AUTHOR'S NOTE: This story is set during the Academy X era (pre-M day). Cyclops was headmaster, Jean Grey-Summers was headmistress, and the students were organized in "squads." Hellion, Mercury, Dust, Rockslide, Tag and Wither made up the Hellions with counselor Emma Frost, Wind Dancer, Prodigy, Surge, Icarus, Wallflower and Elixir made up the New Mutants with counselor Dani Moonstar. In the comics, X-23 (or Wolverine as she is known as nowadays) did not join the X-men until New X-men #20, during M-day. This story is me imagining what would happen if she had joined earlier, when Julian was at the height of being a jerk. At this point, he had some valuable lessons to learn. Which means that he's going to learn some valuable lessons in this story. Enter the Siege Perilous, a magical portal-stone that grants anyone who dares to enter with a fresh start...ps: If any of those elements are unfamiliar to you, I suggest googling the terms. Although this story is not based off of or inspired by comic arcs, all the elements in it are cannon.
CHAPTER 1
Down the Rabbit Hole
"I think you're going to fit in here just fine, Laura." Summers, as Logan had referred to him, was patting her on the shoulder and smiling encouragingly, his dark red glasses moving slightly up his nose as he did. "There are plenty of other people who know what you're going through."
Laura lowered her eyes slightly. She had, as of yet, not identified any individuals who were clones, manufactured by a weapons design facility, for the sole purpose of killing. But she did not say so. Clones did not speak unless answering questions.
"How do you like your roommate?" he asked.
Laura paused, her nose wrinkling slightly. She knew he was asking something about the other person occupying her cell, but what did "like" mean?
Summers seemed to record this as her response. He laughed slightly. "You'll learn to get along. Just give it time. If it's really a bad fit, there are other rooms. But…stick it out a bit, okay?"
Laura nodded, her eyebrows drawn together. She did not understand most of what he had said, but it involved her cell, and remaining in it. She could do this.
"Good." Summers nodded, too, then stood up. "Well, Logan wants you to get the full immersion experience…and I agree. I think the more exposure you get to the other kids, the better. So let's get you set up with one of the squads, shall we?"
Laura's forehead wrinkled. Immersion? Exposure? Squads? What did all this mean? And why was he asking her so many questions? Clones were not important. She nodded anyway.
"Excellent." Summers began working on his computer, scanning some sort of list. "Hmmm. Looks like all our squads are full. We try to keep everyone balanced, so there are no advantages…some of the kids take the field day competitions really seriously." He paused. "Oh, wait. That's right…Wither dropped out last month. Hmm."
Laura said nothing, even though she was barely following his sentences. What was a Wither, and how did it drop out? How did he "balance" everyone? And, still, what was a squad?
"I'll tell you what." Summers smiled. "We'll put you on the Hellions for now. I'm still hoping we can convince Wither to come back, so I can't promise it will be permanent…but we can talk again when that happens. At least you can get a start, and I'm sure Emma will take good care of you." He paused. "How does that sound?"
Laura paused, then nodded.
"Perfect." He paused too. "You look about Sooraya's size. She's on the squad, but she doesn't wear the uniform she was issued…so she may have one that you could use, would that be okay?"
Uniform. Laura's eyebrows drew together. She understood this at least. Nod.
Summers smiled. "Sounds like we have a plan. Shall we go ask her?"
Laura nodded yet again.
"Mr. Summers?" the girl in the room asked, in an Arabic accent, having opened the door slightly. She looked surprised to see them.
"Hi, Sooraya." Summers gestured to Laura. "This is Laura. She's new to the school, and she's going to be joining your squad, at least for a while."
"Oh." Sooraya raised her eyebrows. They disappeared beneath the edge of her garment, a black niqab. "Hello, Laura."
Laura said nothing in return. She decided that the girl was from Afghanistan. Probably Sunni.
"She's pretty shy." Summers smiled. "I was wondering if you still had that uniform we issued you when you first started here—if you wouldn't mind Laura borrowing it?"
"Oh—yes." Sooraya paused. "She…you may have it. I do not need it. One moment please."
She disappeared. There was a sound of a drawer being opened inside her room.
"It's okay to be overwhelmed." Summers was speaking to Laura again. "Just remember…everyone here has been through it, to some degree or another. Even me."
Laura felt he disapproved of her somehow, but she was not certain what she had done. She wondered if he would come back to her cell later and beat her, or if that function was reserved for another individual. Did this place have a handler? It seemed unfathomable that it would not. But, Logan had warned her that things would be different here.
Sooraya returned to the door, opening it, and offering a pile of red cloth-like material to her. The girl's almond shaped brown eyes crinkled slightly at the corners. "Here. I am glad that you will be joining us."
Laura accepted the garment silently.
Summers cleared his throat. "Well, thank you, Sooraya. Your squad has practice tomorrow, right?"
Sooraya frowned slightly. "Yes, at eight."
"Great. I think Laura will join you for that." Summers glanced at Laura. "I'll give you a tour of the facilities right now, so you'll be ready…and then I think I'll hand you over to Kitty Pryde so you can get set up with some classes." He paused. "Have a good rest of your day, Sooraya."
"Thank you." Sooraya closed the door.
Laura sat on her bed. The room was dark, as her roommate was asleep, but she did not need to light to see. She was staring at the three books she had been given earlier, along with the itinerary.
She was familiar with the latter but was surprised to see that the time was divided into hourly increments, rather than by minute. It was also strange not to see it divided by phases, and stranger still that there was no kill order. Instead, the plan was merely for her to walk to the rooms and remain in them for the specified periods of time. Starting with the "squad" activity. She did not even have to locate the rooms, since Summers and Pryde had both respectively shown her where to go.
Her forehead wrinkled. What was the purpose of all this? Were they not aware that she was a weapon? When Logan had removed her from the facility, she had assumed she was being stolen to be used for this location. But she had yet to be provided with even one target. When would she be asked to kill? Perhaps at the "squad" activity tomorrow? Would there be trigger scent? Did they even have trigger scent here?
She finally piled the items together and put them on the table beside the bed, then curled into a ball on her side, frowning slightly. The bed was not hard enough, not as familiar as her shelf in her original cell. But, she should obtain sleep, to prepare for tomorrow's activities. Whatever their purpose, she understood that failure was not an option. Failure was never an option.
Laura looked down at her hands. They were wet, and covered in red. A sharp, metallic smell flooded the air, even though she was outside. In the snow. The ground was frozen solid beneath her knees. She was aware of humming in the distance, and crashing as Kimura ran toward her, pushing trees out of her way. But she remained kneeling, gazing at the body in front of her, the source of the blood. Sarah had stopped breathing a long time before, but for some reason, she was unable to move. Uncertain. Without her instructions, she did not know what to do. She was keenly aware of a cold sensation. Which was odd, since her body had already adapted, her metabolism quickening to produce more heat.
Kimura reached her. "Clone!" she snapped, removing her sidearm and pointing it at her. "Stand down! NOW!"
Laura sat up, her eyes flitting around the still-dark room. She could still hear the word now echoing, although it was not an auditory sensation. Her heart was beating rapidly in her chest, as if she had just engaged in a difficult fight. But she had been asleep. After a few moments, she looked up at the clock. Five hundred hours. It would be sunrise soon, but that was not what had woken her. She was used to the lights in her cell snapping on at this time.
She cleansed herself in the bathroom, which was slightly difficult at first. She had never used the bathing devices, but she had heard her roommate the other morning, and so she could guess at their mechanism. It was different from the intermittent hosing down she'd been given at the facility. The water pressure was lower, the temperature at her control. She set it quite high, since that was what she was used to.
After she had dried off, she picked up the garment Sooraya had loaned to her, wrinkling her nose slightly. The red was a very impractical color. She was used to black, which helped her blend into the darkness she usually operated in. As she unfolded it, several smaller pieces dropped out: a pair of boots, and gloves. The former she pulled on, along with the garment, but she frowned as she regarded the latter. They would affect her dexterity, and her grip, which was often important in combat situations. Snkkt! Ten small red tubes dropped to the ground, and then she pulled the now fingerless gloves onto her hands.
When she had completed preparations, it was only 5:20, leaving two hours and forty minutes before the time indicated on her itinerary. Her training normally began at 5:30, so she decided to head to the practice space early and perform her routine. Her handlers were not there to supervise, but the idea of performing familiar actions was appealing. Especially since she had not done so yesterday.
The large steel door opened at her touch on the keypad, just as it had for Summers yesterday, to reveal a large, empty space. Larger than the dojo she was used to, but that was not problematic. She walked to the center of the room, closed her eyes, then pressed her hands together and bowed slightly. The first stretch followed shortly afterward, a tablelike pose, her back arching. As she worked, she felt an uncomfortable sensation beginning to ease, one that she had not even been aware of, but she now realized had been present since Logan opened the door to her cell, just two days ago. A tenseness. The new surroundings were more distressing than she had realized.
Soon, she was assuming her first real pose, a simple stance, but there was something about performing it that felt natural. So different from the uncertainty of yesterday. She moved through each form slower than usual, lingering in the sensation. By the time she was performing the advanced poses, she was no longer aware of where she was. When she reached the last movement, crouched on the floor, her hands crossed in front of her, she hesitated for a moment, then began the routine anew.
She was in midleap when the door slid open. Landing, she spun around quickly and saw that a boy had just entered. He was about her age, perhaps a little older, with black hair, and was wearing an outfit similar to hers. Immediately, his nose wrinkled. "Uh, this space is reserved, can't you read?"
Laura's eyebrows drew together. Could she read? She nodded.
He folded his arms. "You can read? So why're you here? Everyone knows we've got the DR at eight on Thursdays and—" his eyes, which were a light blue, flickered downward. "Why the hell are you wearing my colors?"
Laura paused, further confused. His colors? It was possible to own colors?
He reached out and snapped his gloved fingers under her nose. "Hey. Answers. Come on, Wednesday Addams, I don't have all day."
Laura's nose wrinkled slightly. His words did not make sense, but she knew from the tone of his voice that he was deriding her. It was the same tone that Rice used when he addressed her, while smirking. Which the boy was also doing.
"Fine, don't talk. Lurk all you want…but do it out in a space that isn't reserved. You don't belong here." He reached out and grabbed her wrist.
Laura reacted almost instantly. A moment later, his arm was pinned behind his back, and he was kneeling on the ground, pushed down by her knee. She considered popping her claws, but did not. She doubted he was the target. He was obviously very surprised by her move.
Then Laura was the one who was surprised, as she was hurled into the air and slammed into the ceiling, in a cloud of green light. Then it was gone, and she was falling, back down toward the steel floor. BLAM! as she impacted.
"Er—" the boy sounded alarmed. "Are you—"
Laura was back on her feet, crouching, and glaring at him. Snkkt! She was not certain he was a target and so she would not kill him, but certainly no one would be angry if she cut something off.
"What the—" he held up his hands as she charged at him. At the last moment, a wall of green appeared, and her claws skated across it with a slash! sound.
"Hey! Stop it!" He snapped.
Another green wave hit her, and she went flying back across the room. She was slammed against the wall, and then she was stuck, her limbs pinned against it.
He glared at her. "Enough. I don't know who you are…but get the hell out of my face!" He made a fist, and a moment later she was tumbling out of the room.
She landed on her hands and knees—right in front of a group of people that were walking down the hallway, toward the room, all wearing the same outfit as her. Except for Sooraya, who pushed someone out of her way and bent down beside Laura, her eyes wide.
"Laura! What is—" she paused and looked up at the boy, who had just stepped into the doorway.
"What, you know her?" he demanded.
"Yes!" Sooraya extended a hand to Laura.
Laura was not sure what the other girl was doing, but her hand was palm side up, which usually meant the gesture was nonthreatening. She withdrew her claws with a snakt, then rose to her feet and took a step back. She eyed Sooraya for a moment longer, then glanced at the boy. Her heart was still pounding from the strange experience of completely losing control of her body.
"So…wait." He folded his arms. "Mind explaining?"
"Mr. Summers said she was joining the squad for a while." Sooraya paused. "They came to my room yesterday, to borrow the outfit. I thought you knew."
"Uh, no." He wrinkled his nose. "No one bothered telling me."
"Oh please, really?" The speaker was a new girl, with bright orange hair…and a body of pure metal. She smelled like a thermometer. "The fact that she's dressed just like you didn't tip you off?"
"Well, I—that's not important!" He sneered at her. "This is my team. You can't just add people without asking me. Or I would've said hell no. Kevin's spot isn't up for grabs…he's only been gone a month." He paused. "And even if it was, it wouldn't be her. She's…she's creepy."
"I heard she's Wolverine's clone." This was from a large pile of what looked like stone, roughly hewn into human shape, like a crude statue. Except it was alive, and judging by its deep, raspy voice, male.
"What—seriously?!" The first boy looked at her again, wrinkling his nose. "Ew. No wonder. I'll talk to Frost…she's definitely out. No room for clones on the Hellions."
Laura glanced up the hallway. Click, click, click…an adult female was approaching. She was wearing high heels, probably four inches in height, by the sound of her footsteps.
"Julian—" Sooraya began, her tone stern, but then she fell silent.
"Children." The woman appeared, around the corner. She was dressed in white garments that did not cover much, with a long piece of fabric draped over her shoulders, under her hair. Which was so pale, it was almost white, too. And smelled deeply of bleaching chemicals. "Do I hear arguing?" Her voice was full of amusement.
Laura's eyebrows drew together. She had heard this tone at the facility, too, in Kimura's voice. Often. It usually meant she had failed.
"Ms. Frost." Julian looked at the woman, his forehead wrinkled. All hints of derision were gone. He respected her, as a superior. "Do you know about this?" He pointed at Laura.
Ms. Frost raised an eyebrow. "Ah. Yes. Mr. Summers did mention we would have a guest today. I trust you have all introduced yourselves?"
"Uh…" Julian glanced at her. "I tried, but she's, like, mute or something." Pause. "And then she attacked me. With knives that come out of her hands."
"I heard she's Wolverine's clone." The rock boy said this again.
Laura glanced at him.
"I see." Ms. Frost placed her hands on her hips. "Well. It sounds like you have gotten off on the wrong foot. Perhaps a fresh start is in order." She looked at Laura. "Please. Introduce yourself."
Laura's eyebrows drew together.
"See?" Julian said, his voice sharp. "She can't even talk. Look, I'm not okay with this. I think—"
"I did not ask you what you think, Mr. Keller." Ms. Frost frowned. "Laura, I am aware of your…situation. But I would like you to begin working on your social skills." She paused. "Ah. You respond to questions best. What is your name?"
"X-23."
Everyone looked at her, at the same time, startled.
Laura felt an urge to make herself small, or to hide, but she did neither.
"Yes." Ms. Frost paused. "And the name your mother gave you?"
"Laura Kinney." Her voice was quieter this time, even though she had not intended it to be.
"Very good, Laura." Ms. Frost paused. "Mr. Summers has asked you to participate on this squad temporarily, yes?"
Laura nodded.
"In words, Laura."
"Yes."
"Very good." Ms. Frost looked at Julian. "I think that settles it. Surely you cannot object to a temporary arrangement. Need I remind you…the next field day is not that far off, and you are down a man."
He wrinkled his nose, glanced at Laura, then shrugged. "Sure. Whatever." He mumbled this. "But she attacks me again, and she's gone." His voice sharpened on the last statement.
"You will not attack him again, will you?"
Laura shook her head.
"In words."
"No."
"Very good." Ms. Frost looked at Julian again, and gestured for him to renter the room. "After you, Mr. Keller."
"LOADING SIMULATION: SENTINEL MK-0001." A computerized voice announced this over the loudspeakers. "Simulation loaded. T minus one minute."
Laura's eyes swept the room as the landscape changed, to that of a large central area, surrounded by roads and city blocks. And people, walking by them, carrying shopping bags. She was familiar with holographic technology, but nothing as pervasive as this. Even the ground beneath her feet had changed, to bricks.
The others did not seem surprised.
Julian began talking. "Okay. I studied up on Sentinels."
"More like, listened in on a certain someone's conversation with the person who did study." The metal girl whispered this to Sooraya, rolling her blank white eyes. Laura could tell by the movements of the muscles in her orbital region.
Sooraya said nothing, but the sides of her eyes crinkled slightly, as if she were smiling.
"He's going to try and adapt to anything we throw at him. So the key is to keep rotating. No one hit him twice in a row. We'll alternate." Julian looked around at the group. "Me first. Then Rockslide…" he pointed at the rock boy. "Then Mercury. Dust, you go next. And, uh, Tag, sorry—I'm putting you on civilians. Tag yourself and get them out of here."
The boy who Laura assumed was Tag made a fist and raised his thumb. His skin was dark, and his hair was braided tightly into a dense mass of cords. "On it."
"Scenario starting in thirty seconds."
"What about Laura?" Sooraya asked.
Julian glanced at Laura, his nose wrinkling again. "Oh. You. I forgot you were here, clone." Pause. "I don't care. Do whatever it is you do. Just do it to the robot, not us, got it?"
Laura nodded. Finally, a target was being assigned. Her relief outweighed the uncomfortable sensation his derisive tone caused.
She knew what to do with targets.
"Scenario starting in fifteen seconds."
"All right, everyone ready?" Julian was looking around the group again.
"I was born ready!" Rockslide said, punching one rock-fist into his other palm.
"I doubt that." Mercury's voice was flat.
"T-minus ten, nine, eight…"
"Cut it out guys." Julian sounded annoyed. "Focus."
"Seven, six, five…"
Laura made fists at her sides. Snkkt!
"Four, three, two, one…simulation starting."
An enormous, purple-skinned, robotic humanoid appeared in the center of the square. Laura gazed up at it, mildly surprised. It was massive, about twenty feet tall, and not all metal as she had expected. Partly biosynthetic materials. She had never encountered anything like it before. Its eyes glowed a bright yellow.
"What're you guys waiting for?!" Julian yelled. "Move out!" He was suddenly in the air, flying up toward the robot's head. It was reaching out toward him with its enormous hand, releasing some sort of energy wave. But this did not go through his green force field.
The others scattered. Rockslide was running toward the robot too, but Tag was headed toward the pedestrians on the sidewalk, while Mercury was positioning herself on the side.
Laura considered her options for a moment. The robot seemed to be modeled after the humanoid form, which probably meant its CPU would be located inside its "head." The kill would involve some climbing, but this was a nonissue. She also headed toward the robot, passing Rockslide, then stabbed her claws into the side of its knee and hoisting herself up quickly. Her claws cut through all materials, so climbing needed to be performed rapidly. Snkkt! as she popped her foot claws, too. The climb took her about nine seconds.
"Clone!" Julian snapped, sweeping by her in the air. "What the hell are you—"
Laura grabbed onto the robot's shoulder for support, drew her other fist back, then plunged it through the side of its head and twisted.
"HHKKTTT—" the eyes flashed, then went out. And the robot began to fall, backwards, toward the ground. Laura sprang off it at the last moment and rolled as she hit the ground. A moment of pain that faded immediately.
"SIMULATION COMPLETE. Twenty-four point five seconds. Casualties: fifteen. Zero points."
Laura sat up, watching as the environment around them faded back to steel. The others were still standing in place. Most looked confused, except for Julian, who was landing.
She got to her feet, as he stomped toward her.
"Clone. You—you're out, you hear me?!" He shook his finger in her face. "OUT!"
Laura's eyebrows drew together. She did not understand. The target was dead. Yet he seemed very, very displeased. Perhaps as displeased as Kimura had been when Sarah had tried to steal her, all those years ago.
"Hey man, calm down—" Tag was saying.
"No!" Julian glared at her. "She singlehandedly destroyed our no-casualty record! Are you insane, clone?"
Laura shook her head.
"IN WORDS!" he snarled at her.
"No."
"Then what the hell was that? You think it's cool to just kill people in the street?" He paused. "You're not just creepy. You're a god damn psychopath."
The door opened, and Ms. Frost entered. She was frowning. "Enough, Julian. Laura, I apologize, I assumed that Mr. Summers had taken your background into account—"
"Ms. Frost, you can't be serious." Julian ran his hand through his hair. "She just killed fifteen people. She didn't even think about them, just…just crushed them with that robot like they didn't matter at all."
Ms. Frost looked at Laura, then the rest of the group. "I think that is enough for today. Why don't you all enjoy a free period before your first classes. Julian, a word in my office." She paused. "And Sooraya…I would appreciate if you could explain the goal of the exercise to Laura."
"Yes, I will." Sooraya sounded distressed.
Julian glared at her, then Laura one more time. Then he closed his eyes. "Whatever. Just…watch your back, alright? Hate to see you get murdered, Sooraya."
Ms. Frost folded her arms. "Come."
"Twenty-four seconds!" Rockslide was smiling widely. "Damn, we're going to just crush the Newbies. I bet the best they can do is five minutes." They were all standing outside, on the lawn in front of the school, now in different, noncombat clothing.
"I dunno, Santo." Mercury frowned. "We did kill fifteen people. That's…that's kind of really bad."
"Aw c'mon, they're just holograms. And besides…we just gotta tighten up our routine a bit." Rockslide paused. "We've got Tag. Get him out there first...Jules shields him….and then we send in whatshername." He glanced at Laura. "What'd ya say it was? Oh yeah, X. I was gonna say that was a dumb name but damn, you can call yourself whatever you want in my books…you earned it." He raised his fist toward her and held it there.
Laura raised an eyebrow.
"I don't think she gets it." Mercury paused. "And there's a giant flaw in your plan."
"What's that?"
"You're assuming Julian's going to come around."
"Pffft." Rockslide smiled again. "Of course he will. Once he gets over being butthurt that someone's way more awesome than him, that is."
"I wouldn't say that." Tag glanced at Laura. "I'll admit that was impressive, but Jules is right. You can't just let people die like that. It's weird that you didn't even think about that."
"Laura…." Sooraya looked at her. "In our exercises, one of our goals is to make sure no one is injured. It is even worse for a pedestrian to be hurt than one of our team members."
Laura said nothing, but her forehead wrinkled. Why would this matter? Since when did anything matter but the target? This was quite different from the facility, where nothing mattered but the target, not even herself.
"Ms. Frost mentioned she has a situation." Mercury paused. "Laura, can you tell us about that?"
Laura's mouth opened, but she did not know what to say. Clearly, they were wondering why she had caused the casualties. But what was this about a "situation"?
"Where are you from, Laura?" Sooraya asked.
"The facility."
The others exchanged glances.
"You're a clone of Wolverine, right?" Rockslide.
"Yes."
"Oh man, that is sooooo cool!" he mumbled.
Mercury rolled her eyes. "Laura, what did you do at this 'facility'?"
Laura stiffened. She had been trained to never reveal her purpose, or the inner workings of the facility. In fact, she had been equipped with a carbonadium capsule to ingest if she were ever captured and questioned, without a chance to escape.
A bell rang inside the school.
"Aw, damn." Rockslide sighed. "Can we just skip and listen to whatever cool-ass spy stories she's obviously full of?"
"No. I, for one, am not going to miss Mr. Logan's class." Mercury smiled at Laura slightly. "Wolverine is one of the toughest teachers here. I'm interested to see if he goes easier on you…because, you know, the clone thing. Come on, let's go in."
Laura followed the group back inside the school, trying to relax.
Laura sat on the floor of the dojo, between Tag and Mercury. Unlike them—and everyone else in the room—she was not dressed in a karate gi, as Logan did not have one in her size. He had mumbled that there would be one waiting for her next class.
Logan was pacing back and forth, surveying his growing mass of students, with more still filtering in. Most were talking and laughing as they entered but immediately fell silent and kicked off their shoes at the door.
"Ugh, the newbies." Rockslide was watching a group of students who had just entered.
Laura was not sure what he meant, but a moment later, she was distracted.
"What the—" one of the boys from the group said this loudly. He froze in place, then his head snapped around, and he stared at her, his forehead wrinkling, and his eyes wide behind his glasses. They looked very white against his dark skin. She could smell a large release of adrenaline.
"David…what is wrong?" A girl was asking him this. Her brown hair, which was tied back, was so long that it almost touched the floor of the dojo, and her skin was very tanned. She put her hand on his shoulder, her expression full of concern.
"I—god—she—she—" David stammered, pointed at Laura. "Twenty-six—"
Logan had noticed the commotion too and was heading toward him. "Need a word, kid. Follow." Pause. "Now."
David glanced at Laura again, then followed him out into the hallway.
Laura tilted her head. She could hear their conversation, even beyond the closed door.
"Sir—that girl—" David's voice was shaking. "I just walked in…and I suddenly knew of twenty-six waysto kill people."
"Yeah, that'd probably be Laura." Logan paused. "She's my clone."
"But—twenty-six ways."
"So? Everyone here is dangerous. Me especially."
"I mean—without a trace. Like, to assassinate. Not just self-defense!" David paused. "She's really, really dangerous. She shouldn't be here."
"Never thought I'd live to see the day that Alleyne and I agreed on something." Julian's voice, coming up the hallway.
"Can it." Logan paused. "Laura's here under my protection."
"But sir—"
"She shouldn't be here." Julian cut David off. "Frost just told me the whole sob story. How she's basically a living weapon. Just waiting to go off…probably while we're sleeping or something." Pause. "I don't buy her whole charity case. Disaster waiting to happen. She's got to go, pronto."
"I said can it." Logan's voice was sharp now. "She's staying. I don't know about you little shits, though, if you keep testin' my patience. Now, get in that dojo and sit your asses on that floor, or I'll drag you in on your ears."
Pause.
"Get out of my way, Alleyne!" Julian snapped. There was a scuffling noise, then a slight bang.
"You really try to pull that shit right under my nose, punk?" Logan growled.
"Uh—" Julian sounded very uncertain. "I slipped."
"Right into my fist?"
Pause. "Touch me and my parents will s-sue!" Julian's voice wavered.
"Yeah, but I still get the pleasure of beating the snot out of you."
A moment later, Logan released him and reentered the dojo.
"The hell you looking at?!" Julian snapped, still out in the hallway.
"Nothing." David paused. "Just trying to figure out how likely it is that your parents are going to drop that kind of money on a lawsuit when they didn't even come visit you on Family Day."
"Grrr!" Julian stomped into the dojo, cast his gaze around, then headed toward their group. "Move over!" he snapped at Laura.
She gazed at him.
"Here." Tag offered, patting the empty space beside him.
"No, I need to be near the clone for the rest of my life so I can be there to shut her down if and when she goes berserk." Julian folded his arms, glaring down at her. "Move over."
Tag scooted over slightly.
Laura gazed up but did not move.
"Keller! Sit down!" Logan barked, from the other side of the room. "Class is startin'."
Julian closed his eyes, his lip curling, but he then took the spot Tag had freed up.
Laura's day did not improve. After Logan murmured for her to "go easy," she was paired with Alleyne for practice. Although he was surprisingly competent with the movements, he continued to smell of adrenaline for the entire routine and seemed greatly relieved when the bell rang again. Laura bowed, but he did not return the gesture, instead disappearing quickly along with the other students that were filtering into the hallway.
"Laura, do you want a shower?" Mercury asked her.
Julian shook his head. "No. I don't want any of you guys alone with her. Got it?"
"Julian—" Sooraya began.
"Sorry. That's how it is." Julian looked at Laura. "You. Clone. Meet me in the hallway, five minutes. Do you understand?"
Laura nodded slightly.
"In words."
"Yes."
"Go wait outside for me."
Laura headed for the door, her eyebrows drawn together. She wondered if it had been her actions this morning that started all of this. Perhaps she should not have defended herself. But he had moved first.
"Julian, come on!" Mercury was saying. "I don't know her…but give her a break already."
"Yeah! We like her!" Rockslide.
"I don't, not really." Tag. "I think she's a bad fit."
"I can't believe you stood up for Kevin and then you're so stubborn about how she's dangerous. Kevin could kill with a touch."
"The difference is, Kevin isn't a psychopath." Julian said this quietly. "She's little more than a thing. An it. She doesn't even understand it's wrong to kill. I've got to protect you guys."
"Please. I highly doubt they'd toss her in with us if she was actually dangerous." Mercury.
"Wouldn't they?" Julian sighed. "Just…get to class. I'll keep an eye on the clone. She can't hurt me."
"Whatever." Mercury left the dojo, walked by Laura without a word.
The others exited in a similar fashion, then Julian. He eyed her.
"I don't trust you." Pause. "You don't spend time with anyone else from the squad unless I'm present, got it? Even if they invite you."
Laura nodded slowly.
"In words, clone."
"Yes." Her voice was quieter than normal.
"And, you do exactly what I say during practices." He paused. "Understand?"
"Yes."
"Good." Pause. "Now get lost. I don't want to have to think about you for a while."
Laura nodded slightly, then started down the hallway, toward her next class
"SIMULATION COMPLETE. Eight minutes, fifteen seconds. Casualties: zero. Four points."
"Come on, guys!" Julian shouted as he landed, the downed Sentinel flickering as the scenario faded. "We've got to do better than this! Otherwise we're going to start field day in second place…and you know it's hard enough as it is!"
"We're doing our best, Julian." Mercury wrinkled her nose. "Need I remind you…we're a man down here."
She gestured to Laura, who was sitting cross-legged on the floor, in the corner, where he had ordered her to wait, with the vague instructions that she would act as "backup defense" if the Sentinel stumbled that way. Which it had not.
Julian gritted his teeth. "Yeah, well, it's not our fault that Kevin left. And I'm not ready to risk our necks for a game. So we just have to pull through." He looked at Tag. "I have an idea. We need to get you to the civilians faster…"
Laura tuned him out, her gaze fixing on the floor, her thoughts starting to drift. Much the way she had done while sitting in her cell at the facility.
As they exited from the danger room, Ms. Frost stopped her in the hallway. "Laura. A word, if you don't mind."
Laura gazed up at her uncertainly.
"I have not spoken to you yet, as I wanted to give you a chance to acclimate yourself beforehand." Ms. Frost frowned. "But I would like to begin having counselling sessions with you. I have some training in therapy, and with my telepathy, I believe I may be able to help you with some of your difficulties." She paused. "Such as the trigger scent conditioning."
Laura stiffened.
"I know you are afraid…but sometimes we must face our fears. Much of it will just be talking." Ms. Frost smiled slightly. "Would you allow me to help you?"
Laura hesitated for a moment, then nodded slowly.
"Excellent." Ms. Frost's smile grew. "How about tomorrow?"
Laura nodded again.
"Good." Ms. Frost paused. "You may run along and join the others. I am sure they are missing you."
Laura knew that they were not. But she said nothing.
"What did Ms. Frost want?" Sooraya asked, as Laura sat down at the desk beside hers, in algebra class.
Laura looked down. "To talk."
"Huh, so she does know words besides 'yes' and 'no.' Who would've thought." Julian, from the desk behind hers. He had traded seats with the previous occupant, in order to better "supervise the clone."
Sooraya sighed and closed her eyes. She seemed frustrated.
"Good morning, children." Dr. McCoy had entered the room. He was a large, furry, blue creature with feline attributes. And small halfmoon glasses. He cleared his throat. "Please open your text to page 59."
Laura opened her book, only to have it snap back shut, in a flash of green. She paused, then glanced back at Julian.
He leaned back in his chair, folding his arms. But he was smirking, that same expression Rice wore while ripping out her claws to apply the adamantium.
She looked at her desk, her eyebrows drawing together, then attempted to open her book once more. This time, he did not block the motion. However, she noted that during the practice segment of the lesson, the lead of her pencil kept snapping repeatedly, with barely any pressure applied. She knew he was behind it
"Ah, perfect timing." Ms. Frost smiled at Laura as she opened the door and looked in.
She had received a telepathic message right after lunch, asking if she would like to come up to this office for her first therapy session, along with a mental map of how to access it. She was uncertain about participating, but she had never refused an order, and so she had come up as quickly as she had been able.
Ms. Frost gestured to the chairs in front of her desk. "Please, have a seat. And kindly close the door."
Laura entered the room, pushing the door shut gently behind her, then slowly approached one of the chairs and sat down, holding her books in her lap.
"You may put your books on the other chair, dear." Ms. Frost clasped her hands on her desk and leaned forward. "I would like you to be comfortable. This is a safe place."
Laura hesitated, then did as requested.
"Good." Ms. Frost paused. "Now. Please, describe to me your first impressions of this school."
Laura paused. She did not know what she was expected to do.
"Observations, dear." Ms. Frost paused. "I want you to tell me what you think. Although I have not read your thoughts, I know that you do think. I simply want you to say them out loud."
"I…" Laura's forehead wrinkled, and she looked down.
"Yes, I know you were conditioned to only respond to questions. To orders." Ms. Frost frowned. "I want you to know that, here and everywhere else, that is incorrect. You are free to respond to whatever you want. However you want." She paused. "Even with silence…although I hope you will choose to speak. I think that would help you."
Laura hesitated. She did not understand. But she had never asked a question herself, before. She struggled for a moment. "Help me?" she asked finally, in a small voice.
Ms. Frost nodded. "One day, you could be just like anyone else here. If you want to."
Laura's eyebrows drew together. This was something that had never occurred to her, in the week-and-a-half that she had been here at the school. She could be like the others? She could be something other than what she was?
Ms. Frost was still nodding, as if she could sense her interest. She probably could. "Yes, Laura. I will help you figure it out, if you are willing to try some exercises." Pause. "Beginning with telling me your first…observations…of the school. In words."
Laura hesitated. "Large."
"Yes, it is a big space." Ms. Frost smiled. "Anything else?"
She thought for a moment. "Many people."
"Good. And?"
"Loud." Laura paused. "Many smells."
"Excellent." Ms. Frost nodded, in approval. "How many people did you meet? And what are their names?"
"Logan." Laura paused. "Mr. Summers. Headmistress. Kitty. Five people."
"Good. You are doing well, Laura. Describe each person to me."
Laura hesitated. "Logan is…short. Dark hair." Pause. "Fur. Animal-like."
"Yes." Ms. Frost smiled again. "Mr. Summers?"
"Red glasses. Brown hair." Laura paused. "Practical. Leader. Touches Headmistress often."
Ms. Frost's smile faltered. "Yes. Well. Headmistress?"
Laura detected an increase in the woman's heartrate, and mentally catalogued the information. "Red hair. Smiles. Fire. Touches—"
"And Kitty Pryde?" Ms. Frost's voice was sharper.
"Intelligent." Laura paused. "Brown hair. Talks fast. Younger than other teachers."
"Very good, Laura." Ms. Frost smiled again. "I think you will learn quickly." She paused. "I have some exercises for you to do, if you would like."
Laura nodded. "Yes."
"SIMULATION COMPLETE. Six minutes, eleven seconds. Casualties: zero. Four points."
"Arrrgh." Julian landed as usual, the downed Sentinel flickering as the scenario faded. "This is…I don't know how to motivate you guys. The New Mutants are getting this thing down in four minutes. That's five points every time. Not only are they going to get the head start, but they're going to cream us on field day." He paused. "Which is next Monday."
Mercury, or Cessily, as Laura had learned she preferred to be called, rolled her eyes. "Again…maybe we'd be doing better if we used all six of our people, like the New Mutants are doing. Because your girlfriend is clearly smarter than you are."
Julian glared at her. "I want us to win, but I don't want anyone to die!" He folded his arms and looked at Laura in the corner. "Besides, even if she wasn't dangerous, she would flat-out make us lose. The one time we let her participate, she flatlined our score."
"Maybe if you gave her instructions this time?" Sooraya suggested.
"God, not you too." He shook his head. "No. We just need to try harder. I'll study our routine…see if we can cut some corners…but come on, guys. If everyone tightens up their act by just one minute and eleven seconds, at least we'll be tied. I know we can do it."
Tag grinned. "Of course we can." Laura still did not know his name.
Sooraya and Cessily traded glances.
"Uh…I skipped breakfast today, anyone wanna join?" Santo asked.
"I could eat!" Cessily smiled. "C'mon, team. Pancakes. Breakfast of champions."
Laura watched the others filing out, then got to her feet and headed for the door. Only to see a flash of green, and have it close in her face.
Monday arrived quickly, along with the much discussed "field day," a total of two weeks after Laura's liberation from the facility.
Laura stood in a row with the others, dressed in her uniform, gazing silently at the podium, where Mr. Summers and Mrs. Grey-Summers (as she had learned Headmistress was maed) stood, addressing the student body, and imparting a message about the importance of teamwork and friendship.
Four teams total seemed to be participating in the event, the only squads to have racked up enough points to do so. The squad in "first position" was the New Mutants, dressed in white and gold uniforms. David and Sofia, the girl who had spoken to him in the dojo, were this unit's leaders. There were several others that Laura had seen only in passing, but that was true for the entirety of the third positioned squad, the Corsairs, and the fourth positioned squad, the Paragons. She did not even know who the advisors were for these units.
"And so, on that note, here is your task." Mr. Summers paused. "First, you'll complete a scavenger hunt, to discover the location of your opponent. You are looking for a clue your advisor has placed. Then, you'll travel to that location, and whoever completes the scenario in the shortest time—without casualties—will win this field day…and be a step closer to being the squad that takes home the trophy this year."
"I think that's all. Except…I'd like to remind you all that none of the clues or locations will be off-campus." Mrs. Grey-Summers grinned. "Good luck, everyone!"
"Crap." Julian turned to his team. "A scavenger hunt? This is totally unfair. The New Mutants have Prodigy and Wind Dancer…the Corsairs have the Cuckoos…the Paragons have Preview, Trance, and Wolf Cub. None of us are any good at tracking things or eavesdropping."
"Um, what about me? I hid under the teacher's table that one time, remember?" Cessily folded her arms.
He raised an eyebrow. "And you got caught."
"I could probably wait in the teacher's lounge as well." Sooraya paused. "But both Mrs. Grey-Summers and Mr. Logan can detect me."
"Uh, guys." Santo cleared his throat. "Speaking of Wolverine. What about our Wolverine clone over here?"
Julian looked at Laura, his eyes narrowing. "Clone. You have enhanced senses?"
Laura nodded.
"…" His lip curled. "Why didn't you freaking say something?"
"We're wasting time, leader!" Cessily rolled her eyes. "Come on. Instructions."
"Okay, okay." Julian paused. "X…whatever…you're with me. Everyone else…pair off and go screw with the other squads. Mercury, Rockslide, New Mutants. Dust, Paragons. Tag, Corsairs. Move out."
Laura watched as the others departed.
"Clone!" Julian snapped.
She looked at him.
He pointed at her. "Track."
Laura gazed at him. "Track what?"
"…" Julian paused. "The field day stuff, duh. Don't question me!"
She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply, gathering the scents around them. Searching for Ms. Frost's scent. There! A strong whiff of a floral perfume. She began to move toward the school.
Julian followed her closely.
Laura sniffed the air again, then pushed the door open all the way and entered the room.
Dr. McCoy's office was much like the others in basic structure, except there were bookcases lining the walls, stocked full of books, and some with cabinets. It smelled like him, that strong feline odor, but there was also a strong, recent scent: Ms. Frost had entered this space, shortly before the activity commenced.
"Tick tock, clone." Julian's voice was sharp.
Laura began to move again, toward the bookcase in the right back corner. She sniffed the air again, then crouched slightly, trying to pinpoint the exact area Ms. Frost had been.
Julian moved to the desk and sat down on the corner.
There. On the fourth shelf down, a volume was sticking out slightly. She reached out and ran her fingers over the spine. The Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary. She pulled it out and flipped it open, still sniffing.
"Hey. Clone. Clues are for people with brains, remember?" Julian reached out and pulled the book toward him with his mind.
Laura did not release it, her boots making squeaking noises on the floorboards, and her eyebrows drawing together. He would waste time if he took the book from her now. She could pinpoint the page much faster.
"Hand it over!" he snapped, tugging at it.
She tugged back.
"Let go!"
He tried to slam her with a wall of green, but she managed to dodge it, and leapt over the desk, wrenching the book from his fingers.
"HEY!" Julian sounded angry now. He scrambled over the desk after her, grabbing at the book.
She shook her head and turned away, hiding the book with her body.
"CLONE! Give it to—" he reached out with his hand and his mind again, projecting a wave of energy that sent her crashing into the cabinet behind her. The door was flung open and a large, black, crystalline object toppled out and onto the floor.
There was a large sound, a deep vibration, and a big flash of white light.
Laura was falling through space. Tumbling. Rapidly. She clutched the book against her body tightly, both so that she would not lose it, and so that she had something to hold on to. Then, she slammed into the ground, with a loud crunching sound. And a spray of leaves.
Leaves? But she had been indoors. She sat up, still clutching the book, and looked around her. She was surrounded by strange trees, with flat, wedge-shaped leaves. They reminded her of a tree Dr. McCoy had shown them in a "Biology" class: Ginko biloba. He had called it a "living fossil." Laura had not been sure of the meaning of that.
"Pfft! Pfft!" Julian was spitting out these leaves nearby.
Actually, beside her. She raised an eyebrow. Why did he sound so far away, so dim?
"Aw man." He rolled onto his back. "What the…what hit us? What is this?"
Laura's forehead wrinkled. She was becoming aware of pain. A slow, steady ache, in the areas that had impacted with the ground when she landed.
"We're in a forest. Great. Thanks, clone." Julian paused. "Tell me you can at least smell your creepy way back to the school."
Laura looked at him, her nose wrinkling slightly.
"So you're going to make us fail field day after all. Just…damn you." He gritted his teeth. "Why'd you have to join us? Why couldn't you stay in your stupid facility and stop making my life suck? I—" his eyes widened, as he stared at something behind her.
Laura raised an eyebrow, then looked over her shoulder. And twitched. There was the largest spider she had seen in her life. The body was perhaps three feet in diameter.
"I…I…spi…spider!" Julian's voice was much higher pitched than usual. He scrambled backward, reaching out with a shaking hand. But no green energy was forthcoming. "…" he made a whimpering noise as the spider began to move toward him. Then he scrambled to his feet and began to run. Probably without a destination in mind.
Snkkt! Laura's claws burst out. She dropped the book in surprise. The pain was overwhelming, as if the bones of her hand had been split apart by razor blades. Which they had. Blood was streaming down her fingers. But the spider was approaching rapidly, and she did not know if she wanted to risk being bitten at the moment. So she forced herself to move, and a few moments later, it was dead, skewered on her claws.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
Laura's head snapped around, and then she was running, roughly in the direction Julian had disappeared to. She could not detect his scent, but she knew he could not have gotten far. And she was correct. A few moments later she reached him—just as an enormous, leathery-skinned beast whirled around him, snapping its large gleaming teeth in his face.
She threw herself at it from the side, tackling it to the ground. A moment later and her claws had ripped through the underside of its throat and belly. It twitched, its yellow, birdlike eye sliding shut, and then it was still.
"…" Julian leaned on a tree, ran a gloved hand through his hair. "That's…that's a dinosaur."
Laura rose to her feet and nudged the dead creature with her boot.
"A raptor." He paused. "I recognize it from Jurassic Park. I loved that movie when I was a kid."
She tilted her head. Movie? Jurassic Park?
"How are there dinosaurs here? Where the hell are we?" Julian paused. "Is this all a simulation? Your senses giving you anything, clone?"
Laura shook her head.
Julian closed his eyes. "So. Great. There are giant-ass spiders, and freaking 're lost." Julian raised a finger with each item he listed. "And I'm with the psychopathic murder-clone of Wolverine, without my powers. Perfect." He paused. "Anything else?"
The raptor at Laura's feet began to twitch.
She peered at it, curious. She could not hear its vital signs, but was reasonably certain it was dead, since she had eviscerated it from the jugular downward. It had been still for at least a minute now.
The movements were increasing. Then, the eye snapped open. It was now a milky blue color.
"…" Julian was watching it too, his forehead deeply wrinkled. "You've got to be joking."
"RRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!" The raptor was back up, and now it was even faster. Laura didn't even see its claws until they raked across her face. She responded with her own claws, mostly out of instinct than an actual conditioned response…and suddenly, there was a huge weight on the end of her claws. Which were connected to her already throbbing hand.
"AHHHHH—Hhhhh—hhhh" she pulled her claws out of the raptor's head. It dropped back to the ground, its eyes open, but fixed.
Laura held her hand against her chest, trying to focus on something other than the pain. But she could not. Her face felt hot and wet. She had experienced all kinds of pain, but none like this, a steady, insistent throbbing that refused to improve. In fact, it seemed to be worsening.
"Crap." Julian paused. "You're not healing, are you? Let me see."
"NO!" Laura snarled, pulling away from him as he tried to grab her hand.
His eyes narrowed. "Fine. Whatever. I really don't care if you're in pain. You're not real anyway. You're just a clone." He paused. "Where's the book?"
Laura sniffled, then pointed in the direction they had come, with her good hand.
Julian closed his eyes. "Ugh. Where the spider is. Fine. We'll go back for it." He paused. "Stop crying. It's getting on my nerves."
He stomped away, and Laura followed him, still sniffling.