The Shadow King falls!

"Emma -- Jean -- you have no idea how glad I am to see you," PG remarked.

"You can thank Dr. Clay for that," Frost replied as she blasted Carol's body, sending the construct flying. "Because of her, you weren't hard to find."

"I see. I owe you, Lilith," PG remarked, looking back towards her partner, who simply gave her a nod. "And this must be Psylocke."

"A pleasure," the blade-wielding mutant answered simply as she cut through the twisted forms of the X-Men's allies the Shadow King had conjured.

"We'll deal with the Shadow King -- you go and help Rogue," Jean instructed as the astral form of the Phoenix surrounded her. "You've got the best chance of getting through to her."

"Understood," PG answered, turning her attention back to Rogue, who was on her knees, being berated by a construct of Mystique.

"Just give up. Otherwise, your powers will destroy everything you hold dear," the imposter Mystique told Rogue. "You know you'll never fully--"

"--Shut up." PG interrupted, punching the faux Mystique in the jaw and shattering the astral projection. "Rogue... can you stand?" she asked as she extended her hand.

Rogue looked up at PG, her eyes full of fear and uncertainty. "What I did to Carol... that's what happens when I touch someone. I'm... I'm too dangerous..."

"Rogue, look around," PG insisted, gesturing towards the other women, who were busy battling the Shadow King and his projections. "Those are some of the most powerful telepaths in the world. I'm an alien with the strength to move planets. You don't think any of us have ever worried about losing control? About hurting others? Do you think we're monsters?"

"No..." Rogue answered.

"I know you've always carried that fear and guilt around. But Carol forgave you, didn't she? Did she not look you in the eyes and say so?" PG continued.

"Yeah... yeah, she did," Rogue recalled, the memory of that conversation with the Avenger returning to her.

"Exactly. And you're so close to finally being able to fully control your powers, to touch other people, without hurting them..." PG continued, gently caressing Rogue's cheek. "We've come so far. We've discovered so much about you. There's only one last thing you need to do, Rogue... forgive yourself. If Carol can forgive you, then why can't you forgive yourself?"

"She was in my head for so long," Rogue whimpered. "She hated me for what I did. If it weren't for Charlie..."

"That was a long time ago!" PG countered. "She's forgiven you. Your fellow X-Men have forgiven you. And the only reason you haven't forgiven yourself is because of the Shadow King. This was his last line of defense... you can't let him win! If he wins, then we lose you. I lose you."

"Kara..." Rogue whispered as she looked at the Kryptonian with a newfound resolve. "You... Charles... the X-Men... y'all got me this far. Y'all believed in me when I didn't. An' you're right, I'm so close now... all right. Let's end this!"

Kara & Rogue flew back into the fray, fighting back the Shadow King's astral constructs and making their way to the man himself. As the two women drew closer, flanked by their telepathic allies, Farouhk's defenses fell away, until the two were face to face with a giant, corpulent, shadowy visage -- the Shadow King's avatar on the Astral Plane. Rogue and PG wound up and punched the avatar hard in the face, shattering the illusion. As everything broke away around them, leaving them floating in a black void, the telepaths surrounded Farouhk.

"No! You haven't won yet!" he hissed. He began to disappear into the void, his presence now seemingly everywhere at once. "This is *my* domain, and it bends to my will!"

"Well, it looks like we're not in Rogue's mind anymore," Jean observed, the burning Phoenix flames surrounding her illuminating the immediate area as the other telepaths worked to hold Farouhk in place. "But now that we're all in the astral plane... he's assumed some kind of abstract form."

"So we need to turn him into something we can hit," Lilith surmised. "I think I can handle that part."

"You won't defeat me!" The Shadow King insisted, his disembodied voice echoing throughout the void. "I will tear apart your minds!"

"You're welcome to try," Lilith challenged as she closed her eyes. "PG, I'll need your help on this one..."

PG nodded and focused her concentration on Lilith as the other telepaths continued their ****. The darkness surrounding the women receded, replaced by a brilliant white light. Eventually, all that remained of the void was the Shadow King, who now appeared in his human form. Rogue charged forward, fist cocked back.

"Stay outta my head."

Rogue struck the Shadow King hard, knocking him to the ground. As she did, Emma constructed a diamond prison around him, leaving him restrained. "That should hold him for a while," she stated, a confident smile on her face. "I'm sure Charles will have some ideas on how to deal with him."

"I think we're done here, then," Psylocke noted. "We should return to reality."

"Agreed. No point in sticking around," Jean agreed. "Let's regroup at the mansion."