Disclaimer: If you have heard of these characters or ideas, they aren't mine. The characters: 'Phantom X', 'Sable', 'Viper', 'Charm', 'Rosethorn', and 'Sonic' aren't mine either, they belong to a friend of mine, Kris Jones. I own characters Natalie, Kevin, and Camille. And together, we helped to create 'Tracker', 'Blacklight', and Michele

a new note from an author friend of mine; she has decided to change 'Viper' to 'Sidewinder'.

Chapter 6: Practice

Beneath the great mansion, Professor Xavier wheeled himself into a control room above a huge barren room. Already in there was Jean, Scott and Storm.

"We buzzed both the girls and boys' rooms. So they should be here soon." Scott said as he turned some knobs and flipped some switches.

"Good, then we will wait," the Professor replied. Although the wait wasn't long, for a small section of the wall in the big room opened like a sliding door and the five girls and four boys walked in. The Professor went over to a microphone and pressed a small button next to it.

"Tamiko, John, Kevin and Michele. Come up here I want you first to see how this works. Logan is outside the door to lead you up here." The Professor leaned back and waited watching Kris, Lauren and Natalie stand and talk while the boys were playing catch with a small ball of light. The doors to the control room opened and Logan walked in followed by the four teens.

"This is the danger room, a training simulator. Down there you will go through different maneuvers and situations. Up here we control the intensity and what happens. I want you first to watch your roommates than you'll get a crack at it." The Professor nodded to Scott and Storm. Storm waved to the waiting group and they waved back signaling that they were ready. Scott pressed a sequence of buttons and then the action began.

David stood tense yet relaxed as he waited for something to happen. He looked around studying everything. When he looked down he noticed an inch of water that continued to rise.

"Phantom!" he called out immediately using Kris's team codename. Kris looked down to see the rising water.

"Mem, make a bubble and lift us up." Kris ordered. The water at their feet suddenly moved away as if a bowl was placed beneath them. Slowly and steadily, they rose into the air several feet and the water stopped rising two feet underneath. Then unexpectedly red laser blasts shot through the air from guns mounted on the walls. The blasts never reached their targets; instead they hit Natalie's bubble-shield.

"Phantom, holding the five of us is a lot different that holding up a bunch of books and papers. And the shooting isn't helping." Kris drew in a deep breath and reached to tap Lauren on the shoulder when a laser gun shot and hit the shield where if it hadn't been there, it would have hit her hand.

Of course! she thought "Everyone Freeze!" And at this command, everyone in the bubble stopped moving; as well as the guns.

-I figured, motion sensors,- Kris said to everyone with her telepathy, -I've got an idea. Sable, you're going have to move fast. Lift yourself up and hit the water with your fire. Don't hit the guns, because I bet you that their metal doesn't melt fast. Blacklight, the shot aren't just coming form the air but, from underneath the water. They can sense solid objects, not shadows. Go down and disarm them. Sidewinder and I will take care of the ones up here. Mem, you're going have to lift Sidewinder and I up. Alright ready? Go! -

Warm air filled the small bubble and Lauren went up with it. Then she unexpectedly burst into flames, dodging the lasers she shot her fire onto the water creating a thick and heavy steam that enveloped everything.

"Blacklight, right in front of you is a hole. And two feet below if the water. Be carful, the water is going to heat up fast." Mem called to David, who liquefied into a black pool of shadow and dropped into the water.

-Sable, go back to Mem. She'll shield you, just keep a steady flow of steam.- Kris sent out to Lauren. Lauren floated down next to Natalie, her flames extinguished. She looked around and didn't see Kris or Jet.

"Where are they?" Lauren asked Natalie as she saw a slim black shape zooming through the water occasionally skimming the surface.

"Up. Jet can pin point the heat of the guns and Kris will use her invisibility to get past the motion sensors."

"Oh." Lauren said and shooting more fire down, creating more steam.

"Sable, bring it down a notch. David says the water is starting to boil." Lauren smiled and waited for her teammates.

"Alright, let us go Mem!" came Jet's voice. Then there were two big splashes and a loud yelp.

"Hey, look before you leap," David's voice shouted through the fog. Lauren and Natalie could hear Kris giggle and more splashing.

"Hey Sable," Natalie whispered into her ear.

"What?" Suddenly the hard surface holding Lauren up disappeared and both girls tumbled into the water. When they surfaced, Kris, David and Jet were laughing and Lauren and Natalie joined in.

"Blacklight, can you get rid of the fog?" Kris asked. David held up a hand and produced a small ball of light. And as the light got brighter, the fog slowly burned away.

"Very nice, now wait for the water to drain," the Professor's voice came from the control room.

"That was excellent," the Professor told the tired and soaked youths. "Brilliant idea Kris, blocking the sensors with the steam and using Jet's ability to sense heat. Then your invisibility and David's shadows to evade the motion sensors."

"Well, why else are we on your 'A-team'," Kris said smugly.

"Yes," the Professor said slowly, "well, let's see what our spectators can do."

Down on the floor, the four young people assumed a square formation facing the outside. Tamiko waved at Storm saying that they were ready. At first nothing happened, then everything happened. The same guns rearmed popped out of the floors, walls and ceiling and began to shot rapidly at the group. Tamiko hit the floor and stayed there, but the guns kept shooting at her.

"It's either heat seeking or they're controlling it!" Tamiko yelled to her friends. As the four continued to doge, Kevin lifted his hands and sent a shock wave towards a gun. The wave made the air around him vibrate as it hit the gun, making it explode. Just then something hard and whip-like struck him and sent him sprawling. Kevin jumped back up only to have to jump out of the way of another metal vine swinging toward him. A huge contraption had come from the floor wielding six heavy steel vines that swung around in random patterns.

John change quickly into an eagle, four times the natural size, and lifted Kevin off the ground continuing to evade the vines. Michele quickly seized the opportunity to jump onto John's back as he swooped down low.

"Tami, this entire room is made of metal! Send a charge through the walls. It might not stop the vines, but it will stop the guns!" Kevin shouted to his sister as she flipped and dodged the oncoming obstacles. Once she was sure that her brother and friends were at a safe enough distance, she sidestepped a laser blast and kneeled to put her palms onto the floor. Then a huge flash of lightning left her body and moved through the walls. The laser guns' casings sparkled with sparks and lowered their points once again disarmed. The vines also sparked with electricity, but did not stop.

Tamiko started running. To her it seemed the room was in slow motion as she ran around the room trying to think of a plan. Then she got it. Coming out of light speed then jumping directly into the speed of sound, Tamiko went through one of the walls. A few seconds later, a huge boom came from the wall as a fissure opened with dirt spilling in and Tamiko tumbling after.

Catching on to Tamiko's idea, Michele leaped from John's feathery back and went straight to the pile of dirt pulling two white cotton packets from her pocket. Putting them into the dirt, she knelt down holding her hands over them in concentration. Kevin and John came to her side as well; Kevin fended off the vines with his shock waves as John batted them away in a grizzly bear form. And Tamiko stood ready to pull them away if any more surprises happened.

Full grown and strong, Michele's real vines lashed out and tangled themselves with the metal ones. Straining but surely the plants held the metal vines securely. Kevin helped Michele up as John changed into his human form again.

"Well, that was interesting," Tamiko said bringing smiles to her friends' faces. Then out of the blue a huge generator on one of the sidewalls started up. Creating a strong suction, the generator started pulling the four teens towards it. John changed again, this time into a mountain gorilla and clung onto one of Michele's vines, the remaining three held onto him.

"John, let go of the vine and everyone hang on!" Tamiko yelled above the generator. John let go of the vine hoping that whatever Tamiko was thinking it was a good idea. And with a bang, the four disappeared.

Up in the control room, the group waited in silence waiting for something to happen.

"Um…does anyone know where they are?" Natalie asked attentively.

"No, we don't," Scott, said as he and Storm check the monitors for any movement.

"Nothing," Storm reported. Then a small gust of air came from behind them.

"Interesting," John said.

"Yeah, it's a lot different then what we're used to," Kevin added.

"Yes, different for the both of us," the Professor acknowledged, "We never had anyone actually leave the room until permitted."

"Oops, did we intrude on your authority?" Michele asked touchily.

"Michele," Tamiko said shooting her a look, "But I do have to ask, Professor, how is fighting against metal vines and laser guns going to prepare your students how to defend themselves against the human race once you're exposed or…other mutants?"

"Its not really the factor of who the opponent is, but teamwork and reaction time. We do put the students against one another, but this room helps us do the unexpected and unnatural. This is to broaden their minds and power usage."

"Do you always talk like a prophet?" asked Kevin making the Professor smile.

"Now, it is almost five o'clock and aren't you all going to the fair?" he said as he gestured for them to leave the room.