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Imperious Dakar, leader and founder of the weapons supplier known as

Imperious Industries, was angry.



Imperious was so angry that he was speaking clearly and precisely in

a calm tone of voice, for he was too upset to speak in the thuggish

manner that he normally did. Making even the most hardened of those

currently with him worried.



In the weeks since the avatar of the Phoenix Force had attacked

Imperious Industries forces in the Iberian capital and the parallel

universe Texas the once stable situation in Iberia had become

dangerously chaotic.



The death of Minister Archon and the disappearance of President

Chrissy Lera had changed everything.



Minister Archon had done such a thorough job purging the Ministry of

Security of any potential rivals that once he died there was no

clear successor. With Archon gone no one was quite sure who was in

charge of the Security Ministry.



This was a disaster.



Imperious Dakar had counted on Minister Archon and his organization

to maintain order and keep things quiet in Iberia. But now the

Iberian secret police seemed on the verge of breaking into warring

factions.



At the moment a ruling committee of high-ranking Mind Flayers was

maintaining a fragile sort of order in the Security Ministry. But

Imperious Dakar knew from personal experience just how temporary

that kind of peace usually was.



While the disappearance of President Chrissy Lera had taken away

Imperious Dakar's greatest hold on the Iberian government.



President Lera was (or at least had been) the absolute dictator of

Iberia. Through her Dakar and his allies could control every

Iberian government agency and institution (except Archon and his

Ministry of course).



Now that trump card was gone, and though most Iberians thought that

Chrissy Lera was still ruling from the Presidential Palace,

Imperious Dakar knew that he could not suppress the truth forever.

People were already beginning to wonder why President Lera had made

no public appearances lately.



Moreover, the only two members of the Iberian government who had the

personal power, reputation, and drive to succeed Chrissy Lera as

President and ruler of Iberia were Ministers Archon and

Rosenthrall. Unfortunately they were both dead now.



Imperious Dakar knew he had to somehow rectify matters in Iberia

soon otherwise the situation would blow up in his face. Which was

why he was currently meeting with his top people to discuss the

situation.



Susan Zweller, Chief of Security Angelus, and of course Imperious

Dakar himself and his familiar the illithid Udragoth were meeting in

the War Room of the Presidential Palace. Verbalizing their concerns

as they stood by various monitors and video displays.



"Its not all bad news Imperious…we are doing good business in a lot

of the other worlds Selene opened up portals to…Dominique Destine

ordered another shipment of bio-weapons…Shego bought two more suits

of power armor…and even that cheap second rate lich Lord Voldemort

finally paid for his WMDs" Susan Zweller said in an attempt to

reassure and cheer up her boss.



"None of that matters if we cannot retain our position here…its only

in the capital of this wretched little country that we can reach

other worlds" Dakar said coldly as he looked upon the seemingly

frail blonde woman.



The hulking armored cyborg Angelus watched his employer closely.

Imperious Dakar was one of the few people Angelus respected, and

perhaps the only one still alive that the cyborg trusted. Which was

why he felt free to say what virtually no one else who worked for

Dakar would dare to.



"What is wrong Imperious?…such displays of emotion are not like you."



Susan frowned in annoyance as Angelus spoke in the ancient elfin

tongue he had learned from his parents. A language she did not know.



Imperious Dakar gazed at Angelus with his intense red eyes for a

moment in silence. Then he stated matter of factly "I met with the

committee just before coming here…they are clearly already plotting

against each other in order to assume the post of Minister…and they

are demanding a great deal more money for `letting' us operate out

of Iberia."



"Damn them…I negotiated in good faith" Susan said with heat. Then

immediately worked to suppress her anger lest it allow her bestial

side to become dominant.



"We should destroy those treacherous parasites before they can turn

on us" Angelus said in his deep mechanically altered voice.



"No…we need the Ministry of Security to maintain order in Iberia…we

cannot afford to occupy the country ourselves assuming the POWERS

THAT BE would even allow us to" Dakar replied as he gazed at the

cybernetic elf.



"They wouldn't" said Susan, as she thought of her so-called masters

in the Illuminati.



"We can afford to pay the committee what they are asking for and

still make a profit…and the Ministry of Security remains functional

at the moment…unfortunately all stability will break down once

everyone realizes that Chrissy Lera is gone" Dakar explained as he

contemplated his problems.



The demonically empowered technomancer was dependent on an

organization that was growing increasingly unreliable, and an

ancient witch that he knew that he could not trust, in a country

surrounded by enemies.



He felt like he was losing control of the situation.

And if there was one thing Imperious Dakar truly hated, it was not

being in control.



"And why should they ever realize that she is gone?"



Angelus and Susan Zweller still hadn't gotten used to Selene's

tendency to seemingly appear out of nowhere, and twirled around to

face the ancient mutant witch. The latest clone of Udragoth (who

was barely sentient) reacted by backing away in fear from the

strange witch whose thoughts he could make no sense of.



Imperious Dakar, who had a better idea of just what Selene was and

what she was doing (because of the mental link that they had

shared), reacted more calmly.



"Hey old girl…whose that with you" Dakar said as he deliberately hid

his true self beneath the rough image he usually projected.



Selene was dressed in her customary Black Queen regalia, but

standing beside her was a pretty female dark elf in an immaculate

white suit that was a mirror image of a drow they were all familiar

with.



"Is that Chrissy Lera?" Susan said in surprise as she stared at the

dark skinned elf.



"No…she just looks like her" Imperious said coolly.

The technomancer was familiar with the unique `presence' of the

powerful necromancer Chrissy, and he didn't feel anything like that

coming from this dark elf.



"Your right Dakar…this is her mother Gennifer Lera…who was caught

trying to escape the same night her daughter did…she already closely

resembled Chrissy so it was child's play for me to alter her body so

that she looked exactly like her" Selene replied confidently.



"That won't fool a decent telepath or mage" Angelus said scornfully

in his deep voice.



Selene suppressed the urge to strike out at the doubting cyborg and

answered in tones of utter confidence "of course not…but I have

already made her think that SHE IS Chrissy Lera and that her mother

is dead…and I can also give her a false magical aura that I am sure

you noticed the lack of Dakar."



Imperious Dakar actually did feel a bit better.

The leaders of the Ministry of Security didn't know that Chrissy

Lera had disappeared, and he was relieved that he could apparently

keep it from them for a good while longer. Nevertheless, Imperious

still couldn't ignore the grim realities of the situation.



"You can fool them for a good while Selene…but eventually people

will notice that THAT is not their President" Imperious said darkly

as he pointed at the drow in question.



Gennifer Lera smiled stupidly as Dakar pointed at her.

Wearing her daughter's face and form but lacking the great power and

utter self-confidence Chrissy possessed.



"By that time I am sure that you will have dealt with the real

Chrissy…and whether or not Gennifer is a good enough fake will not

be an issue" Selene replied. Deliberating steering the conversation

away from how convincing her imposter was to how good Imperious and

his people would be against Chrissy and whatever she had on her side.



"We need to kill or capture Chrissy quickly…and if we capture her we

need to crush her spirit and ability to rebel against us utterly…

Marian Casta is useless to us and should have been killed on sight,"

Susan said. Conveniently forgetting that the only reason that the

vampire had not been killed when she was their prisoner was for

Susan's personal amusement.



To Susan Zweller's surprise Angelus defended her position. Stating

in confident tones "True…but tracking Lera and Casta down should not

be difficult…for all their power at their core they are nothing but

spoiled daughters of the aristocracy…without their followers or

other resources how dangerous can they be."



*****



The old warehouse that Chrissy Lera and Marian Casta had recently

taken possession of was overflowing with people. Despite the cold

night the HC and indoor lights were not in use, for none of those

present (except one) had much need of light or heat.



"THE WORLD CALLS YOU MINDLESS PREDATORS AND SCAVENGERS…BUT YOUR

BETTER THAN THAT…STRONGER THAN THAT…SHOW YOUR WORTH AND JOIN ME IN A

BETTER WORLD AND ASSUME YOUR RIGHTFUL PLACE" Chrissy Lera shouted as

the watching crowd of vampires cheered the elf woman on.



Marian Casta, who was standing a little behind the dark elf, ready

to leap to her defense if anyone threatened her, smirked as she

contemplated how people's self centered viewpoints often blinded

them to the truth.



"The funny thing is…Chrissy means every word…but these 2nd rate

vampires think she means assuming their rightful place by

overthrowing society when she really means joining it as productive

members…and NONE of them have any idea that when she talks about

going to a new world with her that she's speaking literally" Marian

thought contemptuously.



Soon after coming to this world Marian and Chrissy had realized that

while there did not appear to be any of Chrissy's people (elves) on

this Earth, vampires were relatively common.



True, most of them were incredibly stupid, bestial, and weak

compared to the type of undead bloodsuckers Chrissy and Marian were

familiar with. But they were better than nothing.



Moreover, once the necromancer Chrissy had begun to show vampires

that she could use her magic to dramatically increase their super

strength and other supernatural abilities, and told them that just

being around a powerful necromancer like her for long periods of

time would increase their powers (which was true) Marian and Chrissy

had had no trouble attracting vampire followers.



Over fifty bloodsuckers had already joined their gang (which was

still too new and chaotic to rightfully be called an organization)

and more were joining them daily. Eager to gain some of the power

and respect Chrissy (who most assumed was some sort of exotic demon)

promised them.



Once the speech ended most of the vampires left the warehouse, but a

few stayed. Including the one who had joined Chrissy Lera and

Marian Casta shortly after escaping the forces of both Imperious

Industries and the Slayer Army.



The vampire was a tall heavyset woman, with a figure that someone

with a generous spirit might refer to as pleasantly plump and pasty

white skin. She was carrying a laptop computer in one hand that was

practically invisible beneath her baggy clothes.



The heavyset vampire held out the laptop as she walked up to Marian

and Chrissy, saying in a soft deferential voice as she did

so "madam Lera the boys finished hacking the computer I took from

the Slayers…it belongs to Willow Rosenberg…and contains a lot of

information on the Slayer Army and its plans."



"Thank you Samantha…you have served me well" Chrissy said solemnly

as she took the laptop. Opening it up to examine the contents once

it was in her hands.



Samantha gazed into her leader's crimson eyes, which seemed to glow

in the dim light of the warehouse. Trying to act more assertive

than she ever had in her mortal life.



"Then as my reward…I would like to get new powers…like George and

Gregory…if its not too much trouble" the vampire Samantha said in a

rush.



Gregory and George were the first two vampires that Chrissy had

attempted to give powers similar those Marian Casta possessed using

her necromantic magic. Though difficult, the experiment had been a

huge success, and George and Gregory now had many of the same

supernatural abilities that the master vampire Marian did (such as

flight and the ability to change into a bat).



"Of course dear" Chrissy said compassionately as she reached out a

hand to softly cup Samantha's cheek. Using her power over the

undead to send the nervous vampire feelings of reassurance and

comfort.



Samantha visibly relaxed, and then used one hand to unconsciously

clutch the soft comforting palm against her face. Once she realized

the way she was touching her kind (but extremely dangerous) leader

the female vampire squeaked in fright and ran off. Muttering a good

by as she did so.



"For such a big girl she's pretty timid" Marian Casta said to no one

in particular as she watched the heavyset vampire flee the building

(before trying to compose herself outside).



But Chrissy was not listening, for she found the data in the laptop

fascinating.



Willow's computer contained the names of powerful magic users, the

location of Slayer Army bases, databases on local demons, bank

account numbers, and a great deal of other valuable information. As

Chrissy realized just what she had she felt her old self-confidence

returning, and turned to gaze at her friend with a beautiful smile.



Marian sensed the change in the drow and said curiously "what is it

Chrissy?"



"This world has much to offer us Mary…our victory is inevitable,"

Chrissy Lera said with complete self-assurance as she turned the

laptop around in her hands to show her friend and lover some of the

new opportunities available to them.



*****



The past couple of weeks had been very difficult for Professor

Charles Xavier.



It had been over a month since Wolverine had disappeared into the

inter-dimensional portal, and close to three weeks since Jean Grey

Summers had also gone through the portal to rescue him. Over that

period relations between Headmaster Xavier and Emma Frost and her

newly discovered daughters had worsened.



Sophie, Mindee, Celeste, Phoebe, and their mother Emma all blamed

Professor X for his failure to control the woman who was his former

student and the avatar of the Phoenix Force, Jean Grey. Laying the

blame for the crimes The Phoenix had committed against the expanding

Frost family at his feet.



Moreover, what made it worse was the fact that headmaster Xavier

feared that they had a point.



He knew that he should have acted more quickly and decisively to

stop Jean Grey's increasingly aggressive behavior, and Professor X

was honest enough with himself to admit that the reason he probably

hadn't was because he loved Jean like a daughter, and had not wanted

to fight or hurt her (however necessary it was).



They also seemed to blame him for the disappearance of Emma's other

daughter Esme Cuckoo, though Professor X didn't think that was

fair. For no one at The Institute really knew what had happened to

her.



Cyclops and Storm also seemed to have lost faith in Professor

Charles Xavier.



The disappearance of the woman she loved (thanks to mental

manipulation) had made Storm frantic. The brown skinned female

mutant seemed to have lost all interest in anything but reuniting

with Jean. Other than eating and sleeping she appeared to do little

but research ways of finding The Phoenix.



Professor X had tried reasoning with Ororo Munroe but the wind rider

was convinced that he had driven Jean Grey away with his hostility

and suspicions towards The Phoenix. Blaming Xavier for the fact

that Jean left without her.



Scott Summers continued to fulfill his duties as a member of the

teaching staff at The Xavier Institute For Higher Learning and an X-

Men; fighting, teaching, and completing his other tasks as

necessary. But Xavier could tell that his heart wasn't really in it.



Charles Xavier hardly needed his telepathy to realize that the man

who had long been his favorite student blamed himself and his

comrades (but mostly himself) for what had happened to Jean Grey,

Emma Frost, and Sophie Cuckoo.



Of course over this same period Professor X and his X-Men had also

had to deal with the crises, rogue mutants, and hate groups that

seemed to always plague them and the world at large.



But today had been fairly uneventful.



So headmaster Charles Xavier had spent a long time alone in his

office at The Institute. Sitting at his desk, staring at his

computer screen, and reading the e-mail that Emma Frost had sent him.





It is becoming increasingly clear to me Charles that you cannot

protect me, my family, or the students at the Institute. For

whatever reason you simply lack the ability.



I am not willing to sacrifice another daughter to your incompetence,

so I am cutting all ties to you, The Institute, and the X-Men.



My family and I shall rescue Esme from whatever she has gotten

herself into and deal with Jean Grey once we find the bitch.

Cyclops, Storm, and Sage will assist us (insisting that we will need

them and must take them along once they learned of our plans).



A number of others are coming along to help us, but I see no reason

to bother you with the details. Moreover, by the time you read this

it will be too late for you to try to stop any of us from leaving

anyway (as I am sure you would).



Sincerely,

Emma Grace Frost.



P.S. I saw no need to inform you of this at all, but Scott and the

girls insisted that we tell you.





Charles Xavier spent a long time reading and re-reading the

message. Then he opened another file on his computer screen.



His current covert operative, the mutant shape shifter and former

(?) terrorist known as Mystique had recently gone missing. Though

he had no evidence to back this conclusion up, Xavier somehow

intuitively knew that Mystique was one of the unnamed helpers Emma

had referred to.



As Professor X imagined an angry Mystique and Emma Frost in another

universe, ruthlessly searching for the powerful Esme and the godlike

Phoenix, he felt sorry for any native people they came across.



*****



Within a hidden laboratory, the best scientists and sorcerers

employed by Wolfram & Hart were studying the Containment Cube that

held The Phoenix Force and its host Jean Grey.



The Senior Partners that led the (multiple) universe-spanning firm

were pleased with the deal that they had made with the witch

Selene. The spells and magical artifacts to open up portals to

dozens of other worlds that they had given Selene seemed a small

price to pay to have the power of The Phoenix in their hands.



Now they merely had to find a way to safely access that power.



But as Wolfram & Hart experts used magic and science to study and

probe the Containment Cube, the Phoenix Force and the woman who was

bound to it mind, body, and soul, only became angrier.



As The Phoenix raged and struggled against her bonds she felt her

own power being drained to strengthen her prison, effectively

imprisoning and violating her very being at the same time.



But The Phoenix knew that nothing created by mortal hands lasted

forever.



Eventually the Containment Cube would break or simply wear out, and

Jean Grey and the Phoenix Force would be free.



And when that happened, all those who had participated in The

Phoenix's imprisonment would pay.





THE END.