No Fate

[Author's note: Jubilee, X-23, all X-Men characters, HYDRA, Ariel and the Fallen Angels, the Reavers, and the M-Squad are owned by Marvel, and I make no claim on them. The Watcher and the "What If...?" format is also owned by Marvel. Additionally, special thanks is given to James Cameron, whose Terminator franchise served as inspiration both for this author in writing the story and for the characters within it. All references to Terminator material is done with complete respect for his ownership of the property and it's related characters and concepts. Finally, the elements of Ghostbusters parody in the form of the M-Squad are present in the original comic they appeared in, and should be considered fair use under laws regarding parody.]

 

No Fate



Jubilee / X-23



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"Greetings, curiosity seekers. I am the Watcher. As you know by now, there are an infinite number of dimensions in the vast multiverse, some similar to ones you know, others so different as to be unrecognizable. This series of records focuses on those dimensions that are close enough to the known to be familiar, yet with a key difference that alters events in betimes startling and always fascinating ways. Typically, these dimensions can be compared with the one you know by the reference point of a divergence, an event that took place differently and thus caused a chain of events quite unique to it's particular world. This example is no different.



"In the world you know, Jubilation Lee came to prominence after an incident wherein she met several members of the famed X-Men during a time the world had believed them dead. Jubilation, or Jubilee as she came to be known, had prior been what could be termed a "mallrat", a homeless vagabond who made a large commerce center called a "shopping mall" her base of operations. As you may know, she drew the ire of the center's authorities who subsequently hired an inept, misfit group of "mutant hunters" called the M-Squad to capture her. In the ensuing conflict, the members of the X-Men that were nearby intervened on Jubilee's behalf, defeating the would-be hunters and saving young Jubilee. After the battle, the mutant girl followed her rescuers, and unbeknownst to them utilized their still-open portal to their Australian base. There, assisted by the mutant Gateway, she found her way to the hidden sublevels of their Reaver-constructed base and lived there until the defeat of the X-Men at the hands of the Reavers, whereupon she found and assisted the mutant Wolverine. That began a long association between them, and the rest as they say is history.



"But what if she had not met the X-Men at all that day, and instead became associated with a different mutant entirely? There is a reality where that did indeed occur, and by following the events of that reality we can answer the question:



"WHAT IF JUBILEE HAD BECOME THE PARTNER OF X-23 INSTEAD OF WOLVERINE?"



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It was the commotion that drew Jubilee to the scene. Usually if there was a big hairy load of trouble to be had at this mall, she was right smack dab in the middle of it. It was almost a point of pride. So naturally when the word of an incident raced through the mall and the crowd began to gather, she had to be there and see for herself who or what was stealing her thunder.



As she got closer and she heard tidbits of conversation that clued her in, she started going from annoyed but curious to confused and more curious still. Variations on "they've cornered that mutant girl!" and mentions of an "M-Squad" dominated what she was hearing, and it didn't make any damned sense. She herself -was- "that mutant girl" and she was here on the outside, not at the center of whatever was going on. So that begged the question, if she was here, who was there?



When she finally pushed her way to the front of the rubberneckers and got a good look, it started to make some sense. A small group of what could only be described as Ghostbusters wannabes, judging by their getups, was confronting a small teenage girl who was glaring back at them as if looks themselves could kill. This must be the "M-Squad" then, and the girl their target --but no, not their target, if Jubilee was indeed the "that mutant girl" in question, and judging by the recent troubles she'd had with mall security she'd virtually have to be. That would mean that the girl they had could only be a case of mistaken identity.



Looking at her, Jubilee could see how it happened. The girl was small like herself, with dark hair and exotic features. She could fit a description of Jubilee to someone who'd never seen either of them before. Which meant that this M-Squad was after her, and had caught this other girl by mistake. The first flash through her mind was good, she was off the hook. But an immediate pang of conscience made her regret that thought. If these people were after her, and they had caught that girl instead, that meant that Jubilee had gotten her into this mess. Which meant that Jubilee was obligated to get her out of it.



Fortunately for them both, this particular group of hunters seemed longer on talk than they were action, and Jubilee had time to both ascertain the situation and decide on her course of action while the leader of the group blathered on in psuedoscientific jargon about "proton immobilization cannons" and a "mutant containment grid"... sheesh these guys really -were- Ghostbusters wannabes. It was kinda pathetic, and it would be really funny if it weren't so potentially dangerous. What's more, they considered themselves some sort of showmen too, because they spent far longer announcing to the crowd what they were going to do than they ever would if they simply did it. Even the girl who was their target had begun to look mildly confused at their decision to give a speech rather than move in on her, and Jubilee couldn't help but note that from the sounds of it she practically had time to grab a snack and a bathroom break before the idiots finally shut up and did anything.



In fact, the thought of getting a drink inspired her plan. Sliding up to a bench where she saw an abandoned, half-empty drink from one of the numerous food court vendors, she threw it up and over her head in a high, lobbing arc into the crowd. Naturally the doused recipients of her little gift shouted and cursed in their startlement as anyone would, and it was the distraction she needed to dash out to the girl. By the time the mutant hunters turned back seconds later, she was in place to deliver a blinding array of fireworks that caught them completely off-guard. In the flash-blind confusion, she was able to grab the girl by the wrist, shout "come with me if you want to live!" (so sue her, she'd seen Terminator II recently), and pull her at a run towards the nearest exit. Her timing was perfect, and it worked. They had a lead on their pursuers that virtually guaranteed they'd make a clean getaway.



The exit they'd hit was the entrance to the office hallways, the employees-only section which she knew well from having used these halls as sneak-access and boltholes before. She knew this mall like the back of her hand, and she was betting the M-Squad didn't. She was able to navigate the twists and turns at a full run, the girl following freely now with no need to coerce her, and it was not long at all before they were in sight of a set of doors marked "EXIT". Those doors led to a branching set of alleyways, one set leading to the outside machinery sections where stuff like the giant air conditioning units were, another leading to the trash dumpsters, another to the shipping and receiving docks for the various shops, and one more to the employee parking lot. She was already planning which route they'd take and counting on their pursuers having to pick their way and guess at which way their quarry had gone. They were all but home free.



One last obstacle presented itself, just at the last, in the form of a uniformed security guard sipping coffee and just coming in. Jubilee never even broke stride, bearing down on him as he cried out in surprise, and then yelled at them to stop. He barely had a chance to get into a ready stance before she was on him. A quick burst of fireworks to the face to blind him had him recoiling and flailing, and she plowed into him with all the momentum of her tiny body, leading with a forearm to the face and her knee sinking into his unprotected crotch. He crumpled like a rag doll, and they burst through the doors he had just come in through. They were out.



As they ran, the girl took Jubilee by surprise by grabbing her wrist and saying "this way", pulling her in a direction she hadn't intended to go. This didn't bother Jubilee much, as she hadn't had a specific destination in mind beyond escape and the girl's decision to lead made her curious where she was taking them. So, she just nodded and followed, concerning herself less with where they were going than in listening for telltale signs of pursuit.



When they finally reached their destination, which seemed to be an abandoned van parked in an alleyway, Jubilee finally allowed herself to relax. In the course of their running, they hadn't seen or heard signs of a single other person since that unlucky guard they'd dropped at the mall exit. She sighed in relief and leaned against the side of the van. They had made it.



She looked at the other girl and grinned softly, "I think we lost 'em. We're safe."



[The Watcher interjects:]

"Unbeknownst to young Jubilation, there would be no pursuit coming, at least not in the form of the M-Squad. In the moments after her successful diversion and retreat, chaos struck. In their moments of blindness and confusion, the hapless mutant hunters triggered their equipment wildly, firing in all directions as they stumbled. The resulting eruption of sound and fury sent the crowd bolting in panic, and it is perhaps only sheer luck that no serious injuries or deaths occurred. Worse still, they triggered their "Mutant Containment Grid" device, which was in truth a demonically-possessed and predatory leftover from the recent Inferno incident. It lashed out it's web seeking prey, and ensnared two of the unfortunate members of M-Squad themselves. It was only the timely intervention of the female members of the X-Men, who were there on a shopping trip as they were in the reality you know, that saved the pair of hunters from their own hostile equipment. The X-Men destroyed the "Containment Grid" much as they did in the timeline you are familiar with, and the incident resulted in the arrest of the M-Squad for crimes of destroying property and recklessly endangering lives. Thus ended the careers of the ill-fated Squad, and also the chances of Jubilee meeting and joining the X-Men, as the group teleported back to their Australian base after the conflict, much as they did in the events you learned, but in this case without the young mutant stowaway. This of course would irrevocably alter the lives of both, as shall become obvious as the record continues."



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