The X-Men

Nathan's flight to the outer rim of the Shi'ar empire was a quick one, thanks to the stargates and his body's extreme durability. Nathan continued his flight until he reached the seemingly destroyed ship.

' Hm? What is that?'

Nathan asked as he spotted Darwin, of the X-men, floating around the ship helplessly.

' Doesn't look like any Shi'ar or kree, or even Skrull. Guess I'll help him.'

Nathan thought to himself as he flew towards the man.

' Oh, man. I can survive in space. But how do I get back?'

Darwin asked himself as he continued floating.

" Do you need help?"

Nathan asked the man who turned to him and looked at him in shock and confusion.

' How can he speak in the void of space?'

Darwin asked himself.

" I control energy, I'm broadcasting my voice directly into your communicator. Now, grab on let's get you back to your ship."

Nathan explained to the man as he extended his hand to the man.

Darwin nodded and quickly took Nathan's hand allowing the man to fly him back to the ship.

" Thank you Mr?"

Darwin asked the man his name.

" You can call me captain Atom or just atom."

Nathan said to the man.

" Well, thank you captain. But my friends and I were attacked by Shi'ar I have to go help them."

Darwin said to the man before running off.

Nathan followed the man until they reached a door.

" What are you looking for?"

Nathan asked the man.

" There are people trapped on the other side of this door."

Darwin explained.

Darwin tried opening the door until a familiar voice called out to him.

" Darwin?"

Kurt called out to the man in shock.

Darwin turned and ran over to the man.

" Sorry to scare you. It took a while for me to get back in. Thankfully the captain over there arrived in time to help."

Darwin explained.

" You truly are a wonder. I could survive out there for a few seconds but you..."

Kurt said to the man excitedly.

" It's no big deal. Kurt, can you teleport through this door?"

Darwin asked.

" No need for teleporting. Stand back."

Nathan said to the two men.

He placed his hands on the door and started pulling them apart with ease. On the inside of the room were two Shi'ar crewmen.

" Oh, no. Not you!"

One of the men looked up at the captain in terror.

" I see, Shi'ar. Well, that's too bad for you."

Nathan said to the two men as he raised his hand towards them energy started emitting from his hands as his eyes turned red.

" Wait! They're not the enemy they are friendlies."

Darwin said to the man as he stood between them.

" You don't know much about what is going on out here do you?"

Nathan asked in confusion.

" Now, we don't. That's why we need them to tell us what's going and why Skrulls are on this ship."

Kurt explained.

Nathan turned to the man.

" Skrulls, I see. Very well. You can take them. But I seriously recommend you be careful."

Nathan said to the man as he stepped to the side.

Kurt, Darwin, and Nathan took the two shi'ar prisoners and returned to the rest of the X-Men that had come with the two.

" Kurt, Darwin. It is good to see you two are alright."

Xavier said to the two men as they walked into the room

" Who are they?"

Rachel stepped forward and asked.

" They are Shi'ar. They were trapped."

Darwin explained.

" I see. And who are you?"

Xavier turned to Nathan and asked.

" He's the one who saved me from space."

Darwin explained.

" Is that right? Well, thank you then Mr?"

Xavier asked.

" I am Captain Atom, second in command of the Starjammers. Now, that you know who I am. Who are all of you?"

Nathan asked the men and women who upon hearing who he worked for looked at him in shock.

" The starjammers?! Wait do you know my father?"

Alex asked.

" There are many men on our crew. Can you be a bit more specific?"

Nathan asked the man.

" Christopher Summers! He goes by Corsair."

Alex asked again.

" I see. You're the captain's son. Yes, I know of him. He raised me. In a way he's like a father to me."

Nathan explained to the man.

" That would make you all Mutants like me then. Can I ask what the X-Men are doing out in space. when you guys aren't liked by many?"

Nathan asked amusedly .

" We came to stop a mad mutant by the name of Vulcan."

Xavier said to the man.

" Vulcan? Never heard of him."

Nathan replied.

" Sit down, big man. We've got a lot to go over."

Rachel said to the man.

The team began filling Nathan in over what was going on.

" I see, but that doesn't explain why the Skrulls were here? And why you Shi'ar were taken captive."

Nathan turned to the men and said.

" Why did the Skrulls spare you?"

Rachel asked.

" Rachel."

Xavier snapped to the woman.

" It is a good question. Do you have an answer for it?"

Kurt asked.

" They said their code would not allow them to kill any who saved them. It's the first I've heard of Skrulls having any code."

The man replied.

" The Skrulls are twisted bastards. But they have a code of honor. That's more than I can say about you Shi'ar bastards."

Nathan explained to the group.

" Very well, you may ride with us until the nearest Shi'ar hub."

Xavier explained to the men.

" That wouldn't be a good idea. The Shi'ar can't be trusted. You should toss them out of the airlock or just kill them now."

Nathan explained to the man honestly.

" We're X-Men and while we may be at war we do not kill. Especially not those who can do us no harm."

Xavier explained.

" Then you're a god damn fool."

Nathan said to the man.

" But you are a friend to my captain, so I will not raise my hand against you. But let me be clear if either of you leave that hold, I will kill you without a second thought."

Nathan said to the men before walking away.

' Captain always spoke of the X-men like they were better than he was. This guy is a fool for leaving them alive. And this Vulcan guy. Sounds like he wants the same thing as us. At least when it comes to taking down the current empire. Things are about to get a lot more complicated than they already were.'

Nathan thought to himself.

" Oh, you have no idea how right you are."

Rachel said to the man as she joined him.

" How did you know what I was thinking?"

Nathan asked.

" Sorry, telepathy. Sometimes I just hear things by accident."

Rachel explained as she sat down next to the man.

" So Captain, mind telling we a bit more about yourself?"

Rachel asked the man.

" Did the others send you to question me?"

Nathan asked

" No, I just found you intriguing that's all."

Rachel replied.

" Well, there's not much to tell you. I was born on earth, but MRD soldiers killed my parents when I was a baby. Corsair was nearby and found me before they could. My mother was still alive but just barely and managed to get me to the man. Corsair took me in with him and raised me like a son and I in return treated him like a father. Over the years I got stronger and stronger and apparently activated my X-gene as he called it."

Nathan explained.

" So you're a mutant too?"

Rachel asked and Nathan nodded.

" What can you do?"

Rachel asked.

" Well, it's in my name. Captain Atom. Atom as in A-bomb. As in Nuclear fission. I can emit and expel nuclear energy. But it goes further that. My power is quantum."

Nathan explained. He raised his hand and emitted blue energy from his hands.

" That's pretty cool! So, you can manipulate energy. I'm a telepath. I can also use telekinesis."

Rachel explained.

" Is that right?"

Nathan asked.

" Yep, and that's not all I can do handsome."

Rachel said to the man.

" Well, thank you beautiful."

Nathan returned the woman's smirk.

" Anything else you can tell me? For example, what do you do for the Starjammers?"

Rachel asked.

" Well, I handle most of the dangerous jobs that no one else can. For example, if the Shi'ar send Gladiator out to fight, the Starjammers send me out to handle it."

Nathan explained.

" I haven't heard much about this gladiator. What can you tell me about him?"

Rachel asked

" Gladiator or Kal-lark is one of the toughest bastards you can run into in this space. He ranks up there amongst the strongest along with Ronan the Kree accuser, Thanos, Mar-Vell, The Silver Surfer, and Myself. There are others out there of course, whose powers put them above even us though. Beings such as Galactus for example. Though I could probably handle Galactus if need be. Really it all comes down to matchups."

Nathan explained to the woman.

" Now that's pretty impressive. So, do you think you can handle Vulcan?"

Rachel asked.

" I'm not sure. From what you've said it sounds like our abilities are somewhat similar. If that's the case, it comes down to which of us is physically stronger."

Nathan explained.

" You know you've been asking me all these questions but haven't told me much about yourself. So, miss?"

Nathan asked the woman.

" It's Rachel."

Rachel said to the man.

" Well, Rachel. How about telling me about yourself."

Nathan turned to the woman and asked.

" Well, I'm not from this timeline or earth really. I came from an apocalyptic future where I was forced to be a member of a taskforce known as the hounds. We hunted down Mutants and killed them. When I got the opportunity, I escaped from the future and into the past for a chance to change it all. But things weren't that easy, and, in the end, I ended up trapped here for good. And I also hate the Shi'ar."

Rachel explained.

" What did they do to you?"

Nathan asked

" A squad of them came to earth and killed my entire family. They then branded me with a tattoo of the phoenix on my back. Just because my family had a connection to the creature."

Rachel explained.

" I'm sorry to hear that, Rachel. I can't even imagine the pain you must feel."

Nathan placed his hand over the woman's and rubbed it gently.

" Sorry, I don't know why I told you that."

Rachel said to the man.

" Well, maybe you just needed someone who can relate with you in some way. I know you said you came to stop Vulcan. But there's more to it than that isn't there?"

Nathan asked the woman.

" You're familiar with the Shi'ar if I show you my memory of them can you help me find them?"

Rachel asked

" If vengeance will make you feel better then I will do what I can."

Nathan said to the woman.

" Thank you."

Rachel said to the man. She then placed her hands on the man's head and showed him a vision of her memories. Nathan watched and made not of every member that Rachel had seen. When she finished showing him, she removed her hands and looked him in the eyes.

" That was truly terrible, Rachel. But I can tell you who they were. Those were Shi'ar death commandos. The personal execution squad of the Chancellor Araki."

Nathan explained to the woman.

" Can you help me kill them?"

Rachel asked.

" Yes. If that is what you truly want. But be careful not to let yourself be consumed by darkness."

Nathan explained to the woman.

" Thank you, Atom."

Rachel said to the man as she got up from her seat to leave.

" Hey, Rachel."

Nathan called out to the woman as she walked to leave.

Rachel turned back around to the man to listen to what he had to say.

" Call me, Nathan."

Nathan said to the woman.

Walked smiled and nodded before leaving.