Chapter 85: Life and Death

Chapter 85: Life and Death

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1st September 2005, Bayville

(Jean Grey POV)

"Have you been ill in the last few days?"

"No, Ms. Sayre."

The history professor was frowning, "Alright, this getting nowhere. Alright, Ms. Grey, can you tell me why did you think it was a good idea to send in a telepathic blast in the middle of a classroom filled with students?"

To say that Jean was caught off guard would be an understatement.

What did she know? How could she know it? Is she a mutant as well? Did she work with Mystique and her mysterious backer? Questions kept flowing in her head. So much so that Jean was starting to lose control over her telepathy again.

She took a deep breath to compose herself. She realized that she was hyperventilating. In through the nose, out through the mouth. She never thought Ms. Munroe's meditation exercises would be effective for anything. She guessed that she owed her an apology for being so dismissive.

Back to the conversation at hand, she needed to handle this situation delicately. Denying everything was always a good step. Not that she thought it would fool anyone but it would make her history teacher or whoever replaced her reveal more.

Clearing her throat, she answered, "I don't know what you're talking about, Ms. Sayre."

The black haired woman just smirked at her, "Come on, Jean, can I call you Jean?" Before Jean could deny her request, the history teacher continued, "Okay, Jean, I'm talking about the telepathic blast that would have lobotomized the entire class, maybe even the entire school, had I not intervened."

This is not going well; she had almost killed her classmates, maybe even the entire school and that was truly horrifying. How many lives would have been lost if it wasn't for her teacher stopping her. Her lack of control was starting to get really dangerous. She really needs to tell the Professor about it, maybe he would know how to help her. At least she learnt that Ms. Sayre recognized a mental attack. And she was probably the one responsible to putting her to sleep. Jean didn't know whether to be thankful for it or not. For now, she'll stay neutral.

"Telepathic blast, Ms. Sayre? Have you been reading some science fiction? You're not making any sense," the redhead denied.

The green eyed history teach her gave her a look that made Jean feel like she was being an idiot, "Look, kid, I already know about your kind and about Xavier's little school." At Jean's shocked look, she continued, "Yeah, I know who Charles Xavier really is and what he can do. I have been keeping tabs on him and Erik ever since the mess in Cuba. I can't believe the two idiots were having an ideological debate in what could have been World War III. Anyway, I had to make sure that neither of them would destroy the damn planet in a foolish attempt to prove that they're right."

What is she implying? Who is Erik? What rivalry was she talking about? What happened in Cuba? How does she know so much? Was she part of the government or something?

"But the Professor wouldn't blow up the planet"

Before she could answer, she felt some kind of presence in her mind. It was faint, far more subtle than the professor's mind probes. Jean tried to follow it, but couldn't. It was like trying to grab sand. The moment she felt she was closer to the invading probe; it would escape her once more. A couple of moments later, the pressure in her mind receded and she knew that Ms. Sayre had finished her mental scan.

She took a look at her teacher and her heart fell at the grim look on her face, "Alright kid, I know what's wrong with you and it's not pretty."

"What is it?"

"Sometime when you were younger, Xavier put a block on your power. It made sense; I suppose. I can understand the decision, even if I don't agree with it. But you can't change the past."

At her indigent look, Ms. Sayre explained further, "You're very powerful Jean, like absurdly so. You truly cannot imagine what you are capable of. Xavier probably assumed that this power is too much of a responsibility for a girl your age to manage and normally he would be right. He probably wanted you to learn control and be responsible enough to use them productively. Trust me, a criminal with your powers could do some serious damage and there are few individuals in the world who could stop them."

"But happened to the bloc. Is it failing?"

"No," the history teacher denied, "it's working exactly as intended. If you were any other mutant, it would have worked perfectly but you're special, you're more than just a mutant. And that came with automatic defenses."

"How am I different?"

"You're not ready to know that yet." At her frown, Ms. Sayre sighed and continued, "The truth is a beautiful and terrible thing, and should therefore be treated with great caution. What is said cannot be unsaid, and the answers you seek would just overwhelm you. I will tell you when the time is right, as a desperate bid for you to preserve your innocence and your childhood."

Jean just stayed silent, processing what has been said. She knew that her teacher would not say anything further, "Then how to we fix it. Do I reinforce the bloc somehow?"

"No," Ms. Sayre denied, "Your bindings are basically like a wooden damn trying to hold down an ocean. What you've been experiencing is just a few drops of power that overflowed making your abilities fluctuate in strength. The mental bloc doesn't just affect your abilities but also certain aspects of your personalities that have been sealed up ever since your childhood. What happened to you now was something that happened to every telepath, even myself and Xavier. But that usually happens when our abilities first showed themselves, which was when we were children. The bindings have shielded you of these attacks until they started to happen again. Normally, when we react the way you do, the worst we could do is cause everyone around up to have a headache, but you are a lot powerful than a child just discovering their abilities. Your reaction was a lot more dangerous to everyone around you."

"Then do we remove the blocs?"

"Again, no. It would hurt you. You have no idea how truly powerful you are. You would get consumed in your power and would most likely end up killing thousands of people. The only way to solve this, is the same way is to slowly dissolve the bridge, letting you get used to a power level and slowly increase your strength. It's the only viable solution I have."

Jean was undecided; she had no idea what to do. Or whether to trust her with undoing the Professor's bindings. While what he did to her is disgusting, the Professor must have had a reason, and she trusted him with her life. She had to get his side of things.

"I need to talk to the Professor before doing anything."

The history teacher sighed, "Alright, just be quick about it. This is urgent and the bindings could collapse at any time. I'm telling you, that once you leave this office, what happens to you is your responsibility and if you become a danger to everyone, I will deal with you accordingly."

The last sentence made a chill travel through her spine; she had no illusion that her teacher would deliver on her threat. She couldn't help but ask, "Who are you, really?"

Her teacher just smirked, "As I said before, the truth is a beautiful and terrible thing. I'll tell you who I am when I deem you worthy."

Jean just sighed at the response and left the classroom. She had a lot to think about and a long conversation ahead of her with the Professor.