Enjoy. ;) I'm getting this puppy out before I start homework for my multicultural class. And after that, its off to Chemistry! Yay!

But...if I didn't write this now, I won't be able to get back to all of you story hungry fans. =] College is HARD work! That is what I'm doing, just so you know.

Anyway!

Enjoy!

And I don't own any of these characters. Except for the ones I created. Yadeeyadada (:

Chapter 13: Introducing? Gaia

Gaia didn't miss the photographer's hovering presence. She knew what was on that camera, on that memory chip bedded deep inside. The miniscule piece of technology was large enough to destroy her identity, to uproot her with such irrevocability; she knew there was no going back. But she turned a blind eye to him and allowed only the winds of time to flow through her. They always felt ancient. The first sign she recognized was the speed of her heart; it slowed to a soft, unmovable crawl. Every cell in her body gravitated towards the sky and her mind seemed to empty save for the arrow straight conviction that the earth's air was hers to control.

Then, the voice would arrive, soft and murmuring. It always directed her, offering her guidance and wisdom. Without him Gaia knew that she'd be an insane pile of upright bones, loony with the unnatural ability that was hers and hers alone. That called to her and claimed her.

Gaia saw his finger squeeze the capture button, but she listened as another verse from her faceless companion spoke to her.

Don't worry about him. Keep your eyes on the goal ahead. Crush everything you see to the ground.

And no-one will die? You are sure of this?

Yes. They will all be evacuated. No life will be slain under your hand.

I'm still nervous. I know what my winds can do…I don't want to destroy anyone.

Rest assured. You will not. Haven't I kept you sane and safe throughout these past two years, Gaia? You would have been placed in one of those experimental hospitals, believe me. They would have no mercy for you, there.

I'm sorry. I know. I just…I've seen the violence that humans are capable of waging. I don't want to become that.

Stick with me, and you won't.

Her power had been climbing to its peak, like a pitcher of water pouring into an empty cup. Now, she felt the familiar buzz as it asserted itself completely. Her mind submerged into its thick depths and she wasn't aware of her surroundings, of when they disappeared from her senses. Turbulent swaths of power coursed through her veins. Like a million times hence, Gaia felt truly alive. Standing outside a bustling coffee shop and seeing people eat their treats, tore Gaia up and made her stomach only growl harder. Sleeping on the ground, cold, anxious, and yearning for a room, almost quenched any feeling of hope she reserved for the dark days. This was the monotony of her life before he arrived. Alone with only her powerful mutant ability to sustain her, Gaia found that this was when she could identify herself, not as the bum on the street, but a girl. A person. After her father ordered, "You freak! You ruined our family! Don't ever come around here poisoning this house again!" Gaia stumbled through her teenage years, alone. Perhaps she appeared sullen and tough to people. Maybe that's why they avoided her. Yet, blessedly, she never found herself in any dangerous squabbles. Not that she couldn't easily lift herself free of them. But, it was better to steer clear of such attention. It wasn't until the voice inside her head, the one that cared for her and taught her to become who she truly was, did Gaia dare to believe she was somebody more. Feeding off the winds energy gave her a promise. As long as she was in control, she was someone. She wasn't just another face in the crowd. She was important, she was alive, and she was okay.

On the outside, the brown tint of her pupils paled into an indiscernible, hazy white. It was a shocking contradiction to the remaining human-ess of her face. No one's physical characteristics should alter so dramatically. But Gaia's did. Instinctively, without being present to know that she was performing the action, she raised her hands and seemed to catch separate tendrils of the wind. They twirled submissively in-between her fingers, rash and eager, but awaiting her command. The rest of the currents caught up in an invisible tornado around her. Gaia couldn't see anything, she was so far deep inside herself. But she could feel the electrons and protons in the air, the moisture hiding just above it. If she chose, she could mold together a feasible lightning storm. To her mild consternation, however, she never obtained the ability to dominate the slippery, elusive pockets of energy that lightning consisted of. It was far more complex than this explanation, but she felt like she needed a certain code and…she didn't possess it. She never would.

Lightning had a mind of its own; its temperament wasn't as easy to read as the wind.

Her power continued to build. At the last second, before she allowed the air around her to vent its destruction, a flood of panic squeezed her heart. Something was different about this session. Gaia felt a sense of foreboding and instantly realized what it was. Before, her powers would be a pleasant hum in the background. She had the freedom to physically move her feet around in her first conscious, because, in order to bring her power about, she needed to retreat into her subconscious. This time, however, the chamber of her mind felt inherently different. The quality of the atmosphere was clearer than she'd ever known. And its depth was unreachable. Quickly, in order not to waste time, she dove deep into the oblivion and was scared out of her wits when she couldn't touch the bottom. She jumped back up to the surface and encountered the entrance back into her subconscious. WHAT? What was this? The level she dwelled in now wasn't her subconscious. Gaia's mind raced and she was shocked to realize that her mentor had lead her into another dimension entirely. A subconscious inside her subconscious. What the?

No, she thought at once. Her palms broke out in a sweat and her concentration slipped. Wait! I've never gone this far! This is too big…too powerful!

LISTEN TO ME. Release that power, NOW.

Out of engrained habit, Gaia obeyed. But her regret sparked like a raging flame of fire. The tornado she conjured up was so big; Gaia's mental protective wall that served like a dam to her mutant abilities broke. Everything flooded in. Everything. Survival depended on her filtering out the stuff that she couldn't handle. The stuff that had the potential to kill her.

Now it was suffusing itself into her system.

Her terror melted away as her mind went…blank. With the roar of a freight train, the black tornado tore into the airport. The screams of the innocent were lost in the wind. As glass shattered, walls toppled, engines exploded, the only two surviving humans were the girl and the photographer who watched her. He observed her weave back and forth, raising and lowering her hands as if she was in an orchestra, directing the sound of the music. His black eyes were grim as he let his camera drop languidly onto his chest.

She possessed power. Unconquerable power.

Suddenly, movement from the side of his eye caused him to startle. The photographer backed up one step, but he was too late. An exquisite piece of woman flesh stood imperiously before him. Immediately, he knew she was a mutant. Her blue skin and liquid gold eyes were beacons to the truth. He gathered in his dignity and smiled in a familiar way towards her.

"Always out to startle me, eh, Mystique? You do have the nack for making quite the entrance."

She smiled dreamily. "You aren't that fortunate, Dodger. I don't aim to scare my victims. I annihilate them."

He swallowed uneasily, watching the dangerous hunger in her eyes. He needed to be careful with this one.

"I need to send these to my employer before Magneto can get a copy from me," he stated firmly. "You know how this works. I can't bend anymore. He's already suspicious from our last encounter."

"Oh but Dodger," she wined. Her eyes widened as her mouth dropped into an uncharasteristic pout. This woman was made of steel; she wasn't one to cry and scream to get her way. An ex-Marine, Dodger recognized her poise for battle the second she leaned forward onto the balls of her feet. His heart leaped up into his throat. She moved closer to him and he tried to utilize his camera to strike her out cold. Any normal human being would have died on the spot by the force behind his throw. But Mystique merely caught the camera, like it was a wad of toilet paper. She stopped in midstride and lifted her eyes to his face. Then she smiled. Before he could even begin to run or scream for help, she lunged forward and trapped both sides of his face in her hands.

A minute later, Dodger fell limp and lifeless on the asphalt.

Mystique ignored him as she inspected the expensive piece of equipment. She went through his pictures and slowly, a selfish gleam lit her eyes. Oh yes. His employer needed these pictures, but Magneto needed them so much more.

She obeyed orders and turned to go. But not before taking one last look at the young prodigy.

She was in her own little world. But Mystique felt disquieted by the look on her face. One of pain. Deep, deep pain.

What are they doing to you?

Mystique…do you have it?

His voice in her mind caused Mystique to guard her thoughts, before she replied. The determination she felt earlier returned with full force. She couldn't mess this up, and she couldn't allow him to know about her momentary lapse of weakness.

Yes, Magneto. I'm returning with it right now.

Mystique left without looking back.

O-oooooh.

Don't you just want to bash me into a million pieces? (:

Lol!

Review please!

~Merlin's Ward Jack