Final Evolution
CHAPTER TWO
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"Some workout, huh?"
Evan shrugged and mopped his forehead with the corner of his shirt. Instructor Gray continued to work on the computer until it finally deposited a yellow card with a muffled 'beep'.
"So what's my score?"
"Hmm.....not bad......." Instructor Gray beamed with a certain air of pride. "You passed with flying colors. Good job, Evan."
Evan read the red lettering on the card, and could not stop the smile that fought its way onto his face.
Instructor Gray consulted her watch. "You still have two hours of free time. Take a rest, freshen up, change into your cadet uniform and report to the foyer. I'll meet you at 1600."
~ * ~ * ~ * ~
With a loud groan, Evan dropped onto his bed like a rock.
As he lay on his back, he started to count spots on the ceiling. He was still unable to sleep by the time he reached 100. He yawned a few times, but not once could he get some shuteye.
Maybe I'm forgetting something......?
Evan shut his eyes, allowing his mind to replay the morning's earlier events.
Pietro unleashing the challenge in the halls..........standing out in the rain.......accidentally spiking a tree while attacking Pietro........Pietro coming from behind in a rush of air........pain in the back of the head.......spots of black all over vision........loud thunder........muffled voices asking how many fingers were held up........bright light from an overhead ceiling lamp.......woman and dog behind a screen........Dr. McCoy lecturing about personal safety.........
Hold it. Rewind.....
He forced his mind to focus on what had been quite clouded at that point of time.
He had first woken up and nearly blinded by one of the ceiling lamps in the infirmary. There had been a viewing window separating the room he is in from the next.
There had been a woman with brown hair and dark glasses, and a brown wolf-like dog panting up mist on the window they were watching him through.
Who the heck were they?
The clock on his table started to emit soft 'ding's.
Evan sighed. Forcing himself up, he grabbed his cadet uniform and headed into the shower. Okay, spike boy. Change: Now. Think: Later.
~ * ~ * ~ * ~
"Evan! Over here!"
Evan walked over to where Instructor Gray was waiting. She was in her X-Man uniform, and there was a clipboard in her hands.
"Okay, let's see......" Instructor Gray flipped through a few pages. "Evan, you'll be in Squad B. Your partner is.......Kurt Wagner. Quite a lively fellow."
"Lively?" Evan rolled his eyes. "He's just plain loud. Can't I switch my squad?"
"Sorry, but it's all been fixed." Instructor Gray scanned through the crowd. "Kurt? Are you here?"
#BAMF# "Guten Tag, Fraulein!"
Evan waved the smoke from his vision to find an all-too-familiar blue and fuzzy German elf sitting on top of the directory.
Kurt did a back flip and landed in front of Instructor Gray and Evan. "So I guess I'm vith you, ja?"
Evan looked away and made no comment.
"Hey, better me zan Pietro, ja?" Kurt shrugged. "Heard he zumped you bad in zat fight zis morning."
"We weren't fighting, we were sparring."
"Didn't seem zat way to him."
Instructor Gray cleared her throat, regaining her students' attention. "I haven't mentioned yet: Pietro's the Squad B captain."
Evan's eyes widened drastically.
"Say VAT?!" Kurt exclaimed.
"It can't be changed." Instructor Gray reminded them. "This way, Pietro!"
Pietro sauntered across the foyer towards them with Wanda and Todd tagging along behind him. None of them were in cadet uniform, and they easily stood out among all the other students.
"All right, you two. Lesson One on Teamwork." Pietro took on a higher-than-thou look. "Stay out of my way."
Evan studied the trio. The Brotherhood of Disciplinary has full attendance.......Why am I not surprised?
"Pietro, Evan and Kurt: Good luck to all of you."
"Instructor. I do not need luck." Pietro scoffed. "Save it for a poor fool who really needs it."
"If you say so." Instructor Gray looked Pietro directly in the eye. "Good luck, Mr. Failed-The-Past-Four-Field-Exams-Maximoff."
Kurt snickered.
Pietro swore under his breath. "Add Instructor Jean Gray to the list."
List?
~ * ~ * ~ * ~
X-Van #334 wound along the uneven path leading from the X Institute to the port in the nearby city.
Out of habit, Kurt's tail started to twitch restlessly, causing a loud series of clunks from the car door it was leaning against.
"You oughta hack that thing off and ship it to a rehab center." Pietro commented. Then he added a hissed "Freako."
"Seien geflammt Sie!!" Kurt sprang from his seat and attempted to hurt Pietro in a messy way. It didn't help that Pietro was up front with the driving Instructor Gray.
"Boys. Break it up or ride on the roof."
Kurt plopped back down on his seat with a frown on his face. He was still bored out of his skull, but this time willed his tail to stay motionless under his body weight. He looked over at Evan, who was deep in thought. "Hey Evan! Can you show me your how spikes vork?"
"......."
"Just one little peek?"
"......."
"Come on, mein freund! Please?"
"......."
Kurt looked like he was about to comment about Scrooges all over the galaxy. Then he seemed to reconsider and waved three fingers in Evan's full view. "Give me a sign zat you're still alive, dude."
Evan blinked in surprise, abruptly breaking his thoughts. ".......wha...?"
"Vat's on your mind?"
"......Nothing." Evan and Instructor Gray replied at the same time. Evan looked up and saw Instructor Gray trying hard not to laugh.
He would have commented on how irritating her predictions of his words were getting, if he had not been planning to ask her anything.
"Instructor?"
"Yes, Evan?"
"Who was that woman with brown hair in the infirmary?"
"I didn't see anyone with brown hair in the infirmary." Instructor Gray looked his way through the rear-view mirror. "Why? Is something up?"
".....No. It's nothing." Evan remotely returned to his thoughts.
"This is just sweet." Pietro chuckled. "I've been teamed up with a hyper-tailed freako and a guy that just hit puberty."
One warning glance from Instructor Gray kept the seething Kurt planted to his seat.
~ * ~ * ~ * ~
"All aboard."
Instructor Gray led her students into the interior of a transport vessel. A few minutes after departure from the city port, a man with dark red sunglasses walked in from the cockpit. With a smile on his face, he saluted Instructor Gray. "Hey there, Jean. So which youngsters am I up against this time round?"
Instructor Gray returned both salute and smile before beginning introductions. "Scott, this is Squad B. Boys, this is Instructor Scott Summers. He will be briefing you on your mission objectives."
Kurt grinned and waved. Evan nodded a greeting. Then Instructor Summers saw the silver-haired mutant sitting to one side, aloof as could be. "Hello again, Pietro. Ready to get back into the non-stop action?"
"Oh, I just *love* these exams." Pietro's voice dripped with sarcasm.
Instructor Summers laughed at that. "I'll now give you a short run-through on your mission." Pulling out some charts from a binder, he made his way to the blackboard situated on the other side of the passenger compartment.
Pinning up a detailed map, Instructor Summers took out a marker. "The X Institute has received requests for assistance from the Morlocks. We've received information that the Hydrian army has invaded their territories, causing mass hysteria in most of the civilian towns. Your mission is to defend the towns from further destruction by the Hydras. Squad A has been situated here-" He drew a circle near the center of the map. "Squad C is situated here-" another circle appeared near the bottom. "And you, Squad B, are situated here." A final circle was drawn near the top. "It is necessary for you to remember where each of the squads are, as you may be required to deliver messages. The assigned squad captain will ensure that the whole squad remains at its situated position throughout the mission. Any student who leaves his post without permission will be heavily penalized."
Kurt's tail involuntarily twitched again. "Sounds like fun."
"Sounds like utter boredom." Pietro yawned.
"That's it for the briefing." Instructor Summers capped his marker and took down the map. "Remember that all actions you choose to take will be used to grade you in this exam. I wish you all the best of luck."
As Instructor Summers disappeared back into the cockpit of the vessel, Kurt's tail started to twitch even more.
"Nervous, Kurt?"
"Ja, Instructor." Kurt nodded. "A little."
"Here's Lesson Two on Teamwork: No anxiety-induced puking." Pietro announced. "Especially not from Freako."
Kurt's tail promptly tensed as he growled in Pietro's direction.
"Boys. That's enough."
"Whatever." Pietro leaned back and propped his feet up on the opposite chair, nearly decapitating Kurt's tail. "Evan. Go out and see if we're there yet."
".....Fine." Evan stood up and proceeded to the door.
"Good. After all, I'm your squad captain."
Evan was no psychic, but he could still visualize Kurt rolling his eyes and slapping his forehead in his mind.
= * =
Howling WereWolf:
Seien geflammt Sie = Be flamed (Babel Fish Translated)
Sure, our sweet little elf wouldn't have such violent tendencies, but I'd been threatened like that often by non-violent peoples when I was no more than a wee ickle Mary Sue wannabe (Yes! Be Horrified!!!). Besides, who wouldn't react like that after being (1) told that your favorite body part requires obedience training and (2) called "Freako"?
Then again......I could always be wrong........
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