Professor Xavier sat at the Cerebro console in deep concentration. The advanced computer lit up with a map of the United States and then on Chicago in Illinois. Xavier slowly opened his eyes and Cerebro made a loud beeping sound. "MUTANT ACTIVITY DETECTED." Just then Jean walked through the door and saw the screen. She brushed a lock of red hair from her eyes and looked at the professor. "Is that what I think it is?" She asked.
"Yes is it, Jean. This is Nathan O'Keefe, a mutant with powers I believe you're familiar with." Xavier said, rubbing his temples with his fingertips.
"He's a telekinetic?" Jean asked in a surprised tone.
"Yes, but not quite the same as your gift. He lacks your ability to move objects. He can only stop them from hitting his own body." The professor explained.
"I take it you want me to come with?" Jean asked.
"Yes, it would help if someone with similar powers talked to him. Oh, and tell Kitty to come with as well. It might be a good experience to be in her own state again."
The next day...
In a small nook of the bad part of Chicago, seventeen-year-old Nathan O'Keefe was walking home when a mugger tried to steal his wallet. Having been raised in a dysfunctional, poverty stricken home, Nathan learned at a young age the necessity for fighting and he immediately took action against his attacker. The mugger went after Nathan with a knife, but he dodged and slammed his palm flat into the attacker's nose. The powerful strike drove the cartilage into the attacker's brain, killing the man almost instantly, but two more thugs jumped him from behind. Quickly, Nathan swung around and broke one of the thugs' collarbone with a well-placed kick. The third man pulled out a gun and attempted to fire, but Nathan deftly grabbed the weapon from the thug's hand. The man wore a look of shock as Nathan advanced on him. He stammered back and tried to speak. "I-I-I..."
"I bet you say that a lot." Nathan said coldly right before he whipped the pistol across the thug's skull, knocking him unconscious. Nathan breathed a sigh and heard a slow clapping sound coming from behind him. "Well done, Mr. O'Keefe." A woman he had never seen before said.
Nathan slowly raised his gun. "Lady, you got ten seconds to tell me who the fuck you are before I blow you away." He said.
"Of course. My name is Mystique, I represent a group of people that share similar gifts to yours."
"What the hell are you talking about! What gifts?" Nathan shouted.
Mystique advanced on Nathan, taking long strides and slowly turning into her natural form as she walked. "I think you know what I'm talking about, Nathan. The incident yesterday with the gun fight, the shot that should have killed you."
"What the fuck are you?" Nathan looked in disbelief as her skin turned into its dark blue hue.
"I'm like you, a kindred spirit." She whispered.
"No fucking way! You're just a freak! Get the fuck away from me!" Nathan yelled, backing into a corner.
"You disappoint me, Nathan. I guess we'll just have to do this the hard way. Toad, Avalanche, eliminate him." Toad clung to the walls and licked his slimy lips with his elongated tongue. Avalanche stepped into the alley with an evil grin and gritted his teeth. Suddenly Nathan started to loose his balance and fall over. He aimed his gun at Avalanche, but found it quickly plucked from his hands by Toad's tongue. Mystique laughed and turned into a large creature with razor-sharp claws. Right as she was about to swipe a mortal blow onto Nathan, he felt a pair of small hands grabbing him from behind. A strange feeling of weightlessness passed over him. The alley suddenly disappeared and he was inside a building. Nathan turned around quickly to see a girl with brown hair looking up at him. "Come on, like, we've got to get out of here!" She exclaimed.
Nathan wasted no time in following the girl through the building and out the door to the streets. The girl grabbed his arm and led him to a black sedan parked outside the building. The two got in and the car sped away. Nathan spun around and looked to see what had just happened. The girl spoke, startling Nathan. "Are you okay?" She asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just really confused."
"Don't worry, we're here to help." She said.
Nathan looked at the front seat to see the others who she spoke of. A girl with red hair was driving the car and a bald man sat in the passenger side. Slowly, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a pack of cigarettes. "Do you guys mind?"
"That's, like, disgusting!" The brown haired girl protested.
Nathan smirked and stuffed the cigarettes in his pocket. "So who are you people anyway?"
"My name is Charles Xavier, this one driving is Jean Grey, and you've already met Kitty. We're here to talk to you about your gifts."
Nathan rolled his eyes. "Aww fuck, not you too? I told that freakjob back there I didn't know what she was talking about!"
"Do you recall the events that happened yesterday evening, Nathan?" Xavier asked.
"And that's another thing, how the fuck do you guys know my name?"
"He sure does swear a lot." Kitty muttered. Nathan glared at her and she retreated to her side of the seat.
"We know many things about you, Nathan." Xavier said.
"All right, enough of this cryptic bullshit! I want answers!" Nathan yelled.
"We'll give you all the information you seek, if you agree to help us. Now, what happened yesterday?" Xavier asked again.
"I don't know, I got in a tassle with some punks downtown and one of them pulled a gun. They were just bad shots, that's all..." Nathan said with a hint of denial in his voice. In truth he couldn't explain what happened to him. The bullet fired, at point blank range, right at his forehead. He didn't dodge the shot, it simply stopped and fell to the ground. He brushed it off as being lucky, but there was a dark presence of intention in that event, almost as if he willed that bullet to stop. Xavier knew he was not telling the truth, so he had to use the last resort. "Do not be afraid, Nathan."
"What the f-" Nathan was cut off when another presence entered his mind. He felt the professor probing at his thoughts, speaking to him in his head. Nathan threw himself around the car, knocking Kitty against the door and nearly breaking the window. "Get out! Damnit, get out!" Nathan screamed over and over again. The professor did as he wished and left Nathan's mind.
Nathan stumbled and screamed, "What the fuck are you!"
"You're not the only one with gifts." Xavier said in a low voice.
Nathan held his head as a rush of thoughts came into his mind. The mutant academy, the X-Men, Mystique, all the answers became clear to him. He looked over to see Kitty biting her lip and looking at him. The car suddenly came to a halt, stopping in front of an open area. Xavier and Jean got out of the car, followed by Kitty and Nathan. The professor looked up at Nathan and put his hands together. "Now, we are giving you a choice. You can come with us and you can learn how to use your powers effectively, or you can stay here."
Nathan raised an eyebrow. "What, you're not going to force me? I don't buy it."
Jean spoke up, "We don't believe in forcing anyone to join. All we want is to help you."
Nathan frowned. "Look, lady. I don't need help from anyone. Got it? I ain't a fucking charity case and I sure as hell don't need someone giving me advice on how to run my life."
"Of course, the choice is up to you. We will be in the city for several days in case you change your mind." Xavier handed him a button with an X printed on it. "Just tap the center and we'll come as quickly as possible."
Nathan looked at the button and pocketed it, then took one final look at Kitty. "Hey, kid." She looked up at him, a much taller person by comparison. "Yes?" She asked.
"Thanks for saving me." He said softly. Before she had a chance to respond, he walked away. Kitty went to call out at him, but found Jean's hand pulling on her wrist. "Come on, Kitty. Let's get out of here." said Jean. On their way back to the hotel, Kitty was distracted. There was just something about him that she couldn't put her finger on, a sort of visceral need to help this man. She didn't know what it meant, but she did know one thing: she liked it.
"Yes is it, Jean. This is Nathan O'Keefe, a mutant with powers I believe you're familiar with." Xavier said, rubbing his temples with his fingertips.
"He's a telekinetic?" Jean asked in a surprised tone.
"Yes, but not quite the same as your gift. He lacks your ability to move objects. He can only stop them from hitting his own body." The professor explained.
"I take it you want me to come with?" Jean asked.
"Yes, it would help if someone with similar powers talked to him. Oh, and tell Kitty to come with as well. It might be a good experience to be in her own state again."
The next day...
In a small nook of the bad part of Chicago, seventeen-year-old Nathan O'Keefe was walking home when a mugger tried to steal his wallet. Having been raised in a dysfunctional, poverty stricken home, Nathan learned at a young age the necessity for fighting and he immediately took action against his attacker. The mugger went after Nathan with a knife, but he dodged and slammed his palm flat into the attacker's nose. The powerful strike drove the cartilage into the attacker's brain, killing the man almost instantly, but two more thugs jumped him from behind. Quickly, Nathan swung around and broke one of the thugs' collarbone with a well-placed kick. The third man pulled out a gun and attempted to fire, but Nathan deftly grabbed the weapon from the thug's hand. The man wore a look of shock as Nathan advanced on him. He stammered back and tried to speak. "I-I-I..."
"I bet you say that a lot." Nathan said coldly right before he whipped the pistol across the thug's skull, knocking him unconscious. Nathan breathed a sigh and heard a slow clapping sound coming from behind him. "Well done, Mr. O'Keefe." A woman he had never seen before said.
Nathan slowly raised his gun. "Lady, you got ten seconds to tell me who the fuck you are before I blow you away." He said.
"Of course. My name is Mystique, I represent a group of people that share similar gifts to yours."
"What the hell are you talking about! What gifts?" Nathan shouted.
Mystique advanced on Nathan, taking long strides and slowly turning into her natural form as she walked. "I think you know what I'm talking about, Nathan. The incident yesterday with the gun fight, the shot that should have killed you."
"What the fuck are you?" Nathan looked in disbelief as her skin turned into its dark blue hue.
"I'm like you, a kindred spirit." She whispered.
"No fucking way! You're just a freak! Get the fuck away from me!" Nathan yelled, backing into a corner.
"You disappoint me, Nathan. I guess we'll just have to do this the hard way. Toad, Avalanche, eliminate him." Toad clung to the walls and licked his slimy lips with his elongated tongue. Avalanche stepped into the alley with an evil grin and gritted his teeth. Suddenly Nathan started to loose his balance and fall over. He aimed his gun at Avalanche, but found it quickly plucked from his hands by Toad's tongue. Mystique laughed and turned into a large creature with razor-sharp claws. Right as she was about to swipe a mortal blow onto Nathan, he felt a pair of small hands grabbing him from behind. A strange feeling of weightlessness passed over him. The alley suddenly disappeared and he was inside a building. Nathan turned around quickly to see a girl with brown hair looking up at him. "Come on, like, we've got to get out of here!" She exclaimed.
Nathan wasted no time in following the girl through the building and out the door to the streets. The girl grabbed his arm and led him to a black sedan parked outside the building. The two got in and the car sped away. Nathan spun around and looked to see what had just happened. The girl spoke, startling Nathan. "Are you okay?" She asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just really confused."
"Don't worry, we're here to help." She said.
Nathan looked at the front seat to see the others who she spoke of. A girl with red hair was driving the car and a bald man sat in the passenger side. Slowly, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a pack of cigarettes. "Do you guys mind?"
"That's, like, disgusting!" The brown haired girl protested.
Nathan smirked and stuffed the cigarettes in his pocket. "So who are you people anyway?"
"My name is Charles Xavier, this one driving is Jean Grey, and you've already met Kitty. We're here to talk to you about your gifts."
Nathan rolled his eyes. "Aww fuck, not you too? I told that freakjob back there I didn't know what she was talking about!"
"Do you recall the events that happened yesterday evening, Nathan?" Xavier asked.
"And that's another thing, how the fuck do you guys know my name?"
"He sure does swear a lot." Kitty muttered. Nathan glared at her and she retreated to her side of the seat.
"We know many things about you, Nathan." Xavier said.
"All right, enough of this cryptic bullshit! I want answers!" Nathan yelled.
"We'll give you all the information you seek, if you agree to help us. Now, what happened yesterday?" Xavier asked again.
"I don't know, I got in a tassle with some punks downtown and one of them pulled a gun. They were just bad shots, that's all..." Nathan said with a hint of denial in his voice. In truth he couldn't explain what happened to him. The bullet fired, at point blank range, right at his forehead. He didn't dodge the shot, it simply stopped and fell to the ground. He brushed it off as being lucky, but there was a dark presence of intention in that event, almost as if he willed that bullet to stop. Xavier knew he was not telling the truth, so he had to use the last resort. "Do not be afraid, Nathan."
"What the f-" Nathan was cut off when another presence entered his mind. He felt the professor probing at his thoughts, speaking to him in his head. Nathan threw himself around the car, knocking Kitty against the door and nearly breaking the window. "Get out! Damnit, get out!" Nathan screamed over and over again. The professor did as he wished and left Nathan's mind.
Nathan stumbled and screamed, "What the fuck are you!"
"You're not the only one with gifts." Xavier said in a low voice.
Nathan held his head as a rush of thoughts came into his mind. The mutant academy, the X-Men, Mystique, all the answers became clear to him. He looked over to see Kitty biting her lip and looking at him. The car suddenly came to a halt, stopping in front of an open area. Xavier and Jean got out of the car, followed by Kitty and Nathan. The professor looked up at Nathan and put his hands together. "Now, we are giving you a choice. You can come with us and you can learn how to use your powers effectively, or you can stay here."
Nathan raised an eyebrow. "What, you're not going to force me? I don't buy it."
Jean spoke up, "We don't believe in forcing anyone to join. All we want is to help you."
Nathan frowned. "Look, lady. I don't need help from anyone. Got it? I ain't a fucking charity case and I sure as hell don't need someone giving me advice on how to run my life."
"Of course, the choice is up to you. We will be in the city for several days in case you change your mind." Xavier handed him a button with an X printed on it. "Just tap the center and we'll come as quickly as possible."
Nathan looked at the button and pocketed it, then took one final look at Kitty. "Hey, kid." She looked up at him, a much taller person by comparison. "Yes?" She asked.
"Thanks for saving me." He said softly. Before she had a chance to respond, he walked away. Kitty went to call out at him, but found Jean's hand pulling on her wrist. "Come on, Kitty. Let's get out of here." said Jean. On their way back to the hotel, Kitty was distracted. There was just something about him that she couldn't put her finger on, a sort of visceral need to help this man. She didn't know what it meant, but she did know one thing: she liked it.