[2009 – October]
Having just laughed because of Laura's blunt comment, the atmosphere amongst them lively and easy-going, things took a drastic turn when Elijah's arm shot forward like a steel pillar to block the ball that came flying at Ellie's head.
Her laughter dying in her throat, Rogue watched as the carefree emotions bled from the dark-haired teen's face, his teasing smirk and clear gaze vanishing as he rose to his feet.
An icy chill went down her back as she felt the air around Elijah change, her mind pulling up the memory of him clashing with the X-Men including herself, the incident where he had shattered Scott's pride and bones, as well as crushed Kurt and Mr. Cassidy with a single wave of his hand before crossing blades with Logan and Laura just to rob them of their technique.
At this moment, Rogue felt it again, felt the 'real' Elijah appear.
He shed his calm and easy-going presence like his coat, a dangerous and almost malevolent aura appearing around him. It was a subtle change but Rogue couldn't be wrong about this, the terrifying scenes from the past burned into her memories for eternity.
"Are you serious?", Elijah uttered in a low voice, his eyes hard like black diamonds while the hairs on her neck stood up.
"You're sitting next to a basketball court, don't come complainin' about wild shots coming your way! Just give it up, Frost!", the blonde jock called Flash responded ridiculingly, a half-sneer on his face.
"It seems that the lesson that I taught you last time didn't take root, so let's try again.", Elijah replied lightly before he flipped the ball into the air and shrugged off his coat almost simultaneously.
Catching the ball and the coat, he placed the latter down where he had sat before dragging down the zipper of his high-collar dark-blue sweater, taking it off and handing it to Jean along with the tiny black owlet that never seemed to leave his side.
A surprised look appearing on Flash's face, he stepped back and opened his arms wide as he barked back, a provocative smile on his lips: "Bring it, Frost!"
"You will wish I didn't.", Elijah said simply as he moved down the steps with the basketball in hand, his voice causing goosebumps to appear on Rogue's back and arms.
She had no idea if Elijah had ever played basketball but Rogue knew without a shadow of a doubt that this wasn't going to end well for the blonde jock at all.
As an X-Men trainee, Rogue was privy to information that normal students of Xavier's weren't, so she knew very well that the dark-haired teen had just days ago been acknowledged as the strongest mutant on Earth by not only the Professor and the veteran members of the X-Men, including Ororo, Logan, and Hank, but also by Magneto and his Brotherhood.
In fact, he was a being so insanely powerful that the Professor had been forced to admit that the Omega-level category, which was reserved for those mutants who could be likened to walking natural disasters, was simply inadequate to describe him.
Thus, Elijah was now the first and only mutant of the 'Beyond Omega'-level category.
Now wearing only a somewhat loose dark-green tank top, some black jeans, and a pair of white sneakers, Elijah's perfectly-muscled build was revealed, his lean figure undoubtedly containing fatal levels of strength.
His dark locks and shadowed eyes gave him a sinful charm as he moved like a black leopard approaching unsuspecting prey.
…
Putting away the two phones in his hands, Pietro took off his headphones as he smirked interestedly while following Elijah's movements with his eyes.
'Someone's serious, or at least half-serious.', the silver-grey-haired teen thought to himself as he watched.
He could see the hidden malice in Elijah's gaze, his clear eyes having turned a few shades darker, his presence lurking yet dangerous, Pietro understood that thiswas the mutant that even his father was fearful of.
Having shed his calm and mellow attitude, it was replaced by something raw and dark as Elijah seemed prepared to teach Flash a lesson that he wouldn't recover from so easily.
…
Watching Frost come down from the tribune steps and approach, Flash couldn't help but seer inwardly.
Having taken a loss after their last and first confrontation, Flash could acknowledge that Elijah, as a fighter, wasn't someone that he could match up to. But now they were on his court and basketball was his forte as the school team's MVP, so it was the other party's time to eat a loss.
Arriving before him, Elijah passed the ball to him, like it was usually done to initiate a 1v1 on a half-court. Catching the ball, Flash called out with a smirk before passing back: "How about a bet, Frost?"
Obviously, he was thinking of making the other party do something particularly humiliating when he lost, which would go a long way to restore his damaged ego.
Elijah though seemed indifferent to his proposition as he caught the ball and stared at him as he replied: "You have nothing that I want besides your pride."
"But since that is exactly what I am after, you have no right to refuse to give it up in any case.", he added, his tone impassive but his eyes seemed to turn into dark vortexes for an instant, making him look anything but human.
Appalled, Flash took a frightened step back before he realized that Elijah's eyes hadn't truly changed color or form, though they carried a soul-piercing look, the faintest of smiles drawing up the corners of Elijah's lips before he started moving like a black shadow.
He hardly even had enough time to refocus himself when Elijah had already arrived before him, the ball leaving behind nothing but afterimages as he dribbled it with such speed that he had trouble following the movements with his eyes.
His muscle memory kicking in, Flash still tried to snatch it but the moment that he extended his hand, he saw Elijah spin around him and heard the ball make contact with the floor just in between his legs.
Eyes widening, he hurriedly tried to turn around but before he could do so, he felt the sting of the ball bouncing off his back.
Half-turned, Flash managed to get a glimpse of Elijah as he spun through the air with a 520 and caught the ball again, windmilling it, his muscles tensed as he pounded it into the hoop with a single hand.
A one-handed tomahawk dunk.
Freezing in shock, a sinking feeling in his stomach, Flash could hardly hear the gasps of his teammates and the exclamations of the other students as he stared at Elijah's back.
He barely came to himself again when Elijah bypassed him, ball in hand, and whispered: "That's just the start, can you feel it?"
Like a devil, his dark eyes shone emotionlessly as he added: "Bit by bit, I will take your pride."
A chill traveling down his neck, his lips almost trembling, Flash gnashed his teeth as he turned to face Elijah again, resentment thick in his eyes as he wasn't willing to just going to bend over and let himself be stepped on.
And that's when his real nightmare started.
…
"Damn.", Ellie breathed out as she watched Elijah glide past Flash like a phantom and run under and almost past the hoop, only to jump up and hammer the ball down into the net with a reverse dunk after a 360 spin.
His toned arms held onto the rim for a moment, the muscles on his shoulders and arms tensing, becoming more prominent for an instant, before he let go and landed lightly.
Even she had to admit that Elijah looked crazy sexy as he taught Flash a lesson, his athletic performance being just that – a performance.
She wasn't even angry at the blonde idiot anymore for purposefully shooting the ball her way and almost hitting her temple. Instead, she was almost thankful since Elijah's ballgame was an amazing sight to behold.
"I think Elijah is making me less gay.", Yukio uttered as she likewise watched the dark-haired teen being an absolute devil on the field, her eyes glittering with some admiration.
"Well, keep it in your panties.", Jean scolded with a giggle, her eyes fixed on her lover's figure as she smiled brilliantly, "He's taken."
Ellie wasn't jealous after she had heard Yukio's words as she that this was just some innocent attraction, not her girlfriend suddenly falling in love with Elijah. The short-haired individualist was also very sure of her relationship with the Asian beauty and the strong emotional bond that they shared.
Also, she couldn't help but admit that Yukio had a point, the dark-haired teen was a rare specimen. Elijah wasn't simply 'handsome', he had this 'bad boy'-charm that could drive a girl crazy, along with a body that screamed 'delicious with a cherry on top'.
Ellie was one hundred percent into girls, especially the quirky beauty by her side, but if she were straight for a single night, Elijah would, without a shadow of a doubt, be the one that she would wish to be ravished by, that's how crazy attractive he was.
Shaking off those thoughts while noticing how more and more students seemed to appear in the gym to watch the spectacle, Ellie turned her attention back to the court, and couldn't help but be mesmerized by Elijah's skill.
Like he was the sun himself, the ball in his hands couldn't escape his gravity even though he approached Flash constantly, his own intentions and goals the only thing that mattered in this game as he slammed the ball into the hole again and again.
Like a wreaking ball, he savagely destroyed Flash's very fighting spirit with every shot he hammered down the hoop. And he did it with such cold arrogance and ease that it seemed more like an adult bullying a child than a duel with the best player in the school and someone that didn't even attend P.E. classes most of the time.