185 Issue #26

Jack had no interest in the new student tournament that took place afterward. The number of students that wanted to join the Inquisitors was far too numerous. It was better to let the field leader take over the role.

So instead of staying to watch, Jack teleported Quentin and Laura to his penthouse while the rest stayed to watch the matches. These two performed the hardest tasks during the match.

Jack brought the pair through a gate he had kept in his penthouse in the city so that they could see Okkara for the first time. Most of the students had heard rumors about the place from the few that had been but this was the first time Jack had brought those outside of the X-Men, Magneto's family, his family, or Jack's allies.

When they arrived, they appeared on top of Olympus. Jack brought them to the edge to view just what he had created. The pair were stunned to see the giant tree that held up the mountain they were on and even more surprised to see a city beneath them.

"Close your mouths, you'll catch a fly at this rate. Let's head inside."

The pair followed Jack into the temple at the top. They saw Colossus and Quicksilver watching over 3 coffins as they walked through but did not stop to question them. Jack took a seat on one of the thrones while the others sat on thrones near him.

Jack looked at them both as he evaluated what their contributions were in the fight and who truly deserved the pill.

Laura had to hold off the Hulk and took a large amount of damage. Even though she could heal it, the girl still felt the pain so this showed off her incredible willpower.

As for Quentin, he showed just how capable he truly was. Jack valued Quentin not because of his vast telepathic abilities but because he was truly a genius. His tactic ended the match much faster than they would have if they just wanted to wear the Hulk down.

'Without Laura, Quentin would not have had the time to think of his plan but without Quentin, Laura would have eventually lost to Hulk's never-ending increase in strength. Such a dilemma.'

While Jack was thinking of what to do, Laura spoke up.

"Mr. Frost, I understand that we both have contributed and you are struggling over who to give the pill. I suggest letting Quentin have the pill as a reward. Instead, I would like to request something else," Laura spoke eloquently yet bluntly. It was truly a marvel that she was able to speak in such a way.

Jack's eyes sparkled when he heard her request.

"Oh. And what would you like to receive?" Jack asked, curious as to what reward the young woman would want

Laura's face took on a faint blush. She could feel her heart beating louder than ever.

"Um. I was wondering if you... a-a-a-adopt..." Laura was unable to even finish her sentence but Jack understood what she wanted to ask. And he was more than happy to take her in.

Jack had been her guardian since he had brought her out from the Weapon's base. He had taught her how to fight better but also how to interact with her peers. Even the man that she had been cloned from was not as close to her as Jack.

Jack smiled brightly at Laura before standing up and rubbing the young woman's head, making her hair very messy.

"I'd be more than happy to. From now on, and till forever, you will be my daughter," Jack said to the young woman

Laura's eyes began to tear up and she rushed to hug Jack as tightly as he could. She had hoped that he would say yes but was also very afraid that she was overthinking their relationship. She had been worried about it for weeks but she promised herself that if she was the best on her team during field day, she would ask him about this for her reward.

Laura was about to say something but she heard a snarky voice behind her.

"Well, ain't that sweet? You got cucked into having 7 children that you haven't given birth to now," Quentin commented

Laura's eyes flared and her claws sprang out from her knuckles and feet. But before she could turn around, she felt a strong amount of wind and heard the screams of Quentin start loudly before getting quieter and quieter.

Jack snorted before pulling Laura closer in his arms and saying, "No need to worry about him. He is still an idiot."

Laura nodded into Jack's chest as she found the most comfortable spot there.

Vulcan soon brought Quentin back into the temple after having to catch him in the middle of his freefall.

"Thanks, V," Jack nodded toward the young man who nodded back at him before flying away. Vulcan was a young man of few words but Jack didn't mind. He was used to it.

"Teach! Why'd you have to throw me off this damn mountain?!" Quentin complained and summoned a psionic shotgun

Jack looked at him with disdain when he saw the weapon that the boy had chosen to bring out in front of him and his new daughter.

"Say one more word and I can take back the reward I promised," Jack threatened.

Quentin immediately put away his shotgun and put on the most docile expression he could muster. When Jack saw him look like this, he felt even more disdain towards this student of his. He was a problem child of the highest level.

Jack pulled the pill out of his pocket before hurrying to toss it to Quentin. Without even checking the pill, Quentin immediately ate the pill.

As soon as it entered his stomach, the teen could feel a burning sensation all over his body. It was like his skin was literally melting off of his body.

And to Laura and Jack, that was partially true.

They saw that Quentin's skin seemed to be 'replaced' by something else.

Quentin now had a dark purple, humanoid shape that seemed to be made of pure psionic energy. From his head radiated a stream of glowing bright pink energy that resembled his mohawk. He did not have any externally visible ears, nose, or lips, nor was he wearing any clothing.

Quentin looked at his body and seemed visibly excited before he got very worried.

"Wait! What happened to my clothes? And my good looks? How will I get Phoebe now?"

"So he has become more like Bobby after his secondary mutation. Which probably means it will also take a while for you to return to normal. That's good. Your face looks much better like this than your normal self," Jack taunted, feeling a little happy that his daughter might lose interest in the teen

Seeing Jack's gaze and taking at a challenge, Quentin began to yell and focus on his body. He could feel his skin 'melt' again before he noticed that he was wearing the clothes he was wearing before and his hands were normal.

Seeing that he had succeeded so fast, Quentin began to gloat.

"Ha! Take that, old man!"

Jack responded by throwing Quentin out of the temple and off of Olympus once again. Once he was gone, Jack smiled.

'That kid only knows how to oppose authority. The best way to get him to train is to make it look like I'm looking down on him. Such a troublemaker.'