~~~ Warning ~~~ This chapter is contradicting to "X-Men: Evolution!"

Chapter Four: The Land of Kurts

NEW FRONTIER The new frontier is scary and new, It holds secrets, untold. The new frontier is painted black and blue. It has hues unbehold.

Have you been to the new frontier? I have and life, Is different here. There is no knife, In your back, Despite many harms. Take me back, Into those loving arms. Hold me and love me I cannot live here without you.

I fell for a long time when I hit the bottom. It was soft. Scooping some of the material into my hand, I realized it was powder. It was a blue powder that must have been rocks at one point in time. A small light came from the sky. I looked up. It was a translucent white glow. It might have been a moon but it looked more like an orb floating there. I stood up slowly, wiping hair from my face. I dusted myself off. Looking around, I found a stream. It was so dark, so if not for the sound, I would not have found it. Scooping up some water, I dropped it back in and wiped my hands on my pants. The water was a black-brown color. It was disturbed me and I backed up. I assumed I hit a boulder when my back collided with something. Turning around, I found it wasn't! It was a woman of light blue wearing what might have been a magenta bikini and carrying a staff. The staff had large loops at the top and was jagged at one side at the bottom like a key. She was levitated above the ground and had wild, knee-length blond hair. Her fingers ended in sharp points and had no nails. An orb that was tied around her neck by a silver chain floated in front of her. A bracelet adorned her ankle. "Who are you?" she asked sternly. "God! Everyone seems to be blue!" I mumbled. "What?" she asked a little bit louder. "M-my name is Marianne," I said, looking her in the eye. She looked me over with her glowing amber cat eyes. "You don't belong here!" She said. I nodded. "I know! My friend was teleporting with me, and I lost my grip here and fell!" I explained. She raised an eyebrow. "Better make yourself comfortable, Marianne," she said and began to "walk" off. I hurried and caught up with her. "What do you mean, 'make myself comfortable?'" I exclaimed. She looked at me and half-smiled. "Well, you can't teleport and not very often do teleporters who don't live here come through. They go through a different dimensional world of fire and rock!" she told me. I felt like hitting her over the head! "Well, obviously, you aren't a teleporter!" I exclaimed. It sounded like a job or something, like "teleprompter", but I didn't know how else to phrase it. "Well, obviously!" she retorted. "Then who are you?" I asked, exasperated. She looked at me slightly and began to "walk" again. "I am Alicia but am known as 'Key!'" she said. I walked after her. "Why 'Key?'" I asked. She switched her staff to the other hand. "I can open portals," she explained. "So, why don't you open one for me?" I asked, my hands in the shrugging position but asking "why?" instead of "I don't know." She was unbelievable! I mean, why did she have to be so daft, to put it nicely. She turned to me but kept going. Then, she stopped. "You would have to do something for me!" She said. Now this was where I was going, "Now, this is great!" What a fun life I live, right? I wish it wasn't. "And what is that?" I asked raising an eyebrow. Her eyes twinkled. "You will know!" she said merrily, "You have three days!" Then, she vanished. See this is where it got "fun"! How would I know? Three days? I would still be walking three days later! Well, I trudged on in the direction that she had been going along the stream. The weather was hot and humid even though there was no real light. One would expect the sun to be pummeling down light upon me constantly for it to feel that hot but it was. I rolled up my pants to just below my knees and brought my shirt up past my midriff. I kept my hair wet and walked in the stream to help keep cool. The water actually didn't seem that different aside from the color but I still didn't drink it! The feeling of water running down my back was shocking but welcome as it ran down from my damp hair. I walked for hours but I was afraid it had been days. The "moon" did not shift position at all. I began to become too tired to rewet my hair or neck and almost fell on my face. Slowly, buildings came into view. I guessed this was where the teleporters that Key had mentioned lived. The town had buildings that were painted oddly and stood out. They were painted yellow and orange colors. Like neon lights, they stood out vibrantly. The fist one I came upon was like a mess hall. Blue skinned teleporters sat eating rather a lot. They ate fast too! Kurt would fit right in was what I was thinking. The second building has an inn or a hotel. It was taller than all the others were. I could tell it didn't have stairs or an elevator when I looked inside the glass doors. They must teleport up to their rooms or something. A person walked right by me, not really acknowledging my existence. A boy with lighter skin approached me. As a matter of fact, his skin was the same light color as mine. He smiled and looked me up and down which was getting on my nerves. "Is your boyfriend a teleporter?" he asked. I shook my head and looked at him weird. "No!" I exclaimed. "Oh..." he said. "Well, mine found out I cheated on her and left me here!" I wanted to laugh at him as his ex-girlfriend probably is. "How did you get here?" he asked me. "I let go of my friend's hand while he was teleporting!" I explained. He smirked. "You're lucky you didn't get spliced or something!" He said. I gave him a look of disbelief. "Mon oeil!" I exclaimed just to see his expression. "Your eye?" he said. "Huh?" I rolled my eyes. "It means 'yeah right' in French!" I replied. "Oh!" he cried. "Well, it really happened! I saw it!" Now I began to wonder. "How long have you been here?" I asked him. "Oh, a year!" he replied blankly. A year ran through my brain. It made me feel so hopeless! "You get used to the stares!" he said encouragingly. "Great!" I wanted to say but instead, I said nothing. I walked on. He was a bit scary, the way he could stand it here! "Hey!" he called and ran after me. "You tryin' to leave?" I nodded. "Duh!" I said rolling my eyes. "Kill him now!" registered in my brain. "Maybe that is what she wants you to do!" I shook off the haunting voice and continued to walk. His long strides kept up with my swift ones. Since when was I a murderer? "I am coming," he said bluntly. I laughed. "No," I said. "You're not!" He stared at me with an ugly glare, but kept walking beside me. We walked about three miles when I decided to go to sleep. I found a bunch of rocks as we had come across a mountain. It had huge rock that provided shade and had no snakes hiding underneath them or around them. He looked at me inexplicably. "What are you doing?" he asked as I curled up in the shade of one. "What does it look like?" I exclaimed. "Well, it looks like you are curling into a fetal position, hoping to-" he began. "It is a rhetorical question, you jackass!" I exclaimed. Well, wouldn't a comfortable blanket be nice?" he said. I nodded. He was being so difficult! He held one out. "Where did you get that?" I asked. He shook his head and chuckled. "Don't you know? I can conjure things!" He told me. Now I shook my head but I did not laugh. "I am not a mind-reader for crying-out-loud!" I exclaimed. "Oh..." he muttered.
******* I rolled my eyes and laughed softly. I took the blanket and spread it out. Protectively, I turned my back to him and crossed my arms across my chest. I didn't trust him at all. Sleep came readily. Alicia picked up the crying baby boy. People stared and pointed at her. It wasn't her fault her skin was a different color. Why did they reject the perfect boy who hadn't inherited her color? The priest wouldn't even touch it. Why? She couldn't understand! She frowned as he began to fuss. "Sh!" she hushed him. He clung his arms around her. She ran into an alley and drew a circle in the air with her finger. The circle gained a yellow outline and slowly filled in a purple glittering color. Alicia looked both ways. She saw a person and paused. They shot a gun at her and she quickly stepped into the circle with the baby. Finding herself at the front door of a house in downtown Alexandria, Virginia, she put down the babe. She knocked on the door. Then, Alicia stepped back into the world. "I will always love you, Otto" she whispered before she disappeared.
******* I woke up slowly but my vision steadied readily. A bird hopped around in front of me. It was a thrush. The bird chirped and I turned around. The boy peered over me at the bird and smiled. The bird was the first animal I had seen while being here. I wondered if it was the same for him even though he had been here for a year. I decided to open up to him in a form that was hopefully not that noticeable. "Do you know anyone named Key?" I asked. He looked at me. "I have heard of her and good morning to you!" he said. "A person told me she is like the protector of this place! I would like to find her and ask her how I can leave!" He looked at me, his eyes wide. "Did you met her?" he asked eagerly. "No, I haven't!" I lied. Well, that went swell! I didn't even really get what I had hoped but then again, it was good news. That meant that I still had a chance! He had been here a year, didn't meet her, so didn't get out! I don't know why but I choose to climb the mountain. He still followed me. "Ah!" he huffed, leaning on his knees. "This is so tiresome!" "So why don't you go back?" I asked, feeling very edgy. He looked at me pleadingly. "Because I can't!" he told me. "Why?" I asked. He looked at me in the same way but blinked rapidly. He stopped and began to speak. "I just can't!" he cried. "Sure!" I mumbled. He didn't hear me and we continued on. The rocks, being big, were a problem! Sure, it helped for shade but climbing was another thing! You have to practically jump over them and hope the wind, which was quite strong, wouldn't blow you backwards. The wind was worse at the top. From up there, holding my hair back, I could see the town we came from but nothing else in the bluish-black world that I was "visiting." I didn't know where to go so I picked my way down the other side, which had considerably fewer rocks. I heard a clatter and a rumble and the brown-haired boy tumbled past me. I erupted into laughter. He got up and dusted himself off. He was laughing too but tears came down his face. He had a huge gash on the side of his head. Shaking my head, I got him to sit down. Unlike the movies, I couldn't rip my shirt so I took his off and used it. I looked at him and laughed as the material sat on his head. "You didn't have a girlfriend!" I said. He nodded his eyes wide. "Yeah, I did!" he cried and held his shirt to his head. "You're only like ten!" I exclaimed. "No I am eleven!" he retorted. "Oh big deal!" I exclaimed, throwing up my hands and rolling my eyes. "You don't even look like you can get a girlfriend," I added. The "oh! That was harsh!" went off in my head. He looked like he would have cried right then if they weren't already running down his face. "I did," he said so innocently. I believed him kind of and left it alone. "What is your name?" I asked after a while. "Otto," he said. Bells went off in my head. Not wedding bells, mind you, but bells like a light bulb. It was like a "ding" echoing through my head! I didn't understand it yet as one doesn't understand life but it wasn't exactly going to leave me. He fell peacefully asleep soon after and I was left awake. The thresh came back. It stood on the ground nearby and sang. It was like a lullaby. It made me appreciate that somewhat lonely hour. The music was peaceful and flowed like a dance. I was half-tempted. The bird came closer and, charmed by its "spell," I reached out to touch it. The bird flew away. Somber, I fell asleep.
******* Alicia walked along her new world. Things appeared as she touched them. They took on the form she wished. Alone, she needed comfort. Alicia heard a song. The voice was human and it drew her to it. A brown little bird, a thrush, sang its sad song. Alicia moved closer. "What is wrong?" she asked the bird. "Life has treated me bad and I am alone. I have no one. So, I sing this song: "Alone and somber, "peaceful and grey, "Good day sir, "But not for me, "Lonely, oh so, "I need what you have, "One who is not as low, "I need a home, "I need friends, "But most of all. "I need help around all the bends, "And so I sing this song," the bird sang. Alicia reached out to touch it. The bird glowed gold from her next words. "Bird, like you I am alone. If you need someone, I will care for you on one condition. You must be my friend," She told him. The exquisite voice of the thrush became merry and achieved a smooth and up- beat tempo. "I would be glad to!" It sang.
******* Otto moaned. I stirred and stared at him. His cut seemed to get worse. It had a blue-black bruise color around it and it festered. The bird chirped. "He needs help!" I moaned. "Ah!" he cried loudly, scaring off the bird that must have returned while I slept. "It is going to be okay!" I cried, rubbing his arm. He looked at me with troubled eyes. It was just a scrape! How did his skin become so sensitive? I asked myself that question a lot that day. "Only one day left!" my brain registered. A twitter reached my ears. I turned and found that the bird had returned. It dropped a weed and jumped back. I grabbed the plant.] "What do I do with it?" I asked. The bird tilted its head back and began to gargle as it tried to sing. The juices from the plant had done something to it. It came over to me and snapped of a leaf with its beak. With a few chomps, it could sing again. I didn't get it at all. I took the weed. I crushed the roots, as that was what a healer did. I put some in his mouth and on his scrape, and hoped one of them would work. His eyes opened sharply and his breathing became shallow. He tried to cry out but no sound came. Frightened, I remembered the bird and put the leaves in his mouth. I moved his mouth up and down and tried to get him to swallow. It went down and air rushed out of his mouth in a huff. The bird chirped and flew off. "Thanks," I whispered softly. He tried to sit up. I pushed him back down. "Rest," I said. He shook his head and shoved me. "No!" he cried. "I know where to go!" I looked at him confused. He charged ahead and I followed. He lumbered quickly down the mountain. Halfway down, he stopped and looked back at me. I hurried after him as fast as I could. When I reached him, he pointed. I looked. There was a cave only it had a door. We walked over and he opened it slowly. A body sat in a chair by the fire that was in the corner. The body got up and came over. The face was gnarled and the hands, mutilated. I jumped back, screaming. A feminine laugh echoed through the room and the deformed person became Key. "Have you figured out what I want you to do? You only have a day!" She told me. He looked at me angrily. "You told me you didn't meet her!" he exclaimed. "And you wanted to!" I cried. She looked at him for the first time. "Is this your little friend?" she asked. The bells returned and I grinned. "No but he knows how to get out! I would like you to meet Otto!" I told her. Her eyes widened. "An odd name," she said calmly. He smirked. "No! You are more half-witted then I thought... mother!" He said. Mother was the big shocker in the sentence. It was the only part I caught. The dreams I had been having entered my head. I had forgotten them almost as soon as I had woken up. The thrush flew into the room. It perched on her hand. "You were right," she told the bird. "He is very open-minded.' I knitted my brows in confusion. "You won!" she said. "Almost no one finds out!" I shook my head and glared at her. "You mean we aren't the only ones?" I exclaimed. She nodded. "Why don't you let them go?" I exclaimed. She looked at me. "Are you just a mean bitch or what?" I said. "Let them go instead of me!" You know, I sound like a hero there but I really hated the woman. If I could get rid of them, she would only have me to taunt. I could think of some good comebacks if I tried! "I did!" she said. "No, you couldn't have!" I exclaimed. "I did when you met my son!" she said. "How did you know?" I asked. "You did it all on your own," she said. "You know," I said, "This was some real stupid quest! Was this supposed to be worth-wild?" Now, she was fuming. "Do you not appreciate my kindness?" She cried. "No," I said. "I want to go home!" She was really irritated with me. "You don't deserve it!" She exclaimed. Now, all my anger left. I just wanted to cry. In one quick breath, it was back. I flung at her and smacked her across her face. She cried out and swung her staff at me. "Mutant mortal combat!" I laughed as it came down. My face met the ground and I raised my head confused. Wasn't I supposed to be dead? Otto stood in the way and she had stopped. I laughed. 'You are so stupid, Otto!" I said. "Just get out of the way!" He looked down at me and shook his head. "I wanted to leave and she is granting my wish!" I exclaimed. "You're crazy!" He cried. She nodded. "That is why you don't belong here!" she said and the world became a haze. I was falling fast. I could feel the wind rushing up around me. Below was black. Then, colors whorled around. They came into focus and I hit a bed. "Ow!" I groaned. The fall was hard. "Marianne? Where is Kurt?" a voice exclaimed. I looked up and saw Colossus. Embarrassingly enough, I was in his room. He stood in a football shirt and cargo blue jeans. His dark brown hair was ruffled. I explained what happened. He didn't believe me. He told me that he had just walked up to his room, that Kurt had just dropped him off. We heard a huff and the door burst open. Bobby flung it open. "Kurt lost..." he said trailing off as he saw me. "Oh!" Then, he said something under his breath and ran off. I laughed and breathed deep. Never again did I want to leave. This was where I belonged.