Chapter One: The power of the Media
"Bobby turn on the news," Were the words stated by a voice accented by a language that could come from numerous cultures but was usually labeled African.
"Wha-" was the Iceman's reply. The program he and a few other students were watching was so immersive that it had robbed him of his ability to put the letter T at the end of words.
"The news, put on the news," Said the voice that could belong to no other than Ms. Monroe.
"Which one?"
"Pick." Bobby did not exactly know which channel was one of the twenty-four hour news networks. He knew they were in the general vicinity of the early thirties. The channel changed to thirty-two, which was Fox News. Which was followed by assorted c'mons and heys, which were silenced by the headline that ran across the screen reading "Mutant Columbine". The mutants at the school all froze when the words reached their eyes. Their ears burned to hear more. But not yet, for as soon as the news came on it was a commercial break. The message was clear though; Mutants will kill you and your children but before you die you might want to visit a McDonalds.
The tension silenced the most expensive and powerful propaganda machine in the world, being of course American advertising. A whole five minutes of mindlessness passed before the news came back on. When it came back on there was a man talking. He was some sort of expert.
"Look you see this is the total fault of the school. The warning signs were out in the open and the school system completely failed to see them."
The man he was sitting with then said, "I disagree . . ." He was not given a chance to say anymore.
"Don't you think that when a kid sprouts fur that she might be dangerous?" The first man was becoming passionate and loud.
"I'm not saying that, it's just that there should be some responsibility taken by the parents to make sure she is safe to be out in public."
"Would you willing to accept that your child is a danger to society." The argument went on from there, turning from a discussion of a current event to a manly competition for dominance.
As the news continued a story started to unfurl. The attacker was fifteen-year-old Sarah Proctor, who attended Dorchester County high school in Salem Maryland. She went to school that day, attended a few classes then started spewing black gas at her classmates. Fortunately the gas was completely non-lethal. This made the banner of "Mutant Columbine" a little extreme for only a few were unconscious for any period of time and even less was still in the hospital. Sarah was then quickly arrested and was being detained.
Soon the mutant's yearbook picture was on the television. She was the most disfigured of her kind that most other mutants had ever seen. She was completely black. Even her clothes were dyed black by just being worn by her. Her entire face and neck were covered in black fur, which meant her whole body was probably too. Fangs were clearly visible in the picture even though she was not smiling. Her ears too were black, long broad and pointed. They looked more demonic than elfin. On her face lay a pair of glasses, which looked, out of place on such a monster. Along with the disfigurement she was not exactly a beauty to begin with.
One last piece of information was given before the TV was turned from the factual entertainment back to the fictional entertainment. She was wounded in apprehension. Storm needed to consult the professor on whether they should intervene.