Strategy X

## Premise

After a disaster at the football game, Scott makes contact with Todd Tolansky, a fellow student developing new mutant powers. Meanwhile, a new student, Kurt Wagner, arrives at the Xavier School for the first time.

## Summary

Scott and Jean drive to the Bayville High football game, discussing the new student coming to the Xavier Institute and the return of the absent X-Man, Wolverine. Jean goes to take pictures, while Scott meets up with his friend Paul to watch the game. After dropping the coin he had been fiddling with, Scott notices a pickpocket underneath the stadium seats and follows him.

Duncan Matthews, the star quarterback, confronts Todd Tolansky over his pickpocketing, and he and his friends prepare to beat Todd up, until Scott intervenes, attempting to diffuse the situation. Duncan slips while chasing after Todd, who bounces away, and takes his anger out on Scott, throwing a punch that, with a distraction from Jean, knocks Scott's glasses off of his face.

An optic blast hits the propane take at the concessions stand, causing an explosion and damaging the stands. Scott fumples for his glasses, blind, and Jean telekinetically places them on his face. She confirms that no one is seriously injured, before following Duncan in the ambulance. Todd thanks the now alone Scott before he heads home, and Scott warns him against pickpocketing in crowds in the future.

Across town, Kurt Wagner arrives in Bayville via train, wearing a heavy coat in order to hide all of his features. He is met by Professor Xavier and Storm, who take him back to the Institute, arriving in time to catch Scott and Jean on their way to school in the morning, introducing them to Kurt.

After the Professor chastises Scott for his loss of control back at the football game, Scott and Jean explain their powers to Kurt, who shows off his power of teleportation in turn as well. Kurt is then given the full tour, culminating in his bedroom, where Xavier gives him an X-Men costume and a holographic inducer watch to disguise him as a standard human.

At school, Todd confronts Scott before lunch alone in the lockers, showing off his mutant powers by jumping onto the lockers and grabbing Scott's glasses off his face with his tongue, confirming he knows Scott is a mutant as well. After Todd steals his lunch, Scott suggests that Todd visit the Institute, before calling the Professor to let him know about the new mutant, checking in telepathically with Jean from across the cafeteria.

That night, Todd goes to visit the Institute, jumping over the fence. Testing him, Storm summons lightning, chasing him towards the building and eventually blowing him inside with a gust of wind, knocking him into Kurt. The two argue, before getting into a leaping, teleporting fist fight through the halls of the Institute, before the Professor calls a ceasefire, telling Todd he is welcome at the Institute.

Todd attempts to continue fighting, and so Kurt teleports the two of them down into the Danger Room on accident, causing the automated defense mechanisms to activate. Scott and Jean rush in to try and save the two, as Storm and the Professor attempt to shut it down from the Control Room. Kurt, realizing it is a training room, attempts to deactivate the machines, only causing them to go more haywire, and scaring Todd off for good.

On his way out of the mansion, he runs into Logan, recently returned, who Xavier orders to let go. Once he is outside the grounds, he is confronted by Mystique and Rogue, who offer him a place in their organization, which Todd accepts.

Kurt runs off, believing his first day as an X-Man is a failure, and Scott catches up with him. He shows off the X-Jet to Kurt, and assures him that he still has a place on the team.

Xavier and Wolverine catch up, and Xavier explains that the reason he has called Logan back is that the principal of Bayville High has been replaced by Mystique. The two theorize what her goals may be, before Logan heads off to reunite with Ororo.

## Characters

**X-Men**

* Scott Summers
* Jean Grey
* Kurt Wagner (Joins Team)
* Charles Xavier
* Logan
* Ororo Munroe

**Brotherhood**

* Mystique
* Rogue
* Todd Tolansky (Joins Team)

**Others**

* Duncan Matthews
* Paul Haits