Piotr Rasputin was not one to cause problems with the soldiers on his
collective farm. He worked as hard as he could and for as long as the
soldiers wanted, keeping his mouth shut and his ears deaf to the taunts
they made. He even steeled his body to the blows they sometimes dealt him
when they claimed he wasn't working hard enough for the good of the Russian
people.
There was only one thing that made Piotr soft. It was his little sister Illyana. Even though she was only a little girl, they had her working too, carrying around small bushels of hay and whatnot when she wasn't carrying the bucket of water and ladle for the workers. Piotr was a good brother and always tried his best to protect her from any harm.
He was working in the field when he heard the buzzing sound of one of the tractors. Normally, he didn't notice this, this was a farm after all and farms used tractors, but for some reason he felt the urge to look up and when he did, his heart leapt up into his throat as his eyes grew wide.
The fool in the tractor had pulled the lever too hard and now it was stuck at high speed. How many times had he been told not to pull hard on the lever because it got stuck easily? Now, the idiot was destroying their crops but worse, he was heading for Illyana who wasn't paying attention!
Illyana thought that the tractor was simply going its rounds as usual, nothing out of the ordinary on a farm. Besides, she had found an ant farm and the little black creatures were so fascinating that she just had to stop and look at them for a little bit. When she heard her brother shouting her name, she finally turned around and when she saw the tractor coming towards her, she froze.
It was a deer in headlights situation; that was what Piotr saw right away when she froze. He shouted for her to get out of the way but she didn't move, staring at the oncoming tractor with wide blue eyes, her golden hair blowing behind her. Biting his lip, Piotr looked from the tractor to Illyana and he barely thought as he ran in front of her and hugged her tightly against him, praying to any deity who would listen to protect them both. He imagined some kind of metal shield around them and closed his eyes tightly as the tractor came on them.
There was a loud metallic screeching sound and shrapnel flew all over, all of them bent and twisted in odd angles. Out of all of this rubble, not one of them was a body part or covered in blood. Everyone around them stared in wonder as the black smoke slowly died away.
Terrified that he had killed two of his comrades, the idiot stumbled out of the wrecked tractor and he slowly walked towards the front, his whole body trembling with fear of his own life when the soldiers found out about this. His eyes grew wide with everyone else's when he saw Piotr and his sister.
Piotr's eyes were closed tightly, his arms still wrapped tightly around his sister's small body. He didn't open his eyes when the noise died down, too afraid that his sister was hurt. It never occurred to him to wonder why he was still alive.
Illyana slowly wriggled her head from her big brother's grasp and she looked at his arms in surprise. Looking up at his face, her mouth made a small "o" in wonder and she slowly smiled a bit, thinking back to a smuggled book he had once read to her about a girl named Dorothy in a land called Oz and her friends.
"Brother, you are the Tin Man!" she giggled, smiling up at him. "You're all shiny and made out of metal just like him!"
At her words, Piotr opened his eyes and he looked down at her in surprise. Her looked into her eyes first, too stunned for words until he saw his arms. They were pure silver steel. Slowly, he let go of her and he stood up, looking down at his body. From head to toe Piotr was covered in steel, his clothes having ripped in a few places from the strain. Looking at the tractor, he saw a clear indent of where it had smashed into him. The tractor was completely demolished, but he and his sister were completely fine.
"My God, I just turned into metal!" he said, not noticing the looks everyone around him was given him and his sister. Looking at Illyana, he raised his eyebrows a bit and he helplessly smiled a bit. When he looked around at the others, his smile died away as he saw the look of disgust and contempt on their faces. He could see that things would turn ugly soon enough so he leaned down and scooped his sister up in his arms.
"I think we need to head home, snow flake." He said softly, looking around at the others warily.
"But it's not time for us to go home, brother. Won't the soldiers get mad at us?" she asked, wrapping her arms around his neck. Slowly, Piotr shook his head as he started to walk away.
"Nyet, they won't be angry with us this time." He promised her softly. He walked past the guards without a word, everyone watching him silently and yet warily at the same time.
When Piotr got him, his mother took one look at him and quickly shut the door behind him, shutting the curtains quickly. When she turned back to him, she looked at his shirt and sighed, shaking her head a bit.
"That is going to take a long time for me to fix up you know." She said, making him take it off. "What happened, Piotr?" she asked, sitting down and letting Illyana rest on her lap. Piotr was about to sit in a chair when he thought better of it and simply sat on the floor.
"Snow flake was about to get run over by a tractor. I ran up and grabbed her, covering her with my body. That's all I remember besides wishing a metal shield protected us both." He said.
"Piotr turned into the Tin Man, mama!" Illyana giggled, twirling a stray strand of hair around her finger.
"Da, now if I can figure out how I can turn back, that would be nice." Piotr sighed, looking down at his metal hands. Slowly, his mother stood up and headed for the kitchen.
"Try and figure it out, Piotr. I'll start to sew up your shirt. In the mean time, you must not step out of this house. I have a feeling our comrades are not happy about your sudden powers." She said over her shoulder.
Nodding quietly, Piotr looked down at his hands and narrowed his eyes, trying to force the metal away. It didn't work. Sighing, he closed his eyes and tried to think of a way to make the metal go away. If thinking about a metal shield made it come, maybe thinking of the shield going away would make the steel go away. He heard clinking and felt himself get lighter. Opening his eyes, he found that he had normal flesh once more. He smiled a bit and he stood up.
That night was quiet, everyone in the house staying inside and not bothering to look inside. They knew that the people hated them now. There had been leaks of people with special abilities springing up all over the world. The people were being called Mutants nowadays. They were forced to ignore every knock and thump on their doors, learning from the first few that they were simply stones wrapped in papers with threats written on them.
Piotr was ready to leave his home so his family could be safe when he heard a knock on the door. He was ready to ignore it when it listened to it. It was more of a polite knocking, with a happy beat to it almost. Cocking an eyebrow, he slowly opened the door and found himself looking at a stranger with his face covered in a wide brimmed hat and wearing a covering trench coat.
"Can I help you?" he asked, uncertain about this stranger dressed so oddly. The stranger lifted his head and Piotr saw that his eyes were golden and glowed with no pupils in plain sight. The edges of the eyes crinkled up in a smile slowly.
"May I come in?" the stranger asked. Piotr recognized his accent as a German one. He nodded slightly and he stepped back, letting the German stranger with strange eyes enter his home, shutting the door behind him.
"Danke, mein herr." The stranger said, slowly removing his hands from his pockets. Piotr couldn't help but stare at them. They were cobalt blue and covered in fur with only two large fingers and a thumb. When the man removed his hat, he raised his eyebrows as he saw his blue furred face and pointed ears. The man smiled at his reaction and he saw fangs clearly.
"He's an Elf!" Illyana laughed, pointing at him. Piotr winced, thinking she had upset the man when he looked at her, but his worry vanished as the man burst into laughter.
"Believe vhat you vish, liebe! It is better to be an Elf zhen a demon!" the German said, slowly removing his coat. The German was wearing a plain white shirt and blue jeans, his feet without shoes for obvious reasons. His tail unwrapped itself from his waist and swayed behind him as he turned to Piotr.
"I am here to make you an important proposition." He said, slowly walking up to a chair. "May I?" he asked.
"Da, of course." Piotr said, slowly sitting down across from him at a small table. The German perched on top of it and looked around the room for a moment before he turned to Piotr.
"How long have you known about your power?" he asked, tilting his head to one side.
"I just found out about it today when I saved my sister from a tractor." Piotr answered. "Why?" he asked, cocking an eyebrow slightly.
"Mein herr, my name vas once Kurt Vagner but now, I am Nightcrawler. Like you, I am a Mutant." Nightcrawler said calmly, smiling slowly as he looked over at Illyana who was staring at his tail in wonder. Calmly, he flicked it back and forth, looping it around her hand for a moment before unwrapping it. He turned back to Piotr and became serious.
"Zhis vorld does not accept us, as you vell know from zhose stones und looks." He said. "I myself dealt vith hatred und I vas nearly murdered for looking zhese vay." He said. Very slowly, he lifted his feet and showed them to Piotr.
At one time, they had been covered in fine fur like the rest of his body but now, they were hairless and burnt horribly. Piotr winced visibly as he saw that the scars went all the way up to Nightcrawler's ankles, only some of the fur starting to grow back. Calmly Nightcrawler lowered his feet back to the floor, his tail flicking back and forth slightly.
"Disgusting vhat zhey do us, ja?" he asked, cocking an eyebrow. "They vill most likely try to kill you und your family too, mein freund. I und my boss Magneto vill not allow zhat to happen to a fellow Mutant und his innocent family." He said.
"What are you offering my son?" Piotr's mother asked, slowly walking up and placing down a tea tray.
"Freedom." Nightcrawler answered, taking a teacup with his tail calmly. "Mein boss is starting a group called zhe Brotherhood. Ve are fighting for zhe rights Mutants deserve." He explained, sipping lightly from his cup.
"What kind of fighting?" Piotr asked warily. Nightcrawler smiled slowly, showing his fangs in an almost pleasant manner as he tilted his head to one side fondly looking at him.
"Any kind ve need to do." He said. "Do not vorry, ve vill only fight vith our fists vhen ve must." He added, seeing the look on Piotr's face.
"And if I join this Brotherhood, what will be done about my family?" Piotr asked. Nightcrawler looked over at Illyana and allowed her to play with his tail.
"Zhey vill be protected of course." He promised. He rested his hand over his heart. "I swear zhis on mein own life." He added, looking Piotr in the eyes. Piotr looked at the table for a moment, thinking quietly to himself for a moment before he looked to his mother and then back to Nightcrawler with a faint smile.
"All right then, Nightcrawler." Piotr said. "I will join you." Smiling, Nightcrawler finished his tea and he stood up, picking Illyana up and resting her on his shoulders.
"Wonderful!" he said. He stopped for a moment and thought to himself. "You vill need a name." He said.
"My name is Piotr. . ."
"Nein nein nein, mein herr." Nightcrawler shook his head. "Zhat is your old name. You need a new name. One zhat explains your powers." He explained. He looked Piotr over with his head tilted to one side and he slowly smiled, winking at him.
"I have it." He said finally.
"What is it?" Piotr asked.
"I zhink you are. . . Colossus!" he said with determination. Piotr laughed softly, resting his hands on his hips a bit as he looked at Nightcrawler.
"Colossus?" he repeated, thinking about it. He smiled and nodded a bit, shaking Nightcrawler's hand. "I like it!"
There was only one thing that made Piotr soft. It was his little sister Illyana. Even though she was only a little girl, they had her working too, carrying around small bushels of hay and whatnot when she wasn't carrying the bucket of water and ladle for the workers. Piotr was a good brother and always tried his best to protect her from any harm.
He was working in the field when he heard the buzzing sound of one of the tractors. Normally, he didn't notice this, this was a farm after all and farms used tractors, but for some reason he felt the urge to look up and when he did, his heart leapt up into his throat as his eyes grew wide.
The fool in the tractor had pulled the lever too hard and now it was stuck at high speed. How many times had he been told not to pull hard on the lever because it got stuck easily? Now, the idiot was destroying their crops but worse, he was heading for Illyana who wasn't paying attention!
Illyana thought that the tractor was simply going its rounds as usual, nothing out of the ordinary on a farm. Besides, she had found an ant farm and the little black creatures were so fascinating that she just had to stop and look at them for a little bit. When she heard her brother shouting her name, she finally turned around and when she saw the tractor coming towards her, she froze.
It was a deer in headlights situation; that was what Piotr saw right away when she froze. He shouted for her to get out of the way but she didn't move, staring at the oncoming tractor with wide blue eyes, her golden hair blowing behind her. Biting his lip, Piotr looked from the tractor to Illyana and he barely thought as he ran in front of her and hugged her tightly against him, praying to any deity who would listen to protect them both. He imagined some kind of metal shield around them and closed his eyes tightly as the tractor came on them.
There was a loud metallic screeching sound and shrapnel flew all over, all of them bent and twisted in odd angles. Out of all of this rubble, not one of them was a body part or covered in blood. Everyone around them stared in wonder as the black smoke slowly died away.
Terrified that he had killed two of his comrades, the idiot stumbled out of the wrecked tractor and he slowly walked towards the front, his whole body trembling with fear of his own life when the soldiers found out about this. His eyes grew wide with everyone else's when he saw Piotr and his sister.
Piotr's eyes were closed tightly, his arms still wrapped tightly around his sister's small body. He didn't open his eyes when the noise died down, too afraid that his sister was hurt. It never occurred to him to wonder why he was still alive.
Illyana slowly wriggled her head from her big brother's grasp and she looked at his arms in surprise. Looking up at his face, her mouth made a small "o" in wonder and she slowly smiled a bit, thinking back to a smuggled book he had once read to her about a girl named Dorothy in a land called Oz and her friends.
"Brother, you are the Tin Man!" she giggled, smiling up at him. "You're all shiny and made out of metal just like him!"
At her words, Piotr opened his eyes and he looked down at her in surprise. Her looked into her eyes first, too stunned for words until he saw his arms. They were pure silver steel. Slowly, he let go of her and he stood up, looking down at his body. From head to toe Piotr was covered in steel, his clothes having ripped in a few places from the strain. Looking at the tractor, he saw a clear indent of where it had smashed into him. The tractor was completely demolished, but he and his sister were completely fine.
"My God, I just turned into metal!" he said, not noticing the looks everyone around him was given him and his sister. Looking at Illyana, he raised his eyebrows a bit and he helplessly smiled a bit. When he looked around at the others, his smile died away as he saw the look of disgust and contempt on their faces. He could see that things would turn ugly soon enough so he leaned down and scooped his sister up in his arms.
"I think we need to head home, snow flake." He said softly, looking around at the others warily.
"But it's not time for us to go home, brother. Won't the soldiers get mad at us?" she asked, wrapping her arms around his neck. Slowly, Piotr shook his head as he started to walk away.
"Nyet, they won't be angry with us this time." He promised her softly. He walked past the guards without a word, everyone watching him silently and yet warily at the same time.
When Piotr got him, his mother took one look at him and quickly shut the door behind him, shutting the curtains quickly. When she turned back to him, she looked at his shirt and sighed, shaking her head a bit.
"That is going to take a long time for me to fix up you know." She said, making him take it off. "What happened, Piotr?" she asked, sitting down and letting Illyana rest on her lap. Piotr was about to sit in a chair when he thought better of it and simply sat on the floor.
"Snow flake was about to get run over by a tractor. I ran up and grabbed her, covering her with my body. That's all I remember besides wishing a metal shield protected us both." He said.
"Piotr turned into the Tin Man, mama!" Illyana giggled, twirling a stray strand of hair around her finger.
"Da, now if I can figure out how I can turn back, that would be nice." Piotr sighed, looking down at his metal hands. Slowly, his mother stood up and headed for the kitchen.
"Try and figure it out, Piotr. I'll start to sew up your shirt. In the mean time, you must not step out of this house. I have a feeling our comrades are not happy about your sudden powers." She said over her shoulder.
Nodding quietly, Piotr looked down at his hands and narrowed his eyes, trying to force the metal away. It didn't work. Sighing, he closed his eyes and tried to think of a way to make the metal go away. If thinking about a metal shield made it come, maybe thinking of the shield going away would make the steel go away. He heard clinking and felt himself get lighter. Opening his eyes, he found that he had normal flesh once more. He smiled a bit and he stood up.
That night was quiet, everyone in the house staying inside and not bothering to look inside. They knew that the people hated them now. There had been leaks of people with special abilities springing up all over the world. The people were being called Mutants nowadays. They were forced to ignore every knock and thump on their doors, learning from the first few that they were simply stones wrapped in papers with threats written on them.
Piotr was ready to leave his home so his family could be safe when he heard a knock on the door. He was ready to ignore it when it listened to it. It was more of a polite knocking, with a happy beat to it almost. Cocking an eyebrow, he slowly opened the door and found himself looking at a stranger with his face covered in a wide brimmed hat and wearing a covering trench coat.
"Can I help you?" he asked, uncertain about this stranger dressed so oddly. The stranger lifted his head and Piotr saw that his eyes were golden and glowed with no pupils in plain sight. The edges of the eyes crinkled up in a smile slowly.
"May I come in?" the stranger asked. Piotr recognized his accent as a German one. He nodded slightly and he stepped back, letting the German stranger with strange eyes enter his home, shutting the door behind him.
"Danke, mein herr." The stranger said, slowly removing his hands from his pockets. Piotr couldn't help but stare at them. They were cobalt blue and covered in fur with only two large fingers and a thumb. When the man removed his hat, he raised his eyebrows as he saw his blue furred face and pointed ears. The man smiled at his reaction and he saw fangs clearly.
"He's an Elf!" Illyana laughed, pointing at him. Piotr winced, thinking she had upset the man when he looked at her, but his worry vanished as the man burst into laughter.
"Believe vhat you vish, liebe! It is better to be an Elf zhen a demon!" the German said, slowly removing his coat. The German was wearing a plain white shirt and blue jeans, his feet without shoes for obvious reasons. His tail unwrapped itself from his waist and swayed behind him as he turned to Piotr.
"I am here to make you an important proposition." He said, slowly walking up to a chair. "May I?" he asked.
"Da, of course." Piotr said, slowly sitting down across from him at a small table. The German perched on top of it and looked around the room for a moment before he turned to Piotr.
"How long have you known about your power?" he asked, tilting his head to one side.
"I just found out about it today when I saved my sister from a tractor." Piotr answered. "Why?" he asked, cocking an eyebrow slightly.
"Mein herr, my name vas once Kurt Vagner but now, I am Nightcrawler. Like you, I am a Mutant." Nightcrawler said calmly, smiling slowly as he looked over at Illyana who was staring at his tail in wonder. Calmly, he flicked it back and forth, looping it around her hand for a moment before unwrapping it. He turned back to Piotr and became serious.
"Zhis vorld does not accept us, as you vell know from zhose stones und looks." He said. "I myself dealt vith hatred und I vas nearly murdered for looking zhese vay." He said. Very slowly, he lifted his feet and showed them to Piotr.
At one time, they had been covered in fine fur like the rest of his body but now, they were hairless and burnt horribly. Piotr winced visibly as he saw that the scars went all the way up to Nightcrawler's ankles, only some of the fur starting to grow back. Calmly Nightcrawler lowered his feet back to the floor, his tail flicking back and forth slightly.
"Disgusting vhat zhey do us, ja?" he asked, cocking an eyebrow. "They vill most likely try to kill you und your family too, mein freund. I und my boss Magneto vill not allow zhat to happen to a fellow Mutant und his innocent family." He said.
"What are you offering my son?" Piotr's mother asked, slowly walking up and placing down a tea tray.
"Freedom." Nightcrawler answered, taking a teacup with his tail calmly. "Mein boss is starting a group called zhe Brotherhood. Ve are fighting for zhe rights Mutants deserve." He explained, sipping lightly from his cup.
"What kind of fighting?" Piotr asked warily. Nightcrawler smiled slowly, showing his fangs in an almost pleasant manner as he tilted his head to one side fondly looking at him.
"Any kind ve need to do." He said. "Do not vorry, ve vill only fight vith our fists vhen ve must." He added, seeing the look on Piotr's face.
"And if I join this Brotherhood, what will be done about my family?" Piotr asked. Nightcrawler looked over at Illyana and allowed her to play with his tail.
"Zhey vill be protected of course." He promised. He rested his hand over his heart. "I swear zhis on mein own life." He added, looking Piotr in the eyes. Piotr looked at the table for a moment, thinking quietly to himself for a moment before he looked to his mother and then back to Nightcrawler with a faint smile.
"All right then, Nightcrawler." Piotr said. "I will join you." Smiling, Nightcrawler finished his tea and he stood up, picking Illyana up and resting her on his shoulders.
"Wonderful!" he said. He stopped for a moment and thought to himself. "You vill need a name." He said.
"My name is Piotr. . ."
"Nein nein nein, mein herr." Nightcrawler shook his head. "Zhat is your old name. You need a new name. One zhat explains your powers." He explained. He looked Piotr over with his head tilted to one side and he slowly smiled, winking at him.
"I have it." He said finally.
"What is it?" Piotr asked.
"I zhink you are. . . Colossus!" he said with determination. Piotr laughed softly, resting his hands on his hips a bit as he looked at Nightcrawler.
"Colossus?" he repeated, thinking about it. He smiled and nodded a bit, shaking Nightcrawler's hand. "I like it!"