[2009 – October]
Leech.
That was what they called this boy who had the ability to nullify the powers of even the strongest mutants through an aura that he uncontrollably released. If I remembered correctly, his born name should have been Jimmy, though that hardly mattered in comparison to his identity.
This boy was the very source of the 'vaccine' that was developed by Trask Industries to 'cure mutations'.
He had been hidden away incredibly well, and even Emma had no idea where he was, despite the incredible intelligence network that the Hellfire Club had built up since its inception.
She might be able to find him but it would certainly not be an easy task nor an inexpensive one.
In the end though, Trask Industries was just a company operated by humans and it took way more than that to hinder a Realm Lord like myself from finding a boy that they tried to hide.
I had simply covered all of Earth within an ethereal barrier that would block out the presence of every living creature but Leech.
And since I was the incarnation of Darkforce, the only remaining lifeforce had glowed brightly in my Mind's Eye, my Extrasensory Perception picking up on his location with ease after I had stretched it over the whole planet.
It seemed like a rather simple sequence of steps but the strength necessary to do such a thing, it most certainly touched upon the boundary of a higher being.
Without any fancy rituals or spells, as well as advanced technology, this was an act that was just beyond the capabilities of humans and mutants.
The only one that could have found him in a similar manner was Jean, if she had access to the potential lying within her, which was clearly beyond that what a normal Omega-level mutant could hope to do. At this point in time though, my Firefly had not managed to access this well of hidden strength.
Trask Industries naturally had set up some restrictions that prevented mutants with psychic powers from scanning the minds of those residing in their labs but those kinds of restrictions would obviously be useless in front of the inheritor of the Phoenix Force's true power.
Their technology might be able to ward off the rest of mutantkind's telepaths but mortal technology could never restrict a cosmic entity. As a Realm Lord, I could sense this clearly – the absolute gulf in power that lay between those who were mortal and those who weren't.
Alcatraz Island was ultimately where the boy had been hidden. Trask Industries had built a laboratory on this island, which was otherwise well-known for its high-security prison.
It was an underground lab that could only be accessed through a small storage room in the prison.
In truth, it was an incredibly convenient place for a lab such as this since a good portion of the prisoners were in fact mutants, which meant that there were more than enough subjects on which the 'vaccine' could be tested.
…
Looking at the tall young man in front of him, whose presence seemed to fill every inch of his small white cell, Leech knew that he was neither human nor mutant.
He had met many people of both species, especially since he had been brought here, but none of them gave him the same feeling as the stranger before him, his heart palpitating in trepidation due to the stranger's mere presence.
'I am Elijah Frost, and I came to take away your gifts.'
That's what the stranger had just said, the calmly spoken words still echoing in Leech's mind as he stared at the strangely attractive face of the being in front of him.
He didn't fully understand what those words meant but his mind was sharp enough to make a rather accurate guess even as young as he was, since he certainly understood the harsh reality of this world after having grown up in an orphanage before being brought here to be experimented on.
Those doctors in white coats might not have explained why they kept him here, or at least they might not have been honest about the real reason, but he understood enough to grasp what the stranger meant with the word 'gifts'.
And this realization surprised him since it was usually him that took away others' 'gifts'.
The reason behind this though, he could not understand. And so he asked.
"Why would you want to take away my gifts?"
…
Looking at me with trepidation and a trace of confusion in his eyes, the soft-spoken boy voiced out questioningly: "Why would you want to take away my gifts?"
It was easy for me to sense the incredibly active mind of the boy, my inhuman Extrasensory Perception picking up on even the faintest fluctuations of the ambient psionic energy, which was almost frighteningly similar to reading another person's mind.
This was the incredible strength of a higher being like a Realm Lord. My senses and perception alone were so advanced that they could almost rival those possessing empathic and telepathic abilities.
Focusing on the present, I paused for a moment and pondered if I should tell the boy the cruel truth, which was that I came here because he was too weak to protect his own gifts.
That was, after all, the origin of this supposed calamity.
Leech was born with a power that he could neither control, conceal, nor protect, and Trask Industries was trying to take advantage of this to invent a bio-weapon to use against even the most powerful mutants.
Naturally, one could argue that this wasn't his fault since he certainly didn't wish to be born with this power, but that really didn't change anything. Reality and truth didn't care about fault or intentions.
Still, there was no reason to be cruel, and I certainly wouldn't act like this without rhyme or reason.
He was just a boy, after all. Even if smart, how could he understand the far-reaching consequences of Trask Industries' attempt to synthesize his ability chemically and turn it into a weapon against mutantkind?
As such, I decided to be honest while omitting the intricacies behind my interference in this matter.
"To prevent a calamity.", I answered eventually.
Eyes widening a bit, he seemed to shrink into himself a bit, the trepidation in his gaze thickening. Shaking his head lightly while closing his eyes, he opened them with a hopeful look as he set his eyes on me again.
"If you can take away my gifts, does that mean that you are like me?", he inquired softly.
Sighing inwardly, I looked at the boy that seemed hardly eight years old, his maturity far beyond his age due to his rather pitiful circumstances. My answer though came without pause or falsehood.
"No.", I replied with a light shake of my head, "I am something different."
…
Crestfallen, the budding hope in his chest withering, Leech tried to stop the heartache and disappointment from showing on his face, though he was only partly successful as his eyes turned downwards in sadness.
The stranger's next words though caused the hope to reignite inside of him.
"But I will bring you to a place where many who are like you live, a place that you can call home.", the young man stated calmly.
Eyes shining brightly, the young boy was just about to ask the stranger if what he said was really the truth, when suddenly his sight became hazy and a wave of exhaustion swept over him out of nowhere, causing him to slowly sink into a dreamless sleep.
Though just before his consciousness turned dim, his small ears managed to catch a few last words.
"You can rest now. When you wake up, this world will have all forgotten about 'Leech' and you can be 'Jimmy' again."