2014.01.02 - The Six-In-One?

The Stepford Cuckoos are not exactly the most sociable students that the Academy of Tomorrow has to offer. They don't have man friends, are off putting in there mannerisms and tend to act like the believe themselves better than everyone else.

All of that is because of their own unique link with each other. As the Five-in-One they are always in touch with each other and communicate with each other in ways that most normal people can only dream of, and in ways even many other telepaths couldn't achieve. Even their mentor, Emma Frost has never been able to read the girls' thoughts unless they wanted her too. In fact, only one person has ever communicated with them like they communicate with each other: Hope Summers.

It took them a few weeks to work up the nerve to actually approach her, an odd experience for themselves. They were always brave and in control, it was just in their nature. But Hope had made them feel different, they felt like someone may actually be capable of understanding them. So here they were in the dorms of the Academy of Tomorrow looking for Hope Summers... and wanting to share for the first time in their lives.

To be honest, that experience was no less strange for Hope. What she saw...

What she experienced...

And most importantly what she felt is something that she can never put into words, and is something that after a fashion opened a massive old wound for her. After all, much like The Cuckoos, she doesn't have many friends. But it is /NOT/ because she feels better than anyone else. If anything, it's because she's trying to flat out keep her distance from the others for reasons that only she knows.

Thus, as The Cuckoos come... As they find the nerve.... Hope is alone. In her room. Or she was. Because as she's looked for, the redheaded mutant mimic is walking out of her dorm room, wearing her green and yellow non-Academy issue 'Uniform' with it's tattered scarf/cape. And she looks slightly lost in thought.

Or at least she does until she turns and looks directly at The Cuckoos.

The Five-in-One are actually not in their academy uniform either. Classes were done for the day after all. Instead each were wearing an identical outfit that was a bit surprising departure from their "conservative school girl look." They all work black bustiers with white gemstones around the top of the bust, short black leather skirts with fishnet stockings over cream covered leggings and seven inch heels. A cream colored frock coat was worn over the shoulders. Around their necks each one wore a silver necklace, the only difference in their attire was each girl's necklace had a different color precious stone in them, a gift from their teacher.

When the girls saw Hope and her own uniform they looked at her a bit confused. They spoke in their creepy unison way, "Are you planning on going some where Hope? We were hoping to speak with you, actually."

Go somewhere? Speak to her...?

There's /almost/ a wince at that. Odds are if it was /ANYONE/ else, she'd react differently. And yet, as she glances back at 'The Girls', there is a slight pause, before Hope opens the door to her room back up, and motions for them to go inside if they want.

"I was going to hit Mutant Town again. After all, it is sort of the safest place for me these days, buuuuut..."

And if the Five in One do enter Hope's room, they'll find...

Not much actually. The walls are bare. The desk just has what ever school stuff that Hope needs, and not much else. The furniture and linen are more or less just what the school may provide. In other words, it's.... Plain.

"And you're right. I guess we do need to talk."

The Five-in-One's room is actually rather similarly decorated, having very little differences in personality meant little in the way of personalization. They were only now really even learning what fashion was, hence the change from the conservative school girls from the Children of the Corn look. Regardless, it meant that the bareness of Hope's own room didn't really give them much pause.

When they are inside her room and the door is closed, one of them spoke. And it seemed as a side effect of having shared in their hive mind for even a short period of time, Hope could tell them apart as she would know it was Sophie speaking, "Why do you think the Academy isn't safe for you? The campus is protected from those who want to do us harm."

It wasn't what the girls wanted to talk about particularly, but they were curious now.

"Look... You... We.... I don't know how to put this. We shared head space. Yoiu know things about me.... Hell, you were part of me somehow... But you know I fought to keep things secret from you. So I'll just say it. I know enough to make me a danger to you and everyone here, especially if certain people or things come after me. But I don't know enough to prevent what I know from becoming an issue one way or another."

Yes, that's said before the door even has a chance to even close fully. And as it's said, Hope looks... Well, she looks like evn saying that much is complex for her in ways that she can't describe. Ways that are painful.

"The Headmistress knows it. Sort of. It's time travel stuff. So... A mess."

"There are things we don't know about ourselves," The Cuckoos said in unison. They seem to comprehend what Hope is saying, even if they don't have direct context, "You saw it as we shared our collective. We have no memory of our lives before we were on the Staten Island ferry feeling that we had to come to this school. Ms. Frost took us in and made us safe."

Sophie spoke alone again, Hope would remember them telling her that when it is an individual's opinion they speak it themselves rather as a group, "And Ms. Frost took you in because she wanted to make you safe. And besides, if anyone came after you, you wouldn't have to fear."

The girls spoke in unison and their eyes glowed with telepathic power, "We would simply shut down their minds."

They seemed rather serious.

And here's where Hope rubs her temples, "Like I told Ms. Frost. It's time travel. And the guy I've dealt with has no morals in regards to killing innocents. For all we know he could find out I'm here, travel upstream a bit, steal a 'super nuke', then travel back a few hundred years before this school existed just so her could burry that nuke under the school before it was even built, just so he could kill me."

"So it's as much for the other students safety as it's my own that I get away every now and then. Besides, at least in mutant town, if I need to do something, I flat out know I can grab a power that lets me do what I need to do."

Then she shakes her head.

"But you guys didn't come here to talk to me about this. Sorry."

"It's fine," The girls said in unison. Honestly they weren't entirely sure what they could say about anything. Or what they really did want to talk about. Well except one thing, "We're sorry for sounding so extreme. But we have decided that we are quite protective of you now. You are our sister. Together we were the Six-In-One. And we treasure that short time. We would do anything to protect you as we protect each other."

They all sort of lower there head in a bit of embarrassment and say, "And no one understands us or could understands us as you can now."

There's almost a heh at that, and even a bit of a meek smile and a nod.

"Thank you. And..." for a moment, it's almost as if Hope is /about/ to reach out with her powers. To try and mimic the others. To re-establish that link. But she catches herself last moment, and shakes her head.

"Trust me, that feeling goes both ways. I feel like you guys are part of me somehow. In ways I can't describe. And trust me, I'd go out of my way to protect you guys."

Then there is a slight smile.

"All though if I am a 'sister' to you guys now, that makes my family tree even stranger in ways I don't want to even try to put into words. Even if you understand me better than anyone. Even Nathan."

The Cuckoos smirk a bit when she mentions her insane family tree, they don't actually know anything about it. But considering there own interesting factoids of family that had come up to them recently, it didn't surprise them that she had her own quirks about it.

Esme however decided to speak up on it, "We're not even sure we are actually sisters. We researched identical siblings in humans and there has never been identical quintuplets anywhere. A human embryo cannot split that much and be viable."

Sophie looked at Esme, "I thought we were keeping that private?"

Esme fired back at Sophie and said, "We said we would only discuss it with our sisters. She is our sister."

Sophie smiled and said, "Fair enough, I suppose."

Then they were back in the creepy unison voice again, "Also we recently met a man who claimed to be our older brother. We did not believe him but he was very unusual."

There's a slight pause at that, before Hope asks, "Older brother...?"

All though, as for the other stuff, there is an odd grin.

"So far. But in the future? Who knows. Heck, in a few hundred years when they can turn adult humans into cockroach soldiers... It might be possible. Or have possibly happened. Or..."

She shakes her head.

"Yes he's a man dressed all in white and a mask. He calls himself Fantomex and uses a horrible fake French accent. We don't remember him at all, but he knew our names and could tell us apart like only a few people can." The girls told Hope, clarifying who this 'older brother' was. They personally didn't believe it. But there was something that seemed familiar.

After hearing about cockroach soldiers and the like, the girls couldn't help but giggle. They knew it was probably a bad memory for Hope but the idea of it was silly to them. It was then they realized something, "Being a time traveler must be very difficult."

"Not as much as being a bunch of 'sisters' who don't know their own past, or family tree." Hope admits. That is before she pauses and hrms. "You know, you guys could always get genetic tested if you want to find out if you're sisters biologically. I mean, if you're willing to admit someone like me into your.... 'Family', when it's obvious that I'm not related to you /AT ALL/ genetically..."

Her gaze drifts from one Cuckoo to the next, and then then next, and the next, and the next, and then finally the next.

"Then would it really matter if you found out that you weren't?"

Then there's a shrug, and a smile.

"Of course if you ask me, I think you guys are."

"We have considered it. But all it would tell us is if our DNA matched," the Cuckoos admitted, "That could make us siblings or clones. But I suppose we are related even if we are clones."

Sophie spoke up alone again, "And you are our sister because you are part of our hive. No other person can do that. Not even Ms. Frost can see into our minds if we do not wish her too. And when we were all linked, you felt like a natural part of our hive. We wanted you to stay. Especially because we could sense your isolation and loneliness."

The Five-In-One spoke together once again,"With us...there is never loneliness."

And here's where there's a wince.

"I know. I... Felt it. I..."

There's a pause. And a deep breath. Before finally...

"Trust me. That feeling has had me consider creating the link again. More times than I can remember. More times than I want to think about."

There's more Hope could say. More the redheaded mimic wants to say. But a large part of her can't find the words to say it. And well... Not that she'll admit to it, but... She's /afraid/.

The girls looked at each other and then back at Hope, "We do understand. We get lost in our own minds as it is. And we have been like this for as long as we can remember. For someone who isn't used to it. It can be overwhelming."

Then all five girls approached Hope from different angles and hugged her. They didn't feel emotion often, but they did right now for Hope, their lonely sister. Sophie Spoke first, "Even without joining with us."

Then Phoebe, "We want you to know."

Then Irma, "We are always here for you."

Then Celeste, "And you never need to feel alone."

And finally Esme, "Because you are our sister and we love you."

At once they all concluded, "And we will carry whatever burdens are yours, because they are our burdens too."

And here's where Hope mutters something. Something in a language that /ISN'T/ English. Heck, it might not even be a language from this time. Or this reality.

"Thank you."

What else can she do? What else can she say? Part of her just wants to hug all of the Five in One at once, but what she does...

Is nod.

"Thank you. And sorry. Being alone is pretty much all I've ever known. So this is just a bit..."

The girls stopped hugging Hope noting how it was making her a little uncomfortable, "Sorry," they all said, "We don't feel emotions often because of our, unique nature. So when we do feel strongly about something we tend to go a bit overboard. Ms. Frost is working with us about it."

The girls back off her a bit embarrassed by their own emotional moment there, "We understand that about you. And we of all people in existence understand being set in our ways. We did not speak aloud to anyone the first three days we were here. We didn't see the point in it. Telepathy is so much easier."

Telepathy is so much...?

"You must be a natural with telepathy then." is said with an amused smile. That is before there is a nod.

"And trust me, I get the whole 'set in your ways' bit. More often than not, my first impulse is to keep my head down and run most of the time. It is what I've done most of my life. But..."

She shakes her head.

"And trust me... I understand a lot about you... All of you. So don't worry about it. And I apologize if I.... Well, don't use the link that often. I'd like to think I'm doing it to keep you safe, since the less you know..."

In regards to telepathy the girls state, "Ms. Frost thinks that because of the way our minds are arranged we have been telepathic since birth. It is why we are linked the way we are. We would have been linked since the first moment we were alive and able to think." That was the truth about them, as much as their link comes from telepathy it also comes from the way their mental pathways are formed, meaning that apparently Hope was able to mimic that as well some how.

"The less we know the less we can be prepared," Esme says quickly after Hope's comment about keeping them safe by not telling, "The less we know the less we can be prepared."

Sophie then nodded and added to her sister's statement, "Safety is a relative term anyways."

And then back in unison the all said, "We are the Five-in-One the most powerful mind on the planet, there is no threat we cannot face. We are not afraid."

And here's where Hope gives in...

She mimics the girls. She tries not to force the link if they don't want it. Nor does she fight against them if they re-establish it. Instead...

Instead, once she feels the telepathy, the girls, all five of them will get a bit of a memory dump.

Of a young Hope, no older than four or five being in a small village as it's attacked by giant human sized, and human shaped cockroaches.

Of her being a year or two older, and the fortress she's living in being attacked by the same bug soldiers, only now they have wings and can fly.

Of her and a man, a man who 's in those earlier memories suddenly vanishing from that fortress and reappearing in a wasteland where all that can be seen in any direction is nothing but endless sand. Said man also appears to have a glowing eye and a cybernetic arm.

There are memories of Hope in a city, with a handfull of 'time traveling mutants', and one of them saying that there are 'no more mutants' in the time they're from.

There's memories of the same city just a few years later, looking like it's falling apart, with two other ones nearby.

There's memories of those cities blasting off into space.

There's memories of those cities being attacked by aliens... The Brood, and the last remains of humanity being killed off by them.

There's memories of a single person, one obscured somehow by shadows attacking Hope, a man who has been in some of those previous memories, who is /NOT/ that cyborg.

There's memories of sudden, wild time jumps. To the past, before the city of Metropolis was even built. The revolutionary war. Prohibition.

There are memories of the future.

Memories of that cyborg telling Hope about how that other time traveler is trying to kill her. About how he made /EVERY/ continent uninhabitable to try and kill her. About how not long before she was born almost /ALL/ the mutants on the face of the Earth lost their powers. All except maybe 300. And how /HOPE/ was the first mutant born, and to register as having a power since that day. There's no clue as to the hows or whys of the power loss, or Hope having powers. There's also memories of the cyborg telling her that the other time traveler once was a friend and an ally, who went crazy when he found out Hope was born, because he 'knows' that she'll grow up to do something... Something so major, so bad that he feels like he has to do /ANYTHING/ to stop it. No matter what. And to do that, Hope has to /DIE/.

And then, with that all out there, unless the Five in One try to pull her back in, Hope lets the powers, and possibly the link fade.

"Now you know what I know. And what I've been trying to keep secret. After all, just imagine what some people would do to try and stop any of that... All of that... Or even the near extinction of Mutants from happening..."

Due to the way the Cuckoo's mind-link works there were some... side effects to Hope doing that. First was the smile all the girls got when their 'sister' joined back up with them. The Second is that the six of them together like this reached a level of telepathy that few every could reach. Omnipathy. They could literally in the instant that they were all linked feel every mind on the planet at once, fortunately the girls were quite skilled at keeping unwanted thoughts from invading 'there' space so it was just a general sense of every living thing on the planet and how easy it would be to reach in and listen if they so desired.

The last side effect was as Hope was giving the girls her memory dump, she was getting one of her own about them.

There's was much simpler. There childhood was entirely unknown to them. The only possible clue of where they were from before being on the Staten Island Ferry was the image of looking over a vast field of crazy landscapes as if they were surrounded by water and glass... and feeling sublime.. But it could have simply been a fabrication of their own very imaginative minds.

And then it was just them and their time at the Academy. There developing as individuals. The fact that Sophie has a romantic crush on Emma Frost. That Celeste fancies Leo Luthor. Phoebe with her massive crush on Noh-Varr. Irma with her own eyes set on there fellow student Roxie. Seemed Esme was the only one free of falling for someone around them.

Also so of the more creepy or morally ambiguous things they had been doing. Making the Academy's students think the place was haunted in October. Wanting to sabotage Emma's dating life. Controlling a literal 600 person choir/orchestra just to play "Carol of the Bells" for Emma Frost. They were obviously Emma's girls.

After the link had faded, and the girls let it go just because they knew that it was overwhelming to Hope, "That was very enlightening. We understand why you feel so alone," they said together, "But not as alone as you used to feel we think."

Sophie smiled and said, "Because now you have us. And we will keep your secrets, and you will always be able to depend on us. You can call us your Lights in the darkness."

Esme spoke up next, "And the man with the cybernetic arm and the glowing eye... his name isn't Nate is it? He looks like a much older version of a person we have met."

"Nathan actually." Hope says, almost on auto-pilot. To be honest, she's still absorbing the info that the cuckoos told her, because well...

"Nathan was from a possible future from when I'm from... Either the future of this reality, or another reality all together... Nate is from the now of another reality all together. So Nate is sort of my uncle since they are the same person. Kind of like Rachel is his sister, and my Aunt, despite her being from /yet another/ reality. And I probably shouldn't think about my Grandparents, who are both alive and /not/ together right now...."

"Not that it matters to me, since I'm adopted but..."

The redhead pauses, and blinks as she realizes she said all of that.

"And thank you. But now that you know what I know... About what the future might be, you're in danger. If that were to get out to the wrong people, like Magneto for example after what I saw in Genosha, what could happen... What would happen..."

"Sorry."

The girls all giggled a bit at the very convoluted story of Hope's family tree, "And we thought we were confusing. It's nice to know we aren't that hard to figure out as you are."

Sophie decided to clarify what they new about Nate Grey, "Nate is a sort of friend of ours. We were present when he first arrived in this reality. He's a nice man and I could think of worse people to by your uncle."

In regards to the rest however, Esme decided to speak up, "We were already in danger, Hope. You showed us that. And we are the most powerful mind on this planet, more so with you. Or minds cannot be penetrated and no secret can be forced from our lips. We are the perfect friends to confide in."

They spoke at once again, "Besides where else are you going to find a resource of five telepaths who can instantly communicate anywhere on the planet and coordinate any defensive action as such. Who can also act with complete synchronicity That's a good resource to have we think."

And finally they add, "There's nothing to be sorry for, we asked for the information. We wanted to be prepared so we can help you in any way we can. You are our sister, we've adopted you just like Nathan did. If we are to be as family we needed to know."

Hope doesn't mention what Nate's powers are. Despite the fact that if the girls know Nate, then they know what his powers are.

Nor does she mention what Nathans are, despite how he's very limited in how he can use his powers (besides the Nathan running around might /NOT/ be her Nathan, or might just be a younger version of him, or any number of things).

Nor does she mention what Rachels powers are.

Or what Jeans are. /ESPECIALLY/ when she goes all out Phoenix.

Or what their friends and allies can do.

Instead, there's just a slight smile, and a nod.

"Thank you."

And let's be honest here. At this point, what else can be said?

"All though if you really think of me as a sister, then I guess I'm gonna have to try and set Esme up with someone..."

And nor does Hope need to tell them what those people do. They are being mentored by Emma Frost, one of the most powerful telepaths alive. They have dealt with the Martian Manhunter as well. They know one thing that Hope hasn't learned in the short time she has joined with their collective. They are completely immune to telepathic probing. Except when they wish it. The way they exist as the Five-In-One just makes them unreadable, unless they wish it.

And she also doesn't need to mention it because they read it in her mind while she was thinking of those people earlier. They are quite aware of all those people. Telepaths always seem to be aware of other telepaths after all. And honestly, aren't worried in the slightest that any of their secrets will be discovered unless they wish them.

However when Hope suggests setting Esme up with someone she sticks out her tongue and goes, "Eww! Seriously, eww! It's bad enough that I have to share the sweaty, naughty thoughts these four come up with everyday. I don't need to have them myself."

That actually made the girls laugh a bit. Truth was they knew how attractive they all were, but the reason they just harbor their crushes rather than acting is because they are afraid of breaking up the hive with too much individuality.

Unable to help herself, Hope chuckles at Esme.

"Sorry. But iof we're family, I do have to look out for you guys in the long run."

Then though, there is a slight nod.

"Thank you. And sorry."