The Fading

2007-03-26T10:49:00.000-07:00

"Let them all think I'm dead, because I am. I am no longer Angus." I said to myself.

"Oh, but that was such a nice name." said Carnival.

"Keep silent fool; you are, as the humans say, 'creeping me out'." retorted Goshenk.

"Sigh, why don't the both of you just shut up? Like I was saying, I'm just not the same anymore. Now the name Fade makes sense. That's what happened to me."

"Well then, let us chose one common name for ourselves. Let us be known as one."

"Why would we do that?"

"Why, my dear demonic friend, it would be simply ludicrous to be known as three. Let the three be one. To live, we must unite."

"I do not want to unite with you."

"Carnival is right... umm, you said that was your name, am I correct? For a while now, I've been able to call on your powers, Goshenk, whenever I needed them.
Now, there are three souls in one body. If any of us are going to retain our sanity, we have to act as one unit."

Are we going to be a hero? asked Goshenk.

I laughed, "No, Goshenk. My days as a hero are over. We will be a survivor. We will do what's necessary to keep our friends safe, and our enemies at bay. No heroics. Just life, freedom, and occasionally, vengeance."

"Neither playing the hero, nor the villian. I think you may be the only sane person in existence."

"Let's hope you're wrong."

"What is our name?"

We all stood in silence. Carnival said, "I was a performer in life, but I was also a builder. I can could combine anything. I built transport vehicles, I built portals, I combined animals to create new creatures."

"We will have only two forms, that of a human, and our true form. My, my, but this is all so dramatic, let me revel in the moment. I will combine the three of us. When we are one, we will know our name."

Immediately, I felt my shape begin to change. I felt my flesh molding itself into something different, something more powerful. Something terrifying.

When the transformation was done, Goshenk asked again, "What is our name boy?"

"We have none."

"And that is even better! My, this is delightful."

"Let's leave this hell."

"Agreed."

"Oh certainly, agreed."

******

Soon, with Goshenk's skill in magic, we built a portal. We were connected, we knew each other's thoughts. We were magnificent.

We stepped through, and onto a rainy street. A news vendor saw us step through the portal. He dropped his newspapers, and ran off in fright.

We picked up a copy of the Bugle, expecting to see Spiderman in the headlines. He had been pushed back to page three. The headline read:

"Heroslayer"

We are angry.

2007-03-20T19:16:00.000-07:00

To tell the truth, I didn't have any problem with HS going after Laura. He was already in hell, and had lost his devil soul. If he died, where was he going to go? Then there's always those dragonball things that Pan is always talking about.

Pan... I'm going to miss her.

Why?

It's obvious Goshenk, with you in my body, it would be like sharing her. I'll not share with a Demon.

Anyways... no Goshenk, you can't talk right now. Anyways, the X-men and HS seemed to have everything under control. There was just the matter of getting HS' devil sould back... oh well...

Soon, I felt an emotional signature coming toward me. It wasn't even partially human, which meant I couldn't control it, so I hoped it was friendly.

A huge man strode toward me. I took no risks, and called out my second form.

"Who are you?" I called.

The man drew out a hammer. "Don't even think about pretending you don't know me Goshenk!"

Ummm... wow. Is everyone gonna mix me up with that guy. He and old Lucy did have quite the conversation before Goshenk released a massive binding spell on him. It didn't keep him long, but just long enough for me to grab HS.

I pulled out the Tail of Daggers, and lashed out at the hammer. The tail wrapped around the handle, and I pulled hard, setting the giant off balance.

"Oh, I know you well enough," Goshenk explained, "but the boy here does not."

The giant looked puzzled.

"It's a long story," I explained, "but I'm in charge of my own body here, and I can call on Goshenk's power whenever I want. My name is Angus, and I'm a friend of HS. Who are you?"

"I see... I am Vulcan." he replied.

I returned to my Fade form. "Then we shouldn't be at odds. HS told me how you trained him."

"So I did. I've come to tell you all that Lucifer may be cast from hell. If he is, the one known as Hellstorm will rule Hell. He will also have HS' devil soul. He may be tricked into giving it back." Vulcan said.

I was about to reply, when I felt another emotional signature coming... fast. I turned back to Vulcan. "Go, find Lo... the Wolverine. Tell him what you just told me."

He stopped, and stood for a moment. "I know who is coming. Don't risk..."

"GO." I screamed.

He left, and I fled down the corridor to put some distance between myself and everybody else. I stopped, and again called on my second form.

"Goshenk, got another binding spell?" I asked.

"If it's for who I think it's for, then no." he snapped.

"Bloody beautiful." I said as Lucifer burst into view.

"GOSHENK," screamed Satan, "this is the last..."

"It's not Goshenk you're up against." I replied as calmly as I could.

Satan stopped... "You're not...?"

"Yes I am, but no he most certainly is not." Goshenk replied.

Satan stopped. Then laughed chillingly. "Goshenk, you idiot. You picked a half angel? Of all the stupid, moronic things."

I lashed out with the Tail, leaving a shallow cut on his neck. "Less talk, more fight." I said.

He smiled, "Well I am impressed. You scratched me. But try this on for size."

Out of nowhere, an unseen blade ripped my chest open, and I sunk to the ground. I smiled back, "One hit K.O. Nice."

For what seemed like the millionth time in my life, everything went black.

******

I sat in front of my father. Not my adoptive father, Peter, but my real father.

"Son," he said, "I'm proud of you."

"You mean, at least I didn't take three-thousand people with me this time. Speaking of which, is Goshenk still going to be in my body when I get back?"

He laughed, "What makes you think you're going back?"

I only raised an eyebrow. He sighed.

"Yes, you are going back. And yes, Goshenk will be with you still."

"It's my own fault, I guess." I said.

"Indeed, you could have found another solution."

I got up, "Well I'm ready. Send me back."

******

"Well now, look what I find, just walking through hell." said the man in the blank mask.

"A lonely body, with no soul in it at all. How lovely. It's just what I always wanted!" he shouted, twirling around with a dramatic flare.

He looked around, and there was no one.

"Well, at least they left me this very fit looking body to live in, even if they didn't stay to watch me perform. I shall make the best of my situation."

******

I was back in my body, and I looked around. All of my surroundings indicated that Satan had gone back to his own realm, temporarily satisfied with killing me.

"Is that what happened?" I asked Goshenk.

"Oh dear, it appears that I have but little control over this body after all."

"Boy, you don't want to know what happened."

2007-03-14T16:33:00.000-07:00

Mephisto disappeared, and Logan and I were left alone with the imp. Wolverine thought for a moment. Then he said, "I gotta make a call."

"I actually remember when telephones were invented." said Goshenk thoughtfully.

Logan popped his claws again. "Oh yeah, I fergot to ask ya, what's with the two scents? Or the two voices fer that matter?"

I sighed. "It's a long story Logan. But lets just say the demon inside me didn't know how to actually 'possess' me."

"I AM THE GREATEST OF..." I cut him off there.

Logan snorted. "Ya mean, he tried to posess ya, but all he can do is talk?"

I smirked, "And only when I let him. He's kind of ranting in my head right now, but it's easy enough to ignore."

Logan chuckled. "Well ya're lucky, I guess. Ya can ask Ana about the time she was posessed if ya want. That weren't pretty."

I smiled, "Maybe sometime. Right now, I you hae a call to make."

******

Peter met us inside the house. He was dressed like this:

"It was the women, I swear." he stuttered.

Logan chuckled again.

"Don't ask, don't tell." I said, leading Logan along while trying to keep the imp I was holding out of sight. "You might as well go back to your threesome..."

"Right." said Peter, and he ran back into the bedroom.

"I generally stay out the nights that Peter stays home." I told Logan. "You wouldn't believe what I hear."

Logan frowned, "And I'd rather not hear 'bout it."

I directed him to the phone. A few minutes later, he was back.

"I'm ready." he said.

I allowed Goshenk to chant for a while, and soon the imp was released from the binding spell. Then I changed into my Fade form.

"Take us to hell, wimp."

"Indeed."

When the imp hesitated, Logan popped his claws. "Do it already!"

******

Soon, Logan and I appeared in front of Mephisto.

"HAHAHAHAHA! Welcome Logan. And you as well, Angus and Goshenk."

Logan growled, "I get the first shot at this guy."

I backed away,"I'll let you have it."

I grabbed the imp by the neck. "HS isn't here. Take me to him."

Every thing faded again.

2007-02-27T14:50:00.000-08:00

(Anything said or written by the demon Goshenk will be written in green letters. Thank you very much. I hope to eventually meet and destroy you all, in time.)

It's been a while since I've really talked to anyone but May, and of course, I don't plan to tell her what's wrong with me. It'd be nothing but wheat cookies for me. Wait, did I say anyone but May? Sorry, but I meant May and Goshenk. Yeah, Goshenk's the demon inside of me.

What an introduction, boy. Have you no respect?

None at all, so shut up... Right, where was I?

Well then, I suppose I'll have to introduce myself. The fact that I chose to inhabit this boy has been a mixed blessing. He has all the talent I could ever want, but he is too strong for me to control. It's as much as I can do to speak, and even then, only when he lets me.

I am Goshenk, and I am one of the most powerful of all demons...

(Snicker...)

SHUT UP, BOY! It is only by the curse of Satan himself that I must be bound to a mortal being. As I was saying, there was once a powerful warrior by the name of Wulfgar. He was captured by the godess Lolth, and given to the balor Errtu. One of Errtu's favorite torture methods was to have a succubus take on the form of Wulfgar's love, and seduce him.

They would afterwards reveal their true nature, thus bringing delicious, delectable pain to his soul. If the union resulted in offspring, Errtu would rip the half-breed infant apart in front of Wulfgar. But on the last occasion where a succubus deceived Wulfgar, the infant had such extraordinary power that he was spared. And that is the story of my birth.

When I was young, I once went to visit Hell. It gives me shame to admit this, but I had the misfortune to actually meet Satan there. In short, I stubbed his toe, and ever since, I have had to inhabit mortal bodies for my survival.

I have inhabited many people since the beggining of this dimension. I started with the Prince of Persia, from whom I acquired the Tail of Daggers. I moved on to others, from Hitler to Pol Pot. I even had a brief stint inside a woman named Lorena Bobbitt, but I quickly moved on to another male subject. They are much easier to manipulate.

I will not tell you the tale of how I entered this boy. He will tell you in his own time. Will you not?

That's enough. Anyways, I received a call from the X-Mansion. Laura is missing apparently, and Professor Xavier is too busy fighting Oprah to look for her with Cerebro. (A sentence I never thought I'd write.)

That's where Goshenk came in. I figure that if he's going to live inside me, he might as well pay rent, no?

Wretch.

Thank you. Anyway, Goshenk has contacts in low places, so we made a few "calls". I don't like hurting innocent people, but beating the crap out of imps is fun. Especially since the imp I smacked around was the same one that tricked HS into going to Hell.

I made a few calls of my own. I told HS' family that I knew where he and Laura were, and that I was going after them. I also told them that if anyone, especially Pan tried to follow me, there'd be Hell to pay, pardon my pun. Then I called Wolverine.

"What?" he said as he answered the phone.

"This is Angus."

"I know, caller ID. Whad'ya want?"

This man knows how to use caller ID?

"I know where HS and Laura are. Meet me on the roof of Clover Heights."

"Thatd be where ya and the web-head live, right?"

I hung up, and turned to the imp who was bound in a magic barrier that not even teleportation could get him out of. One of Goshenk's spells.

I smiled, and Goshenk did too.

"When the big bad wolf gets here, you're gonna take us all to Hell, right?" I asked.

The imp nodded nervously.

"Good boy."

2007-02-16T14:54:00.000-08:00

"Angus, why don't you talk like an Irish guy any more?"

I turned, and looked. Pan is amazing, even after what happened... gah, best not to think about it.

"It's hard to explain." I replied, "Things have changed for me."

She smiled, "I guess having a skyscraper come down on top of you might do things to the old noggin'."

Another reminder of what I hated to think about.

I pulled away from her slightly. "Pan, I'm sorry. I know I've, well, I guess I've been ignoring you, just a little bit. It's not that I mean to, you know?"

She closed the newly-made gap between us. "I know. It makes me sad too, though. Every time I see you, you seem stretched, tense enough to snap. It seems like I can't help."

I sighed, "You're right, though I wish you could. Look, I'll tell you about it sometime, I promise. I just want to be more in control of what's going on when I do."

She grinned, "Of course, whenever you're ready! Look, I gotta run. I have to be back with my parents before curfew."

"Which is in, maybe, forty seconds." I replied.

"Yep." she giggled as she kissed me. About ten seconds before her curfew, she disappeared.

"The wonders of instant transmission." I thought.

******

I had killed before, in self defense, and to defend Pan. I have no issues with that. But now I needed to talk with someone who'd understand the rest of it. Someone who wouldn't blame me.

"Will she hate what I am?" I asked myself, "Probably not, she's dating a devil, after all. But she may not completely understand."

The city was quiet, and Peter was already on patrol, making it a perfect time to visit Laura. I leaped through the city at three times my normal speed. The only good thing that had come out of my experience with Grelm and the now-extinct Fallen Sun, was my increased strength, and uh, some other things.

Finally, I landed on the free way. I jumped lightly onto the back of a semi-truck, and waited out the rest of the ride. Westchester wasn't far away.

As I approached the X-Mansion, I felt an odd emotional signature. This would have been quite normal, if it weren't for the fact that it wasn't actually on the grounds, but skulking just outside. Peter would have investigated, and when he does, he's usually right, so I altered my course.

It wasn't long before I saw: this guy. I tried a line Peter might have used.

"Is it just me, or does that mohawk suck?"

He screamed, popped claws, and charged me. How many Wolverine clones are there anyway? I turned into Fade, and dodged the charge, whipping my claw-like fingers into his back as he passed. Like I expected, he healed rapidly.

"So what do want here?" I asked, hoping for any chance of negotiation.

"None of your business!" he screamed, and charged me again. Instead of continuing headlong, he slowed, and began to exchange blows with me. This normally wouldn't be a problem, as I am much stronger, but he was fast.

He launched one set of claws towards my midsection, which I pushed away, then he brought the other set whipping around from the side.

I stepped back, "Heh, you scratched me."

"Less talking, more killing." he growled, as he launched a rather complicated set of attacks. I dodged, some, blocked one, but then one claw grazed my side.

Hoping to avoid a few more cuts, I slammed myself into him. He lifted off the ground, and flew over one-hundred feet.

I chuckled, "And there's more where that came from."

"Why can't even one thing go right?" he yelled, "First the Laura bitch, now..."

He never got time to finish his sentence. By the end of the word "bitch" I had my left arm holding his arms back while my right hand went around his throat.

Barely holding myself back, I asked, "What was that about Laura?"

He laughed. "What do you think, Idiot? Weapon X wants her back."

I started to squeeze, but he ripped an arm free and plunges his claws into my gut. I fell back, and howled, "If you wanted to hit a nerve, asshole, you did it!"

He just kept laughing, that is, until I released my second form. From the back of my mind, came a voice. "YES! I'm free. Together we can tear the world apart!"

"Shut UP!" I argued back mentally. "The only thing we'll tear apart, is this guy, then I'm putting you back in your cage."

He might have said more, but I didn't listen. Instead, I called the Tail of Daggers to me, and spoke to my demon. "Yes, evil Prince of Persia, we may share a body, but it's mine. I'm keeping you alive, so you're just going to have to sit there and pay rent."

"Fool," he replied, "You don't have a demon inside you. You are a demon. You are me."

(For those of you who would like to know, this is what my second form looks like, only with shorter hair:)

I turned my attention to the man in front of me. He only kept laughing. "So you look even weirder. Now what?" I whipped the Tail at him. It went straight through his chest. I let my inner fire flow through the Tail of Daggers, and into him. It burned him from the inside, and he screamed in pain.

As his pain mounted, the Demon Prince began to laugh uncontrollably, and so did I. Soon, there were flames bursting out of the man. The flames dissipated , while I used the Tail to shred him.

Lights went on in the X-Mansion, as several people came rushing out. Before they could see me, I let myself slip back into my human form, and ran. I'd call Laura later.

2006-11-13T13:04:00.000-08:00

I called Laura. The moment she heard me voice, she hung up. I put me cell phone back on me bed-side table, and sighed. This wasna' going well. Once me clothes were on, I padded on down to the kitchen. Peter was there, making coffee.

I looked at the thick, black substance, and snorted, "Liquid Satan."

Peter chuckled, "Best damn liquid Satan in the world. Sure you don't want some?"

"Nah, I prefer health. 'Sides, would ya really want to see me on a caffeine buzz?"

"Absolutely not!" proclaimed Aunt May as she sauntered into the kitchen? "Did you have fun at the party."

"Peter did." I responded.

"And isn't that just like him?" May continued. "You always did leave the hosting to other people."

"I had a lot on my mind." Peter defended himself. "A fake Spiderman, in fact. I'm heading over to see Nick Fury this morning to talk to him about it."

Aunt May and I looked at each other, and we both knew what the other was thinking: "Not another one." Peter and I had caught three fake Spiderman's in the last week alone, each being a better fake than the last.

"Where's MJ?" I asked.

"Still sleeping."

Aunt May huffed, "She'll have a hangover, if I know her at all. I'll stay here to watch her while you boys go out and play."

******

With Spiderman gone to see Nick Fury, I was left to deal with daily business. What I didna' understand, is why there was no business. For the first ten minutes, there was nothing. No screams of a woman with her purse stolen. No angry yelling from a bank being robbed.

Then a siren blared.

"That be better." I thought.

The siren came from a modestly sized skyscraper. One that I had, oddly enough, never been inside of. I stopped on the roof of the building, then I jumped off the roof, descending in a wild free fall. When I was past the fortieth, floor, I put me feet on the wall and slowed meself down. At the thirtieth floor I stopped.

From far away, I had noticed a broken window on this floor. I entered through it, and came into a plush office. There wasna' much there, except a few chairs and some people in business suits.

"Welcome, Angus." said one bald, wrinkled man. "I apologize for the... incompetence of my employees. They were not supposed to attack you. But you repaid them well enough for their stupidity. Could we talk?"

"Who be ye?"

"Grelm. Arthur Grelm, High Druid of Fallen Sun."

2006-11-06T13:10:00.000-08:00

Bloody party... why in the seven circles of Hell did I ever think this would be a good idea? Oh right, 'cause all the heroes and villains from both sides of the Civil War are such peaceful creatures. They all be downstairs right now, singing songs about saving the Earth and promoting the benefits of nudity. At this moment, I wish.

So far, I've lost me best friend, me girlfriend, and I've had to stop at least one fight. Kon El isna' helping on that score... At least they've all been apologizing so far, beginning with Ana and Vampirella, and finally even Hot Stuff came to apologize.

"Hey man, I'm sorry about what happened back there."

"It no be a problem, really. Actually, if ya could stick with Laura for a bit, and keep her busy? She is... a good friend of mine. I will find a way to keep Logan away."

He looked at me funny.

"You'd do that for me?"

I didna' say anything for a moment. Then I glanced over at Laura. "Yeah, I would."

******

I devoted the rest of me night to keeping all the guests happy. Even if I couldna' be happy that night, I would make sure that as many people as possible were. It didna' help though, that Peter and MJ kept disappearing. Married people (grunts).

On a lighter note, nearly everyone laughed when Superman (who came to the party later than Kon) walked into the hall. Oh, he looked fine, but as he came in, Kon El plugged the sound system into his iPod, and "Kryptonite" by Three Doors Down came blaring through the speakers.

Kal El was not amused. I tried to make on the fly changes to his emotions to keep him from wrecking the place. It didna' work, and it didna' matter anyways. He seems to be better at controlling his emotions than some people I know...

Finally, some time before the end of the party, Pan walked over to me.

"Look, I'm sorry for freaking out on you there. Are you okay?

I half smiled. "As okay as I can be, I guess. Another dance?"

"Sure."

2006-11-03T18:31:00.000-08:00

I let out me breath slowly. "Bloody Heaven, Earth, and Hell."

"Like it?" Pan giggled.

I was at a loss for words. Pan's black dress was low in the front and much lower in the back. It reached down into a long skirt, with a slit running high on each side. It was all I could do to keep me hands at me sides.

"Every other guy will be jealous." I managed to sputter out.

I offered me arm, and we walked away from the Blackbird, toward the party hall. As the hosts, Peter and MJ were there from the beginning. Aunt May had decided not to come, much to Elixir's relief. I was late only because I had to convince Laura that, yes, I really did want her to come to the party.

She had refused at first, and that made me feel bad. So, I spent an hour convincing her to come, against my better judgment. I knew it was bound to cause trouble.

As Pan and I entered the hall, the MC on stage announced our names as we came in. Behind us were Professor Xavier, all the X-Men, and a few of the students. I had done a little extra "work" on Scott just before the party, so I was sure he would be fine.

Vegeta, Goku, their families, and some of their friends were already there. Coming in just after us, came Nick Fury and Agent Romanova. Well, I did invite everyone...

******

With Pan beside me, I made my way to Peter. He clapped me on the back, and MJ gave me a hug.

"Welcome back Angus!" said Peter with a smile. "Hi Pan, you look great."

"It be good to be back."

As we spoke, the few belongings of mine that had been at the X-Mansion were on their way home. This party was also kind of a homecoming celebration. There wasna' much news to catch up on, so Peter and MJ soon left to greet more guests. I took Pan to the dance floor.

We danced for some time, getting caught up on random details of each other's lives since we had last been together (like, two days before...). We had a live band on stage, singing some slow songs. The mood was perfect.

I drew Pan in closer to me. "I love ya."

Pan just giggled. "After all we've been through, you'd better."

She looked up, and time seemed to slow. I inched my face closer to hers, and then time sped back up. I felt a tap on me shoulder.

Laura lifted an eyebrow, "Would you mind sharing your guy?" she said to Pan, "I don't have a date."

Pan was fuming. So was I, and I gave her a glance that told her so. Ironically, that made Pan feel better. I hesitated, but Pan turned to Laura.

"As a matter of fact, I'm getting kind of hungry. Angus, why don't you give her some company while I see if the caterers were worth the price paid."

With that, I was alone with Laura, and for the first time, I was genuinely mad at her.

"Listen, Laura. I be sorry, but that was bloody bad timing."

"What, you afraid she'll get angry?" she replied saucily.

"I happen to know that she was very angry, and for that matter, so am I."

I didna' really mean to tell her that, but I couldna' help meself.

"So that's it? I'm some sort of irritation?"

"No. Normally, ya be a very good friend." I kept digging me own grave. "Now, I do na want to hurt ya in any way, but ya do na' seem to realize that Pan is my girlfriend. I am in love with her. Do na' get in the way."

Laura smiled a plastic smile. "Fine."

We finished the dance in silence. When she left, Pan quickly returned. "So what happened there?"

I hung my head in shame. "I believe I have just lost a friend."

Pan scowled. "And I'm to blame?"

I just stared at her. "What?!?"

Pan walked away from me too.

******

I stood near the wall. I held my head in my hands. Then I looked around at the visitors. I couldna' show any of this to the guests. This was a party. I looked for something to do. Just then, the MC announced a new guest.

"Carol Danvers."

And there she was. I quickly looked for Scott. He had been busy sampling the food, but had turned when he heard the announcement. I felt for his emotions, checking to make sure that all was in place. Scott would do fine.

He walked up to her, and within minutes, Carol was feeling giddy. They headed for the dance floor. "Well if my own romance life goes down the drain, I'm just glad I helped someone else." I thought.

******

In a while, Pan approached me. "You're not out of the doghouse, but I'll take the leash off if you'll get rid of Wonder Bread for me."

She pointed toward the SHIELD agent known as Wonder Man. "He's a creep, and he's been hitting on me." she said by way of explanation.

"No problem." I said.

I walked up to him. "Hey, ya be Wonder Man, right?"

He was very tipsy, if not drunk. "Yeh, that'd be me."

"Listen, could I just have a word with ya outside?"

"Sure, why not?"

******

Five minutes later I came back in the building. In that time, I had beaten the living Hell out of Wonder Man, without even wrinkling me tuxedo. Wimp.

Laura was coming toward me. I avoided her, and looked for Pan. I didna' want to end the night on these terms. Unfortunately, something stopped me.

"Hey guys! Conner Kent is in the building!"

There goes the neighborhood...

2006-10-24T12:08:00.000-07:00

Apparently, Logan did na' have the time to tell Laura to leave me alone, but you know, I do na' mind much. Do na' get me wrong, I love Pan (and I really ought to tell her sometime), but being around Laura has made it easier to live with certain things I've done.

"You did it for your girlfriend." she said once, "If any bad guy threatens to kill me, you have my full permission to rip him a good one."

"That makes two people I am willing to kill for. More than two, actually... I'd do it for any of the Parkers as well."

"And I wouldna' think any less of ya." she said, imitating my accent.

We laughed.

Later, Peter called, and I had the idea to celebrate the end of the Civil War by inviting everyone involved, hero or villain, pro reg, or anti, to celebrate with us. So far, people seem to think it be a great idea, as long as no one decides to ruin the party by fighting.

Elixir said he wants to go, but I haveta' protect him from Aunt May he says. Heh. 'Twill be fun.

******

"Now Scott," said the Professor, "Laura is doing a very fine job as hostess to our young friend, Angus. However, I feel it would be beneficial for him to spend time with one of our most famous and respected X-Men."

The Professor looked at me, but he didna' have to. He had said exactly what we had agreed on.

Scott whined, "But Professor, the others here don't really res..."

"Now Scott, don't worry about a thing. Angus is a quite friendly young man, and I'm quite sure the two of you will get along well. Show him what we, the X-Men, are all about."

Scott wasna' fully assured yet, so I pitched in, "Is it true that ya were the first student here?"

He immediately went from being discouraged, to arrogant. "Yeah, it is. You've been studying, huh?"

I looked at the Professor. He winked. That meant that he had already made a few mental changes to Scott. I started on the emotional changes.

"So... they say that ya be the best of the X-Men..." I lied. This was the first test.

"Well, actually, I don't know if you could say that. I may have been the first at the school, but if you want to judge by successful missions, or even just body count for that matter, Wolverine's the best. And then there's Storm, she's powerful, and a natural leader. She's a little tetchy, but I respect her abilities."

"I see."

As I kept working on him, he stopped swaggering so much. He was calmer, more confident. Now for the second test: Storm.

She was in the hallway, waiting for one of her students. What she didna' know, was that the Professor had ordered that student to be late.

"Worm." she said as we walked by.

Scott stopped. He looked her straight in the eye. "Look, Ororo, I know we have our differences, but when we can't even walk past each other without throwing insults, that's just ridiculous. Out in the field, we need to watch each others backs and to be honest, I don't think we can do that very well if we're like this all the time."

Storm was livid. I could have calmed her down with me powers, but that wasna' the plan.

"You chauvinistic pig! I don't like you because you're just a sniveling coward who can't hold his own in a decent fight. You curl up in a fetal position and weep. Is that what you call watching my back?"

Scott didna' move. He thought for a moment before replying. "I'm kind of busy right now," he motioned to me, "but I'll be happy to discuss this later. Meet you in the Danger Room tonight."

He walked away and I followed. Storm was left in shock.

******

I didna' spend all day with Scott, but I kept track of his emotions. Late that night, Kodiak went on a rampage and all the X-Men ran to the Professor's office. I ran down too, just in time to see Scott fly out of the office and hit the wall behind him.

"He dented my car!" he said. I have the feeling that he would have been sobbing if I hadna' changed him. As it was, he was almost sobbing then. I got to work immediately.

"I mean," said Scott as I helped him up, "I guess it can be fixed. Plenty of money around this place. I needed to repaint it anyway."

"What be the car's color now?" I asked.

He looked at me, embarrassed. "Pink."

I made a few more emotional changes.

******

It was time for the final test. I went with Scott to the Danger Room. Storm was already there.

"What is happening with Kodiak?" she asked.

"He's okay, I guess. Are we gonna finish this or what?"

"We will indeed."

Scott looked at me. "Angus, stay up in the control room. Things might get ugly down here."

I did as he said. Below, I saw nothing but a blur of lightning and optic blasts. Kind of boring.

Let's spice things up. I thought. I went through the list of Danger Room scenarios.

Magneto's brotherhood? No. Shadow King? No. Brood attack? No...

Insane, fifth level Vegeta? I like it.

Below, Scott and Ororo were fighting even. Then the scenery changed. They were in West City, and Vegeta hovered over them.

"You insignificant, pathetic excuses for life are no match for me! Prepare to die."

This fake Vegeta launched an enormous ki blast at Storm. Scott hit it with his strongest optic blast, which deflected it into the sky. Then he hit Vegeta.

Vegaeta just laughed... until he was hit by ten successive bolts of lightning as well. In the end, Scott and Ororo were beaten, but they had enjoyed themselves.

"Well, Scott, I'm afraid I may have made an assumption or two, but you're not in the clear yet." Then she left. I went to bed, and Scott went to look for Carol.

2006-10-17T16:13:00.000-07:00

I'd had a bloody long day. Pan had started off fine, joking, laughing... very friendly. Laura was not so friendly. She didna' like being near Pan at all, but denied wantin' to leave. Josh wasna' so bad, but having Ororo for a chaperon only made things worse. She kept getting off on all this "men are all sniveling chauvinistic worms" speech.

Pan's energy eventually lessened, and the tension between her and Laura grew. I finally got everyone to sit down for a movie, 'cause talking was gettin' nowhere, and gettin' there fast.

Finally, in the evening, Pan said she had to go. I was both sad and happy to see her off, and that made me feel guilty. I went to talk with Logan about it.

******

I knocked on the door of Logan's room. There were sounds of scuffling.

"Yeah?" Logan called from inside.

"It be Angus. I need to talk to ya."

I could feel the emotions of two people inside, and they were na' to happy. Oops.

Logan opened the door, "What d'ya want, Kid?"

"It be about Laura..."

Logan's eyebrows went up. He was amused. Great.

"Come on in, Bub." he said as he swung the door wide open. A pretty Japanese lady covered herself with the sheets.

"Logan!" she scolded.

"Don't get all tetchy, Ana. If he ain't seen the like before, then it's about time he got an education anyway."

Ana wrapped the sheet around her, and made her way to the bathroom with as much dignity as she could. I turned to Logan.

"If her emotions be any indication, ya be going to pay for that later."

Logan just chuckled. "Sit down. Don't touch anything, ya hear?"

I walked into the room, and took a chair. It was hard to ignore the smell. Logan already had boxers on, and he pulled a pair of pants over them. Thank God Almighty.

"So what's this about Laura, kid? And why are ya talkin' ta me?"

"Well, the Professor be busy, and I do na' really know anyone here. I came to ya 'cause ya happen to be Laura's father. As for what this be about, well, I be pretty sure ya know that Laura seems to like me."

He snorted, "Pretty damn obvious."

"I also be sure ya know that I already have a girlfriend."

"Yeah, a Saiyan like Veg head, only not half as annoyin'. Let me guess now, you want ta tell Laura ta back off without gettin' sliced, is that it?"

"Close." I replied.

"Okay, ya want me ta tell Laura ta back off."

"And keep this whole conversation quiet, of course. What else can I do?"

"Nothin'."

******

Finally, I was heading off to bed. I had thought about leaving, but Peter told me by email that he and the rest of the Parkers had gone to Hawaii. Well, they do deserve it. It's more or less a vacation here for me too.

Just before I got to the room that I shared with Josh, a tall blond woman stopped me. "Hi, I'm Carol Danvers, also known as Warbird... I heard that you can read... and adjust people's emotions?"

I nodded.

She wrung her hands. "Please, I need your help."

2006-10-16T12:31:00.000-07:00

The professor's ethics class went considerably well, as did me next few days in the X-Mansion. I had already recovered, but Aunt May told me on the phone that, while she missed me, Peter and MJ were glad to have some time to themselves. And that was fine, I didna' want to disturb them. Besides, even with the X-Men in town, there were enough criminals in Westchester to keep me happy.

The only thing that bothered me though, was Laura. She herself is na' the bothersome type, in fact she be very friendly. Me problem is that I am bloody crazy about Pan, I do na' want to hurt her. Also, I do na' want her to hurt Laura or me. So I had to do the only sensible thing I could think of.

She was na' being so obvious about her feelings. In fact, I only know her intentions because I could feel the same emotions from her, as I felt from Pan: adoration, and lust. Thus, I couldna' just sit her down and tell her to bugger off. I had to be somewhat subtle.

I invited Pan over for the day.

Worst. Idea. Ever. Laura didna' say anything, but she felt despair the moment I told her Pan would be coming. When Pan arrived, it turned to anger.

Pan didna' simply appear, like usual. The last time, she apparently set off the alarms. Instead, Ororo, Laura, Josh, and I watched while Pan flew in from above.

"Hey!" she laughed, and flew straight into me. We both flew back a few feet, thanks to the impact, and rolled on the ground. I groaned as I got up, and she laughed again.

"You still sick or what?"

I looked at her. "I no be ill, but I no be accustomed to having my girlfriend fly into me either."

Laura's jealousy went up a notch when I said "girlfriend".

"Well, you'd better just get used to it then, no? C'mon, who are all the rest of these people?"

"Some friends here at the mansion." I replied.

Ororo took the lead, "I am Ororo Munroe, also known as Storm. This Laura, and Josh, also called Elixir."

Elixir shook her hand. "You're a Saiyan like Vegeta? That is so cool..."

This is gonna be a long day.

2006-10-12T13:25:00.000-07:00

After Peter left, Hank came to see me. I was sick of being in the infirmary.

"Doctor, do ya think I could walk around for a while or something? Peter said I had to stay here, but not in bed, right?"

"That's true," said Hank, "let me see if I can arrange a tour of the mansion for you.

For a few minutes I was left alone, but the Beast was back before I expected. There was someone with him.

Laura shrieked, "Oh my God, it's you. Ummm, what was your name again?"

"Angus, you be Laura, right?"

"Awesome, how did you know?"

"I heard your father talking to you on that rooftop..." I stopped. She wouldna' remember that, thanks to the Professor.

"Oh yeah! I remember that! You... saved my life..."

Hanks cut in, "So you two know each other already?"

"Yah," I replied, "We have met before."

"Right," Laura said, "so I'm supposed to give you a tour?"

******

Laura and I walked down the halls, and between each stop, we talked about the first time we met.

"It's all really hazy for me," she was saying, "I remember these demon things. One pushed me off the rooftop and... you caught me." She didna' blush, but she was embarrassed.

"Ya do na' have to be embarrassed. The same could have happened to me."

She stopped. "Are you reading my mind?"

"No. I be an empath. Just the fact that ya be anywhere near me means I can feel your emotions. And if ya were far away, I could concentrate, and find you."

"Oh."

I didna' feel it was the best time to tell her that I could control her emotions too. Actually, I havna' even told Pan about that yet. We walked in silence for a little longer.

"So... how did you come here, anyways? Don't you work with Spiderman or something?"

I told her me story, about going to find Doctor Strange, the story of me ancestors, and finally, the fight.

"So Pan, your girlfriend (?), teleported you here for medical care. Where is she now?"

"Yes, I suppose she be me girlfriend. As for where she is, I do na' know. Do ya think I could make a phone call? It be kinda long distance..."

"I'm sure it'd be fine," she answered somewhat reservedly, "who are you gonna call?"

"Pan."

Laura was disappointed.

2006-10-10T12:57:00.000-07:00

Me "tagline" was na' appreciated, I think. The druids, at least, that be what they claimed they were, attacked. The first thing I noticed, is that the older ones launched magic attacks of various kinds. The younger ones used guns.

The man who looked like the leader launched another fire blast. I rolled, and ran up a tree. I silently jumped to another tree just before another blast set the first one on fire. Then I dropped. Pan appeared beside me.

"Do you think we should just leave now?"

"Did ya no hear what Strange said? These people are here because I exist. I'm staying to fight."

I expected Pan to resist at least a little, though I knew she was no coward. Instead, she smiled, then launched herself at the largest group of druids, who were busy looking for us. I followed.

This group was entirely composed of younger druids with automatic rifles. Pan and I plowed through them easily. I think I fell in love with her all over again as I saw her blasting right and left. As for me, I didna' find it hard to fight these people when I knew they were going to fire.

There were only two gunmen left, when I felt another buildup. One of the older druids shouted, and the whole island shook. Pan flew up quickly, but I was caught off balance before I could jump. When the shaking stopped, I got up, but one of the gunmen was right in front of me with his finger on the trigger.

"Don't you move."

"I smirked. "I will na' have to."

Pan came down on him hard, and he fell. The last gunman pointed his gun at Pan, but I was already on top of him. Just before he went under, he pulled the trigger, and I felt several bullets hit. I grunted... it didna' seem to hurt much.

Pan screamed. I turned, and there were three druids reciting some incantation. Whatever their spell was, it was holding Pan down. A fourth druid was holding a blade to her throat. Before I could do anything I was hit by four magic blasts at once.

"Surrender, or your girlfriend dies."

That pissed me off.

"You bloody idiots!" I yelled, "You surrender, or I'll send you to Hades. And what's worse, you'll live through it."

They laughed. I cut them short, by connecting with them emotionally, and releasing all their pain. They screamed, and they all fell. Pan got up and walked over to me.

"Let's go, we're finished."

I growled. "No. They were gonna kill ya, Pan. I'll no let them off now."

I added my pain to theirs, and they howled louder. I walked over to the four that had caught Pan.

Pan herself tried to stop me, "Come on! They're as good as dead already."

I shook her off. I used my claw-like fingers to rip the first three apart in seconds. When I came at the fourth, she jerked in fear. Before I knew what happened, the blade she had held at Pan's neck slipped into me. I fell to my knees.

Pan grabbed me, and pulled me away. "Are you CRAZY?!?! You killed them." she screamed.

"I be sorry. I be a bloody idiot..." I gasped.

She kissed me. "We have to get you to Capsule Corp."

"No. Someplace closer to me family."

"Okay."

******

I woke up slowly. I couldna' feel anything. It reminded me of the time I met Pan.

"Good morning, my young friend."

I looked to where the voice had come from. It was a large blue man covered in fur? Why not Pan?

"I am Doctor Hank McCoy. You gave us quite a scare, young man. By the way, you're in the X-Mansion."

2006-10-09T12:27:00.000-07:00

"It shouldna' take more than a few minutes." Pan mimiced.

"Look, I didna' know that he would hide himself beyond the bloody mountains of Doom, protected by lava and dragons, okay?"

That wasna' a completely accurate. There were na' any dragons, mountains, or lava. Pan and I had traveled for two days, hitch-hiking across the Irish countryside, 'cause Pan couldna' teleport there without going there the normal way at least once. She had, however, gone back to get some extra clothes, food, and my uniform.

At the moment, we were standing on Inchagoill (an island), in the middle of Lough Corrib (a lake). We had swum across the lake in the dark, and were resting ourselves on the shore.

Pan just shook her head. We waited a while longer then I got up. "Well, we might as well go in."

There it was, the remains of a Romanesque church. Once inside, we looked around for any sign of Doctor Strange. After a while of looking at cobwebs, we sat down on the floor.

"So let's get this straight." said Pan, "The note told us to walk through the portal, and we did. Once we were through, we both heard a voice, Doctor Strange's, we think, which told us to come here. We're here, and..."

Before she could finish, the whole floor began to shake. Then we saw it was moving slowly downward, with us on it.

Pan shrieked in surprise and began to fly. I called her back. "Come back, Pan. This be what we be looking for."

"Are you sure?"

"Well, no. But if it not be Doctor Strange, you can always teleport us out, right?"

Pan flew down and joined me on the now steadily lowering floor. It went down, for what seemed like hours. Just as I was starting to drift off, our "elevator" hit the bottom. And just off to the side, was Doctor Strange.

"Welcome, children."

We just stared. Finally, we stepped off the piece of flooring, which immediately began to rise again.

"Don't worry," said Strange, looking at me, "I will call it back down when you need to leave, if you like, but I suspect your friend here knows how to teleport."

Pan looked shocked. "How'd you know that?"

"I'm a wizard, my girl. Now if you'll kindly follow me, both of you."

He strode through the underground hallways as if they were his own. "Then again," I thought, "they probably are."

As if in answer to my thought, Strange said, "The place isn't mine. It was created by your forefathers, Angus. Through careful study of the place, and the books in it, I believe I have the answer to your question."

Just then, I realised, I hadn't even greeted him properly. "I be sorry, sir. I do na' know half of what be happening..."

"It's perfectly alright, Angus."

******

We were in a sort of sitting room, which was comfortably furnished. I sank into one of the old sofas, and Pan sat beside me. Strange found himself an armchair, and sat in it heavily. The fact that we were underground and using torchlight to see added to the mystique of the whole situation.

"Now, children, I am sure your quite eager to find out what this is all about."

Not needing to say anything, Pan and I nodded.

"Very well, I will tell you the story, without all the small details. Then I will give you some documents I translated, if you are interested in hearing the rest.

"The story begins over three milleniums ago. According to the annals I have found, the progenitor of your line was an angel. I do not know what his name was, at the time, but he was apparently quite powerful. Only the archangles were between those of his class, and God.

"This angel fell in love with an Irish woman, whose name is also unknown to history. He gave up his immortality for her. Unfortunately, while she appeared to love him when he was an angel, she could not bear his presence as a human. She ultimately spurned him in favor of the son of her clann's chief.

"Angels are not much given to thoughts of anger or revenge, but they do know sorrow. Your ancestor roamed Ireland, bemoaning his fate. He took on the name 'Angus', which means 'one choice', to reflect the one choice that had taken him from the heavens, to being a broken man.

"In his roaming, he came across an order of Druids, called Fallen Sun. They thought Angus was a being of great power, but what they saw was only the shadow of his former power. They sought to convert him to their cause, but Angus was horrified at the things they did. Human sacrifice, and the like...

"Anyways, instead of joinging, he fought them. The Druids he first encountered were unarmed, and he finished them quite easily. But then they came after thim in the hundreds. Instead of letting him die, God took pity on Angus. He gave him a very small measure of his former power. Small in relation to what he had before, that is.

"For years he fought and when he finally died, he had all but extinguished the Fallen Sun. Since then, his power has been given to one individual in your family every fourth generation."

We were silent for a few minutes after Strange finished his narration.

"Did me father know about this?" I wondered aloud.

"Probably not," replied Strange, "Fallen Sun seems to have left Ireland six centuries ago. There hasn't been one of your kind since, until now that is."

Pan stood up. "So then there's nothing to do now, except go home."

I sighed. "It seems like it. Thank you, Doctor."

He smiled, "It was my pleasure, boy."

******

Outside, on the island, Pan and I said goodbye to Strange. Strange cast a spell, which opened a portal, and he was gone. Pan and I took each other's hand, and she prepared to teleport us home. Just then, I felt someone's emothions. There was the pre-strike build up, and I pushed Pan away from me.

I dropped to the ground, and a firy blast nearly singed my head. I turned Fade, and got up. pan and I were surrounded by men and women in dark robes.

"Angus, spawn of the Devine, surrender to Fallen Sun, or die."

I felt their emotions. There was nothing in them except hatred. I made my reply.

"I be Fade. Die, or I'll make you die."

Hey, that could be me tagline!

2006-10-04T16:00:00.000-07:00

Doctor Strange... That be a strange name, pardon me pun. The morning after the power dampener test, Peter and I prepared to go see Strange. As usual, something got in the way.

"PETER!" MJ came running in, breathless. "There's, like, total chaos out there. A bunch of supervillians think that all the heroes have taken Vegeta's offer of asylum. They're, like, trashing the place."

Peter ran into the living room. A few minutes later, he returned. "The Kingpin's let all my old friends out to play."

"Strange will have to wait, then."

Peter looked at me. "No. I think you should find out what you are before I drag you into any more of this. Go to Strange... this isn't anything I haven't handled before."

If his emotions hadna' gone wild at the last part, I might have believed him. He knew that I didn't.

"Just go." he continued, "I'll find other help. I'll sic Aunt May on them if I have to."

I laughed. "For your sake, me friend, I hope she didna' hear that."

******

I called Pan, to find out if I could get some transportation faster than wall-running. Besides, I hadna' seen her since we left West City. It took some time to convince her to stop fooling around and actually take me to Strange's place, but we got there.

"Pan," I said, "it might have been better if you had landed us outside the mansion..."

"Oops..."

We were in the main sitting room, at least, and not in the Doctor's potion room, or something.

"Well, what be done, be done."

Pan looked around and called out, "Hello?"

Wong came out of the shadows. "Do not worry about having arrived here uninvited. My master was expecting you."

Pan made a face. "Creepy."

******

Wong led us through door after door, hallway after hallway. I started countin' doors, just for the heck of it. Finally, we stopped.

Wong nodded toward a door, and stood back. I walked up to it and knocked. Wong chuckled.

"Do not knock. Enter."

"Whatever ya say, Wong."

Pan and I entered the room. "It's kinda like a movie, she said."

It was. The lights were dim, with a single shaft of light coming through a window. It stopped on a desktop where, big surprise, was an open book, with a note on it. The note read:

Welcome, Angus. I do not know what you are, but I will be more than glad to help you. In the book is a spell which, spoken correctly, will take you to Ireland, where you will find me.

Sincerely, Doctor Strange

Pan snorted, "Great, so now we have to go to Ireland. Should I go home to pack?"

"It shouldna' more than a few minutes," I said, "and ya do na' have to come if you don't wanna."

"Look, of course I'm coming. You think I want to stay back, while you have all the fun? No way."

Wong just smiled a slightly disturbing smile. I picked up the book, and said the spell. Nothing happened. Wong walked over, took the book and said the spell, but the pronunciation was different.

A portal opened. Pan smirked, "I guess ya have to know the language, huh?"

I just shrugged. I took her hand in mine, and we walked through the portal.

Ireland.

2006-09-30T11:08:00.000-07:00

"These guys aren't SHIELD." Peter said.

Peter and I had taken a little longer getting home than planned. Bloody street gangs. At home we had found ten unconscious people in SHIELD uniforms. MJ stayed locked in her room. Aunt May stood by the "SHIELD agents", broom at the ready.

There had been power dampeners all over the place, but Peter and I had destroyed all of them except one. That one, he had simply deactivated and told me to leave it alone.

"Whoever they be," I growled, "They are gonna hurt when they wake up."

Just then, the woman who Aunt May called "Stacey" began to stir. She opened her eyes and started. She saw Peter, who had his mask on. Then she looked at me. I was Fade. Then she saw Aunt May and she absolutely shuddered with fear.

"I won't tell you anything." she said through her teeth.

Just then, one of her comrades had woken as well. When Aunt May stepped forward, he quickly put his hands up.

"Stacey here can be stupid if she wants, but I'll talk."

******

"Fake SHIELD agents." I growled, and slammed my fist into a thug.

Spiderman just shrugged, and engaged another member of a large street gang who called themselves The Big Thugs. Lame name.

"And remember the guys who picked up Doc Ock?" I continued, "They were regular police. Heavily armed, but still coppers. The people who picked up Rhino and Electro were dressed like SHIELD agents. Which means, of course, that we actually gave those guys to the Kingpin."

We finished the last of The Big Thugs. Spiderman and I stopped to rest a little.

"Wilson Fisk hates me." he said. "He'd do anything to get at me. SHIELD knows to leave me well enough alone. I may be on the lower end of the superhero spectrum, power-wise, but I have brains, and I know SHIELD inside and out. I could give them hell before they finally arrested me."

"So while Aunt May thought she was defending us from the big bad government lackeys, she was actually frustrating the Kingpin's plans."

"With wheat cookies."

We both laughed.

"So that be what we know. What don't we know?"

"We don't know how we're going to get payback... yet."

I chuckled. "We could start by sending Fat Man some wheat cookies."

2006-09-25T14:59:00.000-07:00

“I should explain meself now.” I said. (Continued from here.)

“That would be cool.” replied Peter. He was a touch excited, and very curious.

Peter had brought home a copy of the Bugle that night, in which the cover story criticized the government, and more importantly, the Registration Act. After all, to a journalist, if SHEILD isn't enforcing the Act properly, then the problem must be with the Registration Act itself. I no see the logic, but then, the media and I be two different animals.

That night, we had a celebration. After all, it was our first victory against the government's injustice. Aside from freeing Gohan, that is. After having pizza and talking ourselves stupid (those over twenty-one were aided by wine), Aunt May and MJ went to their rooms, and turned off the light as they went.

Peter and I sat in the dark kitchen, still seated at the table. He had been about to turn in as well, before I stopped him.

“When we fought the squid guy...”

“Doctor Octopus.”

“Right, well anyway, when I was wrestling with him, I kind of made a wish... or something. I admit, Peter, I was scared... scared as a wee lad fighting the town bully. For some reason, I wanted him to feel as scared as I was.

“Then we connected. I no be knowing how it happened. We just... connected. The whole time I fought him, I could feel his pride, his arrogance, and confidence. As scared as I was, I hated that. But when we connected, I had control over what he felt. I made him feel the fear I had. Then I made him feel more.”

“And I know the result.” replied Peter. “It was freaking weird seeing one of my strongest enemies cry for his mommy. Kinda satisfying as well, though.”

“I wonder if he still be crying.”

“Not any more. I have a few contacts. One told me that he recovered... though it took a while. Another told me that they destroyed his arms for good. Ummm...”

“Ummm, what?” I asked. Peter was feeling a mixture of curiosity, and mild fear. Not good.

“I was just wondering if you ever used this... newfound gift. You know, after fighting Ock?”

So that was it. “You be asking, 'have you decided to control anyone else's emotions?' No. I didna' want to find out if I could make the changes permanent. Besides, it just seems wrong.”

“It does present ethical questions. But then, so do Professor Xavier's mind altering powers. Just don't use it on us, unless we give you permission.”

“Why would you give me permission?”

“Well, you can control emotions right? You can exaggerate someones fear, sadness, worry, pain, anxiety, etc. But then there's also the 'pleasant' emotions, right? So you can use that ability as a weapon, but it's good for more than that too.”

“It makes sense, but I think, as a weapon, it should only be used as me last resort. As for those other things... we'll see.”

******

The next day I was watching TV. I flipped to the news channel, and the reporter was saying:

“Downtown in Frank's Jewelry the notorious criminals Electro and Rhino are holding twelve people hostage. This latest incident, which started approximately ten minutes ago, is making many people wonder whether arresting superheroes was such a great idea.”

“The hell it was.” said Peter coming up behind me. The report continued.

“Here's Dan Goodman, live on the scene.”

“Thanks, Linda. Here we see Frank's Jewelry under siege by the NYPD. Electro and Rhino are commonly known as thieves, but they don't seem to be after money this time. They haven't made any demands, and as SHIELD has not yet arrived, we don't know what they're waiting for. It's puzzling, because, frankly, they could plow right through the police force here.”

I turned off the TV.

“They be waiting for you, no?” I asked Peter.

“For both of us. They wouldn't be together otherwise.”

******

Soon after, we arrived at Frank's Jewelry. We took the direct approach to the situation. In other words, we walked in the front door.

“Hi Rhino and Electro.” we said in unison.

Rhino replied, “If you thought you were gonna surprise us with your friend, Spidey, think again. We read the papers, and we're ready for both of ya.”

Spiderman sounded surprised, “Wait, you read? Wow. But you know, that whole 'we read the papers' speech makes you sound stupid anyway... oh never mind.”

Electro butted in, “You all sound stupid. I'm gonna fry you like salmon.”

“That sounded smart.” I said. “Why don't we just get to the fighting? Here, Rhino, think 'fast'.”

Fighting was the easy part. Rhino charged, and I dodged. Rhino went through the wall and out to the side street. Spidey dodged Electro's blasts, swung around behind him and slammed him through the hole in the wall, and onto the street as well. The twelve hostages ran out the back.

Outside, Rhino charged me again. I ran up a wall and jumped down behind him after he slammed into it. Spidey had swung around a bit, but then stood on the street just long enough to toss another one-liner.

Electro took advantage, just like we expected. He launched a vicious electrical strike, but I had already picked up a very dizzy Rhino and thrown him in the way. He went out cold.

I've learned to tell when someone is going to strike. There's a very small emotional build-up right before the strike, but it's enough for me. I felt that build-up in Electro, and threw myself up, dodging the blast.

Before he could strike again, Spiderman hurtled into him feet first. Two more bad guys down. Spiderman wrapped them both in a mass of webs. We dragged them to the main avenue where SHEILD was just arriving.

“Here's an early Christmas present.” yelled Spiderman, and we took to the buildings.

Down below, the SHEILD agents looked grim. Their chief barked an order, and they put the two villains in portable prison cells with power dampeners around.

2006-09-21T14:56:00.000-07:00

Continued from here.

In the morning, I found Aunt May and MJ in the kitchen. Peter was on the couch, in the living room. I sat across from him, cleared my throat, and began.

“I heard ya and yer wife last night.”

I didn't need to look up and see Peter's red face. His embarrassment was so strong that I nearly was embarrassed meself. Peter cleared his throat.

“Well, ahh... we'll try not to be so loud and...”

I laughed, “NO no... I dinna' mean that. I meant what you were talking about before that.”

“Oh.”

“Listen, I know, by both what ya said, and what ya felt, that ya be sincere. Me father would approve, I think.” I smiled sheepishly. “Actually, to be completely honest, I was hoping ya would make an offer like that...”

Peter got up and went to the kitchen. A few minutes later, I followed. I sat at the table and Aunt May placed a small plate of cookies in front of me. She put her hand on me shoulder and said, “Welcome to the family.”

******

“Considering the area, I think we should bring our uniforms.”

Peter replied, “Never leave home without 'em. Guys like us get around faster on foot, so we'll change on the way and take to the skyscrapers. Only MJ and Aunt May use the car.”

I keep forgetting that I be a meta now. While I already was a part of the Parker family as far as the Parkers were concerned, we needed to make it legal before the authorities came looking into it.

We left the apartment, and changed in an alley. For fifteen minutes, Spiderman swung through the air, and I followed close behind on the walls. I went a little slower than I might have if I hadn't been trying to leave the windows intact. As we neared our destination, Peter swung into an alley to change. I followed, tripping over meself while trying to slow down. I no be a professional yet.

From there we turned the corner and stood in front of our destination. The building was tall, with more floors than I had ever bothered to count. There were no cement or bricks to be seen on the outside, just shining glass. Large bronze sculpted letters formed the word “Carson”.

Peter let out a low whistle. “Only the best of lawyers for the famous boxer, huh?”

“No reason not to have it. Actually, me father and David Carson were friends in college. They were studying law together when me father had his break in boxing.”

We walked into the lobby, and headed straight for the desk. When I gave me name to the secretary she said, “Oh please, go right on up. Mister Carson said to let you in as soon as you came.”

Mister Carson's office was located on the top floor, naturally. Sunlight poured in from the tall windows directly behind Mr. Carson's desk. Carson himself, a fellow Irishman in his late thirties, was sitting at his desk looking over some papers.

“Come in, lad, come in.” he said without looking up.

“It be good to see ya again, Mister Carson.”

This time, he did look up. “None of that, now, lad. You are yer own man now, so call me David, like yer father did.”

He looked at Peter and added, “And who be yer friend?”

Peter shook David's hand. “I'm Peter Parker,” he answered for me, “I'm a photographer for the Bugle.”

We explained the situation as best we could without mentioning the part about our powers, etc. It's not that I do no trust in me father's friend, but the less people who know, the better.

David Carson's emotions ranged from surprise to utter confoundment. He asked to speak with me alone.

“I'll be blunt with ya, lad. I like the look of this Parker man, and I don't think he be a man to go after yer money. What I don't understand is why you wouldna' want to stay with me. I'd be glad to have ya. I no have a family of me own.”

I felt his sadness, and what seemed like a little bit of remorse. “It's like I told ya,” I said, “he saved me life and now he feels responsible for me too. It no be that I don't like ya, David. Ya always were a good friend to me father and me. Maybe one day I'll be able to explain it to ya, but for now Peter Parker is me guardian. We came here to ask you to help us draw up the papers before the authorities decide to stick their noses into me situation.”

He sighed. “Aye, we know how messy that gets.”

We called Peter back in, and in a few minutes David had the papers drawn up. The three of us signed them, as well as David's secretary, who signed as a witness. As we were about to leave, I felt excitement from David.

“Parker,” he said emphatically, ”are ya the same peter Parker who takes pictures of Spiderman?”

“The same.”

“Here's something ya might want to tell yer web-slinging friend then. Don't tell anyone I told ya this, because I wasn't supposed to hear of it meself.

I have a friend high up who tells me that during all this civil war mess, the government has managed to lose custody of some of Spiderman's old friends, such as the Green Goblin, Rhino, Electro, Sandman, Scorpion, Mysterio, Doc Ock...”

Peter's face remained calm, but I felt his anger growing quickly. “I'll be sure to tell him.”

******

On our way back, peter was cursing like a madman. Finally, he calmed down, and said to me, “Can you believe this? They go around arresting heroes. People who give everything to save the world from insane freaks. People who protect the world from itself. Then they go and release some of the main reasons they created the damned Registration Act.”

“It be obvious that they want to keep that quiet.” I replied, “Don't you get it? It be our duty to stop these old enemies of yours, but if we can make it known that the government didn't do their job by the people while they were arresting heroes, the public will tell SHIELD to shove the Registration Act up someone's rear!”

By this time, we were back in street clothes, almost home. Peter smiled. “Just shove it up, SHIELD. Just shove it up.”

2006-09-12T15:18:00.000-07:00

Gohan be free. That be good news. Now I just have to talk to him about meself and his daughter. Oh joy. Right now, I be at Goku's home. It didn't take me long to find out he was Gohan's father, and Pan's grandfather. After freeing Gohan, we all came here to rest, and take care of any injuries.

I walked with Pan down the hallway, neither of us said anything. We reached the kitchen, where Gohan and Goku were eating like they hadn't in a wekk... for the fifth time that day. Pan squeezed me hand and whispered, "He'll like you, don't worry."

Spiderman says they always say that.

I walked in, and said, "So, how you be doing?"

"Pretty good." he replied. "So you're Angus? The guy my daughter keeps raving about? Good job with the Black Widow, by the way."

At this, Goku grabbed several more bowls of food, and left us alone.

"Thanks, but she no be very fast. And when I turn all black like that, me skin be tough, so the stingers that hit did no hurt much."

"Speaking of which, what are you?"

"We no be sure. Spiderman and Bulma did experiments. All we be knowing so far is that I be three times stronger and faster than Spiderman. I can run on walls, and I can feel other peoples emotions."

At that, I could feel a very strong feeling of surprise from Gohan. I continued, "So you say Pan has talked about me?"

He smiled and shook his head, "Incessantly. You're all she ever talks about now. She also told me about the night you watched the movie." He seemed nervous.

It was my turn to smile. "Me father thought "The Talk" were a bedtime story. I know me limits."

His nervousness left, "That's what I wanted to hear. I guess you really can read other's emotions."

For a moment we were silent. Then Gohan spoke again. "So what do you call yourself when you turn black?"

"Since I no be knowing what I be, I think I'll name me alter-ego later. I was thinking, though, I want to be serious about this superhero business. Do I need a costume?"

"Well, the t-shirt and jeans are okay, but you should definitely think about something classier. Just don't ask Spiderman for advice in that department."

We laughed, though I think Gohan's costume was worse.

"Well I turn all black," I responded, "and I be wanting to stay with that theme. But I no be wanting anything skintight.

"I know a guy who might be able to help." said Gohan with a sly smile.

2006-09-06T14:34:00.000-07:00

Spiderman and Bulma have run a few more tests on me, but gave up. I think heard Bulma mention the word "magic" but I canna' be sure. After the first superhero fight in me life, I be glad for the rest I be getting now. Well, when Pan ever lets me rest.

I had to find out just why I got into the fight, so I went to see Spiderman, I mean Peter. He introduced me to his other self when I met his wife and aunt.

"Peter," I began, hesitating, "no one ever told me what the whole thing with Gaia was about."

"Who's Gaia? She's an X-man right? What "whole thing"?

No luck there. Next, I be trying Vegeta.

******

I found him in his training room.

"Vegeta, who was Gaia? And why were we fighting demons? And why is it that Peter no remember anything about it?"

He stopped training and looked at me. "And you do remember? That's odd."

"What be your meaning?"

He explained everything he knew about Gaia, and then said, "Charles Xavier is the world's greatest telepath. He thought it would be better if the world did not remember what she did."

He spoke in a tone that told me he didn't agree with Xavier's feelings.

"How come you and I remember?" I asked.

"As for me, it could be because I'm a Saiyan, I don't know. As for you, I'm entirely clueless. You may be protected by what you are as well."

I stepped back from him. I was puzzled, and I knew he was too. But for some reason, I felt even more puzzled when I was near him.

"That be bringing me to another question." I said. "What's a Saiyan?"

******

I no beleive this. I be in a house full of aliens! If that weren't enough, a girl who be one-third alien be following me everywhere I go. It's funny, she be cute enough, but I no feel to much when I no be with her. But when I look at her, I be getting feelings of... adoration?

I walked into the kitchen, and as usual, Pan was behind me. Bulma Mary Jane, and Aunt May were all sitting around a small table, making small talk. There eyes shifted to us for a wee bit, and I had to struggle to keep the smile off me face. Why would I be feeling amusement?

Later that day, I talked to Bulma about this.

"Let's try an experiment, Angus." she said.

She sat me in an empty room, facing away from the door. "I'll be right back."

In a few minutes, she was back.

"Don't look behind you," she said quickly, as I had started to turn. "I have someone with me, do you know who it is?"

"No."

"Good."

I heard her whisper something, and whoever was with her moved closer behind me.

"What were you feeling just a moment ago?" asked Bulma?

"I was puzzled."

"Good, what are you feeling now?"

"Curiosity. I no be knowin' why though."

There was more whispering.

"How about now?"

"L.. l...", I stammered.

"Love?" finished Bulma.

"No, pure lust."

I looked around, completely puzzled. Both Bulma and Mary Jane were shrieking with laughter.

"That was, like, so cool. I..." said Mary Jane.

"Allow me to explain, Angus. " interrupted Bulma. "When you told me of all the strange feelings you were having when you were with different people, I thought you might be an empath, and I think I just proved it."

"Empath?"

"You're able to feel what other people feel."

"Wow."

"I want to try it again." said Mary Jane.

Bulma went over to her and whispered. Mary Jane came over to me, and touched me arm. Anger. I'd never felt so angry since me father died. My veins began to turn black, but I stopped myself, and pulled back. Bulma's mouth dropped. Mary Jane went white.

"A.. are you, like, okay?" she asked.

"I be alright now. What made you so mad that I felt it that much?"

She gulped. "Kitty Pryde."

I decided not to ask. Bulma came over to me, "I think that's enough for now."

******

That night, there was nothing to do. I was just about to go to bed early, when Pan came out of nowhere.

"You wanna watch a movie?"

The entertainment system here at Capsule Corp be amazing. We watched "The Saint", with Val Kilmer. I always thought the romance scenes in movies were a little boring, but this time, I liked them. I dinna' realise what was happening till, in the middle of an action sequence, I felt the same kind of lust that I'd felt in Bulma's experiment earlier.

I looked at Pan, and realised that she'd been on the other end of the couch before, but now she was right beside me. She looked straight at me, then leaned in closer. Before I knew it, we were kissing.

At one point, I thought I saw Peter pass by, but it must have been a shadow.

2006-08-31T11:23:00.000-07:00

I'm a bloody moron. I just turned into this thing, I don't know what, and all of a sudden, I want to fight bloody demons! Spiderman gave me perfectly clear and good reasons for not tagging along, here I be, along for the ride like a wee idiot.

Pan got us here, then Spiderman made her go home.

"But why can't I help? Angus is gonna stay here." she begged.

"Angus has to make his own decisions for now." declared Spiderman, "If your father, or your mother for that matter, found out I let you stay, I'd be a dead wall-crawler."

Now don't ask me how this happened, but while me father was a Protestant, me mother was Catholic. That being the case, I knew enough to recognize who was fighting Gaia.

"The Archangel Michael!" I gasped.

Spiderman looked up, "Oh boy. Well while they're having fun, we have our own problems. Demons ahoy!"

I looked, and saw a demon charging straight at us. I charged too. At the last second, I jumped and extended both feet toward it. The resulting collision left the demon crushed, but before I could attack another one, Spiderman grabbed me with a web, and pulled me onto the roof of a building where he was standing.

"Not bad for your first one kid, but before we do anything more, I want you to repeat to me what I told you."

I sighed. "Rule one: follow instinct. I probably don't know about all of me powers yet, so if they manifest themselves during a fight, don't stop to wonder. Just flow.

"Rule two: try not to kill the badguys, they may turn.

"Rule three: Never kill an innocent."

"Good, so let's fight."

Just before Spiderman swung off, I said, "Wait!"

"What?"

"What I said earlier, my father said it all the time. He was a boxer."

"Right."

Alright, now to kick some demon-arse.

2006-08-26T10:53:00.000-07:00

I woke up. Slowly, I lifted me hands. They were me normal flesh color. I sighed and and lifted meself off what seemed to be some kind of medical bed.

"You're finally awake!"

I looked the the right. There was a cute girl there, who looked close to me own age.

"Finally awake?" I asked.

"Well yeah, you've been sleeping like a log forever. Are you feeling okay?"

"I suppose. Where be I? Who are you?"

She turned to walk out, and gave a 'follow me' signal. I complied.

"My name's Pan. This lab belongs to a friend of my father. When Spiderman found you, he brought you here 'cause he couldn't figure out what was wrong with you."

I didn't want to be knowin' what was wrong with me yet, so I asked, "Who's Spiderman?"

"You don't know? It's okay, you'll find out soon enough. What's your name anyway?"

"It's... I no remember."

"Really?"

I looked at her. "Really."