I didn't know where to go. Didn't have anywhere to go. I put my hands in my pockets and realized I hadn't checked it for a while. I got it out and tried to turn it on. It was dead. I figured I'd go back to my room and pick up my charger but before I took my forth step in that direction I realized I had left it in my hotel room before I went out for coffee.

God that seems like ages ago. What was it three or four days? It's scared me that I couldn't keep track of what day it was. The fact that I was unconscious for a good portion of that time didn't help calm me at all.

Hey Professor I can leave the mansion, right? I want to see if the hotel kept my things.

By all means go ahead! Do you have any way to get there? I don't believe the buses come around here.

I didn't think about that.

I'll ask Scott if he would be kind enough to take you. A picture of Scott appeared in my head to remind me.

Thanks Charles.

My pleasure.

A few minutes later the visored man came walking toward me.

"David Blackstone, I don't believe we've had a chance to formally introduce ourselves." He extended his hand toward me. "I'm Scott, pleased to meet you."

"I'm still David, the feeling is mutual."

We made the short walk to the garage with a little meaningless conversation that ended when Scott noticed the ferret currently taking a nap inside my hood.

"Geez I didn't see that before!"

"What!" I didn't realize he was talking about the ferret and I swung my head around almost comically.

"That thing in your hood! It looks like a huge rat!"

Scott's shouting had woken the ferret and it stuck her head out of my hood and had a peek around, trying to locate what had woken her up I'm certain.

"She's a ferret. Use your eye."

"Ha-ha. You're a real funny guy."

"Hey, I thought it was funny."

"Whatever, what's her name then?"

"Haven't decided yet." He gave a questioning look. "I found her cuddled up on my lap this morning. No one owns her so I thought I'd keep her."

"Make sure she doesn't make a mess in my car."

She didn't. The ride from Xavier's school to my hotel was maybe forty minutes long. If that. My ferret couldn't go in the hotel with me so Scott volunteered to hold her while I got my things.

"Um, hello I checked into here about a week ago. And I got so caught up in all the…"

"Hey it's cool I understand, the aliens and everything. What's your name, I'll see if your thing are still there."

"Thanks! Uh it's David, David Blackstone."

"Alright says here you were in room 317?"

"That's right."

"Do you happen to still have your room key?"

I checked my wallet and surely enough I did. Surprisingly enough.

"Right here. I thought hotels sold the stuff in rooms of people that stayed without paying. I mean it was in the waiver that I signed, right?"

"Normally that is our policy but in light of all that's happened…" He let his words trail off. Nothing more needed to be said.

"Thanks man. Wait, why wouldn't my things still be there?"

"Tragedy sometimes brings out the best of us, like the Avengers, but usually it just turns everyone into a scumbag. Hell I should know, my car was stolen a day after the attack."

"That's rough."

"Yeah fortunately I live only about a half block away. My wife though, heh, she's a teacher and works all the way on the other side of the city. Anyway you aren't here to hear me blab. I'll see if your room was broken into."

"Thanks."

He walked from behind the counter. I turned around and where there was once a large couch and chairs there was the hard wooden floor. Sheesh that guy wasn't kidding, tragedy does bring out the worst in people. I leaned against the wall.

It wasn't that long before he returned saying that my door jamb wasn't broken and from what he could see my stuff was still there. I gave the guy a five as a tip and walked to the elevator. It was playing the same Muzak from when I checked in. Like he said my room was indeed not broken into. Though I couldn't say the same for the room next to mine. My stuff was right where I left it.

I put all my clothes into my suitcase and anything else I thought I should keep. I figured I'd let the hotel sell it and keep the profits. Wouldn't be much I suppose.

When I passed the guy at the front desk I told him as much.

I put my suitcase in the trunk of Cyclops' car. And he put my ferret back in my hood. "I really ought to figure out a name for you." I said.

"That'd probably be a good idea." Scott said. "Music?"

"Sure."

He turned on the radio onto a classic rock station. Renegade by Styx started shortly after.

"Oh mama, I'm in fear for my life from the long arm of the law,

Law man has put an end to my runnin' and I'm so far from my home

Oh Mama I can hear you a cryin', you're so scared and all alone

Hangman's comin' down from the gallows and I don't have very long.

Hey!

The jig is up, the news is out

They finally found me

The renegade who had it made

Retrieved for a bounty

Never more to go astray

This'll be the end today

Of the wanted man…"

"That's a decent name," I said in agreement with what I just said in my head. "That'll work."

"What Renegade?"

"No, Styx."

"Decent enough. If a bit peculiar."

"No more peculiar than those sweet shades, Cyclopes."

"Fair enough."

Crazy Train by Ozzy Osborne was next, then Carry on My Wayward Son by Journey, next came Crazy by Aerosmith. We were jamming out to Queens Bohemian Rhapsody when Scott's car came to a red light about ten minutes from the school. It was a long light. There was a minivan behind us. I could see in the rear view mirror a man and a woman in the front seat. The woman was the one driving and the man was turned around in his seat. I guess he was talking to his kids or whatever. It doesn't really matter though. What does matter is that there was a guy with his hood pulled down over his face walking to the door with his hand holding something in his pocket. The guy in the hood opened the passenger door and whispered something to the woman driving. He was holding them up! I could tell because he kept gesturing to his hidden hand. He had a gun in that pocket I'm certain. Styx could apparently read my mind because as soon as it clicked in my head what I was going to do she crawled out of my hood.

"The car behind us is getting stolen from." I told Scott.

"I see him. Stay in the car."

"Fuck that!"

"I'm not going to say it again."

"Then don't cause I'm not listening." We both got out of the car and headed to the van behind us. The guy with a gun wasn't paying attention to us, which was fortunate for the family in the car. Not so much him. I grabbed his hood and pulled him out of the car.

"I'm sorry sir, you appear to be getting into a car that isn't meant for you. Your car is black and white and has those spinning blue and red lights on the top."

"I don't think he meant to get in this car." Scott said.

"No I don't think so either. And I certainly don't think he is foolish enough to use that little gun of his on us."

"I don't know about that. He seems quite foolish." The crook said, pulling the not actually that little revolver out of his jacket pocket.

Scott looked like he was going to jump at either me or him.

"Hey Scott, do you know the average velocity of a bullet as it leaves the barrel of a gun?"

"F- Far too fast." He stuttered.

"And do you know how fast I can walk?"

"Shut up kid." The crook said through gritted teeth. "Get in the car, or I'll make you get in the car. You too Ray-Bans."

"Ray-Bans! Good one, why didn't I think of that?"

"Shut up kid! Get in the fucking van!" He rested the barrel of his gun on my forehead.

I acted like I was thinking about it. I even put my fist under my chin. "No thanks. But you know what here's what I want you to do, and I'd recommend you do it unless you want to know what the soles of your shoes taste like, I want you to unload your gun, disassemble it, put it on the ground, close this kind gentleman's door, and then find the closest police station. Tell them what you tried to just do and spend the next few years in a jail cell with a cellmate who likes to be called 'Daddy' as he slowly causes the circumference of your asshole to grow. In that order." I was getting a bit cocky but I figured I could take him.

That was until my eardrums exploded from the noise of the gun. You know how in television crime shows the bad guy can make a silencer out of almost anything? Yeah, well I can bullshit.

"Any other wise guys?" I could hear the crook say from the ground. He was waving the gun around like an idiot with his finger on the trigger. He wasn't looking at me. And everyone in the van had their eyes were trained on the still smoking gun like it was a conductors baton. Scott however was looking at me looking at him. His mouth was open in shock. I quickly put my finger over my lips in a 'shush' gesture. My forehead was bleeding as I grabbed the bullet and threw it at the now attempted murderer.

"Hey! That's how people get killed!" I stood up then. I could feel the blood from where the bullet had broken skin running down my face. I had to assume I looked like Death had come because the crook tripped over his own feet trying to get away from me. That would not do. I sprinted in front of him and planted my feet so that when he ran into me I didn't fall flat on my ass. That freaked him right out and he ran at a 90 degree angle to his right. I played my little game of pinball for two or three more collisions before he realized he had a mostly loaded gun in his hand.

He emptied the gun into my chest in a vain attempt to stop me. When the last bullet struck my sternum I was on the ground due to the impact of the bullets. I grabbed the hand holding the gun and felt two or three of his bone break when I squeezed.

"What did I say I wanted you to do again?" I whispered as he cried out in agony. "It doesn't matter because now I want you to run." He wasn't listening so I kicked him. "I said I wanted you to run! Run away because the immortal is angry!"

"David!' I heard Scott scream.

"What?!" When I turned my head I noticed that I had gathered a crowd of terrified people. They must've heard the gunshots. My anger dissipated quickly.