27 Chapter 27 - Archon

Apocalypse charged towards Mikael, who stood there calmly waiting for him. He quickly arrived in front of Mikael, towering over him with his large frame. His fist tore through the air aiming at Mikael's head only to miss as Mikael stepped slightly to the side. The silver blade whipped towards his exposed neck as Apocalypse quickly raised an arm to defend himself. The blade carved deep into his armor and even into his skin leaving behind glowing metal and cauterized flesh. The armor had protected him once but he realized it would not likely do so again.

Apocalypse quickly leaped away from Mikael before he could swing again. He looked at the damaged armor and flesh in shock as it struggled to heal as though there was something restraining it. He felt his energy, his power seeping from the wound as he recognized the extreme danger he was just in by trying to face him in melee. Apocalypse looked up to see Mikael slowly walking towards him as he raised a hand and pushed forward, launching the nearby rubble in Mikael's direction. Apocalypse looked on as Mikael simply shifted his path one step at a time as though he knew exactly where to be as the projectiles passed by him harmlessly. Apocalypse continued to try to keep his distance as he raised his hand again, this time firing a beam of purple energy in Mikael's direction.

Mikael threw his saber behind him as the blast impacted into his outstretched hand. Apocalypse tried to overwhelm him as he channeled more power into his attack. Mikael's boots grinded against the ground as he was slowly pushed back. Apocalypse developed a grin on his face as he believed he had gotten the upper hand until suddenly a strange humming sound caused him to turn his head. From his side, Mikael's saber burst from the rubble as it spun rapidly towards his neck. Apocalypse was forced to stop his attack as he quickly backpedaled narrowly avoiding the spinning blade as it carved into his chest plate leaving a wide glowing scar in the metal.

He watched as the saber curved through the air as it returned to one of Mikael's outstretched hands, while in his other was a glove of purple energy. His eyes turned to shock as Mikael fired the violet globe towards him, sending his own attack back at him. Apocalypse crossed his arms in front of his body as the blast impacted, his feet dug grooves into the ground as he was pushed back. The beam of energy faded as Apocalypse looked back towards Mikael only to find that he was no longer there. A swirl of blue mist appeared behind him as Mikael suddenly reappeared, pushing forward with both hands as a sphere of transparent force and lightning blasted Apocalypse in his back launching him uncontrollably through the air once more.

On the other side the battle was raging on as the two groups of mutants clashed. Raven was constantly calling out to Magneto as she attempted to appeal to him, her words seeming to take hold as his attacks grew less frequent. Jean was using her powers to the fullest as she bombarded all of the horsemen with rubble and psionic blasts while pulling her teammates out of harms way. Kurt and Logan took turns attacking Angel as the adamantium claws and teleporting attacks kept him grounded. The Summers brothers could be seen diving in and out of cover that was being given from Jean's assistance as they alternated firing their energy blasts towards Storm in the air. Bobby was locked in conflict with Pyro as fire and ice clashed while Darwin continually harassed Pyro from his sides and dividing his focus. Kitty and Jubilee teamed up to bombard Gambit with their powers as his attacks passed harmlessly through them while Hank forced Gambit to remain on the run to avoid his pursuit.

The horsemen continued to struggle as they began to wonder if Apocalypse's promise was a lie. He said he gave them unstoppable power but yet they were being pushed back and struggled to even fight back. He said he was a god but yet he was nowhere to be seen in this battle. Suddenly a loud crash drew everyone's attention as a large cloud of dust obscured the air between them. As it cleared the horsemen looked on in shock as Apocalypse struggled to pick himself out of the crater he found himself in. His once pristine armor now filled with cracks and lightning shaped scars, many of which revealing blackened flesh beneath that visibly writhed and squirmed in an attempt to heal. He struggled to rise to his feet as he looked around at the now frozen mutants, his visage morphing into one of rage.

"Assist me you worthless insects!" Apocalypse shouted out. A few of the horsemen lifted their feet to take a step forward before they stopped, opting instead to remain where they were. They watched as the figure of Mikael appeared in front of them in a swirl of blue mist.

"Look. Here is your so called 'god.' He doesn't care about you, he doesn't value you. You are nothing to him but expendable tools. Whatever he promised you? He cannot give you." Mikael addressed the horsemen as he looked over each one of them.

Magneto looked over to Raven as the rest turned their heads to the ground. Their minds filling with untold thoughts until Mikael's voice sounded out once more.

"But I can. Join me and I can give you what he can't, revenge, respect, purpose… Freedom. Join me and I can show you a better world. A world where you are seen for who you are, not what. All I ask is that you stand down. Do not damage the image of your people further by following this… man." Mikael told them as he turned to Apocalypse who had finally managed to stand up. His frame seemed noticeably thinner, where once he towered over Mikael now he stood barely a head taller.

Apocalypse pushed his hand forward, firing another beam of energy that crashed into Mikael's outstretched hand. Mikael started to walk towards him and with each step the beam seemed to grow weaker. Apocalypse seemed to become thinner, his blue skin now turning grey and sickly. Mikael continued to draw closer and for but a brief moment Apocalypse seemed to see a large shadow behind expanding behind Mikael. A luminous humanoid figure with stars for eyes that stared down at him.

Apocalypse felt a hand grasp his as he returned to reality to see his own reflection in Mikael's visor. A flash of silver passed his eyes as a scorching pain ran up his arm. Apocalypse stumbled back as he looked down to see his left arm missing from elbow down. He gritted his teeth growling in pain as he looked up to see Mikael holding his severed arm in his hand. He watched as his arm shriveled up and turned to ash with a flash of blue fire.

"Ship! Bring me away from here!" Apocalypse called out into the air. A light appeared on the floating structure above them as his body began to glow. Apocalypse looked towards Mikael in rage as he growled. "I will return. And when I do I will destroy all that you care about."

Apocalypse had a sinister grin on his face as he grasped his left arm. He looked down briefly at his injury before he looked up again as he felt the space twist around him. Just as the teleportation sequence completed, a bewildered look took over his face as Mikael had disappeared from his location. As he felt the familiar pull on his body and he was pulled through space he felt something grasping onto his chest plate. He looked down just in time to see the form of Mikael holding on tight to his armor as suddenly their surroundings changed.

The two appeared in a large room filled with numerous technological instruments. Mikael let go of Apocalypse as he stepped back. He examined his surroundings before turning to the surprised face of Apocalypse.

"Is this a celestial ship? Looks rather bare. Nonetheless thank you. I was wondering how I would get on board." Mikael said with a grin that was hidden beneath his mask.

"Ship! Expel him and take us away from here!" Apocalypse cried out.

"Expelling the intruder now… Error. Systems…are…failing…" A mechanical voice called out before the lights on the inside started to flash and flicker violently. Apocalypse turned his head towards Mikael as he saw threads of bluish energy streaming from his left hand into the floor of the vessel. He watched in shock as the orange lights that illuminated the room slowly turned blue as the mechanical voice grew more and more distorted until it finally grew silent.

"Systems operational master. How might I assist you." A different voice soon echoed through the room. As Mikael finished overriding the sentient system with his power he turned to look at Apocalypse.

"Thank you for your kind donation to my cause. I'll be sure to put this vessel to good use." He said as he reached out a hand. Apocalypse suddenly found himself being pulled in Mikael's direction as his armored boots grinded against the metallic floor. He tried to stop his movement to no success as Mikael's hand once more found purchase on his chest plate.

He tried to swing his remaining arm in a desperate attempt to knock Mikael away only to feel as though his fist was passing through quicksand before it came to a halt inches away. He struggled to move away but it felt as though his body was held firmly in place by a massive hand. Blue flames wrapped around him as lightning began to flood through his body. He felt all the life force he gathered over the millennia, all the power, just bleed away as his body began to turn to ash and dust.

"Your death will pave the way for future. The future of mutants, of humans. Of Earth." Mikael whispered as he watched Apocalypse disintegrate with a silent roar. He closed his eyes and clenched his fist as he felt a small portion of the life force he drained being absorbed into his body, the rest having been dispersed back into the world.

"Ship, what functions do you have at this moment?" Mikael asked as he opened his eyes.

"Current available functions are cloaking, projections, teleportation and flight. Other systems are currently unavailable due to lack of materials and resources." The ships system responded.

"Projections. Can you make it appear as though you are being destroyed?"

"An easy task."

"Do it. I want the world to think you are being destroyed. Then I need you to open a way out for me. After I leave, cloak yourself and project an illusion of your total destruction. Use whatever materials are left to create some debris and scatter it. Once you're done teleport into orbit and remain cloaked."

"Understood. Is there anything else Master?" The voice asked once more, the lights flashing gently with each syllable.

"Do you have a way for us to communicate?" Mikael asked as he walked towards one of the walls as it began to split open in front of him before a small palm sized disc floated in front of him. Mikael reached out and grabbed it before looking it over.

"That acts as a communicator and teleport beacon. Is there anything else Master?"

"No Ship, that's all for now… I should give you an actual name instead just calling you ship." Mikael said pausing for a moment as he walked to the edge of the opening. The wind from this altitude caused his cloak to whip about violently.

"I will await your commands Master." Mikael heard as he stepped out of the ship and entered a free fall. The sounds and visuals of explosions accompanied by explosions of air filled the air behind him. Mikael turned to watch as the ship appeared to explode in a violent explosion while what looked like pieces of its hull followed him through the air. Mikael dived through the air as he began to see several vehicles along the edge of the battlefield. Mikael twisted his body in the air as he willed the force to slow his descent before finally he slammed into the ground in a three point landing. The ground cracked from his impact sending dust and sand into the air as debris crashed into the ground around him.

As the air cleared Mikael's form was revealed to the crowd that had now gathered on the edge of the battlefield. Mikael stood up and saw a few news crews running in his direction before he turned around to the mutants behind him.

"Return to the plane, get it ready to leave. That means you too." Mikael told the group as he turned towards the former horsemen. Without any objection they all quickly started making their way to the plane as the news crews finally closed the distance. Mikael turned to face them as he was immediately bombarded by questions.

"What happened here? Who were they? Who are you? Was that an alien ship?" The reporters asked as they constantly tried to talk over one another.

"A being known as Apocalypse arrived to conquer the earth. He conjured the storm to delay for time to extract his ship. We managed to make it in time to stop the storm from growing larger and stop his plans." Mikael answered before walking away.

"You still haven't told us who any of you are." One of the reporters yelled out as Mikael turned to leave. Mikael paused for a moment as he thought of an answer with a smirk on his face hidden by the mask.

"I am Archon. And we are just people trying to protect our world." Mikael answered over his shoulder as he vanished is a vortex of blue mist.