There Must Be Some Kind of Way Out of Here
Chapter 1
Author's Note: This is my first attempt in delving into the world of fan fiction. Hopefully it isn't too boring. Leave feedback, if you wish, positive or negative. The positive tells me to keep writing more, and the negative tells me to keep writing more so as to improve my skills. Thanks, and enjoy. The stuff in italics are thoughts.
Disclaimer: I guess I'm supposed to have this thing here, since everyone else does. I don't own any of the X-Men characters or any of that stuff, except John, whom I made up on my own doing.
Edited: August 27, 2003 – fixed grammar and spelling errors. Added more to read. Better than the original version.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The bus pulled to a stop outside of the Bayville Bus Station. As the passengers disembarked, a young man stepped onto the platform wearing a long, brown coat and carrying a duffel bag. His broad shoulders slumped down, and he sighed warily.
Well, here I am. Time to start my new life.
Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a picture of a kindly-looking bald man whom he was supposed to be meeting here. His eyes scanned the surrounding groups of people, searching for the man in the picture.
There.
Resting in a wheelchair beside the door leading into the bus station, he spotted the man and walked over towards him.
"Er, uh... Are you uh, Charles Xavier?" the young man asked tentatively.
"Yes I am. And you are John Jashback, if I am not to be mistaken." His voice was so soothing, so relaxing. It seemed to calm the tense young man.
Grasping his hand, the young man nodded nervously. "Nice to meet you. Well, uh, here I am. I suppose we'll be going now?"
"Is that all of your things," the bald man asked, pointing to his bag.
"Oh this? Yeah uh, I didn't have much to begin with, so uh..." he trailed off.
"Don't worry," Xavier replied. "We'll be sure that your needs are met when we reach the Institute. Are you ready?"
John nodded and the two made their way to the parking lot.
Institute…I don't care what they told me before, 'Institute' just sounds…bad.
"I know difficult it can be for you to pack up and move someplace new, especially in your unique circumstances, but I can ensure you that I will do everything in my power to make this experience a pleasant one for you. Welcome to your new home of Bayville, John."
**********
The black van drove down an empty road and pulled up to the gate outside of a large sprawling mansion. The gates slowly swung open and they made their way up the long, winding driveway.
"Whoa. I get to live here?" John asked.
"Indeed. This is my Institute for Gifted Youngsters, people like yourself. They live and train here, and learning to control their abilities so they can leave to become productive members of society." Xavier said.
"Heh. I wouldn't exactly call myself 'gifted.' More like unfortunate."
"Now you shouldn't say that. Despite our differences from others, we are people, merely blessed with special talents."
"Whatever you say..."
The van pulled up to a stop in front of a wide expanse of steps leading to the doors of the mansion. Outside stood an African American woman with white hair and a young man about John's age, wearing red sunglasses. The two approached the vehicle as it stopped. Charles Xavier wheeled himself to the side door and pressed a button. The door slid open and a small ramp extended down.
"Welcome back, Charles. I assume all went well?" asked the woman.
"Indeed, Ororo." Easing himself down onto the pavement he said, "Ororo, Scott, I'd like you to welcome our newest resident, John Jashback."
John stepped outside and extended his hand to the others. "Uh...hi. I'm John. It's nice to meet you."
"Likewise," said the other young man, the one called Scott.
John turned, and the woman took his hand gently and spoke in a rich, majestic tone. "It is a pleasure to meet you, John. I am Ororo Munroe."
"Scott is another of the students here, John. Ororo is one of our instructors," Xavier explained.
"Oh. That makes sense. Well, nice to meet you two. Ah, so uh...you all live here too?" John asked.
"Sure do," said Scott. "C'mon, I'll show you around."
"John, I will meet with you later this evening to address any questions and concerns you may have, as well as explain in greater detail as to what we do here at the Institute. In the meanwhile, Scott will show you the Institute's grounds and your room as well." Professor Xavier waited for John's nod before turning, wheeling himself inside of the house, accompanied by Ororo.
"So uh," John said, looking up at Scott, "Shall we go in?"
"Sure thing. And hey, ease up a little. Things here aren't as bad as they seem."
"S..sorry. I'm just a little nervous, that's all. It's hard picking up your life and starting over again."
"I know that feeling. We all do. But don't worry. You're in the company of friends." Scott replied soothingly, and he put his arm on John's shoulder and led him into the house.
"Wow" was all John could say, upon seeing the inside of the mansion. "It's...amazing."
"Isn't it?" Scott said before laughing. "C'mon, we've got more to see."
The two young men walked up a large staircase directly across from the door, walking down a hallway before stopping at a room. Scott opened the door, and bowed mockingly. "Your suite, sire," he said in a horrific British accent. "I trust you shall find it to your liking." Truly horrific.
In spite of the accent's awful sound, it startled a laugh out of John. "Thanks. It's uh…great." The room really was great. It was quite large and spacious, with a large window across from the door, looking out into the surrounding forest. A desk with a large mirror and a bookcase sat against the walls in the middle, and two beds facing opposite directions on either side of the middle furniture.
"Do I have a roommate or something?" John asked.
"No, not yet. But you might eventually, and hey, if you're here long enough, you'll get your own room," he added with a grin.
John smiled a little and walked over to the nearest bed and tossed his duffel bag and coat onto it before sitting down.
"Mind if I ask you a question, Scott?"
"Sure thing. What's up?" he asked, sitting on the bed next to John.
"Well, for one, where is everyone?"
"The other students are all at school." He pointed to a clock on the wall that read 3:53 p.m. "They should be here any minute."
"Public school?"
"Yeah."
"Oh… But why are you here? Shouldn't you be there, instead of uh…playing hooky?"
"For you. The Professor pulled me out early to come and officially greet you."
"Oh, wow. I feel special all of a sudden."
Scott grinned before speaking again. "I usually give the new students their orientation here. I'm the oldest of the students and I've been here the longest, so it's kind of my inherited job. But anyway, any other questions?"
"Yeah. I can only guess everyone else here is…well, you know. What, uh…brought you here in the first place?"
"Who me? Oh, I just shoot laser beams from my eyes..."
John looked at him incredulously. "You can't fuc—"
"I'm serious," Scott interjected. "I can't control them though. That's why I wear these glasses."
"Oh. That explains it. I just thought they were for show. They do look cool."
"Heh. Try saying that when you've had to wear them every day for almost your entire life, living with the knowledge that you can destroy something just by looking at it."
"I...I'm sorry. I didn't mean to pry like that," John said, wincing slightly.
"No, it's alright. It isn't your fault... So what about you? What can you do?"
"Well...I can't really do anything, not like you. What I have is more like useless ability. Or a curse."
"Oh, it can't be that bad," said Scott. "Just tell me."
"Well, you know how if you grab the tail on a lizard, it falls off and wiggles around for a while and then a new tail eventually grows back?"
"You've got a tail?!?"
"No, no, no! No tail here! But you understand what I'm talking about?"
"Yeah, I think so."
"Well," said John, "I'm kind of like that. My left arm is, I mean to say. Yank it hard enough, and it falls off."
Scott stared back at him in silence.
"Heh, I get that a lot. Anyway, it'll fall off and...just fall off and eventually turn to dust. Like I said, useless."
"But it grows back, right? How long does it take?"
"Not sure. I never sat around and waited for it. I just concentrate real hard on it and I can force a new arm out."
"Whoa. Heavy stuff," Scott mumbled.
"Wanna see it in action?" asked John.
"I don't know. Does it hurt when you do it?"
"Not so much as it used to. I've learned to deal with it."
"Uh, no thanks. I think I'll pass on the offer for now." Glancing at his watch, Scott said, "Well, I guess I should tell you how things run here. We've got training sessions at six in the morning, breakfast at seven thirty. Then off to school till three thirty. Sometimes we'll have a training session in the afternoon, sometimes we don't. Dinner's at six, and sometimes we'll have an evening training session. Curfew's at 10:30, light's out at 11:00. Any questions?"
John sat back stunned for a moment. "Uh, well...we train enough around here? Any reason why so much?"
"To hone and master our abilities, so we can better use them to benefit society. I know it sounds kind of weird, but you'll get used to it. Anything else?"
"No...I think that's it..."
Scott stood up and walked over to the door. "I'll let you get to unpacking and settling in. I'll be back around in a little while to check up on you. You're free to explore the Institute for a while, if you want. And if you ever need to talk or anything, come to me. I'm just down the hall."
"Thanks. I'll remember that," John said.
Scott closed the door, leaving John sitting in his room.
"Oh yeah! I forgot to tell you! Bathroom's two doors down from you!" Scott shouted from outside. John grinned and yelled a thanks to him.
My new home... Doesn't seem so bad. Scott seems pretty cool, and so did Professor Xavier and what's her name? Oh yeah, Ororo. She was pretty hot. Shame I'm not older and she's not younger... Oh well...
John Jashback rubbed his left shoulder, looking at his arm. "Look what you've gotten me into," he said to it. Realizing the futility of speaking to his arm, the young mutant stood up and opened his duffel bag, emptying the contents onto his bed. A few articles of clothing spilled out, along with a handful of pictures – mementos of what he'd never have again – and the various essentials. Well, for the most part. Packing had been a pretty hasty procedure. "Home sweet home," he finally said, looking over his meager possessions and his grand new room.
Home sweet home...
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Alright, well, the first chapter was just the introduction. In the next few, you'll see the new mutant meet and interact with the other X-Men, and eventually into some fights or something. Anyway, this is my first try, so be gentle.
Chapter 1
Author's Note: This is my first attempt in delving into the world of fan fiction. Hopefully it isn't too boring. Leave feedback, if you wish, positive or negative. The positive tells me to keep writing more, and the negative tells me to keep writing more so as to improve my skills. Thanks, and enjoy. The stuff in italics are thoughts.
Disclaimer: I guess I'm supposed to have this thing here, since everyone else does. I don't own any of the X-Men characters or any of that stuff, except John, whom I made up on my own doing.
Edited: August 27, 2003 – fixed grammar and spelling errors. Added more to read. Better than the original version.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The bus pulled to a stop outside of the Bayville Bus Station. As the passengers disembarked, a young man stepped onto the platform wearing a long, brown coat and carrying a duffel bag. His broad shoulders slumped down, and he sighed warily.
Well, here I am. Time to start my new life.
Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a picture of a kindly-looking bald man whom he was supposed to be meeting here. His eyes scanned the surrounding groups of people, searching for the man in the picture.
There.
Resting in a wheelchair beside the door leading into the bus station, he spotted the man and walked over towards him.
"Er, uh... Are you uh, Charles Xavier?" the young man asked tentatively.
"Yes I am. And you are John Jashback, if I am not to be mistaken." His voice was so soothing, so relaxing. It seemed to calm the tense young man.
Grasping his hand, the young man nodded nervously. "Nice to meet you. Well, uh, here I am. I suppose we'll be going now?"
"Is that all of your things," the bald man asked, pointing to his bag.
"Oh this? Yeah uh, I didn't have much to begin with, so uh..." he trailed off.
"Don't worry," Xavier replied. "We'll be sure that your needs are met when we reach the Institute. Are you ready?"
John nodded and the two made their way to the parking lot.
Institute…I don't care what they told me before, 'Institute' just sounds…bad.
"I know difficult it can be for you to pack up and move someplace new, especially in your unique circumstances, but I can ensure you that I will do everything in my power to make this experience a pleasant one for you. Welcome to your new home of Bayville, John."
**********
The black van drove down an empty road and pulled up to the gate outside of a large sprawling mansion. The gates slowly swung open and they made their way up the long, winding driveway.
"Whoa. I get to live here?" John asked.
"Indeed. This is my Institute for Gifted Youngsters, people like yourself. They live and train here, and learning to control their abilities so they can leave to become productive members of society." Xavier said.
"Heh. I wouldn't exactly call myself 'gifted.' More like unfortunate."
"Now you shouldn't say that. Despite our differences from others, we are people, merely blessed with special talents."
"Whatever you say..."
The van pulled up to a stop in front of a wide expanse of steps leading to the doors of the mansion. Outside stood an African American woman with white hair and a young man about John's age, wearing red sunglasses. The two approached the vehicle as it stopped. Charles Xavier wheeled himself to the side door and pressed a button. The door slid open and a small ramp extended down.
"Welcome back, Charles. I assume all went well?" asked the woman.
"Indeed, Ororo." Easing himself down onto the pavement he said, "Ororo, Scott, I'd like you to welcome our newest resident, John Jashback."
John stepped outside and extended his hand to the others. "Uh...hi. I'm John. It's nice to meet you."
"Likewise," said the other young man, the one called Scott.
John turned, and the woman took his hand gently and spoke in a rich, majestic tone. "It is a pleasure to meet you, John. I am Ororo Munroe."
"Scott is another of the students here, John. Ororo is one of our instructors," Xavier explained.
"Oh. That makes sense. Well, nice to meet you two. Ah, so uh...you all live here too?" John asked.
"Sure do," said Scott. "C'mon, I'll show you around."
"John, I will meet with you later this evening to address any questions and concerns you may have, as well as explain in greater detail as to what we do here at the Institute. In the meanwhile, Scott will show you the Institute's grounds and your room as well." Professor Xavier waited for John's nod before turning, wheeling himself inside of the house, accompanied by Ororo.
"So uh," John said, looking up at Scott, "Shall we go in?"
"Sure thing. And hey, ease up a little. Things here aren't as bad as they seem."
"S..sorry. I'm just a little nervous, that's all. It's hard picking up your life and starting over again."
"I know that feeling. We all do. But don't worry. You're in the company of friends." Scott replied soothingly, and he put his arm on John's shoulder and led him into the house.
"Wow" was all John could say, upon seeing the inside of the mansion. "It's...amazing."
"Isn't it?" Scott said before laughing. "C'mon, we've got more to see."
The two young men walked up a large staircase directly across from the door, walking down a hallway before stopping at a room. Scott opened the door, and bowed mockingly. "Your suite, sire," he said in a horrific British accent. "I trust you shall find it to your liking." Truly horrific.
In spite of the accent's awful sound, it startled a laugh out of John. "Thanks. It's uh…great." The room really was great. It was quite large and spacious, with a large window across from the door, looking out into the surrounding forest. A desk with a large mirror and a bookcase sat against the walls in the middle, and two beds facing opposite directions on either side of the middle furniture.
"Do I have a roommate or something?" John asked.
"No, not yet. But you might eventually, and hey, if you're here long enough, you'll get your own room," he added with a grin.
John smiled a little and walked over to the nearest bed and tossed his duffel bag and coat onto it before sitting down.
"Mind if I ask you a question, Scott?"
"Sure thing. What's up?" he asked, sitting on the bed next to John.
"Well, for one, where is everyone?"
"The other students are all at school." He pointed to a clock on the wall that read 3:53 p.m. "They should be here any minute."
"Public school?"
"Yeah."
"Oh… But why are you here? Shouldn't you be there, instead of uh…playing hooky?"
"For you. The Professor pulled me out early to come and officially greet you."
"Oh, wow. I feel special all of a sudden."
Scott grinned before speaking again. "I usually give the new students their orientation here. I'm the oldest of the students and I've been here the longest, so it's kind of my inherited job. But anyway, any other questions?"
"Yeah. I can only guess everyone else here is…well, you know. What, uh…brought you here in the first place?"
"Who me? Oh, I just shoot laser beams from my eyes..."
John looked at him incredulously. "You can't fuc—"
"I'm serious," Scott interjected. "I can't control them though. That's why I wear these glasses."
"Oh. That explains it. I just thought they were for show. They do look cool."
"Heh. Try saying that when you've had to wear them every day for almost your entire life, living with the knowledge that you can destroy something just by looking at it."
"I...I'm sorry. I didn't mean to pry like that," John said, wincing slightly.
"No, it's alright. It isn't your fault... So what about you? What can you do?"
"Well...I can't really do anything, not like you. What I have is more like useless ability. Or a curse."
"Oh, it can't be that bad," said Scott. "Just tell me."
"Well, you know how if you grab the tail on a lizard, it falls off and wiggles around for a while and then a new tail eventually grows back?"
"You've got a tail?!?"
"No, no, no! No tail here! But you understand what I'm talking about?"
"Yeah, I think so."
"Well," said John, "I'm kind of like that. My left arm is, I mean to say. Yank it hard enough, and it falls off."
Scott stared back at him in silence.
"Heh, I get that a lot. Anyway, it'll fall off and...just fall off and eventually turn to dust. Like I said, useless."
"But it grows back, right? How long does it take?"
"Not sure. I never sat around and waited for it. I just concentrate real hard on it and I can force a new arm out."
"Whoa. Heavy stuff," Scott mumbled.
"Wanna see it in action?" asked John.
"I don't know. Does it hurt when you do it?"
"Not so much as it used to. I've learned to deal with it."
"Uh, no thanks. I think I'll pass on the offer for now." Glancing at his watch, Scott said, "Well, I guess I should tell you how things run here. We've got training sessions at six in the morning, breakfast at seven thirty. Then off to school till three thirty. Sometimes we'll have a training session in the afternoon, sometimes we don't. Dinner's at six, and sometimes we'll have an evening training session. Curfew's at 10:30, light's out at 11:00. Any questions?"
John sat back stunned for a moment. "Uh, well...we train enough around here? Any reason why so much?"
"To hone and master our abilities, so we can better use them to benefit society. I know it sounds kind of weird, but you'll get used to it. Anything else?"
"No...I think that's it..."
Scott stood up and walked over to the door. "I'll let you get to unpacking and settling in. I'll be back around in a little while to check up on you. You're free to explore the Institute for a while, if you want. And if you ever need to talk or anything, come to me. I'm just down the hall."
"Thanks. I'll remember that," John said.
Scott closed the door, leaving John sitting in his room.
"Oh yeah! I forgot to tell you! Bathroom's two doors down from you!" Scott shouted from outside. John grinned and yelled a thanks to him.
My new home... Doesn't seem so bad. Scott seems pretty cool, and so did Professor Xavier and what's her name? Oh yeah, Ororo. She was pretty hot. Shame I'm not older and she's not younger... Oh well...
John Jashback rubbed his left shoulder, looking at his arm. "Look what you've gotten me into," he said to it. Realizing the futility of speaking to his arm, the young mutant stood up and opened his duffel bag, emptying the contents onto his bed. A few articles of clothing spilled out, along with a handful of pictures – mementos of what he'd never have again – and the various essentials. Well, for the most part. Packing had been a pretty hasty procedure. "Home sweet home," he finally said, looking over his meager possessions and his grand new room.
Home sweet home...
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Alright, well, the first chapter was just the introduction. In the next few, you'll see the new mutant meet and interact with the other X-Men, and eventually into some fights or something. Anyway, this is my first try, so be gentle.