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""Where There Is Breath, There Is Hope""
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Post by John Kilroy on Mar 1, 2024 3:23:48 GMT -7
X-23 had yet another restless. Night. Lately it had been hard for her to sleep as of late. When she wasn't straight up restless she was having nightmares, flashbacks of her life in The Facility echoed in her mind. The X-mansion was a safe place. No one here was going to harm her or go after, but there was no peace within her. So she did what she did anytime she was restless. She snuck around and explored the mansion. She tiptoed, she climbed walls and ceilings, she was absolutely silent as a shadow. The place seemed to be like a luxurious boarding school having all sorts of rooms. There was honestly nothing like it. Most of the doors were locked and she was afraid to open them for fear that it'd cause a fight. However as she kept tiptoeing she noticed a room that was partially open and empty. Why did this room strike her so much. It was not in how fancy it was, but in how simple it was. There wasin't very many belongings but somthing within the room itself seemed, comforting and inviting. She slowly tip toed inside. There was no one inside it.it was simply lit and didn't have much to it. The most remearkable thing about it was the fireplace. Laura took a wiff of the air, smoke from the fire, sweat, and tears, ink. how pecular indeed. Her nose led her to a small desk with a bible on it. That seemed to be where the scent was the strongest. looking behind her, Laura did not notice anything. So she grabed the bible from the desk and flipped to a bookmarked passage and began to read aloud. "Then you will say on that day, “I will give thanks to You, Lord; For although You were angry with me, Your anger is turned away, And You comfort me. Behold, God is my salvation, I will trust and not be afraid; For the Lord God is my strength and song, And He has become my salvation.” Therefore you will joyously draw water From the springs of salvation. And on that day you will say, “Give thanks to the Lord, call on His name. Make known His deeds among the peoples; Make them remember that His name is exalted.” Praise the Lord in song, for He has done glorious things; Let this be known throughout the earth. Rejoice and shout for joy, you inhabitant of Zion, For great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel"She then flipped to another passage and read another marked passage, this one was quite a bit longer."Men of Israel, listen to these words: Jesus the Nazarene, a Man attested to you by God with miracles and wonders and signs which God performed through Him in your midst, just as you yourselves know— this Man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death. But God raised Him from the dead, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power. For David says of Him,
‘I saw the Lord continually before me, Because He is at my right hand, so that I will not be shaken. Therefore my heart was glad and my tongue was overjoyed; Moreover my flesh also will live in hope; For You will not abandon my soul to Hades, Nor will You [ab]allow Your [ac]Holy One to undergo decay. You have made known to me the ways of life; You will make me full of gladness with Your presence.’
“Brothers, I may confidently say to you regarding the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. So because he was a prophet and knew that God had sworn to him with an oath to seat one of his descendants on his throne, he looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the [ah]Christ, that He was neither abandoned to Hades, nor did His flesh suffer decay. It is this Jesus whom God raised up, a fact to which we are all witnesses. Therefore, since He has been exalted at the right hand of God, and has received the promise of the Holy Spirit from the Father, He has poured out this which you both see and hear. For it was not David who ascended into [am]heaven, but he himself says:
‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, Until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.”’
Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ—this Jesus whom you crucified.”
Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what are we to do?” Peter said to them, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far away, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself.” And with many other words he solemnly testified and kept on urging them, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation!” So then, those who had received his word were baptized; and that day there were added about three thousand souls. They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer."
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Post by Gummy on Mar 1, 2024 7:04:41 GMT -7
Pinned on the shelves of books in various languages were odd sentences.
There were many more beside these but it showed they had power. The books on the shelves, some were dictionaries other translation books and then there were original texts. The Hunchback of Nostradamus, Crime and Punishment, Don Quixote just to name a few.
Kurt had been busy marking books and then had headed to the gym for a workout before returning to his room in the boys wing. His door was always open and the students knew that they were free to enter as long as they had a good reason. It showed his trust in them and also allowed him to reach out to the boys when they were troubled. Plus, there were people here that needed to have some form of respite from their worries and he was one to help.
Therefore, it wasn't a surprise to him that as he entered he paused watching Laura read his bible. He just leaned against the door frame, a towel around his waist a second resting on his shoulders having finished drying his hair. He waited quietly for her to finish and notice him. He didn't enter fully as he knew that would not look good. She needed calmness and patience. He had heard her nightmares, like he had heard others call out in the night from their troubled souls.
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""Where There Is Breath, There Is Hope""
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Post by John Kilroy on Mar 1, 2024 12:58:33 GMT -7
Normally X-23 was very observant of her surroundings, but for some reason, she found herself so engrossed by the words of the holy book. that it all but sucked her focus. It was a good two to three minutes before her focus was even remotely broken away. for whatever reason she looked up just for a split second and saw what appeared to be a blue devil leaning against the door. She jumped. The Bible fell with a loud *THUD* and her claws came out. Her breathing was rapid as memories of her experience with her handler Kimura.
*Little brat! I'll show you what happens when you stick your nose where it doesn't belong* **SMACK!!** **CRACK!!**
her breathing got more erratic as she began to whimper and then she calmed herself down. This man was not like Kimura. This was not the facility. this was NOT the facility.
"I'm sorry," laura whispered. "The door was open. I saw the book..." she looked down, she was remarkably shy when not on a mission. she then looked up at the blue devil. "Do you think such a god exists...Could a god really forgive someone who murdered an innocent?" she asked softly.
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Post by Gummy on Mar 1, 2024 13:25:58 GMT -7
Kurt just waited for her to react, watching her thumb through the pages that he had looked through many times before. He didn't flinch when she reacted to him but just stayed leaning against the door frame. It was only when she spoke that he allowed a soft breath as he entered and turned the light on. He went to the towel rack and placed the one over his bare shoulders onto it before opening a draw and pulling out a few items of clothing: yellow t-shirt and jeans. Only then did he indicate for her to turn around so he could dress. His door was still open and only when she had turned around did he speak.
"It's fine. The book is called The Bible. Some call it The Holy Bible. It is not my opinion that counts but yours. Yes, I believe in Gott, I believe in salvation, I know that heaven and hells exist. I believe that anyone can be redeemed they just have to ask or open the door or take a step."
When finished dressing he reached down and opened the book onto Luke 15 and offered it to her indicating that he had got dressed.
"That chapter talks about a man who has 100 sheep, one gets lost and he spends time searching for it. Only when he had found it was the sheep happy and living back with its flock. The Lords prayer has a line 'And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.' meaning Gott will forgive any sin and look for his lost sheep."
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""Where There Is Breath, There Is Hope""
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Post by John Kilroy on Mar 1, 2024 15:49:21 GMT -7
Laura did as the Blue Devil had asked. In truth seeing a naked man would not have caused her a second glance she knew both male and female anatomy very well... mainly in the weaknesses of that anatomy and how to strike them to kill people, but following the commands of a superior figure was a force of habit at this point.
After Nightcrawler got dressed he gave her the parable of the lost sheep to read. She couldn't help but smile just a little as a silent tear fell down her cheek. The idea that someone who cared for someone to look out for her like her was a comforting thought... but then she remembered the nature of her creation. She wasn't even a true person she was a murderer's weapon that was her purpose. She placed the book on a nearby chair and rolled up the sleeves of her pajama tops. She showed The Blue Devil Her arms which were covered in scars. These scars were not from fights though those healed within minutes if not seconds of being inflicted. No the scars on her arms were for self-inflicted. They did not heal much to the facility's confusion. X knew the truth though. It was not that these scars couldn't heal, it was that deep down she did not want them to heal. Each scar represented an innocent life that she took, one who did no wrong except be in the crosshairs of the wrong people.
"This sheep is stained in red. Is she even a she at all? Or is she a wolf that devours the flock?" Voices in her head began to mock her. *Murderer, monster,* she could hear the crying of her mother as she begged Laura to snap out of her mind-controlled state. Laura heard the sounds of her claws penetrating Sarah's organs and her gasp as she struggled to say her final words.
Laura's composter broke as she began to weep she held tightly to the blue devil like a lost child. She began to cry out. It couldn't have been more than a few seconds but it felt like eternity "Mommy I'm sorry I didn't mean to. Wake up, please wake up, come back please come back! Please... don't leave me..."
She cried for who knew how long. Once she calmed herself down and wiped her eyes she observed the Blue Devil. clearly a man of Germany, well-studied, a scholarly type...
"Are you a priest?" She asked her voice still weak and shy. She then looked back at the Bible on the desk and handed it back to him. "Will you teach me? I want to learn. I want to know everything you know about this God that can forgive and heal."
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Post by Gummy on Mar 2, 2024 11:13:32 GMT -7
Kurt did a soft smile as Laura listened. The embrace was there and he knew it was a good thing. He let her cry, as he gently put his arms around her. The door was still open and that was fine. He released it and sat down on the end of his bed while indicating for her to sit on his desk chair. A simple wooden one that had old school wheels. He smiled to her.
"I am a priest, there is a church I can take you to. I am a member of the Catholic church, it isn't for everyone and there are a lot of other churches out there where people can feel at home in. The one I attend isn't far from here and there are no judgement. I can take you if you wish? I can tell you and you can read. You only have to ask and you are forgiven. It is your actions going forward which make a difference."
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Post by John Kilroy on Mar 2, 2024 15:57:17 GMT -7
Laura gave another shy smile. "I would say I wish to go now but with it being in the middle of the night I'm sure that everyone is asleep." She then looked at The Blue Devil's vast collection of books. "May I please stay here with you for the night? You're library seems vast and I wish to continue studying. I'll be no bother"
X-23 could not explain it but something about the Blue Devil's presence felt... safe. It was like a comfort she had never felt before especially not with The Facility. Was it a coincidence? Was it the placebo effect in action, or was it possible that there was in fact merit to this man's beliefs. X-23 didn't know, but she wanted to find out.
"I do apologize. I do not know your name. I keep wanting to refer to you as a blue devil in my mind. But I get the feelings that's not the case at all is it. One should not judge a book by their cover." That last sentence was not so much asking a question so much as stating a matter of fact.
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Post by Gummy on Mar 2, 2024 16:18:56 GMT -7
Kurt smiled widely and bowed a little.
"I appologise, I'm Kurt Wagner, some call me Nightcrawler. The night maybe young but the church I attend is always open. I have been called fury blue elf, demon and a few other things. I'm fine with it. As for you staying here the night, I'm afraid I can't allow that. You're in the boys wing and it is past cerfew. I can, however, give you a couple of books to help and get you set up in the library. If you have any questions you could always come back."
He moved over next to her and pulled down two books then opened a drawer and retrieved a slightly less worn Bible.
"Here, these are a good pair. One explaining terms in the bible you might not be used to and the other is a good guide. I use it in religious studies. It talks a little about other religions too so you can see some comparisons. It will tell you where in the Bible to find bits. It's set out with a Title and then two numbers."
He showed her an example on his shelves and then showed her where to find it within the book, where the contents was and how to find chapters and verse.
"I can sit in the library with you if that helps?"
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Post by John Kilroy on Mar 2, 2024 18:54:16 GMT -7
Laura offered a shy hand. "Hello Mr. Wagner. My mother or at least the woman I consider to be such, gave me the name Laura. Most referred to me by just my designation. Designation X-23" X-23 gladly took the books that Nightcrawler had offered her. In truth this was the most she had talked sense her first encounter with her Template "father."
"I would appreciate your company, but I do not wish to put you out. I can go days without sleep without much issue. Not sure if you could though. But still I appreciate what you have done." She was silent for a moment. "Most have never treated me like I was a person. I've just been a weapon. Maybe that's all I truly am." She signed and asked the question that so many often ask. "If there is such a God that loves and howles at injustice, why are weapons like me allowed to be created?"
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Post by Gummy on Mar 3, 2024 5:27:32 GMT -7
Kurt took the hand gracefully.
"I know your name Laura, I know your from Logan and that you spend your evenings roaming around the building. I'm not like Charles but I see."
He paused thinking about her last question and in a serious voice. He spoke the truth as he saw it.
"We can thank Gott that your alive, that you are here with us. That is good, you are not a weapon but another human person, you think, you chose, you believe in what you know but you can also challenge what you think and know to become better."
He smiled softly.
"In the beginning Gott made a man and a woman and he gave them free will to chose for themselves. Long story short they didn't chose wisely. It is our free will and the temptation from the devil, Satan, Beelzebub or any other name for evil that can persuade people to do wrong things. Yet, in wrongs can come good. You have a choice not to be the same as those who helped to create you.
"Even Jesus was tempted by the devil before he was crucified but he chose to ignore the temptations and reject what he knew would cause him to move away from his own beliefs. The core of our beliefs is that Jesus was crucified because of our sins. He took all the wrongs that we have done and might ever do and forgave us. He accepted us and even forgave those who put him on the cross. He chose to do that, he chose to love."
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Post by John Kilroy on Mar 3, 2024 7:56:37 GMT -7
Laura listened intentionally as nightcrawler essentially preached to her whether he realized that was what he was doing or not. His words were comforting to her. Still she also had several questions. "If we're supposed to love our enemies, why do the likes of the X-Men fight, even kill when when a situation calls for it." As well as other questions of that nature such as "how can love and war co-exist?"
She didn't mean these questions in hostility far from it. It was just simply the fact that at the end of the day, she was perhaps not a weapon but at the very a soilder of some kind Every bit of new information she'd get she'd soak up like a sponge to water. As the two walked to the library She'd ask other questions too, like the history of the church, how did it come to be, what caused so many different denominations to pop up and so on. When she wasn't making eye contact with Kurt she was reading from a chapter in one of the books he had given her, in fact it was uncommon for her to do both at the same time. The Facility made She knew how to multitask.
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Post by Gummy on Mar 3, 2024 8:35:03 GMT -7
Kurt spoke softly.
"We try not to kill. We save as many as we can and give chances to those who seek us harm. We fight to protect those who are unable to. I wish it could be all peaceful but there are always people who chose prejudice over peace. Those who want to get rid of others they don't understand.
He frowned and was silent for a moment.
"Love can always exist, it is our choice to chose love. It is differing of opinions that cause war. Both sides thinking they are right when in fact they just need to figure out a way to live together. That is NEVER easy to attain and we hope that the children growing up here won't have to fight. Who has the choice? Do the fighters have a choice to join up? Do the civilians have a choice to be bombed? Do the Avengers have a choice to seek peace first? You don't have to fight, you don't have to do as another person says if you don't feel it is right."
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Post by John Kilroy on Mar 3, 2024 9:09:10 GMT -7
It was when Nightcrawler brought up the question about civilians being bombed that the answer sort of clicked for Laura. "We fight for those who can't fight for themselves, and we fight for the day that we never have to fight again." It seemed so simple, Wolverine had tried to express it to her before and yet somehow only now as she said it out loud that she understood it. "I think... I think I understand it now."
She looked over to realize they were both in the library now. She had been so engulfed in the conversation that she did not notice. She looked over to nightcrawler and gave him a smile. It was probably the warmest most genuine smile she had given anyone since coming to the mansion.
"I guess this is where we part ways for the night. I appreciate your teaching. Maybe we can have more of these in the future?"
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Post by Gummy on Mar 4, 2024 8:44:21 GMT -7
Kurt tilted his head and smiled at his with mischief in his eyes. "No, now is when you start to examine, test and finally you will come to understand. As I say to the students here. When you understand is when you start to learn more. Always question what you have learned. That way you will know for certain, just understanding is not knowing how it fits to life."
Kurt then nodded and waved around the library. "I'll be back later if you have any questions or you can come to me when you are ready. There is a section over there on other religions and the history is right next to it as the two are tightly entwined."
He grinned at her. "Gute Nacht und viel Spaß beim Lernen."
Translation according to google Good night and good learning. With that he turned to leave but would allow her time to talk back to him if she wished to do so.
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Post by John Kilroy on Mar 4, 2024 11:54:17 GMT -7
Laura bowed and proceeded to get to work. Her mind once again working like a sponge. The truth was, Laura was designed to be more than just a killing. Machine. She was that and more. she was designed to be the ultimate block ops weapon. A one-woman shadow army designed to expose the darkest kept secrets, topple regimes, end wars before they even started. Information that would take people months or even years to process she could do so in a matter of hours, days, and weeks. Once she got a basic understamding of the Latin Langauge it was only a short time she started reading and memorising the Latin Vulgate. She'd even try to learn Heb
Whenever she had the chance she'd shared what she had learned and would sotimes quout entire books. It wasn't so much she wanted to show off so much as she wanted to share. When she wasn't hanging out with her father, she was spending time in the library researching and studying. She studied different religions and historical text. Admittedly of everything she had studied something about Christianity just... felt right with her. Though she did find herself leaning more towards what would be referred to as Protestantism, mainly due to questioning some traditions of the Catholic church and seeing how they changed throughout history. Something about the idea of Sola scriptura, a cornerstone for beliefs that would remain unchanging even as everything else seemed to shift like sand also felt right. Nightcrawler did say he wanted her to find the truth on her own and that was where her studies and her heart led.
She would have religious debates with him but these were in fun and learned not hostility. One of the things she kept in mind was a scripture in Deuteronomy that if one sought the Lord they'd find him. As long as that were the case regardless of whatever differences in opinion she might have had with nightcrawler, eventually the two would meet at a common ground.
One day Laura tried her shot at communion bread using a Jewish recipe for unleavened bread and wanted Nightcrawler to be a tester.
"How did I do?" She asked crossing her fingers.
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