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Post by havok on Jun 20, 2005 14:28:58 GMT -5
Alex found his luggage in the baggage claim in the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. The car rental desk was off to the side of the baggage claim, so Alex walked with his one bag towards the desk. He walked slowly, the containment suit underneath his clothes was somewhat restricting and became very uncomfortable during the flight.
The woman at the desk was very short with any answers as she shuffled through paperwork with the greatest of ease. It was obvious that she has done this many times before. Alex rented a Ford Escort. He didn't have a lot of money but he needed to get to the capital of America which was four miles away.
After finding his rented car, Alex put his bag into the trunk and climbed into the driver's seat. The position of the chair and the mirrors were fixed as he started the vehicle towards Washington DC. This was a new place for him. He had never travelled this far and he wasn't sure what he was going to do if he needed to release some energy. He could feel it building inside of him and he knew that it was going to have to be soon that he had to release a charged blast but he would have to find a desolated spot.
Alex exited off an offramp into a low end neighborhood. Their was graffiti on almost every building and trash littering the streets. Under the bridge that the high way was on, there was a small tunnel. Alex drove up next to it and exited his vehicle. Nervously, he walked down to the entrance of the tunnel and looked around to see if anyone was watching. It was clear so Alex placed his two fists together, side by side, and fired a single shot of plasmic concussive force into the tunnel. The dark tunnel lit up instantly as the light travelled alongside the blast, the water rippled at the speed of the blast as it struck the side of the curved tunnel. The concrete crumbled down as it the tunnel started to collapse. Ashamed at his own selfishness, Alex ran back into his car and got back onto the highway as quickly as he could. Luckily, all that was above the tunnel was a vacant gated yard. No damage would've been done to the house. Alex swore at himself on the rest of the trip to the lecture.
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Post by havok on Jun 21, 2005 14:22:44 GMT -5
Alex continued along the snowy highway, for the very few miles that he needed to travel. He wasn't sure where the hotel was where the lecture was going to take place but he traveled slowly through the streets of DC. The road name was what he was looking for. Once he found the road, the hotel was right there. It wasn't hard to find at all. Alex pulled into the parking lot of the Hotel Regency and made his way, with his luggage, to the front desk.
((Continued in Hotel:Regency))
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Post by priest on Jun 23, 2005 15:56:19 GMT -5
Figures I'd pull into town when all the crazies do. Priest thought to himslf. He walked down a street covered in protesters. The sidewalks were taped off to keep protesters from covering the road. Everyone was holding up a sign or screaming into the air for all to hear. He shook his head in annoyance as they screamed at him.
One screamed for him specifically to come over using the name "Eyepatch" to get his attention. Priest walked over to the the middle-aged man. He must have been a veteran because he was wearing an old Army uniform and was missing one arm. He was holding a big sign that said Lock'em up! He wanted to know what happened to Priest's eye. "It just quit working one day." he replied, flipping up the patch to reveal a pure white eyeball. Priest noted that the man was a bizarre mixture of chaos and order, torn over the anger coming from the crowd and his sympathy for another disabled person.
Well, I've never seen that happened before, at least not to just one eye. The veteran said. Wait, are you one of them? he asked, pointing to the pro-mutant demonstraters down the road. "Yeah" Priest replied. The order slowly drained away from the veteran as he dropped his sign and reached out to slap Priest. Priest pulled his head back, just barely missing the hit. Flipping his eyepatch back down, he said "Racsists are such morons." and continued to walk down the street.
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Post by priest on Jun 26, 2005 23:14:46 GMT -5
Priest stood in the doorway of a coffee shop holding a plastic cup. Hundreds of pissed off protesters stood between him and any kind of a walkway. Spilling coffee all over a few of them wouldn't help his situation, might be funny though. Never the Less, he just didn't feel like trying to get through them.
It's crazy out there, ain't it? The guy behind the counter said to him. "Yeah, I should have came to town a day later." Priest replied. Heh, But it's all for a good cause. The muties have to be kept in check, Doncha think? Priest shut his eyes and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Honestly, I think these people have too much free time on thier hands."
Hey, he's one of them. A voice called from behind. It was the veteran he talked to earlier. He ran at Priest ready to smack him with the sign, but got a fist to the jaw first. As he went down, more protesters ran in. The mutie! He's attacking humans! someone screamed. As the mob filled the small coffee shop, Priest had no choice but to run. He jumped over the counter and ran through the back. Luckily, there was a back door. He found himself in an alley with the mob following. He focused on trying to stay calm but it wasn't working. Soon chaos was engulfing him, making it harder to think straight. If they caught up to him, someone would probably die.
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Post by havok on Jun 27, 2005 6:25:43 GMT -5
Alex continued to drive into the protest area. Once he realised that he was heading towards it, it was too late. There was no turning back. The traffic lined up and Alex was stuck. He stuck his head out of the window just in time to see a mob of people running at a coffee shop. Alex was surprisingly antsy. He couldn't keep still and he wanted to know what was going on.
Turning off his engine in the middle of traffic, he jumped out of his car and started racing in the direction the other people were headed. Luckily, others had done the same so he wouldn't hold traffic up too bad.
After cramming himself through the back door of the coffee shop between some other people. He raced farther into the alley. It was then that he found out that they were chasing a solitary man. It didn't take a genius to figure out what was happening. Luckily for Alex his normal workouts made him much faster than the slobs in the mob. The screams only admitted the mob's guilt. Alex bolted ahead of them, hoping to maybe catch up to the man in question.
What has gotten into me? Alex thought as he exited out of the alley. Normally he kept out of these kinds of situations but for some reason he was propelled to find out what was happening. A fire heidrant was stationed on the curb and Alex took the opportunity that presented itself. With a single plasma blast he took out the nearest bolt on the solid red heidrant. A burst of water sprayed back into the alleyway.
"Keep running!" Alex said to the man. He had no idea what the man did to attract a mob but where they were at the moment was not safe for either of them.
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Post by priest on Jun 27, 2005 22:35:02 GMT -5
As Priest ran from the mob, someone screamed Keep Running! "What the hell else am I going to do?" Priest screamed back, letting his anger take over. He wouldn't be able to keep this up much longer. Even with Chaos distorting his reality, his endurance was running out. Thinking quickly, he used a trash can to to springboard him onto a dumpster where he jumped to a fire escape.
He jumped much higher than a normal person could. The chaos around him altered his strength and abilities, allowing him to do things he shouldn't be able to do. It was the one upside to such a volitile power. Now the fun part. Someone back there was trying to help him. The gentlemenly thing to do would be to return the favor, if he could just figure out which one it was.
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Post by Phoenix on Jun 28, 2005 2:07:24 GMT -5
[Enter Cyclops and Phoenix from ”Hotel: Regency” thread: xmgenanom.proboards45.com/index.cgi?board=dc&action=display&thread=1118748662] Having stayed in her coat Jean was ready to leave. It would be nice if they would be able to get some sleep, but if not, a lot of caffeinated drinks would have to be ordered. They could fill in Logan and Betsy when they came, and possibly look over the info together whenever they came. The more the merrier. The information on the Bill was pages long. Slipping into the cab Ricardo had called for them, Jean settled back into the chair, letting her head lean against the headrest, her hair spilling over the shoulders of her coat. The events inside the penthouse suite still irked her, as it would anyone in that situation. Anyone in their position, and the state of the nation right now. Jean had just begun to focus on a small tear in the ceiling lining of the cab, when she heard Scott’s voice in her mind. < Honey, what's wrong? > He asked. < Is it Charles? > The concern was evident. Glancing over at Scott, a stressed frown laced the emerald of Jean’s eyes, though her mouth barely moved. < "It—"> Part of her wanted to release, and the other part didn’t want to worry her husband. He did so much of it already, and she knew this would only add to it. Jean changed the structure of her thought. < "He’s very upset. Moreso than I’ve known him to be before.." > Though she didn’t technically see it, she could feel it. The image of Charles crying was fresh in her mind. < "And he did say this could quite possibly be the most dangerous mission we’ve ever been sent on. It’s hard to know what to expect." > Jean glanced away for a moment before looking back into the ruby quartz and connecting with his eyes.
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Post by Cyclops on Jun 28, 2005 2:47:19 GMT -5
< "He’s very upset. More so than I’ve known him to be before.." > Jean explained, looking away. < "And he did say this could quite possibly be the most dangerous mission we’ve ever been sent on. It’s hard to know what to expect." > She turned back to look at him, meet his gaze through the red tinted lenses that hid his eyes.
Scott reached out a took her hand, squeezing it gently. < We're X-Men, Jean, > he reminded her softly. < Our lives are dangerous. Besides, if this bill gets passed, every mutant in world lives will be in danger. > He reached over and brushed a strand of her fiery hair away from her face. < We're fighting for the future, remember? Our future. Charles knows that. I think he just wishes he could do more to help us. Nothing is harder on a leader than asking others to do what you can't, especially if it puts their lives at risk. >
The cab stopped in front of a rental shop whose lot was almost empty. With the rallies in town, most of the rental places were probably getting good business. He paid the driver, then stepped out into the chilly December air, offering a hand out to his wife. Xavier's worrying wasn't unusual, but having Jean this shook up about Charles being worried was. For now, they needed to concentrate on their mission though.
A commotion down the street caught Cyclops' attention. A man with an eyepatch was being chased by a mob of people. He heard them yelling and throwing anti-mutant signs at him. A blonde man yelled for him to keep running, which was likely to set the mob on him next. Their mission was important, but he couldn't just leave people to get lynched by this angry crowd. He looked over his shoulder at Jean.
< I'm going to try and help the men, > he told her, already starting off that direction, his hand going into his inner pocket for the visor he always carried with him for emergencies. < Can you try to calm down the crowd? >
Scott just hoped he wouldn't have use his powers. He didn't want to hurt anyone, just make sure no one got hurt. He saw the mutant leap up onto a fire escape and headed for that building, trying to skirt around the edge of the crowd as best he could.
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Post by Phoenix on Jun 28, 2005 3:37:53 GMT -5
< We're X-Men, Jean. Our lives are dangerous. Besides, if this bill gets passed, every mutant in world lives will be in danger. > As he ‘spoke’ softly Scott’s fingers grazed her cheek, brushing away a strand of her blazing red hair and helping quell her fears in the process. < We're fighting for the future, remember? Our future. Charles knows that. I think he just wishes he could do more to help us. Nothing is harder on a leader than asking others to do what you can't, especially if it puts their lives at risk. >
Scott was one of the first to understand how difficult it was to be the leader of anything. He constantly had to separate his position from his feelings, which is why some find him too ‘straight and narrow’ or too callous. Scott wasn’t devoid of emotion on the field; he just knew how to control it better than most.
Listening to Scott in her mind, Jean understood what he was saying. Yet it wasn’t that she was afraid to go. A little apprehensive and maybe a little fear, yes, but if Charles asked it she would do it. Jean didn’t explain the extent of the grief and fear she’d felt from their mentor. It was staggering. The magnitude of it would be too much to try to comprehend while they should be focusing on something of differing importance.
Keeping the information to herself, Jean smiled and nodded, leaning a bit into his touch. < "I know. At least we’ll have a chance to do something about this, and knowing Charles and the information he gave us, everything is there to better equip us with any information we need." > She gave his hand a reassuring squeeze in return.
As the cab pulled to a stop at a near-empty lot of rental cars, Jean accepted Scott’s hand as he helped her out. It looked like almost everything was taken, but that was understandable. The next few days were pivotal in the nation’s future. Humans and mutants alike were there.
Speaking of which, an uproar down the street caused Jean’s head to turn. A man wearing an eye patch was at the head of an angry mob, just yards from being pummeled. Someone yelled for him to keep going, as the mob continued on after him. That man might be in danger too, and Jean was willing to guess a mutant as well, or at least a human
< I'm going to try and help the men, > Scott turned to her as he put on his visor. < Can you try to calm down the crowd? > Moving forward he pressed around the crowd, heading for a building the man with the eye patch, obviously a mutant from what the mob was chanting, had leapt onto.
< "I’ll see what I can do."> Jean nodded and stayed standing on the sidewalk in front of the car rental shop. She kept to the side, as inconspicuous as possible. Calm, soothing waves of relaxation waved over the throngs of angry mutant protestors, save for the blonde who called out as he obviously wasn’t part of the anti-mutant crowd.
< "You will put down any weapons and go back to what you were doing 20 minutes ago, forgetting about that man and why you were running down the street, not remembering any of this."> Jean wanted to allot a timeframe with enough room. She doubted they were chasing him for that long, and 20 minutes seemed to work. Keeping her thoughts tranquil she sent them over the crowd, needing to keep concentrated over the large group of people. Over and over she repeated the waves and words. Slowly the protestors began to lessen their pace as they stood bewildered for a moment, and then began to disperse.
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Post by havok on Jun 28, 2005 7:04:24 GMT -5
Alex climbed up onto the dumpster after the man who was being chased. It was remarkable how high the mutant could jump. Even with his strengthened legs, he couldn't jump that high. Looking back at the alleyway way that he just exited, he saw the mod start to filter through past the water decoy that Alex sprung.
"Lower the ladder!" Alex said to the man. Time was running out and the mob was getting closer. As the mob moved past the fire heidrant they stopped, looking slightly confused. They turned around and started to walk back to where they came from. This absolutely confused Alex. He thought that he was going to get caught by them.
Jumping down from the dumpster, Alex walked out to the curb. The mob had dispersed and left him alone. Catching his breath, Alex was relieved, and at the same time surprised. He looked around to see if who could have done this to the mob. Alex's first thought was that it was the man that had escaped but left Alex to get caught by the mob.
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Post by Cyclops on Jun 28, 2005 11:48:01 GMT -5
Cyclops smiled briefly as the crowd stopped, looked around confused and began to disperse. Jean had done it. Sometimes the power she wielded disturbed him, but he knew she would never invade someone else's mind without a good reason. She believed as much in the dream as he and Xavier did, and would never jepordize it by using her powers irresponsibly.
He put his visor back in his coat and approached the blond man who'd just jumped down from the dumpster. He skirted around the spewing water, carefully shielding his face. Drying off his sunglasses was annoying and risky.
"Are you all right?" he called quietly. There was something familiar about this man, something he couldn't quite put his finger on. Maybe he'd known him from the orphanage. Boys had come and gone through there constantly and he hadn't been allowed to have any friends. They'd even taken his brother from him. Alex was gone before Scott had even recovered from the injuries he had sustained from their fall from the airplane. He knew Alex was alive, but he wondered sometimes what had happened to his brother, where he was, what sort of life he'd had..
Cyclops drug his mind back to the present, noting the wreckage of the fire hydrant. He wondered who has destroyed it. The wreckage looked like someone had blasted it with some sort of energy blast. Could this man be a mutant as well? It would explain his warning to the other mutant. For now he came to stop nearby, waiting for an answer to his question.
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Post by havok on Jun 28, 2005 12:13:24 GMT -5
Alex was looking up at the rooftop for the man he was trying to help when a vioce behind him made him turn suddenly. He was ready to blast the man in the chest but his voice wasn't aggressive in the slightest. Looking at the man, he wondered where he had seen him before. His overall appearance looked really familiar.
"I'm fine," Alex replied. His voice was a little irritated but he was grateful for the help. "I take it your the one got rid of them?" Alex asked, slightly amused to how it was done. "My name's Alex. Thanks for all your help," Alex said as he extended his hand for a handshake in a gesture of gratitude
The feeling like he knew the man was overwhelming. It was almost like they have met before, but Alex couldn't remember when or the man himself, especially with the glasses that he wore. Alex was tempted to ask the man to take them off but that would be a bold statement and he didn't want to say anymore than he had to to this stranger.
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Post by priest on Jun 28, 2005 14:10:14 GMT -5
The guy Priest was looking for was made himself known. He was standing on the dumpster screaming Throw down the ladder! Priest however was watching the crowd as they quietly quit chasing and walked away, somewhat zombie-like. When he finally looked back down, the guy had also realized and didn't need help anymore. He was walking to some other guy.
Priest grabbed the extending ladder and rode it back down to the dumpster. He then hopped down and walked to the others. He slapped the blond one on the back, meaning to just pat his back but Priest forgot how much strength he had in his current state. "Thanks buddy!" He said before turning to the one with glasses. "And you too. I guess you fixed this."
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Post by Cyclops on Jun 28, 2005 15:07:21 GMT -5
Alex? The man's name startled Cyclops. This man that seemed so familiar had the same name as his lost brother. Not that Alexander wasn't a common name, or that blonde hair or their build was uncommon. He didn't want to get his hopes up. After all, there was no guarantee this was Alex. Of course, it didn't mean he wasn't. Hell, even if it was, he doubted his baby brother would remember him. Who knows what kind of family Sinister had adopted him out to? He forced himself to think rationally.
"I'm Scott," he supplied, taking Alex's hand and shaking it. "Scott Summers." Maybe the name would ring a bell in the other man's memories, if he were Scott's brother.
He saw the other man, the one with the eye-patch ride the extending fire escape ladder down to the ground and hop off. He walked up behind Alex and slapped him on the back. "Thanks buddy!"This mutant was strong as well it seemed. The man looked at him. "And you too. I guess you fixed this."
Cyclops felt sheepish for a moment, since this was the second person who'd thanked him for ending the riot. He couldn't take credit for Jean's quick thinking. "Actually, that was my wife's doing," he admitted, dropping Alex's hand. "You know, this isn't a good place to be if you're a mutant. Or at least advertising it. Someone could have been hurt or killed. You should be more careful. This city is dry field waiting for a spark to set it off."
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Post by havok on Jun 28, 2005 15:45:00 GMT -5
Alex took a step back when he heard the man's full name. The shock on his face was evident. As he was about to say something when something hard hit him in the back. He jerked forward with the impact of whatever hit him. Turning around, he saw that the man he was trying to save had dropped from the roof to join their discussion. Annoyed with the pain in the middle of his back, Alex turned back to Scott, which was also the name of his older brother that he hasn't seen in a lifetime.
"Scott Summers, you say?" Alex was confused as well as shocked. He waited until after Scott had finished explaining the situation before starting to speak. "Summers is my real family name. Have you ever been to Nebraska?" Alex asked bluntly. if this was his brother, then it was a very strange coincidence that they run into each other, now of all times and in the middle of the capitol of America.
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