The Loss Of X

By Pointless Envy

::Prologue::

It seemed like any other normal day at Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters. The students were playing a fierce game of basketball on the courts, guys against girls. The girls were beating the guys, but they were just barely ahead. Some of the students sat around in the grass, studying for a test the following day. And others were spread out amongst the fields, practicing their mutant powers.

Yes, it was a normal day at the School For Gifted Youngsters, a school for the "gifted," or as many like to call them, mutants. It was unknown to the public what this school really was though. Even after the attack sent in by Stryker, the public still didn't know that the students were all gifted in ways such as being able to lift things with their minds; control the path of fire; walk through walls, and shoot spikes from their arms.

On this certain day, one of the teachers, Ororo Munroe, was walking alongside the building, watching the students as she did. It had been almost a month since the incident with Jean Grey, one of the fellow teachers at the school. Her loss had been a shock to the students, once they'd all returned to the school. The biggest impact her death caused was on a fellow teacher, Scott Summers . He and Jean had been in love, everyone knew this. Ever since his return to teaching, the students had given him his space. To anyone who didn't know him well, they'd say her death hadn't affected Scott at all. But to those who knew him, he was hurting, but kept it well hidden.

"Storm!" a voice called out. Ororo turned her head, responding to her given name. Ororo Munroe was only an alias.

Coming up behind her was a mutant named Kurt Wagner. He was unlike any of the other students at the school. His skin was blue and imprinted with self inflicted scars of an angellic alphabet.

"Hi Kurt." Storm said as she turned to him. He jogged next to her, his tail swinging madly from side to side. Some of the students looked at him curiously, but with no judgment.

"Storm! Come quick!" Kurt exclaimed, his German accent thick in the air. Storm followed him through the doors of the school and into the common room, where a few students sat around a big screen TV, their eyes fixed on the News Alert in front of them. A man was live on the scene where a building was on fire.

"-rapped inside! There is still a family trapped inside! I don't know whether the firemen are going to be able to get them before the building collapses! You can hear the boards and floors ripping out as we speak; the building sounds as if it's about to cave in!"

Storm leaned against the couch and watched intently. The camera focused in on a window where a woman leaned out, holding her baby and screaming through the smoke that poured out around her. One of the students fidgeted, as if they wanted to help, but Storm knew there was nothing they could do. All mutants were advised to keep a low profile at the time.

"Aussehen!" Kurt exclaimed, pointing excitedly near the window. Storm leaned forward and gasped softly.

The woman screamed as a figure suddenly emerged from around the building, floating in thin air. It was a teenage boy, with shaggy blonde hair and a medium build. He reached out to the woman, motioning to the baby. She was hesitant, but as another loud creak from inside the building made her scream, she handed over her child to the floating boy.

He gently took the baby and floated to the ground. Two firemen ran forward and snatched the baby away from him. He floated back to the window and the woman leaped out into his arms. He seemed to trip in the air, as if loosing his balance, but quickly was steady again and floating towards the ground.

He let the woman go as they touched ground. The firemen pulled her back and as they did, the building began to collapse. People began running away from the falling debris. When the camera focused where the boy had been, he was nowhere to be seen.