Now, I want to apologize for the errors you might have found all along this
story. They will all be checked once I finish this story, because I don't
have the time to check them right now . . . And I wanted to update sooner,
but I just couldn't . . .
Special section for my reviewers:
Shade: So you're Tigereyes' friend! Well . . . nice for you to have reviewed! Oh, and Max is 'temporarily out of service' caused by the boredom and 'unimportantness' he is reflecting towards the rest of my story.
Xdivas: Well . . . actually, five chapters of the sequel are already done. (muahahah)
Tigereyes: lol. You two seem to be very good friends
Angel-in-disguise: I am taking your advice! I have found a beta reader! And I have a couple of reasons for my common misspellings. First of all, my computer corrects stuff without me noticing. Second of all, sometimes I don't realize some of my mistakes (like 'stagger to the ground', I have no idea why I wrote that. My mistake.) And last, but not least, the only reason that could maybe be lightly considered as a good one is that English is not my first language. But I will correct everything as soon as I have time. Sorry.
Skibummat: Well I was just making everything up just like that . . . but I will change it.
Prostar99: Hi! Now, for my explanation, *this* story comes before X2, and the *sequel* of this story is after the movie. Nightcrawler, Gambit and Beast are all in it (I'm still hesitating on Syrin, though). For my favorite characters . . . (*thinks really hard*) . . . Wolvie, Mystique and Deathstryke are my top three, I think (bad mutants rock!). But I also like Rogue, Storm, Nightcrawler, Jason (Stryker's son. He's really freaky and cool) . . .
Gr33n Pixie: I'm glad you like it! I didn't want Nate to be just a normal mutant with a weird power, that's why I also made him a criminal!
Blaze: Hey! I want to read the 'darker' version of your story! I hope it's coming soon! (And I'm getting my exam results tomorrow . . . ohoh)
¸,ø ¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ ø,¸¸,ø ¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø ¤º°`°º¤ø,¸
Chapter 36:
"I really don't think I need a medical exam right now, thanks," Nathan said, trying to get away from Jean.
"I'm serious Nathan, I want you in my office by tomorrow or else," the redhead said, following him. "It's not an option, it's an obligation for any mutant who lives here."
Nate stopped in his tracks and sighed, looking at Jean with a big sad puppy face.
"Please? I really don't feel bad and I'm sick of going in there," he said, hiding the real reasons. "The bullet wound is fine and my back only cracks weird, that's all. It doesn't hurt."
Jean shook her head.
"Nope, I want you in the med lab by the end of the week," she said walking away.
She disappeared at the end of the hallway, leaving Nate being one of the last students in the ansion. All the others were outside, enjoying one of the last windless days of fall, before winter arrived and they would all need to wear coats again.
"Damnit," he whispered, jogging back to his room.
He arrived to it panting like a marathon jogger, locked the door and rushed to the bathroom. He flicked on the light and turned towards the large mirror above the sink. Around it were full of medical supplies speared out in a very outmoded way. A little worried look appeared on his face as he grimaced to take his shirt off, his back still making inhuman cracking sounds.
The sight was really strange to see: his first bullet wound was almost gone and he didn't need to wear a bandage anymore. His scars from his car accident were old news, but there were still three thin parallel lines passing diagonally on his side. The other wounds were the reason he was avoiding Jean so much, because he didn't want her to see them. On his right shoulder was a very deep opened wound made by a blade, during his stay in Russia. Nate had no souvenir whatsoever about it, and all he knew was that he had gotten it when he had participated in a raid back in Russia. He had gotten messy stitches that showed a lot, but they were soon to disappear completely thanks to his healing factor. On his let side were five pale round marks made by small bullets. They too were to disappear in a couple of days. The last thing he didn't want Jean to see was something he had done in a thoughtless act of stupidity: A tattoo on the upper part of his left shoulder, in his back.
It represented two vined-up acanthus leaves, which are part of some sort of Mediterranean shrub, the acanthus. The leaves were large, segmented, and thistle-like, and those who looked closer could see tiny letters engraved on the leaves' sides, forming the words Vista interiorem terrae rectificando invenies operae lapidem, a saying Alcatraz had suggested to him after having heard the story of his life. On the second side of the leaf were only the initials, v.i.t.r.i.o.l. and both meant the same thing. V.i.t.r.i.o.l. were the initials of a formula famous among alchemists, which meant descend in the depths of the earth, by distilling you will find the heart of creation. These initials formed a word expressing the law of a process of transformation. In other words, the return of a person to the most intimate starting point of a human being; which comes back to say, descend to the most intimate starting point in yourself and find the invisible stone on which you will be able to build a new personality, a new person.
If he focused really hard, he could use his healing power to make it disappear, but for now he would have liked to keep it.
Nate closed his eyes and tried to focus on the wound in his shoulder. He felt a strange cold sensation freeze his shoulder, at the exact place where his wound was. When he opened his eyes, it was nearly totally gone, but Jean would still notice. He did the same for his other wounds, but using his feeble power that hard took away all his strength. Looking one last time at his watch, he read five thirty and fell asleep on his bed without further notice.
¸,ø ¤º°`°º¤ø,¸
It was nighttime, and all were sleeping in their beds. Nate still hadn't returned to the dorm room yet, and so was alone in his room, still asleep because of the effort he had taken to hide his wounds. No one was there to wake him from the nightmare he was having, one so similar to a previous dream he had had during his last stay at the mansion.
As always, a halo rendered everything lightly fogged up, and this time, the dominant color was gray. Many people were on what seemed to be a rooftop. All were wearing black, and were looking down to the road below. Between some of theses people, from under one of their cloaks came out a little girl, the only one wearing white clothing. Her hair fell loose on her shoulders, and her eyes were an indefinite color because of the fog. Her white summer dress moving to an invisible breeze, she walked forward, looking at Nathan straight in the eyes.
"Why did you leave, Nathan?" she said, her voice so calm and beautiful, that made you feel strange the second you heard it, and filling you with an undetermined terror at the same time. "I want to see you when I wake up. I'm asleep . . . mommy's going to wake me up soon because it's all just a bad dream."
"Who are you?" Nathan tried to say, tossing and turning absentmindedly between his covers, back in real life.
The little girl now looked slightly upset.
"You don't recognize me?" she asked, a tremble in her voice. Her face became filled with sadness. "Just like daddy, finally. He never recognizes me either."
"You talk to him like this? In his sleep?" Nathan asked mentally, not being able to really hear himself.
"Yes. It's the only way I can use now because I'm still asleep," she said, sitting down on a step that appeared out of nowhere. "Will you come and wake me, Nathan?"
Questions rushed to Nate's head, almost waking him. Who was she? A dream? A simple dream? How did she know him? Was she only part of his imagination? His conscience was playing tricks on his again? No. It simply couldn't be.
"Are you real?" he thought, imaginary wind blowing through the little girl's hair as she smiled and giggled at his question.
"Yes and no," she said mischievously. "I'm real, but not real at the same time because I'm still sleeping. I want to wake up now. I'm ready. I've been unprepared for so long, but now I'm ready. I want to wake up."
"You're asleep . . . like me?"
"No," she answered. "Much more asleep than you, and if mommy doesn't wake me soon, I might sleep forever. But I want you to be there when I come round."
"But who are you?"
"You'll remember in time. You weren't there before. Mommy just knows a little. Daddy doesn't know at all, but he doesn't know me too. I tell him to come back home, but he won't listen. He's too stubborn to understand. And you too . . . you didn't listen to me last time . . . please come and save us before it's too late. Come and save me. I'm so afraid. You need to know the truth."
"What truth?"
"The one the others are hiding from you, even if they don't know it at all. You have to figure it out for yourself . . ."
The little girl smiled, and the surroundings changed, the rooftops being replaced by a garden in which bushes and bushes of white roses where growing.
"I couldn't hear you last time I talked to you, because the old man was stopping me. But now, I know he's sleeping, we can talk until he wakes up. If he knows I'm here, he'll be very, very mad. I don't think he likes me very much, probably because I keep talking to people in their sleep . . . but it's just that I have nothing else to do. Can't you imagine? Sleeping forever! It's so hard for me not to see the others, and talk. Most of them, all of them, they don't realize that I'm real. Only you, because you asked me. You believe me, don't you?"
Nate mentally accepted that fact, but didn't say anything, just watching the little girl. She stared back.
"I know what you're thinking . . ." she said slowly. "And I'm not 'working' for anyone . . . like the old man thought. He hurt my head last time, and used me to find another mutant that wasn't doing anything wrong. That's not very nice, both for me and him."
She paused, and the scenery behind her changed, the white roses being replaced by a sandy landscape in which trees were sprouting here and there. Suddenly, for a totally unknown reason, Nathan just got scared. He looked at the little girl, but she looked totally undisturbed.
"Don't worry," she said calmly. "That's just Fear on the second floor, practicing her power. I can't avoid catching her brainwaves, and so you're affected by her power."
"Where are you?" Nate asked, feeling the fear in him finally stop.
The little girl looked down for a second, probably wondering if she should tell him.
"I'm locked in the basement . . . It's cold, so silent that it scares you and dark. Very dark. There aren't any lights when I'm alone. You're thinking it's not pleasant, and it's not, but they have no other choice. Mom's hiding me The people with white uniforms want to burry me with dead people under the ground. But mom has a lot of faith that I'm going to wake up, and I believe her because I'm ready."
"When are you going to wake up?" Nathan thought.
"When the next generation is ready," she said.
'What next generation? Ready for what?' Nate mentally asked.
"Mutants . . . ready for . . . the future," the little girl said, her voice drifting away. "I'll only wake up for that. And I'm ready for that. We all are . . . ready to fight for what we believe in."
"When is that time? Why are you talking to me? How do you know me? Who are you really?" Nathan asked, tossing ad turning more furiously in his bed.
The little girl was about to open her mouth when she froze and a worried look came upon her angelic face.
"Oh no, the old man knows I'm here . . . he's coming to get me," She said, getting up and turning around.
"What's your name?" Nathan asked as one last desperate question.
"I need to go . . ."
"Your name!"
"Good Bye Nathan"
"Please, your name!"
But all just disappeared, being replaced by a black void. Nathan opened his eyes, hearing footsteps in the hallway. It was Jean and the professor. Both barged inside his room, looking at him sternly.
"What happened?" both asked as others rushed into the doorway, wondering what was going on.
Panting heavily, Nathan just stared at the wide-eyed, taking a second to fully take conception that what had happened was all real. A joyful voice in his head laughed, proving everything.
"It's me, Nathan . . . Destiny."
Nathan smiled as the voice disappeared into his mind. The others stared at him, wondering why he was smiling like that, but he didn't say anything. Dreams like that were better left unsaid.
¸,ø ¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ ø,¸¸,ø ¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø ¤º°`°º¤ø,¸
Please, o please do *not* confound Destiny with another character already invented by Stan Lee (something like a 'blind seer' named Destiny). *This* Destiny is an O/C and belongs only to me. She is a very important character in my sequel, and what she says are clues to what's to come . . .
Review! Review! Review!
Special section for my reviewers:
Shade: So you're Tigereyes' friend! Well . . . nice for you to have reviewed! Oh, and Max is 'temporarily out of service' caused by the boredom and 'unimportantness' he is reflecting towards the rest of my story.
Xdivas: Well . . . actually, five chapters of the sequel are already done. (muahahah)
Tigereyes: lol. You two seem to be very good friends
Angel-in-disguise: I am taking your advice! I have found a beta reader! And I have a couple of reasons for my common misspellings. First of all, my computer corrects stuff without me noticing. Second of all, sometimes I don't realize some of my mistakes (like 'stagger to the ground', I have no idea why I wrote that. My mistake.) And last, but not least, the only reason that could maybe be lightly considered as a good one is that English is not my first language. But I will correct everything as soon as I have time. Sorry.
Skibummat: Well I was just making everything up just like that . . . but I will change it.
Prostar99: Hi! Now, for my explanation, *this* story comes before X2, and the *sequel* of this story is after the movie. Nightcrawler, Gambit and Beast are all in it (I'm still hesitating on Syrin, though). For my favorite characters . . . (*thinks really hard*) . . . Wolvie, Mystique and Deathstryke are my top three, I think (bad mutants rock!). But I also like Rogue, Storm, Nightcrawler, Jason (Stryker's son. He's really freaky and cool) . . .
Gr33n Pixie: I'm glad you like it! I didn't want Nate to be just a normal mutant with a weird power, that's why I also made him a criminal!
Blaze: Hey! I want to read the 'darker' version of your story! I hope it's coming soon! (And I'm getting my exam results tomorrow . . . ohoh)
¸,ø ¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ ø,¸¸,ø ¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø ¤º°`°º¤ø,¸
Chapter 36:
"I really don't think I need a medical exam right now, thanks," Nathan said, trying to get away from Jean.
"I'm serious Nathan, I want you in my office by tomorrow or else," the redhead said, following him. "It's not an option, it's an obligation for any mutant who lives here."
Nate stopped in his tracks and sighed, looking at Jean with a big sad puppy face.
"Please? I really don't feel bad and I'm sick of going in there," he said, hiding the real reasons. "The bullet wound is fine and my back only cracks weird, that's all. It doesn't hurt."
Jean shook her head.
"Nope, I want you in the med lab by the end of the week," she said walking away.
She disappeared at the end of the hallway, leaving Nate being one of the last students in the ansion. All the others were outside, enjoying one of the last windless days of fall, before winter arrived and they would all need to wear coats again.
"Damnit," he whispered, jogging back to his room.
He arrived to it panting like a marathon jogger, locked the door and rushed to the bathroom. He flicked on the light and turned towards the large mirror above the sink. Around it were full of medical supplies speared out in a very outmoded way. A little worried look appeared on his face as he grimaced to take his shirt off, his back still making inhuman cracking sounds.
The sight was really strange to see: his first bullet wound was almost gone and he didn't need to wear a bandage anymore. His scars from his car accident were old news, but there were still three thin parallel lines passing diagonally on his side. The other wounds were the reason he was avoiding Jean so much, because he didn't want her to see them. On his right shoulder was a very deep opened wound made by a blade, during his stay in Russia. Nate had no souvenir whatsoever about it, and all he knew was that he had gotten it when he had participated in a raid back in Russia. He had gotten messy stitches that showed a lot, but they were soon to disappear completely thanks to his healing factor. On his let side were five pale round marks made by small bullets. They too were to disappear in a couple of days. The last thing he didn't want Jean to see was something he had done in a thoughtless act of stupidity: A tattoo on the upper part of his left shoulder, in his back.
It represented two vined-up acanthus leaves, which are part of some sort of Mediterranean shrub, the acanthus. The leaves were large, segmented, and thistle-like, and those who looked closer could see tiny letters engraved on the leaves' sides, forming the words Vista interiorem terrae rectificando invenies operae lapidem, a saying Alcatraz had suggested to him after having heard the story of his life. On the second side of the leaf were only the initials, v.i.t.r.i.o.l. and both meant the same thing. V.i.t.r.i.o.l. were the initials of a formula famous among alchemists, which meant descend in the depths of the earth, by distilling you will find the heart of creation. These initials formed a word expressing the law of a process of transformation. In other words, the return of a person to the most intimate starting point of a human being; which comes back to say, descend to the most intimate starting point in yourself and find the invisible stone on which you will be able to build a new personality, a new person.
If he focused really hard, he could use his healing power to make it disappear, but for now he would have liked to keep it.
Nate closed his eyes and tried to focus on the wound in his shoulder. He felt a strange cold sensation freeze his shoulder, at the exact place where his wound was. When he opened his eyes, it was nearly totally gone, but Jean would still notice. He did the same for his other wounds, but using his feeble power that hard took away all his strength. Looking one last time at his watch, he read five thirty and fell asleep on his bed without further notice.
¸,ø ¤º°`°º¤ø,¸
It was nighttime, and all were sleeping in their beds. Nate still hadn't returned to the dorm room yet, and so was alone in his room, still asleep because of the effort he had taken to hide his wounds. No one was there to wake him from the nightmare he was having, one so similar to a previous dream he had had during his last stay at the mansion.
As always, a halo rendered everything lightly fogged up, and this time, the dominant color was gray. Many people were on what seemed to be a rooftop. All were wearing black, and were looking down to the road below. Between some of theses people, from under one of their cloaks came out a little girl, the only one wearing white clothing. Her hair fell loose on her shoulders, and her eyes were an indefinite color because of the fog. Her white summer dress moving to an invisible breeze, she walked forward, looking at Nathan straight in the eyes.
"Why did you leave, Nathan?" she said, her voice so calm and beautiful, that made you feel strange the second you heard it, and filling you with an undetermined terror at the same time. "I want to see you when I wake up. I'm asleep . . . mommy's going to wake me up soon because it's all just a bad dream."
"Who are you?" Nathan tried to say, tossing and turning absentmindedly between his covers, back in real life.
The little girl now looked slightly upset.
"You don't recognize me?" she asked, a tremble in her voice. Her face became filled with sadness. "Just like daddy, finally. He never recognizes me either."
"You talk to him like this? In his sleep?" Nathan asked mentally, not being able to really hear himself.
"Yes. It's the only way I can use now because I'm still asleep," she said, sitting down on a step that appeared out of nowhere. "Will you come and wake me, Nathan?"
Questions rushed to Nate's head, almost waking him. Who was she? A dream? A simple dream? How did she know him? Was she only part of his imagination? His conscience was playing tricks on his again? No. It simply couldn't be.
"Are you real?" he thought, imaginary wind blowing through the little girl's hair as she smiled and giggled at his question.
"Yes and no," she said mischievously. "I'm real, but not real at the same time because I'm still sleeping. I want to wake up now. I'm ready. I've been unprepared for so long, but now I'm ready. I want to wake up."
"You're asleep . . . like me?"
"No," she answered. "Much more asleep than you, and if mommy doesn't wake me soon, I might sleep forever. But I want you to be there when I come round."
"But who are you?"
"You'll remember in time. You weren't there before. Mommy just knows a little. Daddy doesn't know at all, but he doesn't know me too. I tell him to come back home, but he won't listen. He's too stubborn to understand. And you too . . . you didn't listen to me last time . . . please come and save us before it's too late. Come and save me. I'm so afraid. You need to know the truth."
"What truth?"
"The one the others are hiding from you, even if they don't know it at all. You have to figure it out for yourself . . ."
The little girl smiled, and the surroundings changed, the rooftops being replaced by a garden in which bushes and bushes of white roses where growing.
"I couldn't hear you last time I talked to you, because the old man was stopping me. But now, I know he's sleeping, we can talk until he wakes up. If he knows I'm here, he'll be very, very mad. I don't think he likes me very much, probably because I keep talking to people in their sleep . . . but it's just that I have nothing else to do. Can't you imagine? Sleeping forever! It's so hard for me not to see the others, and talk. Most of them, all of them, they don't realize that I'm real. Only you, because you asked me. You believe me, don't you?"
Nate mentally accepted that fact, but didn't say anything, just watching the little girl. She stared back.
"I know what you're thinking . . ." she said slowly. "And I'm not 'working' for anyone . . . like the old man thought. He hurt my head last time, and used me to find another mutant that wasn't doing anything wrong. That's not very nice, both for me and him."
She paused, and the scenery behind her changed, the white roses being replaced by a sandy landscape in which trees were sprouting here and there. Suddenly, for a totally unknown reason, Nathan just got scared. He looked at the little girl, but she looked totally undisturbed.
"Don't worry," she said calmly. "That's just Fear on the second floor, practicing her power. I can't avoid catching her brainwaves, and so you're affected by her power."
"Where are you?" Nate asked, feeling the fear in him finally stop.
The little girl looked down for a second, probably wondering if she should tell him.
"I'm locked in the basement . . . It's cold, so silent that it scares you and dark. Very dark. There aren't any lights when I'm alone. You're thinking it's not pleasant, and it's not, but they have no other choice. Mom's hiding me The people with white uniforms want to burry me with dead people under the ground. But mom has a lot of faith that I'm going to wake up, and I believe her because I'm ready."
"When are you going to wake up?" Nathan thought.
"When the next generation is ready," she said.
'What next generation? Ready for what?' Nate mentally asked.
"Mutants . . . ready for . . . the future," the little girl said, her voice drifting away. "I'll only wake up for that. And I'm ready for that. We all are . . . ready to fight for what we believe in."
"When is that time? Why are you talking to me? How do you know me? Who are you really?" Nathan asked, tossing ad turning more furiously in his bed.
The little girl was about to open her mouth when she froze and a worried look came upon her angelic face.
"Oh no, the old man knows I'm here . . . he's coming to get me," She said, getting up and turning around.
"What's your name?" Nathan asked as one last desperate question.
"I need to go . . ."
"Your name!"
"Good Bye Nathan"
"Please, your name!"
But all just disappeared, being replaced by a black void. Nathan opened his eyes, hearing footsteps in the hallway. It was Jean and the professor. Both barged inside his room, looking at him sternly.
"What happened?" both asked as others rushed into the doorway, wondering what was going on.
Panting heavily, Nathan just stared at the wide-eyed, taking a second to fully take conception that what had happened was all real. A joyful voice in his head laughed, proving everything.
"It's me, Nathan . . . Destiny."
Nathan smiled as the voice disappeared into his mind. The others stared at him, wondering why he was smiling like that, but he didn't say anything. Dreams like that were better left unsaid.
¸,ø ¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ ø,¸¸,ø ¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø ¤º°`°º¤ø,¸
Please, o please do *not* confound Destiny with another character already invented by Stan Lee (something like a 'blind seer' named Destiny). *This* Destiny is an O/C and belongs only to me. She is a very important character in my sequel, and what she says are clues to what's to come . . .
Review! Review! Review!