Scott Summers (takes place after issue 13):
My whole world around me is red, literally. I see the world through a red-tinted vision; the contrasting colors are invisible to my vision. Though that doesn't mean I cannot tell which color is which. Blue comes off as purple. Yellow comes off as orange. This is what happens when you are forced to view the world behind rose-tinted glasses. And no; having red-colored glasses over my eyes doesn't make me naïve to the world around me like some out there would think. In fact, my red-tinted vision brings me more awareness than most would think.
It was a moment for Scott Summers to stop and take a breath. They'd gotten through battling the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. That battle had happened over a week ago, and as a result, they had saved the life of Senator Edward Kelly. However, despite the actions of him and his newfound friends, their actions were being scrutinized. The sounds of J.J Jameson's voice blared throughout the radio in Scott's bedroom.
"Who the hell do these mutants think they are interfering? What ever happened to letting the police do their jobs? WAKE UP AMERICA, AND REALIZE THE MUTANTS ARE THE MENACES! And no, I am not angry. I am just expressing my LOVE for this country. Do you hear it in my voice? DO YOU HEAR THE LOVE?!"
Scott proceeded to shut off the radio, rolling his eyes behind his ruby quartz glasses.
'Wow, looks like our number one fan is in the loving mood. Yeah, I'm feeling the love,' he thought.
My whole childhood, I had been trained to be aware and disciplined. The Summers family is a bloodline of soldiers, and my mother's family is no different. My father and my mother had raised me and my little brother to follow in their footsteps of being militaristic and disciplined. My father was the definition of a hardass, but he was fair. He never raised his voice, let alone lay a hand on my brother and I. If Alex or I were acting like flat-out brats, my father just carried himself like a Navy Seal; he would just stand there and not even raise his voice. He would stand there, stare us down, and repeat our names with a sense of authority that got us to listen. That alone was enough. Even my mother was tough as nails, but she was the most loving, nurturing mother any child could ask for.
My father, Christopher, had been an upstanding member of the U.S Air Force. The fact that Ms. Danvers had revealed to me that she had been trained by my father didn't surprise me at all. Knowing one of my personal trainers knew my family personally brings forth a feeling of comfort I hadn't thought ever existed. I hadn't felt this kind of security in years.
Scott breathed out a sigh as he got up, going over to grab hold of his guitar which rested in his room. Grabbing hold of it, he rested it on his lap and strummed a melody to My Chemical Romance's "The Only Hope for Me is You".
Before the plane crash, things had been going well. Well, as well as one could hope for a family with connections to the military. My mom had been a military scientist. I don't know what her research had consisted of. Whatever it was, it must have been beyond top secret, because she hadn't told me or Alex anything about it. My dad must have known. I remember the night the plane crash had happened. Mom and Dad had been wearing looks of pure worry. I still do not know why they'd looked so worried. But I do know for a fact that Alex and I had been beyond excited. We were more than happy to have an impromptu summer vacation to Hawaii. For two boys who grew up with bitter cold winters, warm summer vacations were a luxury for the two of us.
Me being the oldest brother, I was the robust one. So, I can only begin to imagine what had been going on through Alex's mind when he saw me hit that tree when the plane went crashing down. He must've been beyond scared more than anything, especially when he saw me starting to cry. If I weren't strong, Alex didn't seem to know what to do with himself. Hell, when that plane shook and I smelled the fumes of burning metal, all common sense went out the window for me. One of the few things I remember about that night was how I'd just cried my eyes out, my voice growing hysterical as I'd told my mother and father that I had wanted to stay with them. Alex was worse than I was.
But I knew that I'd had to be the mature one. I had to suck it up, and I had to be strong for Alex. So, I'd grabbed him by the hand and we jumped out of the plane together. I don't remember looking back to check and see if my mother and father made it out of the plane. All I can really remember happening afterward was that I'd hit my head against the trunk of the tree, and I'd felt the sensation of blood flowing from my head as Alex appeared over me before my world went black.
Scott's jaw clenched slightly as a shiver ran through his spine as he remembered what happened next. It had been the day he'd awoken from his coma. Jean had told him the story of how she had awoken from her coma, and how terrified she had been experiencing telepathy and telekinesis at once. Scott at that time almost would have begged to have Jean's traumatizing experience.
When I'd awoken from my coma, all I remember having felt was a severe pressure right behind my eyes. I remember the sensation that felt as though it had been burning, like my eyes were on fire. And when I'd opened them, I remember seeing the red compulsion destroying everything in its path, especially as I'd looked up at the roof. I'd blown a hole right through the roof of my hospital room. It was that moment that made me realize that I just could not stay there.
So, what did I do? I'd grabbed a bandage that was there, and I'd ran out of the hospital by jumping out the damn window. I was wearing nothing but a hospital gown, and it was bitterly cold, but I did not care at all. All I'd cared about was getting away from there. I was thinking of every horrible scenario running through my mind.
What if the police were called and they were sent to arrest me?
What if the military came to take me and experiment on me?
I'd take living out on the streets over that.
So, I'd spent some time out on the streets. I do not remember how long I'd lived out there. I didn't have any sense of time I'd spent out there. However, my special awareness had been enhanced. Even though I could not see what was in front of me, I could feel, hear, taste and smell what was around me. I began to grow increasingly aware of my surroundings especially as I dumpster dived for food. Having such a high spacial awareness and taking stock of everything around me only helped with my skills as field leader for the X-men. Spacial awareness was probably one of the biggest things that I took away, because it allows me to find weakness and feel out any space I walk into. I think that's part of why Logan gives me such high praise in Danger Room sessions, because I know how to plan and think of my feet and manage my time. However, I was soon enough found by the police and the child protective services, whom I tried to run away from. However, the police officer told me that there was no use running.
And I knew that that was the truth. As a result, I was placed in the orphanage, where I'd lived for a few years until my first foster father, Jack Winters, adopted me.
I would never be naïve to trust anyone that quickly ever again.
Another shiver ran down Scott's spine as he felt his eyes beginning to water with tears. He wanted nothing more than forget.
When Jack Winters took me in, I was tossed into a life of gang war. I could tell you plenty of horror stories about the life Jack Winters had given me that would send shivers down your spine. They're stories that you hear about all the time on the news, but would never think that it would happen to you. I didn't think in the least that that would be the kind of life I'd be forced into living. It was a life of viewing a world of drug trafficking. Jack in fact had owned his own drug trafficking ring, and had demanded of me to use my powers to help him in his crimes.
My role in it all was being forced to using my optic blast beams to break and enter banks. His associates would take the bank tellers as hostages and make sure they didn't say a word. It didn't occur to me until now that some of his associates must have been telepaths, because he always found a way to make sure that his tracks were covered. Then, he would take my blindfold off my eyes, keeping me handcuffed and aiming my head at the access-way to where the vault was located. They would forcefully make me open my eyes. If I did, I would be rewarded with an hour out in the sunlight, and some real food and water. If I didn't, the consequences were what one would consider torture.
Every time I refused to use my abilities in aiding him, I would receive a beating. And I'd endured some pretty horrific beatings, too. He'd make sure I was kept in a dark room, chained down and forced to lap up water like a dog. However, I never cried out. I never gave them the satisfaction of hearing my pain whenever they beat me. He was determined to turn me into a living weapon and force me to be at his mercy and control. My whole life, up until being adopted by Xavier, had been completely out of my control. Maybe that's part of why Warren and Bobby tease me at times for having "OCD" and being a "control freak". Nonetheless I do agree with them. I am a control freak, and I want things done meticulously and done my way. One part of that is the fact that my father and mother raised me from the moment I was in Pampers to be militaristic and in control all the time. The other part of that is the control my former foster father had had over me. Jack made damn well sure that I knew I was under his control. And that meant enduring severe beatings and being berated. Each time he and his associates beat me, they would tell me numerous times that I was only good for one thing.
Each time they beat me, they took me to a different hospital for treatment. However, the day it all stopped was nothing short of a miracle. One of the nurses who was treating me at one of the hospitals had called the Child Protective Services and they got me out of that situation. But I knew that it meant going back to the orphanage.
Luckily, through it all, Alex and I still somehow managed to be connected. I still talk to him every day because he's the one to make the call every day. And it's something that I never fail to look forward to. Hearing his voice alone brings me the satisfaction that he is safe wherever he is living. But I didn't think that I would be that lucky.
The most luck I've ever received was being alive. But even then, being under Jack Winters' control didn't make me feel so lucky. I don't know what I did to deserve what I've got now, this life at X-Corporation that Professor Charles Xavier had given to me.
Scott stopped strumming at the guitar and set it aside, smiling slightly as he headed toward the shower to get ready for the day that would consist of GED tutoring from Beast, and a Danger Room session with Logan.
When Professor Xavier had approached me, it had been what I can only assume to be a week or so after I'd gotten out of Jack Winters' custody. I did not know why he was there at all. I couldn't help but worry about what was to come, all things considering.
But then, I'd learned the professor and Hank had brought someone else along with them.
Jean Grey.
I know it may seem irrational, but when Jean came into my life at that moment in time, it was an instant sensation of calm I hadn't felt in years. She truly felt like an angel sent from down from heaven in that moment. To learn that we were so similar and had such similar backgrounds brought me a sense of security I hadn't felt in so long. Our weeks we've been spending together, living together under the same roof, she's become what I would consider to be my best friend.
And when I saw her after I'd gotten my glasses placed on my face, I was once again feeling another sense of security that I could see what was in front of my eyes. It was through Xavier and Mr. Stark that I had gained a family. For once, I was back in control after years of having been out of control.
At least now, I know that with this team now known as "The X-men", none of us are ever alone.
As Scott stepped out of his room after having changed into full uniform, he saw Jean out in the hallways, wearing her own uniform. He couldn't help but grin at her as she smiled in his direction.
"You ready?" she asked him.
"Born ready," he replied, and the two locked arms as they walked down to the Danger Room for their session with Logan and Carol.
Up next: Bobby Drake