Baby Steps

Idris Rosario. Day 183 of Weapon-X

"Hello, Mr. Rosario. How are you this fine morning?" I was still strapped to the same table, as the first day, and the day after that, and the day after that. The same blinding white lights. The same procedure. Every day get injected with needles that caused extricating pain. They didn't tell me why. I think they thought that the pain could wake up my X-gene. It fucking sucked.

"Go fuck yourself." I groaned out, while coughing. I heard a chuckle on the intercom.

"I'm afraid I'm too busy as of now. You've made good progress, Mr. Rosario. You've survived this far, and after 274 tests ran on you. I can say that is quite the feat." The intercom buzzed and I was left alone again. In the facility it wasn't always test after test. I had my own cell, with my own bed. That was it. If I had to use the bathroom 6 armed guards escorting me with their guns aimed at my head so that was a real escape deterrent. They've classified me as having a minor healing factor. Meaning they could break my bones and peel my skin off and it'll grow back in a day for them to just do it again. It fucking sucked, I've gotten used the the pain before.

"Hello, Mr. Rosario. I'm afraid Weapon-X has lost interest in you." It was a new voice. A voice I hadn't heard in a while.

"Director?" I heard some ruffling of papers.

"It warms my heart to know you remember me. Yes, Weapon-X has lost interest in you. So you will be terminated. A healing factor like yours has no uses when we have Sabortooth." I was in shock. My heart was pounding in my ears.

"Wait. Wait. Wait! You can't just kill me." The intercom buzzed again.

"I'm afraid we can. No one knows you are here. It'll be like brushing dirt underneath a carpet. Well ash in your case.

"Ash?" I heard a chuckle.

"Yes. It's best to leave no evidence of mutant experiments. So, this whole facility will be burnt with you in it." The intercom buzzed again, and I was left alone. I was in shock, I just laid there staring at the ceiling. I was there for an hour until the light went out. I could hear footsteps past my door, but I knew no one would help me so I kept quiet. I just thought about my life.

I lived a pretty shit life. Of course not by choice or at least it wasn't my fault. Just the cards life dealt me. I really though this Weapon-X thing would be the one. I was wrong. I was a bad student in school. It just wasn't my interest, I had other things to worry about like paying the bills and finding food to eat. I started crying a little bit, when I felt smoke reach my nostrils, the emergency lights had turned on and I could see red flashing lights outside. The alarms was blaring in my ears.

I really could have been a mutant. A hero maybe. Some role model for kids and get my own cereal box. But no, this damn place lied to me. They promised powers but only tortured me and left me in the dust when they saw no progress. I could have been a field agent or something. Healing is pretty good right? The room was heating up more, and I could feel the table warming up as well. Fuck. I tried to break out of the bonds again, only to be left in the same position. I'm really going to die.

Flames were starting to lick at the door and the smoke got greater. Really filling the room. I was hacking and coughing a lung when it reached me. Fuck. Come on, think. I tried shaking the table, but it was screwed in place. It was new too, so I had no real chance of breaking it. The bonds were the same as always, unrelenting. The table was starting to sear into my back. I screamed.

Professor X. Xavier School For Gifted Youngsters

"Storm!" I called out to Storm through her mind.

"Yes, Professor?" She was in her office.

"Cerebro has detected a powerful mutant. I want you and Jean to help him."

"Why us Professor?"

"He's not in control of his powers. He's scared. Jean will be able to talk to him while you hold him off if things get out of hand." I felt a wave of confusion from Storm.

"What is his power, Professor?" I dreaded answering the question.

"From what I can see. Pyrokinesis. Be careful Storm." This would be difficult for them and this young man. I only hope that we can handle this without conflict.

"Jean and I are ready Professor. Where is he located?" I sighed mentally.

"It says he is located in Montana, close to the border of Canada. Make sure you inform Jean of your roles and the situation. Be careful my friend."

"We'll get him professor."

"I hope so. He is a troubled child." I leaned back in my chair, and sighed. Cerebro has never detected someone so powerful before besides Ororo and Jean. This was really a troubling experience. Omega level indeed. Without the proper care he could be trouble for everyone. No. He would be most safe in my care and in the safety of this school.

Idris Rosario. Facility.

I was on fire. Literally on fire. When the fire reached me, the table had already melted into my flesh and my body was smoking. All I could feel was excruciating pain, then it all went away. Once I realized the pain stopped. I just laid there and looked around. The leather straps having melted away. I rose up and just examined the room. The fire was still going on, but I didn't feel the heat. I looked at my body and saw that I was also on fire. It was strange feeling.

I raised my arms, and a torrent of flames blew against the wall melting it. I stood there mouth agape and just examined my hands and then the wall again. The hole that was left was coiling over and the steel had turned liquid.

"What do you know? I guess I do have powers. Failure my ass." Not just any powers. I'm fucking fire. This is cool as hell. I walked forward towards the hole in the wall and accidently released a stream of fire from my feet launching me into the air. I bounced against the ceiling before reforming, perfectly fine.

"Wow. So, I guess I can fly?" I tried again but focusing on releasing a smaller stream that was less powerful and like that I was hovering. Barely admittingly but baby steps. I hovered out of the room and into the hallway, it was charred, and the fires were eating away at the place. Fuck me what a convenient power.

"Now a way out." I wondered around the facility for a while before finding an elevator. Like I expected it didn't work. Huh, Maybe I could go full nuclear in this bitch and melt my way out. I looked to the ceiling and to my arms. Then I looked to the elevator. It would be easier to just melt the elevator out of the way then go up the elevator shaft. So I raised my arms and the elevator just melted away against my flames. This elevator was solid steel too. Not no old crappy apartment elevator. It boiled and groaned before snapping and plummeting to some lower level that I didn't care about.

"Alright, Rosario. You actually got to fly now. You're just going up." I looked up in the elevator shaft and I couldn't see anything. "Damn, pretty secret society type shit." I hovered into the shift and launched up. Speeding towards to the ground floor I was laughing the entire time. My flames were licking at the walls, and I could feel the wind smacking against me. I reached the ceiling to fast, and I tried to stop but I just melted it. Right though it. I launched into the sky to see it was daytime. I flew farther into the sky and just stared at everything around me. I was in the middle of a mountain range. Probably a bad place to be literal fire due to all the tree around me. I saw a Black jet looking thing flying towards me.

"Fuck me." The jet landed and out came two women. One with red hair and the other with white. They looked at me before looking at each other and then back at me. The red hair girl put her hands to her head before looking confused. She some sort of telepath? Actually now that I look at the uniforms that they were wearing. X-Men. Or X-people? Kinda confusing really. I wouldn't say its sexist to call a group of people men. When they have women in it. It's like Firemen. You don't call the people serving Fire people. That would be weird. As I was thinking this through. The White haired chick flew up towards me.

"Hello. I am Storm." Her accent sounded African.

"I know. I mean you're in the X-men. Big fan really." I said nervously and she just stared at me with a thoughtful look before continuing.

"Yes I am. May I ask your name?"

"I may be a fan but I'm not just gonna throw out my name. To some random" I crossed my arms and she seemed amused by that.

"Of course. My name is Ororo Munroe. Also known as Strom as you already know. I am here for you." I just looked confused.

"I've already been kidnapped by a shady organization before. I don't plan on doing it again." It was her turn to be confused.

"Shaddy Organization?"

"Yeah. Man with shades offered me money to join his Weapon-X program. That why you see me like this."

"Weapon-X? This is serious. Do you know of their whereabouts? She asked more focused in the conversation now. I just raised my arms shrugging before pointing down.

"I didn't know much. I was in their facility when they torched it. Making me what I am now. Almost nothings left from what I could see down there." She looked at me before hovering down to the ground motioning me to come with her. The red head walked up to us and stood next to her.

"Im Jean." She reached out her hand and I took a step back.

"Idris." She looked confused why I took a step back. "I don't really know how to turn off the fire. She just nodded and her face was becoming red due to the heat I was radiating. I was still hovering off the ground but I could see the grass was weltering. Shit. "Yeah. It's starting to become a problem."

"It is fine. You must be calm and focus. Powers like yours require a great deal of concentration." Storm said with sincerity. I just nodded and tried to concentrate.

"Wait! My clothes kinda burned when I turned into a human bonfire. So I kinda don't want to flash you guys." Jean blushed and Storm nodded understandingly.

"We keep extra suits in the Jet. Jean, grab one and bring it here. He looks around the size of Scott." Speaking of size. I had grown some and filled out a lot since the experiments. I stood at an impressive 6'4 and my shoulders were broad. This was all rough estimates. All I know I was much shorter and much lankier before Weapon-X.

"That would be just great." Jean just left quickly before coming back with a pair of clothes. She levitated them towards me and I took them with a raised eyebrow.

"Telekinesis." I nodded and grabbed them, waiting for them to melt away. They didn't. I was suppressed. I put them on and examined myself.

"Kind of tight around the shoulders and neck if I'm being honest." Storm just rolled her eyes.

"It will do for now." I nodded and closed my eyes to focus on turning off fire mode. It was hard. But I could feel it in my gut. Something was burning and I just imagined myself blowing it out. I smiled as I became normal again only to yelp as I fell on the floor. I landed on my back and heard them both laugh softly.

"That hurt." Storm helped me up and examined me before nodding.

"Do you feel anything? Anything out of place?" She questioned and I just shook my head.

"Not really. Everything I had at the start is here." She nodded before returning to Jean's side.

"Now. We both came here to offer you a place at the School for Gifted Youngsters." The school for gifted youngsters? Isn't that some preppy private school owned my Charles Xavier.

"Why me? I can't pay for that school." I shook my head and sat on a nearby rock.

"You don't need to pay. It's not a real school anyway. We provide a means for young mutants like yourself and Jean here to learn to control their powers in a safe environment." Storm explained to me and I just hummed.

"Sounds a bit too good to be true. What would I do for actual school?"

"You'll be going to Bayview High School. With me and Scott. So far, we're the only kids at the school. It'll be good to see another face." Jean piped up and I only nodded.

"And If I say no?" Storm and Jean looked at each other.

"It would not be a wise decision." Storm said. And I tensed up looking to see if that was a threat.

"Is that a threat?" Storm just stared at me hard before shaking her head.

"No. Merely a fact. The world is not ready for Mutant-kind. It would be wise to come with us." I stared between the two before sighing.

"When you put it like that. I don't really have a choice anyway. I'm down." Jean smiled and Storm looked relieved.

"We should inform your parents. They must be worried since your disappearance." Storm said gesturing to follow her to the Jet.

"No need. They didn't care for me before my powers. They won't care for me now." I said and Storm looked sorry so did Jean. I just continued walking to the Jet. It was a nice looking thing. Black as night. It looked expensive. Well more expensive then any other plane. I walked in and saw smooth metal. I gave a whistle running my hand across the chairs.

"It gets more impressive when the whole team is here." Jean said as she sat down in one of the chairs. I sat down next to her. Storm or Ororo. I don't really know which one she prefers sat in the pilot seat.

"You should tell me more about the school. How it is and stuff." I told Jean and she just nodded and explained the school to me. It'll be a long day for sure.