Rogue Replacement: A Marvel Story

Chapter 85 - Part 4/5

Arc 7 - Ch 2: Opening Day

Date: Monday, August 29, 2011.

Location: Midtown, Manhattan, New York

Jessica's voice grew softer, a note of sadness creeping in. "That day they let us out… It was the same day that Gwen's father was killed. I saw it on the news."

Tyson's eyes widened as understanding dawned on his face. Jessica had been released the same day as the imposter, Kaine. She would have inherited memories of being with Gwen. Knowing what happened must weigh on her just as much as it did him.

Jessica confirmed Tyson's suspicions, "When I went to register, Kaine went to Gwen's apartment. I wanted to attend the funeral, offer condolences, and do something. But how could I? I wasn't the person they knew or who knew Gwen."

Jean reached out, placing a comforting hand on Jessica's arm. "That must have been incredibly difficult," she said softly. "To have all those memories, those feelings, but to know you couldn't act on them."

Jessica nodded, blinking back tears. "It was like... like watching a movie of someone else's life, but feeling every emotion as if it were my own," she explained. "I grieved for Gwen, for her father, but I felt like an imposter. Like I didn't have the right to those feelings."

"You shouldn't feel guilty for caring, for feeling that loss," he said softly.

She took a deep breath before continuing. "The next time they let us out, I went to pick up school supplies," she said. "But when I came back, the lab was abandoned. I don't even know who was behind making the clones. The only person I know was Dr. Warren, the lead scientist."

"Dr. Warren," Tyson repeated, trying to place the name but drawing up a blank. "I'll look into it. Maybe we can find some answers."

"I'd like that," she admitted. "But at the same time... I'm scared of what we might find. What if knowing the truth makes everything more complicated?"

"Even if the truth is difficult, it's better than uncertainty. And whatever we find out, you won't have to face it alone." Jean offered.

As Jessica looked around at her newfound friends, she felt like she finally had people in her corner, people who understood the complexity of her situation and accepted her for who she was and whoever that turned out to be.

"Thank you. For listening and not treating me like some freak or imposter."

"Hey, we're all freaks here," Jubilee said, "That's what makes us awesome."

"She's not wrong. Normal is overrated anyway." Tyson added.

Jubilee's eyes lit up with mischief as she interjected, "But that's not the whole story! You left out the part about dating Felicia, who you caught robbing Oscorp as the Black Cat, then started dating. And the hot teacher superspy, House of M, and the ninjas!"

"Felicia did what? And the hot teacher..." Jessica mumbled, her voice trailing off as realization dawned on her face. "Miss Rushman? Has to be Miss Rushman."

"Definitely Miss Rushman," Tyson confirmed.

Jubilee playfully slapped his arm, rolling her eyes at their apparent shared appreciation. Tyson shrugged sheepishly.

"So, what's the story with Miss Rushman?" Jessica asked.

"She wasn't really a teacher. She was a spy, sent to Midtown to keep an eye on me because I robbed the Federal Reserve. She was there the night we took down the Green Goblin and took him into custody."

Jessica nodded slowly, trying to reconcile this new information with her inherited memories.

"And House of M?" she prompted, remembering Jubilee's earlier comment.

"House of M is where I run my illusion shows. It used to be an old armory under the control of a mob boss who was coercing Felicia into working for him as his own personal cat burglar. I coopted the property and Felicia from his control. We've turned it into something pretty special."

"And the ninjas?" Jessica asked skeptically.

"Well, when I was training martial arts, the instructor was part of a sect of ninjas," he explained casually. "A whole pack of them tried jumping me after class. It was a good time. One of them is my personal bodyguard and teaches martial arts lessons at House of M now."

Jessica fixed Tyson with a deadpan stare, trying to gauge if he was joking. But his expression remained earnest, if a bit amused. It was strange to hear about events she should have known about but didn't.

He seemed to sense her unease. "I didn't know about your existence until graduation," he said. "J. Jonah Jameson told me, of all people."

Jessica snorted, the absurdity cutting through her melancholy. "So, let me get this straight. While I was... well, while Spider-Man was swinging around New York, you were robbing banks, dating cat burglars, fending off ninja attacks, and putting on elaborate illusion shows?"

Tyson grinned, spreading his hands in a gesture of mock innocence. "Technically, I robbed the Fed before you became Spider-Man."

Jubilee chimed in. "Don't forget about the hot spy teacher. We met her at the opening of House of M back in April. The only reason I'm not mad at him about it is because I can't blame him, she was pretty hot."

Jean rolled her eyes, but there was fondness in her expression. "I think we can all agree that Tyson's high school experience was... unconventional," she said diplomatically.

Jessica shook her head. "And here I thought being bitten by a radioactive spider was exciting."

Sparkles danced around Jubilee's fingers as she excitedly took over the storytelling. "Since you left off on graduation, I'll pick it up from there. So, I went to the graduation ceremony. That girl, Gwen, gave a sweet speech. That night, we went out to an underground club I found online." Jessica leaned forward as the young mutant's voice dropped to a dramatic whisper. "Everything was going well until blood started raining from the sprinklers!"

Jessica raised an eyebrow. She was skeptical, but she'd seen Jublee's fangs, so why not?

"Turned out everyone in the club was vampires," Jubilee explained, her hands gesticulating wildly. "They attacked us, but I used my blasts, and Tyson fought with his claws. It was super scary and exciting!" Her voice grew softer. "But I got bit," she admitted. "Then a vampire hunter showed up with a sword and gun and was all slice slice, bang bang. Tyson distracted him, and I escaped but hid my bite."

"The next morning, I realized Jubilee had been bitten," he added. "We went to see the sorcerers. They said they could cure her if I got the blood of a goddess."

"And Tyson knew there was a goddess on Earth!" she exclaimed. "She has a thing for Tyson, so we went looking for her."

Jessica held up a hand, halting the story. "None of that makes sense," she said, "Well, the vampires are somewhat believable. But a goddess? When did you meet a goddess?"

"Jubes jumped ahead in her excitement. I guess I should talk about what happened during the week of the Stark Expo."

Jessica had an idea of the events from watching the news when she first awoke in the lab but was eager to get first-hand accounting.

"Justin Hammer, CEO of Hammer Industries, broke out Ivan Vanko from jail. That's the guy you probably saw on the news that attacked Tony Stark during the Monaco Grand Prix."

Jubilee interjected excitedly, "We were there!"

Jean frowned. "I wasn't."

"Sorry about that. And for Illyana stealing your bathing suit." Tyson apologetically smiled before continuing, "So, Hammer had Vanko make all those drones that attacked Iron Man. It wasn't just me at the expo either. Iron Man was there, obviously, but so was War Machine, his partner or military counterpart. And I brought Spider-Man, too."

Jessica felt a strange disconnect when she heard about events she should have participated in but had no memory of. She pushed the feeling aside, focusing on Tyson's words.

"I had been working with SHIELD since the Green Goblin incident. After the Stark Expo, they found something strange in New Mexico, so I went down there. Turns out it was Thor's Hammer. Like the mythical Norse God, Thor. He's real, and he got banished to Earth and stripped of his powers. I helped him regain his hammer, then went back to their world, Asgard, with him and his friends to help fight his brother Loki, the God of Mischief. We battled, I lost, but I got his magically enchanted dagger."

Tyson pulled it out and held it up for Jessica to see. Jubilee proudly declared, "I named it Muse!"

Tyson rolled his eyes affectionately before continuing. "There was another Asgardian there. Her name was Amora. She's a magic user. While we were on Asgard, the machine they used to transport to Earth was destroyed, and only Amora and myself returned. So she's the 'goddess' I knew about."

Jessica's mind reeled as she tried to process this influx of information. Gods, alien planets, and magical daggers seemed so far removed from the life she thought she knew. She was just a friendly neighborhood Spider… Woman.

Tyson, seemingly oblivious to Jessica's inner turmoil, added casually, "Oh yeah, and after that, I fought that Abomination in Harlem."

"So, back to the story!" Jubilee exclaimed, caught up in recounting her adventure.

Jean held up a slender hand, the motion cutting off Jubilee's impending tale. "Jubes, we have to head back for our next class soon."

"Wait, just this last part, then we'll go," she insisted.

Jean sighed, knowing how single-minded her friend could be once invested in a story. She could play games all day long to finish a questline. Jean rolled her eyes in fond exasperation. "Fine, last part."

Jubilee grinned, happy to have a few more minutes to finish her account. She launched back into the tale, describing the continuing quest to find the Asgardian goddess.

"We knew Amora was on Earth but didn't know where. So we went to the Institute. The Professor has a machine that helps enhance psychic powers, like the one at Alkali Lake. So he used it to try to find Amora." She stopped and pointed at her friend. "Jean can explain what happened next."

Jean looked up, slightly startled at being put on the spot. She hadn't contributed much to the story yet. She knew Jubilee was dragging her in to the story to distract her from their upcoming class, but she played along and began recounting the events within Cerebro.

"Amora had some protection blocking us from locating her, but she was willing to speak with Tyson. But Tyson's psionic power is illusion-based. He's strong but not versatile as far as psionics go. It's unsuitable for using Cerebro in that manner, so he needed to link with someone else to communicate with Amora. Neither Tyson nor the Professor could work together like that after Alkali Lake. So I stepped in."

"We linked psionically, and it was an experience…" It was clear she recalled the events fondly, but after a moment, she continued, "Amora accepted our 'call'. She said she wanted to see Tyson grow stronger and that Jubilee would be stronger as a vampire. So she demanded that if we wanted her blood for the cure, Tyson himself would need to get stronger to pay the 'cost'."

Jessica gasped in understanding. "She wanted you to kill someone to save Jubilee?"

Tyson nodded solemnly. Jubilee chimed in, "So Tyson went and did something dumb."

"You didn't." Jessica accused.

"He asked me to locate some people for him," Jean explained with a sigh.

Tyson picked up the thread. "One of the people was the imposter. That was when we noticed you all shared the same psionic signature. Then I went after them. That was the day I ambushed you. I was looking for the imposter, err, for Kaine."

"I get it now," Jessica said softly. "You said you needed to help a friend." She looked to Jubilee, her expression filled with sadness and understanding.

"I couldn't find him, so I went after a superpowered rapist in Nevada."

Jean continued, "But we stopped him. Jubilee didn't want Tyson killing anyone for her. And none of us wanted Tyson absorbing a personality he'd have to wrestle with. So we fought."

Tyson's lips quirked into a rueful smile. "And I was doing alright, too. Holding off the whole team," he said with a hint of pride. "Until Jean stopped me. Like you said earlier, she's scary."

Jean rolled her eyes but still smiled.

Jubilee took over the storytelling once more, her voice growing somber. "We went back to the Institute and got married… But Tyson hadn't given up yet."

"You're married!" Jessica blurted out.

Jubilee flashed her fangs, reminding Jess she was a vampire. "Had a ring and everything. But it was made by one of the other students from really slow-melting ice; it only finished melting earlier today. Remember how marriage works. Till death do us part."

Jessica sobered. Turning to Tyson, she asked, "You didn't sneak out to try killing someone, did you?"

Tyson held his hands up in a placating gesture. "No. I looked up a magic tutor on Google and convinced her to train me. Then I contacted Amora and explained how I'd taken steps to get stronger. It wasn't how she wanted, but I made the case it met her requirements. And she accepted. She gave me her blood."

Jessica huffed, shaking her head in disbelief. "I admit, that might be your most clever move yet. But you probably should've started with that one," she commented dryly.

"I'm still learning magic, but intent and wording matters. Amora's requirements were specific, and she warned me that the alternative she accepted did not truly meet her mandate, and she gave me her blood as a favor," he admitted. "She also helped me when I was on Asgard. If I go to her for help again in the future, it might come back to bite me, or I may be in her debt. And I doubt she takes cash or debit."

Jubilee continued, her voice taking on a wistful tone. "But it was too late. In the car, on the way to the sorcerers, I died. Tyson brought me back to House of M and locked himself in a room with me until I rose."

Jessica was fully invested in the story now. "What happened next?"

Jubilee's eyes took on a dreamy quality. "It was like a vampire romance novel. I awoke, and Tyson bravely offered himself to me. And I drank my fill. Then seduced him." Jessica and Jean furiously blushed while Tyson groaned, burying his face in his hands. But Jubilee didn't stop, "When I touched him, and his power didn't work on me, I crawled into his lap and…"

"Whoa, okay, I think they get it." Tyson quickly jumped in, eager to move the conversation along. "But that vampire hunter from the club came to House of M looking for help. Jubilee and I assisted him in stopping a ritual that would've resurrected a blood god named La Magra."

"It was badass," she declared. "The ritual was complete, and this one drop of blood was falling from the ceiling. If it hit the bad guy, he would've turned into a god. But Tyson threw his weapon and hit the drop, trapping the blood god in the dagger! So now Muse is twice enchanted. It's definitely a gold or purple quality legendary item now." She nodded sagely. "Oh. And Tyson's blood is special. It lets me walk around in the day."

"That pretty much covers everything," Tyson said

Jean spoke up. "Up until this morning, anyway. But we've got to get to class."

As Jean and Jubilee stood to leave, Jessica's curiosity got the better of her. "What happened this morning?" she asked, her eyes darting between Tyson and the others.

Jubilee's expression turned serious, and a hint of frustration crept into her voice. "I know Tyson." Her voice dropped to a stage whisper. "He's not going to tell you because he doesn't want to put you at risk. He did the same thing to me."

Tyson groaned, his exasperation evident. "Jubes, really?"

Jubilee smiled smugly. "During this whole conversation, we've been talking about how Jessica is her own person, and I'm proud of you as my boyfriend for not being judgemental and supporting her. So tell her what's going on and let her make her own decisions. And stop being too proud to ask for help."

As Jubilee and Jean said their goodbyes and left, Jessica turned to Tyson with an expectant look. He shifted in his seat under her focused intensity.

"After everything I've heard today, I'm pretty sure I can handle whatever you throw at me," she said challengingly.

"Fair enough," he conceded. "This morning, I noticed something... off about Felicia. She didn't smell like herself. Instead, her scent was that of Mystique. The shapeshifter who, along with Magneto, tried to kidnap me last year. I believe the real Felicia has been captured and replaced. They're coming for me again, likely tonight."

Jessica sat back sharply, her mind reeling as she absorbed this revelation. "And you weren't going to tell me about this?" she demanded, accusation creeping into her tone. "We've been in here for hours having lunch. Why weren't you going after her and getting Felicia back?"

Tyson had the grace to drop his gaze briefly. "Jubilee was right. I wanted to protect you. You've already been through so much, and I didn't want to burden you with this. Plus, I didn't know how this conversation would go. This is my fight." He admitted quietly. "You heard the story. Magneto is my perfect counter. But I've been preparing for him. I have a trap set at House of M… It's the only way I'll be able to win. I want to get Felicia back, but if I went after Mystique now, I might lose my chance to save her.

Jessica spoke her thoughts aloud, her voice tinged with frustration and understanding. "You didn't tell me because you don't know me and aren't trying to burden me with your problems. But you never asked Peter for help either. I, rather, he didn't even know all that other stuff was happening."

Tyson objected, "I called him during the Stark Expo. He was there when the Hammer drones attacked."

Jessica pressed on. "Did you ask Peter to help tonight?" she demanded, her eyes searching his face for answers.

"No."

"Why not?" she asked, softening slightly but still challenging.

"Pete's been having a hard time recently," he explained, "He's been searching for Kaine, and he broke up with Gwen. Spider-Man's reputation has been tanking, and the only saving grace has been that he doesn't have to worry about money because I pay him royalties for House of M's shows."

Jessica mumbled under her breath, "That makes one of us."

Tyson's enhanced hearing caught her words. "Where do you live?" he asked, suddenly concerned. "I know you're not staying with Aunt May."

She shifted uncomfortably in her seat, avoiding his gaze. "I have a place in Brooklyn," she said. Tyson continued to stare at her, his silence prompting her to elaborate. "It's a studio in Bed-Stuy."

"If money is a…" he began, but Jessica cut him off sharply.

"No, thank you," she said firmly.

"And stop deflecting. We were talking about you." Her eyes locked onto Tyson's, unwavering in their intensity. "So you're not going to ask Peter to come help you?"

Tyson remained silent, his internal struggle playing out across his face. Jessica's expression hardened. "You're going to call him, and you're going to ask him to come help because I know that he'd want you to. You can't deny this. I was him."

She crossed her arms defiantly, the action accentuating her bust. Tyson's eyes were drawn to the movement, trailing down before quickly snapping back to her face. Jessica raised an eyebrow, her expression a mixture of amusement and challenge, unperturbed by his stare.

"Well..."

Her tone was expectant as she waited for Tyson to pull out his phone. Tyson hesitated for a moment. Finally, with a resigned sigh, Tyson pulled out his phone. He dialed Peter's number. The phone rang once, twice, three times before heading to voicemail.

"He didn't pick up. I'll call back in a few minutes."