[Age Of Apocalypse] - The Apocalypse War VI - Aftermath I

Val gazed at the people staring at him with a smile when suddenly,

"Ooof!" Val felt somebody hug him tightly and saw Mystique clinging to him.

"I-I thought y-you were d-dead!" Mystique hugged him and cried.

"I'm alive. I'm alive. Don't worry." Val patted her head, hugging her back, and whispered, "Besides, I always repeated a joke, right?"

Mystique sniffed and replied, "Yeah, the joke was like, 'Did you really think that killing me was enough to make me die?' "

"Doesn't that joke apply here?" Val laughed and whispered.

Mystique smiled and stopped crying but still hugged him tightly.

"Arrggh.. could you stop squeezing me like that? It's not a hug! You're squeezing me to death! Ooouf... I'm seriously going to choke..." Val said while trying to lighten the mood.

Mystique laughed and hit him lightly on the chest, but still, she didn't let go of him, "Idiot!"

Wolverine and Sabertooth, too, walked over and hugged him.

Val looked around him and saw Banshee, Hank, Havok, and the other X-Men staring at him with slight tears. He smiled and gestured toward him, and they all hugged.

One of the people in the crowd quickly took out a camera and snapped a photo of the big, warm hug shared by everyone.

A few seconds later, they parted, and Val looked around him, seeing their smiling faces, happy to see him alive. A small drop of tear escaped his eyes, and he wiped it away quickly.

Suddenly, he heard a loud clapping sound and looked around, only to see Bob holding a megaphone while looking at him with an amused expression, "Ahem! Sorry for being rude, but I couldn't keep it in."

Val squinted his eyes and pointed at him, asking, "Bob, isn't it?"

Bob jumped, seeing Val knowing his name, and nodded. He held the megaphone before his mouth and again said, "That was probably the most badass and most awesome thing I have ever seen in my entire life. Congratulations, and we are happy to see you alive, Starlance! Well, sadly, nobody had the foresight to bring a cake..."

Suddenly, the crowd came alive, and people began clapping while bursting into celebration. Somebody from the group brought out cans of coke.

Wolverine asked Val, "Why do I feel so strange in the chest?"

Val laughed and replied, "You mean it's not the cake but your tears?"

"Yeah... Yeah, whatever." Wolverine crossed his arms and looked away.

Val sighed and patted him on the back. Sabertooth laughed, hearing their banter, and began handing out the cans to everyone.

Not long after, the people in the crowd each took a can of Coca-Cola in their hands and shouted aloud, "CHEERS TO STARLANCE!! A TRUE HERO!"

"No!" Val shook his head and shouted, "Cheers to the X-Men! Cheers to the C.I.A! Cheers to S.H.I.E.L.D.! Cheers to... EVERYBODY!!"

"YAAYYY! WOOHOOOO!"

* FWOOSH *

Then, the people opened their cans and drank with everyone to celebrate that the world had one less Evil Mutant to worry about.

Val saw Charles in a wheelchair being pushed by Jean while Emma walked beside them. Charles had a kind smile on his face as he looked at Val. When he came near Val, he stopped and smiled wider.

Seeing Charles, Val raised his fist, and the two bumped fists.

Val looked at his shiny, bald head and sighed heavily, saying, "I'll miss your hair!"

Charles sighed and rubbed his palm along his head, and said, "Yeah.. me too."

Val praised Jean and Emma, saying, "Both of you did a good job. Thanks for saving the bald head here."

Jean slightly blushed due to his praise, but Emma pouted and looked away.

Charles rolled his wheelchair back and gestured for Emma to go forward.

Emma rolled her eyes and spoke in a sassy tone, "Even though I don't like you, I have to say thank you very much."

He nodded and said, "Well, the feeling is mutual. So, no harm done."

"Jerk.", Emma muttered under her breath and looked at Jean, glaring at her.

She held up both hands and said, "Oh, fine! I was just kidding, okay. Stop acting like an old hag like our bald egghead over there."

Both of them laughed out loud after listening to Emma.