Hello readers! Chapter 2 is now up. I'm extremely excited about this fic and I hope you are too! Reviews would be greatly appreciated as this is my very first fanfic! (Hope I'm doing it right!)
Charles turned on the television and sat down on the sofa. The news was about to start, but it wasn't current events Charles was looking for.
"Five government officials were killed today after an explosion at a government building. Police report that they are having trouble finding bomb fragments and are unsure of what caused the explosion. Fowl play is suspected as the tragedy is similar to other bombings that have taken place over the past couple of months. The government officials were discussing a law that pertained to mutant rights and would have limited people with mutant abilities to vote in elections. Under the law all senators and representatives proven to have mutations would be dismissed from congress. The Brotherhood, a mutant society responsible for multiple crimes against humanity is suspected to have ties to these events. Police are continuing their investigation."
Charles sighed. He knew exactly who was responsible and it hurt like hell. What was the point of dwelling in the past? He had his school to run now and plenty of gifted children to keep him busy and distracted.
"Why are you watching that crap Professor?" Alex appeared from the kitchen
"Just catching up on my news Alex, nothing to be concerned about."
"I don't think so, you don't care much for the news. You say it's discouraging and disappointing."
"Yes but today I felt like..."
"You were looking for him Professor. I know you and it's time to move on. He's not the man we all thought he was."
" I know I'm just...Thank you Alex." Charles mustered up the most meaningful smile that he could. "Let's have a good day today okay?"
"Sounds good Prof." Alex turned and left.
Charles looked down at his feet. Erik please stay safe, I don't believe you've changed completely, I still believe in the man you were.
"What do we do?" Raven sounded frantic. She didn't understand anything that had happened at all. Erik had told her the Cure had the ability to kill mutants, but Azazel hadn't been injected. What in hell made him come back to life?
Erik sighed, "We wait for him to come back I suppose"
"I doubt he'll return. His mind was highly unstable and confusing, like being inside a nightmare." Charles spoke softly. "It was as if he had gone mad, yet I've read the minds of madmen before and this was completely different. Insane people still feel human to me, but this...this was something else entirely. He probably doesn't even remember that he was here." Charles looked at Erik. "Why don't we go inside, it seems we have many things to discuss."
Erik nodded and inside the mansion they went.
The mansion was a different place entirely than the last time Erik had lived there. Many of the rooms were now occupied with young mutants who were seeking training from Charles. It pleased Erik that Charles' dream was coming true, at least in part, but hard times were coming and Erik knew these children were going to become a burden sooner or later.
Charles summoned the older mutants to the living room where he expected Erik to explain the strange events. If the humans were really killing mutants by the hundreds, action needed to be taken. Charles always aimed for peace but a line had been drawn. He would not allow his students to become whatever had become of Azazel.
"What the hell is he doing here?" Charles could feel the anger radiating from Alex's mind.
/please don't make a scene Alex, all will be explained shortly. Trust me this once./ He managed to transfer a quick image of undead Azazel. He didn't want to alarm Alex, but he needed him to trust Erik. They couldn't be divided like they had been once. He felt the anger in Alex's mind become confusion and curiosity, much better.
"Good Afternoon students. As you may see we have quite the guest today. I know this may seem shocking to you but Erik is an old friend of mine and he has seen some disturbing things recently. He has come here to warn us and help us. I ask that you show him respect. There are very important things that need to be discussed and we need to remain together and united."
Erik was nervous. He had on some scale betrayed these mutants. They didn't believe in his cause and he hoped like hell that they would swallow their pride and understand the terrible things that were happening.
"I'm sure some of you are aware that the humans have been working on a "cure" for what they call our "condition". I'm here to inform you that they have actually accomplished this task." audible gasps where heard throughout the room. "I'd like to tell you that that's the end of my story but it unfortunately is not. The so-called cure is a failure. Instead of leaving us without our gifts it kills us. Somehow, mutants murdered by the cure come back to life shortly after they die. I'm not sure of the full effects but it almost seems as though the cure is actually more similar to a disease.
The students stared at him in bewilderment. He decided to continue "I was captured with my teammates while on a mission the other night. I saw one of the first dosages of the cure administered to about 50 mutants. They all came back from the dead hungry for flesh. My teammate Azazel was bitten and he suffered a similar fate to those that had direct contact with the cure, even though he had not been administered the cure personally. This disease must be highly contagious and if the reports are true and mutants have been injected with the cure in large masses across the nation, we may have a very serious epidemic on our hands."
Erik looked towards Charles.
/I need your help my friend. We'll be stronger in large numbers. The humans have made their move, we need to make ours/ Erik thought hard at Charles.
\We'll discuss this later when the children aren't around/
The room broke out into a frenzy of voices. Everyone was scared and they had every right to be.
"Enough everyone" Charles boomed over the crowd. "We should be safe here inside the school but I need to emphasize that nobody needs to leave the school perimeters unless they are granted special permission by me. Erik and Raven will be staying with us now and I'd like you to respect them. They are our friends and no matter what comes our way we must stay united. Please try not to alarm the younger children. Security will be doubled and anyone found outside beyond curfew or without permission will be heavily punished." Charles paused and took a look around the room. He cared so much about each and every student and would do anything he could to protect them. The worried expressions on their faces hurt him. He didn't want them to fear. He wanted a world where humans and mutants could live in peace, but that no longer looked possible.
Erik walked down the long hallway leading to Charles' room. Three of the much younger children were running down the hall. One of them, a small girl with long brown hair ran towards him. Erik braced himself for the impact with the girl but was surprised to see she had passed right through him. The sensation rendered him a bit dizzy for a second.
"Oh Sorry Mr. Magneto sir. The professor told me not to phase through people, but I didn't want to crash into you."
"You can call me Erik and it's quite alright my dear. That's quite a power you have there. May I ask you your name?"
"My name's Katherine but you can call me Kitty."
"Well Kitty, it's a pleasure to meet you. Go play with your friends, it looks like they're waiting for you."
They were waiting indeed. The other two children had run behind a wall and were peaking out behind it with worried expressions on their faces. Erik supposed these kids had seen him as the enemy until today. It made complete sense that they were a little uncomfortable around him.
"Oh right, well it was nice talking to you Mr. Magne- I mean Mr. Erik!" and with that, Kitty was off and running towards the other children.
Erik felt a pang of guilt in his chest. He couldn't help but feel like it was his fault the humans had devised a cure and that it was causing such a terrifying reaction. He felt responsible for it and felt like he was playing a big part in what was about to permanently change many of these children's lives.
/You can't think that way my friend. It's nobodies fault. Don't let what you've seen in the past few days get the best of you. We'll protect the children./
\Charles please get out of my head.\
/You were thinking loudly enough that I could hear you without any effort. Will you please come to the library so we can talk?/
Erik opened the door to the library. It was exactly the same as he remembered. Charles' impressive collection of books adorned every wall. But he was not here for recreation and relaxation. There were very important matters to discuss.
"Erik, before you say anything, I need to make this very clear. I know the hatred you hold for mankind has done nothing but grow stronger with the turn of recent events, but I have many young impressionable children living here now." Charles sucked in a deep breath. He could feel the urgency and fear in Erik's mind. "I need you to promise that, no matter what happens, you will respect their innocence and do your best to keep them sheltered. Many of them were abandoned by their parents and I am completely responsible for their livelihood now. I can't have them seeing the anger you hold within and I can't bear to let them see death."
"Of course Charles. The children will be kept safe at all costs. We just need to take some kind of action towards the humans. I'd like to go out there and murder every last man in charge of this goddamn cure but if we are going to compromise and work together, I know that will not work."
Charles looked up at Erik. Charles would not openly admit it, but if the cure was responsible for the murder of hundreds of brilliant, gifted people, he wouldn't mind killing a few men too. He couldn't let Erik know that. There wouldn't be a human being left alive if he did.
Charles sighed, "With security increased I feel as though we should remain calm and see what happens in the next few days. The humans might have the cure under control. Until we know exactly what it is that we are dealing with, I can't have my friends going out to explore a world that might be incredibly dangerous."
"I suppose that sounds reasonable. As long as you promise that action will be taken if we discover what we are up against."
Erik respected Charles' position. He couldn't expect them to wage war against humanity this quickly, but he knew better than anyone that action would need to be taken sooner or later. He just didn't want to run into any undead mutants, not after Azazel.
"You have my word. I can't stand the idea of killing innocent people, but if these men become murderers they are not so innocent anymore." Charles smiled. "It really is good to see you again my friend."
"It's good to see you too Charles, I just wish I wasn't here on such strange circumstance."
Erik turned to leave. "Goodnight Charles, let's hope tomorrow brings a brighter day."
It had been an incredibly long day and he wasn't sure what tomorrow would bring. He needed to be well rested if he was going to help protect the school and his friends. Charles had informed him that the school was protected by a special alarm system that Hank had devised. Nobody should be able to trespass without being caught and the school's senior students were ready to defend the school at any time and need.
Erik opened the door to his bedroom, the same one he had lived in before he had killed Shaw. The closet was surprisingly still full of his clothes, shoes and other belongings. It almost felt like home.
Erik settled down into the bed. It was much more comfy and plush than anywhere he had slept in months. It wasn't long before he was drifting off into a peaceful sleep.
That was when a huge explosion rattled the very foundation of the mansion, and the glass window in Erik's room shattered into thousands of pieces.
Thanks so much for reading! Chapter 3 should be up in the next couple of days! Review if you can!