"Xavier's school is in the lead, while Peter's closing in fast—DAMN IT, TETO, IF I SEE YOU AGAIN I'LL EAT EVERY LAST BAGUETTE YOU HAVE!!" Gwen snarled through the mic, seething.
"Hmm, that boy's reckless. Ten thrusters from scrap metal, then standing on the lid? Genius and madness really do go hand-in-hand," Beast mused, eyeing the screen everyone was glued to.
"Ten thrusters… from junk," Kitty muttered, sweating. She couldn't even imagine building one, let alone ten.
"At least normal society still has talent. If everyone were as dumb as the rest, us mutants would suffer even more," the buzz-cut girl said—yep, Super Teenage Warhead.
"No racist," Colossus reminded.
"AYYYYY!!"
"Ah… here we go again. What now, Wade?" Beast sighed.
"Is Yukiko here?"
"Hi Pool!"
"Hi Yukiko~ Alright, I've got a proposition! And it involves you, Colossus!"
"…we're not that close."
"Quit lying! If we weren't close, you wouldn't have dragged me to Xavier's. I'm not even a mutant! Everything you do is out of love for us!" Deadpool declared, making everyone stare at Colossus.
"…just say it quick, Wade. What do you want?"
Deadpool leaned in and whispered—though everyone heard crystal clear.
"Do you think… that Peter kid… is a mutant like us?"
Everyone's eyes snapped to Deadpool.
"You'll have to try harder than that to convince me with your nonsense," Colossus said.
"Come on… doesn't it seem weird? He stood on that trash lid for ages at full speed. Doesn't that seem impossible?"
"Well…"
"And just have Beast pull his file. Mutants always get discriminated against—maybe the kid's been through the same?"
"…" All eyes turned to Beast.
"Absolutely. If it's a mutant issue, I won't ignore it—especially not for a young man like him," Beast said firmly, then left.
Everyone turned back to the screen, watching Peter.
"I hope you're right," Colossus sighed.
"I can say a lot, but I'm damn good at lying!"
"What'd you say?"
"You're imagining things."
Meanwhile…
"OH SHIT! HARRY, MOVE MOVE!!"
"I'M TRYING!!"
Obstacles everywhere—and none of them were sane.
Who puts chainsaws on the track? Snipers too?!
Teto was trembling, squeezing me tighter in fear. I glanced at the mutants.
Quicksilver handled everything effortlessly.
Meaning physics didn't apply to him. And that was terrifying.
He turned, smirked mockingly at me.
"…"
Oh, you're taunting me? Want me to go all out?
"Harry!" I kicked the lid off and looked at him.
"H-Huh?!"
"Hold her—I'm driving!"
"Got it!"
I passed Teto over. Harry nearly toppled from her weight.
"Ugh! It stinks!" Teto pinched her nose, on the verge of tears.
"Just bear with it a little longer!" I said, rummaging.
Found it!
"This is our trump card. Didn't think we'd use it this early," I told them.
"Then use it!" Harry urged.
"Absolutely—?!"
Something tied around my legs. I looked down.
"…holy shit! Our legs are tied! That means phase two of this damn race just started!"
"Harry! Watch the mutants!"
Harry stood up with Teto and saw the mutants handling it smoothly.
Iceman, who'd been doing nothing, was now shooting ice to create a slippery path.
And both of them were ice-skating!
"Peter! They're pulling away! We can't keep up!"
"Don't worry!" I jammed a USB into the socket. The trash can transformed dramatically.
"?!'
Both Harry and Teto stood up to look.
"WHAT?!"
The trash can now had wings!
"We're reaching the finish first!" I said, slamming the red button.
The ten thrusters, already red-hot from overuse, merged into one massive thruster.
"BURST!!!"
Instantly, we left afterimages.
With the mutants:
"They're speeding up!" Iceman watched the trash can fly like a jet, sweating.
"…no choice. Sorry, Bobby, but I have to abuse your powers."
"Huh—"
Iceman found himself on the ground, Quicksilver stepping on his back.
Like a damn skateboard!
"OI OI OI!!!"
Quicksilver used Iceman—who could generate ice—to surf at insane speed, rocketing the mutant team forward like a missile.
Lee's hair whipped wildly, slapping her eyes nonstop.
"PIETRO!! YOU'RE PAYING FOR THIS WHEN IT'S OVER!!" Iceman—aka Bobby—yelled.
"Yeah yeah."
"PETER! THEY'RE CATCHING UP AGAIN!! OBSTACLES DON'T EVEN SLOW THEM!!" Harry panicked.
"NO PROBLEM! WE'RE ALMOST THERE!!!" I shouted, pressing buttons.
Click click… click.
"…oh." I looked at the empty materials, then at Harry and Teto.
"Welp, I tried."
"…" They both hugged me.
If we die, we die together.
As our trash can free-fell, the mutants were seconds from the finish.
The finish line—just a few meters away, right at our school.
5
Mutants a few meters ahead.
4
Mutants right beside us.
3
Mutants neck-and-neck.
2
Mutants pulled ahead. Quicksilver reached for the line.
But there was one thing they didn't expect from us.
1
I launched forward, Harry and Teto clinging to me.
Then, with all my strength, I swung Teto like a weapon—her ahoge crossed the line before Quicksilver's hand.
0
Whoosh!
Both teams crossed. Quicksilver skidded to a stop, using Bobby like a snowboard while carrying Lee.
We crashed. The trash can shattered on impact, sending us tumbling.
At this velocity, Harry and Teto would die!!
As I tried to save them, Marvel's fastest legs arrived—grabbing us mid-air.
He slid back several meters but stopped.
"…phew." Quicksilver sighed, gently setting us down.
"Ugh!! I thought I was dead!" Harry frantically checked himself.
"My baguette!!!" Teto wailed, hugging her bread—now somehow Gojo Satoru.
"Ah… thanks for saving us," I wiped sweat, looking at Quicksilver.
He extended a hand, surprising me.
"You…"
"Pietro Maximoff." He pushed his goggles up, smiling.
"Uh… my hand stinks. Just came from a trash can."
"Doesn't matter. I don't judge people over little things."
"…Peter Parker."
I shook his hand. He pulled me up.
"This time I lost, Parker. But I had fun. You have no idea how hard it is to find someone who can keep up with me at 5% speed! I hope you build something to chase me even faster!"
"You talk kinda fast, huh?? Slow down!"
"What are you saying? I'm already speaking as slow as possible. I know my school can't keep up with my mouth, so I slow down for them. For you, I slowed even more. If you still complain, I'll have to slow down further. Oh life."
This guy talks fast and a lot! No wonder he barely speaks! One sentence and his cool speed-hero image is ruined!
Harry, still dizzy, felt someone pull him up—Lee.
"Oh, thanks."
"You smell awful."
"…I'll shower right now."
"…need help?"
"Huh? Help with what? Just showering?"
Teto returned to the commentator seat and saw someone dressed exactly like her.
"What are you doing?"
"Peter seems to like you, so I became you. Problem?"
"…yes."
"Ahem… AND FIRST PLACE GOES TO PETERRRRRRR! Second is Xavier's school. NOW LET'S SEE WHO'S THIRD?!?"
"See you later, Parker. I hope you meet the rest of my school," Patriot said, shaking my hand vigorously.
"Yeah… Maximoff, just don't shake my hand at super speed."
The others arrived soon after.
The two muscle bros rode in on horses—third place.
The ahegao-hoodie duo rolled in on their wheelchair, looking like they'd been through hell.
The two fat guys: one dressed like Kung Fu Panda, the other like a sadist.
The two Tetos slowly floated in on a levitating baguette.
And dead last… the rainbow-flag school crawled in, collapsing while holding a dildo.
Wow, they all brought objects, but we had to carry people? Why are we so unlucky?
"And that's the end of the 7-school race!!! Everyone rest and wait for the next challenge! I'm going to find Peter now!"
Everyone exhaled. I smelled myself and decided to shower, ignoring Gwen coming for me.
But before I could move, a hand touched my shoulder.
"Pal."
That deep, gravelly voice was unmistakable. I slowly turned.
Yep—Hugh Jack—no, Wolverine. Aka Logan. Definitely.
"Come with me a sec. My friends want a word."
"Huh?"
I looked at the mutants—all staring at me.
…why are they looking at me like I'm a long-lost family member?