Mutants. An ugly term given to those who possess a gene referred to as the X-gene, a biological anomaly that could have never been comprehended. It can alter ones appearance, shape and even size; the only common side effect amongst mutants being that of naturally developed superhuman abilities. It has been documented that the abilities of a mutant manifest during puberty, but rare and often over looked cases reveal that some with the disease have had their superhuman attributes since birth.
Some claim that mutants are the next stage in human evolution and others deem them simply a disease; a natural error that must be corrected. Not many people realise that a large percentage of mutants don't want their powers, that some have even taken their lives for fear of public rejection. Thus the need for war arose, a conflict between Homo-sapiens and these so called mutants that has lasted for the better part of a decade.
It was inevitable that these clashes of society would escalate, even before all of the riots, protests and the rise in anti-mutant behaviour; one day the threats would become real and the mobs would begin to turn on their own. Soon the humans would lose track of who was a mutant and who wasn't, undoubtedly it would end with a massacre.
It wasn't long before the political parties of the world would be held accountable for a solution, to either exterminate the threat or to come up with a viable way to contain it.
Often repeated throughout history, an attempt at genocide seemed likely and mutants from every corner of the Earth went into hiding. Humanoids attempted to blend into society, to live ordinary lives and repress their abilities whilst those that had physical deformities simply went underground. It was a dark time for mutants; they had been forced to flee their family homes and to forget their friends, all so that they wouldn't be sentenced to death by association.
Nobody was safe anymore, not since the government had introduced the mutant registration act; a new law that required every mutant within the country to formally hand their personal details over to the authorities. However the front wasn't as easily swallowed by everybody, mutants started to go missing and those who had registered mysteriously turned up dead. All who had signed the act had been signing their death warrant; it was as smart as it was horrible.
Preying on the mutants need for protection or some form of normalcy, the government had created a database that immediately pinpointed the location of mutants who'd signed the act. Why should they do all of the work trying to find these individuals when they could voluntarily yet unknowingly give themselves up.
The time for the remaining mutants to look to the X-men to protect them had come.
Despite the likelihood of the looming danger, Professor Charles Xavier and his team of X-men continued protecting those who despised them. Fighting the good fight that would have resulted in the deaths of millions if they hadn't been there on more occasions than one could count. Xavier's school for gifted children was eventually revealed to be the residence of a seemingly endless number of mutants which whilst it served as a place for mutants to master their talents, was the first place that the hordes of anti-mutant groups targeted.
It led to the downfall of some of the greatest protectors the world has ever known and caused many of the original X-men to lose their faith in humanity, leading to the disbandment of the group. However that didn't stop them from combating the new waves of superhuman enemies that cropped up over the years, they still played their parts but they did it from the confinements of their own 'human' lives.
That is why an unknown nemesis of the mutants found it so unbelievably easy to overpower all of them, one by one they fell and Charles Xavier was killed; where he belonged, at his home that was formerly the infamous school. It was at the hand of this strange new enemy that the Sentinels returned; a robotic race designed to hunt and kill mutants by any means necessary. They are powerful, emotionless and only know how to slaughter; making them the ultimate weapons.
It was a dark night over New York as the usual patrols roamed the streets, the city had become a very different place ever since the routine sweeps. It was a simple design, groups of seven to spread out and search for any known mutants. The incessant fog cluttering the sky had thickened, undoubtedly because of the amount of smoke that had been released into the atmosphere; many businesses even suspected to be owned by mutants were often petrol bombed or worse.
The moonlight from above was reflecting off of the windows of towering buildings, the moonbeams hit the structures on the right hand side of Central Park. Inside the gated grassy mass was a crowd of people all being herded together, men, women and children all clinging to one another.
"Get over there!" A young boy stumbled into the mud and groaned as he landed awkwardly on his right arm. He clutched the limb instinctively and looked down at his feet, he realised that his shoe laces were untied.
The 6"3 gun-wielding man before him followed the youngsters gaze and smirked, the fabric of his chequered shirt tightening around his biceps as he raised his weapon. Some of the hostages whimpered but none of them were willing to risk their lives for the stranger, even if he was only a child. They all knew that they'd be brought here because they were suspected mutants so not a single one of them wanted to risk being penalised.
"I said get over there, boy." The harsh tone indicated that he wasn't messing around, but the look in his eyes said otherwise; they almost challenged the child to test him. There was an immeasurable amount of time between the order and the boy's reaction, but it was just enough to allow the hidden onlooker to make her move.
Before any movements or counter attacks could be made, a single bolt of ice struck the ground at the feet of the enforcer and released from within a limitless number of spikes; all of which travelled in several different directions.
From her place behind a tree, Malorie Greene lowered her palm and then felt her heart beat increase as a sea of widened eyes zeroed in on her position. "Who's there?" demanded one of the uniformed men, it was clear that he belonged to the Enforcers.
The Enforcers were the self-appointed protectors of the people, men and women who'd convinced themselves that killing and imprisoning innocent people was the right thing to do. There had been times where the legal authorities had gotten involved, but it appeared that even they were afraid of what the Enforcers would do; they were unpredictable.
As the moving ice came to a halt, people gasped as there was a flawless web that protected the captured mutants, all of them safely behind the barrier. "Mutants!" called a second man who was wielding a gun, he ran forwards but abruptly stopped when he discovered that his colleague was encased in ice.
"Leave these people alone, they haven't done anything wrong." Malorie stepped forwards and the gentle breeze swirling around the park reached her; her noir hair billowed gently until finally it settled neatly on her shoulders. With the crowd of terrified people to her left, she looked past the surrounding fence to her right and out into the road. It was completely deserted with the exception of two trucks that had been modified by the Enforcers, Malorie had seen them before; she wasn't going to let their mutant-resistant armour take her by surprise this time.
"Just another filthy mutie" The man spat, raising his gun immediately and pointing it towards her.
That was when she noticed other members of the Enforcers silently walking towards her position behind her, if one of them hadn't stepped on a branch then she would have been done for. Malorie knew that in a matter of seconds she was going to have at least two rounds of ammo emptied into her back, but just as planned—
"You are fools to think that we do not protect our own." The distant sound of thunder served as an entrance for one of the most loyal and strong-willed mutants ever to walk the Earth. The men immediately looked into the sky and saw a woman gliding towards them, her arms outstretched and hair rippling behind her silhouette as if she was moving in slow motion.
"You cannot shoot what you cannot see." Nobody could see her features from the distance at which she hovered, but Malorie had been at the institute long enough to know what Storm looked like when she was using her power. Her eyes turned a milky white and completed clouded over, she made a mental note to ask Storm whether or not she could see past the clouds whenever she used her ability; Malorie was a very curious person.
As if nature was obeying her every command, a dense fog rolled into the park and prevented anybody from seeing anything. Storm continued flying above the briefly halted conflict and then circled into a descent as two other members of her beloved team reached Malorie's side.
"Nobody else is going to be killed; there has been too much death." Kitty Pryde, a youthful brunette member of the team clenched her fists as she spoke. Her jaw was tightened and it indicated that she was gritting her teeth, she loved being an X-man; it gave her a sense of fulfilment, not to mention the amazing adrenaline rush after a victory.
"I would follow you anywhere, Schatten Katze." Kitty looked towards her German lover, Peter Rasputin and smiled; the familiar shiver travelled down her spine as usual whenever Peter said her name in his natural tongue. Shadowcat.
Nodding towards him and shooting an encouraging smile, she watched as he closed his eyes and willed his mutant ability to obey him; and just like a thousand times before now, Peter Rasputin's body was swiftly enclosed beneath steel. For he was the great Colossus, the titan who had brought down some of the most powerful enemies in history; and he belonged to Kitty.
"Do not worry about that, we shall be victorious today." Storm was the first to walk forward, several more bolts of thunder clattering in the distance. "This is another one for you, Charles." She muttered, the ache in her heart causing her more pain than any gun could.