Chapter One: Nightwolf and Evergreen

Living in my own world, didn't understand

That anything can happen, when you take a chance

I never believed in, what I couldn't see

I never opened my heart, oh, to all the possibilities, yeah

I know, that something has changed, never felt this way

And right here tonight, this could be the…

Start, of something new, if feels so right, to be here with you, oh

And now, looking in your eyes, I feel in my heart, the start of something new, oh yeah

Now who'd of ever thought that, we'd both be here tonight, oh yeah

And the world looks so much brighter, brighter, brighter

Oh, with you by my side, by my side

I know, that something has changed, never felt this way

I know it for real, this could be the…

Start, of something new, if feels so right, to be here with you, oh

And now, looking in your eyes, I feel in my heart, the start of something new

I never knew that it could happen until it happened to me, oh yeah

I didn't know it before, but now it's easy to see

It's the start, of something new, if feels so right, to be here with you, oh

Well now, looking in your eyes, I feel in my heart, that it's the…

Start, of something new, it feels so right, to be here with you, oh

And now, looking in your eyes, I feel in my heart, the start of something new

The start of something new

"Start of Something New", High School Musical

The moon shone brilliantly in the night sky as a teenage girl ran through the alleyways. A boy huffed and puffed as he skidded to a stop in front of the girl, who was now trapped at the end of the alley. The boy, who had messy, dirty blonde hair smiled and looked at the girl, stretching out his hand.

"Come now Danielle, you're one of us…I saw what you did to Cyclone when he tried to force you to join our team…but I understand you…," smirked the blonde haired boy. "Come with me…you're trapped anyway…I've chased you right into a dead end."

The girl looked at the boy and then smiled. "Actually, you walked right into my trap…"

She smiled again and raised her arms horizontally at her sides, her hands glowing with a black aura. The boy realized what she was doing and broke into a run towards her. He was too late as her whole body was wrapped in the black aura and she faded away into the creeping shadows around her.

(break)

"So you guys live at the Academy too?" asked a sixteen-year-old girl with brown, mid-back length hair. She wore a pair of pale, smooth jeans, a pair of brown and pink running shoes and a pink tank top. She had two piercing in each ear, and had on pair of small hoop earrings and a pair of small purple earrings.

"Yes we do Zoey, as do many other people like you and me," answered a woman with wavy, dark brown, shoulder-length hair. She wore a white, ankle-length skirt with tons of pleats, a light purple blouse with a pale flower pattern and white sandals that had a small heel. She smiled sweetly at Zoey as they sat in a car, driving back to the Delvar Academy.

"What are your powers?"

"Well, I can project images of anything I feel like, illusions of sorts," she replied, concentrating for a moment. The next moment, Zoey looked in the mirror and the image reflected in it was not of herself, but of her mother, then her father, then her older brother, then her younger brother and finally, their dog Lucky. Zoey giggled as her image changed every time and then finally, she was herself again.

"That was so cool! Oh I'd love to have powers like yours!"

"Well I think your powers are just as special Zoey."

"Really?"

"Of course! You have the ability to make not only a plant, but any kind of vegetation grow, shrink, imitate someone or something, create a cage around your enemies and many more things."

There was a long silence as they drove on until Zoey took a deep breath and decided to ask Professor the one question that had been burning in her mind for quite some time now.

"Um…Professor Willows…"

"Please, call me Cari."

"Ok, Cari. Umm…I know I'm going to the Academy because I can learn to control my powers and stuff…but that isn't all is it?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well I heard you talking to my mom and dad and…you guys also want me to help you find my sister Danielle don't you?"

"Well…yes…she ran away from your household how long ago?"

"Um…three weeks…is she going to come to the Academy as well?"

"That's what we're hoping for…you see; out on the run like this she's…"

"In danger?"

"Not really, she's more of a danger to others than they are to her."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, there's these three boys, they're mutants as well but…they don't come to the Academy, they prefer to follow a man named Terrance who's ideals are to fight against the humans and make the world a place for mutants only…"

"What can Terrance do…his powers I mean?"

"Well Terrance is actually Professor Delvar's younger brother so he has telepathic powers like the Professor, only not as strong. You see, Terrance wasn't happy just having weak telepathy so he experimented on himself and now…well now he is not to be angered because he can turn into a terrible creature at will…"

"Wow…so his plans…he's trying to do what that Magneto guy did a couple of years ago…I forget where it was…"

"Yes, like him. Anyway, he's also trying to 'recruit' mutants but not in the same way as we are at the Academy. He wants to use their powers for his own benefits and at the moment, he's been sending those boys after your sister."

"Ok, so you said she's a danger to others…why is that? I mean I know her powers have been in and out of her control but…she's never hurt anyone."

"Well that's probably because she's never felt threatened before. Three days ago, Professor Zachary Smith, a good friend of mine who's also at the Academy, found one of the three boys in an alleyway downtown. His name is Jeffrey Spencer, though he prefers to go as Cyclone, and he was a wreck. He had been chasing your sister that day and had finally found her. He said that his orders were to convince her to join the Rebel Mutants but…she angered him and he tried to bring her by force. Your sister didn't like being threatened and forced to join their team and so she used her powers against him," revealed Cari.

"So what happened to him?"

"She trapped his mind in a place of darkness and shadows, where he was haunted by non-stop nightmares. It took hours to bring him back to his normal state and to get rid of the shadow that held him. He took off though, after telling us what had happened and he returned to Terrence and the other boys."

"Whoa…I didn't know my sister could actually do that…I mean the worst she's ever done when her powers are a mess is drown the house shadows and then she had a major headache because she could hear everyone's thoughts."

"Well that's why we need to find her, and invite her here, to the Academy," stated Cari as a large gate opened and they drove down the long driveway, past the courts and training grounds, past the large Delvar Academy mansion and to the garage, where tons of different vehicles and were parked.

The two got out of the car and grabbed Zoey's bags, bringing them into the house where Professor Zachary Smith greeted her. He had very short bleach blonde hair and deep green eyes, and his skin seemed to be tinted green a little.

"Hello Zoey," he said, smiling sweetly.

"Hi," she smiled back, intrigued by his green-tinted skin.

"My powers allow me change into a fish man, I grow gills, webbed hands and my skin becomes deep green scales, it doesn't all go away when I return to normal," he said, answering the question in Zoey's mind.

After showing her to her room and helping with her things, Cari directed her to Professor Delvar's office. He explained his ideas to find her sister and she agreed, asking to leave as soon as they could.

(break)

The small room was dark and depressing as a red-haired girl stood at her window, gazing up at the stars. She looked down to the driveway of the small, broken down house and looked at the car parked there. She'd noticed it as it pulled in but hadn't paid much attention to it. Using the shadows around her, she sensed the presence of three people, a man, a woman and a teenage girl, heading around the back of the house. A black aura wrapped around her and she disappeared through the shadows at her feet.

Outside at the back, Cari, Zoey and Zachary looked at the small, broken down house curiously.

"This is where she is?" asked Zoey doubtfully.

"Professor Delvar said this is where his mind directed him to, and his telepathic powers don't lie," shrugged Zachary.

"Well I guess we should go in and talk to her…" said Zoey.

"Entering someone's house without permission isn't like you Zo," said a voice from behind them. The three turned around to face a girl with cool crystal blue eyes and dark red hair that was layered around her face. She wore a pair of black cargo pants, black and white skater shoes and a white tank top with a thick, sky blue, zipper hoodie on top.

"Danielle!" cried Zoey, hugging her sister tightly. She then proceeded to explain to her sister the many things she had been told that afternoon about the Academy and about the places set there for the two of them. "So come one sis, you've been away from home for three weeks on your own now…please come back to the Academy with me…"

Danielle thought about it for a moment then smiled at her sister. "Fine,"

"Aww Danielle, you'd really rather hang with them and become some sort of perfectly controlled snob student instead of hanging out with me, the guys and just have some fun," said a very relaxed voice. A seventeen-year-old boy stepped out of one the shadows a large tree was creating. His deep blue eyes were fixed on Danielle. He wore loose, dark blue jeans with torn knees, a red hoodie with an Anarchy sign on the front and underneath the hoodie was a navy blue t-shirt that said "…why are you telling me this if you know I'm not listening?" and. He had on black skater shoes, a blue wristband on his right wrist and a black one on his left wrist. His hair was quite messy, medium length and chestnut brown. In addition, he wore red and orange-rimmed goggles on his head.

"Danielle is that-?"

"Darius!" cried Danielle, looking at the boy incredulously. She started towards him and stopped mid-speech. "Darius what are you- wait, you're with them aren't you?"

He smirked and nodded.

"But…why? Terrance is only trying to cause destruction and pain to the humans, the people that actually accept us for who we are…," asked Danielle.

"Look I'm not here to talk about me; I'm here for you, under invite by Terrence that I think you should accept..."

"Darius come on…this is stupid…I haven't seen you in two years and all you want to do is follow orders of some weirdo…"

"Danielle, the first time he sent Cyclone, he tried to bring you in by threatening you…then he sent Jeremiah, I mean Sparks, he tried to play the part of sympathy and understanding and that didn't work. I have orders, and I have a choice…I don't want to hurt you Danielle…" he said slowly, taking a step towards Danielle. Suddenly, a large, thick vine shot out of the tree beside the group and wrapped around Darius, trapping him and holding him in the air.

"Darius! Zoey don't!" pleaded Danielle, whipping around to face her sister.

"Danielle we have to go know…," stated Cari, placing a hand on the red head's shoulder.

"But…Darius…he's my friend…my closest friend…I can't just leave him like this and let him go back to Terrance and the others…" said Danielle sadly.

"You'll see him again…" smiled Zachary reassuringly. Zoey focused her mind and her powers and only let Darius go from the vine's grasp when they were far enough away.

(break)

Two days later, Danielle and Zoey stood in the Danger Room, staring at the large, grey tiled walls.

"So what exactly is this place?" asked Zoey, turning to Cari and Zachary.

"It's called the Danger Room. It's a place where we create a virtual training ground that's very realistic and is used to train our powers both individually and in teamwork. So which of you wants to go first?" smiled Zachary.

Zoey shrunk away, as if trying not to be seen. Danielle confidently stepped forward and stared around the room, then to Cari and Zachary.

"You ready?" asked Cari politely.

"I volunteered didn't I?" Cari nodded and she, Zachary and Zoey walked over to the safe marked zone. As Cari pressed a button on a panel beside her, the grey tiled room around them swirled into a large forest. A large robot that stood high above the trees was tearing and burning them down as it walked on. Many tents, cars and trailers were destroyed and smashed, strewn around the forest floor.

The robot stomped towards Danielle, having just noticed her, destroying everything in it's path. Danielle nimbly dodged left and right, causing the giant robot to miss her every time. After a few more minutes of this, she raised her right hand and a black aura wrapped itself around a huge tree to the right of the robot. Then she flicked her hand leftwards and the tree fell, tripping the robot and causing it to fall as well, right on top of Danielle. She reacted quickly and a semi-transparent black dome formed itself around her, forcing the falling robot's body to bounce off and land to her right.

Before it could regain it's strength, get up and attack once more, Danielle jumped away from the dome, causing it to disappear, and onto the robot's head. Her body was wrapped in a black aura and she transformed into a shifty black shadow wolf that plunged into the robot's head, chewing and messing up the wiring.

The robot defeated and the simulation completed, the Danger Room returned to normal and Danielle stood triumphantly in the middle.

"You both passed with flying colors!" cried Cari-Anne happily later, after Zoey had taken her turn and defeated a giant spider rampaging through a national park.

"Well what does that mean?" asked Danielle sceptically.

"That means that you two are the very first junior students to become part of the New X-Men team," replied Zachary.

"Dude does that mean we get to pick cool nicknames?" exclaimed Danielle excitedly.

"Yes but remember they have to have something to do with your powers," answered Cari-Anne happily. "For example, I can create illusions and my codename is Mirage, and Zachary has the abilities of a fish man, so his codename is Aquarius…"

"Well mine's gonna be Nightwolf…because I have the control over darkness and my favourite creature to create a shadow being of or become is a wolf..."

"I don't know what mine will be…," mumbled Zoey shyly.

"I know!" cried Danielle. "How about Evergreen?"

As Zoey nodded in agreement, Professor Delvar watched from his upper office, smiling.

"Nightwolf and Evergreen…the first of the New X-Men generation…"

Author's Notes
Ok this is my first chapter and I know nothing 'big' happens but that's 'cuz it's just to recruit the first two team members and set the first pace. Hope you like it, comments are welcome!