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I spent the rest of the morning talking with Xavier, he told me about the classes that I could take in order to work on controlling whatever my power may be. There were also sports that the students had come up with to incorporate various abilities. He also told me about different clubs that the students would put together, it was really interesting how they kind of grouped together based on ability sometimes. The robotic club for instance had a lot of students that had either intelligence boosting powers or some kind of machine related ability.
It made things a lot more interesting when it came time for them to show off their accomplishments in front of the school. One year there was even a group of students that made a transformer that still sat in the garage to this day. It wasn't used very often as the students that made it had to give up some comfort so the vehicle would actually be able to transform. When I asked if there were any dangers I should know about for he became silent for a moment before answering.
I could feel his hesitation and that really answered my question for me, [There are many groups that would want to take advantage of the abilities we have been given. Once you graduate you will be offered a choice to join our X-Men program. If you participate in the training and once you pass certain tests you can be sent on missions to save mutants that are being taken advantage of.] I got a little excited about that, it wasn't just the fact that the X-Men were real, it was also that in this world they apparently weren't child soldiers like in other worlds.
It was a relief to hear that but Xavier misinterpreted my excitement, [While there is a Young Guardians class a student may join that will give you an extra leg up on the training, you cannot join the X-Men until after you turn 18. Just in case you planned on trying to graduate early.] I sent back feelings of acceptance and he told me about a few of the other programs offered for people with specific powers.
Like an art class that encouraged students to use various powers to create art, one student preferred to make ice sculptures and it increased the control he had over his abilities. Of course not everyone is the artsy type, but there are other classes for students that need to work off excess energy. Tracking classes for the students with more animalistic mutations, or an obstacle course that would make Marines cry for the ones with physical enhancements.
There was even a psychic hive mind class for those with various psychic abilities to just let loose for a while. It wasn't very healthy to be in control of yourself every minute of every day, if you were so tightly wound for such a long period of time eventually even the most patient person would snap. So in that class the psychics would connect to form a sort of collective and while they were able to keep some things private it was a very intimate experience.
It also helped with conflict resolution, to literally be able to step into someone's shoes, to see what they saw, to hear their thoughts. Trying to stay angry at someone after you share something like that was almost impossible. All this sounded like something I would very much like to be a part of and hearing about all that was offered put a lot of my fears to rest. It seemed like the world I lived in was one that Xavier had worked through a lot of his issues.
But I was still a little hesitant because if something seems like it is too good to be true then it usually is. On the other hand there wasn't really anything I could do about that, I could either refuse and try to find my own way. Not something I was looking forward to with all the mutant hate out there. Or take a leap of faith and give his school a try, possibly finding a better home and family in the process, while also taking the risk that I am stepping right into a trap.
He could probably sense my hesitance because he sent one last thought before withdrawing from my mind. [You do not need to choose now, my school is always open to you, whenever you choose to take that step. If you do, then allow your parents to do all the work, if not send a message through the school's email address declaring your intentions. We will be sorry to miss you if you choose this path but I will deal with the ramifications of your decision in regards to your parents.]
I sighed as I felt our minds disconnect, and as soon as he did I felt a major weight fall off my shoulders. And it wasn't just that our minds were no longer connected, it was also the fact that dealing with my parents was never my idea of fun. But now that Xavier was no longer fishing around in my head I wanted to see if I gained a skill like metal manipulation resistance. It would make my decision for me if I had it but it would also make the decision I wanted to make easier if I didn't so I pulled up my skills page and stared at the new skill in confusion. [Controlled Thoughts LV3].
I wasn't sure what to make of this, it could be that controlled thoughts meant I could fight against outside influence, or it could just be a side effect of having an entire conversation inside my mind. Man, I wish my powers weren't so confusing. I mean there were plenty of other gamer systems out there to draw from, it was one of my favorite genres to read in my old world. So why did I get this minimalistic shit?
Even the descriptor didn't help much, [Thoughts become more controlled and directed.] Thanks for that, it's real helpful. I was interrupted from my tirade when my stomach let out a roar of protest. With all the excitement I guess I forgot to eat, now it was after two in the afternoon and I hadn't had a single bite to eat. That needed to change as soon as possible, and an hour later I had put down four large sandwiches, two bags of chips, and about 40 ounces of water.
All that food made me tired and since I hadn't taken a real day off in a while I decided to take a nap. Laying down in my bed I was barely able to close my eyes before the deepest sleep of my life claimed me. But I was already down for the count so I didn't realize the massive change that was about to happen to me. See, [Controlled Thoughts] was really much more powerful than I thought it was and the next time I woke up I was about to realize that fact.
The dreams I had while asleep reminded me of Dr. Strange's acid trip through the multiverse. Countless scenes flashed through my mind, some I recognized from memories of both of my lives. Others were not only completely foreign but incomprehensible, colors that had no name but whispered about secrets hidden behind the eyes of every artist that ever picked up a brush. They told me secrets no one could know, and once I was aware they took that knowledge, only leaving behind the gap it left behind.
More often than not I was left reeling as I was flung across this strange place, it was like I was a ship lost in a storm. Only the sea I sailed upon pushed and pulled at me from all sides, stretching my awareness in ways I would have thought impossible. That night I learned the true meaning behind the saying when you gaze into the abyss the abyss gazes into you. The experience left me marked even though most of the experiences were lost, too close to the truth of reality for my small mind to grasp.
I shot up in my bed gasping for air, my sheets were soaked in the sweat left over from the ordeal I just went through. Dragging my fingers through my hair I tried to hold onto the fragments from last night but they were slipping through my fingers when something caught my attention. There was a humming noise that sounded just like those colors from last night, just out of my range of hearing but still echoing through my head.
[About time you noticed, I was a little worried that last night had scrambled your brain. Luckily it looks like it was only lightly shaken instead.] I froze when I heard the voice in my head, I recognized the voice as my own but those weren't my thoughts. [Of course not, thanks to the skill you got yesterday your powers got a massive upgrade. Unfortunately the only thing that is working right now is me and your new background music.]
My confusion must have been apartment because I heard a sigh echoing in my head before he started to explain again. [God I can already tell this is going to be annoying. Look, you remember Controlled Thoughts, right?] I rolled my eyes instead of giving an answer to the possible delusion, it seemed like even my hallucinations had to be sarcastic. [You know as well as I do it's how you deal with stress, now shut up and pay attention cause this is important.]
[When you got that skill your powers immediately started to try and bring order to your thoughts. It wasn't much at first, just an easier time focusing, Xavier probably even noticed that you became better at directing your thoughts and emotions through the link remarkably quickly. But once it gained a few levels it started to interact more deeply with your powers, it wasn't just the thoughts you were sending through the link anymore it was any passing idea or fleeting desire.]
[Then when you noticed you had the power and got frustrated by the vagueness of your powers and compared it to all the other systems you read about. That created a connection and suddenly your powers had so much more to draw from and draw it did. It bounced from one system to another, each one different in its own way, and it wasn't just the original stories like the Gamer it drew from every source it could.]
[Games, movies, anime, even fanfiction. Every system you ever heard of, and a lot of those were not very well thought out or relied on your second or third hand knowledge. Then it tried to jam everything into one container, that's why you passed out last night. Your brain almost cooked from trying to adapt to everything. Luckily one of the things a lot of those systems had in common was a Guide.]
[And while your power can do a lot, it can't just will a person into existence with all the knowledge needed to guide you to wherever you want to go. So you got me instead, a copy of you with all of your knowledge, connected to your thoughts, but built to deal with all the stuff you learned last night. Lucky me.] I was a little stunned at the information I was hearing but something made me believe that everything he said was true.
[Yeah, that's one benefit alright, imagine actually having to convince you that this was all true and not a hallucination from one of the million different dangers in this world. Luckily because I'm connected to your thoughts you subconsciously understand that what I am telling you is true, because I know it is. But while I am connected to your thoughts that doesn't mean we are the same person, I see the world much differently than you now.]
[It's like someone copied your brain then shoved it into a computer, because it runs on a different system the longer they were apart and the more data both systems took in the more different they would become. And I already have had to take in a lot more data than you, that acid trip last night, that really happened, and while you might only remember a single percentage of a percent of what happened I remember it all. I don't understand it, but I remember it.]
[That plus the mangled system made me into a completely different person, so act like it. I'm not gonna be your servant, think of me as a friend that lives rent free in your head. I'll help you out but only because it's pretty interesting to mess with everything up here to try and see what might happen. It's like being left alone in a chemistry lab with no supervision and tons of new magical regents to try out. I can not wait to see what happens when I mix some of this stuff together.]
I just fell back onto my bed in stunned silence, I was just complaining about my minimalist system last night and now I had to deal with sharing my mind with another person. [Isn't irony amazing? But don't believe it's all that great in here, last night made a real mess of things and it wasn't like your head was a very orderly place to begin with. It's gonna take months if not years to fix this place up. Fortunately for you, you get to keep your sanity, and it's all thanks to me and the wall I put up to keep $#^#@%@!^$#&^%*%$ and %)&@^(*@&%$@*&$! from affecting you.]
A lance of pain shoots through my head each time his words became garbled and I decided it's better not to know the reason for now and just be thankful the pain is fading quickly. [That's a good idea, and another one is contacting Xavier to try and get into the school as soon as possible.] I sat up straight in alarm, worried that my so-called sanity wouldn't last. [Don't get your panties in a twist, I can sort this out myself but he literally has decades of experience working with both the minds of mutants and their powers.]
[And while I can work out how to set things right in here, it would be much easier to have someone experienced to help me sort this out. I mean it's like a minefield made of Jigsaw style traps in here, it's more than likely I'll set a few off if I fumble through on my own. And the consequences from setting one off could range from turning off your ability to taste garlic to leaving you in a catatonic state until I put you back together again.]
[That's also assuming I'd be able to put you back together after shattering you into a million pieces. Not something I want to try if I don't have to.] I didn't disagree so I stood and made my way over to the computer before looking up the email address and sending a message that something had happened and I needed some help. I made sure to put in that I wasn't in any danger but would still like to head to the school as soon as possible. It wasn't every day that there was a strong possibility you had gone insane after all. [Well twice in your lifetime is more than most people but I for one would rather that number did not rise to three.]
The current advanced chapters are:
Master of Magic Ch2-3
Seal Smith Ch2
Flip the Script Ch1-2
The Game Ch1-3
Millennium Ch1-2
Haven Ch1
Who is a Zoo? Ch1
God of Games Ch6
Breathe Ch1
Another Wayne Ch1
Salvation Ch1
Guide Ch1
Growth Ch1
Ark Ch5-7
Further Ch2
Puzzle Maker Ch3
A Thousand Words Ch1-2
Free Range Ch1
Not All Heroes Wear Capes Ch3