Torch Bearer 3 (Raw)

Part 3

(Jean Grey)



July 16th, 1999
Salem
Bayville
Xavier School for the Gifted
Cerebro room

Jean Grey walked up on the huge ramp leading to the terminal at the end of it. The redhead walked up to the man wearing the strange helmet before the terminal. He had his eyes closed in concentration. With a sigh of frustration he took off his helmet and put it on its pedestal.

"Did you find her professor?" Jean asked her mentor.

The man was bald and handicapped as he was on a wheelchair. He turned to look at the young woman. "I did for a time. But somehow she… disappeared from my senses, as if she was being hidden."

"Was it Mystique who collected her?" Jean said in anger, she didn't like the shape-shifting bitch one iota.

The professor dismissed that thought. "No, she's not powerful enough to do this, but the man she works for… might be."

Jean frowned, the professor kept the identity of the Brotherhood's leader against his chest once more. When will he open up? Jean was getting impatient, withholding this information from his student was foolhardy.

BEEP-BEEP-BEEP!!! The professor put back the helmet when Cerebro notified them it detected another mutant.

"Another mutant professor?" Jean asked, excited.

She liked those moments when another powered person was discovered. The mansion was getting crowded though…

Professor Xavier replied, "No, it's still the same young Lady, but… she's in the Queens and… training."

Jean frowned, the girl had no control of her power the last time she heard what she was doing? "What?"

Xavier described what Rogue was doing. "She's draining animals of their vitality."

Kzzzzt! The console sparked and then exploded in the professor's face.

Bam! Booom! Krrrrrrr. Krrrrrrr.

Just in time, Jean protected the old man by wrapping him in a telekinetic shield. "Professor!"

The console began sparking and the helmet melted. Jean looked astonished and horrified by what just happened,"Sir. What just happened?!"

Xavier said with a small voice, "Someone ejected me from the area with a psionic blast, sent me back to my body,.. and destroyed Cerebro."

The young redhead nodded and when she looked up she saw… "Professor… there's something etched on the panels…"

Engraved on the metal panels of he Cerebro chambers was written:

BACK THE FUCK OFF MY GIRL, BALDY.

Xavier stared at the message and said, "Message received…"

# # #

Back with Kisara
July 24th, 1999

"In brightest day, in blackest night.

No evil shall escape my sight.

Beware my power--Green Lantern's light!"

I spoke the oath out loud as I stood before Anna-Marie and Felicia. A backdraft was created as I activated my power ring; my new costume appeared, replacing my mundane clothing.



My girl, Felicia, made me a Black Cat-esque Green Lantern armor, and it looked like the one from the Spider-Man game on PS4. It was a cool game…

"No way, it should be illegal to be that hot!" Anna-Marie exclaimed.

My face went nuclear as they continued to praise me. Felicia in particular as she said, "I know right? She's been like that since day one when we met, too sexy for her own good."

I scratched behind my head. "Girls... this is getting embarrassing…"

Felicia chuckled. "See how she blushed? She does that all the time if I show some skin."

"Well I kinda understand her. Your skin is perfect. No blemish, no pimples or scars… how do you do it?" Rogue, Anna-Marie added as she ignored my plea for mercy.

My girlfriend put on a mysterious smile. "Good genetics."

Now I was getting jealous of the two's chemistry; Anna-Marie and Felicia were really acting like they were best friends or something. With a shrug, I raised in the air and went supersonic when I reached the stratosphere. I avoided any flight inbound and used my light bending trick to avoid being spotted by any telescope or satellite. There was something I wished to try with the Power Ring and I couldn’t do it on Earth.

“You'll really do it?” Cortana appeared on my right shoulders.

I nodded as I arrived into orbit, 547 km from the surface of the Earth. It was far enough for what I wanted to do. “Yes, I have the image in my head, even the parts and system.”

The Smart AI disappeared and started something in the ring. “I will be there if you fuck up.” Cortana said helpfully.

It was reassuring that she was my safety net… I hovered over the North American continent while building the mobile suit inside my mind with certain technologies designed to make the humanoid weapon into something deadlier.



I was really happy that my smartphone files were preserved, I have all that music and data for my writing.

Anti-gravity engine, ion thrusters, voiture lumière propulsion, arc reactor… variable phase shift armor. The armament consisted of everything Zaft had loaded in it, railguns and beam cannons… I am basically following the strike freedom spec-sheet right now. But I added a better version of the ZERO system like in Gundam wing that Cortana came up with.

The ZERO system analyzes a given situation based on the massive amounts of data collected by its various sensors, then transmits multiple possible responses, as well as the results, directly into the pilot's brain. In other words, it shows the pilots the actions necessary in order to achieve victory. Cortana would basically connect with me mentally, well more than she does right now.

It was time to see if my power ring could manifest my Gundam construct. At first the construct didn't manifest at all, forcing me to review the schematics in my mind and computer.

I needed this tech for the time I will be fighting invasion forces and the cursed bots from the sentinel program. Cortana found that they were in development and I refused to let it be born! As if responding to my will, I was wrapped in green light and found myself in a cockpit.

"No way, it really worked!" I shouted in joy.

Cortana manifested an avatar on the holo-prpjector of the dashboard that I built for her. She looked at me as if I was a puzzle that she needed to solve as she said, "Kisara, sometimes you scare me, this construct shouldn't be possible for you to manifest… and yet you've done it."

I dismissed what she just said, I have a fucking power ring! "Nothing is impossible, just harder to do. With a power ring it is just a matter of will."

The smart AI sighed and then asked, "Are you going to build a real world version?"

I tilted my head. "Should I?"

The benefits outweigh the cons, I could even boast about it in Japan. Cortana nodded and answered me with, "Well yes, but not right now."

Yeah, I was still trying to revolutionize basic science. I wanted to pilot my new construct anyway. I seized the joysticks on the armrests. "Let’s get this show on the road!"

The voiture lumière system activated and the wings of the Strike Freedom unfolded. Thrust started to push me toward the moon. "Woohoo!"

# # #

(Ghost-Spider)

There was one more girl that joined the group in the Cygnus Industries building in Astoria. Gwen looked at them thanks to her binoculars, she had just seen Kisara fly into space and this broke her understanding of what the girl was capable of.

Now, Gwen doubted that she could take her on if she could do that kind of bullshit. The spider-girl was thinking about breaking in but this seemed to be a bad idea, even more so when she noticed the intense green shimmer around the building when some birds and cats attempted to enter the premises.

A force-field? When did Gwen land in a science fiction movie? Kisara Lawson was an alien! It's the only credible explanation...

Gwen didn't notice how she ignored vigilante work all the time now to spy on Kisara. The young woman was also strange, when she went outside she always attracted the attention of everyone around her.

# # #

Back with Kisara…
July 26th, 1999
Roof of Cygnus Industries building

The summer sun beat down on me while I was on the roof of my building. The heat was bothering me a bit, but I held on. I was in my work clothes that consisted of my overalls, t-shirt, and security boots. I didn't need any tools as I used my power ring like one.

I am now building a sensor array; the device is going to occupy part of the roof. The sensor dish will be placed on the side, next to the water cistern; with this I should be able to check on what's in orbit or around the building. With this device, I should be able to notice spies or incoming threats.

Using my power ring to lift all the heavy parts, I started welding them together. It didn't take more than 2 hours to set up the sensor dish and connect it to the fusion reactor that I've recently built.



Before the device came online, Cortana started a battery of tests on it.

"Sensor grid boot up sequence…"

"Calibration tests…"

This continued for one minute, until Cortana announced, "Sensor online, Kisara."

I smiled as I manifested the holo-screen connected to the sensor dish and started the program to monitor my surroundings. "Thank you, Cortana."

But my AI wasn't done as she said, "We may need to code a new patch for stuff the sensors shouldn't report about."

"Why?" I was bemused by her proposal.

Cortana reported, "The sensors are too sensitive, I can see the colonies of ants around us…"

Oh, yeah she was right, there were three colonies of ants in the garden and a bunch of rats in the shed next to my home. I could see it on my holo-screen. "Ah."

I closed the holo-screen and decided to leave the programming to my AI. Because next, I would be building my own satellite spy network. I couldn’t stay blind to what was going on around me; being informed was also a form of protection.

I want to avoid the bullshit that always rolled downhill in New York; in the comics, the city was often destroyed or invaded by aliens or demons and I wanted none of that to happen to me, Felicia and I guess… Anna-Marie now that she joined us.

"We're done here, let's go to the workshop, I want to look through some of the stuff available in the Maltusian database." I said while I descended the stairs leading up to the sensor dish.

And the stairs led directly next to my small lab. I could easily research stuff here and store material in the store room that I renovated. The delivery system brought the materials or chemicals I wanted through a robotic system which sorted everything on the shelves or in the room. I kinda have an overabundance of vibranium that I've found in space for my own uses; and I intended to use it for my satellites.

Before I could even enter the lab, I was caught by Felicia who pulled me against her. "Sara, you're working too much…"

"But kitten…" I was about to refuse.

But she looked rather vulnerable right now, instead of the confident and smug Felicia that I know. "Please? I want cuddles…"

My arms tightened around her and I asked in an even voice, "Did something happen?"

"Yes…" She answered.

I took her to my lab and we sat on the couch… I made her lay on it, and used my thighs as pillows for her head. Then she told me what was happening and I didn't like it. That Ryan guy who almost raped her was out on bail thanks to his rich dad. The guy had come to harass her again on campus with his boys to surround her. Lucky for Felicia some of her friends defended her and were about to call the cops.

"We must do something about that guy…" I said in a cold calculating way.

"I have had enough of trying to dodge him, I want it to be him who dodge me." Felicia said with seriousness.

That is how I found myself on the phone with Matt Murdock and asking him to take care of the Ryan problem for me. I even gave him the recording of Felicia’s almost unfortunate night -with her permission- and asked him to make the guy suffer.

I didn't get to continue my work in the lab that day… Felicia took me to bed and we cuddled for hours.

# # #

The next day…

09 : 47 AM

The next day, I found the strength to extricate myself from my comfy bed and my girlfriend's warm body. I looked at her sleepy face and made a sigh, at least my lawyer was taking care of the problems related to her. I took a shower and brushed my teeth, put my sportswear, and hair into a ponytail and walked to my new tenants apartment on the third floor.

Today was training day with Anna-Marie, we were going to have a little run around the block, eat something at the nearest Cafe and return to use the lab rats to train her powers.

I arrived before Anna-Marie's door and rang the bell; a vestige of the building's previous utility. I had six other rooms like this that were ready to be lived in; Felicia wanted to get one of them. That was stupid, she could just come live with me, I have so much space that I don't know what to do with it.

Hearing footsteps behind the door I heard Anna-Marie's voice, "Coming!"

She suddenly opened the door and I found her wearing a green sports bra, black leggings and white and green Nike sport shoes. Her hair was tied in a short ponytail. "I see that you're ready."

"Well yeah, ah take my trainin' seriously." She drawled with her southern Belle accent.

I put a hand on her shoulder, protected as I was from her vampiric touch thanks to my force-field generated power ring and I said, "I'm proud of you. Come on, let's go."

We left the building and stretched in the garden, Anna-Marie mimicked me while we went thoroughly through each muscle group. She had a blushing face as she watched me stretch. After ten minutes we passed the iron gates and ran toward the direction of Astoria boulevard.

We stopped not too far from a diner where we took five minutes to drink water and start doing push ups and abs in turn. Then we took off again until we were next to the Fairfield inn and this is where things went to shit…

There was an armored bank van accompanied by two SUVs passing us by on the road and… suddenly some guy in a bulky gray armored armor with a rhino horse on his head ran toward the SUV in the front and rammed into it. The scream of metal being compressed and the shock sent the suv crashing into the armored van behind it.

But this wasn't the end, some guy in a green costume with a gold lightning pattern appeared and walked up behind the second SUV and fired a bolt of lightning at it, targeting the tires that he flash melted. I had no doubt that he electrocuted the people inside at the same time.

Anna-Marie pulled me by the arm and made me run to hide behind a black sedan as she had seen the guys in black military gear and ski mask exit the bank van and they were packing heat. So much so that Cortana gave information about what they had on them.

"G&P M16 RAS Custom, MK3 hand grenade. Danger level is minimal." Cortana describes with a monotone voice.

"Eh, maybe not for me, but Anna is kind of squishy, Cortana." I held onto Anna-Marie tightly. I knew it, New York is so fucking dangerous!

"Nothing stops you from extending your forcefield." Was her biting answer.

The soldiers divided into two groups and started firing on the two would be robbers. The telltale of weapon fire continued and when I looked more attentively, I realized that they would be getting massacred. The dude in green and gold costume stopped the bullets by somehow creating an electromagnetic barrier that stopped the bullet in the air. Then he sent the ammo back at the same speed with his power, and some of the men fell dead.

Two of them threw grenades at the electrodude, who was suddenly thrown away on the asphalt; this caused his partner, the rhino guy to take the sedan Anna and I hid behind and throw it at the armed men. Anna started screaming and the rhino themed armored guy threw the car down; next he turned to us and he pushed me out of the way with a lot of strength. “Fucking little girls, get outta here!”

Crack. I felt pain in my right arm. “Argh!”

I held onto it and the HUD that my ring only allowed me to see showed that my arm was broken. Looking up at the man in rhino armor I yelled, “You bastard!”

Raising my left arm, I blasted him with a boxing glove shaped construct. He flew high and a second boxing glove slammed him in the ground by punching his entire body into the asphalt with the power of a freight train! With a grunt, the Rhino tried to get back on his feet until he slammed back on the ground as gravity suddenly turned up around him with my power ring.

He tried to stand up, but the cracks and crater forming where he laid face down showed that he couldn’t; the gravity was turned up to five times that of Earth. My eyes fell on Electro, reminding myself that his weakness is water and as a preventive measure I opened the nearest fire hydrant and sprayed him with the water that I directed toward him. This neutralized him for the time being.

Meanwhile, Cortana accessed the CCTV system and edited the footage and at the same time I put on my Green Lantern uniform with the mask. Kisara scanned the contents of the bank truck and found that only a suitcase cuffed to a man was present.

“It's safe, sir. I took care of the robbers.”

The man turned to me and looked at me; he put his arm around the suitcase and said, “With all due respect ma'am, I will stay inside the truck.”

“Fair enough I will call the police.” I said while subtly scanning the content of the suitcase. On my HUD, the contents of the suitcase were revealed to be a human genome enhancer supposed to enhance…. Basically everything: the human body and mind, grant immunity to any disease, illness, and poison known to man due to their bodies' ability to process it faster; lifespan is also slowed down.

*Hmm, I will have to test that in a simulation. Cortana, please schedule a test for later.*

“Acknowledged.”

After my discovery of the content of the truck; it was a mixture of police and national guard which came to secure the scene. When they arrived, I waved at them and… then activated the cloaking and left the scene. Anna-Marie, who was a smart cookie, had left the scene when the cops and military came in.

I found her three blocks away from the attack, she was waiting for me it seems. I landed next to her and deactivated the cloak. “Hey Anna.”

“Kisara! Are you alright?!” She came next to me, then I dropped the green Lantern uniform.

I immediately held onto my arm, and winced. “No… my arm is broken and it hurts a lot.”

Anna cursed. “Shit, let's go to the hospital!”

The young woman called a taxi, knowing full well that a trip in an ambulance would be expensive. This made me think that I needed to come up with some kind of invention to cure wounds and illnesses… then i thought about the super soldier serum, maybe finding how it's made was a blessing in disguise.

# # #

(Felicia Hardy)

Felicia didn't react well when she learned that Kisara was wounded when she went to a jogging session with Anna. The more she thought about it, the more she wanted to go find the rhino and deal with him permanently. But in the end she calmed down, not wanting to make Kisara cry; the blonde chose to become proactive and do something that stopped her girl from having to go outside and get hurt by some random villain attack.

When they were in bed, she asked Kisara, “Can't we buy gym equipment to make our own home gym? We have the space.”

Kisara seemed to think about it while playing with Felicia’s boobs. “Why not? In fact I should have done that from the start. Do you know anyone who could make a good gym for us, I will pay them for the consultancy.”

With a smile, Felicia said, “Hmm, yeah… Sara. I think it's time for you to meet my dad.”

Felicia laughed, the slight expression of fear on Kisara's face was cute to watch.