Chapter 4: Welcome to Mutant High
Voices are echoing inside Zach's head. But with many playing at once, it's hard for him to make out who's talking. He gasps for air as he wakes up after being knocked out for hours. But how long exactly?
Zach's vision is blurry along with the voices talking to him. Then he sees a light shining onto one of his eyes.
"He seems to be coming around. Heart rate is normal. Breathing just fine." Beast reports as he holds a small light over his face.
Zach's eyes follow the lights before he shakes his head and he looks around and sees three people, and what appears to be a blue type of mutant surrounding him. He wakes up and feels some pain in his head.
"Ow. W-what i-in…." Zach sees the five X-Men all surrounding him. His first instinct was to jump off the table, run and scream. He tries to find a door, but can't seem to make it out as his back faces the wall and looking down at the floor.
"Hey, hey. Take it easy. Take it easy." Beast tries to calm him down.
"P-please. W-whatever ….you want with me, j-just d-don't hurt me. P-please." Zach hyperventilates once more. He remains horrified.
"Wait." Storm places her hand on Beast's shoulder, as if to tell him to stand back. She looks at the new kid with a worried and protective look on her face as she slowly approaches him. "Hey. Remember us? We came to save you. We won't hurt you, I promise."
Storm raises her hands in the air in a surrender gesture. Jean, Peter and Scott follow closely behind her. The silver-haired woman approaches the young mutant as she places her hands on his shoulders slowly and he begins to calm down. He starts to look at them.
"H-how l-long was I out?" Zach nervously asked.
"For nearly a day. But it's okay. Everything is going to be okay. We saved your life." Jean approaches from behind. "We're X-Men."
"We protect others. Humans and mutants." Scott said. "And you and your new friend are the lucky ones today. Good thing we found you first."
"X-Men? I-I've n-never heard of you g-guys. I-I thought you were t-those other ones." Zach assumed.
"Like heck we aren't." Colossus said, only for Hank to give him an elbow strike to the shoulder. "Sorry. We do not like to kill anyone. It is not our way. Our job is to protect and teach those who are lost."
"T-teach? W-what do you mean? What is this place?" Zachery asked.
"I promise you, you'll like it here. Trust me, Zach. You'll make new friends here. And we are here to protect you and everyone else here." Jean gives him a smile.
"W-wait. I-I never said my name." Zach realized.
"There's someone we like you to meet. He's a very important person." Storm tells him. Zach sees Wolverine still asleep on the other table.
"Wait. What about him?" Zach worries for him.
"It's alright. I'm a medic. I may not look like it, but I am." Beast replied to Zachery. "Jean, would you please help me out?"
"Sure." Jean nodded. She turns to Scott and Storm. "Go. Take him to the professor. It's okay, Zach. He's a very nice person. And an old friend."
Jean gives Zach a reassuring friendly tone as he walks out the door with Scott and Storm. The latter puts a hand on his shoulder as the three walk upstairs while Peter goes his own way.
Zach is surprised by what he sees next. The place he woke up in was some sort of medic lab and advanced technology. But once he entered with Storm and Scott, it looked like a regular house. But how big is this place? He sees a bunch of rooms and….. Classrooms?
"What is this? Who are we supposed to meet?" Zach asked.
Neither of them answered. They instead lead to double doors. Scott opens the doors and they meet Charles Xavier.
"Professor. Here he is." Scott said.
Charles Xavier was looking out the window and turned around in his wheelchair and smiled upon seeing the new kid, staring at the floor.
"Ah. Young Zachery. How pleased am I to hear that you're safe. How are you feeling?" Charles Xavier asked.
"Umm…. nervous. And…. Overwhelmed." Zach quietly answered.
"Yes. That's what most people say when they first arrive here. You are no exception." Charles Xavier said. "Welcome to the School for the Gifted. Or as some people say, welcome to Mutant High."
"A s-school? For the gifted? You mean like these two that rescued me?" Zach asked, referring to Scott and Storm.
"Correct. I'd like for you to meet Scott Summers, known as Cyclops. And Ororo Munroe, but she prefers Storm." Charles greeted. "And I am Professor Charles Xavier."
Zach turns around and Storm immediately holds out her hand with a smile. Zach is reluctant to grab her hand, considering what happened last time.
"I….. I don't k-know." Zach is afraid.
"I know your feelings all too well. You're afraid. I can understand that. You are not alone, young Zach. I too am gifted. You cannot harm me." Charles Xavier holds out his hand for the new student.
Zach slowly approaches Charles Xavier, summoning the strength to look at him in his eyes. After more reluctance, he takes off his gloves and shakes the professor's hand. Much to Zach's relief, nothing happened.
"See. I am a telepath. I can read anyone's thoughts and movements and have them do what I please. But I do not intend to use my gift for selfish personal gain. I use my gift to help those in need, particularly the students here." Charles Xavier explained.
"But I don't even know what my gift is." Zach is confused, putting his gloves back on.
"Your gift. It is unlike anything I have ever seen. Extremely rare. You have the abilities of psychometry and intellectual transfer. But after seeing your memories and what happened, I understood what happened. I must say I am terribly sorry for what happened to your uncle. You should be happy to hear that he is in healthy condition." Charles reassures him.
"I-I am glad, but it's still my fault he got hurt." Zach blames himself.
"You are not at fault for the moment your gift was born." Charles said. "I can see why you are filled with so much emotional stress. From your own point of view, what did it look like when your gift was born?"
Zach tries his best to summarize what he has experienced almost two weeks ago. But it wasn't easy. "Umm, well….. It's like reading so many books at once. I look at pictures, things that I normally don't know and yet, as soon as I touch them, I suddenly know what they are, where they came from. And when I touched my uncle, I saw his memories and saw what he knows. But they played so fast, like fast forwarding a movie, that it's h-hard to figure out."
"That is your gift. Touching other people around you or other objects gives you historical memories or sensations regarding others. You gain knowledge, including who made such object, who used them. In the case of humans and mutants, you gain their life history, but you don't know their feeling. It's called psychometry. And for your other gift, intellectual transfer, you can transfer intellectual capabilities to others, such as Storm and Scott. Your powers however will have no effect on me because of my telepathy." Charles explains Zach's powers.
"B-but h-how does this makes me any different from the others? I-I'm….. Just an… autistic…. Guy." Zachery said.
"You are indeed. In fact, you are the first known mutant to be autistic. I had hoped there would be someone like you, Zach. I have studied autism for years alongside genetic mutation. I've always had my theories. If you do like to listen, of course." Charles offered.
Zach looks at Scott and Storm and they both nod to him. The new student turns back to Xavier and slowly nods his head.
"You see, non-mutants who are autistic have it hard. But for mutants like us, our DNA is altered, caused by high forms of emotional stress. It affects them mentally and physically. But I had a theory about autistic mutants. Your physiology and psychology are different from those around you. And by your tone of voice, having a harder time speaking than before, and regressed social skills, I can tell. Autistic mutants would be more affected than an average autistic human being as well as normal mutants such as these children here. I don't need to use my gift to tell you that. You're a special kind of mutant, Zach. But I can promise you that I can help you, as I have with most other students. And I wish to study you and understand you. That is, if you are willing to stay. And learn from us. Let us be your school teachers. And after graduation, you will have a choice." Charles explained.
"A….. choice?" Zach nervously asked.
"You can return to the outside world and find your own career path. Or stay here and become part of the X-Men. It is your right and your right only. We will not force a decision upon you. Would you like a place among the students? I promise you help, and that we help you find friends. And no one will harm you here. I do not tolerate bullies here. What do you say, young Zachery?" Charles offered.
Zach listened very carefully to the professor and his theories and kind offer. And remembering how Storm, Scott and the others helped save his life and the interactions he had with them as well as Wolverine despite not knowing him very well. And how nice they are to him. He sighs and was ready to give the answer.
"Y… Yes. Please. I-I would… love to be a student here. A freshman. And learn from everyone." Zach answered, much to everyone's delight. Scott, despite being somewhat cynical, believes he's better off here than anywhere else.
"Excellent. We'd be more than happy to show you a tour of the school. Come. We have a day ahead of us. Scott. Storm. You know what to do." Scott nods as he gestures for Zach to follow them.
Zach sighs of relief and is starting to cheer up after meeting his new teachers.
Zach is shown around the X-Mansion. He is already impressed by how big it is and so many people here.
"Let us start with the first floor." Scott suggested. "Through the double doors behind you is the exit. There's a courtyard outside and on your left and right are separate buildings are classes with me and Storm. Now back inside and on your left is the kitchen which leads to the dining room. There's more than enough space for kids to hang out and eat. And of course, past the dining room are extra classrooms. On the other side of the dining room is the parlor room where people hang out and have guests over."
"And over here, Zach, on your right of the staircase, past the art gallery. Here is the library." Storm shows.
"Wow. S-so many books here. Y'all must've paid no expense." Zach is impressed.
"Oh, we're prepared for many subjects that we're gonna teach you. But we've already picked out the books you need, and some other fictional or non-fictional books if you like anytime. And don't worry about paying for them. Through the library are more classrooms with Ms. Grey, Mr. McCoy, and Mr. Peter." Storm offered. "And on your right is the professor's office where he will also have his classes. He'll be wanting to talk to you a lot, so be prepared. Are you with us, so far?"
"I-I think so. He said he wants to study me?" Zach asked.
"Yes. Because remember, you're the first autistic mutant. And he also wants to understand you better. We all do. Ain't that right, Scott?" Storm turns to her friend.
"Yeah. I suppose so." Scott shrugs. "It'll be a lot of work."
Storm chuckles a little before shaking her head. "Show some modesty. We all have a job to do. Besides, there might be more people like him."
"I-I don't mean to be some sort of burden." Zach said. Storm just smiles and puts an arm around the new kid's shoulders.
"Nonsense. You're a special one, Zach. We're not even close to being done showing you around. By the time we're done, you'll love it here." Storm said, giving him a friendly smile.
"Yeah. I suppose you're right. I like to see more." Zach gives a small smirk.
"That's the spirit. Come. On with the tour." Storm said.
Scott and Storm guide Zachery upstairs to the second floor. And it's bigger than he imagined.
"Wow." Zach whispered.
"On your left are the girl's bedrooms. On your right are the boys. That's where you'll be staying. We have tons of bedrooms upstairs and downstairs. And at the end of each dormitory are study halls. Feel free to use them anytime, kid." Scott instructed. Zach nodded without hesitation.
"I see a basketball court, a swimming pool and a baseball field. Nice." Zach nods in approval.
"And here's my favorite." Storm looks excited as she opens the staircase to the attic. "A garden with a sunroof."
Storm was the first one up with Zach following her. He can tell on his new teacher's face that she loves this part. Given the many plants hanging from the ceiling and flowers planted within each part of the garden.
"Now this is amazing. My aunt had something like this, but not this beautiful. I like it." Zach praised.
"Thank you. It took me a long time to completely fill this room." Storm demonstrates her powers by briefly summoning rain and it falls into each plant. Zach starts putting on a bigger smile, realizing why she's called Storm.
Storm and Scott then take Zach downstairs to the basement. And the walls have a different structure. The walls are nearly colored blue and made of metal instead of wood.
"We're back here?" Zach asked.
"Down here are more bedrooms and on your right is Mr. McCoy's physics lab. He will be your teacher as well. And next to it is a medical room where he and Ms. Grey help." Scott points out.
"Hey. What about down there?" Zach points to the stairs.
"Ah ah. Sorry, kid. That way is off limits to you and all other students. The sub floor has things that you're not ready to see." Scott blocks the path.
"Listen to us, Zach. We want you to stay out of the sub-floor. It's for teachers only. Don't go looking for trouble. We don't want anything to happen to you. We're here to protect everyone, you included. Do you understand?" Storm asked him with a protective tone of voice.
"Yes, Ms. Munroe." Zach nods.
"Please. Call me Storm. No need for formalities." Storm responded.
"Alright. Tour's over." Scott said. "Peter needs my help. Storm, could you show him where he's staying?"
"Sure thing." Storm walks with Zach and pushes a button and part of the wall opens. They step inside to what happens to be an elevator.
A few moments later, they are back to the second floor and Zach is led to the end of the hallway on the right. Storm opens the door for her new student. There's a bed, a tv, a lamp, bookshelf and his duffle bag and suitcase are already there.
"Here is your room. I hope you liked being shown around the place. What did you think?" Storm asked.
"I like it alot. It'll be worth the stay. What class will I have first? When do I start?" Zach wondered.
"You start tomorrow Monday morning. And you will be with me for the first period. I teach English and History." Storm explained.
"Nice. English is actually o-one of my favorite subjects. I usually do good in that." Zach replied.
"Splendid. You'll have some friends to start out as you go with each class. You start first thing in the morning." Storm said. "Is there anything you need?"
"Uhh, n-no. But I do want to say…. Thank you. For helping me and Logan back there. I appreciate it. I really do." Zach thanks her.
"Of course. It's what teachers and friends are for. You'll like it here. I know it'll take some time getting used to your surroundings. Trust me. Someday, you'll blow everyone's minds away with your talents. And I do like to see you after class, okay, honey?" Storm offered.
"I-I like that. Thanks." Zach looks at her and nods slowly.
"You're welcome, Zach. Welcome to Mutant High." Storm offers her hand again. This time, Zach shakes her hand much to the latter's joy. Storm smiles before she leaves and closes the door.
Zach sighs as he sits on the bed with his stuff. He has a feeling that he will like it here and his opinion will eventually go up. But he still remains afraid of making new friends at his new school. He can only wait and see. For now, he decides to go to sleep.
Note: This is one of my favorite chapters. Zach's interactions with the teachers such as Charles and Storm. So Zach's powers are knowledge absorption and intellectual transference. Psychometry happens when he touches a random person or object and can absorb their knowledge or in case of a person, their memories, but cannot absorb their emotions or feelings. Not only that, but in case of objects, gain knowledge of the maker, users and such. And intellectual transference can transfer knowledge to others. But he can only absorb much knowledge and it isn't infinite and it's too dangerous to transfer from a non-sapient being and can cause psychological issues to themselves when they transfer intellect that is too vast. Telepaths and mutants with absorption powers such as Rogue are immune to Zach's powers. All of this is explained by Charles Xavier.