Rogue Replacement: A Marvel Story

Author's Note: On some public sites, Arc 7 marks the start of Rogue Redemption. What I consider 'Phase 2' of this story. I didn't split the story off into a second story on WebNovel since Rogue has a reasonably strong readership here. But we're over half a million words in, so I try to recap everything that happened within the first few chapters of this arc. Please excuse the excessive exposition in the first few chapters, as I had a lot of ground to cover.

Chapter 84 - Part 1

Arc 7 - Ch 1: Opening Morning Part 1

Date: Monday, August 29, 2011.

Location: House of M, Manhattan, New York

The early morning air in Manhattan was crisp and cool, a perfect contrast to the steady burn in Jean Grey's muscles. She matched her breaths to her strides, trying to find a rhythm. The city was waking up, and the streets were relatively empty, save for a few joggers and early commuters. Ahead of her, Tyson maintained a relentless pace. Beside her, Jubilee moved with supernatural grace and speed that made Jean envious and slightly annoyed. As a vampire, Jubilee no longer knew fatigue. Tyson, whose superpower was absorbing others through touch, had permanently gained superhuman strength, endurance, reflexes, and an incredible healing factor by absorbing the villain, Sabertooth, last year.

"Come on, Jean! You're doing great!" Tyson called back as he slowed down just enough to let her catch up.

"Easy for you to say," she panted, pushing herself harder. "You're not the one with burning legs."

"Trust me, Red. You're doing awesome." Jubilee encouraged.

Jean couldn't help but laugh, albeit breathlessly. She had to admit her fitness had improved significantly since moving in with Tyson and Jubilee at the end of the school year. They had become her trainers, and their positivity and support made it hard for her to refuse their early morning runs. The workouts weren't the best part of living with them. It was Tyson's unique ability to mute her psionic noise. His presence was like a soothing balm, quieting the constant hum of thoughts that usually surrounded her. It was a relief, especially in the crowded city. Last year, Tyson had arrived at the institute, but he'd only stayed a few months before it was attacked. After finishing high school, they were once again living under the same roof. But this time, it was in his swanky downtown suite. She was also sure he was muting more than just the psionic noise. Despite their room being just across the hall, Jean hadn't heard a thing. Neither Tyson nor Jubilee needed sleep, and she was grateful the sounds of their nightly activities didn't keep her up, too.

Tyson's feet slowed to a stop. "Alright, let's take a quick breather here."

Jean doubled over, bracing her hands against her knees as she gasped for breath, trying to slow the rapid rise and fall of her chest. Jubilee stopped beside her, not tired in the slightest.

"Alright," he said, "until we reach the Flatiron Armory, we're working powers. Jean, you're flying as fast as you can. I'm covering us with illusions. Jubilee, you're on attack. Try to land a hit on me as we move."

Jean closed her eyes for a brief moment to center herself, drawing on her telekinetic abilities. Then, with a soft exhalation, her feet lifted lightly off the ground on an invisible wave of psychic force. She shot ahead swiftly, cutting through the cool morning air as she pushed herself to move at maximum speed. Unfortunately, her top speed wasn't much faster than a run.

Tyson summoned his illusions, cloaking the trio as they moved. To any early morning pedestrians nearby, it would seem the three were jogging at a leisurely pace down the sidewalk. But Tyson's concentration was split between maintaining the facade around them and tracking Jubilee's rapid assaults.

Jubilee launched herself at Tyson over and over. Though her attacks had ferocity, they still lacked the finesse of a seasoned fighter. Her vampiric strength made her a formidable opponent, but Tyson's months of intense martial arts training gave him the edge. He dodged her first jab with a swift sidestep.

"Keep at it, Jubes," Tyson encouraged as he narrowly avoided another strike, his voice calm despite her relentless attacks. "You're getting faster."

Above them, Jean soared effortlessly along, levitating a few feet over the concrete. She kept her gaze focused ahead, trying to maintain her concentration.

Jubilee's expression was frustrated as she pressed her attack. With a grunt, she twisted her lithe body mid-air, her foot lashing out in a powerful kick aimed at his ribs. Tyson saw the blow and angled his body, effortlessly deflecting her leg with a sweeping block of his forearm. Though Jubilee's attacks came hard and fast, Tyson countered her every move. After leaving the institute, he spent the summer, then nearly every day after school for months, in intense martial arts training under Colleen Wing, a member of the Hand. His experience gave him an edge, allowing him to redirect her strikes while maintaining the illusions around them.

As the Flatiron Armory came into view up ahead, Jean poured on a burst of speed, propelling herself forward on a wave of telekinetic energy. The building served as Tyson's base of operations. Within, he ran his illusion show, House of M. She landed lightly at the entrance, her feet barely kissing the concrete before her teammates joined her. The group's rush to the Flatiron Armory had only been the first part of their training, a warmup for what was to come.

Maki Matsumoto was waiting inside the arena, ready to lead that day's session. Maki, also known as Lady Bullseye, was a member of the Hand and Hydra. The Hand was a cabal of ninjas. Months earlier, one of the Hand leaders had ambushed Tyson and deemed him a 'Black Sky' candidate. That same night, Maki had reported to Hydra. Unfortunately for her, Tyson had been at the meeting under illusion. Through subtle manipulation of his illusions, he had convinced Hydra that he was a promising new recruit, and they had eagerly brought him into the fold. Maki now served as his bodyguard despite having no real superpowers beyond her extraordinary skill with weapons. She also led a martial arts class for House of M employees daily.

Dr. Curt Connors arrived shortly after Tyson's group. The brilliant scientist had formerly worked at Oscorp, where he had experimented on himself to regrow his missing arm, transforming himself into the Lizard. He'd attacked Midtown High School, where Tyson was attending at the time. Together with Spider-Man, Tyson had defeated the rampaging Lizard, but unbeknownst to the other hero, he'd brought Connors back to House of M. Using his illusory abilities, Tyson had coerced him into curing himself of the Lizard transformation and continuing to work on perfecting the flawed Lizard formula. Once fully cured and restored to human form by the improved Lizard formula, Connors happily continued his research as the lead scientist at House of M.

Ivan Vanko was next to shuffle into the arena, bleary-eyed and scowling. The burly Russian physicist was decidedly not a morning person. His muscular frame was covered in faded tattoos, but his appearance was far more presentable than it had been initially. Vanko had made headlines months earlier when he attacked Tony Stark at the Monaco Grand Prix, seeking vengeance against the billionaire inventor. Later, when he attacked at the Stark Expo, Tyson intervened, using his illusions to coerce him into abandoning his vendetta. Now, the scientist lived at House of M, and his considerable talents turned to more constructive ends. Though not quite a match for the genius of Tony Stark, Vanko was the only other person on Earth to successfully miniaturize arc reactor technology.

"Alright, everyone," Maki called out. "Let's start with some basic stretching."

The motley crew followed her lead, moving through a series of stretches. Once she judged they were sufficiently warmed up, she transitioned into drills. "Pair up," she instructed, demonstrating a series of techniques.

As the group partnered off to practice the drills, the door to the arena opened and in glided Agatha Harkness, Tyson's magic tutor. Like Tyson, Agatha lived in the Four Seasons, though her suite was one floor below his. She'd flatly denied joining their morning run, attending the martial arts class more out of obligation than inclination. Clad in a leopard print tank bodysuit layered over lurid purple tights. Tyson still had no idea why the witch looked decades younger then he remembered from his metaknowledge.

"Vanko, did you invent a time machine and send us back to the 1980s?" Tyson quipped, eliciting a chuckle from Dr. Connors.

Ever fashion-forward, Jubilee interjected, "80s chic never goes out of style! Don't listen to the haters, Agatha. You look fab." She accentuated the compliment with an enthusiastic high-five.

"You know it, girl!" Agatha returned, clearly buoyed by the support.

Before she could get too comfortable, Maki interjected, "Good of you to join us, Agatha. You'll be partnering with me today."

Agatha's exaggerated groan elicited more laughter from the group. "Again? Come on..." resigned to her fate, she began her warmup.

Every morning, Agatha was the last to arrive.

But not today.

Today, Felicia Hardy strolled in last.

She was usually one of the first to arrive, and it struck Tyson as odd. Felicia managed all of House of M's operations held within the Flatiron Armory, including Tyson's illusionist show and any other productions or gatherings hosted in the venue. Earlier in the year, the Kingpin, Wilson Fisk, had forced Felicia into his employ, compelling her to steal for him in order to pay off debts incurred by her father. Under his hero guise, Mirage, Tyson had intervened, convincing the Kingpin to release the cat burglar into his service in exchange for a non-interference agreement. In truth, Tyson had covertly used his illusions to bend the Kingpin to his own will.

Felicia arriving unusually late was enough of a deviation from her norm for Tyson to take notice.

Jubilee paired with Tyson for their training session. He was the only one who could counteract her vampiric abilities if she used too much strength. Meanwhile, Jean partnered with Felicia. There was a pronounced gap between the two women in terms of fighting experience and skill. However, the charming and affable Felicia had befriended Jean. Across the training room, Ivan paired off with Dr. Connors for their own sparring session.

Maki moved among the students. Her keen eyes darted from stance to technique, posture to form. "Remember, true mastery is about efficiency," she reminded them, gently nudging Jean's leading foot angle. "A single well-placed strike can end a fight just as well as brute force."

The drills steadily pushed each student to improve. Finally, Maki called an end to the class, allowing the students a moment to catch their breath and rehydrate. "Excellent work today, everyone," she praised.

Despite how well the training session had gone, Tyson's unease lingered. The source of his discomfort was easy to identify.

Felicia.

Not only had she arrived late, but her scent was off. Seeking answers, Tyson approached her casually. "Hey, Felicia," he began, "Are you ready for classes today?"

"Nah, I'll have to skip the first day," she replied breezily. "There's too much to prep for the show tonight. I'll just email my professors later to explain."

Tyson hoped his smile appeared genuine. "That's real dedication. I appreciate all the hard work you're putting in."

Felicia turned away, stretching her lithe body. But it wasn't her usual post-workout routine. Instead, she struck sensual poses intended to draw Tyson's eye.

He recognized she was trying to distract him from her slightly-off behavior.

His unease intensified. He had seen Felicia act this way before when they first met and she was disguised as Black Cat. At the time, he had been working as a night guard intern at Oscorp. Felicia had infiltrated the building and tried to win him over with alluring poses and flirtatious banter. It had been months since she directed that kind of behavior toward him, especially with his girlfriend, Jubilee, nearby. Until now, Felicia had respected their relationship despite their past trysts. Sure, Felicia was naturally flirty, but she'd directed her more amorous habits toward Jubilee more than Tyson himself since they'd started dating.

He inhaled slowly. It might have appeared he was taking in a sharp breath in appreciation of her curves. But in truth, Tyson was focused on her scent. After months of being intimate and working closely with Felicia, he knew her natural fragrance intimately, an alluring blend of white jasmine, amber, and leather.

But now, the aroma was distorted.

The notes of jasmine and amber were present but faint and diluted. The leather remained but smelled synthetic. This scent was wrong. Like a failed attempt to mimic Felicia's essence. Tyson had encountered such a disturbing scent discrepancy once before, over a year ago, at the Xavier Institute. Professor Ororo Munroe, Storm, had a similarly off-kilter scent when she'd offered him tickets to the NBA finals. Tyson realized the truth later when he'd fallen into their trap. It wasn't Storm at all, but the shape-shifting mutant Mystique in disguise.

With chilling certainty, Tyson realized the truth.

This was not Felicia.

This was Mystique. The Brotherhood had come for him again.

Tyson forced himself to remain outwardly calm. He spoke carefully, ensuring his voice betrayed none of his mounting suspicions. "I'll take plenty of notes so you don't fall behind," he said.

The woman posing as Felicia replied smoothly, "Thanks. It's just opening day jitters, you know how it is."

Tonight was the premier of the new show at House of M. Felicia had been preparing for weeks, but at this point, most of the work was done. All that was left was for Tyson to put on the show, something she wouldn't have a hand in.

But he recognized it for what it was. A convenient excuse to set a trap.

"Of course, don't stress yourself too much. You've been doing such a phenomenal job these past few months. I couldn't manage all this without you," he said, laying it on thick. "We'll probably just be going over the syllabus in the first classes anyway. No need to worry about emailing the professors. Since we have all the same classes today, I can project an illusion of you being there."

"Thanks, Tyson. I really appreciate it. Today will be the only class I miss, I promise," she replied.

She'd just given him more evidence. Tyson and Felicia's schedules didn't match today. Felicia would know this since she was the master planner around here and had arranged Tyson's schedule as well.

His thoughts raced ahead, already focused on how to handle the Brotherhood without tipping off Mystique. If she was here impersonating Felicia, it meant the Brotherhood had to be planning something. She'd said that today would be the only class she missed, meaning they were likely planning something today or, if he was reading between the lines correctly, tonight.

Normally, Tyson would simply touch her briefly to learn their plan, but Mystique had an inherent resistance to psionics, including his illusions. She knew how his powers worked, and if he touched her, she'd know they'd been discovered.

Knowing they were setting a trap gave him an opportunity to set one of his own.

Tyson refused to let them catch him off-guard again. But it also meant...

The Brotherhood had captured Felicia.

As the false Felicia turned and walked away, Tyson recognized how obvious it was to him that it was Mystique and not Felicia herself. He wondered how he could have been fooled by her act the last time. It might be because Tyson knew Felicia better than Ororo. Perhaps it was because he had learned from their last encounter.

Or maybe because he had been anticipating Mystique's return.

After graduation, when Jubilee had been bitten by the vampire, Tyson intended to attack Mystique. But the X-Men intervened and warned her he was coming. After that, she had vanished... Until now.

Magneto and The Brotherhood were coming, but Tyson would not face them unprepared again.