8767/Late Night Nibbles

Late Night Nibbles
Date of Scene:	21 November 2021
Location:	Cafeteria and Bar
Synopsis:	Lorna meets Nathan and they chat over the future of the world.
Cast of Characters:	Lorna Dane, Cable

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Lorna Dane has posed:
The cafeteria and bar was a good place to relax, chat with others, or simply wind down with a good drink at the end of a long day. Week. Year? It felt like that to Lorna as she finds herself here once again. Juggling her duties in Genosha and New York had begun to make her occasional trips up to the asteroid feel like a miniature vacation--Even if they weren't, really. It was just the best place to ensure she could quickly get to either location without having to worry about time. The teleporters that were here could easily send her either place in a blink. Even if Blink herself was occupied elsewhere.

Lorna sits at the bar nursing a drink while taking occasional bites of a burger set beside her on a plate. Whether by design or simply circumstance she was currently alone other than the bartender who would check on occasion to see if she needed anthing else. A tablet is in one hand while she blindly reaches for her plate to snag another fry in between reading.

Cable has posed:
Nathan Summers a.k.a. Cable roams into the cafeteria. A new face but are fairly unforgettable one: white hair, glowing eye, metal armor, and a few holsters packing some very futuristic heat. A wardrobe part bodysuit, part harness complete with heavy duty combat boots. His stern countenance doesn't make him particularly approachable, but he already has a reputation suitable of the Brotherhood: he blew the head off a anti-mutant domestic terrorist.

Stepping up to a coffee station, he pours himself a cup. Realizing he's emptying the container, he does the civic thing and puts on another a fresh pot for the next late night caffeine drinker. Grabbing a couple of protein bars, he turns and makes his way to the bar. Leaning over it in somewhat near proximity to Lorna, he opens a bottle of whiskey and pours a finger into the black bean water.

Finally, he straddles the stool and glances toward the Queen of Genosha. He nods politely, offering a gruff voice, "Your majesty" before he sips his drink.

Lorna Dane has posed:
Lorna Dane had yet to see Cable around but then again she'd been very occupied lately with other matters. When the man joins her, greeting her in that way, she pauses to shift her gaze toward him while munching down on her fry. Which had long ago gone cold much to her displeased sigh. "Sorry, not you," she hastens to assure in case he gets the wrong idea. "Just let my fries go cold. Again. I must have lost track of time." A wan smile is offered over to the man as she acknowledges him with a proper nod followed with a, "Good evening. You don't have to call me that, Lorna suffices. And you are...? I don't believe I've seen you around before. Or, at least not that I immediately recall." Her eyebrows furrow together in a tense frown at herself. "I'm sorry I've been very scattered as of late with the opening of the embassy, working with the rebuilding, and ... other matters."

Cable has posed:
"I understand being scattered. You can call me Nathan, Nate or Cable. Short of it, I'm from the future. I'm stuck here, and some terrorists took a pot shot at my adopted daughter. So I've decided to join the 'mission'." He salutes her with the cup.

"We haven't met before, I just have a file on you. As you might expect, mutant royalty and any child of Erik has a way of... staying in the history books. Not that you haven't earned your own way into memory." He takes a long loud slurp.

"If I recall right... This is a very busy time for you. Rebuilding a society is tough work. How are you holding up?" His eye glows as he glances her direction.

Lorna Dane has posed:
"Ah... Cable. That name I have heard before," Lorna remarks with a thoughtful nod as she tucks the tablet back onto the tabletop for now. Instead she reaches over to slide her plate closer to herself to work on it more before it gets even colder. "Apparently it's not your first trip here. I recall hearing of another visit at the Xavier school before. And you must be speaking of Hope," she adds with a smile. That only slightly falters. "Hope Summers. So you're... Nathan Summers. Hm." This earns a thoughtful noise as she considers it further.

"So is it Scott or Alex you're related to?" It's asked subtly but with a certain hint of fishing as she takes a sip of her drink. "Ah, yes, extremely busy. There's so many helpers though I can't claim that it's all on me. It's mostly organizing and being the public face of things, where Erik cannot." Here she pauses to drum her fingernails on her glass. "I'm still being cautious after his last... issue."

Cable has posed:
Carefully putting his coffee cup down, "A version of Scott is my father. Time-travel being an overly complicated practice. There's technically no relation to the Scott you know. Though I do have an abnormally good guess of the quality of his and Jean's parenting skills."

"And yes, Hope is mine. Damn proud of that kid. Worth every drop of blood spilled and every robot turned to scrap." He muses patting one of his holstered pistols with his free hand.

"Don't blame you for being cautious. To be blunt, if there weren't significantly more dangerous and unstable forces that threaten this Earth. Your father might be high on my list of threats best neutralized. However... I would say he's capable of more good then bad. And you might imagine I'm not one to pick fights with masters of magnetism." He offers a stoic chuckle. "Promise that concern isn't the only reason I'm being polite though."

Lorna Dane has posed:
Lorna Dane lets out a small breath at mention of Scott being his father, only to offer over a far more relaxed smile. "Ah, I'm well aware of time travel, multiverse, and string theory. I can take a wager. Though to be fair I'm rather glad it wasn't Alex. I guess a part of me is still sore over our own past."

It's shrugged off without further explanation. Instead she finds herself grinning further at mention of Hope. "She is a rather remarkable person from all I know of her. And I can't really claim my father isn't a spot of contention for many. I understand that. He's given me plenty of headaches at times, too."

"I'm glad that's not the only reason for being polite," she adds with a quick laugh. "And yes, I can see that magnetism might be a small issue," she adds with her gaze dropping to his arm without any attempt to hide it. There was polite, and there was just ignoring the obvious. "That is a rather remarkable accessory though."

Cable has posed:
"Remarkable... sure. Though it's more of a cybernetic tumor desperately trying to infect the rest of my body." He raises the arm and flexes it. "It has its uses though. We all play the cards we are dealt."

"Glad people share the same view of Hope that I do. This moment in time is lucky to have her." There is another long sip from his mug before its set down empty.

"Guessing you had some kind of romantic entanglement with my would-be Uncle? I'll give you some advice, you probably already know. Summers men are all more trouble then they are worth. Sometimes I think we are natural born zealots. We get a thought in our head, and ignore everything else to exclusion. Worst kinds of assholes if its the wrong thought." He comments while opening the whiskey bottle again and pouring another finger into his mug.

Lorna Dane has posed:
Lorna Dane reaches out to pluck up the cherry that had adorned the edge of her own drink and until now been ignored. It's chomped on with a thoughtful 'hmm' of agreement at being more trouble than they're worth. "Oh, just a little. We were engaged until he left me for the telepath he'd been having an affair with while in a coma. Would have been nice if he'd told me this *before* our wedding date." With that she drops the cherry stem onto her plate with a little flick of her fingers. Her own glass is picked up to hold out toward him. "Top me off, would you?"

"That was years ago, as it is. We're on friendlier terms these days when we do run into one another. These days, I've got plenty of other things on my mind. Honestly, dwelling on that past is just ignoring what I ought to be doing." Her free hand taps the tablet she'd set down. "This isn't such a terrible task at least, just a difficult one. With the holidays coming up I'm trying to ensure that the children in Genosha get some suitable gifts. They've been through a lot and could use some fun."

Cable has posed:
Cable obliges her majesty by tilting the bottle until it clinks with the rim of her glass. He pours a finger's worth then tilts the bottle back. "Ouch. Sounds like he deserves a good hook to the jaw, but I guess its a good thing its behind you. You are certainly more forgiving then me."

He shakes his head and grunts before taking a sip of his whiskey that's now slightly coffee flavored. "That's a good task alright. Invest in those kids, because they have to unscrew all the damage you and your parents' generation have done to the planet."

Pausing, he adds, "Now that I'm implying you personally. Just... damn its not a good trajectory. Environment wise."

Lorna Dane has posed:
"You have no idea how much I wanted to punch him, but he didn't stick around long enough for that to happen. After a year or so?" Her shoulders rise and fall in a small shrug as if unable to articulate the rest. "Seems a bit late to do it at that point." The newly filled glass is raised with a nod of thanks, and drawn up for a little sip. Just a bit, not too much. She wasn't mixing hers with coffee after all.

"Oh my god, I can imagine. I'm a geologist, I can see things already happening. Genosha at least is being rebuilt to be as environmentally friendly as possible. Solar energy, geothermic, whatever we can manage while getting people back in proper housing as soon as possible."

It's here she pauses to regard Nathan quietly. "I know I shouldn't pry, but... Just how bad is it in your time? If you can offer any insight to help improve things, I'd be more than willing to listen."

Cable has posed:
Nate takes a deep breath and sights, pondering long and hard about that particular question. He stares forward then hums pensively looking at her once more, the eye glows a little brighter. "It's complicated. There's already elements of this timeline that are different then the records I have access to. In some ways, -very- different. I can offer this much... if the humans succeed in expelling everything that seems 'greater' then they... and they continue on their current geopolitical path. The damage to the atmosphere raises the acidity of the ocean until its almost dead. The war to purge those like us leaves the land ravaged, because we don't go down easy."

He looks down into his cup, "It's a wasteland. Without advanced technology, the whole damn planet would already be dead. Those of us who survive, do so as small clans... violently protecting our interests."

Frowning, he drains his cup. "It's not a good picture. As for insight, defend mutant kind... use the best of us to save the planet, but be ready to purge the worst of us."

Lorna Dane has posed:
Lorna Dane watches, and listens attentively to the way he responds to such a question. It was a tough one she imagines. It's not as if there was ever one single reason some event in the past happened--usually it was a chain of events building upon one another. Having some insight into what to expect, or what to consider as a possibility though, was still helpful. "Mmm," she responds non-commitally after it all.

The glass is set down to pluck up the tablet again which she thumbs over a list of items. "Right. So, adding in STEM kits and science toys as well as stuffed animals, action figures, and art supplies." It's here she offers another lopsided grin. "I'll certainly keep that in mind of course. I know the future may not be the same, but there's no reason not to try and provide as good a starting point as we can for future generations. We've been rather lax in the past several in that regard, I think."

Cable has posed:
He offers a faint grin and nods to her. "Not a bad idea. Human ingenuity really did a number on the planet, but its probably the best chance for undo'ing it. So do you best to inspire the next Doctor Richards or other super genius."

"Is it wrong to send children micro-brewing kits? Because I've got to tell you, the beer in the future is horrible. One of the best parts of the past so far has been the booze." There is another low chuckle as he drains his cup then sets it down.

Organic hand and techno hand both pressing into the bar, he pushes himself up onto his feet. "I've got a soft spot for kids and the people who take good care of them. You call me in if you ever need a hand with unsavory types. Not that you don't have others, or couldn't do it yourself."

He considers for a moment, "Try not to do your own dirty work, Lorna. Let those of us with hardened scarred hearts. That's another piece of insight. Keep yourself whole so you can help lead that new generation. Make them something great. Something... up to the task."

Turning on his boot heel, he starts to return from the direction he came.

Lorna Dane has posed:
Lorna Dane considers that a moment only to nod again. There was a lot to take in from this conversation. A lot to consider. The last earns a weak grin. "What kind of leader isn't willing to do what's necessary though?" She tried. She wasn't great at it. So far she hadn't been the one to make those decisions, but she had been aware of them. A single nod is given, and she calls out, "Thank you. Have a good night, Nathan."