Day Zero - Bridges Burning
Oct. 25th, 2008 06:30 pm![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
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xp_logsDuring the evacuation, a tragedy at the George Washington Bridge is witnessed from multiple angles.
Zach hunched down in his windbreaker as he pushed through the crowd and gripped Laurie by the shoulder. "I managed to talk to one of the police escorts, they're setting up transportation points. Jesus, everyone's about this close to full panic. This Apocalypse guy... is he one that the X-Men have dealt with before?"
Laurie herself had only appeared to get calmer as everyone around her freaked out. Through the years of training at Xavier's, she'd learnt what panic could do to her, and those around her. While she might want to simply let go, with her powers it was out of the question.
"I don't think so, Dad." Laurie replied, pulling her own coat tightly about her. "I've never seen any mention of him in the files. Do you think everyone'll get out in time?"
"I'm not worried about everyone, Laurie," Zach insisted, peering ahead of them to where the crowds were thicker around the bridge, police and emergency personnel trying to herd everyone through in an orderly fashion.
Laurie glanced back at him from where she was slowly moving through the crowd, his hand firmly gripping the back of her bag. She'd thrown on her backpack as they'd left, quickly checking to make sure she had water and her travel first-aid kit that she never went anywhere without.
"We're going to be fine, Dad. It's not mutants they're after." Laurie noted, continuing to push forward against the surge and rush of the crowd.
***
All day, nothing but panic. Here and there, being directed from what felt like one end of the city to the other. Jennie had spent the night with Marnie and April, her friends from college. She would have left immediately after the first event, but her father had taken his family to the Hamptons for the weekend.
All except for her sister.
Locating Olivia had taken hours. She hadn't been at home, where she said she would have been. Olivia had grown up, and taken to being something of a party girl, much like her sister. Cell service was terrible, but with a little luck she was able to locate an obviously hungover Olivia. The taller girl opened her mouth. To fight, to apologize, to explain, maybe? Jennie hadn't said anything, she just grabbed her sister in a hug.
"Time to go," she said. Olivia left with surprisingly little argument. Jennie was in Business mode. No one felt like disagreeing with her.
Trying to get off the Island had proven to be almost impossible. No subways. Roads at gridlock. No way she could get to SV, as there was roadblocks everywhere. They'd finally ended up hoofing it. Now they were on the George Washington bridge. Jennie was hoping they wouldn't have to walk all the way to Westchester.
The sun had set, and the light had faded, coloring the sky purple. Jennie and her friends were exhausted, and her sister looked drawn and pale. Jennie looked at her sister and then reached for her hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze. They were halfway across the bridge.
All the lanes were crowded with people evacuating through both the upper and lower decks, crossing over the Hudson into Washington Heights. Every hundred feet or so, a New York police officer on horseback was there trying to keep order in the chaotic mass of people.
A cry came up from the south edge of the bridge, as people were alternately trying to rush forward and look down the river at something. Something bright in the sky, approaching fast.
Whatever it was, it zoomed overhead, crossing over the west end of the bridge and unleashing an eerily silent blast of brilliant energy, searing partly through the bridge as it passed. The sounds of rending metal and screaming evacuees that followed was only a precursor to the mad melee of people trying to run in every direction at once.
The bridge heaved, and everyone screamed. Jennie barely kept her balance as people surged forward. Jennie swung around. The lines were a deep, murderous red.
They were all going to die. There was no way to get off the bridge in time. Nothing that could save them all.
Then Jennie's eyes narrowed. Not all of them. Not if she had anything to say about it.
"Liv," Jennie hissed, pulling off her shoulder bag and stuffing it into her sisters hands. "You know where the school is, right? 1407 Graymalkin Lane, Westchester. Repeat the address for me."
Olivia looked at her, blue eyes wide. "14-1407 Graymalkin Lane," she stammered, grasping at her sister's bag. The bridge shuddered again.
"Jennie--" April said, trying to reach for her friend.
"Jennie, God, don't--" Marnie cried.
Jennie pushed them all off. "Get off the fucking bridge. Now. I'll buy us some time. Go or you'll die. Take care of my sister. Get to the school." She began to push her way towards the light. "GO! GO NOW!"
"JENNIE!" Her sister screamed as April and Marnie began to drag her away, across the bridge as fast as they could.
Jennie had a dancer's grace, and she had luck on her side. Somehow she dodged her way through the crowd, as the world bled red and pulsed like a heartbeat.
Another wave of screams came from the crowd on the bridge, adding to the cacophony as the blinding light surged towards them again, this time coming to a halt in midair over the north side of the bridge.
A figure standing in midair, outlined in brilliant white. The glowing wings holding it in place would have given the impression of angelic purity - marred by the irregular straps and armor plates crisscrossing its legs and torso, and the dull metal skull-faced mask, only black holes where the "angel" would have eyes.
One hand raised, glowing like a torch and another beam stabbed into the evening sky, scything through a number of the bridge's support beams.
***
The Rec Room was currently empty. In fact, aside from a few minutes of conversation with Miriam Cross earlier Jim had seen surprisingly few students this evening. He was a bit surprised at that, but strongly suspected many of the students had convened in their respective suites to watch the news. Earlier they'd been wanting answers -- or, at least, the reassuring presence of the staff. But frenetic stress could only be maintained for so long; now they had settled in.
Still, Jim had decided to stay just in case. The only obvious sign of his stress was that he had finally lit a cigarette. Indoor smoking was a rarity for him, but after determining both psionic and cellular attempts to contact his significant other were fruitless he felt the day called for it -- particularly after the throbbing migraine that had settled in an hour or so ago. Nonetheless, in deference to the fact some of the inhabitants had enhanced senses he watched the news from next to a cracked window.
The image on the television was grainy, slipping in and out of focus in the way that an extreme long-range zoom tended to do. Even from the distance, across the Hudson River, thousands of people could be seen packing both decks of the George Washington Bridge, evacuating the city.
"This is Manoli Wetherell, and we are live on the west bank of the Hudson River," the calm voice of an unseen reporter came in from offscreen. "The atmosphere here can only be described as utter chaos. What we know is that at approximately six-thirty this morning, something destroyed Madison Square Garden and Penn Station. Whether it was some kind of air strike or a terrorist bomb, no one knows for sure yet. But in the hours that followed, we have seen things both amazing and terrifying."
The camera swerved dizzyingly, focusing on a black spire rising into the Manhattan skyline, lit by the setting sun.
"This structure, which people are calling the Citadel, appears to have risen from the ashes. We all heard the manifesto of the individual calling himself Apocalypse, giving humanity one day to evacuate the island, which he and his army have claimed as a mutant homeland."
The telepath sighed, tapping his cigarette over a stray dish. "Sure, fuck politics," he muttered. "Just bring a private army and claim part of an existing country. That's a recipe for international acceptance."
A clearer male voice cut in over the image. "Manoli, what can you tell us about the incident this afternoon, with the Air Force jets?"
"Well, Neal, we don't know much here. It's been impossible to get comments from the military liaisons because they're all busy with the evacuation. What we do know is that around four p.m., two F-22 Raptors were flown in on an attack sortie, and both jets were destroyed, no word on the pilots. It's said that--"
Suddenly the camera's focus swung, following a bright point of light from the Citadel, streaking to the bridge. It seemed as if a star was shooting along the river, flying past one end of the bridge. The screams of evacuees could be heard as light flashed across the bridge, support cables and struts snapping.
Jim's hand paused midway over the dish.
"Oh... oh my God," the reporter's voice could be heard over the din. "What is that? Ladies and gentlemen, something appears to be directly attacking the George Washington Bridge. My God, there have to be at least two thousand evacuees on that bridge--"
Through the zoom, a hazy figure could be seen pausing over the bridge, looking not unlike some kind of angel, hovering on wings of light. Flashes of incandescent light, interspersed with a strange crimson glow from part of the crowd, lit the scene as people started flooding off both sides of the bridge in a panic.
***
Zach sighed. "I know, Laurie. It's just that I've spent almost twenty years trying to stay out of this humans-and-mutants crap, and here we are right in the middle of it. It's almost like... the hell is that?" His voice broke off as he saw, along with everyone else present, a bright light in the distance, seeming to come from the large spire that had grown from the wreckage of Madison Square Garden.
Whatever it was, it was like a star brought to earth, and it was coming closer.
"I don't..." Laurie began to reply, watching the star take shape as it got closer.
Finally, the shape formed into the figure of a man with glowing wings spread out wide. He flashed past them, a blast of energy taking out the far end of the bridge with a giant concussive force, and sending asphalt, concrete and steel flying into the air around it.
Laurie could do nothing but stand and stare as it happened, her limbs paralysed with shock.
Before their eyes, the bridge seemed to buckle, metal separating with a loud screech as the throng of people suddenly started pushing backwards like a wave. Another bright beam of light came from the winged figure, shining like the very surface of the sun, burning the metal supports of the bridge into slag as it started cutting through.
***
Jennie flung out a hand, and disk sailed it's way through the air. The light wasn't as bright or as pure as the "angel's" but as it splashed against a support beam the impossible happened. The cables twisted and tangled themselves against the other, still holding support cables. The bridge see-sawed dangerously, but held. Sweat broke out on Jennie's forehead as the area in front of her cleared. Another disk and another cable tied itself to it's neighbor, further strengthening it.
"Hey bitch," Jennie yelled at the "angel." Male, female, she couldn't tell, but it seemed a safe enough insult.
"You want some of this?" she gestured like a boxer getting ready for a match.
I am going to die tonight. Please God, if you're listening to me. If you've ever listened. Get them safely home.
"Huh? DO YA?" She flung a red disk.
The figure pivoted in midair, Jennie's disk sailing past it, followed by another. Luminescent wings enveloped it like a cocoon, hovering in place, then falling towards the river before snapping out again and arcing just over the river's surface and up again.
The screams from the lower deck echoed as a beam of light punched through the center of the bridge, sending people and parts of people flying back. Rising through the hole, the angel of Death silently turned, its impassive stare fixed on Jennie as its wings began to spread and glow brightly.
"Oh, fuck you," Jennie hissed. She threw out her hands, hoping that everyone else had the good sense to run. The air around her began to glow red, surrounding her like a hellish nimbus. The world was pulsing at the edges of her vision. The pressure inside of her head was enormous. "Come and get me, coward," she spat. "FIGHT ME!"
Two fingers flicked forward, and twin beams of light shot to either side of Jennie, slicing neatly through another support beam. The skull-mask leaned to one side, the featureless face somehow conveying a feeling of... amused contempt.
People were still trying to force their way across the bridge, some leaping towards the water as they neared the west end. Everyone wanted to get away from the two glowing figures - one crimson red, the other blinding white.
Jennie closed her eyes briefly, her face calm, almost peaceful. She drew the light towards her, hoping the mass of power would push things enough. Maybe, just maybe she would cause a lucksnap. The light pulsed brighter, and then out, slamming into the angel like a wave.
The masked figure stood impassive for a moment, almost like an inhuman statue -- until Jennie could see a small rivulet of blood running from under the mask. An armored hand raised, slightly trembling, and then for the first time in the blinding onslaught, a keening wail could be heard from under the mask.
Suddenly, light erupted around the figure and, wrapped in a corona of brilliance, it rose back into the sky and unleashed a massive blast to the east end of the bridge, cutting all the way to the foundations of the bridge.
***
"The bridge is going to go!" Zach shouted, reaching out for Laurie in the mob. Between the two of them, a large man was panicking and trying to shove through. Zach fumbled for a moment, then clenched his teeth and reached out to clench the man's face in his bare hand.
"Get. Away." he growled, the whites of his eyes momentarily taking on a purple hue. As if shocked with a taser, the large stranger backed away from Zach, then bolted off screaming into the throng. Zach stepped forward, grabbing Laurie by her shoulders. "We've got to get out of here!" he shouted. "This place is about to riot!"
Laurie was still in shock and she simply stared at Zach for a moment before he turned and began dragging her back through the crowd, and hopefully to safety. Her feet didn't seem to want to move, and she stumbled several times, her mind moving in a panicked circle as people around her screamed and jostled each other in an attempt to get out, to get away.
A young child going down in front of her finally snapped Laurie out of her daze and she set her feet, stopping Zach in his tracks as she reached down to pull the child up and set him on his feet.
"N-no, Dad." Laurie said, voice shaking even as she tried to sound firm. "I c-can do something about this."
Even as her knees felt like jelly, and her hand shook uncontrollably in Zach's, she stood firm against the rushing crowd.
'Please, please let this work." she thought as she closed her eyes firmly, and then matched her action to her words.
A violet colour began to spread over her skin, slightly lighter then the dark purple of Zach's. Laurie pushed her ability hard, hoping that she had enough time to calm the crowd and stop the riot before any more were killed.
Zach watched his daughter in amazement as her power spread outwards, invisible pheromones working their way through the crowd, acting as a counter to the panic and aggression. Miraculously, a number of the people managed to calm down, not only moving in a less panicked fashion but actually directing others away from the site.
Stepping over to her side, Zach tucked an arm under Laurie's to support her. "You did it, kiddo. Come on, let go, we've got to go now. The bridge is going to--"
And as he spoke, with another blast of light from the evening sky, the George Washington Bridge began tilting sideways, ripping free of its abutments, and slid with a crash of thunder into the river.
***
Slowly at first, then with dizzying rapidity, the George Washington Bridge began to twist away from its moorings, tilting and angling towards the black waters of the Hudson.
It wasn't enough. There was no snap. She couldn't save them. Everything fell away, the screams, the screech of metal, she looked up and saw the sky. No stars.
The bridge fell way underneath her, and at the moment of her death, all Jennie could feel was numb. Then the river swallowed her whole.
***
The camera tilted suddenly, and the sound cut out, leaving only the visual image of the light growing brighter around the bridge, and then a figure shooting into the air. A flash, like a lightning strike - and then the bridge began to tilt.
Slowly at first, then quickly like an avalanche, the camera watched in silence as the George Washington Bridge buckled and slid into the waters of the Hudson River.
And, before he could even register the enormity of what he had just seen, Jim felt it.
All day Charles had been in Cerebro, trying to reach the island. Hours and hours spent stretching his mind outwards without rest.
Left wide open to the deaths of thousands.
The psychic scream sent Jim's head back so hard his skull hit the wall. Beyond words, beyond sound. Just shock, shock and appalling pain -- and, in an instant, gone.
Jim was in the hall running for the elevator before he even realized he'd risen. He felt the familiar minds of Nathan and Jean roiling around him, both alarmed, both disoriented, knew others must have felt it too, the Stepfords Farouk Jono Monet someone should see to them -- but not Jim, because Jim was heading for Charles. Jim was in the elevator. Jim was in the basement. Jim was pounding down the hallway--
Cerebro was open, and that open doorway was somehow even more chilling than the cry of distress. There was only one reason the doors would open with Charles connected to the system: a sharp, sudden drop in his vital signs.
Amelia was already there, crouched beside him. Jim noted distantly that an alarm was echoing down the hall. A Medlab safeguard. The young man sprinted towards them, for the first time ever completely oblivious to the narrowness of the walkway as his brain seethed with scrambled thoughts. XavierChuckProfessorDadCharles!
"Good," Amelia said curtly, looking up at him only for an instant. "The source of this isn't physical. Tell me what's happened."
"The George Washington Bridge collapsed," Jim said hollowly. "While, while he was -- out there."
Amelia's eyebrows went up slightly; it was the only outward reaction she betrayed to his words. "Full spectrum of psionic shock symptoms, then," she said, continuing to check Charles's vitals. "I suspect the best thing to do would be to get him into the Box, for now. I'll certainly need Jean. David, are you paying attention to me?"
Part of him wanted to say that this was his speciality -- he had worked on the after-effects of psionic shock before, he knew more about it than Amelia, he sure as hell didn't need Jean's help. He could do this.
The other part of him simply said: No, you can't.
Because this is your father.
Jim nodded. "Yes, we are," he said, and stretched his mind out for Jean.
Zach hunched down in his windbreaker as he pushed through the crowd and gripped Laurie by the shoulder. "I managed to talk to one of the police escorts, they're setting up transportation points. Jesus, everyone's about this close to full panic. This Apocalypse guy... is he one that the X-Men have dealt with before?"
Laurie herself had only appeared to get calmer as everyone around her freaked out. Through the years of training at Xavier's, she'd learnt what panic could do to her, and those around her. While she might want to simply let go, with her powers it was out of the question.
"I don't think so, Dad." Laurie replied, pulling her own coat tightly about her. "I've never seen any mention of him in the files. Do you think everyone'll get out in time?"
"I'm not worried about everyone, Laurie," Zach insisted, peering ahead of them to where the crowds were thicker around the bridge, police and emergency personnel trying to herd everyone through in an orderly fashion.
Laurie glanced back at him from where she was slowly moving through the crowd, his hand firmly gripping the back of her bag. She'd thrown on her backpack as they'd left, quickly checking to make sure she had water and her travel first-aid kit that she never went anywhere without.
"We're going to be fine, Dad. It's not mutants they're after." Laurie noted, continuing to push forward against the surge and rush of the crowd.
***
All day, nothing but panic. Here and there, being directed from what felt like one end of the city to the other. Jennie had spent the night with Marnie and April, her friends from college. She would have left immediately after the first event, but her father had taken his family to the Hamptons for the weekend.
All except for her sister.
Locating Olivia had taken hours. She hadn't been at home, where she said she would have been. Olivia had grown up, and taken to being something of a party girl, much like her sister. Cell service was terrible, but with a little luck she was able to locate an obviously hungover Olivia. The taller girl opened her mouth. To fight, to apologize, to explain, maybe? Jennie hadn't said anything, she just grabbed her sister in a hug.
"Time to go," she said. Olivia left with surprisingly little argument. Jennie was in Business mode. No one felt like disagreeing with her.
Trying to get off the Island had proven to be almost impossible. No subways. Roads at gridlock. No way she could get to SV, as there was roadblocks everywhere. They'd finally ended up hoofing it. Now they were on the George Washington bridge. Jennie was hoping they wouldn't have to walk all the way to Westchester.
The sun had set, and the light had faded, coloring the sky purple. Jennie and her friends were exhausted, and her sister looked drawn and pale. Jennie looked at her sister and then reached for her hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze. They were halfway across the bridge.
All the lanes were crowded with people evacuating through both the upper and lower decks, crossing over the Hudson into Washington Heights. Every hundred feet or so, a New York police officer on horseback was there trying to keep order in the chaotic mass of people.
A cry came up from the south edge of the bridge, as people were alternately trying to rush forward and look down the river at something. Something bright in the sky, approaching fast.
Whatever it was, it zoomed overhead, crossing over the west end of the bridge and unleashing an eerily silent blast of brilliant energy, searing partly through the bridge as it passed. The sounds of rending metal and screaming evacuees that followed was only a precursor to the mad melee of people trying to run in every direction at once.
The bridge heaved, and everyone screamed. Jennie barely kept her balance as people surged forward. Jennie swung around. The lines were a deep, murderous red.
They were all going to die. There was no way to get off the bridge in time. Nothing that could save them all.
Then Jennie's eyes narrowed. Not all of them. Not if she had anything to say about it.
"Liv," Jennie hissed, pulling off her shoulder bag and stuffing it into her sisters hands. "You know where the school is, right? 1407 Graymalkin Lane, Westchester. Repeat the address for me."
Olivia looked at her, blue eyes wide. "14-1407 Graymalkin Lane," she stammered, grasping at her sister's bag. The bridge shuddered again.
"Jennie--" April said, trying to reach for her friend.
"Jennie, God, don't--" Marnie cried.
Jennie pushed them all off. "Get off the fucking bridge. Now. I'll buy us some time. Go or you'll die. Take care of my sister. Get to the school." She began to push her way towards the light. "GO! GO NOW!"
"JENNIE!" Her sister screamed as April and Marnie began to drag her away, across the bridge as fast as they could.
Jennie had a dancer's grace, and she had luck on her side. Somehow she dodged her way through the crowd, as the world bled red and pulsed like a heartbeat.
Another wave of screams came from the crowd on the bridge, adding to the cacophony as the blinding light surged towards them again, this time coming to a halt in midair over the north side of the bridge.
A figure standing in midair, outlined in brilliant white. The glowing wings holding it in place would have given the impression of angelic purity - marred by the irregular straps and armor plates crisscrossing its legs and torso, and the dull metal skull-faced mask, only black holes where the "angel" would have eyes.
One hand raised, glowing like a torch and another beam stabbed into the evening sky, scything through a number of the bridge's support beams.
***
The Rec Room was currently empty. In fact, aside from a few minutes of conversation with Miriam Cross earlier Jim had seen surprisingly few students this evening. He was a bit surprised at that, but strongly suspected many of the students had convened in their respective suites to watch the news. Earlier they'd been wanting answers -- or, at least, the reassuring presence of the staff. But frenetic stress could only be maintained for so long; now they had settled in.
Still, Jim had decided to stay just in case. The only obvious sign of his stress was that he had finally lit a cigarette. Indoor smoking was a rarity for him, but after determining both psionic and cellular attempts to contact his significant other were fruitless he felt the day called for it -- particularly after the throbbing migraine that had settled in an hour or so ago. Nonetheless, in deference to the fact some of the inhabitants had enhanced senses he watched the news from next to a cracked window.
The image on the television was grainy, slipping in and out of focus in the way that an extreme long-range zoom tended to do. Even from the distance, across the Hudson River, thousands of people could be seen packing both decks of the George Washington Bridge, evacuating the city.
"This is Manoli Wetherell, and we are live on the west bank of the Hudson River," the calm voice of an unseen reporter came in from offscreen. "The atmosphere here can only be described as utter chaos. What we know is that at approximately six-thirty this morning, something destroyed Madison Square Garden and Penn Station. Whether it was some kind of air strike or a terrorist bomb, no one knows for sure yet. But in the hours that followed, we have seen things both amazing and terrifying."
The camera swerved dizzyingly, focusing on a black spire rising into the Manhattan skyline, lit by the setting sun.
"This structure, which people are calling the Citadel, appears to have risen from the ashes. We all heard the manifesto of the individual calling himself Apocalypse, giving humanity one day to evacuate the island, which he and his army have claimed as a mutant homeland."
The telepath sighed, tapping his cigarette over a stray dish. "Sure, fuck politics," he muttered. "Just bring a private army and claim part of an existing country. That's a recipe for international acceptance."
A clearer male voice cut in over the image. "Manoli, what can you tell us about the incident this afternoon, with the Air Force jets?"
"Well, Neal, we don't know much here. It's been impossible to get comments from the military liaisons because they're all busy with the evacuation. What we do know is that around four p.m., two F-22 Raptors were flown in on an attack sortie, and both jets were destroyed, no word on the pilots. It's said that--"
Suddenly the camera's focus swung, following a bright point of light from the Citadel, streaking to the bridge. It seemed as if a star was shooting along the river, flying past one end of the bridge. The screams of evacuees could be heard as light flashed across the bridge, support cables and struts snapping.
Jim's hand paused midway over the dish.
"Oh... oh my God," the reporter's voice could be heard over the din. "What is that? Ladies and gentlemen, something appears to be directly attacking the George Washington Bridge. My God, there have to be at least two thousand evacuees on that bridge--"
Through the zoom, a hazy figure could be seen pausing over the bridge, looking not unlike some kind of angel, hovering on wings of light. Flashes of incandescent light, interspersed with a strange crimson glow from part of the crowd, lit the scene as people started flooding off both sides of the bridge in a panic.
***
Zach sighed. "I know, Laurie. It's just that I've spent almost twenty years trying to stay out of this humans-and-mutants crap, and here we are right in the middle of it. It's almost like... the hell is that?" His voice broke off as he saw, along with everyone else present, a bright light in the distance, seeming to come from the large spire that had grown from the wreckage of Madison Square Garden.
Whatever it was, it was like a star brought to earth, and it was coming closer.
"I don't..." Laurie began to reply, watching the star take shape as it got closer.
Finally, the shape formed into the figure of a man with glowing wings spread out wide. He flashed past them, a blast of energy taking out the far end of the bridge with a giant concussive force, and sending asphalt, concrete and steel flying into the air around it.
Laurie could do nothing but stand and stare as it happened, her limbs paralysed with shock.
Before their eyes, the bridge seemed to buckle, metal separating with a loud screech as the throng of people suddenly started pushing backwards like a wave. Another bright beam of light came from the winged figure, shining like the very surface of the sun, burning the metal supports of the bridge into slag as it started cutting through.
***
Jennie flung out a hand, and disk sailed it's way through the air. The light wasn't as bright or as pure as the "angel's" but as it splashed against a support beam the impossible happened. The cables twisted and tangled themselves against the other, still holding support cables. The bridge see-sawed dangerously, but held. Sweat broke out on Jennie's forehead as the area in front of her cleared. Another disk and another cable tied itself to it's neighbor, further strengthening it.
"Hey bitch," Jennie yelled at the "angel." Male, female, she couldn't tell, but it seemed a safe enough insult.
"You want some of this?" she gestured like a boxer getting ready for a match.
I am going to die tonight. Please God, if you're listening to me. If you've ever listened. Get them safely home.
"Huh? DO YA?" She flung a red disk.
The figure pivoted in midair, Jennie's disk sailing past it, followed by another. Luminescent wings enveloped it like a cocoon, hovering in place, then falling towards the river before snapping out again and arcing just over the river's surface and up again.
The screams from the lower deck echoed as a beam of light punched through the center of the bridge, sending people and parts of people flying back. Rising through the hole, the angel of Death silently turned, its impassive stare fixed on Jennie as its wings began to spread and glow brightly.
"Oh, fuck you," Jennie hissed. She threw out her hands, hoping that everyone else had the good sense to run. The air around her began to glow red, surrounding her like a hellish nimbus. The world was pulsing at the edges of her vision. The pressure inside of her head was enormous. "Come and get me, coward," she spat. "FIGHT ME!"
Two fingers flicked forward, and twin beams of light shot to either side of Jennie, slicing neatly through another support beam. The skull-mask leaned to one side, the featureless face somehow conveying a feeling of... amused contempt.
People were still trying to force their way across the bridge, some leaping towards the water as they neared the west end. Everyone wanted to get away from the two glowing figures - one crimson red, the other blinding white.
Jennie closed her eyes briefly, her face calm, almost peaceful. She drew the light towards her, hoping the mass of power would push things enough. Maybe, just maybe she would cause a lucksnap. The light pulsed brighter, and then out, slamming into the angel like a wave.
The masked figure stood impassive for a moment, almost like an inhuman statue -- until Jennie could see a small rivulet of blood running from under the mask. An armored hand raised, slightly trembling, and then for the first time in the blinding onslaught, a keening wail could be heard from under the mask.
Suddenly, light erupted around the figure and, wrapped in a corona of brilliance, it rose back into the sky and unleashed a massive blast to the east end of the bridge, cutting all the way to the foundations of the bridge.
***
"The bridge is going to go!" Zach shouted, reaching out for Laurie in the mob. Between the two of them, a large man was panicking and trying to shove through. Zach fumbled for a moment, then clenched his teeth and reached out to clench the man's face in his bare hand.
"Get. Away." he growled, the whites of his eyes momentarily taking on a purple hue. As if shocked with a taser, the large stranger backed away from Zach, then bolted off screaming into the throng. Zach stepped forward, grabbing Laurie by her shoulders. "We've got to get out of here!" he shouted. "This place is about to riot!"
Laurie was still in shock and she simply stared at Zach for a moment before he turned and began dragging her back through the crowd, and hopefully to safety. Her feet didn't seem to want to move, and she stumbled several times, her mind moving in a panicked circle as people around her screamed and jostled each other in an attempt to get out, to get away.
A young child going down in front of her finally snapped Laurie out of her daze and she set her feet, stopping Zach in his tracks as she reached down to pull the child up and set him on his feet.
"N-no, Dad." Laurie said, voice shaking even as she tried to sound firm. "I c-can do something about this."
Even as her knees felt like jelly, and her hand shook uncontrollably in Zach's, she stood firm against the rushing crowd.
'Please, please let this work." she thought as she closed her eyes firmly, and then matched her action to her words.
A violet colour began to spread over her skin, slightly lighter then the dark purple of Zach's. Laurie pushed her ability hard, hoping that she had enough time to calm the crowd and stop the riot before any more were killed.
Zach watched his daughter in amazement as her power spread outwards, invisible pheromones working their way through the crowd, acting as a counter to the panic and aggression. Miraculously, a number of the people managed to calm down, not only moving in a less panicked fashion but actually directing others away from the site.
Stepping over to her side, Zach tucked an arm under Laurie's to support her. "You did it, kiddo. Come on, let go, we've got to go now. The bridge is going to--"
And as he spoke, with another blast of light from the evening sky, the George Washington Bridge began tilting sideways, ripping free of its abutments, and slid with a crash of thunder into the river.
***
Slowly at first, then with dizzying rapidity, the George Washington Bridge began to twist away from its moorings, tilting and angling towards the black waters of the Hudson.
It wasn't enough. There was no snap. She couldn't save them. Everything fell away, the screams, the screech of metal, she looked up and saw the sky. No stars.
The bridge fell way underneath her, and at the moment of her death, all Jennie could feel was numb. Then the river swallowed her whole.
***
The camera tilted suddenly, and the sound cut out, leaving only the visual image of the light growing brighter around the bridge, and then a figure shooting into the air. A flash, like a lightning strike - and then the bridge began to tilt.
Slowly at first, then quickly like an avalanche, the camera watched in silence as the George Washington Bridge buckled and slid into the waters of the Hudson River.
And, before he could even register the enormity of what he had just seen, Jim felt it.
All day Charles had been in Cerebro, trying to reach the island. Hours and hours spent stretching his mind outwards without rest.
Left wide open to the deaths of thousands.
The psychic scream sent Jim's head back so hard his skull hit the wall. Beyond words, beyond sound. Just shock, shock and appalling pain -- and, in an instant, gone.
Jim was in the hall running for the elevator before he even realized he'd risen. He felt the familiar minds of Nathan and Jean roiling around him, both alarmed, both disoriented, knew others must have felt it too, the Stepfords Farouk Jono Monet someone should see to them -- but not Jim, because Jim was heading for Charles. Jim was in the elevator. Jim was in the basement. Jim was pounding down the hallway--
Cerebro was open, and that open doorway was somehow even more chilling than the cry of distress. There was only one reason the doors would open with Charles connected to the system: a sharp, sudden drop in his vital signs.
Amelia was already there, crouched beside him. Jim noted distantly that an alarm was echoing down the hall. A Medlab safeguard. The young man sprinted towards them, for the first time ever completely oblivious to the narrowness of the walkway as his brain seethed with scrambled thoughts. XavierChuckProfessorDadCharles!
"Good," Amelia said curtly, looking up at him only for an instant. "The source of this isn't physical. Tell me what's happened."
"The George Washington Bridge collapsed," Jim said hollowly. "While, while he was -- out there."
Amelia's eyebrows went up slightly; it was the only outward reaction she betrayed to his words. "Full spectrum of psionic shock symptoms, then," she said, continuing to check Charles's vitals. "I suspect the best thing to do would be to get him into the Box, for now. I'll certainly need Jean. David, are you paying attention to me?"
Part of him wanted to say that this was his speciality -- he had worked on the after-effects of psionic shock before, he knew more about it than Amelia, he sure as hell didn't need Jean's help. He could do this.
The other part of him simply said: No, you can't.
Because this is your father.
Jim nodded. "Yes, we are," he said, and stretched his mind out for Jean.
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