Alternate X-Men #43
Michael Triggs at TRIGGS_M@bentley.edu
Title: A Forgotten Creed

Scene: It could be any home. Any building. Any family. Any city. Any town. 
All across America, the scene is the same. Families, single people, children, 
with their television set on. Who is this man whose face appears before them?
A television screen. The face of a man permeates through it, grapsing his
audience with some natural hypnotic charm.

<Television> : ... Six cases of the legacy reported by non-mutants in New
York... Four cases in Boston... Eleven Cases on the West Coast... These 
vermin are spreading their poison to the American Public. Why should the 
human population be forced to suffer because of these degenerates and their 
leperous diseases? Mutants must be contained, or all of America will be their 
next victim!!

A television set... More like a viewing monitor... It is a ready room... 
No, to be more specific, it is the Ready Room of a very significant person...
Professor Xavier stands, facing the screen. The words of one, Greydon Creed,
make little dents in his mind... His thoughts wander... 

"Perhaps Creed is right. Should mutants be allowed to spread this Legacy Virus
to humans? I have always believed in equality between mutants and humans.
However, would allowing thousands, possibly millions of people to die, through
a disease carried by mutants, would this be giving mutants more than equality?"

Charles mutters a silent curse to fate for throwing such kinks into his ideal
beliefs... As he has learned the hard way, life is not defined in absolutes...

<fade out>

Scene:  Another television set. Same pictures... The hateful sermon echos 
through a damp basement... The noise of rusted spokes, and power drills echos 
back... 

Television: "We are superior to this gene scum, and won't take their dragging 
us down anymore!"

A loud applause roars through the television, only to be answered by a small, 
weak voice coming from somewhere in the basement, behind all the mechanical 
parts, and power tools...

<Voice> : Oh Milton, could you hand me that power-driver?

The sleek form of a white&black cat scurries along the floor, picking up an 
exotic tool in its mouth, scurrying behind a pile of equipment. There is a 
loud clank, as "Milton" drops the power-driver...

<Voice> : No, Milton, that's a power-hammer... Nevermind, I'll get it myself.
I suppose I have to get up and stretch every once and a while...

An old man, at least in his eighties, gets up from behind a pile of junk... 
He is dressed in a light brown jacket, which he wraps tightly around him... 
He picks up Milton, who purrs contently...

Old Man : Oy! It is so cold down here... <Milton meows>... Yes, I know! I 
know! Stop reminding me... I already have to put up with that lousy medic 
trying to keep me in bed... The last thing I need is two doctors... I'm fine..

The ancient man,  gingerly picks up another exotic tool, walking back over to 
his place of work, taking very small steps...

Old Man: After all, my work is almost done! Soon, you and I, Milton, will be 
able to show these whippersnappers who the real superior race is!! If I hurry
up, I might be able to get them out today for a test run. Just gotta get this
damn remote control working...

He points to an infinite number of lumps, underneath sheets. One of the sheets
is displaced, enough to see the glint of metal underneath it.

Milton, responding to the change in his master's voice, meows contently.

<fade out>

Scene: The Morlock Tunnels... Voices, faintly echoing through the elaborate
sewer systems, can be heard... The dimly lighted tunnels are being illuminated
by floodlights, coming from some notably humans forms... The light reflects off
their two armoured bodies... The green suits have an almost military look to
them...

Armoured Form #1 <Walking, strobing ahead with his light> : This is too easy.
Why didn't we think of this before? Using the dead bodies of mutants for the
techno-fusion process? Dead/Alive? With Mutants? No difference...

Armoured Form #2 <Slowing down, to get through some debris> : Unfortunately,
the process doesn't work as well with corpses. The BoGT has been dying to get
their hands on some living mutants...

Armoured Form #1 <Stopping, waiting for #2> : Who'd want to touch one of those
things?

Armoured Form #2 : Oh, come now. Mutants aren't all that bad. Think of all the
fantastic things that can be done with them. Any country with mutants as assets
would be unstoppable. Consider how industry would benefit...

He watches them, from a man-made ledge... When the Morlocks were at their
prime, the Drain Dwellers added these ledges here and there, in order to make
the tunnels more defendable from enemies, the outside world that is... Their
words burn a hole in his heart, enraging him... With so much as a leap, the
being once known as Caliban, leaps down at the second Armoured Form, punching a
gash in his floodlight, tackling him over in the process...

Armoured Form #2 : Roy, get this reject off me! 

He struggles on the ground with Caliban, a hint of fear in his voice.

Caliban : You hate us in the light. You fear us in the dark. Fear is
Caliban's friend... 

Caliban begins crushing the armour with his bare hands, an intense screaming
eminating from whoever is within the armour.

Armoured Form #1 : That was foolish, kid... 

A stream of energy fires from "Roy's" hands, nailing Caliban in the back. The 
stream continues.
									       
Armoured Form #1 : Just what I'd expect from a stupid degen...

Caliban <in pain, turns around> : You can't stop us! We are mutants! We will
survive! 

Caliban smashes Roy's left hand, walking right into the energy blast.
Roy, who is in pain, stops firing. Caliban approaches him, poised to strike.

Caliban : Give up. You've been deemed unworth--.

Caliban suddenly falls over... Armoured Form #1 stands behind him, barely
standing, pointing a gun attachment on his arm at where Caliban was...
Caliban's back is lined with darts of some sort...

"Roy" : I don't see what the goverment sees in this trash. They are
pathetically stupid creatures. Not worthy of them wasting there time on.
However, if they want a live one to work on, this gimp has just "volunteered".

Armoured Form #1 <in obvious pain> Hunng... It took my entire supply of tranks
to phase him... Underestimating him nearly got you killed... Lose the
attitude... The lab technicians should have a field day with him...

The two armoured forms pick up the body of Caliban, who is knocked silly. With
a flash of light, they are gone...

<fade out>

Scene: Central Park. A stage is set up. Banners hang everywhere. And one can't 
forget the picket signs. "Down with Muties", "Yo mama shoulda aborted you.", 
"Factor-X - Extra-Death!"... Of course, no anti-mutant rally would be complete
without a speaker... He stands on the platform, well-poised, and hard-fisted. 
Greydon Creed has despised mutants since the day he was born. One could say
it's "in the family". 

The crowd sucks in his every word... Creed is their political God, for all 
sakes and purposes... He stands there, in the limelight, with an infinite 
number of cameras recording his every move...

"And, in the name of Liberty, Justice, and the American way, I plan to give 
this country back to who it rightfully belongs! Are you tired of living in 
fear of the every action of anti-social Geecees? Do you feel the government 
doesn't do enough to eliminate their murderous rampages? Do you want to see 
the mutant menace stopped dead cold! For the superiority of the human race, 
I hereby announce my candidacy for the Presidency of the United States. I've 
done all I could from outside the political spectrum, only to find government 
stubbornly opposing me. So, if you can't beat them, join them!"

A voice emerges, somewhere in the sky... It thunders loudly... The crowd of 
people, on the verge of Applause, suddenly become silent. A metal silhoutte, 
streaks across the horizon, creating a large shadow over the hand-rigged 
stage... The words sound synthetic, but are easily comprehended, by the 
thousands of people down below...

"Human Superiority? Blah! Blah I say! The time of your rule is over! It is 
now our time to rule! It's survival of the fittest, and we just got nominated 
as the most fit! All hail the eternal reign of the KAMIKAZE WALRUSES!!!"

The crowd is in a state of confusion, as several of the metal constructs, 
resembling walruses, pour down from the Heavens... Creed, completely 
befuddled, shouts:

"Stop! This has got to be some sort of joke...Right?"

<The flying Kamikaze Walruses, in unison> : This is no joke. Your time is 
up. The reign of humans will end soon. What better way to speed up the 
process then by killing the #1 Human Superiorist himself...

One of the "Kamikaze Walruses" swoops down at Creed, who is running in sheer 
terror... Greydon is narrowly missed by the mechanical construct, which 
detonates a large portion of the demonstration platform, erupting it into 
flames...

As this is happening, an intrigued Professor Xavier watches the events 
through his monitor... 

In a world of absolutes, good and evil, black and white, he would regret what
he is about to ask his X-Men to do: Save the very people who hate them the
most. However, as Professor Xavier has learned, time and time again, things
aren't always that cut and dry. 

<TO BE CONTINUED>


