Mortimer Toynbee sat at the edge of a jagged cliff and stared out to the ocean—the somber ocean. He came to this spot whenever he wanted to escape his life. It was so quiet here, so silent. Mort didn't even move a muscle. He didn't want to disturb the stillness that embraced the vicinity. It almost felt like he was in another world when he was up there—almost. There was no movement. The usual howling wind didn't even dare to intrude upon the mutant's solitude. But it was hardly solitude inside of his head.

Questions reeled at his so fast, and his head pounded with anxiety. It was well after midnight, and Mort could still imagine the complaints of the Brotherhood

Bickering. Bloody bickering is all they do!

Mortimer clenched his fists and gritted his teeth at the very thought of the Brotherhood's complaints. So many problems there seemed to be! And sadly, there were no answers.

The one they called Toad inhaled deeply and closed his eyes. Toad. How had he been reduced to a mere amphibian? Well, anything would be greater than what he was before: just a pathetic boy that everyone sneered at and spat on. Just thinking about his past made Mort angry. Sure it was in the past—and sure he was more mature now—but all of the lies, harsh words, and awful faces spun around him and became unbelievably nauseating. Just because he was... is green, didn't mean that he was any different. But it did. He was different, and everyone wanted him to pay the price.

Mortimer scooted forward and hung his feet over the cliff. He was Toad. He was undeniably green, extremely agile, and not to mention, he possessed a tongue longer than a semi. Mort raised his greenish browns and let himself fall backwards onto the soft grass that surrounded him. Absently, he rolled the tiny blades in his hand as he thought of his current situation: The Brotherhood was small, tiny in fact. It consisted of only the four of them: Sabretooth, Mystique, Magneto, and Himself. Personally, Toad only liked one of them: Himself.

Himself is a good guy.

Mort smirked as he lifted his body off of the cold ground and stood up.

He wasn't a very tall man. His brown-green hair was kept short and somewhat spiky. His overall appearance wasn't really intimidating, but whoever met with Toad and fought him, would never underestimate him again. When he was a young boy, Mort was lanky, and he supposed that was why everyone picked on him until he found out the real reason— his color. It all made him furious! He could not change his color, but his body was in his own hands. Mortimer went through intense training everyday and became extremely muscular; Martial Arts were a huge part of his day... life even.

Then Mortimer Toynbee became Toad, a part of the Brotherhood of mutants. He had never felt stronger in his life. What was in the past, he left there now. And he rarely ever thought of the people that had cut him down and stepped on him.

I dare any of them to mess with me now, Toad thought defiantly. I dare them.