Katrin spoke slowly, her German-tinged English coming out in small, broken phrases.
She narrated what those months had been like — the pure white rooms, the awful food, the collars, the tests. By the time she finished, the lab was buzzing with a furious, helpless energy. Everyone but Professor Xavier and me looked ready to tear the world apart.
I wasn't calm because her story hadn't moved me — it had. I was calm because when I first saw her on the beach, my Logic Deduction power had already deduced her story. So I'd had time to digest it and plan a few steps ahead.
"Professor — we have to go and save them," Scottie said, stepping forward with her fists clenched.
"We can't just leave her friends there, like we have to bring them out," Kitty added in agitation, her eyes wet.
"Nein—please, you must not go," Katrin pleaded, shaking her head. "Dey have many guards. Dey vill catch you. Bitte, no."
"The bub's right — you all stay here. I'll go in and slice 'em up quick," Logan snapped and started for the door.
"Logan, wait," I said quickly. "Charging in head-on isn't the smart play. This is a hostage rescue — getting them out safely has to be our priority."
I held my voice calm, though part of me wanted to remind her that she didn't even know where to go. Still, I bit my tongue — the last thing I needed was Logan turning me into sashimi out of sheer anger.
"Hmph." Logan snorted and planted herself against the wall, arms crossed, pissed.
"So, Luke — you already have a plan?" Jean asked, curious.
"If you have one, I'm willing to listen," Scottie said, calmly but still on edge.
"And your plan better not be 'go alone, Aeon,'" Marie said, eyes narrowing. "Ah've trained hard in the Danger Room this whole last month so Ah won't feel like a lump next time. Ah can't just stand there while you get beat up, Lucas. Ah just can't." Her voice broke; she clenched her fist until her knuckles whitened.
"Yes — since the day I came to this school, She has been training like mad there," Kitty said, squeezing Marie's shoulder in support. "And also like my powers are perfect for this— slip in and get out. So I am like not staying behind while other people are suffering." Her voice was fierce and certain.
"I know you've all worked hard training your powers in the Danger Room," I said serenely. "But in the end, it's still just a simulation. It can't replace real-life experience."
I bit back the thought that it might one day. This version wasn't the most advanced — more like VR, closer to the setup back in Watson Tower than the true Danger Room I knew from my meta-knowledge.
"Don't think for a second that just because you've been playin' hero you've got all the practical experience, Luke," Scottie snapped, folding her arms and giving me a sharp look. Even Marie and Kitty's faces had tightened showing anger at my remark.
"That's not what he meant, right?" Jean murmured, trying to smooth the air.
"I meant it more like this is a chance to gain real experience," I said, turning to the Professor. "A controlled mission, supervised. What do you think, Professor?"
"Are you suggesting we bring everyone on this rescue?" Charles asked, eyes narrow and calm.
"All? But Marie and Kitty are just children," Ororo said, alarm cutting her voice.
"We are not children," Kitty shot back, indignant.
"Yeah— Ah already have don—" Marie realised what she was about to say and stopped speaking all redfaced. I just gave her a wink while Jean looked at her and me in alarm.
"Why are you suggesting taking all of them, Lucas?" Professor Xavier asked, calm but direct, eyes fixed on mine. "From what I know of you, you would not willingly place others at risk—especially when we lack concrete intelligence of the enemy, and when not everyone's presence is strictly necessary for this mission."
I calmly met his gaze. He was right — I really had reasons for pushing this. "Professor, you must have foreseen something like this might happen someday. That's why you kept the Danger Room and permitted combat gear to be developed right?" I asked him in return.
"The Danger Room's function is training," the Professor replied slowly. "I feared a day when they might need their powers for survival… but still this is too early for them and you must know that too, Lucas." There was a faint glint in his eyes, as if he suspected I wasn't sharing everything.
"From the moment we found her," I said with a sigh, "I realised there's an organised group out there—with money, tech, and the will to abduct mutants for their purposes. That means anyone here could be a target. They could strike the school itself to round up all the mutants in one sweep."
"I will rain thunder on anyone who dares attack this school," Ororo said, lightning flickering between her fingers.
"I know you will," I replied, smiling at her. "And not just Ororo — I'm sure all of you would band together to protect this sanctuary you're building." I looked around the room.
They all nodded; even Professor Xavier allowed himself a small, proud smile.
"But that threat could come at any time," I said, the smile fading. " it could be as early as today or tomorrow. Professor i just want them to have the experience and power to defend and protect themselves for that day. By just taking an active part in this rescue mission they will be able to learn how to apply what they know practically, they will get confidence and knowhow on themselves and the ones who want to hurt them" I added looking at him earnestly, "And obviously I will be there to make sure that they don't get hurt"
"Professor — Ah've trained a lot in the Danger Room. Ah won't be a burden," Marie said, voice firm, eyes bright.
"Same here," Kitty added, stubborn and determined. "I've been practicing like taking other people with me through the walls."
"If they're there, we'll have more ways to rescue those mutants out," Scottie said, speaking in their favour.
Jean bit her lip, torn, her gaze dropping to her hands.
Charles watched us all for a long, patient beat. Finally he sighed and rubbed his temples. "Very well," he said at last. "But I will not be at ease unless I accompany you."
Both girls cheered, while I simply smiled. I had already accounted for everything — including the Professor's accompaniment.
Even so, Xavier's eyes lingered on me. He clearly sensed I was holding something back. And he was right — there were things I wasn't ready to share with the others. Not yet. The recent Prophetic Dreams that I was getting, born of my Precognition powers were one of them.
"Professor—I—" Helen began, eyes downcast and nervous.
"No. It's all right. You don't have to come," Professor Xavier said gently. "You and Jean should stay here and guard the house."
"But Professor— I was the one who found her," Jean said at last, summoning her courage. "I want to go and help free the other mutants."
"It'll be dangerous, Jean. You should stay here," Scottie said, concern plain in her voice.
"You're all fucking idiots," Logan snapped, anger bristling. "Trainin' in the Danger Room and fightin' real people are different things. From what the bub said, those guards won't treat you like kids." She slammed her fist into the wall for emphasis. "This isn't a fucking field trip!"
"Professor, Jean has a right to come," I said calmly, ignoring Logan's outburst. "Her control's improved. She'll be an asset." Strengthening her powers and her confidence was one of my top priorities.
"All right—then Helen, you stay here," Charles said at last, weary but decisive.
Jean's face lit up; she shot me a shy, grateful smile.
"I… I'm sorry," Helen murmured, head bowed.
I understood her hesitation. After being cooped up in the lab for so long, stepping outside to fight — especially with how she felt about her appearance — wouldn't be easy.
"No, someone staying here is the smart choice," I said, nodding toward Helen. "You've got so much advanced tech in this place. If anyone tried to steal it, you'd need someone to guard it properly."
Helen gave me a small, grateful smile.
"All right," Scottie said grudgingly, folding her arms. "But she doesn't even know exactly where she came from. How are we supposed to find the place?" She gestured towards Katrin.
Katrin lowered her gaze in apology.
"Leave it to me," I said, smiling. "D.A.I.S.Y., show them."
The wall screens blinked and shifted into an aerial feed.
"This is the location where Luke and Jean found Katrin," D.A.I.S.Y.'s calm, synthetic voice announced.
"Is that a full beach resort? Like how could you go there alone and not invite us? That's so not fair!" Kitty pouted, jabbing a finger at Jean.
Jean gave a small, wry smile and avoided Kitty's eyes.
"We don't have to worry — Ah'm sure next time Luke'll take all of us," Marie said, voice low and edged with a little bitterness.
"Sure," I said with a grin. "I'd be glad if you all came. The resort's closed to the public for a month, so once this is all settled we can all just go there."
Ororo smiled softly. "It has been too long since I stood on a shoreline."
Kitty whooped, delighted; Scottie shifted, uncomfortable. I couldn't help but smirk— I would have to reward Marie later for bringing up such an amazing idea.
"Moving on," D.A.I.S.Y. cut in, bringing the meeting back to focus. "There are only a few small islands nearby within range that fit the likely teleport vectors. My calculations narrow it to those three." The wall screens highlighted the islands.
Katrin had explained haltingly that when her friend pushed her to escape, she had panicked — she hadn't chosen a location, only closed her eyes and jumped. She had landed in the water, swum until her limbs gave out, and teleported as far as her fading vision allowed… before her strength failed. When she woke up, she was here.
From my earlier questioning, I also knew her range was limited to line-of-sight jumps. D.A.I.S.Y. had factored that into her model as well.
"So which one of the fucking islands is it?" Logan asked impatiently.
"None of the islands show surface construction or traffic," D.A.I.S.Y. replied in her flat tone, "but Katrin's description suggests the facility is subterranean. Their signatures are masked from satellite detection. Any of the three could be the location."
"That means Professor can use Cerebro to narrow it down," I said, thinking aloud. "Or we check each island in person. With Professor and Jean running scans, I'm confident we can detect subterranean facilities relatively quickly."
"Cerebro should help," Professor Xavier agreed, nodding. "If we locate the island, rescuing those children is our priority. Lucas — I would also ask you to help me in finding out who is behind this. We must stop them from harming any more mutants." His eyes sharpened.
"I planned on it," I said, meeting his gaze.
"So—shall we gear up?" Scottie asked, eagerly.
"Do I like, get my own uniform?" Kitty asked, hand already raised, eyes bright.
"I… I vill come too," Katrin said suddenly, rising from the bed. Her voice wavered, but she forced the words out. "To save mein friends."
Ororo placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Are you certain, child? You've already endured so much. No one will fault you for resting here."
Katrin shook her head, yellow eyes glinting with determination. "Nein. My friend risked everything to help me escape. Now it is mein turn… to help her, to help them."
Ororo's expression softened, pride flickering in her gaze.
"You are such a brave girl," Helen murmured, an odd, complicated smile tugging at her face.
Logan was muttering a string of curses under her breath, arms folded, tapping her legs in frustration and impatience.
As the Professor moved toward Cerebro, both Marie and Jean glanced at me. I could already guess what they wanted to bring up. So before they could corner me, I snapped open a portal.
"Why don't I grab some top gadgets from Watson Tower for you all? Be right back—bye!" I said in a rush, stepping through and leaving two very puzzled girls behind.
***
I have entered the Fanfic Contest on Webnovel!
Right now it's just one chapter, so if you can please check it out & add it to your Collections!
Hogwarts: Monsters and Magic on WebNovel!