Thanks goes to my...uh...3 reviewers. I probably wouldn't have gotten around to another chapter if it wasn't for you guys.
Oh, and Sailorfusion, I think I've seen your Galerians fic on another website somewhere...you should continue it.
Oh, and thanks to pippy32388, my new beta-reader.
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Human Imitation
"Michelangelo City? Where's that" "Check out the screen, it looks like a dump to me" "I wonder what caused all those power surges" Professor Xavier had since abandoned the television to his students. He instead was making his way to the back hallway, toward the room that housed Cerebro. He had been keeping a watchful eye on that particular part of the world lately. Cerebro had been keeping tabs on a few children that would soon be coming into their powers. Two in particular had shown signs of psychic energy, and before long he would have to contact them and their families about taking them in for training. But a few months ago, Cerebro had lost track of the one of them. This had puzzled the Professor at first: he had not known many who could shield their minds from Cerebro so completely. When the same psychic signature reappeared a little while later, he attributed the event to a glitch in the system and nothing more.
But then things had begun to take a turn for the strange. It had been only a few days ago that Cerebro had detected a powerful psychic signature amongst those he was watching. At first, Cerebro was unable to identify it, but after some prompting gave a close match: one Rion Steiner, son of Albert and Elsa Steiner, the former a co-researcher of the revolutionary Artificially Intelligent computer, DOROTHY. It seemed very strange that Cerebro could only find a "close match", but at least there was a name to go with the individual he had been watching for so long.
Arriving at the Cerebro Room, Professor Xavier noticed he was being followed by a certain red-haired student.
"Professor," Jean asked, "is there something wrong?"
He paused, unsure of how to answer her, and then deciding that the truth was the best solution,
"We may have a situation. Go and prepare the team."
"You mean...?"
"I am not positive, but I believe that the electrical surge we just experienced was a result of a sudden surge in psychic power. We must act quickly if we are to reach the individual in time."
Nodding her head in understanding, Jean ran off to gather the others and prepare them for what they were up against. Kurt, Evan, and Kitty were currently standing in front of the television, blocking the screen from Scott, Rogue, Ororo, and Logan. The newscast was showing scenes from outside the Mushroom Tower. It seemed that no one could get past the first couple of floors, due to the highly advanced security system. But this did not seem to matter, since there were no human workers beyond the first floor, only maintenace robots and what remained of the city's Mother Computer, DOROTHY, which had inexplicably shut down, various bits and pieces now rained on the sidewalk below. According to witnesses, there were no people inside or around the tower when the Computer malfunctioned and so, because the only men who could have repaired it are now deceased, the tower was going to be closed down, to be demolished at a later date.
"Guys, the Professor says we're going to investigate in Michaelangelo City and-" Jean began.
Kurt backed up from the TV. "All the way in Japan!"
"Yes Kurt, and it seems that it might be someone's powers gone haywire."
"Oh man," Evan cut in, "look at all that damage to the top of the tower. There's a giant hole in the roof!"
"Alright guys, enough talk" (Scott, of course) "Let's get suited up and prepare the Blackbird for takeoff."
Everyone simply gave him blank stares.
Logan then resignedly stood up. "C'mon guys, let's move out."
At that, all present immediately got up to go prepare for a long trip to Japan. At least it was a Friday...
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With the crowds dispersed, and the cleanup crews dismissed for the day, the Mushroom Tower loomed over the city, casting its shadow upon the already rain darkened grounds. With the Blackbird circling overhead, Scott, Kurt, Kitty, Evan, Logan, and Rogue made their way inside the massive Tower, while Storm, Jean, and the Professor remained behind to search for more data on the purpose of the Tower, DOROTHY, and to do a little something about the pouring rain.
The inside of the Tower seemed normal at first, if disturbingly empty. There seemed to be almost no evidence that anyone had been here at all. When they tried to get to the upper floors, they found to their dismay that the ground floor elevator doors were sealed shut, denying them access. A quick slash of Wolverine's claws, however, granted them all the access they'd ever need, and then some. The Professor had informed them that the disturbance had come from the top room of the tower, which was on its very own floor. But their elevator did not go all the way to the top. Instead, they were let out into what, for all intents and purposes, looked to be a war zone.
They certainly were not expecting this.
Mechanical limbs, as well as organic ones, littered the floor. Bodies cast aside, their blood pooling on the floor. At first glance, most of them looked to be human, but behind those bandages, who could be sure? And then there were the other ones. The spidery-limbed red corpses with lots of teeth and no visible eyes. With a few paler faces and a few green ones, the group prepared to enter the next room, with Kitty phasing through the door to check if the coast was clear. She gave them a meek o.k., and so she pulled them all through the door with her. The high ceiling seemed to absorb most of the light in the great round room, leaving the wary group among shadows. Across the way, there were three other large doors, similar to the one they had just come out of. There was also, what seemed to be, a staircase near the middle of the room.
"Professor," Scott thought, "we've come as high as we could go. Which way now?"
Wolverine had cautiously approached the staircase and began sniffing down the corridor. Backing up a bit, he turned to face the group.
"Not this way, I don't think we want to go down there..." Catching the looks the others were giving him, he added, "Trust me on this one."
Nodding his head in grim affirmation, Scott reported, "The Professor says that there are elevators that lead to the DOROTHY Room from here. They're probably in those other rooms there."
"Okaay..." said Evan, "Then which door do we pick?"
"Well," began Rogue, "there are three colored doors. Pick a color, I guess."
"Okay then," Kitty chimed in, "how about the blue one?"
Figuring that the glowing blue door was just as good as the glowing green and red doors, Scott led his group in front of the chosen door, and placed his hand on the panel to open it. The inside was no less gruesome than the room the had left before, and Kurt looked a little more green than blue, but they continued on, up the elevator, and to another dimly lit room, thankfully devoid of bodies. There was a console at one end of the room, a little red light blinking on the screen. There was another sealed door across from the elevator - that must lead to the DOROTHY Room. Scott checked the door, which was sealed shut, with no way to open it. He was about to blast it open, when Kitty stopped him.
"Wait Scott! Don't blast it yet."
She and Kurt were at the console, which was reading something about floor configuration, and asking for confirmation of bridge extension. They decided that it would be a good idea to extend a bridge if one was needed. Immediately, a whirring noise was heard, as well as the 'chinking' of sections into place. The door then slid open of its own accord, revealing a bridge spanning the length of the large round room they had been in earlier, and connecting to another round room, this time encompassing the ceiling above the center of the lower room.
"Professor says that's the DOROTHY Room." Scott pointed out.
"Then what are we waiting for?" asked Kurt.
Taking a deep breath, and noticing that others were doing the same, Scott mentally prepared himself for what they would find on the other side of the door. He activated the panel, the door slid cleanly open, and took his first steps into darkness.
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...hey, at least I gave the X-Men their own chapter. You'll see Rion again soon enough.
R&R please!
