Chapter 1
Eleanor the Mutant
"Today, the downtown area was robbed by another outbreak of violence," said the newscaster on the television that both Brittany and Jeanette were watching in their New York City home. It had only been three months since their guardian, Miss Miller, was killed by a car thief. The only one of the Chipettes to actually witness the crime was their younger sister, Eleanor. Dave Seville, along with the Chipmunks and their friends, the Chipettes, had fallen behind on their payments and chose to move to New York City in order to get away from the hard times in their former town. As the report continued, the perpetrator in question was revealed to be a mutant, which was fueling the anti-mutant hysteria in America.
"Why did our little sister have to be one, Jeanette?" asked Brittany, shutting off the broadcast. "I don't know, Brittany, but how could David register her with that Mutant Control Agency as if she were a bank robber or something?" asked Jeanette dismally. "It's not like any of the prisons, Jeanette. Dave even told us it's an outreach program to help individuals like her," said Britanny. Jeanette folded her arms and turned her back as her older sister tried comforting her. "I know, but what's going to happen to her, now?" asked Jeanette. "I don't know, sis. Let's just hope that nice boy next door doesn't find out our strongheaded sister is a mutant," said Brittany. Unbeknownst to them, their young sister, Eleanor, overheard the whole conversation from upstairs and ran into the hall. She slowly sat down and wondered why she had to be a mutant of all people. "It's not my fault that I'm different," she said, sobbing into her knees.
Suddenly, a giant red-and-purple robot called a Sentinel landed in the Queens neighborhood and started tracking Eleanor to the Seville house. "I know this sounds crazy, but what if Ellie really isn't a mutant?" asked Jeanette, adjusting her glasses. "Are you kidding me? Look what she did to the cabinet's glass when she screamed earlier today," said Brittany, showing Jeanette the broken glass inside the cabinet. As the twenty-foot-tall Sentinel made its way towards the house, the two sisters hugged while the boys ate in the kitchen. "Brit, be honest to me. Are you sorry that we're related to her?" asked Jeanette. "No, of course not, Jeanette. To tell you the truth, I feel extremely sorry for her," said Brittany, fixing her auburn hair. The Sentinel reached the window of the kids' bedroom and grabbed the bunk bed where both Theodore and Eleanor sleep. Frightened by the sound, Theodore hid under the kitchen table. "Uh, Dave, what was that?" asked Alvin. "I don't know, Alvin. Stay here, I'm going upstairs to check," said Dave, making his way towards the bedroom. "Identification Error. Non-living objects. Begin tracking program," said the Sentinel, dropping the bed. It then left the house to track down where Eleanor might've gone. "Eleanor? Are you alright?" asked Dave. He opened the door and screamed upon seeing the Sentinel leave.
Meanwhile, at the local mall, Eleanor was trying to get her mind off of being a mutant by playing at the arcade. "I thought they loved me," she said through her tears. Outside the mall in the parking lot, the Sentinel made its way towards her location, causing people to panic, due its sheer size. "Can't you do something?" one woman asked a security officer. "What do you want me do, arrest him?" he asked in a panic. "What's wrong with being a mutant, anyway?" Eleanor asked herself. Suddenly, she felt her right arm phase through the arcade cabinet, causing the game she was playing to short-circuit. "Hey, kid! Do you know how much that game costs?" barked the arcade manager. "Uh, duh. A quarter to play," she retorted, sipping on her slushie. "You're one of them, ain't you?" he asked, referring to the fact that she was a mutant. "Like I care!" she snapped, running out of the arcade. "See if I ever visit you ever again, you big creep!" As she was running, however, she failed to notice two women in front of her with clothing boxes. One of them had brown and white hair while wearing a fuchsia-colored dress and pink shoes. The other woman was an African American with pure-white hair, a red vest, black pants, and boots. Since she was already in a bad mood, Eleanor angrily blamed them for not watching where they were going. "What bug crawled up her skirt?" asked the brown-haired woman in a southern drawl.
The Sentinel made its way to the mall's entrance and broke the glass, making its way inside. "Do not be alarmed. I am here to serve and protect," said the Sentinel. Inside a card shop, a suave man named Remy purchased a deck of standard playing cards from the young female cash register. "You must like to play cards," she said smoothly. "I like Solitaire, okay? Unless I've got someone to play with," he said back to her. As Eleanor was going down an escalator, many panicking people ran past her, making her even more mad. "YOU JERKS WATCH IT!" she bellowed, shaking her fist. She then saw the Sentinel they were running from and gulped in fear. The Sentinel scanned her and identified her as the mutant he was sent to capture. Eleanor screamed in fear as the robot grabbed her with a mechanical tentacle that extended from its palm. Many people ran past the two women as they did some window shopping. "Must be a sale," guessed the southern woman. "Put me down, you overgrown bucket of bolts!" snapped Eleanor as the Sentinel dangled her up in the air.
Suddenly, the white-haired woman produced lightning directly from her left hand and demanded that Eleanor be released. "Lighten up on the speeches, sugar," said the southern woman known as Rogue. "Hey, lady! I think he noticed you! Keep talking!" pleaded Eleanor. The Sentinel scanned the women and identified them as unidentified mutant life forms. He ignored them and focused on Eleanor. The white-haired mutant known as Storm, then produced an all-white X-Men outfit, complete with a white cape and flew up towards the robot. She threw a lightning bolt at it, causing the cord to break. Eleanor began falling, but then broke her bonds with incredible strength and realized she was floating in mid-air. "Now that's something you don't see often," said Rogue. "I can fly! Whoo-hoo!" shrieked Eleanor, dodging the hand of the Sentinel. She then blew raspberry at the Sentinel as he ordered her to stop. Rogue lifted the escalator steps off of the tracking, which blocked the laser blast from the Sentinel's hand, giving Eleanor a chance to escape. Realizing that she had more powers than the average mutant, Eleanor decided to fight back. She flew up to the Sentinel and punched its head with her super strength. "Damn, that girl's got a mean right hook," said Rogue. "Agreed. She is very unique," replied Storm. Eleanor continued pummeling the Sentinel until the robot swatted her with its fist, sending her flying into a clothing store. Seeing what had just happened, Rogue flew towards the Sentinel to attack it.
Back at the card shop, Remy had bought another deck and then heard the sound of people screaming in the mall. "Like anything else?" asked the clerk, winking. "Don't go away. I'll be right back," he said, putting the cards in his jacket. Outside the shop, Rogue punched the Sentinel's head with a fierce right hook, sending it crashing into the display. Remy barely managed to dodge it, while also saving the female clerk. Storm flew up towards Rogue in order to help her friend deal with their adversary. The Sentinel got up and the clerk asked what was going on. "Don't worry, cher, your insurance can handle it," said Remy, running towards the action. "What is that thing, anyhow?" asked Rogue. The Sentinel blasted the two women with its lasers out of the glass ceiling on top of the roof of the mall outside. "A robot, I believe," replied Storm, rubbing her neck.
Meanwhile, in the clothing store that she was knocked into, Eleanor slowly got up while holding her head in pain. She then heard the steps of the Sentinel approaching. As if by instinct, her eyes glowed green and started scanning her surrounding area. The scanner in her eyes locked on to a bin containing free costume items. As her eyes turned back to their normal brownish color, Eleanor held her head as if she had just gotten a headache. As she did, the sound of metallic footsteps drew closer towards her general direction. Thinking fast, she put on a green superhero-like top, green pants, green gloves, green boots, and a green eye mask to look like a superhero. When the Sentinel had found her, it immediately ordered her to stop in her tracks. "You'll have to catch me, first," she said in an attempt to run away.
The Sentinel blasted her feet, causing her to fall into Remy's arms. "Where are you going, petit?" he asked her. "Away from that thing, that's where," she said, referring to the Sentinel. "Stand aside. I must apprehend that mutant," ordered the Sentinel. "Hey, apprehend THIS!" said Remy, taking out a card. His hand glowed with kinetic energy, which charged the card. He then threw the card at the Sentinel, which then exploded. He continued bombarding it with some of the playing cards he bought. "Wow, that's so cool! How did you even do that?" asked Eleanor. "With style, petit," said Remy. "Okay, you are officially creepy," she cringed, running off in her new costume. "Wait, Gambit'll help you!" said Gambit, saying that he was also a mutant. The Sentinel fired a laser at him, causing him to fly into a new car that was to be won. "This is absolutely insane! I've got mutant powers, everyone's gone, it's like a video game that's actually happening in real life!" cried Eleanor, hiding from the Sentinel. Eleanor glanced behind the pillar she was hiding and noticed that the Sentinel was scanning Gambit. "Unregistered mutant. Expendable," it said. "Don't you dare touch him, you big bucket of bolts!" she barked. She then blasted the Sentinel with two beams of green energy that emitted from her hands.
Eleanor gazed at her hands in disbelief. "Run, girl! Run!" shouted Gambit. The Sentinel slowly followed her and tossed a metallic spherical device towards her, which emitted a bunch of smoke. The young Chipette coughed and saw a tall man with a visor in front of her. "Who are you?" she asked weakly. "Cyclops. Get down," he explained. "Not that I have that much of a choice," she said sleepily, falling into his arms. The Sentinel blasted a street lamp in the parking lot, striking Cyclops's interest. "Energy blast, huh?" he asked skeptically. "Here's one from a pro." His visor emitted a powerful blast of red energy that sliced the Sentinel's head clean off of its robotic body, causing it to collapse.
Later at an Elizabethan manor called the X Mansion, Eleanor, still in the clothes that she had on from the store, was strapped to a heart monitor in an infirmary. She slowly got up and held her head, not knowing where she was. Suddenly, her left arm phased into the EKG monitor, causing it to short circuit as she got out of the bed. "Aw, nuts. Not again," she said, removing the arm band from her left arm. She jiggled the handle, only to find that it was locked. She then phased through the door and crept slowly down the hallway. She opened a door that she saw to be interesting and noticed a man with beast-like blue fur in a laboratory on the ceiling. "It would be quite disconcerting if this were to detonate," he said, leaping down onto the floor, gazing at the beaker he had poured the liquid into. "Disconcerting, yet provocative." Eleanor continued to wonder the halls until she heard a television playing in another room. "This shocking incident at New Salem Mall is just part of the growing menace of mutant violence," said Senator Kelly on the television. The man watching it, Morph, mocked Kelly by transforming into him. "My fellow Americans, I am an idiot," he laughed, before transforming back into his normal form. She kept watching him until he transformed into her, causing her to run in disgust.
She then ran into a room with several monitors and soon came across one that showed the mutants, Sabretooth and Magneto, followed by a speech from Senator Kelly. "It's time we recognize that all mutants are potentially dangerous to mankind," he said. "Oh, shut up," said Eleanor, turning the monitor off. She then saw the disembodied head of the Sentinel from the mall, but then heard an elderly voice coming her way, so she decided to hide. "What happened at the mall was inevitable," said the voice. It belonged to the founder of the X-Men, Professor Charles Xavier, who was traveling in his automatic wheelchair alongside Jean Grey. "I knew the existence of the X-Men would be revealed to the public one day. But not like this." They stopped at the monitors and Jean pointed out that they were on earlier. Professor X used his telepathy and saw Eleanor outside, who immediately sensed that she was being probed. "It's the girl, Jean. She has telepathy, as well. She sensed my probing," he said. Eleanor ran down the hall in an attempt to escape, but the professor warned the entire building of her presence.
She soon came to a door with a flashing light that said DANGER ROOM. Frustrated, she hit the control panel and ran inside. "Initiate Gambit-Wolverine training sequence," said the main computer. The room transformed and generated dangerous-looking realistic holograms. She narrowly dodged a spiked mace dangling from the ceiling and eventually saw Gambit training. "Petit? This is no place for you," he said, holding an ace of spades. As she ran off, an adamantium claw sliced away a brick wall. The claw belonged to the mutant known as Wolverine. Gambit tossed an explosive card at him, but he dodged it. He eventually got on a piston, which started ascending towards another one. He narrowly managed to dodge it, tearing a bit of his brown jacket in the process. As he landed back on the floor, Wolverine tackled him. "Tag, you're it," he said. Eleanor gaped at the two men in utter shock. Wolverine held up one of his claws ready to strike Gambit, but Eleanor blasted him with energy from her eyes.
Suddenly, the door to the Danger Room opened, with Storm asking if she was alright. "Not for long," snarled Wolverine. Eleanor tried to explain what had happened when she stepped in. Both Morph and the blue-haired man known as Beast found Wolverine's humiliation so funny that they ended up laughing. Enraged, Wolverine showed off his claws towards his fellow mutants. "Don't worry, petit. You just hurt Wolverine's pride. That's all," Gambit said calmly. "Just what the heck is this place, anyway?" asked Eleanor. "One part gymnasium, one part survival course. Affectionately referred to as the Danger Room," explained Beast. "Come with me, child. I shall explain who we are," said Storm, gently taking Eleanor to the balcony of the mansion.
Once they were on the balcony, Storm explained that everyone in the mansion was a mutant. "Not to sound rude or anything, but just what is a mutant, anyway?" asked Eleanor. "No one knows who will be a mutant at birth. We discover our extraordinary powers at about puberty," explained Storm. "But, I'm only eight. Why are my powers surfacing now?" asked Eleanor. "You will learn more about that from Professor Xavier if you stay here with us," said Storm, who then explained that the professor was their leader and had named the team the X-Men. She also went on to explain that she was called Storm, due to the fact that she can control the weather.
"At least your name makes sense. My name's Eleanor. I don't know what I'd call myself," said Eleanor. "You possess many powers, child. But, a name such as the Green Laser would be suitable for someone like you," said Storm. Eleanor cracked a smile upon hearing the name. "I guess you're right. It makes sense calling me that, since I shot out those lasers earlier," she said. "I just don't get why I'm here, though." "You were brought here because you possess extraordinary mutant powers. This is Professor Xavier's School for the Gifted," said Storm. "Aren't you a little old for school? Or did you all get held back?" asked Eleanor. "We X-Men learn something very special here, Eleanor," said Storm. She then walked to the other side of the balcony and manipulated the weather. She explained that the X-Men at the mansion learn to control their mutant powers for the benefit of humankind. "ALRIGHT! ALRIGHT! I GET IT!" shouted Eleanor over the wind. Storm stopped using her powers as Eleanor asked why some people hate them. "People fear what they do not understand," she said calmly.
Later in the war room, Professor Xavier was briefing with the rest of the X-Men. "I managed to retrieve some of the robot's visual memory," he explained. "Take a closer look as a replay it." As he rewound the playback, Wolverine walked in and took a seat. "Howdy, Wolverine. Take a load off," said Rogue. "Anybody notify the kid's parents?" asked Wolverine. "We gave them a holler, but nobody hollered back," she said. Professor Xavier brought up the ID photograph that the Sentinel used to track Eleanor the entire time they were at the New Salem Mall. "That ID photograph is from the Mutant Control Agency registration files," he said, slamming his fist on the arm of his wheelchair. He turned to face the X-Men. "That's how the robot found her." "Professor Xavier, could the government be plotting against mutants?" asked Cyclops. "No, the Mutant Control Agency is a private organization occasionally supported by the government," Professor X explained. He then theorized that someone the agency had some kind of hidden agenda.
He was right, because at the Seville residence, a business man with glasses named Henry Gyrich was questioning Dave, the Chipmunks and Eleanor's sisters. "Does your daughter have any mutant friends?" he asked, showing a photo of Storm and Rogue at the New Salem Mall. "I'm scared, Alvin," said Theodore, holding his cap-wearing brother tightly. "So am I. That guy gives me the creeps," admitted Alvin. "Calm down, Alvin," Dave said to the oldest Chipmunk. "Sir, we only know what Eleanor tells us." "By that, he means only the things she feels comfortable about sharing with us," said Simon, cleaning his glasses. "Brit and I have known her since we were born. She's our sister," said Jeanette nervously. "She's been known to recently keep a lot of her secrets to herself," said Brittany.
As they were talking, Eleanor, still in her costume, got off of a bus and ran down the street towards the house. "I just hope everyone's okay," she said in between breaths. As she ran down the sidewalk, she was unaware that a Sentinel was watching her from behind a building. She suddenly stopped when she heard its footsteps behind her. As it tried to grab her, she attempted to blast it with the lasers from her hands. Realizing it had no effect, she ran off in an attempt to escape, only to find herself facing another Sentinel directly in front of her. The Sentinel in front of her sprayed some knockout gas in her face from its fingertips. She soon collapsed on the sidewalk and was captured by Gyrich and his two Sentinels.
Back at the mansion, Professor Xavier showed an image of a tall building that was the headquarters for the Mutant Control Agency. "Somewhere in there are the registration files of hundreds of mutants, innocently duped into revealing their identities," he said. "So, we get them and we shred them," said Wolverine, now wearing a brown, leather jacket as Beast cleaned his glasses. "I'd get in there alone, easy," Gambit said confidently. "No, Storm will take three X-Men in with her," Professor X insisted. He then explained that she would be going with Wolverine, Beast and Morph into the facility. "If it makes you feel any better, Gambit, I'll go like THIS, huh?" said Morph, as he changed his face into that of Gambit's while laughing. "Cyclops, you will be in overall command," said Professor X.
As Professor X exited the room, Cyclops followed him and started to question his orders. Cyclops, as well as Xavier, believed that both humans and mutants should stand with each other instead of living in fear of each other. "I'm afraid we have no choice," said Xavier as he hovered away in his wheelchair. "What's the matter? Teacher's pet got cold feet?" Wolverine teased. Cyclops glared at him angrily by flashing his lasers from his visor at him. It was as if he was saying, "You want to go a few rounds, tough guy?" Wolverine knew what the look in his eyes behind the visor meant. "Anytime, pretty boy," he snarled. Just then, Jean ran down the hall and let them know that Eleanor was missing. "I'm going after her," said Wolverine, who's real name was Logan. "No way, Wolverine. We've got a job to do first," said Cyclops, repeating the Professor's orders. Wolverine showed his claws to Cyclops, threatening him. "I go where I want to go," he snarled. He shoved Gambit out of his way as he stormed out of the building. Gambit was about to hit him with one of his cards, but Cyclops stopped. "Aw, he's not worth it," sighed Gambit, tossing the card away.
Later, the four X-Men that Xavier sent on the mission, landed their personal jet, the Blackbird, in some foliage far enough away from the guards outside the Mutant Control Agency headquarters in Washington D.C. The Blackbird's staircase opened up below and the X-Men members exited the jet and headed towards the building. "Rogue, everyone, stay close," said Cyclops. "Not too close," warned Rogue, who then proceeded to explain how she found out about her powers. "I remember when I was 13. Had me a boyfriend, till I kissed him. Poor boy was in a coma for three days," she said as she lifted a large rock out of the way with her super strength. The X-Men continued onward as she continued her story. "That was when I first realized, if I touched anybody, I absorb their strength right into me." Morph then spoke up and said that he used to turn him into his school's principal whenever he got into trouble. As he did, he moved a tree branch out of the way, which then proceeded to hit Gambit.
As they stood on a hill facing the Mutant Control Agency headquarters, they heard Wolverine, now in costume again, perched on a nearby tree branch. "You sure make a lot of noise," he said as he leapt down. "You decided to join us, eh?" asked Gambit. "Yeah," mocked Wolverine as he walked towards Storm. "Did you find the child?" she asked. "Her trail went cold outside the house," he responded. "Got bit by a dog, too." "Okay, Storm. Do you your thing," said Cyclops. Right on cue, Storm manipulated the weather, causing the guard to retreat into the security station by the main entrance.
Morph, Beast and Wolverine crawled over to the fence so as to not be seen by anyone suspicious. Beast and Wolverine then launched Morph over the fence, catching the attention of the guard. The guard went up to Morph, who then transformed into him and knocked him unconscious with a sleep gun. Morph put the gun away and transformed back into his normal self. As he dragged the guard away, Beast launched Wolverine to the other side. He then jumped over the fence himself with ease.
As they went towards the building, Cyclops watched their progress through a pair of binoculars. "They're inside the perimeter," he told Rogue. As Beast, Wolverine and Morph continued onward, they were eventually confronted by a guard. Wolverine readied his claws to take him on, but Storm managed to knock him out cold before he could do anything. Instead, Wolverine used one of his claws to slash the door open, so that everyone could enter. To his annoyance, however, it was revealed that Beast had raided the guard of his keys. "I'll buy them a new door!" snarked Wolverine. Just as Beast was about to go forward, Wolverine stopped him and noted that he smelled the ozone from the electronic security beams. Storm lent a hand in helping them see beams by creating mist.
"With faint heart, averted feet and many a tear, in our opposed path to persevere," Beast said, quoting the English poet, Coventry Patmore. He then leapt onto the ceiling and scaled the pipes like a monkey with his hands. He then got to the security box and used the guard's key to open it. Opening it, he flipped all five switches off, then shut off the main power grid. Doing that shut down all of the security in the building, allowing them to proceed onward.
Back outside, Cyclops was getting more and more nervous about his comrades inside the building. "You look nervous as a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs," said Rogue. "I just wish I knew what was happening in there!" he replied. Just then, a truck started pulling up towards the entrance, which could only mean one thing: trouble. Will Storm, Wolverine, Morph, and Beast accomplish their mission? Will they eventually find Eleanor? Only time will tell.