Chapter 24

"I'm sorry, I don't mean to sound naggy but could you maybe expand on the whole "oh hey, I know which religion is right" thing? It's a little overwhelming to those of us who don't have bullshit mutant god powers."

I yawn and tug my vest back on "Might as well, seeing as how you guys ruined my nap. What do you want to know exactly?"

Santo stammers "W-I... how about start with HOW COULD YOU POSSIBLY KNOW THAT?!"

"I watched you bring the dead back, I thought you were just really powerful, but... I mean, people were calling you the mutant messiah, even though you said you weren't. You were telling the truth...right?" Mercury says uncertainly, and the whole group of teens look a good deal more apprehensive all of a sudden. I better nip this in the bud.

"Okay, let me just stop you right there; no, I'm not a god, not of mutants or anyone else. I had two perfectly human parents, I never had any abilities until my mutant powers kicked in, never had visions, never heard voices, nothing. Just woke up one day and BOOM, phenomenal cosmic powers."

Ellie nods "I'm pretty sure he's speaking the truth, it IS sort of hard to see him as divine after you watched him mix skittles with vodka that he stole from a minibar."

"I call it "tasting the rainbow", don't judge me kid!"

Dust finally speaks, and I think this is the first time she's actually spoken to me directly "Forgive me for asking, but... you do make a very bold claim. I mean no disrespect, and I can't express my gratitude for returning my lost friends to me, but as powerful as you are, surely the realm of Allah is a mystery even to you?"

I sigh and scratch my head awkwardly "Sort of? It's too complicated to explain, and I don't know every single detail, but I suppose you can call it "outside knowledge". The basics is that yes, there is a Heaven, there is a Hell, and a ton of stuff in between."

"So... which religion is correct? Because I was pretty agnostic when I died, but I don't remember going anywhere." Brian says, and Ellie nods as well.

"Same here, I wasn't really raised as anything specific, and I didn't believe anything specific either. Did we just... go nowhere?" Neither of them looks happy with that idea.

"I doubt it, few people ever seem to remember what the afterlife was like if they're brought back. Even the ones who do just sort of describe it in vague terms."

Santo shakes his head in disbelief "And that Mephisto guy, he's like, what, the Devil?"

"You know, I'm not even sure there is A Devil, there's a bunch of demons who claim to be Lucifer if they're summoned, and Mephisto is sort of the stereotype everyone thinks of when it comes to bargaining your soul, but he's not actually Lucifer either. You ever hear of Ghost Rider?"

The kids look at eachother. Mercury snaps her fingers in recognition "Wait, isn't he that creepy biker guy with the burning skull head?"

"Yeah, guy sold his soul to Satan, only turns out that wasn't Satan either, totally different demon. There's even some weirdo running around calling himself the Son of Satan, but apparently, daddy wasn't Satan after all, and so on and so on. You can pretty much sell your soul to any random asshole from Hell, it doesn't make them Satan. But seriously, do not do that."

"Wow, good thing you warned us, otherwise we'd have been all over that." Santo says with an almost manic tone "Okay, so there's no Devil apparently, what about God? Is he real?"

Yeah, and he's allegedly Jack Kirby, but I think I'll keep that to myself. "There's definetly someone running the show from the very top, I can't really describe it better than that, and there's a very complex cosmic order underneath Him. For all the things you've seen me do here, it's nothing compared to some of the REAL forces in the universe."

A silence settles over the group, and we begin heading back towards the mansion when Brian thinks of something "Wait, so which religion is right?"

I shrug "As far as I can tell it's basically all of them."

...

"You're absolutely certain of this information?" Maria Hill frowned as she studied the data prints the SHIELD technician had just handed her. The man fidgeted uncomfortably under her sharp gaze.

"Yes, ma'm. We've triple checked all availible data, this is the same energy signatures that were released during the Genoshan Resurrection, except this time they were coming from Westchester. More specifically-"

"Xavier's school." Hill finished his sentence with a grimace "That's all we need... I guess I shouldn't be surprised, if the man has decided to bring back dead mutants, he'll find plenty in Xavier's backyard. Still, this is an opportunity we can't afford to ignore. Is Agent Danvers back from her assignment yet?"

The agent nodded "Yes, she arrived a few minutes ago, ma'm."

"Good, tell her to gather her teammates and prepare for deployment. We need to act before the mutant moves on again." Hill began turning away, but the agents voice brought her back.

"uh, ma'm, are you sure? Shouldn't Director Stark-"

"The director is... currently indisposed, he's delegated Avengers duties to me." Indisposed was putting it kindly. Hill had no idea why Stark had started to come apart at the seams like this, he ignored nearly all his duties as Director of SHIELD, and seemed to spend nearly every waking moment with Richards for some reason. But if he wouldn't move against the enormous danger posed by the mutant, she sure as hell would. He might have smacked around Osborn's bushleague rejects, but no matter how strong this "Ginnungagap" was, a team with Danvers, Ares, Wonder Man, and the goddamn Sentry should be more than a match. "I wasn't making a request, agent. Get Danvers on the line, and step on it! We can't wait all day!"

Hill watched the man leave in a hurry, before turning back her desk. It was a shame they'd have to go after the mutant on Xavier's school, god knows they had a rough history with SHIELD as it was, but if the X-Men had any sense, they'd stay out of the Avengers way when they subdued the reality warper, hopefully Xavier wasn't dumb enough to harbor a danger to national security. And if he was... well, it wouldn't be the first time she had to deal with superhumans who thought "law and order" was just a suggestion.

.....

"Oh, this ought to be good."

I'm sitting in on Emma Frost's telepathy class with Ellie and the Cuckoos when the wards I had set over the mansion go off, alerting me to a group of very powerful people moving towards the area, and I have a sneaking suspicion about who it is.

"Is there a problem, Mr Ginnungagap?" Frost asks in that subtly condescending tone she always has no matter what. She even speaks to Summers that way, and I'm atleast 70% sure she likes him.

"Just a heads up, but I think we're about to have some unwelcome visitors."

Before Frost can answer, her eyes go blank, before she turns to the classroom "All students, please return to your rooms! Emergency procedures are in place!"

The students protests go unheard as Frost rushes out of the classroom, with me following after her. We're met in the hallway by the other X-Men currently at the mansion, some in uniform, others still in civilian clothes, with Xavier and Wolverine leading the group. A few of the students try to slip out after them, but are quickly pushed back by Rogue.

We burst through the mansion doors just as the intruders land on the lawn in front the mansion. A blonde, well-built woman wearing a black swimsuit with a lightning bolt and a domino mask lands first, carrying another woman, this one red-haired and wearing a leather catsuit. Behind them are two large men, one wearing an almost completely red outfit, including the sunglasses, the other an almost gaudy suit of armor that I think is supposed to look either Greek or Roman, though I'm pretty sure neither kind of armor actually looks like that.

It's the fifth intruder that catches my eye though, and not just because he's by far the largest. He has long, blonde hair and wears a gold costume and a purple cape, including a giant belt around his waist with a huge "S" in the center.

The Sentry. Wow. SHIELD is really bringing out the big guns.

Ms Marvel steps forward "Professor Xavier, I apologize for the intrusion on your property, but we're under orders to bring in the mutant known as Ginnungagap."

Xavier gives her a blank look. "I see. On what grounds?"

"How about "because we said so", old man?" Ares snarls.

Marvel holds up a hand. "That's enough Ares. Due to national security concerns, professor. We've been granted extrajudicial authority in this matter, so please don't resist."

I'm about to answer, when I feel a slight pressure on my neck, and bring my hand down on the irritance with a loud smack. Ms Marvel gasps in surprise, even as I bring my hand back around, holding up a stunned but otherwise unharmed tiny woman with wasp wings dressed in a yellow and black costume. I give Ms Marvel a withering glance.

"Please tell me you didn't seriously think that would work. Wow. Just wow. Honestly? I'm insulted."