"Mutant Nation"
By Clive Williams
In 1937, Willie Bly practiced his trumpet on the corner of 125th street and 7th Avenue in Harlem. At the age of six, he had no concept of war. Poverty had been the order of the day, but the poverty had created what the world would later recognize as the "Harlem Renaissance." Young Willie picked up the trumpet for the first time on a hot June aftertoon. He blasted the only note he knew, taught to him by a homeless man who no longer had the strength in his lungs to play.
Now, at the age of 76, he stands in the same spot he first picked up that trumpet, and played the battered brass instrument's final notes. The horn is to be added to the newly constructed Harlem Museum, built over the ruins of the once world-famous Apollo Theater. Willie Bly, along with his grandson Gerald, were the first members of the public to enter the third of many new projects funded by "The Herman Foundation," focusing on the recreation of the famous New York burrough.
A teary-eyed Willie Bly said goodbye to his trumpet, the only piece of his life he managed to escape with when Apocalypse took hold of the city in his campaign of world domination. Willie, his son Harvey and his wife Jennifer, managed to escape on one of the first ships leaving the ports when Apocalypse took the city. They found refuge in Marseille, trying to come to grips with the horror of having to flee their home country like so many others had done. Willie had resigned himself to the fate of having to live out his days in France, surviving on a musician's wages.
Today, Gerald Bly became truly aware of the struggle his parents had faced.
"The sight of my grandfather's former neighborhood made him weep. In spite of myself, I could not help but weep with him," said Gerald, his voice thick with the accent of a Parisian. Gerald watched his grandfather close the glass case over the trumpet, his eyes red and swollen with the finality of the situation. Beneath the instrument was a picture of Willie Bly during his time playing alongside the likes of Duke Ellington, Billie Holiday, and Nat King Cole.
"It's so sad, seeing all this history here, and knowing that the world it came from is long gone," said Willie as he exited the museum. His raspy voice carried with it the many years he'd lived on the planet, "But the future is what's important now." Willie clasped his grandson's shoulder, and pulled him close. Gerald's smooth hands rested over his grandfather's gnarled and weathered hand, and the pair moved off into the street. Tonight, Willie Bly would return to his temporary lodgings aboard the HCS Miranda, and Gerald Bly would return to his dormitory on the grounds of Xavier's Academy.
Gerald is one of five hundred and seventy four mutant students enrolled at what some residents of New York call "Mutant U." The school's stated goal is to foster positive growth in the mutant community, and create a bond between the fledgling mutant world and the human world that has spent many years hunting their kind.
Mutants like Gerald are burdened with the stigma created by many like him that had joined the ranks of Apocalypse's forces; participating in genocide and fighting to conquer new territory so that Apocalypse could do the same elsewhere. Gerald's mother had been the carrier of the mutant gene that had given the young man his extraordinary ability to convert his body to a water-like form. The young mutant, who had been living in Paris as a refugee, took it upon himself to try and rehabilitate mutantkind's image.
"So many like me had taken to becoming runaways, or doing everything they could to hide what they were," Gerald said as he rode on the transport that would take him from the port to Xavier's. "The government was doing everything in its power to keep Mutants under control. They attempted to arrest me and place me in prison, just for being what I am." Gerald gazed into the distance with a look that was borne of pride. He insisted he held no grudge for the actions humanity had taken during those times. He was simply glad to be able to appear in public with his grandfather.
"So much has changed in these ten years," said Gerald. "It was a dream to walk in public, in the daylight. Now, I can walk anywhere."
Xavier's Academy is a veritable orchard of stories like that of Gerald Bly. Part of the training at the Academy includes interacting with humans on a day-to-day basis. Some of the instructors at the school, and most of the administration staff, was manned by humans these days. When the school had first reopened, it was under the sole governance of Erik Lehnsherr, the mutant dubbed "Magneto," to whom the Human High Council publicly honored as the man that "saved the world." Lehnsherr and other mutants had oversaw the Academy during the events leading to the reappearance of a mutant known as "Sinister," and the attack on the Academy by the once-thought-deceased mutant Wanda Maximoff.
In an amicable decision by both the school's headmaster Erik Lehnsherr and High Councilman Shavis, the HHC was given administrative control over the Academy, and the school itself would then receive the full backing and support of the Council. Along with courses on how to control and manipulate their mutant gifts, the curiculum would include classes assisting students on reintegration into society, offering them an opportunity to bond with the world that they'd only a decade ago knew to fear.
The school houses many of the mutant instructors on the grounds, including Marie Lehnsherr, wife of the former headmaster. Her class schedule includes typical courses, and others of a more specific nature. Classes involving "Power control," "Flight," and "Super Strength" were apart of her daily routine, and considered critically important in the development of young mutants. As a mutant herself, she has had first hand experience in what kind of challenges young mutants face when they discover their powers.
"It's a difficult thing to grasp when you're still a few years from shaving and worrying about pimples," said Marie, taking a few moments in-between classes to speak to reporters. Her classroom appeared to be a fairly typical one you might find in almost any school. "For some kids it can be a great thing, finding out they're different. Other kids, it can be traumatic. It can ruin lives, break up families, and it doesn't end there."
Marie and many of the other mutant instructors at the compound were once a part of the mutant resistance, fighting against the forces of Apocalypse, whom were responsible for the murder of the man whose name and visage are present in the main foyer of the building, etched into a thick slab of marble; Professor Charles Xavier. To some of the students, the memorial reminds them of the power great men can have on the world that surrounds them. To others, the memorial is a "creepy thing."
"No matter where you stand, the eyes follow you," said Phillip "Rocky" Marciano, a senior student and hopeful candidate into the school's "Seed" program. He spends his time in the Academy's massive library these days, like many young men his age, trying to understand the poetry of many great writers before he is tested on that knowledge later as part of his exit exams.
"It's supposed to do that, stupid," said Rocky's study companion, Lydia Florentine. Lydia, also a senior, was also submitting her application to the "Seed" program. Lydia and Rocky represent two of the Academy's fifty member graduating class, over half of which have submitted their names for enlistment into the "Seed" program. Two candidates will be chosen to train with the highly-sucessful all-mutant team; a team that might not have existed under normal circumstances.
Initially uncomfortable toward the idea of placing teenaged mutants into combat situations, the HHC has since changed its position on the concept of the Seed. The team is credited with discovering and ultimately driving away the mutant Sinister, whom had been hiding in the ruins of Manhatten Island for years after the final conflict with Apocalypse. The team had also received commondations and were lauded as heroes for subduing and ultimately defeating the mutant-influence that led to the 5 PA bombing of the World Leader Summit held in England.
Many world leaders owe their lives to the mutants of Xavier's Academy, including Latverian President Victor Von Doom, whom had originally been an outspoken opponent of the entire concept of an all-mutant combat team working with the HHC. Since those days, he has been one of the most outspoken proponents of the program and its creator, Erik Lehnsherr.
Between the public influence of Von Doom and the full weight of HHC political clout, the world has slowly begun to follow in their footsteps. Many "Termination" laws have been rescinded around the world, and mutant orphans from across the globe have been finding their way to the doorstep of Xavier's Academy, where they receive one of the finest educations to be had in this world. Anwar Al-Masih, a freshman student at the Academy, was sent to the school by the fledgling government of the African Union.
"The transition has been difficult," says the young man, who had been living in the Serengeti for much of his life. His family, refugees who managed to escape the bombings that destroyed their home country of Jordan, had been living without modern ameneties for most of his life. "I am still getting used to the cold." Anwar's small frame made him seem younger than he really was, but the look in his eyes was as matured and proud as any adult; a reminder of the hardships that had been thrust upon many of the children in a world ravaged by war.
Among members of the Seed, that gaze is a part of the uniform.
The HHC had originally declined our request to interview or photograph the members of the team, but later allowed press to observe them in a training session. From a fixed position in a nearby bunker, journalists witnessed the awesome power of these young men and women as they simulated a precision strike on a target that was to be considered an "Alpha Threat." In the blink of an eye, the team had turned a titanium-encased vehicle into a six square meter crater in the ground. No one present had expected the attack to come so fast, and no one had heard the team approaching.
"The Seed wasn't designed for rolling into combat situations and acting as soldiers," said HHC Public Liason officer Jessica Jones. "Their primary function is as a Reconassciance and precision strike team, tasked with tracking, trapping and subduing significant mutant threats. Thirteen high-priority targets have been neutralized due to their efforts, not including numerous medium to low-priority targets. Their effectiveness is determined by mission success, and their results couldn't possibly be better."
The team themselves are a rag-tag group of individuals, hailing from all corners of the globe. Some appear to be ordinary teenagers, whereas others wear their mutation on their sleeve. They share a common uniform, but this is not what unites them. The current group leader, a positive and upbeat woman of 23, is the team's divining rod, with the others following close behind her as she moves from one area to the next. She administers orders to the team like a mother, with a maturity that is bred from necessity. It is clear that the team of twelve follow her cues to the letter.
Jones would not comment on the team's ranking structure or training regimen, but revealed that every member of the team had passed through the Academy and entered the program upon graduation.
Two applicants are selected from every graduating class to enter into the program, where those two applicants will then receive the most rigorous military and non-military training any student could imagine. So far, the Seed program has only had to eject one student, although there have been some deaths.
"Early in the program's history, before the HHC took control of the administrative efforts, there were a few deaths related to combat injuries," said Jones, carefully picking her words, "Since then, the training and education process has been refined, and there have been no casualties for over four years."
As dangerous as the program appears to be, it still receives exponentially more applicants than there are spots on the ever-growing team. With the team reaching now to a dozen people in strength, there is a worry about a cap being put in place. Other rumors on the grounds are that a second Seed will be assembled and put into place elsewhere. Jones would not comment on the subject.
Applicants that aren't accepted into the Seed program often find themselves working for the HHC directly. With the growing need for laborers and civilian contractors, mutants with particular skill sets often find places working under direct supervision of the HHC Military. One such individual is Ronald "Mack" McDonald, a mutant hailing from Dunsmill, Ireland, that has been integral in clearing debris from the many ruined sections of Manhattan Island during the rebuilding.
"Nothing to it," Mack says in a thick brogue as he hefts a rather sizeable chunk of concrete and rebar with one hand, and scratching his chin with the other. "Me ma always said I had a way of dealing with obstacles. Of course, that was before I was able to juggle (cars) like tennis balls." Mack was not accepted into the Seed program when he first applied as a senior. The HHC, though, saw that the young man had more potential with the Navy's 77th Construction Batallion. The young man was hired on as a civilian contractor, receiving pay for services rendered.
Mack picked up his first hammer three days after graduation, and he hasn't looked back. "I do (my) job, I clear the way for the boys to build some new housing, or a museum, or offices, and at the end of the day, we stop off for a pint before I go home and kiss (my) ma goodnight."
Some mutants, on the other hand, are not seeking a route into public service. Instead, they seek a simpler sort of life. Gerald Bly wants to teach History and French at the newly constructed Harlem Heights Elementary, so he can live and work close to his grandfather and their shared native roots. "My life's experiences can either cripple me or empower me," Said Gerald, "I can let my life be defined by the worst thing that ever happened to me, or I can live it to the fullest. As Mark Twain once wrote, 'Dance like nobody's watching, love like you've never been hurt. Sing like nobody's listening; live like it's heaven on earth.'"
-Time Magazine, "Mutant Nation," Williams, Clive, December 1st, 10 PA.