It was kinda weird going with him. By 'him', I'm not sure who I mean. I
took Magneto's outstretched hand, and he led me out of the police station.
Magneto led me to the limo waiting in the alley, Magneto sat across from me
in the back seat.
I know that my father is Magneto, but is Magneto my father?
He couldn't be!
If he were really my father, wouldn't heat least act happy to see me after all this time?
Wouldn't he, I don't know, look me up and down and then say something like, "You've grown a lot, son."?
I ran away when I was only eleven; hadn't he been worried about something bad happening to me? I was just a little kid, and I had found out- that once again- he was right. The world was filled with bad, horrible people.
Sometimes I think that I've already turned into one of them.
He removed the helmet and set it beside him, I could see his face clearly in the passing street lights.
I stared at him, he stared back at me.
I had forgotten how much we look alike. The hair, the skin, the eyes.yep, spitting images.
I leaned back in my seat. "Where are we going?" I asked.
"We're taking you to your new home." He replied. He simply answered with no further reply.
'What is going on here?' I asked myself.
Evan- that stupid, skater freshmen- managed to assemble a gang of mutants to land me in jail, and then my father shows up out of nowhere to bust me out and give me a ride home?
This was just too weird.
"Mag-." I began, but then I changed my mind.
This was my father! He wasn't the mutant villain I had read about all through the years, he is my father, the man who took care of me when I was little, who helped me discover my powers.we may have been separated for a long time, but he was still my father, wasn't he?
"Father, what is going on? How did you find me?" I asked.
He glanced up and met my eyes. "I have my methods."
I felt the car slow down, stop.
"Wait a minute, you're just gonna leave me? This isn't even my neighborhood!" I declared.
He got out of the limo, and stood waiting for me outside. I had to follow him.
"But, I thought that now we found each other."
What was I going to say? That I wanted us to be a family again? No, no, Pietro, stop it, you're still thinking like a little kid!
"I know Pietro, soon.but there are many things to be done first. Perhaps when I have accomplished what I have set out to do, but not before. I have few people I can trust. Despite the separation of the years, you are still my son. Can I trust you as an ally?"
His voice softened only the tiniest bit, but it didn't dull out the edge to his words.
"What do you want me to do?" I asked.
"Simple things, but not without some degree of challenge. The first thing you must do is relocate, to this house." He gestured over my shoulder.
I turned and read the sign in the half-dead lawn. 'Brotherhood of Bayville Boarding House'.
"There are three young men already living inside. All mutants with varying degree of power. You have already met the X-men. That is Charles Xavier's team of mutants. They are a threat to the Brotherhood, and not to be trusted. Meet the Brotherhood and get acquainted, you will live with them from now on."
He didn't leave any room for discussion, he just handed me a cell phone, "We'll keep in touch with this. Remember what I told you, the X-men must not be trusted."
With a squeal of tires, he was gone.
*^*^*
I knocked on the door, and a guy answered.
He was taller than me by a couple of inches. Darker too, in skin, hair and eyes. He was wearing a pair of roughed up jeans, a black t-shirt with a vest and black motorcycle gloves.
"Yeah?" he asked.
I didn't really know what to say, "Um, hi. Is this the Brotherhood of mutants?" I asked.
He rolled his eyes, "New recruit!" he yelled into the house.
Opening the door all the way, he let me inside.
The house was in terrible shape, but still an improvement from my old apartment.
"Aw, man, another one? If he's as big as Blob, then we gonna need another boardin' house!" came a voice from somewhere upstairs. It was another guy, with what sounded like a New Jersey accent.
I heard something slam against the wall upstairs, and then another something crash. "Whoops, my bad!"
Literally bouncing off the walls was another mutant. He jumped back and forth between the walls on either side of the staircase, and came to a stop right in front of me.
He had landed in a crouching position, but stood up straight to look me in the eyes.
He was dressed no better than the guy who opened the door for me, his clothes both ripped and stained. His skin was somewhat sallow, and his eyes had a yellowy tinge. His teeth weren't in the best shape, either. He didn't look too healthy, but he had an energetic personality. He seemed happy.
"What's up new kid, I'm Todd Tolanski, but the guys just call me Toad. Wanna guess why?" he asked.
"The jumping?"
"Just one of my many talents! Observe."
He pointed at a fly zipping around the front door, and I watched it for a second. Then, out of nowhere, this long, green tongue lashed out and plucked it right out of midair!
"Whoa!" I cried as I watched the tongue pull back into his mouth.
"Oh yeah? Think that's impressive, watch this!"
The first guy who had been standing next to me, but keeping silent, had spoken up.
He made a low groan of effort as his eyes rolled back, and I felt the ground start to shake under my feet! The entire house started to shake, the walls were cracking, the ceiling plaster started to rain down on us.
As quickly as it had started, the quaking stopped. "Wow, now that's my kinda power!" I exclaimed, totally impressed.
"Thanks, name's Lance Alvers." I'm sure he would have said something else, but he was interrupted.
"Lance, knock it off! Some of us are trying to sleep!"
We all turned. This third guy was huge!
It wasn't just the blubbery belly that hung over his sweatpants; he had muscles to spare! He also had a blonde Mohawk haircut, and apparently, a bad temper.
"Just trying to educate Mystique's new recruit. Relax, Blob." Lance explained.
"New recruit, huh? Good, we could use another on our side to help us duke it out with those X-geeks." He said.
"I'll do my best." I said.
"What's your name, man? I didn't catch it." Toad said.
"I'm Pietro Maximoff."
"There's a mouthful." Lance muttered, "So what's your power anyway? It'll have to be useful if we're gonna go against Xavier's team."
I led them outside, and showed them how useful I was going to be. I made a small twister, ran up and down the side of the house and then to finish my act, I ran to the convenience store up the block and returned with a six- pack of Cokes, took about a second.
"Awesome Pietro, you're in!" Lance patted me on the back as he took a can.
They welcomed me into the house of brotherhood, and I had repaid them with betrayal.
*^*^*^*^*
Don't get me wrong, things were cool for a while. We faced off with the X- men a few different times, but it was never anything serious; no one ever got hurt, and we had the upper hand sometimes, but it would've been nice to win just once.
If anything, going against the X-men taught us what our limits were. But it wasn't always about Magneto's team versus Xavier's team. We all went to the same school, we had to be peaceful around one another. Lance and that X- girl, Kitty even had a thing going on.
How they managed to carry on while being on opposing teams is beyond me.
For my part, I did whatever my father asked. Infiltration, spying, whatever; it was all the same, really.
I never questioned his orders. If I could help things move along faster for him, then of course, I would do it.
We had fun, there weren't any adults around, save for the occasional visit from Mystique. I didn't like her very much. All she did was yell and complain, I ignored her most of the time.
Anyway, things were cool for awhile.until I got the call.
Apparently, father had been building.
In the article I had, it said he was stealing military equipment.I never questioned what it could've been for, but I understood now.
Asteroid M.
I know that my father is Magneto, but is Magneto my father?
He couldn't be!
If he were really my father, wouldn't heat least act happy to see me after all this time?
Wouldn't he, I don't know, look me up and down and then say something like, "You've grown a lot, son."?
I ran away when I was only eleven; hadn't he been worried about something bad happening to me? I was just a little kid, and I had found out- that once again- he was right. The world was filled with bad, horrible people.
Sometimes I think that I've already turned into one of them.
He removed the helmet and set it beside him, I could see his face clearly in the passing street lights.
I stared at him, he stared back at me.
I had forgotten how much we look alike. The hair, the skin, the eyes.yep, spitting images.
I leaned back in my seat. "Where are we going?" I asked.
"We're taking you to your new home." He replied. He simply answered with no further reply.
'What is going on here?' I asked myself.
Evan- that stupid, skater freshmen- managed to assemble a gang of mutants to land me in jail, and then my father shows up out of nowhere to bust me out and give me a ride home?
This was just too weird.
"Mag-." I began, but then I changed my mind.
This was my father! He wasn't the mutant villain I had read about all through the years, he is my father, the man who took care of me when I was little, who helped me discover my powers.we may have been separated for a long time, but he was still my father, wasn't he?
"Father, what is going on? How did you find me?" I asked.
He glanced up and met my eyes. "I have my methods."
I felt the car slow down, stop.
"Wait a minute, you're just gonna leave me? This isn't even my neighborhood!" I declared.
He got out of the limo, and stood waiting for me outside. I had to follow him.
"But, I thought that now we found each other."
What was I going to say? That I wanted us to be a family again? No, no, Pietro, stop it, you're still thinking like a little kid!
"I know Pietro, soon.but there are many things to be done first. Perhaps when I have accomplished what I have set out to do, but not before. I have few people I can trust. Despite the separation of the years, you are still my son. Can I trust you as an ally?"
His voice softened only the tiniest bit, but it didn't dull out the edge to his words.
"What do you want me to do?" I asked.
"Simple things, but not without some degree of challenge. The first thing you must do is relocate, to this house." He gestured over my shoulder.
I turned and read the sign in the half-dead lawn. 'Brotherhood of Bayville Boarding House'.
"There are three young men already living inside. All mutants with varying degree of power. You have already met the X-men. That is Charles Xavier's team of mutants. They are a threat to the Brotherhood, and not to be trusted. Meet the Brotherhood and get acquainted, you will live with them from now on."
He didn't leave any room for discussion, he just handed me a cell phone, "We'll keep in touch with this. Remember what I told you, the X-men must not be trusted."
With a squeal of tires, he was gone.
*^*^*
I knocked on the door, and a guy answered.
He was taller than me by a couple of inches. Darker too, in skin, hair and eyes. He was wearing a pair of roughed up jeans, a black t-shirt with a vest and black motorcycle gloves.
"Yeah?" he asked.
I didn't really know what to say, "Um, hi. Is this the Brotherhood of mutants?" I asked.
He rolled his eyes, "New recruit!" he yelled into the house.
Opening the door all the way, he let me inside.
The house was in terrible shape, but still an improvement from my old apartment.
"Aw, man, another one? If he's as big as Blob, then we gonna need another boardin' house!" came a voice from somewhere upstairs. It was another guy, with what sounded like a New Jersey accent.
I heard something slam against the wall upstairs, and then another something crash. "Whoops, my bad!"
Literally bouncing off the walls was another mutant. He jumped back and forth between the walls on either side of the staircase, and came to a stop right in front of me.
He had landed in a crouching position, but stood up straight to look me in the eyes.
He was dressed no better than the guy who opened the door for me, his clothes both ripped and stained. His skin was somewhat sallow, and his eyes had a yellowy tinge. His teeth weren't in the best shape, either. He didn't look too healthy, but he had an energetic personality. He seemed happy.
"What's up new kid, I'm Todd Tolanski, but the guys just call me Toad. Wanna guess why?" he asked.
"The jumping?"
"Just one of my many talents! Observe."
He pointed at a fly zipping around the front door, and I watched it for a second. Then, out of nowhere, this long, green tongue lashed out and plucked it right out of midair!
"Whoa!" I cried as I watched the tongue pull back into his mouth.
"Oh yeah? Think that's impressive, watch this!"
The first guy who had been standing next to me, but keeping silent, had spoken up.
He made a low groan of effort as his eyes rolled back, and I felt the ground start to shake under my feet! The entire house started to shake, the walls were cracking, the ceiling plaster started to rain down on us.
As quickly as it had started, the quaking stopped. "Wow, now that's my kinda power!" I exclaimed, totally impressed.
"Thanks, name's Lance Alvers." I'm sure he would have said something else, but he was interrupted.
"Lance, knock it off! Some of us are trying to sleep!"
We all turned. This third guy was huge!
It wasn't just the blubbery belly that hung over his sweatpants; he had muscles to spare! He also had a blonde Mohawk haircut, and apparently, a bad temper.
"Just trying to educate Mystique's new recruit. Relax, Blob." Lance explained.
"New recruit, huh? Good, we could use another on our side to help us duke it out with those X-geeks." He said.
"I'll do my best." I said.
"What's your name, man? I didn't catch it." Toad said.
"I'm Pietro Maximoff."
"There's a mouthful." Lance muttered, "So what's your power anyway? It'll have to be useful if we're gonna go against Xavier's team."
I led them outside, and showed them how useful I was going to be. I made a small twister, ran up and down the side of the house and then to finish my act, I ran to the convenience store up the block and returned with a six- pack of Cokes, took about a second.
"Awesome Pietro, you're in!" Lance patted me on the back as he took a can.
They welcomed me into the house of brotherhood, and I had repaid them with betrayal.
*^*^*^*^*
Don't get me wrong, things were cool for a while. We faced off with the X- men a few different times, but it was never anything serious; no one ever got hurt, and we had the upper hand sometimes, but it would've been nice to win just once.
If anything, going against the X-men taught us what our limits were. But it wasn't always about Magneto's team versus Xavier's team. We all went to the same school, we had to be peaceful around one another. Lance and that X- girl, Kitty even had a thing going on.
How they managed to carry on while being on opposing teams is beyond me.
For my part, I did whatever my father asked. Infiltration, spying, whatever; it was all the same, really.
I never questioned his orders. If I could help things move along faster for him, then of course, I would do it.
We had fun, there weren't any adults around, save for the occasional visit from Mystique. I didn't like her very much. All she did was yell and complain, I ignored her most of the time.
Anyway, things were cool for awhile.until I got the call.
Apparently, father had been building.
In the article I had, it said he was stealing military equipment.I never questioned what it could've been for, but I understood now.
Asteroid M.
