DEADLY NEW WORLD

Part I: Alliance

By Dino Pollard

Washington, DC

{{LAND OF THE FREE AND THE HOME OF THE BRAVE MY ASS!! THIS COUNTRY CARES NOTHING FOR OUR KIND!! YOU THINK YOU LIVE IN A DEMOCRACY? YOU THINK WRONG!! WE’RE NOT FREE, WE’RE NOT EQUAL!! THE HUMANS WOULD SOONER KILL US THAN MAKE AMENDS WITH US!! THIS IS NOT THE LAND OF TOLERANCE!! THIS IS NOT THE LAND OF FREEDOM!! THIS IS NOT THE LAND OF EQUALITY!! THIS IS THE LAND OF HATRED, OF BIGOTRY!! THIS IS NOT THE LAND FOR MUTANTS!! IF WE WANT ACCEPTANCE,WE MUST TAKE IT!! THE HUMANS CANNOT CONTINUE TO OPPRESS US LIKE THIS!! WE MUST RISE UP TO MAKE THIS A BETTER PLACE FOR OUR KIND!! TO MAKE IT A BETTER PLACE FOR MUTANTS!! }}

“The man sure knows how to make a speech…”

“Look at how he has them eating out of his hand…”

“This situation has gotten bad, sir. Your predecessor took a neutral stance on the mutant issue, but that’s when it could be contained. Now though, it threatens to erupt.”

“I know…”

“We should continue with Project Wideawake.”

“Are you insane, Gyrich?! You can’t unleash those… things on American citizens!!”

“Val’s right, Petey. The Sentinels are too much for this operation.”

“Do you have any suggestions, Colonel Fury?”

Nick Fury took a drag on the cigar, looking out the window of the Oval Office. His eyes went back down to George W. Bush, the current President.

“Registration seems to be a popular idea…” Fury stated.

“I would strongly advise you against that course of action, Mr. President.”

“WHO THE HELL LET HIM IN HERE?!”

“Calm down, Henry,” Bush stated, standing from his desk. “I requested his presence.Thank you for coming all the way down from New York, Professor Xavier.”

The bald man walked over to the President and shook his hand.

“It’s no trouble at all,” Xavier replied.

“Allow me to introduce you to Colonel Nick Fury, Director of SHIELD. Dr. Valerie Cooper, mutant liason. And Henry Peter Gyrich, the head of the NSA.”

“This is a mistake, sir…” Gyrich began.

“I’ll be the judge of that, Henry,” Bush broke in. “Everyone, please have a seat.”

The four people all took their seats and looked at Bush.

“I’ve heard much about you, Professor,” Bush began. “A well-known mutant rights activist. You’ve been in the public eye for some time now. And you even served the country during Desert Storm. The reason I called you here is because you might be the best person to speak with about the so-called mutant crisis.”

“Basically, is there any way you can shut up assholes like this Cortez character?” Fury asked.

“I’m afraid it’s not that simple, Colonel,” Xavier replied. “Something like this will take some time.”

“Time is a luxury we don’t have,” Fury began. “It turns out that there’s a mutant terrorist who’s been causing some trouble overseas. We’ve thought about dispatching SHIELD, but he’s able to cut down our operations before we can even begin.”

He turned on a monitor which brought up an image from a foreign news broadcast. While Xavier didn’t understand the language, he was able to discern what was happening.

Soldiers were attacking someone, and their weapons were being turned against them. Metal flew everywhere, street lamps and shrapnel impaling soldiers. There was a single image of a man in a leather costume with a purple-tinted cape and helmet. Xavier’s blood ran cold as he watched. He recognized the man responsible for this.

Fury then turned off the monitor.

“That was a live broadcast from China,” he stated. “The guy calls himself Magneto, an’ I can see why.”

“Magneto is our immediate threat,” Bush said. “He’s our main priority right now.”

“The best thing I can think of is a mutant strike force,” Xavier stated. “If I’m able to secure the funds, I’ll be able to assemble a group of mutants who, after proper training, can assist us against Magneto.”

“Who would these mutants be?” Bush asked with interest.

“Young men and women who are just learning to cope with their powers,” Xavier replied.“They would be the best choice. I could train them in the use of their powers so that they could stop not only Magneto, but other threats that may arise. This would also hope to prove to the public that mutants aren’t bad.”

“That’s not a half-bad idea, sir,” Val stated. “As far as mutant/human relations goes, it can really help. I think you should really consider this.”

“An’ it doesn’t seem that SHIELD will have a lot of luck against him, judging from these tapes…” Fury muttered. “But, I do have one stipulation.”

“At least I’m not the only one…” Gyrich muttered.

“What would that be, Colonel?” Xavier asked.

“I want one’a my people t’ help you out,” Fury replied. “He’s a mutant, probably the best soldier on the globe. He can be a bit… tempermental, but who isn’t?”

“We need all the help we can get,” Xavier said. “Any help you could offer would be greatly appreciated, Colonel.”

“I can’t believe I’m the only one against this!!” Gyrich exclaimed. “This is too much of a risk! Mutants working for the government? How do we know that they won’t turn on us and JOIN Magneto? The Sentinels on the other hand, CAN be controlled.”

“Mutants aren’t mindless, Mr. Gyrich,” Xavier stated. “Just because one mutant wants to wage war on mankind doesn’t mean we’ll all rally behind him. We do have minds of our own.”

Los Angeles, California

“C’mon O, don’t hog it all!!”

The young, black woman took a drag on the small joint before passing it on to her friend. She took a deep drag and handed it to another person.

“Oh man… that’s nice…”

“Here,” O stated, grabbing it. “Lemme show you how it’s done…”

“Hah, like YOU could show me anything!!”

O grinned before taking another long, smooth drag.

“Damn girl!”

“Haha!” O stated. “What’d I tell you, Jess?”

She looked around at the people at the party. Most were either smoking pot or drinking, some were dancing a bit to the music, and others couldn’t keep their hands off each other. She lost count of the number of people she saw going to bedrooms, basements, hell, even bathrooms. That kind of stuff was common at a rave.

Without warning, the doors suddenly burst open, and cops came pouring in.

“EVERYBODY FREEZE!! YOU’RE ALL UNDER ARREST!!”

They began apprehending everyone. Some people tried to run, only to be stopped short in their tracks. When they approached O, she simply stared at them with ice-blue eyes.

“Hands above your head, move it!!”

O lifted her hands, and aimed them right at the cops. Before they could cuff her, a sudden wind generated from those two hands, throwing them backwards. She hovered in the air, her white hair standing on end, charged with electricity as lightning bolts flew from her fingertips.

“WHAT IN THE CRAP?!”

“SHE’S A MUTIE, SOMEONE STOP HER!!”

“O…?!”

A small-scale hurricane erupted in the room, assaulting all of the cops, and some bystanders as well. O didn’t care, she had to get away.

Her winds began to carry her upwards, attempting to vacate the empty warehouse.

That is, they would have had a recovered officer not opened fire on her.

The bullet whizzed through, striking her in the back. She cried out in pain as she began to plummet.

Her eyes weakly opened and she saw herself staring down the barrels of several guns. Then, she passed out.

Washington, DC

“Colonel Fury…” Xavier stated, once the SHIELD Director entered.

“I’d like to introduce you to yer first recruit, Xavier,” Fury replied.

A man entered. He appeared to be in his 20s or 30s, and he had an odd hairstyle. A cigar dangled from his lips, and he was dressed in a uniform comprised of black leather, with several Xs on it.

“Professor Charles Xavier, meet Special Agent Logan,” Fury stated.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Agent Logan,” Xavier said. “Colonel Fury has told me much about you and your abilities.”

“I gotta tell ya this, then, Chuck,” Logan replied. “You ain’t seen nothin’ yet. An’ th’ name’s just Logan.”

“Very well, Logan,” Xavier said. “Welcome to the X-Men.”

Los Angeles, California

“Ororo Munroe, eh?” the cop standing above her asked. “Eighteen years old. Tell me, Ms. Munroe, what were you doing at that rave?”

“Asking for directions,” Ororo snapped.

“And what about that little display? What did you think you were doing?”

“Surviving.”

“All right, Miss Smart-Ass…” he stated. “I’m not gonna play around with you, understand? Not only were you using illegal drugs, you also endangered the lives of yourself and others, including policemen.”

“They shot me in the fucking back!!” Ororo snapped. “What the hell did you expect me to do?”

“That officer only shot you AFTER you decided to play weather witch. He had no choice but to use lethal force.”

“So what’re you gonna do, now?” she asked.

“Once you get out of the hospital, you’re going to be prosecuted. You’ll be kept in a cell at the prescient until your trial. Unless someone posts your bail, of course. Now, I can help you out, here…”

“I know my rights, asshole,” Ororo spat. “And you can’t question me without my lawyer here…”

“Fine then…” the cop stated, grabbing the phone by her bedside. He handed it to her. “Go ahead and call your lawyer.”

Ororo hesitated for a few seconds before dialing.

{{ Earlier today, President Bush stated that he will do all he can to help contain the mutant terrorist who has been ravaging Eastern countries, the most-recent being China. }}

{{ “America has never tolerated terrorism in the past, and I’m not about to start now. This Magneto will be dealt with, if necessary, severely. Many people have already lost their lives because of him, and I won’t allow him to spill any American blood.” }}

The monitor imploded, metal fragments flying everywhere.

“Tell me, Mr. President,” the man stated. “Do you truly believe you can stop me? Especially when your head is the one on the block?”