Meeting The X-Men And A Discussion

I was pretty determined to try out my powers today in some sort of abandoned warehouse. I had to know what I could do even if I wasn't going to fully fall to The Darkness' temptation.

In the end, I got to a warehouse about seven in the morning after having a hearty breakfast and a little bit of coffee. Also had a bit of a conversation with my parents about how I'd most likely be out late today - it was a Saturday so they didn't really have a problem with it. When I was finally in the warehouse, I checked around for any homeless people or peeping toms and then I got on with my tests.

Or at least, I tried to get through all my tests. Because halfway through, I was interrupted by a small group of...well, they were a group of misfits.

A short man who was incredibly wide and muscular for his size, a tall man covered in blue fur and sporting very feline-like facial features, a bald man in an electric wheelchair and finally a beautiful dark-skinned woman with snow white hair. They were an odd group. That wasn't just the weirdest bit either - the weirdest thing was the jet plane outside the warehouse. The one that wasn't there before and the one I hadn't heard landing.

Of course I knew who these guys were. I was a massive Marvel fan before I died. In order, they're Wolverine, Beast, Professor X and Storm. Real names being Logan, Hank McCoy, Charles Xavier and Ororo Munroe, respectively.

Their appearance here fully cemented what I was. A Mutant.

Banishing my armor but leaving the tendrils coming out of my back - I was just testing how much control I had over the shapeshifting tendrils I could summon. I was currently holding up a few tonnes worth of metal with tendrils that ended in clawed hands. I'd discovered that I could do pretty much...anything my mind could think up with those tendrils. But the more dexterous I wanted the tendrils, the more concentration it took.

Even now the area behind my eyes was alight with a sharp pain, so I slowly put the metal down and banished the tendrils. I'd probably have to stick to simple tendrils for now and train my limits.

I looked tentatively over at the approaching group and scanned my enhanced eyes over each and everyone of the group. Wolverine seemed pretty lax but I could see he was ready to jump at me if I got aggressive or tried to attack them.

Beast was just looking at me with an utter curiosity that put me at ease, oddly enough. I was just glad he wasn't looking at me fearfully - though I guess he understands there's more to a mutant than what their power looks like and he understands it better than most. Considering he looks like a humanoid blue tiger.

Storm and the professor were the ones who looked the most friendly. Both of them were giving reassuring smiles and looked the most relaxed out of the four approaching me.

And it wasn't Wolverine's faux relaxation either. They were genuinely unafraid of my rather demonic-looking power. The professor was the first to speak.

"Hello Thomas," he said as his wheelchair came to a stop a few meters away from me, his friendly smile still there, "I'm--"

"Charles Xavier," I answered and felt a smile crawl across my face as I approached and held out a hand, "I've read your papers on Genetics and Mutation. They're brilliant," I said truthfully - after I discovered where I was, I delved into everything I could academically just as I did athletically/combat-wise. Which meant I came across the work both Charles and Hank McCoy had done on genetics.

Charles' eyebrow rose in surprise before he chuckled and took my hand, giving it a firm grip, "It's always good to know those dusty old papers are being read by the younger generation. Though I'm surprised you understood them. I mean no offense but I've done my research about you, Thomas...a 16-year-old reading my papers is quite an oddity. They're usually only read by college-age students."

"What can I say? I'm pretty studious," I joked and turned to another of the group as I released Charles' hand, putting it out to toward the taller blue-furred man who was actually a few inches shorter than me. "It's an honor to meet you, Dr. McCoy," I smiled and made sure to show I didn't mind his mutation.

It would be rather hypocritical of me if I were to let his appearance deter me when I'm the host of The Darkness, a force that is usually synonymous with evil. Judge someone not by how they look but by the content of their character.

Something I wish more people would do, honestly.

Beast smiled, showing off his rather beastly teeth but I paid no mind to it, and he took my hand in a firm grip, "The pleasure is all mine, young man. The chance to meet a budding intellectual is always a joy," he said and before I could reply, Wolverine spoke up.

"We gonna stand around shaking hands all day or something?" he grunted, earning a sidelong glare from Storm but he seemed unaffected by the look and carried on, looking up at me with squinted eyes, "Look, kid, I ain't got nothing against you but you need to come with us. We gotta talk about those tentacle things you had coming out of your back."

Letting go of Beast's hand, I sighed and looked to Wolverine and then the rest of them.

"I assume you all know I'm a mutant, yes?" I asked and got four nods in return, "Then let's go have this chat. I assume I'll be able to get home tonight, right? You know how moms are and how they worry."

Giving another sharp look to Wolverine, Storm gave my upper arm a reassuring squeeze and a nod before she replied, "Of course. We're not here to arrest or detain you, Thomas. We truly do just want to talk."

"Under one condition," I smirked and held up a single finger. That put Wolverine even further on edge and Storm just gave me an inquisitive look, asking me to elaborate, "Please, just call me Tom. Whenever someone calls me Thomas I feel like I'm in trouble or something," I joked and gained a gruff chuckle from Wolverine, someone I hadn't expected to laugh just because of how tense he was. Good to know he at least has a little bit of humor in him.

My joke got a smile off the other three and on our way we went. I wasn't thrilled I was being taken to a super advanced jet by four strangers but I also knew fighting this would only put me on the opposite end to them and maybe even develop the situation into a fight.

Besides, I didn't have anything to hide. I might as well just have a chat with them...besides, I feel like I could get away from them even if they wanted to stop me, so I'm good no matter what.

. . .

The flight from the west coast all the way over to the east coast wasn't that long, truthfully. Only a few hours. Not instant by any means but far faster than a commercial flight.

Once at Xavier's Institute For Gifted Youngsters, I was escorted inside and showed the way toward Charles' study. Beast and Wolverine both went off to do their own thing after saying farewell to both Charles and Storm before we entered the study.

It was what you'd expect. A big oak desk backed by a shelf of books that seemed built into the wall. A globe of earth was on the desk alongside a bunch of other documents which I kept my eyes away from - I wasn't that nosey, honestly. It's his business, not mine. So instead of snooping, I just sat in front of the desk and so did Storm while Charles made his way behind the desk.

Things went silent for a few seconds as Charles seemed to be thinking up how to start this conversation and I gave him the time to do so. It was obviously gonna be a pretty serious conversation.

"...I'll first start off by apologizing, Thomas," he dipped his head and rubbed at his brow in a tired fashion, "My mutant ability is telepathy and I tried to use it to read inside your mind. Alas, I couldn't get in but that's beside the point - I can only hope you can forgive me for my possible transgression."

I grit my teeth, my jaw locked in tension as the urge to rip his head off flooded through my heart and through my chest. I closed my eyes and rubbed at my temple as I rejected the urge from The Darkness, repeating a mantra inside my head that I was in control, not the one being controlled. Opening my eyes, I levelled a glare at Charles, "While I can't say I condone such an action, I hope you had a good reason behind such invasive action?"

"Yes," he nodded and looked up at me, meeting my eyes despite the shame obvious on his face, "Mutant abilities develop as you use them, I've found, and prolonged usage of my own along with a specific device has given me a sort of...precognition. A dream ability, of sorts. I had a dream that led me to you and at the time I was quite worried, and so I tried to get a read on your character through your mind. Again, I apologize for my actions but they were necessary to see whether you were as bad as that dream was."

"And?" I asked, "Am I?" I didn't know how much I wanted him to say I wasn't until I asked that question and the desire must've been as obvious as anything had been on my face because Charles' gave me a reassuring look and smile.

"I can see you're nothing like that dream. You've been nothing but cordial since we've met and I can see you're a young man who has his head screwed on right," he said before his smile faltered, "But I have to ask because I saw it through your senses, but why did you write that sentence down on that note in your room, Thomas?" he asked and I felt another round of urges flood through my heart.

Horrible, terrible urges. Chaos. Destruction. Slaughter.

I pushed them down and expelled them mentally through the use of deep breaths. Both Storm and Charles gave me worried looks at my sudden heavy breathing and I tried to put them at ease with a weak smile.

"...Because there's something in me, Professor," I admitted and tapped my chest right above my heart, "Something is connected to me and it's pure chaos and destruction. It's all it wants." I felt my shoulders slump as I leaned back into the chair, "But I don't want to fall to what it wants. I am me and I will make decisions for myself, I don't want to let some power decide my actions for me."

The professor nodded, "As you should, Thomas, as you should. Our powers usually come with temptations to use them in certain ways," he said before gesturing to himself, "My own power could easily allow me to control the world by changing everyone's minds to fit my ideals. And I have to live with that temptation, just like you're going to have to live with your own. The fact you see this temptation and the fact you can fight against it shows the strength of your own mind, Thomas. Truly."

Storm added on with a motherly smile, "You're not the only one who deals with this temptation, Tom, and if you wish to speak about it, I'm sure the professor has a certain proposition you would like to hear."

"Thank you, Ororo," Charles smiled over at her and I gave her a thankful smile of my own as he continued, "I would like to ask you to join my school. We have the facilities needed for you to test your limits and feel out the way your power works, and the teaching necessary to withstand the certain temptations power gives a human being. At my establishment, you'd be able to achieve a higher-level of education AND come to terms with your mutant ability."

I listened to him and instantly understood...he didn't understand where I was coming from. The urges in my head weren't from me. They came from The Darkness--from the energy flowing through my veins. But at the same time, the help he was offering would help regardless of whether he understood that or not.

Training equipment I could use, teachers who can give me relevant advice from personal experience and most of all, a place to take my academic learning to an even higher level.

And yet, the nudging at the back of my head caused me to shake my head, "...I'd like to think over the offer, if that's okay?"

Charles smiled and nodded, "Of course it's okay, Thomas. We'll have you back at home by tonight and you can think it over for a week before getting in contact with me through the official means," he held out a card with his school's contact information written across one side of it.

Taking it, I put it in my pocket and Storm stood from her chair, a smile gracing her face and flashing her pearly whites, "How about I give you a tour around the facility to help your decision, Tom?" she asked and I looked to her and smiled.

"That would be lovely," I said and stood before saying farewell to Charles and following Ororo who took me around the entire school building. She showed me the cafeteria, the sports area, the library, the classrooms, the dorms--and then all that was left were the Mutant training rooms. As far as I could see, it wasn't the Danger Room but individual rooms outfitted with all sorts of tech.

Entering one of them, Storm waved her hand at the room and looked to me, "Feel free to go wild in here, Tom. I know I wanted a place like this when I first awakened my ability."

"If you don't mind me asking, Ms. Munroe, what is your ability?" I faked ignorance and asked her. Along the tour, she'd introduced herself to me and I'd taken to calling her 'Ms. Munroe' out of politeness and respect.

Ororo smiled over at me and held her hands together. I raised an eyebrow at her actions and then suddenly a stormy cloud began to come into existence between her hands. I was expecting something like this...but to actually see it and up close, was vastly different to what I'd been imagining. There was no CGI or static images like in the movies or comics. No, it was just...real. A real storm, held between her hands.

Arcs of lightning flashed across the cloud, bangs of mini-thunder echoing throughout the chamber and I could only watch in awe as she explained.

"I can conjure up elements of the weather and manipulate the weather on Earth," she explained before the storm slowly withered away, "It takes a lot of control and I usually teach the younger students how to control their ability's as best as possible. If you take up Charles' offer, you can ask me for pointers whenever you wish, Tom," she joyfully and warmly said to me and I made a conscious effort to not blush at her appearance.

...Comic book-level chicks are way too hot, man.

To push my mind in another direction, I gestured to the equipment, "So I can, uh, use this without being a part of the school?" I asked and Ororo nodded, seemingly amused at my actions.

Pushing onward, I decided to really get some information on my abilities with the equipment here. I could test the raw power of my body and ability and the strength multiplier my armor gives me. Not only that, I can test the striking power of my conjured tendrils.

Well, let's get to it.