For some reason, I think this may be one of my better written stories. Odd what a power outages does to your writing abilities, eh? Anywho, enjoy, and as per usual, I disclaim anything X-men related with the minimal exception of my character, Leo, and the crazy plot line I've thrown her into.
Chapter I
A Prelude to the Inevitable
I was going to die.
In my life, I'd never been as sure of anything as I was sure of this. It was the end of the line for me; a very short line for anyone. It was unavoidable and incongealable; I had few choices, all of which would lead to the same, inevitable end. It was be captured or run, with death at the end of each road.
"STOP!"
They were coming for me and they would never stop.
It never stopped. For so long, I'd been running and I'd known that after running for so long I'd eventually run out of road. The road ends here, now.
"HEY! WE'RE NOT GOING TO HURT YOU!"
In a silver blur, a teen my age appeared at my side as we dodged the branches and roots that filled the forest. I turned to face him, never slowing, and glared, tears slipping from my eyes. "You lie!" The boy gave a growl and reached out to grab hold of my arm. "Let go!" I slapped away his hand and glared, hatred scorching hot in my veins. "I won't go back there!" I threw my hands together to create a clap. The boy stepped forward to reclaim my arm, but suddenly stopped. The rain that had been pelting the earth paused in the air like little suspended diamonds. "What the h-" The echo of the wave expanded and washed over him like a tidal wave and froze him midsentence. But the wave didn't stop there. Trees rustling in the wind suddenly fell silent as limbs froze like ice; a large crooked willow had been swaying in melancholy, but now stood, stilled in a permanent pose. Nature and wildlife, although unseen, lost voice and fell to hushed, deafening silence. Time stood on end; time for that moment had stopped.
The girl turned quickly and continued to run.
I was different.
I wasn't like anyone else. Different- it was the reason I couldn't stop, why I was here now. I was a mutant, and normal people feared me. That's why they hunted me, chased me, hurt me. But what they didn't know was that of all the things in this world that I could be afraid of, it was them, these "normal people" that terrified me the most. Different…
These "people", the ones that pursue me now, in these woods… they claim that they want to help me. But no one can help me; not anymore. I was far beyond any saving…
A loud rustling in the brush propelled my feet faster.
A loud, angry roar filled the forest. Birds unaffected by time flew from their homes in fear. I wished with all my soul that I could join them, that I could fly away from what hunted me in favor for somewhere safe. It was wistful thinking.
A man, no, a creature burst from the shadows created by a giant boulder on my right. Its eyes caught mine; and my racing heart came to a screeching halt in my chest and the tears in my eyes multiplied as fear incased my irises. Of course, he'd be the one to end me; he'd done it once before.
The man's grin grew into a smirk. He leapt from the trees and crushed the ground in front of me. His eyes said it all. It was like looking into the eyes of a predator who'd finally found his prey. It looked like a cat that'd cornered a mouse with nowhere else to go.
The man crouched low to the ground and snarled. My eyes grew wide and, instinctively, I began to step backward towards my only way out. "You killed her…" I whispered as my chest burned with fire and my heart ached in pain. The man, in response, could only laugh. His smile widened and he said, in a low, gruff voice, "I've killed a lot of people; you're going to have to be more specific, girly." I cringed and took a larger step back, but I made a mistake.
A loud crunch shattered the tense moment like glass. Like flame to gunpowder, a string of events began. The man kicked forward in a killing leap, his eyes glued to my jugular. A screech fell from my lips.
And like before, it all stopped.
The raindrops were strung on an invisible string and the creature was suspended in midair, not a foot before my face. A waterfall in the distance ceased its roaring and floated on gravity like miniature rainbows. His fangs were white and bared; his claws were outstretched towards me. It was almost the past...
I turned on my heel, tears still falling against my will. I ran.
As roads always are, they end. The same could be said about my situation; I'd come to the end.
I stumbled to a stop and looked over the edge of the cliff. Down below ran millions upon millions of gallons of raging water. Ice filled my veins and smothered the fire of hatred that had previously set the nerves into a frenzy of fear. I stepped away from the edge and turned in hopes of finding another way out of the labyrinth of a forest. I was met by a floating man.
The strange man wore a helmet and suit of metal. His face, for the most part, was shadowed. The man lifted his hand in offering and began in his alluring, authoritative voice, "I'm not here to harm you, my dear." I glared at his hand and inched backward. He took a step forward, revealing his features. My eyebrows furrowed in confusion at his true identity- he was an old man. "I've heard that line enough times," my voice fell as I stepped back again, "to know that it isn't true." The man lowered his arm, and for the briefest moment I swore I saw sadness in his eyes.
"It was the humans, child," his voice softened as his eyes clouded, "The humans were the one who hurt you. We mutants only want to help you. So, let us." He raised his hand again. "I raise my hand not to harm you, but to offer you what you've always wanted." "And what's that?" I asked quietly. "A family." His lips twitched into a tired smile. "I can promise you a world where humans will no longer be able to harm nor touch us. You'll be safe."
Safe.
It was a word I'd always heard, but never truly understood.
It was something I'd always dreamed of having.
I'd always wanted a family, a home- somewhere safe and filled with people who wouldn't care about being different.
"My child," he practically purred, "You're more special than you know, and those that are like you will see that, too. I ask you this- join my family and I will keep you safe. I promise that a human will never hurt you ever again."
Never again…
The words were sweeter than honey, and in his eyes, I found that I could believe him.
My eyes fell to my left arm. Slowly, I pulled up my jacket's sleeve to reveal the skin underneath. My fingers traced the six-digit number that was burned into it. My eyes lifted towards the man, who stared at my arm in awe. "You promise?" I whispered. The man grasped for words, for air until he eventually found what he was looking for. "I give you my word."
I stood idly in the rain. The moment seemed to last years. Finally, I made up my mind.
"Okay," I whispered with a small smile. I raised my hand to accept his invitation. He smiled genuinely, something I found very rare of the man, and grasped it. "Welcome home-" "ECHO!" A loud growl echoed throughout the forest and made me jump. My hand recoiled from the man in fear.
The beast-like creature from earlier dashed from the woods and charged over towards me. I leapt backwards, nearly toppling over the edge. My eyes grew wide as they switched from the beast to the man whose kind words I had accepted. In a flash, a blur of silver appeared behind the man in metal, "Pops! He's gone nuts!" The creature growled again; the sheer volume pushed me farther; the balls of my feet toppled off the edge. "Sabertooth!" The man threatened the beast with fury lacing his voice.
My eyes darted back and forth between the two as my mind created thousands of connections. "You lied," I whispered harshly. The man whipped his head back in a hurry; his eyes widened at my position, "No! I've not lied. Not to you, Echo!" My heart stopped. "Echo…"
"NO!" I yelled out, "You can't take me back there! I won't go back there!" "No, child, you don't understand!" The man cautiously took a step forward, his hands raised like a white flag. "We're not taking you anywhere you don't want to go!"
"It's all lies," I sobbed as tears cascaded down my face. "No!" He yelled, "Echo-" "My name isn't Echo! It's- it's what they named me…there…" I grabbed my head as the memories rushed back all at once. "I'd rather die!" I spat out before gasping for air, "Then become the military's pin cushion, again!" "No, we're not the military; we're mutants, just like-" "I won't go back!" The man reached to grab my arm. I pulled away, yelling. I didn't notice my footing. Not until it was too late.
"NO!" The man yelled as his hands met air. The blur sped forward in a last ditch effort. All I saw was his eyes glow with fear; and, as I fell, I saw my own mirrored eyes in them. I fell. The only break in the silence were the screams that fell from my lips as I fell down to my death.
I was going to die that day, I'd realized.
And died, I did.
