"Now are we ready to fight?" called Magneto. The answering roar was deafening. Just then, Callisto nudged Magneto.
"I think you may want to be ready to fight right now. We have a mutant, right outside the door. I don't even know what they can do- they seem to be all the levels at once, including level 5…"
In answer, Magneto flicked his hand, and the metal doors to the abandoned hangar opened with a bang to reveal a girl who looked to be about 16. The absence of the war-cries that had filled the room just a few seconds ago made the silence that replaced them deafening. The girl walked calmly and expressionlessly through the sea of mutants which parted before her.
"My dear," Magneto began. "Welcome. We are the New Brotherhood of mutants, who…"
She cut him off, holding up a hand. Looking at Eric with serious blue eyes, she saw him and everyone else in the room flinch when she spoke in their minds.
I know who you are. And I know what you're doing. I'm not interested in fighting right now.
He stared at her, speechless. He was wearing his helmet, which had should have prevented any mutant from entering his head and controlling his thoughts. But she could. She continued out loud.
"I'm looking for someone. Someone in particular, who will restore the balance and basically, prevent the end of the world. The problem is, I don't know where he is, or who he is. All I know is what he looks like- which is why I need you to help me find him."
"And why, my dear, would we do that, when we don't know who you are, or where you're from," Magneto laughed.
"Oh, don't worry, Eric, you will help us." she told him. She turned around, and a girl who looked exactly like her walked in. They looked like identical twins, but the new one looked a few years older.
"I can't get a read on this one," Callisto leaned over and spoke to Magneto. "it's not that she's human, it's like I'm being blocked," He nodded in acknowledgement of her whisper and raised his eyebrows at the girl who had just come in.
"And who, may I ask, are you?" he enquired, not letting on how uneasy they were making him.
"My name," the one who came in originally said, "is Omega. This," she gestured to the other one who had just come in, "is Jess." Jess crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow at Magneto.
"A cape? Really?" She scoffed. Omega glanced at her, her lips twitching, and then continued.
"Whether you want to or not, you will help us find him." She turned to Jess. "Got anything?" she asked her. Jess was looking around closely at the assembled mutants and then did a double take. "There," she told Omega, nodding towards the far corner of the hangar.
"Is that your real name or a name for your ability?" asked Magneto, smirking.
"Since you're so desperate to know, I'll tell you what I can do," she smirked back at him, the first real emotion he had seen from her. She flicked her eyes, and the helmet on his head started drifting off. Alarmed, he used his own power to try to put it back on his head, knowing intuitively that his hands wouldn't stop it. The helmet kept going, not even slowing. It rotated gently and came to rest in midair between Magneto and Omega, who was smiling serenely. Her calm eyes met Magneto's apprehensive ones, and in the next moment, everyone in the whole room was gently picked off their feet. The surprised and frightened cries of the mutants filled the space. They hung there for a few seconds, and then everyone dropped to the ground suddenly. Practically everyone had fallen over, except those mutants whose abilities helped them and Jess and Omega, who landed as lithely as cats. She pointed at a teleporter and then reappeared several feet away. She winked at Pyro and produced a small flame in her hand, quickly snuffing it out by closing her fist around it.
"I see," mused Magneto. "You have some sort of collecting ability. How many have you collected then?" he asked with interest.
"I lost count," Omega shrugged. Then, she turned her piercing eyes to the mutant she was looking for. Jess glanced at her as she gestured at him.
"John, if you'd like to come with me, you have an important task to do," she told him. He warily came forward, glancing at Magneto as he did.
"You can tell if someone's telling the truth, yes?" he nodded. "And you can see the future too," she stated.
"Why do you need him if you have his power?" Magneto asked in confusion. "Ah," she replied. "Who says I need his power?"
"Well, thanks for the help, we'll be going now, Eric." Jess told Magneto. Omega turned to the mutant next to her.
"John, you know I'm telling the truth. You are needed to stop this world, and every other world, time and place, from collapsing and leaving nothing, nowhere, nowhen. Please, come with us," she asked him.
"You can't just take one of my people and leave to do who knows what!" Magneto exclaimed.
Get ready for a fight, he won't let us leave with him, Omega told Jess.
"The thing is, Eric, I can," Omega advised Magneto, walking towards the open doors. Before they got to them, they shut with a bang. She turned around slowly.
You shouldn't have done that.
"Stop her!" shouted Magneto.