xp_logs | Lakshmibai Raj - I'm Guided By This Birthmark On My Skin

The New Mutants and the rest of the volunteers arrive at the refugee camp under the eyes of Hank, Emma and Adrienne.

It was a sea of misery. The helicopter landed and they were able to step down on to the temporary pad that had been hacked out of the brush and tramped down to hard earth. They had split off with the rest of their group in Islamabad, heading directly to the camp to see what they could do. For some of them, they had experience as part of Red-X with these sights. For others, especially amongst the New Mutants, the sheer size and desperation of the camp was a new shock to absorb. The decision to send the New Mutants had ultimately come down to the human cost; there was supposed to be little danger, and with their abilities, they represented more than just extra pairs of hands.

As they reached the ground, a group of Red Cross volunteers came forward, unloading the helicopter around them. At the head of the group was a aging, deeply tanned man and a tall, raw-boned blonde woman in scrubs. Neither were strangers.

"Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. I don't see too many familiar faces, but we appreciate Red-X agreeing to our request for help." Dr Vasco Di Alvito said affiably, only his posture betraying the grinding hours of work he was putting in. Doctor Jane Watts nodded to Sooraya as she stepped up.

"Vasco is right. We know there are political dimensions, but honestly, you're the best resource that we could get here the fastest. It's appreciated."

Hank moved forward and extended a hand, nodding for Laurie to join him. "We're here to help in anyway we can, Doctor Watts. I feel that Miss Collins and I would be most useful in triage, but feel free to put our younger members to work wherever they can be helpful." The large blue doctor turned around and shouted over the helicopter, which was now lifting back off, "Ready, Laurie?"

"As I'll ever be," Laurie shouted, looking around at the camp and just feeling thankful that she wouldn't be the one making the decisions this time around. "Lay on, McDuff."

"Oooh, oooh! I'm ready! I'm ready!" Doreen said, almost jumping straight off the ground with pure eagerness. It was hard not to be. She didn't let her surroundings phase her, after all, these people needed help. But that wasn't any reason not to be cheerful about it, "Pick me!"

Hank turned at the last moment and walked back to Doreen, "Not for this you're not, Dori. Laurie and I are going to help out in surgery. Listen to what Doctor Vasco says and you'll make us all proud, I've no doubt." With a smile and a pat on the young squirrel-girl's shoulder, he was off again, heading toward the medical tent with Laurie in tow.
Sooraya smiled over at Doreen. "I am certain they can find more ... administrative work for us to do, at the very least." Then, her eyes flicked over to the medical personnel. "Or whatever is necessary."

"Maybe we can make tents!" Catseye suggested to Dori excitedly. "Or hunt! Well... Nick and I can hunt, you could carry back all the rabbits or goats or other animals i kill! Or we could cook things!"

"Um... yeah..." Nick was heavily distracted. Even Catseye couldn't break him out of the trance that he seemed to be locked in. His father's lectures had taught him about devastation in rural areas, but nothing could have prepared him to face down the camp. But as he turned back around, his voice gained a new resolve. He needed to do whatever he could to help these people. "I can do whatever they need me to."

Nico stepped down, giving one grim look at the place. "This is gonna be interesting." She was...pretty calm; not precisely thrilled to help, but she was definitely sure she had taken the right choice when she offered herself to aid Red X; some magic could come in handy if anything.

Laura, pretty much like Doreen, was probably a little too excited about the whole thing; she wanted to prove herself and Logan that she had learned something since her arrival, and if she could do something good for others, it would at least be like the old days when she took part of many charity programs; she never went to a war-torn zone though, and didn't have claws to use, but the feeling was pretty similar. "Where do I begin then?"

Pixie felt a little like Dori on the inside, but outwardly she tried to remain calm like Laurie, whom she greatly admired. She was incredibly excited to have the chance to do something with Red-X. Ever since she had met Yvette on her first day of school, she'd known she'd wanted to try to use her powers for good. "If any enemies get close to us, I'll dust 'em!" she said softly in her airy voice, though she knew they would be far from the enemy lines and it seemed like she and the other kids would be working on more mundane tasks.

"Do not get too excited," murmured Emma. "I am not sensing any enemies amongst the people around us. A great deal of need, however." She turned to Dr Di Alvito. "I think we need to co-ordinate our supplies and our resources before we start taking any action." She nodded at the students milling around her. "Is there anything that the others can be doing while we talk about the supply situation?"

"There's things for a thousand people to do. I'll have some of our personnel parcel out work, if your charges don't mind."

Adrienne let her gaze drift over the students and back to the doctor, answering for Emma. "Of course they don't mind, Doctor," she answered cheerfully. "They know this isn't a vacation. They're here to work. They'd especially love lifting heavy things and cleaning out latrines."

Meggan knew it would be bad, and thought she was ready for it, but the extent of the damage hadn’t quite hit home until now—she was a little on the dazed and horrified end of the spectrum, but struggling to remain calm. She knew she had made the right choice to volunteer. The thought of cleaning out latrines might be awful, but she’d do it if it was assigned to her and needed doing.
Fred stood next to Adrienne as she spoke, and decided there was no time like the present to start lifting said heavy things. After his initial fear that came with Red X outings had subsided, Fred found more tasks available than hands he had. Hefting several hundred pounds of relief supplies onto his back, Fred offered a comforting smile and quick nod as he plodded through the scene, trying to mentally keep track what he saw that needed to get done.

“Alright, let’s get you to work then.” Di Alvito said with a purposeful look.