X-Men Saga l Chapter One: Calm Before the Storm [IC]

[Little Fox]

August 26th, 2012 – 4:23am

“Hurry up! You don’t know what kind of freak security they got here!” A brown-haired man with piercing blue eyes that shone in the light of flashlights was barking orders in a fierce whisper. With him were nine other figures that couldn’t be identified due to the white hoodies they wore. The front of the hoodies read God’s Pure Ones. They had with them three wooden crosses that they were raising. It was hard to see in the dark, but to each cross, there was a person nailed at the hands and feet. The one on the far right had a girl that could be no older than seven, auburn hair cascading in tresses down far past her feet. The one on the far left held a woman – She was obviously pregnant, but where her legs should be was a massive mermaid’s tail. Her flesh was lightly scaled and she wore no top. Her blue hair hung limply around her shoulders, covering her face. And in between them both was an elderly man with a face filled with wrinkles, each one earned through the trials of his life. While the other two were nameless, this man was widely known. Eric Lensherr was the leader of a group of mutants who craved homo superior rule and the subjugation of homo sapiens. The people putting them up on crosses saw them as the Devil’s children sent to wreak havoc upon the world. They thought what so many did, but they were the ones who finally began to take extreme action as a group. And this was step number one. They were just outside the gates of Xavier’s Institute for Gifted Youngsters, placing these crosses where everyone could see. They were sending a message: We’re coming for all of you. And we don’t show mercy. Not to the young. Not to the old. Not to the pregnant. Your days are numbered. They hadn’t raised the crosses yet because they were too busy stripping the mutants of their clothes while being harassed by the green-eyed male because they hadn’t done it before placing them on the cross. “Jesus! Ya dumb fucks! We went over the plan a million times. I know this place is creepy and filled with demons, but the Lord will protect us.” They seemed to believe that as they drew daggers and began to carve upon the flesh of the people before them. Horrible, terrible things. Freak. Mutant. Demon. Devil’s Child. Abomination. Death to the Devil’s Bastard Children. With blood-stained hands, they lifted the crosses and propped them up before taking off into the early dawn.

6:30am

“Nyeeaaaaaahhhhhh!” A scream of terror reverberated throughout the Estate grounds. It wasn’t a normal scream, by any means. It was high-pitched and ear-splitting, rattling the windows. It seemed to echo and repeat, hitting abnormal frequencies. It came from a young woman at the gate who was on her knees at the crosses, sobbing uncontrollably. She was with a group of people in matching dark suits – There was a red-headed woman, a brunet man sporting a bow and quiver upon his back, an African American man with an eye patch and trench coat, a Nordic man in a nice suite, blonde man with an All-American sort of look to him wearing a black shirt and dress pants, and then two men with an intellectual gleam in their eyes wearing suits that looked like they were worth more money than a helicopter. They all had wide eyes, standing there and simply staring in shock at the sight before them. One man finally pulled out a phone and began placing phone calls…

It all happened so fast. Media soon swarmed the place, calling out for the staff to speak on what was going on. The woman with raven hair who had been the first to seem the gory sight was the one to answer them. She told them that it was just another attack on the mutant community. “What are you going to do about it?” They asked. The woman had taken full-time position as the Head Mistress of the school and the Leader of the secret team known as the X-Men only three months prior. She answered with a conviction that told she wasn’t lying. “This action will not go unpunished…No mais.” With her words given, she returned to Xavier’s and tried her best to ease everyone’s pains. Eric Lensherr was buried beside his best friend. A statue was erected alongside Charles Xavier’s because he fought hard for mutants to be free from prejudice as well. Maybe not in the best of ways, but he still fought.

8:13pm

Another shriek rang out. And another. And another. All over the Estate, cries of terror were ringing out. Why? Because children began to lose their mutations. By the next morning, it was all over the news that mutants were losing their mutations one by one. By the thousands, even. A group called the Sapien League formed and began to exterminate those that remained. They weren’t religious fanatics. Just humans looking for people to hate. Mutants that could escape their wrath fled to Xavier’s or would go into hiding away from civilization. Those who lost mutations would go on to live normal lives or seek a way to get it back. The kids at Xavier’s who had lost their mutations? Well. Those who were given to the Academy by loving parents who only wanted what was best got to go home or stay if they chose. The others who were forced to Xavier’s by others or by lack of having a real home either stayed or ran away to kill humans. Either way – There are only a recorded number of 201 mutants left in the world. And 79 of them are at Xavier’s. You’ve got adults who are living in the compounds that were built recently and you’ve got the kids who have been asked to attend school. The staff is trying their best to provide a normal life for these people while figuring things out…


Today….Thursday…

September 13th, 2012….4:28pm

Cataleia del Rosario
It was around the time of year that more mutants would come to Xavier’s and learn to control their power at the hands of a colorful variety of professors and various staff members. As Cataleia peeked out from behind the velvet auditorium curtains, she almost cried. Normally, she would have to say ‘There’s so many…’ But that wasn’t the case today. She looked on and she saw…so few. There were 201 mutants recorded to be left in the world. Including herself and her staff…eighty-six of them were here at Xavier’s. And only a few of them were children. She had taken down a record of only eighteen students. The rest? They were just people trying to survive. Ousted by their families and friends. Taking a deep breath, the woman checked her iPhone. It was almost four-thirty PM. She should begin her announcement. Slowly, she took a deep breath and summoned all of her courage and will power to walk across the stage with a bright smile. There was a round of applause and some cheers as she stepped up to the center of the stage; where there was no podium or microphone. She had parted her lips to speak, but was interrupted by a number of catcalls and wolf-whistles among a few comments; Cataleia was a rather beautiful woman and had the ego to think herself a Goddess. Her hair was jet black, cascading in thick curls down just behind her knees after years of only trimming dead ends. Her figure was to die for, as it showed in the outfit of choice for the occasion – A black body suit that showed ample cleavage and hugged every curve of her body, matching the heeled black boots that she wore. Cataleia almost always dressed in jaw-dropping clothes. But this was her uniform – She had only just gotten back from a meeting on board the UNN Alpha and didn’t have much time to change. Removing the smile from her face, she cleared her throat. “Welcome. Welcome one and all to Xaviers’ School for Gifted Youngsters. Although, most of the world likes to call it Mutant High.” She smiled at the soft laughs as she tried to lighten the tension in the air. “You are all here for a few reasons. One…Is because you’re special. Gifted. Unique. You were blessed with amazing powers like so many others once were. And two…Is because most humans can’t recognize that. Don’t ever believe that you’re an abomination. That’s ignorance and stupidity. That is fear talking! People fear mutants because some abuse their powers. They hate the many for the actions of few. But do they hate their fellow humans? How many human rapists and murders are there that get off better than a mutant who robbed a bank?” She was getting worked up now, her Hispanic voice tone growing a bit more powerful with each word, and so was the crowd. “I don’t like being in hiding. But we have to be the bigger people. We must wait. You are safe within these walls! Myself and every other member of the X-Men and anyone on my staff will die for any mutant that we can save. We’re a dying people. But we won’t die. We won’t let them destroy us. Even if they did, more would come. Were we not humans once? What makes them think that they are safe from their own hidden genes? Yes. Mutations have vanished all of a sudden…But genes…they don’t just disappear. It is my theory that they have only recessed for a while. They will be back!” The crowd roared in approval. “We will wait here. We will carry out normal lives here. We will show them that we are here to stay. Mutant and proud, we are the Children of the Atom! We are Homo Superior!” The small crowd jumped to their feet, clapping, whistling, crying out and roaring in approval as she stood there with a smile on her face. “Thank you…” She held up a hand, motioning the crowd to hush. “I know that there are only eighteen of you who have yet to finish school. I think one or two haven’t even been allowed to start. But I assure you that you will get top notch education here. And we will teach you…to control your powers and to fight with and without them. As of now, you are Apprentice X-Men. Each and every one of you. Because as of August 26th, 2012, the humans declared war. And with our numbers so low, we need every able body person. But I warn you…If you use your powers for malicious intent, your training will end.” She grew serious, narrowing her eyes. The entire time she had been speaking, not a single microphone of any time was to be seen. “But, for now. You must get acquainted with your new home and your new family. If you would all please retire to the lobby.” People had been there for a while, but Cataleia and the others hadn’t decided what they would do. Cataleia herself had decided that they would not openly wage war, but instead remain civil and continue on life as normally as possible. Not everyone was happy with the decision but there was no changing her mind. “You will get maps of the school and room assignments and dinner will be served.” The lobby was set up in a way to give the feel of a formal gathering, with a nice dinner and soft music. She watched in silence as the seated crowd left, headed to the lobby. She exhaled slowly and turned around, left with her colleagues. “Well. Time for the meet and greet.” She put on a dazzling smile, showing no hint of stress before hopping off the stage and heading after the others.




Zalika T’Challa
Zalika had long since been ready, but she didn’t show her face until last minute. Dressed in the same uniform as Cataleia, even wearing her long, snowy hair down, she snuck onstage just as her friend’s speech began. The lightest of smirks danced across her face throughout the speech – Kitty didn’t speak very many words, but the ones spoken were indeed powerful. It showed through the positive reactions in the crowd. Though, Zee did frown as the X-Men were made known. The X-Men were once a secret covert ops team. Zalika only knew about them at a young age because of her mother’s affiliation with the team. But most students could go a while without knowing and they certainly weren’t put through training for it without some sort of assessment. Zalika had spent so much of her life training to perfection just to try out for the team! But…she did understand that they were low in numbers and they had to take what they could get. The X-Men would soon become an army if things escalated any further. Not that she had any such qualms with an army. The humans had several of their own, so why shouldn’t they? The mutant known as Hurricane to many didn’t hate humans, per se. To many, it seemed she hated generally everyone. But those close to her knew better. Zalika couldn’t stand the blindness of the humans, though she herself didn’t see humans or mutants as any different other than a single different gene. But according to Professor Xavier…they all had that gene. And Kitty was right…Many of them were human once…Why do so many humans think themselves exempt? Oh…right. They were protected by the grace of God. She shook her head at her thoughts. Where she came from…Wakanda…Such mutations weren’t mutations. They were viewed as gifts from Bast. Though, those who used their powers for unsavory actions were thought to have been gifted by Sekhmet. Zalika shivered at the mere thought of the Lion Goddess – She had once nearly lost her life to that vile Goddess. Zalika herself thanked Bast and her mother for such gifts, and was rather dismayed that her mother had been among the many that had been depowered during the event that everyone had come to call M-Day. But, as Cataleia said: Mutations don’t just disappear. And if anyone would know anything about mutations, it was her. Zalika snapped out of her thoughts, hearing Cataleia address them. She almost snarled at the idea of a meet and greet, her lips pulling back to reveal recently filed canines. She had all four of them done, deciding recently to complete her feline appearance. Her eyes were the beginning of this, though she was born with those. As of lately, she had been working a lot on her agility and flexibility. She had been seen lately with a pair of cat ears that were attached to a headband – Fake cat ears, of course. Most of her friends assumed that it was another ritual to Bast, and they weren’t completely wrong. She was actually showing her dedication for Bast, requesting to be blessed with the abilities of the felines that she loved so much.

Sighing, Zalika followed suit of Cataleia, glancing behind her at a young girl who didn’t look any older than seventeen or eighteen. The girl was staring off into space, shuffling a deck of tarot cards. Shaking her head at the absent-minded young woman, Zee moved lethargically down the aisles and slipped past the doors, leaving them wide open. Once in the presence of others, she almost cringed at the sound of them all talking at once. Once upon a time, in her earlier childhood, Zee would have been bubbly and happy to assist. But now, she just wanted to go back to her attic.



Orfelina Howlett
Throughout the whole of Cataleia’s speech, there was a young woman on the far end of the line of people, staring off into space with bright chocolate eyes. Her hair was a mirror of Kitty’s, though hers had been pulled up into a pony tail. Unlike the others in uniform or professional ‘teacher’ wear, she was wearing a tight white tee and a pair of baggy jeans that had holes in them. Her jeans, shirt, face, and arms were smeared In grease and her arms had a few cuts and scrapes. Upon her hands were a pair of black gloves. About her waist, she wore a tool belt that was filled with a variety of everyday tools and a few other high-tech ones. Her figure wasn’t nearly as flattering as any of the other women on stage with her, being of average build. It looked as though she were only just now hitting puberty. Orfelina stayed in her daze until she could feel someone’s eyes on her, boring into her skull for a few moments. She snapped back to reality, seeing Zalika staring at her before she had left the stage. A blush covered her face as she fidgeted before following suit. As she entered the lobby, she flinched at the number of people. It wasn’t much, certainly far less than the amount she grew up around – But most of them were strangers. She thought for a second that maybe this could be a new start for her. As a child, she was often the object of bullies for being an orphan and basically a lab rat. Of course there were other orphans, but she was the runt of the litter. She had a feeling that things would be better this time around – But she still didn’t want to hang around. Instead, she made a quick getaway and ran outside. She ran and ran and ran. She ran all the way down the driveway to the garage, not stopping to look back. She needed to think. She arrived skidding to a halt at the doors, pausing to punch in the security code. Massive titanium doors slid open to reveal a large variety of vehicles: Custom cars, future car concepts, Harleys, dirt bikes. You name it, it was there. Lina made her way to a 2013 Mustang Cobra – She had a few connections – It was white as snow with a cobra design on the side rear half. She slid her hand along the side, looking underneath the hood with a smile of pride as she whispered. “Did ya miss me baby?” She sang softly her favorite song as she worked. It was a rap song, but she was a rapping failure so she had formatted it for singing.

[Aesthetic]

On this day of August Twenty-Sixth, Two-Thousand Twelve
6:30am

Tangled locks of brown hair were scattered across a maroon-colored pillow, faint exhaled breaths escaping the lips of dear sleeping beauty. Despite how peaceful she appeared, there was malice lingering in the back of her mind, and coming alive in her dreams were the ghouls of her past.

Adria sat up in her bed, a bead of sweat running down her face. She had been dreaming of Professor Xavier's funeral, a scene that was all too familiar for her. Her "Grandpa" Eric was there, his mouth agape and eyes cloudy. Blood had poured from his mouth life a waterfall drowning in blood. She blinked, and his eyes were gauged out. She covered her mouth, softly sobbing into her hand. She was not overcome by emotions: but fear. Every night it was something different. Adria swore that she could hear sickly laughter, swollen with sadism.

The laughter seems to reverberate off of the walls, and it made her ears pound. Adria shook her head, throwing her quilt off of her body and embracing the chill dawn air that tickled her feet. She shuffled in the direction of the ear drum-shattering sound, the ignorance that followed sleep stalking her down the halls. Ria didn't acknowledge the students that peeked out of their doors to listen to the ruckus. Heading down the stairs, Adria blindly, but with years of knowledge, scampered down the steps, trying to boost up her energy before giving the screamer a good talking-to.

When she exited the X-Mansion, eyes adjusting to the lighting, Adria froze, heart hammering. She broke down right at the doorstep, knees buckling. Adria buried her face in her palms, the face of Eric Lensherr's abused body burned into her eyelids.

8:15pm

Long-fingered hands grasped the railing of her bunk bed, a small figure clambering to the topmost bunk. She had the fingers of a musician; long, calloused, and nimble. Esther Hope sat down on her mattress, which was covered with a floral bedsheet. Esther didn't care for the screams that erupted around the entire household, instead yawning, her arms stretching, reaching up for the ceiling. She didn't care as long as it didn't affect her. Esther barely knew anyone on the large estate, for she had just arrived recently. Her older cousin was one of he faculty members at the Institute, and Esther had only been talking to her for the past three days. The tot sank into her bed, drawing a thin blanket over her body.

On this day of September the Thirteenth, Two-Thousand Twelve
4:30 pm

Adria wore the standard uniform, although her bottoms were shorts that ended near her bottom. The outfit had hugged her body tightly, and, if not for the loose collar, Adria was sure that she would suffocate. She didn't wear heeled boots, switching out the stilletos for extra-high combat boots that complimented her outfit. She listened intently to Cat's speech, arms crossed in front of her body as she observed the cluster of students and refugees that would be living in the estate, attending classes. Adria imagined herself changing into every one of them, relinquishing the pain that would come with altering bone structures, the faint buzz that accompanied the change of hair color and style. Her nails dug into her torso; there used to be thousands -millions- of mutants around the world. Those numbers had dwindled down to less than 250 in one night. Many had flocked to Xavier's, and others were in hiding, possibly awaiting an uprising. She huffed indignantly, loosening her grip on her body, instead reaching for the handle of her rapier. The metal grip felt warm and familiar in her hands, easing some of the uncharacteristic nerves that swelled in Adria's mind.

She was prepared for anything.

[Mercenary Lord]

August 26, 2012

6:30 A.M.
Nolan still raged at himself, internally. He'd be awake since two in the morning- he could have caught the bastards and friend them to a crisp. They would never have gotten away. He could have at least gotten revenge. Instead, he had chosen to take the long route out on his run, which had kept him away from the actual building until only a few minutes ago. He had been unaware of the intruders, and so they had slipped away. A tear trickled down his face, although it steamed as it did so, and evaporated shortly. He slammed his fist against the wall of the building, and didn't approach the others for a time. He couldn't face them yet. He had nothing against the other here, but this was slightly personal, and Nolan wasn't sure he would burn them all with his anger so intense. Nolan had met Eric once, and rather than kill him, Eric had let him go, without a second thought. It wasn't much, but it was enough for Nolan to feel enraged to the bursting point.

1:36 P.M.
There would be a reckoning for this, he promised himself. One way or another, the bastards who had done this would pay, and pay dearly. With this promise made, and his mutation urging him on, Nolan finally stepped out from his vantage point, and approached the crosses, to pay his respects. Even the Avengers had arrived to honor the fallen. He approached the crosses, and stayed far longer than anyone else could. Eventually, he moved again, striding up to the three casualties of hatred, and moved his hands along the child first, the woman second, and Eric himself at last. For each, he sent as much power as he dared into the wounds, cauterizing them, and sealing them. It was the least he could do.

He stepped back and looked over his work, making sure that not a single injury remained on the bodies. They didn't look much better, but the trickles of blood had halted, and the disgraceful words had been cleansed from their bodies. He nodded, once, to nobody in particular, and took off in a dead sprint, around the campus once more. He was getting jittery.

8:24 P.M.
The mutants were losing their powers. One by one and en masse, they were disappearing. Nolan had sat by some as they lost their mutations, and sat with them through their distress, another tear threatening to trace his face. What had the mutants done to deserve this? Eric, he might have understood- the man's methods were...unorthodox, to say the least. But this: these were children, innocents. They had done no wrong.

He got to his feet, murmured a word of comfort to his current charge, and left the room. He only made it halfway down the hall before a surge of pain lanced through him, as if he was being forcefully drained of life. He passed out halfway through the ordeal, and then toppled to the ground. The darkness claimed him soon after.


September 13th, 2012

4:28 P.M.
Nolan tried to stay interested in the new arrivals, honestly. The academy had obtained so few in the past weeks, and they were the future of the school. He needed to make them feel at home. But he couldn't, really. He kept looking around, flitting from one person to the next, with his eyes sliding over everyone like they were flecks of dust. They weren't, of course, but Nolan couldn't move during this initiation ceremony, so he was starting to glow, ever so slightly with impatience. His body had to let off steam, and couldn't stay still like this forever. His last workout had been hours ago, and he was back on full. When Cat walked out on stage, and some of those sitting in front of them began to whistle and waste time, Nolan casually took off his sunglasses, and glared at the offenders. His eyes burned with a multicolored light, and his targets quickly calmed. Perhaps they hadn't seen him, but they definitely felt the energy he was giving off, directed at them.

One of his dearest friends was speaking, and he would have them respect her, at least for now. He wiped the lens of his glasses with his shit, and replaced them across his eyes. No one even knew what he had done. He hadn't made them feel any worse, but he had instilled a sense of importance in the room. Or at least, that's what he liked to think.

Cat finished her speech, and Nolan watched as they all started to move. Finally. He was fairly close to Cat, so he burned off a good deal of excess energy by zipping back and forth across a small bit of the stage, fast as light. He slowed when Cat began to leave, since the last time he'd tried to keep going, he'd fallen flat on his face and broken his nose. Feeling suitably calmed, he followed them to the lobby. Along the way, he caught up with the head of the school, and put a hand on her shoulder. He kept the light from exploding, as it usually did, and simply stated, "Nice speech. Very inspiring." He walked alongside her for time, but then stopped as they reached the lobby, set up like a dinner party for the wealthy.

Nolan rolled his eyes, but then they settled on Adria, and he smiled. She always had been like him. They saw thing pretty similarly. He headed over. "Hey, Ria. Ready to meet our future?"

[Suspect]

August 26, 2012.

6:35 A.M.

Alex tossed and turned in his bed, as he was unable to sleep again. It was starting to be a pain in the ass, not sleeping as he heard someone screaming. He instantly sat up, his hands resting by his side, his body some what leaned back. Alex was panting softly as he heard the scream again, this time he covered up his ears and got out of the bed when the scream was over. What was going on? Is everything alright? Those questions ran through his mind as he walked up and down the hallway, first going to make sure that the students were okay. They were fine. Then what was really going on. His gaze shifted towards the front door, which was left wide open. He saw Adria there, sobbing. He walked right up to her, cradling her to his body, turning her away from the scene. It was gruesome. Tears slowly rolled down his cheeks as well. He walked back inside, along with Adria, asking her if she was okay before leaving her alone.

8:30 P.M.

Alex sat down on the foot of his bed, rocking back and forth, thinking to himself. He felt that something wasn't right about this situation. He shook his head of the thoughts, then rolled over to sit up in his bed. Alex rested his back against the few pillows as he reached over and grabbed the remote, turning on his television, catching the lateness of the news. But he did hear something about mutants losing their mutations, one by one, every passing second. When he heard that, he quickly turned off his television and with a soft sigh, escaping over his parted pink lips, he slipped under thick covers and eventually drifted off to sleep.

September 13, 2012.

4:25 P.M.

Alex could be seen, slipping on a white collar, buttoned up shirt, leaving the top button undone, revealing his t-shirt a little bit. He slipped on a pair of black dress pants then placed his feet into some black socks and black church shoes, tying them tightly. He didn't bother put on a jacket nor a tie as he left his room, heading for the auditorm. Alex was a little bit late, he whispered excuse me, everytime he passed by some, making it to his seat, where he ran his right hand through his hair, letting it fall back in place naturally. He applauded when Cataleia made her presence felt on the stage. His eyes shifted towards those that were catcalling and wolf whistling. But that was shortly when Nolan eyes looked at them. A soft laugh past through his lips as he shook his head. He sat upon the stage, behind Cataleia, his legs crossed over the other and his hands, which were clasped together, were placed over his knee. He nodded as he listened to the words of Cataleia as he clapped when everyone else did as he then placed his hands back down on his knee. He had a big smile placed on his face.

When she was done and dismissed the audience, Alex rolled his eyes when she said something about a meet and greet. When Cataleia turned around, he rose up his two thumbs. "Great speech as always, Cataleia." He fixed his posture and stood up, leaving alongside with everybody else. His brown eyes scanned the lobby, which was filled with the chatter of kids, getting their schedules and room assignments. He then looked towards Zalika and saw something a little off about her. Alex slipped over beside her and leaned down whispering softly in her ear. "You okay?" His eyes then shifted towards the lobby, then he placed a fake smile upon his face. Alex then shifted his head towards the kids as he looked at Zalika. "Come on, let's meet the little rascals." He would already be walking towards the kids, looking back every once and awhile, to see if Zalika was following him.

[The Fallen One]

August 26th, 2012

1:35 AM, PST

Ziggy woke up with start. He had felt something so awful that it had forced him awake. It filled him to the core with a sickening, rotting feeling. He crept out of bed, checking around his room. All was peaceful. The only difference was the stifling heat of the Los Angeles seemed to be more prevalent. To stay on the safe side, he checked on the rest of his family. He looked over at his brother. David was still asleep and snoring loudly.

He made his way out of the room, across the hall to his younger sister. She was too was asleep, and it was comforting. His eldest sister didn't live at home any more, so he would just have to hope that she was alright. He opened his parents door just a crack. They seemed to be fine, so he reshut the door quietly. Finally he made his way over to his youngest sibling's room. He was surprised to see Arron awake, sitting up on his bed.

"Hey little bro, what's up?" Ziggy asked, sitting on the edge of his brother's bed. Arron crawled closer to his brother, leaning his head against him. He hated how much he could feel his brothers terror, mixed with whatever had woken him up. It almost made him sick enough to throw up.

"I had a nightmare Ziggy. There was a lot of blood in it. And these bad men. They were looking for you and dad and Sunny. And then they came back later for me." Chills immediately went down Ziggy's spine. He knew what that probably meant. But there was no point in troubling Arron with it. He was just a kid, and there was time for that later.

"Just go back to sleep. It was just a nightmare." He was lying, but he knew it was necessary. As he stroked his brother's hair, he could slowly feel the fear draining away. "It'll all be fine in the morning."

8:20 AM, PST

Ziggy had hardly slept during the rest of the night. The sickness had faded thankfully, but he had still been uneasy. Only his father was up, sitting in front of the TV. Ziggy could feel distress and worry coming from his father. "Wha-"

His father merely turned up the TV. It was a report from New York reporting about crucifixion of 3 mutants on the lawn of the Xavier Institute. Ziggy didn't say anything, he just went back up to his room and wept.

September 13th, 2012

4:28pm

It had been a long 2 weeks for Ziggy, the longest he'd experienced in a while. He'd watched LA erupt into a series of riots, all of them mutant related. From former mutants rallying against the Pure Ones, to humans hunting down and killing mutants, he'd seen so much. As much as he wanted to stand up to them, he didn't. It would be suicide.

So his father had given him a plane ticket and told him where to go. For help with being a mutant. To learn what it meant to be one of the last members of Homo Superior. He'd flown across the country with only hope to find a safe place. Which is what had brought him here, to the Xavier Institute.

He listened to the professor talk and he felt better. There was a fire, a passion when she spoke and he could feel it. It made him feel better about being here, knowing that there were others like him who cared. He made his way through the crowd, making small introductions to some of the others he saw.

[The Xtreme One]

August 23rd 2012 (6:30am)


Lincoln

He had only been back about two weeks. Lincoln Castiglione had all but forgotten about his teenage years in Westchester. He had left the place behind in a flash of light and never looked back. Now he was twenty four and had already amassed his own personal fortune. Life was good, until he saw a news report. A twelve year old girl named Jamie Gordon had been stabbed to death, her body mutilated in ways a normal person could not dream of. All because she was born with the ability to make plants grow. Anti-mutant hysteria was sweeping the nation and attacks like those on Jamie were getting more and more frequent. Watching the news unfold, the phone rang and Lincoln answered to the sound of an old friends voice, Cataleia. He owed her a favour and now she was cashing in. He was going back to Xavier’s.

The three crosses stood resolute above them, Lincoln dressed in nothing but a pair of shorts and a vest. It was a hideous sight that gave Lincoln a cold, clammy feeling in the pit of his stomach. He did not recognise two of the victims but he would still grieve for them. It was the centre piece of the killings who caught Lincoln’s attention most. Eric Lensherr. The man once known as Magneto had always had a big impact on the businessman. When he was younger, Lincoln often clashed with Professor Xavier because he was just so different. In many ways, he may have been more comfortable with Eric’s Brotherhood but alas he stayed at Graymalkin Lane and his views began to change. Lincoln always had empathy with Eric’s plight and seeing like this, it was like losing ones old friend.

(8:40am)

This had to be the blackest day in the history of mutants bar the death of Charles Xavier. People were dying and even worse, the fantastic abilities which made them Homo Superior were disappearing. More and more students were reacting to their loss of abilities, a boy who had a canine like appearance now looked just like a boy. A girl with fire coloured eyes was now the spitting image of the blonde haired, blue eyed All American teeny bopper. Finding a minute along, Lincoln had yet to check in himself. Clenching his left fist and sighing deeply, he unclenched and watched with quiet joy as the lightly tanned skin on his left arm was replaced by an organic steel. He was OK, for now.

September 13th 2012 (4:32pm)

Lincoln sat amongst the rest of the staff in the stage, unlike the others he had actually bothered to get changed before the assembly. After all, just like his grandfather used to say “Appearance was everything” . It was a warm, humid day so Lincoln made the decision to change into a pair of black slacks, perfectly polished shoes and a grey dress shirt with the sleeves rolled to his elbows. This generally as casual as he could get. He listened as his old friend Cat spoke to their newest class, a fair few cat calls and wolf whistles warranted. What a body. Lincoln remembered fondly the night they spent together when they were teenagers, he could only imagine what lay beneath that outfit now they were fully grown adults. With the end of the speech, Lincoln got to his feet and ran a hand through his soft styled hair just in time to see Oferlina run off, strange girl she was. “You probably shouldn’t told them they were going to be X-Men, Cat. Now they’re going to want one of those silly uniforms” He chuckled, it was a light hearted joke one of only a few as Lincoln wasn’t exactly all that funny…or happy at any time. It was a simple fact, whilst the others wore an X-outfit, Lincoln stuck to wearing combat pants and shirt as worn by the military but black in colour.

Beau

All throughout the day, Beau had watched as the new crop of students had arrived on campus. Big, small, black, white and could swear he even saw a green kid in there somewhere. Seeing it all brought him back to his stint as a student within those walls. It felt like a lifetime ago, he remembered sitting in class with the likes of Cat, Zee and Lincoln and listening to Professor Xavier’s speech on evolution. If he was honest, Beau didn’t really understand everything the Professor said but then again he wasn’t exactly the sharpest tool in the drawer when he was a kid. Many times on his travels, Beau had wanted to come back the institute but never thought it a good idea until the mess back in California. He arrived back the day after what now become known as M-Day. He was surprised to find his old friends now working as staff but was even more shocked at the fact that mutants had begun losing their powers. He had been on the road non-stop and as such had not heard of the incidents. He was happy he still had his powers but was saddened at how many had actually lost theirs.

Beau had drawn the short straw the previous evening and had stayed behind at the mansion to welcome the new guests. It was amusing to think that this big burly biker guy was performing a meet and greet with the new attendee’s. Deciding to abstain from Cat’s introduction, Beau sat in his favourite place of all, the garage. Dressed like he should be, in dirty jeans, boots and a tight fitting brown t-shirt, he pushed back some of his medium length blonde hair as he fiddled with the engine of one of Lincoln’s many cars. The sound of angels singing perked his ears up and he popped his head from under the hood to see his “sister” as he had come to know her, stroking her beloved Mustang. “Well hey there, dimples” He offered her one of his rare smiles as he spoke with his soft southern drawl. “Was Cataleia’s speech that bad you had to come see your favourite grease monkey?” Beau often gave his colleague’s nicknames, some were all in good fun an others were said with intent to hurt but he didn’t hold a grudge for long. “Throw me over that wrench will you”

Robin

It was a strange feeling, new place, new people. Robin had felt so isolated when his powers manifested but seeing these people around him and knowing that they probably all felt the same was a comfort and helped quell is nervousness. He sat in the crowd and listened in as the beautiful headmistress made her speech, he let out a wolf whistle of his own, getting a few laughs from those around him. Robin wasn’t a clown but he always loved a good laugh. Once the initial comedy was over, he became engrossed in her words. The affairs of mutants hadn’t been all that big in the UK but upon hearing about the mass purge of mutants, Robin became terrified that either he would be killed or worse his family could get caught in the cross fire. As far as he knew, he was the only mutant there had ever been in the family. It was his brother Andy convinced him to come to the states to get help with his mutation and be with his own kind. After listening to Cataleia, he was glad he paid attention to what his brother was saying for once. With the announcements over, Robin moved with the crowd to accept his class and rooming assignments.

[xHolyLightningx]

September 13th 2012

Katelyn hadn't actually been at Xaiver's long...a month or so now, but even she knew there was a pitiful amount of students sat in the Assembly currently, only eighteen. You could tell simply by looking at the building that it was used to housing many more, Katelyn still wasn't sure why she of all people would've been chosen to keep her powers, but she was grateful in a way. Although she had never gotten on especially well with the fact she was a mutant, it was a part of her and she needed to be proud of that, after all she couldn't go telling the other kids that they needed to be proud of the fact they were mutant's if she wasn't could she? Katelyn paused briefly, looking at the fellow members of staff, Katelyn herself was dressed in her usual teaching attire since she snuck off to change before the assembly. That wasn't a crime right? She looked upon the stylish Cataleia, still shocked at how beautiful the girl was, even to this day and her gaze remained transfixed while she went to give a speech.

Cataleia had always been good with words, Katelyn was inspired and move by her speech as well as the students, it seemed like the students reciprocated these feelings towards the speech. Katelyn smiled and clapped as the headmaster made her way towards the group of fellow staff members before instructing them of this "Meet and Greet." Ew. Katelyn wasn't a huge fan of other people, but what must be done had to be done, she looked as each of the various staff members and other teachers, one of whom was shuffling a deck of tarot cards and looked about twelve, make their way off the stage and head into the lobby.

The young English professor made her way off the stage and into the main lobby, where she surveyed the many students around her, some of whom looked uncomfortable with being here. Katelyn didn't actually blame them, they were so young and we're forced into hiding like they were criminals, they didn't chose to be mutants and they most certainly didn't ask for it yet they were paying such a heavy price for it. And to think that their powers are meant to be seen as gifts, when people do thing's like what happened on August 23rd? Oh god, just the thought of it made her sick to stomach. Who would do such a cruel thing? Why were people so closed minded? The funny thing is, one day they'll need the mutants, for what she was unsure of at the moment however she knew the day would come where they wanted the mutants to help them with their powers. When that day came, Katelyn would take great joy in laughing in their faces as they suffer. Dark? Yes. Cruel? A bit, but how dare they complain, they were hunting the mutant's down like animals! It was sick. Katelyn suddenly remember she wasn't actually greeting anyone, just stood there scowling so she quickly jumped into action and started walking around and smiling offer polite 'Hello's' and 'How do you do's?' as she made her way around the lobby.

[exitthisway]

"Good morning Kyle. The time is now seven o'clock, a.m., Sunday, August 26. There is no school today."

Metallic blinds began to lift open allowing the light of the morning sun to drift lazily into the room. Shadows were forced to retreat and the cold dark air turned to a warm mist. The intense change caught the dreary boy off guard and he moaned in protest, burying his head further into his sheets to try and shield himself from the invader. He hated the way morning invaded his sleep, especially on weekends.

"I know there is no school..." The response was muffled against many layers of cotton. The computer didn't hear a thing.

"The time is now seven o' one, a.m., Sunday, August 26. There is no school today."

With another forced grunt, Kyle fished his way out the tangled mass of blankets and felt for the alarm, shutting it off with a solid thump. "Shhhh...." He said silently as he retreated back into the sheets. He tried to get comfortable though he knew that soon his parents would come to wake him up themselves. It was Sunday after all and morning mass was to be held in an hour.

"The time is now seven thirty, a.m., Sunday, August 26. There is no school today."

Kyle's eyes flew wide open.

"Wait what?" He threw himself from his bed and straight into his dresser knocking pillows and blankets, books that he had left on his bed to the floor. He grabbed the clothes that had already been set aside for him, hung off the edge of the dresser and ironed. Within minutes he had worked them into a tangled mess as he attempted to dress, walk, and brush his teeth at the same time.

"The time is now seven-", "Shut up." Kyle slammed the button on the alarm again and clambered out of his room. His his body had turned into something of a clock, working in synchronization to make itself look presentable as he made his way to the stairwell. His hands were at his neck... fixing his tie. His feet were working on his socks: He would drive his soles into the ground, dragging his foot forward and pushing the sock further up his leg. His arms would stretch out every now and then making sure the Sunday suit sat properly around his chest. He was constantly in motion. His mind however was stuck on the fact that his parents hadn't woken him up. As he passed their room, a glimpse through the open door revealed an empty bed. They were up but they weren't upstairs.

"Mom? Dad?" Kyle nearly flew down the staircase, catching himself against against the railing as he hit the bottom step to prevent him from crashing into the floor. He bolted toward the kitchen expecting his parents to be inside with breakfast waiting and warm smiles. He'd address them in that order. However when the door flew open and he peered inside, he found it to be empty.

"....Where are they?...."

There were sounds coming from the living room. He turned around, silently closing the door behind him. They were voices, voices that were not familiar to him. He was on his guard now as he stalked through the hallway leading from the kitchen to the dining area. To his left were a pile of rocks on a granite plate in the center of the table. The one at the very top was plucked by invisible hands and came to rest in mid air behind Kyle. ...Okay.... His breath was coming out in nervous gasps as he pressed himself against the wall. He now stood next to the doorway leading to the living room, his fingers already snaking around the corner followed hesitantly by the rest of his body. Just as he was about to peek into the room-

"Kyle?" The sound of his mother's voice was like the soft whispers of a wind chime. It was gentle but still audible enough to make out, even with the blood pounding in Kyle's ears.

"Mom?" Kyle poked his head out from around the corner to see his mother holding out her hand, a solemn expression covering her face. His father was staring intently at the televisions screen. His back was turned, arms crossed and a hand on his chin. Even from behind the man had a strong aura about him. Well built for the man's age and only a sliver of grey hair among a mat of black. His mother had a much softer complexion compared to the chiseled physique of his father. She was soft around the edges and seemed a walking cloud to Kyle. When she embraced him it was warm, engulfing, he always felt safe in her arms. He felt the same way as he took her hand and she pulled him into another hug. There were tears forming in her eyes as she wished him good morning and asked if he was hungry.

"What's going on?" He asked, ignoring his mother's questions as he turned to look at the T.V. A large plasma square nailed to the wall projected images of three figures on a cross, one of which Kyle knew of despite the grotesque state the body was in. There were others in the scene as well, people who looked familiar though Kyle couldn't quite figure out who they were. He tried to lean in closer to the set but his mother's hands pulled his back to her own.

"You don't need to see any of that dear."

"But what happened to them?" Kyle asked, trying to get another glimpse of the TV through his mother's blond hair.

"Some people are so miss guided darling... "

"It looked like something from the Bible."

"No.. no. This is not the same thing. God did not die for this."

[exitthisway]

Kyle was one of the last few to enter the room with the rest of the mutants. He expected there to be more, a lot more but he also knew that it was not meant to be. There were only so many of them left and most were still scattered around the globe fighting for survival. He began to wonder how long he would have lasted if he hadn't come to the school instead.

As he moved through the room he would nod to the few who caught his eyes and flash them a smile. He still wasn't sure who everyone was so it was the most he could manage without completely embarrassing himself. He figured in time he would come to know everyone, a day he looked forward to dearly as there were some who sparked his interest. The head of the school for one had quite a way with words and seemed to be admired by many of the opposite sex. He had read about another mutant at the school who had the ability to wield the power of lightening. It was the mystery of his weakness that attracted him for reasons unknown to him. Perhaps it was the fact that he didn't understand it. He didn't know. There were others as well. Someone who could harness the power of the sun. There were those who could master light and sound and much more. He didn't know who they were but being around so many mutants in the same place both excited Kyle and put him at ease. He'd want to meet everyone. For the moment however he kept out of people's way and found himself getting a snack from the food they had left out.

[Little Fox]

Cataleia del Rosario/The Raver
Cataleia smiled as her friends congratulated her on her speech, convincing her that it was very well delivered. She knew that it wasn't very lengthy, but she herself was positive that each and every word spoken said more than enough. She was just about to go grab a slice of watermelon when the all-to-familiar voice of her appointed co-Dean. A smirk formed across her lips as she turned around and canted her head to the side. “Silly little uniform? Well. If memory serves correctly...It is this silly little uniform that has kept your eyes on me since the day you came here.” She slid closer to him and ran a well manicured nail along his jawline. “Or have you forgotten the Christmas of o'three? I really hope not. Because...” She leaned up on the tip of her toes and kissed his earlobe, whispering teasingly. “I remember. Every. Little. Thing.” Grinning, she planted a gentle kiss on his cheek before making her way to the table that she had headed for in the first place. She very much enjoyed the game of cat and mouse that she and Lincoln often engaged in. They always had time for a quick tease and sometimes a nice quickie. But they never had time for anything serious. Sighing, she smiled as a few students approached her and began to launch a barrage of questions at her.


Zalika T'Challa/Hurricane
Zalika watched as Cataleia and Lincoln officially began their 'game' for the year, rolling her eyes as she passed by them. “Jesus, get married already.” Her voice was almost a growl before she turned around to see Alex. “No. Everything is not alright. Or haven't you been watching the news?” Zee rarely ever seemed to be in a good mood since 'the incident'. She was being even more antisocial than usual. Shaking her head, she wandered around the lobby, intent on avoiding everyone until it was time for bed.

“Here, kitty kitty! Nice tail!”

She could hear the snicker of a young boy and followed it, finding a young man that looked about eighteen tugging on the feline tail of a little girl who could be no older than nine. Frowning deeply, Zalika's hand went to her waist immediately where she had one of her guns holstered. She drew it with amazing reflexes, placing the barrel against the boy's skull. “We don't tolerate bullies around here.” She placed her finger on the trigger, not bothering to mention that the clip was empty. The scent of urine reached her nose and her lips curved into a smirk of victory as the boy whimpered, begging that he not be shot. “Get the fuck out of my face. And don't let me catch you doing anything like this again. With everything that has happened, this is how you treat your own kind? Human behavior is unacceptable here.” Zalika hissed into the boy's ear, watching as he quickly fled. Looking down, she got a clear look at the girl now. She was very petite with round yellow eyes. Nestled within a mess of auburn curls were a pair of tiger's ears and in her hands, a matching tail was wrung. Her tanned flesh was marred with burns and scars that Zee immediately identified to be from whips. No words spoken, Zee picked up the kitten of a girl and carried her to the buffet table, grabbing a small bowl of tuna and a small fork. She retreated to a corner of the room, feeding the girl. Neither of them spoke...It was almost as though they had an understanding immediately.


Orquidea/Taror
Orquidea was happily checking her engine until Beau's deep voice reached her ears. Startled, she jumped some and banged her head on the underside of her hood. “Ouuuch.” She whined, rubbing her head as she moved away from her car. She tried her hardest to hide the blush that creeped across her face, brought on by his sweet smile. Coughing, she covered it by grabbing the wrench he pointed out. “Cat's speech was fine. I just need a place to think about this vision I keep having. It doesn't make any sense...Well it does...I just need to figure out what triggers it.” Shaking her head, she offered him the wrench. She wasn't exactly lying, but she was sure that he already knew that she came out to the garage to escape the numerous new people brushing against her. She wrung her hands together after setting the wrench in his hands. She rarely told anyone except Beauregard about the sporadic visions. She pushed down the hood of her beloved Mustang and took perch atop of it. Her gaze wandered to Beau and she frowned rather deeply. She knew that he thought of her as a sister and she had spent quite a bit of her free time thinking about how to get him to see her as more. She had even studied Cataleia's tactics with Lincoln. But a lot of them wouldn't work. She didn't have much of a chest to toss around. She had the build of a ballerina...except her butt. She had rather hedonistic haunches. But she didn't have the flirtatious personality. She sighed forlornly and wrinkled her nose while trying to slide from the hood of her car. She ended up tripping by catching foot in the grill, falling forward and busting her lip against her toolbox, knocking it over. “Geh! I'm such a clutz.” She recovered quickly and bent over, quickly replacing her tools, trying not to break out into tears. She could take a punch to the face; but she was still sensitive. “Hey, Beau. Cat's sending me for groceries and other stuff later on tonight. Can you go with me?” Orquidea hated being around humans alone. Cat told her to ask Beau so the two could get alone time. Why am I thinking about this so much...? She paused a moment to question her thoughts that as of recent had grown more intimate than usual. She sighed and turned red faced to Beau, grease-smeared all over as usual. No wonder she was just the /little sister/. “So, whatchu say?” Her Italian accent as thick as ever as she sucked on her bottom lip, grimacing at the taste of her own blood.


Julio LeBeau/The Unforseen
“Dammit, Zee!” A young man with a light Hispanic accent called out, watching as the African Princess(literally) made some kid piss his pants. Shaking his head as he disappeared around the corner. He returned with a mop and some disinfectant spray, proceeding to clean up the mess. The young man was well dressed in a black Gucci suit, wearing a powder blue dress shirt underneath the jacket. After returning from putting the cleaning equipment away, he adjusted his jacket and tie, looking around with a grin. The young man had a rather peculiar look to him – If one could say that. His left eye was as green as healthy moss on the North side of a stump and his right was a strange mix of purple and red. The right eye had no white to it, instead it was black. His skin was a soft caramel color and his ebony hair was somewhat short and wavy. He exuded an air of...what someone would call 'swag'. He was simply brimming with confidence, for lack of better words. Pursing his lips, he made his way through the crowd, trying to avoid the gun-wielding Zalika. On his way, he bumped into a little boy at one of the buffet tables. Smiling lightly, he put one hand bashfully behind his head. “Sorry 'bout dat, li'l man. I di'nt mean tuh ran into yuh like dat.” His accent was hard to peg, though what strongly stood out was Hispanic and Cajun drawls. It was a strange mixture, but he seemed to make it come out rather eloquently. He offered out a hand to the blonde child. “Name's Julio LeBeau. Who might joo be?”


Markus Wagner/Rewind
“Eh...” High above where everyone was conversing, there was a young man with brown hair that was slicked back, sporting blue streaks. His flesh was of blue color, contrasting against his green eyes. He was hanging upside down from the chandelier, clinging to it with a blue prehensile tail. Markus Wagner wasn't quite the social one. Unlike many others present, his mutation was highly visible. And it was his mother that had been the cause of so many losing their mutations. His face wasn't seen on the news, but those who had been present at Xavier's for the past two months or longer knew exactly who he was. He found himself unable to face his friends with any sort of cheery mood, feeling that they might hold some sort of grudge against him. So there he 'sat', swinging to and fro by his tail, making sure that he didn't bring the chandelier crashing down.