"I'm the punch things type too. I never really got my electricity to go beyond like a few centimeters away from me. If fighting uh...Miss sleepy over there is any indication I doubt I'd be able to get close enough to try." Andy said. She was still looking up at the ceiling where her jacket was a bit frustrated. Andy held her cup of coffee and drank a long sip from it. She finished the cup. Andy wanted another one, but was too interested in what was going on outside to pour herself one. Now that Echo was gone. She wondered if everyone would wear name tags.
"But I am interested. I've heard of him." She left the dining room and went outside with the others. There were a few people on the roof. Andy's stomach dropped with instant regret as she recognized the guy who could control fire from the day before. "Yeah...nope." She mumbled to herself and started back inside. She was not going to get involved in a fight with that guy again, no thank you. The entire reason she had gotten involved the first time was cause there had been purifiers and she hated those guys. Didn't these dudes have anyone else in their group that didn't wield death air, or whatever fire was?
Location: Washington DC, Outside of Jack's Apartment Skills: N/A
Callie stared at Waverly for a moment and gave her a little bit of an annoyed look at her for a moment, she wanted to avoid a fight as much as possible. But so far Jack hadnt done anything hostile just yet anyway as she watched Jack rather closely, as he started to lie which she had a bit of a hard time actually believing anyway. Waverly had spent the whole morning so far freaking out about her being drugged and Sunshine being kidnapped. "Sorry, but I kind of have a hard time believing that honestly." Callie said, as Max quickly started to do his thing, and comically teleported above Jack and Sunshine before opening a portal and taking Sunshine with him.
"Alright so now that is out of the way, what really happened? Waverly remembered you drugging her last night or something, and then taking Sunshine with you." Callie said crossing her arms over her chest slightly, and cautiously watched Waverly as closely as she could as well she didnt want to see a fight breakout right now still. But she will attack if they were attacked first by him anyway as well, turning her attention back towards Jack.
Kristina Smith
Location: Mutant Underground - Outside of Havok's Room Skills: N/A
Kristina stared at Sapphire for a moment as the woman snapped a her, she crossed her arms over her chest slightly. "Hey, i'm just offering to help out. It's better than going solo and stuff as well." Kris said towards Sapphire as she stared at the room seeing Polaris was still out cold, and Havok admitting what he had actually done. She had gone to a few college parties in the past and people using way to many drugs. "Yeah, that really isnt a good idea giving a shit ton of sleeping pills." Kris said as Echo came over towards them saying that they had to give Polaris up to him, and she cringed slightly when Echo called her sweetie it was something her grandparents always called her. "Please dont call me sweetie." Kristina said, but she nodded slightly while looking over towards Sapphire, Havok not wanting to give Polaris up.
She thought about saying something, but decided not to it was really Sapphire's show right now on whether to hand Polaris over to Magneto or not. She had no issue with fighting, she had fought against some Purifiers just the day before, and she was more than willing to help defend this place as well since they were willing to take her in.
James watched the mutant swaying side to side with sympathy but didn’t respond to him when the rest of Magneto’s lackeys didn’t either. He frowned at Magneto’s explanation. As far as anyone was aware, m-pox affected mutants only. Why would they distribute a drug to people that couldn’t use it? It was a waste of resources. It’d be easier to keep a hold of the cure in the event m-pox suddenly struck regular people so it could be distributed more efficiently. James considered how angry it made Magneto, and rightfully so, and it made more sense then. If it was him working for S.H.I.E.L.D and he had the hands on something even remotely resembling a cure, his first thought would be to use it as bait. It wouldn’t be difficult to assume that Magneto would take the bait; a man known for both taking what he wants and a strong sense of justice and loyalty to the mutant community. It'd be like Christmas, all wrapped up in a steel bow. James had a sneaking suspicion that Magento might disappear for a little while.
“Good to know. I don’t think I’ve ever felt quite as useless as I have recently. Even using my healing factor on them doesn’t help. It just comes back worse right after..” James grimaced at the thought of the first few attempts. It hadn’t been pretty. But for now, he had a more pressing concern. The fact that he hadn't heard anything from anyone suggested they were in for a fight and James would bet a lot of money on losing this fight. The last time they’d taken on Magneto, several of them almost died and Jack had been actively bleeding out at the end. Admittedly, that was mostly Polaris but she got it from somewhere. James just hoped they came outside to fight. He was pretty sure surrounding themselves with metal would be a mistake.
In case they attack him, rolls for Reactive Adaptation
Location: Mutant Underground Medical ---> Outside -- Washington D.C. Skills: Telepathy
Luna tried to connect with James again and managed to open her connection with him. She sighed in relief before she spoke to him. ”Don’t get mad. I saw Magneto is here. Is there anything I can do?” She shifted her weight again, trying to ignore the way her breathing hitched so easily from the little movement. She pushed herself up to her feet and grabbed into the door and walked out of the room on shaky legs. She still hadn’t been able to keep anything down in days so the ability to keep herself standing was a miracle. As Luna made her way into the hallway, she heard voices of the others and saw that a bit of a group was gathering. Luna had her mission though and didn’t deviate as she struggled, weak limbs and all to the door that would take her outside. She stumbled forward before falling to her hands and knees beside James. She was breathing shallowly and the world was spinning but she could see a few people come into focus occasionally. Luna didn’t know why she pushed herself to get out here, all she was going to be was a liability but she didn’t want to stand by and be useless. ”What’s… going… on….” It took too much effort to get three words out and Luna wasn’t even sure if it had been audible.
Mild Symptoms: Headache, some splotchiness of the skin, fatigue and exhaustion Moderate Symptoms: Difficulty breathing, dizziness, vomiting, blood shot eyes, prominent veins Severe Symptoms: Vomiting blood, trouble walking, bleeding from the ears, extreme skin discoloration, general looniness
So far, only two individuals have "cured" themselves from M-Pox. The first was S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Cassandra Reed. The second was Gabriel Summers A.K.A. Vulcan.
Outside the Mutant Underground HQ -
It was hard to gauge Magneto's expression due to his helmet. It casted shadow on the majority of his face. Toad and the well dressed gentleman seemed to have gone into some sort of quiet argument, as Toad leaned on him for balance and the gentleman tried to shake his fellow mutant off of him. Pyro was casually juggling fireballs and the last male member of the Brotherhood looked bored. Mystique had shifted back into her natural blue form.
"It's been five minutes. We should get started," she said.
"Yes. Avalanche, if you wouldn't mind," Magneto said, before looking back at the Brotherhood. The man wearing the steel armor knelt down to the ground. He splayed out his fingers and touched the earth covering the Mutant Underground. Suddenly, like a shockwave, a massive earthquake erupted. The Mutant Underground wasn't in horrible condition, but the seismic event was enough to bury anyone inside alive if they didn't evacuate soon. The trembling would knock Glimpse down to the ground completely, forcing her onto her stomach rather than her hands and knees.
Magneto didn't need to invade the Mutant Underground to find Polaris. He was going to force them to bring her to him.
Second Floor of the Mutant Underground HQ -
"I know that!" Havok snapped defensively, although if he were being honest, he hadn't really given it much thought. He had just been focused on keeping Polaris unconscious and safe, he hadn't considered whether or not his strategy could prove to be just as harmful. She seemed fine though. He discretely put a hand on her wrist to check her pulse, finding that it felt about normal. He wasn't a doctor, so he wasn't sure, but he was fairly certain. "She has a pulse, see? She's fine!" he complained, glaring daggers at Echo.
He didn't like Echo's line of reasoning at all. "One, I'm not pussywhipped. You wish that you'd have as much pussy as I do," he bragged. "Two, we don't negotiate with terrorists! If we give Polaris over to Magneto, he's going to make her into his puppet. He's a world class asshole and she'll be better off without him. And lastly, the plan is to kick Magneto's ass. He's getting old, he lost to the rookie X-Men team Xavier put together last year and they were basically untrained kids. We've got me, and I guess the rest of you aren't awful at combat."
The ceiling then collapsed like a cave in. Havok was quick on the draw, sending off a blast of energy at the largest chunk. Polaris was completely unscathed, but poor Echo ended up taking a large chunk of debris to the head. The entire building was shaking profusely, like the worst earthquake in history had descended on them. "Avalanche. Fuck."
Casper shook his head at Zarina. "Soooo many people assume you can't attack Magneto with metal, but Daddy Dear keeps Wolverine around so clearly it has to work at least once every now and then," he said. He wasn't really sure how Wolverine ended up doing in battles against Magneto. He probably just complained that his bones hurt. How did other heroes like Iron Man do? Did Magneto just turn them into giant fridge magnets? Casper couldn't help but snicker at the thought, imagining Iron Man being used to hold some kid's report card onto the fridge. Did Magneto save his kids' report cards? Did the Scarlet Witch outperform Quicksilver on spelling tests? Was Polaris a gifted math prodigy?
He looked around the room quickly for weapons they could use to fight with. He found three wooden serving spoons and he grabbed them. "Are you old enough to use one of these?" he asked. Andy had left the room, so he tossed one of the wooden spoons over to Zarina, before realizing that he had Ben. He didn't need a spoon to protect himself. He then tossed the other two at her, given her the option of having a spare and dual wielding. "The trick is to whack them in the balls. People hate being hit in the balls, but it's effective. Remember that for prom, okay?"
Suddenly, everything around them was shaking. The ceiling was slowly falling apart, bits of tile and whatnot plunging down towards them. The metallic objects in the room had fallen back down to the ground, so clearly Magneto must have shut off the magnetism for the moment. "Am I tripping or is this an earthquake?" Casper asked.
"It's real, you idiot!" Ben snapped. Casper was on his last nerve.
"Fuck," he groaned. Casper grabbed Zarina by the arm and went off at a run with her. Once he left the dining room, he bumped into Andy and he grabbed onto her with his other hand. "Come on, up we go, trust me it's better to fight Magneto than to be buried alive."
Veil
Location: Outside Jack's Office Building Skills: N/A
Veil was ill at ease with this entire situation. Something wasn't adding up here. Maybe her thoughts were just a bit clouded, as Jack had been a reliable and trustworthy person up to this point. It was like he was covered in slime - she just wasn't sure if it was his slime or someone else's. She regretted again not having Glimpse with them. They really could have used a telepath to sort things out and get the entire story. With Jack's family, things were so bizarre that she wouldn't have been surprised if the devil really had made him do it, for instance.
"I'm going to give you one last chance to tell us everything that happened last night," Veil decided, looking steadily at Jack. "I don't give second chances lightly, so I recommend talking." A few people from inside the building had pulled their curtains back, gawking down at the scene occurring outside. They must have seen Max's rip in the fabric of reality that had taken him and Sunshine away - that or the shimmering purple force of Veil's force field. They didn't have much time until the cops were called or worse, Purifiers would show up on the scene.
Veil was gambling that they'd be able to resolve this soon and fast. Otherwise, things could go south quickly.
Sunshine didn't know how to swim. She had lived in the city almost her entire life, aside from the one brief time she and her found family had lived in a summer camp during the winter season. She gasped for air, sucking in copious amounts of seawater into her lungs. She instinctively started trying to cough it out, to rid herself of the nauseating taste of saltwater. She flailed her limbs, kicking in a desperate attempt to get back above the water. She hardly registered Max grabbing her securely and pulling her out, as he floated them up into the air, dangling precariously over the ocean surface.
She was coughing profusely, water coming out of her mouth rapidly until her lungs were clear again. "There's something wrong with you, you just tried to drown me!" Sunshine snapped. She was clinging to Max for dear life however, knowing that her odds were horrible if he let her drop back into the ocean. The sun was blaring down on them and Sunshine scraped her teeth along her tongue, trying to get rid of the ocean taste.
About 300 meters away was an island. It was lush with vegetation, but what immediately stood out was what looked like an elaborate palace complex. Several statues, easily the size of the Statue of Liberty, depicted cryptid-looking monsters. Most of them had tentacles, reminiscent perhaps of the kraken. The entire island radiated evil and mystery, as if some ancient evil had transpired here. The veil between life and death was thinner as well.
"Is that what he told you?" Waverley scoffed when Sunshine told them of Jack's excuse, though her eyes were still staring daggers at the private detective. She continued to glare at him for a few more seconds, before shifting her gaze to Sunshine. She opened her mouth to explain her recollection of events, where Jack came in, drugged the both of them, and kidnapped the younger girl, but before she could, a half-conscious Max popped into being above the pair, collapsing down on them. Waverley's eyebrows knitted together into a look of equal parts disdain and confusion, before watching her roommate be pulled through a portal by the man that killed her mother. Her rage seemed to be replaced by annoyance as she brought her hand which had been stretched out defensively to her head, burying her face in her palm.
"Fucking moron. He better have gotten her to the Underground, because otherwise we're gonna have to find her all over again, and we'll have to get rid of Max's corpse without catching whatever disease she ends up using to kill him." She let out a frustrated sigh, completely dropping her battle-ready stance in favor of her normal awkward slouch. She shifted her body back towards the car, ready to leave to go make sure Sunshine made it safely back home, but she stopped when she realized that Jack could still be a threat to the girl's safety. As Veil gave the man one last chance, Waverley's eyes flitted nervously to the eyes staring worried out windows, but eventually they landed on Jack, narrowed, filled with anger rather than concern.
"Yeah, and give us a reason to believe you won't do this kind of shit to her again. Then we can go our separate ways before shit goes sideways." Waverley made sure not to include an invitation back to the Mutant Underground, even though she knew it wasn't her place to decide.
Andy had come back inside just in time for the building to start shaking. She had moved back toward the dining area but that was useless now. Andy looked up at the ceiling where her jacket was still stuck. With the building shaking, she knew she should evacuate. Andy had lived in California long enough to know how to deal with earthquakes. She was frustrated. Andy wanted nothing to do with the fire user outside. She also didn't like fighting mutants. Why fight people like her that were also abused by the world?
The shaking wasn't stopping though. Not like a normal earthquake. The standard education for earthquakes was stop and get cover until the shaking stopped and then exit the building. It was dangerous to try to exit a shaking building, but it looked like she had no choice. She turned back around and went to exit the building carefully. Andy walked away from the building. She was pissed, her jacket was stuck in that shaking building. If she wasn't able to retrieve it... Andy didn't want to think about it, but she whispered an apology to her adoptive mother.
Outside she looked around at the group with Magneto and the fire guy. She could take a guess which person was causing the earthquake. The guy was kneeling down touching the ground. She grinned a little. He was on the ground. If she could get close to him and punch him letting a blast of electricity out she might be able to get him to stop shaking everything. Andy dashed forward and punched him. It was a good punch, but even with the electricity pulsing from her hand into him, he didn't stop shaking the ground. She ground her teeth, steadied herself and went to punch him again.
This time when she gave a near perfect right punch into his jaw. The man fell over landing on his butt and the earthquake stopped. Andy grinned. Partially she was thankful she hadn't killed the man. She hadn't wanted to do that. Sometimes it was all to easy to do though. Her power caused hearts to just stop if she hit someone at the wrong time. Though now she would have to deal with the consequences of punching a fully adult several inches taller than her with the ability to make earthquakes. Andy stuck out her chin proudly ready to duck and weave as needed to get the heck out of the way.
Andy is going to use MMA/Boxing skills to get out of melee if Avalanche goes for her
"Yeah well aren't you sooooooooooo nice Havok. Look, you want to keep your girlfriend safe, fine, I get that but if you want to knock her out and keep her unconscious next time just ask, since despite knowing for a fact she hates my guts I would have helped you out," Sapphire said instantly to him with a shake of her head. Yeah, the guy tended to be a bit reckless in regards to things, but she knew that he meant well. Typically anyway, but that was besides the point, since right now they clearly had Magneto knocking on their door. Quite literally it would seem as the ceiling started caving in slightly.
"Alright, you want to protect Polaris and kick Magneto's ass, I get it, but how do you plan to protect her from a building that is caving in? Since that is clearly what is going on, guess we could go out there to the entrance and start trying to knock them out before that all happens, since that sounds like our best bet if you don't want to bring Polaris out with us," she said instantly, looking at Havok, before glancing at Echo, "Sometimes the best plans are the ones where you work on the fly, but first priority is going to be knocking out Avalanche and then Magneto." With those last words she started for outside, though before she turned to leave both Havok and Echo would see a kind of weird sight. The right side of her hair had turned white now (which was normal) but the other half stayed the same brunette, and her right eye was now the icy blue, while the other was hazel. It definitely was a bit of a strange appearance.
Zari seemingly was only half paying attention to Casper's sort of rambling, and didn't even really notice the earthquake as she watched Mr. Eyeball start to fall and she immediately went to try and catch him, but she missed and he the ground breaking. "Mr. Eyeball noooooooo!" she said, before she started using her powers to manipulate it so that he was whole again, and she was pretty sure that she had accomplished it for the most part. "Mr. Eyeball, are you okay?" she asked the robot.
"Uhhh... Damn it sounds like your personality matrix is all wonky! I don't like that sort of thinking let's fix this and try again!" she said, before she once more tried to repair him completely.
"Yay! You're back to normal!" she said happily before going over and picking up Mr. Jaws who only had a decent sized dent in his skull, but otherwise was fine and still working. "Eh, you're a work in progress anyway Mr. Jaws, I'll get that dent out in no time don't you worry!" she said before following after Casper and tossing the spoons to the side, and grabbing her flashlight/sword, "Why would I fight with spoons? They are useless and really hard to potentially kill someone with!"
Location: Outside Jack's Office Skills Bluff, Manipulation, People Reading, Charisma
Jack knew that things weren't seemingly going well at all with this, so once more he decided to fall back on his old ways of lying like crazy and hoping that everything worked out in the end. Problem was, what was he going to say? There wasn't much that he could do, since most everything he'd say would probably be weird or hard to think of. Then, an idea crossed his mind, one that seemed like a viable option given his current circumstances, and growing up it always seemed like an easy solution with everything. When in doubt, blame a telepath.
He put a hand to his head and shook it slightly, giving a look of slight confusion with regards to everything, "I-I-I think someone might have messed with my head," he then admit, "I-I-I remember everything that did happen last night, but it kind of seemed like it was someone else doing it, and not me..." he said, before his mind went to the first telepath who probably would have done it, "...I remember at one point, not sure if it was yesterday or the day before that, a voice in the back of my head that wasn't mine... I think it might have been Emma Frost..." he admitted.
Location: Outside Jacks office > ??? Body of water Skills: Teleportation, Lévitation ConjurationNew Outfit
Max watched the expanse of ocean that fell before him. The taste of salt present on his lips as he wondered where they were and what to do. He was tired, more so than usual, the new powers seemingly draining a lot out of him with every use. The M-Pox wasn't helping ofcourse. He couldn't feel the blood that had trickled out of his ears as the water washed it all away leaving small tinges of red in the sea of blue. The fog started to roll back into his mind as he tried his hardest to fight against it, words unable to form or fight Sunshine as the whole of his being fought to focus on one thing, survival. "Jack...Jack...Jack gave Waves drugs and took you bye bye. Took you...Took...Kidnapped." This was not the time for the damned disease to be kicking into to full effect, but he would need to make do and be strong enough for the both of them. It was then he saw the island in the distance. Its towers and pillars showing signs of life and what could hopefully amount to safety for the pair. Max muttered a few words as the levitation failed and they plummeted down into the water, each staying barely above as pool noodles were created in their grasps. "No no no no! Where's boat?!" He splashed the water before him in a small fit of rage as his powers failed to work for him.
Max looked over towards Sunshine, wondering how this would all play out but glad she hadn't used her powers against him yet. The weight of all the clothes was getting to him, forcing him to removed his top layer and stay only in his outfit that he had conjured before. "Im gonna...I'm gonna try to get us to the island, just hold my hand tight." All he could do was wish that the powers that be allow this to work. He held her hand tight, looked at the island one last time, and then closed his eyes. He pictured the sandy beaches of its shores, the towering structures above them, and the safety of land. Another large blast appeared as the pair teleported to the island. The bamfing sound of air being displaced as the pair of them got hit with a wave of immense cold from the water and his powers colliding. When he opened his eyes they were there, on the beach, and away from the mouths of deep sea predators. His fatigue had hit harder than ever, laying down with his back to the sand as the sun hit his face and slowly warmed him up. "I...can't...I can't do anymore."
"He's getting old and yet you're the one losing brain cells." Echo hated that they were going in blind. No plan what so ever. What did Havok think would happen when he kidnapped the daughter of a man who has made a career of revenge? Not only was he stupid enough to do so, he was dumb enough to drug her, and still not think of what to do when Daddy dearest inevitably came knocking at their door. Every Summers was the same, dull, dimwitted boys who think only of themselves and where they can stick it. Before he could say another word the building began to shake and debris started landing from the ceilings. If Magneto didn't kill them this earthquake surely would. A large chunk had fallen, knocking Echo upside the head as he glared daggers towards Havok, clearly blaming him for this misfortune. His head was pounding, heart was racing, and his damned breakfast had been ruined by not one, but two assholes this morning. Echo made his way outside, watching as the new kid pummeled into Avalanche in order to help those below stay safe. This wasn't her fight, but he was damn happy to have the help. Echo let the vibrations of Avalanche's seismic attacks flow through him and unleashed a laser powerful enough to knock Toad out in one go. Nothing personal, but he always grossed him out.
With that minor irritation out of the way, Echo turned his attention to his old flame. " We really ought to stop meeting like this. There has to be a better way for lgbtq+ mutants to get to know each other without the need of disputes. Besides this cant be healthy for our relationship" He shot the pyromaniac a wink before launching a laser from his hand and missing him. He didn't want this fight, in all honesty he just wanted everyone to leave and allow for one peaceful day. But it appeared that day wasn't today. Echo shot off another laser at Pyro, leaving a nice gash in his upper arm. "Something to remember me by darling. Now, Magneto. We have your daughter and she is safe. You clearly have a firm grasp as to how you wish to help the mutant race and we have ours. Please, take your fallen comrades, your ill, and leave here. I will assure you that she will be well looked after and safe while you grab the cure for mutants. I don't wish any more mutant blood to be spilt and im sure neither do you."
Luna could understand Magneto wanting to come for his daughter but she couldn’t understand why he would bring a show of force when most of the Underground were on their last legs with the M-Pox. Luna leaned against James for a moment, catching her breath before the ground started to shake underneath them. Luna fell forward, unable to stop herself from hitting the ground and landed on her stomach. The air left her body and she felt a great lurch from hitting her stomach and the wave of nausea. Her stomach clenched several times and she dry heaved. It was the worst sensation she ever had to experience and it hadn’t been the first time since she had become sick. Some of the Underground members started to evacuate as the earthquake started to collapse the roof on the Underground. Luna looked back with blood shot eyes, watching one of the newer members, Andy come forward and take out the one responsible for the earthquake. Once the ground was stable, Luna managed to push herself to her hands and needs. She breathed in as much as she could and lifted her head to look up at Magneto. ”I don’t believe...collapsing the building...your daughter...is in...is wise,” she noted but she wasn’t a villain so what did she know. Luna took in another lung full of air before speaking again. ”She’s with her boyfriend...you know she is safe here...so why...don’t… you get the cure...then...come back...for her…” Luna doubted the man would go for it. He seemed very unreasonable when it came to his family and what he thought was protecting them.
Location: Washington DC, Outside of Jack's Apartment Skills: Empathy
Callie crossed her arms over her chest for a moment as she started to study Jack very closely as he started to tell his side of the story, while ignoring Waverly and Veil and studied him some more. She started to close her eyes for a moment, she wasnt a telepath like Glimpse was but she was an empath and started to focus on reading his emotions which was the next best thing. She started to get the sense that he maybe telling the truth. Callie took a few steps closer towards Veil and leaned in and whispered towards her, it was still her call really, Max had taken Sunshine to safety as far as she could tell anyway.
"I think he might be telling the truth, empathy is the closest thing right now, I didnt pick up any emotions linked to lying, if Glimpse is feeling better maybe we take him back and have her deal with that?" Callie said as she looked up at the nearby buildings seeing some people have closed their blinds. "Someone will or probably has called in the cops or purifiers we need to leave soon." Callie told her she certainly wasnt in the mood to deal with any of them right now.
Kristina stumbled slightly as she could feel the ground starting to shake, she started to panic slightly that they might end up getting buried under the rubble. "I think it's time to get out now then and fight back or something." Kristina said as she watched a piece of rubble hitting Echo on the head wincing slightly. "That looks like it hurts." Kristina said as she started to turn around and quickly made her way out of the building and outside, seeing some of the others outside fighting against Magneto and his men. She nodded at Sapphires plan seeing Andy had taken on Avalanche Kristina turned to focus on Magneto.
She shot out a really powerful eyeblast directly at Magneto, seeing his helmet come flying off, and him flying off about ten feet away from the rest of the group. Kristina then focused on Mystique next sending a second powerful blast at the blue mutant, seeing where she had hit would have been a lethal shot. But she was still alive and well still after hitting the ground, she looked over towards the others and then over at the Brotherhood. "I think you all should just leave." Kristina said glaring at the others.
Mild Symptoms: Headache, some splotchiness of the skin, fatigue and exhaustion Moderate Symptoms: Difficulty breathing, dizziness, vomiting, blood shot eyes, prominent veins Severe Symptoms: Vomiting blood, trouble walking, bleeding from the ears, extreme skin discoloration, general looniness
So far, only two individuals have "cured" themselves from M-Pox. The first was S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Cassandra Reed. The second was Gabriel Summers A.K.A. Vulcan.
Outside the Mutant Underground HQ -
None of the Brotherhood seemed to really care that Toad had been knocked out. Avalanche kicked at the ground in front of him, creating a chasm that shot towards Andy. Andy would be able to nimbly jump out of the way just in time, but the ground was shaking around her more and more excessively. "You're pretty good... for a girl," Avalanche commented.
Magneto called his helmet back to him, the strange metal fitting snugly around his head. It protected him from telepaths, namely his nemesis and friend, Professor X. "You kidnapped my daughter. Why would I leave her with her captors? You are too blind to see it, I'm afraid. We are not the villains here. You are." He then sent a hail of metallic shards down at the Mutant Underground members. Andy got some minor scrapes. Sapphire, Glimpse, and James were missed entirely, Kris got a nasty gash in the stomach. Echo took the worst of it - one of the metal shards hit him in the back perfectly and sent him toppling to the ground. He wouldn't be able to feel his legs.
"Oi, you okay there mate?" Pyro shouted at Echo. "Maybe you ought to take a lie down or something." He then flicked on his lighter and shaped a serpent out of the flames, smirking slightly before sending it shooting at Kristina. The flaming snake wrapped around her and began to squeeze.
The well dressed gentleman, Mastermind, set his sights on Sapphire. His eyes twinkled as he invaded her mind, trapping her inside a vision of her own worst nightmare. To Sapphire, it would look like there were heavy steel walls pushing in towards her, like the trash compactor in Star Wars. She wouldn't be able to hear or see anyone else. She wouldn't know it wasn't real.
"Which one of you idiots wants to fight?" Mystique asked, drawing two pistols. She didn't wait for anyone to answer. She fired off four bullets in rapid succession at James. Two of them missed, two of them hit - but his skin had hardened just in time and the bullets fell to the ground harmlessly.
"I don't suppose you'll put up much of a fight," Magneto said, peering at Glimpse. He glided through the air, heading towards the entrance so he could go inside and retrieve Polaris.
Havok carried Polaris down the stairs, heading into the entranceway. The others had already gone on up to the surface, leaving Zarina, Casper, Havok, and Polaris inside the Mutant Underground. Havok hesitated for a moment, trying to decide whether or not he could trust his girlfriend with Casper and the green haired kid. The earthquake had stopped at the very least and the entranceway seemed to be holding up. The ceiling wouldn't collapse on her in here and Havok couldn't stay with her - he was, in his opinion, the best fighter present. He had to go handle Magneto.
"Don't fight with spoons, that's just dumb," Havok interrupted, answering Zarina's question before Casper could. "Look, can you two handle watching Polaris and keep her safe? Shouldn't be much to do, but you know, just in case Magneto sends one of his goons down here. You're not high, right, Casper?"
"Uh, she looks like she was drugged, Cas," Ben commented. He had materialized next to Havok and Polaris, tilting his ghostly head as he tried to listen for Polaris' breathing.
"You're right, Bennie Ben Ben," Casper said, frowning at Havok. "You know that you can't just go around drugging people, right? It's illegal and definitely not chill. I didn't want to do this, but I've decided to vibe check your relationship and.... yiiiikes. It's got worse vibes than a Chipotle during flu season. You need to do a sexual harassment training or something. Do we have HR here? If so, go see HR before you get fired for being a creep. Oh and yes, I'm sober, thanks for asking."
Havok groaned. "Why does anyone bother asking you to do anything?"
"Are you contractually obligated to be a dick?" Casper snapped. His head was pounding and he was exhausted thanks to M-Pox. The adrenaline rush from realizing they were under attack was already beginning to wane, since the earthquake had stopped. He then winced, realizing the kid was in front of him. He really needed to mind his language around children. "Sorry, I meant to ask if you're contractually obligated to be a fucking asswipe," Casper said.
Neither Havok nor Casper saw Polaris' eyes flutter open. Her mind was still addled by the drugs. She didn't recognize her surroundings. The last thing she remembered, they had been outside George Washington University. She could feel metal all around them and she didn't look to see who was holding her. Her heart was pounding and her pupils were small as she sent a piece of metal flying at her captor - Waverley's abandoned rebar - and the metal bar went thunk against Havok's skull. Her captor screamed and dropped her reflexively. He screamed in pain and from betrayal, passing out onto the ground.
"Who the FUCK are you?!" she shouted at Casper and Zarina. She reached her hand back and the rebar flew out of Havok's head, snapping into her hand. His blood was smeared onto her hand now. "And where the HELL am I?!"
Veil
Location: Outside Jack's Office Building Skills: Perception, Investigation, Leadership
"Actually, Max - Warlock - did exactly as I asked," Veil corrected Feedback. She never anticipated that Warlock and Feedback would get along. It was out of the cards for them. Veil would, however, keep them from spreading rumors and lies about each other, whether they were acting with malicious intent or not. Warlock couldn't take back killing Feedback's mother. That deed was over. As far as Veil was aware, there weren't any mutants with the ability to travel through time.
Her expression softened, hearing Jack explain what had happened. He seemed like he was telling the truth. She didn't know why Emma Frost would want him to cart off Sunshine like that and drug Feedback, but it made more sense than Jack deciding over night to kidnap his daughter. He hadn't even done a particularly good job of it, taking Sunshine back to his office - if he had been the mastermind behind this plot, wouldn't he have taken her out of DC and hidden her away? He hadn't attacked them either. Veil nodded, glad to hear that Spark Plug thought similarly. "We'll get you back to the Underground, Jack, and we'll have Glimpse get Frost out of your head," she reassured him gently. "Do you have any idea why Frost wanted you to do that?" she added, opening up a car door and motioning for Jack to head inside.
They were lucky - no cops or purifiers had shown up yet.
Sunshine was coughing profusely, but that didn't stop her from being mad at Max. He seemed seriously convinced that Marshmallow had drugged her roommate and kidnapped her, which made no sense at all. If Jack had kidnapped her, why would he just take her to his office for doughnuts? Why didn't he tie her up with zip ties and carve out her guts? That's what she would have done as a despicable, maniacal abductor. But even with that information, Max didn't look like he was lying to her. "If - cough - he kidnapped me, then - cough he's the world's worst kidnapper!"
She screamed as they plummeted back into the ocean, flimsy pool noodles appearing. She was clinging onto both Max and the noodle, not too sure which one would aid her survival the best over time. She didn't have to worry about Max killing her mother at least. She would've been happy to see him roast her alive. Max started mumbling something about a boat, but Sunshine didn't see any at all. "What boat, crazy pants?!" she shouted, the waves becoming more wild and thus louder. A large wave of water hit her and her lungs were filled with liquid once again, as she choked and tried to gasp for air. The next thing she knew, she and Max were on the beach. She crawled onto her side and coughed up as much water as she could, her throat feeling like a cheese grater.
"N-no, you can't go to sleep," she said, displaying a bit of concern for Max as she shook him. "Every pirate movie I've seen has had some sort of secret thing to escape the island... M-maybe that palace thing will have a raft," she suggested, her teeth chattering despite the warmth of the shore.
While the world went to shit around him, James sipped at his coffee again. Quakes, lasers, and metal shards (which James refused to acknowledge nearly toppled him back into the last moments of the other world) flew through the air like bullets and all James could think about was how Magneto was right. Nothing anyone here said would matter; Havok took Polaris against her will and those in charge of mitigating the situation supported his decision. It was frustrating that they’d put Havok’s obsession above the wellbeing of the Underground. Defending people is one thing and James would always support escalating like they had with Sinister’s lair but this? This was senseless carnage where they considered how outmatched they were, that it was likely they wouldn’t make it out on the other side in one piece, and said fuck it. They…
That wasn’t quite right. They was some ambiguous figure who was incapable of accepting responsibility and consequences for their actions. They was someone without a face, a personality, or flaws. It wasn’t They. While Havok’s actions were the cause of all this, Sapphire was the one who shoulder the responsibility for the call. While James headed outside to hopefully establish some rapport and work to deesclate, Sapphire was handling Polaris. At the very least,come up with a plan to handle this fight. Instead, she walks out and goes for it. His respect for her ebbed away faster every day.
But now wasn’t the time for idle consideration. James barely blinked when he brought himself back into the moment and found a gun levelled at him. One and two missed but it didn’t stop the visceral flashbacks―the sharp pain, the familiar mind space, the numb way he dug offending metal out of his chest even as he continued to run after them―and he slipped back into familiar space as the last two slammed straight into him. He watched with detachment as the bullets crumpled against his skin and fell uselessly to the ground, sipped at his coffee once more, and pocketed one of the bullets. This was twice now he’d been able to negate rather than restore. It would require further experimentation.
“Personally, I’d prefer not to. We’re clearly outclassed and I have no interest in watching any of my allies die.” James replied emotionlessly, putting his empty cup on the ground as he took stock of the field. Echo was down, Sapphire was there, a massive snake coiled around one of the new people, and another was taking on the ground quaker. James shook his head at the utter idiocy of it all. Too many people were already getting hurt for him to handle in a fight and he couldn’t rely on this new function to protect him and them. The priority had to be getting Magneto’s group out of here and then they could focus on piecing everyone back together which meant getting Polaris out of there as fast as possible. And hopefully with no more damage to the surrounding structure.
“She’s up the stairs to the left, in the second to last room. That was her and Havok’s room when she was part of this.” James explained, pointing where Magneto needed to go.
Location: Outside Jack's Office Skills: Perception, Radio Wave Interpretation
Waverley tensed up when Veil explained that Max had done as she asked. She was conflicted; none of her thought putting Sunshine's life in Max's hands was a good idea, but at the same time, Veil had more experience under her belt than she did. So she remained silent. Her eyes narrowed as Jack began to speak. She was largely a woman of mundane talents, but she had sharp eyes, eyes that took in every twitch that came with Jack's stuttering voice, capturing every which way his eyes shifted as he spoke. It was hard to trust the man who shoved a chloroform rag into her face, but at the same time...she was a naturally trusting person. Even after everything she'd been through, she always chose to look for the best in people, a trait that usually ended up being more of a weakness than a strength. She wanted to believe the man who slept in the room next to her wasn't a psychopath - so she did. She finally let out a deep sigh, dropping her gaze from Jack.
"But what fuck would Emma Frost want with Sunshine?" she mused, her eyes flitting down the sidewalk, eventually looking up to Veil, as if she might be able to answer it despite the fact that she'd just asked it herself. The revelation only caused her protectiveness over Sunshine to spike. As soon as they were reunited with the girl, Waverley wasn't going to let her out of her sight. Her attention was then pulled to Callie, and the woman's worries of purifiers and police were enough to remind Waverley of her job as the Mutant Underground alarm system. She stretched her mind outward, drawing in nearby radio waves in search of any signs of hostiles in the area. Instead, her mind was immediately swamped with a voice that sounded like it'd be most at home saying a slur. And it did, a few times; the man speaking was going on about the ungodly mutants, talking about them as though they were the shit under the heel of God. She recognized the voice: the evangelical Reverend Stryker, a title that the Christian girl felt he didn't deserve. She didn't like the feeling of hearing his voice in her skull, but she had a hard time shutting it out. She wildly shook her head, before hitting the side of her head, the way one would bonk a broken car radio. After a few slaps to her temple, the voice was replaced by static.
"That was...violating," Waverley mumbled, letting out an audible gag. She then took a deep breath, recollecting herself, and she tried again. Her mind scanned the invisible waves that filled the city, but she didn't find anything else of note. So she looked back to her two companions. "I don't hear any signs of anyone we should be scared of, other than Stryker polluting the airwaves with one of his sermons."
Andy had been a bit surprised when the earth split in front of her, but her reflexes got her out of the way of falling into a gaping hole in the ground. Avalanche complemented her fighting but ruined it by adding for a girl. "I'm pretty certain I'm just good at fighting." She said and moved forward, the shaking ground made her punch go a little wild.
"Mind you I'm used to a bit more stable ground." She shifted, tried again and the punch missed. Andy needed to time her punch better. The ground's movement was too much. So be it, time to use the ground to her advantage she decided. Andy let the roll of the earth lift her up enough to get a little bit of air and she came in with her fist crackling in electricity.
Avalanche fell to the ground which finally stopped shaking. Andy took a deep breath and looked around assessing what the others were doing. It was then she realized she had been hit with something and had scratches and some blood. She had been too distracted fighting Avalanche to notice. "Where did the old guy go?"
Magneto didn’t believe his daughter was safe, whether she was here against her will or not. Havok loved Polaris and if he had been really intent on harming her, Luna didn’t think Veil would have let it happen in the first place. Powerful affects that of a father’s love for his daughter. Luna started to feel her body growing weaker again when the attacking really started. She saw Magneto lift metal shards and fire them towards the Underground but Luna missed who as she collapsed onto the ground again, blood sliding down her neck from her ears. Magneto started to fly overhead and Luna rolled off, watching the shadow of a man pass over her. She gasped and tried to follow but she couldn’t so she rolled over and dragged herself around to watch him go. ”Daddy! Daddy is that you? It’s me, it’s your princess,” she called out to him. Luna felt as if she were going to pass out at any moment but she kept dragging herself towards the man flying away.
"Well at least someone else has common sense, regarding spoons as weapons," Zari commented with a shrug, looking over at Havok, "Though I guess in a pinch you could jab it into someone's eyes and cause a lot of pain." Of course since she technically had Glowstick with her, she had a weapon that was definitely a whole lot better then a wooden spoon, even if Magneto could potentially pull the sword away from her. She didn't really care all too much, since she could potentially still stab him which she thought would be amusing.
She was startled a bit when Polaris suddenly jumped awake, smacked Havok in the head (knocking him over) before proceeding to start demanding to know who they were. Zari tilted her head to the side, before she walked over to Polaris, not caring about whether or Polaris was going to potentially injure her or not, and she reached her hand out and just poked her a few times. "Huh... Not gonna lie, I kind of thought that you were dead since you weren't exactly moving, like at all..." she commented, before poking her again.
Sapphire wasn't sure what to even do, since everything was horrible around her. No matter what she was could do, something was going to end badly, since she wasn't sure at all if Magneto and the rest of his goons. However, she instantly focused in on one person in the group, who also seemingly was looking at her too. "...Wait Mastermind? I thought you were dead! Or at least maybe a vegetable or something like that, since last I saw you you kind of were stuck in a hospital bed or something like that, and your daughters are just beyond annoying and I really don't like them," she said, looking at Mastermind.
How he was standing there was anyone's guess in her mind, but that was the least of her problems there as she couldn't even focus on what was going on with the others, or even hear James' words given the fact that the next thing she knew, the world started closing in around her. She found herself in a steel box or something, and she instantly went to her knees. She was completely back to her normal appearance, as she started panicking more and more. Claustrophobia was something that she had yup, it sucked, but it was something that she had to deal with, and unfortunately for her, right now she was having problems with it and was hyperventilating.
Of course, he was beyond glad that they seemed to buy into his rather quick thinking regarding the lie about Emma Frost. He wasn't too sure what would have happened had they actually not bought into what was going on. Everyone instantly started asking questions, and when Veil made a comment about having Glimpse take a look into his mind or whatever, and instead of drawing suspicion, he just nodded his head, "That's fine with me," he said, figuring agreeing was better then arguing about it.
Another question came his way, this one relating to what Emma Frost had wanted, and he needed to come up with a decent lie or something quickly, and he eventually just settled on 3 words in total, "I don't know..." Of course, he needed to try and get them to stop asking questions, so another thought crossed his mind, and it involved some powers of his he had only figured out he had the night before. Without turning to look at his target, in order to try and hide that he was the one causing it, his mental powers struck out against Waverly, entering her mind and causing immense pain to build up in her head that would bring her to her knees from it.
Location: Washington DC, Outside of Jack's Apartment Skills: N/A
"Well lets get going then, shall we?" Callie said as she listened to Waverly and nodded towards her, they needed to get out of here sooner rather than later anyway. As she started towards the car she stopped and leaned forward against the car, feeling a wave of dizziness hit her again. And then suddenly she vomited onto the side of the car, letting out a slight groan looking at herself in the window seeing that her eyes were bloodshot again and her veins were poking out.
"I really hate being sick.." Callie said as she looked over towards Waverly for a moment seeing her dropping down to her knees and made her way over towards her. "Are you okay Waverly?" Callie asked while looking over at her, she wasnt sure if it was M-pox related or not at all which was a bit worrying as well. "Can either of you guys get her into the car?" Callie asked, she couldnt get them to the Underground HQ quickly.
"Hey it wasnt our call to take her, it was the Havok guy's idea." Kristina said towards Magneto as he suddenly sent metal shards at everyone, she didnt even realize until she felt a sharp pain going through her stomach when she noticed the rather nasty gash in her stomach. The next thing she knew a massive flaming snake launched itself at her, letting out a loud cry in pain as the flaming snake wrapped itself around her tightly.
Feeling herself starting to catch on fire, Kris started to focus her attention towards Pyro, who had created the flaming snake. She shot a powerful eye beam directly towards Pyro, hitting squarely in the chest seeing the burnt flesh, melted clothes, she cried out in pain as the snake coiled around her tighter, as she tried to shoot another eyebeam at Pyro. Only for it to miss again, and she tried to focus on him one more time, as her third shot missed her target again.
Location: Island M the Bermuda triangle. Skills: ConjurationNew Outfit
Max opened his eyes as Sunshine worried over him. Worried? No perhaps that wasn't fully right, she worried for her safety and ability to get home. She didn't worry for him. He'd lay there letting moments pass until the fatigue began to fade away slightly. Lifting his legs into the air and using the momentum of their falling to help him sit upright. "Calm down. I'm not falling asleep just yet." His hand shot up as harsh coughs began to wretch their way up his throat and blood splattered against his hand. When the fit had finly stopped he looked towards the blonde mutant usually so fully of disdain and saw a girl looking for hope. Chances were it was the M-pox talking. He stood up and washed his hands in the beach, flicking the water off before muttering a few words as clothing appeared before Sunshine and him. "Get changed or you'll catch a cold." He turned away from where she was and began to undress, putting on a pair of fresh clothes to help keep him warm after the prior events.
As Max began to change, facing the crashing oceans before him, he thought about where they were and wondered how (or if) they would ever get off this island. "So you think we can find a ship or raft in that weird temple? Wouldn't hurt to try I guess." There was a brief pause before hebspoke again, this time his voice was lower, more serious but still with a grave hint of exhaustion pouring over it. "Did Jack say anything to you? Do anything weird?" He let the words hang in the air as he finished getting ready asking Sunshine if she was ready, waiting for her response. Omce she was he turned around coughing again, specks of blood tainting the beautiful sand. "Ok, lets go check those ruins you wanted to see."
This situation seemed to be getting better, a calm before the storm Echo thought. He hated agreeing with Magneto. Hated knowing that he was right. They were the villains in this story and it was all Havoks fault. A spoiled apple ruins the bunch, and boy did Summers ruin it. His teeth were gritted, halfway debating on calling the others off and telling them this wasnt their fight. Telling them that if Havok wanted to endager them all for some asinine white knighting then he could deal with the reprocussions on his own. Ofcourse it wasn't his call to make. He had no real power here. Before Harry could speak, before a single syllabul could form in his throat, he felt something press against his back. At first it was difficult to tell, his strings were knotted in the back and pressing against him, then they fell, as if they were cut off by some outside force. Cold metal pressed against his skin and all that followed was the feeling of wetness, and then nothing.
As the back of Harry's shirt began to stain red, the blood following every carefully tailored fiber to the next and creating a rorschach of misery to be on display for all his team to see. He couldn't speak, shock took over and his eyes just stared blankly towards Magneto as he glided past him. Pyro's words barely touched his ears when suddenly his legs had given out. The feeling of metal was gone, the wetness subsided into the shadows, all that was left was the hard thwack of the ground pressed against his chest and cheek as he lay there quivering his lower lip. What just happened? Why did his legs give out...why can't he feel his legs? It was then he began to ask in a broken panic "Why can't I feel my legs? W-why can't I-I-I...why can't I feel my legs. My legs...why...what happened?" it started off soft, barely a whisper, then grew and grew until it was finally a blood curdling yell. No more words, no more questions, just pure upheld panic. The air around them filled with his voice as suddenly bursts of light began to form until a laser was produced and struck the field randomly in various directions. It had happened to Charles, and now it had happened to him. He didn't blame Magneto, but his eyes burned red with anger for Havok.
Mild Symptoms: Headache, some splotchiness of the skin, fatigue and exhaustion Moderate Symptoms: Difficulty breathing, dizziness, vomiting, blood shot eyes, prominent veins Severe Symptoms: Vomiting blood, trouble walking, bleeding from the ears, extreme skin discoloration, general looniness
So far, only two individuals have "cured" themselves from M-Pox. The first was S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Cassandra Reed. The second was Gabriel Summers A.K.A. Vulcan.
Outside the Mutant Underground HQ -
Avalanche and Toad were unconscious. Pyro was barely holding on, his flames becoming weaker and weaker as he fought to keep the snake wrapped around Kristina. He had been losing way too much lately, he needed a win. Mastermind was sort of yawning as he kept Sapphire inside her mental prison. He would have done the same thing to Echo, but the boy put off a gigantic laser light show and seemed to be freaking out over his injuries. He didn't really need to do anything at all to take care of him. He set his gaze on the young girl, Andy, but failed to get inside of her mind.
Mystique decided to take care of Andy. She fired off several bullets at Andy, but Andy was too quick - her reflexes let her dodge every shot.
"Enough, Mystique," Magneto announced, as he emerged with Polaris. "Our work is done here. Let them lick their wounds. I doubt they will challenge us again."
Magneto swept into the entranceway, quickly observing the scene. His daughter appeared to be unharmed - a sense of relief rippled through him. He had lost too many of his children already. He wouldn't let any danger befall his favorite child. Her ex-boyfriend Havok was unconscious on the ground. One of Charles Xavier's children was here, the drug addled one, along with a young girl Magneto didn't know. His resolve strengthened whenever he saw mutant children. It was for them that he had to fight, that he had to take on the label of supervillain in order to ensure they could grow up safe and protected.
"I'm not dead," Polaris told Zarina a bit incredulously. "My stupid ex-boyfriend fucking kidnapped me and drugged me. And you all fucking helped him do it?? Honestly, no wonder the Mutant Underground can't make any change happen."
"... Huh. You know, you do have a point," Casper chimed in. He was holding back from his usual rambles, as he didn't want to mansplain anything. He also couldn't help but feel guilty as well. They would have been so angry if Magneto had done something like that to one of them, they would have stormed his fortress and fought to bring them back. Why was it okay for them to break the rules and be mad if other people did it? "I can't speak for Havok, but on behalf of the Mutant Underground, I'd like to offer an apology, Miss Polaris - oh, hi babe!" he perked up, seeing that James had come inside.
"Are you alright?" Magneto asked his daughter, his voice somehow both cold and tender.
Polaris was ignoring Casper. "Yeah, I'm fine," she grumbled. She then looked at James, as he seemed to be the only competent one here. Casper looked as sane as a bag of cats and the kid apparently couldn't tell the difference between the living and the dead. "When he wakes up, tell him it's over - for good this time. And if he tries anything like this again, I'll kill him." She trusted that he would relay the message to Havok.
"Jesus... Remind me to never fall in love with someone from Magneto's family," Ben whispered to Casper, whistling a bit.
Casper gave him a nod. The tension in the room was high, even with Havok unconscious and drooling on the floor. Magneto and Polaris left the entranceway, going back to the surface. Casper didn't make a move to stop them. He didn't see the point in channeling Ben and trying to help Havok keep someone hostage. The entire situation just made him feel dirty - it made him feel like his own father. He shuddered, trying to get that mental barf off of himself.
Veil
Location: Outside Jack's Office Building Skills: N/A
Veil staggered backwards, feeling a piercing pain in her back for a moment. It faded almost instantly and as near as she could tell, nothing had struck her. She frowned slightly, unnerved by the experience. Something seemingly had effected Waverley too, as Waverley was doubled over in pain not too long after breezing through the airwaves looking for signs of trouble. "I've got her," Veil said instantly. She wasn't about to lose anyone else. Her heart was pounding at the idea that Waverley had contracted M-Pox.
Veil only would have herself to blame if that were the case.
She picked Waverley up bridal style, struggling slightly with the weight but she didn't make any comments. She carefully and slowly walked over to their car, loading Waverley into the backseat. She buckled Waverley in, not giving her any chance to protest and claim that she didn't need help. "Jack, can you ride shotgun? I'll stay in the back with her," Veil explained.
"I can't catch a cold, it's impossible," Sunshine corrected Max. She was dressed in the clothes that Max had given her. She had more or less jammed the hat onto her head, looking out of place in the indie-esque outfit. Well, it was more that she didn't really look right in clothes that didn't have several layers of grime on them. Sunshine scratched a bit at her arms, feeling uncomfortable with the fabric. It felt freshly laundered - and was that a hint of lavender scent? She didn't look like a little kid - she actually looked her age, 18 years old, ready for college. She could've been an ordinary person complaining about teaching assistants and their annoying policies, or how hard the chemistry midterm had been, and who was going with who to the engineering formal.
Sunshine didn't answer his question about Jack, just sort of shrugging her shoulders. He was weird all of the time. He had traveled back in time and hadn't been careful about not accidentally fathering and then abandoning a kid. His dad was a supervillain. Normal people didn't really do any of those things. She kept a wary eye on Max as they headed towards the palace, making sure that he didn't fall over and die. If he died, her odds of survival went way down. She needed him or she'd be stuck here forever.
... Wherever here was.
It wasn't too long until they reached the ruins. Up close, it became obvious that the place hadn't been built by humans. Every portion of it was constructed from metal, aside from the glass of the windows. There were cameras all over the place, but Sunshine didn't see any indication that they were on. The front doors weren't even locked - she was able to push them open easily. Everything was pitch black, but she could spot the glint of a ruby red helmet and cape.
She stiffened, recognizing who they belonged to. Magneto. This was Magneto's palace. "Max... Why the fuck did you take us to Magneto's lair?" Sunshine whispered tersely.
