12187/X-MEN The Biggest Smile

X-MEN The Biggest Smile
Date of Scene:	11 August 2022
Location:	Atlantic Ocean
Synopsis:	The X-MEN arrive at a mysterious island in the Atlantic Ocean to chase the coordinates of what they presume to be the hidden base of the SMILE laboratories.
Cast of Characters:	Rogue, Monet St. Croix, Warren Worthington, Tabitha Smith, Jean Grey, James Proudstar

---

Rogue has posed:
The blackbird touched down on the shore of the small rocky island that the provided coordinates had indicated. It's an island so small it doesn't show up on any Atlantic Ocean sea charts. But the odd thing is, there's a lighthouse on the island. One that looks as though it was built in the past decade too. It's light is not on, however, the tower lying dormant in the dim light of the grey cloudy evening skies...

The Blackbird found a natural rock shelf not far from the lighthouse to touch down, where the X-Men could easily disembark the Jet and make their way toward the one structure on the island.

Waves break against the jagged rocks surrounding the island shore, with white water splashing up toward the base of the Lighthouse tower. A singular set of metal doors rest open at the base of the tower, one gently swaying in the wind causing a odd creaking, almost howling, noise to emit from the dark interior within the tall white and red striped building, that just seems so out of place in the middle of no where within the depths of the cold Atlantic waters...

Within the tower, there's a spiraling set of stairs leading up toward the peak, and a set of elevator doors that are open, with the elevator car itself just waiting for whomever steps within. A soft tune of classical music is playing within as well...

A salty ocean breeze sweeps across the landscape, battering against rock and tower facade as a clap of rolling thunder rumbles the grey skies above.

Monet St. Croix has posed:
Monet St. Croix goes out with the rest of the team, her dark outfit a contrast to her complexion. She would float severla inches up in the air, adn go on, "I believe that we would be best served by scouting ahead to some degree and seeing what we're up against." Not necessarily volunteering herself for the duty; another might do it more effectively.
    But in her mind it was a good suggestion for a tactical approach. They needed an idea of what they were up against and where thier enemy was operating from. She's going along with the rest of the group in a low flanking position, to the side by several meters depending on how they would be ordered to advance as she tries to sweep ahead telepathically to the best of her limited abilities.

Warren Worthington has posed:
Warren looks up at the sky and feels the wind. The salty tang is stronger than the wind itself tonight.

"I'll have a look," he replies to Monet over comms. Warren spreads his wings, jumps into the air and gains altitude to survey the island. Anything he sees he relays back to the group on their radios.

Tabitha Smith has posed:
There are some things that might come in handy with missions like this. First; Tabby looks as good in a wetsuit as much as the others. This did invole a lot of time setting up a design to match her neon pink and yellow ex-suit. Even has the starburst pattern at her chest and knees breaking the line between pink down the center and yellow on the outside along sides and arms and outher thighs. The zipper running down the front in yellow from neck on down.

Second; her plasmakinesis actually works underwater, her range sucks but a plasma torch doesn't need to. Luckily she's not actually in the water and the rubber crocs on her feet a very comfy for walking on a beach.

Blonde hair bound up in a pony tail, the woman blinks every now and again. she left her glasses behind in favor of contacts, something she's not used to but at least she can functionally read with them and they won't impede any goggles.

The lighthouse gets a chuckle. "Twenty bucks says we're heading into basement undersea lair territory!" she states and chuckles to the team. "If it's cloaked up high we'd have more dead splat birds!" she pulls out of her behind.

Jean Grey has posed:
As she normally does for official team outings, Jean wears her proper X-Men uniform, the one that comes with a bit of armor for her frail mortal form. Will she finish the mission still wearing it? The betting types might consider those poor odds. Still, for the time being, she's taking everything slowy and steady, no reason for any big flashiness!

Once she's rought the jet in for a landing (she's hardly the top pilot on the team, but she's absorbed the knowledge on more than one occasion, and most importantly... she's not letting Tabitha joyride that thing!) Jean makes her way down the ramp, taking in a breath of the salty oceanside air and casting her gaze around the rocky and isolated shore they've found themselves on. "This really is something. For it just to be here... truly in the middle of nowhere. Feels like whoever would have built this thing -really- enjoys their privacy." She doesn't say it like it's a good thing - more like a sinister, something-to-hide way!

Warren sets ahead, and she gives a small nod. "I'll see if I can get any sense of whoever or whatever might live out here," is added, as she lifts a hand to her temple. <<And I'll keep us in touch this way as well.>> The mental backup is pretty much standard practice.

James Proudstar has posed:
James Proudstar exits the ramp with the others. He doesn't hesitate moving out quietly, using his advanced senses. His black and silver uniform allowing him to disappear into the twilight.

Warren Worthington has posed:
Warren circles around the island. His wings pitch and angle instinctively in the uneven Atlantic air.

"We've got... sensor gear on the roof," Warren shares. "Looks like the light is still installed in the lantern, and the door up top is chained shut. Some foot paths around, but I don't see anyone, just a dock on the other side of the island. No boats."

Rogue has posed:
A bolt of lightning can be seen up in the sky, off in the horizon from Warren's vantage point. It's getting dangerous up there for the winged man!

Down inside the LIghthouse, the sound of a voice can be heard coming from the lift area. "You made it!" The excited male voice says. "Come in, come in, please! I'm so, so, excited that you passed my test. You, your team, the Mutants I've gathered hold nothing to you, and yours. You should be so proud! So, very proud!" The voice continues to prattle on.

Beside the elevator's open doors, a terminal resides with a large LCD screen showing that same face from the lab docks that had been projected upon the side of the building.

Just half a face, the lower half, all smiling, with big white teeth, its lips twitching with contained joy as the X-Men draw nearer to the interior of the Lighthouse, and the open lift doors.

"Please, file aboard. I have so much to show you. And your friend, your friend is waiting..." The lips say further while just shaking side to side, like whomever they belong to is just so happy to see all of the X-Men filing in around the island.

Outside, the sun continues to set behind the clouds, the grey skies very dark to the east, and growing across the sky above the isolated island.

Monet St. Croix has posed:
Monet St. Croix would frown over as she would listen cautiously as the group would head about. Goign to let along the mental link to send to Jean <<I believe they're expecting us>> She's cautious over at this. <<Should we go in aggressively and attempt to breach?>> Or are they being baited to rush in against someone that is only playing to expectations?
    Monet is not particularly happy with this either way if they're being played with. She has a frown on her face of irritability as she would take her flanking position, ready to backup the rest of the group depending on what happened.

Warren Worthington has posed:
His work done, Warren drops down quickly to land on the ground towards the back of the group. The veteran X-Man knows only too well he would just be in the way up front.

"That guy is really creepy," he mutters. Warren keeps an eye behind the group and listens for directions from the mission's team lead.

Tabitha Smith has posed:
Tabby has been getting better in the flight sims. But she's still kind of a leadfoot. So maybe it's a good idea to let someone else pilot. There were puppy dog eyes attempted but alas Jean had to put her foot down. Then there was pouting.

<<So like isn't that normal for lighthouses. Weather stuff. All automated and crap. My money is still on down stairs!>> she joins the mind link, letting Jean rock the control of that so Tabby can thankfully have an easier time keeping all the stray noise in minds. Most her own from going the wrong direction.

Inside the light house Tabby pauses just before the door and scrunches her features a pit with maybe the sound of air being let out of a baloon a bit then heads for the lift itself. "Been hanging onto that all the way here. Not doing that again!" she states while not in an enclosed space before sweeping an arm to the team to encourage getting in.

<<Would you kindly?>> she mind beams with a playful grin. <<Well you guys wanna grab some SCUBA stuff and barrel your way down from outside while I take the nice dry elevator while the only one in a wetsuit?>> she suggests. She does not disagree with Warren.

<<This guy's wolves put me in ICU. His pig farming fairground took away my self control and ability to consent or defend myself. You think you're creeped out!>> she states and shudders at some bad memories.

James Proudstar has posed:
James Proudstar took the co-pilot seat to keep a lid on any hijinks. One of the few New Mutants to be fully checked out on the blackbird.
     He waits with the group, "I can free swim it if we need to, can't be more than a half hour. But it may not be wise to stategize in front of the view screen? Honestly, I think he wants us downn there. This could have been a lot harder from what we've seen." Jim does inspect the car for anything peculiar after Tab's statement looking protective and a bit more concerned. "I'm not crazy about the close quarters but I can tank it, with Jean's help."

Jean Grey has posed:
<<I have one telepathic contact... somehwere out below the water's surface. Teenage girl. Unconscious but she seems alright, certainly none of the stress and panic you'd expect if she was in the water... could be the that some portion continues underground, past the visible island surface?>> Either that or the girl is doing a little mermaid impression.

Jean's hands are on her hips as she runs through the options, while her gaze traces first out to the north of the island, presumbly toward this maiden beneath the seas, and then back upward toward Warren, her eyebrows etching a small frown as his familiar silhouette is backlit by the storm. <<Careful. Looks like rough skies.>>

However, all the investigatory work is somewhat contradicted by the fact that they're being invited in, familiar smiling graphic and all. Naturally, the woman doesn't look pleased by the invitation, and yet, she does start moving forward toward the lift, although she pauses to look straight up the inside of the tower before getting aboard. "I'm thinking breaking in the top is probably pretty much a waste. Whatever's going on here... I'm pretty sure it's underneath us. And it's a lot harder to force our way in that way. Especially on an island this small. Blow too big a hole, and we flood it."

With that logic, she reaches out again: <<Warren, better get down here, looks like we're taking a ride. Don't want to leave you out there.>> She's gonna wait until the full team is gathered before they risk this friendly 'invitation.' "Once we're together, everyone on guard going down. Trap seems only, you know, ninety-nine percent likely."

Rogue has posed:
"Yes, yes. Look at you all. You're such fine, fine Mutants." The mouth says over the screen as the X-Men all start to come together to board the lift. He can be seen visibly shaking his head back and forth, or at least what is visible of it, his huge lips coming together to hum happily as the group enters the lift. "Oh, I promise you, there is no lift trap. I don't want you to come to harm in such a pedestrian way! I have plans, plans that involve you seeing everything I've been up to here! Huge, plans." The mouth adds once the team is aboard the lift.

The doors to the lift exhale as they start to close and the car comes to life. The lights along the panel with the levels lights up, as the ceiling lights flicker on. The lift starts to bump as it releases and begins its downward progression!

It's not half a minute later that the glass wall on the side opposite of the doors reveals the deep blue sea outside... Large bubbles rush past the glass window, as the lift starts down a glass lift tube, and the further it gets down, the more light shafts can be seen breaking through the misty ocean vista. There is something out there. Did anyone bet Tabitha the 20 bucks?

It isn't too far down beneath the waves, but it looks fairly expansive. At least three visible underwater tunnels built out of glass, metal and more. Beyond those tunnels is a visible huge metal sphere, almost like looking at the Cerebro sphere from the outside, if it were submerged in the Atlantic.

The quiet classical music continues to play as the lift descends down further, until scaffolding starts to wiz past the lift tunnel glass wall outside, and then a corridor sweeps up in front of the glass, and takes over the view, showing some of the underwater base beyond the lift itself...

The lift doors open up then. A ding can be heard.

And outside the lift is a man in a white lab coat, sitting in a wheel chair.

He has a fire axe embedded in his forehead. His skull is split wide open, and blood has dried to his shoulders, and down the back of his wheelchair where it pools around the chair, his feet, and the hallway beyond the lift doors.

"Don't mind the mess. We have lost contact with the cleaning staff." The smiling lips on the screen inside the lift says. "Just come on past it. Follow my voice. I promise to tell you everything...."

Monet St. Croix has posed:
Well lovely. Monet St. Croix looks irritated over. She goes to increasingly actively telepathically sweep.. While at the same time she pauses, going to look over the electronics setup. She's done her best to research what they've been up against and encountered, and while she's no technologist.. She does have an eidetic memory adn is a self styled bona fide super genius. So perhaps there's some chance she can inspect things and perhaps figure out as they go in how to hotwire or overload things. Or at least how to get system access. The enemy is hopefully expecting htem to just melee their way on in. At least.. If she can get it.
    She goes to purse her lips in thought over and then would tap at her cheek for a moment. She would switch to Apache and speak over to Proudstar. "Presume that they are listening in to anything. Telepathic links, comms.." Always best to be paranoid. And if they are, if anyone can pick things up it would b e Warpath.

Warren Worthington has posed:
<<Don't worry, no fried hot wings tonight," Warren assures Jean. He is the last into the lighthouse and the lift with the others.

The winged mutant shakes his head when their host finishes his welcome. He looks over to Jean. "We should have brought Deadpool. They might get each other, bond a bit," Warren says dryly.

When the elevator door opens he just sighs at the grisly sight. He follows the others with more pressing roles and crouches down to look over the unfortunate victim in front of them. He looks for traps, wires, ID, anything that might give some context for this place.

"Who built this place?" Warren asks the others. "I don't think it was our host."

Tabitha Smith has posed:
The team can probably tell maybe Tabby is bottling up a little bit of anger and temper. <<You could poke a whole underneath. I bet they got like sub bays and stuff. But I ain't gonna complain getting squished in with all a y'all.>> Because of course the levator is a trap <<Tee Kay an airbubble around us before we start>>. Tabitha might also harbor some trust issues.

The blonde shakes her head as she watches things outside. <<Sometimes I hate being right when it doesn't get me paid.>> she states and rubs her shoulder where she was bitten through. "Trust me when I say I am not fine right now!" she says aloud. Maybe not so good and keeping her emotions in check right about now.

When the elevator stops and Tabby sees the dead guy in a wheel chair she dry heaves, covering her mouth and nose as if it wasn't too late to smell it. "Nah, Wade would probably pitch a bigger fit than I would at all this. Most of X-Force would. I'd be the calm one!"

Jean Grey has posed:
As the lift descends, passing into open water, Jean looks around with renewed curiousity, both to their sides but also back up. "I was expecting underground, not under da sea," she admits. "This would be a really pretty view, if it was a little better lit and, well, you know." Not a mission to find a murderous nutjob. And still, she reassures Tabitha, as they descend, <<I'm ready, if it the structure does get damaged. But I don't want to resort to that unless we have to, since there's good odds they have at least one person down here, another victim.>>

The scene the doors open, sudden as it is, causes even Jean to react with notciable grimace of shocked surprise, before her expression slowly eases. Unfortunately, she's pretty used to this stuff by now, but it's still far from what she expected to greet them at the door! Soon, she takes a step closer toward the sitting body, having to navigate around James' larger form, noving around behind the chair and reaching out to touch him lightly on the shoulder. Her interest is not like Warpath's, not really investigatory, and after a moment, she pulls back away.

"It could be that he was original staff, and someone took the place over. But we can't really say for sure." She shakes her head. "These kind of organizations can have their own, very nasty sorts of internal politics. So it's every bit as possible he was one of them, and this is just the result of some... disagreement among the psychos running this place." Starting forward again, her eyes keep roaming, especially toward the speakers that are leading them on. <<Wish we had Kitty. She'd probably be able to get a better sense of the systems behind all of this.>>

James Proudstar has posed:
James Proudstar raises and eyebrow at M's comment, then nods and steps out of the lift, kneeling beside the corpse and pulls the axe from his forehead. Cleaning the blade and placing it on the floor, "Been dead about a week." He closes the man's eyes and places his hands at rest. "Definitely not subtle but they weren't expecting a fight." He stands and edges forward again , alert for traps and clues. "No way he can resist giving us directions."

Rogue has posed:
There is a bit of a intersection outside of the lift, with a few branching corridors that go in other directions, they all have screens hanging from the ceiling of the corridors, but only one coridor has its screens all lit up. Separated by about 20 yards each, the screens are all showing the man's smiling mouth.

"I am really sorry about the mess, but I am not yet able to do anything about it myself, you see. It's very embarrassing, but once you've gotten used to how things work around here... I am sure you'll understand. Come, come though... there's much to see before we can get started."

The group will be shown the way by those illuminated screens of the man just smiling at them, his lips moving up and down his big chicklet-teeth.

Up ahead, is another body, this one of a woman... Well, her lower half anyway. She's been cut in to two by a large metal door that slammed shut, whatever resides on the other side of the door, who knows, because its completely locked shut tight.

"You see... These were my caretakers, for many years. But once our funding dried up, they started to cut back on what they were willing to do for me. I convinced them to stay here, a little longer... but a terrible thing happened..." The voice explains, his mouth once more shaking side to side, as his tongue tip extends to touch his upper lip for just a moment.

"They were sending out signals, without telling me... They got an entire armed service team to come in, and well... I could have told them the error of these ways, but they chose not to keep me in the loop. Now look what it has done to them? A pitty really... Some of them I even liked...."

As the X-Men make their way down the corridor, and then turn out toward the sea scape that they'd seen from the Lift ride down, they get greeted with a large open walkway that has a glass ceiling, allowing the deep blue sea to shine in upon the corridor...

At the very end of it, is that massive sphere structure, and a pair of glass doors that lead inside it.

There, within that sphere, is a figure, seated in a chair, only their shoulders visible as the chair is facing a massive window out on to the ocean water, even some sea life swimming past it.

But the sphere doors are closed at the end of the hallway... Perhaps they'll open when the X-Men get through the corridor to them?

"You're nearly there. To the lead researcher's office. He... passed away, a long, long time ago... I'm afraid. But, our young friend is there, waiting for you. So that she may show you what we have been working on."

The man excitedly giggles. "I'm so, so, ready for this!"

Monet St. Croix has posed:
Monet St. Croix would muse over thoughtfully <<Jean, are you sensing a solid presence ahead of the individual? I am unsure. I.. Would not presume there is anyone or anything here that is not meant as a decoy at best. I would presume that our adversary here is speaking to us via a long range radio link.. Or is some sort of distributed artificial intelligence.>> M could very well be wrong, but given the thing is going on about 'researchers' and excitement.. This place could be used for biological warfare.
    Or it could be technology. Brainiac's attack had no doubt given a great deal of inspiration to anyone wanting to get a head start on bringing Skynet into existence after all.
    Monet would go to look over at the glasswork that would block the walls over.. And float up, and go to give it a gentle tap with ehr finger. Testing the density of it to gauge the material.

James Proudstar has posed:
James Proudstar stays with the group, he lets everyone catch up as he realizes there are no traps, starting to feel like the buffalo being hunted by Apache, driven towards a cliff and the inevitable betrayal. He lets the image form in his mind in a way Jean could pick up on it. He looks around seeming distracted, he speaks in Apache, "We could flood it, smash the door, pull the girl and kick for the surface?" His voice is steady as he suggests such a radical plan.

Warren Worthington has posed:
Warren follows along with the group, he looks thoughtful.

"So, you were left all alone down here?" Warren asks, looking at one of the screens they are passing. "They were going to... hurt you? Shut you down? With the armed service team?"

"That seems stupid. I bet they were afraid. We get that all the time, people afraid of what they don't understand," Warren says. He frowns and shakes his head. His blue and white uniform swishes in the quiet corridor.

"I'm sure you know all about me, more than I do. You know, I can only imagine what you could /do/ with a place like this. Such a waste to make you defend yourself and end up with it so empty."

Tabitha Smith has posed:
<<I'll save the big boom for when we're done up in this and the girl we came for is found and coming back up with us.>> Tabby says and gives the axe cleaned and removed a very considering look to maybe picking it up.

The gore and violence left behind making her visibly on edge and the woman is doing her best effort to keep her desire to BOOM under wraps mostly because she doesn't want to hurt her family.

"What, they wouldn't re-enact Rocky Horror any more?" she asks with some extra venom in her tone. "I'm a fan, but dude not all the time!" she adds and moves with the others. <<Remember the wolves. The drugs at the fair and the pigs. The birds. Maybe not so much the bird poop. I had to ditch those boots. Or the pig poop and guts. But he's had that girl a long time to play. And some of that stuff works fast.>> she warns from experiience and there's a flash of actual fear from Tabby's side of the mind link.

Jean Grey has posed:
<<Just the one mind, that I mentioned earlier. It's very hard to fake that kind of signal, though, to an experienced telepath, so I'm pretty certain,>> Jean confirms, her thoughts bouncing back to Monet. <<She's in the chair. And still very much asleep. So I don't know what she's going to 'show' us, exactly. Otherwise? I'm not sure what's real or fake. Scanning physically is really a whole different process, I'd have to feel through everything telekinetically, bit by bit. Rather... brute force, a lot of energy.>> Translation: the kind of thing the Phoenix can do, is happy to do, but Jean isn't so cavalier about.

She's not in any rush moving down the hallway, examining their surroundings while trying not to get too distracted by the majesty of it, in how fascinating and beautiful the undersea view would be in better circumstances. Eventually, she makes out the dome, brows furrowing a little at James' suggestion. "'Destroy everything first, ask questions later' isn't really how we prefer to do things," she states in a mild yet firm reminder. "And I think, given the strangeness of all of this, we'd prefer to learn as much as we can. But if things go south, we have a pretty clear escape route up through the water." So call his plan 'B', maybe.

Eventually, they presumably reach the door. "You can definitely help with 'B' if it comes to that," she offers Tabitha. Bit of boom-y revenge!

Rogue has posed:
"I've always been alone." The smiling man's mouth says over the screen at the end of the corridor, just outside of the glass doors that contain the girl in the chair, facing away from the X-Men behind a large oval desk that faces toward the glass walls of the dome itself, which looks out in to the ocean waters beyond.

"The scientists never cared about me. They only cared about what I could give them. Unyielding, never-ending, tests!" He shouts with a sudden shift in his mood, almost sounding like he was on the verge of shakey anger! He pauses, he breathes, and he starts to humm a little song... the same song that had been playing in the elevator on the way down.

"You are my new friends though, here to replace the Smile Scientists. You're here, because you've proven to be so smart. You've practically figured it all out already, and I haven't even begun the show!"

After he says that, the doors split open, and the X-Men are allowed in to the office with the girl in the chair. She isn't moving, she's just laying there, with her shoulddrs sticking out on either sides of the high backed seat, her arms laying over the arms of the office office chair....

"Welcome, to my father's office! He loved to watch me here. All day, we would talk... until they killed him..." The voice says with remorse deep in his voice, as his lips are now being broadcast on a larger tv display in a corner of the room to the left of the doors upon entering...

Outside, some lights come on in the deep blue sea. More white shafts of light pop on, and through the observation window that takes up the whole side of the massive office sphere, something can be seen in the water where the lights are coming from.

IT's long. It's dark. It's a military submarine... 'U.S.S.R.' and the Hammer and Sickle markings adorn its hull. It has three large spotlights on it that now shine up toward the sky high above, as sea life swims around in the dark waters.

"Now then... you see... this lab has been my home. This submarine was my plaything that kept me sane all these years... I want to show you what has kept me alive though... But first. You need to help me."

He pauses as the girl starts to shift around in the chair, waking up?

"I need you to help her in to the air lock, so that she may join me out here, within the water."

Out there? There's no visible sign of anyone out there at all...

Monet St. Croix has posed:
Monet St. Croix would go to frown over for the moment. She's not picking up anyone or anything, or anything out in the sea moreso than what would be normal at this depth. If at all, given the very limited nature o fehr abilities and total unfamiliarity with this location in the ocean. She doesn't bother saying there's nothing out there; the others can figure it out on their own.
    "Whiel we discuss things with you.. What is your name? And waht is her's?" She would inquire. "Do forgive me, but apparently you know all of us quite well and we haven't had the chance to familiarize ourselves with you. If you don't mind giving us some introductions?" SHe would inquire in her best 'polite and formal' voice for etiquette. Matching tone the likes ofw hich one might be at a formal court dinner for some lower mid level nobility wiht the money to actually care about the class distinctions and snobbishness.

Warren Worthington has posed:
Warren wanders forward in the office to stare out the window at the submarine while Monet speaks. "Can you imagine?" he says without turning around. "I told you we should have brought Deadpool. He was tortured..."

He turns around, now standing in front of the girl in the chair. He walks over and looks her over. "Does she want to go?" he asks idly. "I mean, does she know what's going to happen? I like the idea of a partnership, if you're thinking of us being here with you. I can smell a win-win deal a mile away, but it takes a little trust. Not because we deserve, it's just efficient."

<<Tabby>> comes Warren's voice in the link, gentle, but firm. <<Are you okay? You're leaking very sensitive information out loud and look like you're having a hard time staying under control. I know he's a monster, but this thing is probably a million times smarter than we are; we need you, and we need you on your A-game.>>

Warren wanders around the office looking over what its previous occupant left. He pauses for a second to put a hand on Tabby's shoulder, then carries on. "You have to open your eyes to wonder, even in horror sometimes," he opines. "And he did apologize for the mess."

Tabitha Smith has posed:
With the girl stirring Tabby moves over to check on her. "I don't need hands to boom. So I can get her! You guys are the muscle!" she says and checks over her as best she can to make sure she is safe to move.

"You did enough to her. To me." The near death maulings, the drugging. "To everyone else. You can't have her or us!" Tabby states and sounds very, very determined. "Never blame the animals. What ever you are you are way worse!" she states emphhatically.

Turning a more compassionate tone to the hostage in the chair Tabby smiles warmly. "Hi! We're here to get you home. So expect hugs from like family and friends once we're out of here okay." she offers a nice expectation. "I'm Boom-Boom!" she adds in introduction.

The sub outside. Tabby hmmms. <<Maybe shut off the wifi. Pop the top on the can outside, let it sink? Make sure this thing ain't getting away to start again.>> she offers as a tactical suggestion.

<<Hotwings, he, it, they, what the hell ever. knows what he's done to people and animals. I haven't said anything he's not already aware of. Assume that if the girl wants to stay she's been like compromised. Being polite doesn't excuse anyof it.>> she points out to the man that had a hand on her shoulder. There's maybe even a little stream of tears from her eyes. <<My eyes are open. I see abuse, and hear an abuser. Nothing more nothing less!>>

Jean Grey has posed:
Jean glances over as Warren speaks up, and then back... well, she isn't precisely sure where she should be looking as she addresses this entity. She settles on facing one of the screens, the newer, larger one. "That's a fair question. If she wants to come with you, we can certainly help. But I'm sure you know enough about us, to know that we're not going to help move her against her will. Who is she, anyway?"

Of course, the fact that the young woman seems to be waking up provides Jean with an alternate route, as she gently brushes against that stirring mind: <<Hello? Can you hear me? What's your name? Do you know where you are, how you got here?>>

Otherwise, Jean's demeanor remains fairly mild. This is in contrast to Tabitha, although with Warren giving a lecture across the mindlink, she can spare the lecture... although it's hard not to feel a sense of Jean's agreement through a non-verbal component of it. However, what becomes clear in her communication is that her attention is now focused on much bigger fish. Almost literally.

<<I can sink the sub,>> she notes, almost too casually, like it would be no trouble at all. <<But... If that's leftover from the Cold War, not knowing how it got into these people's hands? It could very well be carrying a nuclear arsenal. I don't know if the missiles would still be in a launchable state, but there's the engine reactor too, just the amount of fissile material aboard... the radioactive contamination would be disasterous for the local sealife, and anything - or anyone - up current of here.>>

She gives this all a moment to sink in. <<So let's TRULY all try and focus, keep our cool, and not do anything rash, here.>>

Rogue has posed:
As Warren wanders the office to look it over, he'll noteably find a series of framed photos on the corner of the large desk. They show a pair of older men holding up two large fish proudly, with big smiles on their faces. Presumably their family surrounding them in the background too, running around on a boat, or lounging on its seats. If inspected closer, the man on the right was the man with the axe stuffed through his skull back at the Elevator...

The girl starts to rouse and looks about, noticing people are around her. "Wha..." She starts to ask with a sleepy voice. "Who.... who are you?" She asks further before she looks to Tabi who is closest to her. "What are you doing?" She asks Tabitha. "I'm not going anywhere with you..." She says in growing agitation.

Equally, the voice over the screen starts to grow more agitated. "No. You'll help us. She has volunteered to be the example as she has completed her task here." The Lips say from the large screen casting a reflection on to the smoothly polished floor of the office.

Jean's questions cause the disheveled waking blonde girl to suddenly jolt. She snatches something off of her lap and throws her right hand up, a knife stabbing toward Tabitha's stomach!

The girl doesn't hesitate to jump to her feet then, and run toward the air lock on her own! Her bare feet slapping on the hard cold floor!

"She is the daughter of the man who killed my father... Now, she has killed HER father!" The Lips say as the girl runs. "She is a Mutant. Like... Mmm. Like me.."

From outside the glass observation window, two large objects float up in to view. They are massive... eyeballs, and they're looking right in at the X-Men. Connected to large metal pipes, hoses, the eyes just stare through the glass, bigger than James, each eye is massive.

Out in the water, something moves, beyond the sub. The hazy dark water starts to shift, as something comes in to view. Teeth, a mouth? It's huge. It's the size of the submarine, if not larger. It floats out of a open cavern across from the sub, and it has no upper face, no nose, no forehead, no visible brain. Just a mouth, with machinery connected behind it.

"I'm regenerating... but I need your help. I am the Mutant God, and these scientists decided to stop helping me grow..."

The lips outside, mirror those upon the tv in the office, as its massive tongue extends to rub across upper, then lower, lips. A live feed of the massive mouth outside in the water...

James Proudstar has posed:
James Proudstar does the first aid thing, he frowns, "She's only been here a few days, nothing a hot meal and a shower won't fix. I want to cast my vote for Octopus." He studies the view out the window. <<Is that nuclear? Tabby knows her role.>> Jim's support for the blonde is clear and his tone equally firm as the senior X-Men, a role he shares. He nod to Tabs, Jim doesn't speak to the tormentor.

Monet St. Croix has posed:
Monet St. Croix would just sort of look out the window and sort of stare for a moment. "I hope that someone has a properly large harpoon." She would be very willing to smash out but even she's not sure her body could take the pressure at these depths. And she's sure that most of the team couldn't either. Also there's the whole 'breathing' issue and in a fight Jean probably can't keep up an airbubble for all of them and equalize pressure so they don't get crushed.
    And as the mind comes out Monet goes to finally SNAP. "You have gone on for LONG enough. Be QUIET." Going to trust the others to stop the girl as M is focusing on the monologuing one. Attempting to if she can go to psionically assault the entity. Disembobied voice or other. She attempts to hit upon it SILENCE.
    Sweet, blessed silence. Going for if at all possible those aspects of the consciousness tied to vocalization. If she can over in her attempt she's trying to simply short circuit the bits of the brain responsible for -talking- to simply try and disconnect them.
    Sweet, blissful SILENCE.

Warren Worthington has posed:
Warren's back is turned when the girl tries to stab Tabby, but he pivots when he hears the commotion and footsteps. Without looking back he starts to sprint after the woman. As soon as he is in the glass hall his wings flap and give the already quick man an added boost when he tries to take the girl down in a...flying...tackle.

Tabitha Smith has posed:
There's a brief mental blankness as Tabby feels the knife.

Processing...

Then there's the pain and then a look up at the girl that did it. Then there comes the pain, a lot of it. and a wobble back. <<She's comprimised! I hate when I am right. Frickin hate it!>> she states and looks down at the blade in her midsection.

Anger and Pain.

"Don't do it!" she yells to the girl. "However bad dad was, is, this is worse. No.... mutant god!" Her head mistress here is where Tabby would bet another twenty.

The bleeding soaking the neon colored neoprene worn by blonde slumping against the seat the girl just occupied. "Catch her!" she says slowly and worriedly not looking at the escape attempt.

<<Shove the sub in it's mouth boss! Bet it Booms like Tasmanian Devils.>> She keeps things on the mind link.

Beats using actual strength. Which she kinda is using to save for a BOOM. If she does anything now she's really wanting to destroy the whole place.

Jean Grey has posed:
"What the f-"

Jean is not always the well-behaved adult! And though she has witnessed many strange things in her life, from Mojoverse to the infinite reaches of the cosmos, this whole 'giant robot eyes and mouth' deal is still pretty high on the weird-o-meter.

She's not close enough to the situation with Tabitha to interfere, but when the girl starts to run, quickly delegates action: <<Warren->> He's already on it. It's almost like these two have some experience working together! <<She's probably mentally compromised, like some of the other victims we've seen. Last time I put a bunch of them to sleep, but I think we may need her help, or at least need some answers, and it'll be easier for me to get information out of her while she's conscious. So just hold her, if you can.>> Dreaming minds are weird!

Speaking of which, this is not one of those 'ask permission' times. The familiar gesture, of fingers lifted to her forehead, and she plumbs the girl's mind for whatever she might find to make sense of this whole scenario. The events that brought her here. Her relation to these people.

And yes, for the moment, she's kind of letting the whole 900 pound gorilla of the floating giant eyeballs and mechanical mouth weirdness slide, or at least, acting like they're not some terrifying threat. Because what are any of them going to do, exactly? The second this becomes a real fight, the dome is going to be in real trouble, real fast. Which definitely means Tabitha's advice to smack it with a nuclear submarine is ignored! "What do you need us to help you with, exactly?" she asks instead, now finally addressing the thing beyond the dome, the 'face' (give or take) outside, directly.

James Proudstar has posed:
James Proudstar purses his lips as he watches the beast appear, "... We're gonna need a bigger boat." Well, I mean hitting it with the sub might be a solid strategy if they could pull it off. Then there's blood and chaos and James is tending to the knife wound, staunching the bleeding leaving the blade in place but snapping it off near the skin. Stabilizing Tabitha like a battlefield medic. He lets the girl go knowing she wouldn't come back in the shape she left if he caught her.

Rogue has posed:
"They did this to me..." The massive mouth out in the sea says, his lips moving both on the television, and visibly out beyond the glass of the dome sphere office that the X-Men reside within. "They fed me mutants, and it made me grow. Then they decided I was a /threat/ and they tried to drown me! They let the creatures of the sea FEED upon ME!" The man is now shouting, irate with anger!

Warren tackles the girl, as she tried to make it to the airlock that could access the water outside. The girl shouts, struggles to free herself, as visions flow out of her mind. It can be seen that she was the one who put the axe in to the head of her own father as he tried to wheel her out of the labs toward the lift. It shows her shutting the door on the woman who was cut in half. It shows her murdering other scientists yet to be discovered within the labs, and it shows her wanting to Murder Tabitha, Warren... and herself. "Get off me! He needs me to survive!" The girl shouts.

"Oh, yes, yes, I do need her. I need all of you. The sea fed upon me. But you can save me. Regenerate me. The scientists released the animals upon the population to kill mutants. They would bring them back here, to feed them to me. If I can regenerate off of the flesh of my bretheren, then I can return to rule on my throne, the God of our kind!"

As the massive mouth utters these words, his huge hands can be seen crawling out of the cavern mouth beyond the sub next, connected to large, gangly arms that are covered in holes and show machinery beneath.

Monet can find no sign of a brain from the giant mouth man, it's like it doesn't exist out there. His thoughts are coming from something else. An AI? Maybe the man doesn't even exist anymore, and whats left is just ... pushing to return.

Monet St. Croix has posed:
Monet St. Croix goes to give a warning <<I'm not sure there -is- a mind or a consciuosness here. It's pain and rage and a projection..>> It could be some sort of remote entity.. A psychic fragment turned sentience like a spectre.. Something pushed so far out of it's consciousness that it simply was disembodied.
    As the thing goes to retaliate against her mentally, MOnet is firm. "No." The comment is spoken ever so slowly and firmly as she goes to meet the pain and rage going at her with an implaccable will and maintain her defense. Further psionic attack seems useless for the momentw ithout a target.

"I find your narration to be appalling and -boring-. I've heard far better. Can you at least try to make it somewhat interesting rather than purely melodramtic like this? You clearly fashion yourself as some sort of uber victim. But I see something that looks like a goblet of spare bits that MIster Wilson had left after a cookout that someone stitched back together and put on a reel. If you're going to wax on about your state of being you could at least stand to make the impression unique."
    If at first you don't succeed snark, snark again.

Tabitha Smith has posed:
The blade might need pliers to get out. "You know what really sucks?!" Tabby states with a his as the knife is snapped by the super strong ex-boyfriend. Warpath dose get a sense of appreciation from the novice tyelepath.

"No cauterizing." she laments her immunity to heat and flames and the like.

"Ugh, stupid racist logic. Starve the problem out by removing the food source. The light house undersea base. Nerds. Stupid ass gives gamers a bad name." she says and looks around for a control panel or something that might have functioning security cameras running.

At the same time she's adding her own telepathy to the mix of mind scanning Jean and Monet are working. Extra poower, extra range. <<Where the hell is your brain?>> she asks aloud. <<Screw the sub. We use a Tabby Torpedo!>> she might have an idea.

Warren Worthington has posed:
"Yeah, I bet he does need you," Warren snorts. "That's why you're not going anywhere."

Warren takes no chances, having no idea what powers, if any, this woman might have. In one smooth motion from the tackle he tries to put her on her stomach, pin her down and disarm her. Then search her for more weapons for good measure.

Jean Grey has posed:
<<No, there isn't. Just the girl, there's never been anyone else alive down here.>> Jean echos back at M. There's a reason she hasn't even tried to interact with the strange creature itself. AI. Hivemind? Weird artificial mass? Whatever it is, exactly, it definitely stretches the definition of any sort of life. <<We don't have our tech specialist, but if any of you can see anything in here that looks like a control system, any kind of central computer, speak up! Something has to be controlling it. Powering it, for that matter. Or well, the mechanical part of it, that is. I'm not sure what the fleshy bits are doing. If they're just decoration, or there's more to it.>>

She voices the last part of the thought: "Look around."

And after that, she turns back to the open window, to face the odd amalgamation face-on (such as it is): "She's right. This is pointless. Whatever you are," and now she reaches out, not for the submarine, but for the strange floating extremities themselves, "you're... a fraud, a fake. And we're definitely not here to feed you, to help you back." Her telekinesis takes on a curious approach to her target, grasping for the two independently floating eyes separately, grabbbing and pulling, testing against the strength of whatever mechanism is animating them.

James Proudstar has posed:
James Proudstar double checks his work, making sure Tabitha is ready for transport. "Give me something to hit and I'll take the battle to it "

Rogue has posed:
The girl on the ground proves harder to hold for the Winged Wonder than one might hope! From within her body, a ghostly set of six more arms all reach out, barely able to be seen, the white-whispy-arms start pulling at Warren, ripping him off of her back and throwing him aside, as the Winged Wonder tries to fight back, the two are really rolling around in the corridor at this point!

"My mind has been placed inside a machine, and once my real mind is restored, I will return it to my body..." The mouth says from outside, as the eyes floating around focus on Monet. "You are strong. I can tell. You would serve me well once I am restored... Imagine the power that you could hold, at my side..." He starts to try and appeal to Monet, perhaps knowing some measure of her arrogance?

But it's the sudden pulling of the giant hoses that connecte to his eyes that cause him to turn them to look toward Jean. "You... you are the leader." He says to her, as she can tell that the metal arms holding his eyeballs are strong, but nothing she can't ripped apart with ease before. It's just man made technology, after all...

"Command your people to aid me, or your precious school will suffer."

The submarine shifts, as the side hatches on it all snap open, exposing missile tubes to the deep blue sea!

Inside the office, there is a beeping noise from the director's desk that the girl had been seated at. There are four computer screens on the desk, and a control center. But it's a confusing display to anyone who isn't a super techie like a Kitty or a Doug.

"Unhand me. Or I will see unto the destruction of your people, as it seems I overestimated your sense of understanding reason. We are all mutants here. Together, we can crush our oppressive Human adversaries, and see to it none of our people are harmed like this again. Like I have been, like so many of you undoubtedly have been..."

The displays on the desk show the systems within the Sub coming online, its core activating as processes within it round up...

Monet St. Croix has posed:
Monet St. Croix would go to close her eyes over and then goes to speak quietly. "I.." She focuses. Remembering over where she had seen computers and access panels. Going through her mind where the network had been. Where the power cables lead to. Where the connections were. Where anything that would work over as some sort of hub would be. Everything would be decentralized.. So Monet goes to focus her thoughts over and considers.
    Attempting to hack into the network is pointless with their limited time. So they need another way to cripple it in the short term.. <<Tabitha, please try and find a way to break something important or disconnect it>> Then MOnet is going to review her mind and her memory of the layout, calling upon her thoughts of.. Engineering and architecture. Underwater supervillain lairs still needed to have.. GEnerators.
    So presuming that Monet can get an idea of -where- the primary generator is going to be and where the large power cables are.. <<Excuse me a moment>> Then she's going along at superspeed. She's no Kryptonian.. But she can still hit supersonic. And she has no issues with inertia. So at mtuliples of mach Monet is charging -through- the base, towards where the main power networks would be.. A nd presuming she can, she's going to rip and tear if possible, trying to break them all up as quickly as she can. The thing would be hopefully left without power and then that might SHUT IT UP.

Tabitha Smith has posed:
The pain is pretty intense. And the blonde bombshell is not helping James or herself by squirming around to look inside and out for any sign of the controlling interface. "Jean and I can destroy the thing and not blow the sub." she says very quietly, how much Tabby can actually contribute is anyone's guess.

The beeping gives Tabby an excuse to sit down. She is far from Kitty or Doug's level of tech skills. But she is an ex thief and knows a little about it.

This might be a very, very bad idea.

"I didn't do that! C'mon. No no no, no nuking. That's my job!" she yells out and starts trying to look for anything that might look like it can send shut down commands.

"If this is like boss room. Maybe he has a server room somewhere nearby?!" break something. Tabby can do that. Hands go flat on the panels and look for any and all exposed metal and wiring. That's where Tabby makes a wincing sound and with a small boom blows a hole as big as her fist into the system. Then she starts channeling her own bio-electricity, letting off a number of small bombs as far as she can conduct along the way. Everwhere she can reach.

The downside is that she is not immune to external electricity. "Fuuuuuuuuu......" she groans and grimaces. Her eyes glow blue with her own power pushing to it's limit. "Soooo muchhhh heaattt!" Boom-Boom not having a fun time at all but how much can she shove back to create the mother of all short circuits before she's thrown back. The blade in her abdomen crackling with current where it peeks out of her wetsuit. Blood soaking the wetsuit where it's torn the neoprene.

Jean Grey has posed:
"No," answers Jean, remarkably stoic in the face of the creature's demands, threats. Even the missile tubes. "You feel my powers, so maybe you can understand a bit better. You call yourself a god? I know gods. Real ones. Know their power. And I can destroy that ship as easily as I can control your body. The missiles? Will never reach their targets. I can command them in the air, or stop them where they are." As a demonstration, on the sub, one of the opening missile-ports starts to re-close, the metal twisting.

Now... whether she can avoid them getting where they're going without killing everyone HERE? That's another question. But no reason to tell Mr. Freakface that! And besides, the whole thing gives the others some time to search, to try and disable things.

"However, we are reasonable people. You are some new kind of life. Your mind?" And now she seizes on what it has told them already. "You said it is stored in a device? Wherever it is, we can retrieve it. We have people who are masters of machinery, of computers. Maybe they can find a way to preserve it. But this body of yours? It will never be whole. It will die down here, rot upon the false frame that holds up the scraps." By now, there is a distinctive edge to her own dialogue as well, one that is likely not unfamiliar to some... and something else to worry about.

"There is no better deal for you," she declares. "A chance to continue on... or destruction here at the bottom of the sea, forgotten and eventually washed away."

Rogue has posed:
Warren is continuing to struggle with the girl in the hallway, dealing with 8 arms, 6 of which are ghostly in nature... it's not an easy fight for him. To make matters worse, they've rolled in to the airlock and the girl manages to slap the release on the exterior hatch!

Just as Monet starts to rip wires, Tabitha starts to assault the computer systems directly... water starts to rush in to the glass canopied corridor! The door to the exterior only opens a few inches though, and the water starts to gush in to spill down the corridor in both directions, heading back toward where Monet, and the elevator were, and toward the office where the others are.

Jean, Tabi, James, all have water coming in around their boot heels now, rushing over the smooth stone floor of the office space, headed toward the glass windows that the Mouth, the Eyes, the Hands are outside of.

Those hands are crawling up the rocky foundation that the Office Sphere rests upon, the fingers inching their way up the windows now, as the hands are starting to 'palm the sphere' like a basketball in the hands of a giant athelete.

"You offer me an ultimatum?!" The Mouth shouts, its massive lips moving outside in the dark misty waters.

"No, I will not go back to being 'just a ghost in a shell'!" He growls as his hands start to squeeze the sphere, and little snaps in the windows begin to spider-outward, all directly in front of Jean within the office.

The combined efforts of Tabi, and Monet, manage to make all the power inside the labs go out, the lights shut off, the televisions broadcasting the mouth all snap off, and the computer terminals at the Office desk snap out. But beyond just that, the lights on the Submarine go dim too. Did they manage it?

"What have you done?!" The Mouth shouts, his fingers still squeezing on the glass. Apparently he still functions without lab power! But behind him, the cavern he crawled out of... it has lights on still inside the mouth of the cavern itself. It must be on its own power supply...


Mean while that door is still half open, flooding water over Warena nd the girl. "James! Come shut this damn door!" Angel shouts as he pulls the girl up out of the wate rso she doesn't drown.

Monet St. Croix has posed:
Monet St. Croix goes to yank, rip, and tear until SOMETHING goes out that seemingly has an effect. She seems rahter pleased with herself even as the area goes dark and smug. Monet's mental aura radiates said smugness and supremacy as she goes to rejoin the rest to come along for backup. Even with the seeming threats of gushing water and there being darkness she's still got her hair perfect and no musses even of her outfit despite her (minimal) exertions.
    "IF anyone here cannot see and tell where they are then I can share locations amongst the rest of you." T his is done over verbally just as Jean's probably spread rather mentally thin focusing.

James Proudstar has posed:
James Proudstar looks up, "There's an airlock and the missiles can only launch from so deep... " James walks over to the hatch and ducks through it. He pats Warren on the shoulder and nods, "Get them to the elevator." He slams the door shut, taking a deep breath.

Tabitha Smith has posed:
When she gets jolted back into the chair, Tabitha's arm smells kind of cooked and she's thoroughly wiped as the rest of the power goes out with her own. Outside BOOMs off the table but maybe, just maybe between her and Monet. They gave Jean and the others a target.

Slumping back in the chair, feet sloshing in the water and thanfully she didn't electrocute anyone else. Her power goes where she wants it.

"Imma sleep... when we're flying home. But kick this guy's non existing ass!" she says as loudly as she has the strength to do so. "

"Wonder if the sub was the power source?" she asks and leans sideways against the desk , leaning forward with a lump of sharp metal not feeling all that great.

Not to mention that unlike Monet. Tabitha's hair is a frizzy mess from being electrocuted. Least she still has her eyebrow game on point. She will need help getting out now.

Jean Grey has posed:
As the hands wrap around the sphere, Jean's telekinetic grasp 'moves,' from the more antagonistic manipulation of the eyestalks to fighting against the strength of the weird hands, holding it back to at least slow the crushing of the bubble that holds the sea from them. Still, this whole situation is rapidly deteriorating, as is her confidence of handling it in anything short of apocalyptic fashion.

"Best deal you're going to get," Jean informs the creature. It is a fairly serious and grim pronnouncement. "If you refuse? Well, then so be it." There's no further deal to be made.

<<OK, bubble's toast, I think we need to get out of here. Warren, bring the girl.... We're going back to the elevator. Power doesn't matter, I can lift the car.>> Whatever James is going to do out in the water? Well, it doesn't seem like she's in the mood - or thinks they have the time - to answer.

Jean is already moving according to the plan, back toward the long hallway that brought them here. It's another point of vulnerability, a long distance they have to pass. <<M, bring Tabby.>> Warren's a fast flyer, and she soon lifts from the ground to propel herself along more rapidly as well. As soon as they pass those doors into the hall, she slams them closed behind.

As they bolt for the elevator shaft, her gaze again turns out to the sea - now not to admire the life around then, but the strange cybernetic amalgamation, watching for its attacks and retaliations against the relatively vulnerable passage, marking the moments until everyone makes it into the car... and then SHOOTING it up the shaft at as fast a speed as she dares.

Rogue has posed:
Warren is shouting at James. "Warpath! Don't!" But he's already gone outside in to the sea. The door is slammed shut though, and this leaves the water level at just up past ankles as its continuing to flow around the under water base. Warren has to duck as Jean flows right over his head, then he looks back over his shoulder past one of his wet wings to see the doors to the office get sealed shut. Beyond them, the large mouth is shouting something, but with the power off, you can't hear what it is any longer!

It moves its massive hands, trying to smash the window, as Jean floats away. One manages to breach the glass, causing a rush of water to start filling the sealed-off office!

Warren flaps his huge, angelic, wings, and lifts the girl up off the ground to carry her with him. "Lets move!" He shouts, flying through the hallways after Jean, shedding water from the ends of his bright white feathers.

The entire under water lab starts to groan as the water being taken on starts to make the whole foundation shake, and shift.

Outside, the Mouth, the self-proclaimed 'Mutant God' starts to turn away from the office sphere, and glide back toward the cavern mouth that it crept out of when the X-Men arrived....

Monet St. Croix has posed:
Monet St. Croix goes to launch herself after the others, for any that would need it going ot help pick them up and haul them along towards the elevator. "Let's ensure that when we're done with here we drp some depth charges just to be certain that we've finished here off>" Because there is no kill like overkill and do they relaly need /another/ cybernetically empowered mutant experimental killing machine driven insane wanting to eat them all?

Tabitha Smith has posed:
The blonde is scooped up and finally Monet's outfit gets messy. One arm left hanging limp, blood slowly leaking out though there is a lot of it. The woman drifting in and out of shock.

"I wanted to boom the place!" Tabby pouts in exhaustion and probably shock. Both kinds of bad shock. But she'll live. She's had worse. But sometimes it's hard to tell.

"Don't let me pass out till we see the whole thing go?" she asks while she's fighting to stay conscious. "Gotta make sure Jimmy's 'kay. Got it?" she rambling in part of the whole stayting awake thing.

Jean Grey has posed:
At the moment, Jean is purely focused on getting everyone to safety. Up, up, and away through the elevator shaft, and then out, toward the waiting Blackbird. Evidently, she triggered its remote takeoff sequennce en route...

... because by the time they've emerged from the lighthouse and crossed the small rocky island, they'll find it not where they left it, but already hovering mid-air, with the back ramp open and ready. This is why she's got everyone a designated flyer!

Jean moves up to the front, although mentally she remains focused on the struggle beneath. <<James, we're going to be cruising overhead!>> She can reach out a little herself, to feel it's bulk settling against the seafloor, and adds her own telekinetic guidance, twisting the metal, really JAMMING it in there good, and definitely making sure the tubes all get wrecked along the way. <<Even if those things can't fire, I'm getting us -way- clear in case it triggers the warheads inside or the reactor goes. If it's still there, we can contact SHIELD to come by and handle the wreckage.>>

Indeed, she waits what seems like JUST long enough to let the man burst from the water and get on the Blackbird before shutting the ramp and slamming on the throttle.

James Proudstar has posed:
James Proudstar can see in the dark, he can fly, he can hold his breath for longer than most would think possible. Jim makes hes way to the sub. He shoves the massive ship, using every bit of his strength. Rupturing the subs ballast in the process and dropping it on top of the crabs hidey hole.
     He pushes off for the surface.

Rogue has posed:
Thunder and lightning, heavy rain, and an explosion that makes the earth shake, with tidal waves rolling out in all directions from where that strange island had been found.

Aboard the blackbird, as the bulkheads shake and rumble from the turbulence in the heavy storm-fueled winds, the girl shivers under a blanket that Warren had gotten for her.

"He was the God. He was promising to fix it all. To fix me." She says, completely mentally a wreck as Warren takes a seat beside her to offer some comfort.

Beneath the sea, the crater left behind by the explosion just collapses deeper in to underwater caverns, as the Mutant God, seems to have been utterly destroyed, leaving a half-moon-sized crater within the bottom of the sea floor.

Leaving the biggest smile upon the rocky ocean where the Mutant God had been.