Tales of a Young Mutant 17

Tales Of a Young Mutant

Chapter 17:FOH

I woke up again, feeling weak and hurt. I knew this would change soon, since my healing factor was coming into effect. I scan the room, trying to remember what happened. The bullets all over the place help. As does seeing the blood I lost. I get my energy back eventually, and I slowly stand up. I remember everything that happened now, I remember the gunshots, the language, and Logan. . .They got Logan! I began to cry uncontrollably as I realize that they took him away from me.

I look at my finger. I am still wearing the ring he gave me. I stop crying and then think of a plan. I check my watch. 10 AM, Dec. 25. "Merry Christmas my ass." I mutter. I take a very quick shower, then transform into my leather X-uniform, with the mini-Cerebro headband. I activate it, and it gives off a signal that tells me where mutants with activated X genes are. I got a very high signal within the area.

I follow the mental radar, until I get to a large military base. Surrounded by armed Weapon X guards. There was no way on God's great earth that I was going to get in to get Wolvie by myself. I knew that I would have to get help. It was time to return to New York. I carefully returned to the cabin and packed the suitcase. Then I got it and hopped into the rental car. I drove back to the airport, and passed all the security (I cheated somewhat telepathically) and boarded the plane to New York.

Upon arrival, I turned on Cerebro to find the school there. I found the signal, but I still had no way to get there. It would be too suspicious to fly, and I wasn't planning on walking. I did have my card, but I wasn't using it on a city bus or a cab. I decide on attempting mental conversation with the Professor, using Cerebro to help. I am lucky enough that it works.

<Joshua? I don't sense Logan anywhere near you. What happened?>

<I'll tell you and everyone else as soon as I get there.>

<Understood. I'll send Storm to pick you up.>

With that, Xavier ended our link. I waited in the Parking lot for mom. That violent danger sense kicked in, a little late however, and two very strong arms wrapped around my body, attempting to crush me. I was completely defenseless! I couldn't breathe, and I feared that I would die, when a strong burst of energy hit the attacker, causing him to drop me. I scrambled over to my rescuer, a blonde teen only a year or so older than me, with blue eyes, who somewhat resembled Cyclops.

I look back to see that my attacker was Juggernaut. With him were 4 men dressed completely in black.

"Sorcerers!" I remarked. The teen boy charged energy to his hands and fired it at the sorcerers and Juggernaut. They dodged the blast, except for Juggernaut. He took it, unharmed.

The sorcerers retaliated with fireballs. I put up a tk-shield, straining against the fore-power. "There's no way we can take them all out!" I say, "we need help!"

"I send Xavier another message. <Xavier? Backup requested!>

<Situation?>

I hoped the others would get here soon. The sorcerers had stopped firing, but now Juggernaut was punching on my shield. I was running out of energy to keep it up.

Suddenly the sky changed dramatically from the clear sky to filled with thunderstorm clouds. One lightning bolt from the clouds seared down and connected with Juggernaut, full force, and sent him flying into a wall of the airport. The people now began to flee.

I was finally able to let my shield down to recuperate. No sooner was it done did I get hit with an energy blast from the enemy sorcerers. Before it could advance on me, a bone like spike-thing appeared in the sorcerer's chest. He fell to the ground, dead.

The toher sorcerers advanced. The blonde boy took one out with an energy blast. Mom's lightning bolts fried another one. I took out the last with a tk-blast. Now it was us vs. Juggernaut.

I kept firing at Juggernaut, but of course my shots had little effect. Mom tried lightning and ice, but they weren't helping to slow him much either. We started aiming at the helmet, but he kept blocking it with the rest of his body. We know there are seven hinges on the helmet, keeping it locked to the bodysuit. Mom tried hail. The little hail pebbles became larger and larger. I used telekinesis to latch onto the hailstones and direct them at the helmet. One of them connected and broke a latch. He hits two giant hailstones at me. Since I was busy controlling the hailstones, I didn't have time to react. A laser beam comes from the sky and destroys the two rocks.

I look up to see the blackbird. Phoenix levitated down from it with Cyclops, who had fired the blast. After them, Kitty made Bobby intangible along with herself and they floated down to the ground. Juggernaut aimed hailstones at them during their descent, but Phoenix blocked with her shields, and they went straight through Kitty and Bobby.

I use the distraction to hurl another hailstone at Juggernaut, breaking another hinge. He advances on me, but is slowed down by the now intangible Iceman with ice freezing the lower portion of his body. I blast off another hinge.

Juggernaut frees himself, and then charges at me, attempting to punch me. There's no time to prepare a shield. Surprisingly, the fist goes straight through me. I turn to my left to see Kitty holding my hand. I smile in thanks as she lifts us into the air. Phoenix blasts away a hinge, and then Juggernaut reverts his attention to her. Cyclops makes use of this and blasts a hinge. There are only two left. Juggernaut pounds the ground with his fists, making everyone but Kitty, Mom, and me fall down, since us three are in the air. Mom takes advantage, and uses the wind to send a hailstone at Juggernaut, eliminating a hinge. Juggernaut flings a hailstone at Mom. She escapes it, but she is getting tired and not able to hold up the storm or stay in the air much longer. The blonde teen blasts the hinge, and Phoenix levitates off the helmet. I send strong psi-bolt into Juggernaut's mind, but I can't take him down. Phoenix helps out too, and even the two of us can barely take him, as he is somehow able to resist psi-attacks. I suddenly got an idea. Jean reads my mind and stops attacking.

I flip over Juggernaut, and use my psi-claws to puncture his skin. It doesn't hurt him at all, but it does go through. I have a link to his whole nervous system and his mind. Jean and Xavier both channel their power into me, and through out daisy chain we all attack him simultaneously. The combined attack to his mind and nervous system knocks him out cold, and I move out of the way before I get fallen on. Tired and exhausted from power exertion, I slip into unconsciousness again.

I awoke in the hospital wing of the school, and jumped with a start. I realized that I had passed out. I thought of Logan again, and I forced myself out of the bed. I pulled the wires off, and hurried up the stairs to the war room. Mom intercepted me in the hall.

"Joshua! You're supposed to be in bed! I don't care about your healing factor, you need rest!"

"But mom..."

"Don't you but mom me. Oh no, you haven't eaten anything! Come! Into the kitchen!"

"But mom!"

"Don't you `but mom' me, young man!"

"Yes ma'am, Mom."

"Oh, Eric sent you this." She hands me a letter, sent by Eric.

I follow her to the kitchen, the whole time worrying about Logan. I eat without tasting. Mom senses my worry.

"Child? What is wrong?"

"I think it's time I tell everyone." I reply.

We go to the war room. Everyone is gathered around. I recognize all of them from meeting them or from the Cerebro files. Cyclops, Rogue, Storm, Beast, Gambit, Jubilee, Phoenix, Colossus, Iceman, Spyke, Shadowcat, Nightcrawler, Psylocke, Mom, Quicksilver, Pyro, Marrow, the Professor, Havoc (the blonde teen, Cyclops's brother) and me. I knew why they were all there. They were waiting to know why Wolverine wasn't there. I explained to them the whole trip (leaving out Logan and me in bed.) and told them about Mutant X's appearance.

"We've got to rescue him!" said Jubilee.

"Yeah, we need to get Mr. Logan back." Shadowcat said.

"Good. Let's get ready." Professor Xavier agreed.

I suddenly got a violent premonition. The school's destruction was at hand. It would be bombed in 10 minutes!

Phoenix and Professor Xavier caught on to my premonition and called for an evacuation. We were successfully able to evacuate everyone to the underground levels of the school. We heard the explosions above as the school was bombed.

"What was that about?" I asked.

"That was the Friends of Humanity. They are a new anti-mutant organization, established in New York, and quickly spreading throughout the country. They have already hit the school in Los Angeles," replied Xavier.

"What do we do?" I ask.

"We are already establishing a new base of operations in Orlando, Florida. Then, we'll have to return here to rebuild the original establishment of the school.

"What about Logan?"

"I am truly sorry Joshua, but we cannot leave to get Logan. We must make sure the rest of the students and teachers are safe first."

"I understand." I say. I sit down in a chair. I feel the tears, and I fight to hold them back, but I can't hold them any longer. I cry until I can't feel my tears anymore. Mom and the Professor both try to comfort me, but it's a lost cause.

Mom and Jean say we should check the situation topside. Cyclops, Phoenix, Mom and I went upstairs. Mom put out the fire with rain. We went outside and stared in horror. We came face to face with a humongous robot.

"Mutants sighted. Prepare to be terminated," the robot said.

"A sentinel!" said Cyclops. "X-men! Fan out!"

We spread and positioned ourselves around the robot. Mom brought down lightning, Cyclops fired optic blasts, and Phoenix and I use tk-bolts. We poured it on, and eventually destroyed the sentinel.

Exhausted, we went back to the lower levels of the school. I answered the letter Eric wrote me. I sent it through the mail using a nearby neighbor's mailbox an hour later. Then Cyclops, Phoenix, Mom, Evan, Bobby, Kitty, Rogue, Hank, the Professor, and I got into the Blackbird and rode it in cloaking mode to the new chapel hideout.

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Well, that's all for this chapter. So, the Friends of Humanity have arrived. There's no school anymore. What will the X-men do? And they're headed to Orlando. Will they have a run in with Eric? Stay tuned for the next Tales of a Young Mutant.