The Damned Brotherhood And Their Captain
That night, Charles dreamed with the future.
He saw himself on an endless corridor that felt familiar, oddly similar to the architecture of his own home but not quite the same. The tall walls were adorned with intrincate paintings of blurred faces, and every once in a few steps a large window would brighten the whole space with some natural light. He ventured to open the closest window, and the moment he touched the lock, his mind was shown glimpses of sceneries of what was to come. Charles didn’t know how, but he was certain of it.
That first window took Charkes to a cold night in a forest, inside a cabin he had never seen before, as he was frantically looking for something. But before he could learn more, his mind got sucked back into the hall. He sighed and walked to the next window and it showed him his Mansion, but he saw no one else there. It seemed abandoned, with dusty furniture and nets everywhere.
Charles walked through the halls for a while, and he sighed as he realized all windows looked exactly the same, with no indication of what hid behind. He dared to touch another one, and his mind was transported to the ship in the middle of a violent storm. He was fighting back to back with the same man he had identified the night before as the captain, defending themselves from a multiple-front attack of Royal Navy sailors. The ship shook when a colossal wave crashed down the deck with a loud explosion.
He woke up with a headache and a dry mouth, and it took him a moment to open his eyes. Charles found himself laying on a bed with some wool blankets on top of him, and noticed two soft pillows under his head when he sat up. He looked around the ship’s cabin, grateful the curtains were closed so his eyes didn’t struggled too much adjusting.
Charles stretched his back and let out a soft groan of relief, and when he took his right hand to his temple to try to read the ship again, he couldn’t feel the fog that blocked his abilities the night before. He counted ten minds, most of them younger than him. That’s when he realized he was not alone in that room. Charles quickly got off the bed and saw the captain sitting on a couch near him, with an annoying sneer on his face and both of his hands holding a cup of something that smelled like high quality tea. How dared his captor to enjoy such a delight as he layed unconsious after being assaulted.
“Good, you are awake. How do you feel? My apologies, I didn’t mean to hit you that hard, I just knew you were not leaving without a fight, and I was not having a fight with Azazel out. I sincerely hope you understand.” The man put the tea down on a short table and stood up, without getting any closer. “It is my understanding that your gift has something to do with the mind, am I right?”, he added, as Charles stood frozen before him. The last time someone he wasn’t familiar with confronted him about his abilities it had ended up badly, and the trauma response was building up quickly - and dangerously. But it only took one swipe with his mind to find genuine admiration where he expected judgement, tooking him by surprise.
“I-”, Charles started, but he stopped himself and sighed heavily. There was so much happening so fast that, if it wasn’t because he knew very well how a real mind’s presence feels, he would think he was still asleep. “I guess it is alright”, he said at last, “just don’t… Wait, what do you mean you did that? How could you, you were right before of me”, Charles inquired, a hint of a frown appearing on his face.
“I am like you”, the man simply stated, as if it was as obvious as water is wet and fire is hot. “We all are here, in The Brotherhood. You have been on my ship for the past…” The man did a pause and looked at a pendulum clock that was on the wall. “I’d say twelve hours. I am Captain Erik Lehnsherr.” Erik finally walked towards Charles and extended his hand looking for a handshake.
Charles’ face brightened and he smiled widely as he shook Erik’s hand. “Charles Xavier”, he said. He was out of himself, a whole crew of gifted sailors living together! It wasn’t his first encounter with his kind, after all his sister Raven was taken in because her abilities had rendered all alone and by herself, and his two students were in a similar situation. It was expected that their position made them find each other to better the chance of survival, he had already theorized about that during the early years of his research. But he was marveled at the chance of meeting such a large group. It also made him feel inmediately safer, although he was still worried of the circumstances that made him end up on Captain Lehnsher’s ship. He let go of the handshake.
“Is there a particular reason you decided it was alright to raid my home and kidnap me?” Charles’ words came out harsher than intended, but he was quick to forgive himself. After all, was he lying? It was a more than reasonable response to be mad about being kidnapped, no matter his captors shared something with him. He frowned, expecting a full explanation that he intended to get one way or another.
“We didn’t raid your home”, Erik quickly corrected, but he didn’t bother to deny the kidnapping accusation. “We raided the city, and went looking for you in your home. But I think I can better explain if you come with me and meet the crew. And you look like you need some fresh air.” Charles raised a brow with that last part and couldn’t help to smile and relax again. It was a rude observation, but true nonetheless. He followed Erik through the door outside the cabin and took a deep breath of clean, salty air.
During the night, Charles hadn’t noticed how large the vessel was, especially considering the crew were only ten people. It was a 30 meters long brigantine, that in normal circumstances would need at least thirty people to be managed but Erik’s crew could sail like it was nothing. He and Erik entered the deck, where the whole crew was. Four of them were amicably sparring in pairs. “These are Blob”, Erik signaled the largest man Charles had seen in his life, who was fighting a young lady with brown hair with a white strike, “and Rogue. And those you already know, they are Toad and Pyro.” Erik pointed to the two young men he had encountered when he appeared on the ship last night as they both walked by. The one that controled fired was a pale young man with brown hair and dark circles under his eyes, and was fighting a shorter guy whose greenish skin he hadn’t notice under the moonlight.
“You know Azazel, he’s up there”, Erik continued as he pointed up with his left hand when they approeached the fore mast. Charles looked up, and sure enough, he saw the unique pattern of reddish smoke dissolving in the air as the red man appeared back on the top of the main sail. Charles had mixed feelings about him, considering it had been Azazel the one to invade his home, but he also felt some remorse about the way he knocked him out. Erik chuckled, and Charles looked back at him confused. “Don’t worry, he is fine. Azazel is tough, you just took him by surprise, but he recovered hours ago.”
“Good. I mean,” Charles quicky started but then paused, biting his inner lip, not used to be clocked like that. It was usually the other was around: Charles comforted the people around him. He stopped and Erik with him, his face stoic and calculating. “I didn’t mean to do that, it is not proper of me to lose it like that. But that reminds me, why was he looking for two adults and two adolescents?”, Charles demanded, crossing his arms. He wasn’t droping the topic, he was owed an honest and direct answer.
“We are about to get to that, they’re just ahead”, Erik answered calmly, resuming his walk towards the bridge of the ship. Sitting near the stairs up the bridge, a man was sitting next to Destiny, the young brown-haired white-eyed woman he had seen last night. “Destiny and Caliban are very important for the well-being of the crew,” Erik explained with a soft, almost proud smile on his lips. “I told you the whole crew is like you and me, gifted, with abilities regular people wouldn’t dare to dream of. We are often feared and treated like Devil workshippers, thus we become prosecuted and no place is safe anymore. Caliban’s gift is that he can find us, and has some notion of what we can do. And Destiny, she can see the future, and warns us about all the dangers ahead.”
Charles listened attentively Erik’s explanation, thinking to himself how fascinaing system they had came up with for their own safety. He also wondered if the dream he had last night was related to Destiny’s mind, and noted to himself to make sure to ask her at some point. He didn’t want Erik to know about his dream and the possible visions he had about the future, in part because he wasn’t ready to face those visions himself.
“And how is that related to me and my family? Your sailor was in my house, looking for me. And please, don’t deny it”, Charles countered as they both went upstairs to the bridge. He did a mental count, and noticed there were two people left to meet that weren’t on the deck. He found it odd, because when he wiped the ship before he didn’t find any minds on the down levels.
“I imagine someone of your status has heard the stories around our ship”, Erik inquired. “That we have taken people never to be seen again, that we are a damned ship. Well, we find our own, give them part of our spoils from our raids and take them somewhere they can safely start over if they need so. Some of them have decided to join the crew, others just need a little help. We knew your city had gifted people, and that one of you could read and rule minds, because Destiny saw you and Caliban felt you the second we arrived to the shore. Destiny saw the path, and told Azazel how to get there. And Azazel got you, and here you are.”
“It’s that simple? You just knew I was there so you decided to fetch me?”, Charles exclaimed outraged, why was that pirate so specific on apparently needing his abilities? But instead of giving a direct answer, as he had been doing all along, he walked pass the helm and crouched next to two kids not older than ten years old. Both of them greeted him with open arms as he embraced them in a tight hug.
“I didn't do it for you”, he muttered before standing up again, one kid on each side of Erik. Charles looked at them, noticing right away how much they looked alike. The boy had wild, silver hair and the same smirk Charles had seen in Erik when he woke up, and was staning at Erik’s right. At his left, a girl half-hid inside Erik’s long jacket, the same facial features of the boy, but with a long, brown hair falling freely at her back. “Charles, these are Pietro and Wanda, my children.”
Charles and Erik stayed at the bridge while the children went down to the kitchen, hungry for a quick snack. Charles couldn’t help to smile when he saw how the boy ran down the stairs so fast he only left a silver trace behind him, while his sister just levitated down with grace and pose. He felt such a relief to see two kids just being kids, safely with a father that protect them and embraced them in their uniqueness. It almost made him jealous, if it wasn’t for it was exactly what he intended with his students, and even when he took Raven in.
“They are gifted too”, Charles finally said, his back against the front railing of the bridge. In his research, he hadn’t considered the possibility of their circumstances to be passed down the next generations, and he found it fascinating. But he still couldn’t understand why they would need someone like him to help them, they looked like well-adjusted children. “They’re very similar, are they twins?”
“Yes, they are twins. And gifted. A double blessing, I call it”. Erik kept his head up high filed with pride while he spoke about his kids, and Charles felt a healthy dose of jealousy for such a loving enviroment. “Pietro is fast, very fast. He can run like no other. Wanda, she… well, she is extra special, you see? Caliban said she can mend with the mind and the world around her. I can’t help her with that, Charles. I can’t comfort her when she has nightmares, or guide her when she loses control. Not like she needs right now. She needs to at least understand her abilities in these scary times, with The Hunt getting traction in so many places. As a father, I just want her to be safe.”
Charles was moved by Erik’s words, so honest and filled with love and pride he could feel both without even trying to use his powers. He could sometimes catch on surface emotions like that when they were intense, and he could see right there that Captain Erik Lehnsherr was an intense man. Now he understood what Erik meant when he said that he needed to go to the city when Destiny had a vision about finding Charles.
“I can understand that feeling, Erik”, Charles commented with a smile, but his expression soon changed to a grimmer tone because there was something unsettling that the man said and he wasn’t going to ignore. “But can you explain me what is he Hunt? Because it doesn’t sound like a healthy event to go shoot a bear or a deer.” Erik sighed heavily and walked towards the steeling wheel, and only then Charles noticed that what is tradicionally made of wood seemed to be covered in metal.
“The Hunt is our nightmare, my friend. Some factions of the Church are convinced we are not gifted individuals, but demons in disguise, I already explained that to you. Well, they are quite literally hunting us down under witchcraft charges. And it’s not only the Church, The Hunt cultists are becoming more popular everyday and gaining followers everywhere. Someone of your status must’ve heard of General Stryker’s crazy plan, he has been looking for gold to achieve his goals everywhere.” By the time Erik had ended, Charles felt sick of the stomach. Because he was so careful and selective about using his powers, he hadn’t checked what Stryker’s plan was, and he had had the perfect opportunity to do so during the party.
“This can’t be happening. I’m sorry, Erik, I honestly am. But I’m not a fighter, you can’t expect me to drop all of this on me and not want to go back to my family to protect them. I need to go back, now. Take me back!”, Charles shouted as he got closer to Erik with hostile intentions. But he was quickly stopped by a chain that got out of the water and restrained him back against the railing by the waist. He quickly connected the dots and figured that Erik’s gift had something to do with metal, but didn’t give himself any time to appropiately appreciate his abilities for impresive they were.
Charles prepared to counter with his mind but found the brain fog blocking his way again. Then he realised: Wanda, she must’ve been the one interfering with his mental abilities all that time. She was protecting her family, and she could sense the touch of his mind mendling with her father’s crew. The telepath focused and found her with his mind, and felt very moved when he perceived her attempts to keep his mental wandering away from her and his brother, both eating some oranges down in the kitchen. She was just protecting her family, just like Erik, just like himself.
He felt like a douche.
“Calm down, alright? I would take you back, but I can’t, you blocked Azazel”, Erik said with both hands up, and Charles could tell he was being honest. Charles nodded once and instantly felt how the chain slowly let him go and got back into the water. Charles stared at Erik, expecting some more elaboration because that was the first time that ever happened to him - not that he had used his abilities against someone like him ever, so he didn’t have a reference, but he didn’t feel capable of something that sounded that bad. “When you made him bring you back the ship, he said he could hear your command inside his head and just had to obey. And now there is something like an invisible force blocking him to teleport even near your city. This is actually the closest we have teleported to it so far.”
Charles grabbed his own head with both his hands and looked up the sky, restraining himself from screaming like he wanted and conformed with a muffled noise of frustration that came from his very tightly pressed lips. For his students and even his sister, quantifying the limits of their abilities was much simpler than for himself. Charles couldn’t push himself without the risk of making brain purée, and that was a bet he was not willing to make. All he knew about what he could do was limited to books and conjectures made from his own biased views. So it wasn’t a surprise that of course the first time he went overbard he would just do something like this - he was just grateful that’s all the extent of the damage.
“Can’t we just… sail there? You’re a captain”, Charles pointed out as he looked back at Erik, visibly frustrated with himself, wich seemed to amuse him. Charles found that deeply annoying, but said nothing about it. After all, Erik’s good faith was all he had to go back to his home.
“These waters are infested of Royal Navy”, Erik stated as if it was obvious. “I’d like to avoid putting my children on unnecessary risk whenever possible, so no, we are not just sailing around and much less when you are have no experience in combat. When you’re at sea, you cannot rely solely on your powers to survive. There are some skills needed, and you don’t have them. You’d be a liability”, he finished, as Charles looked him in disbelief. Sure, he wasn’t the best fighter, but every gentleman should know how to yield a weapon. Or that’s what his father used to tell him anyways.
“Then teach me”. The proposal came out of his mouth before he could think about it, and Erik raised both his brows like it was a ridiculous idea. “Teach me to fight so I can go back to my home, and I will train to undo what I did to your friend and help your daughter. Do we have a deal?”, Charles offered, as he approached Erik again with his right hand extended. This time it was Erik who accepted and sealed the deal with a firm handshake.
“Let’s go find you a room, sailor”, Erik joked as they both abandoned the bridge to go to the down levels. It was time to show the new recruit the rest of the vessel.