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X-Men: Evolution of the Heart: Chapter Thirty One

Author's note: This chapter concerns the whole Phoenix aspect of Jean that the cartoon never addressed. I have chosen Dark Phoenix to be the big villain in this series, not Apocalypse (don’t expect Apocalypse to be in this series). I have tried to take some aspects from the comic book and add them with a few concepts of my own. I also plan to add a new character that was inspired from another one of my stories. I hope you all like him!

Also, I've tried to make this so you can put in to the cartoon and not just this story. So you can think of this to maybe take place after the final episode 'Ascension'.

The song is "Name" by the Goo Goo Dolls. I used the same song in the 3rd chapter when Scott and Jean first met. I thought it would be fitting for it to be Scott's last words to Jean in this chapter.

The Ultimate Battle

Few words were spoken as the X-Men and the mutant warrior known as Slayer boarded the X-jet. Kurt, Kitty, Evan, and Rogue tried not to let their sorrow show as they looked back at Scott whom they had trusted as their friend and leader for years now. This mission promised to be Scott's last...For if he was to stop the Phoenix and save Jean Grey, he would have to make the ultimate sacrifice. None of them wanted to see Scott die. They all had seen enough death in their lives as it is. The Professor couldn't help but pick up on these feelings of anxiety that his students were projecting all too loudly as they prepared to take off in to the sky. He too didn't want to see his oldest student die before he had a chance to have a future. He was only 18 years old and he has his whole life ahead of him. He has so much potential to make something of himself even after all the terrible things he has faced in the past. The team wouldn't be the same without him...But Scott seemed all too willing to make this sacrifice for Jean's sake. There was no denying that. As these thoughts ran through Xavier's mind, Scott came up from behind him.

"Professor...Could you do something for me?" asked Scott as the Professor turned to face him.

"Of course Scott, what is it?" asked the Professor who tried to hide the fear that was apparent in his voice.

Scott took a deep breath, as he was about to ask this man who had been like a father to him for one last favor.

"After all this is over...And everybody is safe even though I may not alive to see it...Will you give this to Jean?"

Then, Scott handed the Professor a single envelope with Jean's name written in bold letters on the front. Even with a heart full of sorrow, the Professor did not hesitate and accepted the letter.

"I'll make sure she gets it...You have my word," said the Professor as he held on to the envelope.

Scott managed to smile back at him even under the circumstances.

"Thank you Professor...For everything."

And with that, they both boarded the plane and prepared for the final takeoff.

"So where to Slayer?" asked Wolverine as the jet sped off hiding his own feelings about this mission.

"The Central American jungles...There we will find the temple of the Phoenix. And hopefully we're not too late," said the mutant warrior as the X-jet zoomed over the horizon at full speed.

***

As the jet got closer and closer to the destination Slayer had specified, the team's increasing feelings of anxiety over Scott's fate grew. They knew every second was getting closer and closer to when Scott would have to carry out his decision. However, through all this uncertainty he seemed somewhat calm. His thoughts were still focused on Jean and saving her from this horrible force. To Scott, her safety had become more important than his own life. However, that didn't change the fact that if this succeeded...He would be dead. And there was nothing anyone could do about it. Suddenly, Slayer felt compelled to say something to break the silence.

"Scott...For what it's worth I'm sorry it has to be this way. I know you and your friends have faced tremendous hardships...I've seen that. You all shouldn't have to face choices like this. Believe me when I say I would have done everything within my power to stop this thing without anyone being killed...But there are just some things that can't be changed."

Scott looked back towards the mutant warrior, who was sitting in a seat behind him. He didn't feel at all hostile to this stranger anymore who had saved them all earlier. However, his feelings towards what he's had to tell them hung strong.

"You shouldn't be sorry Slayer. If anything...I should thank you for what you've done for us," said Scott to Slayer's surprise, "Because of you, we can stop this thing before it claims any of the lives it's capable of. You said it yourself, if the Phoenix stays the way it is it will only bring more suffering to all of us..."

"It is still a high price to pay," reminded Slayer.

"But you said it would be better for us all in the end...And I believe that," replied Scott, "This thing can't be allowed to gain full power over Jean."

"Scott...We can still find another way," said Ororo who didn't want to see Scott go through with his decision any more than the others did.

Scott just shook his head, for he knew now that there was no turning back. "No...We can't. This is just something that has to be done...And if I'm the only one who can do it then I guess there's nothing I can do to change that." The mutant warrior tried to sound as sincere as he could, for he knew the feelings of remorse that the rest of the X-men were going through. He could see it with the power of the all-seeing eye...But he wished he didn't. He saw in to the past and learned of their terrible upbringings that were riddled with violence, poverty, rape, and death. Now they seemed doomed to face even more death. And this time it was somebody that really meant something to them. Scott was more than just a leader to all of them...He was a true friend. And they truly didn't want to see him die.

Suddenly, the all-seeing eye mark on Slayer's face began to glow...They had arrived.

"We're here. We're right over the temple," said Slayer as he used his power to pinpoint its final location.

"What? I don't see anything out there but jungle," said Logan as he and the rest of the team looked out the windows.

"Wait for it..." said the mutant warrior simply as the countdown to the Phoenix attaining full power reached 20 minutes.

No sooner had Slayer said these words, a powerful rumbling shook within the ground below.

"What the...Oh my word," said Hank as he looked out the window along with the rest of the team.

Through the violent shaking of the ground below...A mysterious pyramid arose from the ground. It grew through the Earth, shattering the rock around it until it stood high over the trees. There was a large courtyard around it with tall pillars encircling the main temple that stood in the center. It was made of gray stone and had numerous pictures of statues and pictures of the Phoenix around it. The top of the pyramid was tipped with a mysterious opening that gave off a fiery red glow from within. The strange ancient temple gave off an ominous glow as the X-jet flew near it.

"Land over in that clearing," ordered Slayer as he saw the activity within the temple increase.

Logan took the plane down towards a small field outside the temple walls. The vast structure now dominated the landscape before them. Then suddenly the Professor, Slayer, and Scott sensed the coming of a powerful new presence. In the evening sky above them, a fiery cluster of dark red flames began to swirl around the top of the pyramid.

"The Phoenix has arrived..." said Slayer as he and the rest of the X-men watched the flames enter the top of the great structure.

"What's it doing?" wondered Evan aloud.

"The Phoenix has a great deal of power as it is and could very easily destroy this whole planet without a second thought...But it isn't enough for the dark entity. It lusts for it's full potential. This temple was built on a sacred spot with powerful mystic properties and it will provide the medium necessary to fully overtake Jean and become one with her powers. It can't suppress Jean alone because of her inherent strength and her powerful mutation...But with the help of a little magic, she'll be gone for good and the full power of the ancient entity will finally be unleashed."

There was a brief pause upon hearing the mutant warrior's words, but the team stayed undaunted because as powerful and dangerous as the Phoenix was...It was still Jean.

"Then we've gotta stop this," said Logan as he carefully sniffed the air for any activity, but so far had found nothing.

As the team walked through the central courtyard leading up to the temple's entrance, the powerful glow coming from the top of the structure gave them all an ominous feeling. Everybody was to take part in this fight except the Professor, who stayed behind with Cerebro just in case everything went wrong. However, Slayer knew that if they had to resort to using that device...It would already be too late.

A dark feeling could be felt around the team as they approached the front of this massive temple. It couldn't be seen, sensed, or smelled...But somehow they knew it was there. However, there was no time to act upon that feeling, for they had reached the gate.

"Any idea's how to open this thing?" asked Beast as he read over some of the inscriptions.

"The only way this door could be opened is through a powerful magic spell...But that would take too long," replied Slayer as he unsheathed his long, glowing sword from the case on his back, "Instead, we'll use a more direct approach."

"Now yer talking!" said Logan with a wolfish grin as he unleashed his claws.

Both mutants then proceeded to slash an opening in to the thick stone doorway. Slayer's sword seemed to cut it with no problems at all, and the mystical properties impeded, but didn't stop, the Wolverine. Finally, a large opening was formed and Slayer put his sword back in its case.

"Come...We have less than 15 minutes before it is too late," said the mutant warrior as he led them in.

The team followed cautiously in to the temple, but the strange dark feeling from earlier had not vanished...In fact it was getting stronger. The light in the room seemed to have its source deep in the temple's center. There...Dark Phoenix awaited them. Scott tried to remain calm and collected, but time was running out. He kept searching for Jean's presence through the mind link he shared with her...But there was still just emptiness. However he hadn't forgotten what happened earlier when he heard her through their link even though everything else indicated that the Phoenix had completely taken over. Now, his faith resided on the knowledge of a mysterious stranger who had come out of nowhere to help them. He had been true to his word so far with leading them to the temple and saving them from the first fight with the Phoenix. Even though this legend of the keeper and the savior meant certain death for him...Scott's feelings for Jean overshadowed even that universal fear.

Suddenly, Slayer stopped cold in his tracks for some reason. The all-seeing eye tattoo on his face was starting to glow...And he was seeing something that the rest of the team wasn't.

"Slayer...What is it?" asked Storm as the others stopped as well. He was looking at the inscriptions that littered every inch of the walls around them.

"Something's wrong...This whole room feels very wrong," said Slayer ominously as he grabbed his sword and took a battle stance.

"What are you talking..." but then a loud rumbling noise cut Rogue's question off as the writing on the walls began to glow a fiery red color. The writing seemed almost...Alive in a sense as the glowing got brighter. Suddenly, small balls of flame no bigger than a marble floated down from the walls. They seemed to hover like fireflies before them...Then in a bright flash they started to grow in size and took a human shape. Then, as the glowing ceased the final form of the being could be seen. It didn't look human...It looked like fully armored Aztec and Mayan warriors of ancient times. They had inhuman faces that looked like living masks as they gave off an inhuman snarl as dozens of them encircled the bewildered mutants.

The X-Men stood back in shock while Slayer remained stoic and ready for battle.

"What the hell are these things?!" exclaimed Logan as he unleashed his claws.

"Guardians..." said the mutant warrior simply, "The Phoenix knows we're here...And it's trying to slow us down."

"So vhat do ve do?" asked Kurt as the strange guardians got closer and closer.

One of the guardians lunged at Slayer, but he was ready for him. In one swift motion with his sword, the mutant warrior effortlessly slashed through the strange being and it disappeared in a fiery whimper.

"We fight our way through!" said Slayer as he prepared for another attack.

"Sounds like a plan," said Logan with determined growl.

Then, the strange guardians of the temple lashed out and attacked the team full force. They were strong, but so were the X-men. An epic melee broke out as more guardians formed and the team of mutants fought with all their strength. Many of them had large weapons that often had a fiery end the same color as the fires of the Phoenix. Some shot out balls of flame from their mouths as they attempted to push them all back out from where they came. The sounds of inhuman roars and the clash of flesh and steel echoed through the great halls as time began to tick away ever faster for the team. However, as the team fought one...They discovered something strange about these strange entities.

"What's happening? They keep coming back?!" yelled Kitty as she saw one warriors that had been destroyed come right back to life from the mysterious writings on the wall.

"They can't be killed!" said Slayer as he fired a mystic blast at a group of demon guardians, "They are incarnations of dark magic that the Phoenix has bought to life and are being fueled by its flames!"

"Great..." said Logan as he started to slash his way through an oversized dark warrior. "So what do we do!?"

The mutant warrior remained stoic and determined as he fought on.

"We keep fighting!" said Slayer as he unleashed a powerful magic burst at a cluster of guardians only have them reappear again.

"How much time to we have left!?" yelled Scott as he kept firing optic blasts.

"Ten minutes!"

Slayer's skill as a warrior became all the more apparent as he used a great deal of speed, strength, and skill with his sword that gave off a white glow. He made it look easy as he dodged the attacks of the guardians and slashed through them one by one. Logan was also unleashing his full rage upon the guardians. He cut through them easily with his claws, but they kept coming back...No matter what the team did they kept coming back. Rouge stayed close to him as she found that she couldn't use her absorption powers on them, so she had to rely on the martial arts training Logan had taught her. They fought on. Storm had used lightning and rain to put out the fires of the blasts, Scott used his optic blasts to mow entire clusters of them down, while Kurt and Kitty used their powers to dodge and often lead the strange beings in to destroying themselves. As they fought harder, the strange glowing or fiery red light from the core of the temple kept on getting brighter. Slayer slashed through a few more guardians as he looked at these ominous flames. "We have to move...We have only one chance at this..." said Slayer as he saw the flames get brighter. "Scott! You have to get to the core!"

"But what about the rest of you?!" yelled Scott through the maelstrom of fighting.

"I'll clear a path for you!" said the mutant warrior as he fought his way over to Scott and blasted through the group of guardians blocking off the way to the core.

Scott hesitated briefly as he watched his friends fight off the intense waves of guardian warriors. The path before him was clear...If he went he might never see them again. Less then 10 minutes remained...Before everything would be lost.

"You have to choose Scott! You are the only one who can stop the Phoenix once and for all!" yelled Scott as more guardians appeared from the writing on the walls. "We have only 10 minutes! GO!"

As Scott saw the strange dark warriors fight his friends...He made his final choice. Seeing a clear path, he ran through the narrow corridor towards the center to the temple where the fiery light glowed ever brighter. As he ran, Slayer and the rest of Scott's friends looked back...Wishing him luck.

"Good luck kid...And goodbye," said Logan as he watched Scott run off.

Upon hearing that, Slayer felt a conflicting feeling surge through his mind. Even as more and more guardian warriors swamped his position, he couldn't help but feel guilt over what was happening to these young teens whom had been hurt enough in their lives. Gritting his teeth in anger...The mutant warrior made a choice of his own.

***

Time was running out as Scott finally reached center of the great temple. As he walked in to the vast chamber he took in the sight before him. The intense fires of the great Phoenix burned brightly over a deep pit in the center of the room that stood under the opening on the top of the temple. A bright beam of fiery light shot through the sky as the process was almost complete. Through all the flames and the bright lights before him, Scott could make out a faint outline of Jean's body that now burned with the bright fires of the holy bird.

"Jean!" yelled Scott as he ran up to the pit.

However, he was stopped cold in his tracks when a blast of telekinetic force knocked him back towards the wall.

"You shouldn't have come here mortal! There is no more Jean..." hissed the voice of the powerful deity, "There is only I...DARK PHOENIX!"

"Jean...Listen to me...You've got to fight it! I know your still in there...I know you are!"

"Foolish mortal!" bellowed the Phoenix as it slammed Scott against the wall, "You delude yourself in seeking this puny girl! You can't save her anymore than you can save yourself..."

"That's not true..." said Scott as he got up slowly and fought through the pain. "I sensed her...I felt her...I know she's still alive somewhere in that body of evil and hate..."

"She is DEAD! SHE IS DEADER THAN EVEN YOU WILL BE ONCE YOU FEEL MY WRATH!" yelled the Phoenix as the fires burned ever brighter.

"No she's not..." said Scott in a strangely calm voice, "Say what you will, but I know what I felt...And I know that she's alive. She's a part of you just as much as you have become a part of her...And she's strong...Strong enough to subdue even you!"

The rage within the great Phoenix grew as the intense fires caused Scott to fall back under the shock wave given off.

"NOTHING SHALL SUBDUE DARK PHOENIX!"

"You're wrong!" yelled Scott as he got up once again. "She can and she will! Jean...If you can hear me...Fight it! You have to Jean! I know you can do it! I know you can! I believe in you!"

"ERRRRRRRRRRRR! BE GONE PITIFUL MORTAL!" yelled the Phoenix with great anger as it used its great power to lift Scott up off the ground.

Scott found every muscle in his body feel stiff under the force of the holy bird's power. He was floated off the ground he stood and drawn closer to the powerful flames. He could no longer move...But he remained unafraid, for he still felt the weak presence in his mind that he knew was Jean Grey. He refused to give up on her as long as there was a breath in his body. He knew that in the end it was he would have to save the love of his life from a terrible fate...But he wanted her to fight this thing.

"YOU FOOLISH HUMAN! I SHALL TEAR YOU APART ATOM BY ATOM FOR YOUR INSUBORDINANCE!"

"Not today!" came a voice from the other side of the chamber.

Suddenly, Scott was dropped back on to the hard floor and flung against the wall. He was still conscious...But he struggled to get up. Then, he looked over to where the voice had come from and saw Slayer standing before the Phoenix ready for battle with his glowing sword fully drawn.

"What is this?! Another puny little mortal that thinks they can stop the likes of me?!" taunted the holy bird as it felt unthreatened by this new presence. "What can you do that can possibly stop the almighty Phoenix?"

"The best I can..." said Slayer with determination as he lunged forth at the flames.

With his powerful sword he slashed through the fires of the Phoenix, but they seemed to have little effect on it. The more he slashed the more the fires kept coming back. The holy bird responded by launching balls of flame at the nimble young warrior, but he was able to dodge them and continue to slash at the Phoenix. However, try as he might even his magic sword could do nothing to scratch the powerful deity.

"You're a pesky little mortal...But a mortal none the less!" yelled the Phoenix as it let forth a telekinetic burst that flung the mutant warrior back.

Slayer remained undaunted despite this and began to unleash mystical blasts of his own from the symbols atop his hands. He tried using every element against the holy Phoenix and every magic spell he could muster. However, it still didn't even scratch the Phoenix as it merely scoffed at Slayer's feeble attempts.

"GIVE UP PEST! YOU CAN'T WIN! YOU'RE PUNY LITTLE MAGIC CAN'T HURT THE LIKES OF ME!"

Slayer grunted in frustration as he focused even harder and increased the intensity of his power to levels beyond what he normally would use. However, it still wasn't working. With all his strength he put forth the full fury of his magic upon the dark entity.

"You...Won't...Win..." grunted Slayer, as the brightness of his powerful mystic blasts grew more intense, "I...Won't...Let you!"

Slayer's strong words merely amused the Phoenix as its powerful flames blocked the massive blast.

"IT IS NOT WITHIN YOUR POWER TO STOP ME! NOBODY CAN STOP ME! FOR THIS IS BOUGHT ON BY THE POWER OF FATE AND THE DESTINY OF ALL THOSE WHO SHALL FEEL MY WRATH!"

Slayer pushed himself to his limits even though it seemed all too futile. However, he remained undaunted by the words of the holy bird.

"There's just...One problem...With that," he said through the power of his mystic blast, "I...Don't...Believe...In...Fate!"

Slayer was nearly at his limits...But it was still not strong enough to effect the powerful deity in the slightest. It's laugh echoed through the great chamber as it resisted the mutant warrior's magic.

"It does not matter what you believe warrior!" yelled the Phoenix, "NOTHING will stop the reign of DARK PHOENIX! NOTHING!"

Then, with a swift blast of powerful telekinetic force...The holy Phoenix sent the full power of Slayer's blasts back at him and sent him flying against the chamber walls. The mutant warrior was dazed nearly in to unconsciousness by the force alone...But the Phoenix was not done with him just yet. Slayer tried to get up...But then he found himself being flung through the air and slammed in to the walls and floors of the chamber again and again. He tried to break free, but his head was still spinning after being flung back the first time. With all his might, the mutant warrior tried to use his power and skill to break free from the telekinetic grasp of the Phoenix, but it wasn't good enough. After being bashed and slammed around many times, the Phoenix finally stopped and floated him back in front of the fiery pit where the Phoenix was collecting it's final power.

"Pathetic..." said the Phoenix as the motionless body of Slayer now floated before it, "The mightiest warrior this planet can muster is still merely an insect to my power...But fear not, for you and countless others shall feel my wrath soon enough!"

Then, a powerful beam of fiery light blasted the mutant warrior and knocked him back against the stone walls of the chamber and knocked him out cold.

Slayer was down...He couldn't stop the Phoenix even with all his power. He was still alive...But he was out of the fight. Scott slowly got up as he saw not that he was the only one left who could stop this thing. Still hurting from the beating the Phoenix gave him earlier; he approached the holy entity as it prepared to deliver the final blow to Slayer.

"Jean! Stop!" yelled Scott as he struggled to maintain his balance.

The Phoenix diverted it's attention from the mutant warrior back to Scott as he stood in defiance even after all the Phoenix had done and the power it showed. Then, it let forth another telekinetic blast that sent Scott flying back, but he got right back up this time. With Slayer down...He refused to fall. He would not let this thing control Jean.

"Why do you not fight me mortal!?" said the Phoenix as it grew frustrated by Scott's persistence.

"I can't fight you Jean...I could never hurt you," said Scott softly as he struggled back towards the front of the pit.

This just enraged the Phoenix more.

"WHY DO YOU PURSIST YOU DAMNED HUMAN!? THERE IS NO MORE JEAN! ONLY DARK PHOENIX!" roared the dark entity as it used its telekinesis to lift Scott off the ground once again.

"Say what you will...But I will never believe you. I know she's still there...I can feel it. And I won't give up on her!" said Scott.

"YOU ARE A FOOL! SUCH FEEBLE HOPE FOR SUCH A PITIFUL MORTAL! YOUR PESTILENCE HAS TRIED MY TEMPER FOR THE LAST TIME! NOW YOU SHALL BE THE FIRST TO FEEL MY TRUE POWER!"

Scott remained unafraid even though he knew the Phoenix was capable of tearing him apart on the molecular level. However, he knew that this was still Jean even after everything the Phoenix had shown him. It was still the same girl he had met in that dark alley over 6 years ago in their darkest hour. It was still Jean...He knew it and now more than ever his path as the savior was clear.

"Go ahead...Do it," said Scott still unafraid.

The Phoenix let out an angry grunt...It was trying, but not succeeding. Something was holding it back. Scott knew what this was and refused to give up hope for the girl that was still within those sinister fires.

"I...WILL...DESTROY...YOU!" grunted the holy entity, but still couldn't go through with the final act.

"You can't do it...You boast and you threaten me, but in the end I know you can't go through with it. I know because Jean would never go through with it."

"SHE...IS...DEAD!"

"If she is then what's stopping you!?" yelled Scott with determination, "Come on! DO IT! Kill me! It's all the same to me! Because if she really is dead then I don't want to live in a world without her...I can't live in a world without her. COME ON! DO IT! IF YOU'RE SO EVIL DO IT!"

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

A mighty roar echoed throughout the entire temple as the powerful deity thrashed wildly in a struggle to control it's own power. Scott was released from his telekinetic grasp in the process and he fell back to his feet as he stood a short distance from the pit of the Phoenix. It was not blasting or trying to hurt him now...Instead it was trying to fight itself. Scott once again felt the warm buzz in his head grow and he knew then that Jean was finally fighting it...But it was still a struggle, for she was unable to fully subdue the dark entity.

"I knew you could fight it Jean...I knew you truly wouldn't hurt anyone..." said Scott as he took another step towards the pit.

"She...Can't...Hear...You! I...Will...Not...Be...STOPPED!" grunted the Phoenix as it struggled even more than before.

"You can and you will be stopped Dark Phoenix. Jean is strong enough and you can't do anything to stop her because she's still a part of you."

This only enraged the Phoenix even more, but it still couldn't subdue what was left of Jean Grey within it's fiery interior.

"WHY DO YOU INSIST ON SAVING SUCH A PITIFUL MORTAL!?" yelled the Phoenix through the struggle, "WHY DO YOU CARE FOR SUCH AN INSIGNIFICANT SPECK OF HUMAN FLESH?! WHY?!"

"Because...I love her," said Scott as he was now at the edge of the fiery pit that the Phoenix stood over.

"Love? BAH! A pitiful excuse for a human emotion! I can destroy worlds! I can obliterate billions! I can unravel the very fabric of the universe!" "Jean is my world...She is my universe..." said Scott knowing that somehow Jean was hearing this and needed him now more then ever to find the strength to subdue this horrid beast. "A world without her is a world I could never be a part of...A world I could never live in. She's my best friend...She's the one I fell in love with...And she will live...Even if it means I have to die." Scott's words seemed to have triggered something powerful within Jean as she was now on the brink of overcoming the holy bird with the power of her mind and her heart. Dark Phoenix let out another roar, as it could no longer ignore the strength of Jean Grey. From the sidelines, Slayer began to regain consciousness and watched the scene unfold before him. There wasn't a lot of time left...It would be here where the legend ends.

Scott felt Jean struggling within the depths of his mind. She tried, but still couldn't subdue the angry deity. Scott knew the time was fast approaching for him to make the sacrifice that Slayer had spoken of. However, he wanted Jean to hear him one last time before he gave his life to save her. He needed to give her strength...So he did the only thing he knew that could give Jean the strength she needed...He began to sing.

And even thought the moment passed me by...
I still can't turn away

Suddenly, a burst of fiery light erupted from the pit and the almighty holy bird thrashed violently as Jean Grey took control and struggled to keep it. However, the Phoenix would not be subdued and it kept on fighting...But Scott kept on singing.

I saw the dreams you never thought you'd lose...
Get tossed along the way

Then, a voice from within all the fiery hate that brewed within the Phoenix was heard.

Letters that you never meant to send...
Get tossed or thrown away

"Scott..." said Jean from within all the anger and hate of Dark Phoenix.

And now we're grown up orphans...
I never knew their names
Who don't belong to no one
That's a shame...

You could hide beside me
Maybe for a while
And I won't tell no one your name...
And I won't tell em your name

White-hot tears flowed down the cheeks of Jean Grey as the fires still consumed her and refused to let her go. But she was holding them back with more power than she had ever thought she had. The power of that song...That very same song that Scott had sang to her that fateful night they first met...Was giving her strength...

The scars are souvenirs you never lose
The past is never far...
Did you lose yourself somewhere out there?
Did you get to be a star?

Then, Jean began to finish the lyrics to the song that she knew all too well.

Don't it make you sad to know that life...
Is more than who we are

Scott smiled back at her, for Jean had done it...She had suppressed the Phoenix. From the other side of the room, Slayer watched in amazement as he saw the ancient legend that was billions of years old unfold before him.

You grew up way to fast
And now there's nothing to believe
And reruns all become a history...
I'm tired of some kids playing on a tired radio
And I won't tell no one your name
And I won't tell em your name...

Scott was on the edge of the pit that the powerful red fires of the Phoenix were burning through. The sinister power they promised to unleash was still trying to find it's way out. Jean couldn't suppress it much longer...And Scott knew this. However, he wanted Jean to be there...He wanted to say his last words to her...Before he gave his life to save her.

"I love you Jean...I always have, and I always will...And I'm sorry it has to end like this," said Scott softly as he prepared himself for his final living act.

"Scott...I..." but she couldn't say anymore as the tears of white-hot fire burned with greater intensity.

Somehow, Jean knew what Scott was planning...But could do nothing to stop it.

"Look after the others Jean...Be strong. Always trust your instinct...Have faith in others and protect those who can't protect themselves. And most of all...Follow you're dreams Jean...And don't ever forget how much you mean to me."

Scott's words were choked with emotion as he knew they would be his last. Jean's tears through the fires of the Phoenix only grew hotter as she heard what Scott was saying. She could do nothing about this...Her every ounce of strength had gone in to suppressing Dark Phoenix and all she could do now is watch. She wanted to say so many things to Scott...But she didn't have the strength. Scott had allowed her to take control when there was so much holding her back. Through this...The mind link between them had grown as strong as ever. But Scott was about to make a choice that would make it irrelevant. He knew it and Jean knew it...But it was the only way. These two kindred souls had found each other in their darkest hour and since then had developed a bond that almost went beyond love itself. This made the sacrifice that Scott was going to make all the more difficult. He didn't want Jean to ever feel pain...Even if it meant his own life. Jean didn't want it to end like this...Not after everything they had been through. Now came the hardest decision either of them had to make in their already tumultuous lives. Scott looked back up at the girl he had been with for the last six years. The fires around her still burned brightly with the sinister dark red flames. He had made his choice...And he was going to save her.

"Goodbye Jean...Thank you."

I think about you all the time
But I don't need the same
It's lonely where you are
So come back down...
And I won't tell em your name...

Scott Summers then closed his eyes. The final second had come. Then...With his last words and thoughts to Jean...He performed his final living act...And leaped in to the fiery flames of the Phoenix...

chap thirty one

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