Authors Notes

Disclaimer - We do not own X-Men

Chapter 2

The following day gave the 8 mutants time to get to know one another. They had spent the hours sharing stories about their lives before now and how they were found. Sean had just finished telling them all everything about himself and unsurprisingly turned to Lara next. "What about you then? What was your life like before you got here?"

Lara shot him a look of annoyance and fidgeted around uncomfortably in her seat. She sighed. "I don't want to talk about it." She mumbled.

"Come on, Lara!" Sean pushed. Everyone else looked just as eager to know but stayed silent seeing the visible discomfort painted across her face. Sean half expected her to demand him not to ask again but she remained quiet. "Alright..." he started, hesitantly, "How were you found?"

"I just said I don't want to talk about it." She hissed, crossing her arms defensively.

"I just want to know..." He whined, "Everyone else so far has said where they were."

"I don't care what everyone else has done. I don't want to talk about it. Just shut up and drop it."

Sean was taken aback. He looked between the other mutants, who all looked equally stunned at her outburst, quietly hoping for one of them to say something in his defense.

No one did.

He slumped back in his chair dejectedly; he stayed silent after that.

"So... what about you, Lily, where were you?" Raven inquired, defusing the tense air.

"I was at the library." Lily said, tentatively.

"What were you doing at a library?" Alex jeered. Lara straightened up as he said this, any previous signs of being uncomfortable slipping away. The feeling was instantly replaced with boiling irritation. She couldn't stand him.

She was about to - once again - tell him to leave Lily alone when the blonde spoke up, "I was baking a cake, Alex." She retorted, her words dripping with sarcasm. "What do you think I was doing?"

The boy rolled his eyes, not bothering to answer her. He gave her a smirk before getting up and joining Darwin who was playing at game at the far end of the room. Lily straightened up as he left, the weight of the self-awareness and tension she felt from being around Alex being lifted.

"Seriously, what is his problem?" Lara huffed. She flopped back against the sofa with a grunt and turned back to Lily, asking her to continue.

"So... I was at the library - I was reading, before anyone asks again - and well, I have very good hearing because I can amplify the vibrations of air molecules-"

"You can what?!" Sean interrupted, earning a glare from Lara.

"Doesn't matter." Lily stated, "but the point is, I should have heard Charles and Erik coming over but I didn't because Charles apparently did some weird thing that stopped me from being able to." She explained, her brows furrowed in confusion.

"You talk very technically about your own powers but call Charles' some weird thing." Hank laughed. Lily smiled shyly in embarrassment and was about to defend herself before she was cut off.

"Whoa, I didn't know the circus was in town!" A man yelled as he walked past the window; another man was at his side watching him. "Come on honey, give us a little-" he flapped his hands, gesturing wings at Angel, who glared back. "Oh, and you!" He pointed at Lily, repeating the action. "No? Come on, let's see the foot." He taunted, tapping his foot. Hank stood up and walked towards the window. "There it is! Come on Bigfoot, let's go!" Hank ignored the man's jibes and pressed the button to shut the curtains with a wave. "Hey, hey! Come on, hey!" The man protested as they drew to a close.

The group sat in silence as the footsteps of the men walking away grew quieter. Their eyes shifted between one another waiting for someone to speak up.

"They're just guys being stupid." Raven finally said. Her voice was soft as she tried to reassure Angel.

"Guys being stupid, I can handle. Ok, I've handled that my whole life. But I'd rather a bunch of guys stared at me with my clothes off than the way these ones stare at me."

"At us." Raven shrugged. Lara opened her mouth, about to agree but a distant noise broke her train of thought. Everyone's heads whipped to the direction of the window as it continued.

"What was that?" Darwin asked, his voice full of caution. "Something doesn't feel right." He slid past Alex - who then followed - and opened the curtains. The other mutants also followed and gazed out the window, their attention directed towards the sky; something was going on up there. "What is that?"

Before anyone could answer, a loud scream echoed outside before a body slammed against the floor. The 8 mutants instantly jumped back with a scream, slowly reversing further into the room as more and more people suddenly fell from the sky. Raven was sobbing as she clung desperately to Lara.

"Get back! Get back!" Someone yelled, banging loudly on the glass. Him and about 10 others were armed with guns. "Do not leave that room! We're under attack."

The 8 of them yelled and pointed behind him as a red figure appeared out of nowhere and all at once they started shooting. The mutants ran behind one of the sofas for cover as the figure disappeared before reappearing behind a man in front of the window. The shots were directed there and the glass shattered instantly letting bullets hit the walls.

The shots then stopped as everyone's attention was averted to the opposite window where a large tornado was tearing across one of the fields. Lily felt almost in awe of it, knowing she didn't have that kind of power. With everyone's focus lost, the red figure reappeared - holding small swords. More screams rang as he sliced and stabbed them all, breaking Lily out of her trance.

"Stay here, my ass! Let's go!" Darwin roared, running out of the room with the others in tow.

They raced down the hallway, yelling out as they crashed into more armed men. "Get back!" One of them bellowed as he grabbed Angel. She struggled against him with a scream, trying to get past.

"We can help!" Darwin protested.

The mutants were shoved back roughly, as a blinding orange light exploded in front of them all. The men shot at it and the 8 of them ran back to the supposed safety of the room. They crashed into a halt in the middle of it, fixed helplessly at a second tornado outside one window and the last of the guards being killed out the other. A guard was blasted against the remaining glass, shattering it and a suited figure stepped through the empty space; the red figure coming in from the other side.

Several gun shots sounded from the door and someone on the other side begged to be let go in return for the mutants. His pleas were ignored and a loud thud could be heard as he dropped to the floor, dead.

The mutants clung to each other - some crying, some of the verge of panic and some trying their best to keep calm. Lara tried to mask her fear as she hugged Raven tightly, who was now sobbing uncontrollably. Lily gripped Hank's arm, unknowingly and squeezed it tighter as a third man stepped through the door.

"Where's the telepath?" he immediately demanded answer to.

"Not here." The red man murmured.

"Too bad - at least I can take this silly thing off." He sniggered, removing the silver helmet he was wearing. "Good evening. My name is Sebastian Shaw." He announced, making his way towards them. "And I am not here to hurt you."

"Freeze!" A lone guard shouted outside, pointing his gun at Shaw.

"Azazel." The red man disappeared less than a second after the command, reappearing behind the unexpecting guard and killed him with a grunt.

Shaw smirked and handed his helmet to the other man and continued his speech. "My friends - there's a revolution coming where mankind discovers who we are, what we can do. Each of us will face a choice - be enslaved or rise up to rule." He paused eyeing each of them, searching for signs of emotion. "Choose freely but know that if you are not with us then by definition you are against us. So, you can stay and fight for the people who hate and fear you. Or you can join me." He smirked, straightening his back, pridefully. "And live like kings." He glanced at Angel, realising he was getting through to her. "And queens."

He extended his hand towards her and she took it without second thought, being led away from the others.

"Angel."

"Are you kidding me?"

"Come on," she croaked, "We don't belong here and that's nothing to be ashamed of." Darwin reached for her but she ignored him, turning away from them with Shaw.

"We have to do something." Lara stated. Darwin's forehead creased in thought and he turned to Alex, whispering something to him inconspicuously.

Angel, Shaw and the other two stepped through the broken window and stood in a line, facing the remaining 7 mutants.

"Stop." Darwin called, "I'm coming with you."

Angel smirked and Shaw stepped towards him. "Good choice, so tell me about your mutation."

"All of you need to leave when I tell you to, ok?" Alex demanded the rest of teenagers in a hushed tone, unnoticed by Shaw. He clenched his fists angrily when they didn't answer, continuing to stare hesitantly at him. "Ok?" He repeated, "Trust me."

With exasperated sighs, the 5 of them nodded.

"Well I adapt to survive." Darwin meanwhile informed Shaw. "So I guess I'm coming with you."

"I like that." He nodded, gesturing for him to join his team.

He stood beside Angel, locking eyes with Alex and shouted his name.

"Get out!" Alex roared as Darwin grabbed Angel, his back turning to stone to shield them both. Large red, glowing rings circled his body and he released them in their direction with a growl. He grinned as they landed directly on his target. Or so he thought they did.

Shaw stopped them, absorbing their energy into his body. "Protecting your fellow mutants?" He let out a breath of satisfaction as the rest of the power was drawn into him. "That's a noble gesture." He raised his eyebrows as a confused Alex. "Feels good."

Darwin charged at him, raising his fist but was blocked. Shaw grabbed him by the cheeks; Darwin made no effort to struggle as he brought his glowing red hand up to his face. "Adapt to this." He whispered, menacingly. He dropped the glowing orb into Darwin's mouth, who staggered back as it instantly took effect.

The four of them disappeared, leaving only Alex to witness what was happening. Darwin shook; his whole body turned metallic looking before turning into stone. The same red glow bubbled between the cracks of the stone like lava, making the cracks grow larger. He turned to Alex, seeing the desolation apparent in his eyes and reached in his direction. The blonde just stared at the scene in front of him, unable to do anything to help his friend.

The glow disappeared for seconds before returning and consuming Darwin in it as it exploded in a intense, glaring flash.

And just like that, he was gone.