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Angel In The Attic	By : fusedtwilight Category: X-men Comics > AU - Alternate Universe Views: 5328 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own X-men, it is the property of marvel comics and in no way do i make a profit from this fic.

Chapter List
- 38
- 39
- 40
Angel in the Attic
Chapter 39
Fusedtwilight: Thnks to y beta Lisa for the beta.
Oh My Gosh I am so sorry it has been so long since I updated, I had a bit of writers block and decided to chill on Angel In The Attic for a while so I could recharge my batteries.
In this chapter Jacob learns there is more to his power then there seems and Devin faces a terrible trial.

Warren was looking out of one of the windows on Utopia.
"Everything okay, love?" Betsy asked walking up behind him.
"Just thinking about Michael," he said.
"You're worried about him," she stated.
"I am proud of how far he has come. When we first found him he was just a skinny kid afraid of his own power. Now he is leading his own team of mutants. What if I was wrong? No seventeen-year-old boy should have the kind of responsibilities he had."
"He is not the same boy we brought to the school. He's lost his family, nearly died several times and faced all manner of monsters. He is proving he has what it takes to become one of the greats."
"I know. But I know what this kind of life can do to a person. I don't want him to have to go through what the rest of us have."
"Warren, he has already gone through it. And you can't protect him from life. You can only teach him to survive it."
"You're right. I just worry about him is all," Warren said.
"He's like a son to you, Warren. And he sees you as a father figure."
"Really?" Warren asked with surprise.
"Trust me, I know," she said tapping her head.
Just then there was a massive explosion at the center of the island.
"What the hell was that?" Warren asked.
"We're under attack!" Betsy yelled.
"Who is it this time?" Warren asked.

"In the name of Apocalypse! Die!" Holocaust yelled, firing the cannon on his right arm.
To say he looked like a nightmare was an understatement.
He was a flaming skeleton in a ten-foot-tall see-through suit.
And the only thing more twisted then his looks was his mind.
"Who the hell is this guy?" Indra asked taking cover.
"Looks like Ghost Rider's pissed off big brother!" Rockslide yelled.
"That is Holocaust! The son of Apocalypse!" Anole said.
"Apocalypse has a kid?" Rockslide asked.
"Worry less about who his daddy is and just kill the bastard!" Match yelled shooting a stream of fire at the monstrosity.
It didn't even affect him.
He aimed his arm at Match and fired. The blast was made up of the same searing orange color that radiated from his body and Match did not possess the capability to survive such an attack.
"Look out!" Rockslide yelled jumping in front of the blast and was then blown to bits.
"No!" Indra yelled.
He armored up and rushed at Holocaust.
"No, don't get close to him!" Anole yelled.
Suddenly Indra fell to his knees.
"You should have listened to your friend, boy. I am capable of draining the life out of my foes once they are close enough, a slower process then vaporizing but much more enjoyable...for me at least," Holocaust said with an evil smile.
Suddenly a blue blur flew by and carried Indra away.
"Are you okay?" Laurie asked.
Indra looked bad. His skin was sunken and his eyes hollow. "Laurie?" he asked.
"Call me Transonic; it's my codename," she said.
"Transonic?" he asked.
"Apparently it's how fast I can run." She grinned.
"Man, Devin is going to be pissed." He chuckled.
"Come to die with your friends, girl?" Holocaust asked.
"We're not going to be dying today," a voice said.
A pair of arms shot out from beneath Holocaust and sent him flying back.
Rockslide climbed out from the ground, having formed a new body from the earth.
"Didn't I kill you already?" Holocaust asked aiming his cannon at Rockslide.
"Joke's on you! I'm a sonic entity!"
"Psychic entity!" Anole shouted correcting him.
"Psychic entity!" Rockslide said without missing a beat. "And since I'm not like the others I doubt you'll be able to suck me off like the others!"
"Does he ever think before he speaks?" Transonic asked Indra.
"Let him have his moment," Indra said.
"Let's test this theory of yours, shall we?" Holocaust asked.
Before he could attack he was attacked from behind by several spider-shaped creatures made from concrete and rock.
"The hell are these things?" he asked.
"You're beautiful!" a voice said.
Everyone looked to see Zero was looking at Holocaust with wonder.
"Such raw anger! Such malevolence! You look like a demon straight from the pits of hell!" He clapped his hands together and bowed his head. "Please allow me to draw you! You are a perfect subject for my art!"
"That kid freaks me the fuck out!" Match muttered.
"Join the club," Anole replied looking at Zero with disgust.
Holocaust broke free from Zero's creations and vaporized them.
"I am the son of Apocalypse! I inspire fear in the hearts of men! Not art!"
Zero raised his head to look at Holocaust, his eyes filled with a manic delight.
"But fear is art!"
Several tentacles shot into the ground and more spider creations were created, rising from the ground.
"So imagine how much better you will look after I crack open your armor and rip out your insides!"
"Psycho," Indra muttered.
"At least he's our psycho," Transonic said.

"X, stop!" Wolverine yelled.
X-23 continued her assault.
She was not alone. There were dozens of monstrous cyborg creatures with her.
The other X-Men were fighting them while Wolverine fought X-23.
"What the hell are these things?" Ice-Man asked as he froze one of the cyborgs.
"Kill them first and Hank can dissect them later!" Bishop said.
Up in the sky, Storm, Cannonball, and several other X-Men capable of flight were fighting the cyborgs that were attacking the island from above.
"Where in the hell did these things come from?" Cannonball asked.
"I don't know, but as soon as we deal with them we will find their master and make him sorry he attacked us," Storm said.
One of the cyborgs aimed his laser at Storm and was about to fire.
"Storm, watch out!"
Wind Dancer sent a blade of concentrated air at the cyborg and sliced it right down the middle.
"Thanks," Storm said, "you're getting better at controlling your element."
"Guys, it's Apocalypse!" Angel said flying up to help them fight the cyborgs.
"What?" Cannonball asked.
"Holocaust is down there and so is X-23, looks like she's been brainwashed," Angel said grimly.
"Goddess, why would Apocalypse be attacking us?" Storm asked.
Back at their base, Apocalypse and Sinister were watching the battle.
All the Infinites had built-in cameras that allowed them to see what was going on.
"Everything is going according to plan. But the X-Men are putting up a good fight," Sinister said.
"Indeed. If we are to lure the Champions away from our target we must add more pressure to the attack." Apocalypse smiled. "Activate death."
Sinister nodded and began to press several buttons.
"They thought he had purified himself of my influence. What fools! As if my power could so easily be purged. It has been sleeping inside him, waiting for the time when I would call. Bring forth my Death! Bring forth my Archangel!"
Angel slammed into one of the cyborgs.
It tried to shoot him but he grabbed its arm and aimed the gun at its owner's head and let go once it had shot itself.
Several of the cyborgs flew at him, and he knew there was no way he could stop them all.
They surrounded him and aimed their guns at him.
Before he could try and outmaneuver them a burning pain began to spread over his body.
The cyborgs lowered their weapons and flew off.
The pain Angel felt was so intense he could not keep himself afloat and began to fall to the earth below.
"Warren!" Cannonball yelled.
"What's wrong with him? Was he hit?" Storm asked.
"I'll get him! Cover me!" Wind Dancer yelled.
She flew after Angel, Storm cleared her a path.
As she flew after Angel she noticed his feathers seemed to be falling off his wings.
A bright light hit her eyes, a reflection from the sun and she realized it was coming from his wings.
Suddenly something hit her.
Pain exploded from her stomach and shoulder.
Metal blades shaped like feathers had somehow become embedded in her body.
She focused on Angel and to her horror saw he had transformed.
His skin was now blue and his wings had turned into lethal metal blades.
He looked at her with an icy look as cold as the Arctic.
He extended his wings and flew off.
Wind Dancer barely had time to summon a gust of wind to cushion her fall.
Between the blades and the impact of the fall she quickly began to lose consciousness.
"He's...Archangel...again," she whispered.

"Excuse me Michael, but Utopia is under attack," Eve said.
"What?" Michael asked.
"I have intercepted communications from the island. Apparently Holocaust and X-23 are attacking the X-Men along with cybernetic creatures," Eve said.
She activated the main screen so they could see the fighting going on.
"What are those things?" Angie asked.
"I remember those things. They're called Infinites," Blut said. "Sinister makes them from the remains of his victims."
"Dear God! Those are people!" Franziska cried in horror.
"Nope. He takes the remains of his experiments and turns them into genetic soup. He remolds the flesh to his liking and adds cybernetic parts," Blut stated.
"That is disgusting!" Rickard spat.
"That's how he rolls. He didn't get his name for nothing, you know."
"Why would Apocalypse attack Utopia?" Michael asked.
"Maybe he thinks that is where Blut is?" Wayne said. "X-23 doesn't know we left the X-Men so maybe he assumed we are still on the island."
"We need to help them," Rickard said.
"Devin, Jericho, you guys stay here and keep an eye on Blut."
"Why can't I come? I want to fight!" Blut whined.
"We are not sure why he is attacking the island. But if he is after you it is best if we keep you here where you will be safe," Michael said.
"Fine." Blut pouted.
While everyone got ready Blut walked over to one of the computer monitors.
He made double sure no one was paying attention and placed his hand over the keyboard.
A cut appeared on his hand and blood began to pour from the cut and seeped into the keyboard.
"What are you doing?"
Blut hid his hand behind his back and turned to face Angie.
"Nothing, just inspecting your home," he said with a smile.
Angie eyed him suspiciously and looked at the console and saw nothing amiss.
"Don't touch anything, okay."
She walked away and Blut sighed.
He looked back to the console and saw his blood begin to resurface from under the keys.
"Stay hidden for now, okay," he spoke to it.
It went back under the keys hidden from view, waiting to strike when ordered.

"You are all weak! You will die!"
"Warren, no!" Psylock yelled.
She used her telekinesis to shield herself from his attack.
Cyclops tried blasting him with his optic blast but Archangel used his wings to shield himself.
"Warren, stop this madness!" Cyclops yelled.
"Die!" Archangel replied firing more blades from his wings.
"Psylock, can you reach his mind?" Cyclops asked.
"I have tried, all I hear is die X-Men you are all weak!" she yelled.
Several Infinites tried attacking them from above but Psylock knocked them back with here telekinesis.
Beast attacked Archangel from behind, but his attack was sensed and Archangel batted him away with his wing.
Gambit jumped from overhead throwing several charged cards at him and Archangel shielded himself from the attack placing his wings above his head. Cyclops took this moment to try and blast him but Archangel quickly shielded himself with just one of his wings.
"You cannot defeat me! I am your death!" he roared.
"I forgot how annoying he is when he was like this," Cyclops muttered.
"We can't fight these robots and the Horsemen; there are too many of them!" Psylock said, sensing with her mind that the tide was slowly turning against them.
"Have everyone pull back, get the defense perimeter activated!" Cyclops said.
"Die!" Archangeel yelled.
He threw more of his blades at the pair, but before Psylock could stop them they were blasted away by a white light.
"Warren!"
Psylock and Cyclops looked up to see Seraph flying above them, he was looking at Archangel in horror.
"My God, what happened?"

Back at the Ark, Blut, Devin, and Jericho were watching the battle on the screen.
"Damn it, we should be there helping!" Jericho said.
He had not been with the X-Men for long, but he had liked living there and he got along with the other students.
"I could be making the X-Men stronger."
"Dude, we need to look after Blood Boy," Devin said.
"Blood Boy? I like it! But I prefer my real codename: Blood King. Sounds so ominous, doesn't it?" Blut asked cheerfully.
"Our friends are fighting for their lives and you're acting like it is no big deal!" Jericho spat.
"Well geez, no need to get all bent out of shape about it!" Blut said rubbing the back if his head. "People die all the time. I mean the mortality rate for X-Men is super-high anyway, so it's to be expected."
"You should still feel bad! The X-Men took you in and took care of you! You should show some emotion!" Devin chastised him.
Blut just smiled at him, but the smile did not reach his eyes.
Devin had a strong desire to get as far from Blut as possible.
"Emotion?" Blut asked as if the word was a foreign concept to him.
"What good does feeling sad or angry do? Will it save them? Will it beat the bad guys?"
"It shows you care," Devin responded.
"But that's the thing." Blut raised his hand and a cut appeared on his palm. "I don't care."
A stream of blood began to pour out from his hand.
Jericho and Devin let out screams of disgust and got out of the way before they were doused.
"What the hell are you doing!" Devin yelled.
By the time Blut finished, the control room looked like something out of a horror movie; there was blood everywhere.
"This is sick!" Jericho said.
"Sorry for the mess, just getting ready for a fight. Now let's do something about the security system," Blut said.
Suddenly all the screens began to flicker and sparks began to fly out from all the consoles.
"Eve, what's happening!" Devin demanded.
Eve appeared in front of Devin but her image was flickering.
"His blood...infecting...losing..."
"What are you doing, Blut?" Devin asked as Eve's image disappeared.
"Apocalypse wants you."
"Me?" Devin asked.
Blut shook his head. "No. Him."
Blut pointed his finger at Jericho.
"Me?" Jericho asked. "The hell does Apocalypse want with me?"
Blut shrugged. "Don't know. They don't pay me to ask questions...in fact they don't pay me at all."
Devin ran at Blut, but just as his fist was about to make contact with Blut's face, a burst of pain centered on his feet caused him to stop and yell out in agony.
He looked down and saw that a puddle of Blut's blood had sprouted spikes that had pierced his feet, immobilizing him.
"Oh, did I ever mention I am capable of controlling my blood?" Blut asked sarcastically. "That's why my makers called me Blut; it's German for blood. It's also why I call myself the Blood King. I can even control it after it has left my body."
"Bastard!" Devin yelled.
Blut formed a scythe on his arm and slashed Devin across his chest. A look of shock appeared on his face and he fell to the floor, his blood began to pool around him.
"Devin!" Jericho yelled.
Blut held out his hand and webs of blood shot out from his fingers and wrapped around Jericho.
"Spider-Blut, Spider-Blut. Does whatever a Spider-Blut does," Blut sang cheerfully. "Watch him bleed, oh my God. Oh wait, that's just what he does."
He dragged Jericho along as he left the room, leaving Devin bleeding on the floor.
Jericho tried to resist, but the blood web was gripping him like a boa.
Blut dragged him outside where Abyss was waiting for them.
"Why didn't you come inside and get us?" Blut asked.
"There is some kind of force keeping me out. What took you so long?" Abyss asked.
Blut shrugged. "Had to wait for everyone to leave. And when you didn't show up I had to take care of a straggler." Blut shrugged.
"Let's hurry up and get back, Lord Apocalypse has waited long enough," Abyss said.
He wrapped himself around the duo and they vanished.

Kid Wendigo held onto the Infinite as it flew into the sky.
Utopia looked like a mere spot in the ocean.
In his wendigo form his durability was enhanced to the point where only high-caliber guns could hurt him. And even then his healing factor would quickly repair any damage he did receive.
But even he was not sure if he could survive a fall from this far up.
Wolverine was infamous for his healing abilities, but there were some limits even he didn't dare test. Many years ago Magneto ripped the metal from his bones and it damn near killed him.
It took time and help from the X-Men but he managed to heal, and with his body no longer burdened by the adamantium in his body, his healing powers increased immensely.
But ironically his bones would be re-bonded with the metal some time later.
Kid Wendigo saw Storm and some of the other X-Men capable of flight fighting Infinites.
He saw one fly up behind Pixie, she was too busy hacking an Infinite's face to notice the danger.
"Look out!" Kid Wendigo roared, his voice barely heard over the sounds of laser fire and thunder claps.
He ripped the head off the Infinite he rode on, ignoring the awful stench of blood and something like oil. He jumped off the body and landed on the other Infinite as it was about to attack Pixie.
He landed on it and they flew around as it tried to compensate for the sudden added weight.
He grabbed its arms and crushed them so he could not use his guns.
"What you going to do now?" Kid Wendigo asked with a snarl.
"Weapons compromised. Destruction imminent. Eliminate enemy with self-destruct sequence." It spoke in a robotic voice.
"Wait what?" Kid Wendigo asked.
He had lived through a few explosions since he transformed.
But it took a strong blast to knock him out, who'd have thought Apocalypse built each and every one of his Infinites with a pack of C4.
It almost sounded like thunder.

Jacob woke with a start.
He was at his grandfather's ranch.
Another clap of thunder caused him to jump.
He hated thunderstorms. Something about the loud noise unsettled him. It was like the angry roar of some great beast hunting him.
He stood up and walked downstairs to get a glass of water. His grandfather was still up watching the news, which was once more talking about mutants.
Jacob's grandfather glanced up at him as he walked into the kitchen from his chair.
"Was wondering when you would come down," he said.
He knew Jacob had problems sleeping during a storm.
Once when he was a kid, Jacob thought he was man enough to explore the world and live by himself. He was tired of his parents fighting and his father drinking.
He had spent a whole night by himself huddled in a cave during a thunderstorm.
Being so alone, cold, and miserable, with lightning flashing across the sky had left an impact on him. He always dreamed of the cave when it thundered, dreamed he was a boy again crying in fear.
Jacob got a glass of water and sat down on the couch by his grandfather.
"Thunderbirds keeping you up again, eh?" he asked.
Jacob sighed. "There is no such thing as thunderbirds, Gramps."
"Of course there is! A whole tribe of them lived north of Vancouver Island. At least that's how the story goes," he said.
"Exactly, it's just a story."
"Look at that."
His grandfather pointed to the TV. The image was taken from Hong Kong showing a mutant standing in front of an oncoming tank. The mutant looked like he should be in front of a computer; he had a very skinny body and was scholarly looking.
But then he raised his hands and sent the tank flying back when a force-field erupted from his body.
"How can you see that and not believe in the old stories?"
"Did you know any mutants?" Jacob asked.
"I might have. A lot of them look human you know. Though there was this one woman I knew once. She was super-flexible, if you know what I mean," he said wiggling his eyebrows.
Jacob laughed.
"All those stories you read growing up of people who could move mountains or fly or turn into animals. It makes you wonder how much was true."
"You're saying thunderbirds are mutants?" Jacob asked.
"I am saying when you live in a world where some skinny Asian kid can toss a tank around like a toy, you should keep an open mind. They say there are mutants who can turn into animals. Who's to say there wasn't once a tribe that couldn't turn into a flock of big-ass birds?"

Jacob opened his eyes.
He was still falling, the wind roared in his ears, Utopia was growing larger and larger and he was no longer in his wendigo form.
He knew there was no way in hell he could survive a fall like this in his human form.
But he wasn't sure he could make it in his wendigo form either.
But still he focused on transforming, letting the power that flowed through him change him.
As he focused, he thought back to the stories his grandfather told him growing up.
Stories of birds of immense size and power, beings of divinity and majesty who soared through the heavens, their wings sounding like thunder and lightning burning in their eyes.
Jacob felt his body transforming, but he also felt something different right away.
His body grew much bigger, he felt his arms expand and his legs shorten, felt his skin tingle, and at first he thought it was the fur growing in but it felt different than it usually did.
He was so close to the ground he could see his shadow.
Only it did not look like the humanoid form of his wendigo form.
It looked...birdlike.
He realized he was slowing down.
He looked left, then right.
His arms were wings, with feathers as black as a storm cloud.
Not too long ago Michael told him during his trials that Jacob had yet to tap into his full power. Jericho himself had hinted there was more to Jacob's power then everyone assumed.
Now he was starting to understand.
There were mutants who could turn into animals, some could assume more then one the day he turned, Jacob had only assumed the wendigo form because it was all he needed when he fought that bear.
He had needed a form that was vicious and deadly and quick on its feet.
It was not until this moment that he needed something that could fly.
With a beat of his wings he soared into the sky.
There was a tingling sensation coming from his wings.
Electricity was surging around his feathers. He could feel it circulating all over his body.
You were right, Grandad, the old stories were right, Jacob thought to himself.
He was also thinking he was going to have to come up with a new codename because Kid Wendigo wasn't going to cut it now.
He flew up into the sky and every time his wings flapped it made a sound like thunder.
He flew towards Storm and the others. At first they did not hear him because of the thunder clouds Storm had summoned to battle the Infinites.
But Jacob let out a war cry which in his avian form was a shrill shriek that drew attention to him.
"What the hell is that?" Cannonball asked.
"I don't know, but it looks pissed," Sunspot said.
A group of Infinites flew towards Jacob, firing their guns and cannons.
But he merely flapped his wings and arcs of electricity flew forth and vaporized the Infinites.
"Well, guess whatever it is, it's friendly," Storm said.
"Friendly to us you mean," Cannonball corrected.

Down below on Utopia, Wolverine looked up to see the giant bird in the sky.
"What the hell is that?" he asked.
He saw it was only attacking Infinites so he decided to worry about it later.
Colossus, Dust, and Armor had joined him to help take down X-23.
But even with their help she was proving to be quite the handful.
She slashed at Dust, but she was mostly in her sand form so the attack did nothing to hurt her.
"Snap out of it, Laura!" she begged her friend.
Colossus wrapped his arms around X-23, keeping her from moving, but she stabbed him in the shins with the blades on her feet.
He let out a cry of pain and his grip loosened enough for her to escape his hold.
She brought her hand up as Colossus raised his hands to shield himself, but her claws still cut deep into his forearms.
Blood flowed from his wounds; adamantium was one of the few substances which could cut through his armored skin.
But he ignored the pain and the blood and brought his foot up and kicked her in the gut sending her flying back. He felt a couple of her ribs break. But he knew her healing and her pain threshold rivaled Wolverine's and a few broken ribs would not slow her down.
But it gave Armor the time she needed to slam her into the ground.
"I got her!" she said.
"Allow me to help," Guardian said flying down.
"Franziska? What are you doing here?" Armor asked.
"We heard Utopia was under attack and came to help."
"The bird with you?" Wolverine asked pointing up to the sky.
"Apparently Jacob has learned a new trick," she said using her power to scan the beast's mind.
She focused on X-23; she entered her mind to see what the damage to her brain was.
"God, I don't know what was done to her but I can't fix her myself. All I am getting are images and-"
She froze. One of the images floating in her mind was when she was strapped to a table with Sinister hovering over her, preparing to operate on her.
She looked to the side to see Blut standing there with a smile on his face.
"Oh no," Guardian whispered, realizing the truth.
Devin was a lot of things.
Stubborn being one of them.
So where most people might lie down after having their feet impaled and their chest slashed, he would rather drag himself to the medical bay and get patched up.
That's right, he dragged himself from the control room to the med bay.
He refused to give up. Even with the pain in his chest and how tired he felt, he knew if he didn't get some help he was dead.
He was still was losing blood and knew he would bleed out before anyone found him.
As he made his way to the med bay his mind thought back to a time before he was a mutant.
A time when he couldn't walk at all.
His dad used to joke that Devin was born running right out of his mother's womb.
The day he was born had been so sudden; they had no time to get to the hospital; they had to deliver him in the house.
Then when he learned to crawl he was like hell on wheels, zooming around the house, chasing after his brothers and knocking them to the ground.
Devin was always close to his brothers. They took after their father. Austin had his serious side and Harley inherited his quiet and calm nature.
But then again Harley had been born mute so he didn't have a choice about being quiet.
Devin took after his mom. He was the goofball, the one who could not help but throw caution to the wind and get in all sorts of trouble.
He could frustrate his brothers with his hyperactive behavior but they always looked after him. And Devin loved them.
So when he was diagnosed with cerebral palsy at age seven and had to be confined to a wheelchair, the whole family came together to give him all the love and support he needed.
It was a tough time for Devin. He loved to run and was always energetic, so being forced to sit in a wheelchair was like his own private hell.
Austin knew how much he hated the chair. He would carry Devin on his shoulders; if Devin wanted to go somewhere, Austin was more than happy to carry him.
Austin could be serious and a bit stuffy, but no one ever dared say he didn't care for his family. He helped Devin work out, helped him burn the energy that would build up inside him.
Even when Devin felt like giving up, when the depression would eat at him, Austin was there to lend him strength; he was the shoulder he needed to cry on, or to patiently calm Devin when he was having a tantrum when the anger got to be too much.
Devin had a special relationship with Harley though, being born mute and having to speak with his hands, they understood the pain of being born with a disease that took something special from you.
Harley even taught Devin Morse code so when Devin's condition made it too difficult for him to speak he could just tap what he was trying to say.
Then when Devin was ten, a miracle happened.
He and his brothers became mutants.
It was unusual for siblings to manifest at the same time, and at different ages as well.
Austin had experienced a serious growth spurt and things he gripped had a bad habit of breaking.
Harley began to sense the emotions of others and items would randomly fly around him when he was feeling emotional (and with an empath that was a lot).
Unlike most parents, the Annables were proud of their sons for their mutations. Their mother especially thought it was cool as now they could properly do their chores without complaint.
But they decided it was best to keep this quiet. They knew others in their town would discriminate against their children. Since neither of them had manifested anything physical it was easy to keep things a secret and they played Austin's growth spurt off as a hormonal deficiency.
Now at eighteen and 7'8, he towered over his family.
At first it seemed like only his older brothers had developed powers. Devin was happy for them, but at the same time he had hoped he would develop a power as well.
But when you gain the power of super-speed you have to actually move to use it.
Devin did not realize he had this power until the day his family went to the county fair. Devin had been showing improvement with his speech and they decided to celebrate.
His mother and brothers went on the Ferris wheel while his dad and he went to go get some ice cream.
His dad seated him at a picnic table while he went to go get the ice cream.
Devin watched the people around him. He tried not to feel bitter as he watched all the people walking, not truly understanding how lucky they were.
Devin never really knew what it meant to be envious until he got stuck in the chair.
Sure he felt envy for kids who had the newest video game or a new bike. It was human nature to want the best.
But sadly, even adults take for granted the simple things. And it wasn't until he lost the use of his legs he learned to truly appreciate them.
Devin refused to feel bitter; he refused to let such emotions weigh him down. He would not let the disease ruin him.
A pair of kids a little older then him ran by. They were a rude pair, bumping into many people and not even bothering to slow down or apologize.
Devin watched them disdainfully. If he or his brothers acted like that, his mother would tan their hides.
So ignorant of anything but their own game, they slammed into one man who just happened to be at the knife throwing booth.
In hindsight, having such a dangerous game at a crowded area was probably not a wise move.
Just as the man had been about to toss his knife, the idiot kids slammed into him, causing his body to shift as he threw the knife and instead of heading for the target, it flew through the air heading for Devin's father who was walking back to his son with their ice cream.
A little later Devin would replay the events back in his head to understand what had happened. Because sometimes things can happen too fast for us to understand.
Devin realized the danger his father was in, in a moment when the world seems to slow down as an inevitable catastrophe was about to take place and all he could do was watch, Devin acted on pure instinct.
Leaping from his chair, his legs filled with more power than a bronco, he ran for his dad, neither caring that he was too far away or that his legs should not even be working.
There was only panic and a sense of urgency.
Devin ran into his dad sending them both to the ground, and a second later the knife hit a tree with a loud thud.
His father was confused; he didn't understand what had happened. He didn't know that his life had just been in danger.
He stood up and bent down to pick Devin up. But to his immense surprise Devin stood all on his own.
The rest of the family quickly made their way over. Harley was sensing odd emotions and knew something was wrong.
They asked what had happened and of course why Devin was walking, but their father quickly ushered them away to the car, well aware of the whispers of the growing crowd.
Devin kept running his hands up and down his legs as if he was afraid they would once again become inert. They did not speak until they got home.
Once they walked inside their home, they sat down in the living room (Devin instead stood), and talked about what happened.
Devin decided to show them what he could do and began to run around the room, laughing with joy as his speed created powerful gusts of wind.
Harley had to use his telekinesis to lift him up in the air to keep him from running.
It was the happiest day of Devin's life! Not only could he walk again, but he could run faster than ever now.
Devin knew a thing or two about pain. He knew what it was like to struggle, to be seen by others as being broken or weak.
But he wasn't broken and he wasn't weak. Not now and not then.
He would not give up, he would not give in!
He dragged himself to the med-bay, even though his chest screamed in agony and blood loss threatened to send him to a slumbering death.
He crawled to the nearest table, and gritting his teeth he lifted himself up onto it.
The pain in his chest and feet was terrible and he didn't know how much longer he could keep his eyes open.
"A-A-Activate emergency...protocols," he wheezed.
The table lit up.
"Please state the nature of the medical emergency," a robotic voice says.
Unlike Eve, who was a sophisticated AI and would immediately begin to control Ark's devices to heal Devin, the minor AI which was designed in case something happened to Eve needed to be given instructions to operate.
"S-S-Scan and repair...damage," Devin gasped.
The whole table lit up and a 3D image of Devin appeared floating above him like a ghost.
"Severe blood loss detected, body in risk of going into shock. Several lacerations to the feet and a major laceration to the chest. Suggest immediate sealing and blood replacement."
"Do it!" Devin cried with all the energy he had.
Several mechanical arms appeared from the side of the table.
One of them stuck an IV into his arm which began to pump artificial blood into him. The last thing he saw before the darkness finally claimed him was of the mechanical arms descending on him.
He could already feel them working on his feet and he hoped to God he wouldn't feel the pain when he passed out.

"DIE!" Archangel yelled.
He fired a barrage of feathers at Seraph who used his spear to block each attack.
"Enough, Warren!"
Seraph threw a sphere of angel fire at Archangel who raised his wings to shield himself.
"You can't kill me with such a weak attack!" he growled.
The sphere turned into a net-like form and wrapped around him.
"Who said anything about killing?" Seraph asked.
"You dare restrain me with such a weak power?!" Archangel roared.
"Can't be so weak if it is keeping you down, Warren," Cyclops said.
"There is no Warren! There is only Death!"
Betsy walked up to him. She summoned her psy-dagger and stabbed him in the head. He screamed in pain and passed out.
"What happened?" Seraph asked. "I thought Warren broke free of Apocalypse?"
"What do you know of Apocalypse?" Cyclops asked sharply.
Seraph quickly told them about finding Blut and what he told them.
"This doesn't make sense. Why attack us though?" Cyclops asked.
"We figured Apocalypse thinks we're still with the X-Men so that is why he attacked Utopia," Seraph explained.
"If they are looking for Blut then why are they not looking for him?" Psylock asked. "Looks to me like they are just picking a fight. They are not actively trying to seek out anyone."
"Where is Blut now?" Cyclops asked.
"Back at the Ark with Devin and Jericho," Seraph said.
"Look out!" Psylock yelled.
They ran out of the way as Holocaust fell from the sky. He was being attacked by the combined efforts of Skald, Rockslide, and Kenji who had created more grotesque spider-like creatures to fight.
A mini-twister flew towards Seraph and when it stopped spinning Tazmin stood with Anole and Match, while Transonic flew down carrying Indra.
"I think I am going to be sick," Anole said looking ill.
Match lacked his resolve and spewed a steady stream of flaming vomit.
"Oh God!" Anole cried and threw up.
"It's worse than being teleported by Nightcrawler!" Match groaned wiping his mouth.
Holocaust blasted Rockslide and Kenji's creations disintegrating them again, and then he began to drain Kenji and Skald of their life-force.
Seraph summoned two ropes and threw them at the pair and with all his strength pulled them away from the abomination before he could kill them.
Seraph placed his hands on the two and began to heal them.
Rockslide was already reforming right next to the group, grinning happily.
"You have a lot of nerve attacking us, Holocaust," Cyclops growled.
"I am the son of Apocalypse. I do as I please!" Holocaust seethed.
Archangel finally woke up and broke free of his net.
He stood up and spread his wings.
"My God, what happened to Warren?" Tazmin asked looking at her former teacher in horror.
"For some reason he's returned to being Archangel," Psylock said glumly.
Just then Holocaust heard Sinister speaking through the communicator built in his suit.
"We have what we want. Return to base," he said.
"Understood. Come Death, we must return to Father."
"No! They must die!" Archangel seethed.
"We have our orders. We'll deal with them later," Holocaust said.
"You're not going anywhere," Cyclops said.
There was a flash of light and both Archangel and Holocaust were gone.
They all looked up and saw the Infinites were vanishing in a similar flash of light.
"Okay, two questions," Cyclops said. "First, why did Apocalypse attack us?"
"And why the bloody hell is there a giant bird flying in the sky?" Psylock asked.
-Michael!-
-Franziska?-
-We have been fooled. We made a terrible mistake. We need to get back to the Ark. I can't get in contact with Eve. Blut is working for Apocalypse. X-23 is still here and I have been trying to scan her mind, and I can see now Blut was sent to infiltrate us. They wanted Jericho!-

Devin opened his eyes.
He slowly sat up.
Both his chest and feet were healed.
He slowly moved his legs off the table. They felt just fine.
"D-Devin."
"Eve?" Devin asked looking around expecting to see her hologram form.
"Re...damage...should be...back on...glad...alive."
Devin stood up.
"Can you get in contact with the others?" Devin asked.
"Commi...still...own..."
"How can I help?" Devin asked.
"Assist...nes...in...ore..."
Devin understood what she meant.
He ran down to the maintenance room. The drones who were responsible for maintaining the Ark were already in the middle of fixing the damage.
They were creepy silver mannequin-like machines with no faces.
Devin thought they kind of looked like the Cybermen from Doctor Who.
They were like the Ark's anti-bodies, fixing any damage and protecting them from harm.
Devin made the mistake of antagonizing one once for giggles.
But they were horrifically fast, moving so fast they seemed to teleport, and one had caught Devin before he managed to run too far. Had it not been for Eve stopping it, it would have crushed his head like a grape.
But now they were fighting the blood that had infected the Ark's main systems.
Every time they tried to clean it the blood would spring to life and attack them.
Devin had an idea so he ran back to the med-bay and searched through their inventory until he found what he was looking for.
Anticoagulant.
He grabbed several vials and grinned.
"Alright, my time to shine!"
Fusedtwilight: Hope you all enjoyed the chapter.
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Angel In The Attic