After grilling the man for answers, it was only fair play that the Professor got to ask some back as we walked. Thankfully, Charles kept his questions more generalized, most of them boiling down to mutantkind's future and major threats to mutants.
No personal evil secrets he wanted to use for mind-whammying people, so I was more than happy to oblige.
Although maybe I should've held a little back…
"Purifiers, the Friends of Humanity, Sublime, Hydra…" Charles had a worried look as we traversed the halls. "Hah… I've truly opened Pandora's box, haven't I?"
"I mean, if it makes you feel better, I'm not sure most of these exist yet, or if they'll even exist at all. Well, except Hydra…"
"Yes, only the secret Nazi world order existing does wonders to calm my heart," Charles said dryly.
I winced.
"Erik is not going to like that…" The old man shook his head, one hand massaging his temple.
"I mean, they're only technically Nazis…"
"Would you be willing to say that to the man's face?" Charles raised an eyebrow at me. "I
wonder how that would go."
Right… probably not well.
It didn't help that the current Hydra probably dabbled in mutant bullshittery as well.
While I was all for fucking up Hydra, their current embeddedness in multiple governments meant that if he went loud, it wouldn't exactly do wonders for mutantkind's image.
Hopefully, Mystique and Destiny kept a lid on murderous Magneto.
"What am I doing, burdening my guest with such heavy things?" Charles exhaled with a small laugh. "We can speak about it another time. Come, I've been a terrible host. I should have some treats in the parlor—"
A loud crash cut him off, and my hand twitched toward my lightsaber.
Fortunately, it didn't seem to be anything too bad. I could hear faint laughter, followed by groaning. Charles just sighed, looking exhausted in a way that felt deeply practiced.
"I'm terribly sorry, but would you mind heading to the parlor room alone? It seems I need to go educate some of my students on common sense."
"Teens and superpowers not working out so well?" I chuckled.
"Like you can't even imagine." Charles gave a tired chuckle of his own before quickly heading down the hallway. "Please, do make yourself at home in the parlor room."
Maybe it was because I was finally alone, but I couldn't help noticing how wealthy the damn place looked. The outside had already been impressive, but the interior somehow managed to trump it even harder.
I whistled as I walked into the parlor.
The room was large and sunlit, with tall windows throwing bright daylight across dark wood walls, heavy curtains, and a patterned rug. Armchairs, low tables, lamps, and decorative pieces filled the space, giving it an old-fashioned, well-kept feel without making it look untouched.
So I didn't stay polite for very long and sat down in a leather armchair. Despite the fancy look, there were comic books, random games, and regular books scattered around the room. Pretty lived-in, all things considered.
It was nice to just relax.
Dealing with Xavier had been a little stressful, and getting a look at the young X-Men was going to be a thing as well, but compared to fighting conspiracies, demons, or aliens, this had been a cakewalk. I had been dead tired by the time we got back to Kamar-Taj, so it was nice to have something that wasn't immediately life-threatening.
I could actually think for once.
Uh, speaking of thinking…
Whoops.
[Skilled Negotiation]
[+1 Bronze Gacha Ticket]
Totally forgot I had this, actually. I looked around, and the parlor was empty, so…
[Rolling Bronze Gacha Ticket]
[Riptide]
|Uncommon Item|
Percy Jackson - Riptide is the sword of the demigod son of Poseidon, made of Celestial bronze. Making it exceptionally durable and sharp while being unable to hurt anything or anyone mundane. In addition, it is able to switch between the form of a pen and a sword at will. Boosts the power of water affinity when used as a focus.
A ballpoint pen appeared in my hand. I clicked it open and was greeted with a damn fine sword.
The mundane limit was pretty annoying, but I already had my lightsaber, so it was still nice to have something for the more esoteric shit in the future.
I heard footsteps coming toward the room, so I pocketed the pen.
"Oh! It's that guy!" a cheerful voice said.
Kitty Pryde came into the room with Iceman, a red-haired girl I assumed was Jean Grey, and the other X-Men member I hadn't gotten to meet yet. The dark blue fur, yellow eyes, and tail coming from his back made it pretty hard to mistake Nightcrawler for anyone else.
"Hi, hi!" Kitty came up to me with a grin. "Never got to say it before, but thanks for the save again, Mr. Superhero."
"Pshh, I totally would've wrecked them if I got the chance." Bobby raised his chin arrogantly.
"Sureeee."
"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?"
"Oh, Icebaby can't keep his cool?" Kitty stuck out her tongue.
"I'll show you cool!" Like his future namesake, vapor started spilling from Bobby's hand before a burst of ice shot toward Kitty.
She phased out of the way and laughed.
"Hold still, damn it!"
The two began to tussle, very much ignoring the rest of us. I shot the other two young X-Men a look. "Are they always like this?"
Both of them had the decency to look embarrassed.
"You guys have had it rough." I laughed as I got up. "Anyway, I should probably introduce myself properly. I'm Jack."
I offered my hand.
"Jean Grey. And thanks again for saving us." She offered me a small smile as she shook it.
"No problem." I grinned. "Glad I could help."
The blue-furred kid shifted a little, his tail curling behind him as his yellow eyes flicked around the room. He looked nervous, though, considering the whole demon appearance thing, I could understand why he was a little guarded.
Marvel citizens can sometimes be even more evil than the goddamn villains.
I just smiled and offered my hand. "And you?"
He blinked, then relaxed a little as he took it. "Kurt Wagner."
"Nice to meet you, Kurt." I glanced around the room as Kitty let out another laugh and Bobby complained about cheating. "Where's everyone else?"
Before either of them could answer, Charles rolled into the room, looking exasperated.
"My apologies," he said, glancing at Bobby and Kitty with a very pointed look. "Piotr rushed off to arrange something of a feast for Illyana's return, and your friend Anna went with them to a restaurant."
Ah, well, I couldn't blame the guy. Sister came back from quasi hell, who wouldn't be overjoyed?
"I would be happy to show you around more of the school," Charles continued, "provided my students can refrain from turning the parlor into a mess."
Kitty immediately perked up from where she had been half-phased through Bobby's attempted grab. "Oh, oh! Can we use the Danger Room, Professor?"
Charles went still in the very specific way adults did when they realized they had been maneuvered into something.
"You kept saying we needed a real opponent," Kitty pressed, grinning like she had found a loophole in the laws of physics. "Jack could work, right?"
The other four students perked up at that, even Kurt looking more curious than nervous now.
Charles looked reluctant. I was pretty sure he didn't want to piss off the weird pseudo oracle that might help him protect mutantkind's future.
Still… I did wanna see the Danger Room.
"Why not? Could be fun." I gave the professor a thumbs-up.
That earned a cheer from the rest of the students. Charles shot me a look, then sighed at the various excited faces around him.
"...Very well. Follow me."
—
Charles had lived a long life, and quite a storied one as well. He had stood at the heart of conflicts, explored the world, and spent years trying to bring his ideal into reality.
A world where humanity and mutantkind could coexist in peace.
This school was meant to be the foundation of that dream, a place to teach young mutants who might one day help him make that ideal more than a hopeful theory.
As much as Erik called him a naive fool, Charles was not blind to the challenges ahead. There would always be forces eager to crush that dream before it could take root. The conflicts of his youth had taught him that intimately enough.
Still, even for him, secret Nazi conspiracies and a potentially sentient racist bacteria were a lot to take in. It almost made him wish for the more mundane purist groups he had long feared and expected might appear as mutants became more visible.
Almost.
He could not complain too much. The fact that he had such warnings at all was already a miracle. Strange, really, how a single young man could upend so many of his conceptions and carefully held notions.
Charles couldn't help but keep an eye on him as Jack conversed with his students about the upcoming spar.
Logan stood next to him as the two of them manned the control room.
"Kid give you the runaround?"
"You could say that, old friend." Charles watched Jack gesture animatedly at something Kitty had said, earning a laugh from her and a suspicious look from Bobby. "Quite the dangerous young man, Logan. I am still trying to wrap my head around some of the things he told me."
Logan grunted. "That bad?"
"Some of it? Worse than bad." Charles folded his hands in his lap, his gaze never quite leaving Jack. "He is intelligent, alarmingly informed, and oddly sincere. But I admit, a part of me worries this may still be some manner of scheme."
Logan laughed under his breath and shook his head.
Charles glanced at him. "You disagree?"
"I know his type."
The Danger Room's countdown began, the lights dimming as the panels shifted and hardened into place. Below them, his students spread out across the training floor, excitement mixing with nerves as they prepared themselves.
Jack, for his part, simply rolled his shoulders and smiled.
"Three."
Jean took a steady breath.
"Two."
Kurt's tail lashed behind him.
"One."
Bobby lifted his hands, cold vapor already spilling from his palms.
The buzzer sounded.
A crack of thunder split the room.
One moment, the young man had been standing with the rest of the team, and the next, Jack had crossed the distance in a blur, tackled him clean off his feet, and was already carrying him across the room like a stolen sack of groceries.
"Bobby!" Jean shouted.
"Hey, what the hell—!" Bobby yelped.
Jack just giggled as he ran around the room like a madman with Bobby slung over his shoulder.
Charles felt his eye twitch.
He had been warned about his speed, certainly, but the method was rather...
Logan's grin widened.
"The kid's just fucking crazy."
***
Comments and Thoughts would be greatly appreciated. Likes are like a drug to me and boost my creative juices.
I have advanced chapters on Pa tre on/daisyberry if you wanna read ahead.
Just a heads up, there will be no chapter updates next week. Family members getting married so I'll be taking a brief break as I travel for the wedding. Regularly scheduled chapters will begin again the week after.