Genosha - The End of the Beginning
May. 27th, 2012 10:15 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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xp_logsOroro's team - Amanda, Callisto and Nico - reach the cells and manage to free Maddie, Marius and Korvus before everything goes to hell.
The halls in the prison are were identical. Identical metal doors with slotted windows, identical floors, identical walls, nothing to designate any area as special or for mutants or the non-powered. Without a map, or the signs designating different cell blocks by letter-number combination, it was impossible to identify anything. Faint noises came from some of the cells, barely audible behind the thick metal doors, little more than the noises of people moving. It was eeriely quiet, smelled of metal and humanity and the unending industrial sameness of the halls gave it a claustrophobic feel.
Things were not going according to the Plan.
It had started smoothly enough. The power had gone down and they'd breached the security doors, George the werelight (pale and wan, a reflection of Amanda's lack of connection with Hammer Bay) bobbling ahead of the to light the way for those with ordinary vision. Then, just as they'd reached the cell block, the lights had come back on, the electronic locks re-engaging with electronic clicks.
They'd pressed on, anyway. They'd passed the point of being able to retreat and with any luck they'd be able to get at least a couple of the students out.
"Try this one?" Amanda murmured to Callisto, indicating a door. All she could tell was that it was occupied; Cal's senses would give them more.
Callisto pressed the side of her head to the door, banging on it with her fist before listening, her face pulling into a frown. Then she nodded. "It's Maddie," she said, stepping back.
"Keep looking - Nico and I will get this door." Amanda glanced at her student and now teammate as the other two women continued down the hall. "All right, Grasshopper, time to do your thing. I'll keep watch in case there's alarms."
"Here we go then." Taking a deep breath, Nico placed her hands on the door, eyes closed as she focused on the energy influx. She could sense it very well, but her own powers were limited in the ways she could use the energy, and somehow draining it didn't seem like a good idea. "Okay...I'm going to try something." Squaring her feet, Nico started to recite under breath as she focused her energy on her hands, a black pigment appearing on her fingertips and quickly expanding until covering them entirely; a moment later, the pigment started to leave Nico's hands and spread over the door, making a regular sized, circular black spot of what looked like ink over it. "Now...emoceb a wodniw." One second, it was just the dark spot, and the next, it was a circular hole on the door, offering a clear view on the insides. Panting a little, the girl smiled, eyes still closed in concentration. "Not too shabby, huh?"
Amanda resisted the urge to say 'That'll do, pig,' and thus reveal she actually had watched Babe at least once in her life (with Meggan, when she was small and furry). "Good job," she said, leaning forward and bracing her hands against the edge of the hole to carefully poke her head inside. "Maddie? You all right, kid?"
Maddie's head popped into view as she too decided to look through the newly formed hole. Upon seeing Amanda's familiar face, the younger girl smiled a tired, but relieved. smile. "Thank G-d the cavalry has arrived," she exclaimed. She was beginning to think that despite all she had been told, the X-Men weren't going to be able to help rescue them. "I guess I'm not going to have to pull a Steve McQueen after all."
There were few places Ororo liked less than prisons; the heavy bars and concrete walls made her skin itch, and that was without thinking of the oppressive, narrow corridors and tiny cells. With a set to her jaw she strode to the next cell along, beckoning to Callisto as she knelt down in front of the heavy door. "I'll need to borrow your hearing again, if you don't mind," she told the dark-haired woman, pulling out a small lockpicking kit from her pocket.
Still wearing her 'my brain hurts' pout, Callisto listened at the door again. "Marius," she said after a moment. "And the curly haired meta... uh... Korvus?"
Ororo didn't need to hear anything more; immediately she went to work on the heavy prison lock, deftly sliding the picks in and feeling for the mechanism that would allow her to open the door and free the two mutants within. "No, stay here," she murmured as Callisto made to straighten up, "help me listen for the click."
The two women were bent over the lock, listening intently, when the first shouts came from down the corridor. Immediately Ororo's head whipped up, her hands perfectly still as she assessed the situation.
Shouts were followed by the sound of booted feet and the click of multiple safeties being flicked off. The end of the hall filled with men and women wearing the uniforms of the Genoshan Magistrates, their expressions hard and stony as they assessed the situation. And then, upon a barked order, the bullets - rubber at this stage - started flying.
Immediately Amanda clapped her hands together and threw up a shield - it wasn't one of her better ones, being only enough to cover herself, Maddie and Nico and somewhat porous as well - but it took care of the first volley enough for the three to retreat back towards Ororo and Callisto.
"What now, Boss?" she called out to Ororo, sounding strained.
"You three, fall back behind us," Ororo said, giving a final twist of the pick and springing to her feet. "We need to move back - this corridor is too open." She punctuated her words with a gust of wind that knocked the Magistrates back - but not far enough.
"Okay then, let's get out of here. Maddie?" Nico didn't wait for a reply as she swung an arm around the girl and helped her stay on her feet until she was strong enough to do it for herself.
Maddie nodded, leaning against the older girl for support and balance as her legs wobbled and threatened to collapse under her. She had been sitting for far too long, and now with every step she took pins and needles sent sharp pains her lower extremities. But there was no time to lollygag; they were in the middle of an attack and she would just have to push through the stiffness in pain.
This wasn't working - the Magistrates had reordered themselves and were advancing, booted feet moving them down the corridor like an unstopped black wave. "Get them out of here!" she snapped, glancing at Callisto. A moment later she pounded on the cell door with her fist, barking out "Marius, Korvus! I need backup here!"
Marius' flash of relief barely had a chance to form before it evaporated. He started to reach for the cell door, then turned to the younger man. Korvus' face was still swollen and mottled, but he could walk, and if he could walk they could run. They had a chance.
"Seems it's time to go," the X-Man said. Marius put a hand on the door and tried to smile. "Stay by me. We'll keep each other's back, yeah?"
Korvus nodded, moving up behind Marius and putting a hand on his shoulder to show he was right behind him. "I am still capable of being useful." He promised his cell mate as they moved into the hallway.
Outside, Amanda's shield was getting thinner, the witch grimacing as she felt every impact on it. "Time to be away on our toes!" she grated at Ororo. "I can't hold this much longer!" Even as she spoke, a rubber bullet made it's way through her shield, grazing off her head just above her temple. Dazed and with blood flowing down her face, Amanda dropped to her knees, the shield wavering and blinking out.
The blonde woman fell just as the cell door opened; Ororo's attention was momentarily divided between them as she assessed the situation and found it dire indeed. Marius and Korvus were in no fit state to defend the corridor, battered and bruised as they were, and in that split second she made up her mind. "Callisto, Nico, Maddie - retreat!" she ordered, spreading her hands before her and feeling the tingle of electricity run over her fingers. "Marius and Korvus, with them, as fast as you can!" The lightning licked over her palms and then arced out, striking the chests of the first three Magistrates and knocking them back against their fellows - buying them time.
Nodding, Callisto pulled back behind Nico and Maddie and broke into a trot, making sure she didn't run too fast.
"Here we go", muttered Nico as she helped Maddie as she followed Callisto and making a supreme effort not to turn around and yank Amanda by the arm with her. The woman knew what she was doing, and Nico had to trust her judgment.
Maddie picked up the pace as her legs found their stride. "Last one out's a rotten egg!"
Marius spun to follow, but they'd had to distance themselves from Ororo during her counterattack and somehow magistrates had gotten behind them -- but along the rapidly refilling hall there was a side-corridor. They'd been walked past it when escorted back to their cells. Small, probably leading to storage closets . . . and, he thought he remembered, terminating in a glowing red Exit sign.
Marius lashed out with one foot to take an approaching guard in the kneecap, grabbed Korvus by the shirtsleeve, and ran.
Though she needed every scrap of attention focused on the approaching Magistrates Ororo couldn't help but glance behind herself to watch the two groups disappear, the flood of relief that washed over her quickly quashed as she turned to see the guards closer than ever, their firearms trained on her and the blonde woman beside her. The urge to fight and flee were overwhelming but the odds were long; as the Magistrates descended with their batons and rough hands Ororo tried to console herself with the thought that the others were free - that would have to be enough for now.
The halls in the prison are were identical. Identical metal doors with slotted windows, identical floors, identical walls, nothing to designate any area as special or for mutants or the non-powered. Without a map, or the signs designating different cell blocks by letter-number combination, it was impossible to identify anything. Faint noises came from some of the cells, barely audible behind the thick metal doors, little more than the noises of people moving. It was eeriely quiet, smelled of metal and humanity and the unending industrial sameness of the halls gave it a claustrophobic feel.
Things were not going according to the Plan.
It had started smoothly enough. The power had gone down and they'd breached the security doors, George the werelight (pale and wan, a reflection of Amanda's lack of connection with Hammer Bay) bobbling ahead of the to light the way for those with ordinary vision. Then, just as they'd reached the cell block, the lights had come back on, the electronic locks re-engaging with electronic clicks.
They'd pressed on, anyway. They'd passed the point of being able to retreat and with any luck they'd be able to get at least a couple of the students out.
"Try this one?" Amanda murmured to Callisto, indicating a door. All she could tell was that it was occupied; Cal's senses would give them more.
Callisto pressed the side of her head to the door, banging on it with her fist before listening, her face pulling into a frown. Then she nodded. "It's Maddie," she said, stepping back.
"Keep looking - Nico and I will get this door." Amanda glanced at her student and now teammate as the other two women continued down the hall. "All right, Grasshopper, time to do your thing. I'll keep watch in case there's alarms."
"Here we go then." Taking a deep breath, Nico placed her hands on the door, eyes closed as she focused on the energy influx. She could sense it very well, but her own powers were limited in the ways she could use the energy, and somehow draining it didn't seem like a good idea. "Okay...I'm going to try something." Squaring her feet, Nico started to recite under breath as she focused her energy on her hands, a black pigment appearing on her fingertips and quickly expanding until covering them entirely; a moment later, the pigment started to leave Nico's hands and spread over the door, making a regular sized, circular black spot of what looked like ink over it. "Now...emoceb a wodniw." One second, it was just the dark spot, and the next, it was a circular hole on the door, offering a clear view on the insides. Panting a little, the girl smiled, eyes still closed in concentration. "Not too shabby, huh?"
Amanda resisted the urge to say 'That'll do, pig,' and thus reveal she actually had watched Babe at least once in her life (with Meggan, when she was small and furry). "Good job," she said, leaning forward and bracing her hands against the edge of the hole to carefully poke her head inside. "Maddie? You all right, kid?"
Maddie's head popped into view as she too decided to look through the newly formed hole. Upon seeing Amanda's familiar face, the younger girl smiled a tired, but relieved. smile. "Thank G-d the cavalry has arrived," she exclaimed. She was beginning to think that despite all she had been told, the X-Men weren't going to be able to help rescue them. "I guess I'm not going to have to pull a Steve McQueen after all."
There were few places Ororo liked less than prisons; the heavy bars and concrete walls made her skin itch, and that was without thinking of the oppressive, narrow corridors and tiny cells. With a set to her jaw she strode to the next cell along, beckoning to Callisto as she knelt down in front of the heavy door. "I'll need to borrow your hearing again, if you don't mind," she told the dark-haired woman, pulling out a small lockpicking kit from her pocket.
Still wearing her 'my brain hurts' pout, Callisto listened at the door again. "Marius," she said after a moment. "And the curly haired meta... uh... Korvus?"
Ororo didn't need to hear anything more; immediately she went to work on the heavy prison lock, deftly sliding the picks in and feeling for the mechanism that would allow her to open the door and free the two mutants within. "No, stay here," she murmured as Callisto made to straighten up, "help me listen for the click."
The two women were bent over the lock, listening intently, when the first shouts came from down the corridor. Immediately Ororo's head whipped up, her hands perfectly still as she assessed the situation.
Shouts were followed by the sound of booted feet and the click of multiple safeties being flicked off. The end of the hall filled with men and women wearing the uniforms of the Genoshan Magistrates, their expressions hard and stony as they assessed the situation. And then, upon a barked order, the bullets - rubber at this stage - started flying.
Immediately Amanda clapped her hands together and threw up a shield - it wasn't one of her better ones, being only enough to cover herself, Maddie and Nico and somewhat porous as well - but it took care of the first volley enough for the three to retreat back towards Ororo and Callisto.
"What now, Boss?" she called out to Ororo, sounding strained.
"You three, fall back behind us," Ororo said, giving a final twist of the pick and springing to her feet. "We need to move back - this corridor is too open." She punctuated her words with a gust of wind that knocked the Magistrates back - but not far enough.
"Okay then, let's get out of here. Maddie?" Nico didn't wait for a reply as she swung an arm around the girl and helped her stay on her feet until she was strong enough to do it for herself.
Maddie nodded, leaning against the older girl for support and balance as her legs wobbled and threatened to collapse under her. She had been sitting for far too long, and now with every step she took pins and needles sent sharp pains her lower extremities. But there was no time to lollygag; they were in the middle of an attack and she would just have to push through the stiffness in pain.
This wasn't working - the Magistrates had reordered themselves and were advancing, booted feet moving them down the corridor like an unstopped black wave. "Get them out of here!" she snapped, glancing at Callisto. A moment later she pounded on the cell door with her fist, barking out "Marius, Korvus! I need backup here!"
Marius' flash of relief barely had a chance to form before it evaporated. He started to reach for the cell door, then turned to the younger man. Korvus' face was still swollen and mottled, but he could walk, and if he could walk they could run. They had a chance.
"Seems it's time to go," the X-Man said. Marius put a hand on the door and tried to smile. "Stay by me. We'll keep each other's back, yeah?"
Korvus nodded, moving up behind Marius and putting a hand on his shoulder to show he was right behind him. "I am still capable of being useful." He promised his cell mate as they moved into the hallway.
Outside, Amanda's shield was getting thinner, the witch grimacing as she felt every impact on it. "Time to be away on our toes!" she grated at Ororo. "I can't hold this much longer!" Even as she spoke, a rubber bullet made it's way through her shield, grazing off her head just above her temple. Dazed and with blood flowing down her face, Amanda dropped to her knees, the shield wavering and blinking out.
The blonde woman fell just as the cell door opened; Ororo's attention was momentarily divided between them as she assessed the situation and found it dire indeed. Marius and Korvus were in no fit state to defend the corridor, battered and bruised as they were, and in that split second she made up her mind. "Callisto, Nico, Maddie - retreat!" she ordered, spreading her hands before her and feeling the tingle of electricity run over her fingers. "Marius and Korvus, with them, as fast as you can!" The lightning licked over her palms and then arced out, striking the chests of the first three Magistrates and knocking them back against their fellows - buying them time.
Nodding, Callisto pulled back behind Nico and Maddie and broke into a trot, making sure she didn't run too fast.
"Here we go", muttered Nico as she helped Maddie as she followed Callisto and making a supreme effort not to turn around and yank Amanda by the arm with her. The woman knew what she was doing, and Nico had to trust her judgment.
Maddie picked up the pace as her legs found their stride. "Last one out's a rotten egg!"
Marius spun to follow, but they'd had to distance themselves from Ororo during her counterattack and somehow magistrates had gotten behind them -- but along the rapidly refilling hall there was a side-corridor. They'd been walked past it when escorted back to their cells. Small, probably leading to storage closets . . . and, he thought he remembered, terminating in a glowing red Exit sign.
Marius lashed out with one foot to take an approaching guard in the kneecap, grabbed Korvus by the shirtsleeve, and ran.
Though she needed every scrap of attention focused on the approaching Magistrates Ororo couldn't help but glance behind herself to watch the two groups disappear, the flood of relief that washed over her quickly quashed as she turned to see the guards closer than ever, their firearms trained on her and the blonde woman beside her. The urge to fight and flee were overwhelming but the odds were long; as the Magistrates descended with their batons and rough hands Ororo tried to console herself with the thought that the others were free - that would have to be enough for now.
