Welcome to Gaia! ::

Thomas approached her, the brunette jumping slightly as she saw him coming at her with a syringe. Her Dexter joke apparently went right over his head, to which she could only sigh. "Yes, Dexter. It's a TV show about a serial killer who keeps mementos from his victims in the form of drops of blood - you know what, never mind," she interrupted herself, hands moving to her hips with an exasperated sigh. "I swear. Why do I waste my good material on you, Mr. Morgan," she lamented, though her facial expression betrayed the fact that she was only joking around with him. As he told her to watch her language, her eyebrows raised slightly, as if surprised that he found anything wrong with her language to begin with.

Allowing him to inject her with his blood - the very notion of which was enough to make her skin crawl - she laughed when he expressed his faith in her that she would pick the right joke for the occasion. "Oh, that's so sweet. I don't think anyone has ever had faith in me like that before. Unfortunately, I think I'll have to refrain. They all just seem to be in such bad taste." If there was one thing Tara wasn't it was crass.

Their medic instructed her to be more careful in the future, the geokinetic picking up on how badly he wished that they were anywhere else, doing anything else. It seemed a little cliche that their resident healer was so averse to combat, but it was a little sweet at the same time. Responding in typical Tara fashion, that she would do her best to not need his services in the future, he didn't bite at her innocent flirtation. Offering him a wink as he told her that he would be holding her to her promise, the brunette simply grinned her trademark grin, "Oh, I'm sure you will, handsome. Though, I have to admit, I'm curious as to what my punishment will be if I don't follow through."

Leo proposed that they head into the prison to take cover, which seemed counterintuitive until he elaborated that it would at least give them a holding position while they waited on their teammates. There wasn't much else for her to do but tag along and build up their defenses. At the very least, there was strength in numbers, and considering how tired she was already from using her powers, it was better that she wasn't on her own.

Julian set to work teleporting the rest of the Alphas to their position, bringing them two-by-two into the bunker where they were taking their last stand. Bella and Dimitri were in charge of taking down the force field that enclosed them, and until then, it seemed that their only mission was to survive long enough to make it out of here. Whoever had captured them had played the Alphas like a fiddle, which was a discomforting notion. They weren't used to not having the upper hand, and now they were scrambling just to get by.

Leo spoke up once more, addressing the group in a pep talk and explaining their current situation. If they were injured, they were instructed to go get looked at, while the rest of them were to take up defensive positions in anticipation of the next attack from their assailants. Thomas broke away from her at that point, to do his duty, as he said, as Gabriel was clearly in need of his attentions.

"Go forth, and heal, my son," she called after him, offering him a reassuring wink if he looked back in an attempt to show him that they would be fine. Others might be panicking at their situation, but she had faith that they would make it through. At least the ones of them that mattered. That would be Darwinism at its finest, right? It was a good thing their telepaths weren't near, or she would certainly be on the chopping block for those thoughts.

Raine and Lyn took their positions by the door, the former taking care of things for the moment by frying the control panel which caused the huge steel door to close. It would take more than brute force to get through that and to them. At the very least, it bought them some time. Leaning her back against the wall, arms crossing over her chest, she took a deep breath, looking towards the door. There was nothing to do now, but wait.

Aʆєxaηdra Ӎaʀiʆèηє Agηèȿ
Codename:Flairer

❃❂❁❀✿✾✽✼✻✺✹✸✷ ✶✵✴❄❅❆❇❈❉❊❋❖❤❥❦❧ ☀

(())

She wished she had the seemingly calmer disposition Luke carried. Then, she wouldn’t feel like her feelings were on visible display for all to see. Because no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t get her hands to stop shaking. She found placing her hands behind her back to ease her only some. Then, she wouldn’t have to keep seeing her hands moving slightly back and forth. And only the swallowing she did was visible to herself….right?

Such thoughts stopped crossing her mind when Luke appeared tense all of a sudden. She raised an eyebrow and tensed herself at feeling him push her behind him. If only she had a different ability so she could be the one protecting him from the unknown threat. Not the other way around. But, genetics weren’t in her favor in that regard.

Her eyes widened at the sight of someone jumping down from the tree above them. Did the person really just jump down from the tree they were just in? Her eyes stayed wide as the stranger started talking to them and pulled down their hood in the process. When she could see the face of the person, her eyes relaxed and she instead tilted her head. Something about the person seemed familiar. Like maybe she had seen them before now.

The sight of the busted up old version of one of their communicators showed maybe her gut was right. But if that was the case, what was the person’s name? She furrowed her eyebrows. “I believe we have met before, have we not?” She decided to ask shortly after Luke asked his own question. “I do not believe we were on the same team though. But, it is nice to see a somewhat familiar face right about now.” Even if Luke did have a good point about why said person appeared here and now of all times.

For the sake of keeping her emotions somewhat under control, she kept her own fearful questions to herself. No need to start getting to the point of questioning fellow X-men motives as well.

“Are they the reason for the barrier?” She couldn’t help but ask after it was revealed S.H.I.E.L.D was here. She never personally encountered the organization. Like Luke though, she had at least heard of them since coming to America. They always sounded like they meant business wherever they went. “Right. And we need to get the others out of there as soon as we are able to get a hold of anyone at the base.”

She didn’t want to know what would happen if they didn’t.

As she followed Luke and Madison, she thought maybe Madison had simply been paranoid. Maybe the organization wouldn’t know they were out in the forest. However, Madison had been proven right when Luke mentioned they were about to have company. She nodded to his comment and moved herself behind a tree. “I’ll do my best to act as eyes and ears so you two can focus on keeping them from harming us.” She explained before enhancing her sight the moment she heard roots coming out of the ground.

Alex saw one man already caught up in a wooden cage. Looking past the roots, she saw the rest of the group heading towards the plant barrier. “From what I can see, I count about ten people. Looks like they did not come unprepared.” She did her best not to let her voice tremble at the sight of the weapons and armor on their person. “I do not see anymore…” She trailed off as she switched her senses up, letting her hearing be superior now.

The loud footsteps caused her to cringe. But, she made herself slowly try to count how people via the sounds they made to verify her sight. “Yes…it seems it is only ten. I do not hear anyone trailing behind them or anyone coming from any other direction. I have a feeling they did not believe it would take more than what they sent to do the job.” Hopefully, the soldiers would be wrong on that assumption.

Otherwise, she, Luke, and Madison would be screwed as some of the people say.

❃❂❁❀✿✾✽✼✻✺✹✸✷ ✶✵✴❄❅❆❇❈❉❊❋❖❤❥❦❧ ☀

"We will drink our fill of Alpha
Then, of golden sunshine that spills into Outside the Prison Camp
Till our brains intertwine with Luke-Forrest and Maddy "

Aurelie answered her, and her hackles lowered a little bit. If the telekinetic was all right, she could quash her temper a little while longer. That didn’t completely change her pessimistic outlook though.

The X-Men were still fools.

Not for the first time she wondered how the Viper hadn’t taught them to heel years ago. The X-Men took in ‘students’ to give them safe haven and a place where they didn’t have to hide. H.Y.D.R.A. raised a ‘school’ of soldiers whom of which excelled in espionage and murder. Why hadn’t these people been destroyed outright?

Her ego took a hit everytime she saw the group as a whole doing something stupid.

When Rossi began to snap out on her, Katerina’s challenging blue eyes leveled on his. It was clear that she’d hit a nerve. But which one? Was it because she’d insulted his waste of an ability girlfriend? Suddenly Julian appeared between them and placed a hand on either one of their shoulders, whisking them away.

The shape shifter looked around the bunker for any possible enemies as they reappeared in a puff of lame smoke. She didn’t like surprises. Once satisfied she began to cope with Eidolon making her nauseous. She would have liked to say that it was only because of his ability…But his personality was just too much to bare. Beside that point, she felt apprehensive of the escape plan. Especially while she was stuck on the ground, leaving her life in the hands of people she didn’t particularly like or trust.

Eventually she rounded on Rossi. If he thought he was off the hook for the earlier outburst…He was incredibly wrong.

“By the way…It’s Kali, you idiot.”, she snarled at her supposed leader through clenched teeth, reminding him that he’d been pissed off enough to use her real name instead of her moniker. That was a rookie mistake, and he wasn’t green enough for that. It was inexcusable that he took the bait so easily. “And care? No. I don’t. Here or back on base—Your S.O. is still a hopeless piece of trash. Location doesn’t change facts.”

Senior officer. Significant other. Katerina left him and the others that had been teleported in to figure it out and make their best guesses. She stormed away from him and began to check the doors, looking for some kind of security protocol. The area was built to keep things out, not let them in. After a few moments she found a red lever on the far left hand side of the door. It took a little bit of doing but she forced it up, accidentally slamming the handle against the wall. There were a few loud noises as the room locked itself down. A force field, quite like the one that surrounded the prison, spread across the doorway.

“Well that works…”, she mumbled, reaching up to adjust the no nonsense bun she had spun her hair into. From there she waited for the rest of the team to be teleported in, feeling more anxious with every second that passed. This was one of the reasons that she’d left H.Y.D.R.A. in the first place. She hated being locked up in small spaces.

Her eyes fell to Gabriel as he was teleported in and she too frowned at the sight of his injuries. How the hell had that happened? Her worry for Aurelie grew exponentially. “Only fools are confident.”, she returned to the wounded boy. Truth be told, she wasn’t a medic. Blood didn’t bother her in the slightest…But she wasn’t trained to save people. She was trained to kill them. She didn’t know exactly what to look for.

Aurelie was one of the last to appear, one of the few Katerina actually cared about. She acknowledged the others in passing. They existed as lifeforms, but didn’t actually matter as much to her. The former H.Y.D.R.A. agent moved through the smoke and immediately hugged the slightly taller girl, probably before she even had her bearings. “Why were you last?”

The question was almost a gentle whine. The wait, though mere minutes, was excruciating. Pulling back the Italian began to examine her, fully ignoring the fact that Thomas had just requested assistance with Gabriel. “You’re hurt…”, she commented, more to herself than to the telekinetic. Reaching up to the blonde girls hairline, she tried to get a good look at it. It seemed like just a graze…But she could feel anger boiling in her blood. “How do you feel?”

She still ignored Thomas. What was he thinking, using telekinesis to remove a bullet? That was one thing she knew from the field. Never remove a bullet. Pack the injury with gauze, keep pressure on it, and get the victim to a doctor that knew how to get it out. What if Thomas’ blood healed around it and the bullet cut off blood flow? He could lose a leg. What if it hit an artery and removing it made Gabriel begin to bleed out? Would Thomas’ injection work quickly enough?

Thomas raised a needle full of blood to Aurelie and the shape shifter stood between them, glaring rather nastily. “No, no, and no. You’re not giving that to her unless there’s no other choice.”

He didn’t even have gloves on.

“Think about it…There’s too many variables to do this here. Who knows what will happen if the bullet gets removed incorrectly? Or if your blood doesn’t do exactly what it’s supposed to…? I’ve known many associates that when shot, never had the bullet removed, because it was safer not to. Siege will have a better chance if you pack the wound to stop the bleeding—And then get him back to the base.”, she stopped talking then, jaw snapping shut. She was a little more than irritated, and fiercely protective over Aurelie.

“I’ll take care of Allegra.”, she ground out, and headed for one of the many medical cabinets that lined the walls. At least they weren’t at a loss for supplies. Rossi began to give them positions and she glared at him, as if to say ‘no s**t’ when he told her to stay near Aurelie. As if she was going anywhere else.

She grabbed two of the red kits and threw one at Thomas. From there she picked up a few packs of saline solution, and threw that at the healer as well. There were gloves in the medkits, all ready to go. Coming back to her best friend she set down a few items on the end of a console and tried to smile for the telekinetics benefit. “I’ve had to patch myself up more than once…”

Occasionally from a run in with Leonardo Rossi. Oh, hello irony.

“It’s not bad. You’ll be good as new in a couple of seconds il mio piccolo ballerino.”

Just when Katerina finished putting the finishing touches on Aurelie, the computer screens flared to life, and a man in a hat addressed them. The dark haired shape shifter remained silent while a man began to grandstand, moving a little closer to the screen to see better. He looked familiar. Especially the face mask. She tried to jar her memory, and glanced at Rossi…Surely if she recognized him, he would too. What was his name? Slime? Scourge?

“Merda.”

Scourge.

When the audio went dead Katerina felt tense. Though likely not quite as tense as some of the others. The man, Scourge, was putting on the overly dramatic show he was known for. He had to be trying to get inside their heads. He had to be, right? Most good guys would fall for something like that. Turning her gaze to Rossi she paused, before taking a breath to continue. “Try and radio them.… Confirm their status.”

Katerina hoped that the signal would penetrate the walls. They were underground, behind sheets of metal and god only knew what else. Part of her doubted that it would carry. She also didn’t want everyone messaging them all at once. Being on the carrier was dangerous without any distractions. If the team above dropped the ball, they were all basically screwed. Especially if they had to fight their way out.

Raine and the telekinetic shared their gibes at Esben’s expense, and she couldn’t help but giggle when the newer Alpha seemed at a loss for words. “I think he would benefit from the careful hand and a little bit of rouge. ” She affirmed, flashing a set of white teeth behind her smile. The cavalier remarks soon ended when gunfire rent the air and forced a change of focus in the Alphas. Aurelie relieved oncoming officers of their weapons while other followed similar orders.

Aurelie really had never worked beside Dimitri on the field and she couldn’t help but be impressed with what he could shape with his lava. The entire idea seemed obscure - something that hot could hold a shape at the bend of his will. She alluded to all the ladies back in his hometown calling him “Hot Stuff,” and a grin took over her lips when he kept himself humble. “Thug life?” She repeated back to him. “Is that when you say ‘Yolo’ all the time and keep the waist of your pants at your knees?” She asked, completely joking. “Or is this the kind where you’re someone’s girl behind bars?”

As they moved inward, the team split once again and the fight continued. Bella’s sonic scream was unpleasant to endure, but the screech was enough for Aurelie to make the educated guess that she would not enjoy ever being on the receiving end of one of her attacks - to which Dimitri heartily agreed. Bella took their words as she’d possibly hurt them, but the telekinetic was quick to inform her otherwise. Despite her vexation with the team lead for things that had happened just before they had been sent out, it would have been unfair to lie to her. Her tone sounded grim to her own ears when she responded to the assurance. “I would hope not.” She murmured.

Things seemed to be going off without a hitch until they released the prisoners turncoats. From there events happened in a matter of seconds, and both she and Bella felt the warmth of copper-scented, sticky liquid flow freely from their skin. Concerned for the sound manipulator, she asked if she’d be alright. “Transmigration shouldn’t be far.” She observed, believing that Thomas would insist upon healing Bella as soon as he saw the stains on her side.

There wasn’t much time to recover, as a hellicarrier with S.H.I.E.L.D.’s name on it loomed overhead and set about trapping them further. Raine attempted to interrupt the electrical field that surrounded them, but the effort proved fruitless. “There’s got to be a way out of this…” Aurie insisted, sapphire orbs darkened with her trepidations.

In a protective effort, Bella requested that Aurie drawn an invisible dome over the group, and she obliged. Bella declined the protection for herself, reasoning that if she picked off people along the way, it would be less stress to her shields. “They can hold out so long as they aren’t attacked from within.” The ballerina countered. Her shoulders slumped in defeat when the dark-haired beauty pressed headlong into the warzone.

Ever the friend, Raine displayed concern over Aurelie potentially over-exerting herself and she smiled, doing what she could to veil any lost energy. At first, she insisted she was fine, but their pace was slow, and realistically, Aurelie’s shields wouldn’t hold up to gunfire forever. “Do you think you could run the ground with a current and knock out the guys over there.” She dipped her head toward a group of men off to the side of the yard, her golden hair falling in her face with the gesture. “I can drop the shield for a series of seconds…” It was a risk, and likely one that Bella would not have approved of - but otherwise they were simply slow moving ducks, caged twice over.

The way Dimitri held up his gun under the protection of her telekinetic shield made her nervous, and a part of her mind flashed back to the incident at the mall. The explosion replayed in her mind, and when she found her voice to request that the lava generator not do something similar to her today, it quavered - revealing a little more than she had intended. He asked what was wrong, but thankfully he seemed to realize just why she was worried and assured her that he wouldn’t shoot while she still had the shields up. A grim smile touched her lips and the darkness in her eyes revealed her memories had taken her somewhere far away for a moment. “I appreciate that.” She said, trying to keep the fear from her tone this time when she spoke.

Gabe used their comm link, stating he had transportation in the same breath that he used to inform them of a serious injury that he had incurred. Worry bullied itself into her expression at the thought of him bleeding out. Why was he so calm about it? Was shock setting in so soon? Rather than dallying, Aurie reached for her comm, asking for Leo’s location in comparison to the actual entrance of the building.

Julian spotted them then, and transported them to the other side of the compound two by two. She was of the last to leave, considering it was her shields keeping the bullets at bay. Teleportation became a new experience, and in the blink of an eye she lost her balance, her once sure footing leaving her to struggle to remain upright. It occurred to her as it was happening that such a display would only make her injuries appear worse than what they were, and she instantly corrected herself with an invisible force. In that moment, she heard the hoarse murmur of her name, the sound a mix of emotions she couldn’t quite place with a name and she lifted a hand to stave off his concern. “I’m fine. Head wounds always look worse than they are.” She insisted quietly, partly to keep him from being distracted by the fact that once again, she had been hurt on the field, and partly to convince herself that the oncoming headache was not going to cripple her. She couldn’t let it when the Alphas would undoubtedly need the shields she could offer them.

Leo addressed the group with his plan, and the telekinetic didn’t miss his pointed stare at her when he mentioned the injured - her cerulean irises sparked to life with an unspoken rebellion. The last thing she wanted was to be fussed over when she felt the call to fight back against their captors. Her power was an asset they couldn’t afford to not put to use. Had she not just said she was fine?

Dom’s hand found her own, and the small comfort he could offer was diminished when he silently insisted that she do as Leo bade by pulling her to the back of the room - only for her to spy Kat on the way back. Anger tangoed with worry to claim her best friend’s expression and Aurelie tried for a small smile to assuage her concern. “I was their protection; they were shooting at us and it was the only way to keep people from getting hurt..” She explained in a soft tone to her friend, conveying that she didn’t mind if the rest of the team got out okay. After all, that hadn’t been what injured her, but she knew from experience Kat wouldn’t like her being the last one out.

Ever observant, the shape shifter spotted the sticky red fluid that matted once blond tresses against the telekinetic’s head. Even though the cut wasn’t deep, head wounds tended to bleed more than others, making it look much worse than it usually was. Her head did ache though, and she tried to hide it when she felt cool finger in her hairline. “I’ll be fine once we get out of here and I can ice this and take some aleve.” More than anything she wanted to curl into her bed and sleep off this experience. “It doesn’t hurt all that badly.” She said, comparing it to her first fiasco on the field so that she wouldn’t be lying.

Thomas took his job very seriously and started working on Gabe as soon as Leo gave him the go-ahead. He called for her to come over and the blond pulled her beau and her best friend along with her. Kat answered the healer’s question first, nearly growling at the man for getting too close. “I could pull it out, but I can’t promise it wouldn’t shred something in the process.” She stated apologetically. Were she more learned in the human anatomy, she might have been a little more comfortable with the suggestion. But she didn’t know exactly what she would be feeling in order to keep her teammate safe.

First aid wasn’t her forte - outside of sprained wrists and ankles. “I’ll have to study where tendons and the major arteries are beforehand.” Unfortunately, they didn’t have that kind of time. Thomas pulled some blood from himself and held out the syringe, promising to give her a treatment when he was done with the weapons platform. Kat once again snarled at the man and then played the voice of reason, stating that Gabe would receive better care if they simply packed the wound to stop the bleeding. Honestly, the bleeding wasn’t the biggest problem though, was it? Didn’t most gunshot victims go into shock - especially after a significant amount of blood loss. Afraid to say anything in that regard because she was by no means a field nurse, her cerulean eyes searched Gabe’s. “You aren’t getting cold are you?”

She announced that she would be taking care of Aurie, and the blond shook her head. “I’m really fine.” She protested. “Nothing but a flesh wound.” And one heck of a headache. The Italian didn’t seem to hear her as she busied herself with pulling medical supplies from the cabinets on the walls. Her fingers were careful as she pulled open a pack of gauze, put it to a sterilizing liquid and then dabbed at her hairline. Getting the wound clean to see the actual cut would tell her it was only an inch long, and while it could use some butterfly bandages and perhaps a little medical glue to seal the opening, the telekinetic had seen far worse from chaos on the field. “I want a shower.” She admitted to her best friend. “Getting all of the blood out of my hair is going to be a nightmare.” It was easier for her to focus on what they would do once they got home than it was to face the reality that they might not get there.

The screens in the room flared to life, and a man with a curling lip glared back at them through a camera. He threatened the whole lot of mutants. “Who is he?” She asked aloud, bringing her hands to cover her arms to suppress an involuntary shiver.











OOC: Sorry for the wait...please let me know if I have missed something.

Even in the throes of a fight, Blake felt at home - Alice’s banter and foul mouth did much to ease the tension and remind him that even with all of this chaos, he was still human. Or, at least as human as a mutant could be. He reminded her to watch her language and their age-old argument started anew; a lady should use more refined diction than a drunken sailor’s vernacular. She promised him pictures and teasingly offered to share her more naughty ones and Blake politely declined, though a grin still grasped his features. “I’d rather not see shots of you dressed so scantily I can see your religion.” He drawled. “It’d make a mighty shameful man of me to impose.”

A sentinel paraded on their reunion and rained glass and rubble from the building’s roof down on the court. Sharing a split-second glance, the molecular manipulator gave a stiff nod and the pair of them hurled after the robot. With the combined efforts of the Omegas, the robot fell to the ground and Alice tore at its shell, using seismic waves to crack the exterior so that he could get to the core. His moves were seconds too late, as a robotic arm swatted at Alice, sending her soaring through the air and into a nearby pillar. He called out her old codename, but luckily Narcissa was already on it - ordering the resident Native American to collect her.

Knowing she was taken care of, Blake returned his focus to the task at hand. While the biggest threat in sheer size was now decimated, they still had much more to face. The mall had a plethora of MRDs still loose and very much on the hunt. Blake used his comm to thank Aren for his assistance with Alice, and they fell into their own little quips, which the earthshaker happily joined in, despite her pain. “Aftershock, doll… it wouldn’t be a long fight. If Measure ever won, we’d have a ransom of the Red Chief situation soon after.”

Aren accused him of approving of small-pox blankets and the Texan nearly choked. “That was to cleanse your people of the nuisances.” He said. “Though honestly, why would your people be dumb enough to accept a blanket if they were able to make them out of hides themselves?” He retorted back, still keeping his eyes peeled for any future issue.

Narcissa spawned explosive fires through stores she apparently had issue with, and he debated on teasing her for the obvious malice. There seemed to be little time for his delivery though, because he saw an opening in the sea of officers. He informed Narcissa, and cleared the trail - expecting her to be just behind him.

It wasn’t until the cowboy felt the warmth of the sun and caught a breath of fresh air that he realized the Omega Queen had not emerged with him. Lifting his comm watch to his lips, his line went directly to her as he asked if he should turn back so she could have additional cover. “I’ll be on standby.” The cowboy assured his team leader, oceanic depths glaring out into the distance; he didn’t like that Narcissa had fallen behind. He liked it even less that he hadn’t noticed she was gone until it was too late.

Out of the fight, Blake found himself near Alice, who lifted her shirt so that he could see the bruise already forming. He inhaled deeply enough that it sounded like a whistle and guessed his own diagnosis. “You’ll need X-rays if Elixir is too busy.” He said before falling into her joking again. “I don’t chew straw. That’s for hillbillies.” Alice insisted that he’d be able to fix her up and Blake shook his head in the negative. “Only way I can fix you up is if you’re a horse, or if you want me to foot the bill.’ He said as he chuckled at how badly she botched a southern belle accent. “Though I’m pretty certain your brains were scrambled long before I met you. Pretty sure you’re as crazy as a cat trying to bury poop on a marble floor.”

As much as he hated to release her into someone else’s care, it had to be done. Of the people already at the rendezvous point, Blake had the most experience on the field; he couldn’t leave. And she needed to. Alice protested so hard he imagined her lip curling back into a snarl. Charlotte seemed amiable to the request and took the girl’s threats lightly while poking fun at how well-endowed she was. His eyes averted to the cement - looking anywhere in that direction after that remark would paint him a perv. Peyton provided the needed distraction by asking if she needed to get involved and the Texan shook his head. "I think she'll see to reason." He said before rounding his gaze back to the injured in question.

Thankfully, Alice relented with a few requests of her own and making a remark to Roland about taking her to dinner before he started shoving her anywhere. Blake hid his smile behind a hand as he coughed. Between her response and Charlotte’s, he couldn’t decide which was funnier. Her childish antics spurred another chuckle as she put on her gloves and limped through the portal.

Blake mouthed a thank you to Charlotte and then turned to the rest of their rag-tag group. Several of them had already returned back to the base as requested, and he sighed in relief as the rest of the team ran toward them.

After their little meeting where Narcissa acridly addressed the team for the pandemonium, Blake walked up to her and apologized. Whether his comm shorted out when he’d informed her he was moving ahead or something else had distracted her, he wasn’t sure and he frankly didn’t care. He also thanked her for taking care of his old recruit, his hands deep in his pockets as a comfort in the awkward situation. Narcissa’s seemed mocking as she neared him and he had half a mind to believe she might start circling him like a vulture. Her dislike of him was palpable enough that clenched his jaw. After her seeing to the safety of Alice, he wasn’t in the mood to fight with her. She surprised him when she said she liked him being apologetic and a frown cut between his brows. “All due respect, I’d rather avoid further mistakes on the field. I’ll find other things to apologize for if it’s to your liking.” He joked darkly, feeling a little more at ease now that the air had been cleared.

He thanked her for seeing to Alice and gave a short report - her name and her current whereabouts. Narcissa nodded and claimed her as her own. That was fast. “I’ll let her know.” He said, holding back any commentary so that their conversation could end. Even if they were on better footing than they had been two days ago, Blake wasn’t an idiot - Narcissa and he would never be best friends. Neither of them were the type to let go of the tension his associations brought. No matter how much the Omega queen hated Bella, he would defend her. As long as that held true, the wedge between them would always be miles wide.

As he turned to leave, Blake’s eyes found her small form again with a question marking his stare. He didn’t ask it, because he already knew the answer. The Alphas weren’t back yet.

Blake strode to the infirmary, doing what he could to quash the worry that soured his stomach. Bella would be fine; Leo wouldn’t let anything happen to her. He rounded the corner and found Alice already on a hospital bed with Charlotte next to her, who warmly greeted him. He returned her smile with one of his own - she had gone above and beyond his request. With her similar origins and kind heart, the cowboy decided she was definitely a good egg. “Glad to see you again.” He said. “The kids make it alright?”

The Tennessee native asked about the other team and Blake shook his head, doing what he could to keep the grim look off of his face. Their mission had gone south fast, and the Alphas by far had been sent into a more dangerous assignment. “Not yet. Though I’m sure Bella will text me back soon. When she does, I’ll make sure to ask about that redhead on their team that looks a lot like you.”

Roland too stood in the room, though he was the more quiet of the three until he asked him if he could look at her injuries. “That’s entirely up to the lady there, though I don’t think Elixir uses the typical triage methods.” He said with a casual roll of his shoulders. Josh was more of a shaman than a doctor; he waved his hands over the injury and it disappeared. To anyone who didn’t know better it looked like magic. “I’m sure Thomas on the Alphas is tending to any injuries that might incur, so hopefully golden boy won’t be too bogged down when they return.”

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxOmega - mall

As ordered, nimble feet quickly maneuvered through the rubble to meet Alice and provide safe passage away from the fight. The Native took care not to allow her too much movement, mindful that she might have had an injury that would only worsen with removing her from the situation. The Texan thanked him for seeing to the new girl and while he couldn’t see it, Aren nodded once before falling into the typical cowboys versus indians banter the pair was so prone to. He teased his teammate, claiming that after such a gallant effort Alice would no longer be at the molecular manipulator’s side.

She insisted there was no need to fight over her, and Aren’s features fell into a deadpan expression. “That’s not a very nice thing to say about yourself.” He said, the innuendo quite clear from the tone of his voice. His lips pulled back into that familiar grin and the chocolate-imbued irises seemed like they should have melted from all the warmth in them. “But see, blonds aren’t commonplace in my neck of the woods - so we’re apt to fight over the rarer breeds - regardless of whether or not you think there’s enough of you to go around.”

His ward spat blood but Aren felt lost on how to help her more than he was. “I’m sorry… unlike that frilly pretty boy, I don’t carry a handkerchief for these occasions like he might.” He said with a smile, though even with his best efforts there still remained a grim edge to it.

It didn’t take long for the Texan to meet up with them - but there was a void where his partner should have been. Narcissa had not followed him out. Carefully, he traded off his duties of seeing to Alice to him and then started pulling on invisible strands that had locked his existence to a spot of sunlight, desperate for an answer. As he did so, his mouth moved in question against his communicator, asking if he should come to her aid. The panic swelled within her as easily as the tide rose, and Aren felt his own chest constrict with the weight of that feeling. His feet brought him closer to the mall without his brain saying so. The red queen said ‘please’ as she requested he stay put, and his walking ceased at how pained it sounded for her to grit the word out. Heeding to her pleas, Aren sighed and made his demands.

“Knoxx isn’t you. I said two.” The size shifter retorted back, the beak of his eagle mask seemingly smiling. “And by that, I meant one minute and thirty seconds.” His tongue clicked against his teeth to make a ticking noise to indicate exactly what he meant.

Impatiently, the Native waited for his golden-haired lover to emerge from the rubble. Just as he took a step toward the smoldering mall, he caught sight of her and released the breath he hadn’t known he’d been holding. Relief flooded through their invisible channel but there was still an edge to it; she wasn’t in the clear just yet. Without meaning to, he channeled that anxious feeling to her, insisting that she hurry her cute little butt up. Until he could hold her, bask in the warmth of her touch and offer his own, pins and needles would be stabbing at his insides. This hidden relationship would send him to an early grave - of that, Aren was sure. Having her entwined in his arms was no longer a want; it was as necessary as breathing.

They crossed the portal and Narcissa had a few words for the debacle before she sent people away. Blake apologized for leaving her behind - but it was Christian’s detransformation that caught the size shifter’s attention. “Napi!” He said, chocolate eyes wide and full to the brim with surprise. “Please tell me I don’t look like that when I shift.” He felt the disgust roil through the blond - though he wasn’t quite sure if his own sentiments didn’t echo hers. The whole scene looked like something in a horror film.

“Does that hurt?’ He blurted out when Christian was fully human again. Tact definitely missed him this round. It sure as hell looked like it hurt. He also looked beat and when Christian asked about whether or not getting hit with a tranquilizer merited a trip to the infirmary, it made a little more sense. Suddenly he was glad he hadn’t gone back in - if those little darts packed enough punch to tire a werewolf-thing… He’d have been flat on his face.

He looked down at the floor as people began to file out, knowing he shouldn’t make too much contact with Narcissa while people were still so close. He took a seat away from her as he assured her that nothing he ever did could be considered sloppy. Par for the course, he offered to show her once again. “I think you need a dictionary, ki’somma. Disgusting is not synonymous with dashing, ruggedly handsome, or irresistible.”

She mentioned his fan club and a cheeky grin captured his lips, dotting his cheeks with dimples. “I’m sure they would… but I wouldn’t want to cause a riot. Besides… rumor has it, you were petitioning to be the president of it next year.”

Jacen peeked around the corner during their banter and brought his own to the party. Aren hadn’t even been prepared for the bear hug but let out a laugh despite it, happy that the other Omega native had finally shown up. How long had it been since Jacen disappeared? “Yes but my friend, as I’ve said before… you lack the proper parts for a good demonstration.”

He felt Narcissa’s annoyance but couldn’t place just why Jacen’s proximity sparked it. “Maybe we will!” Aren said jokingly back to her, all while trying to pull at their tether to get her to calm down. Jacen was back; she should be happy. “Where we will play video games and eat all the Doritos that Dom can buy us. No girls allowed.”

Jacen asked about the new recruits and whether or not they were still successfully saving the world. It took visible effort not to snort at that - here lately they had been saving their own skins more than anything else. People out in the world were so prejudiced; though Aren had repeatedly joked about being held back by the white men… this world was so different than his own secluded one in the mountains. People in his world were judged by what they offered to the community; respected when it helped provide for their families. Never had he known so much hatred. Being with the X-men had taught him one thing above everything else; he belonged with his tribe. This life would never be what he wanted.

Now… all he would need to do is convince Narcissa that the simple life was what she wanted too. “All these new recruits, and we’re still the only back-woods people.” Aren said with an exaggerated sigh, feigning disappointment.

Narcissa asked them to stick around in case the Alphas needed backup and Aren tilted his head and tried to hide the tick in his jaw. While she might have fooled everyone else, he could feel how worn out their leader was. “If she wants us close, I suggest we go see Joshua for a little energy boost before we get called back out again.” It was subtle, but the demand she get seen lay under those words. “I could certainly use it… and you were in the mall longer Ki’somma.”

Unable to resist further teasing, one of his eyebrows rose as a slow, sensual expression took a hold of his features. “Unless… of course, you’d rather me be your doctor.”

✦ At this Location: Park }{ Base (Infirmary)✦ Thinking About: Stubborn Little Mule ✦ While on Team: Omega ✦



Charlotte didn't know Alice, or anything about the girl, but she was learning that the girl was stubborn and lively (at least that was the nice word for it). It was clear that she didn't want to be separated from Blake - they seemed to know each other in some capacity, which she would have to ask him about later - but the redhead had been given a task, and she was going to follow through. It was the Gauge way. She did her best to negotiate with the girl, attempting a softer tactic than Roland. While clear that she wasn't happy about it, pulling on her gloves with the ferocity of a tired puppy, she relented, on a few conditions.

A smile spread across the redhead's face as she nodded in consent, "Agreed on all accounts. I'll make sure the boys uphold their ends of the bargain." Roland responded with a small laugh, assuring her that there wouldn't be any shoving involved. There were so many comments that could be made, but she decided against it for the time being. After all, this was her first interaction with Aftershock, and she didn't know Roland well enough just yet to give him a hard time in his choice of words.

It was hard for her not to giggle at the girl's hard demeanor, not wanting to make her upset again now that she finally agreed to head back to the base. The girl set off walking on her own, but Charlotte was close enough to lend a hand if it was needed. She caught sight of Blake mouthing a 'thank you' in her direction, to which she responded with a simple nod.She could only imagine how their new ward was feeling about being forced out of the battlefield, given how strongly she seemed to feel that everyone around her needed to see her as strong and independent. It was a feeling that Charlotte could understand, even if she didn't necessarily share it.

As they got closer to the Infirmary, Alice's strength seemed to fail her, the redhead quickly stepping in and giving her a steadying hand as they made it the rest of the way. She stepped back once the girl was shown to the bed and had settled in, taking up residence in the corner of the room while they waited for a medic to come tend to the girl's wounds. As she shed her shirt, Charlotte's green eyes quickly looked over the damage, wincing slightly as Roland turned around out of respect.

He gave his two cents as to her injuries, asking Blake if it was alright for him to take a look at the girl's wounds. The redhead just wanted to know what had happened. She'd been too busy making sure that the kids made it to their destination, she missed the majority of the big battle inside the mall. Perhaps that was a blessing, but seeing wounds like this made her feel like she should have been more of a part of the combat. It couldn't have been easy if a "Simple" missing was resulting in wounds like that.

Alice looked over at her, subtly telling her to leave to which the eagle eye could only shrug, with a soft laugh. "Oh, I know. But Blake told me to stick with you, and since the Alphas are still out, I don't have anything better to do. Let's just enjoy each other's company for now, huh?" Even if she wanted to leave, she wouldn't have without the ok of a medic or a higher-ranking Omega.

Turning the topic of conversation away from the girl's obvious discomfort by asking about her relationship with blank, it was hard for her to mask her disappointment when the answer was a simple one. "Ugh, fine, don't give me any of the juicy details," she whined, arms crossing over her chest as she pretended to pout. She didn't want to force the girl to talk about it if she really didn't want to, but at the same time, it was such an unsatisfying answer. Before she would mine any further information, however, the Texan made his appearance, the redhead ushering him into the room with a small smile.

The blonde asked if he thought they would reward her efforts on the mission with the good drugs, the redhead laughing, "Hey, if they don't I'll see if I can't shake up a little something for you by sweet-talking good ol' Elixir." As she finished speaking she gave her chest a little shimmy, though it was clear that she was joking at the insinuation. What was the point of being well-endowed if it didn't mean anything, right?

Blake asked her if the kids had made it alright, to which the redhead could only give an affirmative nod, "I haven't checked in on them yet, but I assume so. They were lead through the portal by one of the senior X-Men, so I can only assume they're being taken care of. They'll be my next stop once I get out of here." Approaching Blake, she dropped her voice and asked him about the Alphas, hoping to get some news of her sister. The one downside of not being on the same team was that she had to worry then they didn't arrive back at the same time. It felt like the other team had been gone for longer than necessary, and given how well their own mission had gone (despite achieving their goal in the end), she could only imagine what had befallen their black and blue counterparts.

Unfortunately, the Texan didn't have any new information that he could offer her, though he mentioned that he would keep her updated on anything he learned from Bella when she texted him back. "Thanks, Darlin'. I appreciate that."

Standing back once more as the men discussed whether Roland could attend to the girl's injuries, she was glad they turned the decision back on the patient. She hadn't seen Elixir work yet, but she understood that healing for him was as easy as notching an arrow for her - no doubt he would be able to handle the injuries they brought back with them and Thomas was handling the Alpha side. Of course, ideally, there wouldn't be any injuries coming back, but she knew that was wishful thinking.

Roland Anton Chevalier
Location: Infirmary
Thoughts: I can totally make the switch from modest to clinical, right?

He went through the portal with a smirk. Of course, hindsight is always 20/20. The hunk of broken flesh soon realized that his remarks to Alice could be taken the wrong way with the right mindset. Or perhaps it was the wrong mindset, really. Looking to Charlotte he chuckled, giving her a knowing nod. If they were going to be teammates, she should know that he could take a good ribbing from the right person. Hopefully the markswoman was that right teammate for such an occasion.

Alice asked why every single thorn in her side had a Southern accent, which caused him to think. Had he slipped back? He had a bit of the drawl, not as heavy as his Louisiana brethren, but having spent so much time with the Professor he developed a General American accent. Whether or not this was due to some form of neural programming on the part of the telepath or his own volition, he was not sure. But on occasion he would slip back into his original speech pattern, during times alone with Kerrigan that as a gentleman he would not talk about in the slightest around other company.

Getting through the portal he stayed behind the two women in order to assist. The rapport was strong between the two of them; he wasn’t about to muck that up. Considering the almost habitual patter of ******** he’d been responsible since he was here, he did his damn best to avoid such a situation with a potentially brand new teammate. The bruiser walked into the Infirmary, letting the girls get comfortable.

He requested permission to do any sort of triage on Alice’s injuries, Blake stating that they should perhaps wait till Elixir got there. He did say that it was ultimately up to Alice, which she gave the affirmative to do. He quickly slapped some hand sanitizer on, and then grabbed a pair of gloves. If he was going to do this, he was going to be as professional as humanly possible about it. The latex gloves tightened over his skin as he gently placed his fingers on her bare skin. He was extremely delicate, his hands applying on the slightest amount of pressure. He wanted to not be the cause of any further pain that was possible, his fingers tracing along the bruising on her side. His eyes maintained a steady glow, no change in any sort of emotional reaction. Which was good, means he could be clinical about making examinations.

Getting a cold pack, he slapped it over his leg letting the chemical reaction inside take effect. As it hit the lowest temperature possible, he felt his phone go off in his pocket. Grabbing a bandage, he placed the pack on the bruising and then proceeded to use the bandages to wrap it across her body.

“Cracked ribs. This will keep the pain down until Elixir arrives. A quick laying of the hands and you’ll be back on your feet. That is, when he arrives of course.” he stated, grabbing a pillow as well “Here, let’s get this so you’re more comfortable.” offering it to her so she could arrange it herself. He pulled out his phone, seeing a message from Kerrigan, asking where he was and if he was ok. His fingers went quickly across the screen, typing out a simple and effective message:

With Blake, Charlotte, and a newcomer at the Infirmary. Not for me, newcomer cracked her ribs. Just trying to be the boy scout for once. Let me know where you are, I’ll come to you.

Thoughts soon came to the Alphas, and the idea of a rescue mission. As much as he’d rather not risk his life again, he knew he would go through with the mission at the drop of a hat. Despite being on a different team, they all were X-Men. So to quote Black Hawk Down, leave no man behind.

OOC: Let me know if and what I missed folks!