"The Mage"
Writer2bPoet
"When Life Changes"
Summary/Author's Notes: Have you ever wondered what being a mutant would be? Ever wonder about those people who aren't actually mutants, but only carriers of the X-Gene? Well, wonder no more. A story about one such carrier who is chosen arbitrarily to become something more.only problem is that no one asked him.
Disclaimer: I created Allen, and a few other ideas, which will be thrown into the mix, but I do not (as much as I hate it) own any of the characters in X-Men: Evolution. Paramount, the WB, and whoever else does. I'm just going to use them anyway. And no worries, I'll try to keep the characters true to their portrayals.
Altos Verdes, California
Allen smiled as his character materialized behind his opponent and threw a barrage of energy blasts at his friend's Avatar. His friend, Paul, spoke through a microphone system at his house, but Allen heard the Avatar's voice on his speakers.
"That was a cheap shot, Mage," Paul's character's voice, Tiamot, said bitterly. "Even for you."
"Perhaps," was all Allen (Mage) said in return. "You wanted down and dirty, Tiamot, I'm simply giving you what you wanted."
"I wanted a fair fight."
"Well, then," Mage said with a wry smile, "you should have said so."
The two Avatars continued to battle fiercely over the LAN connection. A little while later both players agreed to a draw of sorts. Allen got Paul on an IM channel.
"I must admit, I wasn't sure that the program would have worked. But with the exception of a few minor bugs, it's not bad at all."
"Thanks," typed Paul. "I couldn't have done it without your input though."
"No prob," responded Allen. Paul was a wiz at computer programming. He had had to borrow from various programs, but he had managed to put together an interactive virtual environment in which the two of them could battle their characters. For years, Allen and Paul had role-played with their characters, the Dark Mage and the fire-god Tiamot. Paul was really big on mythology and legendary figures.
"Anyway, it's late," typed Paul, "get back to me tomorrow about those corrections you want, I'll see what I can do."
"Yeah," responded Allen as he looked at the clock. Just past 11 at night. "Yeah," he continued, "have to get to bed myself. Wanna get some stuff ready before school starts."
"School doesn't start again for another week!" answered Paul. "What could you possibly be working on?"
"Not much, that's for sure. Just some errands, mostly."
"Yeah, whatever. Nights." And Paul logged off.
"Yeah, later," said Allen, as he shut down his computer for the night and got ready for bed. When he sat down on his bed, ready for sleep, he looked around his room. He had one of those feeling of unrealism he had sometimes. Like what was real really wasn't. He shook his head, and convinced himself it was tiredness. "What could ever happen? Life's too boring for anything to actually happen." He lay back on his bed with the light out. Summer was too warm for bed sheets. ...............
He didn't know when he fell asleep; in fact, he hadn't even realized that he had closed his eyes. But the dreams came just the same. People with melted-plastic faces running after him with torches, screaming at him to die, or to go back where he came from. The dream gave him the impression that here he was the strange one, the mutant. He woke up in a sweat, and remembered a news feed he had seen about the "Mutant Phenomena".
He shook his head, tiredly, and went back to sleep. That was when the other dream came. He found himself in a large room, bordering on cavernous. The walls were made of some sort of stone; the floor and the ceiling were made of the same material. The air was humid, almost heavy, and warm enough to make him sweat. Allen was surprised by how real it felt. But the thought faded from mind.
He walked forward into the room, and into a central area where the floor was clear for about thirty feet in every direction. The cleared floor space was rectangular, and interrupted only by a waist high length of stone in the middle of the space. A strange sort of light seemed to glow all around him, but it seemed brightest on and around the stone slab. He approached the slab with no feeling of apprehension or hesitation; he was meant to be here. Exactly in line with the slab, at either end of the clearing stood a singular pillar, larger than others that surrounded the cleared floor. There were two other similar pillars, also in line with the slab, but instead they were to the outside, along the length of the cleared space. Each pillar had something on it. He couldn't tell if it was an inscription, or what, but there was something.
'Lie down on the slab', spoke a voice in his head. Allen didn't hesitate, as he started to sit down on the slab, a thought struck him, 'why?' He stopped then and looked around. 'Where am I? And what is this place?'
'All shall be revealed. This time is not for questions.' The voice he heard in his mind had a sense of familiarity. This place seemed familiar somehow. He had been here before. 'I must know why I come here in my sleep?' Allen felt dumbstruck. Did he just think that? When had he ever been here before?
'All shall be revealed. Lie down, and relax.' The voice did not sound upset at the questions, only impatient. It had a parental feel about it. Why should that be significant, though Allen. But it didn't seem important. He lay back on the slab, and took a deep breath.
A blue-green light glowed on the pillars to his right, his left, and the one he faced. He didn't need to turn his head to know that the one behind him was glowing as well. This all had the feeling of familiarity to it, like a book read and forgotten years later when you pick it up to read it again. His body was already tensing for that split-second burst of instantaneous pain that he knew was coming.
The four points of light intersected in the air above him, creating a field of energy directly above the slab. The blue-green color of the field rippled and cascaded, so that it resembled a blend between rippling water, and that web-like look that static electricity gets when it's overexcited. 'This hasn't happened before,' that strange inner voice of his said. He knew it was a part of him, somehow; the part of him that remembered. The pain hadn't come this time, 'Why?'
'All shall be revealed. Unparalleled potential can be yours, if you wish it.' The field had changed, subtly. The color was changing into a sort of electric purple. Unparalleled potential, Allen thought. 'But you once said that.' The other voice had stopped. What had this other voice said? Allen wanted to know. It didn't seem important right now, but the curiosity somehow blended into a newly born feeling of excitement and desire. Unparalleled potential, it said. Allen wanted to know. 'I have a choice. You are asking me if I want this gift of yours?"
'Yes. If you agree, you will now all that you desire answered. If you decline, you will not remember any of this. You need only agree.' Some part of Allen was in awe. It was the most that this voice had ever said, or ever told him. The excitement built within him, and as if a bubble had popped, he could remember everything again. If I want it, it will be mine, Allen thought. There was no question that all was as the voice had said. 'Yes, I will take your offer. I want your gift." Allen thought that he had sounded like a spoiled brat. Instead of asking, he was demanding. But his acceptance stood.
'This is good. All shall be revealed.'
The pillars were still connected by the same energy field as before, and right below the first, a second series of lights began to glow. These were blue-green as before, but they had a different feel to them. The lower lights extended beams that converged on Allen, and engulfed him. He had half expected some sort of sensation as the energy engulfed him, but there was nothing, except for a feeling of weightlessness, as he suddenly realized he was being floated up to the electric purple colored field.
He was brought up to just below the energy field, and for a brief second, his mind registered the fact that the second set of energy beams, which had brought him up to this height above the floor, had stopped glowing. He though he would fall, but he hadn't yet, and he somehow knew that he would not. The first energy field seemed to open up somehow, and then it surrounded him.
'Brace yourself.' He heard the voice tell him. 'This will hurt.'
His body tensed as a surge of energy swept through his body. An imperceptible pain froze his body.
Allen jolted awake in bed. He looked around his room with a feeling of dislocation. Something had happened, he knew it, but he couldn't remember exactly what. He remembered.something about a dream. He shook his head, and looked at a digital alarm clock next to his bed. The face showed that it was seven minutes to six. A pre-dawn glowed began on the horizon.
He started to sit up when his entire body sort of spasmed, and his entire body started to hurt with a pulsing throb. He lay bed, and took a deep breath. Why would his entire body hurt like that? Just need to sleep. He was too tired to wonder if he had thought it or not. He started to close his eyes, and errantly wished that he would feel better by the time he woke up again later on. The pain was already receding as he drifted back into REM.
.....
An alert went off, and woke Professor Charles Xavior in his bed. He recognized what it was, and pulled himself over and into his wheelchair before getting over to a computer display on the far wall of his room. It was directly linked to a computer in the deep recesses of his Institute. An Institute for the Gifted, or mutants as the world labeled them.
Charles entered a code, and underwent a retinal scan to verify his identity before the computer accessed it's records. The computer was called Cerebro, and it was used to monitor mutant activity around the world. Both the activities of those already out in the open, and those who have not yet manifested their latent mutant powers. Whenever one did surface, the computer would alert him shortly after.
"Let's see who we got," said the Professor, more to himself than anyone. A data file came up on the display. The subject in question was an 'Allen Tearance' of a quiet suburb in Altos Verdes, California. Not a large city, but not any small town, either. Nothing too definite on what his ability would be, but that wasn't a new thing either.
The Professor reached out with his mind to see who was available. Logan was up and around, not unusual, but everyone else was still asleep. It was after all a Saturday. Charles was sure he could let this one go for a few hours, but newly emerging mutants weren't something to take lightly. He would have to be brought in, and soon.
"When Life Changes"
Summary/Author's Notes: Have you ever wondered what being a mutant would be? Ever wonder about those people who aren't actually mutants, but only carriers of the X-Gene? Well, wonder no more. A story about one such carrier who is chosen arbitrarily to become something more.only problem is that no one asked him.
Disclaimer: I created Allen, and a few other ideas, which will be thrown into the mix, but I do not (as much as I hate it) own any of the characters in X-Men: Evolution. Paramount, the WB, and whoever else does. I'm just going to use them anyway. And no worries, I'll try to keep the characters true to their portrayals.
Altos Verdes, California
Allen smiled as his character materialized behind his opponent and threw a barrage of energy blasts at his friend's Avatar. His friend, Paul, spoke through a microphone system at his house, but Allen heard the Avatar's voice on his speakers.
"That was a cheap shot, Mage," Paul's character's voice, Tiamot, said bitterly. "Even for you."
"Perhaps," was all Allen (Mage) said in return. "You wanted down and dirty, Tiamot, I'm simply giving you what you wanted."
"I wanted a fair fight."
"Well, then," Mage said with a wry smile, "you should have said so."
The two Avatars continued to battle fiercely over the LAN connection. A little while later both players agreed to a draw of sorts. Allen got Paul on an IM channel.
"I must admit, I wasn't sure that the program would have worked. But with the exception of a few minor bugs, it's not bad at all."
"Thanks," typed Paul. "I couldn't have done it without your input though."
"No prob," responded Allen. Paul was a wiz at computer programming. He had had to borrow from various programs, but he had managed to put together an interactive virtual environment in which the two of them could battle their characters. For years, Allen and Paul had role-played with their characters, the Dark Mage and the fire-god Tiamot. Paul was really big on mythology and legendary figures.
"Anyway, it's late," typed Paul, "get back to me tomorrow about those corrections you want, I'll see what I can do."
"Yeah," responded Allen as he looked at the clock. Just past 11 at night. "Yeah," he continued, "have to get to bed myself. Wanna get some stuff ready before school starts."
"School doesn't start again for another week!" answered Paul. "What could you possibly be working on?"
"Not much, that's for sure. Just some errands, mostly."
"Yeah, whatever. Nights." And Paul logged off.
"Yeah, later," said Allen, as he shut down his computer for the night and got ready for bed. When he sat down on his bed, ready for sleep, he looked around his room. He had one of those feeling of unrealism he had sometimes. Like what was real really wasn't. He shook his head, and convinced himself it was tiredness. "What could ever happen? Life's too boring for anything to actually happen." He lay back on his bed with the light out. Summer was too warm for bed sheets. ...............
He didn't know when he fell asleep; in fact, he hadn't even realized that he had closed his eyes. But the dreams came just the same. People with melted-plastic faces running after him with torches, screaming at him to die, or to go back where he came from. The dream gave him the impression that here he was the strange one, the mutant. He woke up in a sweat, and remembered a news feed he had seen about the "Mutant Phenomena".
He shook his head, tiredly, and went back to sleep. That was when the other dream came. He found himself in a large room, bordering on cavernous. The walls were made of some sort of stone; the floor and the ceiling were made of the same material. The air was humid, almost heavy, and warm enough to make him sweat. Allen was surprised by how real it felt. But the thought faded from mind.
He walked forward into the room, and into a central area where the floor was clear for about thirty feet in every direction. The cleared floor space was rectangular, and interrupted only by a waist high length of stone in the middle of the space. A strange sort of light seemed to glow all around him, but it seemed brightest on and around the stone slab. He approached the slab with no feeling of apprehension or hesitation; he was meant to be here. Exactly in line with the slab, at either end of the clearing stood a singular pillar, larger than others that surrounded the cleared floor. There were two other similar pillars, also in line with the slab, but instead they were to the outside, along the length of the cleared space. Each pillar had something on it. He couldn't tell if it was an inscription, or what, but there was something.
'Lie down on the slab', spoke a voice in his head. Allen didn't hesitate, as he started to sit down on the slab, a thought struck him, 'why?' He stopped then and looked around. 'Where am I? And what is this place?'
'All shall be revealed. This time is not for questions.' The voice he heard in his mind had a sense of familiarity. This place seemed familiar somehow. He had been here before. 'I must know why I come here in my sleep?' Allen felt dumbstruck. Did he just think that? When had he ever been here before?
'All shall be revealed. Lie down, and relax.' The voice did not sound upset at the questions, only impatient. It had a parental feel about it. Why should that be significant, though Allen. But it didn't seem important. He lay back on the slab, and took a deep breath.
A blue-green light glowed on the pillars to his right, his left, and the one he faced. He didn't need to turn his head to know that the one behind him was glowing as well. This all had the feeling of familiarity to it, like a book read and forgotten years later when you pick it up to read it again. His body was already tensing for that split-second burst of instantaneous pain that he knew was coming.
The four points of light intersected in the air above him, creating a field of energy directly above the slab. The blue-green color of the field rippled and cascaded, so that it resembled a blend between rippling water, and that web-like look that static electricity gets when it's overexcited. 'This hasn't happened before,' that strange inner voice of his said. He knew it was a part of him, somehow; the part of him that remembered. The pain hadn't come this time, 'Why?'
'All shall be revealed. Unparalleled potential can be yours, if you wish it.' The field had changed, subtly. The color was changing into a sort of electric purple. Unparalleled potential, Allen thought. 'But you once said that.' The other voice had stopped. What had this other voice said? Allen wanted to know. It didn't seem important right now, but the curiosity somehow blended into a newly born feeling of excitement and desire. Unparalleled potential, it said. Allen wanted to know. 'I have a choice. You are asking me if I want this gift of yours?"
'Yes. If you agree, you will now all that you desire answered. If you decline, you will not remember any of this. You need only agree.' Some part of Allen was in awe. It was the most that this voice had ever said, or ever told him. The excitement built within him, and as if a bubble had popped, he could remember everything again. If I want it, it will be mine, Allen thought. There was no question that all was as the voice had said. 'Yes, I will take your offer. I want your gift." Allen thought that he had sounded like a spoiled brat. Instead of asking, he was demanding. But his acceptance stood.
'This is good. All shall be revealed.'
The pillars were still connected by the same energy field as before, and right below the first, a second series of lights began to glow. These were blue-green as before, but they had a different feel to them. The lower lights extended beams that converged on Allen, and engulfed him. He had half expected some sort of sensation as the energy engulfed him, but there was nothing, except for a feeling of weightlessness, as he suddenly realized he was being floated up to the electric purple colored field.
He was brought up to just below the energy field, and for a brief second, his mind registered the fact that the second set of energy beams, which had brought him up to this height above the floor, had stopped glowing. He though he would fall, but he hadn't yet, and he somehow knew that he would not. The first energy field seemed to open up somehow, and then it surrounded him.
'Brace yourself.' He heard the voice tell him. 'This will hurt.'
His body tensed as a surge of energy swept through his body. An imperceptible pain froze his body.
Allen jolted awake in bed. He looked around his room with a feeling of dislocation. Something had happened, he knew it, but he couldn't remember exactly what. He remembered.something about a dream. He shook his head, and looked at a digital alarm clock next to his bed. The face showed that it was seven minutes to six. A pre-dawn glowed began on the horizon.
He started to sit up when his entire body sort of spasmed, and his entire body started to hurt with a pulsing throb. He lay bed, and took a deep breath. Why would his entire body hurt like that? Just need to sleep. He was too tired to wonder if he had thought it or not. He started to close his eyes, and errantly wished that he would feel better by the time he woke up again later on. The pain was already receding as he drifted back into REM.
.....
An alert went off, and woke Professor Charles Xavior in his bed. He recognized what it was, and pulled himself over and into his wheelchair before getting over to a computer display on the far wall of his room. It was directly linked to a computer in the deep recesses of his Institute. An Institute for the Gifted, or mutants as the world labeled them.
Charles entered a code, and underwent a retinal scan to verify his identity before the computer accessed it's records. The computer was called Cerebro, and it was used to monitor mutant activity around the world. Both the activities of those already out in the open, and those who have not yet manifested their latent mutant powers. Whenever one did surface, the computer would alert him shortly after.
"Let's see who we got," said the Professor, more to himself than anyone. A data file came up on the display. The subject in question was an 'Allen Tearance' of a quiet suburb in Altos Verdes, California. Not a large city, but not any small town, either. Nothing too definite on what his ability would be, but that wasn't a new thing either.
The Professor reached out with his mind to see who was available. Logan was up and around, not unusual, but everyone else was still asleep. It was after all a Saturday. Charles was sure he could let this one go for a few hours, but newly emerging mutants weren't something to take lightly. He would have to be brought in, and soon.