Xavier Institute
Headmasters Office
The polished walls and the heavy wood desk were still all in place. Out of all the rooms, it was the only one to have remained untouched in the construction efforts going on around them. Bit by bit the school was returning to a reflection of its former glory. Charles Xavier would have been proud to see it. Just as proud as he would be to see his prize students doing their best to keep the dream alive.
“I could always teach some accounting classes. Put this old degree to some use after all.” A thin ice ballerina twirled across his open palm, as Bobby settled his feet on the arm of the leather armchair in which he sat.
“Professor Drake, who would have thought it would ever come to that.” Grinning, Warren stood against the desk his arms crossed across a firm chest.
“Ha ha, you’re a riot, wings. Remind me to find you a stand up gig. I’m sure you’ll leave ‘em in stitches.”
Ever the responsible one, Scott’s tiny grin at the two was quickly hidden. The only one that knew of his amusement of course was his wife, who picked up the small surge and smiled herself. If only those that claimed Scott had no sense of humor could be inside of his mind, she thought wistfully. The man may not be full of barrel laughs every time a joke was told, but he had his own brand of humor. Just like most people.
Leaning back in the leather desk chair, Scott’s game face was in full display. “If we’re finished debating the merits of Bobby’s teaching skills, we can move onto more serious matters. Jean has drafted up a list of classes we can offer based upon the skill sets of those of us that will be teaching. While the kids will be here to learn about their powers and living as a mutant, they must also obtain the basics required by any human school. We have to remember that not all young men and women will want to be an X-Man one day.”
Nods all around signaled agreement to the statement. All of them chose the X-Men when they were approached by Xavier to come to his school. They could have said no at any point, but they didn’t. Every time any of them had left the team for a personal life of some kind, the conflict eventually drew them back in. No matter what.
Now they were back on the team together, making the choice to stick it through for the betterment of others. Even though they were focusing on teaching while leaving the fieldwork for the others, it was still a commitment. Charles Xavier was like a father to them and if they had to give up something in order to keep his dream alive, then it was all worth it in the end.
“Sounds good to me. What about Danger Room training and all that? Nothing like running through a giant room that’s trying to kill you to get kids having fun, you know.” Dropping his legs to the ground, Bobby sat up and smiled. “Or we could just lock them in a dark room with Hank after the kitchen serves chili. Now that is a true workout. Separates the men from the boys. Puts some hair on the chest.”
Jean’s hand went up cutting Scott off before he could comment back. “Once the Danger Room is deemed ready, we’ll be taking the students in for supervised training sessions. Sessions will be increased for those students not showing their full potential, or need more assistance with their mutations.”
The folder in her hand opened as sheets of paper were passed around to each of the men. Glancing at it they all nodded.
“I assume these are the lists of the students we’re all recruiting,” Warren said.
Nodding, Jean slid the folder away. “Yes, I’ve been working on Cerebro overtime the past few nights. The Professor had files listing many of the young mutants he was watching for future endeavors, but many of them required more in depth searching. With the school still secret, the families of those concerned will sign these confidentiality forms I’ll be giving you all. Sentiments against mutants are still running on the negative side as the fallout of Onslaught still lingers. We can’t chance the word slipping out to the many hate groups that would jump upon the knowledge of a mutant school.”
“David Alleyne. Why does that name sound familiar?” Bobby sat scratching his head as he stared at the list in hand. “It’s one of those names I feel I should know, and the memory is there but just not coming out. Wait…he was that kid on Instant Millionaire. He was on there for weeks straight with no missteps. They finally sent him home with millions after he was dominating the show. He’s a mutant?”
“His performance was owed to more than just his natural genius. Though from the files and the readings I got, he is not aware of his mutant power. That will be a tough sell, but I figure with your gift for gab you shouldn’t have any trouble.” Setting his list aside Scott rubbed at his forehead lightly. “We need to approach these kids carefully. Most of them don’t know they are mutants. Like this girl, Hope Abbott or another young woman that goes by the name Petra. Neither is aware of their mutant powers.”
“While others including this young man Santo Vaccaro, or a young Welsh girl Megan Gwynn, know fully well they are mutants.” Jean pointed at names upon her own list.
“When do we leave?" Sliding the list into his pocket, Warren waited.
Scott stood and faced the others. “As soon as possible. Jean and I have business to finish attending to here, but Bobby and you should head out now.”
The two men headed for the door closing it softly after themselves. Sliding up against Scott, Jean’s hands slipped around his midsection as she buried her head in his shoulder. “Do you think we’ll succeed Scott?”
“We have to. For the sake of the everything the Professor built and stood for, we have to succeed.”
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A cold sweat decorated a bare brow, as hands scrambled to find the light. Deft fingers grasped the switch and the room was bathed in sudden light. Gasping, Charles Xavier shot up in bed staring at the walls around him. Familiar walls stared back, decorated with shelves full of keepsakes of long ago. A portrait was framed upon the far wall, sporting the smiling faces of Xavier and the students that started it all.
Pulling the blankets back, his eyes readjusted to the now bright room. Images of the cell Bastion had kept him locked in flittered through his mind. Was it all a horrible dream? Or was Bastion using a new form of torture to break his mind? Reaching out he grasped the edge of his chair and pulled it over. With a grunt and some time, he was able to eventually pull himself into the chair.
The year in Bastion’s lair seemed as real to him as any other memory. Yet he could not tell the reality from the fiction. One had to be the reality, it only made sense. A knock on the door startled the man as he turned. The feeling of another mind brushed against his own, and that very fact startled him more than the knock. His powers had been lost after Onslaught, yet they were now seemingly reaching out and touching this other mind. If his powers were intact, that pretty much made it clear that the year with Bastion was the fantasy.
“Come in.” With a click the door was opened, and the head of Scott Summers poked in. The man’s trademark ruby quartz glasses and visor were nowhere to be seen. His brown and naked eyes twinkled as a smile decorated his face. “Scott…but…where am I? I was with Bastion, and then I woke up here.”
His first student let his smile slip some as he entered the room. “I’m not following you, Professor. Who’s Bastion?”
Xavier waved it off with a frown, as risking the confusion of his student was not worth the effort. Reaching out, his mind connected with Scott’s. As he dug through the layers it was clear to tell that it was indeed Scott. Satisfied with what the search produced, he began to push thoughts of the captivity away and embraced the true reality before him. “Scott, where are your glasses?”
“Professor, you know I’ve been wearing ruby quartz contacts for years now. Anyways, Jean sent me to remind you of your visit with the President today. There is talk of a special ceremony to commemorate the five year anniversary of Onslaught.”
Fear rose up as the mention of the alter ego created by his and Magneto’s personalities was brought up. The secondary concern was the mention of five years. Did that many years really pass by? Why were there no memories of those years? “Five years…since the heroes died…I didn’t realize it was that long.”
“The heroes didn’t die Professor…we defeated Onslaught. You were there, remember?”
“Of course…yes. I’m sorry; my mind is not what it was this morning it seems. Let us go meet the President.”
Moments later the man and his student entered the spacious dining room. The table was filled with different individuals, some known and some not, from all over the world. At the head of the table a man stood with a beaming smile. Robert Kelly moved around the table, his hand extended. “Professor Xavier, I am thrilled you agreed to meet with me today. It’s not often one gets to sit down with such illustrious people as yourselves, even the President.”
Grasping the man’s hand, Charles realized Kelly was President. The former Senator, looked to be getting along well in the office. Normally it was said the office aged a man, but he looked no older than the past times they had met over the years. “Yes, well I could hardly refuse the President now could I?”
“No I suppose not.” The genuine smile seemed plastered to the man’s face as he turned and gestured at the table. “I take it you are acquainted with the men and women gathered here today?”
At the right side of the President’s seat sat Reed Richards, one of the smartest men on the planet and leader of the Fantastic Four. His dark brown hair with its normally gray temples was beginning to gray all over. Next to him sat his wife Susan Richards, sans her normal uniform. She wore a conservative yet still fitting business suit that befitted the position of Secretary of State, a fact that Xavier marveled at as he picked it up from her mind.
At the other end of the table Prince Namor of Atlantis sat with his hands clasped. Still as regal as ever he nodded slightly at Xavier’s presence. As one of the first known mutants in the world, Namor’s presence was welcome in the school. On the President’s left a smiling blond woman rose and moved towards the Professor. Valerie Cooper, once the head of the Commission of Super Heroes, was responsible for his jailing after the Onslaught tragedy. His mind paused as it forced past the thoughts of jailing, as clearly that had never happened.
“Professor it is an honor to finally meet you. I have read up on your work, and would love to speak to you about your thoughts on free market trade between the mutant nations and the world.” Valerie smiled and moved back towards her seat, leaving Xavier confused.
“Yes, of course. I would love to discuss matters with you.” The adoration that mutants seemed to be receiving almost brought a tear to the man’s eye. Everything was as it was supposed to be. The dream had finally been achieved.
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The once sophisticated halls of the Xavier Mansion subbasement seemed almost barren in the aftermath of Onslaught. With the Professor’s arrest, the government, under federal orders, had cleared out the mansion. Fighting with Valerie Cooper, Scott had been able to secure some crucial items. The rest had been shipped off to government facilities all around the country for study. This meant no holographic Danger Room. No massive Cerebro. No more highly advanced Medical Bay. They were truly starting from scratch.
In the once War Room a small Cerebro unit had been rebuilt. Hard work on the part of most of them had turned the empty danger room into a shadow of its former glory. Gone were the sophisticated holograms, and in was the Danger Room of old. Trap doors, missile launchers, acrobatic rings, the works. It really brought some of the team back to the days of old.
“Now this is how it should be.” Wolverine muttered as he dashed through the room, claws drawn. A load of missiles streaked behind him, as he dipped and dodged through the rising portions of the floor. “None of that blasted new fangled advanced hologram crap. Just us and the physical traps of the room.”
Storm hovered above, her hair whipping in the air behind her. A bolt of lightning struck out as projectiles were shot her way. Turning gracefully, her hands shot out and wind flung the missiles behind her right into the wall.
A blur zipped by on the ground as Quicksilver dodged between obstacles, keeping one step ahead. The floor opened ahead of him, and a burst of speed was added to his run. Using the momentum he sailed over the opening and came to a safe stop on the other side. Three missiles streaked past him into the far wall. “You would enjoy such an activity Logan. Perhaps we should throw in a few real innocents in danger. Would that get your adrenaline pumping more?”
With a shake of the head, Logan launched through the air and grasped one of the rising floor sections. Digging his claws in he waited. The missiles locked and streaked right for him. At the last second he launched his feet back, and swung up through the air to land on the portion. The missiles struck the bottom of the pillar sending the middle of it into oblivion. As the pillar fell, the stout man rode it down before leaping off right before the crash. Rolling to his feet he flipped Pietro off.
“What’s got your panties in a bunch, kid?”
Before the man could answer the door slid open to allow the entrance of a clearly distraught and distracted Jean. Forgetting the conversation, Logan moved over and laid a hand on the woman’s shoulder. “Jeannie, you okay?”
“No, I just got a massive psychic equivalent of a kick in the head. It felt so familiar. I know I should know that signal.” A momentary pause brought a look of realization upon her face. “The Professor…and me!”
Curious looks passed over the gathered faces. Storm landed and reached out to steady her friend. Pietro approached with a skeptical look dawning on his face. “That’s not possible. The Professor is powerless, and you are here. How could you pick those signals up? Has the Professor returned?”
A shake of the head was all the woman needed to answer the question. Logan groaned as he thought about how she could sense herself. “Madelyne. Please don’t tell me its not blasted clones again. Leave the clones for the Spider kid I say.”
“No, Logan, it’s not Madelyne. Though the bearer of the signal seems familiar as well.” Concentrating, she tried to recall the feelings she had encountered. Her eyes lit up as the feelings of desperation and anger flooded back. “It’s Mimic! He’s out of control and desperate. Logan you have to help him.”
Nodding he pressed the communicator button upon his chest, as the three X-Men began heading for the hanger. “Field team assemble in the Hanger. We roll out in five.”
Twenty minutes later the black jet streaked through the skies. A small mountain stared at them as explosions could be seen down below. The mountain in upstate New York was the home of Project: Pegasus, a government project steeped in deep secret. Rumor had it that all the alien technology left by invading persons ended up in Pegasus mountain. Settling the jet down, Logan led the charge out.
Mimic stood in the middle of the driveway up to the base, optic energy blasting from his eyes. Jeeps and guards were sent flying under the pure fury of the energy. His long hair was unkempt and hung down his back as he muttered to himself. “The disciple of Onslaught is upon you! He will be avenged! He will return for me one day… to lead his people to dominance!”
“Oh great, a nut job.” The yellow and blue mask was pulled down tightly, as Wolverine took point. “Remember the kid’s got the powers of the original X-Men. Don’t get too close, or he’ll borrow you’re power too. Overwhelm him, and bring him down hard.”
Leading the team still felt strange to the man as he dashed into the field of battle. Six bone claws sprang from his wrists as he growled. Leaping through the air he landed beside the mad mutant. Claws shot out and struck in the chest of the attacking mutant. The attack upon the soldiers was halted as the man turned to view his attacker.
Optic energy rippled from his eyes and blasted out, at the same time a torrent of ice flew from his right hand. The optic beam and the ice struck Wolverine in the chest driving him back across the battlefield, and into a tree. Falling with a groan he glanced up and noticed the wounds on the man’s chest begin to fade. At the same time the white wings upon his back shriveled up and disappeared, replaced with the feral man’s patented healing factor.
“That’s not good.” Muttering, Logan rose to his feet and watched the attack begin anew. “That’s not good at all.”
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The dining room of the Xavier mansion seemed packed as more people began to wander in. Scott and Jean sat at the forefront of the room with Warren, Bobby, and Hank surrounding them. Logan sat upon the table with Jubilee hunched next to him laughing with Sam and Paige. Gambit and Rogue stood in the corner conversing, as Storm entered the room her white hair billowing behind her. Even Piotr, Kurt, and Kitty entered the room. When they had returned from Excalibur, Xavier was not sure.
“My X-Men, I have gathered you here today to share the news I have received. Under President Kelly’s watch Genosha has now been fully released as a mutant nation under the leadership of our very own Hank McCoy.” Cheers went up as the blue furred man took a mock bow. “Also the very last of the Sentinels in existence are being dismantled forever today. All plans for the Sentinels and similar weapons are being destroyed as well. The cold war between humans and mutants has finally ended. The dream has finally come true.”
As the cheers and applause got louder, the room shook around them. The ceiling caved in as a giant purple hand shot in. The other wall ripped away as a figure in a red and purple costume floated in. The white hair sticking out from the helmet gave it away. Joseph had returned as Magneto. Next to the man stood the blue and gray form of Apocalypse.
“Joseph…no.” Xavier croaked as he straightened up in his chair.
“There is no Joseph, Charles. Only Magneto. The end has come old friend. The war between humans and mutants is now upon us!” More explosions rocked the mansion as many of their foes from the past appeared.
The Brotherhood. The Acolytes. The Marauders. Reavers. All of their foes from the past were there in some capacity. Xavier’s mind was awhirl at the situation. How could they all be there together? It didn’t make a single bit of sense. Many of them should hate and want to kill each other. Yet somehow they had worked out hatred to take out upon Xavier’s team.
“X-men! Take your positions!” Scott’s hands flew up to his eyes, to the visor that covered them. Xavier did a double take as a moment before the young man had in his contacts. “Take them down, hard and fast. Protect the Professor!”
The room filled with the sound of explosions and crashes as the battle began. Magneto rose into the air, his hands raising to lock his power onto the charging Colossus. The organic metal mutant rose into the air, as Magneto concentrated and pulled with all his power. There was a tearing sound as the man’s metallic leg ripped straight from his body. The screams would stick with Xavier forever as the man was literally torn apart.
A group of Acolytes let loose with their powers upon Rogue, tearing her uniform all over. Rushing forward, their bare skin pressed against hers. All the minds assaulted her at once, as she was swimming in a world of psyches not her own. A guttural scream ripped from her lips as she collapsed under the strain. The mind or Rogue was lost in the sea of minds, where she would never make it to the surface again.
Sabretooth, Apocalypse, and other villains tore into Wolverine over and over. His wounds splashed blood upon the walls and floor. His healing factor was working overtime, but still was reaching the limit of over taxation. A shiny blade shot out of Apocalypse’s hand. It sliced straight through flesh, sending the head of the man named Logan spiraling across the room. His body slumped to the ground, yet Sabretooth wasn’t finished mauling the corpse.
As Kitty solidified to rush to Colossus side, a dart struck her body. The chemicals pumped into her body as she gasped. Phasing away from further attack, she found her self sliding through the ground with no control. Crying out her body sank through the Earth with no intention of ever stopping. She would be a ghost, unable to touch or interact with the world, forever.
Pain rippled across Xavier’s mind as Jean’s was assaulted on numerous fronts. She was powerful, but even the powerful can only take so much. Blood dripped from her nose as she grabbed her head painfully. Collapsing to the ground, a scream erupted as a wave of psychic energy exploded from her driving many to the ground. Her eyes glazed over as everything that had been Jean faded away.
Cyclops was the last standing, defiant to the end. His comrades in arms, no his family, lie dying or already dead around him. The mighty optic beams erupted from his eyes were for naught, as the shield of Magneto protected all. The beams were reflected back, stumbling the man. Another blast shot out, only to be reflected back into the visor sending it into overload. Grasping at the visor, he tried to remove it. Magneto’s grip kept it tightly to the man’s face. It exploded with optic power it fed back into the man’s head exploding it and thus ending the very life of Scott Summers.
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“For the last time Summers, I don’t know where the Professor is!” Valerie Cooper’s voice began to rise as her frustration set in. The man was as hard headed as the rest of the mutants out of Xavier’s it seemed.
“He was in your custody when he left the mansion. So sometime in the last year you just lost track of him?”
Rubbing her forehead, the image of Valerie began to take deep breaths. The bare walls of the Danger Room stood around Scott as he crossed his arms, and stared at the screen. Perhaps the call had been a mistake, but he needed to get to the bottom of where the Professor was. With everything changing, having the man who started it all by their side could be a perk.
“We’ve gone over this all before. Charles entered my custody for his part in the Onslaught debacle. I took him to the detention center myself. A week or two later I got orders to transfer his custody over to Bastion. I haven’t seen nor heard anything about him.” Taking a breath she turned back to look at Scott. “I wish I could help you, Scott, I really do. Bastion now has full authority. I’m just a liaison to you all out of respect.”
A hand slammed out in frustration against the wall. Concern colored her face momentarily, as she regarded him. Pulling his fist back he flexed it to regain feeling. With the Professor in Val’s hands, they were at least guaranteed respect and respectable accommodations for the man. With this Bastion in the mix, it threw that all up in the air.
“Is there anything you can do or tell me?” Taking a deep breath, his hands slid back down to his sides. The visor upon his face flashed red momentarily before going dead again.
Nodding, she thought about what she could tell him. “I don’t know where Bastion took him, but I know that his reasons probably go past just retribution or justice for the fallen heroes. Word is, his attitude is decidedly anti-mutant. I’ll do everything I can to dig up information on his whereabouts. That’s about all I can do, Scott.”
“Then that will have to do. Thank you, Val.” The image faded, leaving Scott alone in the room. Glancing at the door he cursed lightly before composing himself. There was much work to be done, and he couldn’t sit there all day.
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Fires raged all around the floor of corpses. Blood dripped from every wall and piece of furniture in the room. Silence hung in the air, minus the sobs of a broken man. Charles Xavier had just witnessed the slaughter of the students he loved like his own children. Cyclops’ visor was held tightly in his hand as he continued to break down.
Those that had perpetrated the murders were long vanished, leaving the man truly alone. A shimmering image appears along the far wall, as a white haired man wandered through it. Bodies and fire are nothing to Bastion as he just walks through them all, including the furniture. Coming to a stop over Xavier, the man stares up at his captor with despair.
Which was the reality, and which the fantasy? The brain was too exhausted with grief to differentiate. Memories of Onslaught and his resulting incarceration and interrogations speed through his mind’s eye. The future. His student’s death. It was all false, yet it held the emotional resonance of the truth. No matter how hard Xavier tried to convince himself of the falsehood, his brain couldn’t move past the grief and anger. Lashing out he tried to reach out for the man that had done it to him.
The attacks were futile as Bastion merely moved to avoid them. “This is but a taste of the world I am about to usher in, Charles. I am the marshal of all things mutant, it is but inevitability.” Bastion watched as the man’s eyes rolled up into the back of his head, and he collapsed out of the wheelchair.
The world swirled around them to reveal a plain white room. The ‘wheelchair’ was only a metal chair the man’s body had been slumped in. The door opened and two guards rushed in and grabbed the unconscious Xavier. The protocols had been realized. Now they were Bastion’s to control. The X-Men would soon fall before his feet. It was inevitable.
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Quicksilver’s body tumbled through the air as an optic blast and a bolt of lightning struck his chest. Landing on the ground, he was barely saved from being electrocuted with another bolt. Nightcrawler teleported in and grabbed his fallen comrade, before teleporting out again just avoiding singed fur.
Appearing beside the rising Wolverine, Kurt grumbled. “He is much more adept with his powers than the last time any of us faced him. Could it be the touch of Onslaught or the insanity?”
Grumbling, Wolverine ripped his mask off. Chucking the remnants aside he stared out at the others. “Dunno,elf, but no two bit Brotherhood goon is gonna take this team down. That’s for damn sure.”
A streak shot past them as Cannonball headed right for the man. Right before he impacted, Mimic darted to the side faster than the eye could see. Smashing into the ground, Sam trailed along till he finally came to a stop by smashing into the wall of the Pegasus facility. Crawling out of the dirt rubble, he shook his head. Every time they used their powers, the man dropped one of the powers to pick up exactly what he needed to defeat them.
Storm flew through the air, joining Wolverine and Nightcrawler on the ground. “We can’t keep fighting like this Logan. We must work as one. Overwhelm him. He can only take on five powers.”
“I know, darlin’. Rally the team up.”
As the team rallied around the team leader, Madrox had a thought. Mimic copied any power, but he only got half of the power. What if he was given a power he had trouble controlling. Like the ability to split into new duplicates. In his mind it was a sound plan. “I got it. We’ll over dupe him. I’ll distract Mimic by allowing him to copy my powers while you all get a plan going. Kurt, port me over there.”
Bounding over, Kurt and Madrox were gone right before Wolverine spoke. “Damn it, Madrox get your ass back here!”
The two mutants appeared beside their attacker. Suddenly the amount of Mimics grew off the charts. They began porting around attacking anyone that got in their way. They were almost unstoppable. Ducking a punch Madrox muttered at the situation. “That wasn’t my brightest idea.”
Quicksilver and Cannonball sped back into battle as the amount of teleporting Mimics began to rise. Pretty soon they’d be overrun with them. Every hit created another one or more. It was an effort in futility.
“Damn kid.” Muttering, Wolverine glanced around the battlefield. His eyes caught sight of one of the Mimic’s standing in the middle of the field. His hands were held to his head as if in great pain. The Mimic Prime. Concentrating to keep the others going. The strain had to be getting to him.”
A swift tackle took the Mimic Prime to the ground, breaking his concentration. Many of the dupes vanished before the team's eyes. “Tin Man! Get over here!” Colossus heeded the call and dashed over, rock in hand. “Knock him out, Petey!” The rock slammed into Mimic’s head. With a gasp the man sagged and collapsed. All around the Mimic’s disappeared.
Getting to his feet, Logan muttered as he moved towards Madrox. “Kid, don’t you ever do anything that stupid again or I’ll gut you myself. Are we clear?”
A swift nod was all that was needed. Grumbling, the man turned back to see Storm and Colossus restraining the fallen man. Moments later the sleek black jet darted off into the sky, leaving the scientists and military to figure out what to do about Pegasus Facility.
The medical bay sedation tubes slid down as Mimic’s body is dropped into one. Letting it seal back up, Logan grunted. Turning towards Storm and the others, he shrugged slightly. “Guess we better find Slim, figure out what to do with crazy here.”
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As Logan and the others brought Mimic into the Medical Bay, two figures stood overlooking the security footage. Jean’s hand slid out to settle on her husband’s shoulder. The team had proved they could work together, but needed fine-tuning. The running of the team at the base level was no longer Scott’s concern, but it was easy to tell that he still hadn’t fully let go yet.
“I can work with Calvin. Psychic rehabilitation. Perhaps soon he’ll be returned to normal. His abilities would greatly help the team.” Speaking lightly she turned to gaze up at his face.
The grim look upon Scott’s face faded slightly. “Perhaps. It is all coming together. The team. The school. Soon it will all be complete. Are we doing the right thing Jean? Would the Professor be proud?”
Wrapping her arms around the man, Jean kissed his lips lightly for reassurance. “Of course my love. Everything we’re doing furthers his dream. Wherever the Professor is, I know he’s proud.”
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The vast countryside of Wales spread out below, almost blending together. The wind rippled through the white feathers of his wings. Warren Worthington drifted through the air, dressed in one of his finest suits that was tailored for his wings. The costume had been ditched before as a precaution. Coming to recruit one’s child to a private school while dressed, as a super hero was not a very smart idea. The wrong impression would be given, and Warren was all about giving the right first impression.
Landing upon the walk of the small farmhouse, he began the trek up. In the distance a herd of sheep could be seen milling about. Warren was a city boy born and raised; yet something about the wide-open spaces called out to his heart. Perhaps it was the ‘bird’ aspect of him within. Smiling he approached the nondescript door and knocked lightly. Slowly it opened to reveal a slightly balding man.
“Yes? May I help you?” The man stared at the expensive looking man that had come to his doorstep with distrust.
“My name is Warren Worthington the third sir. I’ve come to see your daughter, Megan.”
“Why?” The man’s suspicions were ratcheting up to a much higher level at the mention of his daughter.
“She’s a mutant, sir. I represent an organization that helps mutants learn about their powers. A school, in America. I’d like to extend an invitation to your daughter, to join a brave new world.” With a smile Warren stepped through the door when offered. With the first stop of many almost over, a new era was about to begin. The dream would live on, no matter what.