The Pryde

of Courtship

By Jake H.

 

Chapter 2

 

          In the artic fortress that he recently built in secret, Zal crafted his new hideaway as an exact replica that Kara had built so long ago. He favored being alone sometimes, but more importantly, he enjoyed the space it gave him over the tiny dorms at the school. Yes, the distance was roughly a couple of thousand miles one way to the school, but for someone who could fly at the speed of light and faster, who cared? It was 3 o'clock, and Zal had invited Kitty for a quick lunch after the computer class that he taught in the morning. They had just finished the spicy beef lo mien he had brought from Chinatown, when Zal led her by the hand and into the 'den'. He had noticed that she was wearing the Celtic amulet that he bought her all of the time now.

 

       The den was furnished traditionally for Kitty's sake, because the Kryptonian styles, decor, and furniture were just a little too alien to her. So, he had purchased a sectional sofa, tables, lamps, oriental area rug, and a satellite-linked home entertainment center. In the adjoining room, there was a lavish king-size bedroom suite. It was assembled in seconds on evening when Kitty was here and had mentioned that she was sleepy. He had left, purchased the entire room, and assembled it before she could ask what was going on. She now slept here on the weekends that she did not have watch duty at the mansion.

 

       Zal went over to his wine rack and pulled a bottle of champagne out. A quick blast of freezing breath and it was chilled to a perfect temperature. Even though Kitty was theoretically underage, being only 20, she drank periodically.

 

       "Mmmm, baby. What’s the occasion?" Kitty said as she sipped the cool, amber liquid.

 

       "Oh nothing. I just felt I needed to spend some time with my girlfriend."

 

       Kitty laughed at his struggle. "I know, I know Zal,” she said as she snuggled close to him. "I know it’s hard for you to understand my way of thinking. But remember, I do love you." She leaned into him and her lips found his. They broke after long moments, and were content to sit together and watch the news. They enjoyed each other’s company and would sit for hours just to be with one another. This of course made Jubilee a little jealous, and every time she saw them together, she would say something like 'I still saw him first' and would laugh. But, Jubilee knew they were happy and was happy for them.

 

       After about twenty minutes, Kitty sat up. "Zal, we gotta get back. You have a class to teach in half an hour, and I have watch duty tonight."

 

       "Again?" Zal asked. "I need to talk to Storm and see if I can get you out of all these..." Kitty glared at him.

 

       "Don’t you dare!" she said with mock anger. "It’s the only time I have to do my nails, and I am still trying to perfect my wristwatch computer."

 

       "Yeah, that's right. I forgot about that thing." Zal agreed. "Well, are you ready to go darling?"

 

       Kitty nodded. "Let me get my things.”

 

       Zal started walking to the foyer, and pulled out his cape. He did not feel like putting on his suit, but needed to protect Kitty from the force of his flight.

      

       "You know, Zal. You should probably start wearing your new suit. It does you justice." She had referred to the warlord-style suit that he was building after he was teased a bit about still wearing a suit that, in all aspects, acted like spandex for him.

 

       It was just a few weeks ago when Zal made his first public appearance as Superman here. He just happened to be in New York and walked right in the middle of an armored car hijacking. After making short work of the criminals, Zal allowed himself a short interview. When he got back to the mansion, Zal found Rogue, Gambit, and Logan watching the news about his deeds.

 

       After seeing himself on television, and a good laugh from his friends, Zal had decided that perhaps it was time that he change his look. He began making industrial diamonds again and trading them for raw Vibranium ore. He began forging a pair of spiked shoulder pads, another shield to go over his chest, connecting the pads. A pair of elbow-length glove shrouds and knee-high boot shrouds rounded out the ensemble.

 

       Zal had decided to use a silk cape exactly like his original on the suit. He had been thinking of fashioning Kitty a suit from the material to help protect her from flying with him, not to mention keeping her safe when she went on missions with the X-Men.

 

       Zal sighed at that last thought. He and Kitty had been growing quite close recently, and he was beginning to feel a bit more protective as time went on. Kitty was absolutely thrilled of having a guardian angel, and she was also growing very close to the young Kryptonian.

 

       "Kitty, you know I don’t want to attract too much attention. We are trying to keep the knowledge of my identity a secret after all." He wrapped the soft cloth around her and stole a quick kiss when he finished.

 

       "Hey!" she said playfully. "I can still get out of this, you know."

 

       "Hold on. We're gone."

 

        He picked her up and walked out of the fortress. Within 25 minutes he set it down on the roof of the dormitory, overlooking his now traditional open-air dojo. The class was already waiting, even though it didn't start officially for three minutes.

 

       "Looks like they are waiting for you." Kitty noticed some of the more promising students warming up the rest. She saw a young girl, no more than 14, which stood in the front, her arms crossed as she watched and counseled those who were making mistakes. Zal's pride swelled at her actions. "That's your best, isn't it?" she asked. Zal just nodded, watching them all. "Isn't she the one who is literally half-cat or something?"

 

       "Yeah. That’s her. She learns quickly, studies hard, and has reflexes better than mine under 'normal' conditions. Charles has told me that later in her life, her appearance will change. Bone structure, tail, and short fur over her entire body. She knows this and has accepted it. She constantly asks me to work with her on techniques so she can understand them better. She leads by example, helps instead of critiques, and strives to not let anyone get hurt practicing potentially lethal moves. She's...good."

 

       Kitty pulled him back from the ledge. "Hey buster! You're mine, and I don’t want her hands anywhere near you."

 

       Zal looked shocked. "Kitty, she's like only 14. I really don’t...."

 

       She put a finger to his lips to silence him, and laughed. "I'm just playing, sweetheart." She pulled him down and gave him a quick kiss. "Anyway, they’re waiting for you and I have to go relive Gambit."

 

       As she started air walking down to the ground, Zal shook his head. "Women...."

 

       "I HEARD THAT!" Kitty said without turning. Both smiled, and Zal flew down to start his class.

 

 

       Kitty strolled into the monitoring room where Gambit was reclining, watching the news. "What’s up, Remy?" she said as she picked up the logbook and started reading the entries.

 

       "Hey Cat." he said as he glanced in her direction. "Actually, yes. NASA has been monitoring three UFO's making sweeping patterns over the U.S. They began in San Diego and swept to Miami and back."

 

       Kitty looked over the report and frowned. "How long until they sweep over the mansion?"

 

       Gambit stood up and typed the calculations into the computer. "Bout two hours, Cheri. You give ole Gambit a call when they get close, Okay?"

 

       Kitty just rolled her eyes and pushed him out the door. "Ok, Remy. Go get some sleep." After he left, she sat down and reviewed the UFO's. They were looking for something, obviously. But what? She pulled out her tools and started working on her watch-sized processor.

 

       Meanwhile, Zal had split his students into pairs to work on strike/counterstrike moves. He had personally paired up with Sabrina, his best and assistant. On her request, they were working on multiple, simultaneous, strike/counterstrike moves. Zal was quick to realize that she was fighting extra vigorously today. And she had been practicing. She was using moves that the other students had not even seen yet. Zal intentionally slacked his defense for a moment to observe her motions. She quickly went into a roundhouse kick, aiming high. She followed it up with an elbow smash to the mid-torso.

 

       "Come on," Zal thought. "Too easily blockable." Then it dawned on him. The elbow was a feint. He quickly moved to catch her hand before it smashed into his larynx. She stopped, stood straight and bowed slightly.  "Sabrina, that was good. Improvisation, adaptation, I think you may be ready."

 

       She looked at him gleefully. "The first test, sensei?"

 

       Zal smiled and nodded. "Do you know what it means to pass such a test? It is a lifelong commitment."

 

       Sabrina nodded understanding. "Yes, Sensei. I would be honored."

 

       Then Zal got stern. "Then it is your responsibility to find a time. The entire class must be present, as you will be judged by your peers."

 

       "Yes, Sensei. I will let you know when."

 

       Just then the class stopped and looked around. They all heard the sounds of multiple jet engines flying over the complex, fade away and then come back again.

 

       Unconcerned, he turned to his students. "Class, continue your practice. It’s probably for the Professor, anyway." The student responded and began again. He had heard the craft land heavily on the other side of the school. After a few more words of praising Sabrina for her teaching ability, both her ears and his perked up. Zal started walking in the direction of the sounds of battle. He turned over his shoulder. "Sabrina, take over. Start basic katas until I return." He picked up his pace and ran to the other side of the school.

 

       When he got there, he saw three giant purple and black robots assaulting the X-Men. Storm was blasting one with lightning bolts, with no apparent results. Cyclops was blasting another, but was only succeeding in slowing it down. Marrow, Gambit, Forge and Magneto were attacking the last, but it seemed to be nullifying Eric’s powers, and was uninterested in the rest. The mansion defenses were taking shots at the, being manned by Shadowcat, but the robots were absorbing the hits as if they were non-existent.

 

       Zal, not knowing what a Sentinel was, walked up to the one Storm was attacking. "Excuse me? Do you mind telling me who you are?"

 

       The robot turned its attention to the man standing in front of it. A greenish ray enveloped Zal where he stood. In a very mechanical voice it said; "Alien life form. Various spectrums of solar energy will nullify." It raised an arm and fired a red laser-like blast at Zal. He dodged but the ground at his feet exploded.

 

       Zal glared at the robot. "You're toast!" His fist slammed into the Sentinels jaw. To Zal's amazement, it barely left a dent. "Obviously, I don’t need to hold back with these things, " he said under his breath. He flew around and slammed his fists into the back of its head, ripping a hole in the armor plate. The robot reached back and grabbed the jacket Zal was wearing, and with a quick motion, threw him at the ground. Zal hit headfirst and was buried up to the soles of his feet.

 

       Storm came around and hit the Sentinel in the hole Zal created with a lightning bolt. It immediately half-turned and blasted her with the red lasers it had adapted for the Kryptonian. She screamed in pain and fell into a nearby tree, unconscious.  When it turned to go back after its original target, it found Zal waiting. He ripped into the things chest plate and entered the cavity.

 

       What spectators and observers that were there, were astounded to see the giant robot stop and go into spasms as if it were possessed. After a few moments, it stopped completely and fell over on its back. Zal exited from the same hole he had made and flew over to Storm, checking to see if she was all right. Satisfied that she was going to live, he raced next to Scott, who was still occupying the second one. As Zal landed, he saw Scott blast the knees of the robot, knocking it over.

 

       "How did you do that, Zal?"

 

       Zal turned his heat vision on the monstrous machine.  "Here, it’s a gift." he said as he tossed down a sizeable computer circuit board.

 

       "What’s that?" Scott asked as he finally punched away an armor plate.

 

       "Logic board." he said as he neatly severed the leg from the robot. "Kind of hard for it to run if it doesn’t have anything controlling it." They both sighed as it turned thrusters and auxiliary boosters on, allowing it to remain standing. "What are these things, anyway?"

 

       "Sentinels. Robots built by the government to hunt down mutants. But, I think these might be Prime Sentinels." Scott said as he blasted it back again.

 

       "What’s the difference?" Zal asked as he combined his heat vision with Scott’s.

 

       "Primes are much harder, much tougher to put down. The Avengers took one on and lost.  But, I've seen Logan take a man-made one apart by himself."

 

       Zal paused for a second. "Scott, get your people out of here. I'll take care of these things."

 

       "But..."

 

       Zal interrupted him. "Go! And try to get Eric clear, I may need his help." Zal flew off and behind the one-legged robot, smashing it in the back of the knee. The robot stumbled and crashed onto its side. He instantly flew over and punched the emitter for the purplish ray keeping Magneto paralyzed and nullified. He punched again and the light flickered and went out.  "Get him out of range, let him recover!" he yelled at everyone, then turned his attention to both robots. "What do you want?!"

 

       To his amazement, one answered. "Mission Objective: Find and obtain former receptacle of the Phoenix Force."

 

       Scott turned at the comment. "Jean," he said softly. "Zal! They’re after Jean!"

 

       Zal was busy crushing the emitters that were firing bolts at him. These things obviously had the analysis right on him, but their weapons didn’t seem to adapt completely. The bolts hurt, but seemed to have no other affect, other than knock him around a bit. He was succeeding in occupying their attentions, but could not concentrate on one long enough to disable it without it regenerating the damage he caused.

 

       "Zal! What do you need me to do?!"

 

       Zal turned and glanced to where the voice was coming from, only to see Eric back on his feet. "Eric! Magnetize them together! I need then face to face!" the Kryptonian yelled as he got blasted in the back by the one he wasn't fighting.

 

       Magnetos eyes glowed for a brief second as both Sentinels came crashing together, their chest plates locked by an unnatural attraction. When the giant robots started to force their way apart, Zal flew between them and grabbed a handful of each of their armor. Looking up, he turned on his heat vision, full blast and concentrated on the biggest point where the two machines were joined.

 

       The observers could see the metal soften, and then flow like syrup down over the Kryptonian. The Sentinels brought everything to bear on him. The red, lancing bolts shot from their fingertips again and again, striking their assailant dozens of times. He still did not budge. He was now completely covered in the molten metal that flowed from the armor and external components of the robots. They had almost stopped struggling when, as a final desperate move, began rapid firing their blasts into him. The onslaught took its toll as Charles Xavier saw the young Kryptonian lose his grip and stumble.

 

       "This isn’t good." Zal thought to himself.  "Maybe those bolts were more adapted than I thought."

 

       Charles could tell that Zal was still semi-conscious, and was hurt. It appeared his powers were fading and probably would not be able to finish the job. The Sentinels were white-hot, and various pieces of them were melting rapidly and the resulting heat was catching the surrounding trees and shrubbery on fire. Grimacing at the collateral damage that this was causing, he turned to his guest.

      

       "Bobby, if you don’t mind, Freeze it. Freeze it all. Completely."

 

       Bobby Drake looked at his former teacher; "Professor, what about him? I could kill him doing that."

 

       The Professor shook his head. "No, I don’t believe you will. I think at the most, we will have to thaw him out again."

 

       Bobby shook his head. "Ok." he said in an I-hope-you-know-what-you-are-doing sound in his voice.  Starting at the ground, he began to flash-freeze everything. The molten metal fused together as it rapidly cooled. The Sentinels cracked, then shattered from the rapid change in temperature. The change also affected the Kryptonian, because he started to fall, but the metal around him froze, turning him into a silver-steel statue, with a solid steel mound completely encasing him below his waist. Bobby then quickly put out the brushfires.

 

       About that time, everyone present saw Shadowcat running to the scene, stopping next to Cyclops. "Is he alright?" she asked, not even breathing hard despite the run from Operations.

 

       Scott turned to her and shrugged. "Can’t tell. He's encased in metal. We are going to have to get blowtorches and crowbars to get him out. Unless of course he wakes up and gets out on his own"

 

       Kitty walked over and put her head into his chest. She looked around inside for a second and pulled out. "He's alright. His heart is beating and he's breathing regularly. But, we might have to start cutting him out in private. His clothes vaporized and I think he might want to maintain his modesty. I guess he should have worn his suit."

 

       Scott nodded and activated his visor. He cleanly cut the excess metal away below Zal's waist. One of the stronger students picked up the 'statue' and followed the X-Men to the workshop. Katherine, Scott, and Jean started slicing the metal off of Zal, while the rest of the X-Men took Storm and the other casualties to the infirmary. Storm was all right, but ended up with a welt on the side of her ribcage.

 

       Scott was peeling the metal off of Zal's back, when he started to stir. Kitty rushed to him and spoke softly. "Zal," she said, trying to get him to focus. "Zal, how are you feeling?"

 

       He lifted his head and groaned. "Like a Kandorian Muck Lizard stepped on my chest. How about you?"

 

       "Ha ha. Very funny, Mr. Comedian." Kitty said as she caressed his cheek. "Can you get out of this? It’s been a pain to try to cut the metal off."

 

       "Sure, can you get me something to put on?" He started to flex his arms and hands, and finally, his chest, until all of the metal had flaked off above his waist. He looked up at Kitty, who hadn't moved. Uh, darling?" he said when he noticed that she was staring.

 

       Kitty snapped out of it and headed to the door. "Sorry, honey. I was distracted." and darted out of the room.

 

       Zal smiled and shook his head as he began powderizing the metal stuck in his hair.

 

       "Zal," Jean said as she came into his view. "I want to thank you for saving my life. If it weren’t for you, they would have captured me."

 

       Scott took his friends hand and shook it. "Yeah, buddy. I don’t know what I would have done without you." Then he leaned forward and spoke lower. "But, I still need to find a way to beat you sometime." Both men laughed as Jean just rolled her eyes.

 

       "Men..." she said with a sarcastic smile on her features.

 

       Kitty ran back in carrying Zal's gym shorts and t-shirt. "Here ya go, baby."

 

       "Thanks." Zal quickly shattered the remaining metal and before they could recover, was dressed. "Now then. Will one of you guys please answer me a question?"

 

       "Sure. What’s up?" Scott said questioningly.

 

       "Does this sort of thing happen often here?'

 

       All three X-Men burst out laughing. Zal just stood there with a confused smile, but said nothing.

 

       Finally, Jean stopped. "Actually, things like this happen here on a regular basis. It must be your good luck to be here for some of them."

 

       Zal smiled, but his thoughts were elsewhere. "Well where is the best restaurant in the world?"

 

       Before she could answer, a Cajun voice broke in. "That would be on Bourbon Street, Mon Cheri." Gambit said to the startled X-Man. But her eyes lit up at the suggestion, and turned back to her boyfriend. "Sounds great to me."

 

       Zal nodded and headed for the door. "Then please be dressed in your finest tomorrow night, Kitty. That’s where we will be going. I'll be at home until then." He walked outside and flew north.

 

       The next day Jean and Jubilee were helping Kitty into her dress. She had received notification from Zal that he had rented a Leer Jet to take them to New Orleans instead of flying them there himself. She was a little anxious and worried. There was something in his voice when he called.

 

       "This must be something really special, Katherine. "Jean said, snapping Kitty from her thoughts.

 

       "Yeah, I just don’t know what or why. He's extravagant, but rarely so secretive."

 

       Then Jubilee broke into the conversation. "Well, I think you are about to find out. He's here."

 

       Kitty hurriedly got her shoes on and walked downstairs to meet him. He was wearing his trademark solid white tuxedo. In his hand he held a single small ruby-red rose. When he handed it to her, she found it was solid crystal. "Zal, this is beautiful."

 

       "Not as beautiful as you are, my dear." He picked her up and took off slowly to the south. He landed at a private airport and escorted her onto the plane. Within minutes they were airborne and on their way. They chatted, sipped wine and flirted a bit, but soon they were in a landing pattern. On the ground, there was a waiting Ferrari. He helped her in and drove to downtown New Orleans. She picked a nice restaurant and they were seated immediately. She ordered a light meal of chicken alfredo while he had a filet mignon. They ate in relative silence until Kitty was finished eating, for that’s when Zal started.

 

       "Katherine, we've been together for three months now, and have been getting to know each other for the past five, and my feelings for you have not changed since the day I met you."

 

       "Since you met me?" Kitty’s thoughts drifted to the look he gave her in the boardroom when Kara introduced him to the X-Men.

 

       "Yes. Do you remember what you said to me before we escaped Arcade?"

 

       "Yes"

 

       "Does it still hold true?"

 

       "Zal, you know it does, with all my heart and soul."

 

       Zal stood up and walked around the table. Kitty's breathing got a bit quicker and grew shallow. "Kitty, I have loved you since I’ve met you."

 

       Shadowcat began to tremble slightly as Zal knelt in front of her. The entire restaurant, including the guests, the waitresses, the manager, and the chefs stopped to observe the moment. Zal pulled out a black velvet box from his pocket. He opened it to reveal a diamond solitaire. The diamond had been specifically cut in the El family crest.

 

       "Katherine Pryde," he said boldly. "Would you allow me the honor of taking your hand in marriage?"

 

       A single tear rolled down her face. She wiped it away and nodded her head. "Yes." she whispered. "Yes, I will." She embraced him as the entire restaurant broke into cheers and applause.

 

               

End of Chapter 2 of The Pryde of Courtship!