MUTOSTERONE

The morning sun bathed the Hall of M in golden light, its rays slipping through the towering windows of the open-air training grounds. A gentle breeze rustled the leaves of the ancient oaks that lined the courtyard, adding to the peaceful ambiance.

Professor Langley stood before his students—mutants of all backgrounds, ages, and abilities. Some were eager, some hesitant, but all had one thing in common: they had come here seeking a place to belong.

He adjusted his coat, hands behind his back as he paced in front of them. His expression was calm yet commanding, the kind that demanded attention without force.

"Control," he began, his voice even and firm. "That is the key. Not power, not strength, not even knowledge. Control is what separates you from the chaos they expect of us."

The students listened, some nodding in understanding, others furrowing their brows in concentration.

"Some of you have been hunted," he continued. "Some of you have been feared. And some of you have even feared yourselves." His sharp gaze swept over them, lingering on a few who lowered their heads. "But here, at the Hall of M, that fear ends. Here, you learn to master what others do not understand."

Kai, arms crossed and eyes skeptical, muttered, "And if we screw up? Nexus comes knocking?"

Langley chuckled, shaking his head. "Nexus won't interfere as long as you're registered under the Hall of M." He gestured toward the grand academy behind him. "This place is a sanctuary. As long as you remain students here, you are under my protection. That is my responsibility."

Seraphina smirked. "So, in short, behave and we won't get hunted?"

The Professor smiled. "Exactly."

A few students exhaled in relief. Others still looked uncertain, their past experiences with oppression not so easily erased. But Langley knew it would take time. Trust was built, not given.

"Now," he clapped his hands together, "who's ready for their first lesson?"

A student, a wiry young man with sharp eyes and glowing veins under his skin, raised his hand. His voice was laced with frustration.

"What about Sentinel Core?" he asked, his fingers clenching into fists. "They force mutants to wear those damn suppression bracelets. Even some of us here already have them because we got caught before making it to the Hall of M."

Murmurs of agreement rippled through the gathered students. Some instinctively touched their wrists, where dull, metallic bands wrapped around their skin. The Sentinel Core's mutant suppression technology was a symbol of control, of submission. It dulled their powers, made them feel less than themselves.

Professor Langley exhaled, his expression unreadable for a moment. He stepped forward, looking at each student, his gaze lingering on those who bore the dreaded restraints.

"When you graduate," he finally said, his voice calm yet firm, "CPG or Nexus will be legally required to remove your bracelets. That is the law of Edenia itself."

The weight of his words sank in. A stunned silence hung in the air before a flicker of hope ignited in their eyes.

"You mean… we can actually get rid of them?" a girl whispered, almost not daring to believe it.

Langley nodded. "Yes. You're not prisoners here. You're students, and when you complete your training, you will walk out of these halls unshackled."

A spark of defiance surged through the crowd. Kai smirked. "Well, shit. That's all I needed to hear."

A few others grinned, their spirits lifted. For the first time, many of them saw an actual future—one where they weren't just mutants, but people with control over their own lives.

Seraphina clapped her hands. "Alright, alright, enough emotional moments—let's get to training before you all start crying."

As Professor Langley stood at the edge of the training grounds, the terrain itself shifted in response to the gathering energy of the young mutants. The Hall of M's training field wasn't just an ordinary battlefield—it was a living, breathing construct, built with psionic-infused alloys that responded to the abilities of its students. The ground trembled, sections rising into jagged cliffs, others sinking into deep trenches. Some areas crystallized into ice, while others cracked with heat, forming an ever-changing landscape tailored to challenge each mutant's strengths and weaknesses.

Seraphina moved first. With a flick of her wrist, translucent force fields shimmered into existence, floating like massive shields around the battlefield. The air vibrated as she expanded their size, turning them from mere barriers into protective domes large enough to trap or defend against multiple attacks.

Kai, ever the trickster, grinned. With a sharp inhale, he vanished in a blink, reappearing atop a cliffside where Seraphina had placed one of her barriers. He tapped on the force field playfully. "What happens if I teleport inside one of these?"

Seraphina scowled. "You wanna find out?" She reinforced the barrier with an extra layer, making it pulse with a bright energy.

But before Kai could test his luck, Rick entered the fray. His body shimmered as his skin hardened into pure, reflective diamond. With a single leap, he landed on the battlefield, his footstep cracking the stone beneath him. He clenched his fists, each motion causing sunlight to refract off his crystalline form. "Let's see how tough those shields really are."

With a booming step forward, Rick launched a devastating punch toward one of Seraphina's force fields. The impact sent shockwaves rippling through the air. Her barrier held, but cracks spread like lightning across its surface. Seraphina grit her teeth and reinforced it again.

Kevin was next. He rolled his shoulders, flames licking at his fingertips. The heat around him intensified, warping the air like a mirage. With a smirk, he hurled a fireball at Rick. The moment it hit, the flames reflected off Rick's diamond form, scattering into smaller embers that singed the ground around him. "Gonna take more than that to scratch me, hotshot." Rick smirked.

"Oh, I wasn't aiming for you." Kevin's eyes gleamed.

Seraphina's force fields, weakened from Rick's punch, suddenly erupted in flame where Kevin's fire had struck. The energy reacted violently, causing the shield to collapse in a sudden burst. The explosion knocked Rick off balance, sending him skidding across the ground. But then, everything stopped. A deafening shriek tore through the air. Hana had entered the battle.

Her small frame barely moved as she let out a single, controlled scream. The soundwave rippled outward like a hurricane of raw power, tearing through the battlefield. The ground cracked, trees in the distance bent backward, and even the reinforced walls of the Hall of M trembled.

Kai barely managed to teleport away in time. "Holy shit, Hana, tone it down!"

She clamped a hand over her mouth, eyes wide. "Oops."

Langley chuckled from where he stood. He had seen many mutants in his time, but this group—this group had the potential to be something great.

Seraphina wiped sweat from her forehead and turned toward the Professor. "Alright, old man. How's that for a warm-up?"

Professor Langley smirked. "Not bad. But if you think that was hard… wait till tomorrow."

After an exhausting day of training, the students finally got a chance to relax. The dining hall was warm and filled with the scent of roasted meat and freshly baked bread. Plates were stacked high, laughter echoed across the room, and for the first time since joining Hall of M, they could just be kids.

Seraphina leaned back in her chair, stretching her sore arms. As the oldest among them and Professor's first student, she naturally took the role of leader. She smirked as she watched Kai and Kevin arguing over the last piece of chicken, Rick polishing his diamond knuckles absentmindedly, and Hana absentmindedly humming a tune that made the glasses on the table vibrate slightly.

"Alright, listen up, losers." Seraphina suddenly clapped her hands together, grabbing their attention. "I just had the best idea ever."

Kai groaned, already suspicious. "Oh no."

"Oh yes," she shot back. "If we're gonna be the next big thing, we need proper hero names. Nicknames. Something cool."

Kevin raised an eyebrow. "Says who?"

"Says me." Seraphina grinned. "I'm the first student. That means I get to go first."

She stood up dramatically and placed her hands on her hips. "From this day forward, I shall be known as Aegis!" She projected a glowing force field around her as if to emphasize her point. "Because I'm basically unbreakable."

Kai smirked. "More like Annoyingis."

Seraphina threw a spoon at his head. "Your turn, Blink."

Kai scoffed but leaned back in his chair with a smug grin. "Fine. I was gonna go with something cooler, but 'Blink' actually sounds kinda badass." He tapped the table, then instantly disappeared and reappeared behind Seraphina's chair. "Fastest teleporter this side of Edenia."

Rick rolled his eyes. "You're the only teleporter this side of Edenia."

Seraphina turned to Rick. "Alright, Diamond Boy. You next."

Rick exhaled, thinking for a moment. "Call me… Crystallion."

Kai snorted. "That sounds like a perfume brand."

Rick glared. "It sounds majestic, idiot."

Kevin laughed, flames flickering from his fingertips. "Well, if we're going for cool names, I guess I'll be… Inferno." He snapped his fingers, making a small fireball hover over his palm before crushing it in his grip.

They all turned to Hana, who had been quiet the entire time. She blushed slightly under their expectant stares. "I don't know…" she muttered.

Seraphina nudged her playfully. "Come on, your voice literally shatters buildings. You need something badass."

Hana hesitated, then smiled softly. "…Echo."

Everyone nodded in approval.

Seraphina leaned back, crossing her arms. "Aegis, Blink, Crystallion, Inferno, and Echo… Sounds like a pretty solid team to me."

Kai smirked. "More like a disaster waiting to happen."

Seraphina laughed. "Disasters make the best heroes."

The laughter and chatter in the dining hall were interrupted when Professor Langley walked in, hands tucked behind his back, observing his students with a curious smile. "What's all this? You all seem way too happy for people who just went through hellish training."

Seraphina turned, grinning wickedly. "We were just giving ourselves hero names." She pointed at him. "And you, old man, are Professor M!"

Professor Langley blinked. "…Excuse me?"

Before he could protest, a deep bark of laughter echoed from the doorway. Barry Leighton, arms crossed, looking as if he'd just heard the funniest joke of his life. "Professor M? Oh, that's perfect."

Seraphina's eyes lit up, and she immediately turned her attention to Barry. "Oh, don't think you're getting away, Sheriff. What's your mutant name?"

Barry stopped laughing instantly, his expression twisting into an annoyed frown. "Yeah, no thanks. I don't do 'code names.'"

Kevin leaned in, smirking. "Come on, man. The ex-serial killer turned hero? You need a name."

Kai grinned. "Yeah! Something scary. Like… Midnight Fang or Death Howl!"

Barry sighed heavily. "You're all idiots."

Seraphina smirked. "That's fine, but that means we get to name you." She turned to the others. "Okay, votes for 'Midnight Fang?'" A few hands shot up.

"Death Howl?" No one raised a hand.

Kai groaned. "Damn it."

Kevin snapped his fingers, literally sparking a flame. "How about just Fang? Simple. Sounds badass."

Rick nodded. "I like it. It fits."

Barry groaned, rubbing his temples. "Fine. Whatever. Call me Fang. Just don't expect me to use it."

Seraphina clapped. "Perfect! Now, what about them?" She pointed at the students who had arrived with Barry.

One of them, a towering man with stone-like skin, crossed his arms. "Name's Gregor. You can call me Golem."

Next to him, a woman with silver, metallic hair smirked. "Vera. But let's go with Quicksilver."

Kai raised an eyebrow. "Isn't that copyrighted?"

Vera shrugged. "Sue me."

Beside her, a slim young man with glowing green eyes adjusted his gloves. "I'm Elias. My power's poison-based, so... Venom."

Seraphina grinned. "Damn, you guys are making this too easy." She turned to the last member of Barry's group, a girl with raven-black wings folded behind her back. "And you?"

The girl smirked. "Call me Raven."

Kai groaned. "Okay, that one's definitely taken."

Seraphina threw her hands up. "Who cares? We've got Professor M, Fang, Golem, Quicksilver, Venom, and Raven!" She turned to Langley with a smug grin. "What do you think, Professor M?"

Langley sighed, rubbing his temples. "I think I'm too old for this."

Barry chuckled. "Welcome to my life."

Seraphina, still riding the high of assigning hero names, noticed two students at the edge of the group who hadn't spoken yet. She tilted her head. "Wait a second… You two are awfully quiet. Come on, don't be shy! Tell us your names!"

The two teenagers exchanged glances, hesitant, before the girl spoke first. "I'm Seren."

The boy followed, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Solus."

Kai leaned forward, grinning. "Cool names. But the real question is—what can you do?"

Seraphina clapped her hands together. "Yeah! We need to know your powers so we can give you some sick names."

Seren smirked, twirling her fingers in the air. "I'm a chronomancer. I can slow, speed up, or stop time around me."

Everyone oooh'd in admiration—until Solus rolled his eyes. "Show-off. I make portals."

There was a brief silence before Kai, eyes sparkling with mischief, blurted out, "Wait. You guys are literally 'Time and Space.'"

Seren grinned wickedly. "Yeah, and?"

Kevin burst out laughing. "Holy shit, that's actually terrifying."

Seraphina pointed at Solus. "Dude, your power is OP. You could throw someone into a volcano or drop them in the middle of the ocean."

Solus cracked his knuckles, his eyes gleaming with chaotic energy. "And you just gave me that idea."

Seren gasped dramatically, clutching her chest. "Oh my god, I could freeze someone in time forever while he tosses them into a black hole."

Rick muttered under his breath, "We have created monsters."

Kai laughed nervously. "Okay, maybe we shouldn't encourage their villain arc."

Seraphina smirked. "Too late." She turned to Seren and Solus. "Alright, you little terrors, what do you wanna be called?"

Seren grinned. "Call me Epoch."

Solus leaned against the table, smug. "And I'll take Warp."

Barry, who had been watching this mess unfold, sighed heavily. "Great. Now we've got a bunch of wannabe heroes with supervillain names."

Seraphina threw an arm around Seren and Solus. "That's the spirit, Fang!"

Barry groaned. "I hate all of you."

Professor Langley pinched the bridge of his nose. "I am so regretting this."

Kevin nudged Kai. "Dude, are we sure these two won't just overthrow the government by accident?"

Kai shrugged. "We'll cross that portal when we get to it."