XMen: Dawn of Fire

X Men: Dawn of Fire  
  
Coolesville High  
  
"Stop!" Sharon screamed as her boyfriend struck her across the face. "Stop it!" Brad dropped his hand, mid-rise, and stared at her menacingly. Suddenly, a large palm dropped on Brad's shoulder and the steamed teenager turned around to stare at the new threat. Unfortunately for him, it was Kamden Stelens. Kamden was not at all that muscular, actually pretty thin for his age and size. But he had a reputation at school, one that would stay with him, probably for the rest of his life, and that occupation was "woman protector". "Back off." Kamden said coolly, reaching with the other hand to pull Sharon back toward him. Brad stepped away from his grip and watched as Kamden gently pushed Kate behind him. The tall boy's eyes turned suddenly coal red; becoming a pale translucent color on the sclera. Brad's scowl turned quickly to an expression of terror almost as quickly as Kamden's eyes had changed color. "Mutant!" he spat in fear and hatred both. Kamden continued to change, sprouting large demon-like dragon's wings, accompanied quickly by a row of bone hard spikes along his back and sprouting tail. In only seconds the tall skinny boy no longer remained, instead stood a huge creature, a dragon, crouched low on it's two thick hind legs; it's long arms bowed beneath it. It was black all the way from its short snout to its long whip-like tail; its impressive row of spines also taking the color. The transformation had started at his head and swept down to his tail in only the blink of an eye. In that second he had become a twelve-foot tall serpent with legs. The girl was too shocked even to scream. Pressed as she was against the wall, it seemed as if she pushed any harder she would become part of it. Brad was no better off. He had tried to turn and run, but his feet had failed him, turned to stone blocks. "What the.?!" He screamed in rage looking at his stuck sneakers. Brad twisted to look back at the dragon, which, to his surprise, was also entrapped with stone. It stood sullenly; staring at it's protruding claws. A slim hand dropped onto Brad's shoulder, making him start in fear. "Next time," a sweet voice wafted. "Take it up with her father." Stopping into view from behind Brad was a tall girl, clad in a cheerleader's outfit; totally off-throwing the look of cold malice on her face and her wide stance. Her long blonde hair flowed down her back and shoulders; her legs seeming to last forever in their long and slimness. With a wave of the stunning girl's hand, the blocks encasing the dragon's feet crumbled and broke into small chunks. As the huge black creature was shaking its feet, the blonde cheerleader sauntered up to it and stared into its crimson eyes. "What the heck is your problem?!" she demanded. Then in a somewhat more controlled voice she said, "We have to go." The cheerleader clambered gracefully over the top of the serpent's shoulders and held onto one its large spines. With heavy flaps of its wings, the tautly muscled dragon lifted into the air.  
  
The Xavier Institute  
  
"Kurt! Get back here!" Kitty yelled.  
A blue furred humanoid popped out of nowhere in a cloud of smoke. "Haha!" he taunted in thickly accented English as he waved a sheet of paper in front of her face and disappeared again in a smoke cloud.  
Kitty ran out the door of her room just in time to see blue fur fly around a corner of the long hall. She immediately took off running in the direction after her stolen homework answers. She ran until she saw another of Kurt's smoke entrails; a wispy plume in front of a seamless wall. Without the slightest hesitation, Kitty threw herself completely into the hard oak, dematerializing as she hit to come through the other side in the living room.  
A pile of blue fur sat comfortably in the crook of a couch facing the burning fireplace, the paper clenched tightly in his three fingered hand. "What took you so long?" he taunted. Kitty collapsed beside him on the couch and let out a long breath.  
"You kids still up?" a deep voice rumbled across the foyer. Kitty and Kurt jerked their heads up in surprise to see Logan standing over them. He had a strong face, one of hardship, with a two-day-old wash of stubble. His body was that of a body builder, strong and slightly stocky.  
"It's almost midnight and there's school in the morning." He said gruffly.  
"Aww, but Logan." Kitty began.  
"No buts kid." The older man cut off. "Upstairs, both of you."  
With dejected looks the two made off in separate directions. Kitty walked straight through the closest wall and Kurt disappeared in a poof of smoke. Shaking his head, Logan sat back down at one of the empty and shining clean kitchen tables to drink the rest of his coffee. The chair squeaked as the heavy weight of his body pressed it to the tile flooring.  
  
Professor Xavier sat unmoving at his large oaken desk, eyes closed, fingers clasped, mind intensely draught on the presence of a new mutant in the immediate area. Focusing just a bit more, the professor was able to pinpoint his/her (he didn't know what sex yet) location on the compound.  
Sighing softly, Xavier loosened up and opened his eyes. A cool breeze blew in threw his window; and it would have ruffled his hair had he had any, but the 60 something old man was bald and short with intense blue eyes and a skinny stature. Though it was hard to tell from a glance, seeing as the professor was paralyzed from the waist down and spent his whole life in bed asleep or in his wheelchair, the small man was one of the most powerful people in the world. His X-gene was complex: he was able to read and sense the minds of others; as he had just finished doing.  
Reaching down with his right hand, he fingered a device on the arm of his chair and it rolled smoothly into and down the hallway to the small door to a bedroom. Knocking gently, he waited. The door was answered promptly by a tall, beautiful, and shaped woman with long red hair. She wore a light and tightly clinging purple long sleeved shirt that showed a bit of midriff, above straight baggy khaki pants.  
"Professor?" she said uncertainly, this being the first time he had actually come by her room.  
"Jean, gather a couple others and head out to the front of the compound. We have a visitor." Xavier informed.  
Jean scowled. "The Brotherhood? Mystique?"  
"No," the professor cut in. "No, this is a new presence. I couldn't get an exact reading.but be sure not to go alone."  
"Yes professor." The red head said hurrying to where she knew the young man, Scott Summers, would be.  
  
Outside the Perimeter Wall  
  
A dragon lurked underneath a massive willow, it's serpentine neck stretched up into one of the tree's thick branches where a tan skinned girl sat straddling the tough bark. Her long dark brown hair was curly at its ends and fell almost to her behind, while her large brown eyes were so captivating that sometimes she had a problem being in the same room with too many men. The dragon was staring into them now, while trying to keep up with the conversation at the same time.  
"What's the best way into the mansion, Kamden?" Kate asked for the third time, annoyance lifting in her words.  
The dragon blinked quickly and looked back at the mansion. "It doesn't matter." He said in the same boy's voice he had in human form. "I'll make us a way in."  
"Honestly, you two are always like this." The blonde girl said stepping into view from across the street. She had changed since the last morning from cheerleader costume, into black leather, gloves and all. "Why don't you just join the Special Ed while your mind can still remember what that even is?"  
"Well look who's here." Kamden said dryly, only glancing down. "Miss Fashion Statement."  
"Hey Alicia, what took you so long?" Kate asked in a much nicer tone than the one that Kamden had given her.  
After giving the dragon a menacing look, the girl turned her gaze to Kate. "I couldn't find my other glove."  
"Don't tell me your serious." The dragon muttered, exasperated.  
"Well you didn't expect me to walk all the way here with just one glove did you? I would be the laughing stock of the whole town!"  
"Why do you need gloves in the first place?" Kamden shouted, dropping onto all four clawed feet. Like this, Alicia's head only came up to barely above the bottom of his stomach.  
But she looked up at him unafraid. "I couldn't wear this outfit without them! That would look so ghetto, just like the way you dr-"  
"That's enough!" Kate yelled down so forcefully, she stopped the words from escaping Alicia's mouth. "The professor has probably already figured out we're here."  
"Why do you say that?" the beautiful blonde said, hurt that she had been yelled at.  
"Professor Xavier has psychic powers is why. Now." Kate stood up and looked down at her outstretched hands. The right one glowed a deep crimson red. "Now, would be a better time to get started than later." With this final statement, Kate closed her eyes for a few seconds in deep concentration. The other two watched her, enthralled as always by her mutant gene. When Kate opened her eyes again, they were almost as red as Kamden's, yet milked over with white. Reaching with her glowing hand, she pressed it against the trunk of the old tree. A second later, the huge structure visibly shook, rattling off loose leaves in the process, and swayed as if it would fall. Kamden and Alicia stepped back a few steps from the tree, into open sunlight. The ground underneath them shook almost as much as the tree as huge tentacle like roots exploded from underfoot. The willow tree gathered all its roots to its base, big and small, and pushed down with them, causing the whole tree to lift from the ground. Kate was still attached to its bark, barely visible beneath the branches of the tree. The branches themselves were just as alive as the rest of the plant. They whipped around like angry serpents unleashing years of contained fury. The thick roots surged the tree forward toward Xavier's compound, as fast as a running human, if not faster. Kamden bent down and lowered his neck to Alicia. She climbed onto it and held on as he flew feet above the ground, keeping pace with Kate's tree. He could see her through the corner of his right eye, standing placid, all her energy in this abnormal tree. Kamden returned his attention to the large stone and brick mixed wall that surrounded the school. Sucking in a deep breath through his nostrils, and at the same time emitting a deep gurgling growl, he reared his neck back then shot it forward again in two successive 'sneezes'. Balls of red orange flame flew through the air and slammed into the wall, breaking a large chunk of it and loosening other pieces. Kate's tree escalated forward. It's strong and now flexible branches and roots ripping the remainder of the wall to gravel. It scaled the debris much a spider would and continued forward, into and through a thick knot of trees and into a courtyard of some kind. Without warning, a shot of crimson light struck the base of the tree, causing a mild burn on its bark. Turning, the three intruders spotted a group of humans and two blue creatures running toward them. "The X men!" Alicia yelled in warning. Kamden swung around to face the approaching danger. His wings beat the air harder as he fought with gravity to gain speed. The blonde on his back raised her hands as the got nearer, looking very much like a witch about to cast a spell. Behind them, Kate and the tree had not changed course but were headed straight for the buildings front entrance. Another group of rag tag mutants had converged in front of the huge glass doors to try and stop her assault, but they were only rookies mostly, not the legendary X Men that Professor Xavier held so preciously in favor. 


End file.
