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xp_logsHope, Doug and Darcy deal with one part of the unholy duo.
"Glad that Clarice was able to drop this off here." Hope walked around the chair in the metal cage, which was humming softly. "I just hope it can contain her." Looking over at Doug, she continued: "Time to get this party on the road. Which senator did Scanner alone have an appointment with again?"
A Faraday cage was more hardware than Doug was used to having along on any sort of outing/mission - it wasn't precisely portable. But given the way EM interacted and interfered with psi powers, it was probably their best option for containing Scanner.
"Stackhouse," he answered Hope's question. The senator had come out strongly in opposition to the bill, and there was rumor that he was intending to filibuster, which Scanner and Garrulous were obviously looking to head off.
Darcy whistled lowly as she looked at the cage. "That... is really impressive and a little intimidating. So how are we dealing with this? Distracting Stackhouse and keeping him occupied?"
"No..." Hope glanced at her cellphone. "I will catch her before she arrives there and get her to go in her astral form. I'll keep her distracted, while you find her body and get it in the cage. Luckily his office is close by enough." Hope moved towards the comfortable chair they had put in the corner and closed her eyes. "Wish me luck."
With those words the flower unfolded in her mind and she slipped out her body.
***
It was true, what people said. The red power suit really did work. It wasn't the choice Sarah Ryall would have necessarily made on a normal day, but the Capitol called for a certain dress code, and as she strode down the halls, a portfolio held tightly against her body, she thought the outfit made her ready to take on the world.
Which, of course, in the long run, is what she planned on doing.
The ceiling offered a perfect cover for Hope as she followed her former teacher through the hallways and when there were no others, she floated downwards, bluntly confronting Scanner. "It has been a long time, Scanner."
To her credit, Sarah managed not to look surprised. "Hope." It was the iciest syllable she'd ever uttered. Her eyes narrowed at the translucent form in front of her. "What a pleasant coincidence."
"I rather wish I'd never have to see your face again, but it seems it cannot be helped." Hope countered fluently. "I see you are still acting like his lapdog though. Nothing has changed in that area, I see." She hoped the goading would cause her to go astral.
"How little you know." Scanner sneered. She searched her surroundings, her head moving slowly until she fixed her gaze on the open door to an empty office closet. Perfect. She began to stride toward it. "Power is held by people pulling the strings, Miss Abbott." Her heels clacked on the floor as she made her way into the space, closing the door behind her. "It may be his money. It may be his cause, and in this case, his plans. But don't mistake things." Her body landed with a muffled thud onto the leather chair she'd been standing in front of. In its place was a creation of pure energy. Sarah Ryall as a living, electro-transitional being. "I pull the strings, Hope. And I'm not afraid to cut yours loose."
Hope hovered below the ceiling, her legs crossed. "That is where you are wrong, Sarah. You and Gabe are not the puppeteers. You are only the strings. Habsburg will always be the true puppeteer." With those words she dove through the ceiling, hopefully drawing Scanner with her.
"Clearly your comprehension skills are as good as ever." Sarah Ryall's form pursed its lips. "It's beyond me how someone so remarkably unremarkable could be so annoying." Her form hovered off the ground for a minute, and then she moved to dispose of Hope.
***
Doug watched the sweep of the second hand on his watch, allowing Hope enough time to get Scanner on the chase. "Okay, let's move," he told Darcy, leaving the room with the brisk, purposeful walk of someone who knew where he was going and what he was doing. First step to getting people to accept that you belonged somewhere was simply to act like that, project it with your body language.
Darcy followed Doug, looking every bit the part of a slightly harried personal assistant. "Yes sir," she replied, hurrying slightly to keep up with Doug's longer stride.
They'd already laid out the most efficient path between their own base of operations in the capitol building and Scanner's, so it was the work of a few minutes of memorized turns through the corridors before they were in front of a solid oak door. "Sometimes I love people who think staying analog is somehow safer," Doug observed as they looked at a physical key lock. He shook a set of lockpicks out of the cuffs of his sportcoat into his hand, then raised an eyebrow to Darcy, as if asking if she wanted to do the honors.
Darcy smirked but shook her head in the negative. She liked Doug's confidence in her lockpicking skills, but she didn't want to mess up with nerves and alert someone that they were doing something they weren't supposed to do. "I guess if you had a series of increasingly difficult analog, maybe, but even then it's a physical puzzle to be solved," she responded.
It was the work of less than a minute before a quiet click indicated Doug's success - he had teammates who could do better, but he tried to be at least passingly proficient in any given skillset that X-Force drew upon, just for times like these when he couldn't exactly phone for backup. He pushed the door and preceded Darcy in, checking for surprises.
***
"So, are you here just with Gabe or are the others also stirring the pot somewhere?" Hope 'called' over her shoulder as she suddenly changed directions and 'dove' into a ventilation shaft. "Been wondering about that! Especially 'His Grace'!" The last two words sounded especially mocking.
"Your trash talk is as weak as your personality, Hope." If Scanner sounded weary, it was because she'd been chasing this particular tsetse fly of a mutant around for far more minutes than she deemed necessary. But she rarely left business unfinished, and so her projection followed the girl's astral form, her motion speeding to catch up.
Hope let the waves rise in her mind for a moment, easily slipping into the astral plane to vanish from sight, slipping out only moments later behind Scanner. "Sounds like your bark is much worse then your bite. So many more years of experience on me and you still have not caught me!"
"Well, sure," Scanner snorted. "I prefer to use actual teeth, not psychic ones." Her electro-transitional form disappeared, re-energizing next to Hope. "But that doesn't mean I don't have other tools at my disposal."
Immediately Hope let the waves rise again in her mind, slipping back in the astral plane, before dropping out some distance away only a moment later. "You know what I just don't understand... After M-Day, why are you still following him? You must see his illusions could never work. You never struck me a dumb woman when you taught me."
"What answer could you possibly want to hear?" Scanner's words dripped with contempt. "I swear to God, talking to you is like arguing with a teenage boy on Facebook. Did it ever occur to you, you insipid girl, that I believe in what Genetix is doing? That some of us believe in higher causes." Her hologram moved closer to Hope in short bursts. "And all this from someone who nips at the heels of Charles Xavier. Talk about your illusions and delusions."
"Higher causes?" Hope let out a bitter laugh. "Looks like I need to change my opinion of you. I know it's a far-fetched dream, of human and mutant living together in peace. but at least it is a dream worth fighting for. While yours will only bring suffering!"
***
There had been no surprises in the office, and rather than engage in some kind of subterfuge with a wheelchair, they had opted for the direct approach, Doug hoisting Scanner over his shoulders in a fireman's carry, and relying on Darcy as his lookout. Thankfully it was a slow afternoon in the capitol, and they made it back to their base of operations without incident. He dumped their quarry in a folding chair inside the cage, then staggered out. "Hit it," he told Darcy, still struggling to catch his breath.
Darcy pressed the button emphatically. "My pleasure."
The life came back to Scanner's eyes almost violently, her body jerking. Things seemed — she was disoriented and confused, unsure for exactly how to speak or how to process the sudden change in what she was seeing. "Wh—" She sat up as she felt the weight in her body. And then the metal structure of the cage became clear to her, and she visibly tensed, her posture straightening almost instantly. "What?! How?!"
"Opened a few doors, pressed some buttons, and happened to have access to the right equipment." Darcy quipped.
"A little bait and switch." Doug resisted the urge to monologue too much. It was tempting, though. "We needed a way to take you out of the equation, and..." He waved a hand at the Faraday cage.
"Ahhh, look who we have here. So nicely wrapped and packaged." Hope commented as she rose from her chair, having slipped back in her own body. "Glad to see this fella worked so well. We put some water and crackers in it for you. Should be enough to tidy over." She gestured at the flask as she addressed Scanner.
"You — you, you..." Scanner practically snarled as she sputtered and rose to her feet, careful not to touch the sides of the cage. After a second, she regained composure, though her lips remained curled. "You're too late," she said, her voice icy as she stared down Hope. "What we're putting in motion can't really be stopped. It's the natural progression of things. We're just helping it along."
"I do not think you have to worry about that anymore." Hope commented before turning her back and heading over to Darcy. "Ready for part two?"
"Glad that Clarice was able to drop this off here." Hope walked around the chair in the metal cage, which was humming softly. "I just hope it can contain her." Looking over at Doug, she continued: "Time to get this party on the road. Which senator did Scanner alone have an appointment with again?"
A Faraday cage was more hardware than Doug was used to having along on any sort of outing/mission - it wasn't precisely portable. But given the way EM interacted and interfered with psi powers, it was probably their best option for containing Scanner.
"Stackhouse," he answered Hope's question. The senator had come out strongly in opposition to the bill, and there was rumor that he was intending to filibuster, which Scanner and Garrulous were obviously looking to head off.
Darcy whistled lowly as she looked at the cage. "That... is really impressive and a little intimidating. So how are we dealing with this? Distracting Stackhouse and keeping him occupied?"
"No..." Hope glanced at her cellphone. "I will catch her before she arrives there and get her to go in her astral form. I'll keep her distracted, while you find her body and get it in the cage. Luckily his office is close by enough." Hope moved towards the comfortable chair they had put in the corner and closed her eyes. "Wish me luck."
With those words the flower unfolded in her mind and she slipped out her body.
***
It was true, what people said. The red power suit really did work. It wasn't the choice Sarah Ryall would have necessarily made on a normal day, but the Capitol called for a certain dress code, and as she strode down the halls, a portfolio held tightly against her body, she thought the outfit made her ready to take on the world.
Which, of course, in the long run, is what she planned on doing.
The ceiling offered a perfect cover for Hope as she followed her former teacher through the hallways and when there were no others, she floated downwards, bluntly confronting Scanner. "It has been a long time, Scanner."
To her credit, Sarah managed not to look surprised. "Hope." It was the iciest syllable she'd ever uttered. Her eyes narrowed at the translucent form in front of her. "What a pleasant coincidence."
"I rather wish I'd never have to see your face again, but it seems it cannot be helped." Hope countered fluently. "I see you are still acting like his lapdog though. Nothing has changed in that area, I see." She hoped the goading would cause her to go astral.
"How little you know." Scanner sneered. She searched her surroundings, her head moving slowly until she fixed her gaze on the open door to an empty office closet. Perfect. She began to stride toward it. "Power is held by people pulling the strings, Miss Abbott." Her heels clacked on the floor as she made her way into the space, closing the door behind her. "It may be his money. It may be his cause, and in this case, his plans. But don't mistake things." Her body landed with a muffled thud onto the leather chair she'd been standing in front of. In its place was a creation of pure energy. Sarah Ryall as a living, electro-transitional being. "I pull the strings, Hope. And I'm not afraid to cut yours loose."
Hope hovered below the ceiling, her legs crossed. "That is where you are wrong, Sarah. You and Gabe are not the puppeteers. You are only the strings. Habsburg will always be the true puppeteer." With those words she dove through the ceiling, hopefully drawing Scanner with her.
"Clearly your comprehension skills are as good as ever." Sarah Ryall's form pursed its lips. "It's beyond me how someone so remarkably unremarkable could be so annoying." Her form hovered off the ground for a minute, and then she moved to dispose of Hope.
***
Doug watched the sweep of the second hand on his watch, allowing Hope enough time to get Scanner on the chase. "Okay, let's move," he told Darcy, leaving the room with the brisk, purposeful walk of someone who knew where he was going and what he was doing. First step to getting people to accept that you belonged somewhere was simply to act like that, project it with your body language.
Darcy followed Doug, looking every bit the part of a slightly harried personal assistant. "Yes sir," she replied, hurrying slightly to keep up with Doug's longer stride.
They'd already laid out the most efficient path between their own base of operations in the capitol building and Scanner's, so it was the work of a few minutes of memorized turns through the corridors before they were in front of a solid oak door. "Sometimes I love people who think staying analog is somehow safer," Doug observed as they looked at a physical key lock. He shook a set of lockpicks out of the cuffs of his sportcoat into his hand, then raised an eyebrow to Darcy, as if asking if she wanted to do the honors.
Darcy smirked but shook her head in the negative. She liked Doug's confidence in her lockpicking skills, but she didn't want to mess up with nerves and alert someone that they were doing something they weren't supposed to do. "I guess if you had a series of increasingly difficult analog, maybe, but even then it's a physical puzzle to be solved," she responded.
It was the work of less than a minute before a quiet click indicated Doug's success - he had teammates who could do better, but he tried to be at least passingly proficient in any given skillset that X-Force drew upon, just for times like these when he couldn't exactly phone for backup. He pushed the door and preceded Darcy in, checking for surprises.
***
"So, are you here just with Gabe or are the others also stirring the pot somewhere?" Hope 'called' over her shoulder as she suddenly changed directions and 'dove' into a ventilation shaft. "Been wondering about that! Especially 'His Grace'!" The last two words sounded especially mocking.
"Your trash talk is as weak as your personality, Hope." If Scanner sounded weary, it was because she'd been chasing this particular tsetse fly of a mutant around for far more minutes than she deemed necessary. But she rarely left business unfinished, and so her projection followed the girl's astral form, her motion speeding to catch up.
Hope let the waves rise in her mind for a moment, easily slipping into the astral plane to vanish from sight, slipping out only moments later behind Scanner. "Sounds like your bark is much worse then your bite. So many more years of experience on me and you still have not caught me!"
"Well, sure," Scanner snorted. "I prefer to use actual teeth, not psychic ones." Her electro-transitional form disappeared, re-energizing next to Hope. "But that doesn't mean I don't have other tools at my disposal."
Immediately Hope let the waves rise again in her mind, slipping back in the astral plane, before dropping out some distance away only a moment later. "You know what I just don't understand... After M-Day, why are you still following him? You must see his illusions could never work. You never struck me a dumb woman when you taught me."
"What answer could you possibly want to hear?" Scanner's words dripped with contempt. "I swear to God, talking to you is like arguing with a teenage boy on Facebook. Did it ever occur to you, you insipid girl, that I believe in what Genetix is doing? That some of us believe in higher causes." Her hologram moved closer to Hope in short bursts. "And all this from someone who nips at the heels of Charles Xavier. Talk about your illusions and delusions."
"Higher causes?" Hope let out a bitter laugh. "Looks like I need to change my opinion of you. I know it's a far-fetched dream, of human and mutant living together in peace. but at least it is a dream worth fighting for. While yours will only bring suffering!"
***
There had been no surprises in the office, and rather than engage in some kind of subterfuge with a wheelchair, they had opted for the direct approach, Doug hoisting Scanner over his shoulders in a fireman's carry, and relying on Darcy as his lookout. Thankfully it was a slow afternoon in the capitol, and they made it back to their base of operations without incident. He dumped their quarry in a folding chair inside the cage, then staggered out. "Hit it," he told Darcy, still struggling to catch his breath.
Darcy pressed the button emphatically. "My pleasure."
The life came back to Scanner's eyes almost violently, her body jerking. Things seemed — she was disoriented and confused, unsure for exactly how to speak or how to process the sudden change in what she was seeing. "Wh—" She sat up as she felt the weight in her body. And then the metal structure of the cage became clear to her, and she visibly tensed, her posture straightening almost instantly. "What?! How?!"
"Opened a few doors, pressed some buttons, and happened to have access to the right equipment." Darcy quipped.
"A little bait and switch." Doug resisted the urge to monologue too much. It was tempting, though. "We needed a way to take you out of the equation, and..." He waved a hand at the Faraday cage.
"Ahhh, look who we have here. So nicely wrapped and packaged." Hope commented as she rose from her chair, having slipped back in her own body. "Glad to see this fella worked so well. We put some water and crackers in it for you. Should be enough to tidy over." She gestured at the flask as she addressed Scanner.
"You — you, you..." Scanner practically snarled as she sputtered and rose to her feet, careful not to touch the sides of the cage. After a second, she regained composure, though her lips remained curled. "You're too late," she said, her voice icy as she stared down Hope. "What we're putting in motion can't really be stopped. It's the natural progression of things. We're just helping it along."
"I do not think you have to worry about that anymore." Hope commented before turning her back and heading over to Darcy. "Ready for part two?"
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