Phoenix Inferno

Title: Phoenix Inferno
Author: Corina
Summary: Jean Grey and the Phoenix
Rating: R
Pairing(s): Jean Grey
Feedback: desired.
Characters: Jean Grey
Betas: Looking for testers!!! Email me if interested!
Author’s notes: The Phoenix makes Jean choose between her true loves. But just how does that choice change her life? Original concept in AU.
*Disclaimer: All characters are property of Marvel or DC Comics. I do not own these characters nor do I make any financial gain from these characters. The story is designed for entertainment purposes only.

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“Jean.”

She heard the voice. Loud and commanding. Filling her head with it’s massive force. And yet she didn’t reply. She feared the voice, and respected it. She loathed it and yet it was a part of her very being. She knew it intimately and saw it as a stranger.

“Come to me Jean.”

It was getting louder. Commanding her. Forcing her to rise and go to it. She wanted to argue, but even death itself could not stop the voice. Nor the being it emerged from. She felt her body moving, betrayed by her own needs and desires. She was responding to it, going towards it. Seeing the fire in the sky and emerging from the woods only to see a small clearing.

There was something in the center of the clearing, and as Jean walked towards it, the breeze cool on her face, she saw the light from the sky illuminate it in it’s fiery orange glow.

It was a simple tombstone, set in the middle of the peaceful place. She approached it hesitantly. But nothing in life could have prepared her for what it read. The letters were simple, carved into the rock. JEAN GREY it read, complete with the dates of her life. She looked into the sky, a tear rolling down her cheek. “You called me here to show me that I am dead?” she asked questioning the being. “I already knew that,” she said, her tone less confrontational but confused none the less.

“NO,” the voice replied. “You are here to see the future.”

And as if by some hallucination that Jean couldn’t quite understand, she watched as her friends, her lover, everyone she had ever cared about gather at the grave. Rogue and Remy stood in an embrace to the side. The Professor spoke words that she could not hear, nor did she honestly want to. Scott, her lover…her future…stood at the front and center, eyes focused on the ground. Even through his glasses she could see the pain in his eyes. Pain and anger. Storm and Nathan stood behind him, Ororo wiping tears from her blue eyes, seeking the comfort of Nathan.

Kitty and Piotr held each other in an emotional embrace, turning to allow Hank into their circle. Emma stood next to the Professor, her eyes never wavering from Scott. Jubilee and Theresa wiped their tears, turning their faces away from the tombstone.

But behind them all, hidden in the shadows of the woods, on his knees was Logan. There were no tears. No emotion in his eyes. Nothing but the face of a man that seemed unable to comprehend the situation.

The crowd quickly dispersed, Emma taking strides to catch up to Scott, offering him her support. They disappeared into the woods, and as Jean watched them go, she turned when a sound from behind startled her. It was Logan, emerging from the secrets of the shadows, crossing the clearing towards her grave.

The face that was once emotionless now shed tears, while his hands grasped a single red rose. His body staggered until it reached the grave, falling to his knees, placing the rose upon her tombstone. “I’m so sorry Jeanie,” Logan started, his voice broken and full of emotion. “It’s my fault. I never should’a let you go out there. I should’a….” But his words were replaced with sobs and whispers. “There are just so many things Jeanie that I never got to tell ya.”

Jean wished more than anything that she could read his one, one last time. The things that he had always longed to say. The words that in life she had never had the chance to hear. But even before she could ask the voice, it interrupted the scene, causing it to disappear just as quickly as it had appeared.

“You already know Jean,” the voice said.

The clearing was no more. In it’s place the blackbird. She could see herself, her body, her being, watching as if it was a scene being played for her personal audience. She immediately recognized the scene. The horror of it. The sheer inhumanity of it. She watched herself, stare in horror as the Medi-Unit scanners bottomed out. The Professor had given up on him, exiting his mind. But the Blackbird was going down. The Hatch. She needed to keep the hatch closed or else they would all be dead. Just like Logan. Though her death wouldn’t be at the hands of Magneto. It would be her own weakness, her own slip, that would cause her death.

She watched as the scene played out, as she hung from the plane, clutching for dear life. And when all hope was gone, when she had given up, her Psi-Strength no longer able to hold on, she saw it. Logan. Coming back from the dead and reaching for her. Saving her life. The ultimate sacrifice.

He had come for her. Back from the dead. And yet, in retrospect, she had never even said thank you, simply allowing him to leave the team in the middle of the night, with only the words that he would always have a place with the X-men. She realized at that moment, that she sounded like Scott, placing the team above her own feelings. If only she could have told Logan how she felt…how thankful she was for his actions, maybe things would have been different.

“There is only one reason to return from the dead.” The voice paused, the image of the blackbird gone, replaced once again by the tombstone in the clearing. She watched as two figures approached. As they came into view, she recognized them immediately. Scott and Emma. In Emma’s hands was a baby, a little girl with a visor cloaking her eyes.

Jean felt the tears flow down her cheeks as she watched, Emma placing a hand on Scott’s shoulder. And then she spoke. “Must we come to this place again Scott? You know that I hate this.” Scott turned to Emma, placing a kiss on her lips. “I know dear,” he said, placing a kiss on the baby’s cheek before continuing. “But I have to make sure that animal hasn’t returned. Someone has been leaving flowers on this grave. And if it’s Logan, then I will kill him myself.”

Jean wanted to scream out. There weren’t enough emotions in the universe to express how she was feeling. But had she honestly ever thought that Scott wouldn’t’ have moved on if she was no more? Would she have done the same? But as they walked away, she followed, feeling the need to see more of the situation. It was apparent that something had caused a rift between Logan and Scott. It hadn’t been the first time, nor would she imagine it would be the last. But why would Scott care so much of a simple flower on her grave?

The mansion came into view as she listened to the sound of the baby begin to cry. It was enough to separate the two, sending Emma upstairs with the child, while Scott made his way to the Professor’s chambers. The room was different. No memory of the professor remained. Even the furniture had been changed, altered to suit Scott’s sense of style. She knew immediately that Scott now ran the school.

And then he spoke, calling all members of the X-men into the chamber. She waited, hoping for some answers as they arrived one by one. Most she didn’t recognize. The few she did such as Rogue and Remy appeared to be annoyed by the interruption in their day. There was no Storm, no Nathan. No Beast or Colossus. A new class had come to the mansion and claimed it as home.

“As you know my X-men,” Scott said folding his hands on his desk. “The last of those Wolverine supporters, Jubilee and Shadowcat have been banished forever from the mansion.”

But before she heard the rest of the conversation, the mansion disappeared, replaced by the frigid wilderness. The place looked vaguely familiar, and yet she knew she had never been there before. She looked around, seeing only a small deer scamper across the forest, it’s feet creating soft imprints in the snow. And then…from no where, she heard the all too familiar feral scream of Logan as he lunged for the deer, ripping it apart with his claws.

“Wolvy!!!! Don’t!!! We aren’t that hungry…” But it was too late. The deer lay in a pool of blood, it’s insides gutted. “You gotta eat kids,” Logan said, taking a large chunk of the deer meat and carrying it to the others. Jubilee, Kitty, Piotr and Kurt.

“Cook this thing up,” Logan said, turning and looking in her direction. There was pain in his eyes. Remorse. Anger. A million emotions as he seemed to look right at her, and yet she knew that was not possible. “What’s wrong Wolvy?” Jubilee asked, coming up next to him and placing a hand on his arm. “Nothin’ kid. I just thought I saw…” Jubilee shook her head. “Not Jean again Wolvy. She’s dead.”

Jean buried her face in her hands and sobbed, seeing that future of hatred. Seeing a day when Scott would banish all that he had once believed in, and helpless to do anything about it. Not even death should be so cruel. “I’ve seen enough!!!” she called out to the voice. “Just let me die in peace.”

“Death is never peaceful Jean.” The voice mocked her pleas. Suddenly she was back in the mansion. But it was the mansion she had grown to love. The mansion where she had shared so many happy memories. The mansion where she had shared a bed with the man that she had given herself to, in every way possible.

And that man was speaking to the professor. “I just don’t know Professor. There is something about Jean. I can’t seem to get through to her. We haven’t been able to be…” She could hear the frustration in Scott’s voice and yet, she had never even known the conversation took place. “….a couple.” The professor placed his hand on Scott’s shoulder. “Give it time Scott. Jean is a complex woman. There are times when her powers are foreign even to her. She needs to be given her space and she will return to you when she feels she is ready to continue this relationship.”

Scott shook his head, his lips in a frown. “No she won’t. She’s already found someone else. I can feel it. And it wouldn’t surprise me one bit if it was Wolverine. They have been spending so much time together.” The professor shook his head. “They have been working in the Danger Room Scott, trying to put together an accurate multi dimensional model of the Savage Land. Hardly the type of time together that you should worry yourself about.”

But Scott was being irrational. “I don’t care what it is Professor. They could be finding a cure for the Legacy Virus. I don’t like it. I don’t trust Wolverine farther than I can blast him. And Jean is vulnerable and weak. She may just give in to his wandering eyes.” The Professor shook his head and spoke. “You must give Jean credit Scott. She is not that feeble minded. Her powers are far greater than she has even discovered. And a romp as you would like to think of it is the furthest thing from her mind.”

Scott slammed his fist into the desk. “Yeah…and I’m going to make sure it remains that way,” he said. His words were full of anger as he stormed from the chamber and headed towards the Danger Room. “Jean we need to talk. Now and alone,” he said. Jean smiled apologetically to Logan and exited the room, meeting up with Scott in the hallway. “What are you two really doing in there?” Scott barked at her. Jean could still feel the emotion when he had spoken those words to her many years ago. It had angered her. Even more than the fact that Scott didn’t trust her was the thing that happened next.

“Either you become my wife so I don’t have to worry about these others or we are through. Over Jean.” Jean watched as she cried, incapable of grasping the full extent of his words. “Scott…are you…” But the words were quickly cut off by him, returning to his normal loving self. “I just get so jealous Jean,” he said dropping to his knee. “And the thought of losing you makes my heart stop beating. I could never go on living if you weren’t in my life. There could never be anyone else. I just want you to be with me always, as my wife.”

“Yes Scott!!!” she said, dropping to her own knees and wrapping her arms around him. “Of course I will marry you,” she said kissing him on the cheek.

“ENOUGH!!!” Jean called out, seeing the happiest moment of her life somehow being twisted into a sick and perverse joke.

The voice made the image go away, returning to the tombstone in the clearing. “There is one last thing you must see,” it said.

The tombstone was overgrown with weeds, it’s once upright position a memory. It lay toppled on it’s side, the words, her name…barely legible. And from the woods emerged Logan. His hair was gray, his body older, and yet his eyes still had the same look within them. In his hand he clasped a single red rose. He approached the tombstone, seeing it in it’s toppled condition and reached for it, hoisting the slab upwards and setting it back into it’s position.

On it, he lay the red rose. “It’s been a hundred years to the day darlin’,” he said, sitting down on the ground. “And I can still feel ya with me. There were times I couldn’t come to be with you,” he said shaking his head a bit and reaching into his jacket to pull out a beer. He popped the can open and took a nice long swallow. “But you were never far from my mind Jeanie.”

“I guess I owe ya a bit of an explanation darlin’,” Logan said taking another sip of beer. “Things haven’t been easy. After Cyke and his wench kicked me outta the X-men along with the rest of the kids, they ran the place to the ground. Running outta money they went to the hellfire’s for help exposing the world. Most of the others died that day when the bombs fell.”

Logan finished his beer and smashed the can in his hands, still remembering the moment he heard the news. His family, dead by the evil hands of the hellfire club. “Cyke and Emma survived as did their daughter but they took refuge with the only mutant that would have ‘em. Sinister.”

He reached in his pocket, taking out a cigar and lighting it. A deep puff and a ring of smoke later he continued. “Things went from bad to worse darlin’ as he used them to try to take over the world again. Hell that was sixty years ago and I still remember the feeling when I plunged my claws into his chest. I know ya loved him darlin’ but he had turned evil. He had to be stopped one way or another. It just happened to be me that took that job.”

He paused for a moment, touching the tombstone with his hand. “I just hope you can forgive me for that Jeanie,” he said. “I tried to talk some sense through his thick skull but he left me no choice. I know you loved him.” His voice cracked at the words. “Emma lived for a while afterwards as one of Sinister’s pawns. But he ended up killing her when she was no longer of any use to him, old age taking over her head.”

“The kids stayed with me until they….” He couldn’t bring himself to say it. The word, so final and yet so hurtful. “Died. All of them are now dead. Again I am alone, damning this healing factor of mine.” He tossed his cigar away and rose to his feet. “And if there was a way I could be with ya Jeanie…” he said shaking his head, cursing his life, and remembering that his heart died the day she did. Died a million slow and painful deaths. He walked away, head bowed, and disappeared into the night.

The tombstone was gone. Instead, she could see the fight going on between Logan and Sabretooth. The lunge of Logan going for him. The strength of Sabretooth as he tossed Wolverine into her, her body slumping over from the impact.


The voice grew loud once again. “He will fight to his death to defend you,” it said as Jean watched the blood flow from Logan. “No!!” Jean said. “I can not allow him to die for me. I will do anything you wish of me.”

The voice replied. “I can put life once again in your body. But you must answer this question correctly. For if you fail Jean, the future as you saw it will become a reality.”

Jean nodded. Anything. How hard could a question be? She waited, seeing herself back in the clearing. There stood Scott and Logan, side by side. Each having their heads bowed looking at her tombstone. “You can only have one true love Jean,” The voice said. If you choose correctly then I shall bestow upon you the gift of life, where you can once again walk the earth. Choose incorrectly and the future will be set in stone.”

Jean felt her heart break at that moment. She had always believed that Scott was her true love. And maybe if she could change the future, then they could be together. And Logan…she had been so blinded by her love for Scott that she never gave credit to the man that returned from death to save her life. She thought for a moment, closing her eyes. In her mind she could only see one image. One simple symbol. One single red rose.

She called out to the voice. “I know the answer,” she said, watching as the fire closed in around her. There was silence. Silence so silent that she felt the air move around her. “I chose neither,” she said to the voice.

“Do you mock my offer Jean?” the voice shot back, breaking the silence and stirring the earth with a rumble.

“Not at all. My love for Scott had always been out of necessity. He was the first man that ever told me I was beautiful. The first to understand I was different and special. But it is his own need to not be alone that makes me believe that his love was disincentive.”

“And the other?” the voice asked, the image of Scott disappearing before her eyes.

“Logan had never gotten a chance to love me,” she said feeling a single solitary tears stream down her cheek. “I had never given him the chance blinded by me own love for Scott. But I can not allow him to love me,” she said the words stinging her like a slap in the face. “For I see the pain my death has caused him. I would not want him to suffer that pain yet again. He will far outlive any of us, laying us to rest in the decaying earth. I can not be the one that breaks his heart, causing him the pain I witnessed.”

And then the image of Logan disappeared, leaving her alone with her tombstone. Jean felt herself fall to her knees and sob.

“Cry not Jean Grey,” the voice boomed from up above. “For you have answered the question to my liking. I shall once again bestow life upon you. You have been my life, my host. And I shall bid you goodbye. But first, I shall ensure that you understand my conditions.”

Jean looked up at the fire in the sky. “What conditions?” she asked, her hands trembling.

“You will once again walk the earth. You shall fight for the future of humanity, putting a stop to the horrid future I have shown you. But you must embrace your true love. Only in doing so will you find the strength to once again be happy. Worry not about your death, but of the chance of life now beginning to course it’s way through your body.”

Jean didn’t quite understand the words. She had said that she didn’t want to cause the pain, and yet this voice, this Phoenix, toyed with her.

“Rise to your knees and take my gift Jean. For you will no longer serve as my host. You will be Jean Grey, powerful and caring. Able to stop the horrid future of humanity. I shall bestow upon you a special power. With it I trust you will know the answer to your questioning heart. For from your hands will come power. Power to see the truth and power to squelch evil.”

Jean looked down at her hands, watching as they illuminated into a fiery orange glow. They felt warm to her touch, and yet the confusion was building to a climax of emotions.

“Closest to your heart,” the voice said, “You hand shall do nothing but good. Allowing people to see their true selves. But your other hand, shall display a person’s most hated fears. Together, they shall drive a person mad. Use them wisely.”

And then the tombstone was gone. The fight lingered on between Logan and Sabretooth. But as she saw her body lay there, she watched as the blood stopped flowing. The wounds slowly healed up. Even her clothing repaired itself. “Remember Jean,” the voice said. “There is only one thing that you can come back from the dead for. True love.”

And then the voice was gone. Jean felt almost a sadness, knowing that she would never hear it again. It had become a part of her life, from it’s first quiet whisper. And now, it was no more.

She felt herself being dragged back into her body, feeling it’s cold embrace as her spirit merged with it. And all she could see now was darkness. She felt the cold of death. She felt the pain of her wounds subsiding, until it ended completely. And then…she opened her eyes.

She was alive, evident by the way the sun shone on her body. She could feel the warmth. She could feel the sting of its brightness in her eyes. And yet, she could not move. Not yet.

She watched as Sabretooth got blasted from behind, the fireworks only capable of one mutant. Jubilee. She had come to help Logan, a gesture that showed their incredible connection. Few would have bothered crossing the monster known as Sabretooth. And yet, she showed the spunk that few others on the team possessed.

She felt her heart break for her, knowing that she needed to move. That she needed to put a stop to this. All the pain this monster was causing was due to her. They had come to save her, and yet their only reward would be a slow and painful death at his hands.

But just as quickly, the tables turned on Sabretooth. Jubilee shot him in the eyes with her fireworks, just as Logan lunged for him, burying his claws deep into his abdomen, the would identical to the ones she suffered at his foul hand. But Logan’s victory was short lived, as Sabretooth grabbed Logan by the throat and hoisted him into the air.

“Move,” she thought to herself. “I have to stop this.” But her body deceived her. She managed to move a finger, lightly tapping it against the ground. The finger turned into a few, and then her hand. Slowly the life was returning to her body. Too slowly. Her arm twitched, as she felt the blood beginning to flow. Her body temperature rising. The pain of her muscles beginning to function overcoming her.

More movement, however slight seemed to come a bit more naturally now, as her toes gave way to her legs. “Soon…” she thought to herself. “Soon she would be able to rise again.”

She watched as Sabretooth lifted Logan higher into the air, then sent him sprawling to a nearby tree, impaling him. Next he took off after Jubilee, watching as Jubilee defended herself by shooting a stream of her light show into his chest. It did little to stop him, as he grabbed her around the waist and hoisted her, kicking and screaming into the air.

“Now…” she said to herself, forcing her body to rise to it’s feet. The ground was unsteady, and yet she could feel it beneath her feet. “LET HER GO!!” Jean bellowed, her voice strong and commanding. “Set down the child,” she screamed, moving forwards towards Sabretooth. “Your battle began with me. Now finish it you monster,” she said watching as he turned towards her.

He mind recalled the voice of the Phoenix. “Closest to your heart,” the voice said, “You hand shall do nothing but good. Allowing people to see their true selves. But your other hand, shall display a person’s most hated fears. Together, they shall drive a person mad. Use them wisely.”

Jean looked down at her hands. Closest to her heart….her left hand. The Right….fear and hatred. But together, they caused insanity. She held them up and in front of her. She was ready. Ready to show this monster that he has messed with the wrong people. And as she watched him toss Jubilee to the ground and stalk towards her, she took a deep breath.

“With pleasure Red,” he said. “I know Wolverine will enjoy watching you die again,” he said. His amber eyes glowed in anger. What was it with the X-men that they couldn’t stay dead?

“Not this time Sabretooth,” she said, her fury consuming her body. She felt the anger envelope her, traveling through her blood…from her heart outwards, until it reached her readied hands. And then, she saw them. Claws laced with fire emerged from her hands. Blood poured from her hands as they emerged, though it quickly stopped. She felt no pain in their emergence. Just the sense of power, as she watched the flames grow larger and larger as her anger heightened.

She questioned herself, wondering just what…and then the voice returned to her head. One last time. “Psionic Claws Jean. Capable of inflicting mental damage as well as physical damage on your opponent. Their flame shall consume the mind of your foe, allowing you to control the thoughts. Closest to your heart…or….Fear and hatred. My last gift to you Jean.” And then the voice ceased….forever.

“So c’mon Bub,” she said stepping towards Sabretooth, watching his every breath. “Let’s dance.”