xp_logs | Amara, Angel, Angelo, & Scott

Angel, Angelo and Scott find a girl floating in lava and Angel convinces her to come out. Amara's surprised to hear about people with powers, and that there is a place for them.

Warning for Potentially Emotionally Disturbing Content - Suicide ideation, mentions of the death of a parent.

Her world was fire, and as much as she wanted it to end, as much as she'd begged the gods to just let her die, it endured. Time had no meaning for her, minutes and hours had passed by without her marking them. She'd subsumed herself in the liquid fire that surrounded her, tried to drown or burn, to somehow find an end to everything. To join her mother in the Underworld.

Now she lay staring at the sky, floating on the pool of magma still bubbling in the crevice that she'd made. When would it end?

Scott stopped short, the heat from the lava like a solid wall this close to the pool, "I think we've found her," he noted dryly as he took a step back and nodded at Angel, "all yours Firestar. Ever since they'd landed the blackbird nearby the X-men had been slowly making their way towards the lava pools searching for the mutant who had been at the centre of it and now there was a...figure lying idly in the middle of a nearby pool. It was pretty easy to put two and two together to suggest they'd found the person they had been looking for.

"Right-o, leader," Angel sighed, rolling her shoulders back and hopping into the air for a moment to find the girl laying in the middle of the lava like it was a swimming pool. She lowered herself down carefully so she was hovering less than an inch above the pool, putting on the best, most comforting smile she could. "Hey there kiddo. How's the lava?"

Amara was startled by the voice, her bottom half sinking back into the lava as she looks up at the figure hovering above the lava. Her eyes widened, first with fear and then with awe. The woman was flying! And was unharmed by the heat of the pool that surrounded Amara.

"Chama sagrada do Vesta," she breathed, staring up at the woman that had spoken to her. It took a few more moments to realise that the woman had spoken to her in English, and a few more to remember how to respond.

"Did the gods send you?"

Angel had to work very hard not to laugh at that. The poor kid was scared and she had a woman hovering over her. It wasn't a hard jump. "Not quite, kid. Although my name is Angel. My friends and I are here to help you."

"Help me? Are you here to take me to the Underworld?" That was all the help she needed. All the help she wanted.

"Nooooooo, no Underworld," Angel said, shaking her head. "We're not harbingers of the devil or anything. Just regular old people. Well er. We're mutants actually. We're like you."

Amara stared at the other woman, before shaking her head and sinking further down into the lava.

"I don't understand. I should be dead, like minha mãe. Like the vagabundo who killed her."

Angel positioned herself so she was crouching in mid-air. "What's your name, kiddo?" Names would make it a little easier at least.

There's a strange snuffling noise from Amara, as if she had been trying to cry but couldn't.

"I am Amara Juliana Olivians Aquilla." There's a haughtiness to her words, as if the name should mean something to the floating woman.

"Amara." Well that was a bit of a surprise. Though Angel supposed she should have been expecting it. "Alright Amara. Here's the thing. You're a mutant. That's how you're still surviving in all this lava. I can't imagine it's much fun floating there though. How about we get somewhere a bit more comfortable?"

It's a long few moments before Amara responds. It seemed that she wasn't going to die, nor was the woman calling herself Angel was sent by the gods for her. It was time for her to stop wallowing both in her grief and the molten lava around.

"... I don't know how to get out of here."

That was difficult for Amara to admit.

"I can help with that," Angel assured her, holding out a hand. "Let's get you out of here and somewhere safe. Sound good?"

Amara just nodded, extending a fiery hand towards Angel. She trusted that the woman knew what she was doing. Amara was still half sure that Angel was sent by the gods to her, even if Angel had denied it.

Angel supposed she didn't help that belief when she took Amara's hand without flinching or giving any reaction to the flames licking her skin. "Alright, on three. One...two...three."

And with a tug she heaved Amara up out of the lava. The girl's toes skimmed the surface until they finally found the lip of the pool. "Here we are," Angel said pleasantly as she set Amara down.

Amara didn't know how to react when Angel pulled her out of the pool she'd been lying in for days, simply blinking several times before she reverted back to her regular human form.

And promptly burst back into flames when she realised she was naked.

"... I seem to no longer be wearing any clothes."

"It would appear so." Angel managed to keep her smile down to gentle and comforting. "Hang on a sec, I'll be right back. Don't go back into the lava." She hopped off, back into the air, down to where Scott and Angelo were waiting. "Got her out but she's lacking clothes. Do we have a fireproof blanket or something?"

"I brought clothes", Angelo said, digging in his backpack. "Girl in lava, made sense she'd need them... I went on the big side, better that than she can't get into them."

Scott nodded, that was a good foresight by Angelo, "We may have to see if we can get her one of your old uniforms when we get back to the mansion," he Told Angel, "At least until we can get some fireproof gear made up for her."

"I've got it all packed up in boxes, should be easy enough to dig out," Angel agreed with a nod. But they could worry about that later. She took the clothes from Angelo and took off into the air, returning to Amara's side. "Here ya go kiddo," she said happily as she handed the clothes over.

"Thank you." Amara hesitated for a moment before powering down again, taking the clothes from Angel and dressing quickly. She looked over in the direction that Angel had come from, a thoughtful look on her face.

"Are there other people here?"

"Yeah, my friends are waiting down a ways," Angel said, smiling.

Well then, Amara thought, and nodded to Angel. With her head held high, she started walking in the direction she'd seen Angel appear and disappear from. She managed the walk with more dignity than most would have, maneuvering through the mess the volcano had made without tripping or falling.

Following Angel's lead, the pair of them soon united with Scott and Angelo. Amara stared at both of them for a few long moments, unblinking, before remembering her manners and glancing away.

"Hello. I am Amara Aquilla. Thank you for coming to help me."

"A pleasure to meet you Amara," Scott held out his hand, "I'm Scott, I'm glad we, well Firestar here managed to help you out."

Amara shook Scott's hand firmly with her own small one, trying to stay focused on him and not stare at Angelo.

"I don't know of anyone who would fly into an active volcano zone to rescue a stranger. You are all to be commended."

Angelo was used to it, and took no offence at curiosity.

"It's sort of what we do."

"... what you do?" Amara's brows furrowed, not entirely understanding what Angelo meant.

"Pretty much fly into active volcano's to rescue strangers," Scott replied with a wry smile, "Also offering those strangers a place to work on their powers in safety if they want it."

"Ah está bom..." Amara looked back over the mess her powers had wrought, and grimaced.

"I think this is a thing I will need to do. I am capable of doing much damage."