The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants

Erick Magnus stood in his austere tower on the mutant island country known as Genosha, looking over the ocean from his glass observation dome in the tower affectionately named the Tower of Magnetism. It was tall, gleaming, and impressive looking, a fitting monument to his impressive power-control over all forms of magnetism. Magnus was known to the world as Magneto, the Mutant Master of Magnetism, an evil despot who used terrorism and race war in an attempt to enslave and extinguish the human race to make room for all mutants, the race science classifies as Homo Superior. At least, that's what he used to be. Magneto was now old, decrepit, and going senile, hardly the tall and august figure he was once known as. But even as a shadow of his former self, he still had his pride.

Magnus knew that his son Pietro, the mutant known as Quicksilver, wished to dethrone him and rule Genosha with a steel fist, intending to be far more ruthless than Magneto had ever been. The apple had not fallen far from the tree, a fact that had once filled him with fatherly pride. Now it filled him with hate, sorrow, and most disgusting of all, fear. How had he, a man who had once desired total world domination, fallen to such a human level? Perhaps Xavier had been right all along. Perhaps humans and mutants could have coexisted in peace. Perhaps the X-Men and Brotherhood could have worked together to establish a new world order where Homo Sapiens and Homo Superior could have lived equally, neither hating nor fearing the other.

Perhaps...

But now things were falling apart. He was slipping almost completely into dementia, and even his powers, once a source of intimidation and control, were growing duller like a kitchen knife used one too many times on the wooden chopping board. Pressing a button on his wrist bracelet, he heard the familiar mechanical whoosh of a sliding metal door in the ceiling, revealing a small, spherical AI that he lovingly called Darcie.
"Yes, Master?" it asked in its almost human female voice, the only creature to still call him that.
"Please summon my son. I will have word with him."
"Yes, Master," it said before heading out the metallic sliding glass door.

As the door closed shut with a mechanical beep, Magneto let out an exhalation of pure exhaustion and frustration. He gazed toward the sky, as if seeking divine intervention.
"God, if you exist, please let me rule wisely in my final days. And please, let the world not be turned to ash because of my foolishness, arrogance, and just flat-out stupidity."

Magneto turned his head back toward the Pacific Ocean, the deep and churning water metaphorically representing his soul. The waves were an exact representation of the stormy days ahead for the Brotherhood. They were also deeply represented by the stormy relationship between father and son. There is nothing worse for a King than knowing he will have to give up his crown, and yet not wanting to. Even worse is knowing that the next king will wreak destruction upon the entire world, and yet he cannot rouse his tired bones into action. The old are destined to be swept aside by the young, a fact that tired his soul and only sped him along to complete and total death.

Anthony Hitsuya
Anthony was sitting down on the porch swing on his porch with a group of people from school. I can't believe that I've been here a month and nothing's happened yet, he thought to himself as he smiled and laughed along with the other people. As he reached to get a drink of water, his hand bumped against the girl sitting next to him, Miranda. He looked over to say sorry when his eyes widened with horror. "MOM! MOM! GET OUT HERE NOW!" he shouted as he pushed his way through the group, bursting through the door quickly. As he ran into the house, you could hear the screams as they realised what had happened. The kids ran from the porch quickly, getting away from the house.
Anthony's mom rushed out of the kitchen quickly, a worried and worn expression on her face, "Please tell me it didn't happen again."
Anthony looked down slightly, "I'm sorry mom, all I did was was brush against her hand. I didn't think anything was going to happen." He sunk down onto the stairs as his mom rushed out of the house to the porch with blankets and hot water to try to unfreeze Miranda.
"Anthony, you should come out here for a second," his mom said from outside.
Anthony looked towards the door and stood up slowly, walking towards the door. He opened the door just a crack, enough to see a tall, dark-haired man standing on his porch with his mom. "Who are you?" Anthony asked through the door.
The man looked over at the door and gave a small smile, "Robert Drake. You can call me Bobby or Iceman. I know what you're going through. I went through it myself."
Anthony opened the door a little more at his introduction. "What do you mean, you know what I'm going through?" he asked as a curious glint entered his eyes.
Iceman gave Anthony a smile, "Because I have somewhat of the same mutation as you."
"Mutation? What do you mean mutation?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.
"I can freeze ice at will, its my mutation. You have the same type of mutation as I do. I've come to offer you a chance to come to Xavier's Institute for Higher Learning. Although that is only a cover. It is actually a school for young mutants like yourself to learn how to control their powers. You don't have to come if you don't want to, but I would suggest going."
Anthony looked over at his mom, concern filling his eyes. His mom gave him a small smile, "You should go, this is a great opportunity for you."
Anthony opened the door and walked over to his mom and gave her a hug. "I'll miss you."
"I'll miss you too," his mom said as she hugged him back quickly before pulling away and going back to Miranda who began to stir - thawing out.
Anthony looked over to Iceman, "Give me five minutes, I have to pack." Iceman nodded as Anthony walked into the house and ran up the stairs, throwing clothes into a duffel bag. He looked over at his night stand and picked up his picture of him and his mom placing it on the top of his clothes and zipped up his duffel bag, slinging it over his shoulder and walked back out to the porch. "I'm ready and I'm really sorry Miranda, I didn't mean to, it was an accident."
Miranda was on the swing, bundled up in blankets, she gave a small nod and smile. "I forgive you. Toss me your cellphone." Anthony pulled his cellphone out of his pocket and tossed it over to Miranda. Miranda caught it and flipped it open, typing something into it and tossed it back. "There, text me alright?"
Anthony gave a small smile. "I will. Shall we go?" he asked as he turned to Iceman. Iceman nodded and they walked away from his house. Anthony gave a small wave to his mom and Miranda as they stepped into a sleek black car and disappeared down the street.

Brotherhood of Evil Mutants

Just below Magneto, things were much happier. The large island had many winding roads and straightaways that were perfect for driving. This fact was not lost on Lance Alvers, a middle-aged mutant that called himself Avalanche because of his ability to psionically manipulate earthquakes. He owned an old Army jeep with a cage that a caring foster father had given to him for his sweet sixteen. The old girl was a perfect ride for what he called The Three Mutanteers. The other two members of the group were along for the ride.

In the passenger seat was Fred Dukes, a dense, middle-aged mutant who called himself Blob because of his super strength and slow speed and reflexes. Blob was the reason for the reinforced chassis, as he weighed well over 1000 pounds and could lift several thousand times his own body weight. He was always smiling as the wind traveled over his face and sliced through his mustache and mohawk, the picture of complete serenity and peace. When Blob was a teenager, he always lost his temper really easily and was defeated all the time because of it. While he had not completely broken himself of this crutch, he was much more patient and mature now. His best friends helped keep him calm and collected.

Todd Tolansky, the slightly muscular but still kinda scrawny mutant known as Toad that rounded out the chummy trio, did not even try to break himself of his crutch. He was a loudmouth and a smart mouth, a dangerous combination with the wrong person, but Toad was too stupid or reckless to care. His impressive vertical and horizontal jumps and muscular tongue made him powerful, and age had taught him how to use them in much better ways than the way he had used them as a teenager. However, even after working out enough to gain six pack abs and softball size biceps, not to mention basketball size leg muscles and sexy gluts, he was still living under the assumption that he was a weak little punk that anyone could walk all over. Against most mutants he just knocked them out with his tongue, but against powerful mutants like Juggernaut, who hung around Genosha sometimes but was not directly affiliated with the Brotherhood, Avalanche and Blob backed him up. Together, the three could take down any mutant, except for Professor X, Apocalypse, and possibly Magneto.

The leader of this merry band of rogues was Lance, the handsome, charming boy next door. Well, two out of three ain't bad. He was the smartest, toughest, deadliest, wisest, coolest, and for all the ladies out there, sexiest. Lance's personality was warm and calm, but mutants, even other Brotherhood mutants, messing with his friends really got under his skin. When his eyes lost their characteristic warmth, even the earth feels his fury. Tidal waves and small quakes anticipate his full power, and if sufficiently angered, an earthquake and seismic force traveling through the air like a bullet follows.

Out of the three badasses in the group, Lance is the most badass, and not only leads the Mutanteers, but leads the whole damned Brotherhood. With Magneto slipping away, Mystique missing, and Quicksilver chastised for traitorous tendencies, the job fell to the most advanced, capable, and experienced student, Mr. Marvelous, er, Magnitude. But despite all the good times on Genosha, Lance can never be truly happy. The one thing missing from his exciting new life is the one thing he would trade it all for, his girlfriend, Kitty Pryde, also known as the X-Man Shadowcat. His girl since his teens, Lance desperately wished she was riding in the back with her arms draped over him. But, it had been impossible for him to see her these last twenty years.

When Magneto had Lance build Genosha out of several unused islands off California, and had the rest of the Brotherhood assemble a mutant work force, a contract was signed up. After the island that would become a mutant country was established, the entire Brotherhood was to be moved to their new base of operations-no exceptions-and were not permitted to return to the Human World unless it was to destroy the humans or their protectors, the X-Men. Lance was not evil, and could not destroy the humans because his foster parents had been humans. Conversely, because Kitty was an X-Man, he could not destroy them either. Thus, he was stuck living the life of most men, working during the day and playing at night. But never getting to see his beloved except through one picture.

Years and years ago, Lance and the Brotherhood teamed up with the X-Men to defeat the Ancient Egyptian Mutant Overlord Apocalypse, and this caused a truce between the two organizations while they cleaned up the mess caused by their missing leadership and alliance tension. Lance and Kitty finally took the plunge into a relationship and blew off some steam by going on an amusement park date. No powers, no friends, just two people having fun. They took a picture in a photo booth, and Lance had it framed and put on his bedside table in his room. In his closet hung his metal uniform topped by a plexiglass half-dome for face protection and vision. Right now, he was in his civilian clothes, or, at least as civilian as you can get on Genosha.

"When are we gonna get there, Lance?" Todd whined as he snapped up a fly.
"We're almost there, ya doofus," Fred replied, "now shut up."
Lance shot him a look that said "cool it", then looked at Todd.
"He's right. Just a half-mile further and we'll reach Brotherhood Cove."
"More like a half light year," Todd grumbled, but quieted down.
True to their word, the Mutanteers pulled into the Cove a half mile later.

Lance killed the engine and stepped out, with Todd right behind him and Fred lumbering along. Up ahead was a giant boulder that their leader was about to move, but Fred put a giant hand on his shoulder.
"I got this, man."
A few minutes later, he was balancing the giant hunk of stone on his equally massive shoulders, and tossed it aside like a child with a rock. He then bowed and gestured with his hand, as if to say "after you".

Lance patted him on the shoulder, and Todd flicked his tongue in gratitude. When Fred entered, he rolled the stone back over them. The three lit candles and placed them in holders to light the dim area. They gathered around a circular wooden coffee table that Fred placed. Each got a golden goblet with wine.
"My friends," Lance began, "my good friends. Today, the Mutanteers become a sworn Triumvirate, a Brotherhood of Three."

Fred nodded and Todd flicked his tongue.
"We have all known each other since we were teenagers," Lance continued, "and through thick and thin, we've stuck together through it all."
Fred pumped his fist and whooped a bit, but quieted down when Lance gestured with his hands to quiet down.
"We survived Apocalypse."
"Yeah!" Todd cried out.
"We survived the X-Men."
"Yeah!" Fred cried out.

"Best of all, we survived women."
"Yeah!" they all three said in unison, then subsided into laughter.
None of them were truly misogynistic, just having a little fun to lighten up the ceremony. Lance took his seat at the table and raised his goblet.
"So here's to you, my friends."
Todd and Fred raised their goblets and nodded for him to continue.

"If ever one of us is in danger, two will come to his rescue. Whenever one walks alone, the other two are never too far behind. Not one of us is happy alone, or sad alone, or angry alone. Most of all, not one of us will die alone."
Their faces hardened, pledging eternal loyalty to each other with their eyes.
"From this day forward, The Three Mutanteers are now and forever known as the Triumvirate of Brotherhood, swearing loyalty and fealty only to each other."

"Cheers!" they said in unison and all downed their wine in one gulp. Lance set his goblet down, Fred crushed his against his forehead, and Todd ate his and chewed it a bit with his powerful teeth before swallowing it.
"Let's go to Avalanche Island, brothers."
Fred and Todd nodded, and the three left the cave the same way they entered. They entered the jeep as they always did, but something was different. The air was sweeter and more peaceful, reflecting a Brotherhood of men who would change the world...for the better.

Lucas sat on his bed, his knees drawn up to his chest, his headphones firmly in place as usual, blasting the music he liked as they always did. He could still hear though, not physically hear of course, the music was too loud for that, but hear...and he could hear his parents arguing, every thought...Not that they had to hide that of course: why keep secrets when your son can read your mind like a child's picture book? That was Lucas' curse: some cosmic screw-up had decided to dump the whole damn psychic package on him, then leave him without an instruction manual...Telekinesis, Clairvoiance and, this was the killer, Mind-reading...not just when he wanted to, that would have been too easy, but all the time, every thought that every human had, pouring into his head every day of his whole damned life...let's just say that his headphones weren't just a fashion statement: without them, the noise was even louder...he knew he was being rude, but he listened in to his parent's thoughts, just to investigate whether they were arguing about something other than their messed-up son, i.e. him...no such luck...

He can't just stay in his room his whole life, what about school? Or friends? What about getting a job?his father, a staunch believer that Lucas was just acting out, although he could never quite shake the feeling that there was something seriously wrong with his son...but nothing that couldn't be fixed by actually being social every once in a while...
You know how much it hurts him to be outside, and he told me the other day that he wanted to quit school, because of his...odd little quirk...he's still our son, Jake, we can work something out that can help him..., his mother was a little more understanding of his plight, but the worry in her mind always made Lucas feel guilty that he was burdening his parents in this way...even though he had no control of his 'quirk', as his mom had put it...

He didn't want to listen anymore, so Lucas turned the volume of his music up even further, all but drowning out the thoughts around him, and he lay back, running a thin, pale hand though his dark hair, his charcoal-coloured eyes drifting closed. He wasn't asleep, he rarely did since the noise kept him awake most nights, he was simply thinking, his own thoughts this time, no one else was interfering this time...he hoped...

No, Mommy, please no more fire! It hurts! Aradia screamed as her mother pressed the candle closer to her skin. "I have to fix you, you are broken" her mother shouted in an equally loud voice. Her mother had been at this for three hours now. Aradia didn't know what her mother was trying to accomplish from burning her repeatedly. She just knew it hurt and she wanted the pain to go away. Aradia screamed again as the candle made contact with her back.

Aradia woke up suddenly panting and sweating in her bed. This wasn't the first time she had this nightmare, and it certainly wouldn't be the last. She was certain. Her first instinct was to call for her grandmother, but her grandmother wasn't here with her. Her grandmother had brought her to the Xavier Institute long ago, when she was just thirteen. It wasn't that Giagia (prounounced Ya-Ya) resented her for her "gift", Giagia just thought this place would have better use of her powers.

She sat up in bed and rubbed her eyes free of sleep. She looked over to her alarm clock and saw that it was only five in the morning. She glanced to her window at the pre-dawn light beginning to stream through. She wanted to call her grandmother, but she couldn't remember what time it was in Santorini, Greece. It wouldn't matter much anyway, Giagia would just give the same reassuring speech she used every time Aradia had this nightmare. "Gamó̱to af̱tó eínai chália"{Damn, this sucks.} she cursed in Greek.

Charles Xavier, or Professor X, sat back in his chair and beamed. Today, the second class of growing mutants would come to his Institute of Higher Learning, to become the ambassadors of his kind to the humans. His ultimate goal was to create a world where he wasn't necessary. A world where humans and mutants could live in peace. That was a lofty goal that most likely would not happen in his lifetime. But, his life's work was to see that through as far as he could.

Charles knew all too well the sting and stigma of being a mutant in a human's world. His step-father and step-brother bullied him mercilessly as a child before his mental powers were strong enough to repulse them. His older step-brother, now the mutant known as Juggernaut, still found a way to try and bully him by having his powers mystically released and wearing a helmet that repulses his powers when Juggernaut is not distracted. Ever since facing Juggernaut on their own, his students had grown more and more self-sufficient until they basically ran the entire Institute themselves. It was great to see his seedlings grow into such beautiful flowers, but their toughest days were still ahead. A seed in the ground is protected from the world, while a flower must face it head-on.

His students were a powerful force when combined, but individually, they still had room to grow, even in their middle ages. Cyclops had yet to let go of the rest of his arrogance, Wolverine had yet to remember or fully open up to him about his past, Rogue was still afraid to touch people without the use of gloves because of lack of control, Iceman was still working on mixing emotion and logic, Storm had yet to stop patronizing him about wanting to be the military leader of the X-Men, Colossus had yet to let the guilt of his past go, Nightcrawler was still learning to stand up for himself, and Jean was still working on controlling her impressive power after the Phoenix debacle. However, Kitty's unresolved feelings for Lance had led him to a surprising revelation. When Kitty was a teenager, Xavier had thought at first that her love for Lance was just part of her rebellious phase. However, as time passed, Charles began to notice that there was far more to Lance than met the eye. It turned out that the tough guy persona was just that, meant to hide the scars of his life.

Lance, with the help of his good friends, finally threw off the tough guy persona to be himself, which was even tougher than the persona. He was now the de facto head of the Brotherhood, and his loyalty to his friends and non-presumptuous nature made him a more humble and better leader than Cyclops, if you're just comparing personality. However, if Lance joined the X-Men someday, he would have to endure ostracism and a difference of philosophy. He would have to realize that there was a difference in philosophy behind the X-Men, so being the better person might mean walking away. But, no matter what his shortcomings as a person, though there were few, he could handle it. Lance had grown into a fine man, and it was time for him to complete himself.

However, now was the time to turn his attention to those that the Human World had failed. His first visit would be to Lucas Williams, a growing young psychic with parents that were not sure how to help their son. He knew exactly how to handle him, as he had done the same thing with Jean years before. Now, Jean was ready to help those who were once like her, scared, angry, and alone. Lucas would be a challenge, but more pressing on his mind were the mutants who were more militant, and some who could be swayed to be turned to evil. The mutants were Sniper and Nightmare.

For Sniper, he would need Wolverine, his toughest and most grizzled fighter. Terrence Young, the mutant in question, was one of the most dangerous he had ever seen. He emulated tough from every pore in his body, and his fighting skills were on par with seasoned warriors due to countless battles throughout his life. His power was energy manipulation, which at its best, had the potential to eclipse any psychic, even himself. A man with the potential to levitate whole cities at his best is one that must be taught discipline and control. More than anything, Xavier needed somebody that could beat him in a fair contest and earn his respect.

Cyclops would have been a nice choice if not for his arrogance, which would make him a punk in Sniper's eyes. He needed a man who would fight without words, a man who would just attack him like an animal, like he was used to. Wolverine could do that and earn Sniper's respect. As for the woman named Nightmare, he would have to think long and hard about what to do with her if he was going to stop her from being swayed to evil. For now, though, he had to help Lucas. Jean Grey sensed his needs and began wheeling him out to the handicapped van.

Xavier let Jean drive the van, though he looked forward to the day that he could be self-sufficient himself and lead the X-Men as a complete leader. With enough physical and mental conditioning, he could do that. They drove to the house in the complete silence of two people who know what to do and how to do it, and need to say nothing about it. As they reached Lucas' house, Charles was let down on the handicapped van. He could have levitated himself, but sometimes, human technology is easy in its sophistication. The two rang the doorbell, and a nicely dressed young woman opened the door.

She was harried looking and had been recently arguing with her husband, so Charles put on his most reassuring smile and used his warmest and most polite voice.
"Good afternoon, Mrs. Williams. May we come in for just a second?"
"Who are you people?" she asked with a sniffle.
"My name is Professor Charles Xavier, the Head of the Xavier Institute of Higher Learning. We specialize in teaching young people with special gifts, like your son, Lucas."

Mrs. Williams looked at him with the eyes of a woman who had finally reached the light at the end of the tunnel.
"C-Can you really do that? Is there really hope for him?"
It was Jean's cue, and she smiled with all of her internal beauty.
"It's more than a possibility. I was once like Lucas, and this man helped me become the person I am today."

Mrs. Williams beamed when she saw the beautiful, confident young woman who offered living proof of her son's salvation. She turned her head.
"Honey, please get the den ready. We have guests."
"What? Why should I-"

"Just do it," the mother said in a voice that left no room for argument.
The man put up his arms and went to do it. Jean and Professor X went in, but Charles stopped the chair.
"Before meeting with him down there, I should meet with him in his sanctum. I need to show him that I can truly help before we even put the offer on the table."
Charles rose from the chair, and took a few baby steps.

"Charles, maybe you.."
She then stopped herself, knowing that if the Professor could not count on himself, he could never convince Lucas. Xavier worked hard and made it up the steps before sending out a pulse that nullified all thoughts to Lucas except his own. He then knocked on the door.
"Lucas, if I may have a moment, I would like to speak with you about your special ability."
Xavier than waited for Lucas to reply to him, letting him know if he was ready to talk to someone, anyone, about his powers.

Lucas had thought he had fallen asleep, and was dreaming...his mind was silent...no thoughts bar his own...no wait, there was one other presence, one like him, but far more powerful...This other mind had been what had silenced everything else, and who was now standing outside the door, though Lucas could tell that the other man (he could tell that the owner of the other mind was male), was tired from the effort...Curious, he rolled off of his bed and went to the door, sending out a small mental 'nudge' of his own.
You can help me? Really? he somehow managed to implant the psychic pulse with those thoughts, since he rarely spoke out loud anymore. He didn't trust his voice right now, not when the last time he had actually used it was just over two days ago, when he had retreated to his room, as he was prone to do, when the noise outside got too much.
He opened the door a fraction, cautiously looking out, his dark eyes wide.
Who are you? he 'nudged' again, feeling the full power of the older man's mind, due to the eye contact they now shared. Lucas opened the door fully, his head starting to hurt again from actively using his powers, though his head hurt all the time anyway...He stepped back, allowing the man to enter...

Charles smiled when he saw Lucas, thinking that he was nice and kind, just scared and confused. He liked to telepathically communicate, so Charles obliged him.
Yes, he said while nodding his head, when I was younger than you, I not only dealt with what you do, but had to suffer bullying at the hands of the male figures in my life. You are in many ways a younger version of myself, and I can show you exactly how to become an accomplished telepath like me. I can show you how to eliminate all other thoughts from your head, speak with your own voice without setting off a mind bomb, and I can even teach you how to use your powers to defend yourself from attack. However, this would take quite some time, as telepathic mutants are often the hardest to train.

Charles sat down and noticed that Lucas knew he was struggling.
For most of my life, I was confined to a wheelchair. I recently reacquired use of my legs, but I have to strengthen them
He laid down like a teenager would and smiled.
So, Lucas, tell me about your life thus far, what you like to do, and what you would like to do. You have no reason to fear telling me anything.

Charles then gently admonished himself.
In all of the talk, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Professor Charles Xavier, though you may call me Charlie, Mr. Xavier, or you can call me what the students of my Institute For Higher Learning call me, Professor X. My advanced students are known as the X-Men. We have room for special students of all types of personalities and with a wide variety of powers. You will almost never have a reason to fear anyone on the campus, because like you, they are growing and learning along with their powers.

Lucas sat down at his desk, pulling his knees up to his chest as he always did, it made him feel safer. This man was going to help him? Lucas would do anything to be at least semi-normal, to be able to interact with people again, something he hadn't done for a long time...

There isn't much to tell, Professor..., he started with his mind, then broke off as his migrane got worse...he didn't want to cause himself more pain, so he would have to actually speak for now. Besides, he wasn't even sure that he could've kept it up anyway...the guilt from his mother's worry would have broken his silence anyway...although he tended to stutter so much from nerves that there was really no point in him talking anyway...

"T-there's n-not much to t-tell...I-I just w-want the n-noise to stop...s-seven years...that when it s-started...", he stammered quietly, his voice hoarse from not being used much, resting his chin on his knees so he could watch the man...he was different from the other people who had come before...the doctors that had been sent, or hired by his parents to 'fix' him, although that had turned out to be impossible so far, so that gradually stopped, and he was generally left alone...Not that he minded, but it would have been nice to have someone to support him, instead of giving him the 'Shrink-Treatment'...maybe this 'Institute' would be different? He didn't know, but it would be better than here, that was for sure, if they really understood what was happening to him...

Pietro Maximoff, the mutant known as Quicksilver, was racing around the track at speeds that dwarfed the Speed of Light. He was focusing on getting faster and faster, so they he could go through opponents like the wind and do untold damage. If he could master that technique, no one could stop him, not Xavier, not Apocalypse, and damn sure not his father, the weak ruler known as Magneto. As the door swiveled open, he saw father's pet robot Darcie enter.
"Your father has summoned you."
"Buzz off, Darcie. I'm busy."
He continued moving around the track.

Darcie repeated the message a couple times, until her voice grew more authoritative.
"Mutant Quicksilver, your Supreme Ruler demands your presence in the observation dome of his magnificent Tower of Magnetism. Go, now!"
Pietro stopped in his tracks, but not out of obedience, but anger.
"'Supreme?' 'Demands'? 'Magnificent'?"
He gritted his teeth in rage.

"That old fool's time has ended. He refused to hand the crown to me, giving it to that sissy Avalanche instead. Now, he orders me, the Prince of the Brotherhood, to stand before the supreme ruler...."
His voice trailed off as he shivered with wrath.
"Your tone and emotions are dangerously close to treason," Darcie warned, "Please stop before I'm forced to..."
"TREASON!!!" Quicksilver boomed.

"Your goddamn right its treason! I'll pull that crown from his rotten decomposing hand!!!"
Darcie said nothing, preparing a taser blast, which was building into a small blue ball at the end of her stinger. There was a slight breeze, and Darcie's computations stopped.
Quicksilver was standing behind her in a landing stance, and when he looked up, Darcie exploded into a small fireball. Pietro smiled.

"Oh, I'll come to see you father. But, you won't like what I have to say."
Pietro began walking down the hall, proud of the awestruck looks he was receiving from the junior members.
That's right, kiddies. There's a new game in town, and neither a magnetic storm nor an avalanche will stop it from being played all over Genosha...and the world.
Pietro strode purposefully toward the chamber, knowing that it was finally time for the Prince to ascend to the throne.

Lucas' mind was still clear due to the Professor's ability, but it didn't take a psychic to feel the tension in the room...he sat between his parents, while The Professor and another woman, whom he was told was named Jean Grey and was another psychic like him...sort of, on the other couch across from them. Hid father was...shall we say...resistant to the idea of Lucas going to some special school, and by the way he was glaring at the two older mutants was making that obvious enough, as was his words...

"He's not going. I'm not having my son going to some school for freaks. 'Mutants' or whatever you call them, are just that: Mutants, and they should learn to fit in themselves, not wasting time and money, how did you put it?, 'strengthing their powers'? If anything, they should be learning to be normal, not making themselves less human.", his own father hated anything 'not normal', and while he didn't directly hate his son, he hated the idea that Lucas wouldn't ever fit into normal society.
"Jake please...this might be his only chance of being normal, if he can learn to control his gifts...", his mother, Monica, was starting to lose patience with her husband, she knew what his words were doing to her son, and she knew about all of Jake's previous attempts to make Lucas more 'normal', like deliberatly exposing him to crowds and other loud situations, in the hope that he could learn to ignore the pain on his own...needless to say, all of those attempts failed dismally, and only served to make the boy even more withdrawn, especially to his own family, "You really want this, don't you honey? To go with these people?", she addressed her son, who was staring at the floor, his eyes darker than usual, his headphones around his neck, for once. She knew why he wore them, she wouldn't be much of a mother if she didn't realise how much pain her son was every day.
Lucas nodded, not trusting himself with words. He wanted this more than anything, the chance to be able to control his power...to be able to have friends who understood what he was going through...
"Okay...go get your stuff packed, your father can drop it off later if you don't want to take it just now.", she smiled as Lucas looked up in surprise, a large grin spreading over his face as he took in his mother's words, and, realising what it meant, immediatly stood and sprinted up the stairs to his room, where the sounds of drawers being pulled open and bags being dumped on the floor could be heard moments later. Monica Williams smiled softly...it had been so long since she had seen her son smile like that...

Professor Xavier and Jean ignored the father, knowing that he was a bigot, like most humans were when it came to mutant kind. There were no amount of words in even Charles impressive vocabulary to dissuade a man from what he had been taught to be from birth. The best thing that he could do for Lucas was to get him out of a house where his ability was not accepted and even forcibly repressed. Charles' own step-father was just as much of a jerk, and he knew just how Lucas was feeling. He wanted the chance to improve his abilities and live a normal life. His mother was a gentle soul, and he knew that he could count on her to do what was best for Lucas.

Thus, he decided to communicate with her alone.
Your son will be safe under the care of myself and my advanced students. The Institute is a place where not powers, but personalities may clash. I will do my best to help keep Lucas in good spirits, so that he may become a mature, educated mutant that can live in a normal human society.
When Lucas came down, goodbyes were said. The two gifted psychics then took one of their own out to their van and began the drive to the Xavier Mansion.

Lucas sat in the van in silence, although it wasn't really a new thing for him to do. He had brought a smallr backpack with him, containing his notebook, among other things that he didn't want to leave for his father to drop off, things that he felt more cmfortable keeping with him at all times...
He gazed out of the window, looking for anything that might suggest that they were close, although, truth be told, he had no clue what he was supposed to be looking for or even what to expect from this 'Institute'. Knowing that The other two mutants would probably be able to listen in(whether they would or not depended on their morals and ideas of privacy), he started thinking about what it might be like, being with others like him: How many others were there? What else could they do? What would his classes be like? Most importantly: Would he fit in, or at least be accepted here? That was the biggie in his opinion, he wanted to be accepted, to have friends who knew what he was going through, if only so he could tell his mom how well he was getting on...she worried about him so much, even though his dad seemed as though he couldn't care less how his son felt, just so long as he looked as though he was fitting in. Lucas had mixed feelings about this: on the one hand, he was excited at the prospect of learning to control his powers, and of possibly being able to make some friends...but on the other, he had a weird feeling about his future, as he often did, due to his clairvoiance abilities, but without his notebook, he couldn't channel that feeling into anything solid, anything tangible...so he waited, hoping the bad feeling would go away soon, or that they would get to the Intsitute and he could put it down on paper then, since he didn't want to seem rude by pulling out his notebook right there in the van.

The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants

Pyro snickered as he took a drink of his Magneto Up, a special blend of ingredients meant to stimulate mutant power that was named after the "Supreme" Leader of the Brotherhood. He had just watched Pietro destroy Darcie on the monitor, which was fed by the security camera in Pietro's training area. It reminded him of how things used to be. Nobody used to dare cross Magneto, for fear of retribution from him or his Second-in-Command, Mystique. Now, Mystique was missing, presumably dead, and Magneto was losing his mind. It was the perfect time for Pietro to swoop in and take over, and that entertained him to no end.

The only real obstacle to his complete takeover of Magneto's throne was Avalanche, his newly appointed second-in-command. Avalanche had been in the Brotherhood longest of any student, and knew all of their weaknesses and how to exploit them. On top of that, he was firm, tough, fair, and strong on all levels, making him the idea choice. Well, almost ideal. It was well-known that Avalanche had long desired to leave Genosha, and given the choice, he might just hand over the Brotherhood to Pietro, and Magneto's life, as well. Thus, Quicksilver could be the new Supreme Ruler of the Brotherhood.

Pyro shrugged his shoulders. No matter who was in charge, his role stayed basically the same. The Special Forces were mutants whose powers made them ideal for special roles that required intense focus and were of monumental importance. Pyro's devious little mind had been educated with Strategy classes at the University of Genosha, taught to him by Mastermind. He was the Chief Strategist of the group, and they had their own wing in the Tower of Magnetism. A sweet gig that was not going to be changed just because the leadership of the main body changed.

Pyro looked over at the only other member of the Special Forces left, the animal mutant Sabertooth. Years ago, Pyro, Sabertooth, Gambit, Colossus, and occasionally, Juggernaut, had all gotten together and done the biggest jobs on the Brotherhood payroll. Since then, Gambit and Colossus had joined the X-Men, and Juggernaut had been repelled by Magneto's weakness, choosing just to hang around Genosha for the heck of it. However, if Quicksilver usurped Magneto, he was sure that the Special Forces, in conjunction with the other Brotherhood mutants, could rise up and be strong again. Pyro set his drink down and turned to Sabertooth.
"You up for a little fun?"

Sabertooth turned to him, and his mouth spread into an ugly grin.
"Yes," he said in a low growl.
"According to my computer software, the X-Men Colossus and Wolverine are separated from the rest of the group. Wolverine is in Virginia, investigating the name Howlett, which Jean Grey recently helped him rediscover. Colossus is in Russia, doing some training in the Caucasus Mountains. What say I take metal-head, and you take tiny claws?"

Sabertooth roared his approval, eager to spill Wolverine's blood. He then stopped, and a look of concern spread across his face.
"How do we get off of Genosha without Magneto knowing?"
Pyro motioned for the big cat to follow him, and the two went down to the loading bay. There was a submarine there, big enough to hold both of them. Sabertooth scratched his head.

"How are we going to get off of Genosha in a metal submarine. I mean, he is the Master of Magnetism, after all."
Pyro held up one finger.
"That's just it. It's made of a plastic painted to look like metal. Maggie's powers are completely useless on it, just like he is!"

The two shared a laugh before boarding the submarine and diving. Soon, they were heading for the California coast. When their vehicle docked, they would split up. Sabertooth's animal speed and instincts would see that he got to Virginia in no time. Pyro's strategic genius left many options open, but he would probably hijack an airliner and fly to Russia. He snickered as he began heading for the local airport.

Aradia was anxious for classes to start, but she knew that they wouldn't until later in the day. Many of the teachers has gone on their own missions and she knew that Jean and Professor Xavier had gone to pick up a new student. She was sure Bobby had gone to get another student as well. She was bored so she decided to practice a little. After all, it may prove useful. She left her room in search of some water to practice with. She didn't want to practice inside the mansion, it wouldn't give her enough room to do much. She walked outside the doors and noticed the fountain. It seemed too small for her to really do much with it. She wanted to try something on a much bigger scale today. She remembered that a small lake was nearby and decided that it would serve her best. She walked in the direction of it and upon finding it set about her practice.

She concentrated on the feeling of water. It was light yet heavy at the same time. She did "warm-ups" as she called them and made the water turn to waves. After a few minutes, she deemed herself warmed up enough and began trying harder things, starting with the simplest. She made water balls and amused herself making shapes out of them. She then spread the water thin trying to make a weapon of some sort. She was satisfied with the whip she made and then decided to try something immensely harder. She began concentrating on spreading the water over her like armor. It bent to her will, but then splashed down. She gave a silent sigh and decided she had worn herself out enough. She put the water back in the little lake and walked back to the mansion.

As she exited the little wooded area, she saw the van pull up through the long driveway. She gave a wave, and ran to meet up with them. "Professor, Jean. Welcome back!" she said with delight.

Lucas visibly tensed when the van pulled up outside the mansion, and replaced his headphones from where they had been sitting around his neck, he felt safer with them on. Lifting his backpack, he exited the van, surprised at the sight that awaited him...he knew it was a mansion, but he hadn't expected something this huge...it could easily fit his whole hometown in here with no trouble at all...Okay, I'm probably exagerating, but still...well, as mom says, best foot forward...or as I say: let's get this overwith..., he grimaced...he hated new schools, he had been forced to transfer many times before, because of his 'Gift'...Lucas looked up to check where he was going when he saw a girl around his age running towards them. A student? She's pretty..., he thought as the girl approached them and he pulled the sleeves of his hoodie down over his hands (it was too big for him anyway). He knew from experience that physical contact, especially skin-to-skin contact, only increased his power, and by doing so increased the noise in his head, turning the volume of the thoughts up to an excruciating level...

Charles stepped from the car and sat down in his wheelchair. As he looked up, he noticed Aradia running up to meet the car. Jean smiled and waved at her. Charles wheeled his way over to her.
"Aradia, this is Lucas Williams. He is going to be joining us at the Institute."

He turned to Lucas.
"This is Aradia Marinos. She is a mutant with the ability to control water."
Charles then turned to her.
"Aradia, please show Lucas to his room. It is in room 206 in the east wing."

Make him feel welcome.
This was the thought he implanted in her mind. Jean took his wheelchair and began wheeling him toward the Mansion.
"We have three mutants left to show up. Bobby should be arriving soon with Freeze, I will soon be sending Wolverine to retrieve Sniper, and I'm still working on a solution for Nightmare."
Professor X then eased into thought as he entred the Mansion and Jean started pushing him toward his office.

"Aradia, this is Lucas Williams. He is going to be joining us at the Institute." Professor Xavier said as they exited the van. "Hello," she said holding out her hand to the newcomer. After a minute, it was obvious that he wished not to have contact with her. She thought this might be associated with his power. She listened as Professor Xavier introduced her to him. She consented at Professor Xavier's request to show him to his room. "Of course," she said with a smile. Make him feel welcome she heard in her mind. She was used to this kind of contact with the Professor and so, she didn't jump like many people did. She waved as Jean and the Professor made their way towards the mansion.

"Well," she said turning to Lucas, "if you'll follow me, I'll take you to your room." And with that she headed in the direction of the mansion.

"O-okay...s-sorry...for b-being rude..." Lucas' stuttering was getting worse because of how nervous he was, and because he felt that 'Aradia' would want to ask him a lot of questions, as her thoughts were starting to sound rather curious about him, regarding his power. He had first felt it when she had held out her hand to him, in greeting, one which he couldn't bring himself to take...due to his...situation. She seemed nice enough though, friendly, but not too 'in your face' friendly. He hated people like that. He followed her into the mansion, even more impressed with the inside of the huge building. Chewing on his lip, another sign of his nerves, he contemplated breaking the awkward silence that was starting to form, hopeless though any such conversation would be if he partcipated, his quiet stuttering often discouraged people from talking to him for any length of time. They got frustrated with him, as he did with himself for doing it.
"H-how m-many o-thers are t-there?", he asked her quietly, hoping that she would be able to translate his messed-up speech.

The car drove up the long driveway to the mansion, Anthony looked out the window, his thumb running along the outline of his phone. He gave a small sigh as the car pulled to a stop behind a van. Anthony saw two teenagers walk into the mansion and opened the door quietly and stepped out of the car, slinging his bag over his shoulder. He looked around nervously at his surroundings, pulling his fingerless gloves on quietly to lessen the risk of freezing someone. As he stood there, Bobby stepped out of the car on the other side and walked over to Anthony.

"Come with me and I'll show you your room," Bobby said as he started to walk towards the mansion. Anthony followed him quietly and entered the mansion behind Bobby. When he entered, he stopped and looked around.

The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants

Quicksilver entered the throne room of Magneto. His father turned to him, a weariness in his eyes.
"There you are, Pietro."
His son stopped at the foot of the stairs, looking up at him with contempt. Magneto turned his body to face him and looked down at him.
"You think it is your time to take over, huh?"
Quicksilver placed one foot on the bottom step.

"It is long past time for me to take over. You should have handed the Brotherhood over to me long ago."
"You are still not ready."
Pietro's face twisted in rage.
"Listen to me, you old fool! You will either hand the Brotherhood over to me, or I will take it from you by force!"

Magneto's eyes regained some luster and he pointed a finger at him.
"Take it if you can!"
With a cry of wrath, Pietro leaped at his father, preparing to use his light speed to cut right through him. However, he had made one miscalculation. He was still wearing his metal suit, and his father could control all metal. Magneto caught him in mid-air.

Quicksilver struggled to get free, but before he knew it, he was hurled through the giant glass window of the Observation Dome. There was a great crash, and he plummeted toward the ocean. He landed on a giant island of rock called Avalanche Island, where Lance and his friends hung out on their down time. As he was leaping back up to continue the battle with his father, he smashed face-first into a rock wall that seemed to rise out of nowhere. As he turned, he saw Avalanche ready to meet him.
"Avalanche!"

"Not so fast there, Quicksilver. I'll not have you shaking things up in the Brotherhood as long as I'm around."
Quicksilver landed and ran at Lance. He went to punch him, but surprisingly, it was caught.
"I've been in the Brotherhood longer than you have. I know all of your moves."

Lance countered with his own punch, then drilled him in the solar plexus with a knee. He kicked him in the face to finish, but Quicksilver was back up in no time. He tried to feint him out and went for a kick, but Avalanche ducked and countered with an uppercut right in the solar plexus. Pietro crumpled to the ground, his face almost drained of color.
"Just give up," Lance told him.
As Quicksilver was about to rise to try and fight again, he took a snap kick to the face that dunked him into the water.

Toad approached the edge of the water to stand by Avalanche.
"You think he's finished?"
Lance turned to him and shook his head.
"Not even close."