Escape from New York

[Seer]

<< Time goes by so slowly/Time is fleeting. the stepping disc carries them forward and through. >>

<< MONTHS have passed since Ava and Alison fell into Limbo and were shunted across time and space. So much has happened.>>

<< They fell into a time , a place gripped by an apocolypse. Following the events of Bishop, Arklay Mansion and the exposure of the Six, Humans and Mutants took arms up against each other and everyone in between from metahumans to witches was caught in the cross fire.>>

<<In this timeline New York is ground zero, Sentinels rule and partol the land, the government has become a military gestapo with the alternate DELILAH TRELEVAN being the commander in chief of the military strike force. the alternate NICOLAS KING is now a psychic HOUND, conditioned into the service of the government to track down mutants and non psi screened metahumans. he has done his job well as dozens of mutants...men , women and CHILDREN are flushed out and cut down.>>

<< in this timeline, Karen, Mike, Blaze, Cameron, Alexis and many other friends and family of the six are DEAD. Morgan is unaccounted for, Haleigh has been captured, Alycia is unaccounted for, Sharon is unaccounted for and MAINSTREAM Ava and Alison have been in captivity now for months...having been overwhelmed by the sheer technological might and well coordinated onslaught of the government strike force and sentinels.>>


<< individuality is lost, identity and dignity are stripped as both women have been interrogated, tortured and have had their heads SHAVEN....flashes of white lights, screams and sirens as visions of Alison screaming while strapped to an exam table can be heard. her blue/black hair is shaved away, her body is poked, proded and bombarded by instruments and other energy. a black lotus blossom has been attacked to her neck via a power supression collar, neutralizing her access to her magick.>>

<< they've taken MORE time to torture Alison, as her doppleganger in this timeline was instrumental in the initial resistance against the anti mutant movement, as well as the earlier strikes against mystech. Ava is now bald as well, but has not been subjected to as much scrutiny...not YET.>>

<< Alexis is deprived of sensory input, having been placed in a stasis tank most of the time and then thrown into a dungeon where she can hear the echos of Alison's screams and the sounds of torture. all around her she sees the skeletons of long dead prisoners. the dungeon itself is dark...pitch black with no possible indication of where it ends or begins. she too is wearing a power supression collar and has been stripped down to nothing more than a medical robe.>>

<< it has been MONTHS since they arrived here and its gotten to the point where even SHE begins to wonder if her friends...from HER timeline will come for her. maybe they cant...maybe they've already been killed? there's no way of knowing. she's been kept disoriented and off balance for so long now...all that keeps her grounded to her senses is the fact that ALISON is still alive and in great pain.>>

 

[Persephone]

:: Months had passed....but it felt like years. Day after day the screams of Alison plagued Ava...her begging and pleading...her voice growing horse from the strain. Then the silence...that deafening silence. THAT was what broke Ava down every single time for the sheer fact she didn't know whether Alison had finally been tortured to death or not. It wasn't until that blinding white light of hope when the guards opened her cell door to throw Alison back in, that kept Ava going. Not the six....not her friends...she had given up on them ever coming to rescue them. ::

:: Ava herself had been tortured pretty brutally as well, but not to the extreme that Alison had been. Everything was strategic to these people....they wanted to break Alison down physically and Ava down mentally. And after four months, it was working. ::

:: The goddess was reduced to nothing but skin and bones. She wasn't fed once since her capture, and when they would give her a meal, it was because she was on the verge of starving to death. 'Just a little bit to keep you going', as they would put it so nicely. She lived in a concrete cell with temperatures dropping to the low thirties every evening. With only a thin cotton medical gown and little to no body fat, there were many nights where she thought she wouldn't survive to the next day. Everything here was like the second coming holocost. Mutants, witches, metahumans, and anyone who helped them were treated like animals. Tested on and tortured. Butchered and tossed away like an after thought. These people only sought out new ways to gain power [from the mutants/witches they captured] and use it for their own weapons and 'experiements'. ::

:: Laying in the fetal position on the damp concrete floor, Ava's eyes were closed, but it was too painful to sleep. The skin around the metal power supression collars that was attached to her neck had become infected, and her body ached as it rested uncomfortably on the hard floor. Everything in the room was pitch black....the only light ever entering the space was when the door opened and she was either taken out to the lab or Alison was dropped back off. It gave the goddess no preseption of time or how long she had been there. ::

:: Hearing the latches of the door being pulled open, Ava slowly began to open her eyes as the gaurds entered. The light burned her retina's causing her to squint. She couldn't make much of anything out....but she could tell that Alison wasn't there, which only meant they had come for her. ::

Gaurd: 'Rise and shine, Miss Cassadine!'

:: The two gaurds roughly picked Ava up from the floor; her body to weak to support itself. ::

Gaurd: 'Time for a nice relaaaxing day at the spa...'

:: Both the gaurds laughed as they drug Ava out of her cell, heading to one of the numerous testing labs that she had been tortured in before. ::

Gaurd: 'Your friend's dead....so now we're going to have a little fun with you.'

:: The gaurds had absolutely no regard for life....they ENJOYED every moment of this and it showed. Shutting her eyes tightly, Ava could feel the tears welling in her eyes as they said Alison was dead. Honestly...at this point, Ava didn't know if it was the truth or not. She hadn't seen Alison for what seemed like days....and the last time she saw her she was thrown into their cell, unconscious. Every day it was like these people mentally RAPED Ava and she didn't know how much more she could handle. ::

:: The gaurds strapped Ava down to a metal medical bed that resembled a cross [arms out to the side]. Her breathing became labored as she rolled her head to the side, trying to shield her eyes from the blinding light positioned above her. ::

Gaurd: 'Aw...she's scared.'

:: The gaurd ran his hand up the outside of Ava's thigh, moving to her inner as he reached the hem of her gown. ::

"GET OFF ME YOU SON OF A BITCH!"

:: Screaming out with what strength she had left, Ava thrashed causing both gaurds to laugh with amusement. The gaurd who had been touching her pinned her down [which didn't take much effort] and grabbed her face with his hand roughly. ::

Gaurd: 'What's wrong sweetheart?! Hadn't had a man in a while? A little nervous? Don't worry, i'll be gentle!''

:: Crying out, just as the gaurd was about to continue the doctor entered the room, ordering the men out. With shakey breaths, the gaurd forcefully pushed Ava's face away before winking at her and leaving. The doctor showed no concern for what had happened; he simply walked around to his medical tray, grabbing a needle full of green liquid before injecting Ava casually with it. ::

Doctor: 'Today we will be testing your pain threshold...'

 

[MorningStar]

Now fully healed thanks to Ororo, Delilah passed once again through the stepping disc and into a new timeline with the others. Their landing felt jarring - and not just physically. It was as if they stepped into a nightmare, more horrible than all the other timelines they had been through so far. The shock of their new surroundings made even more so by the peacefulness they had left.

Sirens and searchlights penetrate the eerie half darkness of the oncoming dawn. This was - even at that first glance - a New York City under siege. Delilah half hoped they wouldn't find Alison and Ava here, that they were in some other timeline than this, some better timeline. But if they were here...

The four of them needed to find their counterparts, and soon.

 

[Harbinger]

which way is up?

::they had started off fighting with bravery and finesse but after after a while, Harbinger and Persephone were overwhelmed by the sheer force of numbers and high end technology that assaulted them as they TRIED to escape and regroup in this timeline.::

:: MONTHS had past since their capture. they'd been torn away from each other with Ava powerless to do anything as Alison was tortured, probbed and prodded.::

:: by now, Alison had become almost NUMB to the pain , the white hot feeling of probing and violation as the scientists of Mystech, backed by government sanction, attempted to "experiment" on the woman. Wanting to unlock the genetic code for "magick" in the hopes of replicating it. in this timeline, Alison Marble was CRUCIAL in marshalling the mutants and metahumans to stand bravely in the face of sentinels, psychic hounds and other horrors unleashed upon them by their government. ::

:: Mainstream ALISON was now experiencing the horror they had instore for her alternate.::

:: screams, hallucinations, weaving in and out of consciousness....a runaway train of loss of control and Alison could not GET OFF no matter how she tried. her powers were no longer available to her courtesy of the deadly fumes of the black lotus blossom, the only known agent capable of totally neutralizing a magick user. her silky blue/black hair had been shaven off and several scars from where tubes had been inserted into her head now remained. her body was bruised, stiff and subject to sudden spasms, thanks to a seemingly endless battery of tests and other tortures.::

:: by the time she was thrown into the dungeon and they went to retrieve Ava, Alison was barely conscious, too delirious to cry anymore...lost in a fog of pain and disorientation. it was Ava's turn now...they had long since seperated the two and kept them just barely apart...teasing them with the possibility that they could at least endure this nightmare together.::


:: by now, Alison had lost sight of hope that her friends from mainstream would find her. she could barely distinguish that this was not HER reality anymore.::

......

:: she lay on her side...on the floor...her cobalt blue eyes were now looking glased and involuntarily watering...or was she crying? her body trembled ever so slightly.::

:: who watches the SEER in her darkest hour?::

:: she had NO idea that her friends had FINALLY arrived in this timeline and that help, salvation could possibly be on the way.::

 

[Black Widow]

Haleigh steps forth slowly..... still reticent.... still a little disoriented. Malice had done some real work on her... She'd blacked out and when she woke up.... Nicolas was helping her walk at Aerie... they stopped to watch a reunion of some sorts.... Haleigh looked pained but for a different reason. She was dizzy, her head has its own pulse and she wanted desperately to sit down... to SLEEP... but she forced herself to remain standing.... her whole body ached... whatever she'd been doing during her blackout... she had used a LOT of her energy reserves and she was inexplicably exhausted. She searched her own memory bank for an explanation... but even the fighting she'd been doing before wouldn't tax her in such a manner to leave her feeling this way... she resigned to ignorance... she'd have to ask Nicolas what happened... but for now... she tried to recuperate, as she watched the Karen, Gustav, Sharon, Alexis, and this timeline's remaining Six reunite....

And then they were gone. A stepping disc puts Haleigh, Nicolas, Mike and a revived Delilah back in New York.... Haleigh feels only slightly better... but she knows they need as much information about where they are as they can get, and so she softly closes her eyes and searches for answers. When she finally speaks, her voice is low... just above a whisper.

"This is the timeline our Alison and Ava fell into... I have a fix on their DNA signatures.... they are being held in a government compound. My alternate has also been captured. Alternates Alycia and Sharon are nowhere to be found. Alternates Karen and Mike are on a long list of casualties. Alternate Delilah..... [opening her eyes to look at Delilah] is the commander of the Military Strike Force. [looking to Nicolas with a pained expression] Alternate Nicolas is a psychic hound. We need to get somewhere safe immediately. I will cloak our DNA signatures from electronic detection but if we're spotted..."

She didn't need to finish... they all knew what would happen.

"A secondary priority is to find Alycia or Sharon. We've got our work cut out for us.... They've dropped off the face of the earth."

 

[Seer]

close at hand

<< Black Widow, still feeling the residual effects and haunting feeling left behind by Malice's telepathic RAPE of her psyche, pulled herself together as best she could. with Rampage's help and a boost from Ororo before the weather witch disappeared again, the hybrid was nearly "ok" and able to function at high levels.>>

<< the mainstreams had endured a nightmare in their last timeline but it ended on a beautifull note, one that the mainstreams might have hoped for in their own timeline's similar sequence of events. but everything happens for a reason.>>

<< in THIS timeline, where destruction and terror reigned, the group hurried to find cover in St. Patrick's Cathedral of all places. the church stood strong amongst the chaos and carnage around it and it had remained largely unchanged. even in this time of war and genocide, people still had respect for churches....a small comfort for the mainstreams as they had a moment to assess their surroundings.>>

<< speaking of Sharon and Alycia, they would find ONE of them much easier than they thought...as they heard an "eagle" like cry in the skies outside.>>

a large group of well armed, well trained soldiers, lead by none of ther than this timeline's Delilah aka "the Justicer" were coming down the street. Delilah was holding a chain and at the END of it, was a well toned, large black male....NICOLAS, but in this timeline, his face and chest were tattooed and he was clearly NOT using his higher brain functions. he was a psychic hound and reacting rather STRONGLY as he lead the way to their quarry.

<< right outside of the church, Delilah beams a spotlight on their pray, who was in mid movement. The SILVER SWAN, who was now a wanted fugitive...wanted DEAD OR ALIVE. She was a mutate of high order, one that had openly defied registration, and committed acts of treason and terrorism against the government on behalf of herself and mutants , mutates and metahumans. she was one of several who survived the onslaught of sentinels and psychic hounds that had exterminated MANY , including past members of the six and their allies.>>

<< but NOW, The Silver Swan was seemingly CAUGHT by the glare of justice as the psychic hound was salivating at the chance to attack her. the mainstreams saw Sharon, who looked taller, and was wearing a silver eye mask to match her silver adamantium armoured bodice and boots. her blonde hair had silver streaks and she looked beautifull as ever. two large, silver gryfalcons were perched above her ...the birds Nicolas had given her! they were still with her inspite of all this. >>


The Justicer: we've GOT her, boys. the hound earned his keep once again. her quasi psi screen was not enough to mask her from the hound's uniquely honed tracking ability.

<< Delilah seemed thrilled that they had cornered Sharon. >>

The Justicer: we can do this one of two ways, mutate. You can get on your knees and HOPE for a quick execution on the spot, or you can TRY to fight and give me a reason to burn a hole through your pretty little head with my LASER!

<< the hound growled and lunged, but Delilah kept him suitably restrained.>>

 

[Silver Swan]

outside the cathedral

[ Sharon was hardened in this timeline. She had moments where she seemed to "zone out" but that was no less unusal than any of the alternates or the MAINSTREAM version of Sharon. it was apparently a lingering effect of her transformation.]

[ still, this Sharon seemed battle ready more so than an of her other cross time counterparts, even wearing an eye mask to further mystify her identity to most. as "the justicer" and her small army and the hound closed in on her, she hardly noticed that she was facing them outside the same church where she had been married, her son had been christened, and where she madly attacked Haleigh and innocent by standers after her wild resurrection.]

You traitorous piece of TRASH!

[ she spat at Delilah.]

I don't bow down to YOU or ANYONE ELSE! I WON my freedom...and I will NOT SURRENDER! YOU'RE the one whose going to DIE!

[ as Delilah beamed a spotlight on her, Sharon didnt flinch. her gryfalcons remained perched in a tree high above.]

I survived your sentinels....I've KILLED other hounds that came for me and Alycia...

[ an indication that Alycia was still alive at some point]

and i'll KILL THIS ONE...if only to FREE HIM from this HELL you've imprisoned him in...you.....SELL OUT!

[ Sharon knew it was Nicolas..but she COULDNT allow herself to focus on him. He was the next best thing to a step son at one point...and he'd been so kind to her after her return from the dead...and now THIS! Morgan had disappeared during the initial "Operation Zero Tolerance" and Karen had died....Nicolas was captured and turned into THIS THING. It was MORE than Sharon, even in her current form, could bare, but just like she had liberated her SON, she would do the same for HIM or she'd DIE trying.]

You want me!? COME AND GET ME!

[ and with that, Sharon squares off, ready to fight to the DEATH.]

 

[Seer]

grudge

<< the Silver Swan versus MorningStar and her army and one of the best psychic hounds. It didnt seem to be a fair fight...but as the mainstreams watched....the men came first.>>

<< Sharon's speed made her blur as she dodged the first volley of bullets and plasma blasts, she deflected some of the projectiles with her adamantium armoured arms ala' Wonder Woman. then the men attempted to overwhelm her physically. her MARTIAL ARTS skills in this timeline were amazing! she had been trained by Haleigh and Nicolas during her time with the Six and she laid WASTE! KILLING without hesitation before finally she spread her arms and began to spin around "wonder woman style", transforming into a white funnel of wind as she unleashes her spinning stars. several of them crash through the stained glass windows of the catherdral! she SLAUGHTERS the remaining men as she spins across them and continues toward Nicolas and Delilah. the sickening sound of body parts being torn apart, blood and bone fragments splattering and gurgling screams of men can be heard as the Silver Swan creates carnage.>>

<< the Justicer manifests a laser shield of her own that VAPORZIES or deflects most of the projectiles while the hound's own high level of invulnerability allows him to take damage before.>>

Delilah aka Justicer: HOUND! TAKE HER DOWN and make SURE she's FLAT LINED. we'll ship her body to the DEAD FACTORY and be done with her!

<< and with that, she UNLEASHES Nicolas against Sharon. the hound leaps for her with animal lust and ferocity but as the mainstreams watch, Sharon charges for HIM like a bird of prey as well. Nicolas is bigger than Sharon and while she can lift/press 50 tons as the Silver Swan...he still retains his class 100 strength. her only advantages are her supreme invulnerability that make her nearly indestructable, her SPEED which is beyond any earth/human based level and perhaps her most powerfull weapon, her SONIC SCREAM.>>

<< for the mainstream, to see DELILAH working GLADLY on the side of the government, HOUNDING her own kind, USING one of her former teammates as little more than a super powered SLAVE, its hardly a pleasant thing to watch. Some of them might even secretly hope that this timeline's Sharon SUCCEEDS in killing Delilah. but the possibility that Sharon, even in this form could be hurt , MAIMED or killed by the hound looms in the air as well.>>

 

[Rampage]

Nicolas could sense Haleigh wondering about what had occurred, but he hesitated to tell her just yet, hoping to find a better time. They arrived in a time that was truly dark emotionally, as he could sense all around him. Haleigh gave her report, and he could see that pain that she felt about his fate here. He had already taken stock of it and let it go, to a degree until...

He sensed his alternate and took measures to shield them, a simple task for what remanined of himself in this time. He was a slobbering MONGREL, a shadow of what he would have EVER hoped to be in a ny timeline. The chain and the connotations that it had for him as a person of African descent were yet another affront, and he struggled to stay subjective as the scene unfolded, although it was surreal to watch his teammate that stood RIGHT BESIDE HIM handle him in this timeline as one might a dog.

Sharon defied them valiantly and he could see her sorrow at his alternate's fate even as she she spoke hatred to this time's Delilah. She laid waste to her human attackers (you go girl!!) but then Delilah set his alternate upon her, and she valiantly joiined him in battle. She wa smighty indeed in this timeline but he knew what he was capable of, and he knew that this THING knew no restaint. The gyrfalcons he had given her stood silent sentry as he decided to act.

Mike, take out the trash.

Nicolas the hound was savagely struck with the axe Nicolas swung it after teleporting between it and Sharon. He then manifested a force blast of several dozen tons strength to push him back haphazardly as he spoke quickly to Sharon while he had a moment. He knew he was taking a chance and so he prepared for anything especially her sonic attack by readying to teleport if need be.

I am from another time, sent to help you. I know it's hard to believe, but you can kill me after we deal with THEM if you don't believe me.

Additionally, he confused the remaining soldiers, making them as dangerous to each other as they were to the metahumans before them. Roaring primally, he teleported again, attacking the hound with physical , mental and telekinetic force...

 

[Silver Swan]

confusion

[ the moment of truth was at hand. She was prepared to DIE but at least she would DIE fighting, and FREE. after this...perhaps she'd see her son again...maybe Robert...or even Gustav in the afterlife...perhaps THIS time she'd get to STAY dead but if nothing else she would die trying to FREE Nicolas of this horrid existence he'd been programmed into.]


[ that moment never came, for a large AXE appeared...causing her to fall back with a start. ANOTHER man appeared, it was ...]

NICOLAS!?

[ she exclaimed, and even from behind her silver eye mask...there was a look of extreme confusion in her eyes as this man attacked HIMSELF forcing him back. Sharon was more than a little dismayed.]

I don't UNDERSTAND! what is this!?

I am from another time, sent to help you. I know it's hard to believe, but you can kill me after we deal with THEM if you don't believe me.

[ the Silver Swan looked upon this young man...she'd seen SO MANY OTHER things happen that she never dreamed possible in this timeline, but with Alison missing and Morgan having disappeared long ago, there had been LITTLE in the way of MAGICK for her to face. but this man...he stepped in with a HELPING hand and even left himself open to her violent response if she had one. whoever he was, he HAD to be telling the truth, or some version of it. the gryfalcons cried out as the Justicer took "aim" at the two...her hands clasped in a "dazzler" gun pose. ]


....I.... LOOK OUT!

[too late! even as the hound was sent sprawling across the street and into a building. Rampage AND Silver Swan were hit by a broad beamed PHOTON BLAST. the PHOTON blast had JUST as much power as Rampage's force blast and moved at the SPEED OF LIGHT, sending both Rampage and Silver Swan FLYING up into the air and slamming THROUGH the tree where the gryfalcons had just been sitting. Delilah, in this timeline was MUCH more ruthless with her powers and it showed. that photon blast would have punched a hole through a battle tank! but Sharon and Rampage were LUCKY their physical constitutions allowed them to SURVIVE this shot.]

 

[Arsenal]

Mike was amazed, simply amazed as the woman he had feverishly worked on was all better, just like that. He was becoming more accustomed to dealing with the Six and the others, but they still managed to kleave him in awe at times. Besides, he enjoyed taking another innocent look at ororo. She was Nic' foster somewhat mother, but NOT his. He took a look as long as he dared and turned to the scene to see...Gustav. He was visibly moved as he saw his old friend and employer again. His faith in him had helped make him a better man than he was, and despite what he had lost, he wa sgrateful to the old man for wha the had GAINED. He quickly wiped his face before they moved...

to an even bigger hellhole than before. Haleigh gave them the sordid rundown, and he was about to suggest taking a car to hide when the DELILAH walked up with a punk-assed army and Nicolas on a chain looking like a cross between Kunta Kinte and a rabid Old Yeller. He quickly glared a hole into the side of her head and disappeared, taking a higher vantage point as the scene unfolded. Sharon kicked ass, maybe even good enough to kick his ass WITHOUT powers, and he smiled a bit as he thought THIS Delilah might get hers. Then she sicced Nicolas on him and he could barely look as his young friend snarled toward the mutate. Nicolas "spoke" to him he was already at work, picking off the backup snipers in the buildings surrounding and hitting a car gas tank here or there to create havoc in order to further confuse the enemy. He was cloaked and used his silencer, constantly moving, not too keen on taking more damage just yet...

Delilah hit the pair with the biggest light show he had ever seen. It sent them sprawling and he had to stop himself from jumping near them. He knew that they both would get up, and he had to trust that he could do what was needed here, at least for NOW.

 

[Seer]

withdraw for now

<< Delilah was FAR from powerless. an excellent tactician in her own right, the woman posessed considerable fire power of her own and was clearly not afraid to use it, as she sent Rampage and Silver Swan flying into the air with the force of a run away wrecking ball.>>

Justicer: Interference will get you KILLED, whoever you are. You've just outed yourself as a mutant AND aiding a fugitive from justice which means you will SHARE her fate.



<< the hound, disoriented from being repelled so violently. struggled to regain his footing as Delilah opened a worm hole as she radios the compound where Alison and Ava are being held. >>

the justicer: this is Justicer Trelevan. We've got an anamoly of sorts here. possibly magickal in nature, which means Spellbinder may not be as "gone as we thought. I'm returning to base. the hound needs a medic and I'm going to need a set of CLEANERS to deal with the Silver Swan and her new found playmates.

count on this SHARON, I found you once, I'll do it again. Each battle you give us, gives us DATA on your skills and tactics. we WILL be prepared to EXTERMINATE YOU and anyone HELPING YOU next time.

<< and with that, Justicer Trelevan evacatues through the wormhole, taking Nicolas the hound with her and leaving the Silver Swan and her new found rescuers outside the church in the dark of night.>>

 

[Rampage]

He prepared to 'port even as Sharon started to speak. She yelled a warning, far too late to dodge, but he did raise some shield as he grabbed her to shield her from the brunt of the blast. He could "feel" his shield cracking the FAILING, and the pressure came to them in a rush.

Dear God...does everybody take metahuman steroids in these fucking timelines?!! Like slam dancing with a TRAIN...

They went through the tree and landed in a thud. Delilah was talking as Nicolas looked up, time already fleeting, and started to give THIS Delilah a MUCH worse taste of what HIS DELILAH endured in Darkchilde's realm. He had no sooner reached out to her mind than she disappeared, leaving them in the dark. He turned back to the Silver Swan...

You alright Sharon? They will be back soon, I am sure of it.

 

[Silver Swan]

moments of uncertainty

[ the photon blast hit her like the force of a wave! but Rampage did his best to shield her. they both went flying as they were bathed in the pink hot light.]

[ the force winded the mutate but Rampage held on to her to keep her safe. as Delilah threatened them matter of factly and disapeared into her worm hole, Sharon sneered.]

I'll be WAITING!

[ the justicer disappeared and Rampage asked Sharon if she was oky...she immediately PULLED away from him and was breathing rather heavily, still running high on adrenalin and hightened anxiety and she wasnt QUITE sure just WHOM she was talking to at this moment.]


who...WHAT!?

[ she looked at the cathedral which she was now laying in front of...]

I need to go inside...under cover...ive been flying for HOURS...and i'm a little tired.

[ and as she walked inside...she gasped AGAIN...to see HALEIGH who shouldve been on lock down and DELILAH!]

YOU! you and your DAMNED HOLOGRAMS! I'll SHOW YOU!

[ she reaches /lunges for mainstream Delilah...intending to CHOKE HER TO DEATH!]

 

[MorningStar]

The scene unfolding around them was shocking to say the least. Here they were presented with - not in the bodies of - their cross time alternates. Nicolas jumped gung ho into the battle before them.

So much for the universe imploding when two alternates meet up...

Delilah watched her alternate viciously go after Sharon, AND using Nicolas to do it. What had happened here that had turned them against each other. Why was she working with the military. Questions flooded her mind but without any answers as the battle unfolded. Her alternate's expanded use of her powers intrigued her, she had to admit. This was what they could be if she used them without restraint or reservation.

She stood inside the cathedral with Haleigh, watching as Sharon entered, preparing to greet her. But all too quickly Silver Swan turned on her, coming after her. Delilah used her super speed to evade quickly to the side. She held up her hands in a placating gesture.

"Sharon! Hang on a second - think about it. Two Nicolas...two of each of us. We're not from this time. Please, give us a moment to explain..."

 

[Rampage]

Nicolas stepped forward as Sharon lunged, careful not to appear on the attack but manuevering to cut off the mutate.

Sharon, she is also from another time. I understand your anger considering the circumstances, but this Delilah has done nothing wrong...to you. Please listen, we need to figure out how to proceed next.

Nicolas was hoping that he would have a shot at reaching the Silver Swan. It was obvious that she had been hurt emotionally here in a bad way, but he was hoping that the same emotion she had for THAT thing-that-once-was-Nicolas would help them here...

 

[Arsenal]

Mike paced impatiently as the people before him spoke. He did not care personally what Sharon did to Delilah, but her abilities would be needed in the hours a head so he was SOMEWHAT glad to see Nicolas intervene.

We are going to have to get on the move. I don't know what "cleaners" are, but it does not sound good.

Referring to the entities this timeline's Delilah mentioned before departing...

 

[Silver Swan]

the cathedral

[ as fast as the Silver Swan was due to her mutated status, MorningStar was even faster...LIGHT SPEED fast. this OTHER Nicolas got in the way...and Sharon huffed with annoyance...hitting him in the chest , not with full full force not to HURT him, but just because she was so CONFUSED and FRUSTRATED and this was the SECOND time this man had gotten in her way.]

ANOTHER TIMELINE!? what good does that do ME?

[ she spun around...and moved away from the wall toward the center aisle of the sanctuary....she breathed heavily a bit...but she seemed to be calming herself down. ]

...you're from another time. i havent heard phrases like that since Morgan and Alison were alive and well. That's why I'm here...I came BACK to rescue my friends, Alycia, Alison and Haleigh.

[ she looked back at them. they clearly WERE from somewhere else because they didnt know exactly what was going on. they werent holograms either.]

well...after the government sanctioned "operation zero tolerance"...most of my friends..."The Six" were killed along with scores of other people. many past members and allies were hunted down as well. Morgan disappeared after the attack on Illustra. We don't know WHAT became of her to this day...neither us, NOR mystech. Alison, Haleigh, Alycia and myself...we helped mutants that were resisting the sentinels and the hounds. our goal was to escape to CANADA and regroup there but along the way....in an underground passage, we...were FOUND by the TRI SENTINEL who was dispatched to hunt down "the list" of strongest/most dangerous mutants, mutates, witches, metahumans...WHATEVER

Haleigh was captured....Alison, Alycia and myself were seperated in the PANIC. many more died...but I survived...and I've come BACK to find Alycia, Alison and the others so we can ESCAPE this place together. news feeds from around the world are saying that other nations are consideirng nuclear strikes against america. they dont want the sentinels coming to THEIR land to attack their people...mutant or not. Mystech is more powerfull...more dangerous than President BUSH ever was.

[ Sharon sat down in a pew....finally giving in to the exhaustion that she'd been fighting for hours.]

Delilah ...the Delilah that I know...she's been HELPING them...the killers! Ever since Bishop at Arklay...when i KILLED HIM before he could kill ME! She's spoke of her own kind as a MENACE. She called ME a MONSTER. She didnt even CARE that it was MY SON that i had gone to the mansion for...that I was going to KILL him if only to FREE HIM of his pain and suffering. SHe never had a child...she never understood my pain. ALL SHE CARED ABOUT was that HORRID MAN! He tried to kill me once BEFORE and she didnt care. That's when Morgan and Alison BANISHED her from Illustra.

and then...she sold her friends, her team, me, alycia...ALL of us out. she played in INTREGAL role in the passage of the mutant control act in exchange for becoming the "chief superhuman liason" to the government.

She PERSONALLY requested the Nicolas from THIS timeline to be her hound. She wanted to use him as psychological warfare against me and others she was tracking down. Now she has no one else left to kill...I'm the LAST ONE!

I...I'm ALL ALONE...just like i was at ARKLAY.

[she covered her face with her adamantium armoured hands.]

I don't even know if i my Alison, Alycia or Haleigh are dead of alive...

[ the gryfalcons were now inside as well, perched high above and keeping silent watch over Sharon and the strangers. Mike spoke of them moving. ]


"Cleaners" are mutates who are designed for combat. She wont be able to use them until she PHYSICALLY "checks them out". It'll be a while before they come back and by then...we'll be somewhere else. I remember all the underground passages....Haleigh taught them to me and Alison.

 

[Rampage]

Nicolas looked as Sharon punched him in frustration. It was just a tap and he ignored it while he watched her with a concerned expression as he let her vent. As she spoke of Delilah requesting im as her hound, he looked quickly at her in a pained expression that quickly faded. He had no more time to be hurt or upset. There was work to be done. He spoke after she was finished.

It seems that we all have people to retrieve. Our time's Alison and Ava are here as well, and we intend to retrieve them and put things right here. But for now, unless there is an objection or better idea, let's make ourselves scarce.

Nicolas looked up to the pair of gyrfalcons. Animals knew even better than humans when things were wrong (or right) and the pair recognized him as the nicolas the KNEW before. they fluttered over to his outstretched hand as he held them for Sharon, deciding that underground was no place for them to fly...

 

[Seer]

going underground

<< and with that...with the mainstreams processing the bleak scenario that Sharon has painted, they join the alternate silver swan as she moves silently through the massive cathedral. she notes that this will be one of their safe havens since none of the violence that has raged has touched the church so far.>>

<< as they move to the office of the chaplin, where in mainstream time, the silver swan brutally murdered the staff, Sharon easily shoves a large bookcase aside, revealing a secret passage. MorningStar lights the way as the make their way below ground.>>

<< the passage is close but soon they have to slide down a slope and are now in a catacomb like system FAR below ground where the MORLOCKS used to live. Sharon tells them that only the strongest, fastest and smartest of metahumans, mutants, witches and the like have been able to survive. many have fled to canada and are too terrified to return, but she...she CANT leave Alison, Alycia and Haleigh behind...and she HAS to "deal with" Nicolas.>>

<< Sharon seems brave, but beneath her armour and her obvious STRONGER mental status in this timeline, the woman is tettering on the edge of a breakdown...Nicolas and Haleigh both can detect the stress that she tries to keep in check. But WHO COULD remain "in tact" after having endured a trauma like this?>>

meanwhile back at the heavily fortified government compound:

<< flashing lights, raging machines and shadowed figures preside over PERSEPHONE. Like Harbinger, she too has been stripped of her hair...in her case, the chocolate brown locks that were her crown and glory. She wore a similar "medical" frock which left little covered. Months had passed. The goddess and the witch had been broken down in ways that neither thought imaginable, but in this time....mutant/metahuman genocide was the name of the game and with mystech now backed by the government...anything was possible.>>

<< from Ava, they sought to test the limits of her resistance to poison, introducing her to a VARIETY of plant and animal based toxins. she had taken on a much more pale appearence and was starting to show signs of "plant like" mutation as her body desperately tried to ward off the brutal experimentation.>>

<< the doctor...a revived and reconstituted James Marcus, whose face was hidden behind a contouring facial mask (to hide his bizarre synergy with the zombiefied leaches from Arklay Mansion) pushed on with Ava just as he had done Alison, treating them as glorified lab rats rather than humans. he referred to them as IT's...ignoring their pain, their body's violent reactions...he was BEYOND mad himself, devoid of human compassion on any level as he himself was hardly "human"...having died MANY moons ago when Malice ordered his assassination and then a decade later been revived through a bizarre synergy of the G Virus, the original leeches that were the first living organisms infected with that virus. he SURVIVED his confrontation with Silver Swan when she busted into Arklay Mansion to find her son. and now, thanks to technology and cybertronics, he was "almost himself" through and through again. the irony that many of mystech's operations were carried out by mutants, meta humans or something "OTHER" than merely human was not lost on those who saw the bigger picture.>>


<< something ODD began to happen across the compound...a POWER FLUX of some kind. it cascaded through the various levels and rooms of the compound even down to the dungeons and execution chambers. swivel monitors on the walls, cameras, and sensors all flickered and fluxed as well...the WAVE of distortion seemed to be coordinated but there were no INTRUDERS detected.>>

<< suddenly a voice cam over the sound system. a cool, elegant, female's voice, summoning James Marcus and "other commanding officers" to the War Room. Guards took Ava back to the dungeon, throwing her in, next to a barely conscious Alison. it was the first time the two women had been together in ages...and in both of their battered states it ws hardly a reunion to be enjoyed. they were once again in total darkness....with only the faintest mournfull breeze or the sound of dripping water to peirce the swallowing silence.>>

<< the commanding officers, including Delilah, arrived in the sleek, hightech control room of the fortified compound, wondering who had used the computer to summon them. once there...without warning. the room was SEALED from all entrances. the sliding doors, which were several inches THICK and made of carbonium steel were now frozen and LOCKED. the COMPUTER itself would not respond to ANYONE's commands no matter whose level of authorization. the camera's slowly moved and weaved ,turning to focus on all targets and immediately gaining their identity, dna sequence, and other vital information.>>

<< what happened next was even more unexpected>>

<< a LASER TRAP....a grid of white hot, highly focused, LASER BEAMS in a grid flickered into view from various points along the wall and began to sweep across the room! SLICING UP /VAPORIZING many members of Mystech's high command the United States government, including the VICE PRESIDENT. DELILAH escapes via WORMhole, taking the hound Nicolas with her.>>

throughout the compound

<< specific holding cells are UNLOCKED as zombies and other bio hazards begin to emerge and are RELEASED into the compound to ATTACK guards, soldiers and workers. a RED ALERT goes off throughout the compound and across the city that the compound has been attacked and Sentinels are now on high alert.>>

<< whoever is behind this attack is out for REVENGE...and as the multilated, burned bodies of those caught in the laser trap fall to the floor...one of the flickering monitors reveals a pair of HAZEL eyes on its screen...before going BLANK.>>

<< a NEW wave of violence and panic begins to spread across the city as biohazards are now attacking ANYONE, SENTINELS are on "PURGE" alert...and as news of the disaster at the compound spreads, even being registered by mainstream Haleigh, the nations of the world that CAN are that much closer to a NUCLEAR STRIKE against the U.S.>>