ISSUE #8

" He, so this is selene's great plan, an island full of the undead. Well, it looks like we've got our work cut out for us."

Logan said as he and the rest of X-Force looked upon the island full of undead mutants.

" These are our people. How could selene do this?"

Stryfe asked.

" Because she is a cold hearted and selfish bitch. But that changes today. After today she'll be a dead cold-hearted bitch."

Domino explained.

" We'll get selene. But first we got to get to Warpath. And there's only one way to do that, and that's through the crowd of undead. We'll have to fight close and watched each other's backs for this to work. got it?"

Logan asked the group, getting nods of approval from everyone but stryfe.

" No! I can handle this alone. The rest of you stand back and watch the show."

Stryfe said to the group.

" You're going to take on all of these guys by yourself? Now, this I gotta see."

Domino said with a grin on her face.

" Nathan, no. Don't be careless."

Laura said to the man.

" Laura, I can handle this. For the first time since I got my powers I have a chance to really cut loose. We can't afford to give selene time to do whatever the hell it is she came here to do. My powers are best suited for fighting out in the open. Now, I don't have to worry about my teammates or civilians getting caught up in my attacks."

Stryfe explained to the group.

" But..."

Laura tried to argue.

" He's right Laura. We can't afford to dance around this, if the kid says he can handle it then he can handle it. Do it kid."

Logan stated.

Nathan clapped his hands together and then held them out above his head. He took a deep breath and let out the loudest roar he's ever released. Soundwaves rippled and tore apart the ground below him tearing apart a massive portion of Selene's undead army. Once Nathan was done a massive portion of island had been blown completely away.

" What kind of power was that?"

Domino asked as she and the others looked on in shock at the sheer devastation of Stryfe's last attack.

" How many killed with one attack?"

Vanisher asked.

The undead that hadn't been killed in that last attack turned and looked for the ones who had attacked them. However as they moved to attack a beam of light enveloped the island and the undead started to drop.

" Wow! You did it!"

Josh yelled.

" Josh, that wasn't me. I don't know what that was. But I just know it's going to be bad."

Stryfe explained.

" You have no idea, how right you are."

Warpath stated as he and Vanisher appeared behind the group.

" James? What happened?"

Logan asked.

" Selene, she absorbed the souls of the undead. She used them to become a god."

Warpath explained shocking the group.

Across the world sorcerers of great power all felt the sudden shock of Selene's might. Those who were hit the hardest by Selene's new powers were those who were the ones who could have fought back against her. Dr. Strange. Victor von doom. and Doctor Voodoo. All powerful sorcerers in their own right were suddenly attacked by selene.

" What do we do now?"

Domino asked

" Now, I show all of you how to kill a god."

Warpath stated.

After explaining to the group everything his brother had said to him during their fight, James and the rest of X-Force painted their faces black and white, ready to face selene and her forces that remained.

" If she's as strong as you say she is my attacks, might be useless against her. But at the very least I can keep her distracted until the rest of you deal with her forces. Wither is still injured and only Blink, bard, and lois remain."

Stryfe explained.

" Yeah. Let's go get these bastards."

Wolverine stated as he led the group towards their final destination together.

In Selene's tower, selene and her forces basked in the light of their victory.

" We're going to die here, aren't we?"

Lois asked as she and the others looked upon selene's new form.

" We're not going to die; we're going to be rewarded. Selene needs us. She won't forsake us."

Kevin stated as he blindly believed in the selfish woman he loved.

" It's done. I retrieved as many of the slaves as I could."

Blink said as she arrived in the room.

" As many as you could? Who's still out there?"

Kevin asked, however having been one of them at one point he soon realized who was left on the Island.

" No!"

And just as Kevin spoke that one-word X-Force arrived and the battle began. Stryfe Immediately moved to engage Selene in battle punching the woman in the face.

" You annoying ant! You dare strike a god?!"

Selene yelled as she blasted the man away from her. However, Stryfe emerged from the blast seemingly unharmed.

" How?! How can you not be harmed? You should have burned in that attack!"

Selene yelled.

" Lady, I've been burned by a guy that was as hot as the sun. Fire no longer hurts me."

Stryfe stated boldly.

" But let's see if sound hurts you!"

Stryfe yelled. He snapped his fingers and set off mini sound explosions near the woman.

" Ugh! You bastard!"

Selene yelled. though the attacks pushed her back, she was still unharmed.

On the other side of the battle Josh had engaged his former friend Kevin in a heated battle of Josh's healing vs Kevins whither. Life vs Death in a fight for dominance over the other.

" Do you know how long that killing you was all I could think about? And now I'm going to do it. Laurie is dead because of you! You didn't protect her! I would have! You never cared about her foley... You're supposed to save people... And you let her die! You deserve this foley... You deserve what's coming to you!"

Kevin yelled at Josh as they locked hands with each other. Kevin seemingly had been winning their battle that is until Josh's skin turned black and his power over death emerged.

" I loved her too Kevin."

Josh said to the boy as his powers started to overwhlem Kevin.

" What... What's happening? How... How is this... No! No! Hosh! Stop!"

Kevin pleaded as his body began to turn to ashes.

" I'm sorry."

Josh said as he killed his former friend.

The rest of X-Force had similar luck with Laura, Vanisher, and Archangel injuring blink. And James finally killing and freeing his brother James from Selene's servitude.

" Okay, guys I know I'm strong, but I really need some help here. Whatever she's hitting me with now... it's tearing through my defenses. If we're going to kill her we have to do it now!"

Stryfe yelled.

Archangel immediately moved to help the man and distracted Selene.

" Your soul... I cannot feel it. None of them... Why?"

Selene asked

" Because you are weak!"

Archangel yelled as he slashed selene in the face.

" Nyearrrrh! Away. If I cannot feed on your soul. Then I will have to be satisfied with burning the flesh off your bones. Do you truly believe your claws and knives and guns or even your sound can kill me? I am a goddess!"

Selene yelled as she attacked X-Force with all of her might.

" Elixir. X... Go! X take her."

Logan yelled as he and Stryfe dodged the woman's attacks.

Josh latched onto the woman and tried using his powers over death on her, but it seemed to have no effect. Laura lunged at her and tried to cut her, but was cut open herself.

" X!"

Nathan yelled as the woman was sent flying, a massive hole in her stomach.

" ARGH!"

Nathan grunted as he slammed his fist into the woman's gut knocking the wind from her.

" I... am beyond this realm! I am beyond Human and Mutant! I am Selene! I am-"

Selene was yelling before Warpath cut her off.

" We got it you're Selene. Now how about you shut the hell up goddess and get ready to die."

Warpath stated boldly.

" Hold her!"

Logan yelled as he jumped onto the woman.

Nathan jumped onto one of her arms and held it in place keeping her from blasting the others briefly. Logan grabbed the other, while everyone else held onto her legs, keeping her in that one spot to Allow Warpath the opportunity to drive Selene's own blade into her heart.

" I... I am... I am a god... How can this... This is wrong... This is not how things were meant to be... I am supposed to be-"

Were Selene's dying words. She shortly exploded into a bright light and was gone from this world.

" Everyone okay?"

Logan asked.

" Yeah."

" Hmhmm."

" Present."

" I hate all of you."

" Pays to be lucky."

X-Force all groaned as they got to their feet.

The group looked on as James said goodbye to the spirit of his brother.

" Can we get the hell out of here now?"

Vanisher asked.

" Yeah, let's go home."

Logan said to Vanisher. And in a blink of the eye X-Force was off towards utopia.

Once they were settled back in at their base Laura and Nathan had a serious talk about their future with X-Force.

" Laura, we need to talk."

" Nathan, we need to talk."

Laura and Nathan both said at the same time.

" Uh you go first love."

Nathan said to the woman giving her the go ahead to speak first.

" It's about X-Force. Logan doesn't want me on the team anymore and I agree with him."

Laura stated.

" He! I was thinking the same thing love."

Nathan replied.

" You were? I thought you liked working with X-Force."

Laura asked.

" I like working... Being with you Laura. I don't care about X-Force. I only joined X-Force to stop Risman. Now that he's dead and most of the threats to Mutant kind have been put on the backburner, I don't have a reason to stay on this team anymore."

Nathan explained to the woman.

Laura hugged Nathan tightly letting him know she loved him.

" I'm leaving."

Laura stated

" I'm coming with."

Nathan replied as he leaned towards Laura's lips.

" It will be hard."

Laura stated again, closing the distance even more with the man.

" But we'll be together every step of the way."

Nathan said as he finally kissed the woman.

The two stayed like that for what felt like forever before Laura finally pulled back, a single line of saliva was the only thing keeping the two lips connected.

" Thank you."

Laura said.

" Do you mind if I give Scott one last fuck you before we leave?"

Nathan asked.

" I'd be shocked if you didn't"

Laura stated. She hugged the man and smiled when he told her what he was going to do.

A few hours later Cyclops and the rest of the mutants who were residing in Utopia looked out of their windows to see Tiny Dick Summers! Written on the biggest building, and with it was signed Soundwave Back online!

After nearly a year, Nathan had finally decided to leave the pain of Stryfe behind and with his last fuck you to Scott looked forward to his future with Laura as the two began a new journey together. As good as things seemed on the bright side, lurking in the dark were Mutant kinds deadliest enemies. Bastion the newly revived sentient robot. Hope and Cable still running in the future. The phoenix force. The Shi'ar. And more setting their sights on earth in the future. Will the X-men be able to combat these forces? Or will they fall?