6. Still Unchecked
Keeping to his word, Miguel met with Professor Xavier for a session of mental therapy. He was asked to meet with the Professor while he was surfing the internet on his laptop, not that he would say anything about how much he liked it to begin with. He even sent off a few emails after Megan showed him how to set up an account, although he didn't tell her what they were for.
The session was not what he thought it would be, a couch, Xavier sitting by with a pen and tablet in hand jotting down notes as he talked. Instead, it was in a cold metal lined medical room near the Danger Room, Miguel lay on a table with bright lights shining down from above. The cold surface he was on warmed quickly from his body heat as he waited for Xavier's session to begin. Besides the two of them, Ororo was the only other one present. In truth, he hated the idea of a psychologist. But a deal's a deal and if it meant he could have a few hours of uninterrupted privacy a week, he was willing to go through with what Xavier and Ororo proposed…for now.
Ororo's sessions were more like question and answer. She would pose one question to him then reword it several minutes later. This annoyed him to no end as he was caught once or twice giving different answers to the same question then having to explain why he responded the way he did. The inkblots she questioned him about looked all the same as he mostly saw skulls, fire, a dead tree, and even a few other weird things. Now, he just wanted this to be over with as quickly as possible.
"Now, Miguel, I need you to relax and close your eyes while I attempt to reach inside your mind. You'll fall asleep eventually but there's nothing to be concerned over," Charles told him as he wheeled himself to the end of the table as Miguel gave a grunt in response. "Ororo, if you would please begin recording the session. Hopefully I can find out more about his powers while I'm in there."
Placing his fingers on Miguel's temples, Xavier concentrated as he entered his mind. Flashes of light circled around him like a vortex and darkened the further he dove into his psyche. Reaching the end of the tunnel of light, Xavier saw images of Miguel's life in first person view. Despite receiving feelings of rage and violence like he had earlier, he felt calm and loving emotions that increased when a young Mexican woman would become visible. Passing this since it would not answer his questions at the moment, he searched the various synapses until he got to where his powers were controlled.
Normally, mutants had a single X-Gene responsible for their powers with one control center in their brain to trigger them. Miguel had two centers with one of them connected to his prefrontal cortex, the control center of emotions.
"Ororo, what does the cat scan show?" Xavier asked.
"It shows everything's normal at regular magnification. Is there a certain area you wish for me to look at?"
"What about the prefrontal cortex? Does it look abnormal in anyway?"
"Give me a moment." Turning the images around on a large screen computer, Ororo magnified the area the Professor indicated and took a closer look at it. "It looks as if his X-Gene control center is split in two. One of which is connected to the cortex."
"That's what's causing his emotional duress. Anything that sets him off too much damages his mental stability. That would explain the difference in coloring his claws take when he goes over the edge."
"You mean it's like an alarm telling him to calm down because his mind is being damaged? But I thought he can heal like Logan or Laura."
"But not when his claws are formed. He can only heal when they are not in use and being invulnerable on the outside does not mean he's the same on the inside. He's basically killing himself by being as angry as he is. I'm also sensing how he was able to fight Marko alone, he can imprint his opponent's natural strength. Essentially, he became as strong as Marko is for the time he fought him."
"Would that explain why his eyes shimmer for an instant?"
"Yes. It's his way of imprinting his opponent's strength for his own use."
Pulling back from where he was and finding out the first answer to his questions, Xavier went in search for the cause of his anger. He dove deep into Miguel's memories. Images of fights, standoffs, shootouts, and death surrounded him.
A woman was being badly beaten. She shouted his name over and over while trying to reach for him as she was being suffocated by another individual. As the life left her eyes, the individual came into view to be revealed as a man who looked similar to Miguel. The feeling of being lifted occurred as the man grabbed him and slammed him down on a counter. Water flooded around him as the images changed to show the same man cowering in fear as a pair of black claws came into view and skewered his chest. Then there was the woman he saw when he entered Miguel's mind.
Upon seeing her, Xavier felt all the negative emotions he experienced drain away. Calmness and love enveloped him as she wrapped her arms around Miguel and leaned in for a kiss. The background around the couple changed from the usual blue of the Psychic plane to a desert, the beach, a hotel in Vegas, and the San Antonio River Walk. It reminded Xavier of his past love, Moira.
As he experienced Miguel's emotions on a personal level, a dark cloud began to creep in. Lightning filled the area around Xavier and the loving couple disappeared. The sky cracked in half and fell in large pieces as a black light streaked in from each opening. It was every negative emotion Miguel carried with him moving in.
As Xavier's astral body tried to leave, his physical body jerked in pain with his face scrunching to reflect what he felt. Ororo panicked and called for Jean who arrived shortly thereafter and attempted to help the Professor separate from the astral plane. The added strength of her own psychic powers aided him to get clear of Miguel's mental anguish and come back to the physical plane. Miguel remained on the table asleep as the two women came to Xavier's aid.
"Professor," Jean said as she held onto his hands. "What happened?"
"Miguel, it was…so jumbled…his mind…so violent."
"Here Professor, take this." Ororo handed him a glass of water and several aspirin. He drunk them down quickly and released a heavy breath.
"His mind, every negative emotion he's ever experienced was moving forward. They completely took over the positive ones he felt, almost as if they were being guarded by them and pushed them to the back of his mind. If he continues on like this and doesn't confront his feelings, they will continue to affect his powers and kill him."
A few hours later in the underground locker room, Miguel was busy readying himself for another session in the Danger Room. The uniform assigned to him slipped on easier this time due to it being worn more and more. A pair of scissors were taken to it to make it even more comfortable for him since it didn't allow enough room for him to move around in with the sleeves being cut off and it being made into a two piece suit.
Xavier saw what he did and had another made for him. This one was still blue and yellow but wasn't a one piece anymore. The pants felt looser and came with a belt. The buckle was square with a black 'X' situated in its middle on a background of red. The upper part of the uniform was now a jacket with a hood. He wore a simple white t-shirt underneath it and had it partially zipped up. A large yellow 'X' adorned the front when it was worn like this.
Boots similar to Gambit's covered his feet up to his knees and elbow pads were situated into their proper places. The finishing touch was white athletic tape around his wrists and hands, leaving his fingers uncovered. It stretched up halfway up his forearms and was the last to go on. As he applied the tape to his left arm to finish getting prepared, Nightcrawler appeared next to him from a teleport.
"Morning, Miguel." Nightcrawler said in a cheery voice. It irritated the anger prone man just how happy he could be so early in the morning. "How have you enjoyed your first month here?"
"Fine." It was a simple, quick answer he hoped would satisfy the fuzzy one.
"Care to elaborate?"
Rolling his eyes, Miguel replied, "Fine and dandy."
Tossing the remainder of the tape roll back into his locker, Miguel tossed the pair of lounge pants he arrived in along with it and headed for the Danger Room by himself.
"Still has a rod up his butt?" Bobby Drake asked Kurt.
"Apparantly. He doesn't even laugh at my jokes and I'm tossing him my A-list material."
"Treat him like you do Logan, Kurt," Scott said as he fit his visor in place. "If you treat him like Logan, maybe he'll be able to tolerate you like he does with Megan, Remy, and Rogue."
"Yeah, I have noticed he, my sister and Gambit get along."
"Must be a southern thing," Bobby pointed out. "Hard enough to understand them when they don't ease up on the accents."
"What about Megan?" Scott asked. "Jean says she's caught them hanging around a lot for the past week. She's not Southern. She's not even American, so why does he not cuss her out?"
"Maybe its cause she's helping him with stuff around the mansion. She's really the only one he's said more than two words to him since getting here. Even Kitty can't crack the Chupacabra code," Kurt pointed out.
"Chupacabra code?" Bobby asked.
"That's what they called him in Mexico. The Professor's even found news reports of someone with the same name in Texas taking down drug warehouses and destroying them." Cyclops explained. "Apparently, that's what the drug cartels call him too."
"Hey!" Logan shouted from the locker room entrance. "Get your rears in gear and in the Danger Room. The girls already beat you by two minutes. Scott, Bobby, Kurt, that's ten extra minutes of training on the highest setting today."
"What's the level today?" Kurt asked nervously.
"Eight on the city scape difficulty."
The three boys groaned in unison knowing what awaited them.
In the middle of what could only be described as a derelict city, Gambit, Rogue, Pixie, and Miguel battled numerous soldiers armed with energy rifles. Bright blue streaks shot through the air as the four man team traversed the destroyed environment. Tanks crushed skeletons of long dead people inside cars as they rolled over them while in pursuit of the mutants.
Countless robot drones exploded from being damaged too much as the team made short work of any and all who went against them. While the object of the mission exercise may seem akin to a kid's playground game, Logan made sure it was anything but kid-like. Starting at one end of the room, the team had to make their way to the other side where a tall flag pole was erected and grab the flag at the top. Again, it was easier said than done as the drones continuously replaced their fallen amongst their ranks.
"What's the plan now?" Pixie asked as she and Rogue ducked behind an over turned car.
Gambit flung several charged cards at an incoming group of drones marching over a hill before they could open fire on them. "We may need ta change tactics and not go in as a group. One can get in better than four, n'est pas?"
"Just give me a tap o' your powah and I'm game, sugah," Rogue said as she removed a glove.
She and Gambit touched hands and she activated her power, taking a bit of his kinetic charge ability to use as her own. All the years of working to control her powers had led to her being able to use them whenever she wanted and decide how much to take.
"Pixie, go with…where's Miguel?" Gambit asked as he looked around them.
"He was right behind meh," Rogue told him. "Pixie, eye in tha skah."
Unlike Rogue, who wore a black one piece uniform with a green breast plate and shoulder guards, or Gambit, who wore his usual armored red and blue top with trench coat, black pants, and high, silver metallic boots, Pixie was donned in a blue and yellow uniform with matching belt and hip mounted pack. A rectangular 'X' buckle with a red background hung tightly around her waist. The back of the uniform had large eye shaped openings to allow her wings to protrude from under her skin. Armored yellow boot tops and forearm bracers were her only armor. Pixie took to the air in search for Miguel as her squad leaders stayed behind.
"Now dat de rookies are gone," Gambit said with a sly smile. He grabbed Rogue by the waist and brought her close. "How 'bout a good luck kiss?"
"First we get the win, then I'll give you mo' den a kiss, Swamp Rat." She said flirtatiously and rubbed her nose on his.
"I tink dat can be arranged."
The two again battled their way forward as Logan shouted over a loud speaker to get back to the mission, albeit in a more profane way.
Heading away from the southern couple, Pixie searched for Miguel and found him taking on several drones and a tank that was making its way around to flank them. He sliced through one after the other while making his way to the war machine, not noticing several drones coming up behind him and aiming their energy rifles at him.
Coming in at a dive bomb, Pixie formed her soul dagger and used it to slice through them like they were butter. They all exploded behind her as she joined Miguel, making him turn and raise a clawed hand to her.
"Whoa, wait, it's me!" she yelled, wide eyed.
"Sorry." He turned back around and continued to fight as they went back to back. "What are you doing back here?"
"Coming to get you. Why are you lagging behind?" She threw her dagger at an incoming drone and succeeded in hitting it through the head. Her dagger disappeared and reformed in her hand shortly after.
"They're flanking us. Thought Ah'd buy ya'll some time to get tha flag."
"You at least could have told us what you were up to…where are you?" One second he was behind her, the next, he was gone.
A lone drone fired upon her, nearly hitting her in the shoulder but she dodged out of the way just in time. She charged the automaton and buried her dagger in its head the same time she heard Miguel let out a yell and sliced the side of the tank, disabling its treds then climbed up to its turret. She watched as he tore into the top hatch and rip apart the drone inside. The tank was covered by an electrical current and went dead as Miguel leapt off and landed before her.
"If you're done playing Rambo, mind watching my back? I nearly got hit." She told him through gritted teeth.
"They're not real, what's the difference?"
"You get hit, you stay down until the end of the mission. It's a way to factor in if someone dies in the field."
"Well Ah don't die," He said as he leaned in close, centimeters from her face when several drones opened fire on them. Energy blasts shot over their heads, giving them no other choice but to run in the opposite direction.
"Look what you did!" Miguel yelled as he and Pixie kept low in their run.
"What I did?" she yelled back.
"Yeah, Ah'm the rookie, you're the veteran! You're supposed to be on tha lookout for things like this!"
"Just cause I've been here longer than you doesn't mean I'm a military strategist or a veteran!"
"Ain't that's what you're supposed to be training far?"
"No, we're- GAH!" Before she could say anything more, an energy beam hit her square in the back. She fell forward and couldn't move as an electrical pulse prevented her from doing so.
"Pixie? Pixie!" Slamming on the brakes, Miguel ran back the way they came and let out a growl as he formed his claws and laid waste to the pursuing drones. His claws turned black as he tore into them, leaving none standing.
With the drones destroyed, he dissolved his claws and ran to her side. He picked her up and flung her over his shoulder as he went into a sprint. More energy fire flew past them as more drones took position within a demolished building and fired from its blown out windows. Dirt kicked up around them as the ground was shot but Miguel didn't slow down, even with the added weight of Pixie on his shoulder.
"What are you doing?" she yelled harshly as she bounced along. "Leave me and get the flag!"
"Ah ain't leaving you behind! Ain't that a rule or somethin'?"
"We're scored by how many survive! Now drop me and- hey! What are you-"
"Just shut up and let meh think," he roared as a group of drones appeared from behind a barely standing wall and opened fire on them. Miguel dodged the first round of energy bolts but his luck ran out when he was struck in the chest and fell forward.
Pixie landed with a thud on her back with Miguel landing on top of her. Both landed face to face in a very compromising position as the drones moved on like they weren't even there.
"Well, look what you did." Repeating his words, Pixie stared angrily at him with him meeting her gaze. "Happy now? I told you to go on without me, but no, you just had to come back and play hero, didn't you?"
"Oh, shut up," he muttered. He looked away despite being extremely close to her. A sneer was on his face as he tried to move his head around in an attempt to survey where they were.
As mad as Pixie was, she really didn't mind the view of him above her. In fact, him being on top of her felt nice, even though they had no control of their limbs. If they had, she admittingly wouldn't be opposed to not push him off her. She also liked the way his long hair seemed to tickle her with every movement of his head and he even smelt good despite both of them being covered in sweat and dirt from training. Feeling her face heat up, she forced herself to stop her current train of thought and focus on something else. There really wasn't much to talk about though.
"Axe shower gel?" she asked.
"Yeah," he replied. He took a sniff while still looking around. "Green apple body wash?"
"Yeah."
He nodded. "Smells good."
"Thanks."
Several minutes later, the hologram of the ruined city dissolved and the current running through them stopped. Miguel stood up first, rather quickly, and ran a hand through his sweat soaked hair before offering Pixie a hand up. She took it and stood beside him, pulling her hair back as Gambit and Rogue sauntered up to them.
"Looks like we found the reason you two decided to separate from us." Gambit said, grinning. His arm rested loosely around Rogue who had a mischievous grin on her face. "Seriously, Miguel, good idea."
"Good cover Megan," Rogue said. "Get shot first so he has to rescue you then play damsel in distress. Personally, Ah would've gone for tha direct approach. A little more aggressive but, it works."
Pixie's face turned red and Miguel growled at the pair's insinuations when Logan entered the Danger Room with the other students behind him. They were all snickering at Miguel and Pixie's expense except for Logan who had a stern look about him.
"You two mind explaining that?" the Canadian asked gruffly.
"I told him to go on without me," Pixie started, "but he wouldn't listen. I came back to get him and in our escape, well, that's when things went bad."
"No joke," Logan responded flatly. "And what's your reason, Miguel?"
Grunting, said mutant spit on the floor, ridding his mouth of built up saliva and dirt, and looked the real veteran in the eyes. "Since Ah brought up the rear, Ah thought Ah would handle anything behind us. When Pixie got hit Ah just thought this was one of those missions where we leave no one behind."
"Good reasoning, but your actions got you killed. Sometimes during a battle, if it's important, we have no choice but to continue to push forward and leave the injured or dead behind. What you did was the right course of action but it was at the wrong time. Pixie was dead, you should have gone on without her like she said. If this were real, we would've come home with two less X-Men instead of one."
"Ah don't stay dead," was all Miguel muttered as he walked past Logan.
"The Professor told me to keep an eye on you should your claws turn black. What's your reason for them doing so this time?"
"Stumped mah toe."
"More like hurt his Pixie," Jaimie whispered to Bobby, making the two snicker more. Unfortunately for him, Miguel overheard the remark and formed his claws again. The blue coloring was skipped this time and they were fully black.
Jamie and Bobby's eyes grew wide in fear as Miguel marched towards them and raised a claw. Logan quickly stepped in and popped all six of his adamantium claws himself and blocked the attack. To Miguel's surprise, they didn't cut through the metal claws.
"What the F#$k?" he said as he looked at where he was being blocked.
"Adamantium, kid. Guess we know what those finger nails of yours won't cut through," Logan said.
Dissolving his claws, Miguel glared at the shorter mutant then looked at his hands in question.
"Something wrong, Chupacabra?" Iceman asked.
"What did you call me?" Miguel asked angrily. "No one calls me that!" He again formed his black claws and only stopped when Logan shouted his name.
"Miguel! Take it from one hot head to another, anger has its purpose but not when it costs the safety of others or threatens to kill you. Wait outside with your group and pay attention to what you see on the monitors. Next squad, ready in five, Cyclops, Nightcrawler, Iceman, your session will be survival for thirty minutes plus the ten you earned earlier."
The three teens groaned in unison again.
"On level eight on the wilderness setting instead."
The three groaned louder this time.
After being dismissed from early morning training, the now calmed down Miguel stood in his shower with the hot water running down his body again. He was a tad bit sore from the exercise and had opted to skip breakfast in favor of taking a shower in the bathroom connected to his bedroom. After getting clean, he dressed in his usual cargo pants and wrestling shirt combo with the thought of going downstairs to get something to eat as his stomach was growling loudly by this time. He was just about to pull his door open when his computer binged to alert him to a new message.
Taking a seat at his desk, he moved his finger on the touch pad and woke it from its sleep. Clicking on the email icon brought up his inbox where he clicked on the new alert. A grin crossed his face at what the message said.