X-Men Mission: Agents of SHIELD - Part 4
Mar. 10th, 2021 06:47 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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xp_logsAfter splitting up, Marvel Girl, Daredevil and Spectrum make their way to where Captain America is believed to be held.
The AIM complex was sprawling; a former copper mine that had been expanded and filled with high tech laboratories, engineering shops and production lines. As Coulson had mentioned, the base was still on high alert following the failed assault by Captain America and Deathlok, but there was a certain amount of slack in the guard routines. Obviously they had been certain they'd beaten off the assault and any follow up was far enough away that they didn't need to worry about it. In reality, it was far more challenging to avoid the trains of cargo and equipment being mustered out from the depths of the base and into the muster areas for the supply jets.
While they didn't have a map, the drone coverage by Fitz had provided them a rough path to the holding area, which they were closing on, still unseen by security.
Nica pulled back into the wall as a group of workers walked past, chatting and joking and obviously not feeling threatened in any way. Once they'd passed, she popped out again, tapping her earpiece. "Coast is clear. I think. You two getting anything I missed?"
"No other guards in the area," Matt replied through his comm. The rock made extending his hearing out more difficult, but he had no problems differentiating rock vs tunnels or people within the tunnels. "But that doesn't rule out cameras or other things," he didn't hear any and they'd been careful with the ones they'd found, but it was important to be careful regardless. "Jean?"
"I'm sensing someone in the room with the Captain," Jean said, opening her eyes after a mental scan. "Likely just a technician to make sure the equipment stays working judging by his thoughts. Which is good, because he'll need to show us how to turn off the cryo unit. We need a distraction, and a way to make sure he doesn't send word out. Daredevil, you take care of the distraction. Spectrum, you make sure he doesn't send word out. I'll handle getting the information from him. Sounds good?"
"Works for me." Nica sounded as confident as she could, but she had to admit, she was nervous. Not about blocking comms - that was something she'd been working on in her Danger Room sessions - but about being part of the team to actually rescue Captain America. She'd met him before during the business with the hammers, but this was completely different. He was helpless, needing help, and she was going to help him!
A mental 'cough' from Jean indicated perhaps she'd been broadcasting those thoughts a little too loudly, and she pulled herself together and concentrated. It was one thing to broadcast static across various bandwidths to block comms, but that usually aroused suspicion of interference. Instead, Nica focussed on absorbing the radio waves emanating from the holding area. No radio waves meant no signal and no signal could just be malfunctioning tech.
Distraction was something Matt could do. Moving away from the group, back closer to the way they'd come in, he sipped into an empty room. Lots of equipment in here. Perfect. With absolutely no regard to what he was messing with, Matt found an access panel and pulled all the wires. Then he unplugged as many cords as he could reach before dashing out and running towards the cryo chamber to get Cap out. Distantly, he could hear people moving concerned about the down computers. Whatever he'd done, they'd noticed. Perfect distraction, especially with Nica blocking the radios for communication.
Jean arched a brow as Matt took off, then motioned for Nica to come with them, then focused on opening the door telekinetically.
"Let me know if you run into trouble with what you're doing and we can try to speed things up," she said to Nica as they moved.
Nica gave her a tight nod in reply, focusing on what she was doing.
The technician was very surprised to see a door open on its own and two women walk inside.
"How did you get in here?! Who let you in?" he demanded, reaching for his radio but finding only static.
The man was shoved into the wall, and held there by an unseen force. "That's not really your problem," Jean said, her eyes flickering up to meet his. As they did, the man froze and Jean's gaze became unfocused. After a few moments, she furrowed a brow.
"Daredevil, do you read? The cryo chamber...it needs two high security badges to get in. The technician has one, we need to get another one. There should be someone with that clearance in one of the offices two doors down to the right. He's alone. You might be able to intercept him before he comes to see what the commotion is all about."
"Badge, got it," Matt replied, pausing at the indicated doorway to do his own sonar-reconnaissance. Entering the room, it only took a few seconds to overpower the man inside. The guy clearly wasn't expecting anyone and while he was armed, he didn't so much as draw his weapon. Making sure he was out and then taking the badge, Matt felt along the plastic sleeve it was in, "Any way to make sure it's the right one before I bring it to you?" he asked. Likely not, the chip embedded inside was what made it useful.
As Matt's question came over the earpiece, Nica glanced questioningly at Jean. Now the technician was under control, she didn't need to block the radio signals so much, so she used the wavelengths to carry her through the walls invisibly to where Matt was. "Looks the same as the other one," she remarked, materialising abruptly next to him. "But we don't really have time to mess around. Time's running short."
Stifling a comment, he brandished the badge, already in hand. "I'll meet you with Jean then," he replied since he couldn't go through walls.
Meanwhile, Jean kept an eye on the technician as she waited, and the man struggled. The clock in the room ticked quietly as they sat in awkward silence before the man spoke.
"How do you do this? Are you all...mutants? Witches?" he said.
Quirking a brow, Jean glanced over. "Yes, we're all witches. Do what I say and I won't curse you," she said with a smirk, making his coffee mug float off the table.
The man's eyes widened and his face flushed red as he immediately swallowed.
"Yes, ma'am."
Then Nica appeared back through the wall and the technician's eyes widened even further. "Daredevil's on his way," she told Jean. "He's got the card since, you know, electromagnetics and me might not be a good combination."
Arriving a few moments later, through the door, Matt handed Jean the card and took over guarding the technician, looming over him, "Witches, huh?" he smirked, "And devils. You a religious man?" he asked, semi-rhetorically.
The technician nodded vigorously, "I wasn't, but I...will be? Do you want me to be?"
Jean smiled but said nothing as her attention flickered back to Matt. The technician's badge slipped off of his own neck, floating toward Matt's hand. "These are supposed to go into the cryo chamber and the computer at the same time to start the process.Once it's done. I'll check the Captain's vitals and we can get the hell out," she said. She nodded toward Nica.
"Spectrum, can you please guard the door?"
"On it!" Nica ghosted to the door, focussing both her human senses and her mutant powers for any change in the electromagnetic spectrum that might indicate a vehicle or similar approaching.
"Daredevil, we'll insert the card on the count of three," Jean said, standing near the cryo chamber. Once Matt was ready, she put the card near the card slot. "One, two, three."
At the end of three she put the card in the slot. The machine started to beep as the system came to life and a light over the top of Captain America's head turned on. A humming noise was heard, and the icy sheen across the viewing port of the cryo chamber began to melt away.
Reaching out, Jean opened the door, which hissed as the coldness of the chamber met the warmer air and mist filled the room.
"Captain?" Jean said. "Captain America can you hear me?"
Despite the numbers on the cryo chamber reading green, the tall, muscular man in the red, white and blue uniform showed no signs of life. Just as they leaned in to see if there were other connections, a red light flared in the room and several doors opened. In the ruby glare, they could see the glowing blue eyes of multiple robots advancing on them while over their comms, the slightly apologetic voice of Kane came through.
"AIM set a remote override to the Captain's cryo chamber. Get ready for company."
The AIM complex was sprawling; a former copper mine that had been expanded and filled with high tech laboratories, engineering shops and production lines. As Coulson had mentioned, the base was still on high alert following the failed assault by Captain America and Deathlok, but there was a certain amount of slack in the guard routines. Obviously they had been certain they'd beaten off the assault and any follow up was far enough away that they didn't need to worry about it. In reality, it was far more challenging to avoid the trains of cargo and equipment being mustered out from the depths of the base and into the muster areas for the supply jets.
While they didn't have a map, the drone coverage by Fitz had provided them a rough path to the holding area, which they were closing on, still unseen by security.
Nica pulled back into the wall as a group of workers walked past, chatting and joking and obviously not feeling threatened in any way. Once they'd passed, she popped out again, tapping her earpiece. "Coast is clear. I think. You two getting anything I missed?"
"No other guards in the area," Matt replied through his comm. The rock made extending his hearing out more difficult, but he had no problems differentiating rock vs tunnels or people within the tunnels. "But that doesn't rule out cameras or other things," he didn't hear any and they'd been careful with the ones they'd found, but it was important to be careful regardless. "Jean?"
"I'm sensing someone in the room with the Captain," Jean said, opening her eyes after a mental scan. "Likely just a technician to make sure the equipment stays working judging by his thoughts. Which is good, because he'll need to show us how to turn off the cryo unit. We need a distraction, and a way to make sure he doesn't send word out. Daredevil, you take care of the distraction. Spectrum, you make sure he doesn't send word out. I'll handle getting the information from him. Sounds good?"
"Works for me." Nica sounded as confident as she could, but she had to admit, she was nervous. Not about blocking comms - that was something she'd been working on in her Danger Room sessions - but about being part of the team to actually rescue Captain America. She'd met him before during the business with the hammers, but this was completely different. He was helpless, needing help, and she was going to help him!
A mental 'cough' from Jean indicated perhaps she'd been broadcasting those thoughts a little too loudly, and she pulled herself together and concentrated. It was one thing to broadcast static across various bandwidths to block comms, but that usually aroused suspicion of interference. Instead, Nica focussed on absorbing the radio waves emanating from the holding area. No radio waves meant no signal and no signal could just be malfunctioning tech.
Distraction was something Matt could do. Moving away from the group, back closer to the way they'd come in, he sipped into an empty room. Lots of equipment in here. Perfect. With absolutely no regard to what he was messing with, Matt found an access panel and pulled all the wires. Then he unplugged as many cords as he could reach before dashing out and running towards the cryo chamber to get Cap out. Distantly, he could hear people moving concerned about the down computers. Whatever he'd done, they'd noticed. Perfect distraction, especially with Nica blocking the radios for communication.
Jean arched a brow as Matt took off, then motioned for Nica to come with them, then focused on opening the door telekinetically.
"Let me know if you run into trouble with what you're doing and we can try to speed things up," she said to Nica as they moved.
Nica gave her a tight nod in reply, focusing on what she was doing.
The technician was very surprised to see a door open on its own and two women walk inside.
"How did you get in here?! Who let you in?" he demanded, reaching for his radio but finding only static.
The man was shoved into the wall, and held there by an unseen force. "That's not really your problem," Jean said, her eyes flickering up to meet his. As they did, the man froze and Jean's gaze became unfocused. After a few moments, she furrowed a brow.
"Daredevil, do you read? The cryo chamber...it needs two high security badges to get in. The technician has one, we need to get another one. There should be someone with that clearance in one of the offices two doors down to the right. He's alone. You might be able to intercept him before he comes to see what the commotion is all about."
"Badge, got it," Matt replied, pausing at the indicated doorway to do his own sonar-reconnaissance. Entering the room, it only took a few seconds to overpower the man inside. The guy clearly wasn't expecting anyone and while he was armed, he didn't so much as draw his weapon. Making sure he was out and then taking the badge, Matt felt along the plastic sleeve it was in, "Any way to make sure it's the right one before I bring it to you?" he asked. Likely not, the chip embedded inside was what made it useful.
As Matt's question came over the earpiece, Nica glanced questioningly at Jean. Now the technician was under control, she didn't need to block the radio signals so much, so she used the wavelengths to carry her through the walls invisibly to where Matt was. "Looks the same as the other one," she remarked, materialising abruptly next to him. "But we don't really have time to mess around. Time's running short."
Stifling a comment, he brandished the badge, already in hand. "I'll meet you with Jean then," he replied since he couldn't go through walls.
Meanwhile, Jean kept an eye on the technician as she waited, and the man struggled. The clock in the room ticked quietly as they sat in awkward silence before the man spoke.
"How do you do this? Are you all...mutants? Witches?" he said.
Quirking a brow, Jean glanced over. "Yes, we're all witches. Do what I say and I won't curse you," she said with a smirk, making his coffee mug float off the table.
The man's eyes widened and his face flushed red as he immediately swallowed.
"Yes, ma'am."
Then Nica appeared back through the wall and the technician's eyes widened even further. "Daredevil's on his way," she told Jean. "He's got the card since, you know, electromagnetics and me might not be a good combination."
Arriving a few moments later, through the door, Matt handed Jean the card and took over guarding the technician, looming over him, "Witches, huh?" he smirked, "And devils. You a religious man?" he asked, semi-rhetorically.
The technician nodded vigorously, "I wasn't, but I...will be? Do you want me to be?"
Jean smiled but said nothing as her attention flickered back to Matt. The technician's badge slipped off of his own neck, floating toward Matt's hand. "These are supposed to go into the cryo chamber and the computer at the same time to start the process.Once it's done. I'll check the Captain's vitals and we can get the hell out," she said. She nodded toward Nica.
"Spectrum, can you please guard the door?"
"On it!" Nica ghosted to the door, focussing both her human senses and her mutant powers for any change in the electromagnetic spectrum that might indicate a vehicle or similar approaching.
"Daredevil, we'll insert the card on the count of three," Jean said, standing near the cryo chamber. Once Matt was ready, she put the card near the card slot. "One, two, three."
At the end of three she put the card in the slot. The machine started to beep as the system came to life and a light over the top of Captain America's head turned on. A humming noise was heard, and the icy sheen across the viewing port of the cryo chamber began to melt away.
Reaching out, Jean opened the door, which hissed as the coldness of the chamber met the warmer air and mist filled the room.
"Captain?" Jean said. "Captain America can you hear me?"
Despite the numbers on the cryo chamber reading green, the tall, muscular man in the red, white and blue uniform showed no signs of life. Just as they leaned in to see if there were other connections, a red light flared in the room and several doors opened. In the ruby glare, they could see the glowing blue eyes of multiple robots advancing on them while over their comms, the slightly apologetic voice of Kane came through.
"AIM set a remote override to the Captain's cryo chamber. Get ready for company."
