irritation he was currently feeling was actually his own rather than feedback from Magda and Erik. Until he could be certain of his precise level of irritation, Charles wasn’t going to risk running his mouth.

Really, though, Erik he could deal with. He knew Erik, for the most part. It was Magda who as throwing him off balance. The last time he’d seen her, she had been tentatively hopeful, fearful but not full of rage and anger. What had happened to her? What had changed? Had he been an idiot to simply let her go all those years ago, should he have put more effort into keeping in contact with her?

Charles groaned a little and rubbed his temples. He had a terrible headache and it wasn’t likely that it’d ebb at all prior to landing. And, knowing Erik, his headache seemed destined to only get worse.

[Magda Eisenhardt]

Erik had at least destroyed the building, and Magda no longer had to work on keeping the doors closed. Instead she only make sure the helicopter moved where she wanted it to go. Which wasn't hard as it was built to stay in the hair, she only had to drive it. It made it easier on her powers, but gave her too much time to notice the growing silence--which she hated. It was one thing for their to be silence between Erik and herself while they worked, that was a comfortable one, this one was thick. Building. Uneasy. She hated it.

Magda tired to distract herself by taking a mental inventory of her injuries. Twisting her neck where the mad had grabbed her, she felt it sore. Bastard. If that left a bruise she would be very displeased. Her head hurt her, where they other one had hit her. That surely would leave a bruise. Otherwise, she was unhurt. Erik seemed unhurt as well, for he had been able to lift himself out of the cell. She'd not seen him injured either. Good. Mission was a success.

Turning her eyes from Erik to Charles, she look at him. He rubbed his temples and groaned. Was it drugs or had they done something else to him? Damned humans. Treated them like prizes or frogs in a lab. They weren't alive to them. They were to be feared and hated and killed. Just like so many years ago. Her family. The things they'd did to Erik as a child, and how they'd made her take him food. Humans and their hate. Their fear.

Taking a calming deep breath, Magda knew she'd have to break their silence in order to get the plan together. "We are going to need supplies. I will go get them once we land, and meet you wherever we hole up shortly." She was the only one dressed for it, and they would need clothing, food, medicine. Anything else they opted to send her for.

[Erik Lehnsherr]

Silence continued to ensue during the journey. Magneto remained focused on where they needed to be, and forced himself not to dwell too much on recent events. Though Charles had been drugged, his powers had clearly resurfaced. It wasn't until Magda spoke that allowed them to focus on something else, apart from their own silent thoughts. "I will go," he countered, having been planning to yet just not voicing it. It wasn't words to sound as if he did not think her capable of gathering what they needed -- far from it. But he said them with a tone of finality, having already decided that he would be the one to gather what they need. "It is too dangerous to return to the headquarters, or to the school." Charles' school.

"We will be landing in a wooded area and not far is a motel where we will spend the night." So that they could all regather their energy and until a little bit of the immediate pressure to find them was released. Magneto knew his fugitive status would be a constant, but he was thinking more of Magda and Charles. "I will then gather what supplies we need for this time," he stated, already having a list in mind of necessities. "Magda, Charles, you both should rest." His voice was not as stern or serious. It was calm and composed, as he felt his previous annoyance diminish. He knew that acting in anger would not achieve anything; it would only be a hindrance. He should be more in control of his emotions rather than lash out. Yet, he had been unable to help himself. All he could do now was calm the air and tension between all of them, and hope they could last the night without finding another cause for disagreement.