15 Chapter 15: The Triggers and The Catalyst

Tuesday, October 11th, 2014.

There it is, and there it went.....

Bronte's first week at The Xavier Institute had blown by in a chaotic whirlwind of strange experiences, endless hours of strenuous activity, Mutant history and Combat. Very grisly combat with the one and only, Daken.

It started out as simply one and one's. They saw that he could handle little else. The first two days, he'd barely been able to last ten minutes before fleeing. Not from pain or exhaustion-- but from the fear and pain of seeing his chest ripped open and his wounded arms leaking as if he'd shoved them into life sized blenders. He may have been a Mutant in body, but in mind, he was far from it. Even with his regeneration and other abilities, he couldn't yet stomach the damage Daken would do to him if he could.

Luckily, Laura watched over it all like a hawk with Hank at her side. And as a result, he wasn't overwhelmed. He progressed if ever so slightly. He could tango with Daken for twenty-minute sessions-- and after he'd gained a bit of coordination and combative senses, Raze and Gabbie had become his teammates.

They were far from being a fully functioning assault squad though. Raze was a walking-- sometimes crawling, wildcard. And Bronte's current trigger to enter the "Storm-State" as Hank coined it made him impossible to work with. Hell, Bronte couldn't even work with himself due to the blackouts they caused, leaving him waking up pinned to the floor and tired as all hell when he'd come back to his senses.

The more it happened, the more he realized, his adoptive mother always knew. Anger was a trigger. As she always said before he stepped out into the busy concrete jungle of New York, "If you see violence, go the other way. And don't let anyone get you angry."

It was both a warning for his safety, and many others.....

He missed her. His father as well..... along with the half dozen kids that always scurried around the small apartment and kept them busier than humanely possible at times. When he wasn't getting thrashed by Daken, or working out until it felt like his muscles would burst, he thought about them.... he thought about his old life often.

But it would once again be put on pause as he suited up for Training. The small locker-room was filled as his fellow male students suited up while conversing over all matter of things.

Bronte-- as sociable as he was, kept to himself. Finding that he was much more interested in bobbing his head to the beat of the music playing outside. He hadn't been able to truly appreciate his first passion in so long, simply hearing the basic tune invigorated his soul like nothing else could.

"Sheesh, Bronte. They're workin you good out there, huh?" Sam said as he slipped the sleeves of his brightly colored X-Uniform on.

"Man, I'm getting clowned out there. What are you talking about?" Bronte replied, gaining a laugh out of the super-powered southerner.

Sam shrugged as he zipped up his suit, "I don't know man. You look like you've gained at least another fifteen pounds in the past week. Illyana says you're also getting better in combat at an unnatural rate."

Bronte waved him off, "Stop it-- Illyana's just chattin."

"Suit yourself, brother. But you might want to check Hank for another Mutant ability..... that or you're sticking." Sam jokingly said before they bumped knuckles, "See you out there."

"Word." Bronte replied before whispering to himself, "The hell is sticking?"

"Steroids." One of the students in the locker-room said as he walked by. His face was shielded by his long blonde hair as he read a book in Chinese while holding another in a language he couldn't even begin to guess. Before Bronte could even reply, he was gone.

"Steroids..." Bronte thought before pulling on the pants of his X-Uniform. Before pulling on the upper body portion, he looked at the body mirror stuck to the wall of his locker.

Sam wasn't wrong. Bronte had progressed physically in ways that baffled him. When he first woke up in the Xavier Institute, he'd changed for sure. But it seemed he wasn't done.

He wasn't scrawny anymore. A week ago he was still a stick-- just with a bit of muscle and tone. Now he was lean and hard all over. His shirts had grown too small, squeezing around the chest and arms in ways he'd never felt. Even the pants he'd been given were growing too small.

He shouldn't have been unnerved by the physical changes. It was natural-- in theory. He was getting stronger every other day. He could bench two-hundred and twenty-five pounds for ten reps. He could squat three hundred and eighty pounds the same. And his cardio was absolutely inhuman thanks to his regenerative powers. But still, every bit of progress he made only made Hank have to take more and more samples from him to study.

Some days he'd come to training with the darkest look in his eyes....

Bronte shook off the thought. Whatever it was, there was a larger problem crawling through New York in search of him at every waking moment. That was his focus.

As Laura said, "Remember why."

With that being said, he zipped up his X-Uniform in all its torn and tight fashion and stepped out into the Gym.

***

As soon as he pushed the door open and stepped out onto the metal floor of the Gym, the sounds of music exploded in clarity and intensity followed by the squeak of shoes and the steady bounce of air-filled rubber as a number of Students and Professors played Basketball while Students continued to fill the Gym.

"Bronte!-- We're down ah man, care to join us?" Rahne said as she stood at the three-point line beside Sam, Gambit and Raze. What a collection of individuals.

"Yes of course-- because what you need is another little man." Colossus joked as he stood under the hoop. He looked just as intimidating without his metal skin. Even so, he seemed uncomfortable with Raze standing behind him.

Bronte almost reflexively said no-- as he had to all physical group activities for most of his life. Then he took notice of all the students loosely circled around the court as a crowd. He was in a completely different place than usual. Entirely new circumstances.

Bronte shrugged, "Yea, let's run it."

"Oooouuuhhahaha! The Dynamic Duo is here!" Raze cackled.

"Right..." Gambit said passively from beside Rahne.

Hesitantly-- partially due to the crowd, Bronte entered the game.

And for the first few points, it went as expected. He missed some shots, got some steals and made some good passes. Otherwise, he wasn't doing much. Rahne and Gambit led the offensive-- Gambit's smooth trash talk seemed to be its own offensive force. It wasn't until Illyana had scored her fourth three pointer that things changed.

"Come on, Bronte. We need some blocks!" Rahne said as her eyes glowed bright amber.

"Hit her if you have to, brother!" Raze yelled.

"I'm about to hit you." Bronte jokingly yelled back to Raze, "Alright, checkup."

Illyana tossed him the ball. He tossed it back, and the game began.

She backed away; Bronte followed. He could hear Colossus laugh to himself for reasons Bronte didn't understand until she began waving her teammates off, causing them to clear the floor. The surrounding students began cheering and hooting.

"An Iso? That's crazy disrespectful." Bronte said before dropping into a defensive position, "Alright let's g--"

Before he could finish speaking, Illyana charged straight into him, using the same speed she did when she sparred with her metal skinned brother.

Bronte was stunned by the sudden quickening of pace but adjusted nonetheless, backing up to stay in front of her. As she moved, he swiped at the ball, missing entirely as she dribbled it through her legs and switched hands and began moving faster.

Bronte kept up and swiped at the ball again. Illyana hit another crossover and began dribbling the ball low-- a steady pound following the rhythm of the music playing. Bronte took the bait, dropping low to follow the ball, after three steps, Illyana snatched the ball back with a pound dribble behind the back.

Bronte's feet moved one way, but the rest of his body went an entirely different direction causing him to slip and roll across the metal floor. He looked up just in time to see Illyana shoot the ball from the three-point line. Nothing but net.

"AHHHHH SHIT!" Raze yelled at his sibling's publicized embarrassment. As the other students roared in excitement.

"Yes, Illyana! This is how you play ball!" Colossus yelled, his Russian accent seemingly as thick as his muscles in that moment.

As Bronte rolled over onto his back, he found Raze's pale skinned face, yellow eyes and red fur-like hair facing him. "Brother. You are looking worse at Basketball than you are at fighting. That's disgusting. I don't even want to steal your food at breakfast anymore."

"Back on defense come on!" Rahne yelled.

"Simple slip up, Bronte. Don't worry about it." Sam interjected.

"It seems our defense is compromised...." Gambit commented.

Bronte hopped up onto his feet, "Listen-- I got worked, but let's not lose faith." He turned to Illyana, "Who taught you that NBA shit?"

Illyana shrugged, "Nobody. You just aren't playing like you fight. Everything's a dance, and you aren't dancing."

Bronte didn't know why, but there was something profound about her words. Maybe it was because as much as he spoke to her, she didn't speak much. Maybe it was the music playing over the cheering and excited students of all ages. Maybe it was something entirely different. Whatever it was, it hit him hard.

He took a deep breath and checked the ball.

Illyana charged again. Bronte ignored the squeak of her shoes-- the cheer of the students. And let the predictable rhythm of the music fully take over his mind. He didn't reach as she dribbled, simply watching her dribbles follow the drumline playing from the stereo in the distance.

He waited until she assumed he wouldn't bite. And then he did. In a flash, he dove for the ball. The suddenness of his movements froze her, leaving the steal an easy grab.

He didn't let up once he'd got the ball-- instead continuing to move with the music as he dribbled past her and attacked the rim.

Colossus' skin hardened as it transformed to his trademarked organic metal. He stepped forward to block the shot he assumed Bronte was about to take.

"You are too small, Junior." He joked as he raised his hands.

Bronte looked to Raze who was grinning from ear to ear. The only reason he even considered coming in so close came from fighting Daken with the wild Mutant shapeshifter. He enjoyed attacking from above. It seemed that fact remained the same in basketball. Luckily, Bronte watched his Varsity basketball team back home play so much that he had some ideas.

He stopped short and tossed the ball over Colossus, Raze caught the pass mid-air and slammed the ball into the hoop so hard a crack ran up the reinforced glass backboard.

The students cheered at the violent dunk.

"YEAAAAHHHHHH!!!!!!" Raze yelled as he hung from the rim with his prehensile tongue flailing all over the place and his skin shifting to midnight blue.

The crowd seemed to grow larger as they checked up the ball again.

Bronte passed the ball to Sam. Sam passed it back, gesturing for him to keep it.

"Come on, brother! Let me jam on the tin can again hahahahHA!" Raze yelled in a frenzy as he pushed up against Colossus.

The words never fell on his ears as he continued to move to the music. The ball slowly beginning to feel like an extension of his limbs. The more he moved and relaxed, the more his spine tingled and the easier movement became. It felt otherworldly.

Sometime along the way, Illyana had begun to regard him more seriously and the students had quieted. He didn't notice. Nor did he notice Hank and the others pushing through the crowd.

"Dancing..... it really is like dancing..." He thought to himself.

Illyana suddenly reached for the ball. Reflexively, Bronte executed a cross-over and blew past her. Quite literally in response to a gust of wind pushing him at blurring speeds.

He didn't notice as he went for the rim.

Colossus didn't approach this time, making sure Raze didn't get another dunk. That also meant he stayed under the hoop.

Suddenly, the music playing from the stereo reached its crescendo in intensity and upbeat tone. Bronte followed its influence and jumped. The metal gym floor shook as another rampant gust of wind exploded from his feet and sent him six feet into the air.

He soared from the free throw line. Colossus could do nothing as Raze's arms extended and wrapped around him, leaving him unable to defend Bronte's dunk.

As soon as he made the slam, a whistle sounded, gaining the students attention for the start of training in the midst of their cheers.

He came back to himself-- stunned to be hanging from the rim, "Woah...." He thought as the crowd separated, commending him and the others on the way to their stations.

He let go of the rim and hit the ground, finding his faint reflection looking back up at him from the floor.

His eyes glowed, and the one white streak of hair he had sparked and popped with a bright white intensity.

"Nice dunk, Bronte!" Same said as he slapped his back.

The beginning vestiges of his Storm-State that he'd previously seen faded immediately.

As he turned, he found most of the court emptied except for Illyana. She stood staring before hurrying off to join her training squad.

In the distance his ears perked up at Hank's urgent tone as he spoke to someone.

"What do you mean he can't participate? Weren't you all the ones saying how badly he needed training. You're lucky Professor Xavier let you back in with the way you left. And now you-- what? You want to cherry pick where you fit in and train? He looks more than functional-- and if he's Wolverine's son than he can take a hit."

Bronte turned and found himself looking at Hank, Laura and Cyclops left to remain of the once large crowd.

Laura looked angered by Cyclops' words. Hank looked anxious as he put a hand in front of Laura, "Scott, listen. It's not that he isn't strong enough. But he's full of variables I don't understand. He's changing sporadically-- possibly on a molecular level. It could be dangerous to put him in a widespread violent environment. Even if it is training. The more I study of him the less I understand. And I think it has something to do with someone other than his father..."

"What?" Scott asked.

Hank suddenly stepped closer to him and whispered something that caused Cyclops to stiffen. If that was possible. It was then that Bronte found them both looking at him.

"He's participating in the training event." Cyclops said, seemingly both angered and uncomfortable at whatever Hank told him.

"Listen to me, you stiff fuc--" Laura started as she approached him.

"He's a student at the Institute! Let's leave it to him to decide. I want to see it! This is a controlled environment. I won't let anything happen to these students."

Following his words, Cyclops took command of the room-- announcing for everyone to prepare for a class wide combative training event.

As the students prepared with their Professors, Bronte felt his stomach lurch...