Marvel Genesis: Wolverine, Chapter 24- X-Force

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Rated M for Mature

Appropriate for readers 18 and over. May contain extreme violence, sexual themes, nudity, or profanity.

Note- This series takes place after the events of Project X: The Birth of Wolverine.

Marvel Genesis: Wolverine, Chapter 24- X-Force

Year- 2005 A.D.

Location- D.A.G.G.E.R. Headquarters, Egypt.

Nick Fury told me that I’ll be leadin’ a new team of other mutants. I had the same team before, ever since General Hudson told me to recruit the new Team X. Now, I wonder what kind of mutants they are. There’s no tellin’ how they will act or listen to my orders.

I checked the files about their history and powers. I had to do it first, so I could get some information from them. The information was secret if ya ask me. Nick Fury had all the secrets and yet, he doesn’t spill out much. I don’t know such secrets, which were kept hidden from the old man. Sometimes, I had to ask him, just to be curious about it. But the old man still didn’t wanna listen to me. He had other things on his mind like savin’ the world and makin’ sure that we do the right job. Tony Masters also knew the information. I can sure ask him. But Tony was ordered not to expose the information to me.

I came to a room where an agent sat besides the table. He was none other than Phil Coulson, the man who worked with Nick Fury in the past. I heard he was a better tactician. His almost, clean shaven head made it look like he never had hair before. The black suit, he wore as if he came from a spy agency or the government. Sometimes, he wore black glasses, just to make himself to look cool.

“Hello Logan,” Phil Coulson said. “I was expecting you.”

Sure, he was expectin’ me. Nick told me that Phil would show me my team and discuss the mission. Phil used to work for the government until he got transferred to D.A.G.G.E.R. He had the skills of a soldier, the man with the guns, and the bloody fights against the enemy forces in the war. He did serve war in Afghanistan.

Phil got up from his seat and motioned me to stare at the glass window. The glass window shows another room where the team members won’t able to see us. I looked through the window and saw five members of my new team. Some of them sat on their chairs, the others stood, as if they were waitin’ for someone to arrive. Well, Nick must have told them that, or Phil Coulson. It doesn’t matter. I looked back at Phil, wonderin’ if this was the team.

“This is it?” I asked. Phil smiled, which made me think that it’s a yes. He looked at the members of the team and said, “Yes, Logan. They are all you’ve got.”

“I see,” I said. I looked at each member of the team. The first one was Neena Thurman also known as Domino. She had that white skin with a black spot stuck on her left eye. She wore a black suit similar as the Black Widow, except she didn’t have red hair. She was an excellent marksman, a sharp shooter, and the skills of a soldier. She had the mutant ability to cause good or bad luck when attackin’ her enemies at close range. I wondered about that, whether she’s gonna give us bad luck on our upcomin’ mission. I didn’t wanna think about it. But I’m pretty sure she wouldn’t do it by purpose or accident. Her luck powers could come in handy durin’ the mission. I heard about her past missions, when she used to infiltrate an enemy organization called the Leviathan. Accordin’ to her reports, he used her luck powers to cause the entire army of soldiers to simply drop their weapons or fall down on their feet as if they acted stupid. It was an easy mission for her, but it wasn’t easy to control her powers. She had to do it in close range; otherwise, she wouldn’t able to succeed in her past mission. After that, she became a bounty hunter huntin’ criminals for money. Then, she was brought back to D.A.G.G.E.R. and joined with Nick Fury again to see that their enemies could be stopped, once and for all.

The other one was Telford Porter also known as Vanisher. The funny thing about him is that he could vanish or teleport anywhere around the world, whether its close distance or a far one. He never wanted to join D.A.G.G.E.R. in the first place. He was more like a thief like Remy LeBeau. He could get out easily, just pop outta here and disappear, so that we couldn’t find him. But he couldn’t get out after one of the scientists designed a device that prevented him from usin’ his teleportation ability. He had those black tattoos smeared across his eyes and the rest of his face. He must also have the tattoos on his body, which I couldn’t see, since he wore clothes. His powers were proved valuable because he could teleport from one place to another. He had to think of that place, so we could reach that destination together. His powers were similar as Nightcrawler of the X-Men, except the Vanisher didn’t look like a devil and had no tail from his back. He stood there behind the wall, probably wonderin’ when he’s gonna get out of that hidden room.

The third member of the team, Joshua Foley looked young. His codename was Elixir. He had a golden skin, which made people would think that he’s some sort of a treasure for keeps. But he ain’t like that. He had the power to heal wounds or injuries. I’m pretty sure he didn’t have the healin’ factor himself. However, he could heal the wounds by himself with the use of his golden hands. I read about his brief history of what actually happened to him. Before he had the golden skin, he was just an ordinary human back in his hometown, until his healin’ power got manifested. People were amazed to see that power and thought it came from God. There were Christians livin’ in the small community. Joshua’s foster parents were happy to see this and also thought that God gave Joshua the special gift. However, Joshua accidentally killed an injured man while tryin’ to heal him. That day became worse for Joshua as he was casted out as a devil. His foster parents even resented him. Joshua ran away from his home. Durin’ that time, Joshua underwent a secondary mutation that turned his entire skin into gold. There was no explanation of why it did happen. I heard he wanted to join the X-Men after findin’ out the team rescued humans from bad mutants even if they hated mutants. But Joshua turned his back away from the X-Men, whatever the reason is. Then he was found by Nick Fury to offer a position to stay in D.A.G.G.E.R. He had to undergo some trainin’ so that he could control his healin’ powers without killin’ anyone in the process. He did it for numerous times until he was accepted to participate in a secret mission. He had to join with the other agents to stop bad guys from takin’ over the world. Whenever the agents get shot or injured, Joshua comes to their aid and heals their injuries. So far, he didn’t kill any agent by accident, which is a good thing.

The other member, James Proudstar looked like he was well-built as much as a strong wrestler. He used to be a mercenary just like his older brother, John Proudstar. After their village got destroyed by a powerful being, the Great Beast, they became dangerous mercenaries. The codenames of both brothers were called Warbird and Thunderbird. They had similar powers such as super-strength, limited flight, and great speed. Most of the time, they rely on their weapons such as daggers or knives to cut through the enemy’s skin. They went on a mission in Somalia to kill some drug dealers. However, the brothers were both attacked by a band of cyborg mercenaries called the Reavers. The Reavers killed John Proudstar leavin’ his younger brother behind, left for dead. That was the time when James was found by Nick Fury to join his organization. James Proudstar changed his former codename to Warpath as a reminder of revenge. I can see he looked angry enough to kill the cyborg b@$t@rd$. He held both sharp, army knives in his hands, grippin’ them tightly, probably hopin’ to find those half tin-cans and kill them.

The last member of the team was mysterious. He had no real name, yet his codename was Fantomex. He didn’t talk much. But whenever he talks to ladies, that is the time we see him havin’ a delightful conversation. He did speak a little last time even when it comes to men or a group of people. His powers also came in handy. He had the ability to cast illusions and distract certain enemies. It’s more like Domino’s luck powers. But there was no luck in it. He also has the ability to hypnotize enemies, tellin’ them what to do. His past was a shady one. I can’t seem to dig this guy yet. He wore a white mask, which turns out to be some protection from telepaths. Besides, usin’ his powers, he carries two guns on his hands. He was proved as an excellent marksman.

“Are you going to talk with them?” Phil Coulson asked, finally interrupted my silence.

“Yea...pretty much,” I said. “I came here to discuss the mission. Right?”

Phil Coulson didn’t say anythin’ about it. But of course, he knew that. He smiled as always like a happy clown who thinks everythin’ will be alright. I went away from him, entered the other side of the room, and closed the door from behind. The team saw me as if they had not known or met me for the first time. I’m pretty sure they heard about the Wolverine.

“Okay, folks,” I said. “It’s time to discuss our mission.”

Nobody in the team said anythin’ yet, especially the silent-type Fantomex, who kept starin’ at me like some dog walkin’ out from a neighbour’s house.

“You’re the one whom they call Wolverine. Aren’t you?” Domino said, givin’ out a smile.

“Yea...That’s me,” I answered. “You all know the mission, right?”

There was still silence in the room. Sometimes, I wonder how I’m gonna deal with them if they don’t say a d@mn word.

“So...What’s the mission?” Vanisher asked, finally broke the silence.

I pulled out a device and laid it on a table. I turned on the small button, which made the device produced a holographic image of Dr. Strange, the Sorcerer Supreme.

Everyone stared at the image for the moment. It’s like they haven’t met the most, powerful sorcerer yet, which is true. They wonder what kind of mission he was goin’ to tell them. The last time, he left for his home; he told me he recorded a message for me, so that I could discuss the mission with the other members of my team.

“Hello. My name is Dr. Stephen Strange,” the sorcerer said through his recorded message. “I wanted to let you know that this mission will be dangerous for you. You are about to embark on a long journey to find Dr. Doom’s evil magic, the Ring Imperial. His magic was transferred to someone else. That someone is also a sorcerer.”

“What the heck?” The Vanisher said. “This guy must be crazy.”

“Shh...” Domino said. “Listen...”

“You must be wondering why I have not come to join your quest. I am reserving my magic energy at all costs; this is why I could not risk myself to combat another dangerous sorcerer.”

“Hmm...” Warpath said. “This guy has a good point. Very, indeed.”

“I must say this...” the sorcerer continued. “There is an item, which I have given to Logan in order to contain the dark magic without killing the other sorcerer.”

I picked up a red object from my pocket, which shaped like a piece of rock and showed it to the team. They stared at it for a while and then looked back at Dr. Strange.

“That object will help to capture the sorcerer. It’s called the Crimson Stone. However, you must allow the object to come close to the other sorcerer.”

“Is this message recorded?” Elixir spoke for the first time.

“Yea...It is,” I said. “Just listen, kid.”

“I used all my powers to track this sorcerer who is now holding the Ring Imperial in her hands. She is very powerful.”

“She?” Fantomex said with wonder. I kinda knew he was goin’ to speak up when someone like Dr. Strange referred to a woman.

“Her name is Selene,” the sorcerer continued. “She’s also a mutant.”

“What?” Warpath said, sounded surprised. “Selene?” Everyone looked at him with a surprised look.

“You know her?” Domino asked, turnin’ towards him.

“Know her?” Warpath said. “I’ve met her once. My brother and I tried to defeat her. But we’ve failed. It’s just like Dr. Strange said. She is powerful.”

“Hmm...” Fantomex said. “I liked to see what she’s made of.”

“Now, you’re talking,” Domino said with another smile.

“There is also another thing you should know,” Dr. Strange said. I recalled this message. I was the first person to see this before I had to make a discussion with my new team. What he was about to say next, I didn’t like the sound of it.

“She used the Ring Imperial to raise an army of the dead.”

The rest of the team almost froze like statues, which they couldn’t believe of what Strange has just said to them.

“I know it sounds complicated and risky,” Dr. Strange said. “But that is exactly why you need to go on this mission and capture Selene. I have tracked the location where you can find her. The location is Rome. I hope your mission goes well. Farewell and good luck.” The recorded message ended.

I took the device away from the table, waitin’ for any member to say anythin’ at the moment. So far, there were none.

“Got any questions?” I asked.

“I got a question,” Elixir said.

“Yea...what is it?” I asked.

“When do we get to leave?”

“We’ll leave right now,” I said, lookin’ at Vanisher. “Telford, take us to Rome.”

To be continued in Marvel Genesis: Wolverine, Chapter 25- The Rising Dead, Part 1.

Holy Smokes! An army of the dead? How will the X-Force mange to handle this one, not to mention they also have to face the mutant sorcerer, Selene. Find out what will happen in the next chapter of Wolverine. I ain’t wanna smell and eat the rotten meat, bub. SNIKT!

Edited.