Professor Maxwell stared at the woman seated before him, skeptical. His instincts screamed at him, telling him that something was not quite right. But he just couldn't place what it was.
He had asked Marcus to join him in the visit today. Marcus stood beside Ethan Maxwell, his arms crossed, as he stared intently at the seated woman.
The woman in question had reached out to Professor Maxwell directly, claiming to be a mutant and claiming to have been developing telekinetic abilities. She claimed that she was concerned about the new developments and had wanted to consult with him, unsure of how to proceed.
The case in itself was not unique. Given his reputation, Professor Ethan Maxwell often had people reaching out to him for similar requests and consultations. But for some reason, everything about this woman made him feel uneasy.
Objectively, she appeared to be a woman in her late 30s of European descent- dark hair, dark eyes, lean build, pale skin. When he examined her mind, everything she said appeared to be true as well - she appeared to be developing telekinetic abilities and appeared to be truthful in her accounts.
'I can't explain it, but something is not right here,' Professor Maxwell thought to himself, communicating telepathically with Marcus.
'I was just thinking the same thing,' Marcus responded telepathically.
'She does appear to be a mutant, and her experiences do seem to be truthful,' the Professor admitted telepathically.
'Something seems quite unnatural about her,' Marcus observed telepathically.
Meanwhile, the woman in question flashed a small smile, her eyes glancing between the seated Professor Maxwell and Marcus, leaning against the wall behind him.
"I really appreciate how you both made the time to speak with me on such short notice again," she admitted quietly.
Professor Maxwell nodded with a small smile. "Of course, we are happy to help a fellow mutant," he explained. "And I am truly sorry that I could not be of more help to you," he explained.
"My school is primarily for young adults," he added.
The woman nodded in response. "I completely understand. I am glad that they have someone like you to turn to," she added, her expression softening, gratitude flashing in her eyes.
Professor Maxwell nodded in silence, returning her sentiments with a smile as he watched her stand up and ready herself to leave his office.
Marcus quietly observed her too.
"One thing," Marcus began, peeling himself away from wall as he stood up straight, his arm still crossed. "What was the organization you said you worked for," he asked.
The woman flashed Marcus a smile as she continued to gather her things. "Oh its called the Order of the Phoenix," she explained. "People often think of us as a religious organization, but we are really not. We try to help those in need as much as we can," she explained.
"We do have somewhat of a religious element," she added. "That's why they call me Lady Seline, just as a nun I suppose," she continued with a light peal of laughter. "But not religious," she clarified, flashing them a bright smile.
Marcus nodded with a polite smile, one that did not reach his eyes. He had never heard of this Order and silently reminded himself to look into it.
"We're in the same line of work then," Professor Maxwell remarked politely.
"It would seem so," the woman responded brightly. "Though I truly do admire your work," she added.
"I actually saw one of your students play a game of soccer the other day- she was quite remarkable," she remarked, nodding a little as she recalled the memory.
"You did," the Professor asked, raising an eyebrow in mild curiosity.
"I did," she agreed enthusiastically. "I had some work in the area earlier this week and happened to find myself at the game," she explained.
"I didn't catch her name, but I believe she scored the winning goal," the woman continued. "The red-head," she added.
Professor Maxwell nodded a little. He knew exactly which game she was referring to. Rosaria often played with sports clubs in the area, as did other students. But for some reason, this encounter did not seem as innocent as Lady Seline seemed to recall to Professor Maxwell.
"Yes, our students are encouraged to interact with the local community as much as possible," he explained.
"That is great," the woman agreed. "I do the same actually," she remarked. "We try to encourage our volunteers to really interact with local communities and build systems of support," she added, as the Professor nodded quietly in agreement.
"I'd love to meet her one day," the woman continued. "She seemed like such a confident young lady," she added. "She would make a great role model for us if she is interested," the woman continued.
The Professor nodded once more with a polite smile. "I'll be sure to pass on the message," he replied as Marcus led her to the door, indicating for her to leave.
The woman flashed another smile to both of them, thanking them once more and left the office, making her way out of the Academy.
As soon as she left, Professor Maxwell flipped on the television screen on his wall, changing the Chanel to the live camera feeds from the cameras placed across the Academy. Marcus and Professor Maxwell watched the woman walk out of the Academy.
Once she was gone, Professor Maxwell flipped off the television screen and turned to face Marcus.
"That was quite odd," he remarked.
"She appeared to be truthful in her accounts but there was something about her that felt unnatural, " he recounted.
Marcus nodded, his expression serious. "Did you observe anything in her mind," he asked.
Professor Maxwell shook his head. "It was exactly as she described," he explained. "Perhaps that is what unsettles me so much," he added.
"When people recall memories, they often do it imperfectly. The subconscious mind records things differently, and the conscious mind recalls from the subconscious mind. But it does it with imperfections," he explained. "In Lady Seline's case, the conscious mind recalled everything perfectly," he added. "It was in sync with the subconscious mind," he explained.
Marcus nodded as he listened along. "Is she lying," he asked, trying to follow along.
Professor Maxwell shook his head lightly in denial. "I don't believe so," he explained. "Or at least she has convinced herself that it is the truth," he added.
Marcus raised an eyebrow at his friend's analysis and remarks. "You think a Telepath has messed with her mind and imprinted that memory," he asked.
Professor Maxwell shrugged lightly. "It is possible," he admitted. "Though I did not detect any handiwork of any other telepath involved, " he explained. In his experience, telepaths who altered memories for others usually left imprints of their own mind, albeit unwillingly.
"You think she is a telepath too," Marcus probed.
"It is possible," he admitted. "Telepathic and telekinetic abilities usually go hand in hand," Professor Maxwell continued.
Marcus nodded a little, following along. He had known Ethan long enough to that things rarely unsettled him the way this interaction had.
"And if she is a telepath, the question becomes why do this song and dance at all," Marcus mused.
Nothing about this interaction made sense. Was she being used as a puppet by someone else to get access to Ethan and the Academy? Perhaps she was the puppet master herself, Marcus thought to himself silently. But no matter what, the question really remained the same. Why Ethan, and why the Academy.
Professor Maxwell mused Marcus' remarks. It was too perfect to be genuine. Nothing was out of the order at all. Everything Lady Seline had spoke of was absolutely true. It was almost mechanical, he thought to himself silently.
"I think I know why," Professor Maxwell remarked quietly. Her fixation on Rosaria, out of all the students did not sit right with him either.
Marcus walked over to the window in Professor Maxwell's office, his eyes fixed on the sight of a group of students walking into the garden. In particular, his eyes were fixed on Rosaria, who seemed to be carelessly laughing along with a group of familiar faces.
"You think she is targeting her to get to you," Marcus mused. It wouldn't be out of the question, Marcus thought to himself.
Professor Maxwell was a powerful telepath, perhaps one of the most powerful in history. It was no secret that Rosaria was being prepared to be his protégé. She was after all, a telepath like him. Marcus had recalled Ethan musing over her potential when he discovered her years ago - he had thought Rosaria was capable of surpassing Ethan himself if she used her full potential.
"Or is she using me to get to her," Professor Maxwell remarked.
Professor Maxwell had heard the name of that organization before- the Order of the Phoenix. But what he knew of the organization was quite sinister, hardly the same description Lady Seline had offered up.
Marcus' eyes narrowed as he stared at Rosaria intently from Professor Maxwell's office window. Marcus rarely had opinions on any of Ethan's students. Most of them were most unimpressive. But occasionally, there were a few who caught his eye. Alex had been one of them. And after the events of last summer, Rosaria was one of them as well.
Marcus couldn't help but feel that this whole thing was somehow linked to the events of last summer. He knew whatever Ethan had seen in Rosaria's mind that day had shaken him to his core. Ethan had spent the better part of the last year immersing himself in fringe religious groups and cosmic lore, trying to rationalize what he had experienced in Rosaria's mind.
Lady Seline left the Academy, driving out of the gates in a black SUV. She drove through the secluded woods, through the local roads, heading on to the highway.
Once on the highway, she reached over to her bag for her sunglasses. Flipping them on, she ran a finger through her dark brown hair before returning her hand to the steering wheel.
The corners of her lips extended into a smile as she reached for the navigation screen in the car and dialed a number.
"Her name is Rosaria Huntington," Lady Seline began, not waiting for a response from the other side.
"He saw the Phoenix in her mind," she continued.
"The disturbance we felt last year was most likely her particularly ascending," she added.
"Begin the preparations," she ordered before abruptly hanging up.
Her whole purpose of visiting the Academy had been quite straightforward. The Order had long suspected Professor Ethan Maxwell to be the Phoenix, attributing his unparalleled telepathic and telekinetic abilities to the Phoenix. But last year, Lady Seline had felt a foundational change in the energy - there had been a momentary spike of energy that had displaced the space and time continum briefly. While it resolved itself almost instantly, it was long enough to catch her attention.
The Order had closely followed Professor Maxwell, and the Academy by extension since then. All students were monitored. And through this, they had pieced together that Rosaria had been unconscious for about a week, coincidentally around the same time as the energy spike.
But despite that, there was no way for them to actually confirm any of this without getting close enough to Rosaria herself.
They had tried to go through her parents, which had ultimately failed as they were not aware of the details of her life at the Academy. Lady Seline had suggested to pivot the strategy and approach Professor Maxwell directly as a new mutant, knowing all too well that he was unlikely to refuse.
All she needed was access to his mind. And Professor Maxwell had freely provided that during his examination of her. And in doing so, Lady Seline reviewed all of his memories and experiences- she saw what he had experienced with Rosaria's deep psyche while trying to snap her out of a power surge. And that was exactly the confirmation that she and the Order needed.
After millenia, and across all dominions, they had finally found the manifestation of the Phoenix. The wait, and all the planning had been successful after all.
