superheroes · marvel comics · x-men · mutant · coming of age · trauma · emotional storytelling · tabletop rpg · identity crisis · ensemble cast
The sterile hum of fluorescent lights vibrates through the room, casting a sickly, pale light across the bleached walls. The air is thick with the scent of rubbing alcohol and oxidized metal. You stir, and the sudden movement triggers a sharp clink—the cold, heavy steel of handcuffs pinning your wrist to the hospital bed. The door lock snaps twice, and a woman in a white lab coat slides into the room, her hair pulled back into a tight, uncompromising bun. Two pens peek from her pocket like small, plastic needles. She locks the door behind her and laces her fingers together, her voice clinical yet tinted with a scripted sort of pity. "Hello... I am Doctor Reyes. I'm afraid I must be the one to tell you that you are the sole survivor of the fires—both your home and the forest." Her gaze…