It was another late night, and once again Cessily was having troubles with sleeping, her nightmares still haunting her vividly.
Julian approached Cessily's room and slowly opened the door to see Ian inside tucking her back into bed.
" How is she doing?" He asked.
Ian turned to Julian and put his finger on his lip, telling the boy to quiet down. He then slipped out of the room and joined Julian in the Hall.
" She's not doing good." Ian told the boy. He had just finished checking in on her after she awakened yelling once again.
" Man, she's getting bad. I know what she went through was bad and all. But I had hoped she'd be over this by now." Julian spoke. He rubbed his head softly and looked in at Cessily as she shook in her bed.
" Cessily's strong, Julian. But what she went through was far more painful than anything you can imagine. But I'm to tell you the truth, I'm beginning to think the woman we knew is gone, that the Cessily we knew died in that facility." Ian told the boy.
" Don't be ridiculous. She's strong. She'll get over this. I know it. I mean how did you do it?" Julian asked.
Ian looked at Julian and just shook his head.
" I didn't."
With that said, Ian walked away leaving Julian to watch after Cessily.
Ian stumbled down the hall, still thinking about Cessily and her situation when he absentmindedly bumped into someone along the way.
"Ow." Down on the ground, Ian saw Ruth rubbing her head.
" Oh dear. Sorry Ruthie. Are you alright?" Ian asked the girl as he reached his hand down to help the girl up to her feet.
Ruth smiled and grabbed Ian's hand and the boy pulled the girl up right.
" Excuse me? Yes. She says sorry, she wasn't paying attention."' Ruth told the boy.
" I'm glad you're okay Ruthie, but what are you doing up so late?"Ian asked the girl.
"Pardon! Yes, she wanted to see how you were doing, Ian." Ruth told the boy. She looked up at him and smiled brightly.
Ian returned the smile. Looking down at her, Ian couldn't help but notice how cute she was. Not cute in just an attractive way, but more of an innocent, cute as a button, look.
" Oh, I'm doing alright, Ruthie. Just finished checking up on Cessily. Besides, I wasn't really hurt that badly. Just a few gashes, and scratches. I'm already healed up." Ian told the girl. He patted himself on the chest proudly but stopped when he saw Ruth frowning.
" Pardon? Yes, she knows physically you are okay. But she did not mean here." Ruth spoke. She then raised her right hand and placed it softly on Ian's head. " She meant here. Pardon? Yes, she hasn't spoken too you much, but she worries about your health." Ruth told the boy.
Ian was stumped. "What did she say" He wondered.
" Pardon. You are confused. She sees it often. Always looking out for others, with no one to look out for you. She says, everyone always assumes you are okay. She did too. But now she sees differently. She says, everyone always asked the wrong question. That because you laugh and smile, and because you heal, that you must be okay. But she knows it is wrong. Pardon? Yes! She says, everyone asks if you are okay physically. But no one ever asks how you are feeling here. So, she asks instead, are you okay?"
Ian didn't know how to respond to such a thing. He grabbed Ruth's hand and lowered it from his head silently and placed a gentle peck on the back of her hand and cracked her a small smile.
" Thank you, Ruth. But I'm fine." Ian told the girl. He then stepped past her and continued on down the hall still smiling.
Ruth not once in her life could see. She was blind. Born without sockets for her eyes, meaning she would never be able to see. And despite all of that she sees everything. Yes, she does. She sees and if not for the fact that she didn't have eyes, she would cry. Words could not hide the truth. Not from Ruth, for she could see the truth. In fact, she had personally seen it for herself.
" Excuse me? Yes, what was once whole, is splintered, fractured. Still so many pieces left scattered. An image of a hero hides the injured soul. A mask, yes?" At that moment Ruth suddenly had a vision.
In the middle of a burning city, on one side two machines, on the other a familiar shape.
" This ends now, Bastion. And you Karima, you did not ask for this. They took your body and twisted your mind. I promise to set you free from this."
" You shouldn't make promises you can't keep. Today that girl dies." Bastion told the man.
" Hope is the last chance my people have at surviving. She's prophesized to bring about the return of the mutant race. So many of my friends have died these past few days trying to keep this girl safe. Kurt, Ariel, Cable, Laura, Domino, Logan, Josh. I'm not letting you take another."
" You are wounded and weak. You're only reinforcements, the poor king of Atlantis, is currently in the bottom of the San Francisco Bay. The Avengers are trapped outside, and the X-men are all too occupied with my army to send help. You're all alone. And now, you will be destroyed."
" You think you can kill me, Bastion? You can't. You may be able to destroy this body of mine. But what I represent is far more powerful than any physical quality. I stand now for the hopes and dreams of my people. Do you understand me, now? I am that tiny thought in the back of every mutant's mind that there is a brighter tomorrow for us all. I am the spark in the dark that will ignite the raging inferno of our kind. Kill me? You think death scares me? I've seen death one too many times now, machine. I adapt to it. And so do you. But unlike you, machine, I've become more than what my programming makes me. Heh heh heh!"
" Such bravado. But it is meaningless. There is nothing left for you or your kind."
" We'll see about that."
" Your death is imminent."
" Even if I am to die today, if I can save these people, my people, from you Bastion... Then I will have earned my right to retire from this world."
" No more words, mutant! TIME TO DIE!"
The two sentinels rushed the man, ready to kill.
" HAAAAAAAA!" The man raised his one good arm and fired a small energy blast into the ground below him: creating a dust cloud and jumping into the air, as the machines landed in front of him.
And the vision ended.
Ruth stood in the hallway, breathless and sweating.
" Excuse me! Yes, Unpleasant." Ruth stated. She didn't understand what she saw. Her visions were always incomplete, with very little information to help piece together what exactly is going on. But for a moment she could swear she recognized the shadowed man's voice.