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H i g h S c h o o l X
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Nazarus

Jamie: “Jude calm down.”

Jubilee: “He can't breath Jude.”

I couldn't see straight. After he told us what he did.... I couldn't see straight.

He was grasping at our hands, but he wasn't saying anything. He wasn't asking Jude to stop choking him.

Mr. Wayde: “Get your hands off of my son or I'll blow a hole in your chest.”

It was so easy for him to take the shotgun out of his hands. It was tossed to the side and he swiped him out of sight with telekinesis.

I felt a bullet make contact with our shoulder, but my mind was to gone to feel it. He searched around for the source and Mrs. Wayde was behind us. He flung her back with my powers and she fell over the balcony. Casey vanished from the room, but I don't know if she caught her. I couldn't get a grasp on him. I'd never lost a hold on Jude like I had now. Serenity, Kevin, Carson, Jubilee and Story couldn't stop him and all of them were down. Jubilee was the first to get up, but she was in no mood to keep fighting. Jamie and Casey were trying to get him to stop, but if I couldn't, they had no hope. I tried again to get a hold of him, but he was keeping me locked down. He had so much more power than I gave him credit for. Casey flashed back into the room and sent a plasma beam right into our chest. I felt the shock of it, but Jude didn't even seem fazed. The whole time Xander was under him just trying to hold on. I could see his eyes fluttering and I knew he didn't have much life left in him. I didn't think he would react like this. He was so uncontrollable. I reached out to him again, but I couldn't do anything.

Jude: “How could you do this to me Xander?”

Jubilee: “Jude you're killing him. Can't you see that?”

She tried to get him to stop, but he wasn't listening. She formed a massive firework on the tip of her fingers, but she was thrown back before she could even release it. She slammed into a wall leaving a small crater and there was blood where her head hit. I wanted to run over to her, but I couldn't. Xander's brother and sister came into the room and they had murder in their eyes. Rachel was the first one he went after and when he pushed her back with his powers, she was fast enough to land soundly on her feet. She did a few flips towards us and when she jumped in the air, she threw a small dagger right at us. She was coming down in the air and sent three more daggers our way. She landed on the ground just as the daggers would have made contact, but Jude caught them and launched them back in her direction. She did a few flips out of the way and dodged them. Joey was next up and he ran straight at us. He was coming at us full force and finally something worked. Joey slammed into our chest and we flew back off of Xander. He rolled off of the bed and just tried to catch his breath. I couldn't understand why he didn't fight back.... He just had this glazed look in his eyes. The pain Jude was feeling knocked him out of his mode, but Joey wasn't done. He picked us up and started to really give it to us. He was throwing punch after punch, and he showed no sign of stopping. He was about to swing at us again, but his hand slowed down and then completely stopped. I knew it didn't come from us, so one of the others was stopping him. I looked around and Casey was stopping him from moving. I could feel Jamie entering our mind and putting us to sleep. Finally!

Casey

I wiped Mrs. Wayde's cut again and then cleaned out the towel. When she fell over the balcony, she cut her head. Mr. Wayde was pacing around and the others were nursing their bruises also. Jubilee was actually in the worse condition because she had a concussion. Xander was fine, but he was really shaken up. He hadn't said much since the whole situation ended. Mrs. Wayde said she was fine, so I walked upstairs to check how Xander was doing. When I got in the room he was laying down on the bed with his arm over his eyes. I went over to the bed and when I laid my hand on his harm he flinched and shot up. When he saw it was me, he relaxed, but he was still shaken up. I laid down in the bed with him and put my head on his shoulder.

'' Are you okay?”

Xander: “No.”

'' I'm sorry this happened Xander.”

Xander: “It's my fault. I brought it on myself. I shouldn't have gone over there.”

'' You didn't know that would happen Xander.”

Xander: “Maybe I didn't think it would, but that doesn't mean I didn't want it to.... I really do love them both Casey. But Jude hates me... and he should.”

'' What did Riley say?”

Xander: “To call him and let him know what happened. He was mad, but nothing like this. It was Nazarus... I know it.”

'' No it wasn't. Nazarus was reaching out to us. He was trying to stop Jude, but nothing was working. I've never seen anything like that before.”

Xander: “I shouldn't have told him.... I should have taken it to my grave.”

'' Stop beating yourself up about it Xander.”

Xander: “My parents are so pissed. I heard them arguing downstairs. We should go back to the Mansion.”

'' We are. We're leaving tomorrow around noon.”

Xander: “Where's Jude?”

'' Jamie's keeping him sedated. We think it might be best if he doesn't wake up until we get to the Mansion.”

Xander: “I have to apologize to him again. Then I'm packing my things.”

'' What are you talking about?”

Xander: “I can't stand to be at odds with him Casey. I have money. I'll get my own apartment. I can't stay at the Mansion anymore.”

I got up off of his shoulder, sat up, and turned to look at him.

'' What the hell are you talking about? You're not leaving the Mansion.”

Xander: “Casey I am. My parents probably don't want to be anywhere near me right now. I went to the bathroom and Rachel walked right by me. Joey came in here and cussed me out. They don't want me here.”

'' Xander....”

Xander: “I don't even blame them. I keep hurting the people that I care about. I just need to get away from everyone before something worse happens.”

'' Xander you can't be serious.”

Xander: “But I am. I can't keep hurting people. First I almost killed my family, then I made Jude go crazy, and then you guys got hurt. I can't keep doing this shit.”

'' Xander... Bad things happen to everybody. We just have to learn from our mistakes. Things will get better. You just have to give it time.”

Xander: “I don't have time Casey. I almost died a few hours ago and it's not even the first time I almost died. This life we're leaving is to dangerous. It's dangerous for us and the people around us.”

'' I understand that Xander.... Honestly, I do. But every time something bad happens you can't run away.”

Xander: “I'm not running away. I'm doing what I have to do to keep the people around me safe. Do you think I want to stop seeing you guys all the time? I love you guys. We're like a family.”

'' We are a family and you're trying to break that up.”

I don't know where the tears came from, but they were running down my face.

'' You can't just up and leave Xander. I need you. We all need you. You think that Jude is the only person that cares about you?”

Xander: “Casey I know you all care.... It's just I feel like when I'm around everything that can happen will, will happen. I'm like a bad luck charm.”

'' I'm not letting you leave Xander. We need to stand together. We're hated by the outside world. We're hated by the people at the mansion and most of us are hated by our families.”

Xander: “Casey....”

'' No Xander listen! When you find what we have... When you find people who care about you no matter what... You don't give that up. You don't walk away from that. And you better believe the people that care about you aren't going to let you.”

Xander: “Case I hear what you're saying, but I just can't believe it. I need to separate myself from you guys. I need to keep you all safe.”

'' I'll be damned if you leave us Xander. The group needs you. We're family and family sticks together.”

Xander: “Casey you don't have a say in the matter. I'm leaving and that's final.”

I watched as he walked out the door and I couldn't control the few tears that escaped my eyes. Everything had basically turned to shit. Jude went crazy. Xander was leaving us. There was no telling if Jubilee would be alright. Things were just scary. I made my way to my room and just watched Morgan sleep. In some aspects Jude was right. The life we were living was dangerous. We weren't even part of the X-Men and our lives had been put in jeopardy so many times. I didn't want my daughter growing up like that. I laid down beside her and just watched her chest rise and fall. I would protect my daughter from a life like mine.

~ ~ ~

'' What do you think they're going to say?”

Kevin: “Who gives a fuck? Let's get Jude down to the Med Bay.”

Jubilee: “Is it healthy to keep him asleep all this time?”

Jamie: “Not sure, but what choice did we have?”

Story: “Let's just get him down there okay?”

Story was visibly upset and it was perfectly understandable. Her brother had basically been screwed since the day he came here. It was always something else that was happening to him. When we walked in the front door, all eyes turned to us. Bobby and a few other people we knew of were walking to class, so word would spread pretty fast. I wasn't surprised that Jean was walking in our direction. She didn't seem at all happy to see us, but when she saw me, her eyes were blazing. I looked her up and down and didn't even pay her any attention. She was powerful, but so was I. Logan was the next to make an appearance and he wasn't that happy to see us either. His eyes were extremely cold, but he took Morgan out of my arms and said he would take her upstairs. I watched him as he left and he started playing with her while he climbed the steps.

Jean: “Take Jude to the Med Bay and then report to the Professor's office.”

'' I'm going to go and take a shower, then I'm going to take a nap.”

Jean: “Excuse me?”

'' You heard what I said Jean. We needed to get away from here and we're not going to be punished for that.”

Jean: “What you'll be punished for is allowing criminals to escape.”

I stepped to her and got right in her face.

'' And how are you going to do that Jean? I'm not a little kid and I don't take threats kindly.”

Jean: “Report to the Professor's office.”

She walked away and I could see she was pissed off, but I didn't give a fuck. We all went downstairs and Jamie finally released his hold on Jude. We waited a few seconds and he was instantly alert. He shot up and when he saw Xander, his eyes darkened. Surprisingly Xander stayed as calm as before. We tried to insist that Jude stay down here to be checked on, but he didn't feel like it. I was so nervous for the two of them to be walking in a group together, but Xander just stayed calm and Jude tried to not spaz out. I was seriously going to go to bed, but the others wanted to see the Professor and get this shit over. I only agreed because it would be best to try and be accommodating. Xander's idea of moving out of the Mansion suddenly didn't seem like such a bad idea. I didn't like taking orders from people who weren't that much older than me. Logan was by far the oldest, but he was also the most understanding. Ororo was also pretty understanding, but sometimes she let the Professor's views cloud her own opinions. Jean was just his fucking right hand bitch and that act was tired. I didn't have much interaction with Scott, but he pretty much stood by Jean.

We walked into the office and the looks on everybody's faces was priceless to me. Jean was only beat by the Professor in the pissed off category. Ororo seemed like she was trying to keep a stern face, but she also looked happy to see us safe. Scott also looked kind of happy to see us, but with those sunglasses it was sometimes hard to tell. Logan was standing against the wall looking like he'd rather be anywhere but here and that new guy with the red eyes was just standing against the wall twirling an ace of spades. The Kurt kid was sitting on one of the Professor's filing cabinets and he looked pissed off too. I could tell none of us would be meshing well. I was wondering where Betsy and Rogue were, but I didn't have time to think on it to much because the Professor started to talk.

Professor: “I have never in my life been so utterly disrespected in my life. How dare you all disrespect me and the teachers of this school?”

We were all about to talk, but he cut us off.

Professor: “Several Senior students were hurt and even a visitor was attacked because of you.”

I guessed the visitor was the guy with the red eyes. I wonder what his power was. Throwing glowing cards didn't seem like much of a power to me.

Professor: “I'm half tempted to ask all of you to leave my home.”

Xander: 'That doesn't mean much to me.... I'm leaving anyway.”

Everyone damn near broke their necks trying to see what the hell he was talking about. I didn't only because I already knew. All the adults were shocked, even the Professor after threatening to kick us out anyway. I got upset all over again, but I was actually contemplating moving out myself. My daughter didn't need this kind of life. I watched the Professor regain his composure and turned his attention to Xander.

Professor: “May I ask why?”

Xander: “I'm not happy here... And I don't feel safe here. Besides I keep hurting people I care about and I don't want that to happen anymore.”

Professor: “I don't think that's a good idea. You aren't trained and you have no experience living on your own. You were in a coma for so long.”

Xander: “If you were that concerned about it, you would have been helping me all along. I'll manage.”

Jamie: “You're just going to leave us?”

Xander: 'I'll be close. I'm just not going to be living at the Mansion. I was thinking about getting a place in town.”

Jubilee: “You can't just leave us like that. We're a group.”

Jean: “Splitting you all up might be what's best for the Mansion.”

I looked in her direction like she was an alien or something. Serenity looked like she was about to start cussing, but she didn't.

'' If this group gets split up Jean, I can guarantee you that I'll be leaving also. I'm already on the verge of packing my shit as it is.”

Now everybody was looking at me, but I didn't care. I wanted it to be known.

'' Coming here was nothing I expected. This was supposed to be a safe haven. A sanctuary for people like us. But you treat us like prisoners. It's not our fault we have this power.”

Professor: “No it's not your fault. But it is if you don't learn to control it. Your power could overwhelm you.”

'' Then why haven't we been trained already? We've been here for a hell of a long time.”

Professor: “The time just wasn't right, but that doesn't mean you should leave the school. We have a lot to offer.”

'' No because the time was right when we all got here, but you neglected to do that.”

Serenity: “Can we get to the point of this meeting?”

Jamie: “Yeah can we, because we all need to talk.”

Professor: “Your training will begin tomorrow.”

Xander: “Didn't you hear what I said? I'm leaving.”

Professor: “And I told you that I didn't think it was a good idea. Now your training will begin tomorrow.”

Xander: “You're not in charge of me Professor. None of you are. Now I'm going to start packing my things.”

He walked out the door and Serenity was close behind him. Everyone was filing out and I don't even think the Professor got to say everything he wanted to say. I caught Jean's eye before I walked out the door and I could tell she was still sour about what had happened. Honestly I couldn't bring myself to care. Jean had slowly been changing and it didn't seem to matter to anyone else. She kind of caught my attention during the incident with Carson, but nothing significant had happened since we left. But during our fight, she was a lot more ruthless. People at the Mansion painted her in this picture of glory and caring, but the Jean I had come to know was nothing like that. She was turning into something a lot darker. I didn't have the energy to do anything but go upstairs and go to sleep. I made sure Morgan was okay, but I had to lay down. I was so tired of the bullshit life the Mansion had to offer. Xander had the right idea... It was time to make a change and break away from this place. I finally fell asleep and it was about time. I needed to get away for a while.

The Next Day

Training Session # 1

Professor: “Before we begin today.... There is some things we need to discuss. In order to go out in the world to fight evil, you must have a team. Apparently you all believe you are a team already, but circumstances change. That is why we are splitting you all up.”

'' No.”

Serenity: “Nope.”

Story: “No.”

Professor: “This isn't a discussion. We think this will be the best decision to build you all as a team.”

Kevin: “No.”

Jamie: “We all agree that you can't split us up.”

The Professor looked like he was about to say something, but the door to the Control Room slid open and Jean walked in. She had on her training uniform, but I didn't know if she was training with us.

Jean: “I couldn't find him anywhere Professor.”

Professor: “Xander should have been here already. We'll have to start without him.”

The door slid open again and in walked Xander. He was breathing rapidly, so he must rushed to get here.

Xander: “Sorry I'm late. I had something to do.”

He filed in beside me and of course I asked him where he was.

Xander: “I was looking at apartments in town. Not that many actually, but I found this really nice house for cheap.”

'' A house?”

Xander: “Yeah. It's huge, but it's pretty decent in price.”

'' If you need a roommate... Let me know.”

Xander: “You serious?”

'' I'm thinking about it. I need to be away from here and get my daughter away from here.”

Xander: “Well I put down the security deposit and the first month's rent.... So all I really have to do is move in.”

'' Where did you get the money?”

Xander: “I called my father and he sent it to me. He told me they weren't mad, they were just a little worried about what happened. Everything is cool back home, but I don't want to go back there.”

'' I'll let you know what I decide, but I'll need to find a job and all of that. Might have to enroll in school elsewhere too.”

Xander: “The high school closest to the school is really good. Nice reputation.”

We were really into the conversation and when the Professor cleared his throat, all eyes were on us. Xander apologized, but I didn't feel the need to.

Professor: “As I was saying... There will be more additions to this so-called team.”

Xander: “What do you mean additions?”

Professor: “We will be adding more kids to your team.”

Jamie: “Like who?”

The door slid open and two people walked in. I saw Jamie flare up and I knew this was going to be a problem. Bobby Drake and the girl Kitty Pryde walked in. I didn't know her, but from what I heard around the school she was a pretty sweet person. Bobby looked at Jamie and then all of us, but it didn't seem like he was going to start anything. He eyed Jamie carefully, but other than that there was no hostility from him right now. I was still pissed at him, but I wasn't going to let that get in the way of me being trained. Kitty introduced herself to everybody and everyone introduced themselves to her.

Professor: “This is your immediate team. After today's session you will be locating other mutants for your team.”

Kevin: “You mean we're building our own team.”

Jean: “We think it would be beneficial to find people you trust.”

Jude: “This should be fun.”

Xander: “I'm not sure I should participate in this Professor. I'm leaving anyway.”

Professor: “We talked about this.”

Xander: “And you obviously didn't understand me. I'm leaving.”

Jean: “Xander accompany them. You can help them find someone to fill your spot on the team.”

Xander: “Fine.”

Carson: “This is going to be a big team. There's already nine of us. How big is this team supposed to be?”

Professor: “Generally a team consists of five to seven individuals. Since you all refuse to separate, we can make one big team and have smaller teams within that team. We'll work it out.”

Jubilee: “How long do we have to find these people?”

Professor: “As long as you need.”

Story: “When are we going to get started?”

Professor: “Now. All of you head down to the Danger Room please.”

We all headed down and Kitty was the first one to speak.

Kitty: “It's really nice meeting you all. I've heard things.”

Jude: “None positive I bet.”

Kitty: “Not really, but that doesn't matter to me. I don't listen to what other people have to say.”

'' We're not as bad as people make us seem.”

Kitty: “I'm sure. But I'm dying to get to know all you for myself. Should be an interesting experience.”

Jubilee: “How are you Bobby?”

Bobby: “Fine. Just nervous.”

Jubilee: “Why?”

Bobby: “Don't know what's going happen.”

We stepped out onto the floor and when I looked up all of the seniors were in the room. Logan whispered something in the Professor's ear, but he was waved off and he had a look of desperation on his face. I followed his eyes and he was looking right at Jamie and Bobby. I couldn't see what the problem was, but maybe Logan was just nervous about what could possibly happen. I walked over to Jamie and pulled him to the side for a bit.

'' You okay?”

Jamie: “Yeah I'm fine.”

'' You sure?”

Jamie: “I'm positive. What's up?”

'' Just with Bobby being here and all... I figured it might be a problem for you.”

Jamie: “I'm not worried about Bobby at all.”

'' Keep it that way.”

I gave him a peck on the cheek and went to stand by Kevin. We hadn't been able to spend much time together lately, and I kind of felt like we were neglecting each other. He grabbed me around the waist when I got close and we just kissed for a little bit. I almost forgot where I was, but after hearing the Professor clear his throat on the loud speaker, we separated.

Professor: “We won't be going into simulation until later, so for now you'll just be practicing on each other.”

The door of the Danger Room opened up again and the Seniors walked out. That strange guy Remy was with them again and this time so was Kurt. Everyone had on a training suit, except the Remy guy. He was in typical street clothes, but he was twirling his Ace of Spades as usual.

Professor: “Now we'll have a set of sparring matches. Casey you and Kitty are up first.”

C a s e y
vs.
Kitty

I didn't know who was going to make the first move and I didn't know what her powers were, so I waited. She seemed to also be waiting, but after a while she got tired and charged at me. I was thinking that was a stupid move when she jumped in the air and her feet were aimed right at me. I tried to swipe her to the side with telekinesis, but she didn't even move. I was going to try something else, but I put my hands up to block my face, but her feet passed right through my hands, but when she got to my face, I felt the impact. I fell to the ground and I could feel the blood flowing out of my nose. She righted herself just before she hit the ground and she was waiting for me to get up. I sent a plasma beam at her, but again it passed right through her. She had a small smirk on her face and it was my goal to wipe that shit off of her face. I sent a tremor through the ground at her feet, but she just descended into the ground as if it was nothing. I floated off the ground a little to keep out, but as I was levitating, her hand shot out and grabbed my foot. I was nervous for only a second, but I yanked my leg up with her attached. She let go and with the force of pulling her up, she was right at eye level. Before she fell I punched her in her chest and she flew towards the wall behind her. I thought she would have crashed into it, but she passed through it just as she had before. Again I was waiting for her, but now I didn't know where she would come from. I created a shield in the form of a ring that was around my mid area. I didn't have it fully enclose me because I wanted her to get close. She finally came through the wall and she was heading right at me. I extended the shield when she got close, but she phased through it and sent a punch at me. I was quick enough to evade it, but when I attempted to kick her, my leg passed through her. She was ready for that and sent another blow crashing into my face. I rolled away from her and sent a bolt of electricity her way. She was agile enough to avoid it, but she wasn't ready for the second bolt I sent at her. It slammed into her chest and she was thrown back a good 10 ft. I rushed over to her, but before I reached her, she disappeared into the floor. I was starting to get pissed off, but there wasn't much I could do. Every attack I had, she could let pass through her. I tried to mentally lock onto her, but nothing. I kept that up and just before she tried to grab onto my legs I locked onto her. I was able to do a backflip, but I stopped in midair grabbed her arms, pulled her through the floor and kicked her in the chest. She was again sent crashing to the ground, but she got up almost instantly. She ran at me again and I was trying to anticipate what she was going to do. She jumped in the air again, but I did a sidestep and tried to grab her, but my fingers passed right through her. While I was trying to recover, she grabbed my arm, swung her body up and sent her knee into the side of my head. I fell to the ground and again she straightened up before she hit the ground. My head was spinning right now, but in a last attempt, I punched my hand to the ground and sent a row of panels flying her way. She ran towards them, did a frontflip, phased through the panels and slammed her foot into the side of my face. As soon as her foot hit my face I was out.

K e v i n
vs.
Bobby

I couldn't believe how fast Casey went down to Kitty. I honestly didn't think her power was much, but she was lethal in using it. I couldn't dwell on that too much because Bobby was my opponent. I didn't even get to form a stance before Bobby sent an ice shard towards me. I evaded it easy enough, but he sent an ice beam at my feet and I was stuck. I sent a fire beam at him, but he had converted to his ice form, and he wasn't even affected. I crushed the hold with telekinesis and backflipped away from him. He sent a beam, then an ice shard, then another beam, but I evaded them successfully. I thew a plasma disk at him, but he created an ice shield that absorbed it. I sent a force beam at the ground under his feet and it exploded beneath him. He went flying in the air, but he almost instantly created a snow board made of ice was at his feet and he was building a bridge of ice. It was impossible to hit him because he was moving so rapidly. I was thinking of a way to attack him, but before I could form an idea, he sent an army of ice shards and spikes at me. I put up a shield to block the attack and it felt like it was never ending. I was about to release the shield, when all of a sudden everything started to get dark. I looked up and Bobby was covering my shield in ice. The temperature dropped incredibly fast and I almost passed out from the cold. I expanded my shield until his ice globe exploded and I was freed. He was still gliding on his ice slide and I tried to watch him for a weak point. I watched as the further he got, he created a new construct to hold up the slide. I created a telekinetic blade and sent it flying at all the constructs he had built. The slide instantly started to crumble and he fell towards the ground. I knew that he could save himself from the fall, but I created a bubble around him and when he was almost to the ground, I released the bottom and he slammed into the ground. I brought it back down on him and he was done. I started to turn around and leave, but I heard a noise behind me and turned back towards Bobby. There was ice armor forming out of his skin and the shield I had wasn't strong enough to fight the extreme cold. I jumped in the air just as an ice spike came at me. I was almost back on the ground when an ice boulder smashed into my chest. I was thrown back and Bobby was back on his feet. I got up off of the ground and Bobby was running right at me. The ice armor he had was still intact and he sent blow after blow my way. It would have been easier to avoid his attacks, had he not been able to extend his limbs to hit me. I was able to grab his arm, but because of how cold he was, I instantly let go. I concentrated on my body temperature to try and warm myself up, but as I was doing that my skin started to glow. I was getting nervous, but I didn't feel any pain. After a few more minutes there was steam coming from my body and then fire engulfed me. I didn't feel any pain, so it must have been my power. My whole body was soon covered in flames and Bobby had a look of astonishment on his face. I launched fireball after fireball at him but he created a shield of ice that took the blow. I never let up on the fire and he had a hard time fighting back. He got leverage on me for a second when he created a globe around himself, rolled away from the flames, and then jumped into the air and slid away. I created a blaze of fire and sent it after him, but I also had a stream coming towards him. He tried to fight the oncoming stream, but with both of them closing in on him, he didn't have many options. I thought he had given up, but he jumped off of his slide and before he hit the ground, he created another slide and slid away again. This shit was getting old.... I used telekinesis and crumbled the slide under him. He started to fall in the air, but before he could form another slide, I sent a beam of fire directly at his hands. It hit his hands, but he didn't even seem to be affected. I couldn't beat this guy. I made one last attempt and that was to let him get close to me. I sent fireball after fireball at him to get him angry and when he sent an ice shard at me, I purposely let it hit me. The pain was fucking unbearable, but I held it together. I was laying on the ground and just as expected he walked over to me to confirm the defeat. I waited until he was standing right next to me, when I wrapped my legs around his legs and brought him to the ground. He was surprised and that was my advantage. I got on top of him and started pounding his face relentlessly. He blocked my arm once, but I didn't even let that affect me. He tried to send an ice shard for my chest, but I deflected it as soon as it left his hand. He sent another one at me, but instead of sending it flying, I caught it in the air and stabbed it back into his stomach. I knew it wouldn't hurt him, but he was shocked at being impaled by one of his own spikes. I entered his mind at the same time I pulled the spike out of him and he was left vulnerable. It was hard fighting through his ice armor, but I did and immediately after I entered his mind I knocked him out.

Professor: “Because we only have two additions to your team, you all will be fighting amongst yourselves and the Senior students. Because the seven of you have similar powers, we won't be facing you up against each other. Jamie and Jubilee, this should be an interesting match.”

J a m i e
vs.
Jubilee

This was such bullshit, but I didn't have much of a choice. Watching Jubilee walk into position in that skin tight black leather cat-suit was un-fucking believable. She had just the right figure for that outfit. I was still admiring her when I felt an explosion in my chest. When I opened my eyes again, I was looking up at the ceiling. I looked at the ground where Jubilee had been standing but she wasn't there. I laid back on the ground to try and catch my breath, but when I looked towards the ceiling again, she was coming down on me. I rolled out of the way just as her knee and a firework crashed into the ground. I got back up and she was standing a little ways away from me. I saw a smirk on her face and she sent another firework my way. I rolled out of the way and straightened up, but she was still in the same spot. I was trying to figure out a way to take her down, but my concentration was shot when Jubilee ran at my full force and her knee crashed into my stomach. I keeled over in pain, but I met her foot on the way down and it knocked me back. I fell to the ground again and I could hear her giggling all sweetly. I got back up and directed a punch right at Jubilee's face. I had almost made contact, when I stopped my hand in mid-air. I couldn't hit my girlfriend... That would be all kinds of fucked up. She obviously didn't feel the same way, because my indecisiveness earned me punch after punch to the face. I was on the ground again and blood was leaking out of my mouth. She casually walked over to me, but now I was ready. I kicked her legs from underneath her and when she hit the ground, I rolled on top of her. I watched as the smile on her face grew and that was when I realized I wasn't holding her legs. When I finally realized it, it was already to late. I felt her legs wrap around my neck and she pulled me back to the ground. She rolled away and sent firework after firework at me. I created a shield that absorbed the blasts, but she didn't let up. I expanded the shield in her direction and it knocked her off of her feet, but that wasn't enough. She ran up to me again and I figured going on the offensive wouldn't work, so I'd go on the defensive. She finally made it to me and she tried to punch the shit out of me. I anticipated the move and grabbed her arm just as it missed my face. I grabbed her other elbow just as she was trying to hit me, and finally I had the upper hand. I was going to put her out, but out of nowhere her foot crashed into the bridge of my nose. I instantly let go of her and crashed into the ground. If this was any other person, I'd be kicking ass, but with her.... I just couldn't get my mind to work. She was laughing that laugh again and it was starting to get to me. I created a sphere of energy and launched it at her full force. Her eyes grew wide and she dived out of the way, just like I wanted her to. Mid-roll I grabbed her leg with telekinesis and started dragging her towards me. I was almost up on her, when she turned over on her back and launched three fireworks at me. I created a shield to take the impact, but instead of hitting the shield, the fireworks exploded in a blinding white light. It literally felt like my eyes burned out of my skull. I dropped the shield and my hold on Jubilee because my brain was in such shock. I still couldn't see, but I tried to grasp at the spot where Jubilee was with telekinesis. I couldn't get a hold on her and I felt one of her fireworks crash into my chest. I was still trying to clear my eyes when I felt someone over me. My eyes finally cleared up and Jubilee was standing over me with victory in her eyes. I was going to get up, but she created a firework on the tip of her finger and pointed it directly at my chest.

Jubilee: “Don't get up babe.”

Logan walked over to me and helped me up while Jubilee wiped invisible dirt off of her uniform. I started walking back to the lineup when the Professor began to talk.

Professor: “That is a perfect example of emotion getting the best of us. Jamie let his feelings for Jubilee cloud his judgment and he was defeated. This happens more often than not.”

Jubilee grabbed my hand and as I slid down the wall, she waited and then got into my lap.

Jubilee: “I kicked your ass pretty good... Huh baby?”

'' You got lucky.”

Jubilee: “Bullshit.”

I kissed her as hard as I could. I wasn't even mad. There was no way I was about to try and mess up that face.

J u d e
vs.
Remy

I was passed pissed, so I didn't want this fight to last a long time. I wondered what a guy like that was doing in a place like this. I can't remember what his powers were because when we fought, Casey took them on by herself. I didn't care whether or not I lost this fight. I didn't care about anything right now. I created a plasma orb and launched it at Remy, but he was agile enough to evade it. I was honestly bored already. I sent orb after orb of energy at him, but he was never even hit. Frustration would have been my next emotion, but I was to detached for that. I watched as he pulled a deck of cards out of his pocket and started shuffling and twirling them. I didn't know what the big fucking deal was, but then the cards started to glow and he launched them at me. I don't remember doing any back flips, but there were several explosions in the spot where I was just standing. I probably should have taken this fight more seriously, but I couldn't bring myself to care whether I lost or not. I thoughtlessly sent a barrage of power orbs and beams at him, but he didn't even break a sweat avoiding them. I let up on the works and let him relax for a minute. He quickly sprinted over to me and he threw punch after punch at me. I avoided the first few, but after a while he was getting the best of me. He backed off for a second, but then came right back with an uppercut. I grabbed his arm and twisted it behind his back. I tried to enter his mind, but he was unaffected. He threw his elbow back into my nose and I instantly let him go. I wasn't in to much pain, but he was free of my hold for the time being. He ignited another card and sent it flying at me. I deflected it with telekinesis and sent a pain bolt at him. Because it was a mind based attack I figured he was immune to it. I saw him charging another group of cards, but I wasn't fast enough to put up a shield. They four cards hit me square in the chest and I flew over ten feet and then hit the ground. I got up, but I wasn't in any mood to fight. I was about to give up, when everything around me froze. I was conscious of Story screaming my name and Gambit depowering his cards. I felt a ripping in my skin, but it wasn't causing me any pain. Just an uncomfortable feeling. I felt like I was separating from myself and when I saw a shadow beside me, I knew what had happened.

Nazarus: “You may be willing to lose to him, but I'll be damned if I do.”

vs.
N a z a r u s

Fuck the dumb shit. If Jude wasn't going to take this seriously I would. I entered his mind and completely took over and with his current state of mind, it was alarmingly easy. I didn't know how long I could keep this up, but I had become stronger while I was attached to Jude. Not strong enough to take over him(not that I would want to), but strong enough to sustain myself from him as an individual entity. With both of us against him, Remy started to finally look nervous. He could see Jude's uncaring attitude at first, but with me in control, that wasn't a concern any longer. I had Jude run up on him and physically attack him, while I got accustomed to using my powers again. I created an orb of dark energy and sent it flying at Remy. He was to busy concentrating on fighting Jude, that I had no problem hitting him. He hit the floor pretty hard, but that didn't stop Jude at all. He got on top of him and started delivering severe blows to Remy's face. I had half a mind to order him off, but what was the point? I created a whip of dark energy in my hand and just waited for Jude to be done with him. Remy finally got a break when he charged the glove he was wearing and punched Jude as hard as he could. Jude flew a good five feet away courtesy of Remy's powers. When he got up, I could see he had a horrible burn on the side of his face. I watched as Remy got up and when he did, he set upon Jude again. But that just wasn't working for me. I cocked my arm back as far as possible and let the whip fly through the air. I almost couldn't hear the sound barrier breaking because of the agonizing yell that escaped Remy's mouth. I had a smile of satisfaction on my face, but it didn't last long. I felt a hand grab my shoulder and sharply turn me around. I didn't even have enough time to see who it was before I was flying through the air. Before I crashed into a wall, I created a portal behind me, and resurfaced in another one I had created on the floor. When I finally got a good look at the person who had hit me, I was almost astonished to see Rogue standing there. I could almost see the fury emanating from her.

Rogue: “Get away from him.”

'' Aww... How touching?”

vs.
Rogue

'' Jude... I can't fight them both. I need you to get your shit together.”

Jude: ”Whatever. Let me go.

'' Get it together.”

Jude: “I'm ready.”

I released my hold on his body and let him loose. There was definitely a change in his attitude and he went after Remy with a vengeance. He unleashed a variety of attacks, and while he was agile enough to avoid a few, he was hit by an energy orb that Jude sent at him. I watched as he crashed into the ground, and I could see Rogue fighting with herself to run over to him, but she concentrated on me instead. I watched as claws just like Logan's extended from her hand, and she readied herself to charge me. She ran at me full force and when she got about 10ft. away she jumped at me and prepared to strike. I tried to move, but my body was frozen by telekinesis. I didn't know what to do at first, but I created a portal that was directly in her path. I saw the fear in her eyes, but before she made contact, she flew up and away. I was able to move once again and I set after her. She stopped when she got high above the ground and it was just me and her. I could see Jude and Remy going at it, and it still seemed like Jude had the upper hand. I watched a second to long and Rogue flew right up on me and punched me in my stomach. I flew a few feet back, but I wasn't really affected. I threw an orb of dark energy at it, but she just flew out of the way. I flew at her full speed and we collided with each other head on. We started going blow for blow until we were both exhausted. I tried to back off and give her room, but she flew at me and punched me as hard as she could. I flew through the air, but created a portal and vanished. I created another portal right on top of her and came back out right on top of her. I slammed my foot into her back and she fell through the air and crashed into the ground. She lifted her head up like she was about to get up, but she fell back to the ground unconscious. I descended to the ground and watched Jude and Remy going at it. The burn on Jude's face had healed, but he had a dozen more tiny cuts all on his face. Remy did a few flips away from Jude and threw a set of cards at him. Jude created a dome around himself to block the explosions and then sent a plasma ray right back. They sent power back and forth, but no one was ever hit. I could see the frustration on Remy's face, and when he reached into his coat pocket I thought he was reaching for more cards, but he pulled out a small metal tube and started twirling it in his fingers. I thought he was fucking joking, but he pressed a small button and it instantly turned into a 6ft. staff. It took him a little longer to charge the staff compared to the cards, but not by much. He ran at Jude full force and started trying to hit him. Jude tried his best to avoid the staff, but Remy got lucky numerous times and when he was hit, his uniform was ripped and large burns were left on his skin. I heard a sound behind me and when I looked back, Rogue was on her feet again. Her eyes were glowing red and she let loose a red force beam from her eyes. I tried to move, but I wasn't quick enough. I was hit on my back from the side, and I crashed to the ground. The pain was excruciating and when I tried to get up pain shot through my body. I sent a dark energy blade at her legs to distract her, and as she flew up into the air, I was finally able to get back up. I created a beam of dark energy and sent it after her, but she was flying to fast for me to get her. She stopped and turned in mid-air, and I could see lightning dancing on the tips of her fingers. She sent bolt after bolt at me, but I created a shield and sent them in Remy's direction. I watched as the electricity coursed though his body and he fell to the ground. Jude looked up at me with a smile. But his eyes flashed up and the smile quickly vanished from his face. I turned around and Rogue was rapidly flying towards the ground, but right before she crashed, she pulled up and started flying right at me. I waited until she got close, and just as she was about to crash into me, I stepped out of the way. I grabbed her hair and stopped her before she could go anywhere else. She whimpered in pain, but it fell on deaf ears. I saw claws creeping out of her left hand, and I knew it was time to act. I cocked my arm back as far as I could and then slammed it into her face. She flew through the air and crashed hard into the wall leaving a crater. I knew she wouldn't be down for long, so I created two portals and closed the distance between us. I could see her trying to build up the energy to get up and keep fighting, but I didn't want to keep putting her on her ass. I dug into her mind and made sure to put her to sleep. I looked over and Jude was making sure Remy was really down for the count.

There were really no comments from anybody as Jude and myself made our way to the wall. The Professor was looking slightly disturbed, and I could see the tension coming from Jean and Logan. She lifted Remy up with telekinesis and brought him off to the side and Logan carried Rogue in the same direction. He tried to wake her up, but he was unsuccessful. I reached into her mind and started it back up and her eyes instantly opened up.

Professor: “Let's get to the next fight. Story and Carson you're up. If you'll notice Carson, we had a special suit designed for you. The fabric molecules are unstable, so when you transform, you're clothing won't be harmed.”

S t o r y
vs.
Carson

'' I don't want to fight him. Give me somebody else.”

Professor: “We're very limited here Story.”

'' Let me fight Logan or Storm.”

Professor: “I've already assigned you an opponent Story. Please commence with your task.”

'' I refuse to fight hi...”

Carson: “Story....”

I turned to look at him and he had a bored look on his face.

Carson: “Let's just get this over with.”

I watched the skin slowly start to shred off of the skin and I saw the pain in his eyes. His body mass increased to a great size, but I wasn't sure what form he had taken on. When he was finished, there was a huge red egg in the center of the floor with a jagged ridge down the middle. I was wondering what the hell Carson was doing, but then the ridge started to open and it wasn't a ridge at all. I saw a muzzle and then teeth that looked like little swords. A body came into view and there was a dragon raising up on its hindlegs. I could see smoke coming out of its nostrils and instantly my heart started to race. He opened his mouth and let out the most terrifying roar I'd ever heard. I was so petrified that I couldn't even move my legs. I was vaguely aware of the shining the line of his mouth had taken on and when he opened it, there was a massive fireball being formed. He let it fly from his mouth and just before it hit me, my senses kicked in and I jumped out of the way. I didn't move fast enough and my leg still got burned, but it could have been a lot worse. He launched another fireball at me, but I blasted it apart with a large gust of wind. I launched a force beam at him, but when it made contact, he wasn't even fazed. I created a shield around myself and waited for him to make a move. I was shocked when his head ripped through the air and he tried to swallow me up... shield included. I thought for such a large creature it would have taken him longer to move, but he was amazingly quick. I ran away from him and I could feel heat behind me as he tried to fry me again. I didn't know how the hell I was going to do this. I thought for a second and then jumped into the air. I flew up to where his head was and tried to go for his eyes and mouth. I figured those would be the most sensitive areas. I created a sonic beam and directed it right at him. He fell back, but otherwise he was unharmed. I flew backwards trying to anticipate what he was going to do. I watched in horror as his wings spread out and he started flapping them back and forth. He finally was able to lift his body and that was when the chase started. For such a big creature, it was hard for me to get away from him. He kept snapping at me heels and he would breath fire at me when I gained a little distance between us. I kept flying, but turned on my back so I could look at him. I created a force beam in one hand and an ice beam in the other and sent them at him. He was quick enough to evade the force beam, but he forgot about the ice beam and I caught him on his wing. His wing was completely frozen in seconds and he was thrown out of balance. He plummeted to the ground and I froze his other wing just to gain the upper-hand. He was falling rapidly through the air, but he started blowing puffs of smoke at his wings to try and defrost them. He finally had them thawed out and he righted himself in the air, but his feet still crashed to the ground sending debris everywhere. I waited for him to make a move and he sent a huge volley of fire at me. I created a shield and dispersed the fire quickly enough, but I wasn't aware that he had taken off again and he was heading right for me. I few as fast as I could away from him, but with his huge wingspan, I was losing the race.... I looked back and he was forming a fireball in his mouth. I dived. I could feel the heat, but at least I wasn't hit. I looked back and he was doing a somersault in the air and he was coming right at me. I just couldn't get away from him. I pulled up and turned around to face him. I was waiting for him to get closer, and I thought I would try something and hoped it fucking worked. He was coming at me faster and faster and as soon as he was close enough, I sped at him and then vaulted over his snout and onto his back. I ran along his spine and then did a twisting somersault while I created a sonic blade. I was going to send it down onto his back, but I was hit from the side I crashed back onto him. I looked up and his tail was whipping back around to hit me again. I jumped in the air to avoid it and I flew off of him. That plan didn't go so well.... I had to think of something else. I flew to the ground to re-evaluate the situation and see how I could defeat him. He slowly descended to the ground, but when he landed he didn't immediately attack me. His bulk slowly started to decrease and for a second I thought that he was going back to his human form, but that didn't last for long. He had turned into a bull looking creature, but he was standing 7ft. tall. He had on armor that looked like nothing could pierce it, and he had a warriors' axe in his hands. I think he heard me gulp. He swung the axe around to his back and he fell down onto his hands. I knew what was happening, but I couldn't move. He charged at me full force, but still my legs wouldn't cooperate with my mind. I knew he was waiting for some type of response, but I was to scared. I saw him try to slow down, but he still hit me. It was like getting hit by a car and I flew awkwardly to the side. I could feel the blood leaving my side, but I was still to scared to move. I looked up and he was waiting for me to get up. I got up and tried to keep from falling over again. The axe was still strapped to his back, but that didn't make me feel any better. I think he assessed that I was okay, and he charged me again. This time I was ready. I created a vortex of wind, lifted him, and sent him crashing into the wall. He got up almost instantly and this time he took the axe off of his back. He ran at me again, but this time I didn't send him flying. He got up close to me and swung the axe as hard as he could. I did a somersault just as it would have hit me and when I was coming around again, I kicked him in the chest. He stumbled back and I crashed to the ground. I got up again and almost met his blade, but I stumbled back and started to run. It was a useless attempt, and it almost worked, but I had only gotten a few feet when he landed in front of me. He swung the axe like a bat, and I should have been cut in half, but the blade wasn't facing me. I was hit with the face of the axe and it seemed like a boulder had crashed into me. I saw the blood leave my mouth, but I was to dazed to see much else. I heard footsteps, but they weren't the hooves I expected to hear. It sounded like sneakers were hitting the ground and I knew Carson had taken his original form. I spit up another wad of blood and sat up.

Carson: “Story are you alri....”

I sent him flying as hard as I could with telekinesis. He crashed into the wall and it crumbled around him. It took him only seconds to get up, but I was ready for him. I gripped him again and then repeatedly slammed him into the wall. If he wanted to play hard, then we'd play. The game was fucking on. I finally released my hold on him and he crumpled to the ground. I wanted him to turn into the best creation he could manage and then come at me as hard as he could. He picked himself up, but not with regular hands. Two sharp claws had ripped out of his side and as he was struggling to get back up, four more legs replaced his own. He was finally up, and his upper body started to blur and darken and muscles ripped through his body. I watched in horror as his mouth split in half and his eyes turned a yellow color, and more eyes ripped into his face. He had turned into a great spider like centaur. His hands looked like they could crush just about anything, and his legs had amazingly sharp points on it. He had fur all on his bad, and I wondered if that was some kind of safety feature. I didn't know what he was about to do, but he raised his hand, and I saw the tiniest hole in the center of his hand. I didn't have time to wonder what it was though, before a white string launched itself at me. I tried to dodge it, but my foot was caught and I was stuck to the ground. I tried to pull the web off with telekinesis, but the shit wouldn't budge. I could hear clicking as Carson made his way over to me, but I couldn't worry about him at the moment. I tired to set the web on fire, but that didn't work either. I created a shied around myself, so that I would gain a little more time to get this shit off of me. I had almost loosened the web up, when this piercing scream ripped through the air. It took my a minute to realize it was mine. Carson was making some noise, but at such a frequency, that it was sending waves of pain through my head. I covered my ears, but it wasn't helping. He was in my head. I don't know if I had actually stopped screaming, but I knew my brain hadn't stopped. I wasn't even aware of the psychic explosion I created, but instantly my head had stopped hurting. I saw Carson again crash into the wall, but I couldn't get up. The residue of that noise was still in my head. I couldn't even think straight. I finally managed to get my body to cooperate with me and I got onto my feet. Carson seemed to be just getting up and he had a brutal gash across his chest. I tried to feel bad, but my head was still ringing, so that lasted about a good two seconds. I created a beam of energy and launched it at him, but he had scurried away before it even got close to him. He sent more web at me, but I was cautious enough not to wait around this time. I created a shield that stopped two of the strings, and I ripped another down the middle with telekinesis. He completely froze for a second and his body started to melt. I started to run over to him, but when his body was just a puddle of brown sludge, I stopped. The puddle started to rise and formed into a badly shaped man.

'' Carson?”

He raised his arm and launched a huge wad of sludge at me. I jumped in the air, and created a gust of wind that blew me back. He sent wad after wad at me, but I was to far away for them to get me. I was going to try something different, but as I looked at him, the sludge the was on him started to cake up and harden. He started slowly moving towards me, but again he readied his arm to fire at me. I didn't give it much thought until it sounded like a cannon went off. I created a shield just in time to see the mud missile explode into a billion tiny pieces. He started slowly walking over to me and he fired missile after missile. I was going to try and move, but every time I thought about it, he was already attacking. I turned my shield into a large telekinetic spike and sent it directly at his chest. I heard a loud cracking sound and Carson broke into a thousand tiny pieces. I screamed out for him, but he wasn't moving. I ran over to him and that's when I stepped into the brown puddle. All the pieces were coming back together, but when I tried to step back I couldn't move. His body made of sludge started to reassemble and I was firmly planted to the ground. I created another telekinetic blast, but when it made contact with Carson's chest, the hole just closed back up. I was starting to get nervous when my body was being overtaken with sludge, so I created a blade from telekinesis and sliced myself free. I flew up into the air and started raining force beams down on him. His body was completely tangible and he would create holes in his body exactly where my powers would hit. I didn't know what I could do, but I didn't have much time to think. I heard the same cannon like sound and a missile missed my head by mere inches. I heard the noise again and again, and I tried blasting them out of the sky with telekinesis. I hit most of them, but not all. When the first one hit me, I felt my left arm dislocate. When the second one hit my other arm, I knew it was broken. I cried out in pain, but was silenced when the third and final one crashed into my chest. I felt the blood rapidly leaving my mouth, but it was hard to focus. I felt myself plummeting through the air and then all I saw was black.

Carson

I caught Story just before she crashed to the ground. I slowly laid her down on the ground and then transformed to normal. Her arms were twisted awkwardly and I could see the blood rushing out of her mouth. I don't know when the tears started, but I could feel them flowing down my face. I screamed out for someone to help me, but it seemed like they were moving in slow motion. Her eyes opened and she screamed the most agonizing scream ever. More agonizing to me, because I knew I was the cause. I tried to get her to calm down, but she kept screaming. She coughed up a wad of blood and that really set me off. Finally I saw the fur of Hank's hand and I had some hope. He lifted Story up, and dashed out of the room with her. I sat there in the middle of the ground crying and I didn't care who saw me. I felt someone's arms wrap around me, and when I looked up Serenity was trying to console me.

Serenity: “Everything is going to be okay. Hank is going to fix her up good.”

As hard as I tried... I couldn't bring myself to believe her. Story looked so broken. If she would ever let me, I was going to do whatever it took to get back in her good graces. I had been such an asshole to her lately.

Professor: “Jude, Carson, and uh... Nazarus... Why don't you all go down to the Med Bay, and we'll finish up here.”

I was the first one out the door... I wanted to be there for Story in any way that I could.

Serenity
vs.
Betsy

Oh this would be fucking fantastic. I watched as Betsy sashayed her way into the room. Even though I had the utmost respect for her as a Professor, I still kinda harbored some hatred in my heart. Not that it wasn't a good turn of events, but she ultimately was the one who brought me down that day in the museum. And honestly... it just wasn't cool by me. I waited until she got into position and then we got it going.

Betsy: “You ready?”

'' Are you?!”

I thought she would move to attack me, but instead she fell backwards. I was wondering what the hell she was doing, but she had already disappeared into her shadow. I was on edge now, because I knew from past experience that she could come out anywhere. I had planned to move, but I heard a break in the air, and dived out of the way. I had just barely avoided being kicked by Betsy's foot. She landed smoothly on the ground, but I had already sent a bolt of energy at her. She did a backflip, and the energy bolt whizzed by her. She was back on her feet and we squared off. She sprinted towards me and did a a jumping kick. I wasn't quick enough to avoid her, and she sent me flying. I rolled on the ground and got back onto my feet. I ran back at her and threw blow after blow, but I didn't get one on her. She grabbed my arm when I tried to punch her, and she twisted it behind my back.

Betsy: “I won't be that quick to take down little girl.”

'' Oh I didn't plan on it.”

I elbowed her in the side and when she recoiled, I turned and kicked her in the face. She stumbled, but I brought my foot back and kicked her three more times. She fell to the ground and I could see a small line of blood trickling from her lip. I didn't wait for her to get up and I sent my foot into her ribs. She flew back in the air and crashed into the ground. She got back up, wiped herself off, and came right back at me. But this time, she had that blade attached to her arm. It was glowing like crimson death, and for a minute, I was intimidated. She threw her arm at me as hard as she could, but I was ready. I did a sweeping kick and knocked her off of her feet, and when she hit the ground, I took off. I ran for a few seconds and then jumped into the air. I turned around and watched for her, but she was gone. I was on edge now. I didn't know where she would be coming out at. I created a shield around me, and just waited for her to make herself known. I was looking around, when out of the corner of my eye, I thought I saw something. I turned around, but there was noting there. I expanded my shield, and again waited for her to make a movie. I saw another flash out of the corner of my eye, but this time Betsy appeared. She was perched on the wall and when she saw that I saw her, she launched herself at me. She was flying through the air, and I extended the shield even further. She must have been expecting that, because she created a telekinetic platform and bounced off of it. She flew further in the air, and she blasted me down with telekinesis. I had never felt such pressure. Even though I wasn't being physically harmed, I was rapidly falling through the air. I didn't know what to do, but I applied as much telekinetic force against the inside of my shield as I could. From the outside, it must have looked like I was trying to destroy myself, but that wasn't the case. I rapidly let my shield down, and my power crashed into Betsy's. She recoiled for a second, but then she applied more force and I was falling again. I tried to push back against her, but she was to strong. I crashed into the ground and she landed gracefully next to my head. She formed another blade and put it to my neck.

Betsy: “Defeat is beautiful.”

'' Only when it actually happens.”

I kicked her legs out from under her again and she dropped to the ground. I punched her in the face and she skidded across the floor. I jumped up and blasted bolt after bolt of energy at her. She tried to put up a shield, but she wasn't quick enough. She was struck in the chest, but she still wasn't done. She got up, and this time I could see a definite change in her. She was a lot faster and when she kicked me in the gut, I felt that she was a lot stronger. I cried out in pain, but she didn't stop. I was hit in the face three more times before she stopped. I thought she was done, but she had created her blade and she was coming at me. I created a ring of fire around me, but she just flipped it, and kept coming. She jumped in the air again and she came down on me. I didn't know what else to do, so I created an illusion of myself and rolled out of the way. She slammed into the ground and impaled my mirage in the chest. I had blood spurt out of the mouth and out of the wound and a look of fear passed across Betsy's face. She looked around at everybody else and they were just as shocked as she was. It was time to strike, so I ran towards her and crashed my foot into her face. She spun to the ground, so I got on top of her and started punching the shit out of her. I got a few good hits on her, but she grabbed my arm and rolled me off of her. That didn't stop me though.... I knocked her arm off of me and swung my leg up to meet her face. She fell back, but she never stopped moving. She was swallowed into another shadow and I was left to wait for her to attack.

Betsy: “That was a nice little trick...

'' Thanks. Why don't you come back out so I can finish you off?

Betsy: “Confident are we?

She finally made and appearance and she was right in front of me. She cocked her arm back and then slammed it into my face. I almost hit the ground, but just before I did, I propelled myself back and up. She stared after me, but she didn't fall back into a shadow.

'' Can't fight me up here can you Betsy?”

Betsy: “Oh, I could if I wanted to... But I prefer to fight on the ground. Why don't you join me?”

I felt a force grab my leg and I was pulled to the ground. I tried to fight back, but again her telekinesis was to strong for me. I sent an energy orb at her, and she let me go instantly. She dived out of the way as I continuously sent orbs at her. I settled on the ground and she was staring me right in my face.

Betsy: “You sure are a pest.”

'' Really?”

I focused all of my energy and made a sword just like Betsy usually did. But on top of that, I made psychic armor as well. Betsy looked astonished, but she formed a blade and squared up. She made a way cry and ran at me full force. I steadied myself and readied my sword. Her sword crashed into mine, and we both tried to catch the upper hand. I applied more pressure and she did the same. I did a quick sidestep and brought my sword down on her. She cried out in pain as my sword cut into her arm. Even though there was no blood or a wound, she felt the pain in her mind. She pushed me back with telekinesis and I crashed to the ground. She tried to nurse her wound, even though she also knew it was only in her mind. She ran at me again, and I did a sweeping twist and righted myself. I had just missed her sword attack, but my armor caught the blow. I felt the physical shock, but otherwise, I was okay. I kicked her in the stomach, and she punched me in the face. We brought our swords together again and it was even more intense this time around. She backed off and we started to dance on the floor. Every blow she had for me, I had one for her. We were equally matched, but she didn't seem to want to give in. She came at me again, so I decided to try something new. I waited until she got closer, and when she was right near me, I jumped onto her leg, then brought my body up and kicked her in the mouth. I completed the flip and when I was coming back down, I wrapped my legs around her shoulders. I swung back and brought her and my legs over my head. She flew about five feet and then crashed into the ground, and I landed soundly on my feet. I knew she was dazed. So I recreated my sword and jumped over to her... I brought the sword high over my head and slammed it down into her chest. She let out a piercing scream and I knew that she was down for the count. Bitch!

'' I think I'm done.”

Professor: “I guess you are. Jean help Betsy.”

The Professor looked around, and Xander was the only person who hadn't fought.

Professor: “Xander will you be making an attempt?”

Xander: “No Sir. Like you asked me.... I'm just here for support.”

Professor: “Very well. Dismissed for the time being. I know you all want to go and check on Story, so you can do that now.”

We all rushed out of the room... Even Kitty and Bobby. We quickly made it to the Med Bay and when the doors opened, we saw Story on the table. She had tubes coming out of her nostrils, and her chest was rising and falling sporadically.

'' How is she doing?”

Carson: “She has a lot of broken bones.”

I saw a flash of color and Carson was up against the wall.

Jude: “What the fuck did you do to my sister?”

Carson: “Jude I'm sorry. I swear I didn't mean it.”

Jude: “If she doesn't get better Carson, I swear.....”

Hank moved just as quickly as Jude had and he grabbed Jude up by the back of the neck.

Hank: “Now is not the time for that. Your sister will be fine, so there is no need.”

Jude reluctantly let go of Carson and walked back over to us. A fresh wave of tears flowed from Carson's eyes, so I went over to comfort him.

'' You heard what Hank said... Story is going to be fine.”

Carson: “I know what he said, but I just can't believe that. Look at her Serenity. She looks so.... broken.”

'' She's going to be fine.”

Hank asked all of us to leave the Med Bay so that he could give Story the best care. I quickly gave her a kiss on the forehead and exited the room. We made it to the top floor and Bobby asked for all of our attentions.

Jamie: “What is it?”

Jubilee: “Jamie.....”

Jamie: “Whatever!”

Bobby: “Well the Professor said that we could build our own team.”

Jamie: “Wait what the hell are you talking about? I thought you were just filling in for the day.”

I turned back to Bobby because that was my train of thought too.

Bobby: “No the Professor clearly said that I was joining your team. Kitty and myself.”

Kevin: “Look now isn't the time. Our friend is downstairs and she's in a lot of pain. We can have this discussion later.”

Bobby: “No offense to Story, but just because she's hurt doesn't mean your priorities stop.”

I don't know who grabbed Bobby first, but he had two pairs of hands holding him against the side of the stairs.

Jude: “Don't you ever..... Don't ever. My sister could have died.”

Kitty: “Guys please stop. I don't want to have to stop you, but I will.”

They looked back at her like she was joking, but Casey cleared her throat and they let him go.

Kitty: “We can have this discussion now or later. Whichever you prefer.”

Serenity: “Let's just get this shit over with.”

Bobby straightened his clothes and started talking.

Bobby: “What I was trying to say is.... I think we need to find those other team members. I know a few people who might be very promising.”

Jamie: “Like your friend Jordan.”

Bobby: “Leave him out of this.”

Kitty: “Please stop it. Jordan won't be on this team, because personally no one can stand him.”

Bobby: “I wasn't talking about him anyway.”

Carson: “Then who?”

His voice cracked, but he said what he wanted to say. I turned my attention back to Bobby and he was writing something on a pad.

Bobby: “Here are there names and room numbers... Some of them I know personally, most of them I don't. But they've been looking for a squad.”

Victor – Rm. 503-B

Julian – Rm. 714-C

James – Rm. 331-A

Calvin – Rm. 331-B

Paige – Rm. 434-D

Cessily – Rm. 897-A

Sooraya – Rm. 774-B

'' That's a lot of kids.”

Bobby: “Well... They are very eager for a team. Check them out and let me know what you think.”

Serenity: “We'll do that. Do you have a cell number?”

I put his number in my phone and we split ways. I wanted to talk to the group, but now wasn't the time. Everybody was on edge. We each went our separate ways, and I ended up at the swimming pool. I would have gotten my swimsuit, but I figured what the hell was the point. I slowly peeled off my uniform and when I was just in my underwear, I dived into the pool. The water was refreshingly warm and I didn't have to experience the shock of cold water. The sun had heated the water up just enough, and I was extremely comfortable. I floated in the water for a little bit, and then I swam over to the shallow end. I did laps from the shallow end to the deep end for a while, and then I climbed out of the water. I was tempted to cover back up with my uniform, but I chose not to. The clothes I had on just looked like a bikini anyway. I was relaxing for a while when all of a sudden, the sun overhead was blocked out. I slowly opened my eyes, and looked up at whoever was standing over me. My eyes had to adjust, but after a while, I saw that the man above me was very handsome.

'' Can I help you with something?”

Guy: “That depends. I've been trying to find the gym. I was wondering if you could help me out.”

'' Ummm.... Sure. Let me just get my clothes back on.”

I picked up my uniform and slipped it on. I caught him watching me, but he turned his face when our eyes met.

'' What's your name?”

Guy: “James. James Madrox.”

'' Okay... Just follow me.”

James: “Okay.”

He silently walked behind me and I showed him where the gym was.

'' Are you new here?”

James: “Yeah. I just got here a few days ago. Apparently, there was some problems with me getting the grand tour. I've been trying to work my way around this place.”

'' I'll be back in a second... Okay?”

He nodded his head and I backed out of the door. I teleported to my room and grabbed some dry clothes. I figured if I was down there, I might as well get some exercise. I was back in less than 15 seconds and when I went in the room, he was on the floor stretching. I looked over his body from a distance and he was very muscled. My eyes raked over his body until they came across a tattoo on his chest. There were six, large circles, connected by lines.

'' That's a nice tattoo.”

He jumped slightly, but when he looked up he smiled.

James: “Thanks. It's actually not a tattoo though.”

'' Really? What is it?”

James: “It's a power inhibitor. I got it two years ago.”

'' Why would you want to inhibit your powers?”

James: “Because I have no control over my powers. Any loud noise or me just walking can activate them.”

'' Damn. Well what is your power?”

He was about to answer, when the gym door opened, and Casey walked in.

Casey: “I just scanned for you. Story woke up.”

I turned to Jamie and apologized. I really didn't want to leave him, when I was just starting to learn about him. He seemed like a pretty cool guy so far.

'' You're welcome to come with us if you want.”

Casey: “Who's he?”

'' His name is James.”

Casey: “The guy from the list?”

James: “What list?”

'' I didn't even think of that.”

James: “What are you guys talking about?”

'' How could he want to be on a team though? He's only been here a few days.”

James: “Excuse me! What are you talking about?”

'' Well Bobby Drake gave us this list of people looking for a team.”

Casey: “We have to build a training team. Professor Xavier's orders.”

James: “Oh yeah. I told him I was interested when I got here.”

'' Isn't this a coincidence?”

Casey: “Come on. Story is waiting.”

We filed out of the gym and made our way to the Subbasement. I heard James gasp, but I just kept moving. I wasn't even fazed by this stuff anymore. We made it to the Med Bay and everyone was already there. When the doors opened, James stepped back, but I pulled him into the room. I walked over to Story and she looked completely healed. There was a large red mark on her arms and chest, but I'm sure that was going to heal. I looked around and spotted Carson who was on the far side of the room. He still had tears in his eyes and I think he wanted to stay as far away from Story as possible.

'' Hey babe.”

Story: “Hey yourself.”

We hugged each other and she laid back down in the bed.

'' How do you feel?”

Story: “I'm still a little sore, but other than that I'm fine.”

'' Carson?”

Story: “Is being a big ass baby. I told him that I was fine, but he's still stuck over there being sad.”

I gave her another smile and then she noticed James beside me.

Story: “Who's he?”

I pulled him closer to her bed and introduced him.

'' This is James Madrox.”

Jamie: “The guy from the list?”

Kevin: “That's pretty cool... Wait he is the guy from the list right?”

James: “Yes, but everyone usually just calls me Jamie.”

Jamie: “Hey that's my name.”

James: “I'm sorry.”

Jamie: “Dude I'm just kidding.”

James: “Oh.”

Everyone got a little laugh at his expense, even Carson. It was nice to see him with a smile on his face. Story slowly got up out of her bed and she walked over to him. They had a quick conversation and then they started kissing. I guess things were back on track.

'' So what are your powers?”

He tapped his foot on the ground and an exact duplicate literally popped out of him. He and the duplicate tapped their foot at the same time, and then there were four of them. Suddenly I was weary of him. I had already had a problem with a bitch who could duplicate herself.

'' Nifty power!”

James: “Are you mad?”

'' I've had problems with people who can duplicate.”

James(2): “I assure you... We are nothing like her.”

James(3): “We don't owe her any explanation.”

James(4): “I'm sorry about him. He can be quite rude at times.”

'' Okay what the hell is going on?”

James: “They are exact replicas of me, but we are different in many ways. We all have our own opinions and views and such.”

James(3): “Again with the explaining shit.”

Story: “That's pretty freaky.”

James looked down and I think his feelings were hurt. I gave Story a scolding look and then walked over to James.

'' She didn't men it like that. It's just the last time someone could duplicate, she had complete control over them. They weren't as unique as you are.”

Jamie: “I can see why Bobby wanted him on the team.”

Jubilee: “Can you do anything else? Or do you just duplicate yourself?”

James: “Well I've learned that anything my dupes learn, I learn. Once I absorb them back into me.”

Carson: “Dupes?”

James: “My word for duplicates. It's shorter.”

'' Cool. So what have you learned?”

James: “Tons of stuff. Fighting. Gymnastics. Umm... picking locks. I'm pretty good with guns and I know how to drive and fly aircrafts. I also speak Russian and Spanish.”

'' That's awesome.”

James: “Yeah it's pretty cool at times.”

There was a blurring around his edges, and the dupes were pulled back into him. He didn't grimace, so I figured that it didn't hurt him.

Jubilee: “I wonder what the Professor will say.”

~ ~ ~

Professor: “No!”

Bobby: “Sir with all due respect... You told us to build our own team.”

Professor: “I understand that, but I just don't think that James has the capacity for a team like yours. He has no projectile powers. All he has are his duplicates.”

James: “Are you implying that I'm to weak for their team?”

Professor: “Don't twist my words.”

'' Well that's what it sounds like you're saying.”

Professor: “I don't have time for this. Go get your uniforms on and meet me in the Danger Room in five minutes.”

~ ~ ~

James: “This place is fucking awesome.”

'' It's alright.”

James: “How can you say that? I've never seen anything so high-tech before.”

'' Yeah, the stuff is pretty fun, but it gets old after a while. The changing room is right there. Danger Room entrance is on the other side.”

In five minutes, the whole team was assembled outside. We had to wait a minute for Kitty because she wasn't aware we were meeting back up so soon. We all stepped onto the floor and we heard the Professor on the loud speaker.

Professor: “We shall begin. I want to test how James' powers will mesh with your squad.”

'' Just do your best. Okay?”

James: “Yep.”

The lights dimmed and when the came back on, we were in a warehouse setting.

Casey: “This brings back some fun memories... Huh guys?”

Kevin: “Yeah when you tried to kill me and Jamie.”

'' Shh!. I think I hear something this way.”

I turned to motion for James to follow me, but when I looked back, I didn't know which one he was. There were at least 24 copies.

'' James?”

James(1-24): “Yeah.”

'' Never mind. Let's go.”

I crept ahead of everyone, and peeked around a large stack of boxes. I instantly jerked back, because there were at least fifty guards in the one area. They weren't patrolling or anything, they were just goofing around. I was going to turn back and issue orders, but when I turned around, all the copies were gone. I gave the others a look, but they just shrugged and walked towards me.

'' Where did they go?”

Jubilee: “They scaled those boxes. Who knows what they plan to do.”

'' We'll wait for them to make a move.”

We waited for about three minutes, and then we heard a noise. I peeked around the boxes again, and James was surrounded by the men.

James: “Hey, Hey, Hey... Whoa! What the hell is wrong with you guys?”

Guard#1: “What the hell are you doing in here? This is private property.”

James: “I understand that. I told you I was lost and this was the only building I could find.”

Guard#2: “Who knows what he's seen? Kill him?”

James: “You guys can't be serious!”

I was starting to get worried, and then the guy pushed James and he fell back. There was a blurring around his edges and a dupe fell down beside him, creating another one. The guards looked on in shock, but then their training kicked in.

Guards: “Kill the freaks.”

One of the dupes did a spinning kick and took down a bunch of the guards and the other two were getting it on too. I think the guards were afraid to shoot because they were so close to their own men, so they had to resort to hand to hand combat. Some of them were good fighters, but others weren't very good and they were getting handled.

'' Let's go.”

I stepped around the corner and yanked the first person I made contact with. He flew towards me, but before he crashed into me, I did a jumping kick, knocking him into the wall of boxes. He crashed through one, and came out on the other side. They were all aware of our presence, and they started attacking us. That's when the other dupes came rushing out. It was pandemonium as the guards tried to figure out who was on what side. They opened fire at the dupes, but Casey created a shield to protect them. She left herself open, and one of the guards tried to get her, but Kevin disabled him quickly enough. Kitty was running around, phasing through the guards, snatching their guns, and redistributing them to the dupes. She got snagged by one guy though, who latched onto her. She turned around, and delivered three kicks to his stomach, groin, and chest that even had me groan. She finished off with an uppercut, and he was out. I was looking at everybody else, and forgot about the people who were after me. I was saved from a punch in the face, when one of Jubilee's fireworks crashed into one of their chests'. I thanked her and got my shit together. I picked two of the boxes up with telekinesis and threw them at the largest group of guards. Once the box hit them and cracked open, I realized how big of a mistake that was. What they were guarding was high powered guns. The illegal kind. Each guy armed themselves with a gun, and took aim on us. I created a massive shield that enveloped us, and I could quickly feel the strain on my energy.

'' Do something. I can't hold this forever.”

Carson: “I got it.”

Carson, who had only fought hand to hand for the whole fight, started to take form. The skin ripped from his body, and his bulk increased rapidly. He motioned to Story and she instantly had a look of concentration on her face

Story: “He said reinforce the shield. Whatever you do, don't let it fall. Guys help her.”

'' Where are you going?”

Story: “Don't worry about me. I'll be fine.”

I let the shield falter in a spot so she could escape, and then I put my energy back into it. Everyone had moved closer now, so it wasn't as big of a strain to keep the shield going, but it was still tiring. Everyone who could made shields of their own, and then we waited. I hadn't even realized that Carson had broken out of my shield and he was devouring the guards. He was ripping them to shreds and it looked like he was enjoying it. He was some kind of rock monster, but he had a red musculature under his rock armor. It was such a depressing and disgusting thing to watch. One thing I had realized about Carson... when it came to getting a job done, he didn't care how ruthless he had to be. After he had finished massacring them, he turned towards us, and from his posture... I could tell he was still hungry. He got low to the ground, and charged at us with all his might. He crashed into our shields and I was physically thrown back. My shield faltered and so did Jamie's. I got back up and created another shield, but with more energy. I couldn't keep this up much longer, so I hoped Story had some kind of plan.

Right on cue, Carson was thrown out of my line of sight and Story stood in his place. She didn't even acknowledge that we were there. There was nothing but concentration on her face. The ground quaked as Carson ran for her, but she jumped into the air, grabbed a hold of him with telekinesis. She swung him through the air and slammed him back to the ground. There was a huge crater in the ground, but apparently, he wasn't even harmed. I could see how tense her body was, but she never gave up. He ran at her full force, but she started spinning in a slow circle, like something was weighing down her arms. I didn't know what she was doing, but then I started to feel hits on my shield. She was still spinning, and that's when I noticed that the boxers were being split over and over again. She was steady turning and little cuts started to form on Carson's armor. He started to slow down, and blood started to drip out of his cuts, but he kept running. She started spinning even faster, and a yellow came from her and extended across the entire warehouse. She was turning even faster now, it was like she was dancing. Then.... she came to a complete stop and brought her hand down. The blade came to a stop as it crashed into the top half of Carson's head, and removed it. I screamed out as the head floated into the air, and then turned into nothing before it hit the ground. Carson was in his true form in no time, with only a small cut on his forehead. He looked behind him, and then quickly turned back towards us. I moved away from him just in time for the throw up to start. Story patted his back and consoled him as the simulation ended.

Professor X: “I'm sorry guys, but James is not a good fit for the team. Not this team. What would you do? Use him as a distraction until you were ready? The search continues!”

We all turned around to James and apologized for wasting his time. He took it in good stride, but I could tell he was disappointed. I told him I would keep in touch with him, and that's what I planned on doing.

~ ~ ~

Professor: “There was one good thing about this session.”

Kevin: “What's that?”

Professor: “We learned what Story's telekinetic signature is.”

Story: “My what?”

Jean: “Telekinetic signature is what color your telekinesis takes on. Some people never know, but mine is a pink color. Your signature is yellow.”

'' Nice. And how do you find out your telekinetic signature?”

Jean: “Sometimes using great strength... Other times, it can be just a wisp of color when you're doing something trivial.”

'' Guess I'll have to look for it when I'm using telekinesis.”

Jude

Boring! This whole day was a waste of fucking time. Life itself was a waste of fucking time.

Nazarus: “Oh My! Stop being such a whiny bitch.”

'' Fuck you! Get out of my head.”

Nazarus: “That's our head. Remember that Jude.”

'' And who's fault is that? I never asked for this.”

Nazarus: “And you still haven't accepted it. I'm not going anywhere, so you might as well get used to it.”

Jude: “Just don't comment on my thoughts. I don't have any real privacy as it is.”

Nazarus: “Cry me a river.”

I tuned his ass out and kept walking. It was kind of difficult to do since he separated from me. I knew he didn't want to go to far in case something happened. He had somehow taken a more casual look instead of that goth like shit I had seen him in before.

'' How did you change your appearance?”

Nazarus: “Just imagined what I wanted to wear, and went from there.”

'' Okay.”

It was silent for a minute and then he started to talk again.

Nazarus: “I'll only be with you for a little while longer. I mean I won't be as invasive. I'm getting stronger by the day, and so are you. Soon enough, I'll be able to function completely on my own. I won't be strong enough to leave you forever, but I will only need to come back every so often.”

'' What would you do?”

Nazarus: “Might stay here. Might go elsewhere. I haven't thought about it much.”

'' Oh.”

Nazarus: “I won't leave if you don't want me to.”

'' I want my privacy back, but I don't mind you being around.”

Nazarus: “Then I'll stay.”

I didn't realize it, but we had walked right into a game some of the students were playing. I saw something whiz by my head and instantly I thought that I was being attacked. I stepped back and blasted the thing apart with a force beam.

Kid#1: “Dude what the hell?”

Kid#2: “That was our Frisbee.”

I turned to look at them and was momentarily frozen as they came into view. While the one kid looked normal, the other guy had green skin and something like a crown on his head. I didn't let the surprise reach my face though. He was actually really attractive. The green skin wasn't even distracting.

'' Sorry. I thought someone was trying to start something.”

Kid#2: “What the hell makes you think you're that important?”

Nazarus: “Watch it kid.”

Kid#2: “And who the hell are you?”

'' Look!.... I apologize about the Frisbee. I'll replace it or something.”

Kid#1: “Well it won't matter by the time you get it to us.”

'' I said I'm sorry.”

The one kid looked like he didn't want to drop it, but as we were talking, Rogue walked over.

Rogue: “Julian. Victor.”

Victor: “Hey Rogue.”

Apparently the guy with green skin was Victor and the other one was Julian.

Rogue: “What's going on here?”

Julian: “This ass blew up our Frisbee.”

'' And I apologized. What the fuck do you want me to do about it?”

Rogue: “Calm down all of you. Besides, I just ran into Bobby. These two are on that list Serenity has.”

Nazarus: “You've got to be fucking kidding me.”

Julian: “They're the ones looking for a team? Forget it!”

Rogue: “Stop being boys for like a second. All of you are really good and I think you two would make a fine adjustment to their team. Besides some of the other kids are thinking about joining.”

Victor: “Like who?”

Rogue: “You'll just have to find out.”

They both turned back to me with scowls on their faces.

Julian: “When's the meeting?

Nazarus: “We'll get in touch with you.”

Nazarus disappeared with a flash and after feeling out his essence, I teleported behind him. We ended up in Story's room just as she was walking in the door. Fear instantly crossed her face until she noticed it was us.

Story: “Geesh! What the hell is wrong with you two? You almost scared the life out of me.”

'' That's probably not a good idea. Anyway... We ran into two of those guys on the list. They seemed like assholes.”

Story: “And you couldn't wait to tell me this?”

Nazarus: “The others will be here in a few minutes.”

Sure enough, a few minutes later there was a knock on the door. Story opened up the door and everybody filed in. Luckily the rooms were big, because it would have been a lot more cramped if it was a smaller room.

Serenity: “So they're assholes?”

'' The two we met were... Well it was kinda just the one. He was a jerk.”

Nazarus: “Both of those little boys were a nuisance. In my world, they wouldn't have lasted a day.”

We all looked at him for a second, but he didn't seem to notice... or care.

Jubilee: “So what are we going to do?”

Casey: “We could always hold try-outs. Keep the kids on the list in mind, but see who else is out there.”

Kitty: “Sounds like a good idea to me. I can tell some of my friends to make sure they show up.”

Bobby: “I know a few people.”

Carson: “Some people in my classes were talking about getting a team started. I'll let them know we're recruiting.”

Jubilee: “This girl in one of my classes doesn't talk to many people. I think people are nervous about her or something. She doesn't talk much at all.”

'' See if you can get her to come around.”

Jubilee: “I'll try.”

Everyone basically broke up after that. The girls promised to make signs to attract the girls and some of the guys promised to make signs that appealed to guys and the girls who didn't like that frilly shit.

What the hell were we getting into?

~ ~ ~

This chapter has been a long time coming.

I truly apologize for the wait.

I've been busy with school, so I can only write when I don't have classwork to do.

Anyway. This is Chapter 15. Hope you all enjoy it.

Remember my Email is numberme30@yahoo.com

The group is http://groups.yahoo.com/group/highschoolx

Hope you all have fun with this chapter and please tell me what you think.