4Sorry for the long delay. I was having a severe case of writers block, and then I was unhappy with the first couple of chapters. So I added some more to them and tweaked them a bit. So you should go back and reread them if this isn't your first time through. Hopefully, I will have the next chapter up within the next month or so. Thank you all for the comments, I really appreciate them as this is my first fanfic. And now let's get back to the story!
The professor sat deep in thought at the front of the blackbird. He was troubled by the arrival of this new mutant and what it could mean for Magneto's plans. In that moment that he sensed the mutant, he had sensed a large dark presence that seemed to almost overpower the presence of the man. Yet the man seemed to be in control of the darkness, if only for that moment. He also sensed a great deal of confusion and disorientation from the man. Yes, it was true that he had left to find the mutant with such urgency because of Magneto, but he also felt a great need to help this man if he needed it; and from what he sensed from the man, he seemed like he needed someone he could trust. The professor was broken from his musings as the blackbird jolted to avoid being hit by a flash of lightening. The plane continued to shake from the storm they now found themselves in.
"Is everything alright Storm?"
"This isn't me Professor. I'm trying to calm the weather but there is something blocking me," Storm tensely replied.
"Professor! I can feel something coming closer. So much fear, anger…I feel so cold. Make it stop!" Jean cried.
Scott who had been sitting next to Jean, held her tight as he tried to reassure her. "Professor—" he was cut off as all power in the blackbird went out and a smoky haze filled the blackbird. The smoky haze briefly solidified into a dark shadow of a man. The man screamed at some unknown person "Noooooo. Get away from me!" At that moment the plane began to fall. The professor placed both hands on his temples as he telepathically tried to calm the man down.
"Its alright. We won't hurt you. You're among friends."
The man turned towards the Professor before screaming one last time. Then he vanished. At the moment the power was restored and Storm quickly brought the Blackbird back to a safe altitude. Jean, now calm gasped "he's gone." The question on everyone's mind then was "where did he go?"
Elsewhere a black haze began to form a couple of miles away from the Xavier Institute. That haze swirled around and around until John materialized from the black haze and collapsed unceremoniously.
"This is beginning to become a troubling pattern." John groaned as he rubbed his head and slowly sat up.
He looked around and started to take in his surroundings; automatically taking in all the weak points of the hill he now found himself on and cataloging the best escape routes. He did this effortlessly and efficiently, like an experienced warrior ready to defend himself or escape at a moment's notice. John, however, didn't really take note of this unusual skill or if he did he didn't think about it too much. He had more pressing matters at the moment to deal with, like finding a change of clothes and figuring out what was going on. He noted from his quick scan that there was a mansion that didn't look like it was too far away. With no other signs of society in sight, John decided that was his best option. So after a couple of false starts, he managed to finally get up and stay up, and begin to walk towards the mansion. It was cold so he shivered slightly as he began the long trek to the mansion, since all he was wearing was a hospital gown, but John was too absorbed in his thoughts to pay his discomfort and aching muscles much attention.
"How did I end up here? One minute I was trying to get away from those officers, and the next thing I know I was here." John furrowed his eyebrows and frowned. "But that's not right because I was somewhere else for a moment." John briefly closed his eyes as he tried to remember what had happened. In between all of the chaos there had been other people that weren't there before. Then a man had begun to talk to him. He was sure of that, but he couldn't quite remember what the man was saying. All he remembered was the calm feeling the man's voice gave him before he fell into unconsciousness. It also felt like the man's voice was in his head. Was he going crazy? That seemed to be the only rational explanation. But that really didn't make any sense, how could he have gotten from the hospital to where he was now? If he really was losing it, he would still be at the hospital; he wouldn't be walking in a hospital gown in the middle of some field. So if he wasn't crazy, how did he get here and what did the man have to do with all of it? The more he remembered, the more questions he had. Truth be told none of that frightened him as much as that memory of himself, that Butcher of Lhasa. The Butcher's cold laugh rung in John's ears, as he wrapped his arms around himself tightly as he shivered again, but this time it wasn't from the cold.
