Professor Charles Xavier sat by the fire in his hover-chair. He watched the sparks jump wildly around the bark and ashes. Then he knew it was time. Time to initiate his dream and he knew it would work... It had to work. What he simply could not figure out was where he would find the people he needed for the team.
It would have to be a well designed and rounded team. It could not be one that was carelessly thrown together for lack of time. He would have to search the world over for men and women of every age, race, creed, and mind state. They would, even though he hated to admit it, have to be from all walks of life. Rich, poor, good, bad, saints, sinners, protectors, and instigators. He would need their little differences to enforce his dream the way it would need to be enforced.
He could not, however, enforce it too hard he would have to baby it; but the multi-faceted team would always be there to stand for justice and freedom. Not just Professor Charles Xavier's idea of justice and freedom; but what most people undeniably considered justice and freedom. That which had been layed down by the fore fathers of this nation. By natures and God's rules no not just America but the world.
It took him six months. Six months of searching, not only the world but within himself also. He came up with a vast roster of over one hundred mutants, people with special powers some just little extras others powerful enough to destroy half the planet maybe even all of it. He narrowed that to thirty and then he narrowed it even further to fifteen. Fifteen is what it would be a team, a family, the X-Men.
* * * *
Jean Grey sat in a large easy chair in the study of the X-Mansion. She had been there three months along with Dr. William Hopkal, a friend of the Professor's. It had been a weird time, though, she had been with the Professor before, but that was when he had taught her to control her powers and live normally. That had been six years ago, she had been 13, now she was 19 a woman who knew what she was and how to use it. The Professor had been blunt when he asked her to return he had told her everything she had agreed. She wanted to help because she too believed in his dream of coexistence; but she had left her family, friends, and, in her opinion, her place in life. All of it gone for this... this team.
Some team, she thought,two people who hardly know each other and seem to spend all their days in this study.
"You alright Jean," said Hopkal, code named Revere.
"Yeah just fine," she replied simply.
Hopkal was a tall man of 47 with graying hair and spectacles. He seemed to always be clean-shaven and never went anywhere without a tie. He had known Xavier for 17 years over which they had become close friends and confidants. When the Professor had approached him about his team Hopkal couldn't say no he came without a thought to help his friend.
Hopkal's mutant powers were rather mundane in his opinion, he absorbed the properties of animals, big deal he used to think; until a trip to the zoo had changed his mind. He had accidentally became a raging rhino and almost killed two people but he had gotten lucky.
Professor Xavier opened the door to the study mentally and floated in on his chair. He looked at his only team members thus far; a young, beautiful, and dangerously powerful young woman and a middle-aged friend who, when he wished, could be quite formidable as well.
"It's time my friends," he said matter-of-factly.
Time for what, Jean thought using her telepathic abilities as instructed by the Professor. In the six months she had been at the mansion she had been able to fine tune her powers, it had, after all, been a while since she last used them.
"Time for what," Hopkal said.
"Time to complete the team," he said. "It is time that we complete the first phase of a dream, a dream that the three of us share quite equally. The fifteen candidates that I have narrowed the field to is ready to be chosen. In short It's time my friends."
The three looked at each other and with simple nods they all knew and understood.
* * * *
Dr. William Hopkal, code named Revere, looked at the semi-rundown house which was situated in the hilly terrain of Canada.
So this is where I start helping Charles reach his dream, by picking up a girl in Canada with powers similar to his own, he thought.
"Here goes nothing," he muttered under his breath.
Hopkal got about within three feet of the door before hearing the yelling and screaming; and then came hitting. Sharp thuds and smacks that rolled and cracked like thunder. He shuddered but never the less knocked. A large, threatening looking man answered and asked what the hell he wanted.
After identifying himself and some unwanted small talk on both sides came what, it shockingly seemed, the large man wanted more than anything, the giving away of his daughter, Julianna Cassidy.
She was an average looking girl of 27, Hopkal couldn't believe that she A. still lived at home and B. that she put up with her father. He was, after all, in Hopkal's opinion, a jack ass and one of the few people that Hopkal disliked only after a few moments. It was rather rushed Hopkal simply took her bags and they left. No hugs or kisses or teary eyes; not much of anything.
Julianna was, from Hopkal's again unusually quick judgment, a meek woman who'd been broken. Her personal file compiled by Charles had said she was a reformed drug addict and a target of abuse on what seemed to be a universal scale. She was the dog who would run away at the slight of a hand and still not trust the human to give it love after seeing the error of his ways. It was sad and unfortunate but when Dr. Hopkal considered it there was nothing he could do about it.
* * * *
Jean Grey, soon to be code named Phoenix, walked up the stairs to the small apartment in the suburbs of New York. She stopped for a moment and then remembering why she was doing all this she knocked on the door. What she saw inside shocked her... It was clean. The outside of the apartment had given her a grungy feeling about the place; but on the inside of this particular apartment things looked immaculate. What surprised even more was the young man who occupied the apartment.
He was a tall built young man with brown hair which hung lazily a top his head. He also wore shining red eyeglasses which, Jean decided, was to keep him from blowing everything around him to hell. The Professor had told her that this young man had, as had she, spent time with him in the past and they had devised glasses to contain his power.
"May I help you," the man said.
"Yes, uh, Scott Summers," she said looking at the paper in her hand.
"You've found him," he said shyly. "Wait a minute your Miss Grey aren't you from the Xavier school." He looked at her, he had expected an old woman but she was anything but, in fact she was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen and she couldn't be any older than his 19 and a half years.
"Yep that's me so uh if you don't mind are you ready to go," she asked, for some reason averting her eyes from his glasses.
"Um uh yeah give me a sec," he went inside and grabbed his bags. He took a quick glance around and bid a fine farewell to his home for the past year. When he had gotten out of foster care the first thing he'd done was get a job and then the apartment it was what he was, in his mind, all he was. He walked back out and nodded to her giving his assurance that he was ready; but in his mind he couldn't help but ask,am I ready
* * * *
Professor Charles Xavier looked at the two parents in front of him, there were tears in their eyes as they told him of the strange happenings around the house and some of the things that their son had done, like freeze the dinner table and make it snow last June. He nodded sympathetically as they told him they just didn't understand why this was happening. Finally after they had tried to give reasons for wanting to send their son away to the school he spoke up.
"Mr. and Mrs. Drake you need to understand that this is not his fault and it is not your fault either it is just something that happened. Would you love your son any less had he been born with cerebral palsy," he paused and the mother wept more as the father simply shook his head. "You see you must treat this as no different only this is not a defect this is more a wonderment, a compliment to an already wonderful boy. At my school I will teach him how to deal with every part of his life and these powers. It will not so much be a course in how to get rid of them but how to live with them and help others live with them also. So do not think yourselves bad people because you want to help your son, which is what you will be doing. I know your decision has been a hard one but it is not a wrong one. You will still be able to have constant contact with him so you are not giving up your son you are giving your son a new lease on life. Do you understand?"
No longer were there tears in the parents eyes, no, now there was an understanding in them. They nodded and the father called up the stairs.
"Rob... Bobby, Bobby could you come down here son."
Robert Drake came down the stairs with a backpack over one shoulder and a small suitcase in his hand. His brown hair came down in wisps over his eyes and his blue eyes showed signs of confusion. He knew what was going on but he didn't know why. So what, big deal, I froze the table, you guys should see what I can really do, he thought.
"Professor Xavier is here...," his father choked but then drew it in. "It's time son."
Bobby nodded and hugged both parents good-bye. At 16 he was leaving home most of the guys at school would have been envious had they not gotten hacked off when he turned the gym showers into an ice storm.
Bobby walked out and then the Professor gave one last nod to the parents. "We'll call tonight Mr. and Mrs. Drake," he said reassuringly. And with that they watched there son leave.
* * * *
Dr. William Hopkal walked down the hall of the science building of Cambridge University. It had been some months since he had been there but he always knew the way. It was a feeling, once there you could never forget it.
He walked into the botany lab and saw a stunning young woman of 25 writing some notes as she tinkered with a plant. It wasn't a normal tinkering though, no, it was a mutant tinkering. She was controlling the plant and, it seemed, making it grow before his very eyes.
Hopkal cleared his throat, "Dr. McDaniel I presume," he said looking at her.
She looked up, "Yes," she replied. "You must be Dr. Hopkal, I've read your theses on gene replacement theory for averting mutant characteristics.'
"I thought you were a botanist," he said astonished.
She smiled, "I am, I'm also a biochemist," she said smiling. "Nice to finally meet you," she shook his hand.
Now he really was quite astonished to be a doctor of both subjects took quite some time which it seemed she hadn't needed. It had taken him 10 years to get his degrees in genetics and biochemistry.
"Well I am duly impressed," he replied shaking her hand back.
"Well your letter did say you would want to leave ASAP so if you'll give me a sec; I was saying good-bye to some friends," she said nodding towards the plants.
He smiled and nodded. She picked up a bag that had been out of sight moments ago.
"Ready when you are," she said cheerfully.
Hopkal liked her she was smart, cheerful, and beautiful; and if he wasn't old enough to be her father he would have considered a date with her. It wasn't his style though.
* * * *
Scott Summers, code named Cyclops, still reeling from his encounter with Jean Grey, had had only minimal time with the Professor once he had arrived at the mansion but he had immediately volunteered himself to work. The Professor had obliged and gave him the addresses of a few people and plane tickets to their cities plus money for anything else he needed.
The first name on the list was Eric Hawkins; his file said that his powers allowed him to heal himself and generate biological organs, cells, and limbs, Impressive, Scott had thought.
He knocked on the door to the dorm room and a young man of 18 with short brown hair and bright blue eyes answered the door.
"Uh Eric Hawkins," Scott said quickly.
"You've found him," Eric said with an unruly tone.
"Hi I'm Scott Summers with The School for Gifted Youngsters," he said introducing himself.
Eric looked at Scott and wondered about his eyes but decided not to ask instead he just simply nodded and picked up his bags off the bed, "Ready when you are Slim," Eric said smiling.
Great, I know him for five seconds and he gives me a nickname, hmph, I'll lay ten to one odds everybody calls me that before the weeks out, Scott thought.
The two walked down the steps and Eric chattered on about what he could do and how he was this and that but when he went to open the drivers side door Scott even surprised himself. He lifted his glasses slightly and hit Eric in the stomach. He flew back a few inches and looked around. He had been jawing so much he had never even notices 'Slim' raise his glasses and fire a red beam of concussive force at his midsection. He was lucky it had been just a small, short blast otherwise it could have likely blown his whole damned stomach out through his back.
Scott hopped in the drivers seat and started the car. Eric ran around to the other door and threw his stuff in the back seat still wondering what the hell had hit him.
* * * *
Jean Grey was still thinking about Scott Summers, code named Cyclops, when she walked up the steps to the large Victorian mansion. He had made her feel very weird and she knew that weird feeling but dismissed it as a bad cheeseburger and rang the doorbell.
Kent Andross, a tall young man with blue eyes and blond hair in a crew cut and side burns, and with the abilities of super-agility and minor telekinesis, answered the door with his bags slung over his shoulder. He looked at Jean and said, "You the babe from Xavier's."
She tumbled responses through her head but settled on the simple, "Yes."
"Well toots," he said lighting a cigarette. "Let's beat it before my parents get here."
"But..."
"No buts girlie lets get 'kay...," he paused waiting for her to move. "Look I'm 18 I left them a note and they know," he snorted. "But they could care less anyway.".
Jean looked at him and decided not to argue she turned and walked down the steps to the car. He followed and there was nothing said the rest of the trip.
* * * *
Professor Charles Xavier drank slowly from his cup of coffee and watched the young woman before him pack.
Rayna Zimmer was 22 and worked in a bar in Soho. She had no family worth mentioning and had the mutant ability to copy and assimilate, into herself, the DNA of those around. She could use this power to gain the powers or appearance of her subject. It would be very useful in the Professor's opinion.
It was a quick meeting he rolled into her apartment, identified himself, she gave him coffee and started packing, they left, and that was that. Short, sweet, and simple.
* * * *
Professor Charles Xavier sat in his study looking at his computer screen. The team had been gathered with the exception of a small few scheduled to arrive the following morning. So far things had gone well and now he sat thinking. He looked at the screen intently and at the name on it, Jon Morrow, it was a nice name but the man with it seemed to be anything but; he was an assassin and professional thief. What a profession, thought Xavier. But he was also, believe it or not, the one man that Xavier wanted more than anything at that moment. He would be the lynch pin. He would be Xavier's man. The man to give the team that final balance. A loner, a killer, a lover, a fighter, a sinner, and a Saint.