The Spectrum Force/Rachel Summers, Heather Ray [unputdownable books .TXT] 📗

Rachel Castaneda and Christopher Greyson walkleisurely down Hamilton Walkway, which cuts through the center of the UCLA campus. The walkway is lined with colorful trees and bushes, as well as classroom buildings and stores. Presently, the couple is walking to the International House of Pancakes, which is just off campus. They walk in relative silence, and Rachel, being a very observant person, can tell Chris' mind was somewhere else, from the far-off look in his dark eyes.

"Chris?" she said finally, stopping, "Are you okay?"

"Huh?" he said distractedly, "Oh, I'm fine, Rachel. Why do you ask."

"Because you haven't said a word since we left the High Rise! I know you're not that much of a talker, but still, that's not like you."

"Well, I was just thinking. That's all."

"About what?"

"Nothing important. It was just a... dream I had last night."

"Care to share?"

Chris looked at Rachel, and saw that she was genuinely concerned for him.

"Okay, what happened was, I saw this ball of flames coming at me from the sky. It kept getting closer, but for some reason, I didn't run away. I was... too curious, I guess. Anyway, once the flames came close enough, I could make out the shape of a bird. It was flying right at me, but I couldn't move. Just before it slammed into me, the bird took on another shape... of a girl, with red hair. But not red like Matt's hair--red like fire. Pretty weird, huh?"

"Not necessarily," said Rachel, taking Chris' hand, "I mean, since when do dreams make sense?"

"I guess you're right. But, the funny thing is, I can remember it so clearly. I mean, I have the girl's face blazed into my memory. I think I'd recognize her if I saw her."

Just then, a ball of blazing flames streaks across the sky, and lands in an alley nearby. Both Rachel and Chris are stunned by the event. The first to recover is Chris, who immediately began running to the crash site.

"Chris!" Rachel called, running after him, "Wait! It could be dangerous!"

But Chris didn't pay attention to Rachel's calls. He ran into the alley, and stopped when he saw a tall young woman with curly red hair, lying on the scorched ground. He stayed where he was, and watched as the girl moaned, and sat up. She pushed the red curls from her face, and shook her head.

"Two crashes in one day," she said aloud, "I must be losing my touch."

The girl looked up, and her green eyes locked with the dark ones of Chris, who just stood there and watched her. She rose to her feet, and studied his face.

"You..." Chris said, "You're the girl from my dream!"

"Dream?" she asked.

"Yes! The girl inside a ball of flames! The... the firebird..."

"Phoenix," she said with a smile, "Yep, I guess that would be me."

"Chris?" called a female voice. Rachel Castaneda stood behind the young man, and stared curiously at the red-headed visitor. She gasped.

"Who are you?" she asked.

"I'm Phoenix," she said, "and I appear to be lost..."

Phoenix once again looked at Chris. Her eyes began to glow with orange flames, startling both Chris and Rachel. She then gasped.

"You're the mutant!" she declared, "The one that I felt in outer space!"

Rachel looked from Chris to Phoenix, her face the very picture of confusion.

"Uh, do you two... know each other?" she asked quietly.

"No," said Phoenix, "but his powers called out to me. Are you a mutant, Chris?"

"What's a mutant?" he asked.

"Mutant? Homo-superior? Super beings?"

"The only super beings are the Spectrum Force," said Rachel.

"Spectrum Force?" asked Phoenix, "No, they aren't mutants. If they were, I would've sensed them when I scanned the planet. Chris is the only mutant I found."

"But, what exactly is a mutant?" Chris asked again.

Before Phoenix could answer, the ground began to quake.

"Oh no," Phoenix gasped, "The Denebians!"

"The Denebians?!" shrieked Rachel, as the ground opened up, letting the three youths fall into the deep, dark earth below. They screamed in alarm as the hole from which they came slowly closed, and Rachel didn't notice as her purple and silver ring slipped off her finger during the plummet.

After what seemed like an eternity of falling, Christopher Greyson landed on the cold, hard dirt with a thud.

"Ow," he muttered bitterly, lifting himself up on his elbows and peering into the bleak darkness. Where the heck am I?

he thought. And more importantly, where's Rachel? And Phoenix?

"Interesting," said a deep voice, "So, you are the human Phoenix sought out when she arrived. A kindred spirit, perhaps?"

"Who's there?" Chris called. He jumped when he saw two small red orbs glow, illuminating the room with an eerie red light. Chris quickly realized that the two orbs were the eyes of a tall man with flowing green hair, and wrapped in a black cape. The man stepped over to Chris, and stared down at him.

"I am Acheron, Lord of the Denebian Empire," he announced, "Tell me, boy, why did Phoenix fly around the globe to find you? What kind of powers do you possess?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about!" Chris snapped. Acheron frowned, and bent down. He grabbed Chris' collar and pulled him up until his feet dangled a foot off the ground.

"Do not speak to me with insolence!" Acheron roared, "You'll only anger me, and then your chances of surviving this ordeal will diminish."

"What... what do you want?" choked Chris, trying to wriggle free of Acheron's vice-like grip.

"I want power," Acheron said, dropping Chris, "I brought Phoenix here through the Multiverse because she possessed the power of life incarnate. The Phoenix Force, the source of the girl's power, is limitless life energy. Such power will surely empower my armies forever."

Chris tried to catch his breath, and once again lifted his face from the dirt. He turned to the evil emperor, and touched the stream of blood pouring from his nose. "What does this have to do with me and Rachel?"

"When I found Phoenix, she was with you," Acheron said, stepping away from Chris, "There must be a reason for this, young man. I intend on finding out what it is."

With that, Acheron made a gesture with his right hand, and the shadows cast by the red glow seemed to move. Four black shapes took the form of men, and surrounded Chris, who was still lying on the dirt.

"Bring him," Acheron said, walking into the darkness. Chris struggled against the four Shadow Warriors, but he stood little chance against their superior strength. Acheron led the Shadows through a dark tunnel, until they reached a large iron gate. The gate parted as the emperor approached, and a dull red light poured forth. The Shadows carried Chris in, and the latter looked around in surprise. The room was a large cave within the rocks beneath Langstrum Alps. There were dozens of Shadow Warriors throughout the chamber, as well as two translucent spheres, each just large enough for a person. Between the two spheres is a row of large cylinders, each one metallic, with wires connecting them to the two spheres. Inside the sphere on the left was the silhouette of a woman suspended in the center. Every so often, the pulsing red light coming from that sphere increased intensity. Acheron laughed.

"My dear Eternal Flame," he said, "don't waste your energy. The sphere was designed to contain your primal energies, so the incandescent rays you emit will not affect me. Put the boy in the other sphere."

The Shadows obeyed, and roughly tossed Christopher inside the second sphere. They closed it, and then Acheron stood beside it, staring at Chris from the outside.

"If you are a mutant like Phoenix, then your energies will be a nice addition to what I can absorb from her. If not, at least I'll have your personal life force."

"You won't get away with this!" Phoenix cried from her own sphere, "I'll find a way out of here! I swear once I get my hands on you I'll--"

"Your arrogance is astounding," chucked Acheron, turning on the machine. Instantly, life energy began pouring through the cables into the batteries. Phoenix didn't feel the power drain at first, because her life energy is infinite. But Chris, on the other hand, shrieked in pain and curled into a fetal position on the bottom of the sphere. He clenched his teeth as tears poured down his cheek.

"I guess he doesn't possess the powers of Phoenix," Acheron said, watching the young man's plight coldly, "Oh well, whatever. In a few hours, I'll have every drop of Phoenix energy!"

Phoenix gasped as she let herself drop to the bottom of the sphere. There's no point in fighting the energy drain,

she thought, concentrating her powers, Acheron's been planning this moment for centuries. One would think he'd be prepared to deal with the Phoenix Force. He can't kill me, no matter how much energy he takes. The Phoenix always rises from the ashes. But Chris is another matter... *Chris, can you hear me?*

Chris' eyes were squeezed shut, but he couldn't help but hear the gentle voice in his head. Who's there?

*It's me, Phoenix. Look, I'm really sorry I got you into this. If I didn't seek you out, Acheron wouldn't even have known about you.*

What's... happening to me?

*Acheron is absorbing your life energy. He assumed that, because you are a mutant, you'd have a vast amount of life energy. That's not the case. The energy drain you're experiencing now will kill you. I'll try